Life in Tennessee

Music City!

2010-02-24T15:43:00.000-08:00

Experiences like last night are the biggest reasons why I love living in Nashville! Of course, these two events were on the same night. (It seems like I always have multiple things I want to go to all on the same night). I went to a benefit concert (only $12) in downtown Nashville last night. This concert was for MS and performers were Lee Brice (he's new but he wrote Garth Brook's most recent single "Memory"), Chuck Wicks, SheDaisy, Chris Cagle and Clay Walker. The concert started at 7:30 and I had a party at 9:30. So I was able to hear the first 3 acts but missed Chris Cagle and Clay Walker. But I saw Clay Walker last year at the Houston rodeo so I was really only disappointed about missing Chris Cagle since I've never seen him live before. Below are some pictures from the event. I got there at 5:20 and the doors opened at 6:00 so I got front row center standing spots. It was AWESOME!!! I swear on my life Chuck Wicks and I had a moment. Our eyes locked for like 10 seconds but it seemed like an eternity. SheDaisy was awesome too!! I was most excited to see them. Kelsi (the red-head) goes to the Old Hickory Ward which meets right before my ward so I've bumped into her a few times. She kept looking down at us and smiling so I'm pretty sure she recognized us. Either that or Lori and I were the only ones singing along and so she smiled. :) I'm going to mention something to her though if I see her at church this Sunday.

The second event was amazing! There's a new up and coming group called The JaneDear Girls. One of the girls from the duo is in my ward. She invited me to come to this party at John Rich's mansion!! (He's from the country duo Big & Rich, if you've heard of them). This week in Nashville is CRS week - which I think stands for Country Radio Stations week. So they had over 200 radio people from around the country here listening to their song. If they like what they hear they will play their songs. She invited a bunch of friends so we could jump around and rock out with her band. It looks good to the radio people if they see normal people enjoying the music. It was so fun!! They didn't allow us to take any pictures so you'll just have to believe me but I ran into Jay from Rascal Flatts. He's the dark haired one. And John Rich was behind his bar the entire night getting drinks for everyone! It was so cool!! I love Nashville!!!!!

Anyway, here are some pictures from the benefit concert. I'm sorry I haven't updated in far too long. My only excuse is that my computer broke so I never download my pictures. I'm at the library now so I'll try to update more often. I love y'all!

SheDaisy - I love them!

Chuck Wicks - such a great performer

Lee Brice

2nd Annual Cousin Slumber Party on New Year's Eve hosted by Aunt Jac

2010-01-02T17:08:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures and footage of the officially traditional slumber party:

If you've seen the original "Charlie Bit Me" you may appreciate our reenactments. If you haven't go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he5fpsmH_2g

2009-11-25T11:13:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Pumpkin bread

2009-10-23T06:51:00.001-07:00

This week has been my Fall Break so I've had the entire week off. I decided it would be fun to try to be Suzie Homemaker this week so I made pumpkin bread for the girls I visit teach. My first batch burned a little because it was done on the outside and not in the middle and the bottom stuck to the pans. The bread still tasted good and I got a lot of compliments but I wanted to do better. I got a few pointers from Lori and tried again and it came out like this! I'm so proud of this loaf of bread. I'm finding that cooking can be fun!

Haircut!

2009-10-22T13:39:00.001-07:00

There is a YSA in my ward that works at a salon so I like giving her my business. Here are some pictures from the day. I think I got about 6-7 inches off. You can't tell too well from these pictures but she made me blonde again, cut my hair to shoulder length and even gave me a bang - we'll see how long that lasts. I love getting my hair done. I feel like a new woman!

Before:

After:

Special Needs

2009-10-09T17:54:00.000-07:00

I was looking at everyone's blogs recently and went to my blog and noticed my last post was on August 28! It's about time I post something here.

Nashville is as great as ever! The fall is here although it was 85 yesterday but will be 65 tomorrow. The leaves are beginning to turn colors and it's beautiful.

My new job started off a little rocky. There is this particularly "special" child. He has down syndrome and is much bigger than his classmates. They are all in kindergarten and 1st grade and he is in 4th grade but has the mind of a kindergartener. He loves to bully all of the kids. The first couple of days were rough with him. The teacher said since he doesn't know me yet he was testing the boundaries. Within the very first hour of my new job he was getting a drink of water while we were walking down the hall. I stopped to wait for him while the rest of the class went around the corner. He got one last drink while I pulled him away. I could see something in his eyes and caught on just as he spit a huge mouthful of water right at me. I was able to jump out of the way and dodge it. He then laughed hysterically and ran and caught up to the rest of the class. I thought, "oh boy, I'm just going to love this job!" The next day we were in art with another class. The assistants, me and another girl, sit in these classes (it's either art, music or p.e. each day). The other assistant took one of the boys downstairs to be fed (he eats with a feeding tube) and left me in the room with Casper (the down syndrome boy) and the rest of the class plus another class and a substitute art teacher. Casper of course totally freaked out and started throwing crayons and hitting little kids. I held him in the corner for a few minutes but he was being so disruptive to the other kids trying to color so I took him out in the hall. Another teacher came out and asked if I needed help because he was FREAKING out and I was using all of my strength to hold him in the corner to try to calm him down. No exaggeration, it took all of my strength, he is a big kid! He could probably take me down if he really wanted to. Finally the other assistant came up and got him calmed down. So after day 1 and day 2 I was really not enjoying my job. I didn't realize how much work special needs children would be. Day 3 was so much better. Casper didn't try to kick or hit me once all day and he even gave me a big hug at the end of the day. Ever since then we've been good buds and my job has gotten a lot better. There are 9 students in the class. Three of them have "special" special needs the rest mostly just have learning disabilities and trouble paying attention but they are capable of learning. So far I am really liking it! I am the floater assistant so I go back and forth between the younger special needs class and older. I love going to the older class. They all learned to love me quickly and always want to tell me their whole life stories. I love hearing them say, "Ms. Sampson, did I do it right?" I got sick the week before I started and now two weeks later I'm still sick! I have had NO voice the last 4 days but am finally just starting to get it back today. I'm hoping over the weekend I can rest it and be fully recovered by Monday. I think I just lost it because I am not used to having to raise my voice but with these children there is no choice. They don't listen unless you get right in their face and force them to listen.

Well that is a small update. I'm going to try to update this more often. It's really ridiculous how long I went. There are some fun activities coming up so I'll be sure to take my camera and get pictures of my friends and the events going on.

New Apartment

2009-08-28T21:25:00.001-07:00

Here is a glimpse of mine and Lori's new apartment.

Hallway.

Dining Room.

Kitchen.

Living Room.

My bedroom.

My bathroom.

My closet.

Highlights from the Sampson Reunion!

2009-08-28T21:05:00.000-07:00

Why I Love Living in Nashville!!!

2009-07-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

So I have been trying to upload these videos for like over a month now. I'm sorry but either they will not upload or I do not have the patience to wait for them to upload. So please click on the links to watch my youtube videos. Thank you!

This one is Barbra Jean from "Reba". She is reenacting what a fan had just done. She is so funny! If you watch the show then you know what I'm talking about but I'm guessing most of you will just think she is weird.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVfUa2fufgA

This one is Martina McBride!!! I love her!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFEA9ZTwr_Y

Grand Finale - Keith Urban. Dan - he does not look like David Spade!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaSILkiNCj0

This was at the CMT Awards red carpet. I then rushed home to watch the awards live on tv.

Here, There & Everywhere!

2009-07-06T19:54:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I haven't posted in so long. You wouldn't believe it since I'm currently out of a job - but I'm busy! Over the past month I have been to the Bahamas, Georgia, Texas and Virginia plus locating Tim and Faith's homes in Nashville. Life is great right now and I am enjoying my time off. I still haven't decided my next move but will keep you posted. Below are pictures from Eli's baptism and the 4th of July celebration.

Report on my CRUISE!!

2009-06-09T11:35:00.000-07:00

So the Bahamas were pretty incredible!!! There was a group of 32 of us. I think about 20 of us from Nashville and 12 from Utah came out. I, along with the girls in most of my pictures - Lori, Stephanie and Sarah - flew to Ft. Lauderdale and took a taxi to the Port of Miami. We were supposed to leave at 5 and didn't leave until a little after 6 because there was a ginormous rain and lightning storm. The storm sort of put a damper on our bon voyage party but we didn't let it get us down. Friday was spent eating, karaoking, dancing, and basically living it up! We went to bed around 3:30 and woke up at 7 to find ourselves at the Bahamas. We ate breakfast on the ship and then headed off into the sun. Well, it wasn't overly sunny, in fact pretty overcast but still warm. We played in the water and laid out on the beach most of the day. We also went shopping at the marketplace there. We had to be back in the ship by 5:30. That night we ate dinner, went to a comedy show, went to another dance party, got some professional photos taken, played games with our group and stayed up late again. We went to bed around 3 again and woke up at the Norwegian Island. This island is owned by our cruiseline. When we woke up we went down for breakfast and then went to Sacrament Meeting in the library of the cruise. We got permission from our Bishop! It was great to be able to feel the Spirit so strongly while on the same ship as drunk partiers. We spent another awesome day spent on the beach. I played volleyball, swam in the beautiful and warm ocean, laid out, ate great bbq, etc. We had to be back on the ship by 4:30. Once we got back on we went straight to the pool and laid out some more and watched the bands play. That night we got dressed up nice and went to dinner at an Italian restaurant. The food was sure tasty. Then we went to another show. Did more karaoke-ing. Went to another dance party, etc etc. The next morning we got up and ate breakfast and then took a taxi back to the airport where we sat around all day. We all think we gained 12 pounds over the weekend. It was so fun to have so much food anytime of the day. The cruise was AWESOME and I'm definitely gonna go again sometime. Below are just a few pictures captured. I'll try to get some pictures from Lori's camera to post, she has some really good ones.
Here we are in the taxi on our way to Port of Miami.

Finding our way around the ship - perfect time for a picture. Lori, Stephanie, Sarah & I.

One of the new friends we met. Kappi.

Eating at our Italian restaurant. Stephanie, Lori & Sarah.

A group of us ready for the dance party.

BaHaMaS!!!

2009-05-28T14:07:00.000-07:00

There are 32 singles (about 16 from Nashville and the rest Utah, Arizona and Texas) going on a cruise to the BAHAMAS!!! A kid in Nashville found really cheap tickets and organized it all. We will be gone from June 5 - 8, short but sweet! I've never been on a cruise or even needed a passport so I'm pretty excited for it! Just wanted to give y'all a heads up and maybe make you a little jealous. I will be posting post-paradise pictures though, don't you worry!

Reunion reminiscing

2009-05-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

I'm getting excited to see y'all for the reunion this summer so I was looking through the old pictures of 2007's reunion. I thought these two pictures were funny. When Nate is getting fixed all the boys were staring but when Shelly was getting fixed Shannon and I were in the zone! I'm sure I was just worried about moving and the photographer having to fix me again! I can't wait to see y'all so soon.

Trip to Nauvoo!

2009-05-13T21:20:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I had such a great time with Paul, Lindsay, Sabrina and Lucy. It was just fun to be with FAMILY. It has been a while and I was just happy to be with them. Below are a few pictures and even a video for the viewer's pleasure. The neatest part for me was seeing Edmond Durfee's grave and learning about his story and also getting to do baptisms with Paul. We also saw the red brick store, Joseph, Hyrum and Emma's graves and took of tour of Carthage Jail. There is so much more to do there but we didn't have time with such a short weekend. It was an 8 hour drive for me on Friday and 8 hours again on Sunday but it was well worth it. Thanks Paul and Lindsay! Love you guys.

Last few days!

2009-05-01T19:46:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BRITTAN!

Last Saturday was the Southeast Region of the United States' Service Day and also the Nashville Marathon! It was a busy but awesome day. Sarah, Lori and I volunteered at Corral #9 (the corral our friends were starting their race in) at the marathon. We had to be there at 4:30a.m. The race didn't start until 7:00a.m. We were done volunteering around 8:30 so Lori and I rushed to the church to give blood (part of our service). It took longer than we were planning. As soon as we were done we went back to the marathon to see our friends cross the finish line. The best part of the day of course was that it was 87 degrees outside!!! Then, Sarah, Lori and I volunteered at the 2nd Harvest Food Bank where we prepared lunches for underprivileged kids. Then that night the YSA had an ice cream social.

Tonight some friends and I went to the Bluebird Cafe to see our friend perform. He is a singer/songwriter out here and pretty amazing! The Bluebird is also where Faith Hill was discovered! I took my camera just in case anyone famous walked in but I didn't see anyone. One of these days I will be standing next to someone famous.

2009-04-10T15:01:00.000-07:00

Hey y'all,

It's been too long since my last post. I don't have much to report. Nothing really noteworthy has happened so I thought I would post a few pictures at least. Below are some candids. I have made a ton of fantastic friends out here! We have about 60 - 70 active young single adults with the potential of 100s more. We all have lots of fun together and everybody always seems to get along with each other. Two sisters out here are hosting Easter dinner for all of the singles on Sunday. I am really looking forward to it!!!

Tammy and I

Stephanie and I having a contest - she definitely won!

Stephen and I preparing for some volleyball.

Josh going up for the set.

FHE - we cleaned the White's home because Sis. White has arthritis.

Playing ball with the boys.

Sarah and I posing for the camera.

Lori and I at the Sounds baseball game - season opener!

Houston 2009

2009-03-09T19:37:00.001-07:00

Lori and I spent the last few days in Houston, TX with our favorite Texan family. The week was so wonderful. The weather was in the low 80's. We went to the Houston rodeo and watched Clay Walker in concert. He is a great performer. We also got to meet Christie's boyfriend for the first time and got to know him better. He's a keeper. I got my first sunburn of the season just by sitting outside for a few hours when it was overcast. I love being sunburned! It was a fantastic weekend and it was hard to come back.

It's been a month!

2009-02-25T07:42:00.000-08:00

I realized today that it has been a month since I've posted and I just wanted to let y'all know that I'm still alive. Things have gotten interesting at the office. When I first started working here there were two attorneys and two paralegals. As you may remember, about a month into working here one attorney was let go. Turns out the other paralegal had been deleting emails and communicating with this attorney when she shouldn't have been. When Mike, the main attorney, found this out the other paralegal was fired. Now it is just me and Mike. It has it's pros and cons but mostly cons. Now I have to answer every phone call and everytime I'm on the phone, without fail, at least two people call and leave a voicemail and while I'm calling them back more people call and it's a very long neverending cycle of returning people's calls. Then of course I get the complaint that no one ever answers when they call. We are in the process of merging with another firm though and will be moving the office to Goodlettsville in June. There are four paralegals there so it will be nice to interact with more people again.

When I'm not at work I'm doing YSA (young single adult) stuff. We have FHE and Institute every week and there are always other things going on. I organized my first group outing (normally the same people organize things for everyone to do). We went to a bar downtown to sing Karaoke. We hit the scene a little earlier than most to avoid the wild weekend rush. Lori and I sang "does he love you" by Reba Mcentire and Linda Davis and then I sang "Let 'er rip" by the Dixie Chicks. I also went to the Predators' hockey game last night. A friend gave me his tickets for free. Taylor Swift was at the game so it was fun to try to find her in the crowd. My date (that's right, I asked someone out on a date) knows her personally so we tried to find her so he could introduce me to her but we couldn't spot her in the crowd. They did show her on the jumbotron though. The Preds' won 5 to 3! I have been doing a lot of fun things lately and need to put pictures up but don't have any on me right now. This weekend is one of the YSA's birthday and she wants to go to the USWO Nashville Wrestling match. Should be fun! I'll post pictures of it later. This Sunday some of the Osmond's are putting on a special fireside. As you can tell, things are going well here. I am really enjoying my time and making a ton of new friends. Love you all!

What do you do on a Sunday afternoon?

2009-01-25T17:40:00.000-08:00

I drive around town and find country singers' homes. My friend Myriam knows where a few live so she took us around town tonight. This lovely home is Alan Jackson's. We first drove up a normal looking road with normal looking houses but the road kept going and then there was massive amounts of land and then this huge gated home. We also got a look of Martina McBride's home but it was too dark to get a good picture. I'll have to go back another time.

My first pizza!

2009-01-12T19:27:00.000-08:00

One of my new year resolutions is to become an amazing cook like my mom. I know it may be a little ambitious to try to have happen in one year, but I have got to start somewhere. Here is a picture of my first ever pizza! I don't have a pizza stone or even circular pan so I didn't worry too much about the shape of the crust. The important thing is, it tasted great! It sure takes all night though. One good thing about being single, I've got lunch all week! Thanks for all of the wonderful meals you've made day after day after day, mom. Love you.

Slumber Party

2009-01-01T17:10:00.000-08:00

In efforts of maintaining my "favorite aunt" status, I decided to throw a slumber party for my nieces and nephew that live in Utah. Six of the seven were able to make it. We all missed Sabrina but she was home sick. We had a blast. First, we played in the snow where we made a snowman, made snow angels and had a snowball fight. Then, we came in and had hot chocolate and pizza. Then, we decorated cookies. Last, we popped in a few movies. Kate and Abbey were the winners who stayed up til midnight. Payton was close but fell asleep around 11:30. In the morning, Grandma taught them how to make slime. Overall it was a lot of fun. Below are a few pictures.

Christmas at the Sampson's

2008-12-25T18:37:00.001-08:00

I spent last weekend in Houston, TX at one of my best friend's weddings and the weather was 80 degrees. Then I came home for Christmas to 14 inches or more of snow. Below are a few pictures from the day.

Merry Christmas!!!

2008-12-12T20:24:00.000-08:00

Well, work is going great. I am mostly working on personal injury work. My duties include, contacting doctors and requesting medical records and bills, negotiating with insurance companies, writing settlement proposals, drafting pleadings, blah blah blah, I'm sure that is boring to all of you. The swearing has definitely been a struggle for me to hear all of the time. My co-workers love to use every swear word in the book but I am learning to tune it out. Last week, the two attorneys got in a huge huge fight (they have been dating the last eight years) and Mike kicked Sandra out of the office right then and there. I was expecting her to come back this week because apparently they fight like that all of the time but she didn't come back this week. Mike has seemed happier this week so I guess it's for the best. I got a Christmas bonus today after only working there for a month and it is the same amount I got last year from working at MHM for two years. (Don't tell anyone I said that Brooke.) But I must admit it is nice working for someone who isn't so concerned with money. He seems to have plenty and mentions giving me a raise all the time. He has even mentioned that I am his best worker he's ever had so I think I will stick around for a while because raises are in the future. :)

I got a calling a week ago. I am one of the four Young Single Adult Reps for the ward. It sort of seems like the calling I had the last two years as activities co-chair but the Bishop totally pumped me up for it by saying, "there is no doubt in my mind the Lord wants you to serve here." So I am committed and want to make the most of it. We will be in charge of fhe, firesides, break-the-fast, activities, and helping with stake activities, etc. Basically anything the young single adults get together for, we are in charge of.

Next Friday, Lori and I are driving to Houston to go to Elise's wedding, (my friend from Provo). She gets married on Saturday. Then I am flying out of Houston on the 22nd and going home for two weeks for Christmas!!! I am so excited to go home.

Below are a few pictures of this last week. We went to ICE for Natalie's (a girl in the ward) birthday. It was so fun. They keep the room 9 degrees (I had a hoodie, coat and their blue heavy coat they provide on, and I was still cold) and it is filled with ice sculptures of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. It was pretty fun.

Lori & I

Here's a group shot in front of the Grinch.

Lori, Myriam & I stopped to pose for the camera.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

2008-11-29T11:13:00.001-08:00

I spent Thanksgiving in Nashville! A girl in the ward always invites the singles over that don't have anywhere to go. Below is a picture of the group. I made my first ever pumpkin pie and everybody loved it!!!
Top 5 things I'm grateful for this year:
1. That I had the strength and courage to follow the guidance of the Spirit and move to Tennessee.
2. My family's love and support in my move and prayers in my behalf.
3. Wonderful friends that have always been there for me!
4. The Lord's unconditional love and patience for me even when I don't deserve it.
5. My life. I am so happy to be here right now in this place in my life. Nashville is treating me well!
Love you all!

New job!

2008-11-13T09:30:00.000-08:00

Well this has been a fun and busy week. I got a random call from a law firm that I apparently applied for a while ago. They called me in for an interview Wednesday morning and I got a call this morning offering me the job. I will be a paralegal at a very small firm. There are two attorneys and now two paralegals. I am starting out on a trial basis for 45 days and then if things are working out I will stay after Christmas. They know I want to go home for Christmas for two weeks and they still hired me so that is a plus. This firm is located near downtown so that will be fun. I am going to call Gap Kids and see if they'll let me just work Saturdays. I'm thinking they are going to want me to work Sundays too and I don't want to do that and I especially don't want to be working every single day so that job may not last much longer. There go my hopes of meeting someone famous but that's ok. Thank you for all of your prayers. I couldn't have gotten it without you.

CMA Awards!

2008-11-13T09:13:00.000-08:00

I am sure y'all are aware that last night was the 42nd Annual CMA Awards. Lori and I decided to take a trip downtown and see what we could at the Red Carpet. We learned that we will go much earlier next time. There were a lot of people to look through and it was nearly impossible to get any pictures but I did catch a glimpse of: Keith and Nicole, Billy Ray and Miley, Lorrie Morgan, Darius Rucker, Kid Rock, Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert, Clay Walker, Mark Wills, Darrell Worley, Kellie Pickler and probably a few others. It was so fun to be there!

Lori and I posing with the red carpet behind us.

Darius Rucker was very nice to come to our side of the fence even though we didn't pay to see the red carpet. He shook everybody's hand. He is new in the country business but some of you may recongize him as the lead singer for Hootie and the Blow Fish. Unfortunately this is the only picture of a star I got.

Here I am with "the King" on Broadway in downtown Nashville.

Purity Farm and Jack Daniel Distillery

2008-11-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

Lori and I both had Tuesday off so we decided to visit some places her co-workers have suggested we see.

We took a tour of the Purity Dairy Farm in Nashville. We were able to watch them make and package their ice cream. We were even able to sample some and it was delicious.

Here we are with the Purity cow.

After the dairy Lori and I went to Lynchburg, TN which is just over an hour from Nashville. This is where the Jack Daniels Distillery is located. So we took a tour of it. I think I got a little buzz just from smelling the alcohol throughout the tour. I don't think it would take much for me to get drunk.

Here I am with Jack himself.

Part of the factory.

Here is a shot of a nice Jack Daniels car reminding everyone to drink responsibly.

After the tour of the Jack Daniel Distillery we walked around Town Square and I couldn't resist challenging this guy to a game of checkers. As you can tell it was a very intense game.

Colors of Tennessee!

2008-11-13T08:56:00.000-08:00

Here is a glimpse of the beauty we have been witnessing here. This shot is off my balcony. The trees have been so incredibly bright and colorful and beautiful. I have never seen anything like it. People from here have said it's been more beautiful this year than normal so I guess I lucked out to be here now.

Happy Halloween!!!

2008-11-01T15:37:00.000-07:00

Some girls in the ward threw a YSA Halloween Party. There was food, games, scary movies and great company. I went as Waldo. I almost won the best costume but was beat out by Rainbow Bright. Below are a couple of snapshots. Lori and I ready for the party!

Hanging out at the party. The best part of this picture is Lori in the mirror. Freaky!

(Alisha, Alisa, Dustin, me, & Colby)

I GOT A JOB!

2008-10-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, I finally got a job today! I will be working at Gap Kids at the Green Hills mall. This mall is a very rich area. I plan on taking my camera to work each day because you never know when a country singer will come in shopping for their kids. The pay isn't great and it's only part-time (20 to 30 hours) but it is a relief to have ANY job. I was upfront about wanting time off for Christmas and they still offered me the job so I took it. I will continue to apply for other jobs and looking for something better. I think it will be much easier to get a job in January when I don't have to request time off. Anyway, just wanted to keep you all updated. Thanks for caring.

Another update!

2008-10-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

Since Dan updated his blog I figure it must be time for me to update mine too. We got our second piece of furniture. It is a couch/bed. It's so wonderful to not be sitting on the floor anymore.

Still on the job hunt. This last week I applied at Kohl's and Target and two weeks ago I applied at Baby Gap and Gap Kids. I have an interview with Gap Kids this week. I also had a job interview on Thursday for an outpatient hospital working as an Administrative Assistant. She said I would hear back either Friday (which I didn't) or Monday (tomorrow) so maybe I'll have a job tomorrow.

We only had Sacrament Meeting today because our ward was split. The ward really was ginormous and it was bound to happen sometime. We always showed up early to get a seat in the chapel because they had chairs all the way to the back of the cultural hall. Relief Society has been so big that we had to meet in the chapel and make the elder's quorum meet in the relief society room. It will be nice to have a smaller ward and get to know people better. With this change we will be getting a new bishop. He seems really energetic and fun. In his talk today he mentioned how he loves teenagers and young single adults but especially young single adults. So it will be fun to get to know him better. Word on the street is he is a very wealthy man and has season tickets to the Titans games so hopefully (on a Monday night game of course) we can get invited.

Lori is at her second day of work today. They hired her as a part-time security guard at the Opryland Resort. We don't know if this is regular for a part-timer but she works 34 hours this week. I will be going to many events by myself, such as institute, firesides, fhe and possibly church but I will survive. We have been making a lot of friends out here so that is good.

Well that is my update for now! Congrats again Rachelle, David & Delaney. Can't wait to see Liam. Billie Jo are you getting anxious?

Love you all.

First Piece of Furniture!!!

2008-10-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

I found this entertainment center on Craig's List for only $50. The man was moving to a new home and it just didn't fit. It was quite the hassle getting it to our apartment. We had to make a friend with a truck and it worked out perfectly that he happened to be a 6'4" football player! We are very happy to have our first piece of furniture.

In other news, we finally got internet and cable hooked up in our apartment. We let them know how unhappy we were with their service so we will now be getting two months free of service and 2 movie tickets.

We also recently bought an air mattress so we are no longer sleeping on the floor.

I also had two job interviews this week. I am only interested in one of them. If I get this job I would be making nearly double what I was making in Provo, so that would be fantastic. At this job I would be working for a bankruptcy attorney in downtown Nashville. The building is right next door to the CMT building!!! The lady that interviewed me gave me the rundown of the firm and the benefits and asked me a few questions and then said she would give my resume to the attorney but I haven't heard back since. The firm is really big, about 30 attorneys and only 10 paralegals. The firm is on the 22nd floor of the building.

I spent last weekend in Virginia tending Kyle's kids. It was really fun to get to spend some quality time with them. They were quite a delight!

We are loving our ward. The activities are so great. Institute is wonderful. We still don't have callings yet but hopefully soon. I am leaning toward primary pianist but we'll see.

Dan- Kyle and I were thinking that since you love the Outer Banks and Kyle, Paul & I will all be back east we should have the family reunion back east this summer? Think about it!!!

Anyway, that is a small update on what I have been up to. I miss you all!

Sorry for the delay!

2008-09-20T10:16:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,

I'm so sorry I haven't been updating this as much as I planned. I am actually in North Carolina right now at Lori's sister's house. Her niece was baptized this week and her parents flew out and are going to go to South Carolina next week and didn't mind if Lori and I tagged along. So it may be a while before I update anything new from Tennessee. As soon as I get back the next week Kyle is going to fly me out to Virginia to tend his kids while he and Noelle are in Utah doing the St. George Marathon. So now I don't mind at all that I don't have a job because I get to be doing all of this fun traveling. I will try to update as soon as possible when I get back. We still don't have the internet at our apartment, it's really getting ridiculous. Thanks for reading this! Lindsay good luck this week! Can't wait to FINALLY hear the name of my new niece. Love you all!

Pictures from roadtrip!

2008-09-03T07:36:00.000-07:00

We still don't have the Internet but thanks to KateMoore we sometimes can get a wireless connection wherever she may be. Below are a few of my pictures taken on the road.

Here I am all ready to go with my car packed to the max.

Here is the lovely Colorado sign.

...and the Kansas

We weren't able to get a picture of the Oklahoma sign because it was difficult to see it from far away and by the time we saw it we were driving passed it. But, we did stop in Chechotah which is Carrie Underwood's hometown (my all-time favorite). Here is her High School marquee.

Here is her billboard right off the freeway.

By this time we were tired of taking pictures of ourselves so we just took a picture of the sign.

Here is the Tennessee sign. There is so much going on here and so much to look at while you drive. We were concentrating on taking a picture of the sign while driving as the traffic gets thicker with the big city of Memphis right there that somehow Lori and I both missed the passing of the Mississippi river.

Final destination!

I'm in Nashville!!!

2008-08-30T09:23:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the delay in posting about arriving. We have been trying to get the internet figured out and it will take some more time. We got comcast to come and set us up and she told us to wait 20 minutes then set it up. It wouldn't work. So we called technical support and they couldn't figure it out. So that guy had another guy come the next day and turns out we aren't connected from outside and he can't fix that. So he said it would take about 48-72 hours to get another worker in but of course Monday is a holiday so I wouldn't be surprised if it's more like Thursday or Friday before we get them in.

Anyway, I'll update you on the roadtrip. We left Monday morning and made it to Denver that night. It took us about 8 hours the first day. The drive was so beautiful. When we were driving over Vail Pass our cars wouldn't go above 40 mph because the hill was so steep and our cars were so weighed down with everything we own in them. We spent the night at Lori's mom's cousin's house. She treated us to dinner that night and we enjoyed spending time with her.

Day two: We left Denver at about 8:00 in the morning. This day was our longest drive. We drove for 13 hours. We started in Denver and ended the night in Checotah, OK. If any of you are Carrie Underwood fans you'd know she is from the small town of Checotah. We spent the night in a dumpy motel but it was fun to wake up and tour around her town for a little while.

Day three: We had breakfast in a smalltown diner. It was fun to watch people walk in and everybody knows each other. We left around 9:00 in the morning and charged right through Arkansas. We didn't even stop at all. We stopped in Memphis where we ate lunch at a bbq restaurant Lori and I saw on the travel channel. We have been planning to eat there for a long time so it was fun to mark it off the list. We drove three more hours to Nashville and got here about 7:00. The drive was not as bad as I was anticipating. I thought I would need to stop a lot but we both were not ever very tired, huge blessing.

We have spent the last few days not really knowing what to do with ourselves. On Thursday we tried to get the internet set up but couldn't. We thought it would be fixed on Friday. So we just tried to unpack and get things organized. Friday they still couldn't fix the internet so we decided to come to the library to use the internet. But what do you know, the library is closed on Fridays. So yesterday we went grocery shopping. Today we came to the library to get things done like, update my blog, apply for jobs online, look for furniture online, mapquest church directions, etc.

Well, that is all I have for now. When we get the internet in our apartment I will post some pictures. I love you all.

Here is the proof of us jumping off the bridge.

2008-08-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

Random pics from Portland!

2008-08-13T13:54:00.000-07:00

Eating dinner before heading to the cabin.

Shelly & me posing before going out on the lake.

Cute Olivia!

Cute Delaney!

Hayden & me before going to the lake.

This is Lori and me climbing up to the 2nd level of the bridge. The scariest part was thinking about climbing up.

Payton being a good cousin and holding on to Delaney so she won't fall out of the back of the truck.

No hands! Go Delaney.

Payton is all smiles while surfing with Uncle Michael.

Me and Delaney in the back of the truck.

Brittan eating her treat after a long day of boating.

The Glorious cabin. Thanks again Neals.

Oregon!!!

2008-08-07T10:12:00.000-07:00

The last few days my best friend Lori and I were able to spend time in Oregon. Both of my sisters live there and it was really fun to get to hang out with them and their families. My sister Shannon and her family recently built a cabin in Central Oregon and we spent a couple of the days of our trip there at the lake. It was so beautiful. I wakeboarded, jumped off a bridge and even learned how to surf behind the boat. Attached is a picture of Lori and I preparing to jump off the second level of the bridge. It was quite a rush! I will attach more pictures soon.