Stu and Ju

A fantastic end to 2011.

2012-01-03T09:48:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's twenty-twelve! 2011 FLEW by for us...and we thought it was going to be the exact opposite. We moved from Idaho just a little over a year ago and I had just graduated. Stu still had 1 semester left, just a internship that he did here in NC. We thought those 4 months were going to drag as he worked hard to finish up his school and studied his little tail off for the DAT and so that he could apply to dental school. And then when he successfully completed the DAT and applied to dental school, we were thinking that the next 6 months were going to drag because we had to wait to hear from dental schools. And here we are...a year later and Stu is officially going to dental school! Ah! And we only have 8 months left in NC :( Although you never know...Stu still needs to hear from 5 schools (UNC included). So we are not giving up hope for staying in NC or nearby (more so than NY) but we are preparing for moving far away anyhow. This next 8 months is going to be crazy. And I am not ready!!

Anyway, lets not discuss 2012 right now. Let's reflect on the last month of December and all the wonderful memories it provided. Stu and I were able to spend Christmas with his family this year in Destin, FL. Once again, the Briggs outdid themselves and set us up in an amazing beach house right across the street from the beautiful white sands and aqua water of Destin. You can check out this amazing 4 story "castle" (description is compliments of our adorable niece Brinley) here at our sister-in-law, Meagan's, blog. The house was so nice and there was so much room everyone had their own full bathroom and spacious bedroom and then some!

Most of Stu's family was able to join us in Destin except for his sister Chrissy and her family. We wished they could have joined us! They have 3 adorable little boys who are the busiest little things I have ever seen! It would have been fun to see them; especially because Stu and I haven't even met their 2 youngest! They live in Hawaii so it is hard to get together. Hopefully we can all get together soon though!
So, we flew down from Charlotte, Stu's parents and youngest sister, Hayley, drove down from Chicago. Stu's other sister Trisha flew in from Idaho and Stu's brother Ryan, his wife Meagan and their little girl Brinley drove over from Tallahassee, FL.
Everyone made the trek and we are so glad. We had a blast!

We stayed for about a week and the entire week was full of lots of games, even more laughter, decorating for Christmas (including a real tree), cooking all kinds of yummy (& rich might I add) food, eating great seafood out (a must at the beach!), exploring Destin, shopping and just enjoying the kind of company only family can provide. We loved being around each other since it seems it is rare for so many of us to be together at once. We ate every minute up that we got to hang with our little niece Brinley...she is just a little doll! It was just, fantastic. Here are a few pictures (Stu and I really failed at taking good pictures this trip!) Oh and please ignore our confused camera date...we need to fix that...

Stu and I in front of a giant Christmas tree at the outdoor mall

we visited a couple of times

Everyone waving goodbye to Stu and I as they

rode the little train ride for Brinley

Grandma and Brinely

Out for lunch at "Harry T's" with everyone. Great food!

Stu and our ridiculously large nacho appetizer...

who is this meant for?? We didn't know it would be so big!

Our Christmas Eve h'orderves spread which included

bacon-wrapped/bleu cheese stuffed dates!

Our tree :) Dolly brought lots of cute ornaments from their home

which included many childhood memories and we also made

our own ornaments one night to add to the tree.

Stu and I on Christmas morning before church

Everyone on Christmas morning

Brinley cute as can be on Christmas. She is holding a little dog that her aunt Trisha gave her. It barks and walks! She loved it!

Stu and I with our gingerbread train

The aunties and Brinely at Bulid-A-Bear

Last night in Destin--out to dinner at "Bonefish Grill".

Good food!

So as you can see from our few pictures above, we had a wonderful time and are so grateful to Larry & Dolly for all that they do for us! They always make a great effort to make holidays spent, or any time spent with them for that matter, wonderful. We love you! Thank you again!

Stu and I drove back to Charlotte (we had found super cheap one-way tickets down to Destin but couldn't find a good deal back) on the 27th and enjoyed our journey back in our comfortable Saab that they rental company gave us. It was nice! We were tempted to give them back our Malibu and keep the saab.... And then the next day we celebrated my 26th birthday! Stu and I just hung out all day together (we both took the day off) and went out to lunch and shopped, then went to a movie with my family that night. It was really relaxed and a nice way to end vacation.

New Years Eve was extremely low-key and we just celebrated in our pj's with my Mom, Stepdad and my best friend Jess. Stu barely made it back from work to ring in the New Year!

Jess and I practicing our New Year's celebration

Jess and I looking confused about Lady Gaga's performance

beginning as a giant.black.octopus? And about Dick Clark still being

involved in New Year's Rockin Eve...poor guy.

Jess and Luna

Stu and I--Stu is still in his O'Charleys uniform! He had literally walked in the

door at like 11:45.

My momma & stepdad. My mom totally looks like a gnome in this picture. haha :)

My tacky New Year's polish

Luna ringing in the New Year in her own way....

Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2012 is a great year for all! I will miss parts of 2011, but I look forward to the changes 2012 will bring.

Well, I guess we're New Yorkers!

2011-12-04T13:04:00.001-08:00

Stu is going to Dental School!

NYU, baby!

YAY! I am so proud of him. I knew he would get in. And I even had this tiny inkling that he would get into NYU. So...here we go. Off to New York City. In less than a year, we'll be living in the "city that never sleeps" ; "the big apple" ; "the city so nice, they named it twice"; "the capital of the world." etc.etc.etc.

I've only been to NYC once...and that was just a couple of months ago. And it was only for like 36 hours. And my opinion of it is still in progress. So to sum it up, at this point, in three words, New York is: amazing. terrifying. alluring.

I am about 50 % stressed out to move there. And about 30 % excited. And I guess the other 20 % would be good & bad nervousness right now. I have always thought that I would like to spend some time in NYC. And now that it is a reality, I am a bit hesitant. Yet amped up to go. It's a confusing time in my emotional life. Haha.

And I am only stressed because moving to NY seems ridiculous. First of all, HOW to move there? We aren't going to take our car. We don't want to pay to store it. There aren't any parking lots outside your apartment in NY. It's not a normal city. So, should we sell the car? Keep it in NC? And then, if we aren't driving, should we fly? And ship our things? Or rent a moving truck and drive to NY? I think this is what we want to do...but that will definitely be an adventure. Maneuvering a moving truck through the busy streets of NY are going to be hilarious.

And then there is the job situation. I've been reading all these websites and blogs about moving to NYC and it seems that its as cut-throat as I thought it might be. There seem to be way more people than jobs and then even more people moving to the city in hopes of getting one of those scarce jobs. So, getting a job is competitive to say the least. Good thing I would absolutely LOVE to work as a public relations specialist for a non-profit company. That's not particular at all! But, the good new is, if there was a place with a need for public relations--it would be NYC. So, yay for the PR market being expansive...this is actually a great place for me to practice my career :)

And I don't even want to think about the rent situation. It's not like you go to an apartment complex you like and walk in and sign a lease...basically, long story short, apartments are

EXPENSIVE,
also competitive,
rented/leased through all kinds of sources,
tiny,
some require you to go through a broker (who get a percentage of your rent cost), and unless you are willing to pay a deposit + a months rent or more up front +
have proof of an income that is at least 40 times the rent amount +
reliable sources for a referral,

you won't be getting an apartment...so.....going up there unemployed (most likely),
with Stu as a STUDENT (definitely unemployed)
and ready to pay like $2000 cash
and hope they don't care much about my job status is going to be amazing....

Plus we will need to find an apartment that is in a safe area and also close to NYU--commuting wise...(we might have to be looking at apartments in Brooklyn or Queens or other close places)...

"Dear Future Bishop, we will be bugging you with our 4,000,000 questions regarding just how you move to NY...be ready. Love, The Briggs"

It's just so different! It's a crazy place. Things are handled in a way that is completely foreign to me. It is going to take a LOT of research on our part, and we will need to start preparing now. We are thinking, and this is IF Stu doesn't hear from any other schools (there is still a possibility...this obnoxious process can go into March!), we will want to move up there a little early before school starts to get settled. Maybe like mid/late July? Less time than I'd like! I hope to feel less neurotic by that time...

Whatever! Stu got into dental school and that is all that matters. It will all work out. I have faith in this situation. We have been blessed with this and Stu is going to go on to be a successful dentist!

And did I mention that we are going to be within WALKING distance of a temple in Manhattan? Will definitely be taking advantage of this.

Oh, and we can take Luna :) I read that most apartments in NY allow cats. With what I've heard about dental student study habits, Luna and I are going to be BFF.

Please pray for my sanity. Thanks.

P.S. this girls blog is hilarious. I found it while beginning my NYC research.

Our Small Bite out of The Big Apple

2011-10-16T12:48:00.000-07:00

Stuart and I had a great, last-minute opportunity to visit NYC this past week. Stu had applied to NYU for dental school and received an invitation for an interview there...in 2 weeks from that date. So, we quickly threw a trip to New York City together! I was pretty impressed with our planning capabilities--we had a great time and only got on the wrong subway a couple of times ;)

Here is what we did!

Monday 10/10

Flight: 6AM. ugh....Stu and I tried to go to bed as early as possible so that we wouldn't be tired when we got to New York. With only a day and half to spare, we wanted to make the most of it. But, between being night-owls anyway and trying to contain our excitement, we didn't get much sleep the night before. I tried to sleep on the plane a little bit, but its a short flight anyway and I am so glad I kept my eyes open. Upon hovering over the state of NY, the sun greeted us with the most beautiful sunrise! Seeing a sunrise from a plane is quite possibly one of the most amazing things ever. We broke through the clouds and it was like, BAM Sunrise! And NYC below! So cool. Take an early flight to NYC next time you go!

We got to NY around 8. It was perfect weather! High 70's and sun! We had to take a bus and 2 trains from the La Guardia aiport to Manhattan. As soon as we got to Manhattan we dropped our bags off at our hotel (it was too early to check in, so we just had them hold our bags) and went in search of a NY breakfast = real bagels! We had these awesome bagels from a random little cafe a couple blocks from our hotel. While my wonderful husband waited in line for our order, I sat down to take some cold medicine. Talk about bad timing! Stu and I were both fighting stupid sinus infections while in NYC...yay flu season! In the time I sat down, took some cold medicine, and waited a few minutes for Stu, I met my first New York City homeless man! He tapped on the window next to me and motioned for me to come outside!! Um....no. Seriously?!

After bagels we went in search of the NYU dental school. We wanted to map out Stu's route from our hotel to where he needed to be the next morning. We booked a hotel close to the school so that he wouldn't have any issues with commuting and being late. I think it was only like 5 or 6 blocks away.

We got to check-in early after that. 4 hours early! And our hotel was SUPER nice. We found a great deal on a 4-star hotel in Manhattan with our plane tickets through expedia. It was called the Affinia Dumont and I would definitely stay there again. So nice. The little bellhop man got our bags for us and we went up to the 20th story. Our room was pretty big despite what we've heard about NY hotel room sizes. We even had a full kitchen! Here are some pictures (of COURSE i took pictures of our room!)

Us so pumped to be in New York City!

good products! of course.

Don't EVER call me from this phone!

stocked fridge! too bad we aren't drinkers!!

our view...

upon checking in we were asked if we had any feather allergies. the lady explained that the common pillows used in each room are down pillows but if we were not satisfied there would be a pillow MENU available in our room....what?? here is THE pillow menu. haha!

i want that huge mirror!

me being awesome and trying to show how high up we were...

From there we headed uptown towards a little cruise we booked on the Hudson. It was just like an hour and half cruise that took us down the shoreline of Manhattan, near Jersey and Ellis Island; by the Statue of Liberty and by the new World Trade Center, which is still in the rebuilding process. The Statue of Liberty was so pretty! We got a few good shots of it, but they don't do it any justice! Our tour guide finally stopped talking and everyone on the cruise kind of settled down and an almost awed reverence settled in as we passed the statue. It was a great moment! It really is a beautiful statue, although it was smaller than I thought it would be. The new World Trade Center is one, giant building. Indestructible. And is going to cost about 3.2 billion dollars!

here's a little bit of the shoreline view

empire state building towering over it all

new World Trade Center in process

After our little cruise we ate lunch at this little place called "Papaya Dog"...a skeezy little hotdog joint that was PACKED. It was good. greasy of course. but good. AND SO cheap! There was no where to sit so we took our food outside and sat against a building on the ground! haha--classy seats to go with our classy lunch.

Then we decided to hit up Times Square and 5th Avenue and do a little shopping! I emphasize "little" because most of what lines 5th avenue are high-end designer labels...a little out of budget! But we did shop at a 4 story Forever 21--which included a Men's collection! Stu bought a fantastic vest from Forever 21 Men and was pretty pumped that he couldn't get it in NC. The Forever 21 in NYC even had maternity and kids collections! We also found a 3 story H & M and I bought a cute turquoise blazer. I've been on the hunt for one for Fall and I absolutely love the one I found. Leave it H & M to never disappoint me! We found a few other fun things and ended up walking around for more sightseeing. We saw St. Patricks amazing cathedral (I think I would attend Mass here despite my lack of Catholic beliefs...just to spend some time inside! It is absolutely gorgeous.), Radio City Music Hall (yay Rockettes!), the Apple store which also served as a makeshift memorial for Steve Jobs and lots more. Here's a few of our pictures:

Times Square madness

We found the Tin Man in NYC!

The Naked CowGIRL?

THE 5th Avenue! With THE Saks behind the sign!

St. Patricks Cathedral

Radio City Music Hall

can you see all the colorful sticky notes on the wall outside the apple store? People were leaving their condolences--so neat!

randomness...

We then continued to Central Park. We only walked through a small bit of Central Park, but I fell in love with it anyway. It was such a nice change from the busy hustle and bustle of the city! Its like we stepped into this tranquil other world although we were only across the street! What a relief to have something like this in NYC. We walked through the zoo bit, although we didn't go into the actual zoo. I loved how old it was! Very pretty architecture. It was fun to see little NYC families playing at the playgrounds and picnicking in the grass. I could see myself spending a lot of time here if Stu ended up at NYU.

funny bench...

Our last stop before dinner was the Empire State Building! We got our tickets online beforehand (best decision EVER--super long wait for tickets!) and zipped through the line to the elevator and up we went EIGHTY-SIX stories! We were told to do the empire state building at night. It was a tad pricey, but ever so worth it! The view was breathtaking! I was so in love with New York City at that moment! K, our camera pretty much failed at taking decent shots of the city (with all the lights I think it was just struggling to focus on something) But this is what we got:

We ended the day with pizza from the oldest pizza chain in America--the famous Lombardi's pizzeria! It was SO GOOD. Different. But good. We went with the Margherita pizza (fresh mozzerella, basil and meatballs (?) ) You could tell that they used only fresh ingredients! Mmmmmm...

So, funny story. We went to the E.S.B around 9:30pm and thought we'd have PLENTY of time to make it Lombardi's before they closed at midnight. However, we took a wrong turn somewhere and could NOT find a subway station to save our life! And no buses were stopping?! So, we were like, let's not take a cab, we can't be THAT far from Little Italy. Like an hour later, practically limping because our feet hurt so bad by this point (we had been walking for like 12+ hours!) we arrived at Lombardi's: and were told by the hostess that they closed in 20 minutes (it was around 10:40 pm). We were like what?! So we ordered it to go and had to WALK again to the nearest subway station. Luckily we found a better route back. It was just funny that we were like carting this pizza around and just wanted to like sit down and rest SO BAD. haha! So, we FINALLY get back to the hotel around like midnight and heat our pizza up in the oven! Thank god for our random little kitchen!

Tuesday 10/11

Stu was up bright and early to get ready for his interview at 8am. I got up with him but had no intention of staying up. I WAS EXHAUSTED! My feet/back/head hurt so I went back to bed. Haha. I'm like, I KNOW I only have like a few hours left in NYC, but I just want to lay here in this really nice bed and do nothing. But, I did get up at like 10 and got ready/packed/checked-out and went out to explore on my own for a bit. The hotel was gracious enough to check our bags for us even though we checked out already for awhile so we wouldn't have to lug them around the city. Our flight wasn't leaving till 8pm.

Stu got done with his interview around 1:30 pm and I met him at the NYU dental building. His interview went well overall he thought! And he liked the presentation on the school and the facilities. We have to wait till December to hear from them!! Ugh...

After meeting up, I dragged Stu to MOOD! (Just kidding--he totally wanted to go.) If you watch Project Runway you know what I'm talking about. If you don't--Mood is basically this amazing designer fabric store! It's in the third story of this building and you have to get into one of those old-school elevators with the gate that closes before the elevator door does. And a little elevator attendant had to ride with us up! It was way cool! 3 stories of lovely, lovely, quality fabrics! You could seriously construct anything you've ever wanted to there. They had EVERYTHING. And everything was really nice. And soft! And beautiful! And I was running around crazy trying to figure out where to start! I settled on a nice cotton-blend fabric (cheapest and easiest)--but I love it! It's gorgeous. And I can't wait to play with it. I'm thinking I will make a skirt. The little man that cut my fabric was adorable. And foreign. And cut it for me perfectly on the right line! (Why thank you sir! Saved me some work...) It was an amazing store and I wish we could live in NYC just for the sheer thought that I could spend my days wandering through this store. ;)

After Mood, we wandered around a bit more. Went into the biggest Macy's in the world. Ate an amazing fruit tartlet from a cafe. Went into a few more stores/boutiques. Went to Chinatown. Chinatown was terrifying so we got back on the train to Manhattan. And then we ate (we ate a lot) a late lunch at an amazing thai place. Seriously some of the best thai food i've ever had! And I would say Stu and I are pretty good judges of thai food....it's stu's favorite, so we scout out thai places often....haha. After lunch, it was about time to scoop up our bags and make our way towards the airport.

New York City was fantastic. And to have seen so much in such a short amount of time, I would say we were pretty successful! We had a blast and I hope to return again soon. I would maybe not do AS MUCH as we did in one day if I had to do it again--my feet are STILL aching. And maybe plan a little better. And look at a subway map beforehand. But, it was all worth it.

I LOVE NY!

Here are a few more random memories and pictures from the trip:

1. Visiting the Walgreens in Times Square like 3 times! We needed bandaids, deodorant for Stu and redbulls....3 different trips. Awesome. And we paid like $7 for bandaids I think. Walgreens brand. Like I said, awesome.

2. No sales tax on clothing in NY! Holla! But crazy sales tax on everything else....

3. Crazy white woman on the bus to the airport was rapping 50 cent....and yelling at other passengers...and had hair that was part red/part blond. And she had rotted teeth. And to top it off was carrying a really bad fake coach bag.

4. We saw tons of street musicians. But my favorite was the 40-some year old woman serenading us on her FLUTE while waiting for the subway...

5. Only negative item: NY was so dirty! And smelly at times! I didn't even think about this until I was there...gross. And I HATED the crowds. I underestimated just how friggin crowded NY is. I mean like, BEYOND crowded. I mean, Hello armpit of the stranger next to me on the subway....So as for living there for 4 years? I could do it...but I think we would be ready to leave shortly after.

Stu outside of our hotel. Oh, so fancy.

Me going down into the subway station

Stu on the subway

Wow.

2011-09-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

I am overwhelmed. Today was the last Sunday for our ward to contribute to the food drive that we have been doing throughout the month of September. Our ward chose to contribute to two different organizations: 1) The Cooperative Christian Ministries--who take donations for the area's local food bank and 2) Pat's Place--the organization that I get to volunteer for on a weekly basis...see here.

I was pumped when the Relief Society president of our ward came to me and asked if the ward could add Pat's Place to the food drive we'd be doing--she knew about it because I used to be her visiting teacher, and she happened to remember the organization and their needs, etc. She's basically an amazing person and doing a fantastic job being Relief Society President!

And I was just as pumped when she asked me to organize the Pat's Place side of the drive! Yay for getting to use my PR skills! (Can you tell I am beyond ready to stop playing the nanny and have a "real" job?) So off I went to design a flier, and a handout, and organize how the drive would run to ensure optimal results. I even went into each organization in the ward and gave a little background information speech about Pat's Place so that the ward would understand the great need for assistance there. I felt I did pretty much all that I could to set-up a good drive.

But for some reason I was nervous about it. The donations needed were pretty specific. Healthy snacks. Non-perishable. Pre-packaged. 100 % juice boxes and bottled water. And you know how some people just fail to pay attention to details sometimes? Even though they want to help...sometimes people struggle with what is actually needed? I had already informed the executive director of P.P of the drive and she was so excited! They were about to be out of snacks to give the children that come to P.P and this is an important aspect of how they run their organization. As a non-profit organization, they rely on things like donations. I wanted our ward to come through!

For 3 weeks I watched the barrel set up in the foyer of the church building. I watched it look rather empty for 3 weeks straight. Not many donations were being added, for either cause. Despite the announcements made in sacrament meeting, the notification in the bulletin, the fliers I made, the handouts I gave out, etc....

Then today, I walked in late to sacrament meeting. It was an awkward morning made totally worth it because I was able to get my little sister to come with me to church. However, we came in late and opted to stay in the foyer for the remainder of the meeting. When I saw the barrel for the food drive, on its last day to accept donations, I was overcome with emotion. Not only was the barrel overflowing with bags of food, they were spread all across the floor around the barrel.

I sat on the floor of the foyer after church to sort out the donations. In my sunday best; a pencil skirt and platform heels. And surrounded by granola bars, fruit snacks, 100 calorie packets, 100% juice boxes, boxes of raisins and nuts, etc. All the healthy snacks you could pretty much think of that were appropriate. And if that wasn't enough, as I was sorting, our Primary president brought like 3 more grocery bags over to me that she was personally donating. And THEN a few very nice young men, including our little elders and their investigator brought all of the food to my car for me. (They must have seen me struggle to get off of the floor in my heels without flashing the world....) Stu was M.I.A at church today due to O'Charleys holding his soul for ransom...p.s.

**PLUS all of the donations I have received from my amazing family members and friends.** Thank You! I Love You so much!

I am overwhelmed. Our ward totally came through! And then some! Everyone was so generous! I feel completely awful for doubting them--I should have remembered that Mormons are a little late sometimes ;)

I cannot WAIT to deliver the goods to Pat's Place. It feels so good to give to those that are in need. I think its so easy to forget sometimes how good we have it. Even when we think we don't--we do...in comparison to those that are truly struggling. Like the little children who come to Pat's Place and are given a healthy snack while they wait to be interviewed/medically examined/counseled and comforted about the abuse they have received. It may be the only healthy thing they've had all day. Or all week. Who knows that kind of homes they come from??

I hope to continue trying to do as the Savior has. To be selfless and giving. To be mindful of those that are not as blessed or lucky as I am. To try and not complain about my life, as it is pretty much perfection compared to others. I have a roof over my head. More food than is necessary. A working car. A job. Amazing family and friends. A loving & supportive husband. Knowledge of God and his plan for us. And I could go on forever. I am SO beyond blessed and am so grateful for my life. I know that I have a loving Heavenly Father who knows me individually and my struggles. I know that he loves me, as does my Savior Jesus Christ, who's selfless sacrifice I feel I do not deserve somedays. This little stepping stone in the right direction of service to others is so intoxicating. It feels so good to forget myself. Here's to becoming more involved in finding service opportunities of any magnitude!

YEAH CONCORD WARD. Ya'll are amazing :)

Family Dinner

2011-06-28T17:11:00.000-07:00

Every month, our good friends The Roundy's (Preston & Emily) & Amelia Guffey, take turns hosting dinner--which we call "Family Dinner." Emily, Amelia & I once lived together while living in Wilmington, NC and pretty much consider one another sisters. We have always stayed close ever since we formed our threesome in 2005. Amelia & I have known one another since we were 12 and when I met Emily at UNC Charlotte, I just knew she'd click with Amelia. And they did! And now that we have added husbands to the mix, we are just one big, happy family :) These dinners also tend to have a few extra friends thrown into the mix depending on who is hosting. This has made for new friends!

Stuart & I had our turn hosting Family Dinner this past Sunday night. We decided to go with kabobs since summer & cookouts make perfect sense.

SIDENOTE:Speaking of cookouts--we had this discussion the other day--if you are from the South you understand that a "cookout" includes anything that you grill. Which can also include bbq sauce. And a "barbecue" equals pulled pork/ribs. And on top of that, Southern barbecue doesn't involve much bbq sauce--its vinegar based & you eat it with red slaw.

... Just to make things clear to all you yankees ;) jk.

So at our cookout we served grilled kabobs loaded with chicken that had been marinating in teriyaki sauce over night, red onion, yellow/green/red peppers & pineapple. Stu did the grilling (& I got a crash course lesson on grilling!) and they turned out beautifully! They were yummy and so summer-y! We served toasted- coconut fused rice & a spinach salad on the side. And Emily brought HOMEMADE cinnamon rolls much to Stuart's excitement. Stuart is slightly obsessed with cinnamon rolls...They were amazing!

After lots to eat & great conversation, we decided that it was Cornhole time. Ever played cornhole? It's way fun. It's a beanbag toss game in which you try and get your beanbags on the platform or into the hole. Getting a beanbag into the hole gets you more points, but is of course more difficult. But if you are me you are just happy to get it onto the platform and not on the ground. We played one round and then decided we were ready for the air conditioning. Inside we played one of Stuart's favorite card games, "Egyptian Rat Screw." A ridiculously long game that involves lots of slapping the card deck. Emily won by forfeit of everyone left playing (she had the most cards when they quit.) The game might have never ended otherwise, haha :)

The night was a blast and Stuart and I are so grateful for such wonderful friends! We are looking forward to the next Family Dinner!

Here are some pictures from our fun night:

The Set-Up

Stu hard at work grilling the kabobs...Amelia in the background being, Amelia :)

The Kabobs.

The Friends. Love this candid shot!

And a not-so candid shot. What is with the weird faces?

Lara Stroud & I

Cornhole game. What are you doing Jess? Haha! I have to point out in this picture how cute Preston & Emily are. They are always standing close to one another/holding hands/arms around one another...I think it is just so precious :) You can just tell that they are so in love!

Looking up cornhole rules...haha! we were so prepared...

Game faces. White vs. Black.

Jessica Howle, Lara & I.

Jess in action.

Preston's go.

Go Lara!

Stu was the only one holding up our team, he was great! Lara & I were pretty much failures. And as a result, we lost. Sorry babe!

Stu and I trying to take a good picture...

Summer is HERE!

2011-06-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

I am L to the O to the V-I-N-G summer here in North Carolina! It is HOT and HUMID and it seems to have been THUNDERSTORMING like mad, but I am eating it up because I have missed this so!

Stu and I have been up to some pretty fun stuff lately. It seems that summer is supposed to be filled with cookouts & fishing & baseball games & winning a hundred dollars........so we are doing just that! ;)

Just this past weekend, Stu and I attended 2 different cookouts. One, was my grandmother's 80th birthday party/family reunion in Denton, NC. This is an annual reunion that is always held at a place called "The Farm." It is a beautiful property with a charming old farm house that many people in my mom's family have lived it at some point, including my mother. It has so much history and just seems like an appropriate location for the reunion. I haven't been able to attend The Farm Reunion in YEARS, so it was nice to continue on with an old tradition. I was also able to see, and Stu able to meet, many cousins/aunts/uncles that I haven't seen in forever. Everyone was all grown up & married/going to college/having babies--it was crazy! I felt like it was just last year we were all running around chasing one another with sparklers in our hands and pigtails flailing behind us. And my grandmother was so surprised! She had no idea we were combining the reunion with her birthday and we all started singing "Happy Birthday" when she walked up. She was so precious and appreciative. I love her so much and she doesn't look a day over 60! I hope I have those genes somewhere...

The second cookout we attended was for one of my best girlfriends, Amber Thomas. It was her birthday celebration and a friend of hers threw a cookout in her honor. It was fun to meet so many of Amber's other friends that I had heard about but hadn't met. And it was nice to see some mutual friends that I hadn't seen in forever! Stu was a good sport even though he only knew Amber. This may sound weird, but I am so grateful for a husband that is great in social settings. I don't feel like he is glued to me--he is gregarious and independent and carries on polite conversations with strangers. It's just nice to see that we are individuals as well as a couple. I don't feel like I have to stay beside him constantly or make sure that he is having fun. I find that a very attractive quality and have definitely dated people that were not outgoing and I always felt tied down at social events... anyway, it was a good time and it was fun helping Amber celebrate her 27th!

Myself, Amber & our mutual friend Amie

Stu has also been fishing like it is his job. Surprise there right? When Stu gets into something--he goes all out! There is no convincing him otherwise. No matter what time he gets in from work the night before, as in 1 am for example, he will still wake up at 5 am to go fishing. Now that is dedication! And I guess dedication pays off because he has been doing great lately and has caught a lot of fish and some have been pretty big. I am glad that he has a hobby he enjoys and one that he and my brother can share. I love that they get along so well and enjoy one another's company. I just don't understand why they have to go 3-4 times A WEEK?! Oh well...whatever makes him happy! Here is a pretty big one he caught last week:

Now, I am not the biggest baseball fan. And I really am not the biggest fan of watching baseball on TV. But, if I GO to a baseball game, I am a pretty good sport. I just think it's boring and SO LONG. But, going to the games can be a pretty good time and something different, so Stu and I went to an Intimidators game with our friends Preston & Emily Roundy this past week. The Intimidators are the minor league baseball team of Kannapolis, NC. I have been to many of their games in my life, just none recently, until this past week. It was fun! Eventhough it definitely rained. A lot. But, we stuck it out! We were troopers! We stayed till the end and lost by a point. It was nice, even with the rain, to be out at a sporting event, cheering for "our" team. We even had hot dogs--DUH, it was a baseball game :) The games have fireworks on Fridays, so we will have to go back....and maybe when it isn't raining.

Try #1 at a group picture under umbrellas...

Take 2.

Take 3?

Last try...not the best but at least you can see everyone's face!

So, about that hundred dollars I mentioned above. Hear me out before you jump on your soap box or put on your judging face...I wouldn't consider Stu and I gamblers. You might think Stu was if you saw him and Justin at the casino on our cruise, but we really don't want to get real involved with that scene. We have however, occasionally played a few scratch cards for fun. It isn't a regular habit. Gambling doesn't appeal to me--I am pretty dang careful with money (ask Stu about how much I harass him about our expenses...)--and I absolutely HATE paying for something with nothing in return. BUT, we bought 5 scratch cards the other night for the heck of it (at $1 each) and straight up WON $100! Now, although gambling doesn't appeal to me--winning a decent amount of money makes you WANT TO make gambling appealing! Haha. No worries though. Can you believe it?! Some people spend tons of money and time on those stupid scratch cards and we put in $5 for fun and win $100! We were jumping up and down like we had just won the lottery. The highschoolgirl at the check out stand took the card to scan it and then her eyes got all big and she just looked at us and I'm all, "RIGHT?!" Way fun. Way worth that $5. And we won't make it a habit. Promise.

Here is Stu with our winning card!

So, needless to say, we have had a fun summer so far! With much more to look forward to!

June 26th-June 28th=Annual Girls Beach Trip with my mom & sister!

June 27th-July 1st= paid vacation for me! The family I nanny will be in Singapore...and I plan on sleeping in every.single.day.

July 1-3rd = Virigina Beach with our friends Jamie & Dylan Ferguson for beach fun and the christening of their daughter and our goddaughter, Stella :)

Can it just be summer all year long please???

Can it just be January already?

2011-06-07T20:19:00.000-07:00

These next SIX months are going to D-R-A-G. Know why? Because that's how long it is going to take for us to find out where Stu is going to be attending dental school. Raise your hand if you think applying to dental school is the most ridiculous & most expensive process ever?! MY HAND IS RAISED...HIGH. Let me break this down for you...mastercard style:

Preparing for the DAT $500. (books Stu will only use for a one-time test...)

Taking the DAT $300.

Applying to 8 dental schools $1400. (I think I just threw up in my mouth...)

Possible interviews=possible flights=possible hotel rooms $...

PLUS waiting 6 months to even hear anything. at. all.

...

Let's just say we hope the end of this crazy math equation equals PRICELESS.

But, I am sure that it will. I have one brilliant husband who is dedicated and motivated and super super smart. Who knows where we will end up next fall, for now, here are the options:

The 8 schools that Stu has applied to:

1. UNC

2. Virginia Commonwealth University

3. ECU (NC)

4. University of Tennessee

5. University of Louisville (KY)

6. Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health (A.T. Still University)

7. NYU

8. University of Maryland

So, I know you might be thinking that this list is totally random, but the problem with applying to dental school is that many state schools only accept those of their kind. Meaning NO out of state residents allowed. Or some only take like 1 or 2 out of state residents. So, Stu had to go through and look at which schools had good odds of accepting out of state to in state or which private schools were reasonable, etc. Pretty much a huge headache and I am just glad Stu has decided on the schools he is applying to.

Stu would love to get into a NC dental school of course so that we could stay in the loveliness of the South and close to everything that we love...BUT it's just a few years and if we end up freezing our tooshies off in New York or scorching our skin under the Arizona sun--so be it. I am just pumped for this next chapter in our life.

Hooray the DAT is over!

2011-05-29T17:47:00.000-07:00

As you all know, Stuart has been QUITE busy lately. Especially the past 2 weeks. Stu took off this past week from work and I STILL didn't see him. He has been married to his DAT study materials for the past couple weeks. But, I didn't mind one bit because all his hard work PAID OFF! He took the DAT on Friday and scored a 21! I am SO proud of him. And SO grateful for how much the Lord has blessed us. And for everyone's kind thoughts & prayers. Stu got a great score and therefore has a great chance of getting into dental school. I knew he'd do fine--he's a genius!

Stu was feeling really stressed on Thursday night, so we called up a family friend, John Stroud and asked if he would give Stu a priesthood blessing for comfort and peace. We were so glad we knew someone personally that we could turn to, aside from family, and that Stuart felt comfortable with. We don't have home teachers. Justin was in Washington. And my dad lives an hour away. So, we were so grateful for John's willingness to help Stu out. I could see the ease on Stu's face after John's beautiful blessing. It made me SO grateful for the priesthood and for how much it can bless your home & others' lives. Don't know what I'm talking about? Here is a beautifully written talk about the blessings of the priesthood.

So, what's next for Stu? He begins the application process on Tuesday...at midnight... He is thinking of applying to about 6-8 schools. I am so pumped for him but so NOT pumped for how expensive this is all going to be...but, I'm sure it will be worth it in the long run!

Speaking of expensive...Stu and I received an influx of our loan re-payment mail this past week. SO not looking forward to these new monthly payments. Why does school have to cost so much???

Besides money stress, Stu and I have just been enjoying the Carolina summer weather! I get to lay out at the pool pretty much everyday at my job because the kids LOVE to go to their neighborhood pool anytime they can. I love it too! It's a way nice pool that's pretty big and even has a waterslide. My skin is freaking out because I was so vitamin D deficient in Idaho....so, I am loving this "paid-to-get-tan" thing! Although now my job hours are pretty much either 8-7 or 12-7 because the kids are out of school for the summer. Not too bad when it's 12-7! Those longer days kind of exhaust me but at least its good money!

Stu is also looking forward to fishing more with Justin now that he doesn't have to keep his nose in a DAT book. He also wants to find a different job--one that doesn't require cooking or cleaning till LATE every night. I'd love that too! It'd be nice to be home around the same time.

Memorial Day:

I had the day off today and it was paid too! Stu and I got to spend part of Memorial Day together before he had to work. But, before I even WOKE UP he went fishing with my step-dad David. They left around 6:30 AM this morning and unfortunately didn't have much luck. They said that everywhere they went was pretty crazy crowded...poor guys.

Stu joined me & my friend Lara at the pool that her mom works at during the summer after he got back from fishing. We got in free and even got to get in early and claim chairs before the rush! It was so nice. So relaxing. So refreshing! Today was HOT. Then Stu had to go to work :(

I continued to hang with Lara and we later met up with my mom, our friend Jessica and her mom and had a girls night out. We celebrated lara's birthday (which is Wednesday!) with dinner out and cake at home. It was fun and we all got to catch up because Jess' mom was visiting from Ohio. Jess, Lara and I were inseparable in highschool and I am so glad we have remained such close friends. We all went to college away from one another, Jess went to St. Mary's in Indiana, Lara went to the U of Hawaii and I bounced around from UNCC, UNCW and then to BYU-Idaho-- and still managed to keep in close touch. I love this about us and feel that we will all remain close always.

It was a good day off :)

Current photos:

Stu holding Luna up to get a bug. This is their new thing. He finds bugs that Luna can't reach herself and aids her in catching them. She eats the bugs we don't want. Kinda weird, I know. But also endearing ;) Stu loves that little cat!

See?! Love. Mutal love. Luna will lay across his shoulder like this. Or perch up on his back and just chill. She does not do this to me, nor would I like her to.

Stu and I being twins. This was NOT planned. We are not one of THOSE couples.

Jess, Lara & I at Lara's bday dinner. Love us :)

Girls Night Out!

Typical...

Upcoming excitement:

Stu applying to and hopefully interviewing with different dental schools.

Stu looking into the Airforce.

Vacation at the end of June--hopefully Wilmington!

The Girls Beach Trip--a tradition with my momma, my sister, my friend Lara & her mom.

Camping with my Dad & Kathleen and my siblings.

Volunteer work with Pat's Place. Click here to see what I'm talking about.

Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!

Our 2nd Anniversary

2011-05-03T08:39:00.000-07:00

Stu and I have been married for TWO years! Yay!

To celebrate our two year anniversary, Stu and I decided to just "get away" for the night. Living with my Mom & StepDad is awesome but we just kind of wanted to go away and have a night together away from all the noise of a house with 4 people & get away from our cat child...who is crazy. If you didn't know, we have changed her name from Luna to LunaTIC. Haha. She can be sweet but she LOVES to play and be active, more so than other cats I have had or known! We really wanted to stay the night at The Dunhill hotel in uptown Charlotte, where we spent out wedding night, but it's like $250 a night. So, we opted for something a little cheaper...but not scary.

We also went to The Melting Pot for dinner, a fondue restaurant. Stuart had never done fondue and it seemed like an anniversary kind of dinner. It's kind of pricey and it takes a couple of hours, but its something fun & different and our dinner was pretty fantastic! We spent 2 hours there and had 4 courses. The restaurant's atmosphere is super nice because the lighting is very dim and your table is very private and inclusive. The walls of your little booth are taller and there aren't tables packed together back to back. So, we just had one other table in our area of the restaurant and we couldn't even see them. It was very intimate and anniversary-esque. We started with a cheese fondue (we picked a gruyere/blue cheese/fontina blend) and had bread, vegetables & granny smith apples to dip. It was really strong but REALLY yummy. Then we had really nice caesar salads with candied pine nuts, croutons & parmesan cheese.

Our entree courses were called "The Pacific Rim" and "The French Quarter." The Pacific Rim had shrimp, potstickers, chicken, teriyaki sirloin, pork and duck. The French Quarter's meat was coated in a cajun rub. It had shrimp, chicken, filet mignon & andouille sausage. We just kind of split the entrees and got to try everything with like 6 different house-made sauces they brought us. We also had potatoes, broccoli & mushrooms to cook. Everything was really good--especially the teriyaki sirloin.

Dessert was by far the BEST. We decided we'd go back just for dessert. We picked a milk chocolate/crunchy peanut butter fondue and they brought out rice krispy treats, brownies, pound cake, marshmallows, bananas, strawberries & cheesecake to dip! It was a-m-a-z-i-n-g.

So, needless we say, we left full and satisfied :) It was a fun night out and nice to celebrate our 2nd year of marriage in a different way.

Stu gave me 2 Roses for 2 Years :) Stu's little tradition: A rose for each year. Love him!

I was thinking about how things have changed over the past 2 years and I feel like Stu and I have been pretty consistent. We didn't have a hard time adjusting to one another at all from Day 1. Stu doesn't have any real weird quirks and we have learned to let little things not bug us. He accepts me and my weird quirks without question.We talk everything through and can read one another pretty well. We laugh a lot and I think this helps keep things chill.

Here are a few random things that have developed over the past 2 years:

Stu HAS to sleep on the right side of the bed (if you were in the bed facing forward). I never really cared for a side, I always slept right in the middle of my bed when I was single. He also claims that I am a cover stealer and really hard to steal back from.

I am HORRIBLE at waking up to an alarm...especially on Sunday mornings. We always go to bed SO late! Stu usually turns it off and then makes me get up. And sometimes he has to be persistent about this...It depends on the situation but I really hate getting up. Stu is fantastic to always make sure I get up and get in the shower. He knows I will take longer to get ready so he always sets the alarm for ME and then gets up when I'm out of the shower.

Stu has A LOT of clothes and shoes. More than any boy that I dated. haha :) he also loves to shop which is a bonus for me :) I like that he cares how he looks and cares about style--and that he has his OWN style that he mixes with trends. It's so cute! So needless to say, combined we have a ridiculous amount of clothing/shoes/accessories. Out of control.

Stu and I can NEVER decide on a restaurant. It always takes forever to figure out something that we both want and we usually drive around an area of choices for a good while before someone gives in to where the other wants to eat...hahaha

I always scoot my feet under Stu's bum when I'm cold. Like if we are sitting on a couch. And he lets me just leave them there like an amazing husband :)

Stu is by far the better cook and if I am cooking, he usually takes over anyway. He just kind of nudges his way in and before I know it, I am watching him finish the meal. I think he's just so used to cooking and he really has a knack for it, so he knows how to make things really tasty! It's just funny because he can't complain that I never cook because he is the reason! Although with my job forcing me to cook EVERY DAY--I am doing pretty well! I am experimenting a lot and learning lots.

Our date night lately is usually Tuesday night because Stu works the weekend.

We don't really watch a whole lot of TV--it seems there aren't a whole lot of options on TV anymore except for reality crap. But, we DO watch a lot of movies. We love our Netflix account! The best movie we've seen in awhile was "The King's Speech". If you haven't seen it go watch it right.now. It was fantastic!

Stu can fall asleep ANYWHERE. ANYTIME. seriously. I always ask Stu if he is going to fall asleep before we watch a movie because I hate when he falls asleep after we've decided to watch one together. So if he looks sleepy, I always vote that I will watch something by myself or read or something else. And he can go to bed. His privileges are taken away. Haha. I don't know why I care about this so much...I am a mean wife!

Stu and I hardly ever fight. Seriously. And if we do, it's over in like 10 minutes. We have silly arguments like everyone else, but these are usually way pointless and it usually ends up being funny. We are just on the same page most of the time. And I think our personalities mesh well and neither of us is high strung. Thankfully! For example: Recent trivial disagreements:

1. Stu likes to turn on every light possible and I like as little light as possible...he calls me a vampire because I prefer lamps and candles to harsh overhead lighting. He always leaves the bathroom light, vanity light & shower light ALL on ALL the time...this seems pointless to me...I am anal about things like that--I'm such a spaz.

2. Stu has been stealing my towels lately...why?! we have too many towels stored right under the sink!

3. Stu's fishing obsession has gotten him into a little trouble with me lately...only when he disregards OUR predetermined plans to stay out and fish longer with my brother Justin... Justin & Stu seem to get into this trouble together with Natalie & I on the same side! They are not good together and fishing has taken over their minds!

4. Money is our biggest disagreement. I watch our bank account like a hawk and always am aware of bills going out/coming in/etc. I guess you could say that I am the one that handles our money. Stu & I both like to spend money but I am the one that will stress out about it. I always get buyers remorse! It is my weak point...I hate money so much! I hate how it controls everything! Stu doesn't seem to give much thought to it and this will stress me out. Haha! But he helps me become level-headed and we are good about sticking to our budget when we discuss things.

We are just a good balance!

Those are just some random things that our marriage involves thus far. We are pretty much madly in love and happy as clams :)

Here's to an infinity of years to come!

Easter Sunday

2011-04-24T18:56:00.001-07:00

Isn't it amazing how Easter is always a beautiful day? It's just so fitting considering what we are celebrating. Easter Sunday here was absolutely gorgeous! Sunshine & warm weather with no clouds in sight. After a week FULL of rain and thunderstorms this was SO nice.

This weekend was very relaxing. I had good friday off (and paid!) so I lazed around Friday & Saturday at home (it was so nice to just be HOME for once) and did all the traditional Easter things we do in our family: made THE bunny cake, dyed eggs & watched The Ten Commandments on TV. Stu had to work all weekend so it was just a quiet and chill weekend with my self :)

Here it is! The Traditional Bunny Cake. Except this year I decorated it by myself...My mom has made this every Easter ever since I was a child :)

Our Easter Sunday began with church where Stu aided me in my primary lesson beautifully :) He has such a great way with explaining things in the gospel in simple terms. The kids really listen to him and I feel like I get a tiny glimpse into "Missionary Stuart" anytime he helps me teach. We had a great lesson and the kids did a pretty good job sitting still and listening considering the outrageous amount of sugar they had all probably consumed this morning before church (thank you easter bunny).

After church we joined my Mom & David and my BFF Jess (she is an honorary member of the family and is therefore included in all holidays in which she does not go to Ohio) and all drove up to my grandparents house in Denton, NC for a lovely Easter lunch. My grandma had a festive table set up outdoors under big shade trees for us! It was so cute. We had fantastic food as always with my Grandma and then all went for a drive. Considering it was such a beautiful day we drove down the road to the family's farm--a place that all reunions are held at and where many family members have lived at some point. It's a place full of great memories and lots of stories. It's such a pretty property and we walked around and reminisced and just enjoyed the afternoon. Stu and Jess also got to meet my famous twin great-aunts, Carlene & Marlene who live in another house on the property. They are a blog in itself, so if you have never heard anything about these crazy women, I'll have to devote some time to them later. I plan to write a book later in life and include them as main characters. They.Are.Something.Else.

We left Denton after visiting the farm & my great-aunts and came home to visit with Natalie & Justin who had been at the beach over the weekend.

That was pretty much it. Short but Sweet. It was just nice to relax and enjoy the Easter holiday and reflect on what our Savior has done for us. I am grateful for this time of year and to see the beauty of Spring come out in full bloom and to think of the Resurrection and how we have all been given that gift. What a beautiful time of year! Hope all of you had a fantastic Easter holiday as well.

The BIG 30!

2011-04-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

Stu is THIRTY! Ah! Here is how he spent his special day:

First of all, 3 weeks ago Stu began his celebration. He went with my brother Justin on a weekend fishing trip in Charleston. Justin turns 30 in May so they went to celebrate being almost-30 together. They had a great time!

Today (his actual birthday) we began celebrating by going to breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Know how much I love my husband? I love him SO much that I woke up at 6:30 to go eat breakfast with him on his birthday before he spent the day fishing (he's ADDICTED). That's right--6:30 when I don't even have to be ANYWHERE until 12. That.Is.True.Love. I love my sleep! So, we had a yummy breakfast (we were like 2 of 7 people there...) and sent Stu off to go fish.

Stu went to a local lake called Lake Fisher where you MUST rent a boat to fish. So, Stu went fishing by himself (sad! stupid work...) in a little rowboat that he rented there and fished from about 8am to 3pm. He said that he actually enjoyed the peace and tranquility of being out there by himself on the lake, in nature. Because it is Spring time he saw lots of nature! Baby ducks, snapping turtles, cranes...and he caught a fish! He was kind of bummed that he didn't catch more fish, but still enjoyed being out on the lake. It sounded like a good time. We will have to go back together sometime :)

Then after I got home from work & after Stu got home from cubscouts (that is dedication!) we met up with some family for dinner at a Japanese steakhouse in town called Sogo. It was yummy! And too much food! We had a great chef! He did lots of fun tricks as he cooked in front of us and even brought Stu a birthday cupcake and sang to him. So cute.

David, Mom & Riley (David's granddaughter)

Birthday Boy & I

Dad & Justin (Natalie had to work--sad!)

The Birthday Cupcake

After dinner we came back home and Stu blew out his birthday candles--we just had a "3" and a "0" candles instead of 30 individual candles for his self-esteem and all...haha. I made him a strawberry cake with cream cheese icing (his choice!).

Like that editing effect? haha.

For his birthday, Stu also picked out some sweet new headphones. Like nice studio headphones. Funny story--I always stress about what to get Stu for his birthday or for Christmas because I feel like he is hard to shop for. And I probably think too much about it, but I had the idea to get him some nice headphones. He is always listening/recording/downloading music so I felt like this would be a great step up. But, the problem was, I didn't know much about what makes a good pair of headphones. I had done a ton of research and looked at a lot of reviews but just couldn't decide between a few pairs. And Stu is a lover of the "surprise element." He doesn't want to know what he is getting so he is absolutely no help when I ask him what he wants. So, I finally was like, "Look. I have this great idea for your birthday present but I really need you to pick it out so that it is perfect. Can I please tell you what I want to get you?" He agreed :) And picked out some very nice Sony headphones. He is super happy with them and I am even happier that he loves his gift!

Isn't he just so cute in his new headphones? ;)

The Happy Couple :) and yes Stu is sunburned from Charleston still...and slightly cut off in this picture...

Lunatic on top of one of Stu's birthday cards...this is her way of wishing him a happy day we just know it...

Stu had a great day thanks to lots of calls & cards from loving family and friends as well. Wish you all were here to celebrate this big day for Stu with us! We love you all!

An Update.

2011-04-06T20:58:00.000-07:00

Lately....

STU:

Stu just returned from a fun birthday trip with my brother Justin. The boys are celebrating turning 30 (Stu=April 13th & Justin=May 10th) and decided to celebrate by fishing. They went down to Charleston for the weekend and went out with a guide on the ocean and they both caught pretty big fish! They had a great time and I'm glad they are good friends. I think they go fishing pretty much every weekend. Rain or shine! Boys will be boys...

Stu also literally JUST finished his internship this past Tuesday! Yay! He is finally a college graduate for real! Now he just has to wait for that diploma to arrive and it will be official :) I received mine pretty quickly so hopefully he will too and we can get them framed. He enjoyed his internship and getting to see what his life will be like in the future, but he hated that it wasn't very hands-on. He pretty much just watched for 5 hours a day/2 days a week! BORING! But, he saw some cool stuff and still wants to be a dentist, so I guess it was successful! He got a lot of great tips from the dentist he interned with (who went to UNC) and hopes to just apply what he's learned. He's also been chatting with a counselor in our ward's bishopric who is an orthodontist and went to UNC. So hopefully he has made some fantastic contacts! Next step for Stu? Taking...the...D.A.T! May 27th! So close...he has been studying his little hiney off and feels more confident about it each day.

Stu also works like 5 days a week at O'Charleys and pretty much hates his life. I remind him that "at least he has a job" and "I know how he feels because I've also worked the terrible restaurants jobs" yada yada yada I'm the nagging wife on this subject...but none of that makes an impact...he hates it so much :( Poor thing. Hopefully once the DAT is over he can find a better job! Hopefully one at the new Kannapolis Research Park (UNC holds research history in high regard on their applications!). We will just have to see. I feel like everyone has to work some crappy job they hate before they can really find something good. You just do it. And then when Stu is a dentist, he can look back and laugh at his stupid O'Charleys job. It will seem ridiculous.

Stu's calling in cubscouts has been going well too. And his boss has been fantastic in letting him have off both Sunday & Wednesdays (church & scouts). They had the pinewood derby last week and Stu said it brought back some good memories of his own pinewood derby. So cute. They also had some like C class racecar drivers come in and sign autographs. Stu said the kids were pretty pumped about it. Go figure--Concord is a race city! I couldn't care less about it, but good for them!

Besides fishing, studying & O'Charleys--Stu has just been playing the wonderful husband part perfectly :) He always makes our bed & cleans the room (he doesn't usually go into work till 5 or 6) for me to see when I get home. He does laundry too! He's the best :) Really!

Me:

I've just been working and trying to juggle my "new" (as in home from Idaho loneliness) social life. I work till 7 and then if Stu is closing at work (which seems like too much lately) then I find one of my wonderful friends to bug. It's so fun being home with all my girlfriends again. And it's amazing that after like 6 years, most of us seem to live relatively close together again! Just like the old days :) We have so much fun and I'm so lucky to have such amazing friends!

The family I nanny for is awesome. Their kids are pretty good but I think are really starting to understand that I am not joking around. I know their tricks and I can predict their actions (they think I have a magical power...) so they don't get away with a whole lot. They are really warming up to me too and we are getting along pretty great. They're good kids, I just think that they are used to having a nanny and they are pretty spoiled rotten so they just need a little work ;) There are angels inside there somewhere...it's a work in progress...

The cooking part of my job however is going pretty fantastic! I made a beautiful (yes I'm bragging on myself...if you know me at all, cooking like this is a pretty gigantic feat!) quiche the other night and almost took a picture! My last quiche attempt was in Idaho and it was a disaster. The mother I nanny for emailed me that night and said it was amazing and that the kids ate it right up! They are way picky eaters so this made my night :)

My primary calling is going well. I only have 3 kids in my class (CTR 6) but they are like the 3 most rambunctious children in the entire primary. Literally. I have some crazies. Ritalin should most definitely be enforced. It is a struggle some Sundays to get them to listen/answer questions/sit still/stop being crazy and I just PRAY that something is sinking in. That they are learning at least SOMETHING. One of the endearing children in my classroom raised their hand one week and asked, "Do we ALWAYS have to learn about God?" If this gives you any indication of what I deal with each week...needless to say I was more than happy that this past week was General Conference. I have been in primary for like EVER. Like, I can't remember the last time I had a calling outside of it. I do it and it definitely teaches me a lot, but for the love...

I'm thinking of becoming vegetarian....I know it's totally random! I'm not a big meat eater anyway and want a lifestyle change. I don't want to be neurotic about it or anything but I'm seriously considering it. I think I am going to dedicate a week to trying it out with different recipes and such and see what I think. Stay tuned.

ETC:

We've switched our cat's name from Luna to LunaTIC. She is crazy. Cute but oh, so crazy.

My next vacation days are in June...we're thinking Wilmington! I miss it everyday! I would move back in a heartbeat! Maybe one day... We wanted to go to Illinois and visit the Briggs but unfortunately they will be in Hawaii during the week I have off for vacation :(

And then of course we are planning on cruising again next year around February! Start planning now to JOIN US :) Is it totally sad that I am already talking about the next 2 times we get to vacation?? Haha!

We get to see my Grandma & Grandpa (Mom's parents) on a pretty regular basis. My mom & stepdad go up to Denton pretty much every Sunday and sometimes we join them. This is so nice and my grandma always cooks us something yummy! (I have some amazing cooks in my family!) I like to visit with my Grandma often because she gets pretty lonely with my Grandpa who is suffering from depression. He goes to bed at like 4pm so it's nice we get to keep her company. She is a saint. I don't know if I know anyone better than she is. I just love her and am so glad we get to see my grandparents so often!

We need to join a gym...we've been SUPER lazy. Enough said.

This is about all I can think of right now...good times here in Concord.

PANCAKE DAY!

2011-03-16T19:35:00.000-07:00

Today (3/17/11) was one of my favorite days of the year. One that I have missed for the past few years. And that day would be PANCAKE DAY. (check out that link to read all about the awesomeness). This was Stu's very first pancake day, although he has heard me rave about it forever. For those of you who have never been to pancake day or who did not follow the link above (ahem), Pancake Day is an event put on by the Boys & Girls club that is open to anyone in the community. You buy a ticket at the door or from any hometown business (they are always selling them everywhere) for like $6 and the proceeds go to the Boys & Girls club. Pancake Day goes on all day from like 6 am to 7 pm. And people come & go ALL day! Before work, for breakfast, lunch breaks, for lunch and dinner....Admittance gets you a couple HUGE pancakes (like the size of your plate), sausage, coffee, milk or sundrop. Yep--SUNDROP. Made in Concord baby!

I'm pretty sure you MUST get sundrop with your pancakes. Otherwise you aren't completely fulfilling your Pancake Day experience. (For those of you who are not familiar with the ever so delicious sundrop drink, it is a citrus-y soda that is neon yellow like mello-yello and is manufactured right here in Concord. And it's pretty much a part of anything that has to do with Concord) And if you are from Concord, well then you're pretty much the WORST concordian ever. Weird sounding, but somehow oh so fitting.

So, to Pancake Day we went...and I went twice :) I remember in highschool we would sometimes go for every meal! My senior year we went before school for breakfast, checked out for lunch and went to pancake day and then went with the family for dinner. It's a big deal around here. And its even EXCUSED to check out for pancake day at school! Isn't that just silly? But awesome?!

One ticket gets you one trip to the pancake buffet--but you can choose as many pancakes as you want and they are as big as your plate! They just stack them right up. Then you can choose 1 or 2 pieces of sausage and then your choice of beverage. I noticed that they added Diet Sundrop to the choices this year. Pancake Day is gettin' Fancy!! hahaha :) Stu and I each chose 2 pancakes (neither of us finished) and some sausage and I of course chose sundrop and Stu had...chocolate milk....WHAT?! I explained to him the importance of choosing sundrop but he had to go all old-school on me with his cardboard milk carton...

It was a fun day! AND it was St. Patricks Day! And the start of March Madness! Pretty much the best holiday ever.

Here are some Pancake Day pictures:

Boys & Girls Club--where Pancake Day is held every year

Me, CLEARLY excited about Pancake Day--here with my ticket...

Stu and his VERY FIRST BITE @ Pancake Day

Me supporting Concord and drinking sundrop with my pancakes!

Round 2 of Pancake Day--this time with Amber :)

Round 2! Finished my pancakes this time like a true fat kid...

Posing with the Sundrop Monster Truck in the parking lot...oh, concord...haha

CRUISE 2011--blog #4: Ship Life (the last one I promise!)

2011-03-08T07:49:00.000-08:00

We loved when we had port days and got to explore the islands, but "at sea" days seemed to be just as fun! As I mentioned in one of the too many blogs about the cruise before, there were SO many things to do onboard. Here are a BUNCH of pictures from what we did while at sea:

Playing shuffleboard! Go Natalie!

Justin is SUPPOSED to be taking his turn--he opted to ride around like "Happy Gilmore" on his shuffleboard club/stick/thing instead...

Go Baby! Stuart seemed to be the only consistent one in the game. And the only one who could keep his puck/piece/thing on the actual board...

Lounging on Deck 4--our favorite spot to watch the sunset

Pool #1--the "everyone" pool

Pool #2--"adults only"

Beginning of the magic show...

I don't know if you can tell but the woman is "levitating"

The boys looking good in their long-searched-for fedaro hats...and energy drinks. These 2 were twinners all week...so glad they had eachother. I think they spent more time in the casino than anywhere else. That just gave us girls lots of time to shop and go to shows :)

My mom found a piano...she always does.

Iceskating show!

look at him in the air! we were so surprised none of the skaters fell with the boat rocking and all

More of the show

Natalie providing the entertainment while we waited to go into the dining room--she made a puppet out of an empty dramamine package....hahahha--love her so much!

Leonardo's: Our dining room (there were 3 dining rooms to be assigned to)

View of the dining room when you first walk in

The menu

The BFF's chatting away :)

Stu with his napkin creation dinner time entertainment...a dead chicken???

Justin's attempt at a napkin animal--"this is what you call a Norwegian earthworm..." hahahaha

The bridge to The Promenade--Deck 5--Full of shops & dining--you can see staterooms to the right--some lucky passengers got these rooms that overlooked the promenade

Mom & David on the promenade

Just had to give Stu a little kiss because he just looks so dang cute in that fedaro hat!

The treat Lauri brought us from Utah! Oh, how I have missed See's Candies!

Ahhhhhh...SUCH a comfortable bed.

Looking up at the glass elevators

Justin & Stu with their tattoos...

This is Stu's cobra...good choice babe...

Stu getting an airbrushed tattoo on the promenade...all the guys did it...

See? Here's David sporting his anchor with "World's Greatest Grandpa" written on it, hahaha...love him!

Justin & Stu lookin suave before dinner on the "Smart Casual" night

Stu and I in the library before dinner...the library was on our floor and it turned out to be everyone's meeting place

At Johnny Rockets restaurant on the ship!

Our waiter delivered our ketchup for our appetizer like this :)

Last formal night: Lauri & Kerri (Mom & Daughter)

Mom & David

Natalie with "Justin"--Justin was not feeling well so he left dinner early

My favorite dessert night

Posing cute on the dining room stairs

Live Violin music during each formal night!

Stu just won $5 at the casino!

My favorite slot machine...hahhaha

The machine that won the boys lots of money...i mean, some money...they swore this machine "paid out"--uh huh...

Natalie and I got addicted to this game. It's one of those where you drop in a quarter and try to get stacks of quarters to eventually push money off the edge and into your hand. We got "so close" so many times. Really we just wasted like $10...hahaha

Ice sculptures on the last day

Fruit sculptures too

Our LAST cruise picture :(

CRUISE 2011--blog #3: The Islands

2011-03-07T19:20:00.001-08:00

Our first stop of our trip was our second day of the cruise. We went to sleep and woke up in CocoCay, Bahamas. Royal Caribbean's private little island. It was beautiful! We had get in little boats called "tenders" and be rowed to shore. We spent all day on the island--snorkeling, laying out in the sun, and Natalie, Kerri & I rented these fun foam floats and just bobbed around in the shallow water. It was so nice! The cruise line also provided a nice bbq lunch with all kinds of food for those who wanted to eat on the island. We had good jerk chicken, fresh salads & fresh fruit and yummy desserts. Our group was on the island for about 4 or 5 hours and after that we were pretty fried and tired. Our ship left the island early that evening and the next day was an "at sea" day.

view of the ship from our tender boat

Natalie & Kerri excited for CocoCay!

Welcome to Coco Cay, Bahamas!

BEAUTIFUL beach!

Our foam floats!

Serving Area

a little island shopping

good reggae band provided music all day

Our fourth day was spent in St. Thomas, US Virigin Islands--it was beautiful! We couldn't get off the boat until about 11 and had to be back by 6:30. So, we all got off--got a taxi (somehow) in the mad rush of people and locals and took the SCARIEST ride of our lives up a mountain to an obscure but AMAZING beach called "Maegans Bay." Our cab driver was this crazy woman who drove us through downtown and partially up the mountain, but then pulled over next to this cliff and demanded our fare right then. She took us just far enough that it was a LONG walk back to the ship and an even longer walk to the beach. haha. But, going to Maegans Bay was worth it. Although everyone is a crazy driver there, everyone speeds and everyone drives on the left side of the road. This threw me off at first...Our taxi was an open seating kind of bus where we could easily slip out and roll down a cliff into the ocean...

So, we spent a couple hours at Maegans Bay and then went back to the ship and ate lunch and showered. We went back out to shop. Everytime you get off the ship at an island, you have to bring your passport and ship issued card called a "seapass." Then we had to go through a revolving metal "door" to get into the island. The island was lined with a barbed-wire fence! Justin wanted to shop for jewelry and he and Stu were both looking for fedora hats. If you want to buy jewelry and watches...the Virgin Islands is the place to go! That's what more than half of the shopping is. Natalie and I really wanted to find knockoff bags. So, we left the boys at the shopping district outside the ship and got into another taxi to go downtown to a straw market we had seen earlier on the way to the beach. We got into a cab full of drunken Wisconsins. They were SO loud and obnoxious. They were high-fiving people in cars going the other direction at stopping points. We were so happy to get out of the cab and to the straw market. We found way cute knockoff bags and happily purchased them. We haggled quite a bit with the guy and got a steal! Our taxi back was CRAZY. It took us almost an hour to take a 15 min. ride back. The traffic was NUTS. Hardly any regulation. People everywhere. Cars cutting you off everywhere. And our driver was this crazy old man from St. Vincent who kept trying to get Natalie to give him her name so he could facebook her. He wasn't creepy, just persistent. He also had this jamaican preacher blasting from the radio the whole time and kept telling us that "God told us to be friendly." We were happy to get back to the boys...who did not find anything they were looking for, but managed to find energy drinks :)

Just off the ship...to the left are the barbed-wire fences separating our ship and the island

view from our taxi as we drove up the mountain to maegans bay

stu and I happy in the taxi cab :)

Maegan's Bay

this picture is a little foggy because it had rained for like the first 5 min we were there

Natalie acting scared because our taxi back was even crazier than our one up to the beach...he told us it was an "express ride" and he drove like 60 miles down tiny winding roads--all downhill...we were all holding on tight!

We woke up the next morning to the most amazing island of all: St. Maarten. It was by far our favorite! Amazing location, Great shopping, Beautiful weather...well, eventually.

We woke up and it was gray outside. We decided that we would do our shopping first and then go snorkeling after lunch. So, Justin & Natalie, Lauri & Kerri and Stu & I all got up EARLY and got off the boat around 9:30. We walked off the boat and it began to sprinkle. And then it started to rain. And then it started to pour. And then it was pretty much like a monsoon. We all huddled under a shopping center's awning and decided to just wait it out. We waited for awhile and it just seemed to get worse. Lauri bought us all ponchos and we decided to go out in the rain and shop anyway. We woke up early and we were not going to waste our day.

We shuffled around in the rain--all of our feet turning brown from our rainbow sandals--and looking sexy in our ponchos. We avoided any really nice stores because we were soaked, but the shop owners were trying to welcome us anyway. We were pretty bummed about the weather, but the ponchos were so hilarious. It finally stopped about an hour later and it turned out to be a GORGEOUS day. We shopped and shopped and then got back on the boat for lunch and showers. We went back out on a water taxi and went to the beach. The boys tried to snorkel but the rain had made the water too murky. So they went off exploring and Natalie and I took fabulous naps in the sun on the beach. We found my Mom and David and they introduced us to "Ginger Beer." A ginger soda that BURNED your throat as it went down. But it was good! St. Maarten was our favorite because it was the nicest, everything was close to the beach and the shopping and beaches were absolutely amazing. Justin tried to convince us the rest of the trip that we all needed to quit our jobs and move to St. Maarten...it IS so very tempting...

not sure if you can see how bad it is raining in this picture...

Natalie re-stringing Lauri's poncho hood

Of course Justin managed to rip his...

poncho love

how cute does Kerri look in a poncho?!

GOREGOUS

one of MANY roosters we saw in the Virgin Islands...random!

this bear has it right...

Hooray Ginger Beer! (p.s. how awesome is Stu's hair in this picture...haha)

Man playing steel drums--i'm obsessed.

Corona postcard?

sparkly water :)

leaving the island on the water taxi :(

CRUISE 2011--blog #2: THE SHIP

2011-03-07T18:00:00.000-08:00

After hanging in Savannah for a few hours, we headed for Florida. We arrived in Orlando early that evening and stayed there for the night. The original plan was to go to downtown Disney for the night, but after waiting on Lauri & Kerri to arrive from the airport (they live in Salt Lake City, UT) and finding our hotel in the madness of Orlando--we decided to just call it a night so we could get up early and head to Port Canaveral, FL where we would be getting on the ship!

We boarded the ship around noon and I was in complete awe. Our ship was Royal Caribbean's "Freedom of the Seas." I couldn't believe how GIGANTIC it was. Pictures did it zero justice. And it was SO nice inside. Luxurious and fancy. It didn't seem like you were on a ship unless you were standing on the decks outside. When we got on the ship, we were free to roam around and explore and lunch was being served in the main cafeteria called the "Windjammer." You could eat pretty much all day long in the Windjammer and it had a huge variety of foods. We ate lunch and then by the time we were done eating, our staterooms were available to enter. We found our stateroom and then...KNOCKED OUT. Stu and I took a good 2 hour nap. Yup, we napped as our official first activity of our crusie vacation. Well, it was mainly because we took Dramamine (motion sickness medication) and didn't realize that it was DROWSY. My friend Maria that we had just seen in Savannah had just been on a Carnival cruise and had said that she was sea sick a lot of the time. This stressed me out so we took it right away. Plus, we heard that the Atlantic is a little choppy and it can take some getting used to. We found that the boat didn't bother us during our trip and that there is also non-drowsy dramamine available, so after our nap we learned how to handle it. But, it was just funny that we were napping as we departed land. We woke up to attend the drill everyone is required to attend--just an emergency drill practice where you are assigned to a certain deck with life boats. It didn't take long and after that we just enjoyed watching the land get smaller and smaller as we headed into the middle of the ocean.

Our captain announced that we would be able to see a pair of booster rockets that had just left a recent space shuttle that had left Florida. They were attached to recovery boats docked in the pier.

Our room was small, but nice. There was a SUPER nice and comfortable queen-size bed, a small couch, a coffee table, a vanity, flat screen TV, tiny bathroom and tiny closet. But, it was perfect size for a week. It was really nice and REALLY dark at night. I LOVED IT. Although, you could sleep forEVER in that room. The shower was funny. You had to get inside this like tube-like shower, made only for 1 person, and then slide a door each way to meet in the middle. And the shower head was detachable and right above MY head, so I can only imagine a tall person...But, it was still a nice shower.

Our stateroom attendant's name was Carlton and he was this super friendly Jamaican guy. Justin's new best friend. He was always smiling and made up our room a few times a day. He would even fold up dirty clothes that were lying on the couch and line up shoes on the floor. He made us cute towel animals all week as well. He was fantastic! He also took the time to get to know each of us by name, which made the experience much more personable.

All of our group's rooms were near eachother and we were all on the seventh deck in the middle of the boat. A great location to each side of the ship! We also felt less rocking in the middle (according to our fellow cruisers who had cruised before). Each floor of the ship had staterooms, different venues including an ice skating rink, an auditorium, a sports bar, casino, library, game rooms, dining rooms, the Windjammer cafeteria, 2 fine-dining restaurants, Johnny Rockets restaurant, other random cafe's and pizza parlors, shopping, movie theater, internet cafe, basketball courts, mini-golf, surf/boogie board ride called the "flowrider", pools, hot tubs...it was AMAZING. Apparently our ship was a 4,000 passenger ship!

You forget that you are on a GIANT ship in the middle of the ocean. Once we got into the Caribbean, it was smooth sailing. You didn't feel anything. Here are some pictures of the ship:

Our Ship

Stu and I outside the ship...you still can't see the top! There were 14 floors.

hallway to our stateroom

View from the door...Stu already about to pass out, haha

view from the door of the bathroom

weird round shower with double doors

nice vanity--lots of mirror storage and underneath storage

view from the bed. the main door. closet to the left. bathroom door to the right.

right side of the room--vanity/desk/dresser, more mirror & drawer storage, tv

left side of the room--little "living room"

our tv screen upon arrival...notice anything odd? Yeah, although we brought our marriage license (which they said would be fine) they had to change me back to my maiden name because my passport still says "Sistrunk". So basically, were weren't married during our week of vacation...

View from the ship of one of the two booster rockets attached to a recovery boat.

towel animal #1: happy crab

stingray

scorpion

monkey with a cigarette? hahaha

a bat--my favorite. He had little green sticker eyes :)

a swan

It was all just absolutely amazing. I am done blogging for now--more to come about fun things we did onboard and the islands that we visited. There is just SO much to share. EVERYONE needs to go on the next one....

CRUISE 2011--blog #1

2011-03-07T17:36:00.000-08:00

So, I would begin by apologizing for the long posts that these are going to be, BUT i'm going to enjoy reliving the best vacation of my life despite its length ;)

Stu and I just got home (last night...*tears*) from a 7-Night East Caribbean Cruise on the Royal Caribbean cruise line. This was our very first cruise and no amount of preparation could have really done the cruise justice. Everyone kept telling us about how much fun we were going to have, how everyone on the cruise ship will cater to you and how we will forever cruise from now on. THEY WERE MORE THAN RIGHT. It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. So, here is our fantastic week with pictures:

We began our vacation in Savannah, GA. We were vacationing with my Mom & Stepdad, My brother Justin & sister-in-law Natalie and our good friends Lauri Yamashita and her daughter Kerri. We left on Friday evening and drove to Savannah. The next day me, Stu, my mom and David hung out in Savannah while Justin & Natalie attended Natalie's half-sister's wedding.

We also got a surprise phonecall from my childhood friend Maria Ambrossini and her husband Dale who were travelling back from a cruise toward Charlotte and were passing by Savannah. They stopped and hung with us for awhile before we all had lunch reservations at Paula Deen's restaurant "Lady and Sons." We tried to get Maria & Dale in on our reservation but that place is booked WAY in advance and there is NO extra seating. Natalie had made our reservations months before. But, it was so fun to hang out with them even though we haven't even seen them in Charlotte yet!

Paula Deen's restaurant was super good! Just good ole' southern food done right. We chose the buffet (surprisingly cheap) and homemade lemonade. The buffet had fried chicken, baked chicken, collard greens, mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, bbq ribs, etc. And we got to choose between banana pudding, peach cobbler or ooey gooey cake for dessert. I chose cobbler and Stu had the banana pudding. FANTASTIC!

Stu posing on an old stairwell in Savannah

Us with the Ambrossini's! So fun!

Paula Deen's "Lady & Sons" restaurant

Momma & David looking happy with their yummy menus

Only Paula Deen's restuarant gives you a ho-cake (with syrup) & a cheddar biscuit as a starter...

Round 1 of the buffet...mmmm

amazing homemade lemonade with a mint leaf accent

um...this WAS peach cobbler--i got too excited and forgot to take a picture ;)

SO...CLOSE...TO...CRUISING...

2011-02-16T08:59:00.000-08:00

Not a whole lot has been going on lately--Stu and I have just been working our little hineys off. Well, I've also been playing my little hiney off, but poor Stu can't seem to catch a break lately. He has only had 1 day off in the past 6 days and won't get another off until next week! Poor thing :( I've been off hanging out with all of my favorite people doing things like getting sushi, watching Carolina games and going to 3D movies (Gnomeo & Juliet was TOTALLY Amelia's idea...haha) while my poor hubby has been slaving away at the grill at stupid O'Charleys. I'M A HORRIBLE WIFE!!!

Some days Stuart has to go from getting up at 5AM for his internship to Closing at O'Charleys and not getting home till 12 or 1 AM. Stu also got the nasty cold/flu thing that I had last week so he is super miserable right now. Although its hard to feel bad for him when I had to endure working at RedRobin for like a year and a half while at school...just kidding. I feel bad for him, really bad...restaurant jobs are the WORST.

Poor baby--good thing we'll be in the Caribbean in a week-ish! WE CANNOT WAIT. We've got our snorkels & sunscreen. Now we just need new swimsuits and spray tans. Natalie is THE expert on spray tans so she has convinced us all that we need to go get one...it will be interesting. I am SLIGHTLY terrified as I am usually a tanning-bed kinda girl, but I've been trying to be good and stay away from them because of the you know, cancer issue and all, haha....oh how i miss laying in the tanning bed on cold winter days...

I KNOW we are going to be getting all kinds of great sun while on the cruise, but I just can't stand how freaking WHITE I am right now and will NOT stand for getting in a swimsuit this pale...I have NEVER been this white in my life. I hate you Idaho. Plus, according to Natalie, the spray tan will wear off as we get sun and won't look blotchy because we will be getting good sun :)

Now, Justin just needs to finish up his school these next few weeks and we can all get to celebrating graduations! Justin is going to miss his graduation but we think we can skype him in while we are on the cruise. haha! He has done an amazing job at broadcasting school and truly has a knack for it. We love getting to watch his finished products and see his progression.

Aside from Stu hating life at his job, life is good. We got to see Stu's dad Larry last week while he was on business in Mooresville! It was WAY too short of a visit, but it was so good to see him! We met him at Olive Garden and just caught up on what's been going on with everyone lately. We wish we could be in Morris right now--we miss Stu's family so much and it feels like forever since we got to see all of them at once. We got to visit with Dolly not long ago when she brought Trisha out to Idaho, but it'd be nice to see everyone together! We're hoping to make a trip up to Illinois soon.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Stu and I didn't do much for Valentines Day. He had to close at O'Charleys and I worked till 7 anyway. We're not big on the holiday anyway. But my SWEET husband DID buy me my favorite perfume (TOTAL SURPRISE!) called "Light Blue" by Dolce & Gabbana. I had a little bottle when we were in Idaho but I dropped it and it broke in our bathroom and I hadn't got a replacement because its so dang expensive. So, I've gone without it for a long time and always steal squirts of it when we are at a mall so my cute little hubby broke down and surprised me with it. I will have to ration it out and keep it in a super secure place where it will not break again, haha. He's the best!!!

So, Stu and I didn't really go out to dinner or anything, but my Momma DID make everyone an amazing Valentines dinner! She got home late but insisted on slaving away over this amazing meal of:

1. pecan-crusted salmon with a cucumber-dill sauce

2. a bleu & feta cheese white sauce fettuccine with artichoke hearts

3. a garden salad with lots of fresh vegetables

4. and a fruit salad with strawberries, peaches, blueberries & cantelope

IT WAS AWESOME! Go Mom!

I also woke up to a cute little heart-shaped box of chocolates from my loving step-dad. He is so precious!

So, yay for a fantastic Valentines Day! Hope all of you had a wonderful day of love as well!

...

2011-01-30T19:57:00.000-08:00

Now that Stuart and I will have been married for 2 years this May, we have decided that it is time to take the next step. We are ready for more responsibility. We want to feel that we have something to take care of and love. And we know how all of you are dying to be aunts, uncles, grandmas, etc again...So, we are proud to announce that we...

ADOPTED A CAT.

bahahahahaha! We did. We adopted a beautiful little kitty and named her Luna.

We are in love with her. She is super sweet and loving. She greets us when we get home and purrs and purrs and purrs...she is such a doll! And not only is she sweet. She's also pretty scrappy! She can hold her own. Miss Independent. When she met my mom's cat Woody, she wasn't taking any of his bossy crap. He's about twice her size and she is crashing HIS territory, but she runs this joint. Woody tries to swat at her and hisses at her, but she throws it right back at him. It's hilarious to watch. They've been getting used to each other and we think with a little more time they just might be the best of friends.

We went to the local humane society to inquire about their rescued kitties. They had an entire house full of them. A house called "Princeton's Meow." We went into all of the rooms, there were 4 in total, and tried to find the perfect fit for us. Luna walked right up to Stuart and jumped in his lap. She was a sweetheart from the very beginning.

Luna just turned one and has already had a litter of kittens! Because she had kittens so young, she is very small. The vet said that this usually stunts their growth. She is a petite little thing and a little too skinny for my taste. We will take care of that! I think Stu has given her like 26 treats in the past 2 days :)

We have been having so much fun with Luna so far. I love cats and have converted Stu into a cat lover as well. My family has always had at least one cat, and there is just something I love about how self-sufficient cats are. You don't have to take them outside or keep them entertained--they do what they want. I guess you could say that Stu and I love all kinds of animals and want dogs and a pig too (see royal dandies) but a cat just seemed like a good fit for our situation right now. And she is just adorable. She lets you hold her and she loves to cuddle up with you. We picked a good one!

Here are some pictures of our new addition:

Hangin' out in her bed with a sock full of cat nip...more like cat crack....

Stu spending some quality time with Luna

Close-up of her cuteness! She is so curious all of the time-she got right up in the lens!

Love her! She still has her kitten face :)

awwww.....

What has STU been up TO?

2011-01-20T19:12:00.001-08:00

Some of you may be wondering what Stu has been up to. Since he doesn't bore you to death with his own ramblings, (meaning he is not a blogger like me), I will do it for him...

Stu has just finished his second week of his internship with Dr. McMurtry. He's mostly been shadowing and learning all kinds of cool dentist stuff. He even got see Dr. M pull 7 teeth out of this one guy! ew. But, he still wants to do it. Go Stu! He has to wake up at 5:30 AM to get ready and leave for Mt. Holly where his internship is located. It's about 45 minutes away. I have to admit that I probably don't even move when he gets up...I don't think I could do it...Go Stu!

So, he is enjoying his time with Dr. M and learning A LOT. He loves getting to know how his life is going to go in a few years and he is learning a lot about applying to dental school. UNC dental school in specific. Dr. M went there and so did Bro. Blacker from our ward. They are full of great tips and it is great to see people being so real with Stu and hoping for the best for him. Bro. Blacker even said that I could talk to his wife about her perspective anytime. It's going to be a long road, but we are pumped!

Stu has also been BFF with my brother, Justin. They have been fly fishing, golfing, shopping (you know, boy stuff), etc. They are so cute. It's so nice to be around Justin & Natalie. We just love them and are in similar situations--cruising together in 35 days is going to be a blast!!! (for those of you unaware {how?} we are leaving for the Caribbean the end of Feb.).

Besides all of this he has just been preparing for the DAT...which he will probably take in May and apply for dental school in June.

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It's so nice to be around normalcy in general. I love the realization that I can not only call up my friends, but go SEE them. It's amazing! Stu and I have had so much fun already hanging with our couple friends like Emily & Preston, Josh & Jessica, Justin & Natalie...and Stu has even had fun hanging out with all of my girls like Jess, Lara and Amber. Although he's pretty persistent about being okay with me having "girl days" or "girl time." Haha--what a fantastic husband! And we love hanging out with my Mom and David on a daily basis. They are so fun and full of life. With my mom and her crazy energy and baking sprees and David with his sarcasm and witty comments, we are always laughing. They are fun housemates! (whom we will also be cruising with in 35 days!)

Life is good right now. Not to mention that I got a fabulous nanny job (after a mild breakdown about not using my degree RIGHT now...see my personal blog for that drama) that is quite the hook up: only 2 kids (ages 5 & 8--um, pretty easy)/great pay/paid vacation & paid holidays/weekends off... so MUCH better than quaker steak (where I worked for 3 days...I don't want to talk about how trashy it was). AND we already have callings (love Concord ward)...i'll be teaching primary for the 27th time and Stu will be the den leader for the bear cubs (how cute is that going to be?!). We love the ward although it feels weird teaching in a primary room that I once sat in irreverently as a primary munchkin myself.

So now we are just hoping for Stu to get a job...keep him in your prayers please! And we are just ready to get into a routine again with working, exercise and an actual social life (such a drastic difference from Idaho). We are happy campers. But missing all of you that are not in Concord :(

Goals for right now:

Dear Julie, please go to Zumba class (now that I have a schedule friends, let's go FOR REAL. there are like 1673 zumba classes in Concord alone). And stop eating all of my well-missed but horrible for you southern food. Mmmm, what-a-burger...hahaha (except for witchdoctors {a delicious drink made of different sodas and pickles} jess...can't do it).

Be better church members. Go to ward activities. Be involved in all ward charity efforts. Become actively involved in getting to know others in the ward. Be fantastic in our callings. Go to the temple more.

Be an amazing nanny! Be more creative and proactive with the kids.

Be an even more amazing wife, daughter and sister! Support Stu in his pre-dental school stuff and be there more for my siblings. Make routine monthly/or more visits to Asheboro to hang with my Dad and Kathleen.

I just want to relish in this time we have off from school. Live it up. Relax. Become better people. Take better care of ourselves. Love life. Cause for the following 4 years, it's going to be high stress and crazy!

Let's play catch-up!

2011-01-05T14:06:00.000-08:00

Before you read this blog: Have you reserved the next 45 minutes to do nothing but read my wordy ramblings? Cause this is a long one.

The past 3 weeks have been a whirlwind of craziness. From finishing school, to packing, to moving, to the holidays--I feel that only now can I catch my breath! What a fun past few weeks it has been! My only regret is that I have been a HORRIBLE picture-taker. A little recap anyone?

Last days in Idaho went like this:

Last day at Red Robin--no tears there! Although it was a little sad to leave some of the amazing people I got to know so well, I was R-E-A-D-Y to get out of there!

Finished final exams & classes--Stu and I both did well on our finals (Stu had all 3 of his in the SAME DAY--bless his little heart) and we both ended up doing pretty well in our classes in the end. I received all A's and one B (by 1 measly point...really?!) and Stu got ALL A's! He's just so brilliant! Mind you he was taking Physics part 2, Anatomy and Biochemistry at.the.same.time.

Hanging out with Trisha for her BDAY and crashing at her house--Trisha was so sweet and let us crash at her place so we could clean and get out of our apartment ASAP. We stayed up late playing rock band and apples to apples with her and her roommate. It was good times :)

Moving across the US went like this:

Our car was PACKED. You will see me looking quite uncomfortable in these pictures. I only had room to sit indian-style in my seat for 5 days. Poor Stu had to drive the whole time though! He wouldn't have room to sit on my side...haha, I think we were just horrible packers.

We first stayed over night on our way out in Pocatello to hang out with Grandma & Grandpa Briggs--We just love them so much! They are absolutely adorable! We went out to Golden Corral with them and Uncle Bruce and had a great time.

The next day we made our first stop in Salt Lake City--before leaving the West coast for a LONG time :) we wanted to stop and hug some family that I have in Salt Lake. We stopped by my Aunt Judy's where she, my Uncle Richard and Grandma Sorensen (Dad's Mom) live. We got to visit with them for a little bit and it was so great to see them all. Especially my little hawaiian grandma because she is going on 90!

Then we went by to see my other "family" the Yamashitas. They are always so fun to hang out with and we always have a lot of laughs and relive old times. We got to see Lauri, Gary and Kerri but unfortunately did not get to visit with Tim. But, it was great to see them and to have lived so close to both them and my other relatives while we have lived in Idaho. I am glad that we took advantage of this while we lived out here and were able to see them a few times.

And then we got stuck in Wyoming. BIG surprise right? That is the most worthless state in the entire nation! I think I hate it more than Idaho...Idaho is second. We stopped for the night in Rawlins, WY and woke up to like 6 inches of snow and to find that they had shut down the interstate! And of course that was the only way out...go figure. So, we waited for about 4 hours and then finally were able to get on I-80. We were SO relieved! A local told us that sometimes they don't open up I-80 for a week after bad snow storms. My mind just kept going over the fact that we COULD get stuck in Rawlins, WY *aka* The Middle of Nowhere over Christmas! Thank goodness we did not have to!

We stopped in Tennessee to meet Dolly's side of the family! This was fantastic! I had never met any of Stuart's mom's family and I got to meet a LOT of them at one time! We stayed with Stu's Grandma Finley and accompanied her to the family Christmas party at his Aunt Donna's house. It was a fun time filled with great food, lots of new faces and names, the Dirty Santa game (this was hilarious) and great memories. It was so nice to get to meet all of them and they were so warm and welcoming. Grandma Finley cooked us a great big southern breakfast the next day and then we headed out with the promise that we must get together soon because they are only 8 hours away!

The rest of the drive was perfect! No other bad weather clear until we got to NC where of course it snowed 2 days later!

(this picture is of Tennessee--->...the one above is Wyoming! Such a difference!)

Being in NC so far has gone like this:

Got in late on Thursday, Dec. 23 (a day late)--arrived at my momma's house to the wonderful aroma of home-cooked food! My MOMMA'S home-cooked food :) She is an

amazing cook and even more amazing baker. She had prepared chicken curry, one of our favorites. It was delicious. And then Jenna, Kenny (her bf), Natalie and my friend Amber all showed up! YAY for a reunion already! We all stayed up too late talking, laughing, eating...you know how it goes at my momma's :) It was a perfect homecoming.

Christmas Eve--Stuart and I went SHOPPING. Yes, we were THOSE christmas shoppers. We literally did not have the TIME to shop for Christams in Idaho and this ended up being our only day to do this. So, we joined the other crazies and shopped all day. We were pretty efficient last-minute shoppers! It was crazy and I never want to do it again. I think I might start Christmas shopping this year in March...

The rest of the evening was spent with my siblings and my Momma & David (step-dad) and we did our own little Christmas that night because everyone had all kinds of other Christmas plans that next day.

Christmas--That morning we slept in (the joy of not being children anymore), woke up and helped prepare the Christmas buffet my mother had designed for all to munch on as they showed up on and off all day from about 11-4. My step-dad David has 6 children of his own and in turn about a million grandchildren. So, the different families were welcome to come over to their home, eat good food, enjoy each other's company and the children had gifts to open. So people came and went all day. Stu and I enjoyed watching the kids open their gifts--it was cute! My friend Amber joined us for lunch and she and I had a great time trying to figure out how to open modern-day Barbies! They are in some crazy packages nowadays. And their legs like rotate more so than ours did (remember how awkward you had to make your barbie walk?)--they have come a long way!

Then we, my mom & David and Jenna & Kenny went to my Grandma & Grandpa Hill's house, like we always do on Christmas night. We had a fantastic dinner (good cooks must be genetic...until you get to me that is....), read the Christmas story, opened gifts and tried to teach my grandma how to use her new cell phone. Ha! It was great :)

And then the snow came! A LOT for North Carolina! I think we were the only people not thrilled by the idea of snow. Forgive us for being grinches...but we just left that white crap! But, it was beautiful covering the trees here. You won't see that in Idaho!

And although we were not happy about more snow, we did take advantage of it and play in it! Stu, me, Amy (my step-sister) and her daughter Riley all built my very first REAL snowman!

After Christmas we got to see Amelia and go to Discovery Place together (duh) and then all 3 of us joined Ryan & Meagan for dinner! We all had a great time catching up and just enjoying the company of good friends and family :) We also got to see Jessica (finally) afterwards and had a loud reunion in the hall of her apartment complex. We also got to meet our cat niece Chloe, as she finally came out of hiding. She is quite possibly the cutest cat i've ever met. Dylan, Jamie, Skylar and Stella Ferguson met us twice in the same week and we finally got to meet Stella and see Skylar again, our goddaughters. They are so beautiful and growing so fast!

This is a partial SFR in a TREEHOUSE at Discovery Place. Where else?!

December 28th was my TWENTY-FIFTH birthday--I slept in--DUH, then Stuart made me an amazing breakfast of nutella & banana crepes, hashbrowns, eggs and bacon. It was so good! He is so sweet :) Then, I went to the DMV. Sad day. But, my license expired that day and the DMV wasn't opened the day before, so I had that wonderful experience once again. Why does it feel like you are always inconveniencing everyone that works there when you are usually only there because you are required to be? Good times. That night we went out to River Rock Grille in Concord (a new addition to good ole' ConCity) and had delicious modern-southern food! Then we had chocolate layered cake for me, or chocolate pound cake for Kenny (his bday was the 27th) both made by my momma of course. It was a good birthday :)

Stu & I on my Bday (can you see the cute owl earrings he gave me?)

Then we went up to Asheboro for a few days to visit my Dad & Kathleen--this was fun! I had never been to my Dad's new house in Asheboro and it was great to see all that he's done with the place. He didn't waste anytime fixing it up (typical of my dad)--he had already poured concrete, taken some trees down, laid new grass, fixed countless other details and even built a little utility shed! Their house is cute and decorated nicely. We went out for a belated birthday dinner, watched a few movies over the course of a few days, rang in the New Year with Dad, Kathleen and Jessica (yay for my bff joining us there!) and even visited their ward on Sunday. We got to meet all of their little ward friends and then Sunday afternoon my siblings joined us up there for lunch. We all stayed for awhile and played games before heading back to Concord. It was nice for all of us to finally be together.

Other than all of the above (are you tired of reading my ramblings yet??) we have just been unpacking, cleaning, catching up on sleep and gone hard at the horrible task of JOB SEARCHING. We are hating this "in-between" stage and are ready to have schedules again. Stu begins his internship at a dental office in Mt. Holly next week. We are beyond happy to be back in the South and be around so many of those that we love and have missed. We are glad to see 2010 go but are thankful for all of the blessings that we have seen in our life this past year. We are looking forward to this new year and for the changes it will bring!

Next steps: (in random order)

Find jobs. Any job right now.

Then later finding a "big girl job" where I can USE my degree!

Cruising in the Caribbean Feb.27-Mar.6!

Stu will be preparing for and taking the DAT.

Stu will then be applying to dental schools.

We will find out at the end of the year where Stu is going to school and were we will be moving to the following Fall.

Saving money!

Visiting family not in NC!

Soaking in NC sunshine :)