Almost there...

I just finished registering for my LAST quarter at Cal Poly. Can't believe I will be a college graduate in December.
It has been a long journey and the end is almost here.

So happy.

"Why not?"

At the beginning of the year I was going over my school schedule and mapping out the classes I had left to take. I was starting my 5th quarter at Cal Poly and I had 17-18 classes left to take. Even though I was a senior I wouldn't be graduating in the spring and I was ready to be done. There were so many unanswered questions and "maybes" in scheduling my classes I had left to take. I was hoping for the best, but aware that it might not happen how I wanted it to. I was talking with Jono and told him, "It would take a miracle for me to finish by December."

In March we got our Ensign but I was too busy with finishing school and packing to read it. After we moved to Orange and got somewhat settled I opened it up and started reading before bed at night. I got to an article titled "What Mothers Can Learn from the Savior" by Amy M. Morgan. I thought it looked interesting so I started reading. I loved how the author made such a strong connection between mothers and Jesus Christ.

Then I got to this quote by President Boyd K. Packer: "If you are helpless, he is not. If you are lost, he is not. If you don't know what to do next, he knows. It would take a miracle, you say? Well, if it takes a miracle, why not?"

My eyes immediately began to tear. I felt like President Packer was speaking right to me, and I was so grateful Heavenly Father answered my prayers and gave me a little boost. This was my tender mercy.

Today in Relief Society we talked about the scriptures. The teacher asked if we had a favorite scripture we would like to share. I thought for a minute, flipped to Isaiah 41: 10 and rose my hand: "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness."

"Why not?"

Life in Loa

I was just going through my old blog posts and realized I never published our Loa trip post from last summer! Eeek! The trip was a good one and I wanted to share it all with you. Better late than never!

Our trip to Loa, Utah was a blast! Jono and I enjoyed the quiet escape and feeling of Loa. It was fun to visit Sarah, Kevin and of course, Simon. We started the drive on Friday at about 7 am and got to Loa around 4:30 pm, just in time for dinner. We went to a fun little family owned restaurant and the food was delicious! They had mozarella sticks and scones with yummy honey butter. And afterwards we got a couple slices of homemade pie to eat at home. We spent the rest of the night talking and laughing.

Saturday we woke up and went to Capitol Reef National Park. We hiked about half way up to Chimney Rock (right before we got to the switch-backs) and then turned around and came back. We could see it from the ground...plus my back was on the rebound and it was starting to yell at me. So we left and drove to see some cool Petroglyphs on the side of mountains and visited Holt Orchards. We put a couple dollars in the box and we got to pick some apples and pears...which were delicious!! I love fruit (seriously, it's my candy) and I absolutely loved getting to pick it right off the tree. The location is also a no-hunting ground so there were lots of deer roaming around and coming up close to us.

After we went to the visitor's center and walked around. Then we went back to the house to put Simon down for a nap.

Sunday I wasn't feeling very well so Kevin, Sarah, Simon and Jono went to church and I stayed home to rest while smelling the delicious pot roast Sarah was cooking. It was oh-so delicious! After we watched The Soloist, which we liked.

Monday we went to Fish Lake and walked around a bit. It smelled pretty bad down by the water/shore so we retreated back to the Lodge and looked around. The lake was beautiful though. My mom told me it was my Grandma Alda's favorite place to fish (they lived in Fillmore, Utah) and I thought that was cool. After we had lunch at a nearby restaurant and went back to the house.

Tuesday we went into town and looked at some of the art gallerys and little fun shops. Then we grabbed some ice cream shakes. Later that night Kevin was at work and Sarah went to her first mutual (she just got called to be the secretary in the Young Women's) so Jono and I watched Simon. We had a blast.

Jono and Kevin got to go fly fishing. Kevin's friend took them out and they loved it. I tagged along as well and enjoyed exploring and got a bloody nose from the altitude. Good thing I am prepared and had tissues in my backpack! Phew!

Later we all went over to Sarah's friend's house to watch the BYU football game, which we won, had a BBQ, and played with the kids and their dog. It was fun visiting with them and their house was adorable.

We loved getting to see Loa, Utah and visit Kevin, Sarah and Simon. We had a lot of fun learning what life is like in Loa.

Well, there you go. Only a couple of months late :) Love you Curtis'!