The Cornett Family

Thankful Day 18

2011-11-28T18:22:00.000-08:00

November 18, 2011

Today, I am thankful for Fridays. Random, yes, but at the same time not so random. I love Fridays, I look forward to Fridays all week. Fridays mean I have spent the week working with clients and co-workers that I really enjoy working with. It also means, I get to spend the weekend with my husband. Oh, how I love Fridays!

Thankful Day 17

2011-11-28T18:20:00.000-08:00

November 17, 2011

Today, I am thankful that I have a passion, and that my job is part of that passion. Today, I was able to share that passion with a classroom full of students at Utah Valley University. I am passionate about working with people with intellectual disabilities... It is something that I love, and feel very strongly about. I feel so lucky to be able to work with these individuals, and that I am passionate about my work!

Thankful Day 16

2011-11-28T18:14:00.000-08:00

November 16, 2011

I am thankful for Human Rights... Odd I know. But, today I taught Human Rights Part 1 and kept thinking about how lucky I am to have the rights that I have. It's a little thing - but a big thing at the same time!

Thankful Day 15

2011-11-15T06:44:00.000-08:00

November 15, 2011

Today, I am thankful for Online Classes. Not just because I can do them from my home office while in my pajamas - but because I am able to take classes from a school in Florida - on my own time. There is one school here that does the classes I am taking, but they only start every other year (i would have had to wait until next year to start them), and I would have to drive all the way to Logan for them... NO thank you! I'll stick with Florida classes in my jammies!

Thankful Day 14

2011-11-15T06:42:00.000-08:00

November 14, 2011

I am thankful for exercise. I have been trying to work out at least 3 days per week, and I have some friends at work that I work out with twice per week. As much as I hate starting to exercise, oh and the whole sweating part, I really enjoy working out my body and feeling sore when I'm working out muscles that I don't usually work out. Plus, I feel like I have WAY more energy when I exercise, than when I don't. Who knew I would be thankful for exercise... but I am!

Thankful Day 13

2011-11-15T06:39:00.000-08:00

November 13, 2011

Today I am thankful for Skype specifically. We got to Skype my brother, sister-in-law, and nephews tonight and it was SO much fun! It is so much better than just talking on the phone to them! I love being able to see them! The boys are getting so big now! Sarah was a little camera shy, but I'm sure eventually she will learn to love Skype as much as I do! I am thankful that Skype makes it possible for my family to keep in contact with each other, even when they're so far away!

Thankful Day 12

2011-11-12T14:14:00.001-08:00

November 12, 2011

I am thankful for toilet paper... I know this seems weird, but this morning I was going to the bathroom and realized that the t.p. roll was empty... I keep surplus t.p. above the toilet on a cupboard... as I grabbed the last roll in the bathroom it slipped out of my hand, and I caught it just before it landed in the toilet... that would have been awful! For some reason, at that time I realized that I am really lucky to be able to have toilet paper in general, and can afford the kind I like. I love t.p.

Thankful Day 11

2011-11-12T14:06:00.001-08:00

November 11, 2011

Today, is Veterans Day.... and as such, I am thankful for Veterans. I am thankful for those who have given up much of their freedoms to protect mine. My own father is a Veteran... I am so thankful for him! It is sad that only on certain holidays, like today, do people remember those who fight for our freedoms... Dad, I hope you get your free car wash today! THANK YOU!

Thankful Day 10

2011-11-12T14:04:00.000-08:00

November 10, 2011

I am thankful for friends today. We had some friends over for dinner and games tonight. It was so much fun! We love spending time with this couple, so we try and do it once a month or so... and every time we do - we realize how lucky we are to have such great friends! It is nice to have friends as a couple. So, Natalie and Taylor - we are thankful for you!

Thankful Day 9

2011-11-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

November 9, 2011

Today I am thankful for my co-workers. We had correlation this morning, and I realized that I work with a great bunch of people. I really like all of them! I have been so blessed to be able to work with people that I respect, and have a great relationship with. We sat laughing in the office today, and I was overwhelmed with emotion and love for my co-workers. It also helps that they don't mind having me around! As much as I loved my old job, working from home wasn't good for me... this new job is much better - and having an office environment with these co-workers is truly a blessing! Yay for co-workers!

Thankful Day 8

2011-11-12T13:58:00.000-08:00

November 8, 2011

Today, I am Thankful for the chance to Vote! Yes, I vote... I try and pay attention to what is happening in my area... I try to make an informed decision and vote for whomever I feel is the best candidate, rather than whoever has the prettiest/most signs. If you don't vote, shame on you, and you have no right to complain! Not only am I voting for my future, but I am thanking those who fought so long and hard, for me to be able to have the right to vote! Thank you to them!

Thankful Day 7

2011-11-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

November 7, 2011

Today, I am thankful for modern medicine, and the amazing people who have worked so tirelessly to keep improving things so that people can remain healthy, get better, and have things they never thought they could. I'm thankful that people go to medical school for years, and get hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, to be able to help people. I am SO thankful that they are able to help me and my family!

Thankful Day 6

2011-11-06T17:20:00.000-08:00

November 6, 2011

Today I am thankful for the opportunity to go back to school. This is a hard one to be thankful for today since I am struggling in my class already, at understanding some of the concepts. Behavior language is a foreign concept to me, so I'm having to work harder at this than I have in any other classes before... but boy am I lucky! I am so thankful to have this opportunity to better myself, to increase my knowledge, and to be able to make a difference in people's lives.

Thankful Day 5

2011-11-06T17:18:00.000-08:00

November 5, 2011

Today, I am thankful for my body. My little brother Spencer participated in the Telos Turkey Triathalon. He had to run, bike, and swim. He has been training really hard for this. While, i am not able to do a triathalon, I can certainly walk, bike, and swim... things that not everyone is able to do; and for that, I am truly thankful!

Thankful Day 4

2011-11-04T09:20:00.000-07:00

November 4, 2011

Today, I am thankful for the sun! I thought it was going to snow today - but it's not! It's beautifully sunny outside. I'm even thankful for it when it shines right in the little space between the blinds and the window frame right into my eyeballs in the mornings... The sun makes me happy!

Thankful Day 3

2011-11-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

November 3, 2011

Today, I am thankful for an office with a window. It is really nice to sit in my office and work, and be able to look out a window at the beautiful mountains and the blue sky! I have worked in offices with no windows, and some with windows that looked out to other buildings... a window with an amazing view is more than I could have asked for!

Thankful Day 2

2011-11-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

November 2, 2011( Yes, I'm a few days late - I got busy okay?!)

Today, I am thankful for my amazing husband! What a wonderful man! We have been in love for just over 3 years, and every day I find myself falling a little more in love with him than the day before. Who knew it was possible to love so much!

Thankful... Day One

2011-11-01T16:51:00.000-07:00

Today I am thankful for amazing parents. Today is my parents 31st Anniversary! They are wonderful and amazing people! I am so happy to have them in my life. They have been an amazing influence in my life and I love them so much. Here's to 31 more years!

The big 30!

2011-09-01T14:03:00.001-07:00

Yup... I turned 30 a couple of weeks ago. I know I'm just now getting around to blogging about it - but I've been crazy busy!

Honestly, 30 wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. For some reason - I suddenly felt all grown up... Like I finally had turned into an adult! For some reason I've felt like I was pretending to be an adult for all these years and then suddenly I turned 30 and it magically happened over night! I'm not sure what it was but I'm feeling all adult-ish now. Maybe it's the new job and doing more school among other things... I don't know. But I'm kind of liking it.

My birthday was a great celebration. Travis and I celebrated with dinner and a movie - and of course a fabulously amazing purse! Seriously - it's fantastic! I'm such a lucky lady!

I think instead of doing 31 things to accomplish before I'm 31 - I'm just going to focus on myself. That sounds selfish and everything, but I am going to focus on improving myself - physically, mentally, emotionally, etc. I think it's a good plan. :)

Finishing Goals

2011-08-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

I turned 30 last week... more on that in a different post. But I wanted to make sure and update the progress of my 30 by 30 goals.

3. Go on a real vacation: We had decided to go on vacation this fall, but I changed jobs and don't have enough time off yet, to go on vacation. We are planning two for next year though. I can't say much about them quite yet, although I'm pretty sure one of them will be to NYC for our anniversary. So, I didn't slack and not even try - I just had to postpone the actual vacation until I have some more time.

6. Start a Family: I went to a doctor a couple of months ago - who gave me some direction that consisted of "Lose X amount of weight and I'll get you pregnant". That X amount is more than my next goal... 7. Lose a very specific but undisclosed amount of weight: So I changed the undisclosed amount - increased it actually - and haven't hit it yet. That's not to say I'm not working on it though - I go to WW each week, if only I could make myself track more often. New goal I guess.

10. Take more pictures: I would say the fact that I've actually had posts with pictures since then, shows that I really am taking more pictures! I guess I should scrapbook them now!

12. Learn to De-Stress: This has been really hard, but I realized a couple of months ago - that I need to let things go. I have never been a grudge holder - but I will stress about things I can't change as well as things that don't really effect me. If I came home on Saturday from my WW meetings and Travis had cleaned the kitchen - I started to stress that maybe he thought I was a bad wife because I didn't do it... Who needs that in their life?! Travis and I had a nice long talk about our "responsibilities" inside the home and he made me feel so much better! I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful husband who can help calm me down, and really takes most of the stress out of my life! He is amazing!

13. Do Something Physically Adventurous/Difficult: This one was hard... I had several ideas - one that involved a vacation that we won't be doing in November... However, I realize I did something... I hate exercising - I think it's awful. I get bored and would rather be doing, well, anything else! I also hate sweating - so the two just aren't that interesting to me. Travis and I did P90X... Well, for us, it was more like P60X - I ended up pulling a muscle in my sternum (who knew you could even do that - and I still don't know how I did it) and couldn't finish. We are about to start it up again... Why oh Why do I torture myself like this? It also requires waking up early, which is one of my least favorite things! Oh well - it's all for the good of the family (or future family).

20. Volunteer: This is the one I have failed with the most. I don't really volunteer for anything specific... I mean, I donate money to charities - I volunteer to watch my nephews and niece - but aside from that, I haven't "volunteered" for much of anything. Maybe I'll volunteer at bountiful baskets this week...

24. Blog More Often: I think I'm probably half finished with this. I have blogged more often - but not much. I need to keep working on this one.

28. Take another class or two: Or Five. I am registered to begin classes in Fall through the Florida Institute of Technology taking classes to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. It is five courses and a big nasty exam - I should be done in May 2013 as long as all goes well! Whew! I'm nervous!

30. Forgive those who have hurt me: I know I'm not the best person in the world, and that I've made some really stupid mistakes in the past, and hurt lots of people. But, I'm trying to be better. I'm trying to work harder at being a good person, and I think I'm slowly progressing. It's hard to forgive people, when they don't realize they have hurt you. In any case - this is a work in progress and I think I'm doing well so far. It's interesting though, how hurt feelings take so long to heal. There's one person that I still don't know how to forgive, but I think it's because I don't want to forgive... like I said, a work in progress.

So... I'm not a complete failure, and nor did I slack on anything really - I just need to work a little harder on some. Will I make a 31 before 31 list? No, probably not... And that's okay.

#4 Organize my Scrapbook Stuff

2011-07-19T09:35:00.000-07:00

BEFORE:
AFTER:

Yes, my scrapbook stuff was in Chaos! I typically can't handle that big of a mess - but it's in the office and I don't ever go in there as often now and I didn't know what I was going to do with all of the stuff. When I changed jobs in May, I ended up having a giant 4 drawer filing cabinet that was sitting empty! I couldn't let it go to waste now could I?

I spent about three hours going through all of my scrapbook stuff and putting them in organized fashion - into my filing cabinet. I wish the drawers were deeper because my 12x12 paper doesn't stand up, and has to lay down instead. Which might be good since it takes up the ENTIRE top drawer (and that's after I put into recycling 2 entire kitchen size garbage bags full of paper)! The second drawer is all card stuff and scissors. The third drawer is full of embellishments - think ribbon, flowers, stickers, die cuts, stamps, brads, charms, etc. The bottom drawer has my cricuit and cartridges as well as my glue dots and stuff.

As I was organizing and cleaning it Travis asked me, "In all seriousness honey, are you really going to use all of that stuff? Do you really think you'll get into scrapbooking like you used to?" I told him I want to - we will just see! :) Yay for scrapbook stuff!

Rock Band Party

2011-07-19T09:29:00.001-07:00

Brett Michaels and Lindsay Lohan (Taylor and Natalie Wright)
Rocker Man and Woman (Daniel and Marissa Fischer)
Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber (Bethany and Greg Lawrence)
Freddie Mercury and Amy Winehouse (Travis and Myself)
We had a Rock Band Party on June 11th and invited people that Bethany and I used to work with. It was kind of our idea of a "goodbye" party since we both left our jobs within weeks of each other! We had a few others show up for dinner, but left before the real party started. The music didn't start until probably 9:30 because we had to wait until it got dark out. We had a great time though! We set up the Rock Band stuff in the back yard, and after dinner and dessert - we played until midnight. It was a BLAST! We are so glad that some of our friends could come! I'm thinking we should have another Rock Band Party...

#2 Read 30 Best Sellers

2011-07-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

This one was SUPER hard! I read a bunch of books that didn't count - and struggled through some that did! All in all - I think I learned a lesson... Only read books you want to read. If it's not that interesting - get rid of it! So, here they are... my list of 30 best sellers!

1. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo: Stieg Larsson
2. The Girl who Played with Fire: Stieg Larsson
3. Little Bee : Chris Cleave
4. Best Friends Forever: Jennifer Wieners
5. The Tipping Point: Malcolm Gladwell
6. Blink: Malcolm Gladwell
7. The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest: Stieg Larsson
8. The Hungar Games: Suzanne Collins
9. Catching Fire: Suzanne Collins
10. Mocking Jay: Suzanne Collins
11. I Am Four: Pittacus Lore
12. Maze Runner: James Dashner
13. The Postmistress: Sarah Blake
14. The 5 Love Languages: Gary Chapman
15. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet: James Ford
16. One Day: David Nicholls
17. Catch Me If You Can: Frank W. Abagnale
18. Are you There Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea: Chelsea Handler
19. My Horizontal Life: Chelsea Handler
20. Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang: Chelsea Handler
21. The Help: Kathryn Stockett
22. The Book Thief: Markus Zusak
23. Bridget Jones Diary: Helen Fielding
24. Something Borrowed: Emily Giffin
25. Something Blue: Emily Giffin
26. Same Kind of Different As Me: Ron Hall and Denver Moore with Lynn Vincent
27. Unbroken: Laura Hillenbrand
28. Diary of a Mad Fat Girl: Stephanie McAfee
29. Lies that Chelsea Handler Told Me: Chelsea Handler
30. Water For Elephants: Sara Gruen

#1 Plant Flowers in my Front Flower Bed

2011-07-18T15:45:00.001-07:00

BEFORE:

AFTER:
On June 4th Travis and I planted flowers in the front flower bed. A week later, they all died - some nonsense about needing water?! Apparently our sprinklers were broken - and we had no idea! So sad... Some of them are trying to come back - but I doubt it will happen. They were very pretty for the few days we had them! The plan is, to tear out those ugly bushes too, and put something else there. We will see how that works out though! We are still working on the back yard! Whew!

Goals...

2011-06-03T12:03:00.001-07:00

I haven't forgotten about my goals - don't you fret! I've actually completed 7 more of them... Since it has been a while for some of them - I'll just list them here and what I did briefly. Then I'll be a little more diligent in regards to blogging them more.

5. Use my Clinical License (May 2, 2011) - As a behavior analyst, I am using my clinical license while doing assessments, writing treatment plans, etc. I am loving it so far!

9. Re-decorate one room in my house (May 20, 2011) - My husband and I finally made a proper guest bedroom - complete with a Queen size bed, dresser, night stand, bedding and curtains. I would definitely call it a success! It is no longer an empty room with "sports" themed curtains.

14. Decrease my debt - increase my savings (June 3, 2011) - We have paid off our credit card and have plenty to spare! This makes not only me happy, but Travis extremely happy! All that would make him happier is a coupon for free chips and queso from Chilis... Aah, the simple things in life.

15. Clean out my car- and keep it clean for a week (March 2011) - how about keeping it clean for a MONTH! Yeah, impressive right? I had my car detailed in March and it was beautiful for several weeks. Right now it's clean still but there is some dog hair - so it needs to be touched up. It's amazing that since I don't feel like I live in my car anymore... my car is much cleaner!

16. Host a dinner with some friends - cook the entire thing (March 2011) - Travis and I had some friends (Natalie and Taylor) over for dinner and games one night and I made the entire thing. I am having trouble recalling what I made exactly but I know it was mexican food and it was delicious! But really, what mexican food isn't! Mmm...

21. Take my parents out for a really nice dinner (February 2011) - We took my parents out to Teppanyaki for dinner in February. The shocker - my parents each tried their first piece of sushi... we had them try a bite of a Vegas roll... They weren't big fans, but they tried it and I figure that is progress so it should count for something! They really enjoyed dinner and my mom and I went to a concert that evening while the boys watched a movie.

27. Be able to look at my finances without feeling like I need to throw up (May 2011) - This has been a hard one. We changed our money strategy and since then, I don't freak out when we talk about finances. Travis actually talks to me about them more now than he did before, and I am virtually vomit free during those discussions. I think it's probably the fact that we have no outstanding debt... My car is almost paid off, and we are paying on student loans and a mortgage... but those things are good debt and the interest rates are low... I seriously feel SO much better about finances now.

Good News!

2011-04-28T09:52:00.000-07:00

Remember this post? Well - would you believe it worked??? I was SO surprised I can't even stand it! My goal was to get a new job by April 1st. Well, April 1st came and went... But on April 8th, I got a phone call from Shawnee - the clinical director of Chrysalis. She asked me if I was still interested in doing behavior work and I told her I was. I explained that I had looked further into school, but was having a hard time determining where to do school and more importantly, how I would get my "hours" in. Shawnee told me that she and Marc were extremely impressed with me and that they were creating a new position with me in mind. She said that they were not going to post the position, and they were not going to interview me because they felt like our lunch was interview enough. She gave me information on the salary, benefits, retirement, etc and told me to think about it, and we set up a time to meet on Monday the 11th after the Autism Conference. I went inside my house and told my dear hubby Travis - "I think I was just offered a job!" I had to call Shawnee back and clarify - she laughed and said Yes, she had offered me the job. I talked it over with my husband (a conversation that lasted all of 2 minutes) and then called my mom to let her know! She immediately said "Well, the 8th of April is not the 1st, but it works just as well!" I couldn't agree more!

I am so excited for this new adventure! A new job doing something I'm extremely interested in - for a company I have respected and loved working with for the past 7 years. I am so excited! On the 11th, I accepted their offer and determined that I would start on May 2nd. I don't think it really hit me that I would be doing a different job, until I had to tell my bosses, and more importantly my clients. That has been the hardest. I've been a support coordinator for just shy of 7 years, and many of the clients I've had for that entire time. It was truly a hard thing for me to say goodbye to them. I am lucky to have worked with some great people - and I know my clients will be well taken care of! Last night I had a nice cry as I finished the last of my visits... it's such a bittersweet moment.

I am excited for this new opportunity and exciting adventure! Wish me luck!

A Long Time...

2011-04-07T10:48:00.001-07:00

I know it has been a long time since I have blogged - and for the one or two of you that actually read this - sorry... Things have been crazy - I've been trying to find a new job and have not been successful so far. I did have another round of interviews at one place - and then they hired someone with a PhD. I know I shouldn't be discouraged - but this is the second time in 8 months that I have actually gotten an interview - from the dozens of resumes and applications I have sent out... only to lose a job (after 2 - 3 stellar interviews) to someone who is WAY overqualified. It's so frustrating - but as Travis keeps telling me - it's just a sign that the economy hasn't quite recovered yet. In other news - I have accomplished several of my goals and am working diligently on others. I am really excited and feel really good about it! It's Audit time at work... which also explains my long absence - I'm just waiting to see what happens next with my files... maybe I'll get fired and just collect unemployment for a while. We will see :)

# 22 - Take my in-laws our for a nice dinner

2011-02-09T11:48:00.000-08:00

Travis and I spent a few days at the end of January in St. George with his parents. We went down for business more than pleasure. I have 4 clients down south and had some meetings to do down there. Travis and his business partner held a seminar for some of Travis's parent's friends and were able to conduct some business down there as well!

Well, we decided to take Travis's parents out for a nice dinner! Now, I know that a "Nice" dinner is relative... Travis's parents are on the Atkins diet and can only eat meat and veggies - his dad loves to eat at a Brazilian steakhouse up here called Tucanos - so we figured we would take them for their first experience at a Japanese Steakhouse - and took them to a place called Samurai 21 - it's just like Teppanyaki. Boy did they love it! It was perfect for their dietary restrictions - and in their eyes it qualifies as a "nice" dinner. I think it was a nice dinner. Travis's dad spent a good chunk of the dinner time harassing the little boy at the table with us with hair like Justin Bieber - boy does Bob think he's funny!

It was nice to be able to take them out for a nice dinner and to be able to spend time with them without other family members around. I'm really excited to do this with my parents next!

# 17 - Throw a Themed Party

2011-02-09T11:40:00.000-08:00

Is Christmas a theme? I believe so! Travis and I put on Christmas dinner for both of our families in our home. It was such a hit - I was really surprised! It took a TON of work - but turned out amazingly well! Here is what our tables looked like... Yes, I made the treats in the baggies with the help of Travis' niece and nephew.

This is the table in the kitchen... My parents and Travis's parents sat there

This is the rest of our living room. We had 15 people at our house for dinner - I was surprised everyone fit - but they did and it seriously went so much better than I thought it would have!

Our first attempt at homemade stuffing - as well as Turkey!

Such a beautiful bird! Perfectly moist! Notice all of the crockpots? It was crockpot-a-palooza at our house on Christmas! But it was such a perfect way to make sure everything stayed warm! I think we may do this again next year... We will see! :)

#19 - Sign All of the Books I read

2011-02-09T11:34:00.000-08:00

This goal was accomplished on December 26, 2010. You see, for Christmas I got a Barnes and Noble Nook I LOVE IT! It is going to help me reach my goal of 30 best sellers in no time! So, I finished reading my final paperback book - and have since moved on to e-books! I was worried I would miss the feel and smell of books - but I don't. After all, I teach college courses and read textbooks on a regular basis. The Nook is the best present I have gotten in a long time! It fits in my purse and I take it everywhere and can read whatever I want, whenever I want! It's such a fantastic little toy! I highly recommend it!

Push

2011-01-13T09:45:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite movies is White Christmas... One of my favorite lines the movie is when Judy tells Betty "You can't leave everything up to fate. Just like honesty needs a little plus, Fate needs a little push".

Well, I have given fate a little push. Yesterday I decided to send an email to someone that I really want to work for. I wrote a long thoughtful email as to why I wanted to work for them, the needs that I have seen in their company as well as the needs they have vocalized - and how I can fill those needs. I was TERRIFIED to send the email - but about an hour after I sent it, I received a return email saying that they would like to meet with me to discuss the position...

We will see what happens!

Resolutions

2011-01-11T08:54:00.000-08:00

I figured I didn't need to make any resolutions this year since I have some goals I'm trying to accomplish by the time I turn 30 (in 7 short months). HOWEVER, I realized I need a time-frame for some of these - for my own sanity and mental health.

So - my New Years Resolution - to Find a Masters Level Social Work job and start it by April 1, 2011. I want to be out of my job by April 1st. I love my job, I do, but I need something that's more challenging - and I need to put all of those student loans to good use!

SO - if any of you know of anybody who is hiring an MSW/CSW - please let me know - I will apply!

Goodbye 2010...

2011-01-03T12:39:00.001-08:00

I'm just not sure I'm ready to welcome 2011 yet! Where has time gone?! I'm not sure if it's the weather, the cold, or the fact that I'm even closer to 30 than I'd like to be... but I'm just a little depressed lately. It seems like things are NOT going the way that I want them to.

I had so many great intentions for my 30 by 30 list... I have a couple of them accomplished, one or two more to blog about still, a few I'm working on still, and some I haven't even touched. I guess my big stress right now is that there are 2 or 3 on there that it seems like, no matter what I do, I'm not any closer to accomplishing them than I was in September when I started... and I feel like I'm never going to get there.

I don't want to be a cry baby or a whiner - but I'm seriously struggling here. I want to cry and whine even though I know it won't help. I'm trying desperately to find a new job! I've got to get a different job - my current job is going to be the death of me! I'm overly stressed, under paid, and for the most part I don't even like it anymore. It makes me so sad because I have loved this job for the past 6 1/2 years - but every day, I realize more and more how unhappy it makes me - How stressed I am - How much I dread going to work, checking my email, etc. - How I have NO LIFE but work... I can't live like this anymore.

Unfortunately, out of the dozens of resumes I've sent to places I've only had 2 interviews in the past 4 months. One where I was the company's second choice (how do you choose someone with 9 months of experience when you can choose someone with 15 years of experience - they chose 15 years). The other, a good friend of mine got me the interview - but the company isn't hiring a social worker right now, so that didn't really go anywhere. But, to this particular friend - you are the best! Thanks for looking out for me and giving a good word... You know who you are - and I know I don't say it enough - but you're the best!

Additionally, we've been married for almost 2 years - and yes, we've been trying to have babies the entire time but we need help to make it happen (if it is possible at all)... I know this, yet every time I am more than 5 days late (i'm currently 2 weeks late - and clearblue says that I'm NOT) - I get my hopes up... and then every time it happens a little part of me cries. I try to be brave and pretend it doesn't bother me and that I'm okay with it not happening right now - but truth be told - I'm terrified that it will never happen. I always thought i would have all of my kids by the time I was 30 - just like my mom did (the twins came 4 days before she turned 30) - but now I'm just hoping to have 1 by 35.

Travis and I have talked and decided that as soon as we have our debt paid off (besides student loans and a mortgage) that we will go see someone about it... Right now we are looking at late March/early April for having our debt paid off (it would have been sooner but my car ended up needing some seriously expensive work done last week)... And then we will see what happens.

I need to relax... I am sure things will happen when they are supposed to - but I'm getting a little tired of waiting. Patience is a virtue that I do not possess!

Cleaning House

2010-12-20T13:30:00.000-08:00

No, I'm not really cleaning my house - although I should be for this weeks Christmas Celebration... I'm cleaning "house" in facebook and in my blog. I'm deleting people and deleting blogs. There are people who I am "friends" with on facebook that I've never considered "friends". Why is it that, just because we went to High School together - we should be friends on facebook. We didn't even like each other then?! I don't get it. And people that I was friends with - that I would never be friends with now (we have nothing in common, we don't talk, and they aren't the kind of people I necessarily want to have in my life and knowing my business)... So, why have them in my "friends" list?! It's not worth it if you ask me. So, I'm downsizing! I've already deleted over 200 friends - and I know I have plenty more to delete.

My question is, how do I delete the blogs that I'm following from my dashboard?! I'm not sure why I'm following some of them and I don't want to take up that space anymore. Does anyone know how to delete them?

Maybe when this is done I'll move on and clean my actual house.

#23 Surprise my husband

2010-12-15T09:04:00.000-08:00

I thought that this goal would be the hardest of the entire bunch! I am horrible at keeping surprises a secret - I get too excited and always let it slip! However, this surprise I kept for an entire month!!!! Travis isn't a huge fan of Christmas. He is somewhat of a scrooge - I have my own thoughts about why this is - bu the just doesn't LOVE Christmas like I do. Last year, we didn't have a Christmas tree. It wasn't a huge deal since we weren't even going to be home for Christmas at all... but this year, we are having Christmas dinner at our house for both of our families so I thought we would need a tree. For the past month I have been hunting all over the internet and being sneaky and buying ornaments for our tree. I figured I would buy a tree, decorate it and be ready for him to come home one day... Surprise - we have a Christmas tree! I bought ornaments on ebay, etsy, and a bunch of random online shops. I got the last of my ornaments on the 6th of December and so the 9th was the day! My good friend Bethany and my little brother Spencer helped me buy a tree - put it up and decorate it while Travis was at work. He was completely surprised - and really liked the tree, the ornaments, and the decorations! I was totally proud of myself! I have since added other decorations - but this is what it looked like when Travis got home from work!

Me picking out our first Christmas tree - and it's real!

The tree and garland, up and decorated! There's more now - but this was a great start!

Travis was totally surprised! I can't believe I kept a secret for that long! Wow! I'm usually horrible at surprises - so imagine my surprise when I was able to pull it off! Woohoo! Merry Christmas!

# 26 Spend more time with family, friends, and loved ones

2010-12-15T08:41:00.001-08:00

This has probably been one of my favorite goals! I spend a lot of time with my husband, and with my little brother Spencer (who until recently lived with Travis and I). I see my mom and sisters at school a couple of times per week - and usually see my dad at least once per week. So, Who is left out you may ask? Brian, Sarah, Austin and Conner! We can't forget about them! Well, I was lucky enough to accomplish this goal in the month of November! Sarah went to Australia for 3 weeks with her father, and since Brian needed to work - the little boys came up to Utah for pretty much the entire month of November! It was AWESOME! We all rearranged our schedules to help care for the boys - and I was lucky enough to get to spend every Friday with the boys! I made arrangements with a good friend of mine - to have play dates each Friday so that the boys could have kids to play with and so that Aunt Jenny wouldn't go crazy not being able to talk to anyone all day on Fridays!

November 5th - Austin and Conner and I went with Bethany, Isabelle, and Lucy to the Discovery Children's Museum at the Gateway. I had never been there before - and boy was it fun! The kids had SO much fun playing - I kept asking Austin if he needed to go potty and he kept saying "No Jenny, I need to play!" Here are a few pics of the boys at the museum.

Conner sleeping - by the end of the day he was exhausted!

Austin playing in the ball room - he LOVED the balls!

Conner in the baby play area - isn't he cute?!

Austin using a crane to move blocks to "build things"

Austin, Isabelle, Conner, and Lucy

On November 12th our friends couldn't play - so we went to the Mall and played in the play land with Aunt Shayla and Aunt Melissa! They had SO much fun! Both boys were so tired! I didn't take any pictures because it was just the mall play place - nothing too exciting :)

On November 19th the boys and I went to the Incredible Pizza Company and met Bethany, Isabelle, and Jackson for some food and fun! We had such a great time there! I didn't get a ton of pictures because Conner was pretty crabby and clingy. I got a few of the kids though with their face paints and Austin in a little car ride... I'll get some from Bethany and add them another time!

Austin riding a car - his reward for going down the slide like a big boy!

Austin with his Dragon, Isabelle the snow princess, and Jackson the dragon boy.

Austin with the dragon on his arm. He was SO proud of it!

I love these little boys so much and miss them terribly! I'm sad they live so far away - I hope they decide to move back here! I'd love to keep playing with them! I miss you guys!

# 18: Give more to Charity than I really should or really can afford

2010-12-05T16:41:00.000-08:00

I am so glad I put this one on here... It made me think about people who are less fortunate than I am and it really made an impact on me!

One thing that is extremely important to Travis and I is education. Both of us have our Master's Degrees and plan on encouraging our future family to continue their education as well. So, when an opportunity came up to be able to donate money for education - we jumped at the chance.

Because of legislation this year - the budget for UVU was cut tremendously. The part that hurt the worst, was scholarships for financially struggling students. Because I teach in the behavioral sciences department - I was able to be a part of the First Annual Forgotten Carols Scholarship Gala. Michael Mclean sits on the advisory board for the School of Humanities and Social Science and volunteered to do a Forgotten Carols Scholarship Gala to encourage people to donate to the School for a good cause - but also giving them something in return.

Way back in September, Travis and I paid a rather hefty sum of money for two tickets to the Forgotten Carols through the Scholarship Fundraiser. On December 2nd, we attended the Gala to celebrate the Scholarship Recipients. Over 35 students applied for the scholarship, and two students were fortunate enough to receive a scholarship. One received a full scholarship, and the other a half scholarship. We are talking tuition, fees, books, living expenses, etc. As we met the two students, and had one at our table - both Travis and I felt truly blessed to be a part of this night!

As the Thank You for donating - we attended the Gala - were fed some super delicious good, met Michael Mclean, received a copy of the Forgotten Carols on CD with him reading the book and the music (which he autographed), and 2 VIP tickets to the show. Yes, the benefits were nice - but meeting the students (both of whom were behavioral science students) and seeing how grateful they were for a chance to continue their education was seriously amazing!

Because this is an annual thing - Travis and I will be attending each year. Well, we will be donating each year - I may be attending with a friend because Travis doesn't like the cheese factor of the Forgotten Carols... I, on the other hand, LOVE it - and it will have a special place in my heart now knowing that students at UVU will be able to have the financial means to continue their education.

# 8 Explore New Interests

2010-11-18T09:58:00.000-08:00

Since I've been married I have learned that I actually like to cook. I enjoy cooking dinner - and Travis and I especially love cooking together. (although, usually i'm doing the cutting and chopping while he actually cooks) Well, I have always wanted to be able to make delicious goodies - so I decided to try my hand at baking... I think it was pretty successful! Here are some of the yummy things I have been making lately!

Yellow and Chocolate Cake Bites

Pumpkin White Chocolate Chunk and Candied Ginger Blondies

Apple cider spiced donut holes

Gooey Pumpkin Butterscotch Brownies

Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake (gingersnap pecan crust)

Mini Pumpkin Pie Bites

Snickerdoodle Cake

Seriously - How did I never try baking before? I'm really loving it! And these are all essentially from scratch! I've also made some banana bread - but it wasn't really that impressive so I didn't take any pictures of them. I'm not sure what I want to try baking next.... any suggestions?

SHARK ATTACK!

2010-11-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

If you know me well at all, you know that I am afraid of sharks! Yes - I know we live in Utah - that doesn't mean that I can't be afraid of them! This fear started when I was 17 and went fishing in the Pacific... I caught a dog shark that tried to eat me... Obviously my fear is not ridiculous! On the other hand - Travis thinks it's HILARIOUS that I'm afraid of sharks since we do live in Utah. I know it's a little ridiculous - and my good friend Bethany has decided to give me some exposure therapy to help rid me of my fear... until then, my dear husband decided to send me this cute little picture to show me that my fear is completely irrational! Yeah, if I decided NEVER to leave Utah, and NEVER to go to a beach... Not likely - remember the Dominican Republic? I still want to go! They have a snorkeling excursion with sharks... Not sure that I'm daring enough to do that... we will see! Enjoy my shark attack info! I'm sure you'll find it as entertaining as I did! :)

Let there be Light!

2010-10-21T13:01:00.001-07:00

A brake light that is! On Tuesday morning after I filled up for gas at 7:00 am - I got in my car, turned it on and suddenly a bright red light turned on... My brake light went out. Oye! I was instantly crabby - I hate having car problems and I'm not mechanically inclined at all! So, that evening after I taught my night class I went to my parents house and talked with my dad. I told him my problem and asked for his help. Since I didn't have any bulbs with me - He showed me how to gain access to my brake light and how to change the bulb. He told me someone at Checker or Auto Zone would likely do it for me if they weren't busy. So I decided to check it out...

I went to Checker today and unfortunately it was REALLY busy! I asked about the brake light, a lady grabbed the bulb I needed, rang me up, and off I went. I went home and figured it couldn't be that hard right?! So I tried... And it only took my 5 minutes!

Before...... And After.......

I am SO proud of myself!

BAKERELLA!

2010-10-21T12:49:00.000-07:00

Yes... I love Bakerella and I follow her blog religiously! She is the author of the lovely Cake Pops book... and she came to Salt Lake on a book tour! Of course I had to meet her! My good friend Vicki was gracious enough to tag along with me to meet her! Vicki, her two kiddos, and myself arrived just before noon to the Williams & Sonoma in Trolley Square (really a dangerous store for me to be in) and the book signing was to start at 1 o'clock. When we arrived, we were given numbers to meet her and we were assigned numbers 24 and 25. It's a good thing we got there early because the line was CRAZY! It was out the store and down the hallway - there were over 200 people there to meet her and have her sign their books! When it was finally my turn I was all smiles - completely Star Struck! And I have a picture to prove that I met her....

I will be trying to make cake pops in the next few weeks... I'll post pictures on how they turn out! :)

I. Am. A. Moron!

2010-10-20T10:28:00.000-07:00

Yes, a complete moron! Around mid-September (Okay, the 15th to be exact) I applied for a job with a provider agency that serves people with disabilities - as a therapist. It is my dream job! I could use my license, be a therapist, and still work with the population that I love! So, I emailed them my resume as requested. A few days later I emailed them again to make sure they got it and inquire about interview times and I received no response. Well, after a couple of weeks I decided that I wasn't going to worry about it - I wasn't being considered so i didn't need to worry about it.

I hadn't checked that email address since the very beginning of October - until today... and what do I see? An email on the 6th of October asking for an interview on the 13th or 14th of this month. Yup, last week! I was MORTIFIED! I wanted to cry! I still want to cry... I didn't check my email, thus I didn't get an interview! I am so devistated! Ugh... I don't even know what to do... I emailed the lady back, and will call this afternoon to just apologize again... Wow, i'm an idiot!

# 11 - Actually Use some of my Scrapbook Stuff

2010-10-19T12:30:00.001-07:00

Can you believe I did it??? I used some of my scrapbooking stuff. Whew... I'm so proud of myself! What did I use them for you may ask? Well, my little brother is an assistant house manager and works with guys that have disabilities. One of his assignments was to make a chore chart for the guys he works with. Obviously I volunteered to make it for him and after talking with him about what chores people would have... this is what I came up with. (excuse the poor quality of pictures - my brother took them for me later on)

Exactly What I Needed...

2010-09-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

But not necessarily in the form I would have liked. I have been job hunting for a while now - looking now and then... applying for jobs here and there. I've been serious about getting a new job - but I hadn't been seriously looking and applying. Well, Sunday night I got an email that changed all of that. I decided that I don't get paid enough to be treated like crap. I don't get paid enough to deal with clients like this. And I certainly don't get paid enough to be looked down on and scolded for doing my job the best way that I know how. That email was absolutely rude and uncalled for. But - it gave me the kick in the pants that I needed right about now. I am looking for a new job NOW. Not just looking - I will be calling places, sending emails, following up, etc. SO - if anyone knows of a place that is hiring a CSW - let me know - I am ready for a change!

Story of my Life...

2010-09-25T16:58:00.000-07:00

Stress... Yep, it is the story of my life! For some reason - I feel overly stressed recently! I am more emotional than ever! I get angry at the littlest things... It is so unlike me! Yet, I feel like it defines me right now. In nearly every aspect of my life - I am experiencing stress! It is wearing on me emotionally and physically and I feel like I have no control! I'm trying to find a new job - I still love my current job, but I am not able to get out of it what I want anymore. I want to finish my clinical hours for my license - and I can't do that at my current job. Unfortunately, I'm having a hard time finding a job - which is stressing me out! At my current job - my clients are going crazy, which is stressing me out! I feel like I'm doing things to help OTHER people have an easier job (or keep their job) and it's pretty overwhelming - and overly demanding at times! I'm trying to decide if I should go back to school - and that's stressing me out! My husband talked to me about our finances the other day and that ALWAYS stresses me out! It doesn't matter how much or how little money we have, it stresses me out. Currently, we are on the little side and his reaction to our financial situation stresses me out too! We have been trying to get pregnant, well, since we got married (don't judge us - we are getting old)... and can't do it on our own. We need to see someone - but that is kind of overwhelming and stressful too and I just have NO idea where to start. Besides, all of that will cost money - and well, it's not like we have an excess of that lying around. Do you see a pattern here?! I can't really handle this stress... I just don't know how to get rid of it! Until then, I live with headaches, heartburn, tension, stress, and anxiety... Aaah... the life!

# 25 - Reunite with an Old Friend (or two)

2010-09-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

I accomplished this goal! Yes! It feels SO good to cross one thing off of my list already!

Last Saturday (September 11th) I had a fantastic dinner with two of my mission companions. How is this reuniting with an old friend??? Well, we haven't seen each other - or talked really - since we all went home about 6 years ago...

It was wonderful! We had dinner (mexican of course), ice cream, and played Rock Band 2 for hours! It was SO much fun! Gowans and Webster - I hope to see you again soon!

30 before 30

2010-09-07T16:35:00.000-07:00

I've decided since I'm turning the big 3-0 next year, that I should make a list of things I'd like to do before I'm thirty... Here goes nothing (and in no particular order)...

1. Plant flowers in my front flower bed
2. Read 30 #1 New York Times Bestsellers
3. Go on a REAL vacation with my husband - or at least have one solidly planned(St. George does NOT count)
4. Organize my scrapbook stuff - more of a chore than it sounds
5. Use my Clinical License
6. Start a Family (I feel like i'm setting myself up to fail here...)
7. Lose an undisclosed but very specific amount of weight
8. Explore new interests
9. Re-decorate (or at least re-paint) one room in my house
10. Take more pictures
11. Actually USE some of my scrapbook stuff
12. Learn to De-Stress my life
13. Do something Physically Adventurous/Difficult
14. Decrease my debt - Increase my savings (student loans why must you haunt me)
15. Clean out my Car - and keep it clean for a week! (TRUNK INCLUDED)
16. Host a dinner with some friends - cook the entire thing!
17. Throw a themed party... maybe a Glee Season Premiere Party... Hmm what do you think?
18. Give more to charity than I really should or really can afford
19. Sign all of the books that I read (in case I pass them on - you know?!)
20. Volunteer
21. Take my parents out for a really nice dinner
22. Take my in-laws out for a really nice dinner (is that cheating?)
23. Surprise my husband - not sure with what... but I'm no good at surprises
24. Blog more often - it is a record of life after all
25. Reunite with an old friend (or two)
26. Spend more time with family, friends, and loved ones
27. Be able to look at my finances without feeling like I need to throw up. (they aren't bad - it just makes me sick to think about a car payment, mortgage, student loans, utilities, etc.)
28. Take another class or two... Doesn't matter in what... just another class
29. Get a passport
30. Forgive those who have hurt me...

I'll keep you posted on what happens! Whew!

How...

2010-08-27T11:37:00.000-07:00

How do I write what I'm feeling without coming across as a big jerk?! I don't know that it's even possible...

I'll just say this... every day it gets harder, sadder and more frustrating. Every day I get angrier, sadder, and more and more confused...

I have a newfound respect for those who are experiencing this as well... Know that I love you!

Bring on the Fall

2010-08-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

I love the Fall... and usually, with that, I love the new school year (it's my second year teaching at UVU) and all that comes with it. I have several favorite things about fall! In no particular order:

1. School Shopping! I LOVE buying new notebooks, pens, highlighters, index cards, etc. I love trying to figure out how I'm going to organize everything for the semester... I LOVE it!

2. The Clothes! I LOVE wearing sweaters! My favorite outfit? T-shirt, Jeans, Flip-Flops, and a sweater... or sweatshirt... I'm not too picky about it! I seriously love it!

3. The Leaves! I LOVE watching the leaves change... They're beautiful! I love walking on crunchy leaves! I love not having trees so we don't have to rake - but I love watching everyone else rake their leaves, and seeing little kids play in them!

4. The Smells! I LOVE the smell of fall! I don't know what it is about the crisp chilly air - but I LOVE it! Bath and Body Works has a whole fall line of soaps and wallflowers... yum! My faves? Leaves and the Cinnamon Pumpkin or something. So warm and cozy smelling!

5. The Flavors! Pumpkin anything - and Carmel Apple Spice from Starbucks - enough said!

*** Yes, I am well aware it's not quite fall yet! But the crazy weather the past couple of days has made me REALLY excited for fall! ***

15 years vs 8 months

2010-08-11T13:17:00.000-07:00

Well, I got the call from the job I interviewed for (yes, 3 times) - and they offered the job to someone else. They said it was a really difficult decision and that they took an extra day to decide because they were really torn. They told me that they loved interviewing me, thought I would make an excellent employee and would keep me in mind for other positions that become available. And with that, they took the man that had 15 years of substance abuse treatment... I guess that does trump my 8 months. It was a blow to the ego - This is the first time I've interviewed for a job and haven't been offered it... but, it was a good experience none the less, especially for my FIRST masters level interview. I'll keep on the hunt...

update on the job search...

2010-08-02T14:54:00.000-07:00

Well, my interview went well last Tuesday. On Thursday afternoon they called and I couldn't answer - I'm a chicken I know. I have this horrible inner-conflict about a new job. I hate leaving jobs, etc. Anyway, I called them back and they wanted to clarify the salary with me (which was slightly more than I thought it would be), and then asked me for yet, another, interview. Yup, I'll be heading over this Wednesday for a 3rd interview... Wish me Luck!

Shaking things up a bit...

2010-07-28T16:09:00.001-07:00

Things aren't really very exciting around my house - or in my life really. I have a nice daily routine that is tried and true... but I'm getting a little bored so I decided to shake it up!

I have been applying for jobs around town lately. I have a Masters Degree and figure that I might as well use it! I've applied for probably 6 jobs in the past three weeks - and have gotten 5 of those oh-so polite emails (yes they do it by email now) saying "Thank you for your interest, but we have hired someone who has more experience." At first it was frustrating - but I figure someone will want me eventually.

Well, last week I applied for a job (I won't say where because I don't want to jinx it) and got a phone interview last Monday. Then, they called me on Thursday and asked me to come in on Tuesday (yesterday) for an in-person interview. It was my first interview after graduate school - and my first interview in 6 years really - so I was terrified! I think it went well - but who knows. They said they would let me know by the end of the week.

I guess we will see if changes happen because of this. I applied for another job this afternoon - you know, just in case I don't get offered the other one, or I decide I really don't want to do it... I know you're chomping at the bit to hear if I am offered the job or not - don't worry - I'll let you know! If not, there's another one somewhere I'm sure!

confession...

2010-07-22T15:33:00.000-07:00

Hello... My name is Jennifer and I'm a blog hopper/stalker!

Yes, it's true! I could spend hours reading random peoples blogs! If it's about crafts, or food, or home improvements - I am all about it! How do I find them? Well, I read a friends blog, and if they mention something - I'll look it up, or follow the link to the next thing. If that one is interesting - I'll follow another link... It is a never ending cycle and I have found SO many fun things that I want to do/try/make...

And... it's a great way to avoid doing the stuff I really need to do!

Whew...

2010-07-21T08:29:00.000-07:00

Whew... It has been a busy few weeks for me! It is the end of the fiscal year for work - meaning there are a lot of crazy things going on with work, budgets, paperwork, etc. Plus, I am kind of applying for some new jobs... I am getting a little burned out and am looking for something more clinical. I have had several "thanks for applying but we are looking for someone with more experience" responses - but finally had one phone interview this week... so that's a good start I guess. How do I get more experience if nobody will hire me?! Oh well...

This week is my mother's side's family reunion in Lincoln City Oregon. They are spending the week at a beach house - and we aren't there. Because Travis hasn't earned any money yet with his new business, and we spent a good 12k on starting up the business, I didn't think we could afford to take off a week of work - pay for hotel stays on the way up - a week in a beach house - hotels on the way back - plus food and gas the entire time. It would have stressed me out so bad! I could have gone with my family but I didn't want to go without Travis. Instead we are here in the valley, working hard - and getting our sprinklers fixed... Aah the Joys of home ownership!

About two weeks ago I told my husband I needed a vacation because of my funk... I was getting burned out, feeling crabby and unmotivated, and really just didn't want to do much of anything! I don't think he thought I was serious until a few days later when I had already planned our vacation in December to the Dominican Republic. 8 days and 7 nights at an all inclusive resort in Punta Cana. The total being $2,000.00 for our trip - not including the passports we would need. Travis told me that he didn't think it was a good idea to put it on our credit card and that if we saved up the money for it, he would be fine spending it on the trip. Well, that blew the wind out of my sail really quick! Travis still hasn't gotten a paycheck, I just took a pay cut, and money is tighter than we are used to. Do I sacrifice my lifestyle for a vacation?! I couldn't decide. Luckily, my good friend Bethany and her husband Greg invited us to their cabin this past weekend... It was SO relaxing! We slept in, hung out, watched movies, chatted, spent some quiet time in nature - and were able to just relax and not have to think about work! It was SO nice! I still really want to go to the Dominican Republic, but we will have to put that off until next year since our Dryer pretty well dead - good thing the Labor Day sales aren't too far off! This weekend, Travis and I will go down and visit his parents in St. George (we will take the puppies with us this time). Travis' dad had knee replacement surgery about 2 1/2 weeks ago - and will have his other knee replaced in another 2 1/2 weeks - so we figure we will go down and visit with them this weekend.

I guess we are just replacing the one long week vacation - with two mini weekend vacations. In all reality, the weekend at the cabin was gloriously relaxing and was exactly what I needed. And it will be nice to see Travis's mom and dad over Pioneer Day weekend (or as Travis and his dad like to call it: Pie- and-Beer Day). Although I am very sad to be missing my family reunion! I love my family - I have some seriously hilarious relatives! Bev, Pam & Jon... oh man they kill me! Plus, I think Alicia and her baby Jett and her big 'ole pregnant belly are going to be there for a few days... I haven't seen her since 2006! Who knows when, or even if, we will have another one. Let's hope so!

Funk... And not the good kind...

2010-07-06T13:58:00.000-07:00

I'm in a funk... I'm not quite sure why, or really what's going on - but I'm in a funk and I can't seem to shake it. I'm stressed, frustrated, tired, frustrated... did I mention frustrated? Things that normally wouldn't bother me - are bugging me. I'm more irritable lately - and I have no idea why. And NO we aren't pregnant... believe me, I wish... but not for a while, if ever. Maybe i'm inside my head too much?! Maybe I need a vacation? Whatever it is - I just need something to kick the funk... and for some reason my Mt Dew just isn't doing it for me. Suggestions?

Lots of Tears

2010-06-26T11:37:00.001-07:00

How crazy life can get... Thursday, June 24th started out as a wonderful day - and ended tragically. It is a day I will never forget because I experienced every emotion possible that day! Let me explain... I work with individuals that have disabilities. One of my clients, an almost 3 year old little girl with multiple disabilities was adopted by a wonderful family, and I was there to witness that on Thursday morning. As I sat in the court room and watched this family answer questions, and promise to love her and care for her... I began thinking about how precious family is, and how blessed this family was to have so many loved ones there to celebrate that day! I'd like to think of myself not just as a professional working with them, but as a friend as well. It was a beautiful morning full of tears! Tears of joy of course!

Late that afternoon I received a phone call from a fellow support coordinator asking if I had spoken with my dear friend Corrine that day. I told her that I hadn't, and asked why she wondered. She said Corrine had called with a crisis and asked her to call immediately, but that she never answered. She called families, providers, and nobody had heard from her but thought they heard background noise during a phone call that indicated she had been in a fender bender. I told her boss that I would call Corrines husband, and then let her know what I found out. When I called Damon, as soon as he picked up the phone I could hear in his voice that something was terribly wrong. He told me that Corrine had been in a horrible accident that morning and that it was on ksl.com and that she was in surgery, and they had lost their unborn child. I asked if there was anything I could do for him and her, and he asked me to tell her boss. I asked him to keep me up to date and he said he would.

I called Corrine's boss and gave her the information, and immediately read the news story and then called our two other best friends (there were 4 of us that spent a LOT of time together) and let them know. The 3 of us talked and cried and set times when we would visit, and how we would keep each other posted. Late that evening, Corrines husband said that they didn't want visitors but that Corrine wanted to see us, and asked if we could come. I let him know we would be there in the morning.

Friday morning was extremely humbling for me. I arrived at the hospital with Bethany at around 9:00 am, and found the room where Corrine's family was waiting for her to get out of surgery. They rushed her in that morning to repair her legs which had been crushed in the car. I hugged Damon immediately and asked what I could do to help. I sat and listened as Damon explained the crash to me, and then told me how their precious daughter, Livi, had saved her mothers life. During the crash, the engine of the car was pushed right into Corrines lap. It ruptured her uterus and Livi's body fell out of the uterus and was pressed up against Corrine's organs acting as a human bandaid and preventing her mother from bleeding to death. At that moment, Damon's father introduced me to baby Livi, and put her into my arms. I sat and cried as I held Livi, looking at this beautiful and perfect little infant who was due in just 6 short weeks. The tears came even more as Damon bravely said "maybe that was her purpose in this life - was to save her mother". What strength he had! Livi was perfect and tiny at just over 3 lbs. She has curly hair the exact shade as her mothers, and she has her fathers ears. She looked so peaceful and I half expected her to start breathing and wake up. Corrine was still in surgery when I left, but I promised I would come back to visit today.

Corrine and Damon are two of the most wonderful people in the world and they spent years trying to have a baby, and after 6 artificial inseminations were blessed with Livi. My heart aches for them at this time, knowing how much they wanted her in their family. The thing that impressed me the most, is the strength that Damon had. Undoubtedly this is the hardest thing he has had to endure, losing his unborn daughter and almost losing his wife... and yet he was strong. I know this is because of their Faith in God! I felt some comfort knowing that because of their temple blessings, that they will be able to live with Livi again, and she will be a part of their family forever.

It really made me start to think about my own family. Travis is not a member of the LDS religion, thus we are not sealed in the temple. I couldn't help but think that if that were us, what would happen to our child? Who would she live with in the next life? It kept me awake last night... I'm not sure how to react now and what to say to my dear husband... but i'll let you know.

If you're interested in following Corrine's story - please feel free to follow her blog!

Whew!

2010-05-04T19:02:00.001-07:00

Today we got some good news! Travis was approved to start working by both FINRA and the State. I am SO happy! I know Travis is too! It's been a long two months for him! Now he's in a crunch to hurry and lease an office space, get his office set up, and start contacting his clients. I guess I should have enjoyed all of the time we had together more - cause I'm pretty sure now he's going to be working LATE!

It'll be worth it! Yay! Such a good way to start May!

Look What you Did.... You Little Jerk!

2010-04-30T09:31:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I'm a jerk! I feel absolutely horrible! My husband got a call this morning saying that the State of Utah doesn't want to let him practice financial advising/investing/planning or anything. He looked at me and said "This may be the end of my career." He had tears in his eyes although he didn't cry (unless he did while he was in the shower - or while I was in the shower) - I know he is frustrated and feels like a failure!

I feel bad because here I am complaining about how he's home and I can't get anything done - and my poor husband's career may have just come to an end. Boy did I have to eat some humble pie this morning - and even though I really like pie - this one didn't taste very good.

I'm sorry honey - I love you and I will be as supportive as possible - and I won't complain anymore! Promise!

updates...

2010-04-15T10:30:00.001-07:00

Well, the end of March sucked as much as the beginning did. Travis was "let go" from his job on the 29th of March. I was kind of surprised - but not too surprised. It was a pretty darn strategic plan on his employers end. The company suspended he and his business partners for 30 days, and on day 27 they fired him. They told him they would fill out his U-5 when they got a chance, but they have 30 days to do so. I figure they'll take the whole time to do that - it gives the company 60 days where Travis can't contact his clients, and another month possibly before he could get a job after his license is re-posted.

Luckily, his U-5 was posted yesterday. He is still able to be in the financial advising field which is good for him. He loves it, and he is good at it. It's unfortunate that a lack of training and a full-on "witch hunt" cost him his job. But he is looking for a new job. When I say looking, I'm using the term loosely! He had a 4 hour long interview with a company a couple of weeks ago - and now that his U-5 has been posted, they should be able to make a decision. In the meantime, he waits.

I, on the other hand, work 2 jobs. I work all day, every day - and it never ends. School ends next week, but then I have to put in final grades and a week later - summer school starts again. I shouldn't be annoyed - but I am. Why put all your eggs in one basket? I would be sending out tons of resumes and making phone calls... not waiting on one possible job. Does it make me a bad wife that I'm frustrated and that my stress level has jumped from extremely high to impossibly high since the beginning of March? Yes, he is doing things around the house - cleaning the kitchen, laundry... not the bathrooms of course. But, I am having a hard time working at home because he is there. I love him, but I need my own space and some quiet (so i can rock out to my own music) while I work.

I am trying to be understanding, and respectful, and supportive - but it drives me nuts that he doesn't do things the way I would do them (in terms of finding a different job). Ugh, I feel like a horrible wife!

On the bright side - Spence left yesterday. He went to the Provo Utah Mission yesterday, where he will serve for 12 weeks and will be sent elsewhere afterward. He was SO happy to go! Of course he requested I make enchiladas for him on Sunday, and that we have Cheese Pizza on Tuesday night before he left. He is such a good kid! I'll miss him!

Sneak Peek...

2010-03-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

My family did family portraits a couple of weeks ago - and this is a sneak peek of some of the pics - I'll show more when I get the disc from my mom! If you need a photographer - Heather Telford - is amazing! She did such a great job! And we LOVE the pics so far!

You know what they say about March...

2010-03-25T10:04:00.000-07:00

It comes in like a Lion and Out like a Lamb....

Our March definitely came in like a Lion!!! This month has been so trying on me mentally and emotionally! Travis and I started out the month with the shocking news that he had been suspended from work for 30 days... There has been an investigation with Travis's business partners that I don't really have any details or information about other than the fact that it wasn't anything Travis did - He can't contact his clients - He's not working for 30 days - and he's afraid he will be fired. Such great news to hear right?! Travis is taking it much better than I am! I was in shock and didn't know what to do or say. When I saw him later that evening he said it was beyond his control so he wasn't going to worry about it. He is so much better than I am. I worry about it all the time - but that's how I am - I'm a worrier!

I picked up a third class at the end of February and have really gotten in to it this month - and it has been horrible! Teaching 3 classes is too hard for me to do, and to have my job as well. It just is a lot of extra work that I am having a hard time squeezing in. Not only that, but the students are SO rude and annoying! I never turned in assignments late - and I never argued with teachers about the grades they gave me! I don't understand how this is seen as okay for them! I'm your teacher and if I don't think your paper followed the requirements, and if I don't think it is an A paper - I won't give you an A. It's as easy as that! Oye! One student also tries to question me on everything I say, and tries to correct me as well - luckily, I'm kind of smart and I show up prepared so he doesn't get anything on me! Ha!

With the legislative changes that happened - I am trying to determine if I am going to be able to keep my job or not. I love my job - I love the individuals I work with and I'm not ready to move on yet. However, with the increase in caseloads that was approved I find myself questioning whether or not I can provide quality service to more individuals. And with the decrease in pay, I find my self really wondering if my difficult caseload is worth dealing with for the small amount of money I will be paid. I am trying to think outside of the box and find other things - but I love this population... More Stress...

On the other side of my job - my caseload is going crazy! I have clients running away, clients throwing tantrums, a million reviews, mountains of paperwork, Audits coming up, and the list goes on and on. No wonder I am stressed - I can't have even one weekend without a client calling because they're angry, or sad, or are running away, or whatever... I do love my job - I just wish my caseload would settle down!

We haven't really told anyone yet, but we are trying to get pregnant. The past few months have been spent doing ovulation tests and all that grand stuff - only to find out I'm just not ovulating at all, and we need help getting pregnant. Now we are at the point where we have to figure out who to see for help - what will our insurance pay for - how much can we afford to spend on fertility treatment - how far are we willing to go to have a baby and all of those other questions. We knew it was likely we would need help, this only confirmed it for us. Every time we find out we aren't pregnant, poor Travis has to deal with me. I'm getting used to it and am trying not to get my hopes up - but every month I get hopeful and then disappointed. Is it awful that I feel like less and less of a woman and wife every month that goes by? I guess things happen for a reason, we just have to figure out where to go from here.

On the bright side - we celebrated our One Year Anniversary this month! I can't believe it's been a year already! We have had a big year! We spent our anniversary weekend in St. George. 5 days doing absolutely nothing! It was so awesome! We didn't do nothing really, we watched Grey's Anatomy, we went out for dinner/lunch a few times, did some shopping, got in the hot tub... but really we just took the long weekend to relax and unwind from the stress of the month. It was a nice Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and when I tried to take Monday and Tuesday off as well - it didn't happen. I was emailing, calling, etc. people all day both days - so much for a nice long relaxing weekend!

This week Travis is in California for a business conference. This is the first time we have been away from each other since we started dating - and the first time I have slept alone since we have been married. It is so weird... Luckily, my husband is wonderful and texts or calls before and after the conference, and during their breaks. I miss him - and so do the dogs! They keep looking for him and kind of get annoyed with me when he never shows up! Sorry guys!

Travis is hoping to find out about the fate of his job by next week... The decision will either make or break me! Emotionally anyway - if you see me with big puffy red eyes and no makeup, with my hair in a messy ponytail... just know it didn't go well. I think I take these things too personally - but how can I not?! He is wonderful and stresses about me stressing about him - real productive I know!

So, after the month I've been having - you can see why I'm anxious for it to end! Let's hope it goes out like a lamb!

The Newbolds

2010-02-25T14:36:00.000-08:00

Last night Travis and I had some friends over for dinner - the Newbolds.... boy do we love them! They are SO much fun! We had a great time with them last night! Dinner was yummy, Dessert was yummy, Rock Band was super fun, and Parker.... I just LOVE Parker! His laugh was KILLING me! He is such a cute and happy little guy - and his laugh made my day! It kind of make me a little baby hungry too... Dianne and Kiley - Come over ANYTIME! We had a great time! Oh, and if you ever need a sitter for Parker - Lucy and I would LOVE to play with him!

I put on my big girl panties...

2010-02-17T17:29:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, I graduated in August of 2009 with a Masters degree in Social Work. After graduating with an MSW - you have to take a National exam to become a Certified Social Worker. This exam costs $175.00, is 170 questions, and 4 hours long. Good times right?! Not so!

I have horrible text anxiety so of course I didn't want to take it! Can you blame me?! You have to get a 70 to pass - and statistically speaking - Nationwide only about 70% of people pass it on their first try. Those are pretty good odds - but I was convinced I would be one of the 30% that had to take it again. I know of several people from my Masters Program who I know are MUCH smarter than I am - that didn't pass their first time. But, I also know several people who are not as smart as I am (boy do I sound arrogant) that passed their first time. So, I really didn't know what to do.

Around November last year I started toying around with the idea of taking the test. I pulled out all of my study material - printed around 500 pages worth of study guides - and borrowed study guides from other people.... and didn't crack them open until January of this year. Around mid-January I decided I had to be serious and take the test. The only way I would do that is if I scheduled the test and had it already paid for and then I would be forced to take it! So, I registered for the test.... A few days later I got my registration letter in the mail telling me that I was approved to take the test and that I should schedule a day and time to take it. So, I put on my big girl panties and called and scheduled to take the test on February 16th thinking it was over a month away and I would have plenty of time to study!

As the weeks passed leading up to the test - I tried to study, really I did. I made some flash cards, I took several practice tests, I read an entire study guide/manual, I studied between meetings in my car, I studied at home, I studied at UVU while waiting for my classes to start, etc. I felt like I was studying as best as I could -and amazingly, February 16th snuck up on me and all of a sudden it was here! I felt horribly unprepared for this test - I kept getting 68%'s on my practice tests! If I failed I would have to wait 6 months and pay the $175 again to take the test. Needless to say I was having tons of anxiety!

I decided to put matters into the Lord's hands and asked my dad and brother for a priesthood blessing - I just needed to be able to sleep the night before and be able to concentrate long enough to take the blasted exam! My ADHD was going to seriously impair my ability to sit still for 4 hours in order to take the test! The blessing was beautiful and I was told that I would be able to relax, and concentrate, and that I would be guided in taking the test as long as I was prepared.

That evening I did a drive-by so I knew where to go for the test, had some sleepytime tea and went right to bed. I fell asleep after about 30 minutes (which is really long for me) and slept soundly until the alarm went off! I got out of bed not feeling nervous at all - after my shower that was another thing. I had some oatmeal for breakfast and some tension tamer tea as well, and off I went. I registered for my test at 8:15 and started by 8:30. About two hours later I answered the final question on the test. I had to take a lame survey (no doubt intended to make you freak a little longer) and then a page popped up - I expected to see in giant letters You Failed, or You Passed. Instead, I had to read down half of the page to see where it said "Congratulations, You have passed the ASWB Clinical Social Work exam" Woot woot! I about passed out! You can't imagine the relief I feel now! It's amazing! So, it's official - I am a CSW now... in 2 years I will become an LCSW!!!

Therapy anyone? I'm cheap! :)

Eight days...

2010-02-12T08:24:00.001-08:00

My little brother Spencer has been home for eight days now. He has started therapy already, and will see a psychiatrist for med management next week as well. He is such a good kid, and he is terrified. He is afraid that people are going to judge him because he is home. He tries to avoid people at all costs - he hates going to Harmons now, and doesn't want to go to his home ward. I know it's because of how awful the experience was when Brian came home early from his mission as well. People can be so mean. I know that some of the people in my parents ward have good intentions - but please - just stop! Let Spencer deal with the things he needs to deal with. Don't bug him about going back out - don't make assumptions - and don't pass judgment. It's interesting - in a church where we are taught to love people unconditionally and not to judge people - some of the members are prejudice, gossipy (is that even a word), and downright rude! Mind your own business people!

ANYWAY - other than that... things in my house are going... they aren't going well but they aren't going poorly either. They're just going. I'm still doing WW with my good friend Vicki - so that's good. She is definitely a great support. The Thursday night WW teacher is AWESOME and helps keep me from getting discouraged - and motivates me! It's nice! I'm still teaching at UVU. Tomorrow morning I have my first formal evaluation in the middle of the semester. It's a little scary - but it will be good I guess! This weekend is a nice long weekend - yay for Holidays! Travis and I will probably go out for dinner and to a movie for V-day. On Tuesday I have a big hairy exam to take. I don't feel prepared for it, but part of me thinks I'll never feel fully prepared for it. I asked Travis if he would be mad at me if I didn't pass the first time. (It's a $175.00 exam) He responded by saying "You're going to pass! And if for some strange reason you don't - it's just money." It made me feel a lot better - not great - I'm still nervous as heck. Boy has the anxiety been intense for the past 6 weeks! Also, I'm waiting to find out about a piece of legislation that will determine whether or not I can keep my job. It's been a long few days trying to figure out what will happen! I guess it could be worse right?!

Travis is doing well - our 1 year anniversary is coming up quickly! We don't have any plans yet - but any suggestions are welcome! I'd like to take a nice short vacation - especially since neither of us have had a vacation since our Honeymoon! I'd take a weekend anywhere right about now! We will see what happens! The dogs are doing well... There really isn't much more to update on! My life is pretty lame!

My Little Spencie

2010-02-01T12:06:00.000-08:00

This is one of those posts where I'm not sure how to start... or what to write exactly... or anything really... But I feel like I need to get this out since it's been consuming my every thought for the 6 days...

I'm sure you remember my little brother Elder Spencer Doty - serving in the Belo Horizante Brazil mission?! Well, for the past few weeks he has been writing me every week and telling me how anxious and depressed he has been. I have been supportive and loving. I've prayed for him and I've sent words of encouragement. Last Wednesday, I didn't get an email from Spencie. I figured since it was Transfers week, I would hear something later in the week. That evening, my sister Melissa called me and asked if I had gotten an email from him and I told her no. She told me that nobody had, and that my parents had been called in to see the Stake President that evening. I knew it wasn't good and told her to call me as soon as she found out what was happening.

Late that evening my little sister Shayla called me and told me that Spencer's anxiety and depression had gotten worse and that the Mission President thought he needed to come home. My parents were going to talk with him in the morning and figure out what would happen. The next morning they called him and spoke with him and had determined that Spencer would come home as soon as possible. Unfortunately, as soon as possible isn't until Wednesday.

I can't tell you how many tears I have cried for Spencer. He will come home on Wednesday and will receive treatment for his anxiety and depression. He wants to be in Brazil so badly, but his anxiety and depression has made it nearly impossible for him to go on this way. He is planning on going back to Brazil once he has everything under control. We don't know how long it will take - but we know that he will get better. He is coming home for a good reason - and he wants to go back out. We will just see when that will be.

My heart aches for Spencer. I know he is scared to come home! Unfortunately, my family has experience with a returning missionary, when Brian came home from his mission after only 6 months. As much as we thought people would be supportive there were rumors spread about Brian and the reason he came home. They were all wrong - and eventually the bishop had to get up in Sacrament Meeting and tell everyone to stop gossiping and that Brian was home under the direction of a doctor. My parents spoke with their bishop and let him know that they wanted him to address the issue of Spencers return and stamp out any misconceptions before they start. I guess he talked to the ward on Sunday and let them know that Spencer will be home for treatment for depression. Unfortunately - some people hear what they want and have said inconsiderate things to my family. Spencer is a good kid and he is doing what is best for him right now. Why can't people just accept that?!

The past 6 days have been tormenting as I've prayed and cried and struggled to understand what I can do to help Spencer. The sad thing is, I don't know what to do. I don't know how to act. Should I be happy to see him? Should I be sad that he is here? I just want to be supportive because I love him! I'm hoping that when he comes home - he knows that we love him and care for him. I hope he understands that we will do whatever he needs to make sure he can get the help he needs and return to Brazil as soon as possible. He is such a wonderful kid! I hope others can see that and will be compassionate and loving and helpful and supportive.

I love you Spencie!

Happy Birthday Love!

2010-01-04T12:53:00.001-08:00

Today is Travis' birthday! I just thought I would take a minute to tell you a few things that I love about him!

* He stays in bed in the morning to cuddle with me while I still sleep instead of getting right up
* He doesn't mind doing the gross stuff in and around the house
* He never complains about my cooking - and sometimes lack of cooking
* He humors me and wears the clothes I buy for him
* He uses the flashlight to look at my throat when I feel sick
* He watches cheesy television shows and movies - just because I like them
* He learns the lingo and uses it during those cheesy shows
* He loves me even though I'm a mess sometimes
* He encourages me to talk when I'm frustrated
* He wants to hear anything I have to say - even if it doesn't make sense
* He is 100% supportive of me, my work, hobbies, etc.
* He works hard to support our family (even if it is just the two of us, and the dogs)
* He knows I'm half crazy and loves me anyway
* He knows my family is crazy and still likes spending time with them
* He teases me and pokes fun at my little quirks (and my big ones)
* He is thoughtful
* He is loving
* He loves his family and supports them
* He is the kindest man I have ever known

I am the luckiest girl alive to have snagged this man! Travis, I love you! You're amazing and I'm so happy to be able to spend the rest of our lives together!

Try a Little Harder

2010-01-04T12:37:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe it's a new year already! Wow! Time flies when you're having fun right?! I've already really recapped what has happened in 2009 for Travis and I - and I don't want to bore you but I'm going to list a few things here... for posterity's sake!

* We got Married!!!! March 14th - the best day of my life!
* In May Travis joined a Team at Ameriprise Financial - he has enjoyed work much more since!
* We bought a house!!!! June 10th we signed the papers to our cute home in Taylorsville!
* I Graduated with an MSW!!!! August 4th - it took FOREVER to finish but boy am I glad I did!
* I left the State in July and started with Support Coordination Services of Utah in August!
* Also, in August I started teaching at UVU
* November & December - we spent our first Holiday's as a married couple!

A lot has happened for us... hopefully 2010 will bring some more exciting things to our lives. Because it's the new year, it's time for more resolutions! I don't know how I feel about resolutions in general - but I think one goal will sum up everything I want to accomplish this year - my goal this year is to Try a Little Harder! I won't go into everything this encompasses because it would take forever and be insanely boring - but I figure if I try a little harder - things will continue to be amazing in our lives! Here's to 2010 and trying a little harder!

Our First Married Christmas

2009-12-28T09:45:00.000-08:00

Travis and I had a wonderful Christmas weekend! We spent the 23rd together after a brief work day and exchanged gifts and went to dinner.... My darling husband is the best gift giver - guess what I got! Yup - a beautiful purse! Isn't she lovely?!

He also gave me this amazing customized necklace that I LOVE - This little gem here!
I tried to put the picture on it but it was ginormous... so you get a link instead!

Our dogs are thoughtful as well and gave us this handy little machine...

Which was awesome because we ended up using it last night when Lucy barfed on the carpet.... ugh! Luckily Travis is a good husband and takes care of the barf when he is home - because I'm like Vince Vaughn in Four Christmases - get it away or I'm gonna do it too.... Ugh... I don't do dog barf very well! Yes, I gave Travis a great Christmas as well - He got a Play Station 3 and some controllers and the game Little Big Planet, as well as a pretty sweet money clip. Nothing too exciting to me but he was happy. After we opened our presents we went to Tepanyaki for dinner - yum! There is always tooo much food at Tepanyaki and I always want to eat it all but never can - and I always forget it's not good leftover... but it's fun anyway! Travis is an excellent shrimp catcher!

On the 24th we went down to my family's house to have Christmas Eve and to participate in the celebrations there! We opened a family present (Guesstures) and Austin opened some bath toys. He is such a cute little guy. Of course I held baby Conner for part of the night and just snuggled him... he's so sweet! In the morning of course we had our Christmas breakfast as usual, and then opened more presents - and then had lunch before heading off to the Cornett's for Christmas evening. While there we opened more presents, and had dinner. I seriously ate too much food this weekend - and we got spoiled at our home, my parents and his parents home as well. Overall, it was a very pleasant Christmas for us! We spent time together and with our families. It was a nice Christmas holiday. Now if only we didn't have to work this week - it would make life so much better!

one year later...

2009-12-23T09:15:00.000-08:00

One year ago - today - Travis asked me to marry him. Oh how I love him - he's such a wonderful guy! I was so surprised and so happy - and I haven't stopped smiling since! It's hard to believe it has been one year since he proposed.... Time sure flies when you're having fun - or is it when you're busy?! Either way - time has flown and I am happier than ever!

Today we decided to do things about the same as we did last year. We are both working a little bit (not by choice mind you - we both had meetings get scheduled that we can't miss) and then will meet at home to exchange Christmas gifts and then go out to dinner since we didn't get to last year! I'm excited to give Travis his Christmas gifts even though he has technically already gotten them. I'm not very good at keeping presents a secret! In fact, I'm horrible! Travis' Christmas list hadn't been up for even a week when I went out and bought his gift, and within days had already given it to him! It's a good thing he knows me so well - someone else could get frustrated by my inability to keep such important secrets :) I'm excited for our own gift exchange today - I got him a small gift to unwrap since he has already unwrapped and used his PS3! Is it bad that I'm excited for my gift too? Travis is really thoughtful and I am almost positive I saw a package come from Coach a couple of weeks ago - I guess we will see!

I love you Travis - I'm so happy that you asked me to marry you! You're amazing and I love being able to spend the rest of my life with you!

An Update...

2009-12-22T08:57:00.000-08:00

Well, we went to Travis' parents house on Sunday for his nephews birthday - and it was surprisingly calm and normal. His parents were actually kind of nice and I enjoyed myself. I really like our nephew and wanted to celebrate with him I just wasn't sure I could keep my mouth shut if his parents were rude again... luckily nothing happened. I think they are trying to reach out to Travis in their own way although he is somewhat resistant - I don't blame him - I'm SUPER resistant. Part of me wants to forgive and forget and part of me wants to scream at them. Travis is seeming a little happier but I think it's fake - he knows I'm worried about him and is trying to be all brave for me. He's such a great guy - he deserves a wonderful Christmas... too bad he opened his presents by the end of September... I know, I can't keep a secret!!! Oh well, he at least gets a little present to open even though it's nothing spectacular! :) Love that boy!

HELP?!

2009-12-14T15:44:00.000-08:00

I am having a huge problem and typically I wouldn't turn to my blog for advice - especially since maybe two people read it! (Thanks Vicki and Sarah... it makes me feel special!) But I just don't know what to do - and I figure it's easier to vent it here than to anyone else really....

My husband is the most caring, thoughtful, considerate, non-confrontational man in the world. I, on the other hand am caring, occasionally thoughtful, considerate when I feel like it, and VERY confrontational. We are having problems with his parents! He called them the Saturday before Thanksgiving and asked them about a business proposition - and they wouldn't listen to him. See, Travis and his business partners applied for a small business loan so they can move to the "private" franchise sector of financial advise/planning. This will cost us about $200,000.00 to do and quite frankly we don't have the cash for that. The bank said that our credit was good enough, but that between the 3 business partners we don't have enough collaterol to use to back a $250k business loan. We have only owned our home since June, one of his business partners is a renter, and the other just bought his home in October. So - we were stuck. I told Travis that maybe we should talk to his parents. He said he would talk to his business partners about it. Travis' parents own a home up here in West Valley free and clear - they also own a home in St. George that they are paying a mortgage on. Their plan is to sell the home in the spring when they don't have to realize capital gains on it (which they are being entirely dishonest about and that's a whole other story that makes me angry) - so, Travis and his business partners talked, ran some numbers, and decided to ask Travis's parents to co-sign on the loan and use their West Valley home as collaterol in order to be able to finance the loan. In return, because they would be unable to sell the home during this time, Travis and his business partners would pay his parents $1,000.00 each month while they pay off the loan. That way his parents have some sort of payment for their help and Travis and his partners are able to go "private". It sounds like a win-win for everyone involved right?! Well, Travis talked to his parents about it and his dad wouldn't listen and said No. He said he knew we would come to him and ask for money, yada yada yada. Travis told him he wasn't listening and that he wasn't asking for money but his dad refused to listen. Travis was so heartbroken - if his parents didn't want to co-sign he didn't really care about that but he cared that they wouldn't even listen to him. Travis was so depressed about it and I told him to call his dad and tell him how he felt about it. On Monday evening Travis called his parents and told them how he felt about them not listening to him and not being very supportive of him and his career. Travis' parents retaliated with the fact that we had already ruined their "retirement security" by not purchasing their house anyway. Travis told his father that he thought it would be best for us not to go down to visit over Thanksgiving because it may be awkward. Travis's father responded very maturely and told him that if we didn't come down we would hurt his mother's feelings and would not be welcome to come down ever. SOO NICE right?! So, while trying to be "adult" about it, we went down and had a horrible time.

Ever since then Travis has been different. His hopes and dreams have been deflated by the fact that he can't go "private" and have a "way out" of his office job. He loves being a financial planner/advisor and is SO good at his job - he just needs this private thing to work out because he will have so much more freedom in the way he works with his clients! Now, he hates going to work. He dreads going to the office at 8:00 am and not getting home until 9:00 pm. He complains about how he doesn't get paid enough to be away from me for so many hours in the day (which is very true! Another benefit to being private is the company doesn't take their 70% off the top of whatever he makes - there isn't as much overhead which means, he gets paid better - but he is also able to be flexible about the payment that people make - he can extend payments, he can lower payments where he can't do that right now). He says that this may not be the career he wants to pursue anymore. He stressess about making his "quota" because if he doesn't do a certain amount of business he can be fired. He is such an honest man that he doesn't try and sell people things they don't want or need... Travis is not the same man I married - he's not the same man he was just a month ago either and I don't know what to do about it! He's depressed, deflated, he feels defeated and I just don't know how to help him.

As Christmas gets closer I have more anxiety about visiting with his family over the Holiday. I don't want to see them. I am refusing to take white trash family photos with them this weekend. I don't want to see them for our nephews birthday. I don't want to spend time with them at all - HECK, I don't want to give them the awesome Christmas gift we already bought them. I was a quiet wife who let her husband be treated like crap by his parents because I didn't want to interfere (and I didn't want them to hate me more than they already do) - but I don't think I can take it anymore! I love my husband and it kills me to see him so unhappy. I know he doesn't like fighting with them and he is trying to be the bigger person - he really is. But quite frankly, I am SICK of being the bigger person. Screw his parents - how dare they be so inconsiderate and not even LISTEN to their son. If they had really listened to his proposition and decided they didn't want to do that anymore - that would be one thing - but for them to not listen at all and make assumptions and then guilt us into spending time with them over Thanksgiving makes me furious! It takes every ounce of self control I have not to go over to their home and yell at them, and tell them how horrible I think they are! I haven't really gotten along with them anyway so it wouldn't kill me - but I know it would kill Travis.

I guess I just don't know what to do! I don't think we should have to spend time with them just because it's Christmas. We are our own family and should be able to spend the Holiday together without them. That being said, I want to spend time with my family over Christmas (I can't get enough snuggling from baby Conner) - but if it meant that we ditch out on Christmas day with my family too so as not to be unfair, then I would be okay with that too. Is it completely immature to NOT go to their house on Christmas? We are adults, and adults don't HAVE to go to anyones house right?! We don't have to do anything we don't want to.... but how do I tell his parents that?! And how do I convince him that we don't have to go - and shouldn't go? And, how do I get my husband to feel better about himself and his job? It is so discouraging to see him like this - it tears me up! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

25 years...

2009-12-09T09:07:00.000-08:00

Who knew getting a Masters Degree would be so expensive! I have just made my first student loan payment... my first of many! It's unfortunate that I had to take out loans to pay for an education - and even more unfortunate that I have to start paying them now, even though I just graduated about 4 months ago - and MOST unfortunate - that I will be paying on them every month for the next 25 years! But, I guess it's not a big deal! I mean, I learned a lot - because of my degree I am teaching at UVU so that's a good thing too! I had to extend the amount of time I pay on my student loans from 10 years to 25 years because I wasn't comfortable with the payment schedule that UHEAA and the FedLoan companies were giving me... I mean, I don't mind being poor - but dang! :) In any case, I'll pay without complaint because I have something to show for it! I guess that means I should take my licensing exam huh?! :) That's next on my to do list - after grading the finals from my first stint as a college professor! Wahoo!

Happy Holidays... Happy Holidays...

2009-12-08T08:53:00.001-08:00

I love the holidays! I love the music, the smells... I love how happy everyone is at this time of year, I love buying and giving gifts, I love so many things about the holidays! One thing I do not love? SNOW! I hate snow! I know, why do I live in Utah if I hate snow so much?! I dunno, my parents moved here and I decided never to leave! I don't like shoveling - I don't like scraping ice and snow off my car - I don't like being cold - and I don't like the fact that lots of people don't know how to drive in snow (as evidenced by the 2 1/2 hour long trip it would take me to get to work just trying to avoid such idiots!) ... eew I just hate snow! Otherwise I love this time of year!

I love Christmas Parties! We have been to two already and still have another 3 ish to go to. We went to a party at our friends, the Newbolds - complete with an ugly sweater contest and a white elephant gift - that was pretty fun! Last night we went to my work Christmas Party! We had a nice dinner and chatted with each other and then were given gifts from our bosses... They gave everyone a new laptop and some giftcards! Crazy right?! They're the cute little Samsung tiny laptops that fit right in my purse! And the giftcards? Holy Cow! I was speechless! Seriously - I wasn't expecting anything at all! I thought maybe a nice card - maybe a small giftcard to Olive Garden or something - but I was completely shocked and surprised! It was crazy!

Things in my life as well as Travis' have been going pretty well - and when I start to question what I'm doing something like this happens and makes me feel like I really am doing what I should be. I'm doing the things I need to do and it's nice to have that kind of validation! There are things in our lives that aren't going as well as we had hoped - but you know, I guess that's life. So many things have gone well for us that it only makes sense that some things not go our way - as much as I hate it! I guess that's just something I have to learn to get used to right?!

Our Thanksgiving Reality...

2009-12-01T13:18:00.000-08:00

Well, things went mostly according to plan for Thanksgiving and overall we had a fairly decent time. Here is what happened...

Thursday: My mom was called out on a Red Cross Mental Health something or other for the guy that got stuck in the Nutty Putty Caves - she had to do some bereavement counseling with workers and family members so she was gone from 4:00 a.m. until almost 12:30 p.m. It didn't put a damper on our Thanksgiving at all because my dad is a trooper and a great cook and he took over the extra parts of Thanksgiving that my mom would usually do. I think Melissa helped as well. Travis made the green bean casserole and boy was he proud of himself - We made it in the crockpot and it was much better than I remember it being last year. Probably because we had it at his family's house last year and it was pretty runny. ANYWAY - We had one of my mom's colleagues over for Thanksgiving dinner as well - Hagen (I probably spelled his name wrong) and he told us all about his anthropological dig in South America this summer and I will admit I was fascinated! Who knew you could tell so much about people and their political schema by their teeth! Crazy! After dinner we played a friendly round of Boxers or Briefs (this game is not sold in stores anymore but if you can get a copy of one I highly recommend it - it keeps us laughing for hours!). If you get a chance, ask Travis about my bootylicious mother! Good times! After the game we prepared our game plan for Black Friday and then Travis and I went home to relax for the rest of the day.

Friday: Travis and I woke up at 3:15 to leave the house by 3:30 to go to Kohls to buy 3 things. The doors opened at 4:00 a.m. and it was a madhouse by the time we go there. If you know the Jordan Landing area at all, you will know what I'm talking about. The line started at the doors on the west side, wrapped around to the north and all the way around the east side of the store... it was a LONG line! Travis and I were in line right in front of the Northern doors. Luckily, Travis and I went in and knew where we were going and got all 3 things that we wanted and got in line right away. We were out of Kohls by 4:30. We thought everywhere opened at 4 so we went to Target and Best Buy but they weren't open and instead of waiting for them to open we decided to go home and back to bed. We woke up again around 8:30 in the morning and got ready and packed up to head out to St. George. With our trunk full of dog stuff, our one duffel bag for people stuff and a tummy full of churros - we loaded ourselves and carmel corn from the popcorn cottage into my car and were on our way to St. George by 10:45 a.m. We got there at about 3 o'clock - I think we made rather good time! When we were walking out to the casita to unload our stuff Lucy (having never been at the in-laws before and having never seen a pool before) tried to take a short cut across the lawn and jumped unknowingly right into the deep end of the pool. Within seconds she was doggy paddling across the pool to the other side where Travis pulled her out! It's a good thing she can swim because I didn't want to jump in fully clothed! After that excitement we unpacked our stuff and hung out until the other family got there. That evening we had dinner and watched G.I. Joe before going to bed pretty early! I did get a phone call from my brother around 9:10 p.m. saying that little Conner Jason had been born just then, I even heard him cry! He's a hefty baby of 9 lbs and 20 1/2 in. Brian said he would send me a picture! Yay for being an Aunt again!

Saturday: When we woke up this morning we were going to take it easy since it was Thanksgiving again. However, everyone else had other plans. Annette, Sara, and myself went to a craft fair (I only spent $12.00!!!) and then to Kohls to do some shopping while the kids swam. By the time we got home I was ready to swim as well and hopped in with everyone else. Travis spent about 5 hours in the pool and I was in there for probably 2 1/2. It was nice and relaxing. We tried to get the dogs in the pool, but they were NOT getting close to the water. I guess they knew! :) After we swam we got all ready again for Thanksgiving dinner followed by Four Christmases. Again, Travis and I had a pretty early night.

Sunday: Travis and I woke up, got ready, packed up, had breakfast, rolled up the pool cover and drove home! We were out of there by 10:45 ish again and drove the LONG drive home. Of course, we took a short cut and stopped in Springville to see baby Conner. What a darling little boy! He has such chubby cheeks and knees... such a cutie pie! The poor little guy is all bruised from the forceps and such, but I guess that's just how it goes right?! Austin didn't seem to care about the baby while we were there even though he had only met him just before we got there! After holding my precious nephew we went back home the rest of the way, unpacked, and just lazed around until bedtime.

Sadly, we had a really uneventful Thanksgiving - although there was some unspoken drama and anger at Thanksgiving on Saturday - it was quite a long weekend. Travis and I didn't have time to just hang out, clean the house, and do our regular weekend routine things... So, when we had to wake up for work yesterday - it was really difficult to get out of bed!!! I'm hoping that soon enough we will have our own family and can create our own traditions for holidays rather than have to fit everyone elses plans.... We will see won't we!!!

Thanksgiving Happenings

2009-11-24T17:13:00.000-08:00

Well, our plans are ever changing for Thanksgiving - but so far this is what we are planning...

Thursday: Thanksgiving with the Doty Family
Friday: Shopping - I love me some Black Friday Deals!!!! Then driving to St. George
Saturday: Thanksgiving with the Cornett's and Johnson's
Sunday: Drive back home

AND - somewhere in there... meet our new nephew! Yay! Baby Conner will come sometime then! Sarah is being induced on Friday so we are hoping to see the little guy before we leave - otherwise, we will see him on Sunday! Yay! I'm so excited! I'll let you know how it all goes!

Basic Info...

2009-11-04T16:51:00.000-08:00

Nothing much has changed in our lives, except the fact that Travis is getting ready to become a business owner. He and his two business partners are starting their own franchise of Ameriprise - in essence they will be Privatizing their work. They will be able to work with their clients in ways that are better for the clients and won't have to worry about the red tape of being an employee and satisfying the boss. It's funny because this situation is very deja-vu for us. I mean, after we got married I was toying wtih the idea of becoming a private support coordinator and had so many questions and sleepless nights wondering if it would be good for us and if we would be able to make it. There are so many unknowns in changing jobs and going "private". I feel bad for Travis because I know he is feeling what I felt just 5 months ago. I am completely confident in his capabilities - and I know we will be just fine! It is a little stressful thinking that we will likely have to put our home up for collateral in order to get the business loan they need to "buy their books" - but I know that Travis will be so great at this! He is so smart, he is genuinely caring, he respects people, and he truly wants what is best for his clients! He is an amazing financial planner/advisor and has helped so many people - I know he will continue to do well! The unknown is just a little scary! So, if anyone needs a financial advisor - I happen to know a guy! :)

I am still working as a private support coordinator and I love it - I wish I had done it sooner! It is really a great job! I am also still teaching at UVU - this semester I'm teaching the Case Management class, but next semester I'm teaching two sections of Intro. to Social Work. That should be fun. It will cut down my commute time by once per week - so that's kind of nice. Isn't it funny that I lived down in Orem and commuted to Salt Lake for work - and now I live in Salt Lake and commute to Orem for some work... Funny how that happens. It is such a great opportunity for me and is really helping me decide if I want to get a PhD or not (as of now I'm thinking NOT)! My jobs are going well and I'm pretty happy. I still haven't taken my licensing exam yet - it's been a while - I haven't studied and I'm freaked out! I just need to buckle down and do it! Oye!

Otherwise, nothing much is going on. Still doing WW with a friend - I've lost 7 lbs. If she wasn't doing it with me I don't think I would be doing it. It's hard to be motivated on your own - especially this time of the year! I love candy and pumpkin everything so Halloween was hard. I love turkey and stuffing and gravy and every other food typically eaten at Thanksgiving - so that's going to be hard. I love peppermint and goodies so Christmas will be hard. Plus, I'm really enjoying cooking - so that's making it hard too! I just need more self control!!!! Ugh - it's a constant battle!

Oh, on the sibling front - Spencer is doing well and he is still in the Provo MTC until further notice! Melissa came home yesterday - she's still the same Melissa. Brian, Sarah, Austin and Baby Connor are doing well. Sarah is due soon, poor thing looks so tired and just ready to have the baby already! I can't wait to have another nephew - especially since Austin is so stinking cute - I'm sure Connor will be just as cute! Shayla - I love my little Shayla! She is such a good girl - I get to see her three times a week when I'm teaching at UVU so that's nice. I wish I could spend more time with her though - Sometimes I just need a little Shayla time! Maybe this weekend we will do something fun! Our dogs... they're just dogs! Lucy is as crazy as ever, and Baxter just hangs out, although lately he has been laying on the floor directly below me demanding to be under the blanket I use... it's kind of cute!

Until next time....

The Best Two Years

2009-10-21T13:31:00.000-07:00

Well, today we sent my littlest sibling - Spencer - to the MTC. Yup, He is off to serve a mission in Belo Horizante Brazil. It was a different experience sending him out than it was anyone else for several reasons!

1. Spencer is the first to go out of the country! Brian went to Nashville - I went to Tucson - Melissa is in Washington State - and Spencie is off to South America - CRAZY!

2. We found out last week that he would not be flying directly to the Brazil MTC because they were having visa problems... so instead of taking him to the airport - we send him to the Provo MTC until his visa comes through and then he will be shipped out to Brazil.

3. He is the youngest in the family! Yes, that means we're all old! Even Shayla who is only 40 minutes older than Spencer!

4. They don't do the feel good Called to Serve movie and inspiration thought by the MTC president and his wife. Now, you pull up to the curb, help your missionary get his luggage out of the car, give him a hug and off you go! It didn't feel like a natural departure to me! There was no lingering, there were no kleenex, there was no trying to see him walk down the sidewalk as you exit to your car... It was so weird!

and finally... I feel sort of parental feelings for Spencer. I was almost 9 when the twins were born and I spent a lot of time with them while they were growing up - and I remember it all like it happened yesterday! I remember Spencer being afraid of the Thunder and crawling into my bed with me late at night so he wouldn't be alone. I remember so many things about his life - and spent a lot of time babysitting him - that it makes me really sad!

I didn't cry at the MTC - I didn't cry until I had dropped off Chase at the house and I left to drive back to Salt Lake. He had better write me!

It was time for a change...

2009-10-07T14:07:00.000-07:00

For some reason I feel like I'm changing. My goals, my wants, my needs, my everything is changing. I won't give too much detail - but I feel like I'm turning into a grown up maybe! Is that weird? I am afterall 28 years old now, I should be an adult! Anyway, I figured because I FEEL like i'm changing, it might be a good idea to actually make some changes... Here are a few of them...

1. Off the soda - I did this for almost two years and then decided to take it up again. No lies - I love Mt. Dew - so this is hard for me! There will be days when I need one and when those days come I will have to decide if it's worth the 3 points to me....

2. Yes I said points - I went back to WW last night. A good friend went with me and we will be going together - it's nice to have someone to help support me in this terrifying endeavor of weekly weigh-ins and meetings. I was successful last year - I will be even more successful and will stick with it this year!

3. Walking the Dogs - except in snow! Does that count? Travis and I want to walk the dogs every day. It will give us some much needed exercise and it will give the dogs some time to get rid of their pent up energy (staying inside with me while I do paperwork has got to be boring!). Plus, maybe we will meet some more of our neighbors this way! They will actually know that people live in our house!

4. BUDGET! yes, I spend too much money and I know it. We are working on a budget that doesn't sacrifice our lifestyle for our goals and visa versa. Since Travis is a financial planner it works out well for us! He is so smart when it comes to money and has seriously saved my financial life! So, we are going to be smarter with our money! We've gotta save more so we can do the things we want - Travel, Finish the bathroom in the basement, travel some more... you know, the important things in life.

5. No Texting while I drive! And this one is a huge/hard one for me! I drive a lot! Less than when I commuted daily - but since I teach at UVU 3 times each week, I'm in the car my fair share! BUT - I'm trying to stop texting while I drive. I know it's illegal - so is speeding and we all do that too! Anyway - I'm working on it and I'm getting better at it!

So... these may be small in the grand scheme of things - but I have to start somewhere right!?

All the Single Ladies....

2009-09-24T08:46:00.000-07:00

Can I just tell you how much I LOVE Glee?! Oh man... I look forward to Wednesday nights so I can get my Glee fix! Travis is DVR-ing all of them for me! I'm so excited for Melissa to come home and have a Glee marathon with me! Oh man I love it! This is a clip from last night's episode - which is my favorite episode so far! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2FMdOLyRcA

Update...

2009-09-17T12:04:00.000-07:00

I won't even pretend to be sorry about not blogging. Many times I have started and then deleted because it was mean, or crabby, or sounded weird, or whatever. I figure now I should update the maybe one person that reads this blog - as to what we are up to.

Things haven't changed much - I still love being a Support Coordinator and working for a private company rather than the State is SO much better than I thought it would be. I wish I would have done it months ago! I would ideally like 5 or 6 more cases - but I am overall very happy with my job. I'm loving it big time!

I'm enjoying teaching a case management class at UVU this fall. I am having a hard time because I don't want the class to be boring but I feel like some of the basic information is pretty boring. I'm trying to make it fun and practical, but I don't feel like I'm doing as good of a job as I would have hoped. It will get better with time - I hope!

I LOVE the fall! Travis and I are hoping to head up the canyon soon with the top off his car so we can enjoy the crisp air and the fall colors! The fall makes me so happy! I have already changed some of the soap in our house to fall smells! LOVE IT!

Travis's job is going well, although he is probably going to go into the franchise sector of his company with his 2 business partners. They are looking at joining someone - there are so many things that I know he is thinking but isn't telling me because he doesn't want me to stress out. I stress out more than my fair share. He is completely honest with me - he just doesn't want his being stressed to make me even more stressed. He's so thoughtful that way! :)

Lucy got fixed a few weeks ago and she has healed nicely. Baxter has a date with his girlfriend Patsy and then he will be fixed as well. Other than that, we are all healthy and happy and doing very well!

6 months

2009-09-17T12:03:00.001-07:00

Travis and I have been married for 6 months... I can't believe it! The time has gone by so fast! We are so happy and still so much in love! He is such a wonderful man and an amazing husband! I love you so much Travis!

A Whole Lot of Change

2009-08-14T13:14:00.000-07:00

Well... It's official, I am 28 years old. Nothing too exciting although I'll miss 27. So many things changed for me while I was 27. I thought it would be nice to just make a list to see what changed for me...

* Started dating Travis - the love of my life
* Started a new practicum - Home Health and Hospice @ CNS
* Started my last year of Graduate School
* Received the Belle Spafford award
* Got engaged to Travis
* Got a new puppy - Lucy
* Married Travis
* Moved to West Valley to rent Travis' parents home
* Decided to buy a house
* Graduated from Grad School
* Bought a wonderful house in Taylorsville
* Moved into our home
* Bought our first lawn mower, kitchen table, etc. (let's just say it's been expensive)
* Put together my first Conference
* Finished my practicum at CNS
* Quit my job with the State
* Started a job with Support Coordination Services of Utah
* Was offered a job at Utah Valley University as an adjunct professor - I accepted of course!
* Paid my first mortgage payment
* Watched my little brother open his mission call to Bello Horizante Brazil
* Found out I'll be an Aunt... again
* Had our first major repair on our home - darn plumbing
* Started cooking with Travis - and found out that we are pretty good at it, and we like it!

And that is certainly plenty to keep us busy! It has been a very eventful year 27 has... Obviously 27 will be missed... but I'm sure 28 will be great! Some of the things to look forward to.....

* Teaching my first college class
* Sending Spencer on a mission
* 3 weeks later, welcoming Melissa home from her mission
* Getting a new nephew
* Decorating my house for the first Christmas

... I'm sure there will be others! But I'm not in a hurry to grow up - I've done plenty of that in the past year!

2 weeks notice

2009-07-02T08:15:00.001-07:00

Yes, in a matter of minutes I will be giving two weeks notice at my job. I am leaving my job with DSPD to do the same job for a private company. I have loved working as a support coordinator for hte past 5 years and am not ready to leave my clients. However, the State has determined that they will no longer be employing support coordinators and that if we want to continue working with our clients - we have to go private.

After several months of research and interviews and stress and crying (sorry Travis) - I made my decision to go with a company that I think will suit me and my clients well. I will be an employee of Support Coordination Services of Utah beginning August 1st. (www.serveutah.com) I am hoping my clients will all want to come with me - we will just see!

This has been a huge decision for me to make and I have not made it lightly! I am excited to continue the work that I love in a new enviornment! I'll let you know how it goes!

All Moved In!

2009-06-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Yay! It's about time right?! Travis and I made the big move on Saturday with the help of my entire family (even baby A carried a pillow or two) and Travis's Sister and nephew. It was a long grueling process - who knew we had so much stuff?! (And by stuff I mean, DVD's, Video Games, and Scrapbooking Paper!) In any case we are all moved in I think. We have some things here and there - we're waiting on a kitchen table - but otherwise we are moved in to our very OWN house! We love it! It is so wonderful to have our own space! I'll post pics of the house soon! :)

So thank you to everyone who helped us move - we appreciate it so much! And soon I'll be able to blog about things other than the new house! There are new and exciting changes coming our way (No - we are not pregnant) so we will keep you all posted!

It's Official!

2009-06-11T08:54:00.000-07:00

Well, Travis and I are officially home owners! Yesterday morning we went to Surety Title and sat across the table from Michelle who told us what all the pages were and made sure we signed in blue ink and used our middle initials. It was such a great experience! Signing my life away (as well as all of the money I hope to make in the next 30 years) to have a house - Yay! I'm so excited!

I spent the rest of the day working like a maniac while Travis called and set up all of our utilities at the new house and cancelled the internet at the current house - the Direct TV will be cancelled just before we move! I have to be able to watch my shows ya know!?

Travis and I went to dinner last night to celebrate. We met at Teppanyaki down in Jordan Landing - YUM! Can I just say that I love the Geisha meal! I could eat there every day - but now that I have a house payment I won't be eating there as often I guess! After dinner we went home and watched So You Think You Can Dance and Deadliest Catch (Travis is such a good sport) before we finally went to bed. It was a nice relaxing night - and very exciting to know that we are no longer renters!

So this weekend we will get the keys!!! Over the next few days we will clean the house, get the carpets cleaned, locks rekeyed, and then start moving things in because the big move is on the 20th! I'm so excited for the big move! I can hardly stand it! We will finally have a place that is all our own!!! My family will come up and help and we have some friends that will help as well - we are lucky to have such wonderful people in our lives!

I'm sure we will spend that entire weekend trying to unpack and get things set up just the way we want them... I can't wait! I'm so excited!

Approved!

2009-06-02T16:22:00.001-07:00

Travis called me about half an hour ago and told me he had some good and bad news... Of course I wanted the bad news first - he told me the bad news was He was still at work (and boy is that bad news - I like spending as much time with him as possible so long work days aren't very fun). The good news? We were approved - our financing that is! Which means, we are officially buying a house! We close on June 10th! We are so excited! Nervous, Anxious, a little Scared maybe, but very Excited! So I guess we will be moving on the 20th.... anyone have a truck we can borrow? :)

Turn to your partner....

2009-06-01T10:27:00.000-07:00

So, this weekend Travis and I went to a financial seminar - Millionaire Mind Intensive to be exact. Let me just say that I was not very excited to go. Finances are a little overwhelming and boring to me and I wasn't looking forward to 3 long days of money talk! But, I loved the seminar. Yes, there was money talk - obviously - but not in the way I had thought. I had kind of imagined the seminar to be more like my insanely boring Personal Finance 1100 at UVSC... but it was definitely NOT that!

Without giving away too much - let me say that it forever changed my life! Travis and I learned so much about ourselves, each other, our relationship, etc. I did so much personal work it was amazing! I now have a new outlook on life not just regarding finances but regarding other things as well. It was seriously amazing! I would highly recommend it to anyone! In fact, Travis and I are going to attend the fall seminar again.... if anyone is interested in attending with us - let me know! It is a little hokey, and a little salesy (is that even a word?) - but I promise you will learn some valuable things!

Turn to your partner, give them a high five and tell them "You, have a millionaire mind!"

So You Think You Can Dance

2009-05-21T10:57:00.000-07:00

dance, dance, dance.... Oh man, I love this show - and the season premier is TONIGHT! Yes! I have waited for so long for this show to come back on TV.... LOVE IT! I Secretly wish I could dance like they do... so beautiful, so emotional... yes, I'm a cry baby when I watch it... The Walz that Twitch and Kherington did last season - cried like a baby! I'm excited for this season! Yay!

Also, Darn that FOX television station.... On Tuesday night I got home earlier than Travis (what's new) and decided to watch a little television until he got home and I found a new television show that I LOVED watching.... Glee. Yes, as cheesey as it seems - I loved Glee. It was hilarious! (Plus, I'm a sucker for singing and dancing - of course it's right up my alley) The clincher - it doesn't start until the fall! Darn you Fox - How dare you get me hooked to a television show I cannot even start watching for several months! I guess I'll enjoy SYTYCD until I can start to enjoy Glee! :) I am so excited about it!

On a not as happy note - I just need to vent for two seconds... I understand that some people want to see the best in everyone - but when a person has been downright rude, offensive, immature, and outright horrible - you don't have to like them or work with them or be around them... and if you choose to - I don't want to hear about it!!!

Announcing....

2009-05-18T10:32:00.000-07:00

Travis and I are going to be.... Homeowners! No, it's not what you thought it would be - it's even better! Travis and I have been looking for the past couple of weeks and last week found a home that we love! It's the perfect size, with a perfect yard, in the perfect location... have I mentioned it's perfect?! We are so excited! We made the offer on Saturday afternoon and after a little negotiating settled on a price and signed the contract last night! (Our Realtor is amazing) Yes, we are in a contract to purchase a home! Of course this means we will be house poor for a while - but that's alright. It'll be nice to have a place of our own! We will be able to move in on our 3 month anniversary! Yay! Of course we will invite our friends and family over throughout the summer to celebrate and have lunch and of course, play a little rock band - so be excited! Yay! We are buying a house!

BINGO!

2009-05-09T20:34:00.000-07:00

"When the day of commencement commences..."

I finally did it - I graduated! It really seemed like this day would never come and really it didn't seem real until I was walking up the stairs to the stage in Kingsbury Hall where I would have my name read and would walk across the stage and pick up a diploma (or whatever the paper was inside the red diploma holder they gave me). It was crazy! Travis and I went to dinner with his parents, his sister and bro-in-law, and my mom and sister (my dad was sick), to Tsunami - the place we met :) *sigh* and then off to graduation!

Once I got to Kingsbury Hall, the graduates had to get pictures and junk and then wait around for 45 minutes to get lined up and walk into the building. So, to kill some time, a class mate and I had our own little graduation bingo... There were only 5 things to look for

1. Lei's (super ugly - but whatever)
2. A girl wearing her cap on the back of her head instead of the top (we found several)
3. Someone Tripping (sadly, we never saw this one!)
4. Hooker Shoes (saw plenty of those - hookers!)
5. Finding out someones sexuality is NOT what you thought it was (TOTALLY happened!)

It was pretty fun! We went into Kingsbury, listened to some wonderful and some not so wonderful speeches, and then graduated. It was about 2 hours but it was nice. Afterward we hurried home for some fruit pizza and to sleep.... boy was I tired! :)

In any case, I'm officially graduated... and done for school for a while! Whew! Yay for graduation - and yay for BINGO!

What To Do...

2009-04-28T10:20:00.000-07:00

I have a bit of a dilemma.... My 10 year high school reunion is coming up rather quickly - like in June or something and I don't know if I want to go or not.

Granted there are people that I would like to catch up with - but really I blog stalk them or just check out their facebook pages - don't judge me - I know you do it too! But really, there are maybe a dozen or so people that I do that with. Everyone else??? I don't really care.

The thing is - I moved into that area the day before 7th grade started and didn't expect to be there for too long - we moved a lot and I figured it would be the same. Well, it was, except that we stayed in the same school district and I stayed at the same High School. I changed groups of friends several times and to be quite honest, haven't really kept in touch with anyone from High School.

Not only that - but I am an entirely different person now, as compared to High School. I just wasn't an extremely "good" person. I am not proud of some of the things I said or did in High School - and I don't want to be remembered by people for those things... I don't think I really found myself until I got to College and then I rediscovered myself when I served a mission, and even then have changed into a different person again after being home and in graduate school and married now... But people don't care - I've already had plenty of opportunities to recognize that - They don't care who I am now - they just care that I hurt their feelings or whatever in high school....

I don't think I want to go - is that so bad?

Nearing the end...

2009-04-23T14:03:00.000-07:00

Like many college students - I have been completely unable to focus since.... February 25th. That's a guess, but it's pretty accurate. Obviously part of the reason was because I was getting married mid-semester - but a good chunk was also because I am graduating! I can't wait!

I was surprisingly given an award this year! Who Knew?! I received a letter in the mail about a week after Travis and I got back from our Honeymoon and it said that I would be receiving the Belle S. Spafford Award for my dedication to improving the lives of women. Random right?! But I was so excited! It meant that Travis and I were able to attend a an awards banquet on Tuesday night. It was really nice! It was held in the new Goodwill building. Travis and I sat at a table with two of my teachers from last year, one of whom chose me to receive the award. We also sat with the woman who paid for my award - I got a wonderful plaque and a cash award - yay! :)

The evening was really nice. Travis and I chatted with everyone at our table, enjoyed the dinner, sat through the awards ceremony (short, sweet, and to the point - that's how I like it!) and after some pictures we went home. He kept telling me how proud of me he was... he's such a wonderful guy! My plaque sits in our bedroom until I have an office or somewhere else to put it. The most exciting part about this award is that I will now be on the Spafford Advisory Council which is made up of women in leadership roles from around the state. I am excited to make my debut at the Roundtable next week! Yay for awards!

And.... 2 weeks from today I graduate! I am so excited to finally get a Masters Degree.... Maybe I'll work towards a PhD - but we will see :)

For the first time I feel.... WICKED!

2009-04-19T17:51:00.000-07:00

Travis and I decided to take a trip downtown to enter the lottery for Wicked tickets for the matinee today. Travis likes to be early, and boy were we. We put our names on the notecards and waited for them to draw names. There were probably about 150 ish people there and our chances weren't very good. At exactly 11 o'clock they told us the rules, they'll draw 10 cards and each person is allowed to buy up to 2 tickets at $25 a piece, and you had to pay cash and prove your identity! We waited anxiouslyas the first persons name was drawn and then the second, third, fourth and fifth. I didn't really think we would get any tickets so I kind of tuned out for a minute and then they called the sixth.... "Jennifer Dottie...Er... D-O-L-Y" I went to the front, "It's a T". I won!!! Woot woot! So I went in and got two tickets and came back outside and met up with Travis. Yay! I was super excited! We wandered around town for a while until it was time! :)

We got to Capitol Theatre early which was good because I needed to use the potty and it gave Travis time to look at the souvineers - thanks sweetie! :) We went down to our seats on Orcnestra Right Row C seats 115 and 117 and waited. I won't give away too much for those who have never experienced the awesome-ness that is WICKED! :) But we were both extremely impressed - we loved it and are excited to go back this Saturday evening! Yay! Oh how I love Wicked! I've listened to the music since it came out and have finally seen it!! I have some great images to put to the music now! I LOVED IT! I highly recommend seeing it if you can! :) I'm singing along in my mind as we speak....

Since the Big Day...

2009-03-28T10:42:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since i've blogged.... I was a little busy getting married!

Yup, I LOVE being married. The wedding was perfect, the reception was perfect.... everything about the entire day was perfect! My family was there, including a cousin and my grandma - my friends were there - his family and friends were there.... It was beautiful! If I had taken a year to plan it, it couldn't have been more beautiful or perfect! It was seriously amazing!

The honeymoon was great too! Obviously! We spent our wedding night at the Somewhere Inn Time. It was a cute place and the room was nice. The next day we went to St. George. We stayed at T's parents home, while they stayed at our house in SL to watch the dogs. They have a pool and hot tub in the backyard so we were set. We had a great time relaxing, swimming, relaxing, and swimming soem more :) On Monday we went to Vegas for the night. T got us tickets to see Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian on Monday night... Second Row... It was AMAZING! We had such a wonderful time! Our Hotel was pretty sweet too. We stayed at Trump Towers on the 42nd floor and had to ride the JET Powered elevator - we got to the 42nd floor in less than 30 seconds and my ears popped twice! It was a beautiful room! :) We enjoyed the show and the fun sights in Vegas - Bellagio Fountains were definitely my fave!

So far Married Life is Wonderful! T is so good to me! He has been super supportive and encouraging. Last night, I needed to finish a homework assignment so when I got home from a Prep Course, he went and got dinner for us while I did homework. He sat at the kitchen table, ate dinner and let me work on my homework. When I wanted to take a break and watch a movie - he encouraged me to finish my homework and then we could watch a movie. I finished my homework at 9 p.m., emailed it to my teacher - and we watched a movie. :) He even takes the dogs out first thing in the morning so I can hurry and shower - I usually stay in bed until the last possible moment. Poor boy has to deal with me! He has made me dinner every night this week - Okay, he reheated the leftovers that his mom left for us :) Same difference! :) He is wonderful and I am SOOOO happy!

I love T so much....

Slow Mo...

2009-03-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

For the past two years, there has never been a week that I have thought, this week has gone by so slowly.... Until this week! I have spent so much time doing homework that I have neglected other things - like T. Luckily, we're getting hitched on Saturday! I'm so excited! If this week had moved by at even a normal pace, rather than moving at a snails pace - it would have been better. Of course I don't get to choose but really - can the week move any slower?! It will now be the longest 50 1/2 hours of my life.... but that will be alright I guess. After all, I am marrying the love of my life!

Lucy

2009-03-05T13:27:00.000-08:00

T and I adopted a little puppy on Saturday. Yup, her name is Lucy. She is a Lhasa Apso/Chihuahua mix and she is adorable! She weighs just less than one pound and loves to snuggle. T thinks she looks like Wicket the Ewok on Star Wars... and she kind of does - but we are NOT calling her that! Baxter is T's dog and he is about 5 years old and weighs like 45 pounds and he puts up with Lucy so well. It's cute to watch them play - she is the pesky younger sister and he is the patient older brother. Yes, we have a dog family now! :) It's pretty fun! We are teaching Lucy her name, how to use the bathroom outside, and to stay in her kennel... Okay, T is working on all of that because she lives with him until I move in after we get hitched!!! Exciting!

9 days left (in case any of you were wondering)

9 weeks? What?

2009-02-26T14:26:00.000-08:00

I was just sitting in my Advanced Leadership and Management class when at the end of class a girl said "only 9 weeks left in the semester". Is it really possible that my education will end in a mere 9 weeks? I guess so! It's that time, time to order a cap and gown, time to order graduation announcements... I can't believe it! Two years has gone by so fast!

If only the next 16 days would go by as fast...

18 days and counting...

2009-02-24T13:40:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it has gone by so fast! We are a mere 18 days away from being married and I'm so excited. I'm feeling a little stressed because I have so much work and homework to do before the wedding. Luckily T is a great guy and is completely supportive of me and encouraging of me! Love that boy!

Everything for the wedding is done! We met with the Reception Center on Friday night, the Caterer on Saturday morning and the Florist on Saturday afternoon. It's a good thing T is so organized or I may have put everything off until I absolutely HAD to address it.

I'm so excited to get married and to be able to spend the rest of my life with T. He is so amazing and I love him so much! I can't wait to share that day with my friends and family! Yay for March 14th!

Heart Day

2009-02-17T11:30:00.000-08:00

I love Valentines Day. Well, I love it now that I have someone to spend that day with. I'm lucky enough to have a wonderful fiance who is thoughtful and amazingly sweet. He sent me flowers, candy, and a cute little bear and I loved them, I love him!

We had a fabulous Heart Day. We went to lunch and then settled in the love sac for hours of wedding movies, with the intent not to talk about our wedding. (I ruined it by the middle of the first move "Im so glad we won't have that many people at our wedding")

It was so much fun to just cuddle and watch movies and it wasn't fun when midnight came and I had to leave... Oh well, only 25 more days!

Love Sac...

2009-02-12T14:16:00.000-08:00

Ever since I sat on a love sac, I have wanted one. I guess that makes it sound like it has been years, and it has, maybe 3 years - but years none the less. They are so soft and fluffy and I figured it would be a great piece of furniture to plop in front of one of the tv's at T's house. We talked about them and how much fun it would be to cuddle on one while watching his never ending supply of DVD's. With that conversation I was sold and decided to buy one for T for Valentines Day - I'm such a selfless fiance ;)

So last Monday I did my research and on Tuesday I went into the Love Sac store at Fashion Place and had to be the easiest sell of the day! I told the guy behind the counter exactly what I wanted and bought a love sac. He asked me if I had ever put one together and I said no but it couldn't be that difficult. He gave me directions and put the sac in my car so I could take it home. Now, if you know me at all, or have read my blogs, you know how much I love giving gifts and I knew this one wouldn't wait until Valentines Day.... so that evening I told T that I had a surprise for him and that I would give it to him the following day - yes it was early I know.

The next day I got to T's house and had him help me get it out of the car because it was heavy as sin! We took it to the basement and began the process of turning a small shriveled square of foam into a large puffy love sac. By Saturday it was ready to be tested out - and we loved it! It's perfect for cuddling in and it's even nice for a nap :)

I don't know how we ever watched DVD's before the love sac... It is so much better than the couch! Plus with the blanket and new little pillows we got for it - it's an amazingly comfortable piece of furniture! Love the Love Sac!