Nerd for Life

I am and forever will be a nerd. Proof positive:

I miss school. I miss learning. I'm jealous of all you people going to school right now. Since I won't be able to go back for a while, I've kept many of my college textbooks to reread for fun. I wanted to start reading them again, but they are all Humanities related, and I needed some balance: I haven't taken math since senior year of high school and science since freshman year of college. I used to be really good at those subjects and now I can't remember anything. So at the thrift store on dollar day last week, I bought a college algebra textbook to read and practice math for fun. I read the first chapter yesterday and found it exciting! I haven't done any exercises yet because right now they're just little theoretical things I can do in my head, but I can't wait to start solving for x again.

Look back at the italicized words. Do they shout, "Nerd!" or what?

I WON!

My friend Ashley does a lot of giveaways on her blog. Most of them are baby-related, so I don't enter them (even though I would love the cute stuff for a future baby, but others can use them more than I can). I entered an earrings one (even though my ears aren't pierced! haha) and I WON! The earrings I first chose were no longer on the site, so I chose these instead:


Ashley is hosting another jewelry giveaway for necklaces made out of Scrabble tiles. There are a ton of cute ones with birds and flowers! (To see them, click here.) I really liked these too:

You don't have to know her to enter. Anyone can have a chance to win--just go here!

Sad News

I checked my email this morning as usual and saw that I received an email from my former bishop. The subject line read, "Difficult news." I opened it, read the first part of the message, and was confused. The Alders had moved out of the ward. Well, that is sad, but difficult? I scrolled down to the very first message, from Ryan Alder's parents. The Alders were in a car accident last night while driving back to Utah from Oregon. The car rolled, and Ryan died at the scene from a head injury. Kate is in the hospital, but it seems as if she will recover. Baby Cora is fine.

I was shocked! The Alders were a couple in our last ward in Utah. Although we were never very close to the Alders since we moved away shortly after they moved in, we had some fun memories with them. We became friends at a neighbor's Halloween party. They were dressed as pirates and had brought their pet snake. Justin is terrified of snakes, but by the end of the night, he had acquired a new friend (see photo above). Then we had them over for dinner with our dinner group and played Imaginiff. We had such a fun time! They are both goofy and smiley and fun to be around. We continued to see them at church every week and at other activities. Right before we moved, we heard the great news that they were expecting. Baby Cora was born in June--and she will never know her father. I can't imagine how hard this is on Kate. They just recently celebrated their one-year anniversary.

Please pray for them and their families. And be loving to your family today. You just never know when will be the last time you are with them on earth. I've already been hugging Justin all morning and crying in sadness for the Alders and in gratitude that I still have Justin. At least we know families are forever. It doesn't take the pain away, but it does give us hope.

[Their website is http://www.thealders.org/]

Crazy Dreams

Some crazy dreams I've had lately:

1. Deja vu: I dreamed (dreamt, whatever) that I got my electric bill, and I saw the amount due. Next morning I got the bill--and it was the same amount as in my dream!
2. Death: I dreamed that Justin and I went hang gliding and died, but we didn't know we were dead (we didn't fall or crash) until I overhead someone talking about it. It was scary because I'm scared of heights and would never go hang gliding! I didn't want to even in my dream, and I blamed our death on Justin, who made me do it. I then hid on a shelf in the refrigerator (?????) so he wouldn't make me do it again.
3. Pregnancy: Last night I dreamed that I was pregnant (my stomach was small, though) and was trying to go into labor. There were other women there too. One of them had twins via C-section (unseen and unheard--I was surprised to see the babies). Another was screaming from regular labor pains. I never went into labor.

Is my brain crazy at night or what?

Melanie's Marriage

Melanie Mensink, my wonderful BYU roommate, married David Davies on Saturday, August 22, 2009. We attended the wedding in Oakland, CA. First, Justin and I drove to Southern CA to meet with our other BYU roommate Kara and her husband, Isaac. We had some extra time, so we stopped by to visit Justin's Aunt Erin and her little girls (her husband was working). We all went out to lunch at a Japanese restaurant, and Justin and I played Hello Kitty Uno with the girls. They are so cute and silly!

When Kara and Isaac got off work, we all carpooled to Oakland and stayed in a kind couple's home. We went to the sealing, which was short but sweet. David looked super excited and happy, and Melanie looked beautiful and full of love. I was so grateful to have been there.

The couple came out of the temple in their wedding clothes, and we all cheered and took photos. (While on the grounds we also ran into another friend from freshman year with whom I have stayed in touch: AesaLina Compton and her husband and baby girl.) We went off to the luncheon, where I met and talked with members of Melanie's immediate and extended family visiting from Holland and Bermuda. Everyone in her family is so pleasant!

We had time to kill after that, so while Kara and Isaac napped, Justin and I chatted with the couple we were staying with and then played Rummy 500 and Jenga. I lost at Jenga every time!

In the evening was the ring ceremony outside the church building in Tracy, CA. Everything was wedding white and rosy red and very elegant. David's bishop gave a short speech and then the couple exchanged rings. We threw fake rose petals on them afterward, much to their surprise. The family formed a receiving line, and I went through twice so I could get a picture with the bride and groom. Dinner followed--Justin was very excited about the chocolate fountain, of course, especially since it actually worked (at our wedding, it didn't)! We toasted to the bride and groom and watched them cut their cake, which had the most beautiful topper. David was nice feeding the cake to her, but Melanie wasn't to him. I think they planned it that way. The first dance followed as the sun set, and then came the dollar dance with the bride, and Justin danced with Melanie. Once the floor was open, I got my groove on. Justin and I did some triple swing and fox trot; we haven't danced together in a while, so that was nice. It was all over too soon. I hugged Melanie goodbye and then they left for their honeymoon to Disney World and then Bermuda.

It was the most emotional wedding for me. I love Melanie so much! She was more of a blessing to me than she knows. I miss her already. The groom's father advised me to host reunions so that we would all remain close over the years. I definitely want to do that--our friendships are too precious to lose!