Month of May

I am so happy that winter is now done with. I feel confident enough to say that because the average temperature for the past 2 weeks has been about 65.. I think that means springtime. Also the trees are starting to get leaves and the grass is green(real green even!)
This is what our May has looked like:
Riding horses- I'm actually starting to become more comfortable and less tense when I ride. Rhen still hasn't come out to ride, but he promised me that next time he would!
Playing Softball- We got to play softball with the youth and it was so much fun! We didn't have enough people to make two whole teams so we all just rotated positions and batted. They have a nice little softball field and the weather was perfect. I really just want to go outside and play sports every day, but I don't feel like we would have enough willing participants..
Getting pulled over- This was so bad! I hate getting pulled over. The police officer was so nice though, and he just gave me a warning. My visiting teaching companion and I were somewhat lost and confused because we couldn't find one of our ladies houses(even though we had  been there twice already!) so I was driving around and took a corner wacko and then he pulled me over. I just felt so frazzled! I couldn't find any of my information, but he still let me go and just told me to put in my car when I got home. So thank you Mr. forgiving police man!
Bruises- I am so bruised up, from softball and from running my leg directly into the table at church and from riding horses. It hurts to move!
Temple- Rhen and I got to serve in the temple this weekend and Rhen was able to do 100 confirmations, it was so nice! The temple grounds had beautiful tulips everywhere and we saw 3 wedding groups! I love springtime at the temple!
Anyway that's pretty much all, we are hoping to go camping soon though!

It's coming, I can almost see it

Spring is almost here! I can feel it! Wednesday when it snowed 4 more inches, I saw little sprouts of greenish colored grass! Now that it has melted it all looks sort of less vibrant, but I'll take what I can get! Yay!

In other news, I've been sick :(. Not horribly so, but still enough to make my head hurt with congestion and make me really fatigued.
Short post, but at least I am posting!

Alice in Existentialist Horror-Land

I have lots of good and bad things to say about this subject! First of all... I HATE IT! Haha Okay, that sounds all bad, but I also have good memories of it.
When I was a kid I watched the Disney version of Alice in Wonderland and it absolutely terrified me. It felt like when she escaped, she didn't really physically escape but escaped into her mind. Essentially it was a mind-warp where maybe Wonderland was the real place and England was all in her head. How very existentialist of my young self to be, but that is actually what scared me the most. And because of all the weird creepy things. I suppose by this logic The Wizard of Oz should've scared me too, and it did a little, but not for the same reasons(mostly for the flying monkeys.)
 Then when I was in grade school I saw the LBCC theater group perform it.. I don't really remember much about it. Recently I've gotten over the fear, and evolved to exhaustion over the subject. Alice in Wonderland is the hipster of the Disney movies. That and all the Tim Burton movies.. Which I even kind of like the Tim Burton movies, but (and maybe this makes me a hipster..) I don't like how everyone obsesses over them so much. I just don't understand why there is like 15 different versions of Alice in Wonderland.. And they are still coming! My favorite show is Once Upon a Time and even the producers of that are planning a spin-off: Once upon a Wonderland or something like that (which I will probably still watch devotedly because I am a very avid fan of all things Once).
Anyway that is the part that I don't like, but like I said there is good in me too! When Jeanie and I were in Albany we went to the library all the time and we checked out these Alice's Adventures in Wonderland/beyond the looking glass books that had pictures and basically summarized the actual book by Lewis Carrol and gave insight into why he wrote the things he did, and that was very interesting! Those were pretty cool books...
Also in High School I was in the musical Alice in Wonderland playing the body of the Chesire Cat. I actually have really great memories from this, because I was really able to get out of my shell and express myself because of that opportunity. I'm really glad that I didn't chicken out or anything. So that's a positive thing!
Then the thing which actually triggered this rant on AiW was that last night for Young Women's we watched the High School musical version of AiW. One of our young women was in the play, so it was basically me and the other girl watching her haha. She played the Daisy and the Baby. You know- the baby that is actually a pig who lives with the Duchess. It was interesting how the two plays varied so much, this one was actually more accurate to what happened in the book. But it was also... interesting. Haha, it is so fun to watch young people doing something they love! It makes me want to go back and relive things so I could do more activities, but it also makes me glad that I'm not in HS anymore. I'm a very conflicted person you see ;).
These are some things I really enjoyed about it:
The Caterpillar! His costume was AWESOME! He was wearing a purple sleeping bag with stuffed gloves sewed onto the sides for extra arms. I laughed really hard at that.
The Duchess! Her costume was great too, she had this snazzy purple dress and crazy-huge headdress that look very heavy.
Just the atmosphere in general. Of course the acting wasn't top-notch but it was fun to watch and see them try their hardest!
And that is my Hate-like relationship with Alice.

I miss Oregon

Well it snowed. I wasn't that surprised that it snowed because the weather is rather unpredictable here, but I was surprised at the quantity of snow we got.

This is what our area looked like this weekend

Then on Monday this is what I woke up to:

That ruler is measuring 9 inches in the morning. They measured it later that afternoon and they were up to 11 inches. Tuesday the weather wasn't horrible, so we were able to clean up all the snow on the sawmill area and start processing things again, then Wednesday came and it was like a flash blizzard! Okay maybe the people around here wouldn't call it such, but to me it was a blizzard. There was a ton of snow dumped on us, at least another 7-8 inches and lots of wind! We didn't work much yesterday because it was pretty impossible to keep the snow off everything. When we went upstairs and looked out the windows the visibility was terrible! I could only see maybe 15 feet in front of me, which makes me grateful that I don't ever have to drive to work. Today the sun is out again, but I can't help but feel like shoveling is pointless when the weather is teasing us like this. It stops snowing just long enough to clear everything off and then the next day pours it back down.. Sigh...
Meanwhile in Oregon:

I want to see beautiful colors... Everything is so brown or way too bright white. I think my cornea's are burning up because of the sun reflecting off the sun- everything looks green and dark when I come inside.. I also got a sunburn on Tuesday!
But I shouldn't complain about the brown, I'm starting to see the beauty in it as well. Any color is better than the snow.

P.S. I miss getting letters! If you feel like it would be weird to write to me, then stop feeling like that! I want to here about all your lives and see more fun pictures! I haven't fallen off the face of the earth completely I promise! Rhen misses you all too, so don't forget about him ;)

Some interesting observations..

Colorado is funny! Here are some silly things I've noticed...
Every Kody I've met here spells his name with a K. I've met like 3! 2 Kody's and 1 Kodi, and they are all men. I thought Kodi was a girls name... Hmm..
Everyone who I introduce myself to calls me Melissa at least twice before remembering my real name.
A lot of the young guys(early 20's-30's) call me Ma'am, it's very nice! 
In Colorado it's either clear blue skies, no real clouds in sight or it's snowing. That's only semi true because yesterday it sort of rained and snowed at the same..
There are no mail boxes! There may be some some where, but not here. Only PO Boxes..

Twiddling my Thumbs

I'm having a really difficult time.. I am going to try to keep you guys updated without bringing you down, so I will try to have good things to say sometime soon. As for now, if you want to know what's going on feel free to call us, read LJ, e-mail, or send us a letter!

Talents

Look at this! I was just called into young women about a month ago and it has been a lot of fun getting to know the girls. They are all so talented! Check out this youtube video drawn by one of my girls!

Colorado Cooking

I don't know what's been in me recently but I have been baking up a storm! Maybe it's because I'm away from Jeanie and all her delicious pies.. I've been channeling my inner great baker. Here are some things I'm made recently:
Peach/Apple pie
Lemon pound cake with lemon glaze icing
Reinvented cream cheese layered brownies(Not really layered once I mistakenly reinvented them, but still yummy)
Cookies galore!
Cinnamon rolls
I plan to make maple bar donuts** soon as well
Less baking and more cooking:
I made this delicious baked sweet and sour chicken recipe! It is yummy!
I like when I get urges to be a good homemaker, it makes me feel accomplished..
Changing the topic, Rhen's Great Grandmother passed away last night. I've never had the chance to meet her, but I've heard she was a wonderful person. I don't feel too terribly sad because I know that she has lived a very good long life and is now in Heaven with her Husband. I feel comforted by the knowledge I have of eternal families. I think this is how she would want us to feel as well.

Physical evidence:

 Peach apple pie

 Cinnamon rolls- haha Rhen's expression

 Bread/Cinnamon roll dough

**EDITED 03/28/2013**
I tried my hand at maple bars two weeks ago. It was an interesting development. Let's be honest, Rhen started making them and I jumped in to help(this is where is goes south). We had difficulties with the yeast, too much, the water was to cool, etc. We decided they would probably still be fine. Rhen went somewhere so I decided to knead the dough by myself. It was so tough! I thought it was because I didn't add the yeast correctly, but then I turned around and saw the eggs that I forgot to add in! In a very Fauna-esc. way, I attempted to fold in the eggs into the already kneaded dough.. It was messy. I was too impatient to let it rise extra even though I pounded it into a pulp, so the bars came out a little bit how I imagine a brick of unleavened bread would taste. BUT, the maple icing was perfect! So I won't give up. I really think that they will turn out good next time.

I did have a more successful story as well! I made delicious white chocolate macadamia nut cookies last week. They were scrumptious!

Lets talk about babies

In general I consider myself a pretty private person. I don't like sharing all of my intimate thoughts or feelings with just anyone which is why you may have never heard me speak seriously on this mater. So consider this a special occasion because I am going to be truthful and honest with all those reading this. Normally I'd say, this is none of your business, but nobody seems to believe this so maybe if I expand on the subject everyone will be satisfied. Rhen and I love children. We have both agreed throughout our lives that we would have large families and teach them the love of their Savior and of the peace of the Gospel. Because of some recent insensitive comments I feel obliged to share are my thoughts on the matter. I take the duty of raising children very seriously, how can you not? They are human beings learning and finding their way through this life and we are put here to guide and counsel them as best as we can, we will always be their parents. I want to do my very best always and I want to be in a place where I feel I have that potential. I realize that we will never have "enough money", but babies do require a certain amount of things to give them a healthy start I.E. health insurance. We do not want to shrug off the importance of having children, but since we are the primary people bringing life to them on earth we recognize that it is ultimately our decision to make. We pray very regularly about this matter and I know that when we do have children the Lord will bless us with the things we need so long as we do our best. I don't quite understand how it is possible to have some much love in your heart for something that we do not have yet but I do. Last night Rhen and I were watching Freaks and Geeks (it sounds like a pretty silly thing but oh well) and after watching these siblings going through their lives it really affected me. I started crying-full blown crying- thinking and worrying about the things my children will have to go through in their lives and hoping and praying that they are kind and loving to one another. I felt peace come over me as I prayed, knowing that all will be well. Here are the main things I'm trying to get across:
Rhen and I love children and will have them, someday.
We don't plan on waiting an extremely long amount of time for them.
We haven't decided to have them right now either.
We will take into advice your opinions because you are important to us, but it won't be because of you that we make this choice either.
Please do not try to make us feel bad about our decisions, it only pushes you further away.

I'm sorry if that was blunt, but it is the truth. This isn't meant to be rude or put a wall between us, it's just to let you know why Rhen and I have been private on this matter. I recognize that people are interested in this, and I am not telling you to stop asking or being interested in our life, I just wanted to explain our reasoning.

Going without

Last night I made the decision to stop shampooing my hair. I'm not sure how long I will stick to this, but I figured I had all the ingredients (baking soda, apple cider vinegar, and water) so what the hey! Anyway, I followed all the directions that I had found online and put it to the test. Mid-shower, the apple cider vinegar concoction got knocked over and spilled all over the shower floor(which, due to the very odd design of our shower is consequently half of the bathroom floor) and sent the aromatic smell of vinegar everywhere. I figured "oh well, that's just the conditioner portion anyway" so I went on, pouring the baking soda water into my hair. It was a weird feeling, I'm not sure exactly how to describe it. It felt like even though my hair was wet.. It was dry. Not a very good explanation, but if you decide to try it you will know what I'm talking about. After a few minutes of attempted rinsing I had thought that it was all out. Nope, wrong! I woke up this morning with matted dreads. If you want over night dreads, I highly suggest this technique! My hair is very voluminous today, but I think that's because it's still coated in baking soda and won't lie flat. Despite this turn of events, I'm going to keep doing it and using the vinegar rinse to get the baking soda out. I will update soon to find out if I smell like rotting apples or if my hair falls out!

*Edited 2/16*
I'm such a quitter, I shampooed my hair regularly on Valentines Day. I will try to go back to baking soda soon, but I am going to have to adjust the recipe. It makes my hair super dry and stiff and weird. Hoping that with the adjustments it will improve. I'll keep you posted.

Old Essay

I was going through my old e-mail accounts and I found this essay I had to write a few years ago. It's really interesting to me because I have always been very critical of my writing abilities especially when reviewing old papers, but I actually really enjoyed reading this! 

Mistakes Define Us


Today, youth and adults alike strive for perfection. In this competitive world we are taught that only the best can succeed and anything less than that will fall short. However I disagree with this. It is my belief that the only way to excel is by experiencing mistakes and growing from them.
I don’t mean that I enjoy the lightening fast speed of which my stomach ties itself in a knot, nor the feverish symptoms that occur almost instantly when I’ve done something wrong. These are not the things that I’m talking about, it’s after it has past that I can look back and retrace my steps. Looking back on your mistakes is difficult, but realizing ways to avoid repeating it is worth the effort, even the mistake.
Working with customers has kept this belief with me and continues to prove itself time and again. Scooping ice cream daily may seem tedious and without room for mistake, but there definitely is. One afternoon my coworker and I were working a pretty slow day, when while we were helping a woman with a more expensive order, I accidently hit a button on the cash register, causing it to close up with no intention of ever opening again. After hitting every button on the register we could find we ended up just giving away the product. To add to my distress a rush came in immediately after this. I had no idea what to do, when a patient elderly woman suggested a button under the machine and it worked! The register came to life and we were able to serve anyone with no trouble. Since this discovery we’ve made the same mistake again, and being able to use my prior knowledge, it is no trouble to get back on track.
The woman’s patience helped me to feel calmer and less embarrassed about the situation. This taught me to feel compassion for those who are struggling and to show patience. If there is any way for me to help other people feel better about the problems they have, I will do it. This is another belief of mine: Be patient with others mistakes.
Many people become depressed and anxious when they make a mistake, they end up regretting most of their past. I believe in accepting that the past. The decisions I’ve made have led us up to this point and that I’m happy with who I am, so I don’t have any regrets about how I got here. I’ve made a lot of dumb decisions, but because I am able to look at them from a wiser point of view I am able to avoid repeating them.
Everyone on earth makes mistakes and I firmly believe that there is absolutely no sense on fretting long over them. Remembering that other people mess up too, helps me to feel better and get back on my feet. Also when I began to be more patient with others errors I became more comfortable learning from my own.

Welcome to our Blog!

Hello! I never thought that I would find myself on the writing end of a blog, but here I am! We are, actually. I created this blog spot for both Rhen and I to write about all the things going on in our lives and so that we can keep in touch with all of our friends and family.  I have never really written a blog (or consistently in a journal for that matter) so please forgive me if it is not entertaining or particularly insightful, it's a work in progress I guess!
Moving to Colorado has been an experience for sure and there have been a lot of ups and downs, but I think the hardest thing for me has been leaving behind family and friends. So I decided that since I'm such a slacker Facebook Friend (especially due to some recent events...) I would start a little blog to keep you updated this way instead.
So here's what's going on:
Melanie- I've mostly been working and moping around. I have felt particularly mopey this past month, but I suppose that's just January in general. In a series of events Rhen and I made the decision to adopt a puppy. We had her for one day and I got attached right away. I loved that little puppy, she was such a sweet heart. Anyway one thing lead to another and Rhen and I were made to give her back. This pretty much tore my heart out, I think I had attached to her so much because she was (besides my husband) the only thing I could really call my own here in Colorado. I've just been so lonely recently and it's really difficult for me as Rhen gets to be surrounded by his whole family while I am 20+ hours away from mine. Of course I love the Parmenters, they are my family, but it is really different when you are so far away from everything familiar to you. In an effort to forgive and forget Rhen and I decided we needed to get away for the weekend. This last weekend we drove over to Denver to have some alone time and it was wonderful! We were able to visit the Denver Museum of Science and Nature on Friday, the Denver Art Museum on Saturday (which is HUGE) and the Denver Aquarium on Saturday, and the Denver Zoo on Sunday. It was so much fun and it really helped me to calm down and move on with my life. I miss all my friends at FCWC and I seriously think about them every day! I hope all is well. I really miss my sister most of all though, it's hard being so far away when we have been so close our whole lives. I saw this quote that summarized it perfectly, it said "Sister is probably the most competitive relationship within the family, but once the sisters are grown, it becomes the strongest relationship." Last of all, I've decided to start taking some free online courses just to keep my brain growing before I go back to school, I'm very excited to do this because I feel like it will help me feel more fulfilled and thus less mopey and pitiful. Sorry that that was depressing, now you see why I don't post on facebook all the time.

Well I thought I would leave space for Rhen to write, but he doesn't want to so I guess you only get to here from me today! Please enjoy these pictures from our trip!

 There was a lot of awesome looking architecture in this part of the city!

 This building is the smaller annex portion of the Art Museum taken from the view of the 7th floor of the main Art Museum building!

 Pretty Jelly Fish

 Rhen survived!

 He was showing off for me

Just chillin'