Questions Without Answers

I haven't even had the desire to use this blog in a long time.  I have been caught up in a few other things.  Mostly unfun things.  Things of the stressful nature.  Adult things like money and a new place to live.  Both situations still mostly unresolved.  I can't decide if I want to continue to use this blog. I don't know if anyone reads it, or if I want to continue to do it merely for myself. I have so many notebooks and soon to be a planner that I write in that I feel I have enough things I do purely for my own memories sake.
We went to Dennis big family reunion for Thanksgiving.  Which was much better in many ways than I originally thought it would be. We survived at any rate.

Christmas we spent together.  The week before we spent in California mainly with my family.  It was really nice to see them.  We haven't seen them in a very long time. We, of course, spent one day at Disneyland enjoying our traditional Christmas.  We grew up where Christmas is sunny and barely cold enough for a jacket.  Christmas is something you go and see at Disneyland.  We also got to Skype my brother (who is on a mission) on Christmas day.  All the kids insisted that we take a bike ride.  I even rode a bike.  For those who know me, that occurs less frequently than an eclipse.

Attempt at cute bike picture.

 

We got our first Christmas tree Christmas Eve. It was really fun to just hang out together.   The last two Christmas seasons we have spent with our families.  So this was "our" first Christmas.

Dennis and I are also trying to learn how to take a selfie.  We really suck at it.  We look dumb and look even worse doing it.  But we will prevail.  Maybe.  It is seriously more fun and easier to just ask other people for a picture.

Attempt at selfie.  My aunt promptly made fun of us after this was taken.

Happy Valley

So hell week has finally (sort of) come to an end.  I did a bridal shower last week and attended the wedding this week and now we are finally home after driving through the night.  I am so glad it is all over.
So let's go in order of events.  First off we went to an endowment in Manti.  The temple was beautiful but it was an hour and a half one way and we got stuck in dead stop traffic for another hour on the way home.  Which made me late to the bridal shower I was supposed to be throwing...  So the theme was Milk&Cookies: Udderly in Love.   Dennis and I bought one of those Fujifilm insta cameras and we thought it would be cool to do a photo-booth sort of deal.  I bought 50 sheets of film and we used all of them.  It was fun. Basically all the decor was made by me.  I made the flower crowns, the backdrop, the watercolor table labels, the props, the love banner, the canvases, and some of the cookies. I had help with the cookies as well.  We had a lot of cookies.

This is one corner of a large, full table.

Of course I made Den take one with me.

Ok so thats done.  Next event.  We found a flight and went to California for the wedding 4 days later. We got to hang out with my family a lot which was awesome.  My little sister is almost as tall as me and she is 7... I am going to be the shortest one in my family.  It is ok though. These are my little brother's sunflowers and he is crazy proud of them. Their stalk is bigger than my wrist. On a side note, you can dry sunflower stalk and use it as really awesome kindling. 

 So we helped set up for the wedding as well.  Most days we spent several hours helping.  I did all the table center pieces.  Which of course I don't have a picture of.  This is the only picture I have from the wedding. It's blury but I love that Polariod's are such a one time deal. You know what? It is perfect every time. I am not a big fan of retaking.  The moment is whats perfect or memorable. So why take it 8 times just because you think your smile is off or your hair is ever so slightly out of place? I actually ended up really liking my dress. I am not a huge fan of pink but I looked hard for one I actually liked.

So.  That was that.
We had a lot of other stress.  Including a maintenance emergency in our apartment while we were out.  But its hopefully over. 
We also left late yesterday because we got to drive Dennis truck back but the window was cracked so we had to get that fixed and then I got us lost an hour out of our way and so we've had about 3 hours of sleep since yesterday.  Yay!

(^Clearly obsessed)

Independence Day and all that Jazz

So we have not had a single weekend that is not packed.  This last weekend was no exception.  I had Independence Day off but Dennis had to work. I went on a hike with my friend and her mom to Stewart Falls in the early(ish) morning.  It was so pretty.  Very worth it.

Then Dennis and I went to his grandparents for a BBQ and got to see all that side of them family and catch a bit of the World Cup game.  Then we met his other side of the family at the pool and then had dinner and fireworks with them.  It was my first experience in a firework tent.  Fireworks are illegal in California in the area I grew up in.  We got to see his cousins and aunt and all the babies.

Saturday we hung out with Dennis work friend and his wife.  Dennis also took a massively long nap. 
Sunday we went out to his uncle's for another BBQ. We got to see more cousins and kids again.
This weekend begins what I am calling hell week. I am throwing a bridal shower this weekend and next we go to the wedding.  That's all I will say.  But if either of it turns out less than a train wreck maybe I'll write a post about it. Maybe. I'll think about it.

Thankful Again

So sometimes I get really worried.  If you ask Dennis, sometimes is closer to all the time.  I worry about all sorts of things.  From little things like if I put too much garlic in the soup to big things like not having enough money.  If you ask most anyone who knows me you will also learn that I cannot do anything right in my own eyes.  Which is true.  I can't see past the flaws of something I have done. This post is brought to you by my cousin. I was sad because I felt like some things weren't fair and weren't working out the way I thought they aught to.  She said, "how can you say that?  You are married to your best friend."  It's true. I am.  I am so blessed in that regard.  Many people get married only to find out maybe their prince isn't so charming or maybe he's a little too charming and not enough prince.  Dennis is 100% through and through Prince Charming.  There is not a single moment that I am not grateful for him.  Cheesy as it is.  It is true.  With that in mind, here is another thankful list.

I am thankful for...
*Dennis
*Working in the nursery
* All the babies in nursery that make us proud and happy
*Both of us having jobs
*My mom and dad
*Dennis mom and dad
*Libraries
*Camping
*The sound, smell, and feel of a fire
*Pictures of memories
*Root beer (our weakness...)
*School
* Air conditioning
*The kids in my job. They make me proud.

Weekend Getaway

So last week we took our much anticipated trip to California to see our families and to go to Disneyland's 24 hour day.  It was a blast.  The kids in my family didn't know we were coming so we got to surprise them again. My oldest brother and his girlfriend chose to go to Disneyland's 24 hour day instead of prom so we got to see them there a lot too.  Dennis mom's birthday was also this weekend.  So we got to celebrate that.  To top it off I chopped off my hair again. Dennis says its like a Maggie from Walking Dead or Tangled at the end hair cut.  We were only there for 3 days.  So we barely got any sleep.... Not the most relaxing vacation.  Very fun though.
To pictures.

Me, Prince Charming, his sister, my cousin, my brother and his girl

 So this is my cousin.  She's like. My Bestie.  Our story runs very similarly to that of the opening song for Swan Princess.  We were thrown together.  Didn't like each other.  After awhile we became super good friends.  She also almost cried when she got to see Captain America

Took us less than 2 minutes to pose and get off.  Pros.

Fireworks.  Love their faces.

So this one is our first time picture.  It only says 10:30 I think.  We were pretty proud.  We'd been there since 10 in the morning.  There is another time picture after midnight but the silly cast member put his finger on the lens.  We stayed till 4 for World of Color.  We may have also fallen asleep on the warf in California Adventure...  As you can see in this picture, club Disney is going on in the background.  Not a fan. Made me kinda sad actually that they used the castle for a club.  We joked that Walt was facing away from the castle because he didn't want to know.  California Adventure was a total wreck come nightfall.  They should not have allowed alcohol in the park.  Overall the day was super fun. The night was weird.  But we love Disneyland. 

Unrelated to Disneyland, but this is my brother in his home made camouflage. He taped plants all over himself. I hope our kids are as creative and fun as he is.
Also.  I don't have any pictures yet of my new hair... Maybe next time.

Where were you when...

So lately I've been thinking.  Which is a dangerous thing to do. (-- Gaston song). Anyway.  I have been sort of doing a time line comparason between family and friends about where we were or what we were doing or had done by a certain age.  It's interesting to think about. Dennis and I have both had birthdays in the last month, so we were comparing mostly to our age. 

My grandpa: Was serving in the Navy.  Had not yet met my grandma.  Was not yet a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  May have started college. Had lived through 3 wars by that point. 

My grandma: Was attending college to become a teacher.  It was terribly important to her parents for her to do so.  She may have met my grandpa by this point and he may have been seeing the missionaries.
 
His grandma: Had married her childhood sweetheart two years earlier. She had just had her first baby.  They hadn't been sealed as a family yet. 

His grandpa (paternal): he had eloped with his high school sweetheart years before and kept it a secret and still continued to live with their families to maintain the secret.  By this point they had told everyone and were living together.


My parents: Had been married about a year.  They were attending college together.  My dad had been home from his mission for almost two years. My mom was graduating college and working as a chemist.

His parents: They'd been married over a year about and had just had their first baby.   His dad had been playing baseball at college and had been training with the Red Sox. He had blown out both his knees already. 

Something that is even crazier to do is to think about where we were at younger people's ages.  My brother is getting ready to leave on his mission.  His sister wants to get married.  It's crazy to think either how different or how similar our lives were then compared to theirs now.

Scones

So those who know me know that bread and I have been good friends for a very long time.  I love freshly baked bread of any and all sort.
Today, I made one of my favorites.  Cream scones.  These are my favorite any time of day but especially for breakfast.  I got the recipe years ago from a blog of a lady who was living in England.  I can't remember what its called though. It is my all time favorite scone recipe. I grew up with an aunt and a great aunt who loved England and all things tea and scone.  So the fact that this recipe is my favorite is a big deal.
So here it is.
Cream Scone
2 Cups Flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 Cup sugar
1 pint (2 Cups) Heavy cream (this needs to be the thickest, heaviest cream you can find.)
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon sugar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Combine the first 4 ingredients with a fork.
Slowly mix in the cream.  You may not use all the cream so do it slowly.  I usually put an entire cup in and then slowly add it till its sticky to the touch.
Knead it a bit.  Then transfer to a baking sheet (or a cutting board). Pat into a 10"circle and cut into 8 wedges. Seperate them.
Melt the butter and brush on the scones then sprinkle the sugar on the scones.
Bake for 17 minutes. 

My name is Indigo Montoya. Prepare to die.

So.  I am mad.  One should not blog when one is mad.  Nonetheless.

My name is Indigo Montoya.  You rejected me.  But now you have rejected my brother.  Prepare to die. 

The only school my brother applied to rejected him.  Straight As.  Robotics club. Language all four years.  Sports for two.  AP classes and honors in any place possible. 31 on the ACT. Why did he get rejected you ask?  Well I have come to the conclusion that BYU no longer values academics.  Rather they value sports over everything.  Every single person he went through school with that was academically minded was rejected.  Those who focused more on extra things and not on school were accepted.  Which happened my year as well.  Its whatever that they rejected me.  That's ancient history.  I'm not that smart anyway.  But my brother is so smart.  He might even rival my mom for intelligence. (Those of you who know my mom know how big that is.)
I'm mad for him.  There is no formula to get into that school.  Except to care more about your sport than your classes.  Every other school has a formula that will get you in.  This school seems to be more chance than anything.
I'm a little but furious on his behalf.  I know he'll end up going somewhere way better after his mission.  Provided he doesn't go into the military... But still.  I just wish this time they had accepted him because he deserves it.