story

During Sunday School on Sunday we talked about "how I was blind but now I see" it reminded me of a story from my mission. I served in the California Ventura Mission 99-01. While I was there I served with Elder Tommy Draschil in one of my areas he was my zone leader and told me this story. He said that when he was nineteen he went into the MTC and was there for a couple of days then he just thought you know what I don't know if I want to do this I don't even know if I want to be LDS.. He lived in Provo a couple of blocks from the MTC so he just walked out of the MTC and walked home.. I guess nothing as dramatic as those stories you hear of people jumping the fence or pushing their companion away and RUNNING...Elder Draschil just simply walked away from the MTC his mission and his religion..He said he went home took off his sacred religious clothes and went about living what he thought was a happy life ... He did this for about three or four years over the course of time he realized he was not happy... so one day he decided to pray and ask Heavenly Father what he should do.. he went up into the moutains and prayed with all his heart. He said he was up there for awhile when he came down he knew what he needed to do. He went to his bishop and started preparing to go on a mission. He got called to the exact same mission as he had been called when he was nineteen he was now about twenty-three or twenty-four. This time he did not leave the MTC and he served an AMAZING mission. He was a great zone leader and one of the highlights of my mission. He said to me Sister Wright, I was blind.. I thought I know what was to be happy but I was not happy... he said but now that I am living the gospel.. I really see..I was blind but now I see.. I am grateful that as a nineteen year old boy that he knew then that he did not have what it takes to serve a mission. I am also glad that when the time came, he was able to put right in his life what he needed too and serve a mission with all of his heart mind and strength.. Having a testimony of the gospel and living it is essential to our progression. May we all strive to be who we really are and live as Heavenly Father wants us to live and have the courage to repent and change to become that amazing person that Heavenly Father already knows that we are.

craft

I made this "book page wreath" in Feb. 2011. here is what I did,
I bought a wreath form at Michaels. Then I went to the thrift store in Chantilly and got a couple of books that I was not to embarrased to buy... some of those books were so stupid I would not mind ripping them up BUT I didn't want to buy them hahhaha. I then drove to Elaines and spent HOURS ripping out three pages at a time then drawing spirals on the pages then cutting out the spirals on the pages...then wrapping the spirals into rosebuds...THEN glueing it onto the wreath form.. I had so many burns after awhile Elaine's roommate Amy helped me and I was SO GLAD... I ran out of books but still was not done..I went home and the next day demolished several of my moms romance novels that no one should read EVER..and finally I felt like my wreath was done..then I hung it up.. and saw some bare spaces ... so IDK I guess it still needs some work the ribbon needs to be cuter and maybe some spray paint where it is bare...I will get around to that SOMEDAY...!

holiday

With Valentines Day 2011 less than a month away I thought that I would have SOMEWHAT of a Valentine..then a lot of drama happened and I had NO VALENTINE!!! I am so grateful that Heavenly Father loves me and that he blesses my life :) My life is so much more full of peace and happiness now. :)
I did have a good Valentines day though. I dressed in pink and red and my friend Carrie and I went out to eat at Ledo's Pizza in Alexandria, VA on Rt.1. there were several small families, young teens, and elderly couples. the pizza, salad and friendship talk was great :)
So will I have a Valentine in 2012.IDK BUT I do know I wont WONT be involved with someone that is MEAN to me... http://youtu.be/1CPrzNr1b14 some day Ill be living in the country ..and all your gonna be is MEAN!!! http://youtu.be/0CY6pN7ZcKA
THAT IS RIGHT MY NEXT GUY IS GOING TO BE AMAZING...!!! http://youtu.be/B7x85fv6BaY

thrift store find

yesterday I tried out a thrift store I had never been to before in Manassas, VA... I got an amazing suit that I will post a picture of soon AND this cool deck of CUPCAKE CARDS!!! I should post more indepth pictures but this is good for now..it comes with 24 cards..I guess that 25th one was just to good to let go..each card opens up to reveal directions, tips and ideas. I think that now I need to have a cupcake day! I am going to give these to Elaine, but I am sure she will let me look at them to make something.

thrift store find

   My friend Dorsietta was nice enough to take this picture of me when I went to the Potomac Ward in Feb. for their potluck... I wanted to write a post about it because this is ALL from the thrift store
shirt: is from Jcrew I don't even remember WHERE I got it but I am a JCREW FREAK!!!!! I wish they would hire me part time!!!! I wish I had money to SHOP there!!! you can tell this is a better turtleneck the fabric is so nice and it is just so comfy..
purse: I don't want to admit this BUT I got this purse at Wal-Mart I was DESPARATE for an outfit one time when I was stuck at Justin's and had nothing to wear to an event and then he was like WHY DONT YOU HAVE  A PURSE!!!! all girls have purses... so I got this one for like 5$ since it is from Wal-Mart it fell apart...which let that be a lesson to all that store is a joke...and should not be shopped at...ever... I have since given that purse TO a thrift store...
skirt-isnt that skirt AMAZING I got it at the thrift store in Chantilly, VA it is for real from Talbots and only cost 6$ AMAZING and the cool thing is I wore this to church right near Valentines day so I looked super in season
shoes- I got them at Platos Closet... they were less than 10...Spike has chewed on one of the heels a bit but they are still cute...
coat- I got this cute Gap coat with a bright pink lining at a YARD SALE in Logan, Utah for like 5$ a poor girl had died of brain cancer...sad ::( I am happy to say that her coat lives on through me...
necklace-my mom got me that from Avon for Christmas

see it is possible to be thrifty AND fabulous!!!

craft

  Cupcake Liner Wreath I made Feb. 2011

 myself and my wreath

Even though I did NOT have a Valentine for 2011..which is OK when I think of who it could have been... I made this AMAZING cupcake liner wreath over at Elaine's house one night.
Here is what I did- I bought a wreath form at Michaels and wrapped it with red ribbon that I hot glued down.
then I took pink cupcake wrappers and folded them in 4ths and hot glued them on my wreath and kind of fluffed them out a bit... and burnt my fingers.. a lot.
I took some white mini cup-cake holders and put them on the bottom with a red heart that Elaine's roommate Amy cut out so PERFECT for me...or was it her roomate Danica... I am not sure but that is a cute little heart. Elaine helped me do the ribbon and we hung it up on her door and took the picture.
I now have it hanging in my room. One day I guess I SHOULD put it away and only bring it out for Valentines day...
but I kinda think I like having LOVE in the air :)

Field Trip/Holiday

Have you ever wondered, how do I celebrate PRESIDENTS DAY??? well wonder NO MORE...you fix a "presidental dinner" If you look on the internet you can find recipes for lots of presidents OR if you are able..VISIT a Presiden't house. This is my 4th year doing this and my first year making it to a Presidents house. Since this is the fourth year I toured the FOURTH presidents house, James and Dolley Madison's house in Orange,VA. I organized a mid-single trip for anyone that wanted to go. We met at the Oakton stake center.
Dave A.,
Carrie J.,
Tyler T.,
Rich W.,
Jason M.,
Shawna L.,
Laura C.,
Charles C.,
and
myself met there and carpooled down.
Dave's car is ALL DECKED OUT ...two different DVDS on BOTH backseats...IDK if I like this or not??? I mean kids are so obsessed with TV anyway...
I am glad that we did not watch TV because I read all about James and Dolley and Montpelier on the way there to Carrie and Dave.
Tyler was able to find a restaurant for us to try out called The Hornets Nest. It was SO REDNECK..!!! you will have to look on my FB for pictures I am revamping my blog slowly but surely..so it is still under construction.
This place was ran by a man and his wife. They had great food. Dave was nice enough to buy Carrie and I lunch. The two best things about this place were:
1. THEY HAD FRIED DILL PICKLES!!! always a good sign...
2. they had a PETITION you could sign to get rid of STRAY CATS that ROAM neighborhoods!!!! I signed it...cause hey why not??? I guess they don't have a mouse problem since the cats are MORE of a problem...this just says "small town" all over it...LOVE IT!!!
After the restaurant we headed over to Montpelier. Since we went in February ( black history month). When we got there we were able to take a black history tour of the plantation...Something I have started to notice the more places that I tour around here is that anywhere that had slaves always says that THIS place treated their slaves GREAT!!!! like basically the slaves loved being there because these people treated them just so wonderful...Rich said I feel like they glamorize that a bit ...I said ya think..??
We heard all kinds of interesting stories like about a slave that poised James Madisons grandpa and was hung but his co-conspirators were kept at the plantation.. 
Our tour guide was named Bud and did a great job.
After that tour we went down and checked out the cemetery they have there.
We then went up to the main house we watched a movie about James and Dolley and started our tour.
I forgot our tour guides name but she was just "aiight for me" she made a couple jokes that were a bit off IMO..She also showed us two globes a celestial and a terrestial...no word why they didn't have a telestial...
I asked her if the place was haunted ....she didn't really say...I also asked if the Obama's had been there she said no..but if they did come the secret service would be crazy.
They are still restoring Montpelier.
James Madison was way older than Dolley..Dolley was a widow with one living son..that son was a DRUNKARD AND A GAMBLER...Dolley and James spent A LOT of MONEY and TIME bailing him out. James died and did not leave that much money...Dolley got bored at Montpelier and moved to Washington DC...she left PAYNE her son ( who was a DRUNKARD AND A GAMBLER) in charge of Montpelier...BIG MISTAKE...( he was a DRUNKARD AND A GAMBLER) Dolley sold some of James's papers the people that bought them would only give her the money IF she didn't give Payne her son any of it ( he was a DRUNKARD AND A GAMBLER) so Payne just started GIVING away all of James Madisons stuff to anyone walking down the road...and selling some...Madison had willed his books to UVA he had 4000 they only got like 400 because Payne did who knows what with them...Eventually they lost Montpelier. Later a family the duPonts bought it and added on to the mansion and started horse racing events. They owned the house until the 1960s. After that a foundation bought it and have been restoring it ever since. They are on a quest to get as many of James and Dolley's things back to the mansion as possible. During the restoration they found a SPECK of wallpaper and were able to replicate a whole room pretty nifty.
They even left a restoration room to show us the process of how they found everything...
It started to drizzle while we were there...
Jason and I had a nice time walking around and he was nice enough to take pictures of me lots of places.
We looked around in the gift shop for a bit. They also have a whole wing dedicated to when the duponts lived int he house the redid two of the rooms one of them is a ballroom and one a very elaborate living room IDK if to say they re did them...or if what I need to say is they took the rooms out of Montpelier and put them right into this gallery.  It was very amazing to view these rooms.

 ...and I got a magnet ...of course...:)

We had a nice drive home...
NEXT YEAR: PRESIDENT FIVE James and Elizabeth Monroe, lucky me that is here in VA too :)

PS Payne Todd is NOT buried in the graveyard there he was buried in a paupers grave in Washington DC and no one moved him then and no one will move him now...He was a DRUNKARD AND A GAMBLER...