August 2014 - The one month of the year we actually travel.

August 2014- We left REXBURG!
We had a fun time in August we went to the Oregon Coast with my family for the Willmore Family Reunion. It was a great time. It was a long drive, I slept the majority of the time in the car. I get car sick so the easiest way to avoid it is to sleep and it makes the car ride go by real quick. Besides having a " bladder that mattered"- as my mom would say... we made plenty of pit stops along the way. A few highlights were the fish hatchery, proposal rock, deep sea fishing for the boys- ask Mitch how that went... he got a little bit sea sick, but he caught a fishy!

 The ocean was freezing cold. So no we did not swim. We relaxed on the beach, spent time with family eating yummy meals and laughing. We made some great memories. The Willmore family is full of some really sweet and special people. I am so grateful to be apart of such a fabulous clan. My Grandma Reeser has raised some great boys and a sweet girl and now her posterity has grown. I am so thankful for my Grandma- she is a wonderful example of love, dedication, and putting family first always.

7 week break for Mitch = landscaping and a beard all day every day.

We also went to Bear Lake with the Merrill Family- it was freezing and rainy the whole time we were there so we didn't get in the water besides using the paddle boards and kayaks. There was a hot tub and pool close to where we were staying so we spent the majority of our time there. We went to The Pickleville Playhouse. It is a lot like the playmill in West Yellowstone - so naturally we loved it, but it was so much more hilarious. We saw the production Who Shot Juanito Bandito. It was so entertaining! Of course we got some raspberry milkshakes- twice. They were divine. We had a fun time in Garden City with everyone that came. We did miss Brittany and Quinn though!

Before August ended we spent the last weekend up at the Family Cabin in Island Park- Just Mitch and I. It was relaxing, yes we watched the BYU football game and it was a lot of fun just to spend time together and do absolutely nothing. Island Park is beautiful and you could feel that Fall is coming!

August marked me @ 7 months pregnant. Baby is healthy and cute as ever and making my belly grow! My family members and friends held a great baby shower for me. We got SPOILED. Our little girl sure is going to be wearing some cute clothes, but more importantly she is already loved by so many people and I cannot wait for her to meet them all. I have been blessed through this pregnancy and can't wait for her to join our little family.

It is crazy to think last August we were in New York City. We have had a great summer 2014.

Merril life in May, June, July 2014

So April through July were really great! Better late then never! Mitch and I finished up the Spring semester with some pretty good grades. Which is surprising because the Spring Semester is theee hardest to stay motivated because summer weather sets in. Even though I was working all day every day it was hard to come home to homework when the weather was so inviting and we wanted to go outside and play. Needless to say we got our homework done assignments turned in and tests taken, but definitely didn't get our nice tan skin like summers in the past. I guess that is part of growing up. The best part of the end of the Spring semester was the moment I got on I-learn 2 or 3 days after the semester ended and my "student" tab had changed to "former student" That is the moment when I screamed so happily "halleluiah!!!" I was done with school. It was my last semester as a BYU-Idaho nursing student. BYU-Idaho provided me with a great education. So to those who find themselves complaining about BYU-Idaho try to find the positive and look for ways that the school blesses your lives, because it did mine.

I earned my BSN degree in nursing and I am so grateful for all of those who supported me through it. It is possible to go to school, work full time, be a relief society president and be a happy(most of the time pregnant) person. I don't know maybe ask Mitch how I did, he may give you a more honest response.  Mitch is now a junior! He is getting closer and closer! Time is going by quickly. So to be honest my pregnancy has gone by so quickly. I think from January to July it didn't really hit me that I was actually expecting a sweet little baby girl because I was so distracted with good things to keep me busy. 

 In May we went to Arizona to Quinn and Brittany's wedding. It was SO beautiful and pretty hot. Brittany and Quinn were so happy and it was such a fun weekend with the Merrill family. They were married in the newly dedicated Gilbert Temple. All temples are very beautiful, but this one had a majestic staircase inside and was so beautiful.  Brittany's family was so sweet and it was fun to meet them. We got to eat some Paletas Betty Mexican Popsicle. Talk about best thing on the planet. I got 2 and didn't regret it one single bit.

June was filled with another beautiful wedding of Karli and Brady Walker. Karli has been my life long best friend. She married Brady Walker in the Salt Lake temple. They were a stunning couple and seemed so happy. It was so special to be at these two weddings to support some special people who we love so much.

Mitch and Mom- we went to the Red Iguana,  delicious Mexican food.

Luckily Mitch was actually fun to be around on this 4th of July- you can read my post from last July.. But if not I'll remind you that Mitch had some pretty serious bites and was completely miserable. Looking back now, we laugh at how horrible it was. Some evidence in the picture below...
One thing I have learned about Mitch, he doesn't have the typical reaction. He has really,really, really bad reaction and allergies and his body likes to manifest them very well. Whether its a bug bite, misquote bite, cat or dog hair, anything really his body gives a pretty good response. Also benadryl knocks him out almost immediately. It's like his kryptonite or something ;)

Then my belly started to really pop at the end of July beginning of August. Like people were actually staring as my stomach. Being at work surrounded by little kiddos is probably my favorite place to receive staring eyes. Kids that are 5 years old and up like to look at it and the parents are even better at checking out my belly.  I smile and in my head say, "Yes, I am pregnant, but still completely capable of giving your child a shot." All the wonderful nurses I work with have been so great to hold down the legs for our kinder-vaccines, since those 4,5 and 6 year olds tend to freak out once they realize that getting shots for school isn't really what they expected. The Doctor's I work with have been so great as well. I work with the best Pediatricians in Rexburg. 

This is completely random , but we went to two country concerts this year so far.. Lady Antebellum and Scotty McCreery. Great times. Loved them, but loved my date more. 

July we made it to West Yellowstone and we drove through the park. We saw a whole herd of buffalo! Even little baby ones. Mitch and I had to go to Bear World a week later to actually see Bears and some more wildlife. Bear World was pretty fun and we watched the baby cubs for about an hour.

May-June-July was pretty great!

Jan- April 2014

So 2014 didn't start off the greatest in the "blog" area, probably because this year has been so fun filled with 12(Mitch) +9 (Becca) credits, a full time job, relief society president and Sunday school teacher responsibilities, family, cooking dinner, grocery shopping, laundry and trying to keep our little apartment presentable. We have kept ourselves occupied with i-learn, the testing center and late night cramming along with early morning tutoring. I am so proud of Mitch. This semester has definitely been a difficult one. Chemistry 105 and memorizing all the bones and muscles of the body and then of course understanding the physiology of the human body- its not easy. He has also been teaching Sunday school every other Sunday for the past 4 months. Mitch has taught me that when you put your priorities first, like Heavenly Father- everything has a way of working out. At times this semester I tried to stay awake doing homework and working out after a loooonng day of well child checkups, kids coughing in your face and giving 100 shots. I often ended up falling asleep on the couch as Mitch would lay on the floor staring at chemistry equations that I don't even try to understand. Aside from all the hustle and craziness, we have remained in love. Even more in love actually. Our love has grown deeper and we have come to know each other so much better. He listens to my drama at work and I try and console him before and after a very difficult test. We care. We pray for each other on such a personal level- nothing else matters as long as Heavenly Father hears my pleads to help Mitch do well on his test as I am driving to work.

January we celebrated Mitch's 23rd birthday. He is getting older and definitely wiser too! We went to Idaho Falls to eat, came home and had friends over for cake and ice cream. Mitch got clothing, a new razor and some awesome gift cards. We had the single man crew (All of Mitch’s buddies who are not yet married from Madison High School) here with a few of our married friends in our ward as well. It was hard to pick and choose who to invite… So we just invited everyone! The more the merrier! We had so much fun, played the bean bag game, Mafia, laughed and got a great dose of sugar from cake and ice cream. It was a fun and entertaining night. On another exciting note! Quinn and Brittany Got engaged! We are sooo happy for them! The wedding will be in Arizona on May 3rd! They are so fun to be around and such a cute couple! I am so excited to have another sister in law! Looking forward to wedding festivities.
February is the month of love. Everyone seems to be a little bit sweeter and a little bit more sentimental. We got to go to Kirt and Hailey's wedding the day after Valentines day! We are so happy and excited for them, such a beautiful and fun couple. I was spoiled rotten for my birthday. Woke up to a beautiful new dresser with a beautiful mirror for our bedroom. I love furniture.. it’s not a good addiction. We had a delicious brunch at the Merrill's Jerry's Birthday is on the 20th and Wyatt's is on the 15th so we all got together. Then we went and watched Rhett's basketball game- always a good giggle and fun to cheer on those 8 year old boys learning to gain their coordination and skills. Marianne picked out a beautiful clock for me. I love it. Mitch refers to it as Cogsworth of off Beauty and the Beast. But I love it and it looks wonderful hanging on our kitchen wall. I had Mitch rearrange our new furniture and hang it on the wall as soon as we got home! I was so excited! Then we headed to Olive Garden- A favorite. waited too long, but we couldn't resist the bread sticks and salad. It was delicious. Went to a movie- I fell asleep. Monuments of Men- it was good- according to Mitch. :)

These Pix were taken last Summer. Too fun not to share!

 

Sometimes I forget to buy milk for 3 days and Mitch leaves his cereal on the counter because he can't eat it. Haha poor kid.

My Cute In-laws!

March- March Madness. Lots of fun and lots of birthday cake. Lots of fun surprises too! March was really fun and I can't believe it is already over. Mitch filled out my bracket for March Madness this year and his own as well so really he has two chances... We are still in the competition! If only Florida wins we have a chance! March kept us busy with birthday weekends, and school coming to an end. It was a great month. I also got to go with my mom, aunt Liz, Kristin, and Sara to Time out for women. It was such a fun and uplifting weekend. A fun weekend with the girls. Beth and Jared went to California, so she missed out and we missed her. March went by really quick, but I am glad. Because today marks me at 10 weeks and 3 days. Yup. Mitch and I are expecting a baby. Due October 27th 2014. We couldn't be more excited. Miracles do happen. I have learned that so many people can give you advice of when to have a baby and when not to have a baby and accomplish all you want to before you start a family., and so on and so forth. but really it is between you and your spouse and Heavenly Father. I enjoy listening to and hearing that advice because everyone has great advice. But do they know that sometimes your told at 18 years old that you will probably have to take fertility medication and have a very difficult time getting pregnant when that part of your life comes because your ovaries have cysts on them? A lot of people can judge a couple for having a baby too soon. But when your Mitch and I and you find out your pregnant without having to do all the blood work, tears, semen analysis (haha)  fear and anxiety and medical treatment like clomid or In vitro fertilization IVF your start believing in miracles. Because Heavenly Father is sending us a perfect sweet little spirit that we feel  beyond blessed to have. Have I been sick.. yes. Is it worth it- it will be when these 9 months have come and gone and we can hold that baby in our arms. This last week has been a very difficult week. One of my dearest friends, Maddie Stevens- lost her baby @ 20 weeks. Her hurt and pain has made my hurt ache with so much sadness and sympathy for her. I just want to take away her pain. I cherish her and can only image her pain. I have found that Heavenly Father is the only one who knows why and how things happen in this life. But I know he also gave his only son to us for when times like this come- Jesus Christ is our comfort and he knows and understands our fear, pain and trials. I have the opportunity to give a talk on the Atonement of Jesus Christ to our ward on April 27th. I was talking to Maddie about this, since I gave a talk on this subject last year on Easter Sunday and was kind of complaining about it. Maddie just looked at me and said, "Becca, I would love to give a talk on the Atonement. It is my favorite thing." My heart and eyes just swelled. Tears came and I was taught a lesson by Maddie who had just found out her little growing baby was no longer growing- and she wanted to give a talk on our Savior's atonement. She gets it. I hope she heals, I know she will and I know that someday she will raise that little baby in the next life. Life is very precious and I am so grateful for the knowledge that I have of the atonement and that there is life after death. How lucky am I to know this. I am so excited to listen to General Conference.  It begins tomorrow morning! I hope the spirit allows me to learn and grow. I love my Relief Society Sisters. I see them as my true sisters now; I love them and care about them. I want them to be happy.  This year has been a learning and growing year- it seems to be hard- but so rewarding.

Love You Mads!

December 2013

December came and it only has 2 days left... 2014is coming quick! This month is special for Mitch and I we were married December 15th in the Rexburg Idaho Temple.
December 2nd we celebrated Grandpa Forbush's 92 birthday! We had a little birthday party at the Homestead for him. I think he really enjoyed that.
We were able to make it to the Temple and participate in Temple sealing. It was a very sweet reminder of the covenants we made just one year before in the same Temple.
To celebrate our anniversary we went to Lava Hotsprings and stayed at a themed cozy hotel called the Lions Gate Manor it was a lot of fun except the power went out in the middle of the night and I got a little freaked out since we were thee only couple staying there that night. I thought we could possibly get murdered... what made it worse was Mitch was fast asleep and I lay there thinking of how we were going to die..but I woke up right next to Mitch the next morning, still alive and happy. The hotsprings were so nice and relaxing. Each pool was a different temperate so it was a perfect wintry night to soak and relax in those giant hot tubs. We got to see the Hobbit 2 on our way back home. That is a long movie, but we both liked it a lot. We ate at Olive Garden.. it was delicious! We were a little weirder out at our waiter.. he kept awkwardly touching Mitch's shoulder.. it was hilarious. To say the least it was a perfect weekend getaway to celebrate our first year of marriage.
The last week of school was the week before Christmas so Mitch was studying very hard for his final. He ended the class with a B and I am beyond proud of him. It was a 5 credit math class and he worked so hard. I finished another semester only 2 left and I will be done forever!!!!
The weekend before Christmas we went with the whole Merrill family to Big Sky Montana to go hit the slopes and stay in a cozy cabin. It was so much fun. Everybody was there including Grandpa Cliff Merrill and Quinn's girlfriend Brittany. We had a lot of fun snowboarding and making memories.
Christmas came!!! We mainly celebrated with the Merrills until Christmas day then we spent time with the Willmores post Christmas. It was so much fun. Just a few favorite gifts.. a new high tech camera, Mitch's first gun a ruger 22, gift cards, a plate of Grandma Patrick's , and a windows surface. We were spoiled. It was fun to see the people we had for Christmas open their gifts. This year I found myself reflecting on how grateful I am for my savior and for his birth. It is such a loving, giving season. My favorite part was the opportunity to doorbell ditch Christmas on the doorstep of a family in our ward that was less fortunate this year. It was so gratifying to know they were going to have something to open and have a ham to eat. My heart is very full with gratitude for my husband, family members, my calling, education, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here is to a wonderful year of 2013 and an even better one for 2014!!!

November Turkey Dinner

November was a fun month! We spent the first part of the month busy with school and working. Mitch was helping with Christmas Décor hanging and prepping the lights for the crews. I was still busy just working in peds poking babies and cuddling newborns.. by the way my job does provide sufficient birth control... like when the crazy out of control children come in.. but at the same time I adore those perfect new little packages wrapped in pink or blue..
Anyway I am also working after hours in family medicine which let's me practice up on IVs and XRAYs which I love to do. So that has been a nice change.
Thanksgiving we spent in St. George with Grandma and Grandpa Reeser at their condo. We took the four-wheeler's and razors to play in the sand. It was around 65-70 degrees so that was enjoyable! We also got to see some dinosaur tracks, which were pretty cool. It was a long drive there and back, but we got to enjoy some black Friday shopping, yummy food and family which made it all worth it! Our thoughts were with Beth, she had to have surgery, and wasn't doing so well. I know my parents were concerned and worried about her and Jared. After a long haul she is finally recovering and feeling better. We are all so grateful for that and for the blessing of good health.

October a little Sober

October seemed to come and go. This month went by so quickly. This month also had some heartache and tears. Mitch's sweet Grandma Patrick passed away on October 9th 2013. Helen Patrick the sweetest lady I have yet to meet. She was 88 years old with a beautiful smile and beautiful grey hair. I first met Helen a week or so after Mitch and I got engaged. He took to me to meet his grandma and so was so excited to introduce her to me. Once we got to her sweet and humble home I could instantly tell why Mitch loved his grandma so much. She welcomed us into her cozy home. I also met Uncle Jim for the first time too, who is Marianne's younger brother. Helen was so kind to me. She gave me one of those grandma hugs. She then had has us sit and chat with her. She told us the story of how her and Jack (Grandpa Patrick) first met at the ice cream parlor in Blackfoot. It was a pretty cute story and I could just picture Helen young and sweet taking Jack's order and letting him know that any date she had ever been on the guy asked. :) So I got to know Helen more and more each time we got together with the Merrill's and Helen would come to Rexburg, usually with Grandpa Merrill. She came to my bridal shower and gave me and beautiful pink soft afghan. She was so sweet to come and make an appearance. She braved the freezing cold, snowy, winter wedding day on the 15th of December to be there and support Mitch and I. She even remembered my birthday in February. I quickly realized how lucky I was to have another grandma. Mitch loved his grandma dearly and we both found ourselves crying the day we found out of her passing. At her funeral I learned two thing about Helen Patrick. She loved everyone she came in contact with and she was a loyal woman. She was loyal to her family, her husband, and the gospel. She always said her prayers. She was a faithful woman throughout all of her trials and tribulations. She was quote woman- that is one thing I have in common with her. I love quotes as well. So to read all the quotes on her fridge made me smile and giggle. I believe that you only collect things that make you who you are. Many of the quotes she had were definitions of  how she lived her life. Helen Patrick will definitely be missed, but not forgotten. She is know with Jack, her husband. Mitch and I were able to realize and remember the plan of salvation. We know that we will see her again someday. I think that is why we can go forward with faith, in fact I know that is why we can go forward trying to be better each and every day. Thank you to Helen Patrick for being such a wonderful grandma to my sweet husband. Thank you for loving him and sending him sweet letters while he was on a mission. Thank you for accepting me as another granddaughter. You will always have a special place in our hearts.

The rest of October was slightly a blur and all of the sudden it was Halloween. With school, work, and different responsibilities we have been pretty busy, but also plenty happy too. We still manage to laugh each day. Mitch seriously gets me to laugh no matter what has happened that day. It is secret talent of his. He is my favorite person. I love being married to him. I love him so much. We just keep our heads up and enjoy what is going on in our life. We dressed up as an Indian and a Cowboy this year for Halloween and had some fun with that.

Life is going well. The gospel is true and blesses our lives daily. Mitch helps me be better every single day.. also On the 15th of October Mitch surprised me with some beautiful flowers at work. I was surprised and tickled that he had them delivered. He is pretty romantic. I am pretty darn lucky.
He is working so hard with his Pre-calculus class. I hope and pray the Lord will bless him for his efforts.

Our ward's theme is "Come Unto Christ" So I personally and striving for this. What am I doing to come closer to my Savior?
Today I was reading in the Book of Mormon and came across this scripture in Omni chapter 1:
" 26. And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should ^acome unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and ^boffer your whole souls as an ^coffering unto him, and continue in ^dfasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.

The week will be a wonderful week. :) Bring on Monday and probably snow.. it was a whole 35 degrees today with freezing cold North wind! Here come the Holidays! :)

September 2013

September was an eventful month! Filled with lots of fun things and school.
Mitch and I are only taking 5 credits each this semester. I am taking 2 online classes and Mitch has a 7:45am pre-calculus class every day... so with work and school we both stay pretty busy, but school and work are blessings in our lives. So we have nothing to complain about. We still have plenty of time for flag football, football games on TV.. and Mitch reading about football... and spending time with friends and family!

Disneyland with the Merrill clan was a September highlight! It was a blast. We had a great time everybody was able to come. Heath and Trish and of course there crazy fun kids Rhett, Breelee, and little Wyatt. Quinn came from Arizona and he brought a lovely lady, Brittany. Chase and Jenna and there little cute ones Charlotte and Buddha Belly Charlie came along to. Jerry and Marianne treated us to two days in Disneyland and to the warm weather of California. We had a blast watching all the kids just indulge all that Disneyland offers. It was so fun to see their faces light up as we walked in and they saw the castle. Mitch and I had so much getting fast passes and riding as many possible rides as we could. Mitch talked me into the California SCREAMIN' and good heck I was screaming that entire ride.. every time we went on it. It was so much fun. We made some great memories with  everyone. We spent some time at the beach playing in the sand and water. It was just so relaxing and fun to be with everyone. We ate some delicious food. We walked up and down and all around California Adventure and Disneyland. It was a great family trip. Thanks to Marianne for making the arrangements and putting such a fun family trip together.