Hard work pays off!

I have been doing really well in school this semester! & yes, even dispite missing the first 2 weeks of school! It's incredible! I love my classes, which helps a ton, too, of course...

BUT. All Friday after work I studied my booty off for my stress management test. Nervous like crazy about it. Ruthie & I lived in the library.

All the studying worked! Don't judge my excitement for my score, I'm not the best at school, but I sure work hard! I got...drum roll please...

87%!!!

don't worry, after I got done with my exam at 8 I went to the laundromat & did our overflowing laundry & then went back up north to get Wes from work, aren't I such a good little wifey?

xoxosmartypants

New & Improved

So, if any of you didn't know. I am obsessed with Weather.com. It is one of my favorite websites. It has saved my booty & failed my booty a few times! Over the summer, I don't check it much, because in Utah the only thing on the 4 month forecast is sunshine & heat. But, fall & winter, this is my best friend. Currently, however, the husband & I don't have internet. So, we don't know the weather. Today, sadly, we slept in because it was dark & cloudy & the light in my face didn't assist the alarms this a.m. (don't worry, we made it to work on time). But, I just checked the weather today, because it's cloudy & cold looking...Weather.com got a face lift! xoxoilovecheckingtheweather!

Yeah, RIGHT

(Okay, I really want one of these.)

BYU Honorcode regarding facial hair: "Men are expected to be clean-shaven; beards are not acceptable."

k, so that given, we at the BYU Student Health Center, are where those bearded boys come for 'beard waiver cards.' Yes, they really exist.

Anyway, they call in & I have to read them this enormous procedures paper explaining the process of the beard waiver card appointment process. Essentially they have to shave for 3 days before the appointment and have some serious disease goin on on their face that the doctor can SEE. K?

SO, basically, this morning, I think I got my favorite phone call ever.

"Hi, I'd like to ask about how to get a beard waiver card."

This doesn't sound like how they normally sound when they call in for one, so instead of reading that enormous 'formality' paper, I explained it to him to make sure he really qualified before actually having to read the whole boring thing to him.

Him: "So, what if our spouse prefers it? Are there any exceptions with spousal preferences?"

bahah. I tried my best not to laugh. I really did.

xoxonoexceptions

Buuuuuuuzzzzzzz

I've been a busy little one of these lately!

& I love it!

School has enslaved me, but it's great. I can't believe how enormous my to do list has grown to be...but wait, I actually have to attend class too? hahah I feel like school is consuming my life. & I love it! This is my last year of school & it kind of makes me sad, I've been doing it for the past 16 years & I wonder if it will at all shake my identity!

However, when I meet someone I rarely hear myself saying "Hi, my name is Rachel & I am a student." I don't introduce myself that way...but school's a big deal! What is post grad life like? WHoooooa... hmmm maybe I should watch that movie to find out. It looked pretty funny! RENTAL!

Well, speaking of school, I'm in class & should probably start paying attention again!

xoxobusybee!

Baking with Love.

Something I love about Weston, he does exact measurements. When I bake it is a dash of this & some of that.

Have you ever seen these before?

Well, they're measuring spoons. Shaped like hearts. My mom got them for me at the Tennessee bridal shower.

Okay, so fast forward to our new apartment & to the day below that Wes was making the strawberry waffles. He needed a Teaspoon to measure the Vanilla. He pulls out our only measuring spoons... The heart ones.

He starts to try to find the Teaspoon... I hear the spoons starting to clink in an urgent manner.... "A pinch of love, a spoonful of laughter, a dash of hope......THESE AREN'T REAL MEASUREMENTS!" As if, now the waffles are ruined...FOREVER!

I have never laughed so hard. He looked distressed like he just found out it was the end of the world. It was the cutest thing ever! I went over and turned the spoons over & on the back, sure enough, there was 1 tbsp, 1 tsp, 1/2 tsp, etc., etc., etc.!

I still die over that! Wes is so funny :)

xoxoilovebeingmarriedtoWes!

Happy as a clam!

Cute little bedhead-boy the first week after we got back from the honeymoon, using our SWEET waffle-maker! (thank you Janet! :))

Our first inkling of organization! Our collage, we were so proud! it was our first Sunday home, everything else was a disaster, but this collage was the light at the end of the tunnel of messiness :) & then there's that awesome picture of the temple his mission president & wife gave us in Tennessee.... it's so beautiful!

Our date to Temple Square's Roof Restaurant!

I love that smile!Unsuccessful attempt to get a picture with us and the temple! He takes his drink order very seriously, but always ends up ordering the same thing. Strawberry or Raspberry LemonadeRedo: Partially successful!

Everyone kept asking us what we were celebrating. We told them our 3 week anniversary! hahah We happened to been married for 3 weeks when we went.

As we were leaving our waiter said,"so we'll see you back here on your 6 week anniversary, right?" I responded,"Yeah right! We don't have anymore gift cards!"

Sad, but true :) It was an AWESOME evening!

Afterward we got to enjoy the nice weather and walk around temple square & just chat. It was such a lovely evening!Cute Jenna about to blow out her birthday candles for her awesome 22nd birthday! xoxolifeisgood

My new love...

So, my one &only Paul Mitchell straightener (that I got through my cousin, Lisa, who is a hair girl, in 2010) totally BUSTED. Well, it gave up the ghost, the morning after our wedding...yeah I had an awesome hair do. But it worked solid for 3 years. I loved it. I was sad to see it go. So was Weston, mostly because they cost an arm & a leg. However, yesterday I was introduced to my new favorite, the Babyliss Pro! It's not the one in the picture below, it's wider. It's a monster straightener & works like a gem! (thanks Kristie for coming & having the secret password to let me shop at the salon store!) Thanks husband for not murdering me for 'needing' this! He's so sweet to me. We also forked out $50 to get a locksmith to replace our mailbox lock because we lost the master key...dangit. ***GOOD NEWS*** the book that I spent a gazillion hours to design & make & that my mom bought for us to use as our wedding sign in book. WELL, we had lost it.... or I thought. I had packed it from Tennessee to Utah in August & we have lost quite a few things in the move to our new apartment, so when I searched the pockets of all my suitcase & the special pocket I'd carried it in & couldn't find it, I was devastated. It was such a special book to me. But, we used some little journal as our sign in book & it was perfect, I was just sad to not even have the other one. BUT, last night my mom & I were talking & about how sad it was that that book was lost. & then she said that she'd looked inthe special pockets of all the suitcases at home, but turns out, she was lookin in the wrong pockets, so she went to the attic & found the book in the hidden pocket! HOORAH!! I am so happy! We were cheering on the phone. It was pretty rad! xoxogoodbyeafro!

2 things I've never done...

Left the Brigham Young University testing center with an A.

Given a talk in a student ward.

I'm not in a student ward anymore, so that one won't have ever happened, but maybe I'll give my first BYU talk ever this year...or else I'm the one person who left BYU without speaking in Sacrament Meeting. Rare!

The A is going to happen on a testing center exam this year, though!

xoxogoalsgoalsgoals...

Today is the day.

I totally forgot. Today is my Trahfyk corte. Ew. I totally forgot till Wes was drivin me to work this a.m. Shoot, I have to go fight that bogus citation today! Boooooo!

Wish me luck! & today pictures WILL be put on the blog :) No worries!

xoxojailbird

Just a little sneaky peak of all the Bridals Sydney took! I loved them all!

xoxowetiedtheknot!

What's new pussy cat? Whoa-oah-oh-oh-oh

The weekend was most fab.

Friday Wes & I had a hot date and it was so fun! I was so excited to have him to myself on a weekend night :) (except last weekend his parents took us to Macaroni Grill...amazing! We have had him for 2 weekend nights now...it's so fun!)

Saturday we cleaned & finished organizing the apartment... it looks AMAAAAAZING! I'm so happy & I love our apartment! That night some friends & fam came over to play games, it was so fun and good to see everyone, poor Wes had to work, but got to come afterwards!

I just have to say I have the best husband. Weston treats me like a queen always. He's patient with me when I'm emotional...heaven knows I need that ;) & he's always willing to fix sinks or hang pictures, he works two jobs so we can live and he is just the sweetest. He loves watching movies & doesn't mind that I always fall asleep during them. He does laundry at the laundro-mat when I don't have time. He gasses up the cars. He helps me clean & always sweeps the kitchen. He's my biggest fan. He tells me I can do anything. He can run like a mad-man & he doesn't laugh too hard because I can only bench press the bar 30 times in our workout. He has IBS-Itchy Back Syndrome. It's chronic too. He eats every meal I cook and LOVES it. Even the disgusting quesidilla one the other night. He let me buy a bread maker. He says my hands are made of gold when I make the bread...even when the breadmaker did it... He gets ME out of bed in the morning even though he doesn't work till later. He let me get the grade 6 warmth comforter for our bed, even though he sweats in 30 degree weather. He's social too and helps me plan parties. I love him so so so much. He's the best friend I could ever ask for. He would die for me, and I for him. He's the greatest! I haven't bragged on him in a while, so I was overdue :)

Pictures coming later!

& we got some wedding pictures...Get excited, they're amazing.

Thank you Aunt Mary for taking so many awesome ones! We don't have the professional photographer's from Utah yet, but we do have the Prof ones from TN...they totally rock!

xoxohappywifey

In Spencer's words...

As it turns out, my stress management class is more stressful than I deem appropriate.

xoxonomegustabusywork

When a house becomes a home.

Thank you everyone who shared your ideas for my health blog!

Before the new apartment pictures these are some hilarious texts I got from my family.

Momma sent me this one:

I always knew Dad was Superman!

This one the family sent me on the way home from Utah.

They said Momma ordered really fast food (80mph). Cousin Trevor sent me this one... & I just realized that's an enormous Llama bc Trevor's 6'6"... Anyway, if you don't get the joke of this picture, you're better off... This is our bedding!! Yay! We love our bed! My parents got us sheets, bedding, a comforter & mattress pad...this is the most amazing bed EVER. No wonder we don't ever make it out for the gym before work every morning! This is the collage of our wedding photos in our family room.

This is the kitchen a week ago, but it was the first inkling of organization in the kitchen & I was so ecstatic. It's looking even better now! Our cupboards don't shut all the way lol Don't you love all our storage & counter space? hahah Don't worry, costco shelves saved our booties!

This is the other side of the kitchen. We have our costco shelves on the left & right of the table. They're amazing storage, not the most appealing to the eye, but SO totally awesome for a pantry & shelves since you see above, we have about 1 sq foot counter space & 2 cupboards. & the bottom left cupboard doesn't work.

Our apartment started out EXTREMELY ghetto. We had all white walls, we had holes all over the walls & the trim & everything was disgusting. Wes & I started painting our bedroom before the wedding, but life got busy with school, work and the wedding. My family finished painting it & the other 2 rooms too! It's slowly but surely getting more organized! We are home maybe 2 or 3 hours a day, so we don't have much time to just plow away at it at once, but it's all looking so great. Our creepy, amityville horror apartment now feels like home!

xoxosuzyhomemaker

What are YOU interested in?

I am making a Public Health blog and would like to know which topics interest YOU as my blog readers, or which topics you would like more information and easier access to!

Ideas include: Children's health, the latest on Immunizations, Healthy Recipes, Fun Workout Ideas, World Health Updates, Geriatric Health

I am just trying to see what people want to know most about. I know which healthy topics are my favorite, but I want this blog to appeal to a broader audience than just myself ;)

I need your feedback to know what I should be catering towards. I will do the research & find the information from reliable sources & it will be a good resource for your assistance!

xoxoilovemymajor!

Happy Birthday, Grandmother!

This blog post is in honor of the coolest, best, sweetest, awesomeist, most fabulous, craziest, most loving, most beautiful, most incredible, most happy grandmother EVER!

Happy Birthday Grandmother!

xoxothefavoritegranddaughter

Our Story

Steve Smith did "Our Story" interview.

I know my devoted blog followers followed our relationship mostly through the blog.

For those of you who didn't watch the relationship blossom, you can check out the ghist of it in this video!

xoxomawiage

We honeymooned!

Catching up in school hasn't been as awful as I dreaded! (yet, I'm not totally caught up, but it's goin well :D) Here's some pictures from our honeymoon to St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands! It was amazing! (Thanks Mom & Dad!) These pictures are in no Chronological order, I apologize! & yes, we had a 2 story hotel room, we had a spiral staircase & two full baths. It was a loft style room & upstairs was the bed & the ENORMOUS bathroom that itself was the size of our bedroom in our apartment! The tub was HUGE & had jets, it had a big closet, dancing room, a turlet, & a stand up shower...it was amazing! We had so much fun & had the most beautiful view from our balcony! Snorkel time!

Pool party!

Our first day...we're kewl kids. Especially with Wes' goggles. & that big ball behind his head that makes me think he has a circle head.

Taxi ride to the airport at the end of the week! Sad to leave!

Outside the waterfall into the pool! Yes, Weston's shirt is already off & he has the BEST farmer's tan ever.

He told me he was born with a farmers tan...I'm starting to believe him!

Breakfast on the balcony!

Leaving the island, you can see our hotel in this picture, but I can't point at it, it's in the top right corner of this picture, though!

Flight home, Wes watched "Robin Hood"...I watched "Babies".

Flight home!

Airport in Virgin Islands in our matching tees!

On our balcony showing the bay behind us!

Downtown in Charlotte Amalie!

About to go to the gym!

Wes was doin pushups, I was playing physical trainer & told him to clap between, this is a pretty sweet action shot!

We had a little date in our room one night!

On the ferry to downtown!

Drying off as the clouds roll in!

One of our first days on the island!

On our plane ride to Atlanta on our first leg to the Virgin Islands!

xoxohoneymooners!

Vaccinated!

I got my flu shot today! xoxosneezefree!

Life doesn't get any better!

I am now back in "reality"...wow we are so happy! I am going to be creating us a Brinkerhoff Blog, so stay tuned for a hyperlink & web address for that, it'll be equally awesome & then some, so you might want to read that one.

But just because I owe it to my readers (hi mom!), I wanted to let yall know a little bit about the past couple weeks.

We were sealed by Elder Anderson & it was a beautiful ceremony! Weston & I were sealed together for time & ALL eternity! I can't yet grasp the enormity of that, but I know I am so blessed and have the most wonderful husband EVER! We went to St. Thomas of the U.S. Virgin Islands on our honeymoon....yeah... AMAZING! The reception in Orangeville was an absolute dream as well! I was SO so so happy with EVERYTHING. I'm not kidding, going back to the wedding day I would not change a single thing. Not the way a single piece of hair even laid. It was perfect & more! Thank you so much to everyone who helped especially the Brinkerhoff clan & extended family too who put on the dinner & the beautiful reception & my family who helped with everything. They did a complete makeover on our apartment the week before the wedding...it looks amazing!

The down comforter is missing though...if anyone has seen it...please let us know our duvet cover (& me) would greatly appreciate it!

We had so much fun the 2 days we were in Tennessee & hope to be able to visit again soon! We got to have both families in Utah for the wedding & reception & both families in Tennessee (minus Deej, boohoo!) & it was so much fun! Our families worked so hard to get everything in order! Everything looked beautiful, again!

I've got to play catch up on some school work, but I'll post some pictures later this afternoon from our adventures!

xoxoMrs.Brinkerhoff

Tomorrow!

1 day left!

This is what the day will be like in a nutshell

6am-rise & shine!

7:45-arrive at SLC temple w/ fiance, mom, & dad's

8:30-friends & family arrive

9am-sealing begins!

9:30-sealing is over & Wes & I are married together FOREVER!

10am-pictures outside the temple for a few hours

5pm-family dinner at The Oasis

7pm-reception at The Oasis

9pm-split for the hotel in Price! Party!

Excited? You have no idea.

This week has been insanely busy between work, bridal showers, first week of school, nails & photoshoots, wedding finalizations, recieving ordinances in the temple, etc, etc, etc.

Life is AWESOME!

I am so so so so happy!

Everyone please, PLEASE pray with me that Weston's ring makes it in today...we NEED to have it by tomorrow!!!!!! There were huge hiccups with his wedding ring, as in, it was a size too big. Not cool.

xoxogointothetemple&we'regonnagetmarried

p.s. a girl called in today & made an appt for her 1 yr old daughter. . . names Samara, yes, pronounced just like The Ring girl...creepy? Yes. Even if that was your favorite name ever, I would not be able to name my child that after an extremely sick & twisted movie character!