J + M

Something Old...

2012-01-24T14:12:00.001-08:00

...into something new!

"TODAY I will stop and smell the daisies"
......changed to......
"TODAY I will stop and kiss my spouse"

It has a nice black frame (not pictured), which was the main motivation behind doing this project.

:)

IKEA :)

2012-01-18T10:45:00.000-08:00

It is safe to say that we are done furnishing our apartment!
Thank you IKEA...you were our favorite with the best prices.

..we gave them some good business this month! Here's a collection of the items that now furnish our apartment. This was WAY to fun!

A New Chapter

2011-12-29T15:38:00.001-08:00

We're back!

If you missed the African adventure, you can see it all at www.yougoneduh.blogspot.com

On December 21st, just days before Christmas, both of our parents recieved some very unexpected visitors. We led them along for 3 months that we weren't coming home until May, knowing all along that they were getting a big surprise for Christmas. It was the surprise of a lifetime, and it was so much fun.

Many subsequent surprises followed: friends, coworkers, siblings, grandparents, all were equally surprised and excited.

Finally after two and a half years of marraige; graduation, full-time work, living in my parent's basement, and then 5 months in Uganda, we are finally moving into our first real apartment together.

We live on Main St, right inbetween the State Capitol and Temple square. I can't wait to be within walking distance to everything! Here we start the beginning of a new chapter! :)

Preston

2011-06-09T20:32:00.001-07:00

Preston, my nephew, used to be a sweet little 7-year old

Now he is 16.

My oh my, how the time flies.

Baby nephews & nieces won't always be small.

Cherish the small years. He will always be 7 to me.

Vote for our Africa Blog name!

2011-06-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

Hey friends & family!
Jeff and I can't decide on our blog name for our 2 years in Africa so please review the choices and then vote on the left had column. We're wanting something unique that's easy to remember for all of our followers!

www.yougoneduh.blogspot.com
- get it? It's "Uganda" spelled phonetically? It's silly, but is it too silly?

www.wegonduh.blogspot.com
-"wegoneduh" and "weganda" were taken...but it encorporates "we"

www.jmcuganda.blogspot.com
-"Jeff Melissa Combe Uganda" yes, boring, but simple

www.[insert your idea here].blogspot.com
- do you have an idea that is better than the ones we've come up with? Select "other" as your vote and please write your idea as a comment on this post! We're open to all suggestions

Thanks!

Humidity!

2011-06-01T18:52:00.000-07:00

I arrived in North Carolina late last night. I'm here for 4 days visiting my sister and her family who've been here since 1997. I haven't been here since 2006 and I am loving it, except the humidity! My sister, Emily, says she hated the humidity when they first got here, but she eventually got used to it...

This morning we went rollerblading together (she calls it "in-line" skating) all over her neighborhood before the temperature got too hot. The high today ended up being 96 by the way - WHEW! Anyway, rollerblading was super fun and I was proud of myself that I kept up with her. She's a die-hard exerciser...something I am not!

Now that it's June (CAN'T Believe it!) it means that we can say we are setting out on our adventure NEXT MONTH! We successfully got our vaccinations, and our visa applications are sent in, and I even got some new -durable- clothes! (ones that will endure hand washing) But really Jeff just wanted to spoil me with new clothes. ;)

For Memorial Day weekend Jeff and his family (minus Megan who is recovering from major foot surgery) took me on my first backpacking trip! It was in Capitol Reef (UTAH), unfortunately the fierce wind got the best of us and we spent the last night in a hotel in the glamorous town of Loa, Utah. But the backpacking was great! I married into an amazing family! Good times! OTHER NEWS:
-We sold our babies Tako & Marzipan (lovebirds), it was such a sad morning for us, but a necessary step towards our big move. Good thing we have over 30 videos of Tako snuggling Jeff- those will comfort us when we miss them.
- I got an unexpected stop sign ticket 100 ft away from my house and a door of my car smashed by a big white truck in the same week! My superman Dad repaired the door already! SuperDad!
- According to my sister, Emily (the one I'm currently visiting in North Carolina), Jeff and I are "ECO-YUPPIES" because we shop at Whole Foods.

Is $70.94 Collecting Dust in Your Closet?

2011-05-18T12:23:00.000-07:00

$70.94 was collecting dust in MY closet! That is, on some of my college books that I didn't want to keep. Please note that I kept the important books that I know I will want to dive back into someday (they weren't worth much anyway). Those books will do so much better in the hands of people that actually need them, rather than collecting dust in my closet.

I sold 5 books to textbooksrus.com, they gave me $28.04, and donated 2 books.

I sold 2 books to chegg.com, they gave me $42.90, and donated 8 books.
TOTAL: $70.94

:)

Tired of Waiting!

2011-05-18T08:39:00.000-07:00

Tickets for this grand event were purchased back in September of 2010. Since then, we've been waiting and saving money. Having reached our savings goal 2 months early (go us!) we're getting antsy to leave. However, the TO DO list is getting long and longer each week, even though we're crossing things off!

The other day we decided to go on a hike date. Jeff packed a surprise dinner his his backpack and we hiked up Dry Creek trail that starts up by Primary Children's Hospital. This time of year, all of the snow is melting from high up in the peaks. Where the trail once was, now is a stream (hence the name "Dry Creek"). It was so enjoyable. We ate our delicious dinner on top of a mountain peak, similar to the place Jeff proposed almost 2 years ago!

Here we are on "the trail," with very wet shoes. Good thing Jeff made me leave my running shoes at home!

This week we'll be visiting the University of Utah Travel Clinic to have our "consultations," which involve getting shots. Jeff is mostly up-to-date on his, since he was only over there 2 years ago. I, on the other hand, will have to get..

yellow fever
typhoid fever
polio
measles
malaria
AND maybe tetanus + hepatitus A&B

OUCH!

One of the mose exciting things I did last weekend was purchase a plane ticket for myself to visit my sister, Emily and her family in North Carolina. Back in High School when I was very spoiled, I visited her once a year. Since I've been thrust out on my own, that has no longer been possible. My last visit was in the spring of 2006, which was 5 years ago! I leave the day after Memorial Day and get to stay 5 days.
This is a picture from that visit 5 years ago

Yesterday I got nabbed by a cop for not coming to a complete stop at a stop sign that is less than 100 feet away from my house. I "stop" at that stop sign at least 5 times a day. So unfair. Grr

Only 8 weeks left until our departure from this good country. Africa blog is still in the making. We're currently desputing over the blog name, which is o-so-important. We will probably hold a friend vote soon if we can't decide for ourselves. Stay tuned!

Birds & Pie

2011-05-04T09:41:00.001-07:00

Wednesday, glorious Wednesday. My day off, my day to wake up naturally, take the morning slow, be productive, try new things, etc. Usually, my day to blog as well.

Went on a run this morning; a full lap + a half around the Liberty Park dirt trail. It was the perfect temperature and I felt great! Finished it off next to the cage enclosure that houses at least 30 sun conure parrots. Their bright orange color is a spectacular sight! Most people that walk past there probably never notice those beautiful birds.

Came home & took a shower with my birds (always delightful). They love the water and are incredibly adorable when wet. Today I will attempt to check off a few more items on our "To Do Before Africa" list. Our time left keeps getting shorter and shorter simultaneously as the list gets longer and longer.

Also on my list is the task of making chicken pot pie, from scratch. I found a great recipe and have my mom's perfect pie crust recipe. Wish me luck! I'll blog if it is successful. Have a wonderful day!

Tripness

2011-04-03T13:14:00.000-07:00

For the past 6 years, we have gone on a group trip with friends each year. This year’s trip to Balboa Island marked the end of that era since we won’t be around for the next two years.

2006 – Fish Lake/Capitol Reef, UT

2007 – Arches & Canyonlands National Parks, UT

2008 – The Grand Canyon, AZ

2009 – Escalante, UT

2010 – Sand Dunes & Canyonlands

2011 – Balboa Island, CA

This trip was delightful…seriously…and sarcastically
½ of a beach house
1 bathroom
4 boogie boards
7 days
16 friends
60 degree weather (mostly)
1,400 miles driven
1,000,000 “Yo Mamma” jokes

“Tan…I love you” Yes, I know the vicious sun rays damage our skin and might even give us cancer, but oh, how I love tan skin. I love my tan husband, my tan legs, and my tan face. Like many things, this good thing is coming to an end. Tans don’t last forever. But my confidence has been boosted and that has made all the difference.

“What Goes Around, Comes Around” The trip left me feeling tan and rejuvenated, yet extremely poor. Not having a stalked kitchen can be exhausting to one’s wallet, as well as paying for all the travel fuel for our car (no one has paid us back yet). Receiving my half sized check from Gymboree on Friday was painful too. When you don’t work at my job, you don’t get paid. Fortunately, I have gotten 2 recording jobs since arriving home. These jobs combined will make up for what I lost at Gymboree – doubled. On top of that, the US treasury dumped a large sum of money into our bank account yesterday as well. I love tax refunds. Utah treasury is still on its way!

Seventeen Weeks til Change

2011-03-13T21:25:00.000-07:00

Okay, I get it, 17 weeks is forever away in the future, but in another sense, not really. Okay, moving to Africa is not moving around the block. We're talking major culture, climate, food, and people change. As it is drawing nearer and nearer, here are some things I've been thinking about that I will miss dearly (with some accompanying pictures from Jeff's adventures there in 2009)

MEAT (This picture should clearly illustrate why I will not be eating meat there)

TOILETS (Yes, this is called a latrine...hooray for squatting & strong quads)

HARMLESS BACKYARD BIRDS (Going to have to watch out for these flesh eaters)

..to be continued

Spread out Family

2011-03-09T11:11:00.000-08:00

I haven't blogged for a long time! Guess that usually means that one is "too busy to blog," but for me it has been either "too sick, stressed, or lazy to blog." Lots has happened lately, but none greater than the news of 3 of my siblings announcing a big move out of state. Literally, three of them have decided to move out of Utah all within a month's time! The saying "Things always happen in threes" is ringing quite true.

Amy's family is moving to Folsom, CALIFORNIA (suburb of Sacramento)
Dave's family is moving to Portland, OREGON
Debi's family is moving to Oakland, NEW JERSEY

Emily's family already lives in Chapel Hill, NORTH CAROLINA (suburb of Raleigh)
Anthony & Angelica already live in Phoenix, ARIZONA
Liz's family already lives in Salt Lake City, UTAH.

...and then there's Jeff & I who announced we'd be moving to Uganda, AFRICA only a few months ago, but now that's old news compared to what's come about. They'll all be gone by the time we leave in July too. That's all of the orignal seven children of my parents living in different states! Life will sure change for my parents..and Liz's family - here all alone.

Bank Tale

2011-02-07T17:19:00.001-08:00

Went to the bank this afternoon to deposit happy check (aka recording check). I had to go in since it was made out to the old last name and I didn't know the savings account number. The teller was very accomodating of my differing last names (luckly I had my old drivers license w/ the old last name). I hate it when bank tellers pry into your life asking you rediculous assuming questions such as "How was school?"...assuming you're a student. HOWEVER, today when the bank teller pryed, I didn't mind so much.
TELLER: (reading the check) "Warner Music Group, what do you do for that company?"
ME: "Record music for movies, tv shows, commercials, etc."
TELLER: "WOW, that's really cool"
ME: "Yep!" (but thinking "You know my job is way cooler than yours right now.")

Recording session checks are like free money to me. I would record for free I enjoy it so much (but I'd never tell Warner Music Group that of course). SO when I get these random checks in the mail, it's like free money!

Health Insurance Gamble

2011-02-03T08:20:00.000-08:00

Gambling with life? You could describe it that way I suppose. Except I must not be crazy since 46 million other Americans are doing it too, opting out of having health insurance that is. For almost a year, and longer for Jeff, I've been without health insurance. I made this decision after weighing out pros and cons, and after trying it out for nearly a year, I'm proud to say I made the right decision.

If we had chosen to have health insurance for the two of us through his employment, we would have paid $2,000 since last July!
So far Jeff has gone into the doctor 0 times, and I have gone in twice and done self pay. Those two visits have costed me $300 total. (And I would've "self-payed" those anyways since the deductible was $500!) I can't believe how much money we've saved.

Now, dont get me wrong, if one of us ended up with a terminal illness, we would be in deep trouble, but that's the gamble! Call me crazy, but I was willing to take that risk. The other factor was that we are leaving the country in July and knew we couldn't even rack up the $500 deductible in that time. Knock on wood!

(Don't worry, we DO have car insurance and scooter insurance)

Sleeping Beauty

2011-01-25T11:49:00.000-08:00

When I was five years old, I had a blue velvety dress that I adored. Back then, I was CONVINCED it looked just like Princes Aurora's blue dress and wore it proudly. Oh to be 5 again. Apparently, I did this as often as real roses were present in our house. I would lay here on the couch for quite some time, probably waiting for someone to come kiss me.

Curious one

2011-01-13T11:34:00.000-08:00

You know how when little 16 month-ers get really curious when they start walking? You have to "baby proof" every room they go in. This is what I'm dealing with now that my birds can fly. It's so miraculous to have these beautiful birds flying around our living quarters, but they are sure getting curious and destructive!

Today Tako's new exploration was the recycling can. Not a surprise considering that he LOVES chewing paper. He jumped right in, fell to the bottom, & chewed up this morning's sports section. Brave bird I tell ya.

I love this one with his tail stickin straight up!

Cold January

2011-01-06T08:52:00.000-08:00

Woke up early this morning to teach a lesson at 7AM, then went back to bed. The bed was unusually soft and comfy. You know what I mean, I slept til 9:30.

Breakfast: Life cereal with cold, fresh milk
Listening to: Beethoven Symphony no. 7

I've got an appointment today for an expensive haircut. My last cut was on May 4, 2010, almost 7 months ago. I'm SO excited for some fresh ends, maybe even the bangs will come back. Jeff doesn't know about it, we'll see if he notices a difference. ;)

Tako & Marzipan (the lovebirds) are still incredibly annoying, but somehow, we still love them most of the time. Lately (since they both fly now) we have been putting them in the bathroom & closing the door so they can fly around and expend some energy. Unfortunately, they've almost completely shredded our plastic shower curtain. In my incredible creativity, I've started putting a towel over the curtain, which has worked perfectly! Now they've moved on to chewing the wicker shelf. Oh well!

This week I've been back to my normal work schedule. The break was so nice, but it's good to be back! On Tuesday, one of the cute boys in my morning preschool class gave me a delayed Christmas gift. I opened it in the car before driving home and my heart nearly melted!

It's an ornament!

A Year in Review/Highlights of 2010

2010-12-31T14:32:00.000-08:00

JANUARY 1st: The last day of our trip/honeymooon to Hawaii - Jeff and I went horseback riding on the beach in Laie, Hawaii, then got stuck on a bus, on a one way highway for a few hours before catching our flight back home that evening.

FEBRUARY: We went on a trip to St. George with Jeff's family to visit some of his grandparents and cousins. We went on a hike in Zions National Park with his dad. It was epic, and snowy!

MARCH: Performed my Senior Recital twice! Once in Provo and once in Salt Lake!
(also March) Through the help of so many of our friends, we were able to pull together $500 to send to our friend Wahab in Uganda to save his mother's life. She only needed a simple operation, but it was life or death. Thanks to all who donated. She is alive because of you!
APRIL: GRADUATION! I recieved my undergraduate Degree from Brigham Young University, and performed the musical number at commencement!
MAY: Jeff and I went on a fun trip with our friends to Sand Dunes National Park (in Colorado) and Canyonlands National Park, it was truckloads of fun!
JUNE: I got a job at Gymboree Play & Music as a teacher! Yay for jobs! (can you find me in the picture? My job is very colorful!)
JULY: Jeff got a job at the Homeless Youth Resource Center (Volunteers of America) and loves it! We also went to Colorado with Jeff's family for a large family reunion with his father's mother's family (the Bussell's).
AUGUST: My sweet husband and I celebrated our one year wedding anniversary by taking a trip to southern California. Every part of it was incredibly fun. Jeff also "officially" finished school, even though he walked in May. I was so proud of him!

SEPTEMBER: We bought our plane tickets to Italy and Uganda for July 2011 - CRAZY! I also took a fun trip up to Logan with my sister Amy to visit our sister Debi and her kids. We got had fun and got a great picture out of it too!
OCTOBER: Aside from turning 23, October was eventful as usual with our annual Halloween party. We had a ton of people show this year.
NOVEMBER: Jeff and I decided to walk to his parent's house one snowy Sunday night. It was epic, but so enjoyable to spend the time together. It took us about 3o minutes, but it was great. November was also a month of lots of U of U football. Jeff is a superfan.
DECEMBER: LOTR Marathon (which ended with some strange spontaneity), Christmas, and New Years Eve (which I am currently celebrating)
LAST BUT NOT LEAST: I wish to proudly state that I completed my New Years resolution for 2010 which was to give each of my 6 siblings a birthday gift with a $5 budget. The budget wasn't the important part but rather that I recognized each of them on their birthday. Sounds obvious, but I needed to be better at it. I'm reading for 2011, and can't wait for the new adventures!

Utah Mullet Man

2010-11-29T16:54:00.000-08:00

If you don't already know, I am married to a hard core Ute fan. My sister, Amy married one too. They are a very particular breed. He owns so many red clothes that I have to do a "red load" when I do laundry (not kidding).

This year for the long anticipated BYU-UTAH rivalry game, Jeff decided to grow out his hair into a mullet (styled by me, his hair stylist). I have strongly disliked it very much, due to its uglyness, and now that the game is past, I am excited for it to be chopped off. :) He likes how silly it looks though, and even dyed it red for the game. Luckly, the Salt Lake Tribune caught his picture. It was at least 20 degrees for the game. Good thing I watched it in the comfort of my sister's house. Oh yeah, and UTAH WON! 17-16.

October at its Best

2010-11-03T08:35:00.000-07:00

The day after my birthday, I made my first pumpkin pie. Crust & Fillling = homemade
I was very careful and thorough. Pumpkin pie is one of my most favorite things. As you can tell from the picture below, it turned out absolutely PERFECT. I was so proud! I even whipped up some whip cream to go on top.

Later that day we celebrated my birthday with Jeff's family - who are amazingly good at celebrating birthdays. We used my homemade pumpkin pie as the "birthday cake." Jeff managed to fit 23 candles on one slice of pie for me. It was quite the flame!

Jeff rediscovered his love of carving pumpkins this year. He is crazy good. Here are two of his masterpieces this year:

Last but not least, HALLOWEEN this year was a blast, as it always is. We decided not to dress up as a couple this year, but do our own thing, and it worked out well. I was an egyptian (a costume I wore in high school), and Jeff was "Prefontaine" the famous runner. Click on it to find out more. We had at least 12 friends over in our basement for a Halloween party where people brought food and drinks and we danced. It was really fun.

If you run out of Kleenex Tissues...

2010-11-03T08:31:00.000-07:00

...just put out a roll of toilet paper! My mom is awesome!

Backpacker!

2010-10-16T15:31:00.001-07:00

Last night we took a trip to REI as part of our Friday night date. Jeff wanted me to look at backpacking backpacks (the HUGE ones). Being married to Jeff, I'm pretty much useless without a backpacking backpack, and I'm going to be needing one with our travels coming up in the coming year. Anyways, I learned many things I didn't know before, such as:

-Backpacks come in sizes, depending on how long your torso is. They measured me like you get your feet measured at the shoe store. My size = small, who knew!
-Backpacks come in various sizes measured by "liters." The one I tried on was a 70 liter backpack. All I pictured was the rediculous image of me carrying a backpack full of 70 liters of water and dying.
-When people try on backpacks at REI, they encourage you to take a long walk around the store with it on to see how it feels. Yep, I walked around the store with a backpack stuffed with 20 lb. of sand bags and pillows. I felt so dumb, but Jeff seemed proud to me off.

Needless to say, we left the store with the backpack. Jeff carried it to the car and then carried it in the house as if it was his special present. Even though it's not for him, he gets an incredible satisfaction out of buying me "outback" gear. :) Fine with me!

Love This Stuff

2010-10-07T12:05:00.001-07:00

It could very well be because last night Jeff and I finished off a carton of Double Fudge Brownie ice cream, but I just have ICE CREAM on my mind today.

When we bought it at the grocery store 3 days ago (yes, be proud) we noticed that the same flavor with 1/2 the fat was the SAME price? It didn't take us long to decide which one to purchase. Afterall, if you're going to have ice cream, have some ice cream.

20 Random Facts You Probably Didn't Know About Me

2010-09-22T10:03:00.000-07:00

1. I pretend to be asleep a lot. It’s amazing how much you can get out of people believing that you’re asleep.
2. I love wearing rings and earrings. You will probably never see me not wearing either. I hate wearing necklaces and bracelets. Sometimes I suck it up and wear necklaces, but never bracelets.
3. I NEVER chew gum. I have a weird jaw condition where my tendons are way stretched out. Before I went in for treatment, my jaw would regularly come out of the socket and lock. Incredibly gross I know. So I don’t chew gum anymore & won’t for the rest of my life. It’s VERY bad for your jaw.
4. I hate wearing my hair up because it makes me look like I’m 12.
5. I get spa pedicures about 3-4 times a year. It’s my super splurge and I don’t care. It’s totally worth it to me.
6. I always have my fingernails cut short. If they grow too long it drives me crazy!
7. My fingernails are never painted. Once again, it drives me nuts.
8. I’ve performed on a Carnegie Hall stage in New York City
9. I’ve put 70,000 miles on my car since I got it in 2006 (That’s only 4 years).
10. I think most girls look really bad in Chacos – especially if they wear them with skirts. Sorry, but I just think that way.
11. When I was little, I was known for my incredible ability to make anything out of paper.
12. I have never had a nose bleed.
13. I have never broken a bone
14. I have never been out of the United States
15. I have done my makeup the same way every morning since I was 14 years old.
16. I am still very close with my first best friend that I met at age 2 – Melanie Hayes.
17. Currently, I only own one pair of functional jeans (and one pair with holes in the crotch)
18. I can’t eat apples. They cause a painful irritation in my mouth and face.
19. I have 67 first cousins (both mother’s and father’s sides combined).
20. Jeff & I are moving to Africa next year (July 2010). No, not a few months, we are moving there. Our one-way tickets are already reserved and paid for. WE ARE CRAZY!

Birthday Husband

2010-09-21T14:35:00.000-07:00

BIRTHDAY ON SEPTEMBER 15TH - 23 YEARS OLD!

Jeff grew up with each birthday of his life getting breakfast in bed. What a fantastic tradition! This is my second year doing this for Jeff and I absolutely love it! This year I made homemade cinnamon rolls (from scratch) and they turned out delicious! Sorry for the nudity.

I surprised Jeff later that day by inviting lots of friends to eat dinner with us at our favorite restaurant - Himalayan Kitchen! So many came, thanks to all who did! :)

We celebrated his birthday the next day with his family. He looks so SPECIAL in this picture! My special birthday boy...haha

CUTE lovebirds (like mine)

2010-09-09T17:48:00.000-07:00

hard not to say....
AWWWWWWWWW

yes, I have TWO of these sweetums of my own
Word.

1 Year Anniversary!

2010-08-25T13:06:00.000-07:00

HAPPILY MARRIED 1 YEAR!
Last Wednesday, Jeff and I celebrated our 1st year anniversary. I will be the first to say that I have no idea how the year went by so quickly, but it has certainly come. We are happier than we ever have been in our long 7 years together, and life with each other is simply bliss.

The night of our wedding, my mom quickly preserved the top of our beautiful wedding cake so that we could enjoy it a year later - and we did! I was shocked to find that it tasted almost exactly as fresh as it was a year ago! Except on our wedding day, I was too busy to notice it's deliciousness. One year old wedding cake, what a wonderful tradition!

Another College Degree

2010-06-30T10:23:00.000-07:00

I am proud to announce once again that LIFE IS SO GOOD!

I've almost completed two weeks of training at Gymboree and am starting to feel less overwhelmed and more confident. Yesterday my morning class was nothing short of a disaster. I was unprepared, that's all there was to it. The kids were naughty and crying because they kept hurting themselves, and were arguing with each other. For my lunch break I had to seriously pull myself together. Needless to say the rest of the day, I ROCKED my classes, especially my cute sports class of 7 boys (ages 3-5). My coworker/trainer just sat back and watched the whole thing and later said I had them "captivated." It felt so good!! The sweet kids can tell when their teacher has control and when they don't and they respond to that. Being prepared made all the difference. I love my job!

On an even brighter note, MY HUSBAND HAS A BACHELOR's DEGREE! Oh yes. Yesterday he finished his last essay out of 7 for one of his classes where teacher gave them extra assignments (after classes were over) not to be due until the end of July. Talk about crappy. I'm so proud of him that he cracked down and finshed them already. He also had a sucessful 2nd interview with Volunteers of America for a center downtown for homeless youth. He'll find out if he got the job in about 2 weeks.

I think I'll get out my violin this afternoon and PRACTICE!! :)

Sunday Funnies

2010-06-15T08:33:00.000-07:00

(This post should have been written on Sunday, but it is Tuesday, sorry)

So on Sunday, Jeff and I slept in til the normal time, then took our time getting ready and such. He worked on homework while I prepared our sunday school lesson for the 12 year-olds. It was a nice, quiet morning with my parents gone. We were really prepared for our lesson and even had homemade cookies to bring! We stepped out of our house at 5 til 1:00 and started walking, just like any other Sunday, enjoying the sunshine. To our surprise however, as we turned the corner toward the church, we were surprised to see the parking lot totally empty. There was silence/confusion, which quickly turned to laughter when we realized that we both forgot about Stake Conference! It was one of those moments where you just look at each other and can't help but take in the hilariousness. We turned around, walked home, and changed right back into our pj's! :) At least we have the lesson ready for next week!

Windy Saturday

2010-06-12T14:36:00.000-07:00

Today is windy! I should be out riding around in the sunshine on my scooter, but not today. So here I am writing another blog entry. So I guess a lot has happened lately and it's all good stuff! Life is good!

1. I cancelled my cell phone service with T-mobile last Thursday and sold my phone THAT NIGHT on ksl.com (that is a glorious website) for $20. Wahoo. I thought adjusting to sharing Jeff's phone would be hard, but it's really been nice. It will be a nice bill not to have to pay each month too. WHEW!

2. This morning I took my parents to the airport so they could fly away to North Carolina to see my sister Emily + family. Jeff and I have the whole house to ourselves for the week. We've already enjoyed yelling otherwise inapropriate phrases that you'd normally never want your parents to hear. Oh what fun. :)

3. I dont think I ever mentioned that Jeff and I are growing some greens in the garden! We're growing an assortment of lettuce, spinach, and trying to get some sage growing (which comes back every year). It's been fun to watch and is slowly coming up out of the earth!

4. JOBS!! I'm well on my way to start working as a teacher for Gymboree which will be a fun job. I've already had 2 interviews and have basically been hired, but they're being slow. They'll only give me 15 hours a week but it should be a nice addition to our income. Jeff has already had two job interviews that he's really excited about. We're both just waiting to hear back and get started! It'll be crazy to make enough money to start saving again! That will be nice. :)

5. Jeff only has like a week + half of school left. It totally sucks for him because it's extremely hard, but he's doing so well and I'm really proud of him. He's also trainin' hard for the race coming up. You'd think I never saw him with all that!

Tako Munene

2010-06-03T09:42:00.000-07:00

I wont tell you what that actually means in Luganda, but it's what we call our sweet lovebird. He is so much fun, and the perfect pet for Jeff and I. He's so loyal and hilarious and just plain adorable. I'm the one in the relationship who wanted a bird, but Jeff has fallen in love since too. We spoil him rotten but he keeps us company and makes us laugh. Enjoy this brief video that is a simple window into our life of love for this sweet little green bird.

One Year Ago Today...

2010-06-03T09:19:00.000-07:00

Last year Jeff was gone for 4 months on an internship in Uganda, Africa. I was in the 2nd half of my junior year and living the life in the "Connexsh." It was a good time, but a lonely time. Jeff did what he could while he was away to keep me company and stay in contact, but it was difficult due to the circumstances. We made a count-down-chain for me to count down the days left til he came home. Every so often there would be a message on a ring saying random things such as, "You should march around today" (For March 1st) or "I think today is Michael Jordan's birthday," just to keep my spirits up, and it did. But at the same time it drove me crazy taking off one chain link every day.
June 3rd was the day I was counting down to. His flight got in at 12:30 in the afternoon and it was a moment I will never forget. Later that day he took me to a high peak overlooking the Salt Lake valley and proposed. I can't believe it's already been a year! What a day that was!

I didn't think to take a picture when I first put it up, but at the beginning it extended almost all the way to the floor on the other side!

Only 3 days left!

Sunshine Makes Everything Good

2010-05-25T10:15:00.000-07:00

Ah, life is so good right now.

I'm just sitting in the backyard in the sun with my lovebird, Tako, who is having a converesation with the backyard birds. I wonder if he understands them, even though they are from opposite ends of the earth. Maybe he just loves imitating their songs. He loves the sunshine and fresh air, and so do I. I also love how my diamond responds to sunlight. Diamonds are spectacular in sunlight, they get crazy sparkly and they dance! Something funny happens to you, I guess that's why men choose to present a diamond before they ask you the most important question. They need a little extra sway. ;)

Jeff is off to school for one of his gruesome Tues/Thur where he has 3 classes from 9-12, 1-4, and 5-8. YIKES! He's a good sport though and packs lots of food. I'm so grateful that he is a good man. Yesterday I signed him up for the Wahsatch Steeplechase race, which is 17 miles up a mountain (dirt trail) and down. He will rock it. Trails are his running sanctuary and I'm so excited that he has something to look forward to. He has been getting up at 6 AM every morning to get a 2 hour run in before school.

Last night he made Jamaican chicken kabobs with pasta and steamed spinach leaves grown from his parent's garden. It was delicious, and we have so much fun together. 9 months together!

p.s. I'm making another batch of wheat/white bread today too. :) Life is GOOD

Homemade Bread!

2010-05-18T16:24:00.000-07:00

Apparently, before I came around, my mother used to make 4 loaves of bread every other day for her other six hungry children. My two brothers would each consume one each while the other 2 loaves were devoured quickly by the others. These loaves were half wheat half white and the aroma spread throughout the household.

A while ago, my mom remembered this memory and sadly shared it with me realizing that I never got to experience. She promised me she would show me the recipe and we would make it together. Today was that day and it was GLORIOUS! My dad came in at one point and said "Ohh, I remember this smell, but it's been YEARS!"

Sand Dunes & Canyonlands

2010-05-18T16:16:00.000-07:00

SAND DUNES
NATIONAL PARK
(Colorado)

Imagine being in the Sahara Dessert. There's sand everywhere on your body, and it's really windy. But it's like being in a GIGANTIC sand box, and you can climb to the tallest peaks and just jump off and land in a soft bed of sand. That's where we were
....totally awesome!

_____________________________________
CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK (Utah)

For the second part of our trip we spent in the southern part of Canyonlands - the Needles District. SO many good stories came out of this time well spent. The scenery was spectacular and everything was in bloom which was breathtaking against the red rock and blue skies.

Not to brag, but the best part was being with my rugged "REI" man that I happen to be married to. He made sure I was comfortable and happy the whole time, which I was. :)

These beautiful cactus's had the most beautiful blooms that only come out once a year! Pretty!

...not pictured: Alex, Jamie, Budge, Kenneth, Brazil, and Adrianna, who were all there too.

New Hair!

2010-05-04T17:34:00.000-07:00

BANGS!

A new era of life deserves a new look. I feel new.

College Graduate!

2010-04-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

I DID IT!

Nice Weather = Funny Faces

2010-04-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

This weekend was really fun..the great weather helped a little.

My brother Anthony and his girlfriend Natalie came to visit.

We made lots of crepes.

My dad painted the gazebo and fixed the basketball hoop.

He even bought a new net and basketball for it.

Jeff and me, and the kids (nieces & nephews) had fun with it all weekend.

Life is too much fun sometimes.

Jeff has been doing so well with staying focused with school this week..

while I've been taking finals and celebrating (and practicing my piece for graduation)

Life is good!

ONLY 3 DAYS TIL COLLEGE DIPOLMA!

Lasts, Laughs, and Love

2010-04-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

TODAY IS MY LAST DAY OF SCHOOL EVER! (unless I get a master's degree, but it's not looking promising as of now)
But isn't that crazy? This morning while walking to class I thought to myself "I will never walk to a BYU class again. At every cubicle I've sat in today in the library I've thought "this is my last time cramming for a huge paper that's due in an hour!" Every bathroom..well you get the point.

Today I had my last violin lesson with my wonderful-wise teacher Barbara Williams. We worked on the piece I'm playing for convocation and the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto that I've just been working on for a short while.

Last Saturday was my LAST concert with the BYU Philharmonic. It was glorious though - we ended with none other than Beethoven's Fifth Sympony (da da da DA!) and while playing the last movement, I got teary eyed. I was lucky to have Jeff's parents and Kyle there to support me while no one else could.

I quickly grabbed a group of friends for a picture right after we walked off stage. I picked a pretty good group I'd say!

And then went to greet my wonderful supporters! Kyle was especially complimentary of the performance - what an awesome kid!

Jeff and I have been LAUGHING a lot lately. Just laughing about anything and everything. Forgive me for being mushy for a second, but there is something indescribable about loving someone so much that you can just completely let go and be hillarious and know that you're still loved. We have SO much fun in our little basement apartment in my parents house. There is so much love in that basement. Jeff is so good to me. He manages the one thing in my life that I can't handle (and there's only one thing), and that is my eating schedule. If I were left to my own, I would not remember to eat. Honestly and truly I know it sounds like I'm anorexic, but I'M NOT. I just have this incredible abilty to keep going without food! I dont get hungry very often and when I do I'm good at ignoring it. Anyways, enough about me, Jeff feeds me good. You get it. :)

Life is good! 10 days til COLLEGE DIPLOMA!

Another Contemplation on My Life

2010-04-09T18:37:00.000-07:00

It's time to crack down and express myself again on this blog. Yes I need to be working on my various homework assignments. The last day of class is in four days, and that's when I have a billion things due. But they will get done. They always do. It's a little weird that this is my last semester. Every morning lately while walking from my car to campus I try to soak it in a little more. I can't believe I've been walking around this campus for four years, and all the sudden, I'm not going to come back. THANK GOODNESS, but it's a little sad for me at the same time.

Jeff left me again for the weekend. He's enrolled in a backpacking class that gives him 2 credits. I'm not sure what else Jeff' needs to learn about backpacking other than wearing pants is a good idea, but he needed the credits. He wasn't too excited about all of the rules and the extensive packing list, but he'll need the break before his HUGE finals schedule. Nevertheless, I'm alone. Just me and my homework. Jeff and I figured out last weekend that I have no friends. You're probably thinking, "I'm her friend," but I don't hang out with people out of choice anymore. I barely have time to eat, and when I DO have time, I freaking want to be with Jeff. Sounds like the typical anti-social married person, I know, but maybe those of you who are married might understand. It's sure lonely when he leaves though. I do miss friends too.

So I will continue with the homework. Happy Friday Night! :(

I'm Busy

2010-03-23T15:30:00.000-07:00

I'm a busy woman.
I have woken up early the past two days to run.
I used to run, and then the weather got cold, and I'm a wimp in the cold, so I stopped.
But now I'm running again. It feels good.
But I'm sore.

I drive for 60 minutes every morning to school.
It's a difficult drive in the morning for me..I'd rather be sleeping (shhh)
Class, practicing, class, homework, research, teaching, etc.
Then I drive home, for 60 minutes.

When I get home, I try to be pleasant and love my husband
But sometimes we miss each other so much that we just get mad at each other
Those are hard days because we both need love, but neither are willing to give it first.
Why? Why do we have to battle pride when we know we love?

.........

Graduation is coming up.
It's hard for me to picture a life without school.
I haven't known a life like that since I was three years old.
Does anyone remember life at age three? I didn't think so.
So...this will be a completely new life.
I hope I can make the adjustment! (haha, shouldn't be hard right?)

Someday I will be able to be a loving wife with a full day of patient love.
Not a student that is tired and busy ALL the time, with marriage on the side.
On these days I will practice violin simply because I want to... and because I love it.

Nevertheless, through it all, he still loves me. WOW. What a man. :)

Two Messages for the Day

2010-03-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

My bird snuggles me

My husband is a gorgeous man

with blue eyes

News of the Day

2010-03-12T13:40:00.000-08:00

So this morning I was sitting on a bench at school just outside my classroom, finishing my homework assignment for my next class. I heard someone call "Melissa?" and it was one of the School of Music Administration secretaries. I thought for sure I was in trouble. She asked, "You're graduating this semester, correct?" I was thinking, oh man, I'm not going to get to graduate, or SOMETHING! But luckly, it wasn't that.

Instead, she told me I had been selected to perform at our Convocation ceremony! I was the first choice, and she told me that the faculty gets together and discusses which graduating students would be good candidates for this. I felt so honored! Of course I said yes. Now I will have something to work on! Cool huh!

Senior Recital

2010-03-08T20:46:00.000-08:00

My senior recital was on Thursday, March 4th at BYU
and
Saturday, March 6th at the UofU

It took a lot of energy to play two that close together, but I did it! And I felt good about it too.

One of the highlights was that 3 people after my Salt Lake recital told me that it brought them to tears! Wow! What an honor!

I have wonderful friends who all came - thanks guys! Thanks to my amazing family too. :)

I Made Ice Cream!

2010-02-22T20:35:00.000-08:00

Raspberry - MMM!

Raspberry Ice Cream

1 c. sugar

3 c. whole milk

1 c. whipping cream

6 egg yolks, slightly beaten

1 t. vanilla

In a saucepan, combine sugar, milk, cream, and egg yolks. Heat and stir over medium heat until mixture thickens slightly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla.

Place saucepan in ice water until it reaches a cool temperature, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, blend a whole 16 oz. package of frozen raspberries (thawed). Once mixture is cool, stir in blended raspberries until fully enveloped.

Cover with saran wrap and chill in the fridge for 4-24 hours.

Then freeze with an ice cream maker and whala! ICE CREAM! YUMMY!

Weekend Vacation

2010-02-22T18:40:00.000-08:00

Departure: Friday at 3:00 PM
Arrival back Home: Sunday at 7:30 PM

This last weekend, Jeff and I took a SHORT weekend vacation with his family to St. George, Utah to meet up with his mother's parents and sister's family. On Saturday, we drove to Zion National Park where Jeff, his dad John, and I went on an awesome hike 2 miles up Observation Point trail. It was rainy and very cold most of the day until we started walking, which then it changed to sunlight with clouds hovering over the tops of the ridges. With snow over the red rock, it couldn't have been more picturesque.

Too much driving in such a short amount of time in my opinion, but a great weekend with family! Now I know his mom's side MUCH better. :)

Here's some pictures from our hike!

Valentine's Day!

2010-02-16T17:22:00.000-08:00

...A SUCCESS! (though celebrated Saturday evening, Feb. 13th)

I promised myself I'd take a few pictures of this lovely evening so I could share it with you all on my blog, but it was too much fun that I forgot. It's a good thing I guess.

About a month ago, I told Jeff that I wanted to be in charge of Valentine's Day this year. It would be our first Vday as a married couple, and 6 years since our first date (and first kiss!). I wanted to make sure things were done right - I'm sure you ladies can relate.

The title on the night I guess you could say was "First Date." My original intent was to serve him dinner in the middle of a parking lot at the airport, planes flying overhead, like he did for me 6 years ago. But unfortunately, that wasn't going to work, so I quickly changed it to the comfort of our own basement apartment.

I served him the same dish he made for me: Bowtie pasta with chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and broccoli. I also made red/strawberry Jell-o and made heart shaped jigglers from cookie cutters. It was so cute! We had sparkling martinellis cider with just the light of candle light. It was incredibly well prepared, if I do say so myself, and VERY delicious. Jeff even said that it was one of his favorite meals ever, and he would choose it, if he had to choose one last meal before dying. haha, pretty sincere that man.

Afterward we made valentine's for our family while watching the Olympics in Vancouver. Then we organized the couch into a blanket fort and watched one of our favorite movies, "The Notebook."

Ah.. it sure feels good to do Valentine's Day just the way you like. :)

p.s. Jeff did participate in the holiday by getting me a gorgeous bouquet of red flowers. Good man. :)

200 miles not driven.

2010-02-16T17:12:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I didn't have to drive to Provo. No School because of President's Day. 100 miles saved.

Tonight I am stayin with my lovely girls at the connexsh, my old apartment, back from the days when I wished I was married to Jeff. I will miss Jeff tonight, but it will save me another 100 miles.

200 miles costs me about $25 - pretty awesome

Thanks Connexsh! :) Oh the memories in this place.

My Green Pitch

2010-02-08T21:10:00.000-08:00

There is a green bird sitting on my shoulder. He is adorable, but he wont let me scratch his neck or pet him, and oh, how I want to ... so bad. But this post is not about the color green, it's about being eco-friendly, or in other words "green." Everyone's doing it.

Jeff and I just got back from the grocery stores tonight. Yes, plural. We buy fresh produce (eggs, fruit, veggies, meat, etc) at Whole Foods, and everything else at Dans. The $$ we paid at each grocery store used to be about equal. Now it is about 30% Dans and 70% Whole Foods.   We're finding more and more excuses to buys things there.
   "It's better to support these people"
                                        "It tastes better anyway!"
                                                                      "It's better for you anyway"

We are extremely poor, yet we buy good food. Hopefully we are just good examples to our friends & family of how you shouldn't complain that food that is good for you and the environment has to cost more. You really pay for what is most important to you in life. Some people spend $60 every two months to get their hair done. Some people spend $100 a month to feed their dogs. Why? Because they care about that stuff. Shouldn't people care about not feeding themselves crap food?

New Recipes

2010-02-03T19:21:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday before Jeff and I went to the grocery store together, I suggested that we each look through our various cookbooks and each pick a new recipe that we could try for this week. Jeff picked Jamaican Steak with Pineapple Salsa. I picked Cream of Potato soup. You can see our differences in cooking curiosity. But they were both wonderful. Jeff made the steak on Monday night. Not surprisingly, it was DELICIOUS! I'll admit I had to step slightly out of my comfort zone to be okay with pineapple mixed with cilantro and other stuff, but I'm glad I did. I made the cream of potato soup tonight. It was the ultimate definition of comfort food, and so easy to make. I love being married. :)

Be Careful, Someone Might Be Watching You

2010-01-28T16:11:00.000-08:00

I have always treasured this paper that my niece's teacher sent me when she was in 7th grade. I never knew she considered me a "hero." I guess it just goes to show you never know who's admiring you so you've gotta always be there and be a good example. You might change people's lives and not ever know it.

Tako

2010-01-26T11:35:00.001-08:00

On Monday, January 18th, Jeff & I bought a baby lovebird and named him Tako (pronounced the same as taco). He is so much fun.

Much Needed Update

2010-01-26T11:03:00.001-08:00

CHRiSTMAS 2OO9
*I haven't blogged forever! Since before finals! Here is an update from the Holidays! :)

..with the Combe family - new PJ's!

...our first Christmas tree!!

HAWAII HONEYMOON!!

...just enjoying a Waikiki Beach sunset

...Haunama Bay after snorkeling

The Wall Before Me

2009-12-03T17:17:00.000-08:00

Wow. I'm really at a wall right now as the end of the semester is approaching. There's no easy way out other than up and over. Grr. Here is my "List of Stresses"

1. I have to polish and MEMORIZE my pieces for juries (violin performance final). Why did I pick two incredibly difficult pieces this semester? Why? Brahms Violin Concerto 1st mvt and Bach Sonata no. 2 Fugue!!!!!

2. I have to take a D&C test before Monday that ISN'T the final. :(

3. I have a whole bunch of listening to complete for String Lit. Probably 24 hours of music, no joke. I try to listen whenever I can - while studying, facebooking, doing dishes, driving, etc.

4. AH! CHRISTMAS CONCERT - why are you making my life difficult AGAIN this year? Tonight 7-9, Friday 8-10, Saturday 3-5 & 8-10. Because of this "jolly" concert, I will not see my husband this weekend. :(

5. I have to perform 1st violin in the String Chamber night with my quintet next Wednesday = LOTS of pressure and super intimidating and scary. Oh well, at least we're playing an awesome piece - Brahms Piano Quintet!

6. FINALS!!!

a. Music History Listening (36 major music works, memorized)

b. Music History Written

c. D&C Comprehensive Final

d. String Lit Final Project (Super weird 20th century Swedish piece I'm learning)

....at least I don't have to write another paper. I absolutely despise writing papers!

..it's just so hard to focus when I can't stop thinking about here..

That's where I will be 3 weeks from today with my Jeffrey!!!

Jr. Bridesmaids

2009-11-13T16:01:00.000-08:00

These three are my nieces, they were my "Jr. Bridesmaids."

Anne: short blonde hair (daughter of oldest sister, Elizabeth)

Allison: brown hair (daughter of my oldest brother, David)

Catriona: long blonde hair

(daugher of my 2nd oldest sister, Emily)

They stuck together during the reception. Their dresses matched!

Unfortunately, the photographer caught them at some moments where they appeared to not be having too much fun.

But they sure looked cute didn't they!!

The Diva

2009-10-29T09:39:00.000-07:00

Women: read this, it just might change your life.
Men (if there are any that read my blog): Do not read this, it does not apply to you at all.

I've been wanting to write about this for a long time, but I had to make sure it was "all that," enough to rave about on my blog, and after 3 months, I am completely ESTATIC!

Most of us probably dont remember when tampons were invented and pattented to the public, but I'm sure many women were skeptical, especially with the risks. But I'm positive that the women who were brave enough to try it were amazed with them. But I am here to inform you that there is something even better out there now. It's called the Diva Cup, and I can't express enough to say that it is AMAZING. Imagine a world with no tampons or pads, no stained clothes because of a 100% guarantee of no leaks, and the option to leave it in for super long if you want, and no risk of TSS??? (Not to mention it's extremely environmentally friendly) This is it! The only catch, well, you have to be brave, just like the early tampon users had to be. Also, I wouldn't recommend it to virgins because it's pretty big coming out. But seriously, take it from me, one who was willing to embrace the unknown. I am hooked for life. Read all about it at: www.divacup.com

Birthday!

2009-10-21T11:17:00.000-07:00

YEP! Yesterday was my birthday. Unfortunately, life goes on, even if it's your birthday. But you must do what you can to push aside unneccesary things in order to make the day feel different. This was my first birthday with a husband, and I must say, it was wonderful. In the morning I woke up to Jeff singing "Happy Birthday" with breakfast for me. He put trick candles in my scrambled eggs. :P He even decorated our little "apartment" with streamers and wrote all over the bathroom mirror. It made my early 6AM morning not so bad.

After hours and hours on BYU campus doing my normal Tuesday thing (class, practicing, teaching, took a test too!), I got permission to skip my last class on "birthday leave" and went home early. Melanie came over and gave me a hug and a box of pretty cupcakes that tasted just as gorgeous as they looked. So thoughtful that Melanie of mine!

The night consisted of eating at our (Jeff and my) favorite burger joint, B&D's with about 10 of our closests friends and then watching a movie, just the two of us. I got it good when I married Jeff. I am SO happy. It was a birthday with lots of love. :) Thanks to all for making me feel special.

This is All Real

2009-10-06T10:34:00.000-07:00

One of the things that has troubled me the most in these past few months has been when married people try to tell me the "truth" about marriage, as if they thought they were doing me a favor. They admit, as if being incredibly wise, that marriage is incredibly hard most of the time and only occasionally a ray of sunlight shines through that helps you carry yourself through to the next one.

I am not an expert on marriage, I've only been married for seven weeks. I know that every couple is different, each one having their own issues and problems. I also know that there are just a few small recipes needed for a sucessful marriage.

-- Love, Unselfishness, Devotion, Forgiveness...basically true love. It sounds so cliche but it is so true, when you really understand what real love is. I'm not trying to say that Jeff and I dont have our problems, because we definitely do, but they are so small and insignificant because it is the constant rays of sunlight that shine through them. If you want an honest opinion about marriage, from my point of view, I will share it. But this only applies if the two really, honestly and truly have a near perfect love for one another - the kind of love where your every action revolves around making the other happier or making their life a little easier. Marriage is all SUNLIGHT - while the rare difficulties can only last a very short time until the strong sunlight shines through them once again.

These pictures look like a dream, but it is all real.

Sweet Gestures

2009-09-30T15:04:00.000-07:00

I have the sweetest husband in the world. This was his "to-do list" I found for the day...

Bride and Groom

2009-09-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

. august . 18 . 2009 .
SO HAPPY!!!!!

24 AMAZING days of marriage. I finally recieved this one picture yesterday from my sister-in-law Meg, the first picture I've seen of the two of us on our wedding day. I am dying for more from my photographer..but he's taking a long time. Maybe that's a good thing though....

more to come....soon I hope!

Violin Section Pizza Dinner

2009-08-03T07:22:00.000-07:00

Last night this really wonderful couple from Evergreen (near Breckenridge) hosted all of the NRO violin for dinner. They had an amazing "pizza bar" set up in their backyard where we could pick any toppings and create our own pizza. Then they cooked it on a pizza stone in the grill! They turned out absolutely delicious! Tons of fun too!

The fixins for the pizza - they had anything you could want!

Jen and me and the chef with our pizza creation: chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and basil leaves with mozzerela and parmesan cheese. MMMMMM

The group picture (this is about half of the violins..only half of us showed up, the others probably were practicing)

Then afterwards, they had us all initial their table! It was so cool!

This is the final display of all of our initials!

Getting Excited!

2009-08-01T14:00:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to slowly go crazy excited for my wedding. After today, it's just 16 days left.
Pinch me, 16...REALLY???

So far the wedding planning is going smoothly. I'm still in Colorado violining, and my mom is saving my life back at home. She's told me that there are several gifts and envelopes that have arrived at the house already! What an exciting thing to come home to!

Other excited things to come home to: Um...JEFF of course :) He will be at the airport to pick me up (with my mom) in just 7 days. I can't even begin to express how ready I am to get out of this place and go home. On the way home from the airport, we have to stop at the dress place so I can try on my dress that finally finished being made and make any final adjustments. I actually have never tried it on in my size so I'm so excited!!!! Jeff will be waiting in the car when this happens of course. ;)

Announcements are out, incorrect/outdated addressed envelopes are trickling back, almost all of the bridesmaids and jr. bridesmaid dresses are done. My mom did an amazing job sewing them all - she holds up the world! All reservations have been made...still need to call and double check with everyone.

Still need to be done: I need shoes, we need to find a nice tv to display our slideshow on. Anyone know of anyone that would be willing to share? If not we'll have to rent. Also, I need to figure out the audio situation for the reception.

I can't wait to see my whole family all at once! My sister and her family of 5 are coming from North Carlolina, and my brother Anthony and his GF are coming from Arizona, and everyone else of course. This hasn't happened since 2005! Plus there are several new members now. I also can't wait to see friends and just have a party. It will be amazing. :) Yay for marriage.

Evolution of Dinosaurs

2009-07-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

Take a moment and remember your childhood (if you are part of my generation). Remember the Disney movie, "Fantasia?" Remember the ponies and the dinosaurs and the hippos in tutus? Well all of those were set to famous orchestral works like Beethoven's 7th Symphony or Tchaikovsky's Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies, maybe you didn't know that. Well, I am performing the evolution and dinosaur one this evening with my orchestra. It's called "The Rite of Spring," by Igor Stravinsky. Click here if you need a memory refresher. It's a good thing Disney set the piece to dinosaurs and didn't depict the actual story that it's about..sort of gruesome.

A Visit from Mr. Wonderful

2009-07-22T09:35:00.000-07:00

I'm still in Breckenridge, Colorado. On Sunday, my Mom and Jeff came here to visit. It was the most wonderful thing in the world to see them, and especially to hug Jeff. It had been 5 weeks since we had seen each other, but it felt like so much longer. Each day seems to be drawn out to the length of a whole week here with our busy and demanding schedules. When I saw Jeff, I completely forgot where I was and what day it was, and all that mattered was that we were together. I love him so much.

Needless to say, we had the most wonderful 3 days together. The three of us stayed together in their rented condo. My mom brought the wedding announcements and we stuffed envelopes, addressed, stamped, and sealed together. It was so exciting to see it all together! On Monday, Jeff and I took 2 full bags of wedding announcements to the Breckenridge post office. They're in the mail!

Yesterday, Tuesday, Jeff and I hiked our first "Fourteener." In case you dont know (I didn't know), a fourteener is a mountain peak that exceeds 14,000 feet elevation. We hiked Quandry Peak, which is at an elevation of 14,265 feet..and I could sure feel it. It was definitely uphill the whole way, but we made it! Well, of course Jeff made it, but I was proud of myself. We enjoyed it so much, especially seeing MANY large mountain goats.

Thanks to my wonderful Mother, this was made possible. She was so wonderful. We had some great laughs together and she seemed to love the "escape" and free time.

Only 2 and 1/2 weeks left here and then I don't have to be apart from Jeff for a long time. After almost 3 1/2 years of battling a "long distance relationship," we finally get to be together.

27 days til I marry that man. YAY! :)

Quandry Peak from the Bottom

On our way up! So tired but so excited!

This is me about to face this mountain. Jeff says that I kicked it's butt

Us at the top with a cool sign someone let us use. WE DID IT!

Sweet mountain goat. These awesome creatures were everywhere and they were super chill - they would come so close to us and just be like "whatev, you hikers are harmless." And to come up against those horns, we were. They were so cool!

Check it out! Four of these guys all at once! And right on the trail! Jeff and I stopped to hang out with them for about 15 minutes. It was so cool.

Recent Events of Awesomeness

2009-07-17T12:02:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday I spent the day with my friends at the Breckenridge Peak 8 Fun Park for Christa's 23rd birthday. We had all day passes given to us by a generous donor, and got everything unlimited. It was TONS of fun!

This is the crazy spin thing that I thought wouldn't be scary. And much to my surprise, it was, but also very, very fun. :)

This is me on the rock wall - on the "hard" side

This is the group I went with at the top of the hill about to go down the run alpine slide (way better than the one at Park City) From left to right: Rachel, Christa, Jen, Calvin, & Me!

This is a good view of the slide from the lift

Me all alone on the lift. With a group of 5, someone had to go alone, so we took turns. :)

I made a chocolate/chocolate (double stacked) for Christa for her birthday. This is me about to use my skills to write the "happy birthday."

This is Christa with her cake!

Today and Thinking about Tomorrow

2009-07-08T15:21:00.000-07:00

My mom sent me some 200 beautiful envelopes, some return address stickers, and a nice pen.

FUN!

Tonight the orchestra is performing a wicked awesome concert. To some, this program may mean nothing to you. To others, you might see what I'm saying.

The Overture to the Bartered Bride - Smetena

Piano Concerto no. 3 - Prokofiev

Symphony no. 5 - Shostakovich

SWEET!

My parents and Jeff are coming to visit me in Breckenridge in 9 days!

Jeff and I are getting married in 41 days!

Words?

2009-07-03T09:02:00.000-07:00

What are these? If you're a regular blogger, you'll recognize them as the weird "non-words" that you have to type to prove that you're a real person when you want to comment on someone's post. My favorite thing about them is that they actually look and sound like they could be real words with real definitions. If you're bored, you can pick one and make up a definition! Common, you know you want to!!!

Diamond Ring

2009-07-02T16:23:00.000-07:00

Hi friends. This is the engagment ring that Jeff gave me. Isn't it pretty?

Patriotic Music

2009-07-02T14:38:00.000-07:00

The orchestra is getting ready to perform 3 concerts on the 4th of July. One at 10 AM, one at 3:30 and another one at 8:30. We're playing all of the patriotic classics like Stars and Stripes Forever, the Star-Spangled Banner, America the Beautiful, etc. In my family, it's tradition every 4th of July to watch the fireworks at Sugarhouse Park [for free] by the rose bushes. I always love hearing the Utah Symphony playing in the background. After rehearsing all of that music this morning, it made me really sad that I'm not going to get to be home this summer for this fun holiday. I'll miss the parade, the scones, the waterslide, the waterballoons, the frisbee playing, the otter pops, and of course the fireworks. But at least I'm playing the great music that goes with it - 3 times! If I was home, I probably wouldn't get to do this, so I am happy. :)

Good Habits for Good Mornings

2009-06-29T11:18:00.001-07:00

The days up here in the mountains of Colorado are gradually getting warmer. Since day 1 here, I resolved to start developing some good habits such as going to bed early every night and waking up early. Early to bed at night means about 10:30/11:00 PM and waking up early means 7:00/7:30. The great thing about being here is that it's not hard to go to bed that early because there's nothing entertaining enough to make me want to stay up late. During the first half of the year, my incredibly entertaining Connexsh women would give me reasons every night to stay up late. I won't lie - that was a fun time of life, but this summer is giving me a perfect opportunity to change as I prepare to enter a new phase of life - MARRIAGE!

Another good habit I am trying to instill in myself is leaving a lot of time for myself in the morning. I forgot how much I loved peaceful mornings til I got here. Mornings can be so incredible and I am a firm believer that a good morning can carry you throughout the rest of the day. I have been working on waking up with enough time to go on a short run, take a quick shower, and then get ready slow, make a really good breakfast and eat it slow. By this time, my roommates are usually starting to get up so for the last 30 minutes or so of the morning I go out on the deck and sit in the chair and just let my mind relax and daydream. It's wonderful. Sure sleeping in is wonderful every so often (I'm thinking once a month), but I am so excited about having good mornings.

NRO

2009-06-26T16:41:00.001-07:00

This is the National Repertory Orchestra. This is my orchestra for the summer. SWEET!

(p.s. You can find me in a white shirt on the 5th stand of the 1st violin section)

This One

2009-06-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

Ohh yes.

This is the sweetest man on earth.

This one is definitely mine.

I love him... a lot.

..53 days

We're Walking

2009-06-24T12:05:00.000-07:00

A few years ago when I was 15 or so, I was walking with my parents. I noticed my mom was walking in front of me, and my dad was walking behind me. I remember calling out to my mom, "You're walking too fast," and then turning back to my dad saying "Keep up you slow poke!"

My mom and I talked later and she told me that one of the things that has always frustrated her about my dad is that he walks slow. But she admitted that she likes to walk fast everywhere. Well, I am convinced now that I inherited that trait from her.

If you live accross the street from me, you'll notice quickly that I like to run from my car to the front door when I get home, or run from the front door to the car. I'm sure it looks quite funny. When I'm on a schedule, I like to get to my destinations quicly!

Here in Breckenridge, I live about a 1/2 mile up a very steep hill from our rehearsal location. Typically after rehearsals each day, I walk back to my condo with my roommates. It's the most frustrating thing in the world. They walk SO slow and I can't stand it!!!!

1. It's higher altitude here, and especially

for them because they come from near

sea level - which means they literally

can't breathe going up that hill as well

as I can.

2. They're tired from our rehearsal, and from

staying out late each night (which I don't participate in for wise purposes)

3. They don't have the "walking fast"

gene that I have. It drives me absolutely

crazy. Does anyone besides my mom suffer

from this? It would sure make me feel better.

A Little Taste of My Wedding

2009-06-22T19:59:00.000-07:00

A Good Morning

2009-06-20T09:05:00.000-07:00

Last night the NRO offered everyone a free dinner and 2 free drink tickets at this town pizzeria/bar to follow our first concert - which was successful. I decided to go for the dinner, since I was really hungry. And yes, the food was great. I gave me 2 drink tickets to my roommates and left pretty soon after I finished my food. I didn't want to be around when everyone got slammed. Jeff stayed on the phone with me while I walked home alone.

Apparently when my roommate gets drunk she snores, like obnoxious snoring. Around 5 AM, I moved my pillow and comforter and myself to the couch and was able to comfortably finish my night of sleep. I loved waking up the sunrise from the huge window in front of me facing east. The sun came up slow, and the leaves of the aspen tree right outside the window glowed. My roommates were hours from waking up, which made it feel like I was all alone and made it extra peacefull.

I got up and poured out a yoplait yogurt into a bowl, sprinkled some yummy granola and fresh raspberries on top, and it a very delicious start to my morning. Took a long shower, went outside on the deck for a little while to breathe the crisp mountain air. I will complain a lot while I am here that I miss home, and that I miss Jeff. But mornings like this remind me that I'm going to be just fine. You just have to take each day, one at a time, and find time to just go slow and take in the moments. Everyone knows I want more than anything for it to be August right now, but now is a time in my life that will never come again. I need to appreciate it while it's here. August will come when it comes. But now is now.

Happy In Love

2009-06-17T21:27:00.000-07:00

OK....cutest picture EVER!!!

That is all I have to say

Life Update

2009-06-15T08:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, life was so good for the last two weeks. First of all (and most importantly), Jeff came home from Africa, and it was so undescribable to finally be near him again. On the first night he was home, we went on a hike to the top of one of Salt Lake's peaks, and up there he proposed. After almost 5 and half years of dating, we are finally getting married! I can't even describe with words how happy I am so I'm not even going to try. But the rest of our days together were spent planning a wedding and loving each other as much as possible. Wedding planning was crazy. You name it, we did it all. It was so fun though, and so amazing being with him every day after not seeing him for 4 months. He changed a lot while he was gone, in wonderful ways of course. I'm so ready to never leave his sight again.

But now that happy phase is over. I'm desperately homesick. I'm even more Jeffsick. I'm in Breckenridge, Colorado about to begin an 8-week long program with the National Repertory Orchestra. Traveling yesterday took forever, as the plane flight was short, but the waiting time and bus shuttling time took the rest of the day. We don't have our first rehearsal til tonight. I know once we start rehearsing and playing I will feel better, but for now I'm just alone and sad. I'm staying in a nice condo with 4 other people. My roommate has a sort of harsh personality that migh take me a while to get used to. I think she's acting this way particularly because she found out I was from BYU, and she knows what that means. Hopefully I can show her over time that her perspective should change. The others are really nice though, luckly.

Standing at the beginning with the rest of the time left is not the best place to be. One day down, 55 left to go. That's not nearly as bad as when I started counting down when Jeff left at 115. I will be blogging much more now that I'm here. Not many people read my blog, in fact, I could count them with the fingers on one hand, so I feel safe. Those of you who do read, spare me some love if you can, maybe a phone call or an email. I miss home.

43/43

2009-05-17T18:47:00.000-07:00

I'm just going on tour with the BYU Chamber Orchestra this week.

It's Tuesday through Sunday, and we're going to Idaho and Oregon. I'm sorry to say that I am not terribly excited.

DAY 1: 5 hr 50 min of driving

DAY 2: 9 hr 33 min of driving

DAY 3: 6 hr 11 min of driving

DAY 4: 3 hr 50 min of driving

DAY 5: 1 hr 31 min of driving

DAY 6: 16 hr 48 min of driving

= 43 HOURS and 43 MINUTES ON A BUS!!!!!

..okay, you don't have to feel bad for me, I mean, it's a tour! What do you expect?

I still miss Jeff, in case you were wondering. Tomorrow he is flying out of Uganda and spending two weeks in Italy near Turin with some of his relatives. It should be an incredible experience for him. :) I can't believe our time apart is almost over!! I can't wait for the blog updates THEN! As for now, I just have to get through this week of tour on a bus, I mean playing with the orchestra.....

Believe it or NOT!!

2009-04-07T21:57:00.000-07:00

So last night I talked to my Jeffrey on the phone - he is still in the far away land of Uganda. He told me he was doing well despite a sore throat. He told me he'd had it for the last two days and didn't think it was a cold because there weren't any other cold symptoms with it (runny nose, congestion, etc).

WELL, you can choose to believe it or not, after he told me that, I slowly started to feel a sore throat coming on to me! I was in disbelief and didn't say anything to him as we continued talking. I was sure it was just something in my mind because he had just mentioned it.

Sure enough when I woke up this morning, my throat hurt SO BAD!!!

Is it possible to get sick from someone clear accross the globe? Maybe my mind created it from the conversation. It's kinda crazy to think about. The real crazy thing though is that whenever I'm around Jeff when he's sick, I NEVER catch his sickness. And you better believe that I don't limit my distance from him any more than normal when he's sick. Probably this sore throat thing was just another crazy coincidence between Jeff and I, like the hundreds of times we've tried to call each other at the exact same moment, or the many times that we realize we are thinking the exact same thing. I guess it happens after you spend lots of time loving each other. :)

I Got In!!!

2009-03-14T13:55:00.000-07:00

Remember in posts I wrote back in January that I was preparing all of those audition excerpts for these Summer programs? Well I got in to NRO! It's in Breckenridge, Colorado.

http://nromusic.com/www.netnewsdesk.com/NRO2/index.cfm?PID=1303&ID=5174,19009,0

After much thinking and making of pros and cons lists, I decided to go. Yes, despite the fact that I'd be leaving just 12 days after Jeff gets back from Africa (after being apart 116 days), and despite the fact that I'll have to take my Spring Semester finals 3 days early in order to go, I'm going. It's from June 14 - August 8. Eight weeks, sixteen concerts, LOTS of notes. I want to do it though, it'll be an amazing experience and I'd be crazy to pass it up. Wish me luck!

10 Reasons Why Life is Good Today

2009-03-14T13:20:00.000-07:00

1. I'm done with my seating audition for BYU Philharmonic Orchestra and I feel good about it!

2. The sun is shining, I drove Danielle to the HFAC on my scooter!

3. I came out triumphant in something I've been stressing over for the last 24 hours.

4. I don't have anything majorly stressful lurking in my near future (at least this upcoming week)

5. I am healthy. All of my limbs work properly, I can function normally. I can walk up a huge flight of stairs and be winded at the end, but I can still do it! I haven't been injured in a very long time. I am grateful for that every day.

6. Yesterday I got to talk to Jeff on the phone for 40 minutes. Yes, it costed me more than your normal phonecall to your best friend here in the US, but oh man, it was SO worth it. I can comfortably say that it was the best phone conversation I have ever shared with anyone.

7. I am in love with a wonderful man who loves me in return and tells me every day, even though he is 8,835 miles away. Someday..soon, we are going to get married. :)

8. I got to spend some time with my Dad and my Mom today. I have the most incredible parents. They hold my world up and I owe most of who I am today to them and their incredible parenting.

9. Last night I took some time to snuggle up with a blanket on the couch and read my good book, "How to Pray and Stay Awake," that I've been neglecting lately. It refueled my soul. I am so grateful for the spiritual part of my life that keeps me lit up in times of darkness and confusion. Without it, I would very literally be lost.

10. Life is good today simply because I'm alive. I get another day, another shot at this life, another chance to do some good and to make my small contribution to this society I live in full of very unique, very interesting people who I love.

I LOVE the Smell of Playdough

2009-02-25T19:46:00.000-08:00

There are 12 mini containers of playdough right next to me at our kitchen table. I think Brooklyn used them for a date one night that I wasn't here. I have to confess that playdough is one of my FAVORITE smells! I know...weird.

Today as I was walking back to my apartment from a long day on campus, I decided to stop in the bookstore and buy a brownie mix (yes, I'm making them from a box again - refer to previous post). As I went to the cashier to purchase it, she said to me, "Oo, brownies! What's the occasion?" Um.. I thought to myself, do I need an occasion to eat brownies? I sure hope not! I told her that I was celebrating making it to the end of Wednesday.

30 minutes later....

here is my Play-Doh creation...i dont really know what it is

99 Days Left...

2009-02-23T22:27:00.000-08:00

I counted the chain links..again. There are 99 days left. This morning when I woke up, I admitted to myself that the shirt had no smell left in it. So I put it on. I looked good. :)

I started reading a book yesterday and read quite a bit of it. This doesn't normally happen. I am not what you would classify as a "reader." The last book I think I read without being told to read was The Two Towers, and that was about 2 years ago. It's a painful thing for me to confess, but there it is. This book I'm reading now though is so good for me. It's called, "How to Pray and Stay Awake." Don't you love the title? It beckons you to read it. The type is big and the pages are small so I feel like I'm reading fast, even though I'm probably not. I love it though, it's so good for me.

Last night I added more money onto my Internation Calling Card account and called my sweet love in Africa. I woke him up at 6 AM, it being 8 PM my time. He sounded tired, but happy to hear my voice. I don't remember a thing either of us said, except that he yawned at one point, and I loved it. I think I pay more attention to the sound of his voice rather than the words he says. Somehow at those moments, that is all I want to hear.

Bon Voyage Jeff!

2009-02-10T22:14:00.000-08:00

I did it, I let him go. He'll be in Africa and Italy for the last week til June 3rd. I'm doing okay though. The weekend before he left went by really really slow, which is exactly what I needed, and I've got many great things to help me stay okay while he's gone. We made a countdown chain for every day that he's gone. I've already gotten to take of 2, there are little sweet notes from him on some of them. I have a shirt that he left for me that smells like him (hopefully that won't wear off too soon), and he left me a book of journal entries/letters to me that he's been writing in for the past year. I'm trying to pace myself and only read a little every day. He told me to make it last the whole time. I'll be okay though. I'm crazy busy with school, and I have amazing roommates who love me, and an amazing family who loves me too. I also will get to talk to him periodically on Skype, which will be nice. I love you Jeff! You will be severely missed.

Brownies Make Me Happy

2009-01-19T16:16:00.001-08:00

Last night I made brownies from scratch because

I really wanted to eat brownies, Jeff did too
There was no brownie mix in the house
It was Sunday (didn't want to go to the store and buy one)
I figured I'd try something new...confession: I've NEVER made brownies from scratch before

Alas, butter, sugar, eggs, cocoa, flour, etc. created one of the most delicious things I've have ever presented to my mouth.

I AM NEVER MAKING BROWNIES FROM A BOX AGAIN!

Don Juan

2009-01-14T19:28:00.000-08:00

This is my progress on the Don Juan excerpt so far for the NROI audition. I have to play this, and a couple other selections in front of really intimidating people in San Francisco this upcoming Tuesday. Ahh!!

There is Beauty in the Distance

2009-01-14T14:28:00.000-08:00

Today I am torn

There is tension inside of me

I can't decide whether to give in or not

I want to throw it all on the floor

I'll never be good enough

Perfection is impossible

Why should I try?

Where is the other me?

The one that is fearless

The one that never gives up

The one who knows anything is possible.

She has brought me here

And now has left me on my own.

I must keep going

I must look look forward,

Into the distance,

And at what is before me

There is stable ground under me

There is beauty in the distance

Now I can see it

I'm not there yet

But I will arrive

So long as I keep moving forward.

I will arrive, eventually.

I will not loose sight

I will not believe the mirage of discouragment

I will keep looking forward.

"Effort and courage are not enough without purpose and direction."

My Niece

2009-01-11T20:35:00.000-08:00

Please watch my ode to my niece Amanda. She rocks my world.

Headphones

2009-01-06T17:38:00.000-08:00

My embarrassing story of the day: So, everyone knows the purpose of using earphones is to keep the music to yourself, right? And if you were, for example, in a library next to someone listening to their earphones from their computer & you could hear their music coming out of the computer, you'd tell them, right?

Well! Here I am, in the library, listening to Stravinsky's Pucinella Ballet while following along in the score. I'm trying to find the point on the CD track where my audition excerpt begins, so I have to listen from the beginning. I was listening for 45 minutes before I get to the spot, but it was well worth the time - that is just absolutely gorgeous music. I mark the time on my music, then proceed to do something else. I take out the earphones. Somewhere in my clicking on the computer, I accidently hit "play" and all the sudden I could hear my music breaking the silence of the library. While hurrying to turn it off, I check and sure enough the earphones are still plugged in.

......oh crap. I psst the girl sitting accross from me who has been there the whole time writing every test and due date from all of her classes into her planner. "Has my music been playing outloud this whole time?" She says "yeah, but it was nice!" I was SO embarrassed. Yeah she may have enjoyed it, but the rest of the library was probably thinking "Who does that girl think she is, playing her music outloud?"

Geez, let's all get this straight that it's a common known courtesy to tell people if you can hear their music while you're in a public, designated quiet area! I had my earphones in! It should've been obvious that I had no idea! Grrrrr.

My Denim Quilt

2009-01-03T13:03:00.000-08:00

Last summer I started a project I never finished. I worked on it a little more over the winter break, but am wondering now if I will ever finish. The intended finished product will be a queen size denim quilt, made entirely out of used jeans. Many of my siblings have made denim quilts and my mom got me started over the summer. It's a great way to eat up time in a day with nothing to do (the definition of my week).

Here are some of the images that I've been looking at all day.

The finished product should end up looking something like this....

Auditions

2009-01-02T13:11:00.000-08:00

This morning I've been working on even more preparation for my summer festival auditions coming up. Two weeks ago, after MUCH research and schedule studying, I applied for two very prestigiuos summer music festivals. The first one is NRO (National Repertory Orchestra), which would be from June 19-August 8 in Breckenridge, Colorado.

Then there's also Tanglewood - from June 21-August 17. That's the one I'm absolutely crazy to apply to. It's in Boston and is very widely known. You see, if I were able to attend this program, I would be totally set for graduate school admissions..well sort of.

I'm traveling to San Francisco TWO seperate times to audition for these two summer festivals. Once on January 20th and the other on February 1st. The audition repertoire is pretty demanding so I've been practicing my brains out to get ready.

NRO Audition

VIOLIN
Solo of choice
STRAUSS - Don Juan
Beginning to 9 measures before Letter D
MOZART - Symphony #39
2nd movement - beginning to measure 27 (no repeats)
PLEASE PLAY ONE OF THE TWO LISTED BELOW, EITHER RIMSKY - KORSAKOV SOLO
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV - Scheherazade
Two of the cadenzas, from two different movements
OR
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV - Capriccio Espagnol
3rd movement solo and 4th movement cadenza

TANGLEWOOD AUDITION

Violin
1. a Romantic or 20th Century concerto of your choice, mvt. I exposition
2. a Mozart or Haydn concerto of your choice, mvt. I
3. a prepared audition piece, which will be made available to all applicants 2 weeks before the live audition tour; and on request to tape applicants
4. excerpts (all first violin):

DVORAK
String Quartet in C Major, Op. 61, mvt. II (Poco adagio e molto cantabile): rhl C (mm 32.) to 4 mm after rhl D (mm 51); mvt. IV (Vivace): beginning to 2 mm before rhl B (mm 59).

MOZART
String Quartet in C Major, K. 465, "Dissonance," mvt. II (Andante cantabile): mm 49-74; mvt. IV (Allegro molto): mm 54-88.

STRAVINSKY
Pulcinella (complete ballet): 3 mm after rhl 78 to downbeat of rhl 84 (no divisi)

WAGNER
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Act III: begin at bar 103 of scene IV (22 mm before "molto vivace") and play to beginning of pizz. section (25 mm after "molto vivace")

Wish me luck! I'm goin' San Francisco!

i

2009-01-01T23:30:00.000-08:00

i am a 21-year old woman who has big dreams and loves her life
i want to be married to Jeff Combe so desperately. I’ve been in love and unmarried for too long. I love that man. I want to be married to him and live my life for him
i dislike my feet being cold, drinking milk straight, wearing my hair up, & driving back and forth between Salt Lake and Provo.
i miss being 16. I miss being naïve and living day to day, and feeling like sixteen was just about as good as it gets. I miss being one of the only few in my high school with a license and a car.
i fear the possibility of loosing Jeff or hitting a pedestrian
i feel music when I play it. It becomes my voice. It becomes a part of my body. It is an exhilarating feeling. Music and love are some of the few things I truly know that I feel.
i smell homemade rolls rising in the oven almost every Sunday. True, I am a lucky girl.
i crave hot, cakey brownies with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup drizzled on top.
i cry a lot. Usually over emotions that I take farther than I need to in my mind. But nevertheless, they are there, so crying is my most effective way to realize what they are and work through them. Even though my face gets puffy, I always feel better afterward.
i usually wear the same clothes every week. I do laundry every week. It is ridiculous. I don’t need to do laundry that often. I have more clothes to wear, but it’s only the favorites that make the cut. Week after week, the same clothes. Do people notice? Bah, I don’t care.
i search for a replacement pair of Sam & Libby 80s Vintage Bow Ballet Flats, white, size 7 ½. I trashed my old pair and I’m so sorry now.
i wonder what my life will be like when I reach the place I want to be at so badly right now. Married & done with school, what then will I long for in my life? Or will I be completely satisfied? Sadly, the answer is most likely no.
i love my parents. I love talking to my mom in the computer room. I am so in love with Jeff. I love big parrots with necks longing to be scratched. I love practicing new pieces on the violin, making my friends laugh, and crawling into bed after a long, overscheduled day. I love learning new things and working to make myself a better person. I love chilighetti – the heaven sent dinner my mom makes which is the child of chili and spaghetti. I love fires in the fireplace. I love surprises. I love my hair and I love my much too forgiving body that I don’t take care of enough as I should.
i always say thank you.
i worry about certain people in my life that I love. I try everything I can to make their lives easier, but I still worry.
i am not an average person. I am not a quitter. If I do something, I do it well. If I start something, I finish it. If I say I’m going to do something for someone, I do it, and I do it well. Maybe it takes more of my time sometimes that it needs to, but I take a pride in this. I am also not a secret spreader. If you tell me something confidential, it will stop at me. Most of these things you’ve told me and trusted me with, I don’t remember. But isn’t that the point? Sometimes you just need to tell someone, just one person, but not tell the world. Well, you can tell me.
i believe that there is always a second chance. You can pick up the broken pieces of mistakes you’ve made and start again. It’s never too late. I firmly believe this. If you want to know more, ask me on a personal level and I’d be more than happy to tell you what I believe.
i dance when I hear music that begs me to dance to it. I’ve got some moves, some pretty good moves. Sometimes I look ridiculous, but who cares, it’s all about expression.
i sing in the car by myself when I’m driving to Salt Lake to see Jeff. It’s quality time to myself that I can turn up the music really loud and sing whatever I want. Very therapeutic.
i write boring facts of events in my journal. I hate it. “Today I went here and did this. Then I went there and saw so and so and then ate macaroni for dinner. Blah Blah Blah.” Why can’t I write what I’m thinking about in certain situations or how I feel about life at a particular time? Those are the things I want to look back and remember. I am working on it.
i win sometimes. Last year I won $100 dollars from my apartment complex for filling out a survey. Sweet.
i lose track of time a lot. The people closest to me know this and have been patient enough to deal with me for a long time. I will continue to try to be better, but just know this. If I say “It’ll take me 30 minutes,” it might take me 60 or 120, especially if I’m talking to someone.
i can usually be found practicing my violin, on my laptop, or with Jeff.
i wish time would go by faster. I know it’s a terrible thing to wish for, but for now, it’s my wish.
i think life is a gift. If you don’t make something out of each day, you’re loosing it. I think it’s sad when people don’t realize their full potential until they think it’s too late, but it really isn’t.