Friday, August 19, 2011

Summer Highlights and BIG news!

I haven't blogged this whole summer! So... here are some highlights!

Miniature Golf
We went miniature golfing for one of our date nights... in the rain. I love summer rain. We had a blast.

Birthday Suit
Brian got a new suit for his birthday. Looking sharp! He also got a kindle... and I may have gotten one, too. :)

Swimming
We've spent a lot of time swimming at the pool this summer. It's become one of our favorite things to do together. I'm gonna miss it this winter.

Harry Potter 7.2
It was amazing. I loved it. The end.

Bear Lake
We went to Bear Lake with the Hanson side again this year. The water level was so high, it was crazy! There was hardly any beach, but we still had lots of fun in the water.

Silver City, New Mexico (Davis Family Reunion)

This is the rental car we got so we could drive the 13 hours to Silver City!
This is the cabin we stayed in. Small, but super nice! And air-conditioned! 
A big group of us went on a hike. (I think it was called the catwalk?) Fun times!
 We hiked up to this waterfall and spent a couple hours cooling off. It was a lot of fun!
:)
One of the days we went Rappelling. And this is my crazy husband rappelling front first. (Aussie style). He's been rappelling since he was little, so he knows what he's doing. I still have a hard time watching him do it, though. I get too nervous. Haha.
 
We also went shooting while we were there. Fun stuff. 

Lately

Brian's brother Mike was on leave from Afghanistan for two weeks and we were able to spend some time with him and the family. It was sure fun to have the whole family together again!

Brian is starting school this semester! He's all registered and ready to go! It's about time! We're so grateful that things have finally fallen into place for his education! We're SOOO ready for this next chapter in our lives. 

And that brings us to...

BIG News

No, I'm not pregnant. Ha. 
We're MOVING! As of September 15th we will be living here:

It's a 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath Townhome. It's right by Brian's school and in the middle of both of our jobs. It's a really great location for us!  And we're so excited for more space! After a year, our little one bedroom apartment has started to feel a little cramped and this new place will give us some room to grow! :) 

Other than that, we've just been living life, and loving each other, and stuff. :)

Monday, May 23, 2011

Remember how...

. . . back in December, Brian and I, with my parents, went to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert featuring David Archuleta... and it was awesome... 

. . . Brian's car got a snow mustache in one of the snowstorms back in December, and it was funny...

. . . we got a Wii for Christmas, and it's fun, and Epic Mickey is my favorite game (yeah, I'm a child, so what?)... 

. . . Brian and I booked a hotel in Ogden for our 1 year anniversary and it was awesome, because Ogden brought us together... and we went to all the places we went on our awesome first date, and Brian got to go indoor skydiving and he loved it... 

. . . Brian and I both got new glasses... 

. . . We had Brian's family over for Sunday dinner and cookies and played an epic game of Settlers of Catan...

. . . I got a cute new hair cut (although, it's mostly grown back now and I'm ready to chop it off again, I'm thinking a bit shorter this time, we'll see)...

. . . we went to Disneyland and I got to meet Mickey Mouse, and I loved it... 

. . . Space Mountain is my favorite ride...

. . . the corn dogs in Disneyland are AMAZING... 

. . . I truly love Disneyland with all my heart...

. . . this is what California does to my hair, haha... 

. . . shaved ice from Scotty's in Whittier, California is awesome... 

. . . we went to the beach and it was beautiful... 

. . . my Grandpa Larsen turned 80 and there was a big family celebration for him... I sure do love my grandpa... 

. . .  the family fished and fed the fish at Barker's trout farm for my Grandpa's 80th birthday because he's always loved to fish... it was fun to see so many of my cousins who live so far away... 

. . . I finally beat Brian in Settlers of Catan, and it was epic...




and... remember how I finally blogged about all those things? 

Yep.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Primary President... Say what?

God definitely has a sense of humor. 

The last couple of months have been pretty trying for me mentally and spiritually... A lot of it has to do with my job, and also the fact that I suffer from Seasonal Affected Disorder wherein I find myself with anxiety and depression due to a lack of exposure to enough sunlight during the winter. I've tried anti-depressants before and they've always just made it worse... So, I've just dealt with it... hung in there from November to February... did my best to stay sane. Fortunately, this year it didn't last as long as most years because my loving husband got me a light therapy lamp. It really has made a HUGE difference. Kinda pricey, but SO worth it. Anyway, got a little side tracked there... So yeah, the last couple of months have been a little rough, and just as I had overcome and triumphed over all the battles that had come my way the last few months... BAM! This last week I was called to be Primary President... Say what?! 

I know, right? I'm too young! I have no idea what I'm doing. I have a seriously short attention span- I can barely sit through church as it is. I'm forgetful. I'm unorganized in thoughts and actions... etc. Heck, I'm a primary kid myself. And yet, they want me to be in charge. HA! My initial thought was "they're crazy, they're crazy, they're crazy" and I've repeated it to my poor husband a million times since I received the call... I was in complete shock. I think maybe the shock has worn off now, but to say I'm overwhelmed is a huge understatement. 

On the flip-side, I love primary and I love those kids. And I've already had some pretty neat experiences especially while I was choosing my counselors. So, I guess I have to say... I know that God knows what he's doing... even if it seems absolutely crazy sometimes.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

My birthday and new calling.

My birthday was on Saturday, and I really had the best day ever! I don't ever remember a birthday being so fun... and I was just so happy... all day. And that's a big deal these days...

First of all- Brian and I BOTH had the day off. It has been a very long time since we've both had a day off together... so that alone made the day pretty much amazing!

The day started out slow.. just enjoyed spending time with Brian. I believe breakfast in bed was involved... but I don't remember what we ate... haha. There was lots of laughing and joking and lots of "but it's my birthday!" Poor guy... I milked it for all it was worth the whole day! I Love him so much!

Brian did the dishes while I finished getting ready for the day. This made me super happy!

Went out to lunch with Brian's family to Texas Roadhouse. Delicious food, great company, and... an embarrassing moment or two...


It was pretty great. Oh, and they got me a foot jet spa! It was the perfect gift for me! And I've since used it... and it's amazing! Perfect way to end days I spend all day on my feet at work. :)

After lunch Brian and I went shopping for a Christmas tree. Good ol' Wal-Mart... got us a pre-lit tree that's the perfect size for our little apartment. 

We went to Ross and got me a new winter coat! And I love it! 

Brian came with me to Hobby Lobby (which is a big deal, haha) to get some christmas ornaments for our tree... oh, and don't worry, we went to to the South Jordan one. There was no way I was going to my work on my birthday... haha.

Stopped at a 7-eleven for some Mountain Dew and Coke... we were starting to get a little worn out and we still had plans for the rest of the day. 

Took Trax to Temple Square to meet my family (except Taylor, he had to work) to see the lights. 

Had some difficulty finding my family... apparently there were two bagpipers playing on temple square that night. Haha. 

Walked around looked at the lights... tried not to get lost... took some pictures... you know,  the temple square at Christmas time experience. Haha. 





After we had our fill of the crowds, cold, and Christmas lights we headed to Chuck-A-Rama for some dinner. 

My family came over to our apartment after that because they thought it would be weird to just give me my presents in the parking lot... haha.

I was SO surprised with what they got me! I was NOT expecting anything like that at all! Check out my face!


I guess my dad picked it out... and I am SO grateful! I've been wanting a KitchenAid mixer since I got married! It will make cooking sooo much easier! :)

After my family left, Brian and I walked over to the movie theatre to see Tangled again. I LOVE that movie. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it.

Unfortunately, I was just too tired from all the things we did that day, that I couldn't... no matter how hard I tried, stay awake during the movie... I finally just gave in and crashed on Brian's shoulder. Haha. 

And that was my awesome birthday! 

And then, just a couple hours after we had come home and gone to bed... I woke up abruptly... ran to the bathroom and spent the next 10 minutes projectile vomiting. I've never thrown up like that before. It was kinda scary... it was so violent. It really shook me up, too. Plus, I was still half-asleep. Brian says when I came back to bed I was hysterical... crying and shaking... and not really all there... but he got up and comforted me and calmed me down and just was there for me until I fell back asleep. I just have to say, I Love Brian so much! He really is the most amazing husband. I don't always give him enough credit for how wonderful he really is! I'm so grateful I get to spend eternity with him! 

Fortunately, I was able to go back to sleep and stay asleep well into the next morning... and felt 100% better when I woke up. 

And that was a good thing... because I had to go to church... because last Sunday Brian and I got called into the Branch Presidents office... and you know what that means, right? Brian was all excited to get a calling... and I was... well, not. I already feel like I can't keep up with the things I'm already supposed to do and I'm not a fan of leaving my comfort zone... especially at church. haha. I was hoping it was just a calling for him... but, this is how it went down:
"Brother Montierth, we'd like to extend a calling to... your wife. Is that okay with you?" Hahaha... yeah. Life's pretty funny, ain't it? Well, anyway... they called me to be the Secretary in the Primary Presidency. We're in a branch... so the primary isn't really that big... just 6 or so kids... But I still feel so under-qualified and overwhelmed by it... I'm still just a little girl, after all. It'll be a good learning experience, I guess. Ha.

Oh, one last thing... Brian and I set up and decorated our Christmas tree! We had a lot of fun... and here is the finished product:

Merry Christmas!

PS- Brian is applying for a manager position that just opened up at work... If he gets it, I might be able to leave Hobby Lobby and find another job that might not pay as well, but is a million times less stressful... Please pray for us! I try not to complain too much (sometimes I don't succeed... haha) but my job is just not good for my emotional well-being at all. I'm grateful to have a job, but I die inside a little bit every day I go to work. It makes me physically ill. It would just be SUCH a relief to not have to depend on the money I make from Hobby Lobby... But the Lord knows best... and whatever happens, I know it'll be what's best for us... still, prayers can't hurt, right?

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Our apartment and life these days

I've had a few requests for some pics of our apartment, and we finally got all the boxes put away, so I felt like I could take some pictures. Haha. It only took us a month... that's not bad, right? Haha. Our walls are still a little bare, but we do have a few things up.

Here's the view after walking in the front door. 

View from the corner the TV is in.

View from the next corner.

View from the kitchen.

Bathroom from kitchen door

Bathroom from bedroom door

Bedroom 

Brian's computer corner in our room.

Left: front door, Middle: laundry room, Right: coat closet

There you go. That's the picture tour of our apartment. As far as life goes we've just been working and working and spending time just being together... can't really complain.

Gotta love our shiny faces... haha.

Brian and I went and saw this movie last night! Yep, a whole day earlier than the release date! Gotta love the perks of Brian working for the movie theatre! I really loved it! I can't wait until part 2! My only complaint was the stupid teenage boys that were sitting next to me who spent the whole movie making fun of it. I'm sorry, but if you don't like harry potter- don't go watch it. It's that simple. Thanks. 

That's about it for us right now. Brian's working insane hours because of harry potter... and I'm bracing myself for black friday and the holiday season at hobby lobby.... Haha. Yep, that's all I got for now. 

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Our new life and pumpkin carving

We are loving our new place! We feel so at home here. We're almost completely settled in-- just a laundry basket of clothes or two that still need to be hung up in our closet and a few boxes of random stuff we haven't found a place for yet. The last couple weeks have been so wonderful. I didn't realize how much stress and pressure living with Brian's family created for me. I love them dearly, but I feel like I almost turned into a different person while we were there for some reason... and now I feel so much lighter and back to my good ol' self. I know they were reluctant about us moving out, but honestly, I'm pretty sure they're going to like me better now that we're not living with them. I'm pretty sure Brian likes me better here, too. I like me better here. I just really love it here! I feel so very blessed!

Oh, and I have to post about our first couple of Sundays in our new ward... I mean BRANCH. Yeah, we're in a branch... in the salt lake valley... and it's english speaking. No, not a young married branch. Just a branch made up of our apartment complex. Honestly, I was a little bit nervous about it at first, but turns out it's pretty much awesome. It's perfect for me. I'm so much more comfortable in small group settings... comfortable enough to get out of my comfort zone and stretch myself a little... you know... like actually participate and speak the thoughts and insights that come to me during the lessons... and there's not so many people that most relationships are just superficial... Everyone is so close... and real. It's perfect.

Yesterday Brian and I carved the pumpkins that we went and picked on Saturday from the pumpkin patch that is just down the street from us. Brian was so proud of his. It was cute. Haha. I enjoyed gutting my pumpkin then just did a generic jack-o-lantern face on it. Brian thought his all out and did a few sketches before he used the knife. Here are the results:

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Moving day

Well, it's finally arrived.

We're moving into our new apartment tomorrow.

On a much less happy note, we have to send my cat Jasper to live with my parents. A $300 dollar pet deposit and then more fees on top of that to have him live with us was just too much. It's going to save us a lot of money, so I guess that's good.

 When Jasper was still a kitten... so cute!

He's really such a handsome cat, don't you think?

I've already cried about it. I adopted him 2 years ago and he's become a big part of my life. Laugh if you must, but he's my baby. It'll be a lot lonelier in our apartment without him... and I might have to buy a fish or something so I have something to take care of... yeah, I'm weird, but it's therapeutic for me.

Yeah, that's about all. I'm sure I'll have more to post about after we're all moved and settled in.