Christmas Vacation in Michigan and Wisconsin

Jonathan and I decided to visit family during our Christmas Vacation. Last week, we flew out to Chicago then drove up to Kalamazoo, MI to spend Christmas with my parents.  It was really nice for Jonathan to spend time with the in-laws especially because he had met my parents for the first time when they came out here for our wedding last November.  I was really happy they still liked him :)  The best part was seeing how much fun my little brothers had with Jonathan.  My youngest brother, Camden (8) couldn't leave him alone.  He was always asking if Jonathan wanted to play soccer or play games with him. We visited Lake Michigan as a family and also attended an Eagle Court of Honor for a local scout in my brother's troop.  

Camden showing off his muscles 

Britton (12), Camden, and Jonathan playing a game on Jonathan's phone.

Jonathan thought it would be funny to use the stool at the drinking fountain.

After Christmas, Jonathan and I drove from Kalamazoo all the way up to Green Bay, WI to spend a few days with his sister Ashli and her family.  Ashli and her husband Bart just had their third little boy in November and we were so excited to meet little baby Krew!  We also got to be there for Kade and Ky's 6th birthday (they are the most adorable twins).  For some reason I totally forgot to bust out my camera and take pictures of them, so if you want to see awesome pictures of Ashli and her family check out her blog.  The two month pictures of Krew are the cutest!!!  http://bartandashli.blogspot.com/     :)  

Happy Holidays!

The One Year Mark

Jonathan and I have been super busy with school over the past few months.  As we're coming up on Thanksgiving break (our first real break this year!) we are also coming up on our One Year Anniversary! (Nov. 20) In retrospect, this has been by far the best year ever.  Jonathan and I have gone on adventures, taken lots of classes, and learned (most importantly) how to work together as a couple.  Seriously, we're like a power couple now. not even joking.

Just some highlights from the last month or so:

Jonathan went to his first BIG job interview the second week of November.  He was interviewing with GE in Minden, Nevada.  As far as we know, it went really well but we won't know for sure unless a job offer comes our way.

On a smaller note, I performed for the first time ever as a soloist in front of an audience not entirely made up of my musical peers.  Last week I played my Bassoon piece "Slip Jar" at this semester's Composition dept. recital.  It went really really well and was a huge hit with the audience.  I also got great feedback from the Composition faculty.  

The Last 10 Months - School and Other Things

We took our honeymoon over Thanksgiving break which meant that we had to go to school the following Monday.  Let me tell you, that was not fun at all.  With Jonathan studying Electrical Engineering and myself practicing bassoon twelve hours a week we were super busy.  Luckily, we still found time to spend with each other even if it was only for a few hours each night.  I had early morning classes and Jonathan had loads of homework in the evening.  The next semester (winter 2011) wasn't much better either.  Jonathan was taking seventeen credits and I was finishing up my last semester in the bassoon studio.  Soooo busy.
 
We finished strong that semester.  I applied for the Music Composition BA and got accepted and Jonathan survived.  There was a week break after finals and before spring term started so I decided to get my wisdom teeth out.  I was planning on going to school through the spring and summer so this seemed like the perfect time. Little did I know that I was going to spend the next six days on Lortab with painfully swollen cheeks.  They did get better in time for me to start classes again.

I spent the spring term taking classes full time, to help me finish my music theory core for my major.  Jonathan spent the spring working full time for Sewell Direct as a product innovator.  For the small break we had between spring and summer Jonathan and I went to visit his brother Daniel in Redmond, Washington.  It was so much fun! We saw the locks in Seattle, ate the world's most delicious clam chowder, and saw the sights.  It did rain a little, and it was chilly for that time of the year. We also took a trip to Zion National Park in June.  This was my first time there and I thought it was the coolest thing ever! We took tons of pictures and it was so warm and sunny - a nice contrast to Washington.  Summer term started and no much changed for new classes,still full time, and Jonathan worked a little less to make time for one class.

After summer term, Jonathan and I went on a day trip up to the Uintas again to hike and enjoy the last bit of snow that was still up there.  It was as gorgeous as it had been a year ago when Jonathan proposed to me, although this time I didn't get sick at all, thankfully. We hiked for hours and ate lunch and took lots of pictures.  We even did an off trail hike! It felt like we were the only two people in the world because there was no one else around.

Then fall semester started.......

The Last 10 Months - The Honeymoon

Jonathan and I spent three days in Moab, Utah for our honeymoon.  I was really excited because Moab was supposed to be tens of degrees warmer than Provo at the end of November.  Jonathan had found a small cabin to rent just outside of town. We got down there and it wasn't much warmer than Provo.  We woke up the next morning to six inches of snow! This didn't stop us, we were going to go hiking around Arches National Park.  I had never been there so I was really looking forward to it.  It was super cold, super windy, but there was nothing more beautiful than the snow covered red rock of Moab.  We saw so many arches, even the one that's on the Utah license plate. We really had a lot of fun :D

The Last 10 Months

When Jonathan and I were first married, he wanted me to start a blog for us as a couple.  I thought it would be fun, but i never got around to actually doing it.  Well, after ten wonderful months of being married to Jonathan, i finally did it!  It may be slow at first, but i think ill get the hang of it soon. So, here's and over view of Jonathan and I since this time last year:

  On September 4, 2010 Jonathan and I took a trip to the Uinta Mountains

 here in Utah.  I had spent the summer at basic training in Oklahoma and AIT in Virginia - both at sea level.  About halfway through our hike I started to feel very lightheaded, very dizzy, and very nauseous.  The hike we were on was climbing to about 10,000 feet and I was altitude sick.  I wanted to go back, but Jonathan insisted that we reach the end of the hike, said it would be worth it.  This was very unusual, Jonathan wouldn't put me through this.  But he was right, when we got to the end of the hike, the lake was perfectly still, it was sunny and warmish, and there were tons of white rocks to rest on - which i did.  I was starting to feel a lot better when Jonathan said i should sit up... oh ok.. then stand up.. what?  Then he was down on one knee asking me to be his wife!  It was perfect. I was so happy I nearly squeezed the life out of him when I hugged him and said yes. Jonathan and I were going to get married :D

  

We set the date: November 20, 2010.  I bought my dress only daysafter Jonathan proposed.  Jonathan's mom, Kathy, offered to help with flowers, the cake, AND the reception.  Everything was perfect.  My family flew out from Kalamazoo, Michigan to be there and all our closest friends were coming.  We decided to be sealed in the Draper, Utah temple.  We had so many family members there for our wedding, both immediate and extended. 

Our wedding day was perfect, it didn't snow and the rain stopped as soon as we arrived at the temple.  Even though it wasn't rainy, it was super windy and overcast.  My dad, Andrew, and Jonathan's sister, Ashley,  took our wedding pictures.  It was still really cold outside, but I was so happy nothing could bring me down.

We had our reception at a stake center in Orem and so many people came! I also had to stand for picture after picture after picture which is REALLY tiring.

It was the most perfect day Jonathan and I had had so far and we were the happiest we had ever been.  We cut the cake and I threw the bouquet and we visited with family and friends.  There was plenty of laughter and smiles to go around.

Our friends had written all over our car - but I don't know what they wrote because just as we were leaving for our honeymoon it started raining again.  The only evidence of the sabotage was a million little hearts that wouldn't come off our headlights/taillights for months afterwards :)  So, happy and full of love, Jonathan and I left for our honeymoon in Moab, Utah.