Old Blog - My Favorite Things

I was talking to a dear friend from college recently, and she asked "Do you have any plans... to use up your free time?" Well, what had I been doing to use up my free time? Since I last wrote, my mother-in-law taught me the basic single crochet stitch and I've been building on my knowledge from there. The first thing I made was a small pot holder which is perfect for holding a hot bowl of soup in your hand. Next, I made a nice multicolored scarf for Charles. Think he likes it or it likes him?










After I finished that, I went on to make a baby blanket out of dark blue and "blue mint" soft yarn. No, I'm not anticipating a boy (I'm not even pregnant yet, as far as I know), Charles and I just both like shades of blue. I'm on the last color block. The last time I worked on it, though, was at these three games Charles was officiating in Marshalltown, Iowa. I took it with me to keep me entertained because, although I'm all for supporting my husband in his hobbies (especially when he gets paid for them, although volunteering is good too) I'm really not a sports fan unless I know someone who is playing or I'm playing so it's good to bring something else along with me.

That striped picture to the left is a preview of it. It's so soft and cozy. I love it already and I can already picture our future baby in it. I hope it keeps them warm!

I'm already imagining all the other things I might be able to create. I'm thinking hand warmers might be great if I can figure out how to make them correctly.

A few days ago, I read a book by Randy Pausch called The Last Lecture, which is literally about the last lecture of a college professor and how he had fulfilled his childhood dreams. It was really insightful, and I read the whole thing in one night, partially out of time constraints, but also because it was so good. I would definitely recommend others read it. I chose some of my favorite quotes to share:

The cover of The Last Lecture - it's really appropriate for the subject matter.

"Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people."

"When you are doing something badly and no one’s bothering to tell you anymore, that’s a very bad place to be. Your critics are the ones still telling you they love you and care."

"Decide if you’re a Tigger or an Eyeore. I’m a Tigger."

"It is Important to have specific childhood dreams. (For example, Randywanted to play football in the NFL, write an article for the World Book Encyclopedia, experience the Weightlessness of Zero Gravity, be Captain Kirk from Star Trek, work for the Disney Company.)"

"Be good at something; it makes you valuable…. Have something to bring to the table, because that will make you more welcome."

“When it comes to men who are romantically interested in you, it’s really simple. Just ignore everything they say and only pay attention to what they do.” 

Anyway, I know that's a lot to read but that's not even all of what I liked. This book is super inspirational. On that note, there are a bunch of other books I really enjoyed reading too. One of particular note is Reflections of a Scientist by Henry Eyring. His insights have thoroughly shaped how I view and approach science. I admire him and wish I could have met him before he passed away. Maybe I'll be able to meet his son, Henry B. Eyring at some point, which would also be awesome for a whole bunch of reasons.

I just really like books - especially good ones which help define or solidify how I think about things. Another book - series, actually - which I really enjoyed was the "Great and Terrible" series, which goes through the pre-mortal life up to the second coming. It's really inspiring and comforting when things like the second coming can leave a lot of questions.

"It is not about achieving your dreams but living your life. If you lead your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself, the dreams will come to you." This is another quote from Randy Pausch, and it kinda inspired this post. I used to think I never really had many goals, but when I think about it, I had a few for myself. Here's a list of the ones I can think of now:

- Get married in the temple to someone who loves me for me, silliness and all (Check!)
- Write a book
- Get published
- Read the Book of Mormon in its entirety (Check!)
- Read the Bible it its entirety
- Read the Work and the Glory series by Gerald N. Lund (2 of 9 done)
- Have at least three children
- And much more - I am working living my life so that my dreams just take care of themselves. It will happen if I'm living the right way. Many things already have!