Most embarrassing, saddest, and happiest moments of my life

Most Embarrassing Moment:

When I was in sixth grade at Upland Terrace Elementary we had a lot of fun end-of-the-year activities. One such activity we got to go swimming at Skyline High School. I enjoyed swimming and the prospect of swimming with my friends during school time seemed like a great idea. Everything went well walking to 7th grade photo the school and swimming in the pool. Afterwards I went into the women’s locker room, rinsed off in the showers and went to change my clothes. I couldn’t find my underwear anywhere. I realized that it must have fallen out when I grabbed my towel to dry off from the shower. I went to check and sure enough, on the wet tile of the shower room, was my soggy underwear. I had decided not to claim them, when one of the other girls pointed to the wet wadded underwear and shouted, “Hey, whose panties are these?” She began asking everyone individually whose they were. I felt my face getting hot and ran to change my clothes so that she wouldn’t ask me directly. I just abandoned my wet underwear on the locker room floor and had to go without them the rest of the school day. There was nothing that would have connected me to that pair of soggy underwear, but I was mortified anyway.

Saddest Moment:

Growing up I loved to visit my grandparents -all of them. I have many fond memories of visiting my Grandma and Grandpa Ipson, my mother’s parents. Whenever we would come to visit, my grandpa would give us jelly beans and make us Kool-Aid. He usually wore those one-piece jumpsuits that remind me of a mechanic or flight suit, but he also wore Adidas soccer shoes, which were immensely popular at the time. He wore glasses and sometimes he would pull them out from his face so that his eyes filled the lenses. Whenever we would sleep over, he would stay up watching old movies with us, let us play around with the player piano, and during meals he would give us advice and bear his testimony of the gospel. He was very technologically savvy, so he had a nice computer and a good video camera. He would videotape us on special occasions and at all family functions. He had a special chair in the living room that was his chair and we loved to sit in it. Sometimes he would take us in his big white van to visit our cousins that lived on a dairy farm north of Logan. He always provided Circus Peanuts and those pink lozenge candies as snacks for the ride up. My grandparents had raspberry bushes in their backyard and whenever they were in season, we would go out and pick large bowls of them. I loved my grandpa dearly and was very close to him. When I was in high school he was diagnosed with colon cancer. His health deteriorated quickly. I remember one day during my junior year of high school, I was at my house and the phone rang. My mom answered it and just began sobbing. I knew that my grandpa had just died. I had known people who had died, but no one that had been as close to me as was my grandpa. I was not much of a crier in my growing up years, but I cried quite a bit over his death. I am so grateful that I knew and still do know that this life is not all that there is. I know that I will see my dear grandfather again after this life and that he is in a much happier place now.

Happiest Moments:

I have had at least three moments in my life that stand out to me as happiest. At the time they were the happiest, but then a later moment would surpass the joy. Here they are in chronological order.

Happiest Moment #1:

I was very lucky to serve a mission to some of the most wonderful people in the world. I served in the Bolivia Santa Cruz Mission. I loved the people there and the other missionaries who served there. While I was there I had several wonderful experiences, but one that really stands out in my mind was with the Castro family in Trinidad, Bolivia. José and Guadalupe had nine children, despite their relatively young years (they were both 31). When we met them, they had just moved to the area and were living on the school house floor while classes were out for the winter vacation. The Castros were a nearly destitute family. Brother Castro had a job as a brick maker, but his meager income could not feed his large family. Despite their poverty, they were golden investigators. The parents loved to read from the Book of Mormon and read it aloud to their children. They accepted each precept we taught and applied it into their lives. They began to attend church, even though it was quite a walk, especially with so many young children. They lived the Word of Wisdom and tried to dress modestly. I was especially touched as we taught them the principle of Tithing. José, Guadalupe & 8 of thier 9 children

The Castro family was so poor that they had to take turns going hungry almost every day. We taught them about tithing and promised them the Lord knew of their struggles and that He would bless them if they would obey. Brother and Sister Castro did not know how they were going to have enough to eat, but they did know that they wanted to show God that they loved and trusted him. The next Sunday, Brother Castro went to church with the tithing in his pocket knowing that he would have to ask a few of his children to take a turn not eating that day. I can only imagine the amount of faith that would take, knowing that you will probably have to come home and not be able to feed your young children. The Castro family had a great amount of faith and they paid their tithing. On their way home from church another member offered them some food. The following day his boss came by with some back pay that he didn't even know was owed to him. They were still very poor, but Brother Castro said that since that day they paid their first payment of tithing, never again have they had to go to bed with nothing to eat. They had a lot of faith, but it was definitely rewarded. This family was soon baptized and later they were sealed together in the Cochabamba Temple.

I had gained a testimony of tithing prior to this, but I had never had to make such a sacrifice to pay it as this family made. I know that God blessed them for their faith. It made me so happy to be there serving the Lord as a missionary so that I could witness such faith. I knew that I was exactly where the Lord wanted me to be and doing what He would have me do- a very happy feeling. Happiest Moment #2: When Brad and I started dating, I was 25 years old. I consider that to be kind of an average age to marry. Many of my friends married much younger and many of my friends are not yet married. I am glad that not everyone is on the same time line. I am so grateful for the experiences I had being single through nearly all of my undergraduate college experience. I met so many wonderful people and also had a lot of fun.

Anyway, back to Brad. Finding the right person to marry is definitely worth the wait. In random order, here are a few things that I love about Bradley: *He is considerate of others. He tries to ensure that everyone is included and having a good time. *He is a very hard worker. When he was in school he studied well and now that he is working, he always does his best at work. *He is excellent with children.Before we were married I saw him interact with cousins and now Parker just adores him. *He has a strong testimony and is dedicated to serving the Lord. He always strives to have the Spirit with him. (I’m sure that he will be really embarrassed when he reads this section of the blog.)

Brad proposed in early March and we were married on June 22, 2004 in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. It was one of the most joyful moments of my life to be kneeling across the altar looking into the deep blue eyes of someone that I had grown to love so deeply. There was so much to look forward to and so far things have only gotten better. I love Brad more than when I married him. He is so good to me and is such a wonderful father to Parker. Marrying my sweetheart was definitely a very happy moment.

Happiest Moment #3:

That brings my latest happiest moment. Brad and I were so excited for the birth of our first baby. We looked forward to it (as most parents do) as something that would be miraculous. Nothing, however, can prepare you for what it is like to really be a parent. The actual delivery process is hardly a comfortable experience to put it lightly, but seeing that little baby is so amazing there aren’t words to describe it. When you look into your little baby’s face and see someone who is partly you, partly the person you most love, and partly their own little personality, it is absolutely incredible. There are literally no words that can fully express the joy I felt holding that little boy. Parker has brought more joy to my life than I ever imagined. Parenting is certainly not easy, but I love it. Every time he runs to hug me or says something funny, I am reminded of the joy of parenthood. When Brad and I welcomed Parker into our lives was definitely the happiest moment of my life so far. We are thrilled to be having another baby in a few short months.