Everybody's Free to Wear Sunscreen

In my frantic GRE studying, I came up with a brilliant idea the other day -- study at LAKE TAHOE!  I mean, why not?!  So, I packed my beach bag and headed to Sand Harbor.

It was beautiful!  70 degrees, beach bums everywhere.  I got to use my fluorescent yellow and orange beach blanket.  I stretched out, opened my study guide and worked to my heart's content.

Then it started getting pretty hot.

I looked down.

PINK.

And I hadn't even spent enough time there to feel satisfied that my $8 parking pass wasn't going to waste.

So, I stayed a little longer and envisioned my future best friend--Aloe Vera gel.

It's always a mystery how one side of my leg can turn stop-sign red, but the other side can be white, white, white, with a perfect line down differentiating the sides.

P.S. I should be studying for the GRE right now.  I take it on Saturday and am officially panicking.  Pray for me!!!

I'm posting this video of one of my favorite "songs" from high school:

EVERYBODY'S FREE TO WEAR SUNSCREEN

(you have to love the spanish subtitles!)

Temples

After Buck's Lake, I climbed in my little car and headed west on I-80 - my favorite!

I wanted to visit the Sacramento Temple, and since Reno's temple was closed for cleaning I decided I had better go now.

It is probably my favorite temple. It is so gorgeous!

I first visited it in 2006, the day after I received my mission call. The Sacramento temple hadn't been dedicated yet, and so I went to the open house.

With thoughts of a mission swirling around in my head, we followed a tour guide at about the spot the picture below was taken. The tour guide was explaining the angel Moroni on top of the temple, and started telling the group about the prophet Joseph Smith. He talked about how Joseph was visited by God the Father and Jesus Christ, how later the angel Moroni visited Joseph and gave him instruction. I tried putting on a non-member's glasses, and saw that the story this tour guide was telling sounded absolutely RIDICULOUS to me.

As soon as I thought that, another thought came to me: "Yes, but you know it's true."

And I can never deny I know it's true.

The first time I came here, I marveled at the beauty of all the rooms. My second visit was no less spectacular. Dark wood lines the walls, with light cornflower blue and cream accents. A window looking into the baptistry is etched with a scene from Sacramento's natural beauty. The Endowment room is dark, with an incredible mural wrapping around the walls of more scenes from the mountains and meadows surrounding Sacramento.

Before I entered the Celestial room, I remembered the sweet experience on my first visit. A person I love leaned down and whispered into my ear, "You're almost home." We stepped into the Celestial room and tears filled my eyes.

This second time, my eyes also moistened. A chandelier hangs in the center of this light room, glittering in the happiness of the place. Everything is cream and white, little chairs clustering the room with white and cornflower blue coverings. Three stained-glass windows allow full sunshine to permeate the room, filling everyone with warmth.

This is one of such windows. I sat here with the one I still love and gloried in the beauty of it all. Here is where an old Spanish man came and spoke to my love in Spanish, telling him it is not too late -- he could still marry me before I left on my mission.

(Thankfully God knows more...)

Below are some more pictures from my trip Saturday. It was a clear, warm day -- just perfect enough to fill my cup to overflowing.

I LOVE the temple -- I always have. For years before I actually went through, my heart yearned for it. It is my place of solitude and peace. A place where stray, hurtful thoughts cannot penetrate my soul -- a place where I am safe.

Of course, I love to travel, too. And while I don't have pictures from everywhere I've been, here are some of my favorite temple pictures:

Sacramento, CA

Provo, UT

Boston, MA

Oakland, CA

Jordan River, UT

St. George, UT

(I had 3 great-great...grandfathers help build this one!)

Salt Lake City, UT

Hawaii

Las Vegas, NV

Reno, NV

Moments of Bliss - 4th of July

Fourth of July -- it will always be a special day for me. July 4th, 2006 is the day I met with the Stake President and turned in my mission papers. I still wasn't 100% sure if it was what I needed to do, but I did it.

July 4th, 2007 was the best day of my life so far. I was serving in Cape Cod with Sister Overson. She and I volunteered at the town's parade and then went to the ward's BBQ at the Tuckers, who are one of my favorite families.

This is me and Abigail Tucker. She's my hero.

The mission president had given us permission to stay out and watch the fireworks. The Tuckers drove us down to Falmouth beach, along with the Webbs, the Manoses, and a couple other families. It was raining, but we wanted to see the fireworks anyway.

Sister Overson and I.

Jennifer Tucker and I went down to the beach and sat there for a moment. As I sat there, looking at the Atlantic ocean, completely soaked and so thoroughly happy, I remembered the previous year. A feeling of gratitude enveloped me as I realized how important that day had been. And here I was, sitting with people I LOVED, halfway across the world--my desert heart drinking in the ocean scene around me. The was my favorite mission day.

July 4th, 2008

My roommate Alecia, friend Trevor and I went up to Buck's Lake to visit Anika at her cabin. (Anika is another roommie). We drove up Thursday night and slept under the stars. I haven't seen so many stars in years!

It was BEAUTIFUL up there - cool weather, sunshine and happiness. I loved it. I'm posting some pictures and will explain them, though I've typed enough to fill a book so far.

Trevor and I woke up early in the morning on the 4th to drive to this incredible field full of wildflowers. It was so beautiful! Well worth the 5:00 am alarm.

This is Trevor at work. His camera is pretty much huge and would make all my photographer friends happy.

This is my favorite rock. I sat here and daydreamed about dancing through the flowers in a beautiful blue dress. It has to be blue.

Trevor, Alecia and Katie rode bikes to visit Ani at work. I drove Ani's cousins in Trevor's truck. Oh man....I did like driving his truck!!! We "accidently" got lost on the way to Ani's workplace.

Anika :)

The oh-so-attractive Trevor

Stacy is in the middle. She came up later on Friday. Okay, so, all in all there were 15 people crammed into their cabin...at it was so fun!

Alecia with her CRAZY eyes...

Drew, Ani's brother. I think he's supposed to be a monkey??

Yo.

They played with the soccer ball...

And wrapped up Stacy and tickled her 'til she almost peed her pants.

Soccer again.

We hiked up to a cliff and the girls whistled along the way.

Aren't we cute??

Alecia working it with Trevor's camera

Trevor trying to sneak his arm around Alecia... I've never met a bigger flirt...

Stacy and Katie

This is where we slept...on the back porch under hundreds of thousands of stars. The sun would warm our faces in the morning and it was perfect.

I have to mention, also, that Trevor and I went canoeing on the lake, and that was perfect, too. I've never been before and it was all that I had ever imagined. Except I needed a book. :)

What a great 4th of July!