A little slower than usual...

So as I look back on my blog post history I have noticed that I used to post a ton of posts in every month... Since grad school it has been lucky for me to get one a post a month in, A LITTLE SLOWER THAN USUAL... Some is better than none right? Things have been pretty good and easy going lately, but really BUSY! I am starting to really enjoy school and finding a nice balance between school, work and home. Well, maybe not really a balance because work and school take up most of my time but I have worked out all of the kinks and I feel content with how my life is going currently. I have noticed that I have been getting sick a lot more lately. I think it is because of all of the stress. There was a time in my life when I could say that I NEVER got sick... that is not the case now. I think I got food poisoning last weekend- NO FUN!!! Even though I was really sick I still attempted to teach Sunday School, not such a great idea... I was calling the people the wrong name in class the whole time, OUCH! I felt so bad after class I started crying, silly girl!!! I got a blessing later than night and slept like a baby, feeling GREAT, refreshed and ready to face the obstacles of the week. Thank HEAVEN for the priesthood and the faithful men who hold it!!! I had a great week and got SO MUCH accomplished! Such a great feeling! I had a roommate, Melissa, move out this week. She moved up to Idaho Falls where she will be living after she gets married. It's very different not having her around and we miss her so much! She and I have been sharing a room since November, I know, I know, I own the house yet I shared a room? Yep!!! But now I have my own room, all by myself and I feel so much like a big girl!!! :) It's just me and my puppy Oggie in my bedroom at nights now. I decided to decorate it and have had such a fun job doing it... I decided to post some pictures... but please don't look at the OVERWHELMING pile of laundry... I will get around to doing it someday ;)



So my puppy hasn't had his hair cut since we got him! WOW! It has gotten so long and even got to the point that he couldn't see, poor puppy! He kept running into my bed frame and getting snow and all kinds of stuff matted into his fur! Here is a picture
So I got some scissors and some clippers in an attempt to try to save some money and cut his hair myself. Didn't work. In fact it made things worse. I decided to call a groomer and have him cut professionally. When I took him in she said that she wasn't sure what had happened to his fur but she would try to fix it... I didn't say a word and just played dumb, I didn't want her to KNOW that I am an idiot at times! ;) He looks so cute, once again, and loves running around the house with his VERY ANNOYING squeaky toys... Why did I buy them for him??? And why don't I take them away for good??? I don't know, I don't know!
Last item of business, but the most important... my sweet family! It isn't too often that all of us siblings get together but this Christmas we had a great time. Here are some pictures
I love my nephew more than words can express!!! He is so sweet and cuddly with me! He falls asleep in my arms ALL of the time, which is counted as a miracle in itself considering that he is a super hyper-active little man! He is the cutest little busy body! My sister gets mad at me when I put him to sleep before 9:00 p.m. because then he will wake up in the middle of the night and SHE'S the one that has to wake up and take care of him! Isn't that what aunts are supposed to do? Spoil them ROTTEN and send him home??? I am so good at that! ;)


Well, it's Saturday and once again I have a COLD!!! Seriously??? Oh dear! I can't wait for grad school to be done and my stress levels to go WAY down! It's kind of funny because I continue to say that yet things seem to keep on keeping on... just as busy as ever! I guess that is the challenge, taking time to be happy in the here and now! I am so grateful for all of the AMAZING blessings and angels my Father in Heaven has placed in my path to assist me on my way! There is no way I could do it without ALL OF THEM!

Silly, Silly, Silly!!!

So we FINALLY got the internet back at our house... we had a girl move out and she took it with her... now it's here to stay!!! Now I get to try to back date and inform as much as possible... Hang on... this could be FUN! It's a new year! Often times at the start of a new year we like to reflect on the year that just FLEW by, literally. In order to save space and time I will just highlight a few of the MANY events that took place in 2008. Started the last semester of my undergrad in Jan (the good old days when school was enjoyable and EASY!!!) I turned 26 in Feb (this kind of a sad and depressing one) I applied for the Master of Counseling Program in March and was invited back for an interview (NERVE RACKING) I had my actual interview for the program in April and received and ACCEPTANCE LETTER one week later (Whew, I made it in!!!) I loved April because this was the month that my sweet nephew was born ( I LOVE and ADORE HIM!!!) May I graduated from ISU (YAY!!!) and decided to start looking for a house to buy (Found one that I LOVE) Took my CADC test in June and passed (Whew, once again!) June closed on my home (STILL LOVE IT!) July moved into my new home (HAPPY DAY!) August started the hardest and most trying semester of my life (It's a miracle... I MADE it!!!)I also got my puppy, Oggie in August to help me deal and cope with life (he may have made it harder in the beginning;)) The rest of the months are kind of a blur... I remember that I finished my HARDEST semester and had a great Christmas with my family!!! 2008, it was GREAT!!! Now its the new year with new challenges and adventures awaiting me... oh dear, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger, right??? I was able to get my practicum set up at Pacific Rim Counseling... They are even going to pay me because I have my CADC... What a blessing! School starts on Monday... I feel very afraid but also know that fear and faith can not abide in the same heart at the same time (Heather taught me that one while I was on the mission, thanks Heather!!!) I also know that the reason I am so fearful is because often times I try to do everything by myself. If I wanna survived the next year and a half I am going to have to have more faith, kicking out the fear, trusting and relying on my Father in Heaven and the angels he sends me more often. My hope is that I can do that. That I can be more faithful and less fearful this year. Accomplishing all that my Father in Heaven has in store for me with help from Him and His angels... With God ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

Today was a GREAT day!!! I slept in as long as I could and then I saw what my puppy, Oggie, had done in the front yard. He took the newspaper with all of the REALLY good ads and SHREDDED IT, scattering it across the front yard!!! What am I gonna do with that puppy??? So I cleaned up after him, like I ALWAYS am doing, and then I got ready to go to my Grandparent's home for Thanksgiving. My Grandma is the best cook I know!!! I honestly can't get enough of her mashed potatoes and gravy! YUM-YUM!!! I ate, ate and ate some more! It really was good to see my family and spend time with some of the people that I love! Here are some pictures of what a Howerton Thanksgiving looks like... ENJOY!

Me and my nephew Camerin

Me feeding my nephew, Camerin, a dill pickle! He loves them just like I do!!!! Must run in the family!

My nephew, Camerin and me

My sweet Grandma Howerton and me

My cousin Sami and her boyfriend Dustin

My sister's boyfriend, Ryan and me

My SWEET, SWEET, SWEET Grandpa Howerton

Grandpa Howerton and Camerin

Grandma Howerton and Camerin

Me and my puppy Oggie! I LOVE my puppy!!!

Look at all that food... and my CUTE Grandpa!!!

My sister, Savana, and her son, Camerin

My SWEET nephew, Camerin. I love him!!!

My Aunt Karen, Cousin Sami, Dustin and Cousin Zack

Zack LOVES me!!! Can't you see it on his face?????

My cousin Zach and I being HaPpY!!!

Grandpa Howerton and Oggie

My cousin Zack and I being SiLlY!!!!

Me and my sister Savana

GrAtItUdE

"Gratitude is a feeling of appreciation and thankfulness for blessings or benefits we have received. As we cultivate a grateful attitude, we are more likely to be happy and spiritually strong."

“Whatever hour God has blessed you with, take it with grateful hand, nor postpone your joys from year to year, so that in whatever place you have been, you may say that you have lived happily.”

"The District of Columbia police auctioned off about 100 unclaimed bicycles Friday. “One dollar,” said an 11-year-old boy as the bidding opened on the first bike. The bidding, however, went much higher. “One dollar,” the boy repeated hopefully each time another bike came up.

The auctioneer, who had been auctioning stolen or lost bikes for 43 years, noticed that the boy’s hopes seemed to soar higher whenever a racer-type bicycle was put up.

Then there was just one racer left. The bidding went to eight dollars. “Sold to that boy over there for nine dollars!” said the auctioneer. He took eight dollars from his own pocket and asked the boy for his dollar. The youngster turned it over in pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters—took his bike, and started to leave. But he went only a few feet. Carefully parking his new possession, he went back, gratefully threw his arms around the auctioneer’s neck, and cried.

When was the last time we felt gratitude as deeply as did this boy? The deeds others perform in our behalf might not be as poignant, but certainly there are kind acts that warrant our expressions of gratitude."

This week I have had a little bit more time than normal to reflect on the blessings that I enjoy as a result of not having to go to school because of Thanksgiving break. This break in itself is a HUGE blessing for which I am VERY, VERY, VERY thankful!!! I just wanted to take a few minutes to express my gratitude for the MANY blessings that I enjoy.
1. I am very thankful for milk. I LOVE milk! My roommates think I'm a milk-a-holic and I think they are right. I drink milk at least three times a day and in the summer time when it is hot I like to put ice in my milk to keep it cold. I AM VERY THANKFUL FOR MILK!!!!
2. I am thankful for music. I LOVE music! I always have the radio on in my house, in my car and in my office when I am not with a client. It really doesn't matter what kind of music it is as long as it isn't that yelling and screaming stuff. I really don't enjoy that but everything else I LOVE!!!
3. I am thankful for my job. I LOVE my job! These kids keep me on my toes, that is for sure! I love interacting with them and seeing them grow, learn and progress. I love to see the growth and the learning that I experience as I work with them. They crack me up and just recently labeled me as the "funny, crazy, happy" counselor. I guess they really don't know me that well! :) Along with my job comes AMAZING co-workers. They are so supportive and understanding! They are willing to step up and take on more than their share to make sure that everything is covered while I attend school and try to further my education! Thank you Matt and Jen! I love you guys!!!
4. I am thankful for my education. Who would have thought that I would have my B.A. and be working on my master's. It has been very challenging at times and I am so thankful for all of the support and strength that I have received as I have strived to reach my goals.
5. I am thankful for my puppy, Oggie. I LOVE Oggie! He is such a happy, silly and CUTE little tiger! He always gets so excited to see me when I come home from work or school and when I leave he runs along the fence chasing my car. He has one ear that sticks up a little bit more than the other and he just makes me smile SO MUCH!!!
6. I am thankful for my family. I LOVE my family! My Grandma and Grandpa Howerton are the BEST!!! I have learned so much from them and they always make me laugh. I have learned to stop and smell the roses and to just enjoy life to the fullest from them! I adore my GRANDPARENTS!!! I love my little sister and my little brother!!! While it is true that they are younger than me, they are more grown up in certain areas of their lives. My brother, Ryan, and sister-in-law Jamie have their heads on straight and not only set goals to work towards but actually reach them. I admire them and all of the accomplishments that they achieved!!! My sister, Savana, and her boyfriend, Ryan, are the sweetest parents to my little nephew, Camerin. They are so kind to me and let me spend as much time with my sweet little nephew as I want. I am so thankful for Camerin and the sweet, happy little angel that he is. He is another little tiger that can make me smile no matter what is going on!!!
7. I am thankful for texting. I am also a text-a-holic! I am texting all of the time. I even taught me boss how to text and text my grandparents when I need to talk to them. I need to be better and not text so much but it is so dang easy and fast... Just what I need when I am so busy with everything that is going on in my life.
8. I am thankful for my roommates, both the official and the not-so-official ones. Melissa, Stephanie, Davina, Shante', Lisa, Dave, and Brent. Lisa, Dave and Brent are the not-so-official roommates because they really don't live with us but they are ALWAYS at our home. I love it!!!! I am thankful for Melissa because she is such a great example to me! She is always reading her scriptures, reading the Ensign or listening to talks on tape. She is very in tune with the spirit. Not only does she hear the spirit speak to her but she follows the promptings that she receives. Mike, her soon-to-be husband is one lucky man!!!! I am thankful for Stephie because she is so dang funny!!! She so sweet and innocent. She is always quoting movies like Muppet Treasure Island, "I've got cabin fever!" "I've got it too!" and is always making people laugh... ALL OF THE TIME!!!! Stephie CRACKS me UP!!!! I am thankful for Davina because she is so motivated and such a hard worker. She goes out with the missionaries at least once a week and is ALWAYS doing service for others. She is BEAUTIFUL and is trying to teach me how to dress more like a girl... it's not working too well! ;) Shante' just moved in this week so I haven't really had time to get to know her too well. One thing that I know about Shante' is that she is ALWAYS smiling!!! She just has a way of making people feel happy and comfortable around her! I am so excited that she is our new roommate!!! I am thankful for Lisa because she is so caring and giving. Lisa is always willing to serve others and drop EVERYTHING that she is doing to make sure that everyone else's needs are met. She is such a good work out partner. Even when she has already worked out she'll come with me to work out again. What a WoMaN!!! I am thankful for Dave because he has been one of my best friends since the start of this year. He is kinda like my friend 'counselor' and is always calling me on my crap. Sometimes we fight, most of the time because he is right and I am STUBBORN, but we always make up. Dave and I have gone on LONG drives where we could talk and share with one another anything and everything that was bothering us. I know that I could turn to Dave with anything and he would be right there for me. Now we come to Brent. I ADORE Brent. We met at the beginning of this semester and have become REALLY close. I spend most of my free time with Brent. He is absolutely amazing. Brent really cares about other people and is not afraid to show it. He is so willing to serve others and to make other people's lives better. Brent is very honest and open with everyone around him. Brent has a very strong testimony and is always willing to share what he believes with everyone around him. He has a great understanding of the gospel and is so incredibly intelligent. Brent is such a great friend and I know that I could trust him with ANYTHING!!!
9. I am thankful for all of the friends and family that I have. I have always been blessed with the most amazing friends and family who have taught me so much! I am the person I am today because of their support and examples. I love you guys!!!!
10. I am thankful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and for all of the blessings and opportunities to grow that have come from being a member. I am thankful for the chance I had to serve a mission, to meet the people that I met in the mission field that have changed my life FOREVER and for the experiences that I've had. Let me not forget! I am thankful for the gospel, for the Atonement of Jesus Christ and for the role that it plays in my life. I know that I am FAR from perfect and I have much to work on. I am thankful for the chance that I have to learn to grow and to become more like my Savior.

I am thankful for Thanksgiving and for the chance that I have had to reflect on the many blessings that I enjoy. There is much more that I am thankful for, there is no way I could post ALL that I am thankful for!!! This is my feeble attempt to try to express gratitude for some of the blessings that I enjoy~

It'S aLl GoOd!!!!

I wish that I had something super exciting to share will y'all but really, my life is just too outta control to even pay attention to things that are happening that might be considered exciting. Work, school, church calling, school and more school. That is about it right now. I try to sleep every now and then but overall it's all good. This semester has been a rough one. The roughest semester I have ever had in my whole college career. Everyone says that it'll get better and I sure hope they are right. I have a few weeks left in the first semester of the program and if I can make it till then it'll be a miracle. I believe in miracles... that's how i got into the program in the first place.
I decided to put some pictures of what has been happening on here... I promise to keep my blog more up to date when things slow down!!! I'm so bad!!! I have a hard time even finding time to feed my fish! Oh dear!!! Don't worry though... I take GREAT care of my puppy, Oggie! He is so funny! This is him dressed up for Halloween...

I'm such a mean puppy mommy... look how sad he looks!!!


Oggie, Brent and Me. Brent is a great friend of mine! We spend A LOT of time together and he is so kind to me!
The other day we cleaned out me closet and I gave Oggie some old slippers I had to chew on. He had a hay day with them! It was so fun to watch him play with them. Oggie has a dogie door and he was trying to take his new toys, my old slippers, out through his little dogie door. He was struggling. Brent and I just sat and watched him as he kept trying to get his slippers out the door, we were laughing so hard. Finally, out of frustration, Oggie went outside, leaving his slipper right by the dogie door. The next thing I know Oggie pokes his head through the door and starts trying to pull the slipper out with the little dogie door flap smacking him in the face. Silly puppy! At least he never gave up! What a good lesson for me to learn with school being so challenging right now in my life. Never give up!!! Keep tryng and find new ways to get things done! It'll all work out! Life is good!!!

$tOrM

Within all of us there is a storm
Some believe it will never end
But he who has faith in the Heavens
Will weather ANY storm...

Just another day in PaRaDi$e...

So this hasn't so much been my week. In fact I think that it would be safe to say that it hasn't really been my semester. Let me just give you a little idea of what I mean when I say that things haven't been going my way so much. I will share with you just one day's events to illustrate why I feel justified in saying it hasn't so much been my semester, it might be TOO overwhelming to think of all the not so great days that I have had this semester in one sitting. Every day this semester has been VERY similar tO what I am about to share with you.
This past Sunday I was in Sunday school and we were talking about secular knowledge verses spiritual knowledge. Just recently being called to serve as a Gospel Doctrine Teacher I felt it necessary to help out my fellow teacher by commenting and participating in class. As I was sharing some of my thoughts, I had a little slip of the tongue and when I was trying to say "secular knowledge" it came out "sexual knowledge". Oh dear! I was sooooo embarrassed. I was hoping that the instructor would save me from being the focus of attention and say something but he didn't. Later he told me that he wanted to give me the chance to try to redeem myself but there was no way I could! I was so fluster and blushing so badly that I couldn't say ANYTHING and just sat there trying not to DIE right there on the spot. Not so bad you may think... but that was not the end of my Sabbath day adventures. It was fast and testimony meeting that same day in our ward and I felt prompted to share with the congregation my testimony. As I stood up and went to step over my roommate, Stephanie, to go to the pulpit my skirt got caught on my shoe and I bet you can guess what happened next. Yep! I de-skirted myself in the middle of our fast and testimony meeting. I honestly thought I was going to DIE and I kinda wanted to, to be completely honest. I sat down as quickly as I could and tried to pull my skirt back up as fast as I could. I sat there and just laughed at myself, along with everyone else who was sitting behind me and my roommate. After a few minutes I decided that I would go ahead and share my testimony anyways... I had shared everything else with them, why not just throw everything out on the table? My bishop called later that night and said that he was worried about me and wanted to me meet with ASAP. I had a meeting with the bishop and right before I left to go see him I decided to clean the bathroom with bleach, not a good idea because I splashed it right in my eye and I thought that I was going to go blind. I didn't but my eye was REALLY blood-shot and my bishop thought that I had been crying all day. I wish I had been crying because maybe that would have washed out some of the bleach. I was even trying to think of something really sad so that I could cry, but I couldn't.
I thought that as soon as I got into my home, passed my CADC test and started this semester of school my life would slow down just a little bit, I was wrong... I was WAY wrong! Things aren't bad, and I am happy but I just feel like my world is spinning out of control and there is almost nothing that I can do to get a handle on it, not yet anyways. I'm the type of person who likes to be in control and on top of everything. I feel uncomfortable and get frustrated when things don't go EXACTLY the way I want them to. This is something that I am learning to overcome and deal with. I am learning to go with the flow, to relax a little bit and enjoy life. There really is only so much that I can do and I have finally came to accept that.
Doctrine and Covenants 123:16-17
"You know, brethren, that a very large ship is benefited very much by a very small helm in the time of a storm, by being kept workways with the wind and the waves."
"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us CHEERFULLY do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."
I honestly have seen my Father in Heaven's arm be revealed in my life during the past semester. While it's true that I may feel that I don't have the control that I would like to have right now in my life I know that my Father in Heaven does have that control. I am learning to trust in Him even when I may not understand completely. I can't think of anything else I'd rather be doing right now than what I am doing. I am so thankful for this learning and growing opportunity and will continue to do all things that lie in my power... CHEERFULLY!!! Life is soooo GOOD!!!