L.V. and L.A.

Matt and I decided that we needed a little rest and recuperation after Winter semester finals, so.... we went on a cruise! It was pretty last minute, but one of the best decisions. We needed something quick, since we both started Spring term the next week, so off to LA we went to board a 3-day cruise to Ensenada, Mexico. If you're going to go on vacation, though, you might as well make the most of it. Matt and I rented a car (the cutest little Fiat!.. I'm in love) and headed to Vegas, en route to LA. The drive to Long Beach is 10-11 hours, so we thought splitting it into two legs was a better idea, and it turned out to be really fun!

In Vegas, we stayed in the Riviera, which was... an experience. Let's just say we got a killer deal on a room, and now we know why. For example, no shower curtain? Luckily we just stayed there one night and checked out pretty quickly in the morning. We didn't leave Vegas yet, though. We explored the Strip a little in the morning, but it was all to reach the most delicious destination: Hash House A Go Go. I vaguely remembered hearing stories about this place, but those memories were nothing compared to what I experienced, which was the most overwhelmingly delicious breakfast I have ever tasted. We waited about 30 minutes (which was short, considering all the people waiting in line), but we needed all that time to choose what we wanted to order! I decided on fried chicken and waffles, and Matt got a meatloaf sandwich. Neither of us were disappointed. I think I still dream about this meal. I could barely eat half, it was so big! Going to Hash House was definitely a highlight of the entire trip.

Look at the size of that Chicken and Waffles! And there was bacon cooked INSIDE the waffles.

 After eating, we started our journey to Long Beach! We naturally stopped in Primm at the outlets (can't stop me from shopping), made it to California, then experienced LA traffic. That was fun. Finally we made it to Long Beach, and we were MUCH more satisfied with our hotel situation! We settled in and explored Long Beach for a while, then we grabbed dinner at Bubba's Shrimp. The next morning, we headed to LA to explore some of Matt's old stomping grounds from back in the day. First, we visited the temple, which was beautiful! We had been planning on doing a session, but someone (*I*) forgot their recommend... so we just went to the Visitor's Center instead.

Afterwards, we stopped by Tito's Tacos for some lunch. No regrets there--it definitely lived up to the hype. Those are probably the only hard-shelled tacos I have ever truly enjoyed. (Are you sensing a food theme here?)

A delicious box of tacos...

That day was cruise day, so we had to hurry back to Long Beach to board the Carnival Inspiration. Stay tuned for details on the cruise!

Feeling 22

I'll be honest--I have still never heard Taylor Swift's "22" song, but it just felt right to reference it. I'm twenty-two now! Woohoo! It's so weird to me that I am now fully into the third decade of my life (I had to think about that...third? yup). I've never really had a bad  birthday, but I've had some pretty great ones. I think that this year really takes the cake, though. So many sweet moments and birthday wishes came together to create the perfect day.

The Sunday before my actual birthday, my sisters hosted a fun birthday dinner for me at the Dicksons. It was so fun to celebrate with them and eat delicious food. Steak tacos and chocolate bundt cake! (not together, obviously...)

Now for my birthday on the 16th...

First off, it was a reading day! My birthday always falls pretty close to finals week. This year, I got lucky, and my birthday was the day before finals on a reading day. The only school-related thing I had to do was attend a review session! After my review session and a few hours of work, I got to hang out with Matt all day. I'm the type of person that doesn't need a big group or party--I'm totally good with just being with my best friend. And that's what I did.

My first present of the day was finding out that I made the Young Ambassador's team at BYU! The YAs is a performance group at BYU that sings and dances all around the world. I have dreamed of being a YA since as long as I can remember, and finding out that I finally made the group was more than I could have wished for. (I'll write more about YA's in a later post!) We went to an early dinner at Tucano's, one of Matt and my favorite restaurants. Afterwards, we went home and I got to open my presents! Matt was so good at keeping them surprises. I got a new jacket and scarf (thanks mom and dad!), and Matt got me a piano keyboard! I have been having withdrawals from playing the piano, so I was so happy to get a keyboard of my own. I'm so grateful for my husband who helps me develop my talents and do the things I love.

After dinner, Matt took me to the "Sacred Gifts" exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art. Ok, this was really my idea, but Matt was kind enough to allow me to drag him along! The exhibit was all religious paintings  of Christ by Carl Bloch, Heinrich Hofman, and Frans Schwartz. It was such a beautiful exhibit. It was incredible to actually see in person these paintings that I have seen all my life. I especially liked seeing the lesser-known (at least to me) works of Christ.

All in all, I had such a wonderful birthday. Thank you for all those who made it that way! 22 really does feel good.

Month in Review: March

Remember that time I said I would write at least 2 blog posts per month? Ya, that doesn't kick in until next month... ;) March was a fun month, but it seems like every month is fun when you are married to Matt! Here are some of the highlights:

Lent

This year, we decided to try out Lent. Matt and I are taking a "Survey of Christianity" calss this semester, which is fascinating! I think it is so important to have an understanding of other people and truly learn to appreciate differences and similarities. As Christians ourselves, it was so interesting to learn about the many different denominations. It has been one of my favorite classes at BYU! Anyways, Lent is a tradition mostly in the Catholic church (although I know Protestants who celebrate it as well) where you give up some sort of vice or bad habit for the 40 days before Easter. There is always a big party and day of "lasts" on day before Lent...ever heard of Mardi Gras? 

I think it's a really beautiful idea to try to purify and sanctify yourself in preparation for Easter. You give up some sort of guilty pleasure in order to become more like Christ. Matt decided to give up fast food (if you know his eating habits, you would know hard this was), and I decided to give up Netflix. I know, mine seems a little shallow, but I've really been wasting SO much time watching marathons of "How I Met Your Mother" and "Gossip Girl." I decided I could be doing so many more important things instead. Anyways, we started this month, and we'll see if we can last until Easter!

St. Patrick's Day

We had the most delicious dinner at the Dickson's for St. Patty's Day. Each of us Pelton girls tried our best to recreate our mom's delicious holiday meal. We are suckers for corned beef and cabbage... ok really we just like the delish mustard sauce that goes on top! It was Matt's first "traditional" St. Patrick's Day dinner, and he was surprised that he liked it! He has really only had corned beef from a can on his mission, and he did not like it. Needless to say he was a little wary of our corned beef! But now he has a new opinion. It was so nice to spend the holidy with my family!

School and Work

This isn't so much a highlight as it is a requisite report. Matt and I have been busy studying away! I can't believe the semester is almost over. Just two week in April then we're done with Winter Semester. We've also been busy with work. Matt is still at the MTC and I am a TA. I'm looking for a new job, though, to have during the summer and into the Fall. I will miss being a TA, but I just feel like it's time to move on from PoliSci 200. Let the job search begin! I've already gotten rejected for a book shelving job in the Harold B. Lee Library, so my prospects are really looking up right now. *sarcasm*

Next month's goal: take more pictures and write more posts! Happy March!

Month in Review: February

February was a flurry for the Greens!

Matt: He has stayed busy with school, ROTC, and especially BYU Rugby. The team has officially started the season! They had a pre-season tournament down in Mesquite, Nevada, which I was able to attend. It was about a 4-5 hour drive, so Matt's cousin Noke came with me. It was fun to get a little sunshine and watch the team dominate. Matt also went with the team to San Francisco to play St. Mary's. I was excited that he got to travel with the team (not every player does), but I did not like the fact that he was away for three days...and over Valentine's Day, too! Our first Valentine's Day as a married couple was not exactly how I imagined it. Luckily we have a few more years to get it right. Now, most of the Rugby games will be at BYU.

Me: I am still in love with school (big surprise). My linguistics classes are a dream, and I'm so happy to be back on campus. I always joke with Matt and my parents that I just want to be a professional student! If only they could pay me, instead of the other way around. I'm a Teaching Assistant for a political science writing and research class, which is time consuming but fun. I get to hold office hours and teach my own lab of 20 students. Because it's a writing class, though, all of the assignments are extremely lengthy papers... they take FOREVER to grade! It's all about time management, I guess. Matt and I both finished off the month with midterms (yay!).

Together: We both had "real" sushi for the first time! And we probably ate enough of it to last us another 20 years... but it was yummy. We also had a few fun dates night, both out in Provo and just staying in. We can both be homebodies when it comes to relaxing, so we always look forward to a Redbox and freshly popped popcorn!

Overall, February was pretty good second month of the year: busy, constantly changing, but at the same time, familiar. I was terrible at taking pictures, unfortunately, but nothing really big happened, either. We're both excited for March! It's sure to be a good one.

4 Reasons Why I Love School

After taking a year-long break from school, I could not be happier to be back this semester. It feels like coming home. I felt like a nervous freshie again, anticipating the first day of class and making sure I knew where all my classrooms were. To my surprise, school is better than I remembered.

At school, you know what is expected of you. Where else is every expectation and formula for success laid out in a syllabus? For a stresser like me, syllabi are heavenly.

At school, you can ask whatever questions you want. The (possibly) even better part is that people can usually provide answers. This can of course lead to some "dumb" questions, but hey, get them out in the world. Ask away, my curious friend.

At school, you have a purpose. It's not some abstract concept or lost wandering--you know exactly where you're going and what you're doing. I know what classes I'm taking, and I even know what I'll be taking next semester. I'm getting a degree. I'm networking with professors. I know what's up.

At school, you get to learn everyday. Ok, I realize that there are opportunities to learn everyday without being in school, but it's a little harder. I learned a lot when I was a professional blogger (oh yes, I was a blog writer for a company this last Fall) because I had to write about unfamiliar topics. But otherwise, it's hard to consciously learn things. I love to learn, though, so I love school. It's a given.

These are just a few of my musings about school. Maybe I'll add more later. Stay tuned!