Spring Time

Spring Time 2012

I don't know about you, but I have been ready for spring for a long time now! I love the warm weather and being able to walk/run outside again! There is a fun little route up in the avenues that I run on and I LOVE going on that versus the treadmill in the gym.
I just had spring break, and it was nice to see family. I have been on some fun dates, nothing serious just fun. And teaching is winding down and it's crazy I will be in my 5th year of teaching next year....time flies!
Grad school is keeping me busy but I only have one more year, so now I need to start getting my thesis ready...wish me luck on that, I will need it:)
My nieces and nephews are adorable as ever. My nephew who is 16 went on his first date a few weeks ago, and that weirds me out....A LOT!
My parents are great, and they keep us laughing. It is always nice to have them come visit.
I am hoping to go to New England this summer for a vacation so I am crossing my fingers that works out.
I am reading a great book "Unbroken" and would suggest it to anyone. It is a true story about a WW II vet.
Well, that is all for the update at this point, hopefully I will be better at blogging as the year goes on!
Enjoy the great weather!

Update on life.....

For a little update on life......

I am grading a lot, but I have finally gotten to the point to where I am not bringing AS MUCH home....thank goodness!

My student's finished up learning about immigration and Ellis Island. In my class they researched a country one of their ancestors came from, then made a paper doll to go with it and I was impressed with how creative they got with their paper dolls! Even the boys really got into it, it was a fun unit to teach!

My nieces and nephews are still my very favorite...I look forward to seeing them all. It is weird because I come from a very spread out family. I have a teenage nephew, and teenage nieces, down to newborn baby Harper. My teenage nieces love to help with the little ones and it makes it fun.

---Also, I am amazed at how well kids can figure out technology! My 6 year old niece figured out how to do crazy pix on my i-pad, you should have seen how carried away they got! Halle, my 3-year-old niece joined in the fun as well!

---Grad school has been so much less stress this semester. I finish with the 8 week course this week then start up a new class----Strategic Com. so we will see how that goes. One year left and I graduate....Yay!!

---I am excited about President's day off! A 4 day week is wonderful...

----I am loving Pintereset probably too much. Usually when I should be doing other things...nope I am looking at Pinterest to distract myself.

----I am getting into the Bachelor, we go to my friends house every Monday night and I hate to admit I am sucked in. And if you are too, all I can say if he chooses Courtney I am going to scream! (Pathetic that I have such an opinion about it).

---My favorite sport is over....Football, but the Jazz are keeping me entertained and I have gone to 3 games so far.

---Overall, I can't complain. I am keepin' busy but not too stressed:)

---I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes:

“Between the optimist and the pessimist, the difference is droll. The optimist sees the doughnut; the pessimist the hole!”
-Oscar Wilde

Oh January.......

I say "Oh January" for a reason because that is how I feel sometimes during this month. It's hard to come back to school after Christmas break, especially because I get thinking about all the things I need to get accomplished in the next month. My goal is, to take it slow and enjoy the moments and not get too stressed....right:)

Luckily, I have been able to see a lot of family and close friends this month so that is a plus! I started my communications class which emphasizes leadership in the workplace and I am REALLY liking the class and the reading....so that is a plus too!

My Raider's may have not made it to the Superbowl, but my 2nd favorite team did...the Patriots, so you know who I will be rooting for Superbowl Sunday.

Teaching has been great, EXCEPT for today. I got some major attitude from one of my 9th graders which I didn't appreciate and I let him know, and I also let his mom know too:) And yes, the 9th grade science class had an escape....their class snake escaped and I was NERVOUS all morning until the relief of finding out they found the fugitive. Of all things to lose in a school....a snake is the worst!

My dad has his big 71st birthday this month so we will be celebrating that.

For a church meeting, our president works for the Jazz so we had our meeting at the Jazz game and it was the best church meeting I have ever experienced:)

And my nieces and nephews are as cute as ever, I love them to pieces....

Well, January won't be too bad when I come to think of it, there are a lot of great things about it:)

Almost a year ago from now I was sailing on a nice, warm, Caribbean cruise...seems like it was just yesterday, time sure flies. Great memories!

Good Year 2011!!

2011----Quite Eventful!

JANUARY 2011: My cute hilarious papa turned 70 and we had a family party for him at his favorite place in the world.....SIZZLER! He keeps us all laughing. My brothers and I enjoy telling each other "the latest thing Rog did or said." For example, last night I took him and my mom to the movie in SLC and when it the bill came to $26 bucks for 3 movie tickets Rog said "Holy &$%## that much for a movie!" He doesn't care that people are around he says what is exactly on his mind and it is pretty dang funny!

FEBRUARY 2011: I want on a Western Caribbean Cruise and it was absolutely amazing! I went with my good friend Cami Slade. I didn't know the 2 boys we would be going with, but by the end of the trip we were the best of friends! It was so fun, relaxing, and WARM! I of course had to take off one week of school, but it was worth it, and I hate to admit it, I didn't think about school once!

MARCH 2011: I found out that I got into Weber State's Master's of Communications Program and I was excited to be furthering my education in a field that I had always loved.

APRIL 2011: My parents, and nephew (Tanner) and I went to D.C. for spring break! My friend Brian, that I met on the cruise, lived in D.C. and he talked it up enough that we decided to visit. It was soooo fun! My nephew Tanner, who literally lives in the sticks was our lifesaver on the metro system, we were impressed with his sense of direction!

MAY 2011: I found out I would be a bit busier at my school. I was appointed Department Head of the Social Studies Department. I Started my master's program and I really enjoy the people in my co-hort.

JUNE 2011: Yay!!! School is out for the summer! I ran the Ragnar with friends and really enjoyed it! Oh, and for a school project I made a brochure for my brother's company NSUPPS.com. He is still buffer than ever and is preparing to try and break his deadlift record in 2012...go Brady!

JULY 2011: My big 26th birthday! My close friends went on a St. George trip and had a blast!

AUGUST 2011: I got back to my roots and went to a derby in Heber with a bunch of friends....good times. The bad part, because not everything is perfect in a year right, I landed in ER. I woke up one morning at 4 a.m. with sharp pains in my stomach. I started throwing up profusely (gross I know) and I couldn't leave my bathroom, luckily I had grabbed my phone and of all people---I call my parent's who live 2 hours away, but it was so comforting to talk to them. They rushed up here, took me to the hospital, and from there they gave me an IV so I didn't get dehydrated. They ran all sorts of tests, and really could find the reasoning why I was in pain and throwing up. They narrowed it to 3 things---My celiacs disease acting up, a stomach virus, food poisoning. Anyway, I was sick for a week, and my parents took me to E town and took care of me....I don't know what I would do without them!

SEPTEMBER 2011: The school year is going great....it's my 4th year of teaching and my 7th graders are the best group I have EVER taught (knock on wood:))

OCTOBER 2011: Juggling teaching with going to school full time is pretty crazy but my friends help me by keeping my social life going a bit too...very busy time!

NOVEMBER 2011: On the 2nd of November my 7th niece is born to my brother Brady and his wife Jane. Halle is the big sister, and they named my beautiful new niece Harper. I adore her and could hold her all day long if she let me!

DECEMBER 2011: My awesome research partner and I finished our big--long research paper where we studied the impact of school announcements in my middle school. Christmas parties, shopping, packing.....yay for Christmas and New Years!

I am lucky to have an amazing family and great friends! I still love running, beading, and watching football. I love my job and the people I work with. I still have places I want to travel to so hopefully I can visit somewhere fun in 2012, if there is a beach I will always be happy!

May everyone have an even better year during 2012..Happy New Year!!

New Baby in the family!!

Harper Elizabeth Nielson....11/2/2011

So I just don't think there is anything more precious than a new baby in the family!! Harper Elizabeth Nielson is my newest niece and she weighed 5 lbs. and 13 ounces...just a cute little thing! Her mama was happy that she only had to push 5 minutes versus 7 hours for her first.
I went to the hospital after my class and held her for a few hours. Harper was so sweet and just slept the entire time. Her skin is so soft and smooth and I could literally hold her all day! I love little girls and it will be so fun to have this new addition to our family!
Congrats Jane & Brady!

Yay for Fall!

So fall is my very favorite season of all, I am pretty sure I have posted this before but I love everything about fall! My favorites are:

1. Football Season (BYU isn't great this year but the Raiders are getting better!)
2. Fall leaves....my friends and I just took a drive up to Snowbird and Alta and the leaves were beautiful!
3. Great Holidays to look forward to!
4. Hot Chocolate
5. Burning Pumpkin Spice Candles
6. Birthday parties-I am not joking when I say 80% of my fam. is born in the fall, and I CAN'T WAIT for my new neice Harper to join our family this next month!
7. Candy corn!!! Love it!
8. Sweater season, jackets, scarves, etc..
9. Crisp weather...not too hot, not too cold.
10. Curriculumn...I love my fall curriculumn it's Native American's & LDS pioneers.

The list can go on and on but I really enjoy fall, there are many things to look for ward to...it's a great change!

Oh, and I am adding an adorable picture of my 2 1/2 year old niece Halle Jae who will be a big sister soon...she is growing right up and I think she looks beautiful in this picture! I love my nieces and nephews they are wonderful!

My randomness

So It is July 19th and I should be working more on my final project for my class, but I figured this would be a good....productive distraction. So I will update my life with pictures because those are much more fun....Well, since I last wrote I ran the Ragnar Relay and as much as I was dreading it, I had fun because my group was awesome!
I have made quite a few trips down to Ephraim and LOVE going up to the mountains. It literally takes like 10 min. to get winding up the mountain in my hometown and I love it, it is sooooo peaceful.
In other random news, the Nielson Farm was happy to get their first crop of hay up before all the rain. Yes, even though the rain has been nice...it can be very costly for farmers so this year my dad and brother were less stressed because their hay was NOT ruined by rain. Whenever it rains I love it, but I always worry a bit during crop seasons, the farmers daughter in me:)
I have tended my cute niece Halle Jae and she keeps me smiling and on my toes!
I went with friends to St. George and we had a great time going to dinner, relaxing, shopping, watching movies, and catching up!
I had a birthday! It was a wonderful birthday, I turned the big 26 and had a great day. My friends and I hit the Ute Stampede Rodeo as we do every year, but the saddest thing happened....a horse broke it's leg and therefore, we all knew they would have to put it down so that was sad to see!
I am finished with my summer class this Monday and I CAN'T WAIT!
I love the summer and I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE sleeping in!
Oh......and I HATE the back to school commercials, they at least need to get us through July without them right:)