Poor 2010

I hate to say it, but 90% of the people I've talked to are HAPPY that 2010 is about over. 2010 has gotten quite the bad wrap! There have been SO many trials or heartbreaks this past year, that most of us are excited to change that calendar over:

- Back mishap in April (on my birthday) that caused intense pain for 6 weeks.....

- Playing Volleyball in July and snapped my Achilles Tendon which has lead to 5 months of Physical Therapy and pain..... NO sports for another 8 months (mandated by Dr)

-Lost 3 grandparents this year

-Rough and awkward work situation with bosses that makes me look forward to May....

-Adam's dad fell off a ladder and broke his back (through miracles he WASN'T paralyzed)

-SEVERAL loved ones are getting divorces, which entails tons of changes and heartbreaks....

-The ever present fertility issue just gets more and more complicated. Now there is another surgery needed before we can even think of starting in-vitro.....

As you can see, it's been a memorable year :) I've pondered this past 12 months and I can see the hardships that have been present, but every step of the way I can also see the blessings. I struggled SO much with my leg being out of commission for so many months, but having my sweet hubby, parents, siblings, and friends there to help me along the way has really made me feel SO loved! With the passing of loved ones, I've been able to look at and be grateful for the eternal perspective we have... The knowledge that our Heavenly Father and Savior are there for us, is truly priceless. As I've been praying heavily the past 6 weeks to forgive others, I've been able to grow in my appreciation of a loving Heavenly Father..... I know this is all temporary, but he continues to listen to my prayers and tears and comfort me. And through all this other chaos, he has whispered to us repeatedly that we will one day have children in our home. Having the patience to not know when this will happen, is another area of growth, but no matter how many times we ask, he comforts us.... This past week we celebrated our 5th anniversary and I continue to be amazed that he is my husband. How can a girl be so lucky? He is one of the greatest blessings in my life and I appreciate that the Lord has us together to get through all this craziness we call life.

So, I hope you all have a fantastic New Year's celebration and an even better 2011! May we all continue to grow and survive that growth :)

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all! I love this time of year. I really can't believe it's come around again, but it truly makes me feel like a kid again. I love the traditions, the music, and the peacefulness that comes with this wonderful holiday. My favorite part is that we can finally stop and think of the birth and life of our Savior Jesus Christ. His life and love of us hits me every day in a multitude of different ways, but this time of year it seems to overwhelm me at times.....

I loved this section of a talk that was given by President Monson: "Brothers and sisters, this joyful season brings to all of us a measure of happiness that corresponds to the degree to which we have turned our minds, feelings, and actions to the Savior, whose birth we celebrate.

There is no better time than now, this very Christmas season, for all of us to rededicate ourselves to the principles taught by Jesus the Christ. Let it be a time that lights the eyes of children and puts laughter on their lips. Let it be a time for lifting the lives of those who live in loneliness. Let it be a time for calling our families together, for feeling a closeness to those who are near to us and a closeness also to those who are absent.

Let it be a time of prayers for peace, for the preservation of free principles, and for the protection of those who are far from us. Let it be a time of forgetting self and finding time for others. Let it be a time for discarding the meaningless and for stressing the true values. Let it be a time of peace because we have found peace in His teachings.

Most of all, let it be a time to remember the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the Wise Men."

I'm so grateful for our Heavenly Father and his Son. Merry Christmas everyone! Thank you all for being such great people. We are so lucky to have such wonderful people we are related to and have been able to meet such great friends. Wonderful blessings.....

Whirlwind

Whirlwind is kind of an understatement. We've been ALL over the countryside the past couple of weeks having a ton of fun, but the blog has been neglected :) (Come to think of it, so has our house.... NO Christmas decorations are up yet.... HOPEFULLY tomorrow for Family Home Evening...)

To start everything off, we had a fantastic Thanksgiving at my parent's house in Nevada. The food was great and the warm 70 degree temperature was just right :) Unfortunately I had a terrible meeting right before the break, and I spent too much time crying over the long weekend. It has been a huge struggle for me to forgive some of the awful things that were said, but I've been able to pray a ton and see a few miracles come out of all this. Not what I had in mind when I prayed for 'growth' :)

After talking with a few people when we came back, I was able to clear up a few things and head out on our next adventure with a little less weight on my shoulders. For our 5th anniversary, we had talked about checking another item off of our 'Bucket List'. Going to a professional football game was that exciting item. Then we found out that a few cousins/best friends were going around the same time and that sounded even better! So, we headed down to Phoenix and watched the Cardinals play the Rams. Honestly, I was like a child on Christmas morning. I had never been to a professional game before and I was pleasantly surprised that it was almost like a carnival! SO much was going on at all times, that I would sometimes forget to watch the game :) Unfortunately I forgot the camera, but Scott and Deanna took a few and I'll post some of those when they catch up to the curve ball life has thrown at them recently.....

We rolled home late Monday night and have been slaving away ever since with 2 Christmas parties, Adam working until 10:00 a few nights and juggling Tithing Settlement, and ward conference thrown in there as well (Now you might be able to see why the Christmas deco hasn't made it up yet :) Like I said, 'Whirlwind'. With all of the craziness, we've felt a bit overwhelmed, but then we've been able to find small snatches of time together that have been priceless. Driving the 18 hour round trip from Phoenix or even driving down to Eden for Adam's Christmas party, has helped me 'recharge my Adam battery' :) Those little moments of stolen time are what keep us afloat. I'm so grateful to our Heavenly Father for this guy. Seriously, one amazing kid, and I appreciate his love and support through all the trials that get thrown at us. This past year has been difficult with all the health problems and trials, but Adam has always been so strong. Let's hope 2011 isn't as crazy :)

Timing

I have these fun, light hearted blogs planned in my head, and then life happens and those posts get bumped. So I'm sorry if my blog has turned into a 'heavy' read :) However, my head has been swimming lately with the concept of timing.... You really start to feel like plans are crusin' along and then 'BAM' a road block come up. You feel like it's the biggest inconvenience ever, but once you make it around the new impediment, you see why it had to happen as it did (frustrating, right?)
When I was 20 or so, through a series of spiritual events, I decided to go on a mission for our church. The timing of that ended up being perfect and I was super excited to head over to Spain. While there, everyday things worked completely on the timing of other people's choices. After many frustrating and awesome experiences, I got home. I thought I had this timing thing figured out.
Then it took me a little while to find my amazing best-friend and marry him. Again. Timing. At the time, I couldn't figure out why I hadn't found him yet and what the meaning of it all was. But as I look back at the timeline of our lives, I could see why Heavenly Father had allowed me to work and wait awhile.
Soon after, we were married. And, even now 5 years later, we wait for those kids to join us. We continue the endless cycle to dr's offices and figuring out the correct times of the month. I don't understand this trial yet, but I do have confidence the Lord hasn't deserted us. I do know that he has a plan (even if I forget that at times and have a good cry :)
Now we have another thing to wait on. We had started to look into buying a house. We have the loan and mortgage figured out and we were about to start doing walk throughs and tours. A couple of days ago we were called into the Stake President's office and Adam was asked to serve as the 1st counselor in the Bishopric of our Family Ward..... So, guess what else will be waiting for a while? :) While we were talking with the Stake President, we both felt a huge confirmation that the housing plans should be put on hold for a while....
I sometimes think the Lord gets a good chuckle. I might have quoted this before, but there's a Hebrew phrase that says, "If you want to see the Lord laugh, tell him your plans." So true, right? I do know everything in life has an order to it. I do know there are blessings associated to each sacrifice and the willingness to serve. Sometimes I wonder why we have to do so much bumbling around, but I guess that just helps us learn more.

2 Weekends and a Funeral

October started out with a bang and HASN'T STOPPED YET. We have been running EVERYWHERE. The first week, I had Parent/Teacher Conferences crammed into 3 days (that's 30 meetings people!) and then we headed off to sunny Albuquerque, NM for the weekend. I truly love going down to New Mexico. I always find something new and different there (PLUS it's warm :). We were able to enjoy a couple of care free days down there with Adam's dad and step-mom (Thanks guys!)

But when we were driving home, real life came crashing back. On the drive home, my mom called to let me know that her father had just passed away. We had been given a little warning, so I able to talk with him on Friday (Hardest. Conversation. Ever. How do you end that phone call?....) I truly love that man, so it was hard to imagine him passing on..... He's struggled with health problems for so long, that I just assumed he would always be around (even if diabetes had made him blind, caused his kidneys to fail, and led to heart problems....). But, he has been able to join his mom and dad, who've already passed, and I KNOW he is happier there without all the struggles his body has given him.

So, we got home from New Mexico, packed up again a couple days later, and headed up to Lovell, Wyoming. LOTS of car-time, but it was a beautiful ceremony and it was GREAT to see some family members I haven't seen in 8-9 years (Averett's don't keep in touch very well....)The week before, Grandpa had set up for us to go fishing with one of his Best Friends, so we even spent Saturday fishing in his memory :) Needless to say, we have had some crazy weekends, but we're glad we were able to see so many family members.

The Grand Canyon

As mentioned in previous posts, Adam and I LOVE to travel. It's in our very blood and has led to many wonderful and amazing adventures in the past 5 years. Adam was feeling a little anxious to hit the open road over Labor Day weekend so we looked at our Bucket List and found something that was within our price range. The Grand Canyon was the lucky winner :) I was a little nervous because of my walking boot, but there were still plenty of trails and sights for me to hobble around to.

A big bug that welcomed us. I have NEVER seen a beetle this big!




Complete bliss





Our view while eating lunch. Amazing, right?




Livin' on the edge




Cutsie couple shot :)











I LOVED this adventure and I'm SO grateful for our get-away. This summer wasn't full of fun traveling like some in the past, so it felt refreshing to sneak in a quick trip. We also want to send out a HUGE thanks to my sister's In-laws the Stouts. They were amazing and let us stay with them while we were traveling around. A perfect end to 'One Crazy Summer' :)

Baby Thoughts

I've tried to analyze myself these past several years, but I've never been able to figure out why Autumn is the season that hits me the hardest. I will cruise right through all of the other seasons, but when September/October comes around, I start to ache incredibly for children. We haven't wanted to complain or rail against the heavens for this trial, but sometimes I want to say, "This sucks. No, I don't know how this will turn out." We do look to our Heavenly Father a lot on this subject, but the ache doesn't completely go away....

My good friend Cally recently sent me a newspaper article that perfectly worded how this gut-wrenching trial feels. It is an article written by Laura Bush (which I hadn't known beforehand that they had dealt with infertility). She says, "The calendar advanced, and there was no baby. The English language lacks the words 'to mourn an absence.' For the loss of a parent, grandparent, spouse, child, or friend we have all manner of words and praises, some helpful, some not. Still, we are conditioned to say something, even if it is only 'I am sorry for your loss.' But for the absence, for someone who was never there at all, we are wordless to capture that particular emptiness. For those who deeply want children and are denied them, those missing babies hover like silent, ephemeral shadows over their lives. Who can describe the feel of a tiny hand that is never held?"

As I read this article, I finally felt like someone had ripped the words from my heart and laid them out for the world to see.... THIS was what I have felt while crying in the dark hours of night. THIS is the description I wish I could give to people when they ask how I'm doing....

Yes, I know people say I will long for these quiet times when I'll have a crying baby in my arms, or that I should enjoy the time I have. I kind of cringe when I hear this. I wonder how they picture my life? Adam and I DEFINITELY don't lay around crying all day. We travel around the world. We go on dates. We laugh. We play. But at the end of the day we don't have a little one to carry on our name or a little body to snuggle with that tells us they love us. THOSE are the moments we ache for. THOSE are the moments that make it hard to swallow the pain. This is why we pray for God's help...
(PS. I REALLY hesitated posting this.... It's so raw...)

New Chapters

A lot of 'new' things and firsts are happening around here.

1. I am now off of crutches! Yeah!!!! HATE those things. But now there is more pressure on the injured leg, so it hurts more after those long days of school :(

2. Adam's job is off and running. He finished his first full month there and he's really enjoying it. He now has clients (which makes him one happy camper) and he is really getting into the groove of the company.

3. I took my first steps without my boot this week. I honestly feel like a 1 year old again (or maybe Bambi on ice :), but it's the little things that make you happy. Steps (unassisted) are a big deal around here.

4. Adam had his first school year in 4 years where he wasn't drug to an elementary school for long hours of helping me :) I had some absolutely AMAZING friends come through for me to assist with the set up. Adam was working LONG hours and I had crutches, so my angels from above stepped in and made a miracle happen.

5. I had my first day of school.... Gulp... I know it's my 4th year of teaching, but honestly I get nervous EVERY year. I get so anxious with meeting parents, figuring out the little personalities of my students, and then making sure it all runs smoothly. And THIS year had the leg pain added in, so I was pretty anxious. We are still in the 'Honeymoon' stage of the school year, but this class is going to be really great. A lot of funny and sweet kids.

6. For the first year since we've been married, we didn't get to go the the beach or have a travel crazy summer. I have mixed emotions on this one, but it makes me think of other possibilities now... For instance, my amazing cousin Kalee is now in Belgium playing professional basketball, and who WOULDN'T want to drop in on her?

7. This past little while is the first time in over 3 years that I haven't been through a crazy emotional rollercoaster every month when we find out we're not pregnant. In-vitro will be stinking expensive and I know it sounds weird, but it's been great to have that weight off my shoulders the past little while. All the 'what-ifs' and 'should I be doing more' are gone. Now we've got to get the money....

It's been pretty crazy around here with Physical Therapy appointments scheduled around our work days, and life crammed in around all of that. But we're doing pretty dang good. Life is a blessing. I ran into one of my all-time favorite quotes today. It always makes me happy - "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." Eleanor Roosevelt. All I can say is "Amen, Eleanor." :)

Adam's Big Day

He turned the big 2 9!!! I know it's stupid, but I was glad to have him join me in this age I've been at for the past couple of months. Unfortunately he had to work that day, but he was able to take off half of the next day and go golfing and enjoy himself. I love that everything he wanted was toys :) A kid at heart for sure.



Adam has been my best friend for so long, that I forget how I made it through the first 24 years of my life without him. He is an amazing man and truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. He has really earned this good name the past month or so with having to deal with a 'crippled' wife. He is one patient guy and I love him dearly.

4th of July mayhem

It all started with Volleyball.... Doesn't most of lifes crazy, hairy raising adventures start with sports or outdoor activities of some kind? I'm starting to feel that way.... (Check out the bruising in this pic!)

We were in glorious Nevada for the 4th of July weekend and we had been enjoying ourselves immensely. Swimming, paintball, and playing cards had been occupying our time up until Saturday when the town festivities were scheduled. I was really excited to play in the volleyball tournament that was set up and I was REALLY excited for the team we had lined up. All family and good friends, so I was looking forward to a day full of volleyball. Well, apparently I'm not as young as I thought I was.... We were playing some fast paced, hard games and I was wearing out :) I told myself to buck-up and quit being a pansy, but 3 hours into this shin-dig and I wanted to just lay down :) We were on the last point of our 6th game when I apparently reached the end of my rope... I headed up to the net in a totally normal move (to cover our hitter), when I felt a huge "SNAP!" It felt like somebody and thrown a brick at my ankle.... I was really confused that somebody would throw something at the court during a volleyball game and I started to look around. Then the pain hit.... I couldn't support my weight anymore with my left leg, so I collapsed to the floor. Holy crap it hurt! After they carried me off the court, I was given rough news when an EMT told me it was probably my Achilles Tendon and we should head to the E.R.

Good bye wonderful 4th of July weekend! We wrapped up the useless ankle and headed on over to St. George. The E.R. visit was only about 45 min (amazing, right?) and they said, "The Achilles was torn at least 90%"... What?! I think I freaked the Doc out when I started to cry with the news that it would be a 4 month recovery.... He told us to find an Orthopedic Surgeon in Logan when we got home and to get in ASAP. I was able to get into the dr. 3 days later and surgery was then scheduled for the following day. I've NEVER been under the knife, so this was a point of anxiety. I made it through and I've been able to start down the road to recovery with the help of an amazing husband, friends, and family (thanks mom for coming up for a week! :). I'll progress from my hard cast through a soft cast (still with crutches :( and make my way to a walking boot and Physical Therapy.

The roughest part for me has been the stupid crutches. EVERYTHING is SO much harder. It's a trial in patience, for sure :) I HATE asking for help, so I feel like a little princess when I ask for a drink of water or for something that's upstairs.... On another sad note, I couldn't teach Summer School, so I couldn't make the money that would be my ticket to my Ireland/England trip that was planned this September... A couple of tough pills to swallow, but honestly I'm doing really well. Some days I wonder if I can make it out of the house, but I've had so much great help from my wonderful mother and family, and some amazing friends that the time has gone quickly. Can I send a shout out to my SUPER patient husband? He has REALLY spoiled me these past couple of weeks, and I SERIOUSLY don't know what I would've done without him :) The logistics of keeping a house clean with laundry to be done, trying to shower with this huge cast, and feeding me regularly has really put a load on him as he carries a full-time job. Oh, I LOVE him..... I SO don't want to go through this again, but I have been able to see many great blessings that have come from this trial. Needless to say, it's been an interesting experience :)

An afternoon out

The other day my sister and brother-in-law had the FABULOUS idea to head up a canyon and cook our tinfoil dinners (My family always called them hobo dinners. Anyone else?). It was one of the few nice days we've had up here, so it was great to get away and enjoy the weather. Oh, I LOVE summer!


Delicious dinner! I added some cheese to the mixture and it turned out quite tasty :)

The cutest little guy and his awesome mother :)

World Cup

I've never understood why the U.S. doesn't get as crazy about soccer as the rest of the world does. I actually didn't find the passion until I lived in Spain (Adam played soccer when he was younger and in High School, so he's been in LOVE with it his whole life :) After living in Europe and having a soccer loving husband, my eyes were finally opened. The skill required to negotiate the field, have non-stop play and running for 90 min straight, to be able to have the ball change directions in mid-air, and then to do this all without using your hands (Eat your heart out Princess Kobe Bryant :) is amazing! Needless to say, we are a soccer house hold. Which brings us to the Mecca of soccer, The World Cup.

THE WORLD CUP only comes every 4 years and is a solid month of pure soccer bliss. This round places the tournament in South Africa which obviously puts everything in a different time zone. Do you think this is going to stop us? Nope. We just stay up later and wake up earlier :)

The U.S. vs England match last Saturday was highly anticipated and lived up to expectations. Controversy and excitement over a tie? You definitely don't find that in just any sport :) We're only a week into this treat and you better believe we will enjoy the other 3.

I know.....

I know we're boring and haven't posted for awhile, but we haven't had anything "post worthy" happening around here. Don't get me wrong, we've been so busy I've wanted to pull my hair out, but who wants to blog about that? :)

I've been finishing up this school year (tomorrow is the last day!!!! :), and I just shake my head and wonder where the year went? It seriously feels like March, so I haven't been getting too excited about the last day of school. It didn't hit me until today when we were taking things off the walls and packing everything up. We also don't have any crazy plans this summer, so it's weird to feel so relaxed about the coming months (I might be able to go to Ireland/England in September, so there is that to look forward to :) I always hate ending a school year, though. Some teachers might disagree with me, but it's hard to start over with a new class. I swear, I just get them trained and I just figure out all their little personalities, and they move on to 4th grade, ripping your heart out. Go figure.

Adam has been madly studying for his Clinical Exam that he has tomorrow, which pretty much determines when he can start his job. I have loads of confidence in him, but we're still praying like crazy that he'll do well (you have to cover all bases, right?) It's wicked hard and expensive, so we'll be glad to have that behind us.

Besides work, studying, church activities, family time, friend time, and doctor's appointments, it's pretty calm around here :) Anybody else think May is ridiculously busy?

Hallelujah!!!!

GRADUATION!!!! When we were married 4 1/2 years ago, this day seemed like it would never happen. Getting through our Bachelor's degrees and then a subsequent Master's degree was not within reach. I don't think I have an imagination large enough to think of our lives without semesters or all-nighters finishing homework... BUT I don't have to try and imagine now! It will be our lives, so now I can find out day-by-day :) The day was beautiful and I couldn't stop watching Adam during the ceremony.... It just seemed surreal and I was SO proud. I am incredibly grateful for all his hard work and patience. Oh, I love him....







AND we recently found out that Adam was able to get a fantastic job!!!!!!!!! Yup, he will enter the work force within his field of study. Pretty excited about that! It's with a company that has offices all over northern Utah, so we will be here for a couple more years. We want to settle down further south, but the economy needs to even out a bit.....

Let There be Fish

There's been an inside joke between Adam and I about our ability to keep things alive. We always have good intentions, but every plant that has entered this house alive, has left in a trash can. We've often laughed that maybe THAT'S why we don't have kids yet; They wouldn't make it a week :) But we decided we needed to 'dig a little deeper' and see if we could keep an animal alive. So, we got fish. Easy, right? The experts at Petsmart gave us a HUGE list of things that needed to be done before we could even get our hands on a scaly little friend. We followed everything to the letter. And the first night we had a casualty.... We relied on their 2 week guarantee and had to exchange one little body. I felt like such a criminal when I went into the store for the exchange! But since this little hiccup, we've been able keep all our little ones alive (We had a little scare yesterday involving too much sunlight, but everyone made it through the night :) Phew!


We bought this side table for the tank, and I LOVE it!

Moments

Do you ever have those moments where everything just feels wonderful? You feel so content and life just feels great.... NOTHING in life is perfect and I think we would get spoiled if everything did fall into place. But every once in awhile, there are those moments where I sit back and I think to myself "This is happiness. This moment right here." You might be surprised to find that NONE of it involves money or extravagance, but it always involves my sweetheart and our family and friends.... Those sweet moments make everything worthwhile. Even when work is crazy or I have 10 meetings in a week, I think to those simple moments when the world was "okay" and I realize I might survive :)

Learning

Our topic this month is "Learning" and it was my turn to do the Newsletter. I thought I might as well put my thoughts on the blog too :)

I remember as a little girl, watching my mom read. I still remember being amazed at the fact that she could stare at those squiggly lines in the book, and have a story unfold for her. Books were such a miracle to me that opened a whole new world of possibilities. Using these books for my continual learning, and consequentially my Education, has always been an important part of my life. My parents put such an emphasis on our schooling, that there never was a question about its importance. For this, I will forever be grateful. To learn new things and be open to new possibilities is a gift without value.

“Reduced to its simplest definition, education is the training of the mind and the body. Education is the great conversion process under which abstract knowledge becomes useful and productive activity. It is the something that need never stop. No matter how old we become, we can acquire knowledge and use it. We can gather wisdom and profit from it. We can grow and progress and improve,” President Gordon B Hinckley.

Our education is a progression and can be improved throughout our lives. The resources we have available now are incredible. Almost any questions our brains come up with can be answered with a short search on the internet. Using these tools appropriately, we would be able to understand more than any other previous generation. This is a great gift from our Heavenly Father, which is another example of His endless love. “There is only one Source whence men obtain wisdom, and that is God, the Fountain of all wisdom,” Brigham Young.


May we all keep learning :)

Crochet and Cake Decorating

Lately I've had this huge curiosity to try a bunch of new things. Maybe I'm realizing I haven't tried a ton of new things, because I knew I wouldn't be immediately amazing at them ;) That is definitely one of my faults. When I play sports or do projects I feel like I have to have perfect results. I've always struggled with that. I honestly think I'm too lazy to work on something and not come out satisfied with whatever I was working on. Go figure.

So, I decided to try my hand at crochet. I've actually learned quite a few stitches and it's not as hard as I thought it would be. EVEN better! However, to read a pattern is still a struggle.... I'm working on making anything harder than a pot holder ;)

Also, when we were down in Albuquerque, I was pretty immobile with my back. My Step-Mother In-law introduced me to the world of Cake Decorating. I never knew what was out there! The possibilities of beautiful flowers and designs, just boggles my mind. I'm pretty excited to be able to explore these techniques. I'm not very good, but it is fun to create things with sugary goodness ;)

Birthday Surprise

My Birthday was on Saturday this year, so Adam planned a "big-secret surprise" that required a Friday off of school. Darn it. ;) The only hint he gave me was that it was in Ogden..... So we arrived HERE!!!! I was REALLY excited!!! He kept asking me if I was nervous, but I honestly didn't have any reservations. I just jumped right in and floated around ;) The only worry I had was if I would be able to breathe in the wind tunnel. No problems with that all! For some reason the wind doesn't affect your breathing. It was a surreal experience and I LOVED every minute of it!

















I LOVED the surprise and I thought it was a great start to my "Birthday Weekend" ;) The next day was my 29th birthday..... Gulp! I wasn't looking forward to this step towards the big 3 0..... But it started out great and events later in the afternoon made me forget all about my concerns with aging.... It all started with an Easter egg. My family has a tradition that involves a mad dash to Easter eggs and the potential prizes they can get for you ;) It was the adult egg hunt, and we were all acting like crazy 2 year olds. The very first egg I bent down for, caused me to start gasping for air! In some crazy alignment of the stars, I had sprained my 'stabilizer muscles'. I had never been in so much pain in my life! The pain was shooting everywhere in my body, but was originating from my low back. After tons of help from amazing family, friends and chiropractors, I now want to live ;) It will take 4-6 weeks for me to feel 100%, but I have improved to the point that I can walk on my own now and even shower myself again. I couldn't stabilize myself which meant I couldn't sit up or stand up without those muscles going beserk.... Did I mention it was painful? ;) Needless to say, I was no longer worried about what age I was. I did think it was ironic that my body wanted to rub it in that I was getting older ;) Here's to wishing for many more (less painful) birthdays!!!

Greatest Dessert on Earth

Yeah. I'm a little boastful about these. I can't take credit for creating the recipe, but I am pretty proud I can make them without screwing up the recipe ;) I found them through the 'Queen of the Kitchen' Martha Stewart. She put out a Best Selling cookbook that was all about cupcakes. I couldn't believe she hadn't done this before! It's been a ton of fun creating these little bites of heaven ;)




Here's the recipe:

Makes 36
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (from 3 lemons)
3 tablespoons finely grated orange zest (from 2 oranges)
3 tablespoons finely grated lime zest, plus more for garnish (from 3 limes)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
9 large eggs, room temperature

Glaze:

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/4 teaspoon finely grated citrus zest, such as orange, lemon, or lime
3 tablespoons fresh citrus juice, such as orange, lemon, or lime

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour and salt.

2.With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl every few minutes. Add citrus zests. Reduce speed to medium, and add vanilla. Add eggs, three at a time, beating until until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in four batches, beating until completely incorporated after each.

3.Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full; tap pans on countertop once to distribute batter. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored up to 2 days at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

4.To finish, dip tops of cupcakes in glaze, then turn over quickly and garnish with zest. Cupcakes are best eaten the day they are glazed; keep at room temperature until ready to serve.

Ahhhhh.... Weddings

I really don't view myself as a hopeless romantic, but there is something about weddings that make me cry like a baby. Everything is so fresh in their relationship and everybody is so happy. It just touches my sensitive side ;)
This past weekend we were able to attend the wedding of a person we all refer to as "Rocky" ;) Hermana Rockwood and I were companions on the mission, and have stayed great friends these past 7 years or so. We were so excited to see her and Jarom get married (we've been rooting for him the past 2 years!). I'm not super happy he is whisking her away to New Zealand for the next couple of years, but maybe that will give us an excuse to do a little sightseeing down there.....

Life Hunting

Isn't it interesting how life works? We work our behinds off for 20 years through school, and then what? We have to search for our Life.... A very nerve wracking and stressful process. I went through a minor "Life Hunt" 3 years ago, when I graduated from college, but I found a job so quickly that I didn't have too much anxiety. However, Adam's Life Search is starting to really stress me out. This is the real deal. We've got to find a job, a house, figure out where the Lord wants us..... Then we need to see how it would affect us long term with children (school districts, is family close, etc)..... It's pretty overwhelming to say the least.

I think it's pretty ironic, since we've anticipated this time for SO long ;) When we got married over 4 years ago, there wasn't even a light at the end of the tunnel. No worries on trying to find our Life and pay off those student loans. Well, time does pass and it does sneak up on you. So, now we grow up and find our Lives. Here's where the Faith kicks in and we rely heavily on the Lord. Which helps my anxiety ;)

What will we do next winter?

This coming Saturday marks the end of a tradition Adam and I have had since we were married. Every winter we have made several trips to the Huntsman Center to watch our cousin Kalee Whipple play a little B-Ball (I hope it's not a sin to have too much pride in this girl, because we might be in trouble ;) Sometimes my sisters would come, or other family members, and it would turn into quite a party. Needless to say, we Whipples are not quiet at sporting events ;) But it has always been a pleasure, which has brightened our quite, slow January days. We've been able to watch her grow up and keep updated on how she is doing over greasy skillets from the Village Inn kitchen (at 10 o'clock, that is the only restaurant open ;), while laughing at the completely random topics that come up.

I will truly miss those times..... She has grown up on us and is now a Senior. Saturday will be her last game before the MWC tournament. I'm pretty proud of her. Not just how well she has played, but how well she has handled it all. It's been awesome to see her grow in talent as well has a person. She is known to be shy, but I'm impressed with how well she deals with random people walking up to her and asking for her autograph. It'll be fun to see how she does in the draft these next couple of months. Oh, our little Kalee......

Nothing better than friends

I really wanted to give a shout-out to friends (which of course include those wonderful family members that put up with SO much). I know this sounds SO cheesy, but I've really been thinking about this lately. Since this is the location for my "Thought Vomit", I figured I would have a stab at it ;)

I've been in shock lately from the support we've received. I know we've been exceptionally lucky in life to meet or grow up around amazing people, but it has really hit home these past 6 months. From phone calls, to packages (Ang, you angel ;), to emails, and even acts of service, it has been amazing. I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for showing your love. Thank you for taking a break from your hectic life to give us words of encouragement. Thank you. It really is appreciated and your kindness is a balm. We are truly blessed

I HEART the Olympics

I was one of those geeky kids that would run around the living room, firmly believing I was sailing across the ice or vaulting on a twisted ankle and obtaining that perfect 10. I have always been OBSESSED with each event and every revered champion. I don't care if it is the Summer or the Winter Olympics, if they are in our time zone, or if everything is across the world. Every 2 years, my TV does NOT change from the NBC stations and I'll be watching even if it is 3am. Yes, crazy. I know.

Luckily, my BFF I married is just as obsessed! It surely was destiny ;) We could tell you all sorts of facts and statistics about any event and any contender. Funny enough, Adam has really started to get into Curling (I told you we watch EVERY event ;) It is SO funny to see us cheering for these sports we don't follow the other 1,461 days between Olympic ceremonies. We have been in heaven the past 11 days, and I will be a sad girl when that flame goes out this Friday...... However, maybe I'll be able to get the Olympic theme song out of my head ;)

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat

One of my students is really excited about the theater and was recently involved in a production of Joseph
and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. The parents asked if Adam and I would like tickets and I quickly agreed. I hadn't seen the play in 12 years, but I remembered it was pretty good. I had forgotten how good. I LOVED the play! It was SO funny! I especially liked how this theater had added different local sayings to the dialogue (a couple of advertising quotes and of course the good guys were wearing Aggie Blue ;) I had such a great time.

Is it weird that I had an Epiphany in the middle? Sometimes things just hit me at the most random times, and I'm pretty sure Adam thought I had lost my mind since I was crying during a "non mushy" part ;) It was during a song that Joseph was singing right before the Intermission. He had just been thrown into jail after the whole Potipher incident. I realized he didn't know where his life was headed. He had lost everything. Again. Yet he still had faith in his God. So, I started thinking about all the famous people in the Bible and History. Anybody that came to mind, had their trials and through their darkest moments, they did not know how things would turn out. I'm sure they had doubts. They didn't even know if they would have a happy ending or not. But in the end, God had it all under control. It helped me realize that even in our darkest moments, our Heavenly Father will have everything taken care of. I heard a great quote the other day,"Don't worry about tomorrow, because God is already there." I find great comfort knowing that we're all in good hands.

Nope, life's not fair

So, I've been thinking lately that the old adage is true "Life's not fair." We don't get everything the neighbor has and we don't get it right this minute. No matter how hard we rail against life or shake our fists at the heavens, many facts in life stay the same..... No matter how hard you want to find Mr. Right, or when you think you should be able to have children, or even if you desperately want a loved one back for "just one day", it doesn't happen in our time. AND THAT DRIVES ME CRAZY!!!!

But then I think to myself "What, or better Who, would I be if I received everything I wanted? Would I care about anyone else? Would I feel empathy or be able to relate to their situation? Would I even look outside my own narrow view and lift others up? No, I don't think it would happen..... Which does make me grateful for trials..... They help us reach out. Look past ourselves. Even when our own hearts break, we are able to see through the pain and connect with those family members and friends that we are all privileged to know.

This past month we started the medical side of receiving help with starting our family. To be brief, it didn't work. There's always next month, and yes, we believe the Lord is in charge, but does that erase the pain? Nope. Does that mean I'm smiling through every step of this whole ordeal? Nope. As I said, "Life isn't fair", but in the long run, I'll be okay with that. Right now the pain is intense and at times sneaks up on me, but I'm able to take things one step at a time, one day at a time. And that's all the Lord asks of us.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

A huge mouthful, right? LOVED this book written by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows. It's an interesting read because the entire book is made up of letters written to the characters, but man is it written well. For the first time in awhile, I read a book and FELL IN LOVE with the characters..... You actually feel like you know them and understand the difficulties they felt during World War II. They are sarcastic and just plain real. Some have become my heroes.... A sure sign of a great author. Find it.

THAT couple

Yes, we are THAT couple. We have become the nerds that can't get enough of Family History. For one of our New Year's Resolutions, we decided we needed to start exploring our ancestors. Neither one of us knew a whole lot about our ancestors past our Great-Granparents. So, we decided that Sunday would be a perfect day in our crazy schedules to work on this new adventure. Needless to say, we have been blown away by what we have found. We've only been working on our Family Tree for a month, but the coolest stories have been found and I have truly come to love these people we came from. I would give a lot of money to be able to have a nice chat with a few of them. We found one of Adam's ancestors that lived in Philadelphia during the mid to late 1700's..... He was pretty influential and I would LOVE to know who he chatted with or even met on the streets! So like I said, we are THAT couple ;)

New Obsession

It's pretty ridiculous that we are SO addicted to this game. I mean, with how busy our lives are, you would think we would want to spend our time with sleep or something a little more constructive. But this game is amazing!!! You're able to put your lines onto the other player and you have items that are used to trip them up.... Anybody with a little competitive spirit has got to love that right? When we get playing, an hour can pass without us even realizing it.... I don't even want to shower or worry about anything trivial like food. After we play it, we both have the blocks and shapes running through our minds..... Is that healthy? It can't be, but you better believe I will be walking over to that Wii soon ;)

Snow Again

Well, the snow has come again. For the first time ever I am actually happy about this (Don't ask Adam, because he always loves this white stuff ;) I'm excited this time, because the air quality has been awful the past couple of weeks, so this storm is making it possible to breath again. Logan has the most beautiful mountains, but because of these great 'ole mountains, we sometimes get the worst inversions. Literally the air was liquid and the students couldn't even go outside for recess (which equals a teacher pulling their hair out ;) Now I look out my window and I can see those beautiful mountains and enjoy breathing again without a sore throat.... Very satisfying indeed!

Bumps

Life is good. TONS of blessings. Job is going well. Adam is cruising through his semester. Just cleaned the entire house, so I was productive.

And the only overwhelming feeling I have today is discouragement...... I have so many blessings and yet my heart breaks for my brother right now. He's a fantastic kid, but called us last night and told us that his dream of going on a mission will not happen. While he sobbed through his explanation, all I could think was "But, I still love you." I wonder if that is how God feels? Does he watch us make choices and then when we collapse in front of him sobbing, he says "But, I still love you" ? Does he want to hold us like I did for my brother last night, even though he was hundreds of miles away? Because I have complete faith in my Heavenly Father's love, I dare say he does. Which kind of helps the sad funk I am in today.....

Stuff and Anniversary

This past year my family was able to align schedules, and we were all able to gather in Nevada for Christmas! I was super excited and looked forward to Christmas like a little child ;) We had such a great time catching up, spending time shopping and generally eating too much..... I do love the holidays! ;) Christmas morning was really great with a little niece and nephew LOVING Christmas, Santa, and all the excitement.... my overall sentiment of the whole Holiday was peace and relaxation. EXACTLY what we needed after the craziness of the last couple of months.


















Right after Christmas, on the 29th, fell our 4th Anniversary. LOVE IT! It was Adam's turn to plan the festivities, and he did a marvelous job ;) One thing we agreed on years ago was that our Anniversary would NOT just randomly get squished between Christmas and New Years...... I still wanted it to be important. So, Adam took me to the Cheesecake Factory! I do love this man. I have been craving their fabulous food/dessert for a couple of months. We did some shopping and then headed to the temple.... a perfect way to remember our wedding day. Loved the day and REALLY love the man and all his quirkiness ;)

Then came New Year's Eve.... How is it possible 2009 has already gone by? Wicked fast year, but I find it interesting that almost everyone I talk to seems to be glad it is gone.... Poor 2009. The unwanted year ;) I have mixed feelings about '09....I have learned a lot about myself and growth has been great, but some of it has been painful and is something I'm okay leaving behind in the dusty file labeled 2009.... I guess that's the novelty of a new year, the unexpected possibilities that are waiting around the corner. With Adam graduating with his Master's Degree and a great Dr, I can't wait to see what will be in store for us