Living in Salt Lake: Week 3 Update

I have survived my third week living in Salt Lake. This week has been the most eventful week so far, and probably will be the most eventful week I have in a while! There is a lot talked about in this blog post... just a fair warning :)

On Monday, we had a stake FHE dance at Wheeler Historic Barn. I loved it there! We were out in the country and the smells reminded me of home. It was a pretty cool place. If I had kids, I would totally take them there. There's cows, horses, goats, rabbits, and who knows what else. for kids to pet. They have a mini straw maze and a pumpkin patch for kiddos as well. There's a few other fun activities for families to do as well.

We were in this gorgeous barn for the dance. And since it was a stake, there were a lot of people there. My roommate and one of our friends danced every so often. The best part for me was seeing my bishop and his wife dance during a Lady Gaga song. It made me laugh so hard! My bishop, Dwight Day (doesn't that sound like a weatherman name?) and his wife are probably in their late 60's or early 70's, so seeing a cute older couple dancing to the younger generation's music was quite the site to see!

Before the dance started, I made a new friend. Isn't she just beautiful? That's what I thought, until she bit my finger on accident when I wasn't paying attention. I was already licked by her nasty cow tongue a few times!

We got a new dining room table for our apartment! It is pretty exciting. I was suppose to be picking one up on Wednesday and meeting my cousin, Derek, halfway there since he has a truck he could haul it in. But we got to the lady's house and she had sold it without informing me! So lame. I set up a time and everything to pick up the table. I felt really bad for making Derek drive there for nothing. We both drove a half hour there and back for nothing!

But the next day on Thursday, I found another table I really liked. The one I was suppose to get was wood with two wooden chairs, but this one was also wood but with 4 leather chairs! And it was only $20 bucks more than the other table. The lady was able to deliver it to us since she only lived 10 minutes away and I didn't have a truck or van to pick it up. I am in love with the table! It eventually needs a little TLC with some sanding and staining, but the little metal ball details around the edge are so cute! The leather chairs are all in good condition as well. It makes our apartment look so much better. Now we just need to fill the awkward space by our entry way with something and also get some bar stools for our kitchen counter and we're in business!

 I also bought this mini dresser to put my bedroom TV on! I plan on painting it black or white to match the rest of my bedroom furniture.

After waiting an extra week, I finally received Geoff's letter on Thursday! I normally get his letters in around 15 days counting the weekends, but this letter took 23 days! I'm just glad it got here safe and sound because I was starting to think it may have gotten lost somewhere along the way. I just need to accept that getting mail from Brazil is unpredictable. His letter was definitely worth the wait. I love the little details he puts into his letters that lets me know he is thinking of me. It makes me feel very special :)

I don't usually share personal stuff dealing with Geoff, but I have to brag a little bit! Ever since we first started dating, we would say "I love you to the moon and back" to each other. It fit with us because Geoff loves the planets and stars and would totally work for NASA if he could. Plus we both love to stargaze! But anyways he sent me this colored drawing and it just melted my heart! I thought the "love rocket" covered in hearts was a nice touch!

The best drawing ever.

Geoff and his companion are doing so great. I am so glad he is having some great experiences he can look back on someday. He truly loves being a missionary and serving the Lord. He really cares about the people he teaches and baptizes and works hard to make sure they stay active in the church. He is one busy missionary! I update his website whenever I get a letter, and you can check out the most recent updates here so you can see for yourself how busy he is!

I went to a bonfire on Friday with my roommate's friend, Megan and others from Megan's ward. We drove up to the mountains, and even though it was dark when we got there, I knew I would have to drive back up and see all fall-colored trees. I could tell it was gorgeous! The bonfire was way awesome. We made banana boats which are so good. If you've never made them, you have to during your next bonfire! It's hard to resist a chocolate and marshmallow-filled banana. Others brought a ton of food as well.

On Saturday, I went with my friends Candice and Whitney to "Fight Cancer With Color," a fundraising event held in my cousin Brianne's neighborhood. Jack Rapp is a father of four who has leukemia. I had never been to a color chalk fight before but it was a lot of fun!

Me, Candice and Whitney

Jayni and Mason! Stop growing please!

When I got back from the Fight Cancer With Color event, I saw that one of my Deseret news stories had been published online! I wrote this story last week so I have been waiting for it to be posted. I got to interview Brandon Mull, author of the popular Fablehaven series. He has two new books coming out that I read before I interviewed him. When I went to see on online, I noticed it was a top story meaning that it is one of the top 10 that is being read the most by our readers! I was pretty excited. You can read the story here.

Another story I wrote was posted online at the same time, and I found out a couple hours later that both my stories were published in the Sunday paper! That makes a total of 4 stories put in the paper and 6 online. I hope a couple of other stories I have written get put online this week.

"Top Story" on the home page!

Main story in "Family Life/ Arts & Entertainment" section.
The story on the bottom left is another one I wrote!

This past week I also interviewed an up-and-coming band called Chasing Chance. They are from Orem and will be performing with The All-American Rejects, Boys Like Girls and Parachute next Tuesday. I had so much fun interviewing them. They said they were going to send me some free tickets to their concert, which I was super excited because I am obsessed with the band Parachute! When I went to check my mailbox on Saturday, there were the tickets! I love the perks of working for Deseret News!

Concert tickets for October 23rd!

And that is a brief overview (sorry it doesn't seem brief but it really is!) my crazy busy week. I had so much fun. I wish every week would be like this one!