Goodbye 24, Hello new addiction!

Now that we have officially finished watching seasons 1-7 of 24, we will have a lot more time on our hands! I shouldn't say goodbye, but "see you later". We love 24. We can't wait for season 8 to come out on DVD! Our pictures are horrible, but we had to document it anyways! We went to the library last night and got library cards! We are both very excited about it. We checked out some history and animal DVDs, I got 4 books that seem interesting and Taylor got a few audio books to listen to on his way to and from work. Reading will become our new addiction!

All of our books, CDs and DVDs.

Taylor wouldn't let me get my library card for our picture!

Yay!! So happy!

FUN!

Me: "How would you describe our weekend?"

Taylor: "Fun!"

That sums it up. Our weekend was fun. Saturday morning we slept in a little, went shopping, I gave blood, and we went to a BBQ at South Fork Park up the Provo Canyon with a bunch of people from our ward. It was fun. It was nice to get to know some familiar faces and get to know some new faces. We roasted hot dogs, had a yummy cesar salad, fruit salad, chips, and ice-cream sandwiches... lots of yummy food and great company. Then on Saturday evening we went over to Tony and Lexi's and played some games. We played Mario Kart on the Wii, Lexi and I played Set and then we all played a few rounds of Boggle. It's a good thing I enjoy playing games just for the fun of it because I lose every time!

This morning (Sunday) we drove up to Salt Lake and visited with Grandma Fenton and Mary. Our 45 minute visit lasted 2 hours. Time flies when you're having fun. It was good to see her. We also stopped by Grandma Sargent's and visited with her for a short bit. Taylor's aunt Anne is visiting from Sacramento so she was over and so we got to visit with her also. Another nice visit.

Taylor taught the lesson today for Elder's Quorum. They are usually divided into two groups- an east and a west side Elder's Quorum, but he got to teach both groups. His lesson was on President Uchtdorf's talk, "Two Principles for any Economy". He got a lot of class participation, which he was really happy about. I wish I could go to Elder's Quorum on the Sunday's he teaches!

After church we had Elder Butcher- (Payden) and his girlfriend Becky over for dinner. We all helped make tortilla de patatas. We had arroz con leche for dessert. I made the arroz. It tasted really good besides the fact that the rice was not cooked all the way! Next time... We played a game of Boggle with them. Taylor won! He is really good at that game.

We are both exhausted. Taylor is in bed next to be sound asleep.

This coming week will be a little crazy... I start my new job and also have finals and Taylor should be starting his internship... Life is fun!

Tortilla de Patata! I forgot to take a picture of our arroz con leche... We need to take more pictures...

Family History

I should be studying for finals, but after working all morning I think I deserve a little break before the torture begins! Taylor survived his finals (he finished on Tuesday) and is at work, which means a long afternoon/evening of studying for me...

So, I found this questionnaire on Hermana Farnsworth's blog and think it is fun and a great way to record some family history, so here we go!

What are your middle names? Taylor Douglas and Michelle Jacquelyn. My middle name is after my grandma Jacqueline, but she goes by Jackie. I know it is spelled different. I think my mom did not know how grandma spelled it. Douglas? Hmmm... I'll have to ask him and then update this...

How long have you been together? Taylor and I actually met in July of 2009. I was going to school at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona and came out to Utah for President and Hermana Farnsworth's homecoming. I had served with his cousin Michael Karren in Spain and Michael had told me about his cousin, Taylor, who has just got home from his mission from Mongolia in August 2008. I got home November 2008 and Michael also told Taylor about me. Taylor found me on facebook and we were "facebook friends" and chatted every now and again. We began chatting a lot and talking on the phone and texting a lot a few weeks before I came out in July. We met and had our first date. Can you believe he kissed me on our first date? I knew it was my last first kiss. I think we both did. Our second date we both agreed that we were crazy, but knew it felt right and talked about getting married. Less than 2 months later (all the while being in different states) Taylor proposed! September 5, 2010. Originally we set the date for June, but realized it was crazy, so I dropped my classes at NAU and moved in October, a little earlier than planned and we changed our wedding date. We were married on December 28, 2010 in the Salt Lake Temple and have been married almost 4 months.


How long did you know each other before you started dating? Oooops I already answered that.


Whose siblings do you see the most? We see Taylor's siblings/family a lot more. They are all here in Utah and my family is in California and grandma and papa are in Arizona. It is nice to have his family close by though. And it will be fun when we have kids for them to be close to their cousins. My brother and sister, Michael and Melissa are only 14, so I hope they wont be having any kids soon...


Do you have any children together? Nope. Not yet...

Do you have any pets? No, but I would love a big dog. Someday...


Did you go to the same school? Nope. Taylor is at Brigham Young University and I am at the University of Utah. But just because I go to the U does not make me a Ute!


Where do you eat out most as a couple? Probably Chili's. Their chicken tenders are Taylor's favorite, so we go there most often.


Where is the farthest you have traveled as a couple? California. It is about a 9 hour drive. But we both would love to travel. That is another "someday" dream...

Who does the cooking? I think I do most often or we make dinner together. Taylor has made several dinners for us though. He almost always does the dishes though, he insists! or we will do them together.

Who is more social? Hmmm... tough question. I think we are about the same. I used to be really social, but now I love just being the two of us. We try to be social though. We could do better...

Who is the neat freak? Me. Taylor said he didn't have any idea. He teases me about vacuuming so much. He says that if i keep vacuuming so much we will not have any carpet left.

Who is the most stubborn? I don't really like the word stubborn... but maybe me? Taylor would definitely say me, but he has his moments too!

Who wakes up earlier? Me, but not by choice. I work earlier than he has class or work. If it were not for my alarm Taylor would probably be the first one up. He usually is on weekends. I think 8:30 is the perfect time to get up.

Where was your first date? Paradise, Utah. We met in Salt Lake because I was staying in Provo and we drove up to Paradise and met his parents. We took out the 4 wheelers and when I was driving it there was liquid leaking out onto my leg from the handle bar. We pulled over and the back wheel caught on fire. We ran to a house and called a fire truck. Taylor's parents got there first and his dad put it out before the firetruck, police and ambulance could get there. It was quite the adventure. We had a picnic in the backyard and hung out. We went out to dinner and then back to Salt Lake and watched the movie Win a Date with Tad Hamilton. Did I mention he kissed me on our first date?

Do you get flowers often? No, but I wouldn't want them often. Every once in a while is nice. They are beautiful, but just die. They are kinda a waste of money.

Who sings better? Haha. Neither of us! Maybe Taylor. Anyone can sing better than me!

Who does the laundry? Both of us. I usually start it and forget about it. Taylor is really good about starting a load if I haven't and also finishing what I start.

Who is better with the computer? Easy. Taylor.

Who drives when you are together? Depends. It is probably 50/50.

Who picks where you go to dinner? He usually makes me, but he will let me know if I choose somewhere he doesn't want.

Who is the first one to admit when they are wrong? I think we are both really good about admitting when we are wrong and both quick to apologize.

Who wears the pants in the relationship? We are a team!

Who eats more sweets? We both have a sweet tooth. Probably Taylor though. In fact he was just complaining that we don't have any sweets in the house before going to work.

Who cries more? I am the cry baby.

What's your best day together? Every day!

Where did you honeymoon? Salt Lake at the Anniversary Inn.

Favorite date night? Any time we are together!

Favorite T.V show to watch together? 24!!! We just finished season 7! Now we have to wait for season 8 to end and come out on DVD.

Okay, enough fun... time to study!

Sunshine Academy

Okay, so after a few months of substituting and looking for a teaching position I decided to settle with an office job at the Utah College of Dental Hygiene. The schedule works great and the pay of course can always be better, but it is good. The job is not horrible. I sometimes enjoy it and the other times it is not that bad. Basically I help the patients check in and out, make sure the students enter their patients information correct in the computer, file, make copies, and a lot of other tedious office work. Some days I feel a little disappointed and do not like my job very much as I hole punch and day dream of working with kids. But in those moments I am also grateful that I have a job. However, the other day Dr. Molen- the program director, was talking to a co-worker who works in admissions and was telling her how much he appreciates her because she is such a great problem solver, takes the initiative, etc. and then he looks at me... and says, "And Michelle... you are... hmmm a great paper sorter!" I know he did not mean it the way it came out, but it did not make me feel very good and got me thinking. Taylor looked on Craigslist, which I had given up looking on after months of daily searching and came across a post that read: "Day Care Director Wanted. (Apline, Ut)" I called thsi afternoon and was asked to come in this evening. Long story short. I got the job! It is a new school serving infants-5 year olds called Sunshine Academy. They have a sight in Magna and just opened their site in Alpine in November. Enrollment is still low, so she could not offer me as much as I had hoped. I wish I could work for free, but unfortunately I can't. I explained to her that financially I cannot quit my job at the Dental College with what she was offering me. She promised me that as soon as enrollment increasing, which she is confident will happen in Fall, since they opened in the middle of the school year, that she will match what they pay me. Until then I have to keep that job at the college, but agreed to work only 10 hours a week- Mondays and Fridays. Once she can offer me more and can afford for me to work at least 20 hours I will quit UCDH, until then I will work both. I am really excited. A little anxious with trying to juggle school and both jobs, but it will work out. It will be fine once I get a routine and figure out my schedules exactly. I will have to learn how to manage my time better. Maybe a little less blogging? (I always tell Taylor it is family history. Which is why I began the blog to begin with.) My greatest worry is the time I will lose with Taylor. Monday and Friday's I did not really get to see him as it was, since he had class in the morning, but at least we got to have lunch together before he had to go to work form 3 pm- 11pm. Now if I am working I will not get to see him until late at night, when I should be asleep or the next morning when he should be sleeping or until the next day when I get off work... Oh, how sad! I wish he worked during the day... He should be getting off work right now, but he has a "short meeting." Those short meetings are not like 5 minutes... that would be short, but they are more like a half hour, which means he will not get home until midnight. Ugh... I think we should run away to an island where we can just be together and sleep under the sun all day long. That is sounding wonderful right about now...

Sunday

Had a great Sunday. Taylor and I slept in a little; not as late as I would have liked. We woke up at 8ish and had breakfast, did our scripture study, watched "To This End Was I Born", made a yummy lunch together of salad with BBQ chicken (it's out latest yumminess) , and went to church. After church I went visiting teaching and then Taylor and I went over to McKay and Jodie's place and visited and had dinner. After getting home one of Taylor's companions, Elder Null came by. He is from San Diego, but is on his way up to BYU Idaho. We had a nice visit with him.

New Wii Bowling Champion

I think my bowling days are over... I used to have the high score and would get many strikes in a row, but Taylor has taken the lead. Although it is interesting that I only lose when it is just the two of us playing. When I have an audience I always win. He has also been practicing, but can I blame him? I have not given up yet! I will get my game back! I was fuming inside tonight though when he won 3 games in a row and took the high score. I might even make him sleep on the couch tonight! How can he beat ME the Wii bowling super champion!?

He told us so!

Papa has told me over and over again not to leave the GPS visible. Did we listen? This morning as I was leaving for work I open my car door that is covered in snow and am about to sit down and see broken glass and snow all over the front. Somebody smashed in our car window and stole our GPS! He told us so! It cost only $58 to get it replaced! What a deal, huh? It actually cost $138, but someone left $80 under our door mat... What a blessing! We have our suspicions and are very grateful. (For the $80 that is, not so much for the broken window and stolen GPS)

California!

We had such a good time in California. I have been in Spain, Arizona and now in Utah for so long that I haven't realized just how much I miss and love California. California will always have a special place in my heart, but my heart is wherever Taylor is. It was so fun to see and spend some time with family and friends. I am so grateful for all their love and support. We left Thursday afternoon. The drive was not too bad. It took 9 hours but didn't feel that long. At least not for me. I was just so excited. We took Melissa out for Yogurtland which is one of my favorite places there. We helped out Donna and Donny set up the Stake Center for the reception. We went to lunch at Chili's and went to the beach. It was warm, but not quite warm enough yet. It was fun just sitting on the beach, walking and playing frisbee together. We also went by The Learning Experience and visited with my friends there. Also, a little girl who was in my preschool class happened to stop by while I was there to register for summer. I can't believe how grown up she is. Saturday was the wedding. The San Diego Temple is just breath taking. That is where I received my endowment. Anyways, when you drive around a corner off the 5 freeway it just appears. However, Saturday as we turned the corner there was the temple all under construction! Donna didn't have any idea. Thank goodness for photoshop and it is just one side, so they took most of there pictures on the other side. In between their sealing and the reception we visited with more of my friends. Delora had a few people over to see me and made a yummy lunch. Her kids are all grown up also. Adam is going into high school! Michael and Melissa are going into high school! Sabina and Aian are graduating high school this year! I am beginning to feel old. The reception turned out really nice, but it was an adventure! We are both so happy for Donny and Donna. We really wish we lived near them. Maybe we can talk them into moving to Utah? Or maybe we will end up in California? Who knows! Taylor has looked at grad schools and housing there. We will not be going anywhere at least for another year and then we will see where the Lord will take us! Sunday we had breakfast with my Daddy and then went to Sacrament. Oh I love the people there! The drive back seemed longer than the ride there, but I am happy to be home sweet home. These next few weeks are going to be challenging. We both will be finishing the semester. Thank goodness! The weekend was so much fun. I think it has given me the break I needed to get through until finals. Such good memories made and so much laughing! We are going to try and plan a whole week in August!

Dad will never smile unless I tickle him and then my eyes are open so wide and I am talking through my smile telling him not to laugh!

Random

Basketball... (sorry the pictures did not turn out so good...)

One of my last crafts... coasters. I thought the keys were different and cute.

Our cute neighbors... Marcel, Jessica, Nevaeh & Leia

Highlights

I have a lot I need to catch up on, but don't have much time. I figure it is better to write some quick highlights so I don't forget because by the time I have time I will have more to write about.

Taylor's Audi was having more trouble, so we decided to get rid of it. It just was not worth investing more money into it. We got $1500 for it, which we are so happy about and put that towards his new car. We are a Corolla family! He got a 2006 Corolla S. It is just like my 2005 Corolla S, but a taupe color. It's so cute. We are both very happy. We will be driving it to California tomorrow!!

Once again I have the best husband! I wasn't sure if i should be happy or depressed, but Taylor made the best chocolate chip cookies! If you read my last post my cookies were a disaster! He is so sweet and so thoughtful.

Taylor is almost done with the semester. He has finals coming up next week. He has worked so hard. He is taking Spring/Summer off of school and will be doing an internship at New Haven where is already working. He is so excited and I am so happy for him. He will get to shadow some therapists, which will be such a good experience for him.

For me, the semester cannot end fast enough. I have not lost my "mid-semester blues" or maybe they have just turned into the "end-of-semester, can't take another day- syndrome". I met with my councilor this week and my math class from NAU was not accepted. It is not realistic for me to take 2 math classes this summer, so will be left with 3 credits left in the Fall. So, I had to change my graduation date.

Also, as I mentioned we are going to California for our friends Donna and Donny's wedding. However, this morning I realized I have not found my temple recommend which I misplaced and had been looking for last week. I can't say enough what a great husband I have. After searching everywhere while I was work and not finding it, Taylor called and set up an interview with a member of our bishopric and also the Stake Presidency. How could I lose one of my greatest possessions? How sad! After class tonight (which is where I am right now) and taking a test for another class I have my interview with a member of the Stake Presidency and then am going home to clean up and pack because we are leaving when Taylor gets out of class and I get off of work tomorrow.

Can't wait!

He Lives!

How grateful I am for Jesus Christ, our Savior! I know that He lived, suffered, died, and was resurrected! He is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. He is the promised Messiah! And He lives!

Basketball

We will post pictures later, but Taylor's team made it to the first round of finals and won that came on Tuesday, played again tonight and lost... If you ask me, they should have won! It was so fun to watch him play. He is a great basketball player. He made some sweet shots and would come out of nowhere and steal the ball. He runs pretty fast too! Not only is he a good player, but he is a great sport and a peacemaker... love that man!