Oh Fall Television...

So.....we canceled our dish network about 3 months ago, right as summer started. Why? Because we were both enrolled full time in school and didn't have time for t.v. And because we were getting SO sick of being plopped down in front of the t.v. watching STUPID shows! Our favorite show-Ugly Betty, ended in April--and let's be honest. The other shows are getting ridiculous. Private Practice, Grey's Anatomy...starting to get too trashy. Maybe that's just me-but nonetheless I was over it. We were over it.

So now we just have t.v. available through the high def. rabbit ears. We get basic channels, and included is ABC. I have seen the previews for the next season of some of my shows, and honestly I'm having a hard time resisting the urge to watch the premiers. I know if I watch the premiers, I'll be hooked. And I'll somehow not have enough time to do my homework, be a mommy..yadda yadda.

Also, we have been going to institute and our teacher told us he has a daughter in law who doesn't watch any movies that are rated higher than PG. Yeah to some that's extreme...and I'm not quite ready for that point...but Ben and I were talking and realized that some of the t.v. we watch is just BAD. I don't say any of this to be holier than thou, and I certainly don't care what any of my friends watch--but for us--we notice that the spirit can't reside when we have that stuff in our living room. And we are parents now--meaning it's time to start good habits. I don't want to watch anything I wouldn't dare watch with my kids. So there you have it--Goodbye Grey's, Private Practice, (seriously those are the only shows I can remember...and I know I used to watch like 8 shows...) oh yeah..maybe I'll still watch Heroes if it still comes on...but that's the extent of it.

Anyone else feel this way? I get SO much more done without the stupid TV!!!! :)

Happy Wednesday...hope you all survive til the weekend!

Happy Fridays my butt...

Blunt title maybe? yeah. This is the second Friday in a row to suck the big one. I'm sitting here thinking of my highs and lows. So I thought I'd blog it for posterity and to make me happy and laugh when these days have passed.

Bad things:
-I got in a bad mood because I felt like I didn't have as much oatmeal in my bowl as yesterday. Dumb.
-Our new (new to us) Jeep Grand Cherokee (pictures later) is leaking fluid. STUPID.
-Ben stressed about the leakage and I left without kissing him goodbye because he was stressing me out. RUDE.
-I got behind a slow driver and decided to take another route. Then got stuck at a light FOREVER and realized I'd left my water bottle at home. RAGE!
- I had to wait for an idiot pedestrian to cross the street when it was NOT his turn, and NOT on the crosswalk. LAME.
-I got to my first class and someone was sitting in my "spot". This is the 3rd week of classes and I've sat there everyday. Why would she SIT THERE?! GRRRR.
- I dropped my cell phone and the battery popped out...for the millionth time. IRRITATING.

Upsides to my negatives:
-I found a parking spot WAY closer than usual because someone was leaving the lot. SCORE!
-My teacher's watch is 2 minutes off so I wasn't late for my first class. LUCK!
-I bought a diet coke at the student store because I didn't have water- and I needed a kick in the pants. DELICIOUS
-The class that came after I had to spend extra time to get my diet coke, and dropped my cell phone started late because the teacher was late. PHEW.
-My mom is home with Connor so both of his stressed out parents aren't there to bother him.
-I have a new mechanic that I LOVE because he doesn't over charge me, and knows what he's doing. He'll be available today to look at our jeep.

It's only 11:25 a.m. so this day will probably keep improving...but for now things are already evening out. Aren't Fridays supposed to be AMAZING? Maybe when they're over...for now I don't love them.

But I do love this boy:

Photo credits: Lauren Casto Photography

And I said I'd never need math?

Today as I was on a walk with Connor I got thinking about how often I use some of the basic knowledge I learned in school. Remember how we all said "Math? When am I ever going to use this?!" Well....

I use math in the following ways:

I know how many teaspoons are in a tablespoon, how many ounces are in a pound, etc. I have to know this when I'm adding up my food intake for the day.
Knowing how much an ounce is makes bottle making a lot easier.
I have to keep track of how many feedings and diaper changes Connor has had.
I have to keep a family budget--adding and subtracting almost daily.
I have to do quick math at the grocery store sometimes to figure out how much I'm spending.
I know how to figure out how much I'm spending per diaper, which saves me a lot of money.
I use it to count how many slobbery kisses in a row I can get from Connor.
Without numbers I wouldn't know that there are millions of reasons I love my life as a mother and a wife.
Photo credits: Lauren Casto Photography

Meet Stephanie...

So my fabulous blogging friend Kate does this from time to time...she introduces someone of interest in her life, and exposes their awesomeness. I am doing much the same thing with my dear friend Stephanie. She has been in my thoughts a lot lately, because she is helping me out in a BIG way! When I upgraded from 22 to 24 credits this semester, because I needed to switch teachers for reasons I won't divulge. She was the first person who came to mind--someone I knew I could trust Connor with for 2-3 hours per week. So without further ado...meet Stephanie!

Stephanie Marie Barlow

Married to David Benjamin Barlow (awesome middle name eh?)

Mother of David Benjamin Jr. Barlow (She calls their family Stephanie and the Davids..ha ha)
Amazing friend
Devoted member of the Church
Beautiful Mother
Sincere, trustworthy, and all the other good words :)

She has a son who is 2 days younger than Connor, David Jr. She was checking in to the hospital on my last night there, but we didn't know each other yet. I wish we had though, it would have been fun to exchange horror stories! (We've since done so.)

Stephanie's husband David is our Elder's Quorum President, and he does an amazing job of it. I feel like David and Stephanie are the "parents" of the ward. I always hear of random acts of service they do for people in the ward. And the wonderful part is I know they don't do it for praise. In fact they'll probably be a tad embarrassed when they read this post. But the truth is- they both deserve it.

Stephanie was the first great friend I made since living in Cedar. She and David were standing behind me in line once and the grocery store--we had probably only been to the college married ward a few times, and really hadn't talked much with anyone yet. They remembered my name and said hello. They told me how they had also met online, on Myspace, and had a son Connor's age and that we would be great friends! I totally agreed! They later said they were afraid they had come off weird by insisting that we be friends...but I didn't think so. They were genuine from the start! I think one of the first things I told them was that I loved shopping good deals, and they should check out the top sirloin steaks..ha ha I was buying like $50 worth. ANYWAY...

We have since had them over for dinner and loved their company. If life weren't so busy I'm sure they would have been over more than just the once, but Stephanie and I have had fun yard sale-ing (ok we only went once...lame) and having play time with our boys.

Overall, Stephanie is the perfect example of Christlike love. She visits the Beehive home which is almost next door to my house, to visit with the elderly. She is always selfless with her time and talents. She is a beautiful person, inside and out. I'm so thankful for friends like her, she has truly been an answer to many of my prayers, and I hope reading this she knows how much
I love her! I also love her little boy so much, and love seeing he and Connor play together. I think it will be fun to continuously watch them grow and learn how to play more with each other.

These are some pictures I took from Stephanie's Facebook profile--and some I took at our house when the boys were younger.

Thanks for all your wonderfulness Stephanie!!!

I love my friends.

It's true. I love them so much! I am so thankful for good friends. When I went through my huge life altering trial, I started working at the Sunset Branch of Zion's Bank. I reconnected with Lyndsey Swindlehurst (previously Jacobsen) since we were tellers together. We had danced together for a few years at Diamond Talent--along with Lauren. She invited me to go to a movie with her and Lauren Gornichec (now Casto). I welcomed the opportunity. The funny thing is I was really nervous--I had known Lauren a little when we were younger--like 13, and she intimidated me. She was "cool" and at one point in high school had the ends of her hair dyed..it was rebellious. Ha ha. I don't know if I've ever told her how intimidated I was by her...little did I know she was one of the warmest most amazing people I'd ever meet. And Lyndsey was a saint of a friend. Married but still going out with us single gals who were both suffering from broken hearts. We went and saw Rent. It was deliciously scandalous and full of love, heartbreak and intensity. Lauren cried- surprisingly I did not. I found out after that she had been going through a rough break up. We were a perfect match! :)
The rest is history. After many late night hang outs, dance parties and movie making, Lauren and I became room mates. I started hanging out with a whole new realm of single people who I hadn't known in high school, because they went to a different school. They were fun, and interesting and I learned how to socialize all over again! But the heart of my joy was the friends that I held dearest. Lauren, Lyndsey, Chanelle, Shanae...etc. I made so many friends I never would have made if I hadn't gone through what I did!

Today Lauren, Lyndsey and I are still good friends. Lyndsey lived in Texas for 3 years so I didn't see her much..and Lauren has lived in Vegas since right before she married her honey man...but the wonderful thing is that Lauren and I chat on gmail chat every weekday. I feel like I get to hang out with her everyday! It's one of my highlights. We can vent, celebrate and just talk...all day. It's wonderful!

What's better is that this past weekend I got to hang out in person with Lauren and Lyndsey! It was SO fun! Lauren came up and took some family pictures for us...(can't wait to see them!) and Lynds came up a little later in the afternoon. We all went to dinner at Pizza Factory, then to Pride and Prejudice at Utah Shakespearean Festival. Ben let us use some of his comp tickets and we had SUCH a fun time! Then it was onto the grocery store for some candy, and some late night conversating. We all agree it was a much needed fun weekend. It only lasted about 24 hours- but it was awesome. I love these girls. They know me, as well as I know myself! They were there when I needed them most and I still hope someday I can repay the favor. I don't know if there are many greater blessings than having good friends! Thanks for the fun ladies! I miss you so much! Come back ASAP!!!

200

Well friends..this is my 200th post! I read through some of my first posts and they made me laugh, I was clueless. I still am at times. I guess I'm the type of girl who gets overwhelmed with things, but then realize WAY after everyone else that they're really not that hard. My husband is a great example of this--he always knows what he's doing and sometimes I just hand my computer over to him to "fix". I'm sad that I am this way again. I say again, because there was a time when I was NOT like this. When I worked for Great Pacific in Cali, they had me doing SO many new things that I never had the chance to say "I don't know how, and I can't figure it out." It was quite the opposite. I accomplished a lot with that job, and one thing was my fear of the unknown or un-doable. Well...I'm back to my old self.

But I digress...

So what is noteworthy for my 200th post? How about my progress in education? I got all A's over the summer. I took 16 credits, and I did SO well. I enjoyed every single class. Even the 4 credit Early Childhood Education Development class that was SO hard. I aced every assignment, and felt like it better prepared me for motherhood to all my children. I am really tempted to homeschool them now....

This semester is not any easier. I'm taking 22...yes 22 credits. 16 from SUU, and 6 from Dixie online. Our schedule works out perfectly...Ben has Connor MWF mornings while I go to class, then we trade at 12:50 and he goes to work while I come home and be mommy. Tuesdays and Thursdays I'm home with Connor all day except for 11:30-12:50, which is when Ben takes his lunch. Somehow it worked out like clockwork, and after two days we realize it's going to be BUSY. But we love it! I feel so much more productive having a reason to leave the house...I actually get ready everyday now. I've only had each class once, but I love them so far! I'm taking Art History, 19th Century European Art; Thinking and Listening Critically;
Communication Research; Photojournalism; Event Management; Marketing Principles; and Screenwriting. Oh and Circuit training...easy A. I am gonna be a busy girl but thankfully Connor gives me at least 2 hours a day when he naps for me to do stuff, and he goes to bed by 7 or 8...

Also, my weight loss progress! As of this morning I have lost 9 pounds! I know HCG is not a permanent solution, but it sure is helping me gain the confidence I need to eat healthier. I realize that 4 oz is PLENTY of meat. When Ben and I go out on dates from now on we are sharing!!! I do miss my bad foods...so I know my little body cleanse is not yet over. I need to feel in control of my cravings before this is over. I hope to lose at least 6 more pounds to achieve my goal of 15 pounds. I doubled my wardrobe today. I was wearing two pairs of capris every day. Now I have 4-5...with about 4 more that I am SO CLOSE to fitting into. Such a great feeling! I haven't weighed this much since February of 2009.

In other news, Connor has BAD diaper rash that looks like someone burned his butt with a hot pan. SO sad. We think it is maybe from having the humidifier on all night, and he gets too "damp"...but who knows. SAD story though. I felt terrible having to change is some 5 poopy diapers today!

Well...onto my homework....thanks for reading!