Simply Kenzie M

I want to wish everyone a late Happy Independence Day! I love this holiday and what it means. With all that's going on in the political world, it's nice to have a day to remember what so many people have done to keep our country free. I mean, just think about it. Everyone voicing their opinion, critiquing others, etc. All of that is possible because we have the freedom to say that. Yeah, you might not like what other's say, but just be grateful that we have the freedom to talk. So many people in this world would and do die for the opportunity to have freedom. Let's take a moment, and be grateful for our freedom and what our forefather's sacrificed for us. Ok, I'm off my freedom rant…on to the good food! I think this is the first time I've ever cooked brussel sprouts. I've always thought two things about brussel sprouts. First, how in the world do you cook them? Second, they will hurt my stomach (says every IBS book out there). Well, I thought I wo...

I wanted to post a little about my story with sugar. I'm slowly trying to add more and more about me as I post, so you can get to know me a little better. When I was in the 8th grade, my friend was doing a "no sugar" challenge for a year. Her parents had promised her a significant amount of money if she could do it. When she told us about it, I immediately wanted to do it. The competitive side in me kicked into gear and I vowed to myself that from that moment on I would not eat sugar. I wasn't doing it for money or anything, just simply for my own challenge. I wanted to see how long I could go without sugar for. So, I quit sugar cold turkey. Sure the sugary stuff looked good, but I kept going strong. As my self-induced challenge continued I found myself dropping more and more weight. I liked that. Being a dancer I saw that as a good thing. As more and more weight came off, I became more and more obsessive about not eating sugar, and eventually restricting food. I won...

I am so grateful for this day that we have to celebrate our father's. I want to dedicate this post to my father because I love him so much and I'm so incredibly grateful to have an example like him in my life. He's always been there for me and now I want to give a little something back to him. I know that I will never be able to express in words just how much I love and appreciate him, but I'll try! Here are some reasons why I love him: 1. He loves my mother. 2. He is a righteous Priesthood holder, and always able to give me blessings. 3. He is charitable. 4. He is wise. 5. He can always calm me down when I am upset or confused. 6. I love his big warm hugs that make me feel safe. 7. I love his "non-smile" when he trying to trick us. 8. For the countless hours he spent helping me with math in high school. 9. For all of the father's interviews we had where I knew I could openly express my feelings and troubles. 10. For all of the daddy-daugh...

This weekend I had the opportunity to go to Zions National Park and hike Angel's Landing. The hike is well known in Utah for being dangerous and difficult, but beautiful and rewarding. I'm not much of a hiker, so why I signed up to hike it I don't know. I will tell you that I'm grateful I did it, but I probably won't do it again. We started the hike at about noon and I was already very tired. The heat was really getting to me, and as we were on the shuttle that was taking us to the trail head all I wanted to do was sleep. When we got to the trail head I looked up and thought, "why in the world am I doing this. This is going to be so hard". I could see little ant-like figures winding around the mountain making their way to the top. I felt overwhelmingly tiny and insignificant compared to this giant mountain. We began the hike, and before we were even a quarter of the way up I was tired, hot, and out of breath.  I kept going, determined that I would make i...

He comforts us when we are alone Of all the people to be born on this Earth, none has walked a lonelier path than that of one man: Jesus Christ. In Isaiah 63:3 Christ says, “I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me” and in verse 5 He says, “and I looked, and there was none to help; and I wondered that there was non to uphold”.   The life of Jesus Christ was spent devoted to others. All He ever did was heal those around Him, whether physically or spiritually. Never was there a time when He denied anyone His love. He sat at dinner with sinners, He stopped for the women who touched his clothes, He was there for Jairus when His daughter needed saving, and He was there to comfort and mourn with Mary and Martha over Lazarus’ death. In the Bible Dictionary under Comforter, it states that “Jesus Christ is the second Comforter and that when any man obtains this comforter, Christ will attend to him.” Not only is He our comforter now, but He was the co...

As it is the season to celebrate mother's, I wanted to dedicate this post to my mother. I honestly don't know what I would do without her. She is my saving grace. It has been so hard to be so far apart these past 2 years as they have been serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Cambodia. Only 2 more months left though and I will be able to give her a hug! Here are just some of the reasons I love and am grateful for my mom: 1. She listens to me.  2. She takes time to be with me even when she is busy or tired.  3. She encourages me to keep going when life gets hard.  4. She gives me advice and counsel.  5. She has always sought to raise a righteous family, and she has succeeded! 6. She teaches me about the Gospel and how to be more like my Savior Jesus Christ by her word and example.  7. She values motherhood. 8. Her testimony is never shaken.  9. She is constantly serving others.  10. She has an ama...

One of my favorite songs is by Carrie Underwood and it's called "Jesus, Take the Wheel". I probably listen to it almost everyday on my way to or from work. It's one of those songs that really gets me thinking about my life and about God's hand in my life. I have no doubt that if we let Him, Jesus will take the wheel and direct us through life. He knows the big picture. He knows where and what each destination is throughout our life, and He wants to guide us. I have learned this several times throughout my life and I'm sure I will have many more experiences with it to come. One of those times was when my dad was called to be a mission president for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Cambodia. The year I spent over there literally changed my life and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I learned very quickly there that God had placed me in this situation for a reason, and that there were a lot of great opportunities for me to learn and chang...

I love Christmas. There is no better time of the year in my opinion. I mostly love it because of the time I get to spend with my family. We have a lot of traditions around Christmas time. We do "pixies" which are like secret santa's to each other, we act out the nativity, we read Christmas stories together, we all sleep together, we all wake up early, and many more! One thing that started several years ago is that my dad makes candied nuts. It is the most wonderful smell in the world when he makes those cinnamon sugar almonds! I love when he does it because not only do they smell and taste amazing, but I can tell he loves doing it! Well, I know it's not Christmas time or anything, but I've had a bunch of nuts sitting in my cupboard, and haven't known what to do with them. I originally made a trail mix with them, but after eating all of the chocolate chips and dried fruit I still had lots of nuts left. I've realized lately that I'm not a huge fan of r...

I've been thinking about writing this post for quite some time now. There has been so much on my mind lately and I thought it would be good to write it out. Hopefully it makes sense :). It can be hard to stay optimistic in this world of ours. There is so much contention, jealousy, self-doubt, and confusion. I feel like there are things all around me telling me to be someone I'm not. I've got to be prettier, thinner, smarter, happier, etc, etc. These dangerous thoughts are driving me and a lot of people to a mind set of great unhappiness with life. It seems like we are continually being driven to a point of disappointment about who we are, where we are, and why we are. For people with psychological disorders, such as depression, these thoughts can be debilitating. They can lead to a point of stagnation if not a downward spiral. One negative thought leads to a negative emotion which leads to a negative behavior, which leads to another negative emotion, and then the cycl...

I absolutely love tortillas, but only if they are nice and soft and can be rolled up. That being said, I find it hard to buy store bought tortillas. Every time I go and think, okay I'll buy them this time, but then I take a look at the ingredient list and it's far too long for me to read through it all. That in and of itself tells me that those tortillas have far too many ingredients. The solution? Homemade tortillas, of course!! I think there's this stigma about homemade tortillas, that they are far too difficult to make. However, I present to you my Spelt Tortillas!! They are incredibly quick and take at most 30 minutes from start to finish. I love that these tortillas can be rolled up really tightly and still not break. I love that they have just 5 ingredients.  Spelt Tortilla s total time: 30 minutes makes: 6-7 tortillas Ingredients: 1 cup spelt flour (or flour of choice, although I don't know how gf flours would work) 1/2 cup milk 1/2...

So I was reading the Book of Mormon the other day when I came across a verse that really stuck out to me. Usually I just skip right over this one, but on this day it struck me in a new way (I love that about the scriptures-they are always new!). The verse is 1 Nephi 2:6 which says, "And it came to pass that when he [Lehi] had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a valley by the side of a river of water".  I got to thinking about the symbolism of a valley and a river. Throughout their travels, Nephi mentions that they pitched their tents next to rivers several times. What is the significance of a river? Well, if you think about it, Jesus Christ has said that He is the Living Water (John 7:38-39). Symbolically, Lehi and his family were always pitching their tents next to Jesus Christ, the Living Water. They stayed close to Jesus their entire journey. Upon realizing this I asked myself, "Am I always pitching my "tent", or my life, next...

I feel like at this time of year there is always a lot of talk about change. It is culture to set new goals and ambitions at the start of a new year. I've always believed that setting goals is a very important thing to do. However, despite making these goals, I find myself never accomplishing them how I would like. This happens year after year. It seems like no matter how hard I try I never get the results I want. Well, this year something's snapped within me. I'm sick of not becoming the person I want to be and know I can! This is the year change WILL happen! The Change Process is something that I recently learned about and want to share because I found it incredibly insightful and helpful. I finally was able to see the specific steps that need to be done in order to change. I realized what all is encompassed in change. So without further ado… Step A: DESIRE-- "I want to change" this one is pretty straight forward. We need to have a desire to change in ...

I wanted to share my experience about deciding whether or not to go on a mission, in hopes that people will understand my choices thus far. My hope is that what I'm writing will help someone who is struggling in any way. I ask only that you respect what I have shared here. These experiences are very sacred and special to me. Two weeks before school started in September I had a very powerful and spiritual experience at work. At the time I worked at Good Earth Natural Foods and worked as a cashier. I was having sort of a rotten morning. For some reason I just wasn't happy. I then helped an older gentlemen who such a difference in my life. I will always remember him and his counsel. He told me that I am beautiful and that I don't need to compare myself to anyone else. What's important is that I look in the mirror and see myself as beautiful. I remember exactly what he said, but that was the gist of it. I remember tears coming to my eyes as he talked to me. In my mind I...