Life in the Slower Lane

Well, now that my family has left, my final grades are posted, and Steven has returned to his job full-time, my life is a lot more relaxed than it has been.... well, ever! And, I love it. This past semester, my schedule went something like this:

Wake up, go to class, go to work, go to class, go to work, do homework, fall exhausted into bed.

I learned that going to school full-time and working 40 plus hours a week is not good for anybody. I love working and being productive, but I didn't feel like my life had any balance. I remember one night about mid-March where I had about an hour of spare time, and I honestly didn't know what to do because it had been so long since I asked myself what was something I WANTED to do. However, now I am spending these next few months studying for (& taking) the CPA exam and enjoying spending some more time doing hobbies (I had forgotten what that was even like!). So far, I have loved putting a few miles on my new pretty bike, read some novels for enjoyment, studied lots... (I can't quite just do nothing productive), brought out my creative side attempting to make crafts and awards for my upcoming YW girls camp, gone shopping, cooked new recipes, and all sorts of enjoyable things! Life is good...
If anybody has any more hobby suggestions for me to try out, let me know!

Graduation!

Well, it is official. I am now graduated from BYU with a joint bachelor/masters degree in Accounting. Yay! Some of the highlights of all the festivities include

(1) Commencement: President Uchdorf and Elder Nelson spoke and both gave amazing talks. I was able to have a nice soft seat on the floor and family on both sides were able to attend.

(2) Convocation: For convocation, I upgraded and I got to sit on the front row in the Marriott Center, and by luck of the draw I ended up leading out the recessional of graduates at the end. Right before hand, I met up with all my accounting classmates for one last picture and goodbye. My supportive parents, grandparents, and husband all endured 700 other names read in order to be there for mine!

(3) Lastly, I got a few graduation presents that I am excited to put to good use. My sweet Steven surprised me with some flowers. My parents gave us a picture of the Salt Lake temple for our apartment that I could barely wait to put up on the wall. And, as a combination of all other gifts (thanks mostly go to the Foote's and my grandparents) we bought a new Trek road bike. I think that the bike might have made Steven even happier than me. I am thrilled to sell my old Target bike and officially join the cycling world. I just need the tight little shorts and jersey and then I will really look like I fit in. Overall, graduation was great and exciting and I am so grateful that I have such a wonderful family to share the experience with.

Our First Blog... Again

Well, as you can see from the date on my last posting, I made an attempt to start a blog almost a year ago and failed miserably. However, now that I am not going to school and working full-time, I am making another attempt to revive my blog in order to keep friends and family updated on our busy, happy life! I guess that main change in my life right now is that I am officially graduating from BYU in less than a week and my life as a full-time student is over. So the topic of this post will be things that I will and will not miss as a student:

Things I will miss the most:
* The freedom and flexibility of classes and school (aka... summer and Christmas vacations)
* Reading the "Police Beat" in the Daily Universe
* All of my accounting friends
* Taking tests in the testing center (I am crazy, but I really like multiple choice tests)
* Playing on the intramural sports teams for free

Things that I will not miss:
* Never being "done" with homework
* Paying more in tuition than food or rent or clothes or anything
* Driving to campus and having a daily war with the pedestrians

Overall, I loved being a student but I am excited for what working and the future will hold. I feel lucky to have been able to attend BYU. Go Cougars!