Life Update :)

I have been in college for two days and so far i love every second of it! I never realized how fun school is when you are in control of when and where you go! now if you had asked me 2 months ago I would have burst into tears but I think I'm gonna like this college thing :)

first official college selfie :)

Ryan got home from Guatemala on Friday at 1 am and I picked him up from the airport despite the fact I had to be at work at 5:30 that morning, but what is sleep anyways! And we didn't do much Friday but Saturday was the first day we got to spend together! I forgot how much I love that kid! Our adventures included a 5 hour morning at MCC with an fun lunch, an ALS ice bucket challenge, a trip to Wal Mart, and my favorite part of the day when we dropped of  food for the Sisters in our YSA ward and what was going to be a quick stop turned into a 2 hour visit. I love the Mesa Temple with all my heart and I snapped this picture and when I look at it I feel the peace and love it brings into my life! How grateful I am for my parents and their choice to be sealed 25 years ago in this beautiful place! I know sometimes family drive us crazy but I can't imagine eternity without them! The words to my favorite primary song go through my head every time I'm there "I love to see the temple, I'll go inside someday to covenant with my father I'll promise to obey.." I can't wait for the day when I do get to make those covenants. #ilovetoseethetemple

Happy Happy Days :)

You know those moments you have in life that when they happen, you know in that instant you will forever remember that moment?

in the last 2 days I have had so many of these moments. I know God is aware of me.

Tuesday night my immediate family and I ate dinner together for the first time. The love that I feel for my family is so strong, and as Ellen and Eric are getting ready to move to California in two weeks, I can't get enough of our family time! and I seriously apologize for the love fest but hey I wanna document while I have the time.

and going back to my post about being patient and relying on the Lord's timing, I have seen my life come together in the last 2 weeks and the blessings that I have received, like a full ride academic scholarship to MCC and classes and work that worked out perfectly, I know God's plan for me is greater than I will ever know. I can't wait to see what this next year brings!

 

here are some pictures from the last couple of days

 

 



2 years: Coming to a Close

August 8th, 2012

The first day of Junior year. All kinds of emotions come with a new school year, but I remember this first day so perfectly clear. My family and I woke up at 4:30 am to get ready and do what was one of the biggest sacrifices (for me) and  drive the long 20 minutes to Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix. I has stayed up til 1am talking to and packing with Ryan. Never in the year prior would I have thought that sending my brother off on a mission would be so hard for me. Over the course of my Sophomore year, Ryan became my best friend. My friends were all trying to find themselves and in this process, I was a forgotten cause. I remember coming home one day and crying so hard that it gave me a headache. I was heartbroken, lonely and just wanted someone to be there for me. Ryan came home and when he found out I was crying he came in my room, gave me the biggest hug, cried with me, and told me he would always be there for me. This promise, my friends, was upheld in everyway! He took me, his sophomore sister, to Senior hangouts and game nights and introduced me like I was a million bucks! We stayed up almost every night until 2 or 3 in the morning just talking and telling jokes (only to be ended by a very tired mother, who could hear the laughter even though we thought we were quiet :) ) We jammed to every and any song in the morning going to school and had random dance off with other drivers, even if they didn't realize :) We had become so close! When he got his call on June 6th, and read "Dear Elder Hunt, You are called to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. You are Assigned to labor in the San Diego, California Mission. You will serve for a period of 24 months and are to report to the Provo MTC on August 8th. You will be preaching the gospel in the Spanish language." I was beyond excited for him! Later that night I got to thinking, that was only 2 months away! So we partied all summer, Eric came home just 2 weeks before Ryan left, they both reported, and then it was August 8th.

After having a friendship like that it was  so so so so soooooo incredibly hard for me to say goodbye. When we got to his terminal, he started his goodbyes. I was already welling up with tears. I was the last one in the circle of goodbyes, and for about 30 seconds al I did was cry while we hugged, and then he told me that I was gonna be alright and that he was too. We waved goodbye, and then I went to school. Longest school day of my life.

We wrote back and forth many times and the first 6 months were filled with tears and missing him (yeah I know kinda selfish) the next 6 were a little easier and the so were the next, and these last 6 months have taken eternity to get here.

Today is August 3rd. by this time Tuesday he's gonna be here.

Like I said earlier I didn't know that when he made his sacrifice, it was a sacrifice on my behalf as well. I have tried to be patient ( some days better than others) but  these 2 years are up and I can't wait to have my best friend back in my life.

 



See ya soon Elder Hunt :)

Feeling Loved

Graduating from high school was something I looked to as being so far away it wasn't something to really stress over. I never really considered a whole lot of my options simply because 'I had time'. Well then something crazy happened on May 22nd, I walked across Toro Stadium and got my diploma partied with my friends til 5:45 the next morning! It was so fun but when I woke up I  just laid in my bed and thought:

'Well now what?'

That question has haunted me so much in the last 5 weeks since graduating.

(side note) Since the middle of my Junior Year my cousin, Amy, and I go to the Mesa Temple every Thursday. It has been one of the biggest blessings and I am more and more grateful for it every time I go. This last Thursday Amy was in Utah at BYU swim camp and so I got to go all by myself. As I sat inside reading the scriptures I was thinking about how unsteady the future was to me and how unsure everything felt and then suddenly I was overwhelmed with the love, comfort, and peace I had spent these last 5 weeks on my knees praying so hard to find. I felt Heavenly Fathers love for me so strongly and was reassured that everything would work out, and that he has a plan for me and if I trust him he will help me figure it all out. How grateful I am to know that I am a daughter of God and that he knows me and has a plan for my life!! and as crazy as these last 5 weeks have been, I look back and see that I have grown so much closer to my Savior and Heavenly Father! I am reminded everyday that we are sent here to learn and grow and that sometimes it feels like trials are never going to get resolved and things are never going to turn around, but I know that if I am patient with God, He knows better than us all and he gives us trials as an opportunity to improve and become better.

Today I am grateful for trials, temples, and my testimony.

 

 

Where did April go?

Is it really April 30th? So obviously April has been a month of craziness! Birthdays, senior pictures, wedding prep, studying, picking schools, institute registration, etc. Doesn't that list seem a little overwhelming? Just maybe! :) Anyway craziness and all April is my favorite month for many reasons but,  Especially because its my Birthday Month :) it still completely freaks me out that i'm now 18. When did I grow up?

I went to Oreganos for dinner <3

 Tyler Ward tickets: YES! (thank you Mom)

Flowers from my Dad :)

and No I have not purchased anything that I couldn't before I was 18, but I might be buying a fish in the near future... :) anyway it was a great day and I have so many wonderful people in my life who made it special!

So not only is it my Birthday month, but also my brother, Eric's as well!

yeah we are pretty cool :)

and this kid is getting married in 36 HOURS! crazy stuff!! So there will obviously be a post on Saturday or late Friday night! :)

I also got super lucky and got to attend 2 plays!! Mountain View put on a show called Curtains, a whodunit show within a show kinda deal! It was pretty good and I everyone in it did awesome!

Well then Heritage Academy put on The Phantom of the Opera I cannot tell you how much I love that play in the first place, but they did an amazing job!! I actually got to go TWICE which is hard because even with 5 shows, they sell out every night!! So thank you to my Mom for the family trip, and thank you Maddie for the birthday ticket :)

this is Maddie, isn't she lovely?

Kaylan ROCKED at being Christine!

Go Mckay for being an awesome Raul!

It was seriously so fun to go the first time and it was even better the second time around!!

The pictures are all from Saturday night, because I got my senior pictures done just before the performance! I will upload some when I get them back :)

I FINALLY got my hair fixed, as shown below I was basically blonde and the picture below is the only time besides the day I got it done that I wore it down. The second one is after, and needless to say I've decided I am definitely a dark hair girl! 

Another lovely thing about April I got my Boot off!! I cracked my Sesamoid (under the ball of your food google it if you want) playing basketball back in December and the podiatrist was not happy with me. I don't blame him since I walked around, ran, and worked out on it for 4 months. Go Me! We have been super close for these last 4 weeks, but I'm glad its gone! The last picture is of my new best friends. I call them my Optimus Prime shoes :) no more bendy running shoes for me! oh well it could be worse!

We also got to go through old family pictures for Eric's wedding slideshow and I found these lovelies and let me tell you I was quite the cutie, but the pictures with my brothers are seriously the cutest! I love old pictures!!

So this all pretty much sums up April and if I think of anything else I'll add on to it but really its was a fantastic month! looking forward to all that May brings!

~ Kim ~

CONFERENCE

I seriously LOVE General conference and espcally after the General Women's Meeting last night, my heart is full and I cannot wait to hear from the Prophet and other leaders next weekend! IF anyone is looking for cute handouts for conference go and download these they are too cute!



All Things Bright and Beautiful: General Conference 2014 Reminder: I.CANNOT.WAIT.FOR.CONFERENCE. Nuff said. It seems like general conference always rolls around the corner when I need it t...





If you would like to know what went on in the General Women's Meeting here is the link to watch it: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/watch?cid=HPTH032714628&lang=eng



Here is a video to explain what General Conference is about: https://www.lds.org/general-conference/invite-others?lang=eng

Spring Break: Mexico addition!

So it's been a while! (ok not really but it feels like it!) this week was spring break and first off, being a Senior in high school it hit me like a ton of bricks on the way home that this was my last official break until I graduate, and let me tell you, it's kind of a scary one! I almost cried! If anyone has a way to contact Peter Pan could you please give it to me? I need a quick place to go and not grow up ( I could be a Lost Girl right?) but it's ok graduation is still pretty far away so I'll worry about that later!

So back to MEXICO! When I was younger my family and I would go almost every school year to Mexico with our good friends the Alders. Well it had been 8 years since we last went and we thought it was the perfect time to go.

You know how you remember places or things from when you're younger and then you go again and it wasn't how you remembered? (total autopia moment for me; driving fake cars isn't as fun as the real thing!) Well Mexico was nothing like that but EXACTLY how I remembered it! From the cute little house we stay in to sand dollars and sea shells!

this is the "backyard" of the beach house!

 

I decided I would take pictures of the sun set each night and they were all beautiful!!

Tuesday Night

Wednesday Night

 

Thursday Night

 

It was absolutely breath taking!!  Last night all 11 of us were outside taking pictures, filming, and watching the sun go down over the water! How blessed we are to live in such a beautiful world!

 

ACTIVITIES

Every morning we all got up and when to the bay during low tide and found all kinds of stuff! Clams, starfish, sand dollars, assorted shells, sea slugs (probably one of the coolest things ever!) and octopus  and since we got back at 10:30 tonight I haven't had a chance to get everyone to send me all of the pictures but they are going to come!

We also ate at this little taco shop and it was sooo yummy!! There is something about homemade Mexican food that just gets to me! I loved all the food we got!!

So for now I will leave you with a few of my model shots and I'll add my pictures as they come to me!

water shoe tan lines :)

some shells and a sand dollar

these are probably my two favorite pictures :)

 

Thank you Mexico for being all that I remembered! Until next time!

 

- Kim