Valentine's Day

 Valentine's Day went pretty well this year.  Only one little blip happened, but other than that it was pretty great!

I like to have my 8th grade students do a fun cooking lab for Halloween in the first semester and Valentine's Day in the second semester.  I have them make sugar cookies because it is an easy way to celebrate the holiday.  Just cut out the cookies in shapes that represent that holiday.  The kids make the cookies and I make the frosting for them.  The kids have a blast and love being able to decorate (even the boys) the cookies.  It's a busy, tiring day for me, but it's nice to see how much the students enjoy it.

So, the school district I'm in is crazy and decided to have parent/teacher conferences on Valentine's Day and the day after.  Do they really not think that teacher's have lives and would rather spend it with loved ones instead of parents?  Anyways, I am super lucky and since I am 3/4 part-time, I only have to attend one day of conferences.  Obviously, I chose to do it the day after, so I could spend Valentine's with my husband.

Scott called me on his way home from school and asked if I received anything at school.  I said no and Scott had ordered me flowers, but they never arrived!  He called the flower company and at 4:00pm, they were just on their way to be delivered.  Obviously that wouldn't work since I'm a teacher and get done before then.  So, he cancelled the delivery for that day and got refunded the money he paid for a guaranteed delivery on Valentine's Day.  The company said they would re-deliver on Thursday, so Scott said sure, but he was still upset that I didn't get my Valentine's surprise.  I was fine with it because it's the fact that he thought to order me flowers and have them delivered to my school that was sweet.  Anyways, I got the flowers delivered on Wednesday.  He got me an orchid plant in a cute little cup.  Then came today and I got another flower delivery of the same flower!  We're not sure what happened, but we're hoping that he didn't get charged twice for the flowers.  I am totally fine with having two pretty orchid plants.

The one on the left I got first and the one on the right I got today.

So, Scott got home from school, took a shower and off we went to my favorite restaurant Applebee's!!  I seriously love that place.  We went at 5:00 and it was the perfect time to go because it wasn't that busy and we only had to wait 5 minutes for a table.

 After dinner, we had some time before the movie started, so we went shoe shopping and I got some cute shoes on sale!  After that, we went and saw the movie "This Means War".  It was pretty funny and we enjoyed it!  We saw the special Valentine's showing, but it really doesn't open until tomorrow.

Then we came home, relaxed and went to bed.  It was great to go out and do something and see a movie (I love movies).  I just love my husband so much and I'm glad we got to celebrate on this day of love!

Let the Training Begin!

At the beginning of January, I did something crazy.  Maybe it was all the talk of New Year's resolutions that got me to do it, but I did it. I signed Scott and I up to run the UTAH VALLEY MARATHON!!!!

June 9th will be the day that we run 26.2 miles.  Now, why on earth would I sign us up for such pain? (I know that the picture says "pain you enjoy", but I doubt that I will be enjoying myself until its over)  Scott has already ran a marathon before (I'm still not sure why.  You'll have to ask him about it. He was not thinking when he was younger. haha), but this is a bucket list item of mine.  I am no hard-core runner by any means, but I love the atmosphere of races.  I've done a few 5k's, a 4 mile race (our turkey trot run this year), a 10k and a half-marathon.  I've also done the Ragnar Relay race twice.  The marathon is the only race I have not accomplished yet.

I ran cross-country in high school, but once I got to college, I stopped running.  I, sadly, gained the "Freshman 15" and to lose some weight, I started running again.  I signed up to run a 10k race with a friend in college.  I loved running again and the atmosphere of the race, especially since it was the DAM Marathon race. :)

My friend Arian and I after the race.

After that, I wanted to continue running and racing.  The next year, I ran the half-marathon in the same race.  I ran this one by myself, but it felt so good to do it.

The Ragnar Relay has been one of the funnest races I've ran.  It's been great the two times I've ran it.

First time running Ragnar.

2nd time running.  Team Risky Business.

Me and my cousin Ben and his wife Jessica.

I'm pretty sure this is going to be one of the best only New Years Resolutions I'm going to complete.  I am actually pretty excited to start training, getting in shape and eating healthier.  If you have any tips to help me train, I would love to hear!  Let's get training! *Rocky music playing...*

What's been going on...

Here are some updates on life:

The Husband: Scott has started working at his new R.N. job!  His first day was Sunday night and it went well for him.  He is with a trainer, so he works all the shifts that she does and so he will mostly work graveyard shifts (7pm-7am) and 3pm-11:30pm shifts.  It will definitely be an adjustment for him to start working graveyards again.  He had graveyard shifts when he did his internship last summer, so it's been a while.  It's exciting to think that he is working at a job where he truly wants to work.

Ready to head out to his first day of work!

The Wife:  Teaching is going good for me.  I went to a conference on Saturday and it is always nice to hear different ideas from other teachers.  I actually used an idea that I heard on Saturday while teaching today and it went well, so as boring as those conferences are, I can get some helpful information.  In my spare time, I have been working on a craft project.  I am halfway done in making a felt rosette wreath for Valentine's Day.  It should probably be done by now, but as long as it's up by Valentine's Day, I'll be happy.

 The two of us: Scott did the sweetest thing last Friday, the 3rd.  I was teaching and at my school and Fridays are shorter days to where school is done at 12:30pm instead of 2:45pm.  The teachers then have meetings from 12:30-2:45.  Anyways, the point is that I got done teaching early around 10:45am.  I wasn't expecting to see Scott until later that afternoon when I was done with school.  I had just barely finished teaching my last class and was at my desk when I looked up and I see Scott walking in holding some flowers.  He had to come up to the area to do things for his new job and decided to stop by and say hi.  I think the last time he came to visit me at school was while we were dating/engaged, so it was such a surprise!  I was so happy to see him and since I was finished teaching and my meetings wouldn't start for another hour or so, we went out to lunch.  It was so nice just to spend time and talk with him.  I hadn't seen him for the last 3 days because of our opposite schedules.
I love bragging about how lucky I am to have married such a sweet guy.  Here are my pretty flowers:

A Belated Congratulations

This is something that should have been posted pretty soon after it happened.  On December 17th, Scott graduated with his associates in nursing.  He is now a Registered Nurse (R.N.)!!  He didn't attend the graduation ceremony for a variety of reasons, but I did throw him a party with our family.  All my siblings and my mom were available to come and Scott's sister, husband and kids showed up as well.  It was great to have so much family together showing their support.  We had delicious panini sandwiches for lunch and played some games.  It was a good time and I hope Scott felt that his graduation was recognized.  I wish I had taken pictures, but I was too busy trying to be the host for the party.  Oh well.

(Sorry for the bad pictures...I was in a hurry to take them)

Scott has not received his nursing license yet, but once he does then he will officially be a R.N.

 (This next bit is a little long and really for my own personal "journal".) 

All the way back in October (maybe September), Scott started applying for jobs left and right.  He was talking to every one he could in the hospital trying to find out what he can do to help him get a job.  He didn't start getting interviews until December, but when he did it sure felt like he was getting one after another.  We were feeling so blessed that he was receiving these opportunities.  Scott was so ready to start working as a nurse.  Looking for jobs is such a roller coaster ride.  You get so excited when you get an interview and then feel so disappointed when you don't get it....and then it starts all over again with the next interview.  I can't speak for my husband, but I know that I felt this every time he got an e-mail saying that they went with another candidate.  I kept thinking, "what went wrong?  You said that the interview went great!  You said that they were impressed with you and your answers and your knowledge.  How could they not pick you?"

It wasn't until Scott was offered the job he has now that I realized that Heavenly Father knows what's best for us.  Sure, any of the other jobs Scott interviewed for would have been fine, but this job seems so perfect for him!  Scott is a R.N. in the float pool circuit around the Salt Lake Valley.  This means that he will go to whatever hospital is in need on whatever floor.  He is so excited because he will be getting experience in all areas instead of just one.  It is a great opportunity for him to really figure out what floor he likes working on.

The job is full-time, but his shifts are 12-hour shifts, meaning that he will only be working three nights a week.  I am glad that the time that he will be gone at night is the same as it is now instead of increasing.  I'm not sure I could handle more, especially whenever we decide to start a family.  Another plus is that he will work up in Salt Lake.  We live about 40 minutes south and the school I teach at is up in Salt Lake also.  We are planning on moving once our contract is up in August and it will be so nice not to have to commute every day.

We are so excited for this new journey in our lives and can't wait to see how it goes.  Congratulations, my husband, all your hard work, time and effort have paid off and I am so proud of you!  I love you!

Zupa's Wiconsin Cauliflower Soup

I love being able to find out how to make things from restaurants.  It is just so much cheaper to make things at home instead of going out to eat.  Last night, I decided to make a recipe for Zupa's Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup.  I got the link for the recipe from a friend on Facebook and I'm glad I decided to try it out.  It was so delicious!  The only thing missing from our Zupa's meal was a chocolate covered strawberry.  It was a very easy meal and didn't take a lot of effort.  It was perfect for a cold, snowy evening.

Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup

2 tablespoon butter or margarine
1 medium onion, chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups water
1 can (13 3/4 to 14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1 head (2 1/2 pounds) cauliflower, cut into 1-inch chunks
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I just used normal mustard...you can't really even taste it)
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup Colby Jack cheese, shredded

In a large saucepan, melt margarine or butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Whisk in flour and salt. Gradually stir in milk, chicken broth, and water.

Add cauliflower and heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer until cauliflower is tender, about 15 minutes. In blender, blend cauliflower mixture at low speed in small batches until very smooth. 

Return cauliflower mixture to saucepan; heat over medium heat until hot, stirring occasionally. Remove saucepan from heat; stir in mustard and 1 1/2 cups cheese until melted and smooth. Serve soup with remaining cheese as a garnish.  Add bacon if wanted as well.
(Recipe and picture from here.)

 For a dessert, I made these yummy cookies.  Just take a basic chocolate chip cookie recipe (it can be any of your choice) and add cut up Reese's peanut butter cups and Rolo candies into the dough.  Bake as normal and enjoy!! They were pretty tasty, if I do say so myself.

 

Kansas City Temple

It is weird to think that Missouri is not really my home anymore.  I have not lived there for the past 3 years and I doubt that when Scott and I start a family, we will end up back there.  It is not that I hate it; it just seems like it is a place that is now part of my past instead of my present and future.  The last time I visited was when Scott and I had our reception for our wedding (August 2010).  I do miss it and I love any chance I can get to read stuff about my hometown (Liberty) and cheer on my hometown sports teams (Go Royals and Chiefs!).  One thing that I just read about was the Kansas City Temple Open House dates.

The closest temple to go to when I was growing up was the St. Louis Temple, which was about 4 hours away.  Once the Nauvoo  Temple was rebuilt, we started to go to that one, but it was still a drive to get there.  This Kansas City Temple is just so exciting!!  From pictures and what I've read, the temple is built about 10 minutes away from where my old house was.  I sometimes secretly wish I was still living in Missouri, so that I could participate in this temple that's been a long time coming for the people of Kansas City.  The open house dates are from April 7th-April 21st.  I love going to temple open houses just because it is fun to be able to see a lot of the temple at once, plus it is a great missionary opportunity.

It is crazy to probably think this is possible, but I have my spring break from teaching the week of April 16th...meaning, that I could go out to Missouri and be able to attend the open house of the temple, in a place that is dear to my heart. (If you're really thinking about going Rebecca, I'll tag along!)  It is probably wishful thinking, but either way, I hope to be able to visit it someday!

I just love the fact that Temples are being built in places where it was never thought possible.  It just makes it more real that the gospel really is being spread to all ends of the Earth. 

Slacking...

I have been slacking in posting on the blog.  It seems that I just haven't wanted to post anything, but I know that I should and would probably regret if I don't.  So, let's do a catch-up from Christmas.

New Years Eve was a fun time.  Scott and I went over to Andrew and Rebecca's (bro and sis-in-law) for a party.  Lots of cheering, noise making and balloon popping at midnight.

Scott labeled our cups for us.

Pretty quickly after New Years Eve, Scott started to get this pretty bad cough that would keep him up at night.  We bought some medicine from the store, but after a week and the cough had still not gone away, Scott decided to go to the doctor.  The doctor said that it he probably has bronchitis, so we are hoping that he gets better soon!

A semester of school just got finished for me, so I had Friday off (teachers need a break from all that grading) and I have Monday off (holiday)!  I am a little anxious about this new semester, but it is nice that it will be a fresh start.  I just hope these kids are as good as the last ones! (I complained a little, but in all honesty, they were pretty great).

As a surprise, Scott's Uncle Robert (who he was named after) passed away just recently.  Scott's Aunt Helen passed away right before Thanksgiving, so back up his parents come for another funeral.  We went to the viewing and everybody was saying that they weren't expecting to see each other so quickly.  I actually think it's quite cute when spouses pass away soon after one another.   As always, it has been nice to see and chat with the in-laws. 

On Saturday (the 14th), I went to take the Praxis test again.  I had failed the first one by 3 points (most likely because of the essay portion), meaning that I needed to take it again.  My motivation to study was a little less than last time, but I forced myself to study again.  I feel pretty good about it and I will find out in 4 weeks if I have to take it again or if I am done taking those hard, expensive tests.

In other, very exciting news, my sister Brianna has gotten engaged!  Her and Kyle are great together and it will be exciting to be able to help with a wedding that's not mine.  I am glad that all the planning, stress and money are something I don't have to worry about.  I just get to help out on the fun stuff, like wedding dress shopping!  Congratulations sister and thanks for the road trip to San Diego! (They have chosen to get married in the San Diego Temple).

I think Kyle will fit right in. :)

Excited to visit this beautiful place again!

As I was talking to my sister-in-law, Rebecca the other day, we were both realizing how many activities will be going on and how quickly they will be happening.  I just hope I can keep up on blogging, so I don't have to do another catch-up post.