Driving home from Salt Lake...

First of all I want to say that I am glad my camera was in my car yesterday...The drive home from Salt Lake was so beautiful and a typical day of Utah weather. You can see the changing weather in these pictures.

The mountains in Salt Lake.

The Sunset in Kaysville with the mountains and Great Salt Lake.

This next picture is just a few minutes after the sunset...heading down I-89.
It had just started snowing.

This is on I-84 in Morgan about 15 minutes after the last picture...definitely more snow.

Temple Square.

So this weekend I was able to go to see the lights on Temple Square twice. Yes twice. My friends from college and I all met down there on Saturday. I don't have any pictures from then because I left my camera in the car...and I didn't want to walk all the way back and get it. On Sunday my friend Heather (and her baby Isaac) and her friend Whitney came and spent the night. Whitney had never seen the lights on Temple Square so we drove down there Sunday night. I have plenty of pictures of this time around... oh and in case you were wondering Heather forgot the baby carrier so that is why she is carrying him around in her coat like that...

The Probationary Test of Mortality.

In my Doctrines of the Gospel institute class we were talking about immortality and exaltation on Friday. This is a quote that our teacher gave us and I really liked it so I thought I would share...

by Elder Bruce R. McConkie:

"We don't need to get a complex or get a feeling that you have to be perfect to be saved. You don't There's only been one perfect person, and that's the Lord Jesus, but in order to be saved in the Kingdom of God and in order to pass the test of mortality, what you have to do is get on the straight and narrow path--thus charting a course leading to eternal life--and then, being on that path, pass out of this life in full fellowship. I'm not saying you don't have to be perfect to be saved. If you did, no one would be saved. The way it operates is this you get on the path that's named the "straight and narrow." You do it by entering the gate of repentance and baptism. The straight and narrow path leads from the gate of repentance and baptism, a very great distance, to a reward that's called eternal life. If you're on that path and pressing forward, and you die, you'll never get off the path. There is no such thing as falling off the straight and narrow path in the life to come, and the reason is that this life is the time that is given to men to prepare for eternity. Now is the time and the day of your salvation, so if you're working zealously in this life--though you haven't fully overcome the world and you haven't done all you hope you might do--you're still going to be saved. You don't have to do what Jacob said, 'Go beyond the mark.' You don't have to live a life that's truer than true. You don't have to have an excessive zeal that becomes fanatical and becomes unbalancing. What you have to do is stay in the mainstream of the Church and live as upright and decent people live in the Church--keeping the commandments, paying your tithing, serving in the organizations of the Church, loving the Lord, staying on the straight and narrow path. If you're on that path when death comes--because this is the time and the day appointed, this the probationary estate--you'll never fall of from it, and, for all practical purposes your calling and election is made sure. Now, that isn't the definition of that term, but the end result will be the same. ("The Probationary Test of Mortality," address delivered at the University of Utah Institute of Religion, 10 Jan. 1982)

The adventures of bambi.

On Wednesday morning when I went outside I saw a sight that was very unusual. There was a little deer stuck in the fence between my house and my aunts. Of course when I went near, the poor little thing started freaking out and trying to get away...but it was definitely stuck. I didn't take a picture of it before I helped it, mostly because my first reaction was to save it not to document it. Here are some pictures of the poor little deer.

This is right after I figured out how to get it's leg out of the fence.

This is the part of the fence where its leg was caught. Its leg was over the top part and under the vertical part of the fence...so kind of weaved through the fence. You can see the blood on the fence from the deer.

And this is the blood of the little deer on my hand....gross!


I don't know if you can see this one very well, but this is to show how high the fence is that the little deer was jumping over and got caught in.



This is the little deer after a few minutes. It even let me pet it...obviously still in shock.

The sad part is that when I came back out a few minutes later it tried to run away and because its leg was obviously hurt it kept falling. I called my uncle to see if he could do something with the little deer because it was now stuck in the field and I needed to get to class. He couldn't find it so I have no idea if it found its way out or even if the leg was broken. Hopefully the little guy is ok.

From the study journal...

So last night I was reading from my missionary study journal and there were a couple of quotes i had written down that really stood out to me. Mostly because of things that are either going on in my life or in my friends lives...hopefully to those of you who read them they might help you or someone you know.

Strengthening Each Other
by President Gordon B. Hinckley Ensign Feb 1985 (points of emphasis)
1. It is important to know that each of us gets discouraged on occasion.
2. Each of us should cultivate a sensitivity toward the feelings of others and, when encouragement is needed, make an effort to extend it.
3. We shouldn't waste our time feeling sorry for ourselves.
4. We should try handing out compliments and building up others.
5. The Lord refined and polished each of the Presidents of the Church, letting each one know discouragement and failure and experience illness and sorrow. This great refining process, so evident in our lives, is a part of each of our lives.

another one from President Gordon B. Hinckley (source unknown)
"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he's been robbed. The fact is that most putts don't drop; most beef is tough; most children grow up to be just people; most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual tolerance; most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail-journey...delays...sidetracks...smoke...dust...cinder...and jolts interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."

The Atonement: All for All
by Elder Bruce C. Hafen
"...So if you have problems in your life, don't assume there is something wrong with you. Struggling with those problems is at the very core of life's purpose. As we draw close to God, he will show us our weaknesses and through them make us wiser, stronger. If you're seeing more of your weaknesses, that just might mean you're moving nearer to God, not farther away."

Just for you, Heather!

Last weekend I went up to Rexburg to visit some friends.

My first stop was in Pocatello to visit Vicki, my first roommate in college. It was so good to see her and her husband Michael again. Last time I saw them was about three years ago at their reception in Orlando, Florida.

Vicki and Michael's Wedding Reception.

Vicki, Michael, and me in a boat at Sea World in Orlando.

Next stop Rexburg to visit one of my mission companion Dayna!

Rexburg Temple. (We went to a session on Saturday.)

Dayna. (We were companions for 6 months!)

Me and Katelyn. (Dayna and I taught Katelyn and her family in our last area on the mission.)

Last stop was to visit another one of my college roommates, Heather, and her adorable baby boy Isaac.

Thanks Brandon for this picture of your cute baby boy. Isaac is 2 months old.

Overall it was a really fun weekend. Thanks Vicki and Michael, Dayna and her roommates, and Heather!

My future niece/nephew.

These are pictures of my sister Emily and her 5 month pregnant belly. She finds out next week if it's a boy or girl.

Beus Park.

(CLICK ON PICTURE TO ENLARGE)

These pictures were taken at Beus park in Ogden. I pass by this park on my way to school and finally decided to take a few pictures. This was the best day to take pictures because if was cloudy and everything looked great!

So I created this on scrapblog.com which is an amazing site to make scrapbook pages for FREE!

Crawdad Fishin' at East Canyon.

The beginning of our journey...

Glistening in the sun...

Me pretending like I can play...

Jake really playing...

Sorry girls.... not for keeps!

Ashlea and Ehin's Engagement Pictures!

So last Saturday I took engagement pictures for my friend Ashlea and her fiance Ehin. I wanted to post a few of the pictures.

Photo of the Week Blog...

So I have decided to start a photo of the week project where i will post a new photo every week. It is to help me learn new tricks with my camera and to encourage me to keep taking pictures. I decided to start a new blog for this....everyone is welcome to check it out.

http://daniluvphotography.blogspot.com

Flowers and Sky...