A tribute to the Dadster

                                                  *****This man. is. incredible.******

 My dad is incredible. It took me a really long time to understand that. Growing up when I got put on time out because I told a lie, pinched my sibling ( which unfortunately happened all too often) or not doing my chores did not exactly make him my best friend. Hello!! he was the reinforcer  of the rules and as a kid and a youth I was NOT a fan. HOWEVER.... before you think for one more second that this is a negative thing let me tell you this much.. my dad.. is my hero. He is the one who strongly encouraged, respected and taught me the values that I posess today. Dad, Dadster, Superman, Dumbledore, Popsicle this one is for you.

Growing up my dad ALWAYS was the fun dad he played with us, and to his disgression of me telling this would dress up in dress ups, turn up the music as loud as possible and would sing and dance with us. Every little kids dream right??. (even though I did not like it when I got in trouble by him or was put in "time out" he some how always made up for his "offense" ;)

(Dont even worry those jazz logos were painted on us by him. Those were the John Stockton. Karl Malone days. The jazz was a BIG deal you know.)

Let me tell you more about this man I am fortunate enough to call my dad. The thing that I have learned over the years is how much he loves my mom. I never understood why he would get so upset when I talked back to my mom. He would say " you do NOT talk to my wife like that". I dont know why it took me so long to see. He has never left her side. He never left her and did his "own thing". I mean sure they have their own hobbies that they enjoy separately but she was still always his priority. I remember he build a pond in our backyard it was gorgeous! My mom loves all things victorian so he built her a greenhouse. She wanted french doors coming out of her room. DONE. My cute mom loves all things chocolate and I can remember countless times he came home with her favorite treat just because he wanted to. 

(The first time I officially made cookies with him. It was mothers day and by no surprise we made her a giant "M" shaped chocolate chip cookie.)

(my first day of second grade. For a few years he taught at the same school that I attended, and it was always fun to have Mr.Shaw as my dad)

He started his career as a teacher and ALWAYS knew all of the answers to help me with my homework. I think I always learned more from him than any of my elementary teachers. He has a gift for teaching. Just something about the way that he teaches you makes it stick. He is now an administrator but I will always remember his teaching days because throughout my life they never really stopped. His career as a teacher may have but he always taught me what I needed to know.

( on my baptism day)

My dad always emphazised the importance of the gospel. We are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and whether or not you share the same faith as I do that is just fine. But my dad taught me to always live righteously and abide by the teachings of the church. I have experienced more joy, happiness, and love towards others by doing this than anything else. The gospel I know brings joy and I am so thankful to have a father who always has stood by his values and worked his whole life to strive to become more like christ. 

 (Fathers day one year ago camping at our favorite spot )

(Im not sure whats going on in this picture but fun and games is always in the book for this guy)

(He taught me how to change my own oil and spark plugs...yes i was super proud and bragged to many males about it on many occasians)

Through my teenage years I didnt realize all that my dad had done for me. Going to work every single day. coming home and doing things for all of his family. Listening to complaining kids. Allowing us to make mistakes and helping us to fix them. Teaching by example how to live an honest and worthy life. I dont know why I never appreciated him like I do now. I ALWAYS thought I was a mama's girl. To my surprise I think I have turned out the most like my dad out of all five kids in my family and I could not be more honored.

** Dad  THANK YOU for all that you have done for me. I see now the importance of good parenting and the hard work put in. Thank you for putting up with all of the teenage girl moments, with all of the drama, with all of the sass (which by the way you taught me).Thank you for being there for me when I went through the temple. I love you and happy fathers day!!!!***

(Some people have nice tender dances with their dad at their wedding. With my special dad we danced to thriller. Yep. Full out Flash mobbed it.)

A Ship of Friends...

Friendship

Noun The emotions or conduct of friends; the state of being friends. A relationship between friends.

Synonyms amity - fellowship - companionship - comradeship

                                     

Today i wanted to share a little bit about the importance of friendship. Friends come in all shapes and sizes. The friend that you pass by every day and wave to when you both are getting the mail but no words are exchanged, a coworker who you tell all of your funny stories too and they do the same. A family member who you are certain loves you because they have seen you in all walks of life. ( EVEN in the morning)

It can be a study buddy whom you realize you have everything in common with, or it can be someone who you have nothing in common with but the sheer fact that you love the fact that they exist and are in your life. 

I have been a very blessed individual and have grown up with sooo many different friends from different walks of life and i have learned so much from each one of them and I wanted to share a few of those friends with you. 

From her I learned strength. She endures a rare genetic illness where tumors encompass all of her organs, and yet still is always finding a reason to live and to love.

From her i learned sisterhood. What its like to ALWAYS be there no matter what for eachother. To grow up having "the best of times and the worst of times" together

I learned from her what kind of a mom i want to be selfless, loving, respectful, kind, and the most caring person I have ever met in my life. (my mom)

From her I learned what it was like to be in the presence of an angel. She is ALWAYS doing things for other people, never complaining, and constantly working hard to become and accomplished musician, family member, and loving friend to all. (my little sister)

I learned that difference of age doesnt matter. you can still be as good of friends in whatever walk of life you are and wherever you come from (ps she is not THAT much older than me dont be offended S). I also learned about doing kind things for other people.

From her I learned that no matter what comes your way or how someone treats you you can always be kind in return. You can always love, and live your life to the fullest despite some of the hardest trials and most darkening times.

From her i learned what i want to be like. I learned that you can take ANY situation and make it a good one.  You can love and care for people with all of your heart. i learned selflessness, compassion, and to be an amazing person you dont have to look down on others but rather the opposite and always speak kindly of those you know and love.

From her i learned whether on this earth or the next you STILL matter you will always matter to someone. your life will always have a purpose and dont ever think for one second anything that strays from that.

From this girl i learned the definition of a devoted and true friend. I learned that you can always be there for everyone. Always make time for other people because they will and DO appreciate it. I also learned from her incredible example of self respect and modesty even though it is not always the most popular decision in todays world.

From her oh goodness. i have learned cheerfullness. This girl I learned how to give more people compliments, to smile at people i dont know, to work hard, to perservere, and to love GOD above all else.

From her i learned what a BEST FRIEND was. that you can make ANYTHING an adventure. I learned obedience, trust, and creativity from her. I learned i could always always be myself and still be loved more than anything. ( my other little sister)

From HIM. I learned it all. 

"charity is the pure love of christ"

 The worth of souls is great in the sight of god. Every individual can teach you something, whether it be big or small it can lead you to the path that you need to be. I want you to do two things number one. Think about each one of your friends today and how they have impacted your life.....incredible isnt it?? The photos i shares are most certainly not all of the friends i have had who have influenced me or even close to it. Only a select few but each person in my life i hold dear to my heart and I want them to know that ALWAYS. the second thing i want you to do is introduce yourself, or smile, or even a friendly wave to someone that you dont know because they some day could teach you a very powerful lesson of love, laughter, learning, or of life. 

XOXO 

Thirty, Flirty and thriving!!.... ok Twenty is cool too

Do you remember when you were a little kid and the night before your birthday you just could not sleep?? I mean come on as SOON as it was morning the day is about you. Presents, special birthday meals, balloons, cake, candy, and parties. The thought of it is too overwhelming and sleep would certainly get in the way of your imagination of how the next day was going to play out. Birthdays at my house growing up were Always special.. when you woke up you knew that everyone would be waiting down the hallway in the kitchen with donuts and presents. ( The funny part about this is EVERY birthday for every person in our house hold we always "surprised" them with donuts and decorations. We thought every night before their birthday when they went to bed they better not  see their "surprise" this occured for everyones birthday for everyone in our family but i loved it) I am proud to say that I still have a little bit of a hard time sleeping because of my birthday. I just love them what can I say?? this year was the big 2-0 out of the teens for me. I do have to say this was one of the best birthdays i have ever had. I woke up to my sweetheart who made me JUST what i asked for orange julius and yogurt with granola mmmm.mmmm.mmmm. It was delicious. It was sunday on my birthday so after we ate we got ready for to go to church. ( we are members of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints) and spent a few hours there listening to some wonderful messages. around six luke had invited my whole family over and we had a great little party but I want to skip to the gifts!!! this is the best part about my birthday isnt it always>?? I got soo many great gifts this birthday gift cards, a blanket, a BIKE, running clothes, a blanket etc... it was awesome but my most meaningful gift came from my sweet luke. he gave me five gifts and they were PERFECT. he is such a great gift giver. It always comes from the heart with him. Number one:


                                                           A TRIP TO THE ZOO
You should know i LOVE the zoo. there is just something so magical about it. I love watching the polar bear play in the water, i love the way it smells, i love the safari attire the zoo keepers wear. I love watching the monkeys swing from tree to tree and the way that the lion sits just waiting it seems to attack any chance it could. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE the zoo. So the day after my birthday we took a little trip out to the Hogle Zoo. Which let me tell you has improved immensely since I was a kid. it is even better than before they have made a lot of renovations to the habitats so that you can get closer to the animals. its awesome.! Luke and i had sooo much fun. We ooooed and awed at the animals and we are always succors for cotton candy, ice cream, and cheese pretzals. Dont even worry we ate all of them :) Yes we are still seven years old and we solemnly swear we were up to no good. We had such a fun time together it was such a memorable event and i loved every minute of it.

(I told you i am a little kid i HAD to touch the snake)

Number two, and three: RUNNING CLOTHES

I love to run. it is something that in the past few years I have picked up and I really enjoy. It makes me feel great and I married into a family of people who LOVE to run. my mother in love Melissa is a BIG runner she is one of my running idols and works at wasatch running. My sister in love karalee is also getting into running she runs a TON and loves every minute of it she just finished her second half marathon. How lucky am I to have people who love running like I do?? Anyways I love new running clothes they make me feel so confident while I am running and for some reason give me motivation to work harder. So being the sweetheart he is my husband got me an awesome pair of running shorts and a tank top to go with it. yeaaaahhh!!! 

Number four: A LOVE LETTER

Everybody appreciates knowing how loved they are or being validated and that is something that luke is really good at. He wrote me a heart felt letter about how thankful he was for me and filled with kind words and it was one of the kindest things anyone could have ever done.

****** Last the best of all the game********

Alright ladies and gentlemen this is my FAVORITE story of all. One day Luke and i were sitting in our kitchen talking about our childhood and I told him about this item I had lost when i was little. ( I cant tell you what it is yet or it would ruin the surprise of course) Anyways it was something that i had briefly mentioned to him. He told me he had a gift for me but he had purchased it off of Ebay and could not find any other ones so I would have to wait a few days after mybirthday to get this gift. I kept trying to make him give the surprise away but he held his own and the only hint he gave me was it was something from my childhood that we talked about... I literally had no idea what it could have been... Soo about a week after my birthday i was getting the mail and this envelope came. I thought that it was probably my present and it was addressed to Luke so i went right ahead and opened it (classy i know i didnt even wait for luke to get home from work but i HAD to know) and to my surprise it was THEE most thoughful, cutest, funniest unexpected thing in the world.... 

***now time to unveil the mystery*****

It was a Machoke Poke e mon card. Now let me tell you the story I had told him. My brothers were very into playing Poke e' mon cards. whenever they got their allowances they would buy packs and packs of them. However I was never allowed to touch them or have them. One time and one time only I paid one of them five dollars ( which in kid $$$ might as well of been like giving him $50) that theif!! anyways I had a winnie the pooh wallet that had come with my winnie the pooh backpack.

(it looked something similar to this)

I didnt have any money so I kept my special Poke e mon card in the wallet and brought it to school with me. I bragged to ALL the boys that i had a cool Poke e mon card ( it wasnt even a rare or cool one ps but i loved it none the less) Anyways needless to say one day I lost my wallet and the card and a little piece of my heart broke that day. Luke and i had gotten into a discussion about playing Poke e mon like i said earlier one day and he remembered it and now i have my machoke card. Isnt he special?? I loved my birthday it was so great. 

I blogged a lot about the incredible gifts of that Luke gave me but I am also so thankful for the other gifts I was given I loved them all SOOO much!! thanks for such a great birthday to all of my friends and family!!

xoxo gossip girl

(PS: mom did you send my winnie the pooh wallet to the D.I?? thats always been a curiousity)

Well well well.... I thought that this would never happen I am going to be honest .. me? a blogger? no way! I find out more and more every day that the things that I thought I would like... I was wrong. and the things I thought I would hate I love, and the unexpected I pretty much expect to happen now. I guess I should tell a little about myself and divulge to everyone that what I have to say on this blog will hopefully be of some good to someone in the world. whether you are my next door neighbor, a close family member, or someone I have yet to become acquainted with I welcome you with open arms into mine and my husbands incredible life.

My name is Mindy , and the incredibly handsome man to my right, or is it my left? either way is Lukas . We were married two short months ago so yes yes everyone I know what you are thinking...still in the honeymoon phase. Although that may be true I hope to make that happen as long as possible that love that " cant eat cant sleep over the fence out of the park world series kinda stuff" I am determined to make that last. First I want to throw out a pet peeve of mine.. and that is negative words from spouses.. in todays world for some reason marriage is seen as such a negative thing... "he always leaves the toilet seat up", " he never does the dishes", "she always nags". -you know what I have to say.. who the heck cares... its a toilet seat..really? There are so many bigger issues out there. If you are married you are lucky to have another person who loves you, and if you are  not married I hope to heaven that you find someone that makes you as happy and treats you likeyou should be treated. I am very blessed with my sweetheart so I intend to make you all understand why I am so in love with him. 

***disclaimer, I know that life is hard. I am most certainly not claiming to KNOW anything about being married.But I do know that life is short and the people you love should KNOW just how much you love them always.***

SO.....the moment that you all have been obviously anxiously awaiting our story ...drum role please....

We both were serving some time in prison for various but mild offenses.. every day you have a few opportunities to come out of that dark shadow of a cell and actually have some human interaction.. it was october 27, 2012 when I saw him. Mind you orange jumpsuits are all that attractive so we are going to have to go off of the personality factor i suppose.. we both met in the mess hall where meals were served. I was walking with my lunch tray mindlessly day dreaming when I some force of gravity stopped me from proceeding to the table I was headed towards... It was him.. although not so romantic for me i had ran into him and spilled every last bit of my chicken soup all over him... hahaha wouldnt that have been quite the story????? However it is not an honest one so i suppose i will proceed in telling you the real story the real truth , the whole truth and nothing but the truth!!

Luke and I lived in the same neighborhood in west jordan when we were younger.. we both attended the LDS church and were at an activity for the youth... that was the first night I fell in love with my prince.. dont worry every one did he have braces>?? check! acne?? check! boxers showing with his pants to his mid thigh?? absolutely!! Man was I attratched to that hot guy... However here is the kicker kids.. I was twelve and he was 17. I think that there might be some sort of rule against sixth graders dating juniors in high school but im not sure ;) Anyways years went on and I silently had a crush on him. Dont even be mistaken by the way there was not ONE word spoken to him. I was WAY too embarrased to be doing anything of that sorts.... this is the fast forward part************************* ok so seven years later I had been moved to south Jordan for quite some time and he lived in West Jordan. I never really saw myself as having a chance with that hot boy from when I was twelve so ill be honest I kind of forgot about him... meanwhile we both had dated different people and had both been in some pretty serious relationships. They ended and in October of 2012 I was on Facebook one day and saw one of his posts in my news feed ( of course I added him as a friend on FB even though he didnt know of that twelve year old that had a crush on him...i had to..) I then remembered how cute I thought he was. YES i posted on his wall. YES I flirted with him and....... YES he flirted back. We went on a date the next night and everyone asked us how long we had been dating. Yep the first time we were together we connected so well that people knew even before we did that this match would be perfect...

A few short months after dating we decided to enter into the sacred covenant of marriage, well at least it is sacred to us. Luke is my best friend. There is never a dull moment with us. I love him more than anything in this world and I just think the world should know that. So Im signing out for now 

xoxo gossip girl