It's been a while...

 Well, it's been two years since we've posted on the blog. I guess now is as good a time as any! Major events over the last two years include:

1. The birth of our first niece! (She is now a year old)
2. Our apartment flooded in a freaky flash storm
3. I finished up my Montessori teacher education training!
4. Adam got a promotion and has been able to do a bit of international travel for work - I got to tag along for the second Japan trip
5. We both lost a lot of weight as participants in an infertility and weight loss study (I lost 35 pounds, Adam lost over 150! We are now working to keep it off)
6. We spent a week at a beach house in North Carolina with my family this summer, soaking up the sun
7. My sister, Samantha, went on a mission. Since being back, she got engaged and is getting married in Oregon next month
8. We are both very involved in our church callings. Adam is the new executive secretary and I am working with the beehive group (12-14 y/o) in Young Women's.
9. Adam ran his very first 5k race in May and did it in under 25 minutes!
10. We've completed a few hikes around Utah this year. The most rewarding one was probably the hike we did last week - Squaw Peak, elevation of 8,000 feet.

Now that the crazy busy summer (Kansas, North Carolina, Japan, etc.) is over, we're getting back into a "normal" routine. My school year started in August. This year I have the smallest class size yet. Only 20 students! Our school was awarded a grant to fund preschoolers. As part of the grant, we are allowed a maximum of 20 students per early childhood class. I'm excited to see how the smaller class size will benefit everyone involved.

As far as the baby-making business goes, we've started a new fertility drug (letrozole/femara) this month in hopes of inducing ovulation. All prayers and well wishes are greatly appreciated! This journey is starting to wear heavy on us... in the last 3 years we've now tried - 6 rounds of progesterone, an intrauterine scan (which revealed what my subconscious was afraid of - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome- aka PCOS) 3 rounds of metformin, an HSG test, herbs, vitamins, acupuncture, 2 different fertility monitors, weight loss, vacations, talked a lot about adoption, lots of prayers, lots of tears, and a partridge in a pear tree! 

As a fellow infertile has said, “We rob ourselves – and those around us – if we let our infertility struggles define us and dictate our lives. As huge as this is, chances are that there are still a lot of other things in our lives that are good and going right – and we should fully embrace those as well.” 

While in the throws of infertility and constant disappointment and meltdowns, this thought is sometimes hard to remember. It's been a lot to handle but, even through all of the literal emotional roller coasters, we've been able to turn to each other for strength and support. I'm lucky to have such a great man by my side through all of the trials that this life throws at us! 

Happy Sunday everyone! Be good. Do good. Feel good.

It's the Greatest Time of Year

Oh Fall, so thankful you are here.  You bring with you so many fantastic things.  From cooler weather to chilling events you are where it is at.  I am so thankful for your coming.  I love the changing colors in nature, and the awesome talks that happen during General Conference.  I am thankful I get to open the windows and feel your cool breeze and smell your fresh air, not to mention the baking and soup making that starts happening causing their wonderful aromas to fill our home.  Not only do I get to spend your Saturdays watching the clash of titans on the gridiron I get to cuddle with my sweetheart and remember those first few days after I met her.  I get to think about all the classy holidays that are coming and the fun things to do like carve pumpkins and haunted houses.  I love the cool rain that falls during your time and fills my soul with the refreshing warmth of a new day.  I get excited to know about the new seasons of shows on TV that you bring and the time spent with family and friends.  Fall, thank you so much for all you do.  I love you!

p.s. cannot wait for more fun this year!

Catch Up (warning: picture overload)

Whew! The school year ended just before Memorial Day. Normally that would mean summer break (and we all know that I chose to be an educator so that I could have a two month vacation every year). That didn't quite happen this summer. I ran my second 5k the day after the school year ended and then I spent a solid eight weeks on the beautiful Westminster College campus with the Institute for Montessori Innovations. You can read about it here and here (and I'm sure I'll post all about it later, considering I'll still be taking classes all school year).

But, after the working-school year ended and before the craziness of summer classes started, we were able to go on another cross country road trip to Virginia (this makes our 4th round trip in under two years, Hyundai really should pay us for thoroughly testing out the new Sonata).

I was sure to keep Adam entertained during the LONG drive

We spent a few days in Kansas on our way out. Adam's cousin got married, so it was nice to spend time with his parents and sister, and to get to know some of his extended family a little better. After the wedding weekend, we continued our drive to the east coast, where we spent five glorious days in the beautiful, lush rolling hills of Virginia. I've become fond of the dry air of Utah, but I will always choose a thick forest over the desert. Always.

On our way out of Virginia- see all that green?!

On our way out of Utah

While in Virginia, we got to see Savannah & Jay and Karlee, and their newest little one, Brynlee. She was only four weeks old when we got to see her. So precious.

I love seeing this comparison (:

My sister, Samantha, graduated from high school just a few days before we got there (she came out to Utah a few days after we got back and has been staying with us all summer!), and we had a party for her. All kinds of friends and family came. It was nice to see everyone.

High school friends - I love these girls!

 One of my dad's friends let us go fishing in his pond. Cat-fishing! I had never caught a catfish, so I was pretty excited. I think we all were. (Hopefully some of these pictures don't gross you out).

This is the big guy that I had to fight with

                                                

Even Gracie was excited to go!

Rachel and Mike were actually there while we were.. but this next picture is the only evidence of that. Oops!

The five days in Virginia went by super fast, but they were so fun. But, before we left, we had breakfast at The Swinging Bridge. Adam and I always have to eat there whenever we're in Virginia. It is located at the back of an old country general store, and its just adorable! Plus the food is good too. Mmm!

At the end of June we were able to FLY back to Kansas for a family reunion. So fun! Although, the only pictures I have of that weekend are of Jennifer's dog-children, and of Adam with Jennifer's best friend's kids. Their mom made delicious chocolate chip cookies, and the kids and I ended up playing some game that involved Adam becoming a cookie monster and the rest of us having to hide from him so that he wouldn't eat us. Kids are so fun (:

Anyway, those are the most interesting parts of our summer. Now to enjoy the last couple weeks before school starts up again!

Oh, and here are some funny pictures of/from my Grandma, and an awesome picture of Rachel and I as kids with Mom and Dad. We're so cool.

She wrote on our car before we left. She's so cute, but she's always trying to steal the men in my life, she put my name on there as a after thought (;

She HATES the word 'fart', I think it's hilarious!

Check out Mom's hair!

One of Those Lives

I think that we have a tendency to believe that some people are perfect that some people don't have any issues or problems, that their lives are without flaw and that they are just cruising along towards perfection.  Perhaps we may even believe that they are perfect.  I believe that at times some people even think that about me.  I have often wondered over my life if everyone thinks I am Mr. Perfect.  That I have a perfect life with no problems.  Over the years I think maybe I have even convinced myself of that fact and that I am supposed to be perfect.  That if I make any mistake it is the end of the world, that my life could seriously be over.  The trials I go though seem to take over and define who I am, my mood and my feelings.

I have learned over the past few months that this is not the case, and really this is the wrong way to look at life.  We must first look at ourselves and accept that we are not perfect. Some of us are fat, some are skinny, some are ugly some pretty, some of us have issues with other people, others have addictive tendencies.  Each and every one of us who are human have issues.  Things that we think define us.  I have began to realize that what really defines us is how we react to our imperfections.  It has been such an experience to begin to realize that no matter how much we expect of ourselves we must first accept the fact that we are not perfect, but we have the power to improve.  In my opinion that is what makes us human, we have the power to choose to improve and try to be better every time.  Those of us who pick ourselves up and move forward, no matter how many times we fail at being who we think we should be are on the correct pat.  As long as we are moving forward and not backward or standing stagnantly still then we are where we should be.

In doing this I have come to find that I can open up emotionally much more than ever before.  I seem to see people for who they can be and not who they are.  I have noticed that I feel for others, I pay attention to their feelings and I have compassion for those around me.  I love the song from Brad Paisley.  Sometimes when I have an exceptionally hard day and I begin to forget that I don't have to be perfect today I listen to it and know that I am blessed, and that gives me the strength to keep picking myself up and moving forward.

A Short Easter Message

One of my favorite LDS hymns is 'I Know That My Redeemer Lives.' My favorite version is by Michael R. Hicks, and it is played in this beautiful slideshow with pictures of our Savior. I am so grateful for the Atonement and for the sacrifice that Christ made for us all. Please watch the video, it is simply beautiful.

He is risen!

Red Velvet Catastrophe

So I found this super yummy Red Velvet cake recipe on Pinterest just before Valentine's Day and really wanted to make it. Well, things got busy and I didn't get to make it for V-Day. So, I decided to make it tonight.

Worst. Cake. Fail. Ever.

First, I was completely out of red food coloring. So, I thought to myself, "I'll use blue. A 'blue velvet' cake would be cool."

False.

I overlooked the fact that a dark blue cocoa powder paste mixed with a cream colored batter would make GRAY! And of course just after I had accepted that it would potentially look bad as gray (but still taste good!), Adam said he was going to run to the store to get a few things for dinner. If only he had decided to do so 5 minutes earlier. Oh well.

After baking for 30 minutes, I took the two cake pans out and flipped them out onto a wire rack to cool... only I didn't spray the pans well enough so.. most of the cake stayed in the pan.

I swear I'm usually not this bad!

And since I could only salvage one layer of cake, I then had an entire medium mixing bowl full of frosting.

I tried to make this....

This is what I actually made.

I hope you guys get a laugh out of this, because we sure did!

How to finish your wife's treat.

Step 1

Go out for ice cream on Shaila's birthday.  I order a small blizzard and she got a parfait.

Step 2 

Shaila get's a call from Grandma and Adam finishes his Blizzard... mm mm.

Step 3

Shaila finishes her phone call before Adam can finish her parfait.

Step 4

The finish.  Now that you have eaten most of your wife's parfait wait a minute, she will get upset and let you finish the rest!

legal mumbo jumbo.  I did not actually eat all her parfait.  She was able to eat most of it and I just thought I would share some meaningless photos.