Girls just wanna have fun!

I had a girls night last night. It was really fun! I felt like a teenager again...playing life, monopoly, and scattergories really brings the kid out in you!!! Needless to say I was awake until 5am giggling and having girl talk. It was kind of a last hoorah before the sister missionaries move in. Staying up all night is not as easy as it used to be. I feel so old today. I pretty much slept all day trying to recover from an all nighter. I lost an entire day!! Today I learned that I need a full 8 hours of sleep to function correctly. Sheesh! I am getting old!!! Speaking of old...when you go to your hair salon to get color put in to cover your greys...you are officially old! (Which is what I did yesterday) lol.

Also only 1 more day until I have roommates!!! I am so psyched! It has been a lot of work, but I know it will pay off. Neo is even excited!

One more thing...why is it that I only attract loser men? My picker is broken. Does anyone know how to fix my picker or where I can get a new one? lol. If so, please let me know!!!!!!!

It's been a while.

It's been a while since I've posted a blog. There is one reason for that...I am a retard! The other day I went to use my computer and it wouldn't turn on. I use a laptop, and it seemed like by battery took a dive. I was so bummed out, and just started to count my losses. Yesterday, I spent all day doing spring cleaning. While I was straightening up my computer wires, I realized that my computer was unplugged. SHEESH! I am telling you, I felt like an idiot. So here I am, my computer is just fine, and I am days behind on my blog.

The sister missionaries are scheduled to move in on May 2nd. I am very excited to have the sisters move in with me. The past few days, I have been trying to clean up the house to get ready for my new roommates. Yesterday, I spent all day making my house sparkle from top to bottom. There is nothing better than a relaxing and enjoying a sparkling clean house. I love it!!!

On Sunday, I went to a singles ward in place of the family ward. It was really interesting to see that many young people so excited about the church. I felt like I was home. I instantly made a bunch of friends. Good stuff! I can't wait to go back next Sunday. I think I'm going to eventually switch wards.

On Friday, I went on a bike ride with my friend Stephanie. We rode about 5 miles in the metro parks. This was the first time in 2 1/2 years, that I was able to ride a bike. It felt so good to finally be able to exercise. I used to be very athletic, and now that I'm not smoking anymore, I can get my endurance back up to where it used to be.

Today, is a resting day. I did so much yesterday and I'm pooped!

Roomates!!!

It is almost official! The sister missionaries are to move in with me on May 2nd. I am so excited to have these girls move in with me. I just know it will bless my life in ways that I can't even think of. I only hope it will bless their lives as well. Who would have thought that 3 months ago, I would meet the sister missionaries...join a church...and have the sisters move in with me? I know I sure didn't have that in mind. I know that the Lord knew. It is so amazing how things work out when I am doing the right thing.

High--Low

My low of the day was receiving hate mail from one of my "friends." I lost a friend today. I was very sad. Her and I have been friends for over ten years, but up until recently, our friendship started going down hill. She began to do things that are questionable. I tried so hard to help her, but I can't help someone who wont help them self. On a trip to Historic Kirtland, one of the sisters asked if I had any friends who would benefit from the gospel. I at first said no, but then for some reason I was prompted to write this friends name down. Long story short, the missionaries contacted her, and she freaked out. She wrote me this awful ignorant email. I lost a friend. It was not fun.
My other low of the day was seeing another one of my good friends upset because of a death in the family. It was extremely sad, and I am praying for the entire family.
My high of the day was going door knocking with the sisters. It was interesting seeing how hard the missionaries work. It really puts things into perspective. I don't ever want to take the missionaries for granted!!! It was also interesting to experience the door knocking from the other side of the door.
My other high of the day was having company all day! I just love being surrounded with strong wonderful people.

My mom's comment warrants a new post!

I am proud of you since the day I first laid eyes on you!
You are truly an amazing woman and now I get to be proud of myself too!
I love you so much and I am so sorry I missed the past 2 days..... good thing I have had the past 28.6 years and hopefully the next 28.6 years.
I tried to post a comment but I don't' understand blogging...
Love you!

MOM

Mom, I couldn't have asked for a better mother. You are my best friend, and words could never describe how much I love you. I thank you for always being there for me, no matter what! You are an amazing person and I only aspire to be more like you. I love you so much!

My Baptism!!

This morning, I woke up with a huge smile on my face. For those of you who know me, know that I am in no way a morning person. I felt an overwhelming feeling of joy, happiness, anticipation, and excitement. I felt absolutely at ease because I knew that today was the day that I would make the most important decision of my life. I know I am on the right path! This is just the beginning of my new and wonderful life, and I intend to keep it that way. As I walked down those stairs into the baptismal font I imagined my Savior smiling at me and beaming with joy. It was most likely the closest I have ever felt to the Lord. As I went into the water, I felt all my previous sins wash away. It was AMAZING!!! It all happened so fast! As I emerged from the water, I felt light and almost feint. I wish I could freeze that moment and relive it over and over again, especially when opposition presents itself to me. I am just so amazed at how wonderful I feel about myself (which is usually pretty rare). Today will be a day that I will never forget.

So...here are some of the good pictures that were taken today! Enjoy! For some reason, the pictures are backwards in sequential order. I cant figure out how to reverse the order, so the first picture was one of the last of the day. Sorry.

This egg was given to me by Josh Wray, who spoke at my baptism today. He went on his mission in the Ukraine. Painting eggs during the Easter season is I guess is a huge deal in the Ukraine. The egg is supposed to represent new beginnings, new life. It's a beautifully painted wooden egg, and I thought it was the perfect gift to help me remember this day.
Ok, so this has nothing to do with my baptism, (this was taken at the get together after my baptism). Sister McNeill was doing yard work this morning for an investigator. The poor thing, was gathering leaves and clothes-lined herself on a tree. She will most likely have a black eye tomorrow. Obviously, in the picture...i thought it was rather hilarious.
Stephanie and I, enjoying the party.

The sisters and I livin it up!

In this picture, I am dripping wet. I just got back to the bathroom to change after I was in the water. There is an amazing lightness in my demeanor...can you see it?

Sister McNeill, Sister Matheson, and I before my baptism

The Holloways and I

The Eckman family. David is the one who performed the baptism.

The sisters, David, and the Elders

Elder Bergeson, Me, David, and Elder Beck

Me and David Eckman (I think these jumpsuits are so goofy lookin)

Sister McNeill and I in a "loving embrace" lol

A normal picture of Sister McNeill and I

My best friend Stephanie, Me, and the Sisters

This pic was taken before I got into my goofy jumpsuit, when I first arrived to the church.

I sincerely hope you have enjoyed the pictures of my awesome and important day. I am just so grateful for everyone who was there for me, and encouraging me. I am also so grateful for my Heavenly Father who has opened my mind and heart so that I could enter into this important covenant with him. I am also grateful for Jesus Christ who led the way for me, set an example for me, and died for me. I am anxiously awaiting tomorrow for my confirmation so I can receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. I have felt the overwhelming and obvious presence of the spirit today, and I am so grateful that I can be worthy of his presence. I love what this church and it's principles have done to my heart. I have an awesome testimony of baptism, repentance, and the Holy Ghost. I am excited to learn and grow in this church, and I can't wait for tomorrow! I say these things in Jesus' name!!!!!! AMEN

Men

Annual Meeting of Single, Straight, Emotionally-Stable, Financially-Secure, Intelligent Men Looking for a Long Term Commitment

Men!

I got stood up tonight, so you will have to excuse my bitterness. I will be back to my usual self in the morning. Chao!

Yet another wonderful day!

This morning, I woke up early to take the sisters to transfers in Kirtland. Even though it was raining, our spirits were high, which was the cause of a lot of singing on the way there. Being able to actually see what the missionaries have to go through really puts things into perspective. It was an interesting afternoon surrounded with people who have dedicated their lives to Christ. The spirit filled the whole place! So...Sister Ayala went to Painesville, and the Lord sent me Sister Matheson. (SP?) She seems really nice and I can't wait to get to know her. So the Sisters and I went to lunch at Penn Station. It's this awesome sub sandwich place with fresh cut french fries. When we sat down to eat, I dumped about a gallon of vinegar onto my fries. The sisters looked at me like I was crazy. It must be an east coast thing to put vinegar onto french fries. The girls tried it and quickly dismissed the idea of vinegar on fries. :)

I finished the Book of Mormon a couple days ago. I thought I was finished...lol. NOPE! I was told that the Prophet has instructed us to read from the book on a daily basis, so I started it again. I do love this book, the only thing I do not enjoy about the book is all the wars. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying... Anyways, so I also had the Elders over for dinner this evening. We ate jambalaya, practiced the positioning of my body to prepare for baptism, and learned about Saul in the Bible. I loved that story, it's in Acts 9:1-18. Baptism is an amazing thing. I just love the fact that Saul had a horrible past and all he had to do was repent and be baptized.The Lord just wipes out all your sins-forgiven and forgotten. How incredibly amazing is the Lord that he is able to do that. Now I just have to learn how to forgive myself for my past transgressions. I wish I could be more like our Heavenly Father. Tomorrow is another day.

Some Pictures!

My new kitten-compliments of the Merryman family
Sister Ayala and Sister McNeill gave me a framed picture of the Colombus temple!

Sister McNeill, Sister Ayala, and I in Kirtland, OH. A great portion of the BOM was translated here. This table is original to the house, and Joseph Smith actually sat here. The word of wisdom revelation was also received in this room.

Sister Ayala-and my BB gun

Sister McNeill-I was uncomfortable in my baptism get up, so to make me feel better, she tried it on too! What a good sport!

Ok, so this is the nastiest icecream truck ever! The sisters and I were driving somewhere and saw this truck..It was all rusty and the exhaust stunk so bad-Who would buy ice cream from such a truck? It was grossly funny.

Ok heres Elder Bergeson at Kara's baptism party eating almost an entire cake!!! He actually got through most of it!

Fun at the Merrymans! Playing with deadly weapons is fun! LOL

My life is taking a new turn, a turn for the better. I am so excited to be baptized! I cant wait for that awesome gift of the Holy Ghost! I have never in my life been more ready than I am today. The missionaries gave me two framed pictures as a gift today. I got a picture of our prophet and of the Colombus temple. I hung them up in my living room tonight. I have already found that those pictures invited the spirit into my home. I just feel so incredibly lucky to be where I am today. I only hope I can continue with the intensity and desire that I have right now.

blackbird

Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your lifeYou were only waiting for this moment to arise

Black bird singing in the dead of night Take these sunken eyes and learn to see all your life, you were only waiting for this moment to be free Blackbird fly, Blackbird fly Into the light of the dark black night. Blackbird fly, Blackbird flyInto the light of the dark black night. Blackbird singing in the dead of night Take these broken wings and learn to fly All your life You were only waiting for this moment to arise, You were only waiting for this moment to arise, You were only waiting for this moment to arise.

I love this song. It's like Paul McCartney wrote it just for me!

Sickness

**Sunday**



What is it? Last night I broke out in a fever and body aches. This morning I woke up in the same condition. I started to cry. I must be doing something right, because I was told that I will know I'm on the right path because that is when I will have the most opposition from the adversary. Even though I'm sick, I still got dressed and went to sacrament meeting. It was the longest hour of my life. My family was having Easter Dinner at my Grandma's house. I also made a short appearance at my family dinner. My family used to say a prayer before every meal, but lately, the family prayers have become non-existent. I offered to say "grace" and to my surprise, everyone bowed their heads in prayer. It felt good to bring that tradition back to our family suppers. Hopefully, family prayer can come back into our lives.







**Monday**



I ended up in the ER Monday morning. My incision decided to suddenly split open and the ER had to glue me back together. Also, I found out that I do not have the flu, but a bacterial infection got into my blood stream via my open wound. Sheesh! So I'm now on antibiotics. At about 9am, I found out that missionary transfers are Wednesday and Sister McNeill is staying one more transfer! Which means She gets to be here for my baptism on Saturday! I am so happy, that is what I've been praying for. I went to a dinner appointment with the sister missionaries. A 79 year old Methodist man who is a widow. He was so kind and he was very happy we were there spending time with him. I had a pot of chicken soup on, so I brought that for dinner. We talked about the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, and we also talked about his beliefs. We shared a message about the Book of Mormon, and it seemed like he resisted. We also played mexican train dominoes with him. We had fun, and left his home at 8:30 pm. When Sister Ayala, Sister McNeill, and I got back into the car, we were giggled so hard that it hurt. We laughed histerically the entire way home. I havent laughed so hard in years. Everytime the giggling slowed down, someone's laughter would infect the others into an uproar of new laughter. It was great.


**Tuesday**
Goodbye SISTER AYALA!!! you will be missed!!!

Catching you up!

On one cold and wintry day, my mother was driving me home from another doctor's appointment. It was snowing and the wind was blowing. The wind chill must have been below zero. While pulling into my driveway, I saw these two young women walking down the street. My mother instantly labeled them in her mind as Jehovah's Witnesses. I got out of the car and began talking to these girls. They introduced themselves as missionaries from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I was intrigued. I attempted to invite them inside for warmth. My mother was less than happy with my open invitation and began shouting that her and I had blood transfusions (still thinking they were Jehovah's Witnesses). It was annoying then but its hilarious now. My mother started ushering me into the house, shutting out the missionaries. I told them to come back when my mother wasn't here. To my surprise, about an hour or so later, after my mother had left, the missionaries were knocking on my door again. I invited them in, and had them sit at my kitchen table. They began talking about Jesus, Joseph Smith, and the Book of Mormon. I had an open mind, so I asked them for a complete rundown of the ins and outs of the religion. I do not like surprises. Once they left, I went on with my day. A week or so later there they were knocking on my door again! Of course I let them in and we began talking again. It took about 4-5 visits for me to realize the seriousness of the things they were speaking of. I soon began internalizing the information, and also began reading the BOM. The sister missionaries began to befriend me as well. I started praying and asking God if these things were true. I didn't receive an answer for at least a few weeks, but when I got my answer it was definitely an obvious one. My defining moment was the night before my first surgery. The missionaries offered to have priesthood holders come to my home and give me a blessing. I figured it definitely couldn't hurt, so I told them yes. I was expecting older men to come to my house, and much to my surprise, they seemed younger than me. They anointed me with oil and laid their hands on my head and began to pray for me. It was at that moment when I felt as if Jesus Christ himself was standing over me. It was one of the most spiritual experiences I have ever had. It was at that moment that I knew that this church and the things they preached was for real. I was scheduled for surgery at 6 a.m. and I was still nervous, but certainly not as nervous as I thought I'd be. When I woke up in the recovery room, I instantly wanted to stand up...and I DID!!! 5 minutes after I was awake from major surgery I was standing and walking. I instantly began to pray and thank the Lord for what he had done. Don't get me wrong, I was in a lot of pain, but it was incision pain not nerve pain. I knew what God had done for me and I wanted to repay him. 3 days later, I had the priesthood over again for another blessing for the next phase in the surgery. 4 days later, I was back in the operating room for my final surgery. I was less nervous than the last one! When I awoke from surgery, I did the same thing...I got up! It is amazing to know that the Lord cares enough about me to heal me. You hear about that kind of thing in the Bible, but you never think that actual miracles can happen in 2009. Take my word for it, I am his miracle and I will never forget what he's done for me. And my baptism date is April 18th, 2009. I will never forget, and I will forever be in debt.

Getting to know me

Why am I the way I am? Here's a basic rundown of the past few years of my life... I had my 3rd and hopefully final back surgery in February. For the past 2 years I have been a prisoner in my own body. I have been incapable of the simple things in life such as: driving, walking, sitting, standing, and even sleeping. I became extremely sad, depressed even. Day after day, month after month, in excruciating pain definitely takes a toll on a persons personality. Feeling sorry for yourself on a daily basis and having to rely on others for basic survival is something no young person should ever have to deal with. Besides the pain, one of my major issues was retaining my friendships and close personal relationships. Unfortunately, some of the people who were in my life at that time, began to emotionally shut me out, one by one. These are the people that I considered to be some of my closest friends. To them, I became an unbearable burden, a boring or mundane chore. I understand that taking care of a disabled person can be trying and difficult, but if you love somebody then shouldn't it make it a little easier? I am forever scarred from this experience. The period of time when I was at my worst, my ex was living with me, and I was scared to ask for anything, even something simple like a glass of water. I was forced to be completely dependant on a person who was annoyed with my every whim. That relationship ended very abruptly. The only person who consistently stood by my side was my mother. My mother is the best mother a girl can ask for. She is an absolutely amazing woman who has grown to be my best friend. She helped me out in more ways that I could ever express in words. I was scheduled for 2 surgeries in February, and I was anxiously anticipating the day where my pain would be lessened. The surgery consisted of implanting a neuro-stimulator on my spinal cord. This device would send electrical impulses, effectively blocking the pain receptors from reaching my brain. The surgery was done in two parts--the first surgery they implanted the wires on my spinal cord and left part of the wires hanging out of my back. It was a trial run that lasted 4 days. The second part of the surgery they completely implanted the device internally. The recovery was extremely painful, but the stimulator was a complete success. The device took about 80% of my nerve pain away. I am happy to say that I am now starting to try to get my life back in order. I am in minimal pain, and my depression is becoming much more manageable and is almost non-existent these days. I am also becoming more and more self-sufficient. I am also ready to begin looking for Mr. Right. So if any of you want to set me up with a handsome, responsible, fun, man...I would be happy to meet him!!!