O Christmas Tree

A couple weeks ago Ronnie and I picked out our first Christmas Tree. Trees are expensive! We went to one of the local schools and picked one out...at least they donated some of the money to the school. I was really excited to get a tree and to decorate it. Obviously, Ronnie knew this about me. It was late at night and I wanted to put the lights on the tree. :) He said he had a feeling I would want to...haha. Over the years my mom has gotten me an ornament every year and now I have them to put on my tree! We strung some popcorn and wrapped it around the tree. Ronnie found our tree stand on the side of the road by the trash...nothin' like a free tree stand! Time is going by so fast and I can't believe Christmas is in just a few days. Ronnie and I have already been married for 5 months! Ronnie has also just finished his semester in law school. Now he can take a break from studying and enjoy the Christmas season. We are going to my parents home for Christmas this year. I'm excited to see my brother who is flying in from Utah today. We haven't been home for Christmas for a while (we often go somewhere south...) but it will be nice. I'm looking forward to relaxing and good food. Well I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and travel safe!

Thanksgiving on the Mighty Mississippi

So my brother James and his new bride Stephanie picked Thanksgiving weekend in Nauvoo, Illinois as their wedding venue. For those of you who don’t know, Nauvoo is a tiny town on the Eastern bank of the Mississippi river in Southwestern Illinois (current population approx 1100). The place is significant for Latter-day Saint church members because early church pioneers developed the city way back in the 1840s. They built a beautiful temple there before being forced out in 1846, but unfortunately it was destroyed only two years later. But not to worry! It was finally rebuilt in 2001. Also, many of the historic homes and shops of “Old” Nauvoo have been restored and are run by church missionaries as a visitors’ center area. Ok. Enough history lesson. Back to our trip.

Supposedly Nauvoo is where James and Stephanie “kinda” met about a year ago, on a church sightseeing trip for singles. I confess I’m a little fuzzy on the details. (My bro will have to work on his storytelling skills. . . .He always ends up cutting his narrative short with a laugh and twinkle in his eye, as if the outcome is too obvious, and gushy, to continue.) It was about a 5 or 6 hour drive for them, from Manhattan, Kansas, where they are both in school. For Heather and me, it was a cool 17 hours or so. And when I say, “cool,” I mean it. We decided to drive because we figured it would be way cheaper than trying to fly and rent a car. Sure this would mean more hours in route. And what about motel expenses? Well, we thought of that. We figured we could just take a few extra blankets and pull over at a rest stop. Call us crazy, but that’s just what we did. We stopped at a rather nice rest stop (as far as rest stops go) near someplace called Zanesville, Ohio. Heather climbed in the back seat and I pushed the passenger seat back as far as it would go. No offense to the Koreans, but their Hyundai hatchback is not well equipped for this kind of thing. Within a short time I began to feel my nose hairs starting to freeze. I did my best to hunker further down in my blanket and I peeped back at Heather to see if she was asleep. She wasn’t moving (I don’t think she could have if she tried), but I had a hunch she was not asleep. My suspicions were soon confirmed. My toes had just finished going numb when Heather suddenly pleaded with me to turn the car on. Ok, good, I wasn’t the first to crack! I turned it on and we slept fitfully for an hour until the heat became too much to bear. Back off. Back on….etc. We were up and out of that place before 6:00 am. By 1:30 pm we were in Nauvoo. It was Thanksgiving Day and I wasn’t sure what the day would hold. Would we get any food? My parents had suggested going out to eat somewhere once they arrived in the evening. We decided to be the advanced scouts. We drove across a bridge into Keokuk, Iowa. It was the largest nearby town (but that isn’t saying much). It looked like it was gonna be Dominoes or nothing. That’s when James called us to let us know that his bride’s family had cooked a more-or-less traditional Thanksgiving Dinner and they wanted us to come over and eat. Good job James, looked like you picked winner in-laws! We quickly checked in to our Nauvoo bed-and-breakfast to clean up and then went over for dinner. The bride’s family had rented a historic home in Nauvoo for the wedding weekend (Hyrum Smith’s home), as they had 8 children—some married—and needed the space. We got to meet them all. They were very laidback people, and friendly. They live on a farm in Northeastern Kansas, and they were joking about how obscure the location is—only one traffic light in the entire county. Will James and Stephanie end up in some place like that? Only time will tell.

Anyway, I am probably boring you with blow by blow details. Let’s just throw out some pictures for you. Friday, Heather and I toured the old Nauvoo sites with the fam. Saturday morning was the wedding. It was . . . well, like a wedding. Everything went just fine.




















After the wedding, we stopped by Carthage, Illinois to tour the jail where Joseph Smith was murdered. Then we hightailed it home as fast as we could, though this time we got a motel in Indianapolis (and went to church there Sunday morning). By the time we got to Maryland on Sunday night, traffic had grown thick as January molasses, so we peeled off the interstate and took a more creative way home. We were back in our own beds by 10:00 pm, and we were never more grateful.

Freezing in the Capital

Today was a very crisp day. Ronnie and I braved the outdoors with a run and a bike ride. My toes were frozen. We then met some friends at the metro and went downtown to see the newly re-opened American History Museum. We stopped by the white house first to see the "rally" that was going on to thank President Bush. But there was like 10 people there and we were talking to one of the guards and he isn't even in town so we headed to the museum. Luckily, the museum wasn't far because we were all freezing and my face was numb. It was so crazy busy. We saw Dorothy's shoes, Lincoln's top hat, a large George Washington statue and lots of other cool things. We'll have to go back again to finish seeing everything.

Here I am with good ol' Oscar and next to him is

Seinfield's frilly shirt.

Here is Ronnie with Kermit.

Us with R2D2's friend.

So I've been tagged...twice...

5 THINGS

5 things I was doing 10 years ago:
1. Living in Chesapeake
2. Dancing
3. making a new set of friends
4. going to mexico
5. starting highschool

5 things on my "To-Do" list today:
1. Finish the dishes
2. eat something
3. go to the temple
4. relax a little
5. clean up

5 snacks I enjoy
1. Pepsi (i admit it)
2. good n plenty
3. icecream (chocolate with peanut butter)
4. white chocolate rasberry cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory
5. Popcorn

5 things I'd do if I was a millionaire:
1. Pay off Ronnie's school debt
2. get a toyota highlander
2. Buy a house
3. Get Ronnie a farm
5. host pretty parties

5 places I've lived:
1. Provo, Utah
2. Bowie, MD
3. Chesapeake, VA
4. Rexburg, ID
5. Vienna and Falls Church, VA

5 jobs I've had:
1. Working for my dad
2. Luxottica Retail
3. BCBG
4. TMG Strategies
5. NVT&E

5 people I tag:

um...whoever...

Pumpkin to Jack-o-latern

Happy Halloween!! So last night Ronnie and I carved our first pumpkin together. Well he pretty much did most of it. Next year we'll have to get two pumpkins so we both can carve one. But, we are thankful we actually had a pumpkin to carve this year...thanks mom. Unfortunately, it was rotted on the inside so I let Ronnie clean it out. He dumped the insides in the ivy outside the house...our landlords might have a pumpkin patch next year....

I wanted to do something spooky, so we browsed online for a couple min and found a face that we liked and printed it out. Then I cut out the top and Ronnie carved the face. Now it is truly Halloween. Now if only we had a porch....

A Haunting We Will Go...

So Halloween holds a special place in my heart. It’s not one of those holidays that can be blamed for being overly sentimental. It really can’t be overdone either. The bigger, scarier, and hokier the props; the wilder the costumes (within reason ;); and the more candy the better!

And it’s ok for Halloween to be commercial too. I mean, it doesn’t distract from or cheapen any important religious observance, and people generally know not to take it too seriously. It’s a day to let loose and have fun, to give in to the inner child: running from door to door disguised as masked bandits or caped crusaders looting and plundering sweets from ‘victims’ who are foolish enough to open up and reveal their stash. And while some of us may be too old to actually do the pillaging, we get to relive those sweet moments vicariously, watching the mini masses eagerly perambulate the neighborhood.

If we are feeling particularly in the mood, the night gives us just enough license to don a costume ourselves. The fanciful cast of the evening provides a break from convention, a relaxation of all things mundane and sober. Under such conditions even the most curmudgeonly or dour must breathe in a hint of the levity wafting along the crisp night air; they must walk a bit lighter in spite of themselves.

So after this glowing tribute to the day, it is with great shame and embarrassment that I confess not to have any relevant plans for the day, not even an expectation of receiving trick-or-treaters at our door. This last fact is not something we would wish; rather, our location in a basement of a tucked-away home does not lend itself to the prospect. As for the rest of our plans—or I should say lack thereof—I confess to being preoccupied with other concerns. That day I have an interview for a prospective clerkship position with the Roanoke Circuit Court—in Roanoke, obviously. I’ve never actually been to that part of the commonwealth—yes, folks, here they do not call it a state. It will be a bit of a drive. I’ve done this type of interview before; twice, actually. Once a few weeks ago in Henrico County, Virginia, and the other time a week later in Richmond, Virginia. I was not offered a position for either of those first two tries; so we will see if my luck has changed. The judicial law clerk position sounds interesting to me. Insofar as I understand it, my duties would include assisting the trial judge in preparing for his or her cases, including doing legal research, drafting orders and opinions, and coordinating scheduling issues. Basically, you get to learn the ins and outs of courtroom practice while having direct access to a judge. Not a bad place to start out as an aspiring lawyer. Problem is, the positions are usually fairly highly sought after, notwithstanding relatively low pay. I don’t think I’m completely unqualified, but it is hard to know whether you are sufficiently setting yourself apart from the crowd. If you want to talk about my Virginia connections, for example, I’m limited. I mean, I’ve got one REALLY good contact: I married a native Virginian. (By the way, in case you were wondering, this is definitely not the only area I’m riding on Heather’s coattails. . . .Thanks Honey!) I am also obviously going to a Virginia law school. Problem there is that it’s a Northern Virginia school. Strangely enough, though it is all the same commonwealth, there is a cultural divide of sorts between so-called “Northern Virginia” and the rest of place. Since I’m not a true Virginian, I don’t try to parse too closely the exact content of that split. I have a vague sense after three and a half years here that it has to do with Northern Virginia being so close to Washington, with its Yankee ties and generally cosmopolitan leanings. On the other hand, much of the rest of the commonwealth is self-consciously ‘Southern,’ and somewhat more rural. There are still big cities in places, like the Virginia Beach area and also Richmond, but the populations seem to be more definitively “Virginian.” There are more “lifers,” whereas here in the DC area very few are actually from here. Perhaps I’m thinking too categorically, but it’s hard not to feel a little disconnected when all the judges interrogating you speak with such heavy drawls that you swear you were watching a Dukes of Hazard rerun (not that I ever actually watched that show…but you get the idea). You know, come to think of it, I hope none of these judges Google me online and find this blog. That could put me in a bit of an awkward position. At any rate, I wonder if my being an outsider (and living in Northern Virginia to boot) makes it harder for me to cozy up to these types? I guess I should point out that I am intentionally looking for jobs outside the Northern Virginia area. That is why I’m facing this (perceived) conflict. There are plenty of jobs in this area, but I don’t want to stay here. Neither does Heather. It is simply too expensive, too busy, too congested, and too impersonal for our taste. I could spend forever fleshing out the details of this dislike, but I will spare you. Most of them are somewhat irrational and maybe most folks would not feel the same. I will just sum up my sentiments by stating that I feel that living here has given me a chance to weigh the pros and cons of polar opposite geographic lifestyles: small, rural Midwestern living versus big, busy, metropolitan Northeastern living. In the balance I find the latter wanting. Now it's time to try less busy, smaller, Southern living. Maybe it will provide a tolerable medium??? Stay tuned.

Maized and Cornfused

What a beautiful day! We spent most of the day outside. The morning was started with a bike ride for me and a run for Ronnie (I'm not much of a runner). In the afternoon, we took a drive to Fauquier County (about 25 miles west). We visited a farm that had a corn maze, hay rides, pumpkins and all the other fall goodies. It was our first corn maze and we successfully completed it in about 30 minutes. They said some people took up to two hours and we were convinced that would be us...but we did just fine. After leaving the farm, we took a drive around Middleburg, VA. It's horse country and is well known for their fox hunts. I always love driving around this beautiful area.

Last weekend, we traveled down to Chesapeake and visited my parents. Ronnie had the PRIVILEGE of driving my dad's chevelle. And let me tell you, he was thrilled. My mom made this really yummy lemon cake and the frosting was to die for. I can't wait to make it (although I'm convinced everything is better when mom makes it)! It was great to see the 'rents and I'm glad we live close so we can visit.

Here is a video of my dad's chevelle. Although this isn't Ronnie driving, if you know Ronnie, you know why this appeals to him.

Lately

We welcomed LOTS of rain today. Thanks Hannah. We went to Pottery Barn today to spend the rest of our gift cards. I...I mean we...got some great stuff! When we came home there was a little surprise waiting for us. Puddling on the floor. If you didn't hear before, our basement apartment has a tendency to flood. This time we caught it before it was too late. All the rain made the sewage drains flood and the cap on the "sewer clean out" was leaking profusely. This made the storage area of the basement puddle a lot more and so I began to wetvac. Luckily, I have a handy husband who figured out a way to stop the leaking and we only had a few of our things that got wet that we have to wash or throw out. But thankfully nothing was seriously damaged like the last flood.

Things around here are going well tho. On Labor Day we visited Teddy Roosevelt island on the Potomac River. I had never been there so it was great to see new things in D.C. We may only be in this area for another 10 months or so, so we want to take advantage of living in a place with so much to see! We have a few things left on our list to do before we leave. This past week, Ronnie has been studying hard in law school and applying for different jobs in Virginia (out of Northern VA). He has also been involved in different church opportunities. I've just been working and cleaning this week. I can't wait until we have a bigger kitchen with a normal size fridge, a dishwasher and a table with chairs! That will be the day. We do have a nice place to live but when we do get a fully equipped kitchen I will be truly grateful!

Here is a picture of our entire kitchen. Ronnie bought that large toaster oven to supplement for a oven.

Summer's lease hath all too short a date...or not?

The weather here has lately been flirting with us, foreshadowing the looming seasonal change. Rather than sweat us out and die a slow death, the tail end of summer has turned unseasonably cool, and most recently, overcast. I suppose it’s timely, considering I’ve been in school now for over a week and a half, and the start of school has always, at least for me, traditionally marked the ushering in of all things Autumn.

When it comes to the seasons, I generally consider myself ‘season neutral.’ That is, I enjoy each of the four seasons for its own sake and in its own turn; I do not usually prefer another over the one I’m in. Most of the time. But the onset of Autumn is low tide for this attitude, for it holds so many simple pleasures: vibrant leaves, hay bales, shocks of corn, Halloween, crisp breezes, and hot cider. As such, I welcome all the tale-tell signs. Autumn is at the door! Let it in.

Ok, so maybe it is a little premature to get all worked up about the rites of Autumn. –At least that’s what Heather’s telling me as I write this down. Oh, well, she has a point. Why hurry? Time goes by fast enough as it is. Speaking of which, Heather and I already celebrated our one-month anniversary. I can't believe it. We’re well on our way to the gold. I want to pause and reflect a moment on all that we've accomplished. …Let me see. We have almost spent all the gift card money we received from all the receptions and showers, etc. We’ve almost finished eating the M&Ms (with our names on them) that were passed out at the wedding. Lastly, we’ve almost unpacked everything in our apartment. Well, I would say that’s quite a lot. Oh, and lastly, my part in it all--I remembered the anniversary. Rose, balloon and card. Not bad, huh? I know, I know, I really shoudn't be so modest. That was soooooo thoughtful. Really a nice touch. Way to go!

Wedding Pictures

Here are a few of the many pictures of our wedding taken by our lovely photographer Leslie Powers.

Here we are right after we were married in the DC temple...

In Chesapeake for the reception...

The Weekend

Well I would like to say that we finally got our apartment all put together and organized but our weekend took a little detour. Friday night wasn't too exciting. Ronnie thought it would be fun to have a picnic at a lake. So we determined that the only appropriate thing to have on our picnic would be KFC (or Popeyes...). So off we went to KFC...but there was no KFC. Falls Church has no KFC or Popeyes or Bojangles or.... So we walked around downtown Falls Church for a bit and determined that we wanted to eat at home. We came home, ate dinner and watched Maverick (which I had never seen). So that ended our lovely Friday night. Saturday morning we woke up and decided to take a trip to Farmville, VA. Farmville is about 3 hours southwest of the DC area. Ronnie wants to live in a rural part of Virginia and that is what this was. It was a cute small town. The only pictures we took were in front of Longwood University, which is in their historic downtown. So it was a pretty good trip, considering how spontaneous it was. Maybe next weekend we can finish the apartment.

The way Summer was meant to be...

Wake up whenever you want, go for a refreshing run, shower, eat your favorite junkfood cereal, crank up some country on the living room stereo, and finish reading a good book. Now that’s summer! Believe it or not, that’s how my day started today. It seems too good to be true, and, sadly, I know it can’t last. It’s a brief reprieve. A mere one-week window marking the time between the end of my summer internship with the Fairfax County Attorney’s Office – and all the recent wedding activity – and the start of the fall semester.


When I proposed to Heather during spring break back in March, I never anticipated the flurry of activity that would soon engulf us. To the casual observer, Spring was asserting itself slowly along the expansive network of Northern Virginia hardwood branches. However, in the world of “H & R” things were getting earnest. First there was the planning. Bless Heather’s heart, that’s when she had to do a lot of legwork. To be honest, the most I remember from that phase is giving a lot of affirmative nods while a long series of scenes from bridal magazines were thrust in front of my view. I tried to minimize comment, or, if I did offer verbal critiques of the glossy (overstated) depictions of wedding bliss, I tried to make them ambiguous. Reassuring if possible, but still ambiguous. I knew if I was too eager to voice approval at the first in a series of 100 pictures of reception table settings, I would be accused of picking the first thing to come along in a bid to avoid further ruminations on cutlery and seating arrangements. Of course it would be a hollow accusation. I think I probably did like many of the very first suggestions thrown at me, but I fussed and delayed and appeared as fastidious as possible, for good effect. I think Heather appreciated these genuine efforts. She is at work right now or I’d have her back me up. You may say stereotypical male indifference. I say, “Pshaaw! I’ll have none of that! I'm not beholden to any male mold. I am a sensitive, in-tune, Twenty-first century type of guy. Evolved.” :) ...Well, let’s see, what came next? There was the, ...um, --oh, yeah. The engagement pictures, the sample invitations, the dress selection, oh, and cakes, and favors.... –Actually, you know what? I think my mind’s getting a little fuzzy. Let me switch gears for a second.

I’m sure you’d all really love to hear about how my 1994 Kawasaki, Ninja 600R formed a part of our wedding preparations. I’ve been working on it simultaneously as Heather and I prepared for married life. I went to great lengths to get legal on it here in Virginia. That required riding my sport bike on an obstacle course at the DMV while a grouchy DMV-lady checked boxes on a clipboard and barked orders at me between routines. Talk about pressure. But Heather is worth it. I want to be able to take us for rides around the twisty fall roads outside the city later on. I don’t think Heather fully appreciates these plans yet but I’m doing all I can to warm her up to the idea. The horseback riding thing on our honeymoon kind of fit into that scheme. Admittedly, an animal can be pretty unpredictable at times. But an iron horse, on the other hand, is a smooth running masterpiece of human ingenuity and craftsmanship (or in my case, mass production), and it follows orders very literally. As long as she can trust me, she can trust the machine. No reason for worry. An exultant new hobby we can share together, even after horses get the boot! (Of course there is some added risk with uncontrollable variables like weather, road quality, traffic, and mechanical failures, but surely these are minimal. Breathe easy, Heather.) Will you go for it, Dear? Take as much time as you need to answer. Don’t jump to any hasty conclusions. Before you answer, you should read “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.” That book played no small role in justifying, in my mind, the decision to buy an old motorcycle off eBay (which has proven rather high-maintenance so far). It’s all about the opportunity for deeper meaning that motorcycle ownership brings: the mixture of visceral experience and personal reflection, the complexity and simplicity of it all, the proverbial freedom and wind rushing through your hair (interrupted only by Virginia’s mandatory helmet law, and the fact that I really have no hair). I ask simply, “What’s not to like?!”

Now that’s what you really wanted to hear about wedding planning, right? Well, notwithstanding what you think, that’s the version you’re getting today. I have to get busy soaking in this wonderful day devoid of court opinions and mandatory deadlines (and I have to walk to the grocery store and get the ingredients for our shish kabob dinner so it’ll be ready when Heather gets home from work at 6:00 pm). What a life! :)

Chocolate Chip Cookies and the Honeymoon

Apparently after you are married it is required you start a blog. So we're married. We are back from the honeymoon in Dominican Republic and the reception in Kansas and now real day to day life begins. I'm proud to announce that Ronnie is making my favorite chocolate chip/oatmeal cookies that my mom makes. I like a man that makes me cookies. :) Since he is doing that, I get the pleasure of starting this lovely blog...

The wedding and all the events went great. We have great support from all our friends and family so things went smoothly. The DR was an adventure. We arrived in the Santiago airport and stayed our first night there. The next day we traveled to the north to the Villa Nadine in Punta Rucia were we stayed for the next four nights. Lets just say it was rustic. The "village" had around 300 people and we were staying in the nicest place by far. Everyone lived in little hut type homes and didn't have a/c or running water and rarely had electricity. The Villa Nadine was very nice and open. There were no windows or a/c. It was sort of like camping in style. We had the most beautiful view of the ocean and of the cows that would be herded down the street everyday. While we were there we kept ourselves busy with snokerling, seeing mangroves and manatees, visiting other towns, horseback riding, and visiting historic places where Christopher Columbus landed. So about the horseback riding...I was a little wary of riding a horse and now I know I had every right to be. This was my first time actually riding a horse by myself. Of course I have been on horses at birthday parties or at my Uncle Matt's place when I was younger but I was never on them for long and someone was always holding the reins. So we started our way through Punta Rucia on these horses with our german guide, who didn't speak much spanish or english (which no one spoke english there so that wasn't unusual). In the "guide's" or the "man with the horses" words, my horse was the Beetle and Ronnie's horse was the Ford Mustang. Which my horse was probably the laziest horse ever and he was spooked by everything. He was really spooked when we passed this black stallion and the beetle started jumpin' around and bucking up and neighing and I was scared and got off the horse. Then they wanted me to get back on! Yeah right...I have a hard time putting my life in the hands of a wild beast. So after a few minutes after we passed the stallion, I got back on the horse. I was nervous the whole time we were riding and didn't want anyone to come near me because I thought it would freak out. So after riding, for what seemed like forever, we stopped for a drink and then rode along the beach. Ronnie decided it would be fun to give his horse a little excercise and they galloped away. His horse tripped and they about went toppling over...which was scary to watch. But the horse pulled itself together and then went on trotting. We finally arrived back at the Villa, where my horse was spooked by a gust of wind and I tried to calmly pat its neck and tell him to stop freaking out. So bless all of you that can ride horses...because I'M DONE!! We left Punta Rucia and traveled south to the other end of the island called Boca Chica, just east of Santa Domingo. It was quite the opposite of Punta Rucia. We just happened to arrive on their Father's Day weekend. Our hotel was right on the beach but we couldn't quite get on the beach because of the crowds. TONS of dominicans everywhere. We just relaxed and went to church on Sunday and then Monday we actually got on the beach and spent the whole day there! Needless to say we were burnt by the end of the day and Ronnie ended up with a pair of fake Raybans and buying a $5 coconut...(even tho we were sitting right under a palm tree). Tuesday we left and visited the LDS temple and made our way back to Santiago to catch our plane. We were sad to leave but excited too...I really wanted some American food and fruit (which they have NO fruit there). The places we stayed were not touristy and we probably only saw a couple Americans and maybe a couple more Europeans the whole time we were there. Over all it was an amazing trip and we are glad that we were lucky enough to go.