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Remember When (2013)

-Shaun Walked for Graduation

- The temporary apartment that I HATED?

- We almost bought a home?

- We bought a car?

- I made over 50 dozed cookies... because im obsessed?

- We went flying with Ryan?

-I almost quit school?

-We went to greece?

- We went snorkeling and saw a octapus?

- We ate the best gyros ever?

- Ate lunch in an amazing vineyard?

- Played enough mini golf to become pros?

- We went to the fair?

- We ate more food at the fair than we could hold?

- We got Toby?

- We got Toby a kennel that he literally got lost in?

- We went to Savannah?

- We rode around in a golf cart to see the cool old homes?

- We Kyked to a little island and went swimming in the wamerst water ever?

- We saw a fisherman catch a stingwray?

- We flew on a plane at least once a month the ENTIRE year?

- Jetson and Caden left on their mission?

- We rode mopeds up the mountain in greece?

- I decided to break through a cornice and could lift my head for a week? (ouch)

- We set up the tent in the living room to go "camping"?

- We went to an EVE 6 concert?

- We went to the mountains to fish?

- Bought Shaun a new table saw?

- Almost moved back to idaho?

- Shaun Started his MBA?

- Shaun was offered a new position...with a raise :)?

- I started working again?

- We redid our table?

-  We went to Trans-siberian orchestra?

- We prefected the oven cooked steak?

- We went back to Utah State for Shauns Work?

- We realized our time at utah state is over?

- We played with baby lambs?

- I took the lambs inside to see Shauns Dad?...EVERY DAY

- We got to know a cute little boy named Gage?

- We threw a new years party for Charlie?

-  Charlies friend was "dared" to hug Shaun.... and was SO SCARED?

-  I tried to be funny and put a glob of tootsies rolls on our bed, thinking shaun would think Toby pooped?...fail

- We went running...4 times?

- We signed up for a ragnar..in hopes to run more?

- We went shooting clays and I FINALLY hit one!

Years go by...

Holy crap! ITS OCTOBER! 

Did you know last week (last year) Shaun took me on the scavenger hunt of all hunts. Such a crazy day, with a great outcome!

Now a year later we are in a different state, different side of the country, different environment, and truly loving every minute of it! 

We don't have many friends or family to lean on but we have each other and good ol' Toby Joe. 

This move across the country has been hard, worth it, but hard.

I was bitter to give up my school and [possible] publications.

Shaun was bitter to give up his fourwheeler and hunting rifle. 

We were bitter to leave good friends, our hobbies, and overall the life we created. 

Now, thinking back to those bitter moments I couldn't be more happy for the opportunity to be here in Georgia. I truly love it!

I do hate that im surrounded by city, traffic, and trees. But I love that it is the one place that has no other memories than the ones Shaun and I have created. 

Many of you might not know, but this change was us following a life time dream and goal of Shauns. Shaun is  true-blue farmer who loves his tractors. He loves to learn the ins and outs of every piece of agriculture equipment. We moved here because ever since Shaun was little he has wanted to work for  a Tractor company. AGCO is that company. They are a fortune 500 company, that is the parent company of Massey, Challenger, Fendt, and many more. This company was Shauns dream job. Shaun found a way to get here, worked his butt off to do so and has been an amazing employee. It may not be exactly what we thought it would be but it doesn't matter, Shaun set a goal and made it. We have no idea where we will be in 6 months, 1 year, or 10 years ... heck, we don't even know where we will be in 30 days. But it doesnt matter. I couldn't be more happy than being able to share this dream with Shaun.  

Thanks for the best scavenger hunt ever, Shaun. 

Goodness me.

The last few weeks have been WILD!

A new semester starting

Shaun getting ready to start his MBA program

Shauns Family coming to visit. 

Crazy/Evil Toby Joe.

I actually decided i needed to chill out with school. I decided to take a few less classes and will graduate when I can. I have ALWAYS piled it on a little too high and... I'm freaking sick of it. I'm now going to get a part time job and enjoy not pulling all nighters every night to keep up. I'm still busy but i don't have to been so stressed that I can't enjoy time as a newlywed or proud puppy owner. 

Shauns classes start tomorrow which will be crazy! I'm so excited and proud of him! He is super excited to see what an MBA is all about and finally get going. Its going to be a lot though. For the pre readings he had to read an entire book, for each class. Good heck! They also told him that he needs to have at least one person that will no matter what tell him that he can't quit. They told him that it will be the hardest and slightly worst 2 years so he needs to have someone that will keep him going. Comforting. 

We also found out that Shaun will be coming to logan to recruit for AGCO. Since they are paying for all of his airfare and hotels we decided i would tag along as well! We're super excited to go visit, and see some friends that we have missed! Cody...Lauren... bonfire?? That isn't till the end of october though. 

Toby went from the best most perfect puppy in the entire world to a complete pain in my... He is very much a puppy and we truly love having him.  Our place constantly looks like a tornado came through but it keeps him busy while I work on homework. He still does really well with sleeping through the night, peeing outside, and not chewing on our furniture so i would say he is a keeper. He is great to have, when I get overwhelmed with school or Shaun does with work, heading to the park with Toby completely changes our day. He is a lot but I still think it was a great decision to get him... Shaun might tell you otherwise. Ha, he is still adjusting to having a dog in the house. It really quite bothers him but he is a good sport.  

Here is a bunch of pictures of our little beast. 

Giving him a bath. 

He snuck into the closet and got to his treats. He even figured out how to open it! Grrr.

Right out side of our complex. Gorgeous!

Other than that we haven't been up to much! But i'm sure that will change here soon. Shaun just mentioned that i won't see him till tomorrow till 10pm FREAAAAKKK Thats not ok,  6-10 thats a long freaking day! Yaay gradschool....  


Also,  I was craving cookies today but didn't want to make 4 dozen. So I made up my own recipe! Turned out pretty great! Go HERE to my personal recipe box. Cookies for two!

SAVANNAH

There is a little place down south, on the coast called Savannah. This little Savannah may just become my new favorite vaca spot!

Shaun's family came to see us for a few days so we decided we would head down the the coast that weekend to see what Savannah was all about. Instead of getting a hotel we decided to rent a little house from the site home away.  We actually use this site a lot when we travel and have really come to enjoy it. People rent out condos, or homes pretty much anywhere in the country/world. Its so much better than a hotel and we have been able to take Toby which of course is a must.

Saturday we went to Tybee Island and went Sea Kayaking across to a little beach. All but Shaun's dad struggled to get across to that island. It was hilarious. That man could kill a bear with his bare hands, or knock out a bull with one punch (true story).

After the kayaking, we ran to an amazing restaurant called the Crab Shack. We ordered a big tray of seafood and ate till we couldn't any more. I think there was literally 5 lbs of shrimp along with 5 lbs of crab, mussels, and every other type of shellfish you could think of.  We took home 4 boxes! 

The restaurant also had a big "swamp" area with a bunch of alligators...or are they crocodiles..? Doesn't matter, all i could think of is what might happen if Toby got away from me... and he wasnt even with me. Morbid right?! 

The next day we rode around around on limo size golf cart and saw the city. It was an amazing. The buildings there are so old and beautiful. I want to buy one so bad! I think it would be amazing to buy them, restore them, and sale them. Hobby for the future I suppose.

Scott was about as wild of a driver as my dad! Thats a scary thing folks. 

 Toby didn't so much enjoy the ride. He was pretty bored.. as you can see.

After touring the city for awhile we decided to stop and grab some cupcakes and head for the 5 hour drive back to Atlanta. I hate driving, it makes me so bored and restless, and when I get restless, I get annoying. I can admit it, it's fine. Luckily for Shaun I sat in the back with the dog on my lap meaning i couldn't possibly bug him. most peaceful trip he has had yet. 

I love savannah, I think there would be some awesome dives, and deep sea fishing down there as well! hint hint... dad! 

Toby Joe and Idaho!

Hello world!

It has been a crazy couple weeks! Here is the recap!

As for Shaun...
Shaun took his GMAT and did frickin amazing!
Because of this amazing score he will now be starting his masters come September 16th!
Shaun was offered a different position at work which will give him responsibility and training!
       His work has been super slow which has caused him to get a bit bored some days, this new job is a          HUGE blessing! He will now have some set responsibilities and will be able to learn a lot of                   really cool things!
He is also headed out to go to a farm show in Illinois this week and is super excited! He was asked to make some videos showcasing the new features of AGCO's tractor and also compare them to the competitors.  He decided to practice on one of his toy tractors and its hillarious. He sure knows his stuff!

As for me...
I am starting my last year of college!  Great news.  Little nervous about managing my time but it will be ok!
I started a really great internship at the Marcus Center For Autism and LOVE it.  I have learned so much and really enjoy the clients I have been assigned to.  I was volunteering previously but now its a legit internship... moving up in the world I  suppose. meh.
This internship made me realize that i MUST go on to more school.... dang.
My very good friend Ashley is coming to spend the week with me!  Perfect timing since Shaun is gone!

As for US...
We decided to cancel our contract on the house. Crazy right?! We were SO CLOSE to closing... doi!
Everything is up in the air to much, and because of that we dont want to be tied down to a house.
It looks like (fingers crossed) I will get a job at this center and if that happens I don't want to live so far away. Traffic is a beast!
Also, i could start my masters as soon as next year. If that happens then we will have to move again to somewhere between here and there!
Its all crazy and a bit hard to make these decisions. So we feel that its best to  rent until we figure it all out!


Crazy thing also happened just last week. We sent Caden out on a mission!  Me and Shaun Flew home to Idaho to be apart of his farewell. He gave such a great talk, it was hilarious and spiritual just like talks should be! I held it together, but i'll admit...it was a close one. The night me got set apart was very spiritual. Seeing him with dad and all his really good friends standing around him setting him apart was awesome!  It will be hard to have him gone but I'm really excited for him! I'll be honest though, driving away from the MTC I wasn't so much a fan of  missions...i was a bit bitter! Dont you worry, I'm over that. Church is true folks! I love this church... it brings me such comfort and blessings  I never knew were possible. The Lord really does look out for his children and I have been on the receiving end of that needed aide many times. He has never left me alone (even though it may have felt like he did a few times) and he has never gone back on his word. The lord promised that our family would be blessed when we send a loved one out on a mission...and having 3 out now, i can promise you that is one awesome promise! LOVE OUR MISSIONARIES!  Ariell, Jetson, and Caden... you are literally heros.

Last but not least, I must introduce our new little buddy!

Toby...Toby Joe... is his name. And we LOVE HIM!

He is an awesome pup! He sleeps all night and does ok  with the potty training. He has started to let us know when he needs to go out so im impressed! 9 weeks old and were already pretty close to being trained!  We went to church... no accidents. He was home alone for 6 hours today and... NO ACCIDENTS! Told ya... best  doggy ever! 

Gads!

Gads. New word to my vocabulary. Where did this funny word come from? My mother in law (still weird to say those three words Mother. In. Law. whoa) this word/statement  has been directed towards me on numerous occasions in  awe (or disgust) of my odd behavior  happening at that moment. Fact, I secretly love when she says it to me. Makes me laugh.

Why Gads?

uh.... just spent a week in greece, thats  gads. 

Seems like it didnt happen now, but it did! Best week ever.

I was so excited for this trip i could hardly stand it, sleeping didn't happen the week leading to this adventure thats for sure. I never use to get super excited for family trips but this time I was. Not sure why I was unbearably excited, maybe the fact that I had finally graduated from the kids cabin to a room of my own. Or that everyone was going to be there. It was great.

Low down goes like this.

My family headed out a few days before us to have some time to adjust to the time zone and see vince. Due to the fact that we get 10 days of vacation a year we decided to go two days late. They flew out wednesday we went friday.

flew all night. Didn't sleep. Shaun snoozed thee ENTIRE time. I was jealous. Freakin' 9 hour flights.

Got of the plane and headed to find some type of taxi to take us to the hotel my family had been staying at.   Right when we walked out there was a guys standing at a booth with a big sign reading taxi JACKPOT. He told us we could take a private taxi or wait an hour and take the "shared". We needed to be on the cruise boat in 2 hours so we figured we better go private. We payed the man and headed on our way.

Pause
 Have you ever traveled foreign? Well if you have you will understand how the concept of how much things cost gets lost in the exchange rate. 1 dollar equals 1.32978473 Euros so take the dollar times it by 3 divide by 2 minus 1.... Screw it, I don't do math. Anyway,  that private taxi... cost 110 euros. That equals 155 dollars.  How about that Jackpot? oops..

As we walked outside we saw signs to the taxis followed them and they led to the ocean with boats everywhere. Come to find out taxis in venice are all boats! These boats are not like the good ol' fashioned gondolas your imagining (thank heavens) they are speed boats baby! It was so cool. I'm not sure roads really exist in that city, to the looks of it everything was water "roads" equipped with speed limits and turning lanes.

After a 30 minute tour of the amazingness of venice via water taxi we met up with my family, grabbed some pizza and gelato and headed to embark on our cruise!

We had a little tour guide take us to where we needed to be who ended up being hilarious. If the people around us did something dumb she would mutter something under her breath and shake her head. When we finally asked her what she was saying she responded by giving us a crash course on how to swear in italian. Useful knowledge to have folks!

We all but walked right onto the boat (no lines) and headed to explore our staterooms. Me and shaun explored by taking a nap. nap only lasted about ten minutes before my siblings came pounding on our door saying "no napping, or you'll never get over the time change" blah blah blah... i was so FREAKING TIRED. So... I napped... for another 10 minutes before my alarm went of saying it was time to head to dinner. &@#$!... didn't say it but I definitely thought it!


Dinner... not so great food
Service... could have been better
Ports... So So amazing!

Greece is B.E.A.uuuutiful! (name the show)

If you want know the details of the places.. ask.. i'll give you EVERY detail. But for the sake of blogging here is a few events worth mentioning.

Croatia has this meat that is called.... shoot can't remember. Pretty much extremly old bacon. 30 month old bacon. GADS! But, it was awesome!

Europe just knows how baking bread is done. I love bread especially greek bread.

Snorkeling is awesome but note that iphones particular ones of the white variety don't enjoy it. Hence the reason for no pictures.

Snorkeling also leads to seeing octopuses hiding under rocks. Kinda freaky.

Traveling abroad makes me want to live abroad, really bad.

Greece is EXACTLY what you imagine.

Athens is a huge city, stacked buildings for as far as the eye can see.

The greek temples are amazing. Those buildings date before christ's time, and are still standing! Unreal.



Greece was my favorite trip so far. I love europe!

Happy reading folks!

We be travelin'

Guess where were going tomorrow!?

Europe!

Ya... headed on a cruise boat through greece.


SO.FREAKIN.EXCITED.

Don't worry in 10 days time ill  show you the pure amazingness of this trip.


Random Fact:

Shaun-y has never been out of the country... other than canada ( if that counts) so actually he's never been somewhere where they speak another language.  AND, he's never been snorkeling, on a cruise, in a warm ocean (cali= ice water), on an international flight ,or had to deal with a major time change. I'm more excited to experience this with him and see he how much he likes it more than any thing else!


Dumb moment... I actually googled what language they speak in Greece... duh, GREEK! idiot.

WOOT WOOT!