A Toast to the Whites

Today, is a very special day for this girl. Abby DeLawder, soon to be Mrs. Abby White. Although England has been wonderful so far, my heart is breaking because I am not able to be there for her special day. For this reason, I am going to write a little toast for Abby and her soon to be husband Mr. Patrick White.

First off, I have been around for Abby and Pat's journey from the day they met. At the time, Abs and I were doing an internship together in Salt Lake. We looked like this every single day. Cow & Jumbo 4 life...

 I remember hearing how fun and great this guy was so I told her I had to meet him! 

When we finally nailed down a day, it didn't go as planned. 

During one of the first conversations Pat and I had, we started talking about sports. 

(I'm such a dude sometimes)

I may or may not have told him to "go die" because he mentioned his devotion to the Lakers. Disclaimer: I HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFE TOLD ANYONE THAT. I CAN NOT BELIEVE IT CAME OUT OF MY MOUTH.

 I have since apologized, but our start was rocky to say the least. 

The next couple years their relationship blossomed, and they had their ups and downs. During the downs I was not a fan of the man who was hurting my best friend. 

I mean come on, friend code 101= be on her side, always! 

But look at them now.... they are beyond happy and I could not be more ecstatic for them!!

So here's to you Abs... Here's to you not having to spell your last name out ever again. To moving to the back of the alphabet. To always having a partner in crime and a date to everything. To having your best friend by your side forever. To finding the man of your dreams! To Mr. & Mrs. White!!!

Love you Abs. I couldn't be more happy for you two. Welcome to the married club! :)

Commence jokes about having babies. Too soon?

Why you don't go running

Because you don't live in a place like this....

I don't mean to brag, okay fine, yes i do, but this was my morning run. 

England, you have my heart.

Swoon. 

That is all.

Dreaming

I love dreaming. It's a free adventure every night! Besides the point. The real point is, there is not one decoration in our entire flat. We couldn't exactly bring any with us, given our packing limitations. The bank account and the husband would also not appreciate it if I spent money on expensive decor. This left me with one option: make it yourself. Yay crafting, right?

I'm starting with our room. Over the bed to be exact. Nothing fancy. Super simple.

It's so so easy to make too! All you need is:

I found the actual letters for free here. I printed them off and glue dotted them to the colored paper. (Secret... I used glue dots to mount the clothes pins to the wall too).  I wish I had twine to hang the thing. I couldn't find any in the city and didn't want to order it online, so string worked just fine. I tripled it up so it was a little thicker on the wall. 

Honestly, easiest craft of my life. I love how it turned out!

Side note:
I listened to this song on repeat while making the banner. LOVE IT. Not sure if it's popular in the States, but I'm all about it.

How to Be Happy

Lately, I have been in a little bit of a slump. Why, you ask? But Callie, you have literally traveled the world and had AMAZING opportunities the past six months! How is the heck are you not happy?! Yeah, yeah. I know. 

Life has changed lately. I used to think that I was okay with change, that it was good. I still believe that change can be good. Change is required for progression, but change can also be scary and hard. I found myself writing in my journal this week, "I feel like I have lost myself a bit." That's a scary sentence. Hear me out though...  I had to quit my job, leave my friends, (miss my BFFs wedding... love you Abs) and move to the other side of the world. 

With all that said. Let me tell you that I found the answer to happiness this past weekend. 

(I don't know if I really found it, more like rediscovered it). 

I had a little help from a little thing called General Conference. Haven't heard of it? Well let me tell you all about it! Did you know that we have prophets on the earth today? God speaks to us through them just like he did with prophets of old, like Noah or Moses. General Conference is one of the instances we have to hear modern day prophets and their counsel from the Lord. 

One of my favorite talks was given my President Dieter F. Uchtdorf during the General Women's Session. He gave us a recipe for happiness, peace, and eternal life. I mean really, what else could you want?

"The Creator of the seas, sands, and endless stars is reaching out to you this very day! He is offering the grand recipe for happiness, peace, and eternal life!

To qualify for these glorious blessings, you must...

1) Humble yourself

2) Exercise faith

3) Take upon you the name of Christ

4) Seek Him in word and deed 

5) Resolutely stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places"

I needed to hear this. I was looking inward and not upward and outward. I can be happy when I serve others. I can be happy when I look to my Heavenly Father and trust in His plan. The answer is simple. I knew it all along. I had just forgot. Sometimes we need a little reminding from our loving Father in heaven, and that's okay!

Are you feeling down? Need direction or uplifting? You will find it here.