Happiness...

I love many things. One of the things that I love is how a wonderful recipe can turn a gloomy day into the best day ever.

Butternut Squash Soup with Cinnamon Croutons. That is all I have to say.

Dating on a budget...

We wanted to go out today, but knew that we had spent all of our entertainment budget on our trip this month, so we had to get creative. We just happened to be discussing how we haven't had much luck selling Sky's textbooks on Amazon, which gave me a brilliant idea. We decided to pack up our duffel bag with all of our unneeded textbooks and then take our chances at a used book shop. We decided that whatever money we made we would be able to spend on our date. Now we expected this to be upwards of $5 and a dollar menu date because we hadn't had luck in the past. However, we lucked out with a whopping $70! We were pretty stoked and couldn't stop laughing at ourselves.

We used our unexpected cash to go to a sushi place for lunch and wander the mall with actual spending money. We had a great time and have some money left to burn a few holes in our pockets. We'll have to try another book shop during the winter term!

Fall Break...

We took a wonderful road trip for our fall break. It was nice to go away with just the two of us. It reinforced how true it is that Skyler really is my best friend. We especially enjoyed being with family, visiting close friends, and seeing the church sites. I must say that this trip was a much needed getaway; we were able to make the most of each day and love every minute of it together. We did a ton, so I can't get it all in a blog post, but here are some highlights. (Don't worry, I won't make you look at all the spreadsheets we made to plan for the trip.)

Day one:
Travel to Cleveland and stay with Bridi and Jason Waite (Bridi is Skyler's sweet cousin).

Day two:
Continue with Waite's to Kirtland to see church sites.
See Carissa Clive (my friend from home) who is serving a mission in Kirtland.

This is David, Bridi & Jason's son. He took quite a liking to Skyler. Sky was quite pleased that David stopped and waited for Skyler to hold his hand.

Me and the lovely Carissa.

Day three:
Visit more with the Waite's.
Travel to Carmel, IN to visit my grandparents who are serving a mission in Indianapolis.

On the way out of Cleveland we stopped at the John Johnson farm in Hiram, OH. This is a desk in the office where Joseph Smith studied.

Days four & five:
Visit with Grandma & Grandpa Larsen.

The city of Carmel was very nice. Too bad we won't always have family there.

We actually don't have any pictures of my grandparents, I am the one in charge of the camera and I was too busy chatting away--Skyler got video though.

Day six:
Travel to Nauvoo, IL.
Stop at the Carthage Jail in Carthage, IL.
Visit the temple in Nauvoo.
Camp in the car.

Carthage Jail in Carthage, IL where the Prophet Joseph and his brother Hyrum were martyred.

Us outside the Navuoo temple. We are the tiny specs at the bottom center-right.
Forgive the stranger that took it for us.

Day seven:
See the sites in Nauvoo.
Travel to Chicago to see Ben & Lexi.

This is the making of a wheel for a wagon like the pioneers used to carry their things to SLC from Nauvoo.

The stories of the strength of the pioneers were very touching. They were so strong in their faith and their families.

Day eight:
Tour Chicago with the "All-Knowing Chicagoans," a.k.a. Ben & Lexi.

Us at the big bean in Chicago. Pretty stinkin' cool!

Day nine:
Go to Navy Pier in Chicago.
Walk Michigan Avenue
Visit with Ben & Lexi.

Beautiful Chicago reflecting off of the big bean.

Day ten:
Visit with Ben & Lexi.
Invite ourselves to stay for one more night with Ben & Lexi; we couldn't get enough of them. :) We miss you guys already!

Us on the observation deck in the Sears Tower, which we did on day eight.

I had too much fun to keep up with the pictures, so again, Skyler was the video man on days nine and ten and we have no photos.

Day eleven:
Leave our roommates in Chicago and travel to Ithaca.

I am glad to say that after traveling for 11 days with Skyler I would happily drive across the country with him again. Maybe next time it will be all the way to Utah or Washington!

Spouse Tag...

photo courtesy of the talented Melissa Carlos.

My best friend, Ashley, posted her husband tag and then tagged anyone else that would like to brag about their husbands...how could I pass up the chance! :)

1. Where did you meet? BYU. Skyler's cousin Greg and my roommate Mollie set us up.

2. How long did you date before you got married? 1 year and 4 months

3. How long have you been married? 2.5 fantastic years.

4. What does he do that surprises you? He cleans up after me without a complaint. I never thought I would be the messy one in my marriage (let me defend myself and say that he is very clean person!). He is a great housekeeper and makes me happy to clean for him.

5. What is your favorite feature of his? His handsome eyes and smile (they are a package deal).

6. What is your favorite quality of his? He is constantly striving to be a better person.

7. Does he have a nickname for you? Love.
8. What is his favorite color? Blue or Orange depending on the day.

9. What is his favorite food? Lasagna.

10. What is his favorite sport? Baseball.

11. When and where was your first kiss? At the doorstep of Apt 220 after our third date.

12. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? Go to shows for special evenings. We also enjoy cooking together on a regular basis.
13. Do you have any children? No.

14. Does he have a hidden talent? He is a great problem-solver, which relates to his overall intelligence. He especially enjoys figuring out brain-teasers. (side-story--One of the teachers I worked with gave her excelling math students brain-teasers to help them with their logical reasoning. I stink at such things. Whenever we would give the students a new packet I would take it home to Sky so he could solve them. He really enjoyed it!)

15. How old is he? 25 years old.

16. Who said I love you first? He did.
17. What is his favorite type of music? Alternative Rock--his current favorite is Matchbox 20.

18. What do you admire most about him? He is a great comforter. He is very aware of me and always does whatever he can to make me remember that I am the most important person in his life.

19. Do you think he will read this? Yeah--it will show on his google reader page. Plus I have been teasing him (in a loving way) about it the whole time I have been filling this out. :)

I tag the husbands that read this...please post about your amazing spouses! This could be very sweet!

First Attempt...

Skyler and my parents bought me Photoshop CS3 for graduation back in May. I have been using it for photo editing, but I haven't had the guts to dive into the scrapbooking head first. But, I had time today and felt the urge to create. This is my first attempt. There is so much more to learn! Feel free to leave ideas and suggestions. I just got a free kit from the internet and then pieced bits of what I liked together. It is fun and I hope to do lots more. Chels, you are amazing!

Third year...

We have been loving this new semester. Some might think that the 3L law students are just not fair with all their freedom the last year, but I sure feel like we have paid our dues in many ways. I do, however, have sympathy for you strong couples studying in PhD programs--you are a tough group! Luckily I don't feel like we have suffered extensively from the intensity of the 1L or 2L years. It was definitely a blessing that I was in school during Skyler's first two years so that we could study together instead of me wondering what I could do for entertainment while he studied.

This photo brings me feelings of happiness as I consider that Sky still gets to have tennis shoes out next to his dress shoes. Soon it will just be dress shoes and more dress shoes.

So, what have we done with our free time? The first bit of the month we spent soaking in the last bit of warmth that Ithaca had to offer. We love Ithaca in the summer, but missed it at it's best. We were able to do a nice hike through Treman and also walk along Cayuga Lake. I didn't have my camera for either event because they were spontaneous (which is huge for us).

Other than that we have just been doing various projects. There is lots to do, but we are loving the fact that we can do most of it together. Best of all, Ithaca is in all its glory now with the Autumn in full swing. I took some photos yesterday because I just can't get over how beautiful the trees are with the freshness of fall.

The colors of Ithaca.

I love the beauty of the small droplets of water that cover everything this time of year.

Tagged...

So you might all hate tags, but I like getting them once in a while. I have been in a slump about what to post, so this will get the ball rolling again. I was tagged by Skyler's cousin Bridi, who is the sweetest girl! And yes Bridi, I read your blog!

My 3 Joys, 3 Fears, 3 Obsessions, and 3 Suprising Facts

3 Joys
1. Skyler Mark Tanner
2. The Gospel
3. Cooking/Baking

3 Fears

1. Something happening to Sky and him not being able to reach me
2. Being kidnapped
3. Losing a family member while we are away

(Wow, those are sad thoughts!)

3 Obsessions
1. Beautiful shoes
2. Homemaking
3. Shaving my legs and arms--has to happen everyday.

3 Suprising Facts
1. I don't iron our clothes--Skyler is great!
2. I didn't know how to do eyeliner until I was already in college and my little sister taught me when I came home.
3. I secretly want to be a hippie (shop local, organic, and all that jazz that my husband thinks is for crazies!) :) :) :)

I say if you read this and you want to be tagged...go for it! I will love reading it.

Larsen Kayaking Expedition

We just returned from a week of kayaking with my family. We kayaked around the Broken Group Islands of Vancouver Island British Columbia. It was an amazing trip full of adventure. We were camping in every sense. We were only able to take what would fit in our individual kayaks so we looked a little rough around the edges, but had high spirits. By the end of the trip we were able to see all of the inner islands and proudly say that we had experienced most everything that we had hoped. The highlights included riding the waves, avoiding the paths of whales, playing with fire, and all around family fun. There are a million photos of our expedition in our picasa album. Here are a few to get you started.

Becca and Sky carrying up a kayak for the night.

All of us around the campfire. Dad forgot to look.

The view from the 1st island that we camped on.

Our kayaks after a day of paddling.

Bronx Zoo

Skyler and I took a trip to the Bronx Zoo on Saturday along with Hank and Stacy. We had a great time and best of all, it was free! When we headed out to take the subway to the zoo we were worried that we were crazy because it was absolutely pouring. It was an adventure and we had a good laugh at ourselves. It started to rain even more when Sky and I got to the zoo, we waded through puddles and just had a good laugh every time thunder struck. Sometimes it can be fun to be crazy.

I mention all of this silly stuff because not only was it fun, but it turned out to our benefit. After the initial storm things cleared up. When the Toone's met up with us the sun was shining and the sky was clear. And the best part, no one else was at the zoo. We were able to see all of the animals without trouble because there weren't any obnoxious people trying to budge. We had a front-row seat to everything. It was definitely worth the initial stormy weather. Plus Sky and I are turning out to be fans of the warm rain in NYC.

P.S. Chels, you are right. I am a sporadic blogger :) I should be better.

I think these were my favorite. The mama and baby were so attached to each other. It was quite adorable.

This picture is for Sky's siblings. They are the animals from the cartoon "Madagascar." Kids at the zoo were singing the song "We like to move-it, move-it" as they looked at these lemurs.

They did a feeding "show" with the sea lions. They had them do all sorts of fun tricks. They are such smart animals and clearly attached to their individual trainers.

And of course, the tourist picture. Have you ever seen a tourist picture with only two tourists! It was grand!

A Week Off...

Some might say, "Why would Shannah need a week off? She has a the whole summer off." You would be right, I don't really have much on my plate right now. But Cassie's mom was a sweetheart and treated us to a 3-night inclusive stay at a B&B type place down in Cape May, New Jersey last Monday to Thursday.

Cassie knows I am in love with the 1800's right now so it was great to stay in the place that we did. It was old-fashion and full of charm. That is a nice way to say that we didn't have our own shower--but we did have a claw-footed bathtub :) Truly we loved the old-fashion charm of the area. I would still love to take a trip back in time to nineteenth century England. (For those of you that don't know, I am somewhat obsessed with Jane Austen books right now).

The highlight of the trip was likely the bike ride. We went for what turned out to be a 25 mile bike ride. Luckily Cape May terrain is not similar to the hills of Ithaca so it wasn't taxing in the least, just leisurely. But we did walk like cowgirls after hopping off of our bikes. We had a blast.

The other things we did were treated ourselves to 20 min. massages and SkeeBall. I must say we are quite talented SkeeBallers. Now that is something to be proud of! Other than that we lazied around on the beach and hit the shops. It was great to be on the beach and to do girl stuff.

Here are some photographs from the trip. We were just a couple of sun-thirsty girls gallivanting along and loving the charming town.

The rocking chair in my room--a personal favorite.

Me wandering through the shops.

Us on a quiet beach during our bike ride.

The lighthouse--also part of our bike ride tour.

I loved the fog here. This was near the lighthouse.

Memory Lane...

This sounds like fun!

Here is What you Do:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty cool (and funny) to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Photography Class

I am taking a photography class this week so I can learn more about using the manual settings on the camera and not feel confined by the auto settings that keep me from doing what I want. I did a bit of photography in high school with a 35mm but I don't remember much from it other than the lingo--without the appropriate definitions. I have enjoyed the class a great deal thus far. We are learning various things and I feel like I can actually take the pictures that I want--now I just need to work on my composition and my personal style.

Here are a few photos from the last two nights of homework:

Assign: take a pic with 2/3rds window 1/3 wall (practice with lighting)
p.s. Don't you love the tiling? This is in our apt foyer. It is my favorite.

Assign: panning--follow the moving subject.

Assign: ghosting--subject in the frame for part of the exposure, but not the entire time.

Assign: more with exposure--long shutter speed (a spinning door to Sky's work)

Assign: take a pic of the same subject at 5 different angles all with same exposure--obviously this is only one of the photos.

Beauty in Central Park

Central Park is one of my favorite places in NYC. Maybe it is because I am not a city slicker through-and-through. I love being amongst all of the beautiful natural scenery in Central Park and then seeing the skyscrapers in the distance.

I now love Central Park even more as last night we had the most magical experience. We were just going for a walk after dinner and as we were walking along a path Skyler pointed out to me that there were fireflies. It was dusk, so as it got darker we started to see more and more. We walked amongst the fireflies for a good mile. What a neat experience! I have never seen fireflies before and I wouldn't have expected to see them in NYC. I was so thrilled. We ended up stopping and just sitting and watching them for a good twenty minutes just before we left the park so I could soak it all in and appreciate the moment.

There are just so many things to love about NYC!

P.S. These pictures are borrowed from other people on the web because we didn't have our camera with us last night. We are going to go out again and with my camera next time!

A big cut....

So, I have been growing my hair out for the past year. I went from this...

to this...

in a year and three months. With styling cuts between.

I have been considering cutting my hair for the last 3 weeks or so. When Lexi came to town she was excited to suggest a haircut and get to work. I can't believe it, but I even had enough hair to donate to Locks-of-Love (following in Natalie's footsteps).

I am glad to have short hair again. I really love it both ways. I feel a little more NYC-esque with it short and I think I look closer to my age.

Looking my age is the primary reason for the cut. Over the last 3 months I have had more people act shocked when I mention that I have a husband or that I am over 16 than ever before. It gets quite depressing. It is quite common that people assume I am not old enough to have graduated from high school, let alone to be married and have a master's degree. I will count my blessings on the matter later, but for now I would prefer for people to assume I am at least over 21. No one is ever rude, of course they attempt to turn it into a compliment and then say something to the effect of "That's why you have such a mature attitude." But still, I don't want to look only a few years older than my students. You can decide for yourself if the short hair actually does what I want it to do. For now I feel quite attractive/fun and Skyler can't stop the compliments. I think we both like a little change once in a while.

20 years...

I was tagged by Natalie. Here are the past 20 years of my life.

20 years ago... 1988
1. My sister Rebecca Suzanne was born.
2. I turned 4 years old.
3. I had the most beautiful teal Easter dress, made by my mother of course. I still love it.

10 years ago... 1998

1. The summer between 7th and 8th grade

2. My family moved to Camas from Vancouver.

3. I met and became friends with David.

4. I spent the summer leveling our new front yard.

5. Attempted to make the transition into a new school.

5 years ago... 2003

1. June 2003, I graduated from Camas High School...and finally made it to the stage of my life I had been waiting for for so long...

2. Started school at BYU

3. Met all of my now best friends.

4. Went home for the summer--the only time.

5. Set up Ashley and Nathan...of which I am so proud!

Dorm at D.T.

3 years ago... 2005
1. Started dating Skyler Mark.

2. Snowboarded for the first time. And accidentally let Natalie break her elbow (we think).
3. Held out for the love of my life to realize his deep desire to marry me.

4. Moved into Apt 220 and best friends became friends forever (that was cheesy, but my first thought, and plus, I am the cheesy one :) ).
5. Became engaged to Skyler Mark (Dec. 05).

1 year ago... 2007
1. January: Started my master's degree program in New York while Skyler continued Law School at Cornell.

2. Went to Cape Cod...life long dream.
3. Realized that 4th graders are my favorite.
4. Made more amazing friends in Ithaca, NY.

5. Decided to move to NYC after Skyler graduates.

So far this year... 2008
1. Graduated with my master's degree in Elementary Education.
2. Taken up the life of a housewife...and love it!
3. Seen Phantom of the Opera on Broadway...another random life long dream.
4. Started pilates.
5. Explored NYC.

Yesterday... June 30, 2008

1. Dined at a gluten-free restaurant

2. Played tour guide for our fantastic visitors (That's right, Lexi and Ben know that NYC is the place to be!)

3. Realized that Chinatown really isn't as scary as I thought.

4. People -watched as we wandered all around NYC.

5. Waited for the call from the love of my life to let me know that he is safe in Miami.

Today... July 1, 2008

1. Said a groggy goodbye to our dear friends the Jones' at 4:50am.
2. Woke up at 6:30am to take the car back to the parking garage
3. Went to pilates at 9am.
4. Fell in love all over again with Skyler Mark as I watched our wedding video for the first time.
5. I am now deciding how to make the arrival of my husband a wonderful day because I love him so dearly. (I told you I am feeling sappy)

Tomorrow... July 2, 2008

1. I will get the house in order.
2. Write thank-you cards.
3. Update the budget.
4. Enjoy a nice run.
5. Hopefully feel absolutely irresistible for the arrival of Skyler.

Next year... 2009
1. Skyler will graduate from Cornell Law School.
2. Say goodbye to Ithaca...which will be quite sad.
3. Take a graduation/bar cruise with all of our law school friends!
4. Settle in NYC.
5. Attempt to gracefully attack the highly rigorous demands of being a first-year associates' wife.

I tag...
Molly, Mollie, and Suzanna...feel free to join in if you would like!