I and Love and You

2011

2012-01-22T14:15:00.001-05:00

2011 was probably the fastest year of my life. It mostly revolved around one thing...

Gaining 40 lbs... and loosing 40 lbs... all with in 9 months.

It took four tests before we really believed it.

9 weeks

12 weeks

15 weeks

17 weeks

20 weeks

21 weeks (it's a BOY!)

23 weeks

25 Weeks

28 weeks (after which we have no more pictures because I got HUGE)

34 weeks (3 days before my water broke)

1 hour after my water broke

November 27th, 2011 at 3:58pm

Ashton Jay Beckstrand

6lbs. 7oz., 20" long

Christmas Miracle

2012-01-17T16:54:00.002-05:00

This year hardly felt like Christmas at all with everything we had going on. However, we did get to spend some time with close family and friends, plus our own little Christmas Miracle.

The week after Ash was born Blue Lemon had their 3rd annual Lemmy Awards. I had helped plan this event and wasn't about to miss it. So we left Ashton with his very expensive nanny (aka the NICU) and got dressed up for the night. Can I just tell you how good it felt to fit into something other than sweats?!

Red Carpet night, with yummy food

and good friends.

We didn't make it to any family parties, or to see the lights, we did most of our Christmas shopping in between NICU visits, and we didn't even begin to think about making treats for the neighbors...

But we did have our own little Christmas Miracle

December 15th at about 11:00pm we got to bring the best present in the world home with us after 18 long days in the NICU.

We shut our doors and didn't leave the house till after New Years. Jason's Parents and Crystal and Skyler came to visit Christmas Eve. Jason and I had our traditional Chinese take out for dinner and spent the next 24 hours in a Lord of the Rings Marathon.

Only to be interrupted by my entire family coming up Christmas Day and surprising us with Christmas Dinner and one of the best sibling gift exchanges we've had (we decided on a $2 limit this year = creative and funny presents).

Jason and I opted out of presents this year and took to snuggling Ashton as much as we could.

Definitely can't complain.

Happy Due Date!

2012-01-02T23:34:00.000-05:00

We're so glad you're here.

And we are loving having you home with us. Always and Forever.

Words

2011-12-02T02:57:00.002-05:00

Tonight I need a place to write. So for the few of you that check in on this blog I apologize in advance. But my heart is broken and a good friend said to write everything down because someday I will look back on this and find strength. I know that everyone has trials and I know that I am in no way alone in what I am going through right now. But for now I am grieving, and I think that that's okay, for tonight. People always say that when you become a mother something inside you changes. I'm not sure if that is what has happened to me or if I'm just an emotional person to begin with.

I've wanted to be a mother ever since I was a little girl. Stuffing pillows in my shirts pretending I was pregnant and carrying baby dolls around the house. When we found out we were pregnant I was so scared and excited at the same time. The past 8 months have been a roller coaster of emotions. Excitement for our baby to come and nervousness for the changes he would bring to our lives. I played it out in my head over and over again. I was nervous for labor, how did a body go through all that? How was that ever going to fit?! I was so excited to just hold my baby. I would think about it all night long sometimes. Holding him so tight and loving him as much as I wanted. I was so excited for all my family and friends to come visit us in the hospital and to love him as much as I already did.

I was hoping he would come early, and I guess I jinxed myself, I was thinking December 29th sounded good instead of January 2nd. But November 27th works too. I don't think I fully understood what the future was holding for us when my water broke 1 day before being 35 weeks. When the Neonatalogist came in and talked to us while I was waiting for an epidural I don't think I grasped exactly what she was saying. I was more focused on breathing through the contractions, I didn't understand that she was telling me that my baby wasn't going to be "okay". Epidurals are amazing bytheway. But nurses running in with panicked looks in their eyes, not so amazing.

Being told that your ready to push but you have to push fast and hard is one of the craziest moments. Really? This is happening now? But again panicked doctor voices don't make that moment feel very good either. The words "C-Section" was never something I ever even dreamed of. I doubt many mothers do. I always skipped that section in the books and articles I read. It all happened so fast. I just remember crying and apologizing over and over again to everyone in the room how sorry I was. I felt like I was starting off a bad mother, I couldn't even deliver my own baby. Jason was so calm and great through everything, I felt like I was letting him down though. This experience that he was so excited for wasn't going to happen. Being wheeled down the hall into the scary bright lights of the surgery room, I didn't even register what was about to happen. I was so grateful for the big blue sheet that didn't let me see what was happening but at the same time I hated not knowing what was going on. I just locked all my focus on Jason's eyes and watched him watch me get sliced open.

I still remember the little tiny cry at first, and then nothing, I remember yelling out "why isn't he crying?!" and then it came, not the loud crying you hear in the movies but just enough of it. He had his own special team waiting for him. I was trying to watch him so closely, I just wanted to see him, to count his little fingers and toes and just to know that he was okay. I will never forget the feeling when they laid him on my chest for those short minutes. He just looked at me with those perfect little eyes, he was so tired and honestly so was I. They took him away and I fell asleep while the doctors continued to work on me.

They told me I wouldn't be able to be with him and that he would be in the NICU, but I don't think I grasped exactly what that meant until I was sitting in my room and realized there was no baby in my tummy but no baby in my arms or even my room. It is such an empty feeling.

I know we are not alone in this. So many people have shared their NICU experiences with me and it gives me comfort and strength to know that I'm not alone and that it is not forever. But for tonight I feel like I can feel a little sorry for my self. I know we are so blessed. His lungs are good enough that he hasn't needed to be on oxygen and in the past four days he has dropped down to just one IV and one feeding tube. I know it could be worse. I know there are thousands of babies worse off. I know we are so blessed and I am in no way complaining.

Tonight's my first night at home though. The silver lining in having a C-section is that you get to stay in the hospital longer and I was there exactly as long as they would let me. Getting into the car empty handed with an empty car seat in the back isn't how I planned it either. The empty bassinet I'm looking at right now makes my heart ache even more. You almost have to "relearn" how to walk after a C-section. It is so painful and tiring and the only motivation I had was to walk down to the NICU, which isn't very close, but at the end is your baby so you push through the pain and just do it. It's funny how proud of yourself you can get just over walking distance.

The Nurses say that I had to pretty much give birth twice and that it is going to take a while for my body to recover. So while I'm home healing I'll be praying that my baby is doing the same thing. Finish growing little Ashton your mom and dad want to cuddle you and kiss you and I never want to hear that "times up" and have the nurses take you away from us to plug you back into everything again. Even though I think you look so cute with your little sun glasses on, I miss your eyes. We hardly ever get to see them open so thank you for looking at us so long today before we left. Every night since you were born I just look through all your pictures trying to remember every little feature of your face and hands and feet and every little part of you that I don't even know yet. Please know that we didn't leave you and that we are coming back to see you tomorrow and the day after that, and the day after that, and the day after that....

Dear Baby B,

2011-10-19T13:50:00.000-04:00

Baby B = Baby Boy. Cause we still don't have any names for you. I wish you could pick it out yourself. Sure would make things a lot easier on us.

But look what we got for you.

Gotta love hand-me-downs (I promise it isn't metallic, like this picture makes it look). It makes me happy/giddy every time I look at it. It was sitting in my office at work for over two weeks, but we just brought it home and I think it looks so perfect in the corner of our living room.

Mainly because your room still looks like this.

I promise we will make room for you before you get here.

Chapters

2011-10-13T16:10:00.002-04:00

Having moved a lot through out my whole life, I never really felt like I got attached to a certain house. I got attached to my friends and my surroundings, but never the house it self.

Back in 2006 I started Nannying for a family in Park City, which turned into moving to California, and then back to Park City. Ever since that time I've always had a "home" in PC. I lived there for 3 summers and was back and forth between Sugar House and Park City up until I got married. It was my home during that time. My stability. I knew I always had my room there. My escape and getaway.

Last week, I went up to Park City, to pick up some things that I still had in the basement of my old home there. Since the family spends most of their time in California they have decided to sell it. I got their a little before they did and walked through the house, sat in my room, and I was surprised at all the emotions that came. I went through a lot while living there. A lot of growing up. I miss all the movie nights by the fire place. The scooter rides. The perfect summer weather. The pools. I miss the nights when I had the whole house to myself and I could play the piano and mess up as much as I wanted to and it didn't matter. I haven't played at all since moving away. I miss the cuddles from my girls when they would fall asleep with me or come wake me up in the mornings. I miss all the laughs from the boys cracking me up at all times. The giddiness of the surprise visits and flowers that Jason would always leave for me. I miss the views. Waking up to fresh snow in Park City is something else. It's breath taking.

Blame it on being crazy pregnant or for the first time really being sad about leaving a house. Even though I haven't slept in "my room" for years it was still hard walking away.
We were all crying.
It's the closing of a Chapter in all of our lives.

Thank you for being so good to me Park City. I am a lucky girl to say I have lived there.

Summer???

2011-09-20T12:04:00.003-04:00

Not quite sure where Summer went this year... I don't feel like we got to enjoy it like we wanted to and I'm sad to say that our Bikes didn't even make it out once all season. We will blame this on the crazy amount of Credits Jason took this summer and on the 40+ Weddings/Dinners/Luncheon I put together. Not to mention, I was feeling quite "under the weather" up until the end of July. So what did we do besides work and school?

Tin foil dinners in the mountains with friends. A little bit of St. George. Celebrated Jason's Birthday.

Miniature Golf with the Fam.

Go Karts. Lots of Ice Cream this summer. Played like little kids in the arcade.

We did make it to the pool once or twice. 4 Wheeling for the 4th. Fireworks, Fireworks, and more Fireworks.

Massive bon fires (thanks Dad). Some kayaking and cliff jumping at Causey. Hiking at Sundance.

Jason spoiled me, as usual, for my birthday, which led to a quick trip to Vegas.

Where we explored every free form of entertainment possible, walked the strip till I couldn't walk anymore and lounged at the pool as much as Jason would let me. (This has definitely been my whitest summer yet!)

Bowling, movies, BBQs, cabin trips with friends. We got to walk for a cure and visit the amazing Make A Wish.

Oh and did I mention I gained 9 pounds this summer?

Ya, seriously.

So I guess we weren't exactly bored this summer. But heres to a hopeful boating trip next year! :)

Dinner

2011-09-11T22:43:00.000-04:00

The other day I made dinner for Jase.

It doesn't happen very often (and I've never attempted steak before).

Jason's response when he walked in the door?

"Crap, what day is it? It's not our anniversary or anything right?"

Guest Blogger + Blue Lemon + Weddings + I love my job

2011-09-02T11:42:00.003-04:00

http://blog.thebrideandgroom.com/utah-wedding-planning/divine-details-for-this-white-black-lime-color-weddingguest-blog-with-blue-lemon/

Dear Baby,

2011-08-24T00:15:00.001-04:00

Tomorrow we find out who you are. A boy or a girl. A little me, or a little Jase. Tomorrow changes everything. Even though you're already you inside my tummy. We just don't know very much about you yet and we can't wait. We try and picture you in our family and in our future, and soon we will have another piece of the puzzle. Tomorrow we will know how our family starts out, a big brother to protect his siblings or a big sister to take care of them. Either way we don't care, it just kinda feels like a big deal. Baby, we are so excited to get to know you a little bit better tomorrow. I really do hope you are not too modest and let us get a good peak. :)

Did you know...

2011-08-07T22:51:00.002-04:00

We have a Maxima.

And there is a reason we picked this car out...

The Walk

2011-07-10T20:05:00.001-04:00

Yesterday Jason and I were able to participate in the CureSearch Walk at Liberty Park. It was such an amazing walk and I couldn't believe the turn out! This was the first time that CureSearch has come to Salt Lake and so far it had the largest turn out of all the walks this year. As a whole the walk raised over $70,000 for Childhood Cancer Research. Team Skyler was in the top 5 for the groups who raised the most money too. Crystal and her Mom put a lot into this event and it was incredible running into so many people we had never met all wearing Team Skyler shirts.

There was a special feeling at the park, everyone was there for the same reason, we were all connected in someway. Some had fought, some had lost, some are still fighting, and some where just their because they love. It was an emotional event seeing so many Cancer Fighting Cuties running around with their little bald heads and fighting spirits. I read a lot of Skyler's Buddies Blogs and it was like I was seeing celebrities all over the place. I wanted to run up and hug so many of these little kids and thank them for their courage and example and tell their mothers that I pray for them and have spent many nights crying as I read about their heroic journeys.

I was in charge of taking pictures for our team and loved every minute of the event! I ended up running the cameras battery out there was so much going on and so many moments to capture. To read more and see a few more pictures visit Skyler's Blog. Can't wait for next year!

"Team Skyler

For the Fighters, Survivors, and Angels"

Meet Marci

2011-06-07T21:53:00.004-04:00

I met Marci about 4 years ago at one of those awkward Singles Ward Activities. They were going to the Jazz game and I got talked into going. Probably one of the only activities we both ever went to. So I think it was fate. I didn't know anyone and she was new.

A few months later we were bonding big time in the beautiful Cayman Islands. Creating enough inside jokes to last a life time.

By the end of the Summer we were roomies livin the life in Sugar House. Loved these days. Laughing all night long on the couch. Talking about real life. Swapping music and dancing at all the shows. Watching a million episodes of The OC and Arrested Development. And of course hanging out with the best neighbor ever, Jason.

Jason and I officially adopted her in February.

And then we moved and I cried and cried because I missed her so much. But then we moved home and I was so excited to have my friend back. We may not have been able to hang out as much as we used too. But our monthly dinners were my favorite.

One day Marci decided to go on a Mission. That is what I love about her. She is so brave and strong and has such a huge testimony. Having the opportunity to be there with her when she went through the temple was amazing. I cried. We got to go to St. George for her farewell and meet up with some other good friends.

We were all roommates (and tan) at one point in time, even if it was only for a few days.

Marci, I want you to know how much I love you and how proud of you I am! You are going to be an incredible missionary and I am so excited to hear all of your stories and see the amazing difference you are going to make in this world. Thank you for the example you have set for all of us.

Love, Pop-Pop and Gangy

CureSearch

2011-06-03T21:16:00.002-04:00

From Skyler's Blog:
"There have been too many nights when I sat holding my sons limp hand and listening to a mother down the hall sobbing at the loss of her child, or walked by parents with tears streaming down their faces. I still cant get the images of my son laying in a hospital bed covered head to toe with tubes that were the only things keeping him alive out of my head. Along with the pain, suffering and heartache though I have also seen miracles. I have seen Skyler start breathing on his own when everyone thought he never would again. I have seen him take his first drink after months of not being able to, and I have seen him take his first steps again. I have also received many blessings. The support we have been shown has been incredibly humbling for me. My eyes have been opened to how much good there is in this world. There have been so many people who have picked me up when I didnt think I could go on. Alot of those people were people I have never met before. This last year has changed me for the better and I want to give back. I want to help raise money for a cure. I am proud to be able to take part in this CureSearch walk and am so happy that they have come to Utah for the first time this year."

All of the kids in the video are from Utah, some are survivors, others are still battling, and others are angels helping fight from behind the scenes.

July 9th, come walk with us!

Join Skyler's Team. Or any team for that matter. They deserve a cure.

http://www.curesearchwalk.org/saltlakecity/teamskyler

Utah County

2011-05-16T13:01:00.002-04:00

Sometimes I think that God will place and replace obstacles in your life until you are strong enough to overcome them.

When my family first moved to Utah, we rented a place in Alpine. It was probably the hardest time (in my opinion) in my family's life. My brother and I called it "Hell-pine". I think a lot of it stems from the bitterness and immaturity I had about moving from, all my friends, my high school, my life, and my, my, my Arizona (I was a very self centered teenager). Then coming to this richy "my daddy makes more money then yours does"(I'm not kidding, I heard arguments over this all the time at school), small town where everyone grew up together and wasn't very fond of letting outsiders in, which is what we were, outsiders. In any case Alpine was a hard time for me and when we moved after 7 months of trying to make it work, I swore that I would never NEVER come back. I wanted nothing to do with anything south of point of the mountain. In the next 8 years I could count on two hands the amount of times that I ever stepped into Utah County again.

Then we moved back from Michigan and I had to find a new job, and the one I wanted was in Highland, which is right next to Alpine. As lame as it sounds I almost thought about not taking the job for the sole fact that it was "Hell-pine" territory. Now after almost 10 years, Jason and I have moved back, to guess where... Alpine. I never thought I'd see the day. Jason thought it was really weird that I couldn't remember where my old house was or how to get to certain places. I seriously blocked that time of my life from my memory for a long time. Now we even attend church at the same old ward building, and the other sunday on our way to church we drove past where I used to live, by accident. It did kind of make me queasy inside having flashbacks to those countless nights crying in my room and all those days wandering the halls during lunch because I didn't have friends to eat with.

Again, I think God knows what he is doing, and as lame as it sounds I need to face my 15 year old in secure self and realize that home is where you make it. Who knows how long we will really be here for, but being bitter didn't get me anywhere last time, so here's to our new home, and new adventure, and new friends that I am looking forward to meeting!

Our Life in Boxes

2011-05-04T18:16:00.003-04:00

Once Again.

We're moving. Its tradition at this point.

I will miss our apartment so much. Loved the fireplace, the balcony, the vaulted ceilings, the pool, oh and the walk-in closet. *sigh* Love the mountains. The deer and foxes in our "backyard". Love the shopping and restaurants. Love the people. Love the views.

So long SoJo... We'll be back. (I hope)

Blessings and Love

2011-04-14T01:02:00.004-04:00

Tonight Jason and I were able to go up to Bountiful to give Skyler and his mom a blessing. Skyler is going in for surgery tomorrow to do a biopsy on his lungs. He has been having bad fevers lately and the tests are showing that he may have a fungal infection in his lungs. We are praying hard that this is not a new form of fungus. Not the fungus that almost shut all of his organs down just months ago. We can't bare the thought of seeing him go down that road again.

He is one tough little dude.

You wouldn't have known he was sick seeing him tonight, he was so happy and "normal". As normal as a cancer kid can be, the lump under his shirt where his central line is, his fuzzy head now that his hair is growing back, the slowly healing scars from the many different tubes and surgeries he has already undergone. He looked so big sitting in that chair tonight, with his arms folded, a wii remote in one hand and carmel popcorn in the other, he reverently closed his eyes while Grandpa and Jason gave him a blessing.

A blessing of love and strength.

It brought tears to my eyes. I love that Jason is always prepared and willing to give blessings. I love that he is worthy of the power that he holds to do so. I love that my father raised me in such a way where I'm not afraid, or too proud, to ask for a blessing when needed. I love that I have a testimony of the power, love, strength, and healing that can come from these blessings. What an amazing thing, a direct line from our Heavenly Father, our own special love letter from him. That he loves us, cares for us, wants us to be happy, and even though his answers may not always be our own, they are always for a reason. He does not give us anything that we can't endure, and for that I am grateful.

You are in our prayers Skyler, we ALL love you.

http://crystalandskyler.blogspot.com/

2011-04-03T22:54:00.003-04:00

My Mom loves April Fools Day.

Jason now loves Sushi too.
AKA, gummy worms, rice crispy treats, and fruit rollups.

You get us every year Mom.

Craving

2011-03-20T20:02:00.005-04:00

I'm craving a vacation right about now. For all those Utahn's you know the feeling. Winter is long, and the sun is cruel and teasing right now.

warm. cold. warm. cold. sunny but freezing.

Ever since I was 11 and we moved from Washington to Arizona I would save up all my money all year long and go back to visit every year (except the year they came to visit me).

Then when we moved to Utah, and I went back to Arizona as much as possible.

I loved traveling.

I loved the independence of getting on that airplane all by myself and having time with just my friends.

My first year of college I was way too poor to go anywhere. Then I found Nannying. Traveling and getting paid for it. I was off to New York, then California, best job ever.

The year after I graduated from USU was the best traveling time of my life. In a years time I had gone to California (5 times), Cabo San Lucas, Cayman Islands, and New York. Not to mention all the mini va-kays around Utah.

Needless to say, it's been a while...

I'd love a day on the beach with this guy.

Or a night out exploring with these girls.

How much longer til we're done with school????

Mario

2011-03-13T15:38:00.004-04:00

Weekends have been super busy the past month. Baptisms, Funerals, Birthdays, Work... We've been all over the place and with the beginning of Wedding Season, it looks like my weekends will be booked from here till July.

Luckily Jase and I got a special weekend last week with his family. March 4th, Jason and all of his brothers and sisters were invited to attend the IEA awards banquet at Little America.

Every year they pick a child in need and do fundraising through Children of the Earth and Hogs for Humanity, this year they have chosen to sponsor Skyler. It was a fun and emotional night as we retold Skyler's story and had such an amazing response from so many people showing their love and support for Crystal and Skyler.

It was such a perfect night out, which just doesn't happen often enough. Love these girls!

The following Sunday we were invited to a very special Mario Party, thrown by Skyler himself.

He even hand delivered our invitations, did all the decorating, helped with the food, and planned the games. We played pin the mustache on Mario, Uno, air hockey, had a treasure hunt, and got sweet prizes.

Oh and of course we played Mario on the Wii.

We had so much fun hanging out with Skyler I just love his laugh and his excitement for the littlest of things.

Perfect Weekend.

RollerSkates

2011-03-08T11:17:00.002-05:00

This commercial makes me happy.

Maybe it's because I love this song.

Or maybe I just love the baby...

2 years...

2011-02-24T12:13:00.003-05:00

It's one of those weird things, where I can't believe we have already been married for two years, but at the same time I feel like I can't distinguish the time before we were married from when we weren't. I always feel like Jase must have been around for that family vacation back when I was 15, or that one time when we went to that one place for that one thing. Oh wait that wasn't with you? Oops...

For only two years we sure have gone through a lot of cars (4), a lot of homes (5), a lot of jobs (7ish), a lot of fun adventures, a lot of learning, and a lot of love.

I wouldn't change a thing.

We went to Cancun for our Honeymoon, Puerto Rico for our 1 year, and we really wanted to keep the tradition going, but so far this year a tropical beach get away doesn't seem to be in the cards for us. So I brought it indoors this year. Who says you can't have a picnic at the beach, in February, in Utah.

So cheesy I know...

As Always

2011-02-16T00:05:00.002-05:00

He nailed it...

Perfect Valentines. Again. Thanks baby.

Deep thoughts from 4 year olds...

2011-02-13T21:43:00.001-05:00

We now teach the 4 year olds in primary... 9 of them... they are crazy and by the time we are done with sharing time I am ready for a nap, I just wish they were. Today was about the steps you take to become a member of the Church (Fourth Article of Faith).

1st- Faith
2nd- Repentance
3rd- Baptism
4th- Gift of the Holy Ghost

Teacher: What happens if you don't take these steps?

4 year old: You will fall down.

Wow, good answer. Love their sweet little spirits!

Need a Smile?

2011-02-09T23:33:00.002-05:00

Watch this.

I promise, you will smile.

And if you are like me, you will smile for the rest of the night.

Dad,

2011-01-26T22:49:00.001-05:00

I think you are one of the few that actually check up on this blog so I just wanted to give you your own personal shout out!

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

You are an amazing man, father, husband, worker, church member, and an all around great example to all of us! You emanate selflessness. Even on your birthday you are off all day working to provide for your family and gone all night serving others, fulfilling your church callings, and supporting your children.

I am so grateful for you and all you have done for me! From raising me to love baseball, and always taking me with you to the different ball games, no matter where we are visiting. To always showing interest in the things we enjoy, taking us to plays, sporting events, movies, shopping, etc. For always honoring your Priesthood and being available to help us whenever needed.

Remember when I was looking to purchase my very first car? You would spend your entire weekend with me looking at different cars, making sure I got the best deal and a good vehicle. Those moments test driving $1,500 cars will always be a great memory for me. Thank you for taking the time out of your already bust weekends to just BE with me.

I love you Dad and I hope you had a great day! Thank you for letting us spend a small part of it with you!

ugh... 2011

2011-01-23T20:14:00.003-05:00

2011 was suppose to be my year!
After all the ups and downs of 2010, I was certain that 2011 was going to be smooth sailing. We made our New Years Resolutions, mapped out our goals, and planned out how to make this one, fantastic, year.

However, the first week back to work sure did slap me in the face. All the goals and plans I had made for work were quickly trampled on. Apparently everyone had a different agenda for me than I had originally planned and everything soon spiraled out of control. I think that a fault of mine is that I get to emotionally invested in what I do, it makes me a good employee, but at the same time it can make my life a living you know what. Before I knew it, I was sick over work, more stressed out than I had been in years. I've been emotionally and physically exhausted, putting in way over my 40 hours a week, causing me to loose weight, having no appetite, feeling nauseous, and crying all the time. Now I don't mean a little tear here and there but sobbing uncontrollably at least once a day and not always in the best situations (e.g. The Apple Store).

This week I decided that I either had to quit and move on or turn things around and start over. Since the only other job I would want to do right now, involves training dolphins, I figured I had better figure out a way to make it work.

So I'm back in, back on board, maybe not necessarily as thrilled about my employment as I was before, but I'm here to stick it to them at least. Show them that I do know what I'm doing and I am good at it. It may not be on my terms any more but hey it's not forever. I have a dedication and pride in this brand, and the owners. No matter what.

So heres to 2011, lets just erase the past 3 weeks and go from here...

Best day of the year so far: Chilling with this dude yesterday.

Love him!

We played game after game after game and after he warmed up to me again, we laughed and laughed. I couldn't stop smiling the entire time! It's a good thing I had that little doctors mask on or he would have thought I was a complete idiot for how much I kept grinning at him.

Thanks again Skyler, for reminding me whats really important in life.

2010: the year of the SWITCH

2011-01-19T00:31:00.006-05:00

Start off the year in Michigan...

Switch, we are now in Utah

Jason started the year as the VP of Marketing in Michigan... Switch, he is now a full time student

I started my year off at my favorite job ever, Goldfish...

Switch to my "dream job" as the Event Coordinator for Blue Lemon

Start off the year with great friends...

Switch, new great friends in South Jordan

Start off the year planning trips to the beach and rain forest...

Switch, we now look forward to getaways in the snow

We got hooked on LOST... Switch, we can't stand how much time we wasted watching LOST

We started off the year eating a lot of junk food...

Switch, who am I kidding we still eat A LOT of junk food.

We went from our own Michigan apartment... Switch, living with the Parents... Switch to my favorite apartment ever

Started off the year with 2 new Mazda's...

Switch, we now own "used" vehicles again.

We went from teaching obedient adorable 5 year olds in Primary... Switch, 11 year olds? Seriously?

Talked about buying bikes... Switch, we finally bought the bikes we so long talked about

Lost a brother (Eric left for Korea)... Switch, gained a brother (Jayden came home from his mission) oh and Eric came back eventually too.

Went through heartache and despair...

Switch, we witnessed MIRACLES!

Started out with Jason not wanting anything to do with Harry Potter... Switch, after a Harry Potter Marathon he now loves it (or at least tolerates it with me)

We started off with the hopes and plans for an amazing year in Michigan... Switch, we created new hopes and plans for an even more amazing year in Utah.

It has definitely been a year of change and it has definitely had its ups and downs. But we have learned patience and trust in the Lord. Their was a reason we needed to quit our jobs and move back to Utah. School, Family, New Work Opportunities, Friends, Skyler, the list goes on and on.

2010, it's been a good year and

it's good to be home.

Our Christmas Vacation...

2011-01-01T23:50:00.007-05:00

When I found out that my vacations days expired at the end of the year, I said "alright see you next year!" and Jason and I decided to make the best of our 12 days with no school and no work.

We did lots of last minute Christmas Shopping and stayed up past 9:30!

We got to spend some time up at the hospital with this little dude.

And had a great second "married Christmas" together. Since last years Christmas was spent in another Country (Canada counts) and that's not a very realistic tradition we tried to start some of our own little family Christmas traditions.

We spent Christmas Eve looking at Christmas lights, getting take out, watching movies, reading Luke 2, and cuddling on the couch. Jason's Mom always gives everyone Christmas Eve pajamas. This year ALL of us got "Super Skyler Jammies"

Christmas morning we woke up, opened presents together and headed off to Bountiful to spend the afternoon with Jason's Family. We opened more presents, ate tons of yummy food, and played with Todd and Brittany's new Kinect, (what ever happened to the good ole easy Atari games!?)

That night we headed off to the Airport to meet up with my Family and pick up my brother. Calvin Klein (AKA Eric) had been in Korea teaching English and breaking little Korean girls' hearts for the past 4 months.

Eric coming home was a pretty big deal for our family. Jayden and Eric overlapped on their missions/adventures and this was the first time we had all been together for Christmas in 4 years!

We went to church the next Sunday with my family in Morgan. It was so neat to look down the row and see all of us sitting their together. I loved it. Santa came to my families house on Sunday so we had more presents and more yummy food and fun games.

Jase and I got very spoiled by both of our families this year. Thank you so much for making this Christmas such a fun and memorable one. We love you all!

We had a Beckstrand Family party on Monday at Flips. Where I found out that my husband was apparently a gymnast in a past life. His first time every using one of these things and he was doing all sorts of flips and fancy tricks.

We also got to play in the snow (thanks again Dad and Mom!). It had been a couple years since I've boarded and Jason, as always, is amazing.

This was also the first time in 6 years that my brothers and I snowboarded together. We were all dead the next day but had a blast.

Thanks to my Uncle Randy, and the snow storm preventing him from coming to Utah to use his timeshare, Jason and I also got to spend a night up at the Wolf Creek Resort. Love little getaways.

Topped our vacation off with a fun New Years Eve, with more Chinese food, games, movies, and friends.

Wow, I'm really not looking forward to going by to work on Monday and entering into another Semester of school and never seeing Jason.
Here we go 2011...

"B In Love"

2010-12-28T13:47:00.004-05:00

Dear Mazda3,

It has been a great three years. I will miss you.

You were such a cute, fun car. Thank you for all the good drives, dancing and singing my heart out. At the same time thank you for never telling anyone how many times I cried in the car during drives home after awful dates.

Thank you for saving my life when we hit black ice going 70mph and barely missed the semi truck and hit the median, stopping facing on coming traffic. You handled the situation very well, and I'm sorry I never fixed your front grill for you.

Thanks for being such a great sport about the many many drives down Parleys Canyon to meet the cute Salesman who sold you to me.

I know you had quite a bit of miles on you and have travelled not only across the state of Utah, but half way across the United States as well. Remember when we drove you all the way to Michigan and you never complained once?! You were such a great car to endure that long long drive. And then I had to drive you back from Michigan all by myself. You were packed to the ceiling with all of our things, it was just you and me, and 36 hours of driving, and rockstars, and snow storms, and sleeping in the front seat at scary truck stops, I know you were glad to be home too.

You were a great car, I know I complained at times (but lets face it, you weren't cheap) but with out you I would not have met him and with out him... well lets not think about that.

Love you Mazda3 and thanks again for bringing us together.

Christmas Activities

2010-12-14T21:51:00.003-05:00

I feel like I really haven't gotten into the Christmas Spirit as much as I normally like to. To much stress, work, I really have no excuse though.

We did get a fun gingerbread house making night thanks to the Glovers.

Melissa is the best, she had homemade houses for us, all sorts of candy, and even soup and rolls to make it a perfect Christmasy night.
When I grow up I want a cute house and cute baby and be good at cooking just like her.

I think I ate more candy than we actually put on our house that night.

But tis the season right?

97.1 zht, Thank You!

2010-12-06T17:15:00.003-05:00

http://a1135.g.akamai.net/f/1135/30266/1h/cchannel.download.akamai.com/30266/1084/richmedia/kzht_secret_santa_12-6-10.mp3

We met early at the Hospital this morning for a "Birthday Breakfast" for Brittany.
Which turned into a Secret Santa morning from 97.1 Morning Zoo.

We couldn't be with Skyler, since he is in the PICU right now, but it was such a great thing to surprise and see Crystal smiling and laughing and crying (happy tears) all at the same time.

http://www.971zht.com/pages/secretsanta/

Merry Christmas Skyler and Crystal!

The strength of children...

2010-11-19T12:59:00.003-05:00

Songs For Skyler

crystalandskyler.blogspot.com

I work here...

2010-11-17T19:08:00.004-05:00

Blue Lemon on Studio 5

http://www.utahvalley.com/shopping-dining/dining.aspx?detailID=2267

http://www.vanillajoy.com/blue-lemon-bistro.html

http://www.inthisweek.com/view.php?id=2370624

I love this place, and the people, and the food. I especially love the generousness of Blue Lemon, they will be matching Dollar for Dollar all donations made to Skyler at Songs for Skyler this upcoming Saturday. Thank you Blue Lemon, for sharing the love.

Good Day

2010-11-04T21:45:00.006-04:00

Today was a Good day, I would even go on to say a Great day.

Good event in SLC for Lunch. Love it when they go smooth and everything is on time!

Got a deal for 8 events for a guy from Florida next week. Next week is going to be insane, but that commission check is going to be pretty nice. :)

My dad got us BYU vs. Utah tickets!

Easy event in Highland tonight.

Free Costa Vida.

And what quite possibly makes this day Amazing?

This little guy was moved from the PICU to the 4th floor! All the nurses and doctors commented that they never thought he would move out of the PICU. Apparently kids as serious as he was, rarely get their breathing tubes taken out. So many tears of Joy!

Another miracle... We have someone willing to match dollar for dollar at the fundraiser for Skyler in a few weeks. This is so amazing to me, that people are so generous and loving for someone that they have never even met! Please invite your friends and come out. If you can't donate, just come share the love and enjoy some good music!

Save The Date!

2010-11-01T14:49:00.002-04:00

It's Snow!

2010-10-25T20:13:00.003-04:00

This is what I woke up to this morning!

Snow in the mountains, snow in the grass, snow on my car...

I'm such a little kid still when it comes to the "first snow" (blame it on growing up with very very little snow days).

Come January, I won't be so thrilled about this, but for today I am loving it!

This means I get to wear my sweaters and boots. I love sweaters and boots. Unfortunately they are usually to expensive for me, but I still love to go and just look at them. So many pretty pretty boots.

Oh but I did just win a gift card to Nordstrom, as part of my Rockstar award at the "Lemmys"

Apparently I'm actually pretty good at marketing. Go figure....

Thanks Blue Lemon, great party.

In other Happy News! Skyler is doing a bit better! He is still in the PICU but he actually opened his eyes and watched Scooby Doo the other day. So much love for this little superhero!

Keep the Miracles Coming!

crystalandskyler.blogspot.com

The Prodigal Son Has Returned

2010-10-22T18:45:00.008-04:00

Yep, Elder Snyder is back.

He served an amazing mission, and while I'm glad to have him home, I will miss the weekly e-mails and inspirational stories.

I tried to fool Jayden into thinking I was pregnant when we picked him up at the airport. He just called me a "fatty" and moved on.

He gave an amazing homecoming talk. One of my favorite quotes was:

"It is amazing how when you are building the Lords Kingdom, how much more he is really building you."

Or something to that effect. In any case I cried.

Dear Eric,
Please come home from your modeling career in Korea so we can be a family again.

P.S. I love you

Pre Halloween Weekend

2010-10-12T13:46:00.006-04:00

Pumpkin Patch- Check

Haunted House- Check

Scary Movie- Check

Good Friends- Check

Fun Spooky Drinks with Dry Ice- Check (thanks Jessica!)

Candy and Treats- Check

Perfect Fall Night- Double Check

Every Day A Miracle

2010-09-27T16:16:00.012-04:00

The majority of this past weekend was spent with Skyler in the PICU at Primary Children's. It was a long, sleepless, and emotionally exhausting weekend. I do not know how Skyler's mom, Crystal, and Grandma have been doing this continuously for over a month now.

Skyler had been having very scary nights. Thursday night the whole fam

ily gathered at the hospital at 3:00am to be with him. Friday night we spent the night with Skyler to let Mom and Grandma sleep for a night. Skyler was ab

le to receive a blessing from his Grandpa before everyone left.

Jason and I stayed up all night with him, prepared for another hard night, but come morning time things were actually looking up.

The Church is true.

Skyler gave us a scare while we were there on sunday and his lungs started leaking. They had to put tubes in both sides of his chest. I also got news today that his lung collapsed on him again. A big concern on Sunday was his liver. They have him on a breathing machine and dialysis, which is like an additional kidney. However, they say that they do not have a machine to be his liver.

He is so heavily sedated that it is almost like he is in a coma. It is so hard to see him like this, but it is easier for me to not see him struggling. I pray that he is in a peaceful place through all of this and not feeling any pain.

Be strong little guy!

Some quite observations:

-Hospitals are always cold

-It is so hard to see the full parking lot, and the many many rooms through out the whole hospital with so many people in all of them

-There is a lot of good in the world, but there is also a lot of pain and heartache, you need your family to get through it

-It is very scary to hear a Doctor swear when looking at x-rays and then rush into the room, usually not a good sign

-Crystal is the bravest woman I know! We are the same age, and yet she is years ahead of me

-Nurses are amazing, it is hard work "living" for someone else

-Mothers are amazing, it was heart breaking for me to watch Crystal sit on Skyler's bed and hold his little foot and cry over him. I can not even begin to imagine what this must be like for her.

-Grandmas are amazing, as Crystal sat there with Skyler, her mother sat

right by her side holding her hand. She has been with Crystal this entire time. Putting her work and personal life completely on hold.

-The Priesthood is amazing, it makes me wonder how any one else ever survives anything with out the help of a Priesthood Blessing.

-Husbands are amazing, I have been so grateful for Jason, he is

so strong through out all of this, I can not imagine how Crystal does it on her own. I know Ben, Skyler's dad, is looking down on both of them.

-The Plan of Salvation is incredible, as hard as it is to imagine a life with out any loved one, I can't imagine going through something like this with out the knowledge that we are so blessed to have.

Skyler you are strong and brave and we all love you so much!

crystalandskyler.blogspot.com

Visitors

2010-09-21T15:33:00.016-04:00

I love Visitors! Even though we now live back in Utah I still love love love people coming to visit me. My brother Eric use to visit and hang out with us every once in a while, until he ran away to Korea. I even bought him a toothbrush and he still wouldn't stay. (love you Eric!)

Other than my brother I have only been able to have a few visitors, I blame it on only

having a one bedroom apartment. Apparently people aren't to excited about sleeping on couches.

I did get to have my little girls from California come and stay with me for the weekend. It was so much fun to get to spoil and play with little kids! Started the day off with Baskin Robbins, played at Sugar House Park and fed the ducks, checked out all the cool stuff at Cabela's, ate yummy food at Blue Lemon, and topped the night off with a Carnival! Full of snow cones, cotton candy, food, candy, and more food. Yep we know how to win over little kids hearts.

It was so much fun to have my "grown up-little girls" with me again. I love them!

My latest visitors were my two pretty sisters! They share a birthday and both just celebrated their 16th and 18th! They came up late

Friday night and we went to Momentums Midnight Climb and spent hours rock wall climbing. The next morning we cooked a full on breakfast for them. Eggs, sausage, hash browns, and the best crepes ever! Oh and how can I forget, Blue Lemon cupcakes. See I can do wifely things like make breakfast. We had such a great time, talking, laughing, and playing.

Sisters, please come back soon!

Stand Up To Cancer

2010-09-11T13:07:00.011-04:00

If any of you turned the TV on last night from 7-8pm there is no way you missed this, it was on just about every channel.

I was crying with in the first 5 minutes.

Did you know that:

Every minute, 3 people are diagnosed with cancer

Cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death.

Nearly 12 million Americans are living with a history of cancer today.

1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer.

Most Americans are more afraid of cancer than getting into a serious car accident, or violent crime or terrorist attacks.

(http://su2c.standup2cancer.org/node/2696)

The list goes on...

My Grandpa beat it

My Father-in-Law beat it

Skyler is a warrior and he's fighting it

STAND UP 2 CANCER

http://su2c.standup2cancer.org/

http://crystalandskyler.blogspot.com/

Perspective and Flowers

2010-09-05T22:52:00.008-04:00

Last week was just one of those weeks.

It was hard and stressful and I didn't handle it like I should have.

Work was hard and overwhelming.

I didn't accomplish all I wanted to.

I was annoyed and frustrated with just about everything. Annoyed that the laundry didn't do itself and that the bathroom didn't clean up after itself. Annoyed that I couldn't sleep or eat all week. Annoyed that as hard as I try I just never feel like I'm doing enough. Frustrated that I was crying over nothing.

And poor innocent Jason just took it all in. I came home Saturday night, from a long 12 hour day of events at work to find flowers and a manicure and pedicure certificate waiting for me. With a note from Jase saying how much he loves me and how he just wants me to be happy. All week I had been taking out my frustrations on him, and what does he do? Buys me flowers...

I love him.

Sunday we went to the hospital to visit Skyler.

Poor little guy, just isn't doing good. Anything and everything that could go wrong, has. He looked so frail and out of place in that big hospital bed. You can't help but be on the verge of tears the entire time you are there.

Jason's Mom asked me how my week was. I felt a huge wave of guilt come over me. How can I sit there and complain all week and feel sorry for myself while this innocent little boy is in so much pain and lying there suffering?

I complain and stress over all these dumb little things. While so many people have real trials and real pains.

My new goal is Perspective. Don't take things so harshly and personally. Every day is a new day. A new chance to be a better person. I can't let myself get so overwhelmed or I forget about the important stuff. Like Family, Love, Joy, Friendship, and Health. I've been so blessed in my life. Skyler needs the prayers and wishes more than I do.

Skyler's Uncle made this little slide show of him.

We love you Skyler, thank you for teaching me about perspective.

Welcome

2010-09-01T22:05:00.005-04:00

This is what happens when you turn on your new Mac for the very first time:

I love it.

I loved it when I bought my first Mac book and was too excited to wait till I got home to turn it on, so I started it in the car.

I loved it Tuesday night when I turned on my new Mac book Pro (thank you Blue Lemon).

There is just something about it. Something exciting.

Like you are extra special and Apple is so excited to welcome you to their extra special club.

It only happens that one time, right when you very first start your computer. But it always leaves you wanting more, those Apple people are smart. If I had all the money I would just by Macs to turn them on and get the good "welcome".

Except now, thanks to Youtube. I can watch it whenever I want. But I won't because it'll ruin it and I'd rather save it for the next time...

Skyler James

2010-08-27T23:28:00.007-04:00

Sklyer is Jason's nephew.

We love him.

Last week, he was diagnosed with ALL Leukemia. He has already gone through so much, including several surgeries, constant illness, the loss of his father two years ago, and through it all he has continued to come up on the other side with a big smile. He loves playing with his cousins and will do anything to play a game with you. He LOVES games more than any little kid I have ever met, and he is so good at them too. Board games, card games, nintendo, you name it, he'll play it, and probably beat you too!

Please keep this little guy in your prayers.

We are having a yard sale/fundraiser this saturday to help pay for the ever growing medical bills. It will be held in the parking lot of All Season Pool and Spa in Centerville from 8:00am to 2:00pm tomorrow, Saturday August 28th.

http://crystalandskyler.blogspot.com

Tom Cruise

2010-08-16T11:13:00.004-04:00

Jason and I had to speak in Sacrament Meeting the other Sunday. Our topic: Home Teaching...

We tried to get Tom Cruise to come in and be our guest speaker. He seems to know more than I do.

100% Home Teaching, possible? hahahahahahahaha

Bear Lake

2010-08-04T21:16:00.007-04:00

This years Morehead Family Reunion was at Bear Lake (Thanks Uncle Bob! Great choice!)

Although freezing, the lake is beautiful.

The Caribbean of the West.

Fun boating, tubbing, jet skiing.

Fireworks.

Family.

Really can't complain.

Half Off a Blue Lemon Gift Certificate 4-Pack

2010-07-26T14:13:00.001-04:00

Half Off a Blue Lemon Gift Certificate 4-Pack

Dog Lake, Attempt 2

2010-07-19T20:15:00.013-04:00

Dog Lake, via Big Cottonwood Canyon

I can do it this time.

Maybe

Yes!!!!!!!

Oh and did I mention it was Jason's Birthday? How else could he ever get me to attempt this again?

Topped it off with Pizza Hut and Blue Lemon Carrot Cake (soooo good!!!)

Diamond Rio.

Oh and Fireworks. Yeah, I know how to throw a good Birthday.

Wanted: Friend for Husband, must LOVE Mountain Biking (can use my bike)

2010-07-09T17:07:00.005-04:00

Our second biking adventure was not quite as successful as our first. We attempted to ride to Dog Lake in Millcreek Canyon.

However, the road up Millcreek still wasn't all the way open, so we had to park the car about 1/3 of the way up and ride our bikes the rest of the way up. About 5 miles straight up hill. I was not happy, and I was not loving it.

In all honestly I probably walked my bike for the majority of it. I just couldn't keep up with the constant uphill. I couldn't help but think about how much I could sell my bike for and what would happen if I just "happened" to roll it off the edge of a cliff.

At certain points we were riding our bikes through a good 6" or more of snow. And guess what we found, once we got to the actual trail head, More Snow.

We had been riding for over an hour at this point, and a muddy, snowy trail did not sound appealing at all. So we turned around. Which was the highlight of my ride. As hard as the uphill is, the downhill is

always worth it.

Goldfish, I miss you

2010-07-02T18:43:00.004-04:00

http://www.clickondetroit.com/video/23701792/

MGMT

2010-06-23T16:37:00.007-04:00

I love being back in Salt Lake for many reasons.

The music scene is definitely one of them.

Marci is another.

and crazy weird people at concerts is too.

Oh and the fact that in the venue is now all non-smoking. Love that.

Twilight Concert series couldn't come fast enough.

Modest Mouse.

July 8th.

Yes.

Birthday Bikes

2010-06-12T15:27:00.006-04:00

Happy early Birthday to us!

We've been wanting bikes for a long time now (especially Jason) and after much deliberation and shopping we finally found our perfect fit. 29ers. The have bigger tires then the regular 26" bikes so it is suppose to make them absorb things better? Or something about making boulders feel like pebbles? I dunno. I just liked the color.

We took them out last Saturday for our first Mountain Bike Date. Keep in mind this was the first time I had ever even tried Mountain Biking. We went on the Ghost Falls trail up above the Draper Temple. It was only about 4 miles round trip. It had some awesome views and some really steep cliffs. I have a huge fear of cliffs, and I may or may not have gotten off and walked my bike a few times. It was suppose to be an "easy" trail but even Jase said it was pretty tough. I was dying. But I felt pretty hard core, since I was the only girl we saw on the entire trail. Impressive right??

2010-06-06T18:08:00.006-04:00

This is what I came home to the other week.

Jason surprised me with an Amethyst Necklace.

Amethyst is February's stone.

February is when we got married. My Husband is pretty thoughtful.

It also has a little tiny diamond. I love diamonds.

Yeah... I think he likes me.

2 Month Update

2010-05-21T21:04:00.009-04:00

We have now been back in Utah for two months (and one day to be exact) so I figured it is about time for an update. We are continuing to settle in here, and we are enjoying being back in Utah. We do still miss old friends in Michigan, but are loving the convenience of being close to so many friends and family members here!

The past two months have pretty much consisted of:

Moving in with Jason's Parents

Looking and looking and interviewing and interviewing for jobs.

2 and a half weeks later I got the greatest job at a restaurant in Highland called the Blue Lemon, as the Event Coordinator for their Blue Room. It is (one of) my dream jobs. I'm learning so much and really enjoying it. It's a real grown up job and everything. No more going to work in my swim suit. I put make up on everyday and yes, sometimes I even wear nylons.

After exactly a month living with the in-laws we moved into our own apartment in South Jordan. We are slowly getting furniture. First came the TV, then the mattress, the TV stand, a couch, finally a table (still no chairs, who actually sits at their tables now a days?). You can see where our priorities are though, Jase bought the TV before we even had the apartment. Since we were renting a furnished place in Michigan it is kind of like we are just getting married again and re-opening all of our wedding gifts. It is fun and I'm excited to finally have my own place to decorate.

We sold Jason's beloved car. It was a tearful goodbye, and now we are truly doing the "Student thing" and dealing with having only one car.

Jason is officially enrolled in school and will start at BYU-Salt Lake next month. We are both very excited!

We are excited for this new journey, new opportunities, and new adventures. Things are definitely falling into place and we are so grateful for all of the people who have helped us and supported us in this big life change.

Still Snowing

2010-04-28T23:58:00.008-04:00

Yep, it's April 28th and it is still snowing.

Jason and I feel like Utah knew we didn't get much of a winter in Michigan so it is just trying to make it up to us now. We would always laugh at how everyone in Michigan feels like their winters are horrible and that we would never be able to survive them. Are you kidding me?! I remember driving to work one day, in a "blizzard", the guy in front of me going a ridiculous 8 mph and thinking "Are you kidding me?! Bring it on Michigan! Bring it on!" Which it never did. One of my favorite quotes while we were there was "We have snow for Christmas! You'll love it!" my reply "Wow! Utah has snow for Halloween." Not to mention St. Patricks Day, Easter, and hey why not Mothers Day right? I'm not complaining, really. I have actually come to enjoy winter. I think it is all the years spent in Logan and Park City. Now they know how to do winter!

We didn't get a chance to enjoy any Utah snowboarding this season but we were able to join my family for some good ole fashion snowmobiling. It snowed almost the entire time we were there, leaving over four feet of fresh snow. Which we actually found to be quite annoying as Jason and I got stuck within the first half hour of our first ride.

We stayed the night in an awesome cabin, went hot tubbing, watched basketball, and ate, and ate, and ate. My family loves their junk food that's for sure!

The next day we headed out early and rode for hours. We were trying to get to Muir Lake but only made it half way (about 9 miles) until the snow got too deep and we could not possibly go any further, believe me my dad tried.

The entire trip was so much fun and it was a much needed break from Jason and I's current life of unemployment and homelessness. We came home rejuvenated and excited and I actually got a job the next day (more posts to follow). See what a little fresh air and snow will do for you? Thank you Snyder Family for an incredible mini-vacation!

Festival Of Colors

2010-04-09T21:33:00.012-04:00

We have officially welcomed in Spring! (Even though it is still snowing.) Jason, my brother Eric, and friends all headed down to Spanish Fork to the Krsna Temple to celebrate spring India style. They welcome in Spring by having a huge Holi Festival. There were well over 10,000 people there this year. I had been a couple years ago, but no one else who came with us had a clue what they were in for... Lots and lots of color!!! It is the only time and place where you can throw colorful powder on random strangers.

It turns into one giant color fight. After the official countdown everyone throws all of their remaining color into the air and a giant color cloud explodes, and can be seen for miles. You can hardly see, let alone breathe. Great fun!

Oh and did I mention I found my bestest friend Marci there?!

Hare Krishna!

Farewell Michigan

2010-03-31T18:52:00.012-04:00

After exactly one year and two weeks in Michigan we have said farewell. That's right we are no longer "Michiganders".

When we first moved there I couldn't wait to leave and now leaving has been so hard. We have had quite the adventure here and I wouldn't trade it in for anything. We have had so much fun and have been blessed while we were here.

We were able to attend all the major sporting events... Lions, Tigers, Red Wings, Pistons.

We had fun with visitors. My family came and stayed with us. The Cherrington family stopped and stayed with us on their way to New York. My good friend Autumn came and played, and my friend Kristi and I were able to get together a few times since her mom lives here. We also got to visit and go on trips with my favorite couple: The Moons.

We got to do some exploring in the state of Michigan and the surrounding areas.

We met and worked for a lot of different people,

Doctors, Lawyers, Baseball Players, VP's, Photographers, Car people... Oh the many

jobs I had in Michigan.

My favorite job, was with Goldfish though. I have had the hardest time saying goodbye to them. I love my little swimmer kids. I loved the thoughtful gifts and pictures they would bring me. I loved seeing them get so excited about swimming. I loved the hugs and high fives. I loved the people I worked with. I loved going to workevery day and being surrounded by friends. I loved all the crazy people and dramatic stories and laughing so hard at them at the end of the day.

We will also miss our little five year olds in our primary class. We fell in love with Primary and the special spirit in there.

I may or may not miss our little apartment though. It was a great first "home" for us. But I will not miss the constant head aches from all the smoke that constantly seeped in through the walls or the weird noises or the fear off being home alone in an unsafe area.

I will miss the lakes. I will miss the green. I will miss the good outlet stores. I will miss my yoga classes at my favorite gym. I will not miss "Michigan lefts", that is for sure.

I am excited for family and Utah friends though. It will be a fun new adventure that involves Jason going to school, and me finding a job to support us. I am excited to be able to talk about "stakes, wards, LDS, CTR, BOM, FHE, and missions" and not have people look at me so confused.

Thank you to everyone who took their time to come out to our apartment to say goodbye to us. Thank you Goldfish for the farewell lunch and fun weekend. Thank you Michigan for making our first year of marriage such a memorable one. You will be missed!

(Belated) Anniversary Trip

2010-03-14T16:44:00.013-04:00

For our one year anniversary we decided to take advantage of being "close-ish" to the Caribbean and do some exploring. After MUCH researching we finally found the perfect place, for the perfect price... Puerto Rico. We left last Monday (3/8) and stayed for 5 days. It was a much needed vacation and we had a blast. Even though Puerto Rico received record rainfall that week, and it rained the majority of the time we were there, we still had so much fun exploring new places and getting to spend time with one another without the stress of all the other stuff going on back in our "real lives".

We stayed in Rio Grande, which is on the northeast side of Puerto Rico. We stayed at the Wyndham Rio Mar Resort. It was at the bottom of the El Yunque Rainforest and right on the beach. We truly had the best of both worlds.

We spent a day hiking and exploring the rain forest. It was so beautiful and fun to see all the different kinds of plants, birds, and lizards. We took a hike along the river to a big waterfall where we swam and played for a while too. The rainforest was probably one of the biggest highlights of the trip for me.

We did have one partially sunny day where we hit the beach and rented boogie boards. The water was pretty cloudy from all the storms but it was still the perfect temperature and it was so nice to be back in the ocean again, I just can never get enough!

We rented a car while we were there so we were able to do a lot of exploring in all the little towns next to us. We spent one afternoon/night in Old San Juan. I loved Old San Juan they had fun little shops and great architecture. We also hung out at the old Castillos (forts) that were built 100's of years ago when Spain owned Puerto Rico. It was all very interesting and neat to see such magnificent structures.

The rainiest day there we took a ferry over to Vieques. A small Island just off of Puerto Rico. Part of the family that I had nannied for in New York was staying over there so we got to spend the day exploring that island and catching up with them.

It was hard coming back, but I guess every vacation has to end sometime. Now I just have to restrain myself from planning the next one. Thank you for an amazing Anniversary Jason! I loved every rainy second of it! :)

Dear Tax Return,

2010-03-07T21:17:00.006-05:00

Thank you for being so good to us this year. Being married, and having a combined tax return is awesome! And lets face it, after last year, you really did owe us one. We will send you a post card from Puerto Rico. Thanks again!

Sincerely,

The Beckstrands

2010-02-28T14:39:00.006-05:00

I love that I get to drive by this everyday, to and from work.

I love that I can look out the window during Primary and see this.

I love that out of all the places outside of Utah we could have moved too, we are only 4 Miles away from this.

I love that the spirit is the same here as it is in any other Temple.

I love the feeling of comfort, peace, and home that it brings.

One Year!!!

2010-02-22T16:40:00.004-05:00

One Year already? Where, oh where, does the time go?

I love you Jason!

Tulips

2010-02-19T19:54:00.004-05:00

I love Tulips.

I love Tulips at work.

I love Tulips at work from my Husband.

I love Tulips at work from my Husband for Valentines Day.

Snowfest 2010

2010-02-11T16:17:00.006-05:00

The weekend before Jason left we ventured up to Frankenmuth with friends to experience Snowfest. Snowfest is an annual event where people come from all over to compete in ice and snow sculpting contests.

It's not often that the words "freezing" and "fun" go in the same sentence for me but I really did love Snowfest.

And for those of you who were oh so concerned about me while Jason was gone... Yes I did survive, and yes I did enjoy having the bed all to my self... does that make me a bad wife?

Day 1

2010-02-01T11:23:00.005-05:00

Jason left for a business trip today...

This will be the first night in 345 nights that we will spend apart.

I may or may not have cried this morning when I saw his suit case.

I may or may not have cried when I dropped him off at the airport.

and I may or may not have cried when I came home and saw his laptop and toothbrush gone.

It's not even noon yet. I've get a long week a head of me...

Missed

2010-01-24T10:44:00.005-05:00

Dear Conan,

You will be missed... But I know this is not the last time I will laugh with you. You will be back, it is fate, I know it.

I tried to find a favorite clip to post... but there were just far to many.

Boys will be Boys

2010-01-13T11:22:00.003-05:00

Jason has anxiously been awaiting the arrival of his latest online purchase.

Just in time for church ball... and I quote:

"If they don't make me a bball superstar, I don't know what will!!"

And just in case you were wondering... YES, they are full of even more silvershinymetallicawesomeness in person!

2009, What a year!

2010-01-01T11:21:00.029-05:00

2009 has been quite the year for us! We have had so many life changes this year.

New jobs, New family members, New states, New homes, New last names, New adventures.

and many more...

Eric came home from his Mission in Italy!

I got to take my endowments out at the Bountiful

Temple. We were sealed for all eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple.

Got married.

Welcomed in new life...

Kayson Todd Larson

and grieved the passing of old...

Grandma Beckstrand

Partied with MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice.

Moved to Michigan. Returned to a Family Ward and to Primary.

Said Goodbye to good Friends...

and said Hello to NEW friends.

We "adopted" this little dude.

We explored Mexico, Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois, and Canada.

We have had a very eventful and great year. I feel so blessed to have had so many wonderful things happen this past year and I am grateful for all of our family and friends continued support while we are on our journey here in Michigan. We are looking forward to a fantastic 2010!

Christmas in Niagara

2009-12-28T12:25:00.017-05:00

Since we were not able to make it back to Utah to be with Family for the Holidays, Jason offered me the consolation of our own little get-away trip instead. So rather than presents this year Jason surprised me with a 3 day trip to Niagara Falls, Canada. We left Christmas Eve and stayed at the Niagara Falls Hilton.

It is the tallest Hotel in Niagara Falls and we had such amazing views of them right from our room.

When we checked in we were even upgraded to a Junior Suite and had more room in our Hotel than we do in our own apartment. Jason surprised me by bringing Christmas Lights and Stockings.

Combined with the fireplace, Christmas Pajamas from Jason's Mom, presents from home, and even an Alaskan Nativity scene from my sister (Thanks Kayli!!!) we were all set for our very own first Christmas. Christmas Day we woke up and opened presents together before heading to a huge breakfast buffet. We then headed straight to the pool!

Later that afternoon we set out to explore Niagara City and check out the falls up close.

They are so big and beautiful.

That night we went to Brasa, a Brazilian all you can eat place, for Christmas Dinner.

It was so much fun to relax and not worry about the stress of work or anything else. I love it when Jason plans things they are always so thought out and perfect! It was so much fun to spend so much time just with him and not have anything else going on. Thanks for a great Christmas baby!

December 15th, 2007

2009-12-16T10:52:00.004-05:00

-Went to Christmas Concert with Family at Temple Square

-Stopped at Bountiful Mazda to look at new Mazda 3 for work

-Took a test drive with this guy:

-Told my Mom: "I'm going to marry that boy someday!"

-Smiled the rest of the night

FINALLY!!!!

2009-12-12T13:55:00.013-05:00

I was driving to work friday morning, listening to my favorite morning show, when they announced that Michigan will be banning smoking in public places!

FINALLY!

I actually shouted for joy in my car! Yes, I was that excited over it!

When Jase and I first moved here we went out to dinner at Chilli's and they asked us "Smoking or Non-Smoking?" I looked at the hostess blankly, like it was some kind of joke question, until I realized she was serious. In my head I was like "Non-smoking! Are you kidding me? Why would you even ask me that?!" I couldn't remember the last time I had heard that.

The radio station continued to debate the pro's and con's of this law with many callers very upset. I think this is such a no brainer, and I am so relieved that I can go out to dinner with friends and not worry about coming home reeking of smoke, causing Jason to sleep on the opposite side of the bed. I cannot wait to go out and not have to constantly hold my breath, or make up excuses like "I have asthma" or "I'm pregnant" just to get people to stop smoking around me (Yes, I have done this!).

Michigan is the 38th State to pass this type of law, only 12 more to go!

Gross.

Go my favorite sports team Go!

2009-12-06T22:41:00.005-05:00

Lions Vs. Packers

I tried surprising Jason with tickets to the Lions game for Thanksgiving, and by "tried" I mean I told him as soon as I found the tickets. We were both Packers fans at one point in our lives, and my favorite cozy blanket is currently Jason's Packer blanket that I have officially stolen from him. None the less we decided to cheer for the Lions, since we are currently "Michiganders". Guess who won? haha Poor Lions.

We had a great first Thanksgiving together. Of course we missed family, but it was so nice to spend so much time together. With our busy work schedules, and me always working weekends, having two days off in a row felt like a second Honeymoon!

Little Black (modest) Dress Party

2009-11-09T14:14:00.008-05:00

Jason got us tickets to Detroit's 95.5 "Little Black Dress Party" this last friday. Jason loves the radio station 95.5 out here and I'll admit their morning show is by far the funniest and most entertaining morning show I've ever heard (sorry x96). They hosted the event at Sound Board inside the Motor City Casino Hotel. What an incredible venue! The Motor City is a place Jason and I have heard about and have been wanting to check out while we are here too. It was so much fun to dress up and get a private concert by IYAZ, Kristinia DeBarge, and Jason DeRulo. I didn't really know any of these artists prior to the concert, and I haven't been to many "Pop" concerts either. All I knew was Jason DeRulo's hit song "Whatcha Say" and the only reason I knew that song is because he "stole" the best parts from an Imogen Heap song, that I've been a big fan of for quite some time now. I was secretly hoping that Imogen Heap would randomly show up to perform the song with him. It didn't happen, but he still put on a great show. I picture him as an up and coming Usher. Jason tags along with me to all of my concerts so it was fun to go with him to something he was excited about. Plus I loved getting dressed up and having a night out on the town (a free one at that) with Jason!

Creepy Crawlies

2009-11-03T15:43:00.006-05:00

Jason got quite the scare this Halloween when he found this guy hanging out on one of my shirts in our closet. He thought it was a broach at first (not sure why I would have a broach... let alone one that looks like this, but whatever). Anyways after spraying it with hairspray to see if it was a living thing and not a broach, he bravely "tomahawked" it with a shoe as it was running away. After much research to find out just what in the heck it was we've learned that we had our very own Scutigera Coleoptrata or House Centipede. Jase said it was the size of an iPhone. GROSS! My first reaction was that we were moving out right away and I have been creeped out ever since. These guys apparently eat all other bugs and some people keep them as "pets". Luckily they say if you kill the one you have than you most likely won't have any others because they can't coexist. Phew! Except since it's death we are now seeing spiders, and Jason is having a love hate relationship with this creeper... SICK

I heart Chicago.

2009-11-01T13:06:00.010-05:00

I heart Friends.

I heart City Views.

I heart the Willis Tower.

I heart Cheese Cake Factory.

I heart the Shedd Aquarium.

I heart City Nights.

I heart Jamba Juice.

I heart Pizza.

I heart Jason.

Fridays

2009-10-17T13:58:00.003-04:00

My Jason all to myself...

Taco bell....

Dunkin Donuts....

Baskin Robins....

and Hulu.com

Thank you Friday Nights

Decisions

2009-10-13T22:53:00.011-04:00

We all know I have a very hard time with decisions, that and commitments. I finally got over part of the commitment phobia by actually getting married, but I still struggle with the decision end of things. My biggest one at the moment is jobs, employment, career, work, however you want to word it I just can't decide what I want to be when I grow up!

When we first moved here it took me about a month and a half to find a job.

I truly feel so blessed that I was able to find such a great family to Nanny for. Originally I didn't want to nanny again, but knew it was something I could always fall back on. No matter what the job market is, people always need other people to watch their kids. Knowing this was just a temporary position I think I was able to avoid my commitment issues when accepting this job. I still get to babysit Robbie and end up seeing them at least once a week. Jason and I have so much fun "playing house" and spending time with that family.

Anyways, I am now working at Goldfish Swim School, I've been there for just over two months now. I teach swim lessons and work at the front desk. I love it for the sole fact that I actually get to interact with people my age. At the same time, I've been told that I am overqualified for the job, there really is not much room for any more growth than I have already done, I barley get over 20 hours a week, and I'll be honest with you the pay is nothing to brag about.

That being said I've always known this was a good job to just hold me over till I could find something else. I have constantly been looking for that dream grown up job. One that challenges me and uses my hard earned college degree and one that I feel like I am really making a difference in. This job is apparently non-existent. I have however, found two different "executive" families that I could nanny for.

So it is decision time.

Do I go back to Nannying? I love the kids and interacting with them and all that goes along with that, but at the same time, I get so isolated out here when Jason and I have really no other friends or people our age to interact with. The pay is awesome. The hours are good. With the pay and hours put together I would be making over 3 times what I am making now.

But I have done the whole nanny bit, and part of me thinks... "I'm going to be raising kids for the rest of my life, if I want to work outside the home this is the last chance I'm going to have to do it." So with that thought in mind do I stay where I'm at? And continue looking for that dream job? Being able to put Goldfish and the experience I have gained there will have a greater impact on a resume than yet another Nanny position.

I also have the regret factor to worry about, if I decide to Nanny again, am I just going to get isolated and lonely again and regret leaving a work environment where I am surrounded by people every day. At the same time if I stay where I'm at am I going to constantly be thinking about the money that I am NOT making?

I know I really have no right to sit here and vent about this decision since there is a very large percentage of people in this area who would kill to have three job offers in front of them. I just can't figure it out. And I kinda need to, like tonight, so anyone out there want to tell me what to do?!

Depressed Detroit

2009-09-30T10:46:00.007-04:00

You can take away their Jobs, their Homes, their Automotive World, but Detroit Pride is something else...

Grandma Beckstrand and our Utah Weekend

2009-09-16T10:29:00.014-04:00

Jason's Grandmother, Jean Beckstrand, passed away on September 1st, 2009. We immediately began making arrangements to fly home that weekend for the funeral. It was hard to arrange flights, work, and all of the little details on such short notice but in the end it all worked out. We were able to spend about four days back in the great state of Utah with our family and friends. This was the first time we had been back to Utah in over 6 months and it was a much needed trip.

The Funeral services were held Saturday and it was such a great celebration of Grandma Beckstrands life. It was nice to gather with so much family and feel of all the love and support from everyone. We got to spend a lot of time with Jason's family over the weekend. We have really missed time with family and it was fun to be able to catch up and visit with every one again. Jason's sister Summer flew in from Colorado as well, we were sad that the rest of her family couldn't come with her but it was fun to have her with us. I love my sister-in-laws! It is so much fun to have all these new sisters and friends, I only wish we all lived closer together.

Over the weekend we got to spend time catching up with a few friends here and there. We had a lot of things we wanted to do and a lot of errands that we needed to get done while we were back in town. We were lucky to get most things done. Our trip was definitely to short and too overbooked but while we were there Jason and I made sure we ate at a few of our favorite restaurants that we don't have in Michigan... Cafe Rio, Jamba Juice, and Maggie Moos. We also went to Texas Roadhouse with all of Jason's family.

We were lucky in that it was Labor day weekend so we got

an extra day to spend with everyone. We spent time with Jason's Grandma and Grandpa Millward at their Ancestor party where we got to see a lot more extended family. We spent the afternoon up in Morgan with my family celebrating my Moms Birthday. My Brother Eric came home from Snow College and my Grandparents came down from Idaho to spend time with us as well. We tubed the Weber river and had a great BBQ while everyone was in town. This was Jason's first time tubing/kayaking the river with us. This is one of my favorite family activities and I was excited that Jason was finally able to do it with us. He wasn't a fan of the tubes though and after about two minutes traded me for a kayak. Tubes are the best, but not everyone can handle them. Jk

Last but not least we made sure to squeeze in hair cuts by our favorite stylist and friend ever, Marci! She is amazing and we just haven't found any one that compares to her out here in Michigan.

We want to thank everyone who worked around our schedules, changed their plans, and allowed us to come and visit with them on such short notice!

-Britt and Todd thanks again for letting us stay with you guys! We love little Kayson and still can't get over how big he has gotten!

-Grandma and Grandpa Morehead, Thank you so much for driving so far to see us. It means the world to us.

-Beckstrand Family thank you for all the food, fun, and for making us feel so at home again.

-Snyder Family- Thank you for being so flexible and understanding with our schedule. Thank you for the Sunday Dinner and the fun Monday!

-Grandma L- It was so great to see you and Grandpa Paul, and Paula too! Sorry it was such a quick visit!

-Emily and Jordan- Thank you for letting me come and stop by so late at night. I love your new home and your family so much! You guys are such a great example to us! Thank you!

It was a spur of the moment trip, and we wish we could have gone back under different circumstances but we are both grateful that we were able to spend time with family and be back in Utah for a few days. We love and miss all of you back home and can't wait till we can come back to visit again! In the mean time if anyone wants to head out this way...... hint hint! :)

6 months and 1 week

2009-08-28T12:55:00.008-04:00

Jason and I have now been married for 6 months and one week! I am a little behind on the blogging I know...

It is hard to believe that 6 months has already gone by! At the same time it is so hard to imagine a time where he wasn't in my life. The past six months have been pretty crazy and we have learned a lot about each other and life.

We have lived in three different places now. One in Park City, Ut and two in Michigan. We have learned that driving for two days straight is a good way to test one another's patience. We have learned that I have driving induced narcolepsy and if the car ride lasts longer than 10 minutes I fall asleep without fail. Jason has learned that sometimes it is better to just let me sleep in order to not put up with my singing to my music.

I have had three different jobs (not by choice). We have learned that job hunting is not fun and that I get very bored and anxious when I do not leave the house for days on end. We have learned that there is such a thing as too organized and that too much time on your hands can get you to that point rather quickly.

We have learned that even though there is a lot of dumb drama in singles wards they are a lot more fun and easier to make friends with than in family wards. We have also learned that if you have children you get to be a part of a special club where you get together and talk about your children and set up play dates with your children and if you do not have children you get put into the "babysitter zone" and it is very hard to cross over from the babysitter zone to friend zone.

We have also learned that there is nothing wrong with going to bed at 8:30 for the sole fact that there is nothing better to do. We have learned that I like to lay in bed and talk about our day and our "feelings" while Jason likes to lay in bed and fall asleep within the first 5 seconds of conversation. We have learned that I am a night person while Jason is a morning person. Sleeping in for me means past 10 oclock. Sleeping in for Jason means anything past 6:30am.

We have learned that we have very opposite taste in clothes, and that Jason is much more fashionable than I am. We have also learned that Jason can spend 15 minutes shopping and can come out with 5 things. I can spend 5 hours shopping and be lucky to come out with more than one thing.

We have learned that the fact that I am ten months older than Jason is a big deal and that while I see it as something to be kept a secret he loves to "brag" about the fact that he married an older woman. We have also learned that my college degree, savings account, and other life accomplishment, trumps out his "my wife is older than me" speech.

We have learned that even though it really means a lot to me when Jason cleans up or does laundry, I am still going to go back and do it all over again because I am that OCD.

We have learned that I can cook about 3 things other than Nachos. We have learned that we are both creatures of habit and always end up ordering the same exact thing no matter where we go out to eat, and usually nachos are somehow involved.

We have learned how to compromise. We have learned that what may be important to one person may not be as important to the other. We have learned to respect that we have differences. We have learned that we are stronger and better off together than we are apart. We have learned that there is such a thing as true love and that we are lucky to have found it. We have gotten to travel and do and see so many fun things these past six months and there is no one else I would rather be doing all of these things with than Jason. I love having my best friend to share my life with. Even if it is just sitting at the lake reading books or watching our favorite shows or planning exciting trips that we have yet to take together. I am absolutely more in love with Jason than I ever thought was possible and I know that those feelings are only going to continue to grow.

For our Anniversary we went out to Bahama Breeze and ended up ordering the exact same thing we did when we went there for my birthday (see... creatures of habit). We also opened up our own bank account together and set up our IRA's for our retirement. I guess if we can make it 6 months that means we should be good for the next 60 years right? :) I love you Jason and I am so excited to be on this journey with you.

Woodward Dream Cruise

2009-08-21T14:59:00.028-04:00

MSNBC.COM: "At least 1

million people turned out along Detroit’s fabled Woodward Avenue this weekend, hoping to get a glimpse of the estimated 50,000 to 60,000 muscle cars, hot rods and sports cars participating in the annual Woodward Dream Cruise... the world's largest one-day celebration of car culture..."

All I have to say in regards to the Dream Cruise is... WOW!!! Jason and I have been hearing about this "Dream Cruise" ever since we moved here. Like most of you we had no idea what it was or what we were really in for.

However, last weekend was one of the most exciting weekends/events we've seen in the Detroit area. Woodward is an 8 lane main road that connects Detroit to its surrounding suburbs including where we are living.

Everything shutsdown for this event, the library, shops, even the LDS Temple, almost everything located on Woodward is closed and the 16 mile stretch of road becomes one long amazing car show.

People apparently bring their cars and lawn chairs from all over and either drive

up and down the avenue or sit and watch the cars all day long. Jason and I first got a glimpse of how big of a deal this was back over Memorial Day weekend when we first started seeing all the old Muscle Cars gather and drag along

Woodward on saturday night. Every Saturday night since than the grouping of cars has only grown larger and this past weekend they hit their max! I couldn't believe all the cars that turned out for this. Friday night Jason and I decided to "cruise" Woodward and go check it all out.

What would normally take us about thirty minutes took us almost 3 hours. The amount of cars out was incredible! Sure there were a lot of people like us who were just driving to check things out, but the majority of the cars were anything from old restored Corvettes to

brand new Ferraris.

Saturday was a whole other story. They even shut down some of the surrounding roads so that people could park their cars and you can go and walk around and look at them. People also lined the street watching all of the cars drive by. We saw some pretty creative remake cars from movies and some crazy fast cars and some pretty expensive cars too.

It was such a fun and exciting weekend and I'm not even a "car person".

Holland

2009-08-09T19:35:00.019-04:00

Well Jason did it again... He some how found a way to top my last birthday. Last year he surprised me by picking my up in a limo and taking me up the canyon to Log Haven for dinner (among other gifts). I told him last year that he had outdone himself and would never be able to top it. But as always he was very tricky and sneaky and managed to make this years birthday even better, by surprising me with a trip to Holland!

Holland, Michigan that is. It is a small Dutch town on Lake Michigan. I'd been telling him I wanted to go check it out for quite some time now, and all the while he had already booked the reservations and planned it all out. We left early Saturday morning and drove the two and a half hours west. Jason spoiled me all weekend by doing all the things I love doing! We spent the morning walking around a large art fair and going to see the last authentic dutch windmill left in the U.S. and of course the beach. I couldn't believe how beautiful the beach was. You would have thought you were in California. Waves and everything. It threw me off every time I got knocked over by a wave and didn't come up spitting salt water out of my mouth. It was so nice to relax on the beach together and watch the ocean, I mean lake waves, and the surfers and crazy boaters. It was a pretty cloudy day and eventually started raining on us, so after the beach we went and checked into our hotel. We stayed at The CityFlats Hotel right in town. It was the coolest place I have ever stayed! The whole hotel is very "green" and eco friendly. From the soaps to the carpet to toilets. Not that Jason and I are big greenies or anything but it was super cool and had a very fun and modern feel to it. We had a suite that was bigger than our apartment with a huge bathroom, living room, and kitchen. Not to mention Jasons favorite part, the two large flat screen TV's with surround sound through out the entire suite. In an effort to save money Jason and I decided to do away with paying for cable so we have been with out TV for quite a while now. It was the first thing he turned on when we walked in and we spent the afternoon watching the X games and waiting for the rain to stop. Later that night we walked around downtown, had dinner at the New Holland Brewery Co. (we only drank the water I promise!) , and got ice cream at a little fudge shop. The next day the weather was perfect! After checking out of our hotel we went to a little dutch shop where they make and sell all sorts of dutch things, including wooden shoes. Than it was back to the beach! It was such a perfect day and we spent hours laying on the beach and playing in

the water. The drive home seemed to last forever, I in no way wanted to go back and start another week in the real world. I love being able to spend so much time with Jason and I always have so much fun with him no matter what we are doing. He is so great to me and I truly appreciate all that he does for me. He also got me a gym pass to the gym he works out at and new gym clothes, among other things. Spoiled, I know...

For my actual birthday (two days later) we went out to dinner at a restaurant, I had been wanting to try, called Bahama Breeze. When we got there I was surprised to find out that the family I nanny for had come back early from their trip in order to surprise me and join us for my birthday. It was such a fun night spent with my wonderful husband and "Michigan Family", they even got me a yummy TCBY cake with my name on it and everything. Even though I miss my friends and family back home very much I feel so blessed to be able to share this adventure here in Michigan with Jason and to have met such a wonderful family who has done so much for both myself and Jason.

Family Trip to Michigan

2009-07-20T20:05:00.017-04:00

I have been counting down the days all summer till my family came out to visit! They came last week and now that they are gone, I miss them more than before... We had so much fun together!!!

They came in late Thursday (July 9th) and went straight to Ohio. They were able to spend the day exploring Kirtland while Jason and I were stuck working. As soon as we could we headed to Ohio and met up with them at Cedar Point Amusement park. For anyone who ever comes out this direction Cedar Point is a must! It had more thrill rides than all the amusement parks I've ever been to combined! Who would have that that Ohio would have something so fun and exciting! jk The best was the Top Thrill Dragster. It shoots you off going 120 mph in under 6 seconds before rushing you straight up 420ft. Intense, and Wow, was all we had say after getting off that one.

We all spent the night in Sandusky, Ohio and took a fairy the next morning to Put-in-Bay. A very cute little island where everyone drives golf carts and scooters. We rented our six seater Golf Cart and spent the day exploring. We went through an underground cave and my brother and sister got to mine for gem stones.

We also spent a lot of time on the rocky beach of Lake Erie. It was way to cold for my mom and I, but everyone else got in. My Dad and Jason spent most of there time jumping of the dock

that specifically said "No Jumping". I was pretty impressed watching my Dad dive in the first time. I was even more impressed when Jason taught him how to do a back flip! Yep my forty-something year old Dad did his first back flip! I was so impressed I screamed (both out of shock and excitement). I am always impressed by Jason so I won't even go into detail about all of his great tricks :)

We headed back to Michigan that afternoon and went straight to Detroit for the Tigers game! It is a special tradition for my Dad, and whoever is with him, to go to a baseball game wherever we are visiting. I have so many great memories of going to different stadiums and watching different teams. It was really great for me to be able to share "my team" with my Dad and the rest of my family. We had great seats (thanks again to the family I babysit for whose Dad is on the team) and even though we lost we still got to enjoy an awesome firework show and had a great time!

After church on Sunday we went back down to Detroit and walked along the River Walk and went the Renassaince Building (GM's Headquarters). It was fun to be able to show my family some of my favorite things in the area.

That night my Mom and Dad took of for their 25th anniversary getaway up north and Stephanie and Dallin were left to play with us for the next two days! It was so much fun having them stay with us. They were so great about sharing our one bedroom apartment and putting up with our work schedules. During they day they were able to hang out with Robbie and I and go swimming, to the Zoo, and my favorite park in Birmingham, Booth Park.

Someone told me that it cost a million dollars to build it. I wouldn't be surprised it has everything! Including this hill made out of Astro Turf. The hill has a huge sign saying "No cardboard" but that is the thing to do. Everyone brings pieces of cardboard and then slides down it like a sled in the winter time. It is so fun. I told Jason I wanted one for my backyard someday. Tuseday night after my parents came back we went and saw UP, very cute movie.

Wednesday we spent the day at Stony Creek Lake. We had so much fun! My family rented bikes and road around the lake then met up with Robbie and I and played on the beach and swam in the lake for a few hours before renting Kayaks and going exploring. I was pretty nervous about taking a 2 and a half year old out in a Kayak but he actually did a really great job and even paddled for us. Unfortunately my camera died half way through the day so I didn't get very many pictures.

That night we all went out to dinner at Bucca Di Beppos (I had always wanted to eat there just because I like saying the name) and than went back to the hotel were they were staying for the night. They had a really early flight the next morning so after hard goodbyes Jason finally pulled me away from their hotel room. It was so hard saying goodbye, not knowing when I will get to see them next. But I am so grateful that they were able to come out. I miss Kayli, Eric, and Jayden and hope that I can see them soon too (Jayden not for another year since he is on his mission) but I sure do feel blessed to have such a great family! Thank you for all coming out and spending time with us and letting me share a little bit of our "Michigan Lives" with you all. Love and Miss You!

True Story

2009-07-10T14:41:00.005-04:00

This really happened to me...

Well not the part about breaking up. But a bird really flew into my head. I was just walking along with Robbie (the little boy I nanny) when wham I was hit in the head by this big bird! I was at the Zoo so I don't even know what kind it was! I couldn't stop laughing. I felt like such an idiot because everyone just looked at me like "Well you don't see that every day!" I immediately thought of Elaine on Seinfeld and started developing a complex... Do I really have that big of a head that a bird couldn't have just flown AROUND it!?! Seriously? Has everyone just been protecting me from this fact my entire life? And I am just now realizing that I am a freak of nature!? "A walking candy apple"?! Needless to say I am now terrified of birds...

The Avett Brothers

2009-07-07T12:02:00.006-04:00

I fell in love with the Avett Brothers this last week. I first came across them a couple years ago when I first heard "If It's The Beaches". I loved that song but didn't really ever get much more involved. Until I found out that they would be doing a free show in Detroit as part of Comerica's City Fest. I was so excited to go! I haven't been able to get out to nearly as many shows as I use to in Salt Lake. That has been one major thing I've missed this summer... All of the free shows at the Gallivan Center. Last summer you could find us there pretty much every Wednesday and Thursday night. We got to see some great bands (Nada Surf, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah) all for free! Friends, music, summer nights, all some of my favorite things. However, now we are in Michigan with no friends, little music, and cold summer nights. Jason is so great to go along with whatever it is I want to do here in Michigan. He hardly complained as I made him listen to The Avett Brothers all week long and take me to Detroit to see them. Two songs into the concert though he fell in love with them too (maybe not as much as I did, but still!) Jase walked away saying how great the show was and woke up the next morning singing their songs. Jason likes to make fun of me and my "weird" music so I was excited to come home and find him looking up The Avett Brothers the next day on YouTube trying to find his favorite song (the one they "rap" in... go figure) from the night before.

They put on an incredibly entertaining show. They had enough energy to dance and jump to and enough emotion to just listen and feel. I love their "family" band lyrics. My favorite line from the night was: "Always remember there was nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name."

For one night Detroit won me over, as I had my best friend, great music, and a rainy summer night. No complaining here!

Our First Visitor!

2009-06-09T18:19:00.015-04:00

This last weekend Jason and I had our first visitor out here in Michigan. My friend Autumn made a pit stop to see us on her way out to the East Coast. Autumn and I met back when I was living in Park City. She has nannied a lot as well and we immediately bonded after sharing crazy nanny stories. :) It was so much fun to have someone to show around and to have a friend to hang out with!

We spent Saturday exploring Detroit.

We went to a farmers market, where I decided that in order to really benefit from that I needed to actually be able to cook. But I always enjoy walking around and the people watching in Detroit is great! We also went to the Detroit Institute of the Arts. This had been one of the places on my lists of things to do while we lived here so I was very excited to go. Plus we got in free via my family I nanny for! Yeah, nothing beats a free day at the art museum. It was a beautiful museum and we even got to do arts and crafts! If you can't tell by the picture, Jason was thrilled about this part of the day! He is such a great sport to put up with me and my friends all of the time. After the museum we headed across the border and into Canada for dinner. We ate at Caesars Palace again and decided that Canadian food really isn't that great. I still love the view from that side of the river though.

The weather was pretty stormy the rest of the time Autumn was in town so we really didn't get out and do to much. It was so great to have a visitor though and I am looking forward to July when some of my family comes out and stays with us!

Family Plan

2009-06-02T07:39:00.011-04:00

Well it's official, Jason and I have decided that we are ready to take the next step in our relationship, and start our very own Family Plan. Everything else we've done before this seems so minimal now. Sending out announcements to all of our friends and family, getting married, having a reception, declaring our marital status on Facebook. All these things seemed like such a big deal at the time. But we are now truly officially in a serious relationship and have our very own Family Plan! Cell phone, Family Plan, that is. Yep, we are now on our own cute little, share your minutes, share the bill, Family Plan. In addition to that Jason has converted me over to AT&T. I feel like quite the traitor. I've been standing strong with Verizon for some years now. I loved Verizon! There once was a time that I wouldn't even consider dating anyone unless they were on Verizon and in my "network"so I didn't have to use any minutes on them. Not sure how Jason slipped through the cracks on that one! Jason has to have a Verizon line for work, so I was hoping I could pull him to my side of the phone divide, but No, he has the oh so amazingly precious iPhone that only AT&T provides so as of this last week I am no longer "in the

network". Jason did surprise me with a fancy new phone though, to help ease the transition. We were planning on just getting the free-b phone that comes with the new activation but when it got here it was one of those new fancy, do it all, smart phones. I've never had any sort of special phone before, I've always been too cheap, but I really do love this phone! Thanks Jason! And even though I have no one to talk to on it (all my family and friends are on Verizon) and still haven't quite figured it out yet, I sure do LOOK cool with it! :)

Date Night!

2009-05-26T12:58:00.006-04:00

I guess when you are married, every night is date night... You + Date (spouse) + food + movie= Date. Right? At least that's how dating was back in college so I guess it still counts?? If that's the case than my "dating life" is awesome. Because that is what I have to look forward to pretty much every night. Now I'm not complaining, sitting on the couch, eating Nachos, and watching a movie with Jason is one of my favorite things! But on the rare occasion that we find something to actually go and do out here in Michigan, let alone people to go and do them with, I get just a little bit excited! This last weekend I brought Jason to his first REAL baseball game ever! (The Salt Lake Bee's just don't count.) I babysit for some of the players kids and they had some extra tickets for us. It was so much fun. We got to sit where the players families sit, right behind home plate, and watch the Tigers beat the Colorado Rockies 4-3. I grew up going to Seattle Mariner games and it is such a fun childhood memory. One I'm sure Jason was so sick of hearing about by the end of the night. "And one time, with my Dad...." I was excited to be able to share this with Jason and for him to experience a real major league game. I don't think he is a born-again baseball fan, it lacks the speed and adrenaline for him, but I like to think he enjoyed it as much as I did! I really loved Comerica Park. There is an awesome view of the city and after the game they even had fireworks.

To top the night off we went to P.F. Chang's and got my favorite food.... Chinese. While at the restaurant we noticed the booth next to us was two younger couples, both boys dressed in white shirt and tie. You don't see that too often out here, and my first thought was Missionaries? but than they had dates... After eaves dropping a little bit on their conversation we found out that they were all members. One couple was married and the other appeared to be an awkward set up. I got so excited to find another young LDS couple and figured we were destined to be best friends! After all, here we all were on a Friday night at P.F. Chang's... it was fate right?! Needless to say Jason and I spent the rest of the night coming up with different ways to become their friends. After many great plans that involved "accidentally" tossing a CTR ring onto their table and speaking the words "Prophet", "Temple", and "Book of Mormon" very loudly in their direction, we eventually left the restaurant friendless. I guess if it is fate we'll run into them again later. But just to be safe I still think it would be a good idea to eat at P.F. Chang's every night just in case they come back.

Nanny Diaries

2009-05-14T10:36:00.015-04:00

I finally got a job out here in Michigan! I began Nannying for a family the first of this month and love it! I've nannied for years now and every time it's a new challenge and new adventure. I think it is truly such a rewarding job. While some people love going to the office and working in doors for 8 hours a day, I just can't do it. I need to be able to get out and go and do new things. I applied for all sorts of jobs when Jason and I first got to MI but with the high unemployment rate out here, everyone and their dog was also applying for the same jobs. It got pretty discouraging because I wanted to be doing something I enjoyed and not just hitting buttons on the keyboard all day. I'm still just a big kid at heart and there are so many fun parks and things to go and see around this area but I had no kids to use as an excuse to go and see them. So I decided I would just "borrow" someone else's kid and Nanny again!

I have nannied for kids of all ages and loved all of them! I've been babysitting since I was 11 and just love kids. Hence my college degree in Family and Human Development. Through nannying I have gotten to live and do and see so many amazing things that I would have never had the opportunity to do otherwise. I lived in New York with the Bertolotti family, where I spent a summer nannying a 9 and 11 year old. As big as the age difference was Raquel, the 9 year old, really became my best friend while I was out there. We had so much fun together! I recently was able to go and visit them again and even though she has grown up so much she is still the same goofy little girl that I love!
I nannied in Logan while going to school too. Than in Park City and California, with the Morrison Family. They quickly became my second family and Olivia and Sophia quickly became "my girls" and Mitchell and Myles put up tough competition for Jason. :) I got so attached to these kids that it is still hard every time I have to say goodbye to them.

When I started working with this new family I could feel myself starting to put up defenses so as not to get too attached. But it has been two weeks now and I am already falling for this little boy. I mean, come one, just look at him! How could you not?!

Robbie is full of energy and so much fun! I'm exhausted by the time I get home everyday but I still love it. I hear that being a Mom is the best job ever, but I beg to differ... I think Nannying is, because you get to play with them all day and than when they are tired and whiney you get to hand them back to their parents! jk I know Motherhood will be amazing, but for now I am more than content playing with other peoples kids, and Jason is in FULL support of that too!

2009-05-06T07:57:00.008-04:00

For any of you who were saddened by the news in February of 08 that The Format was no longer, I have good news! It's back! Just under a new name... FUN. I was pretty excited to hear that Nate Ruess, the lead singer of The Format, would be going on to create his own band and continue sharing his musical talents. I was even more excited when I heard they would be touring and even making a stop in Michigan! I love shows, doesn't really matter who's playing, but the news that my favorite bands, new band, would be coming to a location I could actually get to, I was more than excited! With only one online download released to the public I didn't really know what to expect from FUN, a more tripped out version of The Format maybe? I knew it would have a similar sound and style. That's usually what happens when you take a staple member of one band and and create another (e.g. Angels and Airwaves/Blink 182, The Color Fred/Taking Back Sunday). Even with the addition of a girl band member, FUN is The Format, with a little less energy. Nate came out ready to put on a show. I think the shock that The Format is no longer may not have set in all the way for him yet. They were not headlining so maybe that was the reason for the lower energy from fan appreciation. Or maybe the Bands aren't lying when they say that Utah is their favorite place to play. There were a few true Format fans there to cheer on Nate as he came onto the stage. I being one of them. I couldn't help but smile when I saw him come out front and center. It had been a while, and well come on its Nate!? I was excited to see what he had been up to and come up with. Nate is still as crazy and "weird" as he was before. His voice is still awesome. His songs are still fun. But two songs into the set he announces that since they are a new band they were going to do some covers. Covers are always good, but before I knew it I was at a Format concert. FUN covered The Format! Go figure. I don't know why this bothered me so much. I think I wanted to see more of FUN and hear what they can do, not how they can change the originals of great songs. I will admit that I got excited when I heard the intro to "The First Single" and couldn't help but sing and dance along. It took me back to high school, driving down main street, Farmington, in my best friends car dancing and singing our hearts out. Back in the day when there was just a handful of us who even knew what The Format was and were making our own Format T-Shirts. Back before it was the "cool thing" to listen to The Format. Fun will have an easy transition into the spot light though. All those previous Format fans will be sure to follow. Fun has talent I'll give them that, but if they are going to be a new band than I guess I just want them to BE a new band! As sad as I was to see The Format go, I think they need to let them go and do their own thing, as Format sounding as it may be. I couldn't help but notice how emotional filled Nate seemed to scream "I don't need anyone!" during The First Single. I don't know all the drama that went down when The Format decided to call it quits, but I almost felt for a second like that was a slap in Sam Means face. I'm sure FUN is singing about a lot of other things rather than The Formats break up but I couldn't help but notice that some of their songs are a little strong. "At least I'm Not As Sad As I Used To be"... I'm probably way off on this one since apparently a lot of these songs were written by Nate while The Format was still alive. Don't get me wrong, FUN put on a good show, I really did enjoy it. They have talent and as the fan base grows and more music is released and more people can sing and dance along, the energy will grow and the power of Nate Reuss will be back in full swing. In retrospect, I will support FUN and will wait to see what their CD holds this summer. But as far as a replacement band for The Format, I think not. You cannot replace the originals. Loved the show. Loved Nates voice, and the new girl rocked. She sounds like the girl from Straylight Run, but I'm not sure who she is... Anyways. Even though this may sound like I was disappointed in the show, I really wasn't! I enjoyed it. Overall my only disappointment was that Nate Reuss looks so much better in skinny jeans than I do.

We're Awesome!!!

2009-04-26T15:31:00.008-04:00

In the two months Jason and I have been in Michigan we have gotten to see and do some new fun things. Last weekend we drove down to Kentucky and visited our friends and went to the famous Kentucky Horse Races. We've checked out Detroit a few times and we've been looking forward to some warmer weather so we can try and check out some of the surrounding lakes. However, for the most part our nights consist of us sitting in front of the TV with a giant plate on Nachos. No matter what kind of food I buy we always seem to revert back to the classic nachos. It has officially become a food group for us. :) Anyways this Friday we decided to really get out and go DO SOMETHING! We decided to venture over to the country of Canada for the night. Only to find out that Canada is pretty much just like Michigan. Except it has an awesome view of Detroit. We went to Ceasars Palace and got dinner at a Sports bar in the Hotel/Casino. Guess what we ordered... Nachos... and guess what we did... Watched TV... So we went all the way to another country to sit in front of the TV with an even larger than normal plate of Nachos. And we were even able to make it home and into bed by 11:30. Yeah... We're Awesome! :)

Yeah for Friends!!!

2009-04-15T13:59:00.007-04:00

I just have to blog about how excited I am for this weekend! Jason and I are road tripping down to Kentucky to visit our friends Aubrey and Kyle! When I found out we would be moving to Michigan the first thought that came to my mind was "I'll be closer to Aubrey!" and I immediately mapquested the distance. It's about 6 hours, but compare that to the 20+ hours from Utah and that's not bad! Aubrey and I were roommates in 2007 in Salt Lake. We've been through a lot together and sometimes it seems like we live the exact same kind of lives. I got to be her bridesmaid last August and she was able to surprise me at my wedding and be one of mine too! This time last year we were getting ready for our big Cayman Island Trip, so it just makes sense that we meet up again to look at pictures of how tan we were and remember what it feels like to lay out on the perfect beaches of Cayman. Oh those were the days! Speaking of days... only 2 more and I get to hang out with a girl again! Yeah!!! Don't get me wrong I love all the time spent with Jason, but sometimes you just need your girls ya know?

Michigan

2009-04-11T11:55:00.005-04:00

The week after we got back from our honeymoon we loaded up my little Mazda and headed off to our new adventure in the land of Michigan. Jason began working for my company (MAC) the first of January. I was the owners personal assistant and Jason became the companies Marketing guy. In exchange for me hooking Jason up with this great new job and opportunity I lost my job and was sent along with him to try and start up the company in Michigan. I had never been to Michigan before, and Jason had only been there once. Neither of us really knew what we were in for though.

The drive took us two days, about 23 hours, worth of driving. Surprisingly Jason was only pulled over once! For doing like 5 over in the middle of the night in Nebraska. I guess cops out there don't have much else to do. All in all it was a very uneventful trip. There is really nothing exciting between Utah and Michigan.

We arrived in Michigan late Thursday night, March 5th. The next day it was beautiful and sunny. I was so excited to be able to wear a t-shirt and not have snow! But I soon came to find out that was all just a trick to get me to like Michigan more. It has been rainy, cold, and snowy ever since! We have now been in Michigan for just over a month. Jason loves his job and really enjoys it here. I've had the fun and oh so unpleasant task of finding a job. With the unemployment rate so high around these parts it has not been easy... Right now we are staying in a company condo, where we will be until mid-May when we will need to find another place to live for the rest of the time we are here. So far thats been tricky as well.

All in all its been great though. We get to spend a lot of time together, especially since I don't work. So I'm am just here ALL the time. When Jason leaves for work and when he comes home, I'm always just patiently waiting for him. :) The people we have met here have all been so nice and helpful. I'm really looking forward to summertime, warm weather, and leaves on the trees again. There is a lot of lakes, trees, and wildlife around us too, so I love that. We've been able to explore Detroit a little bit as well. Jason got to go to a Pistons game which he said was a blast. He also took me to a Red Wings hockey game. Apparently Hockey is a really big deal out here. Opening day for the Tigers was yesterday and I'm pretty excited to check out one of their games. Hint Hint Dad, come visit!!!

Marriage... The Honeymoon

2009-04-01T11:28:00.021-04:00

After the wedding we woke up bright and early and headed off to Cancun, Mexico!!! Neither of us had ever been before so we were both very excited. I couldn't wait for some beach and sunshine! The flight was long but well worth it. We stayed at the Westin Resort and Spa. We had a great view from our room and could walk right out to the beach.

We spent our first day exploring the Hotel and all of its pools and restaurants. The next day we just hung out on the beach and played in the ocean. Nothing beats laying out on the beach all day with your hubby! :) That night we went to down town Cancun and ate at, my new favorite restaurant, Chocolate City.Our third day their we got up early and took a tour bus out to the Mayan ruins. It was such a great experience and I'm so glad we decided to do it! On the way out we stopped at a cenote, which is a large underground river. It was about 75ft below the ground and so gorgeous. It had vines coming down and looked like something straight out of a movie. We went swimming and cliff jumping. It took my about a 45 minutes and a lot of coercing from Jason but I finally jumped. All the while Jason was doing back flips and showing everyone else up. Our next stop was the Mayan Ruins. They are so amazing and so beautiful. I couldn't believe the knowledge and architectural expertise these ancient people had. I loved learning about their culture and lives back than. The next day we took a ferry to Isla Mujeres. We went snorkeling along the reefs and swam with sharks. I was so proud of Jason! He's not the biggest fan of ocean creatures but he knows how much I love them. I even got him to touch a starfish. :) Back on the Island we rented a little scooter and went exploring. Their were so many fun little shops and restaurants. Not to mention the gorgeous views of the ocean. Our last day there we hung out at the beach, did some body surfing, and soaked in every last bit of sunshine I could before heading back to freezing cold Utah!

I loved this entire trip so much! It was so much fun and I loved having my best friend along with me the entire time!

We got back to Utah just in time for the Mc Hammer and Vanilla Ice concert. He knows how big of fan I am of the 80's and surprised me with tickets for Valentines Day. We went with a group of friends and it was an all night 80's dance party with the best performers around!! I fell in love with Jason all over again that night. Not only did he put up with Vanilla Ice and MC all night long, but he dressed up and danced crazy with me the entire night!

Ice Ice Baby...

Marriage... The Wedding

2009-03-24T14:05:00.022-04:00

Jason and I have officially been married for 1 month now! I figure its about time I update this and put our wedding day details on here for all those who keep asking and weren't able to make it. :)

Friday night, Feb. 20th, we had a fantastic dinner with our family and close friends at a chinese restaurant called Joy Luck, in Bountiful. The food was delicious and Jason's mom was so great to put it all together for us! We had a good time visiting with one another and had so many people come in from out of town. My Dad did a good job at humiliating Jason and I in retelling Jason and I's "how we met" story.

Saturday, Feb. 21st, 2009, ended up being the most perfect day of my life! I still cannot get over how great everything went! Jason and I were sealed in the Salt Lake City temple at 11:40. We were so blessed to be able to look around and see so many of our family and friends in the temple with us. My Grandparents and Aunt and Uncles came all the way from Alaska, Idaho, and Colorado. I also had my best friends drive in from Vernal, UT and all the way from Seattle, Washington. We were sealed by Elder Rudd, a former General Authority. He now serves in the Church Welfare Department with my Dad. I had the opportunity to hear him speak several times when I worked for the Joseph Smith Memorial Building. He did an amazing job and the ceremony was so special and perfect for us. I could not stop smiling the whole time! Coming out of the temple was so exciting. It was great to see so many more friends and family there waiting for us. I feel so blessed to have so many amazing and wonderful people be a part of my life! After group pictures everyone headed over to the reception center to help set up, while Jason and I took more pictures around the temple. We had an incredible photographer and videographer, both were so fun to work with and captured some incredible shots. We also had perfect weather! The sun was shining and even in my short sleeved wedding dress I still managed to keep warm.

The reception was held at the Farmington Arts Center in downtown Farmington. It was the perfect location for us. Making it about half way between both sets of parents. We had so much

help from ward members and family in setting everything up. We could not have done it with out all the people who lent us items, came and served, set up, and cleaned up. Thank you!!!

Our colors were light blue, silver, and black. It was all very elegant and whimsical, I loved it! I couldn't even believe how great everything turned out. We had my favorite flower, calla lillys, for the wedding par

ty and centerpieces, a great hot chocolate bar with more than 10 different kinds of mix-ins, cake and fruit, and all kinds of finger treats. Jason's Uncle even surprised me with light blue cotton candy as a little favor for the guests to take home. He had found out that I had wanted to do that but gave up on it as the wedding got closer and more stressful. Everything was beyond perfect. My brother and sister played the piano so we even had live music. We had a great photobooth for the guests to take their pictures in and than scrapbook them for our guestbook. So many people came from all over Morgan and Farmington it was great to see old friends again. My closest girl friends from Davis came and just about everyone one from USU. My old roommate Aubrey surprised me at the reception and came in from Kentucky. It was so fun to see everyone again, I only wish I could have hung out with everyone more.

We had so much family there it was so great to have everyone together. From my Mom's side of the family we had Grandma and Grandpa, all 8 brothers and sisters and 39 grandchildren (except for my brother Jayden who's on a mission).

Jason had a great turn out from all of his family and relatives as well. His younger sister even made it to the reception with their 4 day old baby!

I had the greatest Bridesmaids ever! They were all so helpful and fun to have around on my big day! I had my two beautiful sisters, Jason's three sisters (who are the best sister-in-

laws ever) and my best friends from Washington, High School, and Salt Lake. All of our brothers were a huge help too, especially when it came to "decorating" our car! Our parents were such a great support and help through out everything as well. I now have two of the greatest families in the world!

All in all I owe everything to Jason. Who has made me happier than I ever thought possible. I cannot believe how much I love him and I would truely do anything for him. Through out all of the great fun and excitement of the day, the best part was sharing everything with him. Thank you for choosing me! I love you!

2009-03-11T13:02:00.002-04:00

Blogging here I come...

2009-03-10T13:05:00.001-04:00

Well since I've joined the world of the "Marrieds" I figured I'd join the Blogging world as well. My friends have tried to get me to start a blog in the past and my argument was that I didn't have anything exciting to blog about and once I got married and had so much more excitement in my life I'd start one. Well I'm married now and still don't have anything to blog about. Just kidding. I'm actually excited to be able to stay in contact and up to date with more people this way. Especially since Jason and I have just relocated to Michigan. As of right now we are still trying to get settled and whatnot. Jason is working out here and so far I have been left at home to unpack. As of right now I am unemployed which is a first for me since I was like 11, but it gives me the opportunity to blog! So yeah for that! :) I'm really new to this but I will try and get some fun pictures and what not up on here soon. Not that I expect anyone to get on and check this thing. Except maybe my Mother who I'm sure is constantly dying to know what I'm doing now that I live so so far away! Right Mom? Love you! :) So keep checking it will get better I promise!