Introducing our garden

Today was SO MUCH FUN!!! We started it of with a little blacklight mini golf, then a bike ride, then a trip to the nursery!!

I am so excited about our little garden!!! We decided to begin with starter plants since this is our first time planting a garden. We have 3 yellow cherry tomato plants, artichoke, basil, and cilantro. My goal is to not kill them. Aren't they cute!!!

Travis actually knows a lot more about gardening than I do because he had to work in his mom's garden for chores growing up. he was a lot of help with weeding and planting. He's the best.

The rest of the night I will be working and Travis is hanging out with his family.

Also, in case you were interested, here is the link to the published paper I am an author on :)

Fun date nights

 

Isn't this place beautiful??We decided it was time for a little date night at the temple since we haven't been in a while. I love this place so much. As per tradition, we ate at Fong's the night before. Seriously best chinese food ever. I get this thing called the bento combo which come with a choice of meat, noodles, pot stickers, and sushi (I substitute cream cheese wontons tho). YUM!!! 

After the temple (time just flies in there, I thought we had been there for like an hour and when we got out it had almost been 2 hours!!! we went to artcitydonuts, unfortunately the line was RIDICULOUS. like worst line i've seen since Disneyland. haha so we decided to get an Iceberg shake instead. We got vanilla ice cream with caramel and snickers, super tasty combo. 

Afterwords we came home and it was my turn to pick the movie. I looked up a list of 50 best chick flicks and found Water for Elephants which I totally remembered everyone saying how good the movie was, can't believe it came out in 2011 and I still hadn't seen it. SUCH A GOOD MOVIE. There are a couple racy parts but the story is precious and the costumes and everything are amazing. I just wanted to go to the circus in the 1930's!! 

 

Also, remember how I won a blog giveaway?? this is what I got with it, so excited!!! :) 

Criticism, procrastination, and workoholochism

Two things I have realized tonight:

I take criticism of my work and work ethic personally. I sat in a room with two supervisors at work as they thrashed a report I had tirelessly worked on and thought was pretty much finished. I almost teared up when they were done. I quickly got over it and remembered they were just trying to make my report better. But this happens a lot. I get emotional when my work gets attacked. Working on it.

Second, I have two settings- Procrastinator and work-a-holic. Still havent got over being a college student I guess. I need to work on it.

Today I turned in my laptop. So. Sad.

I hung out with my mom for a little while cuz I needed to pick up a fan (we just found out our apartment has no AC... yay. She kept making sad crying faces when I said I needed to go. haha oh mom.

My moms canvas' came in the mail. ah PRETTY.

 I made this deliciousness for dinner tonight. A little more difficult than most recipes I attempt, since the sauce was from scratch, but totally worth it :) Skillet cheesy ritoni, recipe here.

I will be working ALL WEEKEND to get my report to a place to defend it on Tuesday. Wish me luck, i'll need it.

Busy life as an almost finished grad student

today was PRETTY exciting.... not.

Soccer. Relief Society meeting. Shower. Defense forms. Focus Group. Study. Take Soccer Test. Review a paper for a friend. Make dinner

You want my life don't you? hahaha

The good news is I took my last test in the testing center, the bad news is I thought I had crossed that bridge over a year ago. haha

My beautiful notes...

Dinner and The Chocolates

First off, I won a blog giveaway!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT??? I thought for sure i'd never win one of these, even though I enter them all the time, but I did! $25 dollar gift card! woot! 

I applied for a job today that I am actually really excited about, hopefully I get an interview, fingers crossed. 

Mostly I spent the day refining my thesis. I'll be so excited when I will be done in about a week! :) 

I made a delicious dinner, avocado basil pasta, super easy, you should try it! Then Travis and I watched some House before heading over to The Chocolate, our favorite dessert place on the planet. I was commenting about how much I love that they always have fresh flowers, so travis stole one and gave it to me. haha 

The night ended with a basketball game for him and more working on my thesis for me, fun stuff people! 

Just my luck

This weekend was so much fun!

Sunday was a pretty standard, I made breakfast and travis did the mountain of dishes in the sink. We went to church and afterwords I went home teaching with Travis. On the way back to my house we found a dice on the ground, Travis was like "Okay I am going to kick it, if you guess right when I kick it I'll give you a kiss." I called out 3! and that was the number. SO LUCKY, you better believe I got my kiss.

Then we headed over to his parents house for dinner. There were a lot people visiting so it was quite the party. We ate outside, it was so beautiful!! Then me and my sister in law just talked on the deck for two and a half hours. Our husbands were so confused they kept checking on us. haha It's like they didn't know girls could talk for that long. haha

Monday we slept in and I went on a run. Then we deep cleaned our entire house, its been a while! Afterwords we headed to JCPenny to get a couple of shirts for Travis, he'd been complaining about not having enough. He also got sunglasses. He picked out this super hipster denim short sleeved shirts with sailboats on it. LOVE. I can never predict what that boy is gonna like.

Then we went to lunch with my family at Apollo Burger (My families version of a BBQ). Next we went to the grocery store, glamorous day for sure. At 4:30 we had a BBQ at my cousins Bryce and his new wifey Melissa's house. I was not prepared for how much fun it was going to be! I think Travis had a good time too, he cooked us steaks on the grill.

Then we went to the new X-men movie, and finished the day off with the bachellorette (which was kind of a boring episode).

A soccer party with a little babysitting mixed in

Today started with a little service. They passed around a sheet in relief society to help clean a ladies house in our ward, and since I haven't done something like that in months I signed up. I got there and stayed for an hour, I was the only one who showed up, I felt so bad. But I cleaned windows and moved some heavy things before I had to leave, hopefully I helped.

After I came back, quickly showered, made some guacamole and we were off to a futbol party for one of Travis' soccer teams. The party was held at a families house who I have babysat for for around 8 years so it was fun to see their kids, unfortunately they don't call me very often seeing as their oldest is like 14 now. While the boys watched spain play soccer, I read the Fault in Our Stars (review tomorrow).

After the game we took a little nap and then I headed up to Sandy to babysit these cute girls!!!

I am so excited for memorial day! I get my baby an extra day :)

Miles this week: 7

Miles this year: 37

Why did I even write about this day, boring alert

Today was pretty chill. My only real obligation was at 2 for visiting teaching and dinner with my hubby at olive garden after.

I lounged around in the morning. and then ran three miles with megan in the afternoon. I was so sore after a whole week of intense soccer class and biking. It felt so good to run, plus its fun with friends.

Then I headed to visiting teaching at 2. We visited a really nice lady in our ward who has the cutest 5 year old isn son. He spent like 20 minutes explaining two of his super cool video games. It was definitely the highlight of VT. haha

After VT I went home and worked for a couple hours before my babe got home. We headed to Olive garden and stuffed our faces. We were going to watch the sunset at this awesome park that we love, but decided it was a little chilly and we just wanted to chill. So we ended up watching a movie, vampire academy (surprisingly travis' choice, I swear) then some house!

Also.

Look at my cute baby cousins :)

We got to see them both a couple of weeks ago, they are both as adorable in person as in this picture!

5/22/14

So there were a lot of great things I was supposed to get done today that didn't happen... Whoops

I guess that is what happens when you are acting mom. I had to take Kates to school today because she had finals and a late start (travis has been taking her all week because they need to leave at roughly the same time). I headed to soccer where we played lightening and in the second round I was in the final 4. Oh my I was exhausted after, so much running.

Then I headed back to my apartment and did some 8 minute abs (ouch) and made a delicious turkey wrap. I forgot Kates was getting out early due to finals, but I headed over and picked her up. There wasn't much we could do at my parents house because contractors were there tearing out the kitchen. We decided to lay out a blanket in the backyard and read. I finished the 3rd maze runner book today!

Afterwords I decided to take the kids out for a little treat (mostly I wanted to try the sweet pig). I love Art City Donuts way too much!!!

I headed home and started making dinner, Travis helped me a lot once he got home and we ate our Asian chicken bowls while watching House.

Also, Travis started making up origonal songs and was serenading me all night. He just gets in moods where he wants rhyme and you can't stop it. Haha it's kind of hilarious.

Review of I'm Trying here:  A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Misadventure

Taylor has a very captivating writing style. This book hilariously details his twenties and the love, heartbreak, and struggles that often accompany this time of life. If you want a light, funny, and exciting read, this is your book. I finished it in less than 2 hours because I couldn't put it down! Also, have a dictionary nearby, because you will most likely be learning some new words along the way! Buy it on Amazon for only $2.99!!

5/21/14

Today as my husband left for his internship he whispered to me, "take things slow today, enjoy yourself." He's a sweetie, and knows that it takes a lot for me to chill. So I decided that was what I was going to do :)

I went to soccer class, went running with the dog, took a shower and got ready, ate some lunch, and did stuff of the computer (like reading my cousins self published book cover to cover, review coming soon!). Then I picked up kids and headed over to my friend Hailey's house. Hailey and her husband just bought a cute little townhouse in our ward that will be ready in August. I can't wait for them to move in!!! We chatted while her 1 year old, Saylor, was taking a nap. When she woke up we took her on a walk to the park. It was so much fun!

Then I came home and took the kids to more stuff. Travis got home and we decided to go out for dinner since the kids were all gone. We went to this mexican restaurant by my parents house that has the BEST carne asada burritos. I would choose them for every meal if we lived close.

Afterwards we picked up kids and Travis watched basketball while I dived into the third maze runner book.

And for your enjoyment, a book review:

Guys I did it, I finished Les Mis. I mostly finished on our trip to mexico (1300 pages) but things got so crazy when we got back that it took forever for me to get through those last 160 pages.

I LOVE this book. Like love a lot. I was so surprised at how easy and intriguing of a read it was. I never wanted to put it down. I also love the language from that time the book was written so long ago and I am sad we have lost the beauty of speaking from that time.

Seriously if you love the story from the play or the movie, you have to read the book, it is so much better. There is so much of the story that those other mediums just don't have the time to cover. I mean it is a 1500 page book for crying out loud!

5/20/14

So many things today. goodness.

I am taking over for my mom while she is on vacation and man is it hard.

I drove back and forth from provo twice, picked up my sister and 4 friends from school, took her to young women's, Travis took trevor to scouts, and soon will be on my way to pick them up again. Can I just say I am not excited for this stage in life, being in the car and chauffeuring?? Maybe I just won't do it. Bikes and Busses all the way haha

Also I hate my families dog. Don't get me wrong he is freakin adorable. But he makes me so sad. He is cooped up all day and I just can't have that. My family has already lost a lot of the interest in him that they had 3 weeks ago. Hopefull with summer it will be easier for trev to keep him outside playing all day. But man animals are a pain. So glad my husband is allergic so we will never have one.

I turned in the my Thesis today. One step closer. I may have to make a few changes, but its so close to being done. Hallelujiah. Cant imagine what life will be like when that stress is gone. I also did some work and cooked dinner. After the long day I remembered that the best place in my parents house is the yard. Relaxing and reading is my happy place, hello good friend, its been awhile.

5/19/14

Today I started off the day with Soccer class, where I had an incredible assist in our scrimmage. I am actually starting to not be horrible!! YAY!! 

Afterwards I biked home and packed all of our stuff. We are staying at my parents to take care of my siblings while they are on vacation till Saturday! I took my mom and her friend Gigi to the airport in the morning, then came home and applied for 39085093 jobs. Really just 10 but it felt like a million. 

I can't wait for the Bachellorette tonight. It's my guilty pleasure. Some people are surprised when I tell them that I watch and love it! haha I don't know why you wouldn't, its incredibly entertaining. 

I have been reminiscing about this amazing day today. Travis and I met August of 2006. started dating on May 7, 2013. We were engaged September 20, 2013. We got married December 28, 2013. We have known each other for almost 8 years. We have been together for over a year, and almost married for 6 months. TIME FLIES. I love this man more today than on the day we were married. He is my favorite person in the whole world!!!! 

Also, I love this picture so much. I wish I had gotten it blown up!!! 

5/18/14

Sundays are just busy.

I woke up around 8 for no reason, again. Then magically fell asleep till 10:30! wohoo!!! progress.

We made a batch of delicious eggs filled with cheese and red pepper. The went to church around 1.

In relief society we hd a really good lesson on the power of scripture study (which I personally and Travis and I together tend to suck at). We decided we need to try studying together in the morning. I Am going to start studying by myself topically, I've never done that so I thought it might be cool. We also had an awesome lesson in the teacher improvement sunday school. The teacher said, "some teachers think that they should entertain and try to compete with other forms of entertainment, don't do this, those other forms will always win out, that isn't the unique thing about the gospel." that really struck me. sometimes I think I treat studying that way, I start to think well id rather read blogs or a novel or exercise or watch TV. Of course, those things are designed to be strictly entertaining, studying the gospel is meant to lift you up, change your perspective, and bring you closer to your heavenly father. Here's to trying to be better!!!

After church I went home teaching with Travis, and then met up with my visiting teaching companion and set up appointments. Then we raced to my parents house for sunday dinner. My siblings were mad we were late. haha

We had lasagna, and it was delicious. After helping my mom take everything from the kitchen to the basement (the renovation is starting on Thursday) we walked over to Travis' parents and took our nieces on a walk and to see the puppy. Oh my gosh Ashlyn (3) was so funny she would act al confident but when we let the dog out she would FREAK (should have taken a picture). then we'd put it away and she beg we let it out again. hahaha

All in all it was a relaxing day. This week will be pretty crazy, we are staying at my parents to watch the kids while they are on vacation, I am mostly not excited about the dog.....

5/17/14

Today was an incredibly fun and active saturday. It started off with Travis heading to ward basketball at 10 and coming home 5 minutes later because there was an event at the church. We decided to play soccer at the park next to our house (we decided we need a park next to our house from now on). On our way we ran into Travis' basketball buddies playing tennis and they asked us to play. We beat them 6-2, 6-0 haha next we played soccer for about half an hour. 

We came home, watched some house, made some lunch and just relaxed. 

Then I left with adrienne to hike up battle creek falls in PG. took us a while to find it, but it was worth it. so beautiful!!! 

After hiking I came home and quickly got ready to go to Salt Lake with megan for some city creek window shopping, blue lemon dinner, and a wedding open house! 

Found this elephant in Anthropologie. I decided if I ever have money coming out my ears, that is where I would spend it all. haha Also look at my cute tulle skirt!!! I felt like a ballerina all day. 

New menu item for blue lemon, steak tacos, oh my gosh I'm obsessed!!!

Ended the night seeing these beauties, blissfully married! 

Also Travis said something super funny, and I made a mental note to write about it and I CANT REMEMBER. Couldn't have been that funny then right? eh. haha

Miles today: 3
Miles this year: 30

5/16/14

Today I worked on my thesis all day basically. Good news is that my committee chair thinks I will be ready to defend in 2 weeks :D I have to finish up a few things but will be done with my paper by next Friday! wohoo!!! 

Me and amanda worked in the lab all day, which was fun, its way better to have a friend in the dungeon. haha We headed to lunch once we had sent off our drafts. We went to a yummy Mexican restaurant and caught up since we haven't seen each other in weeks!!! 

It was actually really nice to be able to focus more on my MPH project this week. I don't know how I would have gotten everything done with all of my other job responsibilities. Blessings in disguise right?

At night Travis and I had plans to play tennis with my parents, but my dad had a last minute meeting scheduled for his bishopric responsibilities, so they had to forfeit. We decided to make dinner and then walk around provo and grab some gelato at Glorias Little Italy. YUMMM. Walking around at night and not being cold was AMAZING!!! gosh I love hanging out with my husband. I miss him now that he is at work all day.