Busy, Happy Life

We've been busy lately and it's been wonderful! Our life has been full of great suprises, visits, and family!

First of all, My mom came to town! It was so wonderful to have her here. I really miss my mom out here, so it was just what I needed to have her around for a while. I didn't want her to leave!! She came to our funny married ward, we went to Michael and I's favorite breakfast spot, and then we headed down to BEAVER! Oh it was so great to be there again. Grandma's house is just like she left it and I loved all of the memories. I told mom that I really wanted the "beaver" experience, so she took me to the local diner which I'm certain has not been redecorated since 1950. We went into a drug store, and the lady had a big beehive hair-do. I seriously felt like I had fallen into another century. I loved it!

Emily, Easton, Carly, Marc, Connie, Kellen, and Caleb came to meet up with us too. Even though it as a very short visit, I needed a fix of my babies and my siblings and it was wonderful!! I hate saying goodbye though. We also got to see cousins Andrea, Valorie, and Stephanie- SO FUN!

I came home from Beaver to celebrate Steph's 23rd birthday!! WAHOO! We had another great gathering with the Lances and I was happy to be with her. It's great to be together on our birthdays and I feel SO lucky to have her as a neighbor again!

Lastly, a fabulous opportunity has fallen into Michael and I's lap. My friend and co-worker Loriol's parents own a house here in Provo. It is split into an upstairs and downstairs apartment. Loriol found out for me that it will be available in April. So, Michael and I went to check it out. 2 bedrooms, backyard, garden, covered parking, furniture, less than what we're already paying, hallelujah! WE LOVE IT! So, we will be moving in, in 1 month! YAY! We're so excited! It's really a cute little joint and I can't wait to live there.

That's us lately :). We're very happy and are just feeling so thankful lately for how well life has treated us since we've been married.

Lauren's married off!

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. DeVard! Look how happy they are! For those of you who don't know, this is my dear friend Lauren Rasmussen (now DeVard) and her new husband Josh. Lauren and I met my first semester at BYUI and she introduced me to my Michael :). Her and I have been very close ever since. I cannot really even express how absolutely delighted I am for these 2. Lauren has the biggest heart, and BEST personality, and is so beautiful and I always knew that I would be critical of whoever she married because he better be good! And yep- Josh fits the profile perfectly. He is a true stand up, good, good guy. And want to know something funny? She was a sister on temple square and Josh was the security guard :). DON'T WORRY- they didn't have a romance or really even meet until after her mission. But it's still just a great story!

Look at this gorgeous bride and groom! Her dress was SO flattering and beautiful on her. And the flowers turned out excellent as well. It was snowy, but it didn't damper anyone's spirits. We were all so happy to be there and see them glowing. The reception was a BLAST! Michael's old friends from Texas were there along with alot of my old friends. Michael and I are pretty big socialites, so we had a a grand time dancing the night away!
I love this one. It really makes my heart smile to see Lauren so happy.

Roomies and friends with the Bride.
1st year of college roomies! Reunited for a temple wedding of our friend. How truly special.

And P.S- michael and I got to have lunch and shop around with our own Loni Nock :) Loni is another very special person in our lives and we were elated to spend time with her again. We love you, lon don!

23

Remember when we used to play MASH when we were little? I would always choose to be married at like 20, and have 3 kids by the time I was 23, and live in a mansion, and drive sweet cars and all of that. hahahaha. So laughable now.

I turned 23 on Monday. Really?! It's so weird. I mean, I know that 23 is not old. But I really still feel 18! It's crazy. I'm happy to be 23, I think it'll be a great year. It's just weird. And I'll tell you one thing. My birthday was made absolutely FANTASTIC by all of the people that love me. THANK YOU to everyone for the thoughtful cards, gifts, texts, phone calls, messages. All of it, I honestly felt so special all day and it was so appreciated. It was so great to chat with my siblings, parents, nieces & nephews, friends, all on one day! Birthdays rock!

My parents have always done a great job of making my birthday fun growing up, and Michael took over wonderfully this year. He took me to get a massage, we went to dinner and to see Dear John (loved it), AND, my birthday actual birthday present was my rings being fused together. YAY! I'm so happy with them. They are 1 now and I love it. They're not clinking into each other all of the time anymore. Do I have a thoughtful husband OR WHAT? I had mentioned that to him before, he remembered, and had it done. stud. I can't stop looking at it.
Stephanie made my favorite birthday cake and we had a celebration with the Lances. We felt like our parents. Eating cake and chatting all night on a birthday :). It's a great tradition to continue. Jarom even got the frosting I like. Thank you guys!
And now, a moment of silence for Sarah.........thank you. My friend Sarah took me out to lunch on my birthday, sweet much? I know! This was a very happy time. We love catching up and such. Why the moment of silence you ask? Sarah is no longer my co-worker :(. She found a new freaking sweet job and I'm thrilled for her. But she is missed!
Basically, March 8th was wonderful this year. I felt so special. And I'm truly SO thankful for all of you in my life that have the ability of making me feel so loved. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your happy thoughts and words on my bday :).

The anticipation is killing us!

I think by now that most everyone knows that Michael has applied to the accounting program here at BYU. That is why we are here. It is the best in the country and he's always wanted to give it at shot. He turned in his application at the very beginning of January and was told it would be 30-60 days until he heard a response. He has been anxiously awaiting as the days climb into the high 50s. FINALLY- 2 days ago, he excitedly sat me down in front of the computer to see a screen that said "a decision has been made on your application, click here to see". AHHHH!!! CLICK IT CLICK IT!!! So, he did, and this is what it said.... "because many applicants are finishing their pre-reqs this spring semester, we will re-review your application on July 12th". AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Do they even understand how tortorous that is? We have lives to plan people! If he doesn't get in, he needs to apply for another program, or we might be in China, or go back to Rexburg. There are so many options and we need to know!

But, Michael being the incredible optimist that he is says to me,"this is great news, I didn't get rejected right off the bat!" :) He's right. That is a very good news. We truly hope that Michael gets in. He wants this really bad. And even though I by no means LOVE Utah, it's dry weather, and BYU-Idaho hating students, we have had some great opportunities open up for us here, so it would be great to stick in one place for a while. But, he assures me that if he doesn't, life will go on, and there are many other options open to him. And I know that's true. He's worked really hard to make sure he has other paths he could take. Anyway... that's the status!

Also, last weekend Lindsey and Anessa came to town. PARTAY! So we had the whole gang over for some home-made pizza and we had a blast! Lindsey and Anessa stayed with us and trust me, we love having sleep overs so it was great fun. Brookie bear, Steph, and Jarom were a part of the fun too and really it is SO fun to have all of these people together. If only we could talk Anessa into moving down here, we'd definately do this more often. someday!

That's life recently :) We're loving it and very happy as usual.

P.S- 2 antibiotics and 1 doctors visit down, and I'm feeling MUCH better. thanks :)

My Valentine

My Valentine was so wonderful to me. I should have known. He always sent me great packages from Taiwan on American AND Taiwanese Valentine's Day. He really is a romantic. First, he brought me flowers and chocolate. That right there would have been enough for me. It made me so happy that he was so thoughtful. Then, he took me to see Valentine's Day which I have been talking about for weeks! THEN- he took me to a local Mexican restaurant that I've been dying to try. And THEN- he took me to a comedy show on campus. What a day!! We had so much fun. We were just so happy and enjoying each other. It's was wonderful!

Then, on actually Valentine's Day, I left some suprises for him around the house and cooked him a delicous dinner and peach cobler. His fav, not mine. haha. It's days like these that make me EVEN more grateful for Michael. He really tries so hard to make me happy, and it works! And what is with all the Valentine's haters in the world? I never hated it! Even if you don't have a valentine, I am always all about a reason to celebrate and eat candy!

On Monday, Kelly and Tyler were in town so we had another get together with them and the Hiltons and Dad and Heather and Brooke. Talk about fun! It's so great to catch up with everyone. And Tiffy and Kelly's babies are seriously perfectly adorable and I could just gobble them up!! It was hard to go back to work after that long, wonderful weekend. But, it turned out to be a good week, as it always does! Now, we're excited for this weekend because Anessa is in town and we get to have a gathering with her, Brooke, Lindsey, and the Lances! REUNION!

...unfortunately, last night at 3:30 AM nature hit me with it's WORST illness. You terrible UTI, I will not let you ruin my weekend. But seriously, I found myself all last night wondering why this particular infection has to even exist. TMI?? sorry. But I figure it you're reading my blog, we're probably tight and you know I'm blunt anyway.

BRING ON SPRING!

3 recent thoughts.

The following 3 topics have been on my mind, for the following reasons...

1. INTERVENTION. Michael and I watch the show Intervention on A&E every Monday night. It is about those who are addicted to drugs, alcohol, eating disorders, etc. They document their lives for a couple of weeks, and then hold an intervention at the end and give them a free ride to the best rehabilitation centers in the country. I always feel so happy when I see these people living their lives sober at the end. What a blessing. The thoughts I've been having all week after watching this show are, how incredibly sad it is how these drugs CONSUME FULLY these people's lives. And my question is, why why why start? I know that I've never been there, and I'll never understand. I never judge these people, I think they're so brave for getting help. I just feel sad for them. Especially the alcoholics. Because: drinking alcohol makes absolutely NO SENSE. Everyone knows that illegal drugs are bad for your body. But for some reason they think alcohol is no biggie. WRONG!It is terrible for your body and damages your brain and organs, yet people slowly let themselves become addicted everyday. I guess that's what breaks my heart. Is that it starts out casual and social, and then ruins lives. I'm SO thankful to have lived a life free of drugs and alcohol. It has blessed my health and happiness in every way.
2. CELEBRITIES. My friend Sarah from work and I share a love for celebrity gossip. So, it felt most appropriate for us to drive up to Park City and check out the Sundance Film Fesitval to look for our celebrity pals. Unfortunately, they were all hiding! What do they do all day??But we scored some pretty sweet free stuff and free make overs. Next year we plan on going clubbing at night dressed like skanks and then we're pretty sure we'll meet some. Anyway, I've been thinking about celebrities and how crazy it is that we treat them the way we do. And I'm totally guilty. They're just people. I mean really. They are actors, singers, athletes, but so are a million other people in the world, these ones just hit it big for some reason. They make absolutely DISGUSTING amounts of money, and why??? We all work just as hard as they do at our differet professions. It's a crazy world we live in! But it sure is entertaining and I'll keep supporting my celebs!3. THE TEMPLE. What a special place. I feel so lucky to have one right up the hill from me. I have had the chance to go twice this week, and it has honestly brought so much peace and enriching conversation into our home. It's mind blowing to me that I am able to be with my family for eternity. It's incredible. I'm so thankful. I am 100% positive that when I attend the temple, my relationship with my Heavenly Father and his Son grows tims a million. And they're building a new one in Payson. AWESOME!

Happy Birthday Michael!

Michael turned 22 on January 19th. I love birthdays and we had so much fun! Since Monday the 18th was a holiday and he had the day off of school, I was lucky enough to get the day off too so we could celebrate all day that day. It was absolutely wonderful to just spend 1 whole day playing and having fun. I had a bunch of presents wrapped for Michael and he opened them throughout the day. It started with breakfast in bed and he opened his card. Then, he opened Monopoly (a game we both love and played a bunch before his mission), and we played! Then he opened some gloves he's really been wanting and we went out to lunch at Tucanos (a place he's really been wanting to try and it was delicious!) Then, he opened some new socks because his have holes, and we went to the bowling alley. Then, he opened sparkling cider and we had cupcakes and cider. We were busy, busy, busy all day and we seriously had so much fun! Everything turned out perfect. Michael does so much for me, and I wanted to make sure he had a special day.

Michael was happy about the gloves :) He was like a little kid, everytime I brought out another present, his face would light up "ANOTHER ONE?!"We played some sweet arcade games at the bowling alley and Michael won us some prizes. I seriously felt like I was in middle school becuase we were both super into it. haha.

So, all of these festivities went down the day before his birthday and I wanted to make sure his actual birthday was special too. So, we had a bunch of friends over for cake that night. It was really fun. Michael is so loved around here, there were about 20 people there. If you've seen our apartment and it's size, then you understand that 20 is really like 50. Here is a picture of Michael leading us in our Happy Birthday song. hahahah!

Anyway, we had a great time. Happy Birthday, Michael. You are without a doubt, THE BEST :)