birthday, temple, mission, happy things going on here.

hi friends.

it is me, brooke.

you may ask why i haven't blogged in FOREVER?

well darlings, let me tell you something. so much is currently happening. so many happy things and i think i would be selfish if i didn't share a little. so let me catch you up.

hold on tight. this is going to be a fun ride. i hope you are all ready.

well to start of.. it is now 12:03 A.M. on august 28th. do you know what that means?

hi, i am now 19. august 28th is the best day of the whole year. (birthdays are my fav. three minutes of being 19 and i have never felt better. kidding. still feel the same, but birthdays make me happy, so i am happy. so yeah).

for those of you who know me, know that i had been going back and forth with the whole mission thing. some days i was totally for it and other days i was totally a no go, but let me tell you something. i pushed satan aside, he will do anything and everything to try and stop the lords work. fact of life, he stinks. i am so happy to say that..... i have officially decided to GO!!!!!! yay!! yay!! yay!! i am so happy! i already have a special love for the people of missouri and i haven't even met the sweet souls yet. i just want to get there already and get to work. i am grateful for a loving, kind, and PATIENT heavenly father who gently and kindly reminded me of the answer he had already once given me and that was to GO. so i am going and i am so happy. what better thing to do than serve the lord for 18 months?

with me officially deciding to go, with only 4.5 weeks before my report date................

cramming. cramming. cramming.

i have been working on my new mission blog, i can't wait to soon share with you all. it will be a fun one. a little piece of the internet where i can share my mission stories and experiences with you all.

stay in tune because that is coming SOON.

also. sometimes i wish i was an elder.

well not really........but shopping wise, yes. they have it SO EASY. two suites, 8 white shirts, 20 ties, 2 pairs of shoes (or something like that).

but no.... for sisters. it is like what skirts will go with a bunch of shirts, so i don't have to repeat the same outfit 800 times? finding long enough skirts is a battle in and of itself. what shoes are comfy, but not completely grandma looking? ( I REFUSE TO GET THOSE BIG BLACK GRANDMA SISTER MISSIONARY SHOES. COMPLETELY REFUSE).

a thought that often comes in my head. "how in the world am i going to fit all of this in a suitcase?"and then panic sets in.

(live picture from the side of my lovely room)

the struggle is real you guys

and......

this isn't even half of it.

when i say my mom and i have been shopping for the past week, ALL DAY, EVERY DAY. i mean it. every. single. word. we are in full shopping mode. trying to get everything i need. trying to get clothes for all four seasons for a year in a half is tricky let me tell ya.

today i turned to my mom after about 7 hours of shopping and said, my feet sting and hurt, i am hungry, we have been in this store for far too long, it is time to go home."

we laugh and make jokes in the stores. people always look at us like we are crazy because we are so loud. today i ran around the store in the brightest pink shoes, acting like i was meeting my mission president for the first time, it was quite hilarious if i say so myself. it makes it fun. i love my (7 hour) shopping days with my mom. after all, i am still not sure how i am going to survive without her for 18 months. so for now i am cherishing every second with her, even if it shopping until we can't feel our feet anymore.

and at the end of the day, i realize that it truly doesn't matter what i am going to be wearing for the next 18 months, but what matters is what i will be doing as a missionary and that is bringing others unto christ.

so lets put the shopping drama aside.....................

along with missionary service, comes going through the temple before you leave to take out your endowments. i am going through the bountiful temple for the very first time on SATURDAY and i have never been happier in my life. i seriously wake up everyday, so excited knowing it is one day closer.

well the excitement does not stop there friends.

my mom will be entering the temple to take out her endowments for the very first time on saturday as well!!!!!!!

i can't tell you how much joy and happiness fills my body when i say that. definitely the biggest answer to my prayers. i have watched the lord perform miracles in my family and i have already felt the blessings from deciding to serve a mission.

i am not even out in the mission field and the fact that my mom is going through the temple for the first time with me, makes everything already SO WORTH IT. the lord will bless his missionaries and their families and i can testify of that.

fun fact- my mom and i went to get garments together on monday and lets just say it was an adventure in and of itself....... we may have been overwhelmed, but we were both just so excited to be there, it didn't even matter.

EVERYONE MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR

SEPTEMBER 14th!!!!

for real though. mark it on your calendar.

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 14th at 11:00 you better all be at my farewell.

( i don't leave until the 24th, but the ogden temple dedication is on the sunday before i leave, so SEPTEMBER 14th is the day!!)

there will also be yummy food at my casa after, so why not come and feel the spirit and get a little bite to eat?

you can't go wrong there.

so happy things are happening here.

BIRTHDAYS, GOING THROUGH THE TEMPLE SOON, AND ALL THE MISSION PREPARATIONS ARE IN FULL SWING.

i am happy.
i am excited.
i am ready.

MISSOURI I AM COMING FOR YOU SO SO SO SO SOON!

love,

the girl that just turned 19
the girl that can't wait to go through the temple
and
the girl that can't wait to be sister dahlberg (here in 28 days!!)

i love you all.

the church is true.

xoxoxo