Moving & Christmas 2009

Here is a picture log of moving 1800 miles in a 16 foot moving truck pulling a trailer with a car on it and also of our first Texas Christmas. It was by far the best Christmas I have ever had. To have all my family there, my grandparents and my sweet Aunt Denise-- it was so fun. Chritmas Eve we all slept under one roof and the boys all stayed up late playing some computer game. i am so excited for many more texas christmas' to come!!

We met up with my best friend Sheree and her family in the middle of New Mexico on our way down. She was moving to Utah from Texas as we moving from Utah to Texas. I am a little mad about that but super excited he is going to be getting a great education up there. Love these two!

My Mom and Dad's new house is beaaaautiful!!

Abbi and her favorite Uncle Geoff

Abbi never takes normal pictures!

We went Ice-skating down-town at the Galleria on Christmas Eve and also out to lunch with all my siblings. So much fun!!

Making my Mom's famous sugar cookies!

Santa came a little early...

Apparently I have been very good this year cause Santa brought me an early present this year and i am in LOVE! With not being able to use the campus gym anymore I was worried about working out because it rains a lot in Houston so I can't always run outside. So Santa brought me this a little early this year. I LOVE IT!!

My goal is to have a home gym someday (hopefully sooner than later) and this is just the beginning. We got an amazing deal and also received a $100 gift card to sports authority as well. We are going to purchase some more weights with it I think.

If you couldn't tell, we made it to Texas safely and are having lots of fun catching up with my side of the family and doing all the holiday things. It hasn't really hit me that we LIVE here now. It feels like a vacation almost because we have been having fun non-stop.

Expect a post in the near future about our huge 1800 mile move across the country along with all the Christmas festivities we are enjoying. I hope everyone has a great Christmas and celebrate the birth of our Savior. I am so grateful for all of my friends and family and feel seriously so blessed for each of you in my life. Merry Christmas!!!

100 lbs mark

Just a week ago, I hit the 100 lb weight loss mark from my heaviest weight 5 years ago. I tipped the scales at just over 250 lbs. Took me about a year to get about 75 lbs off and then my body just stopped losing weight no matter how healthy I ate and how hard I worked out. Just about six months ago or so I cut almost all starches and sugar from my diet and continued to eat a low calorie, low fat diet, increased my running to about 6-7 miles a day, weight train 3 times a week and I have finally lost the last 25 lbs and hit my 100 lb weight loss mark. Man, does it feel great to know that I lost a whole PERSON of fat from my body! Needless to say, for Christmas I am getting lots of new clothes (: Here's to a happy and healthier new year!

<--- before (5 years ago) .............................. And After (me today)

Going to miss these smiles the most!

"We all take different paths in life, but no matter where we go, we take a little of each other everywhere."

Had my last outing with 2 of my favorite people in Logan. These 2 have changed me so much for the better and i will always always remember you and love you Jimmy & Blu.

Couldn't ask for more.

I know I keep talking about our move to Texas but I guess I am just overwhelmed with all the changes right now. I am so excited to be near my family and for this new chapter of our lives to begin but today was really hard for me.

Every Friday at work we have a team meeting where my boss and I instruct our staff on issues and concerns we have with clients and I always do some sort of training as well. I think today it really hit me I will no longer be apart of this. I will no longer lead such an amazing group of people who have forever changed me. My clients, all 29 of these adults with disabilities, are some of the greatest examples I have ever encountered of Christ-like love. Just today here are 2 short experiences I had with two individuals that touched my heart and let me know all will be well.

First, one client of mine who is what you would call "high-functioning" talked to me after he heard that next Friday will be my last day. He asked me what was going to happen at our building when I was gone. I told him things would be fine and everything would be normal and the girl who is taking my place is going to do an excellent job. Then he got really quiet and said that I made an impact in his life, especially in the recent passing of his brother and wanted to thank me for that. The spirit overwhelmed me at that moment. I think I needed to hear that right then because I was having a selfish moment of feeling replaceable and forgetable even after having been here for 4 years. (dumb, I know). I told this client how much that meant to me and I said a silent prayer of gratitude for this particular young man.

Second, one of my non-verbal clients who I am extremely close with and would adopt in a heart beat if the state of Utah would let me, came up to me and signed he wanted to talk to me. I followed him to our usual spot where we have our daily "talks" where he will sign to me (in his own way) of whatever is on his mind. Usually I really don't know exactly what he is talking about, but he is so enthusiastic you can't help but love these moments with him, even if they make no sense. But today it was different. It made perfect sense to me. He simply signed he loved me. Immediately my eyes welled up with tears thinking about how perfect this young man is and wondered if he really knew how much I love him back. So I broke a rule at work (terrible I know) and signed I loved him back. I had to take a quick walk outside to regain my composure and say yet another silent prayer thanking Heavenly Father for this wonderful experience I have had. It hasn't ever felt like a "job". It has been a privilege and an honor to be apart of their lives. I just hope they know how much I love them.

I will miss these little moments in my daily life. I want to get a 27 foot truck, kidnap them all, and take them with me to Texas. I will be forever grateful for these experiences where I feel the Savior's love through these special individuals.

Saying Goodbye to Aggie Basketball

Tonight we went to our last USU games at students.

It was against BYU. Could you ask for a better opponent?

Well, we won.

It was INTENSE. AMAZING. AND WONDERFUL TO BEAT THEM!!!

It was a sold out crowd. We had to stand on boxes because there was no seats left... it was interesting to watch the game that way. But man, it was so worth it. I will have no voice tomorrow!! I will forever love Aggie Basketball!

Last Dinner Group

For the past year or so, Geoff and I have been in a dinner group with 2 other couples. All six of us met in the same singles ward and we were all friends before we all got married. We all went to each other's weddings and have been a great support system to each other. It has been so fun to get together once a month at each other's houses and eat dinner and play games. We will miss these four greatly when we move but plan on lots of visits down in Texas from them!

Deliciously Delicious!

I normally would post this on my recipe blog but this is just too good not to share on here! So yummy and healthy but also a great bread to make to give away for the holidays. I made 2 loaves to give away to two couples we are having over for a dinner group/christmas party tonight. Yum!

Spiced Applesauce bread (makes 2 loaves)

2 1/2 cups of applesauce

2 cups splenda

1 cup brown sugar splenda

2 eggs & 2 additional egg whites

6 TBSP skim milk

4 cups whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

Mix all ingredients except for flour until a nice creamy texture. Add flour & stir until all mixed. Sprinkle brown sugar splenda on top. Bake @ 350 for about 45-50 minutes or until knife comes out clean. So delicious and nutritious!

cabin weekend

We had the best time this weekend at Kellee's cabin near Park City. We did a lot of shopping, went to dinner, watched movies and played fun games. These two are probably our closest couple we hang out with & Zak is by far Geoff's best friend (besides me of course) and we are going to miss them SO much. I think we like vacationing with these two so much that we are going to make it a tradition! Here's to great friends & great weekends!

Looking forward

I am having some anxiety about leaving all that we love about Logan behind as we soon approach moving (2 1/2 weeks!). I love it here. I really do. Yes, I am a complete wuss when it comes to winter time. I hate the snow/cold/ice. But there is so much about it here I love and adore. It is crazy to think I have lived in Logan for the past 7 years (on and off). Logan really is a quaint, beautiful little town. I met and fell in love with Geoff here. Our first kiss was on Old Main hill. I recieved a top notch education here. I made my best friends here. I will miss the small town rodeos in the summer time. I will miss the springtime in Logan. It is so nice when the snow all melts and it is just so lush and green here. It is breath-taking. More than anything I will miss the 29 clients that I have grown a deep love for. That will be hard to leave behind.

With all that said, I am so excited to start a new chapter in our lives. Houston is a great, enormousness city with so much to offer to Geoff and I. The city is rich in culture, museums, art and music. I am so excited for all the missionary opportunities that will come our way. I am so excited to be near my sweet niece and my niece that will be born in early January. I am looking forward to being actual adults with real jobs that require our degrees. I am SO excited to be near the ocean and beach. Nothing comes close to camping on the beach and waking up to the sunrise over the ocean.

While I will miss Logan dearly, I feel like it is the right thing to move to Houston. I am so thankful for all that I have experienced here and be even more thankful for the blessings that are to come.

The Perfect Weekend.

Going here for dinner:

and eating this:

and then watching this:

The rest of the weekend we will be spending with these 2 awesome people, Zak & Kellee at a quaint cabin, shopping in Park City, playing games and watching movies.

Life does NOT get much better than this (:

Hope everyone has a great of a weekend that we will be having!

Deal of the WEEK!

Yessss.... this just in... Cami got this for Christmas for a whopping $19 plus shipping!!

Style Secrets

I love to shop. Not only that, but I have really expensive taste. I can't help but love pretty things. And sparkly things! Unfortunately with Geoff and I being full time students, that leaves us with very little moo-la to spend! So I have found some really interesting ways to still buy nice clothes without spending so much money.

Just recently I have been emailed twice to blog about where I shop for clothes, how I find such good deals and such. So here is a quick run-down of how I find cool stuff. I sign up on email mailing lists for just about every place I shop from. I get all these emails from them at least every other day it seems. In those emails are promo codes and I save them. Sometimes it will be a free shipping code, a 25% off code, a $5 towards your total order code or whatever. A lot of places will allow you to combine these promo codes which can make things incredibly inexpensive. For example, I got that JCREW dress for just $36 dollars (originally $200) because I waited and waited for it to be on sale and saved all my emails from jcrew. Patience is a virtue. Also, I love LOVE LOVE shabby apple dresses but they are pretty expensive. I got my latest dress from there for only $32 compared to the original price of $98. It pays to sign up for all those obnoxious emails that take up space in your inbox-- trust me!

Someone else also wanted to know where I got these headbands from

I ordered them from this sweet little boutique from back East somewhere called Andrea's Beau. They are actually on the more expensive side (for a headband) but they are such good quality and very unique that I couldn't help buying it!
Anyways, hope that answered a few questions and can help everyone find some good deals on some cute clothes!

Holiday Photo Shoot

Here is a preview of our holiday pictures for 2009. No worries, this is not the one we will be putting in our card so it will be a surprise (: I got the idea of this picture from my good friend Sara & I am pretty happy with how it turned out!

Starting the day off right

Besides reading scriptures and saying your morning prayers, one of the most important things you can do is get a healthy breakfast to start the day off right! Just a couple of days ago, there was a segment on the today show about how type 2 diabetes is no longer referred to as "adult onset diabetes" because so many children are being diagnosed with it now. Reason why? They are obese. This makes me so sad that so many people in our country are careless when it comes to taking care of their bodies and also educating their children about how our bodies are a gift. We must set the example of how to do this by eating right and getting regular exercise. I could go on and on about this (as you can probably tell)but it is something I am so passionate about because I have lived both lifestyles. And the sweets and junk food are just NOT worth it!

Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, tastes as good as being healthy feels. Nothing!

I have added quite a few recipes to my healthy living blog and some good tips that I have learned the past few years to enhance a healthy life-style. So if you wanna know more, go check out my healthy living blog

An amazing painting

Please go to this website to see this amazing painting about being "one nation under God". It will touch your heart. Scroll over each person to see the significance that person has had on our country. I especially liked how the painting shows certain types of people who are disregarding our inspired constitution. Makes me proud to be an American!

Click here to see it

How could I NOT be happy?

I am truly blessed.

I may not have everything perfect
but i have a family that loves me,
a husband who rubs my feet at night & does the dishes every. single. day.
friends who make me laugh,
a testimony which has saved me many many times,
an education that fufills me,
a hope that lifts me,
a tiny, yet very cozy home,
dreams that uplift me,
a job that warms my heart,
a bed to keep me warm at night
and a crisp diet coke that quenches my thirst,
and I get to look at this view each day as I drive to work.

So the way I see it...

Life is good.

Much needed day off

Today was supposed to be another normal day. But it turned out to be a really hard one. The fertility medications we have been taking did not work this month. I was 2 1/2 weeks late so we were really starting to get excited. Then the dreaded monthly visitor came.

Today, I am thankful for my Boss. She saw I was in distress, gave me a hug and she sent me home immediately to take care of myself. Geoff's mentor teacher did the same thing. So today we cried together, we watched a lame chick flick together, and we are just taking care of each other. I am actually thankful for crummy days like these. They always make tomorrow a better and brighter day.

A reason to my insanity.

I put up my Christmas tree & decor today.

And yes I realize what day it is. I did it for 2 simple reasons.

1. I love Christmas more than anything in this world.

2. We are moving at the beginning of December and I wanted a chance to enjoy my Christmas decorations.

So there ya have it!