Year in Review, Part 1

2009 has been such a good year for us.  Here is 2009 in review, a photo for each month.

 In January we spent a night at the Webb's cabin with some friends. It was freezing but we had so much fun trying to fit all 8 of us on the same black tube and then trying not to die as we all crashed down the hill.

 
February came and I needed a change.  Tierra gave me bangs.

We also said goodbye to Elise who left to Argentina on her mission.

In March we spent a relaxing weekend in St. George celebrating Laura's 18th birthday.  We swam, hiked, goofed off and got massages.  Dave decorated the condo in pink crape paper.

April  came and we were just hanging out.

In May our ultimate frisbee season started and we were able to enjoy the nicer weather.

In June we were lucky enough to celebrate our second anniversary in the most beautiful place I have ever been. Hawaii easily exceeded every expectation and I hope some day we get to go back.

Part 2 coming soon...

I can't believe it's here.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Oh Christmas Tree (Part 2)

Oh Christmas Tree

Last weekend we headed up to Logan to hang out with Katie and Nate and their family. We slept over Friday night and Saturday morning we headed up to Preston to cut down Christmas trees with all of our fam. We hiked all over the mountain and headed home with 4 huge trees. The funny part is that while you are on the mountain the trees look tall, but not that tall. Then you get home and try to bring them into your house, and they are HUGE. We love this tradition!

Here we are with the tree we finally decided on:

(and yes, this tree is taking up at least half of our living room right now...)

Starlight

Marcus's mom is such a party planner.  Tonight we celebrated Marcus's grandpa's 86th birthday.  Marie had an elf "Trixie" come and entertain and paint faces.

Happy Birthday!

We celebrated Marcus's 27th Birthday last Saturday. We spent the day relaxing and hanging out together. We got Kneader's french toast for breakfast, headed to the Park City outlets for some shopping, and went to Thaifoons at the Gateway for dinner. Happy Birthday Marcus!

Party

We had such a fun Halloween party this year and were happy that so many people could come. Everyone dressed up and we had some really creative costumes!

Best Costumes:
Best Couple Costume: Kendyle and Steve (Toothfairy and Dentist)
Scariest: Eric (Dracula)
Most Creative: Marcus (Hot Dog)
Best Overall: Sam (Billy Mays)

Pics

A few people have asked us to post some pictures of our house. We've been here for almost three months now and we can't believe how fast the time has gone! We are really loving our house, our neighborhood and the ward that we are in. We feel so lucky to be here! Here are a few pics of the main floor:

Denver Colorado

This last weekend we were able to go to Denver for one of my best friend's wedding reception. Kendyle and Steve were married in the Salt Lake Temple on Thursday and then had a reception back in Littleton at her parent's house Saturday night.

We flew out first thing Friday morning and had such a good time. We relaxed and hung out at the pool, enjoyed downtown Denver, the Cheesecake Factory, saw the Cirque de Soleil show Kooza, and spent a few hours at Elitch Gardens, an amusement park.


Kendyle's reception was gorgeous and I loved everything about it. I felt so lucky that we were able to be there. Congrats Kendyle and Steve!

Top of Utah Half Marathon

On Saturday me and my sister Katie ran the Logan Top of Utah half marathon. We had run it last year as well and I think this time around was so much better. It made such a difference knowing what the course was like and what it felt like to actually run 13.1 miles! The first 6 miles were downhill through the canyon and it really was beautiful. Katie and I were able to stay together the whole run and I was so glad to have her there pushing me along! Thanks Kate! We finished in 1 hour 51 minutes. I am so happy that it's over!

Road Trip

Last Thursday after work we headed to California with our friends Austin and Shaeli Ellis and Zach and Marjorie Riches. We drove to Primm and stayed in our $13 rooms at Buffalo Bill's. Friday morning we did some shopping at the Outlets and road the crazy Desperado roller coaster before we got back on the road. We made it to Barstow and of course had to stop and eat at In-n-out for Marcus. He loves it.

We spent the evening at the beach and the water was freezing! The boys are crazy and still played in the water for a long time but I only lasted a few minutes.

Saturday we spent the day at Disneyland. Marjorie hadn't been since she was a little girl and she was especially loving it. It wasn't too crowded and we were able to ride the Tower of Terror, Splash Mountain and California Screamin over and over. We had such a fun trip and our only complaint was that it was way too short!

5 Years

Saturday night Jessie, Jamie and Adam, and Marcus and I went to our five year high school reunion. At first I couldn't believe it had actually been five years, but being back in the school again made me realize it feels like I've been gone forever!

After we went to Nelsons for some frozen custard. So good and so fun.

Happy Today

I found a cute article on WebMD called Choosing to be Happy. You know we all see those people who no matter what happens, are always just SO happy. But there are also those people who are constantly complaining, worrying and wondering why they can't just be happy. These are the 7 steps that the article outlined to become a happier person.

1. Don't worry, choose happy

2. Cultivate Gratitute

3. Foster Forgiveness

4. Counteract Negative Thoughts and Feelings

5. Remember, Money can't buy Happiness

6. Foster Friendship

7. Engage in Meaningful Activities

I thought all of these are a good reminder to me and are all really important. It says, "So it turns out that happiness can be a matter of choice -- not just luck." I liked that. It's my choice.

I think the best example I have of people being happy regardless of their circumstances are my family. Elise is out on her mission, and in one of her recent letters home she explained that they have no power. She says it so cute, she said,

"And we had no power...again!! We needed to wash our clothes, but our apt was too cold...they´d never dry. We needed to go buy food but we had no money....we had to spend our money on the gas bill and the mission hadn´t reimbursed us. We couldn´t even see in our apartment cuz we had no light. I felt helpless! It was so frustrating, but then I realized something: this experience--no light, no heat, no money, no washing machine-- is a one-time thing for me. Probably never again in my life will I have to deal with a freezing apartment, no electricity, handwashing my clothes, and not having money for groceries. But so many people here deal with this every day of their lives. Wow, I am blessed."

She is ALWAYS so positive and happy no matter her circumstances. I see that all around me too--My other sisters, Tierra and Katie are also prime examples of always having such a good attitude and just loving life. So is my cute husband Marcus. He always reminds me that I can't change things but just to accept the circumstances and be happy. I am so lucky and so blessed and have so many reasons to be happy. Today, I am definitely happy.

Sunday Evening, 5:25 p.m.

Hawaii

We just got back this afternoon from such a good trip to Hawaii with Marcus's family. We had tons of fun just hanging out, going from beach to beach and relaxing with Dave & Marie and James & Laura.

We spent one afternoon at the Polynesian Cultural Center, we ate Jack Johnson's famous banana pancakes at the Hukilau Cafe and hiked through botanical gardens to swim underneath a waterfall. We got delicious shaved ice at Motsomotos (the Chinese red beans in it were NOT good, it tasted just like you would imagine, beans mixed in with your shaved ice and ice cream is not delicious. I would highly recommend just getting the shaved ice and ice cream!) We also did lots of snorkeling where we stayed and also at Shark's Cove and Hanauma Bay. It really was so amazing swimming with the turtles and all of the beautiful fish.

Everything about Hawaii was beautiful, including the sunsets. We loved sitting on our beach in the evening and just watching the sun go down.

Thank you Webbs for such an amazing trip! We loved it and are really going to miss it. I already want to go back.

From Where I Am

Things look pretty perfect.
The last six days have been full of beaches, snorkeling, the Hawaiian sun, shopping, food, and lots and lots of desserts! I don't think it gets much better than this.

2 Years

Marcus and I celebrate 2 years today! In some ways it feels like the time has flown by and I can't believe we have been married that long but at the same time I can't ever imagine not being married to Marcus. It's been an amazing two years with lots more to come! Love you Marcus!

You know you're white trash when...

Anyone want to join us?

Happy Birthday Dad!

I want to wish a Happy Birthday to my dad today! I love you lots and lots and am so grateful to you for everything you do for me! I hope you have a great birthday! Love you!

Lucky Green

So Marcus and I have totally been crossing our fingers about what color the outside of our house is going to be. (That's the bad thing about building one of these townhouses, you get whichever color they pick for you.) So there were a few colors I liked, a few I didn't like, and one color that I just loved. Marcus kept telling me to not get my hopes up because what are the chances it will be the one I want right? Anyway, we just saw it today and I must be the luckiest person in the world. I LOVE IT!This picture was taken from Marcus's phone so its not too great but it shows the color!

Happy Memorial Day

Typically by the time Memorial Day comes around I am just so grateful for a day off of work and a chance to enjoy the warm weather! This Memorial Day though I thought a lot about Marcus's brother, Matt, and his wife Marilee and their cute family. Matt is currently deployed in Afghanistan and is serving as a dentist in the Army. I am thankful for his service and all of the others serving to make it so that I can continue living the life that I do.

Marilee is amazing and is in Germany with her three cute girls and one little boy on the way. Thank you to both of you for the sacrifice that you are making for our country!















We love and miss you guys!

It's Sold...

To US!

Our townhouse is framed and will be ready for us to move in the middle of July. It is in South Jordan just west off 106th South and right behind Mulligans golf course. (I may never see Marcus again now that he thinks he will be golfing daily...) The builder is Brad Reynolds. We are so excited to be out of our basement and into a new place!

Waiting...

So Marcus and I put an offer on a townhouse on Thursday and now we are just waiting...the builder countered on Friday and we put another counter-offer in on Saturday. Now we just have to wait and see! Everyone keep your fingers crossed!
*Ours* {hopefully} is still being built, but this is {kind of} what it will look like when all finished.

I've been tagged

So I've never done a tag before but thanks to Bekah I think I will go ahead and actually do this one.

Here are some questions about you and your spouse.
♥ What are your middle names? Marcus Heber and Chelsea Sue
♥ How long have you been together? Married for 2 years in June
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating? Two weeks
♥ Who asked who out? Marcus asked me, I am traditional.
♥ How old are each of you? 26 and 23
♥ Whose siblings do/ did you see the most? We see both of our families a lot, but lately we probably have been spending more time with mine.
♥ Do you have any children together? None yet, someday
♥ What about pets? None ever
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple? Food? Marcus likes eating out and I like eating in
♥ Did you go to the same school? BYU
♥ Are you from the same home town? Nope - Marcus thought Centerville was on the WEST side...
♥ Who is smarter? Marcus is
♥ Who is more sensitive? Definitely me
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple? That's a hard one...Marcus always likes to try something new, but probably Cafe Rio or Rumbi.
♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? Europe - not sure which is farthest - Paris, Spain, London, Germany or Italy.
♥ Who has the craziest exes? hmmm... ?
♥ Who has the worst temper? Me. Marcus doesn't get mad, I do.
♥ Who does the cooking? I cook but lately Marcus is in charge of the meat. He loves using his grill and even fired it up for lunch today.
♥ Who is more social? ?Marcus is better at planning get togethers.
♥ Who is the neat-freak? Sadly, probably Marcus. I like it clean but lately don't have time and Marcus cleans it up before he goes to work.
♥ Who is more stubborn? Me, but Marcus is pretty close behind...
♥ Who hogs the bed? Me. Apparently I like to sleep sideways and push Marcus off the bed.
♥ Who wakes up earlier? Depends on the day - sometimes Marcus has early appointments sometimes he doesn't.
♥ Where was your first date? Dinner at Olive Garden, mini golfing and playing Hearts.
♥ Who has the bigger family? Exactly the same - 4 siblings and 3 neices/nephews on both sides. Marcus's side is about to win when Marilee has her 4th in September.
♥ Do you get flowers often? Valentines and sometimes my birthday.
♥ How do you spend the holidays? with family or on vacations
♥ Who is more jealous? Not sure.
♥ How long did it take to get serious? Not long, once we were dating we were dating and then married 9 months later.
♥ Who eats more? I eat way more often, Marcus eats lots more at a time.
♥ Who does/ did the laundry? We both do, but Marcus probably does more than me.
♥ Who’s better with the computer? Marcus
♥ Who drives when you are together? Marcus. He says I'm a bad driver :)

I guess I tag...Jamie. She's probably one of the only ones who would do it anyway...

Happy Here

It seems like it can be so easy to always sit and dream and think, if only I had this, or when I have that, when this happens, and on and on...

But today, I am thankful to be just where I am.

St. George

Marcus and I headed down to St. George Friday afternoon to spend the weekend. It was so nice to get away from the freezing cold and enjoy the beautiful weather. We got massages, ate Breakfast at our favorite Denny's, hung out at the pool, did a little shopping, and just relaxed. We met the Webbs down there and celebrated Laura's 18th birthday all day Saturday, finishing up with a delicious dinner at Outback.

Saturday night we went to hike the short and scary hike through the crack in the wall. Sadly, when Marcus hit the most narrow point he was realized he was stuck. He was determined he could fit through, after all, it has only been a year since we last did this. He wiggled around, sucked in, and tried and tried but never could get passed that one narrow spot. He had to give up and meet us at the top.

We had a great time and are sad to be home in the snow now! Where did the spring weather go?

SPRING...




LOVE it!