Good Weekend

Lots of laughs. Lots of love. And sunshine! Great day today. We went to the rose gardens, played scrabble, ate delicious foods, and sat out-- all of dad's favorite activities. I love my dad so much. He thinks he deserves more than one father's day a year... he's probably right.

Whitney is so awesome to let me come butt into her life for the summer and try to command her schedule. I just love getting the chance to spend time together again and it's been so fun! Game night on Saturday with her and my parents was QUALITY. All of us were laughing harder than we have in a long time.

I want to keep everyone updated on our ever so anticipated Oregon summer, so I post my pictures on my blog and on Facebook. Is it too much? Help me out. I just figured that some people dont have Facebook, so I should do both?? Your opinions please :)

Is it weird that being in the place I love makes me love the man I love -- even more? Bless you for making this summer possible, Michael... bless you. Ok I'll stop with the mushy.

A Few of my Favorite Things... These days...

Finally, I'm blogging. It's taken a while to share everything I've wanted to share with you all because life has been too fun and too busy lately. Both of those things are good things in my mind when the busy is the fun. We're here in Oregon, staying at my parents for the summer and it's truly everything I hoped it would be. We were eating dinner outside the other night and I just had to say out loud how happy I am. I love spending my time doing things that matter, like visiting family and working on projects with my mom and spending time with friends. I love exercising everyday whenever the heck I feel like it. I love seeing Michael so happy to be putting his education to use. I love Oregon. And I'm mostly so grateful that we've been blessed with this opportunity. Let me share with you some of my favorite things as of lately...

• My Mom retired! You heard me, the greatest daycare ever is closed for business. It was a bitter-sweet day as you can imagine. But we are so grateful to my mom for all of her hard work. We decorated for the occasion and she got some awesome gifts! This is her opening her new camera from dad! Spending time with mom and dad on a daily basis is as wonderful as I remember and it's been so fun!

• My dear friend, Aliya, had her second baby girl :) Her name is Veda Brielle Basom. SHE. IS. PRECIOUS! I'm sad that I didn't get a better picture of her pretty face, but there will be more to come. I'm SO happy that I get to be here to get to know her girls better and catch up with her FINALLY!

• I'm spending as much time as possible with my Whitty Bear. So far I don't have any pictures of us this summer (Whit, we've got to fix that!). I have long been waiting for the day where I get to talk to her on a daily basis and see her multiple times a week again. That day has come! It's fabulous! Just like it's always been. I'm pretty certain this is one of my favorite things about this summer.

• Time with the Mitchells! This particular picture is at our girl's day celebration for LeAnn's birthday. Home is just not home without the Mitchells and I'm loving all the game nights and sittin' outs!

• Visiting family!! So far I've been able to see Tina and her family as well as most recently, Marc and his family. And there is lots more family visiting to come. We went up to watch Marc's football team scrimmage and it was so fun! I LOVE THESE BOYS! They are HILARIOUS! And I never tire of watching Marc coach, it's seriously tender. And Connie looks fantastic in her 8th month of pregnancy!

• Teaching aerobics at the church twice a week. This has turned out to be SO FUN! I totally adore everyone who comes and I have so much fun doing it. I'll try to get some pics of that crew :)
• Hearing all about Michael's internship everyday. You should see him when he gets home. He's like a kid on Christmas. So giddy and just soaking up every minute he gets in that office. I am so proud of him and just so so insanely grateful that he loves what he does.
• THE BEAUTY OF OREGON and seeing it everywhere I go, most especially when out jogging.

I could go on forever, but I'll save some for future posts. Basically, summer rocks.

P.S-- I came across some fabulous old pictures the other day, so prepare for an awesome post that some of you will be pictured in :)

Hello Oregon

Mr. Harlan Masias. I finally got to meet my great-nephew, Harlan. He is precious! Tina had a baby shower for Cierra, Michael, and Harlan and we made it to Oregon just in time to make it. I am so thankful we could go. This little guy is the strongest little fighter I've ever seen. He has Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome and is a true inspiration. I love him so much already, how could you not-- just look at that face!

The shower was fantastic. Tina did such a wonderful job at celebrating Harlan and giving everyone a good time all at once. We had so much fun with the whole crew! It had been WAYY too long since I'd seen Cierra. We used to just play, play, play when we were little and I always love a chance to catch up. I'm excited to spend more time with them this summer.
There she is. Cierra, the proud mama. I don't even have words to describe how much I admire her and how she's been so brave for her baby. Super mom should be her title.
We also got to go to Grandma & Grandpa Jolley's graves. I love going there and thinking about them. We left pretty flowers and told Michael a lot of stories about how great they were. Most of my memories are of Grandpa and I feel lucky to be a part of his Legacy. They were amazing people and had some pretty fantastic kids. Memorial Day is such a good reminder of all that I have to be thankful for.
So, how is Oregon so far? FANTASTIC! We are loving it! We love seeing friends and family. We're loving the beauty and even the rain. Michael is hooked and I haven't even had to try. :)

And side note, look at these fabulous cookies! If you cannot tell. They say I LOVE JB. Which of course is referring to Justin Beiber. And then two of Justin himself. Two of our awesome girls from our Sunday School class made these for us along with a super sweet card as a going away gift. MOST TENDER EVER. It totally made my day. They're so awesome!

Bye Bye Utah

Well, we're all ready to go to OREGON for the summer and we CANNOT WAIT! CANNOT WAIT. Did I mention WE CANNOT WAIT! We are leaving on Thursday and that feels like an eternity away from right now. But, as excited as we are to go, we are going to miss all of our Utah friends. SO, to solve that problem, we had them all over for a BBQ to hang out and say goodbye for the next 2 months! Here's some pictures and a video of all of the fun. And fun it was! We had such a great time! We chatted and ate and played and loved seeing everyone!

Check out our awesome BBQers. These guys were AWESOME! They were up early that morning getting the lawn all ready and they took care of setting everything up and the grilled us some delicious hamburgers and hot dogs!
Look at Steph's cute baby bump! I am going to miss her realllll bad over the summer. We truly love our neighbors!
Speaking of neighbors!! Meet Cameron and Virginia! Ok, we love these 2. And great news people, they're moving into our 4Plex! YAYYY!!! They only live around the corner right now, but downstairs will be so much more convenient, considering we spend most of our free time with them and the Lances. They're adorable, right?! Michael and I always joke about how when you're married, you have to flirt with other couples hahahaha! Well, it totally worked with them.
SO MANY FABULOUS PEOPLE CAME! Loni & Corbin came as well as Lauren & Josh. I don't get to see these beautiful ladies nearly enough and I love them so dearly.
Lindsey made the drive as well. She is a teacher and I'm sad that while she is out of school, I'll be gone.
Court & John came too! And brought their most perfect baby Everett! He is just so adorable and the life of the party for sure.

Basically, it was so fun! We stayed outside until it got dark, and then we moved the party inside! There were 25ish people there and it was a huge success. Yummy food, great people, and a fabulous time! Here's a video! I did the long version so that everyone could see who all was there. It sure was a party!!

Oh, and in the video if you're wondering where my arm bandages came from... it's because I went to give blood and they stabbed me, missed, and tried again. It was awful!

Another Giant Sigh of Relief

HE GOT IN!

Michael received an Email today congratulating him on his acceptance to the BYU Masters of Accountancy Program. YAY!! Can I just brag for a sec? Thanks. I am SO proud of him! Michael works so very hard. He did well fall semester, but according to his standards, not well enough. So, he made a goal to excel this last semester and he did just that. He gets up every morning with a smile on his face and tells me about what he gets to learn in class that day. Then, after a long day of class, study groups, work, and studying, he comes home again with a smile on his face and tells me about what project he gets to work on. Then, he eats and proceeds to study more until 11 pm- 12 am ish. This was his daily routine. While at the same time, some how managing to always make me feel included and special. Always spending time with our friends. And always magnifying his church calling. Who is this man and where does he get this energy!?

We were talking today about how we can't believe we're here. Michael is a grad student. He's studying what he loves and making steps to begin his dream career (as weird as it is that anyone dreams to be an accountant). We feel magnificently blessed. Michael told me today that he is learning to be prepared for whatever outcome the Lord has in store for him and that trust in the Lord is proving to show serious blessings. We feel very thankful for the chance Michael has to receive this fabulous education and we're so excited for what's coming!

I don't have words to express how lucky I feel. I always knew Michael had some really special qualities, and those are showing more than ever. Having a motivated, determined husband is honestly the best gift a wife could ask for.

Thanks for letting me brag. Thanks for listening :)

Enjoying Spring!

Well, there's been a lot of fun stuff going on around here and I thought I'd share some of it. We are getting really excited to move to Oregon for the summer NEXT WEEK! But, before we go we really want to enjoy our time here with our friends and family because we will miss everyone this summer.

Last weekend we went to Idaho Falls for Grandpa Woodmansee's 80th surprise birthday party!! I thought the whole thing was so awesome. Michael's dad and siblings put the whole thing on and they all came. ALL of his grandparent's children were there and a good share of their grandkids along with ward friends and old friends. I love Michael's grandparents so much, I really do! They are wonderful people. When Michael and I were dating and while we were engaged, even while he was on his mission, I spent a lot of time with them and they are always so welcoming and make me really feel like family.

I got to stay with Anessa while we were there and we had some good old roommate slumber parties. It was SO fun to spend time with her again. I spent most of the time dropping hints that she should move to Provo the MINUTE she graduates!

Michael, his dad, and his grandpa. Love this picture! I love all 3 of those men very much. Really, they are all outstanding people and I feel really lucky that our kids get to have such a great heritage. Grandpa is hilarious because he always tells the same stories, luckily we all love them. Regarding me, it's always about how I must have webbed feet because I'm from Oregon, and how he knew I was the girl for Michael because the first time I came over, they offered me food, and I ate it. :) hahahaha! Niceeee.
The fam. I really always enjoy my time with Michael's aunts, uncles, and cousins. Those Woodmansees are really pretty great.
We celebrated Brooke's 25th birthday. 25th PEOPLE! How can this be? Brooke and I met when we were 19. I love spending every birthday with her. She is so important to me and it was great fun.
Oh yeah, and I cut my hair! Well, Steph cut my hair for me. And I'm very happy with it! I've been telling her for weeks that I want shorter with tons of layers and some color. She did exactly as I asked. It's been long for so long and I was ready for something summery. Steph's the bomb when it comes to hair!
Oh yeah, the color I was talking about, it's purple! I pretty much love it. We made it stick out on purpose in this picture but it's kind of subtle in real life and I love it! I like a little spunk now and then. Don't worry Mom, it'll be gone in a few short months :)

Today, we had a picnic at the park with Steph & Jarom and it was so nice and relaxing. Next weekend is our BBQ with all our friends, can't wait!

So, that's life lately and it has been a lot of fun. It's so nice having Michael at home with no homework to do at night. Speaking of school, we find out on Wednesday if he got into the Masters Program at BYU. CROSS YOUR FINGERS! And as for you Oregon... see you in 1.5 weeks!!

Never say Never

2 words will describe my latest obsession... Justin... Bieber!

My friend Virginia and I have been dying to see the movie, so we somehow got our husbands to go with us and my gosh it was worth it. This kid rocks! Seriously, he's incredible! The Lance Bass lover in me came out in full swing during this movie and I felt that I could truly relate to those screaming girls. Michael was making fun of them, but I could honestly understand them. I know how it feels to be SOOO frustrated that you didn't get to meet the love of your life, so all you could do was just scream when you saw him!! SERIOUSLY! I remember going to the NSYNC concert and feeling like my life could never get any better than seeing him up close. So, Beiber lovers, I feel your pain... and I say go for it! Live the dream while you can! Mine came to a screaming halt when I found out that my love (lance bass) also liked boys... shoot.

But seriously, props to J Biebs. This kid has been playing the drums, and WELL, since he was 3. It's incredible. Someone saw him on YouTube and BAM, his talent is now known world wide. It's super fascinating. Anyway, go see the movie. It's pretty awesome. And you better believe I have now purchased his music, and made it my ring tone.

Rock on, Justin Bieber. You're a total hottie and have skills to pay the bills.

P.S- Michael is back to blogging. Check out his view on the movie HERE!