25 most influential people of my 25 years {It's my birthday today}

In order of appearance :)

{and it's long- sorry}

My Mom had me when she was 41 {so it needs to be noted that my older siblings played a large role of "mom" throughout my life too,} but nevertheless, my mom taught me to be energetic, decisive, optimistic and busy. She showed me how to go after the things i want in life- She taught me to sew, stamp, paint, be creative, and is the sole responsible party for my ongoing project bonanza attitude. She's ageless, and i hope that when i am her age i will still ride the Rocket at Lagoon too. :)

My Dad gets full credit for my organization bug. Everything has a place, a time, and purpose. The 7 habits by Stephen Covey was one of his big influences, and therefore trickled down to me. He gave me my first day planner when i was in 4th grade {laughing * like i had so much to plan!}I can't stand junk drawers, clutter, and random piles of things all over the house. I get my Photoshop and technological zest from him. He is also ageless. He's not getting older to me. He taught me hard work as he commuted to Las Vegas every day for 10 years to provide for us. He was awesome and articulate with numbers, but why didn't i learn my dad's accounting skills? Mystery.

My sister Tonya~ My best friend and mentor, my scrapbook buddy, the one person to whom understands my family, and family quirks {of course}, she and i are so alike that sometimes i can't believe it. We have the same mannerisms, temperaments, pet-peeves, chemical make-up even. I love her to death. She's lived in Alaska now for like 7 years, but we are by far each others' closest friend.

Mrs. Beck~ She was my 3rd grade teacher, and had a serious gift for teaching. I feel like i got such a wide range of useful and awesome information from her- I remember stomping to the beat of old classic songs on cut outs of feet on the floor. I have always felt like she brought our class together that year- we were such a tight group from then on-and actually we are all still friends now- :)

Mr. Payne~ was my 4th or 5th grade teacher-{i seriously can't remember} He was also my school choir director for Sunset Express, it was called. It was a fun 3 years with his seriously weird and unique songs he would write {including "When Daddy Carves the Turkey"}. We would perform at all the local anything events throughout Southern Utah complete with our matching shirts. lol. It was a fun experience and prepared me for furthering my quest as a performer. He gave me plenty of chances to succeed with solos, monologues, and assembly performances. I'd like to think that i was for once, a teachers' pet. lol. Our choir was a close group of friends, and gave us something extracurricular to do that was beneficial to the community- not just sitting on our butts watching tv after school every day. 

My family at Tuacahn~ I know it's not a single person, but it has to be listed as so- seeing there were so many people who i loved that came and went. Each summer i grew a new family only to have to say goodbye after an intense 7 month run. It taught me tolerance- for people marginally different than I- It taught me responsibility and commitment as it was a job- I HAD to be on time, learn and remember my part- It taught me team work, and gave me a plethora of wonderful memories to choose from. I can't see my past without Tuacahn in it. It also accounts for the strong pull I have to that awesome musical music. 

Anonymous  friend~ So there was a girl that i knew who was a year older than me. When i was in 5th grade and she was in 6th, she was raped inside her home while her parents slept in the next room. It was terrifying and completely changed my otherwise innocent outlook on the world around me. Until then i had figured my home a safe harbor, a place to run away to, and invincible of anything horrible like that. My parents had to get an intercom system that allowed me to call them from my bedside. I was obsessive about checking my closet before i went to bed, and i personally took the initiative to lock all the doors at night, among a lot of other OCDtype initiatives. From this friends' horrible experience spawned my distrust of the world. I lived in fear for a long long time. I know it's sounds silly that i was still scared with Warren in bed next to me, but I still worried that something would happen that he couldn't help. I actually felt like i finally conquered my fears this year when Warren was in OKC for 4 months. I had to sleep alone. I prayed and prayed, but i can't live in fear anymore- If there is something that someone does that God can't prevent, then i just have to trust that God can help me through it.

Jolynn Black~ She was my young woman's president for one year in there somewhere- I think it was 8Th grade?? Coming from a terrible and rotten experience with YW, she really turned things around for me. She was so happy and had a personality that just made you want to hang out at her house all the time {and we did :)} She made the church seem "cool" to me for the first time. I was so stinking sad when they moved. She really left a stamp on us all. 

Nicole Longhurst~ She was a "horrible rebel" that moved into our ward just in time for girls camp {moan}. None of the other girls in our ward were willing to share a tent with her, which i thought was rotten, so i took her in and we became best friends. She was rough around the edges, had a past- whatever- but we hung out pretty much every single day through Jr. High. We also became "barfing buddies" which is just what it sounds, and pulled each other in andout of that. Through crushes, and clothes, and toilet papering jaunts, brutal Jr. high scams, and notes, notes, and more notes, she kept me down to earth, and gave me a taste of the "real world". She taught me to take things such as boys less seriously. I obviously didn't learn that one as well as i should of. lol.

Bishop Anonymous~ Our family ward bishop once told me that i was "going to hell if i kept dancing." He disapproved of my missing weekly yw activities along with my sleeveless shirts. Needless to say, i probably veered away from the church more than i would have without his awesomely judgemental interviews. I have since forgiven him, and see the things he could have done that would have been more beneficial in a young ladies tender teenage life- Like mentor with love? hmmmm. The gospel is perfect, the people in it are not. 

Brian & Melinda Larson & Company~ "& company" refers to so many great friends that i made while we spent every school night from 4-10 at the studio for the bulk of my adolescence. Not all their influential credits were "great", but i can look back and say that they were a huge part of my adolescent growth. We probably went to them more than we should have for advice- but they opened my eyes, and gave me a greater appreciation of Music, Dance, Theater- and taught me to give all i have to whatever i'm givin' it to. '

We'll call him "Joe"~ Joe was a boy that i met when i was 12? 13? He quickly became my "first love", and later my first kiss. He was not popular, he didn't even go to public school, but he was such a gentleman. He had all sorts of weird family baggage, and his father (70 at the time) died while we were "together". He wrote me all sorts of poems, letters, and despite the fact that his mom disapproved of me, he would ride his bike like 10 miles to come say hi. {ahh. young love}. We got along so well until he transitioned into public school, and i don't know what got into me, but i sort of "disowned" him. I wouldn't talk to him, and instead of embracing his probably terrified 1st year in the public school system, i shunned him and "went out" with some other more popular kids. whatever. So when i came to, we "went out" again, and i learned what it is to forgive. He was so nice and patient, and was willing to take me back when i was such a brat. I learned true forgiveness through him from such a simple life lesson. Be nice. 

John Taylor~ was my freshman Biology teacher at Tuacahn Center for the Arts. He was probably more influential in the way that without him i don't know what i would have done- more than what he actually DID for me. Does that make sense? He was a totally normal teacher- and by that- i mean- it's hard to explain. There were some weirdo's out there. My Drama teacher was a crazie! John Taylor {and we called him that} was funny, and down to earth, and didn't take all of our performing intentions too seriously. He had a wife and little son, and my friend Adria and i went to say hi to them at their house frequently. We had a made up a special club that included him and another cool teacher Ms. Gillespie and Adria and i- we would have lunch just us and make fun of all the wacked students that were actively furthering their "career". It's good to have a neutralizer in a totally one sided experience, and that is what John Taylor was to me during my weird freshman year.

Mr. Saxton~He was my Jr. and Sr. year Drama teacher and Director. He gave me a real hero of an example to look up to- He made me feel right at home at a new school, but not only that, he acknowledged my strengths, and gave me some of my greatest high school memories. One spring break a big group of us camped on his lawn- we just wanted to see his face when he came out in the morning and saw all of us crazies out there. lol. good times.

{It has to be mentioned} Darren- the first boyfriend~ New girl at a new school, and i got asked out on my first "real" date- followed by an obsessive teenage infacuational relationship to which i devoted most of my time and definitely all of my attention. But i was less involved in Diamond Talent Dance, and more involved in friends, parties, dances, and the whole important high school experiences to which i probably would have completely missed out on. He boosted my confidence, stole me heart, and if i ever have a teenage girl, i will be better equipped for those emotional bursts of feelings- over someone who seemed so important then, but couldn't tell you where he is now. 

Liz Carter{Condie}~ We met my Jr. year at Dixie, and immediately were those crazy loud girls who annoy you in the hall. We were both suffering from a breakup with boy who we hated {still were in love with} and created the ever so famous "boy bashing book" that hung from her key chain complete with a pink fuzzy cover. ha ha ha. We played and played that year- We pulled a spring break camping trip {with boys. he he he} and pulled the "I'm sleeping at her house.." stunt. Even though she was a Sr. she never made me feel like she was better than me. She helped me respect the church again, and ultimately brought Warren and I together {he had a crush on her first :) } She made that year way too much fun.

 

-of course- Warren~ He came out of nowhere just in time to save me from an irresponsible lifetime of who knows what. He makes me laugh all the time, he lets me sleep in EVERY weekend, he is seriously the most involved father, and we have so many inside jokes and funny stories to entertain you all for an entire evening. We have more in common than we say, and i love that he enjoys shopping with me. We have way too much fun together, and I love how we can laugh at the same things. Sounds cliche- but i don't know where i would be if he hadn't of found me irresistible :)  

Bishop Cope~  was Warren and I's first Bishop as a married couple in a fun married student ward at Dixie State. He totally made up for all the bad experiences and people i had ever known from the church. He was an awesome Bishop, friend, neighbor, and all around good person. We had some rockin' ward activities {we were in charge- and he spared no expense} including night skiing at Brianhead, an all out valentines dance, a pumpkin carving contest, and awesome firesides. He helped us let go of a court case that was eating at us- had us over for dinners, and gave me employment as a voice instructor for his cute little girls. He is a surgeon and later worked on our little Everett. We were so glad to put our trust in someone like him.

Tim Eiker was my Early Childhood development professor at Dixie State. He was on the more "granola" team, and introduced me to a side of child birthing that I had not even considered. It was his class, {coupled with my sister Tonya's success with natural birth} that i was able to have an awesome {AND excruciating} experience delivering Everett naturally. He had midwives come and talk, specialty speakers, and really tried to give us information that was useful in real life. I learned so much about child development in that one semester that i thought i would be so prepared to be a parent! lol. Nothing can prepare you, but his class did a little more than i would have been otherwise. He was also the first teacher and only one to accuse me of plagiarism. My final report was so good that he brought me into his office and asked me {and Warren} to tell him the truth- I was so offended! I wrote that report with a serious literary background that my high school AP teacher Mrs. Smily had implemented with great force. He said okay, and gave me an A. I was grateful and respected that he took my word for it. 

Dr. Lee~ is a random Dr. that found in the phone book- I got lucky.  He got me on the medication that i needed to live a more full life. He made me feel like it was okay to admit defeat, and that i should be proud to be taking care of my needs, not ashamed. I really felt like he truly cared how i was doing each time i went to him. No matter how little the progress, he made me feel proud, and was considerably flexable with my road to recovery. I wish i would have met Dr. Lee a long long time ago.

My 3 little boys- Everett, Bentley, & Sawyer~ They give me a whole new meaning for life. They have taught me selflessness, patience {still learning}, responsibility, innocence, and have set my priorities straight. I've had to grow up, think less of myself, and love 3 things more than anything else in the entire world. I live for them now. They have taught me what the most important things to spend my 100 years doing are. It's hard to explain like, prosperity. It's like- all that i want is when I'm 80 and in my rocker- to see my boys and their families successful- happy. To know that i had a small part in all that is profound.