why I love my job

~ little boys blowing kisses at me in the hall

~ parents asking if their child acts up in speech because I am soft-spoken (yeah right, I can lay down the law with the best of them)

~ getting paid to drive for 90 minutes in the middle of the day

~ having breakthrough therapy sessions on the fly - thank you dynavox & chipper chat!

~ knowing I only have 14 days until Christmas break

Thanksgiving : Black Friday : Football : Christmas Tree

I feel like this title could double as my post! But don't worry faithful readers,I will write a post and maybe put up some pictures too!

Our holiday celebration started a week early when my mom,Dave & Jessie came to visit.It was so fun to have a full house:) We saw Harry Potter, shopped,put in a new light fixture,shopped,and had a pre-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving dinner.

We had a marvelous Thanksgiving Day. I watched the parade in the morning - and almost cried when the Rockettes started their high kicks - pathetic,I know. But can you think of anything that epitomizes Thanksgiving more than that? We had dinner with about 15 couples in our ward at the church, then watched football. One of my friends here was born in Casper (just like me) and I got to meet her dad. He knew a lot of the same people from there as me & his brother worked for the same people as my dad did. What a small world! I love Wyoming!

My neighborhood friends Sara & Rachel and I decided to go shopping on Black Friday . . . at 3 am. None of us had ever done the early morning shopping thing before - we hit up the GAP, Old Navy, and Target. Cody happened to be doing some shopping for yours truly at the same time. Apparently, we had a couple of close run-ins but Cody was a master of hiding so I am still in the dark about my gifts.

Today, we put up our Christmas decor and went to an auction. And, we are hoping our Cougs dominate Utah!

a post for america

This week I did 2 things to celebrate our country -- voted & ate at the Hamburg Inn No. 2.

Voting in Iowa is an adrenaline rush!  It's a little different to live in a place where the two-party system is, to put it delicately, thriving.  I registered on at the polls on Election Day and I thought the lady who helpd me was going to kill over because of my age & my political leanings.  Apparently, I am the anomaly here in Iowa City :) 

   

Last night, Cody & I went to dinner at the Hamburg Inn No. 2 -- a very small, dirty, greasy resturant downtown.  They served me phenomenal crinkle fries. (I ate them so fast that I didn't have time to take a picture!).  I know you are wondering 'What does the Hamburg Inn have to do with America?'.  So I will tell you : absolutely nothing.

Just kidding.  A few politicians stop by during the Iowa Caucuses -- just people like Mitt, Barak, John (McCain), Ronald (Reagan), Bill (Clinton), among others . . . no big deal. 

Well, we thought it was a big deal because we ate there :)  Maybe some presidential greatness will rub off on us!   

Cody showing off the jelly -- I don't know why.
 It wasn't that special. 
Those crinkle fries were special though.

halloween week

Victor, IA
population 900
about 60 miles from our house
taken 10/28/2010
NO SNOW!!! YAY!!!

We have had an eventful week -- a few highlights were:

- Driving 100+ miles 2 days this week. This makes me grumpy.

-Seeing our friends Elise & Joel at stake conference. They met in the same ward Cody & I did. Joel & I worked together at BYU and Cody & Elise grew up in the same ward.

-Seeing my old Young Women's President, Jeanna, and her ADORABLE girls (and husband too!), also at stake conference. Jeanna was like a second mother to me, just like so many of my other Young Women leaders.

-Watching the Sound of Music cast reunion on Oprah. I bawled twice. Once when a Vietnam vet talked about how the movie was his refuge while he was deployed AND during this clip (start about 50 seconds in with a box of tissues nearby).

-Watching the Giants dominate in the World Series -- especially their cute rookie catcher.

-Having our first real trick-or-treaters! The only problem is that nobody says 'trick or treat'. They just stand at the door and expect candy. Seriously?

the best intentions

the sunrise on my way to work a few days ago

yes, i drive to work while the sun is rising

I stink at blogging. It's kind of ironic, because I LOVE reading other people's blogs -- but then I think that nobody could LOVE reading ours :) I know that is far far far from the truth, so I am going to try really hard to jump back on the blogging train. I don't really think that I am going to try to recap everything that has happened since I last blogged, but I will leave you with a few of today's thoughts.

I love Iowa.

I love living on the edge of town and I love not living in the megametropolis that is the Salt Lake & Utah Valleys.

I love driving by corn & bean fields on my way to work. I do not love driving 2000 miles in 2 months of work.

I do not love Iowa's weather when it wakes me up in the middle of the night sounding like a herd of softballs with wings banging into my window. (It really was just an awful rainstorm with super turbo wind.)

I do not love when my kids cough in my face & get me sick. (But, I am not getting as sick as last year.)

I love blogging. And I will blog again, soon :)

a is for apple

On Labor Day, our sweet neighbors/friends invited us to go apple picking with them at a local orchard. We had a great time & ended up with a lot of apples. Like, WAY more apples than I ever would have purchased at once. I am planning on making them into some kind of treat, but I have had meetings at unearthly hours this week (7:15; 8:15; 7:30 -- keep in mind I have to drive at least 30 minutes before I get there) and have worked late, which doesn't leave much free time :(
So, keep the comments coming & let me know what I can turn my apples into!
P.S. That cute baby belongs to our next door through the wall neighbors & we love him a lot!

out of the mouths of babes

I feel kind of guilty for blackmailing people to get comments . . . but probably not guilty enough to never do it again :)

Does anybody besides me remember that old church movie 'Out of the Mouths of Babes'?



Well, I am thinking about carrying around a concealed video camera (is that even legal?) to create my own 'Out of the Mouths of Babes'. Or maybe it will just become a recurring series on this blog. Anyway, here is the latest installment -- short & sweet:

I went to a fourth-grade classroom to meet some of my new kiddos. Within about 2 seconds, I heard a little whisper from the back, "Who is that lady? She is pretty!".

And for the record, I did NOT look that nice yesterday. Or maybe I did. Is it ever a good thing if a 9 year old thinks you look nice? I just can't decide.

it's been a while

So, I haven't blogged in a long time -- maybe because I don't get enough positive feedback when I blog or maybe because I have been having so much fun or maybe because I am just lazy :)
Here are some quick updates:

JOB: My job is great! I drive between 1 - 3 hours each day, so my car and I are becoming one. The poor Bonneville would have never made it out here :) I have met most of my speech babies and I miss the ones I had last year. My favorite seech story from the past week {written as it was spoken}: "My gwampa gave me a calf this summa. It is bwack and white, but its mom is aw (all) wed (red). He stiw (still) eats fwom its mom."

SCHOOL: Cody reads a lot. One article compared organizational theory to shoes -- who says marrying me didn't aid in his education? He also starts teaching a section of 50-60 students tomorrow :) He is the only first year student in recent history to ever be assigned to do that!

HOUSE: Love love love it! There is no more to say.

FRIENDS: Love love love them! There are quite a few couples in our ward that we plan on being super good friends with.

IOWA: Fab. It feels like home {to me}. I haven't gotten my fill of corn fields, flash flooding, or humidity yet. I hope I never will. Football season starts Saturday -- apparently it is quite the event -- there will be a future post on that!

The end.

Leave comments & I might post more :)

some iowa tidbits

*I started work on Monday. I never realized how destitute the Utah education system was ... it will be hard to leave my job when Cody graduates (is it pathetic that I already love my job enough to think about leaving? I have had a lot of time to think lately!). To my speech friends across the nation, do any of you work for AEAs? And what do you think about it? Maybe my rosy colored glasses will come off soon, but for now I will keep them. You can see where I work by clicking these words. We live in the magenta area (Iowa City) and I work in the blue area (Southwest Region), specifically HLV, Lone Tree, and Williamsburg. I am planning on quite the commute!

*Some of the biggest shocks for me have been sounds. Thunder 'rolls' here instead of echoing off the mountains -- it is really wild. It is so deep and lasts for several consecutive minutes. Consequently, the thunder keeps me up at night. There have been thunderstorms four of the eight nights we have been here. I have slept through ONE :(

There are also these crazy loud bugs that come out in the evenings. You can hear them through the walls of your house! We first encountered them when we stopped at Winter Quarters. The sound was so loud that I didn't believe Cody when he told me they were bugs . . .

*We have fab neighbors! He is doing a residency for opthamology & she plays the violin in Orchestra Iowa. AND, they have an adorable 10 month old boy who will hopefully relieve the pain of missing these two:

our house!

here are a couple videos of our new house. the password is 'house'. creative!

to council bluffs

this was my view all day

at the winter quarters cemetery.

this statue is kinda hard to see, but it is a couple burying their child. heartbreaking.

so glad we are driving across the country instead of walking/pushing/burying our babies.

cody at the spot where we think (95% sure) his great-great-great grandma was buried.


beautiful temple. worn out girl.

we plan to come back soon winter quarters :)

p.s. this exhibit was at the visitors center and it was amazing!

where we have been . . .

. . . is in the car. Since the beginning of July we have driven 2958 miles. Good thing our car is comfortable :) Here is a breakdown {complete with assorted pictures}:

256 miles to Idaho Falls & back for the 4th of July

{No pictures here. We were too busy winning the family scavenger hunt and watching Frank's awesome fireworks!}

1520 miles to Oakdale & back to visit Cody's grandparents

630 miles to Cave Falls for the annual camping trip

552 miles to Sidney, Nebraska

{No pictures here either. Any photos of today would only have sagebrush & semi-trucks in them. Or the marinara sauce explosion that soaked my sweats & the lovely forest green carpet in our hotel room. Or Cody channel surfing. Nothing too fab.}

a fab friday

a few quick updates

-We bought a house in Iowa. It backs onto a little man-made pond :) It has a 2 car garage and master bathroom (some fantastic luxuries that I am thrilled about). We have never seen it. I am slightly obsessed about the decor -- last night I talked to Cody about different ideas for an hour because I couldn't sleep. He just played a computer game & pretended to listen!

-I still don't have a job :(

-Cody went to St. George for work. He ate at a restaurant that had 'cantina' in its name. I was only slightly alarmed when it showed up on our credit card statement. To reaffirm what a good time he had, the line on the statement above the 'cantina' was Burger King. Sick.

-My small group kindergarten class is going bowling every week for the rest of the school year. Right during speech time -- so guess who gets to go with!! Me!! Pretty much, watching those little guys bowl and trying to keep them from running to the arcade is the best part of my job EVER!!

-Our Sunday School class referenced The Emperor's New Groove during this lesson. At least they were paying attention. Demon llama!!!

-I started Jillian Michael's 30 day shred. It is pretty awesome. I can do push-ups (girl ones) for 45 seconds straight. My arms actually have muscles now. I would post a picture, but I can't really think of anyone besides me who might think my arms are muscle-y and I can't handle the mocking that would inevitably follow.

some random thoughts

In just a few minutes, I will leave my office to go child-collecting for my most challenging (isn't that a nice way to put it?) group of the week. Not day -- WEEK! I obviously was not thinking when I scheduled them for Friday mornings.

I hate allergies. I could do without my whole skull aching because my sinuses are so congested. I really dislike missing work because I am sick. But, there are no signs of a sinus infection :) At least I can be grateful for that.

I wore a dress today instead of jeans. I think I am a jean hater. I had been in grad school for 1 year and 9 months before my peers & professors saw me in a pair of jeans -- and several of them let me know how shocked they were that I even owned jeans.

I am stressed about moving to Iowa. Enough said.

I am going to walk to the Shade Sale across from Will's Pit Stop tomorrow morning. I will be leaving my apartment between 8:30 - 8:45. If anybody would like to join me, let me know. And creepy stalkers, my husband will be home, so don't try to rob us :)

I need to score a test now, so I am signing off. Until next time.

spring break by the numbers

7 days away from home
1 lonely husband
8 flights
3 flights that left before 7 a.m.
6 states visited
2 grandmas visited
7 cousins visited (and 3 cousin in laws)
1 puppy still loves me
2 trips to the University of Iowa campus to try to drop off Cody's official acceptance letter
12-15 houses shown to me by a nice realtor
1,000,000 GPS malfunctions
5 pictures

a mexican p.s.

Today one of my kiddos told me he was going to Mexico for spring break. I asked him which part of Mexico he was headed to -- he must not have heard the 'part' part because he said : "The regular Mexico, not the new Mexico."

I deserve bonus points for keeping a straight face :)

mexico (a.k.a. my parents are awesome)

Here are a few highlights from our fab trip to Cancun a couple weekends ago:

Does this picture even need a caption?

Our rooms had an unlimited supply of sodas in glass bottles! I was in diet coke heaven :)

On the beach. Yes, it was freezing (60 F) & windy there. That's why my jacket is on in ALMOST every picture.

Dad kayaking -- we all did, but somehow this is the only picture we have. Kayaking is an AMAZING shoulder workout. It's nice to feel like you are doing something extreme that is not really extreme at all!

The pool didn't really go out to the ocean -- it just looks like it. And, just for the record, that pool was freaking cold.

That is Cody relaxing in the freaking cold pool. Apparently, the resort only felt inclined to heat one of their ten pools. It's not like it gets warm in Mexico anyway :)

I am pointing at a lizard on the rock. There were too many exotic animals in the area for my taste, not to mention the crazy seagulls that would dive-bomb the outdoor restaurants. It was kind of funny to hear the sloshed people scream at them though.

Us arriving. I know it is at the bottom of the post, but that's the joy of blogs -- you never know what you are going to get!

Thanks Mom & Dad! We had a great time & hope to see Mexico again soon!

iowa

Cody & I just got back from Iowa. I realize that it is a random vacation destination, but we had good reason -- he got accepted to the University of Iowa's Management & Organizations PhD program. What a smartie fartie! The department wanted him to come visit and said I could go too. Sometimes life just gives you lemonade & skips the lemon part :)

We left Saturday morning and flew through Denver to Cedar Rapids. The best part was hanging out in the Denver airport where my brother Dave used to work. I'm pretty sure our luggage was hauled around by some of his old buddies. One of the current students in the program that accepted Cody picked us up at the airport. He was very nice and took us around Iowa City to look at different neighborhoods. Iowa City reminded us a lot of Logan -- a quaint little town with a university (and not much else). We went to dinner with him & his wife at a fun local place with delicious food. The hotel they put us up in was super posh. The only downside was the drunken party going on outside and the unsupervised kids running around inside until 3 or 4-ish. Blah.

On Sunday, we went to church at the ward we will probably be going to. It is a married student ward and you get kicked out of it if you have kids over 3. I really liked everybody I met. And everybody I met really liked Iowa City. That was reassuring . . .

I had to come home on Sunday afternoon. The taxi driver that took me to the airport was quite the character -- he talked at me for the 30 - 35 minute drive about topics ranging from taxi drivers hitting deer, to carp, to the World Series of Poker, to Ireland, and my personal favorite : Sturgis. I probably liked hearing about Sturgis the best because it reminded me of Gillette and the time a motorcycle buddy stopped by my dad's store in IF on the way to Sturgis. But I digress!

Cody stayed Monday & Tuesday to meet the professors and students in his department. I haven't been able to get much out of him except that most everybody was nice and that he liked a lot of the research that was going on. Oh, and that his department will try to find a job for me :) I liked that part, because I am broken-hearted about leaving my current students (not the current parents -- but that is a rant for another post!).

Here are some random facts about Iowa City (hopefully our future home):
-There is a mall with an ice-skating rink inside.
-It is in Johnson County.
-There is a street named Mormon Trek Boulevard.
-Football games are WILD!
-They have a sweet outdoor mall with no streets running through it.
-It is about an hour and a half from Nauvoo.
-It is about three and a half hours from Chicago.
-I loved it! Just in case you didn't get that from this post :)

happy birthday grandma!

Today is my Grandma Parry's birthday! Happy birthday Grandma!

I am super lucky to have such a wonderful great-grandma. I am going to indulge myself for a moment and make a quick list of reason I love her.

#1) She is courageous. Ever since I can remember, Grandma has had hard things going on in her life. But you would never know it.
#2) She is smart. Someday I hope to be able to whip out crossword puzzles and those cryptic clues where one letter stands for another letter like Grandma does.
#3) She is crafty. My cousin Katie talked about making Santas on her blog, but no tribute to Grandma would be complete without mentioning Christmas ornaments, Snuggies (not the new-fangled kind -- the original teddy bear shaped sleeping bags), or quilts. My grandma made me a pink and orange quilt when I was about 3 and lived in Wyoming that I took to college with me. Whenever I needed a pick-me-up, I would wrap myself up in it and pretend like I was sitting on Grandma's couch in front of the warm fire visiting with her.
#4) She is thrifty. Before one of our killer Sunday dinners, I remember helping Grandma make fruit dip. My job was getting the marshmallow creme into the bowl -- which was pretty tricky for a pre-teen :) I thought I had it all out, but Grandma looked and just wasn't satisfied. She couldn't believe that I would waste so much. I couldn't believe that I had ALMOST let Grandma down. Luckily, she let me redeem myself. To this day, I make sure that I get every last drop out of anything/everything -- just in case Grandma stops by!
#5) She is funny. Enough said.
#6) She loves her family. I know that I am Grandma's favorite grandchild. The funny thing is, so does everybody else. We are all right. Maybe I have an edge since I was named after Grandma's mother . . . . my fingers are crossed. Grandma's love has united generations of extended family. I feel so lucky to know all of my Grandma's children (my great-aunts & uncles) and their children (my mom's cousins). I believe that the reason I know and love my extended family so dearly is because my grandma loves them so dearly and has worked hard to keep our family in touch and together.

I feel like I could go on forever, but I should probably stop. I am getting teary thinking of what my grandma (and grandpa -- I can't forget him) means to me -- my sixth graders that are coming in 5 minutes my get freaked out if I was bawling my eyes out in front of my computer.

Grandma -- I wish I was in Idaho Falls to come visit you today! I love you so very much and can't wait to see you soon. Love always,

Larkin