"Solids"

Eleanor had her 4 month doctor's appointment yesterday. She is doing great and right on track with everything which made me really happy! =D I had heard that it was recommended that babies wait until they are 6 months old to eat solids. I always planned on giving her solids before 6 months, but I didn't think the doctor would talk about solids at her 4 month appointment. However, he recommended that we start introducing solids into her diet. Eleanor has been really interested in "big people" food for a few weeks now, and we have put a spoon in her mouth a few times to see if she would push it back out with her tongue and she didn't, so I knew she was ready. So, today I went out and bought some jars of baby food and some rice cereal. This is how it went:

I think she was a little confused and skeptical at first...

But in the end she did great, and she was happy and full!! =D

I also have a video of her first reactions to the cereal...but for some reason it wont let me upload it...so I will try to add it later, it's pretty dang cute!!

First Time Skiing

I have always hated snow...always. I just really don't like being cold, and even though snowball fights and building snowmen are supposed to be fun, I ALWAYS end up getting snow down my shirt, or my pants, or in my shoes and socks and I HATE that. Peter on the other hand really enjoys the snow and has been wanting me to ski basically since we met. He thought that I would transform into a snow lover once I learned to ski. I have been avoiding this for our entire marriage until a couple of weeks ago when Peter's dad took us on a ski trip.

I was really nervous about skiing and NOT excited about it at all. I thought I would be freezing the entire time and I knew I would be falling all over the place unavoidably getting snow down my shirt, pants, and into my shoes and socks. I was dreading it. Peter, Peter's dad, and Erika (Peter's sisters) were all very upbeat and positive about the idea of me skiing. They all wanted me to have a great time and encouraged me the entire day. They were so awesome and really helped make the experience a good one.

The first thing I did was sign up for a beginner's lesson. I really felt like I would be so lost in this lesson, but honestly it was not that hard. It definitely lived up to its title: beginner. We didn't even really learn to turn. We mastered putting on the skis, standing up, how to fall, and stopping, which are all very important things to learn, of course. But I was feeling pretty bored by the end and pretty excited to learn some more. After my lesson I met back up with Peter and his family and we decided to hit some of the easier slopes. I was feeling a little cocky about my skills (stupid, I know) and the first thing I did when we got off the ski lift was fly down the mountain out of control and eat it. Yes, I did get snow down my shirt, pants, and into my socks and shoes. I decided to slow down a bit and take a few more lessons from Peter and his family. The rest of the day went like this: I took it slow and easy and made good progress, I started to feel a little better about my skills and decided to take it a little faster and riskier, I flew down the mountain, out of control, and ate it (usually taking other skiers down with me).

All-in-all it was a REALLY fun day. I wasn't cold at all (it was actually really hot), I didn't hate the snow, and I actually really enjoyed skiing. I have some pretty awesome bruises and I could barely get out of bed the next morning, but I am really looking forward to the next time I get to ski. Thank you Kerns for being patient, sharing your skills with me, and helping me enjoy Utah a little more. =D

YEAH! We're ready!!

This illustrates Peter's skill level...and my skill level. Haha.

I did this...a lot...

This bruise is on my upper thigh...it looked SO much worse in real life. Ouch. HaHa.

End of Law School Year 1

I finished my winter semester finals this week.  Next time I go to class at the law school, it will be as a 2L.  My last exam was for civil procedure and it was literally the hardest test I've ever taken in my entire life.

Law school in general is hard and it will be nice to have a break.  I have an externship this summer working for a firm in Orem called Franchise Foundry, learning all about franchise law.  I am actually really excited about it.  I want to get some real world experience and see what it is like.  People are always asking me whether or not I can see myself practicing law based on my law school experience.  I have no idea.

What we do on a day-to-day basis is not what lawyers do on a day-to-day basis, and we are constantly reminded of this by the attorneys and guest speakers who come in to give us lectures.  So, I am excited to move on to phase two of law school, where I can do something real and see what that is like, and then be able to make my own schedule and study things that I think are interesting.

I think that I would really enjoy learning about trusts and wills and estates, I also think disaster law sounds really interesting and I also plan on studying more about the Constitution, maybe 1st ammendment or 14th ammendment law.

The problem with the first year is that you don't get to choose your courses, and the courses you take are these huge broad subjects that you can barely get an overview of before the semester ends.  Torts, Contracts, Criminal Law, etc.  However, during both of the finals that I have now passed through I realized how much I really did learn and how I really do now have a certain global sense about how these things fit together.  Overall, I feel like I am where I should be at the end of my first year, but I am no closer to knowing where I want to be at the end of my third year.  I am just grateful for the chance to have access to such a quality education and I feel blessed to have a bright future.

We sold our contract!!

Wahoo!!

Our summer sales situation just got a whole lot better this week. We were finally able to sell the contract on our Provo apartment. That whole situation has been something of a nightmare, from trying to get into it 6 weeks before our wedding, which created a whole lot of unnecessary stress, to trying to sell it four months before the end of its term. And now its over!

As happy as we are to put that burden behind us, we definitely didn't get out of our contract on any sort of favorable terms. in June there are only two types of people looking for housing contracts that only go through August, newlyweds and failed summer salesmen. The newlyweds for some reason just weren't biting and in the end, we were as desperate as to get someone to sign up for it as Brinn and Anjo--a pathetic pair of down and out sellers giving up on the dream in Colorado and returning to Utah--were to find someone who would pay all their upfront costs to move in somewhere. The intersection of our paths was nothing short of fate.

Anjo had seen our ad on Craigslist and even though we were offering 100 dollars off each month, he was intent on haggling. Basically, he didn't want to pay anything at all until July. Since we had already payed June rent I figured that if he would pay full price for the last two months, we would not ask for June rent back. I thought I was being generous.

Anjo pushed his luck even further by asking us to also pay his deposit, which he assured us he would pay back over time. The deposit was $500. At this point we have to wonder how desperate we really were...do we really trust two strangers to hold up their end of the bargain? After serious discussion, we tell them we will front them $400. Again, we are feeling very generous.

Anjo and I had retreated to our respective camps to see what our wives thought of our negotiations. When we got back on the phone again, Anjo has the audacity to tell me that they think they can get a better deal elsewhere...Say what?? What poor suckers are gonna pay a month rent and 400 bucks. Well, I was shocked but I had a pretty good feeling they would come crawling back. We had given them an offer that was essentially unbeatable.

Sure enough, the next day they called back and told us they would agree to our terms. Sadly, it got worse for us when The Branbury told us they would not transfer the rent from our account to theirs and they would have to come up with whatever was left of June rent, at this point $505. Who do you think had to fork over that dough? That's right, us. Fortunately, we'll get that money back within a few weeks so aside from the hassle of coming up with the money upfront, we wouldn't lose anymore. We reluctantly agreed. They would pay 100 dollars of the deposit and we would put up 905 dollars for them to start their new lives. They would be moving in on Monday.

Well, they called us Monday and to my utter astonishment, they had even more demands to make! "umm, we were wondering if it would be ok if you guys paid the full 500 for our deposit because we came across some unexpected expenses on the drive home, so we don't have that money right now..." ??? Are you kidding me? And you're telling me this now?? Who do you think...I can't believe this!

So yea, it took us 1005 dollars plus transaction fees to free ourselves of this Albatross, but, after that final road bump, they did actually sign on our contract (wouldn't you with that kind of deal?) and we are free. We are free at last!