Smarty Pants

Can you guess what ABABA means?

Michael is a smarty pants and all of the hard work this semester paid off. 

BENDICIONES!

My Moe

Our Moe is leaving us for a mission on Wednesday to go serve the Lord in Ohio for 18 months. Last night we sent her off in true Moe style, eating lots of chocolate and other baked goods. It is nice when the girls get together, even with all of us growing up and being big and busy grown ups. I am so excited for Moe and cannot wait to see what is in store for her. She is going to be SUCH a great missionary. 

I remember the first time I met Mallory back in 2005 (yes, I have lived in Utah for almost 7 years! That is crazy to me.) It was my first or second day of classes at Mountain View which was on a block schedule which was super foreign to me. I knew no one. I was a Senior who felt like a Freshman, imagine how fun that was.

We were sitting in our Interior Design class and everyone had to go around the room and introduce themselves, including an interesting fact. I had this one in the bag, all I had to say is I was from California and I was instantly cool, or so I thought in my California snobbishness. This really cute girl was sitting in the front and introduced herself as Mallory Goodman who played water polo. Words cannot how excited I was to hear this. I ran up to her after class and started babbling 100 words per minute about how I play water polo too and I am signed up for the swim team but I have no idea what to do or where to go. She must have thought I was crazy, but she was nice and told me what I needed to know. 

So I guess Mallory was the one who introduced me to the girls that would get me through my Senior year in the foreign land of Orem, Utah. 

I remember the first time we had Lisa's class, and for some reason we couldn't swim, so we basically had a free period in the morning. I was so shy and didn't talk to any of them, and they were shy and didn't talk to me, so Lisa, our 4ft-snot-rocket-blowing coach was the only one who would talk to me. Sad day.

I remember having to do weight lifting as a swim team and they were all in their long basket ball shorts and I showed up in my teeny weeny boxers to work out in. Yep, I was a hoe hoe (or is it ho ho?)

I remember being a rebel and making them go to Ernie's or Burger King with me early in the morning after practice so we could have breakfast, even if it made us late to Lisa's class. 

I remember them hanging out in the girls locker room each and every lunch period, on a couch, in the shower..... bwahaha, it was funny. 

I remember the first trip we all took together to go do a swimming camp up in Tooele. That is the trip we all put our guard down and became friends. 

Those girls are still some of the closest friends I have. I love that even if we don't see each other for months at a time, when we get together it is as if we had seen each other everyday. I am grateful for those girlies and how they helped me become the person I am now. Without them, I probably wouldn't be married to my Michael, and we all know how much I love him and how perfect we are for each other. Just the thought of not having him or any of the girls not in my life makes me sad!

Another Moe memory I have is when I went over to her house and helped her clean her room for about 3 hours. She wasn't allowed to hang out until her room was clean, so I forced her to clean it so we could play. That was one of my favorite Mallory memories. I cannot wait to send her packages and hear updates about her mission and all that she learns. I will miss her but I am so grateful for her and her example to me. 

I heart you Moe!

Family

....isn't it about time?

Catch Up

I have been meaning to update this for a long time, but life has just been crazy busy. These are some pictures I found from Michael's phone. 

Enjoy.

This is from  Jack's 1st birthday party that we celebrated while they were out here. It was such a cute party with the monkey theme and yummy food. I love it when David and Becca come to town and their kindness. Yay for family!

I have no idea where this is from, but it looks cute. Probably from a motorcycle ride on Jimmer up the canyon. It is pathetic but that is as tan as I got this year, and as you can see it is not even that tan. Sad day. I miss life guarding. 

Bwaha. This picture makes me laugh. We went to California to celebrate Grandpa's 86th birthday and Aunt Robin pulled this sucker out. How cute are we?  And how grateful are we that we grew up and actually grew some hair? I sure am.

Benjamin David Poole

(They are starting the brain washing early)

Micah took Nigel, Isaac, Collin, Michael and I shooting when we were up at his parents house. Nigel did a very good job at staying in his safety spot. 

I LOVE MA HUSBAND!

This kid. Oh man. We went with the Canlas' to Grandpa's birthday and it was so fun! Who would have thought that travelling in a monster van with six kids, four grown ups, one who had strep and was sicker than a dog mind you, would be fun?!

Josh and Danica went to Disneyland right before the party and got this hat for Jack. I think Josh is the most baby hungry man I have ever met. He is so great with kiddos!

Again, this kid. Pretty sure he and Michael (or should I say Monkey, which is how it sounds when Westie tries to say Michael, and it is the CUTEST thing ever) bonded a lot that trip. 

See the safety square? Nigel drew that all by himself and would not leave until all of the guns were put away. Can we say awesome?

And last but not least, Michael and the men folk in his family went to Texas to cheer on BYU. I guess the stadium was ginormous. Welcome to Texas boys, go big or go home.

We are in the middle of finals and projects, and I cannot wait for our much needed Christmas break. We are also doing Thanksmas this weekend and have a company Christmas party to go to woot, woot.                Yay for the holidays!

Saturday is a Special Day...

It's the day we get ready for Sunday!

So today in church, our new bishop announced that for Sacrament Meeting, we would be having people come up and share a testimony about their favorite song and then we would sing the hymn. 

I have to admit, I rolled my eyes. You see, I inherited the Crosby singing abilities... and I will just leave it at that. I felt bad for the lady who was sitting next to me and would have to listen to my awesome Crosby skills shine. The first few songs were okay, it just felt like we were singing. Then, someone shared about how his favorite song was A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief , the sixth verse especially. 

In pris’n I saw him next, condemned
To meet a traitor’s doom at morn.
The tide of lying tongues I stemmed,
And honored him ’mid shame and scorn.
My friendship’s utmost zeal to try,
He asked if I for him would die.
The flesh was weak; my blood ran chill,
But my free spirit cried, “I will!”

That was the song that hit me. That is when I began to feel the spirit. It made me grateful for the first time in a long time to be in the ward that we are in and have the bishop that we have.

Idaho

What a crazy, busy week we had last week! Oy, it was all worth it though. Saturday we slept in and then headed up to Idaho to see the Nielson fam bam for cute baby Nadya's blessing. Words cannot describe how nice it was to be with my peeps. They are home to me and it was so great to get caught up with everyone. Baby Nadya is so stinking cute, long and dainty, just like her mama. DAH! I love the Nielsons!

It was awesome to go down memory lane. One of my favorite memories was when Lyn and I gave Desi a wedgie and pulled her undies up to her armpits, causing them to tear in half. Oh man, we would tease her so much. Now of course I feel bad about it, so sorry Des! I will be forever jealous of your rock hard body (mostly your booty) if that makes you feel any better. 

Of course we talked about Merced 1st Ward. Oh how I love that ward. I have compared every single ward I have been in since we lived there, and no one else even comes close. It stinks that you don't realize what a great thing you have until you don't have it anymore. So here is my shout out to Merced 1st Ward. I love you all and miss you. 

Sadly, I did not take one dang picture the entire time we were there. Poop. Idaho was absolutely gorgeous. All of the colors were changing and the weather was perfect. The whole drive home I was in awe at how pretty it was. It was a great short trip and I think I will be making many more of them up there if it is that pretty. Our hotel pretty much rocked too, thanks Priceline. 

Sunday after the blessing we headed back to home so we could get to Jack's birthday party. It was super fun and Becca did a great job. I got to make some cupcakes for it that looked pretty dang cute if I do say so myself, I copied the idea from Mooder. Aren't Mooder's just the best? I love mine. Unfortunately, the cupcakes did not taste as good as they looked. That is what  I get for cheating and using a mix. 

Life is good. Read your scriptures and pay your tithing. 

The End.

Updates

I guess the most exciting update is that Michael turned 25 on Sunday. He is officially old. Yahoo! We celebrated with friends and family, and lots of chocolate. He recently converted back to Apple products, so his presents included an ipad and apple tv. Lets just say he is a very happy boy, I mean man. 

I got his family and friends to write down 25 different memories they have of Michael and it was so fun to read through what people remembered. I am glad that everyone else sees how awesome and amazing he is, because he truly is the best. 

Lets see, what else? Work is going great, I love having some of my days super busy and long; it makes me appreciate my days off more. I have learned quite a few things while working at Noah's.

1.  I know the difference between and HDMI cord and a VGA cord and how to use them properly
2. Some kids drive me crazy and are just plain spoiled. We had a birthday party for a 1 year old, and pretty sure the parents spent 3 grand on the venue alone. For a 1 year old. Think about it. 
3.  When people are leaving, I usually tell them to have a good night. That is not however the best thing to say to brides and grooms leaving for the night. It is just awkward.
4.  Achy Breaky Heart in Spanish is one of the funniest things I have ever heard in my life and I will shoot myself if I hear it one more time.
5. The girls I work with are seriously the best. It has been so fun to get to know them more. 

Um, Beal introduced me to Pinterest and I heart it.  I do have to say though, it is crazy how something that is useful and productive can also be damaging and harmful. A lot of people use it to put themselves down rather than lift themselves up. Pictures of naked, or half naked people is not art ladies and gents, it is damaging. Satan is a little sneaky snake and would have you think otherwise. The end.

Michael is doing amazing at school and is loving it. We have been so blessed with his work schedule this semester so he can focus more on school. He is now a translator for his uncle's company and it is super mellow. It works a lot better with his personality and he actually enjoys it. Bendiciones.

He also has a bunch of geology trips that he will be taking this month. We also hopefully get to go to Idaho for  baby Nadya's blessing. I can't wait! Speaking of babies, Christy and Eric had their son Benjamin David a few weeks ago and Callie and Jon had Kalani Simplicio last week. I am in heaven with all of these babies! It has been so fun to cuddle them and love them.

The End.

Birfdays and Such

Isaac turned 8! I cannot believe how old that kid is. I remember when he was a baby I would take him to Golden Valley on my lunch breaks and show him off. 

We had a party to celebrate and took the kids on a motorcycle ride afterwards. Some of these pictures are too cute!

That's How We Roll

So, Monday afternoon Michael and I had a break together before he had to go back to work. I kissed him farewell and he was out the door. I went to the window and watched him  as he left because he is just so nice to look at (we are married, so that is not creepy at all.) 

He gets in the car and slowly, ever so slowly pulls, out. As he is doing so, a huge man truck is slowly, ever so slowly, driving past him. As luck would have it, they collided. The rear bumper was fine, it just has a scrape that we can smooth out. Same with the other car as well, but the owner was being kind of a butt about it.  They exchanged insurance and off they went. 

Michael was flustered and annoyed. I was calm, which is not normal. I repeat, in times of crisis, I am not ever calm. I go in crazy mode and freak out. However, in this case I was calm and collected. We called our insurance and told them what happened. Half way through the call, I remembered that you can get money from insurance when stuff like this happens. I only know this because once Covey hit my Jetta and barley made any damage, but we got like a grand out of it. 

Point. Me remembering is what we call inspiration kids.

I asked the kind insurance lady what we would need to do to get an estimate and then work on fixing it ourselves. She got us all straightened out, the estimate appointment made, and we were good to go. After the estimate appointment and deductible was taken out, we ended up making about $400. Our monthly insurance wouldn't really be affected (effected? I can never get those right) because Michael will be officially old next month and we have a great track record with them. If you can, you should totally get USAA because they rock.

I have decided that this is my tithing story.  You know, when you pay your tithing, crazy blessings come from it?  Well, everyone can always use a little extra cash, and now because we paid our tithing and had a little accident, we basically have a free car tune up. Tithing = Blessings.

Bendiciones! I can't help but remember about a similar experience that I had back in the day. Sue and I were living at the condo with Erica and Latara I think. I had been broke for months, and could never seem to get ahead. We all go through that stage of being poor and broke college students, but for real, this time I really was. One day I came home after a long day at work and school and found and envelope with my name on it. Inside was $300 and a note saying that I was loved and to not try and figure out who had given me the money.  I sat on the kitchen floor and cried.  I was overwhelmed with love and gratitude. How can people be so generous and kind? To me, it proved that there is a loving Heavenly Father who is in tune with our needs and answers our prayers. We sometimes are the ones who can be the helpers, and other times we are the ones who need the help. 

That day I promised that when I was able to, I would do a similar thing for a poor college aged girl.

I still to this day have no idea who left that on my porch. I do know though that they are super kind and in tune with the spirit. So, if it was you and you read my blog, please know how grateful I am to you and your kindness. You helped me strengthen my testimony when I needed it the most. You will never know how much you affected me that day. Thank you.

9/11

I cannot believe that it has been ten years since 9/11 happened. I still remember it like it was yesterday. I was not going to write about it, but today in church we talked about how a weak pen is better than a strong memory? I think that is how it went. Anyway, I will not always remember these things, so I am writing it down now. 

I was staying at the Nielson's with Lynlee while mom was in Florida with Christine to visit Jacque Robinson who was playing volley ball for the Gators. We had slept in because we were home schooled and didn't have to be ready early in the day. I walked into their family room and Theresa had the news on. A woman had just jumped out of a building live on tv. Theresa explained that two planes had hit the towers, towers that were filled with people. The planes were American Airline planes. My dad is a pilot for American and was flying a similar route. I was terrified that he was on those planes. I called him, there was no answer, I called my mom, there was no answer. 

It was hectic, it was the longest day ever. I swore my dad was dead. It wasn't until hours that felt like days later that I finally spoke with Mom and Dad. They were both safe. Our prayers were answered. 

I just remember the day being so long and slow. Sue was staying at our house with the Bowen's. She went through the exact same fears about our parents  as I did, and we were able to grieve together but then comfort each other as well. 

We went to Mutual later that night, and everyone was talking about where they were when they heard what had happened. I remember there being a sense of unity, a feeling of Americans joining together as Americans, united and turning to Heavenly Father in this time of crisis. When Dad got back into town, I remember him going up into the attic where all of his stuff was and opening up his American Flag that was in a display case. I think he was given it when he retired from his service in the Air Force. He hung it on the right side of our house, and it hung there until we moved. I remember everyone getting those American Flag car flag things. 

Alan Jackson wrote a song about his experience. I think it totally encompasses how many felt that day. I hope we can all remember that day and use it to progress as a county united and to always remember the true important things in life. 

Where were you when the world stopped turning on that September day?
Were you in the yard with your wife and children
Or working on some stage in L.A.?
Did you stand there in shock at the sight of that black smoke
Risin' against that blue sky?
Did you shout out in anger, in fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cry?

Did you weep for the children who lost their dear loved ones
And pray for the ones who don't know?
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble
And sob for the ones left below?
Did you burst out in pride for the red, white and blue
And the heroes who died just doin' what they do?
Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer
And look at yourself and what really matters?

[Chorus:]
I'm just a singer of simple songs
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN but I'm not sure I can tell
you the difference in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith, hope and love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is love

Where were you when the world stopped turning on that September day?
Were you teaching a class full of innocent children
Or driving down some cold interstate?
Did you feel guilty 'cause you're a survivor
In a crowded room did you feel alone?
Did you call up your mother and tell her you loved her?
Did you dust off that Bible at home?

Did you open your eyes, hope it never happened
Close your eyes and not go to sleep?
Did you notice the sunset the first time in ages
Or speak to some stranger on the street?
Did you lay down at night and think of tomorrow
Or go out and buy you a gun?
Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watchin'
And turn on "I Love Lucy" reruns?

Did you go to a church and hold hands with some strangers
Did you stand in line and give your own blood?
Did you just stay home and cling tight to your family
Thank God you had somebody to love?

[Repeat Chorus 2x]
And the greatest is love.
And the greatest is love.

Where were you when the world stopped turning that September day? 

Labor Day 2011

I guess I should finally sit down and right about our trip up to Idaho. We both had to work, so we didn't leave Orem until about 8 o'clock Saturday night with Michael's mom and Nathan's girlfriend Megan Davis (coolest last name ever right?)

The first stop of the night was in Roy at the Burger Bar. Michael and I fasted somewhat all day so we would be able to eat the ginormous burger. We forgot to tell Mama and Megan not to eat before hand, so they missed out but made sure we stopped on the way home as well after having a bite of ours. If you have not been there, go. Go right now. You will thank me later.

We finally made it to Soda Springs Idaho at like 1 in the morning. We stayed at Christy Jean's club house with the Lambsons. Sunday morning we woke up, met with everyone, including Luke and Bryce, my personal favorite little guys to visit while in Idaho. Bryce and Michael became best friends and got along very well. 

We went to church, had some dinner, and headed up to Bear Lake. Twas fun. 

Monday we went and floated down the river in some tubes. It was scary/boring/super duper fun/exciting all rolled into one. We were in a three man tube with Michael, Sammy, and I. I was the only one wearing chacos, the boys were in flip flops and had to take them off so they wouldn't lose them in the river. Being as I was the only one who had shoes on, I felt it was my responsibility to protect us when we were coming upon any rocks or walls. That was stupid. We were coming towards a really big jagged rock, so I stuck my foot out to push off. Rather than pushing us off, my leg took the brunt and bent in ways that legs should not bend. It killed. I did however save our tube from popping. Go me. 

After hanging out there a tad, we headed home and stopped by Christy and Eric's house. It was so good to see them and I cannot wait for them to have their little baby boy this month! 

Here are some pictures to prove we were there. Enjoy.

Jimmered

As you may know, Michael has a motorcycle named Jimmer. 

We like to go on Sunday rides with Jimmer. This particular Sunday we went up to Vivian's Park and it was GORGEOUS.

That was until we got home and I hit my leg on the super hot exhaust pipe. 

I got burned pretty bad. I documented the healing process and I have to say, the human body is pretty dang cool. 

WARNING!

These pictures may have some mature material (as in they are disgusting) and they also show off my cankles, so look at your own risk.

The last picture is from today. I am kind of upset it didn't leave a cooler scar.....

13.1

We did it! Michael and I completed our first half marathon and lived to tell the tale. 

It all started out Friday afternoon when Michael still had a test to take, so I was on packing duty. I even had him make me a list of what exactly it was that he wanted so he could be as comfortable as possible. I headed home to pack and take a nap while he studied a bit more and took his test. The minute he got home, we were out the door and ready to go. 

I am sad to report that this is our first legit road trip together alone our entire relationship! Pathetic huh? Anywhos, our first stop was in Scipio to visit Marty the Zebra. I have been talking Marty up to Michael for months about how cool he was and how excited I was for Michael to meet him because he was just so cute. So we stop at the petting zoo, but Marty is no where to be found. Discouraged, we go inside to get some treats and I asked the lady at the counter what had happened to Marty. She replied with a blank face, 

"It died."

And that was that. No explanation, no remorse. No compassion. It was really quite sad. I of course called Lexi and we had a moment of silence over the phone and reminisced about our dear Marty friend that we grew to love so much after meeting him two or three times. (We are cool, not crazy, I promise.)

 

Back into the car it was. Being as this was the first half marathon that Parowan had sponsored, it was a wee bit unorganized. We were told in an email to go to facebook to get the rest of the details for where to pick up our packets and when, etc. So into the trusty GPS the address that was on facebook went, and that is where we ended up, which was in fact the Parowan Courthouse, that was LOCKED. I started to panic because I had no idea where to go next, and after knocking on the door, a kind janitor fellow opened it and suggested we go to the Library, to which we did, but still, no packets or running people were to be found. So I asked a nice lady on a swing where she would suggest going to find the registration, and she directed us to the City Center, but again no dice. 

 

This whole ordeal lasted at least an hour, and the pick up time closed at 8 so I was beyond annoyed and stressed. We finally found a poster for the half and it said the starting place was the Iron County Fairgrounds, so we went there as our last resort. Of course that is where the packets and registration was. Ugh! At least we know where all of the government buildings of Parowan are now located. We got our packets with our super awesome get up and headed over to the Judds. 

After chatting with Aunt Lynette and Uncle Kelly for  a while, we figured we should get some food to tide us over for the race the next morning. We headed to the gas station that had a Subway and Taco Bell. You can probably guess that the Subway was closed and we got stuck eating Taco Bell, and boy oh boy, that is not something you want to eat the night before a race. 

We went home and went to bed, had the worst gas all night, and then woke up for the race. I mentioned before that I was in charge of packing and I had packed the wrong pair of new Nike shorts Michael had put on his list! I felt horrible. He basically had to run in basket ball shorts and did not have a small enough pocket to put his Zune in, so he ran without any music at all and in big, baggy clothes. I felt like the worst wife ever. He of course was a champ and made appropriate clothing alterations to his tighty whiteys half way through the race to take care of his pain. 

 

What a tank!  I love him. Everything for this race was seriously against us it felt like. Our training had suffered for the last three weeks because life got in the way, you know, the important things like school, work, eating and somehow getting enough sleep. Our runs became few and far between. We were both trying not to get sick. We hadn't been at home for a huge chunk of those two weeks, so our diet had suffered. Our goal had become just to finish the dang thing and not come in last.

Thankfully, we did just that. We rode up on buses to the start of the race and were told the that start line was between those two big pine trees. Um, which two big pine trees? We were in the middle of a forest basically! We found the appropriate pine trees after waiting an hour to start and then off we went. Miles 1-3 were pretty rustic and rocky, I rolled my ankle a few times and used some choice language. We got to Mile 3 and had our first water break. Miles 3-6 were easy peasy. It was all downhill and felt like we got it done in no time at all. Then came another rest stop at Mile 9 and we were still going pretty good. The route was gorgeous. 

 

Remember the yummy/not Taco Bell we had for dinner the night before? Pretty sure it made me feel like I was going to poo my pants, or have a pariseltic wave as Padre would call it, the entire race. Running with your booty clenched together is no bueno and down right scary.  You hear horror stories all the time about runners losing control of their bowels and pooing themselves, and being tough enough to wipe it of and keep on going. I would be too mortified I think, and I kept my fingers crossed that that would not happen to me, and my booty tight to make sure it didn't happen. 

About Mile 10 is when we left the canyon and ended up on the main road. This is also the time that I lost all motivation. I just got bored and annoyed with myself. I started running and then walking more than I should have, and my sweet Michael stayed with me and pushed me on. Mile 11 was the longest freaking mile ever, it seemed like it would never come. I had an orange and some gatorade that was more powder than anything, which was not a wise choice. I threw up bile and started to walk again. I made Michael go ahead of me because I did not want to hold him back. He fought me on it but eventually just kept running. I would alternate running and walking every block till the finish line.

 

The last half mile was uphill. It was hot. It basically sucked. I had been racing a girl that we would keep on passing each other, and beating her became my motivation. I started to go heal to toe on the hill, ducked my head, and kept going. Low and behold, there was the finish line and Michael cheering me on. It was over! Finally! Michael  had  a 2:07 time and I had a 2:09. He ended up being 8th in his age division and I was 19th. Wahoo! Taking everything into consideration, we were pretty pleased with our time and just glad to have accomplished something as big as that. It was the most we had ever run together and it just felt so great to be done. 

 

To say the least, we were exhausted and hungry, so we hit up the Parowan Cafe for some grub and it was oh so good. Then we went back to the Judds and chatted some more. I love my extended family so much. They are just all so great and it was fun to have Michael get to know them a little bit better. We showered and rested up and then headed down to Zions so Michael could look at rocks because he likes rocks. We were beyond tired though after we did some shopping, so we decided to head on home. Pretty sure I literally slept until 3 pm on Sunday and it was HEAVENLY. I love me some sleep.Michael is a tank and hardly slept at all.

It was such a great little trip and of course I fell more in love with Michael. We are both walking around like penguins with sticks up our bums and it is quite entertaining. We cannot wait until we do another one, and hopefully for that one we will be more prepared. 

We ran a half marathon! Wahoooo!

Here is our super pretty picture after the race.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Michael and I have been staying at his mom's house for the last few weeks while she has her Japanese students here. One plus to being there means that I am down the street from Lexi! So we have been riding our bikes to work together and it has been muchos funnos. 

 Yesterday was the highlight of our biking adventures. Utah is bipolar and likes to be hot and sunny one minute, and then have a downpour rain and hail session the next. When we left in the morning, little did we know that we would be riding in the rain with hail pounding down on our poor bodies. 

I can't wait to watch that bike ride home on my movie in heaven because it was seriously so pathetic but HAlarious at the same time. 

 And of course we had to document it.

 You can't really tell, but we were super duper soaked.

 Lexi wears a helmet. Bwaha.

Kicks and giggles.