Who has the time anymore...?

You know how, like oh, a month ago I made that shirt (well decorated it)? And I had supplies for another one? Yeah...I barely did that today.

That....

Became this...

Minus the zebra fabric. I'm afraid it was a bit too much for me. But seriously, who has spare time that wants to do my DIY projects for me? I suppose that's why a lot of people don't like DIY projects: NO TIME. Between work, school, and homework I barely have time to breathe! Is anybody else feeling this way? I am certainly looking forward to Thanksgiving break even though its a month away.

Speaking of Zebra fabric though, I don't think I have ever in my whole life seen more animal print clad ladies then I did at Capitol Theater Saturday night (slightly hypocritical seeing as I wore my cheetah cardigan-not on purpose though).

 
My parents took me to the second-to-last showing of the Lion King, which was AMAZING! The costumes were just mind boggling, and the singing/music was so entertaining! 

I really wish Jer had come to sing along to the Disney songs. You see, my wonderful well meaning husband tricked me into thinking he was going to be out of town this weekend, so that he could surprise me by not being out of town. Well, my loving, well meaning parents didn't want to leave me sitting alone on a Saturday night, so they bought me a ticket to Lion King RIGHT before Jer surprised me by not being out of town. But by that time, the ticket had already been bought, and the show was (according to the box office) sold out. So my sweet husband didn't come, which is unfortunate because I think he really would have loved it!


Anyways, overall a good and productive weekend that my husband didn't go away for, which is always a plus! Now back to the crazy work/school/homework/not enough time in the day week. Why does it have to be Monday? WHY?!

.luckiest girl alive.

I have no doubt that I have THE most AMAZING man ever! He is the best husband to me, and even without me telling him I'm stressed and kind of down he just knows! And even better yet, he knows exactly how to make a bad week so so so much better.

This is how I know...

He delivered these to my work, along with my favorite food Pineapple Chicken Curry from Spicy Thai (which I've been craving of late). 

What an absolutely amazing man I have in my life to take care of me. 

He totally had me duped too. I thought he was out in St. Louis driving back hunting gear for general elk season. I was completely not looking forward to spending this weekend alone. I was actually kind of sulking that I got left alone while he went on an adventure. 

But then he wasn't out of the state, he was at my work, with flowers and food. He certainly knows how to make me happy very very quickly. Life is good, this weekend is going to be amazing, and I get to spend some quality time with my hubby. 

I seriously am. the. luckiest. girl. alive.

{project:finish the kitchen}

So we've had this huge hole in our kitchen between the fridge and our bookcase. So I have been trying SO hard to figure out what to do to make it look better. A couple weeks ago my parents brought down one of their old couches for us to have. Well then we had this problem of the huge empty space of the wall above it...so I came up with this

To save money, I cut and matted the picture all by myself.

This is the finished wall part of project:finish the kitchen. Lookin' good huh?!

The rest of it should be done hopefully by next week! Pictures to come.

{Grateful for Friends and Fall Colors}

Because my husband loves fall and the colors, and raved about them when he got home from Heber, and partly because I was inspired by NieNie with her back to school/fall drives, I thought it would be a lot of fun to go check out the colors.

Jackson and Brianne (our partners in crime) came with us on the windy Alpine loop through Sundance. Apparently we weren't the only ones inspired because the road was PACKED with people checking out the colors and getting fresh air. We had brought a picnic thank goodness, so when we reached the summit we decided to pull over to try and relieve our nausea from the car+windy roads. That really helped, and so on the way down I finally pulled out the camera in attempts of some pictures...

(Sooooo gorgeous right?! I love fall!)

Anyhoo so as we're going down the canyon I thought it'd be nice to have pictures of more than just nature. Like people+nature. Great idea right? So I say 'Hey Jackson, stick your head out the window' (not the best way to state it huh?) 

And so he did this...haha yep! That's Jackson! 

We love hanging out with these guys, and are very grateful to have another married couple we're friends with down here so we can double and do interesting things to relieve stress from work+school.  Thanks for a fun Sunday guys!

Our State Fair

After a week of trying to figure out a time to coordinate our schedules, and a lot of whining (from me, and Jared's momma) we were able to get to the state fair Saturday night! It was absolutely packed because it was the last Saturday for the fair, but it was absolutely worth it.

One of the most important things to do at the fair, is EAT the odd things you find. No, I'm not talking litter from the sidewalk (grosssss). I'm talking about the wonderful fried oreos, deep fried pickles (a fair tradition), and corn dogs. What do all of these things have in common? Yep, grease. lots of it too. I've been exercising my self control all week to allow for times like last night. We're certainly feeling it today, but it was well worth it. After all the fair only happens once a year!

My cowboy is holding a fried green pickle, MMM!

Us next to the famous annual butter cow creation

Riding the big yellow slide. That's right, this year I BEAT Jared by getting to the bottom first! (that's what happens when you trash talk honey)

Then we went to check out the livestock, and I stood next to this HUGE bull. I didn't want to get much closer in case I spooked the animal and it would spear me with its horns (those things were BIG even if the picture doesn't show it, trust me. GI-NORMOUS).

All in all we had a ton of fun, and it was a wonderful summer night for a visit to the fair. Thanks to Ashley and Mom-in-law for coming along. Its so much more fun with a group! I certainly wouldn't have changed anything about it!

{three months of bliss}

Dedicated To Jared (who will look back on this one day and laugh with me about our newlywed phase)     
 
     It's absolutely crazy to me that we have been married for three months. It certainly does not feel like it! I am so grateful and lucky to have you for my husband. You are not only a support for me, but are quite positively my other half who keeps me with it when I don't quite have it.

Ten of the latest reasons why I love you

#1. I love having you cuddle with me in the morning even though I'm grumpy when I first wake up. It helps me smile later on in the day, when I'm missing you. 

#2. I love that you can go grocery shopping with a list I've made and know what I mean when I say "the red stuff for pasta". 

#3. I absolutely love that you keep me sensible and are my 'Jiminy Cricket' by helping me see that we really need Drano for our bathroom sink, and not flowers for the apartment. 

#4. I love brushing my teeth next to you when we're getting ready for bed. 

#5. And even though I complain, I like being the one to shut off the lights and climb into bed last. 

#6. I love how sometimes you're already asleep when I get home from work because then I get to snuggle up to you before I fall asleep. 

#7. I love that you kiss me goodbye in the morning before you go to school.

#8. And I love even more that you put love notes in my dinner that you bring to work for me. 

#9. I love that you do the dishes for me when I don't have time, or really really really don't want to do the dishes. 

And #10. I love that you will cancel plans with others so we can have a much needed one on one date.

I have loved these past three months with you, and I know I am going to love the rest of forever with you. I'm grateful we're on this journey together, even when we barely see each other between work, school, and homework. Please drive home safe from work, I'll be up waiting.

 

(our honeymoon, month 1)

(new apt. month 2)

 

(start of school, month 3)

.Secret Pleasures.

So I am obsessed with these shoes. For those that don't know, I work at a nursing home doing eight hour shifts and I'm on my feet constantly...so good comfy shoes are vital. I had a pair of adidas that were doing just great until recently. Megan (who I work with) suggested these...

She wears her own pair every day she works and says her feet never hurt at all...and she works two eights back to back=16 HOURS!

Has she sold me? My husband would say she has, but I just can't bring myself to cough up the price. Especially now that school's started and I've cut back on hours....but oh do I want them. I found some on a small sale for the month of September, but I'm still going to shop around. Because, hey, when you get married you gotta be thrifty. Particularly if you want to do something other than work, like having time to see your spouse and actually doing fun things with them.

Another secret item that I absolutely LOVE and need to get more of is my mascara. I'm more than happy to splurge on this because its completely and totally worth it. The mascara I use is Clinique High Impact Mascara (the green bottle). If you are sensitive to mascara or yours' irritates your eyes, try this stuff. Any mascara Clinique makes is extremely long wearing, doesn't flake, and doesn't contain some of the harsh chemicals like an alcohol base that some of the cheapie mascaras use. Its esp. good for me because the cheapie mascaras (and any other mascara for that matter) make my eyes itch and red and dry, and just plain miserable, while this doesn't! It doesn't ever clump for me, and volumizes your eye-lashes so well, only one layer is necessary so you waste less product for better results!!!

If you want to check it out, go here.

And then most importantly, my last and best secret pleasure (not in a weird way) is my mother. She is so calm and reassuring for me all the time. I love talking to her so I can gab about my latest DIY project, or share my concerns and worries for school, or about getting used to newlywed life. Talking to her also helps me unwind, and more than once has she reminded me when I presented her with my worries, who is really in control of my life and that I should also be doing all I can spiritually as well as academically.

She helps me de-stress, calm down when something has me mad, and helps me see the sense (or most of the time nonsense) in what I am saying. I absolutely love her and miss her a lot now that I'm married, even though we both joked about being glad to be away from each other after such serious wedding planning. I miss her terribly now I'm down here in Utah County, and I hope she comes down more often *hint hint*. I hope to spend more time with her, and doing fun things now that I'm officially out in the world as an adult. Oh and P.S. I am EXTREMELY grateful for her kindness to bring down the couch my parents said we could have. We're very grateful to have someplace besides the kitchen table to sit in our apt. now.

(please ignore the stuff that's already collected on it, we get our new couch cover on the weekend!)

"Those who can't remember the past are doomed to repeat it." Winston Churchill

For those of you who forgot, today is 9/11. I myself forgot except for some announcements on the radio a couple days ago. It was nine years ago the hijacked planes crashed into the world trade centers, and the pentagon. I'm sure you're all like "yeah, yeah we KNOW". I just wanted to remind you about that day. I personally remember that day vividly. I remember what I was wearing, my physical state when I found out, exactly what people said to me when it happened, the visuals on the TV. I'm sure all
who were at least in elementary school and older remember and know how they were feeling.

I know those memories for me weren't the best, but it has definitely shaped our country and the citizen I want to be. For those that were not old enough to remember what happened that day, they don't know first hand what they would have felt or what happened; but they should be informed and thoughtful about it.

When I was out running errands just a couple days ago I heard two teens discussing 9/11 and what they knew of it. They couldn't have been older then 14 or 15, but they clearly didn't understand and even went so far as to call it a hoax. Yes, I know this could have just been some immature teens speaking out to impress their friends, but maybe it wasn't. It just makes me question if we are doing an appropriate job in informing those who didn't experience it, about the real facts in a personal and private manner. Only if they're old enough and mature enough of course, but it should be done or they're going to form incorrect opinions about 9/11. If we want our country to move forward and change, we need to make sure that we are educating our children and those who follow after us to know where we've been, and what we've endured.

Today also reminds me to be extremely grateful for the service men, in and out of country that currently are or have served. I certainly could not do it, I just don't have the stamina. That makes me even more grateful for those that are sacrificing their time and are providing our country and families their service. I am very grateful that so many of our men are coming home, just so they can be home and with their families. I know the price they pay emotionally and physically is very high, and it makes their sacrifice even more precious.

I am extremely grateful that no disasters such as 9/11 have repeated themselves recently, and hope and pray it will be a very long time until anything like it happens again.

I am also very very extremely grateful for life, {love,} freedom, and the pursuit of happiness. Have a good 9/11 weekend.

{Holly Homemaker}

This past weekend was absolutely heaven to get an extra day off from work and school, and although I didn't spend it with my honey, we both had tons of fun. However, I look back and feel like I spent it being a holly homemaker, which was not my intent!

First of all Sunday was spent relaxing, watching church movies, and I....BAKED! This is the first time in weeks I have done this, and I know my neighbors and husband appreciated the braided bread they got to enjoy. Well at least they said they did...

*If you want to know how to make this go here*

And Jer made some yummy italian salad's as he called them. 

(I had to insert this just to prove that Jer is the creative cook/chef in our family, while I am the one who resorts to frozen dinners)

Then while Jer went fishing all day at Duck Fork for Labor day,

I madly spent the day with my parents searching everywhere from PC, to Layton for something amazingly beautiful and eye-poppingly colorful- but not costly- for our kitchen. It's been driving me nuts that its so dull and blah, so I wanted something to bring some color to the room. I finally found these flowers at Tai Pan (love that place), and this sea blue vase at Ikea for....$1 (also love that place!)

Doesn't it make it look sooo much more colorful? Guess you'll have to come see it for yourself! There are more plans in the works before we can have a big family get together to let them see our apt. so it'll be a while. I dunno why its taking us so long to completely finish decorating our apartment, but it is!

So here's to us finally finishing it sometime soon!

And as my upstairs neighbor reminds me...there's nothing wrong with being a holly homemaker (:

.it's started.

So it's official, our first football season as husband and wife starts in exactly four or five hours with the kick off of the U's season opener against Pitt.

My husband is at the game with a friend, and I stayed home because I couldn't miss class. I'm glad he got this break from school and homework to destress, even though that means he wasn't home last night (he went to SLC yesterday for a work meeting, and there was no point in driving back down before the game).

I miss him and hope he has fun, even though I don't support the U. I'm sure I'll hear all about it when he gets back tonight. So for his sake, Go Utes! (this will be one of the few times you ever hear that from me)

{School}

Nothing new has really happened in the past couple days except Jer went back to school last week, and I went back at the beginning of this week. I completely and totally meant to get 'first day of school pictures' but forgot so I apologize! If it helps you to imagine we both have 8 AM classes on MWF so neither of us looked amazing on our first day of school. (:

I do have a fun report for you and that is; to my complete and utter joy my sociology professor required us to read one of our assigned books in exactly four days. This book consisted of 285 pages and was actually a very good read except for the fact that I am a full time student, and working almost full time. So I was up late reading, and trying to read it in my breaks between classes, which isn't my favorite way to read a book.

HOWEVER even though I wasn't happy about the assignment I turned out loving the read, and thought I'd share it with all of you. The book is 'Outliers, The Story of Success' by Malcolm Gladwell. It was a very good book, especially to read at the beginning of a new semester to help you  set high goals because hardwork, dedication, and luck are what make people extraordinary (according to the book). I thoroughly enjoyed it, and if you need a great motivational book I HIGHLY suggest it.

But seriously. If you're looking for a good read and (unlike me) aren't in school and have time on your hands-READ IT! I loved it and I truthfully think you will too.

P.S. don't you love the fact that its only 70 outside now instead of 107 billion degrees? yes me too.

P.P.S. the smell of newly unwrapped paper and sharpened pencils is intoxicating.....yes my husband thinks I'm nuts...and no, he knew that before we got married. (: