Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince

This is my book for January. However, I am fearing the fact that I may not reach my new year's resolution of reading one book every month. It's amazing how fast a month goes by! I am only half-way through the book, and there are are only 2 days left. I could cram, but I also enjoy my sleep and staying up to read it might not make me a happy person to be around the next day. I really want to get this finished, though. I should not have taken me this long (since July) to get half-way through! Pathetic, I know. I took some breaks - for a while, I just didn't have time. I just read a page here and there. Then I took another break to read the twilight series, and it has been difficult to get back into it. If I stick my mind to it, it can be done. It will take some discipline, though!

President Hinckley

I just wanted to say quickly how much I adore and admire President Hinckley. Talk about enduring to the end! What a wonderful man he was! I am so grateful to have had him as my prophet gorwing up - he has blessed my life immensly. I know he was and is a true prophet of God and I know that he is with his sweet wife. I have so many great memories of him serving... and I love him. This is my favorite picture of him. I think it shows his personality best. How cool is he?! What an amazing man!

Life is Hard

Today Chris and I taught our 9 year old primary class about the Tree of Life and Lehi's vision. Chris used a few belts put together to form a rope, or "The Iron Rod." He blind folded the kids, and they had to first find their way from Birth (one corner in the room) to eternal life (another corner in the room) without the rope. It is a pretty small room with many chairs and 6 kids, so it was rare if any of them got through without bumping into something. As one boy was going through and feeling his way around the room, one girl said, "Life is hard." She recognized right away what the analogy was and she saw how difficult it was.

Life is hard at times. But I do know that the commandments can get us through... and that brings me to another story about primary. Last week, I was teaching about Nephi obtaining the brass plates from Laban. I asked the class what a commandment was, and one boy said, "It's a pinky promise with Heavenly Father!" I loved that - such a simple way to put it. I expounded on that and taught about keeping our part of that promise and the Lord will bless us with His spirit. Later on, I had them color something from the lesson. That same boy, Jake, showed me his drawing. It was a picture of his pinky promise with Heavenly Father.

That was great! Kids put it so simply - we just have to keep our part of the promise! I know that that's true. I know this life can be difficult at times and we all have our trials. But I also know that if we do what is right, and keep our part of the "pinky promise" (which is actually more of a covenant), that we can be blessed with the spirit and we can reach that eternal life. I know that my Savior loves me. So much that he atoned for my sins so that I can live with him again. What a blessing! I also know that the gospel is true with all of my heart. I know that Joseph Smith is a true prophet who was the tool in restoring the church here on the earth today. How grateful I am for the knowledge that I can be with my family forever through the restored priesthood here on the earth. I love my Heavenly Father and I am eternally grateful for all that he has given me.

Have a wonderful day! Love you all.

Wrong Date...

Hey guys, the post entitled "My Recent Favorites" is my newest post. For some reason, the date on it is the 21st, but today is the 23rd. Weird. Anyway, so see below for my newest post!

A Few More Inches, Please...

A few weeks ago, I decided that my hair was getting more and
more damaged with my shampoo/conditioner (Pantene, in

case you wanted to know). I think I just used it forever and it

was not helping my hair any longer. I had lots of split ends and,

though my hair looked good long, it was not growing at all and I was getting tired of it. Knowing that Chris loved my long locks,

I asked him about cutting it and he told me, "You can do anything

you want as long as you don't complain." That has been a problem for me in the past, so I thought about it for a little while. After some contemplation, I decided that hair grows, and I can do

whatever I wanted without hurting anyone too badly. :)

So, just before Christmas, I had my sister-in-law chop it off. I didn't want her to cut too much off, so I told her to make it just below my shoulders (pictured in my violin photo below). I discovered I liked it - a lot. So I decided I wanted it shorter - and last night she cut it a few inches shorter and this is the result! These aren't the greatest pictures of me, but any comments would be appreciated - I want your opinion!

My Recent Favorites

In the last couple of months, I have found a few random things that have suddenly become favorites in my life, None of which were ever particularly great before - due to the fact that either they were not around, or my tastes have just changed.

The list below is is no particular order...

-Tacos. And, as disgusting as it is for my body, hard shell tacos from Taco Bell. Not sure what it is, but those little things are addicting!

-Snickerdoodles. I have never considered this my favorite cookie until I had one from Paradise Bakery. They are wonderful - and now I like to try them wherever I eat, if they have them.

-Stephens's Chocolate Cinnamon Hot Chocolate. Mmmm mmmm good. It has to be made with milk though, or else it won't taste quite right.

-The movie Hairspray, and the soundtrack to it. I have not gotten sick of this show yet, and maybe I will. But it's sure fun to watch whenever I feel like it, which is a lot. Just ask Chris.


-My fuzzy robe and slippers. My good friend Talisia dropped a sweet care basket not long ago at my doorstep. Inside was some great stuff - mugs with hot chocolate, Mary Kay lotion and body wash, and lots of different sweets. But my favorite things were a fleece robe and some fuzzy pink slippers. She knew exactly what I needed at that time... and I was so grateful. I lived in that robe for a couple of weeks and I wear it now quite a bit, and the slippers are a must have around the house!

-My new job at Axiom. I went into 3form not long ago, where I used to work. I cannot tell you the feeling I had, pulling up into the visitor parking and knowing that I didn't have to stay! My job at Axiom is a considerable amount of stress, the people are awesome, and it is a cool place.

-The Cocomotion hot chocolate maker from Mr. Coffee. We love this thing! I gave it to Chris for Christmas last year, and we drink hot chocolate no other way. It make it the perfect temperature, and the top is frothy. It is fabulous!

Well, now you know a little more about me. Random, I know - but it was fun putting this together!

My Husband

At least once a day, I think about my life. Well, I try to, anway. I think about what I need to change, what is going well, and what I need to do to make things even better. It's not always a life-changing experience and it's not always a great self esteem booster, but I usually have the confidence to whatever it is I realize I need to. Today, my life is good. It's wonderful. I am very blessed to have the things that I do. I know, for one, that I wouldn't be who I am without my husband.

Chris has always been the positive one in the relationship - I usually have more of a negative attitude than he does (a bad habit I am working on changing), and he is always pushing and encouraging me to be happy and to do the best that I can at whatever I do. He gives me confidence and helps me feel secure when I am about to take on a new task that is a bit more scary or bigger or just different than I'm used to. He has full confidence and faith in me and seems to know my potential better than I do. I love him with all of my heart and happy that we can spend eternity together.

Some of our favorite things to do together are:

-Travel. We went to Yellowstone last fall together, that was a blast. We want to go on a trip

every year out of the state. We also go to lake Powell and run the Snake River which we love to do each year.

-We love to watch movies. (Don't let him fool you, either. He LOVES chick flicks!)

-Go to concerts (although our music taste differs slightly)

-Watch plays. Chris will deny this to a lot of people, but he does love plays, even musicals. Our favorite right now is the movie "Hairspray." We also bought season tickets to Desert Star Playhouse, in Murray. We love it there.

-We can have fun just laying around the house and doing nothing.

-We love the mountains, Chris is a big biker. He's taken me a couple of times, the first of which I
swore I would never go again, and the second one was just a whim...if I had thought about it

longer, I probably wouldn't have gone. It's tough!

-We love camping, swimming, and being outdoors. Chris loves to fish. While fishing is not high on the list for me, I love to eat what he catches! One obstacle Chris is trying to climb is getting me out on a snowboard. We are working on that one. :)

I know that Chris and I are supposed to be together and he makes me happier than I could ever imagine. He is strong in the gospel, honors his priesthood, and loved his mission. He has a love for the scriptures and a love for his and my family and I couldn't imagine my life without his love for me. I am looking forward to forever. :)

My Gingerbread House

Chris and I go to a friend's house every December and decorate gingerbread houses. Charla Barton, a dear friend of ours and the mother of one of Chris's best friends, makes the gingerbread from scratch and provides all the candy. I do have to say that decorating houses is one of my favorite things to do in the holiday season. The smell of the warm gingerbread as it fills the house, seeing all of the endless possibilities of color that you can adorn your house with - from pretzels to life savers, with smarties, licorice, gum, tootsie rolls, and much more variety in between, and of course, the frosting to hold it all together - the sky is the limit with your imagination.

This year, I went with the Big Red gum roof as shingles, smarties on the front of the house to add some color, and a licorice door. On the walls of the house I lined tootsie rolls to give it a log cabin feel - and topped it off with large pretzels.

This house has been sitting in my kitchen since before Christmas, and I can't seem to part with it, as silly as that sounds. I have become slightly attached, so I've decided to blog about it.
I wish I had a picture of Chris's house - imagine a few holes in the gingerbread from where bites were taken, making it difficult to put together. But whether we actually make a house or eat the pieces, it's always a fun place to be , the Barton's home, at that time.

The other night, my good friend Katie and her husband came over to play games with us. Katie is the sweets queen. She and I worked together and there wasn't anything I could do to stop her from eating my little treats I would bring in to munch on throughout the day. It obviously wasn't a huge deal, but giving her a hard time was fun. She asked me at first, whenever I had anything to eat, but not after that first little while. Why ask when you know the answer anyway, right? When she was here a couple of nights ago, she took the liberty of diving right in to the roof of my cute little house. Help yourself, Katie... what's mine is yours.

Back To The Basics

Don't I look natural? Well, look again.

Yesterday was my first violin lesson in more than 10 years. When I say back to the basics, I cannot stress that enough. I had forgotten just how much goes into playing a violin! The way the bow is held, the way your feet are positioned, the way the hand and fingers are supposed to be when holding it... It is a lot of stuff! Posture was #1 on the list. We then went over the notes. What the notes are called, how long they are held, etc. My teacher even gave me flash cards to test myself with. :) She taught me a few beats and had me play them, the beats that go in the song "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." I thought about that. Such a simple song. I once played in a large orchestra playing "Canon in D" and now I was learning a children's song, the song that children three years old play when they are learning for the first time. This is my second time around. Oh how I wish I never had given this hobby up. I still have some of my old music and the things I used to play were incredible peices. I am looking forward to practicing and learning again, and I know my husband will make sure I practice. :)

My teacher's name is Calli Barton. She has been playing for eight years; she started when she was seven. Yep, she's 15. She is super talented and definitely knows what she is doing! She graduated just last week from her Suzuki program (an excellent program for learning music); she has done very well. She still takes lessons from a teacher and is in a preforming group as well.

More from me... this time with pictures!

My life is simple. It's wonderful, and have been immensly blessed by my Father in Heaven. I am so grateful for those months on my mission - they changed the way I look at everything. For one, I am so grateful for my family. They are wonderful people who mean more to me than anything in the world. Included with my husband and his family, and my immediate family, I have 4 wonderful nieces and nephews that mean the world to me.

This is Cessna. She is a beautiful little 5-year old that has the wit of a 12 year old. She has an excellent memory, never letting you forget about what you said to her. She never misses a beat and is too smart for her own good sometimes! She loves princesses - Ariel is her favorite, and she loves being the center of attention... just ask her. :) She is such a blessing in our family.




This is Robby. Oh, Robby. He is such a funny kid. He lives in Florida; he is my sister Holly's kid. He loves letters, numbers, and Elmo, and loves to sing. Recently, he has joined in singing with Holly when she associates the letter "Q" with Whitney Houston's "Queen of the Night." What a character. He knows the entire alphabet and what the letters sound like.... he'll be 2 in April. Smart kid.

This is Lance. Lance... likes to eat. Here he is, burying his face in the bottom of the tray to get the last of that powdered sugar. He is so much fun. He loves his mom, the phone, and helping in the kitchen - whatever mom is doing. He is Cessna's little brother. He is 18 months.

This is little Daytona. She is the newest addition to the Orton family tree, and is quickly becoming a little rascall. You can't leave her unattended for more than a minute, if that. She's all girl, but she likes to get dirty too. She is a doll. She will be one year in March!

So, I know the last blog was kind of boring. I mean, who wants to read a novel on a blog page with no pictures? Not many, I imagine. But thank you, Ali and Holly, for commenting. It makes me feel good that someone is reading the blog. I hope you enjoy the pictures. I certainly do! I will add more about my family later.

A few things have happened lately, and I just wanted to take some time to blog it before it gets to be old news. First of all, Happy New Year! New Years is not my favorite holiday, so I like to keep it low key. It was nice and relaxing, before starting a brand new job. Yes, I have finally kissed 3form goodbye and I'm on to somethign new. I work now at Axiom Design, a graphic design studio in downtown Salt Lake. I am really enjoying it. It is a small company, and things are very laid back there. I mean, it is design - you can only be so laid back, I know. But, everyone is really cool and I feel like it's the right place to be. I am the personal assistant/administrative assistant to the owner of the company. I really enjoy being an assistant. Overwhelming at first of course, but it keeps me on my toes and I'm always busy - which is great for me. They have worked on a ton of stuff in the entertainment industry. The Shrek movies, the Simpsons Movie, Over The Hedge, Charlotte's Web, Napoleon Dynamite, and Nacho Libre are just to name a few. Check them out if you get a chance: http://www.axiomdc.com/

So, new year, new job, and a new semester at school as well. I go to the fabulous Salt Lake Community College, and because of my new work schedule, am only taking one class. I decided a while ago that I wanted to start writing. I am looking into it more now, and the class is a college prep writing class to learn about all of the fundamentals. I am loving it! I really enjoy writing and now I am reading things a bit differently. It may become my major (which, at this rate, I will never graduate.... one class per semester. I know, I am really dedicated). We shall see.

Chris has also started class again, finishing up his 2nd year in his plumbing apprenticeship. He is still deciding if this is what he wants to do for the rest of his life, but it will be a great thing to fall back on if not.

And oh yes, we started teaching the 9 year olds in primary. They are great kids! I was so nervous - but they are not scary. Thank goodness!

So - new year, new job, new classes, new calling.... How about New Year's resolutions? Here are a few of mine:

-Get going on my violin. Chris set up lessons for me for Christmas. I am so excited!

-Attend the temple AT LEAST once every month. I have been slacking in this area.

-Finish the Old Testament by the end of the year

-Get back to the gym. 60 bucks a month and we haven't been in months. What a waste!

-Blog about my life once a week. I figure it can be my journal. :)

-Read one book every month. I finished up the twilight series in December, and now I am picking up where I left off in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book #6. No, I haven't finished them, so please don't spoil it for me!)

What are some of your resoultions? Maybe I can add to my list?