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I have learned another truth. And you know what I do when I learn truth! I write it down here so when I come back I can remember. :) I felt prompted to look up quotes from President Hinckley when I realized that my view of a lot of things had been pretty negative. In one quote President Hinckley said he repeated the same quote to himself every morning. I figured, if that helped make him into the optimistic GIANT he was, it is definitely worth a shot! So, every morning after I pray I repeat this quote by him to myself: "Be believing, be happy, don't get discouraged. Things will work out." I have felt so much more positive since then! I feel happier, like I can overcome obstacles. Once I leave on my mission I think that quote will change to "Forget yourself and get to work." :) And I can change it to whatever my current challenge is! Lately I have seen the truth that so much of life is based on how we view it.

Also, I've realized that I need to focus on how Heavenly Father feels about my actions, not on how others feel about my actions. I want to pray every night to ask if what I'm doing is making Him happy, and then listen for the Spirit to guide me on where I'm doing well and also where I can improve!

I've ALSO realized that I need to apply the scriptures more by seeing how I can implement them in my life! It has made my life great so far. :)

P.S. Eight days til I leave, you beautiful people!

Semester in Review

Well, bloggy, I decided you are probably kind of hungry for pictures! It has been, after all, like two years since I last updated you with some! So. Here are some of the memories I was wise enough to record over the past few semesters! I am one lucky girl. :)

Awkward FHE family pictures

Them Idaho potatoes are huge! justkiddingthiswasasquash

Math tourneys! We all came up with different answers and we were all wrong. hahaha

SO AWKWARD. SO. AWKWARD.

We made a bed out of wood and plastic bags for my class!

What a beautiful woman! Mission pictures :,)

We are one ATTRACTIVE, HUMBLE family

This is probably my favorite picture of Mum of all time

Future Elder Scheuermann :,)

hahaha, this cake didn't really work out how we planned

I miss her!

I am definitely NOT baby hungry. Nope.

B-Kiss, erybud!

I love Griff Bear

"This season's hottest new show - All About Ally!"

hahaha HAHAHA HAHAHAHAHA - there are at least four funny things in this picture

We missed Joyce so much that we printed her face off and took her around town!

Blatant advertising - orphanagesupport.org!

Heather got engaged!

There's my honey shoving our wedding cake into my face! Just kidding, we're just PALS, AMIGOS, HE ROUNDHOUSE KICKED ME INTO THE FRIEND ZONE

I got to be a mentor for Get Connected! SO FUN

This is what Lia and I do. Our friendship began by looking at cat memes :,)

One of my best friends :,)

When I brought these out of Little Caesar's I told everyone they weren't for me. Their response: "Sure...you're just stocking up for fast Sunday" hahaha

It's true fellas! Start practicing!

Found this gem on Deseret News and I was surprised to see a rebuttal article as well as negative responses. There are extremes on either side, but I needed this this side right now, because I'm the first to admit that I spend way too much time on my iPhone. It is incredibly convenient, yes. But it also seems to have more power to suck me in than a Hoover 4000 (if those are real). So. This is to remind me that people always come first, and I need to make that habit right now.

"Editor's note: This content by Tonya Ferguson originally appeared on her blog, 4 Little Fergusons. It has been posted here with the author's permission.

Dear mom on the iPhone,

I see you over there on the bench, messing on your iPhone. It feels good to relax a little while your kids have fun in the sunshine, doesn't it? You are doing a great job with your kids: You work hard, you teach them manners, have them do their chores.

But Momma, let me tell you what you don't see right now ...

Your little girl is spinning round and round, making her dress twirl. She is such a little beauty queen already, the sun shining behind her long hair. She keeps glancing your way to see if you are watching her.

You aren't.

Your little boy keeps shouting, "Mom, MOM watch this!" I see you acknowledge him, barely glancing his way.

He sees that too. His shoulders slump, but only for a moment, as he finds the next cool thing to do.

Now you are pushing your baby in the swing. She loves it! Cooing and smiling with every push. You don't see her though, do you? Your head is bent, your eyes on your phone as you absently push her swing.

Talk to her. Tell her about the clouds, Mommy. The Creator who made them. Tickle her tummy when she comes near you, and enjoy that baby belly laugh that leaves far too quickly.

Put your eyes back on your prize: your kids.

Show them that they are the priority. Wherever you are, be ALL there. I am not saying it's not OK to check in on your phone, but it's a time-sucker: User beware!

Play time at the park will be over before you know it.

The childhood of your children will be gone before you know it.

They won't always want to come to the park with you, Mommy. They won't always spin and twirl to make their new dress swish. They won't always call out, "WATCH ME!"

There will come a point when they stop trying, stop calling your name, stop bothering to interrupt your phone time.

Because they know ...

You've shown them, all these moments, that the phone is more important than they are. They see you looking at it at while waiting to pick up brother from school, during playtime, at the dinner table, at bedtime.

I know that's not true, Mommy.

I know your heart says differently.

But your kids can't hear your words, Mommy. Your actions are screaming way too loudly.

May our eyes rest upon those we love, first and foremost, and may everything else fall away in the wonderful, noisy, sticky-fingered glory of it all."

Family Relations

I have had a superb family relations class. Absolutely superb! I wanted to share what I've learned.

Here are some of the most important things I have learned this semester:

1. The statistic that 50 percent of marriages end in divorce is false. I still don't quite understand the actual ratio; something about how in a year, certain people stay married while others divorce. The good news is that I can point out that that statistic is false! I believe that to mean that although divorce is still quite common, it isn't as common as I thought. Hopefully that can give others hope in marrying, instead of giving them the false expectation that their marriage has a 50/50 chance of making it. It also helped me to look closer at the statistic I've heard that even 50 percent of temple marriages end in divorce. I need more evidence to be convinced now, instead of just a random percentage thrown out in the open.

2. Much of the research about the outcomes of same-sex marriage and the ability to overcome same-sex attraction is skewed towards those who favor same-sex marriage. There are a lot of people right now who are taking sides about same-sex marriage. I loved Dennis Prager's article (which has really good points) about how both sides have two different questions they ask, and that's where the problems come. Both facts are true: gay people need more equality, but that does not mean that gay marriage is the best for our society. Sound bytes are made out of skewed information about SSA and the public is confused and misled.

3. Much of the world lives in moral relativism, saying that things are only good or bad depending on how you label them. This concept is false. The truth is that there is absolute good and bad. I can definitely see this pull happening in our society, with people being too focused on tolerance. It's so important to be aware of the fact that this is happening, or it is easier to get sucked into doing it and allowing it ourselves. We must live according to Heavenly Father's law, or everyone will become a law unto themselves, only to find out how mistaken they were at the judgment bar.

4. A few of the most important factors in a happy marriage are that you think of your partner as your best friend and that you respect him. Without those foundations, you are in trouble. Best friends know what each other like and dislike, and they cater to those preferences. They know about each other. They talk about what happens day to day as well as deep things. Do the little things you know your spouse would love and avoid the things you know they dislike. Those little drops in the bucket add up to a strong marriage.

5. The most important things we can do for our children is help them learn to govern themselves and to have strong ballast. I learned this in the parenting class, but I have felt it reinforced this semester. Children definitely need freedom, but they definitely also need limits if they are to learn to have the discipline they will need to fuel their lives after they leave home. Instilling values that apply to many situations is more useful than constantly saying "don't touch that" and "don't say that".

6. About 70 percent of married BYU-I students said that the first year of marriage was bearable. I love this statistic because it shows reality. Many people fall into believing that once you are married, life is happily ever after. The truth is, we know that's not how it's going to be. We aren't going to be ecstatic every day and our level of happiness will stay pretty much the same, or (if our expectations were unrealistically high) they will decrease. If you aren't happy when you're single, you won't be happy when you're married. The truth of the matter is that although married life can bring happiness that can't be experienced in any other way, it is also hard. Hard and joyful don't have to cancel each other one - in fact, the struggle is often what makes the happiness rich.

7. Working together as a family is one of the most important things we can do, but it's also one of the things that has been nearly eliminated from our modern world. Adam and Eve were commanded to till the earth together. Our world has tried to go "back to Eden" where there was less work required. But work is a blessing because it gives us a chance to teach our children, give them good role models, and spend time together. Even the aspects of work that make it seem unappealing, like repetition and being mundane, are what make them perfect ways for families to connect. Although life is easier now, that does not mean it is more fulfilling. We sacrificed a lot when we let technology take over.

8. There is incredible power in labels. I remember Brother Williams told a story about a guy he knows who was labeled moody when he was younger. The man is very capable and bright, but that label followed him his whole life and he still lives in his parents' basement. In the same light, labeling someone as gay can have incredible power to change the course of someone's life. I am making sure that my children never ever label others because of the powerful repercussions it can have.

9. There is no perfect person out there for you, and even if there was, he's not spending every waking minute looking for you. He has his own life! I remember reading the devotional by Brother Chadwick about finding your future spouse. Everything he said is true! You reap what you sow. If you spend all semester in your apartment, the Spirit is probably not going to whisper to an imaginary Prince Charming, "knock on apartment 203 and ask for Ashley." The very best thing we can do is trust that Heavenly Father will help us in finding our future spouse as we go about living full lives while doing our parts to find him!

10. Recognize that research comes from humans. That means it can be flawed, skewed, misinterpreted, or done by those without credentials. Like I mentioned in my first point, it is so easy to want to believe anything that has a percentage attached to it. The implications can be huge! People can decide whether or not they are going to marry or have children based on a false statistic or false interpretation of a statistic. Also, the more people you have researching a topic with the same results, the more you can trust it. Law of witnesses! Also, as President Uchtdorf said in his CES devotional, "...it is always good to keep in mind, just because something is printed on paper, appears on the Internet, is frequently repeated, or has a powerful group of followers doesn’t make it true."

Weaknesses and Worries

I learned another important lesson.

A few nights ago I felt overwhelmed by my weaknesses; like I don't have the strength to ever overcome them. I prayed for comfort and went to Ether 12:27. I found that I had written some cross-references there: Philippians 4:13 and especially 2 Corinthians 12:9: "And he said said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my [Christ's] strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." My weaknesses can be a testimony of Christ's strength. I had this image come to mind of me with patches taken out. These are my weaknesses. Then I imagined golden light bursting from those holes - the power of the Atonement. I know that not only can our weaknesses be overcome through Christ, but that they can become our strengths, our testimony of Christ's strength. That gave me a lot of comfort.

That same night I had the thought that I need to set some guiding principles for my mission. One of the thoughts that came was that I need to go to Heavenly Father with my problems FIRST, ALWAYS. Of course I can go to others as well, but Heavenly Father comes first. So that night I told Heavenly Father each of my worries. I felt powerful comfort that did not come from myself. I felt His guidance through my thoughts.

I challenge you to take your problems to Heavenly Father first. He can help you.