SofaCouchSofaCouch

Last Friday night I bought a couch! I bought the couch from Rooms-To-Go (They were having a sofa sale!!!). The salesman told me that sometime during the next week, I would receive a call from them in which they would give me a time window of when they were going to deliver the couch on Saturday. Perfect.
On Thursday and Friday I received a call from an automated machine telling me that they would deliver the couch between 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock. Kind of a big window right in the middle of the day, but whatever, it's all good.
Saturday finally came. I was so excited! I get up, go to the gym, and then head back to my apartment. I was taking my time because I knew I would be waiting for them to come. I took a shower. I was just getting out of the shower when I heard a knock at the door. Ahhhh!!! It couldn't possibly be them!?! It was only 9:30. I ran to peek out the window (yes, I was in a towel) and it was them. Uh oh. As quickly as I possibly could, I threw on some clothes and ran to the door. Yes, my hair was sopping wet. Yes, makeup was running down my face. Yes, I looked amazing.
I answered the door, and the man said, "Wow, perfect timing." Oh man, I was so embarrassed! Normally people say, "Hello, how are you mam," when you answer the door. I simply got a WOW.  He asked me where the couch was going to go and went back downstairs to get the couch with his coworker. I ran into the bathroom and washed my face as fast as I could. I also combed my hair. They brought the couch up and here are the pictures! Good thing I'll never see those young lads again!

Kinda funny....Loving Dallas!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_localpn/20101216/ts_yblog_localpn/2010s-worst-lists-of-people-and-places-in-dallas-fort-worth

It's Here.

Well, I've been using the excuse that my study materials have not arrived yet so I could not possibly study for MLC (the next actuarial exam). Today was the day. I had a huge box sitting on my desk when I came back from lunch. Here's the pile.

I'm crying a little bit on the inside. That stack is over a foot tall. See you in six months.

Christmas Time!

It's been a while....ok, a long while. I've been a little sick....ok, a lot sick; however, I'm on the mend. Hooray! Christmas is just around the corner. I am really excited to go home to Colorado and see all my family minus Jonathan and Wendy. Even my grandpa will be there this year. This is great!

On Friday I bought a couch. I will have a place to sit! Now all of you can come over! This is great. Please stay tuned for pictures (it arrives on Saturday). On Saturday I went to brunch with a couple of girls from work and then we did facials and nails. This is the first time I've ever done this type of thing...ever...in my life...What kind of girl am I?!?! Seriously, it was fun though and took up most of the day.

Other than that, there is not much going on. No more fevers. Just thought I'd give a little update. I'm out.

Thanksgiving

I am grateful for....
     my family...why? Because they are just awesome. Every single one of them is awesome. Wendy, you're not in this picture, but you're awesome too.

      my friends...I have been blessed with so many great friends....so many of them have made sure that this transition to Texas has been a smooth one.
      the gospel...it's such a blessing in my life. I am so lucky.
      the scriptures
      my job...I didn't have one for a while, how did I ever get this one?!?
      MINIATURE Reese's Peanut Butter Cups...the way to my heart...seriously.

     cell phones...so I can keep in contact with all of you!
     the people in the elevator who smile each morning at work.
     BYU...such a great experience....made so many friends and learned a lot about living life. It was time to move on, but it will always have a place in my heart.

 

      Forgiveness    
    Living in America

      

     Sunshine

     the beach

     Homegrown Tomatoes 

   The Trash Man....seriously, who wants to do his job?

     The Piano...I LOVE IT! This is my dream piano. Some day...some day.

 

     Delicious Salsa

     Good Wholesome Books...I seriously hate it when you start reading a book and have to stop because it gets inappropriate. Come on people!

     Laughter...

     Electricity and running water....I would not have been a good pioneer. They are my heroes.

      My testimony of Jesus Christ

      My health

      Fresh Fruit...ok, these beat out Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

      Air Conditioning!
     Church
     Colorado Sunsets....there is nothing like them.

     Answered prayers
     The ability to see
     Diversity....I saw a Buddhist Monk in Walmart the other day. How cool is that?

      Goals
      Hot showers
    Music 
    All the Awesome people I've met in my life....
       There are many more things I am grateful for; this is just a start.
   

ApLaCeToSiT

QUICK POST! Here is my new dining room! I promise the table doesn't look like a cheap picnic table in real life....ok maybe it does a little, but it'll work for now. Many thanks to a friend who helped me build this...ok, he put them together and I watched.  I did, however, lift the table and chairs up the stairs of my apartment complex all by myself. I was really proud. It was really heavy.



"God expects you to have enough faith and determination and enough trust in Him to keep moving, keep living, keep rejoicing. In fact, He expects you not simply to face the future (that sounds pretty grim and stoic); He expects you to embrace and shape the future--to love it and rejoice in it and delight in your opportunities.

God is anxiously waiting for the chance to answer your prayers and fulfill your dreams, just as He always has. But He can't if you don't pray, and He can't if you don't dream. In short, He can't if you don't believe."
— Jeffrey R. Holland

Unleashing the Dormant Spirit

From F. Enzio Busche's BYU Devotional Address on May 14, 1996 called Unleashing the Dormant Spirit. I love this. Have a great day!

My First Week

I finally have internet so I can blog once again! I know you missed me...probably not...but let's pretend. I started work this week at this big shiny building.

It seriously blinds me everyday when I drive into work. Monday was pretty laid back because I spent almost the entire day with HR going over benefits, PTO, and reviewing just how AWESOME Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas really is. At the end of the day I got to go up and meet my boss and some of my coworkers. Tuesday I spent the first half of the day doing HIPAA training, and then the real fun began. I spent the rest of the week learning stuff about my job. If you want the details, let's talk. It hit me this week that I moved 1,000 miles away from ANYONE I know. What was I thinking? No, this is actually a good thing and I feel good about being here. I am extremely grateful for this opportunity. It'll take some time before I feel like I fit in and like this is my home.

Jonathan and Wendy gave me a gift card for my birthday...WAY back in September. Thank you Jonathan and Wendy! You guys are awesome! I decided to spend it today. This is what I bought!

Awesome, right? Dare I say YES!!!!! I think so. It can also double as a place to sit...I don't even have a chair. Please imagine me eating my breakfast while sitting on this. :)  I also bought some Christmas music, but I shall refrain from telling you who the artists are in fear of you making fun of me....because I know you will! Now off to sculpt awesome abs and fabulous arms while listening to mass-produced Christmas music.

All Moved In.

I moved into my apartment today. This is great! I am so grateful for my grandpa, Grant, and especially my mom for all the help they have given me. Here are pictures of my apartment!

Here is a picture of my living room. Yes, I am completely unpacked!

Here is the living room from the other direction.

Here is the kitchen.

Here is the dining room.

Here is the closet with all my clothes.

Finally, here is the bathroom.

That is all.

I'm Here!

This past week has been very busy and packed FULL. There are so many little things to do when you move 900 miles away! Here is a play-by-play of my week (because I know you REALLY care :) ).

Monday: I packed up my stuff. I had been working on gathering up all my stuff and moving it into the garage last week because I had a friend coming into town for the weekend. Monday I finished everything up and here is a picture of my empty room!

I know this is very sad and may evoke a few tears, so I will give you a moment to compose yourself.....hmmm.....k, ready?

Tuesday: I woke up at 3:45am. YES, 3:45!! I was just so excited. I finished packing the car and got ready for the day. We left Windsor at 5:00am. The drive was pretty uneventful most of the way (which I am SO grateful for). I drove first to Hays, Kansas and then my mom took over. Here is a picture of Kansas.

Awesome, right? I know. My intent was to take a few pictures along the way to document this experience....so I took one more picture. Be impressed. Here is a picture of us arriving in Oklahoma. It is a picture of the welcome to Oklahoma sign. You can't read it at all. Just pretend you know what you are looking at.

Dear Oklahoma, your signs aren't that big. How is anybody supposed to know they are entering the great state of Oklahoma. Who knows.

Moving on, we hit a little bit of traffic in Oklahoma City and a lot of rain about an hour north of Dallas that slowed us down a lot. I decided that Texans don't know how to drive in the rain...and every Texan told us that the next day! The trip ended up taking 15 hours....15 hours! Next time I am either taking 287 (I think that's the road) or flying! We made it though and everything is great.

Wednesday: Apartment shopping was the purpose of Wednesday. My mom and I set out on a hunt for a one bedroom apartment that is in a safe neighborhood. I had a list of places I wanted to look at from my at home internet apartment shopping. We went to so many apartments. We saw some we liked...and some we were afraid for our lives. We came home (back to the hotel) totally exhausted and with a few options that would work.

Thursday: By Thursday morning, I had narrowed my search to three apartments. One apartment was up in Plano. It was really, REALLY tiny, but it had a washer and dryer already in it. AWESOME! It was priced nicely, but was kind of a drive to get to work. The next apartment was in Richardson and was about 3.5 miles from work. AWESOME!! It was priced ok, but felt like a dungeon. There was no natural light AT ALL. One of my biggest concerns about moving here is getting really lonely, and I didn't want the lack of sunlight to help me get there. :) The last apartment was in Garland. It was also about 3.5 miles from work. It was super bright, but it was expensive...or at least more money than I wanted to spend.

I went to the second apartment, and they said they had a different, cheaper apartment. I went to go see it, and it was super bright!!! Hooray! Best day ever. I decided right then to rent it out. I applied for the apartment and was ready to sign the lease. All I had to do was get an electricity account in my name and renter's insurance. Easy right? Well, it took me 4 hours to get the electricity...it's such a long story that I'm not going to write it. You have to call me to get the details, and you should call me. I would LOVE to talk to you to see how you are doing! Anyway, I have a place. I'll post more pictures once I actually get to move in. 

This post ended up being a lot longer than it should have, and for that I apologize. I also would like to congratulate you for reading this far. Good job! Well done. You are a very dedicated reader. Please come visit me. :)

Howdy, Y'all.

I am moving from here

to here

TOMORROW! Waffles anyone?

Introducing....

My liability!!!!

Water Buffalos

Ok, I went babysitting last night for the 14,235th time in my life. After I fed the kiddos dinner, we needed something to do. After thinking of different games that we could play, one of the girls said, "We can play 'animals.' Rachel, you're the water buffalo."
The water buffalo???!!?!?! Seriously!?!?! Are you calling me fat? ;) Why couldn't I be a dainty kitty, a soaring eagle, or even a dog. But a water buffalo?!?! So for the next hour, THIS water buffalo was attacked by cheetahs, lions, and leopards.

 Hide your kids. Hide your wives. Hide your husbands. There is a water buffalo up in here!

But seriously, I thought it was super funny and it made me laugh.

Put on your Sunday clothes, there's lots of world out there.

 When I went to babysit today, Dallin and Cooper were watching Wall-E.

I've never seen this movie, but I noticed the music in the background. It's the music from Hello Dolly.

This was one of my most favorite movies when I was younger...like in the 80s. I knew I was Dolly Levi and every time I would play dress-ups, I would be her. I could sing along to EVERY song in this movie, and I had a mighty crush on Michael Crawford (sad I know!).
I've been singing the songs all day and it has made me smile. I've been humming the song Put On Your Sunday Clothes over and over again.  I like this song. There IS lots of world out there.


Here is the video from the movie. It is a little over-the-top; but I like it anyways!

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

OK. I have to report to work in Richardson, Texas Monday, November 8th at 7:45 in the AM. Exciting, right? Yes. Easy, right? No. Well, it probably would be easy if I had any idea what I am doing!!

First thing on the list: Buy a car. I've never actually done this before and I am scared out of my mind that I am going to be taken. I did test drive this baby though.

Second thing on the list: Find housing! I am moving out there two weeks from today, so I don't have a lot of time. I would like to get a roommate; however, I am moving out there at a random time of the year. Hopefully it'll work out. When I look at apartments online, they all look THE SAME. Hopefully, I won't end up living here.

So dear readers, all three of you, if you have any advice, I would greatly appreciate any info you want to hand out. I hope that this doesn't sound like I am complaining because I am so excited for this job and I can't wait to get there! 

Dallas Texas Baby!!

Okay, so there is really no reason for this post because I have basically told everyone I talk to, but I have some big news. I got a job! SA-WEET!!! I am not sure about all the details (like when I start) because the official job offer will come on Monday. I will be working for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas. That's right! TEXAS! I'm moving to Texas! I interviewed with them last Monday. They called me on Friday to tell me I got the job...except I missed their call and had to wait the entire weekend to find out their decision. I almost died. REALLY. Now I just need to pass the background check and the drug test. :) I am super grateful and super excited!

Now I have a ton of stuff to do...like buy a car, get a phone, get a place to live...you know...all the grown-up stuff!

Musquash

Earlier this evening, around 7:00, I decided to head down to my bedroom. I took my computer with me so I could do a little apartment shopping. :) As I sat there on my bed, listening to some sweet tunes, I heard some scratching. It was coming from my window. First I thought it could be rain. I woke up to rain last night, but then I decided that couldn't be it because it was a scratching noise. I dismissed that thought and continued on my merry way. I heard it again. I turned off my computer so I could hear it better. When I heard the scratching again I thought it might be a bush or something...but wait! There are no bushes in the window well. Ok then, I decided to look out the window. I pulled up the blinds and GAH! There is a creepy set of eyeballs staring in my window!!!! I dropped the blinds and ran upstairs as fast as I possibly could. Surprisingly, I told my mom, dad, and Daniel to come downstairs very calmly. They came downstairs and looked in the window to find a big old nasty critter. We couldn't decide whether it was a large rat, or even what it was (we're city people, ok?). After referring to the internet, we decided it was a muskrat. DISGUSTING! I've been creeped out the entire evening. I'm debating sleeping on the couch tonight. Here are some pictures of the little bugger. Please note the nasty long tail that is about a foot long and those dang claws. Gross.

Musquash is the Native American name of the muskrat (Thank you Google!).

I don't have a name for this post....

I have some news. You should ask me about it.

Patience

 So I am still waiting to hear about this job. STILL WAITING!!!! It's only been four days since I've been back from Texas, but it's killing me! I seriously feel antsy all the time. I constantly feel like I could go run 10 miles without feeling tired. Thank goodness for babysitting jobs that are helping to keep me busy....sort of...I still think about it between playing countless games of Uno and setting up way cool obstacle courses. So what's the moral of this story? I need to learn patience. Any suggestions about learning this from all you readers out there? Here's what George Q. Cannon had to say:

"No man ought to say, Oh I cannot help this; it is my nature. He is not justified in it, for the reason that God has promised to give strength to correct these things and to give gifts that will eradicate them. If a man lacks wisdom, it is his duty to ask God for wisdom. The same with everything else. That is the design of God concerning his church."

I love this girl!

We could all take a lesson from this girl!

Texas Times Two!

For the second time in two weeks, I headed off to Texas. This time I went to Dallas.

It was a very quick trip. I left on Sunday night and got back on Monday. Now, what was the purpose of this trip??? To Interview! I interviewed at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas for an actuarial position!

They interviewed me straight for six and a half hours. They were all very friendly, and I was exhausted by the time I got home last night. Now I'm playing the waiting game!

Austin, TX!

About a week ago, I went out to Austin to visit my brother, Jonathan, and his wife, Wendy. They were super nice and flew me out there and let me stay at their sweet place! I left Windsor on Thursday night and headed to the airport. My mother was kind enough to drive me down there. Check-In was fine, security was fine, but when I got to my gate, I found out my plane was delayed. No big deal, right? They then informed us that it was due to mechanical problems on the plane. WHAT? FREAK OUT! Ok, I'm fine now.

Since I had about 2.5 hours to wait and was hungry, I stopped by the McDonalds (believe me, it was the only choice I had besides Einstein Bagels...if you know me...then you will understand my hatred for anything associated with cream cheese). I ate a snack wrap, but that definitely didn't cut it. So I decided to get a smoothie at TCBY since that would fix the hunger and thirst problem. I went up to the counter to place my order. The cashier asked me where I was from. I told him that I was from the Fort Collins area. Then he said, "You're beautiful." Of course, being me, I said, "Huh?" He repeated it and I said, "Oh, thank you," in a very grateful yet mysterious voice....just kidding....but not really. :) I got my smoothie and went on my way. It only took me about 30 minutes to realize there was a sticky note on my cup with a number on it. His name is Dominque and his number is (303) 342-3402. You should call him. FOR REALS. (It's actually the number for the TCBY at DIA, so you could order a smoothie as well).

I headed off to Austin and got there about eleven o'clock that night. The next day Wendy and I went to The Domain to window shop and watched Charade in the afternoon while Jonathan was at work. It was a good movie. It seemed familiar. Both Wendy and I fell asleep during the movie. Surprised? Nope, that's what I do!

Later in the evening, Jonathan, Wendy and I went to a restaurant. I don't remember the name. It was a TexMex restaurant. I had enchiladas. Before we went to the restaurant, we stopped by a little park to feed the ducks. There are some weird looking ducks in Texas, I must say.

The picture just looks like a normal duck, but let me assure you, there is something in that Texas water. I am telling the truth. After feeding the ducks, fish, and the lone turtle for a few minutes, it started pouring. The second picture above is of the little park and all the rain. You can't really see the rain, but I was soaked!

The next day we went to the botanical gardens. It was very pretty and very lush. Having grown up in the West, mostly in the CO, where the weathermen tell you to beware of the humidity at 20%, I basically died. It was hot! It was humid! AND I am a wimp. Do you ever get used to the humidity? I am basically sure I never want to live anywhere that is humid...at all...for my entire life! That might be a slight exaggeration, but I'll let you figure out how much of an exaggeration it actually is :).

Here is a picture of the Japanese part of the Botanical Gardens. It's pretty, and it's currently the background on my desktop.

After the botanical gardens, we went to Whole Foods. Now, my friends, this is not just any Whole Foods. This was THE Whole Foods. Whole Foods is based out of Austin. This is where you see many different kinds of people and can eat organic fried chicken. This store is 80,000 square feet and was PACKED with people. We ate calzones there and had some gelato. (Actually I had sorbet, but I did sample the gelato. It was my first time!).

I hear you can go ice-skating there, but only during winter. Maybe next time?

We headed home after Whole Foods, drove past the capital (at least Jonathan told us we drove past it...or told us to look at it...I don't quite remember...and I didn't see it), and headed home. We took a nap, went swimming, and ate some delicious home-made Cafe Rio Burritos. It was delicious. Our burritos looked nothing like this, but they were still good.

Later in the evening, we headed out to go on a drive. We drove up into the hills of Austin to see the place where the founder of National Instruments lives (Jonathan works at National Instruments. I'm sure he feels he'll get to go inside someday, but until then he will just have to resort to creeping up on the house and shining his lights on it just to get a glimpse inside.) Then we headed to downtown Austin and onto the campus of UT. It's very impressive. The buildings are very cool. (Sorry BYU, but your buildings are ugly. There, I said it.)

Sunday, we went to church and lounged the rest of the day. Monday, I flew home. I had two stops: one in Dallas (definitely dumb. It took all of 15 minutes to fly there), and one in Amarillo. It was a good trip. I am definitely grateful to Jonathan and Wendy for flying me down there and letting me stay at their place. It was good to get away. Oh! Before I forget, I saw an armadillo. This was a first! Too bad it was dead. :(