Brian & Jessica

Where to even start! I have been so bad at keeping this thing updated. I am happy to announce that we are coming home for Christmas! YEA!!! So happy. I am planning everything I want to eat and do now! In October...

We went with J & E to the Louisville temple about a month and a half ago. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful session. We ate at Chuy's and then went across the street for cheesecake at CCF.

During the week of Sept. 23 Brian had a week off for TLO. We decided to go to St. Louis. We went to the baseball game. They are really good and now playing for the world series. We went to a Rams 49s game. The Zoo and park that that is in and went to the Arch. We went to go to the temple but they were closed for cleaning. Seriously, this happens to us ALL the time. We have full intentions of going to the temple and when we get there we find out it is closed. I am still counting it as blessings because we really were going to go.

*** I had a computer/picture/blogger crisis and all my pictures went away. I am going back in and replacing the pictures but no guarantee they are in order and they will not have captions. As of today, Nov. 24 I should be back up and running full speed. YEA!!

Back on October 2nd I met up with Mom and Logan and we went to visit Penni and Chad. What a wonderful trip! Each time I go to CA I say it was the best trip yet! We started the day of at breakfast and shopping at Costco and TJs. We went to every Costco in the valley looking for the same thing. None of them had it but we found a treasure at each different one! We headed back to Penni's to catch a little pool time and relax before the main event...Adam.

The women in our family LOVE Maroon 5. Well, Adam in particular. Mom got tickets to go see them for her birthday and I couldn't miss out on the party! ( I saw them here in Indy in August for my anniversary.) They are so wonderful!!!

It is always a challege leaving Penni's house. She has 3 dogs that crash the door when it is opened. Here is Buddy getting scolded. He takes off down the street and it is a 15 minute process to get him back. Buddy is a hoot! I need to find the video of him doing his 'swim routine' around the pool. Hysterical!

I had my 2nd hockey experience. We went about a year and a half ago when I was in Peoria for Brian's business trip. This was way better! I guess the sharks are really pretty good and they have more of a following in the community than a lot of other pro sports team in the area. We sat 2nd row right behind the players. We didn't know what was really going on and we picked a lot up on the way but it was still super fun! Thanks Chad!!

We went to the aquarium. Last time I was there I was 13 and the Giants were playing for the world series. Logan is 13 now! I can't believe how little and immature I was back then!

The weather has gone from warm and nice to rainy and freezing overnight. Last week we had highs in the low 40s! This week we are excited to get back in to the 60s.

I have officially started my Christmas shopping! Brian isn't looking forward to me shopping for everyone.

We have been SOOO busy with church stuff. I am having a hard time deciding between Good, Better, and Best activities. We just can't do everything! Between both of our callings we have several weekly activities and have something for one of us every Saturday. We are to the point where we have something every Saturday for the rest of the year and can't leave Lafayette. Going to the temple would require 9-10 hours and have to be done on a Saturday. What do you give up? What is the best! You try and make time to go to the temple but then you have to give something up, the baptism you are supposed to conduct, the family you are supposed to help move, a wedding for an investigator, soup you are supposed to make and serve at the homeless shelter, the RS broadcast, missionary training, Stake Conference/ adult session, YW yearly inservice, the list goes on and on!

These are all activities we have had within the past 30 days on Saturdays. If any of you have wisdom on what I cut out please share your wisdom. I am really looking forward to going to Idaho so we can hit up the temple several times while we are there. Unless you live out in the mission field you really just don't get it. We don't have the luxury or going after work or during the day when we have free time. It requires a full day that you have to plan out in the future. I will stop having a pity party. I don't get to the temple nearly as much as I like but it's not like we are sitting at home all day watching TV right? We are doing other really good things to help move along the work. I hope that I get blessing from those things and my Heavenly Father is not upset I don't get to the temple very often.

This week is a big week! Tonight we have the Voice and the annual pumpkin carving. Brian always does better than me. My pumpkins always look terrible.

Tomorrow is my birthday. We still haven't talked about what we are going to do. Probably should do that.

Wednesday is the ward halloween party.

Thursday is Halloween so I probably should go buy some candy today to pass out.

Saturday is Stake YW training as well as a temple session we really need to be to. (One of the good, better, best days) What to do. I lost my councelor to the new RS pres. One just had a baby and one just had their dad pass away and isn't around right now. So that leaves me. I will be the only one that can go to training. On the other hand, the B family has come such a long ways! If you look back a year ago you would see some posts about missionary work of us meeting a guy that Brian works with and working with him along the way to baptism, then eventually marriage, and now is time for them to go to the temple. We would love to be there with them!! Any advice which is the 'best' activity for us??

Hopefully with all of this weeks exciting things I will have another post ready within the week!

Happy Monday

Jess

Long story short... I didn't go to Mississippi. I really wanted to go with Brian on his business trip. We spend our anniversary by ourselves. I think I got the better end of the deal however. Brian spend his in a car for 9 hours. Yuck.

I wish Brian were here though. Today was my first day substitute teaching! He needed to be here to take my picture on my first day of school :) It was a lot of fun. I haven't been feeling very well and I probably wouldn't have accepted the job but it is at the school like right across the street from my house. Rumor is that it is insanely hard to get on with this particular school. Teachers fight to teach there. I figured what the heck, it's close and I don't want to burn my 'in' so I will take it.

I did Art today. I had 5 3rd grade classes and 3 kindergarten classes. The 3rd graders were awesome! It was a lot of fun. It was hard to keep the kindergartners going. They have only been in school 6 days so for them it is still very much a challenge to be in school.

I have been thinking it would take a while to get any jobs and I looked again tonight and I have another job on Monday being the PE teacher. This time for middle school. It should be fun!! And it's only half day. What could be better!!