A note on my stance

I want you to know that this scares me, more than most things that I have ever done. My heart is pounding as I write these words. I fear that I could hurt others feelings, damage relationships, and even lose friendships because of my own opinion. But I have a very strong feeling that what I believe and know to be true, needs to be said. I pray that the spirit will direct me in the words I am going to share with you.

Please know that this is my testimony. If it wasn't my testimony it would be ok for you to argue. You can disagree, but I ask that you please be respectful of my own testimony. It is not my intent to argue or go into political issues. I love and respect everyone and this is just so I can make my stance clear, not to bash on others opinions. We are all very different, and are entitled to our own choices and opinions, so I ask you to respect mine and respect others as well.

You probably knew what was coming. Yes. I am going to talk about same-sex attraction and gay marriage.

My stance on the issue is exactly the same as what my church believes. This is because like I have said so many times before I know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the only true church on this earth today. I sustain fully, without question, President Monson as prophet, seer, and revelator of our church, and his counselors, as well as the quorum of the twelve apostles as leaders of our church.

I know that our Heavenly Father speaks through our prophet President Thomas S. Monson. What our prophet says, is exactly what Heavenly Father wants us to know.

D&C 1:38 says- 
 38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my^aword shall not pass away, but shall all be ^bfulfilled, whether by mine own ^cvoice or by the ^dvoice of my ^eservants, it is the ^fsame.

Through that I take everything that our prophet says to heart. I believe every word that comes out of his mouth to counsel us is from our Father in Heaven. The counsel he gives us is the counsel that Heavenly Father is giving us. That should not be taken lightly. 

The LDS church has come out with a website called- mormonsandgays.org 
This website explains everything and more about how our church stands on the topic of same sex attraction. I believe and agree with everything that is put on this website.

In the header of the home page it says- 
"The experience of same-sex attraction is a complex reality for many people. The attraction itself is not a sin, but acting on it is. Even though individuals do not choose to have such attractions, they do choose how to respond to them. With love and understanding, the Church reaches out to all God’s children, including our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters."

That last sentence brings tears to my eyes, "including our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters". OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS. 
It makes my heart ache when I see fellow members of our church say unkind things to our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters. In the website our church leaders clearly state that we love them just as much as any other person. 

It also states that our church does believe that the feelings of same sex attraction are real. "The attraction itself is NOT a sin" but just like any other of the feelings we have, we should not act on it. Just like if someone had the desire to smoke, it is not a "sin" until it is acted upon. 

Now to get down to the real issue that has been making me squirm in my seat every time I log onto facebook. 

Here is another statement from the website- 
"The Church’s approach to this issue stands apart from society in many ways. And that’s alright. Reasonable people can and do differ. From a public relations perspective it would be easier for the Church to simply accept homosexual behavior. That we cannot
do, for God’s law is not ours to change. There is no change in the Church’s position of what is morally right. But what is changing — and what needs to change — is to help Church members respond sensitively and thoughtfully when they encounter same-sex attraction in their own families, among other Church members, or elsewhere."

From A Proclamation to the Family written by our brethren- 
"THE FAMILY is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity."

Anyone who has studied the plan of salvation or have been through the temple know that marriage IS ordained of god, and the ONLY way for it to work is between a man and a women. That's how the plan has always been, and that is how it will always stay. 

Our church is NOT trying to force our views on anyone else. People have asked us what our view is on the topic, and we have come out in a mature respectful manner and said that what we believe, is what we have always believed. 

This is my only issue-
I have seen countess friends and family post things that are either for, or against the topic of gay rights or marriage. We need to love one another and accept, like I've already said, that we are all different and that we can, and will, have different opinions. Please be sensitive to others and I ask if you are a member of the LDS church that you be especially careful about what you say to others who do not have the same views. You are the face, and sometimes can be the voice of our church to your non-member friends. I ask that you pray and ask your Father in Heaven if you are unsure about what you should believe. He will NEVER steer you wrong. 

I know that my friends and family who ARE members of the church may not have the same views as our prophets or myself. But I want you to know that I still love you and respect your opinion. If you need help finding what our prophets have said, I encourage you to look at the countless straightforward things the church has put out. I warn you, only things that the church has approved of (lds.org, church magazines like the Ensign, New Era, LDSLiving or mormonsandgays.org like I have said).

I love you all and I hope you know that this is truly out of love and respect to everyone and that I felt like I needed to take a clear stance on the subject. :) 

Nothing but the truth

Sometimes I will write a post, and then delete it for fear of being to negative. But this post I am going to be very honest...
Every day I struggle with losing my dad. I think about him constantly and what my life would be like if he were still here. Because I know it is our plan, it makes it a whole lot easier to stay focused and have a better attitude. But I sure do have my down days that's for sure.
But do you want to know one of the hardest part about losing my dad? Having my mom dating. It's a really hard thing to understand if you aren't going through it directly. I've always known my parents were soul mates, and meant for each other. So it's hard to think that someone could even love her a fraction of what my dad did. It's hard not knowing what the future will be, especially since I will be gone for a year and a half and so many things can change in that time frame. I have to admit, I don't have a very optimistic attitude about the whole thing. I want to just scream, run, and hide under my covers most of the time. Change is hard for me, especially when I'm not the one in control of the change. I feel like this is the worst timing for all of this to happen. But I have to remember, it's not about me. Not even a little bit. But it does impact me, and that's the hard thing.
Even if I was a little bit in control, it's not my place to decide. And I had a powerful reminder of that in the temple yesterday. It's a bit too personal to share, but I know what my dad wants me to do right now. That's all I needed was his comfort and peace to tell me exactly what I needed to do at this time for my mom. I cannot even tell you how special that was for me. Although emotinally I am a crazy person right now, I at least know what my plan is from here, and that is an extremely comforting feeling :)

I'd like to apologize

Ever since I've gotten my mission call I've been very bitter about when I was called to enter the MTC. I complained to a lot of you about how anxious I was and how mad I was about the whole thing. I didn't understand why I was leaving so late and why I had to wait so much longer than anyone else. To be honest, I still do not know completely. Lately I've been grateful that I've been here for certain things like farewells, blessings, baptisms, Karly's pageant and other things. But I feel really bad about complaining so much. I know that my father in heaven has a purpose for me. Even if I never figure out the exact reason, I know that everything will work out the way that it is supposed to. If I never know the reason, or if it may just be for the simple reason of transfers. It doesn't matter to me, and I'm sorry that I was so negative. I'm so grateful for the opportunity to be able to serve a mission at an even younger age than I would have before. That is such a blessing in my life. Thank you all for putting up with me. Now that it is finally almost here I feel very awful about being so pessimistic. I am so grateful for my plan that Heavenly Father and given me and that I am able to have the gospel in my life. I'm grateful that I can repent and start over, and try my best to be better. I'm grateful I have the ability to serve a mission. I can't imagine doing anything else in my life right now. :) thank you for all your support :) 

Also- here is the link to what really helped me understand and realize that right now, my life is amazing and going exactly the way I want it. I was wrong to even complain about something so silly, when others are going through the unimaginable. 

Having trust in Him.

I love playing the piano. I don't know if you knew that, but really that's because I have no idea who reads this... but I can play most of the hymns (known hymns.. not like I'm a Pilgram I'm a Stranger) and if I haven't played it before,  I usually don't have a hard time playing it (Exception- True to the Faith)
I have been playing the piano for about 10 years. I know, that sounds like a long time. You would think I would be this really good piano player. Well, I'm not. It's not my talent or skill even a little bit. I do not come from an extremely musically talented family... I have had to work like a crazy person (I usually sit and play the piano for about 30min-1 hour a day) just to be able to play the hymns. The thing I hate about it, I can only sight read. I have no musical ability whatsoever; so sitting and making up a song will never happen. I can't even hear it or pick something out... I can only read the music. Which has been a very good thing for me, and I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father has given me the ability to do it.
Ok. Enough on that.
I was thinking about it the other day... I am probably going to lose a lot of my piano playing ability on my mission. We won't have a piano (obviously) and I will probably never have to opportunity to go to a church on my p-day to practice for a while. Besides that, how much do you think my companion would like that?
So it was kind of bumming me out. But then I remembered a conversation with a costumer at Costco that I had a while back. She was telling me about how her granddaughter wanted to serve a mission, but was an amazing gymnast. She was afraid that she would lose everything if she went on a mission for a year and a half. The grandma then told me that she explained to her that if she had faith, did what Heavenly Father wanted her to do, and trusted in him, that it would all work out for the best. The best meaning that she could come back and pick up where she left off. Or come back and be even better than she was before. Or maybe come back and not be able to do it anymore, but find a different path to go on.
When I remembered that I was soooooo happy. That little dumb fear of losing my piano playing abilities was completely gone. I know that what I am doing is exactly what my Heavenly Father wants me to be doing. And that's all that matters. If we follow him and do what he asks, everything else will work out the way that it is supposed to. :)

Mission Prep

I absolutely ADORE mission prep. Like, I would seriously go to it if it was every day. No. Joke. But sadly, it is only once a week. I look forward to it every single time though. Even though I only have it once more before I leave.... reality check..... wait.... no.... it still hasn't hit me. Sorry.

This month they had us go and actually be with a companion and teach a family from a different ward! Crazy huh!? The weird thing was... I wasn't even scared at all. Everyone else was freaking out and so nervous. I was just excited because it was going to feel a little closer to actual missionary work! Ashley and I got assigned to the same "mission" (aka- the Harvest Hills 3rd ward) and family.
I felt the need to pray together before we went in. I just wanted to have a good learning experience and bring the spirit into their home.
Oh, and by the way, the family agreed to do this before hand. They knew we were coming and all were very active. The sprit was already strong when we walked into their house. They had 6 beautiful children and were such a cute happy couple. We introduced ourselves and got to know them a little bit. They even had this adorable little 1 week old baby :) we taught them about the atonement and about forever families. Even though I'm sure they knew all of the things that we taught them we tried to go deeper and just bring the sprit. It also felt very natural to me. I felt like I could share my feelings and that the words were just coming out of my mouth. It is one of the stronger times that I have felt the sprit speak through me. We ended with a prayer and all the kids were smiling. Ash and I were beaming. The father thanked us for bringing the sprit into their home and we I think we both left on cloud nine :)
Overall, it was a wonderful experience. It made me even more excited to go out and teach those who don't know these truths that we have and help them understand and give them hope and comfort for the future :)

The sequel to- If you play with fire you will probably burn something (or someone this time)

Here is the sequel to If you play with fire you will probably burn something

We seriously do not know how to jump a car. Here's the story:

Karly is still kind of learning how to drive the stick. My mom has started making her drive it every single day to school. 

She drove the whole way to school with the emergency break all the way on... I don't know how someone could do that, but she said that she was too distracted to even notice. Ashley even had to tell her to turn on her lights... that one is understandable though. Our other car has automatic lights, and I guess you don't have to put on the emergency break hardly ever either. I asked her if she noticed the bright red light that said break on it... she said again that she was too distracted. 

So they made it to school... both of them said that it smelled SO bad... (the tires were like burning of course).

But Karly left the lights on. 

The car died.

We had to come and jump the car for them after Ashley and Katelyn were done with practice (Karl rode the bus home). 

I called Brock because... well... he was a boy and thought that he could help. I had jumped a car before, but I couldn't remember how to do it exactly. He said that he hadn't really done it except for once a while ago, but we could figure it out.

We got there... started hooking chords up, but the last one sparked so bad Brock couldn't even clamp it. 

So then he called his mom and she said that we were doing it right. We had the Mazda on and were hooking them the right way. So- we did it again and it worked. 

Brock's mom said to let it sit for a while. We did before turning on the dead car. But we wanted to sit in the car because it was really cold outside.
30 seconds later I see Lexi, Katelyn, and Ashley just sprinting from the car... I looked and saw that the chords were smoking!!

Here is it smoking... (Yes, we were taking pictures the whole time. Just like the candle incident )

We ran out there but didn't know what to do because they were hot but we needed to get them off! Brock found a sock and got one sort of off... but it burned through right away... I scrambled and found an ace bandage (don't know why that was in the car...) he wrapped it thick and then got the other chords off. 

They had melted all the way down. Almost all the plastic was off the chords... 

We called our mom. She didn't believe us for a while. 

Brock burned his thumb from when it had gone through the sock. It smelled of beef ramen noodles... 

Then we tried to push start it. 

We pushed it up and down the parking lot at least 5 times. We were so tired! It almost worked twice... then as we were about to go up the hill again a nice man (I think he was a principal or something) asked us if we needed help. We asked him if he could jump the car. 

He had a huge truck and all he did was hook the chords up the SAME way Brock did, but he didn't have his truck on. It started right up and was fine.... 

The reason that the chords melted was because our Mazda had too much power with the car on. Plus it had a bran new battery sooooo that's why the chords melted.

Stuff like this always happens when we hangout with Brock ;) 

It worked :) 

If you're wondering how my mom felt about this... it was also the same as the candle incident... she laughed. Hard. She thought it was hilarious that we almost blew up both cars and could have potentially killed ourselves (if we want to go that far ;)) 

We just know how to have fun I guess... haha 

Something BIG

So back in August we had our annual back to school blessings. My cousin Dustin came over for dinner and we had him give us our blessings. I love the amazing spirit that just fills the room when blessings are being given. I feel it is especially strong when my family receives blessings because we can all feel, every single time not only our Heavenly Father and Brother Jesus Christ in the room, but also our own father. This might sound a little weird to some people, but we can feel our own dad speaking to us through the blessing. We have had many times where the priesthood holder acting in God’s name actually says things that my dad wants us to know. The experience is always indescribable. In my blessing I was told that something very big would change in my life this year. I thought… oh crap… I’m gonna get married. Mainly because that was the only thing going through my mind at that time. It scared me a little.

I didn’t realize until a couple days ago that it was not talking about marriage... it was talking about my mission! I just know that Heavenly Father knows us, what we need, and knows what is in our future. This just shows that blessings are straight from our Father in Heaven and that inspiration is real, and I know that will all of my heart.

The second thing I wanted to talk about was my scripture reading. I just love the scriptures. Sometimes I can’t stop reading them! I know that sounds really cheesy, but sometimes I cannot stop reading them! I got so into the scriptures, Preach my Gospel, and Jesus the Christ that I was up till 2:00am the other night. But I have been noticing that I keep reading about the gift of tongues. That scares me! I said that I didn’t want to speak another language (not that this means that I'll speak another language). I just think I could do a lot better if I were to just say things that I want to in my own language… so people could actually understand me… although I do have a first testimony that Heavenly Father will send me where I need to go. That is for sure. Even if I have to speak Chinese… I’m go where I’m mean to go and where I can find the people that need to hear the gospel. 

Tuesday.

Tuesday. 

Whew. 

I THINK I can wait till then. But then I still have at least 3 weeks to wait for my call. Probably longer than that. 

I can't explain how excited I am to go. I have been studying Preach my Gospel, and I just love it! I can't get enough. It just makes me love the gospel and this work so much more than I already did. It makes me realize just how simple the gospel is, but how extremely important it is to do those small and simple things. It may seem like repetition, but it invites the spirit. And by inviting and letting the spirit teach us we will learn new things about our Savior, Heavenly Father, and the gospel that we didn't know before, or maybe that we had forgotten. Our testimonies are either growing or dying. They do not stay the same. We need to be looking for way and praying for ways and opportunities to increase our own personal testimonies. Prayer, Scripture Study, and attending church are just a few of the simple things we can do to help our testimonies grow. I can't wait to share the sweet special gift of the gospel to my brothers and sisters, wherever they may be, and bring them back to the light through the spirit and the my Savior, and Father in Heaven. :) 

The Blessing of Paying your Tithing

Tithing has never really been a hard thing for me. I've learned ever since I was little and old enough to be making money that I should pay my tithing. You learn way back in Primary how much to pay and when to pay. My parents also always told me how important it was and helped me learn by making little jars for savings, spending, and tithing.
I've never really had a hard time paying it. It's always just been easy and I've seen the blessings from it countless times.
I didn't make any money my first year of college. It was kind of weird when I went into tithing settlement with my bishop in my singles ward and I had nothing. But I wasn't making anything so it was fine. But now since I've started working again in the summer the money that I pay to tithing is a little harder to pay. I just think of all the things I could do with the money like how much of tuition that is, or that's a whole month of rent, or "that could buy me a whole book." But then I step back and look at what's really important- that is, obeying all God's commandments in full without hesitation. All of them can and are hard in one way or another for someone. But if we just have faith we will be taken care of. But we always have to remember that it is still in His time and way. You may not see the blessing of paying your tithing for years, but they will come and I know that. Also- we may also not see  the blessings in the way that we intended it. We need to keep in mind that again, it is all up to Him and He knows what is best for us.
I know that if I continue to pay my tithing without complaint, having full faith in my Heavenly Father that I will be ok financially in my life. I may not always have money to do everything that I want. But I know that I will have money for the things that I truly need. He will take care of me because I was faithful in paying my tithing. :)

I. LOVE. LIFE.

That pretty much is it. I really do just love my life right now. I have my amazing family, my fantastic friends, my inspired calling, my super fun job, my many opportunities, and if that's not enough, I feel like I am happy all the time and everything is going the way it's supposed to!
After having a bummer week last weekend, this is a big step for me! ;)
Last week I was just having a rough time emotionally. I couldn't seem to keep control of the million thoughts that were constantly running through my head. Every movie I watched, including an episode of Psych, I would find myself forcing myself to hold back tears. It's Psych. Really. That's just pathetic. I just felt really sad, and was feeling bad for myself. Not a good place to be in. I felt like my mom was mad at me all the time, I felt like I was being a crappy sister, and I was missing my dad more than ever. So Saturday, after I had a big meltdown in my closet after watching Dear John, I had a feeling that I should just go and talk to my mom.
Of course, who would have guessed, that made everything better. We talked about my life, and how I felt like her and I weren't getting along, and how I felt like something was missing in my life, and how I was emotional; then I told her about friend problems and how I was worrying about my future and yada yada yada. It was just a big sob story. We talked for a while, and she told me what I needed to do, and what I needed to hear. I felt so much better! I literally felt like I could conquer the world. Talking to your mom does that to ya sometimes. ;)
I then talked to my Heavenly Father for a while, just like he was sitting right there next to me. He's my best friend, and he deserves to know a lot more about my life then I tell him. So I spilled the beans. Then next thing I know I feel 100% happy. I felt like I didn't have a care in the world. The main thing emotionally that had been killing me was, of course, not having a man in my life. I would complain about it to my mom and friends. That, was getting me no where. I knew that. But I finally just came to grips that I needed to move on and stop moaning about it. My mom helped me that most with that by telling me that my cousins who went on missions both have amazing husbands, and they are just amazing people all around. That really turned everything around for me. I knew that of course, but this time it hit me like a punch in the face. Now I know that all I really want to do right now is go on a mission. So I should be preparing for that, and marriage will come later! Whew. Man. I feel so much better. I can't even explain! I feel like someone just lifted a giant hot dog off my shoulders and stuck a giant stick in my ear to clear my brain of all the things I was thinking (don't ask- that's just how I feel....).
Heavenly Father cares so much about us. He used my mom to help me. He didn't give me the answers, he didn't give me what I wanted, he just gave me what I needed. Peace of mind and my mom ;)

Blessed are they that mourn

So apparently, I'm pathetic. I don't want to go into a lot of detail, but pretty much I was having a hard time with something in my life, something that I don't have, and I was just really having a hard time with it one day. I couldn't get control of my emotions or my mind. It was racing at 1,000mph and I was going crazy. So, as I was reading my scriptures I came across this scripture:
Matt 5:4 Blessed are they that ^amourn: for they shall be comforted.
Immediately I felt peace and comfort surrounding me. I felt like someone had just gave me a huge hug and my heart was comforted and I felt like sleeping. I know that sounds weird, but I just felt very very at peace. More than I have in a long time. It was a comforting feeling and I know that it was the holy ghost helping me through. The scriptures are so powerful and I know that they are to help us, and that they were written for each of us. That's all :) just a random thought :) 

..and I shall conquer death..

The title of this post really has so much meaning and is very fitting for what my weekend was like.

As you know my aunt and uncle passed away last week. It was hard on all of us, but especially their family. We ended up going to the funeral in Arizona.

We took off Wednesday night after the girls had young women's at around 10:00pm (I know, that's way past young women's, you know us). My mom was going back and forth trying to decided if she was going to go or not. My cousin was going through the temple on Friday morning; my mom is close to him and was invited, she really wanted to go. She finally decided that she was just going to stay. So me, along with my sisters headed for Arizona. We were in American Fork and got a call from my mom, she was crying and said to come back, and that she was coming. We headed back and got her stuff in the car and left! I have to say, I was pretty grateful, I wasn't too excited about driving for 6 hours straight in the middle of the night. Now that she was coming, we had 3 drivers, which was so much better! Besides that, it wouldn't have been the same without my mom there.

We got in Arizona at about 11am. We couldn't check into our hotel, so we went shopping because my mom had forgotten her swimming suit.

Finally we checked into our hotel, swam a little, then headed to the viewing.

The actual viewing started at 6 but since we were family we came an hour earlier so we could actually see the bodies because they didn't have an open casket for friends.

It was a very moving experience. My mom tells us at every funeral (I don't think that she knows she tells us this every time, but, she does) to look and see how much of a difference the body is without the spirit. It's just not the person. The spirit is what brings our body to life and gives us our "look." It is very true. My aunt didn't look like herself even a little bit. You could tell there was a lot of make-up on her, probably because it had been longer than a week since the accident, and because of the actual accident. My uncle, we actually couldn't even see him. They had a white blanket covering his face and things over his hands. That was the hardest for my family I think. You couldn't help imagining what was, or wasn't underneath. It was probably one of the saddest funerals I have ever been too. All of our family was in the room, just crying. Everyone was hugging and just balling. It was rough. I can't even imagine losing both of my parents or grandparents at the same time. Probably the biggest thing that got me was all of their grandchildren. You could just tell how much they adored their grandparents, and how much their grandparents adored them. A good portion of all the pictures they had up were Karen and Floyd with their grandchildren. We would watch the kids go up and look at their grandparents and just run crying to their parents, burring their heads. It broke my heart. There is nothing that you can say to make that better.

Some people would be mad or turn away from our Father in Heaven. Not us. If anything, it makes us stronger and our faith increases. Of course it's hard to see the big picture of why this would happen to such an amazing family, but we know that trials make us stronger and that everything has reason and purpose. We know that this was their time, and that they were supposed to go together. Sometimes, that knowledge makes to a little easier to get through the day.

As we were driving back to the hotel from the viewing, the song "I know that my Redeemer Lives" came on. As I sat listening to the song I've heard a hundred times a new feeling came over me. The words "and I shall conquer death" stood out to me more than ever. I SHALL conquer death. An immediate feeling of peace and comfort came over me. Not only had Karen and and Floyd conquered death, but my Aunt Laura, Uncle Arlin, Grandpa Calder, Grandpa Cliff, and my Dad have all conquered death. Conquer. It is only through our Redeemer and Brother Jesus Christ that we are able to conquer death and return to live with those who we love more than life itself. I can't even express how much that means to me.

We then had the funeral the next day. I love funerals. Of course not because I like it when people pass away, but I love learning about the lives of the sweet people who are now passed on. No one says anything bad, no one is mad at them, it's all just great things that the people have accomplished and all about the great people they were here, and are now in heaven. I learned so much about Floyd and Karen, it made me wish that I had gotten to know them better, but I know there is time for that later. :) As someone said in the funeral, they were welcomed with open arms and gigantic hugs in heaven and we sure can't wait to see them again :)

We actually drove by the site they were killed at on our way home. I'm not going to lie, I was a little scared of what I was going to see. We pulled over by the side of the road and just sat in silence. I could feel the spirit so strongly. This is where my aunt and uncle had left their bodies and passed on to the other side. We offered a prayer to our Father in Heaven thanking him for everything that he gives us and for the great lives that Karen and Floyd had lived and for the time we got to spend with them. We then continued to pray to protect us on our way home and to be with the Well's family at this trying time.

I am so grateful for prayer and the powerful influence it has on us.

We even had the opportunity to stop and do baptisms at the Mesa temple. It was really fun because all the workers were so nice and you can just feel the spirits of those you are being baptized and confirmed for. I'm grateful that I can help and serve those who cannot be with their families without help from us.

A little more weird stuff about the trip. It took us 11 hours to get to Arizona. 11 long miserable hours. We took our focus to save gas money. Holy cow. Squishy. All 5 of us. Good thing it was in the night or I think we would have killed each other because of the heat and being awake the whole time. We had some good laughs and I think all of us have a couple of bruises, but it was well worth it! We loved the trip!