Virginia IS for Lovers

This past weekend, I brought Samuel home to Virginia so he could breath in some good ol' eastern air. Yum! We arrived on mom's birthday, and got up the next morning to pay the Hatch's and their new hachita a visit.

Mom was happy as ever. Cooin' and kissin' like any Great Aunt would.

Samuel had never held a baby, so he was very scared! Just kidding of course, just a funny photo.

I regressed to giving my best 12-year-old smile. Mostly baby Siena looks so cute and squished.

The happy little family. Just kidding! I mean we are happy, and we are family. But I am not happy about my stringy 12-year-old hair.

We left Richmond and I spent the rest of the weekend looking like this, because I was SO HAPPY to be in Virginia!

Mom and Dad took us to the barn to see mom's horse. We just horsed around.

And took sneaky pictures in the barn.

Samuel was a horsemanship badge-earning boy scout and took some riding lessons.

And we found some yucky beards.

Dad smoked us in his sweet new ride.

But only after carefully maneuvering off the lawn.

Dad also smoked some targets

And Samuel won Dad's heart by being a fellow smoker.

I just think he's smokin' anyway.

They spent a lot of their time discussin these smokin' guns.

While sweet mommy got to work in the smokin' kitchen to make us delicious southern foods, such as this yummy breakfast. He even tried grits! And said they were good enough :).

So, in the end our trip to Virginia was quite a success. No proof that I ever saw Bethany... but believe me! She was there! We were both sad to leave, and are both excited to go back!


But returning to Utah had it's rewards. I interviewed on Wednesday and was offered at job the next day at Primary Children's Medical Center on their Neuro/Trauma unit! So I had a fun summer of play, but I am excited to finally be back at the hospital!!

Wish me luck!

Life and Love and the Like

I realized I haven't officially "posted" on my life since graduation. Since I have been so bad at taking pictures, there is only evidence that a couple of the stories I am going to tell are true, the rest you'll have to believe in good faith!

First: I really did make it to Utah! We made it into town on May 19th. After 3 days in my sweet truck with no AC, crappy radio (which can probably be attributed to being in the middle of NO WHERE), and no shocks. Quite the comfy cruise!

But the welcoming scenary was quite rewarding, and the treats to follow were all the more worth the long journey.

So.. a week after moving to Utah, after a week of lots of play... you might have heard that I had a little adventure in milk shake shoppe. It's true! I met Samuel! Completely worth any amount of driving in a bouncy truck without AC. He's quite the gem indeed, and things happened pretty quickly too. That being said, to my excitement.. but also disappointment... I had to leave him a week later to take a little adventure as and Island Princess!

(Second). I flew to the Virgin Islands in early June to spend a week with some of my closest friends from college (and life).

I enjoyed making my feet cozy in baths like this:

Spending tropical days and adventurous nights with friends like this:

And made some new friends:

Got some crazy sun baths:

Took this as my daily view:

Hiked to views like this:

Played on, in, and around beaches like this:

Took showers here:

Slept and took more showers here:

And now will spend the rest of my days dreaming of looking like this:

(Third) I arrived home from the Virgin Islands, I died of unbelief when my baby sister graduated from High School!!


(Fourth) I returned to Utah, and gladly found the gem of a boy as I had left him. We enjoyed one another's company for a week and then HE left for a week for family vacation. During which time I took my nursing boards and PASSED!

(Fifth) I started working as a home health/private duty nurse. And while I love the boy I work with, I realized that sitting in a dark room, at night all alone while he sleeps wasn't really fostering learning, relationships or skill development.. the job search ensued. And Samuel moved to Denver :(.

(Sixth) Since my job was so up in the air all the time, and I wasn't finding other work I spent a lot of time in Denver with Samuel, and making a few visits with my sassy Latin family. I don't have any pictures of my time in Denver, but it looked mostly like this:

Including Sam's ridiculous side burns.

So, Summer has ended. Which means Samuel and I spending all of our time taking looong drives and plane rides to see eachother has ended too. Hip hip!!

Time for some new adventures!

There once was a crafty pair. Very mischievous and full of secrect plans.

They determined one day to impose these secret plans on an unsuspecting girl... and as the girl thought, an unsuspecting boy. (To learn later, she was the only unsuspecting one). You see, the girl thought she would just be getting a milkshake with the mischievous girl and her mischievous boy (the three often did things together). Next thing the poor unsuspecting girl knows, a boy walks in behind the mischievous boy.. and her life changed forever!

God bless mischief and milkshakes!

Like I've said: Right Places, Right People

If you search through past blogs, you might find scattered throughout requirements for a "new beau," if not, I'll help:

Loves baseball: check
Current temple recommend: check
Attends the Temple on his own: check
Loves his mama: check
Loves the Lord: check
Stable financial past and future: check
Hunk o' juicy meat: check

To add

Actually makes decisions on his own: check
Sings and plays piano: check
Cares about his health: check
Loves lovin': check
Handy: check
LDS parents: check
No unnecessary debt (or debt at all): check
Loves dogs: check
Compatible intellect: check
Speaks a foreign language: check
Wants kids: check
Self motivated: check
Hugs me, kisses me, (can) tell me he loves me every day: check
Rubbable feet: check
Loves to nap: check
Has sisters: check
Shares food and space: check
Gentleman: check
Honest: check
Wants a garden: check
Loves the beach: check
Thinks I'm awesome: check
Makes me feel like the luckiets girl ever: CHECK.

So I made a list last year which included all of these requirements, but disposed of it, determining it was ridiculous. Then I moved to Utah and found my list-in the form of a boy.

I did it!!

Well, this chapter is officially complete. Now I'm just awaiting the beginning of the newest one!

Butterflies

Today if I was sent to have an X-ray, the radiologist may find this:He might say "Oh my, I have not seen this since the text books." And then he might look at me, knowing the usual etiology of butterflies and inquire "Why?"

This is how I would respond:


In one week, I will be looking something like this:

Graduating from college. After all the hard work, I will finally be have a Bachelor's of Science in Nursing. Phew!

Then, a week after that I will call these streets home (well, not the streets themselves per se):

Then two weeks after that, I will be on a plane with my best girl Alisa, to find Amanda and Lucy here:

And will spend a week pretending I am a tropical island beauty, before real life begins.

Then, assuming all goes well-I will soon thereafter find myself looking something like this:

A lot of big things ahead! Graduation, moving across the country, Virgin Islands, realization of my dream of being a Pediatric nurse, and writing the first pages of the newest and best chapters in my life!!! The butterflies are getting bigger and BIGGER!!!

Let's Go Hokies!

neVer forgeT 32 4.16.07