2009 in Pictures

This week I have been reflecting on the new year and the year that has just passed. 2009 was a tough year for us. There were a lot of changes (mostly good) and a lot of upheaval in my personal life. I had lots and lots of trials, but I was able to overcome them and learned a lot about life and a lot about myself in the process. I'm thankful for my trials. I am a stronger person because of them. That's what our song of the week is about.

As I was thinking back about it, there were a lot of good memories from 2009. So here is a look back at 2009 in pictures.

What we did in 2009...

We cheered on our mom through her weight loss journey...

Before...
After... Way to go, Mom!

We met some good, slightly-off-the-wall friends...

We went and saw some cool shows and learned about the Circle of Life...

We went on random shopping trips to Walmart with our cousins at 3 am...

We discovered the creepy green circle and its many uses....

We said goodbye to a beloved vehicle...

And we said hello to a new one... Look how shiny!!

We learned to make beautiful flowers out of delicious frosting...

We put on some silly disguises...

We totally schooled our family at Wii tennis...

We went on trips to San Diego with our roommates and seeing the sun did funny things to us...

We made totally rad costumes to scare people on Halloween...

We got all gooey inside taking super cute pictures of our husband...

We watched sad movies and cried a tiny bit...

We colored on ourselves with Henna designs...

We played some really weird games that we got for white elephant presents...

We got a puppy and tried to teach him not to chew up everything...

We drank some very questionable looking liquids...

We got married in a special place...

We watched our friends get married too...

We ran away after so we wouldn't get hit by the rocket...

We dressed up in costumes and solved a murder...

We did some super amazing flying leaps through the air...

We took dance lessons...

We played some music on the drums and people clapped for us...

We went on a ride 10 times and almost threw up...

We ate tons of shrimp and almost threw up...

We got called to the nursery...

We found ourselves a castle...

We didn't bring warm enough clothes to see the deer...

We had lots of love in our life...

We built some forts that took up the whole room...

We painted our faces to look pretty awesome...

We made birthday cakes that looked like pirate ships...

We lived happily ever after...

At least for now!

Happy 2010, everyone! I have a feeling it's going to be a great year.

Love always,

B,B&B

Let the Creative Juices Flow!

Hey y'all!

Hope everyone is having a fan-freakin-tastic 2010 so far! As many of you "Britt and Brade in Real Life" regulars have noticed, I have completely revamped the look of our blog. What do you think? I'm gearing up to be brilliant and tech-savvy for my website design class this semester (nervous!) so I thought I would play around a little bit and see some of the wonderous capabilities of the internet. It wasn't easy, but I am pretty happy with the results. I am going to discover the technology goddess within this semester or fry my hard drive trying! :)

I am also taking digital photography and magazine writing for some other right-brained projects. Don't worry, Dad, I'm taking Quantitative Communication Research too to satisfy my self-torture quota. :) Life is changing pretty fast so we're having to change with it. Brade and I even "IKEA-ed" our apartment which has allowed us to explore the interior design portion of our creativity. Life's so much fun! Love you all!

B,B&B

First Christmas

So this past Christmas was our first one ever as a married couple! It was challenging to juggle family obligations with work and finding time to just be together. We attended numerous functions for both sides of the family and we even served as the DJs for the Dillingham family Christmas party at Wheeler Farm.

After all that partying, Brade and I decided we needed a break, so we spent Christmas Eve with just the two of us, turning down several party invitations. We ordered Asian Star takeout (their walnut shrimp is a revelation) and rented a bunch of movies. Then we made a fort and slept in it, waiting for Santa to come and visit! It was easily the best Christmas Eve ever! We love being kids at Christmas!

Braden got a present called the "Dream Drive." Basically this includes a trip to Colorado where he gets to spend a whole day driving through the mountains in 4 different exotic cars including a Ferrari and a Lamborghini! For him this is basically a dream come true. :)

I got a new phone for Christmas called a "My Touch." It is basically like Google's version of the iPhone. It is so great! I have had tons of fun playing around with it and finding out all of the cool things it can do. :)

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season! We sure did. Lots of love!

BandB

Published!

Hey y'all!

I have gathered you all here to announce that I am officially a published writer!!!

Oh my dang I still can't believe it. I am so excited!

My first article has officially been published in Latter Day Bride magazine!!!

I wrote a four page spread about weddings by season. I came up with the ideas, met with photographers, spent hours tweaking, and finally submitted all of my work complete with pictures.

It will be available in the 2010 issue of the magazine available starting in January. My name is printed right at the very top of the page! My article even made an appearance on the cover!

Love you all! Thanks for your support!

Britt

Trouble-Maker in Training

Our dog is driving us crazy. Don't get me wrong, we love the little fur baby. But he is way too smart for us. We have a barrier keeping Bandit in the kitchen because he is still potty training. Bandit, however, has taken this as a personal insult and will not tolerate only exploring a section of the house.

Because our barriers only seem to irritate him more and more, he somehow finds a way to get around them-- no matter how creative we get. This ongoing battle between man and beast has prompted me to add a list to our blog of every barrier Bandit has been able to get around up to this point and how each feat of puppy power was accomplished. As of right now, we are at six and counting. If this goes much further, we might have to surrender and buy a real baby gate. I just don't think I can give him the satisfaction. The dog is beating us, people. He knows complete amateurs when he sees them. Wish us luck.

BandB

Family additions

It has been a while since I have posted. I was expecting married life to give me more free time with wedding planning being a thing of the past, but I am finding that just the opposite is true.

Brade and I have recently had some additions to our little family, the most recent being a rather large purchase. A new car! It is a 2008 Mazda CX-7 which basically translates to being a crossover SUV. We have decided to call it Sparta. That way when we introduce it to other cars, we can say, "This is Sparta." :)



















The second of the family additions has come in the form of a little fluffball named Bandit. He is about 3 months old and tons of fun. Right now we are in the training process. Meaning that Bandit is training his masters to be good pet owners. :)

The last family addition is to our bigger family. Jessalyn and Kyle are engaged! Kyle will officially join the family on March 20, 2010. Congrats to these two love birds!

As our family continues to expand, I want to thank all of you for your love and support! I hope your families continue to prosper too.

Britt