Merry Christmas!!

Hello all! I hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas and that you remembered the true meaning of Christmas this year. It truly is about the birth of the Savior and all that he has done for this world.

Michael and I are currently in Indiana for the next little while. We arrived on Sunday evening after quite the trip. On Saturday we drove to West Virginia for a wedding. One of the people in Michael's cohort at school got married so we stopped by on our way to Indiana. It was on the way but only loosely. It added quite a few miles on but we were glad we went. It made us remember our own wedding. I was feeling extremely grateful for the church.

The next day was a very long day. We drove for another 9 or so hours to get to Indiana. We first went to Hancock, MD and went to Sacrament meeting. It lasted nearly an hour and a half. Ugh! After that things got pretty crazy. I started driving and we went through very heavy rain and fog. It was so foggy that I could not see behind us at all and only a few meters in front of us. I was afraid someone would run into the back of us. We also had snow, a traffic backup, and a interstate closing due to a terrible accident. We had nearly everything on the way but we did finally make it in one piece.

For Christmas eve, we got to visit the old Jail museum and the Henry Lane house. I had never been to either. To those who have not (probably most of you), the old jail museum is the last working rotary jail in the nation. All of the cells are in a circle and you turn a crank to get to a certain prisoner. Henry Lane was a US Senator during the Civil War and a good friend of Abraham Lincoln. He helped push to get Lincoln on the ballot for President.

Christmas was fun. We spent the day with my brother Matt in Decatur, IN. I got to meet my nephew Clayton for the first time. He is such a handsome little boy! I was glad too that their little girl Faith warmed up to me by the end of the visit. We received many wonderful gifts this year and I feel very blessed. I am so grateful for family.

I am glad for this extended vacation. It had been awhile since I had a break. I plan to sleep as much as I can and just relax. I think that I am finally calmed down after our crazy trip here.

Tagged...

I guess I should probably do this since I was tagged forever ago.

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

6 Things that make me unique

1) I love soil (no not dirt). I studied soil science at BYU where I learned more than most of you ever realized was possible about it. I love to give advice about nutrient deficiencies and plant problems. Although, sadly I have no plants myself. The apartment we live in lets in next to no natural light. I need to get a shade-loving plant so that I can actually have some nature in my home. If you have any questions or problems with your plants, please holler.

2) I have a goal to go to all of the 50 states during my lifetime. I have a really good start with 35. To clarify what I mean by going to all of the states, it does not count unless you visit or do something there that is significant. For instance, an airport does not count and only driving through a small section of it doesn't either. Otherwise, I would have I would have at least 4 more states.

3) I can mix a mean solution. Yes, I love chemistry unlike at least half of the rest of the world who dread even the words atom, stoichiometry, redox, and lewis structure. I work in a chemistry lab and I make chemical concoctions for a living (to put it simply). Obviously I do lots of other things as well.

4) I still love writing letters and getting snail mail over writing e-mails. E-mails are so much less personal. At any one time I try to have at least two or three pen pals. I just wish that stamps would quite going up in price. Pretty soon I will have to sacrifice an arm or a leg just to buy stamps.

5) I am an environmentalist (not the chain yourself to a tree obsessive kind). I try to recycle which is immensely easier in Connecticut. Recycling was non-existent in Utah. I am very conscious about our use of electricity and gasoline. I love learning about environmental issues and what I can do to make a difference. I truly believe that each of us can make a difference.

6) I like to keep up with the Pacers, Colts, Yankees, Cougars, and Huskies. I don't care one snitch about the other sports teams about there. I enjoy watching my teams, but I rarely sit down and watch a game unless these teams are playing.

Now I am going to tag Joy and Tricia. Most everyone else that I know with a blog has already been tagged.

Thanksgiving Break

Well, this week officially went by way too fast. Michael had the entire week off and I had Thursday and Friday off. All evening we have both been looking at the clock sadly as the hours click by until tomorrow. Tomorrow is back to school and work. Sadly, this good thing is coming to an end.

Michael spent the week relaxing and catching up on homework and sleep. I think he may have also put some time in on his favorite computer games. It was a much deserved break for him. He has been very busy this semester. I enjoyed coming home in the evenings and actually talking to him and getting home at a decent hour. With no students, I got to go in at 8:30 and leave at 4:30. It was very nice to have more evening hours. Those 10-6 days are killers.

Thanksgiving was fun. We spent the day with a couple of families from our ward. It was nice because that meant we could split Thanksgiving dinner cooking three ways. I got to make rolls, a pie, and mashed potatoes. All of which are easy and old hat for me. Before dinner all of the girls (2 babies and 3 women) met and cooked together. The men and boys stayed at our apartment and watched football. We had a fun day but we both missed family. Thanksgiving is one of those holidays that it is hard to be away from family. I am glad that we will be with family at Christmas time.

On Friday we went to Springfield, Massachusetts to a museum. We went to a Vietnamese restaurant and then to a museum complex there. There are four museums there and a memorial to Dr. Seuss. He was born and raised in Springfield, Mass and many of the people and places in his books are based on actual people and places in Springfield. Cool, huh?! We also saw a magic show and spend some time in the Science Museum. It was fun. We also went and did some early Christmas shopping. It was a fun all day date.

The rest of the weekend has been pretty normal. I taught in church today. We went Home Teaching (yes I did say we... I am Michael's companion) today. I am doing better at Home Teaching than visiting teaching this month by the way. I have a hard time coordinating with my companion to do visiting teaching. She doesn't much like my late work schedule since she has early morning seminary to teach. But, I don't blame her. I don't like my late schedule and I know how early seminary can be. Ugh...I am glad that is over.

Well, hope you all had plenty of turkey and pumpkin pie and a Happy Thanksgiving!

Rhode Island, rain, and runny noses

Guess what!? We moved! Take a look at our new house.

What? You don't believe me? Alright, you caught me. This is one of the Newport, RI mansions called the Breakers. No I do not have several million dollars and we did not move. All of the above is a lie to make you smile. Did it work?


Actually, I did go to that house at least through this hole in the hedge (see below).







My parents came out to visit at the end of October and we visited Rhode Island with them. After all, we are only like 40 miles from there. We went down to the coast where Newport is and looked at Fort Adams and the mansions. We also got some much needed fresh air and a view of the ocean. Isn't it beautiful!?




We also had our first Nor'easter last weekend since we have been here in New England. It was the remnants of Hurricane Noel. I was a little nervous about it because we were headed as a stake Relief Society to Boston to the temple where the winds and rain were the worst. But, it turned out fine. Our trip to the temple was wonderful and I had a great time!


I somehow caught a cold or something because I have a runny nose and my head is all plugged up and I feel very tired. I hope that if I get to bed earlier tonight that I will feel better. I hate being sick. The only consolation is that Michael is good and he takes care of me by making me herbal tea and making sure I rest.



That is all for now. I hope that everyone had a good Halloween. Ours was very quiet. We bought a bag of candy and not a one person showed up. So, we have been piecing at the candy ever since. I am looking forward to the holidays coming up because I get time off from work. I can't wait for a break!

Lists

This week I realized the lists that I make. I have a list of groceries that I need to buy. A to do list for every Saturday and a to do list at work. I have a scripture reading list that helps me keep track of the Sunday School, Relief Society, and Old Testament reading. I know at some point I had a list of books that I wanted to read. I have a list of Birthdays. I guess I must have all of these lists to keep myself sane. It can get pretty hectic. I am one of those people that have to write everything down or I will forget it. I wish I could remember it all but most of the time things go in one ear and out the other.

Beyond that, this week has been hectic. I had to use most of the above lists to keep track of my goings and comings. The highlight of the week I think has been that I finally got our apartment turned into a home. I found our candles, pictures, and other knick-knacks to put out. It is nice to come home to our little spot. It is not much but at least it is a place to feel at home.

I do want to put in some pictures of Sharon, VT and Ben & Jerry's so enjoy!

Joseph Smith Birthplace monument

Michael and I picking the flavor we were sad didn't last long at Ben & Jerry's graveyard.

Beautiful New England

Vermont, Fall, and Conference

This past weekend was wonderful. I really enjoyed watching General Conference. It was definitely a different experience than in April. Michael rigged it up so that we were able to watch it on the Internet on the flat panel monitor of our desktop. (As a side note, when they hooked up our Internet something didn't work quite right so we can only get the Internet on our laptop and not the desktop). There were some really great talks. What I like about conference is the renewal I feel. I feel a renewed desire to be better. It was also neat to see the new general authorities sustained. I was sad, though, that President Faust is gone now. I guess I should also mention that the Relief Society Broadcast was great as well. It was nice to get together with the sisters in my ward and watch it.

By now, most of you probably know about our Vermont excursion. A couple of weeks ago, we went with some friends of ours from our ward to Sharon, Vermont, the birthplace of Joseph Smith. We camped at a nearby campground owned by the stake there. There was a lot of cool stuff up in Vermont. We went to the monument erected to Joseph Smith. I was a lot bigger than I imagined. It was 37.5 feet tall or one foot per year of his life. They told several neat stories about the spot he was born. One neat thing is that the home that his family lived on was on the border between Sharon and and South Royalton. So, they are not sure exactly what town he was born in. However, Joseph Smith, Sr. registered the birth in Sharon so that is where he is considered to be born.

We also went to the Ben & Jerry's factory in Waterbury. The best part was the free sample at the end. Unfortunately, they were not working on ice cream because it was a Saturday. We were still about to go on a tour, though. We got to try a new flavor called bananas on the rum. Michael and I bought an ice cream cookbook. We want to get an ice cream maker soon so that we can try some of the recipes out. In addition, we went to the Cabot cheese outlet and a cider mill. We got to try so much yummy food. It was great!

It has been beautiful here. I can't imagine having an actual yard here because dealing with the leaves would be horrendous. But all the trees are changing colors now. Hopefully by the time my parents come at the end of this month, it will be in full color. I think I am beginning to really like New England.

The last little while

Well, after much deliberation, I am finally posting the pictures I have promised for several posts. We finally have the internet and Michael finally sat down and helped me put the pictures on the computer. I am sure glad to have a technological guy around!


Today was a good Sunday but a bit out of the ordinary. We didn't have church. We were up and ready and even on the way when they called to tell us that the power was out. As a result church was cancelled. We thought about going to another ward but, the closest one was 30 minutes away (I know not that far) and we crashed on the couch. By the time we woke up, the one that we might have gone to was half over. So, we had our own little service at home. It has been a good day though.


Michael and I went to a ward activity last night. It was mostly geared toward kids and since we don't have any that was a bit different. But, they did a cake walk and pictures and a dinner. We had a fun time and ate lots of yummy food.


Over Labor Day weekend, we went to the temple for the first time since we have been out here. It was so beautiful and wonderful to be there. We had planned to go to Boston and do some site-seeing as well but by the time we were done at the temple, we decided just to go home. However, we did enjoy the time away from school and work.

Then, there is the fiasco of the University of Connecticut payroll. Never mind that I worked for 5 weeks before getting paid. They also lost my direct deposit form and got my address wrong in the computer. So, I was ok to drive to the Washington Mutual 80 miles away once but not twice or more to put our checks in the bank. So, we had to break down and open another account and now we are assured that wherever we go one of them should be there. Especially since the one we just got is in all but Utah and Ohio. As a side note, we did not receive our insurance information either because of the wrong address. What a drag!!

Aside from that, we are just beginning to get into the groove of school and work. We are looking forward to a visit from my parents in about a month and we are enjoying the changing of the season. All of the trees here are beginning to look beautiful.

Pictures....



The Redd family at Zion's in June



Kirtland Temple... we visited there when we first got the Connecticut





Pictures on UConn campus



Boston Temple!

Connecticut

Connecticut... were do I start? Well, it is great! Michael and I have been here just over a month and we are really beginning to feel at home. Our new ward has been very welcoming and we have already made some good friends. I have to admit, I was a little worried about it all at first.

I have been working at my new job for 4 weeks. It is hard to believe. I feel like I just started. The downside is that I still have no money to show for it. I will likely not be paid until next Thursday. That means that it has been almost two months since we have gotten a pay check. There is definitely something to be said for getting paid. Unfortunately, I still haven't figured out a way to make bills disappear. As far as my job goes, it is enjoyable. It keeps me busy and I like that. I am a little nervous about school starting, though. It will get even busier than it is now and I hope that I am ready for that!

Michael started Orientations this week. He starts his first classes on Monday. I can tell that he is a bit stressed about it. It will be a lot all at once and it won't end for probably 2 years or more. He doesn't really even get a summer off from classes. I am sure he can do it, though. He is a great student and able to handle a lot. Of course, that doesn't make you feel any better when you are in the middle of it all.

We went to Six Flags New England last weekend for my birthday. It was very very crowded and so much fun. They have a really great water park and lots of roller coasters. Of course, the best roller coaster (Super Man) was down for maintenance. We were there all day and we were completely worn out by it. I can't remember the last time that my feet ached that badly. It was so much fun, though. We celebrated my birthday on Sunday and I am a year older. I guess that is a good thing.

I am sure you are all curious about how Connecticut is unique and different. Imagine being in a forest that extended in all directions for as far as you can see (or can't see more like), add very windy and hilly roads and a pond every mile or two and you have Connecticut. The fruit and vegetables (especially berries) are superb as is the fish. The people have cool accents that come in all shapes and sizes. Everything is far away (at least from where we live) except where I work and Michael goes to school.

We have the internet in our apartment now so I should be able to post pictures and blogs more often I hope. I hope that the start of school is kind to everyone.

Eastward Ho!

I know, it is supposed to be westward ho, but it sounds good the other way too. We are headed east, though. We left our first apartment together on July 11th. We drove to Indiana in two days and we have been here visiting my family ever since. We plan to leave tomorrow to finish our trip to Connecticut. I hope that all will go well in the rest of the trip. We were excited that both of our cars made it this far.

I found out that I will be starting my job sooner than I expected. I will begin July 27th. That means that I have just over a week left until it will be time to start work again. I really wish that I had more time. As it is, we will be very hard pressed to get everything done in the time we have once we get there to get settled in.

It has been very nice to be able to stay in Indiana for a few days. I wish it was longer! I guess we will have to wait until October to spend more time with my parents. They are planning to come visit. That will be fun.

We also found out today that our stuff has arrived in Connecticut. We shipped it on ABF through their U-pack service. I am glad it didn't spontaneously combust or anything. That would have been tragic!

It may be a long while before I get to post again because we will have to figure out internet at our new apartment. In the meantime, I hope all is well for everyone!

Moving

I am happy to announce that I got a job in Connecticut! I will be starting on August 3, so I have a month off from work. I will be working in a a Chemistry lab at University of Connecticut. Michael and I will both be going to the same place every day. I am excited for that especially since my job will only be about 5 miles away. No more bus riding for me! Hopefully we will be able to work it out so that we can go to work/school together each day.

We have moved up our move day to July 12th. We are going to head to Indiana for a few days so that we can stay with my parents. Michael's brother Matthew will be coming with us. Michael's parents are going to drive our other car and meet us in Indiana on July 17. I am excited to spend time with my parents!

With everything coming so quickly, we finally sat down last night and scheduled everything out that we have to do. Every night will be full, that is for sure. There is a ton of stuff to do before we can move. It will be an adventure, that is for sure.

Happy 4th of July to everyone! I hope that you all get to see the fireworks wherever you are.

Stress

I have decided that I must be under more stress than normal because I keep getting sick. I am not sure what it is but in the last year I have been sick way more often than is normal for me. On Friday, Michael and I went to the doctor because we thought we had strep. It turns out we didn't but we both have had bad sore throats. We are feeling better now. I felt a bit guilty that I didn't go to work since I didn't end up with strep. I am sure though that whatever it is that we had that no one else wants it.

Friday we also went to Salt Lake for out date. I know, you are thinking, don't over do it. However, something about being with Michael and in a non-stress environment for a whole day made us both feel much better. We got to see the new Joseph Smith movie. We also ate some Vietnamese food. Unfortunately, the restaurant that we normally go to had closed. We did find another one, though. Vietnamese food (if done right) is delectable!

No news on the job front for me except not getting a good job I applied for. I applied for a job as a Soils lab technician that I felt very highly qualified for. I didn't get it but it has humbled me and reminded me that truly I have to rely on Heavenly Father for help. If I work hard to find a job and pray for help, I know that he will help. Your prayers in this direction would be much appreciated.

We have packed 5 boxes! We are on our way but we realize that we have way more stuff than we think. It is going to be a lot of work to move and that is why we started early. Hopefully if we have started now, there won't be nearly as much to worry about when we are closer to our move.

Well, that's all folks. Stay tuned until next time and I will try to post photos.

More than a box...

Hey all! I am happy to announce that we now have a place to live in Connecticut. I was beginning to think that we would have to pitch a tent or live in a box there. But, now we have more than a box to live in. We had placed our name on a waiting list about a month or so back with an apartment complex called Woodhaven Park apartments. Well, yesterday I had the impression that I needed to call them and find out if they had any openings. I had given them my number and they said they would call if an opening came up. However, they had never called me back. Well, just before I called them I had the impression that they would have an apartment for us. And, they had a two bedroom available in July. We are so excited. The apartment we got is less than the normal rate because of smaller windows so we got a good deal. We are excited. I hope that we like it. We won't be able to see it before we move in.

I am waiting to hear back about the two job interviews that I had last week. Both of them said that they would get back to me this week. So, I am waiting slightly impatiently to hear back. I really hope that I get a job at UConn. That would really help us to save money on transportation. We would also get to see each other more often.

We are going to Zions this weekend for the Redd family reunion. We are excited to get away from Provo. Don't get me wrong, we don't mind living here but sometimes it is just time to get away. Plus, we will both get a couple of days off work. I am glad for that.

I only have a month left at my job and I am relieved. It has been a stressful job for me and I am ready for a change. I just want to get done on a few more things before I go. Hopefully the rest of my time will be incident free. Since I started my current project (the last couple of weeks), the power was off for half a day, the AC broke, we've been short-handed, and I had to move desks. It is difficult to work when there are very few constants.

Other than that, we are plugging along trying to hammer out the details of moving. Things are beginning to fall into place, though.

Weekends

Weekends are truly divine. I don't know what I would do if we never had them. They are what make me press through the week.

Speaking of weekends... Michael and I went to Pocatello last weekend. Since we are leaving soon to go to Connecticut, we have to make the most of our time being close to family. We enjoyed a relaxing time. The highlights of the weekend include playing a night game called Base with Michael's brothers and sisters, sleeping in, and going on a picnic. I love picnics!

We were able to sell the rest of our contract here at Monaco Court apartments. We were glad of that since rent will be expensive enough in Connecticut without having to pay it twice. Our managers here are very nice and although we advertised that we had an apartment available, they did most of the work to sell it. We were grateful for that.

I am still working on getting a job. I have a job interview next week for a lab technician position at UConn. This one looks pretty promising since it is in a soils lab (Soil Nutrient lab) not unlike the one I worked in while at BYU. I really hope that I can get it. Looking for and applying for jobs is a lot of work and not the most enjoyable thing to do.

Other than that, things are pretty normal. We are both working full time and enjoying the summer. It is nice to have a much needed break from the grind of school. We are both excited for the upcoming three day weekend. Hope all of you have a good Memorial Day!

Here are some pictures from the next little while. The first two are from graduation and the other one is from the picnic we went on this last weekend.

Graduation and Publication

Well, I am not sure where to start. So much has happened since I last posted on here. The three most significant things that occurred were Michael's graduation, Clayton's birth, and a recent receipt of a publication I had submitted.

Michael graduated from BYU this year. The speaker at his Commencement was Vice President Dick Cheney. The controversy over Dick Cheney's coming was immense. It was neat to hear a V.P. speak, though. What made it even more neat is that President Gordon B. Hinckley was also there. It was more impressive to me to have him there! Michael graduated Valedictorian of his Psychology class. He got to sing in a special musical number at his college convication. He also got to sit on the stand and wear a really cool medal. I sure married a smart guy! It was good to have so much family there to support us.

I found out this week that I am going to have some research that I did as an undergraduate at BYU published in a professional journal. I did some research on soil boron measurement with Mehlich 3 extracting solution. It was exciting to hear about that. I am excited to see my own work shared with others working on similar projects and also in print.

I have had an interesting sickness this week. I have had hives, aching joints, and other random symptoms. The worst part of it all has been that the hives have cleared up everywhere but my feet. They have been itching for days. I went to the doctor and he was no help. I guess I will just have to suffer until it goes away.

Michael and I are an Aunt and Uncle again. My brother Matt and his wife Shelley have a new baby boy named Clayton. He was born at the end of last week. I am the luckiest aunt to have the cutest little neices and nephews.

I am supposed to run in a 10 K race on Saturday but because I have been sick this week, I am not sure that I will be able to run. I am pretty sad about that. I really wanted to run in it. If the hives on the bottoms of my feet would clear up, I would probably be able to.

That's all for now. I hope all of you are well and enjoying spring.

Another week...

Well, the week went by quickly. I am wondering where exactly it went now and what I did. Sometimes the week goes by and I am not sure by the end what happened. I guess that means it must have been either very uneventful or very busy.

Michael and I both got haircuts recently. I was ready for a change and Michael was looking like Shaggy on Scooby Doo. I am the barber for him, though, and I am still learning. Sometimes I wonder why he even humors me. I do a decent job, though, and at least I don't charge anything but hugs and kisses. I actually had my haircut in the pictures from Easter in our last blog.

Michael tested for his yellow belt in Jujitsu yesterday. It was an hour and half test. I was glad it was on Saturday so I got to go and watch. By the end I think that he and all of the others testing were about the pass out. It was a hard test. He passed with flying colors and I was proud of him. He has really enjoyed that class. I think he has found a hobby too that he would like to continue.

Michael has only 2 days of class left and then finals. I can scarcely believe that another semester is gone and it is our last at BYU. Michael will graduate in less than 2 weeks. We have both loved it here and it will be hard to go. It will be hard to leave behind so much good time spent.

The highlight of my week was going to Enrichment. I am glad that Relief Society gives me a chance to interact with other sisters. It is especially nice to be able to go and not worry about attendance or anything. I like that immensely. I still don't have another calling, so I may not get one before we leave.

Well, that's about all. I hope that everyone is doing well. I hope that all of you with birthdays in April are having a great month!

Easter

Michael and I spent Easter in Pocatello with Michael's family. We colored eggs and had egg races. Michael's mom and her brothers and sisters used to always have egg races when they were kids. So, this year, Michael and his brother Matt dug out a trail behind their house in the gorge. We had a fun time racing eggs. Michael had an indestructible one know as Bubba. Both of mine were slow and I think I only won maybe one race. Maybe I should have named mine too. We also got to help hide eggs for the little kids to find. That was fun except that being a big kid (or adult I guess) means you don't get any candy. =(

I finished up my soccer league last week. Michael said I went out with a bang. I was the only girl there and I just happened to get beamed in the head with a ball just before the end of the game. Well, in coed, in order to keep playing you have to have a girl on the field. So, even though my head was throbbing, I had to keep playing (well standing). I didn't do much playing after that. If I stopped playing, though, we would have had to forfeit. We did not win, but I did survive the game. I didn't even get a black eye. Maybe I should avoid playing soccer for awhile.

Even though we know we are moving to Connecticut, dealing with all of the details of the move is not enjoyable. I have to find a job and we need to find a place to live. Unfortunately, all of it will likely have to be done before we move there. We are hoping to be able to go out again (at least one of us) to look at apartments and sign a contract.

I am finally putting pictures up from Connecticut. The one of the car is our rental all iced over after only one night. There are also pictures of egg races. Enjoy!

Nice People, Snow, and Waiting

Have you ever had a time when people were nice to you even though it was slightly wrong on their part? Let me explain. The past little while I have had several experiences like this. First, I generally ride the bus to work and lately a very nice bus driver has been letting me ride an earlier express bus. These buses cost twice as much but are much faster. Well, he has been letting me ride for the price of my bus (1.50 instead of 3 dollars). But, I am not sure he would accept full price even if I tried to pay it. It has been wonderful to ride this bus because the bus I normally ride is on detour and that means it is VERY late all the time. But, I am not sure if it really ok for me to do it. Second, Michael and I went to get ice cream on Monday for our treat. Well, the person scooped our ice cream and then said we could just have it since he was about to close. He wouldn't let us pay. What can you do?

We went to Connecticut last weekend for a graduate school interview at University of Connecticut. The interview went very well. We enjoyed the place except for the horrible weather. We were stuck there in the worst storm of the season. Everything was closed and the roads were horrible. To top it all off, the windshield wipers on our rental care kept smearing the snow and causing ice to freeze on the window. It was nearly impossible to see at times. We spent most of Friday in our hotel room as a result. We did get to go to Hartford on Saturday. We went to the Wadsworth Atheneum (an art gallery). It was great! We loved it. It was not fun trying to walk on the sidewalks of Hartford in foot deep snow though. (We got pretty wet.)

I got released from my calling on Sunday. It was an early morning at church since we got in at 1 am. I had to teach part of the Relief Society lesson or I probably wouldn't have gone at 8 in the morning. Needless to say we had a long nap. =)

The biggest and best news of the week is that we heard from UConn already. We got accepted to go there. After our trip there and our prayers, we feel like that is where we are supposed to go. We are moving 2300 miles this summer to Connecticut for school. We are very excited!!!

I will try to post pictures on Sunday.

Trust in Him

The last little while has been very busy and nerve-wracking. It is a difficult thing to live in the unknown. I have never been the most patient person and waiting is not my forte. However, I am beginning to learn a bit of patience. I also know how much I need to rely on the things that are lasting and eternal when things get tough.

I am plugging along at work. I think that I am beginning to finally see the light at the end of the tunnel on the project that I am working on. It has been rewarding to finally see the result of my efforts. I am done counting seeds and on to editing the previous catalog for errors. It looks like a new catalog for the company is on the way in the next year. I am excited to help with that.

Michael is working feverishly to get everything done for school. He is to the point in the semester when it is a mad dash to the finish. He also has an Independent Study course to finish in the next few weeks. He likes his classes, especially his Martial Arts class.

We are headed to Connecticut this weekend for an interview at UConn. We are excited to go but also nervous. We both feel really good about the program. It will be interesting to see how we like the place. It would definitely be a huge change and a long moving trip in a few months.

We heard from Utah State last week letting us know that they had selected other applicants. It was not as if Michael was not well qualified but it just did not work out. Sometimes doors close for a reason. Maybe what would be the most comfortable and easy thing for us to do is not what we should do.

Next week I will get released from my calling as Relief Society Secretary. I have to train two new people because we are splitting our Relief Society. Unfortunately that means that I have to make duplicates of everything. I am not excited about that.

Well, that is about all. I will be sure to post photos soon from our trip to Connecticut.

What a week!

It was quite a week. It went by fairly quickly because of the previous 3 day weekend. It was very nice to have a day off, though. Thank goodness for holidays. One fun thing we did on the holiday was play a game of Settlers of Catan (with the Cities and Knights expansion). I enjoyed playing and as usual Michael won. He is really good at that game. I try whenever we play that game to be on his team so that I can win too. I guess it is the Allen competitive spirit in me.

Michael and I did our taxes this week. Although we won't get nearly as much back as we did last year, it will be nice to have a few more dollars to save for graduate school and for a rainy day. I am sure there will plenty of those in the future (especially if we move to the East for grad school) =).

Other than that, things were pretty much the same. Michael took a few tests and went to work. I counted seeds at my job, made dinner, and read any chance I got. I also started up running again. I plan to run in a 10k race this summer.

I have included some pictures from the weekend.

Time Flies!

The past couple of weeks have flown by. It is crazy that we are over half way through February already. Things are only going to get more busy from here, though.

As far as work goes, I have turned into a seed counter. Literally, I spent over half of the day on Friday counting seeds. Luckily, I have had some help from the Secretaries at my work in counting out a thousand of all of the species I have to weigh out to check their seed counts. It may sound very boring but compared to the previous project I worked on, this is exciting. I never thought "bean counting" would be fun.

Michael and I have heard from 3 of the schools we have applied to. Michael has 3 interviews scheduled in March on the 1st, 16th, and 20th. We are excited for the interview on the 16th because we are going to UConn to visit. We both get to go.

Valentine's Day passed fairly uneventful. We went out to eat at an Italian restaurant. The highlight of which was the Italian sodas. Those things are wonderful!

We both have President's Day off on Monday so we are visiting family for the weekend in Idaho. It is nice to be away from the valley for awhile. We had a terrible time getting out of there yesterday, though. The traffic was terrible (as usual magnified by 10).

Hope all is well with everyone and hope you enjoy the holiday weekend. Hopefully all of you have it off too!

Long Week

This past week was one of the longest feeling ones we have had for awhile. It seemed to go on forever. Boy was I ever glad to get to a weekend. I didn't think that my job could get any more boring but it has.

We got a new computer game to play together that we already like. It is called Syberia. I never really got into video games but lately we have been playing more together and I like it quite a bit.

I played a Soccer game on Saturday for our ward intramural team. We lost (again). It's not like we don't have the talent, we just aren't very organized on the field. I don't know how many times I was left alone to guard the goal against like 4 people. Needless to say I was a bit annoyed after the game. But, it was good to get some exercise.

We went to a BYU basketball game this weekend as well. They played 25th ranked UNLV and stomped them 90-63. There is not a chance that UNLV will be ranked anymore. It was a great game to watch. Danny and Kathleen went with us too.

University of Rochester invited Michael to an interview day this month. We worked it out so that he can do a phone interview in the next week or so. We are anxiously awaiting news from the other 3 schools.

That's all for now. Enjoy the pictures from the last little while.

School and Work

In order to make it easier for everyone to know how we are doing, we thought we'd start a blog. I will try to post as often as I can, but I am not sure how often that will turn out to be.

In the next little while things will be changing a lot of us. As most of you know, Michael is graduating in April. He has applied to 4 graduate schools and we are working on applying to one more. He has applied at Utah State, University of Connecticut, University of Rochester, and Akron University. We may apply at University of Louisville. That being said, we are going to be moving before long. We are excited and nervous. Mostly, we just want to know where we will end up. We just heard from one of the schools this week inviting Michael there to interview. It should be interesting to see where we go.

As far as for me, I am just working. It really isn't the most exciting job in the world, but at least it pays the bills. I am currently working on a project involving large amounts of research. It is like I am in college except that I can't change subjects when I get bored of it. I have to work on it 8 hours a day! Ugh!

Michael has a busy semester ahead of him. Several of his classes are like so many in college where they assume that you only have one class and it is theirs. But, he likes his classes for the most part.

That's all for now. I will try to post some photos soon.