Church History

Last year I had the incredible opportunity to go on a 19 day church history tour through 22 states covering both church history and American history on a bus with about 56 other people who I love dearly to this day. We went everywhere... from Salt Lake to Missouri to visit the Amish to D.C. to New York and plenty of other places all the way back to Salt Lake. Every moment was memorable.
I got to visit some of those places again just this week, this time with my family. We did not go across 22 states but specifically to New York where we spent time in the city and now in Palmyra New York. We visited the city on our tour too and kept annoying my family with "O and we did this here!" and "I remember the history of that! It is....." But I loved every second! Now that we are up in church history heaven I think my family is keeping there distance from me... We have been to the Hill Cumorah, Sacred Grove, and the log home of Joseph Smith and the one that Alvin had started for the family. Not only did I make it to the church history sites here but also spent time at the park where we hung out on the tour... Yep even the small places were overly exciting to me (:
I loved learning about the history of so many places on that trip and feeling the spirit everywhere I went. I grew from my experiences there and now being at those same places and feeling that incredible spirit again I am reminded even more of the lessons I learned and the memories I made. I can't help but smile and every place I recognize and I apologize now to my family for all the random comments... But I love the people I was with and the history!

Stop and Smell the Roses

I heard a quote yesterday that I found worth sharing.

"Moments are the molecules that make up a life time of memories." -Unknown

I know I am in a place where I am looking toward the future always waiting for what I hope will come. I made it a wish, then a goal to make every moment count. To help others have moments that will turn into lifelong memories. Just one smile, or one hello could turn a whole day around. Everyday I am going to smile.  I am going to pause, look around, make beautiful places moments worth remembering. I challenge all who reads this to do the same, and now that I have set it not only as a wish but as a goal the challenge is on for me!

Pillow Talk

This past week has been a blast! I had one of my best friends come visit me for my birthday/ her graduation present and we didn't really do the usual around San Antonio... but it was one for the memory books. We did go downtown, we did go to Six Flags, and we did go to the river but it was different this time. As a family and with other company in town we go and see the Alamo and River walk but when we went downtown we went to the top of the Tower of the Americas, took fun wind blown pictures, ate the most disgusting dessert on the planet, and lost the car for almost 30 min with our position markers being a port a potty and the big asparagus. Giggles and smiles the whole time with a hint of panic at the end on my part (:  With about 10 more minutes for our downtown experience we ran by the Alamo, snapped a picture and jumped in the car and left. 

Going to Six Flags the day before was pretty normal. I had no idea how much she loved rides though (: Every drop or twist or turn she was the girl screaming the loudest. I love you Angela! We were kids in a candy store going from ride to ride along with my mom and brother. What a blast! 

We also made it to the Guadeloupe River. We went for one of our weekly mixer dates going on and had a blast with our 3 different dates. We and a fun picnic, swim/skipping rocks, and made s'mores for dessert. Just a side note... I feel like a true Texan this summer after going to a rodeo and then sitting around a fire, eating s'mores, a guy in a cowboy hat playing the guitar, and having an armadillo pass by at the same time! Yep i am in Texas (: 

Over all we had a great time getting out and doing things that the not so average tourist would do and making some fun memories, but I would argue the best memory made this weekend was just the late night pillow talk. That was how Angela and I became friends in the first place and being able to open my heart to her was big for me and I hope for her too.

 Every college student at least knows what I am talking about. You both lay there and get on a topic that is very close to the heart and it is a sweet moment knowing you trust that friend enough to even open up. We also had a few of those 10 minute ab workouts of laughing (: Angela, that is what I am going to remember the most. No matter how early we tried to get up the next morning it was delayed at least an hour though. It was certainly worth it (: 

Everything Missionary

My last two weeks have been pretty crazy with everything missionary. My brother just returned from an honorable 2 year mission in the New York North mission, Spanish speaking. I have loved hearing all his fun stories, some spiritual experience and just other little things. Since he has been home he continues to share! The first day back we went to the grocery store and he handed out a few pass along cards all over the place and spoke Spanish as much as possible. It has been fun having him home and with him being home everything mission has been in our home. We have had the missionaries for dinner, other people sharing mission stories, I have a missionary I am writing who I hear from every week, people being called on missions, and others returning home. Along with all this mission talk I have been asked several times if I am going to serve a mission. I have never really thought that I would until now hearing all the wonderful stories I think it would be an amazing experience. Not until I am 21 though (: With the future still out there I don't know if I will or not but I heard some good advice... prepare as if you are going and you will be ready to share the gospel your whole life. I love it (: So with that I will prepare and if I end up taking a different path with my life I will always do the best I can to be a member missionary and I challenge all of you to do the same.

If you are curious about what I mean by missions or anything else to do with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints then I encourage you to visit mormon.org (:

Who are we all now??

Years go by so fast and each moment is just a snap shop in time. Six years ago I would have said I was the awkward new girl in the 8th grade with just a couple friends and absolutely no sense of style. I was the follower of a friend and the bossy older sister to my brothers. My older brother was the "rebel" (more like he had friends to go hang out with so he was gone all the time). My younger brothers were all just kids in cub scouts who were "cute" if I dare say...

Jump ahead six years.... I am graduated from high school, not as awkward now (I hope!), working on my second year of college, have a wonderful sweetheart on a mission, and have made a lot more friends over the years. My older brother who was the "rebel" is returning from an honorable mission in less than a week and headed up to school with me. My just younger brother is almost a foot taller than me and I guess every girl would still call him "cute." He is also good at pretty much anything... The next one down is super smart and not just a kid anymore. Working hard in band and plays a mean trumpet! All of us ride the unicycle too I must add... (: Biggest accomplishment yet! Now for the last but not least... My youngest brother is out of cub scouts and on his way to middle school. Six years is not a long time! Not even knowing it I have grown up... we all have. There are great perks to being old though. First, no school for me while all of them still have to suffer ;) Second, I love being friends with my parents and not fighting them all the time. I love you Mom and Dad! Yes I am still bossy to my brothers but we are also better friends too. We have all changed but don't we all on a daily basis? I just hope and pray that each day it is for the better and hope and pray that we will always remember who we all are now and forever (: We are all children of God.

Baby Steps...

It's just one of those days... I don't know about any of you but I have these days a lot. I feel stuck in time, doing the same thing day after day and have so many things in the future I am looking forward to and it's a never ending wait. I find myself at work sweeping, mopping, selling with a smile, I go home and find myself doing the same little things. It is time for an adventure! But I have to wait. In three weeks my brother gets home, my other brothers are out of school along with most of my friends (finally). This summer I get to look forward to people visiting and vacations I get to go on. I'm looking forward to being back up at school in the fall, this time with my brother. I'm looking forward to a couple years from now when some of my biggest dreams will come true (: But until all this happens I will wait. I will wait by sweeping, mopping and selling with a smile. I will wait by bettering myself day by day, wait by practicing new talents, by serving others, by strengthening my own testimony each day.I will wait by getting through one day at a time walking with Christ, and these days that seem like they will never end I will look to Christ. I guess I can wait (: That is an adventure all in its self!

Once I was a Sunbeam!

I had a quick flashback this morning from 16 years ago living in Salt Lake City, Utah when I just started primary class. I know I was only 3 but it's one of my earliest memories of sitting there in class with a bunch of other crazy kids and my teacher still had the biggest smile on her face. Well as crazy as it is I met her again 7 years ago in none other than Germany. I was tapped on the shoulder just after stake conference ended by a young lady behind me. I had no clue who she was... She just asked if I was Ashley and introduced herself as my sun beam teacher. Now another 7 years later,  today, I found myself back in primary, back to singing overly high pitched songs and talking in a VERY simple language. I found myself among the sunbeams once again (: I am blessed to be that smiling teacher standing and teachings those wonderful three year olds. Yes, they are crazy, they are loud, they are not very good at sitting still for over a minute but they are the sweetest children who I want to be able to point out in a big crowd and be proud to say I was their teacher. I hope to get to know them and teach them, along with their parents, the basics of the gospel. I love those crazy sunbeams (: I also want to thank my own teacher from so many years ago for that big smile. Thank you for knowing me and remembering me, I was only three but you are still teaching me today. To all those teachers out there and parents with 3 year olds, wow it takes work! But children teach the sweetest things and say the silliest things (:  Well I am ready for fun days ahead and hope one day each of those children will be proud to say that once they were a sunbeam.