Rainy Day Post

So...It's not actually raining, but since I have a cold and I have spent most of the last two days moping around, I thought it was an appropriate title.

Lately life has been pretty normal. Thomas finished up his third semester at BYU in April, and despite going to Colorado for his brother's mission farewell in the middle of finals, he passed all of his finals with flying colors.

The trip to Colorado was a ton of fun, and we both enjoyed seeing our families. We drove down on a Thursday morning and spent the remainder of Thursday and all day Friday with my family in Colorado Springs. It was kind of a goodbye visit for me, as my Mom and younger brother Westin are going to be moving to Saudi Arabia (hopefully) soon. Thomas took Westin to see the new Tom Cruise movie on Friday morning, and I went downtown with my Mom for some QT. We went to the awesome german store for some sentimental imports, walked around Tejon street, and even got a parking ticket! ;) It was great to see them, and we had a really nice time hanging out.

On Friday night we drove down to Florence and spent the rest of the weekend with Thomas's family. On Saturday we hung out and ran a few errands for the farewell party. On Sunday we went to church and listened to Jon's great talk, then went home after church and helped with last-minute prep for the party that afternoon. My Mom and brother both came for church and the party, so we hung out with them for a bit before they headed back to the Springs. We headed back to Provo the next day, regretfully. It was such a great trip!

Life in Provo is uneventful. Thomas is working full-time at the MTC for the summer, and I am still at Old Towne Grill serving and making desserts. We are looking forward to going out to California at the end of the month, so stay tuned for a more interesting post in June!

Spring!

It's finally warming up here in Provo! I am so excited to take advantage of the warm weather, riding my bike to work, going on walks, going for picnics...I plan to fully take advantage this year!

As far as updates, there aren't many. I am still working at the restaurant as a chef and server. Thomas is still working at the MTC and just signed a contract with a startup as their back-end programmer.

We have been doing some fun things lately, though. Thomas had the chance to go with a friend to Virgin, UT to go mountain biking a few weeks ago. He had a great time, and while he was gone, I hung out with a good friend (who happens to be Thomas's friend's wife, Rachel) and have some good girl time. We got pedicures, dyed our hair, and just chatted. It was a great weekend!

This past week we went and walked around Park City, which was also fun. It was a cute little town, and we enjoyed just strolling around looking at overpriced souvenirs together.

We are planning on going home to Colorado in a few weeks for Thomas's brother's farewell, which should be fun. And in May we have a road trip to California planned, and I am so excited to go!

So...that's it. Not super exciting, I know, but hopefully I will be a better updater in the future.

Ch Ch Ch Ch Changes

Well, for those of you who o not frequent Facebook, my parents are moving again. This time they are going back to a place we have already lived in, but they are going to be living in a different city. They are moving to...(drumroll, please)...Jeddah, Saudi Arabia! It is a coastal trade city on the Red Sea, and is probably the most Western-minded city in Saudi. I am very excited for them, as this is a dream opportunity for my Dad, and my youngest brother, Westin, never had the chance to travel outside the US and will enjoy the opportunity to do so now. My Mother, I am sure, will be just fine, although I question whether she is as excited about this as my Dad and brother. Living outside the US has never been an issue before, but now that all but one of her children are living out of the house and are not going to accompany them to Saudi, I think she will miss being close enough to her only grandchild (as of right now) to see him almost weekly. Once more grand kids come along, I wonder if that will be difficult, living somewhere that is extremely difficult to visit, and being limited to one vacation a year to come back an see everyone here in the states.

I know that no matter where my parents are, they will thrive and enjoy the new experiences, and Thomas and I plan on making at least one visit to Europe in the near future (meaning the next three years...) and that would be close enough to Saudi that we could conceivably meet up somewhere. I am excited to see all the adventures they have overseas, and I am glad that I had experiences with Saudi Arabia when I was a child so I know that despite what you hear on the news about the Middle East, I know they will be safe.

As far as Thomas and I go, nothing much to report. We are still trucking along here in Provo, and Thomas is a few weeks into a new semester, which he informs me is going to be a good one. I am doing more and more in the kitchen at work, and got a new chef coat that actually fits me. It is also pink. I like to make sure everyone knows that, as the only female chef in the restaurant, I am going to make my mark and make very sure nobody forgets that I am a girl. And that I am also awesome.

Until next time!

I know. I fail at blogging. And there really is a lot going on at the moment, so I can't use the "lack of content" excuse. So if you're ready for an update overload, we'll get started!

I guess the last time I updated was before Halloween, so I'll start there.

For Halloween, Thomas and I hung out with some friends of ours, Brant and Rachel. They are some of our favorite people, and it was a fun time. We ate dinner in a pumpkin, chatted, and then watched a movie. The movie was horrible. I spent the entire film trying to make my head disappear into my husband's chest. It was tragic. But on the bright side, I did get to wear my Dirndl! Yay!

On to November...much of which I don't quite remember, just because it was a long, long time ago. And also, I don't pay attention.

But, some highlights from November are-

1. We totaled our car on the way to Thomas's grandparent's house. We hit a deer, and yes, it did die. So did our car.

2. Since we only had one car left, I decided to find a new job closer to home. So I now work in Provo at a restaurant. I quite like it!

3. Thomas started a new job on the side doing web development for a start-up company in Oregon. so far it's been going very well! Thomas is enjoying it, and I am happy he is having fun.

4. I attended a friend's wedding the weekend before Thanksgiving. It was amazing, and Tyane was a beautiful bride! I was only in Seattle for around 48 hours, but it was a blast!

Then we have December.

At the beginning of the month I was transitioning from my job at Thanksgiving Point to my job in Provo. It was working double shifts for a while, which was horrible, and Thomas was studying for finals, so we were super busy. When things settled down, Thomas was taking his finals, and I started exclusively waiting tables. Which I am great at, by the way. ;)

Thomas got to go and spend a few days with some mission friends in California for a mission homecoming of one of his close friends. He had a great time, and I barely survived without him. Needless to say, I very much prefer to have him home!

For Christmas, we went home to Colorado for a few days. It was a short trip, and we had a lot of fun. For the first few days, we were in Colorado Springs with my family. We ate some great food, spent some quality time with my nephew, who is the cutest nephew to ever grace the earth, and caroled out hearts out on Christmas Eve. I loved it! Thomas suffered through the caroling, but he had a great time as well. After caroling and opening a few family gifts, Thomas and I headed down to Florence, Colorado for Christmas with his family. we got some Christmas Eve pajamas and did a bit of sibling bonding with the Tingey clan.

On Christmas morning we waited for Grandma and Grandpa Goff to come over, and then opened presents. The rest of the day was super lazy, and wonderful. We just ate some Christmas ham and lots of Christmas cereal. (One of the funny coincidences that Thomas and I discovered when we got married was that both of our families give "junk" cereal in the kid's stockings, and that is basically lunch and dinner on Christmas day.)

The day after Christmas we also spent with the Tingeys, and then headed home on the 27th. We had a great time in Colorado, and look forward to visiting a lot as we finish up school here in Utah.

When we got home, we had a relaxed new year, and celebrated by kissing....at 12:03. Oops.

We are looking forward to what 2013 will bring, and already have lots of fun things going on! Thomas has a new semester of classes, and he is getting excited about all the possibilities that are open to him right now. I am excited about all the possibilities that we have for the future, and I'm excited to share them with you!

I won't make it a resolution, but I hope to be more diligent in the future about blogging.

We'll see.

The Best

I know people say this a lot. Especially newlyweds. But let me follow that trend.

I HAVE THE BEST HUSBAND EVER.

I know you thought you did. Or that you will at some point. But for me personally, I could not have asked for anyone more perfect for me if I wanted to. It's like we were made to go together, like puzzle pieces. We fit.

Let me demonstrate.

Yesterday was my day off. I had big plans, including a quick job interview, doing laundry and dishes, and taking a shower. Oh yeah, it was going to be an awesome, lazy day off.

But alas, it was not to be. I had one of the busiest, most wonderful days off. I did go to a job interview. I did start the laundry. But for most of the rest of the day, I cuddled with my husband, went and ran errands with him, and saw a movie with him. We just spent time together. It was amazing.  I realized at one point, when he had tucked me under the blankets because I was cold, and he started folding the laundry, that I love him more than I though was possible.

It's like my heart has expanded, taking in and giving out more love than I ever though was possible. Mushy, I know. But it's an amazing feeling to both love and be loved so much.

I love taking care of my husband. But I am so grateful that he also loves me and loves taking care of me when I need it. His concern and love shows in everything he does for me, whether it's taking me out on a date or scraping my car in the morning. And I am amazed every time, because it means he loves me. His actions every day show me how very much he loves me and wants me to be happy.

In some small way, I can glimpse what my Heavenly Father feels for me in the love I have for Thomas. I know one day I will have children, and I will feel an even greater part of His love. I am so grateful for the love of my Heavenly Father, and for the love of my incredible husband.

Busy!

It's been a busy few weeks! At the beginning of October Thomas and I had the privilege of going to my friend Anne's baby blessing. It was beautiful, and I very much enjoyed getting to see Anne and her family again. I did her wedding cake a few years ago, and it is so fun to see her and her husband and their adorable little William!

That same weekend, Thomas took the SAT. He is applying to another school that has a great Computer Science degree, and they require the SAT to get in. We are waiting to hear back about his scores, but I know he did well!

I am still working at Thanksgiving Point, and liking it. I enjoy doing something I am good at, and I feel I am learning more every day. My boss is forgiving and fun to work with, and we get along really well, which I am grateful for.

Thomas and I have discovered that Provo and the surrounding area have an abundance of small theaters that have plays almost every night of the week! This past weekend we took advantage of two of them. On Friday night we went and saw "Mousetrap" at the Lehi Community Theater. The play happens to be the longest running murder mystery in history, and it was very well done. We enjoyed it immensely, and loved the intimate atmosphere. For those of you who went to BYU-Idaho, it was similar to seeing a play in the Black Box theater in the Snow building.

Last night we were just walking down University Ave in Provo, looking to get some Gelato after a yummy sushi dinner. As we walked, we spotted a small theater called The Echo Theater. It was playing Jekyll & Hyde, and we were intrigued. So we bought tickets. It was incredible! The theater company that put it on was very professional, and the actors all had impressive backgrounds in theater. We very much enjoyed both plays, and will be seeking out more opportunities in the future to see any and all stage performances that we can while we are here. It is great that stage productions are so prolific here! It makes it easy to find a date activity, and most of the tickets are very reasonable!

Stay tuned for our Halloween activities, I am excited for this kick-off of the holiday season!

WHAT?!

So...this is going to be an interesting post, but considering most of my readers are women, I figured you guys would understand.

A few days ago I was complaining to my boss about how annoyed I was with my jeans  situation. For several months, my jeans have gotten baggier and baggier. (I know, sob story.) But seriously. I no longer had to unbutton them. They just pulled right off. And it was getting ridiculous.

So I was going on and on, and my boss asked what size I was. I honestly didn't know, but my best guess was a 12 or 14. That was what I had always been, and the jeans I had were a 16, so I figured a couple of sizes down would be perfect. She said she had a few pairs of jeans that she didn't want anymore, and I could try them on.

A few days later, she brought them in. They were 10s. I laughed. "These will never fit me!" I thought to myself. From the time I was 12, I have been a 14. Forever and always I have been at least a 14, if not bigger. It was unthinkable that a 10 could ever fit me. But not wanting to seem ungrateful, I thanked her and took them home with me.

Just for grins and giggles, I tried them on.

They fit.

WHAT.

Had to be a fluke. I am not, have never been, will never be, a 10. They were just streched out from being worn, they were old, they weren't right.

So today, I went to test it out. I walked into Old Navy, and pulled some size 10s.

They ALL FIT.

It was real. It was true. I am a size 10. I have no idea how it happened, but apparently marriage works for me.

I know it's silly to do an entire blog post about my pant size, but I am a girl. Who knows why we do what we do, right? ;)