Happy birthday Blog!

Hard to believe that my blog and I have been together for one whole year!
This month has been full of lots of fun things to do. I love spending Fridays with my mom or my sisters and I've been doing a lot of that this month! I've done breakfast with my cousin, dinner with my brother, had friends over for Chinese...it's been so fun and it almost makes me not even mind these ugly January days.

Our ward was just split...again! This is the 3rd time in the 3 years that our ward has been split. We're looking forward to getting to know our new bishop even though Ben and I are still serving at the SL Detention Center as missionaries so our Sundays are spent in jail and not at the ward house. We have another year left in our calling and we are not in any hurry to be released. We love it!

February is looking to be a great month. I will be taking two photography classes so that I can learn how to use my sweet new camera and hopefully take some awesome pictures, which I have always been interested in doing. I figure Winter is a great time to start a new hobby. Speaking of hobbies...I've done so good this month cutting back on the Diet Coke! If you know me at all, you know that me and the beverage go hand in hand. But having an addiction to ANYTHING can't be good for you, right? And it has been easier than I thought.

I'm so grateful for zits and Walmart this month! (Not many people can say that)! Grateful for zits because it secures my job and grateful for Walmart because it secures Ben's! He will be traveling to Canada this Spring to check out all those new stores that he has been helping to get established. Sounds fun, eh?

2009 is off to a great start for us. We are so looking forward to a new year and making it an awesome one!

xoxo

A face for TV

I just have to give a special shout out and CONGRATULATE the Weber State University Broadcast team. Ben and his "colleagues" took first place in the Western State Division! Sweet!
Check out that handsome fella in the top left hand corner. If that isn't the cutest sports broadcaster this side of the Mississippi!
I'm way proud of you Ben!

December Refresher

A lot has been going on so let me give you a quick catch up ('cause I know you're just dying to hear what we've been up to lately). :)
Last Wednesday (the 17th) was my 29th birthday...HOLY SMOKES! My work celebrated by giving me an adorable cake from "Nothing Bundt Cakes". So cute and so yummy. I highly reccommend!

Thanks guys! It was a great work day thank goodness, and I was having a reasonably good hair day. Ben picked me up from work and we headed to the Cheesecake Factory with my cute mom and dad. We enjoyed a very delicious meal together. Yeah...we no longer have to drive to Vegas to get the CF!

Later we went to my in laws so that they could shower me with gifts...just kidding... but not really. For my birthday I had asked for a white wool coat. When I got to his parents home, their were 6 white coats to choose from! They were all so cute and it was so hard to decide, so they let me keep two!!! Thank you Bob, Sue and Anne for helping make my birthday so fun! Love you guys!
The above pics were taken with the sweet Nikon camera Ben gave me for my birthday...I love taking pics of family and friends! It is an awesome camera and I love it! Thanks hona! Ben also had beautiful flowers waiting for me at home the night before my birthday. He took a million pics of me holding them...and I'm wearing my scrubs. How charming. This particular pic made me laugh cause I have a picture of me the night we got engaged holding a bouquet of roses making this same face. Happy much?

Ben's folks are headed to Cali to spend Christmas with all the siblings and grandchildren so this past Sunday we celebrated Christmas at our home! Such a fun night. Ben cooked a GLORIOUS turkey with all the fixin's. Our home smelled so yummy. Then we opened gifts. Can I just say WOW! Ben's sis, Anne gave us a Wii! I could not believe it! It is safe to say that Ben is in heaven! I love the boxing! Talk about a work out. I get so into it! Ben is way good at the tennis and I am pretty awesome at bowling. :)

We enjoyed a wonderful evening together. Merry Christmas to all the California peeps!
I can't believe that Christmas is upon us. I am so excited about my 5 day weekend and spending it with Ben.
Wishing you all a very merry Christmas! We are SO grateful for our family and friends and especially the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus

Check out this cool website. Enter a little info about your child (or hubby, in my case) and Santa will talk to them!
Such a cute idea. Have fun!

CLICK HERE TO TALK TO SANTA!

A new tradition

This year our neighborhood started something new. We all got together and donated food for the food bank. My neighbor, Sylvia had this BRILLIANT idea to forgo the neighbor gifts this year and put that money to good use. So she held an open house at her home tonight from 6-9. You just stopped by to drop off your food...as little or as much as you would like to donate, enjoy a little treat and visit with your friends (my favorite part).
I have to admit, I do not enjoy trying to think up something to give to my fellow neighbors. And then I struggle trying to come up with a cute little saying to go along with it. I KNOW you know what I'm talking about.
So thank you to my cute little friend Sylvia for thinking this up and helping me do a good deed along the way. Heaven knows that I get so caught up in the gift buying and the commercialization of Christmas. Don't we all? Also, hats off to Jiffy Lube (alright!) who is going to match all of our donations!!
My December is off to a great start!!

What are you grateful for?

Ben and I LOVE Thanksgiving Day. I love that there is a day completely devoted to giving and showing my thanks for all the wonderful people, opportunities and blessings in my life.
This Thanksgiving, I am grateful of course for our families and friends but I have also been thinking a lot lately about how grateful I am for the the country I live in, which has come so far since the days of the Mayflower :), my job, which brings me a lot of satisfaction in life, and my very special hubby; whom my world revolves around.
There is so much to be grateful for!
Hope you all have a wonderful Turkey Day!!!

xoxo,
Ash & Ben

Whistling Tea Kettle

Every year I have a party at my house for just my mom, my Aunt Marie and my sisters. It just gives everyone a day to ditch their hubby and kids and enjoy a little time away with just the girls.

So last Saturday my mom, Steph, Angela and Trisha joined me for a luncheon at my home. Sadly, Paige and Aunt Marie were absent this year. I so missed you!
I loved spending the afternoon with the women in my family...whom I so look up to and love!