Happy Birthday Stacie!

Dear Stacie,

Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Staaaaaaaaccciiiiieeeeeee,
Happy birthday to you.

I'm glad Stacie is my sister. She is a hoot and a half. These are some of the fabulous things about Stacie:

++She loves Star Wars as much as Brent.

++She is exactly like Liz Lemon.

++She likes to quote Tracy Jordan and it is hilarious.

++She is very proud to be a carnivore.

++She loves ANTM and she got me to watch it and like it, too!

++Her birthday dream was about Mario and Princess Peach. So, we helped her dreams come true. :)

++Stacie also loves Harry Potter. Anyone who loves Harry Potter like myself is awesome.

++She is fun to tease. And most of the time she doesn't mind....too much.

Happy birthday Stacie! I hope you had a fabulous day!

Love,
Carolyn

All I need is him.

And I'm as happy as I can be.

It's here!

I came home from work today to find this waiting for me on the couch.

I screamed a scream of delight.

I ran to get the camera so we could capture this fabulous moment. Brent took pictures while I opened my mail.
Oh my goodness, it is so beautiful!

I can't believe how happy I am about this piece of paper.
They sent this thing with my diploma advertising framed diplomas. I looked at them and my favorite one was.....$110. Yeah, I'm not going to be getting that frame anytime soon.
Here it is! Me and my diploma. It's now official. I am actually really proud of myself. Way to go me.

randoms

>>I have health insurance! And it feel so nice. Brent and I went up to campus to see what we could do to get some insurance for me. I didn't like to be without it. Well, here is the weird thing. It turns out that I was eligible for it still but Brent wasn't. Since the health center had already done their auditing and it hadn't shown that I was a graduate yet as of when they did it, I can still get the student health insurance through Summer 2010. However, since Brent took 6 credits last semester and only was registered for 6 credits this semester, they wouldn't allow him to purchase the health plan. Weird--especially since he already paid for it.... So, Brent quickly added a class before the deadline and now we both are living happily with heath insurance.

>>Brent is back to classes (with 9 credits now). He has two classes that will help him with his major and the class he quickly added is a world religion class of some sort. (I think...) So far he has enjoyed his classes and doesn't seem to be getting too stressed. All of the classes he needs are offered at terrible times during the day and so it's hard to get the classes he needs.

>>Brent is also working full time still. He isn't the hugest fan of his job for a number of reasons but he still works hard to take care of us. I am grateful that he had a job where he gets to work full time and we can count on those hours to pay the bills.

>>I got a job! It isn't quite what I wanted and it isn't my own classroom, but it is in my field and it's a job. I'm working at Dixon Middle School as a paraeducator right now. I am working in some math classes and I also work for one period in the self-contained classroom. I am happy to be working again and working with students. The situation isn't ideal, but I will learn things I like and want to implement in my own class and things I don't like and won't implement.

>>I got an email last week that said BYU had submitted something or another to the Utah State Office of Education and I could go pay for my teaching license. I hopped on over to the site, paid my $55, and got my license. Then I started to cry. It all just seemed so real--that I was done and that I can have my own classroom and that I am a teacher. I printed off my license and it looks fabulous. I can't wait to get it in the mail and get a fancy frame. Go me!

>>We played Mario the other night and we beat the game! Kevin, Stacie, and Grant came over to play too. However, once Princess Peach got saved she told Mario about a secret world....WHAT?!?! We have to go back and find all of the dumb gold coins with stars on them before we can play the secret world. It is intense. haha. I don't know what me and Brent are going to do when they leave. We can't play by ourselves!

>>Life is great. I love my husband and he loves me. We are always busy but we are always happy. We are so grateful for all that we have and we are blessed beyond measure.

>>One more thing.....I just finished an old Oprah show and it was so tender. Paula Deen came to surprise one of her biggest fans-I love her. Oh, it was just precious. That's all.

Did you know?

++Yesterday was Blue Monday. It is the most depressing day of the year. I'm not sure why...I had a pretty good day. I just found it and thought you should all know. So, if yesterday was crappy, there was a reason! And if not.....maybe next year you will get your chance to be depressed.

If you want to read about Blue Monday and what this formula means, click here.

Big Brother

I am thankful for my big brother!

This morning as I was getting ready for my interview, I was thinking about my cute little car, Petey. I thought about how I hadn't driven it for a few days and I hoped I had gas in it....then I thought that I hoped it would start. I wasn't really worried that it wouldn't. The last time I drove it it drove just fine.

I went outside to start my car and yep, you guessed it. It wouldn't start. And I had a little freak out. I had to be to the school in 30 minutes (yeah, it only takes like 5ish minutes to get there, but I wanted to be early, gimme a break....) and Brent was working and I had no way to get there. It was pretty intense.

I called Kevin to see if he was at work/school. He was....ugh. But, when I told him what was wrong he told me he would be at my apartment in 10 minutes. Yeah-hoo! Seriously, he saved the day!

He dropped me off at my interview and picked me up after it was over. Even though I'm pretty sure we almost got shot on the way there (another story for another day) we arrived to and from safely.


Thank you brother! You seriously rock.

Thanks for the help people!

I already knew which dress I liked better before I put up the post. But, Jeannie liked the other one....

However, I did end up going with my favorite AND yours! Today I got the over thing and the under thing and I think it looks fabulous all put together. Brent does too. :)

Thanks for making the decision easier, guys!
(Keep in mind, I did my hair earlier and I have been out all day....so I look kinda worn. ha!)

Try this folks. You won't be disappointed.

I made this for dinner tonight (I know...I am being so domestic this week!) and Brent LOVED it. He thought it was so delightful. I was a little nervous at first....but I also really loved it. It was super easy and a joy to eat. :) I hope you like it too.


Honey Sesame Pork Tenderloin

1/2 C. soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. ginger or 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1- to 1 1/2- lb. pork tenderloin
1/4 C. honey
2 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
1/4 C. sesame seeds

Combine soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and sesame oil in large plastic bag. Add tenderloin. Marinate at least 2 hours. Combine honey and brown sugar in shallow bowl. Remove tenderloin from marinade and pat dry with a paper towel. Roll tenderloin in honey mixture and then roll in sesame seeds. Roast in shallow pan at 375 degrees for 20-30 minutes (mine took longer), or until meat thermometer registers 160 (ha! I don't have one of these....). Makes 4-6 servings.

I need yer help!

So, I have two dresses. And I have been asking people for their opinions. But, now I come to you, my bloggy friends. I need a dress for Jeannie's wedding. Her colors are goldish or something like that? Anyways....

Dress A:

This is the first dress I found, hence it being dress A. I found it at Macy's on sale after Christmas. It is kinda fun with the ruffleys it has going on. I will however need something to go under it AND over it. It is a strange color and so it might be hard to find something that looks good with it. I will also need new shoes to go with it. All of the different colors (dress, under, over, shoes...) might get a little weird. It also fits a little weird in the boob area.


Dress B:

I actually found this dress first, online, but I didn't get it until I had already bought the Macy's dress. I kept going back to this dress and looking at it because I thought it was so lovely. Brent bought it for me cause he knew I wanted to at least see how it looked. It came today and it fits so nicely. For this picture, I just have a black shirt under it. However, I would like to get a cute tank top with lace or something to wear under it and then a black short-sleeve jacket to wear over it. I already have shoes to wear with it and finding something to match would be much easier I think.


So people, what do we think? I know my favorite and Brent's favorite....but I want to know your favorite too! :) Also, keep in mind that these are not high quality photos. Rather, I just needed a picture to send to people to get their opinions. So, neither look too good..... I promise I will do my hair and makeup on the day of the wedding. Don't worry. :)

Happy Birthday

BLUE-HAIR!

I love you! I hope you had a good time and I hope you loved my song. I practiced it just for you.

something needs to be fixed

Health care isn't worth it. I haven't been to the doctor in so long it's not like I am costing them anything. Ugh.

Here is the info:

BYU health care plan for graduates [month-to-month]: (I can get this for up to 9 months after graduation)

for single students: $109

for married students without maternity coverage: $603

for married students with maternity coverage: $697

There is no way I could ever afford that. How come there is such a difference between married and unmarried? What am I doing that is costing me so much more? Can someone please change this? Thanks in advance.

meet Brent's newest love....

Mark gave Brent a GPS for Christmas. It is neat. Brent thinks he needs to take it everywhere with him so he won't get lost. Just today he had the GPS help him get to campus....in case he forgot how to get there since yesterday.

Well, I took the liberty of naming the GPS. And it's name is........



yep, you guessed it.......











Francesco!

Hot huh?

Hey people!

Don't go here. And don't enter for your chance to win. Unless you want to win for me. :)