Happy New Year!

2011 is here! I had a moment of surreality a few minutes before midnight last night as I realized 2010 is over. Usually it's not such a big deal, I mean, I have survived 22 new years just famously, but for some reason it felt a little weird watching the ball drop and knowing 2010 is just another one for the memory books. What a great year it was! I finished my medical assisting program, my missionary came home, I married him, I got a new job that I love, decided once and for all that I'm going to nursing school, traveled (even if it was just to Vegas...) made new friends, and so much more. New years really feels like a fresh start this year, a year where I start to make things happen instead of just wishing. So, I'm not making resolutions this year, because resolutions are made to be forgotten in a matter of weeks. I'm making a new year's decree. It just sounds better because the only other time I've ever heard that word used is when royalty or someone very important makes a decision that they want others to pay attention to.

1. Change my exercise and eating habits

I'll admit after 6 months of marriage I've definitely put on a few pounds. But my goal this year is do more than just lose weight. I want my diet to consist of more than just white carbs, to actually enjoy fruits and vegetables of all kinds and find some sort of exercise that doesn't feel so mundane to me. I want to become a person who takes pride in being healthy instead of just eating TV dinners and settling for the walk up and down the stairs to my apartment as my workout for the day.

2. Pay all my bills on time

This one goes without much explanation. Bills suck. I think everyone will agree when I say it's much more fun to go spend on entertainment. So I'm going to work very hard and prioritize much more to make sure I get no late notices (or fees...) for any of my bills.

3. Get into nursing school

This one may have to be part of my decrees for 2012, because I'm not sure of the specifics of this one yet. But in the words of Mabel Newcomber, "It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly." I know where I'm going now, so I'll just take it step by step until I figure out how to get there.

4. Record the events of my life

It seems like this is one of those goals I make every year. The time passes so quickly and suddenly I find myself at another January 1 and I can't remember half of what has happened. So I'm going to start small and say I'm going to write at least 1 sentence every day of this year, documenting what happened.

There are many more I want to accomplish but I'll just start here. Hope you all had a great 2010. On to new beginnings and new adventures!

The people who care don't matter, and the people who matter don't care.

3 months

Wow, I can't believe I've been married for 1/4 of a year already! Time has gone by so fast! One thing we've been realizing lately is that we have such a FUN life! Of course, it's filled with the normal work and bills and not-so-fun adult stuff, but we really try to fill our weekends with fun things. This summer has been the best of my whole life. Here are just a few of the things we've done:

There was of course, our fabulous honeymoon in Vegas!

A family reunion with Ian's family up at Pineview reservoir. (My first time on a water weenie)

(That's all the pictures you get because, well, we didn't take any...)

Swiss days up in Midway for Mom's birthday.

A weekend in Pocatello/Blackfoot ID, for the fair. Another first: demolition derby. So. Much. Fun!

Mom and Dad giving us an AWESOME suite up at Snowbird for our birthdays and making us want to snowboard SO BAD!

So that's life in a nutshell for us. It really is so great to be married to my best friend, and to know that what we have will last forever. Every day he proves to me how amazing he is and what a great decision I made in marrying him. I can't wait to see what crazy adventures life brings us next!

Just a thought

I got off work early the other day, and rather than going home to my empty apartment for half an hour before I had to go pick Ian up from work, I decided to go spend a beautiful afternoon sitting in the park. With this spur of the moment decision in mind, I realized all I had with me to keep busy was my crochet hook and some yarn. So, I sat down on a bench in the shade and started to crochet. A few people kind of gave me some funny looks. (I imagine a twenty-something girl sitting by herself in the park crocheting would look rather odd.) Some just kind of smiled and went on their way. There was one lady who stopped however, and with a big smile on her face, asked what I was making. I told her it was a beanie, showed her a couple of the ones I had already finished, and she excitedly responded by telling me how beautiful she thought they were, and that the recipients would be very lucky. I smiled and thanked her, and she went on her way. I don't think it really even occurred to her how that simple compliment made me feel. To be appreciated by a complete stranger. I contemplated it even more that day, and wondered what would happen if we all tried a little bit harder to be kinder to strangers. Even if it's as simple as thanking someone for holding a door open for you. I think it could go a long way...

Happy Birthday Mom!!

Happy birthday!

Cori: I have the best mom ever. It seems like the older I get, the more I understand how much you love us and how many sacrifices you made (and still make every day) so that we could be the best and have the best. You have taught me how to be a better wife and homemaker, and made this crazy transition in my life so much easier. I think the reason the four of us are such great friends as well as siblings is because of your influence. You will always be remembered in my mind as someone who loves her husband, and her kids. Thanks so much for being such a great example. I love you!

Megan: I've realized what a great job Mom has done teaching her kids how to be good people. One memory I have of my mom is when she took me to see Hairspray. On the drive home, we just talked and joked and laughed about life. Mom has always been my rock, even when I wasn't quite ready to hear what she had to say. Even when we disagree, I know she's still there. Happy Birthday Mom! I love you!

Ian: She knows how to make Taco Ring.

Jillian: When I was about 3 mom and I were in her room watching ice skaters on TV. I told mom I thought all the skaters were really thin. And then, being the little whipper snapper that I was, I told her that the only thing thin on her was her lips! We've laughed about that ever since. Thanks for being such a great mom and having a sense of humor with us. Happy Birthday! I love you!

Hope you have a great day today! We love you!!

love, Your kiddos

1 month

Wow! I've been married for over a month. I can hardly believe it. Marriage is a BIG adjustment, but one Ian and I have both loved. It's an incredible feeling to be married to your best friend. Let me catch you up picture wise on what's been going on in our lives:

These are from the night of my endowments on June 22, 2010. It was such an incredible experience. It was such an amazing feeling to be in the Lord's house with so many family and friends close by. I think I started to realize what everyone means when they tell you how important the temple is, and why everything we do in the church leads there.

With my in-laws. (don't you love the matching skirts?)

I didn't expect my Aunt Lisa to be there but I'm so glad she came.

It's so great to have her be such an important part of my life.

It's such an amazing feeling to have the love of your life take you to the temple.

Here's a few of my favorites from our actual wedding. All in all we ended up with about 1,100 pictures so it's hard to narrow down, but I'll do my best. It was absolutely beautiful! Everyone who helped really outdid themselves! I couldn't have asked for a more perfect setting.

The ring ceremony right before the reception

The wedding party. Love these guys!

The Famdamily

Shoving cake in my face (of course!)

Love this picture of Grandma and Grandpa.

So cute and in love after 22 years!

And my favorite one of the group!!

There's more pictures but the uploader thing is being annoying so I'm gonna end it here for now and post some more later. Chau

Bridals

It's been far too long since I've posted anything. It's high time I put some pictures up! Here are a few of my bridals taken by my fabulous in-laws. You can see more of their work here.