Mr. Employee of the Month

Well, I know that Steven will be mortified and unhappy with me when he finds out I have posted this, but that is why I am doing it while he is at work! So yesterday, I managed to pry out of him that he was made employee of the month for all BYU law library employees. Now, that may not be that exciting, but it was the first month that they started the contest, and so he was picked first....and I am just so proud of how well he is doing at his job. He started out taking over his cousin's job right when he got home from his mission just working in the circulation department of the library. Within a year of working there, he was promoted to work in the Systems department of the law library as a systems analyst, received 3 raises, and is now about as high as you can get as a student employee. He writes programs, makes websites, and works really hard to add value to the law library. So... congratulations Steven! I'm proud of you~

Viva Las Vegas

Steven and I were able to go visit his family in Las Vegas this weekend and we had a great time. Steven's younger brother, Jason, recently received his mission call to the El Salvador San Salvador East mission. He went through the temple on Friday night and we were able to be there for him. On Saturday, we started the day off by going to the lake. The weather was hot! The water was a little choppy, but Steven still managed to do great water skiing, and jumping in the cool water to swim was a welcome relief from the heat.



After the lake, we went on a bike ride with Steven's dad and brother's who all have road bikes too. Even though the 3:00 PM ride was around the hottest time of the day (100 degrees), I still enjoyed it and found it easier than riding in Utah. Living in Utah near the mountains is beautiful and great when we want to go biking, but it is impossible to go on a bike ride without climbing lots of hills (and hills hurt my legs!).

We went out for dinner to Carrabbas and since we didn't have time to wait for a table, we sat at this counter that faced the kitchen where we watched the cooks and the cooks even brought us samples. I thoroughly enjoyed the meal. However, I found out afterward that Steven found a cockroach in his napkin and rather than make me and his mom and sister freak out, he just got another napkin. I was a little disgusted because growing up in Canada, I honestly don't think I have ever seen a live cockroach. I'm not discouraging eating at Carrabbas because it was good, but that was a little bit of an unpleasant surprise!

We were also able to visit the Bellagio fountains and a couple of art gallery displays down on the strip. Steven and I try to visit the fountains whenever we go to Las Vegas because we started doing that when we first met before his mission and we have great memories there together. Normally, the songs are Celine Dion's "My Heart Will go on" or Faith Hill's "This Kiss" or something similar to that. This time, they played a hymn "Tis a Joy to be Simple" and I really enjoyed that. All in all, a relaxing weekend and now we are back to work and studying and all that fun stuff...

A Sunny Afternoon

“The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.”

I like that quote and I consider myself so lucky to have many great friends (definitely including my wonderful husband and family.) This afternoon, I spent some time with one of my oldest girlfriends and we got to catch up, chat, go for a walk, and spend time with her new baby.

Fallon and I have known each other since we were six years old and through elementary, junior high, high school, and university, we have always lived in the same city. Now, even though we have both graduated, we are still in Provo until our husbands finish school and still live within walking distance.

Fallon recently had a cute new little baby, Claire, and so I had a great time holding and getting to know her new little personality. Thanks for the fun afternoon Fal!

Rain at Antelope Island

Today was Steven's first road bike race of the season. The race was held about an hour and a half from Provo on Antelope Island. Steven and Ed, a friend from our ward, entered the 40 mile race together and the weather did not co-operate! We left Provo at about 5:30 this morning and at that time, there was a slight drizzle. By the time the race started at 8:30 that drizzle had turned into steady rain. By the middle of the race, that rain had turned into a downpour with a crazy wind that made me grateful I was just the wife standing in the rain taking the pictures and not on the bike. The course started out on a long stretch of road, and then led to three laps around part of the island that was full of lots of hills to climb. I was surprised and impressed with how intense most of the bikers were. Very few beginners here! Steven and Ed both admitted that most of the race was more miserable than fun, but they finished and did a great job. It was a great experience and Steven is excited to do some more races this summer. I had a good time and learned that the weather here in Utah is often just as cold and unpredictable as back home in Canada! Good job Steven :)

Ed in the peloton.

Standing in the freezing cold rain waiting to take some pictures

Steven (on the right) mid-race

Steven before the race (that's why he's still smiling)

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!