2013 In Review!

Now that Christmas is over, the NEW YEAR is almost here! HOLY CRAP! This year seriously FLEW by! I hate how fast time goes, but at the same time I'm so excited for our future.

I worked at an awesome dance studio in Utah called Center Stage Performing Arts. Seriously, anyone in UT that wants their kids to dance, go there! 

D and I got to travel all over Utah visiting various LDS temples which is always really cool to see.
We got to see the king of country, George Strait, for the second time! It was so special because it's his last tour. =(

D got into 3 law schools and we decided to go to one in D.C.! 

I turned 21 and D turned 24! 

D graduated at BYU with his bachelors in history.

We moved back up to Alaska to work for the summer with my Dad's business.
We celebrated our 1st anniversary! 

Thinking we were only going to be in AK for only a couple months, we decided to defer law school for a year. It was a really tough decision, but it actually works out for the best. We are able to save way more money and D can have a longer mental break from school.

I started this blog =)

We traveled all over AK including lots of hunting and fishing.

I started a couple new hobbies, cinematography and photography! 

D and I got to go to Hawaii, which was AMAZING!

I spent Thanksgiving with my family for the first time in 3 years.

D and I went to Vegas for a month to be with his family for Christmas.

2014 will be so good to us! So many changes are going to be happening! I can't wait!

Merry Christmas!

This Christmas is my first Christmas without snow... It isn't quite the same. I'm one of those weird people who love the cold, especially for Christmas time. But I'm trying to embrace warm Las Vegas the best I can.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Have No Fear

Yesterday we went to a duck pond that probably had close to 100 birds there! Birds are one of the many fears of mine. I tend to always say, "That's my worst fear!" whenever someone mentions something kind of scary. That fear ends up on my fear list. I wish I didn't have that many fears.. But the world is scary!

After my encounter with the birds yesterday, I then remember this boy in Hawaii that I was observing (I told you I have a bad obsession of  people watching). If you can't tell, this boy has Down Syndrome and he had NO FEAR! This beach we were at had really big waves even though in the pictures they don't look that big. This boy would run into the waves, they would crash over him and he would get washed back up to the beach and then he would repeat! He wasn't scared for his life. He was having so much fun! It made me think about how much fun life can be if we can sometimes forget about our fear of heights (or whatever your fears may be) and just jump off the cliff into the water and enjoy the rush! 

That is easier said then done... but I am going to work on not being so fearful in life! Life is wonderful and it needs to be enjoyed!

My Utah Weekend

I got to go to Utah this past weekend! I was lucky enough to be just one state over instead of 3,000 miles away from my best friend's wedding! I flew in Thursday afternoon, ate the the delicious burger joint of Five Guys, and then got to see Alie, Chris, and Ciara all go through the Bountiful temple. It was really beautiful I got to stay at Grandpa Ashby's house and Alie and I realized it was our first sleep over we have had in over a year and a half!! It was fun to be able to have girl time with her again before her big day!

Friday we ran a lot of last minute errands for the wedding on Saturday. We ate at a place called Italian Village. If you hang out with the Ashby/Hefner clan you will learn that they LOVE food. I'm thankful to have had opportunities to try new places like IV. They had a delicious bender (a calzone thingy) and it wasn't that expensive which is always a bonus!

Saturday was the BIG DAY for Alie and Chris! Grandpa Ashby made a delicious breakfast and then the morning got crazy! I took pictures of everyone getting ready that I forgot to do my own hair for the wedding! HAHA Oh well =) They day went by really fast. The wedding was beautiful, the food and friends were amazing, and I got to see some family and old friends after the reception! Overall it was an amazing trip but I was ready to get back to Dallan at the end =)

Some previews of getting ready!

 

Group hug =)

Bridesmaids!

Fun staying up til 1:30 AM with these two crazies! Nothing is boring with these two.

People Watching

I wrote this on my phone in the airport while I was waiting to board my flight to Salt Lake City!

I have a problem... It's called "people watching."

I love it, especially at airports!

I love seeing what people do in their spare time and how they react to things. I try not to stare too long though because it probably makes them so uncomfortable. 

I do not judge them by their looks or anything else to make myself feel better. I just like watching people be. I am thoroughly interested in their lives. I always wonder where they are going and why. People are so interesting! 

I love seeing complete strangers interact with each other. It feels good to know that we can all become childlike and make a friend or even to just be friendly to people we don't know at all. 

I try to be as sociable as possible.. But a lot of the time I don't have the courage to ask complete strangers their names and where they are from. 

Missing Utah

 Dallan and I made it to Vegas!!! It's so good seeing his family after 8ish months. I actually slept on the airplane for a couple hours too! BONUS!

It's funny how our perspectives can change as we mature and get older.

 When I was younger I always said I would NEVER go to school or live in Utah. Period. I don't know why but I always said that. Even after graduating high school I still had this weird vendetta against Utah, but of course ended up going to college there because at the time that was the only "less scary" move to make because it was a state I was somewhat familiar with besides Alaska. 

Now the first semester was hell. I hated it and almost quit college to move back to Alaska. It was a weird time.. I don't do well with change at all. I had to learn to be an adult really fast and never felt more alone. Obviously I sucked it up and finished my met my husband there, got my Associates Degree and all that fun stuff. 

After moving away from Utah this past April, I find myself missing it! It's the weirdest thing. I still know I could never live there permanently, but I will definitely visit frequently. Utah has a unique beauty to it and it will always hold a special place in my heart. It's funny how you have to move away from some place to really appreciate it. The same thing happened when I moved away from Alaska for college! 

ONLY ONE MORE DAY UNTIL I'M IN UTAH!!! I'm so excited for my best friend's wedding and I seriously can't wait to see all my friends!

A couple of my amazing roommates who I miss dearly!

The Pure Evil Of Packing

The title says it all... I HATE PACKING! I never know what to bring and when I pack, I ALWAYS forget something or I over pack and I don't even wear half the clothes I brought. Dallan and I are going to Vegas for a month for Christmas and that means I have to bring enough stuff for a month., plus all the wedding stuff for Alie's wedding. I'm writing this so I don't have to pack because I always pack last minute. Procrastinate much? 

Also I HATE red eye flights. We bought our tickets like 4 months ago and purposely got them so they weren't going to be a red eye flight. But you know how the airlines like to play jokes right? Well a few weeks ago they emailed us saying our flight has changed to the lovely red eye flight.. That means I will be up for more than 30 hours at least!  Lord knows I don't sleep on planes, so yes, I will be up from 8ish in the morning on the 9th until I go to bed on the 10th. It just throws off my sleep schedule and takes a good couple days to get it back. Not looking forward to that obviously.

And I have been really procrastinating editing video from our Hawaii trip! But I assure you that it is half way done.. I'm hoping to post it next week! =)

Some Things That Made Me Laugh Today

Jimmy FALLON, not KIMMEL... I always get them mixed up! Anyways, I love when his song parodies and skits pop up on the social networks. I don't avidly watch his talk show, but boy is he funny! I also love the celebrities he chooses to be in them because most of the time I love them just as much!

 Here are some videos that made me laugh:

I'm guilty of hash tagging.. It's good to laugh at yourself right??

Have I mentioned I love Justin Timberlake?? Yup, even since the N'SYNC Days!!! 

"You're Not Pregnant Yet?!"

I am generally a pretty positive and happy person. I would say I'm positive about 85% of the time. I see life in a clear view and can see a bright future for myself. If I say, "I'm ALWAYS happy and never negative," well that's a blatant lie. No one can be happy all the time. It's impossible because we are human beings. With that said..

I wrote this post a couple weeks ago.. I have been debating on even posting it because it may hurt others feelings, but I'm posting it anyways. My feelings have been hurt too. It's life. So sorry in advance if it does. This also isn't directed towards any certain persons. It is just in general since day one of marriage. 

Before I continue, let me remind you, this is MY blog, MY journal, and MY outlet to be creative, or to just vent. So if you don't like what you're reading, then stop now. I don't care.

Has anyone else without kids, been told time and time again, "Oh you're not a mom though, you don't understand."?

As a "newly wed" (1.5 years married) in the Mormon culture the thing that happens AS SOON as you get married is, "When's the baby due?" "Time to get it started!" "How come you aren't pregnant yet?" IT'S SO ANNOYING! I mean how insensitive are people these days?! I usually just laugh it off saying something like, "haha not yet." But sometimes I just want to say (and I have said it once..), "What if we are trying but we can't get pregnant?!" And boy did it shut them up and that particular person has yet to ask me again. It is like some people look at me only being 21 years "old", with no kids in sight or on the way, and think all my eggs have dried up! That doesn't make me feel good AT ALL. I then get all stressed out thinking I'm so old and that I'll be an old maid by the time I have kids, and that clearly is false! 

For the record, D and I are not pregnant and are not trying to be because that's what WE want right now! And yes I get baby hungry from time to time but the timing isn't right for us. I am not old, I am young, I still have PLENTY of time to have children. Just let me enjoy this time with my husband. It is none of your business when we decide to start our family. It is between God, Dallan, and I.

I love kids, and I will have them someday but man, sometimes talking to newer moms just drives me nuts! They (not all new moms do this, but some) act like I don't know that babies are fragile, new, and their immune systems aren't fully developed. DUHHH! I wasn't born in a cave. I have been around enough babies in my lifetime, babysat 100 times and have taken many health classes to know a lot about the human body and about babies. I also understand that moms have a special bond with their babies. But how different can it really be from people who adopt or take care of another's child? I have a few little kids in my life that I love like they are my own. I would do anything for them. I feel this is the motherly nature of every women in this world to love any child that comes into their life whether they have felt them kick in the womb or not. 

It just irks me! Obviously it is a hot spot for me.. Maybe I am a little jealous of new moms, but not only that but it is a CONSTANT question that bugs that crap out of me in the Mormon culture. I love my Church, it is a big part of who I am, but sometimes the culture drives me nuts.

So in the future, Please stop asking me! That would be greatly appreciated.

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year!

December is my favorite month of the year! It's so crazy how FAST this year has gone. It seems like yesterday Dallan and I were in Utah for his last semester at BYU. 

I have a lot of things to look forward to this month. I'm trying to soak every bit of December in Alaska before I head to Vegas for the remainder of the year!

My December Countdown:

9 Days until Vegas!

11 Days until I fly to Utah!

13 Days until my best friend gets married!

23 Days until Christmas Eve!

24 Days until my FIRST Christmas with my in-laws!

30 Days until New Years Eve!

AND

 31 Days until my New Year's resolution starts! 

My parent's small tree this year. They didn't want to put the big one up since Christmas will be smaller at their house this year.

HAPPY DECEMBER EVERYONE!