Thought Thursday- Standing as a witness

My very first thought thursday! are you peoples excited??

This first week of school has made me realize how much i have to stand up for what i believe. from the ages 12-18.5 i repeated what is known as the "young women's theme".

We are daughters of our Heavenly Father, who loves us, and we love Him.

We will "stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things,

and in all places" as we strive to live

the Young Women values, which are:

Faith

Divine Nature

Individual Worth

Knowledge

Choice and Accountability

Good Works

Integrity and

Virtue.

We believe as we come to accept and act upon these values,

we will be prepared to strengthen home and family, make and keep sacred covenants,

receive the ordinances of the temple, and enjoy the blessings of exaltation.

So when thinking about what to write about today, standing as a witness came to mind immediately. I was in my first day of English 2010 and we had to debate some issues because it's a persuasive essay writing class. My professor took the side, in every issue we debated, that goes against what the {LDS} church teaches. I know that everyone has different views and beliefs. that's fine. He told us that for every issue we write a paper on we will not get to choose which side we write about. That's fine if it's an issue that doesn't matter like "i phone vs droid" or "batman vs spiderman" but if it's making me write about something that i know to be morally wrong like pro abortion or pro gay marriage then i care. I know that it's "just a paper in a class" but would that be "standing as a witness"? I was taught to stand up for what I believe in and i'm learning that it's not nearly as easily done as it is said.

second item. Being an art major, i run into photography, drawings and paintings, that i do not feel comfortable with. I was happy to find that because of a series of extremely inappropriate photographs taken by this one guy last semester in a photo class, this paragraph was put into my syllabusses/syllabi {however you may say/spell the multiple of syllabus} "pornography will not be tolerated". All because {mainly the girls} put up a big stink about them. So, standing as a witness can make changes.

my first semester of college i was in a drawing I class and we had to draw nude models. I've never understood why a model just can't put on a swimsuit. Anyways, i seriously didn't want to do it, but my professor gave us little say in the matter. At 18, i was extremely panicked at the thought of seeing a nude male anatomy. Not that i'm okay with it now still. I said, not kidding, at least 20 prayers that morning that i wouldn't remember any of the drawing session and i don't. Honest to goodness. Looking back on the situation, i wish that i would have been more brave to say i wouldn't do it. If this ever happens to be something i have to encounter again as an art major {i don't think it will because i'm done with drawing and painting} i will not attend the class period.

Mosiah 18:9 "Yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort, and to stand as witnesses of God at all times and in all things, and in all places that ye may be in, even until death, that ye may be redeemed of God, and be numbered with those of the first resurrection, that ye may have eternal life"

I believe those that do choose to stand up for what they believe in will be blessed. Although hard, i know that my testimony of this grows every time i make the choice to stand as a witness of Jesus Christ.

Recipe Wednesday- Lasagna rolls and Melissa's Breadsticks

so I saw this wonderful looking thing on pinterest and decided that i needed to make it.

here is the recipe that i used-

Ingredients

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 teaspoons all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pinch ground nutmeg

Lasagna:

• 1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
• 1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
• 3 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, chopped [{this is ham in italian just FYI} i used chicken instead]
• 1 large egg, beaten to blend
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, plus more for salting water
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 12 uncooked lasagna noodles
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella (about 4 ounces)

Directions

To make the sauce: Melt the butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for 3 minutes. Whisk in the milk. Increase the heat to medium-high. Whisk the sauce until it comes to a simmer and is thick and smooth, about 3 minutes. Whisk the salt, pepper, and nutmeg into the bechamel sauce.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Whisk the ricotta, spinach, 1 cup Parmesan, prosciutto, egg, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl to blend.

Add a tablespoon or 2 of oil to a large pot of boiling salted water. Boil the noodles until just tender but still firm to bite. Drain. Arrange the noodles in a single layer on a baking sheet to prevent them from sticking.

Butter a 13-by-9-by-2-inch glass baking dish. Pour the bechamel sauce over the bottom of the prepared dish. Lay out 4 lasagna noodles on a work surface, then spread about 3 tablespoons of ricotta mixture evenly over each noodle. Starting at 1 end, roll each noodle like a jelly roll. Lay the lasagna rolls seam side down, without touching, atop the bechamel sauce in the dish. Repeat with the remaining noodles and ricotta mixture. Spoon 1 cup of marinara sauce over the lasagna rolls. Sprinkle the mozzarella and remaining 2 tablespoons of Parmesan over the lasagna rolls. Cover tightly with foil. Bake until heated through and the sauce bubbles, about 20 minutes. Uncover and bake until the cheese on top becomes golden, about 15 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinara sauce in a heavy small saucepan over medium heat until hot, and serve alongside.

if i were to make this again {which i most definitely will be doing at some point!} i would try it with an Alfredo sauce instead of marinara. also, cook more than the 12 noodles it says to. i had plenty of sauce and stuffing stuff for 18. so, make a whole box of lasagna noodles. be ware-this is kinda time consuming to make both. i think i spent 3 hours on them at least. It tasted so so sososoosososos good though! My roommates said they thought they were eating at a restaurant. lol.

you can see the finished breadsticks at the top of the top picture in this collage. i forgot to take pictures of the finished sheet by itself. :'(

my roommate from last year, Melissa, had these dang good breadsticks and she gave me the recipe. After tasting these breadsticks, you won't ever go back to store bought, tube dough, or even the pizza factory breadsticks. trust me on this one. so so so so so so so so so good.

Breadsticks
3 cups warm water
2 TBS Yeast
4 TBS Sugar
Stir well
Add:
6 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp salt
Stir all ingredients together until very thick. Sprinkle a little flour on counter. Knead just till it sticks together (couple minutes). Cover with a towel, let raise 30 minutes.
Sprinkle flour on counter knead for 2 minutes. Melt 3/4 c butter, pour on cookie sheet (lift one side of cookie sheet with binder). Use pizza cutter to cut dough into strips. Dip in butter on cookie sheet-both sides-stretch, fold in half & twist. Repeat until done. Sprinkle with garlic salt, Parmesan cheese & parsley flakes. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

my advice is to add about a tablespoon of garlic powder to the dough itself as well. this is how i made it this time because i like it more flavorful. :D and DO DO DO use real butter.

today was the day on the quad here at USU. here are all the free things that i got. A card for a free large dominos pizza, an aggie ice cream cone, a roll of TP, a snow cone, a pint of aggie ice cream, some DOTS, a whole chicken sandwhich from chick fil a, 7 pens, a notebook, a free buffet at pizza pie coupon, a free rumbi island grill entre coupon, a free usu t shirt, costco coupon book, free mango pineapple smoothie at mcdonalds coupon, a pack of top romen, cup of noodles, other assorted candy and nic nacs like a magnet shaped like pizza. I'd say i hit the jack pot! I love free things!

also, i made this bridge in 3D design today. it was actually kind of fun!

and here are a few pictures from my first week and a half of being in Logan.

i went ice skating for the institute opening social. and i have a success story to share with you- i didn't fall at all! NOT ONCE! **adds ice skating to talents in resume**

Betsy and i threw a crepe party on sunday afternoon and invited lots of people over. it was super super fun!

my new "ward" friends from oakridge.

and then we played swedish twister and the awkward look game. good times.

we went to THOR on old main hill. it was fun. mostly because Melissa gave me a back message. and played with my hair. :D i didn't really pay attention to the movie.

tomorrow-thought thursday. :D :D

tonight-COUNTRY SWING DANCING!!!!

pros and cons of the day

so i have now officially gone to all of my classes for this semester once. i have a relatively good idea as to how it is going to be. STRESSFUL. I am going to be very very busy. and my wallet is going to be completely empty. sigh. so here are the pros and cons of my past two days

P-my english professor is a cowboy.

C-he's probably way too old for me {late 20's}

C-i don't think he's LDS. :(

P-i learned some new photo studio terms. like penumbra, peanut, gaffers, grips, and the best boy {not to be confused with the best man}, etc.

C-i have to remember what they are.

P-we had a slip n slide on the "grassy knoll" for FHE yesterday!!! :D

P-i am much more brave so i....

P-finally got the nerve up to talk/attempt to sorta flirt with a cowboy.

C-after talking to him for like 3 minutes i saw a ring on his wedding ring finger!. gee whiz. embarrassing!

P- i ate some otter pops.

P-i'm excited to take New Testament.

C-It is hotter than hades in Logan right now.

P-i'm ecstatic to take digital photo

C-my textbook is going to cost an arm and a leg. and i didn't even know i had to buy a text book for this class!

C-the book store doesn't carry it so i have to find it online.

P-i'm going to learn a ton in photo studio

C-it's going to cost a fortune

P- i got free "walking tacos" today for lunch. that is a little bag of Fritos with chili and cheese and sour cream.

P-i had a scotsman dog for lunch yesterday. they are heaven in a bun!

P-i've met a lot of new people

C-i can't remember everyone's name that i have met!

C-i haven't seen my family in a week

C-I miss someone.

C-i don't have a job

P-i didn't even have to look at a map to see where any of the buildings were that i had classes in!

P-i'm not a freshmen!!!!

P-I'm not 18!

P-I'm better at introducing myself and being confident.

P- I'm in my major!

P-I am pretty good at being a college student.

:D

HaPpY tUeSdAy!

Old Main.

A new semester

Do you remember waaaaay back during my last semester of school when I started to cook a lot? yeah, me too. And i kind of miss it a lot. So, this semester every Wednesday i'm going to try making a new recipe in hopes of becoming a more versatile cook. I shall share the recipe I use, and take pictures and post them here so that you can all have your mouths watering. If you are here at USU, come on over and taste a bite. :D This wednesday i'm going to be making Lasagna rolls. here is the picture i found on pinterest that made me google a recipe for lasagna rolls. i've never heard of them, but i seriously doubt that they will be gross.

And i've decided that this semester i'm going to take more time in being spiritual. I've always read my scriptures and wrote in a journal, but my institute teacher gave us all scripture journals today which i've never kept before.... Every thursday which is going to be known as "thought thursday" i will write about things i've learned or think about or wonder about where the gospel is concerned. {at least i'm going to try, maybe you could help remind me. maybe send me a text or something ;)}

so i'll at least post on wednesday's and Thursday's.

alright, so some cute pictures from pinterest that i found.

so i practiced this on betsy's hair. and i can do it! but every time i try it on my own, it looks like knots and rat nests.
pretty sure that i LOVE and ADORE this cake.
i want this skirt.
and i want to do this above my bed one day.
a chalk board fridge?? yes please!

sorta reminds me of my wall. :P

and because i know you all like kid history as much as i do, i bring you episode 6. it just came out like 2 days ago. :D not as funny as the first one that's for sure.

and in case you were wondering what classes i have this semester here they are-

western swing dance

new testament institute

family finance

3D design

studio photography

english 2010

digital photography

i'm going to have the busiest semester thus far....

B1 at the farm is pretty fan-freakin-tastic!

In this post of Brianna's Blog you will find-

• pictures of my adorable new apartment.
• pictures of my adorable journals
• pictures of my adorable cards
• pictures of my adorable self.....hehe
• pictures of my adorable brother's cast
• pictures of my adorable.... i can't think of anything else adorable that i will post.....

My new apartment is located in the building known as B. first apartment.

so here is Betsy and i's room. It's rather spacious compared to last years.

we have bunk beds. it's wonderful.

my necklaces act as good decorations for a bare wall, no??

my half of the closet.

this is what is hanging above my bed. my 2 true loves- photography and cowboys. :D p.s. i went country swing dancing last night.

my wall of awesomeness. if you're on this wall, congrats. if not, sorry, i only have 26 picture frames for the wall. if you want your picture on this wall, please send me a framed picture of yourself {in a black or white picture frame} and i will gladly hang it up.

this is the top of my dresser. Teaspoon and Whisk are my cute beta's Whisk is kinda dumb {he's a boy, let's be honest}. i'll put some food in for both of them. and Whisk eats it ALL before poor teaspoon can even eat 1 flake. and then he gets so fat that he floats to the top for about 8 hours and looks like his eyes are going pop out of his head. And i'm no sure if he's beating teaspoon up or flirting. does anybody know how male beta's flirt? i need to research this.

this is part of our kitchen. this is the worst part of my apartment. it's a lot smaller than my kitchen from last year. it has a lot less counter and cupboard space. no bueno. but there is good news!! we have a turn table microwave and new oven/dishwasher/microwave/fridge!! woot.
a kitchen wall. i hope other girls in my apartment have aprons too. cause i personally think if we all hung our aprons on the wall it'd be a nice decoration. our kitchen is probably the most boring room at this point.

our wall of school pride. Thank you Natalie {my pretty awesome roommate who also loves cowboys!!!}
i found a few boring empty wall places for some paintings. i kinda want to add some color to my italy arch painting. joke, i am not painting for a while. i got sick of it last semester.
our pretty awesome wall of religiousness. complete with picture of Christ, temples, and even a little picture of the prophet, president Monson. I am going to ask for a nice painting of Christ for Christmas because contrary to popular beliefs, i do not ask for barbies or toys anymore. not that i ever asked for barbies 'cause Ash and I hated barbies.
looks like heaven is right outside the window right? nah, it's just 1000 n. and pine view.
so betsy did an internship at an interior design place. and she got this HUGE thing of paint colors. so we're going to write our quotes this year on the different colors of paint samples! i strung colorful pens to twine that taylor stole from IKEA and shoved in my trunk {remind me to thank him cause it actually came in handy!} in between the letters for added decoration AND convenience too. :D i was quite proud of this idea.

i thought this was quite awesome. four girls have moved in out of six that will be here by saturday. and all four of us have loofas of different colors. i kinda hope that the other two of have loofas of different colors than the ones pictured. if so, i'll post another picture. :D

this is known as the bath room sinks. each room gets a cupboard to share. i want to write all of our names along the top of the mirror. wouldn't that be precious?

and our apartment is made complete with........

electric heater metal things from probably the 70's. {is it a good idea to keep TP on these things when they're on? i thought they made a good little shelf for TP storage....}

and a midgit door/harry potter closet! cool beans, eh? one of my roommates hasn't moved in all the way so you can't see it in it's full glory. but here at old farm, we don't discriminate against short wizard people. :P

and this wall heater/air conditioner with a tribal west lacrosse sticker on it that looks like an indian with a spear.... and the hair piece that looks like elk antlers!

here are a handful of the cards and journals i made. Several people have told me that i should sell them. But they take so much dang time i don't want to give them up. lol. i take like 2 full days each summer to make all the journals that i will need for the whole year, plus a few to give away for christmas or what not and this year decided that i hate buying cards so i made cards out of the left over paper i had from each journal.

this is the one i'm writing in now {above}
{gave this one away :D above}

and here is Quinton at the hospital on drugs after his surgery. with a hot pink cast. sexy!

and here is Taylor and I up provo canyon. Finally made him let me take a picture. Gee whiz. You'd think by now people would understand that a part of being my friend is letting me take pictures of you. And now this one is framed and on my "wall of Black and White picture frames" where it will be for the rest of my sophomore year at USU.

i was listening to pandora and this song came on. and i really want to learn how to play it now! isn't it pretty? It's my kind of piano song. I like the slow, peaceful, relaxing, graceful kind. I always hated it when taking piano lessons when i'd have to play a fast song. Playing the piano to me is about relaxing, not working up a sweat.

anywho, i think this is long enough now.

my next post will be some waaaay cute things i found on pinterest. which btw is kinda a cool shindig.

and just when i thought i'd seen it all, i saw this beauty. has anyone tasted this?

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Brianna