What a Rollercoaster of Weeks!

The past few weeks have been CRAZY! Here's a summary:

Monday, Feb. 1: Ben found out that he was accepted into the full-time MBA program at the University of Utah. Not only was he accepted, but he earned a resident tuition scholarship as well as $20,000 additional scholarships. I was SO proud of him and we were SO excited! The kids and I made him a sign, bought balloons, and drank Martinelli's to celebrate. We planned to take out student loans, move into student housing in August, and do school full-time for two years.

Wednesday, Feb. 3: Ben was offered a job by his former employer, Blade HQ, to come back and be their marketing manager. The position is a huge promotion for him and after some salary negotiation (which Ben rocked and I was so proud of him for), we felt like we had two great options in front of us.

Celebrating Ben's acceptance!

We spent that weekend thinking, deliberating, and praying like crazy. By Sunday night we both felt like the right decision was to take the position at Blade HQ and do the Professional MBA (night program) at the UofU next year- once we can get residency tuition.

Monday, Feb. 8: Ben accepted the position at Blade HQ. Our thoughts then naturally turned to the question of where we would live... and we realized that we could buy a house! Woo hoo! A dream that we had had for years was one step closer to being a reality. I began to furiously look at houses, but found very little on the market that was within our price range. Many of the houses were old and needed a lot of work. It really wasn't too promising. I spoke with two realtors that told me that the good houses in that price point were going in a matter of days. Being so far away, I felt so out of control. It began to stress me out to the max, in an almost unhealthy way.

Wednesday, Feb. 10: Ben sat me down and told me that he couldn't live with me so stressed (he was totally justified in this, by the way) and so we agreed not to buy a house until we were in Utah. We decided to move into my parents basement until we could find a house. In fact, Ben quoted the scripture to me, "Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10) which I really needed to hear and has since become my mantra.

Thursday, Feb. 11: A boy I attended high school with posted on Facebook that he and his wife were selling their house in American Fork, just a mile from Ben's work. It had just gone on the market that day. It was adorable, in a great location, and within our price range. I completely forgot Ben's and my agreement from the night before and called my sister Laura to ask if she could look at the house the next day.

Friday, Feb. 12: Laura went to see two houses for me in the morning. The first wasn't great but the second, my friend's, she loved. She called me as she walked in and talked me through it aka "Here's the kitchen... oooh it's got a nice sized pantry..." By the end of the conversation, we were both sold on the house. I called the realtor and told him that I'd need to talk to Ben before we put an offer in, thinking Ben would need time to think about it, but when I called to tell him about it at lunch, he was all for it. So we put an offer in a bit below asking price and waited.

Saturday, Feb. 13: My brother Mark came into town to watch a basketball tournament my niece Makayla was playing in, so we went to watch her play in a game. All I could think about was the house. Would they take the offer? Wouldn't they? By that night we had found that there was another offer and that there was a possibility of a bidding war. To make a long story short, Ben and I made a final offer that night but I went to sleep tossing and turning. I wanted the house so badly, but I didn't want to pay too much for it. It was a long night.

Sunday, Feb. 14: Valentine's Day, but that was the last thing on my mind because I was a tormented soul. I knew that the final offer that Ben and I had made on the house wasn't strong enough, but I didn't know how to increase it without getting into a bidding war. My dad happened to call and offered a solution we hadn't thought of- offer to pay full price for the house and pay closing costs. It made perfect sense and didn't increase our overall cost too much. So I texted my realtor, apologized profusely for making him work on Sunday, and asked if he could submit one last offer from us. After that I felt peace and knew it was in the Lord's hands.

Monday, Feb. 15: We found out our offer had been accepted!!!! I cried I was so excited and even Ben was thrilled. Honestly, the Lord dropped that house in our laps. We were so lucky to get it, really we were.

We also realize that the sale can still fall through, but as of now let's get excited because, we're under contract to buy a house!!! We look forward to having a yard, planting a garden, painting walls, building shelves, and all that stuff that home owners do. Yes, I know it will be a lot of work but it's work that we are excited about and looking forward to.

Now we are in the midst of moving tasks such as packing, scheduling moving trucks, collecting boxes, as well as house items like home inspections, financing, and appraisals. Among the day to day work though, we can't help but marvel that our dreams seem to be coming true in ways we couldn't have forseen. Our goal for so long was to go back to school and now we have other amazing options without having to throw school completely to the side. We will have less debt, a better place to live, and a great professional stepping stone for Ben in the meantime. The Lord is so creative and wonderful- it seems he's given us our cake and is going to let us eat it too. Our cup runneth over.

My 31st Birthday

I am writing this over a month late because it has been a crazy crazy month, but I'll write all about it in the next post. In the meantime I need to tell about my 31st birthday and how great it was.

For the past three consecutive years, Ben has been gone on my birthday due to SHOT show, a trade show he attends in Las Vegas. This year, however, he was able to leave as late as possible, meaning he was home for half of my actual birthday on Sunday and flew out in the afternoon. For that reason, we spent most of Saturday celebrating my birthday. In fact, he had his interview at the University of Utah on Friday, flew home early Saturday, spent the afternoon crashed on the couch (can you blame him?), and then we went out on a date that night. We hired a babysitter and went to a delicious Italian restaurant in Lake Oswego, then came home to have ice cream and blow out candles. Well a candle, to be specific. I'm not much of a cake person, so it was the perfect dessert.

On Sunday morning Ben made a delicious crepe breakfast (my favorite), I opened gifts, and then we got ready for church.

My handsome, dapper boys 

These kiddos are the cutest, aren't they?

Ben came to part of church with us, then left to catch his plane. After service the kids and I stayed busy by taking selfies... of course. 

That night my wonderful friend Dennine invited us over for dinner so I wouldn't have to cook on my birthday. It was fun to be together and was the perfect end to my night. Honestly, it was a fun day and we celebrated it in a great way. Really, this getting older thing isn't bad at all- I don't know what everyone is always complaining about ;)

Zumba

I have always wanted to try a zumba exercise class, and I mentioned so to Ben once. Then recently Ben asked if I would like to take a zumba class offered at the local community center. I said of course. So for my birthday Ben bought me a pass to an eight week class every Wednesday, and since the class is at 5pm, Ben also comes home from work early and cooks dinner. It has been the best birthday present I could have asked for to be able to get out one night a week, as well as not have to stress dinner.

The class itself has been really fun. The instructor is spunky and always has a smile on her face. We live in an area with a lot of seniors, so out of 20 or so in the class I am the youngest under 50. I'm basically dancing zumba with my mom and I love it. I love being in situations where I can make friends that I wouldn't make otherwise, and I have. You can't dance with others and not bond.

I have two more weeks of my class and I have loved how it makes me feel. Moving my body to music feeds my soul and makes me feel young. Props to Ben for winning the birthday lottery this year. I won't ever forget it.

Put In My Place

Currently, our family's future seems so uncertain. We might move to Utah, we might go back to school, we might change jobs, we might start a business, we might buy a house, etc. For a planner like me, the past few months have been trying. Changes have been uncertain and progress slow-moving. In all honesty, it has taken a great deal of effort to keep myself optimistic about the future.

One Sunday I was feeling especially frustrated and hopeless. In Sunday school the teacher was talking about how in the Book of Mormon Nephi asked to see the vision that his father saw (1 Nephi 11). He related it to us by saying how we can also ask the Lord to understand or know something that we desire to know. In my heart I said, "Heavenly Father, I just need to know that you will take care of my family. That's all I want to know. Help me to know that you will take care of my family". I didn't ask about school, jobs, homes, moves... I just wanted to believe that he would take care of us.

My answer came sooner than I expected in Relief Society as the teacher, during the lesson, wrote in huge letters on the board, "TRUST GOD". I studied the words and as I did the Spirit said to me, "Athena, has the Lord ever let you down before? Come on. Will you give him some credit?" It was almost comical and I nearly laughed at the scolding I felt from the Spirit. Despite the chastisement, peace filled my heart and tears came to my eyes. I pondered my life and all the ways it has not turned out as I planned - it has turned out even better. As I've followed the Lord, often by taking a step into the darkness, I've seen the light and it has been brighter and better than I could ever have imagined it.

So as we continue to step into the darkness, I'm going to give the Lord some credit and trust. He has a great track record in my book, and with a history like that I can't help but feel that the future be better than I could plan for myself. But really, who knew the Spirit could give such a tongue-lashing, huh? :)

She's a Sunbeam!

This month Nayeli started Sunbeams. She had been so excited for weeks to be in Primary. She is getting so grown-up and it is so fun to see her become a little person.

Her teacher told me last week that she asks lots of questions in class, questions that pertain to the lesson but are a little off subject. For example, the lesson was on Moses and she asked, "Why did the King kill all the babies?" and "Will slavery ever come back?" She is a little questioner and it cracks me up. I think she's going to give her teacher a run for her money.

Also, a few times since she started she's said to me, "Mom, guess what song I have in my head? Scripture power!" What a smile it puts on my face! I love Primary and the principles it teaches and am so happy she's learning the gospel truths that bring me so much joy.

Ben's Interview at Utah

A few weeks ago Ben interviewed at the University of Utah to start their MBA program in the fall. He applied to both BYU and Utah, and although he didn't get into BYU, we were excited when we heard that Utah wanted to interview him. They were willing to pay for his plane ticket and hotel to go down, so he left early Friday morning to spend the day in interviews and classes.

He was in need of a new suit so we bought one. He looked really sharp.

The interview went well and now we wait until about mid-February when they said they'd get back to us. Although we have no other schools on the back burner, we aren't twiddling our thumbs. We have a plan B and C that are in the running and no matter what, I know that the Lord will take care of our family.

Besides, look at that handsome guy in the suit. Could you say no to that?

To Seattle for the New Year

We didn't have any plans for the New Year, except maybe to go to bed at 10pm on New Year's Eve. That's pretty much our New Year's tradition every year.

After dinner, we opened crackers with paper crowns and little toys inside. Then we banged pots and pans outside our apartment. That was the extent of our New Year's Eve celebrating but it was just perfect. 

On New Year's Day we awoke and packed up the car to head to Seattle. Ben's brother Sam recently married a girl named Bonnie from Issaquah. We went to Seattle for the wedding and met her family who are all very nice. Sam and Bonnie live in Utah, but they were spending the holidays in Seattle and invited us to go up for a few days. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to see them, as well as get to know Bonnie's family better.

We arrived at Bonnie's brother's house and were immediately treated like one of their own. It was so fun to talk to Bonnie's parents and brothers and sisters. We spent most of the afternoon chatting, then Bonnie and Sam drove us out to Snoqualmie Falls. They are beautiful, gigantic falls outside Seattle and although it was really busy, we loved seeing them as well as the lodge nearby. We then returned to be with Bonnie's family and after dinner we played a rousing game of keep away. I haven't played such an intense game with adults and it was hilarious.

That night we stayed at Bonnie's parents house. It was fun to see her childhood home and we played "Cover Your Assets" with Dave and Terry. The next day was Saturday so we decided to go on a hike. We headed to Rattlesnake mountain to try and summit Rattlesnake Ridge.

Sam and Ben carrying the kids

The trail ended up being too icy, but our consolation was Bonnie's dad treating all of us to shakes at the local mom and pop burger joint, which were delicious. 

Before we headed to get shakes we let the kids throw rocks into Rattlesnake Lake. It was really cold though and they didn't last long.

Saturday night Bonnie's sisters and mom invited me to go get manicures and pedicures together. We had a great time. Later that night we sat up late talking with Sam and Bonnie and Dave and Terri since it was our last night there.

The next morning we packed up early to make it to our church at 1pm. We said goodbye to everyone, then began to drive south. As fate would have it, a big snowstorm was moving through the area and we hit it full on. Multiple cars had slid off the roadways and there were many accidents. It made us nervous but we took it slow and arrived home safely. Our church had been canceled for the day due to ice so we had our own little church services at home and enjoyed the tiny bit of snow that had fallen in our yard.

It was a great trip and a great way to start 2016. Happy New Year!