Nebraska

this is in Wyoming on our drive.

So last Thursday we left on our weekend adventure. It started as a 10 hour drive from our house here in Utah to a little town in Nebraska.
After making sure everything was packed and that we didn't forget anything we hit the road, probably pulling out of the driveway somewhere around 7:30 am. We drove for quite a while, just us and the radio, making occasional comments but not really talking. After a while AJ asked me to drive for a bit because he didn't get a good nights sleep and wanted to take a little power nap. Let me tell you; when he got to sleep (it took him all of 5 seconds) he was OUT. I had my music up so that I wasn't bored and was singing along. I am really surprised that he got any sleep at all. He only slept for about 30 minutes though so we pulled into a truck stop and I got me a sandwich and we were back on the road.
After a while, once we'd listened to every song AJ liked on our ipod, we started talking. This is my favorite part of the trip. Its not that we didn't have a good time, but these are the times in our marriage that I really live for, and that I keep very close to my heart. We talked about our families and we talked about the future, and we talked about the gospel and our Patriarchal Blessings. AJ has so much knowledge and knows so much about the gospel that I love talking to him about it. I love how I can ask him a question and he can show me exactly where in the scriptures that I would find an answer. This is one of my favorite things about him is that he is so spiritually minded.
Okay, so anyway, after a while it got quiet again and sooner or later we made our way into Mccook. It was probably around 7 am their time... at least I think that's right.
We spent that evening with the Perkinson (sorry about any spelling errors) Family. Jon is our very good friend and his family is so nice, I love them all!
Jon showed us where our hotel was and we checked in then went to get food at Runza's and then we hit the sac.
Friday morning we got up and watched some TV in our motel room, Mostly about the Casey Anthony trial, and then we went out to Sinert's (?) deli for some lunch. Then we went back to Jon's house to hang out before the Brad Paisley concert.
This is where I skip some minor events and tell you about the concert. It was a good concert. The music was loud and they all sounded really good. Someone opened for the opener, but I can't remember his name. Judd something?!?! maybe not. but then Blake Shelton came out and he was pretty good, and then it was Brad Paisley and he was amazing. So the music was good, the people there... were not.
Phil had some mid 40's ladies get mad at him because he is too tall (and they were too drunk) we had Beer all over our feet and I had it all down my leg. We had people bumping us all night and at the end there was this drunk couple full out swing dancing behind us but were way too drunk to keep their balance and falling into us. After the concert was over we waded through the sea of empty beer cans (not a joke the arena floor was covered, you could not take a step without stepping on one or five).
The next few days were spent with Jon's family and some of the other families in town that AJ really liked. I loved them too. Church was a very fun experience because I got to meet a lot of people, and the people out there are so faithful and have the spirit so strong.
Anyways then it was time to go home. We visited with the Laringtons said goodbye to the Perkinsons and hit the rode around 2 in the afternoon.
This was a much quieter ride home because we were both so tired. I drove from North Platte to Cheyenne so AJ could rest up for the later drive.
We got home around 12:30 ish, got the mail, brought in the essentials and the mail and went to sleep.

It was a really good trip, I really enjoyed the time that I had to be with AJ outside of my comfort zone and to meet some people that got to see my husband as a missionary.
As we were eating Taco John's one day we saw this really cute squirrel completely spaz out. it like was walking crazy on this fence then ran up the pole and across the power lines and stuff.

Survey says do a dance

Okay well here's the deal, I have seen this on a few people's blogs yesterday... and I don't mind telling you that I copied it off of some complete stranger's blog this morning because I thought it was cool. Maybe someday I'll go back and finish that other one I started a few months ago haha.

1- A favorite childhood memory with your siblings.
2- 15 things you adore about your spouse.
3- A regret you have from/about high school.
4- Your favorite person to be around.
5- Your most dreaded house chore.
6- Create your life soundtrack.
7- A deceased person you admire.
8- The best advice your dad ever gave you.
9- Your biggest fear.
10- Your favorite winter activity.
11- Something you feel you've improved in yourself and you're proud of.
12- A simple pleasure in life you could never live without.
13- Your favorite outfit that makes you feel good.
14- A favorite amusement park you've been to.
15- A pet peeve you could kill over.
16- Your most prized material possession.
17- The best quality your mother passed on to you.
18- Your favorite part of the Christmas holiday.
19- Your top 10 bucket list items.
20- Music you never get tired of no matter how much it's played.
21- Your idea of the perfect retirement.
22- The vacation of your dreams.
23- Your most exciting sports experience to date.
24- Your favorite summer activity.
25- Your most peaceful place to be.
26- Your favorite childhood game.
27- The most romantic movie & song of all time.
28- Your favorite scenic picture.
29- Your go-to pick-me-up.
30- A quality you admire/consider a strength in yourself.

Summerfest

I had the awesome opportunity during Summerfest this year, to take Torie on some of the rides. this slide was her favorite probably... for me ... it was terrifying.


We definitely caught some air on that last bump, which she thought was just the coolest thing.








Torie also like the boat ride, though you probably can't tell from this.
On all of the rides she just had such a serious face but once she got off the ride it was all smiles.












This was the sweet purse that i got at one of the boutiques. i think it is sooo pretty! I love it.














This is Maggie, the most wiggliest baby I have ever met. She is Tories baby sister.




Isn't she cute?!
she got to hang out in the stroller while we walked around summerfest this year.

news this week

This week as been a very good one for me.
I have been able to read a lot in the Book of Mormon, and I have learned a lot too. I am so grateful for a husband who knows so much about the gospel and the scriptures because he has been able to teach me, and answer my questions. He is an amazing example to me.
Also, I reread my Patriarchal Blessing today and it brought me so much peace and comfort. I have been pretty emotional over the last few months; things have not been easy and my desires are so strong that I have been so lost. Reading my Patriarchal Blessing truly is a blessing. It may not tell me exactly what I want, but it did tell me exactly what I needed to hear. I feel myself becoming closer to my Heavenly Father, which in turn is giving me new direction in my life at this point.
This week also brings some temporal changes for us. My kitchen is clean, and I have new motivation for an organized house/life. I have been able to clean and organize a lot lately, which is something that I surely don't love, but needed to do.
I was able to cook dinner a few nights and doing so has brought much satisfaction. I am on my way to becoming a better housewife.
It was so rewarding, tonight, to have AJ give me a huge hug and many kissies, and for him to thank me for my efforts. He is such a good husband to me.

We are getting ready to go to Nebraska and I am really excited. He is taking me to a Brad Paisley concert! I am really grateful to be so spoiled and loved, especially knowing its not something he would choose to do for himself.

As you can see this week has been a spiritually uplifting one, and I can't help but be a little grateful for it. It seems we are given trials and opportunities in life that should bring us closer to God, and I am very grateful for the spirit tuning me in to these this past week.
I'm not perfect but I am trying to be; I have a long way to go, but I am happy with my life right now, which is the biggest blessing of all.

Personal Progress : Faith; value experience #2

Alma 56:47
"...yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them."

The Family is central to the Creators plan for the eternal destiny of His children.


Review what "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" (see link above) says about a mother's role. With a mother, Grandmother, or leader, (or readers of my blog) discuss the qualities a woman needs in order to teach children to have faith and to base their decisions on gospel truths.
How can these principles help you in your life today and help you prepare to be a faithful woman, wife, and mother?

Comments welcome; I really would like to know what YOU think about this.

Some things that I thought of as I read the Proclamations were this; love, compassion, forgiveness, respect, work, service, fidelity, faith.
These attributes are essential in the plan of the Father. We MUST have these attributes in order to become faithful women of God.
My very salvation depends on my ability to teach my children these qualities, and what they mean, by example. They cannot learn something from me, that I do not have an understanding of myself. I must first become loving, compassionate, forgiving, respectful, work and service oriented, chaste, and faithful in order for them to learn these things from me.
They should NOT have to learn these things outside of MY home. I must teach them myself, and in order to do so I must first learn to become those things.

So what are some attributes that YOU have found are important? and how do you teach those to your family?


I am grateful for a mom who taught me to be strong in the Gospel of Christ. She has taught me so many things because she is a woman of Faith.

Fail

An organized shelf is a happy shelf. I am very proud of cleaning out and organizing my pantry today... its probably the only accomplishment today.
We start in the kitchen.
First off I was so excited to wear an apron and be this little house wife. So excited to cook a meal that I knew my hubby would love. He loves Pesto. So I made Pesto and Cheesy Chicken.
Fail. Unfortunately, I am not smart about ingredients. I had no idea what pesto was when I went shopping. But, like always I called my mom and asked her where it would be in the store. I thought I was doing so well when I found it. It said Pesto and underneath that, Mediterranean. This is where I went wrong apparently. It has anchovies in it. GROSS!
Well it cooked really nice, and looks basically like it does in the book... but it was so nasty. AJ took one bite and spit it back out in the trash. I was devastated. I hate Pesto anyway, so how was I supposed to know that it wasn't the right stuff?!?!



Yesterday was Torie's 3rd birthday so while my parents were babysitting her I went over and brought her a birthday cupcake.


She doesn't quite understand that its her birthday but she LOVES cupcakes.


as you can see here... it is all over her face. She's trying to lick it off in this picture.

To make matters a little worse when I got home, after I had calmed down from dinner fiasco, I decided to make a cake. You know, comfort food.
Strawberry cake mmmm.
Well our oven timer doesn't work so I usually just look at the clock and make sure I count the right amount of minutes.
I completely forgot about the cake in the oven, so instead of it cooking for 35 minutes it cooked for 65. Thank goodness our oven really sucks. The bottom is a little overdone but for the most part its fine.
However this was the last straw for me today. I am normally very emotional so of course I have been in tears on and off all day because of these little disasters.
Thank Heaven for a husband who is so kind and loving. He gave me a big hug and got me laughing about it. He even listed off quite a few things that I can cook that he loves. The kicker is that it probably would have been a fantastic dinner had I bought the right ingredients.
Special love thanks to AJ for everything that he does for me. Mostly making me feel better about myself when I do something stupid like get pesto with anchovies.

this week

New this week in the Sovine house:

we just got home from Lake Powell yesterday and it was really fun! We both had a lot of fun tubing and boating, and of course playing cards. The only mar on our week was a few injuries... mostly mine. My elbows were rubbed raw on the tube and one of them is infected, and I have a bruise the size of texas, but overall it was fun. We had a lot of relaxation time and we had a few nice conversations that will hopefully help us in our marriage.

After Lake Powell, we came home to our disaster house, but with new motivation for a clean one. I have a book that I have decided to take to heart and use word for word. It is called Organize your Life. it goes through weekly checklists of how to organize different things, starting with your mind, your priorities, your schedule and ending with organizing your vacation. There are a lot of tips in this book that are incredibly helpful and hopefully I can use them to help me get organized. Pretty excited for that.

Also, when I got the mail as soon as we got home I found two of the best magazines in our mailbox, The Ensign and Crochet Today! Both ones that I love. I get my spiritual kick and I get in my crafting addiction. I am so excited to read the Ensign this month. There are a couple of articles that I skimmed and am really excited to really read them. There are a lot in there about the Priesthood and blessings and it really makes me grateful for my husband. I am so blessed by him and his worthiness to hold the priesthood and it also helps me all the time. AJ had given me a few blessings since we got married and its very wonderful to be able to partake of that power.
Crochet today! has been such a nice magazine to have. I love all the designs in them and all of their tips help me all the time. Since this is one talent that I have and love to share it's been so nice to be able to learn new techniques and to learn how to make different things. As much as I love blankets... sometimes I need to do something else. There's only so much room in my life for more blankets.

I am really excited for Summerfest this weekend. Not that I have big plans for it... just that since I'm all grown up now I love going to the boutiques there and seeing all of the creative things people make to sell there. I think maybe one day if I get brave enough I'll crochet tons of things and get a booth to sell my own wares there. For now I get lots of satisfaction from just looking though. Me and my mom are going tomorrow night. So excited.

My niece, Victoria Lily turned 3 yesterday! I can not believe how big she is getting! Its so amazing to me. She was so little and now she has this HUGE personality. It's been fun to see her grow and learn and makes me very excited for my own children someday.

I am still working on my personal progress and have been doing okay with that first value experience, but not as well as I would like. It is still so very hard to remember my prayers. It gets easier most nights but our sleeping schedule has been so weird this past month that my morning ones are so hard to remember and I still can not figure out why. I think I am going to have to get myself a prayer rock. For those who don't know how that works, you get a rock that says prayer on it and when you go to bed you put it on the floor so that you will step on it when you get out of bed to remind you to pray, then you put it on your pillow so you remember to say your nighttime prayer.

I am so excited this next 2 weeks for my Menu! I sat down and hacked out a nice menu for the month that is easy and delicious (hopefully) so that I can start being a better housewife. Really exited to get that going.