University of UTAH Football

So this is a dilema my husband and I have found ourselfs facing with my new job with the President of the University of Utah. We will always be BYU fans since that is our Alma Mater however we have been cheering lately for the U as well.

The President so graciously offered us ticket to the U football game against Oregon State and it was SO much fun! The game was late last Saturday night and it went till about Midnight in overtime. The Utes didn't win but we still had a great time and had amazing seats.

My friends that went to the U are always telling me how good I look in red. I think they are trying convert me into a Ute. Not going to happen though. The President told me he was fine if I cheer for Utah unless they are playing BYU then he understands.

Jake and I get to go to the BYU game next week, so we are SUPER excited about that. Hope they win. 

WE BLEED BLUE!

Remembering September 11th

With yesterday being September 11th, we had a really neat experience that night. Jake is the 11 year old scout leader and last night was his first court of honor. I was so proud of him as he gathered all of this scouts together and awarded them their advancements from the Summer. He is going to make such a fantastic dad one day. Here his scouts are all lined up.

There was an officer from Fort Douglas invited to come and share his thoughts on freedom, which ended up being a really neat experience. He spoke of the sacrifices that are required of those who fight for our country and of the experiences he has had in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He encouraged the scouts and everyone else there to grow closer to our Heavenly Father, to find peace and comfort in our relationship with him. He told us that if you truly understand your relationship with him and the plan of salvation you will see that there are worse things then dying.

A little morbid maybe but it's actually something that I have been thinking about a lot lately. My greatest fear is that something will happen to Jake. I love him so much and I can't imagine my life with out him. I am learning though that if I truly grow closer to God and feel of his love, putting my trust in him, I am not so afraid. I know that we are loved children of a Heavenly Father and that he wants us to be happy.

I am so thankful for the sacrifices of many men and women who fight so that we can live in a country of freedom. This is truly a blessed country to live in.

Anniversary Weekend Pictures

Isn't Jake a stud! I really have the most amazing, thoughtful, caring husband in the whole wide world. This of course makes me the luckiest girl in the whole wide world. It's funny how you hear people in movies say that their loved ones "complete them" well that's how I feel about Jake. He completes me and when he is away a feel that a piece of me is missing. He makes me laugh and smile and helps me not take life too seriously. I love the way that he hugs me when I see him and the way he cuddles with me in the mornings. He has the absolute best smile in the world. Just looking at him you can't help but be happy. I am so thankful to have him in my life. Being married has been the best adventure of my entire life. Thank you Jacob for your example and love!

Here are some pictures from this weekend....

 p.s. this was the best Mexican food either of us has had  here in the U.S. Yes, it is that good! We would highly suggest it.

Look at this Salsa Bar. Delicious!

A happy drive home from East Canyon

First Anniversary

 Yesterday (September 7, 2013) was the first anniversary of our wedding.  I surprised Laurie with an early anniversary gift and celebration about a month ago, so she told me she would plan everything for our actual anniversary.  She's a lot better at planning that me, so I had been looking forward to find out what she had planned... and she didn't disappoint.  I came home from work and was looking forward to some leftovers from the night before, including a bar-b-q pork sandwich and Laurie's delicious chocolate zucchini bread.  I searched the kitchen for these goodies, but couldn't find them anywhere.  I asked Laurie and she told me she was sorry and she had thrown them away.  I was disappointed and told her to make sure to check with me before throwing stuff away...unless it had mold or was visibly bad.   Right after work on Friday we had talked about going to the Salt Lake City temple to commemorate the most important and memorable part of our wedding weekend a year ago.  However, we didn't quite make it to the temple.  Apparently James Taylor was singing with the tabernacle choir that night, so traffic going towards the temple and the conference center was the worst we had ever seen it.  Rather than deal with the parking lot on West Temple and State Street around Temple Square and then seeing if by some miracle we could find a parking spot, while we were stuck behind a FedEx truck trying to turn north onto State Street, Laurie said she had an idea and asked to take over as driver.  She ran around the front of the car and jumped in as driver.  I had no idea where we were headed.  However, as she continued to drive out of town it became clear that we were either going to Wyoming or to Park City.  Eventually we made it to the Park City Marriott hotel, which is the hotel that we spent or wedding night at exactly a year earlier!

On Saturday Laurie had even more surprises for me.  It was a beautiful, sun-filled morning in Park City.   She first drove us over to the Park City Hotel and we spent some time at the golf course driving range and putting green.  I'm not the best golfer myself, but I enjoy going occasionally.  It was fun trying to teach Laurie how to hit the different clubs.  Golfing is tough to learn at first, but she picked it up better than I thought she would.  We survived the driving range without breaking any windows or clubs, so it was a success.  We then went on a longer drive up the canyon to East Canyon reservoir.  We had a nice picnic next to the reservoir.  And to my great surprise the chocolate zucchini bread and bar-b-q sandwiches were not actually thrown at at all, but Laurie had included them in our tasty picnic.  After our picnic in the perfect weather, we rented paddle boards and headed down to the water.  Neither of us had ever paddle boarded before, but we thought it would be fun to try something new together.  Laurie jumped on the board, sat down and started paddling away to the east side of the reservoir.  I was quite a bit slower, but once I got up on my knees I was able to start catching up to Laurie.  As I got closer to her I wanted to show off and show her that I could stand up on the board and paddle like you are supposed to.  I carefully stood up, my legs wobbling the whole time.  I paddled a couple of times before my legs started shaking and the board started wobbling left and right under my shakiness.  Next thing I knew I was immersed under the water and the board flew over to the shore.  I swam over, jumped on the board again, but after a few seconds I was under water again.  Eventually both Laurie and I got the hang of it and we felt like pros heading east with the wind at our backs.  Unfortunately, when we turned around to head back to where we started the wind was a lot stronger it took quite a bit of effort to paddle our way into the wind.  We eventually made it back just as dark clouds were gathering and the pouring rain started.  We made the scenic car ride back to Park City and headed to Park City main street.  We borrowed an umbrella from the hotel and enjoyed a nice walk up and down main street before deciding on a nice, quaint Italian restaurant to eat at.  After dining to our hearts' (and stomachs') desire, we headed back to the hotel. Laurie let me watch a BYU football game, where BYU surprisingly beat the University of Texas.  We spent some time at the hotel pool, steam room, and hot tub, and overall had a really nice, fun time at the hotel.  Sunday morning came too fast and we had to pack up.  On our way out of Park City we found a church building to attend sacrament meeting.  Apparently Park City has a sacrament meeting just for visitors and vacationers.  After sacrament we ran into one of Laurie's best friends - Elizabeth, who lives in Park City and it was fun to catch up with her.

It was a fabulous anniversary weekend and we were  both exhausted as we made it back to relax at our home in Sugarhouse.  As we relaxed I had some time to reflect back on the past year.  It seems like the past year has flown by, but at the same time it seems like we have been married for several years.  Sometimes I feel like Laurie knows me better than myself.  As I think back about where I was a year ago compared to now, I feel like I have grown so much and have had so many new experiences.  My life feels completely different than a year ago, and my life is so much better now.  Some of the many new, great experiences Laurie and I have enjoyed this past year are as follows:

• Being sealed in the Salt Lake City temple
• Enjoying our wedding day (luncheon, sealing, and reception) together with so many wonderful friends and family
• Enjoying our wedding night in nicest suite at the Park City Marriott
• Having an adventure of a honey moon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico -- the first time I have ever used my passport.  We had fun adventures taking fishing boats out snorkling and to hidden waterfalls, and spent a lot of time relaxing at the resort pool.
• Buying our small house in Sugar House.  It's small, but it's perfect for us and we love it.  We love the location.  It seemed a little crazy to buy a house so close to our wedding day.  It was a crazy few months home searching and wedding planning at the same time -- but I'm glad that we had a place to move into together right after our wedding, and we bought the house right before interest rates and home prices started going up.  
• Just before our wedding Laurie started a great job as an administrative assistant for the Utah Lieutenant Governor - Greg Bell.  It was neat to be able to rub shoulders at some parties with the Lieutenant Governor and even the Governor at a few events and parties, and to have an inside look through Laurie at the impressive men that help make Utah such a great state to live in.
• Within a month or two of getting married we also did some serious car shopping together and found a used car that we both liked.  We decided on a 2010 Toyota Rav4, which has been a great car in the snow and it's extra cargo space compared to our Honda Civic has come in handy several times, including our many trips to Home Depot and Lowe's as we've made some home and yard improvements.
• In May we took a trip of a life-time to New York City and Washington DC.  Laurie did an internship in Washington DC as an intern for Senator Hatch and then she served her mission in the New York City North mission.  So it was perfect to have an experienced tour guide who was familiar with both of the cities.  I had never visited any city in the North Eastern U.S., so it was a thrill for me to see the big towering buildings in New York and exploring the busy streets and subways.  It was also so neat to see all of the national monuments and history in D.C.  
• I had a lot of rewarding callings in the many singles' wards I had attended over the years, but none of those wards had the calling of 11-year old scoutleader.  I was blessed with this calling in April, and it's been a lot of fun teaching the 11 year old's in our stake and helping them to develop the attributes that are important in scouts and in becoming strong young men.
• I have thoroughly enjoyed Laurie's cooking.  She cooks the most delicious, healthy meals.  I have been spoiled to have a mother and then a wife that cooks nearly every single night.
• Laurie has been a great sport to take part in my interests with me.  I was so proud of her that she ran two half-marathons with me and also the Moab Red Rock Relay all within just a few months.  It's a good thing that she helps encourage me to exercise, because with her good cooking I'm sure I'd be gaining a lot of weight without the exercise.
• It's also been enjoyable working on our yard and garden with Laurie this past year.  This past spring and summer we planted raspberries, blackberries, peas, carrots, spinach, zucchini, basil, cantaloupe, jalepenos, red peppers, yellow peppers, tomatoes, asparagus, and most recently a nectarine tree.  We've also discovered that our neighbors have a large walnut tree that overhangs into our yard, and we have a few plum trees in our backyard.  It's been very rewarding to me to prepare soil, plant seeds, and then through sufficient sunlight and watering to see the great fruits of our labors that we've been able to enjoy in the delicious meals that Laurie is so great to prepare.   

Much like the great fruits and vegetables that we've been able to harvest from our garden, I am so thankful for the many great and enjoyable times that married life and my wife Laurie have brought to me.  I know that as we continue to strength and love eachother, and spend as much time enjoying the light of the spirit and centering our lives around the living water of Christ that we will have many more enjoyable and rewarding years ahead of us.  I love Laurie with all of my heart. She is the most beautiful person I have ever met... and she is even more beautiful inside than out.  She is so loving, serving, and thoughtful.  I feel like the luckiest man in the world to be able to spend this life and eternity with her as my bride.

Labor Day Weekend

Saturday afternoon we drove down to Saint George to spend time with the Decker's. Yes, it was a full packed weekend seeing as how we ran our 5K that same morning. We loved the time we got to spend with them and were even able to go up to Jake's parent's cabin and hike around.

Here are some high lights....

Mickey and Jett (our nephew) have become pretty good play pals. Maybe they will let Mickey babysit one of these days :) He is older after all.

Jake and his brothers like the occasional video game. Madden is the talk of the town with football season on the horizon.

We found a natural spring on our hike and thought it would be fun to take a sip.

Jake crossing the water.... well... kind of.

Mickey always just fits right in as part of the family.

Walking back to the car.

 Some lovin' from their auntie and uncle

It was gorgeous on our hike and we even found some wild raspberries bushes that we ate from along the way. Wish we had taken more pictures to share. Oh well, maybe next time. Hopefully this will be the first of many hikes to come, up at the Cabin.

Our drive home: Breath taking.

Footsteps for Fertility

Jake and I suffer from in-fertility. It's not something we like to talk about but we are realizing the blessings that come as we are more open about it. This weekend we were able to run in a race that raises money for couples in similar situations. Our families were our biggest supporters. My siblings were able to come run with us, while Jake's family cheered us on from hundreds of miles away. We are so grateful for all the love that we have felt as we continue to take steps that will hopefully one day allow us to have children of our own.

It was a truly amazing and humbling experience as we watched and awaited raffle winners to be announced from the race. Footsteps for Fertility were able to give away 10 prizes. These prizes awarded couples either free or half off fertility treatments. We didn't win anything on Saturday but we felt so much joy for these hopeful couples as their names were called. It was "an emotional experience" as Jake described it.

Here is the BEFORE

and the AFTER

Thank you family!