Butterflies

Brian and I have been dating now for 2 1/2 years. With that comes being extremely comfortable with each other, and extremely comfortable with routine. We have got use to doing the same thing night after night, weekend after weekend. Lately I got to thinking that everything seemed very routine, including my feelings for him. I found myself having to rack my brain to remember the last time I felt the so called "butterflies" when I was with him. It was nothing I was worried about, but something I figured comes with being together for so long. But that raised another question in my mind...Why do the butterflies have to go away?

Nothing is better than your first few dates with a new person. You are ner-vited (nervous and excited) waiting for him to pick you up for the first date. You wonder "when will he hold my hand"? Your belly flips during your first kiss and you can't wait to call your best friend to tell her the good news. All of these different feelings make us crave the butterflies when they are not there. But why when we have the opportunity to have them everyday do they seem to fade away? It is not that you don't have feelings for the person, but I think its more of a routine each and every day. You see each other and hug or kiss hello. You hold hands in the car, in the store, or watching a movie. You cuddle and talk about everything. And then you hug and kiss goodnight. Your emotions stay even, neutral, and routine...just like your every day life. 

As I thought about this the past week, I was reminded of something President Hinckley once said. When asked why his marriage survived for all those years, the advice he gave was to continually court your mate like you did before you were married. Go out on dates, surprise her with gifts, flowers, or her favorite meal. We are given this advice, but with the comfort of relationships, we seem to let those courting rituals fade away, along with the butterflies. Well after tonight, I am a believer of President Hinckley's advice. Brian and I decided after 4 months of staying home on the weekends, ordering pizza, Cafe Rio, or Chinese, and watching football...it was time to get out. Yes you guessed it, we went out on a date! 

We spent the first part of the night at Zoo-lights. Walking around, I seemed to notice we were not the only ones there on a date. Couple after couple passed by, some holding hands, some grinning from ear to ear, some obviously ner-vited to be with a possible future mate. I laughed inside wondering if Brian and I ever looked like that. After, we went to Market Street Grill for a nice, sit down dinner. We literally could not remember the last time we went out to a sit down dinner alone. We enjoyed an AMAZING steak dinner and an even more amazing conversation. I again looked around and saw dozens of couples out doing the same thing. Some out for the first time, and some obviously out for the 1000 time. But for the first time in a long time, it felt like WE were dating. Driving home, I couldn't help but smile because something had come back, almost like brand new. Yep, the butterflies. Just like the first date, roughly 880 days later, I was twitterpated with the man that sat next to me in the car. We ended the night watching "The Holiday Inn" (one of Brian's favorite Christmas movies) and munching on the perfect piece of our to-go chocolate cake. A quick little dance in the street (yes Brian can dance), and a kiss goodnight, and our date night was over.

So now I sit here, hours after saying goodnight, and I am still smiling. I guess, once again, Pres. Hinckley is right. I am a true believer that marriage or relationships in general, should never become routine. They are the most rewarding part of our lives here on earth, and we should treat them just like that. Here I am, about to celebrate my 3rd Christmas with Brian, and I am rejuvenated with excitement. I can't wait to see him again tomorrow, can't wait to kiss him hello, give him a hug, and hold his hand as we walk down the street. The butterflies are back, and I hope this time, we find a way to let them stick around for a long time to come. Love you babe!!!

I told you so...believe me

So just a short 3 months ago, I posted my feelings about summer being over, and how excited I was for Fall because of Football. I can not believe how fast the time went!!! Just about 13 weeks later, here I sit writing a new post about the INCREDIBLE season the Utes had. I will admit, I believed it could happen. My cousin Andrew and I spent weeks leading up to the season talking about how it would be to go into the BYU game undefeated. We both felt if we went into the Big House and beat Michigan that this season could be special. Well, we did that and the magic began. Everyone will remember this season as one with one too many heart-stopping games, amazing comebacks, or blowing out BYU to go undefeated. But in all honestly, I will remember the season with the simple saying "I told you so".

It all started with how perfect our schedule was. Opening the season at one of the most storied stadiums, against one of the most successful college football programs in history. Continuing on to home games against Oregon State, TCU, and BYU. And simply having to survive those "should win but could lose" road games at Wyoming, New Mexico and Air Force.

Next, we FINALLY had a healthy team. Getting starters like Brian Johnson, Brent Casteel, and Matt Asiata back were huge! Adding to that, Bradon Godfrey, Freddie Brown and Darrell Mack as solid contributors. Add in David Reed, John Peel, Eddie Wide, and Corbin Louks and we have an offense that will be hard to stop. With defenders like Sean Smith, Paul Kruger, Brice McCain, Robert Johnson, Joe Dale, Koa Misi (the list goes on and on) we were set to have another dominating year. If you look at it that way, who would bet against us? Well, the nation did.

ESPN gave us no respect. All we heard about early on was BYU and their Quest, Fresno State, East Carolina, and Boise State. Utah was mentioned as a side note only because of the win at Michigan. Throughout the season, we were still overshadowed. One by one, the so called "busters" fell. Starting with Fresno St., East Carolina, and BYU. Even after all of that, with Utah the highest ranked Non-BCS team in the first BCS standings, Boise State was the one to beat. Even teams like TCU, Tulsa and Ball State received more attention nation wide. But quietly Utah kept winning, and quietly they kept climbing. We shut those so called "experts" up by beating Oregon State and TCU when everyone bet against us. We quietly beat up on Wyoming, Colorado State, San Diego State, and the surprise of the year Weber State. It all built up to THE game. BYU...

Throughout the week, we had those who believed, and those who didn't. Still the experts like Lee Corso picked BYU. "No one can stop their offensive machine". "The underrated defense will step up and create turnovers" That's all we heard. Max Hall for Heisman!!! He will be the game changer. BYU will bust Utah's BCS bubble. All of those critics were proven wrong in so many ways! Well, Utah stopped their offensive machine. The underrated defense did not step up and create turnovers, yet kept the middle of the field open all day for Johnson-Brown. Max Hall turned out to be the MVP, too bad for the wrong team. 6 turnovers....looks like Utah's defense stepped it up. Kruger's STILL open!!! In the end, Utah busted the nation's bubble and busted the BCS AGAIN! Who has done it twice, oh yeah that's right...UTAH! Not the little Bronco's, or the Coogs, or the Cinderella Cardinals. It's the Utes!

So here we sit, 5 days away from learning where we will spend the holidays. New Orleans, Tempe, Florida? Who cares!!! I told you so! Ask my cousin (who I will vouch for if he vouches for me), my family, even Heidi who sat by me through all those nail biters and could not believe how calm I was. I knew it would happen. Call it intuition, luck, ESP...(N), or simply faith in my team, but I called it. I really can't tell you what will happen next, where we will go, who we will play, or if we will win. But it doesn't matter, because I love my Utes and always will. Season ticket holder from birth, season ticket holder to death. I am a Utah girl sir and I will be 'til I die....GO UTES!!!

I've been tagged

I've Been Tagged

8 Shows I Watch:

1. Sporting events
2. Sportscenter

3. The Hills

4. Sex and the City

5. Bones

6. House

7. What Not to Wear

8. Friends

8 Restaurants That I Like To Eat At:
1. Café Rio
2. Texas Roadhouse
3. The Yardhouse (not in Utah)
4. In and Out (again, not in Northern Utah)
5. Zupas
6. Rumbi Grill
7. Jambo Express
8. Paradise Bakery

8 Things I Did Today:
1. Taught school
2. Had a team meeting
3. Did an IEP meeting with a parent
4. Raced home
5. Did an ENTIRE assignment that should have taken 3 weeks in 2 hours!!! BOO YAH!!!
6. Ate squash and crackers
7. Updated my blog (sort of)
8. took a shower

8 Things I Am Looking Forward To:
1. School to be over next week!
2. Christmas break at my elementary school
3. Finding out who Utah will play in their BCS bowl game
4. Christmas
5. Utah basketball starting up again
6. A vacation perhaps in a few weeks to Arizona??? Crossing my fingers
7. A wedding???
8. Heather getting home

8 Things On My Wish List:
1. Good grades in school
2. Utah going to the Fiesta Bowl
3. Utah winning their bowl game
4. A ring...
5. The weekend
6. The Utes to be successful in basketball
7. People to actually come out and support the basketball team
8. A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

8 People I Tag:
1. Stevie
2. Kate
3. Tracy
4. Lori
5. Cami
6. Nicole
7. and...
8. anyone else who feels they need to do this

Husband...err Boyfriend Quiz

This is suppose to be for your husband, but he is not that yet so we will make it my Boyfriend quiz

Boyfriend Quiz: How well do you know your boyfriend? Answer these questions about him and find out:

1. Sitting in front of the TV, what's on the screen? Anything. Usually sports, Seinfeld, Friends, Family Guy, or the History Channel

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad? No dressing. He does not eat any dressing and/or sauce.

3. What's one food he doesn't like? I mentioned it above, sauce and dressings

4. You go out to a bar. What does he order? He does not go to bars. He gets water or sprite though at restaurants

5. Where did he go to high school? Alta High

6. What size shoe does he wear? 10

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? Movies, he already has over 300. And we will throw guns into this picture.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? Turkey

9. What would this person eat everyday if he could? A good steak, stuffing, and chocolate

10. What is his favorite cereal? I am pretty sure Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but he does not eat it very often

11. What would he never wear? Hahaha a Utah Sweatshirt

12. What is his favorite sports team? BYU, the Jazz, the Chargers, the Red Sox, and Real Salt Lake. I think I hit every major sport

13. Who will he vote for? He DID vote for McCain. There is no way on earth he would ever vote for Obama, we would have broken up

14. Who is his best friend? Well besides me...his brother Jason, Heather Nibley and Andrew

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do? Cheer for the Utes...


16. How many states has he lived in? Utah and Colorado

17.What is his heritage? I can not think of it for the life of me right now, I know his ancestors changed their name so all of the Dahl's in the world are not related to him in any way.

18. You bake him a cake for his birthday, what kind of cake? Chocolate, but lets be honest, I would not bake it. He would prefer I just go buy him one.

19. Did he play sports in high school? Soccer

20. What could he spend hours doing? Watching movies, playing his computer games, and looking at his guns, the ones that shoot, not his arms.

21. Does he belong to any men's organizations? The "Brian is the bomb" club

Holiday Tag

Tag

Top 3 Favorite Vacations

1. Hawaii

2. Disneyland

3.a My cruise to the Caribbean

b. Pasadena (aka Trip O'Fun)


Top 3 Favorite Flowers

1. gerber daisies, preferably red

2. lillies

3. hibiscus

Top 3 Favorite "comfort" foods

1. cereal

2. chewy cherry slices from Cabella's

3. oreo's

Top 3 places to shop

1. Target! My favorite place ever

2. Barnes and Noble

3. The Utah Bookstore

Top 3 opinions about Halloween

1. I like the feel of it, but I hate being scared. I hate haunted houses, won't go. I hate scary movies, won't watch.

2. I am starting to really enjoy coming up with costumes each year with Brian.

3. I LOVE LOVE LOVE seeing my kids at school dressed up and the trick or treater's

Top 3 opinions about thanksgiving

1. Oh its amazing!!! Family, food and football...the 3 fabulous F's

2. It is the start of the the Christmas season

3. The mood depends on the previous Saturday...win or loss against BYU. We prefer a W!!! Makes for a more enjoyable dinner table conversation

Top 3 opinions about Christmas

1. The music! It is my favorite thing about Christmas

2. I love the feelings, the decorations and the smells...but please don't start them until AFTER Thanksgiving

3. I hate the stress of finding presents, but I love the feeling of seeing my family and friends open their gifts. It makes it worth it each year. Oh and I love seeing what Brian gets me, every year is amazing!


Top 3 things you look forward to in the week

1. The weekend for football

2. The nights I don't have school so I can be with Brian

3. Going to sleep each night

Top 3 events happening this week

1. Halloween Party on Friday! And as a bonus, I took the day off from school!

2. Utah vs. New Mexico on Saturday

3. Its going to sound funny, but a class I am taking on Asperger's Syndrome Thursday night. I know I am a dork

I tag Heidi, Stevie and Nicole

Moab

This fall has been a different one for me. I have gone back to school to get my teaching license and for part of my masters, I am teaching part time at Sprucewood Elementary in Sandy, and I am still teaching a few classes of gymnastics each week. With all of that, it was really nice to get out of town this weekend for a quick little four wheeling trip to Moab. We left Friday morning and spent the afternoon exploring a ghost town down by Green River. It was so amazing to see all of the old buildings and the think that people use to live there.







This was an old rail way shack thingy. I might looked scared in the picture...ok I really was terrified because it was so quiet that I thought at any moment something was going to come kill us.





This was the general store at one point. I was a little less terrified because I had my man by my side but still, pretty creepy.






After spending the afternoon at the ghost town, we met up with the rest of Brian's family and found Crystal Gyeser. It apparently only explodes times a day, but someone told me the water inside was boiling, so of course I did not have the guts to look for myself. With my luck, it would have exploded in my face. We called it a night after that and set up camp.






The next day was a little more exciting. We woke up to it starting to rain, we had to get right into the cars and start the day early. It rained, and rained, and rained all day which made four wheeling a little more tricky. Luckily most of the time we were on slick rock. But we did have a few getting stuck issues that caused the men to be out in the rain, cold and mud for over an hour. After that, and then proceeding to get lost of the top of a mountain with cliffs on either side, we decided it would be best to just drive into Moab and get a hotel for the night. We spent the night walking up and down Moab, eating pizza, and watching some much needed football. It ended up being an ok night after a drama filled day.






Here are Brian and I fighting the rain at a super cool canyon. Below is a better picture of what the canyon looked like.

Sunday we spent the day at Arches National Park. I had never been there in all my years of living in Utah, so it was a really cool day. I was in awe at all of the beautiful landscapes, mountain formations, and of course the Arches. It was absolutely incredible to see.

Here I am at Delicate Arch. It is actually to the right but this was the view. It was breath taking.






Delicate Arch. It was absolutely amazing. So much better than the pictures. It made the hike up the mountain totally worth it.







This was probably my favorite parts of the weekend. There is a trail that only 4-wheel drive cars can go on that takes up up to Tower Arch. It was such a fun trail to ride on and the ending result was awesome!!! Overall, it was a super fun weekend and a quick little trip out of the city.

VOTE VOTE VOTE

I know some of you might not like him, but the team down south's coach is currently in first place. We don't want that. So click on the link below and go support Kyle! GO UTES!!!

Kyle Whittingham

So Long Sweet Summer

So as you can tell from my title, I am wishing a goodbye to summer and the happiness it brings into my life. Yes, I have been back in school teaching now since July 28, but I was still able to enjoy the wonderful outdoors at night and on the weekends. With the drop of temperature over the past week or so, I have come to the realization that fall is here and winter is not far behind.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Fall time. Football, cooler temperatures, the beautiful mountains, and tons of holidays. But there is just something about summer that makes me happy. Maybe because I was born in the summer I don't know. But even though I love fall, a little part of me gets sad this time every year. So here is a few of my favorite moments from this summer...


My Birthday was a success as always. Brian never fails to surprise me with amazing gifts. He always knows exactly what I want without me even saying a word.

We celebrated our 2 year anniversary up at Silver Lake. Brian took me up there for our first date and we had not been back since. If you know the story, you know why...but it is one of our favorite places to be.
I tried rock climbing and found out that I really like it. Hopefully I can get more into this next year with a little more time and resources (aka money haha)
We spent a lot of our time hanging out with good friends. Here we are with Andrew and Keri at the Bees Game. Oh we attended quite a few of those also. The fireworks were amazing each time.
We spent a fun weekend at my cabin down at Fish Lake. Brian found he has a long lost love for fishing. I on the other hand, spent an entire day on the boat and didn't even get a bite. I was the only one who came out a failure. But it was still fun.

Brian bought a new Four-Runner and we found that we love to go off-roading. We are hoping to visit Moab and some other cool trails this fall. Oh we also spent a couple weekends camping where we went fishing and kayaking.

In the end, I had an AMAZING summer with the the person I love more than anyone else. And I can't wait for all of the fun times ahead. Love you Bri!!! In the meantime, bring on Football!!! GO UTES!!!

Tag...hey at least it is something new

What were you doing...

10 years ago...1998

I was in a super weird stage of my life. I was in between 7th and 8th grade. I hit my growth spurt so gymnastics was starting to get hard. But pretty much I was just trying to stay normal with my friends, Cami and Sara (school) and my gym friends. It did not really work that well because we were pretty weird. Not my favorite time in my life, but I did have fun and have some great inside jokes from it. "Can I have a cheeto?" Cami will understand

5 years ago...2003

I was transitioning from SLCC to the U and I was so excited. I joined Lambda Delt and it was probably the decision that changed my life. I met my best friends, and they are the ones who will be my friends for my entire life. And I finally found that I could come out of my shell and learn to function on my own. It was a crucial time of life that has shaped me into the person I am today.

5 months ago...March

I was working at Escalante Elementary. Since then I have started at a new school as a special ed teacher, been to Hawaii, and turned 24!!!

5 things on my to do list tomorrow...

1) Wish Brian a Happy Birthday!!! 2) Go to school 3) wrap Bri's presents 4) go to dinner for his bday 5) Have fun!


5 things I would do if I was suddenly a billionaire...

1) Buy a house 2) Give some money to my family 3) Pay off debts 4) Travel...once school was over in a year. 5) Donate to MDA

5 bad habits...

1) playing with my hair 2) talking too loud 3) biting my nails 4) eating junk food 5) getting too emotional

5 places I've lived

Pretty boring...i have never lived anywhere but where I live now

I tag anyone who wants to do this!

Memories

Here are the directions:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments.

I got a job!!!

Good news!!! I finally got a teaching job! I am so excited and so absolutely relieved. I have been interviewing for about 3 weeks and I didn't enjoy it at all. But I will be teaching half time at Sprucewood Elementary in Draper. It is a year round school, but since I am special ed, I will be working a traditional schedule with options to pick up more days. I am so excited! I finally feel like I am doing what I am meant to do. It is going to be an awesome opportunity. I can't wait to start working and I am almost even more excited to be going back to school. Since I have been out of it for almost 2 years, I found how much I really missed it. The homework part of it really stinks, but I love learning. It makes it even more exciting when it is something you actually are interested it. But that is just a little update.

Happy Birthday to ME!

Yesterday was my birthday and I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who made it great! It is kind of poopy having it on a Sunday, but for what it was worth, it was awesome. I got to have a bbq with my best friends on Saturday. Then Sunday Brian and I went to church, then to my Grandma's for my PERFECT birthday dinner with all of my favorite foods. Then Brian and I had our own time to open presents and just hang out.

Oh, have I ever mentioned he is the best boyfriend ever!?!?! Well he is! He surprised me first on Friday by taking me to Salty Peaks (which is like a skate/snowboard store) and told me to pick out any long board I want!!! It has been something I have wanted for over a year but I have not had the money to buy myself. He tried to pick one out but figured it would just be best to surprise me and let me pick out my own. Of course I got a kickin RED one that rocks my world. So that was my first present. Then Sunday, he told me he had a couple more presents. Well since I had already got a freaking tight long board, I thought it would be something simple. Well part of it was. He gave me a way cute shirt, a DVD about Gordon B. Hinckley because he knows how much I loved him, and an I-Tunes gift card because I spend way to much of my money on that. I was so happy with all of those! But then came the best part! He bought me a brand new digital camera!!! I was absolutely shocked! And the best part is it is RED!!! He also got me a red case to keep it safe in. I couldn't believe it! He puts so much thought into every present he gets me and I love it. It makes birthday's and Christmas so amazing because I always get something I have always wanted or something completely thoughtful. I love him so much!!! So that was my birthday...and it was fantastic!

MDA Camp 2008

I just got home yesterday from MDA camp. It was seriously the best one I have ever had in 5 years of volunteering. My camper Kelsi and I had our own room pretty much the whole week so it was much more comfortable. We had THE BEST group ever. MAVERICK PRIDE! We dominated almost everything and ended up winning by a landslide compared to the other groups. But most of all, I got to know so many amazing people and hang out with the kids who are my heroes.
If any of you ever get a chance, I would recommend taking a week off next summer and volunteering for this camp. It will change your life. I am humbled every single time I go. I am incredibly grateful for my health. I take advantage of being able to do little things as simple as brushing my own teeth, picking something off the table, and being able to get comfortable in bed every night without someone there to move my body into a certain position. Those are the type of things I help Kelsi do each year along with much much more. I can not imagine not being able to do things on my own, and these kids live every moment of every day relying on other people.

What is especially sad is the fact that there is no cure for this disease. These kids talk all the time about how excited they are for doctor's to find a cure for Muscular Dystrophy, but a lot of them will not live long enough to see it happen. Some of the kids, like Kelsi, are still even a mystery to doctor's on what type of MD they have. It is so complex that they can not figure it out, let alone try to find a cure for it. It breaks my heart each year to have to leave because you never know which kids will be there next year, and which ones will pass on. I can truly say it is the one thing I have done in my life that has made me into the person I am today. I have learned to have so much compassion for everyone, no matter who they are or what they look like. It is something that is incredibly dear to my heart.

Even if you can not make it as a volunteer, please donate during the telethons or the "Fill the Boot" drive the Firefighters do. It will help the kids I love continue to have a fighting chance to survive and hopefully one day find a cure for muscular dystrophy.

Why I love Brian

So yesterday I went to the dentist and had to have a crown done on my back tooth. It was no fun at all. Right as they were going to put the temporary crown on, they found more decay so they had to pretty much drill and all that stuff again! During this time, my mouth and jaw wanted to just fall off. I have a tiny mouth as it is so stretching it to extreme measures is never enjoyable. Anyway, 2 hours later, I was finally done. So I called Brian and told him about it. I told him I can't eat anything chewy for a couple of weeks (meaning gum, caramel, that kinda stuff). Well he took it that I couldn't CHEW for 2 weeks. So I got to his house later and he had a "chew free" dinner ready for me. Soup, soft biscuits, and ice cream. He misunderstood what I meant, but the best part was he was trying so hard to be helpful and thoughtful so I couldn't help but smile (even though my mouth was still numb and sore). He has dinner ready for me every single time I go to his house. He sure does take care of me and I love him so much for it!

Ready for something new

So I don't give much of an update about my life, just silly little things. But I am off to start a new part of my life. I have been working at Escalante Elementary School for the past year and a half doing assistant work, working with special ed students, and this past year as an AmeriCorps Volunteer in Literacy.

Well the school year ended last Thursday and I really was sad. I cried as I walked out because all of the little kids gave me hugs and told me how much they would miss me. I couldn't help but get emotional. It has been an amazing place to work and I LOVE the kids. From my experiences there, I have decided to take a new road and try out Special Education.

So...I am going back to school. I am doing a program called the ATP program. Pretty much it is a chance for college graduates (like myself) to get their teaching licenses in a short amount of time. Plus, I get to be hired on as a teacher while I am going to school. So I get all the benefits teachers get before I technically have my license. Here is a reason why I love my job!

I am so excited! The resource teacher I have been sharing a room with all year sent me home this week with 4 boxes of stuff to have in my classroom. I was so grateful for it! I can not wait to find out where I will be teaching! Once I know, I will post it. But I couldn't help but share my exciting news with you all!!!

Oh the memories...

Fill this out about your SENIOR year of high school! The longer ago it was, the more fun the answers will be!! It is fun and enjoyable...

1. Did you date someone from your school? I went on dates with people from my school, but I never dated anyone.

2. Did you win anything in Senior's Who's Who? Nope

3. What kind of car did you drive? a 1983 Mazda 626...aka The Little Brown Bomb

4. It's Friday night...where are you? The Dollar Movies, Dees, or someone's house.

5. Were you a party animal? Nope.

6. Were you considered a flirt? I don't know, probably but I didn't realize I was.

7. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? Not my senior year

8. Were you a nerd? Probably a little, but who isn't

9. Did you get suspended/expelled? No I was the good kid

10. Can you sing the fight song? I think it goes "Hillcrest High School, Hillcrest High School,Fight on for your team. Rally 'round the green and white and show that we can fight HHS! Hillcrest High School Hillcrest High School, Awesome is our name. Fight Hillcrest Fight to show we'll win the game!!!"

11. Who were your favorite teachers? Ms. Hable and her incense burning, Enya playing ways. Mrs. Housekeeper cause she rocked. And Mrs. Payne because she was so ditzy you could talk her into anything, including giving you an A, and she would do it. It was fantastic!

12. Where did you sit during lunch? Depended on the day. A Days in the cafeteria. B Days in the hall by the choir room.

13.What was your school's full name? Hillcrest High School

14. School mascot? Huskies, you have to admit thats a pretty cool mascot.

15. Did you go to Homecoming and who with? I actually never went to Homecoming. I felt bad then, but now I realize it did not matter one bit.

16. If you could go back and do it again, would you? That's an H*** no! It was fun while it lasted, but I loved college and my life right now is a million and a half times better!

17.What do you remember most about graduation? Watching everyone cry and not being sad and thinking I had no soul (until I saw Cami that is), seeing Woody the second I walked out the door and him giving me the best hug ever, staying up all night at Hollywood Connection, and then taking off the next day to Bear Lake with no sleep. Probably not the safest thing to do.

18. Where did you go senior skip day? I don't think we technically had one of those.

19 Were you in any clubs? Seminary Council, Senior Pride, and FCCLA...I have no clue why on the last one.

20. Have you gained some weight since then? Yes, I was the size of a gymnast back then. Things have changed for sure

21. Who was your prom date? Chris Wood...aka Woody. And it was one of the best nights! Everything about it was perfect. I will always love my Woody!!! haha

22. Are you planning on going to your 10 year reunion? Well, considering I did not even go to my 5 year reunion, chances are I won't go to the 10 year either. But you never can tell...

And some more

Ok so I decided to just go ahead and put clips of all my favorite David moments on this. I am kind of bored and since I did one, I might as well go ahead and do them all.


Stand By Me



Love me Tender...and he seriously could if he wanted...haha!!!




Angels was absolutely fantastic!!!



And of course, this could not be complete without Imagine.



I might be incredibly dorky for doing this but lets be honest, everyone has a little something for him inside. Haha

I still love Archie!!!

Sad day...David A. didn't win American Idol. I won't lie, I was pretty sad. But its all good. It was a fun ride. But something that I absolutely loved more than anything was David performing with OneRepublic during the finale. I don't know what you all think, but he could totally pull off that type of music. So here it is for all of you to see. Enjoy!!!

Aloha Hawaii!!!

So I got back from Hawaii a couple days ago and it was absolutely beautiful! I am going to live there one day, trust me. We stayed at Sunset Beach on the North Shore. I fell in love with the simple way they live. Here are some pictures from the week...


This was our first stop at Pearl Harbor. We literally came from the airport here so we were running on fumes. But it still was amazing to see something that historically important. It was also our first experience with Hawaii rain, which by the way is almost more like a mist. It was actually raining while we were taking this picture but you wouldn't have even known.

This was one of the most gorgeous views. We stopped on the side of the road for some pictures. We decided to take the scenic route along the outside of the island to get to our beach house and it was totally worth it. What an amazing place!
This was the view from the back porch of our beach house. I seriously did not expect it to be so amazing but it was everything I could have asked for and more. Most of the time, no one was even around our house so it was almost like a private beach.
One of my favorite moments of the whole trip was simply Brian and I walking along the beach together. It sounds cheesy but there was nothing more romantic. So I had to document it somehow.


The temple was amazing. Driving up to it seriously was beautiful. We didn't get a chance to stay very long, but it was long enough for me to fall in love.


Our last day. On our way back to Honolulu we stopped by the Dole Plantation and this ended up being one of my favorite pics from the whole trip. It was a beautiful day and it put an end to a fantastic week with the person I love...

About me from A-Z...from Cami!

About ME from A-Z!

A- Attached or Single: Attached, and have been for a while now
B- Best Friend: Brian, Heidi, Heather and my Siggie Wiggies!
C- Cake or Pie: Hard choice, I can't decided I love them both
D- Day of Choice: Fridays. Short day at school and my day of fun with Brian each week
E- Essential Item: Chapstick
F- Favorite Color: Red and Pink
G- Gummy Bears or Worms: Neither really, they give me headaches
H- Hometown: Salt Lake City, UT.
I- Indulgences: Itunes (with Cami) and Starbucks Frappachino's
J- January or July: July, I hate winter
K- Kids: One day, but I only want a couple
L- Life is incomplete without: Brian, Family, Friends, The Gospel, and SPORTS
M- Marriage Date: Who knows? Maybe soon...
N- Number of Siblings: 2 brothers and a sister in law
O- Oranges or Apples: Both!!!
P- Phobias or Fears: Failure
Q- Quote: Live Life and Love
R- Reason to Smile: way to many to list, I have the best life!
S- Something New: Swim suits, i have bought like 4 in the past week for Hawaii!
T- Tag: Heidi
U- Unknown Fact About Me: I am not a huge fan of ice cream anymore, it makes my tummy hurt.
V- Vegetarian or Oppressor Of Animal: Oppressor of Animal apparently cause I like meat
W- Worst Habit: biting and picking at my nails or playing with my hair
X- X-Rays or Ultrasounds: Ha ha X-Rays are the way to go in my world
Y- Your Favorite Food: Cafe Rio, Papa Murph's, and The Dahl Family Carmel Popcorn. Its fantastic!
Z- Zoo Animal: Giraffe

A day in my life

So today was one of those days when you ask yourself the questions "what is happening to our world"??

Most of you know, I work at Escalante Elementary School in Rose Park. Most of the time, I love my job! It is fantastic and totally rewarding. But some days, like today, I can't wait to get out of there. I work mainly with Special Ed, but I help out with recess duty for an hour a day. Today, I had a little 2nd grader get upset because he lost his recess time for breaking a rule. He decided to say to another 2nd grader that he was going to "kill all the teachers." Well as you all know with everything that has been going on in our world for the past few years, things like that can't be taken lightly. So of course who is the one who has to deal with it, yep me. It is sad that a little 7-year-old boy had to be severely punished for saying threatening words like that. Even though he said he didn't mean it, you can't let it go. You just never know what could happen and it past experiences elsewhere in the world, things like this have been let go and major disasters have happened.
It left me wondering how bad is it really going to get. Why is a little child like this even thinking things like that, let along saying it to another student. Luckily, the boy he said it to was brave enough to tell me so he could learn a lesson that threats of any kind are not acceptable. But also, what could have happened. Is this little boy really that angry that he would do something. Just a few weeks ago in Georgia, some 3rd graders brought weapons to school and had a set-out plan on how to tie their teacher to the chair and literally kill her. It happens, and its sad.
I don't know what to blame. The parents? The media? Peers? I really believe it is a mixture of all. But maybe you all can chime in on what you think.

And so we wait...

So Saturday was the day we all look forward to, well at least my friends and family and most of the other Utah fans in the world, and that day is the Red and White Spring Game. We start talking about it the day after our bowl win. It is a chance to get a sneak peak at the future of Utah football. You also get to see old players, such as the amazing Eric Weddle, come back to coach the "rookies". And to our delight, we got to see him jump right in the middle of the game, no pads and all, to try and make a tackle. Oh how we miss him. But at the end of the day, it just leaves you CRAVING fall.

There really is nothing better in this world than stepping into Rice Eccles Stadium on a warm Fall afternoon. You hear the band playing Utah Man. You smell the hot dogs, popcorn, kettle corn, and roasted almonds. You see huge masses of red. You feel the excitement of yet another year. You already hear talk of how we can't wait to kick BYU's trash in November. You anticipate what is about to come. Will we ever have another perfect year like 2004? Will we start out the year 1-3 like 2007?

No matter what, it comes every year. Just as the sun rises and sets every day, so do the hopes and dreams of Utah fans. Fans like me, we live for this. I literally was raised on up on "the hill". My parents and grandparents used to be in charge of all the souvenirs for the Utes. So my childhood was not only attending Football, Basketball, Baseball, Gymnastics and many more Utah events, but I spent many afternoons running around the tunnels, back rooms and stadiums while my parents worked. You can count on one hand the home games I have missed in my lifetime. Most of them because of illness. I remember begging my parents to go to the 1988 Utah vs. BYU game even though I had been throwing up all morning. Yes in 1988 I was 4 years old. I knew at a young age how important those games are.

I love it! I crave it! I live for it! If the Utes lose, stay clear of my household. I dislike that team down south more than most people understand. The "pokes" could disappear into the dust of WYO and I would not shed a tear. The "Re-bels, Re-bels" could gamble themselves into the ground and I would not miss them. Its all about the Utes! Even though I am dating a BYU fan, and truly love him more than anything, I will not budge. I love my Utes! Win or lose, they are my team.

So after a fun day like yesterday, we wait. We wait and anticipate another fantastic season, full of blow outs ( Utah 44 UCLA 6 or Utah 50 WYO 0) or nail-biters (pretty much every BYU game, which PS...revenge is oh so sweet). So until then, I enjoy summer. Baseball, boating, camping and relaxing, but never letting the thought of fall leave my mind.

"I am a Utah man sir and I will be 'til I die" GO UTES!!!

Ready for an update??

Ok so I figured it was time to get back on this thing and update my life. But really, nothing new has happened. Haha!!! I am two weeks away from my fabulous vacation to Hawaii!!! Woohoo! I have started the tanning process, which I hate. But apparently it will do me good. I have also started the famous "I am going on vacation in 2 weeks and I am not totally happy with how I look in a swim suit" Diet. Long name I know, but you all know what I am talking about. So its fruits and veggies pretty much all day, with one small, healthy meal. The first few days were really not so hard, but today posed a challenge. I woke up hungry, but still stuck to the Special K and toast breakfast. (Pretty much the only carbs of the day). I was hungry all morning and wanted to bad to go to Subway for lunch. But did I? No way! I was strong and went to the teachers lounge and ate my strawberries, yogurt, celery and carrots. And you know what, I felt really good about it! It felt good to know I have self-discipline and I CAN get through the next 14 days!

I know it doesn't seem like a big deal to most of you, but I was really proud of myself and wanted to share with everyone.

Oh ya, and GO UTES! Red and White Game Saturday!!!

Hawaii

I got really excited the past couple of days. I am going to Hawaii on May 2, which is less than a month away. I have not let myself get excited for the past month because I have had just way too much to get done before I could leave Utah for a week and not stress about my job, my future school plans, and life in general. But I decided this week that I need to stop stressing so much about things and get excited for my first trip to the islands! I get to go for a week and stay in a beach house right on the beach. We are staying about 15 minutes for Waimea Bay on Sunset Beach. From what I hear, it is a fantastic place to stay so I can not wait.

So I have a couple questions. First of all, I need to find cute swim suits/board shorts/cute warm clothes. If anyone has any suggestions, please oh please let me know.

Second, are there any places I HAVE to see when I go to Hawaii? I am up for any suggestions. I am so excited!!! Oh my goodness!

A pretty cool opportunity

So I got a pretty cool phone call today. I was recommended by the woman who is the head of my program to be filmed in a documentary. For those of you who do not know what I do, I have been an AmeriCorps member for the past year working at Escalante Elementary School. I do most of my work there with literacy and I love it. I tutor and teach mainly 1st and 2nd graders in reading. So I will be filmed tutoring a young kid. The cool thing is that it will be shown at a Hope of America concert which is expected to have 25,000 people there. And then it later should be shown on PBS as a documentary. I suppose it is going to be pretty cool, but I swear the people at my school are more excited about it than I am. Maybe they know something I don't, who knows. But I am filming this Friday so I will post a blog on how it all goes and all the details about it when I find out more. But I thought this was a pretty good first blog. Haha

Giving it a try

Well hello everyone! So this is my first blog ever. I have been meaning to do it forever, but Heidi starting kicked me into gear. I have a few friends who talk about doing this and how great it is to keep up to date with what everyone is doing. So this is my attempt to keep in touch with my wonderful friends!