Wishing You a Merry Christmas

Powerful Beyond Measure

I came across a list of favorite quotes today and I really like this one from Mandela. What a self-esteem boost.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us, it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

-Nelson Mandela

ARMENIA 2010

For the first two weeks of June Brennan and I studied abroad in Armenia as part of a Global Health Program through the U. It has been an intense couple of months between course work before and research papers after the trip. We have loved every minute of it and hope to have a long-term connection to the program and to Armenia. I secretly hope we can go back to the country several more times over the course of our lives. The people we met and built relationships with were amazing. I put a video together for our families to sum up the trip and thought I would share it here. On our way back from Armenia we spent 2 days in Paris and actually managed to fit in all of the major sites. Then we were off to San Diego 4 days after we got back. Traveling for an entire month with Brennan was wonderful. I can't wait for our next adventure.

Go JAZZ!!!

I surprised Brennan with lower bowl tickets to Tuesday's Jazz game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. We had so much fun and it was an awesome game - right down to the last second of over-time. Play-offs here we come...

Masterpiece

Tonight was our ward's Relief Society birthday party so I volunteered to make a cake. I don't know what I was thinking because I spent all day stressed about this. I'm so happy it turned out well. It was a MAJOR hit. Thanks mom for all the tips and help. I now have another amazing treat to add to my repertoire.

All Things Winter

March has been a month to squeeze in all sorts of winter activities. From snowmobiling to skiing we did it all and it was so much fun. Here are some photos documenting our past 3 weekends.

Week 1: Skiing with my siblings

We had so much fun skiing with Andrew, Alisha, and Katrina. It's becoming an annual tradition and hopefully we can do it again next year. It was a bit stormy so I couldn't get any good skiing pictures, but here are some of the pre-skiing photos.

Week 2: Sleigh ride & Dinner for Two plus Snowmobiling

We won tickets for a "romantic" sleigh ride and dinner for two as well as a snowmobiling tour so we took the opportunity to spend the weekend in Park City. We loved getting away from home for a couple days to play. It was an awesome get-a-way.

Week 3: Skiing with Blake & Nellie

The season is about over, but we got a chance to spend the weekend with these two. Oh how we miss spending time with them! It was fun catching up and relaxing up in Park City. Hopefully we can do it again next year.

...and just for fun here are some videos from our last trip. The guys definitely had fun in the park with their tricks.

Brennan

Brennan & Mike


Mark

The Current State of Things

Just a quick note as I'm finishing up my daily computer fix. I was thinking about it today about how I spend 8 straight hours at work staring at a computer only to come home and spend several more hours doing the exact same thing. If only the days were longer and I didn't need my sleep. Then I might actually get to some of my projects like quilting and scrapbooking and who would think - cleaning my house. Oh how life is so busy when you're husband is in school, you're working full-time, and you have the outlook of medical school ahead of you.

Oh well. It's part of the adventure, right? I can't wait.

Happy Birthday to Me

Thanks to everyone who made my birthday special this week. It was so nice getting together with my family to celebrate over the weekend and Brennan treated me so special on the actual day. Thanks to my sisters for reminding me that I am now one year closer to being a quarter century old...I love you too.

It has been an extra special treat having my mom and dad in town as well. My mom hasn't even left yet, but when will you (Mom) be coming back? March? (probably too soon) How about April?

Isn't this so adorable! My sister made a Valentine Pocket for everyone filled with a meringue ice cream cone as well. We celebrated my birthday in conjunction with Valentine's Day so we were loaded with candies, chocolates, and sweets. What more can you ask for?

Tammy's Married!!!

High Hopes, Low Expectations

Well don't get your expectations set too high. I realize it's a new year so I probably should have a greater resolve to improve my blogging presence, but there are no promises. I will try, however, to at least post something on here once a month. That will be an improvement from my poor behavior last year.

So in recap of this past month (and a little bit of December) let me fill you in on what we've been up to. I don't have pictures on my computer yet so I'll give you a brief outline.

December:

• Christmas week split between the Rigbys and the Petersons - It was a blast!
• New Years week skiing at Grand Targhee, Wyoming with the Rigbys and 40 inches of new snow.
  

January:

• School started! Brennan's Line-up - Physics II, Genetics, Cell Bio, and Bowling
• Skiing.... of course :)
• Tammy's Wedding - Ok this one hasn't happened yet, but I'm excited to spend next weekend in San Diego celebrating the big day!!
  

Upcoming events for next month include family visits and my birthday :) Love you all and hopefully I'll have more to blog about soon.