{Snow Day}

About 11:50am at work today, we received an awesome email that we were going to be dismissed at work for the rest of the day (with pay, mind you) and we all packed up and were out of the building by 11:58am.

WAHOOO!!!

I can't remember the last time I had an official "SNOW DAY".

It was pretty magical...

...until I got home.

Then I saw this at my kitchen window:

If you can't tell what that is, its a very broken window, suspiciously near the latch that unlocks the window.

There were no footprints, which leads me to believe it was before the snow fell, maybe??? Not sure.

Regardless I've been freaked out.

Our management company is shut down due to the snow.

Wait, what?

Yep. I now have a Target bag taped over that big hole.

SUCKY SNOW DAY!!!!!!

{4 Cancelled Flights, a Wedding & Louisiana}

Boarded @ 6:15am and ready to go, only to deplane due to mechanical issues. And so it began :(

Rerouted to Phoenix. 2nd Flight cancelled. Dallas and their freezing rain. Waaaah! :(

Finally made it to Dallas. Flight delayed.

Complete change of plans. Flew direct to Lake Charles. Well hello Santa Alligator!

Anna Kate & Heidi Lynn.

Little Jonas

Haha. 3 days late, but finally flying home. 

The Newlyweds!

Val and Scott!!!! Our TX BFFs

{Love is Sweet}

My beautiful, sweet friend, Stefanie, was married and sealed to her best friend yesterday in the Salt Lake City Temple.

Stef has been one of my dear friends who I shared many of my single years with and who has loved me and commiserated with, laughed with, shared happy times and sad times with. I love her dearly and this day was one that has been a long time time prayed for and dreamed of.

Stef opened up the world of country music radio to me years ago. We traveled to Nashville together and I think God knew I needed someone who had that same love and big dreams of music with. Our adventures have been many and I will cherish those forever.

She and I have many parallel paths which allowed us to bond in ways I haven't with many people. Her love, compassion and selflessness taught me so much and I want to be like her :)

Happy Wedding Day my dear Stefanie. I couldn't be happier for you and Jared. You are a wonderful couple and I wish you many long years of love and eternal happiness!

You were the loveliest of all brides <3

{Still 35}

I sat down to write a new post many times since my last one, but for various reason it never got finished. We shall see if this one makes it to a glorious end or not...

I have a few updates that are noteworthy to myself:

• I started a new job last month working part-time as an admin at the Church Office Building (COB) downtown Salt Lake City. I've loved it and I love serving the international areas of the church, learning more about their needs and the way Heavenly Father has control over everything in His church. During my third week, we had a special training for 10 of our new employees and they came from different parts of the world, Japan, Russia, Mexico, Guatemala, Germany, Caribbean, South Africa, Ghana, etc. During that training I listened to their testimonies and the desires they had to help spread the gospel in their homelands. One afternoon, unexpectedly (to us, not our boss) Elder Uchtdorf came and visited with our small group and shared his love and the Saviour's love for all of His children. It was a fast 10 minutes, but the Spirit is a quick talker. I felt what he was saying. I just love the Gospel.  I have more news on this topic, but I'll save that for another post next week.
• Ben and I were able to be at the sealing ceremony of our friends Jazmyn and Jeffery yesterday in the Salt Lake Temple. I absolutely love attending these because I can't help but reflect on my own wedding and the covenants we made and the beautiful blessings we can have in our future. 
• My friend Stef got engaged to her sweet Jared. He makes her so happy and I love seeing another wonderful girlfriend of mine making the choice to be married for eternity in the temple. That is a decision I will never ever regret.
• Sheridan, one of my dearest friends, will be here for what feels like forever (Hooray!) during the month of December and part of January. She currently lives in Alaska and she needs to be here closer to me. Best friends are not supposed to be separated for years at a time. Its just not right. I am going to smother her. I hope she is ready. Poor thing.
• I hired a personal trainer who has now become a wonderful friend. She's been helping me for the last three weeks learn a new lifestyle regarding food and workout strategies. I absolutely love it. I hate junk food, although there has been a day here or there I "needed" it/didn't need it but ate it anyway and thought how pointless it was. It did nothing for me. Nutrition for myself and my family will be falling on me from here on out. Besides the education, Kristy is awesome. I love have spiritual conversations with her as well. I prayed her into my life. I have no doubt she was an answer to that specific prayer.
• My Grandma Lyon had a birthday last Sunday. I called her and we talked for quite awhile. She and Grandpa are already in Yuma, AZ for the Winter. It was so nice to chat with her and hear about things that she is interested in and how her health is and just express love to each other. I need to call her more. 
• I get to have another birthday in two days. Wow. I just realized how close it is. When I turned 30 it was kind of rotten, but then I realized, "Eh, 30 ain't so bad Shuga". Then 31 was still alright, because it was still on this side of 30. Darnit. Friday I turn 36. Is life on its way to being over?????
• Next month Ben and I are going to Louisiana for a few days. We are actually flying into San Antonio to visit Beth, one of his best friends growing up. We were going for her graduation art show, but after we'd already bought plane tickets the show got postponed until January. Nevertheless, to San Antonio we go and then we'll drive to Lake Charlies, LA for Ben's brother's wedding. The fact that we were invited and are going are several miracles in itself. All I'm going to say in this post is---AVOID PRIDE my people!!! Time is short here on earth. Just love each other, okay???

Life is good. I feel blessed. I am getting back to the core of who I want to be.

Everyday I walk into my office building and marvel how lucky we all are to have so many blessings. They are there if we just try to recognize them.

Love ya'll...whoever ya'll are, that is!

(You Have My Whole Heart)

I've been inspired by a web project called "Loveumentary". 

What is love?

What would you say if you could write one last love note to someone?

A few people wanted to document their findings in asking these questions and I decided to participate.

http://www.loveumentary.com/you-have-my-whole-heart/

{Last of the Summer Concerts - Luke Bryan}

The Summer of Sweet Concerts has come to an end and what a Sweet Summer it was!

Luke Bryan, Thompson Square, Florida Georgia Line and Cole Swindell ended the Country Summer Concert series on a high note for Salt Lake City!

101.5 The Eagle pulled out the big guns and invested in a Party/Tour Bus all equipped with fancy lights, sound system, TV, snacks, concerts and other surprises yet to be revealed.

Cole Swindell performed on our Outdoor RV Eagle Stage and even though it was the first time I've heard his music, I am a fan. He has written for Luke Bryan and Craig Campbell and I have a feeling we will be hearing more from him. Luke had him come on stage during the show and perform his first single, "Chillin It" (which I've included for your viewing pleasure).

Due to traffic clearing out, we didn't get home until about 1:00am, but that was okay since we had The Eagle Bus to hang out and watch a movie in after the show. That was a pretty long day, but memorable and worth it.

Thank you to 101.5 The Eagle, Erika and Jon for having us as your "interns". We hope we contribute enough to make your jobs a little easier!

{1:30AM Humor}

I don't think the reason I am so amused by this video is due to the hour of the night/morning - 1:30am at the moment.

I might even be jealous that this person has a cat with even more character than mine. 

But seriously...where can I get a shark suit for my cat??????

{Busy, Unemployed and Family History}

My sweet Mission Mom invited me to have lunch with her last week and it was good food for the tummy and the soul!

She asked me what was new and I said that I was the busiest unemployed person I have ever met :)

Okay. I am positive I could be more busy than I already am...but that would require waking up before 9am every day. Who wants to do that when they don't have to though?

I know, I know...spare me the lecture, because I AM working on waking up earlier. That would require going to bed earlier and just for the record it is currently 12:30am.

I have always had a hard timing falling asleep.

Stress has always made it worse.

Nothing right now is terribly conducive for keeping a normal sleep schedule. 

I was in bed tonight at 10:30pm and two hours later, here I am.

I don't watch TV except when Ben is home at night. I have a very long list of things to keep me busy. I can only job hunt and fill out applications for so long each week. BORING!!!

My usual day now, for the most part, resembles exercise, being on my computer, playing with Cinna, trying new recipes-now that I have time, checking items off of my to-do list, weekly service and FAMILY HISTORY!

Does that sound awesome to you too?

**Mormons love family history, aka genealogy. Why? Ask me. We have a lot of good reasons.

A couple of years ago my Grandpa Powell passed away. About a year after his death I had a dream about him and he told me that he missed his sweetheart and couldn't wait to see her again. 

**Mormons also believe that this earthly experience we are all having is temporary and we will be reunited with our loved ones again someday. It makes complete sense to me.

I had that dream in 2008 and I have always felt a pressing need to make sure I started working on our family history so I could take names to one of the temples.

**Mormons also believe in free agency and freedom of choice for our passed ancestors to either accept or deny any work done for them done here on earth in temples.

**Did you know there are temples ALL OVER the world now??? 

Louisiana Baton Rouge Temple - where Ben and I were married and sealed as a family

Needless to say, I am finally working on my family history through www.familysearch.org and I am kind of obsessed with it. 

I called my Grandma and Grandpa Lyon who connected me with their cousin in Florida. I spoke to Nancy, who is my 3rd cousin I believe, and we had a great chat :) She is sending me some information that she has and I cannot WAIT to receive it.

I got stuck on a few family names BUT if I have the right Charles Henry Lyon (my Great, Great Grandpa) then I just discovered a very long line of our family history that has already been done back to the 15th Century.

I am being realistic and guessing there are errors somewhere along the way, but the possibility that I am on the right path makes me giddy!

So far it appears that at least one line of my family came from Scotland in the 1700's and settled in Connecticut, Pennsylvania and then New York. Sure, why not? 

It is pretty amazing the information I've been able to find just with the free resources online. I have a feeling I may be signing up for one of those websites that I will eventually have to pay for as they seem to have easier access to Census records. I need to do some more digging, but so far so good!

{Keeping Perspective}

Motto of the week: Keep it real and keep fun in perspective! 

My FAVORITE song of the week:

Danny's Song - Kenny Loggins (cover by Robert Bartko)

And even though we ain't got money,
I'm so in love with you, honey,
And everything will bring a chain of love.
And in the morning, when I rise,
You bring a tear of joy to my eyes
And tell me everything is gonna be alright.

Ben has been a rock through the last two weeks of my "vacation" AKA "unemployment". 

Last weekend we hung out at home the entire weekend. I think we are still trying to figure out what life is going to look like until I find another job(s). We realized we can't put life and our happiness on hold.

We can STILL have fun, just on a smaller scale and within our means :)

Last night we went downtown to the Salt Lake Greek Festival with our friend Joe. We mostly made it about food and just hanging out, and we had such a good time. We love having friends to hang out with. 

I am SO glad I married someone who loves my friends as much as I do. I don't need fancy trips, nice cars, a big house, or a lot of cash, but I do need people in my life that I care about and that care about us. 

We are living life a little more humble than we've been before, but life is SO good :) 

Ben showed so much care and concern for Joe last night that I was proud he was my husband. It really is the little things. I like being on his team when I recognize those cool things he does even though he doesn't have to. 

For your enjoyment I am also including a picture I took on Trax last night. Salt Lake Comic Con is also going on right now. Even though these Super Heros are plum tuckered out, I felt pretty safe riding public transport last night.

  

{Positive Affirmations}

Today has been what I consider one of my lazy, yet productive and perfect Saturdays.

We got to sleep in a bit.

I applied for another job and then I went walking for an hour at Sugarhouse Park and listened to my tunes in whats left of the Summer sunshine.

Did a little grocery shopping and decided to try a new dish (Creamy Broccoli Artichoke Chicken). It was alright. Ben gave it a 7 out of 10 stars.

We watched a little college football together.

I then made some time to read over and ponder my lesson for Sunday School tomorrow (its on the Sabbath Day).

Then I was thirsty and went downstairs to find my water bottle. I realized I left it in the car. I saw Ben's shoes sitting by door and sat down to put them on. He was sitting on the couch and we kept looking at each other and then looking away with these goofy smiles on our face.

He laughed and then the only thing he said was...

"I love being married to you." 

I think he was teasing me, but regardless, it made me happy. It really is the little things (quirks) that make us fall in love with each other every single day.

For the record...

I love being married to him too :)

{My Other Face Book}

My little face project is complete...for now.

I just completed the 3rd round of CO2 Laser Resurfacing. 

Each round was a dramatic improvement as the office got more familiar with the laser and patient's comfort level. 

Round 1 - Numbing Cream, Nerve Blockers were used (shots in my face and gums) and a LOT of pain killers before and several days later.

Round 2 - Numbing Cream, Nerve Blockers, Pain Killers before the procedure and several days after and Ice was used during the procedure which was a major improvement, pain-wise.

Round 3 - Different Numbing Cream, NO Nerve Blockers, Pain Killers before and only maybe 6 pills post procedure...BECAUSE of their new Cooling Fan! It was a dream! Uh hello, no shots?! The fan drops the temperature of the skin in each area before they zap it. There were of course some tender areas still (around my lips and eyes) but I couldn't have been happier.

My recovery from Round 3 this time was different as well. I already mentioned I only had to take maybe 6 pain pills (Lortab) post procedure. I have a few theories. This time They iced me for about 20 minutes right after I was done. Then, instead of Vaseline, I requested Aquaphor instead. My healing time seemed to be bumped up by a day at least. True story. Plus, I cleaned my face and applied new Aquaphor about 3 times a day.

I am very happy with my results. I still need to find a good "before" photo so I can document all of this :)

Next, I may be trying a new anti-aging product for daily use. I've seen some pretty incredible before and afters. I will do a full review right here and let you know what I think :)

 

Right side - On the drive home. I had a lot more swelling this time and my face was on FIRE!

{Love and Marriage, Love and Marriage}

"...No relationship on earth needs friendship as much as marriage." - Marion D. Hanks

I love my husband.

We knew tough times would come in marriage and here we are faced with another one.

I lost my job last week...again. Boooo! :(

I am not sure why, but I was most nervous to tell my husband. I hate disappointing him.

Surprise, surprise, on my part though.

I cannot express how supportive, loving and kind he has been this entire weekend.

I've had a hard time turning off my brain as to what this means for us, but whenever my thoughts would go there, he would grab my hand, kiss my forehead, put his hand on my leg, put his arm around me or show me affection in some small way that was actually a very BIG way to me.

We are turning into best friends all over again, in a different way. I love this.

We are learning to support each other during hard times, and I'm sure there will be more down the road, but for now he is showing me the love that I need and that is a tender mercy to me right now.

"Married people are sweethearts, in a special creative union, blessed with that powerful chemistry that draws two together, sometimes from next door, sometimes from a world away. This divinely designed power must be sustained by other qualities—by respect and loyalty and integrity—to be what it is meant to be. To be able to give oneself fully with confidence and trust, and to fully receive the other joyfully and gratefully—this is a blessing that grows in meaning year by year and forever."

-Marion D Hanks 

{Saying Goodbye}

Grandpa Lundquist was 92 years old when he passed away this year. I only had the pleasure of being with him twice in my life. The first time was Christmas 2010, when Ben and I were dating. The second was just last year. It was quite the memorable holiday for all of us as Grandpa, Ben and myself ended up incredibly sick for at least 24 hours. I will spare details, but we tried to laugh about it the day I was leaving. This is our "I'm not dead, but I still feel like it" face. It was the last time I would see Grandpa in mortality. I remember the first time meeting him how much he loved his Ethelyn. She passed away about a year ago. Right before we took this photo, he broke down crying saying how much he missed her. Knowing he is now with her again made his passing a sweet sorrow.

Ben and I drove to Lindsborg, KS from Utah. Ben's dad drove from Lake Charles, LA for the funeral. We even brought Cinna (she's an interstate traveler now). Getting to Grandpa's was something we were looking forward to, but we both commented how strange it was to be in his house and not have him there. The feeling was just different. He really was gone. Grandma and Grandpa Lundquist were life-long supporters of the Bethany Lutheran Church. This is where he and Grandma are now buried. It was a lovely service and I felt his location quite appropriate, as he could still watch the crops grow. Grandpa was a life long farmer. He was an inventor and had so many stories of working in the fields. I can still hear his voice...

One of the lovely parts of losing family is the opportunity to gather as family and spend time together. I grew to really love Lindsborg and getting to know Ben's cousins during our short visit this time. I love their small town and their little families and can't wait until we have a brood of our own so they can all play together. We loved walking the streets of the quiet town, watching squirrels, getting SnoCones, visiting places remembered during his childhood, and trying out the local restaurants. It was a great visit and we love this part of our family. As it is with the rest of our family, it is very sad distance keeps us all so far apart during this time of our lives. We love them all :)

{A Little Update}

I've tried to start a new blog post a few times in the last month, but for some reason I just haven't been able to get my heart to put into words how its been feeling.

Rather than blog from the heart this time, I guess blogging the facts will have to do :)

• Co2 Laser Therapy-Round 2, went very very well. I actually have very little to say about it other than it was such a DREAM compared to the first time. They figured out to use ICE on each part of my face before zapping me and WOW. One more treatment to go. I was scheduled for June, but had to postpone until August. I am loving the results!
• Weight-loss. Well, the online trainer thing was short-lived for me. Physically I felt terrible and I looked terrible, and the weight just wasn't coming off fast enough to keep me motivated. A friend of mine came back from maternity leave looking amazing for having had a baby 9 months before. She told me about a program she's been on using "Ideal Protein". I started it 5 weeks ago and I think I down about 13 lbs. right now. I've heard of more weightloss in that amount of time, but I am still encouraged. My clothes have started fitting better and my joints feel amazing. (I was having really sore hip pain before I started this.)
• 48 Hour Movie Project - Year 4 wrapped up last weekend. I was able to be on the Daley/Maxim Team again as their camera chick. It was awesome. We drew "Superhero" for our genre and even though the guys weren't as thrilled with their film this year, we all thought it was really good and of course, funny :) Looking forward to next year even more.
• Garth Brooks - I FINALLY got to see him LIVE in concert in Las Vegas at The Wynn. Ben and I drove down and had an amazing weekend. I have to say---BEST CONCERT I've ever been to. Wow, Wow, Wow. I mean, he is the REASON I LOVE COUNTRY MUSIC. I will admit this...yeah, I CRIED. I've never cried at a concert before...I was that amazed at the magic of it all. He was so real, funny, and he adored his wife, Trisha Yearwood, who came out on stage and sang two songs with him as well. I'm not sure concerts will ever be the same for me again. This girl is completely spoiled.
• That same weekend (Memorial Day), we stopped by and say my good friend, Jenn on the way home. She is pregnant with her 4th baby and we ended up helping her pick up dirt for her garden and getting that all sorted out for her. It was cute to see her so excited about plants. I am looking forward to having something like that once I have room to grow food...now that I love veggies and all :) We also went camping with her family and some people from her ward up Diamond Fork Canyon. They were all fancy and had campers, but we slept in the back of our truck, just like the outdoorsy people that we are, haha.
• Ben surprised me one night and when I came from work he had pulled our weeds and bought a bunch of bark for our front garden. It looks so nice! I don't think it even needs flowers, but I wouldn't object. That was a big deal for me! :) It was one of those things I kept meaning to do and just never got around to doing it.
• I cut 7 inches off my hair. I don't love how it looks, but I love how it feels. I'm pretty sure this was my biggest cut ever.
• Ben and I went to Zions National Park a few weeks ago. We bought a parks pass and have plans to frequent many more. We climbed Angel's Landing, camped and had an amazing time. It was pretty hot and all, but I'm glad I did it.

That's all I've got for now. G'night my pretties.

{Glutton for Punishment}

While I was having my skin resurfaced a little over a month ago, the pain was so completely intense that I was positive I would never give birth to a baby at any point in my life.

DECISION WAS MADE.

Relating to childbirth and going through labor multiple times, I recall that many women have said that you forget the pain and that its worth it, etc...

I get it...sort of.

I am going in for another round of CO2 skin resurfacing in three weeks.

It actually took three people in the doctor's office to convince me I'd live through it and that it would be worth it because I really want smooth skin...more than I want to be skinny/fit. 

That proves to ME what a big deal this is. 

I really thought the first round would be enough, but now it might even need up to a 3rd. 

*Sigh* x's 100

The anxiety that I feel over anticipating the pain isn't helping. They assured me that since I was one of their first patients using their new laser, they've come far in making it less painful. That fact, and that they promised a larger dose of medication ahead of the procedure, convinced me, somehow.

Even though all of you ladies claim to forget the pain of your significant event...I haven't, yet it hasn't changed my mind.

Yes, I just compared having my face burned off to having a baby. Most likely a very terrible comparison, I know.

Maybe I am just a glutton for punishment.

PS--My dermatologist thinks I look like Cameron Diaz. He says this every time I come in. Nice ploy to keep me coming back. Its working.

{The Ugly Truth}

I've always been a confident girl and I've always liked the way I look, but I've never been able to embrace the acne scars I developed years ago. Infact, I really despised them.

Last week I finally did something about those crazy scars.

Did it hurt? Deeply.

Would I do it again? Probably not, but luckily I don't have to :)

This wasn't your BFF's chemical peel. This was a hardcore CO2 LASER. I was drugged up on Lortab, nerve blockers (shots) and numbing cream.

If you are curious what a face can look like lasered-off, here you go. This is my daily play by play for the last 8 days.

The red/splotchyness is nearly gone now. Yay!