Thankful.

We love Thanksgiving, so much. But who doesn't love a day full of family and food? This year we spent our Thanksgiving feast with my fam, and desert and shopping with the Reynolds. 

This year, I'm thankful for so many things. I'm thankful for my ginormous family, and for the fact that we managed to get organized for this picture in under 45 mins.

I'm thankful for my 7 aunts and incredible grandma, who are all amazing cooks and know how to prepare large quantities of yummy food.

I'm thankful for my mom, and for her walking me step-by-step over the phone through making my very first homemade pies.

I'm thankful for the many love-filled emails and texts that I received from friends throughout the day yesterday.

I'm thankful for my messy kitchen and sink full of dirty dishes, because it means a stomach and fridge stuffed with good food. 

I'm thankful for my handsome husband and for the fact that he loves me just as much as I love him.

I'm thankful for our free Christmas tree, and for the fact that almost all of the lights are working.

I'm thankful for my in-laws and that they love a good sale just as much as I do, and that I got to spend a straight 12 hours with them today shopping our little hearts out.

I'm thankful for the full load of homework that I've been putting off all week, because it means that I have the opportunity to get an education.

I'm thankful that Justin and I both have good jobs, and that we were able to take a few days off from those jobs to enjoy the holiday.

I'm thankful for my life, and that it is filled with so many blessings. We have incredible families and friends, and a life overflowing with love. 

And I'm thankful for our warm home, and that I can be cuddled up on the couch enjoying a night in with my hubby. Happy Thanksgiving everyone :)

Family photos.

Earlier this year I was able to be part of a wedding photo shoot by the fabulous McKenzie Deakins of Photography by McKenzie. And as a thank you for doing so, McKenzie let me have one free photo shoot...which we used for a Reynolds family photo a couple of weeks ago. Not only is Mckenzie an absolutely incredible photographer, but she is SO much fun to work with and I highly recommend her. Here are some of my favorites!

I adore everything about this picture.

Mama's boys forever.

We love you Ty Guy :)

My favorite Reynolds :) Isn't he handsome?

Thank you Mckenzie...we love them!

"Put a coat on!"

This morning, on my way to school, I pulled into the parking lot of the Marriott Center, and saw a group of men in suits walking out of the back doors. Knowing that President Monson had been there earlier giving the devotional, I stopped my car and let myself hope that that was who they were escorting out of the building. Usually I'm an extremely unlucky person in these situations, so my expectations weren't very high (I've convinced myself 4 times that I've seen Jimmer walk out of that building before, and have yet to meet the kid.) So as soon as I saw this man's face...I freaked.

I immediately threw my car into park, left it running in the middle of the road, and literally ran up to him yelling, "I just want to shake his hand!" He laughed at me, shook my hand, and told me to get a coat on.

The entire scene lasted about 8 seconds, but it made me so happy. That man radiates the spirit, and it hit me like a wall as soon as I was within three feet of him. I immediately started tearing up just looking into his face, and when I got back to my car, I was smiling, shaking, and crying all at the same time.

It may seem like such a small thing, but my experience today increased my testimony of this gospel so much. I feel so blessed to be a part of a religion that believes in latter-day prophets, and I truly do thank God for him :)

This is Halloween! This is Halloween!

Happy Halloween everyone! This year instead of dressing up and going out to party, we celebrated the holiday quietly with our families. We had lots of yummy food, way too much candy, and plenty of good company. It was nice and relaxing, but it made me excited for when we'll be able to celebrate with our own little kids:) And it also made me very homesick for London. Last year's Halloween was my favorite ever, and I don't think it'll ever be topped. Missing all of these fabulous people today...

 

Love all of you dearly! Happy Halloween!

Catching up...

Due to the fact that my entire life currently consists of work, school, and homework at the moment, blogging hasn't really been a priority in the last few weeks. BUT I've had way too many great moments to put it off any longer. So, here's a quick recap of the last month:

London Family Reunion at my place. I love these people more that words can explain. We've probably set the record for most study abroad group reunions of all time, but it's because we just can't get enough of each other.  Always a good time with these folks :)

My beautiful blonde bestie got married. Congrats to Mrs. Sami Tillotson :) You made a beautiful bride and the entire day was  magical.

 

 

 My best friend/cousin-in-law got married and I had the privilege of throwing her bridal shower, along with Ms. Emily Eyre and Leann Paulsen. Way too much fun.

I love Al with all my heart and nothing made my happier than being able to be a part of her family shower, her friend shower, her wedding dinner, and her bridal party. You're a beautiful person inside and out and I couldn't ask for a better friend to be stuck with for the rest of my life. Love you Al and Mikey! So so happy for you both.

 

 And finally, my babe of a little sister Maddie turned 19. We celebrated with lots of shopping, food, family, and a pretty cake that I slaved away on for hours, and will probably never attempt again. But for this girl, it was 100% worth it. You're my BFF and best sister ever. Love you Mads!

 

 Life is crazy busy but we're loving it and loving this beautiful fall weather! Happy October everyone!

 

The Birthday Boy!

Happy happy birthday to my handsome husband! Yesterday Justin turned the big 2-7. (Yep, you're right, he is almost 30. And no, we're still not having children anytime soon.) We've been celebrating all month long with our families and friends with lots of food and presents. And Justin's fortunate enough to share his birthday month with both of our younger brothers, so he also got to enjoy three different birthday cakes! Lucky guy.

I decided to attempt my very first ice cream cake, and I think it turned out pretty well if I do say so myself. Devil's food cake, Tillamook caramel-toffee-nut ice cream, and chocolate pudding frosting. At least with those ingredients I knew it would taste good if the whole thing fell apart on me. But I'll be honest...I was pretty proud of this baby :)

Justin, being the very practical/cheap man that he is, told me that I wasn't allowed to get him anything that he didn't need, so lucky for me he finally thought of something he both needed and wanted--a grill! We spent about an hour putting this baby together in the dark because Justin was too excited about it to wait until we had some sunlight. And the best part about this gift? He's already made me dinner three times :)

 Last night we celebrated with Justin's friends at Texas Roadhouse--and yes, I made him ride the saddle. He was loving every minute of it.

 

And now for the mushy part. 27 things that I love about my husband :)

1. His smile and the way he smiles with his whole face...melts my heart.

2. How easily he makes me laugh.

3. What a hard worker he is. He never stops.

4. The fact that he does the laundry and the dishes more often than I do.

5. He tells me that he loves me and that I'm beautiful multiple times a day.

6. How smart he is.

7. How much he loves little kids...he'll be the best daddy someday.

8. He tells me how much he appreciates everything that I do all the time.

9. He lets me get away with doing zero yard work, even though he's always telling me that it's both of our jobs.

10. He always lets me order whatever I want when we share a meal because of how picky I am. 

11. He never says anything to me when my half of the bedroom (and the entire bathroom, and the kitchen) is a complete mess and his is spot-free. I never realized how messy I am until I got married.

12. The fact that he's so good with our money, yet still spoils me like crazy.

13. How much he loves both of our families, and puts up with me wanting to spend so much of our time with them.

14. How he gets ready in the dark every single morning so he doesn't wake me up.

15. How he kisses me on the forehead and calls me "sweetheart" before he leaves for work. 

16. How he still opens the door for me everywhere we go.

17. How he holds my hand in the car.

18. The fact that he is such a handyman. That boy can fix anything. Blows my mind.

19. He let me turn his bachelor pad house into our home.

20. His love of the gospel and his strong testimony. 

21. That he'll sleep with an eye mask on so that I can do homework in our room instead of sitting out in the kitchen by myself at night. 

22. How outgoing he is. It makes up for my shyness. He completes me :)

23. How patient he is with me. I get so upset so easily, and he just hugs and loves me until I'm over it.

24. How touchy he is. I've never been one to hug and cuddle more than is necessary, but he's quickly converting me. 

25. How he takes such good care of me. 

26. What a good person he is.

27. How much he loves me, and I love him. 

Happy birthday Justin! I love you so so much and honestly could not ask for more out of a husband. I am one lucky girl.