Happy Now-Oct. 9

10 Things I am Grateful for This Week:

1.  Beautiful, blustery fall weather--I had to give a disapproving frown only once when it decided to snow earlier this week, but the snow quickly melted and we were just left with wonderful, crisp fall weather, magnificent thunder storms, and a wind strong enough to kick up the dry leaves on the sidewalks.

2.  Orange Cinnamon Lampe Berge oil and other holiday scents--My sister-in-law, Angie, bought us a Lampe Berge this summer while we were visiting in Idaho.  You fill the lampe with a scented oil of your choice and burn the wick for about three minutes.  After that the room is quickly filled with a lovely fragrance.  This week I started burning the Orange Cinnamon oil I had bought over the summer.  The scent is so delicious and fills our little apartment with a great holiday aroma.  It's burning right now and I just love it.  Also, the mother of one of my students gave me some marshmallow-scented hand soap from Bath & Body Works this week.  It's so fun to have all of these seasonal smells in the home!

3.  Teacher Appreciation Days--This one is kind of funny.  On Wednesday, during my students' recess time, I was working at a back table with some students who needed to catch up on an essay.  I looked up from the table to see my school secretary walk in holding two beautiful bouquets of flowers.  I was absolutely stunned and had no idea what the occasion was.  I read the cards--one bouquet was from my parents and the other was from my husband, both wishing me a happy Teacher Appreciation Day.  I'm not sure where they received their information (the only Teacher Appreciation Day I'm aware of is in May), but I certainly wasn't complaining and definitely felt appreciated!  They also gave my room a great floral scent right in time for parent-teacher conferences. :)

This is the bouquet from my parents that I chose to bring home to enjoy. 

Here are the flowers from Darren that I decided to leave on my desk at school. 

4.  E-mail updates from friends--As much as I love being a wife, I often miss the girl talk I got so often from the roommates I had while I was single.  I hate feeling like I'm missing out on the important, or even not-so-important, details in the lives of my friends.  For that reason, my whole week was brightened when I received four e-mails with updates from some of my favorite gals!

5.  Jackets--That one word sums up so much of what I love about this season.  I love shopping for and wearing jackets.  The fifth grade teachers had outdoor pick-up duty after school this week and, for the first time this school year, I got to break out my favorite jackets to wear while we waited for all of the students to go home.  Joy!

6.  Students who share an enthusiasm for reading--I am teaching a group of students in reading this year who love to read.  My reading class is my favorite 45 minutes of the school day.  I have started having my students write me letters once a week in their Reading Notebooks about the thinking they're doing while they read in class.  Their letters are filled with such wonderful insights and excitement that I LOVE reading and responding to them.  My students become so animated in our class discussions about the books they love.  My heart thrills talking to them every morning.

7.  Zumba--A group of teachers at my school and I have started an after-school fitness club.  This week we hired a Zumba instructor to teach us 3 times a week after school.  I have never smiled so much during a workout!  I'm definitely hooked.

8.  Making Christmas plans--This morning I talked to my mom about when Darren and I will be able to to start driving home for Christmas this year and how long we we will be able to stay.  Just talking about it makes me SO excited!

9.  Buying (Darren's) Christmas presents early--I may have come across a gift that I think Darren is going to really like and got it for him for Christmas.  Now I just have to keep it a secret for about 2 1/2 more months.

10.  Cheesy romance from an adorable husband--Darren took a long weekend this weekend to drive from Idaho to CA and back to help his parents move.  When I returned home Wednesday night after teaching I began to find little notes that Darren left hidden around the apartment.  It's something my dad did for us kids and my mom whenever we were going to be separated while I was growing up (leaving notes in suitcases, etc. for us to find later).  I even found a new note from Darren today in our Primary Manual since he wouldn't be home in time to teach our Primary kids with me.  Below are some pictures of the notes and where I found them:

On my pillow

As a total side-note, I took this zoomed-out picture of the note to show the canvas print of one of our wedding pictures we recently received.  The canvas print was included in our photo package and I wasn't sure how I felt about a huge picture of us on canvas somewhere in our home, but I love how it turned out!

I found this Thursday morning under the peanut butter on the counter where Darren knew I would go to make my usual peanut butter toast breakfast.

In my scripture journal

Hidden under my brush in the bathroom

In my school gym bag--"Have a great time at Zumba"

In our Primary Lesson Manual

I realize that in future weeks I might have to look a little harder for the little things that make me happy, but this week it wasn't too difficult. :)

General Conference

Twice a year, the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints speak to the world about things relevant to our time in General Conference.  These men and women teach us how to have more peace, joy, and hope in our lives.  General Conference weekends are two of my favorite weekends of the year because they are always filled with such wisdom, insight, and direction.  The fall General Conference takes place the first weekend in October and, as usual, I loved watching every minute last week.  It was especially exciting to get to hear a story shared by Elder Cook about my great-grandfather, Alma Sonne (I may have started jumping up and down when he started the Titanic story)!  As a side note, Alma Sonne had a ring made after that experience with his initials "AS" on the top and the date he finished his mission in England on the inside.  Because of the experience Alma had at the end of his mission with the Titanic, the ring came to symbolize faith, following the promptings of the Spirit, and the importance of remaining loyal to friends.  Alma wore it everyday and, when he died, it was passed down to my dad who has the same initials and who now wears it on a daily basis.

The Saturday before General Conference, there was also a special broadcast from Salt Lake City just for the women of the Church.  The women who make up the General Relief Society Presidency (the organization of women in the LDS Church) speak as well as a member of the First Presidency of the Church (the Prophet or one of his counselors).  I learned so much from all of the words spoken, but perhaps the biggest messages I heard were 1) God loves his children and is aware of their needs, 2) the challenges we face are meant to strengthen us and bring us joy if we endure, and 3) we don't need to wait to find happiness, but can be grateful for the many blessings we have NOW.

Inspired by these messages, I've decided I need to take more time to reflect on the things for which I am grateful every week.  Every Sunday I plan to write a blog post listing 10 things I was grateful for that week.  There are the big things for which I will be forever grateful and that go without saying, such as the family, friends, and Gospel that continually enrich my life.  I hope the "Happy Now" posts will help me reflect on the small things that happen each week that often get over looked but, nonetheless, make my life the happy one that it is!  The "Happy Now" title comes from President Uchtdorf's talk during the General Relief Society Broadcast two weeks ago in which he counseled us to "forget not to be happy now."  Look for the first post next. :)

Park City

Park City is a beautiful mountain resort town nestled in the mountains east of Salt Lake City.  Darren and I love visiting there as often as we can.  Over the past couple of years, Park City has become a favorite city of ours not only for its natural beauty and artsy shops, but because it has been the location of some important milestones in our relationship:

• On one of our first dates Darren drove me to Park City to have dinner and to go on the Toboggan Ride.  It was a great date.  It was on this date that I realized how much of a true gentleman Darren is.  While walking around Park City he traded me spots on the sidewalk several times to make sure he was on my road side.  He opened doors, asked me questions about my job, LISTENED and then asked more questions, and sacrificed some of his own warm clothing to make sure his unprepared date was warm enough on the Toboggan.  I will never be able to live down, however, that despite the fact that I was enjoying the date, I fell asleep on the car ride home--for just a few minutes.  In my defense, it was a Friday night after a long week during my first year as a teacher. He's lucky I was able to maintain consciousness as long as I did.  :) 
• A little less than a year later, we decided that we wanted to take some of our engagement pictures on the old Main Street in Park City.  We met Darren's brother, Steven, there early one Saturday morning and got some great shots!

We didn't know it at the time, but this picture was taken in front of the hotel where we would stay on our honeymoon a few months later-- the Marriott Park City Summit Watch

• I knew our honeymoon would be somewhere close (either Ca or Ut) because I only had a week off of teaching and we both wanted to keep our travel plans simple.  Darren still made it an exciting surprise, however, by secretly arranging for us to stay at the Summit Watch for a week and then revealing it to me during our first dance at our reception.  The hotel was in the perfect location at the bottom of the old Main Street, so all of the shops and restaurants were within walking distance.  Needless to say, it was wonderful!

Honeymoon--old Main Street, Park City

Honeymoon--Dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse

• Most recently, Darren and I ran our first 1/2 Marathon together in Park City.  Darren is naturally much more athletic than I, but he ran with and encouraged me the whole 13.1 miles.  He was even sweet enough to give me a heads up when we were approaching a race photographer so that I didn't look like I was dying too painfully in any of the pictures.  As you can tell in the pictures below, however, I was focusing too much on surviving to even think about smiling for any pictures.  The true smile came out only once--in the picture taken as we crossed the finish line!

Delicious Autumn!

Delicious autumn!  My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.  ~George Eliot

Leaves in Hobble Creek Canyon

I have been inspired by the beautiful autumn-themed posts of others to write my own post about this wonderful season.  While each season has its charms, autumn has always been my favorite.  I think it started while growing up in Redlands, CA where the summers were excruciatingly hot and fall marked the beginning of the cool, crisp weather.  My feelings for this season have only become stronger since living in Utah and New York.  The leaves change to such vibrant colors here in Utah and fall in Manhattan meant cooler weather, fewer crowds, jackets, and pumpkins on the worn steps of brownstones.

We have had the most glorious fall weekends these past two weekends in Utah.  Two Saturdays ago I started the day by riding my bike up Hobble Creek Canyon with another teacher at my school.  Last Sunday, Darren and I took a drive up the same canyon to snap some pictures of the changing leaves.  My love for this season has been born all over again.  I returned from both trips feeling invigorated--wanting to pull out my spice candles, pour some apple cider, make a carmel apple, eat candy corns, and start carving a pumpkin.  It truly is a delicious season, isn't it?

Hobble Creek Canyon

Hobble Creek Canyon

Hobble Creek Canyon

Goodbye Summer, Hello New School Year!

 Tonight I am on the brink of a new school year (my third as a teacher) and hence two blog posts in one day.  It might be a while before the next one.  It is always hard to say goodbye to summer, but at least tonight I feel more excitement than nerves as I anticipate teaching tomorrow.

This has been a wonderful summer--great trips, time to relax, visits with family and friends, and the opportunity to pursue some long-held goals.  Some of the best moments of the summer, however, have been in the summer evenings.  The heat begins to abate and the outdoors becomes so inviting.  Here are just a few ways Darren and I have spent the summer evenings this year:

Big Ben in London

At an Owls Baseball game (Darren's boss had extra tickets one evening early this summer)

Barbecuing with the Chaffees at our apartment in Springville (above and below)

Roommate reunion with Katie, Tessa, and Melissa at Maglebys--Love these girls!

Enjoying several summer storms and beautiful sunsets

Celebrating the engagement and approaching marriage of close friends--Congrats Whit!

As hard as it is to say goodbye to moments like these, I love the sense of fresh starts and the potential that comes with a new school year.  I met several of my new students at Back to School Night last week and I know it's going to be another great class.  My only hope is to communicate the potential I see in my students to them.  I want them to work hard and be the leaders I know they can be.  They need a guide and I hope I can be a good one for them.  Here's to the fresh bouquet of sharpened pencils sitting on my teacher's desk ready to write this year's stories! 

The Big 2-8

My first birthday as a wife was wonderful!  I have a great feeling about being 28.  The past couple of years have brought some big and exciting changes, and I can't wait to see what this year has in store for us.

It's a little embarrassing to admit, but I told Darren that in lieu of gifts I just wanted to eat out for every meal on my birthday--can you tell I enjoy a good meal and not having to do dishes?  Like the family reunion, I meant for this day to be much more well-documented in photos, but in my excitement for the day I often forgot to take those pictures.  Hopefully the following description and few pictures will do the day justice.

I woke up early on my birthday excited to start the fun day we had planned.  Darren had arranged to take the day off so that we could spend it together, and I just couldn't wait!  I came into the kitchen area that morning to get ready for breakfast and found a bouquet of pink tulips (my favorite) and gerber daisies on the table.  They were beautiful!  Darren had apparently retrieved them out of their hiding place and put them on the table early that morning.  As excited as I was for the day and being the light sleeper that I am, I'm amazed he did all that without waking me up.  For breakfast I decided that I wanted to go to Kneaders in Provo for their delicious French Toast.  I was never a french toast fan growing up, but there's something about the syrup and strawberries and creme that come with this french toast that makes it impossible to resist.

After breakfast, I decided that I wanted to open some sweet cards and gifts from family and friends.  From my parents I received a contribution to a bike of my choice (see earlier post :) and a book called Parisian Chic: A Style Guide by Ines de la Fressange.  So fun!  Chris gave me an awesome new running outfit from Georgetown.  I wore it to the gym later that morning and felt so smart and sophisticated being associated with Georgetown's School of Medicine.  My in-laws gave us a generous gift so that that night's dinner could be on them.  Thank you everyone!  The gifts and cards were all so wonderful.

The Georgetown running outfit from Chris and flowers from Darren

Though I was still a little full from breakfast when lunch time came around, I didn't want to pass up the opportunity to go to an old favorite:  Darren and I ate light at Provo's Zupas Cafe.  There are a lot of fun memories with roommates and great sandwiches, soups, and salads to be found there.

Later that afternoon, we came home to find white roses (my other favorite flower) delivered to our apartment from my parents.  What a lucky girl I was to have two such beautiful flower arrangements in my apartment!

Darren then offered to take me to a movie I had been dying to see since I read the book and found out they were making it into a movie:  The Help.  I LOVED it!  I have already seen it again with some girls in my book group and loved it just as much the second time as the first.  I really appreciated Darren taking me to see it as I know it wasn't at the top of his list of movies to see, but I think he secretly really enjoyed it.  The movie is sweet, sad, and poignant with some very funny moments in between.

We went to Carrabas for dinner (yum, yum!) and grabbed a cupcake from my new favorite cupcake place, The Cocoa Bean, for dessert on the way home.  It was a fantastic day filled with fun and food (neither of us had to eat much for the next several days!).  Thanks for all the birthday wishes and your help in making it such a great day!

Sonne Family Reunion

Darren and I recently returned from the annual Sonne family reunion in Carlsbad, Ca.  We had a great time visiting with family and relaxing at the beach--definitely two of my favorite things.  I wish I had taken more pictures, but here are a few cute ones.

We really missed Chris this year as he had already left for Med School.  My mom was with him for the first part of the reunion to attend Georgetown's White Coat Ceremony with him.  It sounded like an awesome event!  At the ceremony Chris received his first doctor's coat with his name and Georgetown University stitched on it.  I got this photo in a text from him after the ceremony.  I'm a mighty proud sister!

Here's Darren with Kim and Richard's cute little boy Parker.  He is joined below by Jill and Tom's girls, Sadie and Ashlyn.