Really?

You know, I've been called a lot of things since I've been married.

 Like

 "Mrs. Epslin"

or

"Mrs. Epsin"

and even

 "Mrs. Aspen." 

But really ISU?

 "Ms. EsPlacein?" 

This is definitely a new one for me. I was really tempted not to fill out the survey they mailed to me because obviously they didn't get the right person.

Our Weekend

We had a fun-filled weekend.

We went and saw this guy and laughed our fool heads off. He never disappoints.

Then Nate decided to enter an eating contest at the local Dickey's Barbecue. Don't ask why. It's just Nate. He got second place a few weeks ago and was asked to come back and defeat the champion. (Who ended up not showing up). But thank-goodness, because Nate ended up winning.

 Here he is getting excited for the competition to start.

 On your mark...get set...go! (Notice the paramedics in the background).

 And he's the winner!  He actually got some pretty nice prizes.

Here is Nate's "manager" Dee. They met at work. Dee made sure to get Nate a matching hat that reads, "Keep off the grass" with a nice little cigarette next to it. Oh dear. I'm not quite sure if I should be proud or not of Nate's accomplishment...

And of course to complete the weekend we watched/listened to conference. Here is a awesome picture from the sun roof of our car while we were listening to the Saturday afternoon session.

A Little Bit of This...A Little Bit of That

Life. It goes by quickly. And sometimes it can be hard. So I decided to highlight some of the fun moments over the past few weeks. Enjoy!

 I found this picture and realized why I kept it. Nate is actually reading. I couldn't believe it myself. This is a rarity. And this only happened when he was recovering from surgery. I miss that day. I had to document it so I would remember that it actually happened.  

 Then I made this. My first cake roll and it actually turned out. Isn't it beautiful.?!

 Yummy. It was a strawberry cake roll.

 To celebrate Valentine's I gave Nate this fun little scratch ticket that I created off of BHG. He scratched off a free dinner of his choice. He picked chicken and rice. Disgusting.

 A few weekends ago we ventured over to Boise to hang out with some of Nate's cousins. And yes... the party got way out of control when Nate actually got his eyebrows waxed. Then all of the "men" decided to do it also. Let's just say that a little waxing of the eyebrows can really change the way a person looks. It was great.

 To celebrate a friend's bithday we had a little adventure to the local roller skating rink. (Where I happened to win the limbo game! WOOT WOOT. In your face little tweens!). The sign walking into the rink was my all time favorite. "Bare Midruff?" I especially like the picture that goes along with it.

And last but not least we got a new car. Another new car you ask? Why yes. We just happen to like buying and selling cars in our marriage. But I am hoping this one is here to stay. It's a bit more economical. The picture doesn't do it justice. It's a 2010 Jetta. It's cute like us.  

Jazz Game

Last Thursday Nate decided he needed one last Hurrah before he went back to work so he chose to go to a Jazz Game. I couldn't complain. His sister Heidi ended up coming with us. Nate must have been really excited because we ended up getting there about 2 hours early....but there were perks.

 First off we got to see Jeff Hornacek. Yeah I know, a blurry picture. What a suprise. But it was still fun to see him helping the players warm up.

  And my favorite of all time. Nate with Thurl Bailey. Priceless picture. Nate looks like an excited little kid. He turned away before I was able to take the picutre and was actually saying thank-you. Gotta love it.

 Our seats. We had to squint a few times but it was worth it.

And a little V-Day love. (Don't mind the lady in the background). Even though we drove back that night and got home around 3:30am, it was well worth it!  

California

What better way to spend Nate's last week of recovery than to go to California for a quick weekend trip with the whole family?!  The purpose of the trip was to see cute little Blaine get baptized, but of course we squeezed in a little Disney Land and some beach time with the family!  It was a blast.

 The very bright sun in front of "It's a Small World."

 Enjoying a nice dinner at Club 33.

 Cute family pictures.

 A little jumping on the beach....

 ...and a little kissing on the beach.

 One of my favorite pictures of Nate and some of the kids.

And last but not least, a ride on the Ferris Wheel at the Spectrum Mall with a very cute boy. I have always wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel with a cute boy and I finally got my chance. It was perfect.

What a wonderful weekend full of good memories with the family. And we are so proud of you Blaine for choosing to get baptized!

Nate's Big Adventure

2012 has started out with a big bang. Being the giving and selfless person he is, Nate decided to donate his kidney to his best friend Trevor. And when anyone asks him about it, he just says, "It feels good to do something for my friend, he would do the same for me!" I keep telling him he has to stop doing all these good things in his life because he is going to get translated and then where am I left? But I am sure proud of him and couldn't imagine marrying anyone better.  

It's been quite the process for Nate seeing if his kidney was a match. He had do go through extensive testing and blood matching and everything looked great. (Coincidence...I think not!) He has been so excited through the whole process and never had any doubts (unlike his wife). But we are grateful Nate was able to do this for Trevor and that both surgeries went well and that both boys are on the mend!

Here's a little summary of his adventure...

 Nate as excited as ever 30 minutes before surgery.

Trevor a bit anxious and nervous for surgery.

Shanna and Kayla waiting for their hubbies to get out of surgery. (Sorry for the blurry photo).

Don't be deceived by this photo. This was Nate day 2 after surgery. He wasn't too excited to go on walks but he always made sure to have a positive attitude. They had Nate up and walking just a couple of hours after his surgery. It made me hurt just watching him.

 My regular spot in Nate's hospital room. Notice that I have 2 blankets, my coat, and a scarf on. Yeah, Nate liked his room at a brisk 65 degrees. If it was any higher, he would complain of how hot it was.

 Best friends reunited!  Trevor got moved up from ICU to Nate's floor only a couple of days after surgery. Nate was sure excited to see him, but not feeling so great. It's amazing to see how quickly the person receiving the kidney recovers. I love this picture.

The night before both boys were released, they wanted to watch a football game together so Nate ventured down to Trevor's room.

The long drive home 4 days after surgery. Amazingly, both Nate and Trevor got released the same day!

Now Nate's at home taking it easy and watching every sporting event there is on t.v. Although it's pretty annoying, I'm proud of you bub! We hope to see you soon Trev!

New Years Celebration

After Christmas Nate and I decided to take a little get-away to celebrate the upcoming New Year. So being the good husband he is, he planned us a little "Lover's Get-Away" in Salt Lake. Our first stop was checking in at the Armstrong Mansion Bed and Breakfast where we stayed the night.

 Then we headed to the Grizzlies Hockey Game.

 We had pretty sweet seats sitting about three rows back and right behind the penalty box for the other team.

 We were pretty excited when one player got put in the penalty box...

... Even better was four...

 ...But the best was five! Hockey games are about the only time I feel right in "heckling" players. We pretty much fit in with all the other fans. It was great fun.  

 After the game.

And enjoying a little bubbly to celebrate the new year. (The picture is blurry because I was playing around with my new sweet I-Phone). It was a much needed weekend and a great way to celebrate 2012!