La Vida Loca

Hola mis amigos! Spanish theme this time. 

Our "vida" has been "loca" lately because we've been pretty busy. But at the same time, I don't really have a lot of pictures or news or anything. So it's kind of weird. 

"Linda" (which is supposed to mean cute.)

Josie has ear infections again. Allergy season, so my throat and eyes are in uproar right now. 

Jake's been going nuts lately because he hasn't been out a lot lately and Josie's knee has been hurting so she's not playing with him. There are also a ton of birds around here lately so that drives him crazy too. I've thought about taking him to doggie day care just so that he can get some of his psycho out.

Family photo! We all piled up on one chair! And of course Jake isn't paying attention because there's probably a bird outside the window that he's staring at. And of course Josie won't put the yogurt container down.

I don't think normal dogs just chill sitting up and cuddle  like ours do.....

DIY de nuevo...

I couldn't believe that it was impossible to find a crate like this that was already stained. So I had to stain it myself. While I was doing it, the wind blew really hard and knocked over the whole can of stain. Now there is a brown spot on the concrete and one side of the crate is basically black because the whole can went on it. It reminded me once again how much I hate making stuff. 

But at least it turned out okay. I like the way it looks now!

This was my other project. I use it as a vanity stool for my bathroom, but that bathroom is white, black and grey and the stool was brown. So I covered it with fabric and painted the legs black. This project was significantly easier and turned out pretty good. It took me like 30 mins to do. (Or less) 

Valentine's Day with Mi Amor

Valentine's day this year was low-key but good. I got this from a student which was sweet. I also took a picture to document that we are doing a fundraiser for the American Heart Association, and the students who donate get a "zoo crew" animal. I couldn't believe how expensive they make the requirements. One kid spent 275$ just to get a tiny key chain of a zebra. But oh well, it goes to charity! 

One girl felt bad and gave me her pre-licked and opened sucker for Valentine's day. So thoughtful.

This is closer to my name than others at least!

This little cutie was so thoughtful to get me a window cling to hang on my office/closet door with the other window clings. The only funny thing is that she thinks my name is Ms. Beth. I don't know why, because she knows Miss Elizabeth.... maybe she thinks there are two. lol Anyway everytime she writes me a note and my christmas present and my valentine said "to ms. beth." Oh well, I like it. (It's the butterfly one)

On Valentine's day I surprised Dallin and had a bouquet of balloons sent to his work. It was overpriced, but accomplished the goal of embarrassing him. :) We both feel like we've been spending a lot of money lately so we wanted to keep the V-day cost to a minimum. So I told him not to get me flowers but after the balloons thing he felt bamboozled and got flowers on the way home. So our "let's not spend money" idea turned into about 90 dollars. hehehe
We made a nice dinner and had a "book club" night. (Which I am now aware that some people think is weird. Haters gonna hate. I'm lovin' it.)
I also made cheesecake with fresh berries on top. It was so good!

My beautiful flowers!

Muy Cansado

We have both been feeling worn out lately. Brianna invited us to go out and I sent her this picture and said, "We are all dead over here." lol we didn't do anything 2 weekends ago but sleep. Sometimes a week of working requires serious recuperation. 

Dallin's Relajacion

Dallin used his Christmas present that weekend. He was nervous so I went with him. I would make fun of him, but I was too nervous to make an appointment for myself, so I'm worse. Lol It was at a float spa. So you go in that capsule thing and float in water and the whole room and pod is temperature controlled so you can't feel the difference between the water and the air. It's supposed to be super relaxing. I just freak out in enclosed spaces. I still don't know if I will ever be able to do it. Dallin said it was mind blowing though. I think he especially needs it because he is constantly over-stimulated. He will watch tv and look at his phone at the same time, and when he's not doing that he's at work doing 400 things at once or playing a video game while answering emails. I think it was good for him to take away his phone and have him deal with the complete opposite for 60 minutes. Because he gets so stressed out and then plays his game. And in my opinion that just makes it worse because he is freaking out and yelling at the screen and hitting the keyboard. Anyway, this was the guy explaining what to do. 

There's dallin and the other guy who was going in other room.

cray cray, right?

He said it was glorious. We found it on groupon!

We don't know what we're doing

when it comes to the house thing. Our rental lease is up in July, so we've been thinking about whether or not we should buy or move. We went to talk to a custom home builder just out of curiosity. It would be a super cool thing and they were really nice. It would be a great option for us, but the lot situation was what complicated it. We want something centrally located so that Dallin doesn't have a crazy commute, so I don't think we will end up going this route. But it was super fun to draw out the design for my dream home! :)

Buena Carne

We went to Ruth's Chris with the premier club at clearlink! It was sooooo fun! I was so happy I got to go this time. Meeting everyone was a blast, and of course the food is to die for. I love that place. I think it's my favorite restaurant. The service at the scottsdale location was amazing. Thank you Clearlink! :)

Jake and Josie were also pleased with the leftovers :)

They are so spoiled.

Musica Bonita

Upon Spencer's request, Michelle, Jordan, Dallin, and I went to the Symphony in Phoenix! They were doing a Disney themed show, so they had the screen play the movies, and singers while they played the music of all the classic movies. 

I was thinking it might be weird, and I didn't love the price, but in the end I was SO GLAD we went. It was so cool it blew our minds!

The singers were so good! I laughed, felt romantic, adventurous, etc. Everything about it was spot-on. We found out they're doing a Harry Potter show in October so of course we're going!

The drive in and out of there was not as awesome as the show was. Since we had to go to down town phoenix, we passed Trenden's old med school. I got so car sick, traffic was terrible, and we ended up being a little late because it was hard to find parking. I don't blame Trenden for not liking AZ that much if that is what he dealt with. Mesa and Gilbert are totally different and less stress. It was all worth it for that show though. So good.

Mejores Amigos

Kim and Rodney came to visit! Her parents moved to Marana, which is 2 hours south of here, and they were down there to visit. I was soooooo excited to see them again. They brought Shadow, and we played games and talked and ate all night. 

(Side note: as you can see behind Dallin, the St. Patty's day stuff has already gone up!)

I just want to say for the record that I actually beat Dallin at a card game. It's called "butt head." lol 

They are getting married in June and I couldn't be happier for them! I am so excited!!! :) Here are the cute pups posing for a picture. 

Teeth stuff

Dallin thinks he may need another root canal, and I went in and had my teeth squared up a bit more. They had rounded edges and one of my front teeth was longer than the other so she just shaved the bottoms of the teeth. I'm getting a fake tooth for one of the side ones so this is the in between picture and we will see if it looks better once I get my new tooth! I am excited but scared at the same time. She said if we get it and it doesn't look good we can just return it and it's no harm done. 

Clearlink folks in town!

We went out to dinner with Josh, his wife and son, Kyle, Michelle, Jordan and their daughter. It was really fun and this little restaurant Rosa's is pretty good. I forgot to take pictures, but that's how you know it was a good time. 

The Diet is not going well....

Becky gave me a twix bar yesterday, the cafeteria lady handed out donuts this morning, and then this is what happened when I asked Dallin if I could have just one of his fries. lol That whole thing was connected! 

This is the reason for the dieting. I ordered this dress online so when it gets here this week we will see if it fits or not. The clearlink party is saturday so if this dress doesn't work out I'm going to be soooo annoyed. 

Well, I guess that's all.

Tenga un buen dia! -Sydney

Best "Winter" Ever!

It was 88 degrees today. And it's February 10th. I looooooove Arizona during the winter. This is the most magical weather ever. It's just warm enough with a slight relaxing breeze most days. I guess it's Arizona's way of apologizing for what it does to you during the summer. 

This was me last Sunday, and I do it a lot lately. I just sit outside and read my book and jake wanders around the yard. I wish it could stay like this always. 

Hike Date

Last Saturday we went on a hike with Jake. Josie couldn't go because of her knee. Dallin freaked out that I was pointing out snake holes, so that was entertaining. Jakey had the time of his life until he stepped in pokey stuff. The trail was close by and we got lunch after and it was a relaxing day. Despite his panic attack, I think Dallin had a good time and we will definitely do it again. 

 New leash area thing. Changed the picture to a cuter one and got new hooks up on the wall!

 The Flanigan's!

My uncle Rabbit and Aunt Lisa came into town for like 1 day and made time to have dinner with me before they flew out. I thought that was so sweet and we had a good time, as usual. I haven't seen him since the wedding and her since 2012 christmas!

I met their friends and they were sweet. They didn't want me to take their picture so of course I did it anyway ;)

 Sore, sore, sore.

The diet has been going well since I discovered I like hummus. Working out is good too, and I've been sore constantly since Monday. I also eat/do whatever I want on weekends so I don't go insane. 

Sickeys

I had the worst cold I've ever had to work through. Literally at work I felt like I was dying. It was the worst. I think all my other colds have just been on great timing because I haven't really ever had to go to work when I'm feeling sick. (But I also don't get sick very often.)

I had no voice at all and a temperature, and it lasted 5 days or so. Thankfully I'm better now, and I made it through without getting a sub.

 My bathroom decorations are almost finished!

I just have to paint and reupholster my makeup stool and then it's done. But I got stuff for around the corners of my tub and i love it. 

In that oil dispenser is bubble bath!

 close up. I adore this so much it makes me happy to be in my bathroom. lol

 Book Club

Dallin reads faster than me so.... he fell asleep. But it's going great having our new reading nook! We are reading "The Uglies" together. It's really interesting so far!

Look how long Jake's eye lashes get before he gets groomed. It's so funny that they just keep growing with the rest of his hair. 

 Why doesn't my neighborhood have sidewalks?

It's so weird. The front yards of the houses just meet up with the road. So when we go on walks their feet end up like this......

They got groomed! They look so cute when they just got their hair done. Josie looks a little fatter, but I love her chunkiness. Lol it looks like they're holding hands in this picture. I promise I did not arrange them- they're just BFF's. 

Livi and Addi's Campaign for a Puppy

They love Jake and Josie sooooooo much. Addi was licking out of the water bowl trying to be like them and chasing them and laughing at them so hard.  It's hilarious. I think when Justin saw how happy it made his kids, that sealed the deal. 

So they got Brady! He's 9 weeks old and a Yorkie Poodle mix. He's adorable and now Dallin wants a puppy. ( not happening.)  Lol But we love him too. We gave him some of Jake's shirts he out grew and he looked so good. He has such a sweet, outgoing personality. When we brought him over to meet Jake and Jo, I think he was a little scared. Jakey went nuts and I've never seen him like that, so he got in trouble and I think that scared Brady even more. Ugh I hope we didn't just traumatize this poor little baby. Jake was sooooo excited to be friends- but he came across a little psycho. I'm sure as we ease Brady into it they will become besties. 

When we were over at the Mayne's last night we had to say our goodbye's to Jon because he was officially moving back to Utah today. I'm sad he is leaving and so is Dallin. He is such a good friend to both of us. We met his new girlfriend Jonna and we did gel nails together. (She is such a sweetheart.) I made it a goal to grow out my nails under the glue-ons so that I could try gel again and I am going to really try not to bite. I think gel will work better with my lifestyle. (Glue on nails fall off often if you're constantly handling basketballs, footballs, and playing tag. Imagine that.) So yes, that means I'm officially on my journey to kick the habit of chewing my fingernails off. Wish me luck. I think they look good, I just want to get better at it because I missed a few spots. 

 Our new area rug!

It looks so good in the space. I was nervous because dallin picked it out and got it online. When it came I was in love with it, and literally hours later Josie puked on it twice in 2 big mountains. WHITE, SHAG CARPET. BRAND NEW. I was so sad. But I used the baking soda trick and went to work. It worked! It's so funny how much the kids love laying on it. You can't see their arms while they're laying down because it matches their fur so well. He's rolling around on it in the pic on the right because he loves how soft it is. 

 Life as a P.E. teacher in Arizona

I literally have a tan line from my wedding ring. I've seen some people get a tattoo right there, but for me I just get a tan line. So when I don't wear my ring everyone still knows I'm married! haha

I took this picture on accident when I was trying to take the next picture. I didn't know that it was on the front camera it accidentally took. But I wanted to document that this was the first time I straightened my hair since June. Everyone was asking me if I got it done or cut or something because I looked so different. lol I don't do it often because it fries my hair and it takes a long time.

 It was capture the flag week, and we did it in a cool way. The students helped me learn the way that the previous teacher played it with them, and I like it a lot. You put a bucket of tennis balls on both sides and they steal a ball at a time and at the end the bucket with the most in it wins! I would always get talked into helping the losing team, so I ended up playing 4 times a day monday through thursday. So I was pretty sore. It's a lot of sprinting.

That same 6th grade class pictured above bet me that if I could talk in a British accent all day they would bring me skittles. Worth it! 

So I tried and I made it until I got to the kindergarteners and I lost it because I was concentrating and everything. I told the 6th graders that, but they gave me my skittles anyway because they thought it was cool that I tried. 

I just love those funny 6th graders. They're the bees knees. 

I saw this hair do on pinterest and thought I'd try it. I did not anticipate the reaction that would come from that decision. When I first got in, a kid told me I look like minnie mouse. Later on, a kindergartener asked me if it was crazy hair day. Several curious students asked me why I did my hair that way. One kid said his sister did her hair like that when she dressed up as a rock star for halloween. A parent in the car line rolled down his window and said "Hey you've got something sticking out of your head, did you know that?" 

LOL

I am not exaggerating. Lesson learned. I will never do that style again. I took this picture after school and laughed at myself. After I had ran in them and gotten hit with balls and the like, they got a little looser and ended up looking like a second head back there. haha

I got this note from a little girl who I helped find the love of her life. :) I don't remember if I already wrote it on here or not, but a little boy asked me to tell her that he liked her. And she gave him a message back, and while we played our game during the 45 minutes of PE I was being their messenger. By the end of the class they were little boyfriend and girlfriend! hehehe just call me "Yenta." (Fiddler on the roof reference.)

Anyway the little ones drive me nuts sometimes, but they are seriously so funny. I had to explain to one that that you can't smack people on the butt when you play tag. "Just tag anywhere else!" haha 

One said, "You're the best PE teacher I've ever had." When I asked him how many he's had, he said 3. So I'm clearly pretty amazing. 

In leadership the young ones are learning about Neil Armstrong, and a first grader said, "I want to be just like him when I grow up. Big and tall and skinny. and I'm gonna stand on the moon and stuff."

It was pretty funny to hear the words, "Oh dear. There appears to be a squabble" come out of a 2nd grader's mouth. haha 

This one I really enjoyed.... "My dad says PE stands for pointless exercise." Thanks, man, it's just my life's work and all. haha

 I had to take a picture of the sky. I'm so grateful that I can be outside and active and just playing games all day. It's the best. It's so pretty out there too.
Anyway, I had a terrible dyslexic moment while we were playing soccer with the 3rd graders. I saw a kid on the ground, and I tried to ask, "Did you hit your shin?" However, it came out, "Did you shit your hin?" The whole class gasped and laughed and told everyone and I was so embarrassed and laughing. Ugh it was awful but hilarious at the same time. Whoops!

The only problem with being outside all day is that I get sunburned and weird tan lines. You've seen the one from my ring and the one on the back of my neck from my whistle. I cannot even begin to describe the obscene farmer's tan that I have on my arms and legs. My shoulders, feet, and thighs are arctic white, and then my calves and arms are almost black. I also have a line from the neck line of my shirts, so on the weekends when I wear anything that's not a crew neck it looks pretty weird too. I took a picture of this blister on my forehead. I put the sunscreen all over now everyday because I've learned  my lesson by now. And it's funny the smell of it actually boosts my mood. Idk- the smell of sunscreen reminds me of fun summer days at the beach and stuff. So I actually like it. I just don't love looking greasy all the time. 

(Side note: my lashes are awesome now that I got a new lady. Plus, she's cheaper!)

I was trying to get creative with leadership so the 2nd graders did a gallery walk that had pictures and information about George Washington while answering questions on their papers. Then they colored a picture of him on the other side. It was a success! I blurred their faces for their privacy. 

 We actually like going to the dentist now

It's odd, I know. Canyon Lakes is just the best. All the doctors, hygienists, assistants, and receptionists know us so well and have been honest about everything we should do with our teeth. They have taken an interest in us individually and they're so gentle on your teeth. They've given us discounts on so many things. 

So I was thinking about getting braces for the things I didn't like about my teeth, but we worked out a plan to fix the 3 teeth I don't like so that I don't have to do that. I am so excited to get the smile I want! 

My first step is bleaching, so they gave me this kit. I didn't ask very many questions about it, so my first time doing it I did it completely wrong. The second I put my trays in my mouth erupted in fire like burn-ey pain. I lasted maybe 1 minute, and then started trying to get it off in the bathroom sink. 

 I looked in the vile and I had put the higher concentration stuff on the gum line and I used half the bottle! That was supposed to last me 2 weeks!
No wonder it hurt so bad, my gums were white after that! I have never seen or heard of that happening. Since then I have figured out how to do it, and my gums are no longer white. lol Blonde moment I guess.

Brian's Nomination

So Brian got an award and got to present to the company for why he should win the trip of a lifetime!

 He filmed a bunch of people talking about him and asked me to make a video for him. I thought it was such a cool idea. I'm proud of those 2 graff boys being such awesome sales managers. I hope he gets the award! Watching/making this video inspired me to refocus again on my relationships with people at work. Good job Brian!!!
Here's the video!

Happy Valentine's Day!

The decorations are up, and I found a fun surprise for Dallin that we're going to do next Saturday to celebrate. 

 Happiness is a Choice

Not that I was unhappy, but I just wanted to challenge myself a little and get better. So I downloaded this app called Bliss, and I write once a day during lunch. It helps me energize for the 2nd half of the day because the afternoons I start running out of energy. It is AWESOME. I recommend that everyone on the earth does this once a day. There are tons of different exercises you can do, and the app tells you the research and why it's good for your brain, attitude, and happiness level. Some examples are "Name 3 good things," "What you're grateful for," "Savoring good moments," "Honoring People," and "Best Possible Future." It's good to check in with yourself and really think about what you've got, what your goals are, and how you can make an impact with what you do everyday. I love it. If you're reading this, force yourself to do this once a day and it will become a habit for your brain to point out the good and not the bad. 

 Jake's Spot

I think he approves of our new chair. He arranges the blinds like that so that he can see out. It's so nice of him. 

 Girls Night

Molly, Tina and I went to get facials together! I got some free vouchers from my mom for christmas and I was stoked they went with me. To be honest- there were pros but I think the cons outweighed them. I knew it was an esthetics school, but I figured they at least prepared their students thoroughly before letting them take a client. As far as I saw, Tina and Molly got people who knew what they were doing. The girl who had me did not even know where to start and was asking 5 other people around her before every little thing she did. I ended up with a small crowd of people staring at me and asking questions loudly about all my skin flaws. (not embarrassing at all) 

Finally another chick took over who knew what she was doing, but it ended up not being relaxing at all and it took like 2 hours. I almost got in a couple car accidents on my way there because I never drive in Tempe. (I didn't know I was driving the wrong way on a one-way road, and I got off on the wrong exit and couldn't figure out how to turn around.) When I was walking in some sketchy guy asked me to get in his car and try his own perfume that he invented. 

It just wasn't a nice school either. So I'm glad they were good sports about it. I probably won't go back. 

 Superbowl 

Dallin had soooooo much dental work done. He ended up in the dentist chair for 5 hours on wednesday and 3 hours on thursday to get it all done. His mouth was in pain and he was all drugged up so although we were invited to a couple parties we just watched it at home. It was a good game, but Dallin was bummed with the results. Everybody likes to root for the underdog. 

Every time I blog I remember something later that I should've put in there. I hope I'm not forgetting something now- but I think that's it. It hasn't been very eventful for us in the last 4 or 5 weeks so this post and last aren't going to make it to Facebook. 

I hope you're doing well! And if you're reading this from Utah or Nebraska, I'm so sorry for the gross cold you're experiencing. ;) Feel free to move to paradise anytime. 

-Sydney :)