A Much Needed Visit

As some of you may know, this week Jason is wrapping up his first quarter of dental school!! What a stud! So this week he has been taking finals, which has been pretty brutal. With finals this week, it meant that last week Jason was gone a ton studying and preparing for his 7 finals this week. Luckily, my sister Becca decided that she and Mae would come visit while Jeff was in Houston. She was here for a week and we had a great time. This first picture is the only one with Jason in it because he was only around on Sunday really. The LA temple has beautiful Christmas lights up, so we took a stroll around the grounds and Mae loved it all the lights! It's definitely the most Christmas lights anywhere in LA!!
Although the weather is starting to get a little too chilly for playing at the beach, we picked the warmest day and headed to the ocean. It was really low tide, so it was great sand castle material. Mae had a blast playing in the waves, gathering sand dollars, making sand castles, and most of all, eating the sand!! Not too appetizing if you ask me!
I loved how the wet sand looked like glass. Their reflections are perfect.
Being a kid!
Mae had a great time playing on the toys at our apartment. She was much stronger than we thought. She would hang on these rings for quite a while and not get scared. It cracked us up!
Mae helping me get ingredients out to make banana bread. She's really into cooking and baking- which I love too!!
We went to the original farmers market here in LA. I think it's the oldest in California too. We browsed and ate lunch there. Lots of fun stuff to look at. Mae enjoyed the fish pond.
As you can see, this tree was ginormous!! It was really pretty and helped me get more into the Christmas spirit...it's kinda been hard since it's in the 60's and the closest thing we get to snow is a little rain.
Proof the we were here together. I like the sign in the background too. Definitely a motto I live by. :)
Thanks Becca for playing with me all week! It was so fun to have other people around and especially a little one full of energy!! I love you guys and miss you already. Good thing we'll see you in couple weeks!

Another Year Older

Although my birthday was on Sunday this year, there were some definite advantages to this. A two day celebration instead of one day, and Jason didn't have school either of those days!! So we had a great weekend together. Saturday night he took me to Natalee's Thai Restaurant for dinner. It was really yummy and had a fun atmosphere. Afterwords, we went to the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The street is closed to cars and is lined with shops and restaurants. There is lots to look at, including crazy and interesting people!! While there, someone tried to sale us "fresh homemade cookies", teenage boys asked Jason to buy them alcohol, we saw lots of brake dancing and street musicians, and we watched a lively debate between an atheist and a christian (which was pretty heated). Lots of entertainment! This picture is kinda hard to see because it was dark, but it's a big dinosaur. They have a bunch down the center of the road. Kinda fun!!

After browsing 3rd Street Promenade, we went to the Santa Monica Pier, which is always fun. That is a big ferris wheel in the background, whic is on the pier. We haven't been on it yet, but maybe someday. There's other carnival type rides and lots of vendors to watch. It is one of my favorites.
On the second day of celebration, Jason got up early and made me breakfast before our 8:30 church! He made me bacon, eggs, toast, and orange juice, which was delish!! Thanks hun! That night our friends Daniel and Kylie came over as well. They made me a yummy multi layered chocolate pudding, whipped cream cake! It was tasty!! We also played some pit and Settlers. It was a fun night for sure!!
Our camera battery died after pictures of the cake, so I couldn't get pictures of anyone else. So here's one of Daniel and Kylie from a few weeks ago. Thanks so much for the cake and for playing with us, you guys are great!!

Halloween Fun in Utah

Last weekend I was lucky to be able to go to Utah while Jason was in St. Louis for a dental convention. It was so fun to be there for Halloween and to spend time with family. It seems like there are so many people to see and so little time.
Luckily I was able to spend lots of time with my nieces and nephews. Mae was so much fun!! She is so happy and full of energy! Becca and Jeff took me to Costa Vida, which was so yummy!! Mae loved the beans and rice the most!
I spent a couple nights with Falycia and Kirk as well, which was great! We ate caramel apples and spent lots of time chatting-can't get much better!! Falycia also made some delicious rolls for Halloween! mmmm mmmmm!!
The weather was beautiful on Halloween and we were able to spend lots of time outside. I think the sun must have followed me from LA or something. Carving pumpkins was a lot of fun with Kyler and Alyssa. Maya liked it too...eating it anyway.
Of course I had to go to the park while I was there and enjoy the openness there. It was great to play ball with the dogs and swing with the kids. I wish there were big parks like that here!
Man do we miss her. It was fun to see Maya again and spoil her a little more. She is very well taken care of at Jannae and Victor's though! Thanks you guys! And thanks everyone who ran me around Utah County. It was so fun to see everyone- we miss you!

Our Haven

Although Jason and I really miss the mountains and the open spaces found in Utah (and pretty much anywhere else), we are really enjoying the beauty of the beach. We have been to several beaches and are figuring out which ones we like the most! There is something different at each beach. Some have very little people, others are great for people watching, and some will be great to take Maya to. This beach is actually up north close to Ventura. It's called Mandalay Beach. We really liked this one. There were hardly any people there and the ones that were there were playing with their dogs in the ocean. Our kind of beach! ;) There was a big black lab that acted just like Maya. Never wanting to quit playing fetch and just full of energy! It was great.
Jason and Daniel doing a little studying for their first anatomy midterm. (and Kylie enjoying the sun!)
This pictures isn't the clearest, but it was so pretty that day. This was at Santa Monica and there were so many sailboats out that day. We counted 21 from where we were sitting. The pelicans were also diving for fish. It was really pretty! So pick your beach and we'll take you there!! ;)

Fall is here...right?

So, like I've said before, California is different. That's the best way to put it. We are still enjoying the beautiful beaches that are so close and the warm weather is a definite plus. However, Jason and I are both missing that fall feel. The cool crisp air, the leaves vibrant with color, and the excitement of college football- especially BYU football. So, to make it feel more like fall, I have been making some of my favorite fall foods. The other night I made some yummy potato soup and homemade rolls. I think I will make some pumpkin cookies this weekend too. Mmm mmmmm.
It made a huge pot, so we have been eating lots of left overs!! I should've fed the other poor dental students. ;)

I love adding pictures of my hubby. Poor guy is always starving when he gets home from school. I guess he needs a lot of energy to feed that big brain of his while he studies!! :)

For Our Mothers...

As many of you may know, this past month has kinda been a whirlwind for us. We moved out here to LA and were in one place for 2 weeks, then moved again! We ended up moving into the University Village (student housing) at UCLA. It's cheap, closer to campus, and we are around lots of other dental students here. As sad as it was having to take Maya back to Utah (temporarily) it is best. We are mostly settled in here and really enjoying it. So, as I said in the title, this post is mostly for our moms, who want to see our new place. :) It's the smallest place we've been in since we've been married, but it is good. This is obviously the kitchen. Man do I miss my pantry!!
This is the view when you walk in. Our dining area, then our living room.
This is our "office". Jason studies here when he's home and I like it because it's right by the kitchen. I guess it's all "by the kitchen" though! Anyway, it's nice when he studies at home, even if we aren't talking. It's just nice to have him around!
This is Jason enjoying a nice Sunday nap after a long week of studying- He definitely deserved it!! Overall, we are adjusting to this new jungle we live in. We have gone to the beach a few times and love walking the shoreline. It is also starting to feel more like fall, so that is nice. We do miss Utah and all of our friends and family there. Hopefully we can see you all sometime soon! Don't forget, we love to have visitors!!

Official UCLA Dental Student!!

Tuesday was Jason's White Coat Ceremony for dental school. It was a great day. After each student received their white coat, they introduced themselves and stated what school they attended for undergrad. Here's Jason introducing himself. Way to go babe, officially a UCLA dental student. As Dean Park said, "the first day of your dental career!" I am so proud of you!!

We had a lot of support this week. Both of our parents were able to come for the ceremony, as well as Grandma and Grandpa Grattan. Thanks for everything, we had a great time!
Jason with his fellow BYU undergrad students. Smart lookin' guys huh?!
My future dentist and I!!

Sea World

Last week Jason and I went to California for a little vacation as well as to scout out the area for housing and jobs. The first part of the week was definitely the more fun half. We stayed in Oceanside, Ca with Jason's sister Jannae and her familyat a condo where we were right next to the beach and only 30 minutes from San Diego. Along with playing at the beach, we decided to visit Sea World for our first time, and man did we fall in love with that place!! If you have never been to Sea World, you will have to come visit us and we'll take you. It was amazing! The animals are so intelligent and do such awesome tricks! It was GREAT!!

Dolly the dolphin actually touched that flag with his nose! So high!

Watching these trainers made me rethink my career choice! :)

It was awesome being so close to these huge animals. this guy was about 9,000 lbs!

victor, Kyler, Alyssa, Kara and Jannae at one of the nights shows. We had so much fun together.

This was a cool show. These guys climbed the poles and did amazing stunts and then flipped off into the ocean for more crazy acrobatics! It was really cool!

Ahhh....Green

Although it may look a little patchy, we are SO excited to finally get a sprinkler system and new grass!! We are still trying to help it green up and grow, but it looks so much better than before!! You can't see it very well, but there is a cute tire swing on our big shade tree that Jannae's kids love!
The first fruitling in our garden. :) We eat a lot of green peppers, so this will be great!!
Our new garden spot! When we redid the yard, we made a garden spot and put a little fence up so the dogs stay out. They are doing great so far.
Our soon to be flourishing garden!! I'm glad we can at least have one season to enjoy the fresh veggies before we move to Cali!!

Dreaming and Drooling

For the past few years Jason and I thought it would be fun to go to the Utah Valley Parade of Homes. So we decided to have some fun and dream a little this year. Jason thought it was good motivation to start another 4 years of school! ;) We had such a fun time. There were some really neat homes. They varied in size from 1,500 square feet to 13,000. There were lots of fun ideas. If you've never been, it's a fun thing to do! Here's a few samples.
I though this little boys room was really cute!


We saw lots of beautiful kitchens...someday huh?!
This was the backyard of the home that was 13,000 square feet. It was amazing. Built on the river. This home had an indoor pool, racketball court, and a home theater. It was really cool, however, I can't even imagine living there. It was crazy!!

Congratulations Jason!!

After much hard work and dedication, Jason graduated from BYU last month. I am so proud of Jason and all that he has put into his schooling thus far. I am so lucky to have a husband who is motivated and dedicated to his goals. He'll do great at UCLA!! Way to go babe!
Jason with his brother Joey
Jason's parents were able to come for the graduation. They have been a huge support to us- thanks for being there!!

Jason and Eric have been study buddies for the past 2 or 3 years and have gone through the whole dental application process together. We're going to miss Eric and Mirjam lots! Good luck in Oklahoma you guys!

Fun in the Arizona Sun!

This past week we spent the week soaking in the sun in Arizona. We had a great time visiting family and just chillin'. We went to the DeWitt ranch and went horse back riding, which was a blast. Sonny and Gracie were great, except when Gracie tried to buck me off...they knew it was feeding time and were ready to go home.
we were also able to go the the Mesa temple and do some family names, which was really neat!
My Dad and I at the Mesa temple.
Poor little Maya. Does she looked picked on or what? Of course she had to go into heat the week before we left on vacation. We didn't want her making a mess on my grandparents carpet, so we had to buy her doggie diapers. She was such a great sport and never tried to take them off. kinda pricey things, but worked like a charm!
Our little baby girl!
Me and Grammy. Jason and I had such a fun time with my grandparents. We didn't do a whole lot, but that's what vacations are for right?! The weather was great and we had fun going out to eat and doing a jigsaw puzzle. Thanks for everything Grammy and Denny!