Big News, Big Year!

This has been quite the year for us, and our lives have completely changed! We were engaged in January, Married in April, and in December found out we are pregnant!! We had been suspecting it for a few weeks, so Dec 15th I took a pregnancy test that was positive! I was so excited I went in and woke up Luke by kissing him and saying "Good morning Daddy to Be!" he shot straight up out of bed and shouted "REALLY??" I think he almost didn't believe me! It was hard to believe myself and I don't think it hit me for a few days that this was really happening. I have always dreamed of being a mom, but have also been told by several doctors that I would have a hard time getting pregnant. It really came as a surprise, and I was scared I am not going to lie. the next several days I read everything I could get my hands on from parents.com and other sources about naming the baby, and what to expect. I think the fear is more of the unknown, and I hope it's normal! That weekend before we left for Vegas we got to go tell Luke's parents. His mom was so surprised she started crying and hugged me about ten times! His dad didn't believe us at first, but is so excited to be a grandpa again! The next day when we got to Vegas we told my parents as well who were also so excited to be grandparents again. We also got to tell all of my sisters. The first few days that we knew Luke was telling everyone he knew that he was going to be a daddy. We are so excited and hoping for a boy since thats the only name we can agree on! When we got back from Vegas I went to my sister-in-law, Stacy's, house to tell her the news and she ran across the room to hug me screaming the whole time! We made her and his parents promise to keep it secret until Christmas. It came out Christmas eve so now both families are in our news. I am so overwhelmed right now, and have been a bit sick... Saturday we got home from the grocery store and walked by all the smokers-- I have been around smoke my entire life without it bothering me, but this was no so that night---I lost the great meal we had just had. Strong smells just don't mix well with me right now, but I am hoping it won't last much longer. Our first baby doctor appt is January 19th and I will be about 10 weeks!

Christmas Day

Our first Christmas together was so exciting! We woke up at 530 in the morning so excited neither one of us could sleep any more! We got up and saw what "Santa" had brought! Santa brought me a pair of earrings that were very pretty, and brought Luke a new watch! Then we decided to dig in under the tree. Luke bought we Mario Kart and Deal or No Deal for the Wii, and a GPS system and a Snuggie since I am always cold! I got him some car T-shirts, a dress shirt, some Bill Engvall movies and a car stereo! We were so excited that we spent the next couple hours playing with our new toys. After Christmas was done at our place and we had a chance to go to the parents place and celebrate with the family. Luke's parents bought us a toaster oven and me a pretty ring with my birth stone in it. We bought a dry erasable table for Desiree so she wouldn't get in trouble for drawing on furniture with princesses on it, and Jayson a little shaky toy that he was actually afraid of! I made Stacy a picture of a stocking that says "Hang up your stocking and say your prayers" and a gift card and she made me a Believe plate and also got me a gift card--great minds think alike! The best part was Jolene's reaction to the cross stitch picture we bought her and the shadow box for the ribbons she won earlier this year at the state and county fairs. After all the morning fun, Luke had to go to work. I spent the rest of the day with his family and had fun chatting and playing games and got a Christmas nap in as well. It was a great day and when we got home we had plenty to entertain us with all our new toys! The next day we got to spend together to make up for the time he was working Christmas day. We played games, watched movies and then went to see "Christmas Carol" (Quick movie review: if you havent seen already--wait til it comes out on video... and dont watch it with the kids!) and then went to dinner on a gift card I had won at work. It was a great day void of family drama and made up for missing out on Christmas day together.

Christmas in Vegas

We were so excited for Christmas this year and we got to celebrate twice! We went down to Vegas the week before to celebrate with my family. This was the first time in about six years that our whole family had been together for Christmas--even if it wasn't ON Christmas! We were glad to see dad in good shape as he had a pace maker put in the previous Monday. He said he feels so good he could run a marathon! With everyone in town and dad recuperating from his surgery we didn't want to overwhelm him so we decided to stay with Lauren & Garn. They were quite the hosts and even made us a big sunday breakfast! We all gathered at mom and dads for breakfast saturday morning and an early Christmas. We had fun surprising mom with a camera, dad with a machine to upload his records to the computer to be digital, Asher got a stamp set which she went around and got everyone with--Jaman got a Monster Truck wii game that he played all week, and we got Lauren and Garn some decorations for their home and a cookbook with a recipe a day for a whole year! Mom and dad got us a copy of the Book of Morning for families, and mom even made Luke a suit! It was a great morning. When we pulled up in front of my parents house that morning Luke said "This doesn't look like Christmas" It was pretty much fall weather, but we still had a "white" Christmas--missionary style! That afternoon Leslie went through the temple to receive her endowments. It was such a special experience to be there with the family to share that moment with her and some special family friends. Leslie has waited a long time to be there, and we were glad to be with her. The rest of the weekend went way too fast, but we enjoyed every minute of it and were glad to show Luke his first Vegas Christmas. Next year we are hoping to be there on Christmas day so we can talk to Leslie when she makes her second call home!

Living Nightmare

To those of you thinking of being sucked into the world of Living Scriptures (AKA Living Nightmares), please think twice! Melissa and I both signed up in September thinking it would be a great thing to have in our homes. However, we have had nothing but problems with the company. The salesman who pitched it to us told us we would NOT be under any contract and could cancel at any time no questions ask. That is a big fat lie!! Melissa even asked twice to clarify--I can cancel at any time--to which the answer came back yes of course! Since then we both have had problems with billing and movies not coming or not coming in the right order. I finally got sick of it--$40/month for one movie is just ridiculous so I called to cancel. I was told it was a contract and unless I was going to pay them $500 for the buyout plan I would have to pay the entire contract. I was livid! I finally got to speak with a supervisor who told me to write a letter detailing what I heard and he would present it to the salesman. I faxed the letter that day and had no response for a MONTH. Finally this week that supervisor called me and said they would cancel the account if I could get a letter from Melissa stating what she heard in the pitch as well. I called Melissa to tell her what I needed her to do, she agreed and I thought the whole battle was over. Ten minutes later, I got another call from the Supervisor. Apparently in that time, Melissa had gotten home and saw she received the wrong movie and called to complain and tried to cancel her account as well, and talked to this same supervisor. He was now refusing to cancel either of our accounts! I was again upset and asked to speak to his supervisor--not only did he refuse to transfer me, but he HUNG UP ON ME!! What kind of customer service or professionalism is that?? From a supervisor?? No way was I about to accept that. I called back and asked the customer support rep for the supervisor of the person I just talked to and apparently he was gone for the day, but I did get his name. I then proceeded to write him a letter stating everything that had happened thus far and how frustrated and disappointed I was with his company. The next day, I received another call from the same supervisor I had been dealing with who said his super had just left his office and they had discussed my account in detail and would be cancelling both mine and Melissa's accounts. I just had to ship back to promo items I received and soon the nightmare would end. I had to get to the supervisors supervisor and argue with the company for TWO months before I was able to cancel what I was told in the beginning was NOT a contract. Never have I dealt with such a shady company. They have such a great product it is too bad they don't have the support to back it up and can't tell the truth about costs up front. If you want these movies in your home my advice is to buy them from Seagull Book or try to find them on E-Bay. Don't get sucked in to a contract with a company that teaches their salesmen to lie in order to gain business.

I Hope They Call Me On a Mission...

Yes, you read that title right. You may be thinking, but Kelly, you have already served a mission? Well, yes, that is true. However my younger sister, Leslie, has not! She turned 21 in September and decided it is now her turn to serve as Sister Freitag (2.0). Leslie received her call last week to Peoria, Illinois and will report to the MTC on February 17, 2010! I am so excited for her, I can hardly express. I have always teased Leslie about following in my footsteps, though this is one thing I didn't think she would follow. Leslie--soon-to-be--Sister Freitag-- has grown into a spiritual giant the last couple of years and I know she will be a blessing to the people in Illinois who are ready and waiting to hear the gospel. It has been fun to tell stories and share excitement of the things to come in mission life. I am also excited to be in the temple with her this weekend as she receives her own endowments. Les has been studying temple prep books and wanting to be there for a long time, and is an example to us all in the strong testimony she has of what takes place there. I will definitely miss emailing her everyday at work and calling or texting just to chat, but I know she will be where the Lord needs her most. Congratulations Leslie--we love you and may not be the best pen pals, but will support you the best we can!

Black Friday

I will admit it. I am a Black Friday-aholic! It is a day I look forward to all year, every year. Getting up in the wee hours of morning to stand in line and be one of the first people in the store, catch great deals, stand in line for hours to pay for them and make new friends the whole time. What could be better than that?

After getting called crazy many times for wanting to go and reasoning it as "tradition," I was finally able to convince both Luke and our sister-in-law, Stacy, to come and be introduced to the fabulous world of Black Friday Deals. Luke and I were up at 3 am and in line at Walmart shortly after. Stacy met us there and the three of us embarked on our journey. Stacy got a great deal on a gift for Jay (won't reveal just in case he happens to read my blog...don't want to ruin any surprises) and Luke and I got the camera we are after... that is supposed to be a surprise for me for Christmas! lol We picked up a few things for Stacy's kids as well, and Luke and I scored on deals for decorating our apt. While standing in line for the camera, I made "friends" with the couple behind me who said they had been shopping since midnight--that is when South Towne Mall opened here!

We finally got through the line and home by a little after seven, and poor Luke had to work that day! We went back to bed for a few hours before he got up to go to work. After he left Stacy called and wanted to go out again--I think I successfully converted her to the wonders of Black Friday. All in all, it was a successful day, and 92% of my shopping was finished!

Thanksgiving

We we re very blessed to actually be able to spend our first Thanksgiving together! Luke had to work the morning, but was off by 1 so we could eat with his family. I was a little nervous to go there due to some family drama, but things were nice and calm. We enjoyed a nice meal with Aunt Sherri's rolls---melt in your mouth delicious!-- and then games. That night we went to see Blindside--the new Sandra Bullock movie--highly recommended if you have not already seen it! We are greatful for so many things including: (but not limited to!) each other, our families and friends, our wonderful ward, and the gospel. We are looking forward to a great first CHristmas together both here with the Rasmussen side and a week early in vegas with my side!

Girl's Weekend!!

Mom, Lauren and Leslie all came up from vegas this weekend! Friday night we had a Pajama party at Melissa's house! It was so fun to have everyone together, and even Asher loved every minute of it! Due to being down one car, Melissa picked me up from work so Luke wouldn't be without a car all weekend. Asher was cracking me up! She had so much to say! On the way to their house we saw lots of Christmas lights already and was quick to point them out and say what colors they were, and make sure that I saw them too. Before mom and the girls arrived everything was "Kelwy can you help me?" or "I want Kelwy!" I loved every minute of it! That night we all sat aroud and caught up on teh happenings of our lives--Asher didn't want to go to bed for fear of missing something! The next morning we woke up to the pitter patter of little feet across the kitchen floor and little giggles as she peeked around the corner and saw all of her aunts sleeping--so fun! That day we all got to go to Time Out for Women and hear some amazing presentations. It was a great day of laughter and tender moments. After that we returned to Melissa's house for more time with the kids. Asher decided to play beauty parlor and found my make up bag. She loves all things pink right now so she pulled out everything pink and told me to put it on her. By the time she was done she had lipstick, eyeshadow and blush all pink! Then she wanted her nails done--in pink. After we did all that she decided to repay the favor and do my hair. She put in about 15 head bands and a pink clip and said I was done! The worst part was she ripped them all out at once--that kinda hurt! Then she had to go down the line and do grandma and Luaren's hair too. She is destined to be a beautician! After teh kids were picked up the girls were at it again! We had tickets to see "Nutcracker: Men in Tights" at Desert Star Theater. There is not much to say about the show...not at all what I expected and quite disappointing actually. We were falling asleep and at intermission Melissa asked one of the waitresses if it got any better! Even though it ended lamely, it was a fun weekend of just the Freitag girls, and I wouldn't have changed it!

Oh What A Night...

Luke and I don't see each other much during the week due to opposite work schedules, but we really look forward to Thursday nights when we can stay at home, watch "The Office" and just relax together as a nice start to our weekend. Last Thursday was no different. I was excited for just that--it was a cold day so I made Soup bowls for dinner and had everything ready when he got home. I was even decked out in my best sweats ready for a night of vegging. Luke text me about an hour before he got off saying his check engine light was on, and that he would come home for dinner and then go use his parents diagnostic checking machine to figure out what was going on. We had a nice meal and did squeeze in that weeks "Office" episode before he left to go down to the parents. About ten minutes later I get a frantic call asking if towing was covered on our insurance. His car had died on the side of the road about three miles away from his parents house. He managed to get it into a parking lot before calling. He called our insurance and towing was covered, but he needed me to come down as well. Did I mention it was a COLD rainy night? I drove down to get him as he was getting off the phone with the tow truck and we were told it would be an hour wait! Luckily that gave me time to go get us some hot chocolate and try to calm him down. The tow truck driver came and was awfully rude-- swearing and calling the car a piece of junk--even when we arrived to his parents house just dumped the car and left without another word to us! Good thing he didn't expect a tip! We pushed the car into a garage (where it will stay for awhile!) with the help of Luke's brother Bryan. We were talking to him about things that could be wrong, when Luke's dad came out of the house and told us not to panic when the ambulance came! Luke's mom had some bad blood clots in her legs and they were swelling up. The call-a-nurse hot line had said to get her to a hospital. A few minutes later, the firetruck and ambulance arrived to take her in. At that point there were several neighbors who had been awakened by all of our.. uh...excitement? Flashing lights and beeping of a tow truck and now the flashing lights of a fire truck and ambulance some neighbors thought there had been an accident! When everything was over it was almost 2 am... Luke and I offered to go to the hospital with his dad, but he declined. We went home for a few hours of sleep before getting up for a 7am follow up on his wisdom teeth. Needless to say we were a tad bit tired that day.... Jolene is ok for those of you wondering-- Myron brought her home the next morning. She had cellulitis and was put on some new meds for that, but is happily recovering at home. The car on the other hand will not recover for a little bit. The alternator is out for sure, but what we don't know is what ELSE will go wrong with it! Does anybody want a Trans AM???

Wisdom Teeth Woes

A few weeks ago Luke an I went to the dentist. I am one of those odd people who LOVES the dentist. I had braces for way too many years not to take care of my teeth now! My husband, on the other hand, dreads the dentist. But, I made him go--our insurance covers it so why not have our semi-annual cleanings? Well, the good news is I can still claim my record of never having a single cavity, and all the weird stuff I had done while still wearing braces is good. Luke, however, was not as lucky. He still has his wisdom teeth, which broke a crown as they are starting to press forward. So the doctor recommended getting them out before getting the crown replaced. I was excited--does that make me an awful wife to say I was excited to see my husband go under surgery? I was just excited to see what he would be like under the drugs! Well, the day of the surgery came and the Luke was a nervous wreck--even had a dream he died the night before. The doctor was running over an hour late which didn't help calm his nerves either. Two and a half hours later I was able to go in and see him, and I was disappointed--this office allows their patients to wake up from the drugs before letting the family see them so all the funny situations I had imagined didn't happen. I walked in the room and the nurse was placing new cotton in his mouth and he was very awake--even shot me a dirty look and said "You did this to me!" lol After the surgery he was doing well enough that he even went to the grocery store with me to pick out things he would be able to eat the next couple of days. Since he still had the cotton in his mouth he was signing to me which got us a lot of weird looks from people, but we were having fun! All in all he did pretty well--only took one pain pill, was only swollen for a day and only on one side of his mouth, and no bruising! I guess I am going to come up with some other evil plan to see him act goofy!

New Calling

I got a calling in our new ward--any guesses? If you said Relief Society (since I have been serving there since I was 18) Guess again! My first NON-RS calling is to be the Secretary in Primary! This is a little intimidating as I have not been in primary since I turned 12, and our wards is quite large. I will be teaching sharing time once a month, and am actually really excited! When the Bishops couselor called me he asked if we had kids or if we were pregnant--to which we answered no to both questions (in case you were wondering!)-- and then he said this will help you deicde if you want them or not, and prepare you if you do! So I am thinking oh my gosh we are going to be in nursery?? There are like 1000 babies in our ward! Don't panic--stay calm!!But, then he said we want you to be in Young Womens. I was not sure the connection there for a minute between young women and preparing for kids... teenagers maybe? Did he think we were going to adopt? or be foster parents? I guess he could see the confusion on my face and he looked down at his paper and said... I just told you the wrong calling! We want you in primary! It was a funny moment--a little overwhelming, but I am truly excited. I love RS, but I am ready for a new challenge. We have our first meeting tonight and then I will be a little more calm...maybe...

Job Updates

We have both been looking for second jobs to earn extra money for the Holidays and to help us get out of debt. There have been some stumbling blocks and we have good and bad news:

Good News: Luke got hired at Extend Health for seasonal employment
Bad News: He was never able to get his Insurance license

Good News: I got hired at H&R Block
Bad News: I am unable to attend the training as it is during my current work hours, and can't take the job

Good News: Luke applied for a job with the DMV that has awesome benefits and hours
Bad New: We never heard back... (Our hope is they are still going through their massive pile of applicantions to select finalists...)

Good News: I had an interview to be a part-time writer with the Valley Journals
Bad News: They picked someone with more newspaper experience (I ask the age old question--how am I to get experience if nobody will hire me? If anyone knows the real answer--please speak up!)

SO after all that... we are both working the same jobs. The final bits of good news are as follows:

Good News: Luke's family is starting their own insurance business and has asked me to get my license and assist them with marketing/advertising (if anyone needs insurance I am your girl!...or I will be as soon as I get my license!)

Good News: Luke signed on with Mona Vie as an independent distributor. (If anyone is looking to lead a healthier life...my husband is your guy!)

I am still learning that when one door closes, another one opens. We are hoping our new opportunities will keep us busy and help us achieve our goals!

Asher and Monsters

A few weeks ago I had Melissa and the kids over for dinner, and as usual Asher wouldn't eat a thing. So I told her if she didn't eat her dinner not only would she not get the candy I promised her, but that the monster would come out of my laundry room as well. All you moms are probably freaking out on me right now--yelling at your screen that is not something you say to a 3 year old! Well, I don't have kids, but I am learning my lesson. Asher did eat her dinner that night, got her candy and the monster didn't come out, but every time a floor board squeaked or there was a noise she didn't recognize she thought the monster was going to get her. I guess I am naive when it comes to kids because I thought she would forget it by the time she got home. Boy was I wrong! Melissa called me a few WEEKS later to thank me again for my monster comments. Apparently Asher had cried when going to bed the night before that the monster at Kelwy's house was going to get her. So, every time she has seen me since she has asked about the monster at my house. When we went to the Scarecrow Festival a week later, Asher freaked out about some of the kids dressed in costumes because they looked like monsters. She then had to tell me again that there was a monster at my house. I was actually excited because this was my chance to make it up to her so I told her the monster ran away from home. Never have I seen her so excited over monsters! She gave me a great big hug and ran over to tell Melissa "Mommy! The monster at Kelwy's house ran away! He won't get me no more!" Now Melissa gets to hear that every day. This past weekend mom and dad were in town and asked if they could have dinner at my house so I invited Melissa and the kids and made it a big party. As soon as Asher got there what did she ask about? You guessed it--my monster! This time I showed her the laundry room so she would know he really was "gone" and she asked where he went. So I said "he left on vacation so he wouldn't scare you any more!" All during dinner she asked where the monster went on vacation and if he was coming back. She got a little nervous to use the bathroom because she thought the monster was hiding in there, but I reminded her he went away. As she was leaving that night she gave me a hug and said "Kelwy I glad the monster went away. He didn't want to scare me huh!" There is the old addage that kids say the darndest things--so true in the case of Asher. I would love to spend a day in her mind to see how she thinks.

Phonex Halloween Party

My company goes all out for the holidays! This year our Halloween party was no different. We invite all families of employees to come play with us. Since Luke had to work, and we don't have kids I invited Melissa and Jaman and Asher. Mom and dad were in twon as well and got to join in the fun. We had a nice lunch of taco soup and witches fingers (breadsticks from Great Harvest designed to look like witches fingers) and then headed out to the warehouse to play games. We brought in love saks, blankets and pillows and threw them out on the floor for the kids to sit on as we watched It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown from our projector. We hung black lights and a disco ball back there as well to make it more festive. After the movie we had the kids go Skeleton Bowling, took them on a Haunted Scavenger Hunt around the office, decorated sugar cookies, and made scones. We had the kids vote on adult costumes-- we were all asked to come as someone from our era so first we went through and explained who we were as some of the kids wouldn't get it. We had Michael Jackson, Indiana Jones, Smurfette, I was Punky Brewster, and a few others, but the prize went to Smurfette-- Allison did a great job!

Dan & Charly's Halloween Wedding

As I mentioned in my last post, Luke's cousin got married on the 16th of October, and it really was a Halloween themed wedding, and everyone really did come in costume. For those of you who read my summer is gone post, I was outbid at the last minute on Batgirl and Joker so we settled for going as Darth Vader and Padme. This was quite ironic since I have never really seen Star Wars and didn't know who she was when Luke mentioned it. The costumes, however, were a hit! I am still meeting some of his family and it is not to a point where many of them recognize me yet so nobody really knew who we were since Luke had his mask on. We lit up the light sabers as we walked in and had everyones attention. The funny thing was we couldn't find the breathing machine as it had fallen down Luke's leg so it kept going off during the ceremony! I guess that's what you get for having a Halloween wedding!

The ceremony was cute--the bride and groom dressed in normal attire--he even had a top hat and cane! She could not stop giggling through the whole ceremony and you could tell they are very happy together. After the wedding we went to dinner with some of Luke's family--we got some great reactions as we were sitll in costume. Luke's little nephew wouldn't come near him when he was in his mask, but other little kids were delighted as he waved to them.

As some of you may remember we dropped our camera on our honeymoon so the only pictures we are taking are from Luke's phone and have had a hard time uploading them to a computer so I will have to post them later. I have a hunch though that I will be getting a video camera that also takes still pictures for Christmas... Just a hunch though!

Scarecrow Festival

This weekend while babysitting Luke's niece and nephew I took the kids down to the scarecrow festival at thanksgiving point. We had a lot of fun taking pictures with the pumpkins and scarecrows, playing games and bouncing in the jump houses. Melissa came with Asher and Jaman and the they had so much fun! Asher and Desiree were instant friends at our wedding and ask about each other all the time. They were so cute together! Asher is really scared of monsters right now and some of the other kids there were in costume. At one point she ran out of the bouncy house so scared because one kid was dressed as a skeleton in there and she thought he was a monster. It took a lot of convincing for her to realize it was another kid her age, but she didn't want to jump in that house any more. I still have to get the pictures from my Melissa and Stacy's cameras, but the kids were a lot of fun!

summer has come and gone

Well, we are all settled in our new apartment. I finally got pictures hung and Luke got through his long honey-do list, but we are settled. We had a lot of fun this summer, though it went by way too fast. We got gipped out of a whole month since it rained all of June. Yesterday we celebrated our six month anniversary! We are adjusting to marriage well, but time really flies as we get older! We are enjoying the beginning of what looks to be a quick fall and the colors are beautiful! Halloween is looking to be fun as we prepare our first couples costume. We will be attending Luke's cousins Halloween themed wedding where everyone is asked to wear a costume of some sort. We will be debuting our coupledom as Joker and Bat girl (if our bid goes through on Ebay!) Cross your fingers we get it on time!

Tropical Snowman

There are a lot of kids in our new neighborhood and so we see chalk drawing, kids on bikes, hopscotch and things all the time around the complex, but today I came home to some kids either missing winter or just being really prepared. Check out the picture of the tropical snowman--all thats missing is the snow! SO cute!

One Year in Salt Lake?

A year ago today I moved to Salt Lake! It is amazing how much my life has changed in one years time! In May of last year my mom, me and my cousin Wendy were in town for a family funeral. We attended a BYU ward with my friend Holly, and I had the feeling I needed to move here soon. I fought it, but the feeling did not go away, something was tugging at me to come here. So I put out some resumes not thinking much of it, and got a call back from Roger Moore, VP of Sales and Marketing at Phonex. The next thing I knew I was here for an interview. I told Heavenly Father that if he wanted me here so badly that he would help things to work out--I would get the job, find an apartment and the move would go smoothly. The day I flew out for the interview my flight was delayed making me 3 hours later than planned. I thought at that point it was a sign that things were not meant to be. It worked out that when I finally arrived at the office for the interview everyone was there to greet me. I was there for 3 hours and met everyone in the company--all 11 of them! ha ha. Roger offered me the job before I left and I knew then I would be coming to Salt Lake. The next day I was driving around and found some cute apartments, on a golf course set back in a nice neighborhood. They were the only apartments I toured. Later that day I signed the lease just before flying back to Vegas. This was really happening. Two weeks flew by and before I knew it I was quickly becoming a resident of Utah. But coming here was not all the Lord had in store for me. Two months after moving in I got lonely as I now lived alone and didn't know anyone here so I, the queen of anti-online dating, got myself a profile. The next day I received a wink, and over the next month started chatting with and emailing Lukews6. Exactly one month later we met in person and talked for hours. We went out four times that first week before I went home for Thanksgiving for a week. When I got back everything else fell into place--he met my parents and after three weeks of dating we were already discussing marriage. We got engaged one month later, and married 3 months after that. And this weekend, on my one year mark in SLC-- we moved into a new apartment! It is amazing to me how the Lord blesses our lives. I am so glad for the guidance he gives me and that he knew me well enough to bring me here and lead me to my wonderful husband. We are excited to be in our new place, though we are far from being settled. We will be asking "Where is...?" for awhile as neither one of us realized how much stuff we had, but we are excited for this new adventure in our life!

Luke's Lead Foot

Luke came home from work very upset last week as he received his first ever speedning ticket! He has had a perfect record until now so I had to welcome him to the speeders club. I wanted to throw a party and put up speed limit signs everywhere with big red X marks through them, but he didn't think it was that funny. I offered to bake him a cake saying welcome to speeders annonymous... but he didn't think that was funny either...

As I teased him it made me remember my first ticket. I was a missionary in Rapid City. My companion and I (Brownie!) were on our way home from zone conference-- of all places-- and got caught in a speed trap. The officer never got out of his car, but instead made me come sit in his (awkward!). He proceeded to write me out a ticket and said if it had not been for the speed trap set up he would let me go, but would have to write me a ticket now. I handed him my Nevada drivers license and he was confused since I was driving a car with SD plates. I explained that I was a missionary (hoping he would let me go already) and he said then I should be a better example of someone obeying the laws of the land! So I got my first ever ticket and was not allowed to drive for the remaining half of my mission! When we got back to the trailer (yes, thats right I said trailer) I had to call president and tell him. I told him I got a ticket on the way home and he said "Sister Freitag, it's not that long of a drive!" Our mission was so big we had elders driving 4 hours to come to the conference, and I lived 30 minutes away! At least the experience added some good pictures to my missionary scrapbook...and the original ticket for all my posterity to see lol

As I shared that story with Luke he cheered up. I couldn't be mad at him... when I moved here last year I got two in one week... okay it was more like two in two days... But I have learned my lesson to slow down and I think he will now too!

No More Mouse, No More House

For the last two months I have been working really hard at the basement that we were going to rent when our lease is up next month. We have been preparing for and planning on this house since a few months before our wedding and were oh-so-excited to move in! I even signed the paperwork at our current apartment letting them know they could release it because we were definitely leaving. The new place would be in the basement of one of Luke's parents friends house, right around the corner from them. Nobody has lived there in about a year and a half so it needed some love and fixing up. Jolene, Stacy, Melissa, Myron, Bryan, Luke and I have all spent time over there cleaning, painting, killing spiders, and doing handywork so the place would be ready to be lived in when our lease is up. About two weeks ago, while at the house we found these little black things all over the apartment. I freaked out and thought we had a mouse. I made Luke go buy mouse traps and set them up, and no longer wanted to go there by myself to work on the house for fear of finding a mouse--dead-- in one of the traps.

Well, the good news is the problem is not a mouse. We have an infestation of potato bugs! I had never heard them called that until now--they are rolly pollies in my world-- all over the house! With some vaccuming and spraying the problem was quickly taken care of so I could get back to work on preparing the house.

Last Saturday Luke and I went over there early in the morning to paint and get a few things done before going on the rest of our errands for the day. Currently, Luke's cousin and brother live upstairs. To put it kindly, Luke's cousin and I don't care for one another. That is a MAJOR understatement, but is the nicest way I can put it. We have had some problems in the past, and Saturday morning would have been no different, except this time the conflict ended with me in tears. I am not a crier. I HATE crying in front of people. This should be an exciting time for us moving into our first home together, and I should not have to dread getting off work and going home in fear of who is already there. SO Luke and I made the decision that it will be better for us as a couple (and for my sanity!) not to live with this cousin. Even with all the work we have put in over there, we are bettering our life by not putting ourselves in a bad situation.

Since Saturday, we have been scouring KSL, Craigslist, Forrent.com and the Apartment Guide. We spent hours researching, driving around to look at places, calling for availability, and yesterday we found it. The Perfect Place. An apartment that we can afford, with washer and dryer hookups, on the third floor, and it has a ceiling fan! The benefits are that the complex has a heated pool, and a year round hot tub!--as well as plenty of parking and being set back off the main road, but still having a good view of the Jordan River. We also had a minimum deposit and get one month of FREE rent for signing a year long lease! We get the keys on August 20th, and are both very excited. This is how moving to your first home should feel! So, no more mouse, and no more house, but yay to a new (clean) place and the beginning of digging ourselves out of debt!

All bets are off!

We did it! I went for a whole month without chocolate, and Luke without soda.

Last night we stayed up until midnight so we could end our challenges together. At 1201AM we broke into the buckeyes Lauren brought me three weeks ago that have been sitting in my freezer ever since. The peanut butter part was delicious, but after a month without the chocolate didn't taste as good as I had hoped. Luke has not had soda yet, but thinks he will swear it off except for on occasion. He has felt healthier without it and has dropped 10 pounds! I have also lost four pounds in the last month, but am not sure if that is in direct relation to giving up chocolate or not. We had a lot of fun teasing each other with this challenge and are now trying to come up with a new one for each other for the next month. This is my prize for giving up something I loved:

Luke also get a prize--he wanted some part for his car that I dont know what it is! So Yay to both of us for willpower! Any suggestions for the next challenge are welcomed!

Asher-isms

Last Friday Melissa brought the kids over while helping me paint at our "new" house (It is a rental that we will be moving in next month, but nobody has lived there for about a year and it is quite dirty. The owner is letting us paint and fix it up like our own!) Jaman and Asher were watching movies on Melissa's laptop while she and I were painting and wiping down walls. Luke actually got the day off and came over to help as well. Asher LOVES him, and always asks me where he is if he is not there. At one point I called him "babe" and Asher put her hands on her hips and said "Kewwy, he is NOT a babe"

Later I gave her some kool-aid and told her not to spill. Her favorite word right now is "why" so she asked and I told her because it would make a mess and then I would be mad at her. She actually stoped the Why's at one and drank her juice--when she was finished she was very proud of herself and said "Kewwy--you not mad at me--I didn't spill!" Cutest thing ever! I think even if she had spilt I couldn't be mad at that she is too dang cute!

The funniest one was when I sent Luke to get us some pizza for lunch. She asked where he went and I told her to get us some pizza. She said her favorite word "why" and I said because he is hungry! and she continued-- "why" so I said Because he is a man! Then she repeated "Wuke is a hungy man?" I laughed so hard when he got back she said it to him--Wuke you is a hungy man! and wanted to say it again to me, and Melissa. She is so funny and always has something new and funny to tell us when she is around.

Burial At Sea

Last night when Luke got home from work I was asleep. He came in and woke me up and was very upset. Our Beta fish, George, that I bought him for his birthday had died. George had been acting weird lately, and honestly we had kind of neglected him while we were away for the weekend. I thought maybe he was sleeping, but after trying to arouse him it was evident he was gone. So, our final salute to our first pet. He was a good fish and gave us some good laughs. Asher loved him, Lauren hated him, Leslie never got to "meet" him. Luke apologized for neglecting him as he had a toilet-side burial. Farewell our fishy friend!

Freedom, Four Wheelers and Fireworks!

Fourth of July this year was lots of fun. We drove up to Logan to meet up with our friends Rich & Alana. Alana and I served on the mission together so it is always fun to get together and catch up with her. We took her parents four wheelers out up in Logan canyon for my first four wheeling experience! We had so much fun, and even crossed the border into Idaho so I can officially say I have been there now!


Then we drove up to Gibson Lakes and even had to go through some snow to get there! This is us in front of the more impressive of the two lakes

On the way back Luke let me drive a little, and those things are harder than they look! I was a little sore afterwards, but we had a great time. I did pretty good for my first time until we hit the bumps in the road--I was going about 25 and hit a dip funny and didn't tip, but took us on a detour through the bushes! Luke was holding on to me yelling "Honey! Honey get on the road!" I gave him a good scare, but I got us back without throwing us off. Still, I don't think I will be driving another four wheeler for a long time!

That night we picked up some pizza and played card games while we camped out waiting for the fireworks to start in the tiny town of Lewiston. I LOVE fireworks and think it is my favorite part of the fourth. I was a little disappointed as this is my first year (except for the mission where we were in bed before they started anyway) not in Vegas for the awesome shows. Alana assured me
I would not be disappointed, and it turns out I wasn't! They put on a good show in tiny little towns! We were laying in the grass and it looked like the fireworks were right above us! Alana said sometimes the ash even falls right on you! But, I have to give credit to lewiston for putting on a not-as-lame-as-I-thought-it-would-be show!

Now for the freedom part... I am truly greatful to be an American where we have freedoms, and for those who are fighting or have fought for us to keep those freedoms. We are truly blessed (or spoiled) as a nation. and I am greatful for a day to celebrate that! Happy Birthday America!

Rain brings beauty

Finally something good came of all this rain! When we were at the Mayan I didn't get any pictures of the rainbows, but these were passed on to me today by a friend at work. Both rainbows were full arches, and gorgeous! Maybe that means our rainy June is finally over!

Happy Birthday Asher!

Asher turns 3 today! We had a little family party last night while the parents were in town. Luke and I had bought her a make up set and she opened it second adn immediately wanted to play with it, but was told she had to open the rest of her gifts first. She is so smart--she tore into everything else and before even seeing what it was would throw it on the couch and go on to the next thing. As soon as she was done she was asking for the make up to be opened and wouldn't put it down! We had to leave a few minutes later, but she had already used a lot of the make up in the kit! She loves make up so much, and the color pink that I am thinking about recruiting her to sell Mary Kay! How could anyone resist this?

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

If anyone is living in or coming to visit Utah any time soon, please take an hour and go walk through the LDS Oquirrh Mountain Temple. Located in South Jordan this will be the 130th temple in the world, making the city of South Jordan the only temple in the world with two temples. Before the tour a 10 minute video is shown on the purpose of temples, and the work that is performed in them. You do not have to be a member of the church or even know much about it to experience this grand building. The open house runs Monday-Saturday through August first, with tours beginning every ten minutes from 8am-850pm. Tickets can be found on www.lds.org/reservations. This is an opportunity you don't want to miss!

James Blonde

My parents were in town this weekend for Asher's birthday, but we were also able to celebrate Father's Day and my dad's birthday just a little late. Friday when I got off work everyone came and met me at my apartment. The kids get bored pretty easy at my house since we dont have any toys, but this time they were hilarious! Asher has discovered a new love for Luke's supersoaker and wants to spray it off the balcony every time she comes over! She will come in and maybe give me a hug then run straight for the balcony and tell me to fill the gun! She will then spray it through each slat on the balcony and try to hit the trees, and the house. That alone could entertain her for hours. Jaman usually comes in and signs to his "friends" meaning he is bored, but this time, he came dancing into the apartment, gave me a hug and wanted to dance around! I had just received a package and inside were the packing peanuts--he was fascinated by them. He threw them up in the air and when they landed would roll around in them! So as he was rolling in a handful I went over and dumped the box on him and he LOVED it! He threw it up and palyed in it as if it was snow. Asher is also learning Ring around the Rosie, and papa taught her duck, duck, goose. Then, she came up with "cows in the cornfields" out of nowhere and had us all cracking up! I am so glad the kids were entertained easily, I just wish I would have had a video camera!

That night we all went to the Mayan for dinner. This is a Mexican restaurant that is set up like Mayan ruins. They even have cliff divers as entertainment! They just got a new chef and changed their whole menu and the whole experience is fun now! As we came out it had been raining, and we saw not only ONE, but TWO FULL rainbows across the mountains! It was beautiful, and everyone was in awe and getting out cameras. After dinner Luke and I took dad to see "James Blonde" at Desert Star Theater. This is a parody theater in Murray that is hilarious! The full title of the show was "James Blonde, Agent 7-11, case of Casino REAL" as you can see a lot of it is a play on words--one of my favorite quotes "Agent 7-11 is all about convenience!" The whole play adds in local humor and some mormon humor-- when they are talking about Blonde's mission the piano player started playing "I hope they call me on a mission" and the supervisor says "I am going to fire you and hire a catholic!" They also make references to most Bond movies, and when they miss their lines--the improv is on the spot and funny. One of the guys was wearing false teeth and having a hard time keeping them in--at one point they fall out and as he puts them back in he says "thats the last time I buy the Wal-Mart brand of Polygrip!" Anyone who needs a good laugh should go see this show!

Free Fridays at Shelf Reliance!

Are you big into food storage and have no place to put it? Are you wanting to start your food storage and wondering WHERE to put it? Well, look no further-- Shelf Reliance has a new promotion where they will be giving away new prizes every two weeks. The current prize is a 72" Harvest shelf and winners will be announced on Friday June 26 at noon mountain time. Follow the link below to find out more details and enter the contest!


http://www.shelfreliance.com/blog/index.php/2009/06/15/free-friday-bringing-harvest/comment-page-62/#comment-3211

Challenges and Cravings

Luke and I struck up a deal this month. We are both trying to eat more healthy so we gave each other challenges to help overcome bad habits. I challenged him to stop drinking soda for a month, and he challenged me to not eat ANY chocolate for a month! Today is day 16, and we are both doing well. Luke has lost 7 lbs already, and chocolate is not looking as tempting any more! Even when the office had treats all week to celebrate being out of bankruptcy--chocolate cake, eclairs, brownies, chocolate doughnuts... oh yeah---I resisted them all!! Saturday we were shopping at Target and they have samples in the super stores now. As soon as we walked in the first sample was new flavors or Mountain Dew and I laughed and said ha ha ha you can't have any! But, guess what--the next sample was ice cream--my other weakeness and both flavors put out to sample had chocolate. Luke picked up a sample and waved it in my face-MMMM Chocolate! But I was good and resisted. We bought popcicles instead :) July 9 is what we are shooting for and if we both live up to it we get a special prize!

Weekend adventures

This past weekend we went to Lagoon--for those of you who are not Utah natives or don't frequent visits here--that is the only amusement park in the state. It is small, but we had lots of fun! Our favorite ride was wicked--a rollercoaster that shoots you straight up then over a very small peak and straight back down before spinning in all directions! What a ride--that one alone made it worth the trip! We also got soaked on a ride called cliff hanger--so soaked that we were still damp when we left the park at closing! It was definitely an adventure.

Saturday we spent some time in downtown salt lake and went to an open house of the new church history library--that we didn't really intend on going too it was just the only parking lot for free parking so we thought we would check it out! The older missionary guarding the lot didnt think we would enjoy it so we wanted to prove him wrong. The church goes all out when it comes to history! We were amazed by many of the restorative techniques. While on the tour we ran into a couple that used to be in my ward in Vegas--she was actually my young womens leader growing up! When she was in the ward they only had one little boy and now they have five kids! They have moved all over from Vegas, to Georgia, all over Utah and now are getting ready to move back to Nevada. Such a small world to run into them there, but very fun. We must have been a lot younger then because when I said Leslie was turning 21 this year her husbands eyes about popped out of his head! After the library we went over and toured the Beehive house, but as we were leaving the heavens decided to dump buckets on us again! We danced and ran to the car, but were again sopping wet by the time we got there! 

Another new adventure for me this weekend I cut Luke's hair. I should have taken before and after pictures and had his brother take pictures during the cut, but sadly enough I didn't! I was pretty nervous--his mom is a hairdresser, but is out of town and he didnt want to wait any longer so he had me do it. I had never cut a mans hair so he guided me through it and Dallas helped me touch it up. It was fun, and he looks clean cut again! 

Husbandly love

My husband loves me! Thursday night was another funny first for us-- I sent Luke to the store for ice cream and tampons and he went with a smile on his face! If that doesn't say I love my wife, I don't know what does! We truly will live Happily Ever After! 

Random...

SO the last couple weeks have been very busy for us as we continue to adjust to married life. We have been very busy! Luke's security job has given us some hassles, but FINALLY put him on a steady schedule which has been so nice! He now has Thursday and Fridays off  so we actually get one weekend night together, and most of Saturday morning as well as getting to go to church together. That has been a blessing. He has also been hired on with Extend Health to sell Health insurance. That will not start until August so he has all summer to attend classes that will prepare him to take the test for his license, and then actually take the class. Once he is settled in and fully trained in insurance he can quit security forever--HALLELUJAH!! We are so happy. ALso in August we will be moving into a house. We will be renting the basement portion, and Luke's brother and cousin will live in the upstairs. We are very excited to be in a bigger space for less rent. The landlord has given us permission to paint so we will be able to make it our home. We will also be right around the corner from his parents which we are very excited about. 

Also, as of June 9 my company will be officially emerging from chapter 11 bankruptcy! They had actually filed last July before I even started, but things went very smoothly, and we are coming out a very clean company. We have had many parties the last week to celebrate. We also just completed a very fun wellness program that as we all finished better than expected lead to bonuses! I am very happy at this company and am so glad I followed the spirit to move here. My life has completely changed in the last year. I moved to a state where I didn't have any friends to work for a company that was in bankruptcy, I moved in to my own apartment for the first time, and ended up finding the love of my life and getting married. I am so thankful for the ways that the Lord proves he knows and loves each of his children. There is only one thing more that would mean my life had changed in every aspect in a year, but we are not quite ready to be parents just yet! 

25th birthday madness!

So I am a little behind on blogging... but now I have the pictures to go with my posts. Luke had a birthday shortly after we got married--25!! That called for a celebration! I spoiled him rotten! I forgot something I needed and he was off that day so he brought it to me at work which is where he got his first gift of the day-- a beta fish! The story here is that he wanted them as table decorations at our reception, and all of the women shot him down. SO, he still got one...just a few weeks later! The newest member of our family is George, and he likes to hide from us except at feeding time! 

Luke was working nights at the time so the night before I stayed up late and decorated the apartment with happy birthday stuff. I had some caution tape that says birthday zone and off limits all over it so i taped it across our front door so that when he came in it would be all decorated. He got home from work at 7am as I was getting ready to leave and asked what I had done--He loved it! I got off work early that day and came home for more surprises. He wanted a Twix cake so I improvised and made a cake with caramel in the center and then frosted it and put mini twix all around the edges.  We were having a party that night so I also made cupcakes--it was supposed to be a car party (which didn't exactly happen) but I put oreos with a white lifesaver in the middle of them on top of the cupcakes to look like old white walled tires. I had a little fun! 

white walled tire cupcakes

the twix cake, and George (the newest member of our family!)

When I got home and woke him up it was time for presents! Luke hasn't had a new suit in forever so I found a great deal and surprised him! He also got a portable DVD player, and a new taillight for his car ( he has been wanting one since we started dating and I got a FABULOUS deal on EBay. My mother taught me how to shop!)

this picture is funny cause it makes him look like he has a fro with the shadows in the background

That night we had family and friends over for the party. We had a lot of fun. Our nieces were a highlight of the party--they both LOVED the noisemakers and party hats and chased each other around all night. 

Asher with chocolate all over her face, and favorite new toys in hand

Asher and Desiree

All in all it was a great day, and our first birthday as a married couple! Funny, mine we got engaged and when his came we had been married for two weeks! 

More Honeymoon pictures

We dropped our camera on  our first day in vegas so we bought a disposable camera for the rest of our trip which I FINALLY got developed! Here are some of our Sea World pictures

we bought a souvenir sea world picture frame and this was the winning picture of us to go in it 

SHAMU

The Dolphin show was my favorite--sorry Shamu

I forgot what kind of animal this is, we just wanted the sea world sign in the background as an option for our photo frame :)

The pregnant Polar bear

Isn't my husband cute?

Utah Reception

After returning from our long drive, we were excited to have our first night in our apartment! The only problem was that the next morning we woke up to a phone call at 7 am! Luke's cousin was moving to a new apartment that day and needed help. Luke got up and went to help move the monstrosity his cousin claims as a TV down three flights of stairs, and ended up pulling out his back! This also happened to be the day of our open house for his family and friends here in Utah. Needless to say, he was uncomfortable the whole night.

My whole family came up from Las Vegas to celebrate with us once again. Melissa even made us a cupcake tower with cute toppings in our colors. 

My niece Asher, and Luke's niece Desiree are now best friends--they danced and played together most of the night. Asher also loves her papa so when she was not with Desiree she was with papa. At one point I went over to talk to dad, and dance with them and she pushed me away and said "No! My papa! You go dance over there with your flowers!" and pointed to the corner of the room! She is such a funny girl.

Desiree

Asher

When You're the best of friends...

Asher & Papa

Lauren & Garn 

Mom & Dad

(Is that a smile on his face??)

Melissa, Curry, Asher & Jaman

Freitag Girls

Love this one of Melissa & Jaman

Proud Grandma & papa

I met lots of new family and friends, as we stayed in our reception line most of the night. We decided not to do the garter toss, and boquet toss and cake eating again since we had already done that in Vegas. We made this decision about half way through the reception though, so Dallas and Kate had snuck away to buy me a garter and it was cutting off the circulation in my leg the whole time! I was glad when we decided not to do all those things so I could take it off, and I really wanted to keep this bouquet as it was my favorite of the three I had!

Luke's grandpa passed away about two years ago, but when his sister showed up at the reception--the last of grandpa Doyle's family-- Luke and I had a tender moment as he missed grandpa.

Since nobody decorated our car at the first reception, Dallas, Kate and Lauren got us this time. Luke was actually really disappointed that nobody got us the first time, and was glad to see the car decked out the second time around. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of that, but we had fun driving away with two big hearts drawn on over where our faces were in the window!

I had so much fun the weeks leading up to and the week after our wedding, and thanks to all who could come and make our day even more special. I am really excited to have my new family so close since mine is so far away!

Rasmussen Girls

My new sister-in-law Stacy and Nephew Jayson

Mother-in-law and I share a special moment

Stacy LOVED dancing with the kids

Both sets of parents

I see a trend.. moms with big smiles, and dads sick of having pictures taken!

Mom and her sisters, Marilyn & Karen all wearing my colors!

And a few more of the Happy couple!!