O N E W E E K

So.....I leave in a week to serve the Lord as a full-time missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints....to Edmonton, Canada...not a big deal, right? 

ACTUALLY IT'S A REALLY BIG DEAL!  

I'm so excited, nervous, happy, sentimental, crazy, anxious, stoked for it all!!!  It's happening so fast, I can't quite handle it.  Oh I'm just so excited.  It's FINALLY happening. 

If you have any questions regarding my religion, beliefs, or what missionary work is, click here for my personal profile on our church website, or here for an overview of the LDS church.

Also, this past week I made the last decked out package I'll ever make for my cute missionary!!!  WHHHAT???  Crazy, right?  He'll get home about 10 months before I do, so after that, the package making/decking out/sending will be his job. ;)  

His birthday is early in August, so my mom's going to send it for me after I leave so it gets to him around his birthday. :)  

I'm actually REALLY proud of this package....since he's been gone, I've come into terms with the crafty side of myself.  MISSIONS ARE MIRACLES I TELL YOU!  

Without further adieu, here's the package:

 

Simple directions for the package:

Cut out 13 (or however many you need) triangles of the same size, and write the letters on them..super easy, right?

Next, cut the ribbon so it reaches across the package (it's really up to you how long you want it)

Hot glue the triangles to the ribbon.

Next, get your scrapbook paper and cut it to the dimensions of the inside flaps of your box, and hot glue them to the inside (I wouldn't risk using glue sticks, they don't seem strong enough)

Lastly, I hot glued the ends of the ribbons to the OUTSIDE of the flaps.  (I tried to glue them to the inside before gluing the scrapbook paper, but it DID NOT work, but maybe I'm just not that talented hahah)

Contents:

I did a little "party in a box" type thing, so I got...

Cake mix

Frosting

Candles

Foil cake pan (like $2 at maceys)

Tie

And a special present I got for him (Canada T-Shirt) cute, right? :)

SUPER easy package.

On another note, I'll be posting on here probably once more with info regarding my mission address, email, blog and the like.

I hope you all have a fabulous day! 

brookelle

fam{ily}

This past year, I've really come to fully recognize the importance of families.  Especially over this past week, it has really hit me how big of a role they play in my life, and to get sentimental, how much I'm going to miss them all when I leave to serve a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints for a year and a half.  

No matter what I do or where I go in life, I know that my family will always be there for me with open arms and loving hearts.  I realize that there are a lot of people who don't have such supportive families, and that makes me sad.  It makes me especially grateful that I have been blessed with such amazing people in my life. 

I love you all!

xoxo

temples, cousins, & a skype sesh

Quite a bit has happened in this past week, so I figured I'd blog about it for all of you who read this (aka probably only my mom and grandma.  thanks guys.) 

Anywho, since I have my mission call, I was able to go through the temple and receive my endowment!  I chose to go through the Jordan River Temple since that's where my beautiful family was sealed a little less than 18 years ago.  (wow, I'm old.)  Here's a little throwback for ya'll. 

Yeah, I know.  My dad had hair.  Weird, right? 

On Thursday, May 8th, 2014, I received my endowment.  It was a little overwhelming, but I felt the spirit so incredibly strong.  Now it's time to go as much as possible before I head out to Canada!  :)  

Also, thanks so much to my wonderful family and friends who were able to join me in such a big event in my life, it really meant so much.

 

 This weekend I got to go to my cousin Andrew's state soccer games!  He's only a freshman and he's starting varsity!  I'm so glad I was able to go to watch him play.  Although they lost in the state championship game, they played their little hearts out.  Annnnd they got to play at Rio Tinto--kind of a big deal.  Anyways, he did fantastic.  I also got to watch my cousin Josh's baseball games!  This kid has been my bff since birth and I'm so proud to call him my cousin.

Andrew and I after his first game^^^

Now for the skype sesh...Sunday was Mothers Day, and as you all know, Mothers Day is one of the two days a year that missionaries get to skype or call home!  On Sunday morning, I was surprised to get a text from Adam's mom saying that I was welcome to come over during his skype call!  I was so not expecting it, and it made me super nervous to be honest.  I didn't know if I should go because I didn't want to freak him out or distract him or anything, but eventually I ended up going.  Let me just tell you that it was probably the greatest thing I've ever done...seriously.  Just hearing his laugh and his voice that I haven't heard in over a year put me on cloud 9!  And I'm still on cloud 9..I'm not sure if it's supposed to last this long...but I'll take it! Only one more year until I talk to him again when I'm out on my mish and he's home!

Although this wait/decision to serve as well has been one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do, I know it's going to be more than worth it.  1 year and 9 months til we're together again?  We're getting there.

xoxo
brookelle