Felipe's Birthday

Attention Readers: Felipe is almost old. He only has 1 year till he is officially old. Don't tell him, he get's a little grumpy when you mention it!

Anyways I thought I would share some great pictures from his birthday a month and a half ago... 

AND

tell you 29 reasons why I love him (one for every year his has been alive)...

1.  He is always willing to help. He moved us into our new apartment even though he was probably exhausted. 

2.  He is so cute, and tries to match his clothes, shoes and belt everyday.

 3.  How he loves to share his desserts with me (mostly because he doesn't like chocolate so I get the chocolate part).

4.  He is willing to try anything I cook.

5.  His handsome smile... 

6.  He helps me cook every night and puts the dinner away after.

 7.  He is ok with trying new things.

8.  He still looks like he is 18 (and acts like it sometimes too).

9.  He is helpful with all the nieces and nephews.

10.  He loves all his family and all mine.

11.  His mad fishing skills.

12.  His chillaxed attitude.

13.  He is not afraid of crawdads.

14.  He kills the spiders in our house (and there is a lot more since we live in the basement).

15.  He is great at sports. He may not be the best but he gives it his all.

16.  He loves everything I do, even if it is dorky...

17.  He loves trains.

18.  He loves his hometown and loves to go visit any chance we get (which is not often enough).

19.  He has a great family that shares with us a lot!

20.  His love of Adidas and Puma everything.

21.  He is funny (not only funny looking, but comical funny).

22.  He is a great pirate. And he has a great pirate voice.

23.  He is great at going along with my crazy ideas. For example... "Hey Felipe, go stand by those sheep and let me take your picture"

24.  He is totally fine with my love of animals.

25.  His love of Nintendo and how he is good at every game.

26.  I love how he loves nature.

27.  He is super awesome (and a very good hippo rider).

28.  He is a great referee and helps the kids learn how to play instead soccer and basketball.

29.  He is the greatest husband in the world, he is amazing, and he loves me more than anything.

I hope Fil enjoys being 29 and can get all of his craziness out before he turns 30!

Look how happy he is to be 29...

Sometimes he is even a little creeper-ish.

See ya!

Trip to Oregon

Yeah more pictures!  We went to the Union County Fair when we first got to La Grande. Felipe's mom won some cool ribbons for her hand made clothes! (Super cute by the way)

We had some fun... I've never been to a county fair that I can remember so it was really interesting to see what goes on and how involved the people get!

No we didn't get any lemonade. But who wouldn't love to drive the lemonade-mobile around?

 

Between a rock and a wet place - the drive to Portland, OR.

What are these things? A mattress for a really long skinny human?

Sometimes polar bears do the back stroke.

The amazing raspberry jam I helped make...

The apron I picked out for Connie to make for me :)  The intention was for me to make it, but I have no idea what I'm doing and she was much quicker!

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY FELIPE!  (more on that later)!

North by Pacific Northwest

This is a vacation. And here are some pictures.

We stopped by Powell's Books in downtown Portland. 42 minutes is not enough time to even scratch the surface of how huge and awesome the place is. We purchased five books in that time and only visited 3 sections.

Andy and I buried his child. It was to the point where the kid looked like one of those barbie cakes.

The Oregon Zoo rocks. Really, it is one cool zoo. Not quite as good as the St. Louis Zoo.

Multnomah Falls. A little busy but awesome nonetheless.

Seaside, Oregon. Super cold and super fun.

I'm a dork.

Right above lower Multnomah Falls.

We took the Historic Columbia River Highway and we found a little place called Horsetail Falls. It's a few miles from Multnomah but less traveled. So worth the detour. We also have a billion other pictures that we may or may not reveal to you later.

What I learned from Eileen

Instead of telling you how much I will miss my sister-in-law Eileen (who moved today), I am going to tell you all the AMAZING things I have learned from her. Some of the ideas are a little crazy or strange, but all have affected my life (and Fil's in the chain reaction domino event)!

1.  Reusable Bags: They are great to take to any type of store/market. You can fit so much more groceries than plastic bags and it makes it easier to bring them into the house (apartment).

2.  Have an opinion: For those of you who have ever known or talked to Eileen you know she has a thought or opinion on EVERYTHING. Not going to lie I was a little intimidated the first few times I talked to her. I realized I do have an opinion and its not a horrible thing to talk about as long as you remember it is what you want for your life and don't try to force others to have the same opinion/thoughts.

3.  Making your own cleaners: She cleaned her entire apartment with vinegar, baking soda distilled water, dish soap and club soda. I'm hoping one day she will give me her "cleaner recipes."

4.  How to be a super amazing mother: I have had some great, nay, outstanding examples of motherhood. If you know my mom you know I didn't learn patience from her :)  Eileen is super patient, even on the 10th time her kids come out of their bedroom in the middle of the night saying they have to go potty. She just replies "hurry quick", then "good night, I love you" Everytime!

5.  Wogging: The combination of jogging and walking. She is the master at this - and I'm still horrible at it. I do like the idea since I can't run or jog for a long time and love walking it is a good combo. Also - it is better than calling it Jocking.

6.  Papa Murphys: Take and bake pizza. She used to work there and knew all the ins and outs of the place. Its so good, affordable, and tastes super amazing!

7.  The Farmers Market: Fresh veggies, homemade food, super good prices, just fun to go support Utahites (sounds like U-tights in my mind).

8.  Sunflower Market and Buy Low: Lets just say getting produce 4-6 pounds for a dollar. AWESOME DEALS!

Thank you for sharing in my list-aholic life. Not going to lie - sometimes I make lists to keep track of all my lists. Since the last 2-3 posts are list oriented, I thought I might just have to show you this side of my life.

I will miss Eileen OH SO MUCH but I know I will see her sometime soon in Texas. She has been a great sister-in-law, a wonderful example, and one of the bestest friends I could ask for. I am always so grateful for my in-laws, I love every single one of them and I'm very blessed to have married into such a wonderful family. Thanks for all you do for me and Felipe.

We love you all,
Krys ( and Fil )

1st and 2nd weeks of Summer

I thought I would just share a few things we are doing with our summer so far:

1.  Felipe is looking for a quick part time summer job with little luck :(


2.  We are trying to get outside every day! I have started walking with a new friend two to three times a week. Unfortunately I have not been able to skateboard lately. Felipe tried a little at Eileen's going away party and is getting better. We decided to branch out and try Zumba today. It was quite a workout - let me tell you! If you don't know what Zumba is, it is a mix between aerobics, hip hop dancing, and weights and toning. EEK! I'm sore...



3.  We got to babysit our little niece Payton. She is super cute (I wanted to take her home with me) We taught her some basic skills - like brushing her teeth.




4.  Sally and crew came into town for Eileen's going away party. Yes, we are not going to talk about Eileen leaving because I don't really believe it yet, nor do I want to believe it! BUT it was awesome to see Sally and kiddos again and hang out with ALL of the family last weekend.


5.  I have been doing a lot of cooking and taking pictures for our new recipe blog. It has been super fun so far and we have had 100+ visitors to our site! (ok so probably 40 of those have been me admiring it).


6.  I have been planning and getting ready for summer school. I still have a lot to plan but so far it is looking good! We are starting on Monday the 21st and going for 3 weeks. It will be Monday through Friday 8-12 with 2 classes (1.5 hours each with a half hour prep each).


7.  We are looking for a new apartment. We did not resign our contract for next year (starting in Sept) so we need to find a new place to live. We would like to move to south Orem or North or South Provo (not central Provo) to get away from the student life, but still be close enough to work and siblings living in Provo.

8.  Enjoying life, good friends, amazing family, good times!

Love you all,
Krys and Felipe

Summer: Days 1, 2, and 3

Day 1: SKATEBOARDING!

It is officially summer in this household. We are going to try to do interesting things all summer and share them with you! First on the list is trying out our new skateboard.




I fell and cut my leg -

I feel like a 4 year old!





 
Day 2: Payton Turned One!

We helped celebrate the day at Jason and CJ's house

Day 3: Relaxed

It was nice.

Where I have been...

1st: Finishing up the last few days of my first year of teaching! Today (fri) was my last day. Next year I will be moving classrooms over to the math hall and teaching full time. I will have two classes of Pre Algebra, 2 classes of Math 7 target, and 2 classes of Pre Algebra target. I am SUPER UPER EXCITED!!! but I will miss my current classroom.

2nd: I'm starting a new blog. My sister and I are going to work on making a cooking/recipe blog. Here is the site - it is still a work in progress, most of the posts are just test posts! If you have any tips of how to change it please email us on the comment page. (I don't know how to make buttons or change the size of the top picture). Enjoy.

www.its-a-keeper.net

3rd: I got a skateboard! Ok well, I just got it today but I'm going to go practice! Adios
KrysJo

New Pictures

Here are some pictures of our wedding day (on the right, in the slide show).

Also, I changed the top to have a picture.

Have a wonderful day!

Love,
Krys and Fil

Spring in Utah

If you know me at all you would know that I really am not a huge fan of Utah. But... we live here so I may as well make the most of it, right? Hence, this is my post to counter-act all those negative feeling of Utah I've had over the last few months!

Thanks to my sister (again) I got to decorate a little for spring. We painted these wood letters in cute bright colors. The yellow twirly should be glued on to the flower, but I wanted to stain them with a very light brown first:

One thing I really do like in Utah is Spring. It doesn't last for very long but it is a very nice time of year. The trees are in bloom for about a week or so. This is a tree outside our apartment taken last night:

Here are the rest of the trees all colorful and pretty:

And finally the best part about spring - it is the beginning of "Summer Provo" as called by me and Fil. It is the wonderful time of year that is not only warm, snowless, and beautiful, but, it is the time of year when all the annoying BYU students are gone! Less traffic, less people screaming in the streets, smaller lines at the stores.

Don't get me wrong, I love my sibs who go to BYU and wish they weren't gone - but all those other students who are loud and annoying... well it's nice to be with out them for a time. Also, I'm secretly teaching my niece to love math!

Here is a little more about me and Felipe... enjoy!

1. What are your middle names? Jo and T.O.

2. How long have you been together? married almost two years... including dating 2.5 years i think?

3. How long did you know each other before you started dating? a few months...

4. Who asked who out? kind of agreed on hanging out

5. Whose siblings do you see the most? Mine

6. Do you have any children together? Nope

7. What about pets? I want a fishy

8. Did you go to the same school? Same college

9. Who is the most sensitive? Me?

10. Where do you eat out most as a couple? On our blue couch... we go get food from all over then come home. Lots of Cafe Rio or Jimmy Johns

11. Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple? Cancun for the honeymoon

12. Who has the craziest exes? neither I think...

13. Who has the worst temper? Me

14. Who does the cooking? Mostly me, sometimes Fil when I ask him :)

15. Who is more social? Felipe

16. Who does the dishes? We share, but Felipe is really good at them and I wouldn't let that talent go to waste!

17. Who is the most stubborn? Me

18. Who hogs the bed? Felipe - he sleeps in the middle (or diagonally)

19. Who wakes up earlier? Me

20. Where was your first date? To the movies, and we wandered around Borders

21. Do you get flowers often? I used to until I told him I really don't like them.

22. How long did it take to get serious? Well... a few months after we met, or two days after we started "dating"

23. Who eats more? Depends on what we are eating

24. Who sings better? Felipe did choir... but we both don't really sing much ??

25. Who does the laundry? It is actually pretty equal on this one

26. Who’s better with the computer? Felipe on a PC, me on a Mac

27. Who drives when you are together? For a while it was Felipe, since my wallet was stolen! But I got a new license so I'll be driving lots more very soon...

28. Who picks where you go to dinner? We mostly just throw ideas out there and then decide together

29. Who wears the pants? Me, duh

30. Who has the better sense of humor? Felipe

31. Who eats more sweets? Me

We had plans for Spring Break

So this year was the first year in many years that both Krys and I had a Spring Break and we had made plans to do some things for the break. However, our awesome plans were never to come to fruition. I found out about a month ago that for my Americorps job I had to attend a volunteer conference Tuesday through Thursday [April 6-8] in Salt Lake City. Needless to say I was unhappy with that. Having the conference in the middle of the week ruined any possibility of going hardly anywhere. Needless to say my sarcasm increased twelve-fold during those days. Two days of workshops [some of which put me to sleep] were not what I was looking forward to for a week off from overdosed hormone enriched pubescent adolescents. I'm sorry to many of my family members whom we were unable to visit this week. New plans are being concocted to remedy this lack of visiting. Other than that we wish you a happy Spring.

New Background

My first task of spring break was to find a new background for our blog. The old one seemed winter like or valentines day-like. I just don't know how to change that bar that has the comments on to the right color. Does anyone know how to change that?

Also...What do you think?

Our Trip To Manti

 A few weeks ago we were able to go down to Manti, UT to visit with family and help celebrate Felipe's Grandparents 60th wedding anniversary.

On Sunday, after church, we were able to walk around the grounds of the Manti Temple. It was so fun to take pictures and enjoy the beauty of the Temple.

We really enjoyed spending the weekend (and week before and after) with Felipe's momma!

Good times all around - as you can tell by the awkward picture of Felipe...

We stayed at the "Manti Motel" which was interesting to say the least. The office was also a movie rental store, a pizza restaurant, and an ice cream parlor. The motto of the motel was "Drop your mail in any of our mailboxes and we guarantee postage!" exactly what I imagined a motel motto to be...

If you noticed we totally forgot to get pictures at the wedding anniversary party so...  if anyone has any fun ones we would love to see them, maybe you could email them to us?? Have a great weekend!

Experiencing Utah

This summer I really want to experience all that Utah has to offer. I realized that I may not like Provo, but there are some pretty cool places in Utah to visit. Here are some things that I really want to do as soon as possible:

-Hike to Timp caves
-Hike or mountain bike on trails near Salt Lake
-Bridal Veil Falls
-Zions National Park
-Bryce National Park
-Arches National Park
-take pictures downtown Salt Lake
-Alpine Loop
-the Great Salt Lake (and Antelope Island)
-Price to visit Sally (Felipe's sister)

Is there anything I missed?

March is here!

One thing I really have come to dislike is February. The last few years it seems like I am tortured during the entire month! Let me explain...

If I could wear flip flops all year round I would. As you can imagine, winter in Utah doesn't make that task easy. So I suffer through winter, which generally starts in October. By the time February rolls around I am sick and tired of the cold.

BUT... it is March now!!! Today just felt oh so warm (probably only a few degrees warmer than yesterday). I am ready to go shopping for some flip flops, anyone want to come?!