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!