The Hookup

Probably the best thing about moving to a new place is Washer/Dryer hookups!!! We got these babies at good ol' Lowes (we put that employee discount to good use!), and so far we have enjoyed our purchase very much. It's nice to do laundry and have the clothes actually come clean! Love it!

I had to post these pics of Brandt - he is like a little kid when it comes to new toys. It doesn't matter what it is, washer/dryer, a package in the mail (even if it's something for me), whatever it is, he likes to play with it. He makes me smile :) I took the video of him below without his knowledge - and after some begging he agreed to let me post it. The first thing he did with the W/D was dry them off (it was snowing when they were delivered), threw in a batch of laundry, and WATCHED THEM :) Then, he threw a shirt into the dryer so he could check out the steam dryer function.

I was hoping his excitement would last a couple of months and I wouldn't have to worry about laundry for awhile, but sadly it wore off after a few days :)

Moving Day

Well, we made it to our new abode here in Idaho Falls. Moving Day was Friday, April 2nd and everything went smoothly. We had gotten a bunch of boxes from my dad, and seriously didn't think we would even come close to using all of them. But we used every last one, without a box to spare!

I have some OCD tendencies in me and I know that, and I accept it- I like myself in spite of them:) But I'm pretty sure I tested some of Brandt's patience with me as we packed and stacked boxes. All the boxes had to face the same way and they had to be written on in the same upper right corner of the box. I even made Brandt replace a box he had stacked because it didn't match the others in the stack. I know I'm crazy! And then I liked to sit and admire my beautifully stacked boxes - I got a little thrill from it (I'm like Monica from "Friends"). I'm so glad my husband accepts and loves me just the way I am, craziness and all :)

Here's our stash ready to be loaded in the truck. Isn't the stack of 70+ boxes pretty?! I know, I need therapy.

Brandt was pretty excited to drive the big U-Haul. He was disappointed when the one we got ended up being an older model. Thanks again to Dan for helping us out! Everything went smoothly and we made it to IF in no time.

We're excited for this new phase, but that teeny tiny McKinley Manor apartment will always hold a special place in my heart.

It was our first home and I was sad to say goodbye to it. Though I won't miss the noisy cars that made my blood boil every time they drove by (I know they did it on purpose!), the stinky lady below us that made our house smell awful anytime she cooked, or the guy in the apartment adjacent to us who we could hear hacking up loogies every morning and night, or the exposed tack strip in the living room that I occasionally stepped on. Other than that it was great :) and it was home. For the first few days up here I was homesick and wanted to go back to Poky. But it gets better every day we are here. Both of us started our new jobs last Monday and so far everything has been going well. I think we're gonna like it here!

We've been here for almost two weeks now and for the most part have gotten everything put away in its place. The extra space has been so nice! And the dishwasher! Garage! Washer/Dryer! Yes, I think we've spoiled ourselves a bit. Although we're already a little worn out by climbing those stairs multiple times a day...sad, but true. We need to get ourselves back in shape!

March 31

My birthday was the last day in March, so amidst all our packing and cleaning we took a break to celebrate. Birthdays aren't quite the same as when you were a little kid...it mostly just feels like any other day, with maybe a tich of depression for being another year older. Granted, I know 24 isn't old, but it sure feels like it! We had a "party" at work (though the festivities weren't necessarily for me...it still made the day different from all the rest :) and Brandt did a good job with the presents! I actually wasn't expecting to get anything this year since we were so busy with moving - but Brandt came through for me! My favorite present: "A Goofy Movie!" I LOVE this movie! It was one of my family's favorites when we were kids and Brandt found it on DVD! Thanks Babe!


That night we were also celebrating Brandt getting done with a tough semester. He did so well and ended up with awesome grades. I had been trying to think of something to surprise him with for being so dedicated and remembered that "The Blind Side" was coming out on DVD - so I bought it on Amazon because they had a deal where if you bought it online, they would ship it to you early so you would receive it on the day it was released (March 23rd in this case) and since we qualified for free shipping, I figured for the same price that would save me a trip to Wal Mart to pick it up. Well, it finally arrived 8 DAYS LATE. I was checking the mail every day and trying to talk Brandt out of forwarding our mail to IF just yet without telling him why...it was ridiculous. Thanks a bunch Amazon, geez. But it finally got here and we LOVED it! I think we were the last ones on the planet to see this one - but it was great. We enjoyed the movie with some fabulous Grecian Key gyros and fries (YUM!) for one last time :( That's one thing we're definitely going to miss about Poky - Grecian Key. Maybe we'll see if we can talk them into opening one here in IF.

The Scoop...Take 2

I call this post "Take 2" because when I wrote it the first time, Brandt said it was too personal to post on a public blog. So Take 1 is going in my journal, and here is Take 2 for your reading pleasure :).

This past year since graduation has been crazy for both of us. Brandt struggled with what he wanted to do with his business degree. He felt good about choosing it as his major, but never knew why because a career in business (other than starting his own business) never interested him. On the other hand, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with my career, but have struggled with finding a permanent job (blasted economy!). Things never turn out quite the way you expect them to, but nevertheless we have had a good year. Brandt has a good (though slightly mundane) job and I've always been lucky enough to find temporary work; we really have been blessed. Life is good! After much prayer and pondering, Brandt has decided that he wants to pursue a career with either the BLM, U.S. Forest Service, National Park Service, etc. This semester, he is taking classes online through Oregon State (go Beavers!) to fulfill the prereqs. for the Master's program he hopes to get in to at the University of Idaho (go Vandals!) this fall. Kind of confusing, I know, but at least Brandt has it all figured out. This is finals week for him, so wish him luck!

So what's next for us? Well...drumroll please...

We're moving to Idaho Falls!

I got offered a full-time job with Harris Dental, which is the same office I worked in last fall while one of their hygienists was on maternity leave. I've been able to fill in for a few different offices in the past year, and so far Harris has been my favorite, so I'm very excited. It took us a couple of weeks to make our decision about moving. I didn't want to commute, and I didn't want to accept the job and then have to quit a couple of months down the road if Brandt got a job somewhere else. We were pretty stressed for a couple of weeks while we were trying to make the best decision. We prayed about it all the time, but didn't feel like we were getting any answers, which was very frustrating. But after I got over the initial frustrations I was feeling, I remembered a talk given by Richard G. Scott in April 2007 General Conference entitled "Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer". At that time, this talk really struck me; I was struggling with receiving an answer as to whether or not I should do dental hygiene or not (this was before I knew I had been accepted to the program). Since that time, even three years later, parts of the talk still come to me when I am struggling with the same thing. Here are some of my favorite things Elder Scott had to say:

"A key to improved prayer is to ask the right questions."

"Seldom will you receive a complete response all at once. It will come a piece at at time...so that you will grow in capacity...He will prompt you in quiet moments when the Spirit can most effectively touch your mind and heart. Hence, you should find periods of quiet time to recognize when you are being instructed and strengthened."

"Your life will be easier when you accept that what God does in your life is for your eternal good."

And concerning those times when you pray and feel like you get no response, Elder Scott said that we should thank God when this occurs because it is evidence of his trust. He went on to say:

"When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision."

I have thought of this last quote often since I first heard his talk, and it has comforted me many times when I have felt that I was getting no response to my prayers. I am so grateful for inspired leaders of the church!

So Brandt and I decided that we would weigh out all of our options, decide what WE wanted to do, and then pray about that. So...we're moving to I.F.!

We hate the cold, so next winter will be interesting, but other than that we're excited! (especially Brandt, as fishing opportunities are abundant up there :) Brandt is going to transfer to the Lowe's up there (he just can't seem to break away from that place!) and keep looking for jobs that will help him get some experience with the agencies he wants to work for, maybe a summer job or something like that. So now the focus of our prayers is for Heavenly Father to just let us know if this is an all right plan. And so far, we haven't necessarily felt "good" about this decision, but we definitely haven't felt bad about it either. So I am following Elder Scott's counsel and trusting that God will not let us move too far in the wrong direction without warning us - as long as we are living righteously.

We went apartment shopping on Friday, which, by the way, is crappy! Brandt was so grumpy after the first hour, which made me grumpy. Needless to say it was a LONG day! But we perked up after we found a townhouse that we both like. We hope to move around the first of next month. So this is our plan for now... we'll see how it goes!

It's About Time!

Wahoo! The "Eclipse" trailer is finally here - thanks Lindsay (and Brandt) for letting me know :)



For me it wasn't as intense as the New Moon trailer, but I am still very excited!

What do you think?

Valentines and Some Other Stuff

I know it's a bit after the fact here but I wanted to share about Valentine's Day (I figure as long as it's still February I'm not too late to blog about it right?) and a little of what else we've been up to. Brandt and I have never been big on celebrating Valentine's Day - mainly due to lack of motivation on both our parts but also because we're so busy and it's never been a big deal to us. Of course I'll get flowers and we may go out to dinner, but that is usually the extent of our festivities. But this year, we ended up celebrating all weekend! Not necessarily celebrating v-day, but the holiday gave us an excuse to go out and party :) So on Friday night we drove up to Idaho Falls and went to the temple and then out to Olive Garden. We had the best server I think I've ever had. Not only was everything PIPING hot, but she brought us fresh breadsticks every 5-10 minutes and told us to take the cold ones home with our leftovers! Amazing I know! They're usually stingy when it comes to breadsticks but she was awesome. The next night, Saturday, we went to "Valentines Day" which we both thought was hilarious. Sunday we didn't do much (I think Brandt had to work that day), but on Monday he surprised me with a gift!

I've been wanting a full-length mirror ever since we moved into this apartment (basically since we got married) and of course rather than buy one, Brandt decides to build it instead! I think it turned out great; he even painted little daisies to make it girly. Awwww...and now look what I got him:

Cake! Yes, lame I know, but like I said, I wasn't expecting to get anything that cool, but at the same time, Brandt loves desserts, so I think it was perfect for him...and he was kind enough to share it with me :) It's good cake too, a recipe I got from one of my roommates a few years ago. Raspberry Dessert = Yum!

Did anyone else feel like the month of February just flew by? We sure did. We've just been chuggin' along, nothing too exciting. Brandt has just three weeks left in his semester before he'll be done until fall. It's been challenging for him juggling a full load crammed into a shorter semester along with working full time, but he has made it work and has really enjoyed all of his classes. As for me, I was lucky enough to find another maternity leave position right here in Poky, so I've been doing that full-time since the first of the month. And the best part is...it's only two minutes away from our apartment! I love not having to commute! As for a more permanent fix, Brandt and I have some big decisions to make with some work opportunities that have recently presented themselves, but I'll save that for another day. Suffice it to say that our life has been a bit of a roller coaster lately, but more on that later.

So basically Brandt has been super busy, and me...not so much. Last weekend Brandt had to work every day and I had an extra day off. I spent one day deep cleaning our tiny apartment and then found myself with nothing to do for the next three days (Brandt said I should have spread my cleaning out a bit more...not so smart on my part I guess). So I picked up and went to Bur-town to find some people to hang out with. Mostly they were all too busy to hang out with me ;) but I did go to dinner with Mom and Syd, and my mom did go to a movie with me - (we saw "Dear John" - and I wasn't that impressed, but it was fun looking at Channing Tatum for two hours :) Rex (the family lab) was sure excited to see me though! This is a pic of what he decided he wanted to play "fetch" and "keep away" with:


He cracks me up :) Anyway, that's it for now. I'll post the scoop of what's next for us as soon as we figure out what that is. Hopefully that happens sooner rather than later!

Book Review: Cold Mountain

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Cold Mountain
By Charles Frazier

This one took me the whole month of February to tackle; needless to say it didn't keep my attention as well as I would have liked. It was one of those books that while I was reading, I enjoyed the story, but at the same time I was fine with putting it down and letting it sit for a few days before picking it up again.

In a nutshell, this is a story set in the Civil War about a soldier who is wounded and decides to walk back home to the woman he loves. At the same time, it is about the girl back at home and how she struggles to survive with the changes brought on by her father's death and the hardships the war has brought. The book interweaves their separate stories, alternating every chapter.

Like I said, overall I enjoyed the book - it was almost like each chapter was its own short story which was fun; but for how popular this book was I expected more from it. I wish the movie wasn't rated R so I could see that interpretation of it. I wasn't a big fan of the ending either - wasn't very satisfying for me; but maybe after it sits with me for a few days I'll appreciate it more.

Up Next: The Hearts of the Children series by Dean Hughes