HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Friday December 17 was Mike's 25th birthday. I wanted to make it a special day for him since it can be easy to blend his birthday in with the holidays. I made him pancakes in the morning before I left. When I got home I made him a surprise dinner. I grounded him to our room while I made dinner. We had fondue which Mike had never had before and is now a big fan of. After dinner he opened his presents, and we had cake. Then we watched a movie. On Saturday we went out to eat at Joe's Crab Shack. He had never been there and wanted to see if it was any good since he LOVES shell fish. They passed the test and Mike approves them for a second visit.

FORMAL NIGHT IN

After a particularly long and frustrating week, I arrived home to find the best surprise anyone could ask for. My husband (receiving no prompts or hints from me) had dinner waiting on the table with candles lit. He had on his suit and tie and had one of my formal dresses laid out on the bed. We enjoyed a very delicious, formal, romantic, candle-lit dinner followed by games. Then we sat and sipped steamers and talked before heading off to bed. What a great way to end a long week, and what a great husband to help make all my problems melt away. When we got married his mom told me that there would be “no returns and no exchanges.” Who would want to return or exchange a husband like mine?!

VETERAN'S DAY

Mike and I both had Veteran’s Day off this year so we decided to make a holiday out of it. We rode the light rail down town and visited the state capitol. In front of the capitol building are several memorials to veterans and one to the September 11 victims. We both enjoyed the experience of seeing the memorials and the gratitude that flowed through us as we thought of those who have given their life for our freedom. Both Mike and I have relatives, living and who have passed, who served or are serving our country. We are so blessed to live in this wonderful land. Let us never forget that “for of him unto whom much is given much is required” (Doctrine and Covenants 82:3).

MISSIONARY WORK

Mike served a mission to Merida, Mexico and I served a mission to Houston, Texas. Not only is it handy that we both speak Spanish, but we are both gung-ho about missionary work. Well, one such opportunity just fell into our laps. I guess it shouldn’t surprise us because that’s how missionary work happens; it just falls into your lap. We had just gotten back from an over-night camping trip and went to fill up the car. After the car was full a woman approached us, notably in distress. She asked if we could push her car out of the street where it had randomly died. It was just at the entrance to the gas station so we easily pushed her into a parking stall at the gas station. She was so grateful and offered to pay us. We declined and offered instead to give her a ride somewhere. She only lived a short distance away so we drove her home. She kept saying how God would bless us for our actions and that we were such good people. Suddenly she asked us if we were religious and what church we attended. We told her and she said, “That’s ironic because we were just talking about Mormons at work today.” She said that she was a little curious about some of the things that she learned. I asked her what she had heard and she said, “They said that Mormons don’t like blacks (she was black), but obviously that isn’t true!” We all laughed at that. I invited her to come to church with us the next day to see what it was like and have some of her questions answered. She said she had to work. Mike told her he had something that might interest her. He reached in the glove box and pulled out a Book of Mormon. I wrote our names and numbers in the front cover. She asked if we believed in Jesus and I showed her that the title included “Another testament of Jesus Christ.” We explained a little about where the Book of Mormon comes from and what it contained and invited her to read the introduction. So far she has not called us. We are so grateful for missionary work and for the many opportunities to spread seeds. We are also very grateful that Heavenly Father trusted us with one of his precious daughters to share with her the Book of Mormon.

THE LORD WORKS IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS

One of my biggest challenges is putting all my trust in the Lord because I have to do it blindly. I am a very organized and planned person. Mike has been working as a technician for an air conditioning company for the last 2.5 years. They have been very flexible in letting him work full time during the summer and part time during the school year. Well, at the beginning of October he was laid off. His boss gave some lame excuses that we didn’t think were very valid but can’t dispute. Unfortunately, my internship is full time plus I am taking a class. This only leaves me time for a very part-time job working only 3 hours a week. Through it all, we have both felt very calm. We know that everything will work out somehow and that this will end up being for our good. The Lord truly works in mysterious ways. Here’s why. The week that Mike was laid off I got a letter from my previous car insurance company. I had not been with them for over a year. They said that they had a check they wanted to send me and needed me to respond in order to receive it. I also got an email from my internship director saying that all of the interns would be sharing a scholarship. Come to find out there are 4 different internships that rotate receiving the scholarship and this year it happened to fall on ASU. What are the odds that this year would land on my internship and that I would not get notice of this at the beginning of the year, rather in the very week that Mike loses his job? What’s more, that same week Mike starts getting emails regarding professional seminars to help students in business find jobs and internships. Talk about a big sign leading the way. Finally, the week ended with fast Sunday since the week before was General Conference. One woman in our ward shared her testimony on trusting in the Lord. She said that trusting in Him is not trusting that He will give you what you want or what you think you need. Trusting in Him is knowing that in the end everything will be what you needed it to be. I know that life is rocky and has many ups and downs. I am grateful for trials because they help me learn how to trust in the Lord better. I know that through it all, good or bad, He is guiding us.

RED MOUNTAIN HIGH

Mike’s little sister is an athletic trainer at the high school for the various sports team. We went with Mike’s family to one of the football games to see her in action. It was fun to be in the high school football game environment again after so many years. I had forgotten how crazy high school students can be.

SCHOOL TIME

Mike is working on his bachelor’s in business communication at ASU and will graduate in two years. After that time we will begin the graduate school application and go where the wind takes us. I am doing my dietetic internship with ASU and will finish with my master’s in May. Between work, school, and other important things such as laundry and grocery shopping we are amazed when we get more than 6 hours of sleep a night. We are currently serving in the nursery of our ward. We thought that we had dodged that bullet since we were both called to serve in the YM and YW when we first moved into the ward. However, six months later we were released and put into the nursery. So far it has been excellent birth control. Besides, who can complain about playing with blocks and snacks during church?

HONEYMOON

Since we decided to get married right smack dab in the middle of the school year, our honeymoon had to wait. Six months later we took a week long trip to Cancun where Mike served his mission. It was so fun to see where he served and meet some of the people he taught. Of course, who can complain about traditional Mexican food? We went to two ruins sites which were so amazing. I kept wondering how long it took them to build those amazing structures so long ago without the modern day help of machinery! We also took a snorkeling trip and saw all kinds of fish and sea creatures. The beach was beautiful. On our last day we went to the beach early to watch the sunrise. It was one of those moments you never want to end: on the beach, with the love of my life, hardly anyone else around, watching the sun come up to begin another glorious day. Unfortunately, a few hours later we flew home. Here are a few things I learned from my trip to Mexico: 1. If you book a room in a cheap hotel, you get what you pay for. 2. Don’t drive in Mexico unless you want to have a rental car that does not meet safety standards in the US and is smaller than a smart car. 3. Traffic lanes on the road in Mexico are optional and can change at any moment from 3 to 4 and back again. 4. If you want a good snorkeling trip, go to a small town, find the beach, and just walk around. Pretty soon tons of tour guides will come up to you and offer you a trip that’s cheaper than the other guy. 5. Be careful in souvenir shops, not all items are rated G.