Eight is Great!

People are always asking me, "how's married life?"  The last eight months have been awesome....Chris and I are so blessed and grateful for our family and friends who have supported us.  This week has also been one of reflection as it marked the 49th wedding anniversary of Chris's parents, and the 9th anniversary of his father's passing.  For me, after watching my mom go through losing my dad, and seeing the struggles Chris's mom has gone through after losing her husband, I am constantly reminded not to take one day for granted.  Sometimes it is hard to remember with the 'in your face' wave of technology and social media always reaching out for our attention.  Sometimes I feel like we are bombarded with emails, twitter, facebook, and with Chris in season, players texting him sometimes in the late hours of the night wanting his attention, or my need to plan lessons or grade assignments.  Those couple of hours we have at home together each night go by so quickly, then it's time for bed, and we are up and at it the next day.  But every day, we know to say we love each other, even if we are upset or irritated, because we both have experienced, as many of you, that life is sometimes shorter than what we anticipate.  I'm grateful that Heavenly Father helped me find such a sweet man.  He may not be perfect in the world's eye, but he's perfect in mine.   Take some time to tell those you love, whether it be your spouse, parents, brother, sister, niece, nephew, or a friend, how much you love and appreciate them.  It doesn't have to be anything extravagent....a text, a phone call, a quick note, an email...however you do it, just make sure you do it!  Have a wonderful weekend!

  

Valentine's Day Weekend!

It was 30 degrees with a windchill down around 20....and opening day for GW Baseball moved forward as planned!  Here's the schedule if you're in the DC area or want to watch games that are streamed online: GW Baseball Schedule.  Chris watches the game vigilantly, running out on the field to treat injuries and to take the umpires water.  The team split their first two games against NJIT in a double header on Saturday.  The baseball guys and coaches love him!  We are excited for another GW Baseball season!

 
 

While the games were finishing up, I went home and made dinner for Chris, and surprised him with a little Valentine's Day set up and dinner with Martinelli's.  We had a relaxing night in, and it was perfect!  The heart made out of post-its is one of my Valentine's Day surprises to Chris!  But Valentine's Day came a day early for me.  I was having a crazy day at school.  During 5th period, one of our ESL kids who only speaks Arabic, had wandered somewhere and it was NOT to class.  So I was running around school looking for him and bumped into one of the ladies from the front office who was looking for me.  A box had been delivered to the school from Shari's Berries....which I had no idea what that company was. She told me I got some strawberries, and I thought someone had bought them for me via a school fundraiser.  When I opened the box, there was a sweet note from my sweet husband wishing me a Happy Valentine's Day.

On Sunday, I had quite the adventure at church.  Due to high winds and subzero windchills, the electricity at the church was out.  The generator was turned on, which gave the church partial electricity.  While the Sacrament was being passed, there was this odd smell in the chapel, and the chapel was getting a little foggy/smoky, but not enough to cause a panic.  After the Sacrament was passed, the leader conducting explained that the generator has/had a small fire and was smoking, so we were going to say a closing prayer and leave.  As we left, the firetrucks pulled up.  At first just a few, then more sirens....6 trucks plus two ladder trucks!  The police shut down the block of King St. that the church is on.  I snapped a picture from my car of the firetrucks in front of the church, and the one of the missionaries, Elder Severe, who we've been meeting for the last few months, took a picture with the firetruck behind him!

 

Sunday evening, Chris and I drove up to Mt. Airy to see his mom and celebrate Valentine's Day with her.  I love watching Chris with his mom.  He is such a sweetheart and loves his mom so much.  We enjoyed our visit with her!

Now we are enjoying the winter storm Octavia.  I have a snow day tomorrow, making my three day weekend a four day weekend!  We are expecting 4"-8" of snow tomorrow by tomorrow morning!!!!

Love....

It has been just three months and two days since I started teaching again.  Since it's Valentine's Day, I decided to list the things I LOVE about my new life!

*I love being back in the classroom.

*I love the collaborative atmosphere of teaching and working closely with other teachers.

*I love having a direct impact on students' lives and knowing that I am helping many of them (especially my ESL kids) get on the path towards a better future.

*In case you didn't hear, I'm team teaching 3 ESL classes....I love those kids.   Some days they try really hard to learn, other days...not so much, but all of us who work with them love them just the same.

*I love my nights and weekends (when I am not planning or grading).

*I love that I can put my marriage and family first without having to explain why and without having to constantly stand up for my beliefs in what is important in my life.

*I love having more time with my husband and continue to learn about him and love him more everyday.

*I love knowing that I can fully support Chris in baseball this year.

*I love being able to have a somewhat orderly apartment vs an apartment that looked like we just moved in yesterday!

*I love the opportunity to continue coaching at a youth level.  It is fun to stay connected with soccer, work with different age groups, and earn a little extra money for me and Chris.  :)

*I love feeling balanced!  Don't get me wrong, teaching and coaching on the side is busy and stressful at times, but nothing compared to how I've lived the last three years.

*I LOVE LOVE LOVE being able to go to all three hours of church every Sunday.  

*I love that I still bump into my GW soccer players when I'm on campus.  They are great young ladies and I miss working with them.

I LOVE that Heavenly Father has had His hand in where I am today.  I am so blessed.

The End of the Ultimate California Experience

This year, Chris got the ultimate California experience, minus Disneyland...we will hopefully do that next year!!  On the 29th, we went to Medieval Times with Tyler's family and had a blast!  We celebrated my nephew, Ben's, birthday and he was knighted before the tournament began.  We sat in the front row!  Our Knight didn't win, but my niece, Laura, was honored as our Knight's queen of the tournament.  

On New Years Eve, Chris and I said goodbye to the beach and rode the Amtrak train from Oceanside t Glendale.  We spent the evening with my two brothers' families ringing in the New Year banging pots and pans with the kids out in the front yard.  Chris took that tradition to a whole new level when he brought out the metal folding chair and started banging a pan lid against it!

Chris hadn't experienced any of Pasadena's Rose Parade/Rose Bowl activities before, so we took in as much as possible.  Chris had been asking me for months if we could go to the Rose Bowl.  I grew up 10minutes from the Rose Bowl, and to most natives, the Rose Bowl is a hassle.  Crowds, traffic...added to L.A.'s crowds and traffic!  I finally gave in the night before the college football playoff selection show.  Sure enough, Chris' favorite team, Florida State, was chosen to play in the Rose Bowl.  Despite the score, Chris loved every minute! It's an event he's always wanted to attend.  Because I knew the hassle with traffic, parking, etc, we bought parking ahead of time in Old Town Pasadena, just north of Colorado Blvd (the Rose Parade route).  After watching the Stealth Bomber fly over the house on its way to the Rose Parade, we got ready for the game.  I left my memory card at my mom's with the video of the Stealth, but that plane was a huge part of our family as my dad worked on it for years before and during its production.  We called it the 5th child of our family.  Chris and I arrived in Old Town Pasadena just as he parade was ending..perfect timing! We walked along the parade route so Chris could see it as we made our way to the Rose Bowl.  It was a 2 mile walk..because of our detour!  Upon arrival at the Rose Bowl...we just took it all in.  We walked around, bought Rose Bowl game gear, ate lunch, and took a lot of pictures!  We saw the Stealth fly over the Rose Bowl and enjoyed the game, sitting in an Oregon section, but people were good sports and nice to Chris, who was decked out in FSU gear!

On January 2nd, we went to lunch with my good friend Chris and his wife, Erica.  We enjoyed chatting with them and playing with their cute baby!  She loved Chris' beard!  After lunch, we decided to go see the Rose Parade Floats.  We loved it!  

We flew back to DC on the 3rd, with a layover in Salt Lake City long enough to visit with my brother, and friends Nicole and Ambree Bennett.  

It was a great trip and very hard to leave!!!  We can't wait to go back for another visit!

Southern California in December

We have been at the beach for the last four days and have loved every minute!  Chris has taken on a new hobby of photography and has captured some amazing pictures!  It's been so nice to relax, eat junk food, watch sunsets, enjoy walks along and views of the beach, and other activities.  Tyler and his kids came down on Saturday and we watched them ride their new bikes they got for Christmas,and yesterday, Chris went fishing.  We enjoyed milkshakes from Ruby's Diner, which is at the end of the pier.  We only have a couple days left here, but we are so grateful for the time we've had here!  

Christmas Fun!

We have loved being in California!  Christmas was a good crazy, as usual!  We spent the first few days as "Santa's Elves" running errands, shopping, wrapping presents and getting things ready for Christmas. 

On Monday (Dec 22), we made a quick drive to the Griffith Observatory so Chris could see the Hollywood sign!

The next night, we took care of Scott's kids and helped my mom decorate for Christmas!  My favorite tree is her Santa tree!

 On Christmas Eve, I said goodbye to my hair.  I donated 14 inches to Locks of Love.  My mom's hairstylist, Leslie Hilquist, who also did my hair for my wedding, cut it for me...I don't think I could trust anyone else to cut that much off for me! 

That night, Josh and Amy Walters and family came over and we had a special visit from Santa!  The adults chatted while the kids made sugar cookies...after our pizza dinner!  We all loved the evening and being together.  

Our PJs this year are Disney PJs!  Our cousin, Daniel Forsgren, from Sweden joined the family this year.  He and Chris were recruited to help with Christmas preparations and were up until 2 helping Mom. I was up until 3:30 and mom was up until 5am.  Scott's family came over around 9, and Chris and Daniel led the bunny hop to bust through the paper.  Chris was volunteered for breakfast duty and made waffles for the whole family.  The rest of the day we relaxed and spent time with family.  It was a wonderful Christmas!

Trams-Siberian Orchestra Christmas Evening!

Last night, we learned that the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is NOT an orchestra!  They are a rock band!  It was awesome!  We loved it!  Before the concert, we went to the National Christmas Tree at the White House.   It was definitely a very festive evening!