Just practicing.

I took a sweater out of my drawer to wear and realized it was missing a button and was really rather fuzzy and not very cute. My first thought was to set it aside to donate. Then, I got bored one night this week when JD was at work and decided to make something out of it. I bought this book a few weeks ago to get ideas of things to make out of fabric scraps I already have and it has tons of cute ideas.

Before:After:

A cute little owl friend! I don't have kids yet, but I sure do enjoy making children's playtoys and listening to the Children's Folk Songs radio station on Pandora. I'm just practicing to be a mom, I guess.

Because I don't have one of my own...

I'll just brag about how ridiculously adorable my Uncle Slade's baby is.

Sweet Brenham was born at the start of this month. . .

and I definitely wish I was in Texas to cuddle him.

I love those little fingers and that cute-as-ever baby nose.

How precious is this picture of my little cousins inspecting their new baby brother?

Jennifer and Slade make really beautiful babies.

Girlfriends.

Even though it stinks JD works on Saturdays til midnight, I'm grateful for the chance to spend time with girlfriends. Last weekend, Cory, Jenessa, and I went to the BYU bball game and I helped them get ready for their Valentine's party.

I like them. They're party people. And I'm glad they're my friends.

Valentine adventure.

JD wanted to go on a really exciting adventure for Valentine's Day. His original plan was to spend the weekend in a cottage near the lava hot springs in Idaho. It would have been very romantic had I not started feeling dreadfully miserable near the end of last week. He decided to ditch the Idaho idea and just do a little camping trip here. He researched places to go and decided we would camp out somewhere in Payson canyon. He packed the car full of our camping supplies, food and lots of blankets and we were set to go. After we discovered the Payson canyon roads were still covered in ice and completely unmanageable and dangerous, we opted to spend the night at our go-to campground, Burraston Ponds. We were a little disappointed, but decided we could still have a really good experience together. Not to our surprise, we were lone souls on the property. Who wants to wake up in a tent in the snow on Valentine's Day, right?

We do! It was peaceful, wonderful, and beautiful.

We actually prefer to camp with snow on the ground because everything stays cleaner.
JD cooked some yummy food while we were there. . .

and kept me happy with a warm fire.

We loved being completely alone in the outdoors, whispering sweet nothings, cuddling up in the blankets, and holding hands by the fire.

Even though it wasn't exactly what we planned, it really was lovely.

Happy Valentine's!

Two years ago.

Two years ago today, I'd been engaged for 3 days. I was still in lovestruck heaven, mesmerized by the idea of having a fiance! A man to be my husband. My lover. My best friend. My closest companion. For. Ever. No doubt, I was really young. I was really scared. I had all kinds of crazy fears and emotions. I didn't think I could cook, or clean, or budget, or manage a home. . . or do any wife-y type thing at all, for that matter. But I did know one thing, for sure.

I knew I could love.

And, oh boy, did I. I loved him more than I ever knew I could love someone. He made me feel comfortable all the time. I never felt like I was pretending to be anything but myself. When I looked at him, I ached for more. I wanted to be connected with him in the deepest ways. And when I tried to imagine my future in my head, it hurt not to have him in the picture. I wanted to be with him always. He made me happy. I knew that I could spend the rest of my existence loving him, taking care of him, and growing with him.

Every part of me felt good with him.

And that's why I said yes when he asked me to marry him.

He was more confident than me. He was older, more mature, and had a little more life experience. He had to calm me down multiple times when my nerves got a little too excited. I was so worried I was going to miss out on a lot of things I still wanted to do in my single life.

But I can honestly say, I wouldn't trade any of the experiences of my year-and-a-half marriage for the things I could have done as a single girl. I have learned so much about myself and how to find and maintain happiness. I have traveled farther than I ever did before. I have felt and experienced the deep joy that comes from building a home with someone. I understand more fully the love of my Heavenly Father.

Two years ago, I really didn't understand how good I had it.

And I probably still take too much for granted. . .

But this I do know: I love him now more than ever. And I'm forever grateful I said yes on that sweet February day two years ago.

I like dates.

I like day dates. I like night dates. I like when we stay in because I feel too yucky to go on real dates. I like movie dates. I like dinner dates. I like dates with you.

(Picture taken on a do-nut date a few weeks ago.)

Almost forgot.

It was my Momma's birthday on Friday! People tell me all the time that I look like my Mom and I act like my Mom and the things I do remind them of my Mom. (My dad and husband tell me this a lot). Every time someone tells me this, I smile. It's just about the greatest compliment I could get.

I want to be like my Mom. She's a loyal friend, a good listener, a yellow lover. She laughs a lot, jumping and dancing around. She's selfless and helpful and faithful. I hope I can be half the Mother she is. Thank you, Mom. For supporting me. For encouraging me. For believing in me. For listening to me. For loving me. I can't imagine life without you. Happy Birthday!

"A Real Jimmer Dandy."

A few months ago, JD and I both ordered magazines to support my brother Isaac through a fundraiser at his elementary school. I chose Better Homes and Gardens and JD chose Sports Illustrated. He got lucky because SI comes weekly! Even though I really love flipping through the ideas about organization, budgeting, and color combinations in my mag, there's usually something in his that catches my eye, too. Like last week when Jimmer Fredette (the top scorer in college basketball who just happens to play for BYU) made the front cover.

A little blurb from the article:

"His name is as versatile as his game. It's a noun: An Arizona fan praised the Wildcats' defense for not letting a big-time scorer "pull a Jimmer." It's a verb: YOU GOT JIMMERED! read a sign waved in the BYU student section. It's an adjective: "He was making some Jimmer Fredette threes!" gushed Syracuse's Scoop Jardine about the six bombs Cincinnati's Dion Dixon hit from beyond the arc. Jimmer has several definitions in the Urban Dictionary, including this: One who is in range as soon as he steps off the bus."

I could go on and on about how fun he is to watch and how wild and awesome his shots are. It's crazy he averages about 26.7 points per game and shoots 90% from the free throw line. He's great. That's all.

It's tight that he's leading the BYU team to victories, landing us in a sweet position in the rankings. However, the more important thing he's doing right now is serving as inspiration for my intramural basketball team (kidding...) But, really, we won our game today! Whoot!

It's been a basketball day for our family.

JD's brother, Ty, spent the night last night

so the boys could play a pick-up game at the church this morning.

I went for support.

The boys came to my intramural game to help cheer us to victory.

Then, we watched the Cougs defeat the competition from UNLV.

It's been "A Real Jimmer Dandy" day.

Ps. That was the name of the SI article. I can't claim I came up with the phrase, dang it.

Happy one week!

A week ago today Chris and Cami tied the knot.

We loved being part of the celebration!
These two made me absolutely giddy.

It's refreshing to see people so crazy in love.

Happy one week!

The answer.

Yesterday, I went to visit with some folks at a retirement home. I wandered around for a bit, looking for someone to talk to. I found a lone man in the dining room and pulled a chair up next to him. He seemed surprised to see me, but smiled. Most of his bottom teeth were missing. After a few minutes of small talk and me leaning in closer to try to make out his sentences, I realized he'd probably rather me do most of the talking because his words took a lot of effort. He chuckled at a few jokes I tried to make and whispered he liked me. I started into my long story (complaint) of how my car broke down and needed repairs, but my husband and I really didn't want to put the money into fixing it. I told him about our nightmares trying to get a loan and how lots of things just weren't going our way. I explained how cranky my husband's been for the past two weeks and how he's been struggling to learn patience during this trial. He listened, nodding at all the right times to acknowledge our struggle. He validated my hardship by "mm-hmming" and "uh-huhing" exactly when I wanted him to. We continued talking until it was time for me to go and as I stood up to leave, he reached for my hand, looked me in the eyes, and spoke. "Prayer is always the answer," he said, as he smiled and released the brakes on his wheelchair. He rolled away, leaving me to ponder his wisdom.

Isn't it funny how sometimes we forget the things we think we know best? I know the Lord hears my prayers and will answer according to His will. I know he gives us trials to help us learn and grow. I trust in his plan for my life. Yet, sometimes during my struggles, I allow Satan to get in my head and make me doubt whether or not Heavenly Father really listens to me, loves me, and is taking care of me.

Then, I meet strangers at just the right time, who help me remember what I already know: Prayer is always the answer.

Ps. Our car trials ended yesterday evening. We bought a champagne colored 2004 Nissan Maxima :)

What do you do?

What do you do when you live in a one-bedroom apartment and have very little space. . . but you really like to craft?

Oh, just convert your closet into your studio, of course.

This is what happened two weekends ago when I was left home alone for a long weekend without a car.