So, last Thursday, I was having a pretty hard day. I was feeling really depressed about a bunch of things, and for some reason, I just couldn't shake it. I was out running errands and I had to find the UPS store, but I had no idea where it was. I pulled in the back of a shopping center so I could circle around and see if one of those stores was it.

As I pulled behind the stores, I saw a dumpster full of mannequin bodies. Instantly, the perfect solution to my bad mood popped in my head: I was going to play a prank on Jared! I was on the phone with my dad and I told him what I was doing and we both started laughing.

When I got home, I called Jared (who was at work) and told him to make sure that he called me before he came home. Then, I put the mannequin on the bed and covered it up with a blanket, so it looked like I was sleeping. Then, I waited...


When Jared finally called, I had about 10 minutes before he got home. I made sure that it looked believable, then I hid in the room across from ours, and waited...

Jared came in, and when he didn't see me in the living room, he went right into our bedroom. He saw the lump and started talking to it, because he thought it was me. Then, he lifted up the blanket and saw the mannequin and turned around and yelled, "Honey!" To me, it was so funny, and I still laugh about it! Sorry the pictures are blurry, but it kind of gives you a visual.






Later that night, Jared took me out on a date. At the movie theater here, they have an arcade, a bowling alley, and a pizzaria. On Thursdays, they have a special for students, so we were able to do unlimited bowling while we waited for the movie, and then we had pizza, sodas, and ice cream, all for only $22. It is a great deal, and we had a lot of fun watching Terminator Salvation. Jared is the best and I am so grateful for him!

The snow does melt in Rexburg!

Since my last post was over a month ago, I thought I would let everyone know that we are still alive and well in Rexburg. We have been busy with so many every-day things and before I knew it, May was over. I am so excited that it is finally getting warmer. I am definitely a warm-weather gal, and I have noticed that my mood and outlook on life have improved considerably (much to Jared's delight). We have been taking advantage of the sunshine by spending lots of time outside. There is a bike path that goes by our house that we ride our bikes on every chance we get. We are also planning to go canoeing this weekend and have a couple of camping trips planned for later in the summer.


Last weekend, we went to Grandma & Grandpa Rasmussen's for a family reunion. It was really nice to see everyone again and spend time catching up. Sunday was Grandma's birthday and as we sang "Happy Birthday" to her, a storm blew the power out. We didn't realize it until after she blew out her candles and we all had a good laugh about it as we sat around by candlelight. I don't remember the last time the power went out, so I really enjoyed it. (Although it was kind of weird taking a flashlight into the bathroom.) Overall, it was a very memorable weekend and we had a lot of fun.

This is Trinity, my youngest cousin. She is four and the CUTEST little girl. She says the funniest things all of the time and has this tiny, squeaky little voice which makes it that much funn













Also while we were in Utah, we took the opportunity to go do work at the Provo Temple. It was so beautiful inside and I was so happy we got to go. I love going to the temple and feeling so close to my Heavenly Father, and I love how it brings Jared and me closer together. It is a wonderful place and I look forward to going every chance we get.






Another cool thing that has happened is that Jared's dad, Kevin, got called to be the Bishop of their ward. He was very nervous before he got set apart yesterday, but we reminded him that Heavenly Father knows what he is doing and these things don't happen by accident. He is a wonderful man and I know he will do great things for their ward.

We have internet!

One of the difficult things about moving is that you have to get all of your utilities transferred. Everything went smoothly this time, except with our internet. We have lived here for almost a month and the internet company just now got around to connecting us. I feel like I have been dislocated from the rest of the world for the last three weeks! It is crazy how dependent on technology we can get. The good news to all of this is that we got some free stuff from the internet company for our troubles, so I guess it wasn't all bad.
We are doing really well now. Jared has started school and is loving it. He is studying to be a Hospital Administrator, which I think is the perfect job for him. He is working really hard and learning lots, but is still very careful to give me attention as well. He is a wonderful husband and I am so lucky to be with him forever!

A Crazy Two Weeks...

As you can probably guess, we have had a crazy two weeks! There have been so many changes, I don't know where to start. The biggest change is that we moved to a new apartment. It is so much better than the one we were living in, and it happens to be cheaper, too. It is so big, that I don't have things to put in all of the cupboards, and I finally have a dishwasher! Hooray! We moved in last weekend, which was pretty stressful. I had to work at H&R Block for half of Saturday, so Jared and his family did a majority of the work. When we got to our new house, we realized that the previous tenants hadn't really cleaned, so there was about two years of dirt and grime everywhere. Luckily, Jared's family is incredible and my fabulous mother-in-law, Mary Ann, offered to clean and spent over seven hours cleaning the house from top to bottom, while the rest of us tried to move eveything over. We are so blessed to have family so close! I love our new house and I am so happy to live there. We have an AMAZING view of the Rexburg Temple out our front window, and I just feel so lucky to have found this great apartment.
Another change is that Jared quit his job at the call center and was offered a job with a family friend to do some contracting work. Jared is really excited to be working full time and not have to deal with crazy people on the phone anymore. He also is interviewing for a tutoring position for one of his professors. This would be great, because he will basically get paid to do his homework, so I really hope he gets it!
I also got another part-time job working for the school district doing the Junior High after school program. It is alot of fun and it is probably the best job I have ever had! I work with some of the coolest kids and I love going to work every day.
Overall, we are doing really well. I am so happy with all of the new changes that have been occuring and I can't wait to see what the spring will bring!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Amazing Recipes

For Christmas, Jared's mom gave us the best cookbook I have ever used. Every single thing I have made has turned out to be delicious. It is called the Mormon Pantry: Family Dinner Cookbook by Debbie G. Harman. I have seen it at Deseret Book and I highly recommend it to everyone. It is smartly organized and has some great quotes in it as well. I also like it because most of the recipes use ingredients that you already have in your cupboard. I have included the recipe for Brown Sugar Muffins, which has become one of my absolute favorites. They are delicious!



Brown Sugar Muffins
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup raisins (optional)
1/2 cup walnuts (optional)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
~Cream butter, brown sugar, and eggs together. If desired, chop raisins and walnuts and stir into creamed mixture. Add soda and salt and mix well. Stir in milk and vanilla. Add flour and stir just until moist. Pour into greased or paper-lined muffin cups. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes. It makes about 20 muffins.

*I added a Tablespoon of vanilla, instead of a teaspoon, and it turned out delicious. If you like vanilla, I suggest that.

I also would recommend the Fruit Smoothies recipe (pg. 89), the Soft Carmel Popcorn (pg. 78), and the Sweet Hot Kettle Corn (pg. 79).

A Fun Weekend

Last Thursday, Jared and I drove over to Boise to visit our families. It was great seeing everyone and catching up with our family and friends. I missed everyone so much!
On Friday night, we went with Vanessa and the Nampa Institute to a Steelheads hockey game. Jared had a lot of fun, but I discovered that I think hockey is kind of boring. Jared's brother, C.J., went with us, and I think he felt the same as me. The only fun parts were when they scored a goal or got into a fight! It was a pretty good game though. The Steelheads scored a winning goal with 0.5 seconds left in the game. I will admit that it was pretty exciting and I even cheered!


Jared and me at the Steelheads game. This was his "ridiculous" face.

A view of the ice.


We also had a lot of fun just hanging out at my mom's. C.J. came over and we played a TON of games and just talked alot. We also went to Tucanos for lunch. It is this delicious Brazillian grill that serves all the meat you can eat. Since Jared and C.J. both went on their missions to Brazil, they both had a ton of fun. Every time a waiter brought more food, Jared would grin because he was so happy to have real Brazillian food again. Also, some of the waiters were RMs from Brazil and spoke Portugese, so Jared also had fun speaking Portugese again. I also love hearing it and I am starting to understand it better. (Which is good, because sometimes Jared and his brothers will speak in Portugese to each other, and now I can tell what they are saying. No more secrets! Haha!)
Overall, we had a great weekend. It was nice to get away from Rexburg for awhile and enjoy some time with our family and friends. Hopefully, we will be able to do it again soon!