Three Years

Three years ago today I was in a state of complete shock. After eighteen months of living a sheltered, scheduled life I was suddenly thrown back into the real world: I was home from my mission!

My mission was one of the greatest times of my life. I met some absolutely AMAZING people and my testimony of the Savior was strengthened in ways I never could have imagined.
I fell in love with Heather Bray and her family the first time I met them. I had been out in the mission field just one week when the bishop sent my companion and I over to meet them. Her husband, Loren, was at work when I took my parents to meet them. The reason both of our faces are red is because we had been crying at saying goodbye.
Adam was one of the most amazing miracles I experienced as a missionary. My companion and I had been praying for someone to teach when he called and said, "I would like to be baptized. Can you teach me everything I need to know so I can be baptized in two weeks?" The experience truly taught me that the Lord ABSOLUTELY answers the prayers of the faithful.
The McCormick boys - Ivan, Krys, and Donnie - were the last people who were baptized before I returned home. The boys had had a tough life, but they were resilient. Krys (in the blue and white shirt) had the sweetest spirit and such a desire to learn the gospel; Ivan (in the green shirt) was incredibly intelligent and had a great understanding of everything we taught; Donnie resisted the gospel at first, but deep within he truly had a desire obey the Lord's will. All of the Elders serving in the Lafayette Ward, along with a member of the bishopric whose name I've forgotten, were there to support the baptism.
All the missionaries in my "Go-Home" group got to attend the temple the night before we were released. It was a great way to finish!

I will always be grateful for the experiences I had on my mission, it was an eighteen months I wouldn't trade for anything. On the other hand, the past three years have been amazing. In three years I've had the opportunity to complete my school work, make amazing friends, work at a law firm (and decide against law school), and start writing a book. I truly believe that all these experiences were enhanced by or happened because of my mission. I can't wait to see what five or ten more years will bring!

The Sundial

Growing up in the suburb of Alpharetta, my family rarely ventured downtown. We would go downtown for Braves Games or once in a great while to attend the Fox Theater, but we would go straight to our event and then leave immediately after. If we went out to eat before one of these events, we ate at in Alpharetta at places we frequented like Olive Garden or Red Robin, that's kind of the suburban family lifestyle.

The mid-twenties single lifestyle, however, is totally different. It is fun to branch out and try fancy and funky restaurants with my friends - restaurants that are one of a kind and have actual chefs. I don't splurge at expensive restaurants too often, but Tuesday night I REALLY splurged at The Sun Dial.

For those of you not from Atlanta, The Sun Dial is located on the top three floors of the Westin Peachtree Plaza, the tallest hotel in the western hemisphere. The tables sit on a conveyor belt of sorts that rotates along the outside edge of the circular restaurant, allowing diners a 360 degree view of the city. To get to the restaurant, diners ride an exterior glass elevator (my friend KayLa did not know this and she does not do well with heights) and the view is exquisite! When we first stepped into the elevator, all we could see was the hotel across the street. After a few stories, the hotel across the street disappeared but there were several skyscrapers still blocking the horizon. Just a for more seconds, however, and all of a sudden all of the other buildings disappeared and we could see EVERYTHING!

Not a great picture, but this is when the elevator was about halfway up.

Once we arrived at the restaurant, the view was unbelievable! I have always loved how green Atlanta is and from the top Atlanta was like a sea of trees with just a small smattering of buildings and trees. We could see all the Atlanta landmarks and into the suburbs. The funniest thing, though, was the fact that there was a grasshopper clinging to the outside of one of the windows. A grasshopper, how do you think he got there?

The lump in the background is Stone Mountain
Turner Stadium looks so small.

The view was not the only thing that made the night enjoyable, the company was great and the food was DIVINE. Two of my friends from the ward, Ben and Tina, moved to Atlanta in May or June and Ben left today to return to BYU-I and Tina is going to Ukraine for a semester abroad. They each had a goal of truly experiencing Atlanta, so we went to the Sun Dial as a final adventure before they left.

Tina, Sara, Ben, and myself waiting in the lounge before we were seated (Mira took the picture and KayLa had not arrived yet)

Mira has more pictures of the food, I will post them when I get them, but it was beautiful and delicious.
We did not order a full meal, that would have set us back about $75 or more a person. We ordered appetizers (as entrees) and dessert. It was a difficult choice, but I ordered shrimp cakes (above) with fried green tomatoes and watermelon salsa. Sometimes seafood cakes can be too dry, but these were perfectly moist and the flavor of cilantro and onion mixed with the watermelon was unexpectedly mouthwatering.

If you are ever in Atlanta a want to go out for a fancy desserts, the desserts are well worth the $8 and you don't have to have a reservation for a table, you can order them in the lounge. Between the six of us we had four desserts and we all tasted each others. Mira and I shared the Chocolate Royal which was a layered chocolate mousse with vanilla streusel and dark chocolate ganache. We were a little worried it would be too heavy, but it was fluffy and melted in my mouth. Of the four desserts we ordered, Tina's Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee was probably the best (I still liked mine best though, if that makes sense, because I am fully committed to chocolate over vanilla). Just thinking about it makes my mouth water.

It was practically a perfect night with friends and a great way to say goodbye to Ben and Tina before each sets off on a new adventure. So, if you are looking for someplace chic and unique to eat in Atlanta, I highly recommend the Sun Dial (please don't judge me for my stupid pun, I couldn't resist)!

ROAD TRIP!!!

I LOVE a good road trip and will jump at most opportunities to take one. My good friends John Murphy and Rachel Parker were married in the Orlando, Florida Temple on Thursday and I really wanted to be there so my friends Jenna Kimble, Laura Bain, and I piled into the car and headed down.

We left Atlanta on Wednesday afternoon after Jenna and Laura got off work and arrived in Orlando around midnight. A seven hour drive really isn't bad when you have good company. Jenna serenaded us with her ukulele, we played the license plate game, and we rocked out to James Taylor and The Beatles. We spent the night with Rachel and her family. The next morning we all enjoyed talking to Rachel and helping as she got ready for her big day.

The Orlando Temple is absolutely beautiful inside and out!

Waiting for John and Rachel to come out of the temple -
somehow I missed the black and white memo.

The happy couple coming out of the temple.

I love the way Rachel is looking at John in this one.

With the beautiful bride.

Jenna was the one who set them up!

John and Rachel were married at 9:30 so we were done by about 11:00 (their reception was not until Saturday back home in Atlanta). We didn't want to just turn around and go home so we headed over to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. I wouldn't recommend going the week before the summer season starts (several rides were closed for maintenance, the park is only open until seven, and just about every eighth grade class in the state of Florida was there celebrating middle school graduation), but we had a great time and got to ride most things we wanted to ride at least once. Plus, I love people watching at places like that! I am fascinated by the way people interact with each other, the kids who think they can outsmart everyone else and cut in line, and the little things people do when they think nobody is watching. Our six hours in the park provided lots of entertaining people watching!

Jenna's friend Michael lives in Gainesville so he drove down to hang out with us for the day.

Jenna wasn't sure if she was tall enough to ride Men in Black.

Laura and I waiting for the Spider-Man Ride - Everybody looks cool in 3-D glasses!

Jenna and Laura waiting in a line.

By the time we got to our hotel Thursday Night, we were all exhausted. I don't know what time Jenna and Laura fell asleep but I fell asleep around 10:00. We woke up in the morning and went to the temple then headed out at about 11:00. I had such a great time, I am always game for a mini-vacation!

General Conference

It's that time again - General Conference! For those of you not familiar with the LDS Church, every six months (the first weekend of April and October) we hold General Conference instead of our regular Sunday services. Conference is broadcast worldwide from Salt Lake and we receive instructions from the Prophet and other leaders of the church. I love General Conference and look forward to it each year.

The speakers are not assigned topics, they each pray about it and select a topic but there always appears to be a theme. This year the majority of the speakers spoke on the importance of home and family. At least three or four mentioned that attending church classes should supplement not replace teaching in the home. Several speakers also quoted from the Proclamation to the World. In a world where the family unit is crumbling it is so important to remember that the family is the most important foundation influence in a child's life.

I love when General Conference falls on Easter because we have the opportunity to hear the prophet and apostles share their testimonies of the atonement. So many of the speakers bore powerful testimony of the Lord's love for us and the fact that we will live again because Jesus Christ suffered for our sins, died and the cross, and was resurrected. I know this to be true and I love hearing other people who also know it to be true.

General Conference really makes for a perfect weekend; my testimony is strengthened each time and there is nothing more important that that!

Grandma Roos

As today is Saint Patrick's Day I feel it is only appropriate to write about a person by the name of Margaret Lorraine Teresa Francis Dooley (Roos). Okay, so Roos might not be so Irish, but it was her married name.

Grandma is probably the one person I am most like: I inherited her stubbornness, her love of books and history, and her Irish temperament. People often see the picture we have on our wall of her in her mid-twenties and immediately comment that I look like her. I always take it as a compliment.

Grandma truly lived the American Dream. She was born in Butte, Montana on 14 May 1921. Nobody really knows what happened to her father (she was told he went out to buy a pack of cigarettes when her mother was eight months pregnant and never came back, but due to other facts we've found that story doesn't exactly hold water) and her mother spent many years as an invalid before dying in 1937. Grandma was mostly raised by her older sister Mae and Mae's husband, Hanks. Grandma had a love of learning and a strong desire to get out of Butte and see the world, so she decided to become a military doctor. Her brothers, like most people in Butte, were mine workers but one sold everything he could to pay for her nursing school tuition. She wanted to apply for med school but was turned away because she was poor, an orphan, and a woman.

After completing nursing school, Grandma joined the Army and headed for Heidleberg, Germany where she was one of the many nurses who cared for General Patton in his final days. It was in Heidleberg that she fell in love with one of her patients, John Keith Roos, a young officer from Utah; they were married in 1948 in Salt Lake City.

Both Grandma and Grandpa returned to school at the University of Utah using the GI Bill and Grandma received a degree in English. They had only one child, my dad, and they settled into a split-level home in a friendly neighborhood Murray, Utah. Grandma was the quintessential 1950's housewife as well as an amazing military officer's wife. She never worked outside the home, but she managed the household as a pro. She was an amazing cook! She was not a fancy cook, but she made killer versions of all the standard comfort foods: meatloaf, spaghetti, tuna casserole, and cream potatoes with peas. Desserts were really her specialty: Devil's Food Cake, Creme Puffs, Turtle Cake, and Cranberry Muffins with Caramel Sauce. When we lived in Utah we ate Sunday Dinner with them each week and she ALWAYS made dessert.

Grandma was never a person to just casually like somebody. If she liked you, she LOVED you and considered you a dear friend (if she didn't like you, then that's a different story - I said in the beginning she was STUBBORN). She was an amazing mother and Grandmother because I always knew how much she loved me, no matter what.

I could go on for ages about Grandma, but it's late so I guess I have to draw the line somewhere. As I said earlier she lived the American Dream. She began her life as the daughter of a poor immigrant family working in a mining town and she completed her life living in a comfortable et modest home with a husband who adored who and friends who would have done just about anything for her - what more can one ask for? Grandma left an amazing legacy in the world and I hope I can live up to it!

A New Approach to Blogging

I really want to be a great blogger and have a blog people feel is worth reading, but I often get stuck in a rut. I either think I have nothing exciting to write about, or I start a post but never publish it because I can't make it perfect. But from now on, no more excuses!

I am a big believer that we our shaped by those we love. Parents, siblings, friends, co-workers, extended family, teachers, etc all help to make us who we are. I feel like I sometimes fail to express gratitude or even recognize those who have helped me reach where I am now. From now on, whenever I think I have nothing to write about I am going to write about someone who has touched my life for good (I don't believe in cyber-bashing, so I pledge to say only good things about the people I write about). Hopefully my readers will feel like this is a blog worth reading.

Devil's Food Cake

I am determined to perfect this cake. My Grandma Roos was famous for her desserts and Devil's Food was one of her specialties. She used to make this for my dad, her "Little Keesie" all the time and it is one of his favorite desserts. The problem was, my Grandma always made the cake as a surprise so nobody ever watched her make it. When she passed away nine years ago, we thought the recipe was gone with her. About two years ago we found the recipe on a card in her recipe box and a few months ago my mom joked that if I really wanted my dad to make me a wooden shoe shelf (because he spends all his woodworking time making toys for the grandbabies) I should learn to make this cake, so I decided to try.

Some recipes are easy - you just do what it says. This cake is not one of those recipes. If the water is not the right temperature, it won't turn out; if the oven shelf is in the wrong position, it won't turn out; if the butter and sugar are not perfectly creamed, it won't turn out. These are all tricks Grandma had perfected but never shared because she never taught anyone to make the cake. The boiled frosting isn't any easier. You heat egg whites, corn syrup, and sugar over a double boiler until the sugar is dissolved (under cooking means grainy frosting and raw egg white, overcooking means all the unpleasantness of burnt sugar), then you have to beat it until it is just the right consistency (not long enough makes it runny, too long and it becomes a giant marshmallow).

I have made this cake three times so far. It gets closer each time, but I still haven't perfected it. I made the cake for a Stake Relief Society Meeting last week and it was okay, but not great. It was a little dry and I had to ice it before it was completely cool so the peaks on the icing were saggy. Thelady in front of me in line looked at the cake and (without tasting it) said, "Who would put Fluff on a chocolate cake. That's a little disgusting." I just had to bite my tongue.

If anyone would like to be a test dummy with this cake, let me know. If I eat all of my practice cakes I will end up shaped like it!

A Perfect Saturday

Woke up, made homemade bagels, went on a walk with my mom and Anastasia, made new friends (and by that I mean I waved awkwardly at Anastasia's friends in Russia as she was Skyping with them), made a Devil's Food cake, and enjoyed an amazing Stake Women's Conference. It was a perfectly relaxing without feeling overly lazy. Top it off with a great Fast and Testimony meeting, a nice "family" dinner with the Gregorys and a kids from the ward, and the Oscar and it was an almost perfect weekend.

Dear Winter

Dear Winter:

Thank you for visiting this year, but you can go now. I enjoyed the January snowfall and the February snowfall, but it is now March and I don't want anymore snow.
Tell Spring that everyone in Georgia is anxiously awaiting her arrival.

Sincerely,
Rachel