WE ARE NOT PREGNANT.
I thought I should get that out of the way before anyone makes false assumptions and gets more excited than they should. However, our news is still exciting!
Brandon has accepted a job in Salt Lake! He starts on January 11th, and is extremely excited for the opportunity! He will be doing data management, which maybe in itself doesn't sound super exciting, but he won't be working in customer service anymore, which is a really big deal!
My last day of work (tentatively) is January 29th, and then I will hopefully be able to go down to Salt Lake. I pushed my last day out a ways so we would have extra time that I could find a job, and also so that we can hopefully sell our house by then. It went on the market Thursday, and we have already had two people look at it, so we are feeling good about it so far!
We are sad to be leaving my family, Boise, and our house, and I am also sad about leaving my job, but we are excited for the adventure! And I am really happy that Brandon has found a job that seemed to fit his area of expertise and interest!
Once we find a place to live in Salt Lake (besides our temporary cardboard box in Pioneer Park with all the other homeless people), we'll have a housewarming party. Everyone's invited!
Monday, December 14, 2015
Monday, November 30, 2015
Boston
I know I have been saying this every time I post, but time is flying!! I can't believe November is over already and we are heading into December. I feel like the last month was fairly busy, but looking back, it really wasn't. Alyssa left the first weekend of the month, I got sick the second week, Brandon was out of town the third week, Thanksgiving break consumed all of last week, and here we are! To do a little catching up...
Boston.
Brandon had the opportunity to fly to Boston to meet his new manager. His company is headquartered in Boston-he and one other person on his team + a small engineering team work here remotely. We decided sort of spontaneously that it would be fun for me to fly out at the end of his week there and spend a few days exploring with him, and it exceeded my expectations! I was so happy that Brandon was able to get out and explore a little before I got there, walking to different restaurants in different parts of the city, but I was more happy that I was able to fully see the city with him!
I left work early on Friday to catch a flight out at 3:10. And of course, true to holiday travel, we took off 45 minutes late. The Phoenix airport, as it turns out, is the literal worst for catching connecting flights, and I missed the gates closing by seriously about thirty seconds. Thankfully, I had been texting Brandon up until my flight out of Boise took off, and he called and reserved me a seat on a flight out just after midnight. Had he not done that, I wouldn't have gotten out of Phoenix until 10:00 the following morning. The lady at the customer service desk called him the miracle husband, and I agree! I slept for most of my three hour flight to Philly, then had one last hour long flight to Boston. I got there at 9:30 am, and was finally able to see Brandon after a long week apart!
We started the day off right by heading to Fenway Park! Notre Dame and Boston had a football game there that day, so there were tons of people roaming around and tailgating. From there, we intended to walk east through Back Bay, but we accidentally walked west for about a mile and ended up in some random area of town! There is so much to see that we didn't even care, though. The area we had walked to was less populated with buildings, so we were able to see some of the famous New England color that was left on the trees. When we finally got to the Back Bay area, I was instantly in love. It was like the perfect blend of old and new. The first building we came across was the Boston Public Library-google pictures of it, I guarantee you will not be disappointed. The building itself is a compilation of Parisian, Roman, and Catalan architecture, complete with tall ceilings, statues of line, pillars, and murals that belong in a cathedral. I could have wandered around there for hours...it was amazing! Right across from the library is Trinity Church, old and beautiful. We didn't tour the inside, but the outside was so neat! It was crazy seeing so many buildings that were built so long ago!
Back Bay is mostly shopping, so we spent our time walking past shops and checking out the old buildings. The neighborhood spits you out at the Boston Common and Public Garden, which are both just a huge park filled with ponds, statues, and probably some pretty foliage during warmer months. We took our time walking through there, saying how often we would be there if we lived in Boston. Brandon actually said he would just live in the park, so if anyone needs Christmas ideas for him, maybe some hobo gloves and a cardboard box to live in or something. On the other side of the Common is Beacon Hill, a drinking neighborhood with a brick sidewalk problem (that was embroidered on a towel we saw in a shop there). All of Beacon Hill sits on a slope. Townhouses line the cobblestone streets, and at the base of the neighborhood, old shops are tucked tightly together. We want to live there, but we also could never afford it-Beacon Hill is the wealthiest neighborhood in Boston.
After exploring those areas, we took the subway out to Harvard and walked around campus. Those buildings are old. It is weird to even think that buildings could be standing for as long as those ones have been. We couldn't go into any of them, because it was a Saturday and they all were closed, but it was still neat to just walk around and see them all. We wandered around Cambridge for a while too. There were lots of restaurants and shops and tons of young people. It was refreshing to be around so many people our age.
It got dark around 4:45, and we both were dead tired from not sleeping the night before, so we went back to the hotel and napped for a couple hours before heading back out. We went to Boston Burger Co. for dinner. I had a Hawaiian burger, and Brandon had the 420 Burger (no joke). It had fried macaroni, mozzarella sticks, and onion rings on it. After dinner we walked to Quincy Market at Faneuil Hall. Faneuil Hall is like a mall food court (just in a super old, neat building), and there are carts you can shop around at. They'd had a tree lighting just before we got there, so there were tons of people. I still can't wrap my head around how many people live in Boston-it's not that big of a city for how many people are there! From there, we slowly made our way back to the hotel. We wandered through downtown, went to the pier, saw the headquarters for Brandon's work, and walked around the outside of the Boston World Trade Center.
Boston feels like it should be huge for how many buildings and people there are, but it really isn't all that big. It is super walkable, probably because there is so much to see, but we had no problem walking all over the place. It was really fun, actually, and thankfully, not too cold!
On Sunday, we walked from our hotel to the Boston Tea Party museum and saw some tea being thrown overboard! I did a big project in fifth grade on the Boston Tea Party, so I am a little obsessed with it. I don't know why, I just am. After that (and breakfast) we took a Duck tour. The Duck is from WWII, equal parts automobile and boat. The first half of the tour, the guide drove us around various parts of Boston, pointing out historic places and teaching us all sorts of things! Our favorite facts were these: Boston has 56 colleges/universities, and the term "Ivy League" comes from the four (IV in Roman Numerals) universities that the league was originally comprised of. The second half of the tour took us out on the Charles (Chahles, if you are a Bostonian) River and we got to see some really pretty views of the city.
After the Duck tour, we walked the Freedom Trail. It is a 2.5 mile walking tour of historic points in Boston. We saw a few old churches, visited the cemetery where Sam Adams is buried, saw the building from which they read the Declaration, saw Paul Revere's house, and walked all the way up to the top of Bunker Hill Monument! 294 steps all the way to the top. It was a neat experience though. And super emotional too, to think about all the things that were sacrificed and created and dreamt about by the people who made our country a reality. I almost cried like five times haha.
That night we went to dinner at Elephant and Castle, Brandon's favorite pub in Boston. After, we met one of sorority sisters at the Omni Parker Hotel and had Boston Cream Pie! It was the best thing I have ever had. And it was super fun to see Heidi and catch up on her life in Boston-it made us want to move there even more! Afterward, we hurried back to the hotel to pack, then took the subway back out to Fenway Park to meet one of Brandon's co-workers. We waited for a while, and they never showed up, so we went back to the hotel early. I was bummed that we didn't get to meet up with his coworker, but it was still fun exploring a different part of the city!
I was sad to leave the next day-it was too short of a weekend! But we made it onto all our flights with no issues, and made it home all in one piece. Quick note on the subway-it was THE BEST THING EVER. I was always worried that I couldn't hack the subway system, but it was amazing. Super easy to use, extremely convenient to get to, and fast! We paid $19 a piece for a ticket, which covered a full week (versus $12 per day) so Brandon used his the whole time he was there, and mine was good for the 2.5 days I was there. I wish every city had a subway system.
To summarize a long post: Fifty points to Boston. You made my whole year.
Side note: Many people have asked if we are still going to Paris. After much consideration (and changing our minds once or twice) we are still going!
Boston.
Brandon had the opportunity to fly to Boston to meet his new manager. His company is headquartered in Boston-he and one other person on his team + a small engineering team work here remotely. We decided sort of spontaneously that it would be fun for me to fly out at the end of his week there and spend a few days exploring with him, and it exceeded my expectations! I was so happy that Brandon was able to get out and explore a little before I got there, walking to different restaurants in different parts of the city, but I was more happy that I was able to fully see the city with him!
I left work early on Friday to catch a flight out at 3:10. And of course, true to holiday travel, we took off 45 minutes late. The Phoenix airport, as it turns out, is the literal worst for catching connecting flights, and I missed the gates closing by seriously about thirty seconds. Thankfully, I had been texting Brandon up until my flight out of Boise took off, and he called and reserved me a seat on a flight out just after midnight. Had he not done that, I wouldn't have gotten out of Phoenix until 10:00 the following morning. The lady at the customer service desk called him the miracle husband, and I agree! I slept for most of my three hour flight to Philly, then had one last hour long flight to Boston. I got there at 9:30 am, and was finally able to see Brandon after a long week apart!
We started the day off right by heading to Fenway Park! Notre Dame and Boston had a football game there that day, so there were tons of people roaming around and tailgating. From there, we intended to walk east through Back Bay, but we accidentally walked west for about a mile and ended up in some random area of town! There is so much to see that we didn't even care, though. The area we had walked to was less populated with buildings, so we were able to see some of the famous New England color that was left on the trees. When we finally got to the Back Bay area, I was instantly in love. It was like the perfect blend of old and new. The first building we came across was the Boston Public Library-google pictures of it, I guarantee you will not be disappointed. The building itself is a compilation of Parisian, Roman, and Catalan architecture, complete with tall ceilings, statues of line, pillars, and murals that belong in a cathedral. I could have wandered around there for hours...it was amazing! Right across from the library is Trinity Church, old and beautiful. We didn't tour the inside, but the outside was so neat! It was crazy seeing so many buildings that were built so long ago!
Back Bay is mostly shopping, so we spent our time walking past shops and checking out the old buildings. The neighborhood spits you out at the Boston Common and Public Garden, which are both just a huge park filled with ponds, statues, and probably some pretty foliage during warmer months. We took our time walking through there, saying how often we would be there if we lived in Boston. Brandon actually said he would just live in the park, so if anyone needs Christmas ideas for him, maybe some hobo gloves and a cardboard box to live in or something. On the other side of the Common is Beacon Hill, a drinking neighborhood with a brick sidewalk problem (that was embroidered on a towel we saw in a shop there). All of Beacon Hill sits on a slope. Townhouses line the cobblestone streets, and at the base of the neighborhood, old shops are tucked tightly together. We want to live there, but we also could never afford it-Beacon Hill is the wealthiest neighborhood in Boston.
After exploring those areas, we took the subway out to Harvard and walked around campus. Those buildings are old. It is weird to even think that buildings could be standing for as long as those ones have been. We couldn't go into any of them, because it was a Saturday and they all were closed, but it was still neat to just walk around and see them all. We wandered around Cambridge for a while too. There were lots of restaurants and shops and tons of young people. It was refreshing to be around so many people our age.
It got dark around 4:45, and we both were dead tired from not sleeping the night before, so we went back to the hotel and napped for a couple hours before heading back out. We went to Boston Burger Co. for dinner. I had a Hawaiian burger, and Brandon had the 420 Burger (no joke). It had fried macaroni, mozzarella sticks, and onion rings on it. After dinner we walked to Quincy Market at Faneuil Hall. Faneuil Hall is like a mall food court (just in a super old, neat building), and there are carts you can shop around at. They'd had a tree lighting just before we got there, so there were tons of people. I still can't wrap my head around how many people live in Boston-it's not that big of a city for how many people are there! From there, we slowly made our way back to the hotel. We wandered through downtown, went to the pier, saw the headquarters for Brandon's work, and walked around the outside of the Boston World Trade Center.
Boston feels like it should be huge for how many buildings and people there are, but it really isn't all that big. It is super walkable, probably because there is so much to see, but we had no problem walking all over the place. It was really fun, actually, and thankfully, not too cold!
On Sunday, we walked from our hotel to the Boston Tea Party museum and saw some tea being thrown overboard! I did a big project in fifth grade on the Boston Tea Party, so I am a little obsessed with it. I don't know why, I just am. After that (and breakfast) we took a Duck tour. The Duck is from WWII, equal parts automobile and boat. The first half of the tour, the guide drove us around various parts of Boston, pointing out historic places and teaching us all sorts of things! Our favorite facts were these: Boston has 56 colleges/universities, and the term "Ivy League" comes from the four (IV in Roman Numerals) universities that the league was originally comprised of. The second half of the tour took us out on the Charles (Chahles, if you are a Bostonian) River and we got to see some really pretty views of the city.
After the Duck tour, we walked the Freedom Trail. It is a 2.5 mile walking tour of historic points in Boston. We saw a few old churches, visited the cemetery where Sam Adams is buried, saw the building from which they read the Declaration, saw Paul Revere's house, and walked all the way up to the top of Bunker Hill Monument! 294 steps all the way to the top. It was a neat experience though. And super emotional too, to think about all the things that were sacrificed and created and dreamt about by the people who made our country a reality. I almost cried like five times haha.
That night we went to dinner at Elephant and Castle, Brandon's favorite pub in Boston. After, we met one of sorority sisters at the Omni Parker Hotel and had Boston Cream Pie! It was the best thing I have ever had. And it was super fun to see Heidi and catch up on her life in Boston-it made us want to move there even more! Afterward, we hurried back to the hotel to pack, then took the subway back out to Fenway Park to meet one of Brandon's co-workers. We waited for a while, and they never showed up, so we went back to the hotel early. I was bummed that we didn't get to meet up with his coworker, but it was still fun exploring a different part of the city!
I was sad to leave the next day-it was too short of a weekend! But we made it onto all our flights with no issues, and made it home all in one piece. Quick note on the subway-it was THE BEST THING EVER. I was always worried that I couldn't hack the subway system, but it was amazing. Super easy to use, extremely convenient to get to, and fast! We paid $19 a piece for a ticket, which covered a full week (versus $12 per day) so Brandon used his the whole time he was there, and mine was good for the 2.5 days I was there. I wish every city had a subway system.
To summarize a long post: Fifty points to Boston. You made my whole year.
Side note: Many people have asked if we are still going to Paris. After much consideration (and changing our minds once or twice) we are still going!
Wednesday, November 4, 2015
Fall.
So September is over. And somehow, October flew by as well. Isn't it crazy how you can feel like you aren't doing much at all, but the days seem to go by in a blur?
Not too many things have happened, but the few things that have happened are very exciting!
At the beginning of October, my cousin came to live with us! She is completing her pediatric rotation for PA school here, and it has been a blast having her live with us! We have spent our time catching up, playing Mario Kart, and drinking Stephen's hot cocoa like the good old days. The only downside is that this is her last week. Five weeks have passed already and we have no idea where they went. I'm so sad that she is leaving!! We haven't lived this close to each other for a really long time, but I am so grateful that she had even just one rotation here so we could spend time together!
Brandon got invited to Boston for a week to meet his new manager and do some work from EnerNoc's office there. He will be going for a week at the end of this month, and I am planning to fly out at the end of his week so we can spend a few days there together! We have been looking at all the things there are to do in Boston, and I am weirdly excited to see all the historic things. There are also some really neat looking neighborhoods in Boston that I am looking forward to walking through. It's not fun to be home by myself for so many days, but we are both super excited to end the week there together!
We got gym memberships. It's not super exciting, but we have been really good at going at least three times a week, and it makes me feel productive!
The weekend before Halloween, I gathered the masses and we had a family trip to the corn maze! I was super surprised that everyone's schedules worked out so well, but literally all of us were able to go; Brandon and me, Alyssa and her friend that was visiting, Anthony and Dani, Adrian and Ayden, and my parents. It was so much fun! We split up in the corn maze and had a race to be the first group out, walked through the pumpkin patch to pick out our own pumpkins, raced down the potato sack slide, then ate Taco Bell and carved our pumpkins together. I wish I had pictures to put up, I was so impressed with Anthony and Brandon's pumpkins!
A few weekends before that, we invited everyone to our house to make caramel apples. They didn't turn out perfectly, but they were still tasty, and it was fun to have everyone together trying something new. And it's magical having a house that has room to actually do these things in!!
Friday morning last week I woke up at 4:55 to buy tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a play that is opening at the Palace Theatre in London next summer. When the clock changed to 5:00 (11:00 am London time) we were rolled into an online queue for the tickets. We started out at something like 17,652nd in line. I thought for sure it would take hours and hours to get through the line to be able to buy our tickets, but thankfully it only took an hour, so we were able to get our tickets before I had to leave for work. Tickets were basically sold out through the end of November, so we purchased them for December 27th, 2016. It's so far away that we don't know if we will actually be able to go, but if by some miracle we are, then we have tickets!!
Like I said, not a ton of things happen, but we have had a really good time these last few weeks. I can't believe that we are already rolling into the Christmas season. It makes me insanely happy, but I am always amazed at how fast time seems to go. It seems like there are always checkpoints that somehow make the time pass faster. Next week I have Veteran's Day off, then the following week Brandon will be in Boston, then the week after that is Thanksgiving, then three weeks left of school, Christmas Break, and then Paris...it's going to be June before we know it!
Not too many things have happened, but the few things that have happened are very exciting!
At the beginning of October, my cousin came to live with us! She is completing her pediatric rotation for PA school here, and it has been a blast having her live with us! We have spent our time catching up, playing Mario Kart, and drinking Stephen's hot cocoa like the good old days. The only downside is that this is her last week. Five weeks have passed already and we have no idea where they went. I'm so sad that she is leaving!! We haven't lived this close to each other for a really long time, but I am so grateful that she had even just one rotation here so we could spend time together!
Brandon got invited to Boston for a week to meet his new manager and do some work from EnerNoc's office there. He will be going for a week at the end of this month, and I am planning to fly out at the end of his week so we can spend a few days there together! We have been looking at all the things there are to do in Boston, and I am weirdly excited to see all the historic things. There are also some really neat looking neighborhoods in Boston that I am looking forward to walking through. It's not fun to be home by myself for so many days, but we are both super excited to end the week there together!
We got gym memberships. It's not super exciting, but we have been really good at going at least three times a week, and it makes me feel productive!
The weekend before Halloween, I gathered the masses and we had a family trip to the corn maze! I was super surprised that everyone's schedules worked out so well, but literally all of us were able to go; Brandon and me, Alyssa and her friend that was visiting, Anthony and Dani, Adrian and Ayden, and my parents. It was so much fun! We split up in the corn maze and had a race to be the first group out, walked through the pumpkin patch to pick out our own pumpkins, raced down the potato sack slide, then ate Taco Bell and carved our pumpkins together. I wish I had pictures to put up, I was so impressed with Anthony and Brandon's pumpkins!
A few weekends before that, we invited everyone to our house to make caramel apples. They didn't turn out perfectly, but they were still tasty, and it was fun to have everyone together trying something new. And it's magical having a house that has room to actually do these things in!!
Friday morning last week I woke up at 4:55 to buy tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a play that is opening at the Palace Theatre in London next summer. When the clock changed to 5:00 (11:00 am London time) we were rolled into an online queue for the tickets. We started out at something like 17,652nd in line. I thought for sure it would take hours and hours to get through the line to be able to buy our tickets, but thankfully it only took an hour, so we were able to get our tickets before I had to leave for work. Tickets were basically sold out through the end of November, so we purchased them for December 27th, 2016. It's so far away that we don't know if we will actually be able to go, but if by some miracle we are, then we have tickets!!
Like I said, not a ton of things happen, but we have had a really good time these last few weeks. I can't believe that we are already rolling into the Christmas season. It makes me insanely happy, but I am always amazed at how fast time seems to go. It seems like there are always checkpoints that somehow make the time pass faster. Next week I have Veteran's Day off, then the following week Brandon will be in Boston, then the week after that is Thanksgiving, then three weeks left of school, Christmas Break, and then Paris...it's going to be June before we know it!
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
September?!
I can't believe it is September already! Summer flew by in a fury. I'm already regretting not eating enough sno cone and spending too little time at the pool.
Brandon and I were both busy working this summer; him, getting acquainted with EnerNoc some more, and me, working at the high school summer sessions. Brandon's family came for a weekend at the beginning of the summer and we had the best time! We ate lots of food, hung out downtown, played games, and the guys were even kind enough to pour an extension of our patio! My favorite part was when we split up, and the guys went to the Harley shop, and us girls got pedicures. That night we went to a baseball game too!
The following weekend we took Friday off and went to Utah so I could go to the bachelorette party of one of my best friends! We drove down to Logan on Thursday, then Brandon and I spent the day in Salt Lake on Friday shopping and seeing friends. That evening, I dropped him off with a friend and drove to Park City to celebrate with Chelsea. It was nice to see her and spend time with her, celebrating the death of her life as an unmarried lady. We played games, ate pizza, and gossiped. All the best girl things. I left around noon that Saturday to go back to Logan. We had a barbecue that night with Brandon's family, and played games with Jake and Alyssa.
The weekend after that was the 4th of July and I was so happy to be in Boise for it! We spent most of the weekend with Adrian, since he had just gotten foot surgery and was bored of being at home. On the actual 4th, we went to the Farmer's Market to get crepes, watched the parade-where Anthony and Dani met up with us, and then went to the Chalk Art Festival. Then we all went back to our house for a barbecue and just rested for a while inside away from the heat. Poor Adrian was on crutches and had been sweating up a storm all morning! That night we headed back downtown and found a good place to watch the fireworks that didn't require much walking to get to. Afterwards, we lit off a few small fireworks at my parents house, then called it a night.
The next weekend was Chelsea's wedding! Brandon and I drove to Idaho Falls Friday night, had breakfast with my grandma, aunt, and cousin Saturday morning, then went to lunch with my other grandma! It was so nice to have some quality time with the family! That afternoon we drove to Wyoming for the wedding. Chelsea was seriously the most beautiful bride. I loved watching the way her and Sam looked at each other, and am dang grateful that she found such a great guy to spend the rest of her life with. Alycia and I were both crying through the whole ceremony because we're suckers for love. We stayed for dinner and dancing afterward. Brandon was kind of third-wheeling it the whole time, but I appreciate him making sacrifices so I can have time with my friends!
Apparently the weekend after that we were in Boise. I have been chatting with Brandon trying to figure out where we that weekend, and neither of us could remember, but it's because we hardly had a weekend at home all summer that it's weird to think that we were anywhere but Idaho Falls or Logan. I don't remember what all we did, but I do know that we had ice cream on National Ice Cream day, which obviously is the most important. We probably slept a lot, stayed in from the 100+ degree weather, and ate, like we do. UPDATE: We went to a wedding open house for one of my friends! I was so excited that these two were finally getting married so we could have some married friends (or just friends in general) in Boise, but the day of the open house, we found out that they had moved to Utah!! Still excited for them, just a little upset that they moved without telling us haha.
The weekend of the 24th of July, we went back down to Logan. I had convinced Alycia to go see Cassadee Pope with me for an hour that Sunday. The 24th of July, is a big deal in Utah, so Brandon and I drove down that Thursday night, and he took Friday off so we could go to the parades and fair events celebrating the 24th. We got to hang out with Austin and Caroline for most of the day Friday, then went to the fireworks that night with Alyssa and Jake. On Saturday, we did all the French things with Alyssa and Jake, including crepes, seeing the opera La Boheme, and planning our trip to Paris. More on that later. On Sunday, Brandon drove me to Salt Lake to meet up with Alycia, and he went to a movie and a park while she and I went to the concert. It was amazing to be able to see her perform exactly a year after I had seen her live and met her for the first time. The best part was meeting her (again) after she performed. I think Alycia about died when she told us that we were pretty haha. I'm such a crazy fan, but I don't even care. I love her. Brandon and I got back to Boise at about midnight that night, but it was so worth it.
That week was filled with many mentionable events! Firstly, I had the whole week off, which was super nice. My favorite thing that week was when we went on a quadruple date with my family to see the new Vacation movie. The Vacation movies, specifically Christmas Vacation, is a huge deal in our family, so it was fun that we all got to go see the new one together. My parents, Brandon and me, Anthony and Dani, and Adrian and his new girlfriend (who I LOVE) all went together and laughed our heads off. It was so fun. Brandon and I got our pictures taken that week for our anniversary, and I am in love with them. See the pictures here.
The last weekend/first day of August, Alycia came to Boise so we could go to the Mountain Home Country Music Festival. We drove back and forth from Boise to the concert Friday, Saturday, and Sunday that weekend, which meant a lot of driving, but also a ton of good talks and much needed time together. We saw Frankie Ballard, Lonestar, Parmalee, Justin Moore, Sara Evans, Brad Paisley, and Blake Shelton! Saturday after Blake Shelton, they turned one of the dance into a giant dance party, so we stayed for that and didn't get home until almost four in the morning! The whole weekend was a blast; so much food and dancing and great music. She had to leave on Sunday before Florida Georgia Line performed, so Brandon met us outside the gates, I swapped cars, and he and I went back in to finish off the night. I love FGL, so I was happy that Brandon was willing to drive the whole way to see them with me!
The weekend of August 8th, we drove to Idaho Falls with my parents to go to my cousin Abby's wedding. It was so great to see her and finally officially meet her now husband! It was a beautiful backyard wedding; you could just feel all the love from everyone that attended. My cousin Ethan turned 21 that day, so before the wedding we met up with family for lunch and cake to celebrate. That night, his band was playing in a show at The Sickhouse (I'm not even kidding, that's what it was called) and my dad suggested that we all go to the show. The opening bands were full-on screamo, not my thing, but Ethan's band was so good! I'm glad we all went!
That second week in August, we had two family members get home from their missions: Brandon's brother, Shawn, and my cousin Tyler. That Friday, we drove to Sun Valley to join Brandon's family vacation for a night, and had a great time playing games, eating, and exploring Sun Valley a bit. We left Saturday afternoon to drive to Idaho Falls, where we went straight to a welcome home dinner for Tyler. Anthony and Dani were there too, so we had some good cousin time with both Dylan and Tyler, most of which was spent at Hobby Lobby and Best Buy. We went to the mission homecoming at the church the next day, then Brandon and I went home right after so we could relax a little after being gone so often.
The weekend after that we went to Logan for Shawn's homecoming. On Saturday, I met Chelsea for lunch and a reminiscent walk around campus, while Brandon went for a long motorcycle ride with James. We had pizza that night with his family, and then went to aggie ice cream and played games with Alyssa and Jake that night. Sunday we went to Herm's with Alyssa and Jake (per tradition), went to the mission homecoming, and then stayed for the luncheon afterward.
As much as I have sort of disliked being gone every single weekend this summer, it has been fun to spend so much time with Brandon's family and all our friends. We will have many more trips planned out of town over the next two months, including Taylor Swift in Salt Lake on Friday and spending the rest of Labor Day weekend in Logan. I'm not going to lie though, I'm super excited for the opportunity to spend more time in our house just hanging out with each other.
So Paris. Back in March or April or something, Jake and Alyssa started talking about going to Paris for New Years. We all kind of toyed with the idea for a while, and then they booked their trip! We really wanted to go, but our finances were kind of all over the place after buying the house. Finally after two months of getting back on track and saving a bit, we decided to just book it anyway! Brandon and I will be in a different hotel about a half mile away from theirs, but I'm going to use the misfortune as an opportunity to eat at a different bakery every day between our hotel and theirs. We both are a little nervous, as Brandon has never been off the continent, and the last time for me was with a tour group wherein I was not the adult. But it will be fine! I told Brandon the other day that I feel like Alyssa is the adult that will navigate us all through this, so we are in good hands (Alyssa, don't let me down!).
I started my new position as registrar a month ago, and so far it has been great! I love being able to interact more with the students, staff, and even parents! It's fun to have different things to do every day and see aspects of the school that I didn't see last year.
I know this was a long post, so thanks for hanging in there.
Brandon and I were both busy working this summer; him, getting acquainted with EnerNoc some more, and me, working at the high school summer sessions. Brandon's family came for a weekend at the beginning of the summer and we had the best time! We ate lots of food, hung out downtown, played games, and the guys were even kind enough to pour an extension of our patio! My favorite part was when we split up, and the guys went to the Harley shop, and us girls got pedicures. That night we went to a baseball game too!
The following weekend we took Friday off and went to Utah so I could go to the bachelorette party of one of my best friends! We drove down to Logan on Thursday, then Brandon and I spent the day in Salt Lake on Friday shopping and seeing friends. That evening, I dropped him off with a friend and drove to Park City to celebrate with Chelsea. It was nice to see her and spend time with her, celebrating the death of her life as an unmarried lady. We played games, ate pizza, and gossiped. All the best girl things. I left around noon that Saturday to go back to Logan. We had a barbecue that night with Brandon's family, and played games with Jake and Alyssa.
The weekend after that was the 4th of July and I was so happy to be in Boise for it! We spent most of the weekend with Adrian, since he had just gotten foot surgery and was bored of being at home. On the actual 4th, we went to the Farmer's Market to get crepes, watched the parade-where Anthony and Dani met up with us, and then went to the Chalk Art Festival. Then we all went back to our house for a barbecue and just rested for a while inside away from the heat. Poor Adrian was on crutches and had been sweating up a storm all morning! That night we headed back downtown and found a good place to watch the fireworks that didn't require much walking to get to. Afterwards, we lit off a few small fireworks at my parents house, then called it a night.
The next weekend was Chelsea's wedding! Brandon and I drove to Idaho Falls Friday night, had breakfast with my grandma, aunt, and cousin Saturday morning, then went to lunch with my other grandma! It was so nice to have some quality time with the family! That afternoon we drove to Wyoming for the wedding. Chelsea was seriously the most beautiful bride. I loved watching the way her and Sam looked at each other, and am dang grateful that she found such a great guy to spend the rest of her life with. Alycia and I were both crying through the whole ceremony because we're suckers for love. We stayed for dinner and dancing afterward. Brandon was kind of third-wheeling it the whole time, but I appreciate him making sacrifices so I can have time with my friends!
Apparently the weekend after that we were in Boise. I have been chatting with Brandon trying to figure out where we that weekend, and neither of us could remember, but it's because we hardly had a weekend at home all summer that it's weird to think that we were anywhere but Idaho Falls or Logan. I don't remember what all we did, but I do know that we had ice cream on National Ice Cream day, which obviously is the most important. We probably slept a lot, stayed in from the 100+ degree weather, and ate, like we do. UPDATE: We went to a wedding open house for one of my friends! I was so excited that these two were finally getting married so we could have some married friends (or just friends in general) in Boise, but the day of the open house, we found out that they had moved to Utah!! Still excited for them, just a little upset that they moved without telling us haha.
The weekend of the 24th of July, we went back down to Logan. I had convinced Alycia to go see Cassadee Pope with me for an hour that Sunday. The 24th of July, is a big deal in Utah, so Brandon and I drove down that Thursday night, and he took Friday off so we could go to the parades and fair events celebrating the 24th. We got to hang out with Austin and Caroline for most of the day Friday, then went to the fireworks that night with Alyssa and Jake. On Saturday, we did all the French things with Alyssa and Jake, including crepes, seeing the opera La Boheme, and planning our trip to Paris. More on that later. On Sunday, Brandon drove me to Salt Lake to meet up with Alycia, and he went to a movie and a park while she and I went to the concert. It was amazing to be able to see her perform exactly a year after I had seen her live and met her for the first time. The best part was meeting her (again) after she performed. I think Alycia about died when she told us that we were pretty haha. I'm such a crazy fan, but I don't even care. I love her. Brandon and I got back to Boise at about midnight that night, but it was so worth it.
That week was filled with many mentionable events! Firstly, I had the whole week off, which was super nice. My favorite thing that week was when we went on a quadruple date with my family to see the new Vacation movie. The Vacation movies, specifically Christmas Vacation, is a huge deal in our family, so it was fun that we all got to go see the new one together. My parents, Brandon and me, Anthony and Dani, and Adrian and his new girlfriend (who I LOVE) all went together and laughed our heads off. It was so fun. Brandon and I got our pictures taken that week for our anniversary, and I am in love with them. See the pictures here.
The last weekend/first day of August, Alycia came to Boise so we could go to the Mountain Home Country Music Festival. We drove back and forth from Boise to the concert Friday, Saturday, and Sunday that weekend, which meant a lot of driving, but also a ton of good talks and much needed time together. We saw Frankie Ballard, Lonestar, Parmalee, Justin Moore, Sara Evans, Brad Paisley, and Blake Shelton! Saturday after Blake Shelton, they turned one of the dance into a giant dance party, so we stayed for that and didn't get home until almost four in the morning! The whole weekend was a blast; so much food and dancing and great music. She had to leave on Sunday before Florida Georgia Line performed, so Brandon met us outside the gates, I swapped cars, and he and I went back in to finish off the night. I love FGL, so I was happy that Brandon was willing to drive the whole way to see them with me!
The weekend of August 8th, we drove to Idaho Falls with my parents to go to my cousin Abby's wedding. It was so great to see her and finally officially meet her now husband! It was a beautiful backyard wedding; you could just feel all the love from everyone that attended. My cousin Ethan turned 21 that day, so before the wedding we met up with family for lunch and cake to celebrate. That night, his band was playing in a show at The Sickhouse (I'm not even kidding, that's what it was called) and my dad suggested that we all go to the show. The opening bands were full-on screamo, not my thing, but Ethan's band was so good! I'm glad we all went!
That second week in August, we had two family members get home from their missions: Brandon's brother, Shawn, and my cousin Tyler. That Friday, we drove to Sun Valley to join Brandon's family vacation for a night, and had a great time playing games, eating, and exploring Sun Valley a bit. We left Saturday afternoon to drive to Idaho Falls, where we went straight to a welcome home dinner for Tyler. Anthony and Dani were there too, so we had some good cousin time with both Dylan and Tyler, most of which was spent at Hobby Lobby and Best Buy. We went to the mission homecoming at the church the next day, then Brandon and I went home right after so we could relax a little after being gone so often.
The weekend after that we went to Logan for Shawn's homecoming. On Saturday, I met Chelsea for lunch and a reminiscent walk around campus, while Brandon went for a long motorcycle ride with James. We had pizza that night with his family, and then went to aggie ice cream and played games with Alyssa and Jake that night. Sunday we went to Herm's with Alyssa and Jake (per tradition), went to the mission homecoming, and then stayed for the luncheon afterward.
As much as I have sort of disliked being gone every single weekend this summer, it has been fun to spend so much time with Brandon's family and all our friends. We will have many more trips planned out of town over the next two months, including Taylor Swift in Salt Lake on Friday and spending the rest of Labor Day weekend in Logan. I'm not going to lie though, I'm super excited for the opportunity to spend more time in our house just hanging out with each other.
So Paris. Back in March or April or something, Jake and Alyssa started talking about going to Paris for New Years. We all kind of toyed with the idea for a while, and then they booked their trip! We really wanted to go, but our finances were kind of all over the place after buying the house. Finally after two months of getting back on track and saving a bit, we decided to just book it anyway! Brandon and I will be in a different hotel about a half mile away from theirs, but I'm going to use the misfortune as an opportunity to eat at a different bakery every day between our hotel and theirs. We both are a little nervous, as Brandon has never been off the continent, and the last time for me was with a tour group wherein I was not the adult. But it will be fine! I told Brandon the other day that I feel like Alyssa is the adult that will navigate us all through this, so we are in good hands (Alyssa, don't let me down!).
I started my new position as registrar a month ago, and so far it has been great! I love being able to interact more with the students, staff, and even parents! It's fun to have different things to do every day and see aspects of the school that I didn't see last year.
I know this was a long post, so thanks for hanging in there.
Summer School
I spent my summer at Rocky (my high school) working with the English Language Learners in summer school. It was pretty low-key: I went to class with the students for five hours and helped them when they needed it, then spent the last three hours in a classroom tutoring/hanging out with a few kids until they left at the end of the day. It was cool to be back in my high school (in my old English classroom with my former English teacher, no less!), but it was definitely weird too. So many teachers were confused at the fact that I wasn't a student; I got stopped on my way into the teacher's lounge more than once. And none of the students believed me until I showed them my badge. Summer school is just a different crowd all together, which means lots of discipline issues, but the students didn't even take me seriously when I asked them to not climb on the stair rail because my face looks like it belongs in middle school. Ridiculous.
Overall though, it was a great experience. I enjoy working at the middle school, but it was nice to be with the high school students for a change. It's kind of fun to watch them figuring out who they are, and making decisions about where they want to be in life. One student that I developed a good relationship with (a refugee child that doesn't have a stellar support system at home) told me that he wants to be a pharmacist when he grows up. I felt so much pride that a student who had just finished his freshman year of high school could have such lofty goals. Before he told me this though, he said "promise you won't laugh?" It broke my heart to think that someone else had laughed at this student's goals, and that he thought it would happen every time he shared his ambitions. For the rest of the summer, I did my best to show him that I supported him in every dream he pursued. It was definitely eye-opening. I am very fortunate to come from a family that loves and supports me in everything I do, and to have parents that taught me that nothing is impossible without hard work. The majority of these summer school kids don't have that at home, and I wanted to be that for them while I could.
With that, though, came a hard realization: there is a limit when it comes to caring. I have always known that I care too much about people; no matter what I do, it just happens. But there would be days in this job that I was so frustrated because all I wanted was for the students to care about their future as much as I did. Over the six weeks I was there, I had to learn to stop myself when they stopped showing interest. I only interacted with about 30 students, I can't imagine how teachers deal with the frustration of unmotivated students in class after class and year after year.
I would do it again in a heartbeat, though. Maybe I'm just an optimist, but I really do believe that everyone is capable of great things. Working with these students to help them work toward their academic goals, and realize that they can actually be successful in life, despite what they may think, was a great experience. I have such a natural love for all the students, and want them to know that I will support them in all their positive goals and aspirations.
Sorry for the sappy post, I just feel so strongly about these kids being happy that it kind of makes me emotional. If you want to hear a ridiculous story, ask me about the time I cried while helping a kid pack up his locker to move to a different one. That was a good time.
Overall though, it was a great experience. I enjoy working at the middle school, but it was nice to be with the high school students for a change. It's kind of fun to watch them figuring out who they are, and making decisions about where they want to be in life. One student that I developed a good relationship with (a refugee child that doesn't have a stellar support system at home) told me that he wants to be a pharmacist when he grows up. I felt so much pride that a student who had just finished his freshman year of high school could have such lofty goals. Before he told me this though, he said "promise you won't laugh?" It broke my heart to think that someone else had laughed at this student's goals, and that he thought it would happen every time he shared his ambitions. For the rest of the summer, I did my best to show him that I supported him in every dream he pursued. It was definitely eye-opening. I am very fortunate to come from a family that loves and supports me in everything I do, and to have parents that taught me that nothing is impossible without hard work. The majority of these summer school kids don't have that at home, and I wanted to be that for them while I could.
With that, though, came a hard realization: there is a limit when it comes to caring. I have always known that I care too much about people; no matter what I do, it just happens. But there would be days in this job that I was so frustrated because all I wanted was for the students to care about their future as much as I did. Over the six weeks I was there, I had to learn to stop myself when they stopped showing interest. I only interacted with about 30 students, I can't imagine how teachers deal with the frustration of unmotivated students in class after class and year after year.
I would do it again in a heartbeat, though. Maybe I'm just an optimist, but I really do believe that everyone is capable of great things. Working with these students to help them work toward their academic goals, and realize that they can actually be successful in life, despite what they may think, was a great experience. I have such a natural love for all the students, and want them to know that I will support them in all their positive goals and aspirations.
Sorry for the sappy post, I just feel so strongly about these kids being happy that it kind of makes me emotional. If you want to hear a ridiculous story, ask me about the time I cried while helping a kid pack up his locker to move to a different one. That was a good time.
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Anniversary
Brandon and I celebrated our four year anniversary a week ago today. The evening was filled with Mexican food, Hobby Lobby, and of course, ice cream. A few weeks back, we had a photo sesh with the incredibly talented Rosie Nary to commemorate our four years of love and happiness. The pics can be viewed through the link below. To family who want to order copies, I don't really know how its going to work. The photos were all too big to upload to Shutterfly, so we'll figure something out.
Check out our pictures here!
Check out our pictures here!
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
on national best friends day.
Before delving into the real meaning of this post, gotta give a little update.
School ended on Wednesday last week, and Thursday was my last official day as Library Assistant. So ends yet another library phase in my life. Friday I spent the day training for my new position as registrar. The current registrar was going to be out of town Monday and Tuesday this week, so I had a nice four-day weekend planned for myself consisting of many sno cones, much book-reading, and a super lot of hours spent by the pool. My body took this small amount of freedom as its own, and by Saturday afternoon I was dead on the couch. Sick. Wee. I have left the house only four times since Saturday, twice for partial-day work related things and twice for food (priorities, right?). I had to miss my first day of summer school today because I woke up still too sick to go to work this morning. What a joke. Thanks a lot body. Jerk.
Anyway.
Yesterday I posted this:
School ended on Wednesday last week, and Thursday was my last official day as Library Assistant. So ends yet another library phase in my life. Friday I spent the day training for my new position as registrar. The current registrar was going to be out of town Monday and Tuesday this week, so I had a nice four-day weekend planned for myself consisting of many sno cones, much book-reading, and a super lot of hours spent by the pool. My body took this small amount of freedom as its own, and by Saturday afternoon I was dead on the couch. Sick. Wee. I have left the house only four times since Saturday, twice for partial-day work related things and twice for food (priorities, right?). I had to miss my first day of summer school today because I woke up still too sick to go to work this morning. What a joke. Thanks a lot body. Jerk.
Anyway.
Yesterday I posted this:
I like celebrating all the little holidays, donut day, pizza day, (any day involving food really), national siblings day...all the best days. But I really like National Best Friends Day because I have some really great people in my life.
Pictured alongside me in the bottom left, in all our awkward, adolescent glory, is a girl who has been my best friend since eighth grade. Through good times and bad, I know I can always count on her and our friendship to be a constant rock in my life.
Top left includes my husband (perma-best friend, sorry babe) and two super great people that need to move their butts to Boise! Our travel buddies, couple significant other, and people who just understand us. They complete us.
And the ladies on the right. Not enough great things can be said about them. The amount of happiness they bring into my life is indescribable. It has been fun to see where life has taken each of us, but I wish it would take us together more often! They are the only people that I can be 100% myself around. They've seen be at my best and helped me through my worst, and I wouldn't be who I am without them! Come visit me!!!
I like having friends, as any average person would. And there are a lot of special people I have met throughout my life that will always be important to me. This is a super cheesy post, but where would we be without the people who have molded and shaped us?
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
on goodbyes.
I hate goodbyes. Ask my friends, or my family, or Brandon. I cry every single time I have to say goodbye to someone I care deeply about, even if we already have planned to see each other again soon.
That being said, today was the second to last day of school. I didn't really think anything of it, because most of the kids I have interacted with this past year are sixth and seventh graders, so I will be seeing them again next year. I didn't think about the fact that I will probably never see any of the eighth graders that I have gotten to know ever again until my 5th period student aide stopped at my desk on her way out of the library for the last time. She looked at me and said "thanks for putting up with me all year." I ALMOST LOST IT. Right there amongst all the books, I almost started bawling my eyes out because my witty, sarcastic little eighth grader made a joking comment about our time together this year, and she probably doesn't even know that I'm actually going to really miss her. She really messed it up for the eighth graders I only kind of know but don't see every day (which is most of them), because every time I saw one of them the rest of the day I just kept saying "I can't believe you're going to high school. I'm going to miss you so much. You guys just grow up so fast." And generally it was followed up with "uh...I just wanted to turn my book in..."
Granted, I am not a teacher. I don't spend all day every trying to wrangle and shape the minds of pubescent preteens who could not care less about what I was saying-I just give them books and take their money when they are irresponsible with said books-but boy, do I love them. I don't know if teachers enjoy their kids as much as I do, maybe for like the first few months, or maybe not at all (kudos to all my teacher friends though, I really don't know how you do it) but I appreciate these students so much just through the little interaction I have with them. They are such special humans, so unique and powerful and driven and determined to get to where they want to be in life. One eighth grader that was on the receiving end of my emotional we'll-probably-never-see-each-other-again spiel, who is kind of a trouble maker and struggles with his grades a bit, responded "Yeah, I'm going to go to high school, then I'm going to graduate high school, then I'm going to go to college, and then I'm going to graduate from college and get a great job." And I almost lost it again. Maybe we don't unfairly judge all the kids, but we sure don't expect as much from them as they are capable of. Great things, magnificent things. So much more than the tiny blip we get from them in a 45 minute period each day.
When I started this job, I didn't think about the fact that every year in June, I would have to do the one thing that I really probably hate most in life. For some students and all my staff friends (which is all of them), the goodbye is just for the summer. But for other kids, it's more than likely a goodbye forever. But I hope they know that even if I never see them again, never find out where they are at in life, I'll always be their cheerleader, hoping that they are happy, pursuing their dreams, and being the best them they can be.
That being said, today was the second to last day of school. I didn't really think anything of it, because most of the kids I have interacted with this past year are sixth and seventh graders, so I will be seeing them again next year. I didn't think about the fact that I will probably never see any of the eighth graders that I have gotten to know ever again until my 5th period student aide stopped at my desk on her way out of the library for the last time. She looked at me and said "thanks for putting up with me all year." I ALMOST LOST IT. Right there amongst all the books, I almost started bawling my eyes out because my witty, sarcastic little eighth grader made a joking comment about our time together this year, and she probably doesn't even know that I'm actually going to really miss her. She really messed it up for the eighth graders I only kind of know but don't see every day (which is most of them), because every time I saw one of them the rest of the day I just kept saying "I can't believe you're going to high school. I'm going to miss you so much. You guys just grow up so fast." And generally it was followed up with "uh...I just wanted to turn my book in..."
Granted, I am not a teacher. I don't spend all day every trying to wrangle and shape the minds of pubescent preteens who could not care less about what I was saying-I just give them books and take their money when they are irresponsible with said books-but boy, do I love them. I don't know if teachers enjoy their kids as much as I do, maybe for like the first few months, or maybe not at all (kudos to all my teacher friends though, I really don't know how you do it) but I appreciate these students so much just through the little interaction I have with them. They are such special humans, so unique and powerful and driven and determined to get to where they want to be in life. One eighth grader that was on the receiving end of my emotional we'll-probably-never-see-each-other-again spiel, who is kind of a trouble maker and struggles with his grades a bit, responded "Yeah, I'm going to go to high school, then I'm going to graduate high school, then I'm going to go to college, and then I'm going to graduate from college and get a great job." And I almost lost it again. Maybe we don't unfairly judge all the kids, but we sure don't expect as much from them as they are capable of. Great things, magnificent things. So much more than the tiny blip we get from them in a 45 minute period each day.
When I started this job, I didn't think about the fact that every year in June, I would have to do the one thing that I really probably hate most in life. For some students and all my staff friends (which is all of them), the goodbye is just for the summer. But for other kids, it's more than likely a goodbye forever. But I hope they know that even if I never see them again, never find out where they are at in life, I'll always be their cheerleader, hoping that they are happy, pursuing their dreams, and being the best them they can be.
Thursday, May 28, 2015
desserts.
The past few weeks have been really stressful.
We closed, we moved, Brandon went to Boston (and I didn't sleep), he came home, we laid sod, tried to deal with some issues with the house and yard and homeowner's insurance, I interviewed for a job, I helped planned a party for all the kids at school, and now I'm training for a new position while simultaneously trying to finish up all the things in the library for the end of the year.
Most of the time, I thrive on stress. It kicks me into high gear and I love the adrenaline rush it gives me. I have the drive to get stuff done so I can relax and do my thing.
And sometimes, I feel like I'm spread too thin. Like no matter what I do with my day or with my life, I will end up disappointing someone, and I hate that. At work, between the growth party, the library and my new position, I barely have time to go to the bathroom. If you know me well at all, you know that I love food and will always make time to eat. Last week I didn't eat lunch twice; that's a big deal. Ha.
On very very very rare occasions, the stress is so overwhelming that I can't handle it and I end up crying in the bathroom at work. Yesterday was one of those days.
I'm sorry that you have to read this not-so-exciting/informative post. But when I'm stressed, I write, and I finally have some time during my day to just breathe, so this is how I'm using it.
The majority of people might say "this is adult life. you are busy and sometimes your head falls off but you just have to deal with it." But I like my head properly secured on my body, and I like having time to live and actually enjoy life, not just going through the daily motions of being an "adult." So here I am, trying to figure out what the heck I'm doing with my life and what is going to make me happiest and most successful (in my own views) as a human. I've gone through like seven different life scenarios in the last ten minutes, so if someone wants to just tell me what to do and provide the means to do it all, please do.
THANKFULLY, there are good things.
First of all, we adore our house. And the fact that it's ours. We laid so much sod a few weeks ago that I wanted to die, but it is so fun looking out the back window window and seeing grass!!! We bought a firepit over the weekend and got to enjoy smores in our own backyard. I really just love it. And the area we live in is so fun too; we are just half a mile away from a fun park with a pond and a playground and pavilions with tables and all the best things. And I just keep thinking about how, if I wanted to, we could have Thanksgiving at our house this year. THIS IS NOT AN INVITATION. I'm just saying it could happen if we wanted it to.
Second of all, our best friends from Utah came to visit us over the long weekend and we had the best time. They got here Friday night, and we spent the whole weekend eating too much food, laughing too much, and talking and just being happy. We never get tired of hanging out with each other and I love that no matter how many days we spend together it just doesn't seem like enough. They found a house down the street from ours that they love, and seriously just thinking about them living so close to us makes me die (in a good way). What a dream that would be!!! We were sad to see them leave on Monday, but we will see them again soon!!
Thirdly, I got offered the registrar position at the school I work at currently. I am very excited to be more involved in the school, and show everyone exactly what I'm made of. I started learning things a few months ago when I first told the current registrar that I was planning to apply, and I will continue training until about two weeks after school ends. There is a lot to learn, but I feel confident that the job and I are a good fit for each other, and I am so dang excited!
A few random, happy things.
--Yesterday we got the movie Paddington for $5. It's cute. If you haven't seen it yet, you should.
--Jurassic World comes out in a few weeks and I am ridiculously excited about it.
--We went to Costa on Friday (because when aren't we at Costa) and my baby bro was there eating with his friends. The look on his face when I started waving excitedly was priceless. I love embarrassing him.
--Football season is coming right up and I can't wait. It's actually embarrassing how much I am looking forward to all the games we plan to attend/watch. I'd rather not talk about it.
--I got to see my best friend on Monday and meet her little baby and I love him. He just kept crying, so he might hate me, but I don't even care. I will love him forever.
--The fact that Paddington is at the top of my list is hilarious. I swear, these are in no specific order.
--I have eight books on hold at the public library and three at home already. Life is good.
--I'm making cookies today. Again.
--Other than the fact that most of my hair has fallen out in the last few weeks, I am very happy.
We closed, we moved, Brandon went to Boston (and I didn't sleep), he came home, we laid sod, tried to deal with some issues with the house and yard and homeowner's insurance, I interviewed for a job, I helped planned a party for all the kids at school, and now I'm training for a new position while simultaneously trying to finish up all the things in the library for the end of the year.
Most of the time, I thrive on stress. It kicks me into high gear and I love the adrenaline rush it gives me. I have the drive to get stuff done so I can relax and do my thing.
And sometimes, I feel like I'm spread too thin. Like no matter what I do with my day or with my life, I will end up disappointing someone, and I hate that. At work, between the growth party, the library and my new position, I barely have time to go to the bathroom. If you know me well at all, you know that I love food and will always make time to eat. Last week I didn't eat lunch twice; that's a big deal. Ha.
On very very very rare occasions, the stress is so overwhelming that I can't handle it and I end up crying in the bathroom at work. Yesterday was one of those days.
I'm sorry that you have to read this not-so-exciting/informative post. But when I'm stressed, I write, and I finally have some time during my day to just breathe, so this is how I'm using it.
The majority of people might say "this is adult life. you are busy and sometimes your head falls off but you just have to deal with it." But I like my head properly secured on my body, and I like having time to live and actually enjoy life, not just going through the daily motions of being an "adult." So here I am, trying to figure out what the heck I'm doing with my life and what is going to make me happiest and most successful (in my own views) as a human. I've gone through like seven different life scenarios in the last ten minutes, so if someone wants to just tell me what to do and provide the means to do it all, please do.
THANKFULLY, there are good things.
First of all, we adore our house. And the fact that it's ours. We laid so much sod a few weeks ago that I wanted to die, but it is so fun looking out the back window window and seeing grass!!! We bought a firepit over the weekend and got to enjoy smores in our own backyard. I really just love it. And the area we live in is so fun too; we are just half a mile away from a fun park with a pond and a playground and pavilions with tables and all the best things. And I just keep thinking about how, if I wanted to, we could have Thanksgiving at our house this year. THIS IS NOT AN INVITATION. I'm just saying it could happen if we wanted it to.
Second of all, our best friends from Utah came to visit us over the long weekend and we had the best time. They got here Friday night, and we spent the whole weekend eating too much food, laughing too much, and talking and just being happy. We never get tired of hanging out with each other and I love that no matter how many days we spend together it just doesn't seem like enough. They found a house down the street from ours that they love, and seriously just thinking about them living so close to us makes me die (in a good way). What a dream that would be!!! We were sad to see them leave on Monday, but we will see them again soon!!
Thirdly, I got offered the registrar position at the school I work at currently. I am very excited to be more involved in the school, and show everyone exactly what I'm made of. I started learning things a few months ago when I first told the current registrar that I was planning to apply, and I will continue training until about two weeks after school ends. There is a lot to learn, but I feel confident that the job and I are a good fit for each other, and I am so dang excited!
A few random, happy things.
--Yesterday we got the movie Paddington for $5. It's cute. If you haven't seen it yet, you should.
--Jurassic World comes out in a few weeks and I am ridiculously excited about it.
--We went to Costa on Friday (because when aren't we at Costa) and my baby bro was there eating with his friends. The look on his face when I started waving excitedly was priceless. I love embarrassing him.
--Football season is coming right up and I can't wait. It's actually embarrassing how much I am looking forward to all the games we plan to attend/watch. I'd rather not talk about it.
--I got to see my best friend on Monday and meet her little baby and I love him. He just kept crying, so he might hate me, but I don't even care. I will love him forever.
--The fact that Paddington is at the top of my list is hilarious. I swear, these are in no specific order.
--I have eight books on hold at the public library and three at home already. Life is good.
--I'm making cookies today. Again.
--Other than the fact that most of my hair has fallen out in the last few weeks, I am very happy.
Monday, May 11, 2015
maximum exhaustion.
If you don't have a lot of time, or don't care to read a bunch of rambling mumbo jumbo, I highly recommend skipping to the very last page of the post. I will not be held accountable for any feelings of resentment you have toward me for wasting your time with words.
Monday last week was Brandon's birthday!!! He turned the big 2-7, and we celebrated the best we could with the limited time we had. I made him sticky buns for breakfast on his birthday, and thankfully they actually turned out well considering I had never made them before. We both had to go to work that day, but I leave a few hours before Brandon, so he took a nap between when I left and when he had to leave. After work we went to Main Street Burger for dinner. It was our first time there and it was really good! Then we went mini-golfing and Brandon won (he says I let him win, but really I just suck at mini golf). To finish the night off right, we got Coldstone with my family, then went back to the apartment so Brandon could open presents. It was a great day!
The following morning things were a bit hectic. We were supposed to close on our house at 9:00 that morning, but the night before we had gotten an email from our realtor that they hadn't received the documents from the bank yet, so our closing might be pushed back. I went to work for a little bit, then we got an email from her saying that we were still on for 9:00. We went and signed the papers, which was the easiest part of the entire home-buying process. Then it was back to work for a day filled with waiting! We had loaded both of our cars up with boxes on Monday afternoon, so after work on Tuesday I went to pick up our keys, then went straight to the house to unload my car. Then went home, loaded up the car again, went to the house, unloaded, and waited for Brandon to show up. Along with his carload of boxes, he brought Costa Vida so that we could properly celebrate our first night being homeowners. After we unloaded his car and ate dinner, we loaded up his car again and took it out to the house. That night we took our all the boxes that we had packed up already. We felt so good, and like we were getting so much done!!
And then Wednesday came.
After work on Wednesday, I went home and loaded up my car again with all sorts of smallish random things that I could fit. I packed it up in an hour and only fell down the stairs once, so I consider that an accomplishment. Took all those things to the house, then went back home to have dinner ready for Brandon, then we went to my parents' house to borrow their ladder and vehicle. When we got to the house, we realized that we left them our car keys, so we didn't have the key to our house. So we had to drive back to their house, get the keys, and then finally we made it out to the house. We then attempted to install the garage door opener (and by we I mean Brandon). Apparently, the box didn't come with all the things we needed, so we only got so far, but it still was quite the process! While Brandon worked on that, I started unboxing a few things and we stayed for as long as Brandon could work on the garage door opener.
On Thursday, I went home and packed up all of our clothes, and took as many bags/suitcases as I could down the stairs in one trip. Then I went to my parents house to load up a dresser that we were storing there, and to take apart our old bed that they had been using as a guest bed. Highlight of the whole week: my mom had made chocolate chip cookies, and I so desperately needed them amongst all the stress of moving. After that, I went home just in time to meet Brandon. We carried a few more loads down the stairs and filled my car to the brim, stopped at McDonald's, and then went to the house to unload and finish installing the garage door opener. And he did it!! I am so impressed with him. He put in a garage door opener all by himself!! Although, unless you have a Brandon, I don't recommend doing it on your own. It's the worst process.
I took the day off on Friday to move. My mom met me out at the house at 9:00 that morning, and we started unpacking things from the boxes. Around 11:30 we went to meet Brandon to get the moving truck, and my mom was the super best and picked up Jimmy John's for the three of us on the way back to the apartment. After we ate, we started loading things into her expedition. My baby bro was kind enough to dedicate some of his school time and his entire afternoon/evening to help us move, so he showed up right as my mom and I were finishing loading the expedition. Not too long after we got to the house, Lowe's showed up to install the fridge!! It's ridiculous how excited I was about it, but boy was I excited.
We went back to the apartment to load the Uhaul. Adrian helped me carry all the heavy things, and my mom made so many trips up and down the stairs carrying all the random things. I can't even describe enough how thankful I am for those two and all their help. We ended up getting everything packed except the 5 heaviest objects in the apartment. They had to leave for a little bit, but Adrian came back to the apartment right after Brandon got home, and those two carried the last heavy pieces downstairs. We got some Panda Express to take out to the house with us (priorities) and ate our dinner on the kitchen floor. When we started to unload the truck it was 8:00, and around 9:00, Adrian left to go hang out with friends, and all Brandon and I had to carry in were the couches. We killed the unloading part of the day! Brandon put together the bed, we went back and picked up the final cargo (the cats), and spent our first night in our brand new home.
Saturday and Sunday were spent unboxing things and getting things settled. We woke up early and had to take the moving truck back, but then were working steadily on the house until about 4:00. We were gifted with a surprise visit from our best friends, and even though it was short, it was the best part of the whole day! We even showed them the house next door where they could live if they wanted to! (Alyssa, Brandon and I decided we will personally pay for the upgrade to the large tub if you'll just move here already!!) After they left, we went to Lowe's and bought blinds and a lawn mower. Brandon installed the blinds that night while I unpacked more things. It was a very productive day and we were both exhausted by the end of it!
Yesterday was a great Mother's Day! We went on a short hike with my family to a secluded waterfall, then stopped for Dairy Queen on the way home. Once Brandon and I were home, I finished the laundry while he set up the lawn mower and mowed the freaking lawn. This kid is a champion, I tell ya. I am so happy to have him and his dedication. We were able to chat with his youngest brother who is on a mission, and then it was back to Lowe's/Home Depot for home things. We bought more blinds, and also an unfinished cabinet for Brandon's brilliant invention. My dad came over and helped Brandon cut a hole in our wall through to the garage. They then cut a hole in the back of the cabinet and backed it up to the wall, and thus a bathroom for the cats is born. We didn't want the litter box inside the house, but didn't want the cat door to lead into the open garage, so Brandon had the great idea of putting the litter box inside the cabinet. It's going to be pretty stellar actually, and once we get a counter on top of the cabinet, Brandon will have a nice little workspace. He was pretty excited about it, so even if you don't think it's cool, you should pretend to. We both ended the day with killer headaches yesterday, so we were in bed by 8:30 hoping that we needed to just catch up on sleep.
We were up at 5:00 this morning because Brandon had a flight to catch at 7:30. He is headed to Boston for a new employee orientation with his new job. He had a list of things he wanted to get done this weekend before he left (mainly blinds) and he got the whole list and more finished by last night. I really am so grateful for him and also for my family for helping us get it all done!
Moral of this entire post: I am freaking tired. I never thought I could ever feel so tired in my whole life. And I'm never walking up another set of stairs ever again. I must have gone up and down those stairs at like 50 times last week and I never want to do it ever again. But I am so happy that we have a house! And we can live in it for years and call it our own. And eventually, sometime (maybe), all the boxes will finally be unpacked and we will be able to walk through every room in the house without falling over cardboard.
Monday last week was Brandon's birthday!!! He turned the big 2-7, and we celebrated the best we could with the limited time we had. I made him sticky buns for breakfast on his birthday, and thankfully they actually turned out well considering I had never made them before. We both had to go to work that day, but I leave a few hours before Brandon, so he took a nap between when I left and when he had to leave. After work we went to Main Street Burger for dinner. It was our first time there and it was really good! Then we went mini-golfing and Brandon won (he says I let him win, but really I just suck at mini golf). To finish the night off right, we got Coldstone with my family, then went back to the apartment so Brandon could open presents. It was a great day!
The following morning things were a bit hectic. We were supposed to close on our house at 9:00 that morning, but the night before we had gotten an email from our realtor that they hadn't received the documents from the bank yet, so our closing might be pushed back. I went to work for a little bit, then we got an email from her saying that we were still on for 9:00. We went and signed the papers, which was the easiest part of the entire home-buying process. Then it was back to work for a day filled with waiting! We had loaded both of our cars up with boxes on Monday afternoon, so after work on Tuesday I went to pick up our keys, then went straight to the house to unload my car. Then went home, loaded up the car again, went to the house, unloaded, and waited for Brandon to show up. Along with his carload of boxes, he brought Costa Vida so that we could properly celebrate our first night being homeowners. After we unloaded his car and ate dinner, we loaded up his car again and took it out to the house. That night we took our all the boxes that we had packed up already. We felt so good, and like we were getting so much done!!
And then Wednesday came.
After work on Wednesday, I went home and loaded up my car again with all sorts of smallish random things that I could fit. I packed it up in an hour and only fell down the stairs once, so I consider that an accomplishment. Took all those things to the house, then went back home to have dinner ready for Brandon, then we went to my parents' house to borrow their ladder and vehicle. When we got to the house, we realized that we left them our car keys, so we didn't have the key to our house. So we had to drive back to their house, get the keys, and then finally we made it out to the house. We then attempted to install the garage door opener (and by we I mean Brandon). Apparently, the box didn't come with all the things we needed, so we only got so far, but it still was quite the process! While Brandon worked on that, I started unboxing a few things and we stayed for as long as Brandon could work on the garage door opener.
On Thursday, I went home and packed up all of our clothes, and took as many bags/suitcases as I could down the stairs in one trip. Then I went to my parents house to load up a dresser that we were storing there, and to take apart our old bed that they had been using as a guest bed. Highlight of the whole week: my mom had made chocolate chip cookies, and I so desperately needed them amongst all the stress of moving. After that, I went home just in time to meet Brandon. We carried a few more loads down the stairs and filled my car to the brim, stopped at McDonald's, and then went to the house to unload and finish installing the garage door opener. And he did it!! I am so impressed with him. He put in a garage door opener all by himself!! Although, unless you have a Brandon, I don't recommend doing it on your own. It's the worst process.
I took the day off on Friday to move. My mom met me out at the house at 9:00 that morning, and we started unpacking things from the boxes. Around 11:30 we went to meet Brandon to get the moving truck, and my mom was the super best and picked up Jimmy John's for the three of us on the way back to the apartment. After we ate, we started loading things into her expedition. My baby bro was kind enough to dedicate some of his school time and his entire afternoon/evening to help us move, so he showed up right as my mom and I were finishing loading the expedition. Not too long after we got to the house, Lowe's showed up to install the fridge!! It's ridiculous how excited I was about it, but boy was I excited.
We went back to the apartment to load the Uhaul. Adrian helped me carry all the heavy things, and my mom made so many trips up and down the stairs carrying all the random things. I can't even describe enough how thankful I am for those two and all their help. We ended up getting everything packed except the 5 heaviest objects in the apartment. They had to leave for a little bit, but Adrian came back to the apartment right after Brandon got home, and those two carried the last heavy pieces downstairs. We got some Panda Express to take out to the house with us (priorities) and ate our dinner on the kitchen floor. When we started to unload the truck it was 8:00, and around 9:00, Adrian left to go hang out with friends, and all Brandon and I had to carry in were the couches. We killed the unloading part of the day! Brandon put together the bed, we went back and picked up the final cargo (the cats), and spent our first night in our brand new home.
Saturday and Sunday were spent unboxing things and getting things settled. We woke up early and had to take the moving truck back, but then were working steadily on the house until about 4:00. We were gifted with a surprise visit from our best friends, and even though it was short, it was the best part of the whole day! We even showed them the house next door where they could live if they wanted to! (Alyssa, Brandon and I decided we will personally pay for the upgrade to the large tub if you'll just move here already!!) After they left, we went to Lowe's and bought blinds and a lawn mower. Brandon installed the blinds that night while I unpacked more things. It was a very productive day and we were both exhausted by the end of it!
Yesterday was a great Mother's Day! We went on a short hike with my family to a secluded waterfall, then stopped for Dairy Queen on the way home. Once Brandon and I were home, I finished the laundry while he set up the lawn mower and mowed the freaking lawn. This kid is a champion, I tell ya. I am so happy to have him and his dedication. We were able to chat with his youngest brother who is on a mission, and then it was back to Lowe's/Home Depot for home things. We bought more blinds, and also an unfinished cabinet for Brandon's brilliant invention. My dad came over and helped Brandon cut a hole in our wall through to the garage. They then cut a hole in the back of the cabinet and backed it up to the wall, and thus a bathroom for the cats is born. We didn't want the litter box inside the house, but didn't want the cat door to lead into the open garage, so Brandon had the great idea of putting the litter box inside the cabinet. It's going to be pretty stellar actually, and once we get a counter on top of the cabinet, Brandon will have a nice little workspace. He was pretty excited about it, so even if you don't think it's cool, you should pretend to. We both ended the day with killer headaches yesterday, so we were in bed by 8:30 hoping that we needed to just catch up on sleep.
We were up at 5:00 this morning because Brandon had a flight to catch at 7:30. He is headed to Boston for a new employee orientation with his new job. He had a list of things he wanted to get done this weekend before he left (mainly blinds) and he got the whole list and more finished by last night. I really am so grateful for him and also for my family for helping us get it all done!
Moral of this entire post: I am freaking tired. I never thought I could ever feel so tired in my whole life. And I'm never walking up another set of stairs ever again. I must have gone up and down those stairs at like 50 times last week and I never want to do it ever again. But I am so happy that we have a house! And we can live in it for years and call it our own. And eventually, sometime (maybe), all the boxes will finally be unpacked and we will be able to walk through every room in the house without falling over cardboard.
Monday, April 27, 2015
Patience
At noon today we have a walk-through of our house with the superintendent to go over any last minute things that need touched up or fixed. It is currently 10:22, meaning I have been at work for almost three hours, and I am DYING. I mean, it's always more fun to not be at work than it is to actually be at work, but we are getting so close to the move in date and I am tired of waiting. We went to the house Friday and Saturday this weekend, and now today. We close a week from tomorrow. Our closing date was roughly 50 days from when we put in our offer. It has gone way faster than I thought it would, but I don't want to wait anymore!
We started packing last week (finally), and Brandon is being super nice and putting up with all my neurotic list making. I like to make the lists so I feel like I'm actually doing things when there really isn't that much left to do. And luckily for us, we are going out of town this next weekend, otherwise we would just sit around and twiddle our thumbs until Tuesday came. Essentially, this whole house buying process has really been testing my patience (both in ways mentioned above and just the whole process in general. i am never buying a house ever again).
Really though, I feel like this whole past year has tested us. We were both so excited to move to Boise last year and finally start what we considered "adult life," but I think we are just now feeling like we are getting there. When we first moved here, Brandon was working for Campsaver remotely and we were living with my parents. In May, he got his job with Microsoft, and was working part time for both places. In June, we moved into our own apartment and felt like we were getting back to adult life. In August I started a new job. In October, Brandon stopped working for Campsaver. In December, he was working almost full time for Microsoft; the holidays kept them busy. And then in January, he went back to part time hours. And then towards the end of February, they cut hours. Brandon applied for literally 7 jobs a day every single weekday since the day we moved here. We decided to start looking at houses, because apartments here are not as cheap as they are in Logan and we could pay the same amount for a mortgage. We put in the offer on our house, and then two weeks later the mother of all holy blessings, Brandon's job, was offered.
That was a long timeline that really probably nobody cares about, but after a year of job hopping and trying to figure out what to do with life and questioning literally every single decision made in our college career, I think we are finally at a point where we feel like we can really start to settle in. Up until Brandon was offered this job, we weren't even sure if we would be staying in Boise. We had hoped for that, but nothing was ever set in stone. I'm excited to move into our house and to start grad school and have Brandon settle more into his job and finally feel like our lives will settle down a little bit and we can fall back into a routine. We have been waiting for life to happen, and I think we're finally getting there.
We started packing last week (finally), and Brandon is being super nice and putting up with all my neurotic list making. I like to make the lists so I feel like I'm actually doing things when there really isn't that much left to do. And luckily for us, we are going out of town this next weekend, otherwise we would just sit around and twiddle our thumbs until Tuesday came. Essentially, this whole house buying process has really been testing my patience (both in ways mentioned above and just the whole process in general. i am never buying a house ever again).
Really though, I feel like this whole past year has tested us. We were both so excited to move to Boise last year and finally start what we considered "adult life," but I think we are just now feeling like we are getting there. When we first moved here, Brandon was working for Campsaver remotely and we were living with my parents. In May, he got his job with Microsoft, and was working part time for both places. In June, we moved into our own apartment and felt like we were getting back to adult life. In August I started a new job. In October, Brandon stopped working for Campsaver. In December, he was working almost full time for Microsoft; the holidays kept them busy. And then in January, he went back to part time hours. And then towards the end of February, they cut hours. Brandon applied for literally 7 jobs a day every single weekday since the day we moved here. We decided to start looking at houses, because apartments here are not as cheap as they are in Logan and we could pay the same amount for a mortgage. We put in the offer on our house, and then two weeks later the mother of all holy blessings, Brandon's job, was offered.
That was a long timeline that really probably nobody cares about, but after a year of job hopping and trying to figure out what to do with life and questioning literally every single decision made in our college career, I think we are finally at a point where we feel like we can really start to settle in. Up until Brandon was offered this job, we weren't even sure if we would be staying in Boise. We had hoped for that, but nothing was ever set in stone. I'm excited to move into our house and to start grad school and have Brandon settle more into his job and finally feel like our lives will settle down a little bit and we can fall back into a routine. We have been waiting for life to happen, and I think we're finally getting there.
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
happy list
Right when I started thinking about this post, I remembered that once during senior year in high school, I made a happy list. The list was a whole page, front and back, written not in bullet points, but continuously on the page so that every single line was filled across the entire page. Granted, probably a good sixth of the things on the list were food items, but still, that's a lot of things that make me happy. Sometimes it's ridiculous how excited I get about things. Like when we went to Pizza Pie a few weeks ago, Brandon just kept laughing at me because I was so happy. Or when we were fridge shopping on Sunday and I just kept talking romantically about how this is our first fridge we will own. One of the guys I work with introduced me to his buddy as the resident spaz, but I don't think he meant it in a bad way (correct me if I'm wrong here, Catic). I don't think it's a bad thing that the little things in life make me happy. Sometimes I wonder, though, if my bright, positive outlook on life gives people the wrong impression or makes them think that I'm not adult enough or qualified enough to do things. I plan on applying for a different position within the school I work at, but I feel like many people (the ones who don't actually matter when it comes to applying and interviewing and all that) will think I'm way out of my league, only because I have a smile plastered to my face 95% of the day. They aren't related things, but this has just been on my mind the past few days. I didn't mean to turn this into a ranting post...so onto the happy things!
-First and foremost, Brandon was offered and accepted a job last week! After many months of searching and applying for hundreds of job (literally), he was offered a job that is going to be perfect for him. He starts on April 13th and is so excited!
-When he got the call about the job, we were just sitting on the living in our soon-to-be home. It was magic.
-We close on our house exactly five weeks from today. It is killing me to not be able to start packing yet. I'm ready to move!
-Last night we felt super grown up because we made the responsible adult decision to save money by buying brownies and ice cream instead of going to Coldstone, and I thought it was hilarious.
-Tomorrow night is the Dan + Shay concert! I bought our tickets a few months ago and have been (im)patiently waiting for it!
-I got a sunburn over the weekend. Ffity points to the sun for shining and the weather for being so nice over the last part of spring break!
-They set up a game at school where we match the staff's pets to their owners, and the pictures are hanging in the break room. Every time I'm in there with someone I know well I ask if they want to see a picture of my children and I think it's so funny. No wonder I've been dubbed the resident spaz.
-First and foremost, Brandon was offered and accepted a job last week! After many months of searching and applying for hundreds of job (literally), he was offered a job that is going to be perfect for him. He starts on April 13th and is so excited!
-When he got the call about the job, we were just sitting on the living in our soon-to-be home. It was magic.
-We close on our house exactly five weeks from today. It is killing me to not be able to start packing yet. I'm ready to move!
-Last night we felt super grown up because we made the responsible adult decision to save money by buying brownies and ice cream instead of going to Coldstone, and I thought it was hilarious.
-Tomorrow night is the Dan + Shay concert! I bought our tickets a few months ago and have been (im)patiently waiting for it!
-I got a sunburn over the weekend. Ffity points to the sun for shining and the weather for being so nice over the last part of spring break!
-They set up a game at school where we match the staff's pets to their owners, and the pictures are hanging in the break room. Every time I'm in there with someone I know well I ask if they want to see a picture of my children and I think it's so funny. No wonder I've been dubbed the resident spaz.
Friday, March 20, 2015
happy things this week
-First and foremost, today is the last day of school before spring break. A whole week of sleeping in, eating whatever/whenever I want, catching up on my shows, and lounging around with the kitties just sounds dreamy.
-Mortgage rates are dropping, and we haven't locked into a rate yet.
-We are starting to feel slightly less discouraged about the job market.
-I was informed yesterday by my mom that there is a Pizza Pie Café downtown, and discovered that it just opened this week! We have talked so many times in the past year about how Brandon craves their salad and how much we miss our mid-week dinners there. We made it through our first year in Boise, and we were given the gift of Pizza Pie.
-On the same note, we get to eat at Pizza Pie Café tonight for the first time since June or October (I can't remember) and are ecstatic
-We saw Insurgent last night and it was so good. Brandon started listening to the book on Wednesday and has almost finished it, but he didn't like the movie as much because it was pretty different from the book. It was still incredible though.
-Not sure if I have mentioned this, but we bought a house this week and I am absolutely over the moon about it.
-Today is the first day of spring and the sun is shining, and you can't get much better than that.
-Mortgage rates are dropping, and we haven't locked into a rate yet.
-We are starting to feel slightly less discouraged about the job market.
-I was informed yesterday by my mom that there is a Pizza Pie Café downtown, and discovered that it just opened this week! We have talked so many times in the past year about how Brandon craves their salad and how much we miss our mid-week dinners there. We made it through our first year in Boise, and we were given the gift of Pizza Pie.
-On the same note, we get to eat at Pizza Pie Café tonight for the first time since June or October (I can't remember) and are ecstatic
-We saw Insurgent last night and it was so good. Brandon started listening to the book on Wednesday and has almost finished it, but he didn't like the movie as much because it was pretty different from the book. It was still incredible though.
-Not sure if I have mentioned this, but we bought a house this week and I am absolutely over the moon about it.
-Today is the first day of spring and the sun is shining, and you can't get much better than that.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
our first great leap into adulthood
Brandon and I had talked about buying a house since before we even graduated college. The plan was to graduate, move to Boise, buy a house, and start grad school. We knew we would have to live with my parents for a little while regardless of the plan, but during that time we both decided to not go to grad school and just get full time jobs instead. We were so excited when Brandon was offered a full-time position at Microsoft that we jumped the gun and put down money to build a house. After the whole mix-up happened, we were devastated (but luckily got all our money back). We were ready to become adults and own a house and start our adult lives, but it all got put on pause, and we found an apartment to rent instead.
We signed a seven month lease (we asked for nine, they said the best they could do was seven...who knows), and thought that by the end of the lease, Brandon would have a full-time job, and we would be making enough money to afford the house we had initially wanted. The job market, however, had other ideas. January 1st rolled around, and there was still no full time job prospect in sight. Our lease ended February 1st, so we decided to just sign another contract, and hope and pray that something would work out in those next few months.
We had been told by so many people that closing on a house can takes up to 2 months, so we had decided to start looking now, so we could put in an offer around the beginning of May and be out of our apartment by July 1st when the lease ended. Honestly, I have been continuously looking at houses since we have been in Boise, but it was time to get serious. We had been looking online and driving around to look at houses since we got back from our vacation in December, and just kept getting so discouraged. Any house that was the size we wanted and no more than 10 years old was just too expensive. We started to feel like the world didn't actually want us to be adults.
Fast forward to the past two weekends. We found a neighborhood further away from the heart of Meridian than we had originally been looking at. Brand new construction, starter homes of the size we were hoping for, and definitely in our price range. Two weekends ago we found one that we liked, but the day we called to set up a showing they told us that someone had put in an offer the day before. Everyone said "it just wasn't the right one, the right one will come along when it's supposed to." This past weekend, we went back out to the neighborhood to look at another house right next to the other one, and we fell in love. This was the first time we had been inside of it, and it was perfect! The realtor that took us out there said it would go quickly, and that the same house couldn't be replicated for the same low price. After a day of consideration and double checking my calculations to make sure we could afford it (I couldn't believe how well it fell into our price range, I'm obsessed with it), we put in an offer.
Last night the house officially became ours, as we signed the final documents. We pushed out the closing date as far as possible, and landed on May 5th. We are so excited to finally be making progress in the adult world, and I'm just happy that life didn't let me down after getting my hopes up so high. Less than fifty days and we will officially be home owners!
We signed a seven month lease (we asked for nine, they said the best they could do was seven...who knows), and thought that by the end of the lease, Brandon would have a full-time job, and we would be making enough money to afford the house we had initially wanted. The job market, however, had other ideas. January 1st rolled around, and there was still no full time job prospect in sight. Our lease ended February 1st, so we decided to just sign another contract, and hope and pray that something would work out in those next few months.
We had been told by so many people that closing on a house can takes up to 2 months, so we had decided to start looking now, so we could put in an offer around the beginning of May and be out of our apartment by July 1st when the lease ended. Honestly, I have been continuously looking at houses since we have been in Boise, but it was time to get serious. We had been looking online and driving around to look at houses since we got back from our vacation in December, and just kept getting so discouraged. Any house that was the size we wanted and no more than 10 years old was just too expensive. We started to feel like the world didn't actually want us to be adults.
Fast forward to the past two weekends. We found a neighborhood further away from the heart of Meridian than we had originally been looking at. Brand new construction, starter homes of the size we were hoping for, and definitely in our price range. Two weekends ago we found one that we liked, but the day we called to set up a showing they told us that someone had put in an offer the day before. Everyone said "it just wasn't the right one, the right one will come along when it's supposed to." This past weekend, we went back out to the neighborhood to look at another house right next to the other one, and we fell in love. This was the first time we had been inside of it, and it was perfect! The realtor that took us out there said it would go quickly, and that the same house couldn't be replicated for the same low price. After a day of consideration and double checking my calculations to make sure we could afford it (I couldn't believe how well it fell into our price range, I'm obsessed with it), we put in an offer.
Last night the house officially became ours, as we signed the final documents. We pushed out the closing date as far as possible, and landed on May 5th. We are so excited to finally be making progress in the adult world, and I'm just happy that life didn't let me down after getting my hopes up so high. Less than fifty days and we will officially be home owners!
Monday, March 2, 2015
Monday sap.
We ventured down to Logan over our three day weekend so spend some much needed time with Brandon's family and our friends. It was so nice to see everyone and interact with people our own age for a change, and spend time catching up with Brandon's parents and siblings.
Brandon's family tried to make this weekend my birthday celebration weekend, and they did a pretty great job! We went to my favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner, followed by Big Hero 6, candy, and brownies. The next morning we all went to The Creperie for breakfast and it was amazing! Afterward we played Heads Up, and it was hilarious. It took a little bit for everyone to warm up and be comfortable being crazy, but by the end we had James jumping over imaginary hurdles, and Caroline and I tag-team charading the words. Brandon's mom made me a ginormous quilt for my birthday too. She told me it would probably take her a few weeks to finish, but she, Caroline, and Candis busted it out in less than a whole day! I am in love with it.
On Saturday we went to lunch with the same friends that we went to Florida with. We love that any time we spend together just never seems like enough. It is seriously always that way. We saw them Thursday night for fifteen minutes, and it about killed us to leave. We spent 3 hours with them at lunch, and even then we could have kept talking for hours. Brandon has this coming weekend off, so we invited them up to Boise and they said yes without hesitation!! We are looking forward to a fun weekend with them, and probably will end up holding them captive so they can't leave.
That same night I went to dinner with my friends (I don't think I will be hungry for the next week, all I did this weekend was eat). It was fun to catch up with the three of them; I feel like so much has changed in the last six months! We ate, laughed, and gave the waiter a hard time about the milkshake machine being broken. It's always hard to say goodbye to my friends, but I know we will for sure be seeing each other at Chelsea's wedding! Let's not wait until then though, okay guys?
I love Boise, and it's always kind of hard for me to go back to Logan, but there are a lot of people I love down there that make the trip a little bit easier. I'm thankful for Brandon's family for making me feel like a part of their family, and for my sisters-in-law who seriously could not be any cooler. I love all our couple friends, who always make me laugh and who make our marriage an adventure to be shared. I'm thankful for my friends, who have loved me at my worst and supported me through hard times, and never fail to be there when I need them the most.
I'm only a little bit sorry for the sappiness, because when life gets hard and I feel a little lonely, I get a strong reminder that there are people that love me, and that I get the privilege to love them back.
Brandon's family tried to make this weekend my birthday celebration weekend, and they did a pretty great job! We went to my favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner, followed by Big Hero 6, candy, and brownies. The next morning we all went to The Creperie for breakfast and it was amazing! Afterward we played Heads Up, and it was hilarious. It took a little bit for everyone to warm up and be comfortable being crazy, but by the end we had James jumping over imaginary hurdles, and Caroline and I tag-team charading the words. Brandon's mom made me a ginormous quilt for my birthday too. She told me it would probably take her a few weeks to finish, but she, Caroline, and Candis busted it out in less than a whole day! I am in love with it.
On Saturday we went to lunch with the same friends that we went to Florida with. We love that any time we spend together just never seems like enough. It is seriously always that way. We saw them Thursday night for fifteen minutes, and it about killed us to leave. We spent 3 hours with them at lunch, and even then we could have kept talking for hours. Brandon has this coming weekend off, so we invited them up to Boise and they said yes without hesitation!! We are looking forward to a fun weekend with them, and probably will end up holding them captive so they can't leave.
That same night I went to dinner with my friends (I don't think I will be hungry for the next week, all I did this weekend was eat). It was fun to catch up with the three of them; I feel like so much has changed in the last six months! We ate, laughed, and gave the waiter a hard time about the milkshake machine being broken. It's always hard to say goodbye to my friends, but I know we will for sure be seeing each other at Chelsea's wedding! Let's not wait until then though, okay guys?
I love Boise, and it's always kind of hard for me to go back to Logan, but there are a lot of people I love down there that make the trip a little bit easier. I'm thankful for Brandon's family for making me feel like a part of their family, and for my sisters-in-law who seriously could not be any cooler. I love all our couple friends, who always make me laugh and who make our marriage an adventure to be shared. I'm thankful for my friends, who have loved me at my worst and supported me through hard times, and never fail to be there when I need them the most.
I'm only a little bit sorry for the sappiness, because when life gets hard and I feel a little lonely, I get a strong reminder that there are people that love me, and that I get the privilege to love them back.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
December. January. February.
You would think that, at some point during the 37.5 hours I sit in front of the computer, I would find even just a few minutes to type something up for the blog. I have plenty of time, but honestly nothing that exciting has happened since Christmas, so we'll start there.
We made the long journey from Boise to Orlando to spend Christmas in Disney World and Universal Studios with our best friends Alyssa, Jake, Mickey, and Harry Potter. We had the absolute best time riding rides, seeing the sights, drinking butterbeer, eating all the many different pretzels, and playing Heads Up while we stood in line. It was so fun to spend six straight days with our friends not worrying about work or anything else, and eating ourselves silly (that was obviously our favorite part). My favorite part from our days at Disney World was eating at Be Our Guest (a.k.a the Beast's castle from Beauty and the Beast) on Christmas. The whole place was decorated for Christmas, and the servers always referred to the Beast as Master. The main courses were great, but we ended up ordering six desserts and splitting all of them; it was heavenly. My favorite part from Universal Studios, was the second night when the guys went to go ride a roller coaster, and Alyssa and I went back to Wizarding World, drank butterbeer, and sat on the streets of Diagon Alley to watch a play performance about the Deathly Hallows. In that moment, I felt like I really was a part of the wizarding world and I probably could have died right then and been perfectly happy with my life.
Jump ahead to January. Brandon and I had a long weekend a couple weeks into January, so we invited Alyssa and Jake up to spend the weekend with us. We had a fun couple days playing games, eating food (our specialty, it seems), and just bonding. The lease for our apartment ended January 31, so a few days before the end of the month we signed another lease and now have an end date of July 1st.
February brought warmer weather and lots of sunshine, and it has been great! Brandon and I made a whole weekend out of Valentine's Day, starting with The Melting Pot on Thursday night, Coldstone Friday, crepes, a movie, and costa vida on Saturday, and a heart shaped pizza on Sunday. Brandon had taken Saturday off so we could spend the day together, and it was so nice! I had work off that Monday for President's Day, so I read, played piano, and then had dinner with my parents that night. Then this last weekend Brandon had the whole weekend off so we could go to Idaho Falls for my cousin's mission homecoming. It was so nice to see all my extended family and spend time with my cousins! This coming weekend, Brandon has the whole weekend off again so we can go to Logan. It has been a while, so we figured we should make a trip down south to see everyone.
I have been putting in quite a few hours at my old job at the counseling office. They hired a new person, so I have been training her for the past three weeks, but then I got a call on Friday saying that she was no longer available for the position. They brought in a temp so answer phones and do the scheduling during the day, so I had to train the temp yesterday, and will be going in in the afternoons to do billing and answer phones for a while. It won't be too bad really, but this week I am working from 7-4 at the school so I can make up for the hours I will be missing on Friday during the in-service, so yesterday I worked from 7:00 am to 6:30 pm. Takes me back to the library days at Utah State!
In other news, my birthday is a week from today. I can't really comprehend the fact that I'm going to be 24. I still feel like I'm 20! The other day my grandma told me that I'm no spring chicken anymore, and I'm slowly accepting it. The librarian's birthday is the day before mine, so this morning I made a banner and am having students and staff sign it for her. I do love celebrating other people's birthdays and going all out for them, but I have a hard time with my own! Here's to the last week of being 23!
We made the long journey from Boise to Orlando to spend Christmas in Disney World and Universal Studios with our best friends Alyssa, Jake, Mickey, and Harry Potter. We had the absolute best time riding rides, seeing the sights, drinking butterbeer, eating all the many different pretzels, and playing Heads Up while we stood in line. It was so fun to spend six straight days with our friends not worrying about work or anything else, and eating ourselves silly (that was obviously our favorite part). My favorite part from our days at Disney World was eating at Be Our Guest (a.k.a the Beast's castle from Beauty and the Beast) on Christmas. The whole place was decorated for Christmas, and the servers always referred to the Beast as Master. The main courses were great, but we ended up ordering six desserts and splitting all of them; it was heavenly. My favorite part from Universal Studios, was the second night when the guys went to go ride a roller coaster, and Alyssa and I went back to Wizarding World, drank butterbeer, and sat on the streets of Diagon Alley to watch a play performance about the Deathly Hallows. In that moment, I felt like I really was a part of the wizarding world and I probably could have died right then and been perfectly happy with my life.
Jump ahead to January. Brandon and I had a long weekend a couple weeks into January, so we invited Alyssa and Jake up to spend the weekend with us. We had a fun couple days playing games, eating food (our specialty, it seems), and just bonding. The lease for our apartment ended January 31, so a few days before the end of the month we signed another lease and now have an end date of July 1st.
February brought warmer weather and lots of sunshine, and it has been great! Brandon and I made a whole weekend out of Valentine's Day, starting with The Melting Pot on Thursday night, Coldstone Friday, crepes, a movie, and costa vida on Saturday, and a heart shaped pizza on Sunday. Brandon had taken Saturday off so we could spend the day together, and it was so nice! I had work off that Monday for President's Day, so I read, played piano, and then had dinner with my parents that night. Then this last weekend Brandon had the whole weekend off so we could go to Idaho Falls for my cousin's mission homecoming. It was so nice to see all my extended family and spend time with my cousins! This coming weekend, Brandon has the whole weekend off again so we can go to Logan. It has been a while, so we figured we should make a trip down south to see everyone.
I have been putting in quite a few hours at my old job at the counseling office. They hired a new person, so I have been training her for the past three weeks, but then I got a call on Friday saying that she was no longer available for the position. They brought in a temp so answer phones and do the scheduling during the day, so I had to train the temp yesterday, and will be going in in the afternoons to do billing and answer phones for a while. It won't be too bad really, but this week I am working from 7-4 at the school so I can make up for the hours I will be missing on Friday during the in-service, so yesterday I worked from 7:00 am to 6:30 pm. Takes me back to the library days at Utah State!
In other news, my birthday is a week from today. I can't really comprehend the fact that I'm going to be 24. I still feel like I'm 20! The other day my grandma told me that I'm no spring chicken anymore, and I'm slowly accepting it. The librarian's birthday is the day before mine, so this morning I made a banner and am having students and staff sign it for her. I do love celebrating other people's birthdays and going all out for them, but I have a hard time with my own! Here's to the last week of being 23!
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