Since I am graduating and finals are not a huge stress for me this semester, I was excited to be able to accompany Cory and her family on a trip to Great Falls. Cory's sister, Sarah, lives with her husband, Darron, in Great Falls. He is in the Air Force, stationed there, and Sarah is the choir director at the University of Great Falls. We all headed up to see the University's production of South Pacific, which was Sarah's directorial debut.
Two words: Home Run. Let's get real for a second, people. Great Falls is not the biggest place on the map, and it isn't crazy to think that there wouldn't be a ton of talented people to cast in the play. Well, the joke is on you because there are a ton of talented people in Great Falls. I mean, there were some great voices in that cast. The play was entertaining, and seeing as it was the final performance of the weekend, Sarah was honored at the end by the entire cast and crew.
Even though it was so short, I really enjoyed the trip. We had never visited Sarah and Darron up to that point, so it was fun to see their natural habitat. Buzz, Grandma Pladsen, Jake, and Anna all made the trip with us, so it was like a mini family reunion. I think it is important to have those kinds of memories in a family. The next morning we ate a delicious Easter breakfast together and headed back to Utah.
The past two months have been busy at the MTC. Sort of. We actually haven't had as many missionaries as we usually have, but with the high turnover in English (new districts every two weeks) it can make it seem like I have been really busy. Here are the missionaries that have come through my classroom over the past couple of months.
L to R: Sister Cardona, Sister Warr, Sister Wangsgaard, Me, Elder Zehr, Elder Ortega, Sister Adamson
L to R: Sister Clancy, Sister Niska, Sister Bishop, Me, Elder Clutter, Elder Hornsby, Elder Mabey
L to R: Elder Hardesty, Elder Gibb, Elder Sortomme, Elder Edge, Me, Sister Mangleson, Sister Erekson, Sister Johnson, Sister Fincher
L to R Back: Elder Brown, Elder Haycock, Me, Sister Eastman, Sister Keeling, L to R Front: Elder Palakiko, Elder Christensen
Cory is half-way to 50! She still looks smokin for her age, though. We don't have any pictures for some reason, that was my fault, but we spent an awesome day at the zoo up in Salt Lake City. Neither of us had been to the zoo in a very long time, and realized that it isn't as exciting as we remembered. Most of the animals were just sleeping, and the African Sahara section was under construction, so we didn't even see any of those animals. Oh well, it was still fun. Cory got a lot of great stuff for her birthday, including two Diamond Rio CDs and the Frozen Soundtrack from me. She has been listening to them already on her commute to and from work. Happy Birthday, Cory!
Well, the month of March was an absolute whirlwind in the Gilmore home. I started the month off with a weekend trip to Memphis, Tennessee for an interview with the University of Memphis. I really enjoyed my time there and was really impressed with everyone I met at the University. After the interviews, I met up with the Andersons for some Memphis BBQ. It was delicious.
It was also a mountain of food that I couldn't finish, so I had the leftovers for dinner in the hotel room. In the following weeks I had more interviews, but only over the phone or Skype. I found myself last week with multiple acceptance offers and the task of making a very important decision. In January I had psyched myself out so much about getting into a program that I applied to over 10 places, and now in the end of March I felt blessed/silly that I had been accepted to 8 of them. Great position to be in, but also stressful worrying about making the wrong decision. So my family joined me in a fast and of all the places, Cory and I are super excited to announce we are heading to Memphis! I personally feel really great about the decision, and while there were other great offers, I think Memphis is the next chapter for us.
So after making the decision I became infatuated with all things Memphis. I read up on the city all the time and look up interesting facts. I even went looking for a Memphis Grizzlies hat at the malls. They didn't have any, but it's all good. I already looked up tickets to a Grizzlies game and you can get tickets as cheap as $6. That is what I am talking about. Here is another classic reference to Memphis for your enjoyment.
Anyway, that is our March update! I definitely have senioritis, and can't wait to graduate in three weeks!
This weekend I traveled to Columbus, Ohio for an interview with THE Ohio State University. Go Buckeyes. I think that it went well, but we will see what happens. I have never in my life been an Ohio State fan, or even set foot in Ohio for that matter, but it was interesting that by the end of the day, I felt myself catching a little Buckeye fever. They really know how to sell their school. Also, their football stadium is absolutely ginormous.
For the rest of my time in Columbus, I drove around the city scoping out potential places to live if we were to go to OSU. It seemed like a very nice place. I also tried a White Castle burger for the first time in my life. Not life-changing, but it wasn't nasty. Anyway, I had a good time in Ohio, but I was definitely missing Cory by the time it was all said and done.
So it looks like Cory and I have to give up our coveted title of newest newlyweds in the family sometime this summer. Jake and Anna got engaged today, and are planning a June wedding. I have mixed feelings about it. On one hand, I totally support them and love Jake, and don't mind being around Anna. On the other hand, I can see my last chance of being sealed to an Anderson slipping though my fingers. I did everything I could to make sure Brett and Anna ended up together. Heck, I would have taken Trevor and Anna, but J-Smoove was too much competition.
In all seriousness though, we love and support them, and Cory and I have no doubts that they will be very happy together. Welcome to the family, you filthy animal. That was to Jake...
Happy Valentine's Day to one and all. Cory and I spent our 2nd Valentine's day as a married couple together this year. It was awesome. When we were dating, I feel like I usually bought flowers for Cory for every special occasion. That isn't a bad thing, but this year I wanted to get her something that would last longer than a few days. So I still got her a rose, but also got her some massage oil and a wooden, back massage tool thing. It is cool. Cory has chronic itchy and achy back. It is a real disease and a real struggle. Hopefully my gifts will help. Cory got me some awesome new shoes that I have had my eye on for some time.
So the big surprise of the day was that we actually got to spend it together! Cory had been telling me all week about how she had to work until 2 AM, and so I was planning on spending the evening alone. On my way home from work I actually considered just going straight to a movie theater, but decided to at least change clothes first. As I opened the door, I found a nice dinner waiting for me. Cory never had to work, she just wanted it to be a surprise! She is the sweetest girl! She even made gnocchis, which I ate regularly in Argentina, and had just been mentioning them a few weeks earlier.
Cory and I are the Emergency Preparedness couple at church, and this weekend the stake had a big Emergency Preparedness fair. We oversaw the emergency car kits booth, and it was a hit. A lot of people came by and made comments like, "Oh my gosh, this is such a good idea. We really need to do this." It made us feel productive, and it was nice to feel like we were helping people. Cory used her new Silhouette machine to make the sign, and Brother Fillerup provided us with some of the things he keeps in his car for our display. It really doesn't take that much to just make sure you have a few necessities in the car in case of an emergency.
As some of you know, Cory was in a car accident in late December, and the insurance proceedings have been a major headache. I will leave it at that. Cory has told the story a lot more than I have, but I think it is safe to say we are both sick of re-living it. Moral of the story: Collision insurance is worth the mulah. Here is Cory's poor Honda at the salvage yard.
Knowing that we might not get any money from the insurance company for quite some time, we made the decision together that it was time to invest in the future, so we started to look around for a new (used) car. We ended up finding one that we loved in our price range, and signed on the dotted line. Say hello to the new member of the Gilmore family!
I currently drive a Mazda 3, and made sure Cory understood that by doing this, we would be staring our very own Mazda fleet. Long story short, I now go by Commodore Gilmore.
Deep in the Hundred Acre Wood, where Christopher Robin plays, you'll find the enchanted neighborhood of Christopher's childhood days.
I ask myself, "Are there greater words from my childhood?"
Cory and I were grocery shopping and happened to see The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh in a small movie rack. At first I thought it was the new one from a couple of years ago. No, it was the original. I didn't realize they were even selling them. It was an easy purchase for us, and we watched it twice in two days.
My mom would sing the theme song as my lullaby when I was little, and maybe once when I was 18. Whatever. I am married now, I can admit it. Needless to say, it was a classic from my childhood, and Cory's, too.
Every once in a while you just feel like it is time for a milkshake. Cory and I headed to Ike's for some Blue Bell ice cream shakes for a quick and fun date. They boast being the only place in Utah that sells Blue Bell ice cream.
Jake and Anna forced Cory and me to go get tacos with them. They get really clingy sometimes. Anyway, we went, and it was awesome. They introduced us to this little place run by multiple families in South Provo. Walking in to their makeshift restaurant immediately brought memories of Argentina flooding back to me. Everyone spoke Spanish, and was making their food on little propane stoves. The sounds and smells were all too familiar to me. The nostalgia was sweeping over me in waves, and I felt the intense need for Cory to understand that this atmosphere was "home" to me for two years. It was nice to walk in and realize how much I missed it, and still love it. There is something happy and pleasant tangible in the air despite a lack of the material.
The tacos were delicious, and it was fun to see Cory's reaction to the atmosphere. She totally had culture shock. She kept mentioning how crazy she thought the place was; not crazy in a bad way, just so different from anything she had experienced before. This culminated with me looking over and realizing she was taking a video of the place.
While I was getting everything in order for my applications to graduate school, Cory was busy at work. Noah's is growing and expanding their business at a rapid rate! They have plans to build new venues all over the country. Cory traveled to Ohio to work a bridal show with her good friends Tiffany and Megan in preparation for a new building opening near Columbus in September. From what I heard, they had a lot of success, and the whole show was buzzing about this new venue coming into the market. I am grateful for such a hard-working woman by my side!
With the start of the new year, I have started to get serious about applying for graduate school. One of the items on my to-do list was to take the GRE, a standardized entrance exam for most schools.
I knew I needed to place above the 50th percentile to be considered for admission by most schools, which I was hoping wouldn't be a problem. Since the GRE is standardized I kept telling myself something along the lines of, "You can't really study for a test like this." I realize that isn't the best attitude to have, but I also wasn't going to spend months getting ready. My friend, Joseph, took it last year and gave me his test prep book. I looked through a few sections and felt good to go.
So the day of the test I was getting a little nervous, but nothing too serious. When I arrived at the testing center I had to fill out some forms, and then I was caught off guard at the bottom of the page. They provided a space for me to copy a paragraph saying I was who I said I was and I wouldn't cheat. The catch: the paragraph had to be written in cursive. Cursive? I haven't written in cursive since the 4th grade. Literally. My cursive literally reflects the intelligence level of a 4th grader. It took me about 25 minutes to finish the paragraph. While my hand was cramping up, four other test takers came and finished their forms before I completed my paragraph. Without a doubt it was the hardest part of the test, and it wasn't really even part of the test.
Luckily the rest was easier. After three hours I got my scores. 80th percentile for verbal reasoning and 70th percentile for quantitative reasoning. Not the highest scores, but well above what I needed. Now starts the process of filling out applications!
Cory and I brought in the New Year at the Hyatt House. The Hyatt House is Noah's preferred hotel on their vendor's list, and Cory, as building manager, received a free night stay, so we cashed it in. It's one of the perks of being an incredibly successful and independent woman.
We started the night with dinner at Fuji's. I have always thought I would make a good hibachi chef.
So I think we all can agree that a toast at midnight is kind of necessary in any new year celebration, but for some reason we did not plan ahead for this. After dinner we stopped by Target to pick up some sparkling cider, but they were sold out. Can you believe that? At 8:00 on New Year's Eve Target was sold out of speaking cider. What? Was there some crazy demand for it? Did everyone else have the same idea as us and buy theirs earlier in the week? Oh...they did? Oh...
Anyway, we settled for sparkling grape. It served its purpose. Happy New Year!
Merry Christmas!!!! I hope everybody enjoyed the day, and that Santa showed up to your houses. Cory and I just got back from my parent's house in Wyoming, where we spent the Christmas holiday. It was a fun-filled four days with the family. How is that for alliteration? There were a lot of memories made, so let's get started with this post! One of our first festive activities was decorating some giant gingerbread men. Cory supervised as I concentrated on the icing.
Lacey and Rhiannon each made their own as well. Rhiannon made sure to let us know numerous times that she was making a gingerbread girl, not a man. Duly noted.
Not long after their creation, we consumed our men and girl. It was actually more fun to make them than to eat them. Successful first Christmas activity!!!
On Monday we spent the morning at home, and my mom made my Grandma Wilma's tacos for dinner. Cory even got in there and helped her out.
After filling ourselves with tacos, we all headed to Cody to catch a movie. We saw "Saving Mr. Banks" about Walt Disney and P.L. Travers, the author of Mary Poppins, and their relationship as the Disney movie Mary Poppins was created. It was a good movie. It wasn't quite as good as I thought it was going to be, especially with all the hype surrounding it, but I recommend it for people to go see. Here we all are at Big Horn Cinemas.
The next day was Christmas Eve! Chris, Lacey, and the kids were going to spend Christmas day with the Huhnkes, so we opened their presents a day early. It was fun to see the kids opening up their presents.
Cory was looking very festive in her sweater.
Before we actually got to present opening we played an intense round of Christmas charades. Mom went all out in her Tiny Tim impression, and Dad was able to portray, "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing!" in one smooth motion. We have some legitimate acting talent in this family.
Ebin nailed the choir boy pose. After opening presents, we headed to Wyoming's Rib & Chop House for some dinner. Dad literally ate reindeer. Poor Rudolph!
We have been going to Rib & Chop on Christmas Eve for years now, and we have taken a picture on the street in front for just as long. Here we are very full. I was ready to just hit the hay for the night. The sooner you go to sleep the sooner Santa comes, you know.
We did not go to sleep, though. How could we when we still had to perform our own version of the Nativity? We haven't actually done this since I was a little kid, but its never too late to rekindle old traditions. I was Joseph, and even though nobody actually had speaking parts, I felt like I made the role my own. Cory was Mary, and a beautiful one at that. Rhiannon was an angel/star of Bethlehem. Lacey and Ebin were the wise men, and Chris was a shepherd, complete with miniature candy cane staff. Also, my teddy bear from my childhood was the baby Jesus.
After the Nativity, the Huhnkes headed out, and Cory and I participated in that oldest of Christmas traditions: opening pajamas on Christmas Eve.
Santa came to our house!!! Yes, even on my 25th Christmas, it is still fun and exciting to come out on Christmas morning. Our new pajamas were warm, Piggy Pudding breakfast casserole was overflowing, and bed head was abundant as we gathered in the living room to open presents.
We had a great Christmas thanks to loving family members. Here are a few pictures from the ensuing gift giving.
Growing up I hated getting clothes, now I don't mind it as much.
I also got some great books. Here I am with Jeffrey R. Holland's book For Times of Trouble. I can't wait to read what insights he has to share about the Psalms.
Cory got a nice purse, and she is looking good with it over her shoulder!
New ties!!!
I also gave Cory an initial necklace with the letter 'S' on it. She said she wanted it, for the record. I didn't spontaneously decide she needed to always be wearing my initial.
Such a great Christmas, and it wasn't over yet! We still had Christmas dinner, and under close supervision, I got my chef on! Give me some oven mitts and I can do anything.
It was a very nice way to conclude our holiday trip. Everything was delicious, and at my dad's request, Cory even made her Aunt Sue's green beans.
It was a fantastic trip for Christmas. There was entirely too much food, especially sweets, but we made a lot of great memories as a family, which is what it is all about. Here are some videos from the trip. Lacey insisted that we record Dad's reaction to his surprise gift from Mom. So here he is on Christmas morning opening it up.
I got a new harmonica in my stocking, and a beginner's book so I can attempt to teach myself how to play it. Here I am in a very amateur performance of Jingle Bells. Enjoy! Notice my mother's unconditional support at the end of my playing.
Merry Christmas, everybody! We are looking forward to 2014!
After I took my last final exam of the semester, Cory and I headed to Salt Lake City for some food at Red Iguana, and to look at the lights at Temple Square. It was pretty packed, but fun nonetheless. It was also bitterly cold, but it didn't seem that bad when you have THIS HOT MAMA WITH YOU!!!
Look how cute she is.
Merry Christmas, everybody! We jump on a plane for Wyoming in two days!
So in addition to teaching my districts, one of my close friends from when I lived in Lufkin, TX came into the MTC. Elder Gabe Hendrickson is heading to Brazil, so I had to venture into Portuguese-land to find him. It actually wasn't hard. He is on the 5th floor of the building I teach in. It was fun to see him.
This is probably one of the funnier moments in Christmas movie history. I laugh every time she says, "What? You hated it?" Anyway, Christmas time is here, and with the semester winding down and finals fast approaching, taking some time to decorate the apartment was just what we needed. It is one of the busiest times of year for Cory at work, too. Even though we aren't spending Christmas day in the apartment, we still wanted to enjoy some Christmas spirit while at home this month.
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