Sesame Street (by Bob)

HELP! Did anyone else see the news article about how the first few seasons of Sesame Street have been released on DVD, but there is a warning on the box that says, "These early ‘Sesame Street’ episodes are intended for grown-ups, and may not suit the needs of today’s preschool child.” Sesame Street is an adult program? Yup! Check out the full New York Times article and try not to be too depressed about your childhood. Here's the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/18/magazine/18wwln-medium-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Ode to Mrs. Terry

So it has been my last couple days at the elementary school and I saw some of the kids for the last time the other day. They brought really cute cards telling me how much they would miss me and how great I was. What a confidence booster! One of the cards was especially memorable. It was a poem from a little 3rd grade girl named Judith. This is how it went:

Lovely teacher, lovely teacher,
eyes of periwinkle blue.
You are such a pretty creature,
and I'm so in love with you.

Isn't that so precious! I am really going to miss the elementary school. It turns out that there are no elementary gigs open in January so I don't think I can teach next semester. I have been looking for other jobs (our plan was to both work so we can save up money) at Gap and other stores, but I am kind-of bummed that I have worked so hard to get a degree that I can't find a job with. I know its just because its in the middle of the year, but I was really hoping to find something in the Spring. I just hope I can find a job that will give me health insurance.
So, most of you know that I love shopping on Black Friday and this year was just as good as the others. For my graduation gift, Bob bought me a guitar, and we found it for about $65. That is a great deal for those of you that don't know. It is a Washburn acoustic guitar and I love it. We were at the stores at 4 in the morning and went straight until lunch time. We had a list of all the places we wanted to go and when they opened so we were very organized. We also got new phones. They are Blackberry Pearls with internet service and they are so cool. The best part was that they were running a deal so we got both phones free, $100 gift certificate to Sams, $100 credit on our phone bill, and two free airline tickets. We are actually saving money having these phones because since they have internet, we canceled our dial-up and our home phone.
Wish me luck on graduation this Saturday. I am singing a solo during the ceremony and I am really excited. I can't believe I am actually done! I have been in school for my entire life and I really think I am going to miss it. Call me a nerd but I really like school.

I Wanna Talk About Me: Letter to a Friend

Over the past several months I have been able to get back into contact with several people that I haven't spoken to in years. It's interesting to see where people are and what they're doing since we got out of High School (I graduated in 2000). And it's crazy to see what these friends are doing and how they've changed. Basically, the internet is amazing. Unfortunately, every time I come into contact with one of these people I have to repeat the history of what I've done for the past 7 years. This post is meant to tell all of my buddies what's been going on since I saw them last so that I don't have to repeat myself another 20 times (I know I don't really have that many friends and that I will, in fact, still repeat myself). One of my friends from Korea looked at the BBBBlog and didn't see a picture of me on it so I've included that. It's basically the only picture I have of myself besides the baby photo I carry around in my wallet. Some of you might think the format of the rest of the post is cheesy, but it's just the poet in me wanting to be a little creative. Oh, and just in case you didn't know the title of this post is actually two song titles: one by Toby Keith and the other by Warrant.

Dear Friend,
I can't believe it's been over 7 years since we graduated from High School! The times were great, weren't they? Sorry I haven't been as good at keeping in touch with you as I should have. I promise I'll be better.
Remember when we used to drive around in the middle-of-nowhere Arkansas, roll down the windows in Papa Smurf and jam out. I guess I should let you know that my musical tastes have changed a bit. I still love to crank up the rock music, but I have abandoned my hatred of Country music. The main reason for this is that Country music hasn't lost its sense of humor. We used to make fun of the redneck lifestyle in Arkansas and I love Country because they can laugh at themselves (and everyone else). I still can't stand some of the really twangy Country, though. Check out the song Hillbillies by Hot Apple Pie to see what I'm talking about with the humor. (WARNING: This song may not be appropriate for young children.)
I guess the last time I saw you was just before I left for Okinawa. I had so much fun there even though I was only there for about 6 months. I basically just worked and played. Exploring the island of Okinawa was amazing!
After Japan I left to go on my mission to Korea. This mission was a wonderful and life-changing experience. I was there for about 2 years. I learned the language, I learned to love the food, and I learned how amazing Korean people are. Every time I think about my service to the Korean people I think of their generosity and their love. Koreans have a word that is sort of like friendship and love, but it's more than that. They call it jung. We don't really have a word for it in English, but I know you've felt it. I get that feeling when I think about the close friendships I gained in Korea (and Arkansas).
While I was in Korea my family moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico of all places. I didn't really have anywhere else to go so I went there for a while. That was in the Spring of 2003. That Summer I moved up to BYU mostly to get some Korean language credits and because it felt like the place I needed to be. I know we used to make fun of (and sometimes I still do) Mormons feeling like they have to go to B.Y. Zoo, but that's where I needed to be at the time. Rather than head back to New Mexico I decided to stay in Provo and try to find a job. Jobs for college kids in the area are hard to find. After a lot of pondering I knew I needed to move back to New Mexico. I did this in mid October.
School was still my top priority once I got back to New Mexico. I started school at a local community college in January of 2004. I am now attending UNM and will graduate with a degree in Finance in May 2008.
In December 2003 I started dating Emily Jewell. Neither of us was really looking for a serious relationship, but a serious relationship sort of sneaked up on us. We did a lot of pondering and praying and we decided that we were meant for each other. (I know it sounds a bit cliche). We were officially engaged in late April and were married on July 24, 2004. I can't believe we've been married for over 3 years now. I know you're wondering, but we don't have any kids yet.
I bet you're also wondering what sort of woman would be "meant for" me. Well, there are tons of reasons, but I would say that the top 3 things that attracted me to her were 1. Her desire for education, 2. Her spunk, and 3. Her modesty.
Education: You know how my family is with education. In our minds there is no way to be too educated. Well, Emily's desire for and love of education fits right in with that view. She graduates next week with a Bachelor's in Music Education. She told me the other day that she is tempted to just keep getting certified with different teaching certificates and keep getting educated. Rock on!
The spunk: One of our friends once referred to Emily as "hard-headed." I call it spunk. You could also say she's very passionate. I love her spunk!
So, my 3rd reason might sound a little weird, but one of the main reasons I love Emily and that I was attracted to her was her modesty (in dress). Call me a Mormon (I won't be offended), but even among the LDS population there are a few girls who still dress like hoochies. I guess it was all those lessons at Church that really made a difference and in my mind "Modest is Hottest!" That describes Emily.
Currently I'm looking for a job and am just excited about being done with school in spite of the fact that I'm looking at going right into my Master's Degree. I'll keep you updated. Please write me back and tell me what's been going on with you.

Bob

catching up

So Bob has been a blogging maniac latley and made me feel like quite the slacker. In my defense though I was halfway through an update a couple weeks ago and the computer was having major problems with our pictures downloading so I just gave up. Here goes try number 2.

Halloween this year was pretty boring for us. No trick or treaters (since we live in apartments) and since we had school the next day and homework to complete we just stayed home. However, we didn't ignore the holiday altogether. A couple days before Halloween we carved a pumpkin. It was a very intimidating picture that we chose to do but I think it turned out pretty well.

This is us really consentrating on the task. We both couldn't fit around the pumpkin without bumping elbows so we took turns. Usually we love bumping elbows but we figured that would be a bad idea with knives in our hands and a very important pumpkin to carve. That would be bad to mess up! After all we only have one pumpkin but we have 10 fingers. For those of you how can't tell what this is (you should go get your eyes checked) it is a scary house surrounded by a scary forest. I have found that if you squint your eyes it really looks cool.

Today is Thanksgiving and it is the start of my favorite time of year. My birthday is on Saturday and I have lots of fun things in store for this weekend, including eating way too much. Mom just cooked an amazing dinner and I am breathing heavily even though we ate a couple hours ago...I think it might be time for dessert!

My sister Heather was caring enough to pass along a blog tag that her friend Bella passed to her. This means that I have to list six things about myself. I hope some of you find this entertaining. I tried to think of things you might not know about me.

1.) I have been absolutely obsessed with Salt & Vinegar chips latley. For those of you who have never tried them you really should. I have always had a love for salt. I find myself buying fries just so I can drowned them in salt and lick the container. These chips really are great for my salt cravings. However, I can not get enough of them. I found myself trying to chew without using my tongue because it was raw from them. And no, I am not pregnant, this is just the way I am. I am actually nervous that my cravings could get worse when we do get pregnant. Maybe they will just go away.
2.) I have just learned more Turkey songs in a week than I have learned my entire life. For those of you that didn't know, I am doing my student teaching right now at the elementary school and naturally the week was full of Turkey songs and games. In fact, Bob told me that I was singing one in my sleep the other day. At least I usually kept the Turkey noises to myself.
3.) Another major addiction I have is my Moms cranberry sauce. I wait all year to eat it and I cover everything on my plate with it. Mashed potatoes have never been so pink. This year I decided to help my mom make it so I would be able to watch and learn. It was a really easy recipe and I found out that the first Thanksgiving she had it was the year I was born. She just got back from the hospital after having me and a family invited them to come over for Thanksgiving dinner. This was the first time she ate it and asked for the recipe right away. It was fate that this delicious jelly came into my family's lives just days after I did. Call me if you eat the canned stuff and I will show you what your Turkey is missing.
4.) I am a Black Friday addict. Black Friday (for those of you in the dark) is the day after Thanksgiving that all the stores put on sales and open their doors at 4 in the morning. The crowds are insane but the sales are amazing. I love the challenge and Bob and I plan out exactly when and where we are going in the morning. All of the Christmas shopping gets done and I get the smug satisfaction of knowing that I got your gift at half off or more.
5.) Bob calls me his cat. My mom has called me that for a while but he started it without even being prompted by her. I love the sunshine. My favorite thing is to curl up in the sun and take a nap. Even if the sun shinning on the living room floor I will just bring a pillow and blanket down there and curl up. He also says I stretch like a cat. I arch my back in the morning when I wake up and usually push him off the bed in the process.
6.) My nickname in my Ward is the "baby-snatcher".We are in a very young ward (well, actually one of those newly-wed, nearly-dead Wards) and there are always new babies around. I pick out my favorites and then proceed to make friends with their parents. I always keep Cheerios in my bag to lure them closer and then bribe them to be my friend with all the stuffed animals and toys that I bring for "singing time." I also ask people if they would let me watch their kids. They think I am joking at first but after me offering a couple dozen times they finally take the hint. Last night we had a little boy named Malachi spend the night and he was so cute. He is super smiley and talkative and we had lots of good cuddles when he got up this morning.
Ok. I finally did my duty and finished Heather's tag. Now here comes the fun part. I get to pick 6 people to do the same. However, I don't know 6 people with blogs that haven't already been tagged so Mutti, Mike, and Nancy, you are it. Give me a call if you have any questions.

Oreo Addendum

By Bob



I thought I'd write a bit more about Oreos since I am an expert on the subject and due to the fact that there is some new information out about the most loved cookie on earth. The following is from a website that proclaims itself "America's Finest News Source." Yes, I am referring to TheOnion.com. Here's the news flash:

A new report released by the Food and Drug Administration Monday suggests that regular consumption of Oreo's Double Stuf cookies could lead to an increased tolerance to stuf.
"For 90 percent of Americans, it now takes twice as much stuf to reach the same level of satisfaction once achieved with a single layer of stuf," the report read in part. "Millions of consumers have taken drastic measures to recreate their initial stuf experience, including the manual construction of quadruple-stuf Oreos and chronic stuf-licking. Some have even gone so far as to twist off one side of the cookie, scrape the stuf off with their teeth, and discard the two chocolate wafers."

Can anyone else relate? Oreo addicts: Please post comments. After all, BibbidiBobilyBoo is your Oreo support group headquarters.

Random Walk: A Book Review

By Bob

For one of my classes I have been reading a book called A Random Walk Down Wall Street written by Burton G. Malkiel. Some would probably consider Random Walk a boring book about investments, but this finance nerd considers it quite interesting and even stimulating. The main theme of the book is that "Investors would be far better off buying and holding an index fund than attempting to buy and sell individual securities or actively managed mutual funds." Here are a few other quotes from the book that make it interesting:
"Financial analysts in pin-striped suits do not like being compared to bare-[bottomed] apes." (I had to censor this one)
"If you sit down at the table and can't figure out who the sucker is, get up and leave because it's you." --p.237
"Never buy anything from someone who is out of breath." --p243
"If the S&P index were an athlete, we would probably be testing it for steroids." --p. 270
"More than two-thirds of professional portfolio managers have been outperformed by the unmanaged S&P 500 Index." --p17
Hmmm...maybe it wasn't that interesting.
Did anyone else hear that the Disney film Bambi made it onto Time Magazine's Top 25 Horror Movies of All Time? I always thought it was pretty scary, but I thought I was the only one.
I had a job interview on Wednesday that I bombed. It wasn't a huge atomic-sized bomb or anything, but it was like a pipe bomb. What happened was that I was expecting a few non-technical questions before the technical ones, but the first question I was asked was "What is a balance sheet?"As I said I wasn't really expecting a technical question right off the bat and I goofed my answer. I know what a BS is, but I just wasn't confident enough with my response. I will have other chances that will go more smoothly and I'll update you all when those happen.

School, Squeegees, and Sandwiches

by Bob

Well, it's time to update everyone on what's been happening here at the Bobily household for the last few weeks.
School has been going well. Just a few weeks ago I started a new class. It is a half-semester course and it has been wonderful! It's called Career Management Skills and we have gone over resume basics, how to write a cover letter, interview preparations, and this week we will be having a panel discussion with several different hiring managers from different firms where we will discuss the various aspects of interviewing. We will be able to hear directly from these hiring managers what they're looking for when interviewing candidates. What's been really cool about this class is the fact that what I'm learning applies directly to things I am currently doing. This semester I'm polishing my resume, applying for jobs, and I'll be having several job interviews over the next few weeks. Don't get too excited, though...I may have to go through a few job interviews before I find the job I'm looking for.
I'm sure you're wondering why the word "squeegee" is in the title of this entry. Let me explain. This time of year as we approach Christmas I have to endure the ever dreaded question, "What do you want for Christmas?" For those of you who don't know, I do NOT like people buying things for me. Am I weird? I feel that people should just spend the money on something for themselves. This is probably the reason I'm so hard to shop for. But I have accepted the fact that there are some people out there who will, no matter what I say, buy a gift for me. Please don't think I'm being ungrateful. I do appreciate it when people go
against my wishes and spend money on me, but if you're going to...just buy me something I am already going to buy like deodorant, socks, toothpaste or a squeegee. A squeegee, you ask? Yes, I have a huge obsession with clean windows. It drives me crazy when there is dirty glass of any kind. I know I'll be in trouble when we have kids. From what I understand kids come with sticky fingers that are the worst enemy of nice streak-free glass. It's almost therapy for me to not just clean windows, but to check every inch of the glass multiple times until there are no streaks, spots, or finger prints. Yes, I know how weird this sounds. In fact, if I could spend a good 20-30 minutes cleaning my windows with the squeegees at the gas station, I would; I have tried this and about 3 minutes after my gas is done pumping I start to get honks from the people waiting to pump their gas. After another 2 minutes or so the obscenities begin. This is when window washing stops being therapeutic. I just stick my tongue out at these rude people and drive away to a more peaceful place with my windex and newspaper. (Newspaper gives you a streak-free shine when cleaning glass) So, I'm ready when people ask, "Bob, what do you want for Christmas?" Here's my answer: I WANT A SQUEEGEE!!!
I mentioned in my last update that we are trying to eat more healthily. Things are going alright, I guess. We have been buying fresh sliced turkey at the deli counter at the supermarket and making sandwiches. I add lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, mustard, mayo (just a little), and my favorite ingredient...jalapeños. Yum!
Mutti will tell you that I used to hate sandwiches that did not include peanut butter. Sandwiches with fresh meat were always "slimy." Honestly, they still are a bit slimy to me, but the redeeming quality of the sandwiches I now enjoy is the jalapeños. I also enjoy these spicy treats on pizza and hamburgers. They are so good! Now,, I have not been perfect with my eating habits. Last Friday I had a will-power breakdown and ate 10 whole Oreo cookies. Double Stuf!!! And just in case anyone is counting--this equals 700 calories. Oh, and Double Stuf Oreos have 17 more calories per cookie than regular Oreos. This reminds me, I need to go find some cookies!

Balloons!!!

By Bob


Well, the biggest thing going on here in New Mexico this week has been the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta that was held here in Albuquerque (where else?) from October 6-14th. What does this mean, you ask? Well, lots (750-ish to be more precise) of balloons taking off from Balloon Fiesta Park each morning and landing in various places around the Albuquerque area. There are also different events at night with live bands, fireworks, balloon glows and food (yum!). Balloon Glows feature the balloons on the ground at the Park at night lighting up at the same time or in some sort of pattern...it is actually really cool. There are usually around 100,000 people on the launch field every morning during the "mass ascension" watching the balloons take off and tons of others throughout Albuquerque watching as well. There are numerous special shapes balloons that can take just about any form. We didn't actually go to any official events this year, but as Albuquerque residents we did get to see a lot of weird objects floating overhead. Objects like...





bees,





Mr. Potato Head and Humpty Dumpty,

Pepsi cans (Mmmm!!!),

cows,

Darth Vader,

and yes...even Jesus!

We also get to see these objects and people landing in random parking lots throughout the city. Duke City Residents ("Duke City" is a nickname for Albuquerque and it's a lot easier to spell) have grown accustomed to balloons overhead during the first few weeks of October. This year Monty (our family dog) did not get to experience Balloon Fiesta. He is now semi-retired in Fairbanks, Alaska. For him Balloon Fiesta used to mean a week of hiding either under the bed or in the closet. I bet things are definitely less stressful in the frigid north. Brrrrr!!!
That reminds me, the weather in Albuquerque has been fantastic. Autumn in New Mexico is the best! Today's weather forecast:Plenty of sunshine. High 69F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.
On a more solemn note...I guess Emily has decided that I'm looking a little too much like I did when I was a baby when I earned the nickname "Round Robbie." (Don't tell her I told you this, but I think she thinks I'm getting fat). All of a sudden I can't find Whole milk in the fridge--2% is the highest concentration of fat I'm able to find. I love my milk!!! (Hmmmm...how much fat do you think is in bacon grease?) And now there is yucky wheat bread in the kitchen instead of yummy crust-free not-so-healthy white bread. Actually...the truth is that Emily and I are both turning over a new leaf and trying to eat a bit more healthily. We'll keep you updated on how that goes.
On a final note: Check out some new features of the Bibbidi Bobily Boo Blog. There are now links to some of our favorite blogs and maybe in the future to some other websites. We are going to be adding a Quote Board (in honor of the good old days on Hood Rd. when Rachel would hang up random quotes from different members of the family taken way out of context). We might even add some of our favorite quotes from other sources. I also plan on researching some other cool features to add to our blog. Stay tuned!!!

Well, my time at the high school is done. They had an incredible concert on Thursday and I was so proud of them. On Friday we had tons of fun. We talked a lot about the concert and I took a lot of pictures. The treble choir girls threw a goodbye party for me with lots of food and cards that had lots of sweet thoughts on them. I am really going to miss those kids. From now on I will go to the elementary school every day. The little ones are so cute but I really made friends with the older kids.
My mixed choir. I got to work with this choir the most. They kind-of became my project. These are kids with basic to no singing ability that have never really sung in choir before. They are a wonderful bunch of kids.

This is me and my mentor teacher Shelly Andes.

My treble choir girls. I really developed a close bond with these girls. They are the ones that threw me a party.

This is the cake they made me.

This is the Concert Choir. Most of them weren't there on Friday because it was senior ditch day. This is the most advanced choir and they are absolutely amazing to stand in front of and direct.

Everything else in life is going great. Bob and I are talking a lot about going and teaching English in Korea. It won't be until he graduates in May but we are really excited about the possibility. My candle business is going great. It is starting to get busy because of the holidays, but that is how I like it. I don't have have too many private students right now which is kind of nice in a way. Primary music is going well. The program is coming up so learning has almost stopped due to practicing the program. Not a lot of fun for me because I don't get to teach any new songs. Hope everyone is doing well!

Flower Power!

Alright! You're probably wondering what's going on with the "Bob-" portion of Bobily since Emily already updated you on the "-ily" part in her last update. Well, I don't think what's going on with me is quite as interesting, but...
As far as school in concerned, I have until May before I'm finished with my Bachelor's Degree: A BBA in Financial Management. I'm excited, but right now it's still far enough away to where I'm not that excited. As far as specific classes I'm taking (this is probably the boring part)...I am taking an Institute class about scripture study. I don't know the official title, but it's with Brother Schaap, the Institute Director. He's great! As far as secular studies, my first of those classes is a Cultures of the World Class. We discuss various aspects of numerous cultures, but we are studying a handful of them more in depth. The first of these is the MaButi (Pigmy) tribe that resides in the African Congo. We are reading a book called The Forest People written by an anthropologist that spent several years among the MaButi. It's pretty interesting.
The rest of my classes are all superbly interesting (ignore the sarcasm) Business classes. One is pretty much the basics of investments. The instructor in that class teaches with absolutely no class participation which is quite different from most other classes I've ever had and considering the time of day it meets (2-3:15pm) often struggle to stay awake while the instructor's back is to the class while he's writing on the blackboard.
Another class I'm taking is called "Derivatives: Futures and Options." If you don't know that that means, please don't ask unless you want long explanation from a nerdy finance geek (that's me). The class would be interesting other than the fact that the instructor is from Taiwan and has a very thick accent and even with my experience with the people from that part of the world it is still quite difficult to understand this teacher.
My final business class is basically about different technology that is used in the business world. We have talked about different software and hardware as well as other forms of technology encountered by us today. This would probably be a boring class except for the fact that the instructor is very entertaining. She definitely makes this early evening class bearable even after a long day of classes.
As the semester progresses I will keep you updated if any interesting things happen in my various classes (that is a big "if," though).
Another school-related event I took place in this week was the UNM Business School (Anderson School of Management) Career Fair. With me graduating in less than 8 months my official job search is under way. I am actually looking to get out of my current work situation soon so that I can start work in a field more closely related to my finance degree than spraying for bugs. The Career Fair was something I've never experienced before. There were supposedly over 80 organizations there, but I think it was less than that. Each of these organizations had a booth set up with recruiters ready to take resumes, ask and answer questions, etc. There were organizations ranging from Wal*Mart to the FBI, from Gap to Goldman, Sachs and from Wells Fargo Financial to Sherman Williams. It was a good opportunity to get my resume out there, for me to gain experience bragging to people about my skills and abilities. That is something that doesn't come naturally to me. Also, Jake helped a ton with the revision of my resume. Thanks, Jake! We'll see if a "real" job comes from this event.
As far as my current work situation, I'm still working at Preventive Pest Control spraying bugs, catching mice, and driving around this sweet truck! I've been with Preventive for almost 3 and a half years. It's been the best job to get me though college, but it's about time to move on. Hopefully other work comes my way soon.
In other exciting news from the Bobily household, we finally finished Harry Potter! I know that we are probably not true fans since we didn't finish it in the first weekend of its release, but we have finished and therefore can be included in conversations with true fans of Harry. Right?
Emily is doing well juggling her many activities. She got to conduct a few pieces last night at a banquet put on the choir program at Sandia High. She did wonderfully! Emily's therapy is definitely her flower garden. She has landscaped a ton in the flower beds near our apartment. Before she came along there were no flowers, a few weeds, a ton of rocks, some bark and a fair share of cigarette butts in the flower beds. Now there are a ton of beautiful flowers and plants.

student teaching

Hi Family! Sorry that it has taken me so long to write an update. School has been crazy busy but really fun. As most of you know I graduate in December and I am doing my student teaching right now to finish up my last semester. I am at two different schools. Since I am majoring in music ed I will be certified k-12 so I am student teaching at a high school and an elementary school. My high school is Sandia High School and it is less then 5 minutes from our apartment which is great. The choir program there is amazing and about 150 kids participate in 5 different choirs, most of them participating in 2. My mentor teacher (Shelly Andes) is great and giving me lots of teaching opportunities. I am pretty much in charge of the mixed choir made up of mostly first time singers. They are really a sweet bunch of kids. My mentor has also agreed to use my candle company for a fund raiser. Over fifty kids have signed up to sell and I told them that they can take all the profit because this is going to be great advertising for me. Plus I really wanted to help the choir/school out. I am at the high schools Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. They don't have choir on Thursdays so I head over to the elementary school. They schedule will last until about October when I will be at the high school only in the early morning for the mixed choir then over at the elementary school for the rest of the day 5 days a week.
My elementary school is Manzano Mesa Elementary. It is about 10-15 minutes from my house. Carla Haynes is my Mentor and she is amazing. She has more energy then any one I know and the kids adore her. I have been doing mostly observing since I am only there once a week but I so get to play the games and dance with them. They are so cute and I am absolutely in love with them. The more I am there the more open I am to the idea of teaching elementary music. I also thought I wanted to do middle school kids but now I am not so sure.
I'm still teaching privately on Saturdays and selling Candles whenever I can find time and life is great. I can't wait to be done with school. It was so much work but I am very glad that I finished. Hopefully Bob can get on soon and fill you in on his semester. I really don't know enough to write anything. Take care and we hope to hear from everyone soon.
Emily

The Big 3

Well, Bobily has officially jumped on the bandwagon and started blogging. We thought that our anniversary would be a fitting time to do so especially since we had such an awesome Pioneer Day weekend. Even though I (Bob-) only have a few days off of work during the Summer, I was able to take three days off for our Three-year Anniversary. Yep, it's been three already. On Saturday we started out the day with some grocery shopping for Sunday dinner. Then we went to Olive Garden for a delicious lunch before going to see the latest Harry Potter film. After the film, Emily went to a friend's baby shower while I shopped for a gift for my sweet bride. When the shower was done we headed over to a performance of "My Fair Lady" that was put on by the theatre that Emily worked with last Summer when she was Cinderella in "Into the Woods." On Sunday we slept in and skipped church because we were "out of town." At least that's what we told people. We just stayed at home and had a relaxing day before going over to the Blacks (Emily's sister and brother-in-law) for family dinner with the Jewells. Emily prepared some amazing fruit and vegetable trays for dinner. Monday was a busy day. We got up early and were out of Albuquerque by 6am to head up to Taos for our Saddle/Paddle Adventure. When we arrived at the stables we discovered that our guide had somehow forgotten that we had booked a ride for that morning. She was able to squeeze us in and we had an enjoyable ride up into the mountains above the canyon. It was a little bit warm, but we enjoyed it. Emily's horse was named Patches and mine was Santos.
After finishing the horseback riding we were served lunch which included sandwiches with all the trimmings, cherries, pickles, and Oreos for dessert.
Once lunch was over we rushed across the street for our rafting trip. Sorry we don't have any pictures of that--we don't have a waterproof camera. It was an exciting 4 mile trip with plenty of rapids; there were also a few stretches of calm water where we were able to get out and swim. After the rafting we were able to drive back to Albuquerque before it got too late.
Tuesday we got up and bought a combo pass to the Albuquerque Zoo, Aquarium, and Botanical Gardens where we spent the whole day holding hands as we looked at the various forms of animal and plant life there. The highlight of our day came as we were heading out of the Zoo--a Giraffe was sticking its head over its fence to eat some leaves off of a tree that was just on the other side of the fence. Feeding the animals in the Zoo is frowned upon, but it was going to eat it anyway, right? It was so cool being that close to an animal that big.