Move in day?

So, for those of you who didn't "hear"... I was supposed to close last Friday but things fell through due to delays with the loan guy, and a porch that didn't pass inspection... BUT, good news is that we have yet another closing date (well at least a possibility). Anyway, I may be closing (aka, selling my soul to the bank!) this Friday. Cross your fingers that it's not a another "false alarm"! I think I can, I think I can, I think I can... :)

What will you LEARN? What would YOU be willing to sacrifice?

So, I started writing this post a month and a half ago, but then I never finished... it's like lots of things in my life... I start, but then I have to come back to them and finish when I have time - which is NEVER. So, back to a month and a half ago...Back in August, Paige and I went to our very first "Education Week" down on BYU campus. We saw a taping of a few talks from Education Week via the BYU channel at the gym in June, and decided to go to the Monday classes (since we had to go back to school that week). It was really AWESOME! Some of the ideas they shared were very thought provoking! I'll share a few of my favorites...

One of the speakers talked about the "trial" Abraham went through (being asked to sacrifice his son) and talked about how the reason Abraham was asked to do this is because (as Truman Madson puts it) "Abraham needed to learn something about Abraham." This made me think about how (in my opinion) this life is really about LEARNING! I need to learn about myself! I'm here to have experiences that help me to know how committed I REALLY am to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, (and to have joy, but that's another post entirely!). So, I think sometimes the Lord puts experiences in my life not because he wants to know if I'll be committed to Him, but so I know that I am committed to him... In my own words :) I think "Tricia needs to learn something about Tricia..." I'm hear to prove TO MYSELF, that I am worthy to live with the Lord forever - He didn't need me to come here to prove that to Him, He already knows me. I am here so that for eternity I'll KNOW what my real commitment level is. I LOVE that idea and it makes me want to do better... makes me want to "prove to myself" that I can DO IT!

Okay, another big thing that has been running through my mind comes from a "session" with a Brother Bartholomew. His class was INTENSE and AMAZING! He talked about revelation and prayer... One of my favorite ideas from his session was that if you don't have time for scripture study in your life, you need to "carve one out". He also talked about creating your OWN sacred grove in you home. He said his is in a room in the basement and his "daily devotional time" is at 5:30 every morning. He stressed a need to have a set TIME in your day where you can communicate with the Lord and study the scriptures so that you can receive personal revelation in your life! He talked about a process of having a 2-way communication with the Lord that has really CHANGED the way that I pray and CHANGED the way that I read my scriptures! It's amazing how the Lord has been communicating to me via the scriptures and how he's answered questions I didn't even KNOW I should be asking! I've started to pray about what I should pray about... it sounds complicated, but it's really NOT and it's amazing what happens when we stop telling the Lord about our wants and "needs" and start asking him what we should be wanting and needing... think about that one...

The last big idea I'll share was this idea that we receive blessings every time we sacrifice. Let me explain a little about what that means to me personally... We all have "things" (aka "sins/bad habits/etc") in our lives that we could do without, or "things" (aka righteous habits) that we COULD use in our lives. Most of these "things" require us to do without, or to create time for them in our already hectic lives. It takes "sacrifice" on our part to add or take away these "things", but the results are eternally important. These sacrifices are all VERY personal, but the Lord can help you see what they are... Perhaps it's to give an extra $10 in fast offering instead of going out to lunch. Perhaps it's to spend 30 min with your "grandma" who is lonely instead of watching your favorite TV program... let it "stretch you" a bit, if it was easy it wouldn't be a sacrifice! I don't know what YOUR sacrifice needs to be, but we all have something we can sacrifice! The greatest part about "sacrificing" is that when we sacrifice something we LOVE for something that the Lord asks us to do, HE will BLESS US for our efforts! Now realize I'm not saying we should sacrifice everything in our lives that's not perfect, but realize that this is a process that if repeated in our lives (via small and simple steps), eventually we will be able to give "all our sins to know Him!" When we give of ourselves, we come to know who we truly ARE... we see our eternal being, not just this "natural man" we are here on earth... chipping away little pieces of "natural man" to see the "eternal possibilities"!

So, sorry to be so "serious" but these things have really been at the front of my thoughts since that day and have changed my perspective on life and I wanted to share because they make my life better! I think they've helped me to focus on what I really want in my life. What do you think? Please share your thoughts! I'd love to hear them!

A House and Hard things...

A House:
Okay, so it's been a while since I've posted, but I promised my sis (these are for YOU Jamie) some pictures of my house. They painted the inside this week and I think I like it... I'm hoping that it's not too DARK! I got extra lights to try and keep it "light" but then the paint is a little darker than I "wanted" but then I didn't want it much lighter... so I guess I'm going to be living with it, so I should just "love it!"

My room... It's AMAZINGLY HUGE!


The view to the front door...


What will be the kitchen...


The front of the house (and the neighbors :)


The living room...


Hard things:
The past two weeks of my life have been FULL of not bad things, but hard things. I have had lots of things going on lately that require a lot of time, a lot of energy, and are just plain stretching me in so many ways. When I found out about some car problems on Saturday (the 2nd car problem for the week... another $200 down the tubes...) I just thought, "really. REALLY! Does it have to come ALL at once?" And then I decided that it is all about attitude, so I should just be okay with things and the Lord will help me through whatever He sends my way. That didn't mean I wasn't still kinda bummed by the bumps in the road, but that I need to not let them hold me back. I decided the next morning to make the best of things and woke up ready to enjoy an awesome Sunday. After 3 hours of awesome meetings I felt rejuvenated and decided to set new goals to help me have a "fresh start" on life! It's always nice to "start fresh" mentally.
Then, yesterday at the gym, I was thinking about some experiences that have been particularly frustrating to me and this thought came to me... At the time I was on the elliptical (at the gym) and the resistance seemed to be more difficult to push against than normal. The thought came to me, I should put it back down since it "feels" so hard to go at this level. Then, I thought, but if it's harder, then it will help me build stronger muscles. Then the light came on... the Lord sometimes gives us things that "feel" so hard! but if we will just take them on, they will help us build stronger spiritual muscles... I know this is kinda a "dumb" metaphor, but to me it just made sense and helped me want to push through these not so fun experiences. Nothings bad or terribly hard, its just a lot at one time! I know I'll be fine and the extra "resistance" will only help me be spiritually fit! No matter how "hard" it is, it will only build strength and benefit me later on! I can be strong... I can do ANYTHING with the help of the Lord, so "bring it on, baby!!!"

Baby Sarah Gammon...

Okay fam' I have pic's of my brand new niece who was born this morning! Her name will be Sarah Gammon and she is CUTE!!! Hope you enjoy...









Oh, and Mom is doing great... she didn't even mess up her hair! ... Here are the "mature" Gammon ladies chillin' at the hospital.

Pools, Pirates & Portland, Oregon

So, I know it's summer and I should have time to post my adventures, but well... I'm lazy:) So, I know it's August but here's what's been happening in June/July (besides buying a house...)

JUNE:

After school got out I decided to spend a week with my favorite 2 & 4 year olds, in the great city of Cincinnati, Ohio. We had good times! We spent a lot of time just "chillin" at the house but did make it to the Air and Space museum in Dayton (Is that right Jamie?) All in all I enjoyed reading, sleeping, playin' with the kids, and more napping :) It's just what the doc ordered!

Here's Allie swimmin in the pool on the deck...



And Lindsay chillin'



Hot babes...




So part of my job during the visit was to help Jamie (my sis) prepare for the next addition to the family by cleaning out the "play room" in their basement. We started working, but were soon attacked by the cutest little pirates EVER... take a look!

The ANGRY ALLIE Pirate



Then, she turned friendly



Then the terrible two-some, Lindsay and Elmo



... Just Lindsay...



We did spend one day at the museum... I took a few pictures, but Allie wasn't in a very good mood (she got scared when we walked under the planes for some reason, which made the visit a little interesting)... so most of the good ones were of Lindsay.







Okay, and to top things off... well for the weekend of the 4th of July I headed to Portland with some girls that I work with. We spent an afternoon at Mt Saint Helen's (which was pretty darn cool!) and I even got to do a session at the Portland temple one evening (which was AWESOME!!! and I needed it that week!). On Saturday (the 4th) I hung out with my friend Ashley (who now lives in the Portland area) and we headed to the beach for fireworks and a good time. It was pretty amazing to see the fireworks while sitting in the sand on the beach! An experience that I won't soon forget... Unfortunately I forgot to take my camera to the beach! Oh, well! I have the memories:)

A hike to some waterfalls...



The temple...



Mt Saint Helen's

A HOUSE... that's BIG NEWS!!!

Tonight I was just looking through my email, deleting emails that are "old" or ones that I don't need to save, and saw an email sent to me by my relator on July 9th. Today is only the 15th, but SO MUCH has happened between the time that she sent that email and the one she sent Today!

So... a little "brief overview"... For the 4th of July I went with a few girls I work with to Portland. Before I left I'd found a place in West Jordan that i really LOVED, but the location wasn't feeling "right". I told my realtor that I would think about things over the weekend and then get back to her when I got back into town... I didn't feel good about things and started thinking it might take a LONG TIME to find something that I would like that much any time soon... I felt a little discouraged! I called her when I got back and set up an appointment to go see a few places that my Mom had found online. There were some properties that looked promising and I started to feel hopeful.

We started a a place that I'd looked at before, but had felt like was too pricey for me. On the return visit, I decided that perhaps, with some bargaining, I could get the price down to something "affordable". Feeling pretty good, we headed to the next stop, but it was way out of my price range, (by about $15,000). I was a little "bummed" because I was thinking this 2nd stop would be a possible match (because I really liked the location of the project). However, after some looking around, we realized that they were building some townhomes (to be finished in September) that would possibly fit within my budget. SO, we decided to take a look. Looking around I immediately liked what I saw... I was thinking that my mom and realtor were not necessarily sure if it was a good buy, so I was a little hesitant... But, the more we saw, the more I LIKED it... and the more it seemed to fit - to ALL of us. So, once done seeing everything, we went back, got some info (they were running a "deal" that ended in 3 days!, and then started a serious look into actually buying one of the unfinished properties.

The next day, I called and got approved for a loan with a GREAT interest rate! and my realtor looked into the builder, the developer, and all the paperwork stuff. We made an appointment and went in to the office on Saturday to put in an offer, and ernest money...AHHH! They told me that they would let me know Monday if my offer was to be accepted (I had some adjustments from their "asking" conditions.)

Early Monday afternoon, hoping that my offer would be accepted, I went to the interior design company and picked out counters, floors, paint, cabinets, etc. Wow, was that OVERWHELMING! So many choices, so many different prices! What can I afford? What's the best choice for me and for a resale? I had a HEADACHE by the time we were done! And then I got a call, late afternoon, from my realtor telling me they had accepted my offer! Yeah, AHH, awesome!, OH MAN...what did I just DO!?!?!?

On Tuesday, I contacted the lender I was HOPING to use, and found out that their interest rates were MUCH higher than the other lender, who had pre-approved me for a loan (and locked me in at that AWESOME interest rate). So, that was a let down, but not a deal killer... I spent some of the afternoon looking at what it would cost me to put in my own granite counter tops, and travertine floors... Man, more decisions! So, I headed back to the "office" to figure out what structural upgrades I wanted to add. Can I say, TIRED!

Today I met with the lender (with the awesome interest rate!), headed back to the interior design place to finalize me counter tops, cabinets, kitchen floors, carpets, paint, etc. WOW, it feels like I've made 1,000 MAJOR decisions! 5 days ago, I was thinking I might have to go back to renting for a while, and now I'm BUYING A HOUSE, I've picked out EVERY inch of it, (hoping that it all turns out okay!!!) and will soon be in some major debt! SO MUCH, SO CRAZY!, SO EXCITING! Did you catch all that? It happened pretty quick... I'm tired just reading about it all over again! Time for a nap! Wait, I'd better take some pictures to post!... no rest for this girl!

"The Wedding"... but not MY wedding...

As I know most of you know (because you came to it) my bestest single friend is no longer single! LAME! Okay, I guess it's okay because in reality I DO like having Adam as part of the family... but STILL! I'm back to being literally on my own... So, a little about the big day! Well, MY version of her big day...

We got up early and headed down town to the temple. And despite an April wedding day, (we thought that the tulips would be out and were hoping it wasn't raining...) and it WASN'T raining! It was SNOWING!!! Yep, snow in April... gotta love Ut. The temple ceremony was really nice and I throughly enjoyed the sealers comments... Personally, my favorite part of the ceremony was where he talked about the fact that if we had been endowed, and didn't have the chance to get married, we had essentially "made it"... So, maybe he didn't say that but that's what I heard. He gave the two of them some great advise on making their married strong through serving each other... which was awesome to think about... and then performed the ordinance. Something funny when I thought about it later, was that when they knelt down, I felt this tightening of my chest and I thought "this is it! you can't turn back!!!... are you SURE about this!" And then I realized, oh, WAIT it's not ME committing to this... it's someone else...WHEW! I'm okay! Guess perhaps I'm not ready for marriage after all!

After the ceremony we went out for family pictures... luckily the snow had stopped but it was really COLD. They turned out pretty good considering that we were all wearing coats and shivering with red noses and pink cheeks!







After all that fun, I headed home and finished up all the flowers. I spent the rest of the day finishing things up after spending the night before getting them started. They all turned out even prettier than I had hoped, due to the HIGH quality of flowers that I got in from my wholesalers... It was LOTS of work but it was all worth it! I just hope someone in the family will return the favor when it's my turn... HINT, HINT!











The reception part was FUN, and there were plenty of people to visit. Things got pretty crowded (despite the nasty snowy, windy weather!) and warm in there but it was awesome to see people from my past. I was glad after all was said and done to be able to GO TO BED! after a long, but memorable day!

A Spring time Trip

So, you'd think that I'd be a little more on the ball, but alas... better late than never, I always say! And generally I'm LATE - SO, here's what happened three months ago in my life!

So, in March Paige and I went on our last "single" sister trip. We decided that we should go see our older sis & nieces before she got married and was too poor to go anywhere. We hopped on a plain, & headed to the Ohio. We didn't stay long - only 3 days, but it was fun to see the girls and to have a few days to do "sister" things. Okay, so mostly we just hung out and watched the girls act like the goofy kids that they are, but I enjoyed it!

A few photo's...


Yes these are "panty liners" that my niece's decided to put on the door below the sink :) Luckily they were on the INSIDE of the door... Nice decorating idea Allie! (Don't worry... there was also one behind the toilet :)... She's bound to end up on HGTV designing someone's new home...)

And, if you thought that the interior decorating skills were good... check out the fashion tips from Ohio this past spring! I know, sorry they are so late... but hey, it's Utah! We're always a month or two behind the times anyway... Check it OUT!

Here's the back view...(complete with wings!)...


And the front... what STYLE!



Don't worry, Lindsay's got the Gammon style vibes as well...



All in all, the trip was enjoyable and these fashionable munchkins were a blast to spend a weekend with! We ended our trip at the museum where the kids (who by the way BEGGED to go to the dinosaur exhibit at the museum... but got scared, so we went to the "discovery" part of the museum...) had a great time playing. Unfortunately my battery died, so you are stuck with some "less than perfect, but all we could get with that last battery juice" pic's...

Not Dead YET!

So, to those of you who think I've died, due to a lack of posting, I say, "I'm NOT dead YET!" The past few months have been VERY busy and have been full of High "highs", and some pretty Low "lows"... such is life I guess. I'm really looking FORWARD to a RELAXING summer break, with NO school and LOTS and LOTS of sleep... something I've been missing out on A LOT lately. I know already that it's going to be full of craziness and hopefully lots of time with family and friends! I hope I'll have more time to update life when I get there... only 4 days left!!! I think I CAN make it!

... a thought...

So, as many already know, my sister is getting married in like 3 weeks! Things are getting rather crazy around our place and since I'm doing lots of the decorating, I'm starting to feel rather stressed too... well, I wish I could say I was perfect, but of course we all know that I'm far from it - which means that I have been neglecting my scripture reading, which means I am captain cranky pants lately...

This morning I decided that 5 min wouldn't make or break my schedule and I sat down to read from the Book of Mormon. I can't tell you the difference it has made! Well, to top that off, I was reading an email from my cousins son, who is currently serving a mission in Australia. He sends a mass email once a week and my cousin forwards it to me. It's funny how his little thoughts have been a real pick me up at times. Gotta love missionaries :)

Well, the thought I had was this one... in this email from Elder Jones, he mentions that if we all would pray with more faith to do what the Lord asks, we would have more confidence, etc. He mentioned the fact that Joseph Smith went into the grove with a sincere faith and desire to really do whatever it was the Lord asked him to do. Now, I may be on my own here, but I've always had this idea in my head that Joseph Smith must have had way more faith than I'll ever have - I mean he was the prophet of the restoration! But it dawned on me, that he didn't have any more faith that I can have! The difference was he was sent here to fulfill a different mission and purpose than me. I guess that means that if I had the faith and it was according to the plan, I could have the same experiences that he did... That makes me want to do better with the whole scripture reading, faith based prayers, etc. EVEN when I'm stuck planning a wedding, and feeling stressed out... I have the same potential and capacity! Just a thought... what do you think?

My height says...

So, I sometimes get a little "curious",... okay nosey, and start blog hopping to random people's blogs, and ran across a link to this thing that tells you what your height means. (You can try it yourself if you'd like...http://www.blogthings.com/whatdoesyourheightsayaboutyouquiz/)

I read this and about died... the last sentence really made me crack up for some reason - so what do you think, is it accurate - not the mexican part, but the rest of it...?


What Does Your Height Say About You?

Your Height Says You're Kind

You are a gifted communicator, and you understand other people well.
You are compassionate and empathetic. You feel other's pain a little too easily.

Because of your open heart and open mind, many people admire and adore you.
You are classy and well mannered. You have the art of charm mastered.

You are about as tall as the average Mexican woman.

Anna's Prayer...

As we all know I'm not a very consistent blogger, and this happened about 2 months ago, but have been meaning (for two months) to share it with ya'll because it really touched me.

I have this little girl in my class named Anna. She's a really cute, bright, polite, funny little girl who sometimes acts like she's 7 going on 12. I had her older brother as a student about two years ago and have gotten to be friends with her mother, who comes in to help in the classroom each Friday. When her mom comes in, she brings her little sister along (Jane) who is 3 but likes to pretend that she's 7-8 like the other kids. She has her own desk with her name on it, her own crayon box, etc. The kids really like it and for a three year old, she behaves amazingly! It's been a fun part of my week this year and will be sad when the "family" moves onto 3 grade next year, because they are lots of fun and really neat to interact with.

Well, about two months on a Friday morning (I think it was the first week in December) Anna came up to me and gave me a little slip of paper (literally the size of a business card) which I quickly decided was an invite to a piano recital to be held that evening. I looked at it and told her that I would try to come but didn't know if I could make it on such short notice. I had something planned for that night and felt like it would be pushing it to get to both the recital and my other commitment in the short amount of time I had. So mulled over it all day and decided at the end of the day that kids only have recitals so often and they rarely invite their school teacher to attend, so I better go, since she took the time to give me the invitation and such. I was a little embarrassed to go since I was in my grubby jeans and ratty looking school sweatshirt, (since I'd stayed late a work that day) but felt the need to go despite my lovely attire. So, I got in the car, rushed off to find the location and arrived about 5 min before things were to start.

I walked into the music store entrance and was met by Anna's mother, who was the host of the recital, since she was the piano teacher of the students performing in the recital. She smiled at me and told me how glad she was that I could come. She's always so kind, so I didn't think anything of it and made some comment on how I was embarrassed that I wasn't dressed appropriately, but wanted to come anyway. She the proceeded to tell me that right before their family had left the house they had all knelt down to say a prayer that each child would do well while performing their piano pieces. Anna had said in the prayer, "and please help Miss Ellison to be able to make it to my piano recital"... or something along those lines, and her mother had been worried that if I didn't come, Anna would be disappointed and worried about her prayer not being answered. It really caught me off guard, because I had really debated on whether or not I had time to come, but had felt a NEED to go. It just goes to show that the faith of a small child is amazing! I was VERY grateful that I had decided to "listen" to that little prompting that told me that I should be there for this simple and uneventful little piano recital. It may not have been a big deal to Anna, but it helped me remember that even simple prayers can be answered if we have enough faith... Something to think about...

It's that Time of Year Again...

Warning: tangent... So, I don't mean to sound depressing, but do you ever get tired with "life" and feel like you are constantly fighting the same battle OVER and OVER and OVER again... Like you are going in circles, doing the same thing, experiencing the same trials over and over again... and asking yourself, when will my life move onto something new? I'm thinking I'm there:) I seem to find myself here this time of year, every year... Lame!

So, if anyone out there has any suggestions - I'm game! I guess I'm not learning whatever it is the Lord's trying to teach me, so I should try to figure out what it is, so I can experience something new... preferably a less uncomfortable trial :) Just kidding, all things are for our good, right? Right!

Okay, onto something more uplifting!:)

Its the beginning of a new year (well kind of, it's now February - but those of you who really know me, know that I'm often a day late and a dollar short :) ), and I guess it's time to make some new goals... I'm struggling a little to pick just a FEW goals (I always tend do over do EVERYTHING in my life, including goal setting) and would like to really narrow things down to a few things that I REALLY want to accomplish this year - How do I simply my goals... maybe I'm really saying how do I simplify my life... (Maybe that should be a goal... one down? how many to go? How many is too many?... HELP!!!)

SO, friends and family... I'm ready for suggestions...

Are YOU Blogging???

SO, over the past few months I have noticed that there are some folks who have said they have been "reading" my blog, but I haven't seen THEIR blogs. I have also noticed that some people used to have "public" blogs, but now are "private!". I guess what I am trying to say, is if you are seeing this now, and either you are now private, or you haven't given me your blog address (if I have it, I have it linked on my blog page... so if you don't see it, I don't have it) I REALLY want to be "in" the loop! ... Send me your address or can I be invited to view your blog? (I guess you have to send me an email??? - I don't know about this kind of stuff to much...) Anyways, it's something that I need YOUR help with friends. :)

Thanksgiving with the Fam'

So I am more than a little behind on life, but thought I'd do my best to get a few entries in, since its a new year, and that means I should be trying harder... right? Well, whatever, here's my best efforts :)

This year, as has been the trend over the past few years, it was just my parents, grandparents, and my two single siblings. We all gathered at my parents house in American Fork for a little turkey, stuffing, and the works. We ate, chatted, got sick, "rested" from the hard work of eating, and then had Pie to top everything off. As always, I made the pies (You can have store bought pies... I mean really!!!) and Paige made the Rolls, while my Mom pretty much did almost everything else. We tried to help where possible, but I admit, I'm probably not the best of helpers in the world... especially on Thanksgiving morning... I tend to spend that morning at the gym, so I don't have to worry TOO much about what I eat that day.

Anyways, it was a really nice meal, and I throughly enjoyed having the day off from work, so as to enjoy and be thankful for the many blessings that i have been given in my life - one of them being that I have a profession which gives me holidays off, so I can always spend them with my family, even if we are "small" in numbers. Really, that's just the tip of the iceberg. I might be one of the most blessed people you've ever met - Yes, Really!



Pie anyone? Yes, it's actually quite fabulous!




Yes, these are the "6-packs" we got from going to the gym that morning... or maybe just the fat roles that came after we ate... ;)



The "usual" Paige and Tricia pose...