long time, no post

A lot has changed since I posted last.

Me and Clay are actually married now. After over 2 years of dating we finally did it, tied the knot that is.
We currently live in Utah and love our apartment. We have become friends with some of our neighbors so that makes life a little more fun.
We got a car for Christmas, since we had to give mine back and we love it.
Clay just started working for a defense attorney and really likes it so far.
I just finished working my temp job at Dr. Williamson's and hopefully will land a permanent position soon.
The holidays were fun this past year. We went to Arizona for Thanksgiving and spent some time with my family. We stayed here for Christmas and spent time with Clay's family. I've never seen so many presents in my whole life! It looked like Santa's sleigh threw up over the Alger's family room. It was awesome since I love presents and surprises.
Hopefully, I'll post again soon. Bye!

February 27, 2009

what an awesome day!!!
this is a long story, but it needs to be explained from the beginning.

clay and i have been dating for almost 2 years (in june). so yeah, it's about that time.

A little preface for this whole thing...the night before i had a mock board for school, and it was very stressful, but if that was my real board i would have passed. i didn't do as well as i would've liked, but all i needed was a "P". so after i got home i was ready to relax and forget about the stressful night. later my dad comes in and starts talking to me. he asks what i am doing the next night and i tell him nothing. he asks if my parents and I can go to dinner to celebrate my mock board being over and a post birthday celebration as well since i was in utah. i agreed. He lets me know we're going early, so to be ready.

Friday comes and i am planning on studying most of the day since i have written boards in less than a month. i study for a while and remember i needed to pay my fee for a cap and gown and it's due before the weekend is over and not to mention i need to start getting ready. so i hurry and put some make up on and try and put my hair up where it looks decent. i tell my dad that i need to go run an errand and he's like i thought we were going soon? and he also says, i thought you were going to wear your hair down? it looks a lot nicer when it's down. (since my hair is always up my parents always tell me how nice my hair looks when it's down and that i should do it like that more often). then he says will you please get a little more dressed up and put your hair down since i want it to be a nice dinner. needless to say i was pissed at this point and could care less about going to dinner. i run and pay my cap and gown fee, hurry home, and straighten my hair and put something nicer on. I wait for my parents to get home so we can leave. In the meantime i call clay and complain that my dad is being so rude and i don't even want to go to dinner. clay says he's sorry, but sort of tries to explain my dad's side and im like whatever. he asks if i can call him later since he's driving home from school and it's snowing. i agree.

my dad walks in the door and asks if im ready to go and i tell him i am. he says he wants to look at something in my room and im a little confused so i follow him and then as we get there he looks and says nevermind. im like o..k.. i go to the bathroom closest to the front door and i hear the doorbell ring. i wonder if anyone is going to answer it, someone finally does. by the time i come out of the bathroom they're gone and i dont know who came to the door or anything. i go in the kitchen to wait some more and the doorbell rings again. my dad yells from down the hall if i can answer it so i get up and look out the window as im walking to the door. usually there is a car parked out front and this time there wasn't so i assumed it was one of my brother's friends who walked or rode their bike over to our house. i answer the door expecting a 15-year-old boy and instead i get this guy.

SURPRISE!

Me and my lovely roses

yep, he had roses and was dressed up in a suit and tie. i stood there for about 5 minutes, literally, trying to process the situation. i had no words and clay was just looking at me, laughing. it was pretty awesome! so after the initial surprise he proceeded to tell me that the whole dinner with my parents was a set up and when i called to complain about my dad my parents had just picked him up from the airport and my mom was trying so hard not to laugh out loud. He said that we had reservations for dinner in a little while and he wanted me to be ready and not feel rushed so that's why he asked my parents to make up the whole dinner thing.

We ended up going to this restaurant at Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale. It's the hyatt with the lake and gondola rides. We ate at the Italian restaurant which was delicious, but I think my favorite part was dessert. Creme Brule with a cookie shaped like a gondola filled with delicious berries and a piece of shaved chocolate as the row or whatever it's called on a gondola. YUM! Then we went and rode a gondala. It was my first time ever doing it. We had a really good singer and it was nice. After that Clay was asking me if there was a cool park or something like that where we could go and sit. I told him that all the parks were closed and they were just normal parks, nothing special. So we were trying to think of a place that had some light and a place to sit and since we couldn't think of anything we decided on the Temple grounds. It was cold outside anyway so we stayed in the car and watched a video Clay made for me. He brought his lap top and it was a video with pictures of us throughout our relationship and some of our favorite songs. He knows I LOVE stuff like that and it was really sweet. After the video we decided to get out and walk around the grounds, but while we were watching the video they had closed the gate so we walked in the front of the visitor's center for a little bit and I was getting cold so we headed back to the car and he was being a little funny and I was thinking what is going on?

Dinner at Gainey Ranch

Gondola Ride

Well, we were looking at the temple and he was just trying to keep me warm and then started talking about how much he loved me and then he got down on one knee and proposed. Of course I said yes! It was so surreal. I just saw all the SPARKLES when he opened that box and thought, "wow, that is the most beautiful ring." I couldn't stop looking at it and it fit great and everything! It's so much more than I was expecting, it's perfect.

ENGAGED!

The Rock. The centerstone was Clay's grandma's.

So after the exciting night we went home and I showed my parents, which they already knew it was going to happen, and it all just felt like a dream.

I know it's been about a month and a half since we've been engaged but not too much has been accomplished.

This is what we do know so far:

We're getting married either aug 1 or 8 in the mesa or draper tempe

we're having a reception in both places so no need to fret

the colors are yellow and brown with green accents

i want sunflowers for my bouquet (no country looking sunflowers or decorations though)

we're probably going on a cruise for our honeymoon. i would have hated that idea before, but it has really grown on me lately

the end

winter 08-09, part 3

Well, enough of debbie downer. I celebrated a birthday last week, also valentine's day, and visited clay. It was fantastic! This was my 2nd trip to Utah in about 2 weeks. It was great to see him within such a short span. Here's a short explaination of the week.

Friday

:Lunch at Blue Plate after Clay picked me up

:Went home and hung out, opened presents

:He got me one of those small hymn books, 2 cookbooks, an IOU for a dress, a kathy bag (what I wanted) and an adorable card

:Went shopping, with no luck

:Tried to get into many restaurants to no avail

:Finally went to a stylish downtown eatery which I can't remember the name of. Cool menus, creepy waiters, too cool for school customers, delicious food

:Went home

:Birthday celebration with Clay's parents (his mom LOVES holidays)

:Chocolate Mousee delight from Marie Callendars

Me with my presents from Clay's parents

This is Dodger jumping on my lap and for some reason Clay wanted a picture of it

Saturday

:Helped with the Draper Temple Opening. It was awesome.

Me and Clay riding to the Temple

Hi Clay

:Dinner at Taste of Punjab, delicious Indian food

:Fondue dessert at Clay's house. Very romantic except for when the paper wrapped around the chocolate blew into the lit candle as I was stirring the fondue and produced a HUGE fireball! and not to mention there was fabric EVERYWHERE! After I frantically yelled Clay's name (since he was not in the room) he proceeds to blow the flame towards the couch to put it out. I yell at him, and now there's soot everywhere, and then I dump a glass of water over the moving fireball. Crisis under control. Clay's parents let us do it in a different location than originally planned and we had to bust out a huge folding table to accomodate the event. The room also wasn't exactly meant to have open candles and fondue burning in unison. The worst part about this whole story is that Clay's mom's house burned down when she was 14 and so she's PARANOID. She has to check to make sure every plug is unplugged from the outlets before leaving. She would've had a heart attack if she knew.

:Clay gave me a knitting kit, awesome earrings from anthro, a cheesy, but necessary stuffed animal, creative picture frame, and a lovely card.

:I gave him a wallet (boring)

Sunday

:Church

:Hanging out watching Survivorman

:Dinner and dessert with grandparents, Teresa, Shane, Natalie, Clay's parents

Monday

:Shopping adventures

:Dinner at Benihana's (Yum!)

Clay's favorite way to smile

My favorite way to smile

:Fondue, pt 2 with family

What an awesome trip!

winter 08-09, pt 2

School has been rather difficult this semester. It is sucking every bit of dedication I have left in me. It's not that time is passing slowly, it is that time is passing ever so quickly with so much mumbo jumbo left to do (yes, i said mumbo jumbo). Me, and all my classmates included, feel that 4th semester should be entirely dedicated to studying for and passing all remaining boards (written and clinical). Instead we have pointless projects that were done 1st semester... and if we aren't competent in what the project is supposed to teach us, we shouldn't be graduating in May...seriously. For 2 weeks in one of our classes we took personality exams and tore up a piece of paper while listening to commands (ridiculous). And I'm so desperate for a board patient; we have mock boards this week and I don't even have any patients that seem promising. Just a schedule that is overbooked with level I's (aka easy and not helping me meet my requirements which are out of this world). The part that gets to me is that I am working so hard and doing everything I feel I can and yet it's still the same. It all works out in the end right?

MCC's Class of 2009!

Why do I look so handicapped compared to everyone else?

winter 08-09, pt 1

yes, I am back. It has been a while I know. Christmas break was so fabulous; I was dreading the return to school.

Me and Clay on Christmas Morning

The Family on Christmas Morning

Me and Clay at the Mesa Temple lights

Trying to take some family pictures

After about a bajillion shots we finally got a few where someone didn't feel like they looked pregnant, their head wasn't cut off, or someone wasn't laughing

Me and Clay, cute

1 semester left!

Today was one of the biggest days in my dental hygiene career. I went and took my anesthesia boards. There is a written portion and you must pass it to proceed to the clinical exam. I have been stressing about this day for months, 6 months at least. It was a stressful and exhausting experience, but so rewarding and I feel relief that it's over. The morning was ok, I took my test, and seemed to be controlling my anxiety pretty well, although there were a few times that I felt myself starting to freak out. Our results are put in an envelope with your ID number, there are no names, they only know you as a number. I find my number and it was crazy opening it and seeing that I actually passed the written exam, part 1 complete. Since I passed I qualified to take the clinical exam. My patient was a fellow student who I had actually used for my anesthesia final during the summer. We were both stressing out so bad thinking about the clinical and our scheduled times weren't until mid-afternoon. We sat around for a long time, stewing in our anxiety and left with our nervous thoughts. There is so much anxiety you feel like you are going to have a panic attack, heart attack, pass out, or hyperventilate. It was finally time for my partner to go and I was up to be patient first. I think that was very good for me because I was able to experience the environment before it actually counted. I was shaking in the chair as I was laying in the chair, not afraid of the injection, but terrified of my turn. I kept putting myself in her position and it was freaking me out. My partner did well and passed her 2 injections on the first try, although there were some stressful moments for her. After sitting as the patient I felt like most of my anxiety had left and I tried my best to relax as I waited for my turn. After a while I was called in to begin setting my operatory up. I got a little nervous as I was setting up because I felt so scatterbrained and I couldn't think straight (which normally happens when I get nervous). Also, my table seemed so far away and I was worried about reaching my syringes and it was extremely stressful trying to problem solve on the spot. I finally gathered myself the best I could and called my patient back. As I did my 2 injections I was so nervous and ran into some issues, but was able to handle them correctly and was successful on both injections on my first try. For this exam you want a flat envelope which has just one paper stating you passed. A fuller, more bulky envelope has a paper that states what was done incorrectly along with other necessary paperwork to retake the exam. You are allowed one retake the day of your exam if you fail, at a cost of course! So as I finished cleaning my room I walked by the basket that had the envelopes, to catch a peek, and saw that all of them were flat and hoped that my results had already been put out. After I finished all that I needed to do I went to the basket and sure enough my envelope was on the bottom and it was flat!!! I opened and read that I passed and I was soooo happy, I didn't even know what to do. This was the hardest thing I have had to do. It was an extremely proud moment. It has been a busy and exhausting few weeks. I am so excited for a break and Christmas!!! But in a week or so it's time to start studying for my national dental hygiene boards which are in march. I have one semester left before I graduate! I can see the light. I can't believe it is already to this point. I am grateful for the opportunity to pursue such an amazing career and to receive an education. I love learning and being challenged. I am proud of my accomplishments and hope that I can continue learning and expanding my knowledge.

its that time of year

you might think that by the title of this post i am going to discuss christmas, well, actually for a student early december=stress...lots of stress with projects, last minute assignments, final exams, and this year anesthesia boards. :/ i feel guilty about doing anything other than school, which means i have feelings of guilt as i type this. it's bad. my whole body has been tensing up because of all the stress, i got shingles last semester during finals because i was so stressed (this actually proves a good point as to why i should have a cavalier king charles even more. you know they have been proven to reduce stress) ;)

look how cute this puppy is!!! how can you not love this dog so much!

so i thought i would post some things that i have recently become really into. they help relieve stress and the intensity of school. they're really random.

-twilight, i loved that movie and think about it frequently. i am determined to read those books over break

-the twilight album, rob pattinson is pretty talented

-tv on the radio
-smoothies
-clay's blog

in less than 2 weeks i will have freedom.
then ill post a blog about christmas.