See Ya, Suckers!

After almost 4 1/2 years (at the sometimes great, sometimes the most horrible thing you can imagine) at this job, I. am. out. That's right! I finally quit. I think I've been talking about quitting for over a year. Kirk's talked about me quitting for over a year. I finally have a new job, and although it's not a phlebotomy job like I've been hunting for, it's much better then where I was. I've gone from getting my schedule on a week-by-week, not being able to plan anything till the last minute, having to ask for weekends off job, to knowing I work Monday to Friday. 8-4:30(ish). I can make plans for a weeknight weeks in advance. I can do whatever I want, whenever I want on Saturdays. I don't have to deal with crazy managers (I've had 9 store managers) and all the crazing switching in and out of people. I can now enjoy going into that store again, because when I do, it'll be to shop. Over the last week Kirk kept asking me "Will you miss your job?". I can answer "No" to that question without even thinking about it. I will however miss some of the people that I worked with. Seeing as I never had shifts the same time as those people anyways, I didn't get to say good-bye to a lot of those people. I guess I'll have to go shopping soon to be able to see them. I can't believe it's really done, and what a relief it is.  Adios, BBB

Tomato Sauce and China.

Kirk and I decided that one thing we really wanted to make sure we got with all of the gift cards from our wedding, was all of our china. We got a few sets from some family and friends and knew we had to get the rest. We ordered it a few weeks ago, and it finally came! We decided that we were going to use it, just for the heck of it. We also decided that it was something we wanted to use often, and mostly likely every Sunday night. If you come over for dinner, you'll probably end up eating off the china, just because we can! Kirk also decided that with all the awesome tomatoes from our garden, he wanted to make a homemade Spaghetti sauce. So he did! I am so blessed to have a husband that not only knows how to cook, and cook quite well, but also someone that LOVES to cook! He won't admit it, but I think it's a release for him. He comes home from work, and that's how he likes to unwind! Works well for me!

Oh how time flies!

Yesterday was 4 months from the day that Kirk and I got married. Now I know some people have been married much longer, but I waited 2 1/2 years to marry this man, so I'm taking it all in. It seems like time has been going by so fast! It was just June when we were preparing for the wedding, and now it's almost November! These last few months have been filled with up's and down's, but we know that all marriages are like that. I've been told by quite a few people that the first year is always the hardest, but I think because we were together for so long before we got married, we already worked a lot of those kinks out. A year ago I was really ticked off that we weren't married yet, but today I am so grateful for the time we had together to build a better friendship and relationship before we got married. In the last 4 months Kirk and I have changed wards, gotten new callings in the church (him as Executive Ward Secretary, and me as a Young Womens adviser), given talks..well, mine is this coming sunday, and I've gotten a new job. Even though this might be a time when we really would love to just spend all our time together and maybe not really be thinking about doing other things that would keep us away from our home and each other, it really has been such a blessing to have the chance to serve in our ward. I'm not sure what his thoughts are, but I love my Young Women. It helps that I'm now related to a few of them, but they really are wonderful girls. I have the opportunity to teach every other sunday, and for those of you who really know me, that is a very hard thing for me to do. As much as I love talking, I really do not love talking in public. For me to get up and give a lesson is just very nerve wracking for me. Thankfully, our Heavenly Father knows exactly what we need. I'm so grateful to know that whatever He has in store for me, I can accomplish with His help. One of the things that Kirk and I have been trying really hard to make sure we do, is to hold Family Home Evening every week. It usually works to have it on monday, but every now and then it ends up on a different day. As I was moving from my parents house into our house, I found this FHE board (pictured below). It was unfinished, and needed some love. I decided I didn't like the font that was already started and decided to start all over. I sanded down what was already on there, repainted the black, then traced and painted all the words. I decided that while the FHE board was good, it just wasn't complete. I went to Michael's Crafts and bought the letters for our last name. My engineer hsuband helped me space all the hooks out, so they were perfectly spaced. He even got out his calculator! After we got all of our wedding pictures back from our amazing photographer, Emily White, I decided that with the big empty space in the loft, I wanted to hang photos up. I went to Target and bought all the frames and Kirk just looked at me like I was crazy! I told him to just trust me, and it would turn out great! I am so happy with how they turned out. It helps that our photographer was AWESOME!!!! (Thanks Em!)  Every time I walk up the stairs and see all those pictures of us at the temple, it just makes me so thankful to be married to such a wonderful man for time and all eternity. 

PBR, baby!

A couple weekends ago, i was at my parents house printing some things, and I get a call from one of my aunts. She says she has an extra ticket to the Pro Bull Riding event that was happening downtown that evening. She convinced me to go, and picked me up about 5 minutes later. We have a family member that works at the arena, and sometimes gets tickets. (Gotta love the hook up!) When my aunt called, I was under the impression that it was only going to be the 5 of us that were in the car, and then I found out that a bunch of family was going to be there! I feel like now that a lot of the kids are growing up, we don't see each other as often as we used to. Maybe that's just me though.. We got there and a bunch of the family was already there, and we had a great time waiting for the show to start. The one thing that you don't know about our family, is that it seems as if a bunch of us have cameras surgically attached to our hands or something. We really like taking pictures.  The rodeo was awesome! There were quite a few times that we gasped and flinched, watching the riders get trampled or stepped on by the bulls. There were also quite a few times when we were very grateful to not be in relationships with said riders. I don't know how their significant others do it. I sure wouldn't be able to! They got stamped on, head-butted, chased, and a couple even got stuck on the bull when they were trying to get off, and got flopped around like little rag dolls. Sometimes I get working about when Kirk has to go out onto a job site, but it's nothing compared to this! It was a fantastic evening with the fam!

Mr. Mario-Pro

(I don't think he really wanted to take this picture)

                                                                      Ride that bull!

He's Ryan Seacrest, and this, is...

 That's right! We went to the American Idol Live tour! It was way better then I thought it was going to be, and the only letdown was that Scotty, the winner, was only on-stage for like a half hour! He only sang a few songs by himself, and hardly any of the group numbers. I wish that we would have seen more of him, never the less, it was still a fantastic show. Kirk talked about going a couple years ago, and it didn't happen. He was so impressed with the contestants on this past season that he knew he had to go. He works with a gentleman who also watches the show with his wife, and he was in love with Pia (on of the contestants) so when Kirk approached him about going to the concert, he was all over it. Kirk bought the tickets, and we waited a few months, and then finally it was time. Kirk came home from work a little early so he could get changed and we could hit the road. He had an extra ticket so he also invited his sister to come along with us. We stopped at The Red Tractor in Dublin for dinner (delish!) and before we knew it, it was concert time! We got a pair of binoculars for our wedding, so with those in hand it was off to our seats. It was great watching the contestants on the big screen because it was nice to see them close, but it was so neat to watch them on the stage and think that they were RIGHT THERE. On our way back to the car on the BART, there was a lady that looked at us and goes "Oh, you were the ones in section xx (just because I can't remember)." We were like "Yeah..." She goes "Yeah, you were screaming a lot. You must be big Scotty fans!". We had to laugh, because mostly I was screaming. It was a little embarrassing to have someone recognize me as the loud one. It was a fantastic evening, complete with people that we love, and great entertainment! 

Kirk & Katie

Kirk, Me, Doreen, & Ron

Garden Update..

I just realized how long it's been since I've updated on anything...I'm kind of a blogger drop out. Now, to avoid writing the talk, and finishing the lesson I'm giving THIS SUNDAY, I'm going to attempt to catch up a little bit. (Last night I procrastinated by catching up with my friend Stefan, Damon, Klaus, & Tyler. Get some good vamp/were action.)


As you'll be able to see below, we had quite a lot grow this season. We weren't expecting that since we started so late, and really had no idea what we were doing! Kirk took the opportunity to learn how to can. He borrowed some things from his mom, and went to work! As a result, we have 2 jars of squash, 6 jars of tomatoes, and 3 cans of homemade pickles! Also (not pictured) we have bags of green beans and corn in the freezer!

(Please ignore the fact that I look pregnant in this picture)