New Job New Tradition

I* got a new job! HURRAY!!

I am working as the HR/Administrative Assistant for a local Engineering and Land Surveying company. We do survey's for oil and gas companies. HR and assistant is the best way I can explain what I do. I make paychecks, battle the infamous Quick Books, pay bills, balance books, fill the candy dishes, mail letters, file, pay the taxes, insurance issues, unemployment issues, shop for office supplies, etc.

Things are going pretty well, but that's because I'm in training. The girl that has been there for two years is sitting next to me the whole time so I can ask questions. She leaves next Wednesday. I'm very nervous. Balancing books via quick books and minor accounting/finance is completely out of my element. I hope that once the training is over my bosses are supportive and patient. They have made it clear - in a nice way- that if I mess up too badly we could lose an account. We only have a few accounts that are supporting our company so I read between the lines and I took it to meant that if I messed up too badly the company could go down and bring all of the people with it. I try not to stress about it but I'm not being humble when I have NO IDEA what I'm doing.

Aaron's job is going well. They are keeping him busy.

The new tradition was this gift bag that I bought today at the store. I think it's very important for couples to continue to pursue each other after marriage. The idea of a date night always sounded appealing to me so I decided to give it a go.

I bought blue gift bag, but gifts don't necessarily need to go in it. The idea of the bag is to put in the idea of an activity we can do together. Aaron LOVES scary movies (I do not) but I knew that Aaron wouldn't notice that today was Friday the 13th! So, I put together a goody bag full of candy and a movie that looked scary from the red box.

Here is a picture of the contents of the date bag.

Total cost: about $15

I could have cut back and tried to make the Friday the 13th date cheaper, but I just can't help myself when I'm buying things for Aaron that he loves.

Aaron is in the possession of the bag and it's his turn to find something for us to do in vernal. I might be asking a few friends for ideas soon. It's possible that ideas will run low here in the middle of nowhere Utah.

Also, until further notice, assume it's me (Marissa) writing the posts :)

Ta-Ra!

Whatcha got cookin?

Aaron and I make an excellent match as far as the kitchen is concerned. I cook, he does some prep work and cleans up!

Because of this, I get the opportunity to get creative in the kitchen without the hassle of chopping and cleanup!

So, for my curious friends, I'm going to post some pictures of the completely unpacked kitchen and then tell about the delicious recipes I've been cooking up!

The best view of the kitchen. It shows off the nice flowers and my perfect kitchenaid mixer!
A good view of my new staple canisters. I used to have black ones from my MIL, but I hated them because I could never stick a measuring cup in there! These match our kitchen and fit out needs much better!
We don't have a kitchen table yet but we do have a bar area where we normally eat. Those stools were expensive @ $17 a piece. They were necessary...and expensive! You can also see the sage we bought at the farmers market hanging above the sink. It smells lovely!
Our kitchen has interesting storage issues. Because cooking is a part of my career and a huge hobby, I have more kitchen equipment than the average person. We did not have enough room to store pots and pans so we used these shelves instead. It's also nice to see all of my cookbooks (which get regular use) at eye level! OH YEAH - and if you look carefully, you can see my new purple steam mop! IT'S AWESOME! Oh yeah, and I love magnets. If you've ever sent me a picture in the mail for a holiday or a save the date, its on there! The door next to the fridge leads into the laundry room/half bath. Those pictures will come next!
We have a dishwasher - which is awesome! The not so awesome part is that the dishwasher is smaller than the hole that was cut for it, so it always feels like its going to top over....but still, we have a dishwasher! We also have a broken silverware drawer. There is no front, and the depth of the draw area is longer than the drawer itself, so it falls in and is SUPER LAME. It's been fixed several times so I am about to resort to heavy duty glue or something.

So, I've been cooking up a storm since I've moved to Utah. On Sunday's I sit down and make a weekly menu. Then I use that as the basis for my shopping list. It helps us save money and keeps me on track at the store.

Here is a delicious list of all of the recipes I've made for the past three weeks. YUM-O!!!

1. Angel Hair Pasta with Mushroom Marinara
2. Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomato Alfredo Pasta
3. Chicken Burritos
4. Huevos Rancheros **
   
5. Blueberry Bran Pancakes
6. Very Veggie Chili Wraps*
7. Turkey Enchilada Pie*
8. Mac and Cheese
9. Crusted Honey Mustard Chicken*
10. Chicken Pitas w/ Yogurt Dill Sace
11. Couscous w/ Turkey Sausage and Almonds
12. Baked Ziti
13. Thai Green Curry Chicken
14. Baked Chicken with Dijon-Lime Sauce*
15. Roasted Pork Tenderloin*
    

* - Denotes an AMAZING recipe that was successfully executed! DELICIOUS!!!!!!!
** - Denotes a kitchen failure. I had rice cooker issues and it messed up the rice. We made that same rice today for the Thai Green Curry Chicken and discovered that the brown rice we were using was riddled with husks! We won't be buying that brand again. Also, I might add that I don't handle kitchen failures very well. I get quite pissy...and that's putting it lightly. The rest of it turned out fantastic and was delicious, according to Aaron. I was too pissed to eat it and enjoyed a delicious bowl of cinnamon life cereal.

I wonder how many days I can go without repeating a recipe? I'm going out of town next week so I won't be cooking here. I'll be cooking for my friend Christy and Matt and their new baby "L". But, I do know what I'm making next week. I should take pictures!

Ta-ra!

Marissa

What we've been up to!

Well - my plan for updating this every Sunday didn't go as well as I had planned.

I really wanted to post pictures with my posts, but I lost the memory card reader - until TODAY!

I have lots of pictures to post and I'll put a caption under neath it to explain what has been going on in Utah.

In late June Aaron, Trixe and I all headed to Afton, WY for a wedding.


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We left Utah a day early to get in a day of camping before the wedding. This was Trixie's first camping trip. She did very well and enjoyed being snuggled up between Aaron and I as we slept. It got pretty chilly that night and she was very cold. We might have to get her a little sweater.

Here are some pictures.
Trixie was a little apprehensive when we first got to the camp site, but she quickly warmed up to the idea of spending so much time outside! So many smells to sniff! Isn't she cute?


Aaron and I built a nice fire and then made delicious Smores! Yummmm.....









Trixie enjoyed her own plain marshmallow. It took her quite awhile to eat it and I think she digested more leaf than marshmallow.

We camped near a spring with lots of waterfalls from snow melt. This is the best shot of the trip. I'm very proud of it!


The next day it was time to enjoy a day of love and laughter with family. I really love spending time with Aaron's Uncle Larry and Aunt Jackie. They are so welcoming, positive and caring. They are always so much fun to be around. The wedding was for Kira and Matt (Kira is Larry and Jackie's daughter) It was so much fun to see everyone and the ceremony was lovely.

The bride and groom were fun and had some neat things at their wedding - including a mustache photo booth. Here is Aaron and I enjoying the wedding!

Back at the home front we've been working hard to set up the house just the way we like it. We have some design challenges ahead of us but nothing major. The one thing I can say that I really like about this house is that the walls are not all white! They are a neutral earthy color, but they are not white!

Other than that...Aaron has been busying himself with work and enjoying his new mountain bike. I have been trying new recipes, setting up the house and searching for just the right career move. We try to find something different to do each weekend. We were happy to discover a farmers market here in town - its not the best farmers market but its better than nothing!


Here is a picture of our spoils! Delicious cherries, cheap flowers, apricots, zucchini bread and kale (from which I made my first and amazingly delicious batch of kale chips!).

Here is another picture of the flowers.




That's all for now. This week I plan to clean and stage the house for good pictures and post them on here for my curious friends who want to see what the house looks like.

That's all for now.

Love,
Aaron, Marissa and Trixie

Trixie!

Well, as I mentioned in the last post Aaron and I are now proud owners of a Pembroke Welsh Corgi named Trixie.

Aaron and I have longed to have a Corgi for a long time - but we also don't believe in paying for dogs when there are plenty of displaced dogs that need homes. We waited a long time to get a dog because the timing was off and we couldn't find the exact dog we wanted. What set the dog owning back even farther was Aaron and I living apart - we didn't want the dog to belong to just one person.

But, but very random circumstance I was looking around on rollanet and happened to find this adorable little Corgi that was being bullied by another dog in her home. In order to make sure it wasn't a scam, I looked on cragslist too - I found the exact same listing there too. I talked to Aaron and he agreed that I could try to obtain her even though we were living in different places.

I emailed the woman that had her and explained how we wanted Trixie to be apart of our family and make our home her forever home. She responded quickly and we had a date on February 10th. I was amazed by how easy the transition was. Trixie let me hold her and I she seemed to have a good temperament. I unemotionally decided that she was the dog for us!

I have never had the pleasure of being around a more laid back pup. She loves to be around people, listens well, was already potty trained and crate trained. Marvelous! She'll never be the kind of dog that rolls over or shakes your paw but she'll warm your lap and your heart.

On the way to Utah, Trixie was a wonderful car companion. She slept most of the way and never made a sound, got sit or had an accident. Her transition to living with Aaron has gone even better. After two days she readily accepted him and will do anything to get him to rub her belly.

Trixie also transitioned well into having to potty in the backyard. She didn't like the idea at first but she's done well. She's even learned to walk past the net we have up to keep bugs out (that was a few minutes of torture trying to lure her through the net with chicken - but it only took one lesson!)

Trixie still has a long way to go in some aspects. My former roommate, Kristina, and I suspect that she was abused before we got her. She is very timid and runs to her crate anytime there is a strange face around. Sometimes she'll shake and other times she is brave and stays out of her crate but keeps her distance. She's particularly afraid of males, shoes and feet - poor thing. She's making progress though.

Anyhow - Here's Trixie! The best dog in the world!

This is Trixie wearing a thug bandanna. It makes her feel brave!Getting belly rubs - her favorite thing.
Trixie looking ferocious! Even though its just a bad camera shot.

Welcome to Utah, Trixie!

Together Again

So what happened after the last post?

Well - to make a long story short. I (Marissa) took a teaching job at the high school in St. James, Missouri and Aaron took a short-term job that turned into a permanent job in Utah.

Aaron and I were apart for about a year. We spend Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring Break together. We also talked on the phone every night (thank goodness for free phone to phone minutes). It was difficult to say the least. But my immediate family and supportive friends made sure that I felt supported and included in gatherings and activities. I couldn't have done it without them.

Now we are both together again and living in Utah! We have a nice town-home with a back yard for Trixie (our new Pembroke Welsh Corgi) and mountains all around.

Aaron has a permanent job with the Bureau of Land Management and I am on the hunt for one.

We are settling in, spending lots of time together, unpacking (blah) and are happy to be together again.

And for my photo frenzies people out there - pictures coming soon!

Love,

Marissa and Aaron

Glittery Bombshell

This past Thursday, while finishing and packing up from a sewing class I'm taking, I get an anxious phone call from Aaron.

"Where are you?" he says.

"I'm still at sewing class. Why, what's up?" says me...

"Ummm, well, when are you coming home?"

This is when I start to get worried - what happened? Did he hurt himself? Did I forget to put the parking break on the car and it rolled down the hill? Did he break something!!?!

"What is going on..."I hesitantly say.

"Well, it's confusing, just come home."

Sooo - I pack up and try my hardest to get away from all of the craft ladies at the craft store but MAN do those ladies like to talk. SERIOUSLY. I was trying not to be rude but I just could not break away from the chit chat.

Eventually I just blurt that I need to go and leave. The sewing place is about a mile and a half from my house.

I walk in the door and sniff - no fire smell. no bloody carpet. no screams of pain. *whew!*

All seems well.

I find Aaron in the dining room looking oddly upset.

I fight my inner desire to go up to him and grab his shoulders and yell "What Happened!??" but instead I say I calmly say "Hey babe, what's up?"

He drops what I would call a "Glittery Bombshell"

Aaron got a job!

HURRAY!!!!!! Right??? Well - sort of. Aaron's new job is governmental which is fantastical - but, its in Utah.

What a great opportunity - what awful timing and so very far away.

We are both trying very hard to remain strong and positive about this very unexpected situation. After all - he's been striking out a lot for a year now and I think he'd given up for awhile - that mixed with the fact that he applied for this job in March/April and had heard nothing.

I'm not sure what I am expecting people to say or how they will react. Most people are ignoring the distance and separation and instead really saying how fantastic it is that he got this job.

Which it is - and I know there are the people who didn't get the job or who don't have the job - but at the end of 2009, if Aaron finished this project on time we will have only lived together for 14 out of 52 weeks.

We are newly weds folks... this is tough for us.

My good friend Michelle mentioned that it makes people uncomfortable and maybe that’s why no one is saying anything. Which could be true.

We are still dealing with this news - I have no idea how soldiers spouses do it. Really, I don't.

So here's the facts:
- Aaron is the crew leader (Hurray!)
- He'll be working in North East Utah
- He'll be doing work with an invasive herbaceous species and leading a small team of workers.
- Aaron leaves August 1st and will return at the end of November (if the project is on time...)
- There is no internet but there is a hill you can climb to use your cell phone. No word yet if there is mail service yet.
- This is a huge opportunity for Aaron to get himself out there and to maybe get a long term government job (the ULTIMATE career goal for Aaron!)

Sooooo - we're dealing. Aaron is having a harder time dealing with it than I am. I tend to distance myself from him before he leaves - it makes goodbyes easier for me but it makes things super hard for Aaron because it feels like he's already gone.

The other hard part is that there are other peoples agendas to take into consideration. The new house has two major projects (Painting exterior and sub pump under house) that are supposed to be finished before August 1st (I don’t know where this worrisome deadline came from....) and we are behind with both of them. I have a conference for a week and Aaron and I are going to Laramie together, but for research purposes - not leisure.

So, finding time for each other in July is going to be tough.

He’s also taking the car which I need for my new teaching job that starts August 6th, so if the magical car fairy could bring me a car, that would be great!

That's our news, folks!

We just never know what is going to be happening.

Love,
A&M

Bob Villa doesn't stand a chance against us!

It's been about three weeks since my last post - woops. Time does slip away from you when you are busy out of your mind. This of course begs the question - what have we been up to?

Well - We are completely moved in and almost finished organizing. We live with my brother-in-law Nathan - (I don’t really care for the term in-law - Nathan is like a sibling). Consolidating two households into one is a lot of work - but we managed. Along the way Aaron and I (mostly me, Marissa) discovered that I have a lot of extra JUNK. This means we're going to attempt to have our first garage sale next weekend. Whatever we don't sell Friday and Saturday will be given to charity - I'm actually pretty excited to see how this works out. Some of my friends also want to simplify their lives and are going to join me. Lets hope it’s a success!

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it in pervious post or now, but Aarons parents own this house and we kids are the renters. Except - this house is in need of some updating and fixing, so for now we're working on the house as workers of course most of which we give right back as rent. It's a good little summer gig but working on a new house that needs a lot of help is a lot of work!!! So far we have spent a lot of time working in the horrible awful overgrown yard - which had mountains of poison ivy. It's now finished (if you could ever call a yard finished) and we've planted a garden full of mammoth sunflowers, pumpkins, watermelons, squash, decorative corn, tomatoes, peppers and herbs! Things are already sprouting and I’m so excited for the fall when its time to harvest all of these things. For those of you who know Missouri - we really REALLY got lucky with our garden dirt. Because all of that overgrown brush and ivy in our back yard, there was a lot of decomp underneath it and as a result our earth is fertile! We suspect there may have been a garden here previously because there was no clay when we tilled it. How lucky is that?

The same cannot be said for the privacy fence we built with the neighbors. Last weekend we built a privacy fence that separated our property from the neighbors. Good fences make good neighbors I believe the saying goes. Since we've built it we haven't seen them at all! For the record they were nice before hand and the fences were for their dogs who can climb chain linked fences. Anyhow - I have yet to experience any work that is harder than digging post holes. Whew - its tiring! The fence was built to perfection due to Robs (Aarons father) expert skills. The fence looks great!

We're also taking the paint off of the house in preparation for new paint! Taking paint off of windows is less than fan but its brainless work that matches easily with an iPod.

A new stove has been installed, new shelves built in the garage, air ducts were added to the bedroom, and we have a new toilet seat that doesn’t go *WOOSH* when you sit on it!

Things are lookin' up!

Love,

Marissa