BYU Game & Thanksgiving

My family got together this weekend for the BYU game. The boys went to the game and my sister, mom and I went to Tai Pan and Ikea. We are all dyed-in-the-wool, true blue, through and through BYU fans having been brainwashed since infancy and BYU being all our Alma Maters'.


It was a quick trip down Saturday morning and the brothers, Jason and I all played Trivial Pursuit in the car on the way down. I am proud to say I definitely held my own, was winning at numerous times during the games and effectively impressed my brothers. It was a great time and we all now have great memories. Thank you brothers for letting me barge in on "brother time."

How was the game? Well, it was very tense at the end going in to overtime but our Cougs did kill the evil UofU team in the end! GO COUGARS!

THE BOYS

We had a very enjoyable Thanksgiving day with the Larsen family. We all had a blast playing games together and definitely created some great memories. Jason and I had our first Black Friday experience and decided to just sleep in till about nine and if we missed some sales, oh well. It turned out GREAT! Jason got a new dress coat for $80 (off of $200!) and I got a dress coat for $40 (off of $100!) We also got some great gifts for other people so, if we're giving to you, be excited! We also both got gloves; we're FREEZING here in Rexburg!! I got my first pair of mittens that I am in LOVE with. No more freezing fingers when I get to work in the morning.

Oh yeah, work. I started at Melaleuca a few weeks ago. It has been... INSANE! Everyone keeps telling me that it's usually not this busy but I have been working my butt off day after day for weeks now and I am so so tired every day. I am learning SO MUCH every day; it's crazy. I guess I'll just be glad for Melaleuca that they are doing so well. Jason has finals coming up this week so we're getting geared up for that. Giddy up.

Fishing Madness & Wedding Bliss

Jason is an avid fisherman. Even the frigid temperatures can't keep him away. My brothers Nathan and Curtis came up on Saturday and they went out fishing together.


They had a fun time but unfortunately they only got to go a half day because Jason had to leave early to come with me to Utah to go to...

Arianne's wedding!

We were so glad we got to be there to support Airs. And when we got there we were very surprised to see…

NIK!
He was supplying the music for the wedding and reception. He’s very talented. I haven't seen him for like 4 or 5 years so it was great to run into an old friend and catch up.

After the wedding and reception we drove to Lehi where we went to dinner at this great Chicago pizza place and saw New Moon which ended up being pretty good. We liked it better than the first movie and I liked it better than the book which (as I understand) never happens, right? So way to go on that New Moon movie makers.

Miss Hillcrest

The latest adventure has been my sister, Celeste's pageant, Miss Hillcrest. She won interview and was so elegant and statuesque during modeling she took our breath away.

This yellow sequined gown looked phenomenal on stage.

Her black opening number dress. She was the best dancer, too.

Her talent "modern girl" costume.
She sang "I'm Not Afraid of Anything."

After pageant hours.

We are all so proud of her. Next stop: Miss America.

Do Not Disturb

Jason is on a training in Nicaragua and he sent me this funny picture.



Please, No Moleste.

Birthday Vacation

Last weekend Jason took me on a trip to celebrate my birthday. We went to Little America in SL among other things and were able to stay in the same room as our wedding night.



It was amazingly fun! He had bubbly sent up to our room which was so romantic and then the next morning we ordered room service. Jason got a breakfast burrito which came with this amazingly small bottle of Tabasco sauce. He used the entire bottle.

More updates to come about our fabulous trip when Jason gets home from Nicaragua with the camera.

Jason's On-site Trainings

Jason goes on trainings all around the western hemisphere (so far) training big companies how to use the software "Fishbowl Inventory" the company he works for. His recent trainings have taken him to Texas/Mexico, and Virginia. He is going to Nicaragua in the next few days. The companies love him and he is getting a lot of experience. When he goes on these trainings, he takes his evenings to sight see the surrounding areas.

In Texas, Jason went to The Alamo which was just a few hours out of the city he was training in.

In Virginia, he was just a few minutes outside the city of Appomattox. The Appomattox courthouse was were the South surrendered to the North to end the Civil War. The museum closed in the evenings so he didn't get to go in but did get to snap this picture of the courthouse. Virginia was beautiful and he enjoyed the trip.

Yellowstone Anniversary

For our 2nd Anniversary, we spent a few days in Yellowstone National Park. We both frequented Yellowstone quite a bit as children but neither of us had been in about ten years. I wasn't excited at first but trusted Jason's instinct and ended up having a blast! We stayed at Mack's Inn, Jason fished to his heart's delight, we saw Old Faithful, The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, waterfalls, a billion buffalo, deer, coyote, and beautiful, stinky geysers. We also spent a day in West Yellowstone and went to Secret Garden at The Playmill. It was amazing and we had a wonderful time!

Beautiful day on 'Coffee Pot' in Island Park

One of many of Yellowstone's Thermal features

Old Faithful in the background
We found "Old Faithful" to be not-so-faithful

There was a huge herd of buffalo on the road when we were trying to get by. It was scary because some would fight right off the road and then suddenly bolt across and almost run into cars! I stuck my head out the sunroof to get a better picture. Jason was nervous and asked me to get back in the car. I didn't listen until the park ranger asked me to as well. :)

We had a wonderful vacation!

Let's start at the very beginning...

Jace and I started dating our junior year of high school. This is prom; yes, we went to prom as pirates. If you know Jason at all, you know nothing but pirates would do.

Speaking of "Pirates..." We were the leads in the school musical. This was probably one of the funnest times in both of our lives. Frederick and Mabel forever!

So high school was a blast but doesn't last forever. I went to BYU and Jason went to Panama.


Beautiful, eh? This is one of Jason's favorite areas: Puerto Armuelles. Someday we'll go back and visit this beautiful land.

BYU unfortunately wasn't quite as beautiful as Panama. I graduated last December with a degree in Choral Music Education. We then moved to Rexburg so Jason could go back to BYUI where he did a year before we got married. Well, that's the last 6 years in a nutshell.

Starting a Blog

So I decided to start a blog because... everyone else is doing it. Also, it'll be good to help keep in touch with family and friends. We need to start keeping track of our memories somehow, too. Fun stuff. This is the story of Jason and I's 'Happily Ever After.'