Just my thoughts

I've had some excitement in the last few weeks, so I thought maybe I'd throw up a blog and share a thought or two.
First, I went to California for a week with my family. I loved it, it was relaxing and fun and I got a tan that peeled all off - what else could you ask for?
Secondly, it was Pioneer Day yesterday! I love Pioneer Day; I always have, I don't know what it is about it that I love so much. Maybe because I love Utah? I was privileged to be able to participate in the Sunrise Service that was held in the Tabernacle in SLC by singing in the choir. It really was a neat experience. Have I shared my thoughts on our country yet? I love America. I can't listen to the Star Spangled Banner without getting chills; it is my number one favorite song. This time made me cry. The last song we sang to close the service was a song called "Thou Gracious God." It is such a beautiful song - it's to the tune of "The Water is Wide" and the arrangement was so beautiful and the song and lyrics so wonderful and wow - I made it through the whole song just fine but the second it ended I broke into tears as they said the closing prayer. I really am so grateful for a gracious God who sent me here to live in Utah and in America and with the heritage that I have that is so amazing and with the family I have now that surpasses everything. :)
And then I went wave running! I am completely sore and black and blue all over today from it! I've got so many bruises I can't even count them. But it sure was a blast. What a great way to celebrate Utah - driving through the mountains on such a gorgeous day and enjoying the lake and the sun and everything that Utah has to offer! It ended up with a drive to the top of the mountain to watch the valley and the fireworks from up there. What a perfect day, I love Utah!

The Weigh In

I have a dinner bet with my friend; the first one to add 10 pounds is taken out to dinner by the other one - anywhere!

So I figured it would be a good idea to watch my diet a little closer and signed up for this website called Calorie Count Plus. It has an on line database of foods with all sorts of nutritional information like caloric content, fiber, protein, etc.

Calorie Count Plus also has some calculation tools that tell you approximately how much you need to eat to get to your weight goal. My daily goal is probably twice what I normally eat, so we'll see what happens. I need to eat a whopping 2879 calories per day!

Today I had a big plate of waffles and strawberries for breakfast - estimated at 485 calories. I need to eat six meals a day of similar size in order to get to 2879 calories... Good thing I live with my parents where the fridge and the pantry are always stocked..

Serenity

Although I didn't have a camera with me the entire time and so have to rely for right now on getting pictures off of my cousin's facebook, I still wanted to throw a picture up on the blog to show what I did over the weekend.

I attended our Joes Valley Olsen Family Reunion which occurs every even year. Let me tell you that I adore this reunion. With over 400 people, I don't know even a fraction of my relatives but the Olsen Ranch, which was homesteaded by my great-great-grandfather Abinadi Olsen of whose heritage I am so grateful and proud of, is absolutely so beautiful and one of my favorite places in the world. Look at it! This is the pond where we used to fish but no longer do because the restocking of the pond became too much, and we use it now for -freezing- dips and skipping rocks and meditation and pictures and long chats.

I have camped in this gorgeous section of Earth every even year of my life, excepting the year I was born in. Over the years, my Joes Valley experience has changed as I have. It's gone from exploring the dirt to picking the flowers to trying to meet the cute cousins (yes, we're related, but that doesn't mean we can't try to get them as a partner for square dancing) to building a dam in the river to just wandering and talking and laying in a field staring up at the stars contemplating this universe and the God that has placed us in it.

I am so blessed to have the most incredible family that has ever existed and although I know that the upcoming years will bring changes to the Joes Valley I know and love, the experiences I've had have shaped my life and I couldn't be more grateful.

Philosophy

I was driving from Logan to Honeyville but the highway was closed for repairs. Traffic was detoured through some back roads and fields that I've never seen, despite spending years in the area.

It started with a left turn off the highway, a short drive past the marshes, and then a right turn towards the southern tip of the Wellsville mountains. It wasn't long before I lost sight of the highway and big, yellow construction vehicles.

It turned out to be a beautiful drive and I had a camera with me; so I stopped and snapped a few pictures. Lesson learned: sometimes you'll get detoured; this can be upsetting if you're so focused on getting somewhere that nothing else seems to matter.

So slow down and take a look around, it can be very rewarding. HAPPY 4th OF JULY!

Sharing a blog is like being a rooom mate...

Lauren and I have just decided to share a space here on this blog and I kind of feel like we've moved in together. I'm already starting to worry about stepping on her toes - but I just feel like the new page layout is so classy! It has a sort of simply-sophisticated look to it... Also it happens to look remarkable like my sister's blog. Maybe it's a family thing?

Lauren dear, I hope you don't mind I took the liberty of doing a little rearranging. Over time I'm sure that we'll come to accept a certain style and when that happens we can live peacefully and happily, but until then we'll just have to make up a lot... wink.

Back to the beginning...

How did it all begin?
The fall of 2006 brought several excellent people to Logan, Utah to continue their education at Utah State University.
Some of the finest of those excellent people chose Pineview Apartments as their residence.
And some of the best of those finest were assigned to live in the north side of the South building, third floor.
School began. If my memory serves me, it was only the first day of school that found the female residents of Pineview 23 (hereafter referred to as #23) wandering over to meet their new neighbors of Pineview 22 (#22).
Andy, being the ambitious person he is, always recognizes an opportunity when it presents itself. He recognized an opportunity in several beautiful girls walking straight into his apartment while he was working on his Statistics homework. He immediately engaged one of them to "help" him.
The only one of the group to have any history in Statistics was a lovely young lady by the name of Lauren Deon Olsen. However, she had taken her AP Statistics class over a year ago, and didn't in fact remember anything of use. A friendship was made all the same.
A recounting of the history of the bond that grew between #23 and #22 would take more pages (figuratively) than this blog could offer. Even a recounting of the history between the friendship of Lauren and Andy would take more words than anyone could read in several sittings. However, this blog is dedicated to highlighting a few choice examples of the wit, the charm, and the all-around amazing-ness of this dynamic duo.
Welcome.

AHH Yeah. This was a proud moment in my life. I went to the dry-cleaners to get my suit ready for a date and wouldn't you know it!

If I hadn't been dating someone at the time things might have been different.

Thanks Katie Stuart, wherever you are.