Snowboarding is one of my favorite things.
I reach a state of FLOW when snowboarding.
Factors that must exist to determine flow include: distorted sense of time, complete concentration, a loss of self-consciousness, direct feedback, balance of ability and challenge, personal control, intrinsically rewarding, lack of awareness of bodily needs, absorption into activity, clear goals.

It amazes me each time I go out again just how much it effects me. [And i get to go at least weekly, if not more if I get the chance thanks to my season pass!] I love and need it. All my worries and stresses and problems just cease for the time I'm gone. I don't even have to consciously push them to the back of my mind, they just go there.

Happy 4th!

I guess I should mention that i'm home now! I got back in February...
I am so happy that today is Independence Day! I am wearing my favorite new dress, its white with blue stripes and has a pocket and a string tie belt and some bronze buttons for decoration. Usually it is my Nautical dress but today it is Patriotic! God Bless America!
Don't get me wrong, Russia was awesome and it has a place in my heart, but I sure love the good ol'e USofA. What a great nation we have, that was built on so many crucial principles.
Today is the perfect day, sunny in the sun but nice in the shade with a cool breeze, sometimes rexburg nails the weather. its great. Its nice to live across the street from the park because i just went down the street and got to watch the parade and then be in the park where everyone gathered with booths and set ups lounging around all day people watching, eating kettle corn and fries while listening to a Jazz band, and then some two guys on Manadlin and guitar [with harmonica]. time to go home, and i'm practically there already! Whats also nice is that everyone has left the house [usually 8 girls] and its just me [and Phuong but she just sits in her room doing hw a lot, i did get her out to the parade stuff and took her to get fireworks, she declared it to be the greatest day of the semester] but its nice cause i cleaned everything so its still clean cause no one is here AND ive moved all the furniture and put the soundsystem in the living room and ive been skateboarding and dancing and playing Donkey Kong in there and its just so open and nice. ah this it the life. but soon people will return and school will beckon again..
I made a great America playlist today and it makes me so happy [including American Girl- tom petty, American Woman- the guess who, US Blues- grateful dead, Fortunate Son- CCR, The Way I Was Made- griffin house, and many many others]. oh, AND there was a red t-top 73 stingray in the parade. yeah.

sunshine state

I'm down in Florida and it is fantastic. I don't want to leave. I wish I could retire already. This is the life for me, except for everyone around me being old... they all talk about their health and whats going on with all the people who are slowly dieing around them. It's quite sad. But as grandmama always informs me, its life, you get old and you die. and thats what happens when you have friends who are old, your friends die.
Sorry, something more cheerful... Their house is awesome. It looks like there is a pool in the living room, kinda.

the sun is constantly bright and shining. I can sit all day and read my book or watch NCIS which seems to always be on here. and if i get hot, i just jumpin the pool for a second. ok, more than a second. being underwater is one of my favorite things. i like to sink down and just sit on the bottom of the pool and watch the water, and how the sunlight dances around through the water. it fascinates me. i wish i didn't have to interrupt it by breathing so often.

I don't swim all that well. mom made us be on the swim team in elementary school for at least one summer. i dreaded it. i do not have technique. i can't seem to breathe while doing freestyle without getting my mouth filled with water. breaststroke was more fun, being underwater and all, but i seemed to always get disqualified... poor form or something. we always called mk the dolphin swimmer. she swims like a dolphin, just glides through the water like them. its the best way to swim, hands down.

I don't want to go home tomorrow. I'm not ready. i want to relax more. i told myself that i'd analyze my mission when i was down here, but instead i just want to escape into the beauty of being here.
This is the life.

Mission

I'm leaving today for the MTC which i'll enter tomorrow. I'm going off on my mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints to Russsia, St. Petersburg.

You can write me on dearelder.com or send me a letter at the MTC until mid November when i'll be in Russia.

Sister Elizabeth Anne Wise
Russia St. Petersburg Mission
Provo Missionary Training Center box # [i dont know yet]
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604

I am sad to be leaving my family for so long but am so excited for the adventure that is ahead.

love beth

summer so far

Being home is nice, I spend my days doing errands with mom and John comes along sometimes too. I don't feel like I have downtime like I was hoping for but we get stuff done and I have read two books for fun already and thats nice.

John and I hiked the Billy Goat Trail last week...

and it was Mary Kates birthday...

and Daves is today. Yesterday we picked him up from scout camp where he's been working for a couple months...

and we went on a hike...

I got some new skirts and my favorite one is the only one i can't take on my mission with me. lame. but its ok, emma will take care of it.

I had raspberries on my cereal this morning mmmm.

I've been very emotional lately.

18 months is a long time. thats like going through the whole baby thing twice, not that I know what that feels like but timewise it works.

stressing stressing stressing out. ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh