No Rain on Our Parade

"Everything Happens for a Reason"

2011-11-19T21:46:00.000-08:00

That has to be the most accurate cliche ever. Over the summer I slipped down some stairs and injured my arm. I have been in some pain ever since. I tried Physical Therapy for a month, but it just wasn't getting better. When I woke up in the middle of the night a few weeks ago with terrible pain, I decided I better go back to the doctor. They decided to do an MRI, where they discovered a tumor inside my shoulder bone. After 7 very emotional days and a biopsy, I found out the tumor is benign (whew!). It is very aggressive and has nearly destroyed the top of my humerus. I am having it removed on Wednesday, which I hope will be the beginning of the end of the pain. I am so thankful for that fall over the summer and that it led me to get an MRI. I'm thankful for the many sighs of relief since finding out it's not cancer. I'm thankful for amazingly knowledgeable doctors who were so willing to get me the help I needed so quickly. I'm thankful for my loving family (immediate and extended) and friends who have offered many prayers and words of support. I'm thankful for my health. I am so blessed.

Toddler Section?!

2011-10-14T20:04:00.000-07:00

My sweet little boy is 9 months old, so I feel like I should still be shopping in the baby section. Oh no, I have to shop in the Toddler Section! Tonight I bought him a sweater that was 24 month size. Yikes! (He is usually in 12-18 month size. That sweater was unusally small). Even though he's a big boy, he's still my sweet, 9 month old BABY. He loves to wave hello and bye, even if no one is coming or leaving. He has been crawling since he was 6 1/2 months, but doesn't have much interest in walking. He loves pulling up on things and climbing on things - but the whole walking thing doesn't seem too cool to him yet. He loves playing chase with his dad. His two favorite things are climbing on things and reading books. He will crawl over to his books and pick up the one he wants to read. I miss him so much when I'm at work, but I'm so grateful I get to come home to him in the afternoons.

This is how he laughs when he thinks something is REALLY funny.

8 Months

2011-09-04T19:36:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 8 months old. He is so much fun right now. I say this at every stage, but this is really my favorite stage so far. He is so funny. He keeps amazing me at what he knows and how quickly he learns things. My new favorite thing he does is playing peek-a-boo behind the curtains. It is hilarious and so sweet. He is crawling all over the place and pulling up on everything. He even couch-walked this weekend! Love love love him!

July

2011-08-27T19:44:00.000-07:00

I know it's September now, but I have to write a little something about July. July was an exciting month, full of milestones for Austin. Within 3 weeks, he . . .

Learned to sit himself up

He learned how to crawl!

And pull himself up.

Life Lesson

2011-08-13T10:48:00.000-07:00

For the past few months I have been following the blog and facebook of a friend of mine from college. Her baby, who is a day younger than Austin, needed a liver transplant. I read everyday to get the update on how Ruby was doing. I was always amazed at Ani's faith. She never gave up. She would talk about how blessed she was when she got to take Ruby home from the hospital for a few days or even just hold her without her being hooked up to all the hospital monitors. When I woke up on Friday and read that Ruby had passed away, my heart just ached for her family. I cannot imagine the pain they must feel. But on her latest blog, Ani said how grateful she is for the knowledge of Eternal families. Her perspective and attitude throughout this unimaginable trial has be so inspiring for me. The past few days I have been hugging Austin a little tighter, holding him longer, and telling him I love him over and over again. I am so grateful for him. I hope I can always remember to show him how much I love him, even when life gets crazy.

Fun in the Sun (With SPF 50)

2011-07-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I are lucky enough to be living in NC this summer. Jeff got an internship in Raleigh (thanks Aunt Debbie!), so we got the chance to get out of Provo for the summer. We are loving it so far. A change is always nice, and who doesn't want to live near the beach during the summer? I spent my first week here with my family at the Outer Banks. Jeff had to work most of the time, but was able to come out over the weekend. We had fun playing at the beach, eating, and trying to turn Austin into a beach bum.

First time at the beach! He'll be a beach bum soon enough

Hanging out by the Sound

Waterfront Dining

Since we got back from OBX, I have been spending my time going back and forth between Raleigh and Beulaville. I love being so close to family, and I'm pretty sure my parents are enjoying having us around - especially Austin! He has grown and changed so much since we have been here - even his hair is growing faster. He is starting to crawl - mostly an army crawl for now, but I can tell it won't be long before he takes off. I can already see I will be one busy mama once he's on the move. Hopefully I will have a video of his army crawl to share soon.

Almost!

2011-07-08T08:08:00.000-07:00

I was getting ready to update this lonely blog when I realized I don't have any new pictures to share. Well. . .I have a lot of new pictures to share, but they are on my camera which is currently at my parents' house. So as soon as I go get it, I will update! Coming soon. . .

*We had so much fun at the OBX - Austin's first time at the beach!
*We are loving spending the summer in NC - grandparents are loving it even more I think.
*Austin is 6 months old. So hard to believe.
*He has a new way of getting around.

Rules

2011-06-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

Austin's sleeping habits haven't been great since he was born. (He has slept for 8 hours straight for the past 3 nights -what are the odds he will keep it up?!) I have read 2 books and several articles on the internet about baby sleeping habits and how to get them to sleep longer. Here are some of the "rules" I came across:

1. NEVER rock your baby to sleep

2. NEVER nurse your baby to sleep

3. Your baby should ALWAYS sleep in his crib. (Not in your arms or in your bed with you)

4. Don't go to your baby when you're letting him "cry it out."

All of these rules have been beneficial for me in helping Austin to sleep better. However I have learned, more than anything, that every baby is different. That NEVER and ALWAYS are words that don't apply to babies. Sometimes I do rock Austin to sleep. Sometimes I nurse him to sleep. Sometimes I can't stand to listen to him cry anymore so I go in there and give him a hug. Sometimes when Austin wakes up too early, we put him in the bed with us and he sleeps with us for an hour or two. And tonight he took a nap in my arms for an hour and it was Heaven. It seems like his sleeping habits have gotten better since Jeff and I made up our own rules and realized it's ok to break them every once in a while.

Guess How Much I Love You

2011-06-05T19:35:00.000-07:00

For Austin's bedtime story tonight, we read Guess How Much I Love You. I love that story. We read it at least once a week. Usually when I read to him, he looks at the book or just looks around the room. As we were reading tonight, he looked at me and smiled the entire time. It was so sweet. That little boy melts my heart sometimes. I remember thinking when he was a newborn that I didn't want him to get any bigger. But as he gets older, I am loving every minute of it. Every new thing he does is so fun and exciting. He is the sweetest little boy.

My Big Boy

2011-05-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

2011-05-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

Austin has had a busy couple of weeks - hanging out with dad, learning to sit up and taking his first bites of rice cereal. He is growing up way too fast.

Just What I Needed

2011-05-11T19:37:00.000-07:00

I got home from work today feeling exhausted and a little stressed. The end of the school year is always crazy and tiring. Later on in the evening, Jeff was showing me the airplane he made in one of his classes. He held onto it and ran across the room and made an airplane noise. Austin starting laughing uncontrollably. So Jeff kept this up for a good ten minutes - running back and forth in the living room with his airplane while Austin just laughed and laughed. We have heard little giggles from him, but nothing like this. It was the best sound ever. I felt so, so happy. I love my little family.

Adorable

2011-05-08T16:15:00.000-07:00

I don't know about others who have tried to find cute clothes for baby boys, but it can be a little frustrating sometimes. There's some cute stuff, but I love the classic baby boy clothing. There's not much of that out there. Lucky for me, I have a Granny who can make anything. She has made Austin several adorable outfits. He wore one to church today, and he looked so precious.

4 months

2011-05-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

I just love this little boy. I can't believe he is 4 months old already. He has changed so much in just the past 2 weeks. He is rolling over a lot, smiling and laughing, and learning how to play with his toys. He got his shots today, and only cried for about 30 seconds. He is such a champ. Here are his stats:

Weight: 16 pounds (77th percentile)
Height: 27 inches (99th percentile)
Head: 16 inches (61st percentile)

Chatter Box

2011-04-10T16:23:00.000-07:00

Tummy Time

Watching golf with Dad. Looks like Austin likes watching golf as much as I do.

Look What I Can Do

2011-03-29T18:21:00.001-07:00

Some of Austin's favorite things to do:

Smiling at mom and dad

Staring at his fist

Eating his fist

He rolled over!

2 month stats

2011-03-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

Weight: 13 lbs (78th percentile)

Height: 24 inches (83rd percentile)
Yea, he's a big fella.

Last week I took Austin to NC. I was really nervous about the plane ride but he did awesome. He slept almost the entire time. Most of the family came over for a cookout at my parents' house. I'm glad Austin got to meet everyone -even though he slept through the entire party. It was also nice for him to experience some warmth - it was in the 60's and 70's while we were there. We even got to take a stroll around the block! One day we went with my grandma to a fabric store to pick out fabric for Granny to make some outfits for Austin. I'm so excited - I get so tired of going in stores and having 1 little rack to choose from for boy clothes. Pictures of the NC trip coming soon.

Austin is growing and changing so much everyday. He is such a happy baby (unless he's hungry). He smiles and laughs more and more everyday. I can't believe how much he has changed in 10 weeks. We just can't get enough of this sweet little boy.

My Valentine

2011-02-14T16:47:00.000-08:00

2011-02-10T16:26:00.000-08:00

Doesn't my "little man" look so big? I can't believe how much he changes everyday. What he's doing these days:

*He loves his dad. He smiles at him all the time - so cute.

*He is awake a lot more- sometimes in the middle of the night.

*His gaze will follow Jeff and I when we move - it's fun to see him noticing us.

*He sleeps all night in his crib (in between feedings). He used to only sleep in his swing, bouncy seat, boppy, etc.

*We used to cover his car seat with a blanket when we were in the car. Now he likes to be able to look outside and see what's going on.

* He is such a relaxed baby. He will just sit there and look around and be happy.

*At the same time, he's a little bit of a lap baby. He loves to be snuggled, which is good since we love to snuggle him and get his sugar. (Which means kiss him, for those of you not from the south)

Uncles

2011-02-06T12:53:00.001-08:00

Sneezes and Smiles

2011-02-03T14:50:00.001-08:00

Lately it seems like Austin has started smiling at us, but it was hard to tell if it was a social smile or if he was just a little gassy. :) But this morning Jeff was talking to him and Austin had the biggest smile on his face - it was the cutest thing I have ever seen. So of course, I wanted him to smile at me too. When Jeff left for school, I started talking to Austin as usual and he made my day - he smiled at me. And he kept smiling and cooing. It was the sweetest thing ever. Of course when I tried to video him, he wouldn't do it as much but here is a little taste of what we saw this morning. It is amazing how one little smile can be the best part of your day.

This is him playing under his favorite toy

Sweet Baby

2011-01-10T16:27:00.000-08:00

I can't believe he is finally here. He is such a sweet baby. I wondered how it would feel when he was born and finally in my arms. I thought it would be surreal, like it was somehow not reality. But it feels so natural and normal. It's hard to imagine him not being here. I love watching him to see what he will do next. Who knew a tiny little boy could be so entertaining? He does something new everyday. He is already such a blessing to our little family. I can't wait to see what he does next.

December 27

2010-12-26T17:34:00.001-08:00

I can't believe tomorrow is December 27. I have been thinking about that date for 7 months. It has seemed so far away. Even though he probably won't come tomorrow, it's still crazy to think that my due date is here. I can't believe it's finally time to meet our baby. I can't wait!

37 Weeks

2010-12-06T18:57:00.000-08:00

3 weeks away! I'm still feeling really good, but I'm getting anxious for him to get here. I went to the doctor today and everything seems to be going well.

Wow, I just looked at this picture and realized how huge I look! Oh well.

What do I need?

2010-11-18T20:22:00.001-08:00

I'm now 34 1/2 weeks pregnant - ahhh!! I'm so excited to meet our little guy. I am also starting to get nervous about having everything we need. I'm not worried about having every little thing ready. I just want to make sure we have the essentials. So, all you moms out there - what are the must-haves for:

My hospital bag

Our first week at home

Anything else you were glad you had or you wish you'd had

(A huge thanks to family and friends who have been so generous and supportive. I can't believe how blessed this baby is to be born with such great family and friends.)

2010-11-11T17:46:00.000-08:00

Jeff and I got to take a peek at our little fella today for the last time before we meet him (in just 6 1/2 weeks). He's about 4 1/2 pounds and cute as a button. He looks like he has really chubby cheeks, but it's really hard to see anything on the ultrasound screen. The ultrasound tech made us a DVD, but my computer won't read it. So you'll just have to wait a few weeks for pictures of the little guy. For now, you can see the bump he's making on his mommy.

Sports Baby

2010-10-10T17:48:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows Jeff knows he is a HUGE sports fan. Thanks to our family and friends, our son has the gear he needs to be one too. Check out all the sports-related clothes he has already. And his father couldn't be happier! Maybe Champ Ian Rains isn't such a bad name after all . . .

The Bump

2010-09-20T19:39:00.000-07:00

For all those who have been asking for a picture of the belly -

26 weeks

Vacation!

2010-08-15T15:13:00.001-07:00

We were lucky enough this summer to go to Washington and North Carolina on vacation. We had a lot of fun at both places. It was so nice to see our families. Here are some of the highlights:

Washington
Mariner's Game

Spending time with Ashlea, Eric, and Adalea

Jeff, John (Jeff's brother), and Jason (Jeff's brother-in-law) went swimming in some FREEZING cold water. I didn't get in past my ankles!

One of the fun things we did while in WA was going up to Vancouver, Canada. It was a really cool city. We went to a park that had tons of stuff to do. We also went to China Town and got some authentic Chinese food. It was delicious! One afternoon, we hung out at Tina and Jason's house - we had a BBQ, played Wiffle Ball, and Jason's dad showed us their bees. They are real bee keepers! It was really cool. On our way back to Utah, we stopped in Spokane to see Jeff's grandmother. She is so sweet and so funny! We really enjoyed spending time with her.

North Carolina
We spent most of our time in NC at the Outer Banks. It was so nice to just relax on the beach for a few days. We did some kayaking and fishing -we even caught enough fish one night to eat for dinner!

We also had the chance to spend some time with Amanda, Kensi, and Carter. Carter LOVED playing with Jeff, and I enjoyed holding Kensi any chance I got. It was so fun to spend time with Amanda. In high school, you couldn't separate us, so it's weird to live so far away for so long.

Our last night in NC, my parents invited some people over for a cookout. It was nice to see so many people that I rarely get to see. We had a lot of family and friends there, and it was a blast. I love visiting family and friends. I can't wait to see everyone in Washington and NC again very soon.
Check out the shirts my parents had made. I think they are a little excited to be grandparents!

P.S. Here I am at almost 23 weeks

Baby Rains

2010-07-15T20:36:00.001-07:00

Just like Jeff has been saying all along, Baby Rains will be a little boy! We were very surprised that the doctor did an ultrasound at just 16 weeks, so it was a huge surprise to find out what we were having so soon. We are really excited and can't wait to meet the little fella!

Baby loves . . .

2010-07-10T17:03:00.001-07:00

Before last week, I can't remember the last time I had Cheetos. And now I just can't get enough. They are sooooooooo delicious. The only problem is, everything I touch turns orange!
How I'm looking these days:

Most people say I don't look any different, but I can definitely tell the difference. I'm feeling really good lately. I think the baby likes weekends; I only get morning sickness on weekdays. It must think working in the summer is just as lame as I think it is. :)

A New Look

2010-06-09T21:52:00.001-07:00

Our apartment has very, very white walls. And as far as I know we can't paint them. So I've been trying to think of a way to add some color to our living room. I've looked for some art work to put up, but it's either too expensive or just doesn't look great. I was telling my friend Ashley K about my predicament and she suggested something she saw in the Pottery Barn catalog. I picked out some fun fabric and wrapped it around a canvas. It was so easy and it gave our living room some color. It's a super easy craft - even I could do it! Sorry about the shadows.

Announcement!

2010-05-28T12:08:00.001-07:00

I'm sure most of you have heard by now, but I am pregnant! Jeff and I are really excited. I'm 9 weeks along and due January 1st - Jeff's Birthday! I had an ultrasound on Tuesday, so I got to hear the baby's heartbeat. That made it feel very real. We can't wait - but I think the grandparents are just as excited as we are!

Bring On the Summertime!

2010-04-26T15:59:00.001-07:00

Over the weekend Jeff and I drove down to Moab, UT. We visited two national parks - Canyonlands and Arches. The weather was perfect for hiking - 70's and sunny. It was nice to get away from Provo where it had snowed two days before. We had a great time. It made us so excited for summer. We can't wait for more summer adventures!

Best Year Ever

2010-01-17T07:38:00.000-08:00

Today Jeff and I have been married for 1 year. I can't believe how fast time goes by. It has been an amazing year. It's not like anything is that different. I'm still the same person, I have the same job, I still love stupid reality shows. Everything just seems better now that I have Jeff to share my life with. Everything is so much more fun. But I guess you would expect that when you marry your best friend. Can't wait for another year.

2009-12-29T17:58:00.000-08:00

Why does time fly by when you're on vacation? We are leaving NC tomorrow morning and going back to Utah. We have had a great time - so sad it's over. I love vacation! Pictures coming soon!

Say it isn't so . . .

2009-12-06T20:04:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving and Christmas!

2009-12-06T19:31:00.000-08:00

Jeff and I had a great time with his parents - such a great time that I completely forgot to take pictures while they were here. All I have is ONE picture from all the Thanksgiving fun. But everything turned out great - Jeff did a great job on the turkey. It was delicious. I loved having the pork roast with grandpa's special sauce. It didn't taste exactly like his, but it was pretty good. We had a lot of fun hanging out with the Rains family. We did a little shopping on Friday, and then on Saturday we went up to SLC to the Family History center. They have a ton of geneology work done, and wanted to get some more information on some relatives.

As soon as we got home from taking Jeff's parents to the airport, I started putting up Christmas decorations. Whenever a girl in the Hollingsworth family gets married, a Christmas shower is thrown for her. So, I had TONS of Christmas decorations for our first Christmas together. I had so much fun decorating. I think Jeff even got into it a little. He thought it would be funny to put all the decorations in one spot on the tree. Yea . . . that didn't last long!

Thanks Grannie Frances for the beautiful wall hanging. My mom sent these trees to me a couple of years ago. I got some really pretty gold ones at my Christmas shower, but they
wouldn't fit in the box when my mom shipped my decorations to me. I think they are making an appearance with her decorations this year. :) I can't wait to get them here.

Thanksgiving Meal Checklist

2009-11-25T19:16:00.000-08:00

Peach cobbler - check
Sweet potato casserole - check
Rolls - check (thank Mary Susan!)
Pumpkin Pie - check (Thanks Macey's grocery store!)
Only about 5 more things to cook

Does anyone know Grandpa LK's recipe for the sauce that goes on the pig?

Thanksgiving Menu

2009-11-09T19:53:00.000-08:00

I love Thanksgiving! I was always lucky enough to attend the Hollingsworth family Thanksgiving feast at my Grandpa LK's house. That was one of my favorite days of the year. The food was amazing and spending time with Hollingsworths is always a party. I'm a little nervous about this year's Thanksgiving because . . . get excited . . . I'm cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Yikes! Jeff and I are excited to have his parents come down for a few days to celebrate with us. Here's what I have on the menu:

Turkey and Stuffing
Pulled Pork (Anyone in the Hollingsworth family will understand why I want pork on Thanksgiving!)
Green Beans -Southern style of course
Mashed Potatoes
Cookie Salad - I don't know what this is really called. It's something Jeff's family has a lot, and it's delicious
Sweet potato casserole
Rolls
Apple Pie
Some kind of chocolate dessert - any ideas??

I just hope I can pull this off :)

Life is Good!

2009-11-08T19:24:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted in a really long time, mostly because I have been so terrible about taking pictures of things we have been doing. We have been trying our best to enjoy the beautiful fall weather we are having. It's hard to believe that it will be snowing soon :( . Here are some things I have taken pictures of lately.

One of our favorite things to do is go for a drive and "discover" new things. We came across a small lake in a canyon near Springville.

We also took a little trip to the zoo. So fun! I love the zoo. Jeff would prefer to see the animals in their natural habitat. I'm content seeing them behind a fence so they can't get to me! One of the main attractions at the zoo that weekend was a baby elephant. She was adorable. I noticed that we were the only ones at the zoo without little kids. Oh well . . . we had fun!

When I was looking through my pictures, I realized I haven't posted anything from our trip to NC. That was an awesome trip. I wrote about it in an earlier post so I'll just put up a few pics.

And one last random thing: I was feeling crafty one Saturday and decided to make a fall wreath. Yea . . for those of you who know me really well, you know I am not a crafty person. It runs in my family, but that gene definitely skipped over me unfortunately. Here is my first attempt at a wreath. It's looking kinda rough - I made it 2 months ago, so it looked a little better and brighter when I first made it. So anyway, this post was very random. But these are a few of the things we have been up to. Now we are just looking forward to having Jeff's parents here for Thanksgiving. I have never cooked a Thanksgiving meal by myself, so I'm a little nervous but excited! I made my menu tonight. If nothing burns, it should be a good meal!

I think that's a word. . .

2009-09-12T19:30:00.000-07:00

While walking around the grocery store this afternoon, Jeff and I were having a random conversation about how much hair we had when we were babies. I said, " I didn't have a sprig of hair on my head." Jeff had no idea what a sprig is! Did I make that word up? This scenario happens very often because I always use words and phrases from NC that he has never heard before like "He didn't have a STITCH of . . " or "I look a SIGHT today." So I'm just wondering if sprig is one of those words that most people don't use or if it's just one Jeff has never heard before.

Coming Soon. . .

2009-08-06T20:23:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I just got back from our awesome trip to NC. We were able to spend a lot of time with my parents and other friends/family. We also had the chance to attend Jessica and Adam's wedding. Congrats guys! I left my camera in NC so it might be a little while before I post the pictures of our trip. We had so much fun and didn't really want to come back. Thanks everyone for showing us a good time. We love you!

The Great Outdoors

2009-07-13T07:54:00.000-07:00

On Friday, Jeff and I decided to go camping at our favorite camping spot, Joe's Valley Reservoir. We had a blast! We both love camping, but we haven't been able to go this summer because of all the rain. But the weather has finally cleared up, so we are hoping we can go a few more times before I have to go back to school (which is ONLY 5 weeks away. . .). Enjoy the pics!

Our favorite camping meal:hamburger, potatoes, carrots, onions . . .delicious

We went hiking on Saturday, which was really fun. But I am SO afraid of snakes. I think I have a snake phobia. I can't even look at pictures of them. Just thinking about them is making my skin crawl! Before we left to go camping, we saw a story on the news about how there have been a ton of rattlesnake sightings this summer. So of course all I can think about on our hike is what I'm going to do if I see a rattlesnake. My plan was to run as fast as I can until I got back to our car. Luckily, there were no rattlesnake sightings on our hike. We had a great view of the reservoir when we were sitting at the top of the mountain. We also did a little cliff-jumping. The jump wasn't nearly as high as it was last year (all the rain made the water really high), but I was still really afraid to jump at first. It was really fun once I got the courage to jump in. Luckily, the first couple of times we went jumping, there were people waiting behind us so I felt a little more pressure to just jump in. Here's a video of me jumping. I didn't realize Jeff was videoing me working up the courage to jump . . .

Here are a few more random pictures: Jeff chopping wood and us playing cards during one of the storms.

My dilemma

2009-06-23T19:07:00.001-07:00

I promised myself I would go to the gym at least 3 days this week. I don't want to go on Saturday, and it's already Tuesday so I really need to go tonight. A really fun Pilates class starts in less than an hour. But it would take less than an hour to bake the chocolate chip cookies I have been craving all day. What will it be . . . cookies or pilates?!

Warning: Its a long one!

2009-06-09T12:27:00.001-07:00

It's been a while since I have written so there is a lot to catch up on. Here we go. My brother Matthew, who is stationed in Everett, Washington came to visit in May. It was so great to see
him. While he was here we climbed a waterfall, shot guns, and went to see the not so Great Salt Lake.
We went shooting with Jeff's sister and brother-in-law: Tina and Jason.
Here's the boys setting up the targets.

Matthew shooting. We didn't have guns that even compared to the ones Matt has on his ship, but I think he had a good time.

This is a video of me shooting. The boys told me a million times that the gun wouldn't kick that much. (My biggest fear was that I would shoot the gun, then drop it on the ground or something.) I'm pretty sure they just told me that so I would shoot it!

Jeff and I took Matthew to hike Bridal Veil Falls. It was absolutely beautiful!

Me and Matt at the top of the waterfall.

Of course Jeff had to get right in the middle of the action!

A few weeks ago, Jeff and I went to the Taylor Swift concert. It was AWESOME! We had a great time. Our seats were almost at the very top, but we were still rocking out. She put on a great show.
This is when she came out in the crowd! We were still really far away from her, but at least we could look at her instead of trying to see her on the big screen!

Us waiting for the show. You can tell which one of us was the most excited to see T-Quick! You can kinda see the sweet necklace Matt brought me from . . . Honduras?? Shoot. . .I already forgot.

The lovely cake you see below is my first attempt at a two layer cake. I'm an ok cook - Jeff and I cook dinner almost every night. It's a lot of hamburger helper and different kinds of pasta with chicken, but I would say we eat pretty good. However, I have never really gotten into baking. But since I got out of school last week, I have had this weird desire to bake. So, today I decided I would bake a cake. It ain't pretty, but it sure tasted good! It made me think how amazing all those relatives of mine are that can make those delicious 16 layer cakes. How do y'all do it?! I will take any advice anyone has about how to keep the side of the cake from falling off!

I love my job!

2009-05-05T14:33:00.000-07:00

I don't write much about my job on here, mostly because of confidentiality. But I have to share something that happened today. If it's not my favorite moment since I started teaching, it's a very close second. One of my students read his first book today! He has a REALLY hard time focusing sometimes, but he has worked very hard this year learning sight words on note cards. Today I pulled out a book to see if he could transfer his knowledge from note cards to an actual book. It was amazing!! I took a video of him reading and showed it to him. He got the biggest kick out of it! I'm pretty sure his mom is the only person who was more excited than I was. Sorry everyone, I have the best job ever. :)

Tulips and Walking for Autism!

2009-05-03T20:08:00.000-07:00

Although the weather wasn't great, we had a fabulous weekend! Jeff picked me up from work on Friday and we drove to Thanksgiving Point for the annual Tulip Festival. I'm sure it wouldn't have been Jeff's #1 choice for things to do on a Friday night, but he was a really good sport.

(Excuse my homely appearance in the pictures. I went straight from work, where we were having casual Friday.) At the end of the trail, we noticed the entertainment for the evening was a local dance company. They had one little group of 4 and 5 year olds. They were adorable! It brought back a lot of memories of dance recitals back in the day. It got me really excited to start dancing again, so I'm currently looking for a dance studio in the Provo area for adults who aren't that great at dancing!

On Saturday, Jeff and I participated in Utah's Walk For Autism. It was amazing to see how many people (including tons of kids) turned out when it was pouring down rain. My job can be stressful sometimes, but I was reminded on Saturday how much I LOVE working with students with Autism. Just like in any class, each of my students have different strengths. There is NEVER a dull moment, and it is a great experience to see them acquire a skill that they have worked so hard to acquire. It was also really fun to see all the family members and friends who show so much love and support. It made me want to do my job better.

Jeff and I walking for the GIANT STEPS Preschool team.

This is one of my cute students! (I got permission from his mom to put this up)

The T-shirt we got for raising at least $100. Thanks family!

For more information about Autism, visit www.autismspeaks.org

2009-04-25T14:00:00.000-07:00

We have spent the last couple of days hanging out with Jeff's mom, sister, and brother-in-law. His sister, Tina, graduated from BYU yesterday. Jeff and I were able to attend the general graduation (for all the students) on Thursday. Pres. Uchtdorf and Elder Nelson both gave great talks with encouraging words for such a scary economical time. Later that night, we all went to a really fun restaurant in Sandy called the Mayan They have a huge waterfall, where some divers put on a great show! We had great seats, so every time one of them took a dive it felt like they were going to land on us. Last night, we went over to Tina and Jason's house and had pizza and played a game Jeff's brother John gave us for Christmas. It's called the Redneck Life; you go around the game board losing money . . . and teeth. Whoever has the most teeth at the end wins! It was a lot of fun. It was really great to see everyone. Congratulations, Tina

2009-04-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

The last couple of weeks have been a lot of fun. I finally got out of the snow on my Spring Break and headed to Las Vegas with Jeff and my old roommate Ashley. We hung out with Jeff's friend Kyle, who was there for a work convention. It was great to be in the warm sunshine for a few days. I did a terrible job of taking pictures so I'll give a quick run-down of some of the things we did. We got there Thursday night and just walked around the NY NY hotel. There was tons to see there, including the Coyote Ugly club. It wasn't as cool as it looks in the movie, but it was still really fun to check it out! The next day, Ashley and I walked around all the shops (which all had tons of really pretty stuff that we definitely couldn't afford) in Caesar's Palace, then we met Jeff and Kyle at the pool in the NY NY. Laying in the sun was my favorite part of the trip. It got me really excited for summer. We all ate some dinner at the ESPN zone - a restaurant that has a huge plasma TV showing a sports game everywhere you look. Ashley and I spent most of our last day in Vegas shopping at the outlets. I came home with 2 new shirts and 4 new pairs of shoes. I never realized how much I love shoes - especially sandals. It was a great trip. We realized we didn't have any pictures of Jeff and me on our way out of Vegas, so the one below is of us in the car on our way home. Sorry I don't have more pictures to share!

I'm dreaming of a sunny Spring Break!

2009-04-15T12:20:00.000-07:00

This week I am on my SPRING Break, and it is wonderful! Monday was absolutely beautiful, sunny and 70 degrees. Yesterday it was raining all day on and off. This morning when I woke up it was SNOWING! (You can tell in the picture how excited I was to see the snow) How can it be snowing during spring break?! It feels like winter is never going to end. But tomorrow we are heading to sunny Las Vegas for a few days, so hopefully I come back with a true Spring Break tan!

Fresh Air and Dead Trees

2009-03-24T17:07:00.000-07:00

Last week Jeff and I were both really stressed with work and school, so on Saturday we decided we needed some fresh air. Utah has some really beautiful places to hike, so we thought that might be a good idea. We forgot that despite the abnormal 60 degree weather on Saturday, it's still winter in Utah! There wasn't too much to see, but it felt REALLY good to be outside and relax in the fresh mountain air. And Jeff got to do his favorite thing - relocating all the rocks on the trail! I think we'll save our next adventure for Utah spring (which doesn't really get going until May!)

Shout Out!

2009-03-12T15:42:00.000-07:00

A very special thanks to Bre Ahrens! Doesn't the blog look much, much better?? Woot-woot!

Help, please!

2009-03-12T14:43:00.001-07:00

Since I created this blog, I've gotten really into reading my friends' blogs. And I have noticed that everyone's blogs are centered. Their text and pictures run right down the middle of the page. How do you do that? Help? Anyone?

2009-03-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

I finally put up pictures of the cruise. We had a blast! We left from Miami and headed to Key West, Florida. I couldn't believe how cold it was there. 60 degrees in January. Rough. :) After Key West we went to beautiful Cozumel, Mexico. That was by far our favorite place. We got off the ship, and our tour guide took us to our snorkeling location. The locals were complaining the the water was way colder than usual, but it felt like bath water to us! Snorkeling was amazing. After that, they took us to get our beach buggy. We drove down a path by the beach. The beaches there are beautiful. They took us to the Crocodile Zone, which was a little scary. The crocodiles were so close! Next, we headed to a local Mexican restaurant on the beach. It was absolutely gorgeous. We wanted to stay there for the rest of the trip. We left that night to head back to Miami. Once back in Florida, we had a long time before our plane left so we took a tour down to the Everglades, where we took a fan boat around looking for alligators. Our trip was amazing. I can't wait to take another cruise!

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2009-03-02T17:03:00.000-08:00

The Big Day

2009-03-02T16:34:00.000-08:00

Jeff and I got married on January 17 in the Raleigh NC temple. It was a beautiful day, a little cold, but blue skies and sunny. The ceremony was beautiful and sweet. We were very lucky to have our families with us that day. We wish so badly Matt (my brother) could have been there, but he was out on a cruise with the Navy. The reception that night was a blast! Jeff was loving the fun-loving southerners. I told him we really know how to throw down a party - even without alcohol! We left the next morning for Miami, Florida. We stayed in an interesting hotel right in the middle of South beach, Miami. It was one of those hotels that looks really cool on the outside, and then you go inside. . . and it's even better. We left on Monday for a cruise to Key West and Cozumel, Mexico. We are true believers of cruises now! All you can eat food and entertainment. You can't beat it. We are loving married life! There's nothing better than being married to your best friend. Enjoy the pics!

My first blog!

2009-02-26T14:55:00.000-08:00

So in my family getting married means one very important thing: it's time to start a blog. I finally decided to just take a few minutes and try to get a blog going. So I went to my local blog expert - Amanda Armendariz and she thought of the title: No Rain on Our Parade. I thought it had a nice ring to it. I hope I can keep the blog going. If you have ideas for me on how to work this thing, I'll take what I can get!