Good Health?

PSh.... who are we kidding?

That is a phrase we havent used it a while.

Spencer and I

have had a lot of health issues in the past year.

Good and bad news for the both of us.

Starting out with the bad news....

I dont know if a lot of people really knew.

But Spencer was diagnosed with

Stage 3 Cancer

{only 4 stages until you die}

about 5 months after we were married.

He had Metastatic Melanoma {skin cancer}

It was from a mole on his bum that

 we didnt notice until after we were married.

He had to have 2 very invasive surgeries.

To remove the cancer and surrounding areas.

Since then he has to get checked every 4 months for 5 years.

then every 6 months for 5 years.

then every year after that for the rest of his life.

I never really thought skin cancer was that serious.

{shame on me}

But it turns out it is one of the scariest/worst ones.

because chemotherapy cant be used 

because it isnt in a single spot.

you skin covers your whole body.

Also the kind Spencer had

{hopefully it stays past tense}

is the most likely to come back. 

Anyways, on with the good news.

There has been some good that came out of this.

{hard to imagine right?}

It has brought us closer than we ever could have thought

when you think you might lose someone you love

you really do realize how much you love them.

It was soooo good for us.

Yes cancer is hard and unbelievably scary.

But we grew more in our first year of marriage

than i know most people do in YEARS!

Also, you realize how much people do care.

We had family, friends, and even random people

telling us they were praying for us every night

and putting our names in the temple.

I really feel like we were carried through it all.

Because of our friends/family/etc.

We could feel it to.

So, thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Next good news....

{have to give background first}

he had his 4 month check up yesterday

and....

he is still cancer free!!!!!!

i couldnt be more happy!

now on to the other bad news.

me. 

haha.

i'll explain.

in the last year i have had:

bleeding ulcers

{from stressing about spencer}

i now have acid reflux disease

{also from stressing about spencer}

I had my Appendix out on my 21st birthday.

I have really bad neck pain that has caused me daily headaches.

Now my teeth thing.

i went to the dentist yesterday and he said....

i may have TMJ. 

great.

Then i went to my Chiropractor later that day

and i have a bulging disc in my neck

{that has been there since my really back wreck,

summer before senior year of highschool}

It causes daily headaches, dizziness, sharp pain,

numbness, inability to work out 

{i thought i was just so out of shape}

So i have to now wear a neck brace

all the time except in public.

{haha. its quite funny to see me with it on}

But he said it can take 3 months to a year to heal

and i cant do ANY exercises or it wont heal.

boo.

guess working at Temptation Cupcake wont

be so great after all.

haha.

Both doctors said that my neck could be/have been

causing my jaw/teeth/awkward bone growth problem. 

Hopefully my neck will heal and fix my jaw.

I am glad to know that i am not just a pansy!

Working out hurt my neck so bad,

to where i would black out and my arms would go numb.

I have had daily headaches for YEARS. 

and its because of my bulging disc.

{which caused my jaw problem}

so all of you who didnt believe me,

there is your proof. 

who feels like a jerk now! 

haha. just kidding. 

Well....

I sure hope this fixes it all.

Its reassuring to know that they are 

finding out whats wrong though.

Good health is something i want so bad!

haha.

But i would rather be sick the rest of my life

than to have spencer's cancer come back.

Well there is our history from the last year!

Hope you enjoyed learning. haha.

probably wont be too helpful,

but it was interesting right?

But....

If you walk away with anything

it would be....

Never take anyone for granted.

♥ ♥ ♥

Funfilled Weekend.

I am sorry to break the news....

i forgot my camera this weekend.

we had quite the funfilled weekend so

it is very depressing to me that i dont have pics.

It started out by going to one of my good friends receptions

Congrats Bren and Frida!

they were a very good looking couple.

she is Swedish and he served in Sweden

he only talks to her in Swedish.

which is very cool to me.

Their reception was in his backyard,

it was hands down the most beautiful outside/backyard reception i've seen.

{Click here for pictures - from his photographer, not me}

Next we drove straight to good old Burley, Idaho.

For Spencer's Mom's side's family reunion!

I didnt really know what to expect

{its only every 2 years, so I havent been yet}

It was such a blast.

They rent out this Ranch right on the snake river

We just camped out while there.

I dont have pictures but the official website does

click here for pictures

We swam, went on the slide,

ate a ton {of course, its a family reunion}

sat and talked, played a TON of volleyball. 

{we played sooo many games, so fun}

then at night we roasted marshmallows around a big fire

and lit off fireworks.

It was such a blast! cant wait for 2013!

After we headed to Pocatello and saw my family

I went to the dentist because i have been having 

a lot of pain in my teeth. 

I coulda sworn i had a couple cavities.

turns out

I am Cavity FREE!

dont get too excited.

thats the good news.

the bad news followed pretty soon after.

Turns out i clench my teeth unintentionally

and its causing a lot of pain in my teeth, and headaches

But worst of all.

I am growing bone under my tongue which wont go away

but it can get worse and if it gets a lot worse

it will get hard to eat.

um.... scary? yes. very.

I go in again tomorrow to find out 

what to do about it.

i am stressing.

which is causing more clenching. 

ugh.

{please feel free to laugh at how awkward this picture is ... haha}

You can see on the inner part under my tongue - inside of my teeth. 

you can see the bumps.

Then after we came back to Logan

I had the day off because it was Pioneer day!

I just relaxed and watched SYTYCD.

{i am very behind}

and Bachelorette.

JP and Ben were my picks from the beginning.

Both great for her.

It was a great weekend!

I love being with family.

I'm so lucky to have such a cool/fun fam.

And to have married into such a great family too!

I love spending time with them both!

♥ ♥ ♥

Will you go out with me?

So its been quite the shock to come back

having things to do. places to be.

 Spencer and I were used to being together 

24/7 for 6 weeks

So its been a bummer being back 

just for the fact that we aren't together all the time

like we were in Europe.

So we decided to do a double date

by double date we mean,

2 dates in a row

2 nights ago we went to Hamilton's for dinner

{where Spencer works, very nice and yummy restaurant}

It was so good.

I got halibut and crab legs with mashed potatoes and veggies.

mmmmm.

Then yesterday we went to Hogle Zoo

{its a famous Zoo in Salt Lake}

I had never been but wanted to go

because i had heard its quite the thing to see.

Hogle Zoo was a hoot!

{get it?}

i love seeing the different animals,

i am so easily entertained by them!

haha Spencer said i was like a little kid

My favorite were the Monkeys.

I have always wanted a pet monkey.

 but then again.... who doesnt?

they are soo cool. 

I now call myself the Gorilla whisperer.

wonder why?

well we were just watching him

he was just chillin on his back, chillaxin.

then i smiled at him and put my hand on the glass.

he stood up and came over right in front of me.

and just stared at me.

everyone around was so amazed and all crowded around.

i kept my hand on the glass and he just kept 

getting closer and closer to my hand/face. 

i was pretty proud of myself.

Then we headed over to the little monkeys 

{like on Aladin}

There was one and when i walked over

and talked to him,

he got all shy and hid his face.

he would look up and i would say

"hi you little cutie"

and he would tuck his head again.

i would laugh and laugh.

i probably did this for a solid 5-10 minutes.

haha.

I loved this other monkey

{He decided to pack his own lunch. haha}

Moving on....

Spencer loved the Elephants.

just stating the facts....

their pee and poo is MASSIVE

we kept laughing at how huge it was. 

{i know we are literally like children}

We were there for 3 hours. 

we saw everything there was to see.

i could talk about them all.

but that might put all of you to sleep

so i will spare you the details.

Here are some other pics from the zoo

 {this is how we started off the day- petting a snake}

{oh boy, does he!}

{did you know a giraffe's tongue is 18 inches long?
also.... that its blue on the tip so it wont get sunburned?}


{what remained of a bird, the vultures cage}

{its eyes were STUNNING}


{Its a double rainbow}

 {our view driving home.... breathtaking}

Anyways, 

i loved our time together.

having date nights is soo important!

Europe really showed us how good 

it really is for a couple.

Make sure you take time for date nights.

you will be surprised how much it helps

Has anyone done any good date nights lately?

any fun ideas?

♥ ♥ ♥

I would like to introduce...

I would like to introduce you to.....

Temptation Cupcakes newest BAKER!

yes, it is me!

I got offered this promotion recently

and have been soooo excited about it.

these treats are to die for.

Cupcakes and Sugar Cookies.
It is a big deal because
besides the owners,
there is only ONE other person that knows the recipe
{the owners brother}
So i feel very priveledged that they would trust me
basically with their business!


My workplace

{i know right? so cute}

It was my first day baking today.

it went really well.

There is a lot to learn.

haha

He is going to have to write it down for me

they have SOOO many cupcakes 

and frostings

and they are all different recipes 

{for the most part}

but i am ready to take on this yummy challenge.

It is early mornings though

I have to be baking by 6:00 am.

So i will possibly be turning into a grandma

and be going to bed by like 8:30

just so i can get up on time

and get through my day!

i switch between baking and selling.

I just want to say....

I LOVE MY JOB!

i love the owners

{i feel like they are my friends not just bosses}

i dont get paid as much as i have in other jobs

but it is so worth it.

Money will come and go.

But happiness is essential.

Find happiness everywhere, even work.

You will be surprised how much it affects your days

I am in a very good place right now

I have the best husband anyone could dream of.

a nice house, cars, etc.

A supportive and loving family.

One who is alwayssss there for me. 

in the good times and bad

Good friends!

A job that i love!

a new nephew on the way

and

I just travelled the world with my best friend.

etc. etc. etc.....

anyways you get the jist!


So i was curious to see what the benefits of
loving your job were.
{and just being happy in general}
here is what i found....

1: Happy people work better with others

Happy people are a lot more fun to be around and consequently have better relations at work. This translates into:

•               Better teamwork with your colleagues

•               Better employee relations if you’re a manager

•               More satisfied customers if you’re in a service job

•               Improved sales if you’re a sales person

2: Happy people are more creative

If your productivity depends on being able to come up with new ideas, you need to be happy at work. Teresa Amibile says:

“If people are in a good mood on a given day, they’re more likely to have creative ideas that day, as well as the next day, even if we take into account their mood that next day.”

There seems to be a cognitive process that gets set up when people are feeling good that leads to more flexible, fluent, and original thinking, and there’s actually a carryover, an incubation effect, to the next day.

3: Happy people fix problems instead of complaining about them

When you don’t like your job, every molehill looks like a mountain. It becomes difficult to fix any problem without agonizing over it or complaining about it first. When you’re happy at work and you run into a snafu – you just fix it.

4: Happy people have more energy

Happy people have more energy and are therefore more efficient at everything they do.

5: Happy people are more optimistic

Happy people have a more positive, optimistic outlook, and as research shows (particularly Martin Seligman's work in positive psychology), optimists are way more successful and productive. It’s the old saying “Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re probably right” all over again.

6: Happy people are way more motivated

Low motivation means low productivity, and the only sustainable, reliable way to be motivated at work is to be happy and like what you do.

7: Happy people get sick less often

Getting sick is a productivity killer and if you don’t like your job you’re more prone to contract a long list of diseases including ulcers, cancer and diabetes. You’re also more prone to workplace stress and burnout.

One study assessed the impact of job strain on the health of 21,290 female nurses in the US and found that the women most at risk of ill health were those who didn’t like their jobs. The impact on their health was a great as that associated with smoking and sedentary lifestyles.

8: Happy people learn faster

When you’re happy and relaxed, you’re much more open to learning new things at work and thereby increasing your productivity.

9: Happy people worry less about making mistakes – and consequently make fewer mistakes

When you’re happy at work the occasional mistake doesn’t bother you much. You pick yourself up, learn from it and move on. You also don’t mind admitting to others that you screwed up – you simply take responsibility, apologize and fix it. This relaxed attitude means that less mistakes are made, and that you’re more likely to learn from them.

10: Happy people make better decisions

Unhappy people operate in permanent crisis mode. Their focus narrows, they lose sight of the big picture, their survival instincts kick in and they’re more likely to make short-term, here-and-now choices. Conversely, happy people make better, more informed decisions and are better able to prioritize their work.

As you can see....

it affects about every aspect of your life.

so BE HAPPY!

find what you love,
not only what makes you the most $
{if you can find both, great}

money cant buy happiness,

just things.

Have a happy Thursday!

♥ ♥ ♥

Awards for Europe

So Spencer and I decided it would be

a good idea to give out awards 

from our Europe trip!

Best, Most, Worst, etc.

Best Pizza - Amsterdam

Best Gelato - all of Italy

Best dessert - Lucerne, Switzerland

Best pasta - is a tie between....

{Cinque Terre, Italy and Lucerne, Switzerland}

Worst smell {pee and/or smoke} - Paris

Dirtiest subways - Paris

Cleanest subways - Prague

Nicest people - Amsterdam

Meanest people - Paris

Prettiest countryside - Austria

Best crepes - Annecy, France

Best lake - Annecy, France

Saddest city - Dachau, Germany

Best drive - Germany {autobahn}

Best church/cathedral - Le Mont St. Michel, France

Most Museums - Paris

Best Castle - Versailles, France

Most accident prone - Annecy, France

Best getaway - Cinque Terre, Italy

Biggest city - Rome

Most stairs - tie between....

{Florence, Italy... Le Mont St. Michel, France... 

San Gimignano, Italy... Cinque Terre, Italy}

Best views - Italy

Most crowded - Paris

Best hotel - Rome

Busiest day(s) - Rome or Paris

Funniest clothes - Salzburg, Austria

Most confusing to get around {car} - Florence, Italy

Most confusing to get around {walking} - Venice, Italy

Most bikes - Amsterdam, Netherlands

Most Mopeds - Florence, Italy

Most walkers - Paris

Best garden - Salzburg, Austria

Most cultural - Venice

No cars - Venice

It was quite the adventure!
If anyone been any of these places
feel free to chime in!

♥ ♥ ♥ 

4 movies

We flew home just recently,

traveling is so fun 

but man... its just good to be home

not live out of a suitcase

be able to sleep in my own bed

etc. 

We were traveling for 24 hours

and our first flight was 10 hours

sleeping on a plane is miserable

and we had our own personal movie screens

on the seat in front of us

so Spencer and I both watched

4 movies

on our flight back

They were all SOO good.

i highly recommend them.

I saw:

Country Strong

{not a country person at all,

but it may have converted me a bit}

The Adjustment Bureau

Unknown

{Liam Neeson from "Taken" is the main character}

and....

 The Lincoln Lawyer

Has anyone seen any good movies yet?

Also....

Also our first day back was my little sisters

last day here in the States.

i only got to see her for a few hours!

She is headed on her study abroad

she is going for 6 weeks

2 weeks in each place

she is going to:

Australia

New Zealand

Fiji

{jealous because Fiji is where Spencer served his mission,

and i want to see it so bad}

She will be backpacking the whole time!

I am gonna miss the little rat

But i am so excited for her!

♥ ♥ ♥ 

I'm proud to be an American

ok, ok, so i know its a day or 2 late.

but i havent had internet access until now

Europe was such an UNBELIEVABLE experience

i will never forget it,

and i am sooo glad and blessed to be able to 

do what we did.

In my opinion its great to visit but....

i am so glad to live in America.

Anyways....

4^th of the July is one of my favorite Holidays!

we are in Prague, Czech Republic today

Unfortunately they do no celebrate America’s independence.

I don’t know why they wouldn’t!

America is pretty dang cool.

Last time I was in Europe we missed this

Wonderful day too!

I was with my sister Sarah and Parents.

We were in Spain.

We are leaving tomorrow back to the good old

U S of A

So I am just barely missing it.

Darn it.

But I cant complain

I am in Prague.

I don’t know what it is about this holiday

That gets me

But I just LOVE it!

Maybe its because its warm, and summer

…..and warm. haha

We get together with family,

Have a big BBQ,

And watch amazing fireworks,

And just take it really easy!

So everyone:

Please soak in the fun for me.

4^th,

Until next year, my friend!

I wont let you down.

 {how darling are these?}

 {firework wreath}

 {cute treat ideas}

♥ ♥ ♥

Prague

Prague, Czech Republic was our last stop

It is considered the "Gem" of Europe.

i believe it.

It was one of my favorite cities last time i was here

....still met those expectations this time!

It is just such a different feel than 

a lot of the rest of Europe

it is so clean and so beautiful yet classy!

We toured the Prague Castle 

which is considered the

"Largest Castle in the World"

It's a whopping 18 acres in total with numerous

courtyards and subsidiary buildings in its grounds.

{old fashion guards are still there}

We walked through the Wallenstein Gardens

it is a secret little nook of a garden

with a very unusual, yet interesting wall

with hidden creatures into the stone

{this bird was thirsty haha}

And then we heard of this architect 

that makes humorous yet famous pieces

so it was like a little scavenger hunt

because the sculptures were scattered all around town

here are a few:

{the artist sitting on his own body}

{called "hangin out"}

{called "pissin"}

Then we ended the night with a slow

walk along the famous

Charles Bridge. 

it was beautiful.

Everything was lit up and reflecting off the water.

Here are some other from around the city:

 {cleanest metro i've ever seen. cops walking around}

 {good oldie}

{this clock has a big presentation every hour}

{this guy was incredible}

♥ ♥ ♥