Lessons Learned

Not unlike any other time I sit down to blog, I don't know what to write about. I don't understand why that is! I mean, lets be perfectly honest, I am an opinionated lady! I get that from my mom. ;) The last blog I wrote was about starting anew and being an example of Christian behavior. I have been able to do that everyday, even if it is the smallest of things. The thing that sticks out to me most is something that happened today.

I <3 this

I was filling up with gas-a not so happy experience-and I noticed a man right away who seemed to be bundled up a lot for the cold and he was pacing, I assumed that to be because he was cold. He walked up to me, seemingly nervous, and said, "Excuse me miss, I know this is a lot to ask, I can see you're already spending money right now, but would you happen to have some change I could have. I haven't eaten in 2 days and I am looking to buy a sandwhich." I quickly pulled my wallet and asked him how much. I was fully willing and ready to give him everything he needed for his lunch. He turned it down and said he only wanted $2 from me. I finished filling up the car and went on with the rest of the day. As I drove away I thanked my heavenly father for the opportunity to serve someone today.

Goofy is my middle name!

Over the last few weeks life has been crazy busy. Myles' older brother got married. It was a nice ceremony and reception. I helped out with some of the decorating and did some sound things for the actual wedding portion of the day. It was a fun and exciting atmosphere, but I do have to admit the gratitude I felt that someone else planned my wedding. I was exceptionally pleased with the decorations at both receptions, and the Temple sealing truly is a great experience. Although there was some drama, by our own choosing we filled the night with fun! It was a long 2 days, but they were seriously fun ones! We were asked to give talks on the following Sunday so that was a little more hectic than we anticipated. Our talks were very much guided by the spirit.

Our job has some major ups and downs when it comes to a first week to the second kind of a basis. We get paid per car. We have absolutely no control over what lots have how much work for us. Because of that our pay checks can vary a lot, causing our money conscious minds to freak out a little bit. We started looking into new job opportunities, however after much prayer and a visit to the temple, we have been instructed to stick this job out. We don't know if that will be another month or until May when we move, but we are thankful to have a job, and we will stick it out as long as the Lord asks us to.

This might be my favorite picture

My new calling in the ward is Relief Society Activities Coordinator. I really had a hard time accepting this to be my call, but I told the bishop I would do it, and I started into my new job. It was a hard experience at first! You will all be glad to know that I have had a change of heart! I have my first activity planned and I am so excited! I am thankful for the people that have accepted to be on my committee. They are a real blessing to me! Our Valentines activity is going to be a great one!

I am in love with my visiting teaching route and my fabulous companion Christine. She is a great friend and I know it was perfect for both of us at this time. The Sisters we visit are strong, faithful, ambitious, beautiful women who are examples to me! I'm thankful that God has provided this program to women in the Church. It really is inspired, even if it takes me a while to get out of my dear mothers attitude. :P

Bridesmaids!

Our wedding pictures came! Sharlene Fagersten with Your Good Side Photography did a super amazing job! The pictures have an assortment of beautiful pictures, serious pictures, and down right fun ones! I am so thankful she agreed to do it, even while she was in school and working, both full time.

We are FAMILY!

Myles got a new tie from Hannah

We went to the Temple this past weekend. It was, as the Temple always is, a beautiful experience. I wanted so badly to have "more profound experience than I have before" moment. However, I asked in my prayers that I would only have what I was ready for. That proved to be a hard thing for me. It was wonderful! However it was the same wonderful as I always thought it was, and I was feeling disappointed that the feeling I thought I wanted didn't happen. I walked out of the temple, trying to keep my head high, but I had this nagging wish that something more would have happened. I became bitter and then saddened because I knew that isn't a feeling you are supposed to have when you come out of the temple. The following day I was able to be touched by the spirit and was finally able to be taught something. I have been taught this by friends, teachers, loved ones, and the spirit countless times. The lesson is: The Lord works in his own time, no matter how faithful and obedient we are. I am now beyond my negative feelings and proud to say that I love going to the temple! Despite my desire for a "profound" something to happen, I know that God is going to work in his time. He is constant. He always has done things in his all seeing time, and he always will. My little human mind sometimes can't grasp that concept. Good thing God sends me the same lesson over and over. Maybe one of these times I'll get it.

My hair is getting its length and curl back at the same time!

I hope everyone is doing well! We are so blessed and thankful to be where we are at right now. Be Faithful!

PS-If you want to see more pictures, there are tons on my facebook!

Starting something new

Myles bulding out table from Ann with tools from my parents

Our Christmas and New Year went very well. We had fun and spent them with Myles family. I wont say it was easy not being with my family, if I did, I'd be lying but all in all I survived and I know it may not get easier, but I will be able to bear it better as time goes. We were blessed by many presents by others and were able to stick to a strict budget for our gifts to others so we didn't go under! It was a fun time and we didn't forget the true meaning of Christmas. We skyped with my family at the end of the day and they called me when they opened our presents to them. That, for me, started the ever lasting fight over the tears. I tried so hard not to cry all day. It was really hard. I made it through though! It didn't help that they were hanging up with me to go skype my not-my-husband best friend, Brother Jon and I didn't get to.

He's so handy

We spent the rest of Christmas week working and new years eve was spent watching Pitch Perfect. (I enjoyed the music but it was very crude at some parts) and shooting fireworks. I think my inlaws learned for themselves that I like sleeping and I don't like the cold. Myles woke me up from my couch nap to get me to watch fireworks and I was crabby and freezing!!

  

Our pathetic claim to snow. It sure was cold!

We helped Gpa Nielsen harvest Pecans

We are glad to start this new year!! :) It will bring adventures of every kind!

Myles shaking the nuts off the trees

2013 is starting off with a chill! We have had snow falling for nearly 30 hours. Guess how much stuck to the ground?? Maybe a total of 2 inches... It's mostly gone now. It's crazy to me that people "can't drive" in this. The roadway is completely clear of any snow! Nothing stuck to the pavement. lol It makes me miss home more than ever. Especially today... Anyway, the down side to the snow is that we can't work when there is snow on all our cars. That made it a little difficult for us this week, with them being closed on new years day, and then the snow, we weren't able to get as much done and got no where near our goal. A goal is just that though, a goal! You can set a goal and not make it because of elements of life you cannot control. Such as weather and what days people close their businesses.
Through all of this I'm trying to remember something that my dear friend and Freshman seminary teacher always said. "During trials, don't ask 'why is this happening to me?' but ask 'what am I supposed learn from this?' And so, even though that is the one of the most difficult, humbling questions one can ask themselves, that is what I ask.

What am I supposed to learn? Sometimes I ask myself that when I'm at church and the speaker is boring, or the lesson is not grabbing my attention. At that point I can usually teach myself something pretty great with the help of the Holy Ghost. However, when this question is posed in the face of a trial, the answer always seems to come more slowly. The answer is never apparent until far after the trial is over. I have decided for myself that in the case of missing being with my family, and having rough work weeks, that my answer is faith. That must be it! It's fairly general, but I can always use more! Faith, Hope, and Charity, right?

Today Myles and I watched a man with his dog,
who appeared to be homeless or at least lived a very meager life style. He had just purchased a warm drink from Starbucks and he and his dog tried to stay close together through the snow to be warm. The man was trying so desperately to assist his dog to climb a wall, when he put his drink down on the wall and squatted down so his dog could climb up him. On the dogs first attempt he didn't make it so the man moved a little bit and the dog jumped up him again. Only this time the dog bumped the scolding drink and it spilled, melting what snow was around it. Not only did the man not have a warm drink to keep him through the cold, but it had spilled all over his shabby bag. He helped his dog up the wall the rest of the way and stood up. He looked up at the skies and shook his fists in anguish. He appeared to be cursing God. My very first instinct when his drink spilled was, "quick! Do we have cash in the car? Find it before the light turns!" I wanted him to have his warm drink in the cold. We were not able to find anything smaller than a $20 in the car, and I almost wanted to give him all of it. I missed my chance and as we passed by him, he and the dog we finding cover under the awning of an empty building. I wanted so desperately to stop but we had work to do. What a lame excuse! I have been thinking about this all day long. Why couldn't we have stopped? If only to see if he had been burned! I wish so badly that we had chosen to show him that God really was out there and looking out for him. There are days that I want to complain about the things that I don't have, or about how such and such a thing went wrong. On those days I still know that God lives, and loves me! He is watching out for me and my family, and he always knows my heart aches. I usually don't make resolutions, but this year I did. This year my goal is to find someone everyday, who I can be an example to. I want to let everyone I come in contact with know that I believe in Jesus Christ! Not by my words alone, but by my actions as well.

Jesus Lives!

Christmas?

It will be Christmas in 4 days. This year is going to be a lot different than I have ever experienced it. It's not only a a first for me, but a first for a lot of people. It will be Myles and my first Christmas together <3, My sweet nephew Ben's first Christmas ever, Mom's first time not being with all of her kids at least for a little bit on Christmas day, My first Ski season without hitting the slopes with my friends, My first Christmas apart from my family, the first time M&M will have to really watch a Christmas budget closely, and the first time that I get to work like my mom did to bring the Christmas spirit into my own home.

It always struck me that my mom did everything within her means to give presents to a lot of people. Not only that, but presents that actually meant something. Weather or not that present may or may not have been a note, or something cheesy, or even something extravagant never mattered. It was always something that she worked hard on. This year she didn't get time to wrap the presents that she sent to our house. I had to open the boxes to see if the fragile things inside had made it in one piece. The boxes were a little ragged looking so I had to look... I didn't want to because the underside of our tree is sort of bare and I want to have something for us to open on Christmas. I grudgingly looked inside the first box and inspected the glass thing, tears welled up. I had to take a deep breath and hold them back as I searched the rest of the box. I pulled it together, and looked in the next box. All was in tact. Now, I am an extremely emotional person already, but I started to cry because my super amazing, and exceptionally thoughtful mommy sent me a clear Glass picture frame thing with the words, "REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE" in big bold black letters engraved on it. Now, to most, these are just the words from the Lion King that Simba's dad says to him. But to me, these are the words my mom said to me every time I got out of the car, walked out the door, left her presence in any way, or just needed a reminder. She always told me on the way out the door for school, "Bye, love you. Be good. Remember who you are!" To most kids that would annoy, but to me it was always the reminder that I was 1. A daughter of a heavenly king. 2. To be a Shining example to all around me. 3. That I was McKay Boyack (Maxey) and that I am a strong, confident young women that could get through anything.

So when you get a present that is thoughtful, take the time to appreciate it! The people that gave it to you, think you are amazing and want you to be happy.

Now, spreading the Christmas spirit in our house has been a little bit hard. Myles and I are constantly on the go, and work takes up a big part of our lives, even during the Christmas "break". So this year has been different when it came to spreading Christmas spirit. We don't have the money or the time to do it like my mom does! The Christmas goody making was on short supply this year! Usually mom, Hannah, or myself makes a ton of goodies and we put them on plates and either ding-dong-ditch them, or go caroling. We did ditch one loaf of banana bread that I made at a friends house, but our caroling  numbers are on short supply with just the two of us. So we made a total of 4 loaves of bread, and ditched one. We have done no caroling, and basically the only Christmas music we hear is what is played on the radio. My father would be pleased to know that the Carpenters are not forgotten when it comes to "Sunny 99.9". We finally have some wrapped presents under our tree, but sadly most of them will be moving on to Ann's house to be opened with Myles' family because only 2 of them are for either of us. So, to me, it feels that Christmas spirit is lacking within my home, but that's probably just because I'm an adult with a full-time job, and no children to make it seem like the most magical part of the year.

I had a hard time getting presents for Myles because he didn't mention anything he wanted, and he pretty much has everything he needs. I am not very creative, but I finally came up with one present that he didn't tell me he needed after I forced it out of him. I'm really hoping that he likes it, because I thought it was pretty ingenious! Myles, however, is the surprise present extraordinaire and claimed to have lots of ideas for me! I'm excited to see what he came up with!

Ben is having his first Christmas, but I hear he isn't very interested in the tree or the presents. Maybe he will be once he realizes he gets to rip everything apart. I'm sad I don't get to see it, but I'm sure I will get a full report, so I will live through it.

Budgeting is an old hat for us, so managing Christmas has not been too bad. :)

Although these are all things about Christmas, I have been thinking about the true meaning, and why we are all even here on the earth. Jesus Christ is the reason! He is not only the reason for this season, but the reason that we all live in joy and happiness. There are scary things in the world, but guess what? Christ over came it all. He is Almighty, he is the Prince of Peace, he is the reason I find blessings in each day, and he is the Good News! Jesus Christ is born! He died and has risen again, so that we can be free! Let us not forget to live joyfully, but also to live prayerfully, kindly, gently, righteously, and with a true testimony of the love that our Father in heaven and his son, Jesus Christ love and bless us. Extend a helping hand to those in need, smile at the people you come in contact with, be cheerful, find the tender mercies, be the one who reaches out to the one, and live the Gospel to the fullest!

We are blessed to live in a warm home, and an extremely full refrigerator and cupboards, have good friends, a job, a fuel efficient car, families who love and care for us, and most of all, the knowledge that Jesus Christ is our Savior and King.

Merry Christmas to all! May God bless you and your families! May your testimonies, and the testimonies of the Youth of the world shine brightly. Praise to the Lord, The Almighty! He is my all!

Mom, this is for you

My mom was chastising me for not writing a blog recently, so here I am, fingering away at the keyboard trying to think of something fun to tell you guys.
I think since my last blog I have had a few exciting things happen, so here goes! We'll see if I can get them all!

Me and my parents in front of our (Myles and mine) favorite Mexican restaurant! Seriously, if you're in Cruces area, eat at Chopes. Most delicious food I've had. 

I think the biggest thing was that my mom actually got on a plane to come see me! It had only been a week, but she missed me that much! We also happened to be throwing the New Mexico reception on the same weekend so it worked out well. ;)

Pic of us from the Cruces reception

We took them out to eat, which turned out that they took us out even though we had been planning on paying. Silly parents... haha anyway, we got to go back to my parents hotel. They had chairs so we decided it would be better that way. We are still working on getting a table and chairs... We had a great time talking, and giggling with each other, all while the dog across the hallway was going crazy!

My NM BFF Beth and I. She was a HUGE help! Love you!

The reception here went well! It didn't seem like there were as many people, but it was still a blast! We danced and greeted people, my Dad had the slide show going again, we even had little kids running across the gym and sliding on their bellies. It was a lot of fun! I did tell Myles that he was not to shove cake in my face this time. I might have cried. haha. I was too tired to think it was funny. It had been a long week of moving in and jumping back into work and I just couldn't trust myself to react well. All was well, we were kind to each other when it came time to cut the cake. The night ended well and there were a lot of people there to help us take down. It truly was a blessed occasion.

Sunday we were up bright and early to get my parents to the airport. It was not an easy thing to leave them there again. We likely will not see them until June for sandcastles. But I do know that the Lord provides for the things that will bless his children. Maybe if I'm lucky an miracle will happen and we will be financially great! Anyway, we made our way back to Cruces to make it in time for Myles' mom's ward sacrament meeting. We were in such a rush when we got home that I didn't even notice until halfway through church that I forgot to put my bra on! Talk about distraction from the spirit! I was laughing so hard, and I'm sure the people around me thought I was nuts! Good thing I was only visiting. Haha! Today, on the way to church I had to make sure that I had one on before Myles got too far from the house.

Myles eating ice cream on our rockin' 70's couch

We have mainly been working non-stop since we got back nearly 2 weeks ago. This last week was a little stressful. The policies and procedures are changing with some of the dealerships we work with so they wanted to "train" us in the new way. Problem is, we asked them what they wanted us to do different, and they said, "Oh, just look on the website and do what you think looks the best. Uh... We were already doing that, thanks... We did end up changing a few of the pictures to make them more "appealing to the eye". Hopefully it will solve the drama problem and we can go on with our lives.

A different angle

My adorable nativity

Today we went to our new ward. They seemed friendly enough! There was a couple people in there that Myles knows. Some kids from his seminary class are in it, so that is fun! We got all of our information to the bishopric and I assume we will be getting callings within the next few weeks. The lesson for third hour was on forgiveness. Although it was very well taught, I had a thought during the lesson that i never got to share. One of the headers in the lesson was, "Forgiveness frees us from the burden of hatred." Or something along those lines... The thought came to me that not only does forgiveness free our spirits, but it frees our bodies as well. I don't think many people realize the adverse effect holding a grudge can have on our bodies. I learned this, not only from my mom, but it was a huge subject in massage school as well. The minute we have an adverse reaction to something or someone, our body makes a mark, so that we can hold on to it. As LMT's we are taught to be supportive and understanding when clients break down on the table. When you work out a "knot" in someones body, it's brings to the surface emotions which were present when the knot was placed there. If there was anger, fear, confusion, sadness, pain, etc it can all come up. When you forgive a person or a situation, your spirit is freed and you can live with the spirit more fully, but in addition to that, your body can live up to it's more full potential. AH! So exciting! Thanks for reading my thought, moving on now.

Look at that cute Ref! ;)

Today we also in-listed the help of our good friend Trevor and got our couch moved in, so now we have more than one place to sit. It is really wonderful to feel like it's all getting together! Yesterday Myles and I put in a team effort and cleaned the house to prepare. Because my couch finally got moved in, that means my nativity went up too! A lady from my mom's ward gave us an ethnic nativity! It really is beautiful, very different, but beautiful the same! I don't think I've seen any similar to it. 

Our oven is really small and there is no room on either side or our pizza stone.

Myles has been reffing basketball and I think I'm slowly coming to understand the sport. It really is one that confuses me. I don't understand all the rules yet, or why the players or the ref's do what they do, but I'm getting there and I'm enjoying watching! I told Myles all I wanted for Christmas was a stadium seat! On the day's that he works two games, my back starts to kill! I am really glad I get to watch him, even if it does hurt my back sometimes.

Our stockings, made by Kimber! <3

Kimber sent us our Christmas/Wedding present! They are adorable and I couldn't ask for anything more! We plan on getting our tree up by Wednesday at the latest, and I am starting to feel like it's Christmas, even though it's still in the 70's. I hear tomorrow is supposed to be colder, but we'll see what actually happens. 

We had some sniffles and aches recently but those have passed. Myles has been putting thieves and peppermint oil into our humidifier so we wake up as fresh and clear as can be! We are busy, and doing well. I wish you all a merry, happy holiday season.

Honeymooners for life

Wednesday we got up as early as our tired bodies would allow and got on the road. This time we would make it to the bank first! We needed to stash all that cash we got from our amazing friends! In the process of finding a bank, we discovered that my temple recommend was missing. I called my parents house to see if it was there, or if anyone had seen it. My temple recommend was extremely vital, as our entire honeymoon was planned around attending as many temples as we could. My family had not seen it but started looking around the church, as well as in their house. The best thing that they did for me was Dads favorite thing to do when something is lost. He gathered up my siblings all together for prayer and asked for a blessing that we would find it. Prayer truly works! I was on the phone with my mom, brainstorming where it might be and she told me to look in a bag that had been put under my chair. When got out of the car to look under my chair Myles got out and looked under his chair too. When he emerged, we discovered a bag of old taco bell, as well as my recommend! We aren’t entirely sure how it got there, but I don’t think that part really matters. What matters is that we found it! We thought that that was a miracle! Even more miraculous is that when we got back into the car, we realized that Myles hadn’t shifted the car all the way into park and that we could have very easily rolled forward and hit the pole we parked in front of. We were in neutral on a slanted parking space, and we didn’t roll! The Lord is so good! Protection in all things if we are faithful!

Our drive to Boise was somewhat quick and painless. We sang Christmas songs for the majority of it. Myles thought I was being silly and ridiculous the whole time, but hey! Gotta do something to pass the time. I slept for a little bit, but we chatted for most of the 7 hour drive. We got to Boise just in time for Criminal to start! I had been looking forward to it all day, but had a really hard time staying awake.

I didn’t sleep too well because I was freezing the whole night, but that isn’t unusual.

I knew all along that we would be honeymooning on thanksgiving, and I also knew it would be hard. Had I known how hard it would be, I might not have done it the same way. I was very flustered in the morning and I didn’t want to make many decisions for myself. Our only plans for the day were to see if we could find a store open to buy a Christmas ornament at, (I’m starting my tree décor by buying an ornament from each city we stayed in.) and then keep driving to Salt Lake City where our next hotel was booked. We found a walmart to buy an ornament at. We picked BSU rubber duckies. They are cute. We also saw a camo razor that reminded us of our friend Trevor.  Later on that day we also saw an advertisement that said, “BUY A TRUCK, GET A GUN!” that made us think of Trevor again.

We hit the road, making the slow journey for SLC. I was texting my Mom who was at her mom’s house for thanksgiving festivities. That was really hard! So hard, that I silently balled my eyes out for a good amount of time (Myles argues that it was only 5 minutes) before Myles even noticed or said anything. I didn’t want him to worry about me, but I was losing it! When he asked me what was wrong, and if I was okay, I couldn’t help but laugh. I knew it was silly for me to cry. “I’m a grown, married woman!” I kept telling myself. “You don’t need to cry because you’re away from you family for the first holiday ever.” But it was no use, and the crying/laughing continued as I told him that it was hard to be away from my family for a holiday. I know he mentioned that He was sorry it was so hard, and then something about his mission, but I don’t remember what else was said between us. The tears quickly finished their début and the day went on as it should.

No temples were open on thanksgiving, but we did stop at both the Boise Temple, and The Brigham City Temple to take pictures. Both of them are beautiful, and I hope to visit the inside someday!

We got to Salt Lake around 5 in the evening, checked into our Themed hotel room, and went back downstairs to find some where that could feed us for thanksgiving, since the room service options did not meet our expectations. After working with the desk girl for a long while, we finally found that there was a cracker barrel in South Jordan that was open and willing to feed us. We went there and it was nice. Not a typical thanksgiving, but a thanksgiving none-the-less.

Now that we’ve talked about the food, I must tell you about the hotel! It’s a hotel called the anniversary inn. There are a bunch of them I guess. They remodel old buildings and turn them into fancy, themed, individual places. We stayed in one called, “The palace Suite.” But there are rooms themed as Egypt, Or the Jungle, or even a town car! The building we stayed in was an old Jail. Myles was reading about the history of the building, and paraphrasing, he said, “Honey, we could be staying in a room where there was a murderer!” That is SO comforting… lol! It was a good time though! Kind of a fancy get away… J

Friday we were up early to get ready visit the Salt Lake City Temple. We had hoped to have time to walk temple square more, but didn’t get the chance. The temple was beautiful and peaceful, as always. It was interesting because to get into the temple, you have to go in a whole different building, then go underground to get to the temple! It’s real! The underground tunnels are not legend! The time in the temple was blessed, and educational. We even got to see a friend from Myles’ mission! They had a fun little reunion and it reminded me how blessed I am to be in a world wide church that is so “Small” We are family!

We swiftly walked to deseret book to grab a few things, and walked back to the car. We grabbed some food and went to the next temple. This one was the Jordan River Temple. I made a special point to make it to that one because my Parents were Married there. On the Friday after thanksgiving, in fact! It was really sweet to be able to go do a sealing session with a family. The father of the family was being sealed to his deceased parents. He had a lot of family file names to do as well so we got to participate in that too. I really felt impressed by their dedication to be there as a family. There were 3 children, 2 spouses, and 2 parents there. They truly were a happy family! It was a great experience!

After the temple we got on the road to go to my Grandma Boyack’s house for a little get together they were having. I wasn’t quite clear on it, but they celebrated thanksgiving on Friday! So we got to go play some games and enjoy some desert with them. It was fun to just be able to sit and be for a while! We were staying in Provo that night, so we didn’t need to leave until I started to feel sick.

My sinuses were really bugging me. I had a head ache because of them, and I was becoming extremely restless. Myles did a really nice job forcing me to pull out my Oils and fix myself. He is starting to be a Young Living Believer!!

Saturday I woke up feeling a better! Lavendar on a cotton ball and in the ear, Theives on my throat and in some water to drink, a warm hat to keep my head warm! That’s all it takes to cure a little sinus issue. J

We planned on doing some more temples so we loaded up pretty quickly and went to eat at IHOP because I had never eaten there before and we needed some breakfast. Breakfast there was really good but our waiter was really strange… Anyway, we went to the Mount Timpanogus temple. It was, like all other temples, wonderful and inspiring! The session there took much longer than expected but was great none-the-less. We decided not to attend a session at the Provo temple like we had intended because we didn’t want to drive over soldier pass in the dark. We spent some time on the Y campus buying my ornament and getting some Ice cream from the BYU creamery. That was delicious. Like, seriously!!!

We needed some real food to go along with our Ice Cream so we headed to the closest Quizno’s to get a sandwhich before we “needed” an oil change. Myles really thought we needed one right away but I wasn’t exactly sure why. Anyway, that was a little weird since we haven’t been able to change the title yet. They thought we were Jennifer! We are not Jennifer. We got it worked out and the oil change took around 20 minutes. Just long enough for us to finish our food and get back in the car! This time we went a block away to see Myles’ mission comp, Chandler Fordham. He works at the mall in Orem at Finish Line. He’s hoping for an awesome promotion soon so he said we had to come to him. It was pretty sweet. I miss having free time to work out bunches. It was good to meet Fordham and be able to see Myles so excited about it! They kept telling each other how skinny they looked… How come no one was telling me how skinny and great I looked? :P It was fun for the small amount of time we got to spend there.

By 3 o’clock we found our selves on the road again! Headed to Moab this time.

We went to the grocery store because I really needed some real food, plus our motel didn’t serve breakfast in the morning and we didn’t want to eat out on Sunday. We were very sluggish and indecisive at the grocery store. Haha we finally decided on begals in the morning and some pizza bite things. After some football it was an early night of 8:30 for us!

Sunday we found a ward where we could attend sacrament meeting. As soon as it was over we hit the road again, going for Albuquerque. At this point I was completely ready to just skip Albuquerque and keep driving until we got home, but that would mean a wasted room and getting home after midnight, only to have to make our bed. We made it to Albuquerque and once again I wasn’t feeling well and I was ready for bed. A little football and a big salad later I was sleeping. I would just like to say that everyone talks about how great and awesome getting married and going on a honeymoon is, but no one tells you how tired you get!! It is great and awesome… but it’s also incredibly exhausting!

Monday I woke Myles up early. I was READY TO BE HOME!! I’m a homebody and I know it. I will freely admit it too! My mommy taught me how. We got to Cruces at 12:30. That gave me all afternoon to make my house livable… It really wasn’t enough time. I walked in and I honestly wanted to walk back out and let someone else do it.

At this point in time, with the help of Myles and my awesome friend Beth I have put the kitchen together and our room is put together. Most of the boxes that need to be searched through and stored for sentimental purposes are in the spare room that will serve as an office and massage room for now. The coffin of a bathroom has everything that can fit in it already in it. I just have a few things down stairs that need to be organized so that I can move the second couch in. Beth and I were even handy enough to get the TV going! WITH channels! Man, I’m so good.

Myles will be home from his game in a few minutes and it looks completely different down stairs. I’m excited!

Thanks for hanging on through the entire story! There will be more newly wed stories to come!

Brigham City, UT

Brigham City, UT Wednesday Afternoon

Salt Lake City, UT Friday morning. Did a session. :)

Jordan River, UT Friday afternoon. Did a Sealing session with the Aldriges. My parents were married here!

Mount Timp, UT Saturday morning. Did a very long session, with a few technical difficulties

Provo, Ut

Monticello, Ut

The endless amounts of cardboard that kept appearing in my kitchen where my table should be!

Here comes the Bride!

Some of the pictures Sharlene took before the Sealing. I haven't gotten any pictures of my dress yet... Again, Check out Mom's if you want those!

The wedding preparations started at 7 o’clock, nearly 3 hours after my body would not let me sleep anymore. Dr Drew came to my shoulders rescue, just in time for my make up to be done, so I did have a small break for us to chat some, and for my shoulder to be placed into its socket correctly. Our long time family friend Kalisha did my make-up and all of the make up and hair for my portion of the bridesmaids. Myles’ sister, Chelle did my hair and she did a great job! I really loved how it turned out! I was finished pretty quickly and Shar, Mom, Myles, Lillian, Leah, and Myself headed up to the temple to catch a bit of the sun before the rain poured. We took some really cute pictures in our dinner clothes. Myles and I were goofing off big time, but it was just oh, so much fun and exciting! We entered the temple and all the people were so helpful. We met with our records sister again and then the work began to get my dress on. All of the temple workers told me how beautiful and modest my dress was, and to compliment my hair. They were all so sweet and wonderful! My dear mommy was there to help me and everything was great! I got my dress on and when I walked around the temple, peoples’ heads would turn and follow me and they would gasp at first sight. I felt like a queen! It was incredible! They lead me to Myles. His eyes anxious and bright, he sat there fidgeting until he saw me. Smiles filled our faces! My mom left me with Myles and the Temple worker, who took us to the celestial room. There we waited for our sealer to come speak with us. We chatted, we sat, we giggled, we talked a bit more, it seemed like forever and I was getting anxious. Butterflies were starting to churn within my stomach. I was becoming nervous that we had been sitting there for so long, and it was becoming too much for me. Finally the sealer came! He lead to some beautiful double doors, and much to my surprise I heard the sound of something tearing. I turned around to see the sealers face filled with horror, and the train of my dress, dragging long and beautiful. Though it was beautiful, it was not supposed to be out yet! They called my mom in and I busted into laughter! Holy cow!! I thought it was the funniest thing that could have happened! The comic relief of the stress I was in just minutes before was priceless! I really thought of it as a huge blessing for me! My mom shoved the dress as far up my torso as she could, so that the train would not drag, and the sealer came to speak with us when she finished. He gave some instructions on how the ceremony would proceed.

He was very clear with it all, and we entered the simple and beautiful sealing room with feelings of peaceful joy! I walked in to see the smiling faces of people that loved and supported us! Sister Tharp, My parents, Both sets of grandparents, Myles’ mom and grandpa, the tearful smile of my wonderful sister Kimber, Ray, Anna and John, The Tapasa’s, My dear friend Dean and his parents, Vicky and Mike Hilton, Sister Theil, Mary Jane and Jim, and the Jessop parents. It was a room full of love! It was great to see everyone there! There were a couple of men that I wish could have been there, but my thoughts didn’t turn to them until after Myles and I had been sealed, and My uncle Jim hugged me twice and said, “This one is from Rorie. You know he would be here if he could.” Then with a tearful smile my thoughts turned to the boys in my life who I watched become men as they prepared for their missions. Elder Jessop serving in Texas, Elder Earl in Brazil, and Elder Hewitt in California. All of them dear, dear friends of mine who I know would have been there if they had not been called to serve the Lord right now. They are phenomenal men and strong missionaries and I wouldn’t want them any other place.

Going back to the sealing now… Dad and Grandpa Nielsen sat at the head of the room with the sealer standing between them. Myles and I sat between our mothers at the other end of the room, fingers interlaced, and trying our hardest to focus on what the sealer was saying to us. He gave us direction on how to have a fulfilling marriage. Key points on what would bring us happiness. There were 5 of them and if I remember them all correctly he instructed us to 1) Keep the commandments that God has set out for us. 2) Learn and Live the Gospel. Be able to teach it. 3) Utilize the Atonement. 4) Attend the temple often 5) Be prayerful.

He was very wise and it touched me to know that he had prayed for council to give just to us.

Then the sealer had us kneel across the altar from each another, smiling and locking eye contact. The sealer had made special mention to us not to look at him, but at each other and so we did. What seemed to be no time later, I heard him utter the words, “You are sealed as husband and wife, legally and lawfully wedded.” Then, turning to Myles he said, “ Do you want to kiss your girl?” quiet laughter filled the room. We exchanged rings and each of our guest filled by, embracing and congratulating us.

We hurried to get ready for pictures, and fix my dress. We were told that there was sun outside right NOW and if we were fast enough we would catch it. My mom followed me into my dressing room and did her best to get my skirt off the ground with more safety pins than I could count as they went on. They would do the job for now… we found Myles and hurried outside. Just as we walked out the doors, it started to sprinkle on us and then all to quickly it turned to a full on down pour. My parade was not just being rained on! It was like someone turned on a faucet right over the temple! The skirts of my dress were drenched; those who did not make it under an umbrella were soaked to the skin. People became quickly miserable. I tried to keep my spirits up as my mom demanded that I be the one to make the decision for what to do. My options were stand in the cold and see if we could get enough time without the rain that we could take pictures, or send all the family away so that they could be dry while Myles and I took pictures at the temple under an umbrella. I opted to send everyone else away and do family and party pictures at the church after the boys shirts went through the dryer. Chad hugged me as he was leaving and soon after that someone asked me what was on my dress… To my shock and horror I looked down to see kind of a brownish purple color smudged on the bodes of my dress. My aunt Anna said she had a plan but for now while Shar was taking pictures it would just have to be edited out of the pictures.

I was freezing the entire time but I believe we got some good pictures out of the few minutes that we had. We of course had far too much fun! Well, I don’t know if there is a such thing as too much fun, but we enjoy ourselves a lot! Although I was having fun, I was still cold so when we finished I was grateful to be able to get warmer, dryer clothes on. We loaded the ripped, stained, and soaking dress into the car and headed back to the family dinner.

Myles and I arrived at home with enough time to have Gma Mabee and Anna work on my dress and for us to start shoving things into the car. It was the assignment of Raymond and Anna to “play tetris” with our car so that all the presents would fit into our little civic. They did an amazing job if I do say so myself! We could probably even fit more in if we needed to! Thank goodness we didn’t though… Anyway, Myles ran up to the church to meet his family and eat while I finished helping Ray pack our stuff up. I got to the church with enough time to have Chelle redo my hair because it really needed it. The rain and wind had pretty much trashed it. Then I drank a bowl of squash soup that was delish, and went to get my dress back on for pictures. The stains were all out and the train was just taken out so that it would look better than half of it being down. They did an amazing job and really helped me feel calm about the whole situation. My one concern was that I really had not eaten anything all day, and I didn’t know if I would make it through the reception!

We did as many pictures as we could before guests started arriving. I do have some fears that we didn’t get all of them that I wanted. I’m mostly worried that we didn’t get one with my entire immediate family. I know my momma really wanted one… Oh well… We will be back.

The party was great! There were so many people there to support us! I felt bad for Myles because he didn’t know anyone there except his family and one of his EFY Tacoma kids that came to see him. Someone else would have to guess how many people were there because I really haven’t a clue. There were a lot. I didn’t have a voice by the end of it! We talked to so many people! Amanda Maki was amazing and did the Food and cupcakes for the guests, and Elizabeth Marquez did the cake for us. They both did an amazing job and it would not have been the same without them! I was touched to see so many of my friends show up and see that there was help needed and gladly step in to fill the empty spaces. Even Lagi got an apron on and got to clear tables with her mommy! They were all so sweet and kind to help like they did.

When it came time to cut the cake we weren’t sure what the other was going to do. Smash cake, or be nice… I wanted to be nice! My dress had already been through so much and I was so tired by that point that cake in my face really didn’t seem like a ton of fun. Anyway, Myles saw me pick up a piece of cake and thought it did it too quickly to have the intention of being nice. Therefore, I got covered in cake! It was everywhere! I tried to get him back but my arms just weren’t long enough! I did get him to some degree, but not as much as he got me… haha it was all fun though. All out of love, and very much full of laughter. The pictures people got of this were great!

We had a first dance which was kind of weird because we were the only people dancing and everyone was staring at us… Maybe that is how it’s supposed be but we just talked and laughed with each other while Myles continuously tried not to step on my dress. Following our first dance we had a father/daughter dance which Myles and his mom joined us in. That was fun! Again, dad and I talked and laughed. Following that I think there was more visiting.

It was coming close to time for Myles and I to leave but we couldn’t find my coat, which had our keys in it. We got nervous that the usual vandalisms had been done to our car, but thankfully went outside to see our car untouched. We couldn’t afford to have anything done to it with the long drive that we had ahead of us. Finally I believe it was Auntie Jo that found my coat in the kitchen, with my keys still safely tucked into the pocket!

Myles and I ran to my mom’s house to change out of our wedding attire, threw some more things into the car, and ran back to the church to open presents and play tetris. Mom wrote stuff down while Myles and I busted open the presents as fast as we could. It was fun!

I went to load up my dress to go with Ann but when I came out they were gone! I guess they didn’t hear me ask if I could send my dress with them… We called them back and I put the dress in the car. It is safely there and will be ready for me to wear at our NM reception next week.

After all the presents had been loaded up I started sending around the hugs to my family and closest friends. Kimber and Fia were the only people who got me to cry all day! Then I got to mom and that was just down hill from there. She and I just held on tight, giggling and crying. Giggling because we are going to see each other next week. Crying because it will be hard to be apart again. After I took a few last minute pictures, Myles and I ran out the door to our car and hit the road. Only heading for as far as Salem.

Pre-Wedding Bliss

Benjermin is getting to be quite the walker!

I had to break this up to make it easier to read. Here is a start. Pictures were being strange so most of them are at the beginning.

Goofy Sister Time!!

Case got a hair cut! Thanks to me!

I got my hair colored!

With the knowledge that I haven’t posted in far too long, I’m going to try to get it all in. The 2 weeks that I spent at home with my family was fun and busy! I got to help with a race that Chad and my Dad ran in, shop with Kimber and Hannah, play endless amounts of “tiki-boo” and hide-and-go-seek with Lillian, Case, and Lagi, spend nights laughing with my parents, and frantically pull the remaining details of the wedding together. It was a blast! A busy blast, but great nonetheless.

Lillian's Salamander friend

 

Getting our Marriage License

In the midst of the usual chaos Myles and I were searching for a car. In Cruces and Oregon. We just needed something to get us home since Myles was flying. Though we did hope to find one in Oregon, if we got one in Cruces Myles’ mom was going to drive one of them up with her if needed. Miracles happen! I found one about an hour and a half away from my parents house, arranged for us to meet them to see the car, got Ray to come look at mechanical things with me, cleared it with my parents that I could take their car, pulled the money out of the bank and headed out the door to look at a 4-door Silver 2004 Honda Civic EX. It was exactly what we were looking for! Raymond and I agreed that it was in excellent condition and I called Myles while Ray called mom. We shared the same message about the car and just asked for opinions and guidance. Myles asked me what seemed to be endless amounts of questions and finally gave me the clearance to buy it, as long as they would drop their price some. I asked them how low they would be willing to go (one of the most intimidating things I have ever done!) They dropped the price $500 for me and I ended up giving them $6500 in cash and driving away with the title of my new used car! I really am pleased with the buy. Myles does has his reservations, but after the experiences he has had with used cars, I don’t blame him.

Wedding planning continued onward and the 2 weeks away from Myles seemed to drag on and race by all at the same time! Finally the day arrived that Myles flew in. I was late getting out the door and his flight came in early. I knew it as going to be close anyway, but I was really starting to worry about how disappointed he would be if I wasn’t waiting at the gate to get him. I made it to the airport 3 minutes before his plane unloaded. I felt so blessed to have made it! Myles kind of had to “hit the ground running” because we had places to go. We needed to get some things for my wedding hair, but more importantly we had to get our marriage license from the county office! That was an intriguing experience for me. I thought it was so weird that they didn’t ask for ID or a birth certificate or anything! They listed online that we needed to have all that available and ready but the only thing they wanted from us was our SSN’s. What happened to proving we are who we say we are? Oh well, we got what we wanted! We got home with enough time to play a few rounds of hide and seek, build a house out of lego’s and clean up the down stairs room for Myles to sleep in it. After that Mom took us to the high school to raid what Witt was going to let us borrow (aka anything we wanted we could have). With selection help from Mom and Megan, we loaded all sorts of stuff into the Suburban. It was great! After that I don’t honestly remember what happened Friday night… (Myles reminded me that we got frozen yogurt and watched a movie with Chad).

Saturday Myles got up in time to go help dad move one of the ladies he home teaches across town. They didn’t get out the door as soon as expected but once they actually left I think they were only gone for an hour and a half or so. Upon their return to the home, all of Myles stuff for the temple was ready so that he could quickly shower and get ready. Then we ran out the door with my mom to do some shopping before I attended the Temple for the first time that evening.  We got some fabric for the wedding table décor, a skirt for mom, new underwear for myself, and new white shirt for Myles. It was a grand time!

Once we got to the temple Myles and I met with a sister who helped with the documentation of my endowment and our wedding. She made sure the spelling and dating of things were correct. They were and we went on our way. My mom and Sister Theil from her ward guided me through the Temple process, taking me step by step and showing me by example how much the house of the Lord means to them. It was a marvelous experience and I couldn’t have asked for it to go any better!  The spirit was so strong and my testimony of the Temple has only increased since then! The temples that are available to the people of this earth are sacred, blessed places where we can become closer to our Heavenly father and our Savior Jesus Christ! I am so blessed to be able to live close to a temple and to be able to attend it often!

Sunday was just the usual Church and dinner with a little twist of fighting a cold. My aunt Mary Jane and her family got to our house Sunday evening to help us celebrate the wedding. And Myles’ family got to their hotel in Salem around the same time. It was good to know that everyone thus far had arrived safely. We tried to watch Galaxy Quest, a Boyack family favorite, so that Myles could understand the humor of it, but he and I crashed. He had been fighting a cold for a time and I was developing it. Emotionally and physically we were already drained, and we hadn’t even got to the wedding frenzy yet!

The water movers!

Monday started earlier than any of us wanted. Or at least that is how I felt. I was so tired and getting so sick! I was the first one to the Church with my cousins, Connor and Ethan helping me unload all the things from Witt. The weather was not helping me be optimistic at all! The wind was blowing so hard, and if the water wasn’t falling from the sky, the wind was picking it up off the ground and blowing it everywhere! It was dreadful! People began to trickle in, ready to help. My mom and Megan started giving people jobs as best they could, Myles’ family found the church just fine and we tried to keep them busy. Megan kept telling me to leave because I was getting to anxious about needing a job, but going home to pack didn’t sound like much fun either. Dad, Connor, Ethan, Ray, Kimber and Megan brainstormed about my drop ceiling. It ended up looking amazing, but not until a lot of sweat was put into it. Thank you for your help and your ides! Experience has now shown us that a bike wheel works over a hula-hoop. I did end up going to pack, then coming back for lunch, then hanging around for a while until mom called with the report that the pump could not hold back the waters, and the garage had flooded. I got home to see the river flowing through our house, just as I had seen it so many times before as a kid. I pulled on my rain boots and waded through 3 inches of water to the push broom that had my name one it. Connor and I pushed water out of the garage for a good 2 hours while Dad worked on the pump, Jessops and Chad found sand bags and pulled the leaves from the drains of the cul-de-sac behind us, and mom hopped back and forth from the Church to the house. It was an adventure, and strangely enough even though I was trying to bail my parents out of their swamp, I was much more calm having something to do. Connor and I got to stop sweeping once the sand bags got put down because the water was no longer flowing fast enough to need it. I went inside and plopped myself on the couch, constantly thinking of how tired I was.I didn’t feel well, and I could tell I had popped my shoulder out while I was pushing a broom. I tried to call our good family friend and Chiropractor to see if he could get me in asap so that I would be able to hug people on Tuesday, but I had no luck at that point. Myles was not improving much and was running a substantial fever. He worked up enough energy to go to Salem to have his “Bachelor party” with his siblings and Trevor. They went laser tagging and sounded like they had a pretty fun time. My job after that was to make sure that the lasagna in the oven didn’t burn, but I was even too tired for that! I don’t remember where I went, but thanks to Uncle Jim, it didn’t burn to badly. We ate dinner and chatted for a while. I showed Grandma Boyack how to play angry birds like a boss. But mostly we were all just tired. I went up to the church to relieve Kimber of Benjermin so that she could keep working, and the gym looked amazing! These ladies really worked hard on this, and it ended up looking phenomenal! They did change a few things after I saw it last, but it really looked great! We I believe only purchased 2 bolts of toole, and the rest was either loaned or given! Thanks to Mr Witt and the Drama and Activities departments at CHS we had some awesome things to work with! Monday night I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t even get into bed until after my mom poked at my face to make my sinuses stop burning, and my head stop hurting. Then she had to practically force me into my bed. I asked for blessings for Myles and Myself, that we would be able to sleep and to rest well enough to have our bodies heal. I slept pretty restlessly but I found that I did get at least a little bit of sleep. My siblings and cousins were told they had to be quiet or I would go crazy bride on them! I don’t think that did a whole lot… haha

There is more to come!! :) If you want to see more pictures and hear my moms point of veiw, read her blog! There are more pictures too!

http://wendy-abcsoflosingme.blogspot.com/2012/11/week-at-boyacks-week-24-chapter-1.html