Hello my friends,

Wow, life has been one whirlwind of events recently. It's been one of the most exciting (and stressful) moments of my life and I've written nothing. It is often easier to say more about nothing then to find the time to say a little about a lot.

In a nut shell...I'm getting married. That you already know, however. My life is changing so much. I'm not just gaining a husband...I am beginning a whole new stage of life in a new state with new friends and a new house and new ideas and compromises and a new job and new experiences. The only thing I can relate it to when I left my parent's home for college. That was a new experience in a new place with new people. The difference this time is that I will not be alone in these new experiences. That will be nice. But simultaneously I will have to learn how to live with someone else.

Being slightly stuck in my ways having lived out from under my parent's roof alone the last nearly eight years, it will be quite the change. Something that I am learning about already. I can't believe how hard it is yet so very important to me try  and compromise on all subjects. Not only that but I find myself saving half my dessert to share or picking out colors for a bedroom that I wouldn't normally pick. And I love it. I love finding new ways to share and to make him smile. It is hard work but I am having the time of my life.

I know I'm making the right decision to marry Monte and even through all the nervousness I find myself excited for the move to a new state. I'm excited about our new home. And I'm excited to meet new people and find a new job. It's a lot to change all of a sudden. One day I'm unmarried living in my apartment in Utah and then next I'm married living in Texas looking for new work and new friends. Crazy. But that is life. 

It is three weeks to the wedding today. We are driving a U-haul down to TX this weekend to get our furniture moved into our new house and to set up things, electricity, internet, and such for the house. We have to register his car and find out where the doctor's offices are. Things like that. Then I will be back the next week for out last full week in Utah. Then it will be my brother's birthday, then father's day, and then my wedding. How exciting. A whole weekend of family togetherness. It is going to be wonderfully stressful but mostly wonderful. I just can't wait!

And best of all...at the end of all this madness that is wedding planning...I will go home with the love of my life to live with him forever, eternally married, as husband and wife. Isn't that the most delightful thought ever.  :)

I'm getting Married!

Well it can't be anymore official then when you finally have the ring. Plans are underway and we're happy. The wedding is set for Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 in Provo, Utah.

So, the countdown is now at 2 months and 5 days. In a very short time I will be a Fairbanks. :)

To answer some of the basic questions I've been receiving lately:

Is that your engagement ring and wedding band in one (since it’s sparkly yet bandlike at the same time)?
No it's just the engagement ring. (I will be getting a plain silver band to go with it for the wedding ring.) It's called an anniversary band but I love it cause it's small and simple...yet, it's still really glittery. :) I actually picked this ring out over two years ago and I didn’t think it was available any longer as the company no longer makes it. But Monte had it shipped in from another state. And I love it!

How old/young is Monte?
Monte is 25 (he'll turn 26 in August...so, I'm 4 months older...muhahaha)

What is his job/major?
He's a computer engineer. He graduates on the 24th of this month. And we are moving to Austin, TX after the wedding where he just got an awesome job with National Instruments.

How many siblings does he have?
He is number 5 of 7.

Where is he from?
He’s from Bellevue, Washington just outside Seattle.

Where will you be living now and what will you be doing in the future?
We are here till the 17^th of June. Austin, Texas after that. Monte will be working…I will hopefully find a cool job. Monte already made some connections with some art galleries in the area. But we’ll see. And eventually we’d both like to do grad school.

Where will your reception be?
It is going to be at the small art gallery that I work at called Coleman Studios. My boss offered to let us use the space for free which saves us like $900. YES! I love them.

How long have you two been dating?
We met in September and have been dating 6 and half months now. After the third date we haven't missed a day of seeing each other...even if it's just to say goodnight (except for Christmas and while he was interviewing in Texas, Idaho, and Colorado).

Here is a picture from our six month date...we called it our semi-versary and we ate at Ottavio's and then went to play put put (miniture golf) at which time Monte kicked my trash. :)

And lastly...a few more pictures from our crazy golf night that really have no point.
(And my friends, If you have any more questions then please email me and I'll answer them...also email if you would like a wedding invitation.)

Put down that camera...
Hey, I said put that down!

Alright you asked for it...! See...mini golf is crazy.
:)

Hello my friends,

I know, it's been far too long since I have written, but that seems to be my way. These last two and half months have been filled with much joy and excitement as well as trials and tears. But that is life, I suppose.

I've decided to give you a quick overview of some things I've been up to, some new pictures of Monte, and a few other random fun facts. So, enjoy the potpourri.

First, we begin with Christmas...
Every year my mother sets up the Christmas village. It's tradition. What's also tradition, apparently, is that my mother adds to the village every year. I tried to help by setting it up this year and I realized there was not enough room to put everything on the table that we have now. This village has been growing my entire life. It may need to move next year...maybe to our very large dining room table. I guess we'll eat in the kitchen. The four of us don't need as much room as this mini town...I mean mini city. (And there's my bro...looking real happy.)

I got a new camera for Christmas because my other one broke on Halloween. I've been devastated that I could not take pictures and that I had to rely on the fuzzy shots of others. So, to try out my new camera I started taking pictures of everything...right away. As I was looking through some pictures from Christmas break back home in South Carolina with my family, I noticed that all the pictures taken at breakfast seemed to have a recurring theme. I've included a couple of pictures demonstrating. Do you see it?

. . .

My family is putting on a Tropicana orange juice commercial!!! This, of course, happened all my accident. But looking back it's seems pretty funny now.

Christmas went alright. New Years was better because Monte came to visit. And then we were back in Utah. The whole break went by so quickly.

In January there was still lots of snow around my apartment. My apartment tends to get really hot in the winter as we don't have control over the heat and those that do either love it toasty or have no idea how hot it gets in our apartment. I told Monte that if he was hot that he could go lay in the snow. Then I said...if you make a snow angel I will. I was just kidding. But then he did it. And he wanted me to keep my word and do it. Yeah...you can just see how that went. :)

I try my best to keep my word. Better watch what I say then.








Now on to some roommate fun. As most of you know...or will know now. My roommate, Mary, is getting married in April. She has decided to decorate her own wedding cake. Because of this we decided it was time to practice.

This was my first attempt at making and using fondant. I am thinking of doing my own wedding cake as well. It will be cheaper and I will learn a new fun skill. I've got plenty of time to practice so that's good. :)

I made blue fondant and Mary made a white batch. We actually made 4 batches cause we tried out two recipes but one the recipes was terribly sticky and shiny. The winner of the evening was a marshmallow fondant that really doesn't taste too bad.

In the back there you can also see Mary's cake. She put four circles on it and then exclaimed, "Oh no, I made a button!" and then she gave up for the evening. Haha.

Shiloh was a little disapointed because when she got home we gave her the sticky batch to work with and it didn't work. But she was good sport and decorated her cake with chunks of left over fondant. And then I got this really great picture. Who knew that my gorgeous roommate could make such a face. I think she looks like Pop-Eye, however, so I had to include the picture here.
We all had lots of fun!

. . . ___________________________________________ . . .

Monte and I try to go out on at least one real date a week. We have been doing that for over five months now. I have seen plays and shows and comedy teams. I've eaten many dinners and watched movies. I've listened to the phil harmonic orchestra thrice. It's been great. Here are a few pictures of a date we went on in February. We saw Mid Summer's Night Dream at the HFAC. My roommate Shiloh did the costume design for the play. It was amazing! Afterwards we looked at the art work on display. I love dating.

Speaking of dating. Valentine's Day was last month as well. V-day last year was spent with my roommate Kari. I took her to Denny's because she was bummed that her fiance couldn't come and see her for V-day. The V-day before that was spent with my roommates Shiloh and Joo-Hee at Red Lobster. And before that...I don't think I remember that it was V-day. Haha. But this year was different. I had someone to celebrate with. Unfortunately he has class on Thursdays and I don't usually get to see him till 10 or 11 pm. He managed to get home by 9:30 that night and we made fortune cookies together. It was sooo much fun. They weren't as easy as I would have supposed but it led to many laughs. Just remember that wax paper burns in the oven and parchment paper does not. Do not get those two confused!

Of course, Here are some pictures. There's the two of us. And then is a pic of the chocolate covered strawberries that I made and surprised him with when he came home. Then me with the pot of roses he brought me with a heart shaped box o' chocolates. And lastly is the fortune cookies we made. They were delicious!



















Other events in February included my ex-roommate's wedding up at the Idaho Falls Temple. Monte and I and my friend Matt drove up for the wedding and reception. I was sad that I was going to miss my old coworkers' party to celebrate one person's engagement and another's new baby. A lot has been happening since I left. (And I really wanted to see a prego Lilit :( She is the cutest!) Anyhow, I could not attend the party because I was invited to my old roommates temple sealing...

Unfortunately...I did not make it. On the way to the temple that morning (Sat. Feb. 9th) we had a little car accident. The car in front of us put on his brakes because we were passing a cop. Monte then hit the breaks slightly because the car in front of us was slowing down faster than we were and we were catching up on him. We couldn't swerve into the left lane because the patrol car was parked there half way on the side of the road and halfway off. When Monte hit the breaks the car began to fishtail. Apparently there was some black ice on the road and we were coming off a bridge heading downhill. The car spun around backwards on the interstate and then into the medium where it flip up on the side. The snow cushioned the flip but it was still pretty scary and I had to climb out the drivers window above just to land in knee deep snow that burned my legs because I was wearing a skirt. It was a pretty crazy morning. But we managed to get the car flipped back over and made it to the Temple in time to see Leila come out. And she looked wonderful! Here are some pictures of her leaving the Temple and of us at the reception.

Oh and the car we were driving and flipped at 65 miles an hour miraculously had little to no damage. Two slight dents that you have to catch in the light just right to even see. It was a miracle. It was also my roommate Shiloh's car. And her car has been having some bad luck lately. She was really great and understanding about our accident in her car but then a couple weeks later her car was sitting in the parking lot behind our apartment and about 1 AM a young man backs into her car. You can see in the picture below that he mangled her license plate and broke her grill. The license plate is hanging on by one screw after being rip up and spun around. And her Toyota symbol is now sitting on her desk in her bedroom. Sad. But strange that we could roll the car off the road at high speeds and it would have so much less damage than someone backing into it in a parking lot. We really lucked out.

So, there you have it. Life up to this point. I am happy. I am still working at Coleman Studios. I like my job a lot. It's fun to be around artwork and artist. But for the last month the printer has been broken and customers are starting to get upset that they don't have their orders. That is not fun to deal with.

My roommates are good too. Mary is busy with wedding plans and Shiloh just get back from a trip to California with the Young Ambassadors. She will be traveling with them to Australia at the end of April so that's terribly exciting.

Monte and I are still doing wonderfully well. He had interviews in Boise, ID and Colorado Springs, CO last week. And next week he is flying to Austin, TX for another interview. He has also been accepted to a couple different grad schools. So, this summer looks to be full of lots of changes. It will be interesting to see how things pan out. I will indefinitely keep you all updated. I promise.

Oh, this should make Caroline and Jana proud, I found out last night that I have not lost my Boggle skills. I more than doubled most scores. It was impressive. But I was not allowed to use the word Tao. Haha. Well, that's life. I'll write more later. Take care my friends.

P.S. I know it says that this blog was published on the 28th of Feb. This is not true...it was started then...but it wasn't actually posted until today, March 10th. Oops...haha time got away from me.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

The Most Wonderful Person I Know...

So, I've often wondered about that day when I would take someone home to meet my parents; THE Someone. Would he be nervous? Would I? My fear is that I would revert back to my child-like self when I'm home and under parental control. A friend of mine and I discussed that once. No matter how adult we are on our own it is real easy to switch gears in some respects when we go home. To become whinier or more easily upset...to become childish (but not in the good way). This is something I've worried about. I want to be the same person there as I would be here.

One thing I had not considered, however, is what I would do when I met his parents. That part I have never thought to think about. I generally really enjoy meeting people's families. To see where they come from is very intriguing. I never guessed I would be so nervous.

I met Monte's parents on Wednesday. I felt that I was quiet and awkward. I got better as the days went on and it was easier to be myself around his siblings, but still, I was worried I did not make the good impression I would have liked. I was worried they would have no idea that I could be fun, or supportive, or mostly that they would not see how much I cared - genuinely cared - for their son. I guess I did alright. In the end, his mother told him that I was a keeper. I assume that's a stamp of approval. It made me very happy to hear that. Now, don't jump to any conclusions...there is no understanding beyond simple courtship between us, so no comments, please, on anything further. I just wanted to express my thoughts on this Thanksgiving.

I had the chance to watch Monte this past week with his family. As with all families there are problems and things that irk us because we know them best and have lived with them longest. I could tell there were moments when he may have felt that he didn't quite fit...that he was the outsider in his family. But I could also see how hard he worked "behind the scenes" to make them comfortable, to make them happy. The little things he did for them made me love him so much more. And I also saw how their faces lit up when they told me about their cousin, brother, or son when he wasn't around. They think very highly of him. They all love each other so much. I felt very happy to be included.

Upon further inspection I learned a bit more about him these last couple of days. He is truly wonderful. When he's having a stressful time I want nothing more than to be of support and to help in anyway I can. His happiness ranks right up there on the scale of most important things in my life. At the same time, I have never felt happier. It's hard to describe...but if I was a balloon filling with water, there are days when I am sure I can hold no more without bursting and spilling happiness upon all the rest of the world. He is so good to me. I can't quite understand what I've done to deserve him. Or why he finds me so terrific and lovely. It baffles me that he can love me so much. I think it baffles him too that I could feel the same way about him.
So much has happened this semester. So much has happened in the last couple months. I look forward to the next couple. I look forward to continually learning about him. I look forward to the next moment that I will see him. Monte is so kind and gentle. He is soft spoken and generally good natured. He cares for others and likes to do things for them. He likes eating chocolate and baking desserts. He's so smart and works very hard. I may miss him during long nights on campus but I admire his dedication. He always returns a message. He's the first there and the last to leave at functions and other activities that may require help, assistance, or attendance. He's sooo funny. I have never laughed quite so much. I am constantly smiling and my sides ache with happiness. He's handsome; probably the most handsome man I've ever met. His hands are warm and fit so perfectly in mine. He has a tradition to walk around the Temple alone each Sunday to think. He is so good. Sitting in sacrament next to Monte is probably one the highlights of my week. He enjoys traveling and experiencing new things. He has a serious face when he's stressed or thinking, a huge grin when someone makes him laugh unexpectedly, sleepy eyes when he's tired, and a simple grin with crinkle smiley eyes when he says I love you. He's the most wonderful person I know! It was the best Thanksgiving break. :)

I dreamed last night that I was in a super hero movie...sort of anime looking but with real people. I had powers but I never used them. I was young and no one knew that I had powers. I was looking for a safe haven and then I stumbled into this family who seemed normal but I could tell that their father had powers. (He had blue hair.)
Then it was getting to be night time and I wanted to find a place to sleep and I stumbled down to the ocean side. It was very beautiful but unfortunately it was private property and some dude chased me away with a shot gun. I didn't use my powers. I knew that I could but I didn't want to...and I didn't want anyone to know that I had them.I found a great enormous home after that and I went inside the hall. It looked like a hotel. There was a bad guy in there. I had seen him several times before in my dream. I tried to get passed him unnoticed. I realized then that he was going to hurt someone. I wasn't sure what to do. No one knew I had these powers and if I displayed them I knew he would attack me and I didn't know if I could win because he was very very strong. A group of men appeared at this time. I walked past them down the hall. I looked up and one of the men was the guy with the blue hair. We made eye contact and even though he looked very different now I knew it was same guy who was the normal father before...but now he was using his super powers. The group marched down the hall and attacked the bad guy. It looked like they had won...but then he rose off the floor into the air and healed. He laughed maliciously and then used the chains and ropes they had put around him and shot them out at the group of good men killing them all in a flash of light.I began to run now. He began to fly. I entered the main part of the home and I saw the children, three little girls, that had been out trick or treating with their father earlier, the man with blue hair. They did not know their father had just been killed. But they did know something was wrong. They started to run upstairs. The way this house was set up it had a center shoot that went up floor after floor and was surrounded on the sides by different colored rooms. Each one had a theme color and was very beautiful.










I remember I wanted to look around the green room but I had no time before the bad guy appeared. Then I ran to the orange room and then to the burgundy room.

The girls were screaming by this point and we continued to run upstairs. It was like running in a spiral upwards and the bad guy was using the shoot in the middle to race us upwards.


I knew that we were running out of room and I feared for the kids.

I was young...but not as young as they were and I knew I was their only hope. The bad guy was not after me...but he wanted to kill this whole family. I did not know why but I knew I needed to help. But I was sooo scared. I didn't know if I could defeat him. I didn't know if I could even help. I had just seen him destroy a whole group of strong men with powers who were the protectors. The only thing I had going for me was that he didn't know that I wasn't a normal child...he didn't know that I did have powers. He came through a window in front of the youngest girl. She screamed...my heart was beating so fast by this point and I was petrified. Really and truly afraid...I knew I might could hide or leave but then these children would be murdered. I made a decision to stay. I have never felt so scared. I moved towards the little girl to protect her...


And then I woke up. I woke up from my dream and I was out of breath. Literally. I was breathing so hard and I felt so tired. And I was still afraid. I laid there in my bed for a while and thought about the dream. I didn't know if the children survived. I didn't know if I survived. I got out of the dream before the battle. The only comfort I felt was that I had moved towards the girl before I had woken up. It was such a strange dream.