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Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Having a Happy Holiday Season

In just over one week, 2,000 miles in a car, 1 joint wedding reception, 4 days of work, approximately 4 days in Fallon, some Angry Birds and Dance Central 2; I would call this holiday season a success.

Still to come...Will's birthday and New Year's in Hurricane. :-)

I couldn't ask for anything more. :-)

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Oh What a Journey It Is


According to blogger the last time I posted anything was June 25th. I don't know about you, but that seems like a long time ago. It's mean it's October. For those of you who know me personally, you know that I pretty much disappeared after starting to date someone seriously. Well this someone is going to be my husband in 8 days! I could give a long version of how we met and how it all happened, but for now I'll just say that when people tell you, "when you know, you know," they're not kidding. I'm definitely not saying that "knowing" makes it the easiest thing in the world to get married, but I will say it makes it easier in the hard times to know in your heart it is right.

So, I have a question for all of you who actually read this: have you ever felt so amazingly happy that you're scared of being unhappy ever again. Logically of course, this doesn't make sense, but I think some of you know what I'm talking about. We all know good and bad things happen, and life is always going to be a rollercoaster of the ups and downs, but do you ever feel afraid to be unhappy because in some way you've forgotten what real sadness feels like? Or because you never want to feel any different than you do at the moment, you hold on so tight not wanting to let go of what you have?

Just thinking. Respond if you would like. :-)

Saturday, June 25, 2011

PlayLIZt: June (Love is You & Keep Your Head Up)

Okay, somehow, of course I have no idea how, I managed to make it through almost an entire month without posting one song. My sincere apologies. I guess you could say June has been quite the busy month. I decided to not try and catch up on the whole month, but I do want to share two songs with you. I have always said that great songs come from TV shows. The first song for June is no exception. I heard this song on the show The Practice and downloaded it right away. I love Chrisette Michele's voice, but most of all I love the message of this song. Song #2 is a much more recent acquisition. On Monday, I heard a song on the radio and immediately wrote down the name and artist so I could download it later. Well, Thursday night I went to the Natasha Bedingfield concert (she is one of the best, if not the best, live performers I have ever seen) and the first opening act was the same artist of the song I heard on Monday on the radio. His name is Andy Grammer and I am a huge fan, so of course I bought his album. So sit back and think of love while "keeping your head up." Enjoy! :)


Thursday, June 2, 2011

Stubbs Family Reunion 2011

Over Memorial Day weekend my cousin Melinda got married in the Rexburg, Idaho temple. It was amazing! Afterward we had our annual Stubbs family reunion. I wrote this little paragraph below on Saturday. I think I said it better then than I could now.

There’s something about family—the way they always think the best of you and the way they support you without knowing all the details of your life. I’m sitting around at my family reunion thinking how lucky I am, how blessed I am to be so closely interconnected with amazing, truly good people. Not every family is perfect, in fact I don’t know any that are, but I can’t help but feel like I got the long end of the stick on this one. And I’m sure I’m not the only one. So today I want to count my family as another blessing. Amazing cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, brothers, sister, parents, niece, and nephew . . . I am one lucky girl!

Melinda's family at her reception.

Sean and the newest addition to his family asleep on the couch. Cute huh?

Tara helping James organize the scripture movie game

The view of the cabin from one of the upper floors.

Emily, Asher, and Maya watching Tangled in the theater room.

Uncle Brian sleeping under the ping pong table. He picks the most interesting places to sleep sometimes. :)

Sunday, May 29, 2011

PlayLIZt: May Week 3 & 4

Time for another double post. Yes, this is what happens when life gets busier than busy. For these two weeks I decided to share two songs from a movie I saw recently called Something Borrowed. The movie itself wasn't anything amazing, even though I laughed at quite a few parts, but I found two great songs from it. These songs are definitely on the more mellow side, but I think that's what I love about them. They're good writing/thinking songs (everyone who knows me knows I love those). :) Enjoy!


Sunday, May 22, 2011

Reaching Our Potential

I have a question.

How do we live up to our potential?
Are we ever really living up to our potential?

Okay I lied...I might have more than just one question. :-)

I've thought about this a lot lately. Mostly, I've been thinking of how can we push ourselves to overcome fears in order to accomplish things we never thought we could/things that are part of our potential?

Thoughts?

I'm still working on the how, but I think there is a definite necessity to seek that potential and reach for it. I'll add it to the to-do list. ;-)

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

PlayLIZt: May Week 2 (Who You Are)

I could write so much about this song, but I'll just write the most important reasons this song is the PlayLIZt song of the week from last week. When I first heard this song there was a line that made all the difference to me. "It's okay not to be okay." I feel like I (and other people I know) spend so much time trying to "keep it all together" on a daily basis, and while some days it's easy to see the good and be happy, some days everything is just not okay. I felt like the lyrics in the song gave me permission to not be okay, but also to never let that be it, to keep living to be who I am deep down, and who you are. This song gives hope when there is none. This song is a gift. This song is for anyone who has ever doubted themselves. No matter what, remember who you are! On Saturday night I got to sing this song for a friend at an acoustic music event to raise money for cancer research. Although it wasn't the easiest thing to do, it was one of the coolest things I've been able to be a part of. So here's to a great song! A really great song!
Enjoy! :)

Saturday, May 7, 2011

PlayLIZt: May Week 1 (Same Changes)

This is another song from one of my more recent favorite movies: Morning Glory. I probably loved it first because it plays during one of my favorite parts of the movie (where she is walking around early in the morning in a sort of reflective mood) and I love it second because of the message that things never stay the same. "Same" changes. As hard is it is to accept sometimes, well most of the time, it's true. Nothing really ever stays the same, but somehow this song makes me feel okay about that. Enjoy! :)

Thursday, April 28, 2011

PlayLIZt: April Weeks 1, 2, and 3

I've been kind of absent lately when it comes to the PlayLIZt--sorry! I have plenty of favorites to add, so here we go. Three songs for the three weeks I missed.

1. This song comes from a friend. I don't know where Lizz Wright came from, but I love her voice. She truly sings from the soul. She has this way of making me feel calm, but filled with the depth of her music. Enjoy! :)


2. Okay, this song comes from one of my favorite movies I have raved and raved about. It starts out a tiny bit slow, so wait for it to build. If you've seen the movie Morning Glory you'll recognize it as the song she is running to at the end of the movie, however, no matter what you're doing I think it's a great listen. One of my favorite lines: "I'm gonna grow myself a giant afro." Enjoy! :)


3. And last, but not least, song number three is a song I can listen to over and over (of course I know this because I have). It's such a sweet song and the type of song you can listen to while doing just about anything and this song makes you smile a little because it makes you think of a "guide" in your life. Favorite line: "You're all that is love." Enjoy! :)

Friday, April 22, 2011

Inspiration As of Late

In the last day or two I have felt completely inspired.
Inspired to express and create.
Inspired to be better and to do more
with my talents, with my time and my effort.

I can name two specific things that represent all of this inspiration.
The first is definitely music.
Music inspires me every single day.
It gives me hope when I have none,
and a lot of times it just makes me want to dance--and I do. :)
But more than anything, music makes me feel and I love music for that.

In a conversation I had with a friend this week
I found myself expressing these feelings just by starting to write and words coming out.
This is what I wrote (what music makes me feel):

"Music feeds the soul and speaks without words to the parts of us that no one can see."

The second inspiration I found today.
I was reading the Twitter paper of an educator.
In it was posted the video below.
Words make all the difference to me.
They have changed my life.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Sometimes It Just Doesn't Add Up


Do you sometimes feel like life just isn't adding up?
That's how I felt today.

I promise I don't live my life
taking each calculated step to, in turn,
receive some calculated result.
However, today about halfway through the day
I had this overwhelming feeling/thought
that if you "added up"
all the things I'm doing or trying to do in my life
that somehow the result (my current life)
would be different than it is today, and dare I say--BETTER.

I'm not trying to complain
and I don't think life is that bad,
but sometimes I just wonder if this is it.
Did I somehow get the equation wrong?

I know in the end
it all comes down to I don't know all the details--
the inner workings that go into creating the result that is my life.

So I'm going to trust in someone who knows BETTER.
Trust Him that no matter how skewed the equation may look,
He knows how to do the math.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Time to Unpack

When I saw this picture I kept wondering why this girl is smiling--her boxes are still packed up. I moved to Salt Lake City on Saturday. A Forerunner and Expedition later I made it to my new place. When I was in college I was lucky if I made it a whole year without moving. I've lived at my sister's place for almost 2 1/2 years, so I decided it was time for a new adventure. Don't get me wrong, leaving Bountiful hasn't been the easisest thing to do, but it was time. Anyway, now I have one day to unpack everything and get my life in order before go back to work tomorrow. It's going to be a long day. A good day, but long. So here's to new adventures and hopefully many, MANY unpacked boxes! :)

Sunday, April 3, 2011

May We Have Ears to Hear

Two days ago I was reading in Matthew 13. As general conference was approaching and I wanted, more than anything, to learn more about what I need to do in my life, I couldn't help but hope I would be ready in my heart and in my mind to receive the counsel given this weekend. As I had these thoughts I read the following scripture:

43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

I have the sincerest desire to have ears that hear.

May we all do what we must to have "ears that hear" as we continue to listen to our Heavenly Father's servants today and every day.  

Friday, April 1, 2011

PlayLIZt: Week 4 & 5 (Rolling in the Deep & Someone Like You)

Okay, so I've been abnormally busy lately, with what? I'm not exactly sure. However, because I've been so busy I didn't get the chance to post a song for last week's pick so I'm including two pick's this week. Interestingly enough, they are both from Adele's new CD "21."

I have liked Adele in the past, but I would now have to say that I love her! Her voice is incredible and her music is amazing. She sings with immense emotion. It's easy to go back through past relationships and relate to Adele's thoughts (through her music) on her last relationship. She is a true artist!

"Rolling in the Deep" is the type of song where you seriously can't sit still when you listen to it, and "Someone Like You," well you just gotta listen to it.

Enjoy! :)

P.S. I was going to just post the songs, but these videos are both so amazing so I had to post them.







Wednesday, March 23, 2011

PlayLIZt: March Week 3 (That's How You Know)

After listening to this song, you might wonder why I posted it. Although it has nothing to do with how I am feeling about life right now, I just can't stop listening to it. It's about learning to move on. It's beautiful and the feelings in this song as so sincerely expressed I love it! Sit back and let it soak in.

Enjoy! :)

P.S. The song wasn't on Grooveshark so here is a YouTube version.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

PlayLIZt: March Week 2 (Price Tag)

I don't even know where to begin. This song has recently taken over my life, in a good way. I first heard it at Serendipity in Las Vegas over Presidents' Day weekend and more than once after I got back to Utah I tried to find what song it was. Then, this past week I heard the last 20 seconds of it on the radio and the station happened to announce the name and artist of the song. We'll just say I've listened to it so much this week, when I woke up this morning the first thing in my head was the lyrics to this week's PlayLIZt pick of the week. Turn up the volume and dance! You won't be able to sit still I promise!

Enjoy! :)

Friday, March 11, 2011

To Kick or Lift?


VS.

I know some might be confused by seeing a picture of Michelle Money and Ashley H. from The Bachelor compared to a picture of Brandon Davies, but I promise there's a good explanation for that. :)

On Monday night, in the midst of an incredible snow storm outside, I watched The Bachelor: The Women Tell All episode. I know I may have lost some of you just now, but keep reading. :) As I watched the episode I listened to woman after woman tear the other down and criticize every possible weakness and perceived fault. The comments were cruel and tactless. It was astonishing to see the criticism people are capable of.

The next day, I read a blog post about Brandon Davies detailing how a former BYU basketball player, Mekeli Wesley, who went through a similar situation in 1998, reached out to Davies. Wesley said, ""I sat down with him and hugged him.We cried together." 

Now, I know these two situations seem worlds apart, but when I saw/read the two stories I instantly connected them. Here you have one situation where people are kicking each other while the others are down, and another situation where someone decided to lift up the other.


I thought to myelf, which one am I more likely to do when I see the faults in others? Which one would you do? Which one should we do?
 
I thought it was time to take a little bit of a self-inventory and remind myself how I can be an influence for good when I choose to "lift the arms that hang down" and "strengthen the feeble knees" instead of criticizing those around me.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

PlayLIZt: March Week 1 (Save You)

Okay, I didn't plan on writing two PlayLIZt posts back to back, but when you have a busy week that's what happens. :) For this week's pick I chose a song that I've had in many of my playlists for over two years probably. I actually found it where I find a lot of the best songs--on a tv show. :)

This song is one of those songs that no matter what mood I'm in I'm always up to listen to it.

Enjoy!:)

(This is the acoustic version so it's a little bit different, but still good.)

Friday, February 25, 2011

PlayLIZt: February Week 4 (Jack)

I don't know if anyone else is like me in the fact that everywhere I go I hear the music around me. Those who know me best will tell you whether in restaurants, clothing stores, or background music on the radio, I hear it everywhere. The best part is, when I hear a song I like I have to figure out the title and artist so I can download it later.

Whoever invented tagging for music was a genius. You'll know what I mean when I tell you the story about this week's PlayLIZt pick of the week.

While I was in Las Vegas over Presidents' Day I had one of the biggest shopping sprees of my life. No joke. We went shopping at the Primm Outlet Mall and I more or less went to town. :) Anyway, the first store we went to was Ann Taylor. I have never bought anything there, but there were great deals so I figured I would check it out. Well, low and behold, Ann Taylor has fantastic music. In fact, pretty much every store I went into there had great music. 

Great Shopping +Great Music=Great time.

So I was changing in the dressing room at Ann Taylor when this song came on and I had to pause and Shazaam (Tag) it on my phone so I could share it with you.:) As a tribute to a great weekend with great music, here is the PlayLIZt pick of the week.

Enjoy! :)

"Jack" by Pixie Lott

Relationship Lessons from Peter Shankman Seminars

I don't know how many of you know Peter Shankman, but he is a hilarious presenter on PR and social media and really knows his stuff.
Anyway, this past week I attended a webinar he was giving through PRWeb, and as I was listening I realized there are a lot of theories and ideas involved in social media that can be applied to relationships. I thought some of them were pretty interesting, so for your entertainment value, here are three relationship lessons that I thought of off the top of my head:

#1 - Transparency. Peter Shankman is always talking about how in this day and age it is quite easy for people to find out the truth about you or your company, so it's better to be honest up front instead of trying to hide something from your consumers.

In a relationship it's important to be yourself. If you try too much to be "what the other person wants" you will waste a great deal of time and energy. At some point they will see the real you, whether it's sooner or later. You might as well let them know up front who you are. Not that they need to know everything right away, but being yourself is always good advice I'd say.

#2 - Brevity. Peter Shankman talks about the importance of being brief when making a pitch to a reporter, or really to anyone.

This principle definitely applies to first meetings and first dates with those of the opposite sex. The first date, especially if it's a blind date, should never last very long. Date #1 is the "get to know you enough so I can decide if it's worth my time or yours to see each other again" date. Sometimes making a date too long can ruin what could have been a pretty good date otherwise.

Disclaimer: I have had first dates that were somewhere in the 4 hour range that were great, but I've also had all day or "marathon" dates on first or second dates and that's just exhausting.

#3 - Don't Talk at People; Talk to them. Peter Shankman mentions how important it is to listen to your customers as a business owner. You can't just push messages out there and not be listening to what the people who use your product are saying.

How many times are you on a date and you realize the person is not really listening, or how many times do you realize you've just zoned out in the middle of someone's conversation. It's always key to listen before you speak, and to be with someone who does the same.

I'm sure there are crazy amounts of more theories I could apply to relationships from Peter Shankman's brilliant seminars, but I'd say three is good for now. Hopefully, you get as much out of these as I did.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

PlayLIZt: February Week 3

Okay, I know this is a little bit early, but I am going out of town for the weekend and wanted to post the song of the week before I left. Last Saturday I got on iTunes and went on a search for some new good music and found this gem. Honestly, it just has a great sound that makes me feel like I'm cruising through these beautiful moments of life. On top of that, anybody who has ever had more-than-just-a-friend feelings for a friend can completely relate.

Enjoy! :)

"Someday" by Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors

P.S. Let me know what you think.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

PlayLIZt: February Week 2

As I was thinking about a song to post for the PlayLIZt this week I couldn't help but think of this song from Leona Lewis that I recently discovered. I will admit although I have a love for music, I often discover songs a year or two after they have been released. Whether a new song, or just new to me, great music is great music!

Enjoy! :)

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Faithful Through Tribulation

I will be the first to admit I don't have the longest attention span, especially when it comes to going to an institute class after a busy Tuesday at work. However, yesterday I heard some scriptures that described not only exactly what I needed to hear, but what I think a lot of people need to hear--essentially, the message that yes, we will experience tribulation in this life, but the glory we receive for keeping our Father in Heaven's commandments in this life is worth it and greater than anything we can imagine, even though we're not there yet. We just need to hold on and keep going.

D&C 58:2-4
2 For verily I say unto you, blessed is he that keepeth my commandments, whether in life or in death; and he that is faithful in tribulation, the reward of the same is greater in the kingdom of heaven.
3 Ye cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter, and the glory which shall follow after much tribulation.
4 For after much tribulation come the blessings. Wherefore the day cometh that ye shall be crowned with much glory; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand.

Friday, February 4, 2011

PlayLIZt

Earlier this week at work, I was talking to Kristy about all of my favorite songs, or songs of the day, and at some point in the conversation she used the term "PlayLIZt" to describe all of them. Then with some more help from her brilliant mind, I came up with the idea to post a PlayLIZt of my favorites on the blog. For some reason when I get stuck on a song I play it over and over all the time and it usually lasts a few days at least, so every week I'll post my song obsession for the week. I hope you will enjoy these songs as much as I do. 

P.S. I figure I would just start with the month of February and add in two songs for the month of January, you know so there's at least one song in every month this year and I had more than one song obsession in the month of January. :)

Song of January

February: Week 1

Enjoy!

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Great Music on a Saturday Night

On Saturday, I went to my see my friend Kristy perform at Legend's Grill with the Feel Good Alliance group. She was amazing! I beamed with pride as I stood front and center cheering her on. :) It was a great night! Some of my other favorite parts are unfortunately not documented in the pictures below, but I loved the break/step dancers, Young Sim's (who is featured below) rapping and the awesome dj who just might have to mix at my wedding reception someday-yes, mix. :)

Shanna and Kristy before Kristy performed.

The beginning of Kristy's set.


Kristy singin' her heart out. :)


Young Sim. I swear I was so close he kept looking right over my head.


Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Somewhere in the Middle

The other day I walked into my condo and thought about how I would put my current state of life into words. I decided it would be called "somewhere in the middle." It's like this feeling of not being able to see the future and the past seems so far behind you, you can't remember how your life got the way it is. Nothing bad. Nothing great. Just life. I wouldn't say I'm unhappy by any means. I would actually say most days I'm in a content and slightly optimistic state of mind, but it feels very "in the middle." I'm in the thick of life. So I've been trying to decide if I like the middle or where do I go from the middle. I don't know. Maybe we live life more in the middle than we realize and we just don't notice it. Anyway, food for thought.

Monday, January 3, 2011

NO EXCUSES!


The great thing about starting a new year is that it is this defined, determined, specific time to make changes in life. I typically hate making New Year's resolutions; seriously, I haven't made one in years. This year, however, I felt the need to change or improve a lot of things in my life. And as I thought about what might be included on my list, it just became overwhelming because I kept thinking, "What is going to make me actually accomplish any of my goals?" I realized it came down to one thing: stop making excuses. It hit me that I know what areas of my life I want to improve; I know them all year round, not just at New Year's. My reason for not accomplishing any of what I want to is because I make excuses. I tell myself, "that's too hard," or "I can't do that," or "that's not realistic."  My one and all encompassing New Year's resolution is to stop making excuses and do it already; do whatever it is I really want to do. Here I go...