Red and Curly

I think this means it's real...

2011-08-18T22:04:00.001-06:00

I think I actually start teaching on Tuesday.

Scary.

"Enduring to the end means improving to the end."

2011-08-04T16:44:00.001-06:00

"Sit tell in the saddle, hold your head up high
Keep your eyes fixed, where the trail meets the sky
And live like you ain't afraid to die
And don't be scared, just enjoy your ride." -Chris LeDoux

Thanks for the many life lessons Lynn. Your funeral was beautiful today. Enjoy your ride, we'll all see you soon enough.

Whoops.

2011-07-20T14:34:00.003-06:00

One year and a month and a day (yesterday)...
Crap I'm horrible at the whole anniversary blog post idea!
I missed the real 1 year mark on here, but I figured that the whole one-one-one would be cool-- Then I went and missed that one too!
Arg.

Anyways! All that matters is we're still deeply in love.
You know the cheesy: I love him. I love her.
But really, he's the best.

This summer has been fast, short, and BUSY!
I do school every day. He does work every day.
We both do Insanity (almost) every day.
We both come home at night and stare at the wall trying to contemplate how we're going to make it through the next day.
Then on the weekends we either:
a) do homework
b) play with friends (aka family)
c) go camping

:) It's a wonderful life.

Excuse my rant...

2011-06-30T18:12:00.001-06:00

Ok honestly. I'm sick of this. I have class everyday (no, I don't have a problem with this, I quite like school, which is good considering my major) and everyday the same thing happens. I really don't appreciate that everyday as I am just about to walk out the door I think "uhhoh, I have five hours of class with no break and I'm hungry."
Dang it!
First of all, I'm already late to class (almost). But I go scavenge anyways. Soon, I realize they're is NO food in the house (no matter how much there really is). Then I think, I could stop at Wendy's... NO! I will not spend $2.99 on gross food- that's at least 4 D.I. books I could have in my classroom.
At this point I really am going to be late (if I go the speed limit) so I grab something I really don't want and head to the car.

Today I gnawed on some extra stale Hint of Lime chips that I think were left over from my birthday in march.

I really gotta go buy some fruit snacks.

us

2011-06-28T19:06:00.003-06:00

Today is: 375 days.

You name it, and we've probably been through it this year.

{i
love
him.}

Summer School

2011-06-09T16:50:00.004-06:00

Today I...

studied out on the lawn.

It was pleasant to the fullest extent.

Moab Trip

2011-05-20T17:42:00.022-06:00

First, Charlee helped me pack everything into the car:

By the time we got there that night, it was just time to go to sleep...

The next day we went hiking. The next three pictures were taken on the easy part of the trip. This hike was literally the hardest hike in Arches, the signs said: Primitive Trail. It was only about 5 miles, but took us a good couple hours. Very hard, but a blast!

Here's one of David and me:

And one of Mel and Staci:
Look at my husband! Super HOT! I mean-- look at those calves! ...oh and the view is pretty ok too.
No words really describe this one... (troll hair?)

That night Stef and Nate came up with their girls. Super fun! We went on a hike the next day.
It was gorgeous.
The whole hike was up a little canyon, switching from one side of the other. Each time we crossed through the stream. Some sunny parts, some shady parts, through the water, out of the water... We loved this hike.

I honestly don't remember taking this picture... And I have no idea who the guy is... But I'm sure Mel remembers it, (she remembers arms like that quite well)...

As you can see from the pictures above and below, all Farnsworth ladies got tired at one point or another...
Through the river...
We found a few caterpillars, Alice kept one on a stick for a while...
At the end of the hike there was this beautiful 'bridge'.
On the way back we messed around. This picture is of Mel spitting the water onto David n Mimi...

I thought this one was darling: David giving Mimi a drink...

All in all: AWESOME camping trip!

This was our second trip to Moab this season. Hopefully we'll make it down much more this summer!

Just Some Simple Easter Pictures...

2011-05-01T21:10:00.007-06:00

Rest Of The Stay-cation

2011-02-21T14:15:00.011-07:00

Here's what we did for the rest of our wonderful mini vacation...

Saturday: We slept in as late as we pleased and then decided to walk down to the pizza place a couple blocks away-- but then we saw it was gross weather and drove instead. Good choice considering that from there we went to Fast Kart! So much FUN! (besides the forever long wait) My arm is still a little sore from turning so much, but we were both pretty good! Of course David was much better than I-- but at least I beat out the slow guy in the group that went with us! :) From there we went back to the hotel to relax; including the jacuzzi, then a shower, and then a bath. Haha! It was super nice. On our way out we perfectly happened to drive by David's mom-- her and Shelly were up to see the symphony, and they were parking at the hotel we were at the timing couldn't have been more perfect! Just a minute difference and we wouldn't have been able to see them!
Then the best husband ever took me shopping... aka walking around in the cold snow while I picked up something to admire how cute it was only to see the price tag and put it down running.
I'm a master at this type of shopping. From the Gateway we found this small and DELICIOUS Thai place. We ate to our fill and then had some more. On our way home we met up with my amazing mom-in-law and Shelly! They came up to the room for about 10 minutes just to say hi before they went back to Orem. Soon as they left we collapsed into bed and watched tv till our eyes couldn't stay open anymore.

Sunday: Early this morning we woke up got ready and ran over to Temple Square where we met up with David's Aunt Kathleen and cousin Cody and his new wife. We all enjoyed Music and the Spoken Word and then walked around the visitors center for another hour. It was great to meet Cody and Stephanie. We went back to the hotel and relaxed for a while before church (it was fun to find some random ward to attend). We literally did not leave our room
for the rest of the day. We took naps, watch Jersey Shore, and ate leftover pizza... I told David multiple times: "I've never been this bored and ok with being this bored before." There was absolutely nothing to do, and I loved it. I read mags, watched August Rush, and found all kinds of new hidden places in Mario on my gameboy.

Monday: Our last day... We woke up and packed quickly. Then we went and ate the breakfast buffet at JB's (the restaurant connected to the hotel), it was pretty disgusting. But we were expecting exactly that, so it was just fine. We grabbed the rest of our things, checked out and drove all the way home. And just to top off how great of a weekend it was, I sang my little heart out to country the whole way home.

It was the most perfect Mini Stay-cation EVER!

Mini Holiday

2011-02-18T21:53:00.004-07:00

So after many weeks of absolute INSANITY David decided that a mini vacation was absolutely needed!
My wonderful Valentines day surprise was a reservation for a room up in SLC for the entire long weekend!
I've been looking forward to it all week. By Thursday I was counting down the hours!!

We started out with a crazy lady asking us for help on the street. She kept telling us she wasn't crazy, which didn't help her argument. We took a stroll down main street and stopped at Vasuvios for a tasty organic bite. It was amazing. Paninis will never be the same.

We then walked back to the hotel, settled in, and we're falling asleep now. Goodnight!!

Oh, and here's the view from the room:
Notice Temple Square in the right corner, the Conference Center in the middle, and the Capitol Building!

Dad

2011-01-11T11:19:00.002-07:00

Joseph Lincoln Raynes PhD, age 64, passed away peacefully January 10, 2011, surrounded by his eternal family, after a battle with brain cancer.

He was born June 21, 1946, in Provo, Utah to Beth Milner and Lincoln Frances Raynes; he was the second of eight children. Much of his childhood was spent on the Oregon Coast. While at BYU, Joe met his beautiful wife Alice Nielsen in a laundromat and it was love at first sight. Their first conversation began with his joke about both having red hair. They married in the Salt Lake Temple on May 27, 1969. They have ten children, all redheaded. It was impossible to be around Joe and not know he loved his family, the Gospel, and serving others.

Joseph completed his Bachelors and Masters degrees at BYU and earned his PhD at Texas A&M University. He served and inspired others throughout his lifelong career in Education. He was an Elementary School Teacher, Principal at Joaquin Elementary, Dean of Continuing Education, Dean of Trades and Technology, and Associate Academic Vice President at Utah Valley State College. He was instrumental in bringing the Education Program to the now Utah Valley University. He loved being a Professor of Education. His influence is carried through the countless teachers he molded.

Traveling the world extensively, Joe was always in search of opportunities to serve others. Fluent in both Portuguese and Spanish, he lived in Bolivia and traveled throughout South America with his young family while working with the Bolivian government. He lived in Colonia Juarez, Mexico working with the Juarez Stake Academy, and traveled to Mongolia to develop their higher education programs during their transition from Communism. He was a gifted storyteller who weaved his life experiences into tales that both entertained and edified.

He was a dedicated servant of the Lord, who served an honorable LDS mission in the Brazil North Mission. He labored as Branch President at the MTC, Bishop of Cascade 2nd Ward, High Council Member in Orem Cascade Stake, and Ordinance Worker in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. A gifted teacher of life and salvation, he lived to bring action to the Gospel’s precepts.

Joe was a builder of homes, ideas, and lives. A gentle giant, who was steadfast, thoughtful, humble, and strong; he spent his life in quiet service. His greatness was shown by his Christ-like love, the warmth of his smile, the power of his patience, the richness of his intelligence, his ability and desire to teach even the hardest of hearts, his comedic timing, and his gift to uplift others through his faith, stories, and unconditional love. His love of the Savior showed in everything he did.

He is survived by his loving wife of 41 years, Alice Nielsen Raynes, and their ten children: Janelle (Nathan) Gerber, Michelle, Denise (Paul) Pitcher, Alison (Marshall) Smith, Melanee, Stefanie (Nate) Farnsworth, Jonathan (Daniela), Danielle (Bryan) Kennedy, Derrick (Alexa), David (Sydney), and their 17 grandchildren. He is also survived by his father and five sisters.

We will post details for the viewing and the funeral soon.

Loving this...

2010-11-04T21:44:00.003-06:00

My family (Harris') has been watching this Miracle Mashup so much they can sing it all together as if it was all made this way.

Hope you enjoy as much as we do!

Dear Stress,

2010-10-13T19:25:00.006-06:00

BRING IT ON!
I can handle it.
Why?

bam.

My Prince Charming...

2010-08-29T20:29:00.003-06:00

It's his birthday!!
I'm by far the luckiest girl alive, and I love him more than anything.

We did lots of things to celebrate including: (but not limited to)
-Seeing Scott Pilgrim vs. The World
-Eating at Rice King
-Shopping (but only as much as a man can handle)
-Eating at Chilies
-Relaxing
-Wearing the big cupcake at church
-Opening presents
-Breakfast in bed
-Spending time with family

Happy Birthday to the Mr. Incredible of my world!

Best Video Ever

2010-08-11T16:51:00.000-06:00

EMBED-Woman Too Excited About Arrest On TV - Watch more free videos

yum?

2010-08-02T20:36:00.004-06:00

Sometimes I pretend I can cook.
Ha.
You know, I boil water and then pour a box of noodles and flavoring stuff in.
Easy.
Then I look at the clock and think- 'OK MUST GET THIS OFF HEAT BEFORE THE BIG HAND HITS THE 3!'
CanDo.
Then I get on my computer and start looking at pictures or blogs. or both.
Relaxation.
Then I hear weird sizzling behind me and realize my food is done.
Panic.
It's been done for 15 minutes actually. Instead of cooking it for 20 minutes, I guess I decided that 35 would be better.
Wonderful.
So things are nice and stuck to the bottom, there's an awkward smell throughout the apartment, and there's some noodles that are much, much darker than the others.
Awesome.

Why yes, at this moment I'm eating it anyways.
Delicious. (or not)

(p.s. someday in the future I'll blog about the way WE make smores. Gotta do what cha gotta do.)

A long time coming....

2010-06-20T14:18:00.010-06:00

To everyone who made our most important weekend the most amazing weekend ever.

Thank you to Daddy Harris, who helped in every aspect of the reception and wedding and gave me his only daughter.

Thank you Mommy Harris, who planned every detail and made sure moment by moment was perfect for everyone, but especially us.

Thank you Mama Raynes, for putting together the luncheon and taking big rocks off our backs to create a wonderful day.

Thank you Father Raynes, who although he was sick needed bed rest, worked tirelessly on our special day and apartment to make it a wonderful experience we will remember forever.

Thank you Kyle, who worked hours and hours to put together our dream wedding.

Thank you Gavin, for always being available to help with anything and everything.

Thank you Connor, for helping everyone with what they needed right then.

Thank you Raynes siblings, your help and support through the last year has gotten us to where we are today.

Thank you Leah, who put together the bridal shower and worked at Sydney's side throughout the most difficult times. For being the best friend anyone could ever ask for.

Thank you Brylie, for being my cuz to the end. Listening to me jabber on and on through the entire semester about the pointless stuff.

Thank you Hilary, best boot buddy of all time. I can always count on getting a smile from you!

Thank you Jon for giving me a great man night. We did man things. It was awesome.

Thank you Derrick for being willing to take on anything we threw your way.

Thanks to Denise and Sammy, Stef, Nate, Alice, and Scarlet, Alexa and Derrick, Penfold family, and Uncle David, Bixler Grandparents, Gordon, and Price family for all traveling so far! It meant so much that you would take that time to travel for us.

Thank you momma Becky for being the go-to girl for any and every wedding question we possibly had, for doing the flowers, helping with the shower, helping with the cake, and everything in between.

Thanks to everyone that came to the church all weekend long to help get things ready. Especially to Bryan who made the reception possible.

Thank you to Corina who catered the delicious food for entire lunch-in.

Thank you to so many others.
We know we could never possibly name everyone, but hopefully this is one, (small) step closer.
We love you.

Thank You.

20 DAYS

2010-05-28T15:12:00.006-06:00

Wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding wedding!

It's pretty much all I think about lately...
Like here's the list of where my mind has gone in the last ten minutes:
-cupcakes
-lights
-tablecloths
-my dress
-their dresses
-tuxes
-gifts for my gals
-fruit cabobs or just fruit?
-do I have to serve carrots?
-do out-of-towners have places to stay?
-how do I not send that particular person an invite?
-what if it snows (thank you Utah.)
-gazebo
-need a box
-sign in book perfection

So in order to get everything done, I've sorta kinda come up with a timeline-ish (in my head). I need to sit down and write it out because it figures I should get the invites out before I start cutting pineapple.
Goal of the week: Get invites out ASAP!
I thought I'd have them out by last Friday, that didn't happen for a long list of reasons. Now it's Friday again, and 90% of the invites are still here. Oops. I blame myself completely on this one!
Anyways, these should be getting out sooner or later. (Hopefully before the wedding at least.)

Last night me and Connor spent an hour and a half stuffing 500 envelopes. At first I was hesitant to let him do it, but I got over that quick when I realized my stack. We actually had a great time doing it! We chatted the whole time about everything from school to wedding to how awesome David is to soccer. It was great to connect with him again and spend some one-on-one time with my little bro (while getting some wedding help too!)

Here's a picture or two of how we did it:

This is Connor smiling about to fill that last envelope...

Then I showed him that was only one brick... We were half way done instead of totally done... I told him to smile, but he said this was a better face. Haha I couldn't agree more.

This is me imagining the amount of paper cuts I was about to get. :) I'm very happy to report we're all paper cut free!
P.S. please ignore the laundry in the background. It's the last week of school for both my parents-- if you have teachers for parents you know completely what I mean.

Also my wonderful friend Hope came and helped me with the last pile! So nice of her!! Sadly I didn't get a picture of her doin it... But I'm sure she's more than ok with that.

All in all we've got them all stuffed!! They all just need: licking (gross), labels, return address labels, a swirl in the back, and a handful need some inserts.

And that's my update to all on the Good Time Happy Fun Blissful Joyness of Wedding Planning for the day!

fin

Creepiest Toy Ever

2010-05-24T16:41:00.005-06:00

I got it in my happy meal and all it says is:

Ha, Haha, Ho, BABABABAP, and Rumpelstiltskin!

The Pink Boa

2010-05-23T20:33:00.003-06:00

Syd and I were just walking through Roberts looking for wedding stuff and over the intercom we hear that the next person at the customer service desk with a pink boa wins a prize. As quickly as Syd could point me toward the aisle, I was sprinting through Roberts with a hot pink feather boa in my hand. As I came to a stop I realized I was the only person slightly interested in the competition and that every second I allowed that effeminate scarf tickle to tickle my hand the longer I was unable to call myself a real man. I won a card creation set, enough to make two cards and as I carried that trophy around with me, a part of me died. I'm not such a fan of Roberts anymore.

I finally did it!

2010-04-24T22:27:00.004-06:00

After years of preparing I pushed myself to my brink and I finally did it. I can now say I have the accomplishment of the Sensuous Sandwich Challenge under my belt. That's 24 inches of bread, meat, and cheese and I did it in 23 minutes.

Oh, and I finished my Bachelor's Degree.

I'm so relieved to have that off of my back now. I keep thinking I have something to work on but I can't think of anything. Here is a list of what I will be doing with my free time:

1. Learn a language or two: Buenos Dias, NeHowMah, Sup

2. Read books all the time. My book shelf is full of books I've been ready to read, but never had the time.

3. Get Netflix. I'm a big boy now!

4. Go Camping at every opportunity. Anyone interested? (not you Sydney, not til after June)

5. Take the GMAT... Someday

Sydney was so amazing to me today. She convinced me we were having a dinner just the two of us in Heber, but somehow got me to drive to La Dolce Vita in Provo where my family and friends were waiting to surprise me. Thank you everyone for coming, it meant so much. I love each and everyone of you, Yes you Ryan, Sydney's cousin I met just today.

But mostly, I love Sydney. She coordinated this with everyone, got me a beautiful watch, and she's so dang beautiful to boot. She's so wonderful and I am the luckiest man on earth to have her all to myself. Thank you Syd, you're the best.

Lady Sydney

2010-04-17T19:34:00.003-06:00

Sydney's favorite, Lady Antebellum, just showed up TV so guess what we're watching?

Sitting in a couch fort, watching the plum blossoms outside as the sunsets, and having Sydney under my arm was a perfect moment.

Thought I'd just share it with everyone.

MUSE

2010-04-14T17:30:00.019-06:00

I've been meaning to post this for a week... ok two...

We totally went to MUSE! And yes, it was AMAZING! Here's a picture tour of the trip:

On the way up we hit some traffic... So while sitting in traffic we took a picture.
This is how excited he was!

This is the side of the freeway that we stared at for count them: 80 minutes. 80. Although we did miss SilverSonPickups-- we had a good time chatting and discussing this complex:

We figured out exactly where the best apartment is in the whole complex.
You can't quite see it in this picture, it's a little farther to the right than this picture shows.

This is a man that was peeing. On the side of the road. While we sat in more traffic. I took a picture of him on here so that we could publicly make fun of him... classy guy.

This is what we saw when we got to our seats. I don't know how we got such amazing seats!
Low enough that we felt right close, high enough we could see over all the gen.adm.

First song! Mind blowingly awesome.

...that close.

Pictures and smooches during the show. :)

We know you're jealous... Maybe you can come with us next time they come around?
The entire night they didn't talk hardly at all, they said thank you a handful of times. The only other thing said was something by the drummer-- it was a little hard to understand but we're pretty sure he said that he loved Utah and had been looking forward to this show since the last time they played in Orem!

I'm pretty sure this was during Feelin' Good
(favorite song of mine personally!)

Right as the show ended we took this. Guess he was sad it was over.
As you can see I couldn't do anything but smile as big as possible.

I love his smile.

One of the first dates David and I ever went on was to the Muse concert 3 years ago. He was supposed to go with his sis (Dani) but she got sick that night. Surprisingly, my parents let me go! I didn't even know the band, we sat in some seats towards the back of the hall and all I could do was stare. Honestly, I probably made him a little upset because I couldn't concentrate on anything but stare at that concert. Good thing I got another chance! :D

We kinda like Muse. A lot.

April Fools

2010-04-02T20:12:00.010-06:00

This is my desk.

Everything is exactly placed as it was when I left it April 1st, at 10 PM, except for the fact that it was on the other side of the building. Matt Thacker, the Graveyard Team and my dear frienemy Candice Linford orchestrated this little prank. I spent an hour walking back and forth resetting everything as it was and my lunch break plotting my revenge.

First One!

2010-03-28T21:57:00.001-06:00

...SOOOOO MANY MORE TO COME!

We can't wait.

Check out more here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachelrenee1/sets/72157623724626016/

Spit-Takes

2010-03-25T00:49:00.003-06:00

Sydney and I quickly watched this clip:

Then, we played the game ourselves. :)

Here it goes here it goes here it goes again. Oh here it goes again.

2010-03-03T21:37:00.004-07:00

...I should have known should have known should have known again. But here it goes again.

So yeah-- I love music.

I'm gonna guess most people do.
But really, I'd like to think that I love music a little more than most do.
Here's the thing: very few love OKGO the way I do. I've loved their music since I heard them over 10 years ago at a TMBG concert.

They are known to be one of the most initiative bands on the face of the planet. Mostly with their music videos; you know the ones-- the backyard dancing video, and the treadmill dancing.

THEY.
HAVE.
DONE.
IT.
AGAIN.

And as if one wasn't enough?? They did two. Of the same song. BOTH are incredible... Watch both immediately.

The other video isn't allowed to be embedded so here's the URL:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJKythlXAIY

Yeah, I know what you're thinking, "WHAT?! WHY HAVE I NOT BEEN LOVING THIS BAND ALL ALONG?!? THEY ARE AMAZING! I MUST NOW WATCH ALL THE VIDEOS THEY HAVE AND CHECK OUT THEIR WEBSITE!" And soon you will think, "WHEN CAN I SEE THEM LIVE AND HOW FAR MUST I TRAVEL?!"
To all this I would reply: Yes yes, they are amazing. I love them too. Luckily for you they're coming to SLC on April 13th!! The venue is a beaut' only 300 people are allowed in. This concert is going to be FAN-FREAKIN-TASTIC. Why is it not sold out? Tickets don't go on sale till March 5th (at 10 am). Why am I not going?
...
It's a 21 up venue. How old am I turning in less than a week? 20. Missed it. By a year.
Thank you mom and dad. I blame them for waiting that full year. (haha)

So hopefully you want to get me a fake ID? Then we'll go together!

What a Valentines Weekend...

2010-02-15T23:05:00.005-07:00

I could go on and on with how great he is, but I'll just let Ella do some explaining:

I could listen to her all day.

Love her.

Love him more!

Be Mine?

2010-02-10T23:08:00.004-07:00

My Valentine has blue eyes and blond hair.

My Valentine's smile brightens every room.

My Valentine can't whistle well, unless she see's Matt Damon.

My Valentine has too much to do and not enough time, but is always there for me.

My Valentine loves Artichokes, Fruit Snacks, and Nachos.

My Valentine is a Mac.

My Valentine doesn't like to read, but loves to cozy up with a good book.

My Valentine loves my glasses and my red hair.

My Valentine says no to drugs.

My Valentine is better than your Valentine.

My Valentine can beat up your Valentine.

My Valentine wouldn't hurt a fly, or your Valentine.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I'm putting it here to remember

2010-02-04T21:11:00.003-07:00

Today I sat around for 10 minutes straining my mind to remember this song. Well I found it and I'll never lose it again. If you lose it too, you'll know where to find it.

(original) Mr Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra

Covers

Mr Blue Sky - Lily Allen

Mr Blue Sky - Nerf Herder

Mr Blue Sky - The Delgados

Now I'll never forget it.

Cinnamistake

2010-01-17T21:34:00.006-07:00

In the family home evening system, adventure based activities are considered especially stupid. In Lehi City, the dedicated participants who challenge each other to these vicious pastimes are members of an elite squad known as Leah, Syd, and David. These are their stories...

My Mister...

2010-01-05T18:25:00.003-07:00

BEST!

Who has Behavior that's awesmazing?

Who has Excellent skills at anything he tries?

Who could have Supercalifragilisticexplealidocious as his middle name?

Who? Who? Who? Truly a Mr. Incredible!

(yes, I suck at poetry of all kinds and will give up now...)

YES! He got the promotion!! I did a nice jig the moment they called and have been doing one in my heart ever since!

And although my week nights are going to be mighty lonely without him... I'm super proud!!

He's currently at work, so since he hasn't posted about it yet I decided to.

He'll now work 1:00-10:00 Monday through Friday. It's tooons better than the graveyard shift. Not to mention this all means BiG promotion! He's now a TL (team lead aka boss) and takes care of his team of about 20, give or take a few.

I'm so proud of this best! I'm absolutely his number one fan!

(ps. H.O.T. picture eh?!?)

My Rose

2009-12-29T19:21:00.002-07:00

This is Sydney's favorite poem. Now I can't see a rose without thinking of her.

The rose is a rose,
And was always a rose.
But the theory now goes
That the apple's a rose,
And the pear is, and so's
The plum, I suppose.
The dear only knows
What will next prove a rose.
You, of course, are a rose
But were always a rose.

-Robert Frost

Christmas Eve Evening

2009-12-25T06:12:00.004-07:00

Twas the night before Christmas,
Two presents exposed.
No time until noticed,
Some darts and pipe hose.

The use of these gifts?
Just point, blow, and shoot.
But it's fun for sword fights
And baseball t'boot.

With a swing by the batter,
And slip of the grip.
The pipe flew through air,
Doing flip after flip.

The new hanging ornament,
Turned us round to view,
A small hole in the wall.
Merry Christmas to you!

Cinci-whatzki?

2009-12-20T09:44:00.007-07:00

It's Christmas time again. That means Jon playing the recorder, homemade chex mix, and our new tradition...Babes in Toyland

This new tradition includes...

This includes Keanu Reeves before his excellent adventure as a man a man who lives in a bowling ball for the love of his life...

Toy Soldiers who only work when a child believes in them... (Spoiler Alert)

Asian Santa and an army of swamp monsters, or monsterpieces...

And Drew Barrymore before SNL ruined her for everyone

Believe it or not, if I muted, changed the channel, turned off the TV or even held the remote threateningly Sydney would have a tantrum suitable for a four year old. Bring your cameras next year...

Fa la la la la la Sushi-YA!

2009-12-06T10:16:00.006-07:00

Saturday we went to Sushi-Ya, my favorite sushi place. Now it's Syd's favorite too!

I ordered my favorites, The Godzilla (Fried Tuna Roll), The Californian (Crab and Avocado Roll), and an Avocado Roll. Every single one of them was extremely delicious, especially with some wasabi and ginger soysauce. I can hear your mouth watering from here.

We quickly went shopping at Tuesday Morning and then stopped by the Ward's Christmas Party. I know, we wish you were there too...

71 to 61

2009-12-02T22:35:00.009-07:00

This is me bragging, rubbing it in faces, showing off, laughing, winning.
Winning.
Winning.

This is the tip off picture I took:

Later after this picture, we won.
Winning.

This is the winning score:

These are our winning faces:

Winning.
Winning.
Won.

ps. I love you. More.

BYU!!!! vs usu...

2009-12-02T07:57:00.006-07:00

The big game is today. BYU vs US...Poo in basketball.

We've made a little wager... Who ever loses has to wear the winning team's logo on their underwear.

Once, a stranger asked me, "David, why do you persecute USU so?" Because they steal my woman! They can make as much cheese as they'd like, live as far away as they'd like, and lose as many football games as they like, but give me back my Syd.

Cougars, don't fail me now!

Vegas Baby!

2009-11-26T11:39:00.004-07:00

Well here we are sitting at grandma's watching the parade and smelling turkey already!
It's already been quite the trip including but not limited to:

-1840 tickets from a half hour arcade trip (Gavin won the Jackpot)

-Midnight bowling, accompanied by partiers and police...

-Shopping at Marshals (Love that place)

-Watching plenty of TV and then some more

-Going to Costco and admiring the oddest clothing choices (70 year olds in tights + tshirt = bleh)

-Swimming. Just swimming.

-Spending time with family? Priceless. Also loud.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Just Another Particle Man

2009-11-11T15:17:00.028-07:00

Last Saturday was the EPIC TMBG CONCERT!
My whole family loves this band, we have (literally) hundreds of their songs on the computer, and know every word to a real good chunk of them. We got to the concert a full hour early because it was open admission, but don't worry we bought our tickets 3 weeks in advance. There were only 7 people ahead of us in line but by the time the doors were open the line went down the block and around the corner!
I took about a million pictures on my phone... Here's some!

I spy with my little eye a TMBG tour bus...

I spy with my little eye John Flansburgh...

I spy with my little eye Danny Weinkauf...

I spy with my little eye John Linnell...

I spy with my little eye someone who pulled a face and someone who didn't get the memo...

I spy with my little eye someone stoked to be at the concert, someone pretty excited to be at the concert, and part of someone who was trying to ruin the photo...

I spy with my little eye a four letter L word...

I spy with my little eye THE accordion...

I spy with my little eye a boy sitting on a TMBG stage...

I spy with my little eye a killer drum set...

I spy with my little eye two people bored waiting in line, one scared boy, and one laughing mother...

I spy with my little eye David, Kyle, Me, Mother, and a couple weirdies in line with us...

I spy with my little eye two of the best pieces of paper...

I spy with my little eye two people who can't wait for June!...

What a great time!

New Camera

2009-11-08T17:22:00.003-07:00

Syd loves our new camera...

a little too much

Mac vs PC

2009-11-07T01:43:00.002-07:00

Just who will win?

Work It Babe!

2009-11-05T11:30:00.006-07:00

1/2 hour at the Halloween store: 1 pair of gloves, 2 hair clips, 1 pair of leg warmers = $15

1/2 hour at DI: 2 sweatshirts, 2 pairs of shorts = $12

1/2 hour at Rue 21: 2 pairs of leggings, 1 pair of leg warmers, 1 pair of hoop earrings = $20

This year's Halloween costumes? PRICELESS!

This picture rocks:
(Thank you father for making this even more cheesy by blurring the edges!)

PS. Thanks to the best Fiance EVER, who wanted to be a million other things before he wanted to be a stupid 80's work out people... Next year he's choosing the costumes!

PPS. BEFREAKINHEARTSPC ;)

Adventure is Out There!

2009-10-25T00:24:00.002-06:00

Woken up by three screaming and jumping kids, one of them my fiance, shakes a man up a bit. After pulling myself together and working on a bit of homework, we headed to a certain Japanese grill. The chef tossed food, which Syd caught first try. I didn't catch both tries but I had plenty of soy sauce on my face.
A quick visit to Syd's and a change of clothes led us to downtown Provo. After arguing with a hairy man and a woman with a black eye over 75 cents I didn't have, we found a dance club. After getting patted down (I mean really REALLY patted down) and stamped on my hand we joined the dance. But just our luck, we were the only ones to show up... 30 blinking lights, 10 loud speakers, and a song later we were out of there.
I had mint brownie ice cream and Syd a pineapple coconut cone. We wanted to take a look at the new In-N-Out burger but an old man in a dark car was already there watching us. Dryer heated blankets and a new episode of Monk closed the night. These are all adventures far too long to post here. These are the feet that brought us to them.

2009-10-17T11:12:00.006-06:00

Got my wisdom teeth out yesterday!!
I went in at 2, and walked out of the office at 3:30!
They gave me some laughing gas before the IV and told me in about 20 minutes I'd get the anesthesia... after about 3 minutes on the gas I was completely out and didn't come to till I was sitting in the car.
I was completely numb from ear to ear until about 4 am this morning! So luckily the pain was nothing yesterday.
David was sooo sweet. He doted and cared for me all day long. Plus--He brought me some stellar presents! Pictures anyone? ...

First he brought me a whole bunch of posters and a HUGE box of crayons! The picture on top is what we drew yesterday. We played the you draw a part, I draw a part game. It was a blast!

He also got me MY FAVORITE BOOK IN THE WORLD! I LOVE LOVE LOVE this book!! And now have two copies, cause I lend it out all the time! If you haven't read it yet, let me know! I'll get you one of my copies. It's a MUST read! (I rarely read, so for me to actually love a book this much is kinda a big deal)

David took fantastic care of me! My other official care taker? MOM! I love my mom so much! She has always taken the best care to raise me! haha I was getting sick of the ice packs, but my face was swelling up pretty badly this morning, so here's what I get to look like for pretty much the rest of the day:

Yes, this is an ice pack wrapped in a towel (so it's not too cold on my skin), wrapped around my head is an Ace bandage so I'll keep the ice on! Haha! Oh, and in my mouth is plenty of gauze to stop bleeding. Its kinda painful, but I'm glad to have a few days worth of pain and get rid of the constant jaw pain and headaches I was having everyday for the last few months!

All in all I'm happy they're out! Thanks David and Mom for making it a relaxing and enjoyable!
:)

My One and Only

2009-10-14T00:22:00.004-06:00

On a call from Australia someone asked me about myself. I told her about my fiance and my school. She then asked if I was a mormon and I told her I was. She then quickly asked how many fiances/wives I have. Just Sydney, my one and only.

Epic-icity of weekends.

2009-10-11T18:32:00.009-06:00

So, first off, this is Sydney. Just signed in as David. So I changed the blog! Well we did. David probably doesn't want to share what parts of this change he truly participated in... so we just wont go there.
We've had a great weekend! David came up to visit me again! I love it when he comes clear up. We always have good time happy fun going on adventures, sleeping, and making cool things! David got here on Friday before my 8:30 class was over! He couldn't sleep after work, so he just drove straight up. When he first got here he still couldn't sleep so we watched a movie then fell asleep.
After a 2 hour nap I was wide wide awake! Of course David had just been up for 21 hours, so I let him sleep for 6 more hours. When he was up we went and grabbed some Cafe Rio for dinner and then spent the rest of the night at "The Shak" aka Nathaniel and Tyler's house. We mostly played video games, and worked on an up and coming song that our friend Cleatus (really Nathaneil in disguise) is writing. ...hot hot baby, sweet sweet lady.
The next morning I was woken up by my phone ringing! When I said hello, all David said was: Good morning, put on some warm clothes and come outside. Apparently he had decided the theme of the day would be: spontaneous. With in 10 minutes of waking up we were getting out of the car clear up the canyon! Up there we built a fire out of some hot embers that had been left there from the night before! (This is a looong but hilarious story, and this blog is already getting long so ask me about it sometime and I'll tell you the funny parts)
After the fire we watched more movie, and then took a nap. Again, I got up long before David. So while he was sleeping I came up with weird ways to wake him up. Such as, Eating popcorn loudly right next to him, throwing popcorn at him, giving him wet willies, taking his blankets and pillow, jumping on the bed, and finally a nice weggie. (The final one was what really made him come to in the end.) When we were both up and ready we decided something fun was needed.
Idaho.
Boring it sounds? Not when you take a couple friends to the nearest town - Preston. Only a half hour a way from Logan. But what to do in Preston? Buy lottery tickets. The lady at the gas station was AWESOME at helping us pick winner cards.
Our winnings:
David spent 12 dollars, Won 1 dollar! but then put that money back into a losing ticket.
Here's David and his scratched tickets:

(umm... I don't know how to turn it. So I guess sorry, just turn your head.)

Rachel spent 3 dollars, won 9 dollars! but then put that money back into losing tickets.
After standing in a gas station for a good 2o minutes, we moved on. It was still early into the night so of course we went... Bowling! In Preston. At a little tiny place called Pop N Pins.

I loved this place, from it's 9 friendly regulars, to the Napoleon claims to fame, to the sign that said this room is PG rated, to the old-fashion way of keeping your own score! (Good thing David knew how to do that cause no one else did!)
I lost, Rachel got second to last, then came Nathaniel, next David, and Jen won us all.
Here's our score card to prove it:

And here's me bowling:

It was quite the epic of adventures.
The end.

Syd Suprise

2009-09-29T02:35:00.002-06:00

Syd came to visit me Monday night really quickly but because I was feeling sick, we watched AFV. These were my favorite

If every child grew up singing this song, the world would be a better place.

Get a wig on that kid.

Homecoming Weekend

2009-09-27T11:26:00.004-06:00

Ironically, neither of us spent homecoming weekend at home...

I came up to Logan to visit Syd Friday evening (true Aggie night oh baby) and after meeting a couple roommates we went off to play wall ball with a few friends of mine. Sydney drew with chalk on the playground floor as I writhed in pain. Why? Let's explain.

The rules of wall ball:
You get three outs then someone has to try to hit you as you stand next to the wall. Well on my final out as I was running to touch the wall Nathaniel's toss sent the ball from the wall to my bad place (it's not bad it's just special). After a moment to gather myself and count how many fingers, I stood up to get my turn as the target. Nathaniel felt bad for hitting me already so he decided to lob the ball. Lob the ball as light as he may, but he still bounced it between my legs, into the wall, and straight into my...special place. And to think right now we could be at America's Funniest Home Videos receiving a check for $100,000 had we just a flip video recorder...

Fast forward...crash on Nathaniel's couch...go see Gavin's game...watch USU beat SUU...energy drink! Stop.
I had never seen Syd have an energy drink and when we went to the grocery store after the game I challenged her. She had one half of a can and was bouncing off the walls. Throwing things at me, tackling James, running mini-marathons, and whistling followed. Promptly after she crashed I sent her to bed.

After waking up on Nathaniel's couch again I went over to Syd's house and we made this!
Enjoy.

I Miss You

2009-09-16T20:56:00.003-06:00

I can sing you a song but I can't sing it well enough.

I can send you a picture but it won't show you how I feel.

I can try to write something sweet and beautiful but I have writers-block.

So I'll just tell you that in everything beautiful around me I see only you and that I miss you.

These Little Moments

2009-08-29T07:43:00.003-06:00

Do you ever wonder what makes significant moments? Where, when, why? I find almost all of my significant moments are early in the day just after the sun has past the mountains announcing the clouds as they spread playfully across the morning sky. The quietest part of the day is highlighted by a cool breeze and dew sprinkled life surrounding me. Pausing to ponder the beauty of the world we live in reminds me of the good fortune we foster and share with those we love. Silent, beautiful moments such as these empower me to live my life in the sun, under the clouds, through the breeze, on the grass giving my whole self to the people I love so much. These little moments remind me of Sydney, because these are the only other moments time stands still.

A Hedgehog and a Date

2009-07-29T07:30:00.002-06:00

Syd made our decision... We're getting a Hedgehog. I'll update you when we actually get it.

Oh, and Syd settled on a date. Want to find out what it is? Great. When she lets me announce it you'll know first!

7/11/2009 = unforgettable.

2009-07-19T20:15:00.011-06:00

Wow... Life has been so completely BUSY!

I started writing this just a few days after actually getting engaged, but it was taking waaay too long considering the detail I decided to go into. So I'm finally finishing it for our 1 month anniversary if being engaged!

Here it is:

Yay!

I'm Engaged!

It's been requested that I write the story about my last saturday on here, I thought it was a great idea!

So...

Last Saturday Danielle was throwing her *classic* Harry Potter party! Me and David decided to make it to the first movie so that we wouldn't feel too bad when we couldn't stay all day long. But when I got to his apartment in the morning we both fell asleep. Till 9. We were supposed to be there at 8. Oops. So he told me since we were already late we might as well just go to the mall and run some errands first. First things first, when we got there we took pictures in an automatic photo booth. He was thinking the whole time--aww cute! We'll have these to remember this special day with. I was thinking- Woah! Fun times! Lets make this crazy. So he was trying to make things nice and smile or be kissing. I was throwing faces, putting my hands in the pictures, and couldn't stop laughing when he was trying to do the kissing one. When we walked out of there and looked at them he was so frustrated that I had ruined his pictures. I couldn't grasp why in the world he would want serious ones.
Who takes serious pictures in the mall?

It was only 9:30 am. The mall doesn't open till 10... after a short time of awkwardly looking at all the closed stores... we decided that some frozen yogurt would be a good breakfast. We had HUGE cones that we ate while sitting on the child's play place down by Famous Footwear. THe mall was incredibly quiet with only a few people around. It was quiet the experience! After sitting there long enough for the stores to open we went around a few short phone shops for me (if you haven't heard about my phone luck this summer ask me sometime) and then looked at a few places to go ring shopping. The couple of places that we went were nice and every ring was beautiful. In fact, it was a big problem because I loved (pretty much) every single ring they pulled out. Simple, complex, modern, traditional... I liked them all. He kept asking me to put ones back that I didn't like but I couldn't decide. Finally after about a half hour and having many, many rings to choose from we took off to Danielle's.

Most of his family was there just relaxing, talking and eating--the classic. I sat down with a couple nieces and nephews to watch some Harry. I tried to get David to sit down and watch it with me, but figured he must-a been hungry because he was always too busy eating or walking around to sit and chill.
The day before we had an agreement that we'd go on a picnic for lunch supposedly because he "just felt like it." I was into that! I love picnics and thought it was good weather to go (not too hot, not too cold). David told me that he was running over to his parents to grab the food and blankets while I relaxed watching some wizards fight each other.

When he got back we grabbed the last few things we needed, said goodbye and walked out the door. He took me to Sera Park and as soon as we got there I knew we had to go sit under our tree. Yes WE have our own tree there. At first we laughed at our tree because it's looking pretty sad and thin. But for the sentimental values, we didn't much care. Our meal started with fruit salad, went to potato salad, and then went to the main portion: Doritos. I was only half way done with my chips when he wanted to have desert. I told him that I wanted to finish my chips first, but finally decided that I could finish them after desert. We moved over to the bench right next to our tree to eat "desert". He was so nervous! I kept trying to joke around and make things happy, but he would just give me a half chuckle and then stare off at some kids playing on the playground.

A small awkward moment after my "Hey this bench we're sitting on was dedicated to some lady who loved this park, she must have died loving it" statement came and went when he looked at me and said...

"I took your parents out to dinner last night..."

That's when he got down on his knee, pulled a little wooden box out of his pocket, and started saying some of the most beautiful words I've ever heard.

They included (but were not limited to):

I love you. I want to be with you for the eternities. You are the most beautiful person in the entire world, and I can't imagine not having you by my side for the rest of my existence.

Will you marry me Sydney?

I was speechless. He was crying, I was tearing up. I gave him a huge hug and just took in the moment. After hugging for a good couple of minutes he pulled back and said, "Wait, is that a yes?" I couldn't help but laugh and say absolutely!

We sat in the bench and then moved back on to the blanket for about 10 minutes while we talked, kissed, laughed, and hugged. It was a perfect moment that I'll never forget.

But the time was short and everyone (my family and his) were all waiting to hear the news, so we went back to Danielle's where his family was waiting with open arms to welcome me and give us both their love.

It was incredible to feel their support only moments after officially announcing that I'd be part of their family.

After showing off my ring, eating some (real) food, and playing with the kiddos for a half hour we headed back to the park where my family was meeting us to see the ring and hear the story. It was fun to show them exactly what had happened, and to let my dad (being the great dad he is) kick off another family from the bench so that we could take pictures there.

It was an incredible day.

I love you my David!

Thanks for giving me the world, not just on 7/11 but everyday.

What should be our first pet?

2009-07-13T17:15:00.003-06:00

We're getting married. If you've made it this far you should already know that. I'm doing this without Sydney's permission because I only have so much freedom left.

I need a vote. What should be our first pet? We have the options of:

Hampster

Turtles

Fish

Frog

Take your pick. Welcome to the new blog everyone!