My Hubby Rocks!

Today is my birthday...and it has been the best! He made a cake for me! Yes, Cody baked. It was a total shock. He didn't make just any cake, either, he made a cake with HOMEMADE Cream Cheese Peanut Butter frosting. I had resee's cups on top, and even fresh shaved chocolate. Way to go all out, Cody! I told him that he now has to live up to that every year from here on out!

He topped off my cake with the DVD Julie and Julia, which I had never seen. It was so super cute, and now I just want to cook, cook, cook!

He also gave me the best present ever, which I will put up a picture of after Christmas Vacation...I know, I know....suspense, right?! Hopefully you think it is as awesome as I do!

After a nice relaxing day of getting my huge surprise, watching a girlie movie at 9 in the morning, eating cake for lunch along with some spiderman mac and cheese(yes, I eat this!), and doing a few loads of laundry to get ready to fly home tomorrow (Yippeeee!), we headed to a delicious italian restaurant called Lo Sole Mio. It was divine. I am now going to go eat a sugar cookie from Paradise Bakery and call it a night! Thanks for the best day ever Hubb! (And stay tooned for the reveal of the big surprise!)

O Christmas Tree!

This is our BEAUTIFUL Christmas tree! I had to beg...and maybe shed a tear or two...to get it. Isn't it awesome? I love it so much. It makes my day each time I get to turn the lights on. We had a good time decorating it...especially when we got a box of Cody's Christmas ornaments from his parents. They were so fun to see! He has one from each year of his life...from trains to planes to golfing santas and polar bears! They are so cute!

Omaha is insane. Yes, insane. I thought Montana had snow...NO WAY! It is so crazy here...we had 4 inches of snow on Monday of last week, and 11 on Tuesday! School and work were cancelled, so Cody and I just partied! Okay, so Cody studied and I, well, I am not sure what I did! It is freezing here...and did you know there is such a thing as freezing rain? It coats on your windows of your car and you have to start your car for at LEAST 30 minutes before you even attemp to scrape your windows! It is INSANE!!! I have never worked so hard in my life!

I also had to give you a preview of things to come on my food blog:

These tasty little treats made an appearance at our soon-to-be annual neighborhood Christmas Party. We had our cul-de-sac of neighbors over for a little treat night as well as some 7-11 game playin'! It was such a fun time...and the 7-11 got pretty heated! If you don't know what 7-11 is, you are missing out!

MONTANA COUNTDOWN: 6 DAYS!!!!

Love this time of the year

Thanksgiving! Christmas! I love this time of year. I am so, so excited for this week....maybe it is because I only have two days of work, maybe it is because I get to see my hubbs for 4 days in a row, maybe it is because my mouth waters just THINKING about Thursday, who knows! I just know that I can't wait for the upcoming month.

We are having Thanksgiving dinner with Aaron and Erika. They are frying a turkey (yes, FRYING...I have heard it is D-licious, even though I am a little scared!), Erika is whipping up homemade pies, (she is a better woman than me, I would have resorted to Costco!) and she is making corn. I am doing the potatoes, (sweet with brown sugar and marshmallows AND mashed regular ones) homemade rolls, (I am trying a new recipe so say a prayer for me!) and homemade stuffing (don't you worry...I have a box of Stove Top on hand just in case I fail miserably!) Overall we should have way too much food just like every other Thanksgiving meal.

This year, for the first time, Cody and I have been scoping the Black Friday sales. I guess when you get really poor and in debt buying stuff for 1/4 of the price, even if it is at 4 am, sounds more appetizing! We have seen quite a few things that we would like to shoot for, but it sounds like we will have to narrow down our options and get the one we want/need most!

It is only 30 days until we fly home for Christmas! We can't wait! I am bummed, however, that I will, again, be missing the family Progressive Dinner Party. It is my favorite. I can't wait until we live in B-Town again and can join in that fun. My sister and brother will both be home for Christmas so it should be a blast. Not to mention the 8 days with no work or school...SWEET!

Just a couple of side notes:

-I love Rummikub. LOVE it. Me and hubbs played it tonight. It made my day!

-We saw New Moon on Friday, loved it...I am pretty sure this one will be my favorite of all four movies considering it was my favorite book.

-I want to see the new Sandra Bullock movie, "Blind Side" I have heard that it is amazing.

-I can't seem to get anything done lately. Not sure why, just laziness I guess!

-It makes me happy beyond belief to talk on the phone to people I love. I hope I get a bluetooth for Christmas so I can talk even more, and multi-task!

-I am so happy that my dad didn't die jumping out of an airplane last week!

-Life is good, really, really good.

Nebraska vs. Texas Tech

Well....two weeks later I finally get around to posting this! We have had a busy, busy two weeks! Cody has had like 7 tests...he is a mad man! Not to mention I had to work last Monday so my life has been a big jumble. It totally messes me up when I have to work on a day I am supposed to have off...I hate it!

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago we went to the Nebraska vs. Texas Tech game. It was INSANE. I seriously could not believe how much RED was there! I looked like a total idiot in my green coat...seriously, people were STARING at me! I should have had a sign that said, "I am from Montana, sorry". Maybe I would have gotten less weird looks that way. We had a great time despite a little kid puking on our seats, and the fact that the game was a blowout! hehe! Anyway, short update, but we are alive!

Omaha's Friendly animals...

Okay, I guess I have been on an animal kick lately....

This squirrel seriuosly would have came in my house if I let him! It was so crazy! Erika feeds squirrels all the time, and when she walked over to my house tonight one followed her over. We proceeded to give him a bite of a cookie here and there, which he ate right in front of us. Finally, we just gave him an ENTIRE cookie! He grabbed the whole thing....yes, the silver on the bottom of the picture is my DOOR FRAME...he was so close to us!

This is Big Fred...

He was ginormous! I couldn't even believe that a praying mantis could get so large. He lurked around our house for a week or two...until the frost hit. Then Cody dug him a grave and he and Jace buried him...poor Big Fred.

Finally a picture of us! YESSSS!! It has been a while! We went to The Melting Pot this weekend....O was it ever divine! (Okay, divine for me, a small little piece of down under for Cody...no, not AUSTRALIA...the other down under!). He wasn't into the "cooking your own food one piece at a time" thing. I loved it...so many different meats all on one platter, and the dessert! Cody did love the dessert, which was smores chocolate (milk chocolate with marshmallow and graham in it). They give you an entire dish of yumminess to dip in the chocolate, including oreo covered marshmallows and rice crispies!

We are like these monkeys...

Okay, we are lame. Seriously, I work, Cody studies, we eat....YEP! That is about it! We pretty much look like these monkeys by the time our day is over! Unfortunately, each week I come and sit down at my blog and try to think of something to write, and, nothing comes!

I did do something last week while Cody was studying, though! I thought I would share this picture of the spider monkeys at the Omaha Zoo. Seriously, this zoo is AMAZING! It puts Hogle Zoo to shame...maybe you Utahn's should come and visit...you know who you are! Every animal you can get soooo close to, it is crazy! I went for a short trip with a neighbor, Jaime, and her little man, Gabe. We had such a blast. We only went to the Aquarium, giraffes, seals and the monkey building. (Seriously, it is a BUILDING...it has THREE levels...crazy!) The aquarium is unreal. They have everything there from penguins (did you know that emperor penguins are born with BROWN, long fur and are as big as their parents in only weeks?) to jellyfish(so awesome!) to seahorses(yes, they really exist!) to sharks...big, scary sharks. I was seriously afraid they were going to come through the glass and bite my head off...it was totally freaky how close you can get to them.

In all of the exhibits they have these certain areas with inverted sections that you can literally be IN the tank/cage of the animal. It is so creepy! The penguins swim right up to your face and under you, the gorillas sit on your head! ahh!

In the monkey building there was a baby gorilla who I just wanted to cuddle with. He was sleeping on a zoo keeper's chest, wearing a diaper and drinking a bottle...just like a real baby! His momma wasn't too comfortable being in the same cage as him, so sad, so the zoo keepers have to raise him.

Okay, the by far most entertaining part of my trip to the zoo was the spider monkeys. They were in trees above a swarm of fish...seriously like 1000. Jaime wanted me to bring some bread to feed them, and I was so skeptical. Seriously? I am not five. WELL....I GUESS I AM INSIDE! It was so awesome, you would throw a piece of bread to them and they would snatch it out of the water below and chow it down. All of the fish would trample eachother to try and get it but the monkeys were to speedy. This is our favorite monkey....

He would snatch a piece of bread, savor every bite, and right when he was done he would throw his hand up in the air like he was asking for another piece! HE WOULD NOT PUT IT DOWN UNTIL WE THREW HIM ANOTHER ONE! It was hilarious! He stared right at us forever until we finally ran out of bread! Everyone around was watching us feed him, it was the highlight of my day!

I can't wait to go to the zoo with Cody, I know he will love it, and I can't wait to see the rest of the animals! I am definitely taking bread with me!

I have loved this picture lately. I don't know why, but it calms me. Hope it does the same for you.

Well, a little update for everybody is well overdue. We are trucking along and already feeling the effects of first year dental school. Cody is staying up until wee hours of the night studying and even waking up early...like 6 am...on Saturdays before heading to the library to get in a few extra hours. He is getting to know a few more kids in his class, which is soooo good. I am ready for some friends to start coming our way any day now! His first mega exam is this Friday, so I am expecting not to see him much at all the next 3 nights, and then to party hard on Saturday! We are excited for the long weekend and hope to have a BBQ on our nice big grill.

We have still been working on our house here and there. We are getting closer to getting all of our pictures on the walls and more decorations up. There is just so much space to cover compared to our little 1 bedroom in Provo! I am getting my sink put in for my salon in two days and I can't wait! Hopefully then I can slowly start building my clientele and get a little extra money rolling in. We have been hanging with Aaron, Erika and the boys non-stop, and I am loving it! They are so fun to be with, eat with, shop with, pretty much do everything with!

I am staying busy, well, occupied, anyway! Work is going great, I work 3.5 days a week, which is just perfect for me. I swear the other day and a half I am cleaning my MASSIVE house! Okay, so it just feels massive! I have been experimenting starting an actual website instead of just a blogspot, so we will see if the fruits of that labor are ever shared with all of you!

We had a nice weekend and watched a few movies. We just joined Netflix, and it is so crazy getting movies in the mail! I LOVE IT! We watched Race to Witch Mountain and Push this weekend and they were both actually pretty good!

Okay, I am obviously out of stuff to talk about...sorry!

Carrie got Married!

I am so happy for Carrie! She got married to Chris Fimrite this weeked, who, let's face it, is the BOMB! They had such a beautiful wedding, and I got to be a part of it! I flew into Billings on Thursday afternoon and from there on out it was go-go-go! We had a rehearsal and a dinner that night, which was o so fun! Carrie and Chris are so thoughtful, that has always been Carrie to think of others more than herself. They gave everyone who had anything to do with their wedding a present, I got clip on earrings(homemade by Mr. Fimrite!) to wear at the wedding and also a photography book, which I LOVE!

Friday we made flowers, well, ALL day! They all ended up beautiful, especially Carrie's bouquet.
I learned a ton about making flowers for special events and spent some quality time with the other bridesmaids. That night we had a BBQ and PJ made THE BEST pulled pork ever! I have to get the recipe asap so I can whip some out and impress some people! Then Carrie packed for her Honeymoon to MEXICO! Fun! FUN!!!!

Saturday was the BIG day! At 7:30 am I headed to Carrie's house and we went to the Dan Walt Gardens to set up for the Wedding and the Reception. It was quite the task, moving tables, setting centerpieces, hanging decorations, planning the fun for the evening. Then we headed to a hotel suite to do hair! And DO HAIR we did! I curled, and curled, and curled for about 4 hours! WHEW! Everyone looked so beautiful, especially Carrie, I LOVED her hair! She even had a Mary Kay lady come to do makeup, everyone looked so amazing. At about 4 pm (only 1 hour late!) we went back to the gardens to start the festivities. Picture time was a blast, I especially loved it! After pictures we headed back to the bridal suite and that is when I whipped out my camera, I think I got some really fun shots! We had a blast getting Carrie all ready to say I DO! Then came the ceremony. It was SOOO beautiful. Rose petals were scattered down the aisle and the weather was perfect. There were a TON of people there. I only cried once during the ceremony when Chris was saying his vows and telling Carrie how much he loved her....that really got me! I am so glad that she found such an awesome man...and he is even more lucky to have her! They said their I do's and it was of to the reception. Everything went perfect, we laughed and great food and amazing cake, (not to mention those cream cheese mints...mmmm!), and danced the night away! It really was an amazing night and I hope they loved every minute of it! I can't wait to see some of the pictures that were taken, but until then, click the pic below to see some of the ones that I took!

Carrie's Wedding

I am in love...

I am in love with my new Kitchen Aid Hand Mixer. There is nothing better than 9 speeds of mixing bliss. Thank you Mom and Cody for helping me get this little bit of heaven into my kitchen!

The Last HooRah!

Yep...it has come down to the wire. Cody has 4 days until he starts dental school!!! This summer has gone by so fast. I think that we are both ready for him to start school, however. He is ready to get down to business, and good thing, because we hear this first year is pretty intense. He will do great though!

We weren't planning on another vacation before he started school, but the cards just fell correctly! Cody's parents decided to buy a motor home(which we are so excited about and hoping that they just might come visit us sometime soon!), and they bought it in Michigan. They asked us to fly and pick it up so that Bert wouldn't have to drive the 23 hours from MI to MT. So, we bought tickets on Thursday evening and flew out on Friday evening!
(JUST A WARNING...we took around 400 pictures in 2.5 days...it was amazing!)

We stayed in a hotel that night and picked up the brand new 2009 motor home on Saturday afternoon. It was fun to see it first and check out where Bert and Laurel would be spending some time! Thank heavens for the couch in the motor home, I don't think I could have taken all of the hours that we spent in it without that baby! Poor Cody just had to hang out in the front while I was on the comfy couch for hours on hours!

Saturday afternoon we went to Ludington, MI and went to the beach. Yes, the beach! We walked out into Lake Michigan and saw an awesome lighthouse. I have never seen a lighthouse before and it was so, so neat! That night we headed to Arcadia, Michigan and we spent the evening in a motor home park on Lake Michigan! I can't even believe how beautiful it was...I had no idea that we would literally be playing ON THE BEACH for an entire weekend! I felt like we were at the ocean. The sand was beautiful, so white and perfectly soft. The water was warm and not salty like the ocean...score! It was perfect in every way. We had a great time just walking on the beach and snapping pictures at sunset.

Sunday morning we golfed at Arcadia Bluffs...one of the top 10 public courses in the nation! It was breathtaking. I have never been on a golf course quite like this one...I will just post some pictures because I can't explain it! They don't even do it justice....

Sunday night we got on a carferry and went across Lake Michigan to Wisconsin. We were all over the map! We got there at about midnight and woke up at 5:45 am on Monday so that we could make it to Whistling Straights, where the PGA Championship is being played in 2010!

Need I say more? It was absolutely outstanding! Cody had a caddy and it was so fun, he has never had a caddy before. The guy totally carried his clubs and gave him advice on each and every shot. Practically the ENTIRE course was on the shore of Lake Michigan, and it couldn't have been more beautiful.

After golf we had our best meal of the weekend at the restraunt there. I had a spinach chicken salad and Cody had smoked turkey club. Okay, I know, they both sound so, so simple. They were out of this world! You know if something that simple can be so delicious they are doing something right! We drove the 9 hours back to Omaha and got home at about 11:00 pm. WHEW!!!!! Great weekend and, as Cody says, it was the "vacation of a lifetime"!

Do you wanna see our House?

From Jul 27, 2009_2

Do you wanna see our house?

Click the "July 27, 2009" link below the picture to come inside!
Make sure to read the captions at the bottom. Obviously we are still working on some things...okay, a lot of things, so finished pictures should be up in about, o, a year! ha!(I am sure that there is an easier way to see these pics but I can't figure it out! Sorry!)

We are here!

Well, we made it to Omaha last Wednesday thanks to a lot of help from both of our parents packing up our truck and Bert driving with us to our new home. I was SOOO worried that Omaha was going to be flat, flat, FLAT! However, it isn't! There are no mountains, of course, but more trees than I have ever seen in my entire life! From every hilltop all you can see is trees with a few skyscrapers mixed in. Omaha is a HUGE city, but I think that we are going to adjust quickly. Every time we speak with someone new they tell us how good the food is here, and we LOVE to eat out, so I can't wait to experience it. Last night we ate at an italian restraunt called Lo Sole Mio...to die for. Every bit was throughouly delicious!
I LOVE our home. I think I have told Cody about 5 times each day how much I love it. It is just perfect for us. I know that so many of you want to see pictures, and they are coming, I promise! I just didn't think that you would want pictures of boxes in every room...it just has a different effect when we have made it our own! We are getting close to being done. The first day I set up my kitchen, of course! I have so much storage space and, because of my amazing sister, a perfect amount of counter space. She gave me a kitchen island and I seriously don't know what I would do without it! Thanks Manda! We have almost finished our living room, but our bedrooms and basement still have lots of work to be done. I can't believe how many closets we have. I have already found myself trying to spread things out on the shelves to make them look more full! I am sure that in a year or two I will be complaining about the lack of space, but right now it is overwhelming!
Something really exciting happened to me the day after we got to Omaha, I got a job! I have been going through the interviewing process over the phone for a couple of weeks, and I met the Dr.'s on Thursday and worked on Friday! I am going to be an Oral Surgery assistant, and I know that I will love it. One of the Dr.'s does facial plastic surgery like botox, nose reconstructions, brow and cheek lifts, etc., as well as regular tooth extractions, jaw surgeries, and more. I am so excited to learn more about this field of work. The Dr.'s are both really nice and both love golf, so Cody will have to go out with them! I really like the girls that I work with as well and know I can learn alot from all of them.
Anyway, just wanted to fill you in that we are here safe and sound AND loving it! Pictures are coming, I promise!

Good TImes, Craziness Ahead!

Well, we have had a wonderful last week here in Billings. For the fourth of July we went up to the East Rosebud with Will, Wendy, and the kids and had so much fun! We got a campsite, started a fire, did some fishing, and it was BEAUTIFUL! I was flashing pictures like non other, and loved every minute of it.
That evening we drove to Nye and joined my family at a friend's cabin. We had great food, went for an amazing hike, and watched great fireworks. Amanda drove all the way from Lake Tahoe to join us that night! It was so good to see her and the kids....and we sure miss Kevin!

The next few days we had "girls days". It was such a blast. We pretty much did shopping, shopping and more shopping! We ate out at some D-licious restraunts and spent some great quality time with eachother. We also went to see the movie "My Sister's Keeper". I give it an A+. It is my very favorite book of all time, and I think that they did well when making it into a movie. Make sure that you have, o, probably about a box of kleenex with you, however....it is a major tear jerker.

My mom also taught us how to sew! Okay, so she taught ME how to sew, Amanda is a pro!(Take a look at her blog to see her latest dress for Meggie.) We had so much fun making our table runners, and they both turned out amazing! I can't wait to put it on my table in my new house! Thanks mom!

On Wednesday night Nate came into town, and I haven't seen him for 6 months so it was so good to give him a hug! He has such a great sense of humor that I sometimes forget when I am just talking to him on the phone. Thursday morning we woke up and headed to Yellowtail to go boating! It was an absolutely perfect day. I realized how much I have taken for granted the scenery up there. Every time we headed down another canyon I was amazed at how beautiful it is. We rented a pontoon(I am sure that I spelled that wrong!) boat and had such a relaxing day. We also had our jet skiis up there, so there was some major getting wet as well! Cody and Ian fished all day, seriously, ALL day, and never caught a thing...poor boys!!!Friday was a very special day. My cousin Lacee, her husband, Luke, and their two baby boys, Colby and Kaden, were sealed in the temple so that they can be together forever, even after this life. I was able to go and take pictures of this celebration. The boys were little angels, and both had great smiles...they aren't very coordinating at smiling, unfortunately! After the sealing we headed to Grandma's house to have an ice cream party with the enitire family. It was quite the event! Kids running around screaming, girls talking about girly stuff in one corner, boys talking about who knows what in the other. It was great to catch up with all of my family, I love and miss them all so much!

Now we are off to Nebraska on Tuesday...I can't believe that it is already here. Part of my can't wait for all of the new friends, new experiences, a new home, a new ward, a new city! They other part of me is so sad to leave my family and other friends behind. I hope that we can adjust quickly to our new, and very different, life!

O my goodness...we own a house. I guess that makes us adults.

2nd Anniversary!

We had the most amazing anniversary this year! Cody suprised me on the 22nd by giving me an envelope that included a map through the Beartooths and Yellowstone National Park, hotel reservations in Jackson Hole, WY, whitewater rafting passes, and tickets to Grease at the Playhouse in Jackson. O my gosh I was so excited! The views were absolutely amazing.

We spent about 10 hours driving to Jackson, I think that going through the Beartooth Mountains was my favorite. We probably stopped 8 times in the Beartooths alone! We got to our hotel at about 8:00 pm and had the nicest dinner at an Italian restraunt. I had homemade gnocchi...to DIE for! Cody got a delicious fire-cooked pizza and we also had the best lemon tarte ever made. Not to mention the delicious sourdough bread as an appetizer...now I have to find some way to master that recipe, Cody is addicted!

The next day we got up and went white water rafting. It was a perfect 75 degrees, and, of course, I forgot the camera! (I figured it would be a pretty crappy idea to take a real camera on a river, anyway!) Cody and I sat in the very front of the boat and got drenched on every single rapid. We had such a blast and can't wait to go on bigger rapids someday!
Then we headed back to our AWESOME hotel and got ready to go to GREASE! It was so much fun, I am absolutely obsessed with that movie. It was a perfect end to an awesome day.

Can you guess where the picture above was taken? Okay, so in every single other persons photo journal of their trip to Yellowstone, they will have a picture WITH Old Faithful, right? Well, because of the somewhat sketch lady who took this picture for us, we can only tell you that we WERE at Old Faithful. She just happened to miss the whole, "Make sure that the fountain is in the picture with us, Okay?????"
Thank you, thank you for such an amazing surprise for our 2nd Anny, babe! (I don't know how this one will be topped...better start thinking!)

58 What?!!?! Tribute to the Studs...

Yep, these men are amazing. My pops, Uncle Joel, my cousin Payton, and Cody golfed in the "Beat the Flakes" Golf tourney last weekend and did so good! It was a scramble, and the boys golfed a 58! That is so amazing! They all contributed and ended out with 3 flag prizes...Glen Campbell Tickets(which my mom and pops attended and LOVED), Mustang tickets (which Cody and I plan to use in the coming weeks), and a shirt and hat (Payton is going to sport his hat the next time he takes his hunting gun on the golf course, and Joel can now replace his PINK nailissimo shirt with his new Pella shirt!). They all made out pretty well! (Not to mention that we are pretty sure Joel and Payton won the grand prize, a trip to Big Sky, and just "FORGOT" to fill their team in...hmmmmm.....)

Me and Hubbs....

Click on the link below to see me and hubbs (that is totally incorrect grammar, I know, I know!) recent photoshoot! I was so excited when I moved back to Billings and Heather Mosser contacted me about taking her family pictures. She is a photographer as well, so I suggested that we trade...and she agreed! I was anxious to have some urban pictures taken of Cody and I, and have been scouting out the exact pictures and places in B-town. Heather did the perfect job of capturing what I was looking for, and I hope that I can do the same for her when we do her family this upcoming week! (P.S. I am blowing up one of the pictures to put on a canvas in our new house...once I narrow it down I will put up a vote for which one it should be!)

OUR AWESOME URBAN PICS

Back in MT

Well, are all of you wondering if we EVER made it to Montana? I am sure you have been checking our blog multiple times a day just to find out...hehe! We  did, barely. I can't believe how long it took to pack! INSANE. I was definitely the world's grumpiest wife for an entire week...we are still married though so I must not have been that bad! Basically, I never want to move again, wait, we are moving again in 6 weeks, crap. There goes that goal! 

We really are happy to be in Montana, though. Cody's parents generously took us in again, and we are visiting my parents constantly. I know I am going to miss them all so much when we leave! We have pretty much been doing, well, nothing! A little golfing, visiting the extended family, a little shopping, some movie watching, eating out...it is like a summer break when I was 14, before I could work! Of course, we have eaten at both Z Pizza and MacKenzie River...delicious as always. 

We saw Star Trek on Wednesday...I know, I know. Don't judge me. I was definitely skeptical...but it was so dang good! I really liked it! I have never seen any Star Trek movies before because, well, they look lame. I thought the story was a little to sci-fi for me, but Cody loved every minute. I would recommend seeing it over any other movies in the theaters right now. So, what are you doing tonight? Maybe going to STAR TREK!?!?!!? (Come to think of it...maybe we will go again!)

We are also trying like crazy to get everything in order for our move to Nebraska...working on student loans, finding the cheapest rates for car and health insurance, etc. We switched our car insurance to Geico...yes, we jumped on the bandwagon. For good reason though; we are paying for TWO cars in Nebraska the same rate that we pay for ONE car in Utah! Is that crazy! Thank you Nebraska for being so stinking cheap to survive in your state! More updates later....!

He Graduated!!

It is official...Cody graduated college today. It is hard to believe that we are already at this point in our lives. Graduation was, well, graduation. It was really exciting to see Cody walking toward the stage, ready to get his diploma. This was one time I was actually HAPPY that our last name started with a "W". I had something to look forward to through all of the other 600 names! He was about 30 people from the end, and he was well worth the wait. I wish I could explain how he feels, but if you know Cody, he is very good at taking things in stride. He knows that this is an amazing accomplishment, but also that there is still a long road ahead. I couldn't be more proud of him! It has been a long haul to get to this point. I wish that you could all know Cody as well as I do. He amazes me every single day with his positive outlook on life, his outrageous sense of humor, his knowledge, his concern for people around him, and his personality! I love the picture that I got of him above, it proves he is a happy man, not to mention that he has HOPS! I love you, babe...way to go!!!!

WHEW!

(I just love this picture...my sister's family...don't the little girls legs just look so TINY?!)

So much is going on right now. I feel like a total hypocrite because I am always the one who is nagging people to post....and here I am only posting one time a month! Life is creeping up on us...

First of all, Cody is graduating on FRIDAY!!! It doesn't even seem real, and I don't think it will until he starts dental school. I am so proud of him. This semester he had 18 credits...and not JUST 18 credits, 18 HARD credits. His only easy classes were religion and coaching football. Other than those,  he was studying his butt off every day. He is so happy to be done and have a 4 month break ahead of him. 

Me, o, me. I am keeping busy, too. My last day of work is tomorrow, and I am really sad! I am so used to having Dylan as my little constant companion, I know that I will miss him. I am going to miss the whole Cox family, they have been so good to me! I am loving, actually LOVING doing photography! I hope that everyone is checking out my blog, I am constantly updating it with new shoots. I have 5 shoots this week alone! I really hope that I can keep getting better at it and turn it into a part time profession(I say part time because my dream is to do hair part time and photography part time).  My hubbs is being amazing and building me a photography studio and  a salon in our basement....O MY GOSH I JUST CAN'T WAIT! I married a great man who just wants to make me happy, I love him! 

Together we are both doing great. We are still doing P90X, although with finals and moving we have gone downhill a little...not to mention all the graduation meals we plan to eat! We are loving every minute of the workouts and can totally see a change. I actually have muscles in my arms...WHO KNEW?!?! (I know, Nate, you won't believe it till you see it...) Cody's pants are all way to big, we really need to go shopping. Anyway, we love the results we are getting and just want to keep chugging along! We are so excited to move home to Montana for the next 7 weeks. We can't wait to see the fam every day and spend some quality time with them that we unfortunately won't be getting for the next 4 years. We are constantly buying things here and there for our new house, and plans of what to do with each room are going through our minds non-stop. If anyone has cheap ways to re-do countertops in kitchens/bathrooms we would love your tips! I hope that you are all planning your vacations to Nebraska...I hear their Zoo is AMAZING! (Like you would come just for the zoo....!!!)

Well, goodbye for now, hopefully I can get a post-graduation post in before we move!

We Love Steve

Steve brought us a lot of enjoyment yesterday. As you know, we are moving soon and trying to sell the majority of our belongings. Cody posted our television on KSL.com, and this is the first reply that we received:

My Name is Steve, I was wondering if you would consider a trade? 

Here is a list of things I have:

1972 Cabin Cruiser Boat 19' (been sitting)

Motorola Long Range Walkie Talkies 

Ray Ban Sun glasses 

19” Flat Screen (not flat Panel) With built in VHS

Free Standing, Adjustable Basketball Hoop 

I sure hope that brought you as much laughter as it did us!!!

I am in Heaven...

I am only halfway through my cupcake, and I am taking a much needed pause from the overwhelming deliciousness of the Vanilla Squared cupcake. O MY GOSH.

I recently saw the Sweet Tooth Fairy on a friends blog, then Cody brought home a clipping out of the BYU newspaper earlier this week, and we had to go. Even after downing way too much pizza at Legends Grille (come on, (1)it is our off day and (2) Cody had to get shots for dental school today and claims he was "sad and depressed" heh....don't judge) we had to check it out. All that I can say is I hope that my hubbs is SAD AND DEPRESSED a lot more often in the future! I so wish we could have found this adorable little bakery MONTHS ago...then again, I am not carrying the extra 10 pounds I would have if we did know about it.

P.S. They gave us a sample of their "cake bites" definitely stay away from those bad boys!(AKA-get them or your will regret it!)

Check it out HERE:

http://www.thesweettoothfairy.com/index.html

Are we alive?

I am sure that is a question that many of you are thinking, and I am so sorry! I don't even know if we have been so busy that I haven't had time to post, I think I have just been doing other hobbies instead! (So sad that blogging is a hobby for me, but it is!)

Cody has been so busy with school, and is feeling small case of senior-itis. He is pushing through it well, and can't wait for April 23rd! Right now he is in the middle of March Madness, just praying one of his brackets will pull through for him! I am so glad that I married a man who is as obsessed with athletics as my FATHER!

I have been reading quite  a bit lately, and I reccommend two of my most recent books. (Neither of them are for the feint of heart, however...) The first being The Secret Life of Cee Cee Wilkes by Diane Chamberlain. I absolutely could not put this book down. Murder, mystery, love, amazing! The second was Me & Emma by Elizabeth Flock. I don't know what to say about this book except for the last 15 pages are amazing! After reading those pages I wanted to read the book all over again. It is definitely a different read, but I did enjoy it.

I am staying busy with photography and loving every minute of it. I really think this could grow into quite a hobby/obsession with me. I love seeing all of the different ways to photograph a child or family. I am always thinking of my next shoot, just wondering what will come of it!

We only have 38 days left in Utah! I can't believe that our home of 4 years is going to be left behind us forever. We are actually excited to move, mainly because there are so many new adventures ahead of us. We are constantly talking about our new home that is 3 times the size of where we live now and everything that we are going to do to it. We are headed to Billings for about 6 weeks to hang out with the family. After all, we won't be seeing them very much in the next 4 years. We hope that we can somehow get our fill (which is obviously impossible) in the short time that we are there.

Then we are headed to Omaha, NE around the first of July!!!! We will be living across the street from Aaron, Erika, Brevin and Jace and can't wait to see them constantly. 

We have lots coming up and can't wait for the changes to come. We are so thankful for everyone here in Utah and will miss them all so much, but we also look forward to those that we will be meeting soon!

Photo Tag

Photo tags...I only did this because I checked what picture it was and loved it! This picture is from Cody and I's wedding day. It is my dad and my sister's beautiful girl Megan. I can't wait for when(but I can) my daddy looks at my little girl and adores every ounce of her! He is such a softy with his grandkids and I love seeing him play with them. He is always so tired after they visit, and I know that is because he does anything that he can to make them happy! I love you dad!

The directions are below, I tag Ashley, Chelsea M, and anyone else who is still reading this crazy blog of mine!

1. Go to your documents/pictures.
2. Go to your 6th file folder.
3. Go to your 6th picture.
4. Post and blog about it.
5. Tag 6 people to do the same.

P90X Update

Well, it has officially been one month since we started our intense workout/eating program. We feel so successful, and we are only 1/3 of the way through the program! It is already well worth the booko bucks we spent and continue to spend on supplements, healthy food, protein bars, etc.

Here are some of the highlights of our experience so far:

1) In the beginning, we could only do 3-5 of each of the AbRipperX exercises. I can now do at least 20 of each of  the exercises, and Cody can do anywhere from 15-25 on each exercise.

2) Cody wore his nice khaki church pants on Sunday and the were much looser, they used to be quite snug! My jeans are feeling much looser around the waistline, despite the looming tightness is my thighs!

3) We are still eating rather plain meals...not too exciting in our kitchen these days! (We have been cheating on Weekend nights...we just can't seem to give up our Cafe Rio salad!) With the beginning of the new month, we now get more carbs and less protein, which is a beautiful thing!

4) We are becoming quite fond of Tony, the trainer. Well, most of the time anyway!

5) My leg has began to burn a tiny bit less. I would say it has decreased from burning 90% of the time to about 75%, that is definitely a plus in my book. I pray that the decrease continues.

6) We have both moved up in our weight or reps in our exercises. I am shooting for reps, (toning), Cody is shooting for weight, (strength).

7) We took our one month photos today and we can each see a change in our pooches(aka our tummy roll!) We can also see more definition on Cody's arms, traps, and chest. (We didn't analyze my chest..hehe!) You can't see the pictures yet, we aren't quite to that level of confidence!

Overall, we are definitely not where we want to be but can tell that we are getting just a tiny step closer to where we want to be. Thanks to all of you who keep asking us how it is going, it is so true that telling people your goals helps you to accomplish them. For those of you looking into P90X...I highly recommend it.

Funny Things

So, I know that most of you have children, and you like to post the funny things that they say. I love reading them, kids really do say the most hilarious things! Well, sometimes I feel like my hubby IS A CHILD! He is truly entertaining just like the little ones running around your house. I wanted to share a word that he made up today:

Ridunkulous.

When he said it, I asked in a very serious way, (just like you would do to a child), "What does ridunkulous mean, Cody?" He replied, "I dunno, Ridiculous and dunk". Yes, I truly love the man (sometimes child) that I share my life with!

My First Maternity Shoot

Go and check out my first Maternity shoot 

HERE