Christmas in Nevada

It was a Christmas of firsts. Our first married Christmas. My first Christmas ever with no snow. My first Christmas in Nevada.

It was nice to see family we don't get to see very often. We took family photos. We sat around the dinner table all together. We spent time talking and laughing. Exploring differences and seeing similarities. 

 It was a Christmas of many firsts. It was the first time I gave up the Christmas that I knew with my family and my traditions, for Parker. Because that's part of marriage. Change. Compromise.  And putting him first. It was great. We had fun. We were together.

my sisters in-law 

my father in-law and june bug 

parker and i with the biggest Christmas haul ever- thank you, thank you Robertsons 

yes this post is coming from my very own macbook pro.  i have the greatest husband ever. he even kept it a secret. i was actually very very surprised. excited. happy. thrilled. all of the above.

I'll Take Some Tinsel With That Tonsillectomy

My surgery went really well. It was early in the morning so Parker was able to go with me before he had to take a final. I wish I had a picture of his face when they put the iv needle in my hand. He just kept showing me how big of a needle it was, it didn't bother me as much.

just showing off those awesome hospital socks 

 I was a little nervous. Mostly because everyone said how miserable I would be when I woke up. It has been a crazy 10 days.  But I am feeling a lot better.

liquid pain killers.... really nasty stuff 

all my holiday treats 

To be honest the whole thing was a lot harder than I thought it would be. It has taken me a lot longer to start to feel better than I thought it would. Parker has been working so hard to do everything he can to make me as comfortable as I can be. He has been working a ton, had a bunch of finals, and made the drive from Logan to Alpine over and over again. He didn't want me to be all alone at our apartment sick everyday while he was working, so I stayed at my parents. I think he has slept less than I have and he still has been so sweet to me. I am a really lucky girl.
My mom is a saint. I know that everyone says they have the best mom. But mine dropped everything that she had to do right before Christmas for 10 whole days to be there for whatever I needed. That is just how she is. I don't think she will ever stop taking care of us girls. And she is a super grandma. The grandkids love her so much and there isn't anything she wouldn't do for them. Getting my tonsils taken out at Christmas time actually turned out to be a good thing. I have been surrounded by family. Watching Christmas movies, playing games, letting the kids stare down my throat with a flash light. It's been fun to have so much time with family.
I even got to see Nicole who spent an afternoon listening to me all loopy and rambling. The Holidays are all about slowing down remembering what life is really about and being with the people you love. Being sick just helped me slow down a lot.
Sunday night I even felt good enough to go over to my sisters house to see the kids preform a Christmas program and Nativity for my grandparents.

yep snow white was there this year

parker and the nephews playing the wii 

Tomorrow we head to Nevada! It's a long drive but we will leave early enough so that we can spend Christmas Eve with the whole Robertson Family.
I hope you are all enjoying the first part of your holidays.

where were we?

Disney Land!

Yep. Both of us in Star Wars Ts. We are that cool.

We did all the "big kid rides" multiple times. Including the new Star Tours. Which is awesome... in case you were wondering. 

 Parker can spin a tea cup faster than anyone. Its a pretty neat skill. 

Small world was all decked out for the holidays. I got more wet on Small World than I did on Splash Mountain. Maybe my family splashes each other on those slow boat rides...  

This trip was a big Christmas secret from all of the kids. Their parents didn't tell them where they were going till the got there. They were so excited. We drove with the Hustons and their kids were so oblivious. Friday night we packed up the car and told them we were going for a drive. They thought we were going to my moms house. And all night long when they asked what was taking so long we just kept telling them we were lost! They woke up the next morning in Disney Land. 

We also went with Hustons to the beach. Thinking the kids would like to see the ocean, maybe walk in the sand. Try taking two little kids from Utah to the ocean and telling them just to look... it didn't matter that it was a little cold, they ran right in. 

Fin in the back ground. All he wanted to take home from Disney Land was a big bag of sand. 

we ran around like crazy, and had so much fun. after a long drive yesterday we are back to reality, finals, and wait for it.... getting my tonsils out. 

wish me luck! 

white lights

I am not a total scrooge I just... I don't love Christmas music as much as most people seem to.... and this year I didn't want to put up a tree. ( i know its our first married Christmas. i know the tree is a big deal) Let me explain. We are lucky enough to be spending Christmas with family in Nevada. And we didn't have a tree so to put one up meant first we would have to buy one... and everything to put on it. Plus there is a little bit of a space issue (meaning there is only a little bit of space and all of our stuff is already in it) Not to mention that if we got a real tree there is the issue of all the needles everywhere and us not being here to water it. If we went with fake tree we would want to have it for several years so it becomes an issue of size and not knowing where we will be living next Christmas and what we will or won't have room for. Of course there is the storage issue, we would have to find a place to keep the fake tree at my moms house......
Parker on the other hand wanted a tree. Just like he wanted to listen to Christmas music the very first time it snowed.  He is determined to save Christmas. So we re-arranged the furniture, then re-re-arranged it, then put it back, then re-arranged it again, and then went back to a slight variation of the first re-arrangement and then we went and found the perfect tree. (fake, although you would never guess it by the delightful pine smell coming from our candle warmer. but still fake so Mom heads up come January we are going to come put it in the storage room some where. Thanks! love you.)
It was the last of its kind... they had to take down the display tree and box it up for us. By this point I had caught Parker's ever so contagious excitement and we anxiously explored Walmart looking for the perfect things to put on our tree.  The set up started as soon as we got home. The whole afternoon was spent meticulously arranging the branches and hanging ornaments. Now white lights reflect off  red and gold, and it is really beautiful. It is the best Christmas tree I have ever seen... probably just because it is ours.

Lesson learned. The Christmas tree is a must for this family. Thanks Parker, you never let me miss out on the fun.

Thanksgiving

First Thanksgiving together. It was a blast. We have so much to be thankful for.

great food. big family. good times.

The Wife

I love my wife.

She is truly the thing I am most thankful for in this whole world.

And as such I have decided to create a short list of reasons why I'm thankful for her.

10. I can always use the carpool lane.

9. She understands how weird I am and also appreciates it.

8. I always have my wife, who I can sing with and who can get me to dance.

7. I am so happy to always have her to watch basketball with.

6.She always makes me laugh. often so much that it hurts.

5. She always shares her left-overs with me... well almost always.

4.She is the best best friend anyone could ever ask for.

3. She always supports me in everything I do and pushes me to be the best.

2.I have some one who I can just be myself with all the time

1. She makes me happier than I ever thought I could be in life. 

To put it simply: I love my wife

The Marvelous Wonderettes

Quick Story.
Once Upon A Time my dad said Jessica lets go to Yankee Stadium this season. So I got all excited and then he changed his mind and told me I needed to learn disappointment.  Good life lesson Dad.
But then, Once Upon This Other Time we went for real. (And I was even more excited for it because I had been disappointed the first time around.) I spent my 18th Birthday just my dad in me in New York City. We ate at Carnegie Deli and spent the afternoon inside the New Yankee Stadium watching the Yankees beat Baltimore. I could take the time to tell you everything that happened in that entire game because two years later I still remember everything about it with perfect clarity but this is supposed to be a quick story. So I'll skip the details and just hit the relevant parts. After the game we found ourselves seeing the Marvelous Wonderettes. And it was awesome. Best-Pre-Parker Birthday ever.
We walked out of the theater both saying, we have got to take Mom and the girls to that one.
Well this Friday night we were finally able to do just that. Wonderettes had made its way to the local Hale Center Theater stage in Orem. My sisters grew up going to Hale Center Theater with our grandparents. It was a walk down memory lane for them, and they all had very specific treats that they always got at what Parker calls Half Time. The show was great was, and everyone loved it. Even the boys.
Bonus Round: I used to do theater. I didn't really look through the program but when it started I instantly recognized an old friend who was in every show I was ever in. It was great to see her still doing what she loves and after I even got to introduce her to my good looking husband and catch up briefly.
When we came outside we were standing in a blur of the biggest snow flakes I have ever seen.
It was a fun night with my family, and this weekend we will see them some more, even throw a football around. Not to mention how excited we are for some quality Robertson time over Christmas.
 Bring on the holidays!

@dinner before the show 

                                                       

The Hunger Games

I'm a book worm. I read quite a bit. And sometimes I can be really nerdy about books I love. But my nerdy love for the Hunger Games is more fun than usual because Parker is just as into them as I am. If this new grown up life permits it... you can bet we will be seeing this one at midnight.

Thankful

There are many many things in life that I am thankful for. There are two major areas if my life that I am especially grateful for. they will be split into two separate blog posts. The first of which will focus on the Church. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

The Salt Lake City Temple
I have only been a member of the Church for a year and a half now and have received countless blessings because of it. I am so incredibly thankful for these blessing and the great joy the gospel has brought me. I am thankful for the Priesthood and the power that it holds. I am so thankful that I will be able to raise my children in the Church and help teach them and watch their testimonies grow. I am thankful for the opportunities I have to strengthen my own testimony through my calling and opportunities to help others. I am thankful for a living prophet, Thomas S. Monson, and the leadership of the Church. It still amazes me how much happier and full my life is now. I am thankful for all those who believed in and supported me, especially my wife (who will be featured in the next post). 

Oh the places you'll go!

I'm thankful for everywhere that we have been,

far away countries, and the park down the road,

family gatherings 

and anywhere we can find with a view,

I'm grateful for all of the places we've been and I'm looking forward to all of the places we will go.

Remember Remember the 5th of November, how it used to be.

It snowed last night in Logan for the first time this year. It is pretty late for the first snow in Logan. Parker and I were so excited. I wanted to go out in it, but Parker reminding me that we been to the specialty hospital that morning for a minor throat procedure I needed to take it easy. Which he was right about, my optimistic prediction that by today I would feel myself again hasn't exactly been spot on, but I'm getting better. But so we settled for a drive through the first snow, and it was really beautiful. And it was a lot of fun to go for a drive and not end up at the doctors :)
Want to know what else is fun? A holiday in which the key celebration is lighting stuff on fire. Who doesn't want a bonfire holiday?? Parker and I decided that our little family would celebrate Guy Fawkes day they way they do in England. By having fun bonfires!
Guy Fawkes is a pretty famous English traitor. He and 12 others on November 5, 1605 tried to blow up Parliament with barrels of gun powder. (They wanted a Catholic on the throne) They were caught and Fawkes was executed and King James I was saved.
So now in England people have bonfires to celebrate Guy Fawkes not blowing up Parliament. Oh how simple and fun it would be but this year world wide Guy Fawkes day is taking a political turn. Oh Occupy Wall Street Movement... . Take what should be a fun day of lighting fires and make it all about you. That'll show the 1 %.
I guess its okay seeing as I am too sick to do the whole fire thing this year anyway. But next year we plan on taking back this holiday full force. With no political undertones. Just fire fun and maybe some smores.

Same Planet

My dad once told me to never underestimate the power of gratitude. If your unhappy really focus on the things you have to be thankful for and you are sure to be happy soon. It is a sure way to see Gods love for you and can give you strength when you need it the most. I love Thanksgiving. I love this time of year when everyone puts a big focus on gratitude. 

Tonight I am Thankful for:

1. Modern Medicine and those kind doctors and nurses that took such good care of me today. (Maybe I'll learn to not be so stubborn about going to the doctors)

2. My friend in Logan that knows me so well that when I say "No its okay don't bring me dinner." She brings me soup so that I don't eat cereal. 

3. For all of the prayers on my behalf 

4. For friends that will talk to me even though I'm loopy, and love us like family 

5. My husband who holds the Priesthood. 

6. A good excuse to stock up on Powerade. 

7. The family that loves me and cares about me. 

8. Sleep.

9. The new season of Bones.

10. Being married to my best friend, and that he can make me laugh even when I'm hooked up to an iv for a really  really really long time. 

11. Being on the same planet. When I was feeling really sick, had a super high fever, and was half asleep half just feeling horrible I felt like we hadn't talked all day so I mumbled to Parker "I feel like we are on different planets" he didn't laugh or tell me I was crazy, just laid down by me for a while and asked if we were on the same planet yet because if not he better get to making a rocket ship.

So maybe I had a little bit of a rough day (or week). Things are still pretty great around here. There is so much to be Thankful for. Happy November friends! 

Throw the Party of the month? Nah the Party of the Year

Not only did we get to go to"The Halloween Feast, in the Haunted Matterhorn Mansion" (aka family Halloween party at my parents) we were able to bring some friends along! I love bringing friends to any family party because my family really knows how to party.  And the party was awesome, my sisters put so much work into it and everyone was really dressed up.... I was so excited to see all the kids in their costumes.
But lets start with the really important stuff, the food:

 There was a lot of food and everything was spooky themed. 

 Can't have a Halloween Feast without lots and lots of dry ice. 
And some awesome costumes

Parker and I were Peeta and Katniss. If you haven't read the Hunger Games, you should probably stop reading this blog and start reading the Hunger Games right away because they are awesome. 

We ate food, played some games and had one awesome dance party.  It was the perfect Halloween celebration. 

I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween. Great way to kick off the Holiday Season.