Merry Christmas!

I really can't believe that it has been over 4 months since I last posted on my blog. I almost couldn't remember how to get to my blog, it had been so long. I know this is not a very good excuse but, I have been so very busy!

I just wanted to take a minute and wish my family and friends a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! May you find joy in the simple things in life this Christmas season. Reflect on the blessings in your life because God loved us and sent His Son. Last year I heard Faith's Hill song, A Baby Changes Everything,and fell in love with it. If you have not heard it you can listen to her sing it on this youtube link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7D-DH9aT3bs&feature=related.

Since, it is 5 days prior to Christmas and I haven't had time to send out Christmas cards, I thought I would fill you in on my life here on my blog. As you know, I had a career change back in April of this year. I was hired to be the event manager for a new company called ASEA. So much has happened since April that it is hard to believe I have only been there for 8 months. I am so thankful to have been able to be blessed with this job. The people I work with are great and it is a great opportunity for me.

I have planned several events now for them and each one has been a success. Hooray! We had our event in July which had a couple hundred people attending the Leadership Summit. In November we took the top 21 leaders, they had to qualify for the trip, to Las Vegas and Southern Utah. We had some training and had some fun activities and ate a lot of great food! On a weekly basis we have meetings where we fly top leaders from other companies into Salt Lake City to our company. These people's names are given to us from our own distributors or they have heard about us and want to come and check our company out. So, I get to schedule their trips, hotel, food etc. This takes a lot of my time. I have worked many late nights and even Saturdays to make these meetings happen. As a result of these meetings we are growing and our sales continue to increase every week.

About two months ago I was pulled into the CEO's office. They told me they appreciated all my hard work and efforts and have decided that I should be given an office. So, I no longer sit in a little cubicle and I have a great view of the Salt Lake Valley from my office window.

I am currently planning a cruise for February. This is an incentive trip that the associates can qualify for, through their sales. We will draw 8 names and they get to bring a guest on this 5 day cruise. We will be leaving Miami and going on a Western Caribbean Cruise with stops in Belize and Cozumel. I am really excited about the cruise, as I have never been on one. They are also letting me take my sister!

In April we will have our Pre-launch convention. We are expecting at least 500 people attending this event. So, I am starting to plan this event. April will be here before I know it.

Once again, I am so thankful that you are a part of my life. I have been blessed with great friends and family! You are examples to me in the way that you live your lives. I am thankful for the knowledge that I have that Jesus Christ lives. That he came to the earth and taught us how to live our life. That he sacrificed and atoned for you and I, so that we can return to our Father in Heaven again someday. I am thankful for the many blessings I have in my life.

May you be blessed with good health, joy and happiness this week and in the coming year.

In case you are wondering....

So, I am planning my next event for work. This one will be in November and it is an incentive trip for people to earn if they hit a certain level in the company. They will win an all expense paid trip to Las Vegas and St. George, Utah. We will likely be staying at the Bellagio, having dinner, a dessert reception in a Penthouse Suite, seeing "O", going to St. George for some training and going to Zions National Park.

In the process of planning this trip I have learned some very interesting tidbits of information.
1. If you want to charter a private jet to fly from SLC to Las Vegas it costs about $60,000.
2. You can rent a Penthouse Suite in Las Vegas for $1,200 a night and with that you will have limo service anywhere in Vegas, preferred seating at any restaurant or show, and private elevators to your room.
3.There are some Suites that you can rent only if invited by the Casino to come and stay...these cost $3,000-$6,000 a night. But, they are over 4,000 square feet...so I am sure that makes it worth it!
4. In the middle of Zions park there is a narrow tunnel, if you are on a bus you have to have the traffic in both directions stopped so that you can go through the tunnel. Apparently the bus is too wide to stay in one lane.
5. There is a great little restaurant in a ghost town outside of St. George in a town called Leeds that is called the Cosmopolitan. It looks like a building right out of a western movie or a ghost town. You go inside and it is a fine dining experience with great food...something that you would eat in a Metropolitan restaurant. The owner is from Europe, I think.
6. You can rent limo buses...that are all tricked out on the inside just like a limo.

And the acadamy award goes too....

After months of planning the first ASEA event has come and gone. I can't believe that it is all over, already. Overall it was a success and everyone felt that it was a great first event. Surprisingly, I wasn't as stressed as I thought I would be throughout the event. People said that I didn't seem stressed at all.

I don't think you can do an event this large without a few problems. So here are some of the fun things that I got to handle.
1. AV problems like the microphones not working when the CEO takes the stage, the sound for the movie not working, continual AV problems.
2. A very LOUD Mariachi band marching into the adjacent room and making it difficult for the attendees to hear the speaker.
3. One of the employees choking on their food and having to have the hiemlick twice!

We had some really great entertainment. I hired a fantastic band called Party Train, they were so great! We also hired a man named Rick Lewis, www.funniestwaiter.com. He was so funny, he had everyone laughing and having a great time! I had to be part of his act and pretend that I had no idea that he wasn't one of the servers. There were about 8 people who went to the management through dinner and complained about his server. One lady even threatened the manager that she would get him fired if he didn't fire the server. I would periodically go and talk to the manager to make it look like I was upset. Finally, I went in the back with the server and the manager. I then took the stage and asked for everyone's attention. In order to continue the act I had to be serious. Well, I was so physically and emotionally tired that I really only had two emotions....laugh or cry. So, I stood on the stage and cried saying, "I really wanted this to be a special event. I understand that many people have been upset about the server. I spoke with him and the manager and found out that this was his first night. He wants to apologize and make it right." After my explanation he took the stage and started his comedy/variety act.

It was great...those who thought they knew that the crazy server had to be part of the entertainment were totally thrown when I was up there crying. I really started my acting career with a very convincing performance! It was great to hear people's stories after dinner about Rick Lewis and my crying. The good thing is EVERYONE was laughing even those who had been besides themselves with outrage. It was really great.

Now that I have all that under my belt...bring on the next one!

The Release

Well, it happened...I had thought that this day was coming for a while now. I have to admit I was bit surprised though with the outcome. The RS president has been in for 3 years now, which in my ward is pretty historic. She just had her fifth child and her husband was just called into the high priest group leadership. So, I figured that she would be released thus resulting in our release as well.

Friday I received a call from one of the bishopric counselors asking me to come in for a few minutes on Sunday before church. Surprise, surprise I was being released. Well, the surprise was that I was the only one being released. But, I really couldn't feel too badly like I had done something wrong and I was being released because I didn't do my calling. The RS president has had many different counselors in this 3 year period. In fact I think she has had about 3 people in each position since she started. So, I am just a member of the ex-counselors club.

I do have mixed emotions about being released. I really did enjoy planning enrichments for the most part. I did enjoy getting to know people better and serving them. But, it was a lot of meetings and time invested in that calling...and it will be nice to have some additional time. Hey, maybe I can keep my blog up better! It will be nice to be able to go to enrichment meetings and enjoy the whole meeting because I am not working in the kitchen or making sure things are getting taken care of.

I have had some amazing experiences and have learned what it is like to be inspired and to be an answer to someone's prayer. I have learned the joy in serving others. I have seen the struggles that people go through and how they are blessed by living the gospel and being valiant in their testimonies. I have given of my time to try and bless the lives of others and instead reaped the blessings in my life. In a nutshell I have learned how amazing our Heavenly Father is and how mindful he is of each of us.

So I guess I will no longer have an excuse for not having 100% visiting teaching every month. I will have plenty of time to do that and keep finding ways to serve others.

BBQ Potato Wedges

Well, I can't believe that we are already in July! I decided to try a new recipe in celebration of our country's birthday. I made BBQ Potato Wedges using some of the Shirley J BBQ seasoning and they were a big hit. The best part of it was how easy it was to make these tasty spears and a much healthier alternative to fries.

BBQ Potato Wedges
2 T Oil
4 medium potatoes, washed, dried and cut lengthwise into eights.
3 T shirley J Dutch oven & slow cooker BBQ Sasoning

In a bowl place potatoes, seasoning and oil. Mix together and place skin side down on a foil covered sheet pan. Bake on the middle rack, at 370 degrees for 55 minutes.

Give it a try and let me know what you think. If you want some of this Fantastic seasoning let me know...I sell it!

Undercover Agent

As you all know my new job is that of an event planner. We have our first event coming up in July, we are calling it a Leadership Summit. Now, I have not ever planned a convention and I really don't know everything that goes on at a convention. Yes, I have been to several and worked a few...but never participated in every aspect.

So this weekend one of our vendors was able to provide me with a staff badge to get into the Zrii's convention at the Salt Palace. They are another MLM company that sells a juice product. He took me around and showed me their store, meeting rooms, behind the big stage etc. I attended part of their general sessions and was able to take away a few ideas. I did however feel like I was being a spy and didn't want to draw attention to myself.

Saturday morning they had the motivational speaker Anthony Robbins speak. I listened to his 3 hour presentation. It was really quite interesting. He obviously was speaking from the perspective of how to build a successful business in a down economy. But, he did speak on topics that you can apply to your everyday life. I will give you a little summary.

3 mandates of Leadership
1. See it as it is, not worse than it is. (He used the economy and how the media just makes it all gloom and doom. Yes, it is times like these that people make the most money if you take advantage it)
2. See it better than it is. (Leadership is being willing to take risks when no one else is)
3. Make it the way you see it. (Motive does matter...if you hunger after something then you will do anything to see that it does happen)

3 decisions we make every moment of our life
1. What should I FOCUS on? (your focus is what you feel)
2. What does this MEAN?
3. What should you DO?
All of these things will determine the direction of your life and you are making these decisions every minute, usually unconsciously. So if you consciously are aware of these decisions you can turn your life into the direction you want. What we focus on determines our state of being. If we are focused on how hard the economy is and how depressing it is. We will be discouraged, depressed etc. If we instead focus on your family because you have less money to spend on trips or more time to be at home with them. You are going to be happier, which will create more drive at work.

If we find that we are in a state of mind that we do not like. We can change that state by being more positive by changing our focus and that in turn will change our behavior.

My new friend- Snail Bait

I have discovered that snail bait does work. Hooray! I now feel like my property is beachfront property, minus the view, palm trees, ocean etc. But, I do have shells throughout my yard without the snail to eat my little garden. I almost feel bad when I think that I killed all of them...but then visions of half eaten strawberries flash into my head and I feel justified. Sorry, Mr Snail...but if you mess with my garden then there is no co-habitation with you!

I did harvest a bowl and a half of delicious strawberries this week. I put miracle grow on my veggies and I am hoping to see some improvement from them.