10 year olds are the coolest.

When J and I got our first calling in the Peak View Ward, we were super nervous because we were put into primary. Luckily J had younger sisters, and I have nieces and nephews to experiment with!!! We told the class that if they all successfully memorized the Articles of Faith that we would have a pizza party! Pizza was the motivating factor, but they definitely accomplished the goal and every single one of them memorized all thirteen articles!

Tonight was our party night. We bought 8 pizzas, 5 2-liter soda pops, Cheetos, and a roll of paper towels and the party was a success. I was so nervous about games and if everyone would get along (we've got QUITE the range of personalities in that class!) and it's needless to say that since worrying is my favorite hobby, I was up late into the night stressing about games. I woke up and decided not to go blow a budget and buy games at Target, and I am so glad I didn't! Here is why 10 year olds are the flipping greatest!

10 year olds. . .
1. love love love Cheetos. Thank goodness; J and I hate them!
2. are happier than any living organism when they are given copious amounts of soda.
3. understand that people are different, but haven't realized how to be mean, so they are so inclusive to every.single.person. . .
4. pretend they hate tag, but once a tag game gets started, the party won't stop! J and I have mastered Ryan-tag and toilet tag.
5. play tag for hours on end, take 10 second breaks, and are happy all over again.

There's so many stories I mentally took pictures of so I won't ever forget them. I really like 10 year olds. Now I just need to go to Yuma and play with my oldest nieces and nephews.

2011

Since January always marks the time to make resolutions, here is Jake's:

"Well easily this year is the year I'm going to dunk, people." NBA, look out.

Other than that, we've now been Flaggians for a whole, entire year. I have loved it here and J has so much that we have even put Flagstaff into our list of future possible hometowns.

Here's our recap of 2011!!

January began with a new blonde hairdo

February involved a midnight date to Taco Bell. . . we're classy and J seems less than thrilled.

March houses J's birthday, and he got hist first pistol. To say he was excited is an understatement.
In April my sister, MerryDeath, got hitched to her cowboy.
In May, we built more cakes.

June was our first anniversary. We ate pizza while our car got harassed by our roof.


July was filled with our annual Show-Low trip for fireworks.
Ps. There isn't one picture where everyone looks normal, so poor Ty is looking extra fierce.

In August we got to see our friends get sealed for eternity!
We went back to school in September and took our back2school photos by the door.

For October 2011 we were invited to a Harry Potter party, so we went as Severus Snape and Narcissa Malfoy. I'm convinced they're in love.
Before November, my sweet, pink, baby Dell passed away and I needed portable internet for my online class, so I got a surprise.
In December we only got one heinous picture of us, and heinous is also an understatement.

Oh my word. And last but not least (even though somehow I forgot...) we had babies!!!!
Earth, Wind and Fire joined us sometime in the spring.
This is Wind only, I can't find one of them all together.

That wraps up our 2011, here's to 2012 being the best yet!

Happy Christmas!!!

Our Christmas this year was QUITE unlike any other we've had! We give new meaning to the saying "It's not a family gathering without a little bit of drama." Thankfully, J and I have successfully recovered from food-induced comas!

We were able to spend a week with the Denhams. They just moved into a new home in Taylor, and I think it suits them....even though they're already wanting to move again! We were able to go with J's old man to his dental office and work with everyone, which always puts J in a better mood.

My favorite part of Christmas is all the songs, and in Flaggy we were punished with absolutely no Christmas music. I always got annoyed how the holiday music started before Thanksgiving, but I learned my lesson and will never take blessed "Frosty, the Snowman" for granted again!

To ring in the new year, J and I were released from our primary teaching calling. To put things mildly, I was sad...J jumped for joy! I don't think he's realized that he actually really liked our class, but I think when he gets something new to do he'll put it together...and I'll laugh a lot to shame him.

Thankfully the holidays are over. We're excited for a new year and new family motto--and especially glad to put such a stressful holiday behind us. Here's to 2012 being our best year yet!

Our Denham Duo 2011

Can we talk about how J is a model? Seriously.

Snow.

I love snow. I love trying to walk to class in it. I love watching people riding their bikes way too fast and falling over from not being able to stop quickly on the ice. I love when the snow looks like its hardened when it really hasn't and you step on it to short-cut, but then you actually drop in 6 inches. I love the way we had a final review with the professor on Sunday and that I didn't want to go, but was blessed to see some doofus try to walk on the frozen pond near the union. I was even more blessed for going when the doofus fell in to the pond sideways and was completely soaked. . . and then even even more so when he tried to make it look like he did that on purpose. When other kind passersby pretended not to notice after he was known to be okay, I gladly laughed aloud at him and called him a dumb dumb.

I love when driving how sometimes even though you go so slow from a complete stop, those back wheels are not going to connect with the road. Along with that, I love the embarrassment that comes long with that awkward slide. I love when the public buses go to far over in their lane and end up showering me while I'm walking on the sidewalk.

I love thermal underwear, wool socks, waterproof boots and ear warmers. I love being warm while walking to school. I don't love going to school so nice and toasty and finally getting in to class and not being able to take off enough layers to avoid sweating through all those toasty clothes nor avoiding frizzy hair when taking off ear warmers.

I love the way snow freezes on the car and forces J to go scrape it off with a snow shovel because he won't buy a scraper. It brings me joy to drink hot cocoa in the morning while peeking through the blinds to stalk him in his fury. I love trying to hurry away when he comes back into the house so frozen solid.

I love how the sky is purple when it's snowing. I love how staying in bed is so nice with such big, fluffy pillows and J. I love bringing the laptop in our room and watching Harry Potter while I cry uncontrollably because I love Snape so much. I love pretending to be asleep when J wants to watch ESPN.

I love how school is over in a matter of days. I love that we'll get to sleep at our house and not have to go to morning class. I love that we may get snow day tomorrow that would cancel chemistry finals. I love that we discovered the akwardness that is ChatRoulette. I love that Earth, Wind and Fire hate us so much.

I just am really liking this whole we-actually-have-a-true-four-season-life thing that happens two hours away from Mesa.

Life Lessons

Sometimes people are mean.
Sometimes standing up for your values makes other forget about their manners.
Sometimes you'll be alone when you're making a right choice.
Sometimes people will mock, taunt, and ridicule you.
Sometimes they can actually talk about you, quite literally, behind your back.
Sometimes friends don't stand up for you.
Sometimes they let you fall they hardest.
Sometimes the people you think are on your team are your biggest opponents.
Sometimes people think the meanest jokes are the funniest.
Sometimes it doesn't matter to others what's right or wrong, only what's popular.

Sometimes. Life. Sucks.

But if you don't show yourself faltering,
if you don't cry before you get home and jump in the shower so no one knows what's happening,
if you believe harder than you've ever had to believe,
if you love harder than you thought you could...

Eventually, you'll remember that life isn't that bad, hard, long or easy. It's just life, like it always is, and it's just one more thing you get to overcome to become the stronger person you were always meant to be.

Enthalpy

Chemistry is a pain in the toosh. I work work work so hard, and then I do mediocre on my weekly quizzes. So then I'll workwork workwork workwork and it's test day and I do just fine. J and I were talking about family home evening yesterday, and we decided we missed the days when we had teachers who didn't care about attendance, and the days when we could miss class and still get A's on all the exams. School is tough, and it should be, but I will be so happy when I go to work someday rather than school. . . and then when I got off of work on that same day I'll wish I was back in school. It's such a cycle!

Speaking of cycles, other than our neighbor Chris, and some other random people in our ward here in Flaggy, I've decided to dislike anyone with a Specialized brand bike. They think they rule the world and try to pass me on my old boat bike! They speed up and try to look all jazzy on those expensive things, just to get stopped at a red light to be caught up by ME. And then I loudly proclaim how dumb they are. And Jake gets embarrassed and I just laugh. But really. I slap them in my mind all. the. time.

Lady Rules

Today was Flagstaff Mountain Oktoberfest. . . in the park right next to our apartment. . . it reaked like donkey breath (I seriously do NOT miss that part of being in a salon) and it made me have a conversation with myself.

How do people not smell how stanky they are? They aren't stanky to them self. So when people kiss and they're drunk, do they smell it? Or taste it? Yesh, but they loves it like you love the smell of acetone nail polish remover. Ooooh.

And when that conversation to myself in the bathroom mirror ended, J walked in the door coming home from his conference sesh. He knows I talk to myself, but when he actually sees me do this it's like we've crossed a weird line that shouldn't have been crossed. It's really hilarious.

In other news, school was el horible this week. I think I ate a bowl of double chocolate fudge ice cream every single day. . . not that that's unusual or anything, but dang. Anyway, I'm now a week ahead in every class (minus bio and chem labs) and a week ahead on homework so this coming week is going to probably see me riding my bike to school Monday morning and run away scared by the sight of me, but a I'm-going-to-kick-school-in-the-bum kind of way.

J has a hard time staying awake for all of conference. I love it because I can say really loud, "J!" and he opens his eyes and looks at me in a ohmygosh, I wasn't even closing my eyes way.

Speaking of Jack's eyes, he got elbowed in the face this morning during basketball. The kicker? It was a guy....on his same team. That's what you call teammmwork.