Less Than 24 Hours

In 18.5 hours from now, I will be completing my last final exam as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University!  Woot Woot! 

Christmas Party

Last night, Joshua and I attended a fun Christmas Party with our co-workers from the BYU Richards Building Swimming Pool.  It was a good time as we ate delicious food provided by Connie Todd, who is our boss's boss.  I actually took teaching swimming course from him several years ago.  He has been a good friend to have during the years I have been at BYU.

We played a white elephant gift exchange game.  This was the 3rd year in a row that Joshua and I went to  the dollar store before his party to buy our gifts.  We always do a themed stocking.  This year mine was a relaxation kit, including a bath tub pillow, bubble bath, foot scrubber, and whatever else someone would need to de-stress in a relaxing bath.  Joshua did a superhero stocking.  It had 2 superhero puzzels, a spiderman squishy ball, 2 windup cars that light up and make noise.

This was our last Christmas party at Connie's house with the pool staff (it's a tradition to go to the party).  It was a fun night to send laughing with dear friends.

My First Business Trip!

Last week, I went on my first big girl business trip as a clinical assistant with Aspiro.  It was for the family seminar that Aspiro holds each month in Saint George, Utah.  To say the least, it was a learning experience.  It was fun but there was a lot of miscommunication that happened that I had to clean up.

It was fun because I went down with 2 of the therapists Jessi Irvine and Gordon Day, and the field director Todd Merrill.  We were given a stipend to cover food and hotel.  So we stayed in the cheapest place we could find.  It was 34 bucks a night.  It was simple but clean...all I wanted.  Going out to dinner each night was fun as they are hysterical people to be around and there is always interesting conversation.

Hopefully next months trip will be a little less stressful and better run.

Christmas Cookies

I don't remember ever cutting out sugar cookies with cookie cutters and decorating them (perhaps I have, sorry mom).  But last night I made the dough and cut out the cookies.  I even made royal icing.  This morning and 6 am while on my break at work I decorated them using the cake decorating kit that mom gave me last year for Christmas.  I thought the cookies turned out so cool!  I've added a picture of the actual cookies that I decorated.  I am proud of myself.

I'm a Natural

So at the reception last night, Joshua and I were helping in the kitchen.  It was fun but the best was when the Shelly, the lady who did the food, asked if I would cut the wedding cake up and serve it.  What! I thought.  No way!  I am not going to be responsible for messing up someone's wedding cake.  She said she would show me how and off we went.  It was so cool to learn how it is done.  First you cut a small circle in the middle of the cake and then slice into the cake from outside to the circle.  Why do we do it this way?  It makes the cake slice easily into nice square pieces.  I felt like a pro!  Here is a picture of me slicing the cake.  I did not know they were taking the picture but anyways, it is proof that I did it.  Here is also a picture of the real cake.  It was a funfetti cake made and decorated by the brides sister.  It was only her second fondant cake.  I am impressed.

My Project!!

Look! I made this wreath.  We went to a wedding reception tonight were they had parts of pine trees and other fir trees woven into the decorations.  It was beautiful.  I was working in the kitchen and saw them throwing them away.  They smelled wonderful and I wondered if I could be creative and recycle them by weaving them into a wreath.  Used what I had at home, some green paper clips to hold two branches together, a ribbon, some red fake berries and a little hot glue.  It worked!  I am so proud of myself and my creativity.  I hope it holds together.

This was a cool flower arrangement done by Liz Lemon Swindle (she did all the decor for the wedding).  We got to keep the arrangement until the flowers die and then we take back the cool vase.  

This was a cool flower that I have never seen before that was a part of the flower arrangement. 

Today has been a fun day.  We have almost completed our Christmas shopping today (Black Friday) when we took our friend/coworker Lauren Clayden from Canada to the mall for her to experience America's Black Friday.  Then Joshua and I relaxed watching Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang. The enjoyed helping at Bishop Jeffs' (our singles ward bishop when Joshua and I lived at the Riviera) daughter's wedding reception.  We still have a bit of homework to do but have had fun helping others and playing.

I Am Grateful!

Today is Thanksgiving and I have so much to be grateful for.  Here are just a few in no particular order.

I am grateful for children - tonight at dinner, the children went first in telling 3 things they are grateful for. I was so impressed by the sincerity of their gratitude.  They mentioned things that took thought like, warm & safe shelter, family, scriptures, food, and church leaders.  They taught me that I have so much to be grateful for. If these kids could come up with these things, then I certainly can and ought to too.

I am grateful for education and an ability to learn - I have so many individuals in my life right now like Joshua, parents, in-laws, friends, family members, and my incredible supervisor & mentor Anna, other mentors like Gordon, Justin, Dr Mathesen, and Wendy who all teach me new things and new ways to think.  I enjoy learning and am grateful to be gaining an education at BYU.

I am grateful for family - I have wonderful family members who love, support and guide me.  I am grateful for my grandparents and that over the years grandpa and I have been able to speak of something we both hold dear, which is our love for Jesus.

I am grateful for Joshua - He is always there for me.  He cares about me.  He helps me and does so  much to help keep our home clean even though both of us have little time to spare in the day and night.  Joshua seeks to work hard to provide for us while we are in college by working 2 jobs while he is student teaching and going to school full-time.

I am grateful to know that death is not the end - As I have been working at the hospital on the labor and delivery and pediatric floors, assisting families who have just lost their baby, it is sad.  What has helped me through is the confirmation from the Holy Ghost that this life is not all there is.  God is in control and He has a plan.

I am grateful for the temple - it is through the covenants I have made with God in the temple that I can be with my family as a family unit even after this life. 

I am grateful for work opportunities - in these economically hard times, I have been blessed with 2 jobs.  I am grateful for my position as a lifeguard as it has allowed me to work on campus, and in between my classes.  I am also grateful that I was offered a position as an assistant to a therapist at Aspiro.  Now I will not have to be a trail guide there and freeze in the snow.  Now I only have to spend a day in the snow, practicing what I have studied.  This is a good paying job that is so flexible with my schedule right now.  It is also so wonderful that once I graduate, I will have a real job.

Most of all, I am grateful for my Savior - without Him, nothing else would matter.  Without Him, I would not be able to be forgiven of my sins.  If I am not forgiven of my sins, I cannot live with God as no unclean thing can enter the kingdom of God. 

There are so many other things that I continue to list that I am grateful for.  I have noticed that as I begin to list what I am grateful for and why, I realize how  much longer my list ought to be.  I am grateful for this holiday and time of year to focus my thoughts and life on what truly is most important; God, relationships, gratitude and love.

What A Weekend

Last Saturday we fly to California for 29 hours of food, fun, family, friends and a wedding of our dear friend Claire.  Sunday we were back in Utah.  We calculated we traveled 13 hours getting to and from San Diego and were there for 29 hours.  It was quick but worth it. 

It was on this trip that I realized we did not just come to California for a wedding (that was a nice excuse) but we really came to California to nurture the relationships we share with others and support those we love (Claire and Chris) in the choices they are making in their lives.  

The wedding was held at the Episcopal Church by the Sea in La Jolla, CA.  Afterward, there was a delightful reception, formal dinner and dancing a country club in Solona Beach.  This was fun for me because I have never been to so formal an affair.

While at the wedding we also met many of Joshua's high school friends.  I have heard so much about them and it was great to finally meet them.  I really like them. 

On Sunday morning, Joshua and I made a gingerbread house!  I have never done this before and loved it!  Elisa, my wonderful mother-in-law, had made the gingerbread and cut out the pieces, prepared royal frosting for us and set out all the candy.  It was so much fun.  I even made icicles come down from the eaves. 

It was great to see Glenn and Elisa again.  They are the world greatest in laws!  I just love and adore them.  It was a quick trip with constant go go go.  But it was extremely relaxing!  I am sure glad we were able to go. 


A while ago I mentioned our Halloween activity.  Here is a picture of us and a recap of what we did.

For Halloween we went with the Thomas's to Color Me Mine.  Joshua was a BYU swimmer.  I was a 50's girl who tried to have tall hair like on the movie Hairspray.  Janea was Mrs. Peacock from Clue and Joe was Mr. Plum.  On the table are what we painted.

Laundry Day

Joshua and I do our laundry at the laundry mat. Here is what happened when Joshua did not bring anything to do with him.

I WON!

So I really enjoy reading other people's blogs. I have several that I look at near daily. It has become a hobby that I really enjoy and a way for me to de-stress. So late last night I was decompressing from the long day, checking out others blogs and saw some giveaway drawings. The purpose is to spread the word about new products and give people a chance to try it for free, so hopefully you will spend lots of money on it in the future and tell your friends. You enter by answering a question such as, "what do you do to relax?" A month or so ago, I won a bunch of fun stuff from Natures Valley (they do granola type food) from one of these things. Well last night I entered 2 of them, one for some nice foot care stuff from Avon and another from a little boutique that actually specializes in adorable baby clothes. This morning I found out I won. My feet will be feeling so nice! I can't wait!

Way to go Joshua!

Joshua is so talented as a writer and a teacher. Everyday he amazes me more and more. Just to brag a little about him, today he went to meet with one of his professors. This woman is the head of the english education program at BYU. She asked Joshua what his hopes, dreams and goals were for the next 5 and 10 years. Then she told him what she thought his goals should be. They then discussed how to accomplish those goals.

This was really nice of her but here is the big wow! She told him she and BYU would be keeping track of him for the next few years. And should everything go as she believes it can, she said they their have already been discussions that they would love to have Joshua come on to teach at BYU. She believes, as do I, that Joshua would be able to not only teach people to write better, but also produce some great english teachers. She said if he is not at BYU in the next few years, she thinks he will at least be at another University. What a great compliment. Now we just need to get him graduated and continue publishing. It will be through his publications that they will best be able to keep track of him.

I am so proud of Joshua!

Shopping Victory!

Tonight I bought a super cute black scarf from Kohl's. I love the weight of the fabric! How much? Originally priced at $25.00. There were discounts and yes, I had a $10 coupon. We paid $2.00. I am proud of myself.

Veteran's Day Tradition

Growing up we had a tradition on Veteran's and Memorial Day to take a pie to a Veteran. We would ring the door bell, then when they came to the door we would sing the song, "I am proud to be an American." It was so fun and a real great memory. I am grateful that my parents helped teach me to be grateful for the freedoms we enjoy, as well as for the individuals who fight so we can keep them and so that others can enjoy them too.

Thanks Mom and Dad!

What are we up to?

Grad School
I have completed one application to Graduate school! I have applied to the University of Utah. They have a one year masters program that I would like to complete!

Bathroom Redo
Joshua and I had fun redoing a bathroom for a family in our ward. We did a cool faux paint job. I love this family and we enjoyed going over lots this week to paint. It looked similar, but much better than this picture I found online.


Friends and Service
We have a great group of friends that we have made that live in our apartment complex and that we go to church with. I had mentioned to Joshua that a lady at church needed her bathroom redone as they were having guests arrive for their daughters wedding and I had volunteered us to do it. Well, this group of friends overheard. Immediately they asked to come. I went and found the lady and told her if she had enough work for us to do, I would have 8 people to do whatever she needed the next evening. She was over joyed. We went, cleaned, rearranged furniture, painted, and did other odds and ends jobs. It was a great time. I love the friends we have.

Halloween
Joshua and I spent the morning volunteering at the boy scout Pow Wow teaching the life saving and swimming merit badges. Then we went to a fun brunch put on by the church. That evening, we dressed up and went with Joseph and Jennae Thomas to color me mine. A cool place that you buy a ceramic and then paint it there. A few days later you pick it up and it has been fired and polished. They were having a Halloween special, where they waved all studio fees if you dressed up. I was a 50's girl, wearing a skirt from Great Grandma Nancy, and Joshua was a BYU swimmer, wearing gym shorts and shirt. Joe and Jennae were Mr. Plum and Mrs. Peacock from the old board game Clue.

Up coming?

• In 2 weeks we head to California for a wedding of a dear friend. That will be fun!
• Christmas break we will go to AZ and CA
• I am doing an Ironman length triathalon over 3 days with my dad
• I finish my internship at the hospital soon and Joshua will begin his student teaching at Lone Peak High School in Highland, UT full time.
• We will eat yummy food for Thanksgiving
  

It's the Final Count Down!

School is quickly coming to an end. 4 more weeks of school! Then finals! Finals does mean final, at least for a BA degree. I'll the be a graduate! After I get through all that and Christmas vacation, it'll be time to take the social work certification exam and the Dopl. Then I will officially be not only a graduate but will also have some alphabet soup behind my name. I will be
Jessica Williamson, CSW.

H1N1

Well it is true. The Dr.'s said that Joshua had it and I am sick now too. It is no fun. I feel like I am in quarantine. But at the same time it is not so bad because I have slept for nearly 4 whole day. Now I am getting tired of sleeping. Tomorrow (Monday) I'll go to the Dr's to make sure my cough has not turned into pneumonia.

Who knows if I got if from Joshua, or if I got it from working in a hospital with visiting lots of people who have it or from some where else.

NEW JOB!!!

I received a phone call a few weeks ago from the creator and director of Vantage Point by Aspiro. Aspiro is where I did my internship as a social work therapeutic trial guide over the summer. Vantage Point or VP is the group I tended to work the most with. They specialize in working with youth who in addition to behavioral and emotional issues (and for some drug issues) have a range learning and neurodevelopmental disorders like Aspergers, Tourettes, ADD/ADHD. We even specialize in working with youth with computer addictions.

So Gordon Day, who is the creator of VP called and offered me a job as his clinical assistant. I have accepted the position. It is a wonderful opportunity to use the skills I have gained while studying social work at BYU. It is also a wonderful opportunity to work with amazing professional. Dr. Day is one of the leading authorities in Autism/Aspergers in the United States. I am his assistant! My work currently entails creating treatment plans, discharge summaries and weekly progress reviews for each student. I enjoy it.

Joshua and I feel so blessed to have this opportunity. I was planning on going back to work for Aspiro in January as a trail guide again. But I HATE the snow. I freeze to death! Now I will not have to! And I still get to work with people that I absolutely love.

Create

Create

Click on the word create to see a beautiful fill that I love on the topic of creating.

General Conference Weekend

My sister Jasmyne and my brother Ben came to visit this last week. It was nice to see them. Here are some pictures Jazz and I took when we went on a hike up by Bridal Veil Falls.

Graduation

I applied for graduation today! Now all I have to do is pass my classes and come December, I will have my degree. I'll be a certified Social Worker.

Congrats Joshua!

I am so proud of Joshua. He has been hired on to be in charge of training triathletes in swimming at a local gym. He has so many great gifts and talents and teaching swimming is one of them. He will be terrific there as he helps others learn to swim, improve their stroke and become more comfortable in the water.

My Shopping Victory

I must admit I have a new hobby. I have found a blog that connects you to coupons and links you to a site that lists all the stores, what their sales are and how much it will cost you when using a certain coupon. They also link you to that certain coupon so you can print it out.

Last week Macey's was having a sale on a certain brand of chicken for $ .99. That's terrific by itself but, online there was a coupon for $1.00 off that same brand of chicken. So I marched down to Macey's with my printed coupon to test this out. And sure enough, I got the package of chicken for free.

Tonight I went to Smith's were they were having some sales. Thanks to the sales and my coupons, I bought 4 big boxes of cereal (the name brand too), 2 boxes of wheat thins, and 2 snack pack pudding cases of 4 each (so 8 puddings) all for $ 8.00. I saved $11.00.

I don't eat cereal but Joshua does and it's always a special treat when we get it. Now we have a supply of it, along with snacks for us to take to school.

Here is the main site I use that connects me to so many deals, free things and is teaching me how to save money:

http://sheshopssmart.blogspot.com/

On the other site are links to the ad and prices after coupons. But here are just the links. You go to the site, choose your store and there it is. They have them for stores in UT, AZ, NV, Eastern WA, ID, and Southern CA. Enjoy!

For Utah: http://grocerysmarts.com/utah/lists/splashg84ctm.php

For AZ: http://grocerysmarts.com/arizona/lists/splashg85ro1.php

For Southern California: http://grocerysmarts.com/california_southern/lists/splashg92ro1.php

For Eastern Washington: http://grocerysmarts.com/washington_eastern/lists/splashg99ro1.php

For Idaho: http://grocerysmarts.com/idaho/lists/splashg83ro1.php

For Nevada: http://grocerysmarts.com/nevada/lists/splashg89ccb.php

Summer Vacation and Where We Are Now

So what does one do when they cannot sleep? Everything they have been meaning to do but just not taking the time for.

In August, I finished working at Aspiro as a guide and Joshua finished his summer semester of school. We took off just as soon as we could to California to cram as much of summer as we could into a 2 weeks. Here is some of the playing we did while in California for 8 days.

Tuesday (8/18/09): Fly in to San Diego. Relax. Family pictures on the beach and a fabulous family home evening on the beach with family and friends.

Wednesday (8/19/09): Relax. Read a book. Went to San Diego, walked on the boardwalk at Belmont (a beach area with an amusement park on the boardwalk) and saw were Joshua and his family would stay for vacations. We went to Legoland, free for one hour. I had never been before (nor do I think I would ever pay their price to go!) and Joshua had worked there for his first job. We went on all the rides we wanted to, saw the whole park, ate delicious apple fries (heavenly!) and took a picture with an employee who had on the same kind of stylish shirt he wore when working there.

Thursday(8/20/09): We went to Knott's Berry Farms (a 1st for me) thanks to Joshua's parents sitting through a wonderful timeshare presentation. It was a ton of fun! Growing up I was always a fan of rides with water, and that proved true still today. Before leaving we made sure to get some funnel cake with Mrs. Knott's boysenberry jam.

Friday(8/21/09): We relaxed some more. Went to La Jolla cove and saw tons of seal!! We climbed all over the rocks, down to some tide pools to look are crabs, sea anemones, sea urchins and a lot of other cool sea things. That night we went to the Pinback concert at the Del Mar racetrack.

Saturday(8/22/09): Relaxed. Hiked around Calavera Lake with Mom and Dad. Then we all went to explore Old Town in San Diego, have dinner down there and then take the trolley to the Padres Game. They lost but our seats were terrific and we had a great time. I had never been to Old Town or ridden on the trolley before. I felt like a young child with eyes open wide the whole day.

Sunday(8/23/09): Joshua accompanied me, Sister McMann, and Sister Wooley in singing "How Gentle God's Commands" in church. It was beautiful. These 2 sisters are sooo musically talented and have gorgeous voices that it was an absolute honor and pleasure to sing with them. We also enjoyed the day with family and visiting with the Robbins and Barnette families.

Monday(8/24/09): Joshua and I went to wander around around San Diego. I had never been to Coronado Island so we went out there. I called Elisa and told her I was on an island for the 1st time ever! The next day I was terribly disappointed to learn it wasn't really an island anymore because of the man made silver strand. While there though, we went and explored Hotel Del from "Some Like it Hot" and enjoyed the super soft sand of the beach. Later that evening we went to Balboa Park for a Buster Keeton silent film, accompanied by a terrific organist at the Organ Pavillion. It was the loudest silent film I have ever seen. I had not been to the Organ Pavillion before and was impressed by its beauty. The movie was simply delightful! And we had the great company of Mom and Dad and other family friends.

Tuesday(8/25/09): We got up early (by 8), went out to a wonderfully relaxing little cafe in downtown Carlsbad, then went down to San Diego again to explore the USS Midway. Brother Waddell was working that day as a guide and brought us on as his special guest. For how large that ship is, I would not like living in such small quarters. It was fun to learn the history of the ship, how it runs and to see all kinds of planes and helicopters. My favorite was a communication plane with a cool satellite that sits on top of it.

After spending 4 hours exploring the ship, we headed over to the Fashion Valley Mall. Joshua really wanted to get a picture of me by the Tiffany's store because of the great discomfort I had shown in it at Christmas time when we went there. To prove him wrong in thinking I could not even step in the store, I went in and tried on all kinds of jewelry. I would never dream of buying anything from there because it is so expensive. I would rather go down to Wal-mart or Target and get some fake pearls for a couple of bucks instead of paying $80,000! (Plus if I loose my Wal-mart pearls I don't feel so bad).

Wednesday(8/26/09): In the morning we went to breakfast with Claire, a friend of ours at a Cafe in downtown Carlsbad. It was the best waffle I think I have ever had! Afterwards, we headed back to the house to pack our bags, then have Dad drive us to the airport to come home. We had such a nice visit with Mom and Dad Williamson and loved the time to relax and play.

But when we arrived back in Provo the fun did not stop. Hours after getting in, we were at the traditional every other Wednesday dinner with my co-guides from Aspiro.

Thursday(8/27/09): We did laundry, got books for school and Joshua took me shopping for new clothes for my internship at the hospital. He thought my hiking boots and grubby shirts would be inappropriate attire.

Friday(8/28/09): We enjoyed the day relaxing at home and preparing for school. We went grocery shopping and Joshua was a good sport as I had add matched everything we were going to buy at Wal-Mart. Really it took a little more time and we had to make sure we got the right size product too. That evening a co-guide of mine was having a b-day campout. Joshua and I had already planned to go camping over the weekend so we headed up but when we got to the spot no one was there yet and we knew we had to be up early the next day so we went home and slept in our own bed.

Saturday(8/29/09): We volunteered to help run the Share a Smile benefit triathlon, that was also a friend of ours eagle project. There we saw old friends and made new ones. All summer, Joshua had taught our singles ward Bishop's kids how to swim preparation for this triathlon. That afternoon we went by his cousin's b-day party then went to stake conference.

Sunday(8/30/09): We enjoyed stake conference and then in the afternoon Aspiro called me asking if I could help in a search party for a student who had runaway. Joshua and I spent the afternoon combing the streets of Provo. It was a fun new experience.

Monday(8/31/09): School began for Joshua and I. This will be my last semester as an undergraduate!!! I only hope that I can make it. Being inside all the time after living outside for 24 hours a days every other week is a huge change.

So now we are in school. I love my internship at the hospital working on the mom's and baby, labor and delivery, anapardum, and pediatrics floors. It is greatly different than the work I was doing at Aspiro but I still am enjoying it. Joshua and I are trying to keep in touch with my co-guides from Aspiro. We just went to a cabin for a thank you party for one of the head people there. It was so fun to see everyone again. I look forward to going back.

I am currently working on applying to graduate school. The essay prompts they give are ridiculous. And Joshua is taking his last semester of classes so that next semester all he will have to do is student teach. He is also working on starting a triathlete swim program at a local gym. We met the owner when we were volunteering at the triathlon.

Currently, I am also training for a 3 day Iron Man length triathlon. Meaning one day will be the 2 mile swim, the next the 112 miles bike, and the next day the marathon run. We'll see how that goes.

Water Park and Film Festival

On Friday, Joshua and I went with people from my work to Seven Peaks Water park. It's been so long since, I have been to a water park and it was the first time I have ever gone and played at one with Joshua. It was so nice to be with him again.

Then on Saturday, we went to the Salt Lake Film festival where one of my friends from Aspiro had a film showing. It was a great documentary called "In Pursuit of Panama". We had so much fun with those who were there that we knew from Aspiro as well. I really have met some wonderful, quality people through Aspiro.

Sky Diving

On Thursday, Joshua and 3 of the guides I work with, Nic Hoggan, Ben Wampler, and Teancum Bryant went to sky dive. I was going to jump but then chickened out. Instead, I went along, went through all of the training and took pictures. I like being the cheerleader. In the end, it was too windy up top so we had to come back the next day. They had fun. The only time I felt sheepish for not jumping was after the boys had jumped, a woman who was turning 80 that day jumped. But other than that I do not regret my choice. Here are the pictures and video of Nic's landing.








It was really funny to watch Ben practice because he is 6' 10" and well...the door is not.










Ben, Teancum, Me, Joshua, and Nic








All ready to go!









Loading up!









Off we go into the wild blue yonder.








Joshua coming down to earth.







Teancum after landing. Poor thing was sick to his stomach afterward.








Ben after his landing with his instructor.








Nic laughing and in awe at his landing.








Joshua just as calm and cool as can be after he lands.










Me and my brave man!





Nic and Joshua after its all over.


This is Nic coming in for a landing