Does anyone else hate unpacking?

Getting ready for a trip is stressful. Not to mention when that trip is post-finals and post-big-work-messes and post-end-of-semester-yahooligans.

Plus, I'm like my Mom. I like things clean. And for some reason, when I am about to leave for a trip I want everything pristine. I mean, cleaner than I would ever have it if I were staying here. Weird? I know.

But last time I had a pre-trip clean obsession, it worked in my favor. We returned from Thanksgiving break thinking "WOW it feels good to be home, and wow does our home look good". And we were really grateful that we had worked to hard to clean.

That said, here's what my to-do list looks like for today/tomorrow morning:

-Pack. I love packing. But I hate unpacking. Problems.
- Exercise. Today we're running stairs so if I never see you again...
- Empty the fridge of all things that will rot
- Scrub the fridge out
- Finish making Christmas gifts (just call me the ULTIMATE procrastinator)
- Wrap Christmas gifts
- Mop kitchen floor real good
- Wipe down the walls (this sounds really strange, I'm not even sure why I put it up. But that's me, bebe).
- Take down Christmas tree
- Date night!
- Tidy up bathroom
- Dust livingroom
- Index (for our calling)
- Write missionaries: Hermana Franklin and Elder Andersen

And a whole lot more. But I realized after that last one that this is probably going to be the lamest post you've ever read and you probably never ever want to hear about my to-do list again. Sorry, guys.

This Family Is Forever

Plus, we're a pretty good looking bunch. And despite the image of crying children, we really do have a whale of a time when we're together...

Whatever that means.

I sure love my family.

Dreams

I've realized lately that maybe there's something wrong with me. You know how people have things that they're just super passionate about and would sacrifice a lot of things to be/do/have/see? Well...I'm struggling to find that thing. My niche. My life goal. My dream, if you will.

I used to be involved in photography. But I think before I even realized it, my sub conscious screamed "DON'T! YOU MIGHT NOT BE GOOD!" So I stopped.

I used to be on a swim team. But again, before I realized why, I found myself not wanting to join a team again, despite my deep love of swimming, because others were better than I was.

I used to be a music major. Now there are many reasons why I quit that program, but I think it took it's toll. Music is one of my refuges in life, but I haven't really put myself out there to perform or sing very much. Want to know why? Because I was told too much in my year as a music major that my voice was ugly, or that I did things wrong.

I never learned to cook because I was scared of burning, overcooking, undercooking, not setting the table right, or making a mess.

So without knowing it, I've built up this paralyzing fear of messing up. Not in everything, mind you. I take risks in some areas, and it seems to be okay for the most part. But in a lot of things, I am just too afraid to try. I didn't even know I had this sickening problem until this last year where I've fallen in love with someone who respects me and thinks the world of me. Tom doesn't love me less if I don't sing right or if I write dramatically or if I don't win the race.

In fact, he's encouraging me to try more, be bold and brave. Pursue that shelled up dream that may crash and burn, and if it does so what?!

Basically, I'm married to the best man, and I'm so lucky to have him. He makes me want to be better and try harder, and not just in the things I'm good at. Isn't that the greatest?

So this is my message of the day to you: be brave! Be courageous and confident. It's a process, we're all learning, so be kind to each other. We can do hard things.

4 months, and other appropriate mushiness

Tomorrow, Tom and I will have been married for 4 months. We both feel like it's been way longer, like we've always been married. It just feels so natural to be together, like we've always been together. And can I just say that married life is the best. If you ask Tom he'll always joke how dumb it was being engaged. Yes it was fun, but you've already made that commitment to be with them forever, it just hasn't been quite solidified yet. Anyways, the point is that we both really prefer being married to being single, dating, or being engaged.

And wow, 4 months! Time sure flies. We've been through a lot, and if it's any indication of how our future will be, boy am I in for a fun, beautiful, amazing ride!

In 4 months we've celebrated holidays together.

He has forgiven me at least 4 times. More like 4 a day.

We have stopped whatever we're doing to say "we are so weird". Again, this happens about 4 times a day.

I've cooked at least 4 successful meals and found a Tom fave: chicken spaghetti.

We've gone on way more than 4 super fun and cheap dates that are definitely in my top favorites.

We've made chocolate chip pancakes many times 4 times.

We've gone through 4 TV's. Don't worry, we finally have a functioning TV for those rare occasions when we sit to watch a movie.

I've had 4 'mid life crises' where I decide to change my major and everything else with it.

4 times my patient husband has brought me back down and helped me see the big picture, so I didn't change my major again.

We've said I love you at least 4 times a day. More like 56 but that's not a '4' number so...

We've established 4 goals for our life (at least) that we are devoted to and working towards with all that we do.

We've worked out together together 4 times a week on our best week.

Marrying you was the best choice I've ever made, and I am grateful to Heavenly Father every day for you as the greatest blessing I'll ever receive.

*insert loud and long cat call*
Do you see those muscles?

Don't get me started on the eyes.

Thanks to Cami for capturing our first "family photo"!

I love you forever, hunky babe.

What else do you do in your sweats?

No, that post about Thanksgiving never came, and it probably won't happen, so I apologize to my small group of readers, and hope you'll forgive me.

This is a post-workout post. We just finished a cycling class that kicked my butt I'm every way except literally, and now I'm siding getting off my bum to do dishes and make the bed. (The one we'll be getting back into in a couple of hours, yes that bed.)

I don't have much to say, but things are good. Sometimes I look around at my apartment, my life, and feel overwhelmingly blessed. I have so much work to do and so many ways to improve, and still Heavenly Father sees fit to bless me with oh so much. I just don't understand it! I have my best friend as my eternal companion, the one who forgives and serves and loves me for reasons I'll never know.

We're entering finals week, so life is stressful at the Cook house. Tyson is coming on Tuesday, as our first house guest! Christmas is so close we can almost taste it! I know Tom will ask me to read this post to him so I can't spill the beans on what the Mr will be receiving, but I think it will be a very good Christmas for both of us.

And now, pictures.

Ward Christmas party!

At the BYU I Christmas concert with Nathan Pachenco. It was such a good concert and a great night! Even if my blow dryer did poop out on me right before, we still made it. #survivors

I donated plasma for the first time this week and it wasn't awful! Just trying to bring in that dough where we can..

I made these letters out of cereal boxes! I'm anxious to get fabric mod podged on them and hang them up. This, my friends, is being resourceful.

We absolutely love our Christmas tree! More on the evolution of the tree later.

Back to reality, no thank you.

We had SUCH a great time in Texas for the Thanksgiving break. Being a very large family, it's chaotic, and loud, and there is always a lot going on. And I love it. Of course there are challenges, but as soon as you're away from all of it, you just miss it. As we drove away, Jeff said "I already miss Texas". Ironically, we still had 11 hours left to drive through just Texas, but I knew exactly what he meant. I already miss my family so much and can't wait to be with them all again.

Just as with any vacation, it was very hard to come back to reality. Especially after a week long vacation, and a super long drive there and back which kind of screwed up our sleeping schedule. Tom was sick, and when the alarm went off on Monday morning, I just couldn't do it. Mostly laziness, and a lot of being tired, but we'll just ignore my bad decision making here. I worked from home which was really nice, and allowed me to take care of Tom and get more rest myself.

So that was weird, that Monday of working from home. Thus began one of the weirdest weeks!

Tuesday was a fairly normal day, until the evening when we were forced to notice our biggest trial that we had been subconsciously ignoring. I guess every newly married couple goes through financial struggles, right? Well now is our time, for real. Oh boy. But, in a way this trial was the answer to a really dumb prayer of mine. Anyways, enough woe is me. Tuesday night was really hard, but we are doing great!

Wednesday I woke up early to finish making cookies for a work thing. Except that they weren't even cookies, and I couldn't get the chocolate to melt right and they looked like little turd balls. Please excuse the visual. They were peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate, and boy was it frustrating. Then, as Tom's alarm went off, the power shut off from Firth to Rexburg. For those of you a little behind on your Southeast Idaho geography, that's quite a space - about 50 minutes driving time, and a lot of people were affected. I went to work to make sure nobody else was there, which was super scary. But don't worry, I had a flashlight (that's what we call acting on a prompting) to help me navigate the abandoned halls.

Miracle of miracles, all of Tom's classes were cancelled one by one. (Just a note, BYU-Idaho has never in the history of their existence from the time they were Bannock Stake Academy in 1888, have they ever cancelled class/work a whole day. They will cancel classes one at a time and then resume normal schedules when the power is on or whatever. History lesson over.) Which meant that my poor sick husband got to stay home and rest, which he desperately needed. Plus, who wants to go outside when it's -9 degrees? Not I, said the cow. We took a nap, then when the power came back on I went to work. A couple hours later I came home, we watched Forever Strong as part of one of Tom's assignments, and we did a lot of productive things. It was a weird, but really good day.

And today, well today hasn't been weird. It's just been a good day.

Even if it was still in the negatives when I walked to work. What's the real difference between -9 and -6 anyway? I mean, is there a greater evil here? I'm rambling.

Happiest of birthdays to sweet Madison Lynn Weston, who is 3 years old today! Madi is the sweetest little girl ever, and I loved soaking in her sweet spirit over Thanksgiving. We love you, Madi cakes!

So anyways, I guess that all this just means that I'm bored while I watch Tom practice his routine for teaching in class tomorrow, and I'm avoiding doing the dishes. What about you, anyone else having Thanksgiving hangover? Thank goodness it's almost the weekend.

Oh and I'm donating plasma tomorrow for the first time, so, there's that. Gotta rake in that money somehow.

Okay I'll stop now before this rambling gets out of hand (no comments about how that already happened on paragraph 11).

Our usual apology, update, and disappearance.

I seem to have a pretty good pattern going of getting on my blog after too long, apologizing for not writing more frequently (though to be honest...what's it to you?), a lengthy update of our life sans pictures, and then I disappear for at least a week.

Not that it's a problem, because there really isn't a whole lot going on in our lives. That's not true, actually. There is a lot. But I guess I just don't find it exciting enough to think that other people would want to read about it? Anyways...I'm adding another portion to the outline and adding "rambling" as a sub-category to each part.

Now on to the update.

Honestly, there's not much else on my mind except this: being with almost my entire family in Texas in just a few days. The opportunity to go to Texas is a miracle, and as time went on the party grew. Now all of my siblings (minus Elder Andersen, who will be dearly missed) and their families will be there (except Kenny, who will also be dearly missed). Last time that happened? August 14, 2013. AKA the day I was wed to my love. Next time we thought that would happen again? The next time a child got married. It is thrilling to be all together, and boy do we have things planned! I'll  do my best to document this very well and do re-caps of each day, because every day is going to be so fun!

But other than the anticipation and preparation of leaving for Texas, life is pretty normal! I have been reading a LOT lately. I finished Pres. Hinckley's biography and was deeply touched by what I read. Changed, is the better word. Then on Monday I picked up Stephanie Nielson's "Heaven is Here", which I had been waiting and waiting to check out from the library. I finished it last night, and today I checked out "Joseph Smith History by his mother Lucy Mack Smith". I have a goal to read biographies/books on all the prophets.

Also, am I the only one who checks books out from the library anymore? Don't answer that. I just can't see a good reason to pass up free books. And a whole lot of them too.

Unfortunately, we did not land the position as managers for our complex. We had a wonderful interview, but felt that it was already decided when they came over to interview us. Come to find out, we had some STEEP competition. But we are happy with the people that were chosen, we love the Silva's!

Tom is still doing amazing in school. He stays busy between homework, classes, work, volunteering, and class projects, but he still finds time to be with me.

In fact, last Friday was date night and I knew he had a lot going on, so I wasn't expecting him to stop school stuff for the whole night. But he did. We started at 5:30, beginning with a trip to this quaint used book store owned by a man with a British accent. We stopped at Broulim's for humus and a treat, then dropped in to Great Harvest for a free slice of pumpkin chocolate chip bread. When we came home, the chili in the crock pot was done, filling our apartment and the hallway with the smell that just makes you feel cozy! Then we watched a movie on Netflix. But wait, it doesn't stop there. When the movie was over, it was still only 8:30, so Tom says "Let's go to the Craze!" If you'll remember, we live above the Craze. But I've never been inside it! So we went with a plan to spend a dollar on "Deal or No Deal" game. Yeah, that didn't happen. 6 dollars and an hour later, we left with a few hundred ticket's worth of candy, and very happy.

I love my husband. I love that he loves me and that we have so much stinkin' fun together! From the beginning what attracted me to Tom (other than his incredible eyes and big muscles and nice hair and great smile and...sorry I'll stop) was how much fun we had, and so easily! We had the same sense of weird humor, and I immediately felt very comfortable around him. Marriage has only amplified that for us, and I am grateful every day for how he makes me laugh and smile all the time.

Saturday, after a productive day, we decided to build a fort in the living room, complete with our bedroom mattress. And no good fort is complete without delicious food, so I whipped up chocolate chip pancakes and we ate them in our fort while we watched 13 Going On 30.

Yeah, I've got it real good.

Oh so blessed.

Since we've been married, I've thought a lot about all the opportunities that are here in Rexburg for us. And just in all areas life, at this point in time. We have so much ahead of us - moving, grad school, children, different jobs along the way, big tests, and unexpected things. Probably.

And it's kind of overwhelming to look at all the opportunities and think which ones are for us? We've prayed for that every day - for the Lord to help us know which ones we should go for, which ones we're qualified for...etc.

It's been an interesting experience. We've had several opportunities come our way, some which we took, others which we didn't. For example, I had the chance to be the coach of the competitive swim team. Almost took it. Got it. Then turned it down.

But here's what's going down in the Cook home lately:

Tom applied and had an interview for an internship on campus next semester. I do get jealous sometimes, hearing about people going cool places for a summer for their internship, but I'm really grateful that we have this chance. It's a paid internship with the school's Biggest Winner program (much like Biggest Loser, but we're more optimistic), and it is Tom's absolute dream job. Watching him get so excited about it just makes me happy. I got to help Tom build his resume, write a cover letter, and work through potential interview situations. It was super fun cause I'm a nerd and love that kind of stuff. And he NAILED his interview. We should hear if we got it or not next week, so pray for us!

Today we had our interview to be the apartment managers. It would be SWEET. Free rent and utilities, a bigger apartment WITH REAL WINDOWS, Y'ALL. Plus it would be a really awesome to get to know the people in our ward better, and to learn lots of really great skills that would be super useful for our future. We'll find out tomorrow if we got it or not....we're not feeling super strongly about this one because of our limited time in Rexburg, but we are confident that the Lord has a plan! And if this doesn't work out, there will be some other way to help us save/earn money.

We've been looking at grad schools and have it narrowed down to 3, essentially. 2 in Texas, 1 in Utah. Our families are rooting for their respective states, and we are torn ourselves. Except for that we don't want to go to the University of Utah. Time will tell!

I have changed positions at work recently (I may have mentioned that before), and am loving my new responsibilities SO much. That's not sarcasm, I really do love it. But I am getting the feeling that it's time to leave that office. I've been in the Online Learning department for over 3 years now, and all but 8 months of that in the same place, my beloved Online Support Center. Since I graduate in 2 semesters anyway, I've been looking for potential new jobs. I don't have a reason to leave the OSC that I would talk about on a public blog, but it's just that time, you know? So lots of potential jobs I'm looking at right now, and it's really exciting, but uncomfortable too.

Tom wishes for me to mention that we could be in the market for a new hamster, see the last post.

Ha, good one Tom.

We are so blessed, and oh so happy. La vie a Chez Cook est magnifique!

Visiting Another Cage

When pets of small children die, some parents tell the children that their pet went to another farm, or something like that, in order to avoid delivering the bad but true news that their beloved pet died.

Well, there are no children in this household, but we're still saying that our Mrs. Choice is "visiting another cage". Yes, Mrs. Choice is dead. It was actually pretty awful! I walked into our room after our date night to the temple, and I see our hamster laying in an unusual position. "Choice, are you dead?" I ask joking, because I always say that to our hamster if he's not moving. When I realized he very well could be, I called to Tom "Hun, I think Choice is dead..."

Tom came running in and looked at Choice, then opened the lid and Choice still hadn't moved...then he nudged him with the wooden tunnel he was laying under, and sure enough....rigamortis.

It was kind of a shocking moment. I mean, I can't say I was heart broken, but just really confused! But because we like to be funny, we dramatized the situation. We placed little Choice in my old phone box and kept him there for the night until we could give him a proper burial.

On Sunday, Kenna joined us and we brought Choice up to a potato field past the temple. It was literally freezing and the wind was being typical of itself, so we didn't want to take a long time. Tom used one of our crappy old pots we're giving to D.I. to bury a hole, and laid the casket inside. We stood around the circle and each tried not to laugh as we 'said a few words'. Then we each dramatically threw a handful of dirt on the casket. Then we completely buried it, though I'm not sure how effective that will be once they begin tilling the ground for post-harvest...don't think about it.

We're sad to have lost Choice after such a short time, but we will not be finding a replacement hamster. We have too much on our plates right now to worry about buying another hamster, and would rather save 'second pet' for a puppy or something. One day...when we get out of here.

But we would like to express public sarcastic thanks to those who expressed sarcastic condolences, and dramatically mourned with us.

R.I.P., Mrs. Choice.

Oh yeah, this thing.

Sometimes I just enjoy reading other people's blogs so much that I forget to write on my own! Things around here have been busy and wonderful, and it's hard for me to find those times to step back and record it! I know that recording is super important though, which is one reason I have this blog. So, here's what's been happening at the Cook house!

Two weeks ago, I spoke in church. This past Sunday, it was Tom's turn! He did a wonderful job speaking on how to love God more than we love the world. It's been mulling around in my mind all week, and I am so grateful for Tom's insight and wisdom! As my family would say whenever they hear that word..."HE IS SOOO WISE!"

I was moved to a new position in my same office, and I am now the Training Specialist. This has been interesting thus far, as I haven't quite left my old position but still have to do my new one. It's stressful, and completely impossible to do all the work that needs to be done in the 20 hours a week. So I do a lot of work at home as a "volunteer". I strangely enjoy this though! This position is right up my ally, and I am loving it.


As of late, Tom and I have been making a lot of sweets. Not for ourselves. Usually. One of our favorite things is making whatever baked goods we have available in the house and then giving them away so we can't eat them. Sneaky, right? We've loved meeting new people and catching up with old friends with this new Sunday tradition.

Except for that one week where there was leftover chocolate cake batter from the cupcakes. And anyone who knows me doesn't even need an explanation when they hear the word chocolate cake; they already know. We made our own mini cake and...ate the whole thing together. Whoops. Now maybe you can see why we bake to deliver?

One of the best parts about being up here is having Kenna with us! I love having at least one sister near by :) We enjoy Sunday dinners, devotionals, and occasional other visits from Nursekinz. But last weekend was her 21st birthday! We had SO much fun at the South Fremont Elementary Halloween Carnival we volunteered at, and then we met up with more of Kenna's friends to eat at Gringo's, followed by Score cake and ice cream at our house. I could kick myself for not getting real pictures of real people on the fun night, but here is a picture of the decorations I put up (at least, part of them), and it will represent the evening.

 Since Halloween was yesterday, we had been in prep-mode for a few weeks before. Halloween is not my favorite holiday...I really don't like anything haunted, bloody, or slightly scary. Our first date was to a Haunted Mill, but that was only because I wanted him to hold my hand. So...Halloween is not my thing, but Tom LOVES it. We balance each other out. This year there was no haunted anything, but you can bet that we celebrated!

Naturally, we carved pumpkins. This is a dearly beloved tradition of the Cook's, and it was so great to watch Tom get so excited! We carefully selected a pattern - Bowser! I poked out the holes with a pin, and Tom followed with the knife. We roasted the pumpkin seed - another first for me! But boy they were good!

For our Ward party, we wanted to go dressed up, but didn't have any money to spend on costumes. So what did we do? We went as couch potatoes. We just went in our sweats, with couch cushions tied to our behinds, and it was terribly comfortable. And guess what, we won the costume contest! 

For Halloween itself, we kept it real simple - we got some candy and a loaf of berry Great Harvest bread, and watched Monster  House with Kenna and Skyler. It was a perfect holiday :)

Consider yourself caught up!

Get To Work

Today I picked up a copy of Gordon B. Hinkley's biography from the library. I just love the library, and I love Pres. Hinkley, so it seemed like a can't lose situation.

I am EATING IT UP. I love this man, and I love learning about his heritage. It seems to me that so far a prominent theme of their family legacy is work. I've been thinking about this a lot lately, and have had some questions weighing on my mind about the balance between praying for blessings/help and working on your own to obtain them.

But this quote about Ira Nathaniel Hinkley, one of Pres. Hinkley's predecessors:

"If he prayed for a thing he went to work to get what he prayed for"

I've decided to make this my mantra for a while. We should pray hard, then work hard. Because the ability to do work is a gift from God, as well as any results of that work. The ability to pray is a gift from God. It's all because of Him.

Last night at an FHE with the President of our school (Kim B. Clark), a question was asked about where the line is between good and bad ambition. Pres. Clark said that we need to take care of things at home. Make sure our spiritual lives are in order, our families are in order, and that we're fulfilling our callings. If we have taken care of ourselves and our responsibilities, then the Lord will bless us with opportunities. If He desires that we become what we hope to become, then we will. 

I just loved that. It's so simple - work hard at what you know. Pray hard for guidance and blessings. Be obedient to obtain those blessings. I don't know why it didn't click like this until now, be regardless I guess revelation is revelation. I'm so grateful for Pres. Clark and Ira Hinkley and their examples, and their words. The world is full of incredible people!

I have a really great husband

So I've been married for 2 months and 6 days and 6 hours. And 11 minutes.

And so far, things have been pretty dang great. And I just want to make a list of things that I have learned about Tom these last two months:

- He looks big and strong, and he is. So I guess that is just a little reminder for you, because I've always known that.

- Tom is a very logical person. He works hard to understand things and when he gets it, it NEVER leaves his brain. Ever.

- Tom is simple. He likes things the way they are and is not a fan of change.

- If Tom doesn't get to work out, he gets cranky.

- Tom loves challenges, especially challenges that deal with fitness or nutrition. This is both humiliating and inspiring to me.

- He loves to cook. He is really good at it too, which is super fun for me. He has helped me grow a lot in my cooking confidence.

- If you have a good reason for him to do it, Tom will do most anything. But it needs to be a good reason, and not something stupid.

- He is a really good friend.

- Tom is honest, and sometimes I wish he wasn't quite so honest, but then I usually take that back because honesty is the best policy.

- Tom loves me more than I deserve to be loved.

Every day has been a growing experience for us. We have learned so much about each other and about ourselves, and about our potential. It is so exciting to look to the future and think about going through life together! I love my man so much.

Make that 23 minutes.

"Your Family's Singing!"

One of my favorite things on the list of adorable and innocent things that Tom has said that make me so happy I married him, is "your family's singing!!" The first time he said it, my iPod was taking a turn on the iHome, and it was on shuffle. All of a sudden Highways are Happy Ways came on. I was in the other room and didn't think much about the change, but Tom exclaimed, in complete excitement "YOUR FAMILY'S SINGING!" I came in and looked at his face, his eyes wide. It was adorable.

And now, every time my iPod is taking a turn on the iHome and is on shuffle, I wait intently for when my family begins to sing.

My family has always sung together. I have memories that are very very near and dear to my heart that consist of all 10 of us gathered around to Stephanie playing the piano as we sang "Andersen Songs". I have always been so very proud of my singing family, and so grateful that my parents instilled a deep love of good music in each of us.

Nowadays, we live very far apart from each other. Stephanie is in New Mexico. Kim is in Utah. Lindsay is in Alaska, Cami is in Texas. Jeff is also in Utah. I am in Idaho. Tim is in France. Sarah is the last bird in the nest that currently resides in east Texas. Being away from family is hard, sometimes harder than other times.

But when I listen to my family sing, it's all just a little bit better. I love listening to my sisters singing a song about sisters, or all of singing about how blessed we are, or my Dad singing  a lullaby that each of us were sung to sleep with countless nights. Through those songs, I feel that intense love again. Gosh, I love my family so much.

I'm so grateful for technology. I'm so grateful that we decided to record a CD as a Christmas gift last year because it has turned out to be one of my most treasured items too, not just a nice way to 'pay back' my parents for all the times we refused to practice. I'm so grateful that no matter the distance or the time apart, my family is eternal. That is pretty powerful, if you ask me, and it's even more powerful that music brings all of that right into perspective.

Life Lately

Life at Chez Cook has been busy! And I finally have some pictures for you, as I promised a thousand years ago I would find/take/upload. You're welcome.

2 weekends ago we ran the temple to temple relay with some of our friends! It was a BLAST. We had 8 people on our team to run the 37 miles from the Rexburg temple to the Idaho Falls temple. It was an all day event and we loved it! I've never ran so far in my life, so I was happy to set that PR for myself. As usual, Tom ran the longest leg in the best time. Gosh, to be like him...

At 6:30 am before the race! It was FREEZING.

Along the way, we found this awesome adorable house!

And we took pictures in front of it. These are some of my favorite people. 

L-R: Me, Tom, Kenna, Blaine (cat bladder)

The whole team, except Coty who was running!

All of us after the race at the beautiful Idaho Falls temple. 

It was such a fun day, and we can't wait to do it again in the Spring time!

 I'm not in school right now (I'm off track), but I love our campus so much! I think it's one of the most beautiful campuses I've ever seen. Tom took this beautiful picture of the Taylor building:

Tom and I recently downloaded Snapchat. And it's hilarious. Here are some of the pictures we've sent each other the last couple of weeks:

Friday night was WONDERFUL. We went on a super hot date. As I was waiting for Tom to get home and I was getting ready, I got nervous again to see him! It was fun :) We ate dinner at home, then walked to the local Farmer's Market to walk around for a while. We took our time afterward to wander around our little downtown holding hands and laughing. We stopped at Great Harvest Bread to get a free sample of deliciousness. Then we wandered around the local craft store for a while to see what we could find. Then a trip to Wal-Mart for some super cheap Halloween decorations did the trick, and it was all in all a wonderful night, and one of the best dates I've ever been on. I sure love this guy.

After our date, we had Blaine and Kenna over to make paper mache pumpkins with us! Free and cute, you can't go wrong. We made the pumpkins that night, then Saturday we painted them while we watched Clue on Netflix :)

We love this life of ours. It is simple, but it is beautiful.

Tomorrow will be two months of marriage for us, and I can truly say that every day gets better. Life is still hard, but it sure is a whole lot better with my best friend to stand beside me. I love him. Did I already say that? Oh well, now you're sure.

Moments

If you know me, you know that I am a worrier. Anxiety and I are close. I stress, and I rush, and I sometimes miss out on little things. Then again, I also feel like I'm observant and I try to be sensitive to others and live in the present, even though I struggle a mountain load bit with that.

Lately, I've felt...well I'm not sure what it is. I love having a routine, but sometimes I wish I had the ability to stay at work because the people I help are always different and the dishes and list of things to clean is always always always the same.

And I've been a poop about it! I've complained to Tom and been just so dumb about things.

But every once in a while, there are moments that bring me back. Sweet passing moments that remind how blessed I am and how happy we are and how much I love this life I live.

Like when Tom studies and thinks out loud. Or how he'll tell me all about what he's studying because it's so fascinating to him!

Or when we're cooking or doing dishes and we somehow end up dancing in the kitchen, me standing on his feet.

Or when I come home from work and Tom has written a sweet little message on a sticky note.

And all of these little moments have continually reminded me that "out of small things are great things brought to pass". The small acts of service that we do for each other, the little kisses on the forehead as we pass by, the funny pictures we send to put a smile on the other's face...it all contributes to this great thing called love! Actually, I'd say that's all that it is - an innumerable amount of little things that make you love that person more and more and more...does it ever stop? Gosh...I hope not.

Sick.

I don't like to admit it, but sometimes I'm not very tough. And when it comes to being sick, I am the world's biggest wimp.

Its a good thing I have the ultimate champion husband, who puts up with my complaining, my sniffing, my coughing, and constant stirring while I try to sleep.

This weekend, despite my being sick, we went down to Utah for Conference! We love the excuse to be with family. We came down with Blaine and Kenna, and had a great drive down. Friday night we went to Tom and Blaine's mission reunion!  It was my first time going to a mission reunion, actually it was Tom's too! And even though it was great to see people, and wonderful to see his mission president and his family, we probably won't go to another one. That night we drove down to Provo and stayed with Jeff and Kerri. We had to watch a few Miranda Sings videos before bed...it's just a must.

The next morning we woke up late (YES. I'm loving sleep these days) and had a yummy breakfast thanks to Kerri! Then we went over to Kim and Caleb's and watched General Conference!

Let me just say that I love General Conference so much. It's like New Years, but better. You get to set new goals and gain new perspective and reflect, but you get to hear from God's appointed leaders on the earth today, so it's better. This Conference was better than the last, and I'm pretty sure they do that every year! I loved being with my family on Saturday. Conference is a very nostalgic thing for me, and I was so grateful that I have at least a couple close siblings nearby.

After the second session, we drove up to Salt Lake and picked up Blaine, then came to Lake Point! The boys went to Priesthood session, and us girls hung out at home. We tried to make a trip into Salt Lake to go to Seagull Book, but it was closed! It was fun to be together anyway. That night all of us watched A Beautiful Mind, then went to bed.

Sunday was another round of wonderful conference! I was feeling pretty crappy, so I was really grateful that we could relax. Blaine's parents came up from St. George to see him, so we hung out with them between sessions and then they stayed for the second session.

After conference was over, we ate dinner, packed up the car and headed home. I love visiting family, but I am always so glad to come back to our little apartment :) I was drinking so much water on the way home that we had to stop twice for me to use the bathroom. I think I'm turning into my mother! ;) We got home at about 10:30, and I went straight to bed.

I was coughing allllll night. At one point I just sat up for a while because I knew I wasn't going to sleep anyway! Then I got the bright idea to get some nyquil (duh, Laura!), at about 3:30. It knocked me right out, thank goodness. And then...well I woke up to tell my boss I wasn't coming to work, and fell back asleep. I woke up when Tom walked in the door for lunch. It was 11:15. That is a new record for sure! And since then, I've done nothing but lay on the couch to watch Modern Family and read blogs. I really hate being sick.

But, watch me go, I'll do the dishes! Or at least do something so I feel that I haven't completely wasted the day.

Mon Petit Frere

My little brother Tim is serving his mission in Lyon, France right now. Monday is P-day (which stands for preparation day, where missionaries get to grocery shop, do laundry, and most importantly WRITE HOME in preparation for the coming week), so this morning when the alarm went off the first thing I did was check my email. Sure enough, another great message from Elder Andersen.

I've been thinking about my little brother a lot lately, and how lucky I am to have him as a little brother.

Tim and I have always been really close. Maybe it's because we were in the 'younger kids' club, maybe it's because when I was 4 and he was 2 we got the chicken pox together. Who knows? Whatever it is, Tim has always always always been there for me.

He's gotten me through a lot of hard times, and has always been there to encourage and support me in whatever it is I'm doing with my life. So when my heart was ready and I found the man better than my dreams, it was only a sealed deal after Tim met Tom.

I remember it very well. Tom and I had just driven to Spring City from the Holli Krishna festival in American Fork, so we were covered in colored dust. We must have looked quite a fright. But Tim was the first one to grab not just me but Tom in a big ol' hug. It made my heart swell to see my two favorite boys meeting for the first time in person.

The next day they went on a run together. Both of those boys love to run...good for them ;) Later that day, Tim pulled me aside and said "You need to marry Tom". So I did :)

Tim is a good man. In one word, that's what I would call him: good. And I mean that in the purest sense of the word. He is honest, he works hard, he is humble, and he does everything to the best of his ability. I have been so blessed by his example and his life. It makes me so happy to see him on a mission, doing what he has been preparing for his whole life, and in a place that is so dear to our family! (Tim was born in France while my family lived there)

I am so proud of you, mon petit frere. Tu me manque beaucoup, et je t'aime.

Perspective

I intended to blog today about our Temple to Temple relay yesterday. Then I wanted to blog about the State Fair we went to way back when we were still in Utah. Then after a few great discussions and short videos and other articles, I wanted to rant about cell phones, about milk, about the terrorists, about government, about exercise, about silly women, about the wonderful Relief Society broadcast last night, and a lot of other things.

But you know what? I don't think it's worth it to vent on the public internet.

What it comes down to is that we knew that things would get 'sticky' in the last days. I probably knew that way more in the pre-existence than I understand it now, because I really don't get it. And yet, I still made the choice to come down to this earth life and follow the teachings of my Savior Jesus Christ.

What it comes down to is that Tom and I will continue to follow the prophet and do what the Lord directs us to do. The rest of it...it's not going to matter. One day all of this will be gone. What a wonderful thing!

What it comes down to is that life, when it comes down to it, is simple. I love Tom. That's pretty simple. Because of our commitment to each other and to our Heavenly Father, we will live the best way we know how. If I can keep this perspective, I think that I'll be a little less shocked when we get to heaven and there is no dispute and contention over what type of milk to use, no confusion over what our eternal roles as women and men are, and no wicked people to terrorize the world.

That will be a pretty glorious day, and I want to feel comfortable there. Maybe remembering that perspective now will help.

Life Lately

I never really feel like we have anything largely significant to post, but I love it when others post and I can just hear what's going on, no matter how boring it is! So I decided to do the same thing for us.

House improvements are pretty much done! We only have one nasty little set of blinds to put up. After one minor setback that I'll blog about later, I feel like we're pretty settled. Of course time will help us really break in this place, but we love it. It's home.
Its amazing what some paint and new blinds can do for a home. And for the spirit of our home! Cleanliness really is next to godliness, we've learned.
Here's a picture of our picture collage! We need to fill that bottom right blank space, and replace a couple pictures, but I really love having our wedding pictures up :)

Tom has been working really hard in school. We're trying to get our schedule down, and we're discovering that usually we get to eat lunch together, which is so nice, and that dinner together is at 7 pm at the earliest. Usually around 8 or 9, realistically. I have work early in the mornings, so I'm pooped by the time dinner rolls around. Recently, it's been a really good day if we can get in bed and read scriptures together. But we love being busy! It makes us feel good and productive.

I'm desperately looking for a second job. I'll take toilet cleaning, if it was available. I've put in so many applications I have all my previous work experience information memorized. Pretty much. Prayers that I can find something would be SO appreciated. Then again, if I'm not supposed to have a second job, we will be okay.

Tonight Tom is taking a test, and I have swimming try outs! I'm not sure if it's a good idea for a lot of reasons...I haven't been on a team in forever, let alone swam competitively. I know some people take it pretty seriously. Okay fine, I only know of one girl who's taking it really seriously, but still. Also, it's getting really cold. I have fond memories of coming out of swim practice with wet hair and it freezing a little bit. But trust me, those memories didn't become fond for a while!

Oh, and it's official, we are Idahoans. I changed my major to reflect what it's been for the past few semesters and I'm coming to grips with being a University Studies major. I know, it's nothing to be ashamed of, getting any degree is awesome! But sometimes I hear about these people getting awesome degrees and I wonder if I'm cheating myself. But I feel good about this, as I always have, so despite my pride, it's happening! I'll be done with formal education in July, if all goes as planned. However, we won't be leaving until maybe 18 months after that.

But we've decided that's okay! We love Idaho, we really do. Even though I cringe a little bit at the thought of a Rexburg baby, I know that life is as good as you make it, or let it be. And we're going to soak it all in.

Basically, our lives are simple but full of joy. I love every second I get to be with my husband. I still struggle to remember my last name when I'm signing papers, I still get really excited when someone says "your husband", and my second favorite part of the day is when he walks through the door. My first favorite part is when I'm leaving for work and he's only half awake and he tells me to have a good day and be safe and bundle up. But that's enough mush. I guess I'm just trying to say that it's all true, what they say about married life. It's all true, the blessings you hear about in the scriptures that come to those who are doing what they should. We can always improve, but I can see how we're prospering in this land and finding true joy as we make Christ the center of our home. Through Him, we can and are doing difficult things that will make us into the people He designed us to be. And it just doesn't get much better than that :)

City Livin

It would be a terrible lie to say that Tom and I are city people.

Because, well, we're just not. He grew up in a small town with no sidewalks, and in all my moving around we usually tended towards suburbia.

So when we were looking for an apartment, and this cute little place fell into our lap, we were just excited to have a place that was cheap and would let us make improvements. Plus the location is killer.

When we went to visit the place, we left talking about the windows. We don't have real windows, you see, but the 3 windows in our house lead to a breezeway. The windows look like old apartment in down town New York windows, and that's not a joke!

But recently when people ask us where we live, we smile and say "downtown". Mostly because everyone would know the whole one street we're talking about if we say that. This may not be Detroit, but I love our home and it's city feel.

It's taken some getting used to, but I love the hum of the light in our kitchen. I don't get bothered (very much) anymore by the conversations we hear and things our neighbors do, because we can hear all. Very powerful of us, no? We love our windows, especially with the new blinds on them. And we even love hearing the occasional siren, because it justifies our belief that we live downtown.

Cause we do.

Fond and Un-fond

Things I'm un-fond of right now:

- I finished painting today. I mean that for reals this time. So now our furniture is pulled away from the walls and it makes everything look that much messier.

- Tom's homework and studying has, by demand, kicked in full force. Goodbye, husband time.

- Every time I go in to do the in store part of my application at Walgreens, the store net is down. Talk about frustrating.

Things I'm fond of right now:

- Despite the mess, I am really loving our dingy little apartment. I know one day we'll look back and miss it, so I'm trying to soak it in while I can.

- My husband is amazing. He works so hard, and does so well at school, and he makes sure that we eat lunch together and get some time during the day to talk and be together. I am SO grateful for that.

- The other day Tom taught me how do use the free weights a little bit. Squats and dead lifts hurt, in case any of you were wondering. But a good kind of hurt...you know? Since running isn't so much of an option these days, I'm enjoying finding other ways to work out hard.

- Yesterday when I was grocery shopping, I thought about how good I had been doing on not spending frivilously. Well, then I bought a bag of coconut so I could make a healthy treat, and I bought a baguette cause it just smelled so good and warm, and I bought a bag of Utah peaches. I don't need a reason for that last one. Good thing they're all yummy and not toooo expensive ;)

- We have plans to play Wallyball tonight, and I think we're all just itching to get back, we haven't played in forever! It should be really fun.

Happy Weekend!

Opportunities

Lately, Tom and I have been talking a lot about the things life throws at you, and what different people do with them. We figure that lots of people struggle with the same things each of us do, but isn't it interesting how we take that same thing and turn it into a whole different life? Different reactions, different opinions...it's all very confusing sometimes.

How are we supposed to know who's right? Is there a black and white to every issue? Or is it all just one big gray blob?

Well today we were having one of those conversations as we sat on the bed, surrounded by our dressers pushed up against the bed so we can paint the walls. Even in that messy room, I felt the spirit as we talked. Still deep in thought, we went to devotional, and heard the words of our school's president and his wife: Kim B. and Sue Clark. The message could not have been more clearly directed to Tom and I. Never in my life have I experienced something like that, where I really thought that they must have tapped wires into our apartment and heard our conversation.

And I came away from it all having learned a lot, but gaining the insight that I, or Tom and I, need to take advantage of as many good opportunities as we can, as we feel guided by the Lord to do. Everyone is different, we all have different plans and ways of learning.

We don't know where we'll be in two years (that is, once we leave Rexburg in two years...), or what we'll be doing. We don't know what our family will look like. We don't know what experiences we will have had, the friends we will have made, or the things we will have learned. Sometimes that scares me.

But I'm always reminded in very quiet ways, sometimes just a moment when I wake up in the middle of the night, or as I'm tiptoeing around the house early in the morning, or as I sit here waiting for Tom to get home: He knows. I don't need to know, because our Heavenly Father does. YOLO doesn't mean do dumb things and try everything! It means, with the gospel perspective, to "lay hold of every good thing". Things that truly uplift and inspire and enrich. And if there are too many of those to handle, pray about which ones to do. But you can't just sit there waiting for the Lord to tell you where to go! He will steer your course as you move. You've got to be moving, acting, stepping into the dark.

What does this mean for us? Well, Tom is changing one of his clusters in school. I'm applying for jobs that I will need to humble myself greatly for. We're learning how to take life one day at a time. I'm applying to be a volunteer swim coach! We're making commitments to each other and to the Lord. We're making and sticking to a budget. Most importantly, we're putting God first in our lives, followed very closely by each other. You can't go wrong when you do it that way - thank goodness!

What are your thoughts on taking opportunities, and handling the temptations, trials, and stresses that life gives to us? I'd love to hear your thoughts and insights!

The Great Return

Last Friday, we woke up early.

Then we hit snooze.

Then I got up and Tom slept for another hour.

We packed up the last few little stray items into the truck we were borrowing from a good friend, said a prayer, and began our journey. 4 hours later, we made it back to our beloved Rexburg!

The place was crawling with new students, their parents, and all 5 of their siblings.

With the help of a very friendly neighbor, we unloaded all of our stuff very quickly. Eventually we removed all of Tom's sister's stuff from the house, and picked up our bed. Home sweet home!

Tom lived in this apartment for half of the semester in the Spring, so we spent time over here, but since we wanted to be obedient, we sat in the hallway together, and every once in a while one of us would trade potty time, etc. Oh it was so nice to finally be in there together - the place we had been dreaming of how to fix up, paint, decorate, it was finally ours!

Well that excitement wore off as we unpacked our boxes and bins and found ourselves in a landfill. Almost literally. There was so much stuff that we couldn't see the floor for 2 days. I'm pretty sure I almost had a meltdown every half hour because where the heck are we going to fit all of these absolutely necessary things? We took necessary breaks to use up some of our wedding money/gift cards, work out, and go to the temple, all of which were very helpful.

But guess what? We did it. You can see the whole floor, and there's only one pile of crap in the corner now. I wish you knew how awesome that is - maybe you'd give me a standing ovation or something.

This weekend was stressful and change is hard but I can't even tell you how nice it is to be here. Together. In our home. Making meals, cleaning, and relaxing together. Oh, and Mrs. Choice is here too, but we're fairly sure that he hates Idaho. That's fine.

I often find myself looking for the pause button. Is this my life? Did I really get him? Are those our photos on the wall? Did they just call us the Cook's? Those sorts of moments get me every time. Married life really is the best. But you know what? I'm not afraid to admit that it's hard too sometimes. Everyone I talk to who's newly married talks about how wonderful it is, and I totally agree! But I have to laugh, because I know that they're all going through their things too. And maybe that's what makes married life so wonderful! That it's so dang hard sometimes (yes, I know this in my glory and wisdom from one month of married-dome.), but you love them so much more every day! No matter how gloomy things look, you have each other. At the end of the day, no matter what happened that morning, you get to kneel and pray together, which seems to just melt away all the extra crap life tars you with. Then you get to go to bed together! Oh my heck, I swear that's never going to get old! I love doing everything and anything with my man.

Basically, life is still life, but it's on a whole new level of awesomeness! I couldn't have imagined anything like this. Somebody pinch me! On second thought, don't.

I'm Resigning From Adulthood

I'm sure that everyone will know what I'm talking about when I say that Tom and I are experiencing growing pains. That sounds bad, so let me clarify. Tom and I are not physically experiencing growing pains, and things between us continue to get more magical every day. We're fine. But I mean growing up, becoming adults, making big decisions...it hurts!

The other day as we were at my sister's house, we looked at Tom's graduation plan, and found out that we will be in Rexburg for quite a bit longer than we had anticipated. Not that that's the worst thing in the world, but to us it's not the best thing either. Then we looked at grad schools and BOY HOWDY. Talk about pricy. And far away. And so many choices. How the heck are we supposed to decide? We would be out-of-state tuition payers for pretty much all the school's we're looking at, and we'd like to move there and gain residency by working and living in whatever state we decide on before we start school, but that could be a long time. That could be really slim pickings financially speaking since we don't want to completely bury ourselves in debt with student loans.

Through all of this, I'm just kicking myself for not pursuing a more specified degree, one that I could get a really nice job with. But I didn't really feel good about anything I tried before. Was it just me being lazy? Should I change my major AGAIN since we'll be there in Rexburg long enough for me to do a different degree anyway? Or should I just finish my University Studies degree, then get certified as an RD (Registered Dietitian, super cool!) and work? What if we have kids by then? How will we balance all of that?

There are a thousand, no, an innumerable amount of questions we could ask and would like to know. For a few days as we researched, the future looked exciting! Now that I'm looking at details, it just looks scary. Why didn't anyone tell me it would be like this? I take that back, you all definitely did tell me this. Why didn't I listen?

Despite all my fears, I can't deny what I know: everything will be okay. We will be guided to the right place. We'll be able to make it through undergrad school, and we will be okay financially as long as we pay our tithing, and give our all to the Lord. I know that. And I'm so grateful for that, to know that He will carry us, whether we have a lot of money, no money, 3 kids or none, a nice home or our tiny apartment. God is no respecter of persons - He loves us all equally, and as Tom and I live the way we know to be right, He will provide for us just as much as anyone else. I know that, and I have to trust that.

"The future is as bright as your faith"

- Thomas S. Monson

Good Friends

This weekend, we went to Provo to spend time with my family. Not only did we hang out with them and have a blast, but we also got to see some other really great people. Unfortunately we didn't have time to see everyone we would have liked to, but I know we'll be back soon and make it happen then. Just too much fun to have in one weekend!

After we left my sister's house, we stopped by an apartment of Tom's really close guy friends, all from his high school. I've gotten to know these boys a little bit over the past few months, but last night just confirmed to me how lucky we are to have such good friends. We stayed there talking for over an hour, and I wouldn't have believed it if you told me cause time just flew by! We were so busy sharing stories about badgers, rampaging buffalo, and injured birds (we talked about other things too, just so you know), that we didn't even think to look at the clock.

I love those kinds of friends. I'm so grateful for the good friends Tom has that are now my friends too - that's another perk to getting married! I hope that our kids have good friends like that. Friends play such a huge part in our lives! I truly believe that they are gifts from God, and I'm so grateful for the good friends in mine and Tom's lives.

(Unfortunately, we are both thoroughly absent minded when it comes to remembering to take pictures. So, this is just a wordy post without any pictures, which is really sad since it may be the last time we see Tom's best friend for a long while! We'll do better next time!)

All things rugged

My husband works for the Tooele Valley Mosquito Abatement District. I had no idea what this meant until I met him, so I explain it by saying he rides around on a 4 wheeler looking for mosquito babies, and then he sprays pesticide and they die. He always comes home covered in dirt and thoroughly coated in the smell of pesticide. And I love it!

The funnest part about his job is when I get to go out with him. I don't spray or do anything because that's super illegal, but I love being in the truck with him as we ride around Tooele valley, and then riding on the 4 wheelers is another favorite part. Now that he works by himself, he gets lonely, so I've been going out with him for a half a day pretty much every day. It's the best!

On Friday, Tom and I went out to the area we sprayed when I first went out to work with him, it was on his birthday. We weren't even engaged yet! Just little kids we were! It was a gorgeous morning, my husband was looking dapper in his gym shorts and knee high rubber boots, and it was so nice to just ride around out there in the sun. It was perfect. And I officially love going to work with Tom.

See what I mean, all that dapper-ness? Irresistible, I tell you.

I think this view is just beautiful!

On the 4 wheeler with my main squeeze :)

It's crazy to me that our time in Lake Point is coming to an end! I am so so so excited to get into our apartment, and start my job again - is it ridiculous that I miss my work? So be it, cause I do. It has been so nice to be here with family, and we are so grateful for the love and help we've received. We are so blessed!

All About Us

Now that this blog is public, people might read this who don't know our story. And I do love this story, so I thought I'd introduce us to you. You're welcome ;)

September 16th, 2012.
It was the first day of church in the new semester. I had just moved in to an apartment of fabulous girls who were immediately my best friends. I was single, and had no interest in getting serious. In fact, I had serious plans to serve a mission for my church. Then this really cute guy walked in all by himself. That makes it SO much easier to get to know them, and find a seat near you. Just a tip for all you single men out there! ;) But, my roommate gave me the look and I knew she was interested. I didn't want to play her game, so I let it go. The cute boy sat with us in Sunday School and Sacrament meeting, and even came over to our apartment later to watch a fireside.
In fact, he came over several times in the next few weeks, and sat with us at church every week. But he wasn't asking out my roommate, or anyone of my roommates...
After General Conference, 3 of my roommates decided to serve missions (due to the wonderful change in age requirement for girls!), and I thought it was great since I was already planning on it too. But something didn't feel right. As I prepared to go, I felt...heavy. Like it wasn't right. I was frustrated, but after weeks of spiritually throwing a tantrum, I gave up and told the Lord that whatever He had in store for me would be great, and I would love it.
Around this time, that cute boy and I started seeing each other every day. We watched a lot of dumb youtube videos and played some really fun games, cooked together, and just had a lot of fun no matter what we were doing! I realized that I really liked this boy. His name is Tom, Tommy Ray. And in fact, I liked him very much.


October 19th, 2012
After what seemed like an ETERNITY, he finally asked me out! We planned a double date with his best friend Ian, who we set up with my awesome cousin Claire! The date? The Haunted Mill. I am TERRIFIED of all things haunted or potentially haunt-able. I'm a whoosie, basically. But I braved the mill, all in the name of love ;) Tom wouldn't hold my hand or anything, which was annoying but surprisingly attractive. Maybe it was because I accidentally elbowed him in the nose. We'll just let that one go.
We continued to see each other every day, and go on unofficial dates, and official ones too. I was falling fast for this kind and strong man that I saw so much good in. We had such great conversations, and we were always laughing when we were together. It was an amazing time, but also frustrating because I wanted more! I could feel how right it was, or at least I told myself that. I couldn't help myself, he's got charisma (name that movie!)

January 2, 2013
I spent Christmas at home in Texas with my family, and it was a hard time for us. We weren't officially dating, and it was just kind of an awkward limbo phase. When I got back to Utah, I spent New Year's with his family and fell in love with all of them. I almost cried when I got on the shuttle to take me back to Rexburg, because Tom wouldn't be coming back until the Spring. I had no idea what would happen. When I got home, we were on the phone, and somehow started talking about our relationship and what we were. It was very simple when we decided "it looks like a duck, it quacks like a duck..."...and thus we became boyfriend and girlfriend. Officially.
We spent the next semester long distance dating, Face Timing as often as possible, having long distance movie nights, and visiting whenever we could.

January 26, 2013
On a weekend visit, Tom finally held my hand. Yes, I floated away. I hadn't ever had to wait so long for something so good, and it just proved to me that even if waiting for things to develop was hard, Tom was worth it!

February 10, 2013
I was down in Utah for a weekend visit, and as Tom drove me back to the airport to be picked up by my ride, we talked about us. I'll leave out the gushy stuff and cut to the chase - he dropped the L bomb. As if things couldn't get better, when we were pulling away from one of a thousand goodbye hugs, he kissed me! I think it surprised him as much as it surprised me. It was the most perfect little awkward first kiss in the history of the world, and if I thought I knew Cloud 9 before, I discovered Cloud 11 in that moment.
Tom came up to surprise me for my 21st birthday, which made me SO stinkin' happy. That was the only present I wanted, and how blessed am I, I got it!

March 30, 2013
I came down to Utah, and we went to the Holli Krishna festival. Then Tom met my parents, and more of my siblings. They all loved him, so that sealed the deal for me! We dropped Tim off at the MTC on April 3rd, celebrated Tom's birthday on April 4th, attended General Conference on the 5th and 6th, and I reluctantly went back to Rexburg that night.

April 10, 2013
We leave for our first road trip alone together, and headed to Oakland/San Francisco, CA. Time in the car is a make or break kind of activity, and it was a good thing for us!

April 12, 2013
On the terrace of the Oakland temple, my best friend read 99 things he loves about me, then asked me to read #100. At the end of his sweet message, I read "With that said, I have one question to ask you...", and then he was down on one knee, asking me to be his forever.
The rest of the day was one of the most glorious days I've ever had. We did baptisms in the Oakland temple, then called our family, then ran around San Francisco holding hands and kissing and not even caring where we went or what we did.

We returned to Rexburg, completed a wonderful Spring semester that was full of ups and downs. We took engagements, made all kinds of wedding plans, probably spent more weekends in Utah than we did in our own town, found an apartment, saw all kinds of miracles.

When the semester ended I went to Texas for a while to be at home. After a few days apart, Tom joined me. I went through the Houston Temple on August 3rd, 2013, which was another day I hope to never forget. Tom enjoyed his first trip to Texas, all except for the humidity ;)

Then on August 14th, 2013....well, you get it.

And that is how we became us.