Stewart's Stories

The Wedding

2011-09-01T14:56:00.002-06:00

So, I'm playing catch up and there's a lot to catch up on. So let's start with the BIG EVENT!

JUNE 25, 2011

So, my wedding day. Started off like any other day. The wedding wasn't until 3, so I had the whole morning to relax and do what I needed to. So I ran some errands, went to Karsten's place to drop off his tie and visit for awhile, did some other things. Very relaxing morning to be honest. I slowly got ready, put on my suit, did my hair and made sure I looked dang good! (and I did!)

Then I drove with Mom and Dad out to the temple. Of course, we got there before Kelly and her parents. We got the paper work taken care of. Went in to get dressed for the Temple and then I was escorted to where I would be waiting for Kelly. I waited quite awhile up there with some other couple that was about to get married as well. Eventually, Kelly arrived and told me she was just talking to friends and such. After waiting in a lone room for just over an hour, the time was finally ours to be sealed! The sealer gave a great little message before the ceremony. I was doing great all during that. Then, when the actual sealing took place, the flood gates opened and my eyes just ran, ran, ran. Kelly, nothing at all! I couldn't stop it. At the end, when everyone was congratulating us, told me that only real men cry at the sealing!

So after the sealing, we both go down and change. I'm ready fairly quickly so I go out and wait for her. Well, I waited, and waited, and waited...the Temple President walked passed me a couple of times. The last time he said "You just get married?" "Yes", I said. "Waiting for your bride?", he asks. "Yeah, I've only been waiting for over 20 minutes now", I say. "Well, son," he says, "get used to it. You'll always be waiting on a woman." Anyway, eventually, Kelly came out looking just amazingly gorgeously beautiful!!!! The dress was very sparkly and pretty and she made it look good! Then began the photos! I felt like they were never going to end!

But they did turn out. Toward the end, we finally had to tell the photographer that we had to go or we would be late for our own reception. So we left (stuffed Kelly and her dress into the car somehow) and drove all the way across town. Of course we were late, but it was OK. We did a little ring ceremony and then the reception began!

The reception was really amazing. My mother-in-law planned it out perfectly and everything was just exceptional! The decorations, the food (we had a candy bar, cotton candy, kettle corn, lemonade, a nacho cheese fountain, and tons of food), the music, everything was perfect! Everyone had a great time.

Our cake was my favorite part. I knew it would be because Maria was making it! We didn't want to do a traditional white wedding cake (how boring!). So we kept it somewhat traditional, but we added color!!!!! Of course we made it teal and pale yellow (our colors). It was the best cake and amazingly delicious! We had a chocolate cake with strawberry nutella filling, an almond poppy seed with lemon filling, and a french vanilla layer. Oh they were all so good! And we also had a ton of mini cupcakes which were so fun and delicious! My favorite was a dark chocolate with amaretto frosting!!!!

When the party was finally over, we left and found that our car was severely attacked. Erika (Kelly's maid of honor) had decorated it very cute and nice. Then my family took over and put oreos all over the windows, marbles all over inside, and rice in envelopes in the shades (luckily I warned Kelly about that one because I know my family so well). Then we drove to her place, she changed, and we started the Honeymoon!

Baking and Blessings

2011-03-20T15:30:00.000-06:00

Well, this month has been the same as the previous. I've been super busy with school, work, and homework. But I have managed to do a few things. In my baking class, I'm learning a lot. I learned how to make pie crust, among other things. This picture is of a peach sour cream pie I made all from scratch. It was so amazingly delicious! Can I say how much I have enjoyed my baking class. Sure it's hard but I've learned so much.

One of my roommates asked me to make his girlfriend a cake for her half birthday. He said she likes photography, so I decided to make the cake look like a camera. It wasn't my best job, but it turned out ok. She really liked the cake. It tasted great, but I could have done better on the appearance. However, I had very little time to actually work on it. So the pictures on the side are how it turned out. Decent, but not great. But then again, I might just be hard on myself.

Back in baking class, we had to bake a cake and decorate it. So I made a brown sugar spice cake (which turned out amazing), and decorated it with butter cream frosting. I learned some new tricks to work with butter cream. So, the dyes I had looked different on the bottles than the way they turned out. I was going to do a red, white, and blue cake, but it turned out baby blue and pink. Oh well. I didn't have time to mess with it. and the decorating is very haphazard. I was 10 minutes late to my next class because I had to finish the cake. But yeah. That's the cake and it tasted amazing, like all my other creations.

The next week, we made fancy icebox cookies. They were really easy to make and they make some cool designs. I decided to just to checker board cookies, but I could have done spirals and such. They were nice and easy to prepare and the best part is you can even freeze them for later. They taste good and can look however you want them to!

I also requested all of my grandparents' patriarchal blessings through lds.org and got them finally. It's really fascinating to read through them and to learn more about who these amazing grandparents were! Just reading through some of them has taught me a lot about them. Seeing how I never really had much time to get to know my grandparents, this is one way that I am learning more about them. It's great and I feel blessed knowing I came from such amazing people.

Playing Catch-Up

2011-02-20T14:59:00.000-07:00

So, this post is all about catching up! It's obviously been a long time since I've blogged and a lot has happened. So I'll do my best to recap the most important stuff.
End of October

I went on a geology field trip to the middle of Utah. We camped at the Little Sahara, and then some random place. We dug up trilobites and other fossils and learned all about the history of the area.

November

Not much happened in November. I went home for Thanksgiving and had a great time with family and friends.

December

The semester finally ended. I got almost straight A's. Just a B in Chemistry. On the way home, Kelly and I went to the Christmas Concert with the Mo-Tab choir and David Archuleta. It was a amazing. Once home, I made plans to talk with Kelly's parents about a pressing matter. It went well. Then on Christmas Eve, I took Kelly on a picnic at Red Rock. After the picnic (where she took a small nibble of her sandwich and ate nothing else), I got down on my knee and proposed. After waiting for awhile, she eventually said yes. Once in the car, I put on the song "Marry You" by Bruno Mars. Great song. Of course, Christmas was great as always.

January

New Year was great. Spent the night with Kelly at the ward party, and then went down near the Strip to watch the fireworks with the Arnolds, Smiths, and others. It was super fun. Also, the 17th was Kelly's birthday. I made her a sweet cake and she had a great day!

February

I'm taking a baking class at school and have made lots of goodies (french bread, muffins, biscuits, bagels, cinnamon rolls, etc.) I'm learning to make everything by scratch, and with no machines for mixing. It's been fun and I'm learning lots of fun things. Also, I finally went cross country skiing with Andrea and her family. Kelly was supposed to go with us, but she wasn't feeling too great that day. This semester has been super busy for me. School, homework, and work are keeping me really busy. But I'm surviving!

There! I'm finally caught up!

New Times

2010-10-18T23:37:00.000-06:00

So, I have started a new blog for my cake stuff! You can check it out at Cake It Easy! I will slowly be putting up all the cakes I have done. So far, it just has the first, the one that started it all!
Ok, enough about that, now back to me.
So, it's been awhile since I last posted. And yes, I have been super busy! Just last week, I had an exam in all of my classes. For those who don't know, I will list all the exams I had: Geology, Calculus, Chemistry, Geology Lab. The only class that was missing was Family Foundations! And that has a test this week. But all is going well despite the craziness!
Work is also going well. Tutoring and grading papers has kept me super busy. Bro. Rich is a great guy to work for. He's so funny. And I'm sure one day soon, I might be teaching one of his classes. So that's exciting!
Kelly is wonderful as always! We are so happy together and life is great! Everyone always asks us when we are getting married. It's funny.
This week, I'm going to go to Millard County, UT for a geology field trip. I'll be digging up trilobites and all sorts of stuff. I'm excited! It should be a super fun trip. However, the only down side is that there will be no running water for 2 days! That's a little scary, but it will make the camping that much more exciting! Another draw back to the whole camping thing, is that I'll have to cram 5 days of school work into 3! Not excited about that! We'll see how that turns out though.

No Time To Procrastinate

2010-10-01T13:07:00.000-06:00

So yeah. It's been many weeks since my last post. Usually when I am in school, I'm a little better at blogging. Why? Because I use blogging as a way to procrastinate doing homework. However, this semester, I have been unable to do that. I may only be taking 15 credits (which for me translates into 5 classes), but this is the hardest 15 credits I have taken yet! I am taking Chemistry, Calculus, Historical Geology, Family Foundations, and a Tutoring class. Pretty much, I'm always swamped. I am fighting tooth and nail just to stay caught up in classes. There's no getting ahead this semester (at least not for now). My classes are enjoyable, I like them all, but the homework load for them is extreme!!!! And there is so much memorizing. I have to memorize many elements and compounds and stuff for chemistry, 80 index fossils (Name, Group, Time Period) for geology, the entire Family Proclamation word for word, and all those calculus formulas! It's ridiculous! But I'll survive!
Oh, and the best news of all (best as in I means something good for me, bad because it just takes away more of my time to do homework) is I GOT A JOB! That's right! You read correctly! I, Stewart Gubler, have a job at school! Who would have thought this day would come?! I was hoping for it! Anyway, here's the history that led up to this momentous occasion.
Tenille had been on me since I came up to BYU-I that I should get in contact with Bro. Rich about a job as a math tutor. I always shied away from this because I hadn't taken any math classes up here. Well, after last semester when I took Trig and Algebra, I decided I could give it a shot. So I emailed Bro. Rich, and the first thing he asks is if I was related to Tenille. So I knew I had an in. I met with him, and we talked for awhile and Tenille and such, and eventually we got to math. He basically hired me on the spot! I was so shocked! He hired me as one of his TA's for his Math 100B classes. So I grade papers frequently. I also get to tutor people who want one-on-one sessions. It's been fine so far. I've been trying to get some hours in the Math Lab (which is sort of like Mathnasium) but you just have to grab the times that randomly show up on the board. So far, none of them have worked for me. But it will eventually come.
So that's the exciting news!
In other news, I have been dating Kelly for 11 months and 3 days now! Crazy how time flies! She's still the best thing that has happened to me!
I have also had many adventures (sacrificing homework I might add) at the Sand dunes and other fun places like Fat Cats and Sammy's (Yes, Rexburg now has a Fat Cats and a Sammy's just like Provo), and of course the infamous 12 taco challenge! That's right, I ate 12 soft tacos from Taco Bell. I ate 11 just fine. The 12th one did my in. I ate half of it and threw up (surprisingly no one really noticed that that was what I ran outside for). I felt great, so I decided I could finish the last half. Well, It was all in my mouth, almost all swallowed, and out it came! To say I felt amazing after that would be an understatement. Throwing up makes you feel GREAT!
Um....I think that's it for now. I'm sitting here waiting for a Tutee to show up, but it doesn't look like they are going to show up. Conference is this weekend, and I might be going to Andrea's to watch it. I hope you all have an enjoyable time watching Conference and I also hope that everyone hears exactly what they need to hear!

Reunions, Layoffs, and Trips Galore

2010-08-14T22:25:00.000-06:00

So to say many things have happened since I last blogged would be a huge understatement. So I'll briefly cover as much as I can.
I went to the Gubler Family Reunion with Mom and Dad. It was pretty fun. I met many cousins that I haven't seen or met in a long time. I saw Laura but she avoided me until the last day as I was leaving. I also saw Jake (now called Jackie) It was interesting. He really did look like a girl until he talked. Interesting family. Overall, it was pretty fun. It was also at the reunion that I found out that Grandma Gubler had passed away. We stopped to see her on the way up, but she was sleeping. I'm glad she is finally relieved of her pain. She was a great woman. I loved the visits we would have as we traveled through Utah.
The week after the reunion, we met again for the funeral. It was a really good funeral and one of the only times I can remember seeing my dad cry. He did a great job though with his talk. It was the best. I was a pallbearer and it was sort of hot outside. It was nice and sunny for the funeral. Then after the luncheon, out of nowhere there was a downpour. It was crazy!
So, I was laid off of my job at Mathnasium. I went in on Monday assuming I was supposed to work and after 2 hours, Dan (my boss) showed up and told me I could go home then because he didn't need me. So I stayed for about 45 more minutes helping the kids that were with me. As I was leaving, I asked Dan what the new schedule was for August and he just said, "Oh, you're not on the schedule. I'll just call if we need you." So yep. That's it! I had my job for the summer. So I basically had 1 month before I worked of vacation, and now I have about 1 month of vacation before school starts.
This past week, I started to drain the pond so I could give it a deep clean. It was hard catching all the fish, but I eventually did it. Then on the day I was supposed to finish the pond, Brady needed me to pick up a part and deliver it to him at Cove Fort. So I did that all in one day and drove back to Vegas and then went to a game night at the Smith's with Kayli and Mackenzie. We played lots of Pounce (sort of like Wacky 6). During the night, most of the fish died in the pool. Sad day.
Then the next day, everyone helped out and we finished cleaning the pond. We filled it up and I went to Petsmart and bought some more Koi. After 38 fish died (including the 2 giant ones), only 6 or so Koi are left and we now have some sucker fish. Also, we can't find the turtle.
Today (Saturday) I went to Hoover Dam to see the bridge and the dam. It was a dam good trip! haha. Then I went straight from that, to Provo! My son from the mission (the missionary I trained, Elder Patterson), is home from his mission so I'm going to his homecoming.

Camping in Zion

2010-07-22T13:07:00.000-06:00

So, last week I had the opportunity and privileged to go camping with my best bud Karsten. We have been trying to plan this for a long time. And well, it finally happened. We had some help from one of his mission companions. We had most of it planned, but not all the details (like where we would camp in Zion, or what day to do what hikes, things like that.) Well, we were going to go camping with a big group from Utah. Knowing this, Karsten and I decided we should bring all the stuff just in case they forgot to. So we loaded up the big truck with all sorts of stuff (stove, tables, tents, chairs, food, water, etc.)
So Karsten and I leave on Wednesday in the afternoon to go find a camping spot. We were hoping there would be one available. So we get to Zion around 4 or so and start looking for a camp site in the unreserved camp site. Well, we drove around and couldn't find anything. We start calling some campgrounds just outside of Zion just to see if stuff is available. Well, for some reason, we decided to go check in the reserved camp site to see if anyone had cancelled. And lo and behold, there was one spot available for 2 nights! We were pretty excited. So we went to the spot and started unloading.
Now, for some reason, the weather decided to be very hot the week we decided to go to Zion. It was in the 100's the whole time we were there. So setting up the tent at 4 in the afternoon was very exhausting and hot! We got the huge tent set up, and set up the picnic tent as well. After that, we needed a break. It was just too hot to be working right then. We found out that the Utah people had 3 girls that were going to be coming too. We decided the girls tent would have to wait until night when the temperature was cooler. Eventually, the camp was all set up. We tried to start a fire with the leftover wood that was there, but it was pitiful. Eventually, around 11 or so, the Utah people arrived. All together there were 7 guys and 3 girls. It was great!
However, that night was terrible. I didn't sleep at all! It was so hot, and the wind kept blowing (which felt sort of nice). But I just couldn't fall asleep that night. Neither did Karsten, I found out the next morning. 2 people woke up and got in line to get passes to hike The Narrows at 5 in the morning. They said there were 2 people in front of them who took all the passes to do Subway. So we made it there in good time.
The next day, after some breakfast, we went and hiked Angels Landing. I remember hiking it as a kid and had vivid memories from it. I remember as a kid that the chains that you are supposed to hold onto in some parts were inside the rocks and were impossible to hold. However, after many years, I guess they went through and fixed that problem. However, I still didn't use the chains. I prefer not to. I prefer to feel the rocks and sand in my hand as I climb up the mountain. Anyway, it was a great hike. HOT, but very nice. After hiking, we came back to camp and found a surprise. The squirrels had invaded. We had a few things that were left out, but we sort of expected that. However, there were 2 other surprises. The first was in the girls tent. A squirrel had apparently chewed through someone's inner tube which we were going to use the next day. So we learned that squirrels like plastic. The other surprise was in my tent. I had a fairly large bag of assorted candy. I had it in a zip lock back, in my zipped up backpack, in my zipped up tent. Well that little bugger unzipped the tent and my backpack and made a mess of my candy. He ate pretty much the WHOLE bag and left wrappers and trash EVERYWHERE. There were some gummy candies that we sort of left behind, but with the heat, they just melted in the tent. So it was a great mess to clean up. After that, I now feel like Doug from "Up". The only good squirrel is a dead one! hahaha.
The rest of the day, we went to this spot that the bus lady said was a water slide. We went there and spent the rest of the day there. The "water slide" was just a little water fall that would have killed your butt if you could slide down it. But we still had fun there. We had smores that night! We had a great fire and we made tin foil dinners which were GREAT! That night, I actually got some sleep. Not much, but more than the night before.
In the middle of the night, one of the girls came over to our tent and said "Jason?.........Karsten?.....Anyone?" I woke up at the first name, so did Karsten and Brandon. However, Karsten was the only one that responded. Brandon just laughed and I just listened. She then said, "The fire is on again. Is that bad?" Apparently we didn't pour enough water on the fire. So Karsten got up and submerged it in like 20 gallons of water!
So Friday was the day that we had to leave our current camp spot, find a new one, and get on the trail of the Narrows. So we packed up, found a new camp site and started to drive out to the Narrows. The tunnel opened at 8, but we didn't get there til 9 or later. So were were already starting the hike really late. We got to the trail-head probably just before 10 or so. That is a super fun hike. They say it takes like 12 hours. So we start going as fast as we can so we can finish before night fall. I love that hike. Once you actually get to the canyon part of it, it becomes amazing! Some parts the river is only 6 or 8 feet wide with huge sandstone cliffs on both sides! It was amazing. However, walking through the river for the majority of the hike sort of wears on you. The river was too shallow at the beginning to use our inner tubes. However, once we got to where the 2 rivers joined, the water became a little deeper. We continued hiking and eventually got to a spot where we used our tubes! It was so much fun. However, I did get many bruises on my butt because the water was still just a little shallow and I didn't see some of the rocks coming. It was a blast. All of us guys would try and float down the whole river (despite the many rapids that had large rocks that hurt) but we did it! Some of us popped our tubes on rocks, some of us (like me) got to the point where I was so cold I didn't want to be in the water anymore. We finished pretty quickly. I think we did it in about 10 hours! 16 miles, most of it in water, in about 10 hours! Not bad! We were all super excited to take off our shoes that night. It was hard, but we eventually all got them off and didn't want to put shoes on ever again.
Since we had 3 cars total, and 2 of them were still at the trail-head, the drivers decided they would go get the cars that night instead of waiting til the morning like we had planned. Well, as they left, we saw some lightning and felt some sprinkles. The girls panicked and called the boys to have them come back. They did and we went to some Mexican Restaurant just outside Zion. It was pretty good. That night, I slept so good!!!!
The next day, the drivers went to pick up the cars. It took them like 3 hours. In the mean time, the rest of us had to clean up the campsite. We were supposed to be out by 11. At 11:30, I flagged down a guy to let him know our site was available so we wouldn't get charged again. We was very happy that I stopped him. around 12, the drivers were back. We threw all the stuff into the cars and then went our separate ways.
It was a great trip. Lots of laughs, inside jokes, friends, etc. What more can you ask for! It was just a straight up blast! The next trip we do we are going to hike Subway! I'm so excited. I just hope I'll still be in town and available to go.

Utah...Again! Part 2

2010-07-02T12:11:00.000-06:00

So, well, we ended up going to Lagoon. It's a fun place. I wouldn't drive all that way just to go to it though. It's not worth that much of a drive. But it was fun. We were with Ashlyn (she just turned 11), and she's really afraid to go on roller coasters. But once she goes on, she is usually fine with them. Well, she would always freak out in line. After we got off, she would usually be shaking, or shedding a few tears. Then a few minutes later she would say she wanted to do it again. Crazy little girl. Well, we went on this one called the Spider.
It doesn't look that bad. There are no loops, just a nice roller coaster. The cars look like this (to the right). 2 people face forward and 2 people face backwards. Well, Ashlyn and Momma Smith decided to take the back so they wouldn't see the scary stuff. So we go, and the first drop is great. It sort of curves and all. Well then you get to the top of the next hill, and then your car starts spinning!!!! It was so fun. But it also made it a little more scary. Ashlyn was screaming the whole time. It was actually sort of funny. When we got off, she had tears and said she didn't like it. We met up with Dad Smith and the teachers quorum. They were also there. So Karsten and I took the opportunity to do the one where it goes straight up, then straight down. It was ok. No worth the long line. It's too short. Well, when we got off, Ashlyn had decided that her favorite ride was the Spider. Go figure. We tried to go on as many rides as we could. The log ride...Waste of time! It had to have been the longest line, and the most ridiculous ride EVER! It just takes you, you go around, go up the hill, go down, and your done. Nothing else! So stupid! After that, we went to the pool area. It's not that bad, if you don't mind spending like $7 to rent a tube to go on the majority of the rides. We didn't. We just borrowed the Teachers' tubes. There are 10 slides, a kiddie section, and a small pool with a lazy river. The slides were ok. Surprisingly, the one that was the most fun for us was the one that was like Raging Rapids. It wasn't as exciting. But it was fun. The line moved super fast so you could go on it again and again. And we did! We stayed in the water park for maybe 2 or so hours. Then we went back to the park and hit up some more rides before it closed. Overall, it was a fun time!
The next day we went to Brick Oven Pizza for Ashlyn's Birthday. That's a nice place. I do not recommend the Calzones. They weren't as good as I thought they would be. Then later that day, we drove out to Manti. Traffic of course was ridiculous out there. We went and saw Paul and Jodi Arnold and Jack and Evan Smith. They both have nice places there. We sat around and talked for awhile, then walked down the street to the temple to watch the pageant. Now, it's an ok pageant. I just really think they need to update it and make it more lively! The voices and all sounded like an old 20's radio program. And the acting and all that just seems so...ridiculous. Obviously they have to do something to make it look like they are talking. But the constant waving the hands and arms when they are talking just looks really weird. They really need to update it. It's just a lot on the boring side of the line.
Well, after the pageant, traffic of course is horrendous. So we chilled at Paul and Jodi's until the traffic died down. We didn't end up leaving until 1 in the morning. And we also took the way where you drive through Gunnison. Interesting drive in the middle of the night.
The next day, Karsten and I went to Provo to visit Trevor. It's been a long time since I've seen him. He's put on quite a bit of weight since being married. It's crazy. Anyways, he wanted to go shopping for a present for his wife. So we went with him. Wow! I've never felt so gay in my life. 3 guys walking in the mall going to all the women's sections in the stores. and Trevor was trying on the necklaces and holding earrings up to his ears to see if they matched. It was crazy. After being in the mall for over an hour, we finally left with a shirt, necklace, and earrings. None of which really matched, but Trevor thought they did! and he liked them all so that's why he bought them. Crazy kid. Then we went back to his place and tried to play some video games. He took over an hour trying to get it to work, so we ended up doing something else. Still video games, but different system. Fun times!
That night, we played Pounce with the family. Eventually Elise and Brittany came over. It was an intense game. Brittany and I beat everyone by a lot. We had like 500 points, and the next people, Karsten and Elise, had like 270 or something like that! Yeah, we rocked at that game! It's so fun and addicting! We played until like 2 in the morning. (oh just FYI, you are lucky to go to bed before 2 in Cici's house. There is just so much going on that you don't want to go to sleep.)
Sunday, we went to the Single's Ward where Uncle Kelly is in the Bishopric. We just stayed for sacrament. Went back home, had lunch, played cards, ate some other stuff, and the finally packed up and left. It was a great vacation!!!!

Utah...Again!

2010-06-24T10:48:00.000-06:00

So, I am currently in Utah! Yep, that's right. I'm here again, same place, mostly the same people and then some. Momma Smith invited me to go with them for a week to Utah. So I decided to accept the invitation.
We left Tuesday and drove to Milford, UT first. There, we did some yard work (for Papa) and then continued our journey. Oh, let me explain one thing. First, it was the house that Papa grew up in, so it's old! The garage where the mower and stuff was is very old and covered in spider webs. The door has to be held up by a stick. Well, Karsten and I were looking for a hoe just inside. I looked up and saw a pretty big spider. I told Karsten to look at it and he jokingly made a big scene and started to run out. Well, in the process of running out, he hit the stick that was holding the garage door open. Unfortunately, I was still standing there. So that old, spider-web-covered door came down and hit me right on the head. When Karsten picked the door up, I was more worried about where the spider had gone that I was about my head. So I got out quickly. Well, I could feel that I had a pretty big bump on my head but nothing more. Well, when we had left, I looked in the mirror of the car and saw that there was some blood there! Karsten felt so bad!!! But it really wasn't that big of a cut. But it sure has made showering and doing my hair super hard! Anyway, when we finished, we decided to leave a different way. So we drove forever through nothingness land and then reached Delta! Now, I've heard tons of stuff about Delta because that's were Mom was born. But I had never actually been there. It is a very pretty little place. It has a few stoplights and a McDonald's, so it's a real place! hahaha! But we did eventually get onto the interstate again.
We eventually got to Springville where we are currently staying with Uncle Kelly and Aunt Cici. They are such a fun family! I always love coming here! They are so random, crazy, loud, fun, etc! They are great! We got here later at night (maybe 9 or so) but Cici and everyone are known for staying up late! Last time I was here, we were doing good to go to bed before 2!
On Wednesday, we decided to go to IKEA. This was my first time and it was quite the experience. That place is HUGE!!!!!! and the food there is amazing! I had the meatballs and they were to die for. I think we were at IKEA for 2 or so hours! That place is exhausting. When we finally left I just felt totally drained of all energy. Seeing how shopping consumed most of the day, we got back and just relaxed. We had a BBQ for dinner and jumped on the trampoline for awhile! I don't know why, but doing flips really scare me! I used to be able to do them, but since I've gotten older, they scare me. Not entirely sure why.
Well, that will conclude this part of the Utah trip. We are about to head to to Lagoon. More adventures will come!!!!!

Midnight Premiers and Early Morning Starts

2010-06-19T14:08:00.000-06:00

So, on Thursday, Kelly and I had to help Momma Smith (Karsten's mom) with mutual. She had a bunch of 1-minute games planned for the youth to do and we had to supervise them. It was tons of fun. Some of them were pretty fun too! The one I was in charge of looked a lot like beer-pong. But it wasn't. It was just ping-pong tic-tac-toe! So no worries there! Anyways, as pay, Momma Smith bought me a bag of my new favorite chips....

If you haven't tried these you are missing out! These are the best BBQ chips I've had. It's basically like the whole BBQ (coleslaw, corn on the cob, the whole shebang) is in the chip! It's so amazingly delicious!!!! I highly recommend them!!!!!!
So after mutual, Kelly and I drove out to Aliante Station to catch the midnight showing of...

It was so good! We saw it on IMAX 3D! This movie is probably better than the 1st or 2nd! It's that good! I was expecting a lot more little kids to be there at the showing, but there really weren't many! Mainly high schoolers and older people! But this is a GREAT movie!!!!!! A must see!!!
Anyways, so after the premier, I got home close to 3 in the morning. Then, I was at the temple at 9. So I didn't get a lot of sleep. Kelly wanted to do baptisms, and they needed a guy to help out. So I went. It was nice. It's been a long time since I've gone to the temple (I'm so bad. I really need to go more often). Anyways, it was great. However, I must say the shower in the guys locker room sucks! I never got hot water and the spray was terrible! But what can you do?! Not a whole lot!

What To Do?

2010-06-16T14:38:00.000-06:00

Well, lots has happened. On June 3rd, I had my last day of work at Mathnasium. It was fun. We had a party and had lots of food and just played games and such. It was nice being able to make as much noise as I wanted to, and letting the kids do the same without Brad telling us to be quiet! But it was also sad. I probably won't see those kids again. I built some pretty good friendships with a few of them. And I will greatly miss them.
That same week (actually the week before), Mom and Dad went up to Idaho because my niece Christina was graduating from High School. So I was home all alone. Normally I don't mind, but the house is pretty scary at night. I went the whole week without ever going upstairs! Anyways, I had lots of things to do, besides work. I had to take care of the garden. And they left right when the apricots were turning ripe. So I had to constantly keep an eye on those and the blackberries and peas. One day after work, I watered the garden. It took me literally the entire day! I was so tired of doing that! I don't know how Dad does it! I also worked around the pond. I cut everything back down so the pond can have a new start (and so you can actually see the pond). That took a long time. And I saw so many spiders and other creepy crawly things to last me a lifetime! Luckily I had some help from Karsten.
Oh, another thing is that Kelly was also gone the whole week as well. She went to California. So, I spent a lot of time at Karsten's! I usually had dinner over there and even spent the night one time because we lost track of time. Did I mention that Karsten's family is literally my second family? Well, they are. I get chores a lot of times when I go over, and I know where just about everything is. It's sort of nice having younger siblings! I have tons of fun with everyone over there!
I have also done a lot of hiking recently. I've gone to Red Rock a couple times now with Karsten. We always do a different hike. One week we did Calico Tank with Kyler (Karsten's brother) and some of his friends. It was a fun one. Then this week, Karsten and I took the Elders (6 of them) and did Calico Hills 2. That was a fun one. We never really stayed on the trail. We just went UP the mountain! It was crazy! We really just made our own trail and eventually got to the top of the mountain. Lots of scrambling and rock climbing! It was great! I also hiked Lone Mountain with Kelly last week. That's a really nice hike. A nice trail up to the top and lots of places to just climb around up there! The only drawback....there is literally no shade anywhere on the trail. That mountain is completely devoid of any trees and/or tall shrubs! But the view is great! I've heard it's a fun one to climb at night because then you can see the whole city lit up!
Oh, I almost forgot the most exciting thing. Last week, the young women in our ward put on a spaghetti dinner/cake auction to raise money for camp. Well, Karsten and I decided we would build a cake to rival them all and earn the girls lots of money. So that's exactly what we did! Here is the process!

After 2 days of working on it, this was the final product...

At the auction, our temple cake sold for $70. However, a much smaller cake, whose name is famous in the Mormon community as "Better Than Sex Cake" went for $100. As my mom said, "Apparently Mormons will pay more for sex than they will for the temple." Gotta love her!
I believe that is all the exciting stuff that has happened recently. I'll try to be more regular now! But you all know how well I am at that! hahaha!

The End, The Beginning, and Who Knows

2010-05-29T18:12:00.000-06:00

Well, not that I need to say this, but school is over. It has been over for me for over a month now. I've just been at home blah, blah blahing and yeah. Tis the life! So for the semester, I got 5 A's and 2 A-'s. And those 2 A-'s were in Capstone (a stupid class anyway), and Technical Writing. But I'm happy with the end results. So that marks the end of my semester. Now for the Beginning.
Well, summer started out nice and slow. It was great. I just sat around and basked in the semi-nice weather of Vegas. While I was basking in the greatness of summer, I was also sending in applications and resumes to lots of places. Well, one day, I went to a job interview at a place called Mathnasium. It's a place where students from elementary to high school come to get extra help with, you guessed it, Math. I never thought I would be a math tutor. I've always, generally, hated math, especially algebra. But I was always good at it. Well, the next day, after doing one interview out in Summerlin, the main guy had me go and do the same thing at the other location out near 95 and 215. So I go and am basically told that I'm hired. So it was great.
I've been working there for almost a month. It has been fun and demanding. There's this one kid who I now call my little brother. He's so funny. He's a junior at LVA. He knows what he is doing, but makes small little mistakes when actually doing it. So, since he is my "little bro", I told him that he is a genius in his mind, but the genius gets lost on its way to paper. It's fun. I have to admit that I have had lots of fun at this job. The best part of the job, I never work weekends. It's great.
Sometime at the beginning of May, Karsten invited me to go with him to Utah for one of his mission companion's wedding. Since I don't work weekends, I agreed. It was fun! We left Thursday night and drove to some place near Beaver for the night. Then we left Friday morning and drove first to Springville where we stayed with his Aunt and their family, and then on to Salt Lake for the wedding. Now, I didn't plan on going to the wedding, but Karsten insisted. So I went. It was my first time going inside the Salt Lake Temple. That place is huge!!! We go there late, I guess, and it didn't help that the temple decided to move the wedding to an earlier time. So we got in right before the bride and groom walked in. Clearly, I didn't know ANYONE there besides Karsten. So it was pretty awkward for me. But it was fun nonetheless. Karsten thought that the reception was going to be that night, but we found out it was going to be the next day and up in Idaho. So we left right after the wedding and cruised Salt Lake for some food (we were starving). We ended up going to the Gateway and found some food there.
Then we went back to his Aunts place. She is so funny! She is very blunt, but very hilarious. Most of you know that I'm not a big eater, so Karsten warned me that she would most likely tell me "Don't be a fag. Eat more food." Sadly, She never said it. I waited and waited forever for her to say it. but she said lots of other stuff. So it was fine. That night, we went to Provo and visited with Elise. We had lots of fun catching up and scaring each other with a story about the creepy place behind her apartment where "Old Man George" lives. It was great.
The next day, we went and watched Ironman 2! It was really really good! I loved it. And since we were in Utah, and it was opening weekend, we had to wait in line for over an hour to get a decent seat. But it was worth it.
Other than that, I haven't really done a whole lot. Before my job, Karsten and I would go to Red Rock frequently and hike or bike there. But since we both have gotten jobs, it's been hard finding a time to do it.

Wake Up In The Morning...

2010-02-21T17:36:00.000-07:00

...and I watch this video.

It's great and it makes my day go much smoother. 'Fore I leave brush my teeth with a spoonful of cheer, Cause when I leave for the day, I'm gonna be just fine!
I've been wanting to use that song for so long and change it like that. haha! Anyways. So yeah. I literally watch that video everyday when I wake up. It's so great and has so many things you can learn and be reminded of constantly. And, since I'm so into the "Secret", this goes along perfectly with it! It's so great how the "Secret" and the gospel go hand in hand. It's amazing.
Another thing I've been meaning to share with everyone was a devotional talk here about 3 weeks ago now. It was amazing. His name is Bro. Waddoups. He asked who had had a bad day before, and of course almost everyone raised their hands. He then proceeded to tell a story about a dog named Cholo. Bro. Waddoups worked in a Veterinarian Clinic. He entered the room of the patient. "There was a scruffy white and black dog sitting on the exam table, you have never seen such an emaciated mess in all your life. He had one red swollen eye and what looked to be a large dirt clod on his head. His coat was dirty and unkempt and he was very gaunt." He proceeded to ask the hispanic family that brought the dog what was wrong. A little girl spoke for the family (of course) and said "'We had Cholo put to sleep a week ago.” With that flat statement my gut tightened slightly, I could envision that we had put Cholo to sleep a week ago and that somehow we had not done a very good job, and he had come back to life, you know that can be considered as one of the ultimate failures. That is a hard decision for people to make and if it had gone poorly, I could imagine that they were not happy, so tentatively, I asked, “Did we put him to sleep?” They smiled and the little girl said “no”. Now relieved but still confused I prompted them to continue. This time the mother in broken English began to explain. “A week ago Cholo ran into the road and was hit by a car, it didn’t kill him but he was badly hurt.” “His eyeball was popped out and his skull was fractured, we could see his brain!” “We knew he could not live and so my husband’s friend took him into the desert and put him to sleep.” I asked, “How did he put him to sleep?” She answered that he had shot him five times. I laughed and commented, “He must not have been a very good shot.” “Oh no”, came the reply, “Cholo was dead, and we buried him in a shallow grave.'" From there they continued, "“An hour ago the phone rang and my husband’s boss said your dog is out here and he doesn’t look very good, you better come and get him. We tried to explain that it could not be our dog that he had been dead for a week, but he said he was sure it was our dog and that we had better come down. It was Cholo and so here we are.” Still not sure what they wanted, I ask, “What do you want us to do, put him to sleep?” The mother became excited and began to shake her head, “No, no, Cholo is a good dog, after all of this, he came home to us. We want you to fix him.”

Cholo had had a bad day. He set a new standard for bad days. He had been hit by a car, had his skull fractured, his eyeball popped out of its socket. He had been taken out into the desert away from his family and shot five times. Then to end this bad day, he was buried alive. So with this as our standard, I would submit that I have never had a bad day and neither have most of you. "
The family had very little money, but Bro. Waddoups went ahead and took an x-ray. "I really expected to find very little when we x-rayed Cholo, but when the pictures were developed, he had been shot five times in the head and neck. I don’t know how he was alive, but he was. The dirt clod on the head turned out to be a large laceration and a fracture into his frontal sinus. What they thought was the brain was actually the sinus cavity. We cleaned it up and sutured his wounds. The eye was very red and hemorrhagic; it had been proptosed and because of the loss of blood it had sunk back in to the socket and his vision was fine, even though the eye was very blood shot. Cholo required very little attention, a few sutures and some antibiotics and pain killers. He was a modern day miracle."
Isn't that a great story?! I love it. He then goes on to say how the family wasn't trying to hurt Cholo, but help him. It's a great talk. You can READ it, LISTEN to it, or WATCH it by clicking on the one you want.
So yeah. Now that I've got that stuff out of the way, let's move on to ME! Well, I am SO glad I changed my major to Geology. I've been much happier and I enjoy and LOVE going to geology class! It's always the highlight of my day (school-wise). So I believe I have finally found the career that I truly enjoy! Accounting was definitely not for me. I dreaded going to that class.
Let's see. A couple of weeks ago (the week before President's Day Weekend), I had my interview for EFY down in Provo. I went down with Maddy (Griff's girlfriend), and Kelly. We went down on Wednesday night and stayed in Provo til Saturday. Everyone of course stayed at different places. I stayed with Aunt Janette. Anyways, the interview was AMAZING! So much better than last years. They put us in small groups of 4-5 and told us to come up with a company name based off a scripture and all sorts of stuff. We also had to come up with a cheer. It was much more "EFY" like. Then in the second half of the interview, we had to give a 1 minute devotional on an assigned topic (and it was strictly 1 minute. When the timer rang, you had to stop mid sentence.) and then they asked everyone just one question. I enjoyed it so much. Last year it seemed like it was just questions. It was much more intense last year.
Anyway, after that, Maddy and I went to In-N-Out. There I saw someone I went to EFY with in Santa Barbara. It was great seeing Lacey and catching up with her. Oh the joys of EFY! It was so much fun. We also did lots of exploring around the BYU Campus. I love that campus so much. It's so pretty, but very big! Later that night, we went and picked up Kelly and went to see "Tartuffe" at the BYU theater. It was so much fun. It was a great play and the set and everything was amazing. I laughed so much! Then of course, we went to the creamery right after that.
The next few days, I mainly spent at Liesl's with Ty and Mom, or at Janette's. It was really fun. And Ty is so cute! While at Janette's she made me watch this black movie called Madea and the Family Reunion, or something like that. It was really funny!
Saturday, at around 6 or so, we finally left and went back to Idaho. We got back to Rexburg just before midnight. Overall, it was a great trip and a nice break from school.
Since then, I've taken many tests and midterms, and have done really well in all of them. I've got a 100% in my Trigonometry class, and like an 85% in my Algebra class. Both math classes, but for some reason, trig just makes much more sense to me.
Well, I guess it's time to talk about apartment life. ***Disclaimer***These are my personal feelings and if the person I'm talking about reads this, just know that this is how I feel, as well as the apartment.
So, this semester, roommate wise, has been really great. 3 of us stayed, and we all knew one of the other ones (Noah). Andy (one we didn't know before) is way cool and we all really like him. However, the last one (TJ) is the one no one can stand. We can't handle it. He is constantly talking to himself (though he thinks he's talking to us). His normal talking voice is about 100% louder than anybody else. Personally, I don't think I can take much more of it. I'm really good at ignoring people, blocking them out and all (that's what you develop after having so many nieces and nephews) however, he's like a virus, constantly evolving. I have to continually think of new ways to ignore him and rebuild my wall because he is always breaking through. My patience tank, while it is a lot deeper than anybody else that I know, is very close to empty. In fact, some days, I think I'm running on fumes. It's very annoying. He loves listening to music that nobody else likes (especially music with lots of swearing. We've gained some ground in that aspect at least) and he is always talking about "hot girls" and such in a very inappropriate manner. I talked to the bishop once about this, and we've also considered going to the Honor Code Office about it. However, we keep delaying, hoping that by some miracle, he will change. But, this hope diminishes faster than snow in 300 degree weather.
Ok, well, that's my blurb for the day.If you have any suggestions, comments, or anything on what I can do with this last part, please let me know.

Wowzers!

2010-01-31T15:54:00.000-07:00

Ok, so excuse my extremely long absence from the blogging world. I just haven't really found much time to sit down and write about things as they have happened. Obviously, at this point, there are many things that have happened. I can't remember them all, nor will I try to remember them all. But I will try to talk about the ones that have affected me most.
First HUGE ONE. Fall semester ended! I ended up getting 3 A's and 3 A-'s (I think). Anyways, point of that is I missed qualifying for a full scholarship by .04 points, or so. Pretty ridiculous! But oh well.
Another HUGE and GREAT one was Karsten came home from his mission! For those who don't know, Karsten and I have been best buds since about middle school. Then, I went on my mission, and then a year later he went on his. So it had been about 3 years since I've seen him. (I'm going to do a story post about how Karsten and I met at a later point in time.) When I got home, I basically spent everyday with Karsten. It was great being able to catch up on things and hang out. And the best part of all, and the most incredible I think, was that we could go back to our old ways, and it wasn't anything bad. Normally people go on the mission and change their ways, but we had already done that. So it was great. PS. I also spent a lot of time with Kelly, so no worries there. Since being at school, probably most of the calls I've made have been to Karsten. What are friends for right?
Christmas happened sometime around here. It was a good Christmas with the family that was around.
Another one of my friends, Trevor, got married too. This was my first wedding that I've been to. It was very cool and interesting to watch! Of course, I went with Karsten so he wouldn't be all alone.
New Years, I went with Karsten to his Grandma's place to help serve at her party. It was great fun. How could it not be with a bunch of old people getting drunk?! I don't think there's anything funnier than a bunch of old people that are slightly, or very, drunk. Luckily, I didn't have to clean as many bloody mary's this time as I did the last time I helped out.
School started back up after that. I got a ride with my old FHE sister Cherie. Her car made it all the way to Idaho with no problems, and then died at the stoplight in Rexburg by the railroad tracks. It completely died. Luckily, some kind people towed us up the hill and to her apartment complex. It made for quite the experience.
In school, I'm taking Math 110 & 111, English 316, Geology 111 & Lab, BoM 121, and Capstone. It's all pretty intense. The hardest class of them all...Capstone. It's only a 2 credit class, but the outside homework is at least 6 hours outside of class. It's crazy. Add to that all the homework from the other classes, and I'm pretty much swamped. However, last week I decided I'm not going to do homework on Sunday's anymore. So far I'm doing really well.
This week, I saw two apostles, Elder Nelson and Elder Ballard, and I shook Elder Ballard's hand. It was great! Such a great week. One of Elder Ballard's things that he talked about was strengthening our testimonies since, "you can quote me on this, we are in the last days." He read a poem about an Oak Tree. Here it is

The Oak Tree

by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr

A mighty wind blew night and day
It stole the oak tree's leaves away
Then snapped its boughs and pulled its bark
Until the oak was tired and stark

But still the oak tree held its ground
While other trees fell all around
The weary wind gave up and spoke.
How can you still be standing Oak?

The oak tree said, I know that you
Can break each branch of mine in two
Carry every leaf away
Shake my limbs, and make me sway

But I have roots stretched in the earth
Growing stronger since my birth
You'll never touch them, for you see
They are the deepest part of me

Until today, I wasn't sure
Of just how much I could endure
But now I've found, with thanks to you
I'm stronger than I ever knew

Such a great poem. I really like it!
Oh, towards the beginning of the semester, Kelly and I decided to pull a prank on everyone. We told people we were engaged. Most people believed us. Some people saw right through our lies. We then told the bishop and he believed us for a day or so, then asked me if it was true or not. I had to tell the truth. He just laughed. But it was really funny how many people believed it even though she didn't have a ring.
One weekend, I went cross-country skiing with Andrea and Kelly. It was tons of fun. The only problem was the day before it had snowed a lot, so not all of the trails had been groomed yet. So we attempted to follow where we knew the trails should be. At one point, Paul sunk about 4 feet into the snow out of nowhere. We were really close to the lake, and probably over a bog area, but after many minutes, we eventually got Paul out, and all of us eventually made a way across. It was tons of fun despite there being only 1 main trail groomed.
During Christmas break, Karsten introduced me a book called "The Secret". I watched the movie on-line and quickly was enthralled by it. Then, I checked the book out up here at school. It took me awhile to read just because I didn't have time. But it's really a quick read and very amazing. It's pretty much a secular view on the gospel and it's amazing! The gospel is so intertwined in it! It's great and I would recommend it to everyone! It's changing my life already!
Anyway, that should suffice for now.

The Tale of Thanksgiving

2009-12-24T15:19:00.000-07:00

This tale takes place in the middle of our previous tale. You know more or less how and what Stewart did for that week and how he got there, but here we will go into a little more detail.
Twas the week before Thanksgiving and all through the Burg, every creature was stirring, yes, even Stewart. He had previously made arrangements to go down with Andrea the Amazing. However, the night of Wednesday came along. Adam of Strange Desires really wanted to go home to California. His valiant steed (a 1980 something Jetta) was the vehicular in which he was going to drive. He had originally planned on going alone, but no one felt comfortable with that idea. Amid random shouts and screams from Griffith the Untamed, Kelly the Thankful decided to cancel her flight for the next day to travel with Adam of Strange Desires. Now, she did this with the hopes and idea that Stewart would go, too. However, Stewart wasn't quite sure, as he had classes on Thursday and Friday (with at least one homework assignment actually due in class on Friday). Adam and Kelly tried very hard to convince him to go with them. Even Griff joined in and ripped Stewart's shoes off his feet and threw them off the balcony into the frozen grass below. To say that this was a quiet time of convincing would be the greatest lie ever told in our tales. However, after many screams, and text messages and emails to teachers, Stewart was finally convinced to go on the journey!
The journey was quite joyous. The first stop was at the Fort Hall Casino in Idaho to get some free hot chocolate. It was the first in a long time that Stewart had smelled the smell of cigarette smoke, and it made him long to be home. They lingered in the Casino briefly, filling up their cups with fresh, steaming hot chocolate. Then, they were on the road again.
Stewart and Kelly quickly feel prey to the drowsiness which enshrouded them. Adam of Strange Desires, however, never gave in. He was the true hero. Rolling on and on through the ensuing darkness, eventually they came to a diamond in the rough. A bright, shining city in the middle of the desert was waiting for them. First, Kelly the Thankful was taken to her humble abode where her mother had prepared a very nice breakfast. There were eggs, hash browns, bacon, and other breakfast type foods. And all this was ready by 5 in the morning!

***Ok, so since I've been working on this post forever, and lots has happened, I decided to do a video blog. so here's the rest of the story. Oh, and I don't know why the sound doesn't match up with the picture. I'll have to figure that out for future stuff. Sorry.

The Tale of City Boy and the Thankful

2009-12-12T17:21:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, in a land very far north, and quite cold too, there lived a little city boy. His name was Stewart. He did not like the cold, but very much loved the environment of this little place called Rexburg. One day, after living in the Burg for a few weeks, he met a girl. The coincidence of them meeting was very strange. She was the Mother of her FHE group. Stewart was the Father of his FHE group. They were definitely in different groups. However, on this particular day, Stewart's group was going to play sardines. The group of the girl, whom we shall call Kelly the Thankful, was, and I put emphasis on was, going to go ice blocking. The predicament of both the groups, was that they were very few in numbers. So to make the game more fun, the two groups...Combined! And that was when it all started. The little boy noticed that she had very pretty red hair. He also quickly found out that she too, was from the city known as Las Vegas. But that was all he knew of her.
Now, let's fast forward a few more weeks. The two groups have essentially become one. The epic FHE of all FHE's was taking place. They were playing the Amazing Race. Things turned out very lovely for everyone. Emotions ran high, tempers were raging, and screaming in quiet buildings was common. Everyone had cameras to record their progress through the race, however, very few if any actually recorded. After it was all said and done, Stewart and some of his roommates, mainly Elijah the Convincing, Griffith the Untamed, and Adam of Strange Desires, decided to vanquish their hunger by feasting at the lovely Taco Bell. While there, Elijah the Convincing discovered a camera in his coat pocket. He knew not to whom this camera belonged, but he had the idea that maybe the little city girl with pretty red hair would know. Before the little city boy called her to ask her if she knew, Griffith the Untamed decided that Stewart should ask Kelly the Thankful out on a date. Stewart thought that was silly because previously he had discovered that her Facebook said she was in a relationship. So he assumed that she would most definitely say no. But he called her anyways to ask about the camera. Whilst speaking to her on the phone, Griffith the Untamed, wildly screamed, "Ask her out on a date!" After some laughing, Stewart hung up the phone with the knowledge that the camera belonged to Kelly's roommate. After a few minutes of mild talk of nothing, Elijah the Convincing came up with the most brilliant of all plans to take the camera to Kelly's roommate, and as the same time personally ask Kelly the Thankful out on a date. Before the little city boy could contest, he was swept away and led to the front door of Kelly's apartment. He timidly knocked on the door and who should answer the door, but Kelly herself! He quickly returned the camera, and then with the coercion of his companions, quickly, and shyly, asked Kelly the Thankful what she was doing that Wednesday. As he had suspected, she already had plans. She was going to go to Salt Lake for a concert. However, she was not very certain of this. Noticing the small, but quiet awkward silence, Griffith the Untamed exclaimed, "Well, what ELSE could she do on Wednesday, Stewart?" To this, Stewart responded, very sheepishly, "Well, we are going to the Haunted Mill at 8 if you want to come, too." With a sparkle in her eyes, Kelly the Thankful responded that that would be an excellent idea and that she would let him know if she changed her mind. After a few minutes or so, everyone departed for their own way, and shortly after Kelly had shut the door, a wildly energetic yell rent the air from all of Stewart's companions. The cry was, "STEWART'S GOT A DATE!!!!" And yes, it was true, the next day, Kelly confirmed the fact that she could go. The little city boy was very excited that day! Despite the cold, he began frolicking down the streets of the Burg.
Now, there are many things that happened between that eventful night and today. For example, there was a Halloween dance, in which Kelly the Thankful dressed up as "Little Miss Idaho" and Stewart dressed up as the "EFY COW." And of course there were countless other meetings and dates that happened.
A few weeks before Thanksgiving, with many text messages and pestering from Elijah the Convincing, Stewart asked Kelly about their relationship. Now, Stewart was clearly nervous about doing this, and didn't think it was the right moment, but Elijah isn't called Elijah the Convincing for no reason. So, he finally asked. Now, to be honest, he really wasn't expecting her to say much about it. However, when she responded by saying that she wasn't really looking for a relationship at that time, his heart dropped a bit. She did say, however, that she was enjoying what was happening, even if it was unexpected. She then turned the question on him, which he did not like. To make things as less awkward as possible (this was hard since Elijah was playing romantic music on the computer), Stewart responded that he too wasn't exactly looking for a relationship at that time. He may have lied a little, but it was just as much truth as it was lie. Stewart, to put it simply, is very nervous around girls. One could call him "old fashioned" as he views holding hands and such as very meaningful things. He places these "physical" contacts as very special since his primary love language is Physical Touch (with words of affirmation being ranked as number 1, too).
Kelly the Thankful was starting to become confused. She couldn't tell if Stewart really liked her or not because he would not hold her hand or place his arm around her very often. However, all of Stewart's roommates knew how he felt about her and made sure that she knew this (all this without Stewart every knowing). So things continued as they had before. But then came Thanksgiving break. Adam of Strange Desires decided he wanted to go to California on Wednesday night. Kelly was more than eager to go home despite the fact that she had plane tickets for that Thursday. She jumped aboard quickly with the hopes that maybe, somehow, Stewart might go, too. This was not an easy feat. In fact, it took both the powers of Adam of Strange Desires and Kelly the Thankful to finally convince Stewart that he could do it. And thus we see that with enough pressure,Stewart will choose fun over school work (especially when he isn't going to miss anything at school). Stewart and Kelly were going with Adam to keep him awake and make sure the car didn't die. However, I believe that Adam was there to keep them awake, which he failed miserably. They both slept pretty much the whole way, with small bursts of consciousness here and there.
Onward and onward Adam drove his valiant steed across the state of Utah, Arizona, and finally Nevada, reaching the chambers of Kelly's house at 5am. Kelly's mom had prepared a breakfast fit for kings that early morning, with the sun rising spectacularly over the Las Vegas valley. After gorging themselves with food, Adam and Stewart continued the journey 15 minutes south to Stewart's house, where the Mom stocked Adam with plenty of sweets to last him the rest of his journey, his return journey, and a few days worth more.
During this week, Stewart and Kelly hung out a few times, but mainly with family. It was a delightful vacation. The return was not so delightful, as Stewart traveled home with Andrea the Amazing and her family in their over-capacity minivan. It was a long ride, with blistering heat emerging from the floor vent at Stewart's feet the whole way and poor kids squished into seats. Eventually, the journey was finished and he was once again in the Burg. Later that week, after having once again spent much time with Kelly, they were walking home one very cold night in the snow. While walking like penguins as they were bunched together, Kelly the Thankful said, "Well, since you asked last time, I guess it's my turn. What are we?" Stewart's heart gave a leap of both excitement and nervousness. He clearly knew that they were more than just friends. However, he was also a little nervous to say that they were boyfriend/girlfriend. After walking and talking, and talking and walking, and then standing a talking in the cold, the decision was made that they were going to be boyfriend/girlfriend. It was a glorious night, despite the frigid, below freezing and below living temperatures. Stewart almost danced his way home through the snow. He was a very happy little city boy. One could argue that there wasn't anyone happier than he was at that moment.
And that is the story my young friends. That is how the little city boy began to have a girlfriend, who ironically was also from the city.
Stay tuned for the next installment of "The Tale of Thanksgiving" which occurred during our tale today!

The Change

2009-11-11T19:32:00.000-07:00

Ok, so for the first thing that has really changed since the last time I wrote is I changed my major. I am now officially a Geology Major. I've decided I don't want to be behind a desk the rest of my life. Being outdoors and such is much more enjoyable to me. So I did make that switch. Along with that switch, I also changed my minor. It was Spanish. But now I have set up 2 clusters (a cluster is something unique to BYU-I and is basically half a minor). So to not lose all the credits in Spanish that I have, I kept 1 minor in Spanish, and the other one is Mathematics. So yep! It's official now!
Let's see. In other news, I have been hanging out (on a date level) with Kelly a lot lately. She's really fun! I really like her! She's a lovely person to be around. We went to "God's Everlasting Love" together (It was a performance with words written by Bednar, and he was there!!!!!). It was really good. Then after that, we went to my old roommates place for some Hot Chocolate! It was fun and I heard a great new song. It's called "Oh Yeah" by Jaicko. Listen to it. It's very catchy and addicting! I've listened to it a ton! It just gets stuck in your head really fast!
This weekend was also Stake Conference. So on Saturday, Kelly and I went to conference at 4:30 to 6:30. It was good. Not too bad. There were some great stories shared. Then I had a meeting at 7 til almost 9. That was really long. Oh, the theme for the conference was based off of Doctrine and Covenants 121, 122, and 123. I'll get to that later. So Sunday, they had a special meeting for all RMs at 7:30 in the morning! Yeah, it was super early. It was pretty good. They actually did not talk about marriage or anything like that. It was really good. Then at 9 was normal conference. So we went and after that, I have cringed everytime I've heard "Doctrine and Covenants 121, 122, 123; Afflictions, Adversity, Trials, For but a small moment, etc." They said those phrases like a million bazillion times! It was starting to get very annoying. Based on such a small topic, most of the talks were generally about the same thing, they just used different stories (for the most part). So yeah. That was Stake Conference.
This week, not a whole lot has happened. For FHE, we made 72 hour kits. I've registered for classes for next semester. and besides that, there's really not much!
OH! David Archuleta is coming to BYU-I for a performance December 4th! And guess who is going?! That's right! ME! I got tickets. So Kelly and I are going! There is also another surprise with that, but I'm not sure if I can post it on here because some people read this who it might affect! So yeah! Exciting!!!!!

Dates and Halloween

2009-11-01T16:54:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, let's see. This week pretty fun. So on Monday, after the Amazing Race FHE, my roommates and I went to Taco Bell for some food. We ended up with someone else's camera, so I called Kelly Andrews (she's from the adopted FHE group) and asked if anyone left their camera, and it turned out it was her roommates. Well, while I'm on the phone with her, my roommate Griff yells "Ask her on a date!" She obviously heard and started to laugh. Well anyways, we stayed at Taco Bell for a long time, and one of the workers (whom my roommates knew and asked her to do this) came over and said, "Look guys, you have been here for awhile and my manager has told me to tell you to leave, unless Stewart asks Kelly on a date." It was funny.
So just as I finally decide I'm going to call her, Elijah comes up with the great idea of going to Kelly's place to drop off the camera and ask her out there. So we go over there and drop off the camera and I ask her what she is doing on Wednesday. She says she was possibly going to go to a concert in Salt Lake. My roommates asked who it was, and she said someone no one knew. Then Griff says, "Well, Stewart, What else could she do on Wednesday?" So I invited her to go to the Haunted Mill with me. She was really excited about it! So on Tuesday she confirmed that she wasn't going to Salt Lake.
So Wednesday came along. I was really nervous to go to the Haunted Mill. So we got there and had to wait to get inside. It was really cold outside too! Well eventually we got inside and into the Mill. It was really fun and scary! She had been through it before so she sort of knew what was coming so she would push me in front! Oh I was really scared. At one point, you walk across this bridge over a river, and then all of a sudden, these plank type things splash you with water. I got hit square in the face. And it was really cold outside so the water only made it worse! Well, after having things jump out at me, or follow me, or grab me, or fall on top of me, I got out of the Mill and realized that my hair was frozen!!!! That's how cold it was! It was ridiculous! Then after that, we went to Ramire's for some food! That was fun too! and they have really good Horchata!
Anyways, so the days go by, and on Thursday night, my roommate Elijah decides I need to ask Kelly out for a second date. So he commandeered my Facebook temporarily and talked with Kelly, then called her on my phone and gave me the phone. So I asked her to the Halloween Dance on Saturday. She of course said yes!
Well Saturday came and I planned on dressing up as the Phantom of EFY. But I found out that you can't wear masks or facepaint to the dance. So i decided to not wear the mask. Anyways, I went to pick her up at 7. She was dressed as a "Welcome to Idaho" girl. and then she had some cow ears that she wasn't going to wear, and I thought it would be perfect for my costume. So instead of the being the phantom of EFY, I was the EFY COW!!! (For those who haven't been to EFY, an important aspect is the COW (Crush of Week) So it was a really perfect costume).

Well, the dance was supposed to start at 7, but it didn't. So we went to the Cocoa Bean and I got a pumpkin chocolate chip cupcake with a Pumpkin be my pie hot chocolate! It was amazing!!!!! So Great. She got the Luscious Blueberry Lemon cupcake and a white raspberry satin hot chocolate! It was great.
Eventually the dance started and it was lots of fun. We stayed until the end (11 pm) and I walked her home. It was a really fun night! I saw many EFY counselors there and we would all bunch together when we heard an EFY song! It was really fun!
So yeah, that was my Halloween!

Amazing Race

2009-10-26T19:00:00.000-06:00

Ok, so on Monday, I planned FHE to be an Amazing Race type activity. Let me tell you. Planning that type of thing is SUPER hard! Here are the clues I made up:

ROUTE INFORMATION

Drive yourselves to the Straw Maze located at 411 W 7800 S. At the ticket counter, tell them you are part of Stewart Gubler’s group to receive the group discount. Each member of the team must pay $5 to enter the maze. The team must stay together. Once inside, you must find your next clue before you exit the maze. Please only take 1 clue. When you have exited the maze, you may read the clue and continue on with the race.

DETOUR

Now drive yourselves back to Rexburg. Only one member on the team may complete this task.

Candy Corns

Go to Broulim’s and buy 1 bag of Candy Corns (the original flavor). Once bought, go to the Crossroads and find Bradon and Kelly. One member of the team must eat the WHOLE bag of Candy Corns in order to receive your next clue. If the assigned member is unable to finish the task, you can assign another member to do the task, but you will have to buy another bag of Candy Corns with your own money.

Feline Food

Go to Walmart and buy 2 cans of Friskees Cat Food($0.46 per can). Once bought, go to the Crossroads and Find Bradon and Kelly. One member of the team must eat BOTH cans of Cat Food in order to receive your next clue. If the assigned member is unable to finish the task, you can assign another member to do the task, but you will have to buy 2 more cans of Cat Food with your own money.

ROAD BLOCK

Go to the building that bears this man’s name. Once there, find room 279d. (hint: the door numbers may appear to skip this number. But you must do as on Harry Potter and go between the two where it should be.) Once inside this room, search among the different objects until you find the one-labeled “3”. Your next clue will be there.

**** Please do not try to hide the other clues. If you do, you will receive a penalty of 30 minutes.****

ROUTE INFORMATION

Go to Greenhouse number 279g. Once inside, you must count how many plants are located inside. When you have figured out the number, find Bro. Willis (he should be near the Greenhouse, if not, just look for him) and tell him the correct number. If you get it right, he will give you your next clue.

ROUTE INFORMATION

Make your way to the building named after this man. Inside, you must find Stewart and Emily. They will be somewhere in the building. It is your job to find them. This is the Pit Stop. The first team to arrive here will be the winner.

So those were the clues. Everyone seems to have had a great time! It was sort of hectic at the beginning! But it worked out pretty nice. I wanted everyone to video their journey, but very few did! But it was still great!

I found out shortly after people started arriving to eat the food that they were all buying Candy Corns, and that they were buying the size smaller than what I had seen at the store. But it was ok! I couldn't change it then! So yeah. It was a really fun time! Everyone told me it was the best activity they had ever done for FHE. So I guess I'm good at planning stuff, even if it causes tons of stress when people show up late and stuff like that, or people don't get the money in on time, but it still turned out great! I thought it went really well and I guess so did they!

Masquerade!

2009-10-26T12:38:00.000-06:00

So this week I was asked out to the Masquerade Ball by my workout partner Erika. She left a Jamba Juice on my front door that said, "Stewart, Masquerade Friday?" Well, I thought up a clever way to respond. So I went to Horkley's and bought a big drink. I froze the letters YES in ice cubes and put them in and left a note behind a mask of the phantom that said something like, "In order to find the response to your request, you must follow this simple advice 'Keep your hands (and drink) at the level of your eyes.'". It was funny. Anyways, so yeah. Well, Thursday I decided to make my own mask. So I went to her place and we made a paper-mache mask. They covered my head in ceranwrap and then covered it in newspapers dipped in homemade glue. I'm sure it looked ridiculous. Well anyways, so I left it there to dry over night. The next day I went back over and painted it white and such. Well, they (all the girls) started getting ready at 4:30 while I was still there. I left probably around 5 and got ready. I listened to High School Musical 3 (the song about getting ready for the Prom) and then I went back over around 7:45. It was raining a little. I had my suit on and a cape. Well, when I got there, they still weren't ready! Girls take FOREVER to get ready. but they all looked so pretty! We took pictures, and headed over, through the rain, to the Hart building. The dance was fun! They had a live band playing music and all. It was tons of fun though. I thoroughly enjoyed it. After that, we went back to their place and baked some pizzas and watched a movie. Now I can't even remember which movie. But whatever. that wasn't important. But it was a fun night.

So then on Saturday, I went to bed around 2 I guess, and woke up at 12:30. It felt great. Then I went running 5 miles with Erika and then went home and did homework basically the rest of the day. I did watch the Amazing Race and the Community. Those are great! I also made my clues for my FHE Amazing Race. It's going to be amazing!!! I'll post about it when it's done! I'm so excited!

The Currant Bush

2009-10-18T22:53:00.001-06:00

So I don't know how many of you have heard this talk by Hugh B Brown. I think it's a great one! I heard this last semester, and just thought about it today for some reason. It's a great story. It shows how the Lord works. He knows what He wants us to be. We must thank Him for loving us enough to hurt us!

Click link below to hear the talk. If you don't have 28 minutes to listen to the whole thing, fast forward to about 17:40. The story about the Currant Bush starts around there.
Download "God Is The Gardener"

On Friday, I decided that I was going to clean (or rather, reclaim) my room. My roommate is extremely messy and disorganized and his stuff is always creeping onto my side of the room. So I reclaimed my side and pushed his back to his side. I even did some reorganizing and now my room looks great!! I feel like I have so much more room (but I'm afraid so does my roommate). The battle wages on constantly of pushing my roommates stuff back over to his side. It's ridiculous. And it keeps getting worse.
Well, yesterday was quite a busy day for me. It started at 10 am. I went to do service down at the fairgrounds. It was a stake service project and many people showed up. We pulled lots of weeds and painted the corrals and fences with gloves! That's right, gloves! It was quite funny. To say I got paint all over me would be an understatement. But it was fun. It's always fun getting the opportunity to hang out with people you know and love and do service together! It's great!
After that, I came home and showered and then attempted to do some homework. The key word was attempted there! I have to write a 5 page paper for my Book of Mormon class. I think I got the header on there and that was it. Anyways, after a little while of messing with that, I decided to go exercise with my running partner. So I head over and we start walking towards the high school to run some sprints. However, on our way there, we decide to sprint to G's Dairy (it's an amazing place near Gold's Gym, on the other side of the tracks). So that's what we did. We sprinted there and got some amazing ice cream. I got Gavin's Mess (chocolate ice cream with caramel swirls and oreos) and Blueberry Pie (vanilla ice cream with blueberries and graham crackers). It was amazingly delicious! and while I waited, I tried some cheese curds! Those are so GOOD!!!!!! After eating we just walked back! But it was so good!
Then, later that night, I went to Guitars Unplugged! That was great! So many performances, and a dance afterward! It was a fun dance! We left early though because we were tired, and then I found out that the inside of glow sticks smells really nasty! But intriguing at the same time! Strange stuff!
So today, I wake up at 6:30 to get ready for Bishopric Meeting at 7. As I'm fumbling in the dark, I notice that my favorite pair of Sunday socks is missing. I remembered putting them away on Friday after I did laundry. But they were not where I left them. I was distraught. Well, it turns out my roommate took them. That's what I mean when I said he's getting worse. I've noticed that he takes my hangars, and now my clothes! Oh this is crazy! So I just take my hangars and throw his clothes on the floor (if he had a floor, it's more like on top of his other clothes). But my socks?! What the heck is he thinking?! And without even asking?! Oh the nerves of some people!
Well, today was Ward Conference, so it was interesting. The Stake President was there and all. It was pretty good overall! I liked it! When I finally went home at 4:30 (church gets over at 12 mind you), I made some Hamburger Helper, and then went to plan FHE for tomorrow! That was fun. and I've become really good friends with Bradon Valgardson. He served in the 3rd ward when I came home from my mission! He's so fun!
Anyways, that has been my last few days! I just barely finished my Book of Mormon paper. I think it's pretty good. I guess I'll find out when I get my score on it!

The Best And The Worst

2009-10-14T17:28:00.000-06:00

Ok, so most of you may have heard of, or been involved in the recent happenings. If you haven't, or you have, I just want to write it down for my own personal journal.
So from my last post, you can tell that I thoroughly enjoyed Elder Oaks' talk on Religious Freedom! I thought it was the best thing that he could have talked about in today's society! When I left devotional, I left with the feeling that I would never remain quiet, or that I would stand up and defend my beliefs! So I go through the rest of the day great! I had lots of homework I had to do, so what did I do? I got on Facebook and talked about how great Elder Oaks' talk was. Shortly after that, I see that my brother Todd has also posted something similar. However, his take on the whole take was as completely opposite of mine as you can get. Basically he said that Elder Oaks' talk was the most hateful thing he's ever read, that it's blasphemous and so offensive. Well, I thought that that was the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, so I decided to point out just one, only one of the many errors of his post. So I told him the whole talk was on love and even showed a whole paragraph that spoke only of love for our adversaries and such. Well, I guess that made it worse. So he basically attacked me saying that love and adversary in the same sentence only negates it. (I don't understand that! Doesn't God tell us to love our enemies more than ourselves?! Who knows?) And then Todd accuses me of basically not loving him because I haven't talked with him much since I've been home! (Isn't love a 2 way thing? And ask Charissa how many times I've talked to her since I've been home. I'm pretty sure I've seen Todd a lot more than I've seen Charissa! I guess that means I don't love Charissa?!) I really don't understand Todd, he is right, I don't know him, as he is now. The Todd I know was a great person. We used to always play farm together and all sorts of things. I don't know who this new Todd is. He totally baffles me.
Ok, well, I didn't read the above post until later that night when Tenille texted me and told me not to take Todd's comment personally. That's when I finally read it. At first, I just thought, "What an idiot he is." But then, it really started to wear on me, I don't know why. Then I saw that Tiffany and Tenille had joined the boat and were defending me! that just made me cry more! I have the best siblings in the world! Well, before I could read all of their comments, Todd basically "disowned" me, as well as Tenille and Tiffany and deleted us from his Facebook. I don't care about that whole Facebook thing, but to think that he "disowned" us made me feel so sad and mad. Again, I truly don't understand him. And I probably never will. Being "disowned" is not a fun feeling. I know it's only Todd, and that in a matter of months or years it will be like it never happened, but still, I've never been on the receiving end of Todd's fury. But honestly, I wouldn't change a thing. I did what I felt and knew to be right.
It makes me think of Oaks' Conference talk where he said "we should love everyone, but not let that love supersede God's laws." "Real love does not support self-destructive behavior!" Dallin H. Oaks is my new favorite apostle! He's so awesome and bold!
In my Book of Mormon class, we were talking about his talk and how the other side is viewing it. One of the signs of a true prophet (or apostle) is that they are very unpopular with the wicked! So Oaks must be a freaking amazing apostle!!!! Then we also talked about how many within the church viewed Oaks' talk as offensive. To that our teacher said that they do not have strong testimonies. A true apostle's message is God's message. This topic that Oaks spoke about isn't anything new. And that ties in with another trait of a true prophet, the message is consistent with the messages of prophets past. This topic has been discusses throughout history. It's nothing new. All those within the church that view this message as offensive or inappropriate, or who view the church's stance on Prop 8 and unacceptable really need to do some self-examination! The Prophet and the Apostles will NEVER do anything that God wouldn't have happen. I've heard it said that criticizing our leaders (bishops, stake presidents, apostles, prophets, etc.) is the first step to apostasy!
Well, Here are the 13 ways to recognize a True Prophet/Apostle.
1. He was Foreordained for a specific mission (Helaman 7:7-9)
2. He declared Repentance (Helaman 7:14-17)
3. His message comes from God (Helaman 7:29)
4. He is unpopular with the wicked (Helaman 8:7-9)
5. His message is consistent with what other prophets have declared (Helaman 8:16)
6. There is external evidence to support him (Helaman 8:21)
7. Current prophesies are fulfilled (Helaman 8:27)
8. He gives signs when needed (Helaman 9:23-41)
9. He has the sealing power (Helaman 10:6)
10. Miracles attend him (Helaman 10:16)
11. He pleads for the people (Helaman 11:4)
12. The righteous esteem him as a great prophet with the authority from God (Helaman 11:18)
13. He preaches True Doctrine (Helaman 11:22-23)
There you have it!
I'm so grateful that I have such amazing siblings out there who are willing to defend me when I'm attacked! I love you all so much! I couldn't ask for a better family than this! Just thinking about you guys gives me tears of joy!
Todd, if you read this, I want you to know that I love you too! You are a special person and I love you no matter what! I just want you to be happy, and know that you will never find true happiness in your current path! That is why I pray for you every night. I love you so much! My one and only wish is that our family can be together and complete in the next life! I believe that is what we all want and that is why we express our love to you the way we do, by telling you the only way to be truly happy! I love you bro! I want you to know I forgive you for the way you responded to my comment! I'm not sorry for posting it, but I'm sorry you got offended by it! I love you with all my heart, and Pray that you will one day find true happiness once more.

Religious Freedom

2009-10-13T20:53:00.001-06:00

Religious Freedom - LDS Newsroom

Shared via AddThis

Ok, So the above talk was given by Elder Oaks today at our Devotional! To say it was phenomenal would be an understatement. This should have been a Conference talk! There is so much good information and insights that the whole world needs to hear, but more importantly, people who live in this great country, which was established and founded on a Constitution that God inspired through wise men that he brought up! This definitely puts the gay rights, and all those other "equal rights" people in their place.
I had the privilege of being one of a few hundred who got tickets to actually be in the Hart Auditorium when he spoke. The Spirit was so strong. I got chills many times because of things he said, some of them scary. Read the article and you will understand. Watch it if you can! It's amazing! I left devotional with a new-found feeling of patriotism and the a desire to protect what God has given us that has kept this country great for so long! I hope you guys enjoy this as much as I did and still do!

Times of Change

2009-10-07T17:17:00.000-06:00

Oh where to start? Goodness! So much has gone on. I guess I'll start off with the biggest one.
Apparently, Idaho forgot that Fall comes after Summer. And that Winter come AFTER Fall. They must have missed the memo, because on last Monday, the weather was perfect (in the 80s and wonderful). Well the next day's HIGH, was Monday's LOW (signaling a change in weather). Well, it only went down from there. After that, it...SNOWED!!!! I woke up one morning, and having heard the reports the day before, carefully, and somewhat hopeful that it was a dream, peaked out and saw a lot of white stuff on the roof in front of my window. It was ridiculous! Snow in October? That just shouldn't happen anywhere below Canada. Well, it pretty much snowed the whole night, and half of the next day. Luckily, only about an inch or 2 stuck here in Rexburg, and by that night, the snow was gone, but not the cold. It was frigid cold for the next few days! And even after a week, the weather hasn't fully recovered. Temperatures are no where near 80, or 70, or 60 for that matter. To get into the 50s is a miracle right now! I ~~Hate~~ Strongly Dislike the cold. It's not fun. I feel really sorry for all the plants. They didn't get the memo either. Most of them are still green (not so much anymore. Now they are either dead or bright red and orange and yellow), but things are definitely different now.
So, for General Conference Weekend, I went down and stayed with Andrea and her family. That was fun! Grandma Chambers was down, which made it even more fun. We did lots of puzzles and I got a few silent laughs and she would fart while walking. Gotta love old people! Ha ha ha. And of course, Andrea made amazing meals! Oh, I love eating at Andrea's! Of course Conference was AMAZING!!! Here are my notes (or some of them).
Richard G Scott - Write down all inspirations, whenever they come, ponder them, and pray for confirmation and repeat. That is how the Lord answers prayers, and if we aren't willing to write them down, we will forget them. The Lord will not force us, we must exercise our agency to follow through and improve our ability to be led by the Spirit.
Vicki F. Matsumori - Set aside some time EACH day to just listen to the Spirit. Remove yourself from all distractions!
L. Whitney Clayton - Bear your burden well, no matter how long you have to bear it, and don't complain, but be patient and cheerful. Burdens are for our own benefit.
Russell T Osguthorpe - Learning and teaching are not optional in the kingdom of God. We must always aim high!
David A Bednar - We need to be more diligent and concerned at home. Express love and show it; bear testimony and live it (bear it to those you love most); and be consistent no matter what.
Dieter F Uchtdorf - All you need is LOVE! "God doesn't need us to love Him, but oh how we need to love Him." Try, and keep on trying until it (love) becomes habit.
Dallin H Oaks - God's love does not supercede God's laws. Real love does not support self destructive behavior. If we truly love someone who has chosen a wrong path, we can and must love them, but must not accept or condone, the path they have chosen.
Jorge F Zeballos - Develop your talents and give the best you can. Be better every day.
Kent D Watson - Temperance! Be diligent in your quest for spiritual goals, and be humble to have a temperate soul. Humbleness is Spiritual Strength!
Boyd K Packer - We must keep our mind free of the mindless clutter of the world. We all need to create a "Delete" key in our mind!
M Russell Ballard - His was to father's and sons. To the sons, he said "1. Trust your father 2. Take interest in your father's life and 3. Ask your father for his advice. Nothing shows respect as much as asking him for his advice." To the Fathers he said "1. Listen to your sons in a one to one relationship 2. Pray with and for your sons and 3. Have the big talks with your son."
Walter F González - In order to fortify our families, we must 1. Feast upon the words of Christ 2. Apply in our lives all the attributes of Christ and 3. Teach the doctrine and principles of the Book of Mormon.
Yoon Hwan Choi - We need to take an interest in those who have fallen and be an example to them and teach them correct principles. Through our example, we can help others get back on the path.
Dieter F. Uchtdorf - The cold winters of our lives will give way to warm springs. To remain steadfast, we must 1. WORK. This keeps you from dwelling on your situation. Do not compare your efforts with the efforts of others. There is NO RETIREMENT in the Priesthood. 2.LEARN. This is not like filling up a bucket, but like lighting a fire. Fill your hours and days with righteous tasks. Never neglect the fountain of Revelation.
Henry B Eyring - We must always be prepared (Priesthood especially to give blessings at any time). Have faith that God lives and that you have His confidence and then have confidence to live up to the trust in God. We must have pure motives and Rise with the tide of the rising generation!
Thomas S Monson - Cease from anger and forsake wrath. (This was an amazing talk and he gave such a heart wrentching story of a husband, who in his anger, threw a toy at his wife, missed her, and hit his baby son, giving him permanent brain damage.) "A MAN IS A FOOL WHO TAKES OFFENSE WHEN NONE WAS INTENDED." Stay away from anger and wrath as if it were the plague. Always have a proper spirit with you. Never live in 'might have been's.
Henry B Eyring - We must fill our lives with the love of God and others. Persist in love, pray in love.
L. Tom Perry - "I don't want to go back to the past, but to the past way of facing the future."(Ronald Regan) We must have a desire to share our knowledge with others to help build the kingdom of God.
H. David Burton - We can strengthen those around us by living virtuously and applying the -ity (charity, purity, etc) traits.
Ann M Dibb - We must use the safety that is available to us (Faith, Persistence, and Personal Worthiness). We must get a firm grip upon the Iron Rod and NEVER let go.
Russell M Nelson - In order to access information or revelation from heaven, we must have real intent and study the material. We must seek to understand God's will and then carry it out!
Thomas S Monson - Don't waste much of your time doing things which are of no value. Serve others and do good every day.
Jeffrey R Holland - (Amazing talk!!!!) Even though the mists of darkness came upon all (in the account of the Tree of Life) Some did not let themselves become distracted from their goal. The Book of Mormon was given to bring happiness and hope to ALL! Joseph and Hyrum gave their lives because of their belief in the Book of Mormon. If it wasn't true, they wouldn't have done that!
Quentin L Cook - Providing spiritual nourishment in the home is just as important as providing food, shelter, etc. We must serve everyone even despite our low resources!
Dale G. Renlund - We must not become casual with our scripture study, prayers, etc. for if we do, we are risking eternal rewards.
Michael T Ringwood - Following the counsels of the prophets will bring about an easiness and willingness to listen and follow the word of God.
D Todd Christofferson - We must not be ashamed to express our beliefs. Lack of internal (self) control leads to external control by the government. It is only through obedience to the commandments and laws that we become free.

In other changes, I have started working our regularly now. I'm working out with a friend (who happens to be a girl) and it's going great. On our first run, we ran all the way around the campus. We RAN the whole way. There were many times when I wanted to stop, but didn't want to look like a wimp. Well, turns out, she wanted to stop many times, but felt the same way! It was hilarious! Then we did Abs! Oh gosh! That hurt so much. We did so many. And somehow, through doing them, I must have pinched a nerve or something because I could not look or tilt my head to the right for about 2 days! It was painful! But our workouts are going well! Hopefully, I'll be all ready for the race on Thanksgiving!

Just A Quick One

2009-09-24T23:04:00.002-06:00

Ok, this is going to be super short because of time. But I'll give a quick update.
Saturday night, I went to the Sand Dunes with my roommates and others and we walked across fire!! It was so fun. Burned a little, but it was worth it! And it was so windy out there! But we still had tons of fun and all.
Sunday, I got a calling. For those of you with Facebook (which seems to be just about everyone who reads this blog) know what that calling is. For those of you who don't, I got called as the Executive Secretary. So after church (church starts at 9) I ran home for a quick bite to eat (like no more than 20 minutes) and then did not leave the church building till 6:30, where I had to go to a fireside! So yeah! This is going to be a crazy calling. But the bishopric is very funny! I like them a lot!
Monday, well, there was FHE, which we played soccer and then had some hot chocolate (Yes, It is cold enough up here now that we have to start pulling out the hot chocolate!).
um...the rest of the week, I'm not sure. I have been doing tons of homework lately. that has consumed most of my time. Oh, and today I cleaned my side of the room and it looks GREAT!!!!
Anyways, so for the point of this post! Well, the other day I got an email from the university basically telling me that if I'm planning to change my major, I have to do it this semester, otherwise I have to petition. BYU-I has a credit limit, and well, I'm half way there. After this semester I will have 75 credits! So I need some input from all of you! What should I do for my major. Should I stick with Accounting, or should I change it to Geology? As of right now, those are my options. If I were to do the Geology thing, I would most likely go to Provo after getting my BA here and then work on a Masters there, with another degree in Statistics. Anyways, that is what I'm looking at. So give me some ideas. Family, you know me, my strengths and weaknesses and all. What should I do?

HOMEWORK!!! AHHHH

2009-09-17T23:25:00.000-06:00

Yeah. It's been crazy! So, it's only been about a week of school, and I have already had TONS of homework! Mainly from Accounting. But oh my gosh! I can't believe this! But things are going amazing. I have some fun and crazy roommates. They do something EVERY night. But I'll get to that later. So um...important things to mention.
Sunday I met my ward. Almost everyone is Freshman! It's so crazy! But such is life. But the Bishopric is really great! For my interview with the Bishop, he saw that I was EQP and he asked me about that.
"So Stewart, when were you EQP?"
"Oh, last semester."
"And who says EQP is just a one semester calling?"
slight pause and gasp of breath. "I do?!"

So we'll see what calling I get this semester.
Monday we got a nice rain storm. As is typical in Idaho, it was wonderful weather the whole day, then around 4 or so, high winds come out of no where and a storm blows in and pounds us for a few hours. We had FHE at a church nearby and had some BBQ pork sandwhiches and had tons of fun. Then we played 2 truths 1 lie. Here were mine.
1. I've eaten an onion plain.
2. I've broken my leg twice.
3. I love High School Musical.
As soon as I read them, some people were like, "I can see you liking HSM." I was like WHAT?! You don't even know me yet but they do. It was so weird. But it was fun.
Later that night, my roommates, some girls and I went to Porter Park and played Peanut Butter and Jelly. For those who don't know what it is, it is similar to the Lava monster game where the normal people can't touch the ground, and then the lava monster is all around trying to get them. Well, we play this on a jungle gym and the lava monster can be on the ground and on the playground, while all the rest can only touch the playground. But the person that is it is blindfolded. It makes it very fun and interesting! It was a blast, even though the playground was really wet and slippery. But we had so much fun.
Tuesday since I was bogged down with homework I couldn't go out with my roommates, but they went to the Ice Caves and played glow in the dark tag. I really wanted to go, but had lots of homework. school is so crazy!
Wednesday, once I had almost finished all my homework, we did some finger painting and watched the saddest movie I've ever seen. It was a documentary called "Dear Zachary" It is the saddest thing EVER!!! We didn't think it was going to be so sad. But the main point is how the legal system has to change so that murders are not walking among us. Very sad.
And well today, once again, Homework! so crazy. But I obviously made a break to watch the Office!!! So great as always! And then I just hung out with some people and played games and stuff! breaks from homework are so great!!!
Well, that's it for now. I need to get back to homework!

A New Semester

2009-09-10T18:19:00.000-06:00

Ok, I'm sorry it's been forever since I last updated! I haven't been doing anything really to keep me from updating. But I just never did it. Anyways, so while I was home, here is basically what I did. Went to a surprise party for me (which Mom actually did good at not letting it slip and I was surprised), read Harry Potter 7, 1, 2, 3, 4, and some of 5 in less than 2 weeks, and hung out with friends and did some swimming. It was boring until I actually started hanging out with friends. Oh, and for one weekend, Hayley Hicks came down, so we got together and made cookies at her place. That was fun. We made a Mickey Mouse cookie, a beehive and bee. It was fun! and they were really good too! We even had ice cream! Such a great time.
Um..let's see. I eventually unpacked and then repacked all my stuff for school. I actually took back less things, or maybe I was just really good at packing it all into fewer bags. whatever.
So on Monday, the Padres and I started the trip up to Idaho. We stopped at Larsens on the way up. Of course that was amazing, and then we visited Grandma Gubler. Oh, I love that lady. she's so funny. Even in her old age, she is great at getting people to laugh. I just hope that she survives 3 weeks with the person she despises most on this planet. She said she wanted to go back to rehab instead of be with this person for 3 weeks. I sure hope she does well. After Grandma's, we made our way up to Nephi where we stayed with my sister, Tenille! Her boys are so funny! they crack me up so much. they are the cutest little buggers too! we went to the One Man Band Diner! So good! I love that place. and that was pretty much it for that day. Oh besides the fact that my sister thought that the moon always rose at the same time each night! That was hilarious! Oh, I love my sister!
The next day we left and drove to Idaho. There were quite a few cops on the road, so I actually had to go the speed limit most of the time. but we made it to Idaho safe and sound and ticketless! That night, my sister Andrea made the most amazing dinner, as always. It was cheese and potato soup with some of her famous rolls! Oh my gosh! It was heavenly! She makes the best rolls out there, and some amazing soup too! So we stayed there that night, and had a good time that night. but it was freezing cold up there! It got down to the 30s that night! Crazy Idaho weather.
the next day, I waited until I got my books (they were delivered) and then in the afternoon, we took off to Rexburg. I got to my apartment and found some people I knew. I basically threw my stuff into my room, went shopping, and then the Padres took off! I did a little bit of unpacking. Then I hit the streets and went visiting people. It was tons of fun! Oh I love college life! My roommates are really cool too! This should be a wicked semester!
Today, I had my first 2 classes. The first one was at 8, so I woke up at 6:45 and got the first hot shower of the day. Everyone after me got cold showers. My first class is Origins of Earth Life. It's going to be fun! I love the teacher (I had him 2 semesters ago) and it seems like a really interesting class. We're going to talk about the creation from the scientific view. Starting with the universe and stars, then solar systems and earth, then life on earth and ecosystems, and then humans! It's going to be great. Then after that hour and a half class, I went to Microeconomics. It seems really fun! We did some auctions and stuff to learn a little about economics. It was tons of fun! I'm really excited for that class.
I've gotten lost on campus already. They closed the main entrance to the bookstore and the MC, so I didn't know where to go. so I followed people and saw the new section of the MC they just completed! WOW!! It's amazing. The new cafeteria is so cool looking and so much bigger than the last one. and the bowling alley is open again, and everything is just amazing!!! Except for textbooks. So I originally only spent $400 for books, but I've had to do some exchanges since then. Now the total is something like $460 or something like that. It's crazy!
But anyways, so yeah, that's what I've been up to. I'll try updating more regularly now that I'm back at school. We'll see how well I do with that!

Camping, Grades, EFY, OH MY!

2009-08-14T22:32:00.003-06:00

Ok, so there is tons to talk about. It has been what...3 or so weeks since I've posted. Well, that's for a good reason. I have been UBER busy! So let's start with...Camping!
Ok, so the week I got out of school, I went camping with Andrea, Ashlyn, Brinley, Raygen, and Jen and her kids. We went to Green Canyon because the kiddos had a swim camp thing! Tons of fun! They would have their lessons 2 hours in the morning, and then in the afternoon, it was free swim so we would all go swimming! Well, during the lessons, we'd just sit around and watch them swim and such. Well, Brinley's teacher caught my eye. She was very attractive. In my head, I placed her at 20 or so years old. Well, that whole week, I never got to talk to her, but there was lots of eye contact. Hahaha. Writing this makes me laugh. Anywho...So to make a long story short, I never talked to her that week, BUT Andrea did. Turns out she isn't as old as I thought. She's taking a few classes from BYU-I, so that's good right. Anyways, to make this story short, after camping, I look her up on Facebook (not in a stalkerish way). I write her a note that says something like "Thanks for teaching my niece..Blah blah blah." Then to make it look better, I had Brinley write her a note too! It was perfect. So, she adds me as a friend. Then we ended up chatting for a couple of hours or so. Well, are you ready for the best part. After avoiding the question for awhile, I find out her age....*drum roll*.......She's 16 (well, as of yesterday she is now 17). But yeah! So how about that?! Makes things interesting. But yeah. Next story.
So after a fun week of camping in the sun and getting an amazing tan (I got my flip flop tan line back!!! Yay me!) It was time for EFY. Saturday I had a training meeting which was pretty fun. It made me so excited, but really nervous too! But I met lots of other people who were just starting too, so it made me feel better. Then Sunday came. I had dinner out there at EFY with my new friends. And then the fun started. The Fun Began! I met tons of people who were going to be counselors that week, and even the session director (Bro. Glenn Davis). Then I met my BC (Building Counselor) and then I met my Co-Counselors. Oh, it was so much fun! And this was only the first day!
Well, Monday was registration day for all the kids! I was so hyper that day! I couldn't control myself. I was dancing around and jumping and running! Oh it was great! I even got to wear the Hibiscus shirt (it's really pink but they called it hibiscus). Anyways, so we checked everyone in and I finally got to meet my boys! I was really nervous. This was the first impression and everything. I also had to lay down the rules for them. But it turns out they were great. I was missing 2 boys (they hadn't checked in yet, but they would later that day). I ran over the rules and made sure they understood and got to know them all. They seemed like really good kids. Then I met all the girls in the group and that was when one of my kids checked in. He was from Hawaii and had just arrived (the other one was still in transit). The 2 from Hawaii did not bring any pants at all. Somehow they didn't see the small print that said at BYU-I no shorts are allowed. So we had to take them out to buy some pants. Anyways, the group was called "Be Just". We all went out to FHE for a lesson and then games, and then it was night time. Every night, I have to give a devotional. It went well, and then I tucked in all 8 of my boys! They were confused when I told them I was tucking them in, but by the end of the week, they loved the moment I tucked them in. (Just a side note, we were encouraged to tuck them in.)
Well, I could go day by day, but that would make this a super long post. Let's just say that it was the best week ever. I had this one boy, Curtis, who was absolutely amazing. He was so spiritual. He made the most amazing comments and asked the most profound questions. One morning at gospel study (they have about 20 minutes or so each morning to study their scriptures), I challenged them to Understand the scriptures instead of just reading them. Well, in that time, Curtis read one, That's right ONE verse and explained it in so much detail that it completely blew me away! This kid is my favorite. And he is so humble too. When I would catch him alone, I would tell him how amazing he was and he would just shrug it off and say that it wasn't him, That without God, he was nothing. What teenager says that? Honestly?! I had some amazing talks with him. And every time I talked with him, he would blow my mind away.

There are countless stories I could share from EFY. So much happened and it was all just amazing. For all of you with kids, I would say send them to EFY at least once. It is the greatest experience for them. I saw the kids grow so much in that short time. It's amazing what they are capable of. The youth of this generation are a chosen generation. Now I understand why the apostles and prophets always talk about them because they are the best!
Click to see my EFY Photos. If You have Facebook, you can see a lot more pictures of me from EFY. The kids were always taking pictures while I was dancing and being crazy!

Well, changing the subject completely, most of you know but for this last semester, I got straight A's! That's right. 17 credits and Straight A's! I was impressed! Although I have to admit, I wasn't too worried that I wasn't going to get them.
So after EFY ended (and I cried so much the last 2 days of it), I went back to Andrea's and stayed there. On monday, we went to Ross Park in Pocatello for Ashlyn's Birthday party. It was fun. Swimming for most of the day. And this time, I did get burnt. but just on my shoulders. Then the next day, I drove Ashlyn, Brinley, and Raygen down with me to Vegas while Andrea and the others went camping in Yellowstone. It was a good drive. The kids stayed quiet and all went well.
So I am finally home. I haven't done a whole lot yet. But this will be the longest I've been home since the mission. I'll be home for almost a month! That's how much time I have been home since the mission. So this will double it! Crazy!!!!!

Finally Done!

2009-07-26T12:37:00.004-06:00

Well, It's official now! I have completed my first year at college! And what a ride it has been. Lots of stuff has happened since the last time I posted. One of which was a choir performance. Here are some of the songs we did. We also sang "Kiss The Girl" but I guess the person didn't get the video. That was my favorite song. And we even had this big black girl come and teach us how to say the words! It was hilarious! But yeah. So here are the videos.

Um...let's see. The last 2 weeks of school were crazy! I've never studied and partied so much in my life! It was so fun and hectic. But I did it, and survived! I don't think I went to bed before 2 every night the last 2 weeks! Heck, one night, I didn't go to bed until 4 or 5! But it was so worth it! Hanging out with friends is so much fun, and helps you forget about the stress of school! I think it helped me out a lot! I guess we'll find out if that is true as soon as I get my grades!
Well, anyways, can I say that I love the sand dunes out here! They are so much fun!!!! Granted, they get sand in every part of your body! But it's so much fun!
I think this has been my best semester ever! I've made some amazing new friends, had the best classes, and if everything works out, it will be my first semester with straight A's! Wahoo! So yeah. I'm so excited. Sad that I have to leave so many friends behind, especially the ones that are going on their missions soon! But it's all great!
Oh, another things that was good was I passed my White Glove! I didn't get charged for anything! I was so happy! Granted, I did clean for a very long time! A couple of days with a couple of hours spent during those days! It was fun! But the apartment looked great! Now I'm at Andrea's just chillin until next week. I'm going camping with Andrea and her youngest kids at Green Canyon for swim camp! Then the week after that is EFY!!!!!! I'm so excited! A little nervous, but super excited! I can't wait! And then on the 10th of August, I should be heading home! At least until September. So that is my plan.
Oh, I really miss everyone from school! Those were some great times and great friends!

4th of July Part 2 (finally)

2009-07-10T23:54:00.005-06:00

Ok, so I'm finally going to finish this stuff.
So on Friday, It was basically my lazy day. I just stayed in IF and finally finished my book for school. It's "The Five Love Languages". After reading it, I found out I have 2 primary love languages, mainly Touch and Words of Affirmation. So yeah! I did find out some good stuff from that book. I'd recommend it to anyone. So yeah. That was my friday, just laid back and all.
Saturday! So I woke up early and went with Ten, Andy, Paul, and Mac to take pics of their 5k. It was fun. I was surprised how fast people were in that race. It was crazy and so many people. After that, and later in the day, we all went to the flag display. Tons of flags, 1776 to be exact, in a field. It was very impressive! I'll even admit it was a little warmish out there underneath the sun.

From there, we went down my the falls and walked around the booths and such that they had set up there. Can I say that Idaho has a ton of really really strange and scary people. In fact, I think I can safely say that if people in Idaho aren't Mormon, they are most likely strange (either white trash, major redneck, or just straight up scary). We weren't there for very long. It wasn't very exciting either. Then, later that night, after taking a nap and eating some KFC, it was Firework time. The little kids played with sparklers for a long time.

Then Kayli and I snuck away and climbed up on the roof where we could get a clear view of the Fireworks. It was really cool! I love Idaho Falls' Fireworks! they are the coolest EVER!

after that, we went and did our own fireworks that Paul and Brady had bought. Some of them were pretty cool. and the kids seemed to enjoy them a lot! So it was a great day.
Sunday, Just church as normal. Ok! Here is how the EQP started off his lesson in Andrea's Ward word for word. "Ok, I do not like to paraphrase what the prophets have to say, so we're going to read what they wrote." OMG! I could not believe it. First off, there are like 5 people in the quorum. Second, reading word for word is very boring. Third, the guy right in front of me was asleep most of the time and was breathing very very heavily! It was hilarious! But such is life at Andrea's ward. so yeah.
Well, that was my 4th of July Weekend Vacation! Had fun and enjoyed the break from school!

4th of July Part 1

2009-07-06T22:05:00.006-06:00

Ok, so this 4th of July weekend was the best!!! I had a 4 day weekend luckily!!! So that made things even better.
Well, to start off, Thursday morning, Tenille and her family came and picked me up and took me to Jackson Hole with Andrea and her family. That is such an amazing drive and such a pretty place! Once we got there, we went to the Alpine Slides. This was my first time ever going to Jackson Hole. So I was a little nervous about the slides after hearing horror tales about Paul. But it was a blast! I could have stayed there for hours!!!!! it was so much fun!

After playing on the slides, we went out to Mormon Row near the base of the Tetons! Now that is a very pretty place! In fact, that is now where I want to move to! Either Mormon Row, or Jackson! Either one! They are so pretty. There was even a herd of buffalo out there! It was just WOW!!!!!

After Mormon Row, we went back to Jackson Hole and had lunch. I went with Blackett Family and ate at a Mexican Place called "3 Piggies" or something like that. It was really really good Mexican food! I was very satisfied! And let me tell you. That Braxten has quite the throw, and Tenille has some amazing reflexes. He tossed a chip dipped in salsa, and Tenille somehow put her hand up just in time to stop it from hitting the people behind us! I thought it was funny, but that Braxten can have quite the attitude!!!!
After lunch, we went to the park and just relaxed for a long time. That was fun and very pretty.

After that, we drove home. It was a very pretty drive home, but I guess it was too much for me because I dozed off somewhere! But it was a great day! When we got back to IF, we just chilled! I think we did something else, but I'm not sure what it was! So yeah. That was Thursday. Tomorrow I'll try to post about the rest of the weekend!

The Date!!!

2009-06-27T20:55:00.002-06:00

So, I'm sorry I didn't take any pictures from the date! But just know it was amazing! Actually, it was a pretty good day overall. Earlier that day, I went to take a test for my Middle East class, and I got a 100%!!!! It was great! Then, there was a wicked storm that poured rain for like 5-10 minutes, which cooled down the already cool weather, and then 10 minutes later, it was beautiful weather. No clouds in the sky, sun shining brightly! I tell you, Idaho weather is WHACK!!!! I can't take it! but yeah.
So for the date, I made dinner. I made Apricot Chicken, Rice, and some of Mom's Homegrown Corn! It all turned out amazing! I was very impressed with myself. I pulled out some Guatemalan stuff and made a table cloth and set the table very carefully. (now, this was supposed to be either a double or group date, but everyone else bailed out the last minute). Anyways, So she arrived right as I was pulling the stuff out of the oven and such! She loved the meal! And not to brag or anything, but it was AMAZING!!! Needless to say, she was very impressed. She had had a rough day that day, and this made it all worth it she said! Well, after dinner, I decided to take her to The Cocoa Bean It was her first time, and she totally loved it! (by the way, if you click the link, it takes you to their blog and shows what they make. It's amazing!!!) Anyways, so yeah. We did that, and had a great time there!
After that, she decided she wanted to watch a movie (and since the cheap theaters are just right around there) we went! She picked X-Men Origins. Neither of us had seen it, but it rocked!!! Except for the theater. not even 5 minutes into the actual movie, it stopped! And there was no A/C, so it got really hot and stuffy inside! but it was a great movie! When that ended, it was late, so we both walked to her place and....She was locked out! So she broke into her place through the window (she says she does it all the time) and then...
Well, it was only the first date, so I ended....with just a hug! Duh! Come on! I'm slow, but I do not believe in a kiss on a first date! Nor holding hands, even though I really wanted to! But I didn't! So yeah! That's the date! It was so much fun! I really want to ask her out again! I really would like to see this one progress!!! So yeah!
Oh, before I forget, here are the videos from the choir performance. They didn't get the "Come Thou Fount" song, but oh well. So enjoy!

WHAT?!?!?!??!?!

2009-06-24T11:36:00.002-06:00

Allergies in the end of June?! How crazy is that?! It only happens in Idaho I guess. And let me tell you. It sucks!!! It looks like I'm constantly crying or something. It's so bad! Right now I have tear streaming down my face because my nose itches!!! I hate this!!!! If I was in Vegas, I would have had my allergies Months ago! Oh well!
So the big news! I'm going to BYU as soon as I get my Associates Degree (so in 2 semesters!) I should be in Provo next Fall! So we'll see how that goes!
Oh, I have a date lined up for this Friday with Cherie!!! I'm so excited! So here is my idea! Help me make it better. First, around 7, I'll make Apricot Chicken and stuff and eat dinner. Then after that, we'll go Ice Blocking, and then after that, depending on the time, we might go to the Cocoa Bean for dessert! Any suggestions on how to make it better? I'm open for anything!
Oh, since I'm in the choir, last Friday, we had a concert! It was so much fun! I'll post videos soon of what we did! But it was a blast! the last song we sang was "Come Thou Fount" It was incredible! I got goose bumps while singing it! It was AMAZING!!!!
Well, I really can't think of what else has happened since the race, which I haven't talked about here, but oh well. that should suffice for now!

Mid-Term Grades!

2009-06-11T21:49:00.002-06:00

So, I found out my mid-terms this week. I'll admit, I'm not too happy with the results! But I can't really complain! I did try my hardest! And that last week was amazingly hard and difficult and busy! But anyways, so here are my grades!

STEWART ALAN GUBLER

1st Summer Term 2009

Department	Course	Course Title	Mid-Term	Credit	Points
FDINT	203	MIDDLE EAST	A	.0	.0
FDSCI	201	NATURAL DISAST	A	.0	.0
FDCOM	201	PROF COM FND 2	A	.0	.0
SPAN	302	READ HISP LIT	A	.0	.0
FDREL	324	D & C	B+	.0	.0
MUSIC	315	MEN'S CHOIR	A-	.0	.0
CIT	140	MICRO APPLIC	A	.0	.0

Totals are for Selected Term	Credit Carried	Credit Earned	Points Earned	Grade Point Avg
Current Semester	17.0	17.0	65.9	3.876

So what do you think?! I'm sort of happy with that! There is some room for improvement obviously! so yeah!
Oh, the race is in like what....1 day!!! YIKES!!! Not quite ready for it! I have gone running this week twice and am done until the race. I'm a little afraid though! So I guess just give it my all, like it did so far this semester, and hope for the same results!!
Oh, does anybody have some good, cheap, fun ideas for dates?! I need some ideas!
Oh, and guess what!!! I finally got accepted as an EFY Counselor for Rexburg the first week of August!!! I'm so happy!

OVERLOAD!!!

2009-06-04T16:57:00.002-06:00

So this week has definitely been one of Stress Overload! It was mid-terms this week. Now, last semester, I had no mid-terms at all. It was wonderful and I felt really bad for those who had mid-terms. Well this semester, the tables turned. I had tons of mid-terms. That explains my absence from the blogging world. It's been a gradual increase of stuff until this week when it all poured in. So basically, the last few days, I've gotten very little sleep and have eaten hardly anything (not because I wasn't hungry, but because I didn't have time).
Monday, was FHE! It was awesome! We went to Porter Park and played in the water area. Granted, it was like 50 outside, and sort of raining, but it was still fun despite the fact that my toes froze (literally) and then got torn up on the grass playing Ultimate Frisbee. So yeah! Then, after that, we went to someone's Mission call opening! It was fun. He got called to Des Moines Iowa, Spanish speaking. then to celebrate, we went to Applebee's and had the slowest service EVER!!! I think we got there around 9, and we didn't get our food till like 10:30 practically. It was insane. But they convinced the waitress that it was my birthday, so I got a free cup of cheesecake!! It wasn't that good though!
Tuesday, Stress limit was approaching the overload limit. I had so much homework to do that it was ridiculous! I also had to enter Home Teaching reports (by the way, the ward got 66% home teaching this month! oh well) But to relax a little, I went and did Tae Bo with 2 of my FHE sisters! That was so fun, and sort of hard! But it felt great to do!!!!!
Wednesday, this was the day that the stress limit went way past the overload limit. This day, I had no time to eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner! I was doing homework the ENTIRE DAY! I've never done that before. I just grabbed a roll of Ritz Crackers and ate that for lunch, and then for dinner, I took some time to cut some cheese and put that on the Ritz Crackers! I took 2 exams this day, watched about 2 1/2 hours of Middle East News clips and then wrote reports about them, read 2 Spanish stories and took a written exam on them and spanish literature. And on top of that, I had to write a 250 word essay in Spanish about Prose (doesn't seem hard, but when your teacher wants exactly 250, no more no less, then it's sort of hard), and did tons of reading for other classes! It was insane! To make it worse, I was so exhausted, that I kept falling asleep while doing the homework. My roommate Will came home from the temple and found me asleep on my computer! It was really bad! Ok, I guess I should mention part of the reason I was so stressed. I had procrastinated some of the homework. Mainly the 2 1/2 hours of Middle East homework and the Spanish essay and readings. But yeah. So that helped with the Stress
Today, I found out that one of my exams has been changed to Friday- Monday. I was upset, because I wanted to get it done and over with. But now I can't. Oh well. And Friday, I'm going to a Cabin with Andrea and her family. so that should be fun!! I can't wait! a nice break from the stress!!!
But yeah, that's my story.

Fish!!!

2009-05-21T16:49:00.003-06:00

Ok, so the other day, my roommate Will made fish! I told him straight up that I hate fish. But he still insisted that I would like it. It was trout. Well anyways, he made it. It did smell pretty good. I'll admit that much. And the seasoning on it was really delicious! But once I got into the meat....UGH!!! It was so disgusting! I ate just a tiny tiny bit. I couldn't do it. It was so disgusting. I mean, just looking at it made me sick (he cooked it with the scales on and the tail). But anyway, so I can at least say I've tried it and HATE IT!!!!! Fish meat has the nastiest taste!!! Most things in Guatemala didn't even taste that bad!!! So yeah! That's that story.
Today, I woke up early and I ran the bleachers here! Oh My Gosh! I don't know what I was thinking! That was so hard and painful! My legs were burning up! The last section I almost died! It was so intense! But yeah. I figure if I do that regularly, that will build up some muscles in my legs! so yeah! And tonight, I'm going to do Tae Bo with my FHE sisters! So that should be fun!!! I'm just trying to get ready for this stupid race!
Oh, I found some helpful stuff for the race. Check out these links. 10 Tips to Race Tough 3 Ways to Prevent Running Injuries
Hope those help you guys!

Planning, Busy, Running

2009-05-16T13:37:00.003-06:00

So this week has been crazy! So I was officially set apart as Elders Quorum President on Sunday. So this week has revolved around that mostly. but here goes the week.
Monday - Meet my FHE group. Let's just say, there are some interesting kids in the group. One of the kids, for his interesting fact about him, said, "Sometimes, I read textbooks for fun!" Honestly?! Who does that? Only this kid. And not to be judging, but he looks pretty weird. Semi-long, never combed, and stringy blonde hair, strange eyes behind glasses, and slightly (maybe more than slightly) overweight. Sounds like a great kid huh?! This will be really interesting.
Tuesday - my ex-roommate (Ryan) got his mission papers returned saying that he could not serve a mission "at this moment." Well, he came over to my apartment a mess. He was crying like none other. He walked in and gave me his phone. I was confused, so I took it and said "hello?" It was his mom. So she explained to me the whole ordeal and asked if I could keep an eye out on him for her. She was very very worried about him. She's such a sweet Mother. So we traded contact information. Then I just sat down next to Ryan, and we talked a little. He calmed down enough to the point where he could talk normally. I'm not sure if he has the right intentions for going on a mission, but who's to judge? After that, I went over to the bishop's office, and I tried to set up Home Teaching! Not fun at all. After 2 hours, I still hadn't done much. This stuff is crazy!!
Wednesday - Not quite sure what all happened, but I did spend another 2 or so hours of working with Home Teaching in my room and went and printed it off. Then, I went door to door in my ward and delivered them! My hand was so sore from doing that! Oh gosh!
Thursday - Once again, not sure what all happened. Just a normal day at Rexburg. I took an exam on the Middle East (FYI, that is one of my classes, it's called "Understanding the Middle East") Anyway, I went and took the exam and I got a 100%! I was pretty happy. It wasn't hard at all.
Friday - Right after I got out of school at 4:15, I came back to my apartment, and went to IF with Will (my roommate), Chris (his friend), Cherie (the Vegas girl that I've talked about before), and Laura (her roommate from England). We went to the Homestyle Kitchen! That's my Bishop's Restaurant. All I can say is WOW!!!!!! AMAZING!!!! I got a French Dip which was to die for, and then for dessert, I had Strawberry Banana Pie!!! It was to die for!!! Everything in the restaurant is homemade (even the bread!) and is just the most amazing food EVER!!!! Then, Bishop Cherry gave us a huge bag of day old cookies (it must have weighed easily over 5 lbs.) and then 2 loaves of bread (one whole wheat, and the other french bread). Gosh, I love that man! He is amazing!!!! and cooks FANTASTIC!!! So now, I have a new favorite restaurant!!!!!!!
Saturday (today) - The ward had temple baptisms at 6 am. So I set my alarm to go off at 5:15. Well, at 6:15, Will (who also set his alarm for the same time) came in and told me that we were going to be late. Somehow, neither of our alarms went off. So we got dressed and went to the temple. It was great! I got to do confirmations! that was my first time. it was so much fun too! After the temple, I went home, did a really quick workout and stretch, and then walked to Smith Park (probably at least 20 or more minutes away) Once there, I started the 10k run!!!! FYI to all! Idaho has a much higher elevation than Vegas, and therefore, the air is thinner. I had to take many breather breaks because I couldn't breath! But in the end, I ran the 10k in about 57:55 minutes! I'm not happy with that time, but we'll see how much I improve in this month!

Mother's Day

2009-05-10T13:37:00.004-06:00

So today is that special time of the year when we go out of our way to show our Mothers how much they mean to us. Granted, we should be doing this on a daily basis since it was because of them that we are here! But at least the world has given those special people in our lives at least one day to remember them.
So today, in church, I had to give a talk on Mothers. More of what was one thing that I learned from Mom that has helped me out the most. Now, there are countless things that you, Mom, have taught me. Just to name a few: How to clean; to be reliable; stand for what you believe; how to be stubborn (in a good way); charity; service; unconditional love to all; helping those around you; pure love; discipline; willingness to give; and the list could go on forever. But in my talk, I focused on You Always Being There. With nine kids, I don't know how you did it. But you somehow convinced everyone else that they were your favorite. Now, I know that I am the true favorite, but that is amazing that you made all the others feel the same way, too. You gave all of us the time we needed with you, and then some. You truly are amazing. I'm sure you have realized how important that is to me, and to all the other siblings (and all the other people you have met in your life). Just like the Savior, you make us all feel like we are special children; that you truly love and care for each one of us no matter what. Mom, I cannot express in words how grateful I am for everything that you have taught me. I cannot express how much I truly love you. The words, "I love you" just don't seem to do justice. But I love you. And I miss you a ton. I miss you tucking me in at night and kissing me goodnight. I miss you telling me how to drive. I miss seeing you reading your scriptures throughout the day. I miss watching you write down the names of everyone that is in church, and who bore their testimony. I know this sounds cliche, but I sure hope my wife can be just like you. I'm surprised you haven't been translated yet. And I know you are laughing right now at having read that, but it's true. The Lord is truly blessing us by leaving you down here longer! You are amazing.

Karen is Kind to all and Kwick to lend a hand whenever there is a need.
KAren is Amazing in All Aspects, Able to do Anything required of her.
KaRen is Righteous in every way, a Representative of all that is good.
KarEn is Energetic when it comes to her grand-kids, and Enthusiastic when it comes to spoiling them.
KareN is Never too busy to lend an ear.
But most importantly, Karen is a Mom!

Common is the composer who composes, the artist who makes art, the mathematician that does his arithmatic. These profess their profession. But rarely is the homemaker recognized as the maker of her home, the mother an architect building the future, the protector of life as it endures... rarely are these professed, or considered professions, though they are proven professions so essential to our world!

Mother, I love you! You are an example to all of what a mother should do, how she should act, and in general, what a mother should be! I love you so much! Thanks for being such an amazing person in my life! You have taught me so much, and I will forever be in your debt! You truly are the greatest!
With tons of love from your favorite child up North,
Your baby,
Stew

Run!

2009-05-09T15:32:00.003-06:00

I know I know! It's been a long time since I've posted! And a lot has happened. so let's see how much of it I can remember.
Well, Last week, I had "the talk" with Tiana. Most of you know this already, but we are now officially "broken up". But it was a good break up. We are still friends and all. So it was great! no hard feelings or anything.
Then that weekend, I flew down to Vegas for Morganne's baptism. that was awesome. I baptized her (That was her request). It was fun being able to see all the family this time. I actually spent almost all of the time with my family. So now Mom can't complain as much. But I can't wait to do it again. Possibly over memorial weekend?! Who knows! Anyways, I'm so proud of little Morganne and her choices she has made! she is so cute! I just love her!
Then that Sunday, since I was still in Vegas, I missed out on my opportunity to be on TV. I'm in the BYU-I Men's Choir, so we were going to sing for Bednar at the fireside, but I wasn't there. Oh well, Being with family is much better!
That monday, I had to leave to come back to Idaho. So Dad takes me. We stop to get gas at Costco, and then he gets on the Freeway at MLK, but goes the wrong direction. Now, I don't know how many of you know this, but 98% of the offramps on I-15 South are closed from MLK to Craig. So we had to go all the way out to Craig before we could turn around. It was crazy. Eventually, we got the airport. I rush to the ticket counter and the guy tells me I can't check in there because it is so late. I run inside to check there, and the lady says, "You are very lucky. The plane is delayed 20 minutes." (the plane was supposed to leave at 4:45 or so, and we got there at like 4:15/4:20) So we (ashlyn and I) Rush through the airport and finally get to the plane. Well, we didn't end up getting on the plane for another 30 or more minutes once we got there. And then once we got on, it was delayed again because someone tried to flush a diaper down the toilet. so they had to fix that before we could take off. It was crazy. But we go to Idaho safely.
Um...let's see what else. this week has been just busy with lots of homework. Tenille! the spring semester is not even easier than the other semesters. I've had more homework this semester than last semester!!!!! not to mention that I'm taking 17 credits! but oh well. Somehow I will survive.
Oh, and then this morning, I went running! I ran 2.26 miles in......20:36 minutes. Not too good. Granted, that is running up a hill for most of the time, but still. times that by 3, cause I should be running 6 miles, and that is 1 hour! Yikes! that is not a good time for a race!!!! I have some major improvement to do there!

EQP

2009-04-26T21:32:00.002-06:00

Yeah, That's me! I sort of figured. But I'm trying to be positive about it. So here is how the run-down went. I was getting ready this morning. I noticed that I had a voicemail. So I listened to it, and it was President McGary (my stake president). He wanted to know if I could meet with him at 8:45 am, that day (he called at 8 am). So I get ready and I head on over to his office. I get there early, cause I like to get to places early. Well, I didn't actually get in to see him until 9 (that is when my church starts). So I go in, and basically, he tells me that I'm the Elders Quorum President. So yeah! He also said he was going to set me apart at 9:30, but he never made it. So now I'm the EQP! Now all the fun begins. I have to find counselors in a ward where I know no one! The whole ward has changed!!! So yeah, that should be fun. I think I've narrowed it down to a few choices. So we'll see what the Lord has planned for me this semester. Oh, at the end of the interview, he asked me how many credits I was taking. I told him 17, to which he responded, oh, just add 5 more to that. So yeah. This is going to be a really busy semester!!!! So yeah! That is the latest news!

Sorry....

2009-04-25T15:40:00.004-06:00

It has been a very long time since I've posted anything here. Lots has been going on. Well, let's see. I spent Easter with Andrea and her family. That was tons of fun, and the Easter Bunny even found me up there. It was there that I found my new addiction: the Wii Fit! It's the best thing in the world, and is a true work out! I love it!
That Monday, I flew down to Vegas! Oh lovely Vegas! How I LOVE THEE! I sure do love Vegas! It was great being home, except for the cold weather that seemed to follow me. I spent lots of time with my friends. Sorry Mom, and the rest of the family that didn't see me as much as they wanted. Anyways, so while home, I went to the theaters a lot. I saw "The Haunting in Connecticut", "Monsters vs. Aliens" in 3-D, and "17 Again". The first one wasn't that great. But the last 2 were amazing. Monsters vs. Aliens is now one of my favorite Disney movies. and 17 Again, is so funny and has a great message. I also finally saw High School Musical 3! It was really good! I like it a lot! Game night was also fun, where we played Loaded Questions (I think that was what it was called) That was great! One person reads a questions and everyone puts down their answer, then someone else reads all the answers, and the person who read the question has to guess who's answer is what.
Well, then it was Morganne and Maddy's Birthday party. That was fun, of course. Playing on the playground and get wet was lots of fun! Oh how I love all my nieces and nephews! They are so much fun to play with!
And I think that about sums up my Vegas Vacation. Then I left with Heidi and her family to come back to Rexburg. We stopped at Larsen's on the way. Gotta love Piccadilly chips! Oh, and can I say that Allie is very demanding. Every 2 seconds she was telling me to get her something. But I still love that girl to death!!!! Logan and Mason were pretty quiet with their DSs, but the occasional fight did break out. And of course, Rylie was not a very happy traveler. So we stopped in Nephi for the night. The next day, we traveled with Tenille all the way to Idaho Falls. Rylie did a lot better on this trip.
Well, once there, just the normal chit chat and all. And then I came up here to Rexburg Sunday evening. It was going to be just me and 2 other roommates, but now, it's just me and 1 other roommate. It's pretty nice!
Ok, so I know you have all wanted to know. Yes I did talk to Tiana. Here's a little of how it went. So we went for a walk into the Gardens. That is a really cool place by the way. Well, we did lots of walking and then sat down in the grass. We started talking about the situation before sunset, and did not end up ending until 11:20. So yeah. it was a long talk. Lots of tears were shed on both sides, and in the end, we ended up opening the relationship. It was a great talk and all. A necessary one as well. So that is the scoop on Tiana and me.
Oh, I found out I got the job for EFY, so I spent most of this week getting the paperwork all filled out and sent in. So I should hear back from them soon to know which EFY sessions I'll be doing.
Oh, so yesterday, Friday night, I went to take a nap at around 7 because I was really tired. Well, I didn't end up waking up until 8:30 the next day! It was amazing! The best night sleep I have had in a long time. When I woke up, I felt so refreshed and awake. So to celebrate, I exercised and ran 2.5 miles in 21:39 minutes! I was so tired from that though. But it was fun. I finally made a playlist on iTunes, so I can jam to my music! it's great.
So that's what has happened in my life. Oh tonight, I got a call from the stake secretary who told me I have an interview tomorrow for a calling. So we'll see what then turns out to be. Love ya all

Travel Week

2009-04-07T14:13:00.003-06:00

So last week I did a lot of traveling! to start off, I left Tuesday at 4 to go down to Vegas for Baby Dax's funeral. I went with Andrea and her family. We got to Vegas around 1 or so in the morning. It was fun. Oh and can I say I love the 2 sections in Utah where the speed limit is 80!!! That is amazing! so much fun!
So Wednesday was the funeral and I sang at it. It was hard, and I was shaking so much because I didn't want to cry while singing. I made it through. It was the most amazing funeral service I've seen and I have such a strong Brother and an amazing Sister-in-law. Don and Marcy, I love you guys so much!
Well, after staying in Vegas that day and getting my homework done, we traveled on Thursday morning back to Idaho. It was a long drive, of course. We stopped and saw Grandma Gubler, who looked really good! I love that woman! she is so amazing! then we made a stop at Tenille's. We made it to IF around 9 or so I think. So Friday, I had a lot of catching up to do and some tests to take. That wasn't fun, but something that had to be done since it was the week before finals. so yeah! fun stuff.
Then Friday afternoon, I went with my roommate Will, his fiance Rose, and Tiana down to Provo for conference. We stopped in Salt Lake and met up with Rose's dad and ate at the Rooftop in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building! That was so much fun and so delicious! I got a raspberry turkey salad! it was so good! then I went to a mission reunion in Sandy. I got to see President Martinez and the whole Martinez family and a lot of old missionary friends! It was so much fun. Then I eventually made it to Liesl's for the night! The next day, early in the morning, we drove to Salt Lake City for Conference. We went and watched the Joseph Smith Movie and then stayed to watch Conference there. It was so fun! Then, I got tickets to go to the afternoon session! that was amazing! I was on the floor, and I thought pretty close, but it was still hard to see the speakers. But what an amazing session. Right after that session, as I was leaving, I ran into President Martinez again. I ran up to him and said, "Fancy seeing you here." and then made some small talk. What I didn't realize was that he had been called as an Area 70! I heard the name Hugo E. Martinez, but figured that it couldn't be my mission president. I didn't find out till late that night! so now I feel really dumb! i should have congratulated him. Anyways, so then for the Priesthood Session, I went to the Tabernacle and watched it. Very uncomfortable! I can see why they build the conference center with soft seats. it was so uncomfortable. That was the most amazing session i thought! the speakers were amazing! and the stories were great!
After that, we went on a walking trip looking for Wendy's. we walked all over before we finally found it! But it was fun, and just a little scary, walking around at night in Downtown Salt Lake! Then we drove down to Provo!
the next day, one more round. We watch the first session in the chapel inside the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, and then we had tickets for the afternoon session! it was so great! This conference was so amazing! they just get better every time! I love it!
Well, let's see. other than that, i've just been getting ready for tests. I only have 2 more classes left and I'm done! It's great! I can't wait! then i have to do clean checks, which won't be fun, and then I'll be home on Monday!!!!

To Baby Dax

2009-03-26T11:51:00.003-06:00

So yesterday I got the news that Dax was born. I was very excited, as I'm sure everyone was. Well, that was that day. I get a text message around 3 in the morning saying that Dax wasn't expected to live much longer. I got that message right before I went to the temple to do baptisms. I braved the single digit windy weather at 5:30 am to get to the temple. I got inside and as I went into the baptistry chapel, I pulled out my phone to make sure it was on silent. Then I noticed I had a text message. I read it and it said that baby Dax had passed away. I think me being in the temple helped me cope with it. Obviously I felt really sad. But then the temple president started to speak and he talked about death, and the reasons we do what we do and so on. It was perfect. Then all these things started coming into my head. One is the song that I put the video below to. I just put pictures on there so you could hear the music. I love this song so much. but yeah. And then I started thinking about everything I have recently read about the death of infants. It made me feel so happy.

"This world is a very wicked world; and it...grows more wicked and corrupt...The Lord takes many away, even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth; therefore, if rightly considered, instead of mourning we have reason to rejoice as they are delivered from evil, and we shall soon have them again...
"...The only difference between the old and the young dying is, one lives longer in heaven and eternal light and glory than the other, and is freed a little sooner from this miserable, wicked world. Notwithstanding all this glory, we for a moment lose sight of it, and mourn the loss, but we do not mourn as those without hope (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith, 176).

"Mothers will have the joy, the pleasure, and the satisfaction of rearing [the child that dies in infancy], after the resurrection, until it reach the full stature of its spirit; and that it would be a far greater joy than she could possibly have in mortality, because she would be free from the sorrow and fear and disabilities of mortal life, and she would know more than she could know in this life" (178).

Isn't this gospel amazing. To know not only that those babies that die while yet young will go straight to the Celestial Kingdom, but to know that we will be able to raise them up there. That is amazing. The Plan of Salvation is so perfect.
Don and Marcy, I'm so sorry for the loss of Dax. I'm sure it hurts. But I must say I am sort of jealous. You know that you have one child waiting for you in the Celestial Kingdom for when you return! Dax may not have lived here long, but he lived here for as long as he needed to be here. I'm sure you, and most of us, have learned a great deal from him. He completed his mission on this earth and has returned to his Father to wait for his eternal family. What a wonderful day it has been. The Earth was blessed with an angel, although for only a short time, and now the heaven's rejoice at having him return. How happy we all should be to know that Dax is now resting in the peace and glory of God. He no longer has to suffer the pains and evils of this world, but now has started his eternal life with God. How great and wonderful the Plan of Salvation truly is.

I made this video mainly for the music. But I decided to add the few pictures I had to it to make it better. Enjoy.

HMMMmmmm.....

2009-03-22T21:31:00.002-06:00

So I just realized I haven't updated in a long time! Sorry about that. So I think I have decided that I am going to participate in the Gubler Run!!! I just need to get some shorts and shoes for the event and start running now! I figure I could run the actual course one of these days and let yall know what it's like. So as soon as I buy shorts and running shoes, I'll get right on that!
Um, in other news, school is getting closer and closer to coming to a close. It's starting to get very stressful now, lots of homework and preparing for the tests. But the good thing is I won't have my American Foundations class for the entire last week of school, and I don't have to take the exam because it's just a retake. So pretty much, in that class I'm very happy!
Oh, So I will be flying down to Vegas on the 13th of April! And then I'll be leaving on the 17th! It's a short time, but I really just want to come home for awhile. And then I'll for sure be down for Morganne's baptism! so yeah! And then I should be home for summer around the 2nd or 3rd week of August. Well, that's if I get the job for EFY. Otherwise, I'll be home the last week of July! I can't wait to come home!
Oh, so the weather here has been so crazy! The last few days it has been so warm. We got up to 60 the last few days! It was great! I actually wore my flip flops! It was amazing!!!!! Then today, we were supposed to get a thunderstorm! I was so excited! I could see it coming for awhile. Then it gets upon us, starts to drizzle, and then monster sized snowflakes come out of the sky! It was RIDICULOUS!!!!! It snows really hard for about 10 minutes. and then it stopped! Not a flake in the sky, but a few skiffs here and there. So needless to say, it's cold again! No flip flops for awhile now!
Oh, and then today, actually just a few minutes ago, I had Carmel Dumplings! They were pretty much the most amazing thing I have ever eaten in awhile! It was great!!! Kelcie, the girl who made them, told me she couldn't give me the recipe since it was a "family recipe" but I'm looking for a recipe online right now that tastes the same. So I'll let you all know as soon as I find one!

Lots of Randomness Connected Together

2009-03-12T12:02:00.003-06:00

Well, it's been awhile since I've updated! Oh, thanks to all of you who filled out that survey! It's very helpful! thanks!
So let's see. I have to remember all that has happened. I guess the big news for me is I got a 90 on my math test!!!! so that's a good thing! I did so well on it because it was on the statistics section, and I love statistics! so yeah! He told us it would take about an hour or more. and I did it in 20 minutes!!! AMAZING!!!! so yeah. I'm pretty happy with that!
OK, I guess I have to post it since so many have asked me about it. No, I am not a VL anymore. And I haven't been one for a couple weeks now. So there ya go!!! It's officially out. I'm not a VL!
In other news, yesterday I watched Moulin Rouge! It's still my favorite movie EVER!!! To me, it's the greatest love story EVER MADE!!! And it has amazing music too!!! Man, I just love that movie and the music so much! Tiana also liked it a lot! So that's good!
Um.. let's see what else there is to talk about. Oh have you heard!!! The gay and lesbian community has registered to have 200,000 protesters at General Conference! that's right, 200,000!!!! That's a lot of people! I don't know where they are all going to fit! but yeah, that's the word! 200,000 protesters for the upcoming General Conference! Sounds exciting huh!!! And have you heard about the HBO series "Big Love"? Well apparently, they are going to air an episode that shows the temple ceremony. Now, I'm not sure what all they are going to portray, but in the TV Guide magazine, they have a picture of a person in full temple clothing! it's so crazy! what is going on in the world today? Satan really is at work and he's doing all he can. Just so you know, the First Presidency said that we should not make a big deal about the Big Love thing because that would attract attention to it. So just keep it on the DL. but this is crazy still. No one respects the sacred rites of others anymore! I can't believe the society in which we live! It's become so perverted! It's the signs of the times! But there is no need to worry.
Oh, so in this weeks devotional up here, I can't remember his name, but he said, even though the economy and all is crashing and all, the Saints will prosper. The Lord will keep his promise that if we are faithful, he will prosper us IN THE LAND! So be faithful and obedient, and the Lord WILL bless us with PROSPERITY IN THE LAND! Isn't that the most wonderful promise we could have in a time like now?! I certainly think so. So there is no need to be pessimistic. Oh do you know the difference between a pessimistic and an optimistic? Elder Claudio R. M. Costa said, "The optimistic sees the light in the darkness even when it's not there. The pessimistic turns off that light" I love Elder Costa! he is so funny. Maybe he will be the next apostle! Any guesses on who it's going to be?!

I need help!

2009-03-07T23:50:00.001-07:00

Hey, if you could fill out this survey and get as many people as you can to do it too that would be great! I'm doing this for a research paper! so please get others to fill this out. my blog is public for this so please tell people to fill this out! thanks!

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Long Time

2009-03-02T11:22:00.002-07:00

So it's been awhile since I posted on here. But really, there isn't a whole lot to update you guys on. The weather here has been really warm. Today, we're supposed to get into the high 30s! I'm so excited, but disappointed, because my roommates and I were planning on going cross country skiing this weekend, but if this weather keeps up, there won't be any snow left. I've decided I really like the snow. it's so much fun. i don't know why, but it' s great fun!
Oh, so on thursday i think it was, i went to the temple. Now any other day would have been fine. the weather had been so great. Spring really was in the air. but this day came and it all changed. there was a wicked wind storm with random bursts of blizzard like snow! So i leave my apartment with just the wind. i cross the street, and the snow starts! it was horrible. i seriously couldn't feel my face! it hurt so bad. I now know to some extent what the pioneers experienced. it was really bad. So i get to the temple, and i look like a walking snowman, LITERALLY! It was horrible. then i walk in and it all melts so i'm soaked! wow! it was just bad. but the temple was great as always.
So I'm trying to decide what to major in. any ideas? I think i've narrowed it down. i either want to be a spanish teacher, or an accountant. not sure which at the moment. i've also looked a little into economics. but i'm really not sure on anything! all i know is i want to be able to use my spanish. that would be such a shame to lose! so what's your thoughts? give me some ideas!
well, i don't have any pics to put up here. Oh, saturday, i went with Andrea, Paul, the kids and Liesl to Brinley's B-day party. we went to some out-in-the-middle-of-no-where hot spring place, but it was so crowded (like sardine style crowded) that we left and went to blast off, an arcade thingy in IF. it was fun. Brinley and the littlest ones went to the jump zone and the others did the different games. Liesl and I started with Skee ball. that was fun, but you really don't win many tickets from it, especially if your machine is cheating you like mine was. so we played that for awhile, then we went and tried the cyclone thing (where you try to stop the light in your jackpot area). anyway, we found out that gave us a lot more tickets for our money. we played that thing for a long time. and i swear it cheated too. sometimes you saw the lights stop right in the jackpot, and then it would jump to the 10 right next to it. anyways, we did this for awhile and the jackpot was up to 390 or something like that. then i hit the light, and it starts flashing like i hadn't seen it flash. i didn't know what happened. I calmly told Liesl, "I think i got the jackpot" then it slowly started to sink in as i said louder and louder "I think i just got the jackpot! LIESL, I GOT THE JACKPOT!!!" It was great. i had to wait seriously like 5 or more minutes for all the tickets to come out! I was so excited. and Liesl would tell every passerby (all 2 of them) "HE JUST WON THE JACKPOT!!!!!" It was so much fun. and it was great getting to spend some time with Liesl! Love ya sis!
so yeah. then at the end, we gave all the tickets to brinley (in total about 860) and she gets a handful of candy. i was so shocked at how much time and money we wasted to get just a handful of candy, but it was tons of fun!!!!
Life is going very well. one of these days, i'll post some of the essays i've written and have you guys critique them for me.

Life is Wonderful

2009-02-24T21:43:00.002-07:00

So yeah. Life is great. things are amazing, except for school. basically the midterm grades are here now. One thing i dont' like is how my American Foundations class has participation points make up 20% of our grade. Its a big class with probably 60 or more people in it. How in the heck are you supposed to participate when a lot of those people are very VERY talkative. i hate it. i haven't had the chance to participate in forever! and can i say that i hate group assignments! I hate them so much! but yeah.
besides that, life is great! nothing to complain about besides school. things are moving along very well. Oh, last night, there was another roommate argument. so i didn't get to sleep until 3. yeah. these things always last forever! but what can you do. i've tried to make them shorter, but it's almost impossible!
Oh, so let's see. besides that, things are great. this is going to be a really short post. i can't think of anything else to write here! so Peace!

Long Time

2009-02-19T23:47:00.002-07:00

So it's been awhile since i last posted. I figured it about time to post again. So to start off. I can't remember if i said this, but i now have an 87% instead of 77% on my math test! I'm so happy. and on my science test, i got an 84%, but that is subject to change too! so hopefully that goes up! Overall, life is great here at the Y-I! It's great!
So obviously i'm sure most of you are wondering about me and Tiana. Well, here's the rundown. We've basically been together the whole week. it's been great! so yeah! life is amazing. she always makes me laugh. She is so fun to be around. and she also makes sure i get my homework done. Basically, amazing! so yeah. oh, and no i still haven't kissed her. but that could end soon. so when you see a post that says, VL no longer, then you know! but until then, no worries!
Oh, change of subject, today i went to albertsons! an amazing deal! you basically can buy 10 cake mixes/cookie mixes/frosting/soups/macarroni grill dinners/cereal/gushers and get $10 of free stuff after that! it's amazing! So Tiana and I went and we bought 20 things. I think in total, i saved like $40 or more! it's amazing. I got 3 boxes of canned sodas, 4 lbs of chicken, and 3 frozen orange juices for free!!!!! amazing!!!!!!! i love this place! there were so many people there too waiting to buy their stuff!!! Albertsons is smart in this case! so i'm basically set for awhile!!

IT'S THE START OF SOMETHING NEW!

2009-02-15T00:08:00.004-07:00

It's official! i'm in love! Yes, me! Stewart Gubler, is in love! Tiana is so much fun! today we went cross country skiing and it was great! We went with Andrea, Paul and 2 other people. andrea and paul stayed with the others, who were really really slow, and tiana and i did our own trail! it was so much fun. this was her first time doing it, but she loved it and was really really good at it! so here are some pics from the last few days. Basically, we have hung out the last 3 days!

so yeah. that is my life at the moment. and not only am i happy about that, but i'm also happy that the average score for the math test was a 62%, so he is going to give us all 10% more. That means, i now have an 87 on the test1 i'm so happy! so yeah. well, let's see. what else is there to talk about.
Oh, let's get back to the Tiana thing. so i've heard, from Will who is the boyfriend of her best friend, that she really likes me. so that helps a lot, but still, it's really awkward for me, this whole dating thing. i still feel awkward being home from the mission. I held her hand today and that was so weird! but yeah. i'm sure i'll get over that. Luckily, i don't have little brothers and sisters to bug me about this. I just have older ones, which could be worse! but i'm happy. I laugh so much when i'm around her! it's great! It is the start to Something New! (name the movie!!!!)
well, that's my post for tonight. i'm exhausted from skiing! Oh and Happy Valentines Day (although i guess technically it was yesterday!)

What is this feeling?

2009-02-13T17:08:00.002-07:00

So yeah, i just got back from taking my first math test ever!!! it was so hard. and this is the easy class. 108 real world math! well, i took the test, and i got a 77%. so i'm really hoping that he curves the grading cause i can't have a C on my report card! oh my gosh! math is so hard! especially financing and taxes and loans, and crappy stuff like that that you need to know for life but always have someone else to the trouble of doing the math for you. yeah! I'm not that person!
anyways, so i've been so swamped with homework lately. it's crazy. like i've stated before, i never NEVER go to bed before midnight. and most of the time, not even before 1! it's crazy. so yeah. such is life at the Y-I!
so, yesterday, i went on a date! that's right! it was pretty awesome. i went witht this girl named Tiana. If you have facebook, she's on there so you can know what she looks like. or you can look at some previous posts. the ones with me in a cowboy hat, she is the one on the far right of the picture! yep. anyways, it was awesome. We went to this place called the Coco Bean. So delicious. it's basically a cup cake and hot chocolate joint! but it is so good. i got a Better than Whatever cupcake (basically a better than sex cake) and she got a mint truffle cupcake. then i got a strawberry white satin hot chocolate and she got the raspberry version. It was so much fun. we were laughing so hard (oh by the way, i went with my roommate Will and his future fiance!) after that, we came back to the apartment and watched Nacho Libre while eating guacamole! That movie is Hilarious! it was my first time watching it! knowing a little about spanish culture makes it so much more hilarious!!! i loved it and was laughing so hard!
well, basically tonight, i'm going to hang out with her, and tomorrow, i'll go Cross country skiing with her and andrea's family! i'm excited. So yeah. well, i'll get more pics up soon. sorry about that. but such is life. there's no time for this stuff.

Who Am I?

2009-02-09T18:23:00.002-07:00

I'm the peacemaker!!! That's right! i totally saved my roommates from killing each other the other day. it was so crazy. it was like 1 or 2 in the morning on friday. so they started yelling at each other and i was in my room cause i was getting ready for bed. so i hear this and let it go for awhile. then i just started shaking. they were getting really loud. well, i stumbled out cause i was shaking so much and told them to shut up and pray if they wanted to solve the problem. so they did and about 3 hours later, everything was great! since it was so late, i decided not to go to bed because i had to wake up at 8:30 and if i went to bed then i would never wake up. so i stayed up. around 7 or 7:30 i took a nap and woke up at 8:30! it was great!!!
so yeah. besides that, life is great! can i say that i love the snow (but not the cold!) i love just walking through it and all.
Oh, so i don't think i ever told yall. so i took 3 spanish tests to test out of 3 classes. well, i did way better than i thought. so on the first test, i got a 99. on the second, a 92. and on the last, an 89! i was so shocked. it was a crazy test because some of the answers or all of them worked for the question. but it turned out fine. so i just got 12 credits right there! so now i have a total of 33 credits (not including the ones i'm taking now) and this is my first semester at school! CRAZY!!!
So, today i cleaned my room. it looks amazing now. i did a little rearranging and now i have so much space. let's see how long before i totally trash it again! i give myself 2-3 weeks!
WAIT! Midterms are coming up! isn't that really fast? i swear i just got here! this is ridiculous.
So i'm thinking of asking this one girl out on a date (There's actually 3 that i'm debating between. This one i'm think about just broke up with her last boyfriend, well, he did to her and she is really funny, spiritual, and pretty) Anyways!
Wow, this a really random post! sorry about that.
Oh today i went with my roommate Will jewelery shopping. basically he is going to get married in july. we found this really great and cheap jewelery store here. it's really cheap! i was shocked. i think i'll go there when i have to do this stuff (which won't be for awhile, so don't worry). anyways, i think i'll end now. the randomness has carried on long enough.

Fun Times

2009-02-04T16:14:00.004-07:00

So once again, a very interesting class in Science. Did you know that the universe is expanding? and that it is expanding faster than the speed of light? or did you know that space really isn't empty? that all that "black" space we see that looks empty, actually has a density? Science is so cool! i love it! and my teacher is the best. We always start talking about stuff that has nothing to do with the lesson for the day but it's so interesting! and then we use these i-Clicker things. it's basically a remote control with buttons A-E. That is how he takes roll and has us take little quizzes in class. it's so fun.
So anyways, there's lot to update. So on Saturday, my roommate Jeff had his birthday. So, in the morning, since he sleeps in late (like literally til noon) 2 of my other roommates and I went to the temple to do baptisms. That was great. Even the 1 hour wait just to get into the chapel, then the 2 hour wait just to change, then the 1 to 1.5 hour wait to finally get into the confirmation and then baptism font. It was crazy. but since me and one of my roommates were endowed, we got to cut since they needed more guys to help baptize. basically the ratio of guys to girls that day for baptisms was 1 guy to 20 girls. Seriously! it was way crazy! But it was a great experience. That was the first time i've actually done the baptizing. it was fun. i liked it.

So after the temple (we got there at like 8:30, and didn't leave until almost 1:30. but it was so great.) we went to Idaho Falls and ate at Red Robin! It was really crowded, since it just opened. But it was so great!! and of course, Jeff being the smartalek that he is, snuck up to the front and paid for everyone (there were about 15 or so of us) We were all mad at him. but he said it was his birthday and could do what he wanted. So after that, we went to Barnes and Noble and then the mall, and then to walmart. it was good. the whole time we were messing around in the car! so much fun!!! the pics will explain.

Well, eventually we got home and then went to Jeff's sister's house in Rexburg. His family threw him a party. and bought tons of Fongs!!!! GREAT!!! but i was so stuffed from Red Robin that i didn't eat much. (PS, can i say that Mountain Dew Voltage tastes pretty good) anyway, there we started playing with his neices and nephews. it was so funny. we played batman, and i was Penguin, and then Joker. and the kids were always batman and robin. so they would basically beat us up the whole time. it was so funny and fun. eventually, we went home after eating cake and ice cream.

Sunday, was church as normal, except that it was Fast Sunday. So as financial Clerk, I was at church from 9 to 2. It was a long time, (and can i say that college kids are stupid when it comes to tithing and fast offering. I mean seriously, who is going to pay 43.88 in cash and coins? why not just round up?! Gosh, it made things so slow. and then people putting in 1 check for 2 different people!? WHAT were they thinking? oh the pains i went through that day with all those coins and crazy checks and stuff. so yeah.
Then that day, i went to Andrea's and ate the MOST amazing meal EVER!!!! it was some recipe from Cafe Rio! OH MY GOSH!! it was to die for!!!!! i'm going to make it one of these days. and you wanna know the key ingredient?....Coke!!!! yes that's right! it was so great!
then, that night, well, it wasn't a good night to say the least. i won't go into details, but basically the next day i never heard my alarm clock to wake up because i was so exhausted. So i missed my classes on monday.
Tonight, i'm making Mom's Chicken Enchiladas for some people here! i'm so excited. and i built it up a lot so i hope it turns out good!!! Wish me luck!!!!

Crazy Science

2009-01-30T15:17:00.005-07:00

So today in my science class, we were talking about space and all sorts related to that. All i can say, is WOW! Space is amazing. so turns out the Big Bang theory has a lot of truth to it. It was really interesting. I mean, a lot of the stuff we talked about was so mind boggling. Like we compared our solar system to an oreo, and the next nearest solar system (or star, which is Alpha Centari) is about 2 football fields away! they estimate that there are about 200 to 400 billion stars just in our galaxy. Next we compared the galaxy to a CD. The next nearest galaxy (Andromeda) is only 8 feet away! CRAZY!! But so interesting. then we talked about how we can look back in time with the stars. it's so awesome! i love this. even though a lot of it didn't make sense, but that's besides the point. so yeah. Totally amazing. I love science. Then someone objected to the big bang thing. then the teacher pointed out, that the theory doesn't take God out of it.
Ok, so here are a few pics of my life so far. not many. i haven't pulled my camera out for awhile. but here are just two.

This bear was carved into this tree. There are like 5 bears i think in total!

Cherie and Me eating pizza. She's from Vegas!!!

AMAZING TIME

2009-01-27T23:44:00.002-07:00

So, basically today started off great! wanna know what the temperature was?! well, let's just say it was cold, like really cold. Maybe even -25 degrees cold! Yeah, that's right. -25!!!! That is really cold. the inside of my nose was frozen in a matter of seconds. Every time i opened the door to my apartment, the steam, or cold smoke would roll in! it was crazy. so yeah. that's how i went to and came from school. with really cold weather. I wore my thermals today. so basically, the parts of my body that were covered were nice and warm. but the parts that weren't, my face, and my hands would i would text message, were icy!!!
so yeah, after that, i went to the devotional with Elder Christofferson. It was amazing. He gave the best talk ever. he talked about how we need to strip our lives and put things in order. prioritize. what a great talk for the worst procrastinator ever!! haha. anyway, it was great.
after that, i went to the testing center and took 3 spanish tests. they were pretty easy, but some of the questions were crazy. Every answer they gave worked perfectly in the sentence. i don't know how they grade those tests. it was rough. but we'll see how i do next week when i get the results.
Then after that, i was starving, so i hit up Hogi Yogi and got a chicken rice bowl with veggies for $5. it was so delicious!! I highly recommend it to anyone that has a hogi yogi nearby! so i ate quickly and went to a study group. that was a waste of time. i really hate study groups. i mean really, what is the point of them. so yeah. anyways. that was basically my day. not too great, but so amazing at the same time. Oh, and a girl asked me out on a picnic! so yeah. It's sort of ironic because i was going to ask someone else out on a date for saturday in the day, and then this girl got to me and wants to do the picnic saturday night. so maybe i can do both.
so yeah. hopefully tomorrow, i'll be able to put some pics up for yall!

2009-01-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

So, I still don't have my cable to connect my camera to the computer so there are still no pictures!
Well, college life is still amazing! i'm loving it so much! My classes are pretty easy for the most part. Can i say that i hate group work. Most of the time i'm the only one that has read or done anything. it pretty much sucks! but what can i do?
Well, things are getting pretty fun up here. Last night i didn't get home till like 12:20. I know, late!!! the security guards kicked us out. we were watching a movie in the lounge of the girls dorms. we watched "When a Stranger Calls". Pretty good movie! i sure jumped a few times! but it was a well put together movie! i liked it!
So i feel like i'm in a frat or something. we have this initiation thing for our apartment, if people want to be considered Honorary Apartmates! It's pretty much the best thing ever. so what the person has to do (mainly only girls) is basically cook us a meal. and it's surprising how many people actually want to do it. Like yesterday, i got free lunch and dinner! AMAZING!!! this is the funnest thing ever!
so on Tuesday, our ward had an activity. we did Speed Dating. Basically the guys all sit down, and then girls come up and you "date" for a few minutes. Then everyone changes again! it's pretty funny. then after that we had baked potatos with chili! So good! only the chili has really hit me lately! so yeah! that wasn't that good.
But overall life is amazing!!! One of these days i'll put up some quotes from our quote wall. They are pretty good!!!!!!!!

The Start of the 3 Day Weekend

2009-01-19T00:24:00.000-07:00

So the 3 day weekend is almost over now. but it's been a great one. On Saturday, i went with Andrea and McKenzie cross country skiing. it was so much fun. it was my first time, and needless to say i feel probably about a million times. especially on the hills and turns and all sorts of stuff. and it was so much hotter up there in the mountains than in Rexburg. i was taking off my coat and all sorts of stuff, and was still hot. but when i got to rexburg, i got out of the car and was REALLY cold!! strangeness. but it was a blast. i'm a little sore right now after doing that, but i'm going tomorrow too! i'm so excited.
So i'm really surprised how adjusted i am to the weather. but i guess when you walk to church in 3 degree weather, anything above that feels warm. speaking of church, i just got a calling. i'm the new BYU-I 39th Ward Financial Clerk. it's actually pretty easy. but i've heard that on fast sundays, i have a lot more work cut out for me. so yeah! but such is life.
So can i say that i love it so much when it is so painfully cold that everything freezes and turns white. It is the prettiest thing in the world to go outside and see the pine trees white with frost. It's so cool! i'll try to take a picture of it when it happens again, which could be tonight. but yeah.
Umm...i think i've covered the main stuff. still totally loving life up here. i'm a huge procrastinator. but such is the college life right?! I say so!

School Life

2009-01-16T15:44:00.000-07:00

So I'm in the library right now. I know...Me...in the library?!?! Go figure! pretty strange if you ask me. But here I am all the same. So I figured I'd give a quick update for yall, seeing how I haven't been able to update since I've been here. Life is GREAT! College life is so much fun. I would have never thought it! I was so scared to come up here, be with roommates that i wouldn't like, and just have all the stress and worries of a college kid. But, when i did finally come up here, i realized how wrong i was. College is so much fun. My roommates ROCK!!! They are seriously the coolest people ever on the earth. Classes are fun. My teachers for the most part are hilarious, even when they give us a lot of homework. and just being able to do whatever i want is great. it definitely is a new life for me. I basically never go to bed before midnight (that's because I'm either doing homework because i procrastinated, or i'm just talking with my roommates) and i wake up most days at 6:30 or 8. so life pretty much Rocks!!!
Well, let's see. besides the cold (which i'm actually getting used to. I mean, right now it's like maybe for a high, 20, and i'm walking outside with just a jacket on!) life is so great. I think i'm actually starting to like snow. It's very pretty, especially when the temperature is so low that any water in the air freezes to the trees and everything! i should take a picture of it sometime. it's so cool. and it's really weird to look out over the valley and just see white for ever and ever! really strange. I've been lucky and it hasn't snowed yet. But there has been lots and lots of fog lately. but it's really cool. so yeah. well, i have to get to my apartment now for the cleaning check. i should have my laptop by tomorrow so i should be able to keep you all updated more frequently.
Well, i love you all so much. Miss ya tons, and just know that i'm doing great (wow, that seems like something i would have written on a letter from the mission. Oh well)

School, Snow, WHAT?!

2009-01-05T18:06:00.000-07:00

So i really can't believe that i'm starting school in like, 2 days! that's just crazy. and it is snowing like crazy here. today, i actually went and registered at my apartment, bought most of my books (a total of $275), and did a little shopping for some stuff i still lack. but during all this time, it was snowing. and it's the type of snow that you can see each and every snowflake and it's shape. it's so cool. but that's because it's really cold.
So, i would put up pics, but i don't know how to use a Mac, so i'll save that till i get the real thing later on.
So the trip to Idaho was great. left Vegas, where Mom cried more than when i went on my mission. We got to Nephi that night, and stayed there with Tenille and her Family. it was a fun time. and when we woke up the next day after playing Rock Band (which i totally rocked on, even on hard), we found the whole placed covered with about 4 inches of new snow! very pretty, and very cold!!!! and yes, i had to drive in it, but it wasn't that bad.
So then we headed out and then made some stops to see Todd, and the Chambers Grandparents. They are cuties. and let me tell you, Harold, when he gets your hand, it hurts, and he doesn't let go for at least 20 minutes. but all went well. Oh, and have any of you noticed that in Utah, their gutters are ridiculous? I swear the car ALWAYS hit the gutter when i would pull onto a street or store parking lot. but yeah.
so life is great, but cold. i'm really nervous to go to school. especially tomorrow to go and start actually living there with room mates and everything.
Well, this could be my last post for awhile. But i love you all.

Where does the Time Go?!

2008-12-30T22:08:00.000-07:00

So seriously...did the time just fly by or what?! i mean, i still feel like i just got home, and now Christmas has passed, New Years is around the Corner, and me going to college is that much closer! Holy Cow!!!! why does the time have to fly by so fast?
anyway, Christmas was great! had lots of fun hanging out with the family. Basically, the house was Way WAY packed! but it made things so much fun! To say that the Nieces were happy to see me (and bug me again) would be a huge understatement! but yeah. such is life. So for Christmas, it was a really simple Christmas this year. Not a lot of presents, but that's not what Christmas is about!
But through all this time, i have become an addict to the Wii (Especially Guitar Hero, Mario Karts, and Mario Smash Brothers!) and have also become addicted to my new (but used) iPod Touch! it's so much fun.
The Homecoming talk went a lot better than i thought. i had absolutely nothing planned, and just talked and talked. i didn't even realize how much i talked until i looked at the clock, and realized i had been talking for about...20 or so minutes. that shocked me! but it went well. I had no idea how to start it, but in the end, i made it through. Then, i stayed to "Go to class" but in the "camino" i ran into some friends, and we just talked the whole time until the bell rang. so i go to Bro. Marshall's class and get some fudge and cake mix cookies!!! I love that man. he is so dang funny!!! He has to be by far one of the greatest Sunday school teachers ever!!!!! Seeing him, and a lot of other people, brought back so many memories of the "Old Days"! but it was great! I love the 3rd Ward.
Oh, and before i went to the 3rd ward, i had to give my testimony in the 4th ward (Spanish Speaking) it went really well, and i talked with all the Chapines (Guatemalans). But the short time i have been home has been great. it is sort of weird. you just pick right up where you left sort of. obviously, not exactly where you left off because a lot of things have changed, but you get the drift!!!

So today in the morning, we went to the temple! that was great as always! in the afternoon, i went and watched Hancock, which is a great movie and then played the Wii for a little while! and at night, we went to the Ethel M's Cactus Gardens. I took some pics!

Me, Jason, Mary, Stephanie

Paul and I on Christmas Morning in our nice shorts!

The Cactus have lots of lights on them!

Kimber making some Crazy Face!!! Gotta love that crazy girl!

Me, Kayli, Jessica, Christina!

The Crazy Pose

Some Random Woman with a way cool outfit!

Just some more Cactus!

Afterwards, we went through the store and i ended up spending $16 on 12 amazing pieces of Chocolate!!!!! It was so worth it!

I'm home

2008-12-17T15:56:00.002-07:00

So i've finally come back from Guatemala. and what a trip. So i left Guatemala at about 5, or better said i was in the airport at 5 in the morning, and i was really cold! We finally get to Dallas after 3 and a half hours, i step off the plane, and realize what real cold is, seeing how the temperature was 22! that was WAY cold. then after going through customs and having a little lay over time, i got off and was in Vegas at 4 or so, with 40 temps! still really cold for me. but yeah.
so, needless to say that in 2 years, lots of things have changed. here are some of the things
I weigh 20 lbs more, and my waist is smaller.
The USA has a black person as president
My house is way different
I love beans!
I have about 3 or 4 nieces and nephews that I have never met.
My old bedroom doesn't exist.

well, i can't think of much else, but i'll be posting more sooner!

Break Time

2006-12-05T21:48:00.000-07:00

Ok, i don't really have anything new to post. so i might as well start my Break for 2 years a little early. So check back in 2 years and I'll hopefully have something to post here. So be back in December of 2008! Take care everyone!

Stange Time

2006-11-24T17:50:00.000-07:00

This is a lilac bush. And as you can tell by the date on the picture, and the color of the tree in the background, it is fall! But this little lilac is still blooming! Our yard is known for flowers blooming at strange times. We currently have daffodils emerging from the dirt! in a couple of weeks, they'll be in bloom! Ahhhh, the wonders and beauty of living in Vegas!!!!

Yellowstone

2006-11-12T20:48:00.000-07:00

So a week or so ago, i had the opportunity to go to Yellowstone the last weekend it was open. so here are a few shots from that.

This is a very rare photo to see. Old Faithful area completely empty! no one else there! I HAD to take a picture of it.

A random geyser erupting near one of the many rivers. I think this is Firehole River.

One of the MANY pools! if you didn't know, the lighter the color in the pool, the HOTTER it is. so this pool is extremely hot!

I thought this was weird. There was all this ice right in the middle of all these really really hot spots! Those icicles are probably about 7 or more feet tall! they were huge! I also walked on some of the ice there. It's really THICK ice!

Another HOT pool! i love the colors in it!

I REALLY REALLY like the colors in this pool. not as hot as the one above it, but still VERY hot!!!

Random Garden Things

2006-11-08T22:46:00.000-07:00

Ok, so it's been awhile since i last posted. I haven't had time to transfer my pictures from my camera yet, so here is some older stuff. Just things i found in my yard. Hope you enjoy these!

Back In Time - Temples Part 1

2006-10-22T19:51:00.000-06:00

I decided to show some of the temples I have seen and taken pictures of. There will be more to come, but this is just a small sample of some of the ones I have taken pictures of!
The Nauvoo Temple

The Washington DC Temple

More!

2006-10-18T22:39:00.000-06:00

Ok, there were going to be more photos for today, but i'm having trouble uploading them. But once again, just random things in my yard. Hope you enjoy!

Start of Something New

2006-10-17T19:48:00.000-06:00

Ok, so here is the first photo blog of the year for me!

This Photo started my new obsession. I took it and was like WOW! That looks really good! Here's what Followed.

Ok, so i realize that they are all plants and stuff. but that's all i have to work with. I'll leave it at this for today. And then i'll post more later! hope you enjoyed!

Long Time

2006-10-15T22:22:00.000-06:00

Well, it has been awhile since i last updated here! hm....I'm thinking of turning this into a photo blog. recently i have been taking random pictures around my house and they look really great! so i'll start doing something like that soon!

Friends!

2006-10-07T00:53:00.000-06:00

Spending time with friends, especially a best friend, is so much fun! I spent basically most of the day with Karsten. started off at Institute. granted, not a whole lot of time spent there because of class, lunch, and then karsten had another class to go to. but at around 5 or so, he called me and we basically hung out till 11:30. it was great! tons of fun!!!!! Totally random things, from playing piano, guitar, violin, to asking a girl to homecoming in a very mormonly weird way, to going to applebees and talking forever with the To-Go waitress. Oh it was great fun! I wish i could do that everyday! Friends, you gotta love them!

Almost a week!

2006-09-28T17:53:00.000-06:00

Well, it's been just about a week since i last posted! the Temple was an amzing experience! after the initial shock of things, it was a very sacred experience! I loved it so much!
I really wish i was in college. I want something to do! Next week i'm going to start a routine. I'm going to try to wake up early and work out and run. and then i'll study for awhile, and who knows what else i'll do! but i want deperately to be doing something. Maybe even homework! I know it sounds funny, but i miss doing homework. It kept me busy! i miss that.
I've been working on playing this one song on the piano. "A child's prayer" i just about got. I can even play it while singing it! for the most part! Karsten and I are going to sing it when we go to visit Jenn!
well, i can't think of anything else to say! so take care!

TEMPLE!

2006-09-22T10:35:00.000-06:00

So this saturday i get to go through the temple to recieve my endowment! i'm so excited. a little nervous though. but more excited. i can't wait!
So in my mission prep class last night, we paired off and "converted" each other to one basic doctrine in the church. I did eternal families. now why do i know that families are eternal. here it goes!
This starts back when i was 5. my grandpa gubler had just died and for some reason i have always remembered that we sang families can be together forever at his funeral! it's always stuck with me. so ever since then that song has made me teary eyed. well, 3 years ago i went on the church history tour for my first time. one of the stops of Adam-ondi-Ahman! what an amazing place with such a strong spirit present. anyway, so the whole tour group was sitting on one of the hills and we were singing many songs. one of the songs we sang was Families can be together forever! so i started to cry because the spirit was so strong. then, as i looked out over that vast field, right there not too far away was my grandpa gubler standing there! I couldn't sing any longer. I knew then that for sure, there was life after death and that i would see my grandpa again! my dad said that in his patriarchal blessing it said that he would help prepare the world for the second coming of Christ. that's what he is doing on the other side of the veil! And i just know that my family, and many many many others will be together forever! isn't that the coolest thing ever!? granted right now there is a member of my family that i wish i could be without, but i'm sure i'll be more than happy to see him when we both get to the other side.

Weirdness

2006-09-14T14:03:00.000-06:00

I saw the funniest thing today in my neighborhood. I had just let my dogs outside when i saw a stray dog outside our fence. i didn't think much of it. then all of a sudden, this little goat come running right behind it. it was so funny. they went across the street and stayed there for awhile so i went inside to find a camera. when i came out they were gone. it was the funniest thing i've ever seen. a goat roaming free in our neighborhood.
I saw a stray rabbit the other day too! lots of weird animals are roaming the streets!

About Me!

2006-09-12T22:29:00.000-06:00

Hey Yall! well, since this is my first post on here, i'll tell a little about myself. I am the youngest of 9 children. I sort of feel like an only child because all but 1 of my siblings are married and moved out. and me. so out of 9, 7 are married. I just got my mission call for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to the Guatemala Guatemala City Central Mission. I leave on Dec 12 to go fly down and report to the Guatemala City MTC on the 13! I'm so excited

I live in Las Vegas and have lived here my whole life, even though i was born in St. George, UT. Half of my family was born there and the other half down here in Vegas. Don't ask why St. George. I think it was something like it was cheaper and they had better doctors or something. So that's that!

I graduated from Advanced Technologies Academy with a diploma in CADD in 2006. High School was tons of fun and I loved every moment of it. If I could go back and change one thing, i would be friendlier and more outgoing to people!

Um...If there is anything else, let me know.