Top 9 of '09

These are the Top 9 Moments of 2009 According to the Turney's

9) Sean goes on a mission!It was an emotional several days with my one and only brother preparing to enter the mission field. I'll never forget his farewell talk, when he was set apart, and those last few nights of the Marsden "children" and our antics. It was a monumental moment for our family and I'll never forget the look on Sean's face when he turned the corner not to be seen until 2011. I'm so proud of my brother and so grateful that he chose to serve a mission. He is a wonderful missionary and we love him.

8) Ski trip in Park City

I am not a skiier. When people ask if I ski I tell them that I have but I don't. This trip however was a lot of fun. I was able to go out once and really enjoy myself. Adam however went 4 times and was on cloud 9! Let me tell ya--there is nothing sexier than watching your husband race down a mountain gracefully and skillfully. Man, it was HOT! Everytime he got all dressed in his ski clothes I started sweating ;). We also had a lot of fun with the family doing kareoke, hot tubing every night, bingo, and mocktails. What a blast!

7) Trek back to the 'Burg

Not many people think of Rexburg as the romantic capitol of the world but Adam and I really loved going back to Rexburg. Adam knew it would be something I would enjoy but he didn't realize the feelings it would stir back in him to return to Rexburg. We loved every moment toget1her--Even the one when we got stuck in the snow =) but we especially enjoyed Craigo's pizza!

6) Trip to NYC

Adam and I still talk on a regular basis what an AWESOME trip we had to NYC. We loved visiting all the historic/national/famous places in the city together. I did pretty well for myself being 26 weeks pregnant we walked about 50 miles in 5 days! It was a great get away--just the two of us and I'll never forget it!

5) Hannah's Blessing Weekend

I felt so blessed, and so loved as both families traveled from California and Utah. Hannah had each of her living biological great grandparents and all of her grandparents (along with most of her aunts and uncles) to come watch her recieve a special name and a blessing. She looked so beautiful and I was such a proud mommy! Her daddy is so tender with her that while he blessed her she just stared at him. She is her daddy's girl.

4) Buying a house

We were so lucky and blessed to be able to buy a house at this time. We love it so much and we are so grateful for the opportunity to live where we do. It is the perfect size for us and the perfect lay out. We waited and saved a long time for this and we are so pleased!

3) Being pregnant

I was so blessed to have a great pregancy and to be able to conceive and carry and have such a wonderful pregancy. No it wasn't fun being pregnant--it never is, especially when you live in Vegas and it is 115 degrees. But I was so grateful and honored to have the opportunity and I often miss her wiggling around inside.

2) Graduations

Adam and I were both able to graduate and it was the second greatest moments of 2009. Adam with his Masters and me with my Bachelores (both in Education). We were blessed to be able to accomplish this without using student loans and we feel really proud of ourselves. We worked hard and accomplished something great.

1) Hannah's Birth

Hannah is the crowning achievement of my life and I am so blessed and honored to be her mother. We love her so much. Her birth was the second best moment of my life (right next to marrying her father in the temple) and I often replay the moment in my head. I had a really easy delivery (in the hospital for only 6 hours before giving birth) and labor and she has been a wonder baby. I've never known a greater love than that of being a wife and a mother and it helps me appreciate our parents even more now. Right before I gave birth one of the nurses said "there is nothing greater in this world than creating a child with the man you love and bringing her into the world." This has stuck with me but I should take it one step further and say there is nothing greater in this world than having the knowledge of eternal family and being able to share that with the man you love and bring our children into the world.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY OLD YEAR.

Treck back to the Burg!

For Christmas Adam surprised me with a trip back to Rexburg Idaho! It was so much fun, brought back so many memories, and we made some new ones too!
This is the apartment Adam was living at when we met... #308 Aspen Village

...and this is where I lived #201 Kensington Manor

This was "our spot" in the gardens. This is where he first held my hand and we had a "deep conversation" about what would happen if I hypothetically dated someone else and wrote off my missionary.

I love the gardens on campus!

This is where I lived when I first came to campus! I loved living in the dorms and I had some awesome roomates.

This is where Adam lived when I went to Russia...he spent many lonely nights crying in that upper bedroom missing his love ;)

This is the Benson Bldg. Where Adam and I met in Bio Lab 101

The BEST place to eat in the Rex! This is Craigo's Pizza! Best pizza west of New York...that I've had ;) I ate 6 pieces...Adam had 6 pieces + 3 pastas lol!

Of course we HAD to visit the temple! We weren't here when it was completed but we were so grateful for the announcement of the building. It's one of the most beautiful temples I've seen!

K-- Funny story...Adam and I wanted to go on this deserted road to a spot we used to frequent (my dad said "hmmm a deserted road in the middle of nowhere....I wonder why you went there..." No he didn't...and neither do you as you read this)

We turned the car around and got stuck in the mud. Probably a punishment for using the road as a make out spot when we were dating. Anyway we quickly repented and prayed. Luckily about two minutes after we said a prayer a man came up (one of the three nephites? lol) and got us out of the mud. Lesson I learned. Marry a man who will pray with you when you get stuck in a lurch...and also have enough humor to take pictures of the predicament while laughing together.

Christmas Vacation

Ever since Adam and I got married we have been involved in a holiday custody battle. Every other year our families get a turn with us on alternating holidays. This Christmas we were due to spend the holiday with the Turneys. Luckily for me, the Turney's decided to spend Christmas on Vacation. Their first idea was Paris... ahh Paris--I miss you. That didn't work out due to Kris's work. The next idea was Florida ("Who wants to spend Christmas in a tropical climate--Do they even have Christmas Trees in Florida?"--Kevin McCalister). Again that fell through.

Much to my (and Adam's) delight they chose to spend Christmas in Park City Utah. Home Sweet Home. Because of Kris's work schedual we will spend Christmas morning with the Turney's and drive out to Pleasant View in the afternoon to talk to my missionary brother and spend Christmas with the Marsden's too!

So far we have had a great vacation. I love spending time alone in the resort caring for my sweet Hannah. It is just wonderful to sit by the fire and take a vacation from Las Vegas, TV, duties of home, etc. watching the snow fall gently on the mountain behind me. I have had the opportunity to ski and actually had a lot of fun while Grandma and Grandpa Marsden babysat Banana. Adam is in heaven on his fourth day in a row skiing and looking forward to one more day of it tomorrow.

It hasn't all been about skiing-- we also sit in the hot tub every night while Nana tends baby Hannah, we've had mocktails by the pool, kareoke night, temple square/Joseph Smith movie, and Bingo for Holiday meal. Since 8 of us played we won a bag of apples, a gingerbread house, some candy, a pumpkin cheesecake, and Adam's victory--a Ham! So now we are all set for Christmas eve dinner! It has been a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to see what the next two and a half days will bring.

Mostly I'm looking forward to talking to my baby brother. That will be the best Christmas present! Yesterday on Temple Square we found a missionary from Australia and both Adam and I HAD to talk to her. It was sureal talking to this sister missionary with an Australian flag on her shirt knowing my brother was in Australia doing the same work that she was.

I have loved my vacation and I'm looking forward to much more :)

{Hannah Loves Santa}

Beautiful Girl {20 Weeks}

Oh Christmas Time!

This is Hannah's first Christmas and I'm a lot more excited than I thought I would be! All of the presents are wrapped and placed carefully under the tree. Hannah has been an exceptionally good child this year so she is sure to be visited by Santa Claus. It is the beginning of new memories, new traditions, and a renewed energy of celebration!

Although this Christmas is a rebirth there are bound to be some old traditions that are eternally linked to Christmas. I am excited to bring Hannah to Lesley's Christmas party to have her meet more of her family and of course Santa! Another tradition I will carry out is seen in the picture above.

My dad read 'A Christmas Carol' each year to me from 1993-2003. I believe we MAY have done it in 2004 as well. It has become a sacred tradition that I am anxious to share with my first born. I have never read it aloud until now. From 2003(or 04) I have continued to read it on my own silently to myself--the voices I hear in my head belong to my daddy. Tonight I started reading it out loud to Banana. I was surprised how easily the old English language rolled off my tongue as naturally as it did. I was surprised how good it felt to be the parent with my baby in my arms telling her the magnificent story that people rarely come to know in all it's glory. I don't know if there is anyone in the world who loves that story better than my dad and me.

Some of my memories of the book include--several years of my dad explaining certain words and phrases that didn't quite make sense, my dad breaking down while reading Bob Cratchet talk about his young son who just passed away, having teenage angst and not wanting to share my dad with the rest of the family when my mom suggested we make it a family tradition and refusing to participate but secretly listening at the bottom of the stairs while my dad read out loud in the next room, watching the blind mans dog lead him away from Scrooge and making the movie to text connection...It has been a wonderful tradition and I'm grateful to carry it on.

My first week...

Ok so it hasn't been the most glamorous job I've ever had.

After cleaning and chores for hours I don't get thanked and it goes completely unnoticed...

I don't get to talk much to Adults...

BUT IT IS THE BEST!

Hannah loves having me home...we have had a lot of fun together. I have learned that she loves her rattle and loves to dance and she loves to move her jaw up and down to mimic talking (but no sound comes out). She has the power to scoot and move while Mommy isn't looking and then surprise me completely when I turn around. I love my Banana and she can throw up on me as much as she likes...as long as it is on this same shirt--which is essentially ruined lol.

{Off and Away}

Congratulations!

Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and Away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you chose.
You are on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go

These are the words of Dr. Seuss in his book "Oh The Places You'll Go." Today is my last day of school and I feel like today is my day. I'm off to great places. I'm going where I am needed. I couldn't be happier about starting my new life as a full time stay at home mommy and wife for Adam and Hannah. It is what I have always wanted. It is a little surreal...Since I was a young girl I've always said I wanted to be a mom more than anything in the world. That I wanted to stay at home and raise my kids. I always said when I grew up I wanted to be a mom...I guess today is the day I'm all grown up.

I have mixed feelings on graduation. On the one hand...good ridden! I have worked myself to the bone working full time taking 18 credit hours going to school in every step of my pregnancy from morning sickness to four days before delivery from walking in the 108 degree weather caring Hannah to walking away from my 3 week old baby to go to student teaching. I am so ready to be done on one hand...On the other hand I'm done...what now. So much of my life I have devoted to THIS MOMENT. I've put so much work into it and now it is over. I'm a little lost.

Student teaching has fortunately been one of the best experiences of my life. As you can see I haven't blogged much in the past four months because I've been stretched to my limit. I've also made some great friends and had some great moments. It was a labor of love.

I am passionate about education, about the children I've come to know and love. I'm passionate about educational theory and the benefits of a strong education. I've grown closer to the Savior who first understood that being in the presence of children is a sacred experience. I know that my education will forever be a benefit to me and those I serve and teach. I have been refined through this experience. I've met some great allies and friends and my testimony has grown.

My formal education began in Mrs. Paul's kindergarten class. I was scared to go to school. I didn't know if the kids would like me or if I would be a good student. I didn't know if my teacher would like me. My formal education ends in Mrs. Bauer's third grade class. I was scared to go to school. I didn't know if the kids would like me or if I would be a good student teacher. I didn't know if my teacher would like me or if we would even get along. Now I know I have friends, I have opportunities. I have been blessed.

Today is my last day of my grand adventure...but I know it will not be the last day of adventures.