Blessed

Mama Russell has been wanting to get new family photos since we got two new additions to the family this past summer. We ended up getting them taken over Christmas, and we just got them back! I LOVE them. Also, I found this little gem of a post that never made it up on the world wide web. I wrote it after Christmas break but I knew something was missing. Lo and behold.... these frames turned out to be the perfect fit. Enjoy!

I'm feeling sentimental today for some reason. Actually, I've been feeling pretty sentimental ever since Christmas break. I'm feeling pretty blessed too. Sometimes I forget about all the amazing things I have been given.

 And by things, I mean people.

People really are the greatest things we have in our lives. I look at all the great things I got for Christmas, which I really do appreciate. I mean who doesn't love new clothes, or shoes, or jewelery, or candy, or.... you get my point. But none of those things really make me happy. Yeah they may make me happy for a while, but I'm talking about TRULY being happy. Having Joy. People do that, not things.

I realize more and more as I get older that PEOPLE are what matter. This break I was overwhelmed with the love and support we got from our families. The Cornilles side of the family is amazing. They have done nothing but make me feel SO welcome and loved. By the end of break it felt like their house was my house. I felt like I grew up there just like Austin did. And then there is my side (Russell) of the family. There's never a dull moment with my family, and I love it! I am so thankful for them and their support as well. I can't tell you how much my mom did for us in preparation for us being home. Not to mention all the Christmas shopping/crafting. She is amazing. Both of our families are. They really bring me joy.

Finally, my husband- Austin. I really don't know what I would do without him. He has been the most unbelievable addition to my life. He's my biggest support, love, and best friend. He is truly a blessing, and I couldn't ask for anything more.

"The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities."

 

-The Family: A Proclamation to the World

The First Presidency and Council of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Also, photo cred to our amazing photographer: Shonda Barlow. Check her out! She did our wedding photos too.

Sukiyaki!

This past weekend we had a cooking/dinner competition with two other couples. It was so much fun! And to top if off... we won! The idea of the whole event was to pick a theme and plan a dinner around it. We scored each other on things like taste, plating, theme, etc.

Night 1: Lauren & Kyle did a Texas BBQ theme. (I wish i had taken pictures because it was amazing.... she went all out with the theme.) There were cow balloons, bandanas, miny bales of hay, sheriff badges, strawberry lemonade, ribs, corn on the cob.... just great.

Night 2: Yours truly. We did Japanese! Austin's family makes this dish called Sukiyaki. It's made up of udon noodles, cabbage, beef, mushrooms, tofu, onions, and lots of soy sauce. You cook it in front of everyone and they watch your skills. Aka: Austin's skills. We had authentic Japanese bowls and used Aust's blanket as a tablecloth- super fun night.

Night 3: Mollie & Levi did Louisiana Cajun! Mardi Gras decorations and all. Their meal included shrimp, grits, some type of warm vegetable salad ($), and gator juice! Delicious.

After dinner on nights two and three we played RAGE. We got this card game for our wedding and we can't get enough of it!! Needless to say, it was a fabulous weekend annnnnnnnnnnnnnddddddd we are starting to have married friends!

I Love You Day!

Valentine's Day gets much better when you are married people. I promise. It was great to have solid plans and feel extra loved all day. Even though I know he loves me everyday ;)

Here's a little snippet of our evening... better late than never, right?



Side note: We had reservations for La Jolla Groves. We got there early and there were at least 50 people in the lobby waiting for their table. Needless to say we left... annnnnnd went to Tucanoes. End result: NO wait, FREE chocolate covered strawberries, & a rose! Fabulous day.

Yay love!

The Ride

“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he’s been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to just be people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey…delays…sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling burst of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.”

- Gordon B. Hinckley

So realistic and I love it. I need to be grateful for the good things in my life. Learn from the hard things. And live everyday to the fullest. I'm not doing this lately and I want to change it.


In relation to "enjoying the journey," here is a little Trace Atkins for your viewing pleasure.

Direction

You know how you make decisions and carefully plan your life out just the way you want it? And then things happen that scream, "Hey, remember that cool plan you had? Oh yeah, just trash it." Story of my life.

I graduated from BYU with a degree in Recreational Therapy. I thought I would get a job with some great hospital or rehab center, and become this amazing Rec Therapist. In reality, I sat a home for a good month searching for ANY job. Let alone a Rec Therapy job...

And now I am working at a real estate agency. Right now I work as an assistant to a realtor but, I am currently working on getting my real estate license. Soon, I will be a licened realtor and I will be working as a Buyers Agent for the Dan Kennedy Real Estate Team. It's going to be a new experience that calls for lots of hard work. I can't wait.

From Recreation Therapy to Realtor? I guess that's life.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUSBAND!!

Today is January 12th, Aka: Aust's birthday!!!!!!!! This post is dedicated to my wonderful, handsome, kind, patient, amazing husband. I love him so much. He means the world to me. 

Happy Birthday Honey!

BRUNETTE.

Well, it's official! I finally worked up the courage to go dark! The process was quite an adventure. I have been contemplating it for a while because highlights are not cheap. If I went dark I wouldn't has a much upkeep. Also, Austin wanted me to do it AND I have an amazing friend Abby who said she would do it for me!!

So, yesterday Abby was coming down to Provo and I made the decision to do it. Scaaaaary. We went to Walmart... yes Walmart, classy. We know. We bought two boxes of hair dye and headed home to get it started.

Main fears:
1) Walmart hair dye
2) My hair turning orange
3) Looking gothic

We tried a little section underneath just to make sure it would turn out okay. Best decision we've ever made! (It was purple.... Iced Mahogany Brown to be exact). Needless to say, we went back to the store and got a different color.

Try # 2. It went much better. We chose "light brown" this time. Abby carefully covered my entire head of hair with foamy dye. We waited 20 minutes and BAM! Here's how it turned out. It's going to take some getting used to, but I like the change!

Special thanks to Austin, Abby, & Marcus. Couldn't have done it without you guys :)