Thanksgiving Weekend

We had a fabulous week!! Dalton got his mission call to Chile Santiago West Mission, so Tuesday he went through the temple for the first time. It was such a neat experience to be there with him. I wish that we got more (and better) pictures outside the temple when it was still light out, but oh well. My parents and Steve and I went with him. Such a great day!


We have 2 new additions to the family!! Sweet baby chicks, just 3 days old! We went with my family to get some chicks for my mom- I grew up on a mini farm, and they have had chickens on and off for years, and it was time to go get some more. While we were there, I fell in LOVE with these two little ladies and needed to bring them home with us. Right now, we are keeping them in a laundry basket in our laundry room, but, next week I am getting them a little coop so they can be outside in our yard. I'm so excited to have fresh organic eggs everyday! They wont start laying for about 6 months. Steve wasn't thrilled, he still has yet to hold one.




How much do I love my man? He came home on Wednesday night with this beautiful bouquet for me. Why? Because he loves me :)


Thanksgiving day was awesome. We usually do some sort of service project as a family during the holidays. This year, Thanksgiving morning, we did a project for an old man who owns a produce shop. My dad has been going to this store for a few years, and has made friends with the old man who owns it. He charges next to nothing for the food & my dad has witnessed on several occasions, he will just give away fruit and vegetables to frequent customers who usually don't have the money for it. The store is in a really poor area. It is literally falling apart, I'm surprised its still standing. The owner now has cancer and has been unable to run the shop, so his son comes in runs it for him. My dad came to the son and let him know that since his dad has given so much to the community, that in his father's time of need, he would like to give back to him. We painted the ceiling, pillars & walls of the store. It was such a rewarding experience. I don't have pictures right now, but I will get some from my dad's camera and post them soon. The son was sooo appreciative, the act of service without any expectation of anything in return was so foreign to him. It was a great missionary experience. Some of my most favorite holiday memories are of our family serving others. We are so blessed, and being able to serve others reminds me of that.

After painting, my family and us headed down to our time share in New Braunfels. We had an awesome homemade dinner by momma and just played games and watched movies all weekend, and did a little shopping on Friday at the outlets in San Marcos.

I set up our tree on Saturday! Its so little and cute, I just LOVE Christmas!!

Go, go, go

Thats all I feel like we do anymore is GO! If we are not working, we are at school, and if not that, its homework, church callings, visiting & home teaching, mutual, ect. Sometimes I forget what Steve looks like, so I have to keep his picture as my wallpaper on my phone. Ok, not really, but I miss him. We need a getaway. Thanksgiving cannot come fast enough, and then Christmas!! I need a break!

Love my job

My boss (chiropractor) has networked with a lot of different bands & musicians for years and I was able to take advantage of that this week. I almost got to work on Robert Plant a couple of months ago, but it fell through. This past Friday my boss had me go to the Frank Erwin Center to work on the Gorillaz before their show! It was awesome being backstage & walking past the dressing rooms & music rooms all day, watching them rehearse & being there for the sound checks. Massaging them was just like working on anybody else, they are just normal people who have blemished skin & buy their underwear at old navy! :)
I was brave enough to ask for tickets to the show & surprisingly got floor seats for Steve, Dalton & me. So fun- its times like these that I just love my job!!

School

I have been in and out of college for years until I decided that what I really wanted was to be a massage therapist. I could educate people about their bodies; helping them achieve their physical goals and being a healer at the same time. There is no better feeling than "fixing" someone, relieving them of pain & improving the quality of their life. I know this may sound sappy, but to have the insight and intuition to heal with your hands is an amazing gift. I'm willing to risk sounding conceited when I say that I'm pretty good, amazing even. Well, to each his own... :)

I don't like the spa atmosphere. Fussy big shots who feel a sense of entitlement aren't my kind of people. After 3 years of being in this field, I now work and 2 different Doctors' offices, no more spas. I really like it, but my body cant keep up. Its only been 3 years and I hurt all the time- not just after 7 hours of straight massage, but even on my days off now. I'm always hurting & tired. I don't want to do this for the rest of my life- I cant imagine what I will feel like 10 years from now. Sooo... Ive decided to go back to school to get my RN!!

I think that with nursing, I will feel that same sense of accomplishment at the end of my work day that I do in the doctor's office, probably even more so. All the bad things about massage (no benefits, contract labor, spas, tips, ect.) don't exist in hospitals. So, I'm pretty excited about that.

This is my first semester back to school in like 5 years. Its taking some adjusting.

I did need to rant for a minute about text books. Seriously. My math class requires us to have the 8th edition of the text book- I swear, the only thing different about this one versus the seventh edition is that they changed the cover from a picture of a flower to a fish. They get to charge me $170 for this novelty. How much math changes in a semester?? Apparently so much that they need to replace an entire text book. Who is it that is making these decisions to rip off poor college kids? And why are the colleges in cahoots with this person? Are they not making enough off the tuition itself? I'm not a fool, I'm not paying that.

I went on Amazon.com and found a paperback used copy for $22.

In other news-

Steve will apply to the Austin Fire Academy in December! He is so excited for this, and I'm so excited that he has found what he wants to do! He will graduate in May with his business management degree, and then we can figure out what the plan is once we know the outcome of the application. Keep your fingers crossed for him! Its super competitive in Austin. Average number of applicants is about 3000 (yes, that's three zeros behind that 3) and they take roughly 100 from that group. They test mostly personality and character in a super long, hand written test with essay questions. I'll have him double up on his adderall that day :)

I'm not expecting anyone to have made it though this long update, but if so, you are more loyal than I had anticipated.

Happiness

I wasn't sure if I should post this yet or not, but I'm excited and want to share! Steve and I turned in our papers today for Adoption. We are going through a private Christian agency through the state. We've been preparing to make this decision for about a year and have thought through many different paths to take. We have decided that this is the best one for us at this time. We are excited for our family to grow! Its going to be a long & difficult road and will take a while to get our case worker, interviews & all our home studies done, but, we have taken the first step! I will keep you all posted on our progress!

Summer time happenings

These pictures are all out of order!!

We had our 4 year anniversary in May, Steve's 27th birthday, and my 25th birthday in June. I had a rough time with this one. We went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner and had some games at our place afterward, and then Sunday we had 'family' birthday- We didn't have a 2 or a 5 candle, so I turned 944 this year :)

Steve and I were both released from our callings (Elders quorum 1st counselor and Primary secretary) . I was so ready to get out of primary, Ive been there for 4 years! Steve has been called to Ward mission leader which he is getting used to- the elders are pretty eager which usually isn't Steve's strong point, so he gets annoyed, but I think things are smoothing out. I am the Young women's 1st counselor, and I love it! I taught today's lesson on Revelation and it went really well. I have always wanted to work with the youth, I'm looking forward to getting to know the girls better. There are only about 7 active YW total, which is very different from my home ward growing up, but I think it will give us an opportunity to get closer. Its a different pace coming from a primary with 70 active kiddos.

We went dancing last night at Coupland dance hall which is waaay out east- population 27. Not really, but its a tiny town. The AC was not working, I don't remember the last time I was so hot and sweaty. It was fun though, we need to get out more and practice out Texas two step.

I wanted to show you my progress on my family tree! I ordered a black iron decorative tree and thought it would be really cute to add all the family members around it. I still need a few more pictures, but you get the idea. Ill post more pics once its finished!

Welcome to the family, Lance!

We went to Utah last week for the wedding, it was so great to see everyone! We sure do miss living there.

Its nice to have another in-law added to the family- Ive been the only one for 4 years now! We are excited for the family to continue to grow. Kyle, you're next!!

Camping

We went to Marble Falls this last weekend and hiked through the Llano river and camped on an island. It was pretty fun- we saw some big fish & tons of bluebonnets! I dont know that we will go again, its alot of work to pack everything in, just to leave the next morning. Lucy was quite a little trooper- she swam most the way even though she hates the water. She doesnt like to be dirty, so she stands on anything that will keep her up and away from the sand. She is such a diva. Here are a few pics of our trip:

We got some snow!

Yes, snow! Ive never seen it stick in Austin, so this was kind of a big deal. The news showed kids "sledding" (on yoga mats, since they dont sell sleds in TX) down hills, mostly in slush and mud. So funny!

Steve got me a rose bush for Valentines day, and I just happend to plant it the night before the snow, so this is me being sad. I hope its still ok!

the latest fertility stuff

We started with a new fertility specialist in January and we really love him. He has such a great reputation around Austin, and I know so many women that have had quick success with him. I've done like 6 rounds of clomid and havent had any luck yet, so today I went and had an HSG x-ray done. Basically they squirt dye into my uterus and fallopian tubes to check for any blockages. Sounds pretty harmless, right? Wrong. Oh my gosh, so painful. I dont know if it was becasue of the pain or what, but I almost passed out. She sent the images over to my doctor, so I will call tomorrow and see what he has to say about them.

This has been quite an experience that we have had these last few years. We have been trying to start our family for almost 4 years. Sometimes I wonder why we have the trials that we do. Maybe they arent trials at all. Maybe its a blessing that Steve and I have had more time to grow and bond with one another, really learning everything and appreciating each small trait in eachother. Maybe Im suppossed to learn patience, or that this really isnt MY life, its the Lord's.

Sure do love you, babe! We've have had some great times just you and me-

We will make good parents one day, till then, we remain positive and happy, sometimes thats all you can do. We do appreciate all the thoughts and prayers that you all are sending our way. :) I'll try and keep our progress posted!