Dig that hole a little deeper

Dan and I were looking at pictures of friends that have gotten married in the last few years. I'm not proud of this moment, but I accidentally made the comment that a few looked like they had put on a few pounds.
After all, who doesn't after you get married. It must be all that good home cooking.

Anyway, back to the story, so I asked Dan if he thought I looked chubbier since we've gotten married and this was his response:
Well...(pause)

I mean I see you everyday so I don't know!
Oh crap I just keep digging the hole...there's no way to fix this one.

Hahahahaha oh my goodness. So freaking funny. Like I'm still laughing about it.

PS. School has started, almost done with the first week, and we're still surviving. We have a bed, dresser, and 2 night stands, and we're almost all the way unpacked (thanks to Dan--I've pretty much jumped ship as far as the unpacking extravaganza is concerned. Blame it on nursing school). We love love love our new little home, our ward, and the area we're living it. It could not have worked out better. I might, dare I say, just kind of love it here...and that's saying something, especially for Utah.

Be HAPPY. Be.

There's no greater misery than to recall the time when we were happy. -Dante

I was talking to my sister today, and she read me this quote. It got me thinking. A lot.
For her, she was thinking on the side of making bad choices/addictions/etc, that kind of stuff that doesn't make you happy, and actually (in my opinion) takes you to quite the opposite end...misery.

For me, the thought immediately came to my mind of my marriage, and my relationship with Dan. And when I was thinking about that, I realized that looking back on the times where we weren't the happiest (mind you, these are brief instances) that it makes me sad, and at the risk of sounding cheesy, it breaks my heart. It literally aches when I think about it.

In light of this thought, I made a decision that I am going to be happy. Just be happy. HAPPY.

I don't want to look back on my life in misery because I didn't make the choice right NOW to be happy.
I don't want to be miserable when I think back on the life I've lived.

I WANT to be HAPPY.
I WANT to look back and remember that we LAUGHED. A lot.
I WANT to reflect on my life and SMILE because it's been a good life.
I WANT to remember that Dan and I LOVE each other. And that it's a FOREVER love.

I want to be happy, and to remember that we are happy TOGETHER. FOREVER&EVER.

He knows me

A couple of days ago, well more like the last week, has felt like climbing the mountain of trials and challenges. I won't bore you with the details, but it had just been a rough couple of days. So I remembered that I hadn't read my scriptures and decided that I really needed to read them. It had been one of those days where I just didn't quite know how we would make it through this one. Not going to lie, I felt like, in that moment, that my Heavenly Father had forgotten about me a little bit, and I felt myself losing a little bit of faith. (I was pretty emotional at the time...hence the irrational thoughts/feelings).
I came across this scripture while I was reading:

But that ye have patience, and bear with all those

afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day

rest from all your afflictions.

-Alma 34:41

I have heard of people having the experiences where they flip open the scriptures and the answer to their challenge/question/trial, but I've never had that happen to me. This time it did. And I was extremely grateful for it.

It reminded me more than anything to have patience, and more importantly, hope. That one day all this will be over, and one day I will find eternal rest and peace.

To make it that much better, when one door closed, the window opened, and we're going to make it.

And to make it THAT much more better (yes...more better) I have this guy by my side each and every day to help me through anything that comes our way.
I know that with him, we can get through anything.
There's no one else I'd rather have by my side than him, and I know my Heavenly Father knew that I would need him.
I still say that I'm so grateful to this day that He and I agreed on him.

 5.13.11: Best decision I ever made.

TWO ONE

Yesterday was birthday number TWENTY ONE.
Old much? Not really.
Recap:
Breakfast/brunch at the Original Pancake House.
Work.
That's about all I got in yesterday.

So I worked until about 9/930 when all the salesman were finished selling, and as each of them texted me their futures and that they were done, I got a "Happy Birthday" of some sorts with it. It definitely made me smile, and made working on my birthday that much better. And, since I turned 21 and can legally buy alcohol, there were a few of the salesman making comments about shots.
One said he owed me a shot of REAL Mexican tequila.
I politely rainchecked.
One said I had to do Jager bombs, or no dice.
To this I replied that between the bombs and tequila, it looked like I'd be pretty hammered in the morning.
One said he would even buy me my first round.

The best part was, all of these salesmen are LDS, so even though I knew the shots/bombs/tequila was all a joke, it was still quite funny.

Dan picked me up, and we went home and made dinner.
Well he made dinner. It was delicious.
Pork Chops. Yum!

But before dinner, when we walked into the apartment, he said he had a surprise for me. Well...it was these beauties...

Yepp, he knows me all too well. My heart just melts for sunflowers!
So back to dinner, he had pork chops and a salad for dinner. It was so exciting to have everything all done up and pretty for it.

And he had croissant rolls baking in the oven to go with it! Soooo yummy!!

And dinner was completed with my favorite...RED VELVET CAKE!
Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture with the baked/frosted cake. So the mixings will have to do.

To make things EVEN better, Jen and Braxton came by, and brought me the sweetest treat ever! Seriously, these were the best cupcakes I've EVER had. EVER. They were chocolate (already a winner) with chocolate frosting and strawberry slices (double winner) with cheesecake in the middle. SCORE!!!

It was the best birthday yet...and I told Dan that this was quite the accomplishment because my mom through me a surprise party for my 16th, and I was totally shocked. So major accomplishment/props to him.

Birthday picture. Love him.

And just because I love his face SOOOO much...I want to remember this face forever.

Thank you for making my birthday so special. I love you!!

It's mah berfday

BIRTHDAY: 21

This morning was perfect. Dan didn't go to correlation and just stayed in bed with me. Then COERCED me to get up so we could go get brunch. So maybe coerced is a little harsh. He didn't have to try too hard. Rylee called me around 8 this morning and I probably sounded half dead. Haha. But it was sweet of her to call me and tell me happy birthday. I got flooded with text messages, and facebook wall posts. This girl feels LOVED for sure. So THANK YOU!!

Day started out with the phone call from Rylee. Then Dan and I got dressed, watch some more Olympic videos, and got ready for brunch.

We went to the Original Pancake House. So. Delicious.
Seriously, the BEST. PANCAKES. EVER. EVERRRR.
Like I had 3 of them and wanted more. That good. According to the menu, they were buttermilk.
I'm going to find the recipe online and make them. So good.

Then came the photo shoot of sorts. That will come later.
And now I'm at work. Which has been slow and easy, thank goodness.
I'm definitely looking forward to birthday dinner. Dan keeps asking me what I want, and I definitely don't know.
I'm excited.
The rest will come tomorrow.

PHOTO SHOOT:

He makes this face pretty regularly.

And this one too...

 

He's so cute. I just love him.

This one is probably my ultimate fav. You have me being the bad A, and I'm just not quite sure what Dan is doing, but it's funny nonetheless.

This is the ULTIMATE fav.

He does this a lot too. Seriously reminds me of my dad when he does this. And my mom can attest...she says in half of their wedding pictures, his tongue is sticking out.

The best friend/husband/man a girl could ever ask for.

I'm the lucky one.

Sunday afternoons on the beach

Yesterday afternoon was exactly what Dan and I needed. This summer has been rough, albeit rewarding, but definitely a struggle on all fronts. It's been so busy and so go go go that honestly I can't believe I'm going back to school in 2 weeks. FLOWN by!

So yesterday after Church, we came home, ate some lunch, watched some Olympics highlights, and then we headed out. There's this lake/reservoir out in Westminster and Dan had been there for a lunch break a few weeks earlier when he was selling out there. It was so awesome becuase they ahve this little parking lot just off the main road that you can park and walk into the reservoir. Best part: you don't have to pay!!

Now I don't know about you, but swimming on Sunday was a "no-no" when I was growing up. Dan on the other hand, things were a little different. They'd go to the beach after Church...and when at the beach, you go swimming. So we compromised at wading in the water.

It was super relaxing and a BEAUTIFUL day outside. PERFECT in fact. The sand was soft and the water was somewhat warm. That (for lack of a better word) perfect water. It was the best thing for Dan and I to just have a few minutes together, and to be outside, and to relax. Just about the PERFECT remedy for a LESS THAN perfect summer.

Back to Provo in a couple weeks. I'm kind of excited about it actually. SURPRISINGLY.

I love him. FOREVER.

THE END.

BUFFALOOOOO

Last week my momma and the kiddos and I met up with the fam and went to Yellowstone. It was quite the eventful trip to say the list. I got to check off quite a few "FIRSTS" from my list.

#1. I got my first speeding ticket...well first ticket...ever. It sucked. End of story.
But the best part about the whole thing...get this. My mom had been driving the whole time. We're four hours into this drive, and I decided to drive for the next couple hours and give her a break. I pulled out of the City Market, drove not even 200 yards, and there's lights behind me. I have no clue where the cop came from...at all. The second best part about it, I didn't even see a speed limit sign, until right before I pulled off the road to get out of the way. 58 in a 40. That blows. Way to go out with a bang. And let's just say that Dan and I are even...and he's definitely driving home from Colorado.

#2. I saw a buffalo on the side of the road!! Seriously! We saw quite a few actually, and an entire herd! It was so stinking cool! Andddd...one of the best parts about the buffalo was Princess Caitlin's reaction to them...Enjoy.

#3. Elk. We saw two huge bull elks just walking along through the field. Huge racks! HUGE! Dan.Would. Have. Died. They were that close, and so beautiful! We also saw a field full of cow elk too. Definitely cool!

#4. Lions, and tigers, and BEARS! Oh my! Yes, the only thing my mom wanted to see the entire time was a bear. Me...not so much. But saw one we did. Thank goodness it was only one. It was actually quite cute, and pretty small, which is unnerving because you just know the mama bear probably wasn't far behind.

The thing that killed me about all of this is that these animals are wild. And people were walking into the fields to get closer pictures! Seriously the only thing I could think of was how stupid they are! One of the workers at the little gift shops told us that just earlier in the week, a guy had to go to the hospital because he got too close to a buffalo and it attacked him. Sucks.

The trip was awesome! Photo overload to come in a few.

A few highlights I definitely don't want to forget.
Princess Caitlin: (while admiring the buffaloes on the side of the road) Look at those balls...
    (she said this entirely straight faced, and completely serious...I don't think she quite realized what she had       said!)

Princess Caitlin: (again while admiring the buffaloes) OH MY GOSH THEIR HUGE!!!!

4 hours into our drive from Denver to the cabin we stayed at in Idaho:
Momma: Ethan, do you have your seat belt on?
Ethan: Oh darn it!

Rylee: I'm starting to think we should sing like that feral child from the zoo. Maybe the buffalo will come to us! They'll be like 'I hear the call! And the people!

Ethan: Get out of the way trees!!
We were all taking pictures as we drove through Yellowstone to get to the cabin. Ethan was taking pictures with his ipod. It was hilarious. We were dying laughing because he was so upset that the trees kept getting in the way of his pictures.

Dan told us all a joke before we left, and it's quite stupid, but really freaking funny!
What did the buffalo say as his child was leaving for school?
Bison!
See...dumb, but funny!

So the aforementioned feral child that we met at the zoo...she was singing to the lions. Like high pitched opera singing. Terrible. But whatever. So we thought it would be funny to see if we could call the buffalo. I don't remember who decided to come up with it, but we rolled down the windows and shouted: BuffalOOOOOOOOO!
We were all laughing about it the entire trip, and would have random little outbursts throughout the trips.

So after I got my ticket, I cried. Yes I'm a girl, and it was the first one. Anyway...Chandler wanted to throw her gum away, but we didn't have anything for her to put it in, so I handed her my tissue.
Arielle: It's just a tear tissue.
Rylee: No. It's a SNOT tissue.
Ethan: OHH! That's the worst kind!

AND...some personal favs from the trip.  
Caution: PHOTO DUMPAGE.

Old Faithful.

Grand Prismatic Spring.

Favorite Brother.

Upper/Lower Falls.

Elk.

Buffalo crossing the river.

Jackson Hole Arch.

Rainbow. Lower Falls.

Family. Greatest blessing ever.

Hawaiian Roller-Coaster Ride

So I'm in love love love with the movie Lilo and Stitch lately. Love. Like honestly, I want my little kiddos to be like Lilo. I think she's absolutely adorable. And I just love that she's short and little and kind of stocky (you know how little kids are sometimes). I know it's just animation, but I just love it.

Don't judge, I've been on a baby kick lately. No, I still don't want one yet, and I'm still sticking to the plan with the nursing degree and then the ninos, but I just get excited sometimes. There's a few things about it that I just can't wait for. Well I can, but I'm really anxious for you. You catch my drift.

I can't wait to see the dad come out in Dan.
I can't wait to see him down on the ground playing with them.
I can't wait to see their precious little brown eyes...because let's face it, Dan has the dominant genes.
I can't wait to see the adorable grins that I know they'll have.

Mostly...I can't wait to see what they're going to look like!
Seriously it kills me because I just want to know what kind of a combination they will be. Dan has met so many people that the husband/dad is Polynesian and the wife/mom is white, and their babies are beautiful!! But all so different. And my nephews are adorable, so if they're any indication...my babies will be beautiful!

Anyway...just some thoughts that have been bouncing around my head for the last few days. Luckily nursing school starts in a couple weeks and I'll be back to lots of medical terms bouncing around my head again.

And...I may or may not be really kind of a lot excited to move back to Utah.
WEIRD.

One day

My life is plagued by these two words.

One day I'll be done with school.
One day I'll have a "normal" quiet life.
One day I'll be a mom and have a cute little family.
One day I'll move back to Arizona.
One day [hopefully] I won't be so stressed about money.
One day I'll live close [in the same state would be nice!] to my two best friends.
One day...one day...

I kind of hate those two words because it makes me feel like I'm dissatisfied at some point with my life and I'm not.

I much more enjoy these type of "one days"

One day I'll have lots of babies that run around our home and fill it with lots of happy sounds.
One day I'll live close to my two best friends and we can walk next door to chat.
One day all of our kiddos will be friends too.
One day I'll be watching my babies fall in love and get married and have their own babies.
One day I'll be a cute little old lady sitting on a porch swing with Dan by my side.
One day I will look back on my life and smile when I think back on the great life I've had.

All these one days make me want to try that much harder to make today count. To make these moments that I'm living the ones that I want to remember.

"One day" reminds me to cherish the memories I'm making today. The moments that I spend with Dan. So that "one day" I can look back and remember these times...today.