Day 23

I am so thankful that Bryce is gainfully employed. This economy is so rough and so many good people are struggling. I feel blessed to be able to help when we can.

Day 17

Today I am grateful for Bryce's great job. We feel so blessed to have found this opportunity in the midst of this economy, and no one deserves it more that he does. He works so hard & never complains. I am grateful that he is doing something he loves. When we got married I told him I would follow him anywhere and I stand by that, St. George isn't too bad a place to follow ;) it was 70 degrees this week. I also feel so blessed that his job enables me to stay at home with Luke. Even though being a stay-at-home mom is ten times harder than I ever thought it would be, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I have the most rewarding job on the planet, and that is because Bryce works so hard for our family.

Day 2

I am so thankful for my sweet husband Bryce. I don't deserve him and that is a fact.

A Getaway & Downhill From Here!

Bryce is so sweet, we all know this by now, but he is usually not a big planner. As in, he hates planning anything & always wants me to make those types of decisions. Well he completely outdid himself this last weekend & suprised me with a little weekend getaway to Salt Lake :) he planned the whole thing himself & it was SUCH an amazing weekend for me. It included but was not limited to: eating at fabulous places that we had never tried before, my favorite used bookstore, lots of shopping, him continuously beating me at checkers, a movie, a walk in a park, church at a charming old chapel in Salt Lake, brunch at the Grand America & loving eachother & enjoying just being together. Here are some pictures if you want to see!

Also, in other news, I am MORE than halfway done with this pregnancy!!! Can you believe it? To celebrate, here is a picture of me at the halfway mark!

Boy or Girl?!?

So this is the question on everybody's minds! What will be the gender of our little tyke? We get to find out tomorrow :D:D!!!

In celebration I thought I would post some pictures of Bryce & I during our "early years" these are mostly for my Grandma K, who doesn't believe there could be a cuter baby than I was...enter Bryce.





Now here are a few of me :)







What do you guys think, who is cuter?! Just kidding, haha.

But seriously, I think that everyone should vote on here (just for fun) whether you think the little one will be a boy or a girl, and then whoever comments first will get the first texts or emails or whatever spilling the news!

Let's do this thing.

i love u valentine...

Dear Bryce,

Even if you hate Valentine's Day, you are still my Valentine. & even though we decided not to spend any money... well blogging doesn't cost any money... and you didn't forbid it :).

-I love it when you sing to me in the car. Especially the part where you never know the right words.

-I love it how you are the best breakfast chef in the world.

-I love it how you think im great even though I am obsessive compulsive & always put your things away in spots that sometimes you don't like.

-I love it when i'm sad and you just grab me up and drop me on the bed again and again until I am laughing my head off & forgot why i'm sad.

-I love it how you are so humble that sometimes you wonder out loud how you got me. Really? That is always unbelievable to me.

-I love it when you do your nervous laugh. & I love it even more how when I point it out it makes you do it even worse!

-I love it how we fit just like a puzzle in our favorite cuddle position.

-I love it how you hold me every night before we go to sleep.

-I love it how you always take me to the temple & read the scriptures with me.

-I love it how you support me in all my dreams. Even ones that are really silly.

-I love it how you open up to me like you never could to anyone else.

-It amazes me how you never complain about anything, but at the same time, you are always sympathetic when I complain about everything!

-I love it how sometimes I know exactly word-for-word what your response to someone or something will be before you even say it.

-I love how I just have to look at you a certain way & you know just what i'm thinking & we both start laughing.

-I love how you humor me when I try to one up you with my plentiful sports knowledge.

-I love how quick you are to forgive me no matter what I do or say. You make it so easy to tell the truth & apologize & make it all better.

-I love how excited you get about small things like double stuff oreos.

-I love how when I try to thank you for doing something around the house you always try to pretend that you didn't do it & that it was me (or Milton) even when I know I didn't & Milton only comes at Christmastime.

-I love how when you don't know something you just look it up & figure it out. I really think you could do anything!

-I love how you talk to our little baby & pretend it has told you a secret but then you won't tell me!

-I love how it's hard for you to be away from me.

-I love how you have instigated the weekly celebration of "Friday-Eve".

-I love how you see the bright side of everything.

-I love how we think the same things are weird.

-I love how your so ticklish.

-I love how you have a special voice for me, even if it means you have to leave the office every time we talk :).

-I love how you call me tons.

I love everything about you. You aren't perfect (pretty close though) but you are perfect for me. I am so grateful for you & I have surprised even myself about how many more things I love about you that I don't have time to list (silly work)! But Bryce, thank you for being an amazing husband & friend to me.

I love you so much.

Jessie

So Spoiled

Can you believe all the gifts I got yesterday?? It looks like Christmas am I right??

Bryce is the sweetest person in the world. Each and every prize was something that I had mentioned in the past (sometimes distant past) that I wanted. I obviously need to be a little more careful about telling him things I want because he always gets them! The books (which i'm SO excited to read) & the cookie cutters (which i'm so excited to use) he ordered on amazon. Beauty & the Beast has ALWAYS been my favorite disney movie & i'm so excited that we have it now so that when we have kids they'll love it as much as I did. Oh & p.s. the two sweatshirts are the most comfy things ever. Perfect as its starting to get cooler. What an amazing man he is.

But obviously, its not about the gifts. He always puts me first. Bryce is truly the most selfless & hardworking person I know. I'm such a lucky girl.

Busy Birthday Weekend

Thursday night felt like Friday, because I got the day off Friday in honor of Pioneer day! That night Bryce surprised me & took me to see Inception, which I have to admit, we both loved.

On Friday I went down to Bryce's work to take him out to lunch since he didn't get the day off :( it was really fun to see his office & grab a bite to eat though. Friday Night we went to Park City for the Deer Valley concert series to celebrate Bryce's birthday with his family. It was my favorite night of the summer so far. Colleen made the YUMMIEST picnic lunch i've ever had & Lauren made homeade oreos...so good. The music was fantastic & it was so fun to just be together & cuddle on the grass. Loved it, loved it.











On Saturday (Bryce's official birthday) we woke up & of course had to have Mcdonalds breakfast! When we brought our breakfast back home I gave Bryce his present which was a gift basket with all his presents inside. After that we had to write our church talks (super fun birthday activity right?) Of course it took Bryce about half the time it took me, but while I finished he got to play one of his new brithday presents Mario Galaxy 3 (who ever thought they'd see the day i'd buy a nintendo game?) which I was really excited about, since Bryce never gets to do anything for himself. After we finished our talks we had some birthday cake & then we went to see Toy Story 3 which was so sweet. You just can't beat Disney/Pixar.




After Toy Story 3 We went to meet the Bailey's & visit Grandma. She was doing so amazing, it's unbelievable. Talk about a strong woman. All the girls were in fun summer colored shirts so I had to snap a picture..



After visiting Grandma we all headed to the Real game. This is mine & Bryce's 4th game of the season, we are becoming huge fans! We had sweet tickets & it was so fun to all be together especially Chris & Mike from NY! There were even fireworks after the game.



]


On Sunday morning we gave our talks which went pretty well I think. As always I was amazed at how lucky I am to have Bryce, & so proud to be his wife. After church we headed up to Park City to have dinner, & then we went down to Grandpa's viewing. After that we headed home & made popcorn & watched Jerry Mcquire on TV. It was so nice to just relax together.

Monday was the funeral, and it was absolutely amazing. The viewing was first, then the funeral, then the graveside service, then a luncheon for the family. It was the most beautiful funeral i've ever been to. Everyone who spoke did a great job & the music was incredible to say the least. At the graveside service, Grandpa got a 21 gun salute for being a veteran. The whole day was awesome & uplifting & we will always remember the peace we felt there.

Laur took these amazing pictures, isn't she talented?












Over all it was a really wonderful & unique weekend. Since then, we also got to go over to my parents house for Bryce's Bickmore Birthday dinner. Bryce picked his favorites (pizza & my mom's chocolate caramel cake) for dinner, & then we opened his presents. He was very spoiled by both our families. We are so blessed to have such great relationships with those we love. Thank you to everyone who makes our lives so full & rich!

Yo DJ. Have mercy on my ears!

Now that I'm a working man with a 30-45 minute commute, I have joined the ranks of the talk radio faithful. For me, it generally goes sports in the morning, news/opinion on the way home. This particular post will focus on the morning sports, and what I consider to be the worst sports radio program in the world. I'm an amateur, but if there is worse, I'll eat my frikkin shoes after a mile run on a hot summer day. So congratulations Stephen A. Smith, yours is no longer the most annoying/irritable/unintelligent voice penetrating the cool morning airwaves. You've been relieved. Step down and make room for the new kings.

Yeah. That's you DJ. And you PK. Because of you I would rather listen to 30 minutes of static. Because of you I was forced to listen to Bob Lonsberry for an entire week (who was recently fired, btw). The phrase "DJ and PK in the morning" gives me an immediate gag reflex. They touch on sports maybe, and I stress MAYBE, like once every 20 minutes.

Seriously, these guys are bad. Remember when you were in 2nd grade and you teased and made fun of the cute girl you had a crush on. Well that's all their alleged "morning sports show" is. DJ teasing PK and vice versa. Problem is, they're both grown men. But that doesn't stop them. I'm not implying anything about their respective batting stances, I'm just calling it like I see it.

Now let's back up a sec. Who are these men? Well let me answer a question with a few questions. Would you rather watch a Jazz pregame/halftime/postgame show on FSN, or shoot yourself in the face with a tranquilizer? If you were ever held hostage, gagged, tied up, held at gunpoint and forced to watch this show, do you remember the short man with a squeaky voice who sits in front of a laptop while "moderating" the ramblings of Big T "former Jazzman turned Mormon Christmas album vocalist" Bailey and Pace "who the heck am I and why do I deserve to be in this seat" Mannion? Yes Ladies and Gents, that's DJ. As for PK. I have no idea who he is, and frankly, I don't care. He could have a microphone in Lebron James' pocket right now and I wouldn't listen to a word.

So I'm gonna end this pointless post with some honesty. This is all bitterness. I would love their jobs, and it just hurts that they are so bad at them. They claim the "highest rated sports show in Utah," which is a SERIOUS problem. Either someone goes to jail for false advertising, or a large number of idiot men need to be stripped of their man cards and taught how to change the station. I mean COME ON.

Our Big News...

I bet some of you will think I am announcing a baby, haha, but I'm not gonna change the title anyway. Do you still want to know our news????

BRYCE GOT A JOB!!!!!

...with Goldman Sachs.

We are so excited. Mostly though, I am just so proud of my husband. Anyone who knows him knows how smart he is and how hard he works. These last two months have been really crazy, we have had a lot of big decisions and a lot of uncertainty. He applied for and interviewed for sooooo many jobs and it has been so crazy and busy for him trying to interview and still keep up with school but he has been truly amazing. I am grateful for him every single day of my life, but these last few months I have really been able to see the kind of provider he will be. I am just so grateful that he loves me. I am so grateful that I get to be a part of his life. I am so grateful that the people at Goldman Sachs were able to see the kind of man he is as well!

But most of all, we feel so blessed, in fact we ARE so blessed.

Believe It

Everyone who thinks it's wrong that I have become the main blogger in this household please say I. I.

That being said, there was a worthwhile happening in Jessica's life that I will briefly account. Details will have to come from Jessica when and if she ever decides to grace her readers again. Last week David A. came into Guru's for a bite to eat. Good thing she knew that no one would believe her without a picture.

Man, now that i'm looking at this picture again, who cares about David, my wife is smokin' hot. He knew it too, I' mean, he should consider himself lucky to stand next to her. What a babe.

Scoreboard, Please

You know, some would say that I'm looking just a tad too intense for my age group. My reply: um....Scoreboard.

3000 Calories Later

Just wanted to shout out to my lover. Thanks for taking me to the best breakfast in the land. I love you. Just a little advice to the readers: Magleby's Fresh has the best french toast in the world, but unless your interested in writing a creamy love note, don't get the fruit bowl topped with whipped cream. Or should I say the cream bowl topped with a bit of fruit. Just ask Abby, she'll tell you.

You know what? I'm in the mood to give another shout out this evening. I think I just better give some love to my main wizard. To Harry Potter, the boy who lived. You're an inspiration to all. Who knew that the dorky kid with glasses would become the youngest person in history to master the Patronus charm. Expecto Patronum!!! Man he was good.

A day in History

For those who have heard this story before, and especially to those who have heard it a thousand times (sorry, baby), i apologize. Here it goes:

Our honeymoon was the best week of my life, and each week thereafter has subsequently become the best week of my life. I love being married. Especially to Jessica. Anyhoo, back to the story. While we were on ou honeymoon, we were sitting at a beachside restaurant enjoying a meal with our pet bird 'Duke' when I looked up and saw a familiar face. After gawking at this mullet-rocking, 6'-7" 180 lb. white man, I realized that it was none other than pitcher-extraordinair Randy Johnson, The last person (until today) to pitch a perfect game in the big leagues. If you don't know waht a perfect game is, it's just like it sounds, and you can google it for details. It has only happened 16 times since 1900. That's once every 6.8 years. Yeah, kind of a big deal. It's similar to an NBA player scoring 65 or 70 points in a game. Anyhow, to shorten the story, I tried to be sneaky and snap a pic, but as I raised my camera and put my eye to the lens, he was looking straight at me shaking his head "no." I'm ridiculous, I know, but I think it's a decent story.

I only bring it up because on this day in history, Randy Johnson is no longer the last person to pitch a perfect game (which happened in 2004, by the way). Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox has done it. It was quite a feat, saved by an amazing catch in the ninth by his center fielder. Buerhle better take that dude out for ice cream, or something. He even got a post game call from Mr. President himself, because heaven forbid something good happening without The Chosen One trying to put his name in the middle of it. If only we could elect the real Chosen One as president. We could budget a trillion for Quidditch instead of throwing it at this weeks counterproductive reform, health care.

one and a half

Yes ladies and gentlemen, we have been married for one and a half years today. I would like to publicly announce that it has been the best one and a half years of all time. I woke up this morning to roses and breakfast (and its not even a real anniversary, its just because he loves me!) he told me before we got married that he would make me breakfast every Saturday morning, and one time i told one of my married co-workers that and he said, "we'll see how long that lasts, talk to me in six months" but guess what, its been a year and a half BOO YAH! Just one example about how my husband and my life are amazing. it's not about the breakfasts though (even though they are fabulously amazing) its about how Bryce makes me better than I am, and how for some reason he loves me so much. I am so blessed. Happy one and a half years to us!

The Perfect Song

Imagine this: My "doesn't pay attention to the lyrics"
 "doesn't like country music"
husband tells me the other day that he heard
the best song and that it reminds him of
me. Well the next night when I got home he 
swept me up into his arms and played the 
song and danced with me. I can't explain the
 feelings that I had, but it was
definitely one of the most romantic moments
 of my life. I am so in love! Needless to
say, I think this song is perfect. It is
crazy how it says exactly what we feel.
You really should all listen to this song,
 it's amazing. I posted the lyrics in case
anyone else is a lyric person like me and
wants to be moved by love!

I thought I loved you then: Brad Paisley

I remember trying not to stare the night that I first met you
You had me memorized
3 weeks later in the front porch light taking 45 minutes to kiss you goodnight
I hadn’t told you yet, but I thought I loved you then  
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like the river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day And I thought I loved you then.
I remember taking you back to right where I first met you
You were so surprised
There were people around
But I didn’t care I got down on one knee right there
And once again I thought I loved you then 
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Like the river meets the sea
Stronger than it’s ever been
We’ve come so far since that day And I thought I loved you then.
I can just see you with a baby on the way
I can just see you when your hair is turning gray
What I can’t see is how I’m ever gonna love you more
But I’ve said that before.
Now you’re my whole life now you’re my whole world 
I just can’t believe the way I feel about you girl
Well look back some day at this moment that we’re in 
will look back and say and I thought I loved you then
And I thought I loved you then...

A very merry Christmas to all

This year, after considering that our little apartment isn't equipped with a chimney, and we don't eat cookies and milk anymore, we decided to save Santa the Christmas eve trouble and invite him over early. We shamefully admit that we lack the self control to keep the presents wrapped under the tree until Christmas. We have been opening a present here and there for a couple of weeks now, and frankly, I dig it. Looking back, I have no idea how I waited before this year. I hope our future children are ready for some new school Christmas traditions. One present on December 1st and the rest of them anytime we darn well please until there are no more. Partaking in the true Christmas spirit on Christmas will be easier that way. Anyway, Jessica got me the sickest jacket that man ever made, and she didn't stop there. She heard this jacket may never make it back to the market, and thus she got me two of them. DVSC is a Hungarian soccer club. She also got me Beetle the Bard, a D-will t-shirt and a Jazz freezer mug. I'm super stoked with the freezer mug, it keeps those beverages cool for hours. I've always hated how milk gets warm after like 5 minutes, but now... hate no more baby, I've got a freezer mug. OH, and the best part, she also got a copy of the jacket for herself. Twinners baby. Huge thanks to our Adidas man Lee, and of course Jessie.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR BRYYYYYYYCEEE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!!!! I love you baby! You are the best man in the world and I am so blessed to be your wife! I hope you have a great day even though work is so stressful and your packages haven't come yet and it probably doesn't even feel like a birthday. If it's any consolation (even though I know you don't care becuase you are amazing like that) you will have ALOT more birthdays together before we go back to heaven together at the exact same time holding hands on our 70th anniversary. Basically what i'm trying to say is...Happy birthday Bryce, I love you!