sensitive monday.

so i was planning on going to seven peaks with friends today but the weather is moody! its cloudy & windy/breezy. NOT a good look for swimming, so i went to the gym instead.

this workout? decent. didnt have a whole lot of energy and my body is a bit achey but i pushed through and treated myself to a rice bowl at rumbi grille afterwards :) SO good.

I REEEEEALLLLLYYYY WANNA GO HIKE THE Y! if anyone's down, please holla atcha girl.

i'm gonna start reading this book called, "the energy bus". my family raves about it, so i'll keep all you fine people in the loop with that one. i also need to read "hunger games". i started it last year and never finished it. i haaave the finish it before the movie comes out.

OH and you all should know that i got a 9.5 out of 10 on my informative speech that i presented for my public speaking class -- in which i mentioned in my last blog post. that was exciting news :) and one of my classmates even messaged me on engrade.com telling me that my speech was awesome. it's reassuring to know that hard works pays off and sticks with people. just another one of life's special gifts.

yesterday (sunday) was a special day for me. church was great as always and my friend came who hasn't been there in awhile and we had so much fun. she's a doll and such a sweet spirit. someone came over sunday afternoon and we sat on my bed and read one of my church books. it was such a special time and sweet experience. i'll treasure that time we were able to share and grow together. church wise, the sacrament talks were great, sunday school was great, and the relief society lesson was great. we talked about missionary work -- one of my fave topics! because low and behold, i'm a convert along with my entire family. 

growing up in summerlin, a community within the las vegas valley, my family and i were surrounded by many members of the LDS church. obviously, LDS kids were my friends growing up as well as friends to my other two sisters and my parents. my family has always been extremely close and tight-knit. However, there was something missing...

anyways, i spent a lot of time with a particular family in my neighborhood, the alger's -- a family that lived only 2-3 houses down from us. they were adamant about holding family home evenings every monday night and took the missionaries out to dinner all the time. of course i was involved in these activities because i was over at their house quite a bit and hung out with this family just about every day. i was apart of their family home evening activities and i was always invited along to dinners with the missionaries. ultimately, one of the missionaries challenged my friend, whitney alger, to give me a book of mormon, in which she did. and from then i would bring it to school and read it during my 7th grade reading class "read & journal time. i got a few weird looks, especially from my teacher, but i couldnt has been more proud to be reading that particular book. 

i had been to the LDS church several times, i attended achievement days, and church activities and programs, and ultimately, i wanted people to know and think that i was mormon too. and that's when i made my mom take me to deseret book to get me CTR rings ;) haha good times. 

anyways, i became so serious about joining the church that i went out on a limb and asked my mom about it. it was a friday night, and my family had gone to dinner at the palms hotel & casino in vegas. my mom & i had gotten up to go to the bathroom and on our walk there i turned to her and said "mom, i want to be mormon and i talked to whitney and she said that her dad could baptize me. but i dont want him to because i want my dad to." my mom was a little surprised, but not opposed to the crazy statement i had just presented. she said, "brooke, mormonism isnt just a religion, it's a lifestyle. but i think it's cool and a good idea, and i'll definitely talk to your dad about it and we'll go from there." she talked to my dad that night, and he was a bit surprised as well, but not opposed either. 

the next night, all of us neighborhood kids were playing outside, including the alger's. and coincidentally ( though not at all ;) ) whitney's mom had asked my parents if were wanted to go to church with them on sunday. long story short, they accepted and we went the next day. that was a great day for me. i had been to church with the alger family plenty of times, but it was so special that my very own family was there too sitting in the same pew as me :) 

following church we had gone to breakfast and talked about it. my dad had us go around the table and tell what we thought about having had gone. i was sitting in my seat just hoping that they all loved it, and they did. my older sister said "i thought it was great. i felt something there that i've never felt before." i'll never forget those words from her.

it was within days that the missionaries were sent to us. fabulous missionaries. elect missionaries. the missionaries meant for us. we took the lessons and listened to the discussions. we asked questions, we were taught how to pray and did so at our meetings. just weeks later, my family, as a whole decided to be baptized. my mom and dad were baptized the first week of november 2002, and my sisters and i were baptized the following week, BY MY DAD. it was exactly what i wanted and more. i was baptized by my father and joined by my whole family. a year later, we were sealed as a family for time and all eternity in the las vegas temple. as mentioned before, my family's always been close, but we were ultimately missing the Spirit in our lives and in our home.

what are we all up to now? well my dad has served in many callings including young mens, high priest, emergency preparedness, and others. my mom has served in the young women's program, primary teacher, as a ward missionary, and now in the nursery program. my older sister brittany has attained a temple marriage to her husband trevor. my younger sister is in young women's now and has served in presidency's with the program. and as for me? i served in young women's presidency's back when and now i'm greatly involved in my single's ward in utah, having served on the family home evening committee, and now teaching sunday school -gospel doctrine, and aspiring to meet a worthy young man who honors his priesthood, sweeps me off my feet, and takes me to the temple to be sealed to him and my future family forever.

it's crazy to think how simple things turn into great ones... i'm grateful for the experiences the gospel has brought to my life. it's not always easy, but that's part of the plan. i know the Lord watches me and loves me and wants me to share my blessings with those i come across. i know i have a specific mission on this earth and not a day goes by that i don't feel a sense of purpose. i'm trying my very best to make conscious and good decisions that will enrich my life now and in the future. i'm extremely grateful for the ward i've been blessed with, for a loving bishop and his wife who have become my parents away from home. for a bishopric who loves us and takes time out of their lives and their families to get to know us young people and to teach and prepare us for our future. i'm grateful for a family who's always 110% supportive. i'm grateful for my roommates and friends both in UT and LV who have brought strength, light, and joy to my life. i watch them everyday and aspire to gain some of the same traits they possess. i'm grateful for church leaders and for the prophets and apostles who lead and guide us in the church today. their counsel is divine and they truly know what we need to hear. i'm grateful for missionary work and its ability to bring light and purpose to people's lives. i'm grateful for education and it's something that i pray i'll never take for granted. i'm most grateful for my loving Heavenly Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. i'm grateful for the love, hope, and comfort i get from learning of them and having faith that everything will be okay and work out according to their will. i'm grateful for the atonement and my knowledge of how real it is. i love this gospel and the joy it brings to my life. i'm so lucky and grateful that it was brought to my life at such a young age, blessing me and my family.

happy monday :)

xoxoxo, brooke

PS) “Cultivate an attitude of happiness. Cultivate a spirit of optimism. Walk with faith, rejoicing in the beauties of nature, in the goodness of those you love, in the testimony which you carry in your heart concerning things divine.” –Gordon B. Hinckley