You really should have thought of that before you became peasants! *

Merry Belated Christmas everyone.  Chewy (yes, he shall now be called Chewy) and I exchanged gifts in the morning and then went to my parent's house for Christmas dinner. 

It was a mad house as usual but a lot of fun. 

The Smith Family - their last photo as a family of 3.

Target Gift Card - yeah!

I can't believe that we are already at Christmas time (and now past it).  This year has just flown by!

Is it strictly apathy, or do you really not have a goal in life?*

It's that time of the year again - to reflect on what I didn't get done....I mean…..uh

So this year wasn't the best for goal completion.  The Internet tells me that it was Woody Allen who said, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.”  2013 has been a great year, it just didn’t involve accomplishing many goals.

1. Read 50 books – This may be the only goal I feel certain I can put in green.

2. Finish the two stories I am working on – Let’s just say that the writer’s block didn’t go anywhere.  I have gotten further and I am working on one of the stories with my writing group – but I have not brought either to a conclusion.

3. Don't text and drive (don't call the cops on me).  It even became a LAW! I’m a lawbreaker! I don’t do it as much as I did, but I still do it.

4. Be Healthier – I never did get an annual check-up.  I tried a few veggies this year (fresh spinach – way better than lettuce), but I really should be doing that more often.  I also bought a fitbit this year and that has helped me in my “being fit” area.  I am obsessed with getting 10,000 steps a day – I haven’t been great about it in December, but I was doing pretty good for a while.  I love the friend feature – so if you have a fitbit let’s connect and challenge each other in 2014.

5.Get back to the basics – It isn’t so much about WHEN you get there, but THAT you get there….right? (if not – this is yellow)  It has only been recently that I have been better about my scripture study and prayer.  I had been doing them each day, but not really…if that makes sense.  So around Sept/Oct I started to give myself an amount of time for scripture study instead of just reading a chapter each morning.  It has been great – and I hope to keep it up in 2014.

6. Home Improvement – NOTHING! I fixed nothing in my house this year….

7. Budgeting/Pay off Debt –I guess there is a reason I have had this as a goal EVERY YEAR.

8.Attend at least one writers conference – My goal was to attend a writers conference, which I did not.  But I have joined a new writing group….was that just THIS year I originally joined one?  The first one fell apart over summer vacation, but this new group is small and consistent.  I really like the people and I’m learning A LOT.  So I may not have gone to a writer’s conference but I have definitely made some progress.

9. Time Management – I have gotten somewhat better.  I now watch Netflix while folding laundry and working in steps....but I don’t think I am where I envisioned myself when I wrote this goal.

10. Journal Writing – Just because I wrote twice in December DOES NOT count!  This is still something I want to get better about – so it will be showing up in 2014.

That's more than a name, that's an attitude.*

I've been MIA in the blog sphere. I feel really bad about that, really, so to make up for it I'm going to post a lot of pictures that I'm not in.

As you know, I got engaged and Matt and I have set a date for March.  I've been getting things ready for that. I am very excited to start my life with my best friend (my best guy friend, clam down Amber).  Right now is just the waiting part (yes, there are things to get in order before we get hitched - but still, it's mostly just waiting).  

I also am starting a new job...any day now.  I applied internally to leave HR and go in to Regulatory Compliance.  I was offered the position back in October but am just now training replacements.  One started Monday and the other person starts next Monday.  Yup - two people for me.  Not really, but my job is split between the two, just one will do more of my job than the other.  So no more chair or light bulb counting, or moving chairs, or dealing with the blasted ping pong table or scheduling conference rooms.  Granted that wasn't all of my job, but these are just parts where I wondered what I was doing with that fancy four year degree I spent five years on...(just kidding, I was like, one semester late...)

Anyway, I am very excited to hand that off and to start something new.  I am excited to work with my new boss and coworker, they both seem like great people.

We had a baby shower for my sisters this past Saturday.  Yup "sisters", they are both pregnant and due within a month of each other.  I'm excited for two more nieces, I just don't know if I'll love them as much as I love the others - but I say that every time another one is about to come.  I will apparently be starting my career as a child photographer when they are born - I have been commissioned to do a shoot.  I have been looking at poses and such so if anyone has any favorites I will accept suggestions.

By the way - Grandma Teddy Cat gave her an empty ice cream cone.

What else...

My friends asked me to take some photos at their wedding reception (don't worry - they hired a real photographer for the actual wedding).  If they like what I took - I get a pack of Ukrop's mini cupcakes (they asked what I would charge and that's what I charge....hint hint Martha...).  Anyway - I was pretty nervous but ended up having a good time.  Here are some of them.

Book Review - November

January - 4

February - 3

March - 4

April -2

May - 3

June - 4
 July - 4

  August - 5

September - 9
October - 5

November - 4

Total =47

 

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black

So I read a vampire book...I swore I never would (aside from Twilight - which I think is why I swore I never would but really, there could be several reasons why).  I actually enjoyed it.  There were parts I wanted to vomit, or tried to curl my wrist (something I do when there is way too much talk of blood and gore).  It's definitely a teen vampire novel - so you know, keep that in mind if you decide to read it.

All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience by Neal A. Maxwell

I really enjoyed this book.  I've been meaning to put a Maxwell book under my belt and I did it! It took me a long time to read, but I found a lot of what it said applicable for myself or for friends who were going through a difficult time.
 

Paperboy by Vince Vawter

I started this one - not too sure if I would actually enjoy it.  But there's something about a young, stuttering, baseball playing coming of age story that really gets to you.  It really was one of those coming of age stories where a young boy is made to deal with very real issues and how that changes the way he sees the world and himself.  Overall - a feel good book.

Miss Peregrine's School For Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

It took me a little while to get in to this one.  Our main character visits the place where his grandfather grew up as a war refuge.  He makes some peculiar friends while trying to solve the riddled last words of warning his grandfather gave him.  I am still processing the end of the story - I think that's because it sounds like there will/should be a sequel.  Not sure if it will happen, but this is a book where I would be interested in seeing the sequel.

Your One True Beauty*

Sometimes I like to light a candle as I am getting ready in the morning, I find it relaxing and it masks the kitty litter odor.  This morning however, I was blow drying my hair a little too close to the candle.  You know how sometimes you could be blow drying your hair and it smells a little like burning? (no? maybe it's just my dryer).  So I smelled that, but it was stronger than usual and I thought, "oh great, I'm going to have to get a new blow dryer soon." Then I realized that the smell was too strong, and that lead to realizing I was too close to the candle.  I moved the candle and ran my fingers through my hair, little black flecks fell like snow to the ground....oops.  The good news - I can't really see on my head where the damage was done, but when I turn to the right I sure do smell it.

In other news - I have completed my third (and hopefully final) half marathon.  I almost didn't make it to the race at all.  I had woken up several times the night before because Mr. Cat was being a brat and kept trying to get out of my room (my roommates are allergic so he has to stay in my room).  I woke up at 7:12 and had to be downtown at 7:44 for my wave to begin.  I don't know how I did it, I grabbed my clothes, my running belt and bib, filled up my water bottle and ran out the door.  I knew from previous years that parking would be difficult.  I turned on Marshall Street and went to the first parking lot I saw.  $5 (which is actually better than the place I parked the first year).  I didn't think I had cash, but I figured I could go to an ATM afterwards and get some before leaving.  Wrong.  They wanted the cash then.  So I opened my wallet, not sure what I would find and thinking, "I'm going to miss this race!"  Inside my wallet - $4 I didn't know I had.  I gave them to the man and asked, "are quarters ok for the rest?" and he nodded.  So I unzipped the change part and there was....$.75.  So close! I gave him the quarters one by one as I dug them out.  Then I started looking through the car for the remaining 25 cents.  If the wallet could magically produce $4.75 that I didn't think I had, then certainly Diego could produce a quarter, or two dimes and nickel, or 25 pennies.  The parking lot guy took a chance on an unknown kid* and told me the $4.75 would be good enough. I parked, grabbed my stuff and pinned my bib while I ran towards where I thought the start line was.  I could see people already running so I knew I was heading in the right direction.  I found the line, but there was a barrier set up and I couldn't join the runners just yet, I had to keep walking until I found an opening, then I slipped in.  Not sure what wave I joined, just knowing I joined the right group of runners.  Then they announced my wave, I assumed it was the one just before the one I was standing in, but it turned out to be my wave.  Talk about cutting it close!



This turkey (to the left) most likely beat me...but I did pass him at least once

When I run I feel like the first mile is always the worst.  Something about thinking how far you have to go and the fact that you STILL haven't even gotten a mile in.  But it didn't feel like that this time.  I found a trio of girls who were running and talking and I figured if I could keep pace with talking/running girls then I was in pretty good shape.  They were running about a ten minute mile too win/win.  But something happened to them around mile 3 (I think they got distracted by the water station) and I spent the rest of the race looking for someone to creepily run behind.

I had a first on this run.  I used the port-a-potty.  I can't really say it's because I really needed it, though I had mentally convinced myself that I did, I think I was mostly in it for the break (there was a line).  I hate port-a-potties.  Hate is a strong word, mostly, I fear them.  I remember once when I was in Utah at a park and they had port-a-potties, I really had to use it because I was too afraid.  The worst part, I knew my fear was ridiculous.  I took several deep breaths, pep talked myself, jogged in place like an athlete trying to psych myself up.  I think I finally used it, but I got out of there as quickly as possible.

It wasn't so bad this time, though I never want to do that again.

I will admit - I walked a lot more this marathon, BUT I never got the broken toes feeling that I've gotten the last two years (and during my minimal training this year).  At the end they gave us a fleece blanket and a medal, but it was a nightmare getting to the food tent.  I think races should be like airports, if you aren't running you can be beyond a certain point.  I think people meeting friends and loved ones should have to wait beyond the food tent, because those of us who just made our bodies do something it now hates us for, would like to get a slice of Papa John's before our legs give out.  And that's just hard to do with all those extra people in the way. 

The worst was having to walk the mile back to the car.  A mile seems so small in comparisson but I was done, my body was done, and the walk back was all up hill.  I got home, sat in the shower for a long time, and dealt with stomach cramps the rest of the night (I think I was dehydrated - no longer sweating by mile 10 might have been the give away).  I'm serious this time - NO MORE!

Someday someone will walk into your life and make you realize why it never worked out with anyone else

Okay readers,

So I have a ton of little checklists and I LOVE checklists.  So I am working through everything and I've decided to do a Google Doc to get addresses.  So if you want a wedding announcement click on the link below and leave your info!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1GtAyTG2FcdDMCOLunSaAS4JIJ96pY_j7wvRv4IXHWMY/viewform

What's that got to do with the price of eggs?*

January - 4

February - 3

March - 4

April -2

May - 3

June - 4
 July - 4

  August - 5

September - 9
October - 5

Total =43

Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James Swanson

Something about October got me into a historical mood.  This was just the first of several this month.  I really enjoyed the book, there were parts that were a bit gruesome but it was certainly interesting to learn the full story, I just don't know if it's ever been taught to me before.  I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning a little history.

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

When I started to read this book, I had just gone through a period when I had started and stopped several books because I found them too emo or lame and I actually worried that this one was headed in the same direction. I thought maybe she was writing to her mom or someone else that she had lost and that we were headed down some emotional remembrance.  But I stayed in there because it had been on my "to read" list so long I had forgotten why I put it there.  Excellent book.  I love how everything ties together and the foreshadowing is great. What can I say? I'm a sucker for twist and time travel.

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

This is another historical book.  NOT Historical Fiction, I almost said that but it would have been a lie.  I LOVED how this book was done.  Larson tells two stories in one and how these two events came together in history.  One story is of the World's Fair in Chicago and the other story is of the rise fall of serial killer H.H. Holmes; who built a mansion of a hotel for the World's Fair with the intent to trap and kill girls traveling alone, far away from home.  One chapter I was intrigued, learning what products and attractions made their debut in Chicago, or what things the fair didn't allow (and those things made it big later); the next chapter, I was horrified by the misdeeds of H.H. Holmes. A very interesting history lesson.

The Registry by Shannon Stoker

This was a pretty intriguing idea to me (which is why I bought the book) but sadly I don't love it and I learned at the end that it at least will have a sequel if not a trilogy but I don't think it impressed me enough for me to remember to buy the sequel when it comes out.  I get why I don't like the main character, she is exactly what she is supposed to be, but I found the main character's development unbelievable based on the rules of her world.  Overall, I did not find the other characters endearing either.  I like the main guy, and later on they come across a gay couple and I like them too.  But the bad guy - hated him (and not because I was supposed to).  He was supposedly evil, at least that was what I was continually told and somewhat shown, but not enough to convince me that he was so. Yes, he killed and threatened but it didn’t seem believable to me. My favorite characters were sadly ones that didn’t stick around for very long. Still, overall I think it was a quick, easy, enjoyable read

The Reservoir by John Milliken Thompson

I borrowed this one from the library - on my phone...so it took me a long time to finish it because I kept forgetting I had it on my phone!  This book is based in Richmond, VA (hometown yea!) so that is probably what got my attention at first.  I did not know until reading in the back of the book that this is based on an actual court case and that the author stuck to the facts as much as possible, but added filler where there was no information.  The book was great and I was close to crying near the end (which I hate to admit - but there it is). 

Overall - October was a good reading month.  Here's to 2 more months and 7 more books!

If you fit into my pants I will kill myself. *

So - I have some news...

Matt and I are officially engaged! 

The story. A few weeks ago Matt said we should go hiking, but we should wait until the leaves would be changing. So we planned a hike for this past Saturday.  

I had a fleeting thought that he might propose on the hike but I also knew he hadn't gotten a ring (as he kept saying). So I let it go, but I was really hopeful that he would propose then. 

On the way up I had to take a breather so I sat on this bench and I asked him to sit next to me and he said something about me needing to say something to him. So I held his hands and said, "Matt, I have something I want to talk to you about. I've gone to see your parents and asked them for their blessing to marry you." At which point he kind of laughs and then asks, "are you serious" (that question kind of egged me on) I said, "I can't promise that everyday will be great, I can't promise that we won't fight, but I promise to always love you" he said "wow, this was very well thought out" and he asked again if I was serious. I laughed and admitted I had not gone to see his parents. So we kept hiking

The trail was packed with people. They had literally come in bus loads. So we get to the rocks and there are people everywhere. We finally find a spot and I start to eat my lunch because I am tired and hungry (and incredibly cold). Matt made sure all of our bags were secure so that nothing fell off the cliffs. It was FREEZING up there. Matt kept saying he wished everyone would go away and he asked if I thought we could wait out the crowds. We tried but as one group left another came. I didn't mind the people too much, we had a good spot and a nice view but Matt seemed to want some solitude up there on the rock. I kept looking at the view and thinking how he must have wanted some time to think and ponder out here in nature. ...I don't know, it made sense in my mind.

Add caption

Matt wishing there was a zombie apocalypse.

It was finally so cold we left. When we were almost to the parking lot I had to stop and sit again (I'm getting so old and fat) at a bench because the downhill was hurting my knees. So I sat down and he started telling me that he wanted to marry me and I said "yes" (cause let's be honest this wasn't the first time we had talked about marriage) and he said, "so we're official?" And I nodded and said, "yeah, I mean, I guess you can just give me the ring when you get it" and he said, "let's get it tonight and then we can go to dinner" and I was like, "ok!" so we held hands and started to run down the mountain (mostly cause walking hurt too much). We kept laughing and then Matt says, "there's a caterpillar" and stops. He asks if we should move him off the trail and I say "sure" and wait while he goes back a few steps to save a possibly already dead caterpillar.  

Then we held hands again and ran down to the car- laughing as we reached the bottom.  I got into the car and Matt put the camelback on his seat and does something outside. I thought it was strange he put the bag in his seat since he wouldn't need it while driving so I grabbed it and put it by my feet. Then I don't know what was going on, I must have been looking out the window talking but I just remember looking over and he is holding a wooden ring box. 

I called out "you lied!" Because he DID have the ring, and apparently he had had it for a few weeks! At that point I didn't care that our engagement was beginning on the foundation of lies and deceit - what engagement isn't really? ...right?  I let him put the ring on my finger and then I geeked out of course. 

We got back to Richmond and I showered and got ready for dinner.  Afterwards we were at his place and his sister-in-law comes in to the kitchen and he said, "Beyonce would be proud of me." and she was like, "why is that?" and he said, "cause I put a ring on it." She literally shook she was so excited.  We told her our story and when we were telling his brother later, she inserted that as we ran down the mountain we sang...which we most certainly did not.  We can be cheesy at times, but not that cheesy.

In case you don't know (and most of you probably don't because I am not so good about talking about relationships I'm in).  Matt is my brother-in-law's brother...or in other words, my sister's brother-in-law.  She is married to Matt's brother.  So Saturday night she was explaining to her kids that Aunt Jessica and Uncle Matt were going to get married.  Jacob says, "Oh, now she'll be a part of the family!"  Because I guess being his aunt for the whole of his life didn't really count.

At church on Sunday, Ava sat in my lap during Sacrament, Matt was rubbing my hand and Ava reached down and started to pet my arm, so Matt copied her.  It made me laugh.  Then she saw my ring and asked in a whisper that could be heard two rows up, "When did you get married?" I told her that I hadn't, the ring meant that I was going to get married.  She nodded her head and said, "Are you going to do this?" and rubbed Matt's arm and I laughed and said, "Yeah, I'll probably do that" and then she asked, "are you going to this?" and put her hand on the back of his neck.  At this point, Matt's head is down and he is laughing.  I say, "yeah, sure." and then she presses her face against Matt's arm but is facing toward me and and asks, "Are you going to do this?" and she closed her eyes tightly and smiled widely as she hugged his arm.  I said, "Yeah, I'll do that too."  She had me laughing.  Then I said, "Guess who I'm going to marry?" and she asked who and I pointed at Matt.  She whispers, "Uncle Matt?!" When I told Joanna she was like, "we explained this to them!" But I thought it was cute and funny.

Anyway - so that's all for now, just wanted to let everyone know! I am very happy and excited, Matt is seriously like a dream come true.  I feel like all of these years I've slowly been adding to a list of the perfect guy (for me) and I keep checking things off that list with Matt.  I am so lucky to be with someone who loves me for who I am and who I can be my weird-self with.  I love him very much and I can't wait to start my life with him!