The One Year Mark

Where do I begin? This was the best weekend we've had in a long time. Marshal got to come home on Thursday and work on a house in Cedar, Friday so we had an extra long weekend to spend together. :) We've mastered the art of dragging out a reason to celebrate and so we began Thursday night. We just went to dinner at Lupitas and were thrilled that our meals were less than $10 together! Broke college students at their finest haha. Thursday was also the last day of Maymester! I said from the beginning that the class would kick my butt but I aced it! So Friday I had big plans to make a fancy dinner at home, little did Marshal know. I got a head start on the day and left the house by about 10 but got sidetracked by a large "Weekend Sale" at Christensens and since I didn't know what to get for Marshal yet, I stopped. Of course I found nothing because I don't even like that store but when I got in my car to leave... It wouldn't start. I called Marshal freaking out and he told me what to do. I fixed my own car! Just call me, Jack of all trades. ;) But really, I was stoked. Then I went and bought wine glasses, new placemats, candles, and stuff to make for dinner and dessert. I had already planned on decorating the house before he got home so I decided to cut out a bunch of little red hearts and I wrote something I love about him on each one of them. I probably made like 50 of them and still didn't come close to covering everything I love about Marshal. Then Marshal called and asked me to run to Home Depot to get something for the house they were working on and when I took it to him, he told me he would be home in about five minutes! Haha I started freaking out. I sped home, changed into the dress he bought me, tidied up and scattered the hearts around the house. I didn't have dinner made unfortunately but it turned out better that way because we got to make it together. :) He was speechless when he opened the front door. The smile on his face stretched from ear to ear and he wouldn't let go of me. I must admit, it did fall together pretty perfectly and looked great but his reaction was what really pulled it together. He walked around the house picking up and reading each of the hearts while I started making the dessert. Just hearing him laugh a little as he read them and stop to come in the kitchen and kiss me, made it all so worth it. Once he finished reading them all, we began cooking dinner: italian baked pork chops, dressing and green beans. Not too fancy but it was delicious. For some reason, I realllllly love green beans. Gross huh? We lit the candles, poured the sparkling grape juice and had a romantic little meal at home. It was great. The dessert however was out of this world. :) It consisted of crumbled brownies layered with whipped cream and then pieces of heath bar toffee and repeated in that order. Once we ate wayyy too much of that, we got in touch with our nerdy side and watched the newest Harry Potter. Loved it! On Saturday, we went to the dollar store and picked up some sand buckets, shovels, kites and of course candy. Then we went up to the pond/lake thing on the hill and made the sweetest sand castle ever. Actually it was inspired from Harry Potter and complete with the forbidden forest haha. It was kinda chilly that day but somehow we both still got sunburns. Since the wind was picking up, we went over to Discovery Park and "flew" our cheap little kites. Mine was broken before it's first lift off but we made it work. It didn't ever get off the ground very high and reminded me more of a stingray gliding across the grass than a kite. Marshal's flew pretty good but took a hard crash and broke. So the kite flying lasted all of twenty minutes? It was so much fun though, we laughed so hard the entire time and everyone was staring at us. From there, we went and got stuff for dinner and headed home. Our dinner was a dud but since it was "Chinese Night", we substituted with Panda Express haha and rented Iron Man 2 which neither of us had seen yet. On Sunday, we made pancakes and had the laziest day ever. For lunch since we wanted to go on a picnic but it was far too cold, we set out a blanket in the living room and had our own little picnic inside. Didn't quite get the outdoors effect but it was still fun. For the rest of the day, we played with Lady, watched tv, and just loved being together. It was "Italian Night" so we found a recipe for a rotini dish that was pretty easy but turned out surprisingly good. We spent the rest of the night playing Scrabble, our favorite game. I promise I'm nearing the end of this post so hang in there. :) Yesterday we slept in for the first time all weekend and it was about freakin time! My body is just set on waking up at 7 for some reason and it's really starting to get annoying. We went to the diner to see Nickie and have some lunch but already had big plans for a barbecue that night. :) We went home real quick to get Lady and I of course got on the computer and saw that Hollister was having a huge sale. Big mistake. We spent like an hour online shopping and came out with a pair of jeans and a shirt for Marshal and a dress and new bikini for me. It's all cute though so that must somehow justify it. ;) We decided to barbecue at my Mom's house and made steak, chicken, and a hamburger for Nickie. It was delicious! Let me tell you, Marshal has mastered the barbecue. We ate dinner then Marshal mowed the lawn for my mom because he's the sweetest guy ever and then we went and got ice cream. It was the best weekend but more importantly, it's been the best year I could ever ask for. :) It feels like it's only been a month and I still get excited to see and hear from him, everyday. That's just how it should be; Perfect. Our actual anniversary is Wednesday so I'm going to St. George to see him and go to dinner. That's when we'll exchange gifts even though my fancy dinner was part of it. :) Can't wait! Oh and once we get through the week, the weekend starts again and this time we'll be celebrating my birthday! :) We're heading up to SLC to see my girlzz and spend the day at Seven Peaks Water Park and the night at mi favorito restaurant, Shanghai! I'm so excited I can barely contain myself, now if the weather just contains itself and provides a nice sunny day for us, I'll be thrilled. Sorry for the incredibly long post but here are some pictures to accompany it. :) Love is all I need.

Couple of freaks... In love.



Our fancy little dinner. :)



<3



The cutest. :)




See the Forbidden Forest I made? Marshal
deserves the credit for the rest haha.




If only you saw the editing I had to do on this...




 

Food, Family, and Fun

Whew it was a long but great weekend! I had to work Friday evening but Marshal came in which helped my shift go faster. :) Then since we were both craving chinese food we decided to try that chinese buffet place for dinner. I tried sushi! And it was just as gross as I expected. We also had crab, lots o noodles and chicken and I made Marshal try a fried banana hahaha sick. Then we went to visit my aunts and grandma who were up here for the weekend and finished watching Pearl Harbor when we got home. It was a nice relaxing evening that we both needed. On Saturday, Marshal had to go work here in town (boo!) for a few hours in the morning so I went to the store to buy stuff to make cookies. I decided on chocolate peanut butter cookies and found a recipe to use. It wasn't until I realized that I was adding two and a half sticks of butter to the batter that I noticed they yield of four dozen cookies! So needless to say, we had plenty to share. We went out to Pine Valley in the afternoon and got to visit with Marshal's grandparents for a while. They're so cute, I love them. We didn't actually end up leaving until about ten that night but it was fun. :) They have so many stories and love to just sit and talk for hours on end. They also insisted that we move in with Marshal's Uncle John in St. George since we're planning on moving down there this summer. This was kind of a shock but a really good one. John lives in a really nice three bedroom house by the golf course all by himself. He's mentally handicapped but still has a job, can drive and essentially, can take care of himself. He will definitely benefit from us living there though, he does get quite lonely and could use a nice, cooked meal every once in a while. I'm SO excited for this. I've really been wanting to cook more and try new recipes so this is the perfect excuse and I've turned into quite the neat freak lately so I'll be able to keep up with the chores around the house. In exchange, we will pretty much be living the life and saving a ton of money. We won't have to pay for anything but groceries and gas! Marshal is already planning Monopoly Mondays because John loves that game and I think it'll be a great experience for both of us to help out with John. Did I mention, Lady will love it too? They have a nice big backyard and John keeps a garden so it'll be a lot of fun. :) Anyways, we're looking forward to the move and  I think it will relieve a lot of stress for both of us. So on Sunday, after I made pancakes,we went to Marshal's home ward for his friend, Rhett's farewell. It was interesting... I don't think I've ever been stared at or given more death looks in my life. After all, I am what stole Marshal away from all of them haha. Then we went to Rhett's house but left in less than ten minutes because it was soooo awkward. We went back to the church for Nelson's ordination into the Priests Quorum and then went to Marshal's mom's house for lunch where we discussed vacation plans for this Christmas. In case I haven't mentioned before, they're taking us to Hawaii. :) Apparently I have to have a passport before then? Isn't Hawaii a state? Retarded. But we spent the rest of Sunday doing nothing after we went grocery shopping. It was great. Marshal barbecued steaks for us and I made MORE cookies because I had to bring treats to class today. This time they were Andes mint chip cookies and they were delicious. We also rented the new Harry Potter and watched it until we fell asleep (like 30 minutes into it) and here we are at Monday. Long weekend right? I gave my mini lesson today in class! It went a lotttt better than I ever expected it to actually. As usual, I was stressin for nothing and my paper dolls were a hit! I was so relieved and now it's smooth sailing until Thursday which is the last day of Maymester! Woo! This weeks plans consist of working, going to Lexi Cain's graduation on Wednesday, and camping somewhere this weekend for our One year anniversary! :) It's been the best year of my life to say the least. It's been a pretty eventful year as well but it still seems like we were flirting at graduation just yesterday. :) I'm so lucky that I met The One so early in life, that's one thing I'll never take for granted.



Yummy pancakes with mixed berries. :)

Reese's Cookies



Andes Cookies


Just call me Betty Crocker. ;)

Almost There!

Today starts the countdown, only four more days of class for Maymester! I can't believe I've almost made it but I really can't believe how much I've learned in such a short time. It's been a great course and I've loved every day of it. The only assignment I really have left is my mini lesson that I'm almost done preparing for and the last part of my final. Woo! If only it was the end of summer school... My next classes start May 31st and I have a feeling they're going to be a lot of work. I have two online classes and an elementary math class for the month of June. We'll see how that goes. In the mean time, if I'd just buck up and take my application to the Education office, I'll be in the college! That thought scares me though so I've been putting it off. In other news, I get to spend the whole weekend (including last night) with my cutesie boyfriend. :) We're planning on taking a little ride out to Pine Valley to visit his adorable grandparents and explore a little, it's soooo pretty out there! Then one of Marshals's best friends is having his farewell on Sunday so to church we go and I'm hoping Marshal will have the urge to barbecue that night. :) I hope you all have a great weekend too!

These are my visual aids for my mini lesson on diversity. :) Cute huh!



My final project. Each crayon has an element and how I'd implement it in the classroom.

Life is good. :)

Busy Bee

I feel like I've been running around like a maniac the past couple of days. I've gotten so much done but there's still so much to do. Yesterday after class I did homework for two hours and called it quits. Then I went to visit my cute Aunt Nickie (the best person to gossip with) for a few hours until Lady and I headed to St. George to escape the freakin' snow and see the man we love most. :) It was a much needed visit to say the least. We had some pizza for dinner and then went bowling at Dixie Bowl. That brought back so many memories and thinking about it even more now makes me want to cry. I used to go bowling there every Tuesday with my Dad. It was my favorite tradition and it was so fun to watch him hit high scores, I even still have the paper with the printed scores of my first game to hit 100. I miss him so much but we'll save that for another day. I kicked Marshal's butt for the first time ever! 156 to 141 was our first game and we won't talk about the second one haha. Then since we played by Marshal's rules and he bought bowling, winner bought glaciers at Larson's Frostop. That was me just to clarify. ;) I had no idea what a glacier was but they were delicious! It's a slushie with vanilla ice cream in it, sounds disgusting right? It was sooo yummy despite the trillions of calories I'm sure it contained. My favorite part of the night came next, we just drove around and talked. I miss being able to talk face to face everyday so it meant a lot to me, I know it's weird. We talked about everything: school, work, memories and the future and I felt so at peace with it all afterwards. Then we went back to Marshal's dad's house and took care of his poor sunburnt neck. It's so bad that the whole back of his neck is one big scab and he can't even turn his head! It's sad but yuck! I had to be back for class at nine this morning so being the wet mops that we are, we were out like ten minutes after that haha. In class today we finally got the layout for our lesson plan that we have to create so we can teach six other students a "mini lesson" and mine is one Monday! My topic is reaching out to diverse students and I'm actually pretty excited about it, except for my fear of speaking in front of others that I REALLY need to get over. I would continue on but I just got the best surprise ever! Marshal just came home and is working here in Cedar tomorrow!  :) :) :) :) I have the best boyfriend in the world, in case you were wondering. I love him so much. :)

I Just Can't Wait

So I had that practicum with a class of sixth graders today... I shouldn't have been so nervous. It was really laid back and pretty much just observing. I actually wish we would've been more involved because it did get a little boring but it was still a great experience and just being in the clasroom got me sooooooooo much more excited to finish school and be a teacher. We got a short break for lunch with our class (pizza) but spent the whole day in one room with a couple different teachers. I'm so glad my nerves were instantly calmed when I walked into the classroom. I stayed afterwards and talked to Marshal's mom since she works there. It's nice to have a teacher that I can ask any questions to and get ideas from. :) I also found out that my nephew is going to be Salutatorian at his eighth grade graduation next week. I'm sooo upset that I can't be there, growing up sucks. On the bright side, I'm going to St. George tomorrow to see Marshal! It's crazy how much I miss him even after one day. Well until something more exciting happens, I'm going to get a headstart on homework. Over and Out.

My twins :)

                                        

                          

I don't have much time to write so let me apologize in advance for cutting this post that deserves to be pages long, short. These are the best friends I could ever ask for. Alexa and Brianne came to visit this last week and it was so nice to be able to hang out with them again. We had a couple lunch dates at Pizza Factory, did some shopping and finally just got to hang out like old times. It's crazy how much I've missed them and I still think it's so weird not seeing them everyday. We've been inseparable for five years and I wouldn't trade a single memory of them for the world. From swim meets to watching Maury in the basement to taking way too many naps (our favorite pass time :) to making the big move to the city together, they've been by my side and we've helped each other through it all. There's no way I would've made it through high school without them to keep me laughing until I cry. They're the most charismatic girls I'll ever meet and no one will ever compare to them. Brianne; the motivated, simple, helpful girl. She always knows what to say and how to say it. She makes me feel more confident in all of my decisions and never hesitates when I ask for advice. She'll listen no matter what and because we're so much alike, she's often going through the same issues or already has and knows how to deal. She's got spunk and a little sass and she definitely knows how to use it. She always stands up for herself and others and doesn't let a whole lot get to her. I so wish I could be more like her in that sense. She's ripped and could totally take me down with one arm although I don't care to prove that true. ;)  I owe her so many more "thanks" than I could ever give and I love that I can count on being close with her for the rest of my life. Alexa; the dolled up, unpredictable, go to girl. She's adorable and so fancy everyday, I envy it. Whenever we talk, it's like we haven't even been apart for a minute. I love that she makes so many jokes and I, for one, can't help but laugh at every one of them. She loves the glitz and glam and it shows in her perky personality. As long as she's had her nap for the day, she's up for just about anything unless it's bowling. ;) Her and Kyle are so cute together and it's obvious that they're in love. I love that we can chit chat about couple things and I love listening to all of her stories. I've learned to usually side with her and ALWAYS let her win board games. :) She's a cute little ball of fire and truthfully, I admire her for the things she's been faced with and been able to come out on top of. I know she'll be there for me no matter what and I hope she knows it goes both ways. I could list a million adjectives describing them but there's no way I'd come close to covering it. They're hilarious, gorgeous, and My best friends. The only thing I would change about them is where they live.

Now, tomorrow I have my practicum at the middle school and I'm Freakinggg Out! Although, I did buy the cutest, fanciest outfit ever for it. :) I'm so nervous but sooo excited to actually be in the classroom. I don't doubt that it'll be an eye opening experience but I think I'll love it except for the waking up at 6:30 part of it. Must. Get. Some. Sleep.

                                                                                                                                                        

Near Perfection

                                 

             Lake Day! These are just cell phone pictures so bare with me. :)            

There couldn't possibly be a more supportive boyfriend in the world. Yesterday started with waking up to delicious banana pancakes with strawberry syrup in bed all because I had a test to take. :) I swear he always knows exactly what I need. The test was in St. George and I was thinking it would take me an hour or so after looking at the review for each section but I came back out of that building three hours later after completing the most tedius test ever. There were four sections, reading, english, math, and an essay question; so easy. I don't mean to brag or anything but seriously that was just a waste of time. I only know two of my four scores so far: 183 in reading and 186 in math with the highest possible scores being 190. Woo! :) Of course I'll use anything to call a celebration so we went on our first lake trip of the year afterwards. We took Lady and our floaties and had some fun even though the water was pretty near freezing. Lady was terrified of the water but was actually a pretty decent swimmer once she was in. However, she'd rather be exploring on land. We went back to St. George after a couple of hours for Marshal's brother, Nelson's birthday dinner with the fam. We went to some new barbecue place and then had a Reese's ice cream cake back at the house. We played ping pong, kicked a ball around outside and played with the girls and Lady. We barely made it home awake at 10:30 last night and to say the least, we were nothing short of exhausted. In fact, we slept in this morning and already took a nap today. Nothing like a lazy Sunday to end the weekend. :) I just wish I could be Lady and continue being lazy for the rest of the day and tomorrow but homework is calling my name already. I made little paper dolls for visual aids for my lesson on reaching out to diverse students and they turned out so great! Big thanks to Marshal for his help with those and my crayon box final project. Couldn't have done it without him. :) Now to finish those up, do some laundry, go grocery shopping and clean up the house. I swear the days are not long enough anymore.

Friday!

Well it's Friday and my class got cancelled, miracle right? Well I'm taking advantage of it by doing homework and watching Moulin Rouge with Lady while anticipating my love coming back home tonight. :) It's been a realllllly long week without him especially because I couldn't go visit on Wednesday. I feel like this should be getting easier but it's not at all, it might actually be getting harder. I miss him so much everyday. However, I have plans to have dinner ready for him when he gets home tonight and I can't wait to see him. Going back in time because blogger was broken yesterday... I went to lunchy with my best friends at Pizza Factory and "worked out" at the pool which really consisted of a lot of talking and messing around, cool with me. Then we made veggie tacos at mine and Marshal's house. Oh how I've missed those delicious things, the perks of having vegetarian friends haha. Then we watched No Strings Attached and painted nails, just like the old days that I've really been missing. "We" also watched Blue Valentine or something like that but of course, I slept through it like always. Apparently it was disgusting so I don't exactly regret falling asleep. :) Sorry guys! Now today I got to sleep in which was much needed and then I pretty much finished up my project for the final in Education 3000. As for the rest of the day; a real workout and a few hours of work is all that's on the agenda so far. I have to take the Praxis 1 test in the morning in St. George and I'm only slightly freaking out but I think that besides turning in my application, that's the only thing keeping me from being accepted into the Education College. Sooo exciting! Wish me luck!

Lovely Love

Okay, I hope to keep this thing updated throughout the summer with all of our adventures and camping trips that we plan to take but for now I'll just let everyone (probably just Brianne and Alexa my newest follower!) know how good I have it. Marshal Sip-- I never thought we'd end up together but turns out, there's no one I could be more compatible with. I'll spare you the mushy lovey details but he's perfect. He makes me laugh at least once a day and always keeps me wondering what's next. He talks to himself and makes lots of weird noises all the time and I Love it. It's nice for it to never be completely silent in our house. :) He cares about me more than anyone else and it's seems as if he's willing to do anything to keep me happy which I know can be a huge task at times. He may have a few iffy family members but he wouldn't be the same without them. A lot of people think they have the most perfect relationship but truth is, there's no such thing. We argue and we disagree but we never stay mad for very long. I just can't be mad at his cute face. :) I think we're one of the strongest couples out there for making through what we have, living apart for four months was definitely the hardest thing I've ever done and I think he would agree. It was miserable but I owed it to myself to go to college with my friends and get that experience and it has made our relationship much stronger. Now he works in St. George all week and even though I'm home, it's just no where near the same. We have the cutest apartment ever but it's nothing without him, after all it's just me and the pup. I love where our life together is headed though, we have so much to look forward to, I just wish it could be easier right now! It's awful not seeing him all week but it's only for a couple more months, let the count down begin. In the mean time, we both try to keep ourselves busy and of course talk on the phone regularly and that's the only way I get through my days. On the other hand, our weekends are always great. We make the most out of what little time we have with each other and rarely argue because it's just not worth it. With summer starting, we're planning camping trips for most of the weekends and I can't wait! We bought a little tent, sleeping bags and all the supplies we need. We're meant for camping and Lady lovesss being outside. Marshal is the perfect person for all of this, he's a great cook and he keeps me feeling safe. :) I really, honestly could not ask for more in a man. He even wants to wait for marriage! Who thought I could find someone like that in Utah? Not me but I have and I'm the luckiest girl in the world. He's so determined and doesn't stop until his best work is done, he might be somewhat of a perfectionist. :) Oh! And he even paints my nails, and he's damn good at it. To sum it up, he's my everything and he makes life worth living for a dramatic effect haha. I wish he knew how incredible he is but I think with time, as things start coming together he'll catch on. I love him and I know it's a forever thing. It's just gotta be. I don't doubt that there will be multiple posts bragging about him but that's all for now. In other news, my best friends are coming today! I even have all my homework done ahead of time so we can gossip, laugh, and hang out all night long like old times. I'm sooooo excited. :) Maybe someday I'll figure out how to post pictures on this thing so everyone can see how cute my boyfriend and friends are. Until probably tomorrow... Sayonara!

Blog,blog,blog

Okay so truth is, I'm beyond busy. In fact, this blog is not simply for fun and to waste time but for a project in my Education 3000 class. Maymester may kill me. As if three hours of class a day wasn't bad enough, throw in approximately three hours of homework a day on top of it. Then add three to five hours of "work" (I love my job) everyday and there's barely time to sit down and eat much less sleep. Don't take this as me complaining though, I absolutely love it. I think I'm meant to always be busy, I thrive in chaos. I love knowing that there's always something I could be doing especially while Marshal is in St. George all week. This class is already better than I expected it to be and just in the last two days, it's gotten me unbelievably excited for my future as a teacher. The readings from the textbook actually interest me for once and we have more hands-on projects to get the feel for teaching; the real deal. Next week, our class is doing a practicum and CVMS which I am sooooo nervous for but at the same time, I can't wait! I'm just glad that the further I get into my major, the more excited I get and the more reassured I am that I chose the right one. I never thought that I could possibly look forward to getting into harder and harder college courses but I get antsy just thinking about it. Once I finish these grueling three weeks and I feel like I can do anything in the world, I'll be even more excited to keep going. Not a ton of people can say that and I feel so lucky that I've known for a long time what I want to do with my life and I'm not going to stop until I get there. I'm liking this blogging thing already. :) Now back to work...