Ready, Set, Summer!

Well, I know it's just the beginning of summer, but I cannot wait for days off at the pool, trips to the beach, fireworks, cookouts, watermelon, Twilight: Eclipse, and of course, Michael's favorite...the WOLRD CUP!!! The olympics of football - every four years. This past week I bought all of the England flags we could possibly need - car flags, garden flags, bumper sticker flags - and when I told Michael his first response was "Did you get one I can wear as a cape?!" Well....no, I didn't think of that one. :/ We will be properly outfitted as England fans nonetheless! If you don't have enough of your team's random things, go here to stock up!

Michael has adjusted suprisingly well to working nights. I've woken up several times in a half panic because I don't know where he is, but eventually it comes back to me that he's at work! I'm finally, for real, working on finishing my final class to graduate from BYU, which means masters program applications this fall, and back to school full time next year! As it turns out, retail sucks. :)

Early last month we planned a nice quiet get away to the beach, just me and Michael, no interruptions, no obligations...just sand, ocean, and relaxation. Around the first of this month we found out that the very weekend we had picked was my dad's class reunion - on the very same beach. AND my brother was going to be going down to Florida to visit my grandparents - 30 min from the beach. So, why not make it a family reunion also and have Sara and Joe and the boys come too?? So, our quiet weekend alone is now a quiet weekend alone, with the whole family. :) We're looking forward to having some time to get away and enjoy the beach, and also getting to spend some quality time with my grandparents and aunt and uncle and brother and parents and sister and her family! :) We also will get to party like its 1965(or somewhere near there) and listen to my dad and his old high school band play(not like, marching band...like, night club band). Should be an unforgettable night! :)

In my dream world, we will also be getting a new car :) In reality, we probably won't be getting my car's replacement until early next year or so. BUT, here's what I have in mind....


The Mazda CX-7. This one is my front runner right now...

Or the Honda CR-V. Also a great choice - mine has lasted me 11 years and is nearing 14 years old...


Which do y'all think??

Soooo Precious!

A few nights ago Michael and I were at Sara and Joe's house when the boys were getting ready for bed. Every night they do family prayers and recently they have been signing their favorite church primary songs before bed. So, with some prodding, they convinced the boys to put on a show for me and mike. While they were getting ready, I snuck out my camera to catch it on video without them knowing.

It is the most adorable, sweetest thing to watch these boys sign. They've gone through a lot, and they have come so far. I just love them to pieces! I hope this video touches you like it has us!

Great new find!!

So, the ward we just moved in to is turning out to be wonderful! A few ladies from RS came to visit me to tonight, and one of them brought me the cutest bag! It turns out that she makes them!! So, I thought I would give a shout out to her blog so you all can check them out!

My option to add a link is freaking out, so go to hammibags.blogspot.com!

In my effort to be a little more crafty, I've taken up cross-stitching! I thought I would document my progress on here! Unfortunately, everything i have done so far is white on cream, but I'll post the pictures eventho you really can't see anything! It's a counted cross stitch, it's very small, and its fairly simple, but it is taking ALL of my concentration to work on it!

If you look REALLY hard you can kind of see what I've done so far! I'm about halfway done with the white of the sheep, and then I'm on to a new color! Hopefully it's one that shows up better so I dont have to do it 2 inches from my eyes!

Lastly, I just finished a super fun secret project for my friend Tiffany's baby shower! The shower is this Saturday, so I will post it after that!! I love surprises!!

*As one last side note, I am going to be posting the links for fun or amazing blogs that I come across at the bottom of our blog! Check em out!

Our new place!

I finally got all the pictures of the apartment taken! Here they are!

5 months later...

I cant believe it's been 5 months since I updated our blog!! I should be fired from blogging - I'm clearly no good at it! Even so, I'm going to give it another chance and quickly update anyone who might be reading this on what has been happening in our lives!



It is so far past the fall that it seems almost pointless to post anything about what happened during Sept, Oct and Nov! So, I'll skip it! :) In December we learned that the store I was working at was closing. So, with the future looming ahead of us we had some decisions to make about how to move forward in our lives! We had contemplated moving to Utah for a short time, but our opportunities there didn't work out the way we had planned, so that was quickly crossed off our list. I got a job at the Mall of Georgia and our plans were set - we're moving to Lawrenceville....eventually! In the mean time, waiting for the store to close, looking for a place to live, and wondering how we would accomplish it all, Christmas came along to distract us! Dave and Jen and the kids all came in for Christmas and we had a great time with them! Their kids kept us going and kicked Michael back into shape with some rigorous football matches. We really enjoyed having them around to entertain us!



I turned a whopping 26 last year in Christmas Eve...and as can be expected, I feel no different(although Michael enjoys reminding me I'm nearly middle-aged). Moving on!



On December 30th we set out for England to give his mom the best ever birthday surprise....which was ruined the day we arrived by an untimely and very telling facebook post! (Don't worry Sara...its ok!!) She was still delighted we were there and very happy to have her boy back home for a while. I got some very enlightening lessons on roast potatoes, yorkshire pudding, and macaroni and cheese. So far I've tried the roast potatoes with rave reviews. I might open a restaurant.... Back to the point, Michael loved being back home, seeing his friends and family, and playing COD and PES with Andrew. I didn't see him much... lol :) The trip ended with piles of snow, huge delays on our flights and huge sighs of relief when we left the ATL airport. We're resolved to drive to England on the next trip - or at the very least make sure we visit in the summer next time!



We got back from England on the 7th, on the 9th I went apartment hunting, and on the 10th we'd paid our deposit on the perfect place for us! It's nothing grand, but its a great space for us at the perfect price! I'll post pictures asap! We've still got a couple boxes to put away and three baskets of laundry! But, thanks to wonderful family, our move was pretty smooth, though exhausting!



So, I've been at my new job now for almost 3 weeks - which I cannot believe! It feels like I've been there forever! Michael is still looking for any job that has nothing to do with cars. Fingers crossed he'll find one before desperation drives him back to Honda...again!



We are loving our new place, the less than 10 mile drive to my work, the grocery stores within less than a mile of our apt, and the wealth of civilization surrounding us! It sure is a change from the pastures and farmland that we were accustomed to! But we both feel it is a change for the better. The beginning of a new chapter...andour one year anniversary is less than a month away!

Birthdays, Mountains, Beaches, and Green Cards!

It's another gray morning in Mansfield this week, and while Michael is getting his much needed "lie in" I figured its about time to force myself to update this thing!

The last few months have been a lot of fun! We are most definitely settled in, and I'm pretty sure the honeymoon period is over. Actually, if i'm being honest with myself, it ended after our two month "anniversary." Since then we've been functioning as a couple who's been married for approximately 42 years. :) But I think its safe to say we love each other more every day, and I'm so grateful for every incidence that makes me realize that.

Let's go back to where we left off, shall we? My last post was April 20 (wow...I suck at blogging). To make this bearable for everyone to read, because blogging about 4 months of life would be a bore to anyone, I'll post a few pictures with some details about what we did. :)


On April 25th we went to Aaron's 4th brithday party. It was a Dora and Diego theme. And it made me think...maybe this year I'll opt for a themed birthday party. They just look like they're so much more fun. :) The kids played in the sprinklers and the adults (ha, thats me and Michael too!) sat around the table and talked and laughed. Ah, married life! :)








Michael got in on some of the action with the cake toppers.







And on an unrelated topic, I tried out a new hairstyle. Bangs! (or fringe, for our English readers). I got so many mixed reviews - initially they didnt like it, but then it grew on them, etc - that they have now grown out past my nose. Still not sure If I'm ever gonna go back there...




In June we celebrated Michael's 24th birthday! (It hurts a little that I'm going to have to suffer through all the milestone birthdays before him.) On a side note, almost everytime we go through a door Michael feels the needs to hold the door open for me (yes, very nice) and then add "age before beauty." >:( Back to the birthday fun: There isnt a terrible lot to do around these parts, so we went to Stone Mountain!

At the top of the mountain:

Then, we went to dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. Michael, to the best of his memory(which isn't good) had never had crab before! Since my family LOVES crab legs, he really didn't get much of a choice in where we went. (That and my parents paid for us, so really it was their choice :) )

The waitress made him hold his tongue and sing happy birthday to himself before he could get his cake. :) I think Sara has it on video...






I wanted to get him an Arsenal cake, but sadly, we don't do cake decorations for that over here, so I settled for red and yellow. Tho, I guess this season it would be red and blue....


After dinner and cake, we went back to stone mountain for the laser show. Sadly, I dont have any pictures to post because, well, fast moving lights don't exactly photgraph well.


Well, that sums up June! In July we had our family reunion in North Carolina. We took some family photos....







Here are some random snapshots of our week in the mountains!






Some crazy big catfish at Field of the Woods.






Amazing view from somebody else's cabin :)




Us :)





Yummy candy shop in Helen, Georgia - a little German inspired village, i.e., tourist trap.

picture time!

And then last month we made a trip to Florida for my friend Ashley's wedding reception in Orlando! We took the opportunity to go to Downtown Disney and the beach!

As you can see, Michael was thrilled to drive the WHOLE way!

After Ashley's reception, and on our way to Disney!

We had some fun with the hats in World of Disney :)

There's no story behind this picture, I just really like it!

We tried to make a stop at the Orlando temple, but the gates were locked. This was the best we could do!

This is the aligator in my grandparents little lake behind their house! Eek!

And we finally made it the beach! We arrived in Florida just in time for some tropical depressions, so we weren't sure we'd get a sunny day!

Michael taking his first steps in the Gulf of Mexico.

After all of our fun this summer, reality finally came back to us! We had our interview for immigration the day after our beach trip - August 18th. Our interviewer was NOT fun at all, and Michael couldn't remember any of the dates pertaining to our "courtship," but he passed us!! Michael is now a conditional permanent resident of the United States of America! Woo! No more paperwork or interviews for a while now - fingers crossed! So, with his social security card, work authorization, and green card in tow, he hit the streets to find a job! Two days later he started working 12 hour days with Honda of Conyers! I have, since April, been promoted to Lead Sales/key holder at Ann Taylor Loft and find myself, starting this month, working WAY more than usual! So, now that we both have jobs and our bank account has two paychecks coming into it, life seems like it might just be going perectly!

However, that being said, Michael's best friend Andrew is coming to visit us this weekend for two weeks. I might have to reassess my last statement after he has gone back home to England! :) We'll keep you posted!!

Home Sweet Home

Well, I think we are finally all settled in! Here are some pics of our little basement apartment!!

There are still a few more things we'd like to do around the apartment, but for now we are really happy with it. And when I say we, I mean me. :) Michael's opinion on everything about decorating is "whatever you want, luv." Fingers crossed it stays that way for about 60 years!

There isn't much new going on in our lives. I'm working at Ann Taylor Loft - just part time right now. Michael is practicing for the semi-pros of Mariokart for Wii and our co-op band on Guitar Hero is really bringing in the cash! Life is good! :)

Start a LOVE train....

"People all over the world, join hands. Start a love train, love train..."

As an intro into the blogging world, I decided to participate in the Chain (train) of LOVE. A friend of mine posted a blog similar to this, and I am following through on my part of the commitment. Here's how it works: the first 5 people to comment on this post will receive something SPECIAL from me in the mail. Word on the street is it is supposed to be homemade, but home ec was not my strongest subject! Either way, you'll get something lovely, tastey, useful, etc. from me! If you comment, you must publish a post similar to this one - sending something in the mail to the first 5 commenters. I thought this sounded like a fun idea, so let's keep it going!

About Us :)

Keia's version: Michael and I met in June of 2007 at a YSA dance. He was dating someone else. Come July, he was no longer dating her, and making some serious advances in my direction. Sensing his cowardice, I worked up the courage and asked him out. Our first date was to Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix followed by some intense Wii sports competitions. He claims he won, but we all know I kicked his trash. Needless to say, I dazzled him with my charm and he couldn't resist a second date, and then a third, and so on. Michael was my first, and VERY awkward kiss - and a very good teacher. At the end of the summer, I was headed back to America and we ended our summer fling - much to my displeasure. He, however, managed to move on just fine! For almost exactly a year, we were barely in contact - only emailing every few months, but early August of '08, he confessed that he couldn't sleep because he could not stop thinking about me and he still had feelings for me. I admitted that I hadn't gotten over him either, and we decided to give it a try long distance! In September he came to Georgia for three weeks to spend a little time with me. We took a trip to Disney World - his very first time - and fell in love!




Michael proposed, completely unexpectedly(well, mostly), on October 8th - two days before he went back home to England. It was VERY romantic, and I cried - of course!



Michael's version:
It started as Keia said at a YSA dance, and as anyone will know I am an awesome dancer, and I'm pretty sure I had her at '2 step's, then hip swing' - I could see it in her eyes, she dug me. But that's neither here nor there. Keia says at the time I was dating someone else but I have no idea who that was, so I'm gonna take her word on that. Apparently come July I was single, I do remember seeing Keia about and making a point of working my 'moves' on her. Now the bare faced lie she calls cowardice I call weighing up my options - didn't wanna commit myself too soon, guys will know what I'm talking about. Well, maybe just Andrew.
It is true she asked me out first only because, well, she asked me first. I was on it, after all I am from a 'slow country'.... you can stop laughing now Sara;)
The date was, well,to be honest I have no recollection of the date, but it must have been great because I came back for dessert. The second date was interesting. I tried to teach Keia how to bend it like Beckham... i guess some people are just unteachable;)
The mighty third date we made out which was hilarious as it was Keia's first time, but eventually we got there and it rocked my socks.
Keia mentioned something about her dazzling charm. The only thing that dazzled me was her ability to suck at wii;)(for the older generation its a computer game and not what you do in the toilet).
At the end of the summer I brutally ended our relationship, and to this day I can still hear Keia singing 'summer lovin' happened so fast'.
The relationship ended and she went home. In her version she still sounds bitter about me moving on just fine - that's because it's still fresh in her mind as I only told her a few days ago how soon I moved on(men are pigs!!!).
So for about a year as Keia said we barely stayed in contact. I was rebuked by Keia via e-mail for letting this happen, to which she swears she was 'joking', but we all know how vicious she can be.
Anywho, I digress. Where was I... she left, I moved on, a year passed and i can't sleep - oh yeah about that...the reason i couldn't sleep was Arsenal were having a bit of a slump in the premier league - that coupled with gas... well you can imagine.
Again I digress, I am a useless blogger... yes, Keia then told me that she had never really gotten over me and well just some really sweet things, bless her.
We gave long distance a try and after some extremely large phone bills I robbed a bank and took a trip to the states, with no idea of proposing against extremely popular belief. I came just to test the waters, see what these feeling I had were as the closest thing I felt to love was eating my first Wendy's in 2001.
We took an awesome trip to Disney which is were I fell head over heels in love with the woman of my dreams, Minnie Mouse, but she was taken(stupid Mickey) so i fell in love with my eternal companion, my friend, my wife. Who i love more with every passing day, but don't tell her that;)



Over a thousand dollars in plane tickets, a Christmas in England, and LOTS of hassle with the Dunstable/Luton registrars offices, we were married on February 28th, 2009. We had a civil ceremony in the Luton chapel of the LDS church, and were then sealed in the London Temple for time and eternity.







We honeymooned in Italy, and I very nearly stayed behind with my gladiator lover... We had a great time and saw some really amazing sights in Venice and Rome. You can see the majority of our pics on my Facebook page. We are now back to reality and living in my parents basement (cheap rent). I am trying to find some full time work to pay the bills until Michael can get his work authorization. We are struggling to understand the immigration process and hoping that we get all the paperwork right! It will be a glorious day when all of his approvals come through! We hope that you'll join us as we try to make a start for ourselves!