White Christmas

Well it's been a while but we're finally getting some pictures up from Christmas! Jake and I went to Utah for Christmas and it snowed almost the entire time! We left a day earlier than planned because there was a huge storm the next day. The drive was fun, we thought it was pretty exciting driving through Hoover Dam, where they filmed part of Transformers! The week in Utah was so fun! We were a little worried that Jitters would freeze in the snow so Jake tried to make her a little sweater :) so cute! But it turns out she didn't need it. She LOVED the snow! Funny story, the first night we were there Jake and I drove my little brother and sister around the neighborhood to hand out some goodies, so my parents were in charge of watching Jitters. They look her outside to to her business when suddenly a huge owl came out of no where and swooped down to pick up our dog! My parents ran screaming after Jitters and caught her just in time. Talk about scary!

My family loves to play games. And eat delicious food. So that's basically what we did the entire time. It was too snowy to drive anywhere and it's always cheaper to stay home anyway! I think Jake was a little gamed out by the time we left though. But he's super amazing for putting up with my competitive family for so long!
On Christmas eve we went to Salt Lake to see the lights at temple square. They were beautiful! I'm always so blown away by how great they are. And we also went up to Logan to visit some more family and eat some more good food. The roads were treacherous! I am so glad I don't go to school in freezing icy Logan anymore!
It was so wonderful to spend time with family, I love them so much! But it's always nice to come home after a trip and relax. On the drive home we stopped and both Rucker and Warner Grandparents houses. I'd never been to the Warner's home so it was neat to see that and spend some time with them.
And that was our amazing trip to Utah! Sorry this is so long!

Hoover Dam. They are building a new bridge and it's ginormous! And scarily high.

Festive Jitters :) She didn't like it so much.

BLIZZARD!

The whole gang at temple square

Christmas loot. Favorite items from my family: Muffin tins and a rolling pin w/pie roller sheet. And we got a sweet mixer from Jake's parents. Bring on the baking!

I love this picture. That's Fernando. He's a beast!!

Phoenix Zoo Lights

Last weekend Jake and I went to see Zoolights with our friend Tamlage and his gf Kalicia.  It was quite an interesting experience.  My back was killing me and I couldn't breath half the time, but I had to suck it up and walk around for a few hours.  The lights were pretty but I think we all were expecting more.  It definitely wasn't $8 worth!  It might have been made more for kids anyway.  But even though it wasn't all we were hoping for it was fun to leave the house and do something new.  Afterwards we had some hot chocolate and played the dice game!  yay!  Tonight we're planning to go see the lights at the Mesa Temple.  Oh, and yesterday Jake's unofficial adoptive brother Josh got married!  Congrats Josh and Rebecca!  It was fun to spend time with family and get to know them a little better.

And update from the last post: we never found anything out about the policemen and helicopters, but we think it was probably drug related or something.  Woot!

Leaving the Temple.  The photographers made them walk out about three times.

These were some zoolights across the lake.  They were really pretty!

An orangutan/ballerina/elf

Ghetto Much?

So at this moment, Jake is looking out our windows at some cops with M-16s and a helicopter flying over our complex shining a spot light. Um... creepy? About five minutes ago Jake was taking Jitters outside when he saw something out of the corner of his eye... a cop up against the wall, brandishing a very large gun. Then he was hit by the spot light, and he stood there trying to look as innocent as possible to avoid being taken down by the watchful cop. The helicopter is still circling and we'll be looking online for the news to see if we can learn anything about what is going on!! Our apartment is so ghetto!! But thank goodness for a wonderful husband who doesn't make me take the dog out at night :)

Elf Dance

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Babysitting

Well today ends our two week babysitting adventure. We were privileged to watch our good friends Tomi and Naomi's dogs while they were visiting family in Japan. There names are Mei and Sue, both chihuahua's, and Jitters is used to them because she was at there place while we were in Utah. The only problem has been our cat. She was terrified at first and we had to lock her in our room. But now, on the day they leave of course, the cat roams free. The dogs are probably more scared of her than she is of them. It's been pretty crazy having two extra dogs in our tiny apartment, but these dogs are very obedient and love to cuddle! Sue is very inquisitive and likes to know what's going on. She likes to sit and watch me make dinner a lot. Mei is so sweet, she is constantly scratching at my arm so I'll pet her. These dogs love attention, and Jitters acted pretty jealous at first. We've had a lot of fun but we know these guys will be happy to get home where they can run around again!

The girls

Sue

All four of them in one picture! The cat was too terrified to run away

Jitters. So crazy cute!

This is what Mei does when she wants attention. And every time I tried to take her picture she'd turn her head like that.

The cat found high ground to stay safe

Weddings Galore

Well it seems there have been an unusual number of weddings this year. I think I've gone to more weddings in the past 9 months than I have in my whole life. But last week Jake and I were able to witness my brother Rory be happily married to his wife Rebecca, and what an amazing day it was! We flew to Utah on Oct. 15th so we could be there when Becca went through the temple (in Logan). Then we had a sweet dinner at her aunt and uncle's house. Thursday was exciting, my mom and sister and I went shopping for shoes, jewelry, and food. Doesn't get much better than that! Jake was driving around Salt Lake and Provo all day trying to find chocolate for his mom and the APX place for his check, so I felt pretty bad for having such a fun time while he was stuck in a car. Thursday night we set up for the luncheon. The church where the luncheon was being held had a reception just before we got there so we got stuck cleaning that up so we could deccorate. It was hard work but it turned out beautiful so it payed off. Then the big day, Oct. 17th. They were married early that morning in Salt Lake. My grandpa Zaugg sealed them and it was lovely! What a neat experience! After the ceremony and pictures, we headed to the luncheon for some great food from Maddox. After lunch and clean up, we went back home for some R and R, but all too soon we were off again. The reception was nice, it was fun to see family and friends and be able to spend more time with them. The rest of the weekend we just hung out with family, cooked food, played games, watched movies. The usual. I love my family! And I miss them tons but it's nice to be back home and in the swing of things again.

The happy couple

My parents and the bride and groom

We loved our shoes but they hurt like crazy! Why do we put ourselves through such torture?

Mmmm... Maddox...

Busy, busy, busy

Well we are now in Arizona, and things have been rather hectic! Right after we moved in I started school at ASU, which has taken some time to get used to. I still hardly know where anything is on campus! We drove up to my parents house in Utah over Labor Day weekend to pick up our wedding gifts and get the rest of my stuff. Jake is still selling security but he has a new job starting soon. Jake's brother got married last week and lots of family came to visit so it was fun to see them again. And in a couple of weeks we will be returning to Utah because my brother is getting married! So a lot has been going on. But... a friend of mine has been wanting to see some of my art and i figured posting it on here would be the easiest way so, ta da!