working that arse off.....

....so the other day, I got a voicemail from Ty saying "call me! Its good news!"

When I finally got a hold of him he told me that a couple of weeks ago he submitted and online application for a local radio station, KQRS.com (keyword: slim), to be one of ten contestants to receive 14 weeks worth of Seattle Sutton meals. Seattle Sutton is a company who provides you with breakfast lunch and dinner that are all nutritionally balanced and fall within a certain calorie level.

Well, he had 2 phone interviews and was told he was chosen as one of the ten contestants! The person who loses the highest percentage of weight at the end of the 14 weeks gets a free trip to Vegas!

Well, sense we wouldn't be spending the grocery money for Ty to eat anymore and we want to make it as easy as possible for Ty to win this thing............we decided that we would buy 14 weeks worth of meals for me too! Okay, to be honest it not only would help Ty.....I really wanted to do it too.

So here we go! The food is shockingly good and it is quite nice not to have to think about what to eat and spending time to make it or wash dishes!!!

Wish us luck!

and the saga continues...

After my trip to the farm we headed back to "normal" life in Rexburg. Well, as normal as a life can with including things like testing centers, chastity lines, milk cartons with names written on them, and 'Boys Out'.

Side note: Have you ever noticed that all of the apartment complexes in Rexburg are named after samething that Rexburg doesn't have??? Ex: Autumn Winds, Birch, Arbor Cove, Pineview....you get my point.

Anyways, I was heading back to Minnesota that fall to work...needed money bad. The day before I was leaving, Ty helped me pack all of my stuff up that I would be taking home and we headed back to Arimo. I was taking the shuttle down to the airport from a little town near where his family was. We stayed up all night just talking. I didn't really know what this all ment but aparently we were breaking up.

We headed to the shuttle in the morning....it sucked. When the van started to pull away and Ty was waving goodbye from the parking lot, I thought I had swallowed my heart. I couldn't say I loved him at that point or anything but I knew I thought he was pretty groovy. I think I spent that whole trip trying not to cry.

For the next four months I worked 80 hours a week! Not something I recomend but do-able if you know it is going to end at some point. Not to mention that if I saved enough to pay the insurace for the next year and enough for gas for the same amout of time, my dad was letting my take his, soon to be my, car! In Rexburg, everyone thinks they need a car. They don't, but you sure are cool if you had one.

So I worked my tail off getting speratic calls from Ty. That was about it. Way to cherish my time huh??

Well, the time to head out to school was quickly approaching and I needed someone to drive my car back out to school with me. Conviently, none of my friends could drive a stick (that is if you don't count my best friend, Linna, but remember this was 'conviently'). So I told Ty I would buy him a plane ticket if he would help me out. He agreed and I counted down the days.

Now realize, Ty was as excited as I was. He knew we were friends but he was adimit that was it. His family gave him crap the night before he left and he insisted that absolutly nothing was going to happen. I think he should have looked up irony in the dictionary before coming.

I picked him up at the airport and speed away. Here is way things get interesting...

While we were talking I felt somthing near my hip. I thought maybe something just brushed against me but then it was on my butt!!! I couldn't believe it....Ty has his hand on my behind! After a minute or two...I asked him what he was doing. He turned bright red and said he thought he was just playing with the seatbelt!!! We warmed up to each other real quick after that one.

That night, we rented 'Rat Race'. Well, it wasnt too far into the movie that we started holding hands. I still couldn't tell you what happened in the movie because I was so distracted by what MIGHT happen. Well, the details are fuzzy and we can't agree on who kissed who first but that is exactly what happened! After four months of 'kissing other girls' , his words not mine, we were back together.

I suppose I should back up a second.....I always (only half jokingly) said I was never going to kiss more that 10 boys in my life. Well, lets put it this way..... I made** it! Wanna know the meaning behind the **? Well, Ty was number 9....good right? Well, when we were broken up, I hit 10. But when I got back toether with Ty I went back to 9 again.....good right? Either way, I made it:)

So we started heading out to school right after Christmas.....so you can imagine the weather conditions. We mad it through MN.....ND.....but Montana wasn't lettin' us in. We pulled into a little town name Glendive, MT around 11pm to find out that the highway from there on out was closed because it was covered with a solid sheet of ice. Our only option was to get a hotel room. Neither one of us were terribly keen on this but we couldn't stay in the car...it was below freezing. So we found a hotel and our only option was to get one room....two beds..but only one room. Reluctantly we took it. Ty told me later that he figured I was worth keeping around because just before I passed out that night I told him 'if I wake up an you are in my bed, I will kill you.' Who knew thats all it would take!

We made it the rest of the way without incident!

We got back to Idaho about a week before school started which was my original intention. I figured I could be all set up and ready to go when class started. Because Ty and I had gotten back together on the trip back, I had no intention of heading back to Rexburg so early while he was in Arimo. He was taking the Spring semester off to work at the ski resort so he would be 2 hours away. The night before I left we were talking and Ty said it.....he said

"You're in trouble"

I asked him "why"

And he told me "because you made me fall in love with you"

Now any normal persons response to this declaration would be 'I love you, too'...right? Not mine! I knew I loved him but I was so freaked out by those words that all I could say was "Ditto!" Ditto!!! Yes ditto from the movie ghost! Its the best I could do. I finally did say it but it felt weird!
(Awful picture...but it was from that night so.....)

Later that month, we decide it was inevitable....we were gettin' married! This freaked me out even more! Not because I didn't want to marry him, but because I could imagine what my family was going to say! My sister had acutally told me (do you remember this, Molly?) that I wasn't 'allowed' to get married until I was 23. I was 21 when we decided this. And I had even told my mom that I would never ever marry anyone in the military seeing how tough it could be for both of my sisters. Boy was I wrong!!!! I was excited but terrified.

You are going to love the story of Ty asking my dad if he could marry me.........next time!

Chapter 2...

..who knew that in my world 'tomorrow' means a week!!

Back to the story...

WARNING.......you can't judge me on this one....it was the past.

After that first kiss...we became an item. It was never said, just assumed. This is pretty standard at BYU-Idaho.....dangorous but standand.

I was living in an apartment complex that used to be an old folks home. Because of that, the doorways were huge, there were bathrooms in the bedrooms, walk in closets, and all of the doors into the aparments were on the back side of the building to ensure privacy. My apartment was in the center making it the furthest to walk to from the parking lot. My roomate and I decided it would be a good idea to take the screen out of our bedroom window, which faced the parking lot, and use it as a door when we were feeling too lazy. Sad, I know, but true. Well, eventually this became a convientant way for Ty to let me know he was there, or say goodnight. There is a rule at BYU-Idaho that there are no boys back in the bedrooms.....we found a way around that. I think this may be a prime example of following the letter of the law vs. the spirit:)

Well we left that screen out all summer....should have put it back in when I started to notice foot prints on my bed from roomates climbing in and out:)

From the time we started dating until the Fall semester, it was a whopping one month. We accomplished a lot in the month though....like going to the farm for the first time....

Ty family lives in Arimo which is about 2 hours south of Rexburg so one weekend, it was time visit the bovine eutopia....ie: T.J. Smith and Sons farms. I'd never spent much time around tractors and cows so I was excited....nervous but excited.

The trip was going great.....we were even going to get to go ride horse's that belonged to Ty's old seminary teacher. I had been taking a horse riding class at school, I know I know but I figured I wouldn't never have a chance to do something like that on my dad's dime again, so I was excited.

We went and got the horses an headed back into the farm land towards the mountains. About an hour or so into the ride, we decided to switch horses. Ty jumped up on him new horse and I attempted to but Triby wasn't havin' it. He would move his butt away every time I went to put my foot in the sterup. So Ty, sitting on his horse, grabed my reins and held up Triby while I got up on the saddle. Ty decided to best way to get the reins back to me was to toss them over the horses head. Soooooo, not a good idea. The reins fell short, hit the horse in the face and spooked him. He took off full speed back towards the stables.......longs ways away at this point. Some time in there the reins wrapped around the horses leg so I had no hope of getting them back. Triby was galloping at full speed and I had NO way of controlling him. I honestly thought there was no way that I was getting out of this one with out major injuries.

Triby was on auto-pilot and took a sharp turn on a PAVED road toward the stable. I was scared beyond belief. Meanwhile Ty was trying so hard to catch up with me but his horse just wasn't fast enough. Well, here is the funny/embaressing/sad/bad part of the story. I mentioned that I was scared, well I didn't have the best reaction to the fear. I started yelling, no...screaming the worst possilbe swear word you can think off. And I mean for a long time.

At this point, I could see the barn in front of me and I thought maybe, just maybe, Triby would just slow down and head into the barn. No such luck. He continued on full speed past the barn!!! Past the barn with me still yelling obsenaties. Ty's horse, however, thought it was a good place to stop short. Ty flew over the front of the horse and slammed into the metal gate on the horse ring. At this point I noticed that there was barbed wire on the side of the road. I could get Triby to turn slightly but pulling on this mane. I decided that if I steered him towards that barbed wire, he would either jump the face or stop. I had to take my chances. Obviously, I was being watched over because he stopped!!! I jumped off, grabbed the reins and started to walked back to the barn. Ty ran to me and helped me walked Triby back. Of coarse......when we were tying the reins to a post, the horses bridal broke! While I was hanging on, a PIG ate the bottom of my shirt!!!! Yes I said a pig... I couldn't do anything about it because I couldn't let go of the horse!!!

Well, as murphy's law would have it, things wern't over yet! We headed into the barn and who was there? The seminary teacher AND.....the MISSIONARIES!!! Yes, that's right, I was screaming swear words in front of the missionaries. So ends the last experience of have had ridding horses.

To be continued....

The beginning.....

I opened the blog up again, moving on...

Today is a special day....today I am kick off the 'crap I don't want to forget' series. I'll admit it, I'm not the best at journaling so you all get to relive this stories with me!

So lets start with the number one thing I am thankful for.....this guy!!

Once upon a time...scratch that! Let's be honest, once upon a time is code word for this one Sunday at the hormone filled institution called BYU-Idaho, I went to church with my roommates. A normal occasion in Rexburg. The morning was filled with chatter about the new semester and all of the new 'meat' ie: boys, that would be coming into the ward.

I had just come back from 2 months in central America (we'll cover that another day) and had a killer tan! Okay, it had faded a little by this point but let's be honest, is that really a bad thing? I looked like a freak!

So with my tan faded to a nice golden color, I was feeling pretty good about myself. We walked up to the Snow building and were sitting in the lobby before sacrament and I saw a boy....a cute boy!!! Lucky me....he came over and talked to us! He introduced himself, I wasn't listening very well as I would soon discover, and just as he finished, it was time to head in.

Now, this is BYU-I...you sit with your roommates, end of story!!! I'll admit that I didn't get a whole lot out of that sacrament because I spent the whole time trying to discreetly, so not smooth, look around to find this boy. It turns out he was sitting a few rows behind us so you can imagine all of my poor excuses to turn around....I dropped something behind me...someone was calling my name...you get the point, just plain sad.

Church ended without another mention of him. Oh well....

Later that week, I hadn't run in the this new boy yet so I decided to take things into my own hands. Okay, that's not true. I'm a big wimp...I had my roommate take things into her own hands. She called over to the apartment I thought he lived in and asked her buddy who lived there if Troy was living with them. When he said no, she asked if he knew which apartment he lived in. No idea. Maybe I just imagined him.

Family home evening assignments were passed down that week and my roommates and we decided to go and meet the apartment of guys we were matched with. We walked into the so obviously boys apartment, it smelled like burritos, and there he was. TROY!

Now riddle me this?? How is it that out of all of the information he gave me when he introduced himself, I remember his MIDDLE name??? His name wasn't Troy, it was TYLER! I told you I didn't listen real well when we first met.

For a reason I can't remember, he walked back to my apartment with me before he had to go to work. I had been unpacking still and had a huge box of stuff that didn't have a home yet. Well, Tyler left shortly after with George Forman in hand. I had 2 for some reason and was happy to get rid of the clutter. We actually still have that grill.

We started hanging out at night and just learning about each other. He had just gotten home from his mission to the Philippines after going to basic training and AIT. I, well I couldn't shut up! That is the reason he first kissed me. Romantic huh? He claims to this day that the only reason he kissed me is to get me to stop talking. I think I might believe him.

To be continued.....tomorrow!!!

Most of you already know...

...but I'm going back to school. I'm know I know....shut up Audrey...right? Its all I've talked about for the last month or so.

But here is the run down. My first class starts on June 7th and then 3 more in the fall. Should be done in about 2 years. The goal is to have a job of some sort (definition to be determined later) by the time I'm 30......so 2 1/2 years away.

In the meantime I also started a photography blog so go take a looksie....again I'm sure you are sick of hearing about it....

www.thestuffishoot.blogspot.com

Did you know.....

....I hate cutting my nails?
....there's a bull frog in Africa that can eat an antalope?
....my husband will kick your butt at the farming game every time?
....my little toenail grows sideways?
....I havn't worn makeup in 2 months?
....I want a mental vacation?
....I am back from blog vacation????????

Well, now you do!

This week in photos....

......aparently not a very exciting week..........I only have 2 photos for you. I take that back, it HAS been an exciting week, just didn't tak photos!

I bought this onion when Ty and I went down to the very southeast corner of MN to go caving and camping. There is a large amish population down there and we decided to take a tour. We bought an audio CD that brought you to several amish family farms. When and if I ever get a large sum of money.........there are a few pieces of furniture that I will be blowing it on. AMAZING! Sense I'm not flush with money, we bought jams, honey, and this little beauty. For 60 cents, this GIANT onion may be the best deal ever! (spice bottle for size comparision only!)

Saturday night, I did some senior pictures for the daughter of one of Ty's co-workers. Lots and lots of editting to do but here is a sample.

A day late but not a dollar short...

....I guess the end of summer means more frequent blogging activity. At least this is what I keep telling myself sense I'm convinced my lack luster posting activity has to be blamed on something.....and summer is as good as an excuse as any.

Ty and I are heading down to Southeast MN to go camping, caving, and amish people harassing. But before I go......I will leave you with today's (or yesterdy I guess) ThankfulThursday.

Today, I am thankful for.........

...my chacos..................made the fair sooooooo much better

...speaking of the fair....pig noses.........arn't they the greatest?

...clean sheets....what could possibly be better????

...Dryer sheets......mmmmmmmmmmmmm

...people who actually pay me to take their senior pictures.....isn't they like double dipping?

...cinnamon roasted almonds.......in the top 10 best things I've ever eaten

...toe nail polish.....how else do you cover up ugly toes?

...a dog who will do anything to make me laugh......or at least I convince myself its on purpose:)

...garden fresh potatoes......I have never tasted anything like it....AMAZING!

...THIS guy!

Because it is a physical impossibility....

....to wait until I'm actually done editting all of the photos until I share them.......her are a couple of Miranda's senior pictures! I will post more when I'm done! What do you think?

Class participation needed....

.....I want your favorite quotes, stories, poems, knock knock jokes........whatever makes you smile, gives you courage, or just a chuckle.

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Brittany posted this on her blog and I havn't been able to get it out of my head.

Come to the edge
No we will fall

Come to the edge
No we will fall

They came to the edge
He pushed them and they flew
-Guillaume Apollinaire

Or Jes and Kurt told me this AWESOME joke!

what's brown and sticky???? (A STICK!!!)

But the one that has gotten me through the most lately was from a small poster hanging on the wall at the Dr office that read:

Courage
doesn't always roar
sometimes courage is
the quiet voice at
the end of the day saying,
"I will try again tomorrow."

So bring on the participation!

Life altering lesson learned at the como zoo.....

........

.........

Life isn't always black and white.............

sometimes the grass really is greener on the other side of the fence!

Ha! I crack myself up!

ThankfulThursday

Is it bad that I'm thankful that I'm not the only one that lets blogging go by the wayside in the summer? Kinda of like misery loves company....

Here goes....
I am thankful for...

1. Insurance pays at least a part of the $46 dollars a box of contacts that I have to purchase 2 of every 3 months
2. My $1 planner that has more than earned its keep..........its fueling my list obessesion
3. My Pfaff...........we are having a love affair, MOVE OVER TY!
4. Tour de France........well and the fact that my dad doesn't have cable and is forced to watch it at my house. My dogs always have someone to let them out on time:)
5. SmashBurger.....mmmmmmmm
6. Etsy..............www.etsy.com
7. Cheese graters......seriously...think about shredding cheese with out it
8. My talent....ability....magical power to french braid my own hair:)
9. Water proof mascara
10........................YOUR MOM!!!!!! .......cause if she didn't exsist, you wouldn't be here to read my ridiculous posts!

A good reason...

.....to deal with power tripping security guards?
...to stand for 3 hours smashed into a sweaty...sweaty place?
...to lose 75% of your hearing for and hours after the noise is over?


....to live the evening with paranoia because a certain previously mentioned security guard tried to take one of your lens to you camera because he says its to long and then you hide it and sneak it into another door and use it anyways.

...to stay up until 2 in the morning at which time you have to go deliver newspapers and don't actually get to bed until 4 in the morning when you didn't go to bed until 3:30 the morning before.

....is it a good reason to get to enjoy the single best show you have ever seen in your life?

.....welll.....is it??

You bet your hiney it is!!! GREEN DAY was absolutely the best concert I've been too! If you ever get the chance...I would suggest. Or.....just wait for me to win tickets again and hope I invite you this time. In the last year I've won 4 sets of tickets from the radio.....so you can calculate you odds.....

So let's talk about the single worst security guard in the city. When I was getting ready to leave, Ty called the Target Center to see what their policy on cameras was. I didn't want to bring my SLR and then be told it wasn't allowed. Target Center said that as long as the camera didn't have video recording or sound recording (which really what camera BESIDES an SLR doesn't have that feature) it was okay to bring in. So we go to get in and the guy asks to look into my bag. He pulls out my camera and proceeds to tell me that it is a video camera. After telling him 3 times that it was not he decided to try and tell me that my lens was too long. All this time he kept trying to ripped my camera out of my hands. You don't grab an expensive piece of equipment away from someone, or at least someone like me, and not expect me to get a little snarky about it. There were too other female security guard who kept telling him to let me go in. So when I started to walk by he grabbed my arm and told me he was calling his manager and I couldn't leave. Well the manager called back and said that I would have to go put the lens in my car. Are you kidding me? This is downtown! Not like there are parking lots conveniently located near by. So I ripped my stuff away from this dude and walked away. I then proceeded to put the smaller lens on my camera, hid the long lens very well in the many compartments of my camera bag and go to another entrance. The security guard there started to tell me I couldn't bring an SLR in but when he saw the length of my lens he told me I was fine.

So what did I do??? As soon as Green Day came on I switched lenses! Ha!

The top 10 observations when attending Valleyfair.....

.....be warned! Several, but not all, of those revolve around the choice of swim suit!

For those of you not from around here, Valleyfair is an amusment park...think Lagoon. Ty and I spent out 5th aniversery riding rides that, in a reasonably sensible persons mind, should kill you with Jes and Kurt last week. I guess we are just big kids! I dare say this is one of the most fun Anniversaries yet! However, lets just say that more than just the roller coasters had me wanting to puke.

10. It is not acceptable to walk around all day wearing only your bikini top and short shorts any where else so why do it here?

9. One who spends more then 2 hours in an amusement park is somehow convinced that $4 for a soda is a 'good deal'.

8. It is perfectly acceptable to wear only your swim suit while hurdling full speed down a nearly vertical slide but you are in no way allowed to take off you shirt (guys only of coarse) when you are riding the wave. Discuss.

7. Husbands will often time do anything humanly possible to win a giant, and I do mean giant, stuffed dog that just happens to look like Blue just to make there wives happy.

6. Forbidden fantasies can be lived out through a mear $6 air brushed tattoo on the inside of ones wrist.

5. Parents should not allow there 5 year old to venture 5 feet out into the middle of a calm wave pool and than expect him to be fine once the waves start. If they do, concerned anniversary celebrating guests will grab said child to keep him from continuing to drown and return him to dry land while little drowning boys look at her like they want to cry.

4. 'Muffin Top' is real.

3. When nagged enough by ones husband....one finds the courage to go on terrifying roller coasters and learns that one likes them!

2. A giant tramp stamp (lower back tattoo) is made all the more ridiculous when it is your name with a swirly design around it and body glitter rubbed on it. I'm not kidding! I actually saw this.

and the number 1 observation is.....................

1. just because you are in the age ranges of 14-29 does not mean you are required by law to sport a bikini. If you have a less than tight physic.....avoid this choice in swim wear. I saw far too much of some peoples bodies and its time people take a good look at what will flatter. Between the cracks and the 2 sizes to small bottoms I beg of you to stop!!!!

What happens when.....

....the Army and the Marines duke it out???

After an afternoon at the lake with our favorite Marine family Travis and Nicole (Ruby was not in attendance), I thought I would be able to answer that question..........

...............But clearlly I am not prepared to make that call.

You tell me???

Technical Difficulties.....

.....please excuse this weeks interruption in the ThankfulThursday line up because the author of said line up has lost a good amount of faith in human kind after today's grand jury. Please tune in tomorrow for our regular programing.

Thank you.

Food PORN!!!!

So I've decided that I want to make a cook book.

I get to make everything, take a picture of it, print it in a book, and use that book to make it again.

Wow, that's a vicious circle.

But that means food PORN!!!! My biggest vice....well really next to eating this stuff! I could spend all day staring at a cookbook. Give me the chance to want a fantastic movie....ie:the labyrinth, or watch food network and my mouth will start a watering.

So now, my cookbook means I get to produce my own food PORN!

Does this mean I have to go to the bishop???