Away

     Mr. Ruben left early Thursday morning for four days to participate in his monthly training for the Marine reserves. It's the first time Adam and I have been separated from each other since we've been married...now that I think of it, maybe even since we've been engaged. Adam was looking forward to a change of scenery (not sure what that means??) But I was also looking forward to some "me" time.

      We knelt down to pray together, said our goodbyes and he was off. I zombied off back to bed. I was honestly scared when I got ready for the day. Of course I would miss him, but I haven't been alone for a while. Plus, I have to confess, driving is one of me worse fears believe it or not. That's how my mom figured I must really like Adam when we started dating because I would drive down to Murray from Ogden to see him. On top of that, we got hit with a blizzard! it wasn't too bad in Lehi, I had some close encounters on the roads though, they're just really slippery PLUS a 50 gallon bucket rolled out in front of me when I was on the freeway, what the heck?!?

But having this time away was worthwhile.

I had time to do whatever I wanted to do, and time to do what I need to do. Study photography, watch Dave Ramsey (kinda dorky but I love his videos) read, bubble bath, Thank you cards, My wifey duties.  

      On Saturday morning I was able to attend a Stake Relief Society conference. I still don't know many faces and there was a sea of them. I sat down on a bench and waited for the conference to start. I didn't recognize any faces. I really didn't want to sit by myself so I prayed that someone  would come late enough and settle for the seat next to me. But almost immediately a nice woman named Wendy came over to me and asked to sit with me. We had a fun conversation. She was so cute and little did she know, an answer to a prayer. It was a beautiful conference, probably one of my favorites. Greg Olsen, the LDS painter and author of my some of my favorite Christ paintings, spoke to us. First off, this guy is HILARIOUS. One time, he was to speak at a conference and share his paintings, and he turned the slide on and he heard a wave of gasps...he turned around to find on the projection, a picture of his wife in her bathing suit from their beach vacation. He was so nervous that morning, he grabbed the wrong slide of pictures! Anyway,  he shared his beautiful paintings and described the story behind them. They were all so amazing but i'll share just one.

      This is one of the first portraits he did of the Christ. He was hesitant beforehand to paint something this intimate because he was afraid he didn't have the capacity to portray Christ. After speaking with Boyd K. Packer, he received some tips on how to portray the Christ. One aspect that was share with Greg was to paint a man who appears "ordinary". Greg thought that was crazy, because Christ was anything but Ordinary! But Boyd explained, he condescended below and experienced every human feeling. And his physical appearance was no different than anyone else's. 

   To help us find there is something extraordinary within ourselves was his mission. So, we may appear ordinary, but our potential is endless. How amazing right? I am so grateful for the Savior. 

He asked many inspiring questions and shared thought provoking remarks on the Savior, and also his passion for painting. It caused me to feel more motivated to continue to study photography and to do more so that I may feel closer to my Savior. It was such an amazing conference, I wish everyone could have heard it. I hung tight on every word he spoke. 

Wouldn't it be nice to be a public speaker like that? One day... that's another one of my fears that I need to conquer in this lifetime.... 

Hellogoodbye

     It's a New Year! 2012 was of course a year to never forget. Adam and I returned home from serving our missions. I went to school for a semester...and a week. We were engaged and married! And get to start our life together in Lehi, Utah. I am finally taking up my life long dream to do photography. Adam and I received our first calling as a couple, Sunday School teacher for 14 + 15 (more posts to come on that). So it's been AWESOME. We are thrilled for what 2013 has to offer. I don't really have a new years resolution...well we both don't. Actually, in the mission we have companionship inventory and planning...So Adam and I do that weekly and have set goals for the week and review short term and longer term goals. Some of them being getting healthy! I was diagnosed with hashimotos disease a couple of weeks after we started dating. So if you don't know what that is, basically my body can barely function properly and  it causes lots of problems due to my failing thyroid. But a healthy diet and daily exercise can slow the process. So we started Insanity, and with Adam's family, we're starting "The Biggest Loser" program to get a healthy boost!

What have I learned so far?  He is still a gentleman, I kid you not. He gets it from his dad who to this day still opens the door for his wife. He snores, which I thought would bother me, but as of now it hasn't at all. I still think it's kinda "cute". He also talks in his sleep. So we will have random conversations in the middle of the night and he has no idea its just a dream haha I love to mess with him. He's a handy man; he can fix things and even put together IKEA furniture!  He can also bake cookies like no other! But his actual cooking...i'll have to continue testing that out. Oh, and he likes to clean, which motivates me to clean. I can't have my husband cleaning more than me!  He's still a dork and makes me laugh all the time. It's a blast everyday.  

Adam: Married life has been blissful. I feel kind of like I'm stuck in one long game of "playing house" with my best friend. We wake up, we exercise, we go to work, we come home, we spend the evening together doing various activities  we go to sleep, we repeat the next day! It's been busy, and is about to get busier tomorrow when my online schooling starts. We have spent literally 24/7 in constant contact with each other since we were married. It makes me sad to know that this will not last forever! (At least in this life) 

Charlene is a simply inspirational cook. I strongly feel she needs to try out for some kind of big-stakes iron chef competition. Since we've been married, she's cooked all the of meals without using a single recipe and each dish is so unique and mouthwateringly delicious. The two of us have opposite sleep schedules. She's a night owl, and I'm an early bird. (Those phrases are so peculiar .. An owl is a bird right? So just to be uniform, I'll just say I'm an early owl.) She's always trying to keep me up at night, and I'm always trying to wake her up in the morning. When one is tired and the other is wide awake, the awake one repeatedly tells the other to wake up, while the tired one communicates using a elaborate combination of grunts to communicate how they feel about what the other is saying. It's really quite entertaining for the two of us. 

I have married into a large family. It's pretty awesome. 

To all my sibs, I miss you guys. The wedding day was very inconvenient for Robin and Chase to make it. But I can't wait till we all can get together again, hopefully this year, let's plan on it!!!

And a special thanks to  Tracy Layne for our wedding day photography!

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Tracy Layne