farewell twenty ten

we celebrated the new year at home with jared's family. we skiied park city, played pictionary, got really confused watching inception, and i stole a quick smooch from my handsome bearded man as the clock struck midnight.

twenty ten, you've been good to me. you have brought many firsts, which are always one part exciting and another part scary. you've brought adventures and travels to new places, new friends and time spent with the old. you've given me memories to cherish for a lifetime. to you twenty ten!

in twenty ten, we finished our first full year as business people with post-college jobs. and although we have both transitioned into our new roles, it's tough learning how uncompromising and ruthless the working world can be at times. we've each grown indidivually and as a couple we've learned to navigate the ups and downs together. during busy season, i couldn't ask for a better friend at home cheering me on, making the bed, cleaning up after my many messes and cooking so many meals for me as i sit at my desk working late hours. life is always better with the mr.

in january we welcomed haley into our family, marking one of my happiest days ever. she is the perfect fit for my brother and makes his world spin 'round. i adore her and love having another girl in the family after being my parent's only daughter. family is where it's at.

twenty ten marked jared's twenty-seventh birthday and my twenty-fourth. wow! it's crazy to think we were a young twenty-four and twenty-one when we tied the knot. our relationship has changed so much in the four years since we met that first day of class in fall 2006. our first phase was school, dating and getting to know our new life together. then it was a big move to salt lake and getting settled in our first little home and figuring out the work thing, and now i sometimes wonder if we're ready to stretch ourselves again and start a new phase. it's a little intimidating to think about, especially when life is in tune and balanced at the moment.

there is so much to look forward to in this new year--a clean slate of sorts where we can learn from what's come and go forward to be better. thank you twenty ten!

                                                                                                          all my love,

                                                                                                          candace

my favorite picture of the year
my favorite project of the year
my favorite post of the year

tre anni

to my handsome husband of three years, you make my world spin 'round. ti amo.

a snippet of pictures to come

"Let the sunlight in, I wanna feel it from within,
        You spin me around and make me feel like I could Shine." - Rosi Golan

Our Story, Part I

Two years ago I embarked on an exciting journey.

It was one of those times in life where I didn’t know what to expect, how to react, or who to be. I was pushed harder than I ever have been at any point in my life—mentally and physically I didn’t think I would make it at times.

I made some wonderful friends at school that year. They not only became my only social interaction, but we grew so close they started to feel like my family too. Too many nights we were kicked out of the library and forced to relocate to Denny’s, and often in the morning I drove in the dark to meet my groupies.

Bridger quickly became my fellow rock climber,

Camille my friend with INCREDIBLE music taste and a crazy sense of adventure,

Brian with miles of young, naive freshman standing in line (and all of his accompanying drama), and

Jared… he was sort of the unknown.

We all slowly learned more about him as time passed. When Halloween came, he sported a Hitler mustache. On the weekends, he rocked out to local bands at off-the-wall venues. And intramural sports came far above school on his list of priorities.

Now looking back, I couldn’t be more grateful for my “junior core” experience. I learned so much about team work, patience, work/life balance, hard work, and friendship. And even better, I fell in love with the man of my dreams. I left school that year a different person, gratefully.

I love reflecting back on my junior core experience with Jared—
all the nights we spent watching movies until the wee hours in the early morning,
our campout on the roof of his house,
endless, endless and did I mention endless texting… EVERYTHING.

12 Days and Counting

I love adventures.

Jared and I are moving to Seattle in just 12 days. I'm so excited for just the two of us to be together in a new place. We'll be able to try new restaurants, camping areas, shopping, oh the possibilities! I keep wondering things like:

1. What will our apartment look like?
2. How many times will we get lost?
3. What will be our first experience cooking fish?
4. What concerts are we going to see?
5. Do we even like doing accounting for a job?
6. What will it be like spending both of our birthdays with only eachother? Exciting, but so different.

The adventure really begins in Orem when we start packing the car. I've been thinking about everything we have to take with us, and it's a bit overwhelming. Yesterday I asked Jared in all seriousness if he thought we could really fit everything we need into our jetta, the one car we're taking with us. He laughed and joked about me not taking a billion clothes with us. I'm the type to freak out and worry, and he's the type to deal with the problem when it arises. Hence, I stress over way too many things. Ironically, yesterday Jared also told me that the golf clubs are making the journey to Seattle with us. Are you kidding me? Those clubs will easily take up half of the back seat. We have to save space for things like clothes, towels, sheets, shoes, the iron, luggage, and so forth. And of course our tent, sleeping bags and other camping equipment needs space too. Here's a picture to help you get the image of the jam-packed Jetta travelling from Orem to Seattle, 12 hours baby!