Two Years

I've been feeling pretty sentimental the last couple weeks because my Timehop has been full of emotional things. Scott leaving on his mission 4 years ago, coming home 2 years ago, and planning for Alaska 1 year ago. June is a happy month and I'm so glad it's June! As I've been reading statuses from "this day in history" I can't help but just want to cry. I can feel all those same feelings again and it makes my heart pound. I have loved Scott since he was 17. I won't deny that. I was totally obsessed might have dreamed of our future together and still don't believe it's actually happening.

Right before he left we had a band council party celebrating the new council with the old one. I was so excited (and nervous) to be president and I knew Scott would have advice. For some reason he was at the party and ended up driving me home. It wasn't anything super special until we got to my driveway and we just sat there. I talked about my nerves for the coming year and he told me about never really having a "best friend". He said so many things I had never even considered being concerns of his. It really felt like I was talking to him for the very first time. And funny enough, there was a song that described exactly how I was feeling.

"We're smiling but we're close to tears, even after all these years, we just now got the feeling that we're meeting for the first time."

I posted that on my Facebook later that day and it came up on my Timehop a few days ago. It struck me and I felt everything all over again. I've always known that Scott was special. I really didn't understand why, but he was just different to me. I cared about him so much. I still do, obviously, but I'm glad I can look back at those times and realize that the friendship we had was so, so special. I wish we could go back to those days sometimes. I wish we could be young and free again without tuition and rent and a car payment. But, this stage is fun too and I'm grateful for it.

Today marks two years since the first time I saw my boy as a returned missionary. I could not believe he was actually back again. I missed him terribly and it felt so good to hug him again. But, things were different. He was so much more serious and ready to finally love me ;) We walked around Jordan Landing at 10:00 at night because that's when I got off work. He held my hand and talked and talked and talked. It was nice to finally feel like "his girl". There weren't 300 other babes I had to fight off anymore. It was just me and him and that was it. It was definitely worth the wait.

I am so glad to have had the last two years with Scott. We've had so many fun times together and I am looking forward to more. He's the best and I love him so much. I don't know where I would be without my little muffin :)

Our first picture together on our second date :)

DFTBA

Love Your Choice

It's no secret that life is hard. It's so easy to look at others and wish that you had their hair, clothes, shoes, talent.... the list goes on. I am definitely guilty of this. I wish so badly that I could change my hair to be thicker, my calves to be thinner, my face to be less round, my skin to be tanner, my torso to be longer... it never stops. Well, I guess it stops somewhere.

Of all the things I am jealous of other people for, the ONE THING I am completely satisfied with is my husband. I don't know how many people can honestly say that. I mean, really.

Every day I am amazed by him. Not even just in an "I am blinded by love" sort of way, but just as a person in general. I've known Scott for a while and I've been stalking observing him since we became friends. He's different than everyone I know. He looks out for me constantly. He always thinks of something nice he can do for me and others too. He works so hard every single day and I don't know how he does it. He has always amazed me and continues to do so each day. I could never dream up a better man to spend my life with. He's not perfect, but he is so wonderful. 

Of all the things I wish I could change, I am grateful to report that my husband is not one of them. The choice I made to marry him is the best one I have made yet. He is absolutely everything I could have ever dreamed of in a spouse and in a best friend. 

On a scale from 1 to 10 I love him 1,000. 

photo credit

23 Never Looked So Good

Scott's 23rd birthday was on Sunday so of course we celebrated all weekend long! We had made a few previous plans and basically all of them went out the window a few days before the weekend. But don't worry- we still had a great time!

First, a little back story. A few months ago Scott mentioned that he wanted to get a Wii for his birthday so we were planning on getting one. However, I didn't know that the Wii had changed so much and that the new Wii U was basically nothing like the old Wii and was so dang expensive. I was on the fence about it so Friday I went in to work and consulted with my boss who knows a lot about video games. I asked him a million questions and he convinced me to get the latest and greatest Wii U and even agreed to go with me to buy it. After work we headed over to Game Stop and he helped me get what I needed. I rushed home and then to Walmart for wrapping supplies... and more presents. Whoops.

Please appreciate how cute these are because boys just don't

When he got home from work we ordered Domino's and went to pick it up (because the $2 delivery charge + tip is way too much for my cheap self. And we live sooo close it's stupid not go get it yourself). I gave him his first present (Big Hero 6!) and we watched it while we ate. About halfway through the movie I decided I couldn't wait to give him the Wii U and after the movie ended I gave him a bag with a controller wrapped inside. He opened it up and was like DOES THIS MEAN WE ARE GETTING A WII?! And I chuckled and went into our bedroom and brought out the big box. I knew if he had seen it he would have known so I kept it hidden until right before he opened it. Let's just say he was very, very happy. We stayed up until 1:00 playing Super Mario 3D world.

I don't have my own picture so this is Google's best. 

Anyway, it seriously is the coolest. The main controller is this game pad and it is huge! It has its own screen with all sorts of random features. All additional players use regular controllers and the games are just so stellar. But! There is an option to go back to the regular Wii menu so you can play all the old games and whatnot on it. It's the best of both worlds and it totally rocks!

Saturday we slept in and played games all morning. We ate waffles and eventually got up to go get ready for the day. We ran a few errands and then met up with his family. We went bowling and had a great time! I did better than I ever have before so that was fun! When our 3 games were done we headed to Texas Roadhouse and enjoyed lots and lots of food!

A nice blurry picture from bowling :)

Sunday was Scott's actual birthday but it was pretty low-key. He had a meeting so we had our fun fancy breakfast when he got home from that. We ditched our own ward because Katie (WHO IS ON A PLANE TO CHILE AS WE SPEAK!) had her farewell and we were not about to miss that! After her church we went to my parents house for dinner with my family because my grandparents were in town, We had a nice meal and a good chat and of course I loved seeing little Ben :)

Because matching is cool ;)

It was such a nice weekend and it was a lot of fun. I am so, so happy to have this man by my side. He makes my life so much more wonderful and I can't imagine being without him. Happiest of birthdays, Scotty :)

DFTBA

365 + 2

I could never, ever find the right words to describe how amazing this last year has been. But, I would be ungrateful if I didn't try.

Scott and I were sealed in the Jordan River Temple on February 15, 2014 and it was such an excellent day. Our wedding was perfect for us and I loved every minute of it. But, The 364 days that followed were even better than our one special day.

I've known Scott for about 8 years, and really well for almost 6. He has been one of my best friends and has stood by me through a lot. I never knew he would be my husband one day. I always hoped, but I never knew. Scott is a person I wish everyone could have. I know a lot of girls married to people like Scott. I see how happy they are and I'm grateful because I know I have that too.

After Scott and I started dating, I learned a lot more about him than I ever knew. I thought I knew him before- nope. As we spent more and more time together, I fell even more deeply in love. I've always been in love with him. He's always made my heart pound and my cheeks red. He's always given me fluttery, nervous feelings of excitement. But, when we started dating, that love turned into so much more. I started to care for him even more deeply. Everything I did was for him. Some people might think it's ridiculous to tie yourself down to one person at the age of 19, but I was happy to do it. I knew my life would never feel complete until I was sharing it with someone who wanted to be with me just as badly.

Scott and I dated for nine months before we got married. That was probably way too long, but that's what we did. By the time we moved in together, it felt like our lives were already combined. The transition into marriage was not difficult in the slightest. Sure, communication wasn't perfect, and it still isn't, but I've never, ever thought to myself "oh what have I gotten myself in to?" I really believe that the time we spent preparing to be married was precious. It was necessary. I am grateful for every single night we had to say goodbye at the door because it makes me appreciate crawling into bed with him so much more.

Marriage is about learning. I'm definitely no expert, but I can say that my husband has taught me a lot. And in turn, I've taught him how to eat vegetables and save money. We build each other up. I think it's awesome. I want someone that challenges me and continually makes me want to be better. Not just for him, but for myself.

I have loved this last year so much. I can't believe how fast the time went. I really, really don't know where I would be without Scott. I've said it before and I'll say it again, he saved my life and I could never thank him enough for it. I appreciate that he pushes me to stay in school and get my homework done. I love that he encourages me to go out and make friends. I admire that he works so hard every single day to build up our savings accounts for the future. I know I can rely on him. I can't wait to see what our second year of marriage is like.

I love you, Scotty :)

Weekend Getaway!

Earlier this year Scott and I started to talk about what we were going to do for Valentine's Day and our anniversary. We discussed St. George and then decided it would be too hard for me to get four days in a row off of work so we sort of dropped the idea of going anywhere. Well, the semester began and I got super depressed so we decided we would go stay at the Little America and relax for a few days- basically exactly what we did for our honeymoon last year. I was stoked! I've been looking forward to our trip for several weeks!

Friday night we had planned to do laundry and pack so we met up at home after work. Scott surprised me with red roses and chocolate :)

Saturday morning was Valentine's day and we woke up pretty early and gave each other our presents. I got him a Utes shirt and a Nike hoodie and a card. I also wrote him 14 letters (one for each day from the 1st to the 14th) of reasons why I love him and he read the last one. He wrote me the cutest poem and gave me a little stuffed dog. He also surprised me with a ring! We had gone shopping about a week before because I wanted to pick out a few for him to choose from so that I could still be surprised but also get what I want... cause, ya know... Anyway when I opened the box I was so happy and said "YOU GOT ME THE ONE I WANTED!" and he was like "I know." I loved all three rings I picked out, but I secretly hoped I would get the ruby. Scott is such a little gem ;)

 

I absolutely love it!

We got ready and headed to Chick Fizzle for some breakfast on our way to the zoo! Neither of us had been there in forever and it was super fun! We got there a little before 10 (an hour after open) and we got a chance to see almost all of the animals active before it got too warm and crowded. I loved the lions! And teaching Scott about what makes a grizzly bear a grizzly bear. My dad would have been so proud ;)

 

By the time we left there were at least 5,000 people standing in line at the gate

 

Inside the bird room!

 

They had written Valentiney things in honey on the glass so that the bears would come over to see the people! This one was licking so much! It was adorable.

We paid (WAY TOO MUCH) to ride the train (SERIOUSLY IT'S SO LAME IT SHOULD BE FREE) and then went to the gift shop to sit down for a while. We walked around the whole zoo one more time and by 2 there were just way too many (very sweet and adorable) children to really enjoy anything. Also everything was asleep. We went to Jimmy John's for lunch and then Target for new swimming suits. We checked in to the hotel and immediately went swimming!

 

The stupid train that doesn't even take you around the zoo >:/

 

This was BEFORE we knew where the train was taking us

  

Lions sleep 20 hours a day so we were lucky to see them moving around before the left one decided it was nap time

 

They were doing tricks with the baby elephant and it was so cute! Watching them eat and drink is really neat!

We had a nice dinner at the Coffee Shop downstairs and enjoyed a bottle of sparkling cider. They were pretty busy and it was getting late, so our waitress forgot about us for like 45 minutes. We just chatted and she finally came back with the check. She was a sweet old lady :) We watched the NBA All Star Saturday events and really enjoyed the slam dunk contest. I'm happy we were able to have actual TV to watch it because otherwise we wouldn't have!

 

Hallway selfie on our way to dinner :)

Sunday was our (FIRST!) anniversary and we slept in a little bit and Scott surprised me with more jewelry. He's such a little punk. He got me a necklace and earrings to go with my ring so that I would have a whole matching set :) I gave him a watch and then later we bought him some new shoes. I wish I would have known he was going to spoil me so much! I would have tried to stop him given him more stuff. Oh whale, he's still sweet :)

 

I love it soooo much!

Also I don't have a picture of the earrings but I'm sure you can imagine yourself some ruby studs ;)

We had breakfast at Village Inn and went swimming some more. We napped and watched a couple movies and lots of episodes of Friends. It was a pretty low key day and I loved it. We watched our wedding video that was made by Scott's grandma and uncle. It's definitely not fancy but it's such a sweet keepsake. I had no idea anything would ever come of all the video grandma shot of our wedding day but I'm so glad it did! It's so fun to see everyone and remember the perfect day :) Maybe one day we'll watch the uncut version (it's like 3 hours long!) but for now the edited version makes me so happy.

I decided that I wanted to take Scott to Cheesecake Factory for our anniversary dinner so we headed off to City Creek. Since it was Sunday we didn't see much of it but we did have a short wait time and that's more important than anything. I wanted to get cheesecake SO BAD but we were just too full. :( We're definitely going back soon!

So,quick story... Scott loves to give money to sign-holders. It drives me nuts because I'm a terrible person I feel like they are just lying, so going downtown with him is not my favorite. Anyway, we had some leftover bread (cause their bread is BOMB) in a takeout box and we were sitting on the train riding back to Courthouse. A guy came up to us and started telling us his story and asking for money or food, but I knew Scott didn't have any cash so it would be up to me if we helped him or not. I was thinking, "hey, I'm never ever going to eat this bread so I might as well give it to someone who might" and I handed him the bag. I told him it was just bread but he still looked really happy. He ran away and ate it and Scott was very proud of me. It was so not a big deal but it did make me feel better than just giving random strangers $5 bills. So yay for our waiter for giving us way too much bread :)

Monday we had to check out and I was so bummed. I always hate leaving! But at least this time coming home wasn't so bad because we were already moved in to our apartment, unlike last year. We drove up by the U and ate lunch at The Pie. It was so heavenly! Then we headed for home and dropped off our stuff and went to the dollar theater by our house to see Big Hero 6. It was SUCH a cute movie! We went home and then watched more movies/TV and played some card games for the rest of the night. It was such a perfect weekend and I loved celebrating our first year of marriage. I sure am thankful for my sweet Scotty :)

 

I told him to smile cute and this is what I got. Whatever.

 As hard as it was to come home, I really love having our own little apartment to live in.

Also, Meet the Robinsons <3

DFTBA

You Make My Dreams Come True

You know those pictures of your grandparents

where they are sitting on the porch 

in chairs holding hands,

just like this one?

Last October we took this picture

so that when we are old

our grandchildren could have a picture of us 

just like that.

We want to look back at this picture and

think of all the wonderful things that

we have done together.

I already look back at this and

think about what has happened

in almost a year.

I could never say enough times

how grateful I am for a man 

who makes my dreams come true

every. single. day.

I don't feel like I have given up

anything to be married.

I still get to go to college,

pursue my career,

spend time with my family,

and be lazy sometimes.

I don't have to give up on my dreams.

Scott is only here to help me accomplish them.

And even better, I get to

come home to the most handsome man,

eat, sleep, and live with a companion,

plan for the future with one constant in mind,

and laugh and cry and play

with my best friend

every. single. day.

I love him so much.

I could never, ever

say that enough.

Why I Loved My Wedding

Scott and I have been married for five months TODAY. I can hardly believe it. It seems like it has flown by yet I feel like we've been here forever. I've been thinking a lot about our wedding day and the time leading up to it. I've been thinking a lot about our sealing ceremony and our reception as I have attended several of those for our friends this summer. I can't help but envy those who have beautiful flowers in their wedding pictures. We got married in February where everything was deader than dead. It wasn't even beautifully snow-covered. Just dead. I can't help but envy those who have perfect little decorations that probably took hours to make. I can't help but envy how beautiful some brides look. I wish I would have taken more time getting ready and making myself look good. But truthfully, I didn't HAVE the time. I was literally doing homework two days before our wedding. I had a huge project due Wednesday and I had to get it done before the wedding or it never would have happened.
I sometimes regret not waiting until the "normal" time of year to have a wedding. I hated having to go back to school just a few days after we were married. And then still having two months of school left. It sucked, I tell you.
But honestly, I loved our wedding. I loved loved loved it. I can't tell you one single thing that wasn't perfect about it. (Except of course...all the dead everything.) We got engaged on September 20th and we had already picked our date... February 15th. The only thing special about it is that it was President's Day weekend so we had an extra day off of school. We later realized it was also the day after Valentine's Day. Oops.
The next morning was a Saturday and we were off to Magnolia Grove to book our reception. I couldn't wait another minute. I had to have my wedding there. I mean, it's gorgeous. Scott called and booked the temple. We planned our sealing for the perfect time of 11 am. After that day I felt like nothing else mattered. We had our temple and reception center booked. Everything else were just minor details.
It wasn't super hard to plan because I already knew what I wanted for our wedding. (I'm going to be so creepishly honest right now..) I have had a crazy obsession crush on Scott for most of my life since I met him. Before he left on his mission we sort of talked about maybe one day having a life together. It was nothing serious and it was nothing that kept me from living my life. But man, I sure did mentally plan out our entire wedding for quite a while after he left. So really, I had already done all the specific planning. Turns out it wasn't such a waste of time after all ;)
I believe in formal weddings. I believe in tuxedos and veils and roses and matching bridesmaid dresses and wedding lines. These are things that are dying away and that kills me. You get ONE day in your life to be fancy. Embrace it! I'm happy people were nice and let me have what I wanted. While it was pretty simple, it was so beautiful. I loved it.
Everything ran so smoothly and our families didn't have to spend all night cleaning up after us. That is something I'm very thankful for. I'm also thankful that we were the only people having a wedding at the time. I know this may sound selfish and terrible but I loved all the attention. I loved that almost everyone we invited came. We sent out over 400 announcements and got a huge turn out. I loved feeling important and loved. It was so nice to see people I haven't seen in ages. And to meet (literally everyone) who knows and loves my husband. It was a very special day. I wouldn't trade it for anything. And I wouldn't trade my wonderful husband for anything.

Happy five months to my sweet boy.

I love him with all my heart.

DFTBA

Photo Credit

Birthday Weekend!

Scott was pretty adamant about letting me pick exactly what we did all weekend for my birthday. He's a real sweetie pie. So naturally, we had the best weekend ever.

Thursday we both worked all day and by the time we got home I was too lazy/tired to cook anything. I told Scott I wanted to order pizza and with the happiest look on his face he said "REALLY?!" :)

Just look at that delicoiusness.

We're keeping Dominos in business.

The next day was the 4th and we both had to work all day again. I wore the It's My Birthday badge at work because I do what I want. And I wasn't working my actual birthday but still wanted a chance to wear it. Our owner came in to drop off checks and he hugged me and told me to have the best birthday ever. He's such a sweet man.

After work I went to my parents house to eat spaghetti and wait for Scott to get off work. We were planning to go to the Sandy parade and watch the fireworks like we had done the year before. But since we weren't actually IN the parade it sounded less and less fun every minute. My family was going to the Bees game and suggested we just go and sit on the grass. So that's just what we did. :)

It was hot and sunny and packed. About the 6th inning my mom texted me and told me there were two empty seats right by them so we fought through the crowds to get to them. It was a good decision. It was nice to be back where we always sit. I have never and will never sit on the grass again. Section 106 or bust. We had a perfect view for the fireworks :)

We moved just in time for the pretty sunset!

Dat iPhone doe

My sister thinks she's so cool

(She kind of is)

Saturday was my birthday! I danced around and couldn't believe that I was finally 20. Scott went to get eggs and came back with donuts and a card. There isn't much in this life better than sugar donuts and Scott's scrambled eggs. He knows me well.

Then I showered and started getting ready while he cleaned the ENTIRE apartment. I just thought he was waiting to shower and whatnot because he didn't want the steam in the bathroom to ruin my hair. (which was partly true...) But he was actually just killing time waiting for the delivery man to bring me these beauties :)

Then we headed for the mall. He told me I had a $400 limit. (HA! LIKE I WOULD EVER SPEND THAT MUCH ON CLOTHES.) He was so cute and so patient while I tried on a million things at a hundred different stores. I was eventually done and we went to Chick Fil A. I got a free shake! And then we went home so I could get ready (again) to go to dinner. My family met us at Macaroni Grill! Then we went back to my parents house for cake and whatnot. Scott surprised me with the sweetest gift. He had collected little happy birthday/why Kara is awesome messages from a bunch of my friends and family and put them in a book with some of my bridal pictures. It was so fun to see all the nice things people wrote to me. It was such a thoughtful present and I absolutely loved it. As well as the Urban Decay foundation and scarf/cardigan outfit my sisters gave me :)

Kaylee made me flag cake.

I loooooveeee flag cake.

I loved my new outfit :)

Notice: Scott and Kaylee are the only people who like to take pictures with me.

That's why they are the only people featured in this blog post.

Sunday we had church in the morning and then after we went to see Scott's family. They had been camping all weekend and were totally beat. I pretty much just took a nap and played with the cats. My two favorite things. :) Then we went over to my family's house for a BBQ with my grandparents. It was fun and delish. I love that our families are two minutes from each other. It makes holidays/events so much easier. After dinner Scott and I helped Kaylee clean her room. That was quite the task! Eventually we went home and I enjoyed my new VS jammies. I got them for $16 and it was amazing.

Birthday weekend was a success! I'm happy to finally be 20 :)

DFTBA