Rewind 2009!

Rob and I both cannot believe that 2009 is already over, it has gone by so fast for us. It has been a fun and enjoyable year for us... here are a few of the highlights that we remember most about 2009!

January...

• We met our new and adorable niece Miss. Aub! She is so cute and precious! We love her!

I stole this picture from your blog Mandi... thanks!

February...

• We had lots of fun playing in the snow and snowboarding all day! Going snowboarding is one of the highlights of the winter.

March...

• We had lots of fun at the happiest place on Earth for Spring Break! My sister and her husband and my little bro went along with us... we had quite the adventure! (I totally want to do the volunteer thing this next year to go for FREE!)

April...

• Rob FINALLY got rid of his ganglion cyst! That was a happy day. He had that thing way too long and it was gross!

May...

• We welcome our newest niece into the world... she too is a doll and so fun! I love having so many little girls around to hold!

Kristy, I stole this picture from your Blog...hope you don't mind!

June...

• I start my LAST summer school class ever and Rob starts his ALMOST last summer school class ever! =)
  
• We had fun at the Lake with the Cook Family!

July...

• Camping! We always love camping for the 4th.

• I got my first black eye... well I should say eyes... ever! Stupid trash can! As Nathan, Justin's friend, pointed out so nicely, I looked like a frog for a week.
  
• We welcomed our newest member of our family into our home... ROXY! She has been lots of fun and a handful all at once. I finally thought that she was over all her puppyness and then she ate my Christmas tree skirt... oh well.

• Rob & I finished summer school.... GREAT day
• Rob got a new Jeep... I think that this was in July... and we sold Red-G!
  

August...

• Married two years!!

• We got to go to Oceanside, CA with my family! It was a perfect vacation and lots of fun! We can't wait to go back.

• Start school... My last year... and Rob starts his last Spanish class for his major... that was a sad day for him!

September...

• HAPPY BIRTHDAY to us both! Rob is 25 & me 22. Rob is in denial that he is getting old so fast (NOT that I think 25 is old) but it is scaring him.

• My parents break ground for their new house! It is going to be weird not going home to the house I grew up in. I am so excited for them. They deserve it!
  

October...

• Mexico with the Cook's! We had fun as usual! It was a short trip for Rob and I, but worth it.
  

November...

• We don't remember anything cool about this month... just SCHOOL.. boo (now you understand why I don't send out Christmas cards, all I would have to recap on is school, which is BORING).
  

December...

• I survive methods and Rob is one semester closer to graduating!
  
• My parents' house is all framed... it is really happening!

So long 2009! We can't wait for 2010. It is going to be a VERY big year for us. We are excited, but I am a little nervous. In 2010, we will say farewell to my handsome brother as he leaves for his mission!, I will graduate from college, I will get my first teaching job (everyone pray for me), Rob will apply to grad school and will be preparing for graduation! Big events, but we are so excited to see where 2010 takes us!

HaHaHa...

I laughed when I saw this picture... I now know why I crave ice cream and chocolate or anything sweet...

Go CATS!!

This is me and Sweet E at homecoming 2 years ago!

GOO Cats! Tomorrow is my last homecoming while in college... I can't believe it! Weird!...not that I do anything crazy at homecoming (like the other 250 students that ran across campus in their underwear), but it is always fun to have school spirit and celebrate being a Wildcat! I still am not ready to be a grown up! This Sunday I am teaching a lesson to my Beehives about courage and the courage to try... when I told Rob what I was teaching about he said "Oh... that will be a good lesson for you too.".... haha... obviously he think I need more courage. But he is right... I am a chicken when it comes to the unknown. Whatever. All I have to say is "real" grown-up life is unknown, therefore I will be chicken!

Anyway... We wish the CATS good luck tomorrow... as all of section 14 says "WE WANT TACOS" (they give nasty Del-Taco Tacos away for free if UA scores 33 points.... i guess the people next to us like them)

Pretty...

PLEASE... someone take the lizard below! You will love it ;)

Mexico!!

At the end of September, we went on the annual Cook vacation to Rocky Point! It was fun as usual. This time we took Roxy with us... that was an adventure... fun though. Roxy LOVED the water and she showed us that she knows how to swim while we were down there.

Rob and I enjoyed the short time away from school and life... we wish it had been longer, but were grateful for the time we got to spend with family.

We forgot to take pictures, so these are all I have to share...

Birthday Rewind!!

This is way old...but still worth blogging! Rob turned 52... wait I mean 25... at the beginning of September... I can't believe he is already 25... crazy!

haha... we were trying to do 2-5 to show how old he was but did 5-2 instead. We have like 4 pictures like this and NONE the correct way... yes we are geniuses!

Anyway, he had a FUN birthday. To celebrate, we went bowling, to dinner, to the movies, and out for ice cream... and the best part of it was that I had such awesome coupons for every place that it made it super cheap (thanks mom for letting me steal some out of your entertainment book). Sometimes it is really helpful that our birthdays are so close together... we get two of all the free stuff.

Anyway, we started out bowling. We went in the afternoon, so the place was empty and they didn't have their cool music and lights going (I guess that is why it is so cheap during the day). We had lots of fun though. We bowled "Skittle" style. Before we bowled, we had to pick a skittle and what we pulled out determined how we bowled.... threw the legs, eyes shut, opposite hand, etc.


After that, we grabbed something to eat and went to a movie... it was so long ago, I can't even remember what we saw...I do remember it was something Rob wanted to see though. After that we went and got our FREE cold stone birthday ice creams! =).... see what I mean about the advantages of close birthdays. Saturday, we then celebrated his birthday with my family and Sunday we celebrated mine and his birthday with his family! It was an exciting 25th birthday indeed!

First a dog... now what?

As many of you know, my husband ALWAYS wants to help other people, animals, and plants. He is definitely the kind of person that stops and helps every person that is pulled to the side of the road. He also frequently picks up animals that are in the street and moves them to the side or takes them somewhere... his favorite are snakes...yuck! Although he is a little overboard sometimes, I do love this about him. He is very sweet and truly willing to help anyone.

However, due to Rob's kindness, this week I came home to this....

it is hard to tell... but this is about 2 feet long.

Yes this is a Chinese Water Dragon... he went to a pool to service it and this was by the gate. He went and told the owners and they were surprised to see it. It previously had been their son's pet, but the boy didn't want it anymore so they just let it free in the desert.(Not the smartest... this is NOT a desert animal). It had been three weeks since they had let it free and it had found it's way home. By this point, it looked and smelled like death. The owners said that they were going to let it free again. Rob couldn't bare to see this, so he took it. They gave him the cage and everything. He didn't tell me he was bringing it home. He just did. He called my mom and told her about it and she went and picked up some food and met him at my house.(my mom always encourages Rob...haha). When I got home Rob said that he was going to call an Animal Rescue place and take it to them.... that was Monday and it is now Saturday... I am still wondering when that phone call is going to happen! Anyway, it looked horrible the first 24 hours, but Rob got it to drink and eat and it is now looking a little bit more normal. I am happy that he was successful is saving it... but now I want it to find a new home! For now though, we have a dragon and a devil (that is what my dad calls Roxy) for pets...what a combination.

Does anyone want this little beauty?

To Cut, or Not to Cut...

Ever since I got married, I have been contemplating doing this but I think I have finally decided that I really do want to do it. I want to (actually, I want someone else to) cut my wedding dress. I want someone to cut it up and make a BEAUTIFUL baby blessing dress and vest/tie set for my future babies. I am a little bit nervous about it because it is my wedding dress, but it has just sat in my closet for two years. If I am going to do it, I want to do it now before I have any kids because I want it to be something they are all blessed in (hopefully they fit in it right?!?). I think it would be really neat for them to be blessed in something that was worn when Rob and I were sealed together for Time and all Eternity in the Temple! =). Anyway, this is something that I really want to do and think would be really special for my future kids, but I have no idea where to go. I have tried to do a little research online, but didn't find much. Does anyone know of someone that has done this before? Or anyone that is REALLY REALLY REALLY good at sewing? There is only one dress so it has to be good the first time. I think I might ask for this for Christmas or use my Christmas money, so I have time to investigate, but I want to make it good! IF in the end I chicken out, which I really hope I don't, then I want to at least get my dress sealed up in a box before it turns yellow. Has anyone done this? Do you recommend it? For now I am sticking with cutting the dress though! =)

update, Update, UPDATE!

I have neglected my blog long enough. It is time for an UPDATE! Lots of stuff, so I will try to condense it a bit!

1. ROXY
Since I last posted, our pup has grown up quite a bit and she sure has made life more interesting around here. She is still pretty small, about 10 pounds. Her fur is also turning brown... it is totally weird. She looks browner every day, but her head is still pretty black. I just hope she doesn't have a brown body and a black head... that would be hideous... seriously!
I am proud to say that she has not had an accident in the house in about a month (knock on wood) :)!! She is a super smart little pup too. About a month ago, we, well mostly I, taught her how to sit, lay, and shake. She also finally learned how to walk on a lease. I don't know why it was so difficult for her, but she refused until she saw my parents dog walking on a lease. I guess she just suddenly realized it was the cool thing to do! Thanks Cooper!

Roxy loves play time with Cooper and loves to bite him. When we were gone to Phoenix for our anniversary, my brother was generous enough to watch Roxy. When we came home and picked her up, my parents' dog was SOOOO sad. He cried like I have never seen him cry before. He put his tail between his legs and looked pathetic. Ever since then, if I ever go over to my parents' without Roxy, Cooper is totally sad and follows me around like I am going to pull her out of my pocket. My mom also says that Cooper spends most of his days sitting by the window looking out hoping that someone will bring Roxy by to play.

2. BYE-BYE RED-G... HELLO WHITE JEEP!
After much, I mean MUCH, searching Rob finally found a new jeep that he liked. Rob decided to play it safe and get the same vehicle, but newer '98 with less miles. His Red Jeep was just getting TOO old. It had something like 230,000 miles on it, so it was time to UPDATE! We got a really good deal on the jeep and it was already lifted and had big tires, which is just what Rob wanted! Rob was getting really sad about selling Red-G, but it just happened that Justin decided to buy it off him, which made the sale super easy! Justin decided to buy it to drive to UA so he wouldn't put so many miles on his mustang! I thought it was genesis considering how many miles I put on my car since starting college. Rob is OBSESSED with his jeep to say the least. I think he love it more than me sometimes... ha!

(Sorry this is the one picture that I have with the White Jeep KINDA in it)

3. CALIFORNIA
I LOVE San Diego! I would be perfectly content living there for the rest of my life... that is if I had a bazillion dollars. Until then, vacationing there is PERFECT! Growing up my family was often found vacationing in San Diego right before the summer ended, but we have not gone for the last couple of years. This was the first time we have gone as a family since Rob and I have been married and it was SO fun! We tried out a new place this summer, Oceanside, and it was great! We had lots of fun enjoying the beach, boogie-boarding (which was especially AWESOME this summer thanks the the great waves), riding cool bikes, going to the temple, shopping, and spending our last week of stress-free summer with the family + Nathan! THANKS Mom and Dad for making this trip possible! We will always remember the memories that we have made together!

4. SCHOOL
School is back in session! Rob and I are back into a routine, which is nice, but school work is never that exciting! FINALLY I am a senior and I don't feel quite like I thought I would. I am excited, but I am little sad too (NEVER thought that I would say that). I love school, regardless of my complaining and it is such a big part of my life... I will feel lost without it! So far both Rob and I are enjoying our classes, so hopefully all goes well with that!

5. BIRTHDAYS!
As many of you know September, actually the first week in September, is birthday week in our house!! Mine was on Tuesday and Rob's is on Saturday!! Rob is turning the big 2-5!! We are excited about the lower insurance and cheap rental cars (since we ALWAYS need one.. not)! Rob took me out for my birthday last weekend. We went to Blanco (YUM), shopping, and to the gaslight! It was a fun night! On my actual birthday, I went shopping and out to eat... two of my favorite things! This weekend will be filled with fun events in celebration of Rob's birthday, so stay tuned for that!



This turned out to be super long... I tired to cut stuff out the best I could. If you read all the way to the end I hope you enjoyed!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!

Today is Rob & I's 2nd Anniversary! It doesn't feel like that much time has gone by, but it has been FUN! Robby is so sweet and I couldn't ask for a better husband. To celebrate, we went to Phoenix for the weekend. It was fun to get away and not worry about anything. We saw Ice Age (super cute), went shopping, went swimming, and went out to eat at some fun places! We both needed to get some tinting done on our cars so we got our cars done for our anniversary and ended up getting fun cheap stuff for us to open! It was a great anniversary!

I am excited for year THREE and can't wait to see what it brings! I LOVE YOU Robby!

Look what TWO year old EMMA can do...

Not that I am bias or anything, but I think that my niece Emma is one of the smartest little girls I have ever met. She is unlike her brother in the fact that she doesn't like to watch TV. Collin LOVES TV and can watch and watch and watch it. However, Emma is totally not phased by it and rather be singing and dancing. This past Sunday, Collin had to give the scripture in primary, so my sister and brother-in-law were working hard with Collin all week trying to get him to remember what he needed to say. While doing so, Emma picked up on the scripture and memorized it herself, possibly even better than Collin. At Sunday dinner, she recited her scripture. It was so cute I had to get her to say it again later and record it. It might be hard to understand if you aren't used to her talking, but this is what she says "Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed" (3 Nephi 18:21).

She also knows all her ABC's and many fun songs, including one of her favorites "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star"
She gets nervous when I record and doesn't always perform to her best, but I still think they are cute and worth sharing!

FYI- This one was recorded the day after I messed my face up... that is why I look funny in the side of the screen.

Great Job Emma!! I can't believe you turned 2 already!

Meet the newest Cook!

Yes, I finally gave in and let Rob get a dog! Roxy (our dog) is 7 weeks old. One of the customers of the pool company Rob works for rescued the mommy of our puppy after she was already pregnant. So, we have no idea exactly what our puppy is. All we know is that her mom was a smaller black lab. We took her to get her first round of shots on Monday and the vet said that he thinks it is either mixed with golden retriever, poodle, some spaniel, or some combination of these. As she grows up, it will be easier to tell. She weights 3.8 pounds and the vet also thinks that we will have to get her groomed (meaning no shedding) but time will for sure tell. If she didn't shed, this pup would be too good to be true because the lady gave her to us for FREE! That is the best price. Needless to say, Rob is IN LOVE with her! He is obsessed! Roxy already has so many friends in the family. Surprisingly, Cooper, my parents horse, I mean dog, is sooooooo gentle with Roxy and Roxy is totally not afraid, even though she is only the size of his head...haha! All I know is that we have only had Roxy since Friday and I already have learned that I am Definitely NOT going to have a baby anytime soon.=) Anyway, I am suppose to be getting ready for Girls Camp. So I better get going!!

Shelly vs. Concrete.... Concrete WINS.

Before I say anything, let me assure everyone.... NO I AM NOT PREGNANT. Now that everyone is clear on that, I will go on with the story. On July 1st, I was at work doing the normal old stuff when all of the sudden after about two hours I felt horrible. It hit me out of nowhere. I was on the playground watching the kids, so I decided to walk over and get a drink. By the time I got there, I was feeling worse. After I got a drink and tired sitting down, I decided that I was going to throw up, so I might as well stand up and lean over the 50 gallon trash can that was behind me. That is about the last thing I remember. The next thing I knew, there were people all hundled above me shouting my name. When I turned around to throw up, I passed out hit the bridge of my nose on the trash can and then my head on the concrete. By the time I woke up, they had called an ambulance and there were about 6 guys coming to help me. Kinda sounds serious. But really it was no big deal. I was at work, so my work had to cover all their bases. I went to the hospital and after some tests, everything looked great, besides my face that is. They aren't really sure why I passed out. Might have been random or due to heat, but they had no way of telling. After hitting my nose so hard, I was lucky enough to not only get a bump on my head and a scrap on my nose, but I got the privalage of having not one, but two black eyes. That is a first for me. Like I said before, I am totally fine and have had an interesting week and a half as people look at me with a curious face probably wondering if my husband beats me... haha! My eyes are almost back to normal! And I don't plan on passing out again anytime soon!

This is day one. Not much bruising, just swollen. Nathan (J's friend informed me that I looked like a frog at this point... Thanks Nathan)

This is day three: swelling down, black eyes begin.