I Married this Guy!

About 3 weeks ago, this stud had an important career fair. We were lucky enough to have a wonderful aunt offer to purchase him some Men's Warehouse clothing. WOW! This guy looks awesome. The picture does no justice. The clothing fit him perfectly and he felt great. He also rocked the career fair! 

I'm so lucky to have married this guy! I'm so proud of him. He works so hard at school and getting great grades. This smarty pants gets to graduate in April with his bachelors! All his hard work is starting to pay off. We are so close to graduating. He's done such great work, that he's cut his master's down to only 8 months. He's done most of his master's research and will even have a few grad-level classes done before he even starts. He works so hard, I'm proud of him! LOVE YOU! - Sami

Miscarriages happen

We miscarried our baby. It has been a very sad and trying time for us, but our faith keeps us strong. You can read my post about my lessons learned here.

Mountainside Walk

Last night after dinner, Trevor and I decided to go for a walk. We  do this on a pretty regular basis. It gets me out of the house and away from homework and we get to spend some time together. Normally, we walk around Wymount and up around the temple. This time, we decided to do something different. On our little excursion, I was, by coincidence - wearing my practical footwear. AKA - my holey ballet flats. Anyway, we walked up past the temple to the Rock Canyon trailhead. We drove up there once, but haven't been back since. We discovered it really wasn't that far from where we lived! Within about a 25 minute walk, we were there exploring around. It was later in the evening so we caught some amazing views. I was disappointed that I didn't have my Nikon with me. So, alas, these pictures are from my phone. I was also surprised at the amount of wildlife we saw. A few days ago, I saw a deer outside my bedroom window, and on this trail we saw a lot of little bunny-like creatures and some ducks crossing the trails we walked on. 

We finally had to call it quits and go home, both of our allergies started to act up and we couldn't stop sneezing! If you look in the picture below, you'll see a big green bowl like area. We walked from where this picture was taken, down the mountain, across the big green bowl and down the road to the temple and then into Wymount. It was quite the little hike we went on, but we sure did enjoy getting to know our surroundings a bit more. That big green bowl like area is a GIANT grassy field. The only real reason we could figure out why it was there is because there is a very large water tank up at the top, so assuming it broke, the water would have somewhere to go so it wouldn't flood the whole city. 

What's interesting, is all this that we discovered last night was only one more road north from where we usually talk our walks. Interesting what you can discover when you mix things up a bit. :) 

- SamiMae

Ern the Fern

Meet Ern. He's a fern, well not really, he's more of a cactus. Actually he's an Aloe Vera plant. He's my happy little plant who sits on my window ledge and keeps me company throughout the day as I'm doing homework. He cleans the air and watches the weather for me. I quite enjoy him. He watches the quad.

He got his name from Harry Potter three "Take it away Ern" from the Knight bus. hahaha.

Ern has a friend, Weinhard. They sit on the ledge together.

- SamiMae

Project+ Certified! 6 Credits down!

On Thursday I passed my CompTIA Project+ test and am now certified! YAY! That class was 6 credits and I did it in 4 weeks, but I was in Idaho for about a week and didn't study. HA! So now I can move all my classes forward 4 months! I'm enrolled in a Managerial Accounting class. I did my first real bit of studying today and LOVE IT! Since March I've done 15 credits! My goal is to do another 9 credits before Sept, which I think I can do. :)

- SamiMae

Passed Another Class!

Yesterday I passed my Marketing and Business Communications class with an 80% on the test! On to Project Management!

- SamiMae

An Idahoan Dinner

While up in Idaho, Mom made baked potatoes for dinner. I forgot how big Idaho potatoes are. (I use russet potatoes, because you can get a 10 lb for like less than $3.) It was enjoyable to have a REAL Idahoan dinner. A large spud and all the toppings. These things are MASSIVE! 

- SamiMae

Break out the Bow

Last week when I went home to visit, I pulled my compound bow and target from storage. It was up in the attic. I got 'em down and went to the backyard to shoot. I had a blast. I love my bow! Last season I had an expert set my sights so my aim is pretty accurate. 

Funny story. So this bow was suppose to be a right handed bow, since I'm right handed. But it got shipped to me as a left handed bow. I didn't know this until I went to see an expert in a shop. He gave me some pointers and helped me use it as a left handed bow. Believe it or not, I enjoy it better as a left handed bow. I'm left-eye dominant. Meaning, I focus my vision with my left eye. Weird, I know. lol. So, It's actually easier to shoot with my left hand. I've strengthened my arm a bit, but I'm a lot steadier with my left hand because it's so much easier to see through my sights! 

Anyway, I'm loving my bow. It's a Youth Bear bow. (The adult ones were a bit...bigger and this just fit better. :) 

Dinner just got away...lol

- SamiMae

Be The Good

Last weekend I went up to Idaho to visit family. While up there we made these cute signs! I'm proud to say I now have an AWESOME headboard. Now, you may have seen these on Pinterest. These are not as easy to make as they sound. They are quite...time consuming and challenging to pull apart the pallets and put them together. But, once you start painting, it goes pretty quick. I had a great time in Idaho and I super enjoy my sign. I think it was worth it. :) 

I think a big shout out thanks goes to Dad, because he spent so much time on these to pull apart the pallets and put them together into these signs. :) Thanks DAD! 

My Cute Name Blocks!

Yesterday, Trev and I took Summer and Skyler up to Ogden to drop them off to mom. We spent some time at Heather's house. We got to make these cute blocks with our last name. This is mine! Isn't it cute!! I thought the green was super happy! Green is my new favorite color! :) 

- SamiMae

Yes, I'd like an extra large pizza, Please.

Summer and Skyler are visiting. We made pizza last night for dinner. My dough rose a little more than I was expecting...

- SamiMae

By The Way....

By the way...I LOVE Trevor. He is awesome and my best friend. I'm so super glad I have him. :) He's willing to take leaps of faith with me!

- SamiMae

Best Mentor EVER!

A few weeks ago I changed Student Mentors at my college. She is awesome. When I emailed her to say I passed my test, this is the response I got!


"WAY TO GO, SAMANTHA!"

- SamiMae

Harry Potter

Harry Potter came out while I was growing up. I remember as a kid that we'd go to the library parties whenever a new book came out. The movies were a super big deal when those premiered as well. A few years ago, I stopped reading fiction. I prefer informational books, boring - I know. hahaha. I'd read church books, self-improvement books, etc. Lately, it's been like a craving, but not for food, to read the Harry Potter books again. Yes, start at the very beginning. I've only read them once, believe it or not. So, Thursday or Friday last week I picked up numbers 1 & 2. I had number 1 read within a matter of hours. (though it took me Friday and Saturday.) Now I'm halfway through number 2. (I also have to do homework, so I just passed another class.) Now, I will finish up number 2. Maybe check out number 3 this week.

Afterwards, It'll be a Harry Potter movie marathon. :)


- SamiMae

Accounting II Passed!

Woo hoo! I just passed my accounting 2 class! got an 86.2% Only missed 8 questions out of 58!

Meanwhile, at Smith's

Today I was shopping at Smith's here in Provo. Nearing the end of my trip, I make my way towards to front cash registers. There is a couple in front of me that I have to move around. Within seconds they both notice me. We make eye contact, and I just stare for half a second. I recognized both of their faces. hahaha. It was Stephen and Whitney from Studio C!

They didn't say anything, but they looked at me to. I couldn't tell if they were waiting for me to say something. I didn't. I'm an introvert. After half a second, I just smiled and kept walking. I'm sure they get a few locals here who recognize them. For those who don't know, Studio C is filmed on BYU campus. :)

I couldn't help but laugh afterwards. There is a clip with both of them in it! :)

Overnight Growth!

I can't believe it! This is so cool. I literally watched my plant grow! My 4 little corn sprouting were underneath the rim of the can last night when I pulled them in! When I looked at them this morning, they were over the rim! And not by just a little bit, by quite a bit, in fact!

See! They are poppin up!

They grew crazy fast! I'm having corn this summer!

Gettin Pretty Good

I'm gettin pretty good at bread making. I've pretty well figured out my sandwich bread recipe! Each loaf I make gets better and better!

Don't those look gorgeous!? 

- SamiMae

Job Interview

I had a job interview today. It went really well! I think they really liked me. They did say they loved the inventory experience I had while I was at Safelink. They will be calling me mid to end next week for a follow up interview with the owners! :)

Church Callings!

Today, Trevor and I were given a new calling! We have been called to be primary teachers! We teach the only member of the primary, she's 4 1/2.

We team teach with another couple. Next week is our first week teaching. We are super excited. There have been a number of things that have played into this and have made it interesting. I'm sure I'll let you know more as time goes on. ;)

- SamiMae

Peep Mania!

The Easter candy is out! Let the regretful indulgence BEGIN! Trevor and I found Peeps in the BYU bookstore on Friday night and we couldn't NOT get some. FIRST PEEP OF THE SEASON. 

Joneses February Newsletter

Hi Everyone!
We've created out February newsletter. It's been great to see the newsletters from the other families. You can view Trevor and I's here.

Have a great one!

- SamiMae

PASSED ACCOUNTING 1

I PASSED MY ACCOUNTING 1 CLASS! The cut score was 76% and I got an 89%! My mentor said it was the highest score she's seen! I'm so excited. I can also get my Accounting 2 class passed by the end of the month. That means I won't be behind in my classes and I can keep moving forward. YAY!

- SamiMae

Six Months Married!

So, as of today, Trevor and I have been married six months! I have the best husband ever! He's my best friend and we've had an awesome adventure these last six months and look forward to an eternity more! Cheers to eternity!

- SamiMae 

A little more frugal...

So, now that I'm not working, we have to be even more frugal then ever. I also am taking this chance to become more self sufficient by trying to figure out my own recipes for common every day food items that we purchase regularly. I found a great recipe for tortillas, and will never buy store bought again. My next thing I'm working on its homemade sandwich bread. We spend so much money on bread for our weekly lunches. Bread is getting expensive. The good bread is over $3 a loaf! Why can't I just make it?

That's my goal this week. Make bread that we can make sandwiches on.

Today, I went to the grocery store to shop. Smith's, in my opinion, is the best place to shop. Winco is pretty good to, but I prefer the quality of food that Smith's has. You are what you eat, so don't be cheap. At the same time, we gotta be affordable. I've been working hard on making dinners with all natural ingredients. I need to be able to pronounce the items.

As I've been doing research the last few weeks/months, I've found a reoccurring tidbit of a tip. Avoid the inner isles of the grocery store. Stay on the outside. That's where the fresh, healthy food is. I did that today. I had my little list of items I needed to get. All of it, was on the outside isles. By not traveling to the inner parts of the store, I wasn't temped to buy anything full of preservatives or processed foods. Smith's had a great sale on produce going on, I took advantage of it.

I've slowly been learning how to cook for only 2 people. I've grown up cooking for an army of 8+. Downsizing to two people has been tough. I usually end up overestimating and buying or preparing more than necessary. Today, I did pretty good. I got less than I thought I'd need. After spending time thinking on it, that was the best move. I know food won't go bad and have to get thrown away.

I've also learned, don't be afraid to buy the off brand items. We've done this with milk. It all tastes the same, and I got 2 gallons of milk today for 3.98, saving .80 cents a gallon. This was the Mountain Dairy brand. I was pretty excited. We go through so much milk - it's Trevor's favorite.

One sneaky advertising I've found is the sale on pounds. Like fruit: 99 cents a pound! Awesome! But then you realize that one apple is a pound, and end up paying $4 for some apples. Measure your produce.

When the cashier hands you your receipt, there are often times a survey you can go and do. Free savings, yay!  I did one for Smiths and got 50 extra fuel points and got entered into their sweepstakes. More savings for me, yay! I also did one for Costa Vida, and next time I go in, I get a free small chips and queso. YUM!


Anyway, it's been fun to learn all these things as I go. Hopefully, as I go, I'll get better. Good luck.


- SamiMae

"Everybody, Uchtdorf is in the building!"

So, quick update. Last week, we had the awesome experience of having President Uchtdorf attend a ward that worshiped in the same building as ours. :) No, he didn't attend our ward, sadly. But, as I was walking out of Sacrament, I heard someone in front of me say "Hey! Isn't that President Uchtdorf?" I turned my head to the side, and he was less than 5 feet away from me. I couldn't do anything but stop and stare! Hahahaha. He was there with his wife for a great grandson's baby blessing.

He didn't come to any of our classes, but we were having ward conference and the stake presidency was there. So, in the last few minutes of Relief Society, the stake president comes in to talk to us. He said he was sitting with Pres. Uchtdorf and explained that he had to go to visit a group of Relief Society sisters. AKA, my RS class. :) Our stake president said that Pres. Uchtdorf put his arm around the stake president and said "Tell those dear sisters that we love them, and that God loves them and that we are grateful for everything they do" Ok, well I can't remember the exact wording, but that was what I remember. As our stake president said that to us, my eyes got all teary. We, myself included, got a shout out from President Uchtdorf. Could life get better?!! I submit that it cannot!

That was the buzz for all of Sunday. So, what did we do in our Sunday school class? (Which is after Sacrament.) We texted all our family members to tell them who we just saw. Welcome to Provo.

-SamiMae

Updates!

Our "Healthy Eating" blog is going through some renovations. I've discovered, that not only is it important to cook healthy food, but cooking in and of itself is an experiment! I've been cooking new recipes almost every night. It's always and adventure and interesting.

This blog, might eventually include health and fitness. I'm getting into yoga, which is super awesome. We'll see what this evolves into as it warms up. :)

-SamiMae

Need a Good Laugh?!

Do you need a good laugh? Check this link out! Trevor and I actually looked up the product on Amazon. It's real! HAHAHA.

BEWARE OF THE GUMMY BEARS!

Jones's January Newsletter

So our each family in our extended family is putting out a monthly newsletter. This helps us all learn what's going on with each family and their kids. Trevor and I put together a newsletter. The newsletter shares a bit more than what I normally post. Click on the link below!

CLICK HERE!

-SamiMae

5 lb Roast!

So, in my freezer I have a few 5 lb roasts. (A wonderful gift from my aunt.) These roasts are of high quality and can feed a TON of people. My favorite thing to do is to cook a roast, (I love coming home to the smell.) and put it into baggies, and freeze it again. So that way, for a quick dinner, I can pull out a baggie and make a meal from it. My latest roast, I got 13 baggies out of it. That's 13 dinners! This is super helpful and so worth it! A HUGE thanks to my AUNT SUZIE! These are so super helpful to have, and the taste is amazing. These roasts are the best beef I've ever had. :)

I cut the meat a few different ways. Some baggies, i cut the meat into cubes so I can make beef stew. :) Some of the beef I shredded, for enchiladas. I also sliced some, for beef sandwiches. Some of the beef, I just sliced and have in a slab. That way, I can decide the night I use it, how I want it cut. These make for quick meals and would recommend it to anyone! Happy cooking!

-SamiMae

Don't forget the Eggs!

So, yesterday I was craving sugar. I had one box of Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies left. Trevor and I were both STARVING. So I began to work on our vegetable grilled cheese sandwiches. I asked Trevor to make the brownies. Sometimes when I ask him to do something, I'll get the urge to micromanage him (mainly when it involves cooking). I fight that urge really hard, because I know how annoying it can be. So, I just continued to make our sandwiches and let him make the brownies.

Well, he makes them and we put them into a 9x13 pan and pop it in the oven for the recommended time of 25 minutes. Meanwhile, we sit and eat our sandwiches. After 25-30 minutes of cooking, I open up the oven and find this:

Yes, those are bubbles. I was just kind of mind-boggled. I had never ever seen something like this before. I watched as the bubbles would form, and then pop. Soon, we realized what he forgot to add in. Eggs. The 2 eggs did not get added into the brownies. Just so everybody knows, this is what happens when the eggs aren't added into the brownies. After it cooled, it became rock hard. We had to soak the pan overnight to remove it. No brownies for Sam....I was bummed, but I didn't need them anyway. HA!

I love Trevor. We both just laughed. It was some great humor that we needed. He's a good sport. Lesson learned. It was a great science experiment.  Next time, we won't forget the eggs.

-SamiMae

Quick Update!

Well Trevor and I were able to take 2 weeks off and head up to Idaho for Christmas and New Years. During this time we had the WHOLE family up. (Including the Hunsaker's from Kentucky!). The stomach flu got passed around. (I had it on our first day up there.) Christmas came and went, as did New Years. Trevor and I had to move apartments (with the help of family). The we had Aidann's baptism to end the trip! It was awesome and fun. It was nice to see my family after 3 months of not seeing them. We took a ton of pictures and many posts will be coming!

Now we are back in school. Trevor just had his second day of classes (and feeling even more like an engineer). I'm blasting through my very first accounting class! (which I'm LOVING!) And, I'm back to work at SexyModest. We are all settled into our new apartment, which is on the third story.

We love our new apartment, the third story was the best decision. We get exercise going up and down the stairs. We lift weights as we carry our groceries in the house. But the best part is, no streetlight shining in our eyes at night! Hahaha. There is also more privacy. On the main floor, it was weird to be eating breakfast at our table and have another person walk by our window and wave to us as we eat our cheerios. Also, on the third story, the sun hits our balcony so I can have a container garden this summer! YAY!

We attended our new ward on Sunday. It's AWESOME! We really think this will be good for us, and have already met quite a few members of the ward who are super cool! We meet in the multipurpose building which feels a lot like the institute building our old singles ward meets in. So, there is a bit more familiarity.

Anyway, life has returned to normal and is progressing and moving forward. We are lovin life! Hope you are too!

-SamiMae

The Hormone Diet

A few weeks ago, after a visit to my doctor, I learned I have PCOS. (Poly-cycstic ovarian syndrome). It's genetic in my family, and now I have it too. I wasn't too surprised, just disappointed. But it was nice to finally have some answers. My miscarriage through off my hormones big time. So my doctor prescribed me some birth control to take to help level things out.

It's helped a lot. But I've also realized that I have to make a lifestyle change. Because of past eating habits, and maybe some genetics, I'm tend to have higher insulin levels. Or in other words, I'm insulin resistant. My body mass produces it because I get sugar cravings, and give in, and then crash. So my body's over producing it to compensate. After doing some research of my own, I've determined that a low-glycemic diet is the best thing for me. I did it for one week (before the holidays) and boy I saw a huge change. My acne cleared up, I had higher energy levels, and lost 2 pounds without doing anything. 

Among my research, I came across the book called The Hormone Diet, by Natasha Turner, ND. I really like her book. She shows the science behind our hormones and how they effect us and what we can to to affect them! She has three steps in her Hormone Diet. I'm on the first step right now, which is to get proper sleep and to do a two week detox.

This detox is a little...intense. Basically all common allergy foods are removed. Corn, wheat, peanuts, etc. Today I went shopping for food. I've found me a few recipes that I'm excited to try. I think it'll be good. Tonight's dinner was great! I'll post that later. I've also got fruit to make smoothies in the morning and cooked chicken for salads for lunch. I'm excited to get my hormones back in balance and get healthy. I could use the energy as well!

I would recommend The Hormone Diet to anyone. This isn't a new "fad". It's backed by science and studies. It doesn't call for anything that isn't common sense or radical. Give it a try!

- Samantha