A Seahorse & Her Moonfish

To be or not to be

2011-07-25T09:27:00.000-07:00

So being in AZ is always an adventure. For one, it's hot. Two, my family is crazyyy!! But in a good way. they are loud and funny. Little Bros are adorable. I almost start crying when I think about how much I have missed them growing up.

Moonfish is golfing right now with some buddies and my favorite return missionary cousin ever :) So happy he is home and I was able to see him. So far today I have established that I will be tired this entire trip, if you wake up after 6am it is already too late to go running because of the blazing heat, and I've washed 3 tiny little puppies. so fun.

I just wanted to drop in and say hello to the blogging world.

Anyways. I am loving this skirt over here at NattheFatRat. It makes me smile.

K I better go get some food in my stummy before its too late.

Hope you had a good weekend!

home sweat home. (seriously, it's like so hot here)

2011-07-24T05:33:00.000-07:00

well we made te 10 hourish drive from provo to arizona. finally i get to see my lovely little family. i have been getting texts from people saying, your mom looks so good, for the past few weeks now. and folk, its true. my mom is itty bitty. oh, dont worry she is still one fine foxy lady. but my dad, he is looking fit. man, i have a good looking family. i shall send pictures so you can come to love them too.

hope everything is going well for you

peace. be kind to everyone

The Girl I Never Knew I Was

2011-07-19T12:20:00.000-07:00

please let me tell you something that concerns me.

since my sophomore year in high school have feel i have been the same height. 5 foot 6 inches. well then a met a girl or two who also claimed to be 5 foot 6 inches but some how they were taller than me. this made me question what i thought i had been told. or i though those girls must be mistaken.

well last night i got sick of all the rumors going around about me not really being the height i claimed to be so many years now that i decided to put an end to it. turns out, according to the tape measure which resides in zacks tool box ,

i am 5 foot 5 inches.

five foot, five inches.

seriously.

all these years i would walk around blabbing about my 5 foot 6 inch stature and now all of the sudden i am not. what a joke. had i known sooner i could have had a totally different high school experience. i could have been in a few plays, i could have possibly been a flyer in freshman cheer, i could have kept with cheer and been a cheerleader all through high school which could have led me down a different career path. oh my, life would be so different. thank goodness i didnt find out about this sooner. my married life is far too good to think anything could possibly be better.

What would you call this?

2011-07-16T10:32:00.000-07:00

Can you guess what this is?

Ohhh- it's a pillow. . .I would LOVE to find someone who made this look good.

To Judge is to be Ignorant

2011-07-16T10:05:00.000-07:00

recently I finished an autobiography written by Marlyn Monroe before her early death at 36. My perspective on her life totally changed. I didn't know a whole lot about her in the first place, all I knew was that she was the sex icon of her time.

well turns out, she didn't want any of that at all. she wanted to be wanted. she wanted to be loved. she wanted to be known.
All growing up she didn't have anyone who wanted her except for manual labor or sex. when she was nine she got her first "prostitution" gig that she didn't want. she got paid a nickle.
Any time she thought she was going to "make it big" turns out she was only wanted because of her curves and mysterious personality.
she was told multiple times that she was NOT photogenic. Ha. that's all I have to say about that.

I am once again reminded that I am far too judgmental.
Oh and another thing- who decided that being poor is funny? I can't understand that at all. Why is it funny that a child has to go to school wearing the same outfit day after day?
Why is it funny when an adult is driving around in a car that is about to fall apart and runs out of gas on the way to work.
It's not funny. So don't laugh please.

Every time I have decided that I didn't like someone it was because I didn't understand them. I didn't know where they were coming from.

I'm trying to not judge.

what a site to see. if anyone was there to see if :)

2011-07-13T10:29:00.001-07:00

picture this.

a blonde girl out for an afternoon run on her lunch break. she sees a nice little park she would like to check out. so the girl jogs across the street and just when she reaches the curb on the other side she falls smack on her face.

now picture that girl as me. it was quite embarrassing. no one saw though so dont worry

A Provo Bucket List (to accomplish before we leave Utah

2011-07-10T05:45:00.000-07:00

The Hubs and I have been trying to figure out fun things we can do in Provo. We've hiked the Y, we've explored BYU campus, we've fed the ducks at BOTH duck ponds, we've visited J-Daws- twice (not all what I was told). We saw them try to put the fire out when the Provo Tabernacle burnt down. we've gone up the canyon countless times, visted the natural hot springs (disgusting, friends. disqusting) I know there is tons more to do but we are having a tough time finding them.
And so, last night at 6pm we set out to find the adventure. First stop was to pick up the pizza Zack has been craving for weeks (maybe even months). And then, with the beautiful weather and all- the park was calling our name.
Yes, I can eat half a large Domino's pizza. I shouldn't- but I can (if I ever need to).
We just laid in the grass watching couples throw footballs back and forth (we decided the girl was far better than the guy) and playing a game of bad mitten. I often wonder how many of the couples are married. Most of them are just trying to impress the other and try to be as adorable as they can be. It's cute, really.
There was a group of people (college age students) dressed in black and talking really loud. they were setting up some sort of stage and families and couples started laying blankets out gathering around the stage.
Turns out it was "Shakespeare in the Park". I'd heard of it but never knew anyone who had seen it. it was actually pretty entertaining. We decided there were a couple actors that were REALLY talented.
The show ended just before it started looking like rain (which never did end up coming) and we set off to get the dessert Zack has been craving (I've deprived him of all deliciously unhealthy foods as of late). Macy's Soft Service Ice Cream, in a cone of course.
It's finally warm enough to be outside past 7pm so we opted to take it outside instead of at our usual table near the TV.
I hate TV by the way. Takes up so much time.

Field of Dreams- Apparently it's a big deal and it's Somewhere in Iowa. Here's what I found in Iowa instead

2011-07-06T18:03:00.000-07:00

The parfait that expires on a day that doesn't exist.
Does that mean it never expires?

Juliette. Such a sweet girl.

This cute girl is my favorite.
I would adopt her if I could.

Fire Flies and Lighting Bugs- or Are They the Same Thing?

2011-07-03T04:46:00.000-07:00

hey there

sorry for the absence. you will never gues where i am right now. iowa. gardner iowa. super fun. let me tell you a little about iowa around july 1st to 3rd 2011. its hott. like 105 degrees with 95 percent humidity. i literally wanted to walk round nked. i went running and i was sweating like crazy but not cause i was working hard, no, it was due to the incredible heat.

and then friday evening there was a huge storm. as we were admirng the lightnigh bugs it started raining like crazy. when we arrived back at the hotel all the power went out from all of the buildings surrounding the hotel. we gathered in the pitch black loby with tons of strangers waiting to check in. it was pretty funny.

so im blogging on my phone and i cant figure out how to capitalize my letters and howto get other punctuations other than a comma and a period. so please excuse the mess of a post. also i dont know how to add captions to the pictures, so here they are, we had yogart that was to expire on june 31st. the other picture is a picture of a couple of my cute nices and nephew riding in a tracker. its so funny listening to children talk when they arent with adults. one nephew asked me if there was humid in asia. then he said oh like in the indonisian forest. he is 7. no idea how he knows about the indonisian forest..

wo my phone wont let me upload those pictures. soooo...this is awkward now...um rain check. okay. thanks.

Play me a song

2011-06-26T05:02:00.000-07:00

We got a piano.
Yes, a real piano.
Where shall we put it you ask?
I have not a clue. Our apartment is far too small.
Do we play?
No. Zack can play a lovely song but that's about it.

But we got one and it is a terrible mess, but sounds lovely.

Happy Saturday!

2011-06-25T05:30:00.001-07:00

Some lovely posts created by lovely people just to make me smile-

Fancy International Thrifts

I love when crafty beautiful girls can take an
ugly dress and make it beautiful

Purses I am dying to add to my wardrobe

on another note (not too high pitched, just a medium soft tone note)- our bathroom is getting fixed today ("yay!" I can hear you chant on my behalf. thank you).

Also last night we watched Benny and Joon with our good friends Quin&Nicole. It was lovely.
If you haven't seen that movie, please watch it.
If you have seen it and you liked it, please see it again.
If you saw it but you didn't really like it I order you to watch it again and again until you do like it. I'm certain you will find love for it.
Wasn't Johnny Depp just astonishing? (typical Johnny Depp-crazy man role)

I hope the weekend is fantastic. Here is your weekly does of farm animals to keep you happy because, well, aren't cows adorable? And how about my husband? wait don't answer that- I already know.

Moo.

P.S. I love you
P.S.S. don't worry, There will more than likely be more farm animals to come. I was pretty obsessed.

Banana Sink

2011-06-21T19:29:00.000-07:00

*NOTICE* Please disregard the mess you are about to encounter. I will clean it up after you take a peek. This was just too funny to not share

This is what happens when I don''t give Zack enough sleep, or when he is watching sports while making food:

Dear Zack,
I know I've left the kitchen a mess, but the sink is no place for your garbage. Please remove and dispose of in proper place. Thank you, Love. You Rock.

Love,
Seahorsexoxo

a sweet kiss

2011-06-21T11:13:00.000-07:00

via

alright, so I may be wayyy behind everyone else because apparently this circulated around the globe faster than you can say "lickity, split" but i am in love with this picture. looks as though its an image straight from Hollywood. How romantically sweet.

the second little piggy built his house out of brick...first with wood

2011-06-20T12:43:00.000-07:00

a few weekends ago zack decided we should just build our own house. how does it look

i know it seems a bit small but it really is quite spacious.

okay you caught me. thats not our house. i lied, okay. but zack did help with building this shed at his sisters house. check out those muscles. and farmers tan..sexy.

Happy Sabbath. Happy Father's Day.

2011-06-19T05:04:00.000-07:00

Oh what a happy day. Can I just say how nice it is to wake up early Sunday mornings and listen to it rain outside? Can I tell you how much it sucks that my dear Zachary has to leave for work at 5:30 AM so I am left here to try to fill my time lest I go insane!

Well enough about me. Today is about Fathers. I dedicate this post to all Fathers, soon-to-be Fathers, and someday-will-be Fathers but especially to my Dear Dad. He is a rock star. literally.

A few years ago he decided he wanted to play the guitar. And he did. I hope that some day he and I can play a song together.

A few years before that, he decided he wanted to become a cyclist. And he did. He got the whole family involved and we would go on long Saturday morning rides together and participate in races.

Around that same time my dad decided he wanted to learn how to be a really good chef (I don't know if that was his ultimate goal, but it happened). He is so good at cooking. I love being in the kitchen with him and watching him cook. He teaches me new techniques every time.
He made my wedding cake you know. Yes, he did. It was a giant cupcake. I'll have to find a picture and show you.

I remember going camping with my family most years of growing up. My dad would pack everything up in the camp trailer and when we got to the camp ground he would unpack everything and make it super comfortable.
The last several Octobers he's taken the family down to Rocky Point, Mexico and we would stay there for a week or so. He was so good about letting us just go out and play while he set up camp. I don't know exactly how long it would take him but I sure appreciate it and I'm so sorry I did not help more.

My dad taught me how to drive the boat and dock it. When I would get super frustrated and I would be in tears wanting to give up, Dad would not let me. He would just smile and say "try again. you're fine". I'd get so mad at him. Thanks Daddy!

I swear my dad can fix anything. He is amazing. Whenever I have issues and need to fix something I call my dad. I call my dad for everything. You can tell he truly cares.

I love you Dad! So very much. Thank you for everything.

Sugar and Bushes. then Shopping

2011-06-17T07:52:00.000-07:00

me: hey babe do you care if i still go to D.I?

Moonfish. no that's great.

Me: ... do you want to come...?

Moonfish:  sure I'll come

me: Are you sure? It's going to be pretty boring and...well...I might take a while

Moonfish: if you don't care then maybe I won't come...
(we haven't reached the point where we can be completely honest without beating around the bush but we are to the stage where we can see the honesty without the sugar.)

And this is why I don't recommend Zack coming with me on shopping extravaganzas:

Scary, huh?
I tried all of it on. Only took me. . .45 mins?
I'm pretty quick. I tried to put all of it back, (because lets face it, employees really don't deserve to have to find a place for all of these just because I felt like playing dress up)
but the cute little old lady insisted that I put them on her clothes rack. She is sweet. Bless her dear heart.

How long before I give in. .

2011-06-16T14:54:00.000-07:00

i thought craving sugar was just a natural way of life. it wasn't until i couldn't stop thinking about chocolate and cookies and ice cream while at work that i realized i might have a problem

articles i have read told me that sugar cravings and complex carb cravings go hand in hand. if you want one, you want the other. that is exactly me. i love salty almost as much as sweet. when i try to be honest with myself about which i like better i can hardly think. 

at work i have access to sugar in all different forms. all covered in chocolate heaven (or hell, how ever you think of it) A co-worker told me that it's satan's fault that I love chocolate. He told me that eating Chocolate is a sin. . .really? Thanks for the judgment.  

i try to stay away. truly. but it is so darn impossible. i know that i get sugar highs and then i crash and i literally fall asleep on my desk. 

everything i have read about in the last 2 hours at work somberly disctrict sugar addiction like a drug or alcohol addiction. i have yet to find a sugar and carb rehab facility near by. i think there is one in fiji though...

So now that i have confessed my greatest "sin" to the blogging world, i suppose i should tell you how i'm going redeem myself.

i don't know yet. i need to eat more food so that when i do get bored and hungry i will reach for the veggies and only glace toward the Drawer of Chocolate Death. I need a support team. So far Zack has joined. And that's the only team member i need at this point. He is a rock star Moonfish.

K, i love you.

ma certo!

2011-06-16T07:20:00.000-07:00

isnt he just the cutest. we saw him on center street by an italian place. i had to take a picture. obviously.

Good Morning, Good Morning

2011-06-16T05:23:00.000-07:00

via

Can my hobby be photography even though I suck at taking pictures?
I imagine when I'm older and we have a home of our own that I will have a room that has a wall covered in black and white images from our years past framed in classic silver and with a 3 inch matte around the picture hung on a solid white brick wall.
Aren't pictures just so fascinating? I wonder what they will be like when our children grow up.

Happy Warm Beautiful Wednesday!

2011-06-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

I woke up one early morning from a dream feeling disgusting. In the dream I had been taking shot after shot of some vile concoction. I'm pretty sure it was suppose to be vodka but I have never tasted the revolting liquid so I couldn't tell you for certain. All I know is it did not make me want anything but water to flush the imaginary drink from my system. I have expressed my feelings about dreams before but I can tell you this one will not come true. Especially because i have thought about it so much. Those dreams usually don't come true.Usually.

I have realized a thing or two about myself in the past little while. I jump from hobby to hobby and never perfect one. Remember when I was in reading books to become cultured? Well that didn't last long. Reading about Rome was only interesting for so long. Remember when I went through my learn how to play guitar faze? Well you probably don't unless I told you in person because I didn't blog about that adventure- that's how quickly it past. It did last much longer than learning a song and a half. Then I was on my running faze. I shy away from pounding pavement. Just sticking to the cross training activities. Most recently I was very into biographies. After reading about a real New York mobster from his sons point of view and a book about the wonderful life of Gandhi, I didn't even pick up the book about the lovely bliss of George and Laura Bush's marriage. 

Now I'm wanting another passion. Last night I asked Zack if we could take a year off and study music in Europe so I could someday be talented enough to audition for The Voice. But I decided that would not do anything for my goal of buying a house and have cute little Zack Jr.s running around the house in their socks.

How lovely would it be to sit on this beach every evening listening to the waves?

(If I told you this was a beach from South Carolina would you think of Nicolas Sparks and his romantic novels?)

Well having children and going to their school concerts and throwing  parties for every year we make it closer to the babies growing up sounds ever better.
A Saturday lunch with the family

(yes. I will be wearing dresses and serving the food with a smile and perfect posture)

 I day dream about the days Zack and I will sit on our front porch watching our children play with the dogs and waving to neighbors as they go for evening walks, stopping by at a friend's house just to say hello and let the children play "while mommy visits."

Those will be happy years. Although, I cant imagine being happier than I am now I'm sure it can only get better. So I hear from veterans who have been married long than Zack and I. 

Summer is the best time of year. I love wearing light flowy shirts and dresses that won't fly up when the wind sneaks up underneath but are light enough to not be uncomfortably hot. Any fun summer plans for anyone out there? We're headed to Iowa and FL. And hopefully. . . AZ! What are you doing?

A Love Note

2011-06-02T16:55:00.000-07:00

Dear Zack,
You're at work right now. But you emailed me from campus to let me know that you forgot your phone. I was sad to hear that news. I have no way of reaching you to find out if you made plans for this evening or if I should plan on making us a yummy dinner (we haven't had any yummy dinners as of late).
I decided that I was to use the back yard more often. I know that our neighbor girls are always in the back yard but it's just as much our yard as theirs! and I want to use the deck. I'm thinking of moving a small table and chairs out here so that you and I can enjoy some time out in the open air. I think that is why we aren't getting better- we're stuck inside! Our sick germs are just circulating. So if you would like- I'd love to have you join me for dinner tonight! I'm thinking of making Salmon and Vegetables. what do you think? Well I think I will make it anyways and hopefully you will be hungry enough to eat. Since it will still be light outside, plan on eating in the back yard.
You and I deserve a nice little date without the distraction on TV. I know there is a game on that you want to watch so I shall try to keep it quick.
Wow Moonfish. You sure are awesome. I love when you call me just to make sure that I made to to work safely. and when you text me and say "I love you wife face!" Those things make me smile out loud.
When you say, "Ah come on!" that is really funny too.
Thanks for letting me treat you to a nice dinner at Outback every once in a while. I know it's really something special for you.
Well moonfish- tomorrow, don't forget your phone!!
I love you!
Love,
Your Wife Face

How to become a VIP Regular at your favorite restaurant

2011-05-24T05:42:00.000-07:00

1. Eat there frequently, or should I say- Regularly?
2. Order the same delicious meal.
3. Order tons of bread and water

It really is that easy. Although, Zack and I have worked hard to find the perfect restaurant. It took us over a year and a half to even decide that this was the place. Outback Steakhouse in Orem, UT.

Friday nights are packed. Saturday nights are even more packed! Calling ahead works sometimes but you should still expect to wait 20 to 30 minutes even after the time they tell you your table will be ready (guess it's hard to get people to leave).

You know you're a VIP regular when you walk in the door and before you even check in the Manager walks up to you and says "two, right? I have a table for you guys."

You know you're a regular when Jeff (the manager) stops by just for small talk and lets you know he appreciates how often we come in and recognized that our favorite table is in the bar area so that we have full access to TV viewage.

Let me just say, we never planned on becoming regulars. Let alone VIP regulars. We never expected to have this great honor- especially while living in Provo, UT. I thought we would have picked a non-franchise, hole-in-the-wall, sort of restaurant. But no- Outback stole my heart with the Chicken Artichoke Flat Bread. And Zack can get the steak that I never cook.

Happy Weekdays

2011-05-23T19:25:00.001-07:00

What a crazy long day! I had a pretty difficult start to the week. I thought it began with the fact that I brought the wrong pair of pants with me to work today to change into. But as the morning grew on I knew it had to be something else.
I felt completely anxious and stressed over every little thing that presented it's self to me. The gloom cloud continued to hover over my desk until I broke out into tears.
The clouds would part slightly and I'd begin to relax and focus on my work but they would return soon enough (or far too soon for my liking) and the tears would break the dam again.
I tried to inform everyone that my blood was boiling and I was in a pretty bad mood. I was snippy about everything. That only brought more tears.
I was having issues today, my friends. Serious issues.
I was looking for Prince Charming to save me from these swings of emotions.
Zack sent me a message (after I had text him a million times to tell him how sucky I was feeling)
"we need to do something to cheer you up tonight. Ice Cream?"
my reply,
"or my meds!"
That's right folks. I hadn't taken my happy pills in a few days and the effects were finally wiggling their selves out of my body.
Prince Charming (AKA Moonfish) came and took me away for a little break and to pick up the prescription.
I doubt my pill kicked in as quickly as I started feeling better. I'm pretty sure the cause for my sudden cheerful disposition was because of my honey coming to see me. I only had an hour left of work by the time I got back so that was perfect timing.
I love Zack!
Then I got caught in the rain on my way home.
Oh rain. You're stupid. Stop coming to visit.
I was welcomed by the stench of drenched carpet in our bedroom when I walked in the door. We noticed the smell this weekend and we could not figure out what it was! We cleaned everything possible. Then we noticed a large wet spot next to one of the walls in the bed room. The smell got so bad that it woke me up this morning. Bleh!
Our trusty fix-it man (Our landlord's go-to guy) came by and pulled up the carpet. Sure enough, soaked. The gross scent consumed the entire apartment. We are leaving the carpet pad exposed so that it can dry out. I don't think I'll be able to sleep in the bed room tonight.

All in all I'm ready for the day to end. I'm ready to take advantage of the weather and use it for some serious cuddle time.

Happy Monday! And I wish you an even better Tuesday!

House Rules

2011-05-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

We don't have house rules around here.
If I want to stay up past 10 pm on a school (work) night, I totally can. If I want to eat dessert before dinner, I can. If I don't feel like doing Saturday morning chores, I don't have to.
And this pleaseth my soul.

But lately, I have felt a little out of control. I have neglected the dishes. I have been sleeping in because I have been going to bed far later than I should be. I have not been eating a well balanced dinner!

What is to become of me??

Well, I'm quite certain I will grow up to be a fine young lady, but I should really set some boundaries for myself, shouldn't I? I mean, I should have a bit of self control. A few more restrictions. Higher expectations for my standards, right?

I shall. From now on, I will be more disciplined.

I will eat 2 to 3 well balanced meals.
I will go to bed before 9:30 on week days.
(mostly because I can't function after 9:30 anyways)
I will do my chores, weekly.

My dear, sweet Carolina (I have yet to decid on a name but this will work for a stand in until then)

2011-05-12T04:40:00.000-07:00

I don't know what all you know about my commute to work this days, but let me tell you it's a totally different world out there.

When you don't just hop in your car only to inevitably get annoyed with other drivers and pedestrians that are inconsiderate of where I have to go- you see so many things you've never noticed before. Like broken took brushed on the road (I know, what?) or the homeless man who lives near the river but is so kind!
During the days of snow, I would take the bus. A $2.25 fare {I'm pretty sure it's up to $2.50 now} and a 30 min ride would get me there all in one piece. When you're on the bus, you meet all sorts of people I have never really interacted with very much since living in bubble-like Provo. Cute elderly women, older men with handicaps. It's quite interesting, although, I think it would be a lot more fun if we all broke out into song and dance while we were driving around picking up more friends. But I don't think that would happen. How would we all know the same dance moves? Right?

Now that the weather is more friendly I ride my bike.
Absolutely love it! We could totally work it out to where I take the car every day but I like the early morning work out and then the work out at the end of the day.
I realized I kind of have a little bit of road rage. Cars can be so inconsiderate. But the sucky thing {which maybe it's actually a good thing} I don't have a horn to honk at them to show them how stupid they are. So I tend to shake my fist. Okay really, I just roll my eyes because if I shook my fist I'm sure they would come after me, alright maybe not while I'm in Provo, but I shouldn't make it a habit in case I ride my bike outside the bubble.

The people I see while riding are so cool. I ride through this cute little neighborhood where the husbands are out early mowing their yards, groups of women are speed walking while catching up on yesterday's rumors. My favorite is this cute couple, probably late 40's, who walk their 3 dogs. A great Dane, a golden retriever, and some really tiny dog. they are the cutest.
One day when I was riding, I was coming up to a group of kids waiting for the bus to come gather them for school and these 2 boys walked out into the middle of the road chests puffed up, hands on hips, eyebrows scowling, blocking part of the road. Maybe I would have been slightly intimidated if they weren't 3 feet tall and had cute little smiles on their face.

There's this guy who leaves for work about the time I get to his street. He rides his bike too. Only his is a really nice bike and he is dressed in his cool cycling outfit. Dude, he can fly up that hill! It takes a lot of work for me. But he is so friendly, says "good morning" whenever we cross paths.

I know what you're thinking- "uh don't you totally stink up the office when you get there?"
Yes, yes I would. If I didn't shower. I wouldn't bike if they didn't have showers. I just get ready for work when I get there. I don't even bother at home.

And that, my dear friends, is what I do almost every day. If it's raining a lot then we figure something else out but other than that- I will stay devoted to taking my bike out to stretch her chains. She's awesome.

K love you, bye!

when i have too much free time- this is what my miond makes me think about

2011-05-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

If i were famous i could write a New York Bestseller. i would be asked to do a book tour and sit at Barnes and Noble signing a bagillion books for "fans". Oprah would call me and ask me to appear on her show. I could decide i dont just want to write books- i want to write music too. Taylor Swift would mentor me. she would co-write songs with we. She would ask me to guest sing in her newest single that is expected to hit the top ten charts for several weeks. I could decide i want a break from the music industry and that i want to travel the world performing humanitarian service and becoming cultures. i could build orphanages and make a real difference in a place where no one knew my "famous name". i would be come a better person. could all that ONLY happen if i were famous? what if i wanted to do it as just a "normal" girl? would i have any sort of impact in anyone's life? these are things i wonder about when i have too much time on my hands

I am not my sisters keeper

2011-05-03T06:16:00.000-07:00

Why can't you just accept our love?
Accept the fact that we care about you and are concerned for your well being?
Accept the fact that we will try to find you when we haven't heard from you in months?
Accept that your brothers miss you?

Your brothers don't even know who you are.
They were too young to remember "Buddy Bears".
Too young to remember that you loved to watch soap operas.
They weren't there when we would watch 7th Heaven on a weekly basis.
They don't remember how cute your laugh was when you got super happy
Or when you would tickle me until I almost peed my pants.

You were there when our family, all dressed in white, went into the sacred room to become a forever family.

I wish you would let us love you.
I wish you would love us back.
I wish you cared about yourself as much as your family cares about you.

I am angry with you.
I'm angry that you push us away when we reach out to you.
I'm angry that you belittle yourself.
I'm angry that you limit your potential.

But I love you.
Sister, I really, truly love you.
I want to be your best friend.
I want to be there for you when you have a hard day.
I want to be there when you had an amazing day.

I want you in my life.
Why won't you let me be?

Snow-go away please!

2011-04-30T10:31:00.000-07:00

If you were to win a "family vacation" it would be for 4. Traditional family cars like the Toyota Corolla, Hyundai Elantra- they comfortably fit 4 passengers- any more than that you are cramped. So I guess now my parents are really living life! They are the perfect sized family since the 3 oldest children no longer live under their roof.

Isn't my family just the cutest!?

They came into town to watch me run my half marathon (I'll have to tell you more about that later).

Luckily, the weather was nice. It would have been embarrassing if it wasn't.

I was hesitant to load this next picture.
It is my absolute favorite picture of my parents.
I didn't know if I wanted to share it with just anyone...You know, other people just might not appreciate it.

My mom is gorgeous and I love when my dad laughs. It's contagious.

So this post was pretty much to show off that I faced the fact that my computer is dead and that I should just load all my pictures on to Zack's computer.
Welcome back to my blog Pictures. Welcome.

p.s. I love you Moonfish. thanks for letting me use your computer :)

To Zachary

2011-04-25T07:08:00.000-07:00

Two years baby!! I can't believe we hit 2 years already. I mean, I feel like I've known you forever but haven't the last 2 years just flown by?
You have truly made them the best 2 years of my life.

You make me laugh uncontrollably, especially when it's past 9 pm and I'm slap happy.
You make me smile when I think about you during the day.

You totally rock my world, Moonfish. Totally.
Thank you for your love.

Thank you for asking me to marry you for eternity.

Thank you for teaching me how to seriously live life.

I have never been happier.

I have never loved someone as much as I love you.

I hear year 3 is the best. ( I didn't really hear that, but I'm sure its true. Until we get to year 4, then 5, then 6...)

I really do love you.
XOXO

Love,
Seahorse

I had an intimate moment with a worm (don't be gross)

2011-04-25T06:36:00.000-07:00

Almost exactly 2 years ago, I was in Salt Lake cheering for my best friend as she ran 13.1 miles and crossed the finish line.
At the time if you asked me to run a mile I would have laughed in your face.
Literally. I hated running.
Absolutely hated it.

And now I'm here at a race with over 11,000 participants waiting to hear the air horn to signal the start of a new adventure.
I'd never ran 13.1 miles before.

Unfortunately I had to use the restroom so I was stuck behind 20 people waiting in line to use the same gross porta-potty when the sound of that horn went off.
From a distance I could see the sea of people starting out their run.
I was actually kind of glad I wasn't stuck in the middle of all that.
I get claustrophobic sometimes.

It was early morning. I was still trying to wake up.
The Early Birds were out trying to catch the Worm.
(Yes, this is where the worm story comes in).

Have you noticed how after it rains worms are all over the sidewalks?
It's disgusting!!
I hate worms and I hate squishing worms.
Anyways, as I was standing there waiting in line (it had been like 12 minutes by then) I caught sight of this loooong worm feeling it's way through the forest of grass and mud.
I become interested in his motives.
Is he looking for something? food? a mate?
Or is he just wondering around until it finds something better than what he already has?
Either way, I put my foot right in front of it to find out what he would do.
When he came in contact with the toe of my shoe he jerked back.
He slowly reached out and touched me.
He felt around.
He gave me a little wormy hug.
Then he started to climb.
Onto my Shoe.
And that was the end of the intimate moment.

10 mins later, after I stepped out of the death box (aka porta-potty), I started my race.
2 hours and 24 mins later, I crossed the finish line.

Thanks for your support :)

P.S. I love you.

Seahorse Moonfish Productions Presents:

2011-04-10T13:08:00.000-07:00

Zackman and myself had the pleasure of traveling up to Ogden yesterday to spend a lovely evening with family :) We went to an arcade last night and played a few games. Here are a couple videos of Yours Truly, Moonfish and Seahorse (sorry they are sideways. I couldn't figure out how to rotate them):

(When I was younger I would play a version of this game and I was pretty skilled. {not so much anymore. I only got 3 stinkin' tickets!})

Look what else we came across as we were venturing through the jungle of games:

(my very own trumpet playing seahorse. We're a talented species, you must know)

This is long because I have missed you-

2011-04-09T05:53:00.000-07:00

*Disclaimer*: This may turn into another "sad" blog post. Bullying has been on my mind again.

Hey hey hey! How you doin'?
Sorry I've been a lazy bum lately!

Just so you guys know, my race is a week from today. Pros and Cons, please:

Pro: I will finally be able so say out loud to strangers I meet, "I have trained and ran a 13.1 mile race. AKA, a half MARATHON". It's a big deal
Con: I will be able to tell strangers, "I have only ran a HALF marathon." Because they will all be able to say, "yeah? Well what about a FULL marathon."
Pro: I will no longer have to plan my life around short runs and long runs. They will just be a regular "however long I feel like going" run.
Con: I wont make the time to spend 2 hours of quality time with the pavement.

Road, I will miss that connection we shared. You took me through my toughest work outs. you almost killed me. Twice. You rock.

Overall, I have really enjoyed running. I know I know, I tell everyone when they ask me about how my training has been, "I'm getting really sick of running." I don't know why! Running has only been good to me.

Besides being stranded 3 miles from home completely dehydrated and not being able to focus long enough to jog more than 10 seconds at a time and besides injuring my knee so many times that it completely took me out of any kind of training for months at a time. I have forgiven you for your transgressions. And I can honestly say that you have become one of my closest friends. Through the tears and after a long stressful day at work you have supported me. Thank you, Run. Thank you. P.S. I'm sorry I have talked crap about you behind your back. I wont do it anymore. Until you hurt me again. Then your reputation will be ruined. But I love you still.

I have no idea why I am writing thank you letters to these sort of things.

Last night, I treated Zack to Outback Steakhouse. It is my favorite because of their Wedge Salad. I decided that next time, I shall order it for dessert (don't worry, I'm not going to express my love for it through a letter. At least not now). We also go because my poor Moonfish needs some meat! I never cook meat for the guy. I'm a bad wife. (I don't really like meat so I don't see why I should cook it. . .)
So after we finally go seated we ordered our water and I noticed, sitting across from us was this dear elderly man all alone. He was just sitting there eating his steak and yummy potatoes. I don't know what overcame me but tears started coming to my eyes. these weren't just "watery eyes" they were full blown running-down-my-face-unable-to-control-myself-tears. I wasn't trying to make scene! I tried to play out different scenarios in my mind to convince myself that he wasn't "lonely" and that he was completely content. But he wasn't wearing a wedding band and he didn't look very happy. I couldn't see a sparkle in his eye; probably because it's so stinkin' dark in there! I sort of feel silly now but at the time it completely broke my heart. He ordered dessert, paid his bill and soon after his spot at the table was replaced with a cute newly engaged couple. I don't know what more I could have done. What would you have done?

That brings me to bullying. (I told you it was bound to happen).
There is this show called What Would You Do? Brookie and KC introduced it to us.
One segment that we watched was about cyber-bullying.
Imagine this:
You're at a coffee shop, minding your own business reading a book or whatever. A few tables down from you, you hear these 3 loud teenage, really pretty girls talking about a fellow student at their school. Pretty soon you hear enough information to understand they are looking at a Facebook page on a laptop and they clearly think they are far better looking than the "Facebook girl". You hear them say things like, "Gross! Why would anyone post a picture of themselves like that?!" or "Haha Jaime is so fat! Lets tell her. I'm going to write it on her wall." or "She is so ugly!! She really shouldn't go out in public anymore." Then these 3 girls decide they want to post a video on the poor girls wall of them taking a poll of people in the coffee shop telling "Jaime" that she is ugly.
They come to your table and ask you, "would you look at the camera and say 'Jaime, you're so ugly!'"
What would you do?

Let me tell you that those 3 teenage girls were hired as actresses and "Jaime" was a fake Facebook profile.

But cyber-bullying is out there. It is real. There are really teenagers, male and female, out there who do this sort of thing everyday. They belittle those around them whom they think are below themselves. But like one of the bystanders said to the girls, Those 3 girls didn't do anything to "earn" their good looks. They were fortunate enough to be born pretty and into families where they could afford good fashion and able to do extra-curricular activities.

Bullying is really sad to me.
I'm trying to figure out something I can do to help the situation but I am struggling. do any of you have an idea?

Well I don't want to end on a "downer" kind of note, so I'll have to leave you with something cheerful so that you can enjoy your lovely weekend.

Biggest Loser is an awesome show! everyone is looking so good! Thankfully Zack likes it too. we usually miss the first hour but make it home in time to see the weigh in. It's so good.

Well my fine feathered friends, and those who may not be so feathered, I shall go now. We are headed up to see my sister-in-law and her cute little family today. They are in Ogden. We get to get out of Provo for a bit. (THANK YOU KIM!!)

I hope to write soon. I really miss it. And I love you all :)

P.S. I love you, Moonfish.

"And such as.."- (guess who said it first. Moonfish, you've got this one)

2011-03-26T04:32:00.000-07:00

Well my friends, I am sorry. I have been absent the last little while (in case you didn't notice my lack of postings) and I'm not quite sure why. I have my theories though. First off, let me just say that I have missed you. My readers and the lovely blogs I follow. They brought me cheer this early Saturday morning (where I should be in bed but I found myself unable to catch my Zzzzs after 4:30 A stupid M). So my Theory as to why I have been on blog strike lately is that my computer is still broken and I can't post pictures therefore surely no one would be interested in my blog. another Theory is that I have been having such a fabulous adventure the past little bit and I was too busy to share it with the bloggosphere. Well the truth of the sad matter is, my computer is broken and I cant post pictures, I haven't taken any pictures, and I've been so tired and drained lately. Don't get me wrong, we have been having some pretty fun adventures but I have been too tired to post anything. I have gotten some lovely comments about my blog from dear friends and that gave me the courage to "get back out there, Champ and show 'em what ya got", kind of thing. I don't want to have another blog failure like the last time I decided I was too good for this. Truth be told, I really enjoy writing. I wouldn't go as far as to say I'm good at it or anything, but it certainly gives me peace knowing that my thoughts are out there being noticed by people who care. My opinions have a place in this world. Finally.

Everything has been fab lately, thank you for asking by the way. I have found this new obsessive interest with the LDS Mag The Ensign. Did you know there are some amazing stories in there that you can actually relate to? Why had I not noticed this before? can you tell me that? Well I know that some of you may not be LDS but if you get a chance, pick up that magazine because it will make you smile. I'll even mail you one or two if you really want.

Also I got a second job. Not that my first one wasn't good enough, I just wanted/needed something to mix up my schedule a bit. I somehow found this lovely lady who wanted help with projects around her house. She is so cute and sweet and her family is adorable; of course I've actually only met 2 of the 5 children and the husband. They have a charming beautiful house. She has let me help her organize and clean different rooms and also do other household caring activities. It's so nice to have a bit of diversity in your schedule, I think, and I love being able to help other people and she is so sweet too!

Zack is still kickin' butt at school. He's a rockstar, I must say. He sure knows how to make a girl swoon with is smarts and athletic ability and that is aside from his dashing good looks.

My job is going along just great. I've been able to work on a few different projects and such that have been very fun to be apart of. Yesterday I was asked, along with 2 others in my department, to stand on a little stage and be introduced to about 60 technicians for our company. I'm pretty sure they could all see my knees shaking under my jeans. Let me also mention that I was the only girl in the whole room. Now I'm not saying that they were checking me out, but for some weird reason I can become very uncomfortable when I am the only girl. and that happens quite a bit in a department like mine where we are pretty much all of the male species.

Running has been rough lately. Zack will tell ya. I have been struggling big time! this week was the hardest. I just could not and would not run. I guess you could say I refused, but I have good reasons! Just listen. I have never really been all that into cardio. I just haven't. I really really love lifting and that sort of thing (I'm not strong at all, I just like my weights). Since I have been training for this oh-so- fun half marathon that I'm super excited for, I've gotten pretty burnt out from running. I feel like it's the only thing I can do! I have to plan everything around how many miles I have to run, even our dinner schedule is planned around my runs. Luckily today, my dear friend Sarah (she totally inspires me because she is awesome) is going to take me out for a long run. Without her, I probably wouldn't do more than 3 miles (I know that's far too but I have a schedule I need to keep up with). I'd like to say that I eventually want to do a full marathon, but right now, I absolutely do NOT! I just want to be able to do other things and not have to spend my full work out time running. I mean, like I mentioned before, I even have to wake up early just so that I have time to let my food digest and my water belly settle. Anyways, I'm super grateful for the experience and the discipline training has given me and I will be a much better person than I was before. I now feel more confident in what I do and confidence is key to success, right? So Mom, Dad (who registered me for the race), hubbers (who purchased these amazing new running shoes for my birthday)- thank you for the opportunity to run this race and supporting me all the way through.

There isn't really much else going on in our lives, besides my obsession with dogs and my desire to somehow trick our landlord into letting us have one, I haven't really been up to anything else. Work, Run, Eat. that's my motto.

Oh but I did discover, while out on a long run day, that what really helps me get through my runs is when people smile at me as I go, especially the cute older couples holding hands and walking their doggies on an early Saturday morning, and the kids that are outside in there underwear that yell "hi!!" at me across the street. Those make me happy. So please-

Smile. It helps me run better, faster, stronger.

P.S. I love you, Moonfish.

Failure to Plan is Planning for Failure- unless you're planning around the weather because your plans will change.

2011-03-12T05:48:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday, my friends, I established Saturday of this week to be my long run day. 12 miles. Crazy, I know. I had to prepare for it. On my long run days I have to prepare very well. I have to be sure I have enough time for my food to digest, but not too much time so that I'm hungry right before the run. Also, I have to have time to hydrate and let the water settle so that I don't have a water belly (I hate that feeling). I knew that I wanted to get my run finished early today and so I planned my time out like this:

(*Times are all in the AM)
Wake up at 5:45- Eat breakfast
6-7:15- drink lots of water!
7:25- take ibuprofen (not too much water though)
7:30- get dressed, warm up and stretch
8:00 head out the door

I set my alarm for 6 because waking up in the 5 o'clock hour on a Saturday is pushing it, really. I rolled out of bed at 6:04. Made some peanut butter toast at 6:15, grabbed a water bottle and stared my computer up.

I looked out the window and noticed a suspicious amount of dark clouds.

This is not what the weather had in mind yesterday. . .

I checked weather.com (you know, the most reliable weather website) and it said the stupidest thing I had seen in a long time:

"32 degrees and stupid rain all stinkin' day because we don't want you to run"

Something to that effect, well that's how I saw it at least.

Seriously?! I planned this 3 days in advance and you're telling me, the day of, that it is going to rain? Weather.com, this is getting out of hand. Please, don't let it rain today!

For those of you who live in Provo, Utah, you know that when it says it's going to rain all day it doesn't. and if it says that it will be cold, it will be. Further more, if you check the weather the night before expecting everything to go as planned, it won't.Because you know why? the weather demons are out to get us, you know. They don't want us to be out in God's beautiful world enjoying the blue skies and Utah construction.

I am going on strike against these demons! I'm going to go out into the "rainy weather" and conquer a 12 mile run (only because now, an hour later than when I first looked out the window, the clouds are parting and I can see the sunlight). That'll teach them that they can no longer mess with my weather!

This morning when I logged on to my computer, she kept freezing up and I would have to turn her off. This happened twice before I decided to use the Hubber's computer. I don't have any pictures from the last day or so on this computer so unfortunately I don't have anything pretty for you to look at. Please come back later today and I should have something sweet for you!

I hope you have a fabulous Saturday. Let me know if you have fun plans! I might join you because, well, after my run my apartment is due for some TLC (Tedious, Long, Cleansing).

Not Fun.

P.S. I love you.

Date Night! Whoo!

2011-03-10T05:29:00.000-08:00

Last night there was reason for celebration. Zack had been juggling so many different assignments and tasks with school that he was beginning to feel a bit over whelmed. But last night he completed a test that he had been studying so hard for and finally- it's done. and he didn't do so bad, if I do say so myself.

So to honor the great achievement, I decided to take Zack out for a treat {really it was Zack's suggestion and I tried to talk us out of it because I didn't work out that day, but it didn't work. Zack wanted a frosty and I couldn't honestly resist}. A frosty from our friend Wendy's. It was delicious, as expected.

{This is a reenactment of the balloons that tried to attack me}

{I tried to frown while eating a frosty one time, it didn't work out so well}

{Makes you want a frosty right now, doesn't it?}

We also had a bishops interview last night. He asked us, "do you have regular weekly date night?"
"We have date night every night."

And I love it :)

Mostly our dates consist of some sort of sporting event such as basketball or football, and food, of course. Sometimes our date is Zack studying and me reading or surfing the webesphere so there isn't much conversation, but you know, we feel the love.

This makes I wonder what other couples do for their official date nights compared to just a regular old evening. There have been talks in church about how important it is to have a date night weekly. Is this meant for families with children when a husband and wife won't have time to themselves?

Also I have been wondering, why do they have to put swear words in movies? I mean honestly it doesn't add much to the story and a lot of times it sounds out of place. I'm okay with a word here or there I guess but when they drop the "F-Bomb" every 5 seconds that's when it gets ridiculous. Even in kids movies it's sort of used casually, maybe not direct profanity, but poor vocabulary skills.

Another thought, last one, what should I have for breakfast...?

A Thought From Me to You

2011-03-09T19:10:00.000-08:00

So here I am, just minding my own business watching the make over episode of America's Next Top model (I'm not a regular, but if I were this would be my FAVORITE episode to watch every season) and on pops a commercial (as expected because this happens when the show reaches a climax point and decides to drive you crazy by throwing ads at you). This commercial is featuring a close up on a 40-something year old wearing too much eyeliner and gorgeous hair. As they slowly pan out they show her escorting two children. They are showing all these men around her gawking, crashing their bikes, tripping- you know, that's the way men act when they are around pretty woman , I guess. I've never actually witnessed it. At the end of the commercial the say something to the effect of "Be confident after you have plastic surgery" and the contact info for "(bleep)Plastic Surgery" flashes the screen.

The very next commercial is showing a house wife, typical mother looking at pictures of past memories and her going through and "erasing" the flaws that she sees with her body. And the contact information for that plastic surgery company comes on the screen, different from the last one.

What? Why do we have to resort to going under the knife to feel pretty? I see billboards around here that say "Love your legs, love your life". Umm I wouldn't say I love my legs. in fact I hate my skin on my legs and even on my arms but hey, it's my skin and I love my life still!

So why are there so many ads telling people, more specifically women, that what they have right now is not good enough and they will not be happy? There are shows out there about weight lose and I think that is a better approach rather than puncturing skin.

Shows like Biggest Loser and Shedding for the Wedding, are done by showing people that it's a lifestyle change to achieve the goal that those Plastic Surgery doctors promise.

I don't know, maybe I'm not one to talk. But I can say that ever since 9th grade I have had body image issues. I won't go into details but I'm learning to just be happy with what I was given. To be happy with what I can control. I can't make my feet smaller, my hair longer, my eyes prettier. But I can take my husband's word when he tells me he thinks I'm beautiful.

I just want all girls to feel pretty. Everyone from 2 to 108 years old deserves to feel pretty. What can we do to help those around us feel prettier? I always like to think of what I would like myself to make me feel pretty. I was at a store one time waiting in line to check out and this complete stranger told me she thought my hair was gorgeous. It was so ugly that day! but it made me feel so good. How many times do we go about our day looking a girls and thinking how good they look, how cute their shoes are, how lovely their skirt is? And do you always tell them? Some times I do. Some times I get the guts to share my feelings to that model pretty girl rockin' the gorgeous waves of blond hair flowing down their shoulders, but most of the time I am guilty of holding back.

So I am challenging myself to speak up more. I'm going to share my compliments. I don't want them to come across as fake (as some girl in high school so kindly labeled me as). Would you like to join me in this challenge?

I love these little suckers!
Sometimes Clara tells me I'm a princess :)

P.S. I love y.o.u.

Breakfast for Dinner? Anyone?

2011-03-05T19:17:00.000-08:00

Alright so call me a bad wife if you must, but I think having breakfast for dinner 2 nights in a row is a good idea. 5 stars if you ask me because, well, I heart breakfast. So pleasing to my tummy.

Last night, Friday. I did make dinner and we ate at 5, a pretty normal time, right? Well Zack went off to play basketball and some how between 7 and 9 pm I worked up a pretty hefty appetite. With it being 9 pm and all, I was not going to whip out another dinner? so it was Honey Nut Cheerios (well the store brand, Honey Nut Scooters just doesn't sound as good) with bananas. Yumm, I know you agree, yes?

And tonight, we went to Subway and ate a late lunch/early dinner. That was about 4 pm and there we were starving by 7:30! Okay, Zack wasn't starving, but I was. Man, I get hungry fast.

I was so desirous to consume waffles so I had no choice but to convince Zack that he would be hungry for blueberry waffles by the time I got them cooked and dished. May I brag for a second, please? These were the best waffles I have ever eaten in my entire life. I don't know what it was about them. Perhaps it was the blueberries I added? or the cinnamon? No, I think it was the raspberry syrup I made. It was so good! My waffles didn't turn out as good looking as Zack's (the darn thing was sticking to both sides of the iron and split in half, crappy waffle iron) but I can tell you that mine tasted far better than his.

I wanted to invite our friend Carly and Court over to join us for waffles but something about them being 12 hours away held them back. Tomorrow I will get back into the real world and out of this breakfast fantasy I have created for myself these past 2 days. Chicken and mashed potatoes. Doesn't sound as good, does it?

Have a Happy Sunday.

We're going to watch Pretty Woman. I love that movie.

P.S. I love you

I Must Confess

2011-03-04T16:27:00.000-08:00

I have something I need to get off my chest. I lied. I told you earlier this week that my living room in my apartment was complete. Well it's not. I added tons. I painted a lot. I reorganized. I reduced, reused, recycled a bit. I think now it is complete. well maybe I'll keep adding to it as we go on but I am pretty stinkin' pleased with it. Zack is pleased as well.

This is a little guy that was sticking out like a sore thumb no matter how far we shoved him in the corner!-

I swear spring is here, it really is! while I was out there sanding and painting the quail birds where walking around trying to find a place to nest, bugs were out 'a flying- landing on my fresh paint too! But no matter, I was happy to be warm and outside I wasn't even wearing a sweater. No sir, I wasn't. Short sleeves and, well, my trusty old painting jeans.

And this is what the dude looked like after-

(not so manly now, is he?)

One of the best parts about this whole project was that it only cost me $11 and some change, real deal, huh?!

So here is what you need to achieve this task:

1. find an old basement apartment in a college town, such as Provo, UT
*be sure the house is owned by an amazing land lord.
*make sure there is a lot of what people would call "junk", such as old doors, broken tables, out of date pictures of painted flowers in gold frames, you know, stuff like that
2. live in the apartment for over a year and a half and then decide it is time to decorate and make it feel like home.
3. dig out the old "junk" and find a way to sand and paint it so that it looks happier
4. love the items you bring in your home
5. continue to have love for your home
6. Love God and express it in your home (cheesy, I know, but it make a house a home!)

And that is how I got to here:

Well this obviously isn't my whole apartment, just a corner.

So either it looks cute or it looks like junk, either way I like it and that's what matters since I have to live in it and all.

I found this gal in our drive way. This isn't the original "before" picture, this after I demangled her, cleaned her off, and sanded a few corners:

And this is what she looks like after:

So I decided it probably looks like a really crappy paint job instead of distressed. Hmmm.

That was a fun project for me.

P.S. I love you

.expressing.

2011-03-03T04:47:00.000-08:00

The truth of it is, I am in constant need of some sort of project. I'm not a crafty person by ANY means. But I have this desire inside of me to be reorganizing, decorating, designing, painting, writing. Anything to get out my creativity (or lack thereof). Yesterday I was feeling very low. I was very emotional. I'm talking tears streaming down my face while I tried to explain my feelings to Zack. I was a mess. A total mess. My plan was to go to the grocery store and go home to wallow in my tears while watching HGTV.

But instead, I decided this would be a perfect time to go thrift store shopping. I really needed to find things to make me happy and feel good. Shopping alone can't do that-it's when I go to a second-hand store where I can make old things beautiful and save loads of cash. Shopping at any thrift store is more work than shopping at any other store. You see, at other stores, lets say Forever 21, you could easily go online and see what outfits their designed have already put together and find the items, "add to cart", "check out", bada bing! Done. Will recieve in 5 to 10 business days. Or Anthropology, go in, see all they have to display, match exactly what they have because they have 5 of the same piece in stock, put it all together head home and set it up the same way they had in the store.
But see when your thrifting, you're on your own. You can have an idea of what you want, but who's to say it will be there? How do you know what will look good together? You really gotta have confidence in yourself that what you're throwing together will be of value to your home or wardrobe. I've done it before, came home from DI with this dress that I thought I could make cute wore it once, hatted it the entire time and haven't worn it since.

And so, I did it. I went to DI. The Provo DI is picked through by tons of cute girls decorating and creating and dressing so cute. But I thought, maybe I'll get lucky. As I walked around the "knick knack" section, ideas started rolling through my head about how to decorate this coffee table we've so desperately needed that my dear friend donated to our cause. I wandered and wandered until I found the most perfect pieces and laid them all together. I was getting giddy just thinking of all the ways I could decorate and not spend more than $10!

Our apartment is cute and cozy (I'm certain I've told you) but it very much lacks any sort of theme. It looks like a college apartment. I mean text books, shoes, dirty dishes in the sink, clean dishes out on the counter to dry; you get the picture, right? (I hate explaining my apartment's flaws. She tries so hard to be nice). But I have been trying to slowly get it to have a purpose. While I was at the store I thought to my self that I was finally going to have an apartment that looked complete. Just like all the other Provo wives.

So as I was gathering my treasures I decided to check out the dress rack. See if there was anything inspiring. And there most certainly was! I found this GORGEOUS dress. I'm so excited about it. I had to try it on right away. I feared it would be too small. I found myself in the dressing room trying to wiggle it over my hips and then trying to zip the thing was another story. The zipper is super old. I finally go it up. Wasn't a perfect fit but I could still breathe. Just don't ask me to bend over.
"I'm sorry babe, I can't pass this dress up. It's gorgeous and best of all, only $8!"
Sent with this picture to "My Love" contact:

Please ignore the angry look on my face- I'm not very good at taking pictures of myself in the mirror, I have to concentrate.

Turns out, it was only six bones. Steal! Well actually I text, "score!" to just to emphasize the deal I just got.

I still had to run to the grocery store because that's where I told Zack I would go. I made it the quickest trip ever! After picking up the table from the friend and driving as fast as I could knowing I couldn't get pulled over (so at the exact speed limit) I finally made it home with my goodies.

I put put the groceries away and put my design together. Although, the apartment was still kind of messy so it didn't look right. So I had to clean. I even cleaned the bedroom even though nothing new was going in there. Except the dress will go in the closet probably. Eventually. I went back to storage and grabbed whatever I could find to pull this together. Hard covered books, candles, large plates, a clock that doesn't work, a German Hymn book. I put it altogether. Rearranged it over and over about one hundred 'n sixteen times. Done. I am well pleased. I wish I had before and after pictures but I didn't know I was going to have a sudden urge to decorate. but here are a couple snippets of what I discovered at the thrift store:

The roses are from Zack, I dried them and have been trying to figure out how to decorate with them. Do they look OK?

So for a total of $12.25 (I make that in less than an hour at work) I got a newly decorated coffee table which then inspired decorating the rest of the room and a new dress that I will attempted to wear but will look like a poser. But I am happy.

P.S. I love you.

Spring, please come early this year...

2011-02-28T19:32:00.000-08:00

Zackers and I posing with a plastic cactus.

Alright, I think it is time.

"Spring! Come to Utah already!"

I am really getting sick of being cold in my apartment all the time. I'm sick of getting out of the shower and being cold. I'm sick of starting out a run and being cold. I'm tired of having to wear a huge coat to work and then be to hot inside and then too cold if I take it off. Basically, I'm sick of it! I'm no longer talking to Winter. You remember how I asked Snow to come on Thursday and not stay very long? Well, she did. She came Thursday but she invited herself to stay the weekend. And what's even worse is that she would snow all through the middle of the night and all morning until our noses were about to fall off, but then when I rush home from work to play, she decides she's done for the day and melts! Then she teases me again the next day! I'm done. I'm not going to be friends with that one anymore. At least for now. Shesh. Winter really is taking too long. I know it has been "fairly mild compared to past winters" but come on- Spring and Summer are way more fun. These are some of my favorite things about the beautiful summers here:

Sunday with afternoon hikes with Zack to see the water falls up the canyon

Watching nature bring life into the world

Laying in the grass next to my Moonfish and looking at this lovely view

Watching this cute little niece of mine feed the ducks

So as you can see. Spring and Summer are far better than the season of cold. I mean I guess that's why I love, love, love Arizona. I love, love, love the heat. And you know what- I like only having two seasons of hot and warm. I actually think it's charming.

***

Well, February has come and gone and now we are on to bigger and better things in March! Right? I don't have too big of plans but I have a feeling it will be a good month. Unless it snows. Then March sucks.

P.S. I love you.

A Day in My Thoughts

2011-02-27T06:11:00.000-08:00

When we are finally laying in bed last night, Zack falls asleep right away and my mind is just going a hundred and fifty two miles and hour.
*I need to decorate something.I need to figure out my outfit for tomorrow (if only I had cute tights).I need to figure out what I want to post about next.I need to clean something.I need to take more pictures.What is my hair going to look like tomorrow? (it's almost been a week of no heat).I need to ice my knee. I need to get a full length mirror for our bed room already!I need to buy a present for my friend.My toes hurrrrtttt!!*

I'm laying there trying to get comfy and trying to figure out why I am needing to do all of these things right now. And so, I look back on my day to see if there was any sign of this coming.

Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start (please sing this, in your head or out loud, in your best Julie Andrews voice because that is how it is written)

:

I'd say it was a good day. Pretty productive if you ask me. I slept in until 7 (I know that's still early but for me that is sleeping in) stumbled out of bed, limited myself to computer time for only 15 minutes (which, can I say, is extra difficult when every cute bloggist in the world as posted, yet again, another cute blog post) and then I started to clean. I did the dishes, I swept, I organized. It was quite relaxing if I do say so myself.

And then Zack got out of bed around 8:45 and we both got ready and headed for the library. I was working on a few work things (I know, on the weekend! I'm lame, but we already covered that) and Zack had to write this super long paper. We were there for at least 2 hours, until I got bored and started catch up on some light blog reading.

Last minute I decided this would be a good time to go workout with my dear motivating friend Sarah and Zack-attack could watch the BYU basketball game. So while the boys (Zack and Sarah's hubby Daniel) watched the game, Sarah and I were kickin' trash in the work out room.

After that, Zack and I went home and got ready for Round Two of the library. yum. we headed back and got settled. A couple hours later we finally decided enough is enough and went home.

We ate dinner.
Leftover pizza for Zackers
Yummy cold cereal for me.
My goes out to those in this world who can't appreciate good breakfast food.

After that we went over to my cousin Brookie's house to help paint. It was just so lovely. A fresh coat of paint will brighten anyone's day. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures. Stupid.

We had to call it quits before 10 though otherwise our car would have been towed or booted (you never can tell what they will do to your car, stupid Provo Parking) and KC took us out to cold stone to curb my craving for something sweet other than chocolate. It was perfect.

Zack and I went home and watched the Karate Kid. Man that kid can fight!

:

And so, this is how I got myself in this mess. In bed, thoughts all over the place. By the time I reviewed the day I was starting to fall asleep. Just in time.
Thank you.

I shall leave you with something sweet. These are some friends that I have the BEST memories with.
(The left to the right)
Zack: my best friend/hubby. (skip me) Jessica: best friend since forever. Callie: became my friend when she was the only other normal white girl in drivers ed- plus she has sexy arms. Catmann: joined our group when she was smitten by a boy and I'm oh so glad she was. And Mikey in the back: not sure how or why we became friends but we did.

This group of amazing people have gotten me through the toughest times. And I shall love them forever.

P.S. I love you

Dream Catcher

2011-02-26T06:47:00.000-08:00

I'm starting to have weird bus dreams. Like the other night in my dream, I was rushing to the bus stop and when I got there, there was a bamillion buses that had my same bus number on them, but I could tell they were all phonies. I had 59.2 seconds to find the right one (okay I don't know how long, but I had to find it quickly). I dashed in between buses, and sprinted past other passengers. And then, I saw it. My bus. With my driver. His name is Caesar. He had the same flashing Eight-Thirty-One as all the other cloned buses except his flashed back and forth from the number to the word FREE (I guess that's how I knew it was my bus? It's hard to tell with these sort of things, you know, in a dream and all). Anyways after reading FREE, all I could say was "okay! I'll take free!" I woke up before I got settled into my seat. "okay that was..different?" I mean what do you say to yourself after you have a dream like that?

Anyways, when I got on the bus that day (in real life now) there was this fancy yellow sign taped over the card reader that said:

Card Reader Out of Order

Therefore- I got a free bus fare. So what does that say about my dream? Is it predicting the future? And so soon... You'll think I'm crazy but I've had dreams that show me scenes from the future. But they don't actually come to pass for like weeks or even months. When I wake up from the dream I don't think anything of it maybe just a "hmmm I've never seen that girl before in my life." And then, you know what, a few months later, I meet that girl from my dream (I was going to label her has "dream girl" but that wouldn't sound right). and I'm 110% positive it is that same girl and we're doing the same thing we were doing in my dream- folding clothes at a store that, at the time of my dream, I had no intentions of working at.

Dreams are crazy. I'm curious to know, Does anyone else have dreams like that? or is this a God-given talent that I'm suppose to use to protect the world?? Probably not. I mean the world doesn't care if I see where I'm going to work in the next year. But it would be cool if I could figure out how to use this power for good! well It's not a power, talent, or gift. I don't think. I think it's just...there. Just to entertain me.

You are probably thinking, "easy. it's de va'ju." No my friends, it's deep than de va'ju. much deeper. But who knows the meaning of it? I certainly don't. So for now, I will just sit back and watch my dreams. Not do anything with them. Now I sound lazy.

This is a little snippet of our future: Zack taking our babies out for a round of golf when mommy needs a day to herself. Can't wait.

P.S. I love you.

My Desire to Become Athletic- at age 20 something.

2011-02-24T06:30:00.000-08:00

Anyone who's met me knows that I have no athletic abilities at all. I'm not aggressive enough, I don't like it when other people lose and that doesn't even cover my skills which I lack very much. I mean I can do basic things like run and catch a baseball (only if I have a glove) shoot a hoop. I can't, however, catch a football or basketball, kick a soccer ball while running, dribble a basketball while running, I can't even hit a ball straight on a pool table. Yeah- I'm that bad. So when my co-workers in my department suggested a softball team this spring and I said "heck yes!" Zack was shocked
"You're going to have to hit the ball with a bat you know."
"I know."
"You wouldn't even hit one at the batting cages."
"I know but I was so young."
"That was last year."
"Welp, I'm just going to have to practice."
And so, I have to practice.

I also, to expand my athletic knowledge and ability, told my cousins that next Christmas I would play football with them. You see, every Thanksgiving and Christmas my family gathers for festivities, food, and football. It's delicious. As for me and my family, we never played football. Ever. Not once to I remember going out and passing the ball to my uncle or blocking my cousin. Zack on the other hand, this last year he threw my aunt to the ground (well keep in mind that she is tiny and full of muscle). She can take it. Yeah it's intense. But I'll do it, just you wait. The issue is, I have the LOWEST pain tolerance. It's way way below sea level. I get hurt so easily. It's ridiculous really.

This is me before a long run. I'm trying to look strong.
*don't look at our apartment in the background. Usually it's clean*

P.S. I love you.

The Lovely Women in My Life

2011-02-22T20:01:00.001-08:00

These are some of my favorite women. They have done so much for me in my life. Now remember this is just SOME of them. There are so many others that have influenced my life for the better and I appreciate all they have done for me.
I love all of you beautiful women so much and I'm so happy and blessed to have you in my life. Thank you!

It's me- just wandering about the spaces in my mind

2011-02-22T05:42:00.000-08:00

I mapped out a run yesterday. I was suppose to run 9 miles. when i mapped it out on mapmyrun.com it said that my run would be 9.56 miles. I rounded it to 9.5. I said "Great!" I went out for my run, almost died of dehydration, stopped at the Wilkinson Center to rehydrate, and half speed walked and half jogged the rest of the way home. It was a miserable run. Miserable. but I did it! I went back online to double check my miles.

8.57?

what? it's gotta be lying. sheesh. all that work for a lousy 8.57. don't get me wrong- that is FAR but I have a schedule to keep here people! I can't get by on 8.57 miles. I'm suppose to run 10 on Saturday! It must have been those stupid brownies that you guys let me eat. Just kidding, I know it wasn't your fault. You would have stopped me, right? Well, I guess this week I will have to step it up on the work outs and cool off on the brownies.
Oh also, I set my hair in curlers yesterday. I left them in for 15 hours and some of them still weren't dry! Maybe i put too much hair in them? But I mean I still managed to make them look somewhat cute? We'll see what the hubbers says when he gets up. I always consult him in my fashion volition.
Yesterday I decided that I really wanted a new necklace. well something different and I didn't want to spend money on anything. I found a video online on how to make a t-shirt necklace. So i pulled out a few old t-shirts and snipped away! I can already tell Zack is questioning the style, and isn't too sure I can pull it off. We will see. I couldn't try it yesterday because I already had to rollers in my hair and it would have been really hard to get it over my head. I'll take a photo and show it to you guys later. Well after I decide if it's cute.
I decided I shall leave you with a few pictures, but my blogger uploading is going really slow. so maybe later. Have a great day!

Round 9??

2011-02-21T11:04:00.000-08:00

That's right my friends, I gave in...again. what am I to do when my husband so sweetly requests my famous brownies with a hint of peanut butter? I couldn't possibly just make them and not enjoy the treat, could I? well I didn't think so, and this is what happened:

And this:

Surprisingly, though, this morning I did not wake up with brownie consumer remorse. I knew that I was going to have a good work out and it was okay that I splurged, I mean com'on it's Presidents Day Weekend! I'm pretty sure Mr. President would have wanted me to have that brownie with a cold mug of milk.
They were delicious. But not worth it to be honest. Now I know. Maybe I can stand strong and not be tempted by moist, warm, fresh out of the oven brownies. Maybe.

a snowflake and a snowman walk into a bar...

2011-02-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

we live in a tiny apartment. I'm pretty sure I already told you. but let me remind you- it's TINY. We've made it quite cozy though. I love it. It's not too far under ground. i mean we have TONS of natural light that comes pouring in when the sun decides he wants to give us a show.
Some times I like to stand on our bed and look out the window across the street and watch snow grace us with her presence as she blankets the field across the street with a lovely white sheet. I only enjoy snow when it sticks to grass only. I don't enjoy it when it is a) on the side walks b) on the streets and c) covered in gross oil and dirt piled up on the side of roads. I hate it in fact.

But when the snow is just coming to stay for a Sunday visit, it can be refreshing. Just looking out the window I can see all the white fluffy happiness.

Today would be a perfect day to build a snowman. and probably the last time we could have a snowball fight with good snow.

I send the hubster an email (he's just in the other room but I'm too cold to get up)

"want to go build a snowman? today would be a really good day."

"sure! lets go!"

I start imagining us out there all bundled up and packing snow to make the bottom of the cold white man. then I imagine us getting into a snowball fight and throwing snow in the air. I have to take my camera, this will be fun.
Zack comes into the bedroom to gather his wife-face. I hop up and look out the window to investigate what exactly I'm about to encounter.

wait, where is the snow? wasn't it snowing all morning and while we were at church? didn't you have to scrape the car off this morning before church? whaaatt?

It was gone. All of it. there was not a trace of snow on the ground. I was thoroughly disappointed if you must know. Here I am, actually EXCITED for the snow for the first time in my Utah life and it just up and leaves? that's not very nice.
Maybe come back this week, okay? except not on the weekend. because I need next weekend to be nice and warm. Thursday might be a good day for you to come, I will make dinner. please bring the activity for us to play. not too late though. how about 6ish? K great, see you then!

Country Fried Chicken

2011-02-20T07:46:00.000-08:00

My hair is fried. like fried chicken. well it's actually not terribly bad. But it is damaged. badly. I bleach my hair, that alone is killing it. and then I blow dry it at least 4 times a week and then I'll either run a curling iron through it or a straightener. So as you girls can imagine- it's pretty damaged. and dry. so I am challenging myself. I want my hair to grow oh so very long. it's grow a lot since The Ninth Grade Incident (I don't want to talk about it, okay?) but it's still not as long as I want it to be. so I'm taking matters into my own hands.

Until further notice: I am taking away my straightener and curling irons (leaving the blow dryer in case it needs to save me from my disasters).

That's right my friends, I am going green. well it's not really green but going natural? I have an addiction to hair appliances and it's going to be the death of my hair. Yesterday I bought foam rollers. I wanted to see how they worked so I took a shower and left them in for a few hours (they say to leave them in overnight) anyways, I obviously didn't leave them in long enough. A few curls came out good so I know they will work if I do it long enough. Hopefully I can use this technique as my main styling. Also I'm only going to wash my hair 3 times during the week. I know it sounds gross but shampooing and getting it went actually dries your hair out and I don't want that!
Anyways, I'll keep you posted. I'm kind of nervous. I don't do well if my hair doesn't look decent and I have to go out in public.

Sugar and Spice- and everything not nice!

2011-02-16T19:51:00.000-08:00

It's sabotage really. I'm pretty sure it's out to get me. A personal vendetta on me. Oh the struggles I've had. Back and forth. It has torn on the very parts of me that make me strong. Temps me from every angle at every opportunity it gets. It disguises it's self so well. It looks so good, but I have the haunting feeling that it would be so evil to partake of the fun. After it's gone- the feeling of guilt forces me to lay in bed under the covers only wishing I could take back what I had done.

.Sugar.

It's killing my mortal soul. It's the very thing that keeps me from pursuing my life long dreams. Okay I know that I'm being dramatic, but seriously. Why does it have to be so lusciously tempting? Why??! What's a girl to do. What am I to do? Here I am, trying to work off 500 extra calories and then walks up a giant cookie with ice cream and it says "oohh I'm so sexy! you need me!" What?? No I don't. I don't NEED you. You might be sexy but I decide what and who I need. And I don't Need you. I want you. I seriously want you. Come here, Let me just have a little lick. One lick won't ruin everything thing I've worked for, right? Wrong. I'll eat the entire darned thing. The whole entire thing. stupid. It happens to me time and time again. It's my true weakness. I'm surprise the ice cream man didn't trick me to get into the truck with all my ice cream fantasies. (My parents instilled a fear of ice cream trucks while I was young, so I ran the other way when the cheery bells came'a ringin). I so wish I ran the other way when sugar plants it's self in my lap. I dont necessarily like sugar it's self, but it's when it's dressed in frosting or on top of an ice cream cone or baked in a warm batch of chocolate chip cookies that it really makes my knees weak. I'm telling you- it's getting out of hand. Serious. I'm trying to come up with a game plan, but I can't seem to figure out the best way. I figure the best way would be to stop cold lemons. To just cut myself off from the deliciousness of mouth watering desserts. I've tried this technique many many times. Twice since the New Year in fact. It fails. Like a negative F minus- fails. The weekends roll around
"Well it's his birthday."
"Well it's Super bowl weekend."
"Well we need to celebrate the end of the week."
Whoa whoa- come on guys! Give me a break! I can't eat this EVERY weekend!!
Can I?
No.
Please?
Not a chance.
Even just a-
NO!!

I am trying to tell myself that I don't like them. I started with cake. I don't really like...ca...cake. Next stop brownies. I'm sorry chocolate pieces of happiness to my tongue, you're a bad influence and I can't have you hanging around. You're just creating pouches of fluff in places that I am trying to trim down! So here it goes. Good bye cake and now- so long brownies! It's been a wild ride, good memories my friends, good memories.

Raising Me

2011-02-13T18:24:00.000-08:00

Seven Signs of Growing Up:
* you no longer care to watch TV every spare second you have. You'd rather read or just listen to music or just talk *you listen to traffic reports on the radio on your way to work. *you watch the news- blek! *you start to plan out you meals for the week *you know how to get stains out of everything (still trying to learn this one) *you start thinking about where you are going to raise your children and what high school they will attend *you go to bed before 9:30pm

Not saying that I'm all grown up or whatever but I sure am trying! well not too fast. I want to enjoi life but I find myself maturing here and there. what store can I get the best deals on produce? what things should we buy in bulk? When should we start a college fund for our children? Growing up is suppose to be fun right? I mean I'm having a blast! I hear a lot of times people say "oh I wish I could go back to high school" or "life was so much easier when I was younger." Yeah, life is probably easier when you don't have much responsibility or when Mom is there to do your laundry and make your lunch for you. I'm loving being able to clean my apartment on the days that I want to, and go to bed when I please. Cook dinner for my hubby. It's fun! Yeah there are hard days for sure-but I'm hoping that when we "grow up" we will look back on these days and think about the "fun" times.

headband, gloves, jacket

2011-02-13T08:35:00.000-08:00

I knew this day was coming. All week I knew what I had to do. It had to get done. there's was no way around it.

But I could be doing so many other things! what if I hurt myself? what if something happens to Zack while I'm gone?

Those were the excuses rolling around in my head. I was trying to get out of the longest run I have ever done in my whole running career (less than 2 years). 8 miles. EIGHT miles. eight MILES.
I'm pretty sure the furthest I've gone was 7 and I nearly died. Thank goodness Sarah was there to push me through the "giving up" laps. Thank you Sarah!
I ate breakfast and convinced myself that i had to wait at least and hour to let the food settle. Then that hour turned into an hour and a half. then I finally got dressed. and then after dragging out my warming up and stretching for 30 more minutes, Zack finally convinced me to get going. He said it would take me 3 hours to finish. 3 hours? He thinks it will take me 3 hours to run 8 miles. HA! I'm suppose to run 13.1 in less than 3 hours! oh little faith does my husband have in me at times. I know it takes me and hour to run 5 miles on the treadmill but there's no way I would take 3 hours to run 8. ( Later I found out that Zack was just joking. he knew I wouldn't take 3 hours to run that far).
It was time to hit the road. Jimmy, Justin, Linkin Park, Blink 182- they all decided to join me on the run because I guess they knew I needed the extra motivation. Dashboard came along for a bit but they didn't stay too long- they had a show or something to go to.
It didn't take long for me to break a sweat. somewhere around 1/2 a mile? well that's because it was up hill. what a long hill. great way to start the run. I knew this loop would have a lot of uphill/downhill variety so it would require me to work hard.
I think I was particularly nervous because when I run it's indoors on a treadmill and I stay at the same pace generally. a steady 5.6 or 5.7 with a 2.5% grade incline. now these hills I was doing were NOT 2.5%. they were more like in the range of 8% to 10% incline. and they were LONG hills. but the happy thought that kept me trudging up the hills was knowing that they had to go down sometime! and oh boy did they go down! It was like jumping in a cool lake after working in 120 degree weather all day! My legs were so please to finally get a break and to just enjoy the view for 3/4 of a mile.

It's nice to have other runners on the road. It's quite inspiring. You have runners of all levels out there pounding pavement. some are so focused and you know they are judging your form and technique. Others are just trying to make it up the hill and you're pretty convinced they are going to pass out. It's interesting coming across different runners running in the opposite direction. You can see each other several yards away. you know you're going to cross paths. Do you wave? smile? nod? try to trip them? I don't know! usually it's last minute you notice out of the corner of your eye that they waved and then it's too late! you missed your chance to wave back and they probably think you're a jerk. Great. I blew it! I totally blew it. what if I ruined her run?
When I come to someone who gives me an uneasy feeling. I look them directly in the eye, let them know that I see them, run hard, and try as hard as I can to not look tired. Let them know that I will not go without a fight. It has worked every time. No one ever tries to mess with me! Or maybe it's because none of those pedestrians had any intention of making any sort of funny business and I judge too quickly. Well I'm going with my first theory.
When I made it to the half way mark of my run I couldn't help but smile out loud. I had to climb the steepest hill yet to get to this point and I hadn't even stopped to walk any of it! WOW. I shot a text to my hubby to let him know that I didn't die and that I'm half way through. Under an hour.
I turned around. Downhill I come! This time I decided to take a different route back. A change of scenery. Maybe a harder course? It was through a cute little neighborhood. Less college students more retired couples with little dogs yelping through screened doors as I passed. It was when I past by the Provo Temple that I saw it. A sign that announced the coming of a marathon to Provo, UT. I could see the headlines now "Local Girl Runs first Half Marathon, Three weeks later Completes her first Full Marathon!"
My half marathon I'm training for is April 16th. This race is May 7th. At this point in my run I am at 6 miles. I feel as though I could conquer the world! I could run 26 miles right now! no problem. It's the last .2 mile that would kill me. I better just take it one event at a time. 13.1 mile is fine for now.
I always feel disrespectful listening to music as I pass the temple and the MTC. So I planned to turn it off just until I past the light. that would be a good distance away so that no one could hear the beats from my headphones. I got lost in thought though. I was coming up with all these ways that Zack and I will be able to save more money in the spring and summer. Stupid winter. it ruins everything. Luckily it's warm outside today. In the summer I'm going to bike to work I decided. that's an extra $11.25 a week. And with the possibility of bus fares going up in March- an extra $12.50 a week which turns into $50 a month! wow that gets exciting.
And then, I'm going to stop using the dryer and just hang all my clothes outside to dry in the clean air. I'm getting a head of myself. that would be a lot of effort. We'll see if that happens.
Before I know it. I'm jogging up our drive way.
Holy sleazy tacos. Did I really just run 8 miles? No. I ran 8.29 miles. At least that's what mapmyrun.com told me.
and whats better is that I ran it in 1 hour and 34 minutes. I know, I know, it's slow. But I finished it okay? that's what matters right now. I still have 2 months to speed up.
A nice long stretch and ice to my knee sounds so pleasant to my soul right now. I stopped at the bottom of my stairs and waited for it to sink in what I had actually accomplished. Zack would be so happy to know that I didn't even walk anything. The only time I stopped was a traffic lights and it was never more than a minute.
I want to run 8 miles every day now. Just because I can.

cowlick

2011-02-12T05:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning was so....so....lame? I don't know how to describe it. First, I got out of bed at 4:50 AM. Lame, right? and then I got on my little lap top and went straight to reading. I scrolled through post after post on this hilarious cute blog for an hour and a half. Still Lame- I know. Then I went to FaceBook to write a status about it- SUPER lame. I stayed on FB for another half hour looking at profiles and seeing who has updated their snapshots of their exciting lives.

Then I heard the alarm go off on the coveted Evo (Zacker's phone). That's my queue! I rushed into the bedroom and snuggle with my warm snuggle buddy. It was allowed after 7:25 am on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.
Tuesday and Thursday depend of if Mr. Study-my-pants off has to go to school before his 12 pm class. And Saturdays & Sundays? Well I have to occupy myself quietly outside the bedroom.

So after a 3 minute cuddle session I rush out of the bed, throw something on, make a quick PB&J for Zack, make a quick breakfast shake for Zack, pack granola bars for both Zack and I- two for him, one for me. By now I'm left with five minutes to get my bag packed for the day, Zack ready to go including his lunch, and still try to camouflage the ever appearing cowlick on the back of my head. We rush out the door and are in the car by 7:40. with the windshield halfway scraped- just so the driver could see. Guess I won't be able to be a passenger seat driver this morning! Oh, but don't worry, I find a way.
"uh Zack?" I said, "Umm you passed the stop line at the red light. you're half way into the cross walk now. I can tell because if I look through the frost on my window, I can tell that your front tires are past the stop line. And.. well see that pedestrian has to now walk around the front of your car."
"I knew you'd still manage to correct my driving."

We made it to the bus stop on time. No more than by 3 minutes to spare though! We're cutting it close that's for sure. I walked into work 30 minutes after getting on the bus. After I clocked in and unpacked my crackers, I realized the cowlick came back! Bleh.

learn to love

2011-02-06T08:17:00.000-08:00

Friday my Callie friend was in town :) she competes for ASU gymnastics (I've always been jealous of her super sexy arms and rock solid abs). ASU was competing against U of U, so Zack and I drove up to Salt Lake and made it just in time. We sat in our seats and enjoyed the games! the crowd was going wild! It always amazes me how many people come to these meets. Luckily we weren't completely surrounded by the enemies fans. We had a few ASU fans right by us with a cute little baby boy that just smiles and smiles.
It's funny listening to other peoples comments. they sure can be rude. What if I were that girls mother they were talking about? but then i realized that i do the same thing all the time. I think that i can just say whatever i want to Zack about anything that i think is wrong, or ugly, or stupid. what gives me the right? I don't know where that person has come from, i don't even really know who they are. so why do i get to make comments about people that are doing things far better than I ever could?
here are some great competitors jumping from bar to bar hoping that gravity doesn't bring them to the mats before they have a chance to grasp the next one and there are people critiquing every little thing- "look at her hair? did she not know that it looked disgusting?"
Really now? Are you serious? this girl just ran full speed at a stationary object and did a flip and now she is on the uneven bars and you're talking about how here hair looks? when was the last time you balanced on a thin beam doing back bends and jumps? I bet your hair looked fabulous when you were dancing on the floor and sprinting to do 3 back flips and sticking it without stepping outside the lines.

Girls sure can be caddy.Like I'm one to talk. whether I say it out loud or in my head. I'm a jerk. where did I learn this stuff from? certainly my dear mother didn't teach me that. I didn't learn it at church in between primary songs. I guess at school. People were always talking about what was wrong with others. My friends and I did it all the time. why? I feel like a jerk. Kids are so mean. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about kids being so mean to other kids just because they didn't brush their hair today or they have holes in their shoes. Why??? Why are people so mean?? Can we all just be nice? Be kind to everyone! even if they are mean to you! lets brain wash our children to do that! maybe the world would be a better place. Words can be hurtful, and no matter how many times to say "I'm rubber, you're glue. whatever you say bounces of me sticks to you" it still cuts to any confidence that you have instilled in yourself.
Bullying is getting out of hand in this world.
So what if someone believes something different than the average man? who cares of someone doesn't have money to buy new clothes every year? does it really matter if we go to church for 3 hours every Sunday and learn about good uplifting things and learn to serve those around us?

Bullying has gone to a whole new level. It has taken the lives of so many people who just want to be accepted and loved by others. No one deserves to wish they were dead. no one has the right to bully someone to death. So why does it happen? What can we do to change what is going on in the cruel world? I'm just one small person here. I can't do it alone. Something needs to change.

We need to start with ourselves. we need to keep our thoughts and words in check. whispers behind closed doors will slip out the windows and will hurt someone. That someone has a bright future if they are given the chance and if we give them confidence. We don't have a right to bring anyone else down.

Can we all just be nice?

to crawl to bed

2011-01-27T20:11:00.001-08:00

It was one of those days. the one where you know it's going to be a good day. I woke up- not feeling rushed. swished my feet around the cold sheets to wake my warm cozy body up. This morning I stretched an awful lot more than normal- almost to the point of breaking a sweat! It was nice. I tried a new do for the hair and it turned out better than anticipated. A style that is really actually bold of me, but with it being one of "those days" and all, I had the confidence - and that's rare. My dear sweet husband dropped me off at the bus stop where I barely made it on in time. My usual seat was taken by a stranger (I thought an angry thought about them) which wasn't my favorite moment, but that's okay- it's one of "those days". Head phones are in, T-Swift is singing her heart out and I've got my book. What a good morning.
Then it hits me.
Something is just not right. I can feel it. Something is ... off . My stomach drops as the image creeps in to my memory. My running shoes in my closet. They are still in.my.closet. Suddenly a gray cloud hangs over me and I'm pretty sure the passengers around me put up their umbrellas. I peek into my bag with the smallest glimpse of hope that maybe, just maybe, the glorious, kind husband packed them for me...maybe...?
No.
If only I had made him breakfast.
(*note to self- always make breakfast for hubby*)
Well. What am I to do? My perfectly organized day is in pieces. I try to puzzle it back together before I come to my stop. No luck. So I call the only person who can straighten this out.
"I can try to bring them to you between classes", Zack is so sweet.
"No, no, that's silly. I'll be fine."
.click.
So here it is. Arriving to work at 8:15 am and will not be fetched by Zack until after 8:00 pm- here goes a lonnngg day.

I manage to make it through the first 4 hours easy as milking a cow. and then the afternoon sweeps over me and overcomes my sanity. Well, I didn't go crazy or anything but I certainly struggle to keep my eyes open!

only eight more hours. I kept yawning to myself.

They went by quickly but then finally the phone rang.

My Love vibrated on my "silenced" phone (it's really not silent- it vibrates SO loud!!)

"I ran to my car! and now I'm on my way!"
(oh how sweet, my prince is coming to save me from the sleepy eye troll and munchkin yawns)

no more than 15 minutes later- he glides into the parking lot and whisks me away. But I make him drive me straight to the library because I have discovered a new hobby I HAVE to pursue. RIGHT NOW.

I need to learn about Rome. or Spain. or how to grow a garden in the snow.

We finally made our way back to the car and I was happily holding 3 new books that I promise to devote all my free time to. I need to learn about something.

Now it's time to crawl to bed. I'm exhausted.

Be kind to everyone my friends!

tickleduel

2011-01-26T09:16:00.000-08:00

Listen to this. We're lying in bed, okay? I went to the bedroom first because both of us like to lay on the big couch (we have another smaller couch but NO ONE wants to sit on the love seat alone- I mean it's a love seat, meant for 2 people to SIT) so we're trying to lay on the big couch fighting for more space, our legs get tangled and our backs can't get comfy so I snag the computer and head for the bed. The hubby stays to watch more Australian Open. Anyways, we're finally both in bed- it's almost 11pm by now but suddenly I am WIDE awake. And Zack, well when he comes to bed that means that he is tired. I ask him to cuddle with me, he rolls to his stomach and throws an arm around my waist (more like lays it across my stomach while he is turned away). I don't know about you but that is not cuddling. He gets sick of that position so he rolls on to his side away from me. So I plot. " How can I get this charming young man to pay attention to me?" I slowly slip my arms around him and give him a huge bear hug from behind. Hold it for a minute- not too long, mind you. Then-

Attack!! I tickle him all along his rib cage. he lays there for a sec pretending it doesn't both him, but the little ab twitches are all too telling :) Here comes the warning- " One...Two...Three", he says, hoping I'll stop. But I don't. Then he gets to "five!" and pounce! he tickles and tickles and tickles until I literally could not beg oxygen to come back into my lungs. He drops and rolls away.

.Silence. .It's over.

Round 2.

I plan the second attack. and he pounces again only this time- no mercy when I call "UNNNCLLLLE!!" I feel as though I will die if this continues much longer so I wiggle myself free from captivity and the very dreaded realization sinks in. I lost.

(P.S. the picture isn't really relevant to the tickleduel that we encountered last night, but I needed to have something )

morning vs. sleep

2011-01-25T21:53:00.000-08:00

Mrs.: "I'm so tired!"
Mr.: "I'm sleepy too"
Mrs.: "Maybe we should both get hooked on sleep aides so that we can sleep better!"
Mr.: "I sleep fine until you jump on me"

.we live a romantic life.

I could be good at this

2011-01-25T21:39:00.000-08:00

You know when you get to that point when you've finished eating cereal and all you're left with is the milk? you have a few options- drink the milk straight from the bowl or fill up your bowl with cereal again, only slightly less than before because there isn't as much milk. This morning I chose the latter..twice :) Oh the guilt. There wasn't much milk left by the time the last refill came around but the last bits were so yummy. please keep in mind that this is not a usual habit of mine- Eating bowl after bowl of cereal, but our dear friend Macy's grocery had an amazing-too good to pass up- sale on our favorite breakfast. Life. Quaker Oats Oatmeal Squares. Magic for the morning taste buds. you must think we don't get tasty cereal very ofter. well, we don't. it's too over priced for my liking. so when each happy box is $3.00 off I can't resists and it takes a lot of convincing from the mister to not buy a bazillion boxes. so we stick with 7. Hoping it will last us a month or two since it's coming out of a very strict budget.

We recently revamped the month to month budget. we spoil our selves by eating out far too ofter and snatching up almost whatever we want at the dreading grocery stores (except over priced breakfast treats). So I feel it's my job to keep us in check considering I do almost all the cooking. It's going to take the most careful planning I can possibly manage.

You see, I'm not a very organized person. But this year, I will learn to be. My goal is to be organized enough so that I don't feel overwhelmed by all the daily tasks. I work full time and don't go to school. Nor do I have children yet- so I should have time right?

*Wish me luck*

A Fun, Fun weekend

2010-07-26T06:34:00.000-07:00

When it comes to planning weekend nights, Zack and I are usually at a loss. We can't ever decide what to do or who to call. They are usually last minute plans and there's only a few people you can ask to hang out last minute. Friday night was fun- we weren't going to go out at first but then last minute our friends Quin and Nicole called- we met up at a park right behind our house and played a couple games then went to their apartment and played the wii (I suck at it- actually i just suck at games, I'm just there to make people feel better about themselves). Then Saturday night we actually had plans so that was good. Our ward was having a BBQ, so after Zack got home from a long day of golf we went to that. I love our ward. Sunday rolled around and Zack wanted to play monopoly really bad. So we asked Alyssa and Tyler what they were doing- they invited us over and we brought the game. Luckily, Alyssa likes the game as much as Zack and Tyler is naturally good at that (once again, I'm just there to make everyone feel better about themselves). It was a really fun night. A great start to a new week :)

My Sweet Love

2010-07-20T20:38:00.001-07:00

After a stressful ending to my work day, Zack was very sweet and patient with me while I took and made many "off the clock" work calls. He is great and understanding to let me finish everything that I need to do and all the while listen to me vent about my daily worries. I love him for that! I always wish that I can repay him for his support and love- I guess I can just do the same for him!! I guess that's what marriage is about- love and support and helping the other become a better person, Oh it's great! :)

Sunday- We look forward to it

2010-07-18T21:05:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoons are so relaxing. It's nice having church early- 10:30, it's perfect. We sleep in a little bit on Sundays, who doesn't though? Well, I'm sure there are plenty of people who don't but right now, we aren't one of them. Today was the first Sunday back at our own ward for about 3 weeks- I guess you really learn to appreciate your own ward. It's nice to be around familiar faces.

I made a yummy dinner tonight with the help of Zack :) We made chicken, mashed potatoes (not quite as good as Mom's yet) and the best corn on the cob! (just boiled, but I made a really good honey-butter with cinnamon). I'm glad I really enjoy cooking- Zack would be so sad if I didn't enjoy it so much :)

After dinner, we went and took a little nap before Zack left for work at 9:15. It's sometimes hard for me to want to get out of bed after we've been sleeping for so long, but our room is getting so HOT! I don't know why- we need a fan I guess. We've opened the windows but that's not enough for us I guess. Oh well.

It's all over. . .

2010-07-18T08:28:00.001-07:00

Soccer. We're finished for the year. I'm sad about it honestly. Soccer has been so fun to go to and be with the other wives and parents. And i know that Zack is going to miss his teammates- they're great friends to him. But there are pros about having this time consuming sport over for Zack. I mean for One- I get to spend more time with him! After I get home from work, he'll be here at home :) Then we have hours together before work. It'll be so nice. Zack's been working so hard with soccer and work and being an amzaing husband, he deserves time to rest. So that brings me to two- he can sleep more! he doesn't have to worry about waking up for soccer practice. Three- We can FINALLY go on hikes together and do other outdoorsy stuff! During soccer it's harder because he works hard at practice and if we were to do something else on top of that it would push him over the edge.

BYU ended the season with a win yesterday playing Ogden outlaws! 3-1.

I'm grateful soccer will forever be a part of my life- I have a new appreciation for it :)

2010-07-16T06:42:00.001-07:00

:)

2010-07-16T06:30:00.000-07:00

Every morning Zack gets home at exactly the same time, 6:41 am. He then will call me and I meet him outside to move my car. It's the same thing every morning. Then he gets ready for bed. He's just plain exhausted when he gets home. Thankfully it's almost over for him! He needs real sleep. For an entire week. It's hard for him to sleep during the day most of the time, but he's so great and goes on with life even if he is dead tired. With soccer ending this week maybe he'll be able to rest more- I know that we will have more time together, That's what I'm looking forward to the most :) But I'm sad the games are coming to an end. Perhaps next year!!!

2010-07-14T06:19:00.001-07:00

It's funny to think that the challenges that you have in life will be so minute when we're older. These things that seem such a big deal to me really don't matter and won't matter in just days. It happens to me all the time, when i get so passionate that something that is just not right and it has to be fixed TODAY, but tomorrow, even if it's not resolved- it won't matter. I try to take things as they come, be relaxed and "go with the flow" but it's harder than I though it would be. Thank goodness for Zack! He keeps my head on straight and shows me whats really important. I love him for that :)

Family in Town!

2010-07-13T06:29:00.000-07:00

This summer has been a lot more fun than I thought it would be :) I thought it was just going to be work, work, work. I've really been enjoying soccer this year which is huge considering I didn't know a thing about it 2 years ago- I didn't even know the world cup only happened every 4 years and that it's kind of a big deal :) (i still can't figure out off-sides. . ) Too bad this is our last year playing at BYU :( we'll just have to wait for our kids to start playing soccer! (no Mom, we're not starting family right now). This past month we've seen SO much family! it's been amazing! First my aunt Shelia and uncle Sam and their amazing family, and then my dear sister Treva, then my Lovely Nana, then Grayson and my Uncle Mark, and just yesterday I dropped of Conner at EFY (I'm so lucky :) ) And of course we have aour family here in Provo with us- Brookie, KC, Owen, Alyssa, and Tyler- I love my family! We also got to see my other cousins for a bit- Dallin, Thomas, Kim, and Kat! it was so fun! and all that doesn't even include Zack's family! Both of his parents came to town :) and Kimmy and Brad and little Lincoln Loggs came down from Ogden (always fun to play with them). And then Zack's sister Amber and her family! (6 total) it was so much fun! I wish i had taken more pictures :(Some day I'll get really good at taking pictures.

We love our family so much and we're so grateful for everyone's support always! Thank you for all you guys do for us!

Finally, a week off :)

2010-06-16T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last week Zack had a break from soccer practice- for a whole week! I was able to get off work an hour earlier (about an hour after Zack wakes up) so that we could spend the evening together before he goes off to work. It was so fun! We made dinner together, we went on walks (both our ankles were out of commission so we couldn't do more than walk, really), my cousin Alyssa and her hubby Tyler came over for dinner(always great seeing them), we just relaxed and even had time to watch a whole movie together! The weather toward the end of the week, unfortunately, wasn't all that great :( just plain rainy. So we weren't able to do everything we wanted to do because most of those activities were outdoors. Friday night we hung out with some friends, played games and started to watch Alice and Wonderland but everyone was falling asleep so we decided to head home early. Zack was really into the movie though- I felt bad we had to leave. Saturday was fun though- as everyone knows, the world cup started. At first I didn't really care to go out anywhere to watch it but after Zack left with one of his friends to go watch it at Iggy's, I felt left out! I didn't want to be out of the loop! So I ended up watching the game too. It was really fun (food was disgusting as Zack put it, I didn't have any). We've started another week filled with soccer practice, practice, practice, and games :) I'm sure Zack is enjoying practice again. Now that he's all healed, for the most part, he is able to practice with the team a lot more. I can't wait for the games this weekend! and the weather is suppose to be nice so that's ALWAYS a plus.

Our Week/Weekend :)

2010-04-27T06:31:00.000-07:00

What a week! Last Thursday me, Zack, and my sister in-law Erin took off for AZ. Zack's dear, sweet grandfather past away the previous week :( He was such a wonderful person to be around, everyone just adored him. There was a great memorial for him and SO many people made it just a wonderful experience- it truly reflected the wonderful life he lived.

Zack and I were able to stay with my family, well we stayed in an empty house that they are getting ready to move into. it was perfect. The Memorial happened to land right on our anniversary :) it was great to be with family for such occasion! We had a wonderful time being with so many people and are so grateful we had the opportunity to be there with everyone! We made our way back to Utah- where we realized just how dark a basement apartment can get at night :) Our electricity was turned off! An hour after we left for AZ we got a call from our upstairs neighbors saying there had been a fire in their bathroom! so all the power went out for 5 days! we're so grateful to our neighbors, Brent and Katie, who stored our meat for us so it wouldn't spoil!! Thankfully the sun rises early so it wasn't a problem in the morning :)

While He's Away

2010-03-20T15:35:00.000-07:00

Sleeping in has never been my thing but when you wake up at 10am, what can ya do? I did what I could to not stress out too much over it, I rushed to do dishes and clean a few rooms so that I didn't feel like I totally wasted my morning. Then I was planning to go to the gym but I opted to hike the Y! It was a beautiful sunny day and I didn't want to miss out on it! I hit the trail with myself, a camera (I don't even think it works) and water, I didn't even have music! There's always a point on the hike where I think to myself' "why in the world did I even start this!" and that thought comes about 28 feet into the hike!! It gets pretty intense haha. But I went to the top and back to the bottom in 1 hour and 5 mins! I thought I would get finished quicker but I forgot my knee is hurt and it was SO hard to get back down!! But along the way I met this MASSIVE dog! The couple said he was a husky- Saint Bernard mix. He was gorgeous! After the Y I wasted 2 hours at the mall debating whether or not I would buy something, I ended up not :(

I picked up a book at the library- At First Sight, I was in a Nicholas Sparks mood. I'll see how it goes. Zack comes home soon--can't wait!!

boo for away games :(

2010-03-19T21:06:00.000-07:00

Gotta love the family that takes care of you when your hubby is gone- Brookie, KC, and Owen stepped in to make sure I wasn't sitting home alone. We watched The Time Traveler's Wife. I had never seen it but I definitely let some tears out! When Zack is gone I'm a lot more sensitive, I don't know why I watch those kinds of movies when he is gone! I know it's only one night, but that is a really long time when it's your best friend! Oh well, I have a long list of things I can accomplish tomorrow! And then he'll be back by 9 (hopefully sooner) :)

Biggest Loser!!!

2010-03-13T20:10:00.000-08:00

I love Biggest Loser! I'm so excited it's back on!! (it stopped while the Olympics were going) that show is so motivating!!! Jillian is such a great trainer- but I am so scared of her. I've had a couple dreams where Zack and I have been on the Biggest Loser Couples series (only we weren't over weight) Jillian was so mean to us though ha ha. I love that show because you can see the real reason people are there. Sure winning a ton of money rocks but really they just want their life back. They can't live their life to the fullest, they are trapped in a body that is ruining them. I'm always sad to see people go home because I'm afraid they are going to go back to their old ways. but I love to see them when they go home and lose another 50lbs! I get so excited for them! I think I tear up at least once every show :) it's so great to see them all push for each other to succeed. last week they had a temptation challenge and one guy ate more than 2000 cals in one challenge!! He was so grossed out but he use to eat more than that at every meal before! It's so great to see how the life styles of the contestants change. It's such a great show :)

Bum knee and a new job!!

2010-03-13T20:00:00.000-08:00

I'm so bummed. I was all excited to train for my first half marathon, and I was doing SO well in the beginning 2 months but then my knee started getting really sore. So sore that I couldn't run anymore and now it's to the point where I am limping where ever I go. I feel so lame :( I miss being able to just get up and run! but I'm too stubborn to go to the doctor. Zack says I need to get it rubbed out and that it will never stop hurting if I don't, but I just keep thinking it will just get better. I'm ready to start seriously working out again. 45min work out every other day just doesn't cut it for me. I need to have something to work for. I'll have to buck up and find a doctor to help me!!! Because this is just getting ridiculous. I feel stuck and it's not fun at all. But I did start a new job! I got hired at a spa called Canyon Breeze Spa. It's just opening up (we're having our "soft opening" this month) and then a re-opening will happen in April! I'm excited! it's been pretty good. A lot of work and only a few clients. So if any of you need a facial, pedicure, waxing. . . give me a call!!! you can come in! Prices this month are the best. It should be a good job, keep me busy doing something I love- a little stress relief :)

Valentine's Day and Love!!!

2010-02-15T16:39:00.000-08:00

A year ago yesterday Zack asked me to spend the rest of my life with him. Best question I had ever been asked!!! It was only a few short months later that we finalized that commitment. Since then it's been the greatest adventure I've ever had! When you marry your best friend, it's easy to have fun everyday. Zack sure makes the ride through hardship blissful. Yesterday, it being the holiday of Valentine's Day, Spent it together at home, I made dinner and dessert. It was great! Valentine's Day is always better when followed by a Monday of no work and school! We spent the morning cleaning our cars and then went to see Valentine's Day-it was a good movie! One of those I'd only see once but it was still good. Tomorrow the week starts again-soccer, school, and work-wish us luck!

circus, Skiis, and Sun!

2009-07-25T18:40:00.000-07:00

We had the great privilege of playing host the last couple weekends :) Last weekend Annie came to visit to help us out and be here to see the family. It was so fun. Sunday we went on a small drive up the canyon and walked around. On the way up my loving husband rolled my arm up in the window! It didn't hurt too badly, although I did end up bruising a bit! This weekend Steven came to Utah for the Kenny Chesney concert on Thursday. Zack, Steven, Kim and Erin all went (it's kind of a long story about why I didn't go). They had a ton of fun though. Last night we went to a circus show! It was so good- Zack's Cousin Nick works with the cirus and travels all over putting on these shows. He says it takes 7 hours to put up the tent! There we clowns, tight ropes, motercycles, and a miniture pony and a small donkey (they didn't do much, just walk around) There was this one act where the girl climbs up the rope and spins and hold up her whole body with just her feet. it was so amazing. We spent today in Park City! It was so beautiful-we couldn't have asked for better weather. We stayed at the Fesival Of Flights for a few hours where we watched free style jumps from tall ramps into a pool. and then we watched the long jump event, that was fun for the first 7 mins but then I got bored. Zack liked it though- I think I was just worn out from the sun. We walked down main street for a while looking a shops and just hanging out really. Overall, it was an excellent weekend!

2009-07-18T17:30:00.000-07:00

So my best friend Carly Cook is getting married :) I'm so excited for her! Heidi and I planned her Utah bridal shower and it turned out so fun. Carly's close friends and new sister in-laws came. There was yummy food and fun presents! The only down side was I had to leave Zack all day :( I went to a work event at 8:30 this morning and didn't get back home until after 5:30. I feel as though I abandoned him. I know he's fine on his own but it was a Saturday and he was here all alone. I wouldn't like that, but I guess I've had my fair share of lonely Saturdays (not to mention lonely WEEKENDS) Annie is coming up here to visit us. It will be good to have her here to help Zack He's pretty excited she's coming. It'll be so good to see her.
Last night we went to Zack's soccer game. It was good to see them play, But I'm sure Zack was pretty bummed he wasn't in the game himself. Tonight they have their last game for the season :( well that's about all the updates we have as of late, hopefully we'll have some more exciting things going on soon!

There's nothing funny about a broken humerus

2009-07-14T07:31:00.000-07:00

Well there is quite a bit to update since the last post. Zack has continued to work hard in his class and soccer. I am still working during the week and loving it! This last week end my family was up here enjoying the Utah weather with Zack and I. The Skousens were also up here visiting their family too. It was so fun to spend time with everyone. Friday night we all went to the BYU soccer game to watch Zack play. This was the first televised game of the season! So it was really exciting for us- our family in AZ could watch it with us! About 20 mins into the game Zack had already gotten injured, it was okay after a few mins (he had just been hit in the head). but, at 33 mins, it was much worse- Zack was running after the ball to save it from going out, when another player lower his shoulder into Zack to block him from the ball. That caught Zack off guard and sent him to the ground. He landed pretty much in a tangled mess. His back was twisted with his arm thrown behind him. We all just sat there waiting/hoping he would jump up and everything would be fine, but all we saw was his trainer running back and forth getting more and more supplies. Turns out he broke his humerus (that's kind of a difficult bone to break). We were so blessed to have his team doctor right there, she got him up and took him straight to the ER where they immediately took him in to get XRAYS. He didn't have to wait at all. We were there for a few hours. while we were there my family came to visit him. We were so blessed to have two priesthood holders (my dad and uncle Tracy) there to give Zack a blessing. We decided to go ahead and have surgery instead of letting it heal on it's own with having the risk of it not healing correctly and having to have surgery later down the road. Thankfully we didn't have to wait too long. . .Melissa (the team doctor) found us a really good surgeon and got us scheduled for Monday late morning; I don't think we could have waited any longer! So we've completed the surgery and now we just have to wait until the doctor says we can leave (we stayed here over night). It shouldn't be much longer, Zack has been doing so great recovering- he hasn't felt sick at all and we've been able to stay on top of the pain with the help of the hospital staff (they've been so great). Last night, A LOT of Zack's team came by to see him. that was so great of them, we enjoyed seeing them here. We have been so blessed and I know that he's been doing so great because of all the prayers we've received from everyone. We're so blessed to have such great family and friends to support and comfort us during this time. I feel so lucky to have such great family right by us to help us through this also. Brookie and Alyssa have been so great to us and so willing to do anything we need. we really appreciate them and their families up here. I'm so glad Zack's sisters are so close and willing to help us also. We truly have been so blessed in so many ways and I'm sure the blessings will continue to come. Thank you so much for every one's love. We really appreciate it.

Missing out

2009-06-25T18:53:00.000-07:00

Zack's team is in Cali again for soccer, this is his last away game though for the season! Finally, I'll get to keep him around for a bit! He'll have two games this weekend, tonight and then Saturday night, he said that he thinks they might be going to the beach on Friday, but he's thinking he won't go because he has to study :( He started anatomy this week and already it sounds killer. I would never be able to do it, but I know Zack will do great. He's just going to study like crazzzy for the next few weeks! I think he's enjoying it so far, I know that he is really interested in the human body and all it's wonderful miracles. Work has been crazy intense for me this week. It seems like I hardly get a second to breath! I've enjoyed it for the most part, I love being busy (it makes time fly by) but then when I get home I have this uneasy feeling that I forgot to do half my work! I've just gotta get more organized and it should be tons better. So basically I miss Zack again, TONS. I'm so grateful he has such an amazing ablilty to play soccer and is able to see so many different places, but I just wish I could go with him some times. I'm glad this is the end of it this year!

While he is gone. . .

2009-06-11T20:08:00.000-07:00

So this trip with Zack gone has been tough! I'm so grateful I have such a great family to keep me occupied while he's away. Brookie is so sweet to take care of me, take me to Red Robin, let me watch movies at her house, and she even lets me hold baby Owen! Thanks Brookie! I'm not really sure why this trip has been so hard, I think it's because I knew it was going to be for so long. I'm so excited to see him this weekend! He's having fun in Cali though; it always seems like he's at the beach,haha. Man, I wish I was there. I decided that when he goes away I'm going to ban chick flicks, those are the ones that get me all bummed out! I guess this is a good time for me to just spend reading and cleaning, too bad I probably won't get to the cleaning part until last minute! Preston and Ryker came up last week to visit! It was so fun to have them stay with us! I'm so grateful Aunt Diane brought them up! I've missed them so much! Preston went to Idaho this week so he'll be coming back to Provo tomorrow to keep me company for the remainder of Zack's little trip. I'm so grateful for the amazing family Zack and I both have. Both are just so supportive and loving! Thank you all so much for all that you've done for Zack and I, we've been so blessed since we've been married. We can't express our love and gratitude enough to everyone. But we sincerly hope that you will someday know just how grateful we are!

Our One Month!

2009-05-25T09:31:00.000-07:00

Crazy- we've been married for a month now! It's been so great! It seems like we're finally getting the hang of everything. It's been so fun cooking together and putting our apartment together, we just sill are trying to find places to put everything! And we're still looking for a fall apartment. I'm starting to learn how to cope while Zack is gone for soccer trips- he goes out of town again this weekend. but they have two games so that's good they won't have to go back again to play the other team. I'm still going to miss him tons! but it's getting easier to handle.

All moved in, well almost

2009-05-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

We finally were able to move into our new apartment! We've both decided we like it a lot and kind of bummed we have to find a new place before august :( but oh well, we'll find something great! I've decided to keep myself busy while Zack's gone for soccer this weekend, my project is to just organize and put a few things together so it looks better when he gets back tomorrow! I didn't realize how much there still is to do! and I didn't realize just how much stuff we had! hopefully I can get it finished before he gets back!

2009-05-09T21:04:00.000-07:00

We were recently married in the Mesa, AZ temple. It was such a beautiful day! We were blessed to have been able to spend it with so much family! We both appreciate all the help and support we received from EVERYONE! Our wedding weekend would not have been nearly as perfect as it was with out all of our friends and family helping us with everything. I feel so blessed to be apart of two beautiful families! Thank you so much to you all! Now that we're back in Utah we've been so grateful to be living with Zack's wonderful sister and brother-in-law. We're sad to move out, but anxiously excited for the new step in our marriage! Since being married, life has been blissful! And I can only imagine what we will experience next!