Dinos and Concoctions

Tomorrow we'll be heading back to God's Country (aka, TEXAS) for a week and I'm sure there will be much to post about regarding that, so before all that goes down, I figured I'd give a run down of the last couple months. Enjoy some of what's been happening via pictures:

I made a green smoothie that was delicious.

I had mucho pills to take in one night that made a nice smiley face.

Husband came home and now we get to go to the temple together again! (Sometimes we like to be gay and match)

We went to a pretty cool restaurant where they have divers that perform during dinner. And we got yelled at by a self-centered-embarrassed-to-breast-feed-in-public-crazy woman.

We got a pet dinosaur named Sid. He likes to be taken on late night walks.

Husband has been an incredible housewife for me.

And in his much needed down time he likes to eat zingers and watch Star Trek. Gotta love them trekkies.

He's also started working on a roofing project for a guy with a super sweet log cabin.

We decided the best way to internalize Jesus was to partake of Jesus Harvest Seeds (some might even call those crazy things Candy Corn - but not us. They're Jesus Harvest Seeds).

We've been going on dates sometimes.

And husband is even nice enough to be seen with me in public when I look like I just worked all day at Hobby Lobby.

We've also discovered that husband can make some interesting, but tasty concoctions out of all the old stuff in our fridge/freezer when we want to get rid of everything before we return to God's Country for a week (and don't mind the VS angel joining us for dinner).

**Not pictured: countless hours of school/homework/work at the Hob Lob/watching episodes of The Office/watching episodes of The Big Bang Theory/hating the tundra that is Utah**

Beautiful Baby and Teeny Shorts

Welp, husband is home and it's glorious. But we'll get to that. First, I have to catch up on the last month or so:

I finished up my summer job with RISE and though it was by and large the most difficult job I've EVER had, I'm so grateful I had the chance to do it. The two boys I ended up working with (Cameron and Bryson) are incredible. I'll love them forever for the things they taught me.

I got to spend a week in Texas in August and I got to have so much fun there that I didn't take one. single. picture. But my brother did while I was visiting his sweet little family!

 It's ok, I know what you're all thinking but too afraid to say. Yes, Orion truly is the most beautiful child ever created. Half Belizean (so he gets the beautiful skin and hair)/half White (so he gets amazing blue eyes). Indeed. He's gorgeous. There were MANY other visits with many other wonderful people, but alas, no pictures.

When I got back from paradise, I got to jump right back into school full time and keep trucking along at Hobby Lobby. So far my classes are great. Very time consuming, but very interesting. I love being fully immersed in my major finally and not having to deal with the trivial classes that are mandatory. And Hobby Lobby is, well, the same. I super love all the people I work with (no joke. really love every one of them), but I wish there were three people with my position instead of just the two of us because some weeks I'm having to work almost full time hours. That's pretty rough when I'm in school full time and already have a 45 minute commute to school one way. But at least I'm making money and I don't dread going to work.

And last but not least: HUSBAND IS HOME! He finished his job in Kansas and safely made it back 2 weeks ago. He jumped right in and found a job with a moving company called Two Men and A Truck so he gets to be people's "boy" all day and exert his manliness. And my gosh, he's such a stud while doing it. He makes good tips for good reason. Who can resist this?

(Please note the tan line just below the knees)

Admit it, he makes that oversized shirt and teeny shorts look GOOD. Mmmm. Husband is such a man. I love having him home. It's so nice to come home to somebody everyday. But not just anybody. Somebody who has the kitchen cleaned and the bed made everyday because he knows that makes me happy and I just don't have time to do it because I'm usually gone around 14 hours a day. And occasionally he reads my mind and has Chinese waiting for me. He's so good.

Well folks, that's our life as of late. And now I'm tired and we have to be up early. (WE have to. Ahhhh, I missed that.) Peace out.

I Don't Want to Be Fabulous; I Just Want to Be Faithful.

Lately I've been having a hard time focusing on the right things. I'm not a materialistic person, but it's still easy for me to lose sight of what really matters. Recently, I guess I've been lost in how glamorous other people and their lives seem to be. So many people seem to be brilliant, beautiful, adventurous, blissful, care free, stylish, and basically perfect. But I'm none of those things and it's been bothering me to the point that I dislike those people and have become unhappy with me and my life.

Today in church, as I was listening to the speaker, a thought came into my mind so clearly that I could almost hear someone saying it: "I don't want to be fabulous; I just want to be faithful." I didn't know where that thought came from but I started analyzing it's meaning. A few definitions of the word fabulous are "almost impossible to believe; told about in fables; purely imaginary; known about only through myths or legends." Yet, that's what society seems to be attempting today. You have to be fabulous or you're nothing, essentially.

But is that what's important in this life? To have others think that you're something they could never achieve? I think not. The first and greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart. If we love God, we will faithfully follow Him. A few definitions of the word faithful are "true to one's word, promises, vows, etc; steady in allegiance or affection; loyal; constant; adhering or true to a fact, a standard, or an original." But my favorite definition of faithful is "reliable, trusted, or believed." How I long to be trusted by my Heavenly Father! I would love for Him to see me as reliable; someone He can believe and believe in because of how I live my life.

For now though, I'm working on it. I have such a long ways to go that it can feel overwhelming at times. I feel so immature in the ways of God and I know I have SO many things I need to change. But I want to change. I want to become the person the Lord knows I can be so that He can trust me with the really big things in life.

What strikes me the most about this sentence that popped in my mind today is that the first part (fabulous) is something that is unbelievable and unattainable. The second (faithful) is something that is so meek and simple. That's how I want to be. I don't want people to see me as something so glamorous they feel they could never get there (because fabulous ultimately is imaginary). I want people to see me as something they can do too so they can feel joyful about God, about themselves, and about life.  It's a good thing we have the perfect example to teach us how to get there.

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Since Skylar and I hadn't been together since mid April essentially (with the exception of a few days during May), we decided it would be fun for me to fly out to Kansas for our anniversary and hit up the church stuff in Missouri and Nauvoo. So that's what we did. It was tons of fun and VERY needed.

I got in Friday the 29th and we just spent time lazy-ing around in Independence, MO. Saturday, we got up (kinda) early and started the 5 hour drive to Nauvoo. We made a slight detour to see Adam-ondi-Ahman (which was beautiful)! Once we got to Nauvoo, we found our motel and relaxed for a bit (there was a lot of "relaxing" during this trip), then headed into town to the temple and to see what Nauvoo was all about. The next day we headed back to MO and stayed in Liberty that night. The last morning I was there, we saw Liberty Jail, then headed to the airport. It was a short, but very sweet trip.

We definitely enjoyed our first night together, but Missouri, as it turns out, is NOT my favorite state! It's a little bit white-trash (at least the parts we were in).

BEAUTIFUL!

Ha ha, what a terrifying mascot for this small town we drove through!

Love Nauvoo! Especially the temple!

This gross Chinese Buffet was seriously the ONLY "sit down" place within 50 miles. We should have been tipped off to its nastiness when the host said to us as we walked in, "If you want fresh food, just let me know. We have cooks who can make new food for you." Yikes.

We passed nothing but cornfields on the way back. That was fun!

Whew! We made it through the first year!

We definitely chose the best time of year to get married. Shark week always coincides with our anniversary!

Liberty Jail was cool. Kind of sad, but also inspiring.

The airport came too quickly. But it was a great trip! Much needed and much appreciated!

525,600 Minutes

A year has come and gone since this new chapter in our lives started. On July 30, Skylar and I celebrated our first anniversary, but we'll get to the celebration part in another post. For now, I want to talk about the last year. People say that the first year of marriage is the hardest. I can't honestly say since we've only been through the first year, but I can say it's had its ups and downs. For some reason, newlyweds here in Utah all claim it's been the easiest, best year of their lives. I think they live in La-La Land. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for this past year, but it definitely came with its challenges. Here's a quick recap:

July: Got married in the Dallas Temple - on July 30th...I think. I ALWAYS think it was the 31st for some reason.

August: Quick honeymoon in San Antonio. Moved to Utah, stopping to see the Grand Canyon on the way. Moved into our awesome, ghetto section of a 110 year old house, sharing a very thin bedroom wall with a couple of single girls in the next apartment over. We had a lot of fun with that. School started the end of August. Skylar took a couple online classes. I got a job in payroll on campus. Skylar started trying to get a branch of Billy Ellis Roofing going up here.

September: Nothing of consequence happened. Or maybe it did, but I don't remember. Uh oh.

October: My poor, faithful Edward (my car I've had since the beginning of college) started having problems. It was our only form of transportation and we spent THOUSANDS of dollars on him for one thing after another, only to never get him fully fixed. At least he kept running though.

November: Went to LAS VEGAS for Thanksgiving since it's only a 6 hour drive (as opposed to the 24 hours to Texas). Saw the Blue Man Group and fell in love with them. Seriously. Got in a car accident in poor Edward on that trip.

December: Billy Ellis Roofing and Skylar decided it would be best for everyone if he broke off and started his own company which meant great opportunity for growth, but no more financial security. I had to quit my job in payroll at the end of the semester due to schedule conflicts in the following semester. Skylar finished his online classes. I made awesome grades that fall! AND we got to go back home for a couple weeks around Christmas.

January: Got my old job back at the MTC (where I worked for 3 years before my mission). Started classes again and a week into the semester had a complete break down (which nearly resulted in us packing up and moving back to Texas). Made the decision to switch my major from Physiology and Developmental Biology to Public Health. Skylar began taking necessary steps to start a new company. Tristan (Skylar's younger brother) moved up to Utah and started living with us. He had to sleep on an air mattress that was too small for him. Poor guy.

February: Again, nothing of consequence. Just the stresses of a new company.

March: The challenges of a new company became more and more apparent. It was rough. We made the decision that we hated Provo and would move as soon as possible. Skylar's mom got really sick and was admitted to the hospital. It was just the beginning.

April: New company challenges persisted, and worsened. I was still crazy stressed over life and money and it took its toll on all of us. Many arguments took place, but much learning and growth happened because of it. Skylar and Tristan made a trip to Texas to see their mom while I finished the semester, packed and moved our apartment. I survived, but I certainly didn't thrive. I made the move to Sandy and Tristan moved into his own place at the end of the month. I decided to only go to school part time and work full time to be more supportive of Skylar. I started my Epidemiology class for the short spring term.

May: Skylar's mom passed away on May 1, shortly after they discovered she had cancer all throughout her body. We all made a short trip Texas for the service. Skylar's company faced pretty severe challenges so Skylar and Tristan headed out to Kansas to work in storm-damaged areas. That was just the beginning of many long months of him being gone. I started work at Hobby Lobby as a customer service manager and also started trainings for RISE, my other job working with disabled kiddos.

June: Skylar bounced between Kansas and Texas, only to settle in Kansas until the fall. I worked 2 jobs, finished my epidemiology class and started another public health class, and stayed pretty crazy busy.

July: I continued being super busy and Skylar continued working in Kansas. We gradually began to get the hang of how to effectively communicate over long distance which was CRUCIAL. I flew out to visit him over our anniversary.

Without going into the nitty-gritty, I'll just say that I'm extremely grateful for the lessons this past year brought us, and I'm extremely grateful this past year is over. I wouldn't trade it, but I also wouldn't want to relive it.

I've been thinking about what other people say about their wedding day. A few key phrases people like to use are: "It was the happiest day of my life." "It was perfect, everything I'd always imagined." "I was so nervous that morning." "I'm so glad we decided to keep with the traditions."

It's funny, I feel completely opposite about that day....in just about every respect. 1) The day we got married was great because we FINALLY (after many years of waiting) got to be together in every sense of the word - forever. Sure it was a super happy day, but it was only the beginning. I've already had happier days than that and I'll continue to have happier days. 2) I hadn't been dreaming about this day all my life. In fact, I didn't even really want to plan it. I pretty much tried to turn as much over to my mom(s) and sisters as I could. I'm grateful they wanted to do it. 3) I wasn't at all nervous that morning. I woke up at 4:30 after only about an hour of sleep because of an interesting night before with my grandmother, got myself ready, then drove myself over to pick up Skylar so we could grab some chick-fil-a for breakfast and head to the temple together. A little out of the ordinary, but it worked for us. We actually were a little surprised at how NON-nervous we both were. There was just a feeling of peace - which was good because my family ended up being an hour late. That kind of stress probably would have killed most other brides. 4) We didn't do the traditional wedding garb. We had a backyard barbeque for the reception where Skylar wore khakis and I wore a sun dress. We had a variety of cakes from Costco and we karaoked while kids swam. It was totally laid back and I loved it.

Our wedding day fit us and it was great, but I'm glad weddings are only for a day and marriages are (or can be) forever. That's what it's all about, folks.

Smoothie Super Chef

Lately, I've become a little addicted to the wonderfully tasty, healthy, filling, chilled delights better known as smoothies. This developed love has been a process, however. Let me back up, so you can understand the smoothie's and my journey to greatness.

Marriage is literally a melding of 2 individuals into one (hopefully better) whole. When Skylar and I got married, we each brought our own great qualities with us. I brought kindness (ha ha), patience (ummm), logic (ok, that's true), and charm (really?). He brought..........a blender. (Yes, he brought much, MUCH more than that, but we'll go with just that one thing for effect).

However, this blender initially was the bane of my existence (a little dramatic? perhaps). It was HORRIBLE! When I first tried to make a smoothie with it (last year), it took me half an hour! And even then, it wasn't fully blended. So I put the blender away and never looked back - that is, until a few weeks ago. It was starting to get super hot here in Utah and as I'm trying not to be a whale anymore, I didn't want to go get ice cream. So as I pondered my plight, I decided to give the ol' blender another go. At first, it was rocky. It took me another half hour to make a stupid strawberry banana smoothie. Afterwards I thought, "Forget it. Too much effort for one serving." But the next day, the heat was back and so was my desire to be cooled and not fat. So I pulled out the blender again. This time, it was a little better, a little smoother. Gradually I cut the blend time down to 25 minutes. Then 20 minutes. Yes, I began to figure out the quirks and gliches of the blender and realized that all she needs is a little patience, love, and understanding for her guard to come down.

Today, I boast a whopping 5 minutes for a delightful, delicious, delectable smoothie. You might say Sally and I have arrived at smoothie pro-dom. (That's right, we've been through a lot so I named her). Because of her loyalty to me, I've come to love her product: the smoothie.

The best things about smoothies, you ask? Why, they're the things I listed at the beginning of this post! Tastiness. Coldness. Healthiness. Happiness. How about a glimpse into one of my best recipes yet?

(These are all approximations. I don't actually measure anything out.)

(Also, there are a lot of parentheses in this post. My bad.)

1 cup of frozen sliced strawberries
1/2 of a frozen sliced banana
1/6 can of calcium fortified frozen orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup of raspberries
3/4 cup of water
3/4 cup of milk

This makes about a glass full of smoothie goodness.

*I've been cutting dairy out of my diet lately, so I use light vanilla soy milk instead of regular milk. It's delish.

*You could use 1 1/2 cups of milk instead of splitting it between milk and water, but I'm cutting out calories by splitting it.

*When you use the frozen fruits, there's no need for ice.

*Also, I'm considering adding some silken tofu to the blend for extra nutrients and protein.

All in all, I've estimated one glass of smoothie-liciousness pumps out about 250 calories, several servings of fruit, and the only sugar is the natural, good-for-you kind. It's super filling and I end up having one for dinner a few times a week. Trust me, they're awesome. Now go make one. Please? Sally will be here cheering you on.

A Day in the Life

Just realized I haven't posted much in a while and I never really updated on how my jobs/school are going.

RISE is actually much better than I anticipated. When I was first hired, I was ecstatic and couldn't wait to start. Then as I learned more about what the job entailed, I became....less excited and more concerned about whether it was even worth it or if I should just get another job. But I decided to go with it and I'm glad I did. For the first month, I worked with a 10 year old boy name Cameron. He was awesome. We played a lot of "zombie wars" and I can now confidently say that I'm ready for the zombie apocalypse. Now I'm working with a 13 year old boy name Bryson who is hilarious. And he's teaching me how to play Magic. I'm gonna be so well rounded by the time this job is over. When it's not just the two of us, we're with a group of other staff/kids doing fun stuff like attempting to ice block down a huge hill and wiping out half way and tumbling the rest of the way down and being super sore the next day because you're getting old. Oh, wait, that's just how it went for me.

Then there's Hobby Lobby. I'm grateful for this job because it's really good experience for me to be a customer service manager, but some days I feel like I just don't make enough for all the stress I undergo with this job! But really, when all is said and done, I like finding ways to solve customers'/cashiers' problems and attempt to make them happy.

And school is great. I'm feeling more and more that I made the right move changing my major to public health. I LOVE all the professors and the material is so interesting! I finished my epidemiology class I was taking in the short spring term and now I'm in health promotion. It's great!

So here's a typical week for me at a glance:

Monday: Attempt to get up at 5 am to work out. If I fail, get up at 7 to get ready for the day. Head up to Murray by 8:30 to pick up Bryson and meet the group for RISE to play for 6 hours. Drop him off around 3, then head over to Hobby Lobby to work until 9:30-ish. Get home and talk to the husband on the phone for half an hour.

Tuesday: Get up at 5:30, get ready, out the door by 6:20 to catch the hour and a half bus ride down to Provo. Health Promotion class from 8:20-10:50 (odd, I know). Catch the bus back up to Sandy, hit the gym, get re-ready, off to Hobby Lobby to work from 4-9:30. Get home and talk to the husband on the phone for half an hour.

Wednesday: See Monday

Thursday: See Tuesday

Friday: See Wednesday

Saturday: If I'm working at Hobby Lobby, I'll probably work 11-9:30. If I have the day "off" I'll probably get called in to work that shift. If by some miracle I'm off and don't get called in, I get to clean my horribly messy apartment that's been neglected all week because I'm gone anywhere from 13-15 hours everyday. And attempt to do homework.

Sunday: Church. Then die. Or catch up on cleaning/homework that didn't get done on Saturday.

So there you have it. Isn't my life spontaneous and full of adventure?! I'll be honest, it gets old to have this exact same routine every week, but at least I have jobs that allow me to pay the bills (mostly). And at least I have the opportunity to be in school working toward my degree. And at least I'm kept so busy that I don't remember the fact that husband is gone until the fall for work. And at least (other than finances and lack of sleep) my life is pretty stress free for the time being!

PS - Sorry about no pictures of all the excitement. We're not allowed to take pictures with RISE because of the kids. And who wants pictures of Hobby Lobby or school? Such is life.