Our Recent Adventures

First of all, Happy Memorial Day! This is a Veteran's Memorial at Smith Park that they dedicated recently. We heard Sam's brother Ben's name is supposed to be put up on it, so we check it occasionally... Not there yet!

Isn't this such a beautiful picture? Sam is in a visual media class, so we've been out taking a few pictures for his classes. I love it!

It was such a beautiful day yesterday! Kinda windy though. And it's funny that it's still sweatshirt weather at the end of May.

Isn't this picture great? The flowers are gorgeous, and the sky looks so blue!

Yesterday morning Sam's brother Adam, his wife Marci and their kids Joseph and Isaac came over for breakfast. I can't believe how big Isaac's getting!

Sam picked out the pictures to put up, and he thought this one was funny... This is me in the Taylor building on campus. I'm picking up a piece of cheese that had fallen out of my sandwich. Oops!

This is last Sunday. After church we went for a drive to look for this ghost town a few miles away. I didn't want to wear my church shoes in the dirt, so I brought some tennis shoes... and I didn't think about the Christmas socks! And the sweatshirt? It was cold, ok?

This is from last Saturday, when we went for a drive and took some more pictures for Sam's class. It's so beautiful out there!

Here's another one from Saturday. You can't really tell, but the trees are all frosted with snow.

Ok, so I picked this one. :)

Look how hard it was snowing! Crazy, huh?

The clouds looked cool here. It's just before it started snowing.

And this is one of the pictures Sam took for his project. The place we drove out to just had miles and miles of these fields. It was such a great day for a little adventure!

Grateful

Last night Sam worked from 2:30-9, so I was home alone during that time. I was writing the last of the "thank you" notes from our wedding so it was pretty quiet in our apartment except for some soft music I had on.

All of a sudden I heard arguing in the apartment above us. The husband and wife were bickering, and quite loudly. The yelling progressed into stomping, slamming doors, and crying. It was horrible. And it lasted for 45 minutes or so. I'm glad I couldn't understand what they were saying. I'm also glad I don't know who lives up there.

But it got me to thinking: I'm extremely grateful that doesn't happen in our apartment. Sam and I don't argue. We don't fight. In fact, I don't remember a single time Sam has said anything unkind to me. Or in an unkind way.

I'm also grateful that I could grow up in a home where I learned this principle by example. I hardly ever remember my parents arguing. (Most of the arguing came from us kids! Sorry Mom!)

I'm so grateful that I married a man that recently said to me, "If I got angry it would just hurt you. And that's not worth it."

I can't believe how blessed I am. I am so grateful.



****** Funny quote: Sam and I went running this morning, and as we ran by Porter Park he said, "I love grass. I love running in grass, I love playing football in grass... Maybe I should have been a goat so I could eat grass." ******

Our Apartment

Since most of you haven't seen our apartment, we thought we'd post some pictures for you.

Here's the counter top that the last tenants painted black...

This is our pantry. Full of the essentials, of course!!

This is our table - a folding table from Wal-Mart that we got with gift cards. Gotta love gift cards! And the flowers are from last night - they were on the table when I came home from work.

This is a bookcase that we also got with gift cards. Everything on top of the shelf and on the wall is wedding gifts.

Here's the couch Adam and Marci let us use while they are in Montana.

And this is our bedroom. Thanks for the quilt, Grandma T!!

This is a wonderful closet expander thingie we got from Sam's Club.... With gift cards. The apartment doesn't have a closet, so we had to put our clothes somewhere.

Here's yet another shelf we bought with gift cards. We put lots of random things on it - food storage, games, kitchen stuff that won't fit in the cupboards, etc.

This is the little closet behind the bathroom door. As you can see, it's next to the shower.

And this is the rest of the bathroom.

We both really like the apartment we're in. It's the perfect size for the two of us. The only thing we don't like so much is the huge, glossy, red wall. We might get around to painting it... sometime. We love our neighbors and ward, and as of now we're planning of staying here for quite a while.

Tender Mercy

Monday was one of those days you dread , one of those days of reckoning were an assignment is finally due and you realize that all the work you had previously done didn't add up to much of anything. As I sprinted home in frustration from all the stress of the day , to grab my forgotten text book, thoughts of doubt and discouragement raced through my mind as to whether I'd be able to meet the requirements of the day and than the side walk chalk I passed stopped me in my tracks, and caused me to slow down and take a moment to think. I read the phrase "Don't worry be happy!"
Though it was simply someone's creative activity of the day left behind on the sidewalk it became to me what Elder Bednar mentioned when he talked about Tender Mercies. "The Lord’s tender mercies are the very personal and individualized blessings, strength, protection, assurances, guidance, loving-kindnesses, consolation, support, and spiritual gifts which we receive from and because of and through the Lord Jesus Christ. Truly, the Lord suits “his mercies according to the conditions of the children of men” (D&C 46:15)." Don't worry be Happy! just a phrase written on a side walk or maybe a sent message, you choose but that was the turning point in my day.

Don't worry be happy!!

Elder Bednar continued "Some individuals who hear or read this message erroneously may discount or dismiss in their personal lives the availability of the tender mercies of the Lord, believing that “I certainly am not one who has been or ever will be chosen.” We may falsely think that such blessings and gifts are reserved for other people who appear to be more righteous or who serve in visible Church callings. I testify that the tender mercies of the Lord are available to all of us and that the Redeemer of Israel is eager to bestow such gifts upon us.To be or to become chosen is not an exclusive status conferred upon us. Rather, you and I ultimately determine if we are chosen."

Things We Learned: Week 1

We've been married a little over a month now, and we thought we'd share a few random things we've learned with you:

1. The prayers of faithful blog followers can change the weather forecast. (Rain was predicted for both receptions, but we ended up having perfect weather for each)
2. You really can fit all your wedding presents in the back seat of a 4-door sedan.
3. Though you can drive right over a pigeon without any damage to bird or car by strategic positioning of the wheels, the best option for a 4x4 foot tumbleweed???
• Driver: grip steering wheel tightly, hit the gas and hope for the best.
• Passenger: put hands straight out in front of you as if trying to stop it with the force.
4. Remember to strategically place gifts in the car and DON'T open the back doors. (Sam's Macbook fell out - the first true test of our marriage. Don't worry, he was very forgiving.)
5. When examining seashells, don't stand too close to the water. And make sure your phone is securely in your pocket before trying to escape a second wave.
6. Denny's bacon is better than the sausage. And you gotta hate good waitresses... cause then you have to tip them.
7. The Hollywood sign is smaller than it looks on T.V.
8. All seafood tastes better when fried.
9. Fruit stands are better than gas stations for snacks... in CA they give out free samples - even when you abuse the privilege.
10. The destination is more enjoyable when you take the time to enjoy the journey.

Our First Post

As many of you know my mom has been quite the devoted blogger for over a year now, so it was only a matter of time before I started a blog of my very own. Since Sam and I were recently married, we decided now would be a good time to start keeping track of our new life together. Here's to our first post!