an update

My blog hasn't been much for actual updates for a looooooong time.
But since our lives have been changing every five seconds I figured now would be a good time to update anyone curious.
We moved up to Riverton yesterday.
It will be a nice to change to be in a new city together.
(Only somewhat new to me but since it's been so long....it's basically all different)
In a couple of weeks I will get my CNA license with an added Health unit coordinator certificate.
And then will start working after that.
Derek is going to start work at IHC in the radiology department, imaging scheduling.
(And let me just brag about my husband for a bit.
Out of 50 applicants HE got the job.
I'm such a proud wife.)
And then after he finishes his anatomy class he will apply to the radiology program and hopefully start that next Fall.
And that's basically all that's going on.
Now that everyone is caught up, let's reminisce on pictures of the apartment we just left.

supporting each other

There have been SO many stories lately of bad things happening to people's kids.
And because we have access to social media and people feel so much strength behind a keyboard there is also SO much judgement.
And yeah, these bad things could all be avoided with better decisions, but they happened.
And those parents don't need everyone and their dog saying how bad of a parent they are.
I'm pretty sure that they are feeling enough hurt and guilt as it is.
Mistakes are made and bad things happen everyday.
The difference is, some are public.
And unwillingly thrown to the internet where they get eaten alive by people who it could have just as easily happened to.
We don't know the circumstances, we don't know their life.
You think these parents are stupid, that's fine.
But leave the judgement at home.
Even if we can't IMAGINE letting these things happen to our children, they very well could.
And not everything is somebody's fault.
Sometimes things happen.
Just support each other and keep the cruel thoughts to yourself.

(I mostly write this as a disclaimer for any future mistakes that I make as mother.
Because they will happen.)

soda springs

Our family went up to Soda Springs in Idaho after having been there 16 years earlier.
And it was beautiful!
Along with the great scenery we had lots of fun, craziness, and laughs.
And we even had MOST of the people there this year which is getting harder and harder.
But we love each other enough to make it work ;)
Here are the few pictures that managed to be taken.
And at the bottom watch for a movie depicting the whole trip;
And realize just how much of a creepy stalker I am to be able to film everyone without their knowledge!

 ^^ I spy with my little eye.....^^

^^Our family has 3 Dereks now. THREE^^

And the video:
https://vimeo.com/172300008
Password: Soda


Also, just for fun, the link to the video for our Lake Powell vacation:
https://vimeo.com/171352725
Password: Powell

life of learning

 Image Via

I was reading a post about learning written by a fellow blogger.
And it made me realize that I need to be a bit more proactive about my learning, especially since I'm almost done with school and learning will soon be scarce.
I've always thought about things that I wanted to become more knowledgeable in but I never really made the effort.
So now, I'm going to write those things down here so that I feel more accountable to learn about them.

ANATOMY
Kynia (said "fellow blogger") reminded me of this desire.
I know it's weird to want to learn about anatomy of my own free will, but I just took this class and LOVED it.
And we barely even touched the pages of the book.
Derek and I have a medical dictionary and an anatomy textbook because we are nerds.
So I already have the materials, I just need to get my nose in there.

NUTRITION
I don't necessarily want to diet or even drastically change how I eat.
But, it would be nice to understand all the things going into my body.
This was also a class that I really loved in college and learned a lot from.
What is going to make me live longer and better?
What foods are going to keep me more alert and focused?
All the mysteries will be unlocked soon.

HISTORY
There are so many categories of "history" and I don't know which I would like to focus on right now.
Derek is interested in history and knows a lot of cool things about the past.
And I want to be as cool as him.
So I need to crack open some sort of historical text and learn.

CURRENT EVENTS
I'm lucky that I have Derek around.
Because much like history, he also knows a lot about what is going on in the world.
So if I ever need to know something, I just ask him.
However, I would like to be able to contribute more to discussions regarding the world around us.
So I'm thinking about turning on the news or reading a newspaper every now and then.

What do you think?
What things do you want to learn?

lake powell

We spent 5 days in Lake Powell last week with Derek's family.
So naturally, I have 5 days worth of a picture dump.
But Lake Powell is B-E-A-Utiful so how could I not?

blessings in disguise

For a while Derek and I have been trying to move on to the next step in our lives.
And that required getting new jobs in a new city and it was starting to get really frustrating.
But we definitely learned a lesson in faith.
He applied for a job that looked really great and that we felt really good about.
A month later we were told to apply again.
A month after that they said that they decided to hire from within.
At that time, I was having to choose a path in life and I stumbled upon a great job opportunity for Derek.
It looked really great and we felt really good about it.
Then we realized that the odds of getting that job were a lot less than we thought.
But the lady in charge helped Derek find other jobs in the same company that might work for him.
He applied to a few and we weren’t hearing anything back.
Through ALL of this I was getting really frustrated.
“Why is none of this working out??? Why are we feeling so positive and at peace with all of these options that aren’t even working out in the end??”
I finally started praying that we (I) would have the faith that what is supposed to happen will happen and not that what I want to happen will happen.
Finally we were led to a job that is absolute perfection.
It’s definitely not his dream job, but it will open the door to so many more opportunities than the other jobs would have.
And the only way that we were able to find this job was because off all the tries and fails.
Each one led us closer and closer to what we were supposed to be doing with our lives.
I always forget that things work out perfectly in the Lord’s hands.
It just takes time, but he is never going to let us fall flat on our face without standing by with an ice pack handy.
We are always so short sighted in the moment and can only see what we want in the present.
But it’s important to step back and try to accept what the Lord wants, even if it’s not what we want.

videos

I had a dream the other night about a man that I dated from SUU.
(Not so much dated as…..I had a crush on him and so I would stalk him. Literally on Friday nights.)
But anyways, it made me reminisce on the best two years of my life.
No, not a mission, but my first two years of college.
SUU is literally my favorite place on Earth.
I’ve been to many exotic places, but it’s safe to say that Cedar City, of all places, is where I want my ashes scattered.
I had my first kiss there, I learned how to rock climb there, it’s where I learned how to gamble, and where I had SO much fun with my best friends.
It’s hard to put into words the best times of your life.
And that’s why I love video so much.
To better reminisce I watched the old videos that I made during those times and it made me so happy that I started documenting things like that.
Because now I can go back and remember *a fraction of* the ridiculous things that I did and the good times that I had.
It’s so easy to forget the small details, but when you go back and remember….
It’s just the best.
So here are some of the different videos I made.
If anybody cares besides me :)

(And they are all hilariously old…)

The first...... "No Handlebars" with a 3 wheeled bike.

Next up....My favorite hike in Kanarraville

Mine and my best friend's Daily Life

And the place that I felt most at HOME

focus on the good

We live in such a crazy world.
Where we can hear about news from all the way across the world.
And everyone shares their opinions and fights and argues with each other about what's happening.
And so many of those things are bad and scary.
People get hurt and some people die.
But what we don't always hear about is the good that is happening.
I had a teacher theorize that the news tells us about so many bad things because those are the events that are rare and out of the ordinary.
While it is good to recognize the bad, it is more important to focus on the good.
Because if we only pay attention to the bad we will get bogged down in it.
Hearing about the good helps us to remain positive and inspired to "be the good we wish to see in the world".
So here is my report of the good news in the world to break up the monotony of all the bad.

>This woman who graduated from the college where she was abandoned as a newborn.

>This mother who is seriously superwoman.

>This story about paying hundreds in pennies is more just to give you a laugh. Especially the last sentence of the story.

>I could never imagine doing what these two men did.

>It's amazing the effort people will go to to save an animal.

>And the "goodest" of all is the incredible amount of love given to complete strangers that have had tragedy fall upon them.

cosmic brownies

Almost two weeks ago in this blog post I foreshadowed that I had a funny story coming.
And now it is here.

It was really hot outside and my two broken knees were starting to stiffen under all the pressure of hiking 6 miles.
But what they didn't realize was that we still had ten miles left to get back to our car.
(Why Capitol Reef only has one way hikes is beyond me)
We started walking down the road, hoping somebody would take pity on our weary souls.
After being rejected again and again by clean people in clean cars a truck stopped for us at the beckoning of Derek's thumb.
We graciously hopped in and sank into the seats.
My knees and my heart were so happy that I offered the kind man a Cosmic Brownie once he dropped us off at our car.
He declined and I secretly cheered because that meant there was more for me.
We started chatting and getting to know each other.
We shared where we were from, where we were going to school, and what we do.
(No, the funny story is not that we let a serial killer know every detail about ourselves.)
And we learned that him and his rock climbing kids are pretty dang cool.
I told him that I live in Provo and go to BYU.
He told us that he had attended the U and that there was such a desire to be the antithesis of Mormon there. 
Once this special word was shared and it was received with warmth he decided that now was the time to confess the question that had been burning in his soul.
"So, back to those brownies that you offered me. What did you call them?"
"Cosmic Brownies?"
"Yeah, did you make those with marijuana because I've got kids so I can't be taking one of those."
"No man, those are just Lil Debbies!!!"

Hahahahaha I guess we did look the type!

summer list

Summer is here!
And our warm weather adventures have begun.
We went boating this past weekend and are heading to Lake Powell this weekend.
(I always wanted to be one of those people that vacationed in Powell....)
But it's so easy to let Summer fly by without fully enjoying it.
Now, I'm definitely a list girl.
I feel like lists keep you focused and on task so I even have a list of Summer activities to do!
Feel free to use this list to brainstorm your own fun Summer!

1. Tube Provo River
2. Fruit Picking (Pickyourown.org)
3. Have a backyard campout
4. Fly a kite from the dollar store or make your own kite
5. Have a picnic
6. Go canoeing or kayaking or paddleboarding
7. Go fishing
8. Go on hikes (On my list are Mt. Timp, Stewart Falls, Neon Canyon, Lower Calf Creek Falls)
9. Have a backyard movie night with a laptop or a projector
10. Have a campfire with hot dogs and smores

derek

I was planning on writing about something else today.
But then I found out that an old friend from high school passed away.
Not someone that I hung out with a ton, just part of my senior year.
And then I was left to enjoy the knowledge he shared on Facebook for the last few years.
But reading the post that his girlfriend wrote this morning just made my heartbreak.
Because I can NOT imagine the pain that would be to lose the one that you love most.
A couple of weeks ago I was remembering Europe and the trial that was for Derek and I.
It was so hard to be away from him for just one month.
And so I decided to start making an effort to not take my time with him each day for granted.
I'm still not very good at it because I still let my phone or my own tasks get in the way.
But I do notice how much happier and fulfilled I am when I sit and talk with him for even just a couple of minutes.
Or go on a walk with him.
Or snuggle together at the end of the day.
Because he matters the most.
Not my phone or social media or those boxes that need to be packed or that toilet that needs to be scrubbed NOW.
Those petty fights don't matter and the bills don't matter.
(Yeah, the bills matter but.......not as much as snuggling at night.)
As long as we have each other to lean on, everything else can wait.

may favorites

>TV Show: Raising Hope. Everybody needs a good sitcom in their life. And everybody needs a new show on Netflix to watch. This show hits two birds with one stone. Seriously, it's hilarious and you'll laugh your butt off! I highly recommend it. Who doesn't love a crazy grandma and poor people?

>Song: The weirdest songs came with my Itunes when I got my new computer and I just discovered the beauty of one of them. I will tag it here because it doesn't even live on YouTube (That's just how cool it is) Sing it as you Please by Shake Your Peace. This is honestly my favorite weird song ever. It might take you a year to actually enjoy it like it took me, but just listen to it once all the way through because the best part is the end.

>Condiment: Sweet Chili Sauce. I discovered Heaven this month and it's name is Sweet Chili. This can honestly go with anything. I dip my chicken in it, put it on sandwiches, put it in my tuna, and even put it in my ramen. It's like ranch....it belongs on EVERYTHING.

>Meal: The meal preps that I've been making recently deal with smothering chicken in deliciousness. I first cook the bite-sized-pieces chicken up in a pan and then add one of these combinations to the pan to heat up:
            4 lbs chicken, 1/2 C. Hoisin Sauce, 1/4 C. light brown sugar, 2 Tbs. Soy Sauce,                  1 TBS flour
                                                                        OR
            2 lbs chicken, salt and pepper, 1/2 tsp paprika, 3/4 tsp. onion powder, 2 TBS each               honey, balsamic vinegar and ketchup, 1 tsp minced garlic

>Book: I read another mystery this month: See Jane Run. And it was SO good! Every page had me going WHAT? WHAT?WHAT?WHAT?WHAT? It is definitely a page turner that you won't be able to put down. And the end had me slightly devastated. But I guess that's the quality of a good book: one that makes you feel all the feelings for the characters. It does have some language so if you're like me and mostly stick to LDS authors then this is just a BIT risque. 

What are your favorites this month??