1/2 a Year

12-19-09 marked half a year of being married to the most amazing man in my life! The last 6 months of marriage has been absolutely wonderful. Yes we have had our tiff's but we have always worked things out and life couldn't be any better! We celebrated by eating Chinese food and by doing a deep cleansing of our apartment. Nothing super special, but we spent the day together and that was all that mattered to me. Christmas is right around the corner and we are exited to see all of our family and then enjoy a small vacation with friends to California. It will be a nice refresher to be away from work and school! Also, to spend time with some of our closest friends. I couldn't ask for anything more. Time has flown by and my marriage is continuing to blossom and grow stronger each day! I can't wait to see what the future holds for us in the near and far future. I couldn't be any happier right now! Greg is such an amazing man and I can't wait to grow old with him (a very long time from now of course...haha). 

I love you Greg! You certainly are my better half! :)

I think its time to Update!

Its been a while since I wrote on my blog. There have been some new developments. The semester is almost over. We only have finals left! Thank God!! It has been a very long a stressful semester, but we have made it through. At the end of October I signed up for my last semester of classes at NAU. That was a very weird and awesome feeling! I will be graduating in May and can't wait. Only 4 classes left to take and my career at NAU is over :) For Greg on the other hand he has a little bit longer to wait. He was going to finish a semester early and we were going to move down to the valley this upcoming summer. However that has changed. There are more classes that he has to take then originally planned for so rather than killing himself in one semester he is going to split it into two. So that means that we will move down to the valley in December 2010. He thought a lot about it and prayed about it and that is the decision he decided was best for him. I told him I supported him either way. I can work full time anywhere since I will be graduated. Our landlords told us we can stay as long as we like in our apartment. The place we are in now is perfect for just starting out but I am ready to have more space already.

I may have already mentioned this in an earlier post but we have a cat and her name is Fyre. She is so smart and cute! I swear sometimes that she is 1/2 dog because she loves to play fetch with her pink ball. That thing is almost torn to shreds, and she refuses to play with any of her other toys regularly. Its very fun to play with her. She is a little over a year old now. We took her on her first adventure over Thanksgiving break. We brought her down to the valley with us and she stayed at Greg's parents house. There were two cats already to begin with so we were very curious how she would react The first day she hid under the couch all day and that was expected. The other cats were very curious though and didn't have a problem approaching her. Fyre was a little uncomfortable with them, but it seemed like by the end of the weekend they got along a little bit. It was really cute, all three cats fell asleep on Kimberly's bed on the last day. Fyre was at the end of the bed, Prince Caspian (PC) was in the middle of the bed and Yoda was at the top of her pillow. It was very cute. The car ride for her was interesting. We had a cat carrier for her which she hates, but we got a 6' leash for her and attached it to the carrier and then let her sit on my lap and then she settled on my feet and fell asleep for most of the ride home. She was very cuddly. Another thing we have discovered about Fyre is that she loves fleece and flannel. Anytime that is available to her so goes and lays on it to sleep. We got Fyre her own fleece blanket for Christmas. We thought it was a cute idea. Here are a few pics of her.

Sleeping, isn't she cute!

I took this with my computer and she was trying to figure out what it was and what was happening...

Over Thanksgiving we were down in the valley and had a wonderful time visiting friends and family! It was so nice to see everybody and spent time with them. We usually have 3 Thanksgiving dinners, but only had two this year because my Uncle was sick. That was too bad, but it was good for my tummy. I don't think it could have handled anymore food. In a way I can't wait to host my own Thanksgiving Dinner, but at the same time I think I can :) The time flew by, but we are looking forward to seeing everybody at Christmas. Love you all!

Let's see... The next major thing that happened was Greg turned 22! I know I am a little late but Happy Birthday Honey you are now old. haha j/k Love you!  We went out to dinner to Olive Garden and had a nice dinner. His birthday was on a tuesday which was both of our crazy days. It was a late night dinner, but it worked out.

Next, I work at DCI Biologicals which is a plasma donation center. Its an ok job through school, but that is all. Every since I started I have worked a lot with new donors and getting them processed so they can donate for their first time. It is a lot of work and very time consuming, but it is one of my favorite things to do at work. In October, I got my 90 day raise and that was $0.50 which is awesome! I was informed about 3 weeks ago or so that management considered me to become the New Donor Specialist! I was very excited and that also comes with a pay raise! So I have been working there for 5 months and have moved up in the world. It feels great! Things were very rocky to begin with, but they have smoothed over some so thats nice. It will be nice to some be able to come home from work and not worry about school and that is for wherever I work!

Other than that nothing really new has happened here in Flagstaff. It is definitely colder here and it has snowed a few times Now it is mostly ice which is the dreaded part. Snow is pretty, ice is evil. The semester is winding down and then hopefully both of us can have a true break and recover. I am looking forward to Christmas and New Years. I think they are definitely my favorite holidays of the year. Well,I think that sums up the last few months. I will try and be better about this in the future and not get so far behind. Happy Reading!

Pork Chow Mein

Prep: 15 mins. + marinating Cook:15 mins

Ingredients:

1 pound boneless pork loin

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 tablespoons soy sauce, divided

2 tablespoons corn starch

1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 cup chicken broth

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 cup thinly sliced carrots

1 cup thinly sliced celery

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup coarsely chopped cabbage (optional)

1 cup coarsely chopped fresh spinach (optional)

Served over hot cooked rice

Directions:

1). Cut pork into 4-in. x 1/4 in. strips; place in a bowl. Add garlic and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce. Cover and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.

2.) Combine the cornstarch, ginger, broth, and remaining soy sauce until smooth; set aside. Hear oil in a large skillet; stir fry pork until no longer pink. Remove; keep warm.

3.) Add carrots and celery; stir fry for 3-4 mins. Add the onion, cabbage and spinach if you choose; stir fry 2-3 mins. Stir broth mixture; Stir into skillet along with pork. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 3-4 mins or until thickened.

4.) Serve immediately over rice

Serving Size: 6

Exciting News!

So my husband just found out that he can graduate a semester early (Fall 10')! We are so excited! I am graduating in May and then he will be doing his student teaching during the Fall of 2010. After he is finished with that he can walk and say goodbye to NAU! We can both see the light at the end of the tunnel now. :) We were talking tonight at dinner about how we finally feel like we can start planning our lives outside of school. We both are going back eventually, but the break is going to be awesome! We have been in school for 16 years now, I think we deserve a break.

We are planning on moving to Gilbert in June of 2010. That is the area Greg will be doing his student teaching in. I will be working full time somewhere. I am going to try and work out a deal with Bass Pro (since I technically still work there) to see if they were reserve my job until I can return in the summer. If they will then I am all set once we move back down. If not then it will be job hunting season for me. I hope the economy is better by then so I can at least find something decent. Hopefully have a college degree will also play in my favor.

Once Greg is done with his student teaching, hopefully there will be a teaching position available for him. Soon after that I will be going back to school for nursing. I am currently on the waiting list for the Maricopa Community College Programs and I am waiting for my phone call to say a spot is open in the program that I want. They told me it was a 4 semester wait so hopefully it won't take that long, but we will see.

Once I am done with nursing school, we will go where ever God takes us. I would love to move out of AZ for a while and settle in a new place. We will just have to go where there are music openings for Greg. I trust we will be taken care of where ever we end up! We talked about Colorado, Texas, Oregon, and Nevada as possibilities for where we would want to move to. If none of those work out, there is still always AZ. We will just have to see.

Trying Something New

I have decided that I love taking pictures and thought that I might try and make a side profession out of it. I am just getting started with my new idea so if there is anyone who wants pictures taken, whether family pics, pics just for fun, individual pics, couple pictures, I will take them for free. I figure it will be great practice for me to do it on my friends that I already know. :) Please let me know if you are interested and we will find a time to get together. I am currently in Flagstaff right now.

Email me if you are interested @ trueblue326@gmail.com

Thanks!

Crazy Times

I know it has been a while since I posted anything. Married life has been absolutely amazing, but its been so busy. Greg and I have settled into life and everything is going great. Our apartment is so perfect for just the two of us. We have a new addition to the family. Her name is Fyre. She is our cat and is so cute. She loves to play and cuddle. It is nice to come home to her. The fall semester has started for both of us and its been a little rocky. Greg is taking 20 credit hours and I am taking 16 credit hours and working 20+ hours a week. We are settling into a routine and things are going better. It is amazing that we have been married for 2 1/2 months now. Time has just flown. I love everyday with my husband and it makes me so excited to be able to say, My husband and I ..... I am excited for this semester because I am loving all of my classes so far and it takes me one step closer to graduation! I will graduate in May with a BS in Psychology and a minor in Biology. For there I will start working full time and then when Greg and I move back down to the valley for his student teaching I will hopefully start nursing school right away. I have applied and been accepted into the Maricopa County Nursing Program and I am currently on a waiting list. Once its my turn then I will get to begin a program. I am hoping to be able to get into an accelerated program and finish that much quicker.

For a long time I felt like I was lost and didn't know what I was suppose to be doing, but God has finally opened some doors and let me see what he is wanting me to do. Everything feels so right and amazing. I really don't know how to explain it any better than that.

I do promise that once I get a chance I will go into more details about each placed we stopped on our honeymoon for those of you who are interested. :)

Honeymoon

The day after our wedding we left for our honeymoon. My parents picked us up from the hotel and took us to the airport. We were flying from Phoenix to Houston TX. We stayed the night in Houston and then woke up the next morning ready to head to Gavelston TX for our cruise! Our itinerary was to be at sea for the first two days, then Montego Bay Jamaica, Grand Cayman Islands, Cozumel Mexico, and then a final day at sea before being back in Texas. Once we boarded the ship, we headed to our stateroom which was 7250. Once we got there we immediately went out on our private balcony and just sat down and took in the moment. We took some pictures. We were on the port side of the ship. Once we got settled and unpacked in our room we had to do the stupid safety drill with the life jackets. That took forever as always but it was nice once that was over. By now we were starving so we headed to Deck 9, the Lido Deck, and got something to eat. The food was so amazing! By this point we have started to leave port and we are back in our room on our balcony watching us set sail into the open ocean. There were lots of Activities to do on the ship. The first thing we did was take a nap because we were so exhausted. That was our favorite thing to do every afternoon. It was just like clockwork. haha Being at sea the first two days was great. It gave us a chance to recover from our wedding so we could enjoy the rest of our honeymoon. Our ship was the Carnival Conquest and it was a beautiful ship. We spent the two days at sea exploring the ship and all the marvelous features. We even gambled for the first time. We played black jack and eventually broke even. That is when we decided it was a good time to quit. It was a great first gambling experience.

Greg's favorite thing to do was lock me out on the balcony and then make me beg to be let back in. I never got smart enough about that and I believe he locked me out 3 or 4 times. You would think you would learn the first time, but apparently not for me. Another favorite for both of us was the towel animals we received each night in our stateroom when we came back from dinner. It was a different animal each night and they were so cute. Did you know they actually have a book published that tells you how to make all the different towel creations. I was so close to buying it but then I figured I would leave that task up to the professionals.

Our Cruise Ship

Stingray eating our chocolates

Seductive looking rabbit

Cute elephant

Sunset the first night at Sea

Our Stateroom

They took my sunglasses it made the dog look groovy

The first time Greg locked me out on the balcony

On our balcony before we set sail

Greg relaxing and loving our balcony

I will create a new post for each place we stopped along our cruise in the Caribbean.

Wedding Day Details

On June 19, 2009 I walked down the aisle at Trinity Baptist Church in Mesa, AZ and became Mrs. Carrie Lynn Nichols! I could not of asked for a more perfect day. It started out in the morning where I went a looked at my flowers. They were gorgeous. After that I went to where the reception was going to be held to look at the final set up. I stood in that room and it hit me that in roughly 6 hours I was going to be back there in my wedding dress and ready to party! That was a surreal feeling. After that I went home and made sure that everything was packed for our honeymoon because we were leaving right away the next day for the Caribbean. Once that was done it was a waiting game until I needed to head to the church to start getting ready. I went to the church around 2pm and started getting my hair done. My hairstylist did any amazing job. While my hair was being done, I also had my make-up done. Both ladies did such an amazing job. Soon my bridesmaids starting arriving and the event began to pick up. I finally was able to get into my dress for pictures. This whole time it was a game to make sure that Greg didn't see me before the ceremony. I had everyone on the look out when I was out of the dressing room. Once pictures started everything went smoothly. I saw the groomsmen and took pictures with them. They went back to Greg and kept telling him and taunting him because they go to see me first. I thought it was really sweet that they kept telling me how beautiful I looked. I was in a daze the whole time this was happening. I couldn't believe my day was finally here. Once pictures were done, they hid me back in the dressing room and the guests started to arrive. The ceremony started without a hitch and things went perfectly. Greg's smile the first time he saw me come down the isle was priceless. It was everything that I imagined. We both could not stop smiling from that point on. The ceremony was beautiful. Once we were announced Mr. and Mrs. Gregory Nichols we greeted everyone in a receiving line. It was great to get to say hello to everyone, even though it was just a quick second. Once that was over we took family pictures and then it was off to the reception. We had a blast once we got there. We had our first dance and I almost cried. It was an amazing feeling to dance with my husband for the first time. Once the dance was over we headed over to our head table and my best friend gave her speech. It was very touching and I love her to death! Finally then we got to go through the buffet line and eat! I was so hungry by that time. The food was amazing. Soon after that came the cutting of the cake. We didn't smash the cake in each others face at the reception, but we did how ever at the rehearsal dinner. Greg's parents got us a cake so we could practice cutting it and I couldn't resist then. That was a great feeling! Once all of the formalities were out of the way, then we got to dancing! We had a blast and the night just flew by. Everyone was so great to us and we are so thankful that we got to share our special day with so many people.

Just after the ceremony outside the church

Precious

The Wedding Party

Andrew wondering what my train on my dress was for

Just me!

Right after we were pronounced Mr. and Mrs. Gregory Nichols

Greg's smile as he sees me for the first time in my dress

Big brother Greg and Little Brother Andrew

The Guys

Greg getting ready

Father and Daughter

Me and the Girls

Me and Dani

Me and Liz

Me and the Girls again

Me and my Mom

Getting sealed into my dress

Awwwww Just Married!

This was the best day of my entire life! Greg and I started our new life together! :)

WEDDING DAY!

Today I walk down the isle and become Mr and Mrs Gregory Nichols! :) My day is finally here!!!

The last few days before I become Mrs. Nichols

As the final days approach before the wedding things are still crazy as ever. Almost everything is ready but there are still a few things remaining. Family starts arriving tomorrow and will be here through the wedding. I have family coming from Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Florida. I feel so special that they would be able to make the trip out here for my wedding. Everything is coming together the slide show is finished, all the favors are done, the bridal party gifts have been completed, and now all I have to do is pick up my dress and make sure the other two bridesmaids dresses are picked up and ok. I am going to get my nails done with some of my girls on thursday before the rehearsal! These last few days I want to be really fun and not stressful because its my final days as single! :)

3 days left until the wedding and then let the honeymoon begin!

Bridal Shower #1

On Monday June 1st the women of Trinity Baptist Church threw me a bridal shower. I feel so blessed to be a part of a church that is willing to do something like this for me. The shower was great! I had a blast and learned a few things about men (that were written by men) to help remind me how their mind works and how to be a successful wife. I will always keep my little "reminder box". A good one was that Greg gets really crappy when he hasn't eaten in a while and I can always tell, so that is a good time for me to ask him when the last time he has eaten and feed him if he needs food. 

My soon to be mother-in-law wrote the devotional for the shower and it was absolutely beautiful. I know that she loves me very much and thinks that I am a great match for her son. It is always hard, especially when its your first child, to let them go and see them happy and on their own. I hope children are a long ways down the road for us but I am happy to have such wonderful "grandparents" on both sides of the family to take care of my future kids. 

I opened my presents and they all are going to be helpful, especially in the kitchen, because I know that Greg and I will never go hungry because of how many recipes we got. Of course you need food to make the recipes, but that is another story. There were also a few unmentionable items that I received which are going to be great :) but there is no need to explain any details on that topic.

Thank you to all who put the shower together for me. I feel truly blessed! I had a great time :)

The Semester is Over!!

The spring 2009 semester is finally over! No more finals, papers, or tests. :) Even though the end of the semester is always tough, it went really well and all of my hard studying really paid off. Towards the end it was really hard to tell myself, go to the library it will be the last time... you can do it. It was a very fun and interesting conversation to have with myself. Greg was really supportive of me and helped me push through to the end. I had 2 finals the last day and they were back to back. The first one started at 7:30am. I just think that is wrong. No student should be asked to think that early in the morning. We are stressed out enough as it is and to tell us we have to function that early is just asking for a breakdown. I survived, but hate having to do it.

Now that school is out of the way, all there is to do is focus on the wedding! There are 5 1/2 weeks to go. We have finished most of the invitations so they can be mailed. People should be receiving their invitations by the end of the week or early next week. Addressing all the envelopes is the part that takes forever and is the least fun (well at least in my opinion). There are so many minor and major details that are left to take care of. I did get to see my dress and it is GORGEOUS!!!! I am taking it to be altered tomorrow and then my entire wedding attire will be set. No its just a matter of getting all the boys figured out for what their tux's will look like. They should be pretty easy so that will be nice. We are still looking for a DJ, which I am waiting for call backs, and we also need a cake. We have an idea what we want but we just have to find somewhere convenient and cheap to get it done. 

Everything for our honeymoon is pretty much set. All we have to do is pick which shore excursions we want to do at each stop of the cruise. We will be leaving from Gavalston Texas and heading to Montego Bay Jamaica first. I have always wanted to go to Jamaica and I think I am most excited for this stop. We will only be there for one day so I don't think that is long enough to get a good feel for what is there. It just gives me the excuse to have to come back so I can see the rest of it. haha :) Next we are headed to the Cayman Islands. I am not sure what we will end of doing here, but is just sounds absolutely amazing! Our third and final stop is in Cozumel Mexico. At first I was a little concerned that we wouldn't be able to stop here because of the swine flu break out, but everything seems to be settling down and we should be just fine. We will just have to see what happens in Mexico. Once we get back from our cruise we will be back in Mesa for a couple of days before we head back up to Flagstaff to our new apartment!

The new apartment we will be renting is in a perfect location. It is across the street from the music building. It is perfect for our first home. :) We will be moving in all of our stuff in 3 weeks so it is all set up for us when we get back to Flagstaff in July. I am so excited I can't wait! Everything is falling into place and before we know, we will be married and on our own. Its really exciting but so scary at the same time. I know that God has a plan for us and everything will work its way out. 

I can hear Wedding Bells..... 38 days left!

Nearing the End of the Semester

The spring 2009 semester is almost over! Only 2 weeks left until school is no longer a huge worry for a while. The end of the semester is always so hard because you are just so burnt out. Every professor thinks that their class is the most important and prevails above all. I hate that. It's not fair to us at all. Instead of making things easier for us they only make it more stressful. All you can really do is just keep your head up and push through it. 

The only thing that has really kept me in tune with the end of this semester is what I am looking forward to...MY WEDDING!! It is so soon now and things are falling into place for that. My wedding dress is here and I will finally get to see it this weekend! I can't wait. :) Our invitations are ready to be addresses which will be a task in itself, haha, but I am so ready to just be able to focus all my time in the final preparations for that. Its only 57 more days so it should be a great journey until then!

My 21st Birthday

Yesterday March 26th was my 21st birthday! I had a blast a had a few drinks. It felt nice. my friends and family are amazing and i was so glad that I could celebrate with them. I had one drink right after midnight and it was really good! :) Even though it was my birthday I still went to all my classes and then work before I could really relax and enjoy my day. Work was entertaining because my coworkers thought I was crazy for being there and tried to get me to go home. I stayed but they took one of the blueberry coffee cakes and made a candle and sang me happy birthday at the end of the shift. It was creative I must say. 

Once I got off work I came over to Greg's house where he threw me a small party. I had my closest friends over to celebrate and they enjoyed trying to encourage me to drink drink drink. haha. We had cake and just hung out and talked for a while. Nothing special but a great time to just hang out. I hadn't seen a lot of them since before spring break. I am a little tired today but feel that my alcohol intake has not inhibited me for today. I never really want to get to that point when I drink. I always want it to be a causal affair. Tonight Greg is taking me out to dinner and we are going to the Olive Garden here in Flagstaff. I might try some of their house wine or have a drink but it won't be anymore than that. 

Now that I am 21 it feels like I am a real adult. I feel more responsible now and that I am not a little kid. Its a weird feeling but so cool at the same time. 

First Day of March

Awww March 1st! Today I made Chicken and Dumplings from scratch for our couples dinner and then to top off the night I made Chocolate covered Strawberries for dessert. Everything was delicious. :) It is a great way to start off the new month. Also, an exciting thing about March is that I turn 21 at the end of the month! I am not much of a drinker, but I do like the occasional sweet/fruity drink. I think the most exciting thing is that if I wanted to I could order a drink while out at a restaurant. Not that I am going to its just the fact that I can is what's exciting to me. 

Things for the wedding are going well. It is getting closer and closer and I can't wait til' the day is here! There is only 3 1/2 months left! :) Our next biggest task is picking out our invitations. We have registered for our wedding so that is done. You can check out the wedding website to find out where we are registered at if you are interested. Other than that nothing else is really going on that is super exciting. There are 2 more weeks and then spring break. It will be a really rough couple of weeks but it just means that I will truly get to enjoy my break. The thursday before spring break I am 3 exams in that day. All of them in a row. I am going to die that day, but I will be so happy when it is going to be over. 

Valentine's Day

On Saturday Greg and I spent the day together snowboarding and skiing at Snowbowl. It was cold but the weather was really nice. The start of the day was a little slow because it was really busy. Everybody wanted to go down the mountain. After lunch was better because it cleared up a bit. I went into the snow park and decided that I wanted to try a few jumps. The first time I went down the row of three jumps I fell all three times and I bet it was pretty funny to watch. I went down the mountain and came back up and tried it again. I was successful my second time through until the very last jump were I completely biffed it and landed right on my butt. It really hurt and it took me a little while to get back up. I had a nice round purple and blue bruise. It is still a little sore but I have gotten over it. :) After the end of the day we were so tired. I guess I feel asleep on the way back to campus. I certainly don't remember the drive home. 

We thought we might be too tired to go out for dinner on Saturday and also every place was going to be packed so we went out to dinner on Friday. We went to Olive Garden. It was still busy but it was well worth going  a day early. I didn't get my gift though until Saturday. Greg made me wait. He got me a card that had coupons for me to redeem that say for example a massage or I get to pick all the TV channels/shows that I want to watch for the day. Also he got me a huge Hersey's chocolate bar for me to eat! A girl loves her chocolate. :) For dinner on Saturday we just ordered a pizza and ate in. That was the best decision that we could of made! We were so tired from snowboarding and skiing all day. 

I love Greg so much. He made Valentine's Day this year very special!

My Dad

My dad has been in the hospital since Saturday and is hopefully going home tomorrow! He has pancreatitis and has been in a lot of pain. He was able to eat some solid food today for the 1st time since Saturday and they took him off the IV fluids. That is always a good sign. He is also off the pain medication they had him on. He is still really weak and has some recovering to do but is on the road to recovery. Which is always a good thing. Thank you to all who knew and have been praying for him. He needs those prays still because he is still not 100%. We never know what life will throw at us, that is for sure.

Ski Trip 2009

Over the last three day weekend, Greg and I went to Durango Colorado and went skiing and snowboarding with the college group from our church in Mesa, AZ. We left thursday afternoon and it was a 6-7 hour van ride to the cabin we have been staying at for years. There were 28 of us that went this year and I felt like it was the perfect size. We got situated Thursday night to get ready for the next 3 full days on the mountain.

Friday morning the group got up at 6:30am to get ready to go snowboarding and skiing. We had breakfast and then made our way to the mountain. The lifts opened at 9am so we were ready to head up the lift to the top of the mountain. My whole goal of the weekend was to get my brand new boots, bindings, and snowboard broken in! By the end of the first day I felt like I had my gear forever! It was a great feeling. :) We took a lot of blue runs down the mountain and caught up with some friends and went down the mountain together for some lunch. After lunch we took a little cat nap up at the lodge and was ready to go down the mountain again. 

Day 2 and 3 were more amazing than the 1st day. The fellowship and getting to spend time with people we don't normally get to see a whole lot of was awesome. Greg and I had a few trails on the mountain but we were able to communicate with each other and grow closer as a couple! The mountain was gorgeous with all the different amazing views we got see that God created.

Hopefully Greg and I will be able to continue on the tradition of the ski trip and have just as an amazing time or even a better time. On Monday we made our way back home after an amazing trip. It was nice to be back in Flagstaff, but it was hard, at least for me, to leave Colorado and come back into the realm of reality.

Heading Back to Flagstaff

Tomorrow I will head back to Flagstaff. It is bitter sweet in a way because I am going back to the place I love to spend time and feel the most comfortable, but it also means that I have to go back to school and work on Monday. :( I am going back to school with a new goal and purpose so that should help keep me motivated. I can also say that I will be graduating with my Bachelor's Degree next year! My new major is Psychology with a minor in Biology. With this degree my plan is to go onto nursing school after Greg and I are married and he has started teaching and earning a salary. I will only have to go to school part time because I have a majority of the requirements taken already for the Community College Nursing Program. This is the plan. God my have something different for us that he has not shown us yet, but this is the direction I am feeling led to take. I am ready to start out the New Year and School Year with a bang. 

Greg is still pursuing his Music Education Degree. He is set to graduate in May 2011. He passed his upper divisions in December and now preparing for his Recital in the Fall of this Year. His course load this semester is much lighter and should be less stressful. The other focus for both of us this semester will be preparing for our marriage. That is going to be a another course within its self! We can't wait for the semester to be over already so all we get to do is focus on our Wedding Day!

Carrie's Photos from 2008

Engagement

Leap of Faith
Who knew AZ could look like Hawaii :)
Taking a stroll
I totally won this battle! :)
Sweet Kiss!

Today Greg and I took our Engagement pictures! We went to the Mesa Arts Center and Free Stone Park. After taking these pictures, everything felt even more real to me. The reality  that I am getting married to the man of my dreams. We have been together for over 4 years and are getting closer to being man and wife. Everything for the wedding is coming along great! Pretty much all of the major things it takes to have a wedding have been accomplished. We have a ceremony and reception site. We have our florist picked out along with our photographer. We have an idea what we want to do for invitations, but we still have some time to figure that all out. My dress and all of my accessories have been picked out, except my shoes, and I will have everything for my attire. My bridesmaids have been picked out and their dresses have been selected as well. My maid of honor is my best friend since forever Liz and I have 3 other bridesmaids. My colors are a light baby blue and a champagne peach.  

Tickle Tickle  hahaha.....
Tender moment...
Look at that air!

My Ring!
    Just another day at the park :)