yours are the sweetest eyes i've ever seen

monday marked two years with the mr. i've been sick for a few days, and he's been hitting the books for a cpa test he took this week. we celebrated yesterday with dinner at chili's followed by the first jazz game of the season.

it's crazy to think two years have passed since we officially tied the not. despite still not having a wedding photo album and the few remaining unused wedding gifts that linger around the house, we've come so far--we finished school together, we moved to a new city, we found things like skiing & pasta that we both love, we each have our tv shows we watch with each other, and we enjoyed the journey to figure all of this out.

the mr. makes it a point to surprise me with a little something on our anniversary. his surprise this year has a nice sound.

can you guess?

you may be wrong for all i know, but you may be right.

come visit me please

last week we packed our belongings and made the long awaited move to salt lake. between the budget truck, lots of family, and our new neighbors, our move was relatively pain free and all over within a day. WOO! and now we have a new place to call home and work together to feel like our perfect little house.


we're still a bit buried in boxes, but we're getting settled in. on our first night sleeping at our new place, we finished watching a boise state game late and then started looking for a box with our bathroom goods--toothpaste, contact solution, face wash, etc. after a long failed search, we decided to forget the bathroom box and just put our tired feet to rest. jared turned the lights out, and we had about 15 street lights and building lights glaring through our uncovered windows right into our eyes. luckily we were both tired enough that it didn't matter, but you forget about the little things like window coverings and living in the city with lights.

and since our first night i've counted our windows--27 large see-through glass windows for the whole world to creepily watch my every move. not cool! i get really weirded out at night. we've taped some blankets and sheets to some windows for now, but something a little more long term is in the making.


we totally survived a really long day. a huge thank you to everyone who helped! and now... we just need some visitors. mHm.

joining the working people of america

this week i officially bid adieu to student life and joined working america. i started my first real job with a public accounting firm ernst & young, which means a few things:

i work at gateway and fear i will spend a lot of time shopping at anthro, j.crew, urban, and other fantastical stores.
i commute from orem which is ridiculously far south of salt lake.
i won't be joining the fam at lake powell this summer.
i now have four cpa tests to take and studying is just miserable.
the mr. and i put an offer on a house and we're waiting to here.
i am a contributing member of society - boo-yea!

my little road map

{image here from flickr}

ever feel like there are so many roads to choose from?

in the beginning it involved decisions like pink or purple, bike or rollerblades, pop rocks or skittles, then it quickly evolved to which boy to date, where to go to college, and what crowd to belong to. as i grow older i’m greeted with more decisions, and harder decisions. will this ever stop? too many decisions freak me out.

a couple of you asked, “what now?” in regards to the graduation post. some things i know, some things i find myself stuck in rut choosing which road to venture, and when. maybe you can help, or just listen.

· we are working full-time at an accounting firm in salt lake, different departments but the same place. is it a good idea to work for the same company as your spouse? still don’t know that one. i start in july. the mr. in august.

· we’re not sure whether we should buy a dog. we’re debating - inside or outside dog, lab or mastiff. i’m trying to get the mr. to understand that a mastiff resembles a horse more than a dog. they are enormous!

· we aren’t expecting a new addition to the family, but it’s in the near future. but when? and how do you know when you’re ready?

· we just ordered i swear a pallet worth of study material for the cpa exams. we will be studying and testing this summer? ew, the thought of it makes me a little queasy. i say my life in school certifies me to sign off of taxes, thank you. i do not need more tests.

· we wonder… to be tied to a massive mortgage or live in the trailer park? where do we live in slc? east side or west side? downtown or suburbs? new or fixer-upper? our housing situation is a huge hurdle that’s quickly going to catch us. way too many decisions involved with this one!

i'm not sure if this answered your question. if not, you at least understand we're in limbo on more than one decision. i guess that's the fun of it!

xoxo,

candace

time to file

you are probably receiving w-2s, interest statements and all that fun jazz for filing your 2008 tax return. for those of us in the category of less than about $45,000 gross income, check out BYU's vita lab for free tax return filing. this year the lab is taking appointments only, hopefully curtailing the long lines. the lab opens february 2 and runs through april 3. it's located on campus in 1820 of the lee library. to sign up for an appointment and for other information, click here. unfortunately, i won't be helping out this year.

if you aren't in blessed utah valley or somehow managed to rake in more than student wages, here are some other cheap filing options:

Turbo Tax Intuit Tax Freedom Project - free if gross income is less than $30,000. more Turbo Tax options here.

Tax Cut from H&R Block - free if gross income is less than $56,000 & you're 50 or younger.

enjoy filing and i hope we all get a nice return. extra money is not too shabby.

Resolve to do...

Today I finally took down the red + green. Now I once again have access to the closet in my family room, which I completely rearranged and compacted to fit even more junk into today. It's so full that I asked Jared to proceed with caution if he needs to get in there. So many fragile and breakable goods that could literally jump out if the door is open. Who needs more space? ME.

So my house is back to normal. I put up the few Valentine's items I have, and we're good to go.

Today I also cleaned my car. Really, cleaned. my. car. I washed the outside by hand and dried it, I used windex on the windows, and even wiped the cracks of the vents. It was in need of some TLC. Plus one might say I'm slightly compulsive. It looks like a whole new ride, so spick-and-span.

Next on my list of getting life back in order...

2009 Resolutions.

Graduate from college. All the blood, sweat and tears of the past 5 years come to an end in just one semester. Thank you.

Strap my climbing shoes on and hope Jared will be supportive. The semester I met Jared I was climbing almost everyday. I took him with me a few times and totally killed him on the rocks. I think he's still a little sensitive, and if you can't tell I'm never going to forget this story.



Play in this beauty before starting our careers at Ernst & Young end of summer.



Learn the basics of geneology. I'm taking a class at school.

Think about the CPA exam. It would be sweet if I could pass and be done this year.

His List

I know resembles something like this (mentally of course--not documented):

Graduate from college.
Try to procrastinate starting new job as long as humanly possible before wife nags excessively.
Golf everyday?
Pass the CPA exam with perfect scores
(capstone of wife's frustration with academia in our relationship).
Sleep a lot.
Play on every sports team I can, including intramurals, ward & friends.
Be awesome.

He's a busy guy and a kid at heart. Can you tell?

Real Life

There is a Grey's Anatomy quote that I just love. Meredith is complaining about how hectic life is when she says,

"We're adults now. When did that happen,

and how do we make it stop?"

Shout out to Becca and Kate, my friends who left me behind in Utah and moved to sunny Newport Beach. I'm still a little bitter, but you would never guess, right? Becca, Kate and I watched many great Grey's episodes together, and I spent some of my best college days with those two!

Jared and I have been thinking a lot about where we're going to live next year, where we will work, and other grown up decisions. I'm excited to say we will both be working in Salt Lake next year. We met with the Ernst & Young office in Salt Lake two weeks ago and decided we would both be really lucky and happy to get jobs here closer to home. Shortly after we interviewed, they let us know there was space available, and we had job offers!

I'm really happy to be close to my family. Although when we first got home two weeks ago, my family gave me a T-shirt that reads, "Most of the people who drive me nuts are in my family." It's so true! You can't live with 'em, but you can't live without 'em. Other wonderful things I love about the Salt Lake Valley include Cafe Rio, affordable homes, 4 wonderful seasons, skiing for Jared, and an overall good quality of life.