Is It Really Happening?

It’s been over a year since my last post. For the most part, I never feel like I have much to write about. Maybe the point is to just write even when you don’t feel like you have anything worthy to write about. This time, I do have something to write about. And it’s good.

Saturday is December 15th, 2012. It’s a day that, at times, I thought would never get here. It was just a tease, a piece of meat being dangled in front of a dog, yet constantly pulled out of reach by a piece of string. Graduation. IT. IS. HERE.

Kyle and I celebrated 4 wonderful years of marriage on November 28th. 4 years ago, I could not have imagined what life had in store. I knew my husband was in school and the ultimate goal was to get into law school. Get in… that seems like a lifetime ago, yet it isn’t.

Nov. 28th 2008 was the most incredible day. It’s a day I will always cherish. The greatest decision I ever made was to marry the right person, in the right place, and by the right authority. Knowing that I am sealed to the love of my life gives me the greatest sense of peace and true happiness and the blessings that have come from that decision have been amazing. 

Less than 24 hours later on Nov. 29th 2008 at around 7:00a.m., Kyle willingly got up early and went to the nearest Walgreens to get some medicine for his new sick wife. 2 days after that, we returned to real life. Within a month of getting married, the job that provided at least half of our income ended. My health rapidly declined and Kyle was left with a new, sick, bride. We saw doctor after doctor after doctor and had test after test after test done. Never once did he appear frustrated, annoyed, burdened. He was full of compassion and love. He didn’t complain on the days when I couldn’t get out of bed to clean the apartment or to make him dinner. Instead he would come home with a smile on his face, give me a kiss hello, throw a load of laundry in the wash and head to the kitchen to cook dinner. Then there was the occasional night where he held me tight as I cried in his arms, frustrated at my health and feeling like a failed wife. I felt like a failure that I couldn’t clean and cook. His response was always “It’s not just your responsibility to clean and have a hot meal ready, it’s a responsibility we share” He certainly did his fair share, probably enough to last him the rest of eternity. However, to this day, he is so willing to help me clean the entire house and then cook dinner. That 1st year saw many health frustrations, a job loss, a job gain, another job loss, the passing of my incredible Grandma, lot’s of schoolwork, softball games, new church callings, and lots of learning how to live with a spouse. What a year it was.  A year after we got married, Kyle’s school load got even heavier and we made the crazy decision to have him quit his job so he could focus on his schooling. It was truly a leap of faith but I wouldn’t change it for the world. It was a faith building experience that forced us to budget and lean on one another and on the Lord. That 2nd year, Kyle took the LSAT and we started the tough, long process of applying for law schools and choosing the right one for us. We prayed, we researched, we prayed some more and finally decided on Phoenix School of Law. There were many who cautioned against it. There were many who felt it was their responsibility to tell us we were wrong in our decision. What those people didn’t understand was the praying that went into our decision and no one could tell us that our decision was wrong except the Lord. We didn’t go into this blind. We knew the economy was bad, we knew it was a new school with new accreditation, we knew it was expensive, we knew it could be tough to find a job once he was done, and we knew we would be paying a mortgage payment back in student loans. We talked to people, did the math, and most importantly prayed. I am always so grateful for the ability to pray to our Heavenly Father and receive guidance. We know that PSL was the correct choice for us. Kyle found a great group of guys who became good friends and even better study buddies. They took the same classes, they all made the decision to push through winter intercession courses and summer school so that they could graduate early, they are a wonderful support system for each other. I am grateful he had that opportunity with them and I hope those friendships continue.

For 2 1/2 years, Kyle has been in school constantly. He has done full semesters for both fall and spring, winter intercession classes, summer school classes, 2 internships, and lots of volunteer work. He has worked incredibly hard. I couldn’t be more proud. Many people have expressed how quickly his time in Law School has gone and looking back, I suppose they are right but there were days that graduation seemed so far away. There were days that the light at the end of the tunnel wasn’t so bright. It sure looks bright now! Saturday I will watch my best friend walk across the stage in his fancy cap and gown and receive his diploma. Yes, I’ve seen this before. The cap and gown weren’t fancy but the degree was still important, one that he worked hard for. But this is LAW SCHOOL. This is a HUGE accomplishment and the very last step before taking the Bar Exam. Saturday I will be surrounded by family. Those that have gone through this journey with us and recognize how important this is to both of us. For their support, I am so grateful. There are undoubtedly many who will not be able to join with us on Saturday, for many reasons, that have been so supportive and wonderful cheerleaders and their support means the world to us.
I look forward to the tears of joy that I’m sure will come as I see Kyle switch that tassel to the other side. I look forward to starting the next chapter of our lives. The one that doesn’t involve extremely long school days and sleep deprived nights as he studies for finals. The next chapter is full of possibilities. The next chapter will be wonderful.

The DIY Blog

I promise to do a real post soon guys so just hang in there. Right now, I just want to tell you all about my new awesome blog. I teamed up with 2 other incredible women and started a DIY blog. It is called Our DIY Diaries. We would really appreciate your support. Please follow us on the blog and share us with your friends. We are also on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.


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Not just updates anymore

For the last couple months, I have been having some bizarre dreams. Those, along with real life events have lead me into some serious contemplation. Unfortunately, these aren't just thoughts that come and go, they are extremely persistent. So much so, that I have had issues getting to sleep because of the thoughts racing inside my head. Because these thoughts refuse to go away, it leads me to believe that either I have some things to work on in my life, although don't we all, or that I need to finally write them down so they can leave my thoughts, or at least leave long enough to allow me to get to sleep faster.

Keeping a journal for me is a big fat FAIL! As many times as I have tried to write regularly, I find that there ends up being long 4-8 month gaps in between each entry. I am not a whole lot better at keeping up blogs, but the gaps are at least a little shorter than 4-8 months.

Long story short, in an effort to "put thoughts down on paper" I am going to start using this blog, not only for updates on our lives, but to share some of my thoughts. Feel free to read if you wish and I certainly welcome any comments or input.

School+Work+Moving=UGH!

Actually it equals stress and the desire to pull ones hair out. Kyle started back to school last week, I can't believe he is already a 2L, and if all goes according to plan, he only has 3 semesters left before he graduates. Yippee! I have stayed busy with work both at the law firm and the graphic design. Those things alone keep us busy, let alone adding additional health problems and moving.

We are moving into a house on September 1st (or that weekend pretty much) I am so excited to be done with apartment life and the hassle it brings but nervous as well. With an apartment, you have the comfort of maintenance and the office staff (however incompetent they are) just a short walk away. Even though we are renting the house, we are still taking on so much more than we have had in an apartment. It will be so nice though not having an 80lb elephant stomping around above us, or neighbors below who like to fight and make up, both loud enough to wake you up at 3 a.m., not having someone constantly parking in our covered spot, or blocking it with a U-Haul. Best of all is we will finally be done with the idiots that run this place!

On to bigger and better things and the new adventures our life brings!

Family Fun Night!

A few months ago, Kyle's family started having Family Fun Night. Once a month, the whole family gets together to enjoy time together. We take turns planning the events.

April was our first month in which we got together for dinner and volleyball (sorry no pictures).

Last month we took a camping trip.

The camping trip turned out to be quite the experience for Kyle and I. We had borrowed the tent and air mattress from my parents. Once we arrived at the campsite, we took the tent out of its box and laid it out in the spot we wanted to set up at. We then discovered that the poles to put the tent up had not been returned to the box the last time the tent was used (probably more than 5 years ago) Fortunately, Bryan and Brittany had a 10 person tent and offered to let us room with them along with Courtney and Chase. In the late afternoon, Kyle went and aired up the air mattress inside the tent. A few hours later when it was time to go to bed, we come to the cruel realization that the air mattress has a leak in it, oh and we didn't clear the land before hand, after all we had an air mattress. Needless to say, despite the fun time we had with the family, we were glad it was only for one night.

This month was our turn to plan family fun night and we decided to take advantage of our apartment pool. I have to say, I think it turned out quite well. We didn't get to use the huge pool at the front of the complex...dang college parties. However, we used the one closest to our apartment and had great views of the lake and the golf course and had the whole pool to ourselves.

It was sure fun watching the kiddos. Some knew how to swim, others were learning and others had their first experience in the pool :)

A New Adventure

I have been so blessed to have my own little business and I love love LOVE every minute of doing my graphic design work. However, since setting up my online store, my business no longer requires as much of my attention. I have been going crazy at home. After all, there is only so much cleaning, dishes, and laundry that needs to be done. I decided that since my health has been increasingly better, it was time to get out of the house and find a new adventure. I started applying for some jobs and was offered 3. 1 was for a Marketing/Administrative Manager, another was a Member Services Rep at a Credit Union and last was a Legal Assistant. Can you guess which one chose?

After a lot of thought, prayer, and discussion, Kyle and I decided that the best option was to take the Legal Assistant position. I started about a month ago and I LOVE it. It was absolutely the right decision. I work for a great LDS attorney in a very laid back firm. I have already learned so much which is exactly what I was wanting. I love that I get to learn some of the same things Kyle is learning in school. The skills I am already learning and will continue to learn will come in so handy when editing Kyle's papers, not to mention help in understanding more than half the things Kyle says haha. The attorney I work for as well as the other two attorneys in the office are so interested in how Kyle is doing in school, they constantly ask questions and offer advice and are willing to sit down and talk or answer any questions he might have.

I work Monday-Wednesday 8-4 which I think is a great part time schedule. Who can argue with a 4 day weekend? I am so blessed to have 2 jobs that I LOVE and am looking forward to learning even more in this new job.

Kyle also has a new adventure. Besides for summer school he is now volunteering at the Community Legal Services in downtown Mesa on Tuesday and Thursdays. Hopefully this turns out to be a good experience for him.

School is out...ok maybe not completely

Kyle finished his first year of law school and is officially a 2nd year law student....that means another year closer to being done! He has worked so hard and I could not be more proud.

Finals were beyond stressful for him and were only at times stressful for me, like when I am helping edit his 12 page paper at the very last minute and telling him "you have 1 minute left before you have to upload your paper!" Yes I had to watch the clock very carefully as he frantically tried to decrease the word count of his paper before the 6:00 deadline.

He was very blessed to find a great group of guys to be apart of a study group from the very beginning and I am so thankful for that. As a group, they decided to take a summer class so they could help each other through it. They are taking Evidence which is Tuesday and Thursday nights from 5p.m.-9p.m. for the next 7 weeks. At first I really didn't think much of it, after all its only Tuesday and Thursday nights right? WRONG! I am glad it will only last 7 more weeks because I do not enjoy him being gone until 10 (by the time he gets home)

We have been discussing whether or not Kyle should take a couple intersession courses and graduate early thats my vote :) It would not allow as many breaks from school but it would mean that he would graduate in December of 2012 instead of May 2013 which also means taking the Arizona State Bar in February instead of June.

I would like to think we took advantage of Kyle being out of school for a couple weeks, but really I think we were mostly just lazy and enjoyed our time together. I know Kyle enjoyed not having to read 20+ cases a week.