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Let's do a little update, shall we?

- I registered for the GRE. I'm taking it in December. I'm Kinda nervous. Kinda excited. Kinda annoyed that it cost $160 dollars. Kinda more annoyed that I will have to also sign up for the Math Subject Test. Kinda even more annoyed that said Math Subject Test will cost another $140. Boo. But my nerves are much more relaxed now that the first step has been made.

- Our Halloween decorations are up. They've actually been up for some time now. I love them. Braedon loves me. We love decorating for holidays. :) Observe:

I love this candle.

- Me and Braedon have also started a new goal of ours, which is to try new things - especially for our date nights (and no I'm not talking about those types of new things). So we bought a couple of jars and some popcicle sticks and spent an evening coming up with random ideas of things we wanted to do for dates. Whatever you draw out of the jar, you have to do. Our first pick was: "Go to a craft store, buy some materials and make picture frames. Ten Dollar Limit per person." First, let it be know that me and Braedon should never go to a craft store together - especially when things are on super sale (I am not even going to divulge to you how much we ended up spending on things not even related to the picture frames. Oops.). Second, check out our super awesome frames we made!

I'm excited to see what our future dates will hold.

- I've been reading a lot more again now that I'm settled in the new job and marriage and such. And I just wanted to express on this blog, once again, how much I love reading. Sigh. So good. And, if anyone wants a good fantasy, check out Brandon Sanderson's first book of his epic series - The Way Of Kings I'm on page 903 (of 1001) right now and I am still loving every letter of it. Read it. You wont be disappointed.

And with that wonderful topic I think I'll take my leave.

Love and Hugs Internet.

:)

* - For those wondering about my title - it's the word 'Update' in Binary code. Oh yes. I'm that nerdy. :)

Graduate School.

Just thinking about the words stresses me out. Maybe typing it down will help calm my nerves.

I've been secretly/subconsciously ignoring this subject for the past 5 months - just trying to enjoy my summer and my first moments of marriage. But I don't think I can ignore it any more.

Sadly.

The thing is - it's not the going back to school that stresses me out. I actually rather enjoy school, and I really enjoy learning about math. I've actually missed my long study sessions trying to figure out a proof, or sitting in class and watching some crazy equation unfold. I really do love math.

So why am I so stressed?

I think it's the waiting. The calm before the storm.

I also know that a huge part of it is the prep work involved in going into Graduate School. What tests do I need to take? Will I do good on these tests? What if I don't get accepted anywhere? What if I've already forgotten everything that I've learned?

I'm the type of person that I'm more stressed out and anxious before a decision or big event. Things can still change, they can still go wrong. But once you get to that point of no return, once you are already in it or once the decision is made and there isn't anything I can change about it - I don't worry anymore. Stress goes away. There's no going back. I've decided (whether for good or for bad) and it's happening.

I really just want to be at that point with Graduate school. Tests done, acceptance letter received, classes signed up, etc. Once I'm there I know I'll handle it - cause I'll have to handle it, no matter how hard it is.

Breath. I just need to breath.

And jump in.

Wish me luck.

It's Tradition.

I feel like I'm always talking/writing about this topic - and that now I'm obligated to write a post again about my most favoritest of seasons:

Fall.

Oh how I've missed you.

I've missed your clean crisp air.

I've missed your cool jacket weather.

I've missed your rolling thunder storms.

I've missed your always changing colors.

I've missed the crash and smash of sweaty men playing football.

I've missed the wonderful decorations your holidays have to offer.

I've missed the scary ghouls, and creepy witches walking through the streets.

I've missed the warmth on my fingers of a good cup of hot chocolate.

I've missed the excuse to wear hats and scarfs.

I've missed the added family get togethers and parties.

You're wonderful Fall - and it's good to have you around again.

Let's hope your cousin Winter doesn't try to take our precious time together too soon.

Love, Me.

The Tale of the Sleepless Lady.

So. Today is a good day.

Why?

I'm glad that (I made) you ask.

I slept last night! The whole night. I don't remember waking up once.

Let's back up a little.

For those of you that didn't/don't know - I have very low Iron. My doctor calls it Anemia - but what do doctors know, eh? I've actually known this for awhile and even bought the Iron pills that I was told to - but taking them was a different story. I apparently suck at remembering to take pills. I actually have an alarm on my phone to remind me to take my 'No Baby Maker Pill' (as my wonderful husband likes to call it) every day.

Anywho.

So with the help of my stubborn, I mean pushy, I mean loving, husband I've been taking Iron regularly every day for the past month or so. I started to feel a difference - I had more energy then normal. Fantastic! Why didn't anyone tell me to take Iron earlier! (*cough*)

But. (There is always a but)

I was still really tired - especially by the end of the day (and when I say end of the day I mean 5:00 p.m.). For some reason I was not sleeping well. I could fall asleep just fine - I could even fall asleep just fine at 6:00 at night. I would even sleep good for an hour or so - but then it would hit. I would wake up constantly, toss and turn, basically never feel like I was truly in a deep sleep.

The best part? When someone in the bed doesn't sleep good - the other person in the bed doesn't either. So not only was I making myself misreable, my poor husband was reaping the rewards of a restless wife.

Awesome.

So we started to discuss options.

Option 1 - Sleeping pills. But this was an automatic no for me. I'm not the biggest fan of drugs. Mainly because they effect me really well. Wanna see something funny? Get me on Lortab. Plus you hear so many scary stories of people getting so hooked on sleeping pills. Pass.

Option 2 - Muscle Relaxers. Maybe if I was able to relax my body I would be able to sleep? Again another immediate no, and for the same basic reasons as Option 1. Plus I wasn't so sure that just having my muscles relaxed would help me sleep.

Option 3 - Vitamins. Vitamins are good for you. My doctor tells me to take Vitamins. Hmmmm. this could work.

So we went with Option 3. We went over to our local friendly Healthy/Organic/My-food-is-so-good-for-you-we-make-it-to-expensive-for-you-to-afford store! Go the the vitamin aisle. See a little sign that says 'sleep'. (See how easy they make it?)

My oh my. There were hundreds of vitamins - how am I to know which one is best? Then I remembered (are you getting bored of this story yet!?) that my dad had been having similar problems with sleep and had started taking a vitamin that helped! So I gave him a call and he told me that he has been taking a vitamin called melatonin. A gander at the shelves of vitamins before me showed a whole shelf dedicated to melatonin. He proceeds to tell me that 5 mg was too much for him but half that is perfect. So I grab a bottle that is 2.5 mg (orange flavored) and head happily for home.

Bedtime comes - I take my vitamin (without need of any coaxing from the husband this time). And that's basically the last thing I remember.

I wake up in the morning - having slept the whole night through (yay!), but upon standing feeling a little woozy/fuzzy/dizzy (you pick one). So I went to work feeling slightly buzzed (or what I expect it feels like to be buzzed). I finally started to feel clear headed around 3:00 - needless to say not the funnest day I've ever had.

So apparently 2.5 mg is a little much for me.

So our story final finds us at last night. I nervously decided to cut my pills in half (thats 1.25mg for my fellow math nerds) and see how it goes.

Well my friends, I'm here to tell you it went wonderfully. I woke up feeling refreshed and energized. I haven't yawned once today. Not once!

That's a freaking miracle.

So that is why today is such a good day. I'm hoping that if I keep taking my Iron and a little melatonin everyonce in a while that I'll continue to feel energized and rested.

Who knew sleeping could feel so good.

:)

Once Upon a Time.

Once upon a time I decided to write mine and Braedon's story down. After I finished it I was happy with the words but wasn't particularly happy with the format I had written it in. This is when I went to my wonderful English major friend Kelci. I asked her if she would look at it and switch it around so it sounded like someone else was telling the story. BAM. She returned to me a wonderfully true tale that we loved so much we printed it on little cards to put on the tables at the reception. The plan was to then post this story on my blog shortly after the wedding... obviously that didn't happen.

Better late then never right?

So for those that don't already know it, haven't already read it or feel so inclined to read it, I present to you the story that is Katie and Braedon:

            Never one to look for that 'fairytale ending', somehow love found this one girl in particular, Katie. Now, prepare yourself for some good cheese, I'll try and keep it short, but this tale is fairly epic - you've been warned.

            It was in the sixth grade that Braedon and Katie met, when she switched schools after her family moved. If you don't know already, Katie was an extremely energetic girl, while Braedon was just fun-loving enough to keep up. They instantly became friends - best friends, in fact. After awhile, it soon came out that Braedon was developing a crush on Katie - he even attested to it, so she knew it was real. Katie, of course, being the out-of-control tom-boy that she was, didn't share the feelings. She loved him, but like a brother - and made sure everyone knew.

            Well, they continued to be great friends all through middle and high school, the whole time he still had a crush on her - again, he'll tell you the same. She got pretty good at ignoring Braedon's advances and made sure to use the "friend" word a lot. Now, don't get me wrong, Katie cared for Braedon a lot, and at times would even say that she had started to like him, but the timing would never seem to work out and she'd go back to just thinking of him as her best friend. Well, they went to Junior Prom together, and shortly thereafter Katie finally began admitting that her feelings towards him were more than those of a platonic nature.

            So, that summer our heroine stepped up her game, turned on the charm ... if you can call it that ... and dropped the clues that she liked him. If you were to ask him, there were no such clues -  but we promise, there were. It took him until the end of summer to finally get the courage to ask her how she felt about him. For him to have the courage at all to ask, once again, about where her affection laid is pretty astounding. She, of course, responded that the feelings were very much mutual, and they soon started dating. Braedon her first and only everything -- first hand hold, first relationship, first kiss (which was during a rainstorm in the mountains, she likes to point out), even her first, real "I love you".

            They dated through their last school years and a year after, at which time Braedon was called to serve an LDS Mission to St. Louis, Missouri. Although both knew it was coming, nothing could prepare them for how hard those two years would be. While it was the right thing to do, going through something like that was not something they would wish on anyone. Alas, Katie waited for him, wrote every week, and together they grew stronger and more in love with each day that passed.

            Then, as the mission wound down, plans were made for his family to drive to Missouri to pick him up, on their way back stopping in Moab. Katie started talking about it with Braedon's mom, and together cooked up a little plan: they got permission from his mission president and decided that she would meet the family in Moab and surprise him there. It was one of the hardest secrets to keep, but it never slipped and Braedon had not a clue.

            When the moment of truth finally came, there was no stopping Katie's fidgeting; she sat, stood, paced, and twitched in the hotel room as she waited for the family to walk in, those 15 minutes lasting longer than the two years, collectively. When Braedon walked in never had he looked so dumbfounded, never so confused and stunned in his entire life. After the initial shock wore off, he came over and gave Katie a great big hug. Best. Hug. Ever. It wasn't until then that she realized how incomplete she felt with him gone and never realizing how she could love someone so much. It felt so right having to be back in one another's arms, both knowing that the waiting paid off.

            Well, if you haven't been able to tell the end of the story by now, I'll fill in the last bit, now -- they waited a month before getting engaged on November 16th - another cute story for another day. They set the date for May, both in school, Katie graduating from Utah Valley University, this April, with a Bachelors of Science in Mathematics.

            For all my efforts in wrapping this up, I couldn't have said it any better than Katie herself, when she said, "I couldn't imagine a better person to spend the rest of my life with! I am so glad that he waited so long for me so that I could wait for him, finally marrying my best friend of 10 years!"

The End.

Or for you cheese balls like me:

The Beginning. :)

Life = Good.

The blog bug has bitten - but sadly I don't have anything particular to write about.

Bullet list time!

- I'm at work. Running a mass speed button. This bascially is a command that add's something to someone's profile... the reason why it says 'mass' is because you are doing it to multiple people - in my case 9,867 people. Thus the reason why I have lots of sitting time to blog. :)

-I'm loving my new job. It's fun to learn new things and push my mind in different directions. Plus the people I work with are awesome - so fun, funny, and happy - with a touch of sarcasim. Perfect environment if you ask me.

-The husband and I are going camping with his family this weekend. The tradititional... something hunt (and also the place me and Braedon had our first kiss. Fer presh.). Bow hunt maybe? I'm not sure. No one ever really does any hunting... it's more just an excuse to get out of town and relax in God's beautiful mountains. Mmmmm. Excited.

-What makes this trip even better then others is that me and Braedon actually get to sleep in our own tent in the same sleeping bag. Nuff said.

-Braedon starts his new job on Tuesday. I'm so excited for him - I hope he loves his new job as much as I love mine. Or at least more then the one he has currently.

-Lately me and Braedon have been trying new recipies - one new recipe a week to be exact. It's been fun to try new things - once I have a few more new dishes under my belt I'll fill you in on the good ones and the not so good ones. :)

-The Young Women and Young Men are doing a Book of Mormon retreat to Bear Lake the last weekend of September. It's times like this that I am glad both me and Braedon work with the youth in our ward. (Okay, so there are a lot of other times that I am grateful to work with the youth - but free trips to fun places is always a perk.)

-Last night was the Ute's first game of the season. Talk about awesome. I went up to my parents house for our traditional football party - meatballs, homemade maccoroni (so good), the best wings ever (drool), and donuts. It was fun to be with the family and enjoy an awesome game! Go Utes!

-I'm going to the Library today during my lunch to pick up some books for the weekend. I'm pretty sure I'm far more excited then I should be. Eeee. I love the library.  :)

-I love books.


That's all for now folks.

Have a most lovely Labor Day!

Be Still.

                                      

Oh hello there. Fancy meeting you here. :)

Man life has been crazy. Good. Really good. But crazy. How about a blog quicky. ;)

-I've officially started my new job - so far I love it, even though all I've really done is watch tutorials and take tests. I love the atmosphere and the people. Hopefully once I really get into the work I'll love that too. :)

-Braedon got a job! This one is for reals. Someone he worked with in his last job found an available position where she now works - once we got back from California they called him in for an interview and blamo! He's got the gig!

-Speaking of California. It was fantastic. Oh. My. Lanta. So awesome. I love the beach so much! Here are a few pictures from our escapades:

Walking on the beach - almost attacked by birds. ;)

I love feet pictures!

Picture complements of Braedon - so pretty!

I love him - and I love this picture!

Maybe later I'll actually do a full post dedicated to the trip, but hopefully those will do for now. :)

-I'm so excited for Fall. For some reason I keep telling myself things will calm down in Fall - let's hope. Plus how could anyone not be excited for at least one of the following: Cooler temperatures, wearing hoodies, the changing leaves,  Halloween, and of course football season! Woot. :)

-This past Sunday as me and Braedon were driving up to my parents house, we happened to be listening to one of my favorite "Sunday Friendly" CD's. It's by the group Eclipse and called Grateful Praise. These men all sing with such passion and joy that you can literally feel there testimony and love of life come through the songs. If you don't have it, or have never heard it - go, right now and take a listen. One song in particular that I love is their version of 'Be Still My Soul'. It's so powerful. With all the craziness that has been going on it's always a good reminder to me to just be still. Listen. Enjoy life.

Breath.

Anywho, it's back to work for me fellow blog-peeps. 

Till next time!

Change.

Do you ever get that feeling right before a storm, where you know it's going to rain?

Or right before you take the last step on a stair only to find it's not there.

Or right before something big is going to happen - graduation, marriage, a big test, etc.

That's kind of how I feel right now. I don't really have any particular reason for this feeling - I just feel change on the horizon. And I am choosing to believe it's good change. :)

Anywho. I'm feeling a little too deep in here...

Bullet list anyone?

-Me and Braedon just ate a delicious meal. Teriyaki chicken in rice with a side of grilled pineapple. Mmmmm. It was delicious. I'm so glad Braedon loves to cook with me and try new things. :)

-This last weekend we went up to Snowbird with some friends, complements of Lisa and Clint (thanks again!). It was a lot of fun to just play around and relax. I love these guys. :)

Apparently one can have too much fun with an underwater camera. :)

You love it. Admit it. ;)

Water Ninja's

- Also last week, we helped out with taking some pictures at my cousin's wedding. They had a hired photographer there, but we had fun going around taking a bunch of shots. It was so awesome to be there for Jordan and Kelli and share in their special day. Which brings us to...

- Me and Braedon are starting a blog for our photography. We love taking pictures so much and would love to get into it more. So we figure we will start posting our stuff online and maybe start to do some more free shoots. Hopefully as we start to build our portfolio we can eventually get to the making some money aspect of photography. :) Check out the blog: http://bkg-photography.blogspot.com/  I haven't spent too much time on the it yet, but hopefully as time goes on it will become more eye-appealing. :)

-I got my hair cut today. It feels so nice. It was basically just a trim - but it was well needed. Especially my bangs, they were driving me absolutely nuts. Yay for small changes!

-So me and Braedon have started this thing called the Daily Dance. Where at least once a day we must turn on a song and dance to it the entire time. It's pretty fantastic. :) I dare you to try it - go on. Do it.

 - Remember that job that I mentioned Braedon getting at the end of my last blog? Lies. Apparently the company decided that the funds were better needed in a different appartment. La sigh. The search continues.

-This week Braedon and I are going to California with his family - cousins and all. Braedon's grandma was somehow able to swing getting a beach front Condo in  Newport Beach. Sigh. The beach. I've missed thee.

I'm so looking forward to getting sand in my swimsuit, feeling the sun on my nose, listening to the crashing waves, smelling the salt air and enjoying time with family and friends. :)

-In preperation for this wonderful event - I am getting a bikini wax tomorrow. To much information? Maybe. That surprising that I gave too much information? Probably not.

- So some exciting news on the job front... after we recived the sad call about Braedons supposed new job, a few days later we got a happy call for me! I got a job! About. Freaking. Time. It is actually to a place I applied for way back in May before me and Braedon were even married. Braedon's cousin works there and I hear it's a great place to work. I'm starting on the nineteenth as soon as we get back from Cali. I am excited and ready for a change of pace.

-Me and Braedon have recently set up our old school Nintendo systems - the Super Nintendo and the Nintendo 64. Man do these games bring back loads of memories - like eating sprees and drinking sprite while wasting the day away with Richard while playing Donkey Kong Country. Or watching my brothers play Final Fantasy and me cover my eyes when I was afraid they would die. Oh man. I love it. X-Box can eat it. I'll take my super and 64 any day. :)

Till next time blogsphere....

Loves and Hugs. :)

Nine. IX. Nueve. 9.

Wow. I feel like I am so out of touch with my internet self. It seems like so much has happened since I last blogged... I'm not really sure if a lot really has happened, but it sure does feel like it.

Let's do a little catching up shall we?

(And let's hope I can remember all the stuff that happened that made me think "I should blog about this!")

1. First I'll start with my new Church calling! I am the Young Womens Secretary! I love it! The Young Women in this ward are so awesome and the other leaders are amazing. I'm looking forward to getting to know them all better. I loved Young Womens back in the day so I'm excited I get to go back! :)

2. On that same note - Braedon just called to be the Priest Duty to God Specialist! So he is now working with the Young Men! Now we get to be together on combined activities. :) It's pretty sweet living in the basement of your Bishop. ;)

3. Jobs. Bleh. Not the funnest subject, but still needs to be updated. For those of you who don't know, Braedon quit his job a few weeks back. He was coming home super stressed and the company just wasn't treating him well. We prayed about it and felt like it was time for him to leave. So he gave his two weeks. He now is working with me for some people in my ward. I work as an office assistant and he is a roofing inspector (random I know... but hey it's work). It's been fun working together and being able to take lunch together and so forth. But both our jobs are not full term - you can't really do roof inspections when there is snow on the roofs. So we are still both looking for jobs... we've both had a couple of interviews, but nothing really has panned out yet. Here's to hoping we find something soon!

4. Babies. No we are not pregnant. And no we are not trying yet... see number 3 for the main reason. :) Just for those that keep asking.

5. My Birthday! Yup. That's right. I missed blogging about my Birthday! I'm now 22. And my wonderful husband got me an awesome gift! He got me a........... LONGBOARD! :) Observe:

6. Braedon and I love doing stuff outdoors - especially hiking. So we went on a couple of hikes together! One up Millcreek Canyon and one up Big Cottonwood Canyon! Both were beautiful! We love hiking in our fivefingers. :) Desolation Trail is up Millcreek Canyon and was so green! I loved it! The hike up to Lake Blanche was a nice long one, but Taylor and Alex came with us! It was a lot of fun! Observe:

So Green!

Happy Hikers!

Lake Blanch and the Crew!

Peachie-O's!!

So Pretty. :)

The fivefingers. And our dirty legs.

Happy Hikers!

7. Real Soccer! We finally made it out to a game! And what a game to go to! We won, 5 to 0. :) It was pretty sweet. Especially since they handed out free BK Breakfast Sandwiche coupons. Don't worry that we all got about 20 coupons... besides Ben. Who go over 200. :)

Yay for Fivefingers!

The Ry and Tiff!

Loves.

Eeee!

8. For the 4th of July we had a relaxing weekend! It was so nice to not really have any big plans and just spend some time with the familes. First we went out to breakfast with my family at Ruth's Diner:

Mmmm. Ruth's Diner is yummy.

And then later in the day we went over to Braedon's house and sat around at the pool and went to a movie. It was so relaxing.

Nan's is basically amazing.

Braedon and his Mommy!

Chillin in the pool!

9. I was going to stop at nine, but during the course of writing this blog... I have a little update on Item number 3. Braedon got a job. Talk about finding something soon. Yay for blessings! :) Fan-Freaking-Tastic! I love that man. So proud of him!

Nine seems like a good number and I like leaving things on a happy note. So we'll call it quites for today. :)

Loves and Hugs Internet.

:)

It's (not) a Brick. House.

It may not be a brick house, but we love it. :)

I know I have been MIA for awhile, but I'm finally back! And not only am I back, but I'm back with house pictures! You're excited. Admit it. Come on.....*crickets*....

Ahem

Well.

I'm excited.

So let's get started. :)

This is our front door! And yes you are looking

down, we live in a basement apartment. :)

This is what you see from the doorway. Welcome to the Goudie home! :)

To your left we have our big desk. We love our desk.

And to the right is a door! What could it be!?

(You're totally on the edge of your seat, aren't ya!?)

It's our pantry! Yay for food! And notice the built in shelves...

my awesome husband made those so we could have better

food storage and more room. Isn't he handy? :)

Walking further into the house you see out awesome fireplace

and our even awesomer table. :) We love our table. Especially

cause if we need it to be bigger we can add in a leaf and it

becomes a square table! Woot.

And on the right is our kitchen!

This is our fridge. We like to write on it. And have other

people write messages on it too. :)

Further on our left is the free china hutch that we got from

someone in Braedon's Parents ward. They were just going to DI it.

We gladly excepted it for free. :)

Next we come to our family room. You'll notice our one (lonely)

red love-seat. The other red couch is still on it's way -

it got back ordered apparently.

But luckily we have Braedon's futon. :)

Walking further you come to another door!

(yes I realize I'm making this tour of our small apartment

a lot longer then it needs to be...)

It's our exercise/random storage room! There is an air

hockey table chillin there from the owners up stairs that

we are thinking we might hook up!

Then turning right you see a hall!

Walking down the hall and looking to your right you come

to two doors! Let's start with the door on the right!

It's our bathroom!

Oh hi!

(Excuse the dirty mirror. :S)

Turning around you see the separate entrance between

our bathroom and bedroom. But we aren't going to enter

the bedroom that way. Back to the hall!

And enter the room on the left! Our bedroom!

This is our giant bed from Braedon's old room. We love it.

For many reasons. ;)

And here is our closet. I'm not sure what we would do

with out this huge closet... we have too many clothes.

And no, I am not the one that takes up the majority of the closet...

that would be Braedon. :)

Speaking of Braedon! Look who I found! :)

Anywho, exiting our room you see two things. First

on the right you see the divider that separates our

home from the stairs.

And on the left you see our storage closest. Nice and full. :)

And there you have it! The tour you have all been waiting for! I hope you enjoyed it. I know that me and Braedon enjoy our house. :) Sorry it has taken me so long to finally put these pictures up!

Anywho.

I'm hoping to catch up on some blogging - so until then.

Love and hugs.

:)