Potato Toes

As most of you know, I had SuRgErY on both my BIG toes on Thursday, May 13th. Apparently my toes/ feet are shaped weird and therefore cause me to get ingrown toenails much too frequently. So I thought I'd get something done so I don't have to feel that pain again or have to perform my own little surgeries on myself.
Pretty much the doctor just removes the root of part of your nail so that your nail will no longer grow (therefore NOT grow into the skin of my toe & kill me). I LOVE MY DOCTOR!!! He's awesome & a riot! Joel went with me to my toe surgery (b/c he's weird & likes that sort of thing) and watched the entire thing. I on the other hand, did NOT want to see a thing so I kept a magazine in front of my face. My toe is healing nicely now and I have my final "post-op" appointment tomorrow.

I just got to take off my silly post-op shoes (pictured below) but my toes are still pretty tender. Joel also had the "FUN", rather NOT SO FUN task of assisting me with bathing (b/c I couldn't get either of my foot bandages wet). Normally I'd say this is romantic but due to the circumstances, it was not pleasant for either party... it was ALL business! I definitely could've used tighter abs & harder buns in the bathing process... it was a pain and rather unpleasant. Joel and I are BOTH glad that's over (which is an understatement)!

Propping my feet up... Doctor's orders

(why is it that when I'm forced to sit on my butt & watch movies all day I don't want to? What's up with that? I usually never have a problem being a bum!)

This is what my Doctor calls "POTATO TOES"

(my toes aren't really orange..promise!)

"What do ya think about my booties?"

"What kind of sandals are those?"

(says one of the construction workers at my office)

You've got to be kidding me! That's what I was super paranoid about the entire time I had to wear these... is that someone would think they were REAL shoes and worse, that I chose to wear them!!! Come on, is my style that bad? (no comments necessary) Anyway, I thought y'all would get a kick out of my booties I had to wear for 8 DAYS!

A reenactment of bath time!

(I had many requests to see what it was like & how ridiculous I looked. Granted... me being clothed makes it less amusing!)

This is how bath time went: I hobble into the tub as Joel fills it up. I put each foot in the corner of the bathtub (like so) while trying to hold myself up with whatever ab muscles I do have. Joel holds the hose (luckily we have a shower head with a hose) with one hand & supports my back with the other hand... while I try to scrub and clean myself. Ahhh... what an ADVENTURE!!! haha!

Getting Crafty

My friend, Sadie is awesome! She makes the cutest headbands & hair clips. So she took the time out of her day to teach me and my friend, Katie how to make these AdOrAbLe headbands! I think they turned out fantastic. Katie & I used the same fabric so our headbands sort of match.
I really didn't make my headband b/c Katie brought her precious little girl over for Craft Night and I couldn't get enough of her. She's so dang cute! So Sadie was a sweetheart and put mine together... I did however make one of the flowers on the headband, so I'm sort of proud of myself.

After this crafty evening, I have decided that I need to do more crafty things... scrapbooking, headbands, bows, painting, etc. I ALWAYS thought of myself as a "crafty" and creative person, but I'll tell you what... I'm really NOT!!! I think my need for perfection hinders my creative juices. I guess it's something to work on it. Anyways...thank you Sadie for teaching us these fun crafts & Katie...thanks for letting me "ohhh & ahhh" over Adele. She's such a peanut!

Katie working on her headband

(Sadie did NOT want to be pictured)

Katie, Adele & Me

(ignore the shine of my face please!)

P.S. - Adele is 4 months old & just got out of newborn clothes

Sweet Little Adele

(she's such a tiny tot)

Katie & Me

(w/ our coordinating headbands)

Joel Reuben's Birthday!

April 18, 1986 was one of the most important dates known to man... well, at least to me, Joel's family and anyone else who thinks he's amazing and the BEST! How lucky am I do have him as a hubby? I know, you don't even have to tell me... I'm the LuCKiEsT!

So Joel turned 24 years old exactly one month (b/c I started this post yesterday) ago! We had a great weekend of celebrations! Friday night we went ate at Craigo's Pizza and went bowling at the REX with some friends, Matt and Amy Maynard. It was so fun! We love bowling...even though we're both pretty HORRIBLE at it! Joel is absolutely hilarious to watch: his form, his facial expressions and the way he literally SLAMS the ball down on the lane! I know he wants some power behind his swing (or whatever it's called), but I was pretty certain the ball was going to break through the floor. Oh that hubby of mine...he is so SILLY!!!

Saturday: Joel's older sister, Janine and her family came for a visit (since they were already in Pocatello visiting her mother-in-law). It was a bLaSt!!! We love spending time with them, especially those 3 adorable children of theirs (no worry, this post is going to splattered with pics of them)! Joel made us BLT Mac N' Cheese for lunch and then we took the boys to the playground in our complex for bit. It was an overcast day, but enjoyable all the same. Oh, Nick's (our bro-in-law) little sister, Tanae, who also attends BYU-I, joined us for a fun afternoon.

After the playground we decided to take a little walk to G's Dairy... they have AMAZING ice cream! If you know me... I LOVE MY ICE CREAM! The twins, Gage & Reid, were hilarious, per usual. They sat at their own little kid table at G's Dairy and made a mess of themselves. I took some pictures (see below) but it doesn't do their ice cream covered faces JusTiCe! Especially Gage, since he had pink ice cream. After that, we just walked back to our apartment and hung out and enjoyed each other's company. We watched Danica do a dance while we sung a primary song, the twins listened to Joel play is guitar, aka: "Ta-tar", Reid was jumping on the bed and smashed his little head into the wall (that crazy/ accident prone kid) and Joel opened his b-day gifts from Janine & Nick and also my gift to him. Thanks Claysons for coming for a visit... we had a BLAST!!! (WARNING: there are a lot of pictures)

Gage climbing up the slide.

Janine & Danica

Nick & Tanae (goodness...they look so much alike)

Oh Little Reid!

Me & Reid

(assisting him down the fireman's pole)

Joel & Gage

(helping him off the monkey bars)

Joel & Me

Reid & Gage

The twins about to race down the slide! (Reid won)

Gage & Reid w/ ice cream covered faces!

(can you tell I love them?)

Princess Danica

Janine, me, Joel & the kiddos!

The Claysons!

(Thanks again for coming. We had so much fun! Love you guys!)

Sunday: the BIG B-DAY!!! We went to church, of course. Then when we got home, I started to make Joel a special b-day dinner! Steak...yams... YUMMY! Well we were having some friends over for dessert and games to celebrate Joel turning 24 and the dinner was taking so long to make (dumb yams) and I still had FRUIT PIZZA to make! So poor Joel, being the loving hubby he is, finished making his own b-day dinner! I know...I know... before you start throwing stones at me, remember it's the thought that counts & my intensions were pure. I just put too much on my plate in a short amount of time.

Anyway, we had a lot of fun with our friends that were able to make it. We ate some goodies and played the always favorite Werewolves of Millershollow! Thanks everyone for joining in the celebration! We had fun!

Joel's B-day Fruit Pizza

(so I make fruit pizza all the time...big deal)

Alex & Juan Pablo

Matt & Amy Maynard

(our friends we went bowling with)

Becca & Cory Bowen, Joel & Colby

Andrew & Cassandre Briggs

My GIFT to Joel: I planned to get this for Joel for months before his b-day b/c we both sleep horribly, due to our mattress. I got him 3" of wonderful MeMoRy FoAm MaTtReSs ToPpEr!!! He absolutely loved it... and so do I. The best gifts are the ones you know someone else will LOVE that you can also enjoy! haha! You know it's true!

Joel showing off his b-day gift

(that box was deceivingly heavy)

"Ah...this is nice!"

(Joel enjoying the memory foam topper)

Joel thinking: "My wife is awesome & gives the best presents!"

Easter & General Conference

For Easter and General Conference weekend (April 2th - 4th), Joel and I went to Utah. We had the opportunity to stay with Joel's sister, Janine and her family (like always), see my sister, Amanda and her hubby, Jared (I didn't get pictures of them...boo!), went to lunch with Joel's best buds he grew up with, Brian & Kirby, along with Kirby's fiance, Jess who we love! Oh and we got to see Joel's cousin, Dave and his now wife, Emily. Needless to say, we had a great weekend full of fun!

Easter Sunday

Joel and I work up really early to get to the Conference Center in SLC b/c we had tickets to the morning session (thanks to my good friend, Lynne getting them for us). We left early thinking we'd hit traffic, have to park far away and get to our seats, with time to run to the restroom. Well... we had hit NO SNAGS! We parked about one block away and walked straight to our seats without any issues. So... we were there HOURS early! We had fun people watching.

As I'm sure you all remember, Conference (especially Sunday morning) was AMAZING!!! I guess it was a perfect way to celebrate Easter! Oh, side note: We sat in the section that is reserved for the hearing impaired. So, there were two TVs right in our faces and I was really distracted by them. It was b/c the sign language translators on the screen, rather just one of them, was soooo DRAMATIC!!! His facial expressions were priceless! I would do almost anything to get a shot of him for all of you to see. Oh well...

Here are some pictures from that weekend, mostly of our niece, Danica & our twin nephews, Reid & Gage.

Saturday morning: Joel & Danica

(Joel won't be happy I put this up here b/c he just woke up)

Reid - He's super cute w/ that adorable face & red hair

 

Gage - I'm pretty sure Nick is reprimanding him for something

Brian, Jess, Kirby, Joel & me @ Chipotle for lunch

The then newly engaged - Future Mr. & Mrs. Kirby Childress

Joel & Me - Easter Sunday in front of the Conference Center

Mista Mista...Get Me Outta Here!

So on April 8th, I came home for lunch and enjoyed an hour away from the office with my hubby. He's the best! Joel not only makes dinner most nights, but he always gets lunch together too. I know...I'm spoiled and the luckiest woman in the world! I do need to relieve him of that burden though b/c we all know he has way more on his plate than I do. It's something I continually try to work on.

Anyway, the POINT of this post is to back track and tell you about an unforgettable lunch on that very day, April 8th. So after lunch, I needed to head back to work quickly b/c my break was almost over. So I gave Joel a kiss goodbye and ran to the door. But WAIT... the door would NOT OPEN!!! The handle was turning, but NOTHING!

Joel did not believe me, thinking I was having a blonde moment and locked the door and forgot about it. So after a minute of me trying to figure out what the heck was going on and complaining to Joel, "What the heck... the door is stuck... It won't open!" Joel continued not to believe me and thought he'd let a MAN do it (b/c surely that would work)! Well, you guessed.... IT DIDN'T WORK!

We ended up calling the manager and she sent TWO maintenance men to help get us out. It NOT only took the two maintenance men, but Joel and I too, to get us out of our apartment. So... 35 MINUTES later, 2 maintenance men, a guy and a girl & a new doorknob and lock... we were literally HOME FREE!!!

AH... I'm TRAPPED! (obviously me being dorky)

Joel showing the doorknob that caused the LOCK-IN!

(he wasn't happy b/c I always make him pose for me & he doesn't like it)

"Did someone just take a picture?" -Maintenance Man

(The maintenance men are on the other side of the door & Joel's manning the Albertson's card)

Apparently the lock membrane broke inside the door b/c the knob would turn, but it wouldn't open. It was definitely an afternoon to remember and one I had to take a few pictures of. haha! CLASSIC!

Coming Soon...

Ok, so I know I haven't been good at posting recently (as I mentioned in my earlier post). But I have lots to share with you, so I thought I'd give you a preview as to what is coming.

• Joel's Birthday Weekend
• Easter &  General Conference Weekend
• Joel's trip to Nicaragua
• Brit's trip to TEXAS
• "Goodbye" dinner w/ friends (who moved)
• And anything else I feel I need to catch up on:
• London & Greece vacation LAST SUMMER (I know...I'm horrible, but it's for me & anyone else who cares)
• Christmas in Ohio
• Thanksgiving break

So stay tuned! I will catch up as soon as I can. I'm having surgery on both my big toes tomorrow afternoon, so I will be home from work all day Friday with my feet propped up. What'd be better for me to do than blog... while watching girly movies, of course?

Side note: I decided to change my background to something a bit more colorful for summer. Although the warmth and sunshine has hardly graced us with its presence here in good old Rexburg. Hope it's not too bright for the eyes.

Brittany's 23rd Birthday Party

It has been quite some time since I last posted. I was doing so well, but then I left for Texas March 13th and it kind of threw me off track (note my last post was March 12th). But I've almost downloaded all of our pictures and will try to get caught up on everything (obviously more for us than anyone else).

P.S. - back your photos up on an external hard drive b/c my friend, Sadie's computer crashed... luckily they had recently transferred all there things to their external hard drive or all, literally, would have been lost.

So my birthday party was a bLaSt!!! Well, I had fun. I won't speak for anyone else. It was suppose to be a night full of fun games you'd play at parties when you were a kid. I, or course, participated in all the events... except Bobbing for Apples. I was NOT about to have my mascara run & my hair drenched at my own party!

Thanks to all of my friends who came to celebrate with me! And a very SPECIAL thanks to those who brought treats to share, who stayed late to help me clean up, who brought me such thoughtful gifts & who participated in the games (which was most important to me)! You guys are the best!

Now here are the pictures for your enjoyment. They're a bit blurry b/c I think the flash kept getting turned off somehow. Also, the pictures are really dark & I'm at work and cannot edit them right now. Sorry about that!

The Fruit Pizza I made. YuMmY!!!

Opening my gift from the Lees family. Everett picked out the card all by himself.

P.S. - Thanks for the wallet guys, I love it & I'm using it right now actually.

Eating the DELICIOUS goodies w/ Everett.

Left to Right: Mallory Hanna, Samantha Wilsom, Mary Davis & Claire Hanna.

Some of the party go-ers!

Katie & Lincoln (who is wearing my headband Shelane made me)

Alex Harrison...what a CHAMP! Coming to a party w/ all married people.

Christian pinning the tail on the donkey w/ a little help from Everett.

Now Lincoln's turn!

Ryan doing the Bucket Toss... rather successfully I might add!

The party continues!

Lef to Right: Becca, Brinley (cutest little girl), Cassandre, Nicole, Meagan & Ryan (parents of cute baby), Paige & Kevin.

The Lees family: Lincoln, Preston, Katie & Everett

Joel w/ the single men (Juan Pablo, Alex & Brent) + Luke

JOEL & ME!!!

He knows how much I love being dipped!

Now for some birthday videos. Disclaimer: I know my voice is a bit loud & clear as day in the videos. Embarrassing...yes! But hopefully they're enjoyable all the same.

The HAPPY BIRTHDAY song! Lincoln & Everett helped me blow out the candles.

P.S.- I have always felt a bit awkward when people sing Happy B-day to me... as you can tell by my facial expressions/ reactions.

Brit's Birthday Wish! from Brittany Skousen on Vimeo.

Joel playing "Pin the Tail on the Donkey". I decided to throw him off guard and send him in the wrong direction. And boy...did I succeed!

Pin the Tail on the Donkey - Joel from Brittany Skousen on Vimeo.

He didn't appreciate me messing him up... so he decided to do a little pay back! Lucky for me, I have a GREAT sense of direction! I almost pinned the tail on the donkey PERFECTLY!

Pin the Tail on the Donkey - Brit from Brittany Skousen on Vimeo.

Bobbing for Apples!
In order of appearance: Jeff Sabin, Kevin Broadbent, Jimmy Wilson, AJ Creek & Everett
(Sorry the video is turned sideways. It's still a good video & Everett is SUPER cute trying to bob for apples)
Congrats to AJ Creek for "bobbing" the fastest!

http://vimeo.com/11658935 from Brittany Skousen on Vimeo.

If you know me, you know that for some reason I CANNOT stand Hannah Montana/ Miley Cyrus. So we found the absolute PERFECT pinata for my b-day bash... you guessed it... Hannah Montana. Here's a little video to show the DESTRUCTION of Hannah Montana.

Hannah Montana Beat Down :) from Brittany Skousen on Vimeo.

Thanks again to everyone who made my birthday so special! I really appreciate it. I couldn't ask for BETTER friends & family. Love you all!