LOVE IT!

This past weekend....scratch that rewind...let me fill you in on the last few weeks first.

At work the kids were preparing for a jump rope for heart fundraiser and we thought it'd be fun to put up some decorations. So we made an apple tree. Every student colored an apple and at least 2 leaves. It took us about 2 weeks to complete and 2 of our very smallest kindergarteners to trace their sillouettes but here it is...

Of course I only have a picture of it before the apples actually got put on, but you get the idea. It turned out a lot better then I originally thought! When the PE teacher found out I had done the majority of it she came up to me and gave me a hug saying it was so good she wished it was actually painted on the wall. :)

Then the next big thing that happened was...

I got myself a car!!!!! It is AMAZING! and I just got back from taking it on its first road trip (with me as owner) and it did absolutely marvelous! Not a single problem! I LOVE having my own car, and its in super good condition too. Thank you g'mas friend for giving me such a great deal!

So as I was saying... this past weekend... my mom and I took MY car to Utah! It was a much needed vacation. I was able to see the missionary couple (The Bowen's) I grew close with on my mission. And visiting them was one of my FAVORITE member couples (The Marran's) from England visiting for the wonderful General Conference weekend. (they'd been visiting for 2 weeks already). I thought mom would never get to meet those wonderful people from my mission, but in fact she got to spent 2 whole evenings with them!

This is the Marran's. They fed me probably every week for 7 1/2 months. I LOVE them to pieces! So glad they were able to visit and I was able to make it up there to see them.

I unfortunately forgot to take a lot of pictures and most I did take ended up blurry cause they are all off my phone as my actual camera hasn't worked properly since my mission. So just to put a face with the name here is a picture on the Bowen's while still on the mission.

The Bowen's and Marran's are two of the sweetest couples I've ever met!

Also on this trip I was able to go to my mission reunion. I saw a few of my companions, the mission president and his wife for the first year of my mission, and the Elders I went into the MTC with (minus Degraw) as well as some other missionaries I grew very fond of.

Sister Todd was my last official companion. 

(I had 2 more when I got stuck trying to get home for 5 days cause a snow storm closed down the London airport which originally was my connecting flight)

Sister Wheeler was my third companion and my last American companion for the next 9 transfers!

Heres Burnham and Eggleston...who I went into the MTC with. They haven't changed a bit! ;)

There were others at the reunion too, but I don't have any good pictures. :(

I was also blessed to go do a session in this beautiful temple. It was seriously beyond beautiful! It brought me to tears.

Mom and I were able to attend the Saturday PM session of General Conference (for my very first time) it was, as always, a very powerful spiritual meeting! And I was again moved to tears when I saw the 1000's of people stand up and become immediately silent as we all watched our beloved Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson enter the room and walk to his seat.

We then visited Ashley and Mandy (and their families) How I met them is kind of a long story, But in short I met them through Rebecca and they met through their boys. All three of them got married while I was on my mission and as you can see Mandy is expecting! :D

It's a tradition in Mandy's family to make doughnuts during priesthood session so we kinda helped out this time. They were SOOOOO good! 

And lastly some very pretty rainbows off the mountains pictures. The first taken in Utah on the way to Mandy's and the second in Arizona on the drive home. I don't know if you can tell from the pictures, but you could actually see the end of both these rainbows. It was awesome!

It was seriously an incredible and uplifting weekend. One I needed :) Now I just need to focus on school for a few more weeks. Thank goodness this trip kinda recharged my batteries, even if I was doing homework during my vacations free time...