The B Glad Family

22 Weeks

2011-11-17T15:58:00.001-07:00

22 Weeks

Well, there you go. I hope my sister Nat appreciates these pictures, because they're mostly for her because she's not around to see me get all big and round. And as I get bigger I get less inclined to want to post these. But I love you Nat.

In other news, I have failed at NaNoWriMo. I had a good couple days, but then I needed a night of Brian just rubbing my belly and then there was a wedding and then I just gave up. Maybe next year I'll try again.

Also, a couple weeks ago, Brian started feeling the baby move! Last night we were laying in bed and he was just talking about architecture stuff and the baby started kicking. He thinks it's a sign, but I think it's mostly that the baby likes Brian's voice. I can't argue with that. I often fall asleep to Brian talking (in a good way.)

We're still struggling to find a name. It's really hard. I want to find something that none of our cousins have, or have used for their kids. That's a lot of names. And then there's the problem of finding something that doesn't make our parents go, "eh". I've decided to stop telling our parents any of the names until we know what we want, and then they have to like it. :)

And I know it shouldn't matter, but I don't want people to think our name is weird, or that we're going for some theme (because we already know what we want to name a girl someday). I guess I'll just have to get some thicker skin.

It's Thanksgiving next week! So excited. And then I get to decorate for Christmas! Yay!

Again: Any suggestions for names are welcome. :)

A few things to note

2011-10-31T18:04:00.001-06:00

* Today marks halfway thru this pregnancy!
I'm feeling pretty good. I can't believe it has flown by so fast. I feel this little guy move All The Time. And he's already a strong kicker. We will see if he doesn't just kick right thru my belly by the end.

20 Weeks

* Happy Halloween!
I thought of a few good costumes but then lacked the energy to actually make them.
Let's just say my costume is Half-Baked. Cuz I'm 20 weeks.

* NaNoWriMo begins tomorrow.
Some of you may remember when I wrote 50,000 words in 30 days. I'm attempting to do it again in November. I will be joining a large group of people already involved in this project.
So if I'm MIA that is why.

* I wrote this whole post from my phone. Including the picture. I'm so proud of myself. It also means I have one less excuse to not blog.

My Baby Brought My Laugh Back

2011-10-29T10:24:00.001-06:00

In high school, back when life was easier & I had less to worry about, I was known for my laugh.

It was loud & happy & maybe a even a little annoying. But it was mine. Unique. Resonating. Contagious.

I was proud of my laugh. I knew you could hear it from way down the hall. But I figured it was a good thing, because maybe it put a smile on someones face.

But life doesn't stay easy like high school. Life can get hard, real fast.

At 21, I lost that laugh. I even lost my smile.

I could still fake it & make people think I was fine. But the smile never reached my eyes and the laugh never came from my gut. Only those closest were able to see that.

Then Brian came back into my life. And he brought my real smile that lit up my face and reached all the way to my eyes. And he even brought back my laugh. But it didn't come as easily as in high school. And it wasn't as common.

I figured this is just the way life goes. You grow up & stop being loud & obnoxious. And I was so happy. So I didn't miss that old laugh.

Then I lost my first baby. And my laugh and smile faded a little bit. Even though I found the healing I needed, I never found a way to bring my laugh back to what it once was.

And then this baby came. And I screamed and cried for joy. And I could hardly keep it in because I wanted to shout to the world.

And I started to notice my laugh again.

I noticed that it not only reaches my eyes, but it comes from all the way down in my gut.

Like my baby is laughing with me & wants me to be as happy as I can possibly be.

So this is for you Baby Boy.

This is to all the laughs I plan to have with you for the rest of my life.

Thank you for choosing to come to our family.

Thank you for bringing my laugh back.

~~

In case you didn't catch that:

IT'S A BOY!!!

Friends

2011-10-18T09:47:00.000-06:00

I just wanted to document a couple of stops we made during our trip to St. George.

On the way down on Wednesday night, we stopped in Cedar City to visit Kyle & Megs. I've known Megs since Freshman year at USU. I love that we've stayed close and have made it a tradition to stop by & visit them when we go to St. George.

It's always fun to get together & catch up on life. And her husband Kyle always cracks us up. He's a great story teller.

On our way home Sunday night, the Preece's invited us over for a BBQ. Of course!

Some other friends Steve & Kam were also there and we had a fun night talking and laughing. And playing with the children. Aria insisted on doing my hair over and over, and made Brian & I King and Queen for the night. We felt very honored.

Corbin was a little shy at first, but soon overcame that & played with Brian. Total boy right there. So cute though.

I'm so grateful for our friends and all the fun we have, even when we don't see them all the time.

St. George 2011

2011-10-18T09:39:00.000-06:00

This year for Fall Break.... oh wait. We don't have Fall Break anymore because.... we're not in school!!! Wahoo!

Actually, we did end up going down to St. George over Fall Break anyway. We were hoping that Brian's cousin and his wife (who is also pregnant, & due 5 days before me) could come with us. Sadly, they could not. Brian & I still had fun without them.

Brian got in a few bike rides, which always makes him happy.

I just got to relax and do absolutely nothing, which makes me happy too.

And we did some shopping, which usually makes us both happy. This year was a little different.

I am about 17 1/2 weeks along. Not showing a ton to those who don't see me without clothes on. (Meaning: Everyone besides myself and Brian.)

But to me, I am starting to show. I'm at that in between point where if you don't know me you think I normally look like this, but if you know me (and look really hard) you can tell something's different. But I just want to show enough that people know I'm pregnant.

Maybe it's only a first time mom thing. So here's my advice to first time moms:
If you don't feel like you look pregnant enough, go shopping.

I was just looking for some longer shirts, and yes, some maternity pants for work. This shopping trip didn't last very long (and not just because I was too tired to keep going.)

Nothing fits like it used to! (Obviously) I'm wearing sizes I don't usually wear! (Obviously)

I was not prepared. But it definitely helped me feel pregnant.

We ended the shopping trip by getting an "Apple Pie" caramel apple from the chocolate store. Totally made me feel better.

The other thing that makes it totally worth it to almost start crying in Target because you're wearing maternity pants:

At 17 weeks, I started to feel my baby move.

Kicking, all the time.

This is definitely Brian's child. They never hold still for long.

Reassurance

2011-09-21T17:00:00.000-06:00

Today I had another doctor appointment.

I am 14 1/2 weeks.

Just a little further along than the last time when I lost the baby.

I have been a little bit of a wreck.

I met with a different doctor because mine was out of town.

He was the nicest, friendliest, funniest old man.

He came in and got right to it trying to find the heartbeat.

And there it was. Strong and perfect.

He admitted that he was a little nervous for me because he'd seen that "darn miscarriage" in my file.

But now he said I could tell the whole world if I hadn't already, because everything looked great.

It was the best reassurance I could've asked for.

(pic coming soon)

I found out later from my mom that he was the same doctor who delivered me.

I wish I could've known so I could've said something.

Thank you Dr. Rasmussen.

Temple Day

2011-09-10T23:40:00.000-06:00

Today I got the chance to attend the temple with one of my best friends.

Heather was my first roommate at college at USU. She was not a member of my church, and had no interest in being one.

We soon became best friends. And we've stayed that way for the past 9 years.

Last year I was ecstatic when she decided to be baptized. It was a very happy day.

Today I had the privilege of being her escort as she went through the Bountiful Temple for the first time.

I'm so proud of her and the choices she's made.

I know it hasn't been easy for her.

Even though she had no family support, and went through a pretty awful marriage and annulment, she hasn't lost the new faith that she found so recently.

She's a pretty strong woman. And I can tell she's happy.

Even when she's stressed, she's happier than when I first met her.

Congratulations Heather!

Moving On

2011-09-10T11:23:00.000-06:00

After 4 years of cinder block, and tile floors, and not-insulated-windows....

And all-nighters at school, and models, and supplies, and reviews...

And the best ward, and the best friends, and some of our best memories...

We have moved out of the Village.

Last night we planned to move most of our things into storage, but leave the rest for next week, because it was so late and we didn't think we'd have enough help.

Turns out, we had TONS of people show up. Including people we didn't even know, who were new to the ward, but offered their help anyway. I was so touched.

Moving is very stressful for me, but with all of the help, we were able to move almost everything in one night.

And then our families helped us unload it all in two different places and made it almost easy.

Thank you to everyone!!

And thank you to all of those we're leaving behind. We love you all!

For Natalie

2011-09-08T23:32:00.000-06:00

12 1/2 Weeks

I know it doesn't look like much yet, but I'm starting to feel like I'm growing a little.

Brian's Photoshop attempt at what I'll look like in a few months

Baby Glad

2011-08-30T21:28:00.000-06:00

That's right.

A baby!

Due March 19th, 2012.

We're so excited!

Listless

2011-08-22T14:26:00.001-06:00

list·less/ˈlis(t)lis/

Adjective: (of a person or their manner) Lacking energy or enthusiasm: "bouts of listless depression".

I put this definition here because when I told Brian the other day that I felt "listless" he asked if that meant "without lists". And then I laughed. And that is why I married him.

But lately I have been feeling very listless. I have no energy to do anything. I don't want to go to work. I just want to stay in bed all day. (Yes, that song is my theme song recently.)

I think part of it is the heat. I just want Fall to come. I want to wear sweaters and smell that cool fresh air. I want to eat pumpkin pie and drive around with the windows down. I want to get in my car and not burn my hands on the steering wheel.

At the same time, I want to go to St. George. I know that these two statements totally contradict each other. But I want to go when it cools down a little. I want to relax and go shopping and enjoy the nostalgia I have down there.

But it's still August. And it's Utah. So it's going to stay hot for a while.

And my sister doesn't live in St. George anymore. Even though I can still go down, and probably still will, it won't be quite the same because there's no one down there for me to hang out with and to help me be crafty because I'm just not that good at it.

And so I'm back to listless. Maybe if I made some lists I actually would feel better. It's worked in the past. :)

Nathan's Eagle Court of Honor

2011-08-14T23:09:00.003-06:00

Today we got to be a part of a special experience for Brian's brother Nathan. Not only did he receive his Eagle in Scouting, but he was made an Elder in our church. Brian, along with his dad, Derek, and Grandpa Merrell, were all in the circle as Nathan was ordained. Prior to the ordination, both grandma's and his mom bore their testimony. After, Nathan also shared his. It was so cool to get to hear him and see how emotional he was. He rarely shows any emotion except to make the rest of us laugh. He's such a stud and we're so proud of him.

Park City

2011-08-12T23:26:00.000-06:00

Today we spent the day up in Park City. Our friends the Preece's had a conference up their for Landon's residency program and they invited us to join them for some swimming and fun.

Corbin, Aria & Me after swimming

We went swimming in the hotel pool. Aria was a little water shy, but Corbin, who's only 1 1/2 was ready to dive in on his own. We had to keep a close eye on that kid.

Me & Marci on a ski lift in the hotel lobby

After swimming we went up to the Olympic Park and watched some skiers jump into the pool. Pretty amazing!

Then we walked around the museum...

Landon, Aria & Brian

Corbin & Brian tried out some skiing...

Corbin skiing

Brian skiing

And then we headed back to the hotel for some pizza. A very fun day spent with very good friends.

Dinner with the Preece's

2011-08-06T23:01:00.004-06:00

Tonight we had our friends, the Preece's, over for dinner. They were in town for the day and we were so happy to see them.

We had a great time catching up and laughing. I always love how we can not see each other for so long, but when we get together we're still as close as ever.

We played with their cute little kids, who thankfully still remember us. Though I noticed that Aria can now say my name correctly instead of the cute "missa" she used to call me. It's a little sad that she's growing up so fast.

We love to see them and miss seeing them more often. Come play again soon!

Seattle!

2011-08-03T10:54:00.001-06:00

Brian just spent the past two days in Seattle. A firm up there asked him to come in for an interview. While he was there he also stopped by a couple other firms to drop off his resume. And then he spent the rest of the time wandering around downtown Seattle taking pictures and enjoying the city.

He said he felt like the interview went well. But he was their first one so they said they'll let us know by the end of the month. Which is still a whole month away. But we're still excited that he got an interview. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Ward Bear Lake Outing

2011-07-30T22:50:00.001-06:00

Our family reunion ended the same day as the ward Bear Lake outing, so we decided to drive straight there instead of home.

It was a nice day to just sit outside and enjoy the lake. Since we had been camping the past two days, I didn't change into my suit, but still had a good time chatting and being with our friends that we've made the past few years.

Our bishop and his wife are so generous in allowing us all to crash their home, and we all had such a good time.

We're definitely going to miss this ward!

Glad Family Reunion 2011

2011-07-30T10:29:00.002-06:00

Paul Glad Family (minus Curtis)

This year's reunion was a short one, only two nights, but we had fun nonetheless. It was up at Smith & Moorehouse, and there was a big cabin that we could have slept in, but since I only do this once a year, I decided to humor Brian by actually sleeping in a tent on the ground. :)

We played horseshoes and Phase 10 and ate a lot of good food. It was a lot of fun just chatting and being with family.

This is camping

Recent Happenings

2011-07-14T11:36:00.001-06:00

Well Summer is just flying by. Here is a few things we've been up to: (Sorry for the lack of pictures. We just haven't taken any lately.)

June 24th - Annual Ward Camp out.

We have only stayed the night once in the 4 years we've been in this ward. That tells you how much I like camping.
But I love going up for dinner! We have a guy in our ward who makes Award-winning turkeys. For reals. SO GOOD.
I love our ward. It's always so much fun to go up there and chat with everyone.

June 25th - Day of Babies

First I went to the baby blessing of my cousin's little boy. They had it at their house and held a luncheon in the backyard. So fun to see lots of family and to hold that little guy. :)
I headed straight from that to a baby shower for one of my best friend's growing up. She's due in September and was so surprised to see me. (It was a ward shower and since I'm no longer in that ward.... but then again, neither is she.) Glad I could go and see her.

June 26th - 30th - BEAR LAKE

This year we only had 16 people on our fullest day. By the last day there were only 5 of us. But we still had a great time.
Monday Brian and I went for our annual 10-mile bike ride. I promptly got sunburned and my sit bones were so sore that I couldn't go on any more rides the whole trip. That's what I get for only riding once a year. Brian of course rode another 30 miles after that because he took my brother and two cousins out for rides when we got back. He wasn't even tired.
We also did Minute-to-Win-it! We only did a few games because there were so few of us, but it was still fun.
The rest of the time was spent just relaxing, watching movies, chatting with family, and eating. Don't forget the eating.
While at Bear Lake, Brian received a request from a firm to send more of his work for them to review. This got us very excited! Brain promptly looked up their site and fell in love with them. They would be a really nice place to work for. We haven't heard anything since but we're not giving up yet.

4th of July Weekend

On the 3rd my sister and her husband came into town. No big deal, except my sister now lives in Minnesota! So we were happy to have them.
On the 4th we slept in. SO NICE! Then we had breakfast with Brian's family and he fixed about 5 bikes.
Then we went to lunch with my family (Burger King as usual). Then we saw Transformers 3. I'll just say, it was better than the second, but not as good as the first.
And then we had a BBQ. Walker chicken. If you haven't had it, you don't know good BBQ chicken. End of story.
The only downside is that we didn't go see any fireworks. Brian and I were pretty bummed. But on the drive home we saw plenty all over the valley. Pretty cool. We'll have to catch them on the 24th.
On the 5th, we had a Barlow get-together. Some of my cousin's and their families who live in WA & TX were in town, so we all got together to catch up. Lots of food and laughing, and very loud talking, as usual. :)

Something else worth noting: We got a BIG air conditioner! We were talking at the family dinner and mentioned that it's so hot in our apartment because our little unit just can't handle it. Well, my uncle manages a few apartments and he keeps AC units in case his renters want them. He said we could borrow one! So the very next day he brought it over and Brian installed it. HEAVEN! It cools our whole apartment. WONDERFUL! Like my sister said, I couldn't have been a pioneer. It's a struggle for me to survive without air conditioning and electricity.

Last weekend Brian had taken off Friday & Saturday to go to a Father & Sons camp out with his family. But then he decided he didn't want to go camping and he'd rather spend the weekend with me! So we got to spend a whole Saturday together, which I don't think has happened our whole marriage (except when we're on vacation). Well, most of the day. Brian still went for a bike ride in the morning, but I spent that time reading, so we each got to do something we love.

We went to lunch with my friend Richard from college and his wife Wendy & their new son Will. Way fun to catch up with them. And the baby was adorable!

Since we met them for lunch at the Gateway, we decided to spend the day shopping. :) Brian bought me some capris, a skirt, and a cute top to match. Then we wandered around and we both got some new sandals. We then spent the better part of an hour sipping large Orange Julius' and people watching. It was so great!

We saw X-Men: First Class using some gift cards I had stored up. I loved it. Not as much as the first, but when is anything as good as the first?

We then grabbed some pizza on the way home and snuggled on the couch to eat it. It was just a really great day.

Date Spot

2011-06-17T16:40:00.000-06:00

Brian and I have noticed that sometimes, when we are just out and about, without a real plan, we usually end up at Office Max, sitting in their comfy office chairs, discussing our future home and plans. I don't know why, but it's very relaxing. Probably because Brian can enjoy the thoughts of designing our home, and I am surrounded by paper and pens, which are soothing to me. (Weird, I know.)

So, if you're looking for somewhere to go and just relax, for free, we recommend Office Max.

And then go home and have some orange cream-sicles. So yummy. :)

Derek & Nathan's Graduation

2011-06-07T15:50:00.004-06:00

This year Brian graduated with his Masters, his brother Derek graduated from Massage Therapy school, and his other brother Nathan graduated from High School. Three graduations in one month means a lot of speeches, a lot of clapping, and 3 great dinners. :)

May 27th - Derek's Graduation

Nancy, Derek & Paul

June 7th - Nathan's Graduation

Nathan receiving his diploma on the big screen

All three of the graduated brothers.
Ironically, Nathan is the only one with a job so far.

Congratulations to all three brothers!

Final Choir Concert - Again

2011-05-31T21:58:00.001-06:00

We attended Brighton High School's Final Choir Concert again this year. These kids are getting younger and younger, or we're getting older and older. This year Nathan had a solo and he did a great job.

When the alumni were invited to come up and sing the final numbers we all climbed up there, but I forget more and more words every year. And I think we were the oldest ones, not counting the teacher. That's what happens when you are the oldest of five and you marry someone who is the oldest of five.

We figured out (again) that we will be going to these until we're 32 if both of our youngest siblings do choir in high school. I'm thinking the only way we can get out of going is if we move. And even then, we'll probably come back for the graduations so we'll be here anyway.

It was still fun though, to be with family and relive some of those high school memories.

Choir Alumni - Brian, Melissa, Derek, Nathan, Curtis

Andrew & Emily's Wedding Dinner

2011-05-25T21:36:00.003-06:00

Because Andrew's wedding was in Arizona, not a lot of Utah friends and family could make it. So they had a dinner up here at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. It was a lot of fun, with speeches by friends and family, and performances by the bride and groom, and really yummy food.

This time there was no official photographer, so Brian was asked to take pictures again.

Grandpa & Grandma Merrell w/the bride & groom.
Grandpa wasn't able to come to Arizona so it was nice to have a reception up here.

I just had to add this picture because it's one of my favorites at weddings.

Derek, Brian & Nathan - all dressed up

Melissa & Brian

Brian's Birthday/Graduation Party

2011-05-20T21:05:00.002-06:00

Brian is now 27! My 19 days of being a "cougar" are over. I threw him a birthday/graduation party to celebrate. We invited a bunch of friends from the ward and our immediate families. I did everything in lime green (Brian's favorite color) and we all had fun just chatting. The weather cooperated for the most part. It didn't rain, but it wasn't particularly warm.

The best part for me was when I brought out Brian's gift. I surprised him with the commuter bike he had been hoping for. I figured that it was for his birthday & his Masters graduation, so I figured he deserved something really great.

He was totally surprised and I was so happy that I was able to pull it off. I never seem to be able to get him something he doesn't expect.

He went for a ride right away.

The new bike. He has since re-wrapped the handle bars in lime green.

Thanks to everyone for coming!

Happy Birthday Brian!

Arizona Trip

2011-05-19T18:40:00.002-06:00

May 15th - May 19th we drove down to Arizona to see Brian's cousin, Andrew, get married.
It was a long, two-day, drive. But seeing these two get married was wonderful. And we were happy we went.

Emily & Andrew

Brian was an unofficial photographer at the wedding, and we had a lot of fun playing around at the reception.

Me, Michelle, Megan - goofing around

The weather was awesome! Not too hot, but not cold. Even after it got dark at the reception, it was still warm enough that I didn't need a jacket. I could live with that.

Me & Brian

We stayed at an old pioneer home in St. George. There was an old granary next door that they had converted into more bedrooms. Brian & I stayed out there. I just had to document how tiny the bathroom was. It helps me to not complain about our tiny bathroom. It can always be worse.

Brian is on the toilet, and he can reach into the sink & the shower.

We were really happy to get home. 24 hours in a car is a long time.

Side note

2011-05-12T11:02:00.000-06:00

This stuff is amazing.

I can't help myself.

I just want to eat it all day long.

Day to Day

2011-05-12T10:31:00.000-06:00

Well, after all the excitement of graduation, we have now settled into a routine.

Mine hasn't changed much. I got to work, every day. Whoopdy-do.

Brian works almost every day on his portfolio (almost finished!) and when he's not working on that, he works at the bike shop (or goes on bike rides, since he's been so deprived in the last four years.)

I have started looking online for Architecture jobs and I'm getting really antsy about finding out where we're going.

Brian is feeling less excited about moving because he realizes he's leaving all his biking friends.

He's also afraid we'll move somewhere without any of these to ride on:

I have also started thinking about a business idea that I could do from home. I don't think I'd make much money, and it wouldn't happen until we move probably, but I'm still mulling it around in my head.

Next week we're going to Arizona for Brian's cousin's wedding. I'm excited for the break and for the warmth.

I'm almost finished with this:

So I ordered this, to hopefully help fill the 22 hours of driving we'll be doing:

But I guess I waited too long to order it. Because it's sitting in the UPS Regional Processing Facility, in WEST VALLY CITY.

Do you think if I just wandered in, they'd let me just pick it up? I need it by Sunday.

Brian wants another one of these:

(Disclaimer: This is not the actual bike he wants. I have no idea what it really looks like.)

I told him he has to sell one of his other two bikes first. He thinks this is unfair.

(Not really, he understands my logic, he just doesn't really like it all that much.)

We got our extension request approved by housing. (Good thing, otherwise we'd be moving in 2 weeks.)

Our official move out date is on or before September 15th.

At least that's some kind of plan. :)

It does make it a little more real, which is weird, but happy at the same time.

And so that's our life for now. Exciting, huh?

HE'S DONE!!!

2011-05-06T20:06:00.001-06:00

After 4, long, hard years in the Architecture program, Brian graduated today with his Master's degree!

There were a lot of sleepless nights, and times when neither of us thought it would ever end, but here we are.

The other side.

Brian right after getting his diploma (case).

I'll admit, I got a little emotional when he walked off the stage and I gave him a hug.

But it was only because I am so proud of him and all the hard work he's done to get here.

I'll also admit, I screamed the very loudest when his name was called.

Brian (and other students) will vouch that they could hear me above anyone else.

"Master" Brian & Melissa

Brian & his parents

Derek, Brian & Curtis

Brian & grandparents

Good job Brian! I'm so proud and I know you'll be great!

I love you!

Visit with Friends

2011-05-03T23:56:00.001-06:00

Tonight we drove down to visit our friends the Preece's. They abandoned us in the Village to go live in an actual house. But I guess we'll forgive them.

We had a nice dinner and ate some more of my birthday cheesecake for dessert. We took a tour of their "huge" house. (It's actually just normal size, but anything is huge compared to these apartments.) Their daughter's closet is bigger than mine, as well as her bathroom. :)

We had a lot of fun just talking and laughing and watching their silly children, who we just love.

It was good to get together and remember that we can stay friends even if we move apart.

A Cougar Once Again

2011-05-01T19:38:00.002-06:00

Today was my 27th birthday.

Brian got me the movies Tangled and Anastasia.

After church we headed to my parents house for dinner.

They gave me some cute new shirts and work clothes.

And we had cheesecake for dessert.

We stopped by the Glad's as well.

They gave me all the ingredients and a mini bundt pan so I can make my own favorite dessert,

Chili's Molten Chocolate Cake.

Overall, a very good birthday.

Even if it means Brian gets to call me a Cougar for 19 days.

Brian's Masters Thesis Project

2011-04-22T19:19:00.001-06:00

Tonight the Architecture College hosted a reception for the Masters students to show off their Thesis projects down at Trolley Square. They had fancy appetizers and drinks, and it was just a fun time for friends and family to come see what these students have been working on all semester.

Brian in front of his final board

Brian & Melissa

I know I'm biased, but I thought Brian did a great job. He had multiple people, including other students, come up and compliment him on his project and his awesome renderings and models. His great-uncle, Frank, came and he said he really liked Brian's project. That was high praise because he's a pretty well-known architect himself.

~~~

A couple days later, we heard a few more compliments from Frank. He told Brian's grandma that he was really impressed by Brian's project and couldn't stop thinking about it. He said that he wanted to take us out to dinner to discuss Brian's options. (!) He also said that Brian should "cast his net far."

We had originally thought we would only apply in Utah because both of our families are here. But after hearing his uncle say he thinks Brian would do better to work in a bigger city, we are now seriously considering moving out of state. It's a little scary, but also very exciting.

Late Nights

2011-04-16T21:14:00.003-06:00

This week is the last week before Brian's Masters Thesis Project is due.

Like every semester, that means each night he gets home later and later.

I'm used to this by now, but it still doesn't stop me from staying up way too late, hoping he might come home early.

So to keep me entertained, here's a list:

Signs It's a Finals Week in the Architecture Program:

Most of the students have bloodshot eyes, a side effect of not blinking for 12 hours straight while working on the computer.
People around you are wearing the same clothes you saw them in 24 hours before.
By the last night, one of the girls has broken down in tears about not being able to finish in time.
At least one person has cut off part of a finger using an Exacto knife. (And they may or may not go to the hospital, depending on how close they are to finishing.) (Sometimes they just fix it using Superglue.)
You start talking, pause, and then don't understand why your wife gives you a funny look. Then you realize you finished the sentence in your head.
People randomly burst out singing, headphones in, but not caring anymore because they're so tired. (Some do it without the headphones.)
Any loud noise or tipping over of materials makes the whole studio gasp in fear that it's someones model breaking.
The only sleep you get is in your other classes.
You're lucky if you remember to put down your Exacto knife and eat something.
You give your wife a kiss goodnight as she gives you a kiss good morning.

It's nice to know that this is the LAST time though. We're almost there!

Upside & Downside

2011-04-16T13:11:00.001-06:00

We love where we live.

I know I complain sometimes that it's small, or old, or smelly, but we really do.

We love how close it is to school for Brian.

We love how easy it is for me to get to work.

We love that it's cheap. :)

But more than that, we love our ward and neighbors.

People are so friendly and willing to help out.

It's so nice to be surrounded by people in similar situations and stages of life.

We've made some great friends here.

~~~

Now the downside.

It's a very transitory place.

New people moving in constantly, which makes it challenging to get to know everyone, especially when you're in Nursery every other week.

Old people (meaning couples who've been here for longer than 1 year) moving out at the end of each semester. And sometimes right in the middle when you don't expect it.

It's hard sometimes to be one of the few couples who've been here longer than 4 years.

It makes some of the younger couples look really young. Mostly, because they are.

~~~

So what's the point of my rambling?

Today, I helped move out some of our really good friends. We packed and cleaned and loaded. And with the wonderful help of our Elders Quorum, it only took about 2 hours.

And then I kissed their adorable 1 year old son, and gave one of my best friends a hug and said goodbye.

And yes, I cried a little.

I know it's silly, because we'll stay friends and we will still find time to visit and see each other, but it's going to be different.

So we wish them well in their new adventure!

~~~

And then we look around and see all the great people still left, and count ourselves lucky.

Things that bug me

2011-04-08T17:01:00.000-06:00

People who don't know where they're going on the freeway, which then causes them to swerve over two lanes of traffic to get to their exit.
The bruises all over my knees from my many falls.
The fact that I keep falling.
The smell of these apartments. I don't know where it comes from and I don't know how to get it to leave.
The fact that I can't seem to keep a simple house plant alive.
How I can't seem to write more than blurbs of books. I have little ideas all the time, but I can't make them more than the blurbs you'd read on the back of the book. Maybe that should be my job.
SNOW in APRIL!!!! I know it isn't really unusual in Utah but still. It bugs.

Good thing it's Friday.

Day One

2011-04-06T16:40:00.001-06:00

Today was THE day.

The beginning of a huge adventure.

One of the hardest for those of us that have to stay behind.

One of the greatest for my brother.

Today we dropped my youngest brother Brad off at the MTC.

It was a long morning waiting for the time when we could take him.

But it was an even longer wait for Brad.

He's ready. So ready.

And we all couldn't be prouder of him.

Of course there were tears, but not from Brad.

He was all smiles.

He's ready. And excited to go.

We'll miss you Brad, but we couldn't be prouder!

Garage Sales, General Conference & an MTC preview

2011-04-04T15:58:00.002-06:00

Saturday morning I went garage sale-ing with my friend Marci. I didn't find much, but I just like to go and look for good stuff. Marci on the other hand found lots of good stuff. I can't wait for the weather to get better so there are sales on almost every corner.

When we got home I enjoyed the Semi-annual General Conference for our church. I enjoyed Saturday morning by myself and then went out to my parent's house for the afternoon session.

Saturday evening I went over to Marci's house during Priesthood session where she invited a bunch of girls over and we had shakes and talked. After Brian got home, we went to his grandparent's house and had more ice cream.

On Sunday morning we went out to Brian's family's house and had breakfast and watched the morning session.

During the break there was a special about the MTC, so we went to my parent's house to watch it together. My mom started crying when it first started and at one point I went to laugh at something and started crying. I don't know what came over me.

We watched the last session and then had dinner with my family and watched How to Train Your Dragon.

I loved the talks given and can't wait for the Ensign to come so I can read them again.

Why I Shouldn't Have Gotten Out of Bed This Morning

2011-03-31T12:28:00.000-06:00

I let myself sleep in a little this morning.

I was happy thinking it was Thursday and my boss would be out of the office.

A nice relaxing day.

Then I got up to go to the bathroom.

I tripped.

And fell on our oh-so-soft tile floors.

Straight on my knees and right wrist.

I crumpled and Brian thought I had smacked my head on the door frame.

I felt like a toddler that sits stunned for a second before realizing that they're hurt, and then starts crying.

Now my right knee is killing me.

My feet are sore from wearing heels for the past two days.

And my boss has already called and gotten on my case.

I should've just stayed in bed.

Spring Break

2011-03-28T17:55:00.002-06:00

For Brian's last Spring Break we headed down to our favorite vacation spot, St. George.

On Thursday Brian and I both got our teeth cleaned by my sister Natalie.

That afternoon Brian went on a bike ride with his cousin Jason.

That night, they weren't home for dinner. Brian called to say that it had gotten dark so they were walking their bikes back to the car.

They didn't get home until 10:00 that night.

And it was then that I found out that they were actually lost. And they wandered around in the almost-dark for hours trying to find their car.

Brian said they spent the whole time praying and almost knelt down together on the trail. And then they found the car.

I'm glad they got home safe.

On Friday we all went to the temple.

We'd never been to the St. George temple so it was fun to go through with my brother, sister, brother-in-law, and grandparents.

We got to see where my parents were sealed and it was a nice way to spend a rainy day.

That evening we did some shopping, which the boys just loved.

Brian actually likes shopping for me. He makes me try on new things and buy stuff I wouldn't usually.

I got some really cute shoes that are a little on the wild side and a fun new purse.

For dinner that night we went to one of those frozen yogurt places. Perfect dinner in my opinion.

Saturday Brian did a ride in the morning and then we went to see Tangled with my sister.

That night we played games with Nat and Adam and some of their friends.

Sunday was perfect weather.

We walked to church and listened to my grandparents speak. They did a good job.

My grandma made us a great dinner and then we headed home.

It was a nice relaxing vacation. I'm sad we had to come home.

But after this year, we can go down whenever we want.

Brad's Farewell

2011-03-20T17:35:00.002-06:00

Today was my little brother's farewell. He did a great job talking about humility and gave a touching testimony. I'm so proud of him. After the meetings we went back to my parents house for some food, family and fun.

Nat, Brad, Melissa

Brad & Phil

Mom, Brad, Dad

Brad & Dani

Brad & Melissa

We also found out today that Brad's mission is the furthest mission from Salt Lake City before you start coming back around. He leaves in 2 1/2 weeks. I can't believe it!

Anniversary #4

2011-03-17T22:45:00.002-06:00

I love that everyone celebrates our anniversary by wearing green in honor of our wedding colors. *sarcasm*

Happy St. Patrick's Day/Anniversary!

Today, Brian woke up at 5:30am (which is a time that I cannot function at.)

He has a review tomorrow at school.

He worked at school from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm, staring at his computer screen.

Then he came home, picked me up and took me out to Draper.

We grabbed a fancy Arby's dinner on the way.

And then we spent the night in the temple.

My little brother Brad went through for the first time, and we got to be there.

It was a very special night because my sister Nat and her husband Adam were able to come too.

And even though the temple worker kept looking at Brian funny, because of his bloodshot eyes, it was a lot of fun.

I'm so proud of Brad and the decisions he's making.

And we ended the night with my dad's homemade chocolate shakes that are better than anyone else's, no battle.

And then Brian crashed into bed when we got home.

Very romantic anniversary.

But this is the last year we'll have to "make-up" for our missed anniversary.

One month until Brian's final project is due!

We love Nursery!

2011-03-16T10:24:00.000-06:00

I have to admit, I'm liking our new calling more than I thought I would.

I was nervous at first.

I mean, I'm 12 years older than my youngest sibling, so I did quite a bit of babysitting in my day.

But that was a long time ago.

I was nervous that I wouldn't know how to handle a 2 year old again. Let alone 6 of them.

But from the first day, when one little girl just wanted to be held on my lap, or today when a little boy just wanted me to kiss his finger that was hurt and then went off to play again like I had totally fixed it, I have loved it!

~~

That first Sunday I kept asking Brian what time it was, worrying that the kids would get bored with their toys or the lesson or snacks. (What was I thinking? Who gets tired of snack time?)

We quickly learned that you don't put out the whole bucket of crayons, it'll end up on the floor.

And you help the younger kids drink their water, or it'll end up all over them.

And in order to have a successful lesson, you need pictures.

~~

This last Sunday, due to the time change, I was a little nervous.

I've heard the horror stories from moms about how it totally throws their kids schedule off and they're grumpy all the time.

But our kids are awesome.

There was no crying or screaming or throwing of things.

In fact, at one point, they all just kind of stood there, staring at the toy in their hand, or nothing at all.

So Brian said, "I think it's nap time."

And then, without a word, they started cleaning up their toys. With an hour left of class!

Like, putting stuff back in buckets and putting the buckets back on the shelf.

Two little boys worked together trying to put a castle back on top of a bookcase. (They didn't succeed, but ended up putting it half on/half off the bottom shelf.)

In my opinion, I think they thought Brian said "snack" time.

We didn't want to discourage the cleaning up behavior, but we did manage to keep them playing for a few more minutes.

Then we had a lesson. An actual sit-down, look at the pictures, copy what the teacher's doing, lesson.

Then we colored. And no one threw any crayons. (One kid did try to eat them, but that's to be expected.)

And then we had snack time & singing time.

And most of the kids actually sang. (Or at least did actions.)

~~

I love our nursery kids.

Why I Love Our New Couch

2011-03-08T14:53:00.000-07:00

I spent all weekend, tucked in the corner, in my pajamas, with a blanket on my lap, surrounded by my computer, my cross-stitch, the Ensign, and a box of tissues.

I think I used almost the whole box of tissues.

I slept a lot.

I watched a lot of shows.

And it was so comfortable.

I never would've made it if we still had the futon.

Playing Catch

2011-02-27T14:17:00.002-07:00

Today was a good Sunday.

Despite the fact that I woke up hungry, which is never a good sign on Fast Sundays.

But I went to church, and listened to the testimonies, and the wonderful lessons prepared.

I heard a bunch of little things, that maybe weren't even part of the lesson, but that I needed to hear.

I love when that happens.

And then I came home and read this:

Playing Catch with Jesus

And it made me cry.

I cried for the man who went through that.

But I also cried, because it helped me understand how to use the Atonement, in a way that I've never really understood before.

I know how the Atonement helps with our sins.

And I know that my Heavenly Father and Jesus love me and are always there for me.

But like this man, I didn't fully understand how the Atonement worked to take away the everyday, sometimes little, sometimes big, things that aren't caused by anyone doing anything wrong. They just happen and can cause grief and heartache and sorrow.

And then I read this article.

And I had to read it to Brian.

And we both just sat there, smiling, feeling that wonderful feeling of understanding and love.

It all of a sudden made so much more sense.

And I immediately put it into practice.

And it works.

Little Brudder!

2011-02-20T14:11:00.001-07:00

(10 points to anyone who knows the source of that title)

Today my youngest brother turned 19.

Weird. This makes me very old.

But nonetheless, I am very proud of him and what he's doing with his life.

He's getting ready to go on a mission, in a little over a month.

Not even a broken collarbone could stop him.

Yesterday I spent the day with my family as we went to Mr. Mac's and picked him out some suits and ties.

He's a pretty handsome kid all dressed up.

Then we went out to dinner.

Sushi.

Yuck.

But we had a fun night just laughing and enjoying the silliness that is, Brad.

Love you bud!

Happy Valentines Day

2011-02-19T14:02:00.001-07:00

On the actual Valentine's Day, Brian had class from 2:00 until 7:30, so we didn't go out or anything, but he did make me a fabulous French Toast dinner. And he surprised me with roses and chocolates when I got home from work.

Instead, we celebrated this weekend, and we went to dinner and a play at Hale Center Theater. We saw "A Tale of Two Cities". It was really good.

The singing was amazing, especially the guys. I love that Brian appreciates the awesomeness of the men's voices, because he was a choir geek like me. :)

We aren't very good at doing actual "dates" each week, so it was nice to have a fun activity like this to celebrate the holiday.

On my mind

2011-02-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

This seems to be all I can think about lately.

A Disney Cruise.

I spend down time at work researching them.

Contemplating where we could go: The Bahamas (I've been once, Brian hasn't), Mexico, Alaska.

Remembering how fun and relaxing it was.

Thinking how nice it would be to just get away for a while.

And have everything done for us. All we have to do is get there.

And the food. Oh, the food.

I love Disney. It's no secret.

We could probably find a cheaper cruise if we looked really hard.

But I like that the Disney cruises are so family friendly, and I don't have to worry about drunken people, and gambling, and all that.

I just like to relax. And eat. :)

So this is what I do all day. Dream about going.

Anyone want to come with?

I didn't...

2011-02-04T21:42:00.000-07:00

This month I didn't...

...clean our bathroom.

...wash the dishes. (Thanks to Brian for doing it so we didn't live in a pile of dirty dishes.)

...go grocery shopping.

...make dinner very often.

...watch as much TV.

...get to hang out and do crafts with Marci.

...post on my blog as often as I planned to. (Like when my brother broke his collar bone, just two months before going into the MTC.)

...get to read ANYTHING for fun!

But this month, I DID...

Write 50,000 words in 30 days!

Brian's Day

2011-02-01T17:33:00.001-07:00

So this semester Brian has a "light" schedule. Only three classes.

Two are only once a week for 3 hours each, and the other is three times a week for 3 hours.

He doesn't have class until at least 2:00 on most days, and no class at all on Thursdays.

I'm jealous.

Anyway, today he was supposed to be studying for a midterm in his Architecture Law class at 6:00.

Here are a few things he did to break up a full day of studying:

Push ups
Cleaning off the coffee table
Reading his Photoshop book for his photography class
Washing the dishes
Cleaning the lint out of the back of the blow dryer

Really? Cleaning lint?

New Calling

2011-01-31T10:36:00.002-07:00

Yesterday Brian and I were released as Ward Mission Co-Leader and Ward Missionary (I was also released as Primary Pianist). But the Bishop didn't give us much of a break. We were also called as Nursery Leaders.

I was a little hesitant about this calling at first, but after the bishop set me apart and gave me a blessing I know that this calling is from God. The bishop gave me a very personal blessing, addressing concerns and issues that I hadn't even discussed with him. It was a huge testimony builder that God knows me and that he communicates directly with bishop's about their congregation members. I cried and the bishop cried and the Spirit was very strong.

Today the bishop sent Brian and I an email reiterating his love for us and expounding on the blessing he'd given me the day before. It made me break down in tears at work (thankfully my boss wasn't here). I love our bishop and really appreciate the concern and love he has for our ward.

After this experience I have decided that I need to focus more on having faith that when we ask, we shall receive. Brian's been telling me for months to be positive and I finally made the connection that being positive is the same thing as having faith. So that's what I'm going to do.

Be Glad & Have Faith.

Rearranging

2011-01-28T20:48:00.000-07:00

The other night Brian and I discovered that the only time we really get grumpy at each other is when we're moving.

This stems from the fact that we don't have the same method when moving things.

Actually, we do. We both agree that when you're moving things around or moving apartments, you should clean things out and get rid of things.

But I don't feel that 10:00 at night is the time to do this. So I decided we should just move the furniture and not worry about deep cleaning things.

However this frustrated Brian as he kept finding piles of things that he didn't know why we were keeping. And then he'd come ask me why we were keeping them.

Which frustrated me because I have a tendency to hold on to things just in case we might use them someday. A bad habit I picked up from my mom.

Brian tends to be more like my dad and just wants to throw it away. He even admitted that one day he'll just start throwing stuff away without asking me, which also upset me.

But it was all for a good purpose.

We got a new couch!!

It was a great deal, and we've been wanting a real couch instead of our futon for a while. It's our Valentine's/Anniversary gift to each other.

It's nice and comfy and we can actually lay down on it together to watch movies.

So happy!

The wall is a little bare because our hutch and bookshelf used to be there (as can be seen here). Brian's going to take pictures with his fancy camera to fill it up. I'm going to buy a cute shelf so I still have somewhere to put my decorations. :)

We moved everything to the back room so now it looks like this:

Still tiny, but we fit it all in.

Happy Friday!

In a Nutshell

2011-01-24T15:04:00.000-07:00

Well January has just flown by. I really don't know where it went. I know it's not over yet, but it is the last week and I don't really know what we've done. Here are the highlights:

Brian started his last semester! Hooray!!
We babysat our friends kids. (When I say we, I mean me, because Brian was falling asleep an hour into it. Granted, he was getting sick and we didn't know it yet. But still.)
I told Brian not to get me sick because he was leaving for New York and then I would be sick and home alone.
He didn't listen.
For Martin Luther King Day I went and got my eye's examined. Fun huh? But I'm getting some new frames, so that's fun for me.
We went to dinner with my best friend and her husband and two kids. So fun.
Brian's taking a photography class so he convinced me to let him get a new camera. A fancy camera.
Brian left for New York Wednesday at 10:00 PM.
I proceeded to not go to bed before midnight each night he was gone. Not a good plan when you're sick.
Had a fun night hanging out with my family while Brian was in gone. My sister came into town.
Did a lot of cross-stitching and catching up on old TV shows.
Realized I do not eat very healthy when Brian's not around. I just don't feel like it's worth the hassle to make something when half of it won't get eaten.
Brian came home last night!!!

So yeah, that's pretty much everything we've been up to. I haven't looked at Brian's pictures from his trip yet, but if he took any cool ones I'll be sure to post them. I'm sure they're all of buildings and stuff.

In book news: I am behind. Shocker. I hoped to catch up while Brian was gone, but then I wasn't feeling great. Excuses I know, but still. Hopefully I can catch up this week.

January is just a blah month, as so many people have already pointed out.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-04T16:15:00.014-07:00

The day after Christmas, Brian and I decided we were going to go to St. George for New Years. That meant I had 3 days to get ready for our trip. This means I just threw projects in a bag and didn't really have any plans for what we would do while we were down there.

As it turns out, I only brought half of some of the stuff I needed, so I ended up just doing a lot of cross-stitch. We had a lot of fun just hanging out with my sister and brother-in-law. We stayed up late and slept in late and played games and ate lots of good food.

On New Year's Eve we played some M&M Bowling and then went to see "Life As We Know It". I really loved it! Then we came home and played games until midnight. As per tradition, we toasted orange juice at midnight and did some kissin'!

On New Year's I went with my sister to Krumpet's and saw the cutest clock ever! I really really wanted it, but 1) it was $45, and 2) it was 2 feet wide. Where would I put it?! I just hope it will still be around when we move so I can get it then.

Brian had really wanted to go biking but it was really cold while we were down there. Not as cold as home, but still around 30 degrees. He did get one ride in and planned to go Monday morning before we drove home, but Sunday night it ended up snowing. Yes snowing. Only about 1 inch, but still. Kind of spoiled his plans.

We had a lot of fun and we happy to spend more time with Nat & Adam.

~~

Goals Review:

Last year I had a lot of lofty goals that I didn't quite get around to completing, but I thought I'd post a few that I did right here:

I read the Book of Mormon all the way through again. I participated in a challenge to read 10 pages a day starting November 8th, and we finished on December 31st. It was very cool and I'm glad I did it.

I exercised more last year than the year before. Doing the Hundred Push Up challenge really helped. I got out of the habit during the holidays but we're starting again this year. I will make it to 100 one day!

I made a goal to read 30 books in 2010. I ended up reading 54. Awesome! I'll admit that a lot of those were young adult novels, but I think that still counts. I love them!

~~

2011 Goals (A few of them anyway)

Read Book of Mormon with Brian: This will be accomplished fairly quickly. My family is reading the whole Book of Mormon together, before my brother leaves on his mission. That's 6 pages a day and we'll end March 30th.

Write a Book: I hesitate to put this out there, but I am going to write 50,000 words in 30 days. I read a book called "No Plot? No Problem!" which gives instructions on how to do that. I'm doing it in the month of January to start my year off right. I will finish a few days after the end of January though, as I am choosing not to write on Sundays.

Keep exercising. I'm going to keep up the Hundred Push Up challenge and just keep increasing the hardness. First do 100 girl push ups and then 100 regular push ups.

Read 75 books: I know this sounds like a crazy goal, but I think I can do it. But this means I need recommendations people!

See Brian graduate with a Masters: I know this is a gimme, but still, I'm very excited for this event.

Move out of the village: I don't know where we'll be going, but we will be going somewhere. I can't believe we've lived in the village for almost 4 years. It'll be a little strange to move out of this place, but we're ready for the adventure.

~~

Welcome 2011!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T01:47:00.001-07:00

I'm sad to say that I, personally, took no pictures this Christmas. I guess I'll just have to steal some from my mom.

Christmas was great this year. Very low-key and relaxed. We spent the night at my parent's house and all the kids were able to fit into the room in the basement so we were back to our traditional sleepover on Christmas Eve. I found it hard to go to sleep because I was so happy to be with my family and we have the best time teasing each other.

Christmas morning we had Monkey bread with hot chocolate and orange juice. We opened stockings and then presents. We were so blessed this year and received lots of fun stuff. But I always like to remember what I gave instead of what I got. A few presents I was excited to give this year were:

Bow ties to Brian. He's wanted one for a while now so he can look like our High Councilman, Brother Knott. And the other Architecture student in our ward wears one so Brian decided he needed one too.
Countdown blocks for my sister Nat. I made these myself. Well I painted and glued and vinyled (not sure that's a verb). I don't have a saw to cut wood myself.
A Malagasy Book of Mormon to my brother Brad. I know he can't read it yet, but I thought it was a pretty cool gift and he seemed pretty excited. We were looking through it and the words for "Doctrine & Covenants" each have 8 syllables. 8 each! 16 syllables to say two words that take us 5 syllables. Good Luck Brad!

After presents at my house we went to Brian's for just a little bit. When we'd woken up at 7:30 Brian joked that we should call his family because they were probably done by then. We found out that he was right. :)

Unfortunately we weren't able to stay long because we were going to visit my Grandma Barlow in the hospital. She had a bad fall about a week before and had to have surgery on her shoulder. It was said to see her like that, but I'm glad we got to go visit on Christmas.

After spending some time there, we headed up to Bountiful to spend the rest of the day with my Grandma & Grandpa Walker. We had a yummy lunch and then watched "Date Night" the edited version, which my parents had gotten for me and my sister.

I also ended up finishing Brian's final present, which was an afghan he had requested about 2 weeks before Christmas. It's huge! But I finished it on Christmas so I still made the deadline. And he loves it. So do I.

Overall, a great Christmas. We are so blessed and so grateful for our wonderful families and friends.

Here's to a fabulous 2011!

'Tis The Season

2010-12-24T23:59:00.002-07:00

This year we've been so blessed to have so many friends and family to celebrate with. Here's what we've been up to:

Dec. 4 - Ward Christmas Party
Great way to kick off the Christmas Season. Our Bishop has it catered and our (previously known as) activity committee does a great job with decorations and games. We love getting together with our ward. And there's always a special visitor for the kids.

Dec. 8 - Relief Society Christmas Dinner
Our Relief Society does a great job providing good food and a fun time. Our Bishop's wife is in a singing group that came and performed for us after dinner. It was great! And I even got to bring my mom with me, which I always like.

Dec. 12 - Community Sing-a-long
This year our Stake sponsored a night of singing Christmas carols. We had a pretty good turnout and Brian and I even participated in the musical number our ward contributed. It really helped put me in the Christmas spirit singing all those songs I love.

Dec. 14 - Brighton Christmas Concert
Like I said on Facebook, we might be going to this until we're 40 because of all the siblings we have. (OK, so only until we're 31 or so, but still that's a long time.) It was fun though to go up and sing. Two of my younger siblings happened to be there too (to see old friends) and Brian's brother is in the choir, so we all stood together again. I am really starting to forget the songs though so hopefully we get pushed more to the back.

Dec. 16 - Glad Christmas Party
Always a fun time. We had yummy soup and rolls and then sat around listening to Grandpa Glad's Christmas stories (which incidentally have nothing to do with Christmas, but it's tradition.)

Dec. 17 - Brian's Work Party
We all went bowling. I have gotten worse at this and I always break the nail on my thumb. No Fun. But we did do one game all left handed, so that was pretty entertaining.

Dec. 18 - Grandma Glad's Birthday Dinner
We went to a place called Golden Dragon. It was really yummy Chinese food. Brian's dad ordered most of the food, and it was so good. I ate way too much. I even tried dim sum for the first time.

Dec. 19 - Bishop's Christmas Open House
We really love our Bishop. He is always so good to have us all come and invade his house. They had yummy food and we had a good time just talking and singing Christmas carols and even playing a few minutes of Christmas Charades. This party is always so much fun and a bunch of us always end up staying to the very end because we don't want to go home to our tiny apartments after having spent a few hours in his huge house. We're going to miss this ward a lot.

Dec. 20 - Walker Christmas Party
Gotta love family. This year we switched things up and had an awesome Italian dinner, complete with Olive Garden salad (the only salad I will eat, probably because of the dressing.) And of course, the traditional brownie pudding for dessert. We had our program and sang some more Christmas carols. Then our grandparents passed out the gifts. They gave the married couples this year a nicely framed picture of the temple we were married in and a sign that says "Families are Forever". I love it!

Dec. 21 - Fesitvus
Our friends Landon & Marci invited us over for a Festivus party, a first for us. (It's from Seinfield.) We had our Airing of Grievances over dinner, most of which consisted of small apartments, and our husbands golfing too much, then we had the Feats of Strength, in which we played Ticket to Ride & Blurt. We had so much fun with everyone and laughed a lot!

Dec. 24 - Barlow Christmas Eve
We had our traditional Pork Roast and Potato Casserole, with Brownie Pudding for dessert. We had a program and sang more Christmas carols. And we ended the night with Silent Night on the harmonica and guitar. Even though we do the same things every year, it always makes me happy because it's a great time to get together and feel that Christmas Spirit.

Tree Skirt

2010-12-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I completed this tree skirt for our Christmas tree. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

Matched Book Signing

2010-12-04T20:00:00.002-07:00

Today my mom, sister and I went to the book signing for this book:

It was so much fun! We got to hear Ally talk about her inspiration and writing process. The whole time I just kept thinking how cool it all was, and hoping that one day I will be doing the same thing.

She then signed all of our books.

One day I will!

(I also came home and read half the book in one sitting. I encourage you all to do the same.)

Called to Serve

2010-12-01T20:22:00.000-07:00

Brian and I rushed over to my parent's house tonight to see my little brother Brad open his call. We were all very excited. My sister Nat, who lives in St. George, joined us through Skype, so that's why Brad tends to talk down to the ground for some of the video.

Thanks to Brian for editing this video for me.

Good luck Brad!!! We love you!!!!

So Thankful

2010-11-30T19:31:00.001-07:00

Somehow, November just slipped by.

I feel like I totally missed most of it, except the last part.

But I was trying to be more aware of things that I am grateful for, so I'm just going to record some here.

BRIAN
Every day I feel more and more lucky that I got to marry this man. He is so good to me and he reminds me that he loves me every day.

MY FAMILY
Brian says that I always double my volume when I'm with my family, but I think that's just because we're always having so much fun and laughing and talking so much that you have to be louder to be heard. I love it!

BRIAN'S FAMILY
I love them for raising such a great son, and I love having so many more brothers. They keep things interesting.

FRIENDS
Old friends, new friends, our ward. I am so grateful for the old friends I can still hang out with and nothing has changed, and I'm grateful for the friends we've made in our ward that I already feel so close to. I hope those friendships last long after we all move out.

MY JOB
Though I have times where I'm ready to be done working, I really am grateful for the job I have. I love the days when I go in and get everything done and feel like I know exactly what I'm doing. I love solving problems and having my boss be happy with the work I've done. I also appreciate that this job has supported us through all 3 1/2 yrs of marriage and has allowed Brian to focus on school instead of stressing him out even more to try and work while doing Architecture.

OUR HOME
While there are many things I can complain about my where we live, (such as the tile floors, and the poor insulation, etc.) I think I need to focus on the good things. Like how I can plug the vacuum into the outlet in the bathroom and reach all rooms without unplugging. :) Seriously, I really am grateful for our home. It's tiny, but cozy. It's not easy to decorate, but I don't decorate anyway. :) And it's where we've formed lots of our first memories as a couple. It's weird to think that all events we're celebrating this year are our last ones in the Village.

MY SAVIOR
I am so grateful for my Savior and all He has done for me. I'm grateful for the Atonement and my knowledge of His love for me. I know that I am so blessed and I'm so glad that when hard things come my way, I can turn to him for comfort and strength to get through them. I am thankful that I have this gospel in my life and that because of it I can live with my husband forever.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-28T16:00:00.002-07:00

This year, because of "Blizzard 2010", we got an extra long break for Thanksgiving. It was so nice to be able to spend so much time with Brian and just relax.

We spent Thanksgiving Day with Brian's family. We had an awesome Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings. And then Brian's brother Derek, who is studying to be a massage therapist, gave us all 10 minute chair massages. Bliss.

On Black Friday, we slept in. I just do not enjoy waking up that early, and then braving a crowd of crazy people doesn't sound fun. But we did want to see if we could get a few things.

We ended up finding Brian 2 pairs of jeans for under $30! We also got me one pair of jeans, a sweater and a sweater dress for $50. Both pretty good deals, but I was so happy to just find Brian some jeans that fit. (I'm one of those mean wives that steals his clothes from the laundry when they get holes, or tears. So he really needed them.)

We spent the rest of the day relaxing and even got to have some leftovers for lunch. That's the one thing I miss about living in the house where Thanksgiving is made. The leftovers.

We also spent Friday night putting up our Christmas decorations. We turned on the Christmas music and had a lot of fun. Now that we've been married a few years, and we've collected ornaments from different places and people, it's a lot of fun to look through them as we put them on.

Saturday Brian had to work, so I spent the day with my family. We did some Secret Santa shopping, and then had lunch. Then we watched "The Game".

My family are die hard BYU fans. I used to be too. But now, since I graduated from the U and my husband will (twice) and we live here, I'm a little more partial to the U. But since it was me against all of them, I held my tongue and didn't cheer and only smiled a little when the game was over.

Sunday we had a nice relaxing day spent wrapped up in blankets while it snowed all day. It was a great way to end a nice long weekend.

Pie Fest 2010

2010-11-22T15:54:00.002-07:00

Tonight we had our first annual Pie Fest!

I actually stole this idea from a couple people I've heard it from.

After Thanksgiving dinner, you're so stuffed you don't have room for all the yummy pies. So why not have them before?

We decided to invite a few people over to just eat pie, for pie's sake!

In total we had 20 people crammed into our little living room/kitchen, but I think it turned out pretty good.

We had some REALLY GOOD pies, and lots of laughing and fun.

Sadly, no pictures were taken.

Lucky for us, we had 5 left over pies in our fridge by the end of the night. Not full pies, but parts.

I think this will be a tradition we keep going for year and years.

But like I told Brian, I can't wait until we have a house big enough to invite tons of people and not have to cram into our tiny apartment.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T15:44:00.000-06:00

On the 23rd we attended the Bowen Halloween party. This is hosted by my cousin and her husband. It was so much fun to finally go. They've lived in St. George the past few years, so we've never been.

We had a yummy dinner, played fun games and did a lot of laughing.

On the 25th, we had a Pumpkin Carving night with our friends the Preece's, and Jose & Anna.

We had a really fun time just talking and teaching Jose & Anna about our Halloween traditions.

I also got to help Aria draw all over her pumpkin. She kept wanting to draw everyone there. I'm not an artist at all but she didn't seem to mind.

Here we are with our finished pumpkin. This also happens to be the first pumpkin we've carved together since we got married.

On the 29th, our ward had their annual Halloween party, complete with cornbread, a chili contest, and a costume contest.

We love our ward so much and had a great time with friends. It was awesome to see everyone's creativity.

This year we were "Glad Bags". Gotta get some use out of the name right?

Happy Halloween!

Libraries

2010-10-21T14:47:00.000-06:00

So you know that scene, in Beauty & the Beast? The one where he shows her the library and says it's hers?

I totally get why she falls in love with him.

I would marry a scary beast just to have that library. (Only sort of joking.)

One day, I will have an awesome library. Or at least an awesome room full of bookshelves that I can escape to to read my books in peace and quiet.

A secret library. Even better.

For now I keep myself content using our lovely public library system. Which I am so grateful for.

Brian would kill me if I bought all the books I end up reading.

And it's not going to get any better.

I bought 3 new books in St. George at a used book store.

I have "inherited" at least half a dozen from my mom as she's cleaned out her stash.

Brian says I can't even go to the library until I finish those books I already have at home.

But that doesn't mean I can't keep adding to my list of books I want to read.

I have 178 books on my "to read" list.

I'm not even joking. Go ahead. Check that I'm telling the truth. www.goodreads.com I'm on there. You can find me.

(In fact you should find me if you're on there because that's how I end up adding even more to my list. I love seeing what everyone else is reading.)

That's how I find new genres that I never would have picked up before. Like "dystopian". Never heard of it before I read The Uglies. Now I love it.

But besides that, I also subscribe to lots of book blogs, which talk about all the new books coming out or that have come out, which I then have to add to my list.

Like these two.

I know I've got a problem.

It's how I'm ever going to find enough time in my lifetime to read all the books on my ever-growing list of "to read" books.

Naked, but It Could Be Worse

2010-10-20T16:06:00.000-06:00

I forgot to put on my wedding ring this morning.

It was not because I stayed in bed reading this book because I was so close to finishing and then I was running way late.

Very good book by the way.

So I've been feeling naked all day.

But it could be worse, I really could be naked at work. *shudder*

The other day at work one of the agents asked how I was doing. I said fine, just my husband's always at school.

He said it could be worse, he could be one of those guys that sits around playing video games instead of doing something with his life.

So true. I need to appreciate that more.

I may have mentioned that I'm doing this.

It's kicking my butt but I'm doing it.

I did 21 push ups in a row the other night.

And Monday night I did 73 total for my whole work out.

It's not 100 but it could be worse. It could be 2 like when I started.

I know I need to update with pictures of all the fun things we did last week. And I will.

Eventually.

I could not post at all, that's worse.

5 Years Hard at Work

2010-10-05T17:19:00.000-06:00

Today marked 5 years that I've been at my current job. That's not counting the two years I worked for the same guy while I was in high school. I thought about just letting it pass, but I happened to mention it to my boss before lunch. After I got back he had this note and a little cash for me.

I think I appreciated the note more than the money. I know this seems like bragging, but I really need to remember that he appreciates me and acknowledges how much I do for him. Hopefully that helps me get through those tough days.

Sad Things/Happy Things

2010-10-02T08:02:00.001-06:00

Things making me sad today:

I'm sore. So very very sore. I started the One Hundred Push Up challenge yesterday. I'm a weakling so I started on the easiest level. So in total I only did 13 push ups yesterday, and I'm so sore. Sore enough that it's really hard to reach up to put on my bra. Because I'm sure you wanted to know. Thankfully, Brian's willing to help me take it off. Because I'm sure you wanted to know that too.

I think I'm getting a cold.

Things making everything better today:

The Aggies Beat BYU!!!!

Sadly, I couldn't see it on TV because we don't get the channel, but I was happy all night long. Condolences to the BYU fans out there.

General Conference is this weekend! I'm way excited.

I started my own "Happiness Project". I'm very hopeful that it will be a good project for me to focus on.

What's making you happy today?

On my mind...

2010-09-30T09:49:00.005-06:00

The other night Brian mentioned that maybe he'll start shaving only when I shave. Do you think he's trying to tell me something?

I went to a bridal shower last night and had 3 cupcakes. They were so good I couldn't stop myself.

I just finished reading this:

It's really made me rethink some things. I want to start my own project.

I stumbled across this page today. It made me almost cry with happiness.

(I really need to get more sleep. Crying over paintings? Really.)

I just wish I could afford one. Maybe this one:

I wish I could afford all of them. I wish I had a place to hang them.

I think the reason I like them so much is because they capture the "magic" I'm always trying to explain to Brian.

And once again, I'm wishing I was in Disneyland. I know, I've got a problem.

There's one for Pinnochio and I just started singing "When You Wish Upon a Star" in my head.

I really need to think of something else.

I'm working on a tree skirt for Christmas. It's huge. It takes up our whole living room right now.

Not that our living room is that big. But I'll trim it down once I'm done.

(Did you see the connection there? Disneyland -> Magic -> Christmas. It works.)

Though I'm still trying to figure out what Brian & I should be for the Halloween parties coming up.

I hate coming up with "Couple's Costumes". I'm just not creative that way.

Any suggestions?

Gyoza

2010-09-29T11:23:00.005-06:00

Last night I made Gyoza.

(This is not a picture of my gyoza, but mine looked just as good, promise.)

Gyoza is a Japanese dumpling. My parents both went to Japan on their missions, and when I was growing up we'd occasionally have a "Japanese dinner". Egg drop soup, ham fried rice, and Gyoza. My favorite!

Granted, I only make the frozen kind right now, because to make them by hand can take up to 4 hours. It's a long process stuffing all that goodness into the wrappers. But worth it.

Gyoza is delicious! Amazing! Wonderful!

And stinky.

The only time it smells really good is while you're eating it. It's not that it smells gross, it's just such a strong smell, that once you're done eating, you don't want to smell it anymore.

So last night after we finished, I wrapped up the leftovers and put them in the fridge so we could take them for lunch today. Then we blasted the fan because my visiting teachers were coming over. I couldn't smell it anymore but I'm sure they could.

Then this morning, as I was in the bathroom getting ready, Brian opened the fridge to get stuff out for lunch. That 1 minute of open fridge unleashed the gyoza smell which reached me all the way in the bathroom. (Again, our bathroom really isn't that far away from the fridge because our apartment is oh-so-spacious, but still!)

It made me laugh because it really does take over like something tangible, but it's not.

Owell, it's worth it for that goodness.

I just hope my co-workers don't mind too much when I pull it out for lunch. ;)

Breathing

2010-09-28T15:52:00.003-06:00

So I've had quite a few moments lately where I need to remind myself to just keep breathing.

Like when a vacation plan suddenly gets all jumbled and it seems like people are trying to cause problems on purpose (though not really). I need to keep breathing and just talk to people. And usually it gets all sorted out without any more stress.

Or like when I feel like I'm being forgotten or overlooked in situations where I really just want to be noticed or appreciated. (Vain, selfish, call it what you will.) Just keep breathing.

Or when we recently found out that a friend of ours in high school and his wife just lost their baby a week before they were scheduled to induce. He posted about it on his blog today and I got choked up.
Then someone posted a link to another blog about the same thing, which I for some reason felt compelled to click on. I read that and almost had a breakdown at work.
Now I realize why they call it "choked up". It's that tight, painful feeling in your throat when you're trying really hard not to cry.
I had to stop reading, and realize that this pain probably won't ever completely go away. And just keep breathing.

Or when the "Check Engine" light comes on in my car for the second time since we got it. Apparently it's the Fuel Pump Sensor. There's actually nothing wrong with it, but I guess it's a common problem in Subaru's.

And when Brian tells me, every day, that he has to go back to school after dinner, until 12 or later, I just have to keep breathing. It's only one more year. And Fall Break is in 10 days.

When do you have to keep breathing?

Craft Night

2010-09-20T20:30:00.001-06:00

Tonight I had a craft night with my friend Marci. Brian had to be at school until very late and her husband was on call, so we decided to spend the time together rather than alone. It was great!

I got one more set of blocks done for my "Home" sign. September (acorn) is very boring. But I had fun with the others. I feel so creative when I finish things like this. I know it's probably small beans compared to what others do, but I feel good about it.

Lame Title

2010-09-20T15:38:00.004-06:00

I hate coming up with titles for blog posts. So I didn't try this time.

On Friday we took Brian's brother Nathan to go get him signed up on our phone plan. His Young Men's program in his ward sends out texts to tell the kids about mutual. Since he didn't have a cell phone he was always missing. So his parents have agreed that it's OK, but they're on a company plan so can't add him. So we are. He also didn't want to buy a new phone, so he agreed to take mine.

I had been contemplating getting an iTouch, but realized that I really just wanted a better phone that could do more. But I just upgraded. So since Nathan took my old one, we got me a new one. I love it! I feel so cool and I can do so much more.

Saturday I got to spend the day with some friends and their VERY cute children. Our husbands went golfing and then to Andinita's, a Venezuelan restaurant. They all served in different missions there around the same time. But none of us wives really like the food. Instead we ended up going for frozen yogurt. Much better.

Saturday night we went out with my cousin and her husband. Always fun to catch up.

Last night I had a dream that we were living in an apartment/house. It was a really big, multiple story apartment, in an apartment complex. It actually reminded me of a building Brian designed about a year ago. Pretty cool.

We had two kids. So happy. And yet for part of the dream I was trying to breastfeed the baby and it wasn't working out. Weird.

We had an impromptu FHE with Brian's family last night. His mom challenged us to write down all the negative or draining thoughts we have and then write down the opposite plus one more good thing. It's been interesting to think about.

Sometimes I think I care too much. When you feel like crying, but try to keep it inside, does it make your throat hurt? It does for me.

I'm so grateful for my husband. He is great.

Tonight Brian's already told me he's going to be late at school. So I'm going to go be crafty with my friend Marci. So excited.

Senioritis, Made-up Words, Happy Stuff

2010-09-16T10:39:00.003-06:00

Well apparently, our life is boring during the school year. I shouldn't be surprised.

For Labor Day, I updated the blog all day, and Brian spent all day doing school stuff. So we didn't get any time to do anything fun.

Brian's having a hard time getting back into the swing of things. Mostly because it's his last year and I think he's got Senioritis. It's also hard when all, and I mean ALL, his teachers tell him every day that there are NO JOBS out there. Very encouraging.

But he went to a lecture last night where the guy talked about how everyone tries to make you think you have to design "Star-chitecture" in order to be successful. But if you can design for average American people, you'll always have a job because that makes up 97% of the people out there. So now he feels better about finding a job when we're done.

In other new words, I realized that I sometimes do something called "catastrophication". (Parenthood, great show.) Anyway, it's taking a normal situation and totally blowing it out of proportion and imagining the worst possible thing happening. I do this a lot when I worry about Brian, or my family. I'm working on it.

I need to focus on the good things in life. Like:

My best friend Val, had her little baby girl, Nicole, on Monday. SO CUTE! We went to visit Tuesday and I just held her and stared for a good 1/2 hour. She has the cutest cheeks and little button nose. We're so happy for them!

I heard on the radio today that tomorrow marks 100 days until Christmas! How could you not be excited about that? It almost made me want to jump out of bed and start singing Christmas songs.

Almost.

But not quite.

And it's almost Fall! I know it's still way hot outside, but I can feel it coming. I love Fall!

Date Nights

2010-09-05T17:09:00.000-06:00

This last weekend Brian took me on two dates.

Friday we went to Jason's Deli for dinner. It's one of my favorites, mostly because you get free ice cream with dinner. (Though we did see a group of teenagers come in and just take the ice cream with out buying anything. I was offended, even though I have no stake in the business. I can't believe kids do stuff like that.)

After dinner we went to the SLC Art Center and looked at a couple exhibits. One was called Girl, Rising, and the other was a mini golf course. Each hole was a different piece of art that was totally playable. We had a good time even though some of them were kind of weird. It was a great idea, something different, and totally free. I loved spending time with my hubby!

Last night we went out with our friends, the Holmans. We both knew Lindsey in high school, and she recently got married at the end of April, so we wanted to get to know her husband. We had dinner at their place (which we liked and even might look at moving to after we're done, depending on where we end up). Then we headed to Mulligan's to play some real mini golf. I did much worse at the real thing than I did at the art center, but we had a good time.

We ended the night at Frogurt, which is another one of those places where you fill your cup up with whatever you want and they weigh it to charge you. I'm really loving those places.

It was great to spend time with them and get to know Preston better. We'll be getting together again soon.

Heather's Wedding

2010-09-02T17:00:00.000-06:00

One of my best friends, Heather, got married today. She looked beautiful and so happy. It was a crazy day, starting with me trying to finish setting up the decorations and things right before, and everyone running around like crazy trying to make sure everything was put together, but that's normal for a wedding, right?

We had a great time and got through it all just fine. We sent them off and then went home and rested my feet. Marci and Brian did the pics and they took tons, so I'm sure I'll put up more once they're finished editing.

Congrats Heather & Jeff!

Last First Day of School

2010-08-23T16:41:00.000-06:00

Today is Brian's Last First Day of School. (Yes, I know in college there are semesters, and that he actually has two semesters left, but he doesn't do summer semester, and I'm too excited to be done, so I'm sticking with my previous statement.)

We're both excited, but nervous. The teachers aren't very encouraging when it comes to the job market right now, but we're hopeful. I know it's early to start the countdown, but considering this has been coming for 3 years now, I'm going to do it anyway.

Good luck babe!

Elder Bednar Fireside

2010-08-22T15:21:00.000-06:00

Tonight we had a fireside with Elder Bednar. He did this specifically for our stake. We went expecting a talk and then he was going to answer a few questions at the end. He ended up spending the whole 2 hours answering questions. It was amazing! His wife helped with some, and both did a great job. I felt so great the whole time. I took lots of notes about promptings that I got and I hope I can put some of those into practice. I feel very lucky that we got to learn directly from an Apostle in that kind of forum.

Bear Lake w/Ward

2010-08-21T15:05:00.000-06:00

Our Bishop has a "cabin" at Bear Lake, so this summer they invited the ward up to spend the day. It was a beautiful place and we had a great time. Lots of good food, and we spent a couple hours on a boat as well, just enjoying the lake. I didn't get any pics, but we were having so much fun, we didn't even worry about it. Hopefully they do it again next year.

Wedding Stuff

2010-08-16T14:45:00.001-06:00

One of my best friends, Heather is getting married soon, so we've been doing a lot of wedding stuff.

Friday we went to Lagoon with the Glads, and that night I went to a bridal shower for Heather. Then Saturday I drove up to Kaysville again to do some bridesmaids dress shopping. We looked around for a few hours, until we finally found them. Then we had to find shoes. Then I helped her get other little items needed for the wedding. And finally we ended up picking up her dress after the final alterations.

After getting home Brian and I went out to the reception for my cousin Miranda. They got married last week in St. George but we weren't able to go. It was great to see her and see how happy she is.

Today I drove up to Kaysville one more time, this time with my friend Marci who is doing the pictures for Heather's wedding. (Check out her work here.) We spent a couple hours taking bridals and had a good time. Now just a couple more weeks and the wedding will be done!

House Plans

2010-08-15T14:52:00.000-06:00

Tonight we had a ward fireside at the house of one of our high councilmen, Brother Cornelius. It was the first house that Brian and I have both walked into and really liked. I've always worried that we're never going to be able to design a house together because we have such different ideas, but this house was awesome. Lots of natural light, really open, but still feels homey. And of course, a library, with a rolling ladder. I just stared at the shelves for awhile.

One day, we'll get there.

Brad the Elder

2010-08-01T14:40:00.000-06:00

Today my brother was ordained an Elder in our church. We got to go and be a part of it. It was a very special moment and I'm glad I could be there to support him. We all got a little emotional, including Brad, who doesn't usually do that. He's getting to be so grown up, though he still has his moments of teenager-ness. I'm really proud of him though. Love you Bud!

Barlow Family Reunion 2010

2010-07-31T14:12:00.001-06:00

This year was the year for another Barlow Family Reunion. This is my mom's side of the family and we get together every other year. There were about 75 of us, so that made it a little challenging, but we had a great time. There were tons of pictures, so I've only included a few.

We started Friday morning with a brunch and tour of my grandma's new living center. It was great to just visit and greet people.

We had to split into two groups, and then after we were done at the living center, we headed to Welfare Square for some tours. It was pretty amazing to see how much the church does. This was near the end and Brian was entertaining himself by that point.

That evening the teenagers went to do baptisms at the temple, and then when they came back to watch the babies, the adults went to do a session at Jordan River Temple. This was a pretty special experience because it was the first time through for my cousin Miranda, since she was getting married in a week. We were a pretty large group, but it was very special.

The next day we started out at This Is The Place Heritage Park. We had some time to just look around so we took a ride on the train.

We stopped by some of the houses and stores as well. The boys were having too much fun. I don't even know what they're going for here.

Of course we had to stop for some ice cream, before lunch. Nat, who's becoming a Dental Hygienist, says you should always eat dessert first so the other food wipes the sugar off. I totally agree.

We had a little presentation at the Israel Barlow statue, since he's our ancestor. On our way, we stopped to "appreciate" the other statues.

This is my mom, a direct descendant, with all of her direct descendants.

After lunch, we had an auction to help raise money for later reunions. We all brought/made items to sell. One of my cousin's husbands works for Johnson & Johnson. So she brought a few bags of different items to sell. One being, KY products. Well, since my cousin was getting married in a week, we all pressured her fiance into buying them. Miranda was pretty excited, (or embarrassed.)

After the auction there was a little free time in which Brian went golfing with my parents, Adam & Nat, & Brad.

Then we headed over to my aunt's for a 1910 carnival. We had cotton candy, popcorn, hot dogs, and games. The highlight was the dunking booth.

Overall it was really great reunion and I had an awesome time getting to chat with everyone that I don't get to see all the time.

The next reunion my mom is in charge of, so I will be helping. I keep suggesting we go to New York, but we'll see. :)

Christmas Meadows

2010-07-25T16:21:00.000-06:00

We spent the 24th of July weekend with our friends, the Preece's, at their family cabin in Christmas Meadows. We got up there late Wednesday night.

Thursday we started off going for a little hike.

We had a really relaxing day and just hung out that night. We ate some yummy dinner and then played games. Marci's dad & sister came up as well.

Friday we went four wheeling. I've never been, but had a great time. I really loved it, though I'm a little shaky at driving.

That night some more friends, Steve & Kam and their daughter Ruth came up to join us. It was great to hang out and get to know them better. Another yummy dinner, with more games and lots of talking.

Saturday we all went out for another hike, this one a little longer. The mountains were beautiful and we had a good time.

Aria loved throwing rocks into any and all lakes. She convinced Brian to help her.

I ended up getting a little dehydrated after that hike, which wasn't fun, but Dr. Preece diagnosed me, (since I wouldn't listen to Brian) and convinced me to drink lots and lots of water. We played even more games that night and all ended up laughing until our cheeks hurt.

Sunday we got up and just hung out until lunch. After lunch we headed home.

We had such a great time just relaxing and being with friends. We loved playing with their two little kids (and their parents). Thanks for inviting us! We'll have to do it again sometime.

Ward Campout

2010-07-09T13:30:00.000-06:00

Each year our ward does a campout. We camped out one of the times, but last year we missed it due to a wedding reception. This year we decided to just go up for the dinner and games. Mostly because Brian had to work on Saturday. Ok, honestly it's because I don't like camping.

We had a really yummy dinner provided by the ward and then played fun relay games.

We also had a great time playing with our friend, Aria.

We had a short devotional by the Bishop and roasted marshmallows before heading home. Our friend Marci was the main authority on marshmallows. :)

Overall, a very fun time, though I'm glad I got to sleep in my own bed.

Girls Weekend 2010

2010-07-04T21:53:00.000-06:00

This year for Girls Weekend we hung around Salt Lake for most of the time. But to start us off, my mom booked us a time to go do some adventurous things like rock climbing, zip line, and canoeing, down in Provo.

All ready in our harnesses
I won't post pics of us climbing because really, the only kind you get are butt-shots, so consider yourselves spared.

I was so proud of myself that I actually did those things. I am not a very daring person, so I'm also glad that Nat got some pictures as proof.

The next day we did a little shopping in preparation for a Bridal Shower we were throwing that night.

Then we went to lunch and to see Eclipse.
After the movie we went to get a Cup o' Snow.

Here are the results.

Friday night we had a family shower for our cousin, Miranda.

We were originally going to have it at our house, but things changed.

We played the memory game by having Miranda wear all the items and show them around the room. Those were also our gifts to her. (Minus the random things like: gum, money, tampon, movie stubs, etc.)

It was fun to see lots of family. We had two family baby blessings that weekend so lots of people happened to be in town.

Me and my cousin, Lisa, with my other cousin, Curtis', baby Kate.

Saturday morning we all went out to breakfast because without a kitchen, it's hard to prepare any meals.

Melissa, Brad, Dani, Nat

Mom & Dad

After breakfast we ditched the boys to go wander around Hobby Lobby.

A new one just opened up by my mom's house and we could've spent hours there. Such cute stuff.

We then went to lunch with some of the extended family that was in town. We had about 20 people there and it was a lot of fun.

Makes me excited for the family reunion at the end of the month where we'll get to see lots more. (Around 70 people! And that's not even all of them.)

After lunch we headed to get pedicures.

This was Dani's first time and she has very ticklish feet. There was a lot of laughing.

The Girls

Mom & Nat

The finished products.

After pedicures we got one more Cup o' Snow and then went home to watch, Jane Eyre, the British version. Which meant it was 4 hours long. But we all really liked it!

I love the irony that we started our girls weekend rock climbing and ending with pedicures and a chick flick.

I had a really good time hanging out with my sisters and mom. I love that we do Girls Weekend every year so we make sure that we stay close.

Unfortunate Event

2010-07-01T21:06:00.000-06:00

While we were at Bear Lake, some tubing slipped off the dishwasher in my parents house that they had turned on before they left. Sunday afternoon. My dad got home Tuesday night. So for 2 1/2 days hot water ran through my parents house.

My dad called the emergency people and they came and ripped everything out and moved everything out of the rooms that were damaged.

The Kitchen/Dining Room

The Living Room (which now houses the fridge)

The bedroom directly beneath the kitchen. This was the worst. It was torn down to studs and cement.

This room also housed my mom's wedding dress and my wedding dress. We're still waiting to hear how those turn out.

All of the stuff was shoved into the Family Room

And the Garage

Luckily my dad went home early, otherwise it could've been worse. Not that this is fun for my mom by any means. But now she gets a new kitchen, so that's fun.

When we got home Thursday morning they had fans going to dry everything out and they had to keep going until Saturday night. It sounded like a tornado. And the only place to really sit was in my parent's bedroom.

Which presented a challenge for our Girls Weekend.

Bear Lake - Part 3

2010-07-01T19:07:00.000-06:00

My favorite part of Bear Lake this year was Game Night. I may be a little biased though because I was in charge. My Grandma had seen a commercial for this show and she wanted me to do games like that. So we played:

Minute to Win It!!!

We divided everyone up into 3 teams.

Team 1: Merrill, Aubrey, Nat, Marci, Shannan, Brendyn

Team 2: Sarah, Dad, Dani, Meggan, Brad, Mom
Team 3: Grandpa, Grandma, Kristi, Parker, Brian, Matt

Judges: Jen & Melissa

Here are some (ok, a lot) of highlights:

Face The Cookie

(Nat & Shannan)

Bite Me

(Parker, Aubrey, Sarah)

Hanky Panky

(Brendyn, Kristi, Mom)

Candy Elevator

(Meggan, Nat, Brian)

Nat after she finished. I love how she looks so proud of herself.

Nose Dive

(Matt, Merrill, Dani)

Defying Gravity

(Brad)

Chocolate Unicorn

(Marci, Dad, Grandma)

Junk in the Trunk

This can only be shown in true form, through video

(Starring: Dani)

Double Trouble

(Brad)

Whippersnapper
(Shannan, Aubrey, Marci)

What a Racquet

(Dad, Brendyn, Grandma)

And last but not least,

Bottoms Up

(Starring: Nat)

Everyone had a lot of fun and we laughed A LOT.

(All instructions for the games can be found on the show's website)

Bear Lake - Part 2

2010-07-01T18:51:00.000-06:00

We always do lots of fun things at Bear Lake. Here are a few:

Golf Horseshoe:

(Mom)

(Nat)
(Kristi)

(Brendyn)

(Melissa)

(Brian)

We went on our annual 10 mile bike ride. It's not a hard ride, but I'll admit, it was easier on a road bike than a mountain bike.

Here were are before we left. I love how Nat & I are just proud that we're going biking, and Brian's made sure to show off his bike. :)

Brian went on another long bike ride by himself, and I went down to take pictures of Nat learning to skimboard. She did great!
Doesn't she totally look like a surfer chick? Hot stuff!!

The great teacher, Matt and new prodigy, Nat.

My aunt Meggan tried too. But she mostly ended up like this:

Other fun things that I don't have pictures of:

Swimming at the pool. Brian went down the new kiddy slide they just put in. He barely fit.
Watching movies and playing board games.
Eating, and eating, and eating. So good.
Getting to know new family members that have been added since last year.
Relaxing and reading books. (I finished almost 3 while we were there.)
Golfing. Well, Brian went golfing with my dad & grandpa & cousin. This was his first time in years. He actually had such a good time that he now wants to take up golf.
Getting ice cream from the local shop. Always yummy!

Bear Lake - Part 1

2010-07-01T18:32:00.000-06:00

Bear Lake was awesome this year, as always. It was a little less crowded, and we missed a bunch of the family that couldn't be there, but it meant that no one had to sleep on the floor, unless they chose to. :)

Most of us got up there on Sunday night. We started off playing a game called Lap Stack. Everyone sits in a circle, each person has their own chair. Then a list of questions is asked. If you can answer yes, you move to the right. If you answer no, you stay put. Hence, you have people that start stacking up on other's laps.

My mom's in charge of this one. I think she does it so she can just laugh at all of us.

Dani & Dad

Marci & Matt

Aubrey & Marci

Parker, Grandma, Brad & Nat

Nat, Merrill, Grandpa & Dani

Brad, Brendyn, Kristi & Shannan

Dad, Brian & Me

We all had a lot of fun and I think it's a great way to start of the trip.

What We've Been Doing All Month

2010-06-22T13:39:00.003-06:00

Not much actually. The weather's been pretty pathetic considering it's June. It was pretty sunny all day, while I was inside at work, and as soon as I'd go home it would get all rainy. Lame.

At the beginning of the month, I got a new road bike! We sold my mountain bike to my sister, because she'll probably get more use out of it that I ever did. And I'm a wuss and I don't think I'd ever have really taken it mountain biking. But I can ride on the roads, no problem. :)

Unfortunately, due to the weather, I wasn't able to ride my new bike until last week. We went to the bike shop and got me the official spandex shorts and we've ordered a jersey. We then rode for about 4 miles and even though I wasn't dying at the end, my sit-bones were really sore!

Last night we went for another ride, this time on campus. I did much better and we ended up riding 5.5 miles. I'm really enjoying it so far. I just wish I was an expert right away instead of having to work up to it. But at least my sit-bones are only a little sore today. :)

Here is my awesome bike:

The only problem I've been having is that my feet keep cramping up if we stop for too long. I've always had trouble with my feet cramping (because I have very low arches) but it's now impairing my biking because we have to wait for 10-15 minutes for my feet to stop hurting. Does anyone have any suggestions or home remedies for this kind of thing?

Brad's Graduation

2010-06-02T17:48:00.000-06:00

Today, my little brother Brad, graduated from high school. It makes me feel so old because I was doing that 8 years ago! But I was so proud of him.

Brian was able to snap this picture of him from way up high in the stands at the E Center:

All of us with the graduate:

Parents and Graduate:

Brad and the sisters: (Though we were missing Nat, who I know wanted to be there)

Me and my bud:

After the ceremony we all went out to Asian Star for dinner. Oh, Honey Walnut Shrimp, how I love you! It was a really fun day spent with the family.

I love you Brad and I'm so proud of you!

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-05-31T14:31:00.000-06:00

For Memorial Day Weekend, my sister and her husband got to come up for the weekend and we all had a great time together. Brian and Adam did some biking and my and my mom and sisters got to do a lot of talking.

On Saturday I went with my parent's and Phil & Dani to see Prince of Persia. My work had a matinee for free & we enjoyed ourselves. I really liked the movie too!

Sunday was my Dad's Birthday, so we all had dinner together.

Even though we had a good time, we didn't take many pictures, except a few of just the girls. Here's one:

Choir Concert

2010-05-25T22:00:00.000-06:00

Tonight was the year-end choir concert for my brother Brad, and Brian's brother Nathan. Nathan is a junior, but Brad is a Senior so it was his last one.

As usual, the choir alumni were invited up to sing the last two numbers. This year, my other brother Phil, and Brian's other brother Derek, were able to be there too. So in order to stand all together I stood by everyone, in the middle of the men's section. Just me. In the middle of all the guys. This made it much more difficult to sing my part when I don't really remember the songs. Owell, it was fun.

Here's all the choir people after: (Derek, Brian, Nathan, Brad, Me, Phil)

And here we all are with the choir teacher (Mr. Smith) and the future choir members (Stuart & Dani):

We figured out that if Dani and Stuart do join choir, we will be going to this year end choir concert until 2016. That is a long time!

Another fun thing about these concerts is seeing old friends. Here we are with our friend Crystal:

Overall, it was fun night. Here's to 6 more years!

One Positive Outcome

2010-05-24T12:49:00.005-06:00

When I was little, I always wanted to have these flowers for my wedding:

But these are the wussiest flowers ever.

They only last from about the last week of April to MAYBE the second week of May.

And because my birthday is May 1st, I knew it would probably never happen.

Then I married someone with a May birthday as well and it just wasn't in the cards.

Besides the fact that planning a wedding around when certain flowers will be alive is crazy (in my book).

But this year, the lilacs have stuck around a lot longer.

It's probably due to the cooler weather, (but not too cool) and the sun only coming out for a few hours each day.

And all the rain has probably helped a ton.

My ride home from work is always enjoyable because there is about a half mile long stretch of lilac bushes and just seeing them and smelling that sweet fragrance makes me so happy.

I probably annoy Brian with my game of "Spot the Lilac Bush" that I play every time we're in the car.

I'm just like a little kid because it's the last week of May and my flowers are still around.

It's the only positive outcome I can think of for having all this rain and cold weather.

And then it snowed today, May 24, 2010.

It literally made me angry the second I woke up and saw that white stuff on the ground and continuing to fall from the sky.

My drive to work was terrifying.

All I can say is that the lilacs better still be there when I drive home or Mother Nature's going to get a talking to from me.

We Got the Memo

2010-05-24T09:25:00.001-06:00

Yesterday we headed to Sandy for my brother's Seminary Graduation. The speakers were great and it was pretty cool to see my dad present Brad with his diploma. (My dad's the bishop.)

After the ceremony we headed back to my parent's house for some ice cream cake that my mom made. So good!

And when we got there we discovered that my sister, my grandma and myself all got the same memo of what to wear:

Green shirts, black skirts.

Obviously that's what you wear to a Seminary Graduation. :)

The Big 2-6

2010-05-23T11:14:00.000-06:00

On the 20th, Brian turned 26. Among other things, this means that he now has to stop calling me "Cougar" for another year.

He got the day off for his birthday. So of course he spent most of the day riding his road bike.

All over the valley.

For 3 1/2 hours.

Definitely not my idea of a good time. But he liked it.

He ended the ride by coming to my office when I got off work, and we drove over to his parent's house for a BBQ.

It was then that we discovered that he had lost his Driver's License, Temple Recommend, and Debit Card.

He keeps those on him when he's riding, in case of emergencies. They all fell out when he pulled out some treats. Somewhere along the way. Anywhere in the valley.

So we stopped by the bank to get him a new card and cancel the old one.

He wasn't holding out much hope that anyone would find it, let alone return it.

So Friday morning he went down to the DMV and got a new license. Thankfully he didn't have to wait in a 4 hour long line. Took him about 10 minutes. Sweet!

And on Saturday, our bank called.

Someone found his stuff and turned it in to the bank.

Yay for people who do the right thing, but boo that he had already done all this stuff to replace his things. But yay again that he doesn't have to set appointments to get a new temple recommend.

So that was the excitement on his birthday.

Well, that and the party. :)

Happy Birthday Brian!

Reading

2010-05-18T17:18:00.005-06:00

Last Sunday, the 9th, I got 3 new books for my birthday. I also borrowed a book from my sister.

I read all of them by Saturday.

I recommend them all:

My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions, by Becca Wilhite

Being Sixteen, by Allyson Braithwaite Condie

Band of Sisters, by Annette Lyon

The Princess Bride, by William Goldman

The author of Being Sixteen, Allyson Condie, has a new book coming out at the end of November. It's called Matched. I can't wait! You can visit her blog here.

My Latest Read

2010-05-10T16:26:00.002-06:00

My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions by Becca Wilhite

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
My mom gave me this book because she said the author's "voice" sounded like me. I have to agree and say I totally loved it! It's a really quick read, but I found myself giggling and squealing for the characters. (Inside my head of course, because I read it at work today.) I'd recommend it to any girl interested in a fun, quick read. (And I have a copy if you're close enough to want to borrow it.)

My only problem now though, is that I find myself both more encouraged and more discouraged to write. Hearing someone's voice that sounds like mine actually out there and published is great, except that it makes me feel like now I really don't have anything unique to add the the world of literature. I guess I just have to try or I'll never know.

Heather's Baptism

2010-05-08T20:59:00.000-06:00

Today one of my best friends, Heather, was baptized. She was my first roommate in college, and we've been friends ever since. I won't say I never thought this day would happen, but I'll admit I didn't think it would happen so quickly. But I'll also admit that I am so so so so so happy that it did.

The service was great. There were some great talks given by her boyfriends sister-in-law and mother, her boyfriend baptized her and his brother confirmed her. I didn't think I would, but after she was baptized I really teared up. I was so happy to see her so happy.

Afterwards we went over to her boyfriends house for food. It was great to see all the people there to support her. She's had some trouble with some of her family accepting her decision but I'm happy that she's been strong enough to know that she made the right choice.

CONGRATULATIONS HEATHER! WE LOVE YOU!

Pine-nut Derby

2010-05-07T21:22:00.000-06:00

Tonight our Elders Quorum had their first "Man-richment." They were feeling left out that us women always have activities and they don't get to do anything. So they did a Pine-nut Derby. Instead of making cars out of pinewood, they used veggies. Mostly potatoes, but there was a celery with a model rocket engine on it (that they set off later. Not recommended, very dangerous!), there was a ginger root, and a zucchini, and a cucumber. It was very interesting and very fun.

The main difference between their activity and ours was that for ours they encourage the husbands to babysit so the girls can have girl-time, but theirs turned into a ward activity with families being invited. There was a great turn-out and I think everyone had a good time.

Brian provided the track that his dad owns, but it was still only coincidence that Brian WON! I cheered really loud, like always, but it made it even more fun.

Here is Brian's "car", he named it "Stack of Idaho".

"Curse You!" Cooking

2010-05-05T22:25:00.000-06:00

Perhaps I should start a series. One where I explain to you all how much I don't like cooking, and tell you of the horrible mishaps that seem to happen every time I try a new recipe.

Or maybe not.

But tonight I seriously wanted to curse the meal I was making.

I decided to try a recipe for Clam Chowder.

Granted, I was planning on making it last week, but I thought all my ingredients would still be fine for tonight.

Wrong.

So there I was flying through all the preparation.

The potatoes were cooking in the clam juice and water, I had melted the butter and mixed in the flour. Everything was moving along and I had even timed it so it would be ready when Brian got home from work just after 7. Then we'd have plenty of time to eat and I could go to Yoga at 7:30.

I never do well with timing my meals. I was feeling pretty good.

Then I go to pour in the Half&Half into the butter mixture.

Chunks.

Gross.

The entire meal, ruined.

I was so frustrated that I dumped it all down the sink (to get rid of the smell) and then just took the boiling potatoes off the burner and waited for Brian to get home.

I didn't even have the energy to try and make something else.

(It doesn't help that it was 7:00 at night and I was already hungry. I don't do well when I'm hungry.)

Then Brian ended up being late and didn't get home until 7:30. So then we didn't end up eating until 8:00.

Grr.

Messed up dinner and ended up missing Yoga.

Lame.

Riveting?

2010-05-05T16:05:00.003-06:00

I made the comment to our receptionist today that watching the stock market all day on the TV by her desk must be riveting.

I was joking.

I don't think she knew what "riveting" meant.

Perhaps she thought I was talking about building something.

I have to take a moment to brag about My Man.

He informed me that 2 separate people he knows that work (partially part-time (meaning whenever the firm has something for them to do) at a firm here in SLC, both recommended him for a job!

The company is starting a new project using some new software that neither of these guys knows how to use, but they both thought of Brian because he's worked hard to learn it this year.

So tonight we're putting together a new resume and hopefully he'll get the job!

I know it might just be for the summer and come Fall he might have to really cut back on hours, but I still think it would be great to have one foot in the door come next summer when he's graduated.

I know everyone's said it, but I'll say it again, It needs to be Spring already.

Brian went for a bike ride out to Draper the other day.

Yeah, that's 50 miles round trip.

He was pretty exhausted but the really bad part was that he forgot to put sunscreen on.

His hands and legs are pretty burnt.

I shouldn't laugh, but the bike shorts are a little shorter than even swim trunks, so the stark difference between his white thighs and the burn is pretty intense.

Yesterday he worked from home on finishing up school stuff and he just sat around in his underwear (and a regular shirt) with it hiked up so it wouldn't rub the burn.

I would've taken a picture, but that's not appropriate. (I really wanted to document it though.)

Brian's team didn't get chosen to ride in LOTOJA this year.

He's pretty bummed. Me too.

It would've been fun to cheer him on.

Maybe next year though.

I think we'll still go spend a weekend in Logan though.

I miss it up there.

This weekend one of my best friends is getting baptized!!

I didn't think it would ever happen, but it is, and I am so happy for her.

I got an electric skillet for my birthday.

I did not have a huge grin on my face when I made tacos in it last night. That would be geeky.

Owell, you all know I'm a geek.

There's a lady in my office that has a young toddler at home.

She is currently talking baby-talk to her over the phone.

She's in a cubicle, not a closed office.

Yeah, I'm just not that type of person.

That probably makes me a bad person for thinking she's weird to do that.

Sorry, lady in the next cubicle.

I recently started working a tree skirt for our Christmas tree.

I'm very excited, but it's huge.

Makes it hard to work with and takes up the whole couch.

Owell, it'll be worth it in the end.

Well, time to go home now.

The end.

I am a Cougar

2010-05-01T11:41:00.000-06:00

According to Brian anyway.

Today I turned 26, which means I am older than Brian for the next 19 days. He finds this to be the best time of the year because he gets to tease me about being older than him and calls me his "cougar". I let him get away with it because it's only 19 days. :)

Yesterday I got a paid day off from my boss for my birthday. Awesome. Because Brian finished his final project on Wednesday he took the day off to be with me. We slept in and I lounged around while Brian went shopping for my presents. (Because my birthday always falls during finals, he never has time to shop until the day before or the day of.) Then I got all prettified and we headed to the DMV.

Yes, this was one of those fateful years I had to renew my license. Because of the timing of my name changes, I never got the chance to renew by mail, which I am mad about. I hate going to the DMV and I hate taking that eye test. I would've given anything to just renew through the mail and not have to take another picture. Owell.

It ended up being very painless. We walked in, took a picture (the best one yet I think) and waited a whole minute before they called my number. Then we just stood there while the guy entered my info, and then I had to take the eye test. Brian doesn't get why this causes me anxiety. I don't really know either besides the fact that I am far-sighted, which means I can see fine while I'm driving but focusing on small things like reading is hard without glasses/contacts. And those stupid tests don't understand my lazy left eye that needs my right eye to help. Seriously, when are you going to need to drive with only one eye open?

Anyway, I ~~took an educated guess~~ hesitated on the first two letters and zoomed through the rest. I almost literally wiped my brow after I was done. But I didn't want the DMV guy to know I was worried about passing. :)

Then we went to the mall and got me some new bras for my birthday. Pretty exciting, huh?

Today we opened presents before Brian went to work. He got me a few necessary items, and the movie Avatar. For the rest of the day I was just lazy and did nothing (including not cleaning my messy house) while Brian was at work. When he got home we went to Red Robin for dinner because I got a free burger for my birthday. We splurged and got a chocolate shake which was really yummy.

Then we came home and watched Avatar. Pretty relaxing birthday. (But no pics, sorry.)