Hello Happiness

Dear World,

I just wanted to let you know that I am filled with feelings of happiness! The days just seem to get better and better and I keep meeting such wonderful people that share these same feelings of happiness. I used to not be so good at making friendships and then maintaining the friendships after one of us moved to another city, country, part of life, etc. Andy keeps mentioning that he really hates meeting people and making friendships only to see them move away a few months or years later. Both of us grew up in itty bitty towns where we had the same friends from preschool to senior year and we rarely had to say goodbye to any of our friends. After high school I moved on to college and barely kept in contact with any of my high school buddies. In college I had a really tight knit group of roommates/friends that I absolutely loved. After we all moved away, I seemed to be the one that forgot to keep in touch.

I take all the blame. I have recently discovered that I have always considered my friend’s friend’s “their friend” and not “my friend”. For clarification: because my friend who I became friends with the old fashioned awkward way of “hi I’m sara, what’s your name? I like your nail polish” introduced me to one of their friends made me feel like I couldn’t be their complete friend. Like on Seinfeld when George and Elaine try to hang out but they realize they were never friends, they were just friends with Jerry. I felt like that with most of the new people I was introduced to. It was extremely awkward and hard for me to open up. I also always found it hard to make conversation with people and always wondered why.

This brings me back to Andy’s comment about hating seeing friends go and move on. I started thinking “why can’t we be friends with them forever even if we don’t live in the same place?” I started thinking about friendships differently and actually wanting to make them work longer than the phase of life I’m in. I found it easier to talk to people and be interested in them and not feeling so awkward telling other people about myself and asking other people about themselves. I have also found that the friendships I made long ago as a kid, in college, out of college and so on can pick up right where they left off if one of us reaches out and says hi.

I love my friends and I’m sorry if you think I fell off the earth. I am trying harder to be a better friend and stay in touch. I think about you all (you know who you are) all the time. You all shaped me into who I am today so it’s impossible to forget you.

Love,

Sara

Water

It’s been over a week since I randomly stopped drinking diet soda. I do not think I feel different or that I have more energy or anything else spectacular. Is this normal? Am I supposed to feel better, worse or the same?

If you’re wondering why I had a change of heart on my dear ol diet Pepsi, it’s because I was sick with a sinus infection the week before and did not drink any soda as I was sleeping all day. When I finally awoke from my coma I had a sip of soda and got a headache. I did not want to chance getting that headache again so I did not drink any soda the next day or the next until now. Plus I don’t really have a desire to drink it again.

P.S. I’ve been drinking diet Pepsi since 2003 when I had to use up my dorm food fund and the only easy solution was to buy bottled water and DP.

The Gospel of Repentance

I recently gave a talk in church about the gospel of repentance. It was such a tender moment for me when I finally understood what it meant. This talk is inspired by this talk by Spencer W. Kimball from 1982.

The topic of repentance has always been very difficult for me to understand. I often equated it to forgiveness in that repentance came to mean asking for forgiveness of your sins. I thought it involved a daily routine of laboriously picking through the many things you did that day to see what was wrong and what needed repenting of. I heard things like: Repent every day, do not take the sacrament unless you have repented and so on.

In my mind this process seemed really hard to do on a daily basis because somehow I couldn’t be as sincere as I thought I needed to be when I asked for forgiveness. I know I’m not perfect, but some days the worst thing I may have done was driven over the speed limit or had a bad thought about a friend or coworker. I did feel bad about it and like I probably shouldn’t do those things anymore but I didn’t feel overwhelming guilt like I have when I’ve done something more serious or something with deeper consequences. I have often felt guilty for not feeling like I took the appropriate steps in the repentance process.

After reading this talk by President Kimball I feel like I’ve had such enlightenment about what repentance actually means. Looking back on my life I think that my mis-understanding of what repentance was led me to feel guilty for things I probably shouldn’t have let myself feel guilty for.

I learned that the real definition of repentance means to turn from your sins and follow Christ and then continue on in your life striving to be better every day.

I learned that repentance is a process – a long process. It starts with someone who does not follow Christ completely or at all and who may have committed sins that prevent him from leading a life of righteousness.

From the Bible Dictionary we learn that this person then has a “change of mind, i.e., a fresh view about God, about oneself, and about the world…repentance comes to mean a turning of the heart and will to God, and a renunciation of sin to which we are naturally inclined.”

This person practices the “R’s of Repentance” and is able to recognize his sins, feels these actions are bad and is able to feel remorse for doing them. They ask Heavenly Father for forgiveness and seek to practice restitution for the things that have affected others.

The next step in the process of repentance (which I did not understand) is to endure to the end. But enduring to the end means to daily strive to be better than you were the day before.

There are many examples in the scriptures that mention the process of repentance – turning from your sins, deciding to commit 100% to Christ and then enduring to the end:

D&C 18:22
And as many as repent and are baptized in my name, which is Jesus Christ, and endure to the end, the same shall be saved.

D&C 20:29

And we know that all men must repent and believe on the name of Jesus Christ, and worship the Father in his name, and endure in faith on his name to the end, or they cannot be saved in the kingdom of God.

Acts 3:19

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Romans 13:12-14

Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.

Isaiah 1:16-19

Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well…relieve the oppressed…plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land

Ezekiel 18:21-22

…If the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.

While I was reading these scriptures I was able to understand the simplicity of the process and the sheer power of the process. Simple because there are so few steps – It may be hard to change our ways and accept God’s will as our own, but yet it is so basic; and powerful because if we practice the gospel of repentance we can gain eternal life.

President Kimball states:

Repentance is a glorious and merciful law. Millions of our Heavenly Father’s children throughout the history of the world have successfully applied this wonderful principle, to their benefit and joy. Shall we not go and do likewise? Millions of Saints have found peace along this path and lived beautiful and satisfying and abundant lives with the gospel of repentance as their guide to personal improvement and to harmony with God.

Reading the scripture in D&C 18:11-13 means so much more to me as I have come to understand this great principle of repentance:

Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God; For, behold, the Lord your Redeemer suffered death in the flesh; wherefore he suffered the pain of all men, that all men might repent and come unto him. And he hath risen again from the dead, that he might bring all men unto him, on conditions of repentance. And how great is his joy in the soul that repenteth!

I feel like I have finally put two and two together and realized how repentance, forgiveness and the atonement are related. I can say that I have had a little peak into understanding how much Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love us and why they want us to embrace this principle of forgiveness. They want so badly to forgive us of our sins and for us to allow ourselves to be saved.

I love this scripture in Ezekiel 18:32 where the Lord pleads with us: For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth…wherefore turn yourselves, and live.

I hope that the words I have spoken today help you understand repentance a little more and that you can feel the peace that I have felt in learning what it truly means to be repentant.

5-Pack

We are up in the great state of Deseret visiting family and taking advantage of things only Utah can offer. Such as 5-pack lift tickets to Park City available only at Costco.
We went snowboarding with Andy’s brother Brett and his wife Ciara and my nephew Travis. The snow was perfect and we all had a lot of fun (except for 2 bruised tailbones). I finally was able to figure out how to go straight and fast without eating it. I can hardly wait to go again.

Break-in

Andy recently purchased a pair of new snow/hiking boots for some heavy duty snow time. His idea of breaking them in is wearing them to Walmart.

Year One

One year ago today, Andy and I hung out for the first time. We went to Jamba Juice for some hot chocolate and a white gummy bear smoothie, played Kinect with his roommates and went to Cafe Rio for FHE. Here is a photo from dinner that night:

Here is a quick recap of the year:

January – Started dating

February – Went to Utah on our first trip

March – Andy met my parents and we exchanged the “L” word

April – Secretly started planning for the wedding

May – Got engaged. Went to Texas and met his family

June – Celebrated our Birthdays

July – Wedding Planning

August – Married! Kauai!

September – Set up house

October – Went camping 3 times

November – Celebrated Thanksgiving with the Fosters

December – Andy got a new schedule and works weekdays now. Dirt bike trip with the boys. Christmas in HB

Recipe: Fried Mozzarella

I found this recipe on Pinterest and decided to try it out. The recipe is from The Curvy Carrot. Finding the ingredients was just as easy as she said it would be. The mozzarella balls were in the deli cheese section and came in an 8 0z. plastic tub with about 20 balls. I modified the recipe because I didn’t want to make 50 cheese balls! We also bought Italian flavored Panko crumbs. The recipe on the blog shows how to make the tomato dipping sauce, but we just used a canned marinara sauce and it was delish.

Here is the recipe:

3-4 cups peanut oil, depending on type of pan you will be frying the cheese in

1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

2 lb. mozzarella bocconcini (about 50 pieces)

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

4 cups panko

Instructions:

1. Drain the cheese from its liquid. Place the cheese on a paper towel-lined baking sheet and pat dry.

2. If your cheese balls seem pretty big, halve or quarter them into bite-size pieces.  Once they get the panko breading on them, they will be a lot bigger.

3.In a bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk.

4. Put the egg mixture and bread crumbs in separate wide, shallow bowls.  Combine the panko with the teaspoon of salt and Parmesan in another wide, shallow bowl.  (*If you only have one shallow bowl, use it for the panko.  It will help you immensely with the breading process.)

5. Roll the cheese in the flour, dip into the egg mixture and coat with the bread crumbs, shaking off the excess after each step.

6.  Repeat the breading process one more time for each cheese piece.

7. In a large, deep sauté pan over medium-high heat, pour the oil to a depth of 3 inches and heat to 350°F on a deep-frying thermometer.

8. Working in batches, fry the cheese until golden, about 45 seconds (or until golden brown-watch them carefully as oven temperatures may vary). If you notice that your thermometer’s reading decreases, wait for a little while until the oil gets back up to the proper temperature.

9. Transfer the fried cheese to a paper towel-lined plate and season with salt and black pepper. Place the cheese on a wire rack set over a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven while frying the remaining cheese.

10.  Serve with the warm tomato sauce