Malachowski's

Kiera's Blessing

2010-07-30T22:00:00.000-07:00

While my family was visiting, Kiera got blessed. My Grandma Kay wanted to plan it all so I let her, she did a fantastic job, Kiera even had her own little blessing program with songs & everything. And invitations! It was June 6th, and she was blessed in the Parowan 3rd Ward church. She did so great! She basically just slept the entire time, such an angel. And she looked so pretty, too! My mom bought her blesing dress, and I just love it. It was actually a size 18 month, but I really liked it so I just got it & altered it. I also made the little white headband. After the blessing we all went outside of course to take TONS of pictures. Then we all headed to Janet's for a little "after party". I made mini cheese cake bites, Janet ordered a cake & sandwhich meats. What a great day!

My Mom & Kiera.

Her dress wouldn't fit in her carseat, so she had to be stripped down naked for the ride to Parowan. Since she'd already been shoved into a stuffy dress and then ripped out of it she was not too happy.

All the family outside the church. So many people came to support little Kiera!

Mommy & Kiera.

My Nona said all this picture is missing is a pair of wings :)

The cake that Janet bought at Lynn's.
Cheese cakes I made.

Our little family. Kiera is just out of it, lol

My Family Visit

2010-07-15T21:53:00.000-07:00

The very week after Brett's Aunt came to visit, my family flew in from Florida. My Mom & I are really close, so I love it when they come to visit! This is the second time I've got to see them this year, and hopefully we'll be flying out to Florida a couple of times this year as well.

Kiera & I drove out to Vegas once again, but this time all by ourselves, aren't we so brave? Honestly I just hate driving but I was anxious to see my family & wanted to spend as much time with them as possible. And since they were staying the night in The Vegas who wouldn't want to get some time away in the sun?! Of course tears were shed when we met them in the air port but they were happy tears! It was especially neat because my parents hadn't seen me since I'd had Kiera & they were so, so, SO beyond excited to finally meet her!

We spent the night in Vegas going out to eat (buffet of course) celebrating my both of brothers' June birthdays & well yeah, shopping & pool time! I already forgot the name of the resort but I think it was Village something or other? I'm horrible, I know. It was gorgous though with a beautiful pool area!

The next day we drove back home, Brett had stayed up for us & made beds for everybody (all 5 of them!) and was really just excited to have his two girls back since Kiera hadn't been away from him ever. I almost thought he wouldn't trust me to take his precious little girl to Vegas!

The week was spent with tons of visiting, GREAT food made by my mother (Brett always looks forward to her cuisine!), shopping (they can't help but spoil Kiera & me) and movies. I love my family so much, sometimes it makes me feel crazy enough to move out to Florida!

Kiera was also blessed while they were here, but I'll post a special post for that next!

The last day they were here we went to Pizza Factory to celebrate my two brothers birthdays. Robert turned 18 & Kade 13. So crazy that everyone is growing up so quick! All my sibblings, though all three are younger than me, are all taller than me! I'll have to admit that after having a crazy-frantic-busy household it was kinda depressing for me to come back home without them while they drove to Vegas. I cried a little, I just miss my mom so much! So much so that I talk her ear off everytime I get the chance to call her.

Just a fraction of the things my family brought/bought for baby Kiera. And my parents had already bought Kiera's Eddie Baur pack-n-play AND sent a HUGE package of clothes up to size 2! And they didn't stop buying us things the whole time they were here, the spoil us big time!

Sometimes I end up in the backseat to comfort Kiera & hold her little hand.
Half of the table at Pizza Factory

Left to right: Grandma Kay, Grandpa Bob (who also had a June birthday), Great-Grandpa Dalton & Aunt Melody.

The other half of the table at Pizza Factory

Left to right: Brothers Kade & Robert, Mom, Dad & Kiera, Me & Sister Chelsea
Dad occupying Kiera at Target while we shopped. Kiera actually grew quite attached to him! And I am pretty sure she has his dimples!
Mom, Kade, me & Kiera in the hotel.

Chelsea & Kade near the resort pool.

Kiera by the pool, all bundled & covered so she wouldn't get burnt! I got some cute pictures of her in her suit (just guess who bought it, Nonni Mia of course) but the pictures are all on my phone. She did have Edward hair sticking straight up from me putting sun screen in it though! But then, her hair is always sticking up!
Kade at the pool.

Kade & the birthday suprise I ordered at the Buffet. Robert & him were embarrased & kinda mad I did that! Brothers!
Robert being a pyro with his birthday suprise . . . by the way this buffet had the BEST chocolate cake!!! Sinful!
The boys in the car.
Oh! Little Kiera also got her ears pierced while they were here! Unfortunately (or fortunately?) she was already screaming from hunger when we went to the Dr. to get it done, so she barely even noticed. Pretty baby Kiera.
I think we were both just a tad exhausted in this picture, lol thanks for capturing the moment, Mom! :)

Pretty baby smiles, tough to catch on camera but here's our best shot! She reminds me of my Mom in this picture.
Mommy & Kiera.

Also Brett, Kiera & I went to my friends Matt & Mandy's wedding that same week. They were high school sweet hearts, aren't they cute?! And I have to say Kiera was adorable in her little lepord dress! ^

My Dad & Kiera.
Kiera's pretty pierced ears.
Chelsea & Kiera.

Daddy & Kiera.

Kiera & her Nonni Mia.

Chels & Kiera at Target.

Brett's Family Visit/End of May

2010-07-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

The last week of May was so super busy for us! Just a recap:

Kiera was taken to her babysitter for the first time so that I could return to work. She was only 6 weeks old. It was probably one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, I find it so difficult to just trust someone with her for the entire day. Before that, I'd only ever left her once to go to a movie (called "Back-Up Plan" with J-Lo) and the whole time I had worried about her instead of enjoying the movie! Kiera's babysitter is named Heather, she's a super sweet & ultra-organized lady with only one small child of her own (Shamus-2yr.) and less than a handful of children she tends. It was so very hard in the begining but has gotten better. I work 3 12 hour shifts, 6:30 am-7:00pm, not only because it is cheaper for Day Care but it also gives me four whole days with Kiera a week. Brett works five days a week so on the days I work he brings Kiera to Day Care from 8:00am to about 4:30. Sometimes you just have to do what you've got to do, even though of course a thousand times over I'd rather be at home with my Kiera-Kier.

Within the same week of my return to work, Kiera & I went with Janet (Brett's Mom) to Vegas to pick up her sister Dara & niece Kyleigh. They came to celebrate Mathew's high school graduation & also to see Kiera of course! Since they live in Missouri we don't get to see them all that often but it was a real treat!

Which brings me to Matt's graduation. Matt graduated from Cedar high this May! Yay for the class of 2010! Kiera dressed up special in a satin pink & back dress. She was so good the whole time & hardly made a peep besides being hungry. Everyone went to Lupita's (AH YUM!) for dinner afterwards & also there was a huge party the next day at Brett's parent's house.

Left to right, top to bottom: Janet, her mom, Barbara, her sister Dara & her sister Cindy.

Yay Matt!

Our little famly at Lupita's!

Half of the table at Lupita's.

The other half.

This was sort-of meant to be a brothers picture but Brett's Grandpa Malachowski stepped in at last minute to sabatoge!

Matt & his girlfriend Andie.

Random Pictures From Kiera's First Month

2010-07-15T20:39:00.001-07:00

She's wearing an outfit that Nona knitted for her, still too big yet gorgeous just the same. Can't wait until this fall when it will fit her.

Kiera with her Great-Great-Aunt Shirley & Great-Great Grandpa Dalton

Great-Aunt Judy, Kiera & Great-Great Grandpa.

Sweet little Kiera.

Kiera sticking her tongue out during the 1 month pictures I was taking.

Perhaps she's thinking,"Mom, stop with the pictures!"

(As always)

One of my favorites, was used for the blessing announcement

that her Great-Grandma Kay made.

Poor, poor baby. It was during the pictures that I realized the reason

that she was acting "cranky" was that she was hungry.

I ended up printing these & some other pictures from Kiera's birth to make "Brag Books" for the gandmas. They turned out pretty cute, and each one had a letter written to the grandma. See Mother's Day post below to see!

Dutch Oven

2010-07-15T20:28:00.000-07:00

Well we've been super busy this summer! Word of advice, keep up on your blog because it's difficult to go back & update later! We've sort-of kicked off our summer with a dutch oven party with Brett's Mom & Dad's friends. We had a bunch of fun & of course the food was so delicious! The kids were planning on playing in the creek (it was held @ Canyon Park), but it was SO cold that plan went out the wndow real fast! Instead they played football, frissbee, etc & as always with kids this age played with fire haha. Someone brought a fire pit so we huddled around it & watched the kids burn leaves . . . lots of 'em. I was assigned a dessert so I brought a Peaches & Cream cake. It was good but not the best, what matters is that Brett loved it. :)

Dr. Bleazard tackling Anthony.

The dutch ovens cooking the delish food!

Kiera all bundled up, she slept most of the time.

The hubby & me! I actually made Brett that quilt for our very first Christmas!

Mother's Day

2010-06-27T13:21:00.001-07:00

My first Mother's Day was this year! Brett made me breakfast & bought me a new pot for cooking & the sweetest card. Later that day we were invited over to Brett's parent's house for dinner, it was a good day!

Sleeping angel.

Kiera with her Grandma Janet on Mother's Day . . . Kiera pretty much slept the entire time!

I made both of the Grandmas a Brag Book, with pictures of Kiera and room to add more.

The book for Janet had a sweet little not from Brett.

Janet & her boys. Brett, would it kill ya to smile for pics?!

2 Months Old

2010-06-10T22:43:00.000-07:00

My Kiera,
Kiera, your mommy is a slacker sometimes, I meant to write you every month, but I suppose I'll just have to do better from here on out.

Kiera, you are such a beautiful, special baby & we love you so very much with each passing day more & more. We love you more than anyone could imagine, an you are starting to notice us more, too!

Just these past few weeks you have become more & more animated, you are smiling all the time now (though we get very, very serious, thinking looks from you often as well). You have even tried laughing a little bit, it comes out in little gasp-like shrieks! So very cute! We love playing & watching everything you do, and all the rest of your family does too!

Everyone (Us, Grandma Janet & Grandpa Chris, Nanna Mia & Grandpa Rob, your great-grandparents, uncles, aunts, etc) is always loving on you! You're such a sweet baby. And so little too! But you are growing more everyday, just a little bit petite :)

You are so good with tummy time, we always joke that you will be crawling before you can pick your head up because while you work you neck muscles, you also push your arms & legs tons! So smart & strong! Speaking of legs, when you get excited or frustrated you kick one leg or the other over & over. You did this all the time in Mommy's tummy too, it's amazing to actually see you doing it! Kiera, I love you so much & miss you every single minute I'm away. All I want to do is cuddle & play with you all day long like we did before Mommy had to go back to work. But we still have tons of time to do that still. We love spending time as a little family, going on walks, napping, even movies! And of course family events.

The last two weeks have been SO busy for you. Between meeting all of Daddy's family & the next week Mommy's (Nanna Mia, Grandpa Rob, Kids & Aunts & Uncles! Always remember they love you too & spoil you every chance!) you have been held lots!

Despite all of your new encounouters, you still remain pretty attached to me. And I love it :) I don't really care (yet ;)) if I don't get anything done, I love that you for me to hold you and tha you love to sleep with me -sometimes-. There are times when you & I just need to cuddle each other. You grab onto my hair and snuggle in :)

And your Daddy loves you so much too. Kiera, you have truly stolen his heart. He is very protective of you. You've really got the best, funnest Daddy. He is already so proud of you Kiera, I sincrely hope that you two always stay this close. He enjoys feeding you when I'm not around, never complains about diapers, dresses you for the babyitter, and as of late give baths without Mommy's help, and LOVES to carry you around & play.

We just got you a swing a couple weeks ago, but you'll only go in it when you're very calm & not in too clingy a mood ;) Your facial expressions are priceless at this age as you try so hard to focus & figure things out.

You are the most beautiful baby, everybody says so, even the Dr.s! You change more & more everyday, it's tough to keep up. I know I will look back & miss these times.

Just last week I took you to Vegas with me to pick up Nanna Mia , Grandpa Rob & your Aunt & Uncles. You were an angel, and even got a swimsuit to fit you! Though you mostly stayed covered under a hat & towel all day. When we got back (two day trip) Daddy swore you had changed while away. He really missed us!

Oh, and you got your ears pierced last week too! You were already screaming with hunger before we even walked in the Dr.'s office though, so it's hard to say if you even felt the pricks! The Dr. said you are growing just right on your own little curve. Which makes me feel better because you don't always seem to be the biggest eater, but you eat just what you need! When you got your shots you were a little grouchy the remainder of the day, and seemed to hurt. I felt so bad.

Kiera, you're good baby & only cry when you need things (even if needing something is just Mommy or Daddy's company) or when your tummy hurts. Reading is another activity you enjoy, oh, and you love cooing at us & your "friends" (the animals on your mobile). In fact, I think the first time we heard you really coo was at your mobile! And your first laugh (aside from those in your sleep) was at Mommy when she got home from work this week! Nicknames we have for you so far are: Kiera-Kier, Monkey, Kiera-Bean. You don't enjoy being put in your car seat but calm down when we actually get driving in the car. You always try to hold your own bottles & pacifiers, you're getting there! You gre out of your newborn diapers & sleepers a few weeks ago, getting to be such a big girl (length-wise!).

Last Sunday we had you blessed in the Parowan 3rd ward church. So many people were there to support you, Kiera. Everyone thinkis you are just perfect. And Great-Grandma Kay organized a special meeting just for your blessing, complete with programs. Grandma Janet & Nanna Mia threw you a wonderful party after.

Oh, and Daddy didn't believe me for the longest time but now everyone knows . . . you will mimic us when we stick our tongues out at you! And sometimes you will stick your tongue out when we kiss you too! We love you so much, wish you could always stay this tiny but know you've got to grow up! Besides, Daddy is excited to show you how to play new games & talk to you someday!

Love,

Mommy & Daddy

Just some uploads from my phone . . .

2010-04-23T14:52:00.001-07:00

Kiera Leona Malachowski

2010-04-19T13:10:00.000-07:00

Well, I suppose we've got some pretty big news! Miss Kiera Leona was born last Saturday! April 10, 2010 at 9:06 pm. She weighed 6lbs 12 oz and came 15 days early. Here's our story:

Friday night Brett & watched some movies & went to bed, I kinda wanted her to come a little early, because I was so excited to finally meet her & honestly scared of going past my due date & having a huge baby! But I didn't think she'd actually come . . . Wednesday I went to my Dr. appointment and was still at a one. I'd had contractions that were on & off, not to mention pre-pre-term labor at 32 weeks (which was scary & awful, didn't want her that early! They stopped it though! I also had to go on bed rest for 5 days & when I went back to work was on light duty for several weeks). So after my 37 week appointment I was feeling kinda bumbed, I was just hoping I would be a little more dialated when she did decide to come. That whole week (and the week before?) I could feel that she'd dropped. All that pressure & weight kinda hurt! Anyhow, we went to bed without a clue as to how we were about to spend our Saturday . . .

At quarter to 5 I woke up, thinking maybe my water had broken. I wasn't sure though because
it was very very little. Thinking maybe I just peed my pants, I cleaned up & went back to bed. Then I felt a little something more, so I got up once again . . . lots of liquid came out in the toilet . . . yet still I questioned myself. I think because I had been to OB already a few times for contractions that I couldn't believe my water had actually broke. I turned the light on and went searching for pads (they say if you soak through one in an hour . . .) and woke Brett up in the process. Then I noticed the not so small wet spot on the bed . . . by this time I was pretty sure it was time to go to the hospital! We didn't even have our bag packed. So I got ready while Brett rested a little more, all the while soaking through pads (sorry for the details!). Once Brett was finally awake I changed the sheets while he showered. Then I remembered they don't let you eat once you're admitted to labor & delivery. So I called them & asked if I could eat breakfast before I came. The nurse told me I could (my Dr. was actually right there and she told me later that he said, "Don't tell them they can eat! What if they needed a C-Section?") It was about 8 am when we finally got to the hospital (partially because I went back to bed twice thinking my water wasn't actually broken). We walked into OB and Dr. Gatherum was actually already there. They showed us to a room & checked my water . . . yup it had broke, no doubt about it! But I was still only dialated to a 1+. I had contractions but they weren't all that regualr yet and were way far apart. Dr. Gatherum said, "Yeah, we'll keep you!" And we knew we were having a baby that day :)

They gave me a pill to disolve in my mouth that is supposed to rippen your cervix. If I remember right after a few hours I was dialated to a 3. But it stopped there. I stayed at a 3 for a while. The nurse thought the baby was probably sunny-side up, like her face was faced up towards my belly rather than my back. She said a lot of times when that happens you get stuck at a certain number. Oh, and we had called our parents & my grandma so Janet was there. Initially I just wanted it to be me & Brett, but I knew everyone was excited so we called everyone & let people in the room, so long as they promised to get out before it was time to push. My contractions were getting pretty intense by now, and Brett was doing a great job helping me through them. We used a hot pad & I just held onto him lol. About the meanest thing I did during labor was slap Brett's arm when he tried to pry my hurting death grasp off of his arm. He's a real trooper!

Since I was at a 3+, Dr. Gatherum said I could have my epidural. The anesthesiologist took a while to get there though! And Dr. Gatherum had also said to start pitocin. It was started, but lower so my contractions wouldn't get too bad before my epidural. I was so scared to get my epidural, not knowing just how bad it was going to hurt! One of my friends was stabed about 6 times (so she says) and said it killed. My contractions hurt worse than the epidural! It wasn't even bad. However, I had asked Janet to leave while I got it, but right in the middle my grandma came in the room! I said,"I don't want anyone in here right now!" But she didn't listen & proceeded to ask the nurse how far dialated & efaced I was etc. while they tried to tell her we'd be finished soon but to get out. But she didn't. Anyhow, once the epidural was in it was all good from there! Wayne did such a great job, I couldn't feel the contractions, just pressure, and I could move my legs the whole time.

The nurse had me lay on my side/belly to try & get the baby to turn. I could actually feel her turning! After an hour or two of that, when they came to check me, I was at a "stretchy 5" and completely effaced. It all went quick from there. The nurses changed shifts, leaving Debbie to help with the labor & she was amazing! Such an energetic, sweet lady! And very motivational. They told me to rest for an hour or so so I'd have energy for pushing. By 7:20 I was ready to push. However, while pushing I spiked a fever. So I had to stop pushing for a while so Dr. McCune (our pediatrician) could come & talk to us. When a woman gets a fever in labor, she has to be put on antibiotics and the baby has to be taken within the hour after birth to be put on antibiotics as well. and they can't sleep with you in your room. This made me so sad. By now I was starting to feel the contractions somewhat. But I stayed on top of it with my handy pain button :) (Turns out I had no infection or illness, my fever went away as soon as labor was through. But they had to take precautions).

At 9:06 pm Kiera Leona was born, and she is so beautiful! Brett got the camera ready (and he helped me sooooo much during labor & pushing, he is the best husband ever! He was so excited to watch her be born! I don't know how women do it without their husbands he was amazing!). He was a proud Daddy right from the start. He even cut the cord. We let the family come in & see & hold her. Then everyone (except for me) including Kiera headed to the nursery. I felt ready to go & see her, but they made me wait 2 hours before getting up. In the meantime I texted everyone our good news, seeing as how I was all by myself.

I was actually able to pop right out of the bed, the nurse was pretty suprised. They'd also had me pump while I was sitting there, and when Brett came to walk me to the nursery he said, "She's really hungry! She's sucking her fingers & stuff!"

But when we went to go & see her, they told us they hadn't gotten the IV in yet & most parents don't like to watch that because it's mean & sad. So they said they'd call our room when they finally got one to work. They didn't call until 1am! Then I finally got to see our little princess again!

Because of the possibility of an infection, we had to wait for lab results. It was rough, not knowing if something was going to be wrong with her. We waited two days for lab results, and at one point of course I was crying because we had a scare with some of the results, but the next day they came back normal. We were told we'd probably be there until Thursday, so I went to boarder status on Monday night (I was discharged but could pay for a room to stay & nurse her). On top of all of that breastfeding was a real challenge. Monday we unexpectantly got good news, everything was normal with the labs. But then her jaundice level was now up. Which meant we again couldn't go hom. It's hard because you never expect to stay longer than your 24 hours or that something will actually be wrong with your new, precious little baby. She spent 2 days under the lights, I was with her in the nursery for most of everyday, and went to the nursery to try & nurse her throughout the night. But Tuesday night when we thought we had the possibility of going home, and were told once again we couldn't, I kinda had a come apart. So Brett took me out to dinner & shopping for a few hours inbetween nursing. Wednesday we were suprised to hearwe could finally bring our little monkey home! I called Brett at work, and told himhe could come & get us! We were so excited! 5 days in the hospital was plenty for us.

Of course once I got home with her & Brett returned to work I had a moment of panic, like how do I take care of you?! And we were still working on the breastfeeding with her. But one visit from the lactation consultant (Sue, she is so awesome!) and I was feeling better. Still scary and everytime I nurse even now I get proud of her for eating & cooperating.

Thursday she had her first Dr. appointment with Dr. Nelson (McCune is her actual pediactrician but he's out of town). She's doing good, but we just need to make sure she's gaining enough since she had problems feeding in the beggining.

Parenting is an adventure with something new everyday, I can't believe she's already over a week old. It makes me sad. Her actual due date was April 25th, which is this Sunday! She's beautiful, alert, calm, sweet and just generally a really good baby so far. Eating was our only issue & she gets better & better everyday! It's so amazing to see Brett with her, she's got him wrapped around her finger already. He is so sweet and gentle with her, almost too much so, afraid to hurt her. But she knows her Daddy and gets excited when he talks to her, or when we both hover over her, yeah it's aparent she's going to be way spoiled. We're so happy to finally have our little addition join us! We love her so so so much! She's got such a personality already, with her cute little smiles, which she has about 4 different ones. And she hardly hardly ever fusses, she's so content.

Brett is obsessed with the hair behind her ears, lol. It'll go away, just a little left over luango hair, but he thinks it's so funny & cute. He said take all the pictures you can, haha so this is for him. She's our little monkey.
Yup, still pretty fat, but I had to have a picture of her first walk anyway.

Brett took this picture of us while we were resting.

Tried to catch one of her smiles . . .

Love her cute ourfit? Good, because she pooped all over it & one of her blankets that night . . .

Valentines

2010-02-15T17:49:00.000-08:00

Sadly, we didn't even get any pictures of Valentines this year. But we had a bunch of fun! Friday night we were going to go & see "Valetines Day" but Brett came home saying it actually looked cheesey & I was feeling just way way tired so we opted to stay in. We went to Papa Murphy's & got a heart shaped pizza, since his mom usually did that every year with him & his brothers. Then we just snacked on candy and watched "Couples Retreat". We also exchanged gifts that day. I just got him some candy, a cd and other fun stuff. Usually I go all out (i.e. homemade gifts, suprise dinner, fondue) but I just didn't get to it this year. Kinda sad, I'll make it up next year! And he was so sweet. Last year he forgot to get me a card, so this year he spent a lot of time picking out a REALLY sweet sentimental one, I cried. And he was so excited to give it to me too. He got me candy & "Time Travelers Wife".

Saturday we went and got our Bountiful Baskets. Ever heard of it?! It's crazy you pay $15 & you get TONS of fresh fruits and vegetables. Here's a picture of what we got in our basket a couple of weeks ago:

All for $15!!! I think it works because they get all of us to "contribute" the fifteen bucks & are able to buy more produce for less? What you get in your basket is different every week, for example we got stuff like two huge butternut squashes, corn on the cob, strawberries, pineapple etc this week. We also tried out the bread (5 loaves for $1o) it is so amazing. I love homemade bread, delicious. They do it about once a week or every other week, they've got locations all over Utah & I think Arizona too. It's bountifulbaskets.org

After we picked up our basket we headed to St. George. We bought the baby some clothes, and me a few maternity shirts. (for Christmas Janet bought us a gift certificate to get belly pictures done as a "first family portrait", which we're taking on Wednesday). Then we headed to Red Lobster & proceeded to wait over an hour for dinner. But it was SO good. I filled up so much on salad & rolls that I didn't eat too much of my stuff, but Brett did & we took the rest home. I also got heartburn for the first time in my life, doesn't that mean the baby'll have a lot of hair?! Wive's Tale right? Lobster, shrimp, scallops ect. YUM

Brett's Grandma Camille is always such a sweetheart, especially around the holidays. We get a card for just about EVERY holiday, even St. Patricks! For Valentines she got us this:

It's a cute little heart-shaped plate with M&M's, pink chocolate chip pancake mix & syrup. So Sunday morning Brett got up & made me pancakes. So sweet :). That night we ended up going to see "Wolfman" kinda gory but pretty good. Just a classic scary movie, it's based on the orinal black & white "Wolfman" movie you usually watch around Halloween. Not the most romantic but the rest of the weekend was. Not to mention I changed positions during the movie about a half million times, she decided it'd be fun to jostle, tickle and move around not to mention everything's shoved up in my ribs :)

OHHH Sunday we also ordered the baby's crib (Thanks Janet!) it's going to be here this week! I'm so excited, we've got her bedding already & it starts to feel a little more real each day. It'll be so strange to have a crib set up in there, but so fun! Her room won't be so random anymore :)

That's all for now I hope everyone had as great a weekend as us!

Getting ready . . .

2010-01-20T18:08:00.000-08:00

For our baby girl! She'll be here in about 3 months! Time is flying by! I went to the doctor today and I guess everything is still looking good. She's getting stronger and seems to be moving a lot more now, though when I'm at work not as much (they say your constant motion lulls them to sleep). This was my last Dr. appointment in my second trimester! In fact, this Sunday I'll be in my third! I can't believe it! Since I haven't been sick for the past couple months I'm feeling pretty good, just getting bigger & def. actually "feeling pregnant". I've been starting to get even more tired & hungry lately, which is normal. I can't really reach my toes anymore though, it hurts too much! So today I went & got gel toes :) however, I won't torture you with a picture of my toes.

We're not really telling anyone any names we're thinking of, it's going to have to be a surprise! We haven't decided on "the one" though.

We'll be getting our crib soon it's a chocolate brown, and I just ordered the bedding. Originally I was going to do a black & pink nursery, but I couldn't find any bedding I liked that wasn't WAY expensive. I was considering making my own, but since I work full time Brett didn't want me getting stressed (I can be a perfectionist). I seriously have seen EVERY KIND of bedding. I googled & searched for hours on end. So I just decided to change the colors to pink & brown. Brett doesn't understand my pickiness, his only preference was that we didn't get a white crib. Here's a pic of the bedding that's coming this week:

And here's the picture of my diaper bag I bought when we were in Cali for New Years:

And . . . I have been crafting a little lately. I just love the projects you can find on blogs now-a-days! And I have so many more I want to try, I just have to pace myself so I don't get overwhelmed. Brett says I need an allowance just for my crafts. Whatever :) Here's a wet wipe case cover I made today.I think it matches my diaper bag close enough, I love these I'm pretty excited! I'm also making a daper clutch to match it. OH, and since there are 3 other preg girls I work with (we're all due within 2 months of each other, and Brett's cousin Brandon's wife is due any day, I am making 4 more wet wipe cases & diaper clutches. I bought all the material today. Let the fun begin . . .

This weekend I also made these beaded binky clips. I made two for myself & 2 others fo gifts. I love them :). I think she (our baby) needs one in every color, but like I said I'm pacing myself. Brett can only stand me going to the craft store so much :)

Oh, and I bought my first package of diapers today, so I could put a few in each of the diaper clutches I'm giving as gifts. It was so weird! Also, I demonstrated to Brett how to change a diaper using a sock monkey as our "baby". He wouldn't try, he says he'll just try with "the real thing". We shall see.

Anyhow that's what I've been up to lately! 13 & 1/2 more weeks to go!

2009

2010-01-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

So I've been a major procrasinator with my blog this year. So I really liked how some people have done a "year in review" with pitures & captions. We had a lot of fun in 2009, a lot of changes too & are looking forward to 2010 with all it brings, especially our new little girl!

In January we rang in the new year with my Aunt Lisa, Uncle Rob & their kids in Springville . . .

We celebrated Radeza's Birthday,

In February we got the Nintendo Wii . . .

I spent time baking cookies (and throughout the year)

We baked tons of Valentines cupcakes for our family & friends. Brett really took his artistic time!

I had to work Valentines so Brett suprised me with a "romantic" dinner. Heart shaped grilled cheese & spaghettios!

In March we treked down to Las Vegas for Monster Jam . . .

In April we celebrated Grandma Kay's & Aunt Melody's birthdays . . .

And everyone at the party randomly wanted to try Brett's weights . . .

We celebrated Easter & got a bowl of goodies from Grandma Malachowski . . .

We welcomed puppy Jewels into the family as my "Easter Present". But Brett has fallen in love with her too!

Throughout the year I got to babysit my cousin, Alanna. We had Littlelest Pet Shop playdates with Sam . . .

And baking parties too!

Throughout much of the year I spent time baking cakes & later taking some cake classes.

In June we went to Cali for a Dodgers game & had the official "Dodger Dogs" . . .
In July we celebrated me 22nd Birthday, camped with friends Chan & Levi, went to parades. . .

We said goodbye to our first home together . . .

And hello to a new home

And I got a new job at the hospital.

In August we celebrated Brett's 21st birthday at Brunos with family, and then headed to Mesquite with Jer & Des.

We also found out we were expecting ou first little baby!

In September Brett & I celebrated our First Anniversary

In October we dressed up spooky & headed to Grandma Malachowski's for her annual "party" and later hit up another Halloween party with Nick & Elle. We also enjoyed the luxury of not having to rake leaves anymore

In November we celebrated Thanksgiving with Brett's family. And I drove everyone crazy at work with my Christmas cheer & music

And we found out that our little baby is a girl!

And in December we decorated our new home for the holidays & traveled to spend the holidays with family!

New Years

2010-01-10T11:49:00.000-08:00

So Santa was amazing & brought Brett's family really really great tickets to the Lakers game New Years Day (along with other fun stuff like a Playstation 3). Since we hadn't seen Brett's Grandma Barbara since Thanksgiving & spent Christmas with my family we tagged along to Cali.

New Years Eve, after we drove in, we all went to On The Border and then watched "Up". We watched the ball drop in New York (New York Time) and I guess everyone was way tired because we were all out before midnight. We woke up to plenty of racket outside though when everyone else in the neighborhood started celebrating outside!

Friday Brett's Grandma made us a huge breakfast (which is her thing, she loves to make breakfast!) and we got to shop! I so wish we had amazing malls near us :). And I finally found my diaper bag! It's way cute, pink & brown damask. Will post a picture later.

Brett's best friend, Dean, (who was also his best man) moved to Cali after high school. So he came to visit for a little bit while Brett's family went to the game. Brett's Grandma made us dinner & we had fun teaching her to play Scattergories. We even watched some of the game on TV it was really close! But of course the Lakers won! Brett's grandma Barbara also made us chocolate chip cookies which my fat butt so needed.

We came home to a still traumatized Jewels on Saturday. No we didn't leave her completely alone, Brett's Grandma & Grandpa checked on her.

We had a great time during the holidays but it's good to be back home & relax a little. Well, as much as you can relax with work anyway!

Christmas Season

2010-01-10T10:38:00.000-08:00

Well we were really busy this holiday season! So I totally slacked with the blogging. Better late then never though, right?

Mathew's (Brett's younger brother) birthday is December 23. So that night we went to celebrate. It was the big 1-8! Apparently what he needed was boxers, so we got him that & a gas card. His big gift from his parents was a weight set (Brett took the other one when he moved out).

Mmmmmm & we had an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen.

Here's some pictures of how our house looked this season. I should say looks because I still haven't taken Christmas down!

Our green & red tree. This year we added a Grinch ornament & one from

Brett's Grandma Barbara.

Our very first Christmas together (when we were dating) I got Brett

a model train. He loves it & basically doesn't stop messing with it day in & day out. Our dog, Jewels, was a little afriad of it at first, but she got use to it.

Jewels in one of my childhood stockings. She's a pretty tolerant puppy.

See what I mean?

This year my Aunt Lisa & Uncle Rob invited everyon up for Christmas. So the Sunday before Brett & I had our own little Christmas together. I got him a much needed new coat from Billabong, tools for around the house & his tool box, The Hangover (except he pretty much ruined that because before I could get it for him he kept insisting we go buy it), clothes, & the new Mario game for the Wii. He got me a few pajama sets & a robe from Victoria's Secret, clothes, bath gel & perfume & lotion, Wii Fit Plus. We also got ourselves some new movies. Jewels got treats & a charm for her collar.

Brett's grandparents really spoiled us that week too, they brought over a ton of gifts & even remembered Jewels & the new baby. Brett's parents also got us some nice gifts . . . clothes, towels, a gift certificate to get belly pictures done, gift card for groceries & a new family Willow tree figurine. And they got Brett some new weights so he can work on getting even stronger :). Brett's Grandma Barbara sent us a new ornament & Chillis giftcards.

Tuesday I was on call all night but got a head start on baking. The plan was to make several cookies for everyone & put them in cookie jars with a game. Sounds easy but I was baking all night Tuesday (just hoping my pager didn't go off), making stocking stuffers for work, Dr. appointment Wednesday morning & baking the rest of the day. Turns out I chose some complicated cookies but I got it done! They turned out way cute but I didn't get any pictures :( I made rugelach, pinwheels, oreo truffels, mexican wedding cookies & raspberry filled square cookies. I didn't get to try any of them, but made Brett taste test one of each!

Thursday morning we said goodbye to Jewels & headed up North for Springville. Not everyone could make it this year, my parents being in Florida & others had to work. But Brett, me & my grandparents enjoyed spending Christmas with the Davis'. When we got there of course all the kids ran out to greet us, they are so sweet.

My cousins Morgan (left) & Taylor at Christmas Eve dinner. Morgan is 10 & Taylor is 5. Dinner was so yummy. Ham, "funeral potatoes" and this really delicious chinese cabbage salad that I'm going to have to try & make!

My Aunt Lisa & Christian (who's 8).
Me (pregnant as ever), Brett, my Grandma Kay & Grandpa Bob.
Tradition in the Davis household is to have a talent show Christmas Eve. You can do anything as long as it pertains to the Savior or Christmas in general. We didn't know this, and the rule is everyone has to participate! So we got to read a picture book called The Three Trees. Such a wonderful story! The kids played the piano, along with Grandma Kay, and Taylor held up pictures as the nativity story was read. Uncle Rob even played the guitar. Tradition in their house is also to open ALL of their presents Christmas Eve. (and Santa comes the next morning). My parents even sent our Christmas package there. We were spoiled as ever, Aunt Lisa & Uncle Rob got me the Deluxe Magic Bullet blender, a crepe maker and Brett got an airsoft pellet pistol. Grandma Kay & Grandpa Bob got us two hking backpacks for 72 hour kits, and my parents sent goodies for everyone, clothes, oranges, a watch for Brett & baby stuff.

We stayed up pretty late that night ;). Christmas morning the kids actually didn't bother anyone until about 8 or 9 I thought we had missed Christmas! They got so many fun books, games, clothes ect. We also made crepes with all the fixings & just relaxed enjoying each other and our gifts. Santa left candy, joranges, jerky & more Chillis giftcards in our stockings!
My Grandpa Bob is quite the coin collector. He even has books for us kids that he's always adding too. Needless to say Santa knows this & left him & Grandma huge jars of coins in their stockings. Grandpa kept trying to steal Grandma's jar, insisting that she got a camera so it was okay. I believe this picture was taken after he got caught in the act.
Morgan asked Santa for a dollhouse this year. Of course Santa delivered, isn't it great? I had one very similar to this when I was little & truly loved it. Here's Morgan & Kayla (who's 12) in front of it. They spent the day looking for scraps and little things to make the dollhouse homey.

Brett & I with Taylor & one of her drawing boards.
Aunt Lisa with her Santa presents.
Christmas night we went with Rob, Lisa & the kids to see the new Chipmunks movie. The kids loved it, it was a cute little movie. We followed it up with delicious Chinese food. A little unorthodox, and new to us all, but very fun & yummy. Our waiter was Italian, um, "special" and kept trying to use Chinese lingo with us lol.

We had so much fun it was great to spend Christmas with family. Hopefully another year everyone (my family, my Aunt Mel, Uncle Joe, Uncle Stan, Radeza & Alana) will be able to be together for the holidays. Rob & Lisa were so generous & kind to open their home & make everyone's Christmas wonderful.

Saturday before we headed back to Southern Utah we went up to Taylorsville to visit my Great Grandpa. He actually lives in Parowan, but had a big fall a couple of months ago & was in the hospital up North for a while. He's staying with my Aunt Judy right now. He seems to be doing pretty good, it was good to finally get to see him. I love him & I know it's hard for him since my Great Grandma passed away a few years ago. He is so excited for our baby, it'll be his first great-great. Aunt Judy was actually having a familybreakfast and was kind enough to let us crash it. We enjoyed more crepes, breakfast casserole & burrittos before we hit the road once again. I even got to see my cousin Josh, who I was always close to growing up.

All in all a wonderful Christmas for us! Jewels was SO glad to have us home, though a little traumatized! It's strange that next year will be SO different, as a family of three instead of two & a dog. Our baby girl will be 8 months old!

25 Weeks

2010-01-09T21:22:00.000-08:00

6 months & 1 week tommorow! Getting a little closer :)

Half Way

2009-12-05T20:00:00.001-08:00

20 weeks pregnant tommorow so we are half way there! This last week I have been able to feel her more, she's getting stronger! Before it was more like bubbles, now she does little jabs too & I feel them more & more frequently. I especially can expect to feel them when I'm hungry or right after eating, and mainly when I am relaxing at home rather than running around at work. So exciting, sweet & strange feeling at the same time! I kinda jump everytime she does it! I am so excited for Brett to feel her someday too. Also, note the belly, it is popping more & more lately, yikes . . . but as long as she's growing I guess! Can't wait for our little princess girl to get here in April :) As for names, we've decided we're not saying anything until she is here. We're not set on any yet, might g & buy a baby name book . . .

18 weeks

2009-11-23T21:47:00.001-08:00

I almost forgot, here is a belly pic at 18 weeks, it's coming . . . lol

It's a . . .

2009-11-23T20:59:00.000-08:00

GIRL!!! We went for our 18 week ultrasound today & found out we are having a baby girl! I always thought she was a girl, but everyone at work and everything thought it was boy, saying they knew it. And Brett comes from a family of all boys, so I tried to convince myself it was a boy too. But I thought it was a girl. Still, when the nurse told me there were 3 lines, and it was a girl, I was shocked. I asked if it really, really was. Our Dr. even said at our 14 week ultrasound that it looked boyish and might be a boy. We are so excited! And Brett's mom is so so excited, she finally has a little girl to spoil! I think Brett is a little concerned for our money though, he knows I will buy everything girly! We are going to have our Dr. confirm it again on Wednesday, but there was no doubt in the nurses voice . . . here are the pictures: Above you can see she's a girl.

Profile, if you look at her fingers it looks like she's making a peace sign. Profile, and you can see her spine too.

Above, you can see her leg.
Another girl picture.
Her lying on her side. This is her back. You can even see a little ear! And . . . her butt.

Profile
Her foot. She seemed to love to show them to us. She kept flinging them up to her mouth too, and reaching for them with her hands.
Some 3D pictures, the top one you can kinda see her little face. She's all skin & bones right now though, she hasn't fattened up yet!

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-04T13:12:00.000-08:00

The week before Halloween Brett & I carved our pumpkins . . . his is on the left & mine is on the right. Jewels basically just stalked us the entire time, and ended up getting away with some chunks of pumpkin. A few days after we did these, it snowed & they got all demented looking & mine lost some teeth. Here we are on Halloween. Brett has been wanting to get some cuts from the Halloween store & be something really creepy for the last couple of years, so he did that this year. At first he thought he could do it himself but something you should know about Brett, he never follows instructions, like, EVER. So he glued them on & the make-up & camoflauging was left up to me. It took hours! And even I was pretty impressed with how real it looked. Bretts grandma throws a little Halloween party every year so when little trick or treaters would come by they'd just stare and stare at him, I'll admit it was creepy. I was so glad when he washed all that stuff off! As for me & Jewels I made us some tutus, I was a witch, she was supposed to be put before I made her a hat we decided she probably wouldn't wear it anyway. So she ended up being some sort of goth ballerina or something?!Here's the little Fava family, lumberjacks! I thought it was pretty creative & cute! This is the best picture I could get, I think little Nicky was eating a cookie or something. Besides, I found out that night that many kids won't sit still for pictures, especially when hyped-up on sugar & excitement! Puppies too, for that matter.

Here's Brennan, Brett's cousins little boy. Originally he came as Spiderman, his mom painted his face so cute! But this is him in his pjs, running around with a broom & my witch hat. I heard at one point he was sporting an easter basket too, I suppose you could say he was a little holiday challenged that night, lol

After the family party (his grandma is so cute she bakes all these treats & gives everyone goodies. She even thought to make Jewels a little treat bag with doggy treats) Brett, Nick & Elle & I headed to another party. One of Vinny's neighbors throws a huge one every year, this year we decided to go. It was pretty fun!

And here's a belly picture at 15 weeks. I took it at Brett's grandmas house, I swear I am bigger at night, it's not as noticeable in the morning. But as you can see it is coming! I finally schedueled my ultrasound and it's for the Monday before Thanksgiving.

Also, I still haven't tried our new scanner yet, but hopefully I'll have the latest ultrasound picture up soon! It turned out cute, with the baby looking as us right as he took the picture!

Belated Big News

2009-10-30T11:10:00.000-07:00

So, I'm going to post this, even though most everyone already knows, via word of mouth & facebook (my mother-in-law was excited & posted it pretty early, so I did the same). In late August, the night before Brett's birthday, we found out we are expecting a little baby in April! April 25th. We weren't really expecting it, and it take some getting used to, but we are so excited! Though it is nerveracking to wait! We hadn't been married quite a year even, but all the same we can't wait! My 10 week appointment was actually the day after our anniversary. It was so amazing to hear that fast little heart(at the time it was 189bpm) and see that little baby moving. Though I must confess that since my mother-in-law & I both work at the hospital we'd snuck 2 ultrasounds already. But this one was special because it looked more like a baby, and we could hear it's little heart together. I can't feel it moving yet, but they say that may come soon. As for sickness, yes I've been sick . . . but I am hoping to get better soon since I'm officially in my second trimester. Haven't gained any weight yet, actually lost about 8-10 pounds, but I'm sure the weight gaining is just around the corner! It's hard to think of gaining so much, but I have to remind myself it's for the baby. Monday I had my 2nd appointment, at 14 weeks, and I was actually lucky enough to get yet another ultrasound. And, the baby's heartbeat has slowed down quite a bit (which it's suppossed to by now) to 149bpm. Dr. Gatherum winked & said that's a boys heartbeat, I looked it up & it said above 140 is girl below is boy . . . we shall see! Janet (Brett's mom) came with me to this one to hear the heart, and during the ultrasound she asked if we could even see what the sex was. The baby has grown so much! I will post the newest picture as soon as I can figure out how to work our new scanner. Anyway, the doctor tried to see "the goods" but the baby had it's legs indian style and wouldn't open up! From what the Dr. saw he said it maybe, might look kinda boyish but not to buy clothes 'cause he can't tell. I looked that up too & it says boys & girls look the same at this stage, basically, so again we shall see! We are excited for whichever! Although Brett's mom has all boys so a lot of people are thinking that's what it'll be . . . but Brett & I can't agree on any boy names so I guess we better start trying harder! I get to really find out about 3 weeks from Sunday. Also, I am as of like this week, starting to get a little belly. It happens so fast, one day Brett just says, "Holy Crap it's bigger!" Yeah, thanks honey. My mom always said she didn't start showing until about 6 months, apparently not me. It's not too obvious yet with clothes, I still fit into all of my stuff, but by the time winter really hits I'm sure it'll be more obvious! Speaking of winter I hate driving in snow, hate being cold, yet love snow at the same time. I was excited for the snow this week! And I am so excited for Thanksgiving & Christmas!

First Anniversary

2009-10-30T10:03:00.000-07:00

Last month, September 27th, was our first anniversary! A lot has happened in the past year, and it was a great first year. Our anniversary fell on a Sunday this year, so Friday night we celebrated. We ate at the Ninja, so yummy! The little boy sitting at our table was playing with his silverware, trying to be like the chef! Then we did something kinda childish & went to see Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs in 3d. Cute movie. Our anniversary present to ourselves was a new washer & dryer, we went & picked them out on Saturday. Our first house already had a washer & dyer, and in this new townhome we had a lovely wash room but no washer & dryer! So it was time to get a set! Sunday Brett's mom invited us over to her house for dinner to celebrate with family. They bought us a cake, as shown above. We also had our top teir from our wedding cake that had been frozzen ever since. Somehow, it wasn't as cute as a year ago, but still moist! We each ate a piece at home & then just threw the rest away, the fact that it was a year old didn't make me want to eat much of it! All in all a great year & we're looking forward to whatever comes next!

Didn't realize this picture was blurry, but it's the only one like it so oh well!

Unwrapping the top teir, which my father-in-law Chris wrapped to withstand a bombing, I swear! It was under layers & layers of plastic wrap & aluminum foil, he wasn't messing around! Pretty sure no air got in there!

And all I got . . .

2009-07-17T20:59:00.000-07:00

Were these dorky shoes: So, today I told Brett that I needed to go shopping for some new shoes for my job. The little number you see above is what I am supposed to wear, I guess. I don't know, I just never fell into that trend, I don't love them on me. I feel kinda dorky. They are uber comfy though. But while shopping of course I tried on a dozen + other shoes . . . I have an addiction. But since Brett was with me I did good & only bought what I came for. Not to mention it sure helped that he ket reminding me just exactly why were out & about shopping. But my birthday is next week so I have been making sure to point out what I want, and my sizes . . . in everything from shoes to aprons to clothes . . . actually he can just get me gift cards. Or nothing at all I still love him, well him & those Steve Madden shoes I tried on today . . . Hello, my name is Shae Malachowski, and I am a shopaholic, as Brett makes sure to point out to me.

Also today we went on a very long hike/run/walk with Jewels which made us feel very good & tired! Except for of course Jewels she is still wired, I thought for sure it would wear her out! Brett even had the bright idea to climb up these off roading-made hills . . . there was so much gravel! I am such a chicken and it wasn't about the incline it was about all the gravel I am a clutz & knowing me I was sure to loose my footing and roll down the hill jack & jill style! Once we made it to the top though, that was a whole other story! The whole falling down the hill was the same, the fear greater. Brett kept telling me, "to just run down it, so I will not fall" HA. With so much loose gravel that it looks like a rock river, you expect me to "just run down it" without totally biffing it on my face? He then proceeded to run down it several times with Jewels in toe (I had her leash earlier but she got frustrated with me, she started barking to run down with Brett. Traitor) They were happy to show me about 3 times how I should just run down it. I considered going down on my butt, but who am I kidding that would hurt too. That sucker was steep. Oh, and let's not forget the creepy guy in the red shirt who was outside his door watching our every move, or the family sitting on their porch. What a view. And Brett made sure to point them out and how they probably thought I was retarded. Well I would look retarded even more so falling down the dang thing. In the end, after watchig the impressive though not too convincing demonstrations, I opted for an alternate route, side stepped most the way down & 3 feet from the bottom, "ran down it". And creeper guy in the red shirt was watching all the while. Hello, my name is Shae and I am also a woose . . .

On the way home we got an icee, counter-productive? I felt bad for the poor girl . . . she can't have been getting too many orders all the way our there, it was in a random spot! It's across from Fiddlers movie theater & that car wash. They should have put it by Wal-Mart not to mention she was basically sweating to death. The Icee stand was actually my very frist job, but this gal had a fan, and a tv with a dvd player! Oh, and we found out that she is only going to be a Junior in high school and the brand new yellow chevy cobalt was thanks to her "daddy". Right about then I started to not feel quite so bad for her :)

But, it was a fun walk! Jewels made some mexican friends by the park & got some cat-calls from numerous dogs in the backs of trucks. And behind fences. And she even got to play in the gutter with the running water, which she tried to chase! Oh boy, I feel a bath time coming on . . .

Couple Survey

2009-07-15T18:53:00.000-07:00

This is kinda long but fun to do. I tag anyone who wants to play, and like I said it is long but fun to look back on your relationship together!

1.) Your names: Brett Christian & Shae Marie Malachowski

2.) How long have you been together?: 2 years & 7 months

3.) Are you married?: Yup, 10 months now.

4.) What's the dumbest thing you've ever fought about?: We've fought about a LOT of dumb things, but a frequent one is probably dinner, like when I really really don't want to cook, but don't want him to because I'm a freak about raw meat, so we then bicker for about 30 minutes me begging to pick something up, him trying to convice me to just eat something at home. I usually win :)

5.) What was the first thing you bought for each other?: I bought Brett a lap desk, a sketch pad (where I wrote a note with pictures) and artisit pencils (& a planner he never used)before he left for school. The first thing Brett ever got for me (we had to think together on this) was my Valentine roses, and not just any roses, he went the floral shop & went all out on way expensive ones! The tag said, "Remember Shae, every kiss begins with Kay"(inside joke) but no jewlery lol (we started dating in January)

6.) Where was your first date?: Brunos, & then he brought me home to his family while we waited for our movie. His parents lived a few miles out of town in Spring Creek, so he took a back road, and I didn't know him yet, and I remember being freaked out thinking he was going to like, murder me or something lol so I remember saying something like, "You're not going to like kill me out here, right? I don't believe you, I thought you said you lived in Cedar . . ." Well I am still alive! The movie we saw at the good 'ol Stadium 8 was, "Blood Diamond".

7.) What was the first movie you watched together?: Blood Diamond ^

8.) Do you remember your first kiss?: Oh yes, lol. On one of our early dates I thought for sure he was going to kiss me, he was hugging me and just standing there, how awkward! And he was like doing this weird sway thing, while hugging me. It went on for a few minutes, and he must have been nervous because he was like, "You're really bendy" What? So after he left I texted him saying "What's the matter, didn't want to kiss me?" Turns out he was going to, but didn't 'cause he had gum in his mouth & couldn't decide what to do with it, lol. On his way home that night he felt so dumb about it he sped home & got pulled over! But no ticket! He said he always felt like that was his punishment for not kissing me! The next day, he didn't kiss me all day and just was holding my hand & stuff, and RIGHT before he left he was all, "So are you going to kiss me?" And we did :)

.9.) Who asked who out?: Brett

10.) Was it love at first sight?: For him, yeah but I took a while longer :) Had too many dumb boyfriends :)

11.) Do you believe you are soul mates?: Sure do!

12.) When was the last time you saw each other?: Right now lol, the joys of being married, you sell each other all the time!

13.) Last time you talked on the phone?: This afternoon

14.) Last time you talked on the net?: How about never? And he doesn't text either!

15.) Your favorite memory?: Hot-tubbing when were first dating in sub-zero winter weather! And going to the store because I just had to buy juice afterwards, with our hair wet! Speaking f, it would be so cold the tips of my hair & Brett's spikey hair would freeze! And then of course, our wedding :) I will never forget seeing him at the end of the aisle, I thought he wasn't going to show (just 'cause I worry all the time!), I was shaking so bad!

16.) Whats the sweetest thing youve ever done for each other?: Brett is actually sweet all of the time, not so much in the way of buying flowers everyday, but he is just really caring with me & does stuff for me constantly, even when I am a total brat. I love him so much, he's just extra sweet with me. As for me, I used to leave him notes all the time, (need to start again!) and for holidays I try really hard to get him the perfect gifts, and I make stuff for him too. Like a blanket, a canvas . . .

17.) When did you first say "I love you"?: Well I am pretty sure we had both been feeling it for a while, but I wasn't about to tell him first! I am stubborn that way! SO after kissing me one night, he just sorta pulled away from my face and said it, and then hugged me.

18.) What are your "pet names" for each other?: I call him honey, he calls me, "Shae Marie" to the tune of "Sherri Baby"

19.) do you think your significant other is the one?: Well, obviously

20.) How many times a day do you kiss?: Not sure . . .

21.) Do you hold hands?: Yeah, not as much as we used to though.

22.) Favorite feature? I just love him, lots! He is handsome :) and sweet

23.) How long do you think you'll be together?: Forever and a day

24.) What's the longest you've ever been apart?: A week when he went to the River with his family when we were first dating.

25.) Have you ever broken up?: No, but we have def. had our bad fights!

26.) Would you like to have children together? If yes, how many?: We sure do! We go back & forth between 2 & 3. I always hope for twins :) I am a tad crazy

27.) What reminds you of your sweetie?: When I read books, like TwiLight because they are in love ha, basically all day long something will remind me of him, and a certain actor but I can't remember at the moment!

28.) Do you have a special song?: "Pretty Lady" by Kalai was our wedding song, and "Midnight Train" by Journey, no reason we just love it

29.) stayed out together 'til the sun came up?: Yeah we road-tripped from Northern Cali home to Utah! In one night! We always have grand plans of pulling movie all-nighters but I ruin it by getting tired & falling asleep.

30.) Skipped work just to be together?: Um, no? We need money, who does that?

31.) Stayed up all night watching movies together?: See #29

32.) Gone on vacation together?: Uh huh, it's a favorite of ours! The annual River trip, Monster Jam, Oralndo, Cali, Up North ect.

33.) Fell asleep in each others arms?: All the time. On the couch, we fall asleep together a lot. We lalso ike to take Sunday naps on the couch :) And most nights Brett will cuddle me in bed too.

34.) Got caught daydreaming about each other?: Sure :)

35.) Stared at each other smiling?: Sure, glaring too :)

36.) Say something disgustingly mooshy: I love Brett so much, and I am so happy we are together! LOVE him so much sometimes I call him while he's on the job just to tell him!

Lots of Changes!

2009-07-10T16:50:00.001-07:00

SO! Brett & I have been going through some changes lately! A big one being that we just moved into a brand new town home on July 2nd. And we love it! It is so wonderful not to be elbow to elbow with each other! Our first married house was SUPER tiny. Literally no room to walk, one bathroom, but we were happy just to be with each other! And now we are happy for more space! Our new house has three bedrooms, 2 1/2 bath, a beautiful kitchen & a fun, young neighborhood. And so much more storage! I will post pictures later, when it is all put together & looking cuter. And, oh yeah, it is right next to the hospital. Which is another one of our recent "changes" . . .

I got a new job! I was working at Comforts of Home, a local home decor store (kinda similar to Tai Pan, only not huge, not cheap and not as amazing!). I love Bullochs, (the Drug Store that also owns my home decor store), I will so miss all of my friends there, the discount, and seeing all the new merchandise. I'm actually a certfied phlebotomist (people who draw blood) but haven't been able to find a job doing that. So I was staing at Bullochs, but, I just wasn't full time, and had no benefits, and it just wasn't a "forever" job. So about a month ago I applied at Valley View for a Central Processing Tech job. They clean, sterilize, package all of the surgical insruments. AND you get to watch some of the surgeries. Well I didn't hear anything for weeks, and then I got called for an interview for last week. Turns out the manager had gone on vacation! I went to my interview and thought I really sucked, and couldn't sleep the night after, I thought I did so bad. But a few days later, I got a call saying I got it! I am so excited, and yes, I know I am very blessed, fortunate to have gotten it. HR told me that there was a pretty big pool of people going for it. And, as a lot of you may know, my mother-in-law works there. But that is not entirely why I got it. Keep in mind I had to interview fr myself! It is full time, and much more than Bullochs, and benefits, which is awesome. I am stoked to learn something new, I can even get certified. I just went to my orientation today & let me tell you, Intermountain seems like a really wonderful place to work, it was neat to learn about the history. And they really take care of their employees. I am hoping this job leads to even bigger and better things, and because they offer tuition reimbursement, I can also go back to school for Surgical Tech, which I have been interseted in. And, this job opens a door for Scrub Tech because I will get to learn a lot of stuff that they do too. Anyway, just wanted to share the good news! And if not share at least document it in our "journal". All for now, wish me luck!

"Coupon-ing"

2009-07-08T16:09:00.000-07:00

So recently I have come across a bunch of coupon/freebie/deal blogs & websites. If you haven't looked at stuff like this, go, now! It is pretty amazing, I have yet to try it (a lot of the deals require using two coupons, which I never knew but most stores let you?) but I am excited to try my hand at it the next time we go shopping! If you're interested, the links are on here, under, "show me the money". Oh, but the one thing I did try was the ziploc one, seriously all I had to do was put in the address I wanted it shipped to, (NO email, phone number, card, sing-up for membership . . .) and within the next 4-6 weeks I am supossed to recieve a 50 pack of ziploc bags & a fresh seal container. Let's see if it's all a hype!

Jewels

2009-07-07T20:58:00.000-07:00

Our little puppy, Jewels. Her birthday is February 9, of this year & we got her almost exactly 2 months later. She's the first little addition to our family & we just love her. We got her from Brett's Aunt Julie, and when she was offered we actually went home without her. It took the whole next day of me begging & telling Brett it wasn't such a big deal, and if you have read previous posts you know I have been asking him for a puppy forever. Brett was just scared, really. Well we finally went to get her & she stole Brett's heart almost right away. I often remind him how he once said, "I just don't want a little puppy running around here." The next couple of weeks were a little tough, waking up with her in the middle of the night (puppies can supposedly be a little bit like new borns, I'm told), but I didn't even care. Little Jewelzie has grown up so fast & I didn't even notice! Looking at some of these pictures from just a few months ago, I can see the changes. She is no longer quite as fuzzy, both ears have perked up (they were half perked when we got her, so cute. They went from that to one up one down). Also, she isn't pudgy like she was when she was super little. She has such a funny little personality, she knows the word "No" and is usually pretty darn good, but will also "tell you off" if she doesn't want you tell her no. She is a very quick learner. And she can play a little too rough sometimes! She also has "little dog syndrome", she doesn't always seem to get how small she is. She often, well all the time, is jumping on her little hind legs, usually to try to see things, or just for no reason at all. She really loves lying on the top of our couch to look out the window & wait for Brett to come home. She has fallen off the couch before with excitement because she saw his car! & nestling her little body or nose into small places. She used to be afraid of stairs but loves them now & is always trying to find a way to run up them. She LOVES kids & meeting new people, everyone that comes to the door, even if it is the "cleaner salesmen", mailman, whoever she thinks they her best friend. She is so good with not begging for food too much! She gets frustrated and will let out a bark every now and then, but tries so hard to stay back, away from the food. She gets car sick & alergies. She her weekly bath & blow-dry (I have to, I won't have my house smell like wet Jewelzie!) She loves cuddling and nestling her body & nose in small places. She loves to scurry underneath small places such as trunks, the bed, anything she can work her way under, almost like it's a playhouse. She even seems to enoy being zipped up in my jacket. She follows us both around the house, our little shadow, and yells at me when I come out of the bathroom 'cause I wouldn't let her in. She is so attachted to Brett, when she was little we had a baby gate in our old house to block of the living room, so that we could keep an eye on her. Brett would come home, step over the gate, and there she would wait crying, jumping & whining for her pal to come & say hello to her. As a matter of fact the two of them are napping together right now. She loves belly rubs too. Sometimes we aren't sure weather she is a cat(she makes wierd whiney noises resembling a meow), bunny(she hops constantly), mouse or dog, but we just love her, all 2 & 1/2 lbs of her!

No this is not her puppy purse, I just put her in mine to see if she'd stay

Blurry, I know but this is her trying to run up the stairs at our new house.

Bundled up like a burrito, snuggling. She actually thinks this huge down blanket is hers, and freaks out jumping all over it whenever we get it out.

Yes we were finished with the box!

Sometimes she gets a little bit picked on & dressed up when we get antsy waiting for Brett to stop doign weights.

She really loved that duck.

Mister, "I really don't want a puppy."

She really just like to try to rip her scarf, not wear it.

But it sure is cute, when I can get it on her.

That duck used to be bigger than her! She thought it was her buddy, and I am not lying I SWEAR she used to hump it! Honest! We had to get rid of her best friend because he was all torn-up & she started to eat the cotton. Bye, lover.

Also, she thinks she is way viscious. She hates it when I clap, I dont really know why, but it is really funny.

See how pudgy she was!

Very first picture. I had her wrapped in a towel on the way home because I was so afraid she would pee on me lol

Take me out to . . .

2009-07-07T17:51:00.000-07:00

The Ball Game! A couple of months ago Janet asked Brett & I if we'd like to go to a Dodgers game in Cali. I have never been to a major league game, so of course we said yes! The trip doubled as a visit to Brett's Grandma Barbara too.

*I am having trouble placing pics so you will have to scroll down to see them*

We were a little concerned about bringing Jewels, in the months before the game we were hoping she'd be potty-trianed fully so we could bring her. Well she had it down pretty good come June so she got to come! I will admit she gets car-sick, so the vet gave us some pills, but I just didn't want to drug her unless she was miserable. Plus you have to like fast the puppy for 2 hours so we decided to see how she'd do without it. I put her in her little bed, in the back seat, and she just kinda laid down, for a while. But right before Mequitte she puked. And I know this sounds gross, but she didn't eat it, either (usually they do). So come the next rest stop, I was scrubbing a doggy bed and trying to give little Jewels water. I felt so bad for her. After that she did absolutely wonnderful, she didn't go to the bathroom at all (it was like she was in hibernation) and she jst slept on my lap the entire drive. I swear 90% of the time she really is the best little dog. Oh, and I don't wish to have the nick-name "Paris" but I bought a little puppy bag to put her in. I never thought I would put a puppy in a bag but seriously, it is WAY handy. On the way we stopped at Del Taco (Brett's parents stopped too) and brought her in in her bag. It is kinda discreet, except when she pokes her head or butt out lol. So Janet came over to Brett & was like, "You can't have her in here!"laughing her head off. But I told her people bring their dogs through Bullochs all the time & if they ask us to take her outside we will, but we were in Baker & I wasn't about to leave her in a hot car. It was pretty funn though, 'cause I think Jewels has intuition, she really looked like she was trying to be good & keep her head down. No one said anything, and she just sat at my feet while we ate.

Once we got to Brett's grandmas it was really fun. She is so sweet, she was actually flying back from Florida as we made our way to California, yet she still found time to make up all of the beds a week in advance so it'd all be ready when we got there.

OH and they have a huge black lab named Charly, and Jewels is so afraid of dogs. People, she will meet & greet, just loves anyone who comes to the door & thinks they are there to see her. Dogs, forget it, she will cry. After weeks of being a chicken she had just gotten used to Brett's family dog, a yellow lab, Shanai who is about 12 years old. She frequently chases her around the house barking & taunting, begging to play (and Jewels is a 2.5 lb Chihuahua mix). But Shanai is just too old. So we thought she'd be scared of Charly too, and Janet & Brandma Barbara thought Charly might try to eat her, and she was scared, at first. But the next day they were the best of friends, chasing each other everywhere. Until Jewels would decide she was sick of him smelling her & tease & dive somewhere she knew he couldn't fit, or job on the couch, as if to say, "Ha ha". It was just like a baby sister & big brother, 85 lb. Charly just couldn't understand why he couldn't get on the couch too, and would try. Jewels is such a little instigator, she would actually sit on someone's lap & paw his face and snap. Brave little dog.

Also apparently a lot of "gang-banging" has been going on in the parking lots of the games, and I was so scared! So I asked Brett's mom if we could ride with them to the actual game. Hello it is in LA! Brett's brother Matt thinks I'm kinda a freak, and maybe I am, but I just can't help it! As we got out of the Denali I was like "Hope your rims are still here when we get back." And Brett's response was, "You have to take off the wheels to that on this car, the wheels & the rim are the same thing." Which made me feel pretty dumb.

But anyway . . .The baseball game was a lot funner than I thought it would be, it is so much different to be there in person! And we saw a classic ball-game proposal . . . during the "kiss me" stuff . . . so cute! We of course ate "Dodger Dogs", but sadly our weren't grilled all the way. I didn't know that was the norm until hours after we had had ours, and I looked over and saw another person's, and theirs looked way better. But oh well you have to have a hot dog at a baseball game! Sadly, the team we were there for lost, but it was still fun! Oh, and Brett's grandma made a HUGE breakfast (she always does) the morning of the game, so yummy!

Don't mind the sick glasses, I had ordered my contacts like a week before and do you think they got here in the "two-three days"? Nope.

Dodgers

Brett's family, they had way closer, way more expensive seats then us, but we were happy anyway :) At least we could see the whole game without binoculars & could read the score! ha

Dodger dogs . . .The crazy-busy traffice on the way out of the parking lot afterwards. Looks like Christmas.
Jewels cooped up in Charly's ginormous cage while we ate breakfast. No, Charly is not in there too.

The Fourth

2009-07-07T13:22:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty fun fourth of July this year . . . except I forgot to take any pictres! This year we went to Janet's (Brett's mom) for a BBQ with bunch of their friends. It was SO good! There were all kinds of chicken tha everyone brought, hot-dogs, ect.

I was going to make this ice cream cake with angel food & layer of blueberry & strawberry ice cream . . . got a special pan for the angel food cake too . . . the directions said NOT to grease the pan, so I didn't. BIG mistake. The whole cake stuck to the inside of the "special" pan . . . so since my cake was pretty much messed up at that point, I had to make another plan. I was freaking out and Brett was trying to tell me it was okay, and I was like, "How is it okay the cake is demolished!". I have to hand it to Brett, 'cause everytime something doesn't go right I tend to get way anxious and prob. a little mean. So I racked my brain trying to figure out how o fix the mess. If ever one of my moms cakes would go wrong she'd turn it into a trifle. A trifle is layered cake, pudding, berries, ect in a clear punch-bowl looking thing. So that's what I did, only with the ice cream . . . also had fresh berries. But, mind you I had to call my mom (she lives in Florida) to ask what order she thought I should layer everything, I call her for just about everything, usually cooking related, the conversation goes, "Hi Mom, how are you? Hey, how do I . . ." When we were first married I was a freak about cooking & raw meat & making sure things were abslutely done, so she got a lot more phone calls back then. Brett laughs at me all the time and said it's a good thing she always gies such good advise! And it is! It turned out WAY yumy & everyone said it was beautiful too.

After the BBQ everyone headed up Leigh Hill to watch the kids set off their fireworks. Now, when we went to Brett's Moms we brought our little puppy, Jewels. Janet always calls her, "my grandaughter" & loves to see her. So Jewels was busy making friends with just about everyone, especially the kids. She was the center of attention. So when it came time for fireworks I didn't want her to be left alone & scared. So I brought her with us . . . NOT such a great idea. The minute the first one went off, she was still on her leash & she cried & cried & started running. So I decided to hold her, while Brett and I watched. Not so grand either, she kept clawing & climbing her way up me & scratching the heck out of my neck. The solution? I zipped her inside my jacket, where she stayed pretty-okay, with her nose nestled in my sleeve. I looked pretty funny too, like some sort of deformed preg lady, but hey it worked! Also, this adorable little boy who had played withehr earlier wandered over to "comfort" her. He was only about 3 or 4, and very friendly! He kept petting her, kissing her, rubbing her neck & covering her eyes, "So she won't get scared." I said, "You are doing such a great job, making her feel better." and he said,"Yeah, because she loves me." By the end of the night he was bascially sharing a chair with me, holding Jewels. One of his last questions was, "When is her birthday?" I told him February 9. And he said,"Can I come to her birthday?" lol what a cutie! If ever we had a birthday party for Jewels, he'd be top on my list :)

So Bad . . .

2009-07-06T22:45:00.001-07:00

with blogging lately! But, I thnk I am going to start up-dating it now . . . just realized there are not even pictures of Jewels, our puppy, on here and we got her about 3 months ago :). Also, I have created a new blog for my cakes, Tu-Shae Treats, as seen top right. Hopefully more to come!

Fall, Fall, Snow?

2009-04-14T21:35:00.000-07:00

Just some Fall pictures from '08. And no I am not confusing the seasons we actually did get a snow storm in October, which is actually normal for Utah. I guess you could say it was our welcome back from sunny Florida. At least we got some good use out of our fireplace! Don't mind Brett's boxer shot, I wanted a picture of our rental house in the snow . . .

What a god hubby, choppin' the wood.

My awesome witch I had to get at Bullochs, she has strippy socks too! And this is what happens when you are not too adamant about racking up all of your leaves . . . a life size amount! And PS I did it help with this, in fact I initiated it just for the record for the pics don't show it :)

Halloween 2008

2009-04-14T21:14:00.000-07:00

Sweeny Todd & Mrs. Lovett

Little baby Nicky, ain't he cute?! Chubby little guy!

So this one is from last year . . . I sewed the costumes but come to find out there aren't any pics on the computer of them . . . just this bad one! Will find a better one later . . . check out my sick wig!

Sewing away . . .

So I always seem to give myself huge projects, and every Halloween it is costumes for Brett & me. Last year it was Jasmine & Aladdin I made the costumes at his Grandma's house due to lack of sewing machine, and they are so sweet they bought me one! This year I had to compromise with Brett & be something "creepy" and not so cutsey so we went with the dark Sweeney Todd. Also sewed these costumes, this time from the comfort of my home! But I had to do it quickly because we got home from our Hooneymoon right before! Halloween Brett's cute Grandma Camille always has a little party for all of the relatives & she makes all sorts of goodies! It is so fun to see all the kids in their costumes! Here's some pics!

The Honeymooners---Blog Overload!

2009-03-09T14:59:00.001-07:00

Oh, the hooneymoon, where should I even start? We got married Saturday so Sunday Brett had some family (grandparents & aunt & cousins & also his best friend) that had traveled for the wedding & wanted to see our house so they came by Sunday afternoon. They also gave us a few last minute gifts! (Thanks to Aunt Cindy for the money & Grandma Barbara & Chris for the Vacuum!)We then ended up heading to his parent's house for a minute before we headed out. Because we didn't get to try much of our cake the night before it was nice to enjoy it without people shouting, "shove it, shove it" lol. We also got to see a few pictures that family members had taken with their own cameras. Also, don't mind the sick pictures with my glasses on . . . I woke up the morning after our wedding & one as ripped, and I was out of my contacts, and it was Sunday, so mid-way through the hooneymoon we had to call my Cedar doc to fax my records to wally-world so I could get contacts . . . yeah.

And then it was time to get to The Vegas. Our flight out to Florida wasn't until Tuesday, so we had a few days to play in Vegas. It was nice to get to drive together & just talk & relive the past days events. And to fill each other in on what we each did on our own that wedding day. Also, for the wedding I made a bound guest book on heritage makers (amazing go to the site if you haven't seen one!) Anyhow, it had a bunch of pictures of us & quotes & spaces for people to sign, so while we were on our way I read Brett peoples well wishes for us.

Once we finally got to Vegas as embarrasing as it is to say we kinda got a little bit lost. Our destination was the Venetian so we could check in, easy enough considering it is on the strip, yeah? Well you would think so but apparently not so easy for us. We couldn't get over in time so we ended up going into the way ghetto downtown, past the strip, with all the gang bangers & strippers. Luckily it was broad daylight but still not so fun! Once we got back on track we pulled into the Venetian & were officially in heaven! What a way to start our hooneymoon! The room was beautiful & comfortable ( I would put those comfy beds in my house any day!)the hotel itself was amazing. We spent a lot of time just walking around the different shops, eating gelato (yeah, we had it about 3 times) and just relaxing before our early flight out. We loved going to the forum shops @ Caesers as well, a favorite of mine has always been the enormous toy store! Oh, also we went on the gondala, which was a fun experience! We didn't really get a chance to enjoy the pools or jacuzzi but we still had an awesome time in The Vegas.

Early. early Tuesday morning we went running through the hotel with all of our luggage (think "Home Alone") only to find half of the floor was blocked off for cleaning or re-carpeting what have you. So we spent a few mintutes trying to get around that, and actually Brett kinda lost me for a few minutes! But we made it to the shuttle on time & were on our way! Once we got to the ariport we breezed through security (it wasn't too busy) and grabbed some pastries & Starbucks. It was my first time really flying (hadn't been since I was 3 & my family always road tripped everywhere else) so I was kinda scared but also very excited. They gave us these little sandwhich lunches which weren't too bad & we watched some movies on the way. Oh, and we didn't take any "air-borne" or anything so we actually ended up catching bad colds. But it was an exciting trip & I was even more enthusiastic about landing in Orlando! Also I was on the lookout for terrorists & was convinced we had one in the row across from us, she looked pretty sneaky! Ha ha what can I say I was only slightly paranoid . . .

When we landed in Orlando it was pretty stormy & I was just praying that bad weather wouldn't continue throughout the rest of the week. Luckily for us it didn't, we had beautiful sunny days & it wasn't even too hot since it was fall. We checked into our hotel (Calypso Kay) & were suprised to find that Brett's mom had booked us a special condo. Kitchen, living room & all. Though I can't say we really used the kitchen to do much else but heat left overs, it was still a treat!

The remainder of the week was spent between Disney, Orlando & about 2.5 seconds in Daytona (explained later). Let me tell you Disney treats you very good when you are first married! Both of us had already been to Disney World but it was even greater to get to go with just each other. Brett has an Aunt that works for the park & was able to get us in free each day. Her friend Carrie was great, he would meet us at the entrance, give us tips, and even went out of his way to get us "Just Married" pins & autographed Mickey-Minnie pictures. We are very grateful to him & Brett's aunt for being so kind to us & helping us have a master of a hoonemoon!

We spent the first disney day between two parks-- Hollywood & Epcot. Hollywood was fun & had a lot of neat things that had to do with movies, but out of the two I loved Epcot! It was simply amazing. I had been before but hadn't spent a lot of time just wandering & enjoying it. The architecture was fabulous! And for those of you who haven't been, in each country the epcot has, Disney goes to that country to recruit interns to come work at Epcot. In other words, all of the workers in Italy are from Italy, Japan they are all Japanese etc. Epcot also had a very interesting exhibit you can go through that shows you all of the modern marvels you can update your house with. At the end of our long day we ate dessert in a French pastry shope & watched the gorgeous firework display. It was the most romantic of the parks.

The next day was Magic Kingdom which is one of the funnest & most familiar parks for most! We had a blast going from Splash Moutain to Pirates, Main Street USA to Tommorow Land. I also took Brett on one of my fav childhood rides, Peter Pan. Somehow his family had always skipped this neat attraction! This day is also when we found out just how generous Disney can really be. Now, keep in mind that we are wearing "Just Married" pins & people are shouting "Congrats" left & right. Apparently, these wonderful pins also result in freebees. When we were getting lunch in adventure land they noticed our pins & gave us free choc. cakes. We were extremely psyked, but it gets better. Because we went late September, early October, Disney was all decked out top to bottom in fall/Halloween decor. The holiday seasons in Disney also mean special events, and in this case it was the "Not So Scary Halloween Party". While wandering around we discovered more about this party. Magic Kingdom would be closing several hours early & only admitting people in with seperate tickets for the party. Dissapointed that we would have to leave the park early we ventured to Guest Services to learn more about it & how much it was. The tickets were about the same price as the regular tickets! And all it really is is trick or treating, parades & fireworks. We decided that was a no go. As we were turning to leave (oh, not to mention that by this time we also had not only the "just married" pins but also mickey ears with wedding hats & veil) anyhow, as we were turning to leave the man behind the counter said, "wait a sec." He had me fill out a form & then returned with two tickets to the special party! Exciting stuff! We used the extra time to enjoy some more rides but also did our fair share of trick or treating & watched the parades, shows & final fireweorks. Great times.

The next day we headed off to Universal. I hadn't been since I was small so Brett was more than happy to tote me around & show me his favorite attractions. We also stopped at Guest Services to see if they had special just married pins, but to no avail. Guess we weren't in the magical world of disney anymore! We went on Jaws, OH and a way fantastic ride was the mummy! So much fun, but because of the plane ride we were both coming down with nasty colds! On our hooneymoon of all times . . . Universal was also decked out for the Halloween season but not in such a fairy tale way. There were creepy jack-o-lanterns everywhere. As we were enjoying the park Brett realized that some of the rides he wanted to show me were in Adventure Island. So we headed over there. First thing I see is the Hulk. The Hulk is a very large, twisting, turning, tumbling roller-coaster. As I make a bee-line for it I realize that Brett's hand, which I am so ernestly tugging, is actually trying to pull me back. Startled, I turn around. Now, Brett & I had discussed our love for theme parks, including roller coasters. Brett had always said he loved roller coasters too, but as we head for the Hulk I find out otherwise. He had meant he loved rollercoasters like Space Mountain. Not Hulk. He had never tried any large roller coaster & was not about to. I was not about to go on it by myself. Seeing as how both Brett & I are both stubborn we both tried to get the other to do what we wanted. I lost, and we left the Hulk in a patch of green behind us. Still to ths day I think, wistfully, someday Brett will try a huge coaster, someday. But we enjoyed both parks.

Also, Universal was to be closing early too because they were having their own party. But this one was not Mickey's "Not so Scary . . ." one. The party for Universal was to be a haunted one. A lot of the lots & warehouses in the park were transformed into haunted houses. The hardcore kind. The theme this year was "Bloody Mary" just to give you an idea. I had never in my life been to even the haunted houses that small towns put together or the haunted hospital. But I was game to try it so we got tickets for the party. We don't have many pictures of this because I pretty much spent the whole time being scared out of my pants. It was still daylight when they started haunting. The very first house Brett & went through we actually got to by accident. At that point, much of the park if ropped off & there are paths leading out to the different haunted attractions. We thought we were getting on one ride, but the path kept going. Once we realized where we were headed I decided to be brave and trudge forth. But I ket asking every worker I saw if this was a "very bad one" or very scary. The haunt we were headed for was creepy fairy tale stlye. So we figred it may not be that bad. As we entered I knew it was going to get bad. I really freaked out and latched to Brett's hand & burried my face in his shoulder. I was in hysterics. And I started the thing out closing my eyes. But just to hear strange people breathing down my neck, eyes I couldn't see, and creepy music, I was freaked. Not to mention I got squirted with some water towards the end of it---not expected! I could not wait to get out & I'm not exaggerating when I tell you I did not open my eyes the entire time. I came out bawling & a worker had to ask me if I was okay. What a big, grown-up 21 year old. There were 7 year olds coming out of that thing laughing with glee & I was officially basket-like. But as the night wore on I learned to open my eyes & smile at the creepy people that jumped at me. It was really neat after I got past my "initiation". We also went to a way odd & creepy magic show. We ended the night with a yummy, loud meal at Hard Rock Cafe.

Took this pic because I'm a phlebotomist (person that draws your blood at the hospital)

Our last day of theme parks was animal kingdom. Another favorite! Yes, I'm aware I say that about most all of them! But this park is remarkable! I love the plant life, details, lands and everything else. We started the day off with a delish breakfast at Rain Forrest Cafe, another first for Brett, as was the Animal Kingdom. And then it was off to the park! We went on the saffari & even though the lions were sleeping away hidden, we got to see a lot of animals. We got drenched on the Mount Everest ride, and saw "Tough to be a Bug"(see picture with Brett touching dung . . . hot.). Also, this was the only park (besides Epcot) where I found almost non-fast food. The choices at the other parks were primarily pizza, burger, chicken nuggets, ect. When we got to the Animal Kingdom, I was so very stoked to see asian food! Not high class asian food, sure, but a little something other than chicken nuggets! Sick . . . Also went to see Nemo the Musical, which was surprisingly amazing. The puppets (I guess you'd call them that?) were so intricate & the whole thing was cute. Bring your kids! We ended our last day at Disney with a run-through of the magic kingdom & if I remember right some ice-cream. It was so sad to get on te boat & say goodbye to a land of magic & re-enter the real world where each & eery person you run into doesn'r treat you ubber-special and where you can't round a corner & run into a cartoon. I have been begging Brett to go back for our anniversary!:) But I also ask for a puppy aout everyday & that's a no go too :(

So the next part of our trip starts going all "Just Married" like (that movie . . . about the newly wed Brittany Murphy & Ashton Kutcher). The last few days we were supposed to go to Daytona to a lovely, beautiful resort hotel on the beach for some relax time after the theme parks. I am such a summer-lovin gal & had been looking forward to the beach for AGES I really do miss it so much. My Nona & Uncle & my parents & sibs all live in Florida. So we agreed to meet them all for lunch (My Nona couldn't make it to the wedding because of health problems). We ate at one my fav places . . . The Boston Fish House. GREAT place. They get all of their sea food fresh from Boston, it's rushed there on boats. We had a wonderful time & it was great to catch up & for Brett to meet that side of my family. Needless to say we took our time. Once we were finished there we decided it was time to head off for Daytona. MapQuest in hand, we jetted off (PS I hate MapQuest . . . ) First off, it took us a bit longer to get there than we thought, second off we got lost. Like out in the boonies lost. It felt just like that movie "Vacancy". I was so afraid our brand new rental car was going to go ka-put in the middle of the forest. Stupid Mapquest sending us off the freeway . . . grrrrr. WELL after circling around for a few hours & getting al turned around we figured out where to go & found ourselves in Daytona. Can I just say that the "Daytona Strip" is kinda sick. Not what I expected. As you drive down the beach front, you'll lovely hotels, and then . . . trash. Pretty tall building . . . and then a tattoo parlor. No joke! I got all anxious driving & just hoping our hotel was as nice as the pictures showed . . . we finally found our hotel. It was beautiful, and SAFE feeling. Right on the beach. And we had a suite booked. Well, we didn't know what the deadline was to get there & not meet our reservation. Turns out we were 15 minutes late for it, and so the meanies booted us down the street to some run-down scary hotel with cop cars out front . . . ummmmmm no. Checked in & the bathroom was sick (I did not use it all night, And I SO wanted a shower . . . ) and the whole room just felt . . . yuck. I ended up sleeping fully in my clothes with my hood on my head for fear of who knows what. Needless to say we checked out immeadiately the next morning. Brett has a great grandpa that lives in Florida also so we went & spent some time with him until our flight out on Tuesday. He was so sweet, he was so excited for us to come & excited to have some people to talk to, his wife died a few years back. He even insisted on making us dinner & wouldn't even let us help with dishes.

Tuesday morning we headed for the airport. It was bittersweet. We were vacationed-out, yet it was hard to leave. Oh, and we so missed our layover flight. We were stuck in Texas for 8 hours! We ended up buying books & eating Panda. Once we flew back to almost home-sweet vegas, we were a bit jet-lagged, tired! So we headed to the Venetian for one last night! It was such an amazing trip & we had so much fun, even despite the hicups! And now that it's still winter I sooooo miss that wonderful weather!

September 27, 2008

2009-02-24T19:30:00.001-08:00

September 27, 2008 is when Brett & I got married. We were engaged for a whopping 9 months, and while it made planning easier, I wouldn't reccomend it to anyone! It is just way too much time for anyone to be scrutinizing tiny details that one day really won't matter (i.e. the flavors of each cake teir, the exact green color for the linens, ties, ect, exactly what time the flower girls will strut down the aisle . . .) I'm sure Brett will never forget the days of me stressing over the tiny stuff, or falling asleep during movies from thinking too hard. But I still enjoyed planning the whole thing, none the less. I even had a little, well big, binder that I hauled around with tips, pointers, do's and donts', plus all of my vendor info & color samples & everything else. But, as I learned, you can only be in control & plan for so long because when that big day finally comes, you're just along for the ride, and you just have to hope that everyone else follows "the plan". What I will say is that it is actually kinda sad, I mean I spent so much time planning & worrying that everything wouldn't be "just right", I kinda lost sight of what I was planning, ya know? And it's something I kinda lost sight of until like the day of, and then it was like, " oh yeah, I'm marrying the guy of my dreams today, I love him, I'm so excited I can barely stand it, and who cares if my hair is perfect or the DJ doesn't play the right songs or heaven forbid it should rain? I get to marry him today, and life goes on beyond today!"
Speaking of rain, on that day, the clouds were threatening us. And it was something to worry about, because we had planned an outdoor wedding. Months before had I had found a website (something to do with NASA maybe?) which could tell you aprx. how the weather would be on any given day in the future, along with what time the sun would set in your area, ect. I followed it like a religion and was assured it wouldn't even sprikle. Yet coem September 27, the skies were cloudy & stormy looking, and throughout the day I would just keep chanting, please don't rain, please don't rain, please . . . It actually sprinkled a few hours before, way to go weather people, as usual! Luckily it did not rain during the ceremony.
I was also running a little late for my own wedding, everyone was waiting & ready & I was still trying to shove my dress on . . . but as my photographer reminded me, they really couldn't start without me. And after all the months of planning, everything really did turn out "perfect" and beautiful. I mean yeah, the cake was slightly crooked, I wasn't really happy with my hair, and we didn't get all that specific pictures we wanted, but it was perfect anyway. I will never forget how his face looked as I walked down the aisle, it may sound cliche but he was all I could see. And Judge Eves did such a wonderful job with the ceremony. My most favorite part of the day was the ceremony, and after it was said and done, Brett & I walked back down the aisle & we had that little moment, that feeling of, "We did it!" --though it wasn't quite suken in yet!(See picture 1 above)
After that the evening was even more of a whirlwind, we didn't get one bite of the food, I didn't get a gulp of the lemonade or whatever it was. The one thing I did get a bit of was the cake. And by the way, we made a pact not to shove it in each others faces! Of course the crowd told us to though! But we walked away clean. And the cake was so good! Hope our frozen piece still tastes good in 6 months! lol Our first dance was to "Pretty Lady" by Kalai. It was beautiful. The bridesmaids were beautiful & I still love their dresses, and they all helped me so much that day (and the night before--Cami! Cami stayed up until well past 1:00 am the night before, creating flowergirl baskets & giving advice) with everything from decorating to support to helping with my huge train. But even 5 months later, while it was all beautiful, I couldn't be happier than knowing that I truly am his now, and we have our new little life together with more adventures to come.

Another Birthday

2009-02-24T19:04:00.000-08:00

Brett's 20th birthday was August 20th 2008. Yes, he is a year younger than me, if you didn't already know. Anyhow, his mom had a party for him with all the fam. memebers. He got tons of movies, clothes ect. I got him an old school super nintendo---mario is the best & Brett wasn't going to have a gaming system when we got married, because the playstation is the families. I also got him clothes & movies. It was a fun time, and I can't wait until August 2009 because then it will be my turn to throw the party at our own little home!

This is the new tool belt his parents got for him. I think it is sexy & am always begging him to wear it home one of these days . . . still no luck.

Blowing out the candles . . . check out Chris's face . . . too funny ^

Aren't I good? All 3 fast & furious-es-es . . . . .

And a hat . . .

Opening his super nintendo & realizing what it is.

Please note that at the time my camera was still new to me & I didn't know all the functions. So it was acting up & took a ton of blurry pictures :(

Wedding Planning & Dress Confusion

2009-02-24T18:15:00.000-08:00

Wedding planning can be a blast, most of the time. But when it all comes together in the end it's worth every ounce of time & work. I actually changed my colors once, my dress choice 3 times, wedding location & time twice! Here's some pictures I ran across from the planning process . . .

Assembling invitations . . . the two of us made an assembly line.

I never thought it would take so long! Oh, and finding people's addresses

and stamping & licking envelopes is time consuming too!

This is me @ Brett's house, putting our pictures together for our slideshow. We had so many pictures, and Brett's mom actually paid for the slideshow, so she had to pay extra just because of how many pictures we had. But it turned out really cute!

This is my first wedding gown that I almost ordered, only in the ivory color not white. I absolutely loved it. The problem started when I started to notice that a whole lot of other people liked this "rueshed" or bunched style, including my cousin Laci. I hadn't attended her wedding, but when I saw pictures of her beautiful dress, I decided to do something different. Didn't want to copy :) But I so did love this one . . .
This is the second dress I gravitated to. It wasn't in stock yet, because it was a new design. I had only seen it in a catalogue but really liked the Cinderella, poofy princess look of it. Also loved the corset detail in the back, and I don't know if you can see it in the pic but it also has layers of lace all over. When it came in stock & I tried it on, I decided against it. Some things are just very different in person, and when worn on a different person.
This was my final dress (yes these two pictures are of me). I loved this dress becaue it was unique. It has an amazing, big, pleated train and lots of beaded detailing. Believe it or not though, I actually had the style of dress changed. But this is the finished product. Too bad you pay so much money just for them to sit in a closet, eh? And by the way some of my indecisive-ness on this issue was due to the fact that I worked in a bridal store and had the opportunity to try on & look at any dress I wanted, any day!
Oh, and this dress was due to come out a couple of months after my wedding. In all honesty, and I know this is bad, but I almost think I would have chosen this one, had I had the choice. But it wasn't even in stores yet. And I do still love my real dress :)

My 21st Birthday--July 23, 2008

2009-02-24T17:51:00.000-08:00

The same week as my family bridal shower was my 21st birthday. Ever seen the movie enchanted? I freaking love it lol so Janet bought me an ice cream cake with an "Enchanted" picture on it. We had enchilladas (yum!) & I opened some presents. Brett went shopping for my presents that very day, which is typical (he'll tell mehe does it so that I won't find out what they are, but I know better). Anyhow he got me a new digital camera & a memory card that holds 700 pictures (no joke), so sweet! The funny thing is that I am always begging for a puppy. Badly want one. So he thought it would be funny to leave my present outside. He came in & got me & told me it couldn't wait, I had to "open" my present early & that it was outside. I was thinking maybe, just maybe he got me a little puppy! We head ouside & sitting on the porch is my new camera in a Wal-Mart bag, along with Mac-n-Cheese crackers. Nice wrap job honey! He got me the crackers 'cause I saw them on t.v. & wanted to try them. The crackers were kinda sick, camera was great. Thanks honey! He told me afterward that he considered wrapping my presents in a blanket with a little leash hanging out. Cruel, don't push your luck, hon. Funny story about being 21 . . . . So Brett's family & I were at AppleBees one night. I decided I wanted to order a "beverage" just for the sake of ordering it. I told the nice waiter that I wanted a Mudslide. Looking confused he says, "Oh do you mean you want a sundae?" I said, "No, I want that mudslide right there." Still looking confused he says, "You mean a virgin mudslide?" I then repiled, "No, I don't want a virgin. I want that one." Looking troubled, he finally asks for my i.d. It was pretty hillarious, but not too surprising since I look young for my age.

Bridal Shower . . . April 2008

2009-02-24T17:35:00.001-08:00

When I was in the beggining stages of planning my wedding I asked my good friend Mandy Wing to be my Maid of Honor. She agreed, and I was so excited for her to help me with it all. A few months later Mandy felt she needed to go on a mission. She put in her papers and got called to Japan! She is in Japan right now, as I type! I was very excited for her soon to be amazing experience & know she is doing a great job out there. SO brave. Since she was scheduled to leave for the MTC in June, and my wedding was to be in September, she obviously could no longer be my moh. But she is still an honary bridesmaid to me! My mother in law & Brett's grandma were planning a bridal shower for July (see previous blog), and I was bummed that Mandy, Cami (whose husband's job keeps them on the go during the summer), Lundi (who was going to China for a semester, couldn't come to the later shower. So they threw me a very early shower in April (April showers . . . ha). There were only a few of us but it was very fun. I got a few "naughtier" gifts that prob. would have been embarrasing in front of family. It was held at Pizza Factory----oh so yummy! It was a fun little get together, thanks so much guys! P.S. Cami, I had to borrow some pictures from your blog because I didn't have my copies scanned, thanks :)

Bridal Shower . . . July 2008

2009-02-24T15:39:00.000-08:00

Brett's Grandma Malachowski really wanted to throw me a bridal shower, so her & my mother in law did it. They did such an awesome job, but that's only to be expected considering Brett's grandma spent months planning it, doing things such as tying little ribbons around mini sawns necks (they held the favors) crocheting (spell) dresses for birdemaids dolls & bride, finding games, making little prizes, ect. She is so cute. Brett's mom hosted the party & invited tons, I mean tons of friends & family. Brett's Aunt Dara & kids came all the way from Missouri for it, because they couldn't make it for the wedding. Brett's other Aunt Cindy & kids came too, along with Brett's other Grandma Barbara. So it was a house full of people. And the kids even helped to decorte. Janet also ordered a cute cake with our picture on it & bought balloons to tie on my chair. I am so grateful for both of them for doing this & many other things for us. The guys were all supposed to go downstairs & play pool or watch movies in the theater, but somehow they never made it down there! So there were a few awkward presents to open in front of guys, but we mainly got loads of kitchen & home stuff. Seriously, we got a housefull of presents, all of the presents filled half of Brett's room & some of the pantry. I also got my ring back that very same day. If you're wondering what I mean, my diamond was loose & they couldn't tighten it, so they had to make me a brand new ring. It took a month or so for them to make it, and I was so excited that it came in just in time for the shower. We had a great time & are so thankful for everyone's thoughtfulness. Thanks Janet & Camille!!

Me & my new ring, finally!

Kylee helping me open one of the many presents

The pretty little dolls Brett's Grandma Camille

made--she is so sweet!

Me with some of our presents. Including the deep fryer

Janet & Chris got us so I can make yummy eggrolls!
!

Brett's cousins & I watching "Little Mermaid" before the guests came.

Brett & I

The kids deorated this banister. Cute.

One of the games Camille thought up.

Fun in the Sun--July 2008

2009-02-24T14:36:00.000-08:00

Looks posed, but it was really more of an, "I caught you"
picture. Which could explain why he doesn't look too
thrilled . . .

Brett's youngest brother, Anothony

Brett's parents

Brett's Grandma's husband, Chris & his brother on one of the seadoos.

Brett's mom, Janet, Brett, & his brother Mathew

Mathew, ready to go tubbing, which I was not brave enough to do!

My water shoes, it's very rocky so you have to wear them when you're out in the water. I got them out of the kids section, which is why they're pink!

I look sick in this pic, but we'd just spent an entire day at the lake
& were hot, exhausted & sun baked! :)

I love this picture, we took it on the
boat at the end of the day.

Out in the water . . . when your feet can't touch the ground
I always have flashbacks of movies like "Jaws" & get nervous,
even though, yes, I am aware there aren't any sharks in freshwater lakes.
So, Brett's Grandma Barbara (mom's side) owns a river house on the Colorado river which is on the border of Laughlin, NV (can't spell) and Bullhead City AZ. Every summer Brett & his younger brothers go & have fun in the water & sweltering heat. They've got a house boat & seadoos & tubes . . . I didn't get to go last time, so July was my first time. It sounded fun so I was pretty excited to go. Little did I know that it is like way below sea level so it is a sweltering HOT HOT HOT pit. So you spend a lot of time running around in swimsuits & tank tops, I made the mistake of packing jeans . . . ha, yeah right! It was so much fun though, it was also my first time on a seadoo, and that was pretty mch my favorite! The guys also went fishing, and caught a cat fish & some others. We spent our evenings huddled under AC & fans, along with BBQs. One morning Brett's Grandma made us a HUGE wonderful breakfast with pancakes, all kinds of fruits, whpped cream, toast ect (she's famous for that). We also spent most of our time on Lake Mojave which is actually the best for seadoos. All in all it was a pretty great time, check out some of our pictures & see for yourself!

Bad Blogger

2009-02-21T20:39:00.000-08:00

Okay, so it has been FOREVER (and a day :)) since I've been on here! Now I am just overwhelmed! What can I say I gt very busy with my jobs, the wedding, moving ect! SO much has happened since my last post (July . . . hello . . .) I mean getting married is a huge part of people's lives, right? Oh and how about first holidays as a married couple such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, and the most recent . . . Valentines. I am a terrible blogger! So I guess I will start back tracking & updating it!

Wedding Updates/Birthday

2008-07-22T21:50:00.000-07:00

Brett & I went to a family friend's baby's first birthday on Sunday. Oh my goodness he is so sweet & cute! So chubby! We got him a little leap frog musical letters counting drum thing and he seemed to like it & everything else! Including the cake he had a ball! Was trying to share it with grandma & daddy while mom stayed back to stay clean! I know we're not married yet but when I see the babies I just melt and say to Brett "we're going to have on eof those someday, huh?" Don't worry though not for a couple of years! However I do say the same thing whenever I see puppies in the Wal-Mart parking lot and Brett literally has to drag me away. And then we realize I have to put the puppy down! lol!

Well what can I say wedding plans are in swing, not quite full swing yet, though! We just got our invitations in the mail & it took me literally two hours just to assemble 23 of them. No joke. But I'm excited & think they're way cute!

My second bridal shower is this Saturday. A couple of friends threw one for me a couple months ago and now this one is being thrown by Brett's Grandma Malachowski. And just so you know that will soon be my last name! Can I just tell you that his grandma is TOO sweet?! She's pretty much been planning this showe since we got engaged in January. She's been doing everything from crocheting (sp?) wedding and bridesmaids dresses for dolls to making mini glass swan favors filled with candy. She's even putting a picture of us on the cake! I'm not entirely sure what all she has planned for Saturday but I'm most excited! Brett must be a favorite (jk!) or something because she spoils me too much, I mean hello she got me a sewing machine for an engagement present! I just love her!

So, update on my ring for those of you who are wondering. It's been gone for about a month and half, I think. What happened pretty much much sucks. There had been a few problems with it like diamonds poping out and a loose prong. I felt like I was always bothering the jewlery people to fix something or other! Anyway, the day before we were suppossed to go & get bridals & engagements I look down and notice that a prong is broken in half!!! Needless to say I could not go & have bridals taken without it so Brett took it in after we got back. They said, first of all, that the other girl that has my same ring has been having problems too! That they talked to the company that made it & they said that the rings had been made from a plastic mold & apparently you can only make so many rings from a plastic mold before they start turning out bad. Also the company/designer looked at the ring & realized that the ring had bad diamonds in it too! I had noticed the side diamonds looking dark sometimes but thought I just didn't take care to clean it enough! Nope! I guess that the company said that they had been buying diamonds from this certain guy for like 10 years so they stopped checking the quality of diamonds. Turns out that the guy sold them some diamonds & told them they were better quality than they were! So anyway they are making me a completely new ring. I have been waiting and waiting & after all this time I decided to go in & ask when my ring would be finished & shipped. They said this week! I am so happy! I miss it! It was getting awkward because people would be like "We heard you were en . . . . " and then glance and my ring finger and stop. And then I'd have to be like, "Oh! Yeah, we're engaged, my ring is broke . . ." and then they're like, "Oh, we just weren't ure if it was official or not . . . under the radar . . ." SO I am so excited cause I felt dumb! Maybe Brett will have to propose again since it is a brand new ring!

Um . . . flower girl dresses ! Well I've been very bad with that! I have only made one & not even put the zipper in yet! But I think it is cute! I am just praying it will fit her & not look silly!

Brett's mom has offered to pay some guy to do our wedding slide . . . the one with baby pictures. It costs 250! Expensive if you ask me but it's way kind of her & it takes the stress off of us trying to make one or pay someone. Even though it is not rocket science it gives me one less thing to worry about. I'm grateful that she's helping us! Whew!

OH! Yeah my 21 first birthday is tommorow! Acutually less than an hour from now since it's past 11! I'm excited! I know I say that a lot! I have to go & get a new licsence because mine expires tommorow. I wish there were more you could do than buy alcohol or gamble. But it is fun to be older! And I think I can buy dry ice now? Not sure!

I drive by our soon to be first home every chance I get. I hope the kids that live there right now don't think I'm stalkng but I am so enthusiastic about making our first little home together! It has a yard, is small but cute! Let's just hope I don't make the kids that are there feel awkward . . . I don't think they notice, and it's not like I'm peaking the windows but it's still kinda funny. I wonder if once we move in I'll just drive by & look at it wistfully because that's waht I'm used to doing. Ha ha . . .

Subzerohottubbin

2008-07-05T16:11:00.000-07:00

Oh, and in case you're wondering as to what our URL is reffering to (subzerohottubbin) it's beacuse when Brett & were first dating we'd always go hot tubbin! In subzero January whether. Give credit where it's due, Brett came up with the snazzy name!

Intro/dating history/wedding plans/house

2008-07-05T15:15:00.000-07:00

So, I'm pretty new to this whole blogging thing. But it seems like a good way to document life & the new chapters to come! So, where to start?

Well, my name is Shae ha ha this feels like an alcoholics annon. meeting. Anyway, I'm 20, soon to be 21 on the 23 of this month, I work at a local Home Decor store, and job number 2 is at a Bridal Store, oh, and I'm engaged. His last name is "Malachowski", try saying that three times fast! I was trying to tech my little cousins how to say & spell it, and we came up with "Malibu Cows Can Ski" haha what a riot! Brett & I are just so excited to finally "tie the knot"! Even though planning the dang wedding thing gets WAY frustrating at times! I pretty much just wish it had already happened & we were living in our own little house now. Oh, but I suppose it will happen soon enough! September 27, to be exact!

Brett & I met in January of 07 and were engaged nearly a year later! And no, there were no break ups in that time! However, about 3 weeks after we met, we had to face the reality that BRett would be leaving for school. He was leaving for California, and I was to be stuck in Utah. Now, I know that seems like such an incredibly short time to date someone, and I'm NOT saying we were head over heels, yet. But have you ever been at the fork, the crossroad, where you can see yourself possibly ending up with that person? That's where we were, and I knew if he moved to cali & I stayed put we would've never found out. I just wanted the chance to date him longer and see what was what. To have an adventure. So, Brett left for Cali and I stayed home. Coincidently, I was in the process of looking for a new job. It was winter, the start of a new semester at the local college, and practically all of the jobs were taken! I would apply places day after day to no avail. I was working at the Wal-Mart Distribution Center, 45 miles away from my town, and the hours were getting cut. I had worked there a year a nd half, and was sick of it. Plus, I'm a pretty skiddish driver & the commute through a place called "the black ridge" in a snow storm was not good! So, anyway, considering all of these circumstances, I decided to look for jobs in California. Brett & I were talking night & day, every spare minute. I later found out that while he was traveling to California, he had this terrible gut feeling, and wanted to be near me. Don't make fun! It's not cheesey! So I started researching possible jobs & apartments. Then my friend, Mandy suggested nannying. Long story short I found a family with triplets that needed someone pronto, so I moved out there! I was 20 minutes from Brett. And I'll have you know that I turned down a beachfront family in Malibu, just to closer to Brett! Brett was in Sacramento. So, We dated in Cali for a while. More on that later, just wanted to brief you on the craziness that I traveled miles and miles to be near someone I didn't know perfectly yet, for the sake of further getting to know. But look, we've lasted a year & a half now, and are engaged! Exciting stuff! You just never know . . .

Back to the wedding plans. The reception place is booked, the wedding site booked, the photographer planned, we've got the dress, cake & flowers, sparklers are bought (ohhh doesn't sound liek a wedding thing, I know . . . but it's going to be awesome! It's our ceremony send off!) . . . oh, and we finally found someone to marry us! It's Judge Eaves & he supposedly does a good job so, there's some stress lifted off! We recently went to Thanksgiving Point to get engagement pictures & bridals done, but more on that later. Just barely made the attempt at booking the DJ today. Exciting. We ordered invitations, garters, and the bridesmaids heave their dresses. I'm in the process of sewing flowergirl & junior bridesmaids dresses, wish me luck I have no idea how or why I get myself into these projects! Seems all that's left to plan/buy is centerpieces. And no, I'm not doing fish, for all of you crazy people that go on abou the cruelness thereof. These things all get so expensive though, really. For all of you un-married folk . . . perhaps you should consider eloping. It stresses me sometimes, for instance at my other job today I was calculating each months earnings and bills, I only hope I can act like a sane normal person after this . . . then again, was I ever that way? lol

Ohhhh so Brett & I found a house to rent. It's kinda a long story but here goes . . .
We were starting to get worried about finding a place, and since we live in a college town we knew we couldn't wiat until September. So we started looking but already landlords were gettting calls from the college kids . . . annoying! They seemed to be beating us to everything! So we finally found this condo. I have to admit I was not excited about it. It was kinda dumpy looking, and BROWN. But I just kept telling myself "it's our first place, it's not forever", and besides, the inside was nice with new carpet. Still though, the backyard was the size of a postage stamp & rent was going to be $695 every month until September! But we were desperate, and didn't want to end up living with mom and dad so we gave the guy a deposit (he kept telling us how so many people were calling him on it & how he'd "try to hold them off"). Well, he cashes our deposit & proceeds to go up to fish lake, where there is no reception for cell phones! While he's gone someone tells us about another house for sale. An actual house in a neighborhood (of retired people, mind you lol) with two bedrooms and a fireplace. I decided to go talk to the guy because I kept getting this sick feeling about the condo. Turns out that the situation with the house is perfect for us. There were two girls living in the basement (the house is split into two apartments, really, upstairs and downstairs) and one girl wanted to leave for the summer. SO she sold her contract to her roomates brother. He moved in. Turns out that the girl who moved out didn't like her little summer juant, so she came back. It just so happens that the upstairs was available at that time, so she moved into one of the rooms. The contracts end mid August, and at that point the brother will be moving out & the upstairs girl will move downstairs. Works out perfect for us because we'll be paying just $175 a month intil September, and then full rent will start & we'll move into the top part of the house. So much better than having to pay $695, when we're already paying for the wedding! The only downside is that the condo guy is not being too nice about giving our deposit back, which suck because supposedly he had so many interested people & we didn't even sign anything. Oh well we'll save money in the long run. the house is small but cute, made of brick, with a fireplace, a breakfast nook & virtually no closet space. It also has a crack in the wal bathroom, which Brett was worried about, but we're only two people & don't need too much space! He was also the one terribly worried about the closets. There are three or so, they're just old & small. What a girl he is to be so worried about bathrooms & closet space! Another neat thing about this place is that I can have a puppy. I cannot wait, everytime we go to Wal-Mart & someone's trying to pawn off puppies in the parking lot, I have to stop and "ohh and ahhh" and hold them. Brett literally has to drag me away while I beg "to please have one for my birthday". I am also excited to paint the inside of the house, fun times to come! Anyhow I better be getting of this machine, I am starting to feel light headed from staring at the glowing screen! I'll try to post pictures of the house & our engagements soon!