Jordan & McKenzie Castleton

Lovin' it...

2012-01-15T17:46:00.000-08:00

If you haven't read about my cleaning schedule below...you need to! I am absolutely loving it. It's SUPER manageable and I feel that my house is ten times more clean than it usually is. It's nice to only have one chore each night and to not have to do any cleaning AT ALL over the weekend. :)

I've also been loving on this website lately.. www.skinnytaste.com

So many yummy/healthy recipes! Thank you Pinterest!

That's all for now.

New goal for 2012...

2012-01-05T17:08:00.000-08:00

With the new year comes new ideas...I've been super addicted to Pinterest more than ever lately. There are so many good ideas on there....it makes me want to get crafty and really organized. My sister-in-law told me about a weekly cleaning schedule that she spotted on Pinterest and I thought it sounded like a great idea, so I did some research.
Sure enough I found a cleaning schedule that works out great for me, I only changed up a few small details. Pretty much, each day is organized with a few different cleaning chores that take 25-30 min or less. I'm usually spending a TON of time on the weekends cleaning everything up because I never clean during the week. By following this cleaning schedule, it will free up time on my weekends and my house will probably be a lot cleaner than it has been lately. Thought I would post the schedule I'm going to follow in case any of you peeps wanna try it out. Sadly, I haven't been able to try it out yet because I've been confined to my bed...sick as a dog (SIDE NOTE: BRONCHITIS SUCKS). But as soon as I begin following the schedule, I will post some results. :)

MONDAY: Clean kitchen - mop floors and wipe down counters thoroughly.
TUESDAY: Dust entire house - occasionally do mop boards, blinds, etc.
WEDNESDAY: Clean guest bathroom - Including; shower, counter tops, mirror, toilet
THURSDAY: Clean master bathroom - Including; shower, counter tops, mirror, toilet
FRIDAY: Vacuum house thoroughly.

Easy right? Who doesn't want Saturday/Sunday to do whatever they please?! I know I would love to have my weekends CLEAN-FREE! Also, depending on how much laundry I have, I will make it a goal each day to do ONE load and completely put it away (Yes that means folding/hanging up clothes).

Wish me luck. Happy Cleaning.

I have several other WONDERFUL ideas thanks to Pinterest, I will share soon!

Taking a look back at 2011

2012-01-02T17:51:00.001-08:00

It's crazy to think that 2011 has come and gone. 2011 was definitely good to us and we can't wait to see what 2012 will have to offer.

Short re-cap of 2011:
At the beginning of the year, Jordan spent a majority of his time studying and working hard to pass his tests for work. He ended up passing his Series 7 and Series 66 with flying colors. Soon after, he received a promotion at work. In September, I was offered a job at Sedgwick. I left my job of two+ years and that was definitely a big change for me. We enjoyed a trip to St. George and Vegas with Meagan and Ric. Went to CA with family for the USC vs UTAH game and of course stopped at Disneyland as well. I spent my entire summer slaving away at MATH. This fall, I finished up my MATH credits, what a relief! Jordan spent all of his summer weekends going on hikes (he lost 20 lbs doing so)! He also went on a LONG, HARD backpacking trip this summer with his siblings to release some of his dad's ashes. It was an unforgettable trip for him. We celebrated our 2nd anniversary at Ruth's Chris. Spent our second full year in our condo. Had fun spoiling & playing with our pup, Sadie. Had many date nights and enjoyed many lazy days. There were lots of good times spent together and many new traditions created in 2011.

I'm grateful to have such great friends&family to spend all my time with. Time moves so quickly...so I always try to remember to enjoy every minute. I think 2012 will be another year of great success and happiness.

Jordan and I on the last day of 2011.... :)

Remembering..

2011-11-14T15:58:00.000-08:00

Well November 2nd marked a year since Jordan's dad left this earth. It was a very difficult week as we were forced to remember back a year ago. The memories and feelings were so raw. I knew it would be hard and that's exactly what it was...hard. Jordan's dad left us far too soon, he had so much to live for but he couldn't see past the struggles that he faced. Only God knows what he was dealing with inside. We miss him each and everyday...but life must goes on. I am certain that he's happy and overcoming the temptations that he faced in this life..and I know he would want for all of us to be happy and to continue to live our lives to the fullest. I am so lucky to have Jordan and his amazing siblings because they truly are the definition of "strong". I know God has reasons for putting us through the things that he does and although it seems unfair and difficult, it will make sense one day. My testimony has grown throughout this trial as I have witnessed MANY tender mercies. I'm just so grateful for both of my amazing families during this month of thanks. I've learned and I'm still learning to appreciate the little things and to never ever take anything or anyone for granted. Here's to you Doug, you may be gone...but you will live forever in our hearts. We love you, we miss you and will continue to think about you each and every day.

Catch up post...

2011-10-14T21:38:00.000-07:00

Wow! Where does the time go these days? I thought September went super fast and now October is flying right by! Jordan and I really haven't been up to much these days, just keeping busy with work and school.

My original plan for this fall was to work part time and go to school full time and try and finish school up as quickly as possible. I had it all planned out and it was perfect but something else came along and I just couldn't pass it up. At the beginning of September I was offered a job at Sedgwick CMS as a Return to Work Coordinator. If you know me, you know I don't like change. I like to get comfortable and stay comfortable.

I knew I couldn't pass up this offer though, so I accepted the job! I left Tibro Medical, my work home for the past two and a half years. I definitely miss my work family but I'm loving the new job and the new opportunities that I have.

All in all, I feel completely blessed. I am so grateful for the opportunities that I'm given. With every new experience, comes new life lessons to be learned.

I'm now a month into the new job and it has been challenging and stressful but I've been patient and I feel that I might be starting to pick it all up. I'm getting the groove of things and I like it :) Plus I get to work with my bestie Meagan! Big thanks to Meagan for all her help and support during the application process! I am grateful for her and her help.

That's a bit of an update about my job. More blogging to come. I know I have been slacking lately but I can't help but go to bed every night at 9 o'clock (My brain is BEAT by the time I get done with work/school each day). I'm slowly working to get some energy back so I don't bore my husband to death! :)

Anniversary #2.

2011-09-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, September 18th...Jordan and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary and our 5 year mark as a couple! :) Man, time flies! We went out to dinner on Friday night to celebrate the big event. We had a very nice dinner at Ruths Chris. We went to Ruths Chris on our honeymoon in San Diego and we have been wanting to go back ever since. It was a perfect place to celebrate our anniversary! We had a wonderful time! The food there is a excellent. We spent our actual anniversary just relaxing and enjoying our time together. Much needed!

I'm lucky to have Jordan. We've been through so much together, good and bad. I would do anything in the world for him. He completes me. He is my best friend. I'm so glad to have him by my side for eternity! :) Love you!

Here are some fun pics..

The night that started it all :)

"Sadie Hawkins Dance" Our senior year.

The Island of Capri, Italy. Summer of 2008

Celebrating our 1st Anniversary (Huntington Beach)

A more recent pic of us...

Summer!

2011-08-06T14:26:00.000-07:00

My math class is officially over and I'm happy to say that I passed with FLYING colors! I got an A in the class and I'm so proud of myself! Now it's time to enjoy my last 2 weeks of summer because Fall classes start in less than 2 weeks! We have some fun things planned for the next few weeks and I can't wait to spend lots of time with Jordan!

Besides being SUPER busy with school, it really hasn't been a bad summer. We've tried to spend as much time as we can soaking up the sun and doing things with family and friends.

We celebrated Jordan's 22nd birthday on July 3rd! We took some time off work and had a four day weekend to celebrate his birthday and the 4th of July. We relaxed a bunch and spent a night in Wendover with my parents. Jordan REALLY enjoys Wendover, so that is what he chose to do for his birthday! LOL. We spent the 4th of July swimming at my parent's house. It rained all day long but we didn't let the rain ruin our fun! That night we had a big barbecue with Jordan's family and enjoyed the fireworks at the Salt Lake Country Club!

July went pretty quick but we managed to swim a lot (in between studying and homework). We had Scott and Amber and the boys up at the end of July and that was a lot of fun. We took advantage of every moment we had that weekend. We all went to Lagoon, barbecued, pool party, had breakfast in the mountains, went to Park City and rode the alpine slides, made homemade ice cream....and much more. It was a FUN and EVENTFUL weekend to say the least.

For the past few days Jordan has been up in the Uintas with his sister and three brothers. They are on a backpacking trip to go spread some more of their dad's ashes. He had requested to be spread up there and so they went to honor him. I hope Jordan has had a wonderful time, but I'm ready for him to come home! :) No service for 4 days is just TOO much for me! I'm sure they will have some great stories to tell and I can't wait to hear!

I will have to post some pictures soon, this is all for now though. Everyone enjoy your last bit of summer! Can't believe fall is right around the corner!

Finally..

2011-07-16T17:50:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to post these few pics from T-ville Dayzz. What a fun time it always is. I think I can honestly say that I look forward to T-Ville Dayzz every year. They have the BEST firework show! We went to the parade in the morning and then spent our day swimming in the sun! I am so GRATEFUL every time I get the chance to do things outdoors and soak up some sun. It's hard to work in an office all day and then spend my nights in a stuffy classroom or doing homework. It makes me look forward to being graduated one day and actually being able to enjoy my summers! Anyway, I do have more to post about but this is a start! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer.

Excuse me....

2011-06-29T19:35:00.000-07:00

Yes I know I have been absent from the blogging world for far too long. I have a lot to catch up on but you see I have no time. I'm currently spending every last waking MOMENT doing MATH! :( Pretty sad if you ask me. But if you care to know...I'm doing FREAKING amazing in my class! My percent is at a 94% and that is with 5 chapters of homework, quizzes and 2 DANG tests. Pretty good if you ask me. So excuse me while I'm absent. I will hopefully be back sometime soon. LOVE YOU ALL! Happy 4th weekend! Oh and Happy Birthday to my cute hubs!

I've got some catchin' up to do!

2011-05-23T17:35:00.001-07:00

Jake & Shelby tied the knot on May 6th, 2011 in the Salt Lake Temple. There was just about a week full of wedding festivities. A couple days before the wedding, us gals got together and painted our nails/toes with my Gelish polish and a few of us got spray on tans. This was my very first spray on tan and I really didn't know what to expect. Jenny and I were pretty dang dark....talk about DARKER than Meghan who is natural and beautifully tan. :) After showering the next day, I still felt a little too dark for my liking but it didn't look too bad at all. It definitely was a quick tan, very convenient. I would probably try it again in the future :) We had the wedding dinner the night before the wedding and it was ABSOLUTELY gorgeous! Pam out-did herself as usual and every little detail was perfect.

The temple ceremony was nothing short of amazing. I LOVE going to the temple, especially with all the family there. It's such a peaceful place. The day couldn't have been more gorgeous. The tulips were bright and vibrant, the sky was blue and it was nice and warm! :)

The reception was at The Old Meeting House and once again Pam and Mark really out-did themselves and put on a spectacular reception complete with a FLASH MOB dance! That's right! Our family choreographed a FLASH MOB dance and in the middle of the reception we broke out in dance! There were a lot of us too! I want to get the video so I can post it! It was SO much fun!

I'm lucky to have such great in-laws! They are such a wonderful family and I feel BLESSED to be a part of their family. Thank you Pam and Mark for putting on such a fun week of wedding festivities!!

In other news...Jordan and I have been busy as ever! I started summer semester just a short week after spring semester ended. :( Total bummer but there is not much I can do about it. I'm taking MATH of all classes - I struggle with MATH more than anything else. I am really going to try and do well in the class though. Starting fall semester, I will be going part-time work and full-time school. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. I want to finish school so I'm really excited but it will be interesting to cut my hours down at work. I know things will all work out and I am so grateful to Jordan for working hard to support me while I finish school. I am planning to be at the U of U by Spring 2012. I will be getting my bachelors in Human Development and Family Studies. I'm really excited about this and feel that it really fits ME and who I AM.

Jordan got a promotion a couple weeks ago at Fidelity! He started his new position today and is already loving it. I'm soo proud of him! He's working so hard and learning SO much! He works hard for our lil' family and I'm grateful to him. He's going to be working hard over the next few months to hopefully move into another position which would be an even bigger promotion! :)

That's about all we've been up to. Sorry I've been such a slacker in the blogging area. I hope to get better but I can't promise anything considering I spent 8+ hours doing Math homework last week. I have a feeling that's how all my weeks will go for the next 2 and a half months!

Slacker..

2011-05-09T17:21:00.001-07:00

I just realized I haven't blogged in almost a month. I've definitely been slacking on the blogging. My bad! The past few weeks have been busy ones for sure. I had finals and we had Jordan's brother's wedding. I guess I will start off with Easter...

We had a great Easter Sunday. We spent time with both families. I absolutely LOVE holidays! I have such great family on both sides and I'm so grateful! All in all, it was a good weekend. Jordan's brother Jared was able to come into town for a visit so all the boys got to go fishing. :) I colored Easter eggs with my sister, it was a good time. I showed Sadie her Easter egg and she wanted it SOOOO bad! It was hilarious. Well hope you all enjoy our cute lil' family pic above!! :)

Nails...

2011-04-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

So I think I'm a little behind in the times but I just got my nails done last week with Shellac. This stuff is amazing! I'd never heard of it before but now that I know about it, I'm sold. It goes on like nail polish and after being cured in a UV light, it's a gel-like polish. It's hard and won't chip or dent...AMAZING! After a couple weeks it will grow out and then it's time to re-do your nails! I've gotten so tired of my nails chipping 5 minutes after painting them. I don't have to deal with that anymore because I bought myself a UV nail lamp and GELISH polish! Gelish is just like Shellac...I liked the color selection Gelish offered so I chose to go with Gelish instead of Shellac. All in all, they are both the same concept and ultimately offer the same thing. You can paint toes too, so I will be able to do my own gel toes :) I'm way excited about this as you can tell...

Check out the websites here...

Gelish
http://www.nailharmony.com/

Shellac
http://www.cnd.com/Consumer.aspx

I'm considering sharing my lovely GELISH with others - haven't figured out pricing or anything like that yet but it's a thought.

I want to hear your thoughts on Gelish & Shellac...have you used these products before? What did you think?!

CoLoR!

2011-03-30T15:16:00.000-07:00

We went to the Color Festival on Saturday with Mandi and her husband Jordan and it was a blast. I'd heard about this color festival but never had the chance to go so it was fun to finally be able to go. It was really fun to go with Mandi and Jordan, we all had so much fun. It was a blast to throw chalk all over other people and ourselves :) The chalk came right out of my hair and skin so I was very happy! Jord and I washed our clothes on Sunday and anything that was white is now PINK. LOL! We wore old clothes anyway but it's just funny that Jordan's shirt and hoodie are now a beautiful shade of pink! It was lots of fun to go get all colored up but showering was probably the best part :) If you've never been, I recommend going and experiencing the color festival!

Last weekend...

2011-03-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we got to spend some time with my nephews! They were up visiting UT for spring break! I just love these little buggers so much! I miss the days when I lived with them and got to see their sweet faces every single day. I definitely cherish every moment I get with them. Christian is so old, I can't believe it. He's growing up so fast - he's not a little boy anymore :( My mavy cakes is getting older by the minute. It makes me feel so sad. When I lived in AZ, Mavy was so small and I babysat him during the day and I'm so grateful for those memories. Everytime I see both the boys I'm shocked at how big they are getting.

Anyway, we went out to The Spaghetti Factory with my fam and it was a great time. :) Yumm, love me some noodles!!! Here are a few pics for ya...enjoy!

slowly.but.surely.

2011-03-06T21:28:00.001-08:00

It has been four months since Doug passed away. Tonight I finally loaded the pictures of his memorial on to my computer. They are absolutely beautiful. It seems like so long ago but other days it feels like yesterday. Jordan and I got to talking today about the spirit and our testimonies. I told him how much I felt the spirit during the week his dad passed away. I also expressed to him that through this whole ordeal my testimony has been strengthened. I remember thinking to myself...where is the guide with instructions on how to deal with this? That was silly of me because I know that the gospel is our guide. I feel closer to Jordan than I ever have and I know we have learned to really lean on each other. Slowly but surely...time is healing some of the pain. Everytime I hear Jordan laugh, my heart is so happy. It felt like weeks upon weeks that I didn't hear that laugh and it broke my heart. I've never felt pain like that before. I see so much love between Jordan and his siblings and it makes me so happy that they have each other. It's so evident to me that Heavenly Father knows each of us on a personal level. He loves us and wants the best for each of us. I look at each new day as a complete blessing. One of the most important lessons I've learned through this tragedy is to love each day and to be grateful. Things can change in an instant so we must treasure each day, each moment.

I know, I suck at blogging.

2011-03-04T15:13:00.000-08:00

Ok so I feel like a horrible blogger lately. I don't really know where February went - such a short month (literally). :)

Well I'll start out with Valentine's Day! Jordan and I aren't usually too big on the whole Valentine's Day thing. We had talked about what we wanted to do this year and just couldn't decide on anything. Last minute we decided to do small gifts and enjoy a nice dinner at home. Jordan put me in charge of dinner and said he would cover the plans for the rest of the evening. He wanted me to make Chicken Alfredo but I just couldn't bring myself to cook on Valentines so I ordered Olive Garden to go and set it up at home (HA HA). We ate dinner and exchanged some gifts I got him some XBOX headphones and he got me some pretty flowers and yummy chocolates (woops I went over our limit)! For dessert we headed over to try Culver's frozen custard. Culvers is a
hamburger joint with DELICIOUS frozen custard and it opened on Valentine's Day so we decided to go grab some. This place is BAD NEWS! Their frozen custard is delicious and the problem is...we don't even have to leave our street to get to it. Yup, it takes a couple seconds and wa-la we're in the drive-up! It hasn't even been open a month yet and we've been there at least 7 times or so. WOOPS! Everyone needs to go try out the frozen custard...but beware, it's a TRAP!

In February I had the opportunity to go to AZ and visit with my sister and nephews. Man, I love AZ - being there brings back such great memories of living there! Going to college there was such a great experience for me. I went with my parents for a few days and sadly it was rainy most of the time. We did get one day of sunshine and the warm sun felt incredible. I can't wait for it to really warm up here. We spent the sunny day outside and went mini-golfing! It was such a nice little getaway and so GREAT to see my family. Thanks parentals for allowing me to tag-along on your trip and an EXTRA BIG thanks to Jordan for staying home and being the babysitting for Kendra and the dogs!! :)

Happy 50th Mom!

2011-02-16T19:50:00.000-08:00

My Mom's birthday was on February 11th! This year my dear mother turned the big 50! :) She looks good for 50 huh? My dad had planned out a nice big surprise party in Wendover and it turned out to be a HUGE success! She was so surprised and we had so much fun! There were a couple close calls with my mom finding out because she is a bit nosy but we managed to pull it off! :) I love my mom to death and really think the world of her. She does so much for Jordan and I and is always looking out for us! I know I've said it before and I'll say it again...my mom is the most generous person I know. She is always looking for ways to help others out. I look up to her so much! Love you Mom!

February 11th was also Jordan's dad's birthday and we sure did miss him. I am sure he was enjoying his birthday in Heaven but we wish he was here so we could celebrate with him on earth. Happy Birthday Doug, we think about you everyday and miss you dearly. We know you're watching over us from Heaven, love you always.

Playin' Catch Up....

2011-02-04T15:18:00.000-08:00

Well lets see....Jordan and I haven't been up to a whole bunch of anything lately. Jordan has been swamped with work, studying and tests! I've been busy with my new school schedule and work. Not too much fun! I am happy to say that as of today...Jordan is done with his tests and passed BOTH of them! I never thought I'd see this day LOL :) Our life can finally get back to "normal" and we can actually spend more time together now. I'm so proud of Jordan and his accomplishments. These tests are very challenging and to think of the circumstances that Jordan has been in while trying to accomplish all this makes me want to cry. I don't know if I could have done it! He is amazing!

On another note..a couple months ago I took the MATH placement test and much to my surprise, tested into MATH920. BUMMER! Considering I have already taken MATH950 and passed with flying colors...I was a bit discouraged about it all. After sitting through a couple weeks in that class, I realized I was miserable. LOL. Then the thought occurred to me that I should just study real hard and try taking the placement test again. After dedicating every min to studying Math last week, I took the placement test and tested into MATH1010! WOW! What a relief! I just saved myself a LOT of time and money! I was so happy and so proud! TAKE THAT MATH! HA!

Jord and I have been so busy that I feel we might be neglecting our little pup! Don't worry she lets us know when she isn't getting enough attention! She makes me laugh. I keep all her fun little doggy toys in a basket in our family room and whenever we aren't paying attention to her she will go get EVERY stinkin' toy out of the basket and spread them out throughout the family room. Sadly, this has been happening a lot lately and I feel super bad. This weekend marks a year of having Sadie around! I can't believe it was a year ago that we went to the pet store (just for fun) and left with a cute lil' pup! Sadie definitely keeps us entertained and we love her very much!

Well I think that is about all for now! We're off to have a weekend full of celebration!! YAY for Jordan! I promise to have some fun/interesting things to blog about from here on out...we will now have time for FUN things! YAY! :) Happy February to all!

Shout out!

2011-01-21T15:17:00.001-08:00

Just wanted to let Jordan know how proud I am of him. He's been working so hard for his upcoming license tests. I can't believe how much he has been juggling and I am pretty sure I couldn't do it. For the past week and a half I feel like I haven't had a husband and he still has one more week left of this intense studying. He looks kinda like a zombie when he comes home at night, it makes me feel bad. LOL. I know all his hard work will pay off and he will pass his test with FLYING COLORS! :) No doubt about it! Love you Jord!

5 years ago....

2011-01-16T13:28:00.000-08:00

That's right people, I met Jordan 5 years ago this month. I am SO glad we captured this photo and that we still have it. We were SO young then. If someone would have told me then that I would marry Jordan...I would have told them they were COMPLETELY CRAZY. Seriously. I was not interested in Jordan at all. This picture was taken one of the first times we hung out. I wasn't too nice to poor Jord but he was SO PERSISTENT. Well, I am SO glad he was because life is wonderful and I have been so happy with Jordan for many years now. Love you!

sadness

2011-01-11T19:37:00.000-08:00

"We enjoy warmth because we have been cold.
We appreciate light because we have been in darkness.
By the same token, we can experience joy because we have known sadness."
-David Weatherford

I love this quote so much. I love its meaning. I know that we wouldn't know happiness if it weren't for sadness...I understand that, but that doesn't mean it makes it any easier. :( It has been a rough day..just needed to vent in some way.

My car.....

2011-01-06T18:15:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I've had my new car for a month now and I haven't really spoken of it or taken any pictures..how dare I? Getting a new car was a pretty BIG deal for me. I've driven the same wonderful '93 Honda Accord since I was 16! As much as I despised that car, I loved it a lot. It was MY car, the only car I'd ever known in all my years of driving. That sweet ol' car never let me down! It's a champ! I can remember the day my parents bought me that car! It was such a happy day to finally have my own car. I remember Madison and I sat in it forever just laughing and imagining how it was going to be (don't ask me why we just didn't go for a drive). That car was with me through all three years of high school, you can imagine how many fun memories were made. My friends and I drove my car to St. George for our senior trip. SO FUN! I remember driving that car down to Arizona when I moved there after high school - such a long drive and such a big change in my life! Then my little car drove me back and forth between Salt Lake and Orem so many times while I was attending UVU. So many memories in that car and it may be pathetic...but I'm going to miss it. Needless to say it sold REAL quick and it's new owners will be by to pick it up this weekend. It will be weird to not have it around any more. Don't get me wrong, I'm super happy about my new car and I LOVE IT SO MUCH already. I love my Subaru and am SO thankful for the all wheel drive. It's so nice and safe. I will post some pics of my new car soon, it's super cute. But for now...Goodbye little old Honda, thanks for the memories.

New Year's Eve...

2011-01-05T20:03:00.000-08:00

Just throwin' this out there...New Year's Eve is not my favorite. I don't feel like there is really anything great going on and it's always so stinkin' cold outside and yeah....so I am happy with sitting inside a warm house in the company of friends and family! This year we had a very low key New Year's Eve and it was SO MUCH FUN! We hung out at my parents and invited Elizabeth & Kavin over to play some ping pong and Kinect. We also had a little potluck type dinner and it was delicious! At midnight my dad lit off a nice BIG illegal firework! We had picked it up for him on our way home from Vegas in October. The firework was called "Who's Your Daddy?" LOL! It was pretty intense! :) After midnight, we were all pooped from working our butts off playing Kinect, so we called it a night and headed home for some shut eye! :) It was a nice evening and we enjoyed spending time with everyone. We were very happy to see 2011 and hope it will be nice to us :)

New Year's Day was great! Jord and I slept in, made some breakfast and then got ready for the day! We headed to the mall to exchange a few things from Christmas and then we headed out to lunch/dinner at Texas Roadhouse! It was nice to see some old friends there and eat some delicious food. It seems like yesterday that I was working there and really it has been a few years! Man, where does time go? After lunch we headed out to Jordan's parent's house to pick them up and then we all headed to Provo to get new phones for Jordan and Mark. Luckily Jake manages the Diamond Wireless in the University Mall so Pam and I were able to get some quick shopping in while the boys worked out their new phones! It was nice to be able to spend some time with them on New Year's Day! We love our family and friends! Goodbye 2010, gone but not forgotten! Now to 2011...

Taking a look a 2010

2011-01-01T11:48:00.000-08:00

2010 was a year full of ups and downs.....here is the recap.

2010:
Bought our cute pup
We took our first class together at SLCC
Both landed a 4.0 GPA during Spring Semester
Jordan was offered a GREAT job at Fidelity Investments
Took our first camping trip (what an experience)
Went zip lining and tubing in Lava Hot Springs with my family
Celebrated our first anniversary in California
Spent our first full year in our Condo
Purchased Utah Football season tickets
Watched Jordan's dad marry his sweetheart Theresa
Spent Halloween in Vegas (crazy)
Suffered an unimaginable loss (We love you Doug, R.I.P)
Spent lots of quality time together
Bought a new car (LOVE my Subaru)
Started a new Christmas Stocking tradition
Made lots of Sunday breakfast together
Witnessed two of my friends get married for time and all eternity
Spent lots of time playing with our pup

We are grateful for all the memories made in 2010.
The hardships faced in 2010 brought us closer to each other and our family, for that we are also grateful.
Like I said, 2010 was a year full of ups and downs.
We're looking forward to 2011 and hope it will bring us much happiness. :)

2010-12-29T18:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas came and went this year! I love this time of year and it never seems to last long enough! Oh well, until next year!

For two weeks leading up to Christmas, my work did lots of different festivities! I love my work! So fun! Needless to say...I didn't win any of the games/competitions. I did win some candy for being the WORST guesser in the candy guessing game! GO ME! We ended the week with a delicious soup potluck, white elephant gift exchange (I got a machete AH) and an ugly sweater party. Here is a picture of the peeps in my office that wore their ugly sweaters! Big thanks to Mandi for lending me her ugly sweater, it worked out perfectly!

Kendra and I on Christmas Eve! I always look forward to my family's traditional Italian Christmas Eve dinner! So delicious! My mom works so hard to prepare that meal and I am grateful for that!

My Christmas pup! She looked so cute in her $2 Christmas sweater from Target! Good purchase! She was like my little baby! We bought her a stocking and filled it with yummy bones, toys and a cute new collar. She acted unusually hyper on Christmas Eve...I think she knew Santa was coming ;)

Jord and I in our Christmas pajamas. We head to Jordan's grandparent's house on Christmas Eve to do the cousin exchange and to get our pajamas. We always have so much fun with this! I don't have very many pictures because I seemed to leave my camera random places and I wasn't too happy about it! But I hope you all had a great Christmas! :) Happy New Year!

Festive things...

2010-12-16T16:25:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we finally got our Christmas tree up! This is the very first year that I've EVER had a fake tree. I'm not even kidding, I grew up with real trees. I absolutely LOVE everything about real trees....they smell SO good and are oh SO pretty! Last year we bought a real tree for our first Christmas and it was fun! I did however realize how much work real trees are when you are the one having to get it up, light it and maintain it. Growing up, my mom and dad did all of that so I never realized just how much work they are. For a few different reasons we decided to try out the fake tree this year. So far, so good. It was such an easy set-up and it's pre-lit (BONUS)! Instead of spending so much time on lighting the tree, we were able to get going on the fun part (putting the ornaments on it)! I love our Christmas tree decorations - red and gold ornaments with a sparkly gold star for the topper! It looks so classy! LOVE IT! :)

Last Saturday, we headed to out to make gingerbread houses with some family friends. Jordan is hilarious when it comes time to decorating. He's so serious and competitive! He would barely let me do anything for fear that I would mess it up! SHEESH! You will notice the cute Christmas lights and rock pathway (that was my doing) but the sweet icicles and fat santa man out front (ALL JORDAN)!

I love this time of year. It's so crazy but so fun. It's kind of bittersweet this year, as we are without Jordan's dad. I know it will be rough on Christmas, but I know he will be here with us in spirit. We miss him so much and think of him daily.

On another note - Jordan has been working super hard at Fidelity! He's learning so much and enduring that long 22 week training period. He says it feels like school and there is SO much to learn but he is loving it! It's nice to see him happy at his job (for once)! He's now studying heavily for his Series 7 license. He spends countless hours studying and it's draining but it will be SO WORTH IT! I'm pretty much a loner for the next little bit while he dedicates most his time to working and studying! I'm so proud of him.

Goodbye November...

2010-12-03T21:37:00.000-08:00

We were very happy to see November come to an end. Although Thanksgiving was really nice and we were happy to get to spend lots of time with family. This year was my family's year for Thanksgiving! We woke up and headed over to Jordan's parent's house and spent some time with them and then we headed over to my parent's house to eat! It was a delicious dinner and I was super happy to have my sister and nephews in town to share the holiday with. After dinner I checked out all the ads for Black Friday but I couldn't bring myself to go out in the cold and fight crowds of people. I've never done the Black Friday shopping deal and although it seems completely crazy, I'd like to try it one year just to say I've done it. Anyway, it is a tradition with my family to watch "Christmas Vacation" on Thanksgiving night! I looove this tradition and look forward to it every year!!

Saturday brought a VERY big game! UTES VS. BYU! This is always a fun game to go to (especially when the UTES WIN)! :) It was a very close game and I was pretty sure the Utes were doomed and then I saw that football tumble across the field...BEST FEELING EVER! I'm pretty sure Jordan's dad was there helping the Utes out, it was unbelievable. GO UTES!

Saturday night we let our nephews come sleep over at our place! They are so cute and I just love them so much! I miss them all the time and wish I lived closer to them! They LOVE Jordan and they LOVE playing XBOX with him! It's so cute! I'm really glad they were able to come visit! Love you boys!

Now we're really looking forward to December and hope that it will be a better month than November (which is not going to be hard to beat). I hope that we can enjoy this holiday season and do some fun, festive things.

In Memory....

2010-11-22T19:39:00.000-08:00

Douglas Thurgood Castleton
2/11/58-11/2/10

Our beloved husband, father, son, brother, uncle, nephew and grandpa passed away peacefully surrounded by his family along with his new bride and one true love, Theresa.

He was born February 11, 1958 in Salt Lake City to Grant and Anne Castleton. He was an Eagle Scout, graduated from Skyline High School and attended the University of Utah. He served an LDS Mission in Fukuoka, Japan and worked for Castleton's, Inc. His most recent venture was starting and running Seamless Flooring Systems. He loved the outdoors and was a skillful and a patient fly fisherman. Doug was known as a very hard worker and master of many trades. Doug was an avid Ute fan, golfer, hiker, and hunter. His love for his friends and family and willingness to help others endeared him to many.
He will be missed by: his wife, Theresa D. Castleton. His "5 J’s" Jason (Meghan), Jenny Borg (Brett), Jared, Jake, Jordan (McKenzie). The mother of his five children, Pam Pierce. Five grandchildren. Step Sons, Brandon Frenette (Shaunelle), Mark Frenette (Victoria), Chanse Frenette (Janelle). Three step grandchildren. His Mom and Dad. Brothers Ron (Gayle), Jon (Wendy), and preceded in death by his brother Jeff.

A private memorial service will be held in his honor on Friday, November 5, 2010.

We love you and we will miss you.

Doug was such a great man. He always had a big hug and kiss waiting for you and he never failed to let you know how much he loved you. He never once referred to me as his daughter-in-law, he always called me his "3rd Daughter". I'm so glad that the last memories I have of Doug are happy ones. We got to go down to Vegas over Halloween weekend for his wedding and it was a very nice time. We were all together as a family and Doug was SO happy! I see so many great qualities of Doug in Jordan and I'm grateful for that. Doug was a VERY hard worker and I have a VERY hard-working husband.

The last 3 weeks have been harder than I can even explain. It feels like we are lost in a fog and can't find our way out. As hard as we try to just get back to normal...we can't. We are still trying to remember what "normal" is. I know time is on our side and we just need to do our best to be patient. There is not a day that we don't think of Doug, we miss him so much. We are all aware things like this happen, but we never expect them to happen to us. Thanks again to all our friends and family that have gotten us through the last few weeks. Seriously...support means everything and we couldn't do it without you guys!

Since it's Thanksgiving this week I thought I would share a few things that I'm REALLY grateful for. First off, FAMILY...without family, you have NOTHING! I'm so grateful for Jordan and how good he is to me. He is always willing to help me out and he never lets me forget how much he loves me. I am also SO grateful for my pup! I love that dang dog...she is the cutest pup ever and she brings me LOTS of happiness. The night Jordan's dad passed away...she didn't leave Jordan's side. It's crazy how much dogs can sense. They really are man's best friend!! I am grateful for my family - I love my parents and am so thankful for the great relationship we have. I love my sisters, they mean the world to me and I don't know what I'd do without them. I am SO grateful for Jordan's family - they are awesome! I'm so thankful that I get to be a part of such a close family. They are always concerned for each other. I'm grateful for my wonderful friends, without them...I would be lost. I love each of them to pieces and really treasure their friendship. I am thankful for my wonderful home. It has been a year this week since we purchased our condo and it was one of the best decisions that Jord and I have made. It really feels like home and I couldn't be happier here. I am also grateful for my job, I love the people I work with, they make each day exciting. I'm thankful for the opportunity to earn money in such hard times. As hard as school is, I'm grateful for it because it makes me smarter and keeps me going!! :) Most of all, I am grateful for life....it's so precious and we must cherish each and every moment. Happy Thanksgiving Peeps! Hope it's a good one! Remember to be thankful :)

Birthday!

2010-11-15T15:22:00.000-08:00

Last week I celebrated my 22nd birthday! Not gonna lie, with everything that has been going on...I wasn't too excited for my birthday. I wasn't sure how it would turn out but I'm happy to say that it was a GREAT day! I received many surprises from friends and family and it made me super happy!! :) Jordan bought me some new black boots and a cute new black skirt for church! It's kind of a tradition for Jord to buy me new boots every year..I love it! I live in boots all winter long, you can never have too many pairs. We went out to The Cheesecake Factory with my fam for dinner and it was delicious. That place is one of my favorites! :) Thank you everyone for all the calls, texts and messages - you guys made my day! Love you all!

Thankful...

2010-11-08T18:35:00.001-08:00

I can't believe we're already into November. Time is flying. This month I want to try my hardest to recognize each and every little thing that I'm thankful for. As many of you know, Jordan's father passed away last Monday and it has been the hardest week to get through. It has been VERY difficult to watch Jordan suffer and know that I can't take that pain away from him. I definitely would if I could. I think it's safe to say that my heart has broken right next to his. I don't think we could have gotten through the past week without family and friends. It's humbling how much support we've received. I know we have a long way to go from here but it's SO comforting to know that we have an awesome support system by our side. I've been SO thankful this past week for the amazing gospel. It's so comforting to know that we will see our loved ones again that have gone on before us. I know that Doug is in Heaven and watching over all of us - and most importantly...I know he is happy. Heavenly Father has a plan for each of us and I know we need to always try our best to understand that, even when it's hard and doesn't seem fair. We are so blessed to have the knowledge that we do. I'm so grateful for the power of prayer and I'm happy to be surrounded by family that holds the priesthood. What a wonderful blessing! My testimony has grown so much this week and I have so much love for my Heavenly Father. We went to church yesterday and it seemed like every song was meant for us and every testimony had something that both Jordan and I needed to hear. Many people talked about families being eternal and the plan of salvation. Others talked about facing trials in our life and how we must always stick close to our Heavenly Father. I know that he is aware of our struggles and that he will always be by our side.

Where did October go?

2010-10-24T22:02:00.000-07:00

I can't believe October is already coming to an end. Janessa got married on October 7th and it was a beautiful day! I'm so grateful that Jordan and I were invited to the temple ceremony! I'm so glad I could be a part of her big day! She looked gorgeous and SO HAPPY! The reception was beautiful - everything went so well! I'm so happy for her and Matt and wish them the best! :)

Other than that - we haven't been up to anything EXCITING at all. Hopefully this week will be filled with some Halloween festivities that I can blog about. Jordan and I had a STRESSFUL couple of weeks this month. As you all know, Jordan was hired on at Fidelity. There are some processes you have to go through after you're hired such as a drug test, background test, finger printing, etc. Well Jordan made an HONEST mistake on some of his information regarding his current salary that he submitted for his background check. Fidelity ended up calling Jordan and saying that he no longer was eligible to work there due to the mix-ups on his background check info. I can honestly say I've never seen Jord so heartbroken. Luckily, Jordan earned himself a second chance and they agreed to take a second look. We were hoping it would get straightened out quickly so we wouldn't have to play the fun waiting game - but it ended up taking TWO WEEKS!!! Those were the longest TWO weeks of my life!! Jordan was able to prove the information he put down was correct and we're good to go - still on track to start at Fidelity on November 8th! Jordan has worked so hard for this job and I'm so proud of him. This is such a big step for us and we're very excited. We have the best family and friends. We struggled a lot over those two weeks but we had so much support from our loved ones and we're so grateful for that. I received daily text messages and calls asking for any updates and it really meant a lot. :)

Janessa's shower and bachelorette fun!

2010-10-06T21:02:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth, Meagan and I threw a bridal shower for Janessa last month and it was so much fun! It turned out awesome and we were so glad! It was the first event that I had at my condo and I was a bit nervous but everything went smoothly! I spent a month getting odds and ends done around my house and BIG THANKS to Jord for all his help - he's the best! We had some delicious chicken salad sandwiches and yummy pasta salad! Oh and of course we had some brownies and Brooke made her delicious chocolate chip cookies! We played a question game with bubble game - that is always a hit! Janessa did well and it made us all realize all over again how perfect her and Matt are. We had some good laughs at the shower and all in all, it was a great afternoon! Thank you to everyone who helped out and thanks to all who came!

Last night, we were able to take Janessa out for a little bachelorette dinner! I love my girls so much and I'm so GRATEFUL to have such a close group of friends. These girls mean so much to me and I'm so thankful for their friendship! We always have fun together and usually spend the evening laughing! It's always a good time when we get together! We had a GREAT evening and we are so excited for Janessa! I can't tell you how happy I am for her and her marriage to Matt! They are going to have such a happy life together! LOVE YOU NESS!

Brad Paisley!!

2010-10-06T20:52:00.000-07:00

Jordan and I decided last minute to buy Brad Paisley concert tickets! I'm super glad we ended up going! It was a GREAT concert and Brad Paisley is an awesome dude! We didn't get too many pics (of us that is)...but we did take plenty of pics of the INTERESTING people at the concert! I think people watching was one of the best things about the night! Seriously...there was some weirdos there! If you like Brad Paisley and haven't been to one of his concerts, I highly recommend it!

Wedding cake!

2010-10-06T20:44:00.000-07:00

The night that we got home from Cali, we decided to cut into our wedding cake! I was a little worried to eat a year old cake that had been sitting in a freezer, but it was fun! The cake had a great taste, but the texture wasn't too good LOL, one bite was MORE than enough! I loved seeing a part of my beautiful cake again - it was a reminder of how beautiful our wedding was - it was the PERFECT day! I can't believe a year has come and gone!! One down, eternity to go!

It has been awhile...

2010-10-05T21:17:00.000-07:00

Wow I'm behind! It doesn't help that my computer crashed :( and Jord has a macbook and I'm completely illiterate when it comes time to using it so it takes me FOREVER to do one thing. Oh well! For our first anniversary we took a quick trip to California! It was such a great little getaway! It was nice to spend time together without any interruptions! We flew in to Cali on a Friday morning and headed home on Sunday evening - although it was short, we fit in a lot of fun!!! We were able to spend the entire day on Friday at Disneyland!! Disneyland was all decked out for Halloween - I'd never seen it like that! I highly recommend going during "Halloween" season! Even the rides were decked out and different for the holiday! We had so much fun and were completely pooped by the end of the night. Saturday was our anniversary! We woke up and got ready for the beach - Jordan's grandma came and picked us up and took us to get a rental car so we could have a bit more freedom! It was so sweet, his Grandma too us to breakfast for our anniversary - it was so nice to spend time with her! She's too sweet! After breakfast we headed to Huntington Beach! It was my first time going there and it was absolutely beautiful!! We literally just sat on the beach for awhile and listened to music! SO RELAXING! We walked the pier and rented a tandem bike! We also did some shopping and shared some yummy gelato! What a great afternoon! That night we went to Cheesecake Factory and walked around a nice outdoor mall that was by our hotel! Sunday morning we woke up bright and early and headed to Disneyland again - we fit in all our favorite rides for a second time - we were able to go to lunch with Jordan's grandma and then she took us to the airport! It seems quick but I feel like it was a pretty long vacation for some reason! BIG THANKS to Jordan's family in CALI for transporting us everywhere and doing so much for us! They totally made our vaca possible! I'm so glad we went! Jordan starts at Fidelity next month and so we won't get too man vacations for awhile! Ok now time for PICTURE OVERLOAD!

One year!

2010-09-21T21:54:00.000-07:00

For some reason my blog isn't letting me upload pictures right now, so to heck with it...I'll go on without the pics! As most of you know, Jordan and I celebrated our 1st anniversary on Saturday September 18th! We enjoyed our weekend in sunny Cali (that will be in a later post)! On our anniversary we spent a relaxing day at Huntington Beach - it was so wonderful to spend time with Jordan and think back on our first year together!

This year has been a great one. I'm not sure I understand what people mean when they say the first year is the hardest...I think it went pretty smoothly and I think Jordan and I have both learned a lot. Jordan and I dated three years (to the day) before we got married and I'd like to think I knew him pretty well then - but after living with him for a whole year, I think I know him EVEN BETTER!! It's the best to always have my best friend by my side. I honestly don't know what I would do without him. He keeps me in line and reminds me to not be so serious all the time :) We have our disagreements, but we're ok with that and we know that in the end...we'll always be on the same page. <3

Our wedding day was such a special day. I wish I could re-live it over and over again. The temple is such a beautiful place and I'm so grateful that Jordan and I were able to be sealed for time and all eternity. I can't imagine a more perfect day. During the time leading up to our wedding we felt happiness and we also experienced hard times. I've never felt the Lord's love more than I did on my wedding day. I'd like to share an experience I had that day..(the following paragraph is from a talk I gave in sacrament earlier this year)...

Deciding to get married in the temple was an easy decision, but knowing that none of my immediate family would be able to attend was hard. Somehow I always felt comforted at the fact and knew that I was doing the right thing. My family is amazing and has always supported me with my decisions and I'm so grateful for that. The day came and Jordan and I were sealed. After the sealing, my friend helped me back down to the dressing room. There was a sweet temple worker there waiting to help us. My friend left the room for a minute and the temple worker came up to me and gave me a hug, she had tears in her eyes and she told me that she knew how hard it was to do this without family because when she was married she didn’t have any immediate family there to witness it either. She told me that she has been so blessed because of her decision and that I to would be blessed and that I had done the right thing.

What an amazing experience! This lady knew nothing about me and she had NO way of knowing that I didn't have any immediate family in the sealing. I'm so grateful for her and for the things she said...I know that was the work of the Lord. She was absolutely RIGHT! I feel SO blessed. I couldn't ask for a better husband! I can't wait for many more years together and know that we will be blessed because of the decision we made. :)

2010-09-13T21:37:00.001-07:00

Day 5- A picture of somewhere you’ve been to...

The summer of 2008 - Jordan and I had the opportunity to go on a vacation of a lifetime. We were gone for 14 days and we traveled through Italy down into Greece and we even made a pit stop in Turkey! We went to sooo many different places and saw so many things (I'm too tired to post all pics)! Some of the other places we went that aren't shown below are the Acropolis in Greece, the Pantheon in Rome, the island of Capri (SO GORGEOUS), Naples, Rhodes...ok I'm done. It was such an awesome experience and I learned so much while we were there! I better have the chance to go back someday, it's truely AMAZING <3

Mykonos, Greece..

Trevi Fountain in Rome!

Olympic Stadium in Athens, Greece..

Vatican City...

The Colosseum in Italy!

habits - day 4

2010-09-11T20:54:00.000-07:00

Day 4 - A habit that you wish you didn’t have...

I think the worst habit I have is WORRYING TOO MUCH! I worry wayy too easily and it drives me to sickness. This is not fun at all. I have constant worries about the ones I love getting hurt! When situations come up - I always think the WORST instead of being positive (this is horrible)! I'm getting better at it and reminding myself to have positive thoughts but it's something I have to work at everyday! If Jordan doesn't answer his cell phone - I FREAK OUT! I feel powerless and worry that he is hurt! It's like COME ON MCKENZIE - just because he doesn't answer his phone doesn't mean he's hurt! BLEH! I know I am probably sounding ridiculous right now! :) I'm taking a personality theory class right now and we recently wrote a paper on our personality type and I took the test and found out I'm a "protector"! The description of this personality type fit me PERFECTLY! It mentioned in my text that the "protector" will worry themselves to sickness (BINGO)!

Friends.

2010-09-10T17:07:00.000-07:00

Day 3 - A picture of you and your friends...

Here are a couple pics for you!! I love my friends SO much! I'm so fortunate to be surrounded by such great people. These girls have seen me through both my best and worst times. :) I'm so grateful for them and the great example that they are to me!

day TWO!

2010-09-09T18:03:00.000-07:00

Day 2 - The meaning behind your Blog name...

Hmm...Where there is love, there is life. Pretty much, it's just a quote that I really like. It's pretty self explanatory - without LOVE, life is DULL! Sadly, I don't have a creative blog name like some of you people!! But this blog is all about Jordan and I (and of course our pup)! I love writing down memories that we share, it will be AWESOME to look back on it in the future! :)

ONE!

2010-09-08T19:48:00.000-07:00

Day 1 - A recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself

..Yeah yeah I know this isn't recent - it's a year old pic. But come on peeps my anniversary is next week so I thought it was fitting.

15 Facts about ME...

1. I'm a CLEAN freak. I can't go to bed in a messy room - gotta make sure things are picked up off the floor. I've had to relax A LOT since I've been married to Jordan (sadly he doesn't like cleaning quite as much as I do)!
2. I'm shy - sometimes. When I'm around family and friends, I could talk forever! However, talking in class gives me anxiety ((no joke)).
3. I need to eat something SWEET after every meal. Preferrably CHOCOLATE! Sadly but fortuntely Jord doesn't share this sugar love with me. He keeps me in line and tells me NO a lot, but I appreciate it.
4. I will only eat GREEN bananas.
5. I am a perfectionist and like things to be done my way (which I usually see as the right way)...I know this seems bad but it's true!
6. I still have a "baby" blanket that I sleep with. Jordan makes fun of me all the time. I don't consider it a baby blanket though, it's just my "favorite" blanket. :)
7. I HATE milk more than anything! I'm lactose intolerant and have been since I was little. So anything dairy makes me sick - I will always tough out the pain for some ice cream though (I'm obsessed)!!!
8. I'm thee biggest worry wart you'll ever meet. I worry myself to the point of sickness and as much as I HATE IT, I can't help it. If Jordan does not answer his cell phone - I will have a PANIC ATTACK! BLEH!
9. I'm SO afraid of spiders! I completely freeze up when I see them - and I've never had the GUTS to kill one. EW!
10. I love SCHEDULES AND ROUTINES. I have to know what I'm doing and when I'm doing it. If my plans get changed or fall through - Oh boy all hell breaks loose.
11. I get REALLY ONERY when I'm hungry! Jordan knows very well to get me food and to get it FAST!
12. I snack ALL day. I eat small portions and I eat ALL DAY! It might be healthy if what I snacked on was good for me - but that is SO BORING!
13. I have an obsession with accessories. Yes, this BAD habit has calmed down quite a bit since I got married - but sheesh, I can never pass up a cute pair of earrings or a cute necklace!
14. I'm a MASTER at making grilled cheese. Ask Jordan!
15. I'm deathly afraid of cats! They are so sneaky and gross to me. ICK!

thirty.

2010-09-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not...I LOVE to blog! I think it's such a great collection of memories and thoughts and it's so much fun to look back on! I've been feeling like I never have anything too exciting to post about so I'm gonna try the 30 day blog challenge (Thanks Sarah)!!! Here is the list in case any of you bloggers wanna do it!

Day 1 - A recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself
Day 2 - The meaning behind your Blog name
Day 3 - A picture of you and your friends
Day 4 - A habit that you wish you didn’t have
Day 5- A picture of somewhere you’ve been to
Day 6 - Favorite super hero and why
Day 7 - A picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you
Day 8 - Short term goals for this month and why
Day 9 - Something you’re proud of in the past few days
Day 10- Songs you listen to when you are Happy, Sad, Bored, Hyped, Mad
Day 11 - Another picture of you and your friends
Day 12- How you found out about Blogs and why you made one
Day 13 - A letter to someone who has hurt you recently
Day 14- A picture of you and your family
Day 15 - Put your iPod on shuffle: First 10 songs that play
Day 16 - Another picture of yourself
Day 17 - Someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why
Day 18- Plans/dreams/goals you have
Day 19- Nicknames you have; why do you have them
Day 20 - Someone you see yourself marrying/being with in the future
Day 21 - A picture of something that makes you happy
Day 22 - What makes you different from everyone else
Day 23 - Something you crave for a lot
Day 24- A letter to your parents
Day 25 - What I would find in your bag
Day 26- What you think about your friends
Day 27 - Why are you doing this 30 day challenge
Day 28- A picture of you last year and now, how have you changed since then?
Day 29 - In this past month, what have you learned
Day 30- Who are you?

It's that time of year...

2010-09-05T23:01:00.000-07:00

We love our Utes!!!

Game 1 was definitely a bit nerve racking but our Utes pulled through! Jordan and I are SEASON TICKET holders this year and we're so happy about it! :)Bring on football season! I love this time of year!

Lots to talk about!

2010-08-24T18:28:00.000-07:00

First off, we had family pictures with Jordan's family this month and they turned out awesome! :) Everyone looks great and I love our bright colored shirts, so cute!

Secondly, Jord and I finally booked our anniversary weekend....DISNEYLAND! Hoooray! It will be a very short trip - but we plan on fitting in LOTS of fun! :) I'm glad Jord talked me into it - I think it will be a much needed vaca!

Last but definitely NOT LEAST - Jordan was offered a job at Fidelity! He starts on October 18th! We are SO SO happy! This is an answer to many prayers!! It has been a very long process - We waited a couple months to even hear back from them after he applied, then he had to pass a phone interview and then the next step was a face-to-face interview AND a personality test. Jordan spent a lot of time preparing himself for the interview and he had a lot of help from his brother, Jared (who currently works at Fidelity)! Jordan interviewed at the Salt Lake office but he is actually going to be working at the American Fork location because that ended up being the only place that they had some openings! :) We're super excited and so grateful for this opportunity! I'm so proud of Jordan for all his hard work! He deserves this!

The latest and greatest...

2010-08-09T16:04:00.000-07:00

Last week Jordan and I started feeling like we were coming down with a cold and sure enough....we got hit with a MEAN cold. Of course, Jord was down for a day and then felt MUCH better..then there is me who is still feeling like complete CRAP! I don't know what it is but lately I'm sick every other month...I think I get better just to catch something else. It really isn't fun and I feel like most of my summer has been spent with the sniffles :( I need to start taking something to help my immune system (since I don't think I have one right now) and I also need to take LOTS of Vitamin C. I'm just hoping to feel better real soon so I can enjoy the last couple weeks of summer! I'm so excited to start back up with school this fall. I was so BURNT out after spring semester that I decided to skip summer semester and I don't regret it at all! It's hard to work full time and go to school full time, so I think taking a break this summer was very good for me! :) But as nice as it was, I'm missing school! I love school because it keeps me busy, I don't have time to sit and be LAZY... :)I'm taking a couple different psychology courses this fall - Personality Theory and Abnormal Psychology, and let me tell you, I'M SO EXCITED! I'm sure they will be interesting classes!!

Other BIG news, JANESSA IS ENGAGED! :) I'm so excited for this girl...she deserves THE BEST! She's getting married on October 7th, 2010. That is just right around the corner - gotta get planning a super FUN bridal shower, YAY! After Janessa gets married, the FANTASTIC FOUR WILL ALL BE MARRIED LADIES! :) This will be awesome! Janessa is such a great friend and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to live with her for awhile - we grew so close and I'm so grateful for that! So excited for her...YAY JAN!

Weekend getaway...

2010-07-26T18:06:00.000-07:00

On Thursday night, we headed up to Lava Hot Springs with my fam. My dad rented a little house right on the main street there - so that was fun! Friday we hit up the waterpark and rode all the slides and got some sun :) We went home, showered up and walked down the main road and checked out all the little shops! Friday night we made some yummy tacos and entertained ourselves all night by playing cards together! So much fun! Saturday was by far the best day of all - we went zip lining in the morning and it was one of the funnest things I've done!! Who knew they had ziplining in Lava Hot Springs!? I highly recommend it though. Saturday afternoon we rented some tubes and went floating down the river! Danggg that river gets intense and I definitely got knocked around! :) It was fun though! We were all so BEAT on Saturday night from our big day - so we just went to dinner and played some more cards! YAY :) This was such a fun little trip and it was SO nice to get outside and get some sun. I feel like I'm cooped up in an office wayyy tooo much - so it's nice to do outdoor activities when I get the chance. Thanks mom and dad for an awesome vaca! It was just what I needed!

P.S I slacked on the pics - we did too many crazy things...I couldn't bring my camera along!

As some of you may remember - I had a friend from high school pass away in March! Maquelle was such a sweet girl! She died in a car accident on the way to Pocatello, ID. There is a Pink cross on the side of the road where she passed away. I really had my mind set on visiting her cross - I felt like it was something I really really wanted to do. As we were headed to Idaho...I could feel my stomach tensing up as we got closer to the spot where she passed away. :( I can't explain how I felt - it was horrible. I wasn't quite sure where the cross was - but I had a good idea (Maquelle's cousin works at the same company as I do, so he was kind enough to explain where it would be)...sadly there was so much construction going on in front of her cross, so we couldn't get to it and had to keep driving. I felt really bad but told myself we would stop and see it on the way back (kinda tough because it's on a highway). On the way home we stopped at the spot it was at - it was unfortunate because the opposite side of the highway that we were on was up on a big hill - so it prob wouldn't have been too safe to cross the highway, climb down the side of the hill, and cross another highway to get to it. Instead, we crossed one side of the highway and I tried to get some pictures of it! It's hard to believe that someone so young and full of life is gone..it's just unreal. It's hard to see a truibute on the side of the road for someone you once knew and shared great times with. :(

I know it's kinda hard to see - but it's the best I could get from where I was at. It's a cute pink cross that says her name and has a pretty picture of her. It's surrounded by flowers, so pretty! Love you Maquelle.

Seriously..

2010-07-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

I should NEVER watch the news because I'm the biggest baby. Whenever I read about tragic events, it's all I can think about for days on end. My heart breaks just wondering how the people involved must feel. Jordan gets so upset with me because it takes days for him to get me to stop talking about it. The horrible tragedy of the young mom that was hit and killed on her bicycle earlier this week...uh that whole deal just breaks my heart. I've been thinking a lot about it this week and I feel sick inside for her husband and beautiful little girls. Life is SO fragile - at any minute we could leave this earth. Hearing tragedies such as this one makes me want to be a better person and live my life to the fullest! I know that there is a reason behind everything. It's just so hard to understand that sometimes when we see horrible things happening in the world everyday. It's so hard to see such young people die, people with so much life left to live...but God has a great plan for each and everyone of us and we must trust in that.

But all the dwelling over tragedies really helps me to be grateful for life and not take one second for granted...so I guess that's good! I think we all need to be reminded how fragile life is sometimes... :)

Jordan's 21st Birthday!

2010-07-05T19:35:00.000-07:00

Jordan's 21st Birthday was on Saturday! Saturday morning we slept in till 11 am (felt so nice), then we woke up and went to breakfast at Over the Counter (a good hole in the wall breakfast place). I let Jordan relax most of the day and play video games (his heaven)!! :) We went to Jason and Meghan's house for dinner! The food and cake were yummy! Jordan had lots of help blowing out his birthday candles from our nieces and nephews, so cute!!

After dinner, most of the family headed over to Keys on Main (those who were not there were definitely missed)! We all had such a good time! I let the piano players know that it was Jordan's birthday and so they called him on up and had him sit on the piano while they sang him a special birthday song. It started out as "teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini" and somehow turned into "teeny weeny two inch pecker for a weeny" LOL!!!! Jordan's brother Jake got all of it on video and I'm still waitin for him to post it so I can steal it. Once I get my hands on it, I'll post it on here...SO FUNNY! Thanks for those who came out, it was a great night and the perfect way to celebrate Jordan's 21st birthday!

The fun didn't stop there! On Sunday afternoon we headed to Wendover with my parents. They took me there for my 21st birthday and Jordan wasn't able to come - so he was excited to finally be old enough to go! We had a really fun time together! We played Black Jack and the nickel poker machines. We each spent $30 bucks and at the end of our night...we were up 8 bucks! Hey, that is SO much better than losing....we were impressed that we spent a good amount of time gambling and ended up ahead. It was some dang good entertainment!!

*BIG thanks to Jordan's brother Jake for watching our little pup so we could getaway for a night! :)

Tville dayzz

2010-06-28T16:50:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't look forward to T-ville Dayzz? It never gets old. I remember looking forward to this weekend for as long as I can remember! I was just a LITTLE PISSED off that I was sick this weekend though....of all weekends. SERIOUSLY! I went to the doctor Friday night after feeling like crap all week and sure enough, I have an ear infection AND bronchitis. The doc said these infections are the result of having bad allergies. Who knew allergies could be SO mean!?

We went to the good ol' T-ville Dayzz parade on Saturday morning with my parents - this year my little sister was in it for Bennion Jr. High because she's gonna be an SBO next year. :) My dad was very entertaining throughout the parade and when Kendra passed by - Jordan thought it would be a good idea to throw candy back at her...lol.

It has kinda become a tradition to go swimming at my parent's house after the parade - I was totally fine with this because I was DYING of heat! I got into the pool for about 10 minutes and then my ear started THROBBING - I had forgotten all about being sick for a min. Swimming + ear infection = bad idea :(

The fireworks at T-ville Dayzz were just as awesome this year as they always are. I love those fireworks!! I didn't see too many people this year because I didn't really walk around...it was SO nice to just lay on a blanket on the lawn and relax (especially because I wasn't feeling too well...bummer)!!

I'm super EXCITED for this upcoming weekend though...Jordy Jord is turning the big 2-1 on Saturday. Finally..he's such a youngin'
We have a lot of birthday festivities planned for the weekend and double BONUS - it's a LONG WEEKEND because of the holiday!!!

Weekend recap.

2010-06-20T21:22:00.000-07:00

This weekend was a really fun! It was very eventful and busy, but FUN! Friday night, Jord and I went Father's Day shopping and ended up buying tickets to Toy Story 3 in 3D. What a cute movie! I always love nights that Jordan and I can go out together, just the two of us and do something fun. They are the best!

On Saturday, Jordan and I were privileged to attend a session at the Oquirrah Mountain temple for Brooke's big day. I'd never been to the Oquirrah Mountain temple, I didn't even make it to the open house...so I was WAY excited to go through a new temple! :) It was just as beautiful as the rest and it was a nice session. I love the feelings that I have while in the temple, it's such a special place and I know it's where I need to be.

This morning Jord made me breakfast and then we headed to church. I love church so much and I love my calling. Yes, it gets crazy sometimes, but the little kids in the nursery are just the cutest things ever. It's so much fun to serve with Jordan! He's the best with the kids! There are times when I'm about ready to pull my hair out (usually the last half hour of class - when they are MORE than ready to leave) and Jord will whip out some game and they will become completely entertained. He's a lifesavor. I don't know what I would do without him. It's so cute in sacrament meeting, the little kids will spot Jordan and I and they will just stare at Jordan and smile, they love him so much!

Tonight we were able to celebrate Father's Day with all the wonderful dads in our life. I'm so grateful for my dad and for all that he has done for me in my life. He's a caring dad and I love him very much.

Also, today marks ten years since my Grandma Carol passed away. I thought about her a lot last night and today and I miss her so much. It's hard to believe that I was only 11 years old when she died, but I feel like I have a lifetime of memories with her. It's amazing what an impact she had on me in the 11 years that I was able to be with her. We were up in Bountiful last night and being there always reminds me so much of her - I can remember staying with her for days at a time and remember all the things we did together. On the way home I looked at Jord and told him I needed to cry - so I cried the entire way home....I still miss her so much. I will treasure the memories I have of her for the rest of my life. I know she's happy where she's at and that she continues to watch over my family and bless us so much. I know that even though she hasn't been here on earth to watch me grow up - she's been watching from above. Love you Grandma.

Where does time go?

2010-06-08T20:12:00.000-07:00

June 1st, 2010 marked 3 years of being graduated from high school. High school seems like so long ago but at the same time it feels like yesterday! I remember being so excited to leave high school and enter into the real world and now I'm wondering what I was thinking!? Yes, being grown up is a lot of fun, but sheesh I miss high school because it was easy. Getting older comes with more and more responsibilities and it gets rough sometimes. Trying to manage a full time job and full time school is crazy business but I'll get through it. Anyway, I've been reflecting back at how much I've done in these last 3 years and how much my life has changed.

This same time, three years ago...I was preparing to move to AZ for college. I had no idea what I was in for - it was definitely one of the hardest things I've ever done. It was also one of the best things I've ever done. It was so good for me to get away and experience life somewhere else. It also gave me confidence that I never knew I had. I learned a very important lesson - that I can be happy anywhere I am - my sister helped me realize that.

I stayed in Arizona for 10 months, finished two semesters at Chandler-Gilbert Community College and then moved back to Utah in May 2008.

I moved to Orem in August 2008 and attended UVU. This was such a fun experience. I lived with a couple friends and we ended up getting a Korean roommate as well - I was very unsure of this in the beginning but she became one of my best friends. I attended two very hard semesters at UVU and completed a CNA program while I was there. I'm so grateful that I had this opportunity to live with friends, it was such a fun time!

Then on March 13th, 2009 - Jordan proposed!!! :) I've never been so excited! I couldn't wait to start planning my wedding - but after a 6 month long engagement - I was completely SICK of planning and ready for my big day!

Finally.....September 18th, 2009 - Jordan and I were married in the Salt Lake Temple! Best day of my life! I can't believe that it's already been almost 9 months since that day! Time sure does fly!

Since then Jordan and I have purchased a new condo in Midvale and we LOVE it so much! We keep busy with work and school and we still fit in dates every weekend! :) Adding a pup to our family has been an adventure as well, but we're loving life and we wouldn't change a thing! :)

It's so crazy to see how much my life has changed in just three short years. I'm grateful for all the opportunities I've had thus far and can't wait to see what lies ahead of me! :)

Lots of fun...

2010-06-06T20:59:00.001-07:00

My little weekend getaway with the girls was WAY fun and MUCH needed! It was so nice to get away from life for a few days and share some laughs with my girls. The first day there we layed out - well I decided to try the baby oil trick AGAIN - lets just say my skin burned for the first time in my ENTIRE life...no joke. I've never felt a sunburn like that - I was an idiot and I'm pretty sure I will never do that again (ha)! After laying out we went shopping at the outlets, to dinner and to a movie (The Last Song - my second time seeing it, LOVE IT)! Saturday we headed to Vegas - our goal was to do some shopping and hit up the Nascar rollercoaster at The Sahara and we did it all. The Nascar rollercoaster was SO much fun! We also ended up walking the entire strip - so to add to the pain of my sunburn, I was super sore. Sunday afternoon we hit up the lake in St. George - we just hung around the beach and talked. I'm just so thankful for these girls and don't know what I would do without them! We have so much fun together and I can't wait for our many future vacations together!

While I was away on this little getaway - Jordan was home spending some bonding time with the pup :) Thank you for watching the pup so I could head out and have some fun! I guess it's my turn this week -Jordan left for Seattle, WA today for a week business trip! This is his third business trip this year - I'm getting pretty pro at getting by without him when he's gone but it doesn't mean I like it! :( Well that's all for now. Enjoy the few pics below of my trip!!

Senior Trip...number 2?

2010-05-24T19:34:00.000-07:00

Well, this week the "fantastic four" will be headed to St. George to REINACT our senior trip ;) We've been planning this little getaway for some time and it's finally here and we couldn't be MORE excited! Thinking back on this trip just makes me laugh....We had so much fun together. I think this trip is one of our favorite topics when we all get together...such good times. I think back to how easy life was then - high school was over and we had not a care in the world. Life has changed so much since then - but we're still all such good friends and I'm so grateful for that...

Some of my favorite memories from that trip:

- As some of you may know, in St. George you MUST be 21 years of age to rent a hotel room. Being that we had just graduated high school, that little rule was not in our favor. We called several hotels begging them to let us stay there...no luck. My dad finally decided he would reserve a room for us - he booked it and told the receptionist to make a note that his daughter would be checking in because he would be arriving later on in the evening. We thought we had it all planned out - HA! Once we got to the hotel, we decided to split up in pairs because we didn't want the hotel staff to see us all together, because they would for sure realize that there were NO parents coming. So Janessa and I checked in, the lady gave us some crap and said I needed to have my dad come get the second key to the hotel room once he arrived. GREAT! They were already on to us. So we snuck Meagan and Liz around the back of the hotel....LOL that was interesting. I've never laughed so hard in my life. The hotel staff continued to bug us throughout the first couple of days - but we learned how to avoide them AT ALL COSTS! We never walked out together - always in our pairs! LOL!!!!

-Our room was right next to the pool - so we'd always spy on people at the pool, it was perfect. There was a big group of kids in the hot tub one night, so we continued to watch them and they knew we were watching them...(we found this so amusing - don't ask)...anyway one of the girls in the hot tub thought we WANTED her boyfriend - so she kept glaring at us, she was literally PISSED. You had to be there, but it was pretty funny considering he was NOT attractive AT ALLLLL!

-We would stay up late everynight and have ULTIMATE girl talk. It was amazing! Just what girls LOVE to do! :)

There are so many good memories from that trip - I love it. The last memory that I'd like to highlight is the fact that we decided it would be just AMAZING to stay out all day at the pool and lay out. Oh don't worry, it gets better...we CAKED our skin with baby oil. If you've ever used baby oil before, you know how it works. Keep in mind that our pasty skin hadn't seen the sun too much yet - because lets be real, Salt Lake doesn't see summer until JULY! Anyway, you get the picture....white skin, baby oil and lots of sun for countless hours (we even ate lunch outside because we were so dedicated to getting tan)......

On that note...looks like I better hit up the tanning bed before I head to St. George this weekend...this is probably one of the moments we're not going to try to reinact!!

Happy Memorial Weekend Peeps, hope you all do something fun and exciting...

Paintballing and more...

2010-05-13T20:14:00.000-07:00

My work does a couple annual paintballing trips each year up in Morgan! I've never been paintballing before, so I decided to brave up and try something new. Not gonna lie, I was a bit afraid about getting shot with a paintball...AH! My parents were out of town - so Jordan and I were staying with my little sister, so we decided to take her with us. It was fun having her there (to hide behind) LOL! YES, I really hid behind Kendra!! It was a really cool area to play paintball - literally out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by mountains and fields. We played for 4 HOURS! Jordan had the time of his life - LITERALLY, he talked about it for DAYS! :) It was pretty intense! Not sure if I ever actually hit anyone - but I definitely got shot! OUCH! It does hurt pretty bad for a min and then the pain goes away. I did get some good bruises though! Oh well, it was a new and exciting thing and we all had a great time! I love the people I work with - seriously they are the best!!!

AlSo....

Can't forget about this cute little girl! Sadie got to go to a puppy party at The Puppy Lounge in Salt Lake today! She spent the day there and played her little heart out. She has been pooped all night - ZzzZzzZzz.... Anyway, the Pet Lounge had the cutest little bow clips for $0.95 and I couldn't resist - her hair works perfectly with them! Sadly, Sadie hates them and shakes them right out - don't worry though, I will find a way to make them stay in. MUAHAHAHA!

2010-05-10T21:03:00.000-07:00

Alright, not gonna lie - I feel like a horrible blogger lately. Jordan and I must be theee most BORING people ever because we haven't had anything too exciting to blog about. We've pretty much been super busy though. School finally come to an end last week and I've never felt more relieved. This was my first semester of FULL-TIME school and FULL-TIME work and it was VERY challenging. I know school is worth it though and I won't give up, no matter how hard it may be. Jordan got his first 4.0 this semester and I'm VERY proud of him. His hard work really paid off - good job Jord!!! :) So far I've received two A's and I'm just waiting on my other two classes to post the grades. Jordan is already signed up for 9 credit hours for the summer (boo) and I've actually decided not to take summer semester.

Other than school, we've just been busy working and relaxing as much as we can. Our pup is still keeping us busy, but we love her to death. She's so much fun to have around!

Jordan went on a business trip to Colorado last week to buy back textbooks from a University. I hate when he's gone, but I'm learning to cope with it and I found plenty of things to keep me busy! I'm glad to have him back though!

We also got called to be the nursery leaders a couple weeks ago. We're excited to serve together and I know that it will be a fun experience. There are so many cute little kiddos in our ward!!

That's about all we've been up to lately...We had the chance to go paintballing last weekend with my work. Man, that was a new experience for me! It was lots of fun though and Jordan is still raving about it - it was right up his alley. I will post pics soon...

A Little about us...

2010-04-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

What are your middle names?
Mine is: K (yes, just the letter)
His is: Douglas

Do you have little pet names for each other?
Not really. We call each other babe and that's about as far as the pet names go.

Who said I love you first?
We're both guilty. I sent him a text one night that said "LOVE" and he wrote back "YOU" ha.

Did you go to the same high school/college?
We didn't go to the same high school. He went to Brighton and I went to Taylorsville. The first 2 years of college we attended diff. schools and now we both go to SLCC and we have classes together - how funny.

Where is the furtherest you have traveled together?
To Italy & Greece. Most amazing trip EVER!

How long have you been together?
We've been together a total of 3 years and 7 months - married for 7 months.

Do you have any children together?
Not yet! We will someday in the far future!! :)

What about pets?
Our cute pup Sadie <3. We luuuv her.

Who is the smartest?
Depends on the subject!!! Jordan is amazing at math and horrible at English. Well, it works out perfectly because I SUCK at math but I love English!

Who is the most sensitive?
ha, definitely ME!

Who has the worst temper?
Neither of us have a bad temper with each other - I'm grateful for that! :)

Who does the cooking?
I do the cooking and Jord does the dishes and I like it that way!!

Who is more social?
Jordan is definitely more social. He can talk to anyone, anywhere about anything...but I love that because it helps me to become more outgoing!! I love that Jordan can get along with anyone he meets!

Who is the neat-freak!!
HA HA HA! I'm not even going to try to deny it. I am! Jordan would tell you the same thing.

Who is the most affectionate?
Jordan wins!

Who is the most stubborn?
Jordan is DANG stubborn!!!! I am too though! Everyone is a bit stubborn at times, just how it is.

Who hogs the bed?
DEFINITELY ME! I've woken up plenty of times and realized I had all the covers - whooops! Oh and I have this thing where I like to sleep in the middle of the bed, Jordan doesn't appreciate it at all! LOL

Who wakes up earlier?
Seems like it's ME. I wake up earlier during the week for work. I envy him when I'm heading to work bright and early and he is ZzZzZzZ!!!! But I love weekends because we both get to sleep in!

Where do you eat out at most as a couple?
Lets see...Wingers, Red Robbin and In N' Out! Fancy...I know.

Where do you shop the most as a couple?
Winco. Love going grocery shopping together!

My life...

2010-04-13T15:23:00.000-07:00

This picture pretty much sums up my life right now. I can tell it's the last month of the semester because I have piles and piles of homework to be done in just a few short weeks. I blame school for my lack of exciting posts! I will be so happy to say goodbye to this semester...then it will be time for SUMMER SEMESTER. Oh the joys of being a student! :D

In Memory...

2010-03-31T19:04:00.000-07:00

It wasn't easy hearing the news that this sweet girl had passed away. Maquelle and I were on dance company together in high school. This girl was always smiling and she would ALWAYS go out of her way to help others. She was a great example to everyone that knew her. I'm so glad I had the chance to know her during her short time on earth - she left us way too soon. I know God had a different plan for her and I'm sure she's happy where she is. Love you Maquelle - so many people LOVE you and will miss you forever! R.I.P

I Love these boys!

2010-03-21T12:05:00.000-07:00

My nephews have been up visiting Utah for the past couple weeks, which has made me so happy. I had the chance to spend some time with them which I'm so grateful for. I just love these little boys to pieces and wish I got to see them more often. :( They are growing up so quick - it's crazy. Last friday, I was lucky enough to be able to take the day off to play with them. I picked them up Friday morning and we had fun playing all day. We took Sadie for a walk and went and played at the park by my house. They loved Sadie so much and had lots of fun playing with her. I didn't have to worry about the kids being too rough with Sadie, it was the other way around - dang dog. When Jordan got home from work, we took them to dinner and then went to Jumpin' Jacks in West Jordan. They kids had so much fun jumping around and going down all the fun slides. It was so cute to watch them. We ended the night with some popcorn and a movie. They had their little sleeping bags, so we set up their beds and had a fun sleepover. I wish these little rascals lived closer so we could do fun things like this more often. Love you boys!

What we've been up to....

2010-03-06T14:45:00.000-08:00

We've definitely had our hands full lately with our pup! I don't think I understood how much work a puppy would be. But I'm happy to say that we're adjusting just fine. The first couple weeks were pretty rough with the potty training business. But things are getting better. I'm happy to say that she hasn't had an accident in the last 5 days. KNOCK ON WOOD. :) But we've had fun - it has been a new and fun experience for Jordan and I. She LOVES to hide under the couches and drag our clothes/shoes under them and chew on them! lol. She is a fun puppy and it's fun to see her gaining confidence to do new things. We took her to the vet this week for the first time and much to our surprise - the vet says she's definitely not a schnoodle (stupid pet store doesn't know what they are talking about), but she's actually a terrier-poodle mix. She now weighs 5.5 pounds, she has gained a pound and a half since we got her.

A special shout out to Jordan's friend/cousin Mike! He's leaving this week to serve a mission in Texas. We're so proud of him and wish him the best of luck! We are going to miss him - he's such a fun person. :)

Little thought...

2010-02-23T21:13:00.000-08:00

I found this quote the other day and I love it. So I thought I'd share it....

"Everybody in this life has their challenges and difficulties. That is part of our mortal test. The reason for some of these trials cannot be readily understood except on the basis of faith and hope because there is often a larger purpose which we do not always understand. Peace comes through hope."

--James E Faust, "Hope, an Anchor of the Soul", November 1999 Ensign.

I'm learning that we should be just as grateful for the bad times as we are for the good times. What a strange concept? Doesn't it seem like you can't have too much good in your life without a little bit of bad sneaking in?

Valentines Weekend.

2010-02-15T22:05:00.000-08:00

Due to the fact that we just bought a brand new puppy, Jordan and I decided that we didn't want to do anything big for Valentines Day! We decided we would celebrate Valentine's Day on Saturday - we didn't have any plans at all so it was a spontaneous day. There was no stress associated with Valentine's this year and I really enjoyed it. On Saturday morning Jordan made me Popeye Pancakes (a.k.a German pancakes). It was DELICIOUS! I love breakfast! :) The rest of the afternoon was spent doing homework and cleaning (our typical Saturday duties). But we did it all together so it wasn't all that bad. We ended up getting ready for the day at about 3 pm. We decided to head to In n Out for a low-key Valentine's dinner :) I thought it was fun - but really anything I get to do with Jordan is fun! We then did some shopping for my mom for her birthday present and while we were out - I thought it might be fun to find each other a little something at the store. Instead of just picking out what we wanted - we made it into a little game. We parted ways in the store with $10 each and a time limit of 20 minutes. In that 20 minutes we had to spontaneously pick something out for the other person that was within our $10 limit. It was pretty hard to pick something out for that cheap and without really being able to think about it, but it was actually really fun. We would run into each other and just laugh - there were other times we would see each other off in the distance and try to get away and hide. After we had purchased our gifts - we met up and left to head home. Jordan gave me my gift which was a little Valentine's bear, photo album and my favorite gum (so cute)! I ended up finding him a pretty cool dart board. Last year we did our own chocolate fondue with strawberries, bananas, and marshmellows. Jordan asked if we could carry on this little tradition of ours this year. So we ended the night with some yummy chocolate fondue and a movie! It was a great time spent together. I'm so grateful for Jordan and for all that he does for me. I'm so lucky to have such a great best friend and husband. I love hanging out with him all the time - it's a dream come true.

Happy Birthday Mom!

2010-02-10T21:44:00.000-08:00

My mom's birthday is tomorrow (February 11th) and I figured I might not have time to write her a birthday shout out then so I'll do it now. :)

My mom is such an awesome lady. Jordan and I agree that she is one of the most generous people we know. She is always looking for ways to help others out! She has done a lot for Jordan and I and we really do appreciate it. My favorite thing to do on the weekends is go shopping with her (not just because she buys me lots of nice things), :) but because it's so fun to get out and do things together! I love it! I'm grateful that I have a mom to call up everyday and talk to. I'm grateful for a mom that cares so much for her family and friends. I find myself becoming more and more like my mom everyday -and it's definitely not a bad thing! Although I haven't lived up to her cleaning standards quite yet, I know I'm on the road to becoming OCD with cleaning. It's bound to happen one day! My mom has a great sense of humor and is fun to laugh with. I'm very grateful for all she does for me - I don't know what I'd do without her. I love you Mom! Happy Birthday!

New Pups!

2010-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

I seriously don't know what got into me. Jordan has been wanting a puppy for the longest time and I kept telling him there was no way! Well, last Friday I told Jordan we could "MAYBE" look into getting a dog and by Saturday night we were the owners of a cute little schnoodle (schnauzer/poodle mix). After much thought, we decided to name her Sadie. We found her at a pet store and I just loved her - she was so cute and so sweet. I'm not gonna lie, I was extremely stressed the first two days that we had her. I kept asking myself what I had done, ahhhh! Puppies are a lot of work but she is so worth it. Luckily, Jordan has had a puppy before so he knows what to expect...me on the other hand - well I'm adjusting. :) She has such a fun personality! She can be so crazy one minute and the next she will be completely fine to just lay and cuddle with ya on the couch. She's already started chewing on everything she can find. I turned away for two minutes today and turned around to find her little 4 pound body dragging Jordan's huge sweat pants across our bedroom floor. So funny! She's done well with the potty training business. She's only had a few accidents which happened her first two days home with us. She is such a smart little puppy - which I'm very grateful for. :) I'll keep ya updated - I still don't think I'm fully aware of what I'm in for. We'll see!

What I've been up to...

2010-02-01T19:34:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday was my work's "holiday" party! For some reason they do the company party in January - but I actually kinda liked it, it gave us a reason to get together and celebrate after the holidays were over. It was at the Little America Hotel, we had a yummy dinner and then a night full of festivities that included; LOTS of comedy, prizes and dancing. It was a good time, I love my co-workers :D There were many BIG prizes given away and unfortunately Jordan and I came up short. Although we didn't win a thing, we had fun together! Over the last few months I've felt particularly lucky to have a job. I know how tough times are and I know that my job is very important.

This weekend I had the opportunity to get together with my lovely girlfriends and go to lunch and then do our monthly craft date. Since October, we've been getting together once a month and doing a craft. I love it so much and always look forward to that day each month. We have been working on crafts for our homes - but this weekend we made headbands...gosh it's so addicting. I also bought some plain baby headbands and then decorated them up all cute for mine and Jordan's sweet nieces. I'll have to start posting pics of the different crafts we do each month, SO MUCH FUN! I love my friends! :D

Cute Friends!

Cute Headbands!

life.

2010-01-22T17:19:00.000-08:00

I know it's been awhile since I've posted anything - I really haven't been lazy, I promise. We just haven't been able to do very many fun things this month. Jordan's work continued to get busier and busier - and I sorta never saw him for a few weeks. He would leave at 6 am. and get home well past 10 pm. The only hope I had of seeing him would be to go work with him. Yikes! So for a few nights I went straight to his work after I got done with my job and worked the night away with him. Lets just say it hasn't been the best few weeks - and we can't wait for life to go back to normal for us so we can actually see each other once in awhile. :) That will be nice. I'm glad we both have jobs though, so that we can support ourselves and afford our condo (which I'm loving so much). It's so nice to have a place of our own - although it's so much work to keep up with. SERIOUSLY! Well, the picture above is Jordan and I outside of the Little America - we went to dinner there a couple weeks ago for my dad's birthday~ Good times! Jordan's work is slowing down quite a bit and by next week he should be back to working normal hours :) That means my blog posting will pick up and be a little bit more exciting to read about then this post is. :) Hope 2010 is off to a great start for all of you - we love you!

Goodbye 2009 and Hello 2010.

2010-01-04T18:04:00.001-08:00

2009 was a big year for me - my life changed quite a bit. There were plenty of UPS and DOWNS but I would be lying if I said it was a bad year. I mean I married my best friend - that's pretty dang hard to top! :D I'm grateful for all the blessings I received in 2009 - and look forward to all that 2010 has to offer.

This is how I rang in the new year....

Jordan and I decided to have a small New Years Eve party at our new place. It was fun to get together with good friends. We played some fun games, had some laughs and ate a delicious pot luck dinner. I'm blessed to have such great people in my life and hope that our friendships continue to grow throughout 2010. :)

Time for decorating..

2009-12-29T20:54:00.000-08:00

Alright, I know I'm slow at posting pics of our new place. Lets just say that it is a MAJOR work in progress. I never realized how much there would be to do. It's never ending. We moved in - I got tired of unpacking so I ended up just throwing things in closests (out of sight - out of mind) and now I find myself going CRAZY because there is no ORGANIZATION! So there is my reason for not posting any pics yet - because my house never feels clean! I never have time to just sit and clean because I work all week, weeknights are spent lounging and weekends are spent playing and catching up on sleep. Ohh the busy life Jordan and I live - it's GREAT! :D But I also haven't had the time/money to decorate to the extent that I'd like to so that's also why you haven't seen any pics. My mom and I spent the day shopping for house decorations yesterday and it was super fun. Thanks to my mom, and some gift cards that I have - I was able to get a bunch of decorations for the kitchen!! I was SO EXCITED! I've posted a pic for you to look at - but it's not quite done. I still need a few more things to go up top on the cabinets and then I think I'll be satisfied! :D Ohhh the joy of house decorating! I'm having so much fun - good thing I have a mom that has an eye for decorating! She has helped me so much! THANKS MOM!

Wedding pics...

2009-12-28T20:44:00.001-08:00

I decided it was time to post some of my wedding pictures on my blog. So here is a sneak peek for you - there will be plenty more coming your way :D

Christmas Time!

2009-12-27T22:02:00.001-08:00

It has been a fun first Christmas being married for Jordan and I. Besides Jordan being super busy at work - we found some time to do a few festive things. We picked out our first Christmas tree together and that was lots of fun. My parents drove us up to the tree lot in my dad's brown truck (for those of you that know my dad and his brown truck - I'm sure you're laughing). Anyway, I'm sure it was a funny sight to see my dad, mom, jordan and I all crammed into that old truck - but it sure was a good time. We went and picked out ornaments for the tree - decorated it together and put up the few Christmas decorations that we have up. It has just been awesome being together and having our own place for the holidays.

Christmas eve came quick! We did our usual routine that night! We ate our yummy Italian dinner at my mom's house and then headed to Jordan's grandma's house for pajamas and presents. This was my first year being in the cousin drawing so that was a lot of fun for me. Every year the cousins all exchange gifts and then you watch each person open up their present. After that all the kids get into their new pajamas and we take pics together! I just love CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS! We headed back to my parents after that to have a sleepover! We stayed up playing games with my family and then headed to bed. It was fun to stay there with my nephews and watch their excitement about Santa Clause coming!!!

Christmas day was a busy one! We woke up Christmas morning and opened gifts with my family - I love watching everyone open the gifts that I bought them. :) We then headed to Jordan's mom's house for a Christmas breakfast with his family (YUMMY)!!! After we visited for awhile, we headed home to get ready and then head straight back out the door for Jordan's other grandma's house! We always go there Christmas day for the delicious ham and potato dinner!! Then it was back to my parent's house for some more fun. We've also been working really hard on a 3000 piece puzzle. YIKES! :) I enjoyed spending the day with family. Holidays become a bit more crazy once you're married and have two families - but I wouldn't trade it for anything. I love being around loved ones - after all that's what makes the holidays such an amazing time. I hope you all had a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

P.S BIG THANKS to my friend Meagan for the wonderful Photo program (which allowed me to make the cute scrapbook pages above) and also to Jordan for getting me a perfect new camera so that I was able to take all the fun pics! :) I am a lucky girl!

It has been awhile...

2009-12-12T10:26:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted anything in quite a long time. We actually moved into our condo the day before Thanksgiving and since then have been super busy and internet-less. :) We're loving our condo - but it's going to take us awhile to get settled in and everything. Our two spare rooms are filled with boxes of junk - maybe one day we will get around to going through it all. :) It's been kind of overwhelming trying to decorate our condo plus decorate for Christmas. It will be weird to see the condo without the Christmas decorations and tree - I will actually have to decorate with normal things. lol. Jordan has been super busy at work lately - it's buyback time once again. Then come January it will be time to sell all the books again. Jordan worked from about 8am to 10pm everynight this past week - it's been sad not to have him around as much. Starting next week I'm going in to work with him at night, I will get off at 4 pm from my job and head straight over there for a good 5 hour shift. It will be busy but atleast I'll be around Jordan more and it will mean more money for us! That's about all that has been going on lately, I will need to get some pictures of our new home posted as well as some pics of us celebrating the holidays. I can't believe Christmas is only about 2 weeks away. Time is flying, I hope everyone is enjoying this time of year - it really is wonderful.

My 21st Birthday!

2009-11-18T18:30:00.001-08:00

On November 10th, I celebrated my 21st birthday! I can't believe I'm 21, it's hard to believe considering I look 12 yrs. old. :D
The night before my birthday, Jordan took me to the store and bought me my favorite Ben & Jerrys and then we went home and watched a few episodes of my favorite show - One Tree Hill. I'm currently addicted! lol. I must have been so excited for my birthday because I guess I talked in my sleep that night, I looked at Jordan and said, "You're the first one to tell me Happy Birthday!" haha. Oh the things I say in my sleep! Anyway..on my birthday Jordan picked me up from work and took me to Wingers for lunch, on the way back from lunch he surprised me with a present. He bought me super cute Uggs. He gave me a pair of black Uggs last year so this year he gave me some brown ones. I got back to work to find flowers sitting on my desk (Jord had secretly had them delivered while we were at lunch) and then there was a card and balloons from my work. :D

That night we went to dinner at the Olive Garden with my family - it was a good time. The real party came on Friday though. My mom had been telling me she would take me to Wendover for my 21st birthday - well she kept her word. I invited Meagan to come along - because we always have to do something fun together for our birthdays since they are only one day apart from each other. So Friday I took a half day off work and we all met at my mom's house and headed out that afternoon. We picked up my mom's aunt on the way - boy she is a hoot! She entertained Meagan and I the WHOLE time. My mom taught Meagan and I how to play nickel poker and we got stuck on that for awhile :) Later on my dad and our family friends Mike and Jacki came down. My dad taught me how to play Black Jack and Roulette. We all had so much fun - BIG THANKS to my parents for taking us on such a fun trip and being so generous to let me gamble your money away! :D You're probably noticing Jordan didn't go with to Wendover - well that's because he's just a baby and won't turn 21 until next July! LOL! Well can't believe another year has come and gone - time is flying but I'm having the time of my life.

Halloween 09.

2009-11-02T16:10:00.000-08:00

So every year my work has a big decorating contest and costume contest. My friend and I decided to dress up as Mario and Luigi and we ended up getting a bunch of people in on it. We decided to decorate our area as bowsers castle - boy it was a lot of work and even meant us staying after work for a couple of hours one night just to finish it up, but it turned out pretty cool. A lot of people ended up dressing up, we had mario (me), luigi, wario, yoshi, the turtle with the cloud, the BOO ghost and a princess. I was pretty proud of myself this year because I didn't just go buy a Mario costme - I found the overall outfit at Forever 21 for $7.99 and bought white leggings - the rest of the costume was borrowed. It turned out really cute, I was excited. Sadly, the department next to us rednecked their department up and stole the prize from us for best decorated and best costumes. LOL. It was a good time though, I love the people I work with - they make life great! Saturday I spent some time with my family and then at night Jordan and I went to the Utes blackout game with his family. We met my parents afterward for some din din at Little America and then headed over to see Paranormal activity with friends. Man was that show freaky!!! All in all, it was a great weekend!

Pumpkins.

2009-10-29T21:01:00.000-07:00

Carving pumpkins is always a fun time :D Jordan was his usual competitive self. I gotta admit it, his pumpkins usually turn out way better than mine - he's super creative. I like to go for the simple stuff like circle eyes and a triangle nose. I'm sure you'll be able to tell which one I carved. In the time that I carved ONE pumpkin, Jordan did two. He even cleaned out all of the strings and seeds out of mine - what a nice guy! :D Happy Halloween!

Haunted Forest!

2009-10-14T15:53:00.000-07:00

Last night we got together with a bunch of our friends and went to the Haunted Forest in American Fork. Jord and I had gone last year as well and we loved it so much so we wanted to do it all over again this year. We started the night at Wingers - had some dinner and headed over to the haunted forest. There were lots of scary people walking around and for some reason I wasn't scared...I was just having a really good time. We were there with a great group of people so that made it even more fun. It seemed like they had added more into it than they had last year so that was cool. I love it because you're literally just wandering through a forest in the dark - I think that's totally better than an indoor haunted house. I think Jordan should work at a haunted house because he was constantly trying to scare all the girls in our group (including me). My arm hurt by the end of the night from gripping him so tight. But it was definitely well worth it. :) Here are some fun pics from our night...

Honeymoon Part 3: Mexican Riviera Cruise

2009-10-06T15:57:00.001-07:00

We boarded our cruise ship Monday afternoon and by 5 pm we had set sail. The first night was a little weird - we both felt kinda dizzy and could feel every little sway on the boat. We woke up the next morning feeling much better and by then we were used to the swaying of the boat. Tuesday was a FUN DAY AT SEA - so we spent the day laying out (which we got completely fried after only an hour), we ate lots of course and took a nice nap before dinner. That night was formal night on the cruise so we got all dressed up and went to our fancy schmancy dinner!! The waiters sang "HAPPY HONEYMOON" to us at dinner - that was pretty embarassing! Wednesday morning when we woke up, we had arrived in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. I love Cabo, I had been there once before but the last time I was there it was in December (not September) and let me tell you what - it was MISERABLY hot!! We just about died walking around shopping for fun souveniers. We ate lunch at a retaurant along the harbor. One of the guys that worked there came up to me and handed me a bag of ice and said, "Here try out our Mexican air-conditioning." We got a good laugh out of that!

We had one more day at sea on Thursday and Friday morning we arrived in Ensenada! Ensenada was interesting. We had purchased a shore excursion through the cruise line which took us by bus to Rosarito to a beach club called Papas & Beer. It was a way cool beach and restaurant but sadly it was a FOGGY day ;( We just lounged by the ocean, had lunch and got to ride the sweet mechanical bull they had. By the time we were leaving, the fog had cleared up and the sun was shining bright (just our luck)!! Saturday morning came and we had arrived back at port - got off the ship, headed to our car and drove straight home...suprisingly the drive wasn't too bad. We had such a great time on our cruise though, we took a nice long nap everyday, ate plenty of ice cream cones, went to all the fun shows on the cruise and met some great people.

Honeymoon Part 2: San Diego

2009-10-05T16:23:00.001-07:00

The next morning (Sunday) we woke up and headed out to San Diego. That was only a 5 hour drive from Vegas so it wasn't too bad. We stayed at the Holiday Inn located right across the street from the harbor. It happened to be right across from the dock where our Carnival Ship would be - so it worked out perfectly! We had such an amazing view of the ocean. We ended up eating at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for dinner which was located right along the harbor as well. It was DELICIOUS! I've never been BIG into steaks - but man that filet was so yummy! If you've never eaten there before, I highly recommend it! We spent time relaxing that evening and had a GREAT time together! Stay tuned for Part 3 - the cruise! Boy, I have plenty of pics to share!

Honeymoon Part 1: VEGAS

2009-10-05T16:13:00.000-07:00

So the day after our wedding, we loaded up the car with our bags and headed for Las Vegas! We had chosen to go on a cruise for our honeymoon and decided instead of flying that we would drive to San Diego (where the ship left from). So our first stop was Vegas, we arrived there at about 6 pm on Saturday evening. We stayed at the Las Vegas Hilton (which was so nice)! We took the monorail around the strip and made some pit stops at all the different hotels. We ate at Serendipity 3 - they are known for their frozen hot chocolates, unfortunately after a lot of yummy food we were too full to try out the famous frozen hot chocolate! We spent the rest of the evening walking around through the mall in Caesar's Palace and watching the fountain show in front of the Bellagio! We also had a lot of fun people watching - man I felt a little out of place in Vegas (but that's a good thing)! :D

Our Wedding!

2009-09-28T16:07:00.000-07:00

Mckenzie & Jordan at the Salt Lake Temple from Davey Orgill on Vimeo.

Well our day finally came and it couldn't have been more perfect. The weather was just beautiful - we were so blessed! It was great to have all our family and friends there to celebrate with us. The temple ceremony was amazing - I can't describe how perfect it really was. I was so grateful to have Meagan there helping me - she helped me get into my dress and get ready and she made me feel so pretty! She kept telling me how beautiful I looked. The reception went great also - the weather got a little questionable there for a min but it ended up being a really nice night. Everything looked just the way I had always imagined it. The yard was gorgeous - I can't thank my parents enough for all their hard work!! :D It was great to have my sister and her family in town - so glad they were able to make it up here!! Thanks to everyone who came and showed support. We love you all! Also, thanks to everyone who put so much effort into setting up as well as cleaning up. Meagan and Jason - we owe you guys for many late nights staying up with us and helping do invitations, creating our video for the dinner, etc. It was so great to have so much support from family and friends. I'll be posting some pics soon and also some pictures from our super fun honeymoon. :D For now, enjoy our AMAZING video by POINTE DIGITAL.

"I love to see the temple..."

2009-09-13T08:11:00.000-07:00

What a week we've had! Thursday night, Jordan had the amazing opportunity to go through the Jordan River Temple. I was feeling so jealous, because I was so anxious and excited and wanted my turn. We had decided before hand that he would go through before me so that he could be there on Saturday for me. It worked out really well. My turn came yesterday and I went through the Jordan River Temple as well. It was such a neat experience. I had asked my best friend Meagan to be my escort and I'm so glad I did. She has been such a GREAT help through everything. I'm so grateful for her friendship. She is always so willing to help others and will usually put others before herself. She truly cares for people and I admire that so much.

The temple was awesome though. Jordan and I both loved it and can't wait to go back again and again. We are super excited for our wedding this weekend though. We can't wait to go to the Salt Lake Temple together and experience being sealed for time and all eternity. I'd like to thank all the support we've had through this whole experience. We love you all so much!

Our Condo!

2009-09-13T08:01:00.000-07:00

I'm SUPER excited for our condo to be done. We found out that it should be done the middle of October and we are praying that it gets done sooner rather than later. As much as we love Jordan's family - we can't wait to be in our own place because than it will really feel REAL! :) I'm so anxious to set it all up and decorate and make it our own home! I posted some pics above of the progress -we love going to check it out and see what else they've completed on it. It is coming along nicely! I can't wait until I can see it with all the things we chose for it (like the paint, carpet, flooring , counters, etc). It was so much fun customizing every detail of it. We couldn't be more happy about our choice to buy our little condo!

Fun Times...

2009-09-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

This past Thursday, I had the opportunity to go to the FIRST UTES GAME of the season. It was so exciting. I've never been much into football until last season - I started understanding football a bit more and now it's SO much fun to watch, I'm quite the little fan! :D I can't wait to go to more games this season, it will be a good time. I'm excited to see how the Utes will do this year!
Then Friday my friend Meagan and her mother took me to get all my temple things. This was a but overwhelming, but so much fun. I got my temple dress (which I love so much), a cute temple bag, and all the other things you need for the temple! Meagan helped me pick out all my garments and was SUCH a big help! I can't tell you how grateful I was for this and for their support. Meagan's mom is the sweetest lady I know and I'm so lucky to know her! Kim - thank you for being so generous and buying me my temple dress and everything else. It meant A LOT to me! Meagan - thank you for being such a great help throughout this whole experience, I'm excited to go through the temple and have you by my side, continuing to help me!
I'll be going through the Jordan River Temple this Saturday and I'm very excited to take this big step in my life :D

On Friday night, we got the FANTASTIC FOUR together again. Meagan, Liz, Janessa and I went to dinner together and then went to Elizabeth's house and chatted until real late. I love these girls so much, I'm grateful to have a good group of friends in my life. Thanks for the super fun night girls, lets do it again real soon!

Shower Fun with Friends!

2009-08-30T20:33:00.000-07:00

Meagan and Janessa threw me a bridal shower on Saturday and it was A LOT of fun! :D It was so nice to see everyone!! I'm lucky to have such sweet friends! I got lots of NICE gifts, I can't wait to decorate our condo and use all of our new things! Thanks everyone! We played some fun games and had some good laughs. You'll see pictures below of me all dressed up. They blindfolded me, put a suitcase in front of me and had me get dressed for a "date" with Jordan, lol. I did pretty well besides the fact that I ended up with a tank top on my leg - other than that, I looked pretty dang good! ;) It was definitely a fun time, big thanks to Meagan and Janessa for putting that together - you girls are the best!
After the shower was over, Meagan and I decided to grab some dinner together and then we ended up at AllStar Lanes. Our guys won't ever take us bowling (they always drag us to action movies - BOO)!!! Since Jordan and Ric were at dinner with some friends, we decided to take advantage of our free night and do some bowling. It was a blast. Thanks Meagan!! :D

Ohh Summer...

2009-08-17T16:06:00.000-07:00

I can't believe we are already into August. I've been so busy that time has just flown by so quickly. Although I've had a lot going on this summer, I've still managed to do some fun things. Jordan and I took a vacation with his family to Island Park and Yellowstone. That was a LOT of fun, I'm so glad we were able to get away! Sadly, I don't have any pics from that vacation because my camera is currently broken :( My summer classes ended last week - thank goodness. I was able to pull off straight A's, so I was pretty happy about that. But since school is over, I've had a BIT more free time to hang out with fam and friends. Wedding plans are coming right along...it feels like there is still so much to do and we are exactly a month away from tomorrow. I can't believe it. I'm so excited. Now I just need to get everything finished - so I can relax. Overall, it hasn't been too stressful but now it's CRUNCH TIME and I'm starting to feel it :D I've had two bridal showers so far and both have been lots of fun. I'm so excited to use all of my new things!! A little update on our condo - it's a work in progress. We've actually walked through it a couple times the past week - it's all framed, the windows are in, plumbing, and some other things. It's so exciting to see the progress! We are so excited and hope they hurry up so we can move into our home soon after we are married! :) That's about all for now. I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their summer :)

Kenny Chesney!

2009-07-29T22:11:00.001-07:00

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to go to the Kenny Chesney Concert with my best friend Meagan! :) Her sweet mom bought us tickets - and boy they were GOOD seats! Lady Antebellum was the opener, next was Miranda Lambert and last but not least...KENNY CHESNEY! WOW! He was amazing and his songs were so much fun to dance and sing along to. We were kinda bummed out that Sugarland had cancelled, but there was still plenty of fun to be had! :) I can't forget to mention that it was SCORCHING hot outside....ughhh. From the minute we stepped out of the car we were dripping sweat! Our cute cowgirl outfits didn't help either. Boots and cowboy hats are not good to wear in the heat! Wooo-eeeeee. Even though it was hot all night long, we had so much fun and I'm so glad I was able to go. I think one of the funnest things about this concert was people-watching...wow! Country concerts sure do attract a different type of crowd! :D Thanks again Meagan and Kim for letting me go and enjoy this wonderful concert!

Our weekend in St. George.

2009-07-12T21:01:00.000-07:00

Jordan's brother Jake and his girlfriend Megan invited us to stay in Megan's family condo this weekend in St. George! We weren't sure if we could make it at first, but at the last min. we decided we would go and I'm so glad we did. Jordan and I both needed a good weekend away from reality and we ended up having so much fun together!! We drove down Friday after work and got to St. G at about 10:00 pm. Of course our first stop was IN N OUT!! :) We spent the weekend relaxing, hiking, swimming, shopping and just enjoying each other's company. It was REALLY nice to just sit back and relax and not worry about wedding plans or my summer classes all weekend. I'm really grateful for Jordan and for how great he is to me. I enjoy spending time with him!! He was constantly making me laugh this weekend (even to the point of tears)...I love him and the GOOD influence he is to me. I couldn't ask for a BETTER best friend!

Jordan's birthday (a little late)!

2009-07-12T20:48:00.000-07:00

Well this is a little late, but Jordan had his 20th birthday on July 3rd! It was a really fun day - I didn't have work (due to the holiday) and so I decided to throw Jordan a surprise party. Jordan worked a half day and then Ric took Jordan golfing so that I would have more time to prepare for the party! A BIG THANKS to Meagan for coming and helping me all day long!! I went and picked Jordan up from his house that night and told him I wanted to take him to get his present before his family birthday party started (his mom has family over every year for a party - so he figured that was going to happen)...anyway, I got him in my car and blindfolded him. I drove around for a LONG time waiting for everyone to show up at my house! Well, 30 minutes later I got the OK to go to my house (by this time Jord was SO confused as to where we were and he was getting a little anxious to get out of the car). I helped him walk into my backyard - where he took the blindfold off and everyone yelled "SURPRISE" ...it was PERFECT and he had NO IDEA!

Summer time!

2009-07-01T21:09:00.000-07:00

Well, it's finally starting to feel a bit more like summer :) Last weekend was T-ville Dayzz and boy do I love going to the parade and fireworks. I've been going for as long as I can remember, it's always so fun to see EVERYONE there! I absolutely love the fireworks - they always put on a great show. The parade was fun this year because my nephews were there, things like that are always more fun with little kids! ;) Maverick was really cute - he would run out and get candy that was thrown and then immediately shove his face full! Christian was also very entertaining, he was so excited to collect all the flyers that were being passed out (who knew flyers were better than candy) ha! T-ville Dayzz is always fun...I think it will continue to be a tradition for a long time!

P.S.

2009-06-22T19:02:00.001-07:00

I've decided to officially make this mine and Jordan's blogger. ;) **Notice the link has changed. It's now www.jordandkenz.blogspot.com

Time flies...

2009-06-22T18:53:00.000-07:00

When you're working full time, taking summer classes and planning a wedding...Oh and trying to fit some social time in with all of that because after all it's summer! :) My weeks seem to fly by and before I know it the weekend has come and gone and another week is staring me in the face. I've also had my sister and nephews in town the past few weeks and it has been great, I love playing with my nephews...they are too cute. :) Anyway..updates, Jord and I are going to sign on our condo this week so that is exciting and we are also taking our engagement pictures tomorrow night - hopefully they turn out alright! The wedding plans seem to be slowly coming along, there is just so much to do and I'm already sick of it...I wish I could just show up the day of my wedding and everything would be done for me, man that'd be great! ;) Hope all is well with everyone, hopefully the rain will be gone soon so we can all start enjoying summer!!!

Wedding plans...

2009-06-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

My life is slowly becoming CONSUMED with wedding plans. My weeks seem to fly by between work, summer classes and WEDDING PLANS. It's so exciting that it's finally time to start planning and getting things ready. There are times when I feel I'm on top of everything and then I remember fifty million other things that need to be done. Sheesh! I still have just about three months until the big day, but for some strange reason that just doesn't feel like enough time. I have a feeling that my busy schedule is only about to get even more busy. Eeeeek!

But on the up side, Jordan and I along with his mother (who is a realtor) have been checking out diff. condos that we might be able to purchase and Saturday we found the perfect spot for us! There are brand new condos being built just off of 7200 S. and 700 W. They are 3 bedroom/2 bathroom condos with a nice spacious living room and kitchen! We talked to their lendor a bit and things are looking really good for us! The only bad part about it is that if we do end up purchasing one, our cute little condo won't be finished until NOV! AH! We are still figuring everything out though, but I'll def. keep ya'll updated! We are super excited!

Taylor freaking Swift.

2009-05-31T15:24:00.001-07:00

So last Tuesday, my little sister and I (thanks to my dad) got the chance to go see Taylor Swift in concert at the Energy Solutions Arena. I've always loved all of Taylor Swift's songs and thought she was a great artist! This was her first headline tour and I'm so glad I was able to attend because it was absolutely AMAZING. She sang SO many songs, she was constantly singing...there were hardly any breaks, by the end of the concert she looked absolutely pooped! She had so many cool effects and backgrounds! We had pretty dang good seats....we were off to the side and only 5 rows up. She disappeared for a minute and all of a sudden started singing at the top of our aisle...it was so exciting! We were only 5 seats in from the aisle and she walked right by us as you can see from my pic above. She walked around by the floor seats, gave hugs, signed autographs, shook hands, etc. It was really awesome - she seems like such a sweetheart! I will definitely pay to see her again in the future! :)

Just some thoughts...

2009-05-24T21:50:00.000-07:00

In honor of Memorial Day, I'd like to share some thoughts with you about my Grandma Carol. It has almost been 9 years since she passed away - and I still miss her often. I don't know what it is - but she has been on my mind quite a bit lately. It started with a dream I had a couple months ago - my grandma and I were talking and she kept crying and saying "You've grown up so much!" I envy those who still have grandparents, because it really is such a priviledge - don't ever take it for granted. Lately, I find myself telling Jordan all about her and how great she was - but I can't help but feel mad that he never got the chance to meet her!

When I was little - I loved going to Grandma's house for sleepovers (which lasted days at a time). We would stay up late, eat grapes and watch movies together - just the two of us.

One summer I begged my mom to let me go stay with Grandma for the week - and although my grandma was sick, she still agreed to let me come up and stay with her. Little did I know then, that I would be spending the last week of her life with her. I can't even explain how grateful I am for the random urge I had to go stay with her that week. I know Heavenly Father was blessing me and I'm so thankful for that.

I know that she is pain-free and happy where she's at and I know that she constantly watches over me. Love you Grandma!

May Fun.

2009-05-24T21:32:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my family and I traveled to Arizona for a very exciting event, Amber's Graduation! I'm so proud of her. It was great to be down there and get to spend some quality family time together! :) We even had the opportunity to go to Christian's talent show at school - he signed up to play a song on the piano all by himself - he is such a "Go-Getter" Just like his mother! :) Amber's Graduation Party at the park was SO MUCH FUN (a little too hot outside - but hey that's ok), there was a DJ and delicious El Rico's Mexican food!! I can't wait until Amber comes up to Utah this summer, we are going to have a BLAST! :)

For Memorial Weekend, Jordan and I had the chance to meet up with some of his family for a weekend at Snow Canyon and Zions! We enjoyed some camping, hiking and great FUN! We spent all day Saturday at Zion's National Park, we went on three different hikes and saw such amazing views! Everything about Zions is gorgeous and we have our Heavenly Father to thank for such amazing things on earth. I'm grateful for the time I got to spend with Jordan, he's so much fun and I love him more everyday! There were several times this weekend that we just sat and laughed together until our stomach's hurt - those are the moments I live for! We are literally counting down the days until we are married, I can't wait! :)

Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T20:54:00.000-07:00

Today I was asked to give a talk on mothers in sacrament and although talking at church is never fun, it was a great opportunity! It helped to remind me how important mothers are and how much they do for their children on a daily basis. My mother is always there for me and is always willing to help me out with whatever I need. She is a little OCD when it comes time for cleaning, and I always despised it as a child...but I'm becoming more and more like her everyday (yes I'm turning into a neat freak)! She is constantly worried about me and wants to make sure I'm always safe, that is another thing that I despised as a teenager but more and more I'm grateful for that because I know she cares about me and loves me! We were joking today about when I was in high school and whenever I wasn't home and I'd hear a siren nearby....I knew that my phone would be ringing any min. Without fail, she always called to make sure I hadn't crashed my car or something! :)

I really am grateful for my mom though and I hope she knows just how much I appreciate her! ;)

I'd like to share a little quote that I used in my talk....

"God couldn't be everywhere, so he gave us mothers."

The role of a mother is SUCH AN IMPORTANT THING and I hope everyone took the time today to let their mothers know just how much they love and appreciate them! :)

So Proud.

2009-04-30T23:22:00.000-07:00

It's absolutely NECESSARY that I tell you all how proud I am of my big sister! She has officially finished her law school classes and only has her finals left and then it will be GRADUATION TIME! She has worked so hard to graduate early. She is literally the definition of super woman because she has been juggling LAW school, homework (hours of it, I witnessed it first hand), internships, children, a house, a part-time job at one point, church callings...this list could go on for hours - but you get the point. I'm just so proud of her and I couldn't be happier that she is finally done. She deserves this more than anyone and now I just hope that she can find herself a great job! I'm so grateful for the time that I was able to live with her, although we weren't able to do too much (due to her busy school schedule)... I know that there was a reason for me being in Arizona - and I'm glad I could help her family out! I'm so GLAD that I will be in Arizona cheering her on at her graduation on May 15th!

Amber - I love you and I'm so thankful for a sister like you. You are a great example to me! You're so smart! You're one of the most sincere people I know, always looking for ways to help others out! I know great things are in store for you and I'm excited to see what the future has in store for you! Thanks for being a great sister and best friend! We've always said that we are different in that you choose to do things the hard way and I'm always looking for the easy route. You've definitely done this the hard way, but as always you've succeeded and come out of it ON TOP! Here's to you Grad! CONGRATULATIONS! I'll be seeing you soon! ;)

All moved out.

2009-04-30T23:10:00.000-07:00

My "almost" empty room :(

This was only ONE load.

I'm officially back into my parents house and ALMOST all moved in. I've been taking small loads of stuff home for a couple weeks now. Much thanks to my family for helping me move most of my crap out last Saturday and a special thanks to my mom for coming down to Orem on Tuesday and grabbing the last load of stuff and helping me scrub down my apartment. I spent THE whole day today unpacking, ugh I absolutely hate moving...it is NEVER ENDING! The picture you see above is just PART of Saturday's load and the load my mother brought home on Tuesday pretty much went on top of everything else that was sitting out. I couldn't see one inch of carpet in my room. I realized today that I have WAY TOO MUCH CRAP and I had nothing else to do but grab a big black garbage bag and fill it up to give it away. It always feels good to get rid of a bunch of clothes and throw away useless items. :) I'm definitely missing my apartment though, and of course my roommates. I'm so grateful for all the memories that were made! I guess it's now time to move onto the next chapter in my life, MARRIAGE. It's now time to start planning my wedding! :)

Nearing the end....

2009-04-25T20:14:00.000-07:00

Well this past week has been a busy one and next week will only be busier. My last day of class was on Wednesday and I'll finish up the semester this next week with a couple finals. The packing has officially begun at my apartment, in fact...as of today it's almost done! We spent the end of the week packing and Brooke moved out today, so we are now down to 3 roomies until Wednesday. I've been stressing quite a bit lately...between packing, moving, cleaning and studying for my finals. Of course when we moved into the apartment it was a disaster but we are forced to leave it SPOTLESS. To top it off, I've been feeling horrible this week with a sore throat, stuffy nose, cough, aches, etc....so I finally went to the doctor on Thursday and didn't like what he had to say. I have some virus that's going around, it's apparently contagious for 7 days and the congestion will last around 3 weeks. I chose the worst possible time to get sick! :(

Anyway...these are some pics of our fun last times together. I've grown to love these girls so much and I'm going to miss them dearly. I can't believe it's already time to leave, I can't help but be sad. What a great chapter in my life - so many memories that I will never forget! Thanks for everything girls, I LOVE YOU!

Easter Eggs!

2009-04-08T20:41:00.001-07:00

Tonight, my roommates and I were able to get together and color Easter eggs. I've always loved coloring Easter eggs - it just never gets old no matter what age you are! :) As my days at my apt. with my lovely roommates are growing slimmer each day, I find myself more and more sad about it! I've had so much fun with these girls and I'm going to miss seeing their shining faces each day! We've done a lot of fun things together throughout the semesters and I'm so thankful for this opportunity! It has been so much fun getting to know Hyeyun and learning about her culture and teaching her all the American ways! :) I'm even more sad to think that in a few months she will be back in Korea and I won't see her anymore. It's hard to live with someone for 8 months and become such good friends with them and then have the thought in your mind that you might never see them again! :( I love my roommates and I hope these last few weeks together are loads of fun! Anyway...I hope everyone has a good weekend and a HAPPY EASTER!

Childhood friends...

2009-03-30T09:22:00.000-07:00

On Saturday night, Janessa and I hung out with Matt, Andrew and Branson. They came down to Orem and we all hung out, went to Noodles and Co. and then to Krispy Kreme for some yummy doughnuts! I love hanging with Matt and Andrew because I've known them since kindergarten. Andrew and I were Kindergarten lovers and then we sat next to each other at graduation (kinda fun). But it's always such a fun time because all we do is sit and talk about old times in elementary and we just laugh so hard because it's funny how much has changed. I don't see them often but we usually see each other once and month and I always enjoy our visits. It's fun to have long-time friends that you are able to reminisce with! Anyway..it was a good weekend!

Special thanks to Meagan and Ric for taking Jordan and I to dinner to congratulate us on our engagement :D They are such great friends to us! We love you guys!

Branson, Matt, Janessa and I!

Andrew and I!