Tyler and Janae

New Blog Part 2

2009-05-03T12:56:00.000-07:00

I have officially started the new blog, and will no longer be posting on this one. It is private, so if you haven’t received an invite yet, and want to, leave me your email.

(If you don’t want to leave your email on here, email me vano_182@hotmail.com.)

Thank you, and it has been a great pleasure writing for “Tyler and Janae”.

New Blog

2009-04-24T19:36:00.000-07:00

I decided to start a new blog. I hope to start next week when I get finished with all my master’s classes. It’s going to be private, so leave me your email if you want to see it!

(I promise new and glorious poems will be coming!)

My Favorite Things

2009-03-29T13:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, this “spring’ weather has really got me annoyed and depressed. I get really irritated with Mother Nature when she teases me with one warm spring day in the middle of many snowy, windy days. I wish it would just be spring already. Actually, if I am going to be wishing for things, I wish it was summer - now and always. So, in an effort to turn my frown upside-down, I have made a list of some things that can still make me smile.

1. Black nail polish. No, I am not Goth or satanic, I just like the way the color looks. I have also become pretty good at painting my own nails. I don’t think I’ll be opening a salon anytime soon, but at least now I can cut down on the professional manicures.

2. Scentsy Candles. I just placed my first order (thank you Allyson!), and I am very eager to get mine and join that bandwagon. No, I am not going to start selling - just smelling!
(Been there, done that, and forever have unnecessarily negative feelings towards Arbonne.)

3. Pedicures. I had one this last week, thinking I would be able to start wearing open toed shoes. Boy was I mistaken. However, I was very excited to find out that my favorite place to get them, Trendy Nails, is opening up in Rexburg. Now I don’t have to drive to Idaho Falls to get them. Hooray!

4. Music. I am one of those people who can’t stand silence (unless I’m in school, and then I demand it!) Whenever I look out the window and see snow being blown by 40 mph winds, I simply turn on one of my new favorite CDs, and it all seems to go away.

Don’t judge me…it has some really good songs on it.

Tyler bought us tickets to go see Taylor Swift in Boise!!! I can’t wait!!!

5. First graders. This is my favorite time of the year to teach. The children are able to do so much more than they could at the beginning of the year, which means we get to do so many fun things. Even though the school district has no money for field trips anymore, my class will NOT miss out on any of the fun. Right now we are growing caterpillars into butterflies, and they are SO excited about it. Some of the future fun includes more animal fun, homemade ice-cream, picnics, etc. Don’t you wish you were in my first grade class? Probably the best thing about first grade is how loving they are. I have one girl who has started to write “I love you Mrs. Ricks!” on all of her papers. It is so cute. Another girl, one of my shyest-never talks-cries if you call on her to answer a question, walked up to me the other day and said with a big hug, “I love you so much, Mrs. Ricks”. I will admit there are times when I want to paddle a few of them, but I just wait until I get home and take it out on Tyler. It really is such a rewarding career, and I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else.

Wow, that makes me feel so much better! Now I just have to close the blinds and blast some “Hoedown Throwdown”. :)

Welcome to America!

2009-03-18T19:50:00.000-07:00

I looked in the mail and guess what I found?
A letter saying that I get to stick around.
No more will being deported consume my fears,
Because now I can live and work for 13 years!
So watch out America, because I’m here to say
Janae Elizabeth Ricks is here to stay!
(Unless Tyler gets a job up North,
Then to Canada we’ll go forth.)

Yet Another Shout Out

2009-02-19T17:05:00.000-08:00

I am often amazed at how crafty people can be,
So let me tell you about my good friend Whitney.
She sits at a computer and in five minutes you’ll see
The beautiful blog header she made just for me!

I know this is a sad attempt at a poem, but I can’t think very creatively right now. Obviously Whitney can, because check out that awesome new header I have. I’m very impressed. In college we used to have “Craft Tuesdays”. I don’t remember how many times this actually happened. Part of me thinks just once, but it had to be more. The only one I remember is when we made our own maracas. They were incredible - made out of pencils and balloons. So if you need any crafty ideas, go ahead and ask. I will secretly ask Whitney and then report back to you.

Kittens!

2009-02-19T16:50:00.000-08:00

I saw this video on The Soup and just about died laughing. I hope you do, too.

Shout Out

2009-02-16T16:56:00.000-08:00

Today, I went with my friend, Emily, to get pedicures at The Essence of You Day Spa and Salon. It was the most incredible, relaxing, heavenly, sublime, soothing (and any other pleasant adjectives you can think of) pedicure I have ever had. It was an hour and a half of pure tranquility. I recommend that everyone in the area experience the Tropical Pedicure. I left feeling completely relaxed, refreshed, and energized. It was utterly life changing.

Confession

2009-02-16T16:32:00.000-08:00

Dear Avon Makeup, I am sorry to admit it, but I have turned back to Bare Minerals. You just don’t make me as happy as they do. Yes, you are about a third of the price, but I simply need better quality makeup. I bought a new kit and started today. Don’t take it too personal, I may come back to you for other products…maybe. Sincerely, Janae – Happy to be back with Bare Minerals

Something Important

2009-02-10T20:13:00.000-08:00

The richest person is not the one who has everything, but the one who needs the least.

The happiest people don't have the best of everything. they make the best of what they already have.

If you remember this post, you know I am trying to be more positive in my life. It is turning out to be a lot harder than I had hoped. Somehow, I thought the more sayings I recite, the sooner I will be able to believe and live them. That isn’t working too well. I often try to find happiness in places that I really won’t. I’ve got to figure out how to just enjoy the moment, otherwise I will never truly be happy. It is still so hard to change my way of thinking. I try to love that Tyler is still going to school and I am still working, but it is just so hard. The other day I tried to make a list of “reasons I am happy my husband is still in school”. I got nothing. Well okay, I got this:

1. It gives me more time to diet and get in shape for the day when we finally have kids.
2. He does all the housework while I do schoolwork. (That’s a toss up – some days I would rather trade.)
3. I am able to get a master’s degree a lot easier than I would several years down the road.

That’s all I could come up with, but hey, it’s a start, right?

Untitled

2009-02-05T16:13:00.000-08:00

Teaching first grade brings me so much joy,
And I really do love each girl and boy.
But there is just one thing that ticks me off,
Why don’t you cover your mouth when you cough?!

Seriously...I am so sick of getting sick!

25 Things

2009-02-01T14:02:00.000-08:00

I have been “tagged” on the Facebook and Blogging world, so I finally decided to do it. I’m not going to “tag” anyone, but whoever wants to do it, I would love to read your 25 things!

Here are the official rules if you want to do it:
Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. I was adopted as a baby. My birth mother was only 15 and since my mom badly wanted a girl, my parents adopted me!

2. From the time I was five years old, I wanted to be a teacher and would play school on a big chalkboard in my basement. But even before then, I would tell my mom all kinds of stories and she would “publish” them for me. I love teaching, but being a children’s author is my dream job.

3. Whenever I hear music, whether out loud or in my head, I have to start dancing. Not good dancing, but crazy and weird dance moves. I love it!

4. I started choir when I was four and continued until I graduated high school. At times I wanted to quit, but my mom wouldn’t let me. I am glad she didn’t, and I really miss it.

5. I am very picky when it comes to my classroom. Everything has to be perfect and in its perfect place. I really like things the way I like them, even if it means Tyler has to redo hanging up pictures because they look wrong.

6. It annoys me when people don’t use spell check or at least read over what they wrote. It doesn’t make sense, and it looks bad. (If you see mistakes in mine, it’s because Tyler did a bad editing job!)

7. I am an adult who loves macaroni and cheese with cut up hot dogs.

8. When I’m going through a 24 marathon, I find it hard to go out in public because I keep asking myself, “Do these people know what’s going on?!” (nuclear bombs, nerve gas, terrorists, etc.)

9. The only yogurt I will eat is peach.

10. I hate being alone. Whenever Tyler leaves the room, I ask where he’s going and sometimes just follow him.

11. I can’t paint my nails. Once I tried painting my toenails red, and it looked like my toes were bleeding; it was scary. Now I just pay people to do it for me.

12. Since I started teaching, I go to bed and wake up early, even on the weekends. If I’m not in bed by 9:00, I am very cranky the next morning.

13. I eat ranch dressing on almost everything.

14. I am not very outgoing around people I don’t know. I think this makes some people think I am stuck up, but I’m not!

15. I have the worst nerves. If someone just walks around the corner, I gasp and jump.

16. I am seriously addicted to coloring my hair. I go every other month to get it done.

17. I love buying books. Tyler gets mad when I don’t use the library, but I just like to own my books. I can’t really explain it.

18. I always drink out of a straw.

19. I get sucked into Lifetime movies very easily, so I try to avoid that channel.

20. I met Tyler online. I was embarrassed about it for a while, and even made up a different story of how we met. But, after three years of marriage, I am finally okay with it.

21. Sometimes I am afraid to have kids, because I fear that they will be obese. (I think this comes from watching too much Maury Povich in high school).

22. I always drink bottled or filtered water.

23. I often think if things are more expensive, then they are better. That is why I get mad when Tyler buys no name brands.

24. I played Rugby my senior year of high school. I loved it and wish I would’ve played more sports sooner.

25. I am a people pleaser, and I find it hard to say no to people. (Which is why I spent two lifetimes doing this silly tag!)

Happy Friday!

2009-01-30T16:25:00.000-08:00

Snow Day

2009-01-27T20:07:00.000-08:00

I woke up this morning feeling tired and sour,
But my spirits were lifted by the end of the hour.
Good news from the principal – it’s a snow day!
I then got to relax in a very big way.
Hours of TV and reading took place,
Until the time of Tyler’s returning face.
We went to a movie and then grocery shopped,
And lay on the couch until my head almost dropped.
Now off to bed, while all night I'll dream
Of another great call to make my heart beam...

Gratitude

2009-01-26T19:27:00.001-08:00

Today I am grateful for three things:

First, I have a warm house that comes with a wonderful husband who will strip down while I crank the heat up to 90 degrees on frigidly cold days like today.

No, this is not really Idaho…it’s some awful place in Switzerland.

Second, This blue box that came today after my necklace was lengthened. Now I can finally wear it…hurray!

And Third, Jack Bauer

He is the only one you can trust.

Four Faves

2009-01-24T19:43:00.000-08:00

Did you know that my own mother and father never thought I would make it through the first semester of college? Shocking, I know. Now it’s hard to believe that I graduated college and am now on my way to a Master’s. Honestly, I wouldn’t have believed it either if you had told me years ago. Somehow it happened, and tonight I was thinking about the amazing adventure that was college, and reminisced through pictures and memories that I hope to keep forever. I moved almost every semester in college, and was able to meet so many amazing people. Through the journey I met four people that I considered (and still consider) some of my closest friends. I would now like to introduce you to my four faves:

Emily

Jessica

Whitney

Allyson

I started writing individual paragraphs for each girl, but soon realized that was going to take hours. These girls were my greatest friends and (I know it might sound lame) but they changed me. Here’s a very short list of some of my memories with them:

-Emily and Jessica trying to teach me to dance – moment of silence for Club Retrix (and the thirty-two other names it went by)
-Watching Friends until all hours of the night and completely pissing off our lesbian, trumpet playing roommate
-Wearing our matching pants courtesy of Broulims
-Breakfast Tuesdays! Eating oranges and making waffles (and especially giving the ones that fell on the floor to our other weird roommate…haha)
-Making our own maracas
-Playing tricks on GP
-Filling giant holes in chocolate cake with frosting…what a sweet surprise!
-Every aspect of Vashon Island (Allyson, aren’t you glad I didn’t put any of those pictures on here? Yikes!)
-Spending hours walking the track and listening to boyfriend drama… Yes, I really do miss those walks/talks

Oh, I could go on forever, but since many are inside jokes and probably boring to you, I won’t. I sure do miss the “old days” when we would hang out without a care in the world. I’m sad that things are so different now with careers, kids, husbands, etc. It is crazy how things have changed so much in the last few years. But I am so glad that I am able to keep in contact with all of my four faves! And here’s to more years of memories together! I love all you girls!

Grammar Punk

2009-01-18T12:22:00.000-08:00

Back in September, when I went to a writer’s conference, one of the presenters, Sam Beeson, told us about this “game” he created called Grammar Punk. I thought it looked like a great way to assist me in my creativity, as well as possibly bring into my class (on a much simpler level of course). This is one of the few things I have wanted for a while and never actually bought myself, so Tyler was lucky to get that as an idea for Christmas. I just wanted the dice, but since we couldn’t buy them separately, we got the game 12 Tall Tales, which on top of the dice includes cards with: location, character, genre, etc.

Here’s how it works:
There are six dice to roll. They tell you:
1. The topic of your sentence or story.
2. A type of punctuation to use.
3. A part of speech to use.
4. Vowel*
5. Consonant*
6. The number of dice words* to use.
*A dice word is a word that has the vowel and consonant you rolled in it.

Today I am using these to help me write my poem of the week. This is what I rolled.

So in my poem about sports, I need to include a question, an interjection, and at least three words which have a w and an i (turns out I had a lot more).

To start off, Sam suggests creating a list of dice words to use. Here’s my list:

wicked witch win wisdom wimp wind

wide will window write white wipe

And the final product:

Oh no! When I look out of my window I see:
All the wicked children playing football without me!
I point my wand out through the window,
And send a load of magic down below.
The football gets hit and takes a new flight.
While all the children suddenly turn white!
A few start floating up to the sky,
While many begin to loudly cry.
What is the lesson they must all learn?
Don’t forget to give the witch a turn.

I am pretty awesome at this game, but if any of you want to challenge me to a rousing game of Grammar Punk/12 Tall Tales, give me a call...

What is Grammar Punk?
(For those of you who may want to know a little bit more.)

Braggin' Rights

2009-01-14T17:08:00.000-08:00

Remember that hideous paper my group and I spent days crossing the “APA” t’s and dotting the “neurology” i’s until we were just about ready to die? Well I found out that we got 100% on that paper! Can you believe that? 100%! That is completely unexpected, but utterly deserved.

On a side note, I also passed both classes with flying colors.

Straight A’s baby!

And here’s hoping for another perfect semester…

Arizona

2009-01-11T07:42:00.000-08:00

After Christmas we left the great white north,
In search of somewhere warmer we set forth.
Hour after hour we did drive,
Only on junk and fast food could we survive.
We finally arrived after hour sixteen.
And we were very excited to improve our hygiene.
The purpose of this trip a month ago was revealed,
Tyler’s dad and his wife were going to be sealed.
Even though the trip was very short,
We were able to do some things of report.
We saw Tyler’s favorite mission companion,
As well as the breath taking Grand Canyon.
We ate gourmet food and rocked out with Dave and Kate,
And we ending up rocking until a little too late.
It was nearly sunset when we got to the park,
Which is why some of our pictures are a little bit dark.
The freezing cold and all the snow
Was something that surprised me so!
After our many hours of driving around the nation,
We were grateful to be home at the end of our vacation.

Ode to Christmas

2009-01-05T17:08:00.000-08:00

We spent the majority of the holiday in Canada visiting my family. It was a lot of fun. My three brothers and their families all came to join in the festivities. Some of the highlights were: Wii games, walking down a “Candy Cane Lane” type thing, playing with two super cute nieces and one way cool nephew, eating McD’s breakfast, everyone (but of course not lucky Tyler) getting sick from such sweet kids, and driving thirty hours. Here’s some proof.

My parents' beautiful tree.

Tyler and my dad loving Wii golf.

Ally sprinkling food for Santa’s Reindeer.

A bad picture of us ruling Outdoor Challenge.

Jordan and Cyd in awe of how friggin' awesome Tyler and I are at the Outdoor Challenge.

Arms flapping...getting too excited for her favorite present.

And this is that very awesome present.

Tyler didn't flap, but was just as excited for his new shoes.

As was I for a new Tiffany's necklace to add to my collection.

Matching aprons from Cyd.

Jordan being weird while Cyd conducts the Wii Music Orchestra.

Warren, very addicted to Guitar Hero.

Like father, like daughter.

Sweet Grace.

Ally and my Grandma.

At the end of this very cold, yet very enjoyable holiday, we were so excited to go feel the warmth of Arizona. But that’s another story…

Anticipation

2008-12-24T09:26:00.000-08:00

I’m sitting here on Christmas Eve morning,
Waiting for those who will come without warning.
Brothers, sisters, and children galore,
Will soon come bounding through the door.
With smiles, hugs, and presents for all,
Each doing their part to make Christmas a ball.
This week will be filled with many ambitions,
Trying to fulfill all the Christmas traditions.
But of them all, the one we will never forbid,
Is McDonald’s breakfast with Jordan and Cyd.
There is one more thing that would make my heart glow-
If only it weren’t thirty below.

Wedding

2008-12-24T08:35:00.001-08:00

On the weekend my family and I went up to Edmonton for my brother’s wedding. It was beautiful. Cold, but beautiful.

My brother, Ryan, and his best man, Hunter.

The two sweet girls...Ally and Grace.

The entertainer - Nicole's brother Julien.

The Wedding Ceremony.

Their first married kiss.

Dancing

The new happy family.

Ally: tired and sick.

Pictures stolen from Ryan and my dad.

Seriously going to win!

2008-12-13T20:37:00.000-08:00

Here is another seriously so awesome giveaway from my fave blog:

P.S. I will get back on the blogging train again soon. Apparently I am still super busy.

Relief

2008-11-24T20:00:00.000-08:00

After many weeks and endless hours of work, my paper is finally finished! I have never had the experience of “eating, breathing, and sleeping” something, but I have definitely done that with this stupid paper. I worked in a group with two other people, and we literally went to work, class, then met until about 10ish most nights, and then went to bed. I even dreamt about APA format, wondering if I left enough spaces or had the margins just right. It was the most annoying thing ever, but I can safely say it is finished, and all we have left to do is present after Thanksgiving, which will be a piece of cake.

I don’t know if I could have survived it without my wonderful husband, Tyler. He has really stepped up his role by helping me at school, keeping the house clean, doing laundry, shopping, cooking, and preparing meals/ snacks for my group… The list goes on forever. He has been an amazing helper, which makes me love him even more!

So, with all that out of the way, I am going to put my feet up this weekend, get a pedicure, and just relax…

Tip Junkie

2008-11-15T16:03:00.000-08:00

Have you checked out Tip-Junkie? They have tons of giveaways everyday for 12 days.

ugh...

2008-11-15T09:27:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder if I am crazy or sane,
For taking a walk down master’s degree lane.
I’m starting to feel a great deal of stress,
From a paper – 30 pages, 20 sources, no less.
Not to mention finals and many a test,
To see if I am performing at my best.
The time spent reading book after book,
Is seriously killing my straight hair look.
I need more sleep, which means less time
For straightening my hair - what a crime!
Can I still be a great teacher to the little ones?
Oh yes, I am taking out the big guns –
Movies, games, and rewards galore,
Although it does mean more trips to the store…
I make them run to burn their energy away,
In order to teach them nicely all day.
I still love them, and they love me
Even through this trial of a master’s degree.
I often wonder if this stress will ever stop,
Because the other day I drank an entire pop…

*Disclaimer I have not had pop in over a year, so this was a big deal.

Fight for the right

2008-11-04T20:44:00.001-08:00

Janae

Tyler

Basically if I ever get into a fight with my first graders, I better have Tyler fighting on my side!

Poem of the Week

2008-11-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

The Witches

On a cold and spooky night,

Three young witches took flight.

They grabbed their brooms and their hats,

Completely ignoring their beloved cats.

Out the window, they did fly

Up into the darkened sky.

All the fun they had in mind,

Was hindered by what they saw behind.

Three black cats on broomsticks small,

Following behind them all.

Curious, but not willing to stop,

They found a home and perched atop.

Down the chimney, like Old St. Nick,

They jumped and ran through very quick.

The witches were fast, but the cats were quicker,

And with every step the witches felt sicker.

In the dark, they ran and crashed,

Couches and tables all got smashed.

They saw the cats behind them still,

Ran through the kitchen and cups did spill,

Down the hall and through the door,

Hoping to see those cats no more.

Across the street and into a school,

They saw more witches! Oh, how cool!

Now they had a perfect disguise,

A Halloween party, to the cats’ demise.

The cats left sadly, and began to squeal,

For all they wanted was a little meal…

BOO!

2008-11-01T09:15:00.000-07:00

Well, I think I have finally regained my breath and strength from a crazy, and incredibly spooky, night last night. But, let’s not start there. Let’s start at the beginning…a very good place to start.

Monday: Went to first grade class, and then master’s class. Pretty uneventful.
Tuesday: Started off with a bang as I fried off part of my hair, for the third time, and realized I had to buy a new straightener (especially with school pictures coming the next day). I was really upset about this, mainly because the one I had was not cheap. I mostly blame Carmen Electra for making it look so wonderful. So to all of you hair straighteners out there…beware of the Kiyoseki. Luckily, I have the most wonderful husband ever, and he let me buy a new one that day. Along with a wonderful husband, I have a wonderful hair lady at the Cutting Corner in Rigby. She just so happened to have a new professional, amazing straightener in - the FHI Heat. It was 2/3 of the price of my Kiyoseki, and came with a guarantee – if I don’t like it, I can bring it back to her, no questions asked. Luckily, it was amazing, and made my hair feel so much healthier, which made me very happy! After all the drama of hair straighteners, I saw the most incredible, and cheesiest, movie ever. Yes, you guess it…High School Musical 3. I love those movies, I admit it. Once you get over the fact that they are incredibly cheesy, how can you not love them? Of course I bought the soundtrack the next day…don’t judge me.
Wednesday: Went to first grade class, and then master’s class. Pretty uneventful. Although, I did get my midterms back, and passed with flying

c o l o r s !
Thursday: Went to first grade class. Tyler was nice enough to come help. Spent hours getting ready for the Halloween party. Missed The Office…thank goodness for Internet.
Friday: Braced myself for a day of craziness. Very surprised by the calm, cool children who walked in my door. Halloween didn’t officially start until 12:20. I was very happy about that…they weren’t. Tyler helped all afternoon this day, too. Once the costumes were on and the children were transformed into the likes of Hannah Montana, Dragons, Werewolves, Brides, and more, the party began. These were my two favorites:

Little Devil

Cute Dragon

We started off with a classic game of freeze dance, while waiting for the parent helpers to arrive. When they arrived we broke off into five different activities, including…

Bean Bag Toss

Candy Walk

Ring Toss

Halloween Jingo (That's the game Tyler AKA Mr. Ricks is playing in the background)

Decorating Cookies

Then the games finished and the parade began. While we were all lined up ready to go, I decided I wanted a picture of everybody. But, in order to save time trying to get them in a picture group, I just videoed them. I realize I went a little fast, but after a few views, you can see them all. Notice the bratty bride in the middle and the many complaints of sweaty heads. Maybe now they’re grateful we didn’t wear costumes all day. Too hot. After listening to the video, I hope my voice doesn’t sound like that when I talk to adults. I’ll call it my first grade voice.

Funny Story: After the party, we were only left with about six kids, and then after the first bell, only two. Since they were two of my favorites, I let them decorate an extra cookie. Here’s how the conversation went:

Red Riding Hood (to Mr. Ricks): Give me the frosting!
Mr. Ricks (trying to instill some manners into this child): What do you say?
Red Riding Hood (refusing to give in): Give me the frosting!
Mr. Ricks (never giving up): We say, ”Give me the frosting ______”?
Dragon (feeling so smart and proud): /g/!
Apparently they weren’t saying the sound /g/ at the end of frosting…it was hilarious.

Finally the bell rang, and all the children left, giving Tyler and me time to clean up the mess. After 392 hours, my classroom is finally back to normal, leaving me exhausted, sweaty (my costume wasn’t much cooler than theirs), and ready to go home. Is Halloween over? You may wonder…but it is surely not. Some of you loyal readers may remember a long time ago when I said we were going to try to be more social by inviting people over at least once a month…? Well that never happened. But finally, I invited another teacher from our school, Georgia, and her husband, Wes, to have a spooktacular Halloween time with us. Not knowing what they were getting themselves into, they agreed. So we started off casually enjoying a Jack-O-Lantern Pizza (well, not so much Jack-O-Lanterny when you trade the pepperoni for ham, but oh well). After that, we all got up our nerve to go to the Haunted Mill (where Tyler and I had our first date). I guess I forgot how scary it actually was, because wow, was it scary. If I hadn’t gone before we left, I probably would have peed my pants with fear. They were pretty good at scaring us, and really good at annoying us. Sometimes the monsters wouldn’t let us pass, or would follow us for excessive amounts of time. Two times we got out of the mill, and thought we were free, but no, we had to go back in for another fearful experience. Finally we were free, and left. All of us coughing and sneezing from the excessive amounts of fog machines and dust. Luckily, we were all alive, and intact. Nostalgia aside, I don’t think we will ever go back. After being scared to death, we decided it would be great to stop being scared, and enjoy a little Mario Kart. That helped to restore my lungs, breath, etc. When they left, I got ready for bed, my head hit the pillow, and literally three seconds later, I was asleep. I couldn’t even finish one page of my book. Boo urns. Now, with Halloween finished, a serious sugar detox begins…

How can teeth be self-righteous?!

2008-10-26T15:39:00.000-07:00

Is... an... awkward... thing... for... a... dentist... to... say... after... having... a... curry... dinner...

Yesterday we watched one of the funniest movies of all time.

It made me laugh out loud almost the entire time. Not a lot of shows can do that, you know. So far only The Office, Arrested Development, Friends, and Baby Mama have been able to accomplish this amazing task. Tears came, I was laughing so hard during the above quote. Ricky Gervais is one of my new favorite funny guys. Pretty much anything he said was funny, simply because of his voice, tone, and his sweet sweet smile.

At first I was a little (okay a LOT) sad to watch this movie, because I was originally going to see High School Musical 3 (I know I’m lame, get over it) but it was sold out. But I was very pleasantly surprised that Ghost Town was so incredibly awesome. All in all, we give it two thumbs up.

We also rented another incredibly spectacular game... Wario Shake It! It has unbelievable effects. Check it out for yourself.

WARIO! Let's go!

Flowers

2008-10-22T15:42:00.001-07:00

These flowers are so pretty,
Bought with Tyler’s love.
I’m writing this little ditty,
About the flowers up above.
On day one they looked pretty sad,
I thought they had no chance.
On day six, they are really rad.
They make me want to dance.
A part of me feels a bit gloomy,
Knowing they won’t forever last.
I wish they could stay in our roomie,
But they seem to be fading fast.
Now I guess I’ll have to treasure,
Each moment they are with me.
For they have brought me such great pleasure,
Since our third anniversary.

On a more personal note...

2008-10-19T12:28:00.001-07:00

Have you ever seen someone walking on the street or somewhere, and thought to yourself – “Wow, I wish I could just be her!”? You don’t even really know the person, but you just feel that she might be more “normal” than you. Well I do that a lot – I think, “wow it would be so nice to have her life and see if she thinks the same things that I do.”

Well, we had stake conference today and to me the central message was being positive and happy. This is something I have struggled with for a lot of my life. I have never had a very high self-esteem or been happy with myself, for various reasons. Currently I am unhappy because we are still living in Rexburg, a town I dislike a lot, waiting for our life to start. I feel like we should have already moved on from this point. We have been married for three years now, and most of the people I know who have been married that long have at least one, if not two, kids. I am constantly on Tyler’s case begging him to hurry up and graduate, and sometimes blaming him for me being miserable. I know it’s not his fault; it’s just where we are in our lives. I want to just jump ahead into the future. I was talking to Emily, a good friend of mine, and she was telling me that she has learned to stop waiting for their life to start, because right now is their life. It could take a lot of time to get to where you think your life begins (a life like my parents have – with a house, kids, careers…). She has made the decision to just be happy and enjoy this part of their lives because it’s either that or be miserable waiting for the time to pass. And honestly, I am sick of being miserable about it. So…I am turning over a new leaf. I am going to accept this as our life, and enjoy it. During my time browsing other people’s blogs, I have found my new mantra. I am going to recite it everyday to get some self-worth back.

I am all of these things, and more, and so are all of you.

New Discoveries...

2008-10-18T12:01:00.000-07:00

I just discovered how to change the fonts, colors, sizes, etc. So I did a lot of experimenting in this blog. Reader beware...

I just sat down to type my research paper review, and decided I would much rather do this instead (especially since I know Jordan and Cyd are dying for an update…). This has been such a long week. I feel like I have been going and going without a break, so I am really looking forward to tomorrow, when I can just do nothing. Okay, where to start…

I had two midterms this week which I studied my butt off for. I have no idea how I did, so we’ll just have to wait and see and hope for the best.

Tyler left early Thursday morning to go check out graduate programs at the University of Idaho in Moscow. Luckily I have been busy enough to not be too lonely. However, when my chef leaves, I resort to Bajio, Carino’s, toast, and macaroni and cheese with cut up hot dogs (which I am eating right now). Yummy…

This week I discovered a few great things:

1. Cherry Italian Sodas are delicious.

2. Avon has the best mineral foundation for $24 cheaper than Bare Minerals. I bought eyeliner, 8 eye shadows, blush, and translucent powder for only $26. I can barely believe it. That’s like Wal-Mart prices for the vain and prideful who refuse to buy important things from there. So all you Bare Minerals users out there…stop what you are doing and go buy Avon’s mineral foundation. It’s only $7 and the best thing you’ll ever buy.

3. Being a teacher has many benefits. Some of which include no tax on school purchases, and 20% off at Barnes and Noble. But this week Barnes and Noble is giving teachers 25% off anything in the store. Needless to say I stocked up on my books I want to read. I bought these:

But I am sad I have to read these first:

4. I got my MAT scores back today, and scored in the 51st percentile…meaning I passed and can continue my graduate program. I also got my official acceptance letter today. The program has been so disorganized and crazy that about half of us weren’t accepted until recently. Thankfully, all the work I’ve done so far has not been for nothing. I get to keep going to class and running around like a chicken with its head cut off.

And now I am going to finish my work, so I have time to play when Tyler gets home.

O.c.t.o.b.e.r = L.o.v.e

2008-10-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Today marks the day when, three years ago, Tyler and I got married. Also on the 13th was our first date four years ago. So we kind of have two anniversaries in one week. I thought I would have class all night, but was able to take my test and leave. Since Tyler didn’t go to his class, we actually get to celebrate…kind of. We’re just going to go to dinner, tonight, then we plan on going to the Haunted Mill next weekend (that was where our very first date was…it scared me to death, but I’ll still go back).

We decided this year to not get each other gifts, but find something that we both want—which is turning out to be harder than I thought. For those of you who don’t know us very well, we really don’t have a lot of common interests, so to find something we both want is tricky. I would love a pedicure, or a new pair of shoes…but Tyler doesn’t seem to think that would make him happy. I’m not 100% sure why… I’m sure we’ll think of something come Christmas.

I saw these two rhymes about people who marry in October:

“Married when leaves in October thin, Toil and hardship for you begin.”
“If in October you do marry, love will come but riches tarry.”

I have to say they have been very true for us. Everyone always says the first few years of your marriage are the hardest…and wow, would I have to agree. The first three years have been so difficult. We have had our fair share of problems – many involving “riches”, but it’s safe to say those are getting under control. Don’t get me wrong, we have had some wonderful times, too. Some of our favorite memories are:

Our cruise to Mexico
Road trips to Canada
The Eastern Idaho State Fair
Endless nights of working at my school (both of us)
Playing Nintendo for days at a time
Watching 24 for 24 hours straight

All in all, it has been an amazingly rough and wonderful ride, and we are looking forward to the exciting things coming ahead!

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

2008-10-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

I get sucked into things pretty easy, and saw this contest. Of course I had to sign up. Handbag Planet is giving away a purse every hour tomorrow. So how sad would it be to not even try? Go to the website, sign up, and win.

Chef Ricks

2008-10-13T19:42:00.000-07:00

I just have to take a minute to say how much I love this guy.

Today I came home from teaching and then from an exhausting class (complete with a midterm), starving at 8:00, and he had a delicious dinner ready for us. This happens pretty much every night. Tyler has taken over the cooking. I make the list, he shops and cooks. Love it…love him!

Oh yeah, and on top of cooking, he always makes sure our apartment is clean. Again…love him!

Picture Tag

2008-10-11T19:52:00.000-07:00

You have to stop what you are doing and take the following pictures NOW. No excuses! If you don't have time to blog just take the pictures NOW and blog when you can!! No cleaning, re-arranging, just have fun taking the pictures!

1. Kitchen Sink
2. Favorite room
3. Fridge
4. Closet
5. Laundry room
6. Self Portrait
7. What you or your family are doing
8. Dream Vacation
9. Favorite Shoes
10. Bathroom

1. Kitchen Sink - Luckily it's Saturday, so I already cleaned most of our apartment.

2. Favorite Room - I almost put the bedroom, because I love to sleep. But I changed my mind at the last minute and chose the living room/family room. We love to play Nintendo and watch The Office—one of the few things we have in common!

3. Fridge – Pretty empty...pretty typical.

4. Closet – Because our apartment is so tiny, our closet is so full of random things.

5. Laundry Room – Again, because our apartment is so tiny, our laundry room consists of a washer and dryer stuck in the corner of the kitchen. I’m getting used to it...

6. Self Portrait – This is my “I hate science” face. (see number 7)

7. What you or your family is doing – I am studying for my Language, Literacy, and Neurology class. We have midterms this week, and I may or may not make it.

P.S. I don't know why this picture is turned-it's normal on my computer.

8. Dream Vacation – Honestly, at this point I would be happy anywhere WARM. It started snowing today and I shed a tear. It barely became fall, and now its winter. I want to move…

9. Favorite Shoes – I couldn’t choose one pair. Here are my reasons: the madden girl shoes are so cute, but are, as my mom calls them, “one hour shoes”. Any longer than that, and you might as well cut off your feet. So after that hour, I will wear flip-flops for the remaining 23 hours.

10. Bathroom - Pretty clean—except that the sink has a leak, and all of our stuff from under there is shoved behind/around the toilet. We can never get a hold of our landlords, so it might be like that until we move out. Also, the bottom drawer is broken, but Tyler promises he will fix it today. We’ll see…

I have seen a lot of “tagging” on blogs, and this one has to be one of my favorites. I saw it on Diane’s blog, and decided I had to do it. I unofficially tag everyone who reads this, but officially I will tag: Allyson, Becca, Kari, and Kate.

Splish, Splash

2008-10-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

Tyler is really interested in the environment, and especially water. Because of this, he has started his own blog about water issues. I’ve added it to my blog list, or you can go here. It’s probably a good idea, so maybe I can understand some of these important issues. At least one of us does.

This has also been the inspiration for my poem of the week. Enjoy!

Water, water everywhere.
To disappear would be a scare.
Everyday I drink and drink.
To turn off the tap I never think.
The water flows out without a care,
Not realizing it might not be there.

In a bottle I shouldn’t buy,
The reason— I’m not sure why.
“30 minutes on a treadmill,
Forever in a landfill.”
It’s a shame that I waste,
But I just love the taste.

Everyone has a part to play,
To ensure our water doesn’t go away.
Nalgene© bottles are a place to start,
And to stop buying Fiji© would be smart.
Don’t spend so much time in the shower.
Try ten minutes, instead of an hour.

If we all do our part to conserve,
We will have water left in the reserve.

Cross 'em

2008-10-07T19:00:00.000-07:00

Tyler has an official interview in Boise tomorrow, for a job at the Senator’s office in Idaho Falls.

So…

I Secretly Love Fall (Not Summer)

2008-10-05T14:01:00.000-07:00

I look out the window and what do I see?
Leaves are falling off of every tree.
Red and yellow and orange and brown.
The leaves are falling all over the town.
I see people running into every store,
To buy decorations and pumpkins galore.
Pumpkin pies were made,
In leaves the children played.
I hope that summer doesn’t feel too betrayed.

I look out the window and what do I see?
My neighbors bringing pumpkin treats for me!
I open up my closet to take out my coat,
If I see snowflakes I might slit my throat.
I walk down the steps and off to the park.
As I arrive I hear playful dogs bark.
On the leaves I laid,
The trees around me swayed,
I hope that summer doesn’t feel too betrayed.

Hmm...

2008-10-03T14:27:00.000-07:00

Dear Janae, This is your stomach speaking. I suppose congratulations are in order for doing well on the MAT test today, but I cannot condone this course of action you are taking. Getting a masters degree WILL only cause you more ulcers. I know you have your own reasons for getting it, but I highly recommend you quit before I explode. But, then again, you are your own woman. Sincerely, Your Stomach.

Dear Stomach, I don’t care what you say. We can handle this. I will try not to get so stressed about it, and eat healthier. Sorry. Wish me luck. Sincerely, Janae

Number 1

2008-09-28T15:14:00.000-07:00

So I started a goal to write one poem a week, in order to keep my creativity and rhyming skills fresh. Here is the first of many. I won’t necessarily post them all, but since this is number one…it’s more special.

Penelope and Pete loved to eat.
They devoured every single treat.
Everyday they would eat, laugh, and sing,
Without knowing one simple thing:
Eating all day can quickly make
You 300 pounds! Without mistake.
All of the sudden, before their eyes,
Penelope and Pete had doubled in size!
They made a vow on that horrific day,
To put all the candies and chocolates away.

23? Not me. 24? For sure.

2008-09-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

I am finally back from work and school…let the birthday celebration begin!!

Wait…what’s that you say? I have to go to bed, so I can be rested enough to teach bratty six-year-olds all day tomorrow?

Oh…crap.

Well, at least I got some flowers to show for it...
(Okay, and some new clothes, perfume, dinner, etc.)

Fall Into Books

2008-09-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I attended a Workshop at BYU-I called “Fall Into Books”. It was awesome! They had two Keynote speakers and then various mini workshops for authors, illustrators, teachers, parents, and teens.

The Keynotes were Chris Crowe, an author and BYU Professor, and Brett Helquist, an illustrator best known for illustrating A Series of Unfortunate Events. I really enjoyed Chris’ presentation. As you may or may not know, I have written two children’s books that I am hoping to get published. So I went to this as an aspiring author, as opposed to a teacher. Anyway, he shared a lot of the lessons he has learned along the way to becoming an author. One that impacted me the most was that “there are no excuses for not writing”. I get so busy and always seem to put off something that I love to do. It can take years to get a book published, even after being accepted by a publisher, so I might as well continue writing my future great books while I wait!

Sam Beeson is a high school teacher and children’s book author and he presented one of the workshops. He told us that he has written a poem a day since 2006, just to keep practicing. What a great goal! I don’t think I can do a poem a day, but I’m going to try to write (and maybe even post) one a week. Some will be terrible, and some might turn into a great story.

I bought these two books

to help me get through the publishing process a well as a few children’s books to add to my library. The first one tells you all the places you can send your manuscripts, what types of books they like, how they pay you, etc. I’m anxious to get these books and really make this dream of mine happen! I left this conference feeling so inspired and excited.

"Books fall open, you fall in, delighted where you've never been; hear voices not once heard before, reach world on world through door on door; find unexpected keys to things locked up beyond imaginings. What might you be, perhaps become, because one book is somewhere? Some wise delver into wisdom, wit, and wherewithal has written it. True books will venture, dare you out, whisper secrets, maybe shout across the gloom to you in need, who hanker for a book to read."
~ David McCord

But it's only Fair!

2008-09-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Can…not…move. Too…full…of…delicious…food.

Over our time at the Fair, Tyler and I devoured:
-3 Teriyaki rice bowls
-2 Fudge brownie ice-cream waffle cones
-1 large plate of scone nuggets with honey butter
-1 plateful of dutch oven BBQ pork, green beans, and potatoes
-1 deep-fried Twinkie with whip cream and strawberries
-1 deep-fried Milky Way with whip cream
-1 foot long corn dog
-1 funnel cake with powdered sugar and cinnamon sugar
-Cinnamon glazed almonds…on the ride home

We had a GREAT time at the fair this year. Usually Tyler isn’t the type to pig out, but he made a HUGE effort this year, just to make me happy. I believe the fair is the time for you to eat as much as you possibly can, in order to survive until the next year. I know we did an excellent job at that.

In between our “meals”, we walked through all the exhibits and only got tricked by one company. I bet you can guess…Trend West. Stupid timeshare people. They suckered us into giving them our information. But luckily, Tyler figured it out in time, so we just gave them fake info. Haha…jokes on them now. We also listened to a few different people perform on the free stage. Most were average performers that I would not pay to see. But then we went to the hypnotist, and he was so good. Personally, I don’t believe in hypnotism, but whether they were faking or not, it was still so, so funny. Our favorite was “Band-Aid Boy”. Every time the hypnotist would touch his face, he would think he was cut and bleeding to death. He would shout out “Medic! I need a Medic!” and another girl would come put a florescent Band-Aid on him. He had about seven by the end of the show. Haha…that was really funny.

All in all, we had a blast. Yes I feel sick, but at the same time, very happy.

Too Good To Be True?

2008-09-05T17:53:00.000-07:00

Can I just tell you that I almost screamed when I saw the trailer for Confessions of a Shopaholic? I love this series of books and after viewing the trailer, I can’t wait until the movie comes out!

I know it won't be as good as the books, by far, but I still think it looks awesome!

"Your Mama Don't Dance"

2008-09-05T17:09:00.000-07:00

Remember that post where I announced the walls of my sheltered life were coming down? Well, they did last night. I went to the most amazing and unexpected concert of my life. Thanks to my 80’s music loving friend, Linda, I went to the Poison concert. I really don’t know any bands from then, let alone any of their songs. But, thanks to Guitar Hero and VH1’s Rock of Love (Yes…I admit I watch that show), I knew a couple of them. I thought they put on an awesome show. I loved every song they sang, even the ones I didn’t know. When they played “Talk Dirty to Me”, I was able to sing along and jump like real rockers do. Ha. It was awesome. C.C. DeVille (guitar) and Rikki Rockett (drums) both did amazing solos. I have never been one to be impressed by someone playing a guitar, but wow, C.C. was incredible. I don’t even think I could do that well on Guitar Hero…let alone a real, actual guitar.
Janae = Speechless.

I will let you in on two secrets:
1. I think Bret Michaels is very sexy.
(Even though he looks a little too much like a woman)
2. C.C. DeVille scares me…a lot.

Here is my crappy cell phone picture, to prove I was there, and so was Bret Michaels.

Story Time...

2008-08-23T09:40:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, there was a young, beautiful, enthusiastic, first grade teacher. She had just begun preparing for the new school year, when she was bombarded with meeting after meeting after meeting. As she spent many pointless hours growing closer and closer to death by boredom, she discovered the power of a cell phone. Time went by so much faster as she played Bejewled and texted her husband. When the meetings finally came to an end, she arrived at her school, only to be completely attacked by boxes. There were boxes everywhere! She calmly and quickly opened each box and put away its contents…the materials for the districts new reading curriculum—Houghton Mifflin. After several days of papers, bulletin boards, laminating, cutting, cleaning, dark circles, frizzy hair, and sleepless nights, her classroom finally looked immaculate and was ready for children. Or so she thought. When the children arrived Thursday morning, she greeted them with a smile and a positive attitude. As the day went on, the nightmares began. Girls began crying for their moms, boys were fighting, children were starving by 9:00, the bells weren’t ringing, two children got lost at recess, and several took the wrong bus home. The teacher went home exhausted, drained, and questioning her career choice. But, as Friday came, many problems were solved. Snacks were passed out several times a day, just one girl cried, one lone boy was lost at recess, boys were separated, and everyone got home safely. The teacher went home, put her feet up, and booked a pedicure for Saturday afternoon. And secretly hopes Monday never comes…

Wow

2008-08-04T09:45:00.000-07:00

I will say, I impressed myself.

96 words

Speed test

How fast are you?

Kellie Pickler!

2008-08-03T15:05:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, when we got home from my family reunion, Tyler went to his own family reunion (which he may or may not blog about later) and I went to the most amazing concert of the summer! I have led a little bit of a sheltered life, in that the only concerts I have been to are some punk band who played in a bar when I was in high school, and Collin Raye who performed at BYU Idaho. Neither of which were very exciting to me. But this…Kellie Pickler…one of my FAVORITE American Idolers came to little Idaho Falls and gave an outstanding show. I’m shocked at how many people don’t know who she is, or that she's even famous. She has won 3 CMA awards, people...that’s pretty impressive.

My friend Jessica and I went and she was the exact right person to bring. After the opening act (some random country band I’ve never heard of—Moutlon Jess?) Jessica made us walk up to the VERY FRONT and watch the show from there the entire time. We were so close it was amazing! I wish I would have had my camera, but I only had my phone, which sucks at taking pictures. But here’s one to prove I was there.

Kellie gave the best show. She talked and joked between her songs; she was just her adorable self. She just seems so real, and I love that about her. She wore a tank top and jeans…nothing special, but she looked adorable. After the encore, she started signing tickets at the front, so of course, Jessica had us shove our way up there and got our tickets signed! It was very exciting. After about 3 minutes of deciphering, we decided that is says “Heart KP”. You be the judge.

All in all, it was the BEST show ever, and it makes me want to make the drive to Salt Lake to go to more of them. The walls are officially coming down on my sheltered life. Watch out everyone!

Van Orman Family Reunion

2008-08-01T21:40:00.001-07:00

This has been a busy week, so I will start with our family reunion. This year was the 2nd Annual Van Orman Family Reunion. My parents, brothers, and their families all went up to Kananaskis in Canada. Tyler and I drove to my parents’ house on Wednesday, that way we had a day to buy and prepare food for the meals we were in charge of, and also not have to do so much driving. On Friday morning we drove up to my brother Ryan’s house to pick up the trailer we were going to be using, and then continued on our way to the campground. This trailer was enormous. It had two queen beds, two double beds, shower, toilet, kitchen, plasma TV, DVD player, etc. Pretty much the only way I will camp.

We got to the campground at about 4:00, so we unpacked and set everything up and cooked dinner. My brother Warren and his family came about an hour later than us. After dinner we just hung out by the campfire and cooked some delicious pies.

On Saturday we went on a walk around the Upper Kananaskis Lake. It was so beautiful! Kananaskis Country is so breathtaking. There are tall trees everywhere, lakes, waterfalls, etc. It’s so calm and peaceful…minus the mosquitoes.

The walk was easy, so we brought all the kids (Hunter—8, Ally—3, Grace—4 months). Ally was obsessed with binoculars. She SLOWLY walked almost the entire way looking through binoculars. Luckily we weren’t in any real hurry. The fast walkers past us by, and then some of us just walked with her and laughed. It was funny. She kept saying she saw things like fish and snakes. I don’t know how much she actually saw. Half the time she had them on backwards! But she’s 3 and absolutely adorable.

We tried to take pictures of her during the walk, but she didn’t really want to have her picture taken. We tried, anyway.

There was a waterfall part way through our walk that we had to take pictures of. It was huge and stunning.

Then we stopped and threw rocks into the lake. Warren and Tyler were pretty good at skipping them. Ally just liked to make big splashes!

Some of us just sat, watched, and rested.

After throwing rocks, Ally wanted to build a tall tower. Tyler helped her build it, and then she put the finishing touches on it…sand.

When everyone was done building, and throwing rocks, we went back to have lunch. After lunch my brother Jordan and his wife came. We played some games, and hung out until after dinner. After dinner, we went to one of the Interpretive Programs the campground puts on. They teach about different parts of the wildlife in the area. The one we went to was called, “Kung Frog—Legend of the Pond Master”. It was basically about amphibians. At each of the programs they have audience members help out. So at this one, Ally got to hold up a sign (although it really ended up being Ryan and Nicole), Hunter threw some sort of poison at one of them, and Jordan and Tyler got to dress up for the dating game. There were three different amphibians for the frog to choose from. Tyler was a frog, Jordan was a toad, and the other guy was a salamander. Well, naturally she chose Tyler and they got to go and mate. They came back with 2,000 eggs! If it hadn’t of been with a frog, I might have been a bit jealous!

On Sunday, my mom deciding that we weren’t doing enough, so she sent me, Tyler, Jordan and Cyd on a hike up to Elbow Lake. I have to say it was pretty brutal. It was basically straight up the whole way there, and then very very down on the way back. Luckily they had a bench to rest on the way up and down. Once we got there it was really nice. The Lake was completely still, and had the most beautiful reflection of the mountains and trees in it. We had to stay a while and take pictures. Jordan and Cyd have a fancy camera, so it took them a while to set it up. But once they did, they got some amazing pictures. Unfortunately, mine wasn’t as fancy, but hopefully these will do.

We spent Sunday night playing games with the adults and the kids. We spent quite a while playing play dough with Ally and Hunter. Cyd is quite the professional play dough creator, and she made some beautiful nails for Ally, lips, cupcakes, finger puppets, and a lot more. Ally and I were both impressed! I can mostly make snakes and worms. Hunter was also really good at this. He made a perfect starfish and a rainbow. He may have a future in the play dough industry… The rest of the night was spent being entertained by Ally, and trying to get baby Gracie to be happy. That was a challenge.

On Monday, Mom, Dad, Tyler, Averley and I took a bike ride on a 14 km trail. From the beginning it is very up, so we just got dropped off at the end and rode fairly easily back down. There were some ups still, so it wasn’t completely for pansies, but definitely not for the tough guys. After the ride, we ate lunch and watched Ally take pictures of everything. She only dropped the camera once, so that’s impressive.

After lunch, Tyler and I left and started the long 12 hour drive back home. We got back just in time to wash a few loads of clothes and head off to a concert (me) and another family reunion (Tyler). More to come on those later, I’m too tired…

To see more pictures, you can go here.

Our Fun Week

2008-07-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

Tyler had the week off from work, so we were finally able to spend some desperately needed time together. It’s been so crazy with him working so much, so I was very excited to have him around. We started off just being lazy and enjoying doing nothing. We played a little Wii, watched TV, the usual lazy activities.

On Wednesday, Tyler’s sister Jen invited us to go to Heise Hot Springs with her and our niece August. It was really fun. I’m a little disappointed that I’ve lived in Rexburg for about 6 years, and haven’t been to many of the attractions around here. This summer I’m hoping to go to more of them. I guess Heise was the start of it. It wasn’t as big as I expected, but it was still really fun. Although I have to say if I wasn’t a good swimmer, I wouldn’t have felt very safe with those lifeguards. They seriously looked no older than 14. All I can say is that it was a good thing I was there, to save August if necessary. All jokes aside, my favorite part was the waterslide. It was ridiculously fast! Even sitting up I was going all over the place. It’s a good thing it was fully enclosed, or I would’ve been flung out of there! After the swimming fun, we went to the pizza place nearby and finished off the day with some extremely tasty pizza.

On Thursday morning we cleaned our house before Jen and August came over to play Wii. That was a blast. We played Mario Kart, and with four people playing I wasn’t last nearly as often! I don’t like losing very much, and playing with Tyler I lose a lot! We decided we really love having people over and should do it more often. Neither of us are very good at being social with people, especially in our ward. But hopefully we can start to change that and get to know them. After all, we have been here for a year now and hardly know anybody. One of our goals now is to invite people over at least once a month. That should be an easy start for us.

Tyler's Birthday

2008-07-11T22:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Tyler’s 28th birthday, and I have to say I was a little disappointed. I don’t think he was as disappointed as I was, which is good considering it was his birthday. I have realized that we are VERY different when it comes to birthdays. He seems fine with a card and dinner, whereas I would like a whole week of celebration and gifts. It only seems fair. So when I wasn’t able to make him a birthday breakfast, have a party, or buy lots of presents, I was pretty upset. He's been working so much that he was home just enough for a shower and dinner before he was off again. But he ended up with a decorated house, cheesecake brownies, a TV, and a few small presents. Needless to say he was happy. Eventually I’ll learn to be happy with it too. For his birthday…not mine.

Crockpotting

2008-07-09T14:12:00.001-07:00

Since I am home all day, every day, I have been catching up on my talk shows. My two favorites are Regis and Kelly (always been my fave) and Rachael Ray. Yes her voice kind of bugs me, but I think she’s funny. Anyway, today on her show was a lady by the name of Stephanie O’Dea. She made a New Year’s Resolution to make her meals in the Crockpot everyday for a year. Now I have always loved cooking in the Crockpot, but I can’t ever find anything I like other than the typical roast, and shredded chicken. Well, she has a blog (http://www.crockpot365.blogspot.com/) where she posts her recipes that she used everyday. So as of right now she has 191 recipes, with pictures and a verdict on how well it turned out. This is going to be my new favorite site to go to daily. I am very excited for some new, delicious Crockpot recipes! Also, if you have any yummy recipes, please share!

Happy Canada Day!

2008-07-01T09:07:00.000-07:00

Today is Canada Day. Here is a little bit of history for you, compliments of Wikipedia:

July 1, 1867 marks the joining of the British colonies of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada into a federation of four provinces. However, though Canada is regarded as having become a kingdom in its own right on that date, the British Parliament at first kept limited rights of political control over the new country, which were shed by stages over the years until the last vestiges were ended in 1982, when the Constitution Act patriated the Canadian constitution. Canada Day thus differs from Independence Day celebrations in other countries in that it does not commemorate a clear-cut date of complete independence.

In general, we celebrate as any other country…with picnics, face paint, and fireworks.

Summertime

2008-07-01T09:02:00.001-07:00

This last week has been pretty uneventful. With Tyler working 14 hour days, it leaves little time for us to do anything. Such is the life of a farmer’s wife. Luckily it won’t be forever. We were able to take a day and go to the lake. One of my favorite things about the summer is hanging out at the lake. The closest one to us is Rigby Lake, which is fine. Since it is in Rigby, it’s quite full of white trash. But, once you learn to avert your eyes from some of them, it’s a pretty nice place. We spent the day lying on the beach, and then floating in the water. It was quite a relaxing and enjoyable day. If only everyday could be that nice…

We Love Wii!

2008-06-25T12:05:00.001-07:00

I have to give a shout out to Japan’s greatest invention, and winner of the highly coveted Chrysler Design Innovation Award—Wii Fit! This product has truly begun to change the lives of overweight Americans…including Tyler and I. We have spent hours playing this “game” and just can’t seem to get enough. I know people may not see how a little game can truly give you an effective workout, but it can. For those of you who don’t know, Wii Fit is made up of 4 areas:

• Aerobic Exercise: Up to 30-minute exercises that are designed to get the heart pumping.
• Strength Training: Controlled motions using arms, legs, abs, etc.
• Yoga: Classic poses that focus on balance and stretching.
• Balance Games: Fun activities, such as ski jumping and heading soccer balls, which challenge the player’s overall body balance

It even has a section for just plain running, which is much more enjoyable than a treadmill, I might add. Probably my favorite part of the Wii Fit is that I want to keep going in order to unlock other games and poses. It’s always exciting when there’s something new to try. But, nonetheless, we always finish sweaty and exhausted. It was even enough to make us cancel our gym membership. We are hooked.

School's out for Summer!

2008-06-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

School has been out for a month now. I’m pretty sure I have it a lot easier than Tyler. He is working full time at his family’s farm, while I am spending my days doing pretty much nothing. I did take a class called “Teaching with Love and Logic”, which was an amazing class. Any and every teacher should read the book by Jim Fay. It is a wonderful approach to teaching. But, now that that is over, my mind is completely off of teaching until August. My days involve: sleeping in, going to the gym, tanning, watching Regis and Kelly, showering, and reading at Rigby Lake. Sounds pretty fun, huh?