Home

My dad is a gifted writer. His email this morning expressed something I would never be able to express in words, so I wanted to share it.

"We sometimes wonder where our home is—it isn't really on Howey Drive since we're not there. It isn't really here, either.  Our home is really in our connection to each other, wherever we are, in whatever circumstances we are. Our home is carried by these words, and by all of the love and memories and words and hopes and dreams of our hearts. Our home is solid and secure and lasting. It is not dependent upon our being in any timezone or place of residence, or even in mortality or on the other side of the veil. Our home, and the love that fills it, is one of the greatest blessings of our lives.  I love you all so much, and in this moment, I am home with you!"

I believe this with all my heart.  I am grateful for my home :)

L-I-F-E

long time no blog. time for another edition (or rather the first edition but "another edition" sounds better) of...

the AMAZING, the DULL, the NERDY:

first up, the AMAZING:

Brian Regan concert (FREE)

Lady Antebellum on valentine's day:

Long overdue hangout with Annie and the Shawcrofts:

(you get to imagine a photograph here that doesn't exist. picture this: homemade mac and cheese, smallville, qwirkle, and mexican train. also imagine...the later it gets, the harder we laugh...the weirder we get...the more scared ryan gets. good times all around)

Two free nights of bowling in the past month...high score of 85...sure beats that one time in high school i bowled a 9. yes folks...10 frames, 9 pins total. i'm pretty good.

now on to...the DULL (although i am pretty easily entertained so these are all things that make me happy even though they may appear dull to others):

i joined a DINNER GROUP! you know what this means: i'm eating better, I'm spending less, i'm honing my domestic skills and cooking, and making new friends. love this.

MY ROOM IS CLEAN! that's right. this is big. i finally pulled my life back together over the long weekend and man i am so much happier. it makes a huge difference. "only the home can compare to the temple in sacredness" = true story IF it's clean. sweet deal.

i hung up a shelf in the kitched and put cute little things on it. i'm not usually good at stuff like this, but dang it looks good and homey now. yay.

I discovered wordle.net.  mom and dad, i finally went on the site and i'm addicted to making word clouds now! they are so legit. i made one of my patriarchal blessing and my prospectus hahaha. these may or may not be hung in my room in the not-so-distant future.

and on to everyone's fav: THE NERDY:

i have officially scheduled my oral exam for the last week of march! i'm super nervous, but i've started doing review sessions every week with one of my professors and it's secretly getting me kind of excited. yeah we all thought i was a nerd but now it is proven.

i just printed my poster today to present my research in san diego this week!! pictures to come from my lovely nerd adventure.

my friend josh and i went into steph's 6th grade class as visiting scientists to teach about microorganisms! they swabbed for bacteria and everything. this might have changed my life. cute girls writing you thank you cards that say "i might want to be a scientist someday" and kids telling each other, "hey science is COOL" make me happy.  yay science!! we may be going back from round 2: heat, light and sound...so stay tuned for that. oh and also, they call me Dr. Liz. enough said.


well that's another edition of...the AMAZING, the DULL, the NERDY.  that kind of sums up my life recently. except for the dull part. mostly nerdy and amazing.