"This is all I need...."

That is what Tati said last night at Red Robin where we all gathered for her birthday. She looked around with a content and satisfied smile on her face and said "This is all I need" ( assuming of course that Aubrey was there in Spirit) I have definitely had that feeling before, where I look around and become overwhelmed with gratitude at the people in my life. I am so grateful for amazing friends and family who have made my life so rich and happy. Being with people who we love and who love us can bring us so much happiness and peace. For this I am eternally grateful!

Steven

This is Steven. Isn't he handsome? Let me tell you a little bit about Steven James Cundiff:

* Steven is one of the most athletic people I have ever met! He can do anything! He is an AMAZING runner! He is also amazing at soccer, basketball, AND racquetball! He LOVES being outdoors and being active. He is also really strong :)

* Steven has an enormous amount of hidden talents, including (but not limited to) chopping wood, starting fires, predicting the future, and washing windows.

* Steven loves talking to people and making them laugh.

* Steven has more drive and passion than anyone I know. He will do anything it takes to make his goals happen.

*Steven has his head on straight.

*Steven is very considerate and kind.

*Steven can speak Mandarin (which means he is really smart).

*Steven is a great motivator.

*Steven always calms me down and makes me feel happy, especially when things are really rough.

*Steven has a very good memory.

*Steven is a very good communicator and very understanding.

*Steven is very honest.

*Steven hates olives, just like me!

Anyways, I could go on and on about Steven but this list is sufficient for now :)



I am one lucky girl :)

Roommates

Once and awhile you get really lucky. This is how I feel about being roommates with Nicole, Brittney, and Brittney. We were freshman roommates at the dorms at BYU-Idaho and we were the best of friends! We had so much fun together. We got together last weekend at Olive Garden and we sat and talked for hours! We are all in very different places in our lives, but we still had a great time! I love these girls and will be forever grateful that I shared the first few years of my adult life with them!

Grateful

Sometimes when we are feeling under the weather, we get frustrated because we can't do everything that we are supposed, or want, to do. (Like teaching the gospel doctrine lesson at church, or running, or hiking). BUT sometimes this is a good thing because it forces us to slow down and gives us a lot of time to think. (Like laying in bed all day with nothing but myself or going on a really long walk this morning because I couldn't run). As I was walking the route that I normally run, it was so nice to take time to actually see the beautiful things going on around me. I think summer is finally here! I loved seeing tiny dots on the Y and kids running around at Seven Peaks. I loved seeing all the people running or riding their bikes. My mind was immediately taken back to last summer which was by far the best summer of my life. I was very active and I made a lot of amazing friends. I am pretty sure that this summer will be even more amazing than last and I am so excited! Here are some of the other thoughts I had while on my walk:

I love Provo!

I love America!

I am so grateful for all of the people who have sacrificed their lives to make this country what it is today and to preserve our free spirit. I think it is because I just recently returned from out of the country, but I have never been this grateful for America before. We truly have so much. I just went out-by myself- for two hours, walking and sitting on a park bench. That would not happen in a lot of other places in the world. We have so much freedom and I am so grateful.

I wonder when I am going to feel better so I can run?!

I am so excited for this summer and all the adventures that await!!

I am so excited to go home to California with Steven!

I am so grateful for Steven!

Iguazu

I am BACK!! So good to be home!!

Here are a few pictures from our trip to Iguazu. We got a little lost so we didn't have as much time there as we would have liked. The pictures are taken from a catwalk that goes along the river and then ends right in front of the biggest part of the falls called Devil's Throat. We were super close up so the pictures aren't all that great :/ It was a phenomenal experience!

This is actually in the morning when we got to Ciudad el Este. The right side is Argentina and the left is Brazil!


Walking across the river!




Devil's Throat!!

Village and sunset

So I am really creative with the titles of my posts. Today we went in to one of the indigenous villages close to the school. It was hard to take pictures there because the people are really suspicious of outsiders coming in. But we got a few thanks to Jarilyn's stealthy camera skills :)



Here is a typical house in the village.



Saeko, me and Jarilyn in the village


We figured they probably would't mind if we took pictures of their cattle


Some of the students playing soccer, they are fanatics here!


Hawaii? Nope, just the jungle of Paraguay :)

Farm life in black and white