Enjoy The Ride

HEY! HEY! HEY!

WELCOME BACK INTO MY WORLD!

I know, I know, I disappeared into thin air, and you have all been torn up about it! I know you have! It's okay, you don't have to be strong anymore waiting for an update on my 

(Insert sarcastic tone when reading below)

INCREDIBLY INTERESTING LIFE

HA HA HA!!!

So, I know you're all asking yourselves, "What is new in Shanon's world?"

Well prepare yourselves for the ride of your life!

Please remember, keep your seat belt fastened at all times and keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times. Enjoy! ;)

We shall start with my trip to Oregon!

I just returned from Woodburn, Oregon a week ago! You see that is where one of the most amazing people in the world, Sharon Oler Benson, lives! Yeah, her husband is pretty cool too...lol!

They visited their families here in Idaho for the weekend and then I drove back with them!

It was great to see them again and to be able to spend some one-on-one time with them!

We were able to get a family picture before they left, however we are missing one because Clay had already left for work. 

While in Oregon I had a ton of fun with my Sharebear and Nate! We went to Multnomah Falls, Portland Zoo (my favorite animal was the sea lion), and went rock climbing just to name a few.

And of course we spent loads of time just being silly!

Moving on...

Life is wonderful!! I'm in a bit of a transition phase trying to figure out exactly what I want out of life and working to accomplish that! Every day is an adventure in my life, and I am LOVING it!!

Just for fun I'll share some things that make me smile, bring me happiness, and yes, occasionally even make me break out into song:

GLEE!!

FOOD(duh)!!

FRIENDS!!

FAMILY!!

MUSIC!!

READING!! 

LIFE!!

Life is wonderful! I have my bad days.

I'm far from perfect, and sometimes I wake up and I have bad hair days, everything I try on seems to make me look fat, a new ZIT has formed and taken over my face, or I just feel blah.

Yep, bad days are no fun, but with the bad days also come good days!

Good days where I feel beautiful, energized, and ready to conquer the world!! 

Those good days totally make up for the bad days, and I smile :) because life is wonderful!

So as part of my new found determination to try and keep up with blogging, as per the request of  my sister, this blog will serve as a way to share the little things I see, do, or experience each day that make life AMAZING!!

So I dare you to enjoy the ride of life with me, take in the view, and smile as I include you in the ride of my life!

Thanks for riding with me "In My World" today! I hope you have enjoyed yourselves, and I hope you visit again! <3

Missing You Grandma & Grandpa

Well, lately I have found myself thinking of my grandparents often and how much I miss them! It's crazy sometimes how often I find myself wishing I could have just one more of their amazing hugs or kisses they would often shower me with every time I saw them!

If I could have one more day with someone not on this earth anymore, it would be the amazing woman pictured above! My grandmother, Bonnie Hebdon, has and always will be my hero! She never failed to bring a smile to my face with her loving and kind words. Some of my most treasured moments were spend with this woman. She is absolutely amazing to me and always will be! Some of my favorite memories are cooking with her (she was a fabulous cook), sitting next to her in church as she would rub my arm, and our weekly trips to take her to get her hair done and to the grocery store. Every Friday she would get her hair done, then we would go grocery shopping, get a donut (she would always get the jelly filled, chocolate, or the glazed croissants, then to Maverick to fill her mug with Diet Coke, my mothers mug with Pepsi and mine with whatever I wanted that day! I looked forward to those weekly trips and missed them so much once she got sick and was not able to go out anymore. I also loved our trips to Hong Kong! She loved Chinese food and Hong Kong was her favorite! She would always get the Sweet & Sour Pork with Ham Fried Rice! :)

I miss the fact that every time I would have to leave her after visiting tears would be shed because she didn't want me to go. Her grandkids were such a treasure to her. I could always tell I was loved by my grandma unconditionally and that I could always count on her to make me feel better.

My last memory of her happened a couple weeks before she passed away. I had spend the weekend in Blackfoot, at the time I was going to school in Rexburg, and I had spent the night at her place that weekend to help her during the night. I remember waking up to help her as I heard her call my name over the baby monitor. How I loved and miss her voice so much! I remember as I was preparing to leave to go back to Rexburg for school, she hugged me and cried. She then asked me to stay just a little bit longer. I sat down next to her on the arm of her big chair and we just held each other for a while. I will treasure those last few minutes we had together for the rest of my life! I wasn't able to say goodbye to her and so for me those last few minutes that I was able to spend with her are of such importance to me!

I wrote a poem shortly after she passed away that explained so much of what I was feeling. It was wrote from her point of view. You can read it here.

This handsome man is my amazing grandfather! Oh my dear Grandpa Hebdon! Ha, he was such a character. Although he had a short temper at times he was one of the most loving men I have known. He may not have always shown his love as often as some, but I always knew that he loved me without a doubt. It was also evident hat he loved his dear wife, Bonnie, and my grandmother very much. Once she got sick, he did everything he could to help get her feeling better and on the road to recovery. He was the hardest worker I have ever known in my life. He worked so hard to support his family, and even in his old age he continued to work harder than most people I know. He was so funny! Sometimes I would just find myself laughing so much at some of the things he said! He always gave great hugs, just like my grandma, and he patted me back every time I got a hug, and he always gave out kisses! He loved his coffee, Pepsi, and milk! :) He was never a picky eater and would eat anything you made for him and tell you every time how great it tasted! He was such a fisherman! I've never known anyone to love fishing as much as this man did! I will never forget all of the numerous pictures of him fishing, and how he was so patient with me every time I went fishing with him. He would bait my hook every time because he knew I didn't like to do it, and every time I would get upset that I let a fish get away he would say, "Don't worry, you'll get another one." He was the happiest when he was with family and fishing. He also loved hunting and camping! I looked forward to our annual camping trips in Palisades over the fourth of July for his birthday every year! I always had so much fun! 

He passed away after fighting cancer for the second time in his life! He first suffered from prostate cancer and beat it, only to have to fight another type of cancer later in life. He suffered with Multiple Myeloma which took him not long after we all found out he was sick. He was always in such pain because of the cancer but he would never let on to how much pain he was really feeling. 

I am so grateful for the last camping trip we were able to go on with him this last year. I remember he was bound and determined to go despite the doctors counsel. So he went, oxygen and all. He enjoyed himself even though he had to be hooked up to his oxygen the whole time. He even got out on the boat and went out on the four wheelers a couple times. I will never forget the four wheeler ride I was able to go on with him that last time camping with him.

Although it was an incredibly hard experience, I am glad that I was able to be with my grandfather in his last days on this earth. He passed away at home with all of his family surrounding him. We were all able to be there with him as he took his last breaths, and although that may sound like not the most wonderful experience, it was something I wouldn't change for anything. After not being able to say goodbye to my grandma when she passed it meant a lot to me to be able to tell him goodbye and how much I loved him before he had to go.

I also wrote a couple poems when he was suffering from the cancer right before he passed away. One was about family, which you can find here.

I just needed to vent and write down the feelings that have been on my mind regarding these two amazing people. I will never go a day without thinking about them, and how much I love and miss them!  Growing up right next door to them was a joy and the close bond I shared with them is more precious than words can express. Oh, what I wouldn't give for one more hug, one more kiss, one more "I love you" from the two of them.

My Life Lately

Wow! I'm not sure where to even start! I'm guess I'm just going to go ahead and type until I run out of things to say. Sharon has bugged me a few times about updating my blog, so here goes nothing! This one is for you Sharebear! :)

Lets see, where to start? I am still working at JC Penney. I've been there for about a year and a half. It's definitely not the job I would like to have for the rest of my life, but it helps pay the bills for now until I finish school and can get a "big girl" job. It seems like sometimes I am so behind those I graduated high school with. So many of them are finished with their bachelors degrees and are married and have kids! That just seems ridiculously crazy to me! I used to get really frustrated over the fact that I sometimes felt like I had accomplished nothing with my life, seeming as how I had not finished school, didn't have a great job, and was neither married, or had kids. Then I came to the realization that I am not everyone else. The current state of my life is not something I need to constantly compare to others. I have had different experiences, different struggles, and also different successes than those I graduated with.

This last year has been crazy! Two of the most difficult things I've had to deal with is losing my grandpa and my sister! My grandfather passed away after his second battle with cancer. He fought so hard and lived such a wonderful life! I love him and my grandma so much and miss them both every day. I also miss my sister Sharon Marie like crazy! She married a wonderful guy named Nathan Benson and they moved to Oregon. It's one thing to lose your twin sister to marriage, but then they had to go and move to Oregon too! Oh well, if I had to lose her to anyone, I'm glad it was Nate! I love them both so much and had a wonderful time visiting them in Oregon over Halloween! :)

Two of the most wonderful things in my life include Maleah LaRue and Kaitlyn Marie! Those two little girls are so much fun, and I just can't get enough of them! They never fail to bring a smile to my face and I've never seen such beautiful girls in my entire life! My sister Sara and her husband Clay make some of the cutest little baby girls I have ever seen!

I am also so incredibly happy for my brother Marcus and his wife Shylo! They just bought a house and it couldn't have come at a better time! They have been so patient and I'm so glad they were able to get the house. I love them so much!

Another change as of lately is I am now living with my Aunt Vicky! I enjoy living here very much. She is a wonderful roommate and I'm grateful for all she does for me!

All in all, life is beautiful! Thanksgiving was wonderful, and I'm excited for Christmas! The holidays are much different this year without either one of my grandma and grandpa alive, and Sharon and Nate in Oregon, but I know I will still have a wonderful time with my family! I have wonderful family, friends, and so much to be thankful for! :)

Also, a quick side note, one of my favorite television shows is Glee! Last night they played two of my favorite songs! The first is from a classic movie which I absolutely love, Dirty Dancing. The second, is by a band called Florence & The Machine who I can't get enough of. I got SO excited when they started playing these two songs! I was absolutely giddy, smiling from ear to ear. Music is amazing! Videos of both songs are posted below! Oh, how I love these songs and Glee! :)

I've Had The Time of My Life



Dog Days Are Over



Well, I think that's all for now! Peace out and keep smiling! Happy Holidays! :)

Spread the Love

"And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considereth not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."
-Matthew 7:3-5

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them."
-Mother Theresa

"Judgements prevent us from seeing the good that lies beyond appearances."
-Wayne Dyer

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path."
-Paulo Coelho

What is the reason for all the quotations? You might ask me this question if I were before you right now, as you are reading this. Well, the topic of these quotations, judging others, has been on my mind a lot lately, more so than ever before. You see, I used to think I was an expert at judging others, and it was one of my biggest weaknesses. I would walk down the street and think quietly to myself about others appearances, and if I was not alone I would occassionally let a judgemental comment slip from my lips, never thinking to actually look beyond the physical appearance rather than judge based upon an appearance different than my own.

I look back now and feel so ridiculous and childish. The statement "we learn from experience" really rings true through my heart. I've made many decisions and changes in my life throughout the years that not everyone has agreed with, and I have been judged for my decisions and actions just as I had judged others in the past. Now I know that until the end of time we all will have differing opinions on different situations in life, whatever it may be about. We do not have to agree with the decisions of others, however, it is never our place to judge.

No two people's lives are exactly alike, no two people have experienced the exact same pain, no two people have experienced the exact same struggles, and no two people have had to make the same choices.

So I ask, how can one possibly feel that they are in a place to judge the apperance, decisions, actions, or beliefs of another? Why do we waste our time passing judgement on others when we ourselves have plently of things to improve upon in our own lives? I believe so strongly that if we would take the time to get to know the heart of a person before we hastily make rash judgements this world would be a much easier place to live in, and much pain that we cause others could be avoided.

I am NOT EVEN CLOSE to being perfect. I still end up judging others at times, but I have made many changes in my life to improve upon this weakness. I have a wide variety of friends to which I am very grateful for. Each one of them has taught me something different, something valuable, something I would not trade for the world. I love each one of them for who they are, strengths and weaknesses, good and bad, past and present. This was made possible not by hate, not by judgemental behavior, but acceptance and love.


So I mentioned I had been thinking about this topic for quite a while, for months, and I feel now more than ever that the solution is love. It always has been and I believe always will be. I wrote this poem one night, about a month ago when i was thinking about this very topic. Now, I'm not a poet, I just enjoy writing, so it's nothing great by any means but it really helps to portray my thoughts on the subject. I hope you enjoy it.

We Become One
By Shanon Oler

On the outside
we all seem different
black, white, gay, and straight
overweight, skinny, tall, and short
drug addict, alcoholic, sinner, and saint.
Yet one things brings us all together,
there is one thing that can create ties between
the two most unlikely people you could imagine.
Love.
In love there is power,
the power to create a peace,
a harmony in an otherwise chaotic world.
In love you lose sight of discrimination and hatred,
physical and emotional differences,
of addictions, sins, and self-righteousness.
Love is within each one of us and
it is love that rebuilds the broken heart,
gives us the strength to forgive, and to let go,
and it is love that we yearn for
no matter how bad we have hurt before.
In love we become one,
tied together by a world of unspoken similarities.


Spread the love!

Shanon Carlie

Welcome to My World

Here I am! Yes, it's true! Contrary to the popular belief of myself, I have joined the blogger world!

CRAZY!

You know how crazy this truly is if you really know me.

 I have never been the blogging type, but at this point in my life, change seems to be the only constant in my life. Consequently, I have decided to embrace that change rather than fight it tooth and nail as I usually do. Very rarely am I happily compliant with this unavoidable constant, however, that is about to change also.

Yeah I know, you would think I would have become accusomed by now, considering at the age of 23 I have worked about ten different jobs and moved over ten times since I graduated high school, but NO! 

Ha, I'm not stubborn at all!

Well, after realizing the other day that I think way too much about these changes I've decided I need an outlet, a place to vent, to share my thoughts, my experiences, and anything else I feel the need to share. I just hope that someone might be interested enough "In My World" to follow this blog.

Here is a glimpse into my world in the words of Marilyn Monroe:

"Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."