Small Service

Today I held the door open for a blind man and talked to him briefly as I registered to vote. Finding small ways to serve others is easy, try it!!

Homecoming Parade

I am part of the Folk Dance Ensemble at BYU this semester and had the priviledge of dancing during the Homecoming Parade this weekend! Our team did a choreography to Cotton Eyed Joe and an Indian/Bollywood/Bhangara dance that was performed by all 5 teams together. The route was a little less than 2 miles and we danced the entire time! I was exhausted by the end, but I love to perform so I enjoyed every minute of it. The crowd loved it and I had strangers telling me we were the best part of the parade! This was the first time I'd actually gone to BYU's Homecoming Parade and had a blast being in it! Today my legs and feet are a bit sore, but it was definitely worth it. Thanks Jeff for sitting in the cold and taking pictures! (I am in the team wearing red... in the back corner)

Back to the Future!!

You may have already seen this before, but in case you've wondered what your yearbook picture would look like if you had graduated from high school in a different year between 1950 and 2000, here's a fun little website: http://www.yearbookyourself.com. I personally think I should have graduated in '76 or '88, what awesome hair. Amy is, not surprisingly, cute in any decade.

Tag, You're it!

Jessica tagged me in her post to come up with 7 things I'd never say, and 7 things Jeff would never say. It took a lot more brain power than expected... we had a lot of laughs. I hope you have a laugh too!

7 things I’d never say:

1. I’m in the mood to listen to country!
2. Let’s go to the pet store.
3. Dancing is not my thing.
4. Please pass the pickles. (neither would Jeff)
5. Hellboy is my favorite movie.
6. Jeff, can I watch PTI with you? (Pardon the Interruption on ESPN)
7. Please, let me make the tossed salad!

7 things Jeff would never say:

1. Let’s skip the BYU football game today.
2. Anyone have a piece of gum?
3. Do you have any smaller shoe sizes?
4. Let’s go dancing!!
5. Full screen is better than wide screen.
6. I hate my iPod.
7. I hope the Red Sox win the World Series!

Karren, Stef, and Nicole... tag, you're it!

What We Did On Our Summer Vacation

I think a quick update is in order considering we haven't made blogging our #1 priority this summer. We've been using our time off from school to work and discuss some seemingly ominous life decisions. After our spring classes were over mid-June, Ernst & Young flew me out to Irvine for their Summer Leadership Program. Essentially all of the conferences I participated in this summer were opportunities to get to know different public accounting firms and meet professionals from the practice.

So, starting with McGladrey, E&Y, and PricewaterhouseCoopers, I am being recruited for something for the first time in my life! Is this what it feels like to be a football player? If only derivative contracts and equity consolidation were as exciting as the flee-flicker pass or the triple option. The Deloitte National Leadership Conference that I attended in Scottsdale was like a professional EFY with lots of free food and soda. We went to a dude ranch and did some service in the downtown Phoenix area in between sessions.

The day after I got back from Arizona, we flew to California for a week to visit my family. While there, we braved the heat of Six Flags Magic Mountain and each of its 13 roller coasters. And even a heavy case of nausea couldn't keep us away from In-N-Out on the way home! We also hit the beach, saw an Angels game, did dinner with some friends, and went to Boomers, where Amy's record against me in miniature golf was upped to 3-0. It was a quick week, but we were glad to spend some time with my sister Stef and her family that live in Arkansas.

Away from the ocean and over the Rockies, we visited Amy's family for a week as well. While in Colorado, I was invited to lunch with two partners from Deloitte's Denver audit practice, and was able to visit their local office and the offices of McGladrey which are, coincidentally, located in the same office building downtown. On Thursday we drove up to Estes Park and up over Trail Ridge Road (the highest paved road in the nation), including an unexpected but beautiful jaunt around the back side of Rocky Mountain National Park to get home! We also enjoyed playing with the kids and bumming out at the pool a little bit.

Well, we've been back in Provo this month trying to make some dough. Last weekend we went camping with our ward up in Mapleton Canyon, a good excuse to buy a new tent and break out our new sleeping bags. It turns out that if you wear a yellow t-shirt, the bugs and crawlers will think you are all the rage! Boy, do I love nature. I saw the Dark Knight twice (once with Amy and once in IMAX). And let's see, you could say I'm pretty enthused for football season. GO COUGARS! That's our concise summer travelogue. Thanks for reading!

1 Year Anniversary

Jeff and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary almost a month ago on June 13th! He gave me a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, we went out to dinner and a movie and came home to our frozen cake top! Yes, we saved the top of our wedding cake, mummified in the freezer for an entire year. After it had thawed all day we unwrapped it and hoped for a decent tasting treat. To our surprise it was delicious! Almond-poppyseed, yummy. The frosting was great too and even had some of the scrolling left on the surface. I found the flower arrangement that topped it and put it back in the cake for a few pictures. Here are some pictures from the wedding cake 1 year ago and the cake as it stood so beautifully on our anniversary. (We did not smash it in each other's faces this year) Happy Anniversary last month Jeffrey!! I LOVE YOU!

Random things about me...

I wanted to do it too, so here you go.


10 years ago:

I was 11 and terrified of being a “Middle-schooler.” The thought of having to open a locker on the first day made me nervous and sure enough, I was late to homeroom on my first day of class because I couldn’t get my locker open… I remember being nearly the last person left in the hallway. On a not-so-frightened note I was excited to soon be 12 and entering Beehives with the rest of my friends!


5 years ago:

Sweet 16!… nearly 17 by this time. Mom, Dad, Kels and I had just returned from a trip to Nauvoo and Winter Quarters during the summer break. I was working at Mail ‘N’ Copy in Windsor, getting ready to start my Junior year of H.S., and excited to be a part of the brand new Windsor High Varsity Dance Team.

5 months ago:

Gosh, five months ago… school School SCHOOL!!! I was deep in Organic Chemistry, both lecture and lab, Physics lecture and lab, Humanities, and two dance classes to keep my sanity! Both Jeff and I were diving into classes and staying up late doing homework. Let the fun begin again in less than two months!


5 Things on my To-Do List:

1. Scrapbook wedding pictures
2. Paint the pot for my alovera plant and repot it
3. Declare Minor
4. Schedule appointment with Dr. Brown to discuss nutrition research
5. Set up dentist appointments


5 Snacks:
1. Fruit
2. Dad’s cookies
3. dry cereal in a cup
4. Soynuts
5. Boiled artichoke and hollandaise sauce


5 Billionaire things:
1. Two Grand Pianos, maybe even a Concert Grand…
2. Home gym with full dance floor and personal dance/weight trainer
3. Recording studio
4. Game room: billiards, air-hockey, Super Mario Bro’s, Pac Man and a popcorn machine
5. Reserve an entire amusement park when family is in town


5 Places I have Lived:
1. Windsor, CO
2. Provo, UT
3. ?…..
4. Some day these others will fill up with new locations
5. But I hope we don’t have too many moves


5 Things You Might Not Know About Me:
1. I had an elderly imaginary friend named Toba who lived in a closet at Tozer school and looked like sunbonnet Sue
2. At the age of 14 I was four inches shorter and nearly 20 lbs more than I am now… a little on the ‘dense’ side as my brothers told me
3. I won the Harvest Festival Pageant in 2004 and became Miss Windsor 2004
4. I love the smell of coffee
5. I’ve saved and dried every rose ever given to me


5 Pet Peeves:
1. When my co-workers aren’t being proactive and are getting paid for sitting around
2. Two-faced people – being an entirely different person with me vs another individual
3. People arguing about things they know nothing about
4. Parents who have no control over their kids
5. Coffee can exhaust pipes, and over-sized ghetto spoilers