Standstills of December

They are over the place, these standstill moments of joy that can be created. Thursday was one of the most magical days I have had in a very long time. Jonathan and I have a favorite tradition where we celebrate our own little Christmas together before we go home for the holidays. Thursday was our Christmas this year, and time just stood still as we soaked up the joy of being together.

The day before (Wednesday) was my last day of work at SecurityMetrics. I am resigning because of many reasons. The major one is that I am only allowed to take one extra day off than what they are giving me over the holidays, and I have two very important weddings to attend. So feeling lighter than I have in weeks only added to the pure joy of Thursday. I was with Jon rather than being stressed at work. And I most likely will never return to work there again. :-)

We rocked at surprising each other this year for Christmas. I sent Jon on a scavenger hunt around the home...I have been giddy with excitment to give him his present this year.

Needless to say, he was even more grateful than I imagined. My man has neck and shoulder probs because of football games and a car accident a few years back. It's time to have it taken care of, poor guy. I found a great deal and an excellent chiropractor, if anyone is interested. After these first two treatments I already paid for, Jon can return for full treatment for only $30. It will be so worth it, as he holds all his stress in his neck and law school only adds its extra weight to the problem. He is thrilled!

We make a big deal about doing all our smaller presents first. This is one of my most favorite things the Husband did for me. This made me laugh so hard...can you decode it?

That's right. I get to go shopping and buy myself a cute new outfit. Also, new boots! Ha ha, I especially love the "times 2" just to clarify.

And now for the big one. Jon created a key for me to decode my final present. I had to look through some of his law school books to discover the correct letters, write them down, and unscramble the puzzle.

 

Can you believe this? I was freaking out, and I am still freaking out. He did it. Jon's first internship this summer will be for a law firm in New Zealand. And we will be living there for about five weeks!

One of our biggest dreams is to travel the world together. We are officially on our way, New Zealand is one of our top locations on the  J-Rach Bucketlist of Life. :-)

We want to remember our second Christmas together forever, so I had to document this while it's still so fresh in my mind. Here's all our "loot" as he calls it. Best Christmas ever. Another tradition are those chocolate-covered cinnamon bears, I am obsessed. We cooked a delicious breakfast together, as we pride ourselves in the fact that we love our own homemade breakfasts so much more than any restaurant could offer. ;-)

We wrapped presents for the fams, watched Elf, and had a magical day. He is my best friend in the entire world, and still the best decision I have ever made.

Merry Christmas, everyone! May you discover and create your own standstill moments with friends and family this spirited season.

You Magical Month of December

First off, get your craft on. Thanks to a lovely friend who hosts "The Finer Things Club" at her house once a month, I was able to donate $5 and make this wreath. These past two Christmas seasons, I haven't been able to find one I love in the stores. That worked out well - it is so much more fun to make one yourself! Besides, I never do crafty things and this was so relaxing. No wonder so many mothers love to craft, it's an excellent emotional outlet.

Second off, meet Charlie!

This is our Charlie Brown tree this year. Yes it's true, the Dittos live on a tight budget, and we couldn't be happier with this little guy bringing light into our home. It's called Christmas character people. And what's more, that tree has personality! Hee hee.

In the words of my ever-so-blunt mother, "Look at that! The further away you get, the better it looks!"
Thanks Mom. But we still love our little Charlie.

Third, Happy Birthday to my brother, David.

(Great pic of you too, Dad. What a champ.)

David, you are one of my role models and greatest examples. I am so impressed with your strength and your testimony. You have given your entire heart to the Lord during such a trying time, and I know you will be blessed because of it.

How I love this time of year. My little apartment smells like THIS right now, because one of our traditions is to give out sweet bread to our neighbors. I highly recommend this recipe, especially if you are like me and Banana Bread is not your favorite. This one doesn't mess around. I would have done my favorite, which is Pumpkin, but the retired religion professor we meet with every Sunday has chosen Banana as his Christmas wish.

Wish granted. I hope you are all immensely enjoying your holiday season! One week away from Christmas. My heart is so warm and full. 

5 Benjamin Franklins for Christmas!!

I have been to many a work party hosted by Security Metrics because Jon worked there for our engagement and over a year of our marriage. Last year's Christmas party, they featured Gev from So you Think You Can Dance, hosted the event in the massive event center at UVU, and had delicious food catered for all the employees and spouses. They don't mess around with their company parties. One of the most intriguing aspects of their Christmas AND summer parties is their competitions. Winners win $500 a piece. Jon and Dan always competed in Badminton, but they continually competed against freakishly good guys who quite frankly, could not be beat.

Now I am the breadwinner and it was my turn to sign up for an event to compete in. I was not very hopeful when I heard what the competitions were this year: Basketball? Darts? Air Hockey? Ping Pong? Badminton? Bull Riding? What the Sexist??? Where is Boggle?! I thought to myself. It was always listed as a competition before and I was really looking forward to putting my skills to the test. Then the very last option...Shuffleboard??

Hmmm. That involves luck, right? (This is my thought process, if you didn't catch on) I've never played before, but basically you just need to get the puck in the right places without it sliding off? I decided I had to take my chances there. The raffle had too many people's names on the list, so chances were slim. And there are way too many employees at this company for me to have a shot at any other event. So Shuffleboard it was.

First round. I beat a sweet girl who taught me how to play. It's trickier than I thought to add just the perfect amount of push to your puck. Too hard and it falls right off - resulting in zero points. Too soft and you won't even make it to the point lines. Hitting your opponent's puck completely off the board is extremely advantageous to assuring a win. Lessons were learned.

Second round, I beat Dustin who I trained with. I asked if he let me win but his response: "Heck no! I want that $500!"

Third round, I beat another girl who was intent on winning and making me nervous. She had the touch, but apparently I had the force. I mean the force, people. Star Wars Jedi Knights, Straight up. There were literally moments where my puck was flying way too fast across the board, I would hold out my hand and shout...STOP!! before it flew off the edge...and I am not kidding. It was like someone's hand just stopped the speed of that little guy and it remained on the 3 point line, sometimes as close to the edge as possible without completeley falling off. Those shots equal maximum points.

Have you ever seen that oldschool movie, Angels in the Outfield? "You got Angels with ya right now!!!"

Fourth and final round. I am trying to contain my excitement that I might win this thing. I HAVE to stay calm so that I can play my pucks perfectly! This guy I played was really good. Before we started he was sprinkling extra stuff on the table and warming up and what not. I'm thinking let's just play this thing so the butterflies can leave my anxious stomach.

And you probably guessed it already, but yes. I WON!!!!!!

And it is our little Christmas miracle!!! Jon's like "I had no idea you knew how to play shuffleboard!" Yeah, I had no idea either. But we were pretty desperate for Christmas money this year. We didn't really have a plan for how to buy gifts for the holidays. We avoid pulling out loan money unless it is in regards to Jon's education. And we needed that blessed cash.

After celebrating and releasing all that built up energy that was burning inside me, I whispered to Jonathan, "I was totally praying the entire time!"

His response: "Me too!"

Like I said, angels, people.

That is Andrew, who I beat in the final round, sporting a fake smile.

And Jon's Uncle Bill, Aunt Marcia, and cousin Jenny who witnessed the miracle with us!

As we jokingly but with high spirits say at the Mecham's: It's a Christmas Miracle!!!

Standstills of November

Jon's favorite thing about Thanksgiving:

 Turkey Bowl

 He might have pretended to be Riley Nelson out there.

Rach's favorite part about Thanksgiving:

This is quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays. And I am totally the type of gal who advocates Christmas music during Thanksgiving day. It will always be playing in our home during the month of November. :-)

But really, our most favorite part and of course our standstill moments this month were spending precious moments with both the Dittos and the Mechams. I didn't even expect to be in Utah during Thanksgiving this year, and I was grateful to spend the day surrounded by family who I admire and cherish so deeply. What a blessing to take a break from my job and to actually spend hours of the day with my Jonathan.

His first round of law school finals begins this week, on Wednesday. Our first semester of graduate school has flown by! We are officially on our way to building our dream.

Launder Wander

Ever been without a functioning washer and dryer for a period of time? Adventurous. It's been about two months now for the Husband and Myself. In the beginning, our dryer would delightfully sound like a screeching cat whenever we attempted to use it. Sorry, neighbors. It was truly boisterous and I feared our windows might shatter if we left it running. Our landlord ordered a new one, which took longer than necessary to install and then ended up having a broken part anyway. Cool dude. We took a massive load of laundry home to South Jordan in our first act of desperation. And then, we got desperate again.

Luckily, we have amazing neighbors. Thanks Emily and Ty, for saving our smelly lives before the holidays began. While we were leaving their apartment Zach and Clarissa spotted us on the way back and asked us about the current sitch. This lovely couple also invited us to their apartment to do laundry anytime. Gracious neighbors! We sure do love our new ward and all the couples surrounding us. But here's where the story gets especially great...

Before leaving for work the next day, I asked Jonathan if he could retrieve our last batch of clothes from Em and Ty's place. He did so willingly, but was surprised to hear a knock at the door a few hours later. Zach and Clarissa are standing at the door with a bundle of socks in their hands and huge smiles on their faces.
"Hey...I think you might have forgot these. Are these yours? There was a trail leading from the Brown's to your house."
Jon: "Wow...thank you for picking those up! Yeah those are mine."

"Are those yours too?"

Jon's pants were hanging over the railing outside.

There it is. Like I mentioned before, never a dull moment.

How could he not feel the weight lessen after dropping so many items? I did remind him to take a basket, but I guess that's just not Jon's style.

He'd rather leave a trail along the sidewalk so our friends can easily find their way to our door.

Dear Marmie

Thank you for being not only a mother, but a close and kindred friend. Calling you every morning on my way to work provides an inner strength within me to tackle the challenges that await me for the day.

From the very beginning of my most cherished memories
hearing your whistle somewhere in the audience below
as I danced and performed with my dedicated heart,

You have always been there
  
       You have always answered

                      and

 You have always proven your unshaken confidence in me.

Consistent, loyal, and firm you are.

That courage, passion, and vigor of yours instills an awakening within me. In your eyes, I can accomplish anything. May I begin to see as you see.

I love you, Mom.

Sugar Mama

The unexpected turns of life are still playing with my path. Never in a million years would I have thought I could work where Jon worked the first year of our marriage, at SecurityMetrics. Three weeks into it now, I am a full-time working woman with a big kid job. Call me Jonathan's sugar mama.

I am still learning how to earn commission at this place, and in some ways this is one of the most difficult jobs I have ever had. Obviously I got the job because my genius husband left a legacy there, blowing his sales out of the water. He tries to train me at home but what a stretch for me and my non-sales-type-personality. Would I ever have even considered working at a place like this in my past? Never. But we can do hard things, right? Finding a full-time job is quite a task for me it seems. Employers could care less about a bachelor's degree in psychology. And we choose not to live off of school loans.

I am a creator of circumstances, not a creature of circumstances. I try to tell myself that everyday. At least Katie Shepherd Harmon is working there with me. Her light gets me through the difficult days. And sometimes she'll kidnap me from my little cubicle so we can go play Ping Pong in the basement.
And so we can breathe and remember our happier selves.

I have a plan to make more than five sales in one working day. Not quite sure how Hawaii would average 12 sales a day there. Except that he's brilliant with people and proving his case. Good thing he's in law school, right?

For all my Fellow Folkies

After many years of friendship and dating, my dear friend Sally married her best friend last Saturday in the Mesa, Arizona Temple.

Her mom made her dress (hello talent) and my favorite part is how the back poofs out like an old-fashioned ball gown.

 I couldn't help it, I teared up a little when they walked into the sealing room. Sally has been a close friend of mine for three and a half years (is that all?). While dancing with BYU, we toured Montana, Wyoming, and China together (one of those things is very unlike the other...). Then we were roommates the year that Jon came into my life, so in a sweet way he felt like an older brother to her. And this past year and a half of my marriage, Sally is still a close girlfriend I have in my life. It's so strange but those seem to disappear in rather odd ways once you get married. But I cherish Sal's friendship so much and the fact that we still get together just to talk. Sometimes for hours. The point is, I am so happy for the love between Greg and Sally and it was really special to be in Arizona for their ceremony.

Yep. This picture says BYU Folk Dance written all over it. These three boys are hilarious and requested a fake laughing picture. Try it some time. Obviously you'll just end up laughing your heart out.

Never a dull moment. Who wouldn't want to perform with these people? Oh the good old BYU dancing days. Is it pathetic I still have dreams that I go back to BYU just to perform with the company again? 

And now for the showcase - Greg put me in charge of decorating the tables. From the moment we got home from the temple to the time people started arriving for the reception, this was my project.

Guest table: They wanted some old fashioned post cards available for guests to write on and clip to the wall on the side. How cute is that idea?

Table 1 - Sally loves loves loves wildflowers. All kinds of natural beauty splashed throughout her wedding celebration. And they both wanted a "cluttered look" for the table center pieces. Also, Angie arranged all the flowers, including bouquets and boutonnieres! She worked for hours. We arrived to Mesa about 4:15 am, but Angie woke up three hours later to pick up all the goods. Other than a couple hours at the temple, she did flowers until the sun went down. It was fun to have her teach me a few things as well.

Love that picture. :-)

Table 2 - If you notice, each picture on all the following tables is a picture of them as BYU International dance partners throughout the years. The two shorties were always paired up ;-) and I love how each of these pictures add to the antique look of the tables. Here they are dressed in Southern costumes.

Table 3- the tea cups are holding tea candles for more light. I love that bold sunflower! And of course, they were partners in our pioneer dance.

 Table 4 - This is one my favorites, thanks to Greg. And they are clogging partners in that pic.

Table 5 - Polish dance partners. These two best friends really have journeyed through so much together.

Unfortunately those were the only tables I had time to snap a picture of. It was so much fun putting these together though. And even more fun when they loved how it all turned out!

Of course I had to get a picture of this hair. Gorgeous.

 I am so happy that the knot is officially tied! I know they will rock at their marriage because they already strive to continually serve one another. And because God is at the center of it. I am excited for their Utah reception tonight. It will be full of more BYU Folk Dance goodness.

Love you Sal.

How Engaging!

See that lovely couple beneath me-self, Husband, Sara Love, and Matty Babe? 

Well, THEY ARE ENGAGED!
Officially. Happened T minus 3 hours ago, or something like that.
And I couldn't be more thrilled for the two of them. No more Daniel in St. Louis going to law school without his woman. The perfect woman for him, and to be my new sister-in-law this December, I might add. They only have to play the heart-breaking long distance game two more times, and then thank heavens for no more goodbyes! They belong together. I felt so close to her from the very beginning, and soon her name will be Alicia Ditto. Then she'll finally understand how fun it is to marry into that name. She is already a kindred. Aren't they such a gorgeous couple? They are also hilarious together, which makes it all the better.

Alicia, love you to pieces already, Sis.

Boo Yah!

I am a facilitator of Love and Logic Parenting Courses and I love teaching these classes to parents throughout Utah. I have taught three in the last year, and I am so thrilled that I was just offered to facilitate another in Sandy! (Finally, something is looking up!) But all that information is just to preface what I would really like to document today.

I used Love and Logic on my husband last Sunday. :-)

Jonathan has sooo many strengths. One of those strengths is NOT punctuality. Now, it's not like I am great at being on time. However, I am better at it than Jon. And Sunday after Sunday after Sunday, I felt like MOTHER. Trying to wake him up, (he is still under the false belief that he can get ready in about fifteen minutes. This theory of his has been proven untrue basically every Sunday we have shared in our marriage) waiting in the car, and continually walking in late to sacrament meeting. And week after week, "Sorry Rach. I'll be on time next week." Well words weren't cutting it anymore. His late habit had to be broken. And with me walking in to sacrament meeting in a crabby mood so often, I decided it was time to utilize in my personal life what I teach in Love and Logic parenting courses. :-)

Especially when we discovered that our ward begins at 8:30 am.

Ready for this?

1) Ownership of the Problem: what can I control and not control?

Saturday evening around 7pm. (The conversation went something like this...)
 Rach: "Husband, I love you. And I would like to take the sacrament tomorrow in a happier spirit rather than being so grouchy about being late. Does that sound fair to you?"
Jon: "Of course that sounds fair, Sweetheart."
Rach: "Good, I'm so glad. So here's what I've come up with. Our car will be leaving tomorrow at 8:20am with or without you in it. I love you."

2) Hope that your child (in my case, husband) blows it. Opportunity for thinking/decision making.

Sunday morning, I get up and get ready for church. By 8:00 am, Jon is still sleeping. 8:10 rolls around, and he's so peaceful in our bed. I smile to myself. This is going to be a great day.
8:15 - He gets up and starts running around. I am a little disappointed but also very happily enjoying myself
 as I wasn't playing MOTHER today.
8:20 - I give him a kiss and walk out the door.

And as I walked into our parking garage, I heard frantic, pounding footsteps in the apartment floor above me. Ah, that would be my husband running around. Jon barely made it to the car before I turned the corner. With shaver, socks, and shoes in his hands he jumps in and remarks "You're awesome." (I think deep down inside he wants to break this Hawaiian habit of his.) And I was in the best mood I've ever been in on a Sunday morning. What a lovely, refreshing day!

So he made it the first week. What happened last week, you wonder?

Saturday night before bed.
Rach: "Hey Babe. You remember our deal, right? Our car leaves at 8:20, with or without you in it?"
Jon: "Yeah yeah I remember." (Taking me less seriously this time????)

3) Follow through with loving action.

Sunday at 8:23, I walked out the door and left a man still enjoying his breakfast. Love in my heart, of course. Malice is not endorsed by any Love and Logic facilitator. And it's not like I didn't miss that handsome man of mine, as I walked into the meeting alone and sang the opening hymn without the accompaniment of his pleasant voice. He managed to hitch a ride with a friendly neighbor. And as he sat down next to me on the pew, with a smile on his face he said, "Wow. I'm never going to be late again."

I guess we'll see.

He certainly improved his punctuality this morning for stake conference. Granted, that started at 10:00 AM.

Maybe the funniest part of all is that as I turned the corner last Sunday and pulled out onto the road in front of our complex, Jon opened the door and we straight up made eye contact. What did I do? I drove right on. Thank you, Love and Logic. Putting the fun back into parenting, and guiding children (and spouses!!!)  to be more responsible.

Do's and Don'ts de Placement Break

DO have a sleepover in your front room. To maximize the experience, build a fort as well!

 DO act like a kid. In fact, do it often.

DO NOT act like a bass fish at the aquarium at Cabella's.

 Unless you are rather used to being fools in public together.

Certainly, DO hike to the Timpanogos caves when the surrounding mountains have recently been sprinkled with snow.

DON'T forget your tennis shoes! Choose to be more comfortable than we were. 

 Do watch Planet Earth - Caves before you go! (Nerd confession #1)

Should you find a Rubber Boa crossing your path, DO NOT pick him up!

 Unless you are positive he his harmless (luckily a forest ranger was walking with us) and you take immense satisfaction out of doing something, every day, that scares you. Little Rachie's heart was POUNDING. 

 Little Jonny's was not.

 Do Say hello to a forest ranger! You never know, he just might be your blast from the past and eighth grade science teacher! Mr. Ellison? RANDOM. Yes, I trusted his judgment when we discovered this snake. I well remember this man's passion for Bill Nye the Science Guy. Anything more foolproof than that? Please. That is pure scientific knowledge at its best.

And lastly, Do fall in love with the children in your life. These are five of my 39 little students. From left to right we have Mr. Chris the Red, Paisley the hip-shaker (and only lady in her class), Auggie the fohawk guy (riding a bull maybe?), Shane who wears a Buzz Lightyear shirt daily, and Mathias who has recently become Shane's shadow.

I got to play on this blowup slide with these little babes. Brightened my entire week. :-)