Loving, Laughing, Living

Bennett Watson Bogle

2010-07-05T21:41:00.003-07:00

Born June 29, 5:39 pm

8lb 13 oz
20.5 in long

practically perfect in every way!

a million years

2010-05-04T17:50:00.005-07:00

life is crazy.

BUT I have been trying to be better at photographing all of our events =)
Here's what has been happening lately...Last month, we got a new puppy. His name is Spooner and he is adorable!

those pictures are a few weeks old. he is not so tiny anymore and the only growing faster is MY STOMACH! :)

my dad was in town this last weekend and took some photos for us... this is my belly at 33 weeks... time is flying by!

Is it just me or do the frontal view and the side view look drastically different??

Ty can't get enough of my belly which is super cute (especially considering the fact that I am losing interest in my waistline quite rapidly). He rubs it all the time and lays his face on it while we watch tv.

Ty has been working hard around the house. I feel like he is nesting more than I am! He installed curtain rods in practically every room of our house and hung all the curtains I picked out. And today he spent a good 6 hours on yardwork (planted grass in our monster backyard... we'll see how that goes...)

Life is good here. We just never remember to brag about it... oh- I mean blog about it =)

Til next time...

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T10:51:00.007-07:00

Tyson woke me up this morning to breakfast in bed- my favorite indulgence =) he made hashbrowns, sausage, and eggs and brought it to me on a tray with a long stem rose. I love that he can be so romantic!

I got him a box of chocolates and a gift certificate to a couple's massage class so we can learn how to do legit massages.

This Valentine's Day is extra special for us because it marks the one year anniversary of our sealing in the Mesa, AZ temple.

Being sealed has been such a blessing during the last year. I am so glad to call Ty my eternal companion and feel overwhelmed with the thought of spending forever with him.

In other news- I am officially half way through this pregnancy! Hooray! We are working hard on the nursery (which really means working hard on our den/guest room so we could clear out the nursery). Our friends Kathrin and Ryan are helping A LOT! We love them =) I'll post pictures when the room starts taking shape. I'm really excited about how its going to turn out.

I'll try to post ultrasound pictures and whatnot soon. Life has been busy lately but we are loving it!

Nursery

2009-12-19T11:40:00.003-07:00

Why is this crib bedding $300?? I love it!

Anyway- i think i have decided on this black crib =)
I love the 'jenny lind' style and you can get matching changing tables, bookshelves, etc.

I'm DYING to find out if we are having a boy or a girl, but we've got to wait another month or so. We always talked about wanting a boy first, but I think I have jumped ship. Obviously, we will be happy with either, but I just want to know already!!!

Oh Baby

2009-12-16T18:45:00.002-07:00

Haven't updated in forever... but we've got news!

I will post my sonogram as soon as we have hooked our scanner up to the new computer =) Our baby is the size of a lime and I am due in June!

I can't even tell you how excited Ty is. He literally said that all the stresses he was feeling went away when he found out we were having a baby. So cute! =)

CHICAGO

2009-07-05T16:14:00.006-07:00

We got back from Chicago this week so I'm posting some of our pictures here. The rest are on facebook =)

We rented this bicycle for an hour and it was embarrassing! There were no gears so we were going sooo slow! The joggers were passing us!! Fun anyway

We spent a few days at Navy Pier which was lots of fun! There are a bunch of rides and mini golf along with boat rides, a really pretty garden, FOOD and fun =)

We took a pirate boat tour from navy pier too. It was a lot of fun!

We went to a museum that was having a Harry Potter exhibit with artifacts from the movie. This is the flying car. You couldn't take pictures inside the exhibit, but it was super cool! They had everyone's wand and costumes and even the moving pictures that you see on the walls at Hogwarts. Super cool!

This is Buckingham Fountain. It was really pretty!

We made two trips to the Ghirardelli shop for ice cream! It was amazing!!

Field Museum! This is Sue, the most complete TRex fossil ever discovered!

Legend has it, if you get married in this church behind us, you will never get divorced! There is a crazy long waiting list.

We didn't take any pictures at the Art Institute except this one- an example of the Miniatures. They had about 30 of these little rooms with real furniture and decorations. Some were really elaborate. It made me want a doll house!

These are a few pictures from the aquarium. It was really neat! They had small animals like turtles and pirhanas and big animals like beluga whales and dolphins.

We had a realllyyyyy fun time! It was nice to get away from our usual routine and go somewhere together. We havent really had a trip since we've been married except our honeymoon and we really want to start travelling more. I'm excited to cash in the rest of our frequent flyer miles!

Time Traveller's Wife

2009-06-13T08:46:00.005-07:00

I can't even tell you how excited I am to see that this book is being turned into a movie!! Who else has read it? Who else wants to read it before August so we can see it together??

2009-04-26T16:33:00.001-07:00

jessie nelson bell- if you're out there, please invite me to read your blog! i miss hearing about your newlywed escapades.

Thats all.

oh- pictures of the house will be posted soon- i promise!

No Doubt

2009-03-02T11:18:00.003-07:00

Remember these guys? The band that launched Gwen Stefani to solo artist stardom?

Yeah, I totally won tickets to the reunion tour this morning on the radio! Be jealous!

I called Ty to tell him and his exact words were "Well, there is NO DOUBT that you'll have to find someone else to go to this concert with you."

Any super fans out there? Anyone? Bueller?

My birthday is off to a great start!

Those Who Can...

2009-02-27T11:17:00.003-07:00

I love my job.

One of my sweet angel boys wrote me a letter for Valentine's Day that was just so cute and I wrote him a thank you card for it on fancy stationary. Ever since, he has been writing me "thank you for the thank you" letters about once or twice a week.

Today, it was sealed in an envelope from home that he had decorated with flowers.

Dear Mrs. Bogle,
think you for the litter you sent me. I love you as a teacher and you are the Best and most cind teacher I ever hade. I love you as a techer more than the galexey and more than that. Love Derek

My job here is so much fun. I've been thinking about trying to get a job in the Laveen district once we move, but I can't imagine leaving this school and these kids and my humongous classroom. I guess we'll just see what happens.

Speaking of Laveen, we should be closing in the next week or two... Our official closing date isn't until March 20 but we should be moving before spring break as long as there aren't any huge holdups.

I CAN'T WAIT!

Good News!

2009-02-20T13:00:00.003-07:00

So many wonderful things have happened lately so I'm excited to blog about them today!

1. Tyson and I were sealed on Valentine's Day and spent the weekend with my dad and stepmom in Sedona. It was so nice to be up in the mountains again =) I really miss it. Oh and being sealed is cool too haha

2. Tyson and I celebrated Valentine's Day on Tuesday by having a candlelit dinner of grilled cheese sandwiches and ramen noodles with Pomegranate sparkling cider. Mmmm. He got my High School Musical 3 on bluray and I got him a nice framed picture of the temple.

3. On Wednesday, Ty was talking with his manager about work stuff and the possibility of transferring to a f&e closer to our new house. Long story short- his manager gave him the asst. manager position and said they promise to work around his school schedule! He jumped from making $9/ hr. to $12! Awesome.

4. Also on Wednesday, I won a $50 gift card on the radio!! It is for some American Bistro in Phoenix that is supposed to be pretty good. I had to guess a riddle that sounds like something wayyyy dirty but is really a household object.

5. We should be closing on our house in the next few weeks! We are so EXCITED!! I can't wait to have my birthday party in our monster backyard. Oh- and we are already discussing the tetherball 'court' that we will be setting up as well.

All good things! Oh- and someone contacted me about advertising on my Year of Pizza blog that I made in January (but i never posted anything on it) because it has had 80 hits already! haha. That could be fun...

Catch you later!

Ketchup

2009-02-03T17:55:00.005-07:00

I am the worst blogger on the planet.

In an attempt to rid myself of the guilt I feel for not posting since Christmas, I will update you briefly on everything going on in our lives:

Shanda's job: Good. Today ranked top 3 worst days at school. My little challenge child attacked me and wouldn't stop punching me in the stomach and arms. I'm okay. He is suspended.

Ty's job: Great. Everyone loves him. He was told that he was next in line for an assistant manager position, but his availability with school won't let him get it. I'm glad he isn't dropping out of school! He might be getting a new job doing car detailing that pays better. We'll see.

House: We bought one. You can look at pictures on this craigslist post http://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/reb/992990653.html
We will be closing sometime in March I think... Hopefully earlier, but we'll just have to see.

Misc: Ty is the best husband ever. We made a resolution to be more romantic and I'm sucking at it just as much as I suck at all my resolutions. Ty has started doing cute things all the time =) Last week he painted my fingernails for me during One Tree Hill. Today I came home and he had left a trail of flowers from my parking space to our apartment door. There was a bouquet inside and the entire house was clean! Luckiest girl ever.

Also, we will be getting sealed on Saturday, Feb. 14 at 9am (i think thats the right time...). Does anyone want to volunteer to do my makeup? Please?

Never got around to making Christmas cards... Here's our family portrait anyway =)

Merry Christmas Eve

2008-12-24T10:31:00.003-07:00

I really just wanted to post this picture. My grandparents played Santa and Mrs. Clause in their older years and I love this picture.

The last few years have really made me miss them around the holidays. I wish Ty could have met them. Grandpa Dean had a huge heart and always sat with me at the counter cracking pine nuts when we would visit. I would eat them as fast as he could crack them open. Grandma would spend all day in the kitchen baking and bustling. I remember as a kid just trying to stay out of the way. My brother and I would usually go play in the garage which was the size of a pretty big barn and completely filled- floor to ceiling- with old stuff. Rolls of carpet, bull horns, sharp, rusted metal. It was a kids playland and a parent's worst nightmare. I can even remember a few times that our parents would come calling for us and we would just hide. They probably would never have found us if we hadn't popped out from wherever we were.

We spent a lot of holidays with my Grandma and Grandpa Dean because they lived so close to us, and I'll always remember the love and warmth that filled their home at Christmas.

2008-12-06T09:15:00.000-07:00

http://www.designspongeonline.com/2008/12/uxus-designs-mcvillage.html

this is easily the coolest mcdonalds playland i have ever seen. too bad its in amsterdam or else me and ty would have to plan a roadtrip.

design sponge is the coolest if you haven't ever checked it out before...

Picture Post

2008-11-23T12:21:00.004-07:00

Halloween

First Year Anniversary at Landmark

Westin and Katrina's wedding

Kids Vote

2008-10-17T12:33:00.002-07:00

I've never been very politically active or even aware, but this election I am really trying to pay more attention. I hate to admit that I've never even voted before and that now, as a 21 year old adult, I had to ask my mom how to even register. I don't want to talk politics here though, or even discuss my feelings about the presidential candidates; I want to share a story about the students in my class.

I teach second grade in inner-city Phoenix. We are a charter school, so we serve a pretty large area- any parents that want their children in our school are welcome to come no matter where they live. Every student at our school receives free lunch because of their low family income. It can be heartbreaking hearing about their home lives and realizing how sheltered I was as a child.

Today at recess a group of third graders asked their teacher, a good friend of mine, who she was planning on voting for in the upcoming election. Being a diplomat, she asked who they thought she should vote for and the students started debating the candidates back and forth. My second grade students and I started listening to the older kids as they discussed what they had heard about both McCain and Obama. It was surprising and pretty cool to hear the students talking about how their lives would be effected by the outcome of this election.

Eventually the conversation turned to immigration laws and how the presidential candidates were going to change or reform the laws and practices. My students began to join the conversation and started talking about how scared their family is of Joe Arpaio. They were under the impression that if Obama wins this election, their families will receive the paperwork they need to stay in this country and they won't have to "hide from Sheriff Joe" anymore.

It doesn't matter how I feel about Sheriff Joe, Obama, McCain, or even immigration laws. It was emotional listening to these children trying to make sense of the politics that are forcing their parents into hiding. They don't understand why they can't live freely in what they learn is the Home of the Free. There are no easy answers.

I talked to my students a little bit about voting and being good citizens, but I want to do a more in-depth political study with them. I hear that Nickolodeon has Kid's Vote online so I'll be doing some research there to guide our discussion. Any feelings on this topic?

Hope everyone is having a great day.

Oh- and my phone got stolen from Ross. Super lame. Call Ty if you need anything.

Loving, Laughing, Living

2008-10-03T06:37:00.001-07:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

let the countdown begin...

2008-06-14T10:30:00.004-07:00

so I haven't posted in a while, and I haven't posted pictures in even longer... so here are a few from May... A few days before graduation, me and Ty went down into Oak Creek Canyon which ranks in the top 3 of my favorite places on the planet. Dandy loves it there too. She is such a water dog and loves all the smells and running on the river rocks and chasing lizards and butterflies. We have a special place called Grasshopper Point that we love to go to because it has a beautiful portion of the creek running through it along with a bunch of waterfalls and big still pools. There are walking trails and big trees that change color in the fall. Every time we visit Grasshopper Point I find more things I love about it. Its on of the only places I've ever been that makes me feel so close to Heavenly Father because of all the natural beauty. These pictures don't even do it justice, but if anyone wants to go- I'll share my special place with you =)

Oh and this is a tree frog we found... You can't tell from the picture, but his belly was BRIGHT NEON YELLOW! It was so cool.

I also graduated from NAU in May!! YAYYYY! It feels so good to finally be done!

I have some cute pics of me and Ty, but can't get them to work at the moment so I'll save those for later!

We are moving down in about 2 weeks! Both of us are getting super anxious already.

haha

2008-05-22T13:11:00.002-07:00

i haven't posted in over a month so here is a new one.

ps- i'll have pictures soon

oh and me and ty are moving to the east valley sometime in the next month or two... we'll keep you posted.

ohhhh- and i'm a college graduate now =) yay.

firsts

2008-04-12T16:02:00.002-07:00

So i'm graduating in about four weeks and although I've been looking forward to it for the last year, I'm surprisingly nervous. This is the first time in my life that I haven't known at all what the future holds and where I will end up next. I've applied for teaching jobs all over Arizona and in a few districts in Washington and Oregon. Ty had a hard time moving out of Chandler just to come to Flag and I thought he'd be more nervous than me about a big move like that but he is mellow as ever (typical for Ty, right?). I feel like we are about to enter legit adulthood which means careers and children. Eeek.

Last night I got my first blessing from Ty. I woke up around 3am and felt like I had been poisoned or somehow stabbed from the inside. I am usually the one in our relationship that suggests spiritual solutions like reading scriptures or praying for help, but amidst my wailing, Ty suggested the blessing. After snuggling with me on the bathroom floor for a few minutes, he also went to the Circle K next to our apartment to buy some Gatorade in the middle of the night. Within half an hour I was able to go back to sleep and even made it to work this morning like nothing had even happened. This was really the first time I've been able to see the miracles and blessings of the priesthood in our marriage and it is truly incredible. I know I picked the right guy and can't wait for more of these miracles over the years.

My student teaching is going a lot better these days (which I never thought I'd say). I taught my own unit during the last three weeks. It was an entire unit about Africa and I did a LOT of research in preparation. I taught the kids about one animal every day and they really picked up on some interesting facts about each one, like how a giraffe can kick 360 degrees with every foot and elephants can snorkel with their trunks above the water. We also learned a lot about how people live in different regions. My main goal was to educate the kids that not all people in Africa are black and poor and live in grass huts. We learned about the big cities and the different things that people typically do for work there. Next week we are going to learn about diamonds and food crops. Surprisingly, my coop. teacher has only had positive things to say about all the lessons I've prepared. She asked for copies of all the activities I did with the kids and wrote me a nice letter of recommendation. I'm glad things are going better now toward the end.

For those of you interested, my graduation is on May 9. The weather is going to be fantastic and its a great excuse for a vacation =) I'm going to be mailing announcement thingies this week.

Breakfast for Lunch

2008-03-26T15:55:00.002-07:00

I bought some Malt-O-Meal brand cereal at the dollar store. It's called Blueberry Muffin Top and it is DELICIOUS!!! It really tastes like a blueberry muffin but the pieces look like Golden Grahams or something. Unfortunately, there were only about 3 servings in the box. Looks like I'll be doing some grocery shopping at 99 Or Less.

PS- How do I fatten up my husband? The cereal didn't work...

2008-02-28T16:40:00.002-07:00

1. Pick up the nearest book (one of at least 123 pages)

2. Open the page to 123

3. Find the 5th sentence.

4. Post the next 3 sentences

"Pull off some modeling clay about the size of a jelly bean. Roll it in your hands until it is round like a small marble. Take a larger piece of another color clay."

Taken from a book titled First Science Experiments (chapter: What is Hail?). I don't have time for fun books these days.

Me and Ty should be coming down to the valley this weekend, but he is feeling sick so we probably won't be leaving tonight like I had hoped. Good news tho- I passed my AEPA! Yayyy!! And, as if I'm living in some alternate universe, I actually did something today that my cooperating teacher appreciated! We made cupcakes using dixie cups and an electric skillet. The kids got to help measure, pour, stir, and we even learned about high altitude cooking instructions. They loved it and the cupcakes turned out amazing!

Anyway- thats basically all of the news I have to share. Megan- I can't wait to hold Catcher this weekend since I was sick the weekend of his blessing. You guys better be around!

See ya soon =)

awesome

2008-02-23T10:44:00.002-07:00

thehamburgerphone.com
love it.

Update

2008-02-15T20:09:00.002-07:00

We had a snow day today so I got a break from my black-hearted teacher and a little extra time that I am spending here, blogging. Things have not gotten better with her by the way... I called Ty on my lunch break twice this week crying in my car. She just does the most backhanded things! Case in point: She asked me to find some cute Valentine's day worksheets and activities a few weeks ago so I flagged some cute stuff in a teacher magazine. She won't give me her copy code so I had to wait for her to make the copies for me. When she gave me the stack, there were a couple missing. I didn't think much of it and just made those copies myself at home. About a week later, she says to me "If you can't find enough things for the kids to do, I found these really great worksheets for them. You should be looking for this type of stuff" and hands me the stack of missing copies! This happened again a few days ago with space activities that I had found and asked her to copy. Needless to say, I'll be making my own copies from now on. She also talked to my advisor for 20 of my 30 minute observation visit and complained about me the whole time. I want to get a job in this district so badly and I'm not sure if thats going to happen if she continues to hate me the whole semester. Blah. This four day weekend is a nice breath of fresh air to say the least.

Ty has not found a new job yet. Well, let me rephrase that. Ty has not yet found a job that will adequately pay our bills long term. He got hired at Discount Tire (thanks to Arnold) but has to start at a part time position and it only pays $8.50 an hour. I finally took matters into my own hands and called our bishop to ask him to keep us in mind if he hears of any open positions. He called right back and gave us a few leads of people to call in the ward that own their own businesses. I have been working a lot at Oregano's to make up for it, and we have a lot in our savings account, but I'm starting to get worried. Side note- devil teacher told me I'll have to quit my job if I expect to fulfill my responsibilities as her student teacher... She makes comments about it every other day.

Valentine's Day was really nice and mellow. My kindergarteners were so cute and loved exchanging cards and candy. Mrs Roth told me she was getting them pencils and crayons and I should get a food type treat. Thanks. We have one little girl with diabetes and another with a strict no gluten, no dairy, no artificial flavoring/coloring diet. I finally found some organic rice cake snacks that were packaged like pirate treats so I got Pirates of the Carribean valentines to go with it. The kids loved it and the parents appreciated it too, especially since Mrs Roth served milkshakes and frosted cookies at the party. It was the saddest thing to watch these two little girls eat all organic rice cake snacks when the rest of the kids were overdosing on sugar and dairy. What is she thinking?

Ty and I cooked a nice dinner and were supposed to exchange little gifts but he got me a really nice necklace with my birthstone in it. We probably shouldn't be spending money on stuff like that right now, but I like it so much that I'm not even going to think about it =) I felt sort of lame giving him a box of cinnamon toast crunch lol. I'll just have to step it up for his birthday this year.

Hope all is well with everyone. We may be coming down in a few weeks for my birthday and a job fair for the Gilbert district... And if anyone wants to take a little vacation up here to the snow, let me know! =)

blahhhh

2008-01-25T16:36:00.001-07:00

have i mentioned that i am student teaching with devil woman? my new daily mantra: "i can read. i can write lesson plans. i know how to fix a boo-boo. i am not an incompetent twit. i will be a teacher someday." ty is being very supportive and lets me vent when i need to which is nice, but i need a battle plan... the easy solution would be to discuss my concerns with my advisor, but she pretty much worships my cooperating teacher...

i will be taking the aepa tomorrow and really appreciated everyone's help and input on my last post. it is fun to have so many teachers in the family =) thank you.

also- i have been reading everyones posts, but haven't really been commenting lately...

kristin- dude. i didn't know you were going to hair/cosmetology school! thats rad. ty says hes glad cuz now he doesn't have to dye my roots like a gay anymore. haha
megan- juno totally ruled. me and ty both loved it. i hope the decorating is coming along nicely and i can't wait to see pics. you have very good taste.
elise- i love your kids' posts. i think my favorite was zoe talking about keeping her lamb clean with a lint roller. too cute!
monique- you go girl. and good luck with the water tower!!
merilee- i'm sorry about sid and your differing tastes, but i will say that your pictures are so cute =)
natalie- congrats on the potty training! and thank you for the pictures. ty and i really enjoy them
emily- happy anniversary! and sorry i missed you last weekend when you passed through...

help please.

2008-01-23T15:46:00.000-07:00

after drying my tears over the death of heath ledger, i sat down to study for the aepa. I was doing great until I hit the social studies section. holy cow- which one of my professors was supposed to teach me about Confucianism? Byzantine Empire? Hellooo. I think I only got one or two questions right in that whole section.

Current teachers- how hard is this test? I'm totally freaking out. What should I study? My test is on Saturday. I'm thinking I probably should have started preparing before this week...

RIP Heath. Who can even study at a time like this?

not dead, just busy

2008-01-16T22:14:00.000-07:00

me and ty haven't dropped off the face of the planet yet, but we are both super busy!

i started a new job at one of the busiest restaurants in town, Oregano's, and have really been enjoying it so far. It sucks having to close though because I don't get home til about 11.

I also started my student teaching last week after two district wide snow days. I am not really getting along wonderfully with my cooperating teacher, but I love the kids already! This teacher came highly recommended, but she has been teaching for 25 years or something and is really set in her ways, some of which I really don't agree with... but I guess if she's been employed for that long, she must be doing something right. She wants me to meet her at the school every morning at 7- I haven't woken up that early since high school! Needless to say, I'm tired pretty often.

Between work and student teaching, I haven't had much time for anything else so Ty is worked to the bone at our apartment and has probably been starving. He is a good sport though and hasn't complained about anything except for my alarm waking him up in the morning (its a loud version of Kiss "I was Made for Loving You"). We have found time a few nights in the last couple weeks to get together with some friends of mine which has been really fun.

Anyway- just wanted to let everyone know that we have not died, and when I have more time I'll post some cute pictures of us at Christmas time with our families and Catcher! =)

i never know what to title these

2007-12-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

my surgery went surprisingly well. i didn't swell at all, and only took pain meds for the first day as a precaution. my gums are a little discolored, but thats expected. the stitches are itchy because they stitched the front of my gums to the back of my gums in between my teeth. i can eat anything i want though which is nice and it doesn't even hurt to brush my teeth. i feel very blessed. i have my post op appointment on thursday but i don't know if the pathology report will be back yet.

in other news, i spoke too soon about ty quitting WoW. While I was napping after my surgery, he reinstalled it. hopefully it'll be better now that he's had a break and we've discussed the concerns about having it as a daily thing.

ty and i are really excited about spending our first holiday season together with our families. i'm going to be coming down to the valley on thursday to see my brothers open presents before they leave for utah. i'll go back to flag on saturday night, and then me and ty will come back on monday afternoon, but we have to drive back on christmas day for ty's work.

megan- please have your baby soon. we can't wait to see him =)

2007-12-12T08:02:00.000-07:00

Pictures as promised (yes, I realize it was a month ago...)

This was our house. It had three bedrooms, an awesome view of the ocean from the top balcony, and only 3 cockroaches that we found =) I don't know why this picture isn't in focus.

This is my favorite picture of Ty of all time I think.
Sand dollar heaven. I was really trying to find a live sand dollar for ty because he's never seen one before. When we used to swim in the ocean down in Mexico when I was younger they would get stuck to our shoulders, backs, legs. They look like little fuzzy green quarters. Me and Ty didn't find any, but we found a ton of regular sand dollars.

I've been to the beach with Tyson three times now I think, and every time we go he acts like a small child who is seeing the ocean for the first time. He runs around collecting shells and brings them to me when his hands get full and then I have to tell him "okay honey pick your three favorites, we can't take them all home- we have to leave some for other kids to find" and then he negotiates so he can take FOUR home instead. It's real cute and kinda funny.

We rented quads for an hour one day and it was the most awesome thing ever! I've never really ridden quads before but I had SO MUCH FUN! This activity is highly recommended to everyone who goes to Mexico. It was cheap too.

This is Ty getting stuck in the sand on the beach. The guy we rented them from said we could go as close to the water as we wanted, but he was lying. The sand near the water is really loose and Ty just sunk right in. It made for a pretty cool picture though.

This is me NOT getting stuck in the sand. yay.

Best meal ever. It was about $5 for 10 jumbo coconut shrimp with pineapple dipping sauce. Amazing. I also had apple soda for the first time and it was pretty good. Ty ordered the same thing everywhere we ate: beef soft tacos.

These are the 'famous' arches that are the entryway into the little city where we stayed. When I was little and my family used to come here for vacations, you could actually go up inside and look out over the whole city and the ocean and everything. It was so cool, but it is closed now.

We both drank a lot of Fanta because we couldn't find lemonade (both of our favorites) and the water isn't safe to drink. Fanta is good though, and they always gave us straws =)

So i am officially done with classes until i eventually decide to go back for a dual major or my masters (I haven't decided which i want to do first). I think I did pretty well, but there's one class that I'm kind of concerned about. It's the one that I wrote a paper for in between our wedding ceremony and the reception...

I go in for my mouth surgery tomorrow. I've been trying not to think about it while I finished up the semester so last night it hit me and I had a mini panic attack. I'm going to be the worst patient ever. It also means that I can't work full time like we were planning during winter break so we are pretty strapped for cash. I'm nearly always stressed about money, even though I usually don't have a reason to be, but now I do and it is lame.

I have almost all of my christmas shopping done though, because I don't know how well I'll be feeling after surgery for shopping and crowds and whatnot. I still need to get Ty his 'big' gift, but thats going to have to wait til closer to christmas.

Tyson and I used some of our target gift cards to get christmas decorations for our little apartment. I don't know how we did it, but we got everything to fit. yay! Our tree is really cool- it has those fiber optic lights on the ends of all the branches and they constantly change colors. We don't even want to put ornaments on it because it is so pretty already.

Ty is looking for a new job too. He is just so bored at the credit union, and needs to be making more money since I won't be working for the next month, and then I start student teaching... He is thinking about picking up two part-time jobs so he can work more than 40 hours a week. I really appreciate the fact that he is such a hard worker and wants to provide for me. My cousin filed for divorce in October and that was her main complaint about her husband. I just feel really lucky to have Ty.

This is getting much longer than I thought it was, but I haven't posted in almost a month... Last thing: Ty quit WoW! He was just playing it way too much and wasn't getting productive things done, and it was causing a lot of tension so he just uninstalled it! I bought him a different video game that isn't online with other people, its just you against the computer, so he can pause it when he needs to and walk away from it without letting down his friends or getting attacked when he's not looking. Things have been wonderful lately.

i'm back

2007-11-16T15:16:00.001-07:00

things have finally started to settle down up here. ty is back at work and i'm back at school and work. dandy is glad to have us both around =)

here are some pictures of the wedding from my digital camera... enjoy! i'll post our mexico pics sometime this weekend probly...

9 days

2007-10-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

some days it seems like this year has flown by and i can't even remember all of the cool things that have happened since january. and other days it seems like i've been waiting all year for this and it hasn't come soon enough. most days though, i can't sleep because i'm thinking of all the things i have to get done before next weekend. and of course i never write anything down at night so i usually forget what needs to be done.

it was really nice to be home last weekend, but also weird. my mom hugged me before i left and said "this is the last time you'll be home as our unmarried daughter." i've been living away from home for almost 3 years now, but it seems to be just hitting her that me and ty are going to have our own life now.

tyson and i carved pumpkins last night and they turned out really cute =) once i get a camera, i'll take some pics. also- halloween candy is so expensive! i'm handing out pencils or something lame from now on.

pics

2007-10-17T16:35:00.001-07:00

took some more pics this weekend... she took like 150 shots (yeah holy moly), but these are just a few of my faves.

just in time for Halloween

2007-10-10T16:17:00.000-07:00

So, I went to the dentist today for my check-up. Figured it would be perfect timing to have a cleaning before wedding photos... I also had a funny bump on my gums that won't go away and I wanted them to check it out.

WELL, it turns out I have a rare form of a gum infection that is eating the roots of my teeth =(

They are sending me to a specialist in Sedona because my dentist said he doesn't know much about this kind of infection and he doesn't have the tools in his office to check out the damage that its already done.

Hopefully my teeth will last until the wedding...

and double hopefully maybe this will convince Ty to put me on his insurance for after we get married...

wake me up before you go-go

2007-10-04T14:33:00.000-07:00

so i have been feeling completely tired, run-down, and stressed out lately and had no idea why. i haven't been doing too awesome at school and wedding planning has made me cry on more than one occasion.
just today i realized that this is probably due to the fact that i have not gone to sleep before 11pm ever since ty moved here!! starting next week, that is going to change!

best buy opens this weekend so i'm going to be working crazy long hours, but ty promised to make me a nice breakfast on saturday morning before he leaves for the valley. that will be nice. he is so thoughtful =)

also- the wedding is one month from saturday (or wednesday depending on your definition of a month). if i don't have your address, please post it here or email it to shanda.dean@gmail.com

the only thing we still really need is a CAKE! any volunteers to home make it? we're having a whole dessert bar at the reception so i really don't care what kind of cake we have as long as it looks pretty.

OH speaking of wedding cakes- whenever ty comes to my apt he watches this lame SPEED channel which is basically just car renovations for rich people. but last night, he was channel surfing and stopped on the FOOD NETWORK and asked if i'd like to watch the wedding cake show with him! it was awesome. the competitors had 8 hours to create a wedding cake for this couple and some of them turned out soooo cooool. this just popped into my head so i thought i'd share.

Recap:
i need more sleep.
send me your address.
ty is the best.
the end.

Quick Update

2007-09-21T17:51:00.000-07:00

Life is good.

Ty is here and does my dishes more often than I cook him dinner!! It's amazing. Everyday so far he has asked me what he can do to help me out since I've been so busy with school and work. I make him lists sometimes, but most of the time he just does chores around my apartment. He is so totally out of my league, but I don't think he even cares =) I think I'm going to spend the rest of my life trying to prove to myself that I deserve him. But I think thats a good goal to aim for.

My new car is awesome. In the last 200 miles, I've gotten an average of 41 miles per gallon. I still can't figure out how to program my radio stations, but everything else works just fine. I love it.

My job at Best Buy is keeping me super busy, but I can tell all of the managers appreciate the work I do and are happy to have me there. They give me "special projects" and have put me in charge of large groups of other employees quite a bit as we get ready to open the store.

School is the most stressful part of life right now, but I have one of the highest grades in my most difficult class so I guess I'm doing alright.

My mom is coming up tonight with my family and I'm pretty excited. If only I didn't have to work tomorrow....

it's about time.

2007-09-13T09:53:00.000-07:00

in just a few short hours, i will be the proud new owner of this sweet ride:

2003 toyota prius (hybrid). yay!

my mom

2007-09-09T17:12:00.000-07:00

i mostly just wanted to post what dandy looked like before her haircut...

yeah, she's my little sheep dog =)

but now i've decided to tell you all why my mom is the best mom in the whole world. you might think its up for debate, but really, that would be like arm wrestling hulk hogan for the last french fry. just let him have it.

i've known for quite some time that i have the best mom in the universe, but this weekend just further confirmed it. i thought the highlight of my weekend was going to be a 58 page practice test that i was graciously allowed to print from her computer, but it only went uphill from there! she took me thrift store shopping, and let me tell you - if it were an olympic sport, my mom would be a 39 time gold medalist! she always finds the coolest stuff!

anyway- she's trying to find things for her house in flagstaff (where ty will be living) but ended up buying me NEW FURNITURE! my couch and loveseat are uncomfortable and falling apart so she replaced them with SUUUUPER comfy thrift store finds. and since the upholstery was so heinous, she bought slip covers too =) they look so cute! ty even broke them in by taking a saturday afternoon nap! yay.

she's just so darn cute and thoughtful! this is a picture of us in 2005 taking a gondola ride in venice. yeah, that was her idea too =) life rules.

becoming a mom scares me because i have her to live up to. but if i'm half the mom she's been, i think i'll do alright.

can i have my money back?

2007-08-31T08:44:00.000-07:00

this has to be the worst haircut EVER. i feel so bad.

conjunctivitis

2007-08-26T19:18:00.000-07:00

i have pink eye. and some sort of allergy attack too. yeahhhhh.

at least i have the disney channel.

school starts tomorrow so hopefully i'll be feeling better...

oh- and can i just say that STARDUST was quite possibly the best movie i've seen this year!

i wish i was cool

2007-08-24T16:45:00.000-07:00

no one tagged me, so i'll just pretend i'm cool...

1. 4 jobs I've had
nanny
answering service
server at Ruby's
data entry

2. 4 movies I can watch any time
wicker park
how to lose a guy in ten days
the notebook
high school musical (duh)

3. 4 places I have lived
Flagstaff
Chandler
Mesa
Richfield

4. 4 TV shows I love
america's next top model
one tree hill
america's got talent
thats it

5. 4 foods I love
pizza
rice
potatoes (in any form)
chicken

6. 4 websites I visit daily
myspace
facebook
craigslist (i'm trying to buy a car)
email

7. 4 places I'd rather be
europe
nyc
oregano's
home

i'm back in flag now, totally loving the 83 degree weather =) i got a job today but its only for the next two weeks, so i went to another interview at Best Buy and i'll probably start there in a few weeks when their store actually opens. was that a run-on? oh well.

First Post

2007-08-21T10:41:00.000-07:00

Since this is my first post, I'm going to take this opportunity to confess my deepest, darkest secret. I'm in love with High School Musical. Troy Bolton is my celebrity dream date.

Yesterday, I almost bought this tacky alarm clock at Target with his picture on the face. And I just found out that they have HSM phone faceplates so I'm looking into getting a phone that is compatible. Next time I get my hair cut, I'm planning on taking Gabriella's picture to the salon. Are there support groups for this?