HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARRIE~!

Carrie! today is your birthday and we wanna celebrate! We made you an awesome video... last year. So please enjoy.
http://vimeo.com/34110663

Happy Birthday Carrie!

Love, Us.

Happy Hardcore Birthday, Daniel

We hope it's the greatest day ever! :)

Thanks to Taylor...the beginning is fixed!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFNvb-g2Uho

Love, 

Everyone

In October...

We went to Pennsylvania. 

It was fun.

I would write all about it, but my brain doesn't want to.

So here are some pictures.

  

 

 

Inside joke...

We love Rocky

Perching

Taylor=awesome

planking

 The end.

This is not a video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5GwlLu4Mrw

Did you know...

.....That 13% of American adults have at least one stepchild? 

Well David and I know it. Why you might ask? Because as I was driving David to school on Tuesday morning, we were listening to the radio and they were doing their morning trivia thing.

The question was: "13% of American adults have at least one of these..."

Answers consisted of:

 dogs

cats

daughters (that was the key)

When the person guessed daughter he let her guess again because she was on the right track. She had nothing. 

I sleepily mumbled "illegitimate child"

to which David said "step child"

A few more people called in saying:

dog (again...rookie mistake)

grandchildren (he let them guess again...nothing)

David said, "it's got to be one of the ones we said."

I said, "well then call them!"

he began to reach for his phone, his gloves were too big (it's freezing here) so he gave up. I reached for his pocket because now I was being competitive. He didn't let me reach in his pocket, but he got the phone out for me. I dialed the number once, busy. I dialed again...ringing, ringing...

"MY FM what's your answer?"

Me: "stepchild"

My FM guy: "that's exactly right, you've just won a $10 gift certificate to Costa Vida...blah blah blah"

WE WONNNN!!!! What an awesome morning...and it was only 7:30am. So cool.

 Now we just have to drive to Idaho Falls to pick up our gift certificate. 

So excited for good food...for FREEEE!!!

Thanks MyFM. 

Happy Halloween (early)... and other stuff

David found this editing program online and made us into zombies...for Halloween he says. :)

We carved pumpkins for FHE with some families in our ward. It was fun...(David did all of it). We were going to go all out and do an crazy Walker from The Walking Dead, but our pumpkin was so thick it was almost impossible to do. So we ended up with this Mexican Jack O'Lantern...with a bum.... :-/ heh

We are planning some fun stuff for Halloween...even though we probably won't be dressed up. haha whoops! We are excited though!

AAANNNNDDDD I started my collection of children's books...FINALLY. I've been in a bunch of college classes where they always talk about getting your children's book collection started now so when you're a first year teacher you don't have to blow a bunch of money on books. Well I finally obeyed. Mostly because I have to teach a lesson about Fall/Halloween this week in Preschool, but these will be fun books to have forever. ALSO, I got to write "Dominguez" on all of them. :) They are mine. I love it.

Also, I promise a post about Pennsylvania is coming...like probably this weekend. Here's a little teaser..

'Merica!

November 6th is Election Day.

David and I are almost registered. We are both going to be Idaho Voters now. 

Hopefully 4 years we can still be Idaho voters. :)

David just needs to sign his registration form. I need to stick them in the mail and we'll be set!

I love America.

The End.

P.S. We went to Pennsylvania. Blog post coming soon. :)

Glow Worms

Last week I walked out to my car after class. I was in a hurry to get to work so when I saw a bright green piece of paper on my windshield my first thought was, "Oh great. a ticket". As I continued walking toward my car, trying to think of why I would have a ticket. I parked in the right place, I had my permit in the window, I didn't exceed any time limits...I had done nothing wrong. By the time I got to my car, I was pretty upset, and ready to give BYU-I Parking Services a piece of my mind...but I found something quite the opposite. Something that made me giggle. Something that made me happy. Something that made me curious. I found this....

"I wish I were a glow worm, a glow worm's never glum. 'Cause how can you be grumpy, when the sun shines out your bum?" ~The Super Smiley Sister~

I admit, I laughed out loud. I looked around to see if anyone was close by that could be "The Super Smiley Sister". I read it multiple times because it is so clever. And I was grateful that it wasn't a ticket. :)

Thumbs

Have you ever tried to take your contacts out without a working thumb?

I'm here to tell you it is nearly impossible. 

In my case, I had a Bandaid on my thumb, therefore, it wasn't working properly. 

I had a bandaid on my thumb because I cut my fingernail too short. Worst. 

I tried using my left hand. No go.  Not coordinated enough.

I tried using my bandaged thumb. Ouch.

I ended up using my index and middle fingers. In a scissor motion. 

It still hurt me a little bit, but the contacts came out and I was able to go to bed. 

Why do short fingernails hurt so bad? Boo.

It hurt to type, it hurt to text, it hurt when I was just sitting still.

 

I'm grateful for my thumbs. And when they are fully functioning. :)

Chopped

No, I didn't cook anything really awesome.
No, neither of us chopped a limb off.
No, we didn't lose any jobs or what have you...
Yes, I did cut my hair 10 inches and yes I did donate it to Locks of Love.

Back in February, The White Christmas Sisters' invited any and all who wanted to participate. I felt the desire to commit to this all the way back then because not only have I lost my Grandpa and Uncle James to cancer, but David's mother as well. I wasn't fortunate enough to ever meet her, but I know she was an amazing person and she's given me an amazing husband. I figured I could give back in some way besides being a good wife. So I decided not only to do it for little Claire, whom I've never met, but also for my late mother-in-law. It was a really great experience and I'm so happy with how it turned out.

I won't lie, I was very nervous when I showed up to get it cut, but when I heard the first snip of the scissors, I literally got goosebumps and was overwhelmed with joy and love for those suffering from such a horrible thing.

 Here's a before and some afters! :)

**Hair cut by the one and only Stayc (Smith) Smart! Thanks girl!

Before

After

Ta DAAAA!!!

Her name

Her name is Cyndi... get it right or pay the price.

East vs. West

West is better.

The end.
_________________________________________________________________





Just kidding. I'll explain.

Last night David and I went to the Eastern Idaho Fair. Since I can remember I've gone to the Western Idaho Fair each summer and loved it. Not just the rides, but the food, the people watching and everything else that a fair entails. So I convinced David to take me to Blackfoot, Idaho so I could get an Onion Blossom. Yes. That's all I wanted.

The first thing that is makes the West the best is that it's in my town. Maybe 15 minutes away (with traffic). We had to drive an hour to get there! But I guess that's sort of unavoidable when I live in little tiny Rexburg.
When we arrived the first major disappointment was the parking. WE HAD TO PAY FOR IT! What the heck? We never pay for parking in Boise, and they even have little trolley's that come around and pick you up to take you to and from your car! Blackfoot--nada. So we had already spent $3 before even getting inside. Boo.
Second disappointment: Horrible spacing (I sound like a dance competition judge)! But seriously, everything was so close together and awkwardly angled. I mean naturally, at a fair, there are long lines everywhere you go, but it made it even worse when there was only space for like 10 people when there should have been space for 50 or more.
Third disappointment: No flow. When we first walked in it felt like we weren't even in the same vicinity as the rides or food. And we literally had to walk through an underground tunnel to get to the food and rides. Then there were random
Disappointment #4: NO ONION BLOSSOMS. Yep. You heard right. The one reason I went to the fair and it wasn't even there. I still had greasy nachos and an ice cream cone, but nothing beats the onion blossom with delicious fry sauce.

Okay so enough complaining. I've been spoiled with the Western Idaho Fair, but I am still grateful I got to go to a fair at all this year. We rode one ride and that was just enough. We saw all the animals and cool little shops. And we even found a place with massage chairs that we sat in for like 10 minutes before we left the fair. :)

Although it wasn't the fair experience I'm used to, I still had lots of fun!



Clydesdales! So huge!

This is called a "Walker". David used them this summer at work and they are SO expensive!
This one was $12,320--and that's a "fair special". HA!
I didn't get pictures of our dinner, but a picture of David's dessert was necessary.
Funnel Cake!

Science at the fair!

David was in heaven. So many little gadgets and toys!

Sweetest hand-beaded moccasin boots ever!

This is for Brooke. I will be sending it to her. This is a Scottish Highlander. All things Scottish will make me think of her. This one made me laugh out loud. She will love it. :)



This goat also made me laugh out loud. There was only one way to get that food and he was hungry enough to do it! :) Although it looks as if we are standing outside the fairgrounds because of how far away the rides look, we aren't.
We still had fun. I promise.

Food and Jobs...as promised

Warning: This is a lengthy post. Probably boring to anyone who isn't my mom or sisters. Don't feel obligated.

Food first!
Over the past 6.5 weeks (aka David and my summer break) we have done some good eating. Some at restaurants, friends houses and some homemade meals. We've enjoyed Pizza Pie Cafe, tin foil dinners at the Muench's, Applebees, homemade Cafe Rio/Costa Vida at the Muench's, hamburger pasta at the Buys' and Wingers! From that list you may think we haven't done any cooking for ourselves--false. We've done quite a bit actually. I only have pictures of some of the food we've made at home, but it's still proof that we are eating and we're eating good food!

California Pizza Kitchen-Club Pizza
One half without tomatoes-----for David

Camping breakfast (we had more than just potatoes)

Grilled Brown Sugar Chicken, Squash and Zucchini

We also had family favorites like Chicken Pillows, Tostadas, and Hamburger Rice Casserole to name a few!

**we are currently completely out of groceries.....darn.

No onto the 'job' part of this post.
David was given a full time job this summer as a member of the grounds crew on campus. He was blessed with 40 hours a week and a very, very flexible supervisor--which made any summer travel plans pretty painless. :) He will be able to work the first few weeks of the semester on the grounds crew while the testing center is slow, then he'll be back to the testing center 20 hours a week!

As for me... I was a teacher's assistant during the Spring semester as well as worked at Opinionology. I was very grateful for the TA job for the Spring semester, but was super bummed because I wouldn't be on track in the Fall in order to keep that job and not have to work so much at the call center (don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for a job there, but it's not the most fun job). Then one day close to the end of the semester, David came home and told me that the on campus employment policy was changing and that people can still work when they are off track! That was the best news that I'd ever heard. I quickly texted Sister Cranmer to ask if she'd heard anything about it, she hadn't--I was devastated. When I went back to work on Monday the first thing she said was, "guess what? The rumor is true, you can be my TA in the Fall!". I was elated! So I had two jobs secure for the Fall semester. Everything I ever wanted...or so I thought.

A few weeks into the summer break I received an email from a former teacher and family friend, Sister McQuain, that stated--

"My son-in-law is looking for a part-time courier (see below). If you or anyone you know might be interested in this part-time job, please contact Ryan as indicated below. Have a great summer!"

The email then went on explaining the job duties--

Part-Time Courier Position A regional, independent medical lab is in need of a local courier for the Rexburg, ID area. The responsibilities include picking up specimens daily from at least one physician office and preparing them for shipping to the lab (located in Boise).

I thought, oh why not. I knew she sent this to all of her students and it had been a day or so, and I was sure someone had already contacted him and been hired. I thought wrong. He responded to my emails, asking me a few questions, then saying he wanted to see who else applied and that he'd let me know. Fair enough. A few days later, he contacted me and started talking like I had the job--asking how long I'd be in Rexburg, what I do for the holidays, etc. Just over a week later I met with him in Boise and he showed me around their office and explained what my duties would be over in Rexburg. What a blessing.

*** Yes I pick up "specimen". No it isn't bodily fluids. They are skin biopsies. I don't have to touch them or even look at them if I don't want to. They come in plastic bottles that are tightly secured in zip-lock bags. I haven't even gagged once. Shocking. I know.

Anyway, we feel very blessed that we have been able to find jobs that provide for our little family of two. We have had many conversations about people who can't even find one job, let alone two or three, and on the days we are feeling like we hate our jobs and wish we didn't have the be there, we remember those people and how grateful they would be for the jobs we have. Our attitudes quickly change. We know the Lord is blessing us every day and we couldn't be more grateful.

Adventure Is Out There!

We're off to Boise/Cascade for another camping adventure! Coming soon a post about food and jobs. :)

Until next time!

Birthday Camping Trip!

So I don't have many pictures of the whole adventure, but it happened and it was a BLAST!

Before I start telling the tale of the Birthday Camping trip I need to thank both the Dominguez and the Foote family's for making the whole trip possible. Without your gifts and generous donations to the Dominguez Duo camping fund we would have been sleeping in the woods with no tent or sleeping bags, our food would have been majorly time temperature abused (Cyndi) without a cooler, our feet would have been tired (or our bums dirty from sitting on the ground) without camping chairs, our whole bodies would be injured and broken if it weren't for our red lantern and our lives would not be complete without the fishing pole that caught David's cute little fish (on his first cast, mind you). So thank you, family.

So we only worked half a day on Friday so that we could get up to the mountains early enough to get a good spot. Tom (David's chemistry friend) and his wife are from around here so they told us the best place to go...right down to what unit at the campground! When we got to the campground we were super bummed to learn that they were full...or so we thought. David got out and talked to "good ole Richard" (the camp host), and he said the people in Unit #2 (the exact spot Tom told us to go) were only going to be there until 5pm. PERFECT! It was only 2:30, but we had things to entertain us. We were able to walk around and see Mesa Falls and enjoy a little snack--chips and grapes. :)

We got lucky and the people in our spot left early! We were able to get ourselves set up--well Kent and Anna did most of it while I had to go back to Rexburg to work (explanation coming in another post). Thanks guys! When we got back up into the mountains we went on a little nature walk and then started cooking the dinner--American Tacos (duh!). Tom and Kim got there just in time to eat with us and they loved the heavenly goodness that is Fritos, chili, cheese, sour cream and onions! Yummmm.
David and Tom both work on BYU-I grounds crew...Kim and I work indoors...can you tell? So unfortunate for us.

Not long after dinner David was ready for s'mores. The marshmallows started roasting, the chocolate started melting, the graham crackers started breaking and the strawberries were delicious (yes...strawberries on s'mores--try it). Then we played games! Pop5 & Uno Roboto were on the game table that night! It was awesome and hilarious all in one! I loved it. We ended the night with hilarious mission stories and sharing embarrassing moments around the campfire! Perfection.

Saturday morning, David woke up early ready to do his favorite thing--cook breakfast while camping--and that he did! And although it was a long process, it was soooo worth the wait. Everyone loved his potatoes, the eggs were perfect, and the sausage and bacon were to die for. Once we were all stuffed to the brim and all packed up we headed up the road a little bit to fish! Tom knew the place so we followed him.

David caught a fish on his first cast! So awesome. We still haven't eaten our little guy, but I'm looking forward to it! :) After fishing for a few hours -and getting super sunburned- we hiked back up to the road and cooked us some hamburgers and hotdogs before we drove back to Rexburg.

There was another fish inside his mouth...ew.

Proof that I actually fished...even though I have nothing to show for it. Meh.

We had so much fun and we can't wait to do it again!

***on David's actual birthday (Aug 9th) I made him a cake and I even sang a happy birthday solo for him. :) Then we went to the new Batman movie!***

Happy Birthday, Love!