Zavoral Villa!

I finally sent this story to the editor of the Ensign, one of the magazines for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We'll see if they ever publish it. Let me know what you think! Parable of the Flower By SarahLynn Zavoral I once had the opportunity to work with people from all walks of life that seemed very different from my own. As I sought the Lord’s will to know how I could serve and work with them, I had a very clear dream. The message I took from it is one I will never forget. In the dream, I found myself with a group of friends touring a museum. The guide led us into a courtyard where a vase of unusual looking flowers sat on a table. With some solace, the guide informed us that these flowers were special. “When you smell this flower,” he whispered, “it can tell whether you love it or not.” What a peculiar thing for a flower to do , we thought. With a bit of cynicism toward the guide, a man from our group marched up to the flowers. He stooped down and t...

Tomorrow is our two-year wedding anniversary!! We highly recommend being married. In fact, we're surprised that more people aren't getting married these days. Marriage is such a great thing! Already we've experienced a lot of joy from learning and growing together. It was my turn to plan our anniversary celebration, so I took Jeremy to a seafood restaraunt on Newport Beach, and after dinner, he was kidnapped by a Gondola Company. We went on a gondola cruise throughout the port while the sun set. We had baggets, sparkling cider, chease, salami, a gondolier and Italian music. Jeremy was really surprised by it all and actually liked it a lot. Here's our thoughts on how to enjoy marriage: Eat off of the same plate while you watch TV. Take pictures of each other. It helps boost his/her self esteem. Learn something new to keep impressing your spouse, like playing the piano. Say "I love you" every time you think it. Pretend you're in a musical together while you ...

I took Katie and Matt to Crystal Cove near Laguna Beach. We got to explore a bunch of tide pools. There were thousands of hermit crabs, hundreds of sea anemones, dozens of sideways walking crabs, several fish and one enormous sea slug. Make sure to click on our slideshow of Katie and Matt's Visit to see all that we did to entertain them. We drove Matt and Katie back to Jeremy's parents house in good ol' Sac Town. It's nice that we don't have to pay one penny for gas because Hormel gave us a company car to use however we want. It's the pimpinest Dodge Charger you've ever seen! My favorite part of the 8 hour drive was having Katie read the play Pygmalion to us. Jeremy says it was his least favorite part. He felt like Katie was yelling in the back seat, but he obviously can't tell the difference between noise and dramatic articulation. It was Grandpa Davidson's birthday this past week, so we had a party. Don't worry, Jeremy took the opportunity to...

"Get ready for a momentary intoxication of THRILL!" This is what we heard for a solid hour and forty minutes as we shuffled in line to ride the newest roller coaster at 6 flags Magic Mountain: X2. Make no mistake. This ride was designed for type X extremists with a completely vertical 200 ft drop, 76 mph turns, rotating seats, real fire flames and deafening music. I was terrified to go on it. When I was young, I loved roller coasters. Heck, I've even been sky diving! But for some reason I've become a total nut case about riding roller coasters. It might be a combination of 1) too much stress with anticipating the first gigantic drop and 2) fear of breaking my jaw from screaming too loud. Silly fear, you might say, but I have my reasons. So after the stress from the Goliath, Viper, Batman, and Riddler's Revenge, I was ready to throw in the towel. But Katie and Matt, our little sister and brother who are visiting us this week (what a blast it has been so far!) found...

Well, Jeremy is doing great with his career, but I've basically been shooting the breeze out here for the last two months. Yeah, I've got my Sing Me English project, a new calling at church, and a bunch of goals to keep me occupied. But without a job, things have been pretty solitary-- and at times depressing-- for me. Needless to say, it is a little weird being a stay at home mom without actually being a mom. My biggest decision lately has been whether I should watch TV or read a book before I go to the pool. I do a lot of blogging, email, bill paying and cleaning. (I never realized how much laundry two people can create in a week!) Although not having accountability to anyone was a luxury the first week or two, I'm getting antsy to have a real job. But not just any job, I want to be doing what I am passionate about, what I spent 5 years in college for. I want to be bringing joy to children with music and the arts. I feel the same way I did last summer: stuck...waiting...u...