Name: Shanna

Birthday: June 13

Age: 28

Current Obsessions:

1. -Digital Scrapbooking
   

2. -Blogging/Website Design
   

3. -Catching up with old friends
   

4. -Facebook
   

5. -Reading and talking about what I’m reading.  
   

Education:

Bachelor of Science in Business/Management

Working Toward MBA

Occupation:

Wife, Mother, and Student

Music I like:

1. -Inspirational/Religious
   

2. -Owl City
   

3. -Sara Bareilles
   

4. -Michael Bublé
   

5. -A Fine Frenzy
   

6. -Paramore
   

7. -Muse
   

8. -Feist
   

9. -Yeal Naim
   

10. -Harry Connick Jr.
    

11. -Celine Dion
    

12. -Rascal Flats
    

13. -Brad Paisley
    

14. -Carrie Underwood
    

15. -Frank Sinatra
    

16. -Anything on my iPod
    

Movies I like

1. -Pride and Prejudice (BBC)
   

2. -The Importance of Being Earnest
   

3. -Singin’ in the Rain
   

4. -Sleep Beauty
   

5. -The Little Mermaid
   

Literature I like

1. -The Book of Mormon
   

2. -The Hunger Games
   

3. -The Uglies Trilogy
   

4. -The Twilight Series
   

5. -Anything by Jane Austen
   

6. -Anything by Gerald N. Lund
   

7. -Anything by Orson Scott Card, particularly The Women of Genesis Series, Ender’s Game and Ender’s Shadow
   

8. -The Harry Potter Series
   

9. -The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
   

10. -Ivanhoe (Thanks Mrs. Pederson)
    

11. -A Tale of Two Cities
    

12. -Number the Stars
    

I am a wife, mother, and *forever* student. My life is full of amazing things. Because I am married to a Marine, I have been able to live in more places than I probably would have if Josh had not enlisted. In the past few years we have lived in Utah, Missouri, California, Virginia and North Carolina.

I love my life. Everyone has hardships, but I am happy to be me and so blessed to be able to have incredible experiences. I am blessed with a loving, caring and hard working husband. Our little boy Nathan is such a joy to be around all day. He makes me laugh and I love watching him grow. What a blessing it is to be a mother!

I have completed my Bachelor’s Degree through University of Phoenix. I am now working toward my MBA with a concentration in Accounting with a goal of taking the Uniform CPA Examination and becoming a CPA. It is such an exciting time for me. I’v come to the completion of one of my goals in life and have started another. I try to better myself with each day, learn something new and apply it. I don’t always succeed, but at least I am trying, always moving, never standing still.

I don’t have much spare time, but when I do, I love to update my website, scrapbook, take pictures and read. If you have any book recommendations for me, let me know.

If you would like to read about my life in its entirety (instead of the past few years), continue on:

I was born in Orem, Utah, on June 13.  I am the oldest of seven children.  I grew up in Utah and Idaho.  The first eight years of my life were spent in Utah County.  We lived in Pleasant Grove where, when I was 3-years-old, I woke up at 5am and went next door (we lived in a duplex).  I knocked on the door and asked if my friend Marie could play.  Her dad was not very happy to have me wake him up so early on a Saturday morning.  In Central Orem we could watch movies in our yard at the Drive-Up Movie Theater across the street. We lived in Springville where I got the chicken pox and threw water balloons at the trains that would pass by during the summer.  I loved school and had a wonderful time at Vineyard Elementary in Orem.  My dad was a police officer and would pick me up from school in his cruiser; he would call my name over his speakers to let me know he was there.  I thought it was the neatest thing.

When I was eight-years-old, we moved to Montpelier, Idaho, located in Southeast Idaho. It was wonderful to live so close to our Grandma and Grandma and Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Rasmussen.  We would go on “drives” to the bird refuge every Sunday in the spring and summer.  We saw ducks and ducklings, geese and goslings, cranes making nests and many other wonderful things.  During the summer, I had a lawn mowing business.  I would take care of six lawns on our street every week, along with that of a laundry-mat every two weeks.  It taught me a great deal about responsibility.  Bear Lake was so close we would go there almost every week during the summer.

During high school in Montpelier, I was part of the honors program.  I was on the Academic Decathlon team.  While competing at state, I won an award for my essay and literature review.  I was also in the marching band, jazz band and concert band, playing the clarinet.  One of my fondest memories of high school at Bear Lake High is of Seminary.  The school allowed us to go during regular hours, but only during 2 out of 3 trimesters.  During the other trimester, I was able to go to early morning devotionals.  I made great friends and loved it there. 

Before my Junior year in high school, we moved to Southern Utah to a little town called Bicknell.  I transferred to Wayne High School.  That was quite a shock for me.  There were only 36 people in my graduating class.  It was a great experience though.  The band was small and I was a little disappointed, but I was selected to attend the Southern Utah University Honor Band Festival.   I made friends quickly and had lots to do. 

Part of my great experience is due to my academic counselor wanting to help me continue the education I had started in Montpelier.  Wayne High School didn’t have an honors program, but I was able to take college courses called “EdNet.”  These courses applied to my high school credits as well as future college credits.  My counselor also encouraged me to apply for several activities between my junior and senior years.  I applied and was accepted to Girl’s State and Governor’s Honors Academy.  I earned more college credits there and even received a leadership scholarship to Southern Utah University because of my participation in GHA. 

I ran for Senior President and won.  I was called to be on the seminary council and loved it.  I competed in the Sterling Scholar Awards competition and was chosen to represent my school in the Music category.  I was also a part of many clubs and activities.  I had a great senior year and graduated with honors.

Then it was off to SUU.  Due to my participation in Honor Band, I was able to be a part of SUU’s Marching Band.  Because of this, I had to be there a month before school started to practice our routines.  While there, I was chosen to be a Presidential Ambassador for SUU due to my leadership scholarship.  A lot of the PA’s had been my counselors at GHA, and the new PA’s had attended GHA with me,  so it was nice to see some familiar faces.  There were quite a few of us who were part of the Marching Band and we became fast friends.  I was also involved in Concert Band, Pep Band, Orchestra and the Clarinet Quintet.  One of the highlights of my year was going to the NCAA Basketball tournament and playing in the pep band.

That summer, I decided to stay in Cedar City in order to keep my job as a cook at Wingers (gotta love their wings!)  That is when I met Josh.  We had our first date on July 17, 2001 and he proposed to me two months later on September 16th.  We were married in the Salt Lake Temple on December 21, 2001.  I am extremely blessed to have him in my life.  He is a wonderful man and a great example.  The rest is history…