Christmas Cookies

So it's Christmas time and love is in the air...

with mistletoe hanging in all the doorways...

people are craving a little extra "sugar"...

and decorating cookies is the perfect way to give it.

 Everybody loves that moment when they reach for more frosting and touch their neighbor's arm.

Coordinating cookies really has a way of bringing people together.

 Candycanes, Stockings, Gingerbread People, Bells, Stars, Trees, Ornaments, Snowmen

 Everybody's #1 cookie:

 SUCH a fun pre-planned holiday activity.

25 years of life

Today I turn 25 and to celebrate here are 25 meaningful memories from my life:

1. Touching the ocean for the first time

2. Volunteering for Big Brothers Big Sisters

3. Folding clothes with best friends at Old Navy

4. Leaving the country for the first time to do humanitarian work in Mexico

5. Living in Juniper Hall

6. Drinking milk straight from a cow udder

7. Growing my armpit hair out for a summer at Brighton

8. Studying abroad in Hong Kong

9. Visiting Bangkok, Thailand

10. Joining the acoustic instruments club

11. CCYSA 12th Ward and Staheli farm

12. Graduating college

13. Sitting on the edge of the Cliffs of Moher

14. Being in the Salt Lake Temple, especially with family.

15. Meeting all 12 of my mission companions

16. Living in Brazil

17. Going to Disneyland and other adventures with cousins

18. Mentoring teenagers with Ernesto

19. Driving from Salt Lake City, UT to New York City, NY

20. Visiting a best friend in Fort Collins, CO

21. Listening to Ingrid Michaelson live.

22. Learning to river raft

23. Getting soaked by Iguaçu Falls

24. My first time in the Grand Canyon

25. Seeing both of my younger brothers come home from missions

Halloween Baking

Dinner in a Pumpkin

Marshmallow Chompers

Witch Brooms

Witch Vacuum

Mummy Dogs

I Am Enough

I wish everybody could internalize the truth that we matter because we exist.

All we have to do is be alive to be important.

We are creations of beauty and worth.

Knowing our infinite potential and believing we deserve goodness is powerful.

Imagine how the world would change if we all loved ourselves and decided we are beautiful.

And how would changing our view of ourselves change our interactions with others?

Rosemary Wixom said: 

"Once we begin to see the divinity in ourselves, we can see it in others."

Marianne Williamson said: 

"Love is not my weakness, but my strength. Sometimes I feel that if I'm loving, vulnerable, and energetically unguarded, others will take advantage of me. In fact, it's my love and defenselessness that provide me with divine protection. My love attracts my greater good. Love gives me strength. It guides me to clearer thinking, more meaningful reflections, a kinder way of being, and a more attractive personality. It opens me to a creative flow. It is the key to my success in life, and the source of my inspiration."

9/11 Patriot Day

On September 11, 2001 I wrote this in my journal:

Almost 3,000 people died and countless more were injured and my only comment was one sentence.

Obviously, as a child in elementary school I didn't comprehend the impact of the terrorist attack.

Recently, I watched a movie called Flight 93. 

I began to think what I would have done had I been on one of the hijacked airplanes.

Who would I call? 

What would my last words be? 

Would I help to take back the plane?

It was strange watching a suspense filled movie and knowing it was a true story. 

That I was alive and aware when it happened.

How horrific for the people directly impacted by the attack.

It almost doesn't seem real. 

The older I get, the more I begin to comprehend the impact of this day in history.

I feel motivated to better observe this national day of mourning.

Taking time to be grateful for my safety and my life.

 According to wikipedia, the following is standard observance:

The flag of the United States is flown at half-staff at the White House and on all U.S. government buildings and establishments throughout the world; flags are also encouraged to be displayed on individual American homes. Additionally, a moment of silence is observed to correspond with the attacks, beginning at 8:46 AM (Eastern Daylight Time), the time the first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.