half over.

Being home has been quite a treat.  

Southern Alberta has treated me well.

Quite well.

I have to say the fact that I'm going back to Texas in twelve days makes me panic a little bit. 

I've already been here for twelve, and it's gone so fast.

 I feel like I'm not quite finished with my time here. 

Hopefully the next twelve days will go perfectly. 

The last twelve have certainly had ups and downs, but despite the downs..

  the ups and the realizations I've made and the chances I've decided to take

 have made everything so worth it..  =)

I keep learning a little bit more about myself every day.

 I like that.

I'm making a list now.

1. My bed is my favorite belonging. Is that bad?
2. I love the weather here. I love that it cools down at night.
3. I like wearing jeans better than wearing shorts.
4. Having a washer and drier is so convenient. Also having a fully equipped kitchen is so convenient.
5. Sometimes you just have to be spontaneous and try to win fifty bucks by running through the mud bog, because sometimes you win.
6. People don't change all that much. I'm still the same me I was when I was 12 and when I was 17. Sure, there are differences, but deep down, I have the same heart. It's just a little tougher and experienced.
7. I love my friends with all my heart.
8. I want to go back to school after I graduate from Dental Hygiene.
9. I want to be an English teacher... Surprise surprise.
10. Being straight up is the only way to be. Nothing to lose, right?
11. Random people you hardly know like to take it upon themselves to make your business their business. So not cool.
12. Life is all about adjustments.
13. Boys like to be the hero, and girls just want a hero. How convenient.
14. Summer is the best time of year.. and summer stories are always the best. =)
15. Time can pass.. from days to weeks to months to years, but some things in life just never, ever change, no matter how much you think you want them to. Some things just are the way they are.
16. Some people ya just can't trust. It's sad really.
17. Sometimes you just have to choose to find your own way for some places in life instead of following the map you created for yourself so long ago.
18. I don't care about what other people think nearly as much as I used to. It feels like heaven.
19. I'm me. I'm Jane. I tell myself not to put my heart on the line, but I always do. Can't help it.
20. Some risks will always be worth taking, no matter how many times you've taken them before.

~We Bought A Zoo

the early bird gets the nicest butt.

I solemnly swear to blog more often. I'm surprised I haven't lost any followers. Special shout out to Carson for his text this morning reminding me of this blog.

Jane! I went onto your blog for the first time expecting to see some new blog posts. But nope! #slacker

I don't know what my deal is. I feel weird blogging. I think I've changed a lot lately.

Maybe I got tired of people knowing everything.

Whatever it is, I kind of miss blogging. So my blog may be different as of now and my posts might be a lot different than they were in the past..
but I think I am back. Hopefully.

I started this crazy thing where I work out at 5:00 am three mornings a week.

Take a moment to digest that people.

I don't do stuff like this.
Back in the day when I took dance.. we had an early morning stretch class. Once a week. At .. 6:30? Does anyone remember?
Anyway. Every Wednesday I had an inward battle. Debated not going. Debated running away. Debated quitting dance. Debated crashing my car.. dying.. breaking my legs.. ANYTHING. It was the hardest thing ever for some reason.
I do believe it has prepared me for this time in my life though.
I did discover in the summer that I can be, in fact, a morning person.. but 5:00am is pushing it. 

Not to mention that early to get up and sweat your face off and feel like dying is really pushing it.
Anyway.

I attend a fitness class at La Sierra with Nora Estrada.

Yeah. Thats her. 

She's a babe... and she makes me wanna be a babe.
It all started when I did this crazy thing called a 10km run a week after being here. Heres pictures to prove it.

Befoooree

Afterrrr =)

Anyway. I met all these La Sierra ladies because Sarah went and worked out with them last semester and they were there and she was there and well. You know how it goes. I saw this lady Nora. Found out how old she was and died when I realized her butt was nicer than mine.
The day I turned twenty, my butt started sliding down lower and lower to my thighs.
It scared me a little bit.
I'm just being honest. So I vowed it was time to make a change.
I decided to meet Nora.
Its been three weeks and I'm still alive.

Anyway, I love her. I hate her though. But mostly I love her.

Thats news. 

christmas gifts.

Today while I was waiting for church to start, I found my mind wandering. It has been doing that a lot. What am I saying. It always does that. Anyway, I started getting all caught up in my self pity and confusion and troubles in life, but then I glanced down to the church bulletin resting on my lap. This little gift was printed right in front of me. It made me smile, and I want to share.

Christmas gift suggestions:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.
~Oren Arnold

Then I started thinking about new things. My fussing and pity seemed to sink to the back of my mind as I thought about these letters placed together on the page sending such a lovely message.
It's Christmas.

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So.

To my enemy. Forgiveness.
 I can't exactly think of one particular person. But I do know that there are people that I have struggled to get along with in the past. People who have hurt me or done something that I don't agree with. I'm afraid I have a few grudges that I believe really should just disappear. I am going to do my best to find forgiveness. I know its possible if I stop dwelling on things that have happened in the past.

To my opponent. Tolerance.
To be honest, I don't have any particular opponents right now. Opposition? Yes. There is opposition in all things. So, dear opposition. Come as you may. I will tolerate you, because you exist. I will continue to exhibit a good attitude and do my best not to let the opposition to get the best of me.

To my friend. My heart.
My dear friends. Here is my heart. My heart is honest. My heart is full. It is forgiving. It is healing and growing. Here friend, my heart is yours. Take it. :)

To a customer.  Service.
I am not in any situation where I will be helping customers as I am currently unemployed, but I certainly do not mind giving service. There are opportunities to serve everywhere, inside and outside of the home. I don't mind helping, but I sometimes find myself serving unwillingly. I am going to make a constant effort to serve with a happy heart. It helps. Serving is always rewarding.

And to everyone. Charity.
What is charity? We are often asked this question. Charity is the pure love of Christ. It is loving someone as Christ would. This is a challenge, because I am far from perfect, but keeping the constant remembrance of the Savior and how he would treat others.

To every child. A good example.
Oh my, I have been developing such a deep love for children the past little while. Being in the primary has brought me such joy. They have so much joy and always help me to feel the spirit. I remember when I was little and looking up to the older kids who were in high school or going to college and thinking they were so old. I remember watching them and wishing I was them. I feel so young now, but I believe its the same. The children still watch. Setting a good example for children is more valuable than often realized. I wouldn't be who I am today without the example set by my older siblings and some of my friends older siblings.

To myself. Respect.
I am deserving of respect. I deserve to be treated as a Daughter of God. I don't deserve to be looked down upon or mocked. Unfortunately, life isn't that simple. I will not always be treated with respect. But I can respect myself enough to remember that I am a Daughter of God, and remember not to let the opinions of others affect the self image I have of myself.

everybody wear YELLOW

I love yellow... as I have mentioned a few times. Well. Look what I found via THIS blog.

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I spent hours looking online for this yelllow skirt and matching top I bought at Jacob only last week, and I failed. I refuse to take a picture of myself wearing it because I am not a photographer and it would end up looking ridiculous.

However. I did find some fabulous photos of other yellow clothes that I adore.

Yellow is just a happy color. And it's summer!

So. Everybody? Embrace yellow.

And make the world a little bit happier. =)

photos found via weheartit.com

check check check.

Okay well let me start off with a summary of how my March went. I'd say I was fairly successful. Not perfect though. There is always next month!

- My room is a mess. I cleaned it really good twice, but it didn't last. I know, I'm terrible.

- I am still waiting to hear back from a few places for a summer job... but I officially have a plan C now if both of them don't work out.

- No quilt. Oh well.

- I went shopping. Don't tell my parents.. I only bought things that were on sale though. :)

- So I didn't save 99% of my earnings. More like 80%... which is a lot better than before. I feel like I've made progress.

- I didn't wash my mom's car because it is still so muddy outside. I did clean out the inside of it though.

- I donated to a children's charity. Not much, but hey. I still did it with the ideas of my March goals in mind. 

- I made breakfast, lunch, and dinner every day since Wednesday for three girls I'm babysitting. Not to mention I taught the youngest one how to ride a two-wheeler? Bonus points, thanks.

- my treadmill is officially part of my exercise routine. Unfortunately the TV in front of it only gets the business channel. You'd think I would be very educated in the stock market these days, but I'm really just not. I think I tune out the TV.

- I don't exercise how I originally planned, but I have an official exercise routine. I can tell its making a difference. My butt has been sore for two weeks. Progresssss! :)

- J Biebs. Check. Also brought along three more friends to infect them with the fever.

- so the not sleeping in one was a failure. I won't go into details.

- choreography: done.

- institute every week. yes yes yes and yes.

I'd say it was a successful month. 

Inspired by conference this past weekend, I am officially making a To Be list instead of a To Do list for this month.

1. Be non-judemental. This is something I have been working on for a while. I get very upset when I feel I am being judged, so I know I need to stop judging others.

2. Be efficient. I need to stop being lazy on some days and get out of bed at a normal time and use my time wisely. If I spent as much time serving others as I do on facebook, the world would be a happy place. Also. if I spent as much time exercising as I did on my blog?.. ya. I won't even go there. It's time to use my time better.

3. Be clean.  I am going to make a conscious effort to only handle each thing once, meaning I need to put things away instead of just dropping them on the floor. Keep my room clean, help with dishes, put my make up away.. the easy stuff that clutters my space. I'm sick of it!

4. Be friendly. I could probably say thank you a million more times a day. I could probably have a smile on my face more often. 

I'm not sure how I will keep track of these, but I am definitely putting out a conscious effort to be a better person this month.. specifically in these ways. Hopefully there will be specific situations that I can write about on my blog. :) Wish me luck.

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C.C. you wear me out.

So as posted on March 9, I have a list of goals to accomplish. No. .I didn't forget, but I regret to inform the blog world that I have failed one some of them already. I know I have until April 9th, but here is my update. Let me first remind you of my goals.

- attack my messy room and keep it clean until I leave for Florida (I was going to say keep it clean forever but let`s be real.)

- figure out a Plan B incase my summer job doesn`t work out

- start making another quilt

- don`t go clothes shopping... not even once

- make an official budget.... 99% savings.. 1% other.. or something close to that

- clean my mom`s car

- donate something

- make Sunday dinner
- use that stupid treadmill that is sitting in my house. three times a week.
- I`ll throw in 100 sit ups three times a week just because it will be good for me.

- did I mention I need to stop shopping.. I am also adding no more eating out to that list.

- see J Biebs with Steph again

- don`t sleep in past ten, ever (I`ll aim for 9:30 next month.. maybe)

- finish choreographing the dances for my dance classes

- go to institute every single week

WELL.

I cleaned my room. But it's a mess again.. but I am cleaning it again today for a second try.

I applied for another job incase plan A doesn't work.

No quilt yet.. but there is still time!

I accidentally bought two shirts. They were on sale though.

I didn't make a budget, but I now deposit any money directly into my savings account which I can't access with my debit card. I find this helps.

Mom's car - more messy then before but maybe next week.

I donated to a children's charity when I went through the till at Extra Foods.

Sunday Dinner... forgot about that one. Tomorrow I will!

So.. I have only used that treadmill twice. I'm an embarrassment, I know. Gotta start somewhere.. and that's more than I've used it in the twelve years we've had it so I have improved.

I did a hundred crunches week one and week two, then completely forgot week three. I'll start again after I write this post. I guess week three still has a few days left. :)

So I have cut back on eating out. I went to Moxie's for Jordan's bachelorette party, but I figured that didn't count because it was a special occasion and I really didn't write fine print on that one. I think it is more of an.. don't eat out unless necessary.. kind of goal.. yeah?

I went to J. Biebs again last night. I even brought along Jared, Parker, and Ryan. Even if they deny it, they are secretly infected with the fever too. I know it..

So this sleeping in past 10 one.. uhh.. no comment. At least I am conscious of it though, and I do set my alarm every night before I go to bed. Its hard to wake up at a normal time when I don't have to work until 3pm til 11 pm Monday-Thursday okay?!

Finish Choreographing. 2/3 classes done. I think that's a good start.

I haven't missed institute since February 22 I believe.. possibly the week before. I forget.

I'm doing better than I thought. Minus my treadmill business.. but on the plus side, I found this gem hiding in our cabinet downstairs...

Oh, Cindy and I are going to have such a lovely time. I got about halfway through the video today. She is so hardcore... but I will be as fit as her someday. I WILL!

Goals

So blogging world. It has been one month since my best friend Cody left. I`d say the time has flown. I have accomplished quit a bit I believe.. including applying for my summer job, completely finishing my application for Harlingen, mailing in my passport to be renewed, making some new friends whom I am really beginning to just love, and making a huge mess out of my room. That last one there isn`t really a proud accomplishment.. but anyway.. I feel like it was a successful month; however, I realized there is just so much more I need to be accomplishing. .....So I stole this idea from Desiree.. but I am going to just make a list of a few goals I want to accomplish in the next month! I didn`t do new years resolutions this year, so I think I am going to start doing monthly goals. I feel like working on something for a month is less overwhelming then the entire year. Baby steps work well for me. =)

Goals

 March 9 - April 9th

- attack my messy room and keep it clean until I leave for Florida (I was going to say keep it clean forever but let`s be real.)

- figure out a Plan B incase my summer job doesn`t work out

- start making another quilt

- don`t go clothes shopping... not even once

- make an official budget.... 99% savings.. 1% other.. or something close to that

- clean my mom`s car

- donate something

- make Sunday dinner
- use that stupid treadmill that is sitting in my house. three times a week.
- I`ll throw in 100 sit ups three times a week just because it will be good for me.

- did I mention I need to stop shopping.. I am also adding no more eating out to that list.

- see J Biebs with Steph again

- don`t sleep in past ten, ever (I`ll aim for 9:30 next month.. maybe)

- finish choreographing the dances for my dance classes

- go to institute every single week

I`d say thats a pretty good list. 

Blog friends. I need your help. 

Remind me to keep working on these things please and thank you!.. 

and check up on me too.

ask for source.