Birthdays and Toddlers

So I have been so insanely busy these past two weeks and apologize for not posting last week. So my internship has been very educational, I am learning so much more than I ever could in my classes. I have also gained a lot of confidence in my self as I have had to learn so much over these past two weeks and I honestly feel like I have the hang of things. Learning how to use the software and keep up with the  needs of clients has been exhilarating. My work is starting to feel like family, they brought me a balloon and a beautiful chocolate cake on Thursday! (They didn't know it was my birthday on Wednesday)

I don't work on Friday's and this week I got to spend it with my favorite four year old! Leslie and I had a swim date over at Caitlyn Walkers house with some of the ladies and their kids from the ward! I borrowed Leslie for the afternoon since her little sister wasn't feeling so good. We had so much fun! It was the first time I have been in a pool this summer, and let me tell you it felt so good!!! And I only suffered minimal sunburns on my shoulders and back...I applied sunscreen twice and still I got burned #whitegirlproblems



Birthday Bash! So Tyler is amazing and got me a camera for my birthday :) he is spectacular and I loved trying it out this week! We both had to work on Wednesday so it was a bit different than what I am used to haha but we had a blast going to Tucano's and the Mall (Yes they have a Tucano's here and it is FABULOUS!) We had a little party on Friday night which was SOOOOO much fun! We have made some AMAZING friends here in Houston and are truly blessed to have them in our lives! Here are a few pictures from the party!

We love our Leslie and Emma as you can tell they were the hit of the party and made everyone feel at home by playing with everyone and just being so adorable! We had so much fun and we have a TON of left over cake and ice cream! So all in all it was a fantastic week filled with lots of love and laughs! We love our Houston Ward Family and are starting to dread the day we will have to leave them :(

Till next week :)
Emily and Tyler

Internships and Thunderstorms

So last week was WET and LOUD! I mean pouring rain out of nowhere everyday kind of wet and booming thunder that set off car alarms kind of loud. I thought it was summer time...but apparently this is summer in Houston? Didn't see that one coming. Anyways we survived with only minor hyperventilating and some sleepless nights. Don't worry though I calmed Tyler down and he eventually stopped crying...just kidding it was me that was freaked out. In my defense we have been watching WWII documentaries (Band of Brothers and the Pacific) and the thunder sounds a lot like bombs. Also thunder doesn't necessarily accompany rain, so it really catches you off guard and well my first reaction is always to duck because of flying shrapnel. I might have some PTSD...soooo on another note we have had lots of indoor cuddling time this week which was super fun and it encouraged me to get new pillows which I am proud to say I found at TJ Maxx! My mom would be proud of my abilities to find things discounted ;) Love ya mom!

Okay so this weekend was stake conference and it was a little hard on us because we couldn't make it to any sessions on Saturday because we had a dinner with the Judge (Tyler's judge). We did however have a great time at dinner and were very impressed with the musical talents of Edie, the Judge's five year old granddaughter. She belted out every word to Let it Go, needless to say I made a new friend! We loved getting to see everyone out of "work mode."

So this week I started my internship at the West Houston Counseling Center. Tyler took me shopping for "work clothes" over the weekend at the Katy Mills Outlet Mall (we have been so fortunate to live so close to outlet malls both in Arizona as well as here in Texas). We had a fun night and a work out (that mall is HUGE) as we got some much needed shopping done :) Tyler is the best at shopping, he seriously likes it more than me! Little fun fact, Tyler had a Banana Republic card before we were even dating! He is the perfect husband! He really does spoil me more than he should ;)

So my internship looks like it is going to be pretty relax for this month at least. I am just working 9 to 2 right now and will be mostly doing office work. I am a bit worried for July because the head office lady is going out of town all month so I will be manning the fort all alone. But that is why I am learning from her all June. I am just so glad to be almost over with my classes and have my degree. I feel like I have been in school for forever and well it has been 18 years since kindergarten started, so pretty close! I am excited to learn from a great bunch of ladies who happen to all be mothers as well. They all work part time so they can spend time with their children which is one thing that really attracted me to this field in the first place. I want to be able to have my degree and have the option of working if I need to for my family but still be flexible with my hours. So this is a great fit for me.

Well I will be much busier now than I have been the last few weeks so I will keep ya posted on how I cope managing my classes with house work and my internship. Hopefully there aren't too many meltdowns...I must say I will miss watching Emma and Leslie so much. They really are the sweetest girls and have made me and Tyler EXTREMELY eager to be parents.

Missionary Moment- Okay so I wanted to start having a missionary moment so here  are mine from last week. We were able to have the missionaries over and teach an investigator about the importance of the Prophet. It was so great, I likened it to being in the army and how we listen to our leaders to know where to go and what to do because they can see the Germans coming for us (again those WWII movies). Our investigator really liked that analogy and he was very receptive. He also went to stake conference with us on Sunday, which was a neat experience! Oh I also went out with the missionaries on Friday but I think I am bad luck...we struck out at all three appointments :(

I will keep ya'll posted! Till next week,
Emily and Tyler

Star gazing and Memorial Day

So this week was pretty fun. First off I love watching Emma and Leslie, its basically the highlight of my days. So this week started off great with an email from Elder Ryan Lehikainen :) His emails are the absolute best way to start off my weeks! He is doing great and loving his new area. Not gonna lie I always feel extra special when he emails me directly, even if it is brief, it means a lot that he takes the time to tell me he loves me in particular.

Monday I got to watch Emma and Leslie so it was a great day! That night we were able to go over to some friends in the ward and have dinner and get to know them better. They were so sweet to us and we really enjoyed getting to know them better! They have a four year old and a sixteen month old. We had some great enchiladas and tasty salad made by Caitlyn herself!

Tuesday we had the opportunity to go to and hear Jackie sing at her end of the year performance for her voice class. She was AMAZING! I had no idea she could sing like that! Tyler and I were very happy to go and support her, we miss going to our families performances so this was a fun activity! We went out to eat with them afterwards and it was fun, but probably the worst service we have ever had at Chili's. They switched servers on us and well the new server forgot to get us our food...so forty five minutes later we ate our food.

So we had a great week and I had to start working on my first research paper for my psych 302 class, which was BORING. Actually I still need to finish it and well I am procrastinating as we speak updating my blog....So I was able to help out Tyler with mutual this week which was super fun. The young men were in charge and planned Frisbee golf at the park across the street from us. The kids had a TON of fun learning a new sport. And no surprise, my team kicked some serious booty!

Thursday I was able to take Emma and Leslie to the splash park and we had a BLAST!!! It was so hot though, Leslie was done in two hours and we ended up going over to my house to watch Despicable me and eat ice cream as well as some hot dogs and mac and cheese. It was a great day! As a bonus their dad offered us free tickets to a local baseball game, the sugarland skeeters. It was so nice of them and Tyler was very excited as Tracy McGrady was pitching. We were floored to find that our free tickets were luxury boxes with a free dinner as well as ice cream buffet! Needless to say we were pleasantly surprised :) And they won so it was great!

Friday we went to see the new X-man  movie at the coveted Palladium (a really big and nice movie theater in Katy) with Jackie and her mom Teresa. It was such a great movie and a really cool theater. It had a bowling alley inside as well as huge seats and floor to ceiling screens. It was really good! We went home and had to stay up till one for the meteor shower which we realized we wouldn't be able to see unless we drove out of the city. So to the car we went and out driving towards the trees we found the stars. Tyler swears he saw a shooting star but I just marveled at the beauty of stars and was a happy camper!

Saturday we had a ward Memorial day breakfast at 7:30 AM.....Yeah crazy! But we went even though we had barely three hours of sleep to go on. It was a pretty good breakfast and we liked mingling some families we haven't had the chance to talk to yet. We were too exhausted to stay for the car wash afterwards but we took home Talan in order for his mom to be in charge of the car wash. We went to Costco and had some fun running about town.

Sunday we had a great time with our class and enjoyed teaching even the twelve and thirteen year olds as well. They are much more interactive than our regular class and it was fun to get to know some of them better. We were able to attend a break the fast potluck at the Wilson's after church and it was so much FUN! We got to know some great couples and we loved watching the kids play. The Wilson's are so inviting of new couples in the ward and really make you feel at home. We have come to really love them and will miss them when we move.

Memorial day came and so did the rain and tornado warnings. Needless to say we were not very happy. Actually I had a little freak out...I have never had to live in an area where there was a tornado warning before and I found out I don't like it one bit. We went and saw Blended and it was a great funny feel good movie. We walked around the mall but then had to head home with the tornado warning. We watched Band of Brothers and snuggled on the couch will listening to the howling wind and booming thunder rattling our windows. We were happy to be safe and at home together.

Well that was our week, sorry its so detailed but we had a very busy week! We love our adventures here in Houston...just not the extreme weather ones that can kill us. Well heres to another fun week! We will keep ya posted :)

Love,
Emily and Tyler

Mothers Day and Then Some

So I apologize to anyone who actually reads my blogs, I need to be more regular with my posts. So this was our second Mothers Day together but  since last year we had only been married a year, this one was a bit more on our radar. Tyler was so sweet to me and spoiled me even though I am not yet a mother. He said I get points for wanting to be a mother :) He is the sweetest. He insisted on buying me "I will be a mom someday gifts" which was very sweet of him and made me feel very special. I love my new watch (my first grown up watch)! Fossil seriously is the best bang for your buck! You can get a great watch for under 100$ and I love the leather band over the metal one. He also got me an adorable necklace and some fun sunglasses. I think he didn't really like my other sunglasses so he "insisted" on buying me new ones. Haha he is very good to me!
 Presents are great and I love feeling special but my biggest present was getting to skype RYAN THOMAS! This was our last time to skype before Ryan comes home in September :) It was amazing to see his smiling face, that smile of his is infectious! He is such an important part of our family and we have missed him so much over the past twenty months! I cannot wait for him to get home in September. Tyler and I are also returning to California in September and will be there when he gets home. Needless to say we are counting down the days.
In the "Then Some" we have had some exciting days with our neighbors and we had a first of having to call the police. I have never really been exposed to domestic violence and I can't imagine how children who are exposed to that grow up normally. As we were laying there waiting for the police to arrive I was only comforted with Tyler's arms around me. We said a prayer and had to sit there and wait. I was so distressed, I could barely sleep the rest of the night. I can't imagine how their two small children felt having to hear and see such violence. I was reassured in my major as a marriage and family educator. I am so excited to start our eternal family and to raise them in a home filled with love and the spirit.
I have a few new things going on in my life as well, I have started to baby-sit bi-weekly for the Wilson's. They are so adorable and I have loved getting to know them better over these past few months. They have the two cutest little girls in the world and they always make me smile. They are also great practice for Tyler since he never had little sisters and all things "girlie" are pretty foreign to him. Watching him give the girls piggy back rides and read them books when we tuck them in bed is priceless. He has never been so attractive to me than when he is acting like a father. We are so happy together and are more in love with each other everyday!
Keep ya posted!- Emily and Tyler

One Year

Today mark's mine and Tyler's one year anniversary! I am so lucky to have married such a caring and amazing man. Looking back over the past year I am amazed at what we have accomplished as well as what we were able to avoid.
Top Ten things we did:

1. Moved across the country
2. Went to the Grand Canyon
3. Went to Florida and Disney World
4. Completed three semesters of classes (mostly all A's)
5. Swam in the Gulf of Mexico
6. Houston Rodeo and Brad Paisley concert
7. Tyler went to work for a fifth circuit Federal Judge
8. Texas state fair in Dallas
9. Went to Louisiana for Tyler's work (I sat in on a hearing)
10. Have made some great friends both in Tempe as well as here in Houston (Wilson girls)

Top Ten things we are happy we avoided:

1. Going to the hospital
2. Getting a traffic ticket (miracle I know)
3. Getting in a car accident
4. Failing a class (this one just applies to me)
5. Food catching on fire
6. Food poisoning
7. Passing out from heat exhaustion (I thought I would while we lived in AZ)
8. Stitches of any kind
9. Jury duty 
10. And last but not least, getting into a huge fights (Tyler is much more the peace maker than I am)

So here is a little summary of our life over the past year. We started off in Tempe and four short months later we moved across the country to Houston, which surprise to me, is basically on the border of Louisiana. We have loved our adventures here in Texas and the fun times we have had just the two of us. We have a great ward here in Texas and I must say one of our favorite things to do is to babysit for people in the ward. There are two little girls we like to watch, Leslie and Emma, and they are the most precious little girls in the world. Watching Tyler play with them melts my heart. We are very excited to be moving back to California in September to be closer to family but will miss the friends we have made here in Houston. Here are some pictures from our trip to Corpus Christi just this past weekend for our anniversary. 

This one is Tyler and I at North Beach, it has a reputation for jelly fish, so we did not get in the water here. 

This is the beach on Padre Island, it is a national beach and protected along a 75 mile shoreline of pure sand and water. It is GORGEOUS! 

I decided that I want to live on the coast one day, Tyler says I have "expensive" taste.

This is my adorable husband :) He was such a trooper and helped me build a sand castle despite the massive amounts of seaweed on the beach.

Our beautiful sand castle, its pretty simple but I was insistent that we build one and Tyler indulged me :)

I was so unbelievably tired from our day at the beach that I passed out when we came home. I woke up to a great surprise from a thoughtful Tyler, face masks from Lush, a bath bomb, and flowers :) He has learned exactly what makes me happy and never disappoints! He then proceeded to tell me I look like Elphoba which led me to do a beautiful lip sync of Defying Gravity in our bathroom. He laughed, my mom thought it was hilarious and it is on facebook if you want to see it. Tyler is so very indulging of me and my crazy antics! I love him more and more every day and count my lucky stars that he married me! I can't wait for everyday I get to spend with him :) Here is to many more adventures as a Young :) 

Winter is officially over

It feels so good to be done with finals! I will always remember the semester I thought taking 17 credits was a good idea. It has definitely been the most trying semester of my life, but now I only have one more left! I can't believe I'm almost done :) Me and Tyler had a great weekend! We had a picnic in the park Saturday afternoon with Leslie, Emma and Jackie. It was so hot, we were only out there for an hour and I got sunburned. It was well worth it to play with those cuties. They have awesome parents, they are seriously the happiest kids I know. They make me and Tyler so eager to start our family. We love our Sunday school class so much,  we might be few in numbers but we have the sweetest kids who are learning so much. I am always so sad when I think that we only have five more months here with them. We are very excited to go back to California but I have to admit we are going to miss Texas more than I thought we would. We have made some good friends down here and there is nothing like Southern hospitality. I never get tired of being "blessed" after going to the grocery store. Oh and we were very pleased to have a Rita's ice open up near us this weekend. This was one of our favorite dessert places in Arizona and it was so nice to have one here in Texas. We are so excited to celebrate Easter with Tyler's cousin and his wife and kids this weekend. Holidays are always better with some excited little kids around! Happy Easter from the Young's!

Conference Weekend in the Young House

This was such a great weekend for me and Tyler. Last October would have been our first time watching conference as a married couple but I got the WORST sunburn of my life and was on pain killers all weekend so that one doesn't really count. It was so sweet to snuggle up on our couch in our little apartment and hear the words of our prophet and apostles. Tyler knows just how to get me out of bed and surprised me with some of my favorite treats including the sweetest fruit tart from a little bakery called Cafe La Madeline. Tyler went to Priesthood session with some of our friends and I was able to have a girls night with Karen Couch! We really loved and needed a quite weekend with finals coming up for me next week. I am SO relieved to be done with this semester of classes, I will never again take 17 credits in one semester. I never could have gotten through the semester without the help and support of Tyler. He is so good about helping me with my studies and not objecting to Chipotle salads for dinner when I am too busy to cook dinner. We are coming up on our first year anniversary and I can't believe how fast time flies! Sometimes I feel like we were just dating and other times when I think of how much we have accomplished in this short year I feel like we have been married for five years. Tyler is the best husband I could have ever asked for and he makes me the best version of myself I could have ever aspired to. I love him more and more each day. I just wanted to share my favorite blurb from conference this April: