New Situations Provide Happier Times

I have now been working in my new 'family' for almost a week. I was hired as a 'staff' member a week and a half ago after my second interview for a benefited position with the USDC (Utah State Developmental Center). I am now working with 5 females instead of 4 males. My ladies are all very sweet and I already love them very much. It has been a delightful experience to be exposed to their tender need for affection. I am beginning to love my new job. Frustrations before this change in position were leading me to consider leaving the job for good, but now life is much better. I have excellent coworkers who are not perfect but get the job done. With the change in position I have also been able to have more time with my Isaac. My shift has changed from 8-4:30 to 1:30-10. That change has added several hours to our day together and we have rejoiced in eachothers company. (Of course, in the last two day we spent our extra hours together sleeping...but how nice to sleep together!) Isaac has an interview for a full-time benefited position with the church tomorrow. If he gets the position, we will be blessed with even more time together. :) I truly feel blessed. I know Heavenly Father has been mindful of our needs and has met our needs and exceeded them so that our cup truly is running over. :)

Happy Times

It's monday, and I am sitting in my living room after a long day's work at the USDC (Utah State Developmental Center). I've found myself often complaining about the leanness of the time I get to spend with Isaac, but today I feel quite different. Today I am feeling grateful for the fact that time spent with that wonderful man is the best time there is and it carries me through the not so good times. This last weekend, Isaac and I went mini-golfing. We played 36 holes and I never have had so much fun! I laughed and laughed constantly...the other people playing at the golf course must have thought that I was crazy, but I couldn't help it. Isaac truly is the best friend I have ever known...and he grows more and more so as the days go by. He is my support, my defender, my love. I am very grateful to have such a wonderful man as my husband.

The Lonely Wife

Life is full of trials...my current trial is not being able to see my husband during the week with the exception of about 5 hours between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. It has been difficult, and we spend as much time together as possible.
Today I had a first...a pang of down-and-out jealousy. I was sorting laundry when I picked up the shorts Isaac left on the floor after changing into his work pants. I went through the pockets to remove change and papers. Among the papers were two receipts, one for a movie ticket and one for a beverage from the theater. Isaac had mentioned spending time with a friend today, but I had no idea exactly what they were doing so I wasn't prepared for the evidence of their activities. Perhaps it's PMS?
So I feel the need to ask of you, my blog readers, what should I be doing to improve my attitude? What can I do to keep from feeling too lonely or is this what I will have to learn to deal with until I am used to my life?

Isaac asked me to post this one too...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Our Reception

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Wedding Pictures by Jordan Juarez

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Kitchen Disasters & Delectable Food

Today I decided to make sure that the squash that Mom and Dad sent home with us got eaten. So, I found a shish kabob marinade online, adjusted it slightly according to what I have in the kitchen, and started. I marinated chicken pieces in the sauce for 2 hours, then insisted that Isaac grill the chicken on our stove. Whoops!
We have a skillet that has big grooves on it, making it perfect to 'grill' things on, the only problem is that we didn't expect the obvious issue with grilling...smoke. We had smoke and tons of it billowing around the house...it set off our smoke detector and one of the landlords came running over to see what the problem was. I told him we were experimenting and didn't expect there to be that much smoke, so he just laughed and said we shouldn't redo this experiment on the stove. But let me tell you, those shish kabobs were something to write home about! We had summer squash, zucchini, and cherry tomatoes from the home garden, then we added a red bell pepper, pearl onions, and, of course, the chicken. We then basted the whole thing in the marinade and wallah! Heaven! We had some Smith's garlic bread on the side also. I wanted to cook up some rice, but Isaac said to just skip it...saying we had more than enough food already (oh, and he took all the leftovers for dinner tonight at work).
Anyways, here is the Shish Kabob Marinade I used today (and I do suggest grilling the 'bobs on an actual grill outside...hehehe):

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup veggie oil
1/4 cup spicy brown mustard (I used honey mustard since it is what I have)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon ginger

Happy grilling!