Update

So I have been a lazy blogger... been busy doing other things but here is a run-down of some recent happenings:

Moving in

• So our move went quite smoothly, except for having to haul everything up our tight stairwell. Thanks to Chris Nielsen and Chris' Dad for helping! Everything has a spot and we feel pretty settled. I feel like I can be a full-fledged homemaker in our new place. We just need to do some more hanging of pictures on walls and slowly fill some of our furniture needs. Since I have been a lazy blogger I have yet to take any pictures of the place.
  

Jobs

• So I have continued working as a tutor for the past little while. At times it doesn't seem worth it for the few hours I work but I will say it has been amazing to see how these struggling students have blossomed. ALSO I have since been hired by Three other Districts as a SUBSTITUTE...however with all the paper work and processing I am waiting to get cleared and start getting calls to sub. I can't wait to get back in the classroom...even if it is not my own.
  

My trip to Arizona

• My parents and little brother were planning on going to their timeshare in AZ before thanksgiving and then go on to visit my grandparents serving their mission on the Navajo reservation further east. Well so awhile back they asked if I wanted to join them for a few day in AZ (while Chris has to work hard and home to study). I of course happily accepted. So for a few days last week I spent with the fam in AZ just relaxing. We got to relax by the pool, watch lots of movies (including NEW MOON... which has converted me to TEAM JACOB), and eat a lot (esp. my mom's addiction to Paradise Bakery cookies... which I think is rubbing off on me)! I felt bad though since one of the days their my dad suffered from food poisoning all day. Also I really missed Chris and our new home while I was gone. And I felt bad that I missed my niece, Maddie's, Baptism.
  

Maddie's Baptism

• Like I mentioned I missed Maddie's baptism and felt bad to not be there. But the re-cap from Chris was good... I got to see pictures of her cute (hand made by Grammy) baptism dress, hear Chris' Baptism Talk he gave, and so forth. We are sure proud of Maddie's decision!
  

Thanksgiving

• So Chris was soooo excited to finally have a Thanksgiving at his parents' house since it had been way to long. We got to celebrate the day with his parents and Katie and Chris' family. It was a delicious spread of food from Chris' mom who always out does herself. We appreciate all her hard work! Then after pie and letting our food settle we headed to the movies. We saw Blind Side, which was EXCELLENT! It was a very positive and funny movie. Highly recommend it!

It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home. ~Author Unknown

So today Chris and I are finally moving into our own place. We have been living for that past months with Chris's parents who have been so generous to let us stay. We have been saving money and trying to find the right HOME for us. We stumbled upon this townhouse on craigslist, not really even in the area we were mainly looking in. However, when we went to look at it we new it would be a great fit for us and just felt right.

I can't wait to set up our home and build many memories there. Wish us luck with our long day of moving.. and then let the unpacking BEGIN!!!!

-pictures will follow as soon as the place looks presentable-

The Big Nubmer 1

We got to celebrate our nephew, Coleman's, 1st birthday last week. I can't believe he is that old already!! It was so fun to be able to take some pictures one his big day... he is sooo cute!

Saturday Soccer!

Last Saturday (Halloween) Chris and I went to see our niece, Maddie, and our nephew, Carter, play in their soccer games. It was a beautiful sunny day and was so fun to watch them play. It is so fun to live close to Chris's family so that we can go to all the things like this.

As far as Halloween.. we had a nice homemade chicken noodle soup before heading out to go trick-or-treating with Katie's Kiddos!

When Chris studies...

I Travel!

Or at least I did in this one case. When Chris has MAJOR tests he locks himself in a room and studies 24/7. I am proud that he can work this hard... but it's a bit lonely. So my solution on his last test was to travel back to Seattle to be with my family for a long weekend.

So I went from a Thursday to a Tuesday (thanks to Southwest's cheap flights) and here is my recap:
(sorry not a great variety of pictures showing all I did)

THURSDAY:
I flew in early in so my mom picked me up. Dad at work+ Paydan at school= Girl time! So my mom and I went to the mall! I actually have not been clothes shopping with my mom in a loooong time and it was great. It was nice to window shop and also catch up. We then had a yummy lunch while continuing to gab away.
After Paydan got home from school we all drove up to Suncadia (a mountain style resort) about an hour away to meet up with my dad who was at a business conference there. It was a BEAUTIFUL drive up with all the fall colors! Then that night we went to the closest town (population like 100?) and ate a mom n' pop Italian place.
a view from our room at Suncadia

FRIDAY:
After a quick workout and swim at Suncadia's pool we packed up and headed home. Had a nice, relaxing day at my parents. Then we had a neat experience that night, that I was so glad I was visiting so I could be a part of it. My Grandfather Bussey passed away last year and his work was all cleared and ready to do at the temple. So My Brandon, my parents, and myself had a nice dinner at Outback and then headed to the temple. After a little mix up with the paper work, everything was work out. I began by doing family names for baptisms and then my brother got Baptized by my dad for our grandpa. It was sooo neat and I was glad I was a part of it.

SATURDAY:
I got to meet up with a good high school friend, Yeng, for a bit. It had been a long time and it was so great to catch up. Took some pictures of the beautiful fall (which is the main thing I miss here in CA). Then we had a nice dinner at home and my mom, Paydan and I got in the Halloween Spirit by watching Hocus Pocus!

SUNDAY:
I lucked out to be visiting on the week of the Primary program in my parents' ward. I love the programs and it was fun to see my mom put her great Chorister skills to work and see Paydan in his LAST program. After Church just hung out with family and relaxed and had a nice dinner.

MONDAY:
I had the craft itch and since my mom has her new remodeled CRAFT room I wanted to put it to use. So after looking through some old wood my mom had (back from her Craft Show days) I got a vision and we headed to Michael's. I decided to make Halloween Blocks. So I painted them black and then on the front Mod-Podged on some cute Halloween paper to spell out BOO and two pumpkin faces. Then I also slapped together a frame to match out house. After dinner we headed out to see Brandon and Heidi's new place!

TUESDAY:
Flew home at the Crack of DAWN and was reunited with my wonderful HUBBY (who was free from massive studying!)

Fall and Miscellaneous Pictures:
I love this FIERY red from the Japanese Maple

These pumpkins were from Paydan's garden!

What STUDS going for a Harley Ride!

BYU v. SDSU

So we ventured down to San Diego for the BYU game with our friends Jordan and Lindsey (and their adorable baby girl McKenna).

It was wonderful weather (especially since we were in the shade in the stadium), wonderful company and a "wonderful" game (wonderful is in quotes for Chris since although the cougs pulled a "w" he believes they didn't play the best).

update...

*We went to Disneyland the other Friday night with some couples from Chris's podiatry class. Since Disneyland has been doing all these new Halloween things it made the place PACKED. The signs outside were saying "Disneyland is VERY busy" and it was! But we still had fun and got to go on some rides and enjoy the new Halloween Fireworks.

(us waiting for the fireworks)

*We spent last Saturday in Chino Hills looking at some possible housing options. We really like that area and are going to continue to look there. I am ready to get our own place and get all our stuff out of storage.

*On Tuesday night we went to a BYU Ballroom Performance at a local high school with Braden and Talicia (a couple from school). IT was an entertaining show and was fun to get some "culture" in our lives. It made me wish Chris and I could dance like that together.

*Chris is still very busy with school but is doing well and I am soooo proud of him.

* I am excited because I have planned a last minute trip home for next weekend. I am so excited to see my family and be back in Seattle for a bit. I came up with the idea after I realized that on weekends before big Exams, Chris just locks himself in the spare room all day/night! So I thought I would check if flights were cheap the weekend before Chris's next big test and they were....CAN'T WAIT!

Happy Birthday to... CHRIS

I picked Chris up from class and we drove out to the ONLY close Pei Wei for lunch. He is the birthday boy with the yummy honey crispy chicken!

I took Chris back to classes (after he changed into his "business attire") and I had him quickly open his gifts in the car... so anti-climatic. Here is his new laptop case.

In order for Chris to apply his FREE birthday ticket to his Disneyland Pass I got Chris after work and we zipped over to the Happiest Place on Earth. It was closing in like an hour, so we decided to hope on Space Mountain since it was closed when we went on my b-day. We had to wait in the looong line but it was fun!

Here is Chris trying to impersonate a "ghost" to fit in with the new Halloween Space Mountain Ride. (Can you spot the matterhorn in the back?).

Waiting in Line...

I love Chris's face in this picture... it makes him look like he was really scared and I look "great" with my eyes closed... I wasn't scared but my eyes were watering like crazy from all the cold air being pumped out.


I want my wonderful Husband to know how much I love him and am so glad that he was born 27 years ago!

A GOLDEN BIRTHDAY

Ok, if you really know me, you know I am a kid at heart... I love children's books, I choose to watch Wizards of Waverly Place over like Grey's Anatomy (or some other adult show), I enjoy playing with kid's toys with my nieces and nephews, and I LOOOOVE Disneyland. So of course naturally, all I wanted to do for my birthday was go to Disneyland!

Also, we wanted to go because you get in FREE on your birthday... any if you buy a season's pass they will credit your FREE ticket to your price pass. So I am officially a Disney pass holder again! So I will probably be a frequent visitor of the Happiest Place on Earth.

So it was a VERY hot day...but because it was a school day and coupled with the heat it was not crowded... SCORE! We were able to hit all the major rides in California Adventures in under two hours. The longest we waited in line all day was like 10 minutes. The only bummer was the Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain were closed so they could get it ready for "Halloween".

Of course the first matter of business was to get my BIRTHDAY button! I have always wanted to wear one.. but never had the chance. It is so great, all the Disney Workers (cast members) said "Happy Birthday" to me throughout the day, it made me feel special.

So many people know about the Mission Tortilla Tour at California Adventures where they will give you a free tortilla... and if it is your birthday they many times will give you a whole bag of tortillas (which I got!). Well right across from the tortilla shop is the Boudin Sourdough Tour. Well, if I could only live off one food for the rest of my life it would be SOURDOUGH! So we had to check out the tour. Well as we walked in they gave us a small, tiny slice of bread. You sit and watch a movie on the history and process. I almost walked out... but I am so glad I didn't at the end of the tour there was a Cast Member handing out WHOLE loafs of Mickey-shaped bread. Chris and I BOTH got one. I was in heaven. So next time you are there check it out!

Here are some of the cute Halloween Decorations they have put up. Chris is enjoying the Candy Corn Cactus! So CUTE!
So Chris's highlight of the day was finally beating me at Toy Story Mania ride (which is our FAVORITE!). On both toy story and Buzz rides I always get a higher score... so finally he beat me. Yeah... you would think a good husband would let his wife win on her birthday... think again!!!

Check out the Small World Tower in Chris's Glasses!
(I love the happy feeling I get after this ride... cheesy I know... but go world unity!)

Chris was very upset that I blocked his face in the Splash Mountain picture...especially since his pose was "so funny"... I guess he was pretending to yawn. By the way... we got SOAKED!

But after hitting all the major rides we were ready to go. We strolled through Downtown Disney. We didn't want to drive home in rush hour traffic so we decided to head for the beach for dinner. We ate at BJ's (our traditional stop) at Huntington Beach and also made sure to stop by Jack's.

It was a great day... at wonderful way to celebrate my "golden" birthday (24 years old on the 24th). I appreciate all the birthday love I got too!

high expectations...

...with a lot of disappointment.

So we journeyed to BYU for the FSU game like mentioned before. I won't go into the heartbreak the game caused... like for many, but it was a quick trip.

the Alma Mater

a cinnamon lollipop- a pre game snack thanks to Brick Oven

My stud of a husband! Can you guess if this was pre or post game... with a smile like that you would think pre-game...pre-disappointment.

Us enjoying out seats at the TOP of the stadium! Literally, it was the very top row!

Lisa Leonard Designs Jewelry GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Lisa Leonard Designs Jewelry GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

These pieces of Jewelry are BEAUTIFUL... I hope I win.

it's GaMe time!!!

So I have to make a quick blog about some major football happenings that are relavent to my life.

First, tonight my Alma Mater, Skyline High School (in Sammamish, WA) is playing a HUGE game that they are actually showing on ESPNU!

They are playing Christian Oakes from California, both teams are nationally ranked and the QB's are both ones to watch. Also, people in my home town are stoked becuase they are hoping for CELEBRITY sightings since Will Smith, Wayne Gretzkye and Joe Montana all have sons on Christian Oaks and are "supposedly" coming. For you avid BYU fans you may wanna check out the game since Jake Heaps, the Skyline QB (who is in my home ward and I played B-ball with his sis) has signed with BYU and he is the "next big thing".

Speaking of BYU, Chris and I are leaving in the next hour to make the trek to the MECCA of college football (in Chris and I's book)...PROVO. WE just had to be there for the Coug's first home game against FSU and when our B.I.L. Chris said he had extra tickets we hopped on it! I am so excited to see the COUGARS play, especially since they are doing so well and also since I have grown more fond of the sport this year. Also I am excited to head back to P-town and campus... I hate to admit it but I miss it! I am hoping to also possibly catch up with friends too!

yummmm.....Recipes

So, I can't remember if I posted this before but the girls on Chris's side of the family started a recipe blog. Let me tell you that my sisters-in-law are quite talented domestic goddesses and can cook up a storm. We hadn't updated it in a long time, but I asked my S.I.L Katie to send me the electronic copy of her mom's "infamous" Red Book Recipes.

So I just added all of these recipes to the blog so feel free to check them out. There are some great ones to try. Chris loves like ALL of the main dishes from his mom, especially Chicken South of the Border and we make Chicken Stroganoff all the time!

ALSO...
If you have any quick, CHEAP, dinner recipes that are a HIT in your house... email me the recipe!! I am definatly in a recipe RUT!

This is what podiatry school does to you...

Chris's face explains it all here!
Let's just say that Chris is a bit burned out on studying... but man can he tell you a lot about your innards!

He has now learned to utilize his parents' whiteboard to draw diagrams of various body parts to help him memorize things... isn't he such a little artist! This is you inner organs, from the heart to the small intestine... with a lot of mumbo-jumbo I don't understand.

My little studier working hard!

Yes, Chris even has a COLORING BOOK to study with... but unfortunately it is not cute little ponies or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles... just boring body stuff!



THE BONE BOX....

(since I was bored this weekend I started snapping pictures of Chris's bone box)
Each pair of students gets a box full of bones to help them study. We have had the privilage oh having Mr. Bones at our place for awhile.

I wish I was a tech geek...

So yesterday while Chris was studying away for his next exam on Monday-there went our weekend :)- I spent some time figuring out some more things for on our blog.

I hate to admit it but I wish I was a HTML/java script guru so I could totally do what every I want to my blog. I wish I wasn't such a slave to other people's genius! So from browsing a site I learned some more tips. Now to some of you this may seen meager... but I felt pretty good about figuring some of this stuff out.

For example... I was able to find the EXACT COLORS for my fonts, etc. to match our header. I was also to adapt the line breaks between posts and sidebar, and take away the boarders on the header and pictures, instead of either having all or nothing with it. Lastly...my FAVORITE addition is the icon in the internet browser. So instead of the blogger symbol next to the http it is out "J" from our header!

In another life maybe I would have been a tech geek!