Love Your Life

New Blog! Wootersfam.blogspot.com

2011-07-09T14:06:00.001-07:00

I'm Back!

2010-03-21T15:04:00.000-07:00

I'm terrible at this blogging thing sometimes. But today I decided I'm going to do better. A lot has happened in the last 5 months or so. I am now working at Sundesa in Pleasant Grove. I like it there. It's a small company (for now) that manufactures and sells the Blender Bottle. If you haven't heard of the Blender Bottle, you should go out and buy one. You need to mix up a protein shake, gravy, scrambled eggs or chocolate milk? This thing will do the job. Anyways, I process orders and am in charge of making sure all of our store orders get shipped out properly.

In December, we got to go to Houston for Christmas! It was so fun. I wish we could have stayed longer, but isn't that how it always is? I got an ipod nano from Andrew...in pink of course. Also, Andrew and I made a gingerbread house. Now, not many people know this, but I have a secret ambition of being a professional cake decorator. So, when I bought this gingerbread house kit, I thought I would just smoke Andrew in decorating skills. Well, to my dismay, he totally schooled me. I believe it's because the icing in the piping bag was very thick and Andrew has stronger hands to pipe it out, thus leading to better control of the decorating process. Had I used my own icing, I'm sure I would have managed just fine. Here's us in front of our little Christmas tree.In January, we celebrated Lily's birthday. She's 3 now, and as cute as ever. Tahlia made the cutest ice cream cone cupcakes. Maybe I should take some lessons from her about cake decorating... Here are the cupcakes along with a couple pictures of the two cutest nieces in the entire world .

In February, we took a trip out to Chicago for President's Day weekend to see Andrea in her Show Choir Competition. Let me just say, it brought back a lot of memories from my own high school days. Andrew had never experienced show choir before, so it was fun to show him the ins and outs.....and that no, it's not just like Glee....only kind of. Later in the month Uncle Sam bought us a Wii!!! (tax return money) So, we decided to invite Julie, Jimmy and Nathanael over to try it out. Nathanael was a pro...jk he didn't get to play, but he was pretty darn cute!This month was Andrew's 26th birthday! What an old man. I kept joking with him that he was 4 years older than me, which is not true, but for the next couple of months he's 26 and I'm 22. Haha! His parents and I pitched in together to get him an external hard drive. Not a very exciting present in my opinion, but he was very happy about it. He had been wanting it for a while. He also got Mario Kart for the Wii and some other little odds and ends. The most impressive thing (I think) that I did for him on his birthday was that I made him Shrimp Alfredo! Yes, that's right, SHRIMP! For those of you who don't know, I am not a seafood lover....more like a seafood hater. But I DO love my husband, and wanted him to have a very special day. Here is my one-time creation....
We also got to go to Aunt Teresa's for dinner the day before. Here are some pics from that.

Also, on Andrew's birthday, we had some friends over to celebrate. I had made Andrew's favorite, Angel Food Cake. Now, last year I make this too, and it turned out just fine. For some reason, this year, when I turned the cake upside down to cool, it just fell right out of the pan on the the counter. Sad day. This happened like 20 minutes before our friends were going to arrive. So, in desperation, I ran out to the store and bought the pre-made kind. Not as good as home made, but it was good enough. The rest of the night was lots of fun. We love Andrew and we love our friends!

2009-10-14T12:24:00.000-07:00

So, I just wanted to post a couple of pics up here to let you know what's going on these days...

1. I got my hair cut! Yay!
2. Stuart, Ashley, and Jennie (Andrew's Brother, Sister-in-law, and Sister) came to visit for conference!3. Funny story here....the other day, I decided to ask Andrew on a date the old-fashioned corny way. So I made him a giant chocolate chip cookie, and wrote on it with icing, "Andrew will you go out with me on Monday?" I was so excited and thought it was so cute. So he gets home from work and I have the cookie and a tall glass of milk out on the table waiting for him. He was all excited.....so excited in fact that he flailed his arm a little bit, and SPILLED THE MILK ALL OVER THE COOKIE!!!! Of course, nothing ever turns out like it does in the movies. If this was the movies, he would have swept me off me feet in a big hug, and the we would have romantically sat there and eaten the cookie together. So ya, it turned out pretty gross, and I think it is still sitting there soggy in the fridge. haha. se la vi! (I don't know why it wouldn't post correctly, so you can just tilt your head and read it that way.)

Graduation and KEITH URBAN!!

2009-09-16T21:01:00.000-07:00

Alrighty, I figured it out. Here are some pictures of Graduation!! Ok, so I'm not all the way graduated yet. I'm still wrapping up a few things with my internship, so I'll officially receive my degree in December this year. Pretty exciting stuff. It's just weird not going to classes anymore. I miss campus...surprisingly. :)
Anyways, here are the pics.

Me and the parents.....
My sisters and I....
Me and my hubby....

I graduated in Recreation Management and Youth Leadership. Yay!!Ok, so let's get on to the exciting news! As many of you know, last May I won Keith Urban tickets on the radio. And, the time finally came when I got to go! I was going to go with Andrew of course, but he had manditory training for his new intramurals job - which I think he probably enjoyed more than he would have the concert. :) So, my dear long lost friend Mikall and I went. We seriously had a BLAST!! Here are the pics. For more, go see facebook.

This is Mikall and I in front of one of the Tour Trucks. When we saw this we serisously freaked out. yay....

No, we didn't REALLY have a BBQ with Keith, this was just a cardboard cutout ;) ....
Me and Mikall right before the concert started....
Yay Keith!.....

So, during the concert, Keith got off the stage and started walking down the isle on the floor. I just figured he'd walk around for a while and then go back onto the stage, but NO, he got up on to this mini stage right by us!!! I swear we were like 50 feet from him!....

So I thought he'd sing the rest of that song there, but no, i was wrong again. He sang like three or four songs there! It was sweet.....
At one point he turned around to the people on the floor seats behind him, and said "Who's got the good seats now!" It was pretty great. Then he sang "Making Memories of Us" which he dedicated to his wife, the beautiful Nicole Kidman. (For a short video of that, see my last post.)...

Rock on Keith Urban!! Woot! It was for sure the best concert ever.

Preview of Keith....

2009-09-16T19:46:00.000-07:00

So I was going to write about graduation and the Keith Urban Concert I went to a few days ago, but for some reason, Blogger won't let me add pics.....so for now, here's a quick video of Keith....he was awesome and it was for sure the best concert I've EVER been to!

Here's Keith Urban Singing, "Making Memories of Us" (which he dedicated to his wife, the beautiful Nicole.)

A beautiful Rainy Day

2009-06-11T18:34:00.000-07:00

Today started out sunny. Then I got a phone call from my manager at about 9m telling me that the park (Seven Peaks Water Park) was not opening today due to inclement weather. I was a little puzzled but happy to have most of the day off. I went in for some extra training and had the rest of the day to myself. Unfortunately, it ended up being one of those days where you have all day to get things done....but you do nothing. It DID end up raining, and it was glorious! I miss big rain storms like that. Soon, it started pouring outside, and Andrew and I decided to go play. So I put on my rain boots and a jacket, we grabbed a soccer ball, and headed out to our nearly empty parking lot. It was so much fun! Then I took some pictures (and photoshopped them)....

Also, I am happy to say that today I took my second to last final exam EVER!! I got a 94. Yay!

Count Your Many Blessings

2009-03-13T14:14:00.000-07:00

I saw an old friend yesterday in the Wilk. As I was talking to him and catching up, he said, "so, it sounds like life is good.....lots of blessings." It made me really stop and think. Ya, life is often stressful. Sometimes we get way bogged down and depressed about our circumstances. But, that doesn't mean that our Heavenly Father has forgotten us. He still loves us, and it we just look to Him and rely on His strength, He'll still bless us.

I'm thankful for what my friend said.
I'm thankful to have a healthy, happy, harmonious family.
I'm thankful to have found the love of my life, my best friend for eternity.
I'm thankful to be going to a University that offers an incredible educational experience along with a daily dose of the Spirit.

I think we are all blessed more than we know. And that's what keeps me smiling. :)

Highlights of the past....oh, month or so.

2009-02-03T14:34:00.000-08:00

Well, yes it's been a while since I've posted, so let me fill you in on a few of the happenings or little moments I've been experiencing lately...
-Witnessed a beautiful wedding ceremony of two of my close friends.

-Ate a cookie in the shape of Texas

-watched clips of Enchanted, Runaway Bride and Sleepless in Seattle in one of my classes. I think they should make a class that studies chick flicks. I would thoroughly enjoy that. :)

-started working at my internship with the boys and girls club. I forgot how teenagers think they are so cool and that they need to show off and be louder than anyone else in the room...or the world for that matter. The 3-5th graders are fun though. I feel like it's much more of a rewarding experience when I work with them.
-We (me and the teens from the Boys and Girls Club) are selling hot chocolate on 8th north tomorrow! Come buy a cup for $1!
-I went to the temple. I love it there. We did some sealings for some interesting names...George Buchanan ring a bell? I think it may have been the former president's father.

-I had an interview for a summer job/internship at Seven Peaks water park. That was the most nerve-racking interview of my life, but I think I did ok. We'll see by the end of this week.
-Played in my first inner tube water polo game....we tied...stupid refs.... bummer.
-Said goodbye to a very dear friend as she left for her mission.

-Fell in love with my husband all over again....(I do this on a daily basis)
-Made Texas Sheet cake....mmmmm....
-Helped plan my sister's wedding....I love doing this. Wedding planning is definitely a passion of mine. I don't know why, it's just so cute, and a lot of fun for me. It's especially nice when you aren't the one stressing over the details. (I love you mom!!!)

So, that's the gist of it. I'm sure I'll be posting within the next week or so. But for now, th th th that's all folks!

Looking back on 2008

2009-01-15T08:25:00.000-08:00

1) Where did you begin 2008? In My Family Room with my Best Cousin, Jess and my Family and friends.
2) What was your status by Valentine's Day? In Love and hoping.....lots of hoping for the future. ;) And a surprise home-cooked dinner - how romantic!
3) Were you in school anytime this year? Yes siree!
4) How did you earn your money? A VERY stressful summer job, a glorious campus job, and grant money from the US Gov.
5) Did you have to go to the hospital? Well, technically, no. But I accompanied Andrew to the ER last winter.
6) Did you have any encounters with the police? No. Wait, let me think.......ok no.
7) Would you relive 2008 over and over again? Well I definitely loved soooo many parts of it! But 2009's looking great as well!
8) What did you purchase that was over $1000? Hmm...well the wedding wasn't a purchase per say, but that definitely amounted to more than a grand. And then there's tuition...ew.
9) Did you know anybody who got married? Molly, Justin, Richie, Mel, Sadie, Jennie......oh, and maybe one more lucky girl!
10) Did you know anybody who passed away? A couple notable church leaders, but no one I knew personally.
11) Did you know anyone who had a baby? Ummm...I don't think so.
12) Did you move anywhere? Back to Chicago for the summer and then into my new Apt. With my hubby!
13) What concerts/shows did you go to? I saw Wicked (again) and Phantom of the Opera (in NYC!)
14) Are you registered to vote? Yes.
15) Do you still have the same job as you did in 2007? Yes, go Records!
16) Has anyone betrayed you in 2008? Not that I recall. If they did, I'm obviously over it. :)
17) Where do you live now? Provo, UT on Univ. Ave.
18) Describe your birthday. May 6th!! I got the best and most expensive gift of my life! (A diamond engagement ring!) Most memorable birthday for obvious reasons. Ok, so Andrew proposed in April, but it was at a dinner date we planned to celebrate my birthday.
19) What's one thing you thought you'd never do but did in 2008? Fly to Houston twice, get 2 of 4 wisdom teeth out while Andrew took care of me, and see Phantom in NYC!
20) What has been your favorite moment? Watching the sun set on the beach in Cali.
20.5) Any firsts in 2008? Went to Las Vegas, Went to California, saw the ocean, got engaged, got married, etc.
21) What's something you learned about yourself? My capacity to love and be loved is greater than I could have ever imagined. 22) Any new additions to your family? My dear Andrew.
23) What was your best month? August and April
24) Were you in a relationship this year? Sure was!
25) What music will you remember 2008 by? Colbie Caillat, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift
26) Who has been your best drinking buddy/buddies? Well, Kaitlyn and I DID have a lot of fun at her 21st birthday! (root beer kegger)
27) New friend? many
28) Favorite Night out? February 16-17. Walking on Newport beach with my sweetheart. One of my most favorite moments.
29) Would you say you've changed since the beginning of this year? Most definitely.
30) Do you think 2009 will be better or worse than 2008? It will be hard to beat, but I'm confident that it will be superb!!

Out with the Old. In with the New!

2009-01-01T16:11:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everyone! Last night, Andrew and I rang in the new year together for the first time as a couple. We didn't have any big plans, but we did take the opportunity to spend time together and relax a bit. We watched Enchanted and Indiana Jones 4. We stopped the movie at about 11:57 to celebrate a little. We poured a little bit of the bubbley (martinelli's), and when the clocked struck midnight, we shot off our silly sting. Unfortunately, the silly string acted as a better confetti than it did streamers. So, we got silly string dust and bits all over our family room! Ahh! Anyways, it was fun and I'm glad we could spend the evening together.

Today, I did a little new years detox in my closet and dresser. Get this, I threw out 8 pairs of shoes (including my stinky black flats) and over 20 articles of clothing! These items will all be donated to our beloved DI (with the exception of the stinky flats). I am pretty proud of myself, and it will be a nice surprise when Andrew gets home tonight. He's been asking me lately to organize my closet. I must say, it's looking good!

Christmas Time is here!

2008-12-23T13:29:00.001-08:00

After nearly 9 hours of airplanes and layovers, I am happy to say that Andrew and I successfully surprised my siblings Christmas morning. They had no idea we were coming to Chicago to see them! There were gasps, tears and cheers when we appeared Christmas morning. It was great.

On Friday, the whole family took a trip downtown. We took the 'L', or for those of you who are unfamiliar with Chicago's fine public transportation system, the "elevated rapid transit railroad." It's a lot of fun - especially for suburbanites who don't go downtown much.
When we got there, we visited my dad's office. His whole office has moved down to the company's headquarters right in the heart of the loop next to the Chicago River. Here's a pic of the view from the office.After that, we went and saw the decorations at Marshall Field's....Oh, I mean Macy's. Every year they decorate the storefront windows with scenes from children's stories. In years past they have done stories like Pattington Bear, The Nutcracker, Pinocchio, and Harry Potter. This year, they did their own story about decorating Chicago for Christmas.
After that, we grabbed some lunch, checked out streets where scenes from the Dark Night were filmed, and headed over to Milenuim Park to see the Bean. Of course, it was all foggy and non-reflective because of the weather, but still fun. Then, we went over to Daley Plaza to see the HUGE Christmas tree. Here's our family in front of the tree.
The rest of the week, we did some shopping, played Wii (the family gift), and of course went out for some Chicago Dogs at Portillos. It was great. We had a lot of fun, but got to relax too. (To see more pics, take a look at my facebook album.) Merry Christmas Everyone!

I can hardly contain myself!!

2008-12-22T10:23:00.000-08:00

So, Christmas is only 3 days away! I'm so excited!

Yesterday, we only had one hour of church because there are hardly any students left in Provo. We had a combined sacrament meeting with 3 wards, and surprisingly, we filled the entire chapel and had to open into the overflow. The meeting was nice, and we had a baby blessing! I always love hearing those. It was fun to see the little babies and toddlers dressed in their Christmas outfits. One little girl was dressed in a little Santa dress and cap. So adorable. After church we took a 3-4 hour snooze. Then we had breakfast (at 2pm!). I made french toast and bacon. Yum! We had a very relaxing day.

Here are the 9th and 10th days of Christmas...
9th Day: Nine scoops of Blue Bell. (A gift card to Outback, where they scoop up blue bell ice cream for a dollar a scoop)
10th Day: Ten fingers massaging. (Back massage)
I'll post the 11th and 12th day soon. It has been a lot of fun to do this for him and I think he has enjoyed it a lot!

Today it is snowing like crazy! I wish I had a good camera so I could take a picture, but it's beautiful!

Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!

2008-12-19T12:05:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! Well, today I am making my first post. I feel like it's important to document what's going on in my life - even if I'm the only one that ever sees thses. :)

Today I'm working all day since it's finals week and I am finished taking all my tests. I think I am going to get "A"s or "A-"s in all my classes except one. Also, I got 90% or better on all my finals but one (same class)! That's an accomplishment! So I feel pretty good about that. Plus, the other class is just one credit, so it won't have too big of an impact on my GPA. After this semester, I will take classes until June, then I have my 4-month internship, and THEN I GRADUATE!!! I can hardly wait!

So, now that finals are over, I don't have too much on my plate. Just work and doing stuff around the apartment. I SHOULD be working on thank you notes.... but we all know how much I love doing that.

This Christmas, I am doing the 12 days of Christmas for Andrew. I started the first day on Dec. 13h so that the 12th day of Christmas would fall on Christmas eve. Here are the things I have done so far...

1st Day: A love note in a pine tree. (I placed a love note to him in our Christmas tree)
2nd Day: Two songs from iTunes.
3rd Day: Three-hour Spaghetti (Andrew's favorite dinner!)
4th Day: Four favorite pens (Andrew likes a certain brand of pens, and we were running low)
5th Day: Five buck pizza
6th Day: Six bottled root beers (IBC)
7th Day: Seven cinnamon rolls
8th Day: Eight chicken roll-ups (Andrew's other favorite Dinner)

The whole point of this is to show him how much I love and appreciate him by giving him something he enjoys each day. So far so good! He's loving it!

Well, that's all for now, I'll post some pictures in the near future. Have a good one!