Slice

Ok I have so much to update but no pictures on this device so I will post about something that doesnt require pictures. Last Monday I went in to have surgery. I will be honest I did not want to do it. For the last six months or so I've been having issues that my doctor thought were signs of endometriosis. But the only way to diagnose it is to go check things out inside. So I finally decided it was time to check things out. They made two incisions, diagnosed the endometriosis, and burned/cut it off all in one surgery. I was pretty miserable for most of the week but was glad I had cleaned the apartment before I went in. This Christmas I was thankful for good doctors and good health!

Upholstery Step Two

I'm finally ready to post a couch update after a long week of finals, preschool parties and doctors appointments. Today I spent about 7 hours removing the old fabric from the smaller of the two couches. It had about a million staples and my fingers are raw! Also, when bringing the couch into the apartment John had told me he thought there was a tennis ball inside. Much to our surprise, after removing the back fabric we found it wasn't a ball, but a potato. I don't even want to know how long it had been in there! The only way it could have gotten inside the couch is from a small whole on the underside. I'm guessing the person who owned it before had a pet ferret. Apparently they collect potatoes. Anyway, here is a picture of the couch and one of the potato!

Step One

Ok I know I already posted today.  But I wanted to post about my completion of reupholstering-step-one!  After spending two hours with my brother in law loading the couches into a truck and then into our apartment, John and I just spent another hour at Joann Fabrics picking out fabric for our couches.  This is what we chose. (Notice it is 50% off.  Also, notice it is outdoor fabric.  Hopefully that means it will withstand my husband/dog) (That is husband AND dog...they are not one in the same ;))

http://www.joann.com/joann/catalog/productdetail.jsp?pageName=search&flag=true&PRODID=xprd581635

Now, these "bargain" couches are going to end up being quite an investment but we have been pricing love-seat/couch sets lately and we will still be paying far less than buying new ones.  AND this is the exact print I had in mind.  Win win!  Sadly, it takes 2 weeks to ship so I'll have to wait a bit to get started.  I guess that means I'll have to spend time studying for finals etc.  Dang!

A New Project

I'm so excited about my latest project. I found two awesome couches at DI last night. Here is a picture of the smaller of the two. I am going to reupholster both of them and recover the pillows! Only problem is I have never reupholstered anything before! Wish me luck!

Who doesn't love a great deal?

As Christmas-shopping-time approaches I am reminded of how wonderful the world wide web can be when you are shopping on a budget.  Since I married a boy with extremely expensive taste, who gets nicer-than-my-car clothes hand-me-downs from his brother, this little site has been a lifesaver for me at gift-giving time.

www.whiskeymilitia.com

Check it out!

P.S.  Anyone notice how many of these - I used in that super short post?

P.P.S.  Shout out to my supa cool big sis for teaching me about Whiskey Militia

Cider Time!

With the stress of school and work John and I haven't had a ton of time for fun lately.  This week my brother Nick came to town so my family planned a few fun activities to do with him.  Monday night was especially fun.  My dad's friend Gary owns a farm in Milleville where he grows all kinds of produce, including a variety of different kinds of apples. My mom also grows apples so last year we decided to combine forces and make some cider.  It was so successful we decided to do it again this year.  Luckily, we had more helping hands this year!

We started with these beauties!  He had bushels and bushels and bushels for us to smash!

Then we placed a variety of different apples in baskets to be washed before pressing.

Then we sorted through and threw out the wormy ones

Then they went into the press where they were crushed into pulp.  Then the strong members of the family turned the wheel that pressed the pulp into juice

The finished product was 40 of these babies!While we were there we also enjoyed a home-cooked meal of fresh bread with huckleberry-rhubarb jam, vegetable soup, potato salad, sloppy joes, navajo tacos,  pumpkin bread and pumpkin pie.

A Little-Big Blessing

After one of the most stressful weeks of my life an answer to prayers came today.  John and I have been waiting for my ticket (see last post) to be filed so I could pay it.  Last week he called in and though the officer hadn't turned in my ticket yet, the lady told him that a misdemeanor (which is what it said on my ticket) for a revoked license would be a $750 ticket.  I've been working the numbers to make it possible for me to pay the ticket all week.  I have seriously thought of little else.  Anyway, today John called while I was in class and the police man had turned in the ticket.  Since he wrote it up as a DENIED license and not REVOKED, it came out to be a ... wait for it....wait for it...$50 ticket!!!  I've never been so happy to pay the city of Logan $50 in my whole life!  PLUS, since I was quick at fixing the problem with my license, and had my driving privileges back within 48 hours they are taking another $10 off of the ticket. I am lucky for the mercy of the cop in how he wrote my ticket and glad that I will be able to keep that extra money in my savings account for the future.  P.S. I did learn my lesson about driving with a dog on my lap.  And, oh yeah, turning in my medical form :)

Lame Week

Ok my life has been super boring lately so I haven't really updated my blog.  However, this week was super lame and stressful and I need to vent a little.  I dont' know how it is for the rest of the world, but for me being married has been really hard.  I hate watching my paychecks all disappear to pay rent.  I hate that I haven't been able to buy a single new item of clothing for myself in almost two years because I've been trying to save.  I hate that I always have 4 inch outgrown highlights and 4 inch split ends because I can't afford to get my hair done more than every 6-8 months. I hate going a week without groceries until payday because the bank account is so low.  I hate freezing my face off every day at our apartment because I don't want our utilities bill to be too high.  But mostly, I hate that I forgot to send in a medical form to the DMV.  Why?  Because after saving, saving, saving, I now have to hand over over a month and a half's work to Logan City.

Here's the background.  I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when I was 19.  Since I already had my drivers license I didn't have to do anything regarding my medical status on my drivers license.  When I turned 21 and renewed my license I checked the box stating that I am diabetic.  I received a paper in the mail a few months ago that I needed to have my doctor sign and then return to the DMV.  I forgot about it at my last appointment and decided to just take it to him next month when I drive down to South Jordan for my appointment.  On Thursday on my way to class I got pulled over because I was driving with my little dog sitting on my lap. (Yes, that is illegal, I didn't know either).  Not only did I do that, I wasn't driving my car, couldn't find proof of insurance in the car belonging to my parents, had lost my wallet and therefore didn't have my driver's license and then couldn't remember what name I had put on my license.  Looking totally suspicious.  When the cop ran my license it was...wait for it....REVOKED.  Yes, I have been driving on a revoked license for a month and didn't even know it.  Sadly for me, that is considered a misdemeanor and I now owe the city $750, which is almost all of the money I have in my savings account.  Also, I will only have a job til Christmas and then I wont' even have that little bit of income coming in.

Ok.  Done complaining.  I am just frustrated with myself.  And frustrated that I care.  I shouldn't care about money.  I know John and I will be fine and I'm glad we are married now so we technically don't need to buy each other Christmas presents (hehe).  But seriously.  The week sucked.  P.S. I do love being married.  I just hate money.

Medicine

Isn't medicine supposed to fix problems, not make MORE problems?  I am frustrated with doctors and medicine today.  I have been feeling really sick for about 3 weeks now.  Last week I finally decided enough is enough and have been trying to get in to see my doctor.   After waiting all day Friday for the nurse to call me back with a set appointment (which she couldn't set up for some reason) and then spending most of today on hold I finally got an appointment.  For...wait for it... November 10th.  Hopefully I don't die before then.

1 Year

Warning: Mushy recording of wedding/anniversary stuff

On September 3rd John and I celebrated our first year of marriage.  I was going to post about it right after but decided I wanted to contemplate on the past year a little before I recorded my thoughts/memories.  

The first time I ever laid eyes on John Blair I was 11 years old.  He was in a production of The King and I with my oldest sister.  I thought he was the cutest boy I had ever seen. (And boy was I right!).  I remember going home and keeping a copy of the program by my bed so I could look at his picture so I wouldn't forget what he looked like.  To my surprise and excitement a few months later we both auditioned for The Sound of Music at UFOC.  You may call it divine inspiration or just smart casting on my dad's part, but we were cast as brother and sister.  I remember that summer being one of the best of my life for a few reasons, one being John.  Over the next few years our paths grew apart as we went to middle school and then high school.  I met up with John my freshman year at a SV vs LHS football game and he was just as cute as I had remembered!  Sadly, I later found out that he had a huge crush...on the wrong Ballam girl.  After a few weeks of misery, watching he and my sister flirting up a storm and going on a couple of dates, Ester could see how distraught I was and called things off with him.  Luckily, he then realized that it would be a smart move on his part to go for the younger sister. Always smart right?  Anyway, we hit it off and spent the next two years dating before his mission.  

Skip ahead two years (the two years John was on his mission were full of bad dating mistakes on my part. And a lot of hoping on his part)  When John got home we slowly started things up again and on March 6th, 2010 I decided I would be crazy not to marry the love of my life when he so desperately wanted me to.  

Ok this is what I really wanted to write about.  Our wedding day.  September 3rd, 2010.  Such a beautiful day.  I remember going to bed around 4 am the night before, after going through the temple and decorating the reception center.  I woke up the next morning completely calm.  Complete surprise to me!  I fixed my hair and make up and then waited 20 minutes for my anxious parents to be ready to go.  When we arrived at the temple I saw John sitting there waiting for me with tears in his eyes. I remember thinking "Gosh I hope those are good tears".  Luckily they were and we went our separate ways to change.  As I put on my temple dress I started thinking about how lucky I was to not only be marrying my best friend, but doing so in the house of the Lord where it we had planned to get married 4 years earlier.  I was proud of us for the decisions we made that had led us to that point in our lives.  The little lady helping me dress told me to stand in front of a large mirror before I left the room.  I am so glad she did because that was one of my favorite memories of the day! My dress was simple white satin.  Very different from the ornate, beaded mermaid gown I had chosen as my "wedding dress".  Though as I stood there I was overcome with a confidence I had never felt before or since. I remember feeling beautiful from head to toe.  Not really because of how I looked, but because of the way I saw myself as a person at that second.  I knew that the way I was seeing myself was the way John, and my Heavenly Father saw me.  I wanted to write about this because it is something I need to remember in my life.  The most important people in my life see me as more beautiful and wonderful than I sometimes see myself.  

Anyway, a few minutes later I was escorted down a hall to meet with John.  I remember a sister escort came up to my personal escort and whispered "the groom is meeting with Brother So and So".  The first thing that popped into my head was "Oh no, he's backing out!" Haha!  I was obviously wrong and a few minutes later John met up with me in our own private room.  We had a few minutes alone to talk about how excited we were for the ceremony.  We also had a visit from a family friend who gave us some words of wisdom and encouragement.  Our sealing ceremony was beautiful.  I honestly don't remember much of what was said except when our sealer asked us to try and look at him and not each other. :)  It was so neat to kneel across the alter and watch sweet tears running down John's face.  Once we were sealed we were asked to stand up and hug.  I was so happy I couldn't help but do a little jig in my slippers!  Hugging my family, and my new family was such a great feeling.  We are both blessed to have such supportive parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents who joined us that day.  Aside from John's sister and one of of my best friends/cousins, everyone we wanted to be there was there.  

The reception was perfect.  We wanted a party, not a super formal reception and we got it!  I ate 11 doughnut holes but sadly missed out on the rest of the food we served.  (but I hear it was delish!)  Anyway, perfect day.  John took me to Little America that night before heading to Hawaii in the morning.

Now...to the anniversary.  John surprised me big time!  I asked him to plan everything and he did a great job. I bought him a nice Nixon watch as a gift.  He woke up early with excitement to give me my gifts.  He bought me pearl earrings and a pearl ring.  I was so surprised!  I had mentioned to him a month or so earlier that I was sad because I lost the pair of pearl earrings I wore at our wedding.  He also knew that I am super envious of a pearl ring of my mom's that she let me borrow for our wedding.  He did an excellent job picking out the jewelry and I have worn it every day since! :)  He then drove me to a "secret destination" in SLC.  I had high hopes that we would be going back to Little America and was pleasantly surprised when we pulled up.  We watched a movie in the hotel before going to Applebee's for dinner.  Not super romantic but it sounded delicious to both of us!  We then went back to the hotel and sat in the hot tub with about a million little children splashing around.  Needless to say we didn't stay long.  We finished off the weekend in Bear Lake with my family which was perfect.  I couldn't have asked for a more perfect weekend with a more perfect companion!  I am so blessed that John had the patience to wait for me to make up my mind about marriage.  He is definitely perfect for me and though we have had a tough year, I know we will work everything out and live happily ever after.  I know our feelings for each other can get us through anything!  I am a lucky girl!

Summertime 2011

Ok, I slacked a bit on my blog this summer and didn't post much of anything about the operas.  I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to earn money while performing this summer at UFOMT.  I was in 4 of their 5 shows and had a blast.  Here are some pictures to give you an idea of what the shows were like if you didn't get a chance to see them.

 This is definitely my favorite picture of the summer.  (Ensemble of Merry Widow)

 John and I after Oliver!

 Ester and I after Oliver!

Some of the Merry Widow ladies

 Classic prom pic

 All of the Merry Widow ladies

 Sad to say goodbye to my favorite wig

 Don Giovanni costume

 Who Will Buy?

Entire Oliver! cast after the final performance

Sadly those are all the photos I have.  I didn't get any pictures during Boris, mostly because my costume wasn't fantastic. :)  It was a great summer and I am sad that it is over.  I am blessed to have met so many wonderful people again this summer and hope to work with them again someday!

Analyzing Me

I've been thinking a lot lately (I've had a lot of time to think while John is at work and I have nothing to do) about myself.  I've had quite a rude awakening since I got married and realized I really don't have many... skills.  In high school I was 100% confident in everything about myself.  Now I'm about 10% confident.  I think it's because I was REALLY good at being a girlfriend...and not so great at being a wife. (Maybe that's why I had many boyfriends but only one husband ;))  I am good at planning fun dates etc...but not every single night.  I thought I was a great cook...til my husband started eating my food.  I enjoyed cleaning...til I had my own apartment and roommate to take care of on my own.  I guess I need to practice the wife stuff a little!

A Week of Cleaning!

This summer was crazy busy for both John and I.  Now that the operas are over I have had a chance to clean our apartment.  And I mean CLEAN.  I scrubbed every inch and even cleaned all of the carpets in the last 3 days while John is at work.  I am now envious of my mom's steam vac, after seeing how great our carpets look! Anyway, I also had a chance to do a couple of crafts.  Since we have virtually no cupboard space in our bathroom or bedroom for me to store necklaces without them getting tangled, I made a little necklace hanger to put on the wall.  (I still haven't put all of my necklaces on it since they are stored in different places throughout the apartment)

I also made some fabric wall hangings for our spare bedroom.  Since we can't paint, and most of the photos from our wedding are unframed, the blank walls have been driving me crazy.  This was my little solution.  I eventually want to hang one of our large photos right in the middle of  them, but we'll see if I get around to it. :)

That's about it!  John and I are planning on doing something exciting this weekend..we just have to figure out what! :)

Still Alive!

I was going to post an update....but there really isn't much to say.  I'm still here.  It's still summer.  That's about it!  I'll post more when I have my camera with me.

It finally happened...

After 15 years of working at Utah Festival Opera (now Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theater) I was finally officially invited to a party.  These parties happen every weekend during the summer and I always hear about them, yet I have never been invited.  Why invite the boss's daughter to a party where everyone gets totally wasted and the cops are called?  It's beyond me.  But thank you, crazy person, for breaking my party invite losing streak.

Summertime?

I haven't posted lately because I've felt like I should wait til I had something exciting to post about.  Well...nothing exciting has happened and it doesn't seem like it will any time soon so...here is a little update on our summer.  (It is finally starting to feel like summer here in Logan!)

We are sad that we have only made it to the Gardener's Market once, but the one time we were able to go was super fun.  I purchased some bread and balsamic dip and John chowed down on a fancy, bacon wrapped hotdog.

We also spoke/sang at a fireside for the Jewish community here in Cache Valley.  

Last weekend we spent some time at Summerfest with John's parents and then headed up to Bear Lake to be with my dad on Father's Day.  We enjoyed a nice Father's Day meal at Cafe Sabor where John and Ben ordered some delicious shakes.

We also had a really scary experience happen on Sunday with our sweet family dog, Tennessee.  She was attacked by a pitbull in front of their house.  We rushed her to the vet where she had 16 puncture wounds stitched up and 4 drains put in on her leg, and chest.  She is home now but is still in a lot of pain.  It breaks my heart to see her hurting.  She is such a good dog and we are lucky to have her in our family.

Summer has been crazy with John's work and my rehearsal schedule. We usually only have a couple of hours to spend each day since I usually go into rehearsal when he gets off of work.  But I am so grateful that we both have jobs this summer since I haven't had a full time job since we got married.  It will nice to be able to put a little money away to pay for school!  Hopefully something super exciting will happen soon so I can have blog inspiration. :)

Then and Now

I've been looking through the pictures on my computer and realized just how much John and I have been through in the last 8 years.  Here are a few pictures to document some of our time together.

 At the beginning...Sound of Music 2002

Reunited in 2005

A few high school dances

The mission call

Apparently dating two friends works out 50% of the time

Right before John went to OK

My family re-falling in love with John

Baby blessings

Spring Break in St. George

 FINALLY engaged!

A long patient summer 

Engagement photo time

Happiest day of our lives!

I am so lucky to have a husband who has been there for me through thick and thin, even when I was a big pain!  Love him!

U2 360

Last night was AMAZING!  About two years ago I heard that U2 would be coming to SLC on their 360 tour.  U2 is my all-time favorite band and I have always dreamed of attending one of their concerts.  Anyway, I bought tickets and was excited about it for months.  A few months before the concert I got an email from SmithTix saying that the concert was cancelled because Bono was having back surgery.  I was extremely disappointed, but they said the concert would be rescheduled and to hang on to our tickets.  I did, and the concert was rescheduled for May 2011.  

Last night John and I had the BEST time!  The concert was absolutely amazing.  The Fray opened which was fun.  Rice Eccles Stadium was completely packed with people of all ages.  Remember the footage of the Beatles fans crying when John, Paul, George and Ringo walked on stage?  Well...that was me.  I was seriously blown away seeing Adam, The Edge, Larry and Bono in real life!  So cool!  The concert was unbelievable.  The technology was amazing and we had perfect seats.  It was such a high energy concert.  It was by far the funnest thing John and I have done since we got married and I was really glad that the concert was postponed to a time in our lives that we needed a little pick me up!  :)

 

Ester's Birthday and Other Events

Ok, my blog has been super lame lately.  When I got married I had this picture in my mind of being a cute little married couple who does cute little married couple things and always has a camera on hand to capture each moment.  Well, as you've noticed the last time I took a picture of myself was when we went to Vegas in March.  But...I did take some pictures of what I've been doing the last two days.  (Pardon the amateur pictures, they are from my iPhone)

Tuesday I made 150 cupcakes and 18 cups of frosting for my mom's preschool graduation.

Though I made them from mixes, it still took a while.  Yesterday I frosted them for the two classes graduating that day.

Yesterday was also Ester's birthday so I made her a cake.  It turned into a slight fiasco because when I took the two cakes out of the oven they had hardly risen AT ALL.  So, my mom suggested making my great grandma's wedding cake recipe (since we were out of mixes).  Here is a copy of the directions...

Sift dry ingredients (less sugar) 4 times.  Mix sugar with milk; add flour.  Fold in whites.  Bake in very slow oven in ungreased tin sprinkled with flour.

That's it.  Well...I consider myself a pretty good cook, but I am NOT good with recipes like this.  First of all, I read "Sift dry ingredients" before I read "(less sugar) so, I sifted the sugar in with the flour.  Now the "Fold in whites" sounds simple enough.  Except that, as my mom told me later, the whites needed to be beaten.  Nowhere on the recipe does it say that, but I guess Grandma Glenna thought it was common knowledge.  "Bake in very slow oven".  What is a very slow oven?  I guessed.  Guessed wrong.  How long?  Doesn't say.  This just goes to show that I am not as experienced in baking as my great grandma.  Anyway, the cake turned into some sort of souflee that burned on the outside and was like whipped yogurt on the inside (Ever had one of those?  Gross)   So, I opted to keep my two Funfetti layers and make it a short cake.  This is how it turned out.

It was a fun day.  Ester, Scott, John and I went to dinner at Calloways and then returned to my mom's where all of us (Mom, Ben, Scott, Ester, Liv and John) played Words With Friends for 2 hours.  I love my family!