Called to Serve - T-Ca$h Style

On February 19th, 2008, my brother A-Team opened his mission call. He was called to the Canada Toronto West Mission. He entered the MTC on June 18th, 2008 - just days after Branson and I got married.

Friday night (February 19th, if you were wondering) my brother T-Ca$h opened his mission call...

The room was full of our family, Grandma, this Bishop and our buddy Alex and about a million of T-Ca$h's friends. Ok, about 20 of his friends. but the room was packed. And you can hear the cheers that erupted when he announced that he was called to the England Manchester Mission. We were all excited. Our Grandma's parents were Mission Presidents in England Mission that included Manchester at that time. Pretty sweet.

But our family was more interested to hear when he was leaving.

You see, Austin has been gone for over a year and a half. He is going to be coming home sometime in June, we think (since he left in June two years ago), so when Tay is going was what we were super interested in. Wondering if he would be able to see Austin, or whether he would miss him and go 4 years without seeing him.

So when Ca$h read that he was to report to the MTC in England on June 18th, mom and I erupted. We laughed and gawked. We had been talking about it all week, and I was convinced that they were just going to miss each other. So when he said June 18th... It totally solidified my conviction. I'm pretty sure that they'll miss each other by days.

England. T-Ca$h is going to England. He's going to come home with a cute little accent (just like my friends Spence and Sam did when they came home from England... ha ha). And he's going to be such a great missionary. I'm so proud of him for deciding to go on a mission, and for being worthy to go in the first place. He's going to be fantastic.

And how crazy is it that A-Team and T-Ca$h both opened their calls on February 19,th and they both go to the MTC on June 18th. Seriously... Crazy!

learning

Things I have learned this week:

I have the best friends ever. Seriously.

Kendyll and Shaylyn are two of the most adorable gals I know.

I shouldn't read into any of the crazy dreams I have.

Hearing from an old friend out of the blue is priceless.

What I consider short hair is not what
other people consider short hair.

I am allergic to contacts. I think. And I'm upset about it.

The government hates people who are married who don't own houses,don't have kids, and aren't going to school.

We are getting screwed by our taxes.
And no, I don't want to talk about it.

I cry every time I see a TurboTax and/or H&R Block commercial.

Sometimes, all I want to do is cuddle up in a blanket and watch tv.

I am thoroughly entertained by Joss Whedon's show Firefly.

My dream is to be able to stay home and cook all day.

I would totally rock a Food Network Channel show.

My dad thinks I make the best chocolate cake ever.
But don't ask... It's a secret recipe.

I am not addicted to my phone.
I can be without it for hours and not care.
(Which I consider a great feat, compared to all of those Blackberry/iPhone addicts. No offense.)

I wish I were more like my mom.

Sometimes when everything is going wrong,
God lets you know it'll be ok.

Tithing blessings are real.

I have changed so much in the last 5 years.

Yet, so much of me is still the same.

I am so grateful for my family.

I miss joking and badgering with my brothers.

I have so much to learn.

And I am truly showered with blessings from up above.

Don't ask me to count them, because I'll go forever.

And then the dishes will never get done.

Or the laundry.

I am learning. I'm changing. I'm growing. I'm re-learning. I'm realizing. I'm remembering. For better or for worse. Crossing my fingers it's for good. I have so many things to work on. Topping that list is probably my attitude. I've been stuck in a rut for a while, and the 'misfortunes' have been getting the best of me. I've tried to be optimistic... for a minute. And then BAM! TurboTax commercial. And then when I decide to stop my blubbering and wipe my tears - BAM! I make an awful dinner. And then when I clear the table and try to hide my hurt pride - BAM! A glass is dropped and broken. BAM! BAM! BAM! (It's been a rough week... Don't judge me. Please.)

But I need to stop focusing on all of that and instead see that luckily, no one was sliced when said glass was dropped. And luckily, I usually do make great dinners - And I can try again and make a new dinner tomorrow. And luckily, we have food so that I can make dinner tomorrow. And luckily, I have a tomorrow. (Barring the unexpected... of course.)

So I'm lucky. And by lucky I mean blessed. Because I'm pretty sure they're the same thing.

And I'm learning... lots of things. About myself. About what I want to be. And when I grow up, (and maybe before...) I want to be better. Nay, I want to be the best. Not necessarily better than everyone else. I don't want the responsibility of being the best at everything... that would certainly get tiring after... like two minutes. I want to be the best at being me. I want to be the best me.

Slowly, but surely, I'm learning how to do that. And I've got so much more to learn.

losing track

Remember that one time when it was still January? Ooh, better yet - Remember that one time when it was still November?

Yup. Pretty sure I'm losing track of time. It's already February, and that blasted groundhog saw his shadow yesterday. (Though, I must admit that I think the whole "Groundhog's Day" thing is a crock. Really? We determine the coming of spring with a rodent? I mean, come on. Really?!) The weather has been feeling a lot like early March instead of early February, and is making my ache for spring that much more. I'm totally in the mood for spring cleaning, blossoms on our trees and light-jacket weather. Granted, I have some cute winter coats. But I feel that their seasonal usage should come to a close rather quickly.

I've decided I'm blaming the loss of time tracking on my job. Just when I think things will die down... they don't. The holidays were so crazy with work [insert gratitude for having a job here], I barely had time to think about Christmas until it was knocking on my door in the form of in-laws and Santa Claus. (Don't be confused... I don't think my in-laws and Santa Claus are the same. Come on - everyone knows that Santa Claus doesn't knock on the door!) So December flew by in a flash. And now January is gone too. What even happened in January? I can't recall...

Work... Piano lessons... Playing the organ in Stake Conference (super intimidating - though I received several compliments.)... A few encounters with friends (though definitely not as many as there should have been)... And an almost-failure of attempted resolutions. (I swear I'm trying. But it's just so hard to follow through on resolutions when you have no concept of the time flying by. How am I supposed to try to be a better person when January barely existed for like three days?)

And now its February. At work, we're already working on summer and fall products - so this part of me keeps thinking it just might be summer. You know, when I'm sitting at my desk, listening to John Mayer, with no windows in sight reminding me of the inversion and 30 degree temperatures outside. And for a minute I think it might just be warm when I walk outside.

And then... Failure. I leave the building to run an errand or grab lunch and am reminded that - oh yeah, it's still winter. The worst part of winter, too. The part of winter when the air is so awful it burns your throat just to breathe. The part of winter when the only thing to look forward to is spring. No Thanksgiving or Christmas to make winter acceptable. Yup. That part of winter. The part of winter called "February."

Granted, lots of great things happen in February:
My parents anniversary. My dad's birthday. Valentines Day. Hiring a new person in the music department to help relieve a little of the madness. A potential new piano student. A girls night with Kendyll and Shaylyn. So close to March Madness. All of my favorite tv shows are in full swing. Its the 2 year anniversary of when I decided that marrying Branson would be the best decision ever.

See? Lots of good things. I need to focus more on those. And I will. As for those resolutions - I'm still hoping February proves more successful that January.

Please bless that February doesn't fly by as quickly as the last few months.