America the Beautiful

For the past two years, Brady has been trying to convince me of how Florida is beautiful.  I made the mistake of telling him I would not follow him to Florida if he went to medical school there so don't apply (it just did not sound appealing to live in Miami, nor will it ever).  Now, whenever Florida comes up he raves about how great it is, just to irk me. So we had to put it to the test.

Last week over the 4th of July weekend we went and visited our friends Mike and Courtney in Destin, Florida.  More accurately, Niceville, Florida, which is just across the bridge from Destin.  If all of Florida was like Niceville/Destin, I would fully admit to take back all my judgment and fall in love with all of Florida.  Because that is what happened in Niceville/Destin!

We left Saturday night and stopped in New Orleans for a night.  I loved seeing the architecture and the history behind the buildings and the town.  We went to Cafe Du Monde and enjoyed delicious beignets and then walked through different parts before starting on our drive again.  

The Kelley's were the more darling family and we were so grateful for their hospitality and generosity!  We had a blast on the beach, walking around different parts of town, dreaming of yachts, jet skiing with dolphins, and just hanging out with Mike, Courtney, and their family.

We enjoyed our few days away and were so sad to leave!  We drove home through a downpour of rain, and we got back to Houston just in time to watch the fireworks.  In Houston, people just park alongside the busiest freeways to watch fireworks because they have the best views.  So we found our spot, and watched two different firework shows.  What a country we live in!  And on that day, we enjoyed the beauty of 5 different states!

I still will never live in Miami.

Things from far away...

enjoy the journey

lovely, lovely utah

At the beginning of June my darling cousin got married to her prince.  Brady and I flew out, and I had the privilege to be part of this special day for her.  Everything was perfect.  Emi looked so beautiful and so happy!  I was so happy I could be there to see their marriage and celebrate with them!.

The added bonus was getting to see all of our friends and family.  We spent a day on the lake (later resulting in split lips for me. SOMEONE please keep reminding me to load lots and lots of spf Chapstick on to my lips), ate In-N-Out TWICE (in one day), competed in a heated match of badminton, and spent the precious time we had with family and friends.  Brady even spent an evening with a creeper mustache.  Enough said with that.  Amazing trip!

We ended it celebrating Brady's 25th birthday!  Flights got delayed and we got home at 3am, but back to work we went.  Texas woohoo BABY!

Now for the goods...

It is a novel...

Some people say medical school makes widows, and I have to say this is a false statement...

Unless it is test week or the week before,

which it is.  Thus, it leads me to the close of a Saturday filled with reading, cleaning, and going across town to stores with dear friends.  It has been a good day, but I am most excited for the next hour when Brady is stopping his studying and I get him back until Monday!

So here are our updates.

Christmas...

Fabulous!  Two weeks of pure happiness with family and friends.  The only thing missing was snow and skiing, but we were so happy with those we love that it didn't damper the trip.  There was lots of games, shopping, eating, movies, talks, hugs, and love.  Cheesy?  Well, it was perfect.

The trip started with Brady's best friend's wedding. 

They made great t-shirts for everyone at their wedding dinner

The groom and my groom

We ran to another wedding reception after their wedding dinner and we some of our two favorite people back from Cali.  Then met up another night and played games and caught up.  We love you guys!

the bride and groom

We love being with these guys and their wives all night!

Little pictures taken at the Heaps, but this is a great action shot of Justin

And Claudia, who laughed (probably angrily) at me after I took this.

Nana and Boppa took all the grandkids to a play, and we got to go along.  So fun!

Adorable. period.

I loved spending time with this lady.

the classic nelson christmas basketball game took place with Dennis and Justin Heaps as the honorary guests.  Fun day as always!

Holy smokes. Heart melting.

My mom planned a spectacular nativity with all the grandchildren, and they were adorable.

what a family.

night with the girls.

and a night with my amazing dad!

still my heart is melting.  he turns two in a couple weeks, and he already know how to play angry birds.

Then we came home.  It was shocking to come back to 75 degree weather.  We took advantage of it and played tennis in shorts and t-shirts the day we got home!  For New Years, we got dinner and then went downtown for the cities celebration of bringing in the new year.  It was fun being with friends and people watching for hours!

Amy did a good job of getting in view of this guy's lit mullet.  What a spirited guy

And then we were back to life.  I took and passed a certification test.  Brady started back to school.  Last week we went to watch Jimmer and the Kings play the Rockets, and we even got to go shoot a ball on the court after the game.  The Rockets holding a BYU Alumni night, who woulda' thought?

Jason was thoroughly excited to go take his shot.  He kept asking, are you ready to take my picture??

So back to school and work!  We love it!  And now that Brady has put his flash cards down, and called it a night, we are going to go see Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.  I loved the book, and I am so excited about the movie!  

And of course, being with this man

Mom time, Study time, Job time

My fabulous mother came to Houston last week to hang out with me for the weekend.  It was so fun!  We had an idea of doing some projects, but really, we just hung out.  We ran, walked, swam, ate, drove, watched movies and prepared my headboard for me to make.  It was so nice having her around to talk to, laugh with, and just be with!

Now she's gone and Brady is still in the mode of study and tests.  To be more exact it has been this (each line equals a day):

study

study

church, rest

study

study

study

test, study

test, test, study

study

church, rest

test, test, study

study

test, study

study

test, study (now)

and still to come...

study

church, rest

test, study

study

test

Utah

These have been and will be his days.  His WHOLE days. My heart aches for him.  But he is almost there. 6 days 'til Utah!

Oh ya, and I got the job I have wanted since before moving here!!!

I will work at TIRR Memorial Hermann doing Therapeutic Recreation.  Best job period.

Car vs. Bike

Last Thursday morning was an exciting day in the Heaps home.  My mom was flying in that afternoon, and I was so excited to hang out with her for the weekend.  Brady left for school on his bike, and less than ten minutes later my nightmare came to life... He called.

Funny nightmare?  Not when he's riding his bike.  It takes him about 15 minutes to get to school on his bike, so 10 minutes is still when I am peacefully doing something else, knowing he is safe. But he called.  

Long story short, Brady got hit by a car on his way to school.  He left an extremely large dent in the side of the car, the front wheel and the handlebar on his bike was ruined, and he got some bruises on his leg.  Luckily nothing big for his injuries.  

This event was intense though because the guy who hit him tried to get out of paying for Brady's bike repair, and tried to threaten Brady with going to the Police to file a report because Brady shouldn't have been riding in the street.  In the end, this man saw the light.  Brady explained the man qualified as a hit-and-run (more to the story I'm not telling) and that the police would also then ticket him for the accident.  The man also realized it is very unlikely a car would win when he hit a biker.  Smart guy.

So Brady's bike is getting fixed.

This photo taken the next night after Brady finally found him, and he had tried to pop this dent out of his car.

Best photo.  Brady documenting his bruise.  Keep looking.  It did get darker.

We're thankful, we're thankful, we're oh so thankful!

What a day! We were blessed to go to the Blake's house for dinner on Thanksgiving.  Dave Blake works in the nursery with us and is amazing!  The whole family is amazing!  Their family goes onto the list of all that we are grateful for!  The Pace family was also there, and it was a feast to remember!  The food was delicious, the company was the best next to family (they felt like it), and Brady and I both felt so grateful for all our blessings!

Isn't gratitude a tricky thing?  You start listing things you're grateful for, and you realize you can't stop.  No matter life's circumstances, when I express my gratitude, I see the Lord in each aspect of life.  Gratitude is an expression of faith.  And it is true.  So I don't want to be grateful just one day, I am grateful everyday.  To see why, go here.  Or just look at my husband.

But such a fun day!

Brady was working on that blink.  Or just really happy.

Ping pong to work up an appetite

Lacrosse after the feast

Faces to be thankful for

Happy Thanksgiving!

That night we decided to be daring and head out to the Houston Premium Outlets.  These were by far the best outlets I have ever experienced.  Primm in Las Vegas doesn't even come close.  And these people came ready to shop.  When we first got there, we saw a mom and daughter get out of their car with suitcases!

Photo is blurry, but suitcase is fully visible

Long night

We woke up wondering if this is what it feels like to be old.