drumroll please...

the grades are in...

and i can officially add another 4.0 to my transcript

i'm going to toot my own horn because i'm feeling very proud of myself

i can't even tell you how relieved i am that all my hard work paid off

call me crazy, but after getting a 4.0 my first semester of grad school, i've been on a straight-a warpath.  bound and determined to rock a's every semester.

and so far, i've done it all 4 semesters

so let's pray the next 3 semesters go as well as the last few have gone

merry christmas to me!

a server's letter

dear ladies who had their work christmas party at our restaurant last night,

it was very nice of you to come in and enjoy a holiday meal with us.  there were a lot of you, and you were a little needy, but nothing i couldn't handle.  and you wanted a private room upstairs, which resulted in me running the large flight of stairs all night long.  you even left piles of wrapping paper and ribbon and teeny tiny confetti all over the room and i didn't even say one bad word.  but again, nothing i haven't had to deal with before.  it's all part of my job description.

it sure was sweet that you kept calling me "cute girl" and "sweetheart" all night and it was nice of you to tell me that i was one of the best servers you have ever had.  it was also very thoughtful of you to leave me some home-made snowman treats with a little note wishing me a very merry christmas.  i'm sure they took a long time to make.  

however, verbal tips and peppermint snowmen aren't really replacing monetary tips this year.  i know the economy is down a bit, but i'm pretty sure i can't go to my landlord and tell him that he is such a kind, generous guy and expect to get out of my rent payment for the month.  i'm also pretty positive that the cashier at best buy isn't going to accept these little edible snowmen as payment for the christmas presents i still need to purchase.

thanks again ladies for coming in to the restaurant, but please never sit in my section again.

sincerely,

liz

i'd rather be

here....

than here...

stupid finals week.  i hate you.  and it's freezing cold outside which makes it that much harder to get my butt to campus to study.

this is my 14th finals week and i'm kinda sick of it.

enough of my complaining.

back to studying.

thanks for listening.

She's a troublemaker

This is what I came home to yesterday after a long day at school. When
I left, the cage, crate, water, and toys were all in the kitchen on
the tile. She managed to drag everything to the front room (smearing
poop in the process) and proceeded to shred my favorite wreath to
pieces. It's a good thing she's so loveable or I just may have killed
her right then and there.

oh yeah, halloween...

now that thanksgiving has come and gone, i guess it is time to post about our halloween.  the week before halloween we headed to murray and went to a party that sarah and emily put together.  it was a murder mystery dinner and was a lot of fun.  it was especially fun to see and catch up with our friends we haven't seen forever.  the murder mystery part was fun and i was actually the one who got killed off.  haha.

josh and i dressed up as captain hook and tinkerbell.

we got tess the same day as the party.

here is the whole gang... it was a lot of fun!

on halloween, we went to a party at stacie and mckade's house.  we ate some yummy soup bowls and treats and played some games.  i especially loved the caramel apples we made... yum.  of course i didn't bring my camera so i have no pictures from it, but it was a lot of fun.  we even dressed tess up as tinkerbell and she had a ball playing with the little devil (diesel).

i.am.grateful

i love this time of year and the way it gets me thinking about all of my many blessings.  i truly am blessed and i am so grateful for all that i have:

• a kind, supportive, hard-working husband who shows me he loves me each and every day.  he is my best friend and i know he is perfect for me
• a sweet little puppy who gives so many kisses and is always excited to see me.  she has dug her way into my heart faster than i ever thought possible
• a fabulous family that has always encouraged me to be the best i can be and has been my biggest support system.  they pick me up when i am down and celebrate in my accomplishments
• a wonderful set of in-laws who let me into their family and have treated me as one of their own.  they would do just about anything to make sure that josh and i are happy
• the church of jesus christ of latter-day saints and all of the blessings and promises that come through living the gospel of jesus christ
• amazing friends.  josh and i have been so blessed to be surrounded by people who lift us up, make us laugh, and inspire us to be better people.  our murray friends, logan friends, ogden friends, and juneau friends have all played an important role in our lives and we love them all so much
• my education and my scholarships.  it is a blessing to have professors that believe in me and have invested so much of their time and energy to train me to become an amazing professional one day. they have provided me with the means to graduate debt free and i am so grateful that such a heavy financial burden can be lifted off our shoulders
• missionaries, especially our own nate-dogg.  he is doing a fabulous job serving the people in washington and oregon.  even though we miss him like crazy, he is setting such an amazing example of dedication and service to the Lord
• my job.  and although there are times that i loathe it, i am blessed to have a job that works around my crazy schedule and helps us have a little extra spending money
• a strong and healthy body
• the doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals who have given us hope in fighting josh's cancer battle
• grandmas, grandpas, and other relatives who love and support us and constantly tell us how proud they are
• my new car and the fact that it has 4 wheel drive
• a small home filled with love and warmth
• my bed and how big and comfy it is.  it allows me to get a good night's sleep so i can tackle new challenges each and every day
• temples and their beauty- both inside and out
• an amazing relief society presidency that goes above and beyond to touch the lives of each of the sisters in our ward
• other church leaders who are inspired men and women who speak the true words of God

these are just a few of the things that i am grateful for.  the list could go on forever.

i hope you all have a fabulous thanksgiving spent with family and friends!

love, liz and josh

i am grateful

one of my favorite scenes from mary poppins is where mary, bert, jane, and michael meet up with uncle albert and they start laughing and singing so hard that they float up to the ceiling.

gets me cracking up every time.

i am grateful for laughter

sometimes a good, belly-achin' laugh with my classmates is the only thing that gets me though a long day at school or work.

like the kind where tears roll down your face and your cheeks hurt

laughter reduces my stress level and helps me chill out.

i am fortunate enough to be surrounded by fun and optimistic friends, family, classmates, and coworkers that i consider to be down-right hilarious.

from my husband poking fun at the random things i say to dance parties in my kitchen to terrible audiology jokes to long car rides rocking out to 90s pop hits to fabulous game nights....

nothing makes me happier than laughing for hours on end with the people i love.

and so today, i am grateful for laughter

i don't know how to post a video, but here's a link to a youtube clip that makes me laugh

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBSYD0dQCAw