Dave and Natalie Shaw

NEW PERSONAL BLOG

2009-11-06T09:24:00.001-08:00

Hey friends…I am switching THIS BLOG to a new address. I cannot access blogspot at work, and since all my blogging is done at work I had to switch. Please change your google readers and any links you may have to the new address which is www.natanddave.wordpress.com . I still have my healthy living blog www.nono2yoyo.com but it is not my PERSONAL blog about Dave and I’s life…I will no longer be posting on the natalieandaveshaw.blogspot.com please take note and update! Thanks! Love yaw
www.natanddave.wordpress.com

I need YOUR help

2009-10-10T14:06:00.000-07:00

Hey family and friends! I hope you are all having a great weekend. I'm writing this post because I need your help. As you may know I have started a service Project (Project Feed Me) to help feed hungry families across the country. There are hundreds of people that I don't even know who have signed up and are ready and excited to give service. To my surprise, only a few people that I know and love have done the same. I know we are all super busy and have a million things going on, but if you take just a moment to find out about Project Feed Me, you will see how important you are and how much you are needed! People are suffering and with little effort on your part, you can help make a difference. Please read about the project below._______________________________________________________________________________

Every 3.6 Seconds someone dies of hunger. When will it stop? How can we help? We must do something! Project Feed Me was created to help you and I feed the hungry.

Project Feed Me is a nine week program created to help feed hundreds of thousands of people. How can you get involved? It’s simple.

All you need to do is buy two of the “recommended food items” each week for nine weeks. At the end of nine weeks gather up your items and take them to your local food bank.

The “recommended food items” are the items that are most needed by food banks. Every Monday, starting Monday October 12th, the “recommended food items” will be posted at www.nono2yoyo.com .

Most items are very inexpensive ($1 or less) and can all be found at your local grocery store. To learn more about Project Feed Me and how you can help please visit the Project Feed Me site. It’s time for us to stop saying, “I wish I could do more” and to start saying, “I am doing more”.

To learn more about project feed me visit: www.nono2yoyo.com/project-feed-me

To participate in project feed me visit: www.nono2yoyo.com/register-here

Thanks guys!!!

Project Feed Me

2009-10-08T10:17:00.000-07:00

Hey friends! If you haven’t had a chance to check out PROJECT FEED ME on my other blog, please take a second to check it out. It is a great service project and with your help it can help thousands of hungry families across America. It’s so easy to participate. PLEASE PLEASE check it out!

Just so ya know…

2009-09-25T10:42:00.000-07:00

Hey friends….here is the latest post from my other blog, I thought I’d let ya all be aware! I’m so happy it’s the weekend. We are going shopping..yay fun!
Big AnnouncementI’m pregnant!! …..ok Just kidding. Not even close. But I am moving! Not cities or houses or jobs,but blog locations! You can now find me at
New site: http://www.nono2yoyo.comFeed: http://www.nono2yoyo.com/?feed=rss2
It’s still the same blog but in a new location and with a new look! I will be posting all of my new posts on that site, so make sure to update all your feeds, links, blogs etc to the new site address so you can come and visit me there! I just finished the transfer this morning and am still working on a few things so bare with me. I’m excited that I have my own site…i’ve never had one before. yay!
Also…
If you have ever thought about self hosting but aren’t quite sure how to make the switch, check out this amazing blog that I came across the other day. Its called Health Blog Helper. If you are new to the health/food/fitness blogging world like me there are so many things that exist that I’m not even aware of, and at times its pretty overwhelming. Health Blog Helper has been a life saver! Matt, the host has been so awesome to answer every single question i’ve had about moving my blog and figuring out how things work. I’m no stranger to technology but there is a lot to know and learn and without the help of him and his blog I would not even know where to start!Thanks Matt!
I’m still experimenting with the new layout and look check it out and let me know what you think!

Weekend update and new posts…

2009-09-24T12:54:00.000-07:00

I posted a weekend update from our trip to Illinois on my other blog and have been meaning to post it on here too. To save time and energy go to http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/weekend-update-a-little-late/ to view it. I also have a few other new posts that you can check out while you are there. Here are the links, if they don’t work just go to the blog and you can find them all there. J Hope your having a great week!!

· Day 2 Crossfit
· Counting Calories
· Day 1 Crossfit
· 30 Days of Crossfit

Oops I forgot

2009-09-16T12:10:00.000-07:00

I forgot to add the link to my newest post on nono2yoyo
Take a looky: http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/2009/09/16/how-much-do-you-weigh/

Rainy Days

2009-09-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

I love the rain. I think I was born to live somewhere rainy. All I want is for it to rain. I love it so much. I love the smell, the sound, the darkness. And I love how comfortable it makes me feel. Dave is the exact same way. We have both always been this way forever and it’s so fun to enjoy it together. We love rain so much that every night we fall asleep listening to rain and thunder on dave’s IPOD.Instead of complaining when it is dark and dreary outside, we take the opportunity to snuggle up and enjoy it. We get in comfy clothes, eat our fav treats, open the windows, listen and relax. If there is ever lightning and thunder we are so excited. We could sit outside and watch and listen to it all day/night long. Dave grew up in Illinois and had tons of big storms and when he moved to the west he was quite disappointed in what we called “thunder storms”. I kept telling him that in September we seem to get some good rain and thunder storms but up until this week he didn’t really believe me. The lightning and thunder this week was still pretty weak for him, but none the less exciting. I told Dave that maybe we should move somewhere that there is thunder and lightning storms on a regular basis. He looked it up online and found out that Florida averages one lighting storm every four days. Hmmm…maybe we’ll move there.

Weekend Plans/New Posts

2009-09-10T12:51:00.000-07:00

I have a few new posts on my other blog… check them out here and here .

Only 2 hours left until Dave and I head to Cedar City for the weekend. Dave is going on a weekend long four wheeler trip with Casey (my bro-in law) and I am going to hang out with Courtney and the kids. Yay! I’m way excited. I can’t wait! Court and the kids aren’t coming up until Friday night so I’ll have the entire day to myself. I’m excited to spend some quality alone time. I have a few things on my list of things to do…take a nice run, sleep, watch movies…read magazines…fun stuff like that. I have no internet phone or TV so it will be quite relaxing! Bye bye for now.

Summer, Fall…NO WINTER….

2009-09-08T10:05:00.000-07:00

Happy fall. I love the fall. I also love the summer so I’m sad and happy about the changes that will happen. I drove to work this morning with the heater on and it reminded me of winter…which I hate. I wish it would be fall and summer all year long.

We had a fun weekend…busy but fun. We did a lot of labor day sale shopping. Since there were great sales and we need stuff for when we have a home, we bought almost everything we need in one weekend. Fridge, washer dryer, couch, and…..Dave sold his car last week and on Saturday he got a new one. He is so excited. He got a VW Tourague and he loves it with all his heart. It’s really cute, and in amazing condition. I’m a bit jealous of it. It looks brand new and it’s a 2004, the owner took amazing care of it. We got a screaming good deal on it too…so we were both happy! Anyhow …I think I forgot to mention this on here….but we aren’t building a house anymore. Yup. We are officially retarded. Well not really. We were about ready to dig and but the longer we went in the process the more the house was getting ridiculously high in price. We were going to be spending at least 60k more than we wanted and or planned. Dave felt very uneasy about it and I agreed…so we backed out. So here we are. Square one again..looking for a home. We think we found one…but I don’t want to ginx it so I’m not going to talk about it until we find out for sure in a few weeks. So that’s the deal. Oh Also…I posted a few new posts (as of Friday) on my new blog…. If you didn’t already get a chance to read the new posts I wrote on my “new blog” take a look. If you want, add the blog to your google reader or blog checker because although I may add links on this blog to that blog as I write new posts as a reminder to you that the other blog exists, I don’t think I’ll always remember to do so. Anyhow… have an awesome short week…. I’m not working Friday yay…2 ½ days and counting!!

Home page: http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/

Operation Beautiful:

http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/2009/09/04/operation-beautiful/

Perception:

http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/2009/09/04/perception/

Math and the New Blog

2009-09-04T09:18:00.001-07:00

MATH:

I passed my math! Yay me. That means I’m finished with school…as in am a degreed woman! It only took a million years to muster up the strength to take that bloody class. I did pretty well too considering I was shooting for a passing grade only. I ended up with a B and huge smile on my face!

THE NEW BLOG:

I mentioned in a post a few weeks ago that after I finished with my math class I was going to start a new blog…that’s not entirely true. I had kind of already started it, but I didn’t have time to write any posts since all my spare time was wrapped up in my math class. I have been done with math for three weeks now and have had plenty of time to blog….but the truth is I have been a little bit hesitant about sharing this blog with my friends. The only reason is because in order to explain why I started the blog I have to speak very honestly about me…and share information about myself that is personal and kind of embarrassing. After thinking about it for over three weeks I decided that I do want to share it. The reason I decided to start the blog in the first place was to document my progress and experiences and hopefully share experiences that may relatable to others. Before I started the blog I had been doing a lot of blog reading in the healthily living, food and fitness blog world and a lot of these blogs have helped me so much. I realized that my experiences are very similar to a TON of other bloggers I’ve read about. So, I decided it would be fun to start my own. I want to focus the blog on living a healthy positive life and the changes that we have to make to do so. The blog is about my steps in doing just that. I hope that you and anyone who wants to will participate will. When I say participate I’m talking about an interactive blogs with questions, challenges…comments fun stuff like that. I want to learn from anyone who has anything to say and discuss topics together and maybe through documenting my experiences I can help influence others just like others have influenced me. The name of the blog is nono2yoyo.wordpress.com . To get a better understanding of why I started the blog and what it’s all about read the about me page first and then go to the home page to read the first post. I have a few other posts that I’ve already completed but I’ll wait to post them until after this post so if you want to read the first post first you will be able to. I plan on posting frequently and discussing lots of random topics. Fitness, nutrition, power of positive thinking, struggles, goals…and who knows what else! Anyhow…I’m kinda nervous about people (you) reading it….but I think I’m ready to put the past behind me and realize that I should not be embarrassed by it! I have done what I consider to be a 180 degree change and I am at a wonderful place with myself. I think knowing that gives me courage to let it all out…ok that its. J See ya

New Blog: www.nono2yoyo.wordpress.com

About Me: http://nono2yoyo.wordpress.com/about/

T minus 20 seconds

2009-08-30T15:51:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday Dave and I took off the entire day of work to watch the static (test) launch of the DM-1 Rocket at the ATK facility in Promontory. If you know Dave, you know it takes something pretty big for him to take off work...if its not a vacation you can pretty much count on the fact that he is not going to take the day off....(even if he is throwing up). So this was a BIG deal for him. It doesn't take much for me to want to take the day off, so when he asked if I wanted to come it was an easy decision. This was exciting for dave for a lot of reasons...he works for ATK and he LOVES rockets and anything that has to do with them. The thought of watching a rocket launch made him more excited than you would imagine. So on Tuesday morning we both went into work early and got a few hours in before we headed up to promontory. We left around 8:45am because were told you needed to be there 3 hours early if you wanted to have a good seat. We got there at 9:45am. The launch was not scheduled until 1:00pm....that meant 3 hours of waiting. Since we had never been to one of these things before we didnt really know what to expect. Luckily we brought two camping chairs, an umbrella and a cooler with lunch and drinks. We set up our chairs and started the long 3 hour wait. If it had not been 100 degrees outside with the sun blaring down, it wouldnt have been so bad...but after an hour and a half of baking in the sun, we had to take cover in the car. We ate our lunch in the comfort of air conditioning and then both took a short nap. At 12:30 we went back to our spot and sat around waiting for the count down. Finally the clock started to move...we were sweating our butts off and ready to see what we had come for. T minus 60 seconds.... T minus 45 seconds.... T minus 20 seconds.......the clock froze. There was some sort of complication. We waited...and waited....and waited..... 25 minutes later the announcer came over the speakers and told us there was a problem with some sort of something and the launch had been canceled. yup. 5 hours and 45 minutes later, an entire day off of work...and an hour and a half commute ahead or us, the launch had been canceled. It was sad. Mostly for dave. It was fun for me to take the day off and hang out together...but he was so disappointed. I guess this is something he has looked forward to his entire life. He was a sad little boy. He picked his heart up off the floor and we headed out of there. It took over an hour to get out to the parking lot and then we had another hour drive to get home. It turned out to be an 8 hour adventure. We were pretty bummed about not seeing the action, but all in all it was a fun experience and we were glad that we got to spend the day together. Here are a few pictures of us "patiently" waiting for blast off.... Hopefully dave will have another chance to see a launch sometime very soon!

I did not dress for the weather that's for sure!

Summer Pics

2009-08-08T16:55:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures that I finally emailed myself from dave's phone.

Baby Joel

I won an IPOD shuffle at south weber days!

This is me on stage trying to win!

Getting ready to force feed turtle her medicine

She is not happy about it

Lunch and Shopping at Trolly Square

Lagoon...we had SO much fun!

24th of July Parade

The White Roller Coaster

More Lagoon

The end.

Summer is almost over!!

2009-07-31T08:36:00.001-07:00

I think it’s been forever since I posted anything. Here is a recap of what has been going on….

-Bear Lake with the family…(very fun!) Swimming, playing cards, hanging around, laughing…eating…fun times!

-Work (same old same old)

-Dave’s 28th birthday!

-Lots of four-wheeler shopping (still no four-wheeler)

-I’m finishing my last class to get my degree. It’s a math class. And I hate it. But I’m holding up pretty well. Only two more weeks.

-Many visits to tony’s

-Swimming at the pool non-stop with the fam

-Hikes

-Bike rides

-24th of July parade and lunch

-Sick Kitty and outrageously expensive medicine

-bachelorette finale party…..(so much fun!)

-new nephew! Dave’s brother his wife had their first baby! Baby Joel! He is so cute and I hate that I have to wait so long to see him!

-Last but certainly not least…..we are building a home!

We cannot wait! They should start within the next four weeks and then it should be about 4-6 months after that! We are thrilled! After 9 months of looking we are confident in our choice and are so happy with the home, the area and the fact that we will be in our own house! It has been almost 10 months that we have lived with my parents and we are past due on moving out! Lucky for us we can save some more and when the time comes we will pack up and move! The subdivision is in Layton. It is just a few minutes from the freeway and 5 minutes from the mall, Wal-Mart, sams…and many other things! We love the lot, love the house and are ready to be in it!

That’s all for now. Oh ya one more thing!! I am starting a new blog! I will still have this blog, but the new blog will be much different than this one. I will post the new site when I have finished with my math class. The new blog will be a lot different than this blog. It is meant to be an interactive blog, not just updates (like I seem to only do on here) The blog is about changing…and my quest to create and maintaining a healthy lifestyle, make changes…and work to improve myself mentally and physically. I want to share what I’m learning and I’d love to learn from anyone who is interested in chatting about different topics related to Fitness, nutrition, positive mental thinking and the struggles that come up when we try to change ourselves for the better. (I’ll explain more later!) I started the blog about a month ago and have written a few posts already, but I haven’t gotten around to fine tuning them or telling anyone about it yet. My math class has consumed my free time so as soon as its over I’ll post the link to the new blog. I’ll explain more about the blog and the purpose when I get around to posting the link! K bye bye!

Add on… I wrote this post yesterday but didn’t get around to posting it. Yesterday Dave and I hiked waterfall canyon. It was so much fun! Here are some pictures!

Happy b-day

2009-07-12T01:10:00.000-07:00

It was dave's birthday on tuesday #28! He is the oldest 28 year old i know...in fact If I don't stop and think about it, I kinda forget that he is so young. He seems like he could be 32 or 35 or 40 or something like that...ha, I guess he must have an old soul ....and i say that is a good way. Ok back to the birthday day....

After work we went and looked at four-wheelers for a while (of course) and then headed to tonys to eat our most favorite dinner....when we pulled into the parking lot with not a car insight we knew something was wrong. DANGIT! we forgot that they were closed for their annual cleaning. We were really sad. Dave opted for cheese sticks from pizza hut and i got a bean burrito from Taco Maker..YUM.

I made dave an ice-cream oreo cake and we each had a piece while he opened his presents! I tricked him so good this year. He always guesses what I am getting him but this year he was clueless! I even faked him out and made it seem like I got him a bike and then on the actual day I got his old bike and put a blanket around it with a huge ribbon and when he saw it he was way excited and thought it was a bike....once the blanket was removed he realized it was not new but his old one...totally tricked him. He was relieved too, because he didn't really want a bike...and least not one I picked out! :) He loved his presents and we had fun playing with them. It was a wonderful day. I am so thankful for dave and his life. He is a wonderful man. Happy birthday little one. I Love you

I'm ending with some cute pictures of the BDB. (Birthday Boy)....made it up

Happy birthday (ps...i keep falling asleep while i'm writing this. I sat up to help me stay awake but it didnt seem to help cus my head is bobbing on in all directions,, Its awesome.

Two Years Ago

2009-06-25T12:41:00.000-07:00

Dave and I’s two year anniversary was June 1. We were married on Friday June 1, 2007 in the Bountiful Temple. As mentioned in previous posts…we celebrated our two anniversary by going to Park City for the weekend and then of course, our wonderful trip to Cancun. I have been so bad about posting lately that I didn’t get a chance to really say much about our Anniversary. So….

A few things I love about dave…

1. He doesn’t wake me, even when I fall asleep without brushing my teeth

2. He is the goofiest person I know (but not many people know it)

3. He’d eat at tony’s every day if I wanted to

4. He like’s renting a movie to watch at home right after we finish watching a movie at the theater

5. He ALWAYS smell good (body, hair, breath…everything!)

6. He plays the guitar with his fingers while he sleeps

7. He often reminds me how bad diet coke is for me, but never asks me to stop drinking it

8. He is incredibly handsome

9. He has never farted in front of me

10. Last but not least….He does my math homework.

I heard a song today on my way to work and it gave me warm fuzzies…I might have teared up a bit. This song sums up how I feel about Dave and our life together. After hearing the song, I decided I’d post something on my blog with the song lyrics and a message to my honey. The next part is addressing Dave...(and I don’t care if you think this is cheesy, mushy, stupid, lame….or whatever..it’s how I feel)

Dear Dave…

The first time I talked to you I knew I was going to marry you. The first time I saw you, I was in love. I remember the first night we hung out together (after talking 3-4hours a day for 3 weeks before meeting), I felt the strongest feelings I had ever felt. I wanted to tell you I loved you...which is craziness, but I felt it. I thought I loved you then. As we dated and I learned more about who you were and what you were about…I again, thought I loved you. On our wedding day kneeling across the alter, my heart was fuller than I ever thought possible…and I thought I loved you. When I look to the past, I realize how little we truly knew of each other, and it freaks me out to think we thought we were ready. But heavenly father knew what he was doing and he led us together. The past two years have brought us closer together and built our relationship stronger than I could ever have imagined. I am the luckiest girl alive. I love you. You. You. You. You are so complex. So interesting. So Intelligent. So funny. So honest. So Kind. So obedient. So Sexy. So ambitious. So lovely. So goofy. So strong. So diligent. So persistent. So Anal. So vibrant. So alive. So mindful. So aware. So respectful. So silly. So patient. So understanding. So loving. So magnificent. And so, so, so much more. I find I learn more about you EVERY day, and I love it…all of it. EVERYTHING! You are my world. I cannot imagine loving you anymore than I do today…but I know I will. You just get better every day. Thank you for being you. I love you!

This song reminded me of you…. Happy 2 year anniversary little. I love you!

I remember, trying not to stare the night that I first met you. You had me mesmerized.
And three weeks later in the front porch light, taking forty five minutes to kiss goodnight.
I thought I loved you Then.

Now you're my whole life, now you're my whole world. And I just can't believe, the way I feel about you

Like a river meets the sea, stronger than it's ever been. We've come so far since that day.
And I thought I loved you then.

I remember, taking you back to right where I first met you. You were so surprised.
There people around but I didn't care. I got down on one knee right there.
And once again, I thought I loved you then.

Now you're my whole life, now you're my whole world. And I just can't believe, the way I feel about you
Like a river meets the sea, stronger than it's ever been. We've come so far since that day.
And I thought I loved you then.

I can just see you, with a baby in your arms, I can just see you, when your hair is turning grey.
What I can't see is how I'm ever going to love you more. But I've said that before.

Now you're my whole life, now you're my whole world. And I just can't believe the way I feel about you

We'll look back someday, at this moment that we're in and I'll look at you and say, "And I thought I loved you then."

Happy anniversary my love. I love you, I love you, I love you, I do!

oh the divertido

2009-06-21T15:36:00.000-07:00

Finally! Here are the pics. On the way to Mexico we had to be on an early flight and I was super tired. At the risk of being super embarrassed, I am posting the following picture that dave took of me on our flight...... for two reasons, one: dave dared me and to and two: i think its hilarious! Dave added some colors to make it look like i was dead...please enjoy a laugh at my expense

At the mall trying on sunglasses....i picked this pair

The pools and Hotel

My little mexican

Dave shopping for a wedding ring..(after two years of searching)

Swinging in the hammock at the Hilton...warm breeze, ocean waves....heaven!

crab catching on the beach

Natalibre

literally the sexiest man alive

2 years...happier and more in love than ever ever ever... (anniversary 06.01.07)

the view from the pool

What an amazing trip! All we did was eat, sleep, layout and relax. We drank virgin pina coladas, ate yummy food, ice cream twice daily..sometimes more, ordered room service, rode the bus, shopped at the mall, made deals at the market....and enjoyed each others company. FUN FUN DIVERTIDO! Happy two year anniversary to us...i love my honey and am more thankful for him and our life together than i could ever explain. We will definitely being going back very very soon!

oops

2009-06-20T21:57:00.000-07:00

looks like I still haven't written or posted any pics from Mexico. Dangit. Today was a busy...crazy day! We met someone to look at my car in the morning (its for sale if you are looking 2007 Acura TSX)The guy didn't like it...he said it wasn't clean enough....bla bla bla is what i say.. it is clean and its looks great. We were going ot go to SLC with Trev and Erin but the kids were not feeling well so change of plans. Instead dave and i went and ate at Elmadador..yum! I haven't eaten there in five or six years! It was yummy! As we were headed back to Ogden to do some investigating on a home, Dave got a call from someone saying they wanted to buy his IPhone and they wanted it today. So we turned around and headed down to gateway, where we stood in line for 2 hours YES 2 HOURS to get him a new phone. After the gateway we cruised out to Hooper to check out a home that is similar to the one we are thinking about building in Layton...(which i may elaborate on in another post)After driving out to 5900w aka the lake, we rushed home, changed and met Trev and Erin at Roosters in Layton. After my favorite dinner (Cajun Turkey Sandwich) we went to the theater and saw "The Proposal"....it was hilarious! I loved it! It was so funny and so cute. Just great! After the movie Dave wanted to go to Walmart to get a plastic phone protector, so while he browsed the electronic isle, i sat on a bench near the magazine isle and read US, In touch, People and Stars. Very entertaining, I could have stayed quite a while. Since I loved "the proposal" so much I decided i wanted to watch another movie tonight...so on our way out of red box we rented Revolutionary Road and are going to watch it in t minus 5 minutes. (on clear play I'll add...just in case you were going to judge. :) So once again, I have a few of my fav things waiting for me downstairs. Geeze....(15 minutes later) I think I could have posted a bunch of pictures in the time i took to write this post. Oops! tomorrow....i hope.

More pic's to come

2009-06-19T20:21:00.000-07:00

I am committing myself to posting pictures and writing about Mexico...but not until tomorrow. I have a movie, a husband that is really really cute, and a diet cokedwaiting for me...

vamos a mexico

2009-06-03T20:24:00.000-07:00

We are going to Mexico tomorrow morning! YAY!!! It was way last minute. We finally figured out a time that would work after 4 hours of trying..no joke. So Tuesday evening we nailed down the date...which is tomorrow! Yay. We just finished packing and are now off to bed... our flight leaves at 7:00am so we have to get to bed. Oh and happy 2 year anniversary to dave on Monday 6.1.07...I can't believe its been two years. Best two years in the history of two years! I meant to write something the other day about it but i have been swamped and when we found out we were going to go to mexico with 1 days notice that added on a million things on top of the already swamppyness. I have a few other things i'd like to blog about too....but they'll have to wait, Mexico is calling. Adios Amigos

$12 a night

2009-05-26T13:08:00.000-07:00

Since Mexico was out of the picture we decided to try and do something else fun around here. I searched on line for some great last minute deals and found a listing on KSL for the Westgate Resort in Park City. The price was 2 nights for $24.99. Sounded too good to me. I called the guy and he said it was true. All we had to do was listen to a 90 minute presentation for the time shares. I talked to Dave and he was in. We headed up to Park City and started the weekend out with a intense sales presentation. The guy did a fabulous job and got us very interested in the Time Share. He gave us a tour of the resort and got us really excited to enjoy it…but not to purchase it! After the sales pitch, we stocked up on the free cookies they had available and headed to our room. We relaxed for a bit and then headed out to eat. Dave thought we should have Mexican since that is what we should have been eating in Cancun. We ate at Baja Cantina. The food was excellent! We walked around after and I showed Dave the Alpine slide and the other stuff up there. We decided we’d come back the next day and do the zip line. Before going back to the hotel, we stopped off at 711 for some treats. Dave got a big bag of Skittles and some sour jolly rancher chews (best candy in the world) and I got a reeses fast break. I’ve never had one before, but wo baby I will have one again! So good! When we got back to the hotel we got in our suits and headed for the hot tub. They had an amazing indoor adult pool and spa area. The pool was as warm as a hot tub and the hot tub was smoking hot. We spent 2 hours swimming and hot tubing. It was a lot of fun! The rest of the night was treats and movies. The next day we worked out, swam in the pool and spent all day at the outlet malls. We planned on doing the zip line but the weather wasn’t right for it. We ate later that night at Squatters which was really good! We swam again when we got back and after get in our pj’s and relaxed. It was such a fun weekend and so cheap! 25 bucks for two nights. If you can handle a 90 minute high pressure sales pitch and want to spend the weekend at a 5 star resort…. I’d recommend it for sure! It was fun getting away. We ended the weekend with a BBQ at mom and dad’s with Jac and Jared. It was great. Yummy food, laying out, bad mitten (however you spell that) and great weather! Lots of fun! I am in vacation mode and hope we go to Mexico this weekend…pray for good weather.

3 Strikes, you’re OUT!

2009-05-22T09:34:00.001-07:00

What the freak! Dang it all to (#)*$()#*$()*$. This morning started out like any other morning, Dave and I got up and went to the gym. I headed upstairs to kick kill myself on the stair climber (sometimes it feels like I might die) and Dave headed down stairs to run. After I was drenched in sweat and couldn’t bare to go one more step, I went down to run next to Dave. When I got down there he handed me his phone and said “look”, and looked…. Lo and behold on his phone was the 10 day weather forecast for Cancun, Mexico…. At first I got really excited as I imagined our 8 day stay in pork paradise…. But as I looked closer I saw this:

Saturday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Sunday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Monday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Tuesday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Wednesday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Thursday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Friday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Saturday: RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS

Sunday: SUNNY AND CLEAR (the day we leave)

My heart sank. How could this be? Was it a joke? My mind raced with a million thoughts….Can we cancel now without huge fees? Should we just go and ignore the thunderstorm warning? What type of trip would it be if we were cooped up in our room for 8 days? Is someone trying to tell us not to go? There were several things that seemed to stop us…this being the third. First the kidnappings with the drug lords, then the swine pork flu, (I know that’s not what it’s called I just like to say it like that) and then the third thing….8 straight days of thunder storms. What are the chances? Not very likely right!? I thought about it for the rest of my workout and surprisingly was not too upset by the idea of canceling. This made me think that it might be the right thing to not go. Am I making this up or is the spirit telling us not to go? It kinda feels that way to me. GEEZE LOUISE!! I called my dad and we tried to figure out various options of different places to go…turns out Cali, Mexico, Florida, Costa Rica and all the western and eastern Bahamas will all be raining and thunder storming all week long. After talking with Dave and weighing out our options we decided it may be best to postpone. I called continental to see if this was possible without outrageous fees, luckily they were more than happy to place our ticket on hold due to the pork flu regulations the airline put in place. Phew! The resort was great as well. They are going to put our deposit on hold and let us use it when we decide to come…sometime in the near future I hope. So that’s that. We are no longer going. Instead of being too upset about it, I’m going to look on the bright side and think that it was not meant to be for us to go this week. If the weather clears up we might go next week….if not who knows.

I’m in the process of trying to find us a great deal to go to Vegas for the weekend. I figure if we do something vacationie we won’t feel as bad….but it’s not looking so good, I can’t find any good deals. If anyone knows of any killer last minute deals please let me know!

If we don’t go to Vegas I’m thinking tomorrow will call for some extra cold diet cokes a few of our favorite snacks and an entire day of lounging by the pool. Sound good to me!

Nothing Important

2009-05-21T11:40:00.000-07:00

I have decided that Heidi and Spencer have a secret relationship that the cameras never show…it is the only logical explanation to her accepting a ring (and as we all know) marrying him. What an idiot. Did you hear him say something like “I know its been rough lately, but I think getting married will make everything better”. Good one spencer. YOU ARE AN IDIOT. …. And not to be rude (like I care it’s a tv show) Stephanie must have fried her brains on drugs cause she is really dummy. Poor girl.

Is it just me or does everyone else copy the way lauren does her hair when you see a new style? Did you catch the double twist. One from the top with the bangs, and then one lower twist… very cute. I tried it and I liked it! That show is good for so many things.

We are only two days away from Mexico and it couldn’t come any sooner. I can not wait to do absolutley nothing! We have decided however that we are not going to sleep in while we are there….for a few reasons…hear me out.

If we sleep in until 10 or 11 everyday we will….

1. Miss breakfast

2. Not be able to be at the beach until 1:00pm at the earliest

3. Get out of the rhythm of waking up early and when we get back from vacation it might be impossible to get back in

4. Not want to exercise thus breaking another habit and making it that much harder to start up when we get home

5. Sleep through the mild morning weather

Those are all really good reasons. We decided we’d sleep until 7 or 7:30….get up exercise, go to breakfast and be ready for a long day of nothing by 10am. Sounds great to me! We have also talked about doing some fun exercises on the beach…getting up early to see the sunrise….taking naps throughout the day…sipping on diet coke until they run out….and soaking up the rays (don’t worry we brought lots of sunscreen)!

I’m so excited and I’m sorry to make you jealous, that is not my intention. On to something else.

While I was texting my sister yesterday complaining about work she sent me this picture:

My home office

I sent her this picture in response:

(Picture didn't work)

Her work looks like a lot of fun. I know its hard work, long hours and a lot of responsiblity…but I think I’m about ready for my own home office and new job title aka MOMMY/employer baby shaw.

This does not mean that we are going to be having a baby anytime soon…I just means that when the time comes…. I will be very very ready. In the mean time I’ll be here at my actual office doing pointless, meaningless things day after day. I can deal with it though… I know that soon enough my job will have a lots of meaning…

I’m sure I could go on and on about pointless things for quite a while, but I wont. Wish us luck in mexico and pray we don’t get the Pork Flu…

Oink Oink!

Lately

2009-05-15T13:25:00.000-07:00

I keep thinking about posting something and then I forget. So here I am. Things have been wonderful lately, not anything exciting or new…but life is just wonderful. I feel good, the weather is good…summer is around the corner…good stuff all around! The last couple of weekends have been really fun! Last weekend Trev did a special mother’s day thing for Erin and lucky us (me and jac) we got to join in on the fun. He got her a hotel room for two nights, a makeover, a massage and dinner. We got to spend Friday night with her. It started with a massage ….and then we met up at the Gateway for an early dinner at happy sumo..YUM! We shopped around at gateway and then went back to the hotel. By the time we got back to the hotel we had worked up an appetite again, so we set out on foot to find somewhere to grab a bite or a treat. We walked around downtown Salt lake and after about 20 minutes found what we were looking for. It was so funny to walk down town and have people honk at us or whistle….three girls no hubbys…we laughed our bums off! We went to a place called hmmm… now that I think about it can’t remember what it was called. It is a pizzeria type place and we shared a small pizza… and as if we didn’t already have enough food, we stopped at 711 on our way back and got some treats…. Something about the night made us feel like we had to eat lots of food and treats! After walking back to the hotel we changed into our swimsuits…I’m retarded and didn’t bring one so I got in my sports bra and underwear I thought we’d be the only ones at the pool so I wasn’t too worried about my make shift swim suite but When we made it down to the pool area there were so many people! Way too many to be sporting my obvious underwear swimsuit. So I hung out while Erin and Jac got in the hot tub. We went back to the room and began a mother’s day present/project for my mom. It was so fun! We made a video/skit for her. It was called the annual mother of the year awards skit. We had six different categories where she was up for nomination… such as “comedian of the year award” or “most dramatic” or “most likely to make it to the celestial kingdom” We then nominated my mom by acting out things about my mom that we love or funny things that she does or says and seriously it was SO FUNNY!… we laughed our heads off. It was so fun making it. We laughed so hard it made my stomach hurt. It was SO SO FUN! It took a couple hours to make the video so when we were done we were way tired and all hit the sac around 1am. Jac and I got up bright and early and ran in “the race for the cure” . It was really fun. It started on 3 west and went up and around by the children’s museum and then back down 4th west around the gateway. It was only a 5k so we were done in 35 minutes but it was fun. The weather was perfect. I couldn’t believe how many people where there…it was really neat. After the race Dave met me in SLC and we spent the day shopping, eating and then went up to Mt. Green to look at lots for sale. Have you been up there lately? HOLY MOLY! We could not believe our eyes. It is heaven! It’s so pretty. I think we might build a house up there. We are in the beginning stages of thinking about it…but it looks like it will be something we can do…and we are PUMPED about it. It is probably one of the prettiest places in all of northern Utah…no joke. There is a new development up there called the cottonwoods. We had never heard of it but I guess it’s been there for a while. There are a total of nine phases and they are on phase three, which is where we would build. The community looks like something out of a movie… its really amazing. You are surrounded on all four sides by huge mountains. You feel so secluded and quaint..but its only 10 minutes to highway 89. We met with a builder yesterday and talked about our options…we are really excited and we think this might be the way we are going to go. Maybe this is why it has been so hard for us to find a home…. Because we weren’t supposed to?? Who knows…we still haven’t made any decisions..but are excited about the option! Here are a few pics of the area just to give you an idea of what I’m talking about…

My work is good. Nothing new or exciting to report. I am starting school today. I have a math class and a diversity class… and then 8 years after high school I will finally have my degree. BLA…degree shmee… I’ve been done with school for six years minus that bloody math class. Truth is I hate math, and I NEVER could justify paying to take a class I will hate. So luckly L-3 is paying for it! Yay! So my parents…and Dave’s mom will finally have what they want…. My degree! J jk guys (I’ll be happy too…although for me it makes no difference in my life whatsoever)…Seriously..if I was going to get paid big bucks or get a huge raise or something to do with a job that I loved upon getting my degree I would have done it years ago..but since that is not the case, my motivation has been little to none. But I will be glad when its over…mostly because people won’t bother me about it anymore! J ha ha jk..kinda

Dave’s is loving his job. It’s going so great. The other day on a Sunday night, dave said to me “I’m excited to go to work tomorrow”….i thought he was kidding and kinda laughed it off and said…”ya me too I can’t wait”….he quickly told me he wasn’t kidding and that he was actually excited. It made me so happy to hear that he really felt that way. He has been LOVING his job. He has done some amazing things for ATK, things they didn’t even know were possible before he came to work for them and they are really letting him run with his ideas and the project and he is loving it. It makes me happier than I could ever explain to think that he looks forward to going to work. When I think about work..i think about throwing up….but I’ve come to grips with it and I can handle it because I know I won’t be working forever….but when I think about my sweet husband who works so hard every day and will continue to do so to support me and our future family for his entire life…I hate to think that he will want to throw up every day for the rest of his life. So obviously his feelings and excitement about work are so wonderful and truly a blessing from heavenly father.

What else have we been doing?? We have been kicking our butts lately working out…really trying to get in good shape. I am really proud of us. We are both lifting and doing cardio and really working it. We both feel better, look better, and are loving what we are doing. Being active and pushing yourself to be stronger makes everything in life seem easier and more exciting. When you feel strong and motivated in one area, it seems radiate to all the others. Needless to say we are feeling good and working hard, and I’m proud of both of us… it took us a while to get out of the rut we are in…but we both feel confident we won’t get back into it that rut, because being out of it feels way too good! Our hard work has and will continue to pay off and we are slowly but surely starting to see that.

Good news! I think we are still going to Mexico. Since the swine flu has tamed down a bit we feel comfortable going…we are super excited and very happy that it worked out this way! So that’s really all I have to write about. Nothing too exciting just life. I guess I do have a few random thoughts, here they are

· Have you tried morning start veggie burgers? They are SO good. I feel like I ordered it from a restaurant every time I have one. Try it you will thank me

· I think my body is used to being sore and is accepting the soreness as a normal way to feel…I think it might feel weird if it’s not sore…??

· My fingernails 3 days ago were so long. Longer than they have ever been in my life. I kept them for 3 weeks and then I accidently bit them off in sacrament meeting

· Why didn’t anyone give me any suggestion on bronzers??

· Have you tried Snickers protein bars? 10g protein 150 calories…one of the best tasting protein bars I’ve tried… (Wal-Mart)

· I love the hills…it cracks me up and I love it

· I don’t have to work tomorrow and I’m really excited

· Thank goodness I’m getting my hair highlighted tomorrow cus my grow out is disgusting

· I really want to live in Mt. Green

· Yesterday I read a story in the news where a man from Twain sat on his toilet at home to go to the bathroom and a snake came up and bit his penis…. I laughed out loud! (he ended up being ok)

Bye bye!!

swine swine go away…come again another day

2009-04-28T13:06:00.000-07:00

Happy Swineavessary! In 3 weeks Dave and I were supposed to be heading to Cancun Mexico to spend a week at a five star all inclusive resort for our second anniversary. Now that this stupid Swine Flu has come about we have to cancel our much needed vacation. We were hoping we might be ok to just go when we first heard the news because it seemed the outbreak seemed to come from Mexico City, but it looks like all the people in the US that have been infected were all vacationing in Mexcio…primarily Cancun! And after the government came out and said not to travel to Mexico unless necssassary, we figured we should listen to the warnings. We are so bummed. We are thinking about trying to go somehwere else, but with cancelation fees and last minute notice it might not be possible. We were so close to the final days that I felt myself getting tan just thinking about laying in the sun and relaxing. We have concluded that we might have to hold tight until this flu passes (hopefully it does and fast!) We have been looking forward to this vacation for over six months….so now with three weeks to go, we are pretty disappointed with the latest news. Stupid Swine Flu!! Oh well I guess its better to be safe than sorry. If anyone has any fun suggestions for our anniversary now that we have such a huge change of plans PLEASE let me know. I was thinking maybe a weekend in Park City or something like that??? Oink oink oink… (I know you don’t get the flu directly from pigs….i’m not a dummy…I’ve done my research) I just wanted to oink.

Design Automation Company

2009-04-28T10:57:00.001-07:00

Dave and Casey started a Design Automation Company (DAC) to help improve the processes that designers and engineers use on a daily basis. It’s really too technical to explain to normal folk like you and I. Well Last week they headed to Seattle and spend 4 days at the COE conference, Catia Operators Exchange. They went to meet new people, network and get their name out there. They had a great time and were really successful! Dave LOVED hanging out with Casey. He came back and told me so many fun stories that made me crack up. Casey is a crack up! He doesn’t care what people think…he just does and says what he feels…and its really cute! Dave told me Casey MADE him get ice cream and sweets everyday!! That’s just like Casey….a cookie with every meal, and a few in-between. Dave just sent me this picture so I had to post it. They both look so cute and are both such wonderful guys. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful husband and I am so thankful to have such a wonderful brother in-law too!! Casey has been my brother in law for longer than I remember begin alive….ok not really but for more than ½ of my life. I always looked/look up to him and wanted to find a husband just like him….always happy, positive, excited, hard working…and much more! No wonder he and Dave get along so well and have so much fun together….. I copied my sister and married someone that reminded me of her husband! J thanks court! Ha ha…If you are interested in learning more about “DAC” Design Automation Consulting go to www.dacsite.com you can learn about what they do and if you feel like it you can even watch some of the videos of Dave’s macros in action while you are there! Good job guys for your hard work at COE…… I am so excited for you guys!!

Obligation

2009-04-21T08:25:00.000-07:00

1 Nephi 9:6

“But the Lord Knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words.”

I read this verse today. It is so awesome. I have been thinking about missionary work lately. I read an article in the April Ensign called “The Obligation of the Church” by John A. Widtsoe. He talked a lot about missionary work and our obligation to do this work. Just being members is not enough. He explains that it is not just a recommendation to teach others of the truth, but an obligation. It’s not enough for us to just keep the commandments, heavenly father is counting on all of us to spread his word throughout the world. The truth is for everyone. My question lately has been… how? How can I personally be a missionary? It’s been on my mind and in my prayers lately. The scripture above is an answer to my prayer. Heavenly father knows everything. And he will prepare a way to accomplish what he wants through us…if we are faithful, and if we have a desire to do so, and If we make ourselves available, he has power to fulfill all of his words. I’m realizing that it’s my obligation to pray for missionary opportunities, and it’s my obligation to be an example and earnestly seek opportunities to help others find the truth. On the one hand this is a overwhelming responsibility, but on the other….it is a huge blessing. We have the opportunity to share the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who have not yet heard or received it. What a wonderful blessing. I am eternally grateful for the examples that a few member missionaries set for Dave. Through their examples, testimonies and the plan that the lord had prepared for him…..Dave was able to find the gospel. While investigating, he closely observed those around him, he faithfully read the book of Mormon and went to church, he asked questions, he prayed morning and night, and he asked heavenly father in faith “if these things were true”.

“Wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words.” Because of Dave’s faith, the dedication of member missionaries and the plan prepared for both Dave and I by our father in heaven, I am sealed to my husband for eternity. I would be ungrateful and selfish if I did not fulfill my calling as a member missionary. I can do better….. It is my obligation. There are millions of people, just like my sweet husband who have not yet heard or received the truth. Many are ready and waiting. Heavenly father has prepared the way…and through his children (us) his work will come forth. It is our obligation…I pray I can do my part.

Shopping Girls

2009-04-21T07:51:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to get a bunch of new clothes….and when I say a bunch I mean I hate all my clothes in my closet and want new ones. Obviously I can’t get all new clothes…BUT my sweet husband heard my cries and on my birthday he gave me money to go shopping! (so did my in-laws thank you!) I’ve been really exctied to spend it…BUT… I knew I couldn’t do it alone, as in I’d probably pick more clothes that I hated. I am really bad at my wordrobe (that’s why I hate my clothes)… Obviously I needed someones help. If you know my sister Erin, you know that she is pretty much the cutest, most stylish girl alive. No exageration. She ALWAYS looks cute and doesn’t own ugly clothes. She knows the latest styles and is a professional shopper and cute outfit wearer. J No matter what she is wearing she makes it look cute and when you’re with her…she makes you look ugly. HA HA….just kidding! But really, she is too cute. So me being fashionalby challeneged, asked her if she would come shopping with me and help me pick out some staple pieces of clothing. She was overjoyed at the though of it…(after last night and sore feet and back I’m not sure she felt the same way). After a month of waiting for a good time for both of us to go….we met up last night and hit it hard! We shopped for four straight hours…and we were so productive! She helped me pick out so many cute things…all so different…lots of colors, and items that I usually wouldn’t pick (cus im retarded). I even bought my first pair of leggins…and a few things to go with them…and they acutally looked cute! It was so much fun! By the time we looked at the time it was 9:00pm and we hadn’t eaten or taken a break….we shopped right through the night! When we finsihed our feet and backs were hurting a bit and were ready to rest…So we went to the Cheesecake Factory and had a yummy dinner! I love that place! I dropped Erin off and decided that since it was now 10:30pm and I still had to drive home, I’d stay the night and then only have a 10 minute commute in the morning! What a fun night! Shopping, dinner and a sleep over! I was exhausted when I got in bed and actually had a hard time unwiding from the evening. It was so much fun and I couldn’t be happier with my new clothes! Erin..thanks SO much for your help!! You are so awesome to spend your entire night shopping for me…I know it was rough not trying on and buying things for yourself…I seriously could not have done it without you! Not only did I get some cute cute oh so cute clothes…but I had a blast hanging with Erin the entire night! thank you so so much for your help!! I really appreciate it! Here’s to another night like that in 6 months…(or however long it takes to convince dave I need more clothes!) ha ha!!! Just kidding!! (kind of)

Question!!

2009-04-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I laid in the sun and accidently fell asleep for an hour. Ouch! I’m fried! I’m talking bright red/pink really bad…embarrassing style! The lines are horrible! I am so white that a touch for the sun cooked me! Dave and I are going to Mexico in a month and so I am going to go tanning a few times to try and work my way up so this doesn’t happen every day. So the reason I’m writing about this is….. I have a question and I’m hoping that someone has the answer. And if you do….. pretty please leave a comment.

Does anyone know of any good self tanners/Bronzers?

I am so sick of looking pale and gross, but at the same time I don’t want to get all my color from the sun. I’m sure everyone is feeling a bit pasty right..me especially. I have not seen the sun in a long time. Living in the Northwest for two years didn’t help my base color too much either. If I had all the time in the world I’d put on 70 sunscreen and lounge in the sun covering parts I don’t want to get wrinkly and slowly after a few months I’d get a nice base color without all the damage…but since that is not going to happen, I’d like to find a tanner or bronzer or lotion that looks good. Does anyone currently use one that they really like? If so what is it, where did you get it, and how much does it cost? The only thing I’ve ever tried was a Jergens lotion with a tanner in it. It worked ok…but was a bit too yellow and orange looking. I was reading in people magazine the other day and they were talking about self tanners and bronzers and how now a days you can stay tan all year long….they went on to say that in years past tanners and bronzers used to leave you yellow and orange but now there are tons of tanners that do a great job…..only problem is they forgot to mention what those might be. Does anyone you use a shimmer lotion? Does that help with color at all? If you have any suggestions or the answers to my questions please let me know!! Thanks!

Pictures

2009-04-14T20:45:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from Conference Weeekend

Kam

The Girls

More girls

Me and Davo

Dave and Kylee

Fall Out Boy

2009-04-14T20:28:00.002-07:00

Last night Dave and I went out to SaltAir to see Fall Out Boy in concert. Fall Out Boy is Dave's fav. band. I got him the tickets for valentines so this concert was two months in waiting. Last night I learned that I don’t really like concerts. I didn’t really know it. But after last night….I’m pretty sure I won’t be spending money on them anymore. Don’t get me wrong…They did a great job, and I really liked listening to them in person…it was just not worth the money, back and feet pain, and paralyzing fear that came over me as I realized that one day my children are going to want to come to something just like this. AHHHHHHHHHHH. I remember in 7th grade Rachel Roberts mom was taking all the kids to the Bush concert. I wanted to go so bad. I was the only one that couldn’t go and it was all my mom’s fault. Bless my mother. I’m sure that the only concerts my children will ever be going to will be put on by the church. I must say that people watching was almost better than hearing fall out boy sing. There were so many WERID people.

This girl was one of my favorites to watch...check out her braid...

Adults who were retarded, teens who just want to be accepted and have no other way of expressing it than through making themselves look like FREAKS. It made me sad. It made me hurt for them. It made me wish they could just have lovely parents and friends to show them the way. I wished they had a purpose. I wish they knew about the plan of salvation and our savior and what life was all about. I wanted to scream it from the roof top…not really, but i did think it. I was disgusted by some people, annoyed by others…I also realized that I am going to be the strictest parent in the world. Sorry ahead of time future kiddos…you’re going to hate me. But one day when you grow up and figure yourself out…..you’re going to look back and be so thankful that I was such a rock hard witch! J Ok..just kidding, I’m not going to be a witch….but through my experiences good and bad I really have learned a lot. And I’m sure that a Fall Out Boy concert of anything of that nature is not somewhere or something that I want my children to take part in.
We got to the concert at 7:00 hoping that Fall Out Boy would come on in 30 minutes or so….but we didn’t get that lucky. We had to stand around and listen to opening bands for an hour and a half.

I couldn't stand for one more second and since there were no chairs I squated for a while...

My feet were killing me. My back was killing me….and Dave had no gum. That’s right. He didn’t bring any gum with him and he almost died (he can’t live without it)… so being the “cool” wife that I am…I started to ask around. At first Dave was a bit embarrassed that I was asking these random strangers for gum…but once he realized there was a possibility that he might get a piece, he egged me on. After about 45 minutes I finally found a piece!
Little Honey

Once Fall Out Boy had started we were about at our whits end. The smell, the people, and our aging bodies were ready to hit the road. I wondered if anyone elses feet or back hurt. Or was it due to the fact that we were 10-15 years older than everyone else that our bodies were uncomfortable? We stuck around for another hour and then left. It was nice to leave early because we missed all the traffic!

We made it home by 10:00 and were thankful to get off our feet and into bed. It was an interesting night. A lesson learned. And an obvious sign that I am getting old And you know what I say to that? If making logical choices, being realistic and having common sense is a sign of getting old…then I say bring it on. I am more comfortable in my skin now than I’ve ever been….so I guess is I’m “Old” compared to the people at that concert….i’m actually thankful for that birthday song “one year older and wiser too….(clap)…happy birthday to you!”

Easter Weekend

2009-04-14T20:28:00.001-07:00

My parents were out of town and since we celebrated Easter last weekend it was just Dave and I the entire weekend. We went to Chili’s on Friday. We love that place. In Portland there was a Chili's right across the way from our town house and we went their often. About six months before we moved back to Utah they closed it down. It was really sad, I may have even blogged about it…I can’t remember. So when we moved back to Utah we were so excited to be able to go to Chili’s again. After dinner we got a frosty (vanilla) ( I choose it over chocolate every time). We came back home and watched the movie “Wanted” on clear play. I was not thrilled to watch it, but once it got going I really liked it. Can’t say the same for Dave. He was asleep ½ way into it. Saturday we slept in and lounged around. At 12 we went to the gym. When we got back we were both so tired and worn out from a hard week of working out that we crashed. We slept for 3 hours. Later that night we met up with Crystalyn and Rob at the Porcupine restaurant in sandy. It was really good! The plan was to go hot tubing at snow bird, but it didn’t quite work out that well. We got caught trying to sneak in and a really mean girl told us she was going to call the cops on us. Dave was concerned this was going to happen from the get go, but Crystalyn assured me that she does it all the time. It was so funny to see dave bolt out of the room as soon as he sensed any sort of trouble. He is so cute..always minding the rules! Since we didn’t get to hot tub we got ice cream instead and it made everything better. It was a great night…(minus the part where I almost threw up in Dave's car from being car sick…we pulled over in time…and luckily it was a false alarm).
Easter Sunday was really nice. We went to church and had some really great lessons. Christ’s resurrection was the complete and final step that will allow us to one day return and live with him again. I am so thankful for his sacrifice, his suffering , and his perfect example. I love my family so much and am thankful for the gift he gave us all that enables us to live together forever.
After church we took a tiny nap and then went on a walk. The sun shining and the warmth of the day made it feel like a special day. After our walk we thought about making a fancy dinner. But since it was just the two of us and neither of us like to cook…
Our Easter Feast

I am so thankful for the knowledge of the plan of salvation. I know why I’m here, I know where I’m going, and I know what I need to do to get there. What an enormous blessing and comfort this knowledge brings! What an amazing gift our Savior has given us all. The gift of eternal life.

Conference Weekend

2009-04-08T09:50:00.000-07:00

As if I don’t say it enough and we don’t all think it… weekends are the best! This weekend was even better than normal because of conference. My mom got the family tickets and we went to the Afternoon session. It is only my second time going (first time was Dave and I’s first date) and I really loved being there. I was uplifted by the speakers and am determined to keep fighting the fight and try to do a better job of it! On Monday Dave and I had family night together and talked about what we learned from all the things we heard over the weekend. We each came away with some really great council. We made some goals to work on together and personally, and committed to each other to try and come closer to our heavenly father. We are so blessed to have a living prophet who loves us and gives us council and so much support. I wish conference was held more often than just every 6 months!!

On Saturday when the boys went to Priesthood session me, jac, erin, the kiddies, and zone went to TONYS! Yay! Dinner was lovely, however Erin might tell you different since Kylee would not stay in her high chair. We came back home with stuffed belly’s and played cards, ate cookies, and watched a movie. Trev and Erin stayed over cus they are the best! It’s tradition in the Keyes home to have a HUGE conference breakfast. French toast, waffles, pancakes, bacon, eggs, hash browns, fruit with cream cheese dip, chocolate milk, assorted juices, cinnamon rolls….ya. We ate it all. I remember as a kid laying in bed on conference morning and smelling pancakes and hash browns. No matter how bad I wanted to keep sleeping….the smell drew me out of bed and to the kitchen. (it’s not like conference starts that early 10am…but I remember thinking it was so early when I was younger). We don’t eat breakfast at the table but instead lay blankets in the tv room and eat while we watch. It’s wonderful. After we give our bellies time to settle everyone continues to munch throughout the day. Ever since I can remember we would all take naps in between conference sessions….those naps seem better than most. Since my mom and dad will be out of town over Easter we had an Easter egg hunt Sunday night for Kam. It was fun to see her find all the eggs...she was the only one searching since Kylee is too little to understand. Later that night we had a nice Easter program put on by mom and dad…and then we ate yummy roast for dinner. After everyone left Dave and I ended the night with a great movie. Slumdog Millionaire (edited on clearplay)

What a wonderful, wonderful weekend!

Unanswered Prayers

2009-04-08T09:49:00.000-07:00

(Warning…I’m going to post cheesy song lyrics and say sappy things)

Friday night Dave, mom, dad and I went to a new restaurant called Pleasant Valley Grill. FLASH BACK: Anyone remember my old boyfriend Josh from high school? Well his mom owns this restaurant and he was there waiting tables. I haven’t seen him in 6 or 7 years. He came over to our table and said hello to us when we got there and before we left he talked us into ordering some coconut cream pie…we didn’t chat much other than a hello and how’s your food. Why do I bring this up then you ask? Let me take you back in time……In high school Josh and I were inseparable. We dated for 2 years…and I would have bet 1 million dollars that I was going to marry him … I was that sure! I was devastated when Josh left on his mission and thought without a doubt I’d wait for him, I remember thinking I would die if I couldn’t be with him. Ha ha! ….I wrote him faithfully…for a while, but things turned out a bit different than that (much too long to explain). Long story short…drama…drama…more drama…and it didn’t work out. I’ve come to conclude that my crazy 19 year old brain took a while longer to mature than most….that is the only logical explanation for some of the things in my past that I like to block out of my memory. I thought I knew what I wanted and how I wanted me life to turn out. But heavenly father knew better. He knew what was in store for me. When I look back on me 5-10 years ago…. It’s weird to think I was me. Of course I was me…but now I’m me in a different way….a better way. I am so incredibly grateful for Dave. I just can’t say it or think it enough. He truly is more than I could have ever dreamed of. He is my best friend. He makes me want to be a better person. Never in a million years would I have guessed my life would turn out how it has. And I am SO GREATFUL that it did. I am thankful to my heavenly father. I am thankful to my family. And I am thankful to a husband who by himself had the courage to seek out the truth. To study, pray, and gain a testimony of the true and everlasting gospel for himself. Without him having the courage and humbleness to do this and accept the gospel, we would have never met. I don’t think we would have met had one thing been different. I’m sorry to be so incredibly sappy, but it’s true. I actually accidently heard the words to that song before I even thought about putting it in this post…I swear! To add to all the sappiness I’ve created I’d like to wrap this post up with an oldie by Garth Brooks…”Unanswered Prayers”…. Ya know that one? Of course you do. Well…on Friday night as I thought about the past and everything that has transpired ….this song couldn’t ring more true! Here are the words…read them (I altered them just a bit)

Just the other night a hometown football game

My Husband and I ran into my old high school flame
And as I introduced them the past came back to me
And I couldn't help but think of the way things used to be

He was the one that I'd wanted for all times
And each night I'd spend prayin' that God would make him mine
And if he'd only grant me this wish I wished back then
I'd never ask for anything again

Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers
Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs
That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers

He wasn't quite the angel that I remembered in my dreams (no offense)
And I could tell that time had changed meIn his eyes too it seemed

We tried to talk about the old days
There wasn't much we could recall
I guess the Lord knows what he's doin' after all

And as he walked away and I looked at my husband

And then and there I thanked the good Lord
For the gifts in my life

Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers
Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs
That just because he doesn't answer doesn't mean he don't care
Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers

The end…

Thursday night fun

2009-04-02T18:17:00.000-07:00

My Mom and Dad are tending the kids this week and my mom forgot about a young women's meeting she had to attend in SLC...so this is what we've been doing tonight...

Kylee loves Dave so much..its really cute

They spent 30 minutes just cuddling

She's so stinking cute

Kam watching 101 Dalmatian's with her sleeping bag, popcorn, chocolate chips and chocolate milk...love her!

You can't see it in this picture...but Kylee has a snaggle tooth and she does the hugest cheese smiles ever...its so funny!

I’m rude..will you still help me?

2009-04-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

I need some help! I am having difficulties with my workouts..well maybe not difficulties…but confusion. I’m not sure I’m doing enough or the right thing…and I’m getting frustrated by not knowing…I want to make sure what I’m doing is going to give me the results I’m looking for. I know that it takes time to see results….and I’m fine with that…..the problem is I‘ve never consistently lifted weights as a means of losing weight. I always focused on the cardio and hit that hard. I want to make weights be a consistent part of my workouts and help me progress to my goal…. but I’m not sure I have a good routine (if you wanna call it that). If I had extra money to hire a personal trainer I’d do it in a heartbeat and have them make me a weight lifting schedule and routine…but since I don’t…I’m reaching out to you in hopes that you may have a great weight lifting/cardio routine that is tailored specifically for losing weight and toning your junk…and not just the junk in your trunk J. I know beggars can’t be choosers but I’m not looking for little helpful hints that you “THINK” might help (not to be rude)…... I am looking for advice from someone that lifts weights regularly …has lost weight by doing so….or even better… a personal trainer. Rude alert. I’m setting the rude alert off on myself for being so demanding when I am asking for help!! Sorry…I’m not trying to be rude or demanding and I’m not saying I don’t want to hear your advice...…I just want factual facts and not helpful hints like those provided in People magazine.

Ok to the point…my main concerns are….Am I doing enough? Is 30 minutes a day enough? Am I doing the right exercises? Should I split my workouts into upper and lower body? What should I be doing? How much cardio? How much weight lifting?

If you can help…THANK YOU! I was hoping you might give me some examples of what you currently do or have done. I know not many people read this…so I’m not sure I will get much if any feedback but if you are reading this and you can help me…please leave a comment and tell me what you do…and please be specific.
P.S…. Just to avoid any retarded comments that might come from this post… I don’t think I’m fat. I don’t think you’re fat. I’m not asking you to tell me I’m not fat…I would just like some suggestions, and if you can give me any I would be so so so so so thankful!

Thanks love ya..

This is what I’m currently doing (only for the past 2 weeks)

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
· Weight Lifting 30 minutes
· Leg Press 3 sets 12
· Inner and Outer thigh Machine 2 sets 30
· Bicep Curls 3 sets 12
· Tricep Curls 3 sets 12
· Walking Lunges 20 down and 20 back
· Shoulder Raises 3 sets 12
· Calf Raises 2 sets 30
· Abs 3 sets of 20 (weighted)
I try to only rest 15-30 seconds in-between each rep so I am getting cardio too

Tuesday/Thursday
25-35 minutes Stair Stepper

The Sun Killed me

2009-03-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

When Dave went to the gym this morning, I didn’t join him. Shame on me. I had a horrible dream last night and I think it left me feeling kinda weird and I just didn’t want to go (excuse). But for real…My dream was creepy… I was killed by the sun. I was driving with some friends on Glassman way and as we looked out the window we saw the moon and it was HUGE it looked like It was red and yellow and on fire…it seemed to be falling from the sky. It was such an amazing site that I called Dave because I didn’t want him to miss it…..he told me it wasn’t the moon but that it was the sun. As he began to explain to me what was happening using a bunch of technical jargon…. all the sudden this huge ball of fire was right in front of me rolling down the road…I knew I was going to die. I didn’t have enough time to explain to Dave what was about to happen, all I could do was tell him I loved him over and over and then the huge ball rolled right over the top of us… and I was dead.

Bla. I didn’t like it. I’ve never died before in my dream. It was pretty real….and weird. I think I ended up coming back to life later on in the dream, but I’m not clear on that. Geeze brain take it easy…don’t kill yourself. I guess this dream was a little better than the night before where I dreamt that my sister made out with my husband. WTH? My dreams are so cooky sometimes! Where do dreams come from anyhow? It can’t be from something I was thinking about because trust me, I was not thinking about a giant ball called the sun rolling down the street…. and I definitely was not thinking about my sister kissing Dave. Today after I got to work and was in the mood for conversation I called Dave and told him about my dream and how I died. I’m not going to die like that right? I asked him… (Hoping he would comfort me)………NO! he said… definitely not by the sun rolling down the street…..that’s just impossible…. maybe an asteroid though. What? Hello that is not what I wanted to hear…Thanks for the comforting though! Too funny. I’m ok though.

I don’t know about anyone else but if I have a weird dream It takes me a bit to get over it. Sometimes I still feel a little sad, mad, upset, or weird. Even though I know it wasn’t real. Does that happen to anyone else? I remember when I was in elementary school having a dream where my mom was in prison and was smoking and I was so upset with her… how could she do this to our family? I distinctly remember being so angry with her the next day! How about the dream where you are pregnant but you know you didn’t do anything that would make you pregnant…Heck sure you’d never even kissed a guy, so how could you be pregnant? Wasn’t that the worst? Dreams are weird. Most of my dreams are annoying. Why don’t I have those sweet dreams that Dave always wishes me at night? The ones filled will everything you ever wanted? Hmmmm?? Maybe since my life is filled with so many sweet dreams…. my dreams can’t be filled with them too?

The end.

PS…if you see the sun or the moon and it looks abnormally large and is red and yellow and looks like it is falling from the sky…..RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!

The weekend

2009-03-30T12:43:00.000-07:00

-ate union grill

-watched some 30 rock

-fell asleep on the couch until 4am and then we moved to the bed with sore backs

-attended a baptism

-got an oil change

-ate lunch at gateway

-prepared a lesson

-putt another offer on a house (CROSS YOUR FINGERS AND TOES THIS TIME)

-eat at tony’s

-watched more 30 rock w/martenilli white grape juice

-went to church

-took a nap

-had a birthday party

-successfully fought the Sunday night blues

-had a sleepover with honey

For Back Up

2009-03-27T09:04:00.000-07:00

My super hot, skinny, and young faith hill look alike sister wrote a wonderful entry in her journal/blog today that made me want to be better about blogging. Lately I haven’t been doing much of anything that feels blog worthy…so I just haven’t been blogging. After reading her entry…I feel refreshed, motivated and excited to blog. I’ve decided that my posts might not be exciting to read…but oh well! I want to be able to look back and remember today…this week….and this month, and I know the only way to do it is through keeping a record. When I stop and think about it stuff happens every day…I just don’t seem to want to blog about it..but if I don’t…what record will I have of it happening? My memory certainly won’t be enough. I swear I don’t have a long term memory. I need a back up memory! That’s why I’m feeling it important for me to blog….its really the only record I will have of our life…and I want to be better about documenting it! Thanks for inspiring me court!

So I am substitute teaching the Relief Society lesson on Sunday. Since I don’t have much to do today at work, I plan on spending a majority of the day preparing. Who says you can’t get paid to do church work? Ha ha JK! But really I get paid jack squat here at work…and it feels like I’m giving unpaid service 9 hours a day 5 days a week… oh the joy! J So my lesson is on the sacrament. I hate to admit that I haven’t done any studying yet, but I’m just kind of like that. I enjoy teaching lessons and feel comfortable doing so…but I usually do better when I spend a lot of time studying close to the day that I will be speaking. Spanning things out over an entire week or two is not my thing. (or is that my excuse?) NA…I just feel I prepare better this way. Maybe after I prepare the lesson and have pondered and learned some things I’ll write an entry about that, but for now I’d like to capture a few things that have been going on with Dave and I.

We have consistently for 10 days woken up at 4:45 and gone to the gym. I am so proud of us. Ever since moving to Utah we have had a really hard time getting up any earlier than 6:00am…and even then we were struggling. In Portland we had things down to a science…we would be up at 4:00am or 5:30am every day. We were going the gym regularly working our bums off and we were both in great shape! Well that is not the case anymore. I am in major need of losing some LBS and Dave feels like a girl with no muscle. He feels weak when he isn’t lifting. I’m not saying I’m fat..I’m just saying I would like to be more trim and feel better about myself and by working out and eating healthy it will happen! So 10 days is only 11 days away from 21 days and 21 days makes it a habit right? I don’t know if that is true or not but I’m going with it. I have to admit that the first couple of days felt like H E double tooth picks…but now we are getting the groove and starting to feel good afterwards… plus its awesome to get to work at 6:30am and have already worked out for the day. So that’s that.

House searching… not so much. For the past two or three months we have been laying low and not really doing much searching. We haven’t felt like it was the right time to buy as the market continued to decline right before our eyes. I honestly don’t know what will happen or when we will buy…we are kind of playing it by ear. We are READY to move…but who knows when and where. We have however made an offer on an AMAZING short sale home in Kaysville http://www.utahrealestate.com/864764 . We are in love with this house and as you can see it is a STEAL of a deal…so we are hoping that may pan out. Short sales are pretty sticky so we are praying for the right thing to happen and crossing our fingers for some extra luck.

Last weekend I went on two hikes and it was really great! The weather was amazing and the mountains were beautiful.

On Friday afternoon I went with Carlie and Jordan and we hiked to the Uintah “U”. The view was so pretty! I had a great time chatting with Car and Jordan and their crazy dogs! Saturday afternoon we went with Jac, Jared and the rest of Davis county on hike in Layton. It was hard. I guess even though I’m trying I’m still not in that good of shape. When we got pretty far up and there was a lot of snow…it made it pretty hard to continue up. The way down in the snow was even worse! I ended up sliding down on my bum for a portion of the way. It was like sledding without a sled. My bum stayed cold for quite some time. After the hike Dave and I got in our swim suits and tried to lay out in the back yard just in time for the clouds to come out….we were too cold so we opted to spent the rest of the afternoon in the hot tub. It was really fun. We played the “would you rather game” and talked for hours! I love that boy.

Dave..I must say something about how much I love this guy and how blessed I am to have him as my husband. It’s the truth. He makes me so happy. He is a sweet heart and truly tries so hard to do anything he can to make me happy and better our life. Of course he isn’t perfect nor is our relationship…but if it was ever to get there it will be thanks to him. I am so blessed to have a best friend who is always cheerful, happy, goofy and positive. He is never in a bad mood or negative…never…it makes life so much brighter!
FYI:

If you don’t watch TV or have no interest in it…I suggest pushing the “X” button on your browser.

TV. It would be a shame if I didn’t do an update on the shows we watch. I think Dave and I are addicted to TV and proud to say so. Of course we have many things other than TV that we love to do, but if you asked us both to describe a relaxing evening...we would both say it would be cuddling and watching our favorite shows (and eating treats). So here is the low down. We just finished watching an INCREDIBLE show called “Jericho”. If you haven’t seen it…rent it! Season 1 and 2 are available on DVD. It’s so good. Not only was it entertaining but it gave me an urgent need to buy a gun (check) complete my food storage(in process) and be make sure I’m prepared for anything that can and will come. (In progress)
I think I’ll make my list of shows in order of the night they air…NOT in order of favorites.

Monday Night:
“Heroes’” It has been a little weak this season, but we still love it. “Save the cheer leader save the world!”
“24” Jack (run for president Bauer) has made a major comeback and the show has been really great to watch!
“The City” I love this show. I really do. It’s not the Hills, but I hate Olivia just as much as I hate Spencer. I was bummed at the last episode of the season…I don’t think Whitney made the right choice…that’s just me though.
“THE BATCHELOR”…need I say more? I loved it and am so bummed its over! I loved Jason, and unlike anyone else…I always liked Molly. I think he did the right thing (although maybe he didn’t go about it the right way)…But seriously….you have to follow your heart. Right? People who say he is a jerk for following his heart have never followed theirs!
“True Beauty”….tell me you didn’t love that show. It was so freaking funny and so incredibly annoying to watch. I didn’t know someone could bother me so bad (Chelsea) After watching the show I’ve mastered an impression of Chelsea’s annoying voice and body language…I whip it out sometimes just to drive Dave crazy!

Tuesday Night:
“FRINGE” I knew it was going to be an amazing show when I found out the producers of lost had something to do with it. If you haven’t seen this show…start watching. It has been on break for the last month but will start up again the 7th of April. This show is so great! I don’t feel like going into detail about it..so just trust me.
“BIGGEST LOSER” I’m disappointed that I haven’t stayed up to date watching the show…honestly there are just too many shows to watch and this one has taken a back burner. I still watch the clips on NBC updating me on what is happening and I am super amazed and proud of all the people on the show. If they can do it..one day I will too! (I keep telling myself that)

Wednesday Night:
Wednesday is Dave’s “Game Night” he plays video games with his friends all night and loves it! I usually go on a walk with dad, take a bath, get on face book and look around or just spend time relaxing.
At 8:00 everything stops and our FULL ATTENTION turns to…..
“LOST” I cannot tell you how much we LOVE this show. It is so great. Every time we watch it we love it more and more. It will be a sad day when it’s over! The episodes are never long enough and are always so entertaining. Lost is #1 on my list of favorites!
(DO NOT TRY TO WATCH THIS SHOW UNLESS YOU CAN COMMITT TO STARTING FROM THE VERY FIRST EPISODE AND WATCH AT LEAST TWO SEASONS…if you don’t like it after that go see your doctor cus you are mentally insane!)

Thursday Night:
“Kath and Kim” ha…this show is perfect. I love everything about it. EVERYTHING! It’s just so stinking great!
“The Office” love it, we all watch this, so no need to explain.
“30 Rock” is on directly after the office and we had watched it a few times in that past but didn’t really get into it. Well last week we started watching it from the pilot episode and OH MY we are HOOKED. It is one of the funniest shows I have ever watched. I laugh out loud more in that show than I have ever laughed at any show or movie. It took me a few episodes to get into it…but oh man, it is so funny. It has become one of my favorite shows! Tina Fay is a genius. The show is a crack up. Watch it..trust me you will LOVE IT and be so happy that you did!!

Ok there you have it…now you believe me when I say that we are truly addicted to TV….sue me. Ok maybe we aren’t addicted, but we do love it! Lots of time we don’t get around to watching the show on the week days, so we wait until the weekend and instead of renting a movie we catch up on our shows! Ok I’m done talking about that…I didn’t think I had so much to say about it..i guess I’m passionate about it… who knew? ok JK I knew!

Ok. So this post is way too long..sorry. This confirms that I must post more often so that when I do post its not incredibly long and painful. Happy Friday!

B-Day and St. Pattys

2009-03-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was a blast! We celebrated my birthday and St. Patricks day with the entire family. It was so much fun! I didn't have to work on Friday so that as even better! After I woke up and had some breakfast we all lounged around in our PJ's hanging out and talking. Friday night everyone came over for the St. Patty's day dinner/party. We ate green food, played green games, and watched Darbio Gill and the Little People. I didn't get to partcipate in the annual coin toss, because my head got smashed inbetween Dave and Trev at the very first of the toss and MAN IT HURT..i was down for the count and didn't get a single coin! :( Other than the huge headache I ended up with, the night was a BLAST!

I think this is what we would look like if we were drunk. Thank goodness that will never happen

Court and Kylee

Me and Grace

Anytime the goggels went on dave's face did this...what a dork(a cute dork though right?)

On Saturday (b-day day) we woke up and went to breakfast at the yummiest place. Pleasant Valley Grill. If you have not been there..GO its so delicious! I had Pancakes(my favorite)!! We had a wonderful brunch and then went back to the house and hung out. I got a little tired so I took a nap and then Dave and I went and played basket ball at the park. Later that night we headed to my all time favorite restaurant... TONYS!!

I will never get enough of this stuff

The Waiting Room

After a delicious dinner we headed back home and I got to open my b-day presents...everyone was so thoughtful and sweet and I got some great things! After that we played American Idol Karaoke on the play station...so fun!

On Sunday we all woke up and went to church and then came back and took our regular Sunday naps. Sweet Adeal (our third grandmother) brought over HUGE new york stakes for everyone..so we grilled those baby's up and had a YUMMY steak dinner followed by a bunch of fun games!

What a wonderful weekend! Thanks so much mom and dad for making everything so wonderful! It was so fun to have everyone home and spend so much time together! Love you all!

Blogaversary

2009-03-06T19:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my one year anniversary for my blog! I can't believe it's been a year, and then on the other hand I can't believe it has only been a year. At one point in my blogging life all i seemed to think about was blogging...(mostly because i had nothing else to do at work) but also because it was really fun for me. I would even say it was kinda becoming a hobby. Things have changed a bit as life has changed...but i still love blogs...i love reading them, i love writing on mine, i love talking about them. I look forward to twenty years from now when i can look back on all these posts and remember what i was feeling, thinking, and what I was doing!

PS:
Today...we celebrated my birthday even though its a week away(too long to explain why)...

the celebration went like this...

home made rainbow cake with the ball frosting (the BEST)

a house full of balloons

a room full of hidden presents that i had to search for in order to open

My favorite licorice...much needed nail oil and lint roller...a birthday card, and dr. pepper lip smaker!

A cute pink bag for my lap top

AND....an INCREDIBLE b-day gift....a home made "gift certificate" for a shopping spree!!

last but not least...a lovely dinner at Tony's...

can you say holy mother of america happy birthday to me??

I never knew Dave could be so romantic, so thoughtful, and so darn good at giving me exactly what i want! ha ha...but seriously!! and not because of the gifts...but because of the thought he has been putting in to the things he does....its really so sweet. I tell him all the time that i really didn't know he was this wonderful when i married him..I'm sorry to be so cheesy....but he honestly gets better every day! Thanks babe for making my birthday so special...it means a lot! 143!!

ta ta for now. we are going to start watching the series "Jericho" on netflix..i heard its good!

HERE is my first blog post in case you're interested to read it!

Dave, Nat and little turt good: Link

2009-03-03T09:30:00.000-08:00

Dave, Nat and little turt good: <center> Link </center>

Link

2009-03-03T09:26:00.000-08:00

Oops I forgot to post the link…click here to see

Bachelor Smatchelor

2009-03-03T08:51:00.000-08:00

WTH!

I’m assuming everyone in the world watched the Bachelor last night. I was freaking out the entire time. I was sure he was going to pick Melissa (even though I always liked Molly… and ps.. am I the only one that liked her? Seems like no one liked her) anyhow… I was sad for Molly but so excited for Jason and Melissa, they seemed so happy. And then as soon as Jason walked on to the stage on the after the final rose show…I knew that something bad happened. Everything after that was, weird, awkward, and hard to believe. Dave was giving me his thoughts the entire night about how he thought it was so fake and everything was staged. I wouldn’t have it. I defended Jason, Melissa, and Molly the entire time. Even this morning Dave sent me a long email about his conspiracies of what happened and that he thought it was a big hoax. I disagreed. I gave him a big long email about how it could have really happened that way and bla bla bla. After sending the email I decided that just in case something he said was true, I should look around online and see what other people are saying….. L I’m not a happy camper. It seems that something very fishy and fake is going on and I don’t know about everyone else…but I just wanted everyone to end up like Trista and Ryan…happy and actually in love. If you haven’t talked to other people or looked around online, you’ll be surprised when you see all of the theory’s that are floating around out there. Most of them are pretty consistent, and the biggest thing is that most of them where written weeks before the finale even aired. Its not like they were just written last night or this morning. People knew this was coming. WTH? Am I retarded? I knew some sort of twist was going to come about…but I didn’t think it would be staged and a big hoax to bring in more viewers….I guess I’m too much or a romantic and I actually believe in the stuff that is going on. I mean, The first time dave and I had any contact I we were living different states, I knew I was going to marry him after our first phone conversation and ended up falling in love with him over the phone before I even met him, 1 ½ months later (2 weeks after meeting him in person) I moved to a different state to be closer to him and 8 months later was married…. If it happened for me why couldn’t it happen for them? Dave on the other had is a bit more practical and has been having these “conspiracy” thoughts for quite some time now. I guess before I make any firm decision about how I feel or don’t feel about what happened I will give tonight’s show a chance. But looking back on everything….there are just way too many things that happened that just don’t add up…things I wanted to believe just happened that way because it was meant to be, but now….i just can’t be sure.

If you want to read some of stories or conspiracies of the Bachelor go here and read the report and watch the video. I’m sorry to bring this to your attention if you weren’t already thinking it….

PS….i think he should have just picked Jillian and avoided all this drama!

weekend happenings

2009-03-02T11:51:00.000-08:00

We had a fun weekend! Nothing to exciting….but it was still fun and relaxing.

Here are the highlights:

-dermotoligoist visit

-test drove a tundra (for the 10th time in the last month)

-Wings at Wingers (dave hated them)

-Brought Nana a diet coke

-Hot tubbed

-sister came over

-Watched “unbreakable”

-Watched “Saving McCallister”

-Fell asleep on the couch

-Woke up at 10am

-Ate a PB & J sandwich for breakfast (a Saturday favorite)

-took nap while hubby volunteered to clean, vacuum, scrub, and wash my car (a 2 hour task)

-went shopping and bought a bra that made me VERY happy

-saw a movie that I didn’t love

-ate at Tony’s and loved it

-enjoyed a soft serve vanilla ice cream cone

-played w/turtle

-cuddled with honey

-fell asleep before 11:00pm

-went to church

-took a nap

-ate with the family

-moved the tv into our bedroom (yay!!)

-stayed up until 11:30pm on a week night

Can’t wait till Friday: 4 days and counting….

funky funk junk

2009-02-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

I’m in a total blog funk. I read everyone else’s blogs and LOVE them. But I can’t seem to come up with anything to blog about. I think I know why. Let me explain….About 4 ½ years ago….My life was funky, in a funk, funkdified, funky funk funk…and anything else you can make up using the word funk.. I was confused. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life, where I wanted to work, where I should live…and don’t forget about the Panic/Anxiety attacks worrying that I wouldn’t find “Mr. Right.”

QUESTION: What does this have to do with not blogging and my life now?

ANSWER: I’ll explain with an analogy

Do you remember the last time you broke up with a boyfriend? It has to be a boyfriend you really loved and adored. You loved him, you loved being with him, you were best friends…. but deep down inside you just knew it was not right to be with him forever? MEMBER THAT? I do…and all too clearly.

I remember trying so hard to make it work, while at the same time trying so hard to make not work and end it once and for all. I wanted the change but had a hard time changing….

Immediately after I let go and broke it off I was so relieved because I KNEW I had done the right and now everything would magically fall in to place. LOUD BUZZER NOISE

W R O N G!! My life did everything but fall into place. I became a mess…I was confused, a bit bored, very lonely, and completely overwhelmed about what was to come next. Every day was a stomach ache and every night was a cry fest pitty party (drama mamma aka: Natalie pre Dave….(side note thank goodness for husbands who love us enough to help us grow up and become better all around)

Ok…here’s the analogy

Old boy friend that you love = Portland

*Loved Portland! Adored it. Loved the people, loved my job, loved the adventure…. But we knew it was not where we were supposed to be. It was really hard to leave our friends, the beauty, the endless fun and memories….the life we had created together as newlyweds

Breaking up with boy friend because you knew it was the right thing to do and you longed for “Mr. Right”= Moving to Utah

*As much as we loved Portland and as hard as it was to leave, we knew Utah was the place to be and we knew we needed to get there not matter what it took. We searched for over 2 years trying to find the right job and when it seemed like it would never happen…it happened and we were thrilled. Finally our dream was coming true! (live by family, buy a home, have great jobs) … it was all in the near future!

Making the right decision but still feeling lost, confused, and funkdified= Current situation

*Although we are thrilled to be here… I believe our expectations of what it would be like are a little different now that we are here. We are confused… a bit bored, lonely in a sense (we miss Portland), and slightly overwhelmed with what is to come next.

Don’t get me wrong. We are happy, life is good, and we don’t have many complaints, I have however come to realize that WE ARE IN A FUNK. We feel a little bit of where should we work, when should be buy a home? A bit of what should we do and how should we do it?… a little bit of where are all our friends and I thought we’d have more to do and a lot a bit of living in my parents basement and not our own place……

Word: Lim-bo
Pronounced: [lim-boh]
Definition: an intermediate, transitional, or midway state or place.

I kinda wish I were doing the limbo under a pole instead of being in a state of limbo. I believe this feeling comes from not being able to create our own life here in Utah. We are not on our own schedule, we aren’t in our own house, we don’t even buy our own food. (not that I’m complaining, cus its so wonderful to not have to do the grocery shopping…but sometimes you just want to have the food you want, when you want it and its not that my mom won’t buy it…of course I give her a list sometimes, but there is already so much food in their house that I don’t want to add unnecessary things when they really aren’t needed. And since I give my mom money at the beginning of the month for food, anything I buy on top of what she buys is just additional money spent…and we are trying to save ya know.)

We are so blessed to be able to save money by living with my parents, but it’s not our home, it’s not our stuff, and it feels like it’s not “our life”….or at least not the one we were used to living.

This past week Dave and I have been taking walks after work. The weather has been nicer and we need exercise so taking a walk is a great way to get in some exercise while spending quality time talking and listening to each other. And just in case I wasn’t feeling funky enough…. Leave it up to the conversations below to fill me with more to think about…

Monday

Dave: “maybe I want to go back to school and become a radiologist”

Me: “huh?”

Me: “another 8 years of school?”

Dave: “hmmm…”

The next day

Dave: “I think I want to be a professor at BYU and get my doctorate”

Me: “do it”

1 day after that

Me: “Do you want to move to Australia or New Zealand?”

Dave: “yes”

Me: “me too”

Me: “what about buying a house”

Dave: “I don’t know”

Me: “me either”

Today

Dave: “happy Friday honey”

Me: “thanks you too! want to go to Tony’s tonight?”

Dave: “you read my mind”

Ok I made up the dialogue about Tony’s…but trust me we’re thinking it.

I have felt a lot of different emotions since we got here. It seems I can’t put my finger on what it is I’m thinking, wanting, or feeling (aka why I suck at blogging lately)…. Amidst the confusion, there are a few things I know for sure…

*I know Dave and I truly love each other

*I know that the church is true

*I know we have to go to work even if we don’t want to

*I know we love to watch “our” TV shows (the bachelor, hero’s, 24, true beauty, fringe, biggest loser, lost, Kath and Kim, the office)

*I know we love turtle, even when she is annoying and won’t let you pet her

*I know that a king sized bed is much better than a queen and if you don’t have one you HAVE TO MAKE THE SWAP

*I know that my allergies magically disappeared and I could not be happier about it

*And last but certainly not least I know Tony’s is the best restaurant in Utah and that we have eat there at least once a week.

Other than that everything else is up in the air. Who knows what we will do and when we will do it. I guess it’s a waste of time to worry about when it will happen and when we will get out of this funk….kinda like how it was a waste for me to worry about when I would find “Mr. Right (aka little honey)”. I found him didn’t I? And what a worthwhile wait!

The way I see it is, we just need to keep CTR’n….and enjoy this funky journey…. it will be worth the wait!

Love Love Love

2009-02-18T10:59:00.000-08:00

After I bought Dave a Valentines present last week I was so excited to give it to him I could hardly wait! I came right home and told him that I’d just bought him a Valentines gift! His response…

”you bought me something?…. I didn’t know we were buying each other gifts for Valentines…I hadn’t planned on buying you something..”

Without sounding disappointed I said…”well I don’t expect you to buy me something…..I just had a great idea of something to get you so I had to get it!”

A few days passed and I asked him if he had anything planned for Valentines and he said…

”no not really…I figured we’d go to dinner.”

Of course I was a bit disappointed as I’d hoped he would have planned something…really though when it comes down to it, he does cute things everyday so who cares if he doesn’t for Valentines right?

I know he thinks its a stupid holiday anyhow.

Well, Friday night rolled around and while watching a movie, he paused it and said…lets exchange valentines gifts! HUH? I didn’t think you were getting me a gift…he looked at me like I was a dumb dumb for thinking such thoughts and went on to tell me I was really gullible if I fell for his

“I didn’t know we were giving each other gifts line…” (which I totally did)

He went into the bedroom and came out with his hands behind his back! He told me he wanted me to go last…so I then gave him the gift I had bought for him…(Fall Out Boy concert tickets)…he was super duper excited. Now it was my turn! He reached behind the couch and when he came back up he was holding a huge pink gift bag. I asked him where he got such a cute bag and he told me he picked out from Target! The fact that he bought a decorative bag to put a gift in, for me, on Valentines, was enough of a gift in itself…I didn’t even care what was inside the bag….it could have been a pile of poop and I would have been happy! (it wasn’t poop) I opened the bag and inside….was, TA DUH…..

I have wanted one of these for a really long time! I am ALWAYS cold and every time this commercial comes on I always say how cool I think it is, and that I want one…the commercial is so dorky, dave always makes fun of the acting, which probably made it easier for him to remember that I really really wanted one! I was thrilled with the gift! A big pink gift bag, a bright blue snuggine…and a husband who picked both of them out just for me! I cuddled up to him in my snuggie and we fell asleep on the couch.

The next morning I woke up and Dave was not lying next to me. He must have snuck out without me hearing. As I started to walk up the stairs ready to eat some cereal, Dave opened the door and told me to get back in bed. So I went back and waited. He came down a few minutes later and brought me breakfast in bed. HOW SWEET! While eating breakfast he handed me his phone and told me that someone had sent him a text message. I checked the phone and there was a long message addressed to me! He knows how much I LOVE love letters, so he wrote me one…. along with a really sweet poem. What a sweetie heart. Then as if that was not enough…. he pulled out two more pink gift bags! One with a few pairs of really cute socks I have been wanting, and one with two different kinds of my all time favorite old fashion licorice… which he had gone to 4 different stores to find. And to top it all off he handed me a long stem…chocolate rose and told me how much he loved me! It was so sweet…and even sweeter that he took the time to do something for me. Maybe I’m a dork, but it meant so much to me! The rest of the day was wonderful as well! We went to Kylee’s birthday party….went to a great movie, ate at our favorite restaurant (Tony’s) and came home and watched another movie. I made chocolate chip cookies and we ate them right up. I had a wonderful valentines filled with love, love letters, gifts, and yummy food….BUT in the end….nothing and I mean nothing will ever beat the everyday love that my little honey shows me…. It’s that everyday love, that makes life so darn sweet!

Pregnant

2009-02-12T14:40:00.001-08:00

Who is? Not me that’s for dang sure! I did have a big scare the other day though. It went a little something like this….

After getting ready for bed on Sunday night, doing the nightly routine, I realized that my p-day party was three days late! That has never happened to me before so naturally I freaked. My heart began beating really fast and I felt sick. I didn’t want to mention anything to Dave (since the last time I mentioned something it left him in tears) I laid there in bed for over an hour worrying, wondering, planning, counting, imagining…I finally couldn’t take it anymore so I woke Dave up and told him that I hadn’t had my p-day and I was freaking out, he must have been too sleepy because he told me not to worry about the things I couldn’t control and rolled back over. WHAT! Last time you cried like a baby when my sisters and my mom worried me into thinking I was pregnant because I had a stomach ache.. (what’s up with that anyhow when your first married if you get sick in any way someone thinks you’re pregnant)…So even after spilling the beans went back to sleep. I didn’t, that’s for sure. It was now 2:00am….I laid there contemplating if I wanted to get dressed and drive to Wal-Mart to buy a pregnancy test…. I about did it but amazingly talked myself out of it by telling myself that if I was pregnant tonight, I’d still be pregnant tomorrow. Somehow I fell asleep. I jumped out of bed the next morning at the first sound of the alarm and pretty much ran to the bath room, hoping that someone had thrown me a surprise p-day party…. Nope. Nothing. I got ready for work with a pit in my stomach…I really felt awful. On my way to work I stopped at the gas station to buy a prego test. As I searched frantically isle by isle the clerk asked me what I was looking for…. I looked at her with a blank stare and said…uh medicine, but you don’t have it and then walked right out the door without looking up. On my way to work I prayed. And I cried. And I prayed some more. Geeze you’d think something horrible was happing. After my prayer I felt some discomfort in my stomach, I crossed my fingers and hoped the discomfort would turn into cramps! And to my relief…when I got to work I got that p-day party I was hoping for! Halleluiah! I called Dave immediately and told him. I felt like a new woman p-day, pms and all! In a way I feel a bit selfish that I’d be so upset to have a baby right now… but I’m not trying to be selfish…I’m just not ready to have kiddies yet. To me if I am that scared, worried, upset, panicked…it can’t be the right timing.. (kind of like when you were dating your old boyfriend… the one you didn’t marry and you felt worried, upset, panicked, and scared…about the thought of marriage) Didn’t go that way with your future husband to be right? NOPE not for me..its was smooth sailing…and just felt right!

I know when I’m/we’re ready to have a baby I’ll/we’ll know it and welcome will it with open arms. As for now… I’m happy where I am. I am a needy girl and need more time with my honey. More time for the just us, more time to grow, more time to learn, and more time to enjoy each others undivided attention. Once we have kids…we will have them for the rest of our life… I guess we’re not quite ready to start the rest of our life. Bye bye

PREGNANT

2009-02-12T12:04:00.000-08:00

wife...AKA.....realtor

2009-02-06T16:15:00.000-08:00

This is what I've been doing lately(see below)... ahhhhhhhhhhhh! how did i get tasked with selling a condo I did not agree to purchase??? It could have something to do with me listening to Dr. Laura on a regular basis and because I love my husband and love to keep him happy. The following is a cry/plea for help:

IF YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO IS LOOKING FOR A CONDO IN THE SEATTLE AREA..PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF PETE, SEND THEM TO THIS LINK CLICK HERE

And while you're at it beg them to buy it. OK thanks!
So for anyone who might be wondering what the heck I'm talking about...let me tell you. Two months before Dave and I met he decided to buy a condo with a friend. (WHAT? WHY? HUH?) Ya, I know.. my thoughts exactly. Anyhow, 2 months later,we met, 4 months later we moved to Portland,5 months later we got married, 16 months later we moved to Utah...mean we pay this mortgage and are gaining nothing as the market continues to drop...lower and lower. Since we want to buy a home here, we need to get rid of the condo there. the end. Happy day!

Natalie and Dave Shaw | 801-814-1050

517 225th NE Lane, Sammammmish, WA

PRICE JUST REDUCED $24K MUST SALE! OUR LOSS IS YOUR GAIN! WE MUST SALE!
LUXORY CONDO WITH ALL THE UPGRADES!

2BR/2BA Condo

offered at $285,000

Year Built	2005
Sq Footage	1,047
Bedrooms	2
Bathrooms	2 full, 0 partial
Floors	1
Parking	3 Covered spaces
Lot Size	Unspecified
HOA/Maint	$198 per month

DESCRIPTION

Our condo in a GREAT location and loaded with all theupgrades. It is in perfect conditions (no pets or kids). Let our loss be your gain. If you are looking for a smashing good deal and are serious about buying give us a call and come take a look! We are open to offers.

This condo is located in the Saxony Condominium Community. Saxony is a modern community with attention to traditional details. The concierge service will take care of the details of day to day living while you live life to the fullest.

Condo Details:

9ft' Celings Throughout

• 2 Bedroom and 2.00 Bathroom

Unit Features: Large Balcony/Deck/Patio, Disabled Access, End Unit, Ground Floor, Insulated Windows, Large Master Bath , Large Walk-in Closet

Dishwasher, Dryer, Garbage Disposal, Microwave, Range/Oven, Refrigerator, Washer

Ceramic Tile Floor, Wall to wall carpet

Appliance Hookup: Electric Cooking, Gas Cooking, Electric Dryer, Gas Dryer, Washer

1 Mantel Fireplace w/ Beautiful Granit

Common Features: Cable Television, Club House, Disabled Access, Laundry Room, Lobby Entrance, Security Gate

No. of Park Spaces: 3 - Common Garage

Homeowners Dues: $198.00

Dues Include: Garbage

Level Entry Luxury Condo! 9 ft ceilings, slab granite counters, designer light fixtures, chrome and nickle plated hardware, upscale style. Spacious bedrooms that are separated like 2 masters. All on one level, no stairs!! Large walk-in closet, laundry room with full size w/d. Gas fireplace. Radiant-floor steam heating keeping you comfortable at all times. Garage parking for 2 car plus a private outside space included! (3 owned parking spots) HUGE BONUS!

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Fireplace	High/Vaulted ceiling	Walk-in closet
Family room	Dining room	Dishwasher
Refrigerator	Stove/Oven	Microwave
Granite countertop	Washer	Dryer
Laundry area - inside	Balcony, Deck, or Patio

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Covered parking	Guest parking	Clubhouse
Storage space(s)	Playground	Secured entry
Elevator	Wheelchair access

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Radiant-floor steam heating keeping you comfortable at all times

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Natalie and Dave Shaw

801-814-1050

For sale by individual owner

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Feb 6, 2009, 2:24pm PST

Bucket List

2009-01-26T17:49:00.000-08:00

I saw this on someone else's blog and thought it would be fun to fill it out myself...and it was! Feel free to do the same. I had fun thinking about each memory as I marked them off the list!

Started your own blog
Slept under the stars
Played in a band
Visited Hawaii
Watched a meteor shower
Given more than you can afford to charity
Been to Disneyland
Climbed a mountain
Held a praying mantis
Sang a solo
Bungee jumped
Visited Paris
Watched a lightning storm at sea
Taught yourself an art from scratch
Adopted a child
Had food poisoning
Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
Grown your own vegetables
Slept on an overnight train
Hitch hiked
Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
Held a lamb
Gone skinny dipping
Run a Marathon
Seen a total eclipse
Watched a sunrise or sunset
Hit a home run
Been on a cruise
Seen Niagara Falls in person
Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
Seen an Amish community
Fired a rifle, shotgun or pistol
Michelangelo’s David
Sung karaoke
Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
Bought a stranger a meal
Visited Africa
Walked on a beach by moonlight
Been transported in an ambulance
Had your portrait painted (drawn)
Gone deep sea fishing
Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
Gone scuba diving or snorkeling-
Kissed in the rain
Played in the mud
Gone to a drive-in theater
Visited the Great Wall of China
Started a business
Taken a martial arts class
Visited Russia
Served at a soup kitchen
Sold Girl Scout Cookies
Gone whale watching
Got flowers for no reason
Donated blood, platelets or plasma
Gone sky diving
Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
Bounced a check
Flown in a helicopter
Saved a favorite childhood toy
Visited the Lincoln Memorial
Eaten Caviar
Pieced a quilt
Stood in Times Square
Been fired from a job
Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
Been on a speeding motorcycle
Seen the Grand Canyon in person
Published something
Bought a brand new car
Walked in Jerusalem
Visited the White House
Had chickenpox
Sat on a jury
Met someone famous
Joined a book club
Lost a loved one
Had a baby
Seen the Alamo in person
Swam in the Ocean
Owned a cell phone
Been stung by a bee
Seen Mount Rushmore in person
Learned to play an instrument
Held a tarantula
Touched an iceberg
Changed a baby’s diaper
Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
Had a food fight
Had a snowball fight
Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
Ridden a roller coasterVisited all 50 states
Taken a road-trip
Milked a cow
Been in a movie
Crashed a party
Made cookies from scratch
Gotten a tattoo
Rafted the Snake River
Performed on stage
Been to Las VegasEaten shark
Bought a house
Been in a combat zone
Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
Touched a stingray
Broken a bone
Ridden a horse
Eaten sushi
Had your picture in the newspaper
Gone back to school
Eaten fried green tomatoes
Killed and prepared an animal for eating
Dyed your hair
Caused a car accident
Saved someone’s life!

Dracula

2009-01-23T10:57:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd give an answer... to the guess i posed the other day. What I have been doing that is so out of the ordinary for me. I have been reading. After being beyond bored at work with nothing to do, right before I might could have snapped and gone crazy... i decided to do the last thing that I ever imagined may entertain me. I asked Jac for the website where she reads books online and for a suggestion on which book to read and I slowly got started. I have been reading the book "Dracula" written by Bram Stoker. Its very good. I am so surprised with the book, and myself for that matter. I still have a while to go...but I'm chugging away and doing good. Maybe this isn't a big deal for anyone else, but for me... its huge. The only book I have voluntarily read is the "Book for Mormon." Another fun thing about this situation is that everyday I have been telling Dave the story and the things I have been reading and he really likes it... so its fun to talk about it with him. So there ya have it. The end

Pics

2009-01-23T10:50:00.001-08:00

It's my day off...and I finally have a second to post some pics...

Dave's parents Cat, Biggie....20lbs!

This is how we babysit...

The Church is True....and even turtle knows it

Super Cat

??????

2009-01-21T10:11:00.000-08:00

Guess what? No really…guess what!??? Guess what I’m doing right now…not this very second but you get the gist… Anyone? It’s something you’d never ever in a million years believe once I tell you.. (if you know me well that is). Any guesses? Let me give you a few hints:
1. It’s something I say I don’t like to do
2. It requires free time
3. It’s something people do that I always want to do but just can’t seem to get into
4. It’s something that my sisters would be proud of me for doing (I think)
5. It’s something my mom used to say leaders do
Ok that is too many clues. If you know the answer, leave a comment….
All I can say is good job me! Although most people do this all the time…I’m not most people. So yay me! I’m so pleased… infact maybe I’ll do it again!
Ps…this has nothing to do with exercising or nutrition :)

Today

2009-01-16T13:48:00.000-08:00

I love today. Less work and More time with my little honey. A Dinner date at Tony’s with some people I really love…not to mention food that I can’t get enough of. An entire weekend without work! I’ll welcome errands I might have and enjoy taking my time doing them…mostly because Dave is with me, and today it feels like we have all the time in the world. Tonight we will go out to eat….there’s something about going out to eat that makes me want to do it every single day. I love ordering something I know I’ll love…and I adore watching Dave point at his food with his fork while his mouth is full and give it the satisfactory nod accompanied with “uh huh!” (this means he loves it and he is HAPPY!)
what a babe he is….best thing is he doesn’t even know it….making him all the more babeolicious! After chatting, laughing, and enjoying the evening with friends and we’re all alone…..we’ll start a movie and purposely fall asleep watching it all cuddled up in blankets… it feels so nice knowing that tomorrow will not wake us up. As my eyes start to get heavy and I drift off into dream land …I’ll suddenly remember that I haven’t brushed my teeth……as suddenly as I remember…I purposely forget….. instead, I snuggle up closer to my darling, give him a bad breath kiss and fall back asleep… what a lovely day!

long time no post

2009-01-13T20:27:00.000-08:00

I can't believe its been almost one month without a post. Thank goodness other people aren't lazy and make time for blogging because if not...i would have nothing to look forward to at work. I don't have much to blog about. But, I thought I'd post a few pics and give a little update.

Illinois was great. We had a wonderful Christmas and it was fun to spend time with Dave's family. We did a lot of relaxing, way too much eating, a lot of sleeping in, talking, and hanging around. It was really nice.

Going back to work after a two week break almost gave me a stroke. I'm back into the swing of things now, ffffppphhheeeww! (hand swiping my brow). We found a fabulous house that we LOVE to death....we made and offer, they countered, we countered back...and it just wasn't low enough. So we are back to square one. Kinda frustrating, no no no VERY frustrating... But the good news is we are saving money everyday...so we have that to be thankful for...along with everything else of course! Dave is working his little bum off being the best hubby ever. Turtle is being a sweetie pie cuddling with us every night while we watch TV. We have started working out again...hallelujah... Dave bought me the biggest loser DVDs for Christmas and sweet mother they are hard! They are kicking my butt....hopefully after a few months it will disappear! That is the goal at least. Life is good. House hunting is hard. Exercising is worth it. "24" is back with a bang. I'm anticipating "Lost"...and last but not least, Tony's is my favorite restaurant.
Goodbye for now.

(excuse me for complaining)

2008-12-19T11:11:00.000-08:00

It seems I have no time to blog these days. While we were in Portland 99% of my blogs were written and posted while I was at work….leaving me 8 hours a day to check blogs, write blogs, stock blogs, and basically… blog. Now I can only write/post/check and comment to blogs in the evening…which really stinks. I’m lucky if I even get to read all the many blogs that I used to religiously follow or stock…(what’s the difference really?). When the weekend comes, I have so many posts to catch up on, that sometimes it doesn’t happen.

Nothing new is really going on with us… just the same old stuff I guess. We are still searching for a house and up to this point we haven’t had any luck. We must be really picky because I think we have looked through 70+ homes. Sounds like an exaggeration, but I don’t think it is. Each time we go out looking we look at 4-7 homes at time…and we have been out looking well over ten times (ask my sister if you don’t believe me I think she’s ready to kill us )..(she’s our realtor). I keep wondering what it will feel like when we FINALLY find the ONE. Will I go inside and know for sure that this is THE ONE?... Or will it take some easing/talking into for it to make the final cut? Who knows right? Not me.

We have looked all over the place… North Ogden, Pleasant View, South Ogden, South Weber, Layton, East Layton, West Layton, Syracuse, Kaysville, West Kaysville, Farmington, Bountiful, West Bountiful. Tomorrow we are heading up to Mountain Green…I would LOVE to live up there. It’s so very beautiful…I’m crossing my fingers that we might find something. I often wonder if we are being too picky…and if what we want even exists at the price we are willing to pay. One thing I would like to SHOUT is this….People say this market is so great and talk about how now is such a great time to buy… I think the people saying that haven’t spent the last year looking for houses, either that or they just have a lot of money to buy a house outright. Of course if we had 700,000 in cash or even ½ that amount, we could buy a home that used to be priced at over a million…and get a steal of a deal….but I’m sorry people homes in the price range that we are looking in have not seen this “AMAZING DROP” that everyone is yapping about. Yes there are a million homes for sales, yes they are lower priced than before, yes there are many foreclosures….but have all you yappers been out house hunting to see the price, selection, and location of these homes? …..that’s what I thought!

Here are a few questions that make me lose sleep at night:

-How many people would like their kitchen/grate room to be big enough to fit a couch and a kitchen table?

-Doesn’t every want to be able to fit their bed and furniture in their master bedroom and still have room to breathe?

-Does anyone else not want to have to use the hall closet as an overflow for the lack of closet space in the master bedroom?

-Does it bother anyone else when the ceilings are so low you can touch them?

-Who paints their walls, red, orange, and a weird green? (this is for real!!)

-How does a home that is only a few years old look like it has had the wear and tear of a home built in 1983?

-Has anyone ever heard of a laundry/mud room..and where they serious when they stuck a washer and dryer in a room the size of a food pantry?

-Aren’t homes too close together if you leap out your window and make it safely into your neighbors?

What is wrong with these builders? I am about ready to quit my job and start designing homes that people will actually buy.

We are now entertaining the thought of building, but where is the question? Lots are few and far between……geeze, that is a whole other post in itself. Ok I’m off my soap box. (speaking of soap boxes…who made that saying up….soap boxes are way too small and not strong enough to stand on anyway…what a dummy) or am I the dummy? Tushay… O YIPPEE…I always wanted to use that word (tushay)…did I use it in the correct context? Hmm… who knows.

So today is a very slow day at work. Everyone is gone for the holidays…I have no work to do…..I’m talking, NONE. I have been sitting here for over three hours and have not done anything… well that’s not true I have done the following:

-Looked up information on Symphony homes

-Went to the bathroom (3 times)

-Sat on hold with customer service regarding a Christmas shipment

-Looked on Ebay

-Ate a nutrigrain bar and a string cheese w/ a diet coke

-Braided my hair

-Wrote a love note to my honey for the 8th day of Christmas

-Blew my nose

-listened to Carrie Underwood

So I guess when I think about it, I have done a lot in the last three hours. Good job me. Who needs work when you can keep yourself busy with stuff like that!

On a lighter note….I think Dave and I are going to exchange our Christmas gifts this weekend. Since we will be in Illinois over Christmas and can’t bring our gifts with us, we thought we’d do it early! Knowing that Dave never checks my blog, and since I have nothing else to write about… I’ll share a few things that I got for him that I’m excited about ….(you now know that he really never checks this if I’m willing to expose this information). So, as I have mentioned before, Dave is OBSSESSED with four wheelers. He sleeps, eats, drinks, and breathes them. Only problem is he doesn’t have one. He is waiting until we find a home so he can have somewhere to store it. So on behalf of his dream to one day own a four wheeler….I did theme gifts this year! A four-wheeler helmet, some gloves, and a few other things of that nature. Even though he does not yet own the item for which these gifts are for, I hope he will still love them just the same.

Ok since this post is way too long and I am obviously way too bored.. I will end with our Christmas plans. 23rd-31st Waltonville, IL. This is only my second time visiting Dave’s home town (population 400) but I’m super excited. I hope to do a lot of relaxing, hanging out with the family, watching and going to movies, eating Julie’s yummy pies…and things of that nature. It will be a wonderful break.

Ok, that’s all for now. If you have read this entire post….maybe you should come meet me for lunch cus I’m betting that you are bored too!

Merry Christmas

RaNDom PiCs

2008-12-14T18:12:00.000-08:00

We LOVE Chilis!!

Hero's Season Finale....tomorrow! (Syler)

She FINALLY loves me more than Dave!!

A Whole New World

2008-12-03T15:42:00.000-08:00

Last week little Turtle Tot went outside for the first time! Since she is so small and we are afraid of her getting lost of getting hit by a car, we decided that she would be an indoor kitty. So up until now she had never been outside. When we took her out and set her down for the first time, it was so funny! She did not know what to think about it. She immediately went back to the door that led inside and sat there acting like she had to get back in there.

I think the cold pavement and grass were a little confusing...but after a while she got the hang of it and started to explore.

All in all......I don't think she liked it much, but it made me feel better to let her get out, explore, and get some fresh air. I can not wait until we get our own house and she can wonder about whereever she pleases...but until then...I think she has adjusted to her tiny two bedroom apartment that we confine her to (due to family allergy problems). Is it so weird to anyone else that I really love her...like for reals? She's just a little person in a furry animal body, and she smells so good (no joke..she actually smells good)...and lets face it..she has the cutest kitty face around.

love ya turty

Gobble Gobble

2008-12-03T15:40:00.000-08:00

Me, Dave, mom, and dad all headed down to Cedar City (duck creek) to the Craig’s cabin for Thanksgiving! We had a blast! We obviously went to Grandmas first and had a scrumptious. Immediately after pie we were on the road. The drive wasn’t too bad... about 4 ½ hours, and lucky for us we had pretty good weather! We had a blast hanging out with Court, Case and all the chitlens.

We went sledding, rode four-wheelers, (which only created an even stronger desire for Dave to get one RIGHT AWAY!)… We watched funny movies (Kung Fu Panda), made treats, created thanksgiving dinner (again! Yum) played cards, musical charades, took naps, played with makeup, layed around, talked. We had a grand old time! Thanks for letting us spend the holiday at your cabin Craig family! We had a blast and loved seeing you!
oops no pics, didn't bring my camera.... I'll count on you to post them (court)!

True Love

2008-11-25T16:49:00.001-08:00

Diet coke gives me comfort and makes me happy. I’m sure that any of you DC drinkers can appreciate my feelings...! Here’s to 3 out of the 4 best times of my day! CHEERS!

1. Diet ok AM

2. Diet coke Lunch

3. Diet coke pm

4. Seeing Dave

Ps…saw twilight last night.. LOVED IT…LOVED IT…LOVED IT…could not believe how much I loved it…felt like a 12 year old girl J I thought I’d like it just ok…but let me say it again…LOVED IT

(I listened to the first book when it very first came out before all the excitement and I really liked it…I’m not a reader so I didn’t ever start the other ones, I just had my sisters tell me what happened…anyhow …I thought it was so great! I did not love who they picked for Edward while watching the previews…but after seeing the movie….wo baby…..I HOPE I GET BIT!

W.T.H.I.T.W.

2008-11-24T16:19:00.000-08:00

What The Heck In The World?!!

It’s hard to believe that not working for one month has become detrimental to my mental/emotional state. I thought I’d be able to jump back into the swing of things with ease…..WO baby was I WA rong! Remember when you started your first “real job”… the excitement, the anticipation,…and then out of no where you get hit by a Mac truck, and you have an “AH HA” moment where you realize that you will be working everyday forever and ever?? You begin contemplating suicide when you realize you don’t have a choice....work is what you do...and you are now a slave to the man?
Remember that?........ I do. I remember it like it was yesterday…or maybe even today..…Pit in my stomach, compulsive thoughts about sleep…loss of freedom. Looks like I have to be responsible again.
BOOOOOOOOOO YAAAAAHHH (someone just yelled that in my ear) and it hurt.

Dear Responsibility:
I hate you. You stink. Please leave me alone.
P.S..…I hate your guts

Ideas Please

2008-11-10T16:28:00.000-08:00

Don't get me wrong...I love being back in Utah I really do, so this post is in no means me complaining....but I think living away for 2 1/2 years and the fact that I accidental blocked out my life and memories before Dave has caused me not to remember all the fun things that there are to do here in Utah. I know there are plenty of fun things, ya know...things that Utahans do for fun, things that are special to the area...ya know all the fun stuff. I was thinking about it today and all I could come up with was Crystal Hot springs! ha ha funny right? But I always loved that place! So my plea to you is that you will leave a suggestion or two of some of your favorite things to do in this lovely place we call home! In return I'll give you the low down on fun things to do in Portland...what a great swap right!!! I thought so...PRETTY PLEASE give me some ideas...EVERYONE, if you're reading this give me at least one idea!!! Simple, extravagant, relaxing....whatever just help me remember! Tell me what you love to do! thanks!!

count em up

2008-11-06T21:32:00.000-08:00

When upon life's billows
You are tempest tossed
When you are discouraged
Thinking all is lost

Are you ever burdened
With a load of care
Does the cross seem heavy
You are called to bear

When you look at others
With their lands and gold
Think that Christ has promised
You His wealth untold

Whether great or small
Do not be discouraged
God is over all

Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done

Life is rough. No matter how big or how small the trials in life may seem...I believe that if you focus on the positive and count your many blessings the load will seem lighter and the day brighter! My dad told me that when he is down or discouraged he repeats the words to this song aloud, and then counts his blessings, naming them one by one. I liked the idea and I thought I'd share it....it's not rocket science or anything new...just a sure fire way to brighten your day!

Kath and Kim

2008-11-06T21:21:00.001-08:00

Does anyone else love this show? It cracks me up! I love the outfits, the story line, the cast....love it all! Seriously funny! If you haven't seen it yet, you really should! Check out the trailer below...if that doesn't strike your fancy...check out the entire first episode...and after that if you still don't like it then we probably shouldn't be friends..:) Let me know what ya think!

Like a kid in a candy store

2008-11-02T15:57:00.000-08:00

ps

2008-11-01T13:56:00.003-07:00

ps...i tag erin too! :)

The Quirky Tag

2008-10-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

Ok...I have 10 minutes before I'm off to look at some houses...can I complete this tag in 10 minutes....let's see...

(3 hours later)

1. I can only sleep on my right side....with a body pillow...and a puffy pillow for my sweet little head. (this is not by choice (back pain)...but I would consider it quirky)

2. I tuck the top of my mouse suit into the bottom of my mouse suit (mouse suit = g's...Dave's nickname)....that's right, I'm a tucker.

3. I can not start eating dinner until the mess I created while cooking is COMPLETELY clean. All I want to do after I eat is put my dinner plate in the dishwasher and walk away.

4. I like to pop zits. In fact.. I LOVE IT. I even sometimes have dreams about pooping a really good zit. Dave lets me pop his back sometimes...its his way of showing me he loves me.

5. I am always pulling my shirt down.... :) No..silly people not like that. I'm talking about the bottom part of my shirts. I'm always tugging and pulling to make it longer...even if its a long shirt. It's something I do out of habit I guess...maybe I think it makes me look skinner if my shirt is longer...??

6. This quirk has changed in the past two weeks since living in Utah...but when I was in Portland, not a day that went by where I didn't talk to someone in my family. I just love them..

the end.

tag emma, jen, court, jac,...and anyone else.

Halloween ExtravaGANSA

2008-10-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

geeze louise! What a fun weekend! The whole fam was in town and we partied hard core! We went to the corn maze, tried to carv pumkins, had a surprise birthday party for my dad...had a crazy fun (jam packed) Halloween party...went to the temple, watched scary movies...chatted the nights away..and laughed our little somewhat big bums off! (the big referring to me not you sisters) It was so much fun! We also went to Tonys TWICE!! YUMM!! Since I am somehow stil really really busy...I'll leave it at that and throw in some pictures for your viewing pleasure!! Thanks mom and dad for a fun willed five days!!

We made it..and we're busy

2008-10-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

We arrived into Utah almost two weekends ago..and I haven't had a spare minute to blog...I can't even believe it. I am beginning to understand how it is so hard to blog when you are not sitting in front of a computer for 8 hours a day...its very difficult to find time...its seems like everything else takes precedent....(weird).
Anyhow...we are here, we are loving it...and we are BUSY! House hunting is not for the lazy folk...its takes serious looking and hard work! But we are making progress! Turtle is a bit stressed and confused...Dave Love's his job...we love Utah...life is good!

Proof that we are really here..(Rumbi Grill)mmmm mmmm good!

PS..any friends or family that I haven't called or seen yet..don't hate me.. I want to call you and play with you really soon! I really have been crazy busy.. working, looking for a job, moving, looking for a house showering...ya know all that stuff..it's our Halloween family weekend(wed-sunday non stop party)..so next week..IM FREE! (unless I have to start work..)

So long, Farewell

2008-10-08T09:42:00.001-07:00

We can not WAIT to move to Utah. We have been working our tails off in preparation for the move and have just 1 day left! Although we couldn't be more thrilled about our move, reality is setting in and it is becoming clear that we're going to miss this place dearly! Portland is where our life together began and where all our memories up to this point reside. We've been blessed to make dear friends that have been like family to us...we have become accustomed to the mild beautiful weather...we've seen the breath taking sites....and just recently we've begun to feel that Portland was "our home"...(minus our real family). I want to dedicate this post to Portland a place we've come to love...I'm sure it will naturally shift places with Utah and become our "new" home away from home.

10 things i'll miss
(in no particular order)

1. the beautiful weather

2. visits to the coast

3. the hundreds of hikes, trails, and bike paths (just outside our front door)

4. magical strawberries and berry picking

5. Nike clothes being sold everywhere for CHEAP
(Shopko,Fredy's,& Ross 2 name a few)

6. low altitude runs

7. McMenamins dinner and a movie

8. friends who make you feel at home

9. wearing hoodies in the summer

10. NO TAX ON ANY PURCHASE i.e.(Diet Coke =$1.25 you pay $1.25)

I tried to create a slide show and it erased on me, so I am posting a bunch of pics our time here in Portland. (most are repeats from previous posts)

bye bye Portland. Thanks for letting us stay! We'll miss you. Be back soon!

it just fit

2008-10-07T08:29:00.000-07:00

Last night Dave gave Turtle a new name... Miss Mensie. Not sure if it was inspired by the word "Mensies" or not, either way I kinda like it. I guess I was excited about her new identity because I decided to give Dave a new name also....
I began listing every name under the sun...figuring that if said enough names aloud the right one would stand out....and it did.....Afterward I went and checked on Miss Mensie who was down stairs sleeping. I came upstairs, got in bed, then leaned over and gave Charles a kiss good night. We both slept soundly.

(I sang Charles this song to alleviate any grumbling brought on by my decision)
(3 days and counting)

Turty

2008-10-05T01:43:00.000-07:00

She's so cute when she is sleepy and in the mood to cuddle!

wHat The hECk in tHe WorLd

2008-10-04T23:06:00.000-07:00

When my lovely niece Gracie was about 3 years old, she sent my mom a letter that my sister helped her write. My sister wrote word for word what Grace wanted to tell her "gaga" (my mom)...

the letter went something like this..

"i love you gaga, i like to play wit mom, come see me, cache is my older brother, we love when you see us, my favorite is chocolate, WHAT THE HECK IN THE WORLD. Love, Grace

We all laughed our heads off at the letter and have all taken the saying "what the heck in the world" and added it to our everyday vocab.

So can I just say "WHAT THE HECK IN THE WORLD!!" Could packing be more stressful, tiring, draining, physically painful and ANNOYING! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!

5 days and counting!!

FUNNY STUFF

2008-10-02T09:20:00.001-07:00

I watched this video on one of my friends blogs, and I HAD to share it with anyone who has not seen it...its too funny to keep secret! Make sure to watch the entire thing! (thanks han)

After watching Stacy's Trumpet solo, we stumbled across this video...hilarious!

I am a party animal

2008-10-02T01:26:00.000-07:00

This is the first time since I've been married, and maybe even in 2 years that I have been awake past 11:30pm on a weekday. Yes, its true...I am awake in the AM...this is not my dream typing...its me. After a long night of packing we got to bed pretty late by our standards(11:00pm). I tried to fall asleep but I seem to have a long list of things that need to get done and I kept adding to and reviewing this list over and over again. After an hour of reviewing in my mind, I realized that the madness would not stop until I physically put these things on paper. So here I am 1:27 am...still awake. It's crazy to think I used to go to bed between 1:00 and 3:00am on a regular basis. I felt obligated to document this event since it may be years until it happens again. Thanks for the stress Utah, I still love you and will see ya soon!

No Place Like Home

2008-09-26T22:10:00.000-07:00

In 14 days we are going to Utah....and this time we aren't just going for a visit....yup! You heard me right....WE ARE MOVING!!!......Utah here we come!!! Dave was offered a job today in Clearfield, Utah!!! It is with an amazing company (ATK)and to top it all off, his position will allow him to work in the feild he loves most...AREOSPACE!! He will be a CATIA guru and also design for the Airbus Structual Compsites..(whatever that means!) I can not express how excited we are! We have been trying to move to Utah for the past two years and now it is finally happening! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!! When Dave told me the news this afternoon I burst into tears, bawling my head off like a baby! I couldn't stop! All I could say over and over while whaling at the same time is "are you serious?" "are you serious?" ...We are so incredibly excited! Thank you everyone for all your efforts, support, and prayers, we could not have done it without you! And we could not be more excited!! Thank you honey for never giving up and trying you hardest to find a job in Utah! You did it! THANK YOU!! Congratulations! I am so proud of you!! 14 days and counting....see ya oh so soon!! "There's no place like home...there's no place like home...there's no place like home."

To court....thanks for the idea!

O.C.D.

2008-09-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

Do you know people who can not start something without finishing it? I do! Dave started his little design in his mind...(its an orignial), designed it in using CAD sofwate, then rendered his data and made this lovely image for all to enjoy! If you understand how design software and rendering works...this is pretty darn cool..and impressive! (I can brag all I want!) This is the same image I posted last week, only now it has been rendered making it look like a digital photo! It is now an official design, start to finish...one of a kind! It's ready to be manufactured and sold..... any buyers??

"I will Ease the Burdens"

2008-09-26T10:43:00.000-07:00

When I think about trials, I can't help but feel a bit frustrated and angry. I always ask WHY? WHAT? HOW? I've felt/feel confused, afraid, and at times alone.

I read a wonderful message today about Alma and his people. It helped remind me of important principles that will help me in times of turmoil. I wanted to share it in hopes that it may enlighten you the way it did me. This message was written by Elder Maury W. Schoof and is found in the October issue of the Ensign. (It will be available online in a few days)
In hopes to separate my thoughts from his words...I have put "parenthesis" around his words and italicized them. My thoughts are the ones not-vitalized.

Synopsis:
Alma and his people hearken to the words of their prophet Abinadi who advised them to flee into the wilderness. They began to prosper for a while in the land of Helam, but their peace was soon interrupted when the laminates (their enemies) came to conquer them and their land. Alma "exhorted them that they should not be frightened, but that they should remember the lord their god and he would deliver them" Mosiah 23:27

The laminates made a promises to Alma that if he would give them direction and help them find their way home then his people would be set free. The laminates broke their promise and took ownership of the land and Alma's people. This caused much pain and tribulation for the people of Alma. When I read what happened next I realized I needed to learn from and then apply the techniques that Alma and his people practiced..

"And Alma and his people did not raise their voices to the lord their god, but did pour out their heats to him: and he did know the thoughts of their hearts." "And the voice of the lord came to them in their afflictions saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage. "And I will ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs...and this will I do that ye may stand as a witness for me hereafter, that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, Do visit my people in their afflictions." Mosiah 24.11-14

Heavenly father kept and keeps his promises! He strengthened the people of Alma, and made it possible for them to "bear up their burdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with patience to all the will of the lord" Mosiah 24:15.

The lord delivered them from their enemies....Take notice to their actions immediately after they were released from bondage?
"They poured out their thanks to god because he had been merciful unto them.”And they gave thanks to god, ....lifting their voices in the praises of their god" Mosiah 24:21-22

Elder Schoof points out four important things that can be learned from this story.

1."The lord tests the faith and patience of his people"
Impatient is my middle name. I want it now; immediate results are what I am looking for. I've finally begun to realize that that's not the way it works...

"Elder Richard G. Scott said the following about trials "The lord gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain."

.....I've felt that stretching, discomfort, and pain. I can't help but ask myself if my burdens would seem lighter if I thought of my trials as the lord polishing, stretching, and molding me to become more like him?

2. "We need to trust the Lord"
"The Lord's view is much broader than ours, and he has promised that he will not try us beyond our ability to withstand. Elder Scott said".. "To exercise faith is to trust that the lord knows what he is doing with you and that he can accomplish it for your eternal good even though you cannot understand how he can possibly do it."

Does that hit home for anyone else?

3. "We should not murmur"
GUILTY!
"Alma's people did not complain about their afflictions" "Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught: "Murmuring can...be noisy enough that it drowns out the various spiritual signals to us, signals which tell us in some cases to quit soaking ourselves in indulgently in the hot tubs of self-pity! Murmuring over the weight of our crosses not only takes energy otherwise needed to carry them but might cause another to put down his cross altogether. "Being of good cheer is what is needed, and being of good cheer is equally contagious. We have clear obligations to so strengthen each other by doing things 'with cheerful hearts and countenances." Doctrine and Covenants 59:15

When I think about the trials that weighed/weigh heavy on my heart, It's obvious that my murmuring did make my "cross" heavier and harder to bear. When we are personally feeling the pain and anguish that trials will bring, it seems a lot harder to "be of good cheer". But what if we tried it...would it help? Would our crosses seem lighter? Would our burdens be easier to bear? Would the lord lighten our load as he sees us fulfilling our obligation to "be of good cheer"? I think I know the answer.

4. "We can look to our leaders for comfort and encouragement"
"The people of Helam listened to and heeded their leader and he quieted their fears."
President Gordon B. Hinkley also quieted the fears of many when he spoke in general conference following the attack on the United States on September 11, 2001." "I am Optimistic. I do not believe the time is here when an all-consuming calamity will overtake us. I earnestly pray that it may not. There is so much of the lord's work yet to be done. We, and our children after us, must do it!"

Our leaders are called through divine inspiration and are willing and ready to give comfort, encouragement, and direction if we but seek it!

Life is rough. Sometimes the load seems too heavy. We must remember that life is merely a journey, a step in our eternal progression.... we must remember that heavenly father is stretching and molding us... and it WILL hurt... BUT all these experiences will strengthen us, enrich our lives, and help prepare us to return to his presence.

We are so blessed to have a father that "will ease the burdens which are put upon [our] shoulders, that even you cannot feel them on your backs."

We are loved.

Fun Times

2008-09-21T18:55:00.000-07:00

Weekends are the best! We had some friends stay with us this weekend which made the weekend that much better! We have not seen them in quite some time, so it was so fun to catch up! Since I failed at finding a baby sister (sorry!) We decided to hang around the house Friday night and let Amelia get her beauty sleep. We ordered take out from PF Changs and chatted the night away. Saturday afternoon we headed over to NW 23rd street and strolled around for a bit. We had some yummy lunch and then got one of our favorite treats found on 23rd street...The best ever White Hot Chocolate from Vivace Cafe. We also hit up the Saturday market and spent some time with the homeless at the waterfront! I also smelled "burning leaves" (Marijuana) the first time while at the park! Fun times! We had a great time visiting a few hot spots in Portland, and really enjoyed the company! The last time we saw Amelia was over a year ago so it was really fun to see her, play with her, and get to see her cute little personality. It took her the entire time to warm up to us, but right before leaving her and Dave spent some quality time playing with Turtle. Thanks for visiting Smith family! It was so great to see you after such a long time! We had a wonderful time! Come back soon!!

Dave, Amelia, and Turt

Downtown Waterfront

UPDATE

2008-09-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

After reading my post, I think Dave got really excited and once again could not get these Four Wheelers off his mind...as a result check out the design he sent me today from work:

He drew this in his CAD (computer aided design) software. This is not an easy task. This image was designed using 3d mathematical data and equations, he drew it from scratch, from an image in his mind! Its kinda hard to explain how it works if you've never seen it done! But its a really hard to do. This is just a screen print of what he was working on. Its a picture of the user interface with the tire opened as a file on the page....but at least you get the idea!

It looks great babe! Very cool!

He was so excited for me to see it and to tell me how my post inspired its creation! ha ha ha...I couldn't resist posting it for everyone else to see!

CAN AM OUTLANDER MAX 800 R LTD

2008-09-18T20:12:00.000-07:00

Ya know that feeling you get when you go into your favorite clothing store and you are surrounded by cute clothes and you just want them all! You picture yourself in everything you see and imagine just how good you would look and then magically everything around you somehow ends up in your closet,.... take that feeling, put it into a guys mind, and then amplify it by ten... I think this is how Dave feels when he thinks about, talks about, looks at, listens to, researches about, and or anything that has to do with Four Wheelers! Does it even seem possible? Could someone really get that excited about a machine? Answer = Yes!

ATVS. All-Terrain Vehicles. Four Wheelers. QUADS. I'm sure there are tons of other names out there for them, but these are the most common ones spoken of in our home. Dave loves these things. Sometimes I think they take up a large majority of what he thinks about. It cracks me up! There have been plenty of times when I ask him what he is thinking about and he looks at me with a sheepish grin and laughs....ha ha He doesn't need to say....I know the answer.. FOUR WHEELERS!!

Unfortunately for Dave, the closest store that carries "his" four wheeler is about 45minutes away...don't worry though, we have been there one million times. I have to be honest here, the store itself is not that exciting or impressive. Pictures this...its about 1000 Sq feet, they carry only a handful of machines... and they don't even let you test drive. Doesn't that take the fun right out of it! So basically we go, we look...and we conquer...well, not exactly..the only thing we conquer is Dave's burning desire to see these bad boys in real life again. He feeds the need to feel it, touch it, sit on it, and imagine riding it. He checks out the engine, and all of the features he loves. He even asks the sales clerks questions that he knows all the answers to, just because! Its pretty funny! Along with these visits, he spends endless hours watching You Tube videos, any and everything about them. Thus starts the cycle, he watches fun, exciting clips, day after day until he just can't take it anymore.....he gets so excited and has to show me pictures, wants to talk about it..and expresses his deep desire to go look at Four Wheelers again...and so we go! It's like he needs that fix....he loves to take it all in, to imagine what it would be like to have his own and be able to ride when and where he pleases. I always go along for the ride and express to him how cool these puppies are...even if they do all look the same to me and each visit to me is just the same as the last! ha ha I'm not complaining, not at all really... I am actually really glad that he loves them so much! Its so fun to watch him get so excited about something and have such passion! He acts like a little boy that wants a new bike or an ice cream cone..its really cute! I can not wait until we move and can finally buy some. It will be so exciting when he does not have to imagine but can actually go out and ride anytime he pleases! Until then... I think I just might add You Tube to my list of things to be thankful for in my daily prayers! It really helps "bridal all that passion!"

-here are a few pics for you babe 143-

New Favorite Show

2008-09-18T12:42:00.000-07:00

Don't jump to any conclusions! This is not taking the place of my all time favorite favortiest show....the one and only LOST...It is however being added to my list of favs!...and its getting up there after just two episodes! It's a REALLY great show! Imagine a mix between "The X-Files" and "Twilight Zone" and then add the genius minds from the creators of Lost and Alias to the mix! What do you get? A really cool, creepy weird, action packed, mystery filled, exciting show!! When I found out the producers of Lost and Alias were making this show, I hoped with all my might it would turn out wonderfully...and to my excitement it did! There are even times in the show where they play that weird sound effect music from lost..(I thoroughly enjoy those sounds!) I wasn't sure how I would feel about Joshua Jackson being one of the main characters, but it turns out he fits the role perfectly! Good think I was not in charge of casting! Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) the main character is very like able as well. She's really pretty (not importnat, but maybe a little right?) but more than that she really is a perfect fit for the role! If you have not yet seen the show...you can catch the first two episodes by clicking here FOX.COM and then pick up where you left off next next Tuesday @ 9/8C...its 9:00pm at our house so figure out where you live and do the math!

Now a little treat for all of you TV buffs out there that are wondering what Fall 2008 TV has in store for you! When do your favorite TV shows start? What are the new shows, and what are they all about? Anybody wondering these things? Well, I know I was.... SO...I took the liberty of creating my own schedule, and I thought it would be a shame if I kept it to myself. So after doing a bit of research and watching tid-bids of all the new fall shows, I can say with little hesitation that I am really excited, and am pretty hopefully for the new fall tv schedule! GEEZE LOUISE... All this talk about TV is making me excited to go home, get in my comfys and snuggle up next to my honey and watch something fun! I love the excitement that Dave and I share together when we know its the day that our favorite show is on! This summer has really sucked as far as TV shows go, so we are very excited about the upcoming schedule! My list includes new and returning shows that have started or will be starting in the near future. These shows are shows I plan on watching or shows that I plan on trying out for an episode or two to see what I think.

So to all my fellow tv lovers out there..Get those DVRS ready, wash your pjs, put the kids to bed...and get ready for some serious ACTION....you, your husband/wife...and the TV!!

(If you click on the show itself it is hyperlinked to its home page where you can find out more about the shows times, watch previews, etc.)

Mondays
Terminator Sarah Connor Chronicles FOX Mondays 8:00 pm
Hero's NBC (Sept 22) 9:00 pm
Prison Break FOX 9:00 pm
My Own Worst Enemy NBC (Oct 13) 10:00pm

Tuesdays
Biggest Looser NBC Tuesdays 8:00 pm
Fringe FOX 9:00 pm
The Mentalist CBS (Sept 23) 9:00 pm

Wednesday
Knight Rider CBS (Sept 24) 8:00pm

Thursdays
Kath and Kim NBC (Oct 9) 8:30pm
The Office NBC 9:00pm
Eleventh Hour CBS (Oct 21)10:00 pm
Life On Mars NBC (Oct 9) 10:00 pm

Friday
Crusoe NBC 8:00pm (Oct 17)

Sunday:
24 FOX Sunday 11/23 (Season 7 Jan 2009)

LOST EARLY 2009 (that is all the info they give us..those dirty bags!)

PS...if I'm missing a show that you love to watch please leave a comment and tell me about it because trust me I want to know!!

LONG OVER DUE!!

2008-09-13T12:24:00.001-07:00

After almost 2 years of living in Portland I finally found someone that I trust to highlight my hair! Up until now I have been getting my hair done every time I go home to Utah. Before yesterday it had been over 3 months since my last cut and color!! And my hair was really really long even 3 months ago!! Since I work out in the morning and don't have too much time to get ready I find myself resorting to a pony tail pretty much everyday. (lucky me, Dave's likes it the best in a pony) Anyway, I haven't worn my hair down and straight for two.. maybe three months. I think I tried to wear it down and straight a month or two ago and Dave said..."honey not to be rude, but I think you need a hair cut, you're hair is looking like the girl from the ring!" ha ha ha that was funny! That comment was made about a month and 1/2 ago..so it has only gotten longer! When its down and I curl it, it looks fine since the curls shrink it quite a bit, but...as you can see from the before picture below, my hair was way to long long long OVER DUE and in desperate need of a hair cut!! It was almost embarrassing to take it out of my pony tail and have the girl cut it..and I am also a little embarrassed to even post this picture because it looks so gross....I actually couldn't even where my hair in a pony tail without it being in curls because it was too long. It looked like a horses tail... ewww!! I have just been so busy lately with the job search and then starting with a new job that I put my hair needs on the back burner. If and IF I ever wore it down it was in curls, but lets be honest, most days it just ends up in a pony tail. As a result of my laziness...this is what it looked like right before I got it cut...(disclaimer, it looks extra gross in this picture not just long gross but gross because it wasn't flat ironed, it was really frizzy because I had just taken it out of a bun after I got done exercising so it was kinky and gross...but still, how could I have let it go for that long?? So here is a before and after pic...she took off about 3 1/2 inches off... maybe a little more. It made a HUGE difference! Take a look...

The New Job

2008-09-11T09:23:00.001-07:00

I got a new job! It's AMAZING....its fabulous! Imagine being in
H E DOUBLE HOCKEY sticks...and after a lot of hard work and many many prayers you are lifted to a place that feels like heaven....aka my new job at Mentor Graphics www.mentor.com! I am working in the Marketing Department and my role covers the online marketing for events, workshops, seminars and trade shows for our department. I think that's the best way to explain it without going into boring detail. Guess what? I love what I do! Can you believe it? Because I can't! But it's actually fun! The people I work with are GREAT! My manager could not be cooler. He is so laid back, down to earth, funny, fun, and just great. My group is amazing...the environment is laid back and just great! Without evening knowing that I would love the job and what I would be doing or knowing anything about the company, I was excited to start something new. I had met the people in my group and I felt great energy and I was excited to work with people who were happy, positive, upbeat and hopefully had souls, unlike the people at poopliner. Ha ok that was rude, but not an exageration. With that in mind when I got to work on my first day, I was in for more excitement than I could had ever imagined! I met with my manager he brought me to my desk and showed me some break areas....listen to this, they provide free soda of every kind in these break areas, every kind of herbal tea, coffee, milk, coco of every flavors, sugar free, low sugar, splenda, they also have this movie style popcorn maker with fresh popcorn in the afternoon! So after I got settled at my desk which sits right next to a huge window with a great view, I was given a tour of the campus, which might I add is beautiful! There are amazing walking and running trails covering the grounds. There are ponds inbetween the trails and the buildings... little walking bridges connecting the walking paths, huge trees covering the grounds. The outside landscaping just beautiful! Its like they plopped the buildings (4 buildings in total) in the middle of the forest. There is a building called "The commons" which has the cafeteria, the gym, and other amenities including: a few pool tables, a fuse ball, a big screen tv with couches, a ping pong table, and a saloon to get your hair cut and colored. There is a huge outside eating area with picnic tables and umbrellas that sit along side a pond with a fountain that is surrounded by green trees and beautiful landscaping. Its just unreal. Then on top of that there is a great gym in this common area. It has all the weights you would need, 6-8 treadmills, elliptical, bikes, all the cardio stuff, tvs, etc. balls mats... a full sized basket ball quart...they also offer DAILY AEROBIC classes! And my manager also told me to feel free to go to whatever classes I'd like whenever. There is a daily schedule that offers Cardio, yoga, Pilate's, weight training...ect...the commons has a locker room, including hairdryers, Sana, and a jacuzzi! And to top it all off, if you would like they provide you with free personal training sessions for as long or as little as you'd like. UH HELLO IS THIS WORK? YES IT IS AND I WORK HERE! I can not believe it! Its just unreal! So needless to say I am LOVING, absolutely loving my new job! My schedule has changed it bit which is still taking a bit of getting used to, but its still great. We sleep in a bit longer than before until 4:45 then I leave at 5:00 it takes me about 25 minutes to get here..(which is about the same commute we had at freightliner)then I work out shower and get ready in the locker room (I'm the only person at the gym and in the locker room..most people don't get to work here until 8:30-10:00 its weird) but I start around 7:00 and work until 4:00 that way I am home by 4:20-4:30. I'm used to being finished with work by 2:30-3:30 but honestly, you can not beat all of this. I could not ask for anything more! We really had our prayers answered. Heavenly father ALWAYS knows what he is doing and what is best for us.....its just seeing through the trial or the hard time to get to the good time that is so hard. Dave told me that leaving Freightliner would be a blessing and something really good would come of it. I was so upset and caught up in the thought of us not working together and not being able to spend the extra time together. We have seen so many blessings come through me leaving freightliner...way to many to list. Me finding this job is just the icing on the cake! I feel so blessed to have found this job and this company! I actually get excited to go to work! So there you have it! I actually love my job! I never thought I would or could say that! What a change!
http://natalieanddaveshaw.blogspot.com/2008/03/devil.html
(check out this post from 7 months back)

Weekend in Bend

2008-09-09T21:21:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Dave and I headed down to Central Oregon to a little spot called Bend. Population 75,000. It's very well know to Oregonians, and we found it to be a wonderful place to visit! Our weekend get away was kinda a last moment thing although we have been wanting to do it for quite a while now... so we are really glad we were spontaneously spontaneous because we had a blast! So, Friday afternoon Dave met me at work..(I got a new job, which is a whole other post in itself..I LOVE IT) we drove 3 1/2 hours south eastish to Bend. We stopped in a po-dunk town and had dinner at a little ma and pa restaurant that ended up being really great! When we arrived in Bend at the Eco lodge (high rollers)that we originally booked for $64 a night we were informed that our online reservation was booked as a "smoking" room and they were all sold out of their non-smoking rooms...lucky for us on the drive in we saw that the Sugarloaf Mountain Motel was $54 a night, had free wifi, and had vacancy! So with little hesitation, we checked in, got settled and headed the next store Sonic Drive Inn for shakes...mmm mmm good!

The next morning I got up and went on a run and explored the beautiful town. There was a mountain with a gorgeous golf course and huge homes across from our hotel. So I around an explored the area and ended up running to what seemed like the tippy top of the mountian and found an amazing view that looked out over the entire city/town. It was so fun to run around and explore the area and see the beautiful homes and landscaping...I found cool trails and golf courses and even met some nice people that were running as well.. it was really fun! I came back and we got ready for the days adventure. We headed up to Sun River which is a huge resort about 30 minutes outside of Bend. We planned a bike riding tour called the Paulina Plunge. We got on a bus with a group of about 20 and headed up the mountain where we would start our adventure!

This bike tour had us ride over six miles down a winding forest trail on mountain bikes, we would then stop and hike for a bit into huge waterfall where we would swim around and play in the falls. There were even natural slides that these falls created that we slid down...it was so fun!

We swam in the natural pools, and jumped off rocks into the deep cold water. Some of the water was a lot colder than others, but lucky for us it was warm out side so we warmed up pretty fast. There were a total of six falls.

We would ride for a mile or so, set our bikes down, hike in, find the fall, play around, hike back out, ride again 1-2 miles....hike again, swim around....etc. It was a riot! Sometimes we were going really fast down hill, and other times it was slow and steady.

The views were amazing! Mt. Bachelor was huge and seemed so close, the weather was really warm too... 80-85, it was just lovely!

In the middle of the day we hiked to a beautiful fall and had a picnic lunch.

We ended at the bottom of the mountain where the bus took us back to our car. What a fun day! It was amazing! We loved it! If you ever go to Bend we highly recommend this tour (Paulina Plunge)!
They used the ash from a burnt tree to paint tribal symbols on our faces

That night we went downtown and ate at the Deschutes Brewery...YUM oh it was good! We also went to a old fashion candy shop got waffle cones with cookies and cream ice cream...k I must stop thinking about it or I'll want one right now and its 7:30 in the morning! The next day we woke up really early and went on to a trail called the "Upper Deschutes River Trail". It was beautiful. The trail ran right along the bed of the river.

We walked about 2 or 3 miles right along the river bed. The river was running pretty fast but it was so quite and still. You could not hear it moving at all, it was really neat. After we walked for a while we got to a part of the trail where you could see fields and fields of lava formations in the distance that stretched for miles, it was really neat. The surroundings were just beautiful.

Our camera started to die...so I did not take too many pictures! After the river trail we did one last hike before heading home...it was called Tumalo Mt. The trail started us out at 5800 ft elevation and ended an hour later at 8200 ft so its a pretty big increase, and being that we're used to exercising at 300 ft...we were out of breath to say the least! It was a tough hike..and all up hill, our legs and butts were burning the entire hour.

(Bend is high desert, a lot like Utah, so these mountains were very similar to the Utah mountains, much different than the mountains we have started to get used to in Portland.)After about 20 minutes, the view was amazing. By the time we reached the top, we were speechless. You could see for as far as you can imagine in all directions...we were at the top of the top. Mt. Bachelor was so close you felt like you could touch it. Go figure my camera was dead. But we did get it all on video camera and took some pics with that camera, so hopefully I can figure out how to put those ones on here. To say the least the view was incredible and the burning of the butt and intense work to make it to the top was SO worth it! There were huge mountains and volcanoes surrounding us on all sides and it was incredible. The wind was blowing really hard and it was really cold so we stayed as long as we could to take it all in, and then we booked it down the mountain. We ended up making to it down in 28 minutes! It was an AMAZING HIKE! On our way home we stopped in Sisters, OR and ate at a yummy brewery (what is it about breweries that make their food so incredibly good?)We looked around at the cute shops, got a treat at the bakery and then headed on home. The scenery on the way home just blew my mind. Detroit lake....wow! Talk about amazing. Its picture perfect! How is it that there are so many beautiful places here in Oregon? I am sure there are places upon places that I don't even know about that are just unbelievable! I am now adding Bend to my list of favorites! Needless to say, we had an incredible time. What a fun place to visit. It was beautiful. There is so much to do, so much to see, we really did not have enough time! We hope to go back very very soon!

Hero's

2008-09-04T09:11:00.000-07:00

Dave and I have started watching the Hero's serious and WE LOVE THEM. They are so entertaining and action packed. The show is about a special group of people who have a different variety of special abilities or powers. Some of these people use their powers for good, and few use them for bad. Most of them are trying to figure out how they got these powers and what their purpose is. They begin to wonder if they are all connected? Some of then begin to realize these powers may be used to "save the world". This is at least what I have gathered from watching so far.... and don't worry I have not given too much away! We have watched all of season one and are almost through season two. They are so action packed! I find myself thinking about the show and its characters throughout the entire day. I wonder what each new episode will hold and how everything will unfold. And this isn't a new habit I picked up with theHero's series (spending lost of time thinking about TV shows I am currently into). I was telling a friend last night that as I was getting ready the other morning I said to Dave, honey....what if someone finds out that Clair?....do you think that they will have to move? or do you think that they will come up with something and they will fix the problem??...That question was then followed by a bunch of other questions that I will spare you, but they were intense and well thought out in my head the night before as I lay in bed thinking intently all about the show! Its true!!...I can't help but think about it. In the grocery store, in bed at night, while I'm driving, cooking, exercising... I think about these people, their life, their powers, their next move, what I'd do if I were them, for all I care and know...their real, its real, its not fiction, and I'm living it, the series that I'm watching that is...needless to say, Dave and I both love the show.. I also thinking it is even more exciting to watch since we are watching them back to back with out breaks in between.

So as great as this show is and as much as I'd love to dedicate the entire post to it...this post is not intended to be about the show Hero's....(even though the first part of this ended up being really long) This post is dedicated to my personal hero...I like to call him little honey, but his real name is Dave.
Since watching the show Hero's I have confirmed my suspicion that my husband, my little honey... (Dave), has the exact same special abilities and powers as these fictional characters in the Hero's series. I'm not even kidding!! These characteristics are so incredibly similar to the characters in the show it is uncanny. Now you might be asking yourself "is she serious?" Is Dave really a hero?? Does he really have super powers? Great question!! The answer is a big fat YES!....and just because you asked, I'll prove it to you! I'll tell you a bit about each character and their abilities and then I'll tell you about Dave's. I'll also tell you how Dave has used his "powers" and "abilities" in our life in the exact same ways as these characters and show you how he has literally "saved the world" by doing so.....well, my world that is.

If you have seen the show, you will be familiar with the characters and their abilities and that I am about to list. If you have not seen the show, follow along and you will do just fine. (ps..if you plan on watching the show and do not want to know about the abilities of these characters DO NOT READ ON)

*****DISCLAIMER*****
Before I begin, I want to make sure it's understood by all, that I'm not trying to brag, boast, or do anything of that nature. This is all coming from a wife that is completely greatful, thankful, and madly in love with her husband. I am dedicating this post to Dave in a humorous fun way because how much I love him, and because of how blessed I feel to be married to such a wonderful man. He has done some HUGE sacrificing for me lately and I want to make a special post for him, something kinda dorky but sweet. So I hop to share this with him, and with those who care to read it. I also want to have it for my own personal journal keeping on my blog in the future! So please keep that in mind as you read on! I can't help that I love him OK!??

Molly
Molly's ability allows her to locate anyone no matter where they are at anytime. All she needs is a map and a push pin and then she is able to locate the exact location of the person. All she has to do is close her eyes and think about them.
I know Dave and I were soul mates. I know we knew each other in heaven and were separated when we were sent to earth. I am positive that once he was ready to find a wife he used this ability that he has to locate me, his future wife. Once he was baptized and was ready to find his me, he got a map, a push pin, closed his eyes and stuck the pin directly over Provo, Utah. That's right! He used this power to locate his eternal companion. ME!! There's way more to this power than that, but I'll leave the details out for time sake.

The Haitian:
The Haitian can erases specific thoughts and memories for a specific amount of time or forever. He can also make it so other people who have abilities can not use their abilities when he is around.
Before I met Dave, I was always very comfortable on first dates. I didn't really get nervous or have a hard time when meeting new guys. It was easy for me to carry on conversation and be myself. That is until the day I met Dave for the first time. He decided to use this ability on me to erase my memory. I could NOT REMEMBER MY NAME, I felt so confused, flustered, I felt butterflies, nervous, embarrassed, feelings I had never felt before! I sat there in augh as I could felt confused in more than one way. I didn't remember where I parked, how I had even gotten where I was, or who I even was. It was like someone had taken me very breath away! Luckily, he was able to give my memory back and I remembered where I parked, I remembered my name, and I got back to my regular self again! That was the one and only day that I literally lost my words, thoughts, and memory in front of a guy...and I that is when I knew he was special...I just didn't realize at that time how special!

Isach Mendez:
Isach paints pictures of the future that end up coming true.
One rainy Seattle night after only spending 5 days together, he decided to share another one of his abilities with me. He whispered the future into my ear. He told me that he knew I was going to be his wife and that we would be married one day. Eight months later his "painting of the future" was fulfilled.

Elle:
Her body is full of Electricity. This girl can shoot electricity from her hands and shock anyone she comes in contact with.
Before Dave and I kissed for the first time he actually sent and electrical spark from his lips to mine which pulled me into him...it freaked me out a bit and hurt, but after the initial shock, it was amazing! Wow, what a powerful kiss! The electricity was so powerful! Talk about electrifying!

Clair Bennett:
Clair can heal herself. No matter what happens to her, her body will automatically heal itself. She can never die.
I have asked myself if I could choose one ability would this be the ability I would choose to have? Although Dave can heal himself, he is so selfless and instead has been so patient with me and has used his ability to heal me. He has healed my heart, soul, and healed my life and who I used to be. I think back about who I was before I met him and I don't really love everything about who I was. I was still me....but I was not the me that I know I could have been. Dave has freed me from any pain, insecurities, and sorrow that I ever knew. He has helped me take on the things that I pushed aside in the past. Things that I did not stand up to, things I procrastinated and those things were the very things that stopped my personal progression both spiritual and temporally. He has helped me face many obstacles and over come them...He has help led me become closer to the person I have always wanted but never could quite be. He continues to heal me every second of every day. I am so thankful to him and his continual healing and help in my progression. This gift has healed me in more ways than I ever dreamed or imagined possible.

Nikki Sanders:
Multiple Personality Disorder
If you've watched the show, you'd think this is an horrible ability and nothing you'd ever want. And for the most part I agree. But lucky for Dave, his multiple personality disorder is a positive thing. He is a computer geek, a spiritual giant, a math matitian, an inventor, a dork, he's funny, sweet, kind, gentle, fun to be around, incredibly good at making people feel comfortable, he's likable, understanding, hardworking, honest, forgiving, the list of his personalities goes on and on, is just too long to list....this ability is one of my very favorites. He is so charismatic. It's fun when we are around different groups of people because they think they know him so well, but really its hard to get to know Dave because he really is so different around so many different people. You many think he is shy. You may think he is really out going. You may think he is a computer dork. You may think he is a Genius. How well do you really know him?? And which Dave do you really know? It's when you start seeing more than a few of these sides that you know he feels comfortable around you!!

D.L. Sanders:
D.L. can walk through walls. Nothing stands in his way. He is invicialbe.
This may sound far fetched but ask anyone in my family and they will vouch for Dave on this one. It's true Dave can walk through walls. ANYTIME Dave runs into a wall, something that seems to hard to overcome, he ALWAYS finds a way to over come it. Whether it be work, home, or personal. His ability allows his to walk through the wall and solve the problem. The other day my mom called me and said "Nat, I had this problem and I was really working hard to solve it and just as I was getting ready to give up I thought about Dave...and I thought, NO! I can't give up..think about Dave, what would he do..there is always a solution..there is always away around it...so I worked harder, and I did some other things and eventually I came up with a solution!" ha ha I laughed! It was cute...I obviously couldn't tell her that Dave has this special ability and that is how he is always able to come up with a solution, but I'm sure glad it gave her hope and helped her not give up! Truth is Dave ALWAYS has a solution I have no idea how its possible to solve a problem every time, but it is. So if you ever come to a problem you can't solve, no matter what it is...Dave is always on call! Its amazing. Truly a gift.

Micha Sanders:
Micha can control anything that has to do with computers and technology. He can make them do whatever he wants.
I really envy this ability. Dave has the power to do any and everything with all computers. He can fix them, he taught himself how to write code(we will contribute that to the ability), analyze the code, wiz at all the programs, graphic designer, knows all the technical lingo, and then he can do any and everything with them. That's right...he can control computers. I am sure lucky to have him, because all I can do is use a computer.

Monica Sanders:
Monica has perfect muscle memory. She can do any and everything she sees, learns, hears. I always said that I would have to marry someone that knew as much as my dad and I lucked out on that one! Dave's copy cat ability allows him to do any and everything. He is annoyingly talented. Whether is sing perfectly...play the guitar. Fix my computer, change the oil in my car, put together the new dresser, fix the sink, tile the floor, cook me dinner, teach me to iron, set up the Internet, oil paint perfectly on his first try, decorate the house, pick out a cute outfit for me better than I can...you name it he can do it. It is kinda disgusting sometimes, but I have to remind myself that its a super human ability and if I had one I could do all of those things too, and that makes me feel better! Plus its so handy to have him around!

Matt Parkman:
Matt can read minds and hear peoples thoughts.
What and amazing ability! This is something that I love about Dave! When we first started dating I thought it was just a coincident that we were always on the same page. We seemed to always be thinking the same things. We wanted to do the same activities, we always agreed on the same things, but then I learned about his ability to read my mind. It kinda bugged me at first, when I learned that he had just been reading my thoughts and agreeing with everything I had been saying and thinking. I got over it though. The truth is, its quite nice. He always knows what I'm thinking. He knows what I want, when I want it. He always refills the soap dispenser, or leaves me little notes. He knows to gives me little kisses on my forehead, and that I love it when he calls me sweetheart. He knows just when to tell me he loves me or that I look cute. Its nice to know he is listening to my thoughts and doing the little things that he knows I want him to do!

Nathan Paterlli
Nathan can fly.
It didn't take me long to figure out that Dave could fly. It was obvious from the moment I met him. He was successful in all he did. Flying through his masters at Purdue with a perfect 4.0, finding the gospel, moving out west.(His Dream!) He was truly flying. He has shared this ability with me and is helping me learn to fly..but with major supervision. And let me tell you, this flying thing has give me an entire new perspective on life....the view from up here is AMAZING!! Sometimes it even feels like I'm doing it by myself. Through all of this Dave has opened my eyes to possibilities that I thought were out of my reach. He has helped me to become someone that I never thought I could be and accomplish goals and dreams I never knew I could...some of these goals I never knew I had or even wanted!Just a few examples of some goals I have had in the past that were always so hard to accomplish: I have actually become a morning person! (you may have read this in a previous post) Who would have ever thought this to even be a possibility?? I would have bet millions upon millions of dollars that this would NEVER happen! I now LOVE to exercise..again I would have bet millions that this would have never happened. I have learned to be a positive thinker and be happy all of the time, no matter what happens. Theses are just a few of the many many things that Dave's "ability" has taught me. It literally has made me feel like I can fly. Like the sky is the limit. And I am so thankful for his dedication and patience while I am learning to spread my wings! I am just a baby bird ya know!

Peter Patrelli:
Peter absorbs others special abilities and then can use their power as his own.We have not finished watching season two so I am not sure what lies ahead for Peter, but I know that his abilities are very strong and very important. My prediction is that Peter's life has a huge purpose and he will do amazing things with his abilities and his life. Many people are relying on him to "save the world" and I believe he will. (I hope I'm right!!)

Dave has so many unbelievable "abilities" and talents. I know he will continue to share these with those around him, just as he does now. I know there are people relying on him to "save the world" in his own way... one person at a time and I know he will. He has already saved my world. He has given my life meaning, purpose. He has literally changed who I am and what I want to be. He has helped me to become a person that I never knew I could be. And I am so thankful for him. He sacrifices for us and dedicates so much for me. He does so much for those around him. He serves so faithfully in his calling and loves the young mean he works with. He is such a great example to those he works with and always sharing the gospel with those around him, being a missionary everyday. I can not express to him how grateful I am for his love and his meaning in my life. Although his "abilities" may not be "super natural" they are super hero and have saved me and my life. He is my hero and I am so incredibly grateful for ever moment of our life together. Thank you honey for giving me all your patience, guidance, understanding, and love. You are my best friend. You are my HERO!

if you read this entire post..you are either, my mom, sister, or very very bored! :) thanks for tuning in!! :)

Obedience

2008-08-28T09:10:00.001-07:00

Two months ago the July issue of the ensign had an article by Elder M. Russel Ballard that talked about "Sharing the Gospel Using the Internet". This asked us as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to share our testimonies and thoughts about the gospel through the Internet. Now days we have infinite access to millions of people through emails, blogs, personal websites, etc. After reading his message I came away from feeling touched by the spirit, I felt great inspiration and motivation to share my testimony with those around me. I felt obligated to share the truth of the gospel with those around me. Elder Ballard expressed that it is our duty as church members to share our feelings and beliefs with those around us and those who we may come in contact with in any form (aka email forwards, blogs, etc) The article was wonderful. Now, obviously if you have been reading my petty blog post the past couple moths you will know that I have been posting on things such as: my new favorite cereal ...or my fabulous new shoes....or surprise, another post about how much I LOVE MY HUSBAND. The point is, I have not hearkened to the council of my leaders! I have not shared any gospel principals on my blog...I have not born my testimony... I have not expressed thoughts about the gospel, I have not discussed lessons from church that have sparked my interest. Shame on me. Thus the purpose for this post.

In July's Issue I felt the brethren asked us (ME) to try (NOT TO TRY BUT TO DO) and make an effort to do something (that something is, use the Internet as a positive tool to share the gospel) and up until this point, I have not done that. This morning as I was reading the First Presidency message in the September Ensign, I could not help but think back to what I was asked to do two months ago. I also felt a strong desire to share this message with any and everyone who wants to read it. Not only because I was asked to share my thoughts and testimony through the web, (AKA BLOG) but because it is my obligation to be obedient, (as you will find out from President Eyrings and Clarks message below) it is what heavenly father expects of me. Who am I to pick and choose the things that I will and won't do? These are errands from my father in heaven. These are direct requests from a heavenly father who has given me more than I can ever given back. Who am I and who are we to ever think twice about not doing any and EVERYTHING he asks of us? I received a mighty swift kick in the pants on this one after reading a WONDERFUL part of a talk that was given by President J. Ruben Clark, he warned us about being selective in what we will obey, he put it this way:

"The Lord has given us nothing that is useless or unnecessary. He has filled the Scriptures with the things which we should do in order that we may gain salvation, When we partake of the Sacrament we covenant to obey and keep his commandments. There are no exceptions. There are no distinctions, no differences."

President Eyring goes on to say, "President Clark taught that just as we repent of all sin, not just a single sin, we pledge to keep all the commandments. Hard as that sounds, it is uncomplicated. WE simply submit to the authority of the Savior and promise to be obedient to whatever he commands. Faith can turn our call as home teachers or visiting teachers into an errand from the lord. WE go for him, at his command."

This message truly touched me. It made me realize how truly important it is to completely OBEY our father in heaven and ALL his council...not just selective parts! This post is not to preach, it is me sharing my thoughts about something that I have a firm belief and testimony in. I have learned that obedience brings so much happiness and so many blessings. Heavenly father is so loving and so very kind. I am so thankful for a loving father in heaven who is watching over us and guiding our life, every second of every day. I am so thankful for a heavenly father who asks so very little of us, and in return gives so much. I am so grateful for my savior and for his incredible sacrifice for me. He went through unimaginable pain. He suffered He bled, and he died....all in hopes that I will make it back to his presence again some day. What an amazing gift he gave to me...and to all of us. I can not express the love and gratitude I have for both my savior and my father in heaven. I am so thankful for the knowledge I have of the plan of salvation. I am so thankful to know that I am sealed to my family and will live with my them forever, beyond the grave. I am so thankful to know that I am sealed to my husband for all eternity, that this earthly life is just our first estate and our journey together will continue far beyond our years here on this earth. I am so thankful to know that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is the one true Church. I know these are simple truths but they are the foundation and cornerstones of the gospel, and I am truly thankful for the sure knowledge of them. My life is truly blessed. To do the things I am asked of and be obedient in all things is the least I can do to repay my savior and my father in heaven for all the wonderful blessings they have bestowed upon me. Thanks for letting me share my thoughts and feelings!! I hope the message that Elder Eyring's and Clark's words will touch you the way they did me! Have a great day!! Love ya!

For more information about the LDS church or Elder Eyrings message visit the following links:
www.lds.org
www.mormon.org

ps...this invite is to any and everyone who wants to participate....regular bloggers, semi regular, once in a while bloggers, whoever... I thought it might be kinda fun to start blogging here and there about gospel topics... just a thought, a topic, and message, a quote, whatever, whenever, as little or as much as you'd like, something that we can share with each other to help keep the spirit in our life, and help lift each other up...and keep us moving in the right direction. Maybe one of us is having a bad day, maybe we need a little inspiration, maybe we are preparing a talk for the upcoming sunday, maybe we just need a little inspiration, maybe we came across something we just really want to share... maybe we just having something on our mind...if we all share something here and there with each other about the gospel, we can help strengthen each other and hopefully help strengthen others around us too! I think it can be something really great and a great way to share the gospel!! Anybody interested?? Let me know!! I'd love to hear peoples thoughts, messages, testiomonies, advice, etc... any and everything!! Let me know what you all think! :)

tagged by taggart

2008-08-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

I was tagged on this by my cute friend Corrine "taggart"...so here ya go...

4 jobs I have had:

1. Living Scriptures

2. La Weight Loss

3. First Line

4. Freightliner

4 movies I have watched more than once:

1. Saturdays warriors (about 1 million times)

2. Encino Man (squeezin the juuuuiiiiccccee..(you will know that line if you have see this show more that once)

3. What About Bob (if you have not seen this more than once, we are no longer friends)

4. Finding Neverland (this is one of my favorites)

4 Places I have lived:

1. Laie, HA

2. Sibui, Romania

3. Provo, Utah

4. Portland, OR

4 TV shows I watch:

1. Lost (religiously)

2. Hero's (just started and I LOVE IT)

3. 24 beep beep..beep beep.. those beeps were the seconds ticking. I am forever a fan of this show, even if the last season was a bit weak. I am just gonna blame the weakness of the last season on jack's (keifer's) personal trouble with alcohol...everyone deserves a second chance though right?

4. The Hills (not a consistent watcher, but I must admit to really like it when I do watch. What is it about these girls and their perfection that makes you want to keep watching? And could Heidi and Spencer be more EVIL? I hate them so bad!! Anyone Else??

4 Places I have been:

1. Romania

2. London

3. Paris

4. Italy

4 People who text me regularly:

1. Dave (but not that often)

2. Sisters (but not really now that I think about it)

3. Mom and Dad ( but only when I text first)
I must say I'm not the biggest texter, and not that many people text me either. Am I a looser, and I am just realizing it? Since Dave and I started dating my text life has gone to pot. There was a time when I used 3700 texts in one month...now I barley use 100. Oh well I could careless. I am happy as can be with my lack of texts. Feel free to shoot me a text when you read this if you feel sorry for me and the lack of my text life, you really shouldn't feel too sorry though, I have replaced my text life with the most amazing husband in the world. I realize that my blog posts remind everyone of this day in and out...I just can't help how much I love him!!

4 of my favorite foods:

1. Doughnuts

2. Peanut Butter

3. Baked Sweets...what is my problem??

4. Blueberries

5. Cheese Puffs (did it only ask to list 4?)

4 Places I would like to visit:

1. New York City

2. New Zealand

3. Fuji

4. Spain

A few Random Questions

1. How long have you been married? 1yr 3 months

2. How old is your spouse? 27

3. Who eats more? Dave. unless its something sweet!

4. Who said I love you first? Dave

5. Who sings better? Dave..he is AMAZING, he records his own songs both singing and guitar.

6. Who is smarter? Dave again...he is a an Einstein not even kidding

7. Who controls the TV remote? usually me...if not we would be watching the history channel or something to do with aliens, jets, or NASA.

8. Whose temper is worse? neither of us have tempers

9. Who does the laundry? me, but dave is always willing to help

10. Who does the dishes? me, but Dave is really good at helping when i ask.

11. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? me.

12. Who cooks dinner? me, I wish I was a better cook though

13. Who is more stubborn? neither one of us

14. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? prob me...because I am usually the one who is wrong...darn it!

15. Whose parents do you see the most? mine. Utah is closer than Illinois.

16. Who has more siblings? me 5 to 1

17. Who wears the pants in the family? both the same...diff pants for different situations :)

thanks for reading...and tag your it... this was a fun one....take the time and do it! come on, you know you have nothing better to do!!!

Kickin It

2008-08-23T17:37:00.001-07:00

Dave bought some new puma shoes last weekend that were so cute...and yesterday while we were out, we came across a huge sale at famous footwear...so since we LOVE to be twiners(ha, ok maybe its just me) but anyhow...I had no choice but to buy the girl version of his shoes. I also couldn't help but take a picture of our twiner kicks! Thanks for letting me copy you honey! You're so cool!

More Pics

2008-08-20T07:29:00.000-07:00

I just got a CD in the mail from my parents with all the pictures that they took while they were here! Most of the pics are the same ones I had on my camera...but here are a few new ones!

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