1) Jake completed his last semester of college and was able to graduate with not one but TWO degrees, one in finance and one in accounting.
2) Through some help from Joel, Jake was able to land a fantastic job up at Zion's HQ in Salt Lake a week before he graduated. It was a HUGE blessing to be able to jump from one career into another in a seamless motion. I am so glad that we have family who is willing to use their connections to help another.
3) We also moved....again. It was a bitter sweet deal. Being told you had to be out in a month, against our will, was to say the least stressful. BUT we have wonderful people who love us and wanted to keep us so we moved two blocks into another basement. How wonderful it is to be in a great apartment that doesn't smell and the general feeling and looks have improved as well. We get to have a dog without all of the work. This is because the dog is our landlords.
4) The Summer Olympics happened and we were able to watch and enjoy women's gymnastics and the swimming competitions.
5) I taught summer school for the first time at Reagan. It was a welcome break from the solitary confinement that is summer break. It was also fun to jump start some young minds.
6) My student entered 5th Grade and after a worrisome first week got into the groove and things have been great. He is maturing and becoming more independent (which is our ultimate goal!). I am amazed at the growth that he has had in the 2 1/5 years I've been with him.While sad I look forward to a time he doesn't need me anymore. That means I have done my job correctly.
Jake laying down with Molly after a rousing game of fetch
7) Jake continues to be a wiz kid at work and is trying to work his way up the ranks and find ways to improve himself.
7) Jake continues to be a wiz kid at work and is trying to work his way up the ranks and find ways to improve himself.
8) For the second time we were Joel's support crew for the LOTOJA in September. Not only that we had to wonderful opportunity to take one of his dad's puppies with us to Jackson. Since we knew what to expect we were more relaxed and really enjoyed it. The puppy wasn't too terrible. Mostly she slept at my feet and stole all of the air conditioning (since I put in on the floor setting since she was really hot curled around my feet all day). Joel did amazing! It is always great to share in something like that. We hope to help again in the years to come.
This is "Freckles" trying in vane to get away from the hot sun on our way to Jackson. Soon after this she crawled through the opening between the passenger and drivers side and curled under the gas and brake peddle. We had to coast to a stop for fear of crushing her head!
9) For the first time since our honeymoon we were able to take a real vacation that didn't involve any family obligations. We went down to St. George in October during my Fall Break and enjoyed a few days at my uncle's home there. There were many hikes. Our journeys took us to Snow Canyon, Zions National Park, Tuachan, and Las Vegas.While we had tickets to Aladdin we were unfortunately rained out. On the bright side we got a rain-check for next year plus two sets of tickets for other shows that have gone to good use. We were also able to go to Las Vegas and visit with Joel, Brooke, and the kids. It was fantastic to be able to see them one on one. We could get to know them in a different way then we have been able to in the past.
This deer literally walked right in front of us as we were on our way up to Emerald Pools in Zions. She just stood there for a few moments as if saying "Well? Aren't you going to take my picture?" Then slowly meandered away once we took a few pictures. 
10) Christmas was a fantastic time for us. My parents were able to come to Utah and my whole family was together for the holiday season. Also due to Jake's new job and his grandparent's generosity we were able to have a very posh Christmas. Normally we are very frugal and have a budget for gifts and such not. Not this year. We went a little crazy. This year we felt very blessed to be able to indulge in the more commercial aspect of Christmas. Don't take this as bragging, we are just grateful we were able to do this for ourselves.
11) Not only were we able to be blessed with a little extra $$ we were also able to confirm that I was pregnant! On the December 21, 2012 I was able to go to the doctor and he confirmed that I was going to be having a baby in July. Being able to hear my baby's heartbeat for the first time was the best gift anyone could have ever given me. Both Jake and I cried when I told him when he got home that day. It was such a precious moment that I am going to cherish for
all time.
Wow-zaa! That's a lot of presents
