Work hard, play... later!

Well, like every other semester in our lives, we don't see each other nearly often enough.  Jeff is busy all week before the sun comes up and long after the sun goes down.  His one consistent day off is Sunday.  However, that is my consistent day ON.  I am busy all week as well - working by night and school/preceptorship by day.  It's a busy life, but it will all pay off eventually.  (At least that's the plan!)

I have started my preceptorship for nursing school.  It is like the grand finale for clinicals.  I am in the NICU at the U (yes, my current place of employment) and I couldn't love it more! It is the best job and I am getting so much closer to everything I have been working toward.  7 MORE WEEKS and then I graduate! Oh thank goodness.  (Although, I will be doing the RN to BSN program just a couple weeks after graduating.)

Jeff received a promotion at work!! (yep, another!)  He is SUCH a hardworker! I am so proud of him.  He is now the manager of the area he is working in at Biofire.  Meanwhile, he spends 20+ hours a weeks for school.  What a total rockstar.  I'm a lucky, lucky girl.

We purchased memberships to the recreation center in our hood.  It is fabulous.  They have so much to offer and it is affordable.  I have been going to the gym and lifting 4-6 times a week and Jeff is able to go 2-3 times a week. Fitness is really important to both of us and it has provided some much needed stress relief.

Perhaps it is all of the above that is keeping me from blogging.  Perhaps.

Skydiving!

We did it!

We can check that off our bucket list!

It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be.  Last year, I said I'd never do it. I'm not sure what changed in me, but I didn't hesitate for a second when the opportunity came!

Jeff and I were able to ride on the airplane up together.  Then I watched as my husband jumped out of a moving airplane 14,000 feet in the air!! So exhilirating! I followed right after!  Both of our tandem instructors allowed us to steer the parachutes and Jeff did a cool trick with his camera guy where they were all spinning belly down.

If you haven't gone, you really should!

Garden and Goals

Cool story about this cute little cherry tomato: we had a garden box full of peas earlier this summer.  It was fabulous, but as the heat increased they died and went to garden heaven.  Jeff and I were out weeding and pulling all of the dead plants when we smelled... tomatoes! We look at a few of the plants that are green and lo-and-behold... they were growing!  We hadn't planted any and neither had the previous owners, but there were tomatoes in that box last year. I'm assuming a few dropped and seeded.  Patient little tomato plants waited for the peas to finish! We have something like 3 cherry tomato plants and 1 regular tomato plant.  So cool! (Especially because it's Jeff's favorite fruit!)

Cutest dog on this planet... Love that Icky.

My Fall Schedule.  This is what my schedule looks like without my preceptorship! Pretty great, right? I'm loving it.  I am wanting to get into better shape and become a better climber so this schedule is hopefully going to keep me on track.  Jeff and I are able to go to the gym together at 6:00 AM every day.  I get home from my night shifts and we go then too! It's really nice.  We got memberships at the South Davis Recreation Center.  They have a great facility! Often, I will bike the 1.5 miles UPHILL back home while Jeff drives to work from the gym.  It's a killer!

Back to my preceptorship: I got my placement in the... *drumroll*.... Newborn ICU! I am sooo excited about this because I feel like it will give me that much more orientation to the unit I plan on working on as a nurse anyways!  It will start the beginning of October and continue for 6-8 weeks.  I must complete 135 hours, which equals 11 twelve-hour shifts.  So my schedule above will be much busier come October!

Sushi Fun

Our prep area!

Our finished products! These are our first rolls. :)

Jeff and I both really love sushi.  We had a spotty tradition of doing Sushi Sunday.  It was great because we were close to a sushi restaurant with great prices for take-out. 
Now that we have moved away, we don't have that luxury.  So in an attempt to cut costs on one of our favorite meals, we made sushi at home!
It was sooo yummy! It was also much easier than I thought it would be.  It was nice to personalize our rolls to just how we liked them. We've already made sushi again with friends! Join us next time? :)

City of Rocks Trip

Jeff and I went on short climbing/camping trip to City of Rocks!  It is so awesome.   We had a great time escaping the pace of the city, work, school and life in general.  The climbing there is my favorite.  I cannot wait to go back!

We grilled some corn on the cob and chili one night over the fire.  It was really great except for when Jeff grabbed his chili off the grill and dripped molten chili juice down his leg!  I died laughing... Not very nice.  He actually sustained a burn!  (I find pain to be funny.) 

We ate at a little local joint called Rock City one of the days while it was too hot to climb.  They are well-known for their pizza so we gave it a try.  It did not fail to impress us.  Some of the best pizza we've ever had! It tasted totally homemade.  And the way they did their drinks was awesome.  You just grab whatever you want (beer, wine, soda, sports drink, water, etc.) and drink up.  When you are done eating and drinking you just bring your empties to the cashier and they charge you then.  So cool. :)

Vigor Utah Solitude Trail Run 5K

Jeff and I ran our first 5k together on the 17th of August, 2013.

It was a really great experience.  It was a trail run at Solitude.  It was so beautiful!  We were so lucky to run with really great friends! We all placed in the top 3 and celebrated at The Porcupine for breakfast after the race.

Jeff placed 1st overall! How awesome is that?!  I came up 2nd right after him and placed 1st in womens.

We plan on doing more races, but not anything too crazy.  I'm thinking no more than 10 miles.

Jeff was able to get a video of me crossing the finish line! It was a great feeling! 

The Latest and Greatest!

On Wednesday, we went to "StreetFeast" in Bountiful.  It was part of the Summer Fest in Bountiful.  It was a really cool festival, but we actually didn't end up eating anything. (Which was the whole point on "StreetFeast" haha) But it was pretty neat little event with some dancers and music.

On most every Friday, my friend Jess and I go on an adventure.  Sometimes it's a hike or a swim or a random trip somewhere.  This time we went climbing in American Fork canyon! It was a good time, but the routes can be hard to find in this canyon because the guidebook was published in 1995!  Many things have changed since then.



Friday night Jeff and I went on a hike at Deuel Creek in Centerville.  Here is the view just above the trailhead.  So pretty!



There was a ropeswing about halfway through the hike! We had so much fun playing on it.

Waiting to jump from the rock and swing into the trees!

There was also a fun little waterfall that you could climb on top of.

My dreamy stud muffin.

On our way back out as the sun is setting across the Great Salt Lake!

Gorgeous and clear views of the valley.

Saturday we went rock climbing in Big Cottonwood Canyon. Always a blast!



Jeff rapelling down a route.

After climbing on Saturday, we tubed the Weber River with our good friends Amber and Kirby.  It was so much fun! The weather was perfect and the river was a good mixture of relaxing and exciting.  It was a 2 hour trip.  In the course of the river, there was a little area you could pull off and swing off a rope into the river.  Jeff and Kirby went several times.  Jeff did backflips and received much applause! I went off one time and it was awesome! 



On Sunday (today) we hosted a celebration for my sister Hailey's birthday! We had a sub sandwich bar and had a picnic in the backyard.