We be Trippin'

Jon and I took a quick {seriously!} trip over to California for one of his mission buddy's wedding. The temple, luncheon, and reception were beautiful! I love Cali, but HATE the roads! Seriously, most confusing highways I've ever experienced...lucky for us we have a gps on our phone, we'd probably still be trying to find our way back if it wasn't for that! 

After 24 (out of 72) hours in the car,  1594 miles across 4 states, 8 movies, 

and a pretty yucky hotel, we're happy to be home :)

and I'm thinking we'll wait a little while before taking another road trip.

 We took advantage of one of their Christmas trees.

The happy couple. Mr.&Mrs. Bassett. Congrats!

The LA temple was all lit up, almost as great as the SLC temple.
We walked around for a minute after the wedding, and I was kinda shocked how cold it was outside!
{Duh Me, it is December after all}
We tried getting the Angel Moroni in the picture with us...the bottom right is what we got.
I wish I would have taken more pictures of the reception, I just felt like I would look a weirdo since I knew nobody but my husband.
A bit awkward...
Anyway, it was themed around the 50's! the colors were fun, the candy was old fashioned, her bridesmaids were decked out...I loved it. I love weddings :)
Jonny and I had our Christmas with just the two of us today, since this weekend will be quite crazy! Boy oh boy did we spoil each other. It has been such a great relaxing day, thanks for everything babayyy!
Merry Christmas, everyone. I hope this season has been great for you, and hope we can all keep the spirit that is felt this time of year ALL year long. I'm so grateful for the gift of Christ, our Savior. This next year I will do all I can to come closer to Him, and dedicate myself more in service for others.

Oh Santa!

This song is stuck in my head at all times. I woke up this morning singing it...poor Jon.
I hear it twice a day while I'm at work, you might just find me dancing up and down TJ's aisles,
if you're lucky ;)

Merry Christmas!

I'm a week late...

...wishing my bro Ty Ty a happy 25th birthday! 

Wow, a whopping 2-5. You're old, dude. ;)
Ty has always been the best big brother I could have ever asked for. I remember being on the bus in junior high and asking all the kids older than me if they knew who Tyler Christiansen was,
cause he's MY big brother.
He's funny, no no- WAaaaAY funny!
He's smart.
He's good looking.
He always has a new pair of shoes on {maybe he has stinky feet, too?}
He's well groomed.
He's caring.
He's giving.
Did I mention he's funny?
and I love him.
Thanks for practicing your WWF wrestling moves on me when we were kids. Thanks for the random phone calls to see what's up. Thanks for always giving a hug hello and goodbye. Thanks for going to a high school dance with me when you were a super senior. Thanks for being a good brother. 
Happy belated birthday, you old fart!

Today was Good.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are usually my least favorite days when it comes to school. I go to campus at 7, and don't get done with classes until 3. By then I am definitely starving and my eyes are droopy. I start out with my jogging class, where I get all sweaty and stuff. Yum. Then I hurry to my 3 hour sewing class. I may have said this before, but if you ever want to lose some self-esteem {who would?} take an advanced sewing class with a bunch of girls in your same major who dominate! I purposely pick projects to do that are easier than all the others because I know if I even tried to attempt what they do, I would fail! I've only had two days this semester where I've actually cried in that class, but that's just embarrassing enough! It kinda stinks when all the girls are talking to each other, saying "how cute!" everyone's projects are, and I hear nothing. {don't worry, I've thrown myself a pity party or two} But I must say, I'm happy with my work! My teacher is so sweet and kind and helpful, this was her last semester teaching sewing as she'll be retiring. She definitely deserves a long and relaxing retirement! {Thanks, Lu!}
ANYWAY! After sewing class is over, I actually stay in the lab an extra hour and a half trying to catch up. Then I head to Preschool Methods, probably one of the most pointless classes for my major {I'm going to teach high schoolers...not preschoolers!} But as I've listened to the lectures I've taken them more as how to parent toddlers. haha :) For a month we've been working on our lesson plans, INTENSE STUFF right there!
By the time those days are over I'm pooped. And I usually head into work at 5. Yikes!
Well today was a different Thursday. Jon didn't have work, so I rode with him to class (he has a 7 o'clock class too) in his car that he got all warmed up. He got me a poptart to get through my classes {super healthy, huh?} Then when class got out he was waiting for me right outside the building. No walking across campus for me!
Laziness.
I came home to the best surprise! a suuuper clean house. Yes! I haven't had time to clean for a few weeks, and it was starting to get pretty bad...Thanks Jono! I love you!
I didn't have work tonight, so a nap was taken, a Christmas movie is being watched, and my stinky feet are being rubbed. Lucky is my nickname..how fitting.
Now if I could just focus on my final projects and study a bit for finals next week!

H is for Happy.

And Heidi! Today is my sista' Heidi's birthday. She's a whopping twenty-two! I'm grateful to have a little sister (by two months) that has so much knowledge to share with everyone. If I have any questions or problems I know I can turn to Hyde and she will help me out! She and the hubs are moving away to med school this coming Summer/Fall, and it's gonna be WEIRD. My girls need to stop leaving me!
Love you Heidi! Hope rolling into your twenty second year of life was rockin'!
{my computer is being lame and won't let me post a funny picture on Heidi's 18th birthday. dangit.}

Sara Bareilles - Yellow

officially obsessed.

Confession

I finally went on an adventure yesterday to get my name changed.
Yeah, Yeah...

 I probably should've done that about 7 months ago. But hey! I have an excuse. Logan only does it on Thursdays at a certain time via webcam, and Thursdays are quite busy days! 

So I made the excursion down to Ogden to do the deed. 

Another confession: my license has been expired since I turned 22. Yep, I'm a rebel. 

-Or just an idiot-

So when I got to the social sec. office I walked into the room full of about 32 peeps ahead of me that all smelled quite lovely..maybe that's a lie. I took my number and sat down and started playing solitaire on my phone. I soon realized I needed to fill out some paper work, but I was pen-less. Shoot!

I wasn't about to ask one of my buddies to my right or left because they didn't look too happy to be there. 

ANYWAY. I didn't fill it out. 

55 minutes later, my number {A197} was called, and I felt very self conscious walking in front of a large crowd because I KNOW they were all staring at me. There was nothing else to look at. 

I got to the window and the woman just stuck out her hand for my schtuff. 

My hands were shaking as I handed her the marriage license and my expired drivers license. 

Woman with an attitude as big as her lips: Did you fill out your paper?

Me: No I couldn't find a pen. But I can do it quick!

Woman: Well did you atleast fill out your social?

Me: Oh yes. {As I begin writing it down}

Lips: So, you just lied to me?

Me: Sorry, I thought you said "could you atleast fill out your social?"

Woman: Mmhmm.

Woman again: Oh no no no, this license is expired! {pursing lips} I'm gonna need another form of ID.

Me: I know, I wanted to change my name before I got a new license.

I don't have any other ID, would a pay stub work?

Woman: haha NO, do you have a health insurance card?

Me: Oh yeah! 

{of course I hand her the one that doesn't include my name. Hooray for double coverage!}

***

She then went on explaining that NO amount of cute will save you from an expired license. 

And that it would be 'real bad' if I was going somewhere on emergency then got pulled over. 

Yada yada yada. 

Basically, she gave me a lot of crap! but it's ok, I wouldn't expect any less...

I was definitely in the wrong. 

After that I was able to go to Target {yay!}, got our winter tires put on, then headed to the DMV. 

Oddly enough the guy at the DMV was SOOO nice! I was expecting to have to take the driving test all over again {thanks for freaking me out, mom! haha}

Did you guys know you're supposed to legally change your address every time you move? Well I've never done that, and I've moved about 6 times since I've gotten my license. 

 Tip#1: if you get pulled over and the cop asks what your address is, be sure it's the same as the one on your license! OR you'll be ticketed. {Thanks DMV guy!}

Tip#2: DON'T run "legal" errands on a Monday.

I'm pretty sure that's when everyone and their boyfriends and puppies go!

***

So who's excited for Thanksgiving? I know the Feller's are! {that's us :)} 

We've been in "Thanksgiving Break" mode for a bit longer than the actual break. 

We can't wait to spend 4 days stuffing our faces with his family. 

I'm a bit stressed out with about 8 projects I've got going on right now. The end of the semester has always been intense, but I'd say this one is by far the worst. It's crunch time, so we're gonna be having a LOT of late nights in our home.Lucky for me I've got a hubby that will rub my stinky feet and make apple cider :)

I'm pretty sure I love the holidays so much more being married. I remember years in the past being sorta cranky at work when I'd hear Christmas music, or when it was busy. But I'm lovin' it right about now!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

100 YEARSofSTYLE

In my Dress and Humanity class we were shown this video. 

I love the styles shown and especially the dancing! 

Watch this...you won't regret it!

30 Flirty and Thriving

Happy Birthday to my awesome big sis, Brittany!

I love you, Britt! Thanks for always being there,
 knowing just what to say.

I'm so lucky to have you as a sister and bff.

I know I can turn to you anytime. You've always been there!

You are the bomb.com.

Don't worry, you're only 1/3 of the way to "old".

:) Love you!

ps...All the time!!!

Being alive is a gift

 "There comes a time in your life, when you walk away from all the drama and people who create it.   You surround yourself with people who make you laugh.   Forget the bad, and focus on the good.   Love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don't.  
Life is too short to be anything but happy. 
Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living."

Being alive is a gift, living life happy is a choice...

Sometimes when I am feeling down or hard on myself, I go back to this quote that my mother in-law shared with us. How profound. Really! Rather than focus on the bad, let's focus on the good and build on that. We are so lucky to be here on this earth today. If you are feeling unhappy, look at your life and all that your are blessed with. If that doesn't make you just a bit happier, ask your Heavenly Father for the strength to carry on. He hears you and understands.

You deserve to be happy.  

President Uchtdorf gave a talk this last conference that I, and many others, will always remember.

If you have ten minutes, read it! If you already have, read it again. It's something we may need to hear over and over...and over again.

Click HERE to read.

Trying

One night I decided to make caramel corn. I remember making it when I was in junior high with my chef-of-a-sister, Heidi. But no, I'd never made it on my own. We don't have a popcorn maker, so my only option was to pop the kernels {which we received when we got married} on the stovetop. Wow, what a challenge! If you can get your hands on a popcorn maker, do it! If not, practice can make perfect. {In my case, TONS of practice} On my fourth or fifth try I decided to take some pictures as I went so I could share this journey with you and get any popcorn tips you might have :)

Start by adding about 3 Tbs of vegetable oil to your pot

 I poured enough kernels in the pot to almost cover the bottom,

 if you do too much you may be left with some kernels in your caramel corn.
Cook on medium-high, shaking the pot the whole time {pain in the rear}.

Once the popping stops, or there are about 7 seconds between each one,

turn off the heat and remove

 Pour popped corn into a LARGE bowl.

Here are the ingredients for the caramel {you can alter how much or little you'd like depending on how much popcorn you make...but it goes a long way!}

• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cube {or 1/4 cup} butter
• 1/2 cup karo syrup
• 1/2 can sweetened condensed milk
• cook on medium-high heat. But STIR, or else you may have some burnage.

{sounds reeeaal healthy, huh? ;)}

Cook brown sugar, butter and karo syrup to "soft ball" stage.

{still not so sure what that means...I just assume it looks like the photo above}
I stirred the whole time.

 Once you've reached that stage, Add sweetened condensed milk.

 Bring to a boil {goes quick!}

Once those steps are completed, you know what to do..

Grab your hubby or a friend to help you pour and mix!

Unless of course you have four hands, or are so much more talented than I.

YUMMM

Just so you know, one day I will have popcorn mastered! One day :)

Ps. How was your Halloween?

Ours was baby-licious!

Over the Limit? Help!

I'm sure some of you have experienced this before...Blogger said I've reached the limit of photo uploads. Do I really have to purchase more space or is there another way?

Help! Please :)

Pumpkins

On Monday we went over to the Smith's to carve pumpkins and eat brownies. It was so much fun!

We all carved different faces into ours. Can you tell whose is whose??

Everyone's is so different :)

 Jonny's

 Mine

Jord and Jame's

 We're so glad Jame and Jord are up here too. Logan is a lot better when you've got loved ones around.

Afterwards we went to the annual pumpkin walk. We had gone the Saturday before but the line was reDICulous! There were atleast 250 people in front of us just waiting to go in. That was dissappointing. But when we went back on Monday it was okay. Everyone walked pretty slow, so we walked behind them and just took pictures of scenes we liked over there heads.

Here are some of our favorites:

 Nightmare Before Christmas

 Kung Fu Panda

 Despicable Me (love!)

 Behind us is Gilligan's Island

 I am Snow White. Didn't ya know?

 Little Bob the Builder:) {Yes we can!}

It was a fun night! Love this little tradition that Cache Valley has.

Ay to Zee

Jonny and I went to the temple tonight. What a blessing it is to have one so close.

Peace, happiness, and a clearer mind in just a couple hours.

Love it.

Now. we're just chillin.

I saw this on a blog I follow, cats and cardigans. It's late at night and I don't know what to blog about.

 I just know I need to blog.

 if you're feelin' it, copy it!

A. Age: twenty two.

B. Bed size: queen. perfect for snuggling.
 C. Chore that you hate: hanging up clean clothes. I wish there was a machine to wash, dry, and hang/fold all in one!

D. Dogs: favorite animal. I can't seem to convice Jonny to get one {he blames it on the apartment restrictions..surrre..}
maybe after our first child? or last?

E. Essential start to your day: sleeping in laaate! not possible with school and all, so on the rare occassion that I don't have class or work early, I'm one happy morning person!
this week I got to sleep in 3 times. HOLLA! thank you Fall break!

F. Favorite color: orange. happiness.

G. Gold or Silver: well, silver. I don't think I could pull off the gold.

H. Height: 5'7&1/2"ish.

I. Instruments you play: nada. how lame.

J. Job title: Maxxinista.

K. Kids: we'll have lots one day. and they're names will be so cute ;)

L. Live: beautiful Cache Valley. we'll be moving away sooner or later, though!

M. Mother’s name: Teri.DeeDee.Margo. love my moms.

N. Nicknames: Ash, Splash, Smash, Lucky, BigAsh, Feller {bout time!}

O. Overnight hospital stays: none that I know of..

P. Pet peeves: the sound of hucking-a-loogy. mmm.... :(

Q. Quote from a movie: You know what music is? God's little reminder that there's something else besides us in this universe, a harmonic connection between all living beings, every where, even the stars.

-August Rush

R. Right or left handed: right handed.

S. Siblings: britt, aubrey, boyd, ty, stacie, heidi, paul, tia, houston

U. Underwear: I wear them when I exercise...

V. Vegetable you hate: nunya

W. What makes you run late: pushing snooze more than I had planned.

.X. X-Rays you’ve had: dental.

Y. Yummy food that you make: mash potatoooes. yummm. can anyone fail at that, though?

Z. Zoo animal: elephants are kewl, and rare {well, you wouldn't just see them ANYWHERE. right??}

Well that was fun. I got to know myself just a little more.

haha remember doing these via email to all your friends in Jr High?

Good times.

I wish I could sleep in tomorrow but hey, a girl's gotta work!

Night hombres.

PS- Jon and I are now addicted to Bones on Netflix. ooh yeeaahhh.

Ceeelebration Time, Come on!

We decided last night that we LOVE the placement of our birthdays. It's lots of fun to have them 2 weeks apart, and there aren't any other Holidays too close. Being "newlyweds", money is tight. You all know what I mean, right? Well somehow we managed to OVER-spoil each other this year. I don't know, maybe we were just so excited to celebrate our birthdays together once again! {since we had 2 years of them apart...} My bday was Sept 26th. I had class and work, and came home to a lovely surprise from my hubby. He was sitting by the door waiting for me with flowers, chocolate {awww...;)} and SICK a gift! {mmhmm, sick!}

Theeese bad boys! I've been in need of new running shoes for about 3 years, so I'm simply in love.

Jono had to go to a lab for a couple of hours after that, so I had the pleasure of going out for frozen yogurt with my lovely friend Val. She surprised me with a cute striped shirt {love my stripes!} and some goodies that I so dearly love {coca cola, orange candy slices, etc} Thanks ValPal!

Earlier I had told Jon I might want to go to a movie, mainly because I wanted their popcorn and fountain coca cola. Mmm. Guess what he did? Brought the movies to our home!

Thanks baby boy! I'm thinkin' this will be how I'll want to celebrate every year :)

Jame and Jord even stopped by, even though they were feeling sick. It was so nice of them, they brought us brownies :) All time favorite.

It was so fun hearing from and seeing lots of family and friends.

Thanks you guys! I love you!

The Wednesday following my 22nd, Jon surprised me once more with a trip down to Salt Lake to see Miss Taylor Swift! We had such a blast. We definitely looked a little out of place amidst all the little girlies and their moms, but don't worry..we still sang ;)

HAWT. he's the best!

 Thanks JonnyB!

 You are the best thing that's ever been Miiine! {too cliche?}

 She was wonderful

Thank you so much for making my birthday so special, Captain!

We also got to celebrate with our families the Sunday's before and after. My mom hosted a party with steaks and taco salad-the foods of my soul! It was so fun to spend time with mom, Britt, Nick, little Ave, Ty, and Jon. I missed Tia a lot, and hope she is doing okay.

We all kind of failed at taking pictures, but I did happen to get one of the cake.

These are the earrings Avery gave me. I was graced with some shoes, some jewelry, and mula to get ma' hair done.

Thanks you guys for thinking of me, you are the bombs.com!

Jon's family holds a monthly birthday celebration, because there are SO many peeps in the fam it would probably be close to impossible to celebrate each and every one individually. We got together with all the siblings that live in Utah and had a yummy dinner and dessert over conference weekend. Jon and I got Target giftcards, holla! I love Target. I little tooo much!

Thank you for being so good to us, we love you!

We also were able to stop by my dad and Dee dee's home before heading back to Logania. I received an Itunes giftcard AND and Outback steakhouse card as well! Thank you! And for Jon's bday they got him a desk for his music equipment {he doesn't know yet, so luckliy he doesn't really read this blog.}So awesome!

It was really good to see all of our family in such a short time. We are blessed!

This past Sunday we got to hang out with Mindi and Dave. We love having them up here in Logan! after their cute girls were all in bed, we painted a pumpkin that was going to be entered into a contest between all the dental offices here in Cache Valley. Check it out!:

It's Jack Skelington with braces! It took a while to make, but we had fun. And cookies :) Dave and Mindi also gave us bday giftcards to Buckle and Pacsun. Oh yeeeah! Thanks Gordons!

Yes, we were spoiled. What the heck? I thought getting married was the death of birthday gifts!

Ok so in my last post I mentioned that it was Jon's birthday. Well about a week ago Jon said he thought he knew what his present was {my bad for having it wrapped up on the living room floor}. He guessed right on, so I tried "lying" and said 'Nope! Guess again...' But I had this huge grin on my face so it was way obvious I was lying. He fell for it, but I let him open it anyway, haha.

Its-aWii! He's been saying how we should get one since day one of our marriage {kind of..} So I impulsively {oops!} got him one! I think it was worth it, he's spent some time playing on it already. Weee!

So this Tuesday, his day of birth, he had work and class til 8. I met him afterward for some grub at Texas Roadhouse, one of our favorites.

Then we went home and Jon opened the last of his gifts. He pretty much already knew what it was...

But thanks for acting semi-surprised :) It's a microphone! Now he can record all of his new stuff, which I'm hoping I can share with you guys one day.

After all the rolls and steak from Roadhouse we were a little too stuffed to eat any cake, so we just had some of Jon's favorite drink.

It's Sprite with lemons and limes squeezed into it! You should try.

So-fresh-and-so-gooood! ;)

We watched the movie Hanna. Have you seen it? Kind of odd...yet good...

not so sure how we feel about it.

The next day, guess what we did? We ate cake!

Haha, he's such a nerd sometimes :) I love it.

I can't wait to celebrate birthdays each year and create traditions for our little family. I love Jon more and more each day, he is such a beautiful person inside and out. I love our history and the fact that we get to create our future together. It's so fun being young and in love.

I think it will always feel like this :)

Well, time to go to bed and prepare for school and work tomorrow. The routine ;)

Sweet dreams!

PS- if you learned anything from this...was it that we love steak??