The New Job and Spelunkin'!

Hey y'all!

I just wanted to let you know that my new job as a nanny is going GREAT! At first, it was extremely difficult. The baby has some extreme anxiety with new people. It's quite funny how my first week went.

Ok, so let's back up.

I started two weeks ago. The family had an aupair from Brazil. I worked with her for the first three days so she could show me the ropes and the baby could get used to me with the comfort of someone familiar alongside her. I was supposed to work the entire week, but on Thursday, I got the stomach flu. It actually makes for a great puke story.

Here's the puke story: So, Thursday morning, I woke up feeling really crummy. I texted Adam around 6 AM saying I was sick and asked if he could bring me some ginger ale. Within half an hour, he was on my front doorstep with ginger ale and this garlic medicine that's supposed to help speed up recovery from illnesses. However, when Adam opened up that cursed bottle, I smelled the strong scent of garlic and I just couldn't handle it anymore. I tried to run to the toilet, but ended up puking all down the hallway, making it one puke into the toilet. This was the first time I didn't make it in the toilet since I was four. I was absolutely dying of embarrassment when I was done, and stepped outside the bathroom to view the damage. I was expecting a mess from Adam as well, since he gets this horrible gag reflex when he sees puke. Instead of seeing another mess, I  saw Adam with this little piece of paper towel, wiping up my puke (and it wasn't just a little bit of it), with all his might. It was probably the sweetest sight I've ever seen. I immediately grabbed the roll of paper towel and demanded him to go outside while I cleaned up my own mess. He refused to and grabbed more paper towels and kept cleaning while holding back gags. When I was done cleaning, I went into the bathroom to wash my hands and saw myself in the mirror. My hair was a disaster, I had ghost white skin and mascara blotted around my eyes, and I had a smear of puke on my cheek. I couldn't believe he still loved  me after all this, but he certainly did, because for the next three days, he took good care of me. That's pretty rare to find in a guy! I feel so lucky to have him.

Ok, I'm done with my puke story. I just had to brag a little about how awesome my fiance is.

Anyway, the following Monday, I started my job flying solo. The aupair had moved to Maryland for another job. Monday was absolutely horrible. The baby was hysterical the entire day. There were times where I thought she would pass out or make herself sick from all her crying. Sometimes she'd be crying so hard that no sound would be coming out of her mouth and she wouldn't take a breath for a good 10 seconds. I was absolutely frazzled and completely relieved when the day was finally over. The baby hadn't taken her naps, since she was too hysterical to calm down. I was definitely not looking forward to the entire week. However, Tuesday, there was a surprising change. The baby only cried a few times when her mom left and if she was tired. She still didn't really take her naps and was kind of tense all day. But it was definitely an improvement. Wednesday was much better. Thursday was better than Wednesday. Onnolee finally started reaching to come to me, leaving her mother just so I could hold her. On Friday, I walked through the door and Onnolee screamed excitedly, "Lala!!!" and ran up to me.  I was so amazed by the radical change that took place from Monday to Friday.

Friday, the mother and the baby left to Pennsylvania to drop the Onnolee off at her grandparents while the mom went on her business trip. I dropped them off at the airport and drove back home. They will be gone for the next few days. The only responsibility I have is to clean the house on Tuesday and put up "Welcome Home" signs for the dad. He is in the military and will be coming home on this following Wednesday. Then, I have to pick up the mother and baby from the airport in Nashville.

During my time off, it's been so nice to hang out with Adam. Yesterday, we worked on his farm. I helped his mom collect pecans and cut the raspberry bushes. After working for a bit, we headed out to go spelunking, which is a southern term for caving. It was so much fun! There was a spring coming out of the cave. We walked in the water, which varied from ankle deep to thigh deep. Surprisingly, it was pretty warm for a cave. It was so fascinating to see the limestone formations and how perfectly clear the water was in the pools on top of the rocks. We saw crawdads that had no eyes, I caught a bright orange and black speckled salamander, and we saw a snake hiding in the rocks. It was really cool to see how much wildlife there was living in the caves. When we reached the end of the first part of the cave, we debated whether we should keep going in the crawl space to get out on the other side, or head back the easy way. Our friends had a baby with them, so they headed back the easy way. We followed them, but decided that soon we will come back and go through the crawl space for a little extra adventure. I wish I had brought my camera so I could have some pretty cool pictures, but I couldn't find it in my room, which is a disaster. Once I find my camera, I'll be sure to go back and take some pretty cool pictures.

I'd post pictures of the baby too, but I can only describe her. The father works in a very secretive position in the military, so it puts the family at risk for enemies to retaliate. I'm not allowed to say when they leave to somewhere and where they are, specifically. I have to be pretty vague about things and can't post pictures without clearance from the mother. I choose not to post pictures for now. But, Onnolee is the most beautiful baby girl you'll ever see! She has blonde hair, vivid blue eyes, long black eyelashes, and beautiful pink lips with rosy cheeks. I can only hope my kids are as cute as she is! When she's in a good mood (typically in the mornings and after her naps), she is the sweetest baby ever. She will turn one year old in October. I am teaching her sign language. She is picking up here and there but hasn't quite caught on that the signs have meaning yet. She knows the sign, "more", but she thinks it means "grapes". She will also sign "puppy" occasionally, and recently learned "baby." I think soon, she will pick up quickly.

Well, that is all for my recent adventures! I'm sure enjoying life here. I miss my family a lot, but I know they're always there and I Skype with them every Sunday, which makes it easier for me.

I'll be sure to keep you updated on my future shenanigans. Until then, farewell! 

I Got A JOB!

After two weeks of searching, I finally got a full time nanny position!

Funny thing is, I promised myself, that after eight years of nannying, I would never nanny again. Except for my two darlings, Kennedy and Cooper, and my great friends Leah and Lucy. But other than those two families, never again.

Why?

Because, my last two nanny positions were a complete disaster! You all know my story about Switzerland, and then the last nanny position, the kids were really difficult to work with. So I've been having a bit of anxiety applying for nannying jobs, worrying whether I'll get along with the parents and the children, and so on.

But, I have a GREAT feeling about this job. I've been praying for a job where I'd get along with the parents and be happy in my work. I feel like nannying is what I'm best at, and I guess I'm just going to go along with the 9th year of being a caretaker.

I'll be taking care of a 10 month old baby girl. Her name is Onnolee. Quite the unique name. She is probably one of the most beautiful babies I've ever seen in my life! Blonde hair, brilliant blue eyes, and a beautiful smile. She's quite shy to other people, and apparently cries when she meets someone new. But, when I met her for the first time, she seemed really happy to meet me. The mother said she was really surprised that she wasn't freaking out. I think it pleased her that the baby seemed to like me right off the bat. Onnolee seems pretty easy to take care of. However, she has kind of a separation anxiety when her mother leaves the room. She'll cry and cry and cry. I witnessed it when her mom said, "I'm going to leave the room so you can see what she does." The mom left the room and Onnolee freaked out. I can tell it's going to be a hard first few weeks until Onnolee gets used to me and becomes more comfortable when her mother leaves. But, that's how it usually is with any kid or kids, in my experience. So I am expecting it to take a while, but I know it'll all work out in a couple or so weeks.

I'll be earning some good money (for a 21 year old nanny). It'll be enough to get me by comfortably. My responsibilities include doing laundry, housekeeping, cooking, running errands, and of course, caring for Onnolee. The mother works at home, so she'll be around every once in a while. She also travels for her job, and when she travels, I'll be joining her with Onnolee. So I'm really excited for that!

I'm excited to see how this works out. It's 10 hours a day, 5 days a week, and the occasional weekends. I've worked longer than that before for the same pay, so it's just fine for me.

Life is good, and I've been greatly blessed to have a wonderful home to live in, a good job, and a wonderful fiance. Thank you for all your support, I appreciate it!

The Move to Tennessee

Hey y'all!

So, moving to Tennessee was an excellent idea. I love it here so far! The people are great, being with Adam is awesome, and the family I'm staying with are absolutely amazing!

Here's how it all started.

I missed Adam way too much to be 1,600 miles apart all the time. So, I made the big decision to move to Tennessee. Adam was originally supposed to move to Utah, but he had a feeling to stay down in Tennessee, so I decided to follow him. I flew out to Tennessee at the end of August and stayed there for a week. (That flight was supposed to be for me to go and help him drive to Utah. It was non refundable or transferrable, so I decided I might as well just use it.) Then, Adam and I flew back to Utah to get my car and most of my stuff.

It was really a bittersweet moment when I got into the car to drive back to Tennessee. I knew I would really miss my family. I almost cried my eyes out when we left. But, it was a sweet moment, because I knew I could be with Adam every day now, and that it was a new adventure to embark on.

Adam and I started our long cross country journey. I wasn't sure what to expect. We planned on driving straight through and that it would take 25 hours. However, by the time we hit Colorado, just before Denver, we both became so exhausted we couldn't keep going. We stopped in the mountains twice to sleep for a couple hours before continuing on. I drove the last part of the night. Around 6 AM, I found myself falling asleep at the wheel. I don't really remember what happened, except that my head snapped back up and I basically freaked out. I pulled over at the next exit and slept in the parking lot of a gas station for a couple hours. Then Adam and I switched over and I slept while he drove. Adam makes fun of me because apparently I slept the "whole time" that he was driving, which is far from the truth. ;)

Adam and I didn't really talk much because one of us would sleep while the other was driving, or we would just sit in silence because we were too tired to talk. We had our share of interesting and funny conversations though. I tried to play a game of "30 Questions" with Adam that I found on Pinterest. He was kind of reluctant to play, but he ended up talking a lot and answering the questions. We only made it to 5 questions because they were pretty deep stuff. We did learn a lot about each other though!

The drive was not very interesting. We missed the beautiful mountains in Colorado because it became dark by the time we hit them. So, we ended up driving through the boring part of Colorado and through the bleak Kansas scenery. The only interesting sight was the St. Louis arch. We drove through St. Louis on the second night and it was AMAZING. I loved the sight. The silver arch shone brilliantly in the darkness. I was driving, so I didn't get to stare at it long, but the image is burned in my memory.

Finally, at 4 AM on the third night, we arrived at Adam's house in Adams, Tennessee. It was such a relief! I dropped Adam off and drove to my new home in Sango, which is about 10 minutes away from Adams and Clarksville. Christie, the mom, was still awake when I arrived. She's quite the insomniac, apparently! We chatted for a while before I headed off to bed.

It took me a few days to get rid of the lag from driving. I was pretty much exhausted for about three days. Looking back on the trip,  it doesn't seem so long to me. I think it was so long that it didn't even matter anymore.  It felt like we were driving and driving and driving and going nowhere. And then, all of a sudden, BAM! We were in Tennessee. It's kind of weird to think about it, and to think we will have to do it again twice in January, when we drive to Utah for our reception then drive back to Tennessee.

So far, the first two weeks of living in Tennessee has been great. It's been a bit different there. The climate is pretty humid, of course. The small town setting is pretty different for me. Growing up in the suburban area, stores are pretty close to us. However, here, you really have to plan out your trips because everything is so far away and it can get a bit expensive in gas if you have to go to a store every day. If I have to go to the store, I really have to think it out and make sure I'm getting everything I need to get for the week. It takes about 12 minutes to get to Walmart, and 25 minutes to get to the mall, Target, and Hobby Lobby.  But that's on the route that my GPS has shown me. I'm sure there are faster ways to get there. I just haven't found them yet.

 I've hung out with Adam every day. We've been working on exercising and went on a hike yesterday. Adam got us lost. We planned on a 1.37 mile hike and ended up walking 5 miles, according to my GPS. The trail had split at one point. I told him the trail was that way, and he said he was SURE it was the other way. So, we went the other way, despite my objections. Guess who was the right one? ;) But, we did get some extra exercise in, even though I had to do it all in my flip flops!

Now, the family I live with... can I say they are AMAZING?? Because they are! I had quite a bit of anxiety moving in with a family, since the last two families I had stayed with ended up being... let's just say it didn't work out very well. I just didn't want to experience that hurt and disappointment for the third time. I can't tell you how good it feels to be accepted, welcomed, and loved in a home with another family. It feels so good to know they appreciate me and know that I appreciate them too. The parents are amazing and kind, and the four children are absolute angels to me! The children are: Liza, age 14; Alexander, age 12.. I think...?; Tori, almost 9 years old; and Katie who's six. They also have a dog, a ferret (which I hate because it decided it likes to bite my feet and chase me), and a sugar glider.

The children and the parents have been so excited to learn sign language and they pick it up so fast! The mom, Christie, wants to go on a sign language mission with her husband, so she has been super interested in sign. The two younger girls, Tori and Katie, have been stuck by my side and absolutely love signing and having me teach them how to paint. All the children are so sweet and obedient. Of course, probably not all the time, but they're some of the best kids I've seen, especially in my 8 years of nannying. I can only hope my kids will be as awesome as they are!

Currently, I'm searching for a job. Probably as a nanny, of course. I've applied to several retail jobs, but I haven't heard back because it's slow season and they aren't hiring just yet. I had an interview to nanny a beautiful 10 month old baby girl. I find out today whether I get the job or not. I'm pretty anxious to hear back! I've also gotten some side babysitting jobs and people who are interested in purchasing my paintings. So things are going well. Money's a bit tight, but I'm getting along. My parents have been so awesome with helping me out and I'm forever grateful I have amazing parents who support me in all that I do. They really are great examples to me.

While I'm waiting on a job opportunity, I've just been working on paintings and helping the family out with learning sign language. Christie has been out of town for the past few days, so I've been helping the two younger girls get ready for school, homework, and the occasional dinner. I also finished two paintings, which I'm pretty proud of.

Things are great! The only bad things that have happened so far is being out of money, chipping my front tooth, and having my laptop broken. But once I get a job, I'm getting that tooth fixed and my laptop fixed.

I have some pictures posted of my time here in Tennessee. It's not much, since I'm not really camera crazy like some people are. Anyway, enjoy, and thanks for reading!

My room while unpacking...

Finally clean!

Me teaching the kids how to paint.

Lil'bit.

My paintings!

Driving in Kansas. 

Playing with the butterflies.

Eating at Red Robin in Kansas. Adam was pretty tired!

My 4 month old niece, Teyla!

My first pen drawing.

The river in Adam's backyard. 

I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.

This is a nanny's/artist's sleep deprivation blog post. Honestly, I think I'm so tired I can't sleep. So, here I am... deciding on whether it's a good idea to write a blog post at 2 AM while sleep deprived.

But, here goes!

Just an update on life. I went to Tennessee for 10 days. It's been six weeks since I've seen my fiance. It's been crazy hard and lonely. But, guess what! Next Saturday, I get to see him again! I'm so excited. It's quite a bittersweet thing though. I'll be moving away from my family to be with the love of my life in a brand new state with a culture and people that I'm not used to. It's kind of scary. I think I'm more nervous about moving to Tennessee than I was moving to Switzerland. But at the same time I'm so excited!

Anyway, I got my cochlear implant fixed, finally! They gave me a new coil, which is the cord part of the processor. So now it works. YAY! But I'm hoping to get an updated one, which is supposed to be a lot better than the one I have now. It would be awesome! I'm crossing my fingers that insurance will support me in this.

What else is new? I started a new job last month. I work as a employability assessor at Miles Employability Services for the Deaf. So basically, I assess people to see if they qualify for MESD to help them find a job.It involves learning about the person, giving advice, practicing interviewing skills, and giving tips on how to land a job and to keep it. It's not too bad at all! I quite enjoy it. I get to help people, so it makes me feel like I'm doing something positive with my life.

I have a bridal shower next Thursday that my wonderful neighbors are throwing me. I'm so excited for it! People in my ward are so awesome and supporting.

Today, I met with my two good friends from Switzerland, who were aupairs with me. These two girls were the girls that made a huge difference in my experience there. First, I met with Caitlin for lunch. She was the girl who gave me her job as an aupair in France when she went home for Visa reasons. If it wasn't for her, I'd be stuck in Switzerland with no money and no job, depending on church members to help me out, which is definitely not what I would have wanted. Anyway, she's such an awesome girl and a very, very talented artist. We both went to a French restaurant in downtown Salt Lake City. It was an expensive, fancy cafe. I probably should have just ordered a dessert for everyone, (I had two children with me that I'm nannying for four days,) cause it cost me about 30 dollars for lunches for the three of us and two desserts for us to share. CRAZY! The desserts were delicious though. I had a blast seeing Caitlin! Later, I met with Elisabeth and a few people I knew in Switzerland who went to church with me. It was AWESOME. Elisabeth practically saved my life in Switzerland. When I got kicked out of my first home, she was there for me. She supported me, cried with me, and gave me the friendship and strength I needed at that time. She also gave me a place to stay til I found the job in France. Without her, I would have been so alone. Elisabeth and Caitilin are two of the most selfless people I know. Without them, I would have never survived my situations in Europe. I just absolutely loved seeing my two angels all in the same day! It was the best. If I could hang out with them all the time, I would. However, we live in different states, which makes it quite difficult. But no matter what, these two girls have a huge place in my heart forever.

Life has been good to me lately. Many, many unexpected and difficult situations have occurred in just one year, but I've learned and grown so much. I know there will be more in store with me, both wonderful and difficult. But now, I have someone to experience them with me and to be my support and love for all eternity.What more could I ask for?

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be."
-Douglas Adams   

Fireflies

It's quite a feeling of magic, really, seeing a firefly for the first time. 

I remember when I was a small child, around six years old. My mother brought back fireflies in a jar from a trip she took somewhere east of Utah. Dots of green light flashed here and there under the warm night sky as we let the lightning bugs fly free. 

Years later, the song "Fireflies", by Owl City, came out on radio. It sparked my imagination and built a burning desire in my heart to see "ten million fireflies" light up a warm summer night. 

Currently, I am in the beautiful state of Tennessee. My fiance had been telling me about the fireflies, how there are thousands of them out every night, and how beautiful it was to watch them glow. When I first arrived, I was so excited to see the fireflies. It's something I looked forward to every night. Unfortunately, Tennessee has been going through a drought and a major heat wave, causing the lightning bugs to hide all day and all night. I was so disappointed the first couple nights when I didn't even get to see a single glow. 

A few nights into my stay, I was watching for the fireflies, as usual. I wasn't expecting anything, really. Then I saw it. A bright, quick, green flash. Then a few seconds and a few feet later, another flash. Then another. Then another. It was a single, lone lighting bug flying its way across the porch. I couldn't contain my excitement and started laughing over delight of seeing a single fairy-tale-like magical bug. 

My fiance reached his hands out and cupped the firefly in his hands. For a moment, it flashed its beautiful bulb and illuminated his hands and face with a serene, yellow-green glow. My mind took a photograph of that single split-second moment and it resides only in my memory as one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. 

A few days later, on the fourth of July, it rained. That night, the skies cleared up and my fiance and I decided to go for a swim in the river. We floated around for a while. As the sun set, the fireflies came out, one by one. It wasn't as many as I would have liked to see, but it was still such a magical moment for me. It felt like I was watching fairies dancing in the woods and peeking out from behind the leaves. I felt so alive! Who knew that something so simple could bring such happiness?

Some may call me silly for finding such delight in just a little bug. But for me, it's a whole 'nother world. 

The best things in this world aren't the biggest and most expensive. Sometimes, it isn't even material. The most amazing things come from the hidden treasures that lie right in front of our eyes. We don't see it, because the world has trained our eyes to be focused on objects of monetary value. But, if we choose to, we can look away and see the beauty that lie around us. We can begin to notice and take value of the simplest of things. Isn't that what God made our lives to be for, anyway?

"You would not believe your eyes

If ten million fireflies

Lit up the world as I fell asleep.

'Cause they'd fill the open air

And leave teardrops everywhere

You'd think me rude but

I would just stand and stare.

I'd like to make myself believe

That planet Earth turns

Slowly

It's hard to say I'd rather stay 

Awake when I'm asleep

'Cause everything is never as it seems..."

"Fireflies" by Owl City 

The Proposal

As many of you know... I'm now engaged to the wonderful and handsome Adam Farley!

I've been asked to tell the story of how he proposed to me, so here it is!

It was a hot day on July 4th. We got up, got ready, and hung out around the house a bit. It was just a regular day and I was getting excited for the night cause I was suspecting he'd propose then with all the fireworks. But even then, I wasn't too sure cause that's too obvious and that's not Adam. He loves things to be unexpected. So, I was kinda not really getting my hopes up about him proposing on the fourth of July. 

We got a little bored hanging around the house so I told him I wanted to go to the mall and like the gentleman he is, he happily took me and tediously went to every store I wanted to go to and let me try on things without a word of complaint and a smile on his face. You know that's one of the many reasons why I love him! After shopping, we had delicious Japanese food and just talked. He wasn't acting weird or nervous or anything. By then, I decided he wasn't proposing that day cause I was expecting that he'd act nervous or strange. Cause ya know, it's kind of a big deal, asking someone to spend the rest of their lives with you. 

After the mall, I suggested we head back home, but he said he wanted to "show me something cool." Of course, he wouldn't tell me... it was a surprise! So, we went on a drive for about 45 minutes. We arrived in Nashville, but I still had no idea where he was taking me.

Now, back up a bit. Adam has listened to me talk on and on and on about my trip to Italy. He knows I love Italy and everything to do with Italy and that one of my favorite spots, other than the Amalfi Coast, was Rome. And in Rome, my favorite spot to hang out was the ancient Pantheon, which is similar to Greece's  Parthenon. 

As we arrived in Nashville, he pulled into the park and there it was, Nashville's and the world's only life sized, accurate replica of the Parthenon. We weren't able to go inside cause of the 4th of July, which was a bummer. But it was really cool to see the Parthenon as it would have looked like back in ancient Greece and Rome when it was just built, with all the designs and the colors. We walked around, took some pictures, sat on the steps and talked. It was really, really hot and humid for me and I was getting thirsty. So I suggested we go to the gas station and get a drink. 

Adam and I began walking toward the front, and as we hit the front steps, he stopped me. I turned around to see him on his knees holding a ring in his hand. My heart stopped for a second and then it just started pounding like crazy! I didn't know what to do or say. He said to me, "I can't promise you that we will get to travel all over the world. I can't promise you we will have nice things. But I can promise you that with me, you will never be bored. I promise you that I will always love you. Will you marry me?" 

Of course, I said "YES!!!" 

I'm so excited for the new adventures that lay ahead of us. We both are. We don't have a date set yet but it will be soon... somewhere in the time frame of August-January. It depends on work, money, and all that stuff. But for sure, we aren't waiting for long! 

We will be starting out in Clarksville/Adams, Tennessee. It's a beautiful country area, with lots of trees, rivers, and farms. And rednecks. But that's OK, I'm marrying one! ;)

I'd like to thank everyone who supports us. It really means a lot, you don't even know! It feels really good to know that people are happy for us and that we have friends who care. So, thank you! 

Adam and I will be taking our engagement pictures before I leave Tennessee. I am here to visit for 10 days, and currently I only have 3 days left, sadly. It has been such a wonderful time meeting his family, exploring his backyard and swimming in the river. Anyway, engagement pictures will be up soon!

Thank you all for everything! I hope you enjoyed the story!

Adam taking me to the Parthenon. At the time I didn't know it! 

The ring!!! Small and simple, just like I wanted. :)

Changes, Changes...

This week has been pretty crazy.

Monday, I tried to get a doctor to write me a letter of recommendation that I could send to my insurance company to get a new processor for my cochlear implant. The doctor refused until I got a test done to see if "the inside part works." It was pretty frustrating. I just wanted to tell him "You were an hour late to see me, now I'm late for work. I just paid 85 bucks to see you for five minutes for you to reject the reason why I'm here. OF COURSE THE INSIDE PART WORKS! It's the outside part that's broken... look at it! It's all mangled and falling apart!" But no, he wanted to give me the runaround. I've been waiting for months and months for a new processor and there's just new reasons popping up for why I can't get one. Hopefully, this gets resolved soon, because it's driving me nuts!

Tuesday, I got let go from my nannying job. Apparently the mom, all of a sudden, decided to stay at home. So, that means I got a three day notification, leaving me with no job and no money til I find another one to last me til I move to Tennessee. I hope I get blessed with finding a way to make money.. heaven knows I need it.

Wednesday, I got a stomach bug.

Today is Thursday. Stomach bug is gone. It's the last day of work. At least I can see this event from a humorous point of view. So, last night, I decided to set my alarm for 5 AM so I could work on my painting. I went into a rut for a few weeks, but now I'm back! I've been working on a painting of a butterfly, which is going to be awesome. It's more of a design, but I'm pretty sure it'll sell so I'm very excited to finish it. Well, 5 AM came around and I decided I didn't wanna work on my painting and to sleep in til 6:15. (In my mind at the moment, 6:15 was the time I was supposed to wake up and go to work.) Well, I slept in til 6:20 and freaked out cause I had to leave in 20 minutes to make it to work on time. It was 6:45 by the time I was done and I was freaking out cause I was going to be SO LATE! While I was speeding down the highway, I realized.... It was 6:45 and I didn't have to go to work til 8.

Yeah.

It was too late to turn around and go home, so I decided to go to Target, but it was closed til 8. JUST MY LUCK!!! So, I'm at McDonald's writing this informal journal/blog hoping that someday I'll look back on this and laugh!

Also, my boyfriend has been gone on trek, a latter day saints event where the young men and women go out in the wilderness dressed as pioneers and walk for 10, 20, 30 miles while pulling and pushing handcarts. The point of trek, is to give the people who attend, a small taste of what the pioneers experienced. I haven't spoken to him in two days, which is kinda hard cause he would be the one who helped me get through the long days at work by keeping me distracted from the occasional boredom. I won't be able to talk to him til he picks me up on Friday.

Oh yes! I'm going to Tennessee tomorrow! It'll be my first time in the middle/southeast part of the United States and I'm so excited! I guess I can consider it a "celebration" for surviving work and as a nice break til I have to come home and find another job. Also, I get to see my boyfriend! I haven't seen him for a month and a half! It's been really hard... but the day is finally here! (Almost.)

Well, that's pretty much my week, folks! I know it's not anything TOO exciting but I just had to vent!!! I feel a little better now. I'd like to thank everyone for their support by reading my blog! It means a lot! I'm always surprised by how many people come and read what I have to say. You guys are the best!

Til next time!

Laura

Just... Life.

I think it's about time for an update on here. Life's been pretty uneventful, so it's taken me the past 4 months to gather up enough events to produce a decently lengthed blog post.

 What have I been up to lately you may ask? Well, not much if you compare it to what I was up to in Europe! But I guess it's not too bad!

 Let's see. March, I started a new job nannying, as I mentioned in my last post. 3 kids. Elena, 11; Alexander, 9; and James, 7. They're relatively average kids... sometimes good, sometimes bad, sometimes terrible, sometimes sweet, sometimes cute, sometimes not so cute. You know. They're on year round school, so I started out when they were off track, meaning I had to entertain them for 10 hours a day. Which was hard. These kids are the kinds that LOVE to explore, play, and constantly need full attention. It's not a bad thing at all! I'd be fine with that, but I've had a tough time with my cochlear implant processor being broken. Right now, I'm just wearing a hearing aid... which gives me about 30% of hearing. That means, I can only understand 30% of what they say. Well, with my hard efforts, maybe 50% or 60%. If I try really really hard and they speak clearly enough. It just sounds like someone's covering their mouth while they're talking, so it's really muffled. So yeah, the constant effort of trying to understand the kids absolutely wears me out after a while and then I kinda just want some alone time to re-gather myself. After 2 weeks of 10-plus hour days, the kids finally went off track, which meant I only had to babysit 2 1/2 hours a day, which was nice, but meant a whole lot less money. Right now, they are on summer break, so I'm working full time again. I'll be honest. After a while of not having my cochlear implant, I've been slacking on nannying. I've kind of withdrawn to myself, not really wanting to talk or listen or play. It's a bad thing, I know, but I just kinda couldn't help it.

 Anyway, I went to Washington for a week to visit with my family. It was absolutely amazing and such a great break! I always love going to visit my family... it's always great to see my little brothers, sister, grandparents, biological mother, and other family. Plus, Washington is such a beautiful place. I always miss it when I leave.

 While I was in Washington, I got to see my sister, Kendra, graduate from high school. It was great! I'm so excited for her to take a huge step in her life. She will be moving to Utah and attending the Latter Day Saints Business College (LDSBC) in Salt Lake City. I'm so excited for her to move to Utah! Unfortunately, she's moving to Utah the same time I'm moving to Tennessee... (To be explained soon.)

After my blissful trip to the Evergreen State, I returned to work. Apparently, while I was gone, the kids had gotten a really good nanny to sub for me. The first thing 7 year old James told me when he saw me was, "I liked our other nanny more than you! She played with us ALL DAY and talked to us, WAY more than you do!"

 Can you say, "OUCH."

 It was kinda a wake up call for me, that I needed to play with the kids more, even if I'm having a frustrating time with not being able to hear. But at the same time, the kids were disrespecting me because of my hearing, which made me not really motivated at all to help them out, cause I had explained over and over how my hearing works and how they need to talk to me and respect me, but they just never listened and I was at the point where I was DONE. Anyway, that day was a really bad day. The kids didn't care about me anymore. They were running wild throughout the house and it was like I wasn't even there. Nothing I said or did mattered to them... it was like I was invisible. They trashed the house, with me running behind them trying to pick up and clean up, while scolding them and trying to get them to do the things they needed to do. Nothing worked. Scolding, yelling, speaking in a firm voice, eye contact, taking away privileges, etc... everything on the list.. nothing worked. They would just laugh and walk away. I just wanted to cry!

 The next day, the mom got way mad at me cause of what happened the day before. I just couldn't take it anymore. I started to explain what was going on and how the kids were misbehaving, and then I just burst into tears. Between sobs, I explained how I felt like I try hard to get the kids to listen to me and respect me, but nothing worked. I told her what happened the day before, and how hard I tried to get them to behave themselves but ended up being stomped into the ground like I was worthless. After hearing my side of the story, the mom was very disappointed in her children. She gave the oldest a lecture (and I'm sure that night, she gave the two younger a good lecture as well, because the next day they were much better), and told her that she had to be my ears, along with other things about behavior. The day went much better after communicating with the mother and children. I played with the kids all day. It seemed to me, that all of a sudden, they realized that I REALLY can't hear them. That I do care for them and I really try to communicate with them. There was a total 180 in the children, as well as myself.

 Yesterday, I went swimming with them. They made the effort to look at me and talk to me so I could read their lips, and used their hands to gesture what they were saying, which helped a lot. Oh, I can't tell you how much that meant to me! I feel so blessed that everything is finally working out with the children! It was a hard 3 1/2 months trying to deal with them, but now it is much easier. I have a feeling that the next two months will be alright.

 Now, the moment is here to announce that I am moving to Tennessee on August 25th!

 Why?

 Well, a few months ago, I started dating this wonderful and amazing guy who's name is Adam Farley. Truly, he is the best man I have ever met! Hard working, kind, sweet, gentle, loving, and strong in the church. He has such a good heart and loves me to the moon and back... and more. He's so talented in many things, a jack of all trades. Many people love him, including my parents and sisters, which is a first!I know if THEY approve of him, he's definitely a keeper. All of my friends and other family approve of him as well, with no hesitation. That's how amazing he is!

 I met Adam through a friend while we were carpooling to church together. Adam joined us for the ride. When I first met him, he looked like a mountain man. Full on beard and shaggy hair. I was kinda like, "eh...", but as I got to know him on the way to church, I figured he was a really cool guy and thought we'd make good "friends." Later, he got my number and asked me on a date. I wasn't really interested but figured I'd give him a chance and go on a fun date.

 A few nights later, he showed up on my front door, dressed in a nice button-up shirt and with his hair cut and his beard shaved. I hardly recognized him! He took me to a fancy Italian restaurant to remind me of my trip in Italy. I had an amazing time. I went on a second date with him, then a third, then a forth... and it kinda went from there. You get it. We were stuck like glue since the first date and spent every day together.

 So, I'm moving to Nashville, to be closer to him. He means so much to me and I feel that we are going to have a great future together. Moving to Tennessee is going to be a great adventure, and I am so excited for it! I'm sad to be leaving my family, but it may be for a short while. If not, I'm going to be sure they get flown out to visit as much as possible, and I'm going to make sure I go to visit them as much as possible too! Life has been good to me. A bit hard lately, with not being able to hear and being away from my wonderful boyfriend. But, in a few weeks hopefully, I'll be able to hear. And in two months, I'll finally get to be with the love of my life.

 So yeah, this blog post turned out to be longer than I thought, so thanks to everyone who actually read to this point here. I'd like to thank all my friends and family for their love, support, and care. It means a lot. I love you all!

 Til next time,

 Laura

The Ups and Downs of Life

I started a new job a couple weeks ago. Let's guess what it is... Yep. I'm a nanny! Again. For the 8th year in a row.

It's funny, I keep promising myself that I won't get new nannying jobs and that the only babysitting I'll ever do are for the two families I've nannied/babysat for a few years. However, I became so poor that I started having to borrow money from my dad and avoided looking at my bank account cause it was just too depressing to see my checking balance as $0.16 and my savings as $0.05 (true story).

Nanny jobs are just super easy for me to get, mainly for my years of experience. I've always gotten hired right on the spot so I knew it'd be no problem. And guess what! I got hired right then and there.

So, I nanny three kids! This is the most I've ever done, other than the four kids I temporarily babysat every now and then in Switzerland when "in between jobs."

It's not too bad, three kids. They're older, so it's easier since they can take care of themselves mostly. Elena is 11, Alexander just turned 9, and James is 6. Elena is very creative, loves to read books, and is writing a book herself right now. She also loves art and is very good at it. She loves to draw dragons and cats. Alexander is very active. He loves reading Elena's new book that she's working on (which is probably THE cutest thing ever), jumping on the trampoline, and drawing cartoons. James is VERY active. He loves sports and is very lovable and cuddly. He also says pretty much the cutest things ever.

It's been really good so far. They really tried to test me the first couple weeks, that's for sure. But it's not the worst testing I've had, so I didn't really mind. It was tough getting used to each other and the schedule and rules, so we had a few tiffs and I got in trouble for a few things they did behind my back. But hey, that's the life of a nanny. The family is really forgiving though, so I consider them great!

They go to year round school and they were off track, so I had to watch them for about 10 hours every day. The days were pretty long, especially when I didn't get any sleep the night before. But now they are on track and today is the first day I haven't had to wake up at 6 AM. It feels kind of weird. However, I'll be working about 13 hours a week instead of 50. Talk about a HUGE pay cut! So, I'm going to be getting up at 7:30 anyway to start my "Work Day." One hour of exercise, breakfast, then "work," which will consist of basically painting all day until I have to leave to my now "helper" job. I don't consider it a nanny job when I'm working 13 hours a week, since I just go and have the kids do homework, feed them a snack, drive them to lessons, then fix dinner, and go home.

Other than my nannying job, I went to Moab with some friends. It was a completely spontaneous trip. My friend Amy and I decided that we'd just spend the weekend bumming it out in South Utah. We went to hang out with a couple friends of mine Friday night and slept over on their couch. When we were at the apartment, one of the roommates got drunk trying to impress Amy and ended up passing out. We colored his face... I've seriously always wanted to do that. But he woke up and Amy felt way bad for him so she took him to his room so he could sleep it off and he ended up throwing up on her. Then we took him to the shower so he could clean himself off and he ended up passing out in the shower. This is pretty much the first time I've ever witnessed someone being shitfaced drunk this close up and it definitely makes me never ever wanna drink.

On Saturday, we drove four hours to Moab in my non air conditioned car. However, it was so fun just chatting and going on an adventure together. We camped by a river and just chilled all Saturday in the city and at our campsite. The night was miserably cold though. That's the Utah desert for you.

Sunday, we took the route to Slick Rock bike trail, where we diverted off the bike path and hiked to this waterfall and swimming hole. It was absolutely gorgeous but the water was way too cold to swim in! Some people were completely insane and jumped into the water hole without knowing how deep it was. Dumb. I just enjoyed the view. We were all exhausted by the end of the hike because we had a crappy night of sleep so we headed home after the hike. I had my friend AJ drive the entire time because I was so sick of driving! It was nice to just chat to my friend in the backseat for three hours!

I was sad we couldn't stay in Moab for longer. That's what happens when you have a job I guess! I have tons of fun plans for the summer though. Well not TONS, but... so far, I'm going to visit my biological family in Washington for a week and to see my sister graduate high school. Then, I've got a friend from Switzerland visiting America and she's going to stop by in SLC for a little bit and stay with me and I'll get to show her around. In August, I'm going to Havasupai Falls for the Peach Festival, which should be AMAAAAAAAZING! Then, hopefully in the fall, I'll be able to get that backpacking guide job that I've been DYING for. We shall see how life plays out.

I believe that is all for now. So far, this year has been full of ups and downs. The downs include having to withdraw from school when I was halfway over, having a sucky dating life, being completely broke, and getting sick! But the ups include starting a new year, getting my life back, spending time with my family, getting a job, starting to increase my strength, and looking forward to some new travels this summer. I really don't know what's going to happen this year. I have a simple plan of what I'll be doing, but the wind could blow me in a different direction. Life can be pretty unpredictable sometimes!

A New Life and a Hopeful Future

I know I've been bad at blogging lately, I'm sorry!

Well lots of things have happened since I've gotten home from Switzerland. I signed up for Spring semester at Utah Valley University, expecting that I would do absolutely excellent and get good grades and last the entire semester. Unfortunately, a chronic illness relapsed and the stress was making it worse. The worse it got, the more behind I got in my schoolwork. I already had about 4-6 hours of homework a day because I stupidly signed up for four art classes. Finally, it got to the point where I was so behind that I couldn't have a hope of catching up and I just couldn't do it anymore. So I dropped out of school. I was so disappointed about it but now I feel it was for the best. I may not go to school for the next year, but we will see where life takes me. Unexpected things can happen, you know.

Ever since I dropped school, I've been looking for a job. It took me a month, but I finally found a job as a nanny in South Jordan. The family is so sweet and the kids look like a lot of fun. I'll be nannying three kids, a girl that's 11 years old, and two boys; nine and six. They're pretty energetic so I expect to be exhausted at the end of the day! But it pays alright and I could certainly use the money right now. They are going to year round school, so they have 9 weeks of school and 2 or 3 weeks of break. I'll be starting this coming Monday and be jumping right into full time 8:00 AM-6:30 PM work. It'll be pretty stressful. I was hoping to start while they were still in school and be working with them 4 hours a day just to get used to the kids and the schedule. But hey, maybe this will be for the best. I hope they like me! Including the parents!

Other than nannying, I've been looking for a second job. I signed up to work at REI and they want to interview me, but I've been thinking about it and well... I prefer to have my free time rather than working all the time. So I've decided to freelance modeling, writing, and art. So far, I've benefited no money, but many compliments. That's just as good to me! It gives me hope and motivation to keep going, and maybe soon I'll be able to earn money with selling my art and by getting freelance jobs for writing and modeling.

Since I'm not working right now, I've just been taking care of my sister, Sara, and my dog Roo. My dog had to have nine teeth pulled on Monday cause the last family that had him didn't take care of his teeth. He had a ton of abscesses and was getting an infection in his face. Good thing we caught it because the infection could have spread and we could have ended up losing the best and only dog we've ever had. He seems to be back to his normal self now.

I also finished a painting for my mom. I took a picture of her prized zinnias in our front yard a few summers ago. Last year, I decided to start painting it, but took a break when I moved to Switzerland. Now I'm back with all my art stuff, I decided to start painting again and to finish the zinnias for my mom. I finished yesterday and put it on a stand in the kitchen to surprise her when she got home from work. She absolutely loved it and said it was the second best present she's ever gotten, the first being her wedding rings. I'm not so sure if it's true but I'm happy that she loves it!

Well, good news is, I'm feeling a lot better and I decided I'm going to try to focus on getting completely better in the next year. I'm going to exercise to get my strength back and to practice some mental and emotional endurance so I can be strong enough inside to accomplish my schooling.

I'm looking forward to this year! I'm going to try to be working a lot and traveling a lot as well! My best friend, Amy, is coming to Utah next week! Unfortunately I'll be working, but we will have the weekends to chill. Also, we might go to Moab one weekend. I'm super excited for it because I have been itching to travel since I got back from Europe! Moab is awesome and it should be a nice break from everyday life.

That's all for now. I know, my life hasn't been too exciting and adventurous like it used to be, but that's what happens. Hopefully I'll have some great stories to come with my future adventures to come, even if they're little weekend trips.

To my readers:

If you made it all the way to this sentence, I'd like to thank you for caring enough to read all this and make me feel special. So, I will reward you with a picture of my painting that I gave to my mom since it's the best thing I've got right now!

Map of Where I've Been as of 2012!!

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