Long Time

Yes, it's been forever since I've posted and that is not because nothing has happened. In fact, it is because everything is happening!!!

First and foremost, meaning the very most important, my wonderful, fabulous, lovely, awesome, etc. sister got married last weekend! The wedding was amazing and it was so great seeing her get married to such a great guy. (Now Ryan and Dave can do the whole sports thing while Lynne and I do the whole shopping thing...) The receptions was beautiful and took me back to my wedding but this time there was no rain and the mini got covered in shaving cream and marshmallows. It was a great day and CONGRATS to Dave and Lynne!!

Secondly, we finally made the move away from Provo, UT. After 4 years there, I think it was time for us to get out and move into the real world without married student wards and where 80% of the ward is pregnant... (well, of the girls, you get the idea.). Our new residence is in Draper, Ut. There are several perks to the move. A. It now takes Ryan 9 minutes to get to work--that means he sleeps in until 9 minutes before he has to be there :) B. Our house is awesome. It has a washer and dryer in it so we can use it whenever we want and it is my favorite thing EVER!! C. There are more, you just have to come see yourself. haha. Basically, we absolutely love living a little up north!

Thirdly, which is 100% related to number one and two, Lynne now lives in Sandy, Ut, which is exactly 8 minutes from my house. This is the first time in I don't even know how long that we have lived in the same state. (What, like 9 years?) It is so fun to have my sister so close. Plus, we decided its great because we now go to the gym every morning together (well, today was the first day, but it WILL still happen)

Fourthly (is that a word?) and probably the least important because of the anticlimax of it all. I graduated... Kind of. Well, I walked for my graduation. I will be done in December and there is no graduation in December, so I opted to walk early with all my friends. It was fun but, obviously didn't feel real since it wasn't... haha. But it was good to see all my family who came out for the big event!!! Hooray for being almost done with school!

Life is good, sorry there are no pictures, I will have to post some later of the new digs and the newly married Lynne Kimball.

I LOVE Winning!!

I don't necessarily think I'm a poor loser (you know, the ones who throw fits or are in a bad mood forever after the loss) but I DO believe that I am a FABULOUSLY GREAT WINNER!!! I am so so so HAPPY after a win and I am completely on a high for a good week!!! The smile rarely leaves my face for the entire week. I mean, for a winner, I have a pretty good attitude about it!!!

So this week we had our Softball intramural games (two of them: Wed night and Thursday night). We won on Wednesday to put us in the Championship game on Thursday (where we actually played the same team from Wednesday). So we played our first game and, let's be honest, played like crap and so we lost. But the second game we brought it BACK!! Oh, it was so awesome!!! We were hitting really well (with the exception of one inning, but its all good!) and our Defense was superb!! Like, really, it was fabulous! So we were the visitor and so the other team had last ups. We went into their last ups being 3 runs up. (meaning we had to get 8 outs for a win!!). Needless to say, we were worried! They put all their girls up first and, since our defense is awesome, we got them out one after another. Then all the boys were up, meaning our outfielding had to be excellent! Ya, it was! The last batter came up and would have had to hit a homerun to win. It was a nerve racking inning but in all WE WON!!! Oh, it was the best feeling EVER!!! I was so happy!!!

For those of you not in the know, my team also one the Division 1 Softball Championship last year! So that makes 2 years, back to back that I have won a championship T-shirt! I love it!! It has been an excellent season and I have enjoyed it so much. This is the one reason I am so sad to graduate this December (because that means no more intramural softball!) Hopefully I can still play somehow. Anywhere, here are some pics after the victory!!

That would be me with my brand new winners shirt! LOVE IT!

The whole winning team!

My best fan... the hubby.

My bro chose me over going to a choir concert. I think he made the right choice!

These are the 4 that won the t-shirts last year too. We were all on the same team last year!

Taking a victory walk off of the field!

THE t-shirt: "The most coveted shirt on campus"

"Thou shalt not covet"

Days with the Girls

I've been spending a lot of my time (most days) with two adorable little girls: Gabs and Maddie. They are adorable. It is such a fun time. The minute I walk int he door Gabs usually asks "come play in my room, An?" and with that face how do you say no. Or sometimes we will "Go to the library" which ends up being the spare bedroom. The conversation usually goes like this:

Me: What are we gonna get at the library?
Gabby: Ice cream. Walks to the bed and pretends to pick up some ice cream from the library and hands it to me.
Me: What kind of ice cream?
Gabs: Snow White.

I'm not sure what kind of library you can rent ice cream from, but Gabby totally has it right!! And perhaps snow white is vanilla? She's got me..

We also go to the park sometimes where Gabby repeatedly would like "underdoggies!" Or sometimes we play with her baby doll, which she talks to in a high-pitch voice, "Hi, baby!!" Hmm.. wonder where she got that from.

It has been so fun to hang out with these fun girlies! Here are some pictures of the girls!

Madeline Mae Trejo on the day she was born. 5 lbs 1 oz. So tiny!!
This picture makes Maddie look like a doll. Gabby was being very soft with her. She is a great big sister!
Gabby with Mad's binky. (I tried to get her to smile but she would only do it for like 1 second. oh well).
Mads does a lot of this lately... She is so adorable!!

Gym Rut

So I realized today that I listen to the exact same songs over and over and over again while I'm at the gym. It's either Marie Digby, Missy Higgins, and if I feel like I need a big push Skillet. (that one is for Rachael, whom I miss very very much!) Today I ventured out and found my one true love, N' Sync and they did the job very well. But I need other songs that will boost my gym moral so that I can keep going! Let me know what gets you in the running mood!

Am I Deaf?

There are so many songs that I think I know the lyrics to. Then out of no where one day I'll be singing along with a friend and I hear them sing completely different words than me! Turns out I've been singing some songs completely wrong my entire life. For example:

Mayberry by Rascall Flatts:
What I sing: "I've been slavin'. Sittin' on the porch drinkin' ice cold cherry coke." Or when I started to think that doesn't make much sense: "Hey Miss Mayberry, sittin' on the porch drinkin' ice cold cherry coke." Turns out I was wrong in both cases.
What they really sing is: "I miss Mayberry. Sittin' on the porch drinkin' ice cold cherry coke." Well, at least I got the last part right.

Another one I have been singing wrong all this time is Arethra Franklin's Respect:

What I sing: "R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to me. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. sing-pa-she-be-tee-sea. (jiberish)" In other words, I had no idea what they were saying there.
What they really sing: "R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to me. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Take care, TCB." Not really sure what that means, but hey... whatever floats Aretha's boat.

What are some songs that you sing wrong... Maybe you can help me stop singing songs wrong! :)

Starburst

Just imagine this:

Hot day
Hot car
Starburst left in your hot car
DELICIOUS!!

If you have ever roasted Starburst and enjoyed it, go stick a pack of Starburst in your car and you will be quite satisfied! There is nothing like that semi-hard outside like the Starburst has been cooked with a great, chewy, soft inside. It's fantastic. You MUST try it!

5 Months

I've heard when you first get married you measure your time being married by weeks. Eventually this gets old and you start measuring by months. At about 2 years I hear you start just saying how many years you have been married. I look forward to getting to that point but right now, I'm still counting by months, so here is to Mine and Ryan's 5 Month Anniversary! Yay for 5 months!

Is that Ken Griffey, Jr. out there?

Background: My whole life (well, maybe like the last year of it) I've heard stories about Andrea playing softball in high school and how she was really good. Her grandparents always say it, but there's one story I hear over and over from Jeff: all about the time Andrea gunned a girl down at home plate from left field. I think it might have been against an undefeated team, or in the state championship, or against the Orioles or something. Well, I think that would've been a wonderful piece of Andrea folklore to witness, since it is Whitaker Legend.

Aside: Now, let me say that we have been having weird weather in Utah. It's seriously rained for almost 3 weeks straight, everyday. And we've had lightning; tons of lightning. It feel a lot more like back home in Illinois than Utah. Basically my point is that strange things are afoot, and tonight the planets aligned and took me back in time so I could see Andrea in her heyday just for a moment.

Story: So as we've all heard a million times (maybe she's only told me a million times) she was a BYU Intramural Softball Champion last year (upper division mind you). And this year she didn't get on a team, until a friend called saying they needed extra players. Tonight was her first game, though it was the team's third of the season. She went and played left field, and in the second inning it was like a Field of Dreams/The Natural moment. She was playing deep and this boy hit a pretty good one to left, but short of Andrea. She runs up on the ball and gloves it on a short hop (which was impressive). The runner on second, who apparently didn't think she would catch it anyway, had already taken off and was rounding third when she got to it. He keeps chugging home thinking there is no way Andrea has the kind of arm to get him out. Big Mistake! Because my Honey has a cannon! She scooped it up and threw a strike to the catcher, gunning the guy down at home plate!!! The throw couldn't have been any more on the money! And I swear I'm not exaggerating, but the catcher didn't even have to move to apply the tag. He was right off the baseline and the ball just dropped into his glove perfectly in time for the runner just to run right into his glove. It was subliminal, glorious, magnanimous.

Happy early birthday, honey, you are the best!

Ps. Also, they won.

Top 5

Sometimes I like to tell Andrea my top 5....whatever. I don't know why, I just like making up Top 5's. The other day Andrea said something and immediately I thought, "That's got to be in my top 5 favorite things she's ever said to me." So I thought I'd post my Top 5 Things Andrea Has Ever Said to Me:

1. "Yes." (as in "Yes, I will marry you")
2. "I love you." (as in she loves me)
3. "Let's watch Lord of the Rings" (I still can't describe my shock and amazement)
And now the one she said the other day, coming in at #4....
4. "Let's watch the second Lord of the Rings" (what's better than one Lord of the Rings? Two obviously...)
and 5. "Michigan? That's OUR team!" (I almost cried).

As you can see, Andrea is the best, and I love her! Feel free to tell us about your Top 5's, or anti-Top 5's, those might be funny too.

What do you mean there's no water?

Today started off pretty regular. Ryan off to work and me contemplating whether or not I was gonna get up and go to the gym. After some coxing from my best friend Steph, I decided I should. So after a good walk/run (I'm working up to the actual running part) and the last 25 minutes of a Pilates class (which kicked my butt!!!!) I come home only wanting to take a shower and go back to bed. So I walk in my apartment still sweating from all the hard work I did at the gym. About 2 minutes later I hear my doorbell ring. (This never happens, so its kinda a big deal for me...) It was the manager of the apartment complex. He says, "Just wanted to tell you that the water is off" and then bolts away while mumbling "it's gonna take a while." I was kinda taken off guard or I would have asked some questions like, "Why?" or "When will it be back on" or "Why?" or "Do you understand that I smell and NEED a shower?" Ya know, those types. Anyway, so just wanting to make sure he is right, I go try to turn on the water and what do you know, he was right, nothing came out. So I am still sitting in my gross work out clothes trying to figure out what to do and decide that I will change into PJs and begin reading Harry Potter #5. The whole time I'm reading I am freezing because my hair is still wet from the sweat and I feel all gross. It was none too good! About 2 hours later I go see if, by chance, the water is working again and what do you know, it is! So I'm so excited!! I run and get my towel and turn on the hot water (which felt soooo good!!) and jumped in finally excited to be clean!! (and the shower wasn't even making the high pitched screechy noise so I was pretty relaxed) Basically, I prepare myself for a wonderful, long, warm shower. Here is where it gets really interesting...I reached for my shampoo and put it in my hair rubbing all the hairspray out and all of the sudden, the shower starts to lose pressure.

My thoughts: That's weird. It isn't as strong. What if the water is gonna turn back off? (slight panic because I have shampoo all over my hair and hands by now.) No, it isn't going to turn off. (going about my business but noticing the shower is losing more and more pressure by the second). Oh my gosh, it's going to turn off!!! What am I gonna do stuck in the shower with shampoo on my head with no running water!! (Following this was the quickest rinse of the hair to attempt getting all the shampoo out of my hair before it turned off. Yes, that means I had my head under a mere trickling of water getting the last bubbles out of my hair before it shut off completely!)

Needless to say, it was a rough afternoon for me... Now I'm just waiting for the water to come back on so I can actually take that fabulous shower. But now I think I'll be pretty suspicious when I do venture back in there...

ps. What would you do if you were stuck in the shower with no running water and a whole bunch of shampoo in your hair? (Ya know, just in case this happens to me any time soon...)

Goal #1

Yes, folks it is actually Friday...

"My goal is to make you forget how to do the dishes." This is what Ryan said to me this week as he was cleaning up the dishes from not only dinner but from my lunch too! He wants to do the dishes so often that I actually forget how to do the dishes myself. Now I understand that this isn't actually going to occur, it's like riding a bike, right?, but nonetheless, it is the goal that makes me melt.

Ryan really is THE BEST HUSBAND EVER!!

Relaxing?

My shower makes this really high pitched screeching sound whenever I turn on the hot water. IT really doesn't make for a very relaxing shower. The only way to make it go away is to turn the hot water down some (so it is barely dripping down) or turn it up some (so it is shooting you in the back so hard it hurts). Either way, not very relaxing...

Wednesday Shopping

Every Wednesday there are two grocery stores in Orem/Provo that have chosen Wednesdays as their produce specials day. So you can guess where I am on those particular days. The ads come on Tues/Wed and I plan what will be best to buy from which store and then I set off.

First is to Sunflower Market. This has the best deals!!! One time I found Gala Apples (the ones i buy anyway) on sale for 33 cents/lb!! Talk about a fantastic deal!! (They are normally $1.50/lb). I normally leave there with more than a weeks worth of produce and haven't spent more than $6!! It is like the best place ever!!!

Secondly, on my way back home, I stop at Buy Low Market for the stuff that I saw was actually cheaper than Sunflower (I know, how could that be possible?!?!). Buy Low is 100% annoying because there are a million people in there with their huge carts blocking every isle and walking sooo slow, but its okay because I can get two pineapples for $1!!! So it's worth it, as long as I don't get a cart and weave in and out of those people who stand and look...

So that is usually what I do on Wednesdays! I just don't know what I ever did without these two stores... Oh ya, paid more...

MHRF

So these are quickly turning into My Husband Rocks Saturdays because Fridays have become a little busy, but I will try to do better.

I am so grateful for Ryan and how much he loves me. I can tell he loves me because he always wants to be with me. He is always content with just sitting with me doing whatever. It is one of our favorite things--to just be together. Ryan always makes time to spend time with me. I love him and am so grateful for him!!

Today I'd Rather be Here

If any of you know me even in the slightest, you know my dream vacation would be to go to Greece. I would absolutely be in heaven if I could go to the islands of Greece, especially Santorini, Greece. Ever since Brian and I tried to go like 2 years ago, I've been obsessed. I've had a calendar of Greece both years and now have about 3 books on Greece. I've researched the places that are the best to go and saved a "My Greece Trip" on my computer. (Ya, I don't think anyone knew it was this bad...) Oh, but it is. You have no idea!

First, I would wake up to this view:

Followed by eating Breakfast here. (Local Fruit, of course!) Maybe next I would take some sort of hike so I could see this. Maybe a little cliff diving and swimming in the fabulous water? (oh, and yes, of course I would have the island all to myself (and my guest) so there aren't any other people around, as you can see by the picture.)

Of course from the wonderful workout of hiking (of which did not make me sweat at all and I still look perfectly put together), I would be a little famished and would like to dine here with some gyros that I got from the local market. Can you say, Yum? Ya, I can!

This would be followed by a nice relaxing time at the beach. (That umbrella is obviously mine as I said I would be the only one on the island--and my guest). The night would end with a romantic eventing watching a fabulous sunset over the white buildings!

Oh, and of course I would want this guy with me... (he would be my guest for sure). But he would have to change into some of those great Greece white flow-y pants to fit into the culture.

Well, a girl can dream, can't she?