Merry Christmas

I have not updated my blog in almost 2 months! I did not even realize it was that long! I feel like we have been so busy and I have been running around with my head cut off. So here is a quick update. Bryan applied to Medical school and we are in the process of interviewing and such. I graduate from Nursing school this Month!! BUT, I start my bachelors program in January. So I am not done with school yet.
We are going to California for Christmas. This will be my first Christmas away from my family and with my in-laws. I am very excited yet very scared. I have never not had a holiday with my parents.
I have come to realize that i am obsessed with Christmas. I love it. I love the cookies, the music, decorating gingerbread houses, decorating the tree, reading the Christmas story, Santa coming to our house, Christmas shopping, all the beautiful lights, family time and making new memories. I truly wish Christmas was every day of the year. BUT, I think once December 26th comes along it kind of depressing. All this for only one day. Why can't Christmas be two days!
Anyway, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Peace and Joy to all. We love our family and friends and will be forever grateful for the birth of our Savior.

Cereal

Growing up my family ate TONS of cereal. They could have it for every meal. I never understood it because I never liked milk. My sister, Marissa, would always say, "Janelle just eat cereal and you will lose weight." The only problem was I didn't like cereal.
Then something BIG happened. I found a soy milk that I love and so I started to buy Honey Nut Cheerios. I became OBSESSED with cereal. I ate for breakfast, after school snack, and bedtime snack. I would no longer stare at my pantry for hrs thinking what I should eat for a snack. I instantly grab a bowl, milk, cereal, and pour away. I LOVE IT! Now, I know why my family ate cereal every day and what I was missing all these years.

My Granparents

This past weekend my Mother's parents came into town for the wedding. Here are pictures of us with my Grandpa and Babba. We are at the Cardston Canada Temple with my Babba and the SLC temple with my Grandpa. We love them!

Dallin and Shannon

My brother Dallin is getting married next week. I never thought the day would come!! I am so excited for him and his future wife. They are a fun, out going couple that we love to hang out with. I am actually surprised how great of a girl Dallin found. I have met many of his past girlfriends and none can even be compared to Shannon. Shannon out shines them all.
I just want Dallin and Shannon to know how happy I am for them. They are going to be a great couple and will find so much joy in their lives from one another.
People are still surprised that Dallin Bird is actually getting married. After one month of being around Dallin and Shannon I knew they were going to get married. Dallin's eyes lite up when she was around and I have never seen that before. Plus I like Dallin a whole lot more now!!
I want to thank Dallin for getting married because now my whole family is coming out to Utah to visit and nothing gets better than that!
So CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

I never thought I could be this busy in my life. I have classes for 8 hrs on Monday and Tuesday, Clinicals for 12 hrs on Wednesdays and Thursday and 4 hr of class on Friday. Every weekend has been packed full of things to do, and all I can think about is sleeping in this weekend and having Monday off. I am so excited to go to Texas and be away from school and all its business. NOW, I know what real life is going to be like and what being a MOM will be like. I think that is why I am waiting to have kids!!

Road Racing

Racing...it is something that I have come to believe runs in my blood. I love to see how far I can push my body and for how long. Track has always been that rush for me, as of late though I have found my new love (after Janelle of course, though she may say otherwise). The second track season was over this year I instantly jumped on my road bike and began training for some road races. I found a few in our area and set some goals. The first race was a weekly criterium race at UVU. It is a set course that we ride for 40 min on and once the 40 min are up they give you 3 laps to make any final moves before you sprint to the finish line hoping to grab first. My first race was a killer I went out way to fast and wasted tons of energy trying to speed up and slow down and get in front of people. In the end lets just say I didn't have much to really contend for the top 3.
Back to the drawing board it was then. I checked out a book called the Ultimate Ride by Chris Carmichael. He has a lot of great training and racing tips that I have since fallowed. I got a lot stronger on the bike and could actually go longer than 30 miles without dying. For those of you that laugh at my 30 miles I remind you that I normally run 400 meters...big difference.
So once again I entered the weekly criterium race and this time I placed 4th overall but 1st in my category.
The real challenge was thrown down though by Dallin Bird to ride in the Tour de Park City...a 100 mile race with a huge vertical climb at one point of about 3,500 feet. This was one race I wanted to do but didn't think I could handle 100 miles but Dallin got me to do it and I am glad I did. I finished in a time of 5 hours 50 minutes.
My next race will be the Sanpete classic on August 29 so stay tuned...

A Hobby I like...

For the last 6 months or so I have been trying to find a hobby that I would enjoy and want to do. I tried bow making, which I do like, scrapbooking and bead making. While Bryan and I were in Washington visiting Bryan's parents we walked down main street and saw a bead shop. I was in the crafty mood and decided to go in and see what they have. I saw beautiful fresh water pearl string for 10 bucks! I immediately thought to make a pearl necklace for myself and my sister. I enjoyed it so much I went back and bought more! Now its onto learning how to knit and crochet.

Canada Oh Canada

While In Canada We went to Waterton Lakes. It was so beautiful.

Where Have we Been??

I feel like I have not updated or checked my blog for a month! I know all of you are just dying to here about our lives and miss my weekly updates (ha!). Bryan finished Spring Term at BYU with amazing grades and is now excited for summer. I have been busing with my new calling as Relief Society President. We took a trip up to Alberta, Canada to finish my mother's parents. It was fun to learn more about my grandparents and see where my mother grew up. We went to Waterton National Park. It is multiple glacier lakes surrounded by mountains...aka beautiful!
Now we are in Port Ludlow, Washington enjoying time with Bryan's family. The weather is beautiful and the pool is so refreshing. We been to Victoria Canada, fishing, saw transformer ( i hated it) and going to Seattle. We can now say our summer vacation has offially started! Photos are coming, this stupid computer won't let me add them right now...

I think I made too much....

Growing up with 10 brothers and sisters my mom always made a lot of food. Now being married I often make way too much for dinner or have a fear that I didn't make enough when we have a party. At the last minute I am always throwing something together that has nothing to do with the main meal just to make sure I have enough.
I also tend to buy meats in bulk. I dont' know why when its just the two of us. My freezer is packed with meet that are 4lbs or more. I buy meat like every 2 or 3 months. What started all this craziness was I always wanted left overs when i cooked. But in the middle of cooking I would think I have way too much and start calling people over dinner. So in the end I would never have left overs. Bryan would just laugh at me. Once i realized that it was expensive to feed everyone and not have left overs I quickly stopped that.
So here is my last creation. I wanted to make a roast because i never have before. The meet was about 3.5 lbs and Bryan cut up like 8 potatoes. We had way too much food, but it lasted us 5 days!

Mountain West Conference Weekend

This past weekend the BYU track team went to Laramie Wyoming for the Mountain West conference. I have no idea who decided to pick the middle of nowhere for conference. The BYU track team drove to Wyoming while me and Bryan's parents flew into Denver and drove two hours north. It was a beautiful drive and relaxing weekend.
Bryan ran the 110 meter high hurdles and took fourth overall. He ran the 400 meter hurdles and took FIRST place! He ran a 51.4. I was so proud of him. Right before the race i thought I was going to through up, i was so nervous! I always get scarred he is going to get hurt.
Bryan was so stoked to win! It was his goal all season long. Now it is off to Eugene Oregon for Regionals! Wish him luck.

BAD LUCK

I seriously have bad luck. Everytime I travel my flight gets delayed because of mechanical difficulties. Who wants to go on a plan knowing they are having a malfunction. I don't! This weekend we were in Wyoming, aka the middle of nowhere, for Mountain West conference. Bryan was running the 400 meter hurdles and won by the way!! i will post some pics up later.
After a wonderful weekend, i was ready to come home and get organized. Bryans flight left at 12:10 so we got the the airport at 10:30. My flight did not leave until 12:50. I said bye to Bryan and off i got to sit at my gate until it is my turn to leave. Well 12:55 roles around and we have not boarded yet. I then start to think well did i miss my flight by accident and didnt hear them board. Nope thats not the case. The flight was delayed for mechanical difficulites, so we had to wait. We wait about an hour and they say ok everything is fixed we are ready to go. We all board the plane and about ten minutes later we are unboarding the plane. The mechanic changed his mind and said the plane is not ready and we had to wait about 4 hrs until it was ready. Long story short I waited in the airport from 10:30 to 4:30 to fly home. I landed at 6! The worst part Bryan arrived in SLC at 1:30 and waited for me in the car at the airport until 6!!
I seriously hate traveling!

I Finally Decorated

I stink at decorating. I don't know what i like cause i like everything. I buy stupid things that i end up throwing away. So when my mom was in town we went to HobbyLobby to find some cute things. I will be honest. I pushed the cart while Carrie and my mom went down the isle and found everything. I just had veto power! So here are some picks of my newly decorated home.




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Test Day is here!

As we speak Bryan is taking the MCAT. I have been nervous all semester as he's been studying, practicing, and so forth. Bryan has never seemed nervous once! I don't know what it is about him but every test he take he never gets nervous while i am over there pacing back and forth! Anyway, as i wait for him to call me after his test, it feels like the hours have gone by so slow. I slept in so it would feel like the day will go by faster!
Needless to say after the MCAT we are partying!!! We have no idea what to do cause neither of us are partiers but we will think of something! Everyone is invited.... By the way Bryan's idea of partying is going to see the X-Men movie!! Love it huh..

Grocery Shopping on A Budget

So i had this enrichment activity on grocery shopping on a budget. I learned that I do not shop on a budget at all. I spent the most amount on money possible, and not on purpose. I just suck at shopping on a budget. I thought for sure buying in bulk was smart....oh its not if there are only 2 people in your family. I thought planning out my meals and the buying the materials is shopping on a budget. Oh its not! Shopping on a budget means finding the food that is on sale and planning meals around that. And if its on sale buy more then you normally would.
My only problem with shopping on a budget is I buy things that i have no idea how to cook and I buy a little too much. But it has been a fun learning experience and i have saved so much money this month! So try my way for a month and see if you like it.

Ready to Quit!

I am sitting in the library right now, looking around and decided I am so over school. I hate test, quizzes, research papers, waking up early, going to bed late, and boring lectures. But hey everyone keeps telling me college is the best time of your life and the easiest. However, all I know is school has caused more stress in my life then anything else so far. I have stressed induced hypertension! Who knows how stressed I will be with kids! I love learning but I hate the work! Why can't I just go to a lecture listen and learn without all the work! I dream of the days when I don't have to turn an assignment in. I dream of the days when I actually get a good night sleep instead of tossing and turning all night worried about my test the next morning. School work is never ending. I finish one test and then start studying for the next one the very NEXT DAY! I am so done with school.
Now the bad news, I have a lot of schooling left!

On a totally different note i learned great tips on grocery shopping on a budget and making GOOD cheap meals! Tune in soon for that post!

About Time....Ava

As most of you already know my niece AVA MAY JENSEN was born yesterday afternoon. She is so adorable and I cannot wait to meet her in person. It is so weird to have a new niece born and not be able to go see her until she is a month old. It makes me so sad. She is one lucky girl to have Marissa for a mother and Steve for a father.

Marissa will make sure Ava is clean, neat, nice, and well mannered. She will protect her and teach her.

Steve will make sure Ava has fun in her life and sings a lot too!

Congratulation you two. I am so happy and excited for you guys.

Anticipating

As most of you know my sister Marissa is pregnant and due in 1 week. I have been anxious to meet her little girl since the day i found out she was expecting. Now with only 1 WEEK to go the days feel like forever. The eight months of getting to this point flew by and now it feels like i am watching paint dry. Time needs to hurry up....

Now for a little secret. I have always wanted a lot of children but the whole pregnancy thing freaks me out! Now that i am married and could potential have a child it freaks me out more. I am so scared of being sick all the time. I do not handle pain very well. HOWEVER, watching Marissa go through pregnancy and have no morning sickness or pain had brought me hope. She still does everything she wants to; the pregnancy does not slow her down. It has given me a little confidence booster that i will be able to handle it and that not all pregnancy are horrible! It taught me mind over matter.

So, Marissa please have your baby sooner. I cannot wait to meet Ava! She is going to be the most well behaved and healthiest baby I ever met. Her kids will be telling my kids to stand up tall, suck your tummy in, and stop eating chocolate!

Frosty's

I went to Wendy's yesterday because i was craving fries. I order a kids meals because it was cheap and it came with a junior frosty. I can't remember the last time i had one. When i saw it next to the cashier I immediately said, "awwwww how cute." The cashier looked at me like i was crazy. Anyway, i paid and on the way home i was looking at my Junior Frosty and I had a walk down memory lane.

When I was little my dad and I would always go to wendy's and get a Junior Frosty. We would go after basketball games, soccer games, church events and so on. I distinctly remember one time my dad asking me what i want and said a Junior Frosty as usual. However, this time he looked at me and said you do not want a Junior, you want a MEDIUM frosty. He order it for me and i looked at it like i have the biggest dessert in the world! I thought i had the coolest dad in the world! I enjoyed all five bites of my frosty

SO, now my junior frosty sits on my window seal above my sink for me to look at it and remember times with my dad growing up. Plus, its so cute; i like looking at it. Bryan thinks i am nuts! I took a picture of the frosty next to the cup to show how really small it is!

Chocolate Passion

I have come to the conclusion that I LOVE chocolate. I think I am obsessed with it. I truly crave it. I do not crave a lot of unhealthy things but chocolate is one of them. I am convinced my mother ate a lot of it while she was pregnant with me. ANYWAY, the point of this post is not to confess my weaknesses. The point is to give my friends a great recipe. Yesterday we had friends over for dinner and made this dessert. It was so easy and so good. You have to like chocolate though. A true dessert to me is anything with chocolate in it. I bet you already guessed that. I got the idea from kraftfoods.com. I LOVE their website. They give me easy quick yet delicious dinner ideas all the time. I thank my sister Marissa for introducing me to it.

What You Need

3 cups cold milk

2 pkg. (4-serving size each) JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding

1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP French Vanilla Whipped Topping, thawed, divided

1 baked 9-inch square brownie layer, cooled, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5-1/2 cups)

1 pt. (2 cups) raspberries

Make It

BEAT milk and dry pudding mixes in large bowl with wire whisk 2 min. or until blended. Gently stir in 1 cup of the whipped topping.

PLACE half of the brownies in 2-qt. serving bowl; top with layers of half each of the pudding mixture, remaining whipped topping and raspberries. Repeat all layers.

REFRIGERATE at least 1 hour. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

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Shopping For Bryan

The track teams gives Bryan 150$ to buy clothes, so tonight Bryan decided we should go to the mall. As a normal woman I became excited. My husband wants to go to the mall!! Horray! Then i slowly realized i am going to get nothing out of this mall trip, besides a good time with Bryan and spending BYU's money. We are going to go to my favorite stores but only look at the Boy's section. I know I probably sound ridiculous but i got my hopes up for about 5 minutes and then reality set in.

Our Wedding

So i know its been almost 7 months since we were married and i still dream about my wedding day. It was everything i wanted and more. It was elegant yet fun. It was beautiful and relaxing. I was surrounded by family and friends. The feeling of love was so apparent and not just between us but among everyone that was there. I had friends come from all over the world to attend. I felt so lucky and honored. My bridesmaids helped me so much with colors and picking out the dresses. They went to so many appointment and never complained. My mother did most of the hard work and i tried to involve Bryan as much as possible but he did not care. He just kept saying what ever you want babe, i am just happy to marry you. My favorite part of the wedding was just being surrounded by my whole family. I distinctly remember at one point in the evening during the dinner i looked over at my brothers and sisters and their families and just smiled. My heart filled with gratitude for my them. They were all laughing and having a good time. People are right when they say your wedding is one of the best days in your life!

New Born baby

I am a new born baby at this blogging thing. I am totally learning how to use this high tech stuff. It can get so complicated. I realized we needed a blog when most of our married friends and family had one. Now everyone can secretly stalk us. Once i decided to actually make a blog i again realized we are very boring. We wake up, go to school, eat, study, and go to bed. What could i possibly put on a blog that is interesting? I am hoping overtime i will get an idea! I am open to suggestions as well. I know Bryan will be putting up lots of political articles, which i think makes our blog boring. But at least it will be something on our blog! So welcome, Enjoy and tell your friends!