Kent's official now in two states

Kent just got sworn in to the Utah state bar and is now officially licenced to practice in California and Utah. Here we are after the ceremony.

Other recent things:

I just applied for school, took the placement test, and went to register for class and found out that I am not considered a resident of Utah even though I have lived here 23 out of the 26 years of my life. I have to wait another semester to qualify for residency. I would love to just go to at least one class this semester, but the tuition is three times more for non-residents!!!! Arg! So I guess i get the summer off.

Kent has gotten various legal work for individuals here and there, but is still looking for full time work - as am I. I started teaching piano lessons again, I am also taking piano and violin lessons once again, and just got a gig playing piano at a christening party the end of this month.

I am also helping a friend plan the 3rd Annual Gala for the Empress Theatre. What do you know, all the event planning and sponsor finding at Pepperdine is still paying off.

Pepperdine has hired me once more for a temporary position which I can do remotely. It is interesting I can still get jobs in California, but not here in Utah - where I live. CRAZY!

Well, that is about all that has happened. Pretty boring for now. Maybe something fun or unexpected will happen this week for me to blog about - maybe an airplane will fall out of the sky right outside our apartment window and create a huge fire which everyone will miraculously survive. Or, maybe everything at MACEY's will be discounted to .50 and I will be able to purchase my one year supply of food storage all in one swoop. Of course if that happened, I would have to store it in the bath tub, the dryer, the washer and the oven since this one bedroom apartment isn't getting any bigger. ;)

Moved and Settled

Well, we have left Cedar City already and moved up to Salt Lake in hopes that Kent will be able to find a law firm to associate himself with. We are living on about 7400 South and 900 East by Fort Union in Midvale. We miss our big three bedroom for sure. We are in a one bedroom apartment - again! I am starting to teach piano again and will begin taking lessons from Kent's mom next month to polish up my skills.

We had a wonderful time over Easter weekend. We went to St. George and played air soft, had a late night Easter egg hunt/competition in the dark, and played around on the red rocks. It was a blast.

Us before our air soft battle:

Sammy and my cousin Jake posed as victums of a devistating rock slide - what goofs!

7 Years and Funny Family Moments

We have now made it past the seven year itch. Our anniversary was March 15th. Kent took me to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner then to the Anniversary Inn in Salt Lake and we got to stay in the Anniversary Inn Suite. It was a wonderful time. We watched foot loose - my first time seeing it if you can believe it. I gave him a bunch of "little things" meaning a bunch of little items (toys and candy) that were attached to typed notes that listed all the little things I loved about Kent. For example, the other morning, Kent got up really early to go hiking. He left while I was still in bed and while he thought I was still asleep, he touched my face, gave me a kiss and said, "You're beautiful". These are the little things I love. All right, I'll stop being mushy now.

Kent went on a 10 hour hike/bob cat tracking expedition last week including a fall off a 15 foot cliff. Him and his friend Kenny left at about 7:30 am from Fiddlers Canyon and while fully intending to end where they started, Kenny's wife and I ended up picking them up at about 5:30 or 6 pm in Cedar Canyon at the other end of town. They had crossed a few mountain ranges, many cliffs, much snow, and who knows what else. They weren't sure exactly where they would come out in the canyon, so they had us driving up and down for a while searching for them. I guess no matter the age, boys will be boys. Kent had quite the sun burn and some really muddy clothes, but he had a great time. I used to be that adventurous, what happened?

Funny Moment #1:
So I went to my dads house for the weekend and got to spend some time with my brother, sisters, niece and nephew. Some of the funniest things (well funny to me) happened. I was sitting at the table eating lunch with my niece and she looked at me and said, "Your hair is brown", after I confirmed her comment she then said, "my hair is stylish". Hmmm! I wonder what she meant by that?

Funny Moment #2
Later I was doing my hair and she came into the bathroom and asked me to ask her how I looked. I asked her, then she promptly replied, "You look Distinguished, Very Distinguished". She is only three years old! Where does she get this stuff?

Funny Moment #3
But the one that tops them all... We were over at my aunt and uncles house for an early Easter celebration and my nephew (2 years) and my cousins daughter (3 years) disappeared. When we found them, they had been in the bathroom each with a bottle of baby powder squirting it at each other. I didn't have my camera, but my sister did, so I will get some photos. The whole bathroom was dusted, the kids looked like ghosts, the carpet "poofed" as you walked across it and the heater vents carried the white dust throughout every room in the house. What can you do at that point but take a picture? It was so hilarious!

Other things we did:
We went shooting. It's been a really long time since I've done that and I realized that I can't shoot right eyed. So I switched to left handed shooting and hit all my targets after that. Maybe that is why I also shoot pool left handed. I can't wait to get my own 22 and join the gun owner world. We of course need to get jobs first so we can afford it. I colored in coloring books a lot, played some cards, went on a Pez scavenger hunt which was the adult version of an Easter eggs hunt. We were on teams and had to read the clues in the Pez and guess the word before the other teams. The Pez were so hard to find we didn't even find them all.

Here are some of the clues - see if you can guess the word....
- Oder less
- Colorless
- Inflate
- Firmament
- Public Utterance
- Particulate Matter

What do you think? Any luck? We guessed helium, hot air balloon, and balloon but to no avail. The answer was, drum roll please, air. Quite anti-climactic. It was too obvious for us to figure out. Finally another team guessed right and won the treasure chest full of treats. Fun stuff.

Well, I think that about does it for my update. I can't really think of anything else interesting to write so I'll sign off now.

Humbled

It seems like the very second I think I know best about any topic the Lord feels the need to let me know how far I am from right. I suppose that is how we grow. I was missing my old ward and feeling sorry for myself that while I have met so many great people here in Cedar City that I just love, I wasn't feeling that "sisterhood" that I treasure so much. I had all these speculations for why that might be and of course none of them had anything to do with ME. HA! Maybe if I took another look I would see that it is me who's the problem. Anyways, my point is that I just met my new visiting teachers this week and they are wonderful. More wonderful than I could hope for. They made me feel like I had known them for years - like we were "sisters" and that's that. Sweet women.

I was also convinced that spring should be here and that the continued snow was just unfair. Then the Lord saw fit to dump a little more just to prove me wrong. So sorry everyone.... It's my fault. ;) We have had so many lessons, talks, and articles that involve adversity lately. I think that includes the adversity we bring upon ourselves through negative thinking. I guess it is all just hitting me and I am gaining a stronger testimony that the Lord knows best. He has shown me that he knows me, he loves me, and he wants me to grow - even if that means I have to experience difficult circumstances in life(of course we all do). I guess what I am struggling with now is wondering if I can accept the trials that He knows I need through out my life.

For FHE this week we read an Ensign article about enduring to the end. It defined the word endure in a way that I never thought of before. "Endure to the end: To remain true to the commandments of God despite temptation, opposition, and adversity throughout life." The article then goes on to teach that enduring is not just to "hang on" through unpleasant times, but to live happily despite them. Hmmm.... Food for thought.

By the way, Kent and I will have been married seven years next Monday. Boy! Where does the time go? Just as I was telling Kent's parents that it went by so fast, Kent said, "It feels like forever". I don't know how I'm supposed to take that! I think he just likes to be the center of attention. :) We all had a good laugh.

Valentine "Treet"

I made this Valentine candy tree for Kent. I can't wait to give it to him on Sunday with a nice candle lit dinner. Luckily he rarely reads our blog and I am pretty sure if I don't want him to see it this is a safe place. We'll see. I never was very good at keeping presents a surprise.
I finally got all my dishes done after taking my niece and nephew back to their mommy. I miss them already. They called me today to say hello. It was SO cute.

I suppose I should give an update on our lives as of late. I just finished my work at Pepperdine and and getting ready to look for part-time work. I am also working hard on finishing everything up for the Miss Southern Utah Pageant. It is in less than two weeks and I have a tone to do.Wish me luck. I am going to need it.

Kent is studying for the Utah bar exam that he will take at the end of this month and he just finished taking the written and physical tests for the Marine JAG Corp. He did pretty good. Got 99% on the written exam. The Marines is not the only option we are looking at, but it is looking like a good one. We will find out if he gets in at the end of March. There are only about six open spots on the West Coast, so we will see. He is still working out for about 1 - 2 hours a day.

Just found out one of my good friends, Jennifer is pregnant, and so is my cousin Stephanie, and my neighbor two doors down, and two other women in my ward. It must be the season. I am so excited for them all! I love babies. Hopefully I will soon be joining them in the morning sickness fest. Well not if I'm lucky eh?

Well Kent is home. Got to go.

New Church Calling

I forgot to mention that I have a new calling as a Relief Society teacher. I am so excited. It has been a long time since I have been in Relief Society. I guess I am starting to grow up.

Fun in the Snow!

I finally got the Christmas off my blog. Sorry about that. It has been a hectic month. KD and Talon, my niece and nephew are staying with us for a couple of weeks. They are so fun. We made snow angels on Monday, learned the Hokey Pokey on Saturday, Made cookies yesterday, and learned how to help our neighbors for Family Home Evening. They are so cute.


Today we are drawing pictures for their mom. I decided to take some pictures of them, but they just thought it was fun to run away from me while I chased them with the camera. IT'S A NEW GAME! They loved it. Luckily we have gone digital so I can take as many pictures as I want. They love Uncle Kent and I had to go buy a pre school work book so they could study "just like Uncle Kent". The best is when they come get you to show you what is in the toilet and want you to clap! I love it, just not the smell ;)


So after spending almost every weekend sense Thanksgiving up in Salt Lake, it is nice to have a break from the long drive. Kent is studying hard for the Utah bar and working out like mad to meet the requirements for the Marine JAG Corp. He has really bulked up. It is kind of funny - none of his shirts fit. They are all stretched around his biceps and across his chest, but hey... I'm not complaining.

I will be done working for Pepperdine this week. It is hard to believe. I got another job offer for contracted marketing work last week from someone I met at Pepperdine. Just part-time and month-to-month, but what great timing. I think I'm going to go look for a part-time job stocking shelves or something just to bring in some extra cash. Everyone keeps asking me why I want to do something like stock shelves after the work experience I have gotten. Are you kidding? No really, I just want something I don't have to put so much mental effort into and that I don't have to think about after I come home. I am not looking for a permanent or full-time career so why deal with the stress? While I have thoroughly enjoyed working for Pepperdine, and Seagull Book before that and wouldn't trade the experience for anything, it will be so nice to have a less complicated job. Manual labor would feel so great about right now. I know, I sound crazy.

Well, time for me to go wipe noses and think about dinner and more laundry while I enjoy the Berenstain Bears on TV. Hopefully my next update won't take me so long to get around to.