Tennessee

I won't recap all thats happened since the last time I wrote, but a few major things; we moved to Tennessee in January, Joel started his accelerated RN program at Union Univ., I now get to stay home with Everett FULL TIME, and life is good.  I really wanted this blog to be all about Joel...but Im finding I really need a place to 1) write down my random thoughts, and 2) write down stories of the happenings in our family.  I will still keep writing my gratitude posts about Joel, because that's still something I want to work on, but I have some new goals to go along with it.

I don't remember what I was doing, but one day this inspiration hit me and I just started thinking.  Like really thinking...weird to explain but all these really important things just started popping into my head.  So I grabbed my phone and started typing them into a note.  This is what it said-

What do I want in life?
- I want to be a morning person
- I want to strengthen my marriage so it doesn't just survive, it thrives
- I want to be more patient with Everett
- I want to be more productive during the day
- I want to feel like I personally know my savior
- I want to finish my degree

So these are my new goals.  This is what i'm going to be focusing on in my life, and I'm going to write about my struggles and successes on here.

I am also going to be writing down random stories that I remember, like Everett's birth story, dates Joel and I went on, etc...because when I get old I want to be able to remember all this stuff! haha

I'm also going to be planning out ways to reach my life goals, daily and long term.

Ok, writing it down is the first step to accomplishing right?  Here goes...

Crazy

These last couple weeks have been crazy, hence why I haven't written on here! With Thanksgiving passing it really made me think about all the things I am thankful for in my life and I need to be better at not just thinking it but actually writing it down.
We had an awesome Thanksgiving with my family, and I am thankful to have a husband who gets along with my family and is so easy going. On the flip side I am also thankful to have such awesome in-laws!
I kept thinking over Thanksgiving about how grateful I am to have such a hard working husband. He has been working so hard in school over the past 5 years in order to provide a good life for our family. Sometimes I don't always act as grateful as I am because I have been working full time for the past 5 years, but I really am grateful for his dedication to being successful in school. I know all of that hard work will pay off when he finally graduates from CRNA school, and I am working hard to remain positive through all the stress and bumps along the way! (Because there have been quite a few) haha Here is our Thanksgiving family picture right before the feast!

Noodle

Joel is very smart.  He always knows what's going on with politics and news...im grateful for him because I hate keeping up on these sorts of things,  so he fills me in on all the important stuff

The Grass is Green Right Here

Joel is just a happy person. When he lived with my family in utah last summer (while I was pregnant, lucked out on that one) my dad would always say how nice it was to have Joel there because he is just such an easy going happy guy.
Im grateful for Joel's positive outlook and happy demeanor he lives life with. I need to be more like that.

Sleepy Time

One of my favorite things is coming home and seeing Joel and Everett asleep taking a nap together or when Evie wakes up really early and Joel brings him into our bed and cuddles him back to sleep.

Today im grateful for half awake kisses that happen when Joel leaves before me in the morning, and for sweet father son cuddles :)

Example

Joel spoke in church today with some of the deacons he teaches.  It was such an awesome talk and his kids gave really great talks too.
Im grateful to have a worthy husband who is such a good example to the young boys in our ward.  And I know he will be just as good of an example to our son(s) when they get older. 
Ps I love this picture of us in Yellowstone in sept 2013

Sweetest thing

I was going through random pictures on my camera today and found this one I took this last summer. I really wanted a family picture so I made Joel trek out into the brush at a local park and take some...with our tripod...haha it was 12:30 in the afternoon and the sun was beating down and he was mad at me the whole time for making him do it haha and I didnt think I took any cute ones but I found this little gem!
I am so grateful to be partnered with this guy in raising our little guy. He is such a fun dad and I love watching them play together, it really is the sweetest thing.