and one year later...

We still love each other!!!

Happy Anniversary to us:)  We did most of our celebrating last Thursday after a canceled 4 day 3 night hiking trip due to weather...it was a very sad day but we will make it to Havasu Falls in the fall

SO we spent the day at the lake kayaking and swimming.  It was so beautiful after hiking around the lake we found a nice little cove all to ourselves, this is what it looked like

Yes, that is Chase in the water.  And those are in fact my beautiful chacos
Thursday really was a great day!

and today our actual anniversary?
we headed back to the lake with some new found friends and had a picnic. This evening we went out for Sushi.. turns out I am crazy about Sushi just in time for us to go into ultra poor mode...dangit

and finally

we are settling in for some Survivor Man on Netflix.  WOO WOO


p.s. Happy first day of school tomorrow Doctor Moffat

Yes I am LDS, no it is not against our religion to eat chocolate

Our new friend Allie was kind enough to clarify the chocolate thing to one of her co workers...thanks Al!

So our latest discovery? We LOVE waking up early...  If you know Chase personally you may have just laughed aloud or assumed I am being sarcastic, I can assure you I am not.

I think the idea of being awake and functional became a lot more realistic after we got our new bed.  Why did no one previously tell us that memory foam mattresses are made from angel clouds laced with powerful sleeping medication?  I literally have watched Chase get out of bed with immediate pep in his step ready to dance his way through the day.  That's right I am talking about CHASE the same Chase who would wake up and go through the first few hours of the morning in complete confusion.  I can not count the number of confusing things the man has said or the ridiculous things that he has done after first waking up.

So after a week of waking up on our own between 6-7 (it helps that we have been in the East all summer) Chase and I sort of mutually agreed to start waking up at 6 on weekdays and 6:30 on weekends.  So we got up this morning (that's right a Saturday morning) at 6:20 and I can not tell you how productive we feel.

We have many reasons for this but the resolve to be healthier is a big factor. YAY EARLY MORNINGS!

Thats all for now...fyi our apt keeps looking better and better!!!

oh and ps I got Chase to do some yoga with me yesterday!! woowoo!

I love Chase St

Hello, here we now are in Glendale AZ.  This is where you will find us for the next 3 to 4 years (WOOOHOOOO!!!).  Chase is starting med school here at Midwestern University in about a week.  aka consider me a widower who lost her lover temporarily to the ever present call of studying, lecture halls, labs, more studying and boards.

anywho..... before the summer started and we headed out to NC Chase and I packed up all of our belongings (which I might add fit into TWO Honday Civic car loads) and unpacked them into the smallest storage unit available.
   SO as you may or may not be able to imagine when we arrived here a few days ago it did not take us long to drag all of our belongings up the flight of stairs into our brand spanking new apartment.

The next few days went as follows

First of all we had a blast going through wedding gifts for the THIRD time.  The best part about it was that we actually got to open them for use:)

Then to my delight WE BUILT A FORT!

That night we went to the store for a few basic things we needed and did not have.  i.e a vacuum cleaner, shower curtain, dish detergent etc...THAT was when I started to get worried...

there we were looking at shower curtain LINERS in Walmart.   The first 10 min of Chase debating which shower curtain LINER was best for us was fairly funny.  When it started to drag on closer to 20 min (As Chase would say he is very thorough) I started to get extremely worried about what the next day had in store for us.  The next day was the day we planned on shopping for and acquiring most of the furniture we needed for our apartment... things like a bed, couches, desk and so on.   I felt myself starting to panic, stores like IKEA take long enough when you don't plan on buying anything and I was going in unarmed and a little unprepared. 

Luckily I could channel my thoughts towards the awesome fort that Chase and I were going to sleep in that night.  I was so sure that I was never going to have a better nights sleep.  After all I was finally getting Chase to sleep in a legit fort with me.  

TURNS OUT I am getting old.  Don't get me wrong of course it was not to bad...after all we were in a fort... that I built... BUT I will not claim that night to be the best nights sleep I have ever had.  

so let me fast forward past biting the bullet and renting a budget truck, our 6 hour shopping spree in IKEA, and the 2 hours in Ashley furniture (did I mention losing my cell phone in a couch) to the down side of IKEA's inexpensive attractive easy to get home furniture.  

YOU HAVE TO PUT IT ALL TOGETHER YOURSELF

which I'll admit the first 6 hours of that is not even that bad.  You feel fairly accomplished when you put together a side table, dresser, couch, chair, lamps, and help with a tv stand.  It's just that after your thumb prints wear off you really don't feel like doing it anymore... I probably am just a baby though I have not heard Chase complain this whole time.  

I do have to say though the last few days Chase and I really have had a lot of fun... It's been fun to work hard side by side and to laugh with him.  I love that guy

and here is a sneak peak we are not completely finished but its looking good so far:)

(oh and I just took these pictures and did not even try to be artistic, not to mention its dark out)

Remembering you are great

When I first started to really love Chase.  I mean REALLY REALLY love Chase and the first thoughts of...Is this someone I should marry? started coming to my mind I would makes lists of qualities I thought were important in a husband and and qualities Chase had and then match them up.

Something that was on my list that was never taught to me directly at home, church, or other examples (but was always taught indirectly) was something that Chase has.  It's something I realized I was always surrounded with my whole life.  In my family, the friends I chose, and all of my role models.

He is not afraid of being great.

Something that I think holds back so many people from their greatest potential and even HALF of their potential is their own fear of being great.

Chase is not afraid of being great.  He sees something he wants and goes and gets it.  He does not get angry if he fails at first of loses to someone else.  He just trudges on analyzing, learning, and evaluating his own progress.  I know no one with his stamina.  If you lost at a board game that last 45 min a round 4 times in a row would you want to keep playing until you figured out how to win?  If you would would you do it with a smile on your face while being a good sport? maybe you would, and good for you:)

some other people in my life who are not afraid?


How about that little brother of mine.  once upon a time when he was 10 or 11 he asked for a kite from ebay online from my Mom.  Little did she know that it was a kite boarding training kite that came with a how to video.  Through teasing not living near water or wind and the expectations and lack of money on our families end He got his first sponsor (for kite boarding) when he was 16 and now at age 19 is on a professional international kite boarding team.  My brother is cool ( I know I talk about his a lot) and he is also not afraid of greatness

What about my Mom?  she has lost somewhere near 115 120 lbs (I am really not sure how much) and for her birthday this year I ordered her a size Large shirt! (I wear a medium fyi) what a babe.  She decided she was not afraid of greatness either.


My other siblings?  also great in other very different ways.  Daniel? He is the best of all of us.  The man is hard working, never wavers, kind to everyone, fun, he is the best listener and most thoughtful person I know.  seriously girls if you have a shot with this man don't waste it.  Jacob, another sweet fearless sibling.  He is not afraid to be himself and stand up for whats right ever.  He also knows how to make everyone laugh...AND He has better swimming technique than any of us ever had.  Rob? Another person in my life who has decided to take control of their health.  He has started running like a mad man.  Also he knows technology like no one else I know.  and Aaron!! talk about self control.  I always know I can count on him to do the best he can with what he has.  Responsibility is this guys middle name.

And Daddy? where do you think we learned how to be so great?  I am fairly sure that all of our focus and drive (aka stubbornness) came from this guy.  It was nice to grow up knowing that this amazing man had our backs always.

I really love my family, And I really love that they are all such great examples for me.  I love how different we all are.

All of the people in my life are so brave.  It takes a lot to push yourself and make a difference in the world.  And that's what we all intend to do.

(I am not about to proof read my post, sorry Chase I know their are probably a lot of mistakes)