Yes we're still alive!

So I thought I should probably post something so those of you who we don't talk to often don't start to think we died or something. We are back in Utah and doing well. Life threw us a few curve balls on our arrival home but who doesn't get a few of those. :) Nick is back at school at the U and doing great. He is going for a degree in Business Administration ( I think that's what it is now, I've lost track with how many times its changed!) and then off to med school to become an Ophthalmologist. So we have like 12 more years of school, but who's counting! At any rate, he's doing great, getting good grades and enjoying his classes. As for me, I'm currently looking for a job. I'm really not sure doing what so that makes the search a little more complicated than I expected. :) As soon as I make up my mind or run into something good I will let y'all know. Its good to be home and done with long and hard work hours for at least another 7 months. The summer was definitely a success and a wonderful experience. Sometime soon I'm going to have to post more of our pictures from out there. You take so many and then the thought of downloading each one onto your blog is just daunting. Since we have been home we have wanted to take advantage of our free time. So far we have decided we are going on a new hike each week. I threw that one off for a couple of weeks by having ridiculous allergies. I could just see myself sneezing and falling off some ledge. So after the allergies calmed down a bit we went on our first hike to Moss Ledge up Big Cottonwood canyon. It is one we've been on before but was still a blast.

So there's starting to be a theme in our hikes. We have reached our destination, everything has gone well, and then I spot something that looks like great fun to climb. I don't know why I'm attracted to steep rocky things but I am. There's just so much fun to be had, wondering the whole way up what your going to find at the top. Well, here's the first one. It doesn't look to bad but let me just tell you how many little spiders are in those rocks! Ya going up you don't need to put your hands down there to hold on but little did I realize that going down was going to be a whole new ball game. About half way up that little glitch hit me and we made a quick decent. I'm sure the falling rock and possibility of a land slide had some pull in that decision but the spiders where definitely the deciding factor. Bellow is a picture of the rocks we climbed up looking down.

Nicholaus climbing up the side of the waterfall to take a look at where it first hits. I tried to do this as well and it didn't go so good (major panic when I realized I couldn't get down) so there is no picture of me because the photographer was busy coaching me on how to get down.


Nicholaus and I before we started our way down.


These next pictures are of a different hike we went on up to Doughnut Falls. Its another well known one up Big Cottonwood canyon. This picture bellow is of a chipmunk. This little guy was fearless. He was out on the trail digging away in front of hikers and would let you get within like two feet of him. You probably are going to have to look at the picture in full size in order to see him, but he sure is cute.


We where shocked when we got to the falls because there must have been a rock slide since we where last there. You cant even see the falls from bellow now. You have to get right up there and inside to see anything. Still a pretty view though.


For some reason Nicholaus had the desire to get his head wet with the freezing water. This is the face he made the entire time while screaming "COLD!"


So this is the second rock ledge we tried to climb. I had the genius idea that if we climbed it we would be able to get to the top of the falls. Well since all the rocks had fallen I didn't think to look where they had fallen from. We get to the top of this thing and realize that all the rocks that fell came from where it used to connect to the falls. Now we have this insanely steep ledge to go down because our way is blocked. It was scary because it might not look it but this is a nearly vertical climb and getting up is always easier than getting down. We lived but Nicholaus is no longer listening or allowing me to climb anything when we are on hikes.


It was great to walk through all the tree's with there changing leaves.



Nicholaus and I so happy after we made it down from the rocks.

I saw this test on one of my friends blogs and thought it would be fun to do. I really didn't think that I would end up being a Bella, I was thinking more of an Esme or something much more low key. Funny though. Whoever is obsessed with the Twilight series should do this. Its short and fun. :)

Waffles, My Foot!

So I woke up this morning and ate a yogurt, and soon after reading, I woke Emily because I was hungry. I told her waffles sounded good, even though I know that we don't have a waffle iron, and she wasn't going to help me because her back wasn't doing well. Anyway, I told her that I had an idea and I was going to make them anyway, but she didn't like the sound of it. Here is my creation...This is the GEORGE FOREMAN/CHINESE way of cooking waffles. You have to have a grill, and you have to have chopsticks, and other wooden materials. Emily really didn't like the idea at first because she thought the waffles would taste like meat, and that it would be a big mess. Take a closer look at the Supa-grill to see how it works!
I have to admit that I was a little worried about the first one, because I didn't want it to overflow and have Emily be upset, and I wanted waffles! In the end it all worked perfectly without any problems, and for me, it was much less messy than making pancakes! Here is the first one...

Yummy :) Emily liked it! I definitely suggest that if you ever have chopsticks left over from Chinese food the night before, a George Foreman grill, and some enthusiasm for interesting things, that you try making waffles like this!

P.S. Some people can't figure out why I used chopsticks, so for those of you like this, it was to balance the grill so all of the waffle mix didn't spill out onto the counter (so it was level). This way, it makes the waffles Chinese, and George Foreman-ish.

Husband Tag

Husband Tag

1. What is his name? Nicholaus Christopher Chipping

2. Who eats more? Definitely Nick. Especially when it comes to Oreo's. I have to ration him or he will eat a whole bag in one sitting!

3. Who said, "I love you" first? Ok, so I had to ask Nicholaus about this one because I didn't remember at first. It was our 2nd week dating and we were at a stop light driving to his house. I remember I had to ask him what he said because he said it so quietly I wasn't sure if he really said it.

4. Who is taller? Nicholaus (5'10") Me (5'8" or 9" not sure)

5. Who is smarter? We both have our specialties. Nicholaus can tell you almost anything about new technology, apple stuff, sports cars, and the gospel. He is also really good with math and spelling which are both my biggest weaknesses. With me its anything animal, or craft stuff and then I love science.

6. Who is more sensitive? Absolutely me! Poor Nicholaus has really had to put up with a lot being married to such a cry baby that takes everything personal. He is a great sport with it though. I always think that he is the only one patient enough to put up with me and my emotions.

7. Who does the laundry? I do, and I can tell I have been slacking and its time to do the whites when he starts to wear his black church socks with shorts and sneakers. ( It drives me crazy!)

8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Typically I sleep on the right but it depends on what side is closest to the door. He insists he sleeps there in case some one broke in he could protect me. I used to argue that but he always won so I stopped.

9. Who pays the bills? We both do. He used to keep up on all the bills and I didn't know what we payed where but now that he works such long hours all week I have taken the job up mostly.

10. Who cooks more? Me for sure! He makes some mean breakfast burritos but he gets this panicky look on his face when the meal gets more elaborate than that. He is such a sweet husband and helps clean up and do the dishes all the time but the cooking is definitely my job. Just the other night he asked for seconds and I told him he could go get more and then he asked if I could go help him with it. I could not help but laugh.

11. Who is more stubborn? Two years ago I would have said me but being married to Nicholaus has really calmed me down in that area. I think we tie on this one right now. It really depends on the time of day though. If its bedtime and he is tired, there is absolutely no discussion as to what is happening. Those lights are going out and we are going to bed or he is not a very happy person. But if its morning and he's trying to wake me up theres not much success in talking me out of bed.

12. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? Again, I think we are at a tie. Honestly it usually is whoever really is wrong. It depends who is more emotional at the time as well though. If I start to cry he usually caves or if I can tell he is really upset I will cave but I think we have a pretty healthy level to both. That is something that I have always loved about Nicholaus. He is such a humble person that he is ok with admitting he is wrong. I have had to learn how to do the same which is not easy at times.

13. Who has more siblings? Nicholaus by far. He comes from a family of 7 children including him. He has 5 brothers and 1 sister. I am an only child. So all those siblings was quite a shock. I love every one of them though!

14. Who wears the pants in the relationship? Well it depends on how you look at it. He makes a lot more money than I do but I work really hard at home too so I like to say we both wear the pants.

15. What do you like to do together? Lately just having time together is wonderful. We love going to the movies or out to eat. We really like doing outdoor stuff together though like roller blading, swimming, hiking, walking, camping, going for drives. We also love to play cards like Phase 10 or Uno.

16. Who eats more sweets? Well Nicholaus is a cookie monster but I love dark chocolate. We try to stay away from sweets but we are not very good at it.

17. Guilty Pleasures? Nicholaus and I have been on this kick with this restaurant called Grand Lux Cafe. It is owned by the people who created the Cheesecake Factory but it is so much better! It is this glamorous gorgeous restaurant that you think would cost an arm and a leg to eat at but is somewhat reasonably priced. For the past couple of months we have gone there every Saturday night. Nicholaus always gets the Sautéed Swordfish and I get the Grilled Mahi Mahi. It is so much fun because they have great music playing and its such a beautiful place with wonderful service. It sort of feels like you are on vacation and I figure since Nick works such long weeks he deserves it and I am lucky enough to tag along!

18. How did you meet? Well, we met in December of 2005 when Angie Meeks (then Jefferson) and Maren McLaughlin ( I probably spelled that wrong!) came over caroling with some friends. Nick was there with his friend Ryan Meeks and I immediately thought he was the best thing ever! I tried to talk to him all night and he would either give me a blank stare and walk away or would laugh and then walk away. It was horrible!! I was convinced that he hatted me but latter found out that he was just terrified of me. Even after all of that I just knew I was going to marry him and that night went home and told my mom that. I don't know how to describe it, I hadn't ever experienced anything before where I just absolutely knew that is what I was supposed to do. The next time we met was the 2nd week of January. Angie and Ryan set us up on a blind date and we spent every day together after that. We where engaged a month latter and married 4 months after that.

19. Who asked whom out first? Neither, blind date. But that night Nick asked me out again.

20. Who kissed who first? Nicholaus, he kept faking me out for a week, acting like he was going to and then not and then two weeks after we had been dating he finally kissed me. I was wondering if he ever was going to!

21. Who proposed? Nicholaus. He acted like we where going to the Gateway mall to make some finalizations on my ring and then surprised me and proposed there by the fountains. It was way cute, he was so scared even though he knew I was going to say yes.

22. His best features and qualities? Everything! He is by far the most amazing person I have ever met. Everyday I am reminded of what a blessing it is to be a part of his life. He is such a strength to me and our marriage. Anyone who knows him knows that he is one of the sweetest and selfless people who would do anything for anyone. His spirit is so kind and his testimony is a rock. On top of all that he is an absolute dork with a great sense of humor. It has taken some time to get used to the fact that he doesn't care what people think of him so he is just silly everywhere we go. I could not have dreamed of having a more loving, compassionate, supportive, wonderfully perfect husband!!

23. Tag you’re it. Who do you tag? Jenny Marie and Katrina (this means you have to start a blog now wrinkle! :) )

The Memory Post

This looked like fun after I posted one on Jens blog so I thought I would give it a try.

1. Add a comment of a memory you have of the two of us together. It doesn't matter if you know me very well or just a little, it can be anything. It can be a recent memory or from way back. Once you leave a comment I will assume you are playing too.

2. Add these instructions to your own post and wait for the memories to start rolling in.

New York Botanical Gardens!!

The Saturday before last I went to the New York Botanical Gardens. It was absolutely amazing. It is one of the largest Gardens in the world I guess and I tried to cover it all. It sure is Huge covering over 250 acres. I tried to control myself with taking pictures and now I am kicking myself thinking about all that I missed. I am going to have to do a few slide shows to include them all though. The last slide has a bunch of frog pictures that might not make sense. I was watching the Wetland area and noticed that there where a ton of bull frogs there, a few minutes latter I also noticed that they where fighting each other. :( So those are pictures of them battling it out. There are also a bunch of pictures of sculptures who are done by an artist named Moore. I hope you enjoy looking at the pictures as much as i enjoyed taking them!

Hike with Rodger

So Rodger (the dog of the family I nanny for) and I decided to go for a hike the other day. Palisades New York is an absolutely gorgeous area with tons of bike and hiking trails. This is a picture of the trail we where on. A little bit down the trail we found a deer path that looked like it lead down to the river. Curiosity won and we decided to check it out. It lead to an abrupt cliff that dropped a couple hundred feet and had an absolutely wonderful view.




















Rodger and I sitting on the cliff.

Sweet Husband

So yesterday morning I woke up to Nicholaus excitingly telling me to get up and be quick. He told me to get dressed and that i was not allowed to do anything with my hair. I was still half asleep when he started to tie a blindfold over my face. I was so confused and was getting upset! He took me down the elevator and into the car. (I could hear people laughing in the background as we went along!) He wouldn't tell me a thing and just kept saying how cute I looked when I was confused. Finally after driving around for a while he let me take the blindfold off. We where at an i hop for breakfast! How cute is that! He kidnapped me and took me to breakfast without any hints of wanting to!!! I told him he is giving me reason to forget to go grocery shopping more often. I really lucked out to get such a well trained guy. I just wanted to let everyone know what a sweet husband I have and that I love him a ton!! :)

New Orchid!

So when I was at work yesterday I met the grandmother of the 2 boys that I nanny for. Well I should probably explain to those of you who don't know what I have been doing with myself lately! I found a job being a Nanny for a family with 2 boys (Charlie 15, and Sam 13) plus there 3 cats ( Coco, George , and Emily!) and dog Rodger. The boys are obviously a lot older so my job is pretty basic. I am there to cart them around to friends houses, tennis lessons, make dinner, keep them out of trouble, ect. In all honesty most of the time there is absolutely nothing to do so I end up watching animal planet or playing with the animals, Very low key. So back to my story. Yesterday I met their grandmother. She is this sweet lady that travels the world and collects Orchids. We hit it off and talked for hours and when it was time for me to go home she told me to take home this Orchid with me. I told her no but she insisted. It is this gorgeous purple and yellow one that she got in Florida a few weeks ago. I didn't know much about them so I stopped by this wonderful garden center on my way home to get a new pot and learn what on earth to do with it. I met this cute old Asian man that I could hardly understand (makes me wish you where here Richard and Nathan!) who re potted it for me and told me how to take care of it. This guy was so sweet! He even packaged it up all cute for me with a bow and everything!









He really did a good job. He even put all of this moss on it and made it look so pretty! :)






















Here is a close up of what the flowers look like. I love how they are outlined with white! This also makes me miss you Marinke! (lol, probably spelled that wrong!) You would love this garden place, there are all sorts of Orchids everywhere!










I had to take a picture of the pot because it is so perfect for me. I am obsessed with swirl patterns and I just feel in love with this pot! So thats about it for the Orchid. Lets just hope it survives the car ride home!!!

BIG Storm!

Since I finally figured out how to post on this thing I thought I better post again soon before I forgot! I just wanted to show you guys these pictures. Lately it has been storming like crazy out here . Sometimes the storms get pretty intense. These are some pictures of a storm that was going over us the other day. It was so creepy! As you can see there where these black clouds covering us and the thunder was just out of this world! I got pretty nervous when I was taking a picture and then saw a house about 2 blocks from us get hit by lightning! I couldn't believe my eyes!! this huge bolt of lightning came down and seconds latter huge sparks and flames where coming up higher than the trees. It was intense to watch, I hope no one was home. To bad I didnt get a shot of it. So thats about it for our weather adventures this week. Post again soon!

Day at the Beach

Since Nicholaus accidentally erased this at the bottom, it is now at the top. This is just a cute picture of him avoiding having his picture taken, while at the beach.
So Nicholaus and I decided to drive down to the beach today. It is about a 40 minute drive from where we live, and we were really excited to get there. We arrived immediately dissapointed to find that this was not much of a beach at all. We were soon surprised to find many dead jelly-fish skewed all over the sand! For some reason, there were hundreds of these jelly-fish that were swimming to shore. This is a picture of one of them that was still alive. Don't know what kind it is, but we thought it was pretty cool.

Dead Hela-monster? Okay, so lets have a little zoology lesson . . . What looks like metal, and is related to pre-historic tarantulas? Ding! According to Nicholaus, a giant fossil on the beach. Actually though, it is called a Horse Shoe Crab!!! How cool is this!?!? I have always wanted to find one ever since my zoology class in High School!! As we were getting ready to leave this dissapointment of a beach, I stumbled across what looked to be some metal helmet in the sand (with a tail) . . . Anyway, looking closer, we discovered what it was. Check out the cool pictures below to see more of what it looks like!
At first, there was no way I was going to touch this thing! And besides, we thought it was dead anyway, so we just turned it over with a rock.
When it started to twitch and hover away, we realized, HOLY COW, THIS THING IS ALIVE!!!
So now I will take over on the typing (yeah, it's me, Nicholaus). Emily soon found that this helmet, like any other animal, was something she HAD to touch with her hands. This picture is her showing it like a dog at the prize show.
This one is the thing sticking it's butt at me, with the tail going for my eye!
Emily felt guilty after getting him out of his sand-station, so we decided to relocate him for a brief moment in the water (mainly for a bath, to get a better look at him). These guys do belong in the water too, so don't worry - we didn't hurt him.
After getting a good look at this guy, we lovingly named him Henry, the Horse Shoe Crab. It doesn't really work because we didn't keep him, but if we ever find him again, we'll see what happens. . .
His tail is going crazy there - I think he was finally starting to get angry! At first, it was wagging more like a dog's tail, but then he started to move his crab/pre-historic-spider legs and tail in a frantic way. So we finally let him go back to a peaceful life, face-down in the sand and water.
My cute wife standing on the beach :)