Has it sunk in yet?

I am leaving in 8 days. Surreal much?? So I thought I would write one last blog post.

Oh, I have to tell you, I am big fan of Shannon Hale and last Saturday I got to meet her!!! I'm so grateful that my sisters came along, especially when I know that one particular sister wasn't really wanting to go (but she was glad she did because it was AWESOME)! If you do not know who Shannon Hale is or have not read any of her books I would recommend first and foremost Book of a Thousand Days. I almost cry every time I read that book (which is the equivalent of crying for me, since I don't really cry very much). And then once you've read it you can talk to me about it haha and we can gush over Khan Tegus. I would also recommend Princess Academy. That one is pretty sweet as well. And if you love Jane Austen then you should also read Austenland and Midnight in Austenland.

Okay, that's my Shannon Hale blurb. Enough said.

Also I went to the institute Valentine's Dance last Friday. I had very low expectations for that dance. I felt like I had been tricked into going when I didn't really want to go for several reasons.

1. I would be one of the few people there without a date.

2. Because it was a couple-ly dance, they would probably only play slow songs. And it's not very fun to dance to slow songs alone.

3. I am leaving on a mission, so even if I did HAPPEN to meet someone, what good would it do me?

So I wasn't really looking forward to it. When we first got to the dance, my suspicions that the dance would suck were confirmed when they were still eating dinner. About 30 minutes later (and after me saying, "Why are we here? We should blow this joint" about 10 times) the dance finally started. And again, my suspicions that they would only play slow dances were confirmed when the first two songs were slow ones. . . . But then the third dance was a fast one and the party began!!! It turned out to be one of the best dances I have ever been to! They played just as many fast songs as slow ones, and I even let myself have fun during the slow ones. And since I was going to be leaving in less than two weeks, I didn't care what anyone thought of me so I just partied it up! If you have not seen me at a good dance where I am having fun, you have not seen me! Hahahaha. Epic!

Okay, now I should maybe get to serious things like saying goodbye and all that. But it just hasn't really sunk in yet. I don't think it will sink in until I watch my parents drive away and abandon me at the MTC ;) The longest I have been away from home was the week I went to New York City. And I had two of my sisters with me then. I have suffered from homesickness in the past and I found a book in the library the other day that was all about hoomesickness. Did you know that in the Civil War, if a soldier was homesick they would let him go home?!?!? It was totally legit then whereas now it's like, buck up dude and get over it. I am very much a home body and I love the safety and comfort of being home. I'm also afraid to basically live out of suitcases for 18 months. But I need to remember that this is what Heavenly Father wants me to do. Maybe if I stop digging in my heels, this will be the most amazing thing that has ever happened to me. Maybe if I just have a little more faith that things will work out the way they are supposed to all these dumb worries will just melt away. And it's not like I'm dying or never going to come back. It is going to be challenging but it's also going to be the biggest adventure of my life so far. And I'll get to spend my time preaching something that is very dear to my heart. Something that I know is true and that has helped me tremendously throughout my life.

I hope everyone who reads this will write to me. I'll post my address on Facebook soon.

Until then, God be with you til we meet again ;) or in Maurie speak, peace out me hombres!

66 Days and Counting

66 days until I leave for the MTC! Crazy! Sorry for the short post. Kind of pointless actually, huh? Oh, and the picture is of my Mom's bruise when she broke her arm. I shouldn't say "broke her arm" that makes it sound so weak. She broke it in two places and then the bone shattered in between those two breaks. It's pretty hard core haha.

Mom's bruise

Mission Call

I'm glad they called me on a mission, now that I have grown a foot or two! Haha

Most people were really surprised when I told them I was going on a mission so I've decided to give a little back story about it.

Growing up I never really wanted to go on a mission. Or rather, it wasn't that I didn't want to go it was just something that I NEVER thought of doing. It wasn't for me. I had no real interest or desire to go. Then in January of 2010 something happened. I had just turned 20 and was going to Weber State. I was finally getting into classes that had to do with my major. I was taking editing classes and . . . I hated them. That's what I wanted to do when I grew up, edit stuff, and I hated it?! And on top of that I wasn't any good at it either. I was frustrated and confused so I prayed to know if I should continue with all these English classes or find a different major. I was sitting in Sacrament meeting in my home ward. The speakers in the meeting were the matron and a guy from the presidency of the Ogden Temple. The matron spoke first. She didn't even speak about missionary work, really. But my head and my heart were only telling me one thing: mission, Maurie. Mission.

No, no, no, I told myself. No. Just no. After the matron spoke there was a musical number. It was a medley of "I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go" and "God Be With You Til We Meet Again". That's when it really hit me: Go on a mission, Maurie. And I started getting teary-eyed. I wasn't sure if it was because I was feeling the Spirit or because I just did not want to go on a mission.

But over the next few days, I just kept feeling like I should go on a mission. But I was confused. I was praying to know what to do about school and that's the answer I got? And I was only 20. I had a whole year before I could even really think about a mission (but I think Heavenly Father told me so early so that I could have a year to get used to the idea of going on a mission). I talked to my parents about it and both my mom and dad had a condition. My dad's condition: Graduate from college first. My mom's condition: Wait until all the boys your age are home from their missions. So when I was getting close to graduating I started thinking of a mission again. I even went to the bishop and lots of things. But I just didn't feel good about it. I was freaking out. I didn't really want to go, I was just going to go because that's what I thought I should do. Plus there was this guy, but that's a whole other story. When I was just about to start on my papers (in March of 2011) I told my Bishop about all these concerns I had and he told me to wait awhile and see what happened. So that's what I did. I graduated and got a job and felt good about not going at that moment. Every day when I drive to work I see what's left of the Ogden Temple. And one day in early September I looked at the temple and the thought of a mission came into my head again and I started to cry. I am not exactly a crying person so it surprised me that I was crying. But I knew it was because I had finally decided to go on a mission.

Long story short (not really) I talked to my bishop that Sunday, by the following Sunday I had all my paperwork turned in. The next week I met with the Stake President and four weeks later (there were two little hiccups with the missionary department after that) my call came.

Uh. . . blog much?

Um, so it seems that I have not been good at blogging lately. Maybe because not much is going on. Or maybe because SO much is going on that I don't feel like I have time. It's probably a mix of both. I've just been busy with work. Even though it's only part time it sometimes feels like it's full time and I've been taking a few institute classes. Plus my church calling keeps me busy. This last weekend felt like a never ending go go go session. I'm so glad it's Labor Day tomorrow and I get the whole day off (and I get paid too, can't beat that). But I just wanted to say that life is good and I am very happy these days :) no complaints from Maurie.

Harry Potter!!! (and t-shirts)

If there is one thing I love almost more than anything else (including Burn Notice) it is Harry Potter! As much as I love Harry Potter, I have never gone to a Harry Potter midnight showing before. How is this possible you ask? Well, because I value my sleep. And I don't enjoy movies after midnight usually, because I am so tired. But I decided with this last movie coming out, that I need to sacrifice some sleep to show what a true fan I am and go to the midnight showing. I am going with my sister and brother-in-law and we made these truly awesome shirts (pictures to come soon). Making those shirts was quite an adventure. At first, we were gonna try what my sister Linda did with these Robin Hood shirst she made where you bleach a black shirt. It was proving to be monstrous. We had to cut out all the letters and we only had a dull exacto knife (I cut my finger in this horrible process) and then we tried bleaching on shirt . . . to epic failure. To be honest, I was ready to quit right then. Then we thought about the shirts we made for Halloween. We used this thing my mom calls Stitch Witchery (but is actually called Heat and Stitch or something like that) where you iron on what you want. We decided to do that. It was tricky too, but not nearly as tricky as the bleaching thing. And they turned out so stinkin cute! I can't wait to wear it tonight!

Me from O-Z

O

Outside activity I love: playing tennis (though this technically can be done inside)

P

Pet peeve: extreme PDA and super loud chewing

Q

Quote I love: "Build a man a fire and you warm him for a day. Set a man on fire, and you warm him for the rest of his life."

-Terry Pratchett

R

Right or left handed: right

S

Siblings: four. One brother, three sisters, plus two brothers-in-law. Both named Scott, oddly enough.

T

Treasured memory: getting sealed to my family

U

Unspeakable vow: if it's unspeakable, why would I tell you? Haha (plus I can't think of any anyway)

V

Vegetables I dislike: mostly all . . . I'm just picky

W

What makes me smile: Burn Notice, cookies, funny jokes, good movies, great times with friends, thinking of a song I love and then hearing it on the radio almost immediately after I think of it . . . lots of other things that I can't think of right now

X

X-rays I have had done: one on my middle finger when I sprained it (thanks for nothing Spencer George) and another on my foot. It was hurting really bad, but there was nothing wrong with it so it turned out to be a waste of time

Y

Yummy food I make: blueberry muffins

Z

Zoo animal: Koala bear

As another note, my sister had her baby! Her name is Ella and I really, really, really wish I could go see her :(