We FINALLY sold our housing contract on Saturday. Talk about relief. We are so blessed. Not only did we sell it, but the people that bought it decided to be fair. They are paying half of April's rent as well as half of the deposit which is nice because I was so desperate I almost would have just given it away. The bad news-- we have to be out by Saturday! This Saturday! They gave us one week to move out, but hey, I'm not complaining. This week will be a fun one...
Where will we stay starting this Saturday after we move out and during all of finals week? That's a great question my friends. We have a few options, but still haven't made a final decision. It won't be fun to be homeless, but we are fortunate to have some dear friends who are willing to let us crash on their couch for a week. People have been so nice and willing to help us move. Someone in our ward dropped by with several very nice boxes Saturday and the packing has begun. (Our apartment is a wreck!) Anyone who knows me well knows that I like to plan ahead. Andrew always makes fun of me because I like to pack quite early. Last time we moved, the apartment was in boxes with three weeks to spare. I'm feeling a little frantic about the fact that Saturday is merely 5 short days away. It will all workout!
There was even a storage unit left at the cheap price that we wanted which was surprising because they are filling up fast at this time of year. Through this process I have learned to be more patient. God did provide a way, but not in the timing I would of liked.It all worked out though. He sees everything and knows what is best. We are blessed more than we deserve and I am so grateful. (As of now, there are still 13 apartments that haven't sold in our ward!)
Now, back to packing... the never-ending process...
Monday, March 31, 2014
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Bittersweet
April 11th is approaching quickly. I have been in denial about the whole thing probably because we have yet to sell our apartment contract... Regardless, we are moving to Utah on the 11th. We will grace Utah with our presence for one night before flying to L.A. I can't wait to see my little nephew who is now crawling. He may or may not be the background on my phone. I frequently get asked if he is my little boy. I wouldn't mind taking credit for his cuteness.
A week of relaxation couldn't come at a better time. We plan on spending lots of time sleeping in, lounging around the condo, hanging out at the swimming pool, taking long walks on the beach, going to the L.A temple, eating famous Chicken and Waffles, and of, course spending a day or two at the happiest place on earth. My little nephew (Simon) will only be there the first night. We will make the most of our time together.
Anyone who knows me knows that living in Rexburg isn't my dream. (understatement of the century) In fact, if I hadn't met Andrew, I would have transferred to a different school. Having said that, I find myself a little sad at the fact that we are leaving. Here is how I have broken things down:
Things I'm looking forward to:
Am I ready for April 11? Yes and no, but mostly yes. Ready or not Utah, here we come!
A week of relaxation couldn't come at a better time. We plan on spending lots of time sleeping in, lounging around the condo, hanging out at the swimming pool, taking long walks on the beach, going to the L.A temple, eating famous Chicken and Waffles, and of, course spending a day or two at the happiest place on earth. My little nephew (Simon) will only be there the first night. We will make the most of our time together.
Anyone who knows me knows that living in Rexburg isn't my dream. (understatement of the century) In fact, if I hadn't met Andrew, I would have transferred to a different school. Having said that, I find myself a little sad at the fact that we are leaving. Here is how I have broken things down:
Things I'm looking forward to:
- Cafe Rio being 2 minutes away from me. (notice this is listed first)
- Spending time with my family!
- Getting paid more than minimum wage which is nearly impossible in Rexburg.
- Having shopping nearby! (Something besides Cal Ranch)
- Getting to hangout with old friends.
- Attending my home ward/family ward.
- Having free time!
- Friends. Our best friends are moving back to Rexburg after being gone for 2 semesters and we will not be here.
- Our ward. I don't know a bishop that spends more time in my behalf.
- Our apartment. Of the 3 we have lived in, this one is by far the nicest. (Hopefully it will sell or I guess we won't really be leaving it...)
- Leaving during the BEST and only warm season in Rexburg. Why couldn't we plan these internships during the winter??
- Our noisy neighbors. (Apartments have the thinnest walls!)
- The wind. The wind here is ALWAYS bad and no matter how modest my dress is, it becomes very problematic on a daily basis.
- Wearing a dress everyday for work. I have been doing it for a year now and don't know that I can come up with one more cute outfit.
- The grocery store. No matter when you go, it is always crowded because there are only 2 in the entire city.
- School. A break will be nice. I have been going to school year-round for 5 semesters now and am very burnt out.
Am I ready for April 11? Yes and no, but mostly yes. Ready or not Utah, here we come!
Monday, March 24, 2014
Elizabeth Smart
Instead of studying for finals this weekend which would have been the smart thing to do, I purchased Elizabeth Smart's book, "My Story." Andrew had to talk me into purchasing it because it was kind of pricey, and I didn't have the patience to wait for this book on hold at the library. I have been wanting to read it for quite some time. The book was definitely worth every penny. I could hardly put it down until I finished.
I have vivid memories of hearing about Elizabeth Smart being kidnapped growing up. She was taken in 2002 and I was 9 years old at the time. I was terrified that I might be taken too. In fact, one night I woke up because I heard noises. I thought for sure someone was there to take me and I was beyond scared. It took me over an hour to get up the courage to even get out of bed and go to my parents room. What if the kidnapper heard me? My parents were very anti letting us kids come into their room/bed at night (can you blame them?) and I was afraid they would be mad at me. They ended up giving me a pillow and I slept on their floor that night.
Ironically enough, Elizabeth Smart happened to be found at the Wal-Mart right near my house, so this story was very close to home for me. I had no idea how much Elizabeth Smart went through until reading this book. It is so sad to hear what she had to experience, but it was also amazing to see that miracles she still found in her through in the midst of it all. Her positivity through it all is inspiring. This is one of my favorite quotes from the book: "As of this writing, I am twenty-five years old. I have been alive for 307 months. Nine of those months were pretty terrible. But 298 of those months have been very good. I have been happy. I have been very blessed. Who knows how many more months I have to live? But even if I die tomorrow, nine out of 307 seems like pretty good odds." (pg. 302)
Read it, you won't regret it.
Monday, March 17, 2014
Dessert
Dessert is what I'm all about. I think I inherited this lovely trait from my mother who claims she works out just so she can eat. (I do too!) It's hard for me not to make something sweet on a nightly basis. I think a recent experience illustrates what I am trying to say perfectly.
Andrew and I were playing the game "Telestrations" with some friends. As you know and have seen my artwork, (previous blog post) art isn't my thing. When I got the next booklet to draw in, I saw the word, "desert." I immediately thought, "how embarrassing, that person can't spell. Don't they know dessert has 2 ss's because you always want 2 helpings?" I drew a nice dessert. At the end of the game, I realized that there was not a spelling error. I was supposed to draw a desert, not dessert. All of the previous pictures before mine were deserts, but because of me and my love of dessert, the whole game changed. Everyone thought it was pretty funny.
I'm always up for trying a new dessert, in fact, we rarely have the same dessert twice. (Unless it involves peanut butter.) This past weekend, some friends invited us over for dinner. When Andrew asked what we could bring, they said, "Have Jenna make one of her famous desserts." I have had so much practice making dessert, maybe I'm finally becoming good at it.
I tried a new recipe which is never a good idea when you are giving it to someone else, but this recipe was a success! You can find it here: www.thecountrycook.net/2013/05/old-fashioned-oatmeal-cake-with-broiled.html
The best part of the cake is probably the broiled frosting. (or the cake batter. Licking the bowl is always the best part.) It adds a crunchiness that is to die for. I was a bit extreme and took the advice given in the recipe saying if you want to be mean, double the frosting. The mixture of brown sugar, coconut, butter, evaporated milk, and pecans is out of this world. That being said, I couldn't eat as much as I wanted because it is very rich, but worth every bite. Here is a picture:
I left lots of the cake with our friends which is good for my belly and which also means I have an excuse to make dessert again tonight...
Andrew and I were playing the game "Telestrations" with some friends. As you know and have seen my artwork, (previous blog post) art isn't my thing. When I got the next booklet to draw in, I saw the word, "desert." I immediately thought, "how embarrassing, that person can't spell. Don't they know dessert has 2 ss's because you always want 2 helpings?" I drew a nice dessert. At the end of the game, I realized that there was not a spelling error. I was supposed to draw a desert, not dessert. All of the previous pictures before mine were deserts, but because of me and my love of dessert, the whole game changed. Everyone thought it was pretty funny.
I'm always up for trying a new dessert, in fact, we rarely have the same dessert twice. (Unless it involves peanut butter.) This past weekend, some friends invited us over for dinner. When Andrew asked what we could bring, they said, "Have Jenna make one of her famous desserts." I have had so much practice making dessert, maybe I'm finally becoming good at it.
I tried a new recipe which is never a good idea when you are giving it to someone else, but this recipe was a success! You can find it here: www.thecountrycook.net/2013/05/old-fashioned-oatmeal-cake-with-broiled.html
The best part of the cake is probably the broiled frosting. (or the cake batter. Licking the bowl is always the best part.) It adds a crunchiness that is to die for. I was a bit extreme and took the advice given in the recipe saying if you want to be mean, double the frosting. The mixture of brown sugar, coconut, butter, evaporated milk, and pecans is out of this world. That being said, I couldn't eat as much as I wanted because it is very rich, but worth every bite. Here is a picture:
Be jealous!
I left lots of the cake with our friends which is good for my belly and which also means I have an excuse to make dessert again tonight...
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Spread the Word to End the Word
In High School, I was a peer tutor and had the chance to work with handicap teenagers. While involved in this program, I was pushed to join a club that I had never heard of. When I found out more about the club, I immediately joined. (and got a free t-shirt)
The club was called "Spread the Word to End the Word." The "word" refers to the "r" word aka retarded. I have always disliked when others use this word and don't use it myself. I pledged not to use this word and you can too here:
http://www.r-word.org
Fast forward to my college years and I am enrolled in a special education course. I was assigned to teach the class (with 2 other people) one of the chapters from the book. My group happened to get the chapter that talks about the use of the "r" word and how offensive it is. I immediately told my group about my High-School experience and the club I joined. Ironically, a girl in my group owns a t-shirt company and we decided to make the entire class matching t-shirts. (We used my High-School shirt as a template)We only let the class take a shirt if they pledged to not use the "r" word. The whole class took a shirt. Maybe we started a revolution...
In my special education class we have had to experience a lot of challenges that others face. For instance, we were assigned to ride in a wheel-chair for 4 hours. This might sound easy, but trust me, it isn't. There were certain things we had to do while in the wheelchair, so unfortunately I couldn't just take a 4 hour nap and be done.
The hardest thing for me to do in the wheelchair was go to the bathroom. How can I be expected to hold the door open while wheeling myself in and making it over a huge bump on the ground? I struggled to even get in the bathroom for nearly 5 minutes. (Luckily nobody was nearby to see me.) Once I finally made it into the bathroom, I immediately had to make a sharp turn. This didn't go well. I may or may not have left my mark on the wall corner in the bathroom.
After washing my hands,I realized that I was in trouble. How could I possibly keep my dripping-wet hands clean while wheeling to the paper towels? After this wheelchair experience, I woke up the next day EXTRAORDINARILY sore.
Another assignment I completed was wearing various masks over a 4-hour period to experience what it is like to be visually impaired. This was NOT fun. I had a headache for the entire 4 hours and when I was walking back after the 4 hours to return my face-masks, I nearly fell down the stairs because I couldn't see. I might add that my eyes were in so much pain that they were watering.
The assignment I probably struggled with the most was talking with a speech impediment. There were very specific instructions for this assignment and as I approached the Wal-Mart worker, I was nervous. I could not use the letters l or n when talking. I asked the worker if they have the movie, "Wegawy Bwonde." (Legally Blonde) He gave me a very funny look, but did look it up for me. In the meantime, Andrew was watching from nearby and could not contain himself. I then laughed as well because I felt silly, but only when the worker had his back turned to me. I went all the way to Wal-Mart for this experience, so I would never have to see the person I talked to again. It was humiliating.
There are so many things to be grateful for. Speech, working legs, eye-sight, etc. What if these things were taken away?
My challenge to you: think twice before using the "r" word next time you're tempted.
The club was called "Spread the Word to End the Word." The "word" refers to the "r" word aka retarded. I have always disliked when others use this word and don't use it myself. I pledged not to use this word and you can too here:
http://www.r-word.org
Fast forward to my college years and I am enrolled in a special education course. I was assigned to teach the class (with 2 other people) one of the chapters from the book. My group happened to get the chapter that talks about the use of the "r" word and how offensive it is. I immediately told my group about my High-School experience and the club I joined. Ironically, a girl in my group owns a t-shirt company and we decided to make the entire class matching t-shirts. (We used my High-School shirt as a template)We only let the class take a shirt if they pledged to not use the "r" word. The whole class took a shirt. Maybe we started a revolution...
In my special education class we have had to experience a lot of challenges that others face. For instance, we were assigned to ride in a wheel-chair for 4 hours. This might sound easy, but trust me, it isn't. There were certain things we had to do while in the wheelchair, so unfortunately I couldn't just take a 4 hour nap and be done.
The hardest thing for me to do in the wheelchair was go to the bathroom. How can I be expected to hold the door open while wheeling myself in and making it over a huge bump on the ground? I struggled to even get in the bathroom for nearly 5 minutes. (Luckily nobody was nearby to see me.) Once I finally made it into the bathroom, I immediately had to make a sharp turn. This didn't go well. I may or may not have left my mark on the wall corner in the bathroom.
After washing my hands,I realized that I was in trouble. How could I possibly keep my dripping-wet hands clean while wheeling to the paper towels? After this wheelchair experience, I woke up the next day EXTRAORDINARILY sore.
Another assignment I completed was wearing various masks over a 4-hour period to experience what it is like to be visually impaired. This was NOT fun. I had a headache for the entire 4 hours and when I was walking back after the 4 hours to return my face-masks, I nearly fell down the stairs because I couldn't see. I might add that my eyes were in so much pain that they were watering.
The assignment I probably struggled with the most was talking with a speech impediment. There were very specific instructions for this assignment and as I approached the Wal-Mart worker, I was nervous. I could not use the letters l or n when talking. I asked the worker if they have the movie, "Wegawy Bwonde." (Legally Blonde) He gave me a very funny look, but did look it up for me. In the meantime, Andrew was watching from nearby and could not contain himself. I then laughed as well because I felt silly, but only when the worker had his back turned to me. I went all the way to Wal-Mart for this experience, so I would never have to see the person I talked to again. It was humiliating.
There are so many things to be grateful for. Speech, working legs, eye-sight, etc. What if these things were taken away?
My challenge to you: think twice before using the "r" word next time you're tempted.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)