Arkansas

Well! Ava and I made it back from Arkansas yesterday afternoon. We had such a fun trip!

We went up up with Grandma Teri Wednesday afternoon to see our Arkansas Family. Ava is going....Ava IS spoiled rotten with love!

We had such a wonderful time seeing everyone!

Thanks Arkansas Family!

We did arrive on a bit of a sad note, Jimmy's mother passed away the night before our arrival. We are so sorry for their lost and our thoughts and prayers go out to them.

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Christmas

As Ava & I sit here bright & early on her very first Christmas morning I can't help but think of how in awe I am of this beautiful little gift we've been given.

I think about Mary & what would happen to her firstborn child just 33 short years later.

I think about my own Heavenly Father who let his only begotten son come to this earth knowing the unbearable hardships he would face.

I think about how I love this little girl more than life itself.

I think about how grateful I am that families are forever.

I think about how extremely grateful I am for all the blessings in my life!

Merry Christmas!

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Cousin time!

Ava said, 'why doesn't my hair look like that!'

Alivia gave a thumbs up!

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Meet & Greet!

There is nothing like coming home to everything you know!

Grandma & Grandpa Armstrong met us at the airport and we were all delighted!

Ava got to meet lots of new people
last night! She met her Aunt Peggy, Kayla, Uncle Frank, & Aunt Gene!

Then she woke up this morning to another surprise! She met her Aunt Megan, Uncle Brandon, & her cousin Alivia!

Oh, there is no place like home for the holidays.....

Life.

This beautiful girl has entered our home & rocked or world! I never knew I could immediately fall in love with something so quickly! I love her so much & could not imagine my life without her.
My blog has fallen by the wayside while my mom was here & then someone else wanted my attention! But I am back on it now! Ava is on more of a schedule & I have learned to do a lot with just one arm! My left side is going to be so strong when this is all said & done.

September

   I feel like this lamb. Just happily (when i'm not throwing up) skipping (maybe more like waddling) along the road of pregnancy. September is finally here! I am so glad!!! This brings me one month closer to having my baby girl here!
   I have to admit...I'm donezo being pregnant. Which I think is my first guilty mothering thought. It's such a strange feeling. I feel so lucky and blessed that I have been able to have this blessing of being pregnant but at the same time I think..I have a room for you please exit my body after 35 weeks...thanks!!! I should not feel bad for feeling like this..but I do...or maybe I should feel bad for feeling like this...*sigh*
   Either way I am grateful for this rolling, tumbling, shy girl taking up some space in my belly but I am still glad it is September :)

Lucky

   I try not to brag...but really I must...I have the best husband in the world. He has been dealing with this sick, pregnant woman for 33 weeks now! The daily occurance of vomiting has not stopped him from (just about) every morning offering me a cold rag, a cracker, or something to drink.
   He deals with me on my weepy days where I cry about rabbits not having anywhere to stay during the winter.
   He deals with my snappy sassy attitude when I ask why he put such large pieces of ice in my drink. (This is sad...but true...I've taken to eating ice ALL the time)
   I am so excited to meet this little lady and see what she looks like. I am almost as excited to see her as I am to see what an amazing dad my amazing husband is going to be.
(PS I love that this husband has no idea that I blog about him! Bahahahahaha!)

~Baby Shower~

   It's been awhile since my last post..I hate when this happens because then it is so hard to get back to doing it frequently.
   Something I wanted to post about though was my amazing Baby Shower! Why was it amazing? Let me tell you. It was amazing not because there was wonderful food, not because of the adorable decorations, not because of the cute gifts. It was amazing to be a thousand miles away from all my family and still have 'family'. These women made me feel so loved and special. It is amazing the relationships you can form in just a year and I am so grateful for these wonderful ladies and for everything that they do for me.
   I know that Aaron and I are where we are supposed to be. We are in such a unique situation because we go to church with so many other doctors and their wives. I go to a church that is full of young moms with young kids and they all have the most amazing advice.
   I am so blessed.

Important

   Wow! It has been forever since I have blogged but...truth be told I've had much much MUCH more important things going on!
   First of all my wonderful sister, Paige, came to visit me. We had a blast! We shopped, crafted, watched movies, swam, read, and just hung out and enjoyed each other :) I am so lucky that she came up to see me.
   Then, my momma came to visit me! We shopped until we dropped!!! We found Baby Girl a stroller, a crib, a mattress, and bedding! Aaron said to me, "how is it that you talk to your mom every day and you guys still have so much to talk about the whole entire time she is here?" This basically sums up our whole entire visit. We would lay in bed and talk and talk and we would have to say ok...it's one in the morning. No more talking....and then we would start up again. I love my mom so much and so glad that she braved the airplane to come and see me.
   I am so grateful for all the wonderful family I have in my life! We've had my in-laws, sister, and mom come and visit us. The party isn't over with yet though! I still have Jennifer and Kara coming to see me this week!!! 

Camp!

   This past week I went to girls camp for church! Let me just tell you it was a blast! For several reason and if you happen to not understand why this made camp...you obviously were not at camp.

1. Rebecca Black. This girls song about Friday was sang....an unmentionable amount of times! So many  times I woke up singing it this morning! We did sing one final time on Friday to commemorate the week!

2. Edge. What girls camp isn't complete with out one annoying chorus from a Lady Gaga song?....I even like gaga and I wanted to rip my ears off.

3. A Pirate Theme. This year at camp our motto was, "We seek after these things" from the thirteenth Article of Faith. So...we were pirates...seeking after good things :) Well, I happen to have some amazing girls that brought some amazing costumes and dressed up as pirates! Needless to say Capt Jack was there.

4. Friendship. It is weird as an adult to make new friends sometimes. This week though I met a couple of amazing women that I now absolutely adore. We laughed, shared stories, bossed girls around, and just enjoyed each others company.

5. Bonding. I got to bond with all of my girls. Needless to say I love them even more than I loved them before. They are simply amazing to me and I can not wait for these girls to be the leaders that my little girl will look up to at church. I loved getting to know them on a personal level not just as a collective group at church. I loved knowing individual things about them. It's amazing what girls camp will do for a relationship

6. Mosquitoes. I have 25 mosquito bites on my body. What would I have done without OFF!!! Thanks to the girls that shared their dry Off and kept asking me if I needed more spray...even the girl I made fun of because she was obsessed with spraying herself down :)

7. Ice. Isn't it weird the little things you miss? One very special girl brought me two cups of ice while I was at camp. I will treasure that cool moment forever for more than one reason.

8. Motherhood. One girl helped me become a better mom by calling me into her tent, being very serious, and telling me she needs help find a healthy snack.:) Those girls took such good care of this pregnant lady all week long I would do anything for them! They carried things for me, slowed me down, and just made me feel loved :)

9. Spiritual. These girls have an amazing spirit around them. I can only imagine how hard these girls daily struggles are from the pressures of the world. It was nice to strip down the hair products, add a layer of dirt, and be able to hear them and see them the way our Heavenly Father sees them. I loved hearing what they had to say about certain topics of the gospel. I hope they can see how beautiful they are from the inside out.

10. Relationships. I hope those girls created many new relationships. Relationships with girls from other places. Relationships with girls from their own ward. Relationships with their leaders. Most importantly a greater relationship with their Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

I love Girls Camp.

Summer

   Today is the first day of summer. The longest day of the year. My name is Summer and I have absolutely loved seeing everyone love summertime today :) So, enough said. I love my name. I love Summertime :)

Father's Day

   Today is Father's Day! I am so lucky to have such an amazing dad in my life! A man that I respect so much, have learned so much from, and love so much! I truly am blessed to have an eternal family and to have such a wonderful dad :)
   As I talked to my dad today it made me so sad that I was his only girl not there to celebrate with him today.
   Love you dad! Enjoy your day!

One Year



   As Aaron and I were going to bed last night we realized we have been in Ohio for a year now! Yesterday was the one year anniversary of moving into our house :) Wow. What a year!
   It is so weird to think that a year ago our little family moved into our little house to start our big lives!
It's amazing what 365 days means.
365 days means:
You will have new friends you never had before
You will celebrate your one year marriage anniversary
You will have callings in church you've never had before
You will become pregnant
You will live in a state you never imagined yourself in
You will survive six months of winter
You will love living in a state where it snows quite a bit
You will meet amazing women and learn things you never knew
You will put a sweater on your dog because it is so cold
You will spend most of the summer with the windows open
but most importantly
You will learn that home is wherever you want it to be
You will learn that family stays the same near or far
You will learn that creating your 'own' family is the most amazing feeling

I want this...I need this...

   When Aaron and I first got married I wanted a mixer so so so bad! Aaron said we will save up for it and get it when we get to Ohio! So when we got here and we realized how tiny our kitchen was and how low the cabinets went we knew it was not functional right now.
   Today, I'm thinking about our future home. While I still love our little Ohio home it would be nice to have a bigger home especially with a bun in the oven. Our home is the perfect place for us.

Irena Sendler

I found this story and thought it was amazing. Totally going to get the book.
Irena Sendler 1910-2008 A 98 year-old German woman named Irena Sendler recently died. During WWII, Irena worked in the Warsaw Ghetto as a plumbing/sewer specialist. Irena smuggled Jewish children out; infants in the bottom of the tool box she carried and older children in a burlap sack she carried in the back of her truck. She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto. The soldiers wanted nothing to do with the dog, and the barking covered the kids’ and infants’ noises. Irena managed to smuggle out and save 2500 children. She eventually was caught, and the Nazis broke both her legs, arms and beat her severely. Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar buried under a tree in her backyard. After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived and reunited some of the families. Most had been killed. She helped those children get placement into foster family homes or adopted. Last year Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize. She was not selected. Al Gore won- for a slide show on Global Warming.

Bubbles Anyone?

  I've never been one to take a super long shower (unless you talk to my dad who thinks anything over 5 minutes in there is ridiculous! ;). Since, I've been pregnant though it is my favorite place to be. I even take baths now!

  See I have this sister named Jennifer and she loves to take baths! I mean like she could be in there for hours, if the hot water allowed. I've always made fun of her. Always. She even fell asleep in there when she was little and we thought she had drown!!!! I kind of understand it now though.

  Let's talk about how stupid it is that pregnant women aren't supposed to get in hot tubs?......That is all I want to do!

Now, I just lay in there and relax. Ahhhhhhh :)

Dreams

   First of all I love this picture. It is just amazing and something that would only happen in a fairy tale or a dream. So, of course I love it :)
   I never used to dream. Ever. I mean I would have one every few months but I am not one of those lucky people that wakes up and gets to tell everyone about their awesome dreams. Since I've been pregnant though I have dreams all the time! Nightly. They are really random and kind of strange usually. I am just happy to have dreams part of my nightly life now because in four short months I'm sure I will be too tired to dream. :)

Sisters!

Don't tell Aaron but.....I wouldn't mind having this one day :)
What can I say, I love my sister!

Tickets

   Today I bought tickets for me and a couple of my guests that are coming up this summer. I bought tickets to Ke$ha!!! I am pretty darn excited to throw glitter in the air, wear fake eyelashes, put extreme amounts of eyeliner on my face, and bedazzle my pregnant belly......
   My hair stylist and I are both pregnant! Due a week apart! We are both having girls as well! This is also both of our first times to be pregnant. We were talking about all this pregnancy stuff and then she was like what kind of music do you listen to...and I said oh you know..Britney....and she said me too.. do you ever think about that..how you are having a baby and you listen to music like that? I must admit I have thought about that a lot!
   I love reality TV...I mean..I am an avid Jersey Shore, Teen Mom, 16 & pregnant watcher. Sometimes I can't help but think I am still 21.
   Sometimes I wonder, will I be like the mom on mean girls?! "I'm not a regular mom, I'm a cool mom!" I don't plan to but sometimes I wonder is that what I act like?
   I'm grateful for a husband that understand me. One time I was slightly distressed about this situation and just wondering if I should act more 'my age' when he told me, you know what I love about you? That you are a responsible adult, a hard worker, you genuinely care about people, but that you will always be a little bit of my MTV girl. Ah. I love that man. I can't help the way I am.
   I do know that having a baby girl will change a lot but I hope that I can always tap into that 21 year old Summer :)
(ps sorry this was so so so so random!)

Nesting

  

     Today I began my nesting process! I think it is because this past week I felt Baby Girl kick for the first time :) It was such a surprise because I've been waiting, anticipating, and stressing out about it!!! Then after a long day of walking around and being busy I layed down in bed and felt a little poke below my belly button...then I felt another! It has been pretty sporadic since then but it was an amazing feeling :)

     Birds and pink are going to fill our little girls room. At hobby lobby I wanted everything and felt like I could not make one decision! I am grateful that I will have a mom, sister, best friend, and mom-in- law coming up to help me make those important decisions this summer!

Tornado

     Yesterday was a crazy day in my home state of Oklahoma. I am so grateful that all my family and friends are safe.
     It is so frustrating to be so far away from my family when horrible things are going on. The weather is not on any of my Ohio stations and I could not find anything online. It was just annoying.
     Normally I feel like we do not make a huge deal out of twisters but this year it seems like they have caused so much destruction.
     I love storms and crazy weather but when it begins to destroy lives it makes you have respect for mother nature.
    Today I am grateful for modern technology and the ability I had to check on all of my loved ones yesterday.

Musicals

     As Aaron heads to work on the night shift I often find myself watching all the shows I know he hates. The ones with drama, the ones that are 'reality', and the ones that sing!
     Today I have "Hello Dolly" playing. Now I do not necessarily love musicals but I for sure enjoy them. I think Disney did this to me. Growing up we would watch Disney movies every Sunday and consequently we would buy the soundtracks as well! Growing up I can remember jamming out to the "Beauty and The Beast" soundtrack while we cleaned the house. I may know every Disney song that is out there...jealous?
     I also believe that my sister Jennifer did this to me as well. This girl loves her some musicals. She used to watch 'Calamity Jane' religiously every night!
     Then I have this friend named Kara who loves musicals too! She introduced me to "Hello Dolly." She was in the play in high school and loves it! So now I love it too!
     This is a very random post I realize. But I am grateful that I grew up in a 'singing' house. One of my favorite parts of church is singing hymns. I love thinking about my mom and my sisters and I sitting together at church and singing.
     I'm glad I will soon have a little girl to sing with. :)

Saturday Morning

     Is there anything better than a Saturday morning of nothingness? Let me tell you about our Saturday morning.
     It started out pretty normal, me throwing up and Aaron asking me if I'm ok. It's pretty routine now and not even a big deal. I go lay on the couch and he goes back to bed. The dogs come and lay all over me and make sure I am ok. About an hour later at seven he gets up and announces he wants biscuits and gravy and is heading to the store! I feel really bad for waking him up so early in the morning when he is on night shift and it's a rare Saturday (or any day) he gets to sleep in. I do have a confession though, I love getting up early on Saturday when that is our only day to spend together. So I feel bad....but not really :)
      The biscuits and gravy were delicious but not quite as wonderful as spending a wonderful sun filled,warm, Ohio morning with my little family :)

More...Laundry :)

     I realize that I am again talking about laundry but....I'm still working on it today :) Don't Judge Me.
     But my post today isn't really about the laundry it's just a tiny reason I love my husband. He ALWAYS empties out his pockets before he throws his clothes into the hamper. This is one less thing I have to do during the laundry process. Also, I guess it is one less reason why it takes me so long to accomplish the simple act of washing and drying clothes.
     This picture may be my future child...pray for her.

Heat

      I know I talk about my dogs alot but until mid October they are my only babies :)
     This morning we went to the dog park for the first time in a long time! Cheyenne was so excited...well for about 15 minutes anyway. Both of the dogs were so hot and panting they were heading for the gate to leave way before I had planned!
     When we move back to Oklahoma these dogs are going to die if they think this weather is hot!

Laundry

     Sad but true. I will admit it- I am horrible at getting the laundry finished! I sort it, I wash it, I dry it, and then.....well it may sit in the laundry basket for quite sometime!
     I do not know why I am like this! It makes me crazy! All my clothes are wrinkled. I can never find what I want to wear. My poor husband has to wear mismatching socks.
     I need to realize that there will be a baby in this house soon and then there will be A LOT more laundry!

Momma

     I was reading a magazine article the other day and this lady said that she is not a 'Mom' she is a 'Momma' and I absolutely loved that! Maybe it's because that's what I call my momma :)
     So, my Momma is a pretty amazing woman. It is crazy to be pregnant and that my mom was pregnant with me... maybe it's my pregnancy brain but this is just amazing to me. When I think about how much my momma has sacrificed for me it shocks me. She is so selfless and giving of herself.  Not only is she a great momma but she is a great friend now!
     She listens to all of my crazy concerns. She laughs with me and cries with me.  This woman knew I was pregnant before I even told her. She just knew something was up.
     I am grateful for the woman that knows me better than I know myself.
     I love you Momma :)
     

Baby Girl!

     Wow! I can not believe I can finally call this baby, My Baby Girl! It is nice not to call her 'it'. :) Finding out what this Little Peach was was quite unconventional and pretty amazing.
     First of all you have to understand what it means to be a doctor's wife. People ooohhhh and aaahhhh over it but really it is not always as glamorous as it seems. Maybe to be married to a doctor and not a resident would be the ultimate goal. I still love this man and his silly ambitions. It is very often though that I repeat to him, "say it with me...dentist!" But even with the ups and downs it was quite awesome the way we found out. Aaron took me up to the hospital last night and scanned my belly and there she was, just hanging out movin' and a groovin'.
     How amazing is it that my husband was able to look and tell the gender of our baby?! It was just Aaron and I. No one else was there.
     That was quite an amazing moment.
     I already can not wait to meet this baby girl!

May!

     Wow! It has been almost a month since I have blogged anything! I am ashamed!

     So much has happened in our little world! First of all we took a trip to Viva Las Vegas and had a freakin' blast! Aaron had never been before and he really enjoyed it. We had perfect weather, wonderful company, and some fantastic food! We were lucky enough to be able to go and see two cirque shows while we were there Le Reve and Ka! They were breathtaking!

     We then stopped in Oklahoma where we got to see a lot of family for a very short amount of time! We saw some of our Arkansas family, our beautiful new niece, Alivia, and her parents. We got to spend time with Aaron's parents and mine and my sisters! Oh and a random little stop to see my Kara Bear! We had a great time but it was way way to short!

     This week I am 16 weeks along with this wonderful baby! The baby is the size of an avocado this week! Pregnancy has been...interesting! It is just all the unknown about pregnancy! Today I feel great but tomorrow you never know. Being pregnant is not what I thought it would be so far but not in a bad way. I thought it would be all, "I'm walking on sunshine..." but it is just different! I for sure have a lot more respect for my mom now. I can not believe I will be doing this at least a few more times! Even though it is hard and a little different every time I hear that beautiful strong heart beat it makes puking every morning completely worth it! I can not help but cry every time I hear it. Probably because I can not feel the baby and it just makes it so real!

     That is the update for the last month!

Baby Alivia

I am a little late in posting this but I became an Aunt on Monday, April 4th, 2011.

My first niece Alivia Nicole Armstrong is so adorable!!!

Congrats Brandon and Megan

You are going be beautiful parents.

The Wal-Mart Baby

    

February 22, 2011

     Well, if you are reading this then I guess we have made the big announcement on facebook that I am pregnant! It.Is.So.Weird! Let me just tell you the story of how we came to find out that I was pregnant.
     Aaron and I had been on vacation all week long and the week before I had been sick. Fever, cough, laid on the couch for three days kind of sick. Well Tuesday rolled around and I was feeling nauseous all day long. We had just finished seeing a movie and made a little trip to hobby lobby then we were like man we have not eaten dinner. But I was feeling sick. So I said, let's go to wal-mart and get a pregnancy test and if it's negative we'll go home because I'm sick BUT if it's positive let's go out to eat to celebrate.
     We walked into wal-mart bought the test and I went to the bathroom...yes IN WAL-MART! I took the test and walked out to see Aaron sitting on the bench waiting for me. I grabbed his hand and told him we needed to get to the car fast!!! We casually jogged to the car and I told him either I am playing a cruel joke or I am pregnant...which do you think it is?!
     Then I told him, it was positive! My eyes were as big as saucers! Seriously. We played the rest of the night off casually because I wanted to take another test in the morning.
     The movie, "Where the Heart is" is about this girl who lives and gives birth to her baby in Wal-Mart! I never thought that I would be finding out I would be having a baby in Wal-Mart!
     This is the strangest/most amazing feeling in the whole wide world. To think something may be growing inside of you and you not even know it.
     It was positive.

Heat.

     See this picture? This is what I looooooooooonnnnnnnngggg for! I long to lay in the sun. I long for the sun to boil my blood. I long for it to tan my pasty pasty white legs.
    I little tanning history. I used to hate to lay in the sun. I used to hate to walk around in my swimsuit. I have a dear friend named Erin that made me lay out in the sun with her. She gave me self confidence and a tan!
     Now I love to lay in the sun and tan!!!
     This picture was taken one summer when Kara and I were laying out. We did not want sunglasses tan lines so we came up with the superb idea to lay out with cucumbers on our eyes! It was a good idea.
     I miss the heat.

Eyebrows

     I LOVE Eyebrows.
Don't feel self conscience mine aren't always perfect either.
Eyebrows are the frame of the eye. They enhance one of our most fabulous qualities!
     When I watch movies I stare at their eyebrows. It's generally the first thing I notice about people.
     Back in the day...Jennifer and I order NAD's! This hair removal stuff that was all the rage! Well, Jennifer waxed off the tail of my eyebrows and they did not grow back until last year! It took them like ten years to grow back. I'm not bitter or anything :)
     Tonight at Young Women's we had a beauty night!!! And I waxed lots of girls eyebrows. I had so much fun and felt like I was in my element.
     My dream job? To shape eyebrows for the stars!

Jane Eyre

     I am so so so so excited for this movie to come out! I read the book a LONG time ago and I loved it! Well in preparation for this movie to come out I watched the BBC version.

                                                    

     This series follows closely to the book and I just wanted a refresher before the movie came out.

     What is it about escaping to a world long ago? Where women wore dress and sat in rooms all day long in a certain 'attitude' and learned things that would make them a respectable woman.

     I love to read and Jane Eyre is not an exception.

Mama Knows Best

     Today I talked to my mom on the phone for over an hour :) I am so grateful to have such an amazing mother who knows me better than anyone else. A woman who has loved me unconditionally no matter what!
     When I hear girls that do not get along with their moms it automatically makes me sad. My mom is so selfless and has given me so much.
     I look just like her (or so I've been told), sound just like her, and laugh like her.
     I love you mom.

Tumble!

     So, I have some friends that blog on Tumblr. I was really confused when I first saw it but I really like it now! It seems very very random...kinda like me!
     I think this is awesome because sometimes I do not have things to blog about. My life seems pretty simple and uneventful sometimes so I think finding beautiful pictures or things that describe me would be a fun thing to blog about!!!

I love Yo-Yo's! You see them everywhere right now and I made a Yo Yo heart t-shirt for Valentine's Day!

Birthday

     Today is Dr.Armstrong's birthday. We are doing nothing. I made him pancakes for breakfast and am in the process of making his favorite cake, Peanut Butter! I'm pretty sure his mom has made this cake for him for his birthday forever. I feel slightly intimidated to make it!
     I think traditions are so interesting. In my family when it is your birthday you are the Queen Bee for the day. You do not have to do anything and you get to boss people around. It's super fun. In college my birthday usually fell on Homecoming Weekend. Confession I usually pretended all of these festivities were for me. Because it was my birthday :)
     Birthday's come down to one thing; having someone who loves you with you.
     Happy Birthday Baby.

Vacation

     This week Aaron and I have been on vacation! It has been fabulous! We have slept in (most important), bought a new mattress, cooked, caught up on Bones, put up some wedding pictures, and Aaron has built a few things.
     Yesterday, Aaron took me to the Gorge Metro Park (see picture above). We took the dogs and had a great time! It was beautiful! We went down to where they have a dam and it was crazy to see the water roaring so quickly.
     Tomorrow we are going to go and visit our Amish "friends" and do some Amish shopping.
     This has been such a nice and relaxing vacation. I missed seeing my family but it was nice to not have to pack a bag and fly! Aaron and I have been able to just enjoy each other.
I love Staycations.

Maci Marie

Yesterday, Erin and Brian Dickison welcomed their first baby into their family.

     Little Maci Marie

Congratulations Brian and Erin! You will be amazing parents!

I can not wait to meet her :)

Sick

     Let me start off by saying I hardly ever get sick. This year on the contrary I feel like I am sick every other week!!!
     I may have had the smallest little break down tonight and I may have sobbed just a little bit and I also may have freaked Aaron out a little bit. He was like are crying because your sick or....because of other reasons? Poor Guy. He made me a grilled cheese sandwich and covered me with extra blankets and left for work.
     As I was saying, I never get sick. I have the occasional sickness just like anyone but here I feel like I am always battling some head cold. Just throwing a little pity party for myself and warning everyone to stay away from me.
     Oh, Ohio...please do not tell me you are making me sick because I really want us to be friends for the next three years!

Is that the sun?

     This morning I woke up and walked outside and was like, "woah! What is that!!!" It was the sun. Not only was it the sun but it was not below thirty degrees and the wind was not blowing. It was beautiful and amazing!
     Since living in Ohio I have added a few weather terms to my vocabulary.
1. Blustery-BBBRRRRRR! When Aaron and I first saw this on the weather channel and heard intelligent people saying it we simply mocked them. Blustery? What does that even mean? You obviously only know when you live in places like Ohio.
2. Balmy- Balmy is my new favorite word! It simply means mild and refreshing. It almost feels like it is a little humid outside. It was balmy and sunny today!
     So far the winter has not bothered me yet but I do enjoy days like this where the 'sunshine is scattered all along the way.'

Young Women

     At church I recently got a new calling. I get to serve in the Young Women's program! I am the second counselor in the presidency which means I get to work with girls age 12 & 13.
     Let's just say I had some nervous excitement going on! I love kids and have worked with kids for awhile now but.....only until they are about five years old! So I was just way out of my comfort zone!
     Well, last night we had New Beginnings where we introduce the new girls to the program. It went so well! I was nervous but now I am feeling much more confident. I am working with such amazing women and my girls...they are so sweet!
     In all my years as a Mormon girl I do not think I have ever had a calling that I have been so nervous about! I called my mom after New Beginnings last night and she said, I hear some nervous excitement in your voice, I think you have met a calling that is really going to challenge you and you are going to love.
     I am so grateful for this opportunity to serve these girls and our Heavenly Father. :)

STAY!!!

     Last night a small milestone in the Armstrong Family happened! We were taking our nightly walk with the dogs and we let Cheyenne off her leash so she could play in the snow a little bit. Well she stopped in the driveway where I make her 'stay' before I let her off her leash so she can dart to the back. So, we were walking in and she stopped on the exact spot and did not move until I said 'Go!'
     Before we became roomies all Cheyenne could do was sit. (Good Job Aaron!) This past summer Cheyenne and I spent a lot of time at the dog park. I taught her how to fetch and how to fetch balls out of the water! Now she can stay too!
     I am the dog whisperer.

Homemaking Matters

     I'm a crafty person. I like to pull out my hot glue gun and go crazy! That's the problem though. I have to use a glue gun!
     My dear friend Kara talked about on her blog how she wished she could make yo-yo's and how she wished she would have listened to her grandma.
     I wish I knew how to sew! At the beginning of the summer I was determined to sew me some curtains!......I bought some yesterday. Disappointed. Aaron also makes little comments here and there about how he wished someone would sew his pants up for him.
     I feel like sewing is such a lost art! We have disappointed our grandmother's generation!  As a crafty person I just think that I could do so much if I knew how to sew.
     Well, tomorrow I am pulling out that sewing machine and I am going to take it slow. I'm going to remember it is a skill. I will remember what my mom always told me, "Practice makes perfect."
    Another goal for the year: learn how to sew.

Sleeping In

     Remember when you were in High School and you could sleep and sleep and sleep and sleep? Remember when you would hear 'old' people talk about how they could not sleep in anymore?
     I am that old person. If I sleep past eight on a Saturday I wake up rejoicing! I woke up at nine this morning! Nine!!! I did not have to be at work until 11:30 (then I got the call that I did not have to come in at all)!
     I am always jealous of the babies at work that fall asleep while they are eating lunch. They then take two hour naps. Jealous. Then they go home and fall asleep at like eight! I bet those babies rarely sleep in though!
     Thank you snow storm for allowing me to sleep in today. Thank you snow storm for letting me stay home all day long.

Friends

     When I think of the word "Friend" a lot of things pop into my head.
1. The theme song from Rob & Big, "Let me tell you about my best friend..."
2. The theme song from Friends, "I'll be there for you 'cause your there for me too.."
3. My favorite image is this part from Harry Potter 7 (yes..I love harry Potter) where Harry, Ron, and Hermione go to Luna's house and she has painted all their portraits on her ceiling and she has written the word "friends~friends~friends" all around the group!
     Yesterday, I had a root canal and one of my new friends, Tiffany, came over and brought me some snickerdoodle cookies! It truly made my day and made me feel so loved!
     I was so scared when we first moved to Ohio. I worried I would not make any friends. That I would be all alone and worst of all lonely. Seven monthes in and I can say that I rarely get that deep down ache for the people I love back in Oklahoma. I mean I still miss them a ton!!! But facebook, cell phones, and airplanes have made this separation much easier.
     There is a reason that I do not feel that ache anymore and it's because I have friends! Real and true wonderful women that are sweet and kind to me.
     Yesterday, my friend Tiffany brought me snickerdoodle cookies because I had a root canal. That's a friend.
     As I was thinking about all my friends I realized there were so so many! I am so blessed to have so many true friends! College gave me an education and fabulous friends. Starting with my first true friend, Erin Dickison.
     One of my favorite friend memories is my bridal shower in Stillwater. I have the picture up in my 'getting ready' room. I had so many wonderful women there who I loved and loved me.
     I love all of my friends past, present, and future.