Our Newest Family Member

Her name is Tonks, and yes, she is just as cute as she looks.

We got Tonks from the breeder on Saturday. Our good friends are taking care of her temporarily until we move into my parent’s house later this month. She’s about four and half months old, and loves to sniff and give puppy kisses in your ear.

She hasn’t been too difficult to train, which is great, because Beagles are known for being stubborn. She has a great personality and we really like her a lot.

Tag!

I got tagged a long time ago, but late is better than never, right? And, I couldn’t remember much past 6...

8 Favorite Restaurants...
Tucanos (I usually eat my body weight in meat...mmm)
 Los 3 Amigos (The beef chimichanga with green chile sauce)
 Red Robin (The fish and chips)
Wingers
Papa Murphy’s
Zupa’s
My mom’s house

8 things that happened yesterday...
1. I got a much anticipated second job interview
2. Went to work
3. Played WoW and almost completed Stratholme
4. Called my mom
5. Made some super secret saturday plans
6. Cleaned up nothing and did no dishes
7. Watched a movie
8. Played Christmas songs on the piano

8 things to look forward to...
1. Saturday
2. Christmas
3. My bff coming home from her mission
4. Moving out of the spider house
5. Moving into my parent’s house
6. Going to Washington DC
7. Batman coming out on DVD

8 Favorite TV Shows...
1. The Office
2. House
3. Glenn Beck
4. The Colbert Report (not so much anymore though)
Friends
6. Nick at Nite


8 things I love about Fall...
1. The feeling in the air
2. The smell
3. Hot Chocolate
4. The leaves
5. Nice weather which lasts about 12 hours here in Utah
6. Sweaters

8 things on my wishlist...
1. Our own house
2. No more debt
3. Better jobs
4. Done with school
5. To get to level 80 on WoW
6. A puppy
7. A kitten

Movies and Such

Daniel and I went with some friends and saw Bolt in 3-D last night. It was so AWESOME! It was a really cute, fun, family movie with a great message. (Such a nice change after Wall-E). The hamster was my absolute favorite.

I read the entire Twilight series over the weekend. I decided it was important to read the books before I was too harsh on them. I have to say that I was really disappointed. I like vampires and werewolves, but felt that the romance in the book was an excuse for a real story. Plus, Bella was unbearable whiney. The fourth book wasn’t half bad, but it wasn’t worth it to read through the whole series to get to it.

We had Thanksgiving with my mother’s family on Saturday in Idaho. It was really pretty there, even though it was a little bit cold. And, it was nice to see my aunts and uncles. They all like Daniel a lot. (Why wouldn’t they)!

In other news, I had a job interview today. I’ve applied to work in our congress-man elect’s district office. Honestly, it’s a kind of a long shot, but I really really hope it works out. The interview went well, and I’m really excited about the prospect. I won’t know anything for a while, probably a few weeks in December. But, keep your fingers crossed for me!

Happy Thanksgiving!

One Year Later

So, this week marks one year since I met/started dating Daniel. I can hardly believe it’s been a year. I thought I would celebrate by recounting the events that happened around then for those who may not be familiar.

I had had kind of a rough year with a lot of things going on. I think everyone except those who knew me very well thought I just might go off the deep end. I had doubts myself. I got a new apartment in late September with some awesome roommates. Soon after moving in to my new ward I felt prompted to ask the bishop about mission papers. Since my parents home was so close to where I was living, I decided to go through my home ward bishop, but made him promise not to tell my parents about my decision. I also told him that if I started dating someone, I would stay home. He agreed. About two and half weeks later my papers were submitted. The next day, I met Daniel.

I got his number through Facebook and started texting him. He asked me out and I told him that I was going on a mission. He said that was fine, it didn’t have to be a serious thing.  I got my mission call to Milan, Italy two weeks later. That day we decided to start dating “officially.”

Daniel has taught me so much about how relationships are supposed to be. Everyone told me the first year of marriage would be terrible and we’d fight all the time. And, that hasn’t happened. We’ve learned a lot about each other, but I would say that this has probably been one of the easiest years of my adult life. And I owe that to Daniel. Love you sweetie!

Rock Stars

Daniel and I are rock stars.

My brother entrusted his Xbox 360 to me while he is on his mission. The first order of business was to buy Rock Band. I’ve been wanting to play it pretty much ever since I heard of it. Daniel and I have really enjoyed playing it.

And, it’s made us quite popular. We have people calling us once every week or so asking to come over and play. We also brought it down to Payson over conference and had some fun playing with the family. Even Matt and Sherie joined in the fun.

Another video game I’m really enjoying right now is Lego Batman. I really like the Lego video games. The level of play is really geared towards a younger audience, but I really get a kick out of picking up lego men and throwing them down and watching them break into pieces.... And the little videos between levels are just too fun. I recommend the game highly, as well as Lego Star Wars. I have yet to play Lego Indiana Jones, but it’s next on my list.

My Spider Sense

So, I’ve determined that I have a spider sense.  I can tell when they are in the room.

For instance, one morning I got up to take a shower and as soon as I stepped foot in the bathroom I felt nervous and twitchy. And sure enough, when I pulled back the shower curtain there was a big one in the tub that couldn’t get out. So, I disposed of that one.

While I was taking a shower I was still really nervous and jumpy. I had this quick thought, “What if there is one above my head.” I looked up just in time to see a big black one repelling from the ceiling. It dropped into the tub and down the drain, thank heavens.

Then, the next day, Daniel and I were sitting at the table. My eyes kept being drawn to the corner. After a couple times I saw a big brown spider in the corner.

I think I’d rather have another sense than a spider sense. Because I really hate spiders.

Off to Brazil!

So, this morning I went with my mom and dad to take my brother to the airport. He is serving a mission in Santa Maria, Brazil.

Jacob is the first missionary in our family, and the closest in age to me. I have to admit that it was harder to see him go than I thought it was going to be. We’ve become pretty close, especially since he moved out to college.

I couldn’t believe how grown up he looked in his suit and tie and name tag in the airport today. It was nice to be reassured that this is definitely something he can do. I’m going to miss him a lot, but I will know that he’s okay.

As hard as this is going to be for me, I have to admit I feel worse for my dad. He’s really losing a best friend. Jacob and my dad liked all the same movies, TV shows, and goofy/sarcastic sense of humor.

The highlight of the morning was when Jacob gave me a hug and said that he would miss me.

(btw, the picture above is pretty old. We don’t take pictures together very often..lol)

Kids Say the Darndest Things

So, I’ve had some funny experiences in my few short weeks at my new job that I’d like to share.

We have this program on the computers at school called LanSchool. I think it is literally the best thing ever invented. Basically, it allows me to see all the computers on the network and monitor students’ activity. I can shut down programs, send messages, blank screens, etc. It’s like ultimate power. It’s even awesomer when I tell someone to get off Solitaire or something and they say, “Hey! How’d you know I was on that?” I just say, “I can tell.” Then, most of them try to see if they can get around the program (which they can’t). Or, they start writing me messages on Word documents to see if I am reading their stuff and will answer back. Strangely, they get a big kick out of me taking over their computers.

A boy came in the other day to check out a laptop for a teacher. He said, “Do guys every try to flirt with you on the computer?” I said, “Uh...no.” And he said, “Oh, because my buddy said that he was writing stuff on his computer to try to flirt with you the other day.” I said, “Huh, well I didn’t notice. And, that’s pretty lame.” He agreed.

As I was leaving work on Wednesday a girl stopped me in the hall and said that she thought I was cool for telling people to stop playing games. She said, “I never have the guts to tell people to stop doing things, so it’s nice that someone is willing to take charge.” I wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or what. I don’t like telling people to get off games, but I kind of have to.

One thing I’ve learned though is how good people are at rationalizing everything they do. In the elementary school I worked at before I realized that these kids can come up with excuses for everything. That doesn’t change in high school, they just get better at it.

My Hymnbook

I had a neat experience today in sacrament meeting. Daniel and I were sitting in the foyer because we came in a little late and there wasn’t much room in the chapel.  Near the end of the meeting this older woman came and sat next to me. When we started singing the closing song she said that I should come to choir and sing alto because I have a lovely voice. I said thank you and that I had been meaning to come to choir but just forgot.

I have a German hymn book in my scripture bag. I don’t speak really fluently, mostly I just like looking at the translation and trying to find the songs in the English version. Well, I had it out and was looking at the German version of the song. The woman next to me said, “I had a hymn book just like that when I lived in Germany. But, I gave it away when I left because a gentleman there wanted an English one.” Then she looked closer at my hymn book and said, “That’s in German!! Where did you get that?” I said that I had received it as a gift a few years back. I said that I liked looking at the translation, but that my German wasn’t very good.

Well, after the closing prayer I turned to her and asked her if she’d like the book. She refused at first, but I could tell that she really wanted it so I insisted. She wanted to pay me for it, but in the end I convinced her to just take it.  Really, it wasn’t much of a sacrifice for me. I rarely used the book, and it was given to me by someone I’d rather not remember. Daniel has already promised to buy me a new one anyway. :) But, it was nice to put a smile on her face. I’m sure she’ll enjoy the book.

Beauty and the Beast

I’ve been meaning to blog about this for the past week now, and just haven’t had a chance.

I had such an awesome time doing this play. It was a lot of work, and I’m not going to lie, I’m glad it’s over.  It’s nice to have my evenings back.

But, I had some amazing experiences that I’d like to share.  Half-way through our run, we had some technical problems that forced us to redo much of the show. We had to change the beginning, some of the leads had to learn up to 3 pages of dialogue, and Belle had to learn a whole new song; all within a few hours. The rest of the cast found out about the changes as we came in for hair and makeup. Everyone was really upset and the feeling was very tense.  But, we had our cast meeting and did some last minute blocking and said a prayer.

While we were waiting for the show to start I was talking to one of my fellow actors.  I said that I had a good feeling about the show and thought that we’d be able to pull it together well. He agreed and we started talking about the ambition and talents of our lead characters. Our conversation reminded me of a few experiences in my life that I shared with him.

The first was when I was a communications student at BYU. I was working for the Daily Universe during the Spring/Summer terms. I did a profile on the head of the Piano Performance major. I asked him what it was like to be the head of a major that many people in this area don’t take seriously as a career. He said that when he chose his major during school, many looked down on it. But, because he had a natural talent and the ambition to stick with it, doors were opened to him. He said that he felt like every profession could be that way. If you have the natural talent and ambition for something, go for it. The opportunities will come. That was a changing point in my life. I decided then that I would do what I felt was right and take advantage of opportunities given to me. And it really has paid off.

The second thing I was reminded of was when I was a senior in high school. The only class I had at the high school was choir. Near the end of the year we went on choir tour to Los Angeles. It was a really neat experience. We got tickets to see the Lion King on broadway at the Orange County theater. It was absolutely fantastic. I had never seen a professional musical production before. The experience totally changed my outlook on theater. I was left with a feeling of awe and wonder. Whenever I performed after that, I tried to bring that same sense of awe and wonder to the audience.

That night we had an amazing performance. When we came out for curtain call I was along the side of the auditorium. When Belle came out I saw these two little girls in the audience. I wish I could have taken a picture of their faces. They were just absolutely glowing. That night we got a standing ovation, and got more compliments than just about any other night. I could hardly believe that no one noticed the changes we had made to the program.

Then, on Saturday night, we were opening the curtain for the number “Gaston” one of the benches got caught on the grand. When the curtain was lifted it ripped a hole in the grand about 10 feet wide. The bottom of the curtain just split at the seam. I was sitting right behind it and heard that rip and thought, oh shoot. But, we kept going through the number. At intermission about 6 women got some needles and thread and we sewed the curtain back up. It wasn’t the best job, but it kept the show going.

It may be weird to say this, but all these experiences were testimony building for me. It proved a sense of community and pride in our work. We had several other things happen in the play. There were deaths of family members, fires, and torrential rain. But, when things got bad, we trusted in the Lord. And we succeeded. Our Monday matinee was completely sold out, and every seat in the house was filled, plus some.

Thanks to all of you who took time to come see it. Your support made it all worth it.

PS
I don’t have pictures of the play yet, but I will post them when I get them.

Differential Diagnosis

What a week this has been. I have some good news, and some weird news. It’s not every day you hear that, right?

The good news is I got a new job. I’m the writing lab technician for Mountain View High School. I started on Tuesday and I’m really excited about the job. Basically I run the writing lab which consists of a computer lab and two laptop carts.  I am in charge of the scheduling for the lab, and all the student accounts. It’s nice because I get to work with a combination of students, computers, and free time. Plus, it’s more hours.

The other good news is the play is going really well. I’ve had a lot of fun being in it.  And, although I haven’t actually seen it, from what I’ve heard from other people, it’s really amazing to watch.

The weird news is I think I’m losing my brain. I think the portions that control memory and responsibility are seeping out through my ears. It’s the weirdest thing. In the last two weeks I’ve lost my keys twice, my phone countless times, and can’t remember anyone’s name.  All these things would be fine if they were spaced out a little more. It takes me 20 minutes to get out the door to go anywhere because I keep forgetting things to bring. I am hoping it will get better once I’m a little less stressed. But, part of me wonders if it’s something a little worse. And, if it is, I know a great doctor.

The Olympics

I don’t really like sports, but I sure do love the olympics. I think part of it is that I’m a real America snob. I love seeing our team do well. I wish that we could win gold in every event.

Well, since Daniel and I are currently living in a spider-infested hole, we don’t get TV. Not even with those attractive bunny-ear antennas. Believe me, I’ve made Daniel try. A lot.

So, we’ve basically taken up a temporary residence with mom and dad Ellsworth. I’ve been getting my fill of olympic goodness. It’s been a lot of fun to see, honestly. I think Michael Phelps is awesome. I can’t believe he has as much energy as he does to do all those events and to do so well.

The other thing I find amazing about Phelps is his history. His teachers told his mother that he would never amount to anything and would never be able to focus. Kids made fun of his bean-pole body and big ears. I imagine those people feel pretty bad now. It just goes to show you that when you make statements like that, they tend to come back to haunt you.

The other interesting thing about the olympics is how China has been acting. To make the olympic village they bulldozed a bunch of homes, making thousands of people homeless. They have a specific area for protests. The girl that sang the national anthem was told she was too chubby to be seen and had a different girl lip-sync it for her. It would be funny if it wasn’t just so seriously weird.

Anyway, it’s been a fun week so far. Beauty and the Beast opens in 1 week from today. I finally sewed my costume and everything is coming together.

My final words are Go USA!

The Dark Knight

So, Daniel surprised me and got tickets to see “The Dark Knight” which I have been excited about since “Batman Begins” came out.  I love Christian Bale as Batman, and really just love the idea of Batman as a superhero.

The movie definitely did not disappoint. It was pretty much nonstop action from the first scene to the end. There was a point in the middle of the movie where it slowed a little bit. In fact, I remember looking at the clock on my phone and thinking, there is no way this is over. And it wasn’t.

I was so impressed with Heath Ledger as the Joker. When they first announced that he would be playing the part, I admit I was a little skeptical. But after seeing previews, I began to be convinced. Well, he definitely threw his heart and soul into the role. He was able to portray a sick, twisted criminal who, in the words of Alfred, “just wants to see the world burn.” The movie was all about the Joker. Batman was almost a side character.

Throughout the whole movie Batman, Gordon, and Harvey Dent are coming up with these plans to stop the Joker from murdering and causing general chaos. But, he’s always a step ahead of them and uses their plans against them.  I didn’t read the comics as a kid and I didn’t know that Harvey Dent became Two Face.  I was pretty sad about that. I liked Harvey and what he represented.

I had two favorite parts in the movie. The first was when the prisoner threw the key to the bomb overboard. I wanted to give him a standing ovation. The second was at the very end when Harvey Dent died and Batman tells Gordon to call in that Batman killed all the people that Harvey actually killed. Batman says, “You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain. And I can do both of those things.” People need to have their faith rewarded.

All in all, one of the best movies I’ve ever seen, and definitely the best superhero movie. Heath Ledger as the joker will be the bar by which all other villains are judged. It’s a must-see in the theaters and is a movie you can watch over and over again.  The only complaint that I have really is I didn’t like the replacement for Rachel Dawes. The other warning I would give is that this is not a children’s movie. It is very dark and while not bloody, it is violent.

Anyway, let me know what you thought of the movie!

Happy Birthday America!

I love Independence Day. It’s my favorite holiday, hands down. And I like living near Provo for Independence Day. We have the biggest celebration in the country here. The fourth of July to me is a time to step back and think about all the things I love about our country instead of focusing on all the things I’d like to change.

We are in a state of turmoil right now; however, I believe that things aren’t so different now as they were in 1776. We face many of the same problems as they did. I am grateful that the founding fathers sacrificed their fortune and good name to give me freedom.

I owe my love of country to my parents. Independence Day is a pretty big deal in my family. My mom will usually read stories and quotes about the Declaration of Independence to us. I hope to do that one day with my family. Because, no matter our faults and shortcomings, we are the best nation in the world. And I am proud to be a part of it.

This has been a pretty eventful week. I can hardly believe that we are into July. Especially since we seemed to just have skipped Spring.

I was able to round up a lot of wedding and reception photos this last week. And I used my Adobe Lightroom magic to touch them up a little. They aren’t as totally gorgeous as my photographer seems to make them, but I think I’m getting closer. Either way, it was nice to have some more pictures. Here are a few I liked best.

(Images were on iWeb and I'm too lazy to import them)

I just realized something really weird the other day as well. I was looking at my wedding photos and realized that my brothers Jacob and Samuel were not at the temple after my wedding. And I have no idea why.

The Jason Chaffetz campaign asked me last Saturday to head up the social media team. Which basically means that I am going to be in charge of everything Facebook and MySpace related. I thought that was kind of neat.

But, I think the most exciting news this week was that I finally found some shorts that fit and that I like.  I’ve been on a search ever since the weather got nice. Either they are too short or too wide, or I didn’t like the color. (I’m quite picky when it comes to clothes). I had given up and bought a pattern and was going to have my sister make some for me. But, I went to Urban Wear in the University Mall and saw the perfect ones. I was so happy. I told the clerk that she needed to get more of that style in more colors. It literally made my week.

Anyway, Daniel and I also got a cute little barbecue grill from my parents. I’m excited about it because now dinner will be easy. And Daniel can be a macho man and help out. :)

And now, for one last picture

Lagoon Day

Daniel here signing in.  last week Emily and I went to Royal Engineering’s summer party at Lagoon.  We laughed we cried, we nearly lost our lunches, it was a blast.   Emily isn't to fond of the big fast rides so I brought a friend.  Cody came along so I wouldn't have to do the fast rides all by myself.   Emily jokes that i had to bring a date to lagoon, but cody is more of a brother anyway.
    so any way, we were there all day and the lines weren’t all that bad.  we rode the Rattle Snake Rapids, The Pirate Ship, The Colossus, The White Roller Coaster, The Jet Star II (were I got whiplash i think) Dracula’s Castle, And the terror ride.  after we had our fill of rides we got to eat dinner in one of the pavilions.

Movies I've seen lately

Daniel loves watching movies. In fact, that's pretty much what we do most nights. It takes quite a bit for me to feel like I've wasted my time after watching a movie. So, I can usually find a good point in most movies. Here are some of the movies that we've watched lately and how I felt about them.

The Bee Movie
I'm going to start with this, just to get it out of the way. This movie was perhaps the worst movie I've ever seen in my life (except maybe Star Wars Episode 2). It was stupid, uneventful, and extremely false. The premise of the movie is that this bee (with the voice of Jerry Seinfeld who is such a whiner anyway it makes me sick) doesn't want to do mundane tasks for the rest of his life. So he ventures out of the hive in search of something new. He meets this human woman and falls in love with her. (Yeah, right). During a venture out to the grocery store, he sees all this honey on the shelves and deduces that the humans are stealing from bees. So, he files a law suit with the honey companies. Well, at the court hearing, you'll never guess who is representing the honey industry. A fat white man. Go figure. You know those evil, gluttonous corporate organizations. Anyway, he wins, and the bees stop producing honey. Well, according to this movie, when bees stop pollinating, all plant life dies....immediately. Anyway, they work it out in the end. But, I honestly felt like I had wasted part of my life watching this movie. I definitely don't recommend it.

Juno
I'd heard a lot about this movie, some good, some bad. But, I wanted to see it myself. After having seen it, I have mixed feelings. It was definitely off-beat and quirky. I liked Ellen Page because you never knew what she was going to say next. But, I didn't love it. And I'm not really sure why. I think, honestly, the soundtrack kind of bugged me. That's really the only complaint. It was worth seeing at least once though.

Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull
I've been wanting to see this movie since I heard they were making a new one. I love Indiana Jones and I love Harrison Ford. Daniel and I saw it the weekend it came out and I really enjoyed it. I think the critics will rip it apart though. I think that if you see the movie you need to realize that it's an Indiana Jones movie, so a lot of it is pretty unbelievable. And a little goofy. I liked Raiders of the Lost Ark a little better, but this movie was definitely right in step with the others.

The Great Debaters
Along the same lines as Harrison Ford, I love Denzel Washington. I feel like he always has a really good energy with his roles. He also directed this one, and I feel like it carried that same energy. Anyway, I thought the movie was really good. It was set in the pre-civil right era. I felt like it had a lot to say about racism without getting all down on "the white man." It told it like it is, which is very refreshing. To me, the message of the movie was that this is where we came from and look how different things are now.

Cloverfield
My brother loved this movie, and I was pretty fascinated by the previews. I liked the way it was filmed, showing a disaster from a common person's point of view. But, it didn't really thrill me. I wasn't scared through the entire thing and it's really easy to get me jumpy. I think it was the lack of music, which was part of the effect. Also, I really didn't like any of the characters in it. Or, at least I didn't feel a connection.

Ironman
I have to admit that I wasn’t too excited to see this one, but Daniel really wanted to see it, so we saw it with some friends. And I was totally blown away. I love transformers, and I felt like this was in the style of that movie. Robert Downey, Jr. did an awesome job as Tony Stark, and I loved Pepper Potts. It was exciting, and had great character development. I totally recommend it!

Anyway, I'm still patiently waiting for the new Batman to come out. If you know of any other good movies I should see, let me know!

Blogity Blog Blog

    Emily has been getting after me to write in the blog so here i go.  and as I type she is perched on my shoulder eating cookie dough. I like rain and the smell of rain but right now it’s raining cookie dough and the occasional droplet of drool.  cookie dough has got to be the most beloved desert that was never meant to be eaten raw. Lucky man/woman who discovered that little miracle. 
    Any way as far as status goes, I’m working, taking the summer off from school and enjoying spending time with my princess.  Who is my wife(for the sake of some unforeseen ,however improbable, confusion). we are living in a basement apartment in orem. we have three little port holes and we like them. we call it the Ellsworth lair and we like it. we have just finished remodeling our spider infested solitary confinement to a lovely full bath.