From there to here

I left for Florida a whole week before Carl did. I came here for the Model Schools Conference. It is a conference where schools around the country that are doing really well present to the rest of us so we can see what is working. Every year my school sends a few teachers to this conference and I was one this year. There were eight total in our group that consisted of six teachers and two administrators. As a bonus side note, two more teachers were there from our school presenting (which means we are considered a model school!). Before I left Carl home alone for a week, I made sure he had plenty of food.

Not only did we go to workshops but we also had a lot of fun. We mostly traveled all day Saturday and Sunday we spent at the beach. Monday was workshops during the day and Magic Kingdom at night. Tuesday was similar but I opted out of the theme park and just hung around the resort for the rest of the afternoon and evening because we had all of this:

So, in addition to the district paying for my sweet Disney resort, conference fees, and per diem for food, they also paid for my airfare out here which means essentially that they also paid for my airfare for my cruise. So, it was a sweet deal.

Now I'm at the new location while I wait for Carl to get her so we can cruise out on Saturday and I'm enjoying a lot of lounging/reading time and laying out by the pool. I had some great ice cream today and I have seen so many critters. I was fascinated with these sand crabs we saw at the beach, a raccoon wandered by while I was in the hot tub at the resort, I saw a bunny at the resort too, lots of squirrels, and apparently it is lizard mating season which means that I've seen more than I wanted to from them.

PS - I went running this morning and everyone should be proud (even though it won't help me much before the cruise) that I ran outside in the humidity, on the pavement, and early morning when I hate running.

T minus two days until our cruise sets sail in the Western Caribbean and I can't freakin wait! Ahoy!

Signed, Sealed, Delivered; I'm Yours!

June 17, 2008 was a big day for us. Just two days after our one-year mark we were sealed in the Mount Timpanogos Temple for all eternity. Most of my thoughts are probably a little too personal for this blog but a few things that were wonderful about the day were:

1. It was very relaxing. Not a lot of stress (once we got to that day). The sealing wasn't until 7 PM so everyone had time to live out their day and then head to the temple.
2. I shouldn't have been surprised but the temple patrons were the best! I thought they might not make it as special since we'd already been married for a year but I was wrong. They ushered us around like we were the only people that mattered that day. They didn't make us rush and were very careful to keep the spirit with us.
3. We had family and friends over to Carl's parent's home afterward for some INCREDIBLE food. (see below)
   

It was a wonderful day and thanks to everyone who came and participated. Thank you especially to Carl for being his very best for me and being such an amazing husband and friend that I'd want to make sure to be with him FOREVER!

One small year for our marriage; one giant leap towards eternity

Ever wondered what one year of blissful marriage looks like? Here it is:


We had such a great anniversary! We celebrated by first, sleeping in. I couldn't wait to give Carl the card I had put together for him. Traditional one-year anniversary gifts are paper so I made a lists of 100 things from the past year that we have done, said, been, or listened to. I had so much fun making the list and it was even more fun to look over it together. When we finally did get up and running we got on Trax and rode downtown to Little America Hotel. They have a world-renowned (well, maybe not WORLD-renowned but still very, very good) brunch. We stuffed ourselves with excellent, fresh fruits, baked goods, bacon, sausage, waffles, freshly sliced ham, crepes, potatoes, and much more. So delicious!

After breakfast we decided that we'd better try to work off a little of our breakfast so we took a walk around downtown. We toured the Grand America Hotel, walked around the City and County building and Matheson courthouse. It was a warm day and lots of people were out enjoying the sunshine. Trax took us home so we could promptly take a nice, long nap.

When we woke up we decided to go swimming at my mom's house and luckily Sommer and her family were there to swim as well. We all went to the pool and had a great time. The rest of our evening was spent planning out the details for our cruise. We researched the activities we could do in all of the different ports and made a list of our top choices. We're so excited.

It truly has been the best year of my life. I have never been happier or felt more complete. I am supported by a a husband who loves me and we have so much fun together. We eat dinner together just about every night and sometimes we get to have breakfast together too. We go out and do lots of fun things like go to shows and performances. We get to laugh every day. We play games together and watch movies together and we've been working on goals together. Getting married was a great decision. Marrying Carl was the best decision I've ever made. I love you, Carl. Thanks for such an incredible year!

Better Homes and Gardens

Here are a few pictures of our plants this year. We're quite proud! We have three planted pots in the front and the roses are planted in the back. Our tree, which we were sure was going to die, is now thriving and looking better than ever. It's quite a treat to see our plants grow and especially as they open up wide in the sun. I'm sure this is exactly what having kids will be like.

The moss on this one has these teeny, tiny white flowers that I think are just the most adorable things I've ever seen but I couldn't get a good picture. Just try to imagine how cute they are.

We also have a second rose bush but he's new this year and so I didn't take a picture because I didn't want him to feel bad that he wasn't as big as the other kids.

School's Out!

I made it through another school year. We're officially out for the summer and I'm pretty excited. However, it won't be all fun and games. I am actually teaching at the Community College this summer and attending and/or presenting at several workshops and conferences over the summer. That will significantly cut into my pool time.

Carl and I have some fun plans for the summer though so watch the blog for updates on our summer adventures.

When the principal rings the bell....