Happy Halloween 2013

I was on a roll with posts, but its been a REALLY busy 2 weeks.

I started my new job with Ritz Carlton and LOVE IT!!!

Ritzy hotels and awesome people!

Not to mention the travel perks

Plus we have been doing finishing up our townhome for our renters, who moved in today!

I love Halloween. A Lot

I love decorating my house.

I love dressing up in costumes. especially when it comes to my dogs.

I even love carving pumpkins, minus the allergic reactions. 

I love the fall and all that it brings.

This year was lame. 

First of all, I had to work till 7 pm and Jeff had to GO to work at 7 pm.

We did NOT carve pumpkins for the first time, since we started dating 9 years ago!

I have NOT decorated my house at all, other than getting the boxes out.

I did, however, dress up my dogs

well at least Bailee... {Bailee destroyed Oakley's headless horseman costume the night before}

I did get a huge dose of Halloween at work
My coworkers are hilarious and so clever
We had some really elaborate costumes
my boss came in a Theater quality Marie Antoniette costume, sorry failed on a picture

Animal Themed... Zoo Keeper and all his animals

Hee Love her!, Really bad pictures off of my phone. but you still get the idea

Paint = Ruined Clothing

Part of getting ready for our renters to move in we needed to do a little painting

We wanted to cover some dings and nail holes

We also had some damage from the previous owners we never got around to fixing

We also had a hole in the wall that was made worse by Oakley

Part of owning a dog I guess

Generally, pretty easy fix and nothing to major

I thought I could just carry a little paint drip pan around with me and fix the spots that needed fixing

Easier said than done

Within the first couple strokes the plastic drip pan bent 

The ENTIRE thing of paint dripped down my sweatshirt, my new leggings, and onto my favorite pair of Toms

{They don't make my Toms anymore}

Heartbroken and covered in wet paint I just thought I'd ruined my entire outfit

Well thanks to the magic of the internet I decided to research how to remove dry latex paint from clothing

Multiple different sites suggest a variety of things

The only one I had experience using to remove stains, like pen ink, was rubbing alcohol

I thought I'd test out this method and share the results.

Major paint spill right? This is a week and a wash/dry later

STEP #1

Soak paint stained area in small bowl of rubbing alcohol

Wait 10 minutes

STEP #2

Use a little elbow grease 

Rub with cleaning rag {one you don't care if the stain transfers to}

Keep scrubbing until you see the stain disappearing

Side note: You might have to add a little more rubbing alcohol through the process

STEP #3

Rinse thoroughly with warm water

{rubbing alcohol is FLAMMABLE and needs to be out of your clothing before washing}

STEP #4

Wash your clothing as directed on the label



Before actually washing. Surprising right?

STEP #5

Enjoy your clothes again!

Side Note: It worked the best on my black pants, my white shoes it was an improvement, but didn't fix it completely. It could have been, because I didn't try to fix it until a week later so the stain REALLY set in. The quicker you act on ANY stain the better. Rubbing alcohol is also great at removing pen ink, but make sure you blot the stain DO NOT rub or it will just spread like wildfire.

Making Dreams Come True: Our Bucket List

"The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss, but that it is too low and we reach it." ~ Michelangelo Buonarroti

Our life is ours to live and we intend to live it to the fullest. We are always talking about things we would like to do in our lifetime and places we want to go. I personally LOVE to make lists so why not make a list of our dreams and turn words into actions. In a Forbes article it outlines ways to achieve any goal; step one: write it down, step two: look it often, step three: tell people. Here you go, in no particular order. Some of these are individual goals, but we plan to do them together. Some of them I'm adding that were on my bucket list before

1. Own a dog Completed August 2011
2. Fall in love Completed Summer 2005
3. Get married to best friend Completed August 2011
4. Move away for college Completed August 2008
5. Buy first car all on own Completed in 2008
6. Buy first home Completed June 2011
7. Own a Lovesac sactional Completed September 2013
8. Stay in Presidential Suite of fancy Hotel Completed Summer 2010? Again on honeymoon
9. Kiss on the beach Completed June 2012
10. Learn to Surf {Completed by Katie in Hawaii October 2003}
11. Become parents
12. Cook a Thanksgiving Dinner all by myself Completed Thanksgiving 2011
13. Experience Christmas in New York {Katie)
14. Spend all day and night on the beach, bonfire included
15. Volunteer in Africa
16. See the Northern Lights
    
17. Change someones life for the better
18. Play "messy" twister, keyword paint
19. Go on a cruise
20. Learn to drive manual {Katie}
21. Get a puppy for Christmas, like on Lady and the Tramp Completed Christmas 2012
22. Swim in every ocean
23. Become fluent in ASL {Katie}
24. Become fluent in another language {Katie: Italian, Jeff: Spanish}
25. Visit Dubai 
26. Own a horse
27. Ride a mechanical bull
28. Plant a tree from a seed and watch it grow
    
29. Milk a cow
30. Go hang gliding {Mostly Jeff}
31. Go bungee jumping {Mostly Jeff}
32. Go skiing in Aspen, Colorado
33. Swim with dolphins {Completed by Katie in Hawaii October 2003}
34. Have a 50th wedding anniversary and many more
35. Run in the Color Run
36. Run a half marathon
37. Ride an elephant
38. Pet and hold a baby tiger
39. Go scuba diving {Jeff has a GIANT list of places}
    
40. Ride in a helicopter
41. Visit all 50 states, airports do not count
42. Ride in a hot air balloon
43. Visit the pyramids in Egypt
44. Graduate from College
45. Go skydiving {Mainly Jeff's, Katie's have the guts to go}
46. Stand on every continent 
47. Go white water rafting {Completed by Jeff as a kid}
48. Go to the floating lantern festival {Katie}
49. Walk the Great Wall of China
50. Attend the Olympics Completed at the 2002 Winter Olympics
51. Attach a lock to Love Bridge
52. Watch the ball drop in Times Square
53. Cut down own Christmas tree
54. Go to Mardi Gras
55. Go paintballing {Katie, Jeff has many times}
    
56. Go on vacation with no plans, show up at airport and take next flight
57. Spend the night in an aquarium
58. Build a piece of furniture from scratch {Katie}
59. Adopt a baby
60. Be paid to blog
61. See a show on Broadway {Katie}
62. Learn to play a musical instrument
63. Throw a dart at a map and travel to wherever it lands
64. Put a piece of gum on the gum wall in Seattle
    
65. Stand on the Chicago Ledge in the Sears Tower
66. Stay in over the water hotel in Bora Bora, the one on Couples Retreat
67. Go on a safari
68. Carve something on a tree together
69. Jump off a waterfall
70. See the frozen waves in Antarctica
71. Send a message in a bottle
72. See an Ohio State football game {Katie}
73. Visit Greece
74. Kiss at the top of the Empire State Building
75. Kiss at the top of the Eiffel Tower
76. Take a gondola in Venice
77. Make a wish in the Trivi Fountain
78. Visit Vatican City
79. Visit Ireland
80. Visit London
81. Visit Rome
82. Put a letter on Juliet's Wall {Katie}
    
83. Go zorbing 
84. Ride a segway
85. Go Para sailing 
86. Watch sea turtles hatch
87. Participate in the polar bear plunge
88. Ice skate in Central Park
89. Donate bone marrow and save a life
90. Visit the four corners
91. Be part of a flash mob {Katie}
92. Spend the night in an igloo 
93. Stay at the ice hotel
94. Go whale watching {Completed by Jeff in August 2008, Alaska}
95. Go cage diving with Great whites {Jeff, he is nuts}
    
96. See all the 7 wonders of the world
97. Go to the Galapagos Islands
98. Ride in a submarine
99. Cook every single thing in a cookbook
100. Be an extra in a movie
101. "Hold up" the Leaning Tower of Pisa
102. Own something from Tiffany and Co
103. Experience zero gravity
104. Visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter
105. Climb the steps of the Mayan Ruins
106. See a meteor shower
107. Go to every Disney Land/World
     
108. Swim with manta rays
109. Ride a camel 
110. Become a teacher {Katie}
111. Become a police officer {Jeff}
112. Swim with beluga whales
113. Do everything on my bucket list

That's all I want to think of right now. I will add on as I go and update with all our adventures. Do you have any bucket list items? Any Suggestions? Let me know, I am always up for new ideas. 

My Little Raccoon Puppy

If you are a friend on Facebook you have probably heard part of this story.

A couple days ago we were watching TV when I looked over at our little dog, Bailee, and noticed something odd.



This is her cute little face normally. I love this pup!

It looked like she had been punched in the left eye.

All around her eye was swollen and you could really see her white skin under her black fur

I thought maybe she had something in her eye and had Jeff take a look.

We couldn't see anything and decided just to watch her

After a couple hours we realized both eyes were getting swollen and the left one was a lot worse

This was when I first noticed both eyes were swollen.

Jeff kept calling her his little raccoon puppy. Poor dog.

She was acting her normal hyper self.

We even went to the park and played fetch until they were both worn out.

Before we left Jeff gave her a Benadryl

We were used to doing this, since Oakley has major skin allergies in the Spring

A couple hours went by and it seemed like it was getting even worse

So I took to the internet to look at different causes and asked our dog friends for advice

I called the vet to get advice and see if they were still open she was turning off the phones as I called

She told me just to keep on the Benadryl to make it through the night and then if needed come in the morning

Around this time Jeff found the remnants of the first Benadryl on the kitchen floor, little stink

We gave her another Benadryl, making sure she actually ate it

You can tell it was getting worse and looked like fluid around the eye.
{Sorry bad picture, these were taken with my phone and she wiggles a lot}



 I was really worried, because I couldn't think of anything that she could have come in contact with out of the ordinary.

I started wondering if one of the other dogs in our community gave her something

Needless to say I treat my dogs like my babies and I was freaking out. Google didn't help either

We bought some eye drops for her and hoped that she'd get better

Though I couldn't tell if the Benadryl was helping at all

We went to bed and hoped for the best.

Throughout the night Bailee threw up a couple times.

Which is not something she has ever done

Her swelling had gone down and by morning it was almost completely gone.

Throughout the next day she acted normal, except she threw up about 3-4 times

She still was eating, drinking, and playing like normal

Vet's advice to fast for 12 hours and then for the following 12 hours only give small amounts of rice and boiled chicken.

We also continued the Benadryl for the next 24 hours to prevent any other complications.

Probable Diagnosis: bug bite or allergic reaction

Since we hadn't given her anything new or changed anything in our home I believe a bug bite

Since we moved back to Bountiful I have been traumatized by spiders

 I am terrified of them and they are everywhere. We see big ones at least every other day

Bountiful equals the land of the Spiders

I believe that my sweet little dog has now been attacked by one of these spiders.

Happy to have my little dog back to normal!

Baby Fever

In Utah its no secret we get married young and have babies quickly there after. 

I have friends who are pregnant with or just had their third baby!!!

We are the odd ones out with no babies. Except of course our two fur babies.

My fur babies are pretty cute though

Ever since we got married it seems babies are everywhere

The last couple months even more so

I am so happy for all my friends and family who are pregnant or new parents.

You are all making me want a baby, especially since the birth of our adorable niece Avery

We wish she wasn't on the other side of the globe! We are dying to meet her

Plus we want to wish our handsome nephew Dominic happy 2nd birthday!!!

We wish we could have been there and we miss you terribly!

Isn't she adorable? I can't believe how much Dominic has grown up!

Only a handful of people know that at the beginning of this year Jeff and I were trying to conceive

Obviously, nothing happened so NO we are not pregnant.... keep reading
We knew that it would take some time to get pregnant, I was diagnosed with PCOS back in 2007
We weren't in a big rush and just followed my doctor's advice

However, life intervened
We had so many changes and new challenges that we decided to put it on hold.
I will be the first to admit that it was a really hard decision.
I really wanted to start our family, I still do

We decided it was not the right time after all

We realized we have dreams we want to accomplish before we bring children into the picture

We want to travel and to see the world 

not exactly easy to do with a child on your hip

We want Jeff to be hired on with one of the police agencies

Babies are expensive

I want to be the healthiest in all aspects of my life I can be
I still have to have that dreaded surgery, after all
We will wait at least a year and maybe two years before we add any more members to our family.

Babies will change our lives and we really cannot wait to be parents someday

In the mean time I will stifle my baby fever with visiting everyone else's adorable babies.

The Catch Up Part III: The Big Move



One of many trips on Frontrunner

Good-bye Utah County! Hello Davis County!

That's right we moved!

For the last 6 months or so we had just kinda thrown the idea around to move.

It was something that we would say "oh, six months from now," or "down the road"

This September we decided that the time had finally come.

Between school, my injury, Jeff starting the police academy, and life intervening

Jeff was looking at traveling up to 4 hours a day. Not exactly practical

Its funny how when you make the decision how everything escalates so quickly

It seemed like we started packing stuff up, looking for a place to live, and actually moving in just a couple weeks time

Its amazing how things fall into place when something is right. 

I'm someone who worries. That's an understatement 

I stay up late going over possible outcomes and debating on the right thing to do.

I break down plans and make to do lists. over and over

I lived on the Internet looking for places to live and tips to selling your house.

It's been an exhausting month to say the least.



Our home for the last 2 1/2 years!

When we decided to move we were planning on selling our house.

We talked to a realtor and had her go through our house telling us what to fix and what will up our sale price. 

We started fixing repairs that we had delayed doing while we lived there.

Our family has been such a HUGE help and we appreciate it sooo much!

My mom was there every day she could helping clean and paint. 

All while she has had pneumonia!  

Jeff's family has helped with repairs and painting, which included painting an entire room that was yellow

My dad helped fix the carpet and fix some baseboards that needed to be replaced.

Throughout this whole process Jeff and I have been excited to move back to our home town.

But there was just an uneasy feeling about selling our house.

I think at first we both really ignored it, I mean its easy to do when you are super busy every minute

We prayed about it and I spent my late nights thinking  obsessing about it

The promptings were always there and just got louder the closer we got to officially putting our house on the market.

We talked it over and decided that maybe selling wasn't the right direction for us. 

When we first bought our home we knew we wouldn't live there forever.

We had talked over the years about someday renting out our home since its such an amazing location

So we decided to become LANDLORDS!!! 

Cue the scary music

Its amazing how much better and less stressed I felt after paying attention to those little "nudges" 

I know more than ever that we made the right decision and that Heavenly Father really brought that peace.

Happy to be able to sleep a good nights sleep again. 

 

The instant we made that decision EVERYTHING fell into place

We found a cute family to rent our home that had lived in our community a year before

We have had great advice from friends and family who have experience with having rental property

We have done tons of research and read books for advice.

We are ready to take this head on and start this new adventure!

We are loving being back and being so close to friends and family

Oakley didn't like it at first and seemed a little homesick, but has adjusted well

Bailee on the other hand took to the new place like she owned the place.

I can't tell you how much we have hated despised making the hour drive down here all the time

Jeff went back to working at his old job and is loving being back with all his favorite patients

I still will keep substituting, but not for all the school districts and just for schools in Salt Lake

However, I did get a NEW job working for Ritz Carlton!

We are excited for these new adventures and changes. 

I am personally happy things are settling down a bit though

Just in time for the holidays!

You will be Missed Grandpa

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal"- unknown

My sweet grandfather, Ray Moosman, passed away last week.  He was such an example to everyone in our family and for anyone who met him. He was the hardest working man I have ever met and taught that to all his children and grandchildren. He was witty and loved to laugh and joke around. He was stubborn and had a firecracker personality. Most of all his was the most generous and charitable man.

He played such a big part in my life and always supported me. Even with a huge, busy family he always made time to call me and check on how I was doing in school and life in general. He always made sure to tell me that he was proud of my accomplishments and wanted me to succeed in college. He knew money was tight for my mom and that my scholarships only went so far. He sent me $100 every month like clockwork from the time I started college. It made all the difference in the world to me.

When I was little he would make sure to pick me up every Christmas so I could attend the Moosman Christmas party. It was a tradition I loved and was always entertaining. I remember when I was maybe 12 or 13 he came to pick me up and when I was getting ready to get into the backseat of the car he had hid a plastic snake on the back seat to scare me. Trust me it did, I'm terrified of snakes. As I screamed he just laughed, which then made me laugh. The car ride to the party was always entertaining too. Every year, without fail, Grandpa and Grandma Shirley would bicker about how to drive the entire way. "Ray, turn your turn signal on. Ray, get in the other lane." or vice versa depending on who was driving.  This would probably drive most people crazy, but it was more entertaining than anything. He drove a taxicab for years to support his family, he drove up to the age of 82. About a year or so ago my mom was driving down the freeway and was behind a taxi car that was driving maybe 10 miles under the speed limit. Annoyed she got into the next lane to pass the car, she happened to glance over at the driver there was Grandpa, cowboy hat and all, just chatting away with the passenger in the back. I hope his passenger wasn't in too much of a hurry.

Another memory that makes me smile was at this past year's Christmas party, every year we have Santa come and bring gifts to all the kids. Santa pulls gifts from behind the tree and you have to come and sit on his lap, no matter how old you are. (You only get out of it once you're married.) Well Santa had pulled out a couple of the gifts, which were gladly taken by the little ones. Then he pulls out a present and reads off the name, "Grandpa" and with little enticing on Santa's knee sat Grandpa. Laughter, snapping cameras and phones filled the room. He was always up for a good laugh. He loved Christmas. Its the time our big family all gets together, catches up, and has a good time. Grandpa made sure that every year he had a Christmas present for all the grand kids (and there is a lot of us) when we were little he would get us all matching pjs (which over the years changed to just pjs) and then when we reached a certain age he would give us money. It was always a highlight of the Christmas party, especially for the teenagers. Mostly it was just a way he showed his love for us. He'd have given anyone in our family his last dollar if he knew they needed it. This Christmas will be a hard one for all of us not having him there. 

Anyone who met Grandpa and spent more than 10 minutes with him, you would know his passion in life was the horses. I don't think I ever had a conversation with him that didn't involve the horses. At his home he has pictures of  all the "greats" they had owned and I remember sitting in the living room a couple years ago and he would bring out different pictures and tell about each one. I probably sat there a good hour and a half listening to him reminisce. Honestly, it was one of the best conversations I had with him not because I was really interested in the horses, but because his passion and the stories of the past was so strong. He told me about growing up with horses and how he got into the horse business. Even though my grandpa had been really sick the last couple months he couldn't wait till he could be back with the horses. He was worried he'd still be in the hospital when their was a horse race on the weekend.

His passion is something that he passed on to everyone in the family. He taught us to work hard and be passionate about the things we love and that family will always be there. I still cannot believe that he is gone. I don't know what we will do without him and a void has been left in our hearts. His funeral was a great time to remember him and talk about all the great times we had. As hard as it was to say goodbye we know he isn't sick and in pain anymore. He is with my uncle Gary, his two daughters that died at birth, and cousin Cody now. I know he is watching over our family and sending his love. I know that his spirit will always be the strongest with the horses and the races. 

"When a loved one becomes a memory, that memory becomes a wonderful treasure to hold in your heart forever."

I love you Grandpa and miss you so much. 

Allison's & Pauls Beautiful Wedding

What is better than a beautiful, outdoor wedding in the summertime?

How about if its your gorgeous sister-in-laws wedding?

Jeff's older sister Allison got married this summer. 

The best part was that she moved back to Utah for 2 months while she planned her dream wedding

How cute are these two? Paul's niece and nephew

These girls adore Allison, she used to nanny them

Even though Jeff and I have been together for 9 years I haven't had many opportunities to really get to know Allison

Allison has been in Alaska, basically since she graduated high school

Alaska is where she met her husband Paul, he is from the beautiful state of Oregon

I also hadn't met Paul before this week, so it was nice getting to know him before the wedding

We are so happy for you two and wish you a life full of happiness

The night before the wedding Paul's family hosted the rehearsal dinner at Jeremiah's in Ogden

The food was great and it was fun to hear all the childhood stories

It was a night filled with love, laughter, and of course a few {happy} tears.

Lene, Cathy, and Dominic just days before they left us for Italy.

The rare occasion I'm not behind the camera. 

Jeff & Allison's sweet cousins. Love this family!

Dominic obviously enjoyed the food

Allison's best friend gave the BEST speech I have heard.
She used a Hanson song that they used to listen to when they were younger.
It was really funny and sweet. 

Sweet speech from Allison's best friend Amanda brought tears to everyone's eyes. 

I believe this is the reaction to the Hanson song

The week before the wedding the weather reports said it was going to rain.

While we were in Lake Powell Allison asked that during every prayer we ask that it wouldn't rain

Her prayers were answered!

It was a perfect day and not a cloud in the sky

Allison looked absolutely stunning and the wedding couldn't have been more perfect

They held the wedding in their parent's backyard that was covered in white lights. 

They had a sweet ceremony with close family and friends

After the ceremony we had a sit down dinner. The food was incredible!

Allison's friend cooked, who is a professional chef at the Canyons, cooked the entire meal.

After the dinner began the reception which was filled with laughter and lots of dancing. 

It really was such a special night and we couldn't be happier for Allison and Paul

She looked stunning.
{Picture by Jessica Janae Photography}

I do's. I loved her jewelry
{Picture by Jessica Janae Photography}

The beautiful cake

Cake smash!

Cake smash that followed with a fall.
{NOT Paul's fault, there was a rock in the way}

First dance by sunset

Sweet father-daughter dance

My favorite part of weddings is always the father-daughter dance.
Always a sweet moment.

I think Grandma Judy and her sister had the most fun dancing

Cute moment between my sweet in-laws. Love them

A really sweet moment between Cathy and her dad. 

All the little kids, especially Dominic, were having the time of their lives dancing

David, Eric, and Jeff enjoying the hard work.
I don't think Jeff will be willing to put lights up again

Welcome to the family Paul!

All the lights and overhead of the dance floor

My buddy throughout the wedding. Seriously she's too stinkin' cute!

I love watching couples dance. 

Back of Allison's gorgeous dress