what's your connection?

What do you feel connected to?

 I feel powerfully connected to the sky.

The sun, moon, stars and clouds.  

Years ago I received a blessing which eluded to the fact that it was in my best interest to pay attention to nature.  At the time I was taken back a bit because I was not the "tree hugger" type, so what could that mean?  I pondered it a lot, so much so that it became a little bit of an obsession.  So I began to read articles and watch videos or tv specials specifically about the elements of nature.  I turned to learning a little bit about earth sciences and started truly noticing all the little things around me when I would go for walks, hikes or drives.  In 2011, on vacation to the Teton Valley, it became very clear...I got it!  I knew what my blessing meant and how interested and invested I already was with it!  The elements of nature have a divine and significant meaning.

I came to believe that everyones spirit connects to an earthly element.  For example - My Sadoe Potato connects to the trees, she feels a comfort in them.  She also loves the water, she claims it makes her feel peaceful.  My Momma Cait's heart is always open to animals, she loves and cares for them intensely.  My Handsome Man is very much a kin to the earth, he is addicted to and thrives on outdoor adventure.  After many inquiries I have found people who love dirt, people who love rocks and people who are drawn to rivers.  When people understand what I am asking them, and are willing to answer me, they become very detailed and speak with a sense of excited reverence about their particular connection.  It's very cool.

Genesis 2:7 describes man was made from the earth itself.  So why wouldn't we feel a connection to it?  I believe ALL that the earth and heavens provide are specifically designed for our use and learning.  Just as we are blessed with unique talents and wisdom, I can't help but believe we are also blessed with very individual connections to God's beautiful earthly creations.

So, on days which I lay on my lawn and gaze into the big blue sky...or sit on my porch in the middle of the night just to see the stars, I will SMILE and say thank you for the blessing of my connection to it.  When I travel back to the Teton Valley (as I try to do every single summer), I will be humbled by the blessings of it's overwhelming magnitude...and then I will SMILE and be grateful for it all!

What are you connected to?  Don't take it for granted, don't think it's silly.  It's a blessing!  Immerse yourself in it, smile and be grateful for the connection.

Keep your sunny side up!
Lisa Lucille

Temple Lights!

It's been a really long time since I've been to Temple Square for the sole purpose of viewing the magical christmas lights.  It's been over 10 years and that's truly sad.  Well, I had the opportunity to go last night and it was beautiful...as always.

The activity of walking around Temple Square, taking in all the sights and lights and being completely mesmerized by it is a totally different experience now that I'm 44.  When I was young it seemed so grandios...a sheer miracle of wonder!  Now, that I'm old, I realize that the Square itself has tripled in size, instead of a couple hundred people walking the Temple grounds there are thousands and it doesn't seem as grandios, but rather realistically amazing.  It still holds so much magic.  It is beautiful.  However, I noticed that some of the big trees that used to adorn lights, don't anymore because they are way to huge.  It's like they are the Grandpa's of the Square and have given over to the younger trees the responsibility of displaying all those shining lights.  I saw, in bits and pieces, the influence of the modern day.  Many pre-made metal trees adorn the grounds and the bushes are lit with netted lights.  The Temple does not actually sit at the middle of it all, and quite frankly is a side note to all that is going on.  The Joseph Smith memorial building is packed with people and is (with my designers eye) spectacular to gaze around at!  It's all changed since the 70's and early 80's, it seems almost like a whole different place.  I'm grateful for the memories I hold of the less crowded and smaller festival of lights.

See the "Grandpa's" of the square.
Not lit anymore, but so nobly guarding the temple itself.
I'm sure they find that to be their most precious job anyway.

The brightest light of all.
Standing grand and ever so humbly.

I don't care if one is christian, jewish, hindu, islam, buddhist or whatever...I think the lights at the temple are a pleasure for ANYONE to go see!  If only to feel the spirit of joy and cheer!  Besides, city creek is right across the street...and who doesn't want to shop there at least once a season!?!

"But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him."  Habakkuk 2:20

Peaceful tidings....
Lisa Lucille

the sky is on fire!

I LOVE to observe nature.  It's in the top 3 on my favorite things to do list.  All of it...from the depths of space to the tiniest spec of sand on the beach.  It's all extremely fascinating to me.  The sunlight is my happiest, of all natural elements, to be involved with.  I was granted a few amazing glances at the magic of sunlight this week.  The skies have been ON FIRE!

tuesday's fire

thursday's fire

I delight in every sunset I see.  Sometimes my mom will call me, just to remind me to look out my window, so I don't miss the beauty of it!  When I was a teenager, I used to drive up to Tanner Park so I could sit in quiet and watch the sun go down.  The view was always the best up there.  One night, I remember, actually seeing the rays of the sun stretching out from that big orange orb and reaching up into the neon indigo sky...the image is burned into my brain...i love it.

Summer is the best time to watch a sunset.  The season doesn't necessarily provide the most beautiful sunsets, however, the air is warm and the sky stays bright until almost 10:00!  I like to lay down, on the thick grass, and watch the sky go from light blue to soft yellow, pale pink and neon orange.  I continue to lay there, until the sky reaches that perfect indigo color and then fades into a royal deep purple.  Then the stars start to twinkle, the moon rises, the sky turns black and I welcome the calm of a very warm and delicious night! (it's not even the first day of winter yet and I'm already salivating for summer...oh boy...)

Peace be to you and you and you...
Lisa Lucille

so many things happen...when time flies....

Gosh!  So many things happen in a moment, hour, day, week, month.....you get it!  Time really does fly.

Reminders of what's happened in the last year or so....

*a cruise to the caribbean - again, that's #17, not bragging...just saying'
*voice box surgery - didn't last, not complaining...just a good test of will work and what won't!
*Kyle came home from serving in Kosovo for 10 months!  Good soldier boy...xoxoxo
*a new 5th wheel - L O V E...it resides in St. George (hence, so do I from time to time)
*Sadie tried out for Miss Bluffdale and won Miss Photogenic!
*Sadie graduated from Riverton High - and then.....
*Sadie went to Peru - an amazing and selfless service project she involved herself in!

*CJ bought me a new 4-RUNNER - it's gorgeous...waaayyyy better than a new pair of shoes!!
*CAITLYN is PREGGERS! - STOP!...Grandma time! (And it's a girl! - Ava Jane)

*a Colorado Springs trip, to visit Cait...in her ghetto digs...
*Tom left for 'duck' training in Canada - miss him....he probably doesn't miss me?
*went on an AMAZING church history tour - 12 days on a bus learning, sight seeing and learning!

Susquehanna River
Wait! John the Baptist was here?!  BOOM baby!

shoppin' the pioneer way
Kirtland OH
She like their hats....

Baptized for the dead...
with my Sadoe...
in the Nauvoo Temple!

*Cait and Kyle moved home - back to Utah....where we LOVE them!

*my IRONMAN finished the Florida race in 10:54:08 - wicked weather and all...he ran his A#% off!

*Kyle and Caitlyn are going through the temple to be sealed for ETERNITY on Nov. 22!  YAY!!!!

That brings me to today.  CJ is in bed with the flu.  Sadie is working.  Cait is home with her dogs and preggers belly.  Ava is swimming happily in her mothers womb.  Kyle is working his little rear end off (he works at the shop).  I am sitting at my kitchen counter (have been for the last 2 hours!) wondering "EXACTLY HOW LONG does it take to update iTunes on my iPhone?!!?" In between the wondering of the iPhone and this exact moment, I have been filling plastic cups full of ice water, warming up chicken noodle soup,  dosing out ibuprofen and taking temperature checks on my sad CJ's forehead.  So...I haven't got a damn thing accomplished today.  It's ok, because my family comes first, and...well...I love them.

This month I will be starting a Random Acts of Kindness project, a Proverbs Project, re-decorating my craft room and, of coarse, journaling...in my 7 (yes, 7) journals.  I journal...so sue me.  The blog will reflect my efforts (whether super lame or freaking awesome...some kind of effort will be made).

The best part of the next week (november 10th) is that my Grandma Gibson will be 90!  My awesome grandma, who, took me to her golf tournaments, bowling tournaments, relief society luncheons, taught me to forever love the smell of PineSol, and body surfed in her 60's....she will be 90!  Forever one of my favorite people and greatest examples!  She's adorable....and supremely feisty.

And....I guess it's pretty cool that my Cait will be turning 22 on the 9th and my cute dad will be turning 67 on the 14th.  I'm sorry Cait and Dad, but 90 trumps both y'all.  Just sayin'...loves!

"Sometimes we win and sometimes we lose.  I don't care if I win or lose...I just love playing the game!"

Peace to my peeps....

Lisa Lucille :]

happy EARTH day!

Just wanted to post a few pictures of the places I love most on God's Green Earth!

sunshine….it's my favorite thing

daisy's are my favorite flower

nothing beats the Wasatch and Uinta mountains

MY Land of Liberty!

moose, may favorite animal

snowmen….the only great thing about the snow
(according to me)

raspberries…to make raspberry jam
DELICIOUS!

different cultures…love, learn and appreciate them!

so many places to travel
i love the open road

Bear…another favorite animal

oh the serenity of a white sand beach….ahhhh

Teton Valley! Teton Mountain Range!

untouched, preserved places to EXPLORE!

the clouds….the blue sky

my very own back yard with my dog…
best place to be on my little piece of earth :]

So HAPPY EARTH DAY!  I love this earth!  To explore it, learn about it & learn from it, watch it change from season to season, listen to the breeze blow through the leaves, smell the lilacs in the spring and the crisp leaves in the fall, lay on the grass and stare at the sky, watch a thunderstorm, walk on the trails…or off the trails, travel it, take care of it and love it - the earth is a most precious gift!

Peace and harmony
Lisa

looked outside at JUST the RIGHT moment!

Last night, my family was gathered in the great room watching t.v. and chatting when  I barely noticed the light change on the wall.  It had been raining outside most of the day and was quite grey.  But, now the wall looked more yellow.  I turned to took out my windows and WOW!  I ran to my back door and out onto my deck…holy cow, it was like heaven!  The clouds broke and the sun was shining brighter than ever.  It was the most gorgeous sight!  I called out to my family and insisted they come out to see, they did and were just as amazed as I was.

I immediately started taking pictures with my little old iPhone 4.  These are the moments I wish I was a professional photographer!  But I can't complain, my phone did pretty great…

my favorite…i could NOT believe the color of that sky!

rainbow, stretching across my little town

i think we know where the pot of gold is!  those colors were literally neon! 

…and my love for clouds was fulfilled 

you can't really tell (but i posted it anyway, to remind myself), the trees are shinning silver!  just like tinsel on a christmas tree….amazing!

Amazing, breathtaking nature!  Right out my back door….I LOVE IT!

Peace out!
Lisa

SPRING!

It's officially SPRING!  Yesterday was day 1 of this most colorful season…and I couldn't be more excited!  Winter, here in Utah, wasn't that awful this year, however, I think due to my hellish recovery and the toxic Salt Lake valley winter air, I'm just ready for the renewing feeling of spring.  I'm not a negative person so I try to enjoy every little moment, but the warm air, green leaves and sunshine always help make the day a little 'brighter'…literally!

I was out playing with my dog a couple days ago and noticed that there were little tiny green leaves starting to poke out on my maple trees.  Happy Day!

I also noticed that my lilly's were starting to shoot up impressive little bunches of green-ness!!  Then I looked to the sky and WOW how blue it was!  I was so happy to be alive in that moment, everything seemed so fresh and absolutely beautiful!

I'm grateful to live in a place where all 4 seasons can be enjoyed fully and I love each one of them (except for winter…not a big fan, although it is gorgeous!).  The thing about right now is that it's all beginning again…and that is so exciting.  I can't wait for the tulips, daffodils and hyacinths to bloom!  I love to sit on the green soft grass and hear the leaves rustle in the breeze.  What a gift each season brings!  At this moment…I'm just excited for the many gifts of SPRING!!!

Love and Peace to you and yours,

Lisa :]

always changing...

Constantly changing the way I do things...I'm a creature of change.  Loving the world around me and always wishing for more, it's what I do.  When you boil it all down...that's what makes my little world spin.  That said....no more "day's" posts.  Cooking, crafting, serving, cleaning and all that jazz are just things I do randomly and my free spirit doesn't allow me to tie down certain things....like cooking, crafting, serving, cleaning, etc. ;]  I'm moving back to "journal" type posting, it's much more fun for me.

Anyway...Last Thursday I had my tonsils out and 3 sinus procedures done all at the same time.  I'll be honest, it was dreadful.  Couldn't eat, sleep, drink....just lay in my bed and take the days one minute at a time.  I'm not a bed dweller, or t.v. watcher - so it super sucked.  I had WAY too much time to sit and think.  All I knew is I couldn't wait for better days.  Laying in bed for a week with not a whole lot of cheerful moments and a great dose of pain made me realize I'VE GOT TO GET OUT AND DO MORE!  My sympathies to those who are afflicted with pain and a bed ridden quality of life...my heart breaks for you.

So, It's August 31.  In Utah we have no choice but to endure Indian Summers.  They are beautiful!  In an attempt to get out and breathe the mountain air, my cute CJ took me for a motorcycle ride up the canyon and into Heber Valley.  We ate a small lunch and then continued home.  It was so much fun!  My husband is so good to me.  Whoa, back to my subject of indian summers.....I took pictures of the beginnings of a beautiful summers ending.

Perfect image of an early september sky.
SO FREAKING GORGEOUS!

Look close....you'll spot the early changing leaves.

I love when the leaves start changing, the thunder clouds start rolling in and the warm winds continue to blow.  It signifies so much change.  This same time of year is when vacations are over, trailers and boats get put away, the new school year begins, you take a jacket at night to save you from the chill and of coarse...the leaves change and fall arrives.  Fall is my favorite...so you will hear no complaints from me.  But the indian summer saves me when I still desire to go outside to play with Tom, drive with my windows down and sit on the back porch to read a book.  Utah is so pretty and full of change....guess that's why I've lived here all my life ;]

"CHANGE IS IN ALL THINGS SWEET"  -Aristotle

Enjoy and Be Peaceful :]