Back "home"

I have arrived back in Logan after a spectacular Christmas break.  It was filled with family, friends, good food, and phonecalls. It is a weird feeling to go from logan, to home, and then back to Logan.  It is almost a double life.  I have a few friends that stay consistent from place to place but other than them.... life is completely different in the two places.  There are friends that I am so close with in Logan that i have barely spoken to or seen in over 3 weeks.  And now there are friends in Salt Lake that i won't see or talk to in several weeks.  This double life can be exhausting and overwhelming, but I feel so blessed.  I am so lucky to have friends and family always around me no matter where I end up.  I have been worried about transferring to the U in the fall but this break gave me much more hope.  I have people at home that will fill my time with laughter and joy just like the people here in Logan do. 

I am going home to SO MUCH. more than i could ever ask for. my ENTIRE family is there waiting for me and so many amazing friends. 

I will miss Logan though.  It has been my home away from home for a very long time and I have made memories here that I will never forget. 

So here we go Logan. My last semester! Help me make it count, make it memorable, and make it one to remember! Help me to cherish the laughter, appreciate the rough times, and remember the people.  Thank you to everyone that has touched me and affected me in my time here in Logan.  I am excited for this semester to begin. 

here is a quick picture preview of my break.... in case you care!

PAJAMA PARTY

CHRISTMAS DINNER

HOT COCOA

LOVE LOVE LOVE THEM! MISS YOU ALREADY ANNE!

DECORATING COOKIES

GIRLS!!!!!

my sister and my mother fired up our '69 land cruiser to rescue me from reams and my dad from Jimmy Johns during a storm when our cars couldn't get us home...

new years!!!!!

bryce's friends!!! now they are my friends :)

g.n.o.

my sandra FINALLY IN TOWN from california

love these boys!

bessshhhttt freeen

80's night with my best friend in the world!

i  had a great christmas and i should have a great semester!!! bryce has reached his 6 month mark (on january 7th)!!!! 18 more to go!! so proud of that boy!

The Holidays

So, we've made it through 3 of the biggest holidays of the year unscathed.  The presents have been given, the kisses have been exchanged, the family has been visited, and resolutions have been made. Oh, the memories that have been made. 
this christmas.... i can honestly say that i have had the best christmas of my life.
CHRISTMAS DAY:
8:15 talk to bryce
9:00 breakfast with the goodfellows
9:30 presents with the goodfellows
10:30 presents with my family
11:00 movies with my family
2:00 all my siblings came over for games and fun
10:00 pm hot tubbing at my brothers

talking to bryce set the tone for the entire day.  he has grown so much and i feel so blessed to be the girl that gets to talk to him on Christmas.  His family is so welcoming to me.  I was able to go to temple square with them and attend his sister in laws baby shower this break also.  Words can't explain how amazing it was to hear his voice, and not only that, we were able to skype with him.  To see that smile and to see him laugh. I almost forgot what that sight looked like.  I will say, that phonecall has brought so many feelings to the surface which has made it slightly more difficult, but COMPLETELY worth it.  I didn't know it was possible, but i love him even more. 

What an amazing christmas season. 

My new years resolution is to complete at least 2 things on my bucket list!!!

i know this is a quick and simple post.... but life is busy!!!

5 days

So I get to talk to ELDER GOODFELLOW in 5 DAYS!!! i can hardly wait!! since the last time I blogged about him I have recieved one FAMILY e-mail and 2 PERSONAL E-MAILS! the first personal e-mail came as a total suprise. I have never recieved one of those before.  We've decided that in addition to handwritten letters we are going to send a little e-mail every week. I'm going downtown with his family tonight to see the lights and I'm really excited to see all of them.

Family E-Mail Dec. 13, 2010
"Hey so my new area is really good its super big, it’s a lot of walking and riding the bus.  We don´t really knock doors you just yell out buanes and the people come to the door.  But the few members that we have here give us referrals so that is good and my companion does not like to contact so he will say lets go talk to the member and I can´t stop him he just goes so that is kind of hard but whatever.   

We have a lot of good investigators right now we have a date for this Sunday, and we have 3 other people say that they believe the Book of Mormon is the word of God, we will make sure to get them in the water.  But other than that we have a few new families but they don´t seem like they care."

"So this week in church was crazy like 5 minutes before they asked me to speak so that was fun they asked to only take up like 10 minutes and at about 4 minutes I was out of Spanish time went by super slow.  But I made it out of there alive so that was fun.  For lunch after the meeting the members made hamburgers, everyone here thinks that we live off of hamburgers so they always say they will make them so that was super good.  Then after our senior missionaries had two lessons and they asked me to teach them in English."

Personal E-mail December 13, 2010

"so things here are going good i am in a new area augadulce so that is sweet it mean sweetwater my new companion is elder cobba he is from peru and is a little crazy thing i tell ya haha so i am loving it here it is a really really big area."

" hope you are having fun with school and i know you are freaking out right now about all the finals just know it will be ok you will do fine on all your test and `pass all your classes. i know you so well haha but just know that i love you so so so much and can´t wait to talk to you on christmas its going to be bomb.com haha so in your letters it sounds like your doing way good and having alot of fun with everything and ya haha so i hope you have a sweet christmas break sounds like you will my family said they have alot planed so that is cool haha just the same old stuff haha so ya i am here in panama just loving everything about it haha and i don´t want to write tomuch because i will write it in the letter"

"i get to talk to you in like two weeks crazy haha but ya love you so so much and can´t wait to talk to you and and that fun stuf so i love you more than anything and love getting letters from you i love you I Love You but we are going to go play soccer right now so that is fun haha but ya love you so much and talk to you later love your missionary/boyfriend Elder Bryce Goodfellow PS i hope you like this"

Personal E-mail December 20, 2010

"this week was the baptism of Jose so that was cool and way sweet i gave him the holy ghost in sacrmant meeting so that was cool so i just want to tell you i love you so much"

"i am so glad i have you and your sweet heart to forgive me of everything i did so i love you so much can´t even tell you how much i love you haha like just thinking about all that stuff the other night made me think if we could make it through that and still have crazy love for each other how is this not meant to be you know like i think about that all the time haha like there is a reason that we are still togther haha so i love you so much for just always loving me and keeping me in your heart and everything haha thank you so much and love you blog by the way looked it up and my companion said he was going to add you on facebook did he ever find you?"

"i love you more than anything i can´t belive i have you as a girlfriend i cant wait to talk to you on saturday on skye so that is sweet haha but i love you so so so much and talk to you saturday love elder goodfellow your missionary/boyfriend"

HOW LUCKY AM I? i can hardly even wait to talk to him on Christmas!!! He is the most amazing guy! almost 1/4 of the way!!! slowly but surely! I LOVE YOU ELDER GOODFELLOW!!!! AND I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!

movin on UP

when it comes to phones... i have been stuck in the past century. I was always one step behind... brick, slider, slightly better slider! having internet on your phone? keypad? apps? who knew this even existed? well... yesterday me and courtney went to the t-mobile store after a day at the beav and i took the leap of faith... i am now the proud owner of a blackberry curve! I wanted to get the purple one but they didn't have one so they gave me a car charger and green case for free. yes... i can't believe it either! HELLO 21ST CENTURY!!!

Poulsen Clan



Left to Right: Suzanne, Jason, Ryan, Trisha, Matt, Kristi
Chandler, Ashtyn, Ethan, Kaylee, Jaxon
Morgan, Brittany, Lorin, Sheryl, Aubri, Evan, Collin

 Our most recent "family picture". My mom isn't a big believer in hiring someone and planning a day to take pictures so these are usually what our pictures look like.  This was during our annual family campout in my backyard.  As crazy as we all are, I love them so much. I am so excited to go home and spend a few weeks with them.  I miss them more than they know when I am up at school.  Even though I will miss Logan when i move home next year, I am elated to be around my family consistently again. 
"Remember who you are and what you stand for, and bring Honor and Dignity to the Poulsen Family Name."

5 months & 5 days

Bryce has been gone for 5 months and 5 days.  More specifically it has been 159 days. It feels like it has been years already.  He is serving in Panama.  "I am now here in zone of Chitre and the area is Augadulce and that means sweet water. "
he sounds AMAZING! i have never heard him talk like this.  I can tell he is still just as fun and loving and carefree... but he is also spiritual, mature, and humble.  It has been interesting and exciting to see.

Exerpts from the E-mail sent on December 6, 2010

"We have a lot of investigators in my new area the area is huge, I can’t believe it’s lots of walking for me.  So the work is good here we had 4 people this week say they believe in the BofM.  We will get them in the water very soon so that is good  and I think there will be more.  The church that we are in here is small.  All it is, is a house so that was a little different to be at church in a house, with not a lot of members so that is too bad like priest quorum this week there was 8 of us and 3 where missionaries and 1 was a investigator so that was a little different.  For district meeting we have to take a bus for like an hour and a half and then go back so that takes up a lot of our time.  I should have a lot of success here in Sweet Water or at least I hope so."

"My new companion Elder Cobba is really weird but he works hard and that does not come around very much with Latino elders and he is really helping me with my spanish.  I am just trying to learn my new area and the people here and my companion was here before me so we are not both new.  I can’t wait to see what this week has in store for me, it should be a good one, yet again one more week down.  Love you all and hope everything is going good."

I CAN NOT wait to talk to him on Christmas.  I feel so blessed that his family is happy to include me in that special phonecall and that he would ask them to do so.  His family is so welcoming to me whenever i am home for any reason and they still invite me to everything.  The GOODFELLOWS have such big hearts and i am so lucky to have fallen in love with a boy that comes from such an awesome family. 

I think about him and miss him everyday.  I try not to be selfish with my feelings and try to remember that he is EXACTLY where i want him to be.  The people of Panama need him in their lives more than i do right now.  I'm so proud of him and for the choices that he has made! I look up to him so much.  I guarantee he will never understand what an amazing example he is and has always been to me. I'm the luckiest girl in the world. I'm so lucky that he writes to me every week. I'm so lucky that he loves me. I'm so lucky. Panama is so lucky to have him for these two years.  They will never know.

LA BLUES & SKATING SORROWS

There are some people in your life that leave a mark and no matter what happens that mark can never be erased.  They come into your life unexpectadly and stick around through all of the highs and lows of life.  Even when life gets busy and you don't stay in touch you know that no matter what, they will answer a phone call and be there when you need them.  They are there to cry to, laugh to, gossip to, and even be silent.  They understand.  They don't judge you.  They just love you and they are simply there.
These people are hard to come by.  When you do find people like this, hold on to them forever. Never let them drift or fade.  Remember them and all they do for you.
"Even though we've changed and we're finding our own place in the world, we all know that when the tears fall or the smile spreads across our face, we'll come to each other because no matter where this crazy world takes us, nothing will ever change so much to the point where we're not all still friends."
so.. to my dearest sandra and my beautiful kylee.. remember you are not forgotten. out of sight but never out of mind. you are missed. you are missed greatly in fact.  i love you and i am grateful for you and i can't wait to see you.  i'm so proud of both of you for how brave and strong you are.  you have both effected me greatly and i can only hope to one day have that strong of an impact on someone else.