Summertime!

Summer is going by way too fast! It makes my heart sad because I love summer so much. Summertime in Billings is beautiful and HOT. Although I AM an Arizona girl, I'm a White Mountain Arizona girl, so the heat and me are not well acquainted. And Jordan is from Wyoming.....Needless to say we are not cut out for the heat. We've resorted to sleeping on a blow-up mattress in our living room because that is where our air conditioner is located in our lovely little apartment. You do what you gotta do. Other than that we have no complaints. Life is good and we are adjusting well to our new place. 

 We got to babysit T-man the other night, and he was tuckered out. He came right over to Jordan, snuggled up and went to sleep. It was precious.

In June I was able to go home for a little while and visit my mom and sisters. It was a blast! I love going home and being able to hang out with these two cuties makes it even better. Seriously, they are so awesome. Carson is such a little pill and quite the tease. He cracks me up. I asked him if he wanted to come stay with me in Billings and he said yes, so come on Heather, send him on up!!! (you're welcome too, of course) Cozi-bug kept telling me I am her favorite and she wished she could come live with me. I would have gladly taken her, but I was afraid Jake and Heidi would miss waking up with her bright and early! :)

Cousinly love. 

She doesn't look too thrilled with me here, but normally she was telling me how I'm her favorite person in the world. 

The 4th of July was super fun. I was sad not being in good ol' Eagar, because if there is one time to be in Eagar it is for the 4th. That town knows how to wish America a "Happy Birthday". So, even though I was sad to not be home, we had fun here. We went with Leith, Britt, and T-man to Red Lodge where they have a big parade. It was a pretty cool parade, but T thought it was the best thing in the world. Leith and Brittany have to buy him a horse now because he would get so excited when one came by in the parade. Which was like every 10 seconds. It was adorable. I could just kiss his little cheeks right off.

I made a birthday cake for America. We thought about singing and lighting candles, but we just ate it instead. 

Billings, MT

Well, we made it safe and sound to Billings! Moving is the worst thing in the entire universe. I will never do it again. Actually, that is a lie. We will have to do it again in just one short week. Unfortunately we were not able to find a place to live that was available when we needed it. So, we have been living in a hotel for the past week and a half, and still have one more week to go.

It's awesome.

Not really.

At first I wasn't completely upset by the idea, but it gets old fast. I tried pretending that I was some famous movie star, but that only lasted for about a day. Luckily Jordan's company has been really good to us and  put us up in a suite. It has a small mini kitchen, so cooking isn't totally impossible, but I still feel really limited. It is nice having a 24 hour fitness center to be used at my disposal, but that's really about the only perk. All of our stuff is sitting in Leith and Brittany's garage right now and I just want to get into our new place and start unpacking and decorating and just be able to hang out amidst all my own stuff!

Other than that, we have really loved Billings. It is just the right size for us, and it is really beautiful here. The weather is SO much more mild than Laramie, and not to mention there is a pretty handsome little man that lives right down the street from us. We missed having Teagan around and now we get to see him all the time again! He's so fun to hang out with and has made the move A LOT more bearable. Leith and Brittany have been pretty handy too. :) All in all, I think we would both give Billings a big thumbs up!

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

This past month has been pretty insane for us. When Jordan and I got married, I dropped out of school right before starting the dietetics program at Utah State. It was really hard for me, because I had known from day 1 of applying that was the program I wanted to do and what I wanted to be when I "grew up". Obviously, Jordan is worth more to me than any degree ever could be, but it was still hard.

At the beginning of April I went to Logan to interview for a position back into the dietetics program. I had to reapply even though I had already been accepted once. It was kind of a shot in the dark, and also pretty amazing that I was even able to interview because I had submitted my application late. At first it felt like everything was falling into place and that I would be able to go back to school. At the same time, Jordan had an opportunity to interview at an awesome company in Billings, Montana. We figured he might as well interview. What would it hurt, right?

Well, it turns out that I got back into the program and he also got offered the job in Billings. We had about 10 days to decide what we wanted to do. It was SO HARD! I can barely decide what shoes I want to wear in the morning, so being faced with something like this was really lame and stressful. Jordan was so great and was totally willing to give up his amazing job in Billings so that I could go back to school, but after a lot of discussions and even more praying, we both knew that Billings was where we needed to be. I still can't believe that I am going to live in Montana. Who lives in Montana?? I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that I would live there, but it's a new adventure for both of us and we are pretty dang excited! One thing that makes moving there A LOT easier is knowing that Leith, Brittany and Teagan are there. What would we do without them?? I don't even want to think about it.....

So, we have about two and a half more weeks in good ol' wyoming, and then it's off on another adventure. We're really nervous, but mostly excited.

A Smorgasborg Post

 Life has been ultra crazy lately. But in a good way.

Conference weekend was great. It's definitely one of my favorite weekends of the year. We spent time with great friends, delicious food, and wonderful talks. It's amazing how I feel like they are speaking directly to me. It's also amazing how every other person who listens feels the exact same way. The church must be true! :)

I made another quick trip to Utah. Hopefully some good news will come from my quick visit, but the jury is still out on that one. Either way it was awesome to see old friends and hang out with two of the cutest boys in Logan. I just really love Logan. It might be one of my most favorite places in the entire world.

The Easter bunny did not disappoint this year. I didn't get home from Utah until later that day, and he had hidden eggs all over the apartment for me, and filled a basket with all sorts of goodies. He's pretty smart, for a bunny. 

I also got my passport in the mail!!! I couldn't take a picture of the inside because I didn't know that you could smile for a passport picture, so I kind of look like a serial killer. They still gave me one though, so it must not have been too bad of a picture. I can't wait to put some stamps in this bad boy. Hopefully sooner rather than later!

And we got these bad boys on the same day. Talk about a good day. Two months ago Jordan told me he got hit up by some girl scouts that he couldn't refuse. We waited and waited and endured all the facebook updates about everyone eating their cookies and never got ours. I was afraid the little girls had been pulling Jordan's leg, but luckily they were honest troop members. The first day we got them we ate the whole box had a few and put them away to save as a special treat. Obviously we have mega self control! ;)

And that about sums up our lives. Passports and girl scout cookies... doesn't get much better than that!

YW Broadcast

Last weekend we officially became the coolest leaders ever by taking our girls on a trip to Salt Lake to attend the YW broadcast. Ok, so maybe that doens't make us that cool, but I like to humor myself that it does. This trip was pretty stressful. Our stake president wasn't able to get us tickets, and once the news was out that we didn't have tickets everyone started to doubt whether we should just cancel. Unfortunately, I was one of those people who doubted. Luckily Liana stayed strong and encouraged us to just do it.

 It was an awesome trip. We toured temple square, saw the Joseph Smith Movie, were given free ice cream, and just had a fun time together. We tried to convince ourselves that it would be ok if we didn't get into the conference center by using the stand-by line, but honestly, I would have been pretty bummed about it. I've had the opportunity of going to conference a couple of times and there is just something about being there and I really wanted the girls to be able to feel that. After we had gone to our hotel to change into our church clothes, we got seperated trying to get to the conference center. We were directed to the tabernacle with the rest of the stand-by people, and as we were walking there we saw Liana and she yelled out "I HAVE TICKETS!!". It was so awesome. Some random stranger came up to her and asked her how many she needed. We raced over to the conference center and got in line. Then we were interviewed for the Desert News and Church News. They took our picture and everything. We're basically superstars now.

It was a fantastic trip. And the broadcast was great. I felt like every single talk was just for me. Some of the girls were a little less enthused about the trip, but I had a blast. I guess that's what happens when you are dealing with teenagers. :) I really hope I was more appreciative of my leaders when I was in Young Womens because it's A LOT of work. But we love these crazy girls and I wouldn't change callings if I had the chance!

Man's Best Friend?

Ever since I was little I haven't really liked dogs. There have probably been two dogs in my entire life that I can actually remember loving. The first was my Uncle Clay's dog, Tuffy, and the second was Muffin. I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that these are the only two dogs that I've ever been around for a long period of time. Both were wonderful golden retrievers who were the nicest dogs in the universe. Other than those two, I haven't ever really found another dog that didn't gross me out/scare me. 

It all stems from a traumatic experience when I was five and my sister and I were riding our horse in our own yard, not harming a fly, when our neighbors mean, evil rottweiler's came over and scared our horse. The horse bolted to the barn and my sister and I were thrown off. Heather broke her shoulder, and I had a massive headache. Ya, Heather is pretty much my favorite friend becasue she risked life and limb to save me. I'm pretty sure I had a concussion, but no one believes me when I say that.

As if that wasn't enough, these same dogs decided they would like to torture me throughout my entire childhood. Everyday the bus would drop me off at the end of my road, and I would have to walk about half a mile to my house. These same dogs would wait at our driveway and would start barking and growling the moment I got close. Our neighbor always said they were nice and wouldn't hurt a fly, but really? A big, growling dog is scary, I don't care who you are.

Yesterday Jordan and I were running and he was pretty far ahead of me. Out of nowhere, this big, scary rottweiler runs up to me and jumps up on me. Of course, I got scared and pushed the dog off of me. Then the dogs owner yells at me that she "wasn't going to hurt me". I didn't hear what he yelled at first, because I had headphones in, but basically he couldn't believe I had the nerve to push his big, nasty dog off of me. Um, I'm sorry but if your dog is going to chase after me and jump on me, then I have the right to push it off. Get a leash, buddy.

I'm sure that my dislike of dogs has way more to do with me and my attitude than the dog, but I can't help it. I want to be a person who loves dogs, but it's just not in the cards for me. I guess I'm going to have to find a new animal to call my best friend. Perhaps a fish. They seem nice and calm......

Neighbor-less

We are seriously missing this little man.....

We also really miss his mom and dad. Leith and Britt decided they needed to up and move to Montana, and we are still so sad! They were by far the best neighbors we have ever had.  And I hope they feel the same way about us. Jordan pointed out that this is the furthest he's ever lived from Leith since their missions. He's pretty bummed that his BFF moved away. I am too. I am so lucky that my sister in law is also my cousin, and that we got to live next door to each other for so long! Our hearts are still a little broken, but I'm sure it's nothing that a trip to Montana won't be able to fix!  

On a completely unrelated note, Jordan and I signed up to run in a half marathon! This will be the 3rd one I've ever done, but I feel like it's my first! Ever since I moved to Laramie I have been running maybe three times. The awesome weather forced me to work out inside, and since I hate running on treadmills, I had to find other ways to work out. This is Jordan's first race and he is sooooo excited! We went and got him new running shoes the other day. He was so excited he almost slept in them. And no, I'm not kidding. The race is June 9th, so we're crossing our fingers that the weather will be nice to us so we can get some training in. 

The big 2-6!!

Valentine's Day is also Jordan's Birthday.

I know there are a lot of mixed feelings about Valentine's Day, but I have always liked it. Growing up my mom was super awesome and would always have a scavenger hunt for us that would lead us to our gift. It was so fun! Plus, I just like to have a reason to celebrate, so I'm a fan of little holidays.

 I must admit I was a little nervous for Jordan's birthday this year. I can only imagine that when your birthday is on a holiday you could probably feel a little cheated. I didn't want him to feel that way, so I tried  to separate Valentine's time and Birthday time equally.

For breakfast we had Cake Batter Pancakes with sprinkles. I think it might become a new birthday tradition in our house.

My picture quality is terrible! My camera died on me, so these were all taken with my phone! Sad day!

After work we came home and he opened his birthday present. I had to make him wait all day long because I still had to finish part of it during my lunch break. I'm kind of a procrastinator. We had a nice little dinner, and then dug right into his birthday treat!



 He wanted me to make him a turtle cheesecake for his birthday. It may look a little sketchy in this picture, but it tasted great! But let's be honest, how can you go wrong with chocolate, cream cheese, and caramel?

It was a pretty great day. Jordan did a fabulous job and made me feel special even though it was HIS birthday. I think I may have to start getting him a gift on my birthday. That's only fair, right?

I love this crazy kid. It was fun to spend a day celebrating him! Happy 26th Birthday Jordan!!



Salsa and the Super Bowl

This weekend was fun.

Jordan was a real man and took me to watch Breaking Dawn at the cheap theatre. Verdict- I was glad we only spent $6 total to go see it, but it was a fun time spent laughing with my husband.

We got to babysit Teagan for a little while. He is awesome. We just really love that kid.

I made some homemade salsa. I used my mom's recipe and some delicious Arizona grown green chili. It was yummy. Maybe not quite as good as my mom's, but I'm working on it.

We went to our friends house to watch the Super Bowl. It was the 3rd Super Bowl I have ever watched in my life. Is that unamerican of me? It just wasn't a big deal in our house.....I'm not even sure I should count this one as a time that I watched, because I mostly just chatted with Tiffany and Ashley and crafted.

All in all I would say our weekend rocked!
 

The New Addition!!!

I must have been a very good girl this year, because Santa treated me very well! I have been wanting a Kitchen Aid for a long time. Pretty much ever since we got engaged. I would always tell Jordan I didn't really want one because I didn't want him to feel bad for not getting me one. But he's smart and saw through all my fibs. On Christmas he gave me this little tiny box to open, and I have to admit I was a little sad because I knew a Kitchen Aid couldn't fit in that box. Little did I know that he had taken a picture of it and wrapped it for me! It was great. He's pretty tricky.

Last week I decided it was time to put it to use. I was a little scared to use it. I'm not sure why... I guess I was scared to get it dirty. I know, I'm weird. I made some cinnamon rolls and sadly they didn't turn out quite as well as when I had made them by hand. I did some recipe substiutions, so that must be what happened, right? Either way, it has been such a dream to have and I love it!! Way to go Santa! :)

There it is in all of it's beauty. I wanted to name it, but people tell me that's weird so I won't.

Christmas 2011

We spent Christmas down in Mesa this year. At first I was a little skeptical about having Christmas in 70 degree weather, but I got over it as soon as we stepped off the plane! It was fabulous! We all had so much fun! We ate delicious food, went to a train park where the little boys almost died of excitement, played the wii, played games, strolled through the lovely temple lights, and just had a superb time! Most of the time I was too busy having fun to take pictures, but I was able to get some.

I die every time I look at this picture! Jordan schooled both of us with his funny face!

So excited to go see the temple lights!

These two little monkeys were inseparable. It was so fun to watch them play together!

Little Titan! I'm pretty sure he is the happiest baby on earth! We offered to bring him back to Wyoming with us, but Koy didn't like that idea.

Goobers 1 and 2

Sawyer! I just can't get enough of that red hair!

Carson is awesome. He kept holding my hand on the car ride. I'm pretty sure that translates to mean I'm his most favorite person in the world.

Mama Kimmy. She's wonderful. I love her.

We always pose for pictures like this. We'll have to change it up next time!

We also got to head up to Eagar to spend time at home and meet up with some friends. I love Eagar so much. Every time I go back I remember how much I loved growing up there. It makes me sad that we live so far away, but it's so comforting to go home and realize that not a lot has changed.

We bummed a ride back to the valley with Collin, Ashlee, and Nolan. It was a great trip. Nolan was an absolute dream, and it was so fun to chat with Collin and Ashlee. Thanks again for the ride guys! :)

One night we were getting ready to go out to eat, and we noticed a certain someone was being much too quiet. After some investigation, we found Carson playing with mom's make-up. At least he knows where it goes (sorta)! What a stinker!!

It was such a fabulous trip! We loved every minute of it. We didn't want to come back, but were so happy that we got to go and spend time with everyone!

Happy Anniversary to US!!

We celebrated our one year anniversary on December 17th. It is so hard to believe we have been married for a WHOLE YEAR! Time has gone by so fast. Jordan was super awesome and surprised me with an awesome anniversary present! He was quite secretive about what he had planned. All I knew is that we were going to be going down to Denver. Friday night, we went out to eat at Benihana's which was spectacular and quite tastey. It was pretty funny because when you go to Benihana you have to share a table unless you have a party of like 8 people. So we were surrounded by strangers, but they were very nice and were excited that it was our one year anniversary. The food was delicious, and the nice people sang to us. It was some asian song, so I have no idea what they were saying, but it was still a real great song.

On Saturday Jordan surprised me with tickets to go see "A Christmas Carol" at the Denver Theatre! It was so awesome! I love going to that kind of stuff, and being able to go see "A Christmas Carol" was so fun! It put us right into the Christmas spirit! Such a great gift! He is so awesome! And sneaky!

At the theatre

It was a really great weekend. It was so fun to celebrate our anniversary and to think back on our year. Being married is very different than we thought it would be, but I am so blessed to have found such an awesome guy! He is perfect for me and I am so grateful for him!