THANK YOU to the parents who get it!

I have worked with children for the past 8 years of my life between both preschool and swimming lessons.  Because of this, I have worked with literally HUNDREDS of parents, and I just want to give a quick shout out and and appreciation to the parents who just get it.

thank you to the parents who know their child is capable of making a mistake, and that their child was not a victim in every situation. 

thank you to the parents who know that my time is just as valuable as theirs. 

thank you to the parents who don't try to bargain and cut a deal with me, just because they know me really well. (Trust me, I would love to be able to give more swimming lesson deals, but because it's my ONLY source of income in the summers, I can't afford to give discounts)

thank you to the parent's who took time to get to know me (even if just a little bit... "how was your weekend?") 

thank you to the parents who work with their child at home! Whether school or swimming- when they get it more than once they are far more likely to succeed!

thank you to the parents who expressed their appreciation!!! Whether you gave me a nice "end of the year gift", wrote a small note, or just gave me that genuine hand shake and expressed any form of appreciation, that goes a long way and makes my job worth it!

thank you to the parents who see how difficult it can be working with young children and give me little compliments or words of encouragement.  

thank you to the parents who have given me referrals making it possible for Bryan and I to pay our rent each summer.

thank you to the parents who share the stories of their child's successes at home ("My child fell into the pool but was able to swim to the side!" or "My child was able to identify the first letter of their name in a book we read together tonight!")

thank you to parents who give their children incentives! seriously! I even like the occasional bribe because it usually gets kids to conquer their fears.

thank you to the parents who expressed concern, because of this I can help make changes to benefit the child's needs. 


I can't believe I have another school year in the bag! Although this year was extremely difficult and I complained about it almost daily, because of success I was able to see in my students both socially and academically it makes it TOTALLY worth it.  Here's to a summer full of SWIMMING LESSONS!

Utah doesn't get enough street cred.

we love moab. 

Bryan is the best adventure partner ever. 

we are still in love & we have a good time. 

 

 

As of lately update:

i'm not pregnant, but everyone else is pregnant

school is almost out which means its almost swimming lesson season

this weather is making me CRAZY for summer

I'm volunteering a shiz ton

we have been married for a long time

Pretty Much Perfect.

It has been a long time since I last blogged
I have thought about how I should a lot... but I couldn't get myself to sit down and do it. 

I've been looking at a lot of blogs/instagrams/social medias lately and I have found a common theme of all the bloggers out there, and how it appears to me that they all lead perfect lives. They dress impeccably, have the most gorgeous children, and wake up at 5:45 am to go to the gym and post a picture of their perfectly balanced breakfast.
It made me feel quite inadequate to blog, and sort of in life in general.  I mean, obviously I'm not a fashion blogger, nor could I ever be, or want to be for that matter, but they all seem to be just so perfect, right? So I have been trying to convince myself that is a stupid reason to stop blogging, because I don't do it for other people, I do it for myself, really.  I don't keep a journal or anything like that, so a blog is the best record of my most random thoughts I have over the years. 

While I was looking at others blogs, I just found myself asking "seriously? is this really your life? Do you always look like this? Do you always eat like that? Can you really afford to dress yourself/your child like that?" and I just have to keep reminding myself that the answer has to be no.  

Social media is giving me serious brain damage apparently.  of course people aren't all they are portrayed in their best pictures.  But sheesh... it seems like a lot of pressure.  

Like I said, I certainly do NOT consider myself a "blogger" at all! but I find people always commenting on things like Instagram saying  "oh my gosh you guys are perfect!" "You look so good" "I want your life" etc.  I am not here to brag and say that everyone wants my life (i'm 99% sure no one would actually want my life), but even I fell into feeling this pressure of looking, acting, and portraying myself in a certain way.  Like people would literally be disappointed in me if I gained any of my weight back, or people would hate knowing that Bryan and I (although we are very much in love) have certainly had our share of goof ups and arguments. and of course I have with both of those things! but it's like I can't let people know.

Now, I'm not going to do anything drastic like delete all my social media, because I really do enjoy it.  I don't want to get rid of it completely because it occasionally drives me crazy. It's a good way to stay in touch, or see pictures of amazing & beautiful places (and there are a lot of great whale pictures on instragram), but I don't even know what to do.  I know I can't be alone with this sense of pressure.  I read an article not too long ago about people who take a lot of selfies RARELY post the first one they take- they take  tons, sometimes literally hundreds before they get the perfect picture they find worthy of showing to the world.  If I posted the first picture I took, it's usually an accidental frontward facing camera and all I see is my double chin and up my nose.  Now, I probably wouldn't be getting tons of "I want your life" after a picture like that. 

Of course I like getting nice comments and positive feedback on my pictures.  I love comments that say "I love you two!" and even a nice one like "you look so pretty" if I happened to get ready and felt good that day!  but I almost cringe at ones that say "you are perfect".  Seriously. I love my life, and I feel extremely blessed, and I am happy, but please don't get confused and think my life is perfect, because it certainly isn't, and I don't want the pressure to have to pretend that it is.  

I'm done comparing myself to other people based on pictures and thinking my life is lame if I'm not traveling to far away countries and eating expensive food.  I have never been happier with my tight-budget, occasionally messy, basically standard routine, hilariously ridiculous life.  

and with that, I don't "want" anybody else's life.  

Sh*t I've Learned While Being Married

On November 21, 2013 
I made the easiest and best decision of my life. 

Although I have had anxiety for the last 2 months about "no longer being a newly wed" and coping with those feelings… I have had time to reflect on how much fun this past year has been. 

Perfect? No. 

Different than I imagined? Sort of. 

Hard? Sometimes

Still the Best Thing Ever? Yes

It's only been a year, but another year older, another year wiser.  here is a list of things I've learned along the way... 

Share Your Treats!!! That shiz comes full circle over time. If you don't share the cupcake your neighbor dropped off, he won't share his freshly baked Dunford Donut next week. (We always know when you eat treats and don't share!)


Choose your battles.  Obviously someone you live with is going to bother you occasionally.  Tell them the things that are worth sharing, but don't pick apart every single thing they do "wrong". 

Get a hobby together.  People told us this… we chose corn hole, shooting guns, and watching Netflix.  I recommend all three.  

Start traditions together.  This could be Spaghetti Wednesday, Walking Dead Sunday, Nude Brunch, Official Diet Coke Time… you get the idea.  

Know each others needs.  I'm not talking shelter, food, safety needs… I'm talking about the simple NEEDS we each have.  He knows I need 15-60 minutes of uninterrupted cuddle/back tickle time after work to decompress, and a made bed every day.  I know he needs matching socks, and a few hours to sew creations each Sunday. 

DOCUMENT! I don't care if you have a digital camera, Vine, Instagram, journal, blog, WHATEVER! just document!!! 

Work on projects TOGETHER.  For now, we are working on our health, marriage, and school (well, I'm helping him with school I suppose).  Eventually we will work on our home, kids, etc. 

Remember those small things that hardly seemed worth mentioning, but when you look back it meant everything. (For you my love, it was long boarding in the parking lot, learning to drive stick, vespa to the hospital, Sundance moonlight ride, and so much more)

Learn to do the things that you hate if your husband/wife loves it.  I HATE giving back tickles… I know I am satanic.  Do I give them enough? No… but I'm trying to share the generosity and pay it forward.

Still do things for YOU! Just because your married doesn't mean all other areas in your life no longer apply.  Still go to lunch, call your friends, buy an occasional guilty pleasure.  If not, you might go a little bit crazy. 

Sometimes I think it's okay to go to bed mad (okay, maybe not totally fuming mad… but annoyed mad).  Sometimes all I need is a few ZZZ's to realize where I was in the wrong in the disagreement.

Whether you are both in school, or one person is working and the other is in school… you BOTH need to pull your weight.  Neither one is a "stay at home" anything which requires both to share in cooking, dishes, and cleaning. Both helping 100%, not 50/50.

Give up your fight.  

Be obsessed with your significant other!!! The obsession radiates and makes loving, laughing, serving, and having fun come so naturally.

Even when teasing, don't throw them under the bus in front of friends.  You can tease, but don't reveal your husband/wife's bad habits to friends, even if they do drive you crazy.
  
I saw a quote once that said "Never stop dating your wife, and never stop flirting with your husband", and how true I have found this to be! Bryan hasn't lost it… He has always been great at weekly date nights, opening the door, and planning something special.  Remembering to flirt with your husband isn't difficult, but sometimes it can be hard to remember… I mean we do spend our lives together! But, I will say that I have seen a huge difference in when I am still sending Bryan sweet texts, complimenting him, or just giving him that look when we are standing across the room from each other versus when we just spend a casual, normal night together where we aren't trying to impress each other. It just keeps things fun. and special. 


and to Bryan, how can I ever even thank you? There is so much it's hard to put into words… but here it is for starters.  I'll spend the rest of my life trying to remember and thank you for all you do for me.  

Thank you not only for waking me up every morning, but doing it gently (and listening to me whine for the first 30 minutes of being awake).  
Thank you for scraping off my car every cold and winter morning. 
Thank you for STILL opening my door. You are such a gentleman.
Thank you for making me laugh harder than anyone else. 
Thank you for still being so obviously obsessed with me. 
Thank you for knowing my mood so perfectly, that you know exactly what I need, or knowing when to just stop. 
Thank you for all the nights you hold me and tickle me to sleep, which is all reality every night.
Thank you for making me not only breakfast, but also an amazing lunch for work every morning. 
Thank you for all the sweet notes.
Thank you for forgiving me after I punched your head. 
Thank you for always being so willing to apologize, and doing what it takes to make this work. 
Thank you for all of the dates "on you"!
Thank you for every surprise.  I don't know how you are still so good at them!
Thank you for caring about what matters to me!!! i.e. whales, diet coke, friends, ice cream, etc. 
Thank you for all of the ridiculous snap chats you send me. 
Thank you for working so hard in school and at work. 
Thank you for making the bed every morning. 
Thank you for not embracing my weirdness, but loving it and being 10 times weirder than me.
Thank you for taking my side on every situation, even when you know I'm wrong. 
Thank you for fulfilling my life dream of being crazy in love, and being a much better husband than I ever expected to get. 

I love you so much.  it has been a wonderful year.  I can't wait for 80 more and forever after that! 

but like I always say… "the sun lights up the day time, you light up my life" 

Oregon, Fall Break.

Bryan and I had an amazing time in Oregon for Fall Break again this year. 

We had so much fun becoming "athletic" at a football game, hiking, going to a pumpkin patch, visiting Portland, watching comedian Jason Hewlitt, making 1000+ videos of us singing different variations of "rounds", our tradition of chili and corn bread and watching The House at the End of the Road (or something like that… I recommend it, it was way scary!) with apple spice cider and carmel apples! 

It was so fun to see my sisters and their families again.  It's terrible living so far away from them.  We miss it and can't wait to move there (ha just kidding… kinda) and go back again for Thanksgiving this year! 

 but like I always say… "wouldn't it be chilly with no.skin.on?"

KOL. Mechanical Bull Tour 2014. Las Vegas, NV.

I know I'm not being dramatic when I say that last weekend was the best weekend of my LIFE! 

I have been waiting to see Kings of Leon live for over 3 years! Last time, they were all addicted to drugs and went hiatus, but they made a come back with their latest album, Mechanical Bull. 

I have always loved Kings of Leon, but we have started to listen to Kings of Leon so much more since we have been married, that they just remind me of Bryan and our summer together.The best part is Bryan loves them basically as much as I do (maybe more, if that's possible) so it was SO FUN to see them live! concerts just are not as fun if you aren't with someone who knows, loves, and appreciates them as much as you.  We spent the next 30 minutes debriefing the entire concert… what we expected and didn't expect, what parts made us cry, etc.  

The concert was so amazing. Usually after a concert I want to give everyone the entire play-by-play including what their opening song was, their encore, what they were wearing, etc.  But honestly, I haven't been able to give anyone the details.  It was literally like a sacred moment in my life that I only want for me, Bryan, and kings of leon. 

Thank you Kings, for giving us the best night of our lives. 

Also, if you want any advice in life at all…

Download ALL of Kings of Leon's albums

watch Talihina Sky on Netflix. 

but like I always say… "I don't care if you don't care"

Hobbies.

The other day I saw some meme that said something along the lines "nothing puts me into a bigger panic than when people ask me what I like to do for fun"… this got me thinking… WHAT THE HECK DO I EVEN LIKE TO DO FOR FUN? Like, an OFFICIAL thing I like to do for fun.  Something I can report back to people when they ask! And I thought… and came up with nothing.

I feel content with just talking to people.  Maybe that's why I haven't invested in my hobbies.  Because unlike boys who go golfing or something hobby-esque when they hang out, girls just go to lunch and chat.  Am I right? 

But it's a common questions, almost anytime you meet someone new… "so, what do you like to do for fun?" It's an ice breaker.  or a total stressful 3 second identity crisis asking- who you really are and what you really do in life. 

like I said…people ask me what I like to do, or what my interests are. This is what I've come up with.

Whales. Obviously. 

The Ocean… the whales home.  Obviously. 

Serial Killers… thats creepy.  I don't like to just tell people that.  But seriously, a good True Crime or murder mystery book/movie/tv show and I'm hooked.

I have a small interest in Health… enough to like to learn new things, not necessarily enough to do any of them. 

Diet Coke is an interest.  I could have an extended conversation about that. 

I love traveling! (But that's become more difficult with a real job and 100% more bills than last year).

but I mean, there are more interest than classified "hobbies", right?

Most of my life I haven't had any real hobbies... I danced in Jr. High and sang a bit in high school. Other than that I've enjoyed watching basketball games, hanging out with friends, cleaning my room, crashing parties... None of these considered "hobbies".

You see… I've TRIED a lot of different things. but I'm not GOOD at anything.  Doesn't that just kinda suck? It mostly just sucks when I am on Instagram and I see people who are extremely fashionable or even models, painters, singers, athletes, world travelers, etc.  (Note: I am aware that Instagram portrays only the parts of these people's lives that they WANT to show and to look awesome-- but I can't even do that!)

To paint a picture (ha, not literally)...I almost failed my pottery class once.  I'm almost too embarrassed to try to draw a circle or a straight line in front of preschool kids.  I've never been on a team sport.  I'm not musical, (meaning although I have tried guitar lessons, I don't know how to play).  I can't quilt/sew.  I can only cook in a crockpot.  and I can't blow a smoke circle, do the splits, or tie a cherry stem into a knot. 

My day consists of: gym, work, clean, dinner, and some activity (netflix, pinterst, reading, preschool prep, etc.) Except I'm not sure any of those are considered "hobbies". Everyone does those things basically.

let's take the gym for example… I go 4 or 5 times a week.  but a hobby? I'm not so sure that counts. 

Backpacking... I've done that once an almost died but still had a good time. Does that count?

I started cooking and that has become really fun for me. Not because I'm an excellent cook, but Bryan treats me like I'm the amazing inventor of all delicious foods, and that feels pretty good. But all I do is throw it in the Crockpot and come home 5 hours later and it's done! (If that's considered a hobby, i recommend it because it's the most simple thing in the world!)

Reading? That could be considered a hobby right? I do love a good book.

When we first got married everyone told us to get a hobby...

I'd probably have to say Bryan and my new hobby is shooting guns! I mean, we certainly don't do it everyday... But enough times and made the commitment to make it a pretty permanent thing. 

And my favorite hobby would have to be corn hole. hands down. and riding the scooter.  because it's just amazing. 

I guess I can just feel pretty insignificant in the hobby area because when you're married to a man who can try anythig the first time and it turns to gold...

I'm not kidding. 

The man has made me multiple wood works, including our corn hole set AND the cutest whale tissue box ever! Sewed a perfect Buff Headband, has the eye and skill for photography, can sketch or paint anything possible, and can freaking weld new handlebars onto his fixed gear bike!!! 

I guess what I'm trying to say is… I think I'm a good person.  I'm open to try almost anything.  It's just too bad I'm not da bomb at anything I do.  The bottom line is… if you have any hobby suggests, please comment below.  and commit to doing it with me.