Pumpkin Patch

Life has been crazy busy, but has also been very good to us. I've had 3 tests, 2 presentations and a major paper since I last updated, which I thought were going to be the end of me. Tutoring has been coming along. I make $60 a month. And it's just about as much as I can handle right now. 
 
General Conference was just what I needed. I got my answers and it really helped me through these crazy school weeks. We passed our first cleaning checks too (which were a nightmare!), which is something that makes us very happy. I've also started making dinner every night. I get the ideas from Pinterest.com. Some days I'm too stressed out and Bear says, "let's just have leftovers." Those words are just what I need to hear (even though there's usually no leftovers). But I'm pretty proud of myself knowing that I'm budgeting, eating healthy, and making good food for me and Bear. I'll be sure to post some of the good things I've gotten from that lovely site. 
 
One of my presentations was in my Political Philosophy class. I was super nervous and asked Bear to give me a blessing. It's an upper division class, and I had to be prepared for the questions and debating comments my classmates would throw at me at the end of the class. I felt like I did a horrible job, but I got 44/45. So prayers and preparation do work. And somehow I've been able to stay on top of my homework. It's kind of a miracle.
 
 I went to my first drive-in movie last weekend. It was my second time seeing The Help, but Bear hasn't seen it yet. I cried even harder this time. There was something so fun about sitting in the back of our truck bundled up in blankets in the fall night weather that made me really happy about life at that moment. 
The leaves are starting to change outside. There's this one particular tree that I can see from our living room window that is absolutely breathtaking. Tuesday was a day off from school for going to the DC Temple. I really wanted to go, but we had just recently been and it's 3 hours one way. I felt so guilty, but I felt like I just needed to focus on me and Bear and to take a breather after our crazy two weeks. One of the things on our Fall bucket list was to go to a pumpkin patch, and I found this one about an hour away from us in Monroe, VA. The whole drive was gorgeous. We drove along the Jame River in the Blue Ridge Mountains with all the colorful trees. Virginia is so beautiful. This little old man owned this pumpkin patch in the middle of nowhere. We were pretty much the only ones there. We picked out unique gourds, along with a white pumpkin and a pink one! Pink I tell you! It's actually more of a salmon color, but I claim it as pink. The little old man with the Appalachian Virginian accent said he'd never seen one like it before. Usually that kind has little brown knobs all over it. But this one was acne free! I'm quite happy. Decorating them has made me quite happy too.

We are very happy. I hope you are too. We're going on a hay ride and to a corn maze this Saturday. I'm really excited!

Blue and White

I bought the above towels from Target. I'm in love. I can't wait to use them. I guess it's because of the way my mom decorated, but I love the Japanese blue and whiteness.

And I got this ^ to go along with the towels. I didn't get the full white pineapple bathroom set from BB&B like I wanted on my registry, but luckily they're white so they'll match this soap dispenser and the towels.

I'm saving up to buy this koi bathmat ^. It's from Anthropologie.com and it actually a lot longer than it looks (55"L). I LOVE IT.


I'm not going to buy a shower curtain until we get to school and I can actually look at our bathroom. The problem is, I like white frilly ones, but then I think there will be too much white in the bathroom. So then I think I should get a blue one. But it's boring. We'll see.

I love these kitchen towels. Of course they're from Target again. I'm not too happy with Bed Bath and Beyond. They have nice appliances and stuff, but their kitchen towels and decorations are ugly (in my opinion).

And another one from Target...this dinnerware set. But I can't have my whole house be blue and white! Gah I need to be a little more creative.

Room

^ I bought those pillowcases for me and Bear for Valentine's Day. They can finally be together now. You can buy more lovey dovey pillowcases, mugs, tshirts, and drinking glasses at Bold Loft.

Me and Bear are staying at the Fredrickson's in Lancaster. At first we were trying to find an apartment in the area, but all of them were at least 6 month leases. So we petitioned the bishops in the area and the Fredrickson's answered their bishop's request first. In a previous post I said we'd be living in their basement. I can tell you now that is not true. There are no basements in California. So we're living in the only bedroom on the main floor; all the rest are upstairs. Our bedroom is very lovely and my camera isn't doing it justice.

Kate re-paints and refinishes wood furniture and is a photographer. I'm jealous, because I would love to fix up antique furniture. I love her decorating and it is inspiring me. They even gave us the little TV which was in their room, which is very nice of them. The room is very "springy" and refreshing. Under the window is Bear's planning whiteboard. I'm going to learn her coupon-ing skills too.

So I only really have to keep our room and bathroom tidy and I'm not cooking any meals (I am helping, but I'm not planning the menu and shopping)...so I sometimes feel like a failure housewife, but I do enjoy the company and the skills I'm learning from Kate and her two cute kids. Kate's younger sister Kacy is staying at their house too, so it's nice to have another girl close to my age. I'm very grateful to them for letting me invade their space.
Here is Kate's blog. Click HERE.