Shave and a Hair Cut 2 Bits

I have become quite skilled with scissors. Just a few more times practice with Ottie's hair, I think I can give anyone a hair cut!

I generally wouldn't have groomed my own dog but I called to see how much it would cost and it was like $45.00! What the!!!! So I gave him a bath and thought, "How hard could it really be?" So I got out some craft scissors and went to work. I think its as good as any professional. I even trimmed around his...backside. You can be the judge.

See as follows: Before. After.

I Will Never be a Ballerina

Growing up my mom tried to get each of us girls to take ballet. Megan had something wrong with her ankles so it didn't stick, I was too busy trying to be a boy(boys do not take ballet), and Jaimie, well she took ballet for a little bit because she had the long body of a dancer (gag). Then she decided she didn't like it. As you read, I didn't take ballet because I wanted to be a boy. Odd yes, but I found so much joy in being tough, helping dad with Saturday morning projects, and being able to take anyone who looked at me wrong. This desire to be a boy decreased when Daniel was born. When he was born I thought, "Man, he's the real deal. My dad will totally want to do boy stuff with a real boy and not a boyish-girl." Ever since then I have tried to become more of a lady and leave my boy self in the past. At times this is hard to do, I find myself trying to wrestle Whit to the ground(I always get trashed) and taking pride in carrying heavy things. To try to override these masculine qualities I decided to take a ballet class this semester. My teacher complimented me and my posture and hand position.

"That looks beautiful Lindsay," my instructor said.

I loved my ballet class and after hearing my teacher's compliment I thought I must be good. I decided I liked the class so much I would work really hard and maybe take another ballet class next semester.

While in class one morning practicing first position I noticed it was difficult because my knees were touching. I looked around and no one else's knees were touching. Whats wrong with mine? I want to be the best little ballerina in here! I went to the next class a little early to get the instructors help. I told her my knees touch when I am in first position. She looked at my stance and notified me that I was quite knocked kneed. She then went on to say that the slight curvature in my spine would make it difficult to do pleas correctly.

One blow after another! My dreams to be a ballerina were dashed. So, sorry mom it just wasn't meant to be.

If you wanna get the rabbit out the LOG you got to make a cold motion like a DOG.

Its a great Waylon Jennings tune and fine reason to not let me update the blog-scattered thoughts and random titles. Never the less it is Whit writing this weeks update. Corvallis was a much brighter place this last week. Sunshine and a steady routine made our second week here in Corvallis feel more like home. School for both Lindsay and I is great. I am taking two real classes this term with the bulk of my time spent on research. I was told to keep my course load light this first semester due to the time I would be spending drawing blood and dosing sheep with Selenium. Starting the 8th of February I will be spending noon to midnight at the sheep research center. Yes under normal circumstances employees would take care of this but I have to draw blood samples on new-born lambs before they nurse. And apparently graduate research assistants have no limits on how much they can work. Fortunately these long hours will end on the 15th of March. Overall the benefits of free tuition and stipend out weigh the cons of being the head errand boy.
This week Lindsay received a calling. Laurel co-advisor!!!! We both laughed when she was asked, moments earlier in sacrament meeting I leaned over and jokingly commented she would be called to young women. My fingers are crossed that I will be the microphone coordinator in Sunday school but for now Lindsay is the only one with a calling. The ward is great! It is a nice mixture of older and younger members all of whom have been very welcoming. We feel blessed to be where we are.
The long weekend was nice to spend together. We explored Corvallis and surrounding areas and enjoyed plenty of sunshine. After the first week of rain and fogg the Sun was a welcome sight. We took a long ride on our bikes. Lindsay's countenance quickly changes when we have a hill to climb. Since we live on a hill I'm not sure how often we will ride bikes together. Or maybe we will catch that outdoorsy granola spirit and love those heart healthy hills.
Are you falling asleep yet? Well that's all I can think of. Saludos to everyone far away. Thank you for your support. Whit

Courtney's Taggity Tag

random-facts-about-me tag.
rules: Post the rules on your blog List Post 6 random things about yourself

Random Facts: about yourself.
1.I love fairs & expos of any kind (really truly! I think its the best way to spend a Saturday)
a. good people watching
b. lots of fried food
c. all kinds of things to buy for you display shelf!
2.I have a funny looking dog
3.I love cured meats (preferably hot dogs. mmm...)
4.I like Tom Sellack (what a man!...that stash. ooo baby!)
5.I relate to the character Meg Ryan plays in the movie "French Kiss"
6.I knew all the words to the song "Body Language" from little Mermaid. Ursula sang it. I wanted to be her not Ariel. I don't know why it was weird.

Definition of Spagetti:

It is a more delicious, much better version of spaghetti. Pronounced spa-je-tee.
(I meant to spellit that way, and Whit didn't have to point out I spelled Spaghetti wrong)

Drum Roll Please..............SPAGETTI GRILLED CHEESE!

You know you want this! Take three thick slices of chedda and place them on two pieces of bread. THEN heap a generous amount of left over spagetti onto one of the bread slices, close the sandwish and butter each side. Place into the pan/panini maker like an ordinary gilled cheese until the cheeze is perfectly melty. Sizzle and Dizzle, Save the Flava!

Welcome to our Itty Bitty Crib

We are all moved in! Well, almost. We are getting to be really comfortable in our new home. Whit and I were actually really lucky to get this apartment. The exact same floor plan is found in high-end, shire, cottages of middle earth. Whit was worried that we would have to rent another apartment to fit all of my kitchen appliences. Luckily that wasn't the case and everything fits. Our bed almost reaches from wall to wall. If you have seen Barefoot in the Park our bedroom is a similiar set up. Otis, our puppy has also become comfortable. He has made sure to mark his territory on my clean floor. Damn Dog!

Whit and I are getting into the swing of school and work. We go to school at 7:30 and then get to eat lunch together almost everyday! Lucky us! After lunch Whit goes back to school until about 5:00 and I work at home. I'll take a break from work by taking Otis on walks, vacuuming, reading, and then I finish my day by making dinner. Eventful, eh?! I have had fun making dinner each night, it makes a great end to the day. We have been feasting on meals such as:

hamburger patties, green beans, mashed potatoes

chili with cheddar cheese

spagetti, corn, and toasted sourdough with Olive Oil (ooo...fancy)

Although I must say my favorite is a by-product of the spagetti, GRILLED CHEESE W/ SPAGETTI!

Whit and I love it here and hope you enjoy our bloggedy blog!

I Dedicate this to Megan, Riley, Tay, and Katie

I wanted to post these priceless photos to show the Bingham's in Utah how great Oregon is! I was priviledged to see the awe-inspiring FALLS!!!

Just some pictures to catch everyone up

Got Married, Got a Puppy, Moved Out of State

The title of this post lists the three big changes that have occurred for Whit and I since my last post....5 months ago. Rather than writing multiple post to illustrate each of these great, stupid, adventurous changes I thought I would just write one broad one and include pictures.

The first really super big change. We got MARRIED!! Whit and I have had a great time. It doesn't feel like we got married though, I just feel like I moved in with my best friend. The first few weeks we were married were interesting. Since we dated long distance we weren't together in many social situations and only spent short, blissful weekends together. We (I) had to get used to being with each other all the time. Like every second of the day! So that was new, but good. Whit has gotten used to my opinionated nature and "impractical" grocery shopping. Our first excursion to the grocery store was full comparing prices, and Whit explaining that I had been paying for the packaging and name brand rather than the actual food. I quickly replied, "When I grocery shop I pay for quality not quantity." This is still an issue we are working through.

We also had a new addition to our family. We bought a dog. His name is Otis and he is really cute. Whit and I decided that he looked like Tummy Gummy for Disney channels Gummy Bears. The first day we had him was an experience. We took him home and loved playing with him and cuddling with him. At the end of the day I put him in his kennel while we made dinner. After dinner we went to get him and were greeted with disgusting mess! He looked like a chocolate bear instead of a gummy bear. It was awful. I took the dog to give him a bath and curse at him until he understood that he had done a very bad thing, while Whit cleaned the kennel. There have been other mishaps since then but for the most part we have been happy we got him. As long as Whit takes care of the unpleasantries I love the cute little, mop. If I have to do it then Otis is threatened with a new owner or worse. Aside from Otis' puppy faults we do really love him.

Our most recent change is our move to Oregon. We are currently staying with family friends in Salem, Oregon, which is about 45 minutes away from school. So we start our days at 6, which really isn't bad, but it feels so early! Whit has jumped into his classes and is working with sheep a lot. He is really busy and a little worried about he will weather biochemistry in the coming terms. We are happy here and adapting to our new home. This is only our fourth day here. We can't wait to move into our apartment and make a home in Corvallis, Or. There isn't much more than that. I am sure I will add more once we are more settled. We will let you know how moving goes next time!

-The Stews