Back to the Old Grindstone...

Well, EFY was fun... I gotta say, it is weird not having to memorize 300 names this morning. Also, I was kinda nervous. Maybe jittery is a better word for it, but I hadn't really had that feeling since the beginning of summer for my first week as a BC. I'm sure that it will wear off in a few days. New faces, new places. All of my classes seem to be off to a good start, except for the fact that the publishing culture is making a killing off of the books I have to buy... The price of knowledge I suppose. I'm excited! It is going to be a great year!

Adventures in Yellowstone

I had this WHOLE WEEK OFF from EFY, and so I spent it up in Yellowstone with my little Bro, Matthew! It was a rockin' time! We started a game where we would get points every time we saw an animal. Matthew won. He has an eagle eye! I really love Yellowstone. It is a gorgeous place! I try and go there each summer to just get out of the hustle and bustle of life. (Next summer, I want to go backpacking through there, so if you are interested, let me know...)

---

We started off at about 5am, and worked our way up to Jackson, Wyoming, where we

ate breakfast, and saw our first animal!

We got really clos

e to a full grown ELK!!! Matt

hew was imitating it, so I think that is the reason that it didn't get nervous, seeing as Matthew looked just like one...

~~~

...We also had another

interesting character in our midst: Don Quixote's cousin, Twizzler Julio

The weather was splendid, and we got the chance to take in the beauty that surrounded us. Each night we wrote in our journals,

and drew pictures of

t

hings that had particularly struck a chord with us.

We saw

Old Faithful, and even named a few geyser's of our own.

This one we named

FIREBALL GEYSER... ------------------>

It rained our first night there, so when we woke up in the morning, we decided to make a quick stop by the "comfort station". It is so incredibly nice that they have those there...

AND THEN WE BRAVED THE COLD!!!

All in all, it was a good trip! I love my little bro sooo much. It was good to just spend some time with just him having fun, drinking hot chocolate, imitating buffalo, almost burning our tent down when the gas stove exploded, and chasing each other in the rain. I am so grateful that our family is forever! I wouldn't have it any other way!

The Birth of the Blog

Well, it is official, I have started a blog! This week was so amazing tho! I LOVE being an EFY Counselor! It is so awesome. I thought that it was good last year, but the kids have just gotten even better. Hopefully, I am able to bless them in some small way, but I feel that I am blessed even more by them. That is the interesting thing about trying to help each other out. The one is blessed by recieving, but on the other hand, we are also blessed as we are allowed to give. I am so grateful for all of the opportunities that I have. Life is good. Last week some girls came running up to me, squealing at the top of their lungs, "SHUA!!! Wait!!! We have a question for you!" I waited for them to arrive, and then they asked, "We can't figure out whether you are cool, or just a nerd! What are you?" and I simply told them, "Myself." I love being myself. It makes me happy. Because being myself involves the Gospel, and I love it! Every second of it!