Where Does the Time Go?

I just got an email with a subject line of Can you believe it's been 2 years, Lydia A with a link to the proofs of when I graduated from BYU.  Well really when I walked.  I finished classes December of 2010 and walked April 2011.  Has it really been 2 years since I graduated college?  Where has the time gone?  It doesn't seem very long ago, but at the same time feels like a different life.  After I finished in December, I started working at an elementary school as an aide, back when I was planning to go to grad school for Speech Pathology.  I was just taking a year off to get experience and work for a bit before going back to school.  After the school year ended, I started working as a summer camp director at a daycare, which wasn't bad.  I enjoyed taking the kids on field trips and just playing all day.  When school started in the fall is another story.  They had me teaching kindergarten with no experience and or resources.  But that's a rant for another time.  I quickly learned that I did not want to be a teacher and be responsible for these kids education.  Maybe it would have been different if I had gotten a degree in Elementary Ed.  And that feeling of inadequacy started to extend to Speech Pathology as well.  Would I be a good Speech Pathologist?  Did I have what it took?  Could I help these kids?  Or would it just stress me out since there wasn't a guaranteed outcome.  Each child and case is different and requires something different.  Looking back on my time as a speech aide and watching the SLP work, I could be an SLP with the training and experience from grad school.  But is that what I wanted?  I wasn't sure anymore.  After thinking about it and talking to friends and roommates I decided that Sign Language was what I wanted to do.  Speech Pathology just didn't have that same appeal to me anymore.  I absolutely LOVED my sign language classes at BYU.  I've always liked sign language since they had us take it in middle school.  It was something that was fun, and that felt I was good at (when I was actually practicing, I've lost a lot of my sign language now).  I decided that I wanted to go back to school to study ASL and become an interpreter.  I looked into UVU and their program (since BYU doesn't have more than a few ASL classes) and their prices for tuition and was starting to look into loans to go back to school.  My roommate was going to go back for Special Ed and we were going to go to UVU together.  But then I started dating my husband and that got put on the back burner, especially when things started getting more serious.  And that roommate that was going to go back to school with me is now on a mission.  Funny how things don't work out as we plan.  After we got engaged, I decided that I didn't need the experience of working at the daycare anymore since I wasn't going back to school anytime soon and not for Speech.  So I found a new job, the same job I have now at Ingram Medical.  Its been good to me.  I'm able to work full time and make decent money, especially compared to what I was getting at the daycare, with a lot less stress and outside preparation.  This last weekend all of my dad's family got together for my grandpa's 80th birthday party.  My aunt who got me interested in Speech Pathology was asking me if I was going to go back to school.  She and everyone else was saying to go back while you're still young and its less likely you'll go back when you're older.  I don't want to go back to school.  I don't have that desire anymore.  Would it be fun to study sign language?  Sure.  But I can do that on my own.  I still have all my old books and am way below the level I was at.  I can do that on my own time.  I don't need to go back to school for that.  The main reason I was going to go back for an advanced degree is so I would be able to support myself and live on my own and be a grown up outside the Provo bubble.  Getting married has changed that.  Josh just graduated with his Bachelor's and is starting his Master's in the fall.  I've always wanted to be a mom.  That's part of the reason I didn't want to go to grad school.  I had always expected and was told by everyone else that I would get married young.  I don't think anyone expected me to graduate from BYU single.  I'm saying that to sound conceited or anything, that's just how it was and its what the expectation was.  In my parents generation, not many women graduated from BYU, and not as many as do now.  I think that's due to society and culture expectations.  Not as many women were in the workforce as there are now.  And that's another tangent for another time.  Where was I going with this?  Being a mom.  That was always the plan.  That's just it, it was always the plan for the future.  It was always off in the distance.  But its not so far in the distance anymore.  Especially now that we know we are going to stay here for the next 2 years, and that Josh got in with funding for his master's degree.  And its terrifying.  And exhilarating.  The terrifying part is that I like to plan and control things.  You can't really do that with having a baby.  It happens when it happens in the Lord's time.  I don't really like things that are out of my control.  And I have a feeling that when the time comes and we decide we want to start trying to get pregnant, that it is going to be one of those things that will be out of my control.  And that's going to be the hardest part, is to let go of that control I like to hold onto.

Diabetic Kitty?

We have a cash pay program here at work for a free new glucose meter and the strips are $19.95 for 50.  Cash pay doesn't go through insurance or need a script from the doctor, just a credit card on file.  I talked to a lady today to verify a cash pay and how often to send the strips.  She had already given us her credit card, I was just verifying how many strips to send and how often.  And I found out its for her cat.  She made it very clear that the meter and strips are for her cat, not her.  I didn't know people tested their pets blood sugar levels.  And my next question is how do you test a cats blood sugar?  And how do you find out your cat is diabetic?

Awkward Phone Call

I work at a call center for a diabetic mail-order pharmacy.  I used to do sales, but now I work on sales recovery, which are accounts that didn't get sent out or are on hold.  So its mainly fixing problems.  Today, I was calling a guy to get him to call his doctor's office to approve our fax.  The call was going just like any other doctor call, until he started telling me that he had prostate cancer.  Which, again isn't too out of the blue.  Sometimes patients just want someone to talk to.  Its not the first sad story I've heard.  But this is where it takes a turn for the awkward.  He tells me had surgery for his prostate cancer and his doctor told him that he wouldn't be able to have relationships and would need a pump.  Then he is asking me if his insurance would cover that if I could check with the insurance for him.  I told him that we only deal with testing supplies and to ask his doctor when he called him.  And I got off the phone as quickly as I could.  Then I get a message from my supervisor, who happened to be listening to that call, saying "We don't sell penis pumps?  Hahahaha"  Oh the joys of phone sales...

Chick-Fil-A Opening in Murray

Whenever Chick-Fil-A has a grand opening of a new store, they do this whole first 100 thing.  The first 100 people at the location 6am the day before it opens have to stay for 24 hours in the parking and then they get 52 free combo meal coupons the next morning at 6am.  If there are more than 100 people there at 6am the first morning, they raffle off the first 100 spots.  Some of our friends have started the Varsity Parking Lot Camping Team, or VPLCT.  They camp out in parking lots for openings of places and sales and the sort.  I think Chick-Fil-A openings were a big part of starting up VPLCT.   Its pretty routine now.  Josh went up with everyone else Wednesday morning to stay for 24 hours in the parking lot.  I came up that afternoon after work as his guest to stay the night.  And a cold night it was.  We went to bed probably between 11:30 and midnight and they woke us up at 5:30 to start lining up to get coupons.  And since it was cold and Josh and I were on a twin air mattress, we didn't get the best night's sleep.  Especially waking up so early.  We both took a nap this morning while the laundry was going before we had to go to class and work.  Needless to say, caffeine is very much my friend today.

Meatball Mishap

Josh made meatballs for dinner in the crockpot the other day.  It had bubbled over and this what I came home from work to.  And laughed.   And took pictures.  And then cleaned it up.  

Valentine's Day and My 24th Birthday

 What I came home from work to:

I waited for Josh to get off work before opening anything, except the tamales in the brown bag.  I was hungry. 

Reading the card, which fit us pretty well 

This is where Josh thought he was being super clever.  He wrote hope it fits with a winky face on the card.  

And then he put my present in a Victoria's Secret bag 

And it's................... a shoe! 

I had been wanting a new pair of Converse shoes. Josh was slightly dissappointed I waited until he got home to open it.  He was hoping I would be searching the apartment for the other shoe he hid.

I ended up getting Josh a nunchuk controller for the Wii and random other goodies.  I had gotten him a new pair of hair clippers since he was complaining about his old ones.  But while I was at Shannon's bridal shower, Josh and the twins went to NPS where he got a new set for himself for $10.  And the funny thing is I had gone to 3 stores looking for the WAHL clippers and then had to return them.  It makes for a good story though.

For my birthday, we were actually in Vegas.  A friend of ours is leaving for her mission this week and was giving her farewell talk in church.  The only thing we really did in Vegas was go to the Body Worlds Exhibit.  The rest of the time we hung out at the house with everyone in town.  It was a nice weekend, and I totally spaced on taking any pictures.  

Shannon's Baby Shower

Since Shannon doesn't have a facebook anymore, I putting the pictures I took up here instead!  Shannon made sure to pose with all the presents, which makes the pictures that much more fun.

 

While I was at the baby shower, Josh and the twins went to NPS, one of their favorite random stores in Salt Lake.  After they came and picked me up from the baby shower, we went to this great little hole in the wall, Bell's Deli.  The hamburgers were awesome and the BLT was really good too.  We even made it on to the group's facebook page.

I pulled this off the facebook page here

We're famous!

6 Months

Today marks our 6 month anniversary!  Its been a normal day, didn't do anything special.  We celebrated Friday on our weekly date night.  We went out for dinner at a Srilankan place called Banana Leaf.  Then we had fun wandering around Barnes and Noble for awhile and buying random things like a temporary tattoo kit, with markers.  Clearance is our friend.  6 months seems like a long time, but at the same time it doesn't feel like its been that long.  Being married is the best.  We've settled in and gotten into our own routine of being married and its great.  And its only going to get better as time goes on.  Sitting here watching The Bachelor makes me thankful for the love and stability that I have.  We've got the real thing, and there is nothing better than that.  

Superbowl Sunday

We had the usual group over to watch the Superbowl and pig out.  Peter made gumbo.

It's tradition to get the All American Chocolate Cake from Costco from the Superbowl.  Darius is what Kyle named Link in the Zelda game he is playing on our Wii, which also explains the triforce symbol.  This the cake before....

and after

Kyle eating chocolate cake

More of Kyle eating, chips this time

Peace sign!

Derek likes to make faces

We got a temporary tattoo kit that was on sale at Barnes and Noble on date night

Boys will be boys.  And they will wrestle.

That was our Superbowl Sunday!!!

Pajama Pants with Pockets Tutorial

So for Christmas this last year, Josh and I (mainly me) made pajama pants for his family for Christmas.  It took 2 weeks to finish 2 pairs of pants, and it was miserable.  That machine did NOT want to cooperate.  Today, this pair took me 2 hours total.  It goes so much faster with my own sewing machine.  I am posting it here mainly to have the pictures to remember what to do next time I make pajama pants.

First, get all your fabric pieces together.

Pin together the front and back leg pieces right sides together at the inseam.

Sew the inseam and zig-zag or serge the edges together.

Put together your two pieces now matching up the pieces right sides together front to front and back to back. Pin the crotch.

Sew the crotch half circle and zig-zag or serge the edges.

Now it gets a little trickier.  You want to match up the front to back pieces so you have 2 legs.  You have 4 pocket pieces.  Pin one to the left front, one to the right front, one to the left back, and one to the right back.

Sew the pockets to the pieces with a 3/8" seam and press the pockets out.  It should look like this with the right sides together.

Sew the curve of the pockets, but not the top.  I like to use a smaller seam allowance so the pockets aren't as bulky.

Sew both front and back pieces together a little over an inch from the top and bottom of the pocket.  This will be the opening for the pocket later.

Continue sewing down to sew the outer seam. 

Zig-zag or serge the outside of the pocket seam and the outer leg seam.

Now for the casing.  Its a little like the pockets, in the fact that you leave an opening in it.  With right sides together, sew the ends of the casing together leaving an opening for the elastic later.

Press the seam open.

Fold in half wrong sides together (you should see the right side of the fabric) and press.

Turn pants right sides out and pin the casing to the waistband, with the opening you created matching up with the back crotch seam.  You are pinning raw edges together. The fold should be at the bottom.

Fold the casing up and you have your waistband.

Almost done, its time to hem it.  Fold and press the bottom 1/4" 

Fold over and press again.

Sew close to the edge of the fold to make your hem.

Now, all that's left is to insert the elastic and you are done!