Wait.....What???

Disclaimer....this post is rather lengthy....so continue if you dare.

So if you follow Dallon or I on Facebook, you might have noticed that I got a new job, (also we are pregnant, but that will be a completely different post :). Some of you might have thought, Wait....what?? Well you wouldn't be the only one that has said this the past couple of months. I just want to give an explanation to clear the air, but this has been nagging me for quite some time. I just need to get it off my chest and let it go.

So if  you didn't know, I was offered a job in April to teach at a middle school in Layton. At the time I was ecstatic, I had a job secured even before I graduated. I know that this is not always the case for most people and so I couldn't help but feel really fortunate. Summer passed by quickly and August came. The act of driving down to Layton everyday became a routine, and so did the process of my downfall.

If you didn't know already, I come from a family of teachers. It all started with my Grandpa Fisher, a standout educator that inspired many, myself included. His legacy started in a little town and still continues on as his offspring earns degree after degree in education. Growing up right next door to him, I idolized him and the way that people respected him as a person and as an educator. I wanted to influence people's lives like he had done for so many. Going through my own education, I found example after example that inspired me to earn my own degree in education. It was a long six years, but in May 2014 I completed my degree, and had a job offer secured. This was where my happily ever after would start right? I would immediately start inspiring young people in the field of Family and Consumer Science. I would feel a sense of accomplishment and prestige because I followed in my grandfather's footsteps, along with so many of my relatives.

Now I'm not saying that I didn't find certain aspects of teaching rewarding, nor that I didn't touch a handful of lives while I was at Central Davis, but my dream job was actually deteriorating my entire being. I did not set out to write this blog to say poor me, or to say look at me and my short comings/failures. I just wanted to express my feelings and let others know why I decided to step down from my position as a middle school teacher so I could gain a sense of peace.

My decision to end my teaching career early was not something I EVER planned on doing, ever. I'm not a quitter, never have been. That's just not how I was raised. Nor was I taught to give anything less than my best. The decision was a drawn out process, but the actual thought of quitting came to me on my way home from school one day in November. I was driving through Sardine Canyon and to say that I was tired would be putting it lightly. I was just about to make the second to last turn in the canyon and I nodded off to sleep. The instant I woke up, I had the odd feeling that I didn't care if I had crashed or not. Yes you read that right. I did not care either way if I had lived or died on that ride home. This feeling scared me down to my bones. Dallon didn't deserve that, my family didn't deserve that, me passing from this life to the next simply because I didn't care. I was in bad shape. Every day I dreaded going to school because of various reasons and then I dreaded going home because I had to take school work home with me because I couldn't fit in the prep time into my full teaching schedule. It was like I was drowning, literally drowning. On the weekends I would just stress about what I had to do to prepare for the upcoming week, so I didn't really have a break. I was in a constant blur of what was required of me. If I wasn't grading or planning, I was starring off into the abyss. It was a constant struggle that Dallon and I constantly talked about. We tried to brainstorm how to fix the problem, talk to my coworkers, talk to my supervisors, talk to my family members, try to cut back on everything, try to just get by, try staying down in Layton, take couple of days off, etc. It wasn't until I had this falling asleep at the wheel experience that my eyes were opened and it was like Heavenly Father was telling me to take a step back,  to evaluate what was really important, and then make a decision.

Dallon, bless his heart was so very loving and comforting throughout this entire ordeal. He would just hold me when I would cry, cry for feeling like a failure, cry for feeling like I was letting down my entire family, cry for feeling like I was letting down each and every one of my students, cry for spending my entire life preparing for my dream  job, getting said dream job, and then quitting 1/3 of the way through the school year. Every morning I would pass on looking at myself in the mirror because I just couldn't face the fact that I was a quitter. I couldn't bring myself to stop teaching because we needed food to eat, we needed a place to live, and I did not want to be the reason that Dallon had to take a break from school because he is so close to finishing, etc. But after having this epiphany in the middle of Sardine Canyon, I decided that we needed to make a change, and rely on the Lord for the rest.

I put my 2 weeks notice in with my principal the week before Thanksgiving break and from that moment on, I felt 100 times better. I know that this sense of peace came from my Father in Heaven telling me that everything would be just fine. My principal was very gracious about the entire ordeal, as well as the Central Davis staff, and that made things a lot easier. Telling my students the following days that I wouldn't be returning after the break was one of THE hardest things I have ever had to do in my entire life. I had to get up in front of them and tell them that I was failing them as a teacher and that they deserved someone who could give them their best work, and that just couldn't be me anymore. I decided that I needed to be honest and tell them I was suffering from depression/anxiety. I told them I was going to take some time off of teaching so I could get myself better. Being around teenagers all week long, I knew that I had to be honest with them. They deserved the truth. I just spoke of my difficulties and that if anyone was feeling similarly, that it was okay. That they too can stop and evaluate their lives to see if they need to make any changes in their lives for their well being.  A handful of students came up afterwards and thanked me for being honest with them and for admitting to feeling depressed and dealing with anxiety because they too feel similar feelings.It was actually a great teaching moment to me and I hope that they will continue to be honest with themselves and seek the help they need.

After having broken the news to my 200+ students, I received numerous cards, notes, emails, from students, faculty members, and parents. I felt such a sense of peace to witness that I hadn't entirely let down all of my students in the few short months that I was at Central Davis. I wrote sub lesson plans until they were able to find a replacement, to help make the transition easier. When I traveled down one last time to tie up loose ends, if felt as though I was in a dream. It didn't seem real. I was walking away from a great job, a great faculty, great student body, great community, however, it just wasn't great for me at this point in my life. It would be a great opportunity for someone else (they actually hired a fellow classmate from Utah State, so I know my students will be in great hands). And that is how I took a step back and made a change in my career, a change for the better.

OUR WEDDING 03/10/12

Here is a little flashback, to one of THE best days of our lives. We were sealed for time and all eternity on March 10, 2012. We were surrounded by so many people that have loved and supported us for all of our lives. We are so grateful for everyone that was able to celebrate with us. 

(Random couple photo....they were married on the same day three years before and we ran into them while we were taking our pictures. They fit in so well with our color scheme, we had to take a picture).

Some candid shots of the wedding luncheon. Sharon and the girls put together a delicious lunch for everyone! We are so grateful for their amazing talents and their support. (Sharon also made our beautiful cake! I couldn't have asked for a better mother in law).

It was so great to see so many wonderful friends and family! 

Dallon and I danced to one of our favorite songs for our first dance, "I'll be" by Edwin Mccain. Dallon has played this song for me numerous times and so I couldn't think of a better song to dance to with my new forever sweetheart.

Dallon and his gang did a thorough job of decorating our car.....it was a nightmare to clean....but oh well, it comes with the pure bliss of karma :)

Beginning of August 2014

To start off the month of August, we were able to attend a sealing for my adorable cousin Emma and her sweet husband Nathan. She looked gorgeous, as always, but there's a glow that brides have which makes them even more elegant and timeless. It was so great seeing everyone come together for a beautiful day and sealing. We are so grateful for our family and the knowledge that we get to be with them forever.

 

We then were able to head down to Salt Lake to attend the famous Vans Warped Tour with Daezia. We absolutely love to attend concerts and couldn't pass up the opportunity to attend this awesome event.

 As we watched show after show, I couldn't help but think back to the first time Dallon took me to Warped Tour back in 2009, it was a great time then, and it was a great time this time around. I'm so grateful for Dallon and that he shared his love for music with me.

We were able to meet up with Colin and Sara after a few shows into Warped Tour. We are SOOOO glad that they moved back to Utah so that we could be reunited! We missed them so much while they were in Oregon.

Anberlin announced earlier this year that this would be the last Warped Tour they would be performing. They have amazing songs, to say the least, and so we had to document this monumental performance. They also announced that they will be doing a farewell tour this fall, and will be coming to Salt Lake. This helped ease our heartbreak for the time being.

My favorite part of any show, is to look up onstage and see all of the guitars tuned and ready to go for the upcoming performance. Dallon is completely to blame for my love of guitars. His guitar playing skills melted my heart almost six years ago.

After we get done rocking our faces off at Warped Tour, we kept tradition alive by going to go to Olive Garden. Colin, Sara, Shelley Mom, Nisha, Stox, Kiana, and Daez, all joined us for a delicious dinner. We had a great time chatting it up with everyone and couldn't help but realize just how truly blessed we are with amazing friends and families.

Because we forgot to take a photo of all three of us at Warped Tour, we had a mini photo shoot in the parking garage before we parted ways. I am so grateful for my sisters. They are my best friends and I don't know where I would be without them (we missed Akaydeh, MahLee, and Mandi of course). I am also so very grateful for my dear mother. She is also one of my very best friends. She has a heart of gold and unconditional love for everyone. She is such a great example to me. Last, but certainly not least, I am so grateful for Dallon. He is my main man, my partner in crime, and my forever best friend. He takes such great care of me and I would be lost without him.

Happiness is:

• Concerts with some of the best people I know.
• Musicians with mad skills.
• Weddings and family time.

July Hikes 2014

In the month of July, we were able to go on two gorgeous hikes. First, we went with our friend Chad to the Wind Caves in Logan Canyon. It was a pretty chill hike, and we even got rained on a little bit. It was overcast for the entire hike, so it was perfect weather for our outing.

The other hike we went on was with Chad and his wife Ileana. We had a great time chatting it up on the trail while we thoroughly enjoyed the beautiful scenery. Dallon and I work with Chad at the Police Department and so we've been able to become pretty good friends with him and his wife. They are great company.

California or bust!

July has already been so good to us, and it's not even over yet. We walked outside on the first of July to find this beautiful scene. We are so grateful for the beautiful world we live on and especially for the opportunity that we get to live in beautiful Logan.

We thoroughly enjoyed our Fourth of July holiday in Milford. We started the day out with supporting the city by participating in the annual 5k Run/Walk. I have been running off and on this summer and wanted to see how I would measure up to other runners. So I ran my best and came out with a 23 minute race. I don't remember the last time I competed in a race and I'm not going lie, it felt so good to compete again (even though I burned my lungs a bit). Dallon was there at the end of the race to capture the intense finishes. Hopefully by this time next year we can fix his shin splits, so he can join in on the fun.

Next came the parade! We love watching all of the floats, performers, rides, and military men/women carrying the colors of our nation. MahLee danced with the rest of the cheerleaders. I'm not going to lie, it is really weird having a cheerleader in our sporty family, but to be honest, MahLee is such an incredible dancer! It will be interesting to watch her on the sidelines cheering. Aren't Akaydeh, Kinley, and Tay such cute dancers? Kam and Trex rode on the Primary Float and had a great time. 

We had a great time at the park for all of the festivities. I was able to get my cotton candy fix for the year and I couldn't have been more excited. All of the kids participated in the annual kid races and here is a picture of Kam ready for his race. For our barbecue I was volunteered to make the deviled eggs.

Right before dusk, we participated in the new Ping Pong Ball Event. People buy bracelets and then Michael Mayer flies in his plane over the golf course and releases hundreds of ping pong balls. Each has a number on it and you can win some pretty great prizes. Dallon and I made out like bandits! We got a couple of free icees, yum, some free blizzards/frosties, a lamp, photo album, American fishing backpack, and half a pig, cut and wrapped! (a $150-$200 prize!)

When I found out that I had won the pig, I screamed for joy and went to find Dallon the great news. As soon as I told him, he got this really confused look on his face and said, "I don't know what that means." I explained how awesome the prize was and he was able to wrap his head around it and then came up to my excitement level.

And to round out this wonderful holiday, we thoroughly enjoyed our firework show at the park. We are so very grateful for the opportunity that we have to live in this country; to live in a place where we are free to choose for ourselves how to live.

Saturday the 5th, we packed up and headed to California for our summer vacation. For a couple of weeks, I put together some travel packs for the kids to help keep them occupied on our long road trip. Kam loved to traced his mazes, so that he could do them over and over again. Stocks was adorable as usual and was a asleep one minute, and then posing his face off the next. He definitely keeps everyone smiling and laughing. He is such a sweetheart!

The first day of our trip we headed to Huntington Beach for a little fun in the sun. It was quite the excursion to find the perfect place for the whole Tribe, but we made it to the beach and had a lot of fun. (Begonia Park was the place where we had lunch (a paradise if you will). Our KFC never tasted so good after trekking all over the coastline for a place to play at the beach). 

Also, I always knew that Dallon liked the beach, but I never really knew just how much until we had to practically pry him and Jeep away from jumping through the waves. I don't think I've ever laughed so much in such a short amount of time at all of the tumbles we all took along the shoreline. It was definitely a great time.

Kam and Trex didn't really like the whole water scene, so they spent their time burying things, themselves, and other people. One of the best moments was when Kiana offered to bury Kam and Trex in the sand and she kept saying over and over again, don't move, the sand will get all messed up. So once they got done getting buried, they offered to bury Kiana. When they got done burying her, Kam leaned over Kiana and said, "Wanna get messed up?" 

The next day, while everyone else chilled in Anaheim, Dallon and I went to Los Angeles to do some sight seeing. We rode the train through Southern California and enjoyed seeing the incredible scenery. We got to Union Station and rode The Metro down to Hollywood Boulevard.

While in Hollywood, we went on a tour of Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Hollywood Hills, Rodeo Drive, and of course Hollywood. There were so many great things to see! We went up to see the Hollywood sign and while we were there, we were able to get this amazing panorama picture of the Los Angeles Valley. It was a beautiful and clear day, so we were able to get great pictures.

We went around looking at different celebrities' houses like Wilt Chamberlain, Bruno Mars, Britney Spears, Jackie Chan, Katy Perry, Julia Roberts, Michael Jackson's, Robert DeNiro,  Denzel Washington, and many others.

Oh and FYI, this picture of our tour bus includes Emma Stone's grandparents, aunt, and cousin! Before our tour started we overheard them talking about Emma and we didn't think it was real, but then the aunt explained that they were telling the truth. It was crazy! So our tour was pretty cool to say the least.

This picture of the Badgley Mischka store is the store that Julia Roberts went to in Pretty Woman! ("Big mistake, huge!")

Towards the end of the tour we got to see the House of Blues where Freaky Friday was filmed. Once we were dropped off on Hollywood Boulevard we headed to the Chinese Theatre where a ton of stars have their hand and footprints. We then went to the Wax Museum and had a great time posing next to the stars. Some of those statues were amazing and looked just like the real person....others not so much.

After the Wax Museum, we went to the Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum. There was a Jimmy Hendrix portrait made entirely out of guitar picks so Dallon had to get a picture with that and I posed next to the world's tallest man to see how I would measure up.

This is a picture of Capitol Records, where tons of famous artists have recorded major hit records. This other picture is the Metro Line Map. We became very familiar with this map throughout our week of traveling around Southern California.

Day two of Cali was dedicated to Disneyland! (Well, California Adventure). It was so much fun watching the little kids light up on the rides or whenever they would see a disney character. They kept us laughing throughout the entire day and made our day at Disney unforgettable.

Everyone had a buddy so that no one got lost and Kam would not let Dallon out of his sight the entire day. It was adorable. Oh and yay for matching backpacks! Also, how cute are all of those ears! 

We LOVED Cars Land! It was so great! The ride was even cool for us older peeps. But it was THE best when Dallon rode with Kam during one of the rides and Kam was starstruck when Mater came. Dallon said his face was priceless.

Trex surprised everyone when he went on The Tower of Terror! He did NOT like it all btw. Daezia came out of the ride with him clinging to her. After he calmed down for a bit, he told us that he would never go on an elevator again, well one that had seats. Kam was devastated that he wasn't tall enough to go on that ride, but we explained just how scary it was and then he turned a complete 180 when he told us why it was THE scariest ride because of the ghosts.

The selfie with Tay was taken just after she head butted me to photo bomb the picture with Kam. I didn't even see it coming! So I had to take a picture of her to document the experience. I had to get a picture of Daezia and Frozone because her and Dallon love to quote his super suit lines.

After a long day, Dallon got some snuggles from Stocks. I don't know what it is, but Dallon can get Stocks to sleep within a matter of minutes! It is crazy, but completely adorable.

The adults went to dinner at Benihana and when we came back, we found Kam like this. He was completely exhausted!

The next day we rode the metro again to head to LA. We went to the Guinness Book of World Record Museum. We found the guy that Daezia could give a run for his money. (The World's Fastest Ketchup Drinker). I also got a great picture posing in the world's fattest man statue.

We then decided to take the metro and bus to Long Beach. We passed by the Staples Center, Compton (sketch and a half), the aquarium, some pretty nice houses, and some not so nice houses.

We ended up at Huntington Beach yet again, for another fun day of beach activities. The Spauldings, Daezia, MahLee, and Akaydeh met up with us after Disneyland.

The beach is sooooo gorgeous!! If we lived here, we would definitely come to the beach every day! (Durfey sand photo cred-Kiana Don)

Day four involved another Metro ride into LA. We traveled to China Town and found the restaurant where Rush Hour was filmed. Dallon loves Rush Hour, so we had to eat there of course. The orange chicken was DELICIOUS! Definitely worth the trip.

My favorite part of China Town was the swap meet....it was never-ending! We spent a good amount of time just wandering around, and I'm sure we didn't even make a dent in it. Our golden purchase was a hat for The Chief, (he's been wanting a hat like the ones on Mulan for years! So we became the favorites when we got him his very own).

We then headed to Little Tokyo to get us some Hi-Chew and sushi. We found the goldmine of sushi at Kula, it is a revolving sushi bar, best idea ever! We got to pick and choose a variety of delicious rolls, all at very reasonable prices. Success! While we were eating, I decided to look up some places where a few of our favorite movies/tv shows were filmed in LA. Little did we know, when we stopped at Little Tokyo, we were just a hop and skip from "The Loft"! (Where Nick, Jess, Coach, Schmidt, and Winston live in New Girl) So we walked on over and had a short photo shoot.

We were sad to pack up our things in Cali, but eager to head back to Utah. After a LONG day of traveling, and traffic being horrific, we stopped at the Nevade/California state line to hit up the Fashion Outlet Mall. We all found some killer deals on various products and walked away very happy with our purchases. We then got a couple hotel rooms at Buffalo Bills and spent the night. (I would highly recommend NOT staying at Buffalo Bills, no free wifi and everything closes at 6. Lame!)

One more photo from Benihanas....delicious food, great company!

Our summer vacation was epic and we had a great time! We were so grateful that we were able to spend time with some of our favorite people! We couldn't have asked for a better vacation.

Happiness is:

• Disneyland of course
• The Beach
• Great food and great people to share it with
• The laughter of our cute nieces and nephews
• Ear plugs, best invention ever.
• Road trips singing along to 90's Alternative/Pop

June 2014

June started off with a fishing trip to our favorite marina. Dallon caught a mighty fine catfish on our outing. I did not end up so lucky and just reeled in some baby ones. We sure wish it would warm up a bit to help make these trips a little more awesome. 

We then got a visit from Mike and Sharon in the middle of the week. Mikaela and Daniel were married and we were able to go show our support by attending the luncheon. It was at the lovely Copper Mill Restaurant. It was fun chatting with Grandma Durfey, Aunt Vickie and Uncle Marty, as well as the parents of the bride, Uncle Gary and Aunt Le Ann.

That weekend Nish and Jeep came up for a visit! Kin ran at a youth track meet in Provo and then they came up to Logan to go to Buffalo Wild Wings (Dallon and Jeep's absolute favorite place to eat) to celebrate Jeep's upcoming birthday. Happy birthday Jeeps!! I don't know who loved the photo op more, Dallon and Jeep or Kin and Tay. 

The next weekend, we had the opportunity to go down and visit our peeps in Wayne. Jaxx is getting so big! He is so much fun to hold and play games with. He has the cutest smile and dimples to die for. There's never a dull moment when Luxi comes to visit. She found some shimmery lotion and decided that her legs needed some moisture. We also found out that Shanda didn't know what a leg war was...so we had to explain it and do a couple of rounds of course. Mike won...no surprise there....but it was fun to watch. 

Living right next to the fish hatchery, sure has its perks. The kids are able to run around on the beautiful grass, makes great scenery for photo ops, and it is a great place to go worm hunting for our fishing trips. Which if you decided to go fishing, don't try and use a raft on a windy day, especially if you only have one working oar. Maddi, Miley, and Luxi had so much fun running around on the grass and rolling down the hills. Their  cute giggles and laughter are so contagious!

The next week brought an event that brings tears to my eyes. The Relay for Life event takes place each year to raise money for cancer research to help find a cure. I have happy tears because our sweet Tay is a survivor of stupid cancer. Sad tears, because stupid cancer has taken more than just one of my sweet loved ones. I relay to help find a cure. As we walked and walked the entire night, Dallon and I talked about his future. He is studying Biological Engineering in hopes of finding a cure for cancer so we don't have to say goodbye too soon to those we love and cherish.

After we were able to recover from pulling an all nighter, we had a family barbecue. We love being able to spend time with our families and we also love barbecues! While Dallon was cooking, the boys sat by him, all the while soaking up everything they could. They are constantly asking Dallon how things work and why he does certain things. It is so adorable to see just how much they look up to him. Oh and how cute is Stockton?

I want to start doing something that one of my friends does after each post. She simply writes a list of things that make her happy. What a great way to count blessings and to be mindful of things little or big that bring happiness into someone's life. Thanks Sara!!

Happiness is:

• Re-watching quotable chick flicks, I've been in an Emma Stone mood ever since her epic LSB
• Road tripping with great music, techno, country, pop, indie, whatevs
• Playing with our adorable nieces and nephews, we can't believe how big they are getting
• Summer, enough said
• Night fishing trips, there's just something about a peaceful lake at night with my main man
• Modern medicine, we wouldn't be here without it 
• Sunflower seeds- ranch, dill pickle, and cracked pepper