Wake me up when September ends...

Sorry I've been so neglectful lately. I can't believe I haven't updated in so long! It's been really busy, with family and parties almost every weekend. Also, I have to confess, I started a new Design blog, and I've been spending a little more time there lately.

So here's the condensed version of what's been happening lately:

With the help of a number of wonderful friends, Ben and I packed up our two bedroom apartment in Provo and moved to San Francisco. Now, before you go thinking "what fun! - they're living in the city!," let me inform you that we're not actually right in the city. We decided that it would be better to save some money and live with Ben's parents while he attends Law School. The funny thing is, that Greg and Darlene had that same thought, when Greg got a job in the city. So now we're re-living one of the shows from our childhood - Full House - and all living together under the same roof. I must say though, for roommates, the Swapps and the Nielsens are pretty awesome. (and no, I'm not just saying that because Darlene's sitting across from me on the sofa right now.) :)

Ben has successfully started Law School. He seems to be cut out for this stuff because he's doing so well, and loving his classes. I'm so proud of him! I'm looking for a job and planning to finish up school myself in January, as well as taking on the project of re-doing some of the rooms here at my in-law's home.

In other news, my awesome and gorgeous sister is in Jerusalem right now at the BYU Jerusalem Center! I'm so happy she gets to have this experience, even though I totally wish I could be there as well.

Camping!

When you're prepared, camping can be one of the most incredible experiences - turning off technology, slowing down the pace of life, and discovering some of the most beautiful things nature has to offer. If unprepared however, you probably won't ever want to try it again.

Since we got married, I've wanted to take Ben out camping, but lack of necessities like a tent and sleeping bag prevented us a number of times. I have to say though, part of me wondered if this city boy I married would even be able to handle the great outdoors.

Well, we finally had our chance to go camping a couple weeks ago. We went down near Goblin Valley with 3 other couples and had an awesome desert camp-out. After breakfast and breaking camp Saturday morning, we went on a beautiful hike and even found a cave! Unfortunately, I completely forgot that I had my camera until we were on our hike, so I don't have pictures of our camp site or anything. :(

On our drive to and from the camp site, we listened to some Louis L'Amour short stories. It was fun walking around the desert pretending we were in one of his stories, braving the harsh winds and searching for a desert oasis.

Enjoy Life

I recently ran across this blog post that totally made my day. The blog serves as just a little reminder to recognize all those great moments in life that we take for granted.

Why obsess over our appearance and weight? While I'm a firm believer that you should exercise and look your best, the key to it is looking YOUR best, not the photo-shopped-model-on-the-magazine-cover's best. Part of the wonderful blessing of having a body is getting to enjoy the pleasures of life. Enjoy that extra scoop of ice cream or that second (or sometimes third) slice of cake. Don't deprive yourself - Just remember to do it in moderation. Enjoy every moment in life - the exercise AND all of those yummy treats.

A little odd, don’t you think?

This morning I woke up to a blanket of snow. Typically, this is really exciting because I love the snow. In the last week of May though, things are a little different. I’m ready for sunshine and summertime.

While I was getting ready this morning, I decided to listen to Josh Groban. With five albums (one being Christmas), I decided to just turn it on to shuffle. When I do this, I always run the risk of an occasional Christmas song coming up in the mix. However, this has only ever happened once – maybe I’m just lucky. Today was different. After the original song that I turned on, every song after that was a Christmas song! I switched to Michael Buble (8 albums and only 4 Christmas songs) and the same thing happened! How does that even happen?

Great new singer!

Caro Emerald is a hot new jazz singer from Amsterdam. Her first album debuted last summer and is "a mix of 1950's inspired ballroom jazz, cinematic tangoes, groovin' jazz tracks, infectious mambo's and banging beats." Her accent, or lack thereof, is perfect. What a shock - I never would've guessed that she's not American! Most importantly, her voice is incredible!!

Enough talk - check out a couple of her songs and see for yourself!







Needless to say, she's my new favorite artist! (Thanks for introducing me to such a great singer Liesl!)

Happy Mother's Day!

I wanted to take just a minute to recognize two of the greatest mothers in my life: my mom and Debbie - my "mother-in-love."

My mom is an incredible woman and has been a wonderful inspiration to me in so many ways. I think service is one of the most important life lessons that she's taught me. She is so kind and loving and always looking for ways to help people. I can't begin to count the number of times she's gone out of her way to do something nice for someone that needs it, even if that just means being a listening ear for someone needing a friend. It's not that she has nothing better to do, or tons of free time on her hands - I can't think of anyone busier than my mom either - it's because she loves the Lord and is doing her best to take care of His children.

Growing up, I remember hearing people joking about the infamous "Mother-in-law". I never experienced this because my parents and grandparents all get along really well. My mom always told me that when I got married it was so important that I got along with his mother. That became one of the crucial things I looked for in the guys that I dated - we both needed to get along with each others' parents, especially our mothers.

Even with that as a priority, I never could have dreamed that I would get along so well with my mother-in-law, or love her so much. Debbie is another incredible woman and I am so grateful that she's a part of my life. Something that I've noticed and I really admire is her ability to be optimistic and upbeat about everything. Its seriously superhuman! While I try to be optimistic, there are definitely things that get me down or cause stress. I've never seen anything affect Debbie, and that is a quality that I would love to have. - Maybe she'll rub off on me more while we're staying with her during Law School. :)

Unfortunately, I don't really have any pictures that I would be "allowed" to share of my mom or Debbie, otherwise I'd post some.
(Note to self - take some more pictures!)

In lieu of those pictures, I wanted to share the chorus to a song,
"That Wonderful Mother of Mine."

"You are a wonderful mother,
Dear old Mother of mine.
You'll hold a spot down deep in my heart,
'Till the stars no longer shine.
Your soul shall live on forever,
On through the fields of time.
For there'll never be another to me,
Like that wonderful Mother of mine."

I love you Mom!

Life Lessons from Mother

I've taken a lot of classes recently where the main focus is on the home. We talked a lot about the kind of environment we grew up in, what our families were like, how we were taught, as well as learning good ways to do things. I really struggled while writing a paper on methods our parents used to teach us, and this concerned me. I've always felt that my parents taught me very well, but when asked to clarify how they did it, I was stumped. I felt like I "just knew" things and had a hard time figuring out how it was that I had been taught them.

Today in my Human Development class we watched three videos of childbirth; graphic videos that were not for the faint of heart... or stomach. My professor even gave us the option to leave the room while he was showing the videos! But I digress. As we watched the three mothers giving birth to their babies, I realized how incredibly blessed and lucky I am.

My mom taught me so many things and helped prepare me for life in what I feel was a pretty amazing way. I was there when my sister and my two brothers were born. I got to watch the whole, incredible thing. Watching those videos reminded me of those experiences and finally answered my question. My mom taught about life by letting us experience it! The reason I sometimes feel like I didn't "learn" things (in a traditional sense), but rather just "knew" them was because I had been there! I had seen it, touched it, experienced it! The reason I now feel so prepared for life is because it's not such a big unknown! While it's still scary to go out and do it by myself, I have an idea of what it is, so I'm not walking blindly into the dark. I have my mother's lessons to guide me. Thanks Mom!