A weight lifted off your shoulders

Do you ever feel like a weight has just been lifted off your shoulders?


I just experienced that feeling once again on Thursday when I cut off 7 inches of hair.  If I would have known I was only 1 inch away from donating my hair I would have gone shorter but we didn't measure until after. Oh well, maybe I can grow out my hair again someday.  Until then I am loving my shorter hair!! I'll add better pictures later...all I have now is my little ponytail stub that I just love! (I wish I would have done before and after pictures!)

 My new stub

Sporting my camera and hair lol

April 28, 2012: The Twin Falls Temple

I am loving angel Moroni

I am so blessed that I was able to go to the Twin Falls Idaho Temple yesterday! We have been planning to go through the temple with Brent’s friend from high school and his wife…so our friends Tim and Keeley. We have been looking forward to this weekend for about a month, but I didn’t realize we still needed to make a reservation until Thursday, and then, the session was all full. Talk about heart ache!! After many text messages during work and a few phone calls to the temple we were able to get into the schedules 8:00am session. Lesson learned…always call the temple as soon as you know you are going to be attending. We have to call ahead of time because the Boise temple is being renovated so everyone goes to Twin Falls on the weekends and it get filled up very quickly.

Such a beautiful spring morning!

We left Boise at 5:15am to drive to Twin Falls to get there nice and early to be prepared for the session with Brent’s cousin Chad and his wife Kate. They are awesome and it was nice to be able to drive together. Tim and Keeley received their endowments and then were sealed together right after. Being sealed is such a great thing because when you are married legally, it is only until Death do you part, but when you are sealed together by someone holding the priesthood power that married or sealing is eternal! Your perspective on life definitely changes when you know you are together eternally.  We were all dressed in our temple attire for the sealing because we had just completed an endowment session. That was a new experience for me to go to a sealing room all dressed in white. Man I am a succor for sealings. Unfortunately I don’t remember a lot of what was said in my sealing, so I try to pay extra attention to what is said in others. I love the three pieces of advise that their sealer gave them, and I am excited to apply it in my life.

Awesome Friends L-R Combe's, Johnston's, Wolfs, Tim's Step-Dad,
Pearman's, Jan Combe

1. Read and study The Family: A Proclamation to the World http://www.lds.org/family/proclamation?lang=eng  


2. Attend the temple often. Go to the temple where you were sealed. 


3. Have family prayer, twice a day. Pray and express gratitude for your spouse.

I loved hearing this counsel because not only does it help to point me in the right direction but it makes me feel good to know that I am already striving to do that in my marriage. Have we succeeded in all of those? No, but we are always trying and that is what I feel is most important. There are times we slip up but hey, we’ve got a long haul ahead of us! That’s why I think sealings are so amazing, because it helps us all remember that we really are in it for the long haul. I am so proud of Tim and Keeley, and I am so grateful that they let us join them on their special day!

My Mom and Dad

Not only was I glad to go to the temple yesterday for Tim and Keeley, I was glad to go to the temple for me. 12 years ago yesterday my Dad and brother Kevin were killed in a car accident. I was 13 when it happened and it is crazy for me to think that I have lived almost as long without them here as I did with them. Dad and Kevin are still such a part of my life, but there are definitely times I wish that they were more. I talk to Brent about my Dad and how excited I am for them to meet. It took me a while to realize that I kind of freaked Brent out by saying that haha- I was not saying that I couldn’t wait for Brent to die, but more that I couldn’t wait to see all my family together again!

Forgive my pictures of pictures...I had to work with what I had.  This is a picture
of me and my Dad one week before he died.  We were on a walk while in Provo
and we decided to stop and pick flowers for my sister who was pregnant and sick.

My older brother Kevin

There was no better place for me to be yesterday to remember them than at the Temple. The Temple is important to me because my parents were married and sealed in the Idaho Falls temple and each of their children are sealed to them for time and all eternity...not just death til you part. I remember at their funeral I had friends come up to me who were crying more than I was… and I did my fair share of crying. I couldn’t understand why they were so distraught and I eventually figured out it was because I knew I was sealed to my parents and siblings. I knew then that I would see my Dad and brother again, and I still know that just as much. Our Heavenly Father has a great plan for each and every one of us. Sometimes we do not know what that plan is, but He does. I am learning to trust in his plan, and I know that it is something that I will constantly be learning to do.

Happy Easter

It is Easter morning and I thought it would be appropriate to take a few minutes to update this blog. I was looking online for a picture that I wanted to include of Christ, but I could not find any that I loved of him and the resurrection. It was interesting to be looking around online and seeing all the different renditions of Christ. I am so grateful that have a smidgen of an idea of who he is and what he did for me. I realize that there is so much more that I can learn and that I try to learn everyday, but having the understanding that he is my Savior and that he atoned for my sins personally has done so much to help me. What a wonderful thing it is to know that Christ died for me, but most importantly that he lives again!

Our new apartment

We have finally moved and settled into our new apartment. I am really happy about that fact. We decided to move a few months ago because our contract was ending and Brent had officially had one too many cold showers!! It was a hard decision because we really like out cheap ghetto apartment that we were living in. We could totally afford more, but we chose to live in a simple and cheap apartment. I know that as soon as we go up in size and quality it would be hard to go back, so we stayed nice and cheap for as long as we could. Unfortunately the time to move came, and it was not pleasant to find a new place to live. I never knew how many scams there were on Craigslist for apartments. I would get myself so excited for a great place I found, but would only end up being disappointing. It was starting to become more that I wanted to deal with. If it wasn't a scam, we were one phone call too late....it had just been rented!!

I finally found an apartment that looked like it had all of our qualifications...2 bedroom, garage, and an upgrade from our current apartment. We were not asking for a lot, but it was sure hard to come by. Anyhow I found a place that I liked with an extended 2-car garage and we were the first people to look at it and we gave them the papers that day. We knew that we would be able to get it so we were finally able to move forward with out move.

I thought that looking for an apartment was bad, but apparently moving was just as bad. Brent does not like to move, so he was less than motivated to move, but he was a trooper and moved anyways. Thankfully our awesome bro in law Kasey helped Brent move all of the big furniture, and the Jacobson's helped us clean after everything was out of our old apartment. What a great blessing!!! I am so grateful that we had great family to help us move and clean!

We are super pleased with our new apartment. It has a 2 car garage so Brent will be able to start working on his car that he is restoring. That was a big factor for us deciding to move and I am so grateful we made that decision. It has been fun to have the garage because we have so many projects that we are always working on and it is nice to have the space.

Yesterday when we were driving home from Home Depot with a table saw that we just bought Brent and I were talking about how we are a little different than a lot of people we know because we are always busy working on lots of cool projects. I have learned that it is about the process of making something that is pretty incredible, and not just the outcome (maybe that's because I usually screw up the outcome, but have a good time doing it :) It's all about Finding Joy in the Journey!

I was reminded of Brent's comment this morning while I was outside on our deck grinding wheat for a batch of homemade wheat bread I was making. That sucker of a wheat grinder is loud!! Our poor neighbors are not going to love us between my loud wheat grinder from this morning, or the table saw yesterday. Oh well, what can you do right? We don't have kids that cry all night long for the neighbors to hear yet, instead we have lots of noisy power tools!!

I wish that I had some cool pictures to post, but unfortunately I don't. I have had a few different things that I wanted to write about in the past, but didn't because I didn't have pictures. In the end I decided to write this for me, and it is okay that I don't have pictures for now.

Happiness

This is my quote of the day from Brent. First let me give a little background so you understand why this was worth remembering. Pet names are not really our thing. I call Brent hunny, which sometimes turns into hunny bunny. I will call him puppy because he loves puppies and often acts like a puppy. That is about it. Brent in return will call me hunny which makes me melt a little, but for the most part he calls me nerd, crazy, and many other names which I can't think of at the moment. Not your typical "cute" name, but I totally know that is his term of endearment for me and it cracks me up.

Yesterday while we were sitting on the couch finishing up dinner (yeah not my favorite place, but it's not worth debating, especially after a long day of work)... Brent looks at me and asks "Do you think we are always going to be this happy?" Yeah we are, because happiness is a choice and we decided a long time ago that we are going to be happy together.

Utah Winter Weddings

Brent's Sister Jennifer got married on January 21st in the Bountiful temple. We are super excited for her and Kasey to be married. It was a weekend full of so many wonderful and crazy memories all wrapped up into a couple of days.

We decided to take off work on Friday and go down to Utah early. In the end, we did not really get to Utah as early as we would have like because we did not leave here until probably 1pm. I was okay with that because it meant we had time to pack and get ready for the weekend. Normally we decide to work half of the day, so the night before we are up late packing and we can never leave at noon. This way we were actually able to leave at at 1pm and get to Utah at a somewhat decent hour.

I love having Michelle and Derrick live in Ogden. Ogden is so much closer than Provo, so it makes the drive so much better. I don't have the fondest memories of driving to BYU because it felt soooo long. We stayed with Michelle and Derrick and went to dinner with them. I was a little bummed because we were going to go to a sushi restaurant because Brent and Michelle love sushi. I detest the idea of raw fish but I figure it would be a good time out and I can afford to starve for a night. Unfortunately when we got to the restaurant there was a 45 minute wait, and we were starving. Instead we found a little hole in the wall sandwich shop which was great. After dinner we went back to the house and played Ticket to Ride. So much fun!!! We had never played before, but Brent won, and we had a good time. Michelle does not like games to take a lot of time so I feel like we played a speed version of Ticket to Ride, but we managed to end at a decent hour. That is a game on my list that I want to get!!

I remember back in the good old days when Brent and I used to be able to cuddle on the couch, but it just doesn't seem to work as well for long periods of time. I was in charge of packing our stuff (basically because Brent didn't) and the thought never crossed my mind to bring a sleeping bag/pad. We attempted to sleep together on the couch, but it was so cramped!! About half way through the night I decided that it would be better to be uncomfortable on the floor instead of on the couch with Brent happily snoring I mean purring in my ear. Needless to say, that was not the best night of sleep I've ever had. I think we decided before important things like weddings we would splurge and stay at a hotel...just so we look somewhat decent in the morning.

The Big Day!!!

Jenn and Kasey's wedding was at 10:30 in the Bountiful Temple so we left with plenty of time to get us there by 10:00am. Thankfully it was not snowing, but it was raining like CRAZY!!!!! We had umbrellas but I don't know if it did us any good. I felt like I was soaked by the time we got in. We walked into the temple right at 10:00 and Joanna informed us the Jenn and Kasey were still not there. (FYI you are supposed to be to the temple at least an hour before you are sealed). I was able to meet some of Brent's family that lives in Utah that I have not met before so we were able to use our waiting time wisely.

This is the first sealing that I have been to since we were married. I just love sealings!! They are so powerful. It brought back a flood of memories from July and I am so glad that we were able to be apart of that with them. A sealing does not last long and is not glamorous, but it always focuses on those things that are most important. I am so grateful to know that families can be sealed for time and eternity and that there is no reason to be afraid of death. Life is a journey we get to take together and a fun one at that!!

After the wedding it was still pouring down rain. We were behind schedule so we left to go to the luncheon in downtown Bountiful. After the luncheon some of the family was going back to the temple to take pictures, but we already had plans to see Kailia and her new baby, so we didn't head back to the temple. When we were driving to Kailia's house the rain turned into huge snowflakes! The weather was crazy! We were driving along 4 lane roads where the two outside lanes were flooding because there had been so much rain. This was the first day that I had ever seen Brent hold a baby. I don't know if it was by his choice or the fact that Kailia put her in his arms and no one would take her back. It was too cute. She didn't cry once while he was holding her, but we are pretty sure that there was a possibility he might freak out a little bit if she did.

While we were at Kailia's house Brent got a call from his Mom saying how they were stuck at the temple and they could not get down the roads because of the snow. It was beginning to turn into a crazy night. We were supposed to be heading to Randolph Utah, which was about 2 hours up the Mountains near Evanston Wyoming. I am not a fan of driving in the snow even though we have a truck and the ability to handle it, it is still not my favorite thing. Brent's family was in a car so they were not as equipped as we were. I did not feel good at all about going to the reception because the roads were terrible! They were closing the canyon roads and everyone kept telling us to stay and not go.

Finally Brent made the final decision that we should not go, and man was I happy! By the time we would have got to the reception it would be ending. I am sad that we missed the reception but I am so grateful that we stayed behind. I feel so strongly that I cannot pray for safety if I am not going to listen to the promptings of the spirit. I remember President Hinckley telling a group of missionaries to not do stupid things and they will be protected (or something like that!) Another determining factor was the opportunity to stay in Salt Lake City. We found a sweet hotel deal on Priceline for only $69 so it cost about the same to stay.

Our Fun Date Night!!

Brent and I love Texas Roadhouse and that is normally where we go out to dinner. Nothing fancy, but we love it like that. We hadn't stayed in a hotel and done anything nice since our honeymoon 6 months ago. (yeah even on our honeymoon we went to Texas Roadhouse in IF). Like I said we got a hotel from Priceline for only $69. We stayed at the Sheraton in downtown SLC. We were only 4 blocks away from Temple Square, which was really nice. They put us is a King Suite (originally $249:) and we were feeling a little spoiled. Since we did not get sushi on Friday night, we went to Benihana's where Brent was able to get sushi. What a blast!! They cooked the food right in front of us and put on a bit of a show. We had a fantastic time together doing something a little bit out of the ordinary. We got a chance to walk around downtown as it was snowing and just enjoy the simplicities of life. Unfortunately it was not as good of a time because we were worried about family that was driving, but we made the best of it.

Sunday morning we woke up early... but it was hard because we had such a huge and comfy bed. Just for the record I am not a fan of a king size bed (I am sure that will change when we have kids that take over though) because Brent was so far away. I have gotten used to the fact that we are always bumping into each other in our Queen bed...but that's how I know Brent is there :) Anyhow...back on topic...we went to Music and the spoken word on Sunday. AMAZING!! I have always wanted to go, but I have never made it before. We were late, but it was still fantastic. Afterwords we walked around temple square that had a fresh blanket of snow on it. What a beautiful place it is. I love the spirit that you can feel when you are at the house of the Lord. We did not stay there long because we had to check out of the hotel and drive home, but we were there long enough. I love being able to go at our own pace and do what we want. No one was rushing us and we were able to bask in the great beauty around us.

It was amazing to be on Temple Square. I love the contrast from the day before. It was overcast all day long and pouring down rain/snow. The next day is absolutely gorgeous. It was definitely worth the wait, just like most things in life!

I love this picture...my favorite is the light post, not sure why.

Thank goodness for little tripods!

Isn't she a beauty? Yeah that's right, this flower is a she because she is a fighter. Blooming through the snow and cold. That is how I want to be!

Happy Birthday to Brent and Joanna!

My Sister-in-law Lisa invited all the family over on Sunday to celebrate Brent and Joanna's birthdays. I have been thinking for a long time what kind of cake to make Brent for his birthday and I decided to do a lemon cake. I have no idea what his favorite dessert is because he likes everything! He likes lemon, so I thought this would be a good option. I used the same recipe that Ashley used to make our cupcakes for our wedding. (It works out because today was our 6 mo anniversary too :)

Anyhow, back on topic...Ashley made cupcakes, but I wanted to try my hand at a double layer lemon cake with lemon custard deliciousness in the middle. I am always skeptical, because I can mess up anything really well...I would almost go so far as to say it is my gift haha. It was pretty fun to work on Saturday night because Brent had a bachelor party he went to so I got to have the night to baking by myself! I learned that when you put a cake on top of the custard it manages to ooze out the sides. It was really quite an adventure, but I really enjoyed taking lots and lots of time to make the cake, filling, frosting, and candied lemons. It was definitely worth the time too because it was nothing like an ordinary cake. I am not a fan of cake, but this is a whole new ball game. I am so so glad that Ashley shared her masterpiece with me...and I will share it with you. If you like lemons...do yourself a flavor and try this :)

Triple Lemon Cupcakes

24 cupcakes

*I used Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme cake mix… but any lemon cake mix should be fine.

Filling:

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 T lemon zest
2 eggs
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice (about 5 large lemons)
2 T butter

Combine sugar, zest, and eggs in saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a whisk. Cook until sugar dissolves and mixture is light in color (about 3-5 minutes). Add lemon juice and butter; cook for 5 minutes (whisking constantly) or until mixture thinly coats the back of the spoon. Remove from heat, pour into container. Cool to room temperature. Cover and chill. The mixture will thicken as it cools.

Frosting:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
4 T lemon juice
4 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp lemon zest

Beat together butter, cream cheese and lemon juice on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating on low speed until incorporated. Add lemon zest and increase speed to medium-high and beat until smooth.

To assemble:
I used a Wilton #230 round tip to fill the cupcakes (I bought mine at Walmart in the wedding supply isle). Fill a piping bag fitted with tip 230 with lemon curd, and pipe into the center of each cupcake. It can be tricky to know HOW MUCH to pipe- but just squeeze a little bit in until you notice the cupcake puff up a little bit. You will know you’re using too much filling if a lot of it leaks out, or the cupcake explodes. If some filling leaks out the top- don’t panic, just wipe it softly with a dry paper towel.

Fill a second piping bag fitted with a large star tip with frosting and pipe a swirl onto the top of each cupcake.