Well What Would YOU Do if You Were Getting Kidnapped?

A few weeks ago Luke was in Texas on a business trip with his boss (whom we will call Jack). He was to be gone from Mon- Wed. It was Tuesday night. I had gone to mutual after being at work all day long and then had a Presidency meeting after mutual, so it wasn't until 10:00 pm that I was finally on my way home for the day and got to call my hubby and say hello- which meant it was midnight there in Texas. The convo went something like this:
Me: Hi hun. What are you doing?
Luke: Nothing, just got back to the hotel.
Me: Um... isn't it midnight there? Why were you out so late?
Luke: I went shopping with Jack.
Me: Shopping? What could you guys possibly be shopping for at midnight?
Luke: Just stuff, I don't know.
Me: I don't get it. What kind of stuff did you get?
Luke: Just random stuff.
Me: Okay you're being super sketchy right now. I'm going home and taking a shower and I'll call you before I go to bed.
So I got home, LOCKED the front door and LOCKED the bathroom door (because I'm paranoid like that when Luke's not home), and jumped in the shower. A few minutes into my shower I realize the shampoo bottle is empty so I slide the shower curtain back and reach out to the near-by cabinet to get a new bottle. Just as I grab the bottle I hear the bathroom door handle shaking. Someone was trying to get in! I freeze. A second later I see the door handle twist and the door opens. I seriously don't think I have ever screamed so loud in my life! And never for so long before either; it took a good 10 straight seconds of screaming before my brain realized that the intruder was none other than my loving husband who had returned home from his trip a day early and wanted to surprise me, but ended up terrifying me to death instead.
Now that got me to thinking that:
1. My bathroom door is obviously very easy to pick and I'm not sure I'll even bother locking it from now on because someone can still get in whether it's locked or not.
2. I'm glad my husband isn't really "sketchy" and was really only a few miles away from coming home to me when he said they were "shopping".
3. I need to work on my self defense skills because, honestly, if that were a true kidnapper I would have been stuffed in a bag and hauled into someone's car in .2 seconds. I did nothing but scream!! That's so lame! (Of course I'm glad now that I didn't do anything other than scream because it was Luke, and I wouldn't want to hurt him... but I DO want to hurt a real kidnapper if the time ever came and obviously I am HIGHLY incapable.


But seriously... What would YOU do if you thought you were getting kidnapped?

Luke and I had a great Holiday break! Both of our bosses let us take a whole week off from work, so we were able to spend a lot of valuable time together, with Luke's family, and with friends.

We spent Christmas in Vegas with Luke's family. We got spoiled with a lot of great gifts and enjoyed our time playing games, talking, and watching videos of previous Christmases in the Stephenson home.



During our time in Vegas we also did a little site-seeing and visited Red Rock Canyon, which I had never even heard of before, but is super cool. Next time we're in Vegas I'm definitely going to bring my tennis shoes so we can climb around instead of just watching everyone else.



After 5 days in Vegas Luke and I started our trek to Utah for our friend's wedding. We got caught in the worst snow storm either of us had ever seen, and both got extremely sick from hanging out the window and snapping the frozen ice off our windshield wipers. I was so looking forward to being back in Utah visiting our friends, playing games and hanging out but Luke and I were so sick we were hardly able to enjoy anything. I swore I would take a ton of pictures over our break, but sadly being sick really made me lose any motivation I had to take any. Sadly this is one of the only pics I took while in Utah. This was while we were outside the Draper temple waiting for Nate & Liz to come out. We were beyond freezing.



We spent New Years Eve at with some of our friends and their family playing games.

Since being home Luke and I have both made our goals for 2011 and took some time to reflect on the good/ bad of 2010. Ultimately we both agree that we have had a year of many blessings. We love being here in San Diego with great jobs, awesome friends, a nice apartment, and each other. We have loved taking this adventure and exploring this new place together. We loved 2010 and can't wait to see what 2011 holds!

Not gonna lie... Lately I have been missing this:

Christmas time in Utah. Christmas hasn't really felt like Christmas for a few years now... it's just not the same when you're all grown up. But somehow Christmas time still felt Christmasy the past 3 years I spent in Utah. I'm sure the crisp winter weather had a lot to do with that, and although that's all I ever complained about when I lived in Utah ( and I still wouldn't trade the SD weather for Utah's weather in a million years), it did have a way of making "it look a lot like Christmas". The snow, Christmas lights, late night runs to 7-11 for hot chocolate, and gingerbread house competition with friends definitely made the cold winter days bearable. This time of year makes me reminisce on the fun wintery things Utah has to offer. I'm actually excited to visit the good old state of Utah in a few weeks for New Years. Luckily, though, I only have to endure the freezing cold for a few days rather than the 8 months I used to have to go through. Yay!

On a side note- Did any one else think the latest Harry Potter movie was a major let down? Luke and I thought it was dumb- we were definitely not impressed.

When I Thought My Husband Died.

This past Saturday was my sister's baby shower, so I went to LA for the day to join in on the celebration. Meanwhile I left the Mr. at home. Throughout the day I wondered what he was up to and how he was doing, but never heard from him, so I figured he just wanted me to enjoy the morning with my mom and sisters without interrupting me. By 1:00pm I thought it was strange that I hadn't even gotten a "How's it goin'" text and decided to text him and see what he was up to. No response. A few mins later texted him again. No response. Luke knows that I freak out if I don't hear from him after two texts. No response= he's dead.

So I called him, left a voicemail, and texted him some more. (Good thing I'm his wife, otherwise my persistence would have been super stalker-ish) I tried to not let it worry me and just enjoy my time with my family. Kendra had an AMAZING baby shower with so many fun friends, great food, and tons of gifts. Then us girls and Jared went out to lunch and did a bit of shopping on 3rd Street Promenade. All the while I had not heard from my boy. The time came for me to say goodbye and head back to Carlsbad, so I got in my car and drove back a little too quickly, hoping that within the next two hours he would call. No such luck. 2 hours later (and a lot of terrifying thoughts of what I would do without Luke) I pull into my apartment complex. As soon as I get to the gate of the complex I get his call. He left his phone in the car all day on accident and didn't even realize it. He was laughing hysterically at all the "Where are you?" "Are you okay?" texts and the "I hope you're not dead" voicemail. I, on the other hand, did not find it very comical. What would I do w/o my hubby? IDK... But at least I don't have to think about it anymore, because he is very much alive and I am very happy about that.

Me and the pregnant woman herself.

While I'm posting pics, this is me and Luke over Thanksgiving break at the fish hatchery- one of my Dad's favorite places....

Luke and I got box tickets for a Clippers vs the New Orleans Hornets game. It was so much fun!

Yes I know, I know.. it's been forever. My computer decided to completely shut down about a month ago, thus the hubby and I have been sharing his laptop, which is my excuse for not having updated in forever. That and also I have been too busy/lazy to update. So I'll just give a quick run-down. Since my last update:

-I switched jobs. I now work as a front receptionist at a dental office and LOVE it. I seriously work with the best people ever. It's awesome :)
-I have been called to serve as 2nd Counselor in the Young Women's.
- Luke and I spent a weekend in Vegas for our nephew's first birthday.
-We had a happy Halloween.
-We spent a beautiful warm sunny Saturday at the beach catching some rays.
-Luke finished his last online class for BYU and will be graduating in December! We're both very happy and proud of his accomplishments! He's worked so hard the past few months on his final classes and now he's finished and can finally relax!
- I ,on the other hand, have not been as diligent with my online studies. It's so hard to be dedicated and motivated. Therefore, I'm not.
- I went to the SYTYCD tour with a friend. It was way fun!
Now we're looking forward to the next couple of weeks in which we'll be able to go to Fresno for Thanksgiving, Vegas for Christmas, and LA for my sister's baby shower!
Although we have been crazy busy lately, I only have a few pics to prove it.




Me and Luke with our pumpkin that stayed good for 3 days. Things seriously go bad here in 2 seconds because of the moisture. We had to throw this bad boy out within a few days of carving it.

SYTYCD :) Amazing.

My camera takes pics super delayed. I tried to take a pic when Ashley was up, and it finally took like 15 seconds later when it was Billy's turn. Boo- I don't even like Billy.

Me and Taylor

And.... that's about it, folks.

Well I'm home from work sick today... there's some flu bug going around. Being sick is not fun but it's somehow nice laying on my couch watching the Food Network all day. The only thing that would make my sick day a little less sick is if I knew Luke would be coming home from work this evening, but he's back in Texas again so I'm a lonely AND sick girl :( Boo.

Well since I'm home with nothing to do I figured I'd show a few of the little festive crafts I've been up to lately. They're nothing too great or exciting, but a few autumn leaves/ festivity add a nice fall touch to our apt.

First up is the BOO letters that I made. My friend and I decided to entertain ourselves while our hubbies watched football all weekend every weekend to get us through the season so we bought the makings of a few crafts, and this was one that we each made. It hangs on my pantry door. I think it's pretty cute.



Next I made a few fall arrangements with pumpkins, leaves and pinecones for our entertainment center area.



I also made myself a nice autumn wreath to hang on the outside of our front door. It looks so autumny, and it was so easy to make!



I also made these fun pumpkins out of plastic jars and orange tissue paper. Luke thinks they look a little juvenile which, okay... ya it's true but when I fill them with Halloween candy like candy corns, etc I don't think he'll mind so much. Juvenile or not, they were still fun to make.

I also have a few other fun Halloween decor but i didn't make them so I won't post about them. Anyways... that's just about it. I love fall time. It's so great. The End.

Farewells and Birthdays.

Last weekend we went up to Clovis for Emerson's farewell talk. He did such a good job, and I'm so excited for him and the experiences he will have the next 2 years in Colombia. He is such an obedient, happy and positive guy and I know that he will bless the lives of many people while on his mission. Luke and I were also able to spend this weekend with my family in LA. Unfortunately I forgot my camera last weekend for our trip to Fresno, but I did capture a few pics this past weekend in LA.

We will miss Moe. He doesn't leave for another week, but this was the last time Luke and I were able to see him. Good luck, Moe! We know you'll do great and we can't wait to hear all about it in your letters :)

On a different note, my lovey turned 25 this week. It was a pretty low-key birthday that consisted of us just being together. We went to one of his favorite store, Fry's, went out to dinner, opened presents, and had some yummy ice cream cake. I am so glad that I married Luke and that I get to spend forever with him. Here are just a portion of the many reasons I love this man:
1. He makes me smile.
2. We have a similar sense of humor, and we're both constantly cracking jokes and laughing. He is a goof.
3. He is very handsome.
4. He is extremely smart.
5. Luke is very hardworking and determined. He's doing very well at his new job. In fact, he does well at just about everything he puts his mind to.
6. He helps out with keeping the house tidy.
7. He is a handy man. He has been my side-kick with decorating our apt by hanging pictures, shelves, wall art, etc.
8. He compliments me on my crafts :)
9. He tells me I'm beautiful.
10. He wakes up diligently every morning at 5:45 to fulfill his calling as seminary principal.
11. He is faithful in attending our church meetings every Sunday.
12. He honors his priesthood and is a great example to me.
13. He understands the importance of the principle of tithing and pays it dutifully for the two of us.
14. He is patient.
15. He has an incredible attention for detail.
16. He does the little things for me, like getting my oil changed or washing my car. And killing bugs.
17. He calls me cute nicknames like sweetie girl, Jay Bird, baby girl, etc. My favorite is sweetheart.
18. He writes me love notes when he leaves to go out of town.
19.He has a good head on his shoulders and is able to look ahead and plan for the future.
20. He has good family values. He loves spending time with his and my family, and is preparing for the day we have a family of our own. He will be a great dad.
21. He is a good friend.
22. He has adjusted well to me and my quirks/ habits within our first year of marriage. We have grown to the point where we almost know what the other is going to do/ say before the other does/ says it. I know that will only enhance the longer we're married. :)
23. He has a strong testimony and love for the gospel.
24. He loves me.
25. He is the best part of my day... every day. I love just being near him. We don't even have to be saying anything, I just love knowing he's near. He smells good, he looks good... he is good at.... everything. What is there not to love??
I love you baby boy. I'm so glad that I got to celebrate your 25th birthday with you, and I'm so glad that I will be able to spend the next x amount of birthdays with you. XOXO.