thunder

I've recently come across a cool website: http://www.thunderfap.com/

Go here to get free samples of everything from Redkin hair products and Lacoste cologne, to Crest Whitestrips and Degree deoderant.

It's pretty awesome.

designing women

I was thinking of some old movies tonight, and I decided that I am deeply saddened that we don't dress like women did in the 1940s. Think of Katherine Hepburn, Ingrid Bergman, Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth, all of these women oozed sophistication and class. (If you don't know who they are, you have some serious googling to do, my friend.) They were sexy not because they showed alot of skin, but because they carried themselves with confidence and had some self-respect. I think I'm going to emulate these great Hollywood actresses.

If you see me and think, "My, how she reminds me of Lauren Bacall!" now you know why.

the Titan

Last week was spring break for everyone not in hair school (yay), so Brandon's parents took us all to Six Flags in Dallas. Brandon, Brittany, Brian and I ran around riding the rides, and Sherrie and Randy hung out with Portia. We had a blast basking in the sunshine and hanging out as a family.

By far, my favorite part was the Titan. Three and a half minutes of stunning speeds, death-defeating drops, and one 120-foot long tunnel shrouded in total darkness. That first drop is over 255 feet tall (about 26 stories), and puts you at over 85 mph, and it is straight down. I repeat: straight. down.

By the end of the ride the first time, my eyes were watering like crazy and I was shaking so much that I could hardly hide it. And I couldnt wait to do it again! (Do I sound like a commercial yet?)

We only got to ride it twice because of the length of all the lines, but if you ask me, the hours stood waiting for all these thrilling coasters were worth it!

If you ever go to Dallas, take the time to stop at Six Flags. Its totally awesome!

my little fizgig

Portia is a funny kid. She has become fully mobile now and prides herself in her crawling skills. But, as you may imagine, she gets herself into some trouble, at least more than she used to.

This afternoon, I hopped in the shower (yes, I do this often). I left Portia in the living room, surrounded by toys and Baby Einstein, and Brandon was just in the other room studying, but I left the bathroom door open so I could hear her just in case. After a few minutes, I heard her come into the bathroom. Her bath toys were in there and she started playing with them, so I continued my shower. But pretty soon, she stopped making any noise, so I stuck my head out to see what she was up to. She looked fine, just sitting on the rug, holding a rubber duckie. Then she smiled.

Remember on TV, when someone puts too much soap in the washing machine and the bubbles ooze out everywhere? Now imagine that same situation, but in my daughter's mouth. She had found a tiny piece of broken soap on the floor somewhere and was sucking on it. I yelled to Brandon and he got her good and rinsed.

So what happens if when she's older, she says a bad word sometime? I can't wash her mouth out with soap, she likes it!

Portia Swinging

There is a little park in our complex with a few swings. The sun was shining today, so we took Portia to try it out!

Portia Swinging from kathleen rawlinson on Vimeo.

Sacrament talk

today, Brandon and I gave talks in Sacrament meeting, here's mine:

Good morning,

We have been asked to speak on the Conference talk: To Acquire Spiritual Guidance, by Elder Richard G. Scott. When we first received the call to speak, I immediately felt overwhelmed. Public speaking is something that I generally don’t like to do. After a few days of hyperventilating at the thought of today, I started to try to think of ideas, but I was stumped. I had no clue what to speak about. Before going to bed one night, I prayed for guidance and for confidence. The next day, I happened to come across one of my old friend’s blogs online. Miraculously, she had just posted some of her feelings on personal revelation. After reading her simple but profound thoughts, I not only felt a little less frightened, but also had a few thoughts of my own. The Lord answered my plea for help in a most unconventional way.

Personal revelation can come in many different forms, and can come at any time. It is up to us to be continuously ready to receive that strength and guidance from the Lord. If we are not prepared, we will miss something.

Elder Scott said:

“I am convinced that there is no simple formula or technique that would immediately allow you to master the ability to be guided by the voice of the Spirit. Our Father expects you to learn how to obtain that divine help by exercising faith in Him and His Holy Son, Jesus Christ.”

He goes on to say that if receiving revelation were easy, we would become weak. We must work at it, having faith and patience, only then can we grow spiritually.

When we are spiritually strong, we can not only receive inspiration to know what to do, but also the power to do it. In high school, my English class read a play based on the story of Job. Beforehand, my teacher had all of us bring our Bibles to class, to go over the story together so that we could understand the play better. I felt prompted to bring my Book of Mormon as well, and being the only member of the church in the class, I was nervous that a lot of attention would be turned my way. But I brought it, and after a few minutes of quietly studying our bibles, some of my classmates began to ask me questions about the church. And after a while, the teacher and every student in the class were listening intently to me. I was petrified that I would say something wrong or that I would be confusing, but I was given the power and courage to answer the questions and bear my testimony to my class.

The Lord also comforts us in times of grief or fear. He has given us this gift out of pure love. When I was a little girl, I had quite the overactive imagination. It didn’t help that I had seen the move Hocus Pocus, which scared the living daylights out of me. I would lay in bed at night and imagine witches coming to steal me away to turn me into a cat, and I would never get to see my family, or play with my barbies ever again! I would terrify myself to the point of insomnia, at which point I would usually remember from Primary, that my Heavenly Father loves me. I would say a prayer to help me be less afraid and fall asleep. Every single time, my silly childhood fears were dispelled, and I did this quite often. Because of this, I learned at an early age of the infinite and abounding love of my Father in heaven.

We must all remember that our Heavenly Father loves us and wants to help us. He rejoices when we are happily following the gospel of Christ. Moses 1:39 states that the Father’s work and glory is to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. He will reveal to us the help and guidance we need, as well as His incredible love for us, as long as we remain worthy to receive such.

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

8 months has gone by so fast

Portia is getting so big, she has just started crawling! It's so fun to see her explore and learn about the world around her!