January & February WINTER highlights!

Jacob's FAVORITE thing to play with / his comfort item = my hair.

Visiting Dad at work - it's so fun that he works on the Pillsbury Biscuits desk!

Frosty!

We got A LOT of snow this winter.

Blocks became a great inside toy.  It's also fun to through them around and make a big, loud, mess.

Icicles on our house!

Valentine's Day sugar cookies.  Yum!

Ben's 28th Discount Birthday

Ben turned 28!  Woot woot!  This year's birthday theme was "free" and/or "discount."  Ben did his research and found out what you can get for free on your birthday . . 

We started the day at Denny's where you can get a free Grand Slam on your birthday - all you have to do is show them your ID.  Since I was along for the ride on all of these adventures, I needed something too.  So, we added extra scrambled eggs to the free Grand Slam for $1.29, I got the bacon from Ben's meal, and with tax and tip we paid a total of $3.00.

Our next stop was IHOP, where you can get a free short stack on your birthday (I think you have to sign up for their birthday club by email for this one).  But, it happened to be National Pancake Day, as well as Ben's birthday, so with a donation of any amount to the Children's Miracle Network it was free short stacks all around!  Baby appreciated that.  ;)  We made a donation of $5.00 so that was our grand total there.

After breakfast(s), I came home for a nap and Ben took off on a three-hour 50-mile bike ride.  So that was free, obviously.

Then I met Ben at Jamba Juice in Manhattan Beach where he had just picked up his free birthday 16 oz. Jamba!  (Sign up via email for that one.)  We hung out at the beach for a while (parking: $3.75) but it was honestly just a little too chilly for me!  So we headed to a triathlon shop that Ben has been wanting to check out for a while and meandered around there for a while.

Then, Cafe Rio!  This was Ben's choice for dinner no matter the price, but can you believe it - it was $5.00 Tuesday!  Haha!  All of their entrees were $5, plus $1 for an enchilada style burrito, so our total there was $11.99.  Cracked us up.

After dinner we headed home, and stopped at Baskin Robbins for Ben's free birthday scoop (sign up via email).  It was dollar night there, so my ice cream was cheap, but I paid with a gift card so our grand total was $0.00!  Such a funny day.

With other coupons that are good for more than just your actual birthday, Ben still has a free sandwich and drink from Jersey Mike's, a free burger from Red Robin, and a BOGO from Coldstone (that's the one I'm most excited about)!  He cracks me up!

Then we opened presents.  I bought Ben a new waffle iron . . with a gift card - haha!

~*~*~*~

In other news, Ben has been working SO hard at school and at networking/recruiting these first two quarters and has secured himself an awesome internship for the summer!  I am so proud of him.

As soon as he finishes third quarter finals in June, we are off to Minneapolis, Minnesota for a marketing internship with General Mills!

Converted Unto the Lord in 2013

The year 2013 was a big year for us.  It certainly wasn't my favorite year and I am looking forward to 2014.  Shall we reminisce for a moment?

Right before Thanksgiving I received the following email from a sister in our ward:

Hi Karin,

It’s your lucky day! 

As part of my calling as ward photographer, I also put together a quarterly newsletter. The newsletter usually includes a little piece written by someone in the ward reflecting on one of the year’s themes. For our end of the year newsletter, the bishop has asked that YOU write up a short piece around the overall theme of the year (“Converted Unto the Lord”). This is a short piece - you can determine how long you’d like it to be and it’s pretty much a “free choice” topic (really, I find that most things can fall under “conversion” — anything that helps strengthen faith also develops a stronger “conversion”). 

Is this something you’d be willing to do? There’s no rush. As long as I have it within the next two weeks or so…(by December 5?). 

Thank you,

Her Name

This is what I wrote and it was in the ward's newsletter which was passed out last Sunday:

Converted Unto the Lord

At the beginning of 2013, I made a New Year’s Resolution to read the scriptures every day.  Of course I have missed days here and there, but overall I have been able to invite the Holy Spirit into my life each day.  This habit, along with daily personal prayer and trying to write in my journal frequently, has helped me to draw close to my Father in Heaven.

This year brought significant trials and heartache.  As I have relied on the Lord and on my testimony, I have come to learn of the strength a solid foundation in the gospel can be.

Elder David A. Bednar said, “Knowing that the gospel is true is the essence of testimony.  Consistently being true to the gospel is the essence of conversion.”

The choice to have faith can be a hard choice, and I have often felt that my faith is insufficient.  But, as I have prayed and echoed the words “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief,” Heavenly Father has blessed me with faith and strength beyond my own (Mark 9:24).

To exercise faith, I make choices each day that bring me closer to the Lord and demonstrate my obedience to Him.  I study the scriptures, I hold Family Home Evening with my husband, I attend my Church meetings, and I serve in my Church callings.  Even when it feels as though my prayers are going unheard and unanswered, I continue to pray in faith.  I have been taught, and at some point have felt, that Heavenly Father is listening and that He answers prayers.  I choose to have a happy heart and to remember that the Lord’s hand is in the details of my life.

Through all of these things, I have felt Heavenly Father bless me and I have felt the Atonement be an active power in my life.  The Atonement works because Jesus Christ suffered not only for my sins, but also for every pain and heartache I would feel.  Because of this, my Savior knows exactly how to succor me and lift me up. 

I know that we are here on earth to prove ourselves worthy to return to live with Heavenly Father.  Part of proving ourselves means that we will be challenged.  As we keep the gospel in the forefront of our lives at all times, it becomes the foundation of our lives and gives us strength and power.

Consistently being true to the gospel – through happy times and through hard times – I am converted unto the Lord.

It was a very sweet experience putting into words the things that I have felt this year, and while I am excited to move forward in 2014, I am so grateful for how I have grown.

A brief look back at the year:

January 2013 - 

Karin bought an iPad mini!  It's been an awesome purchase.

Karin (finally) diagnosed with PCOS after 9 months of trying to conceive.

We moved from our first apartment in Walnut Creek to our current apartment that we totally adore.  (Some of you sent Christmas cards to our old address - ask me to get our new one.  I don't want to put it on the internet.)

Ben baptized one of our friends!

February 2013 - 

Karin had surgery to remove some large cysts.

Ben traveled to New York City for work training and got to explore lots of exciting restaurants while in the city.

March 2013 - 

Ben turned 26!  And we had a blast throwing a party to celebrate with our ward friends!

April 2013 - 

I can't think of anything besides just working . . Ben for Ernst & Young and Karin at Chateau at Poet's Corner.

May 2013 - 

We vacationed with Ben's family in Destin, Florida!

We hiked Land's End in foggy, foggy San Francisco after breakfasting at our favorite Dottie's True Blue Cafe.

June 2013 - 

We vacationed in Seattle and the San Juan Islands in Washington with Karin's family!

We celebrated our THREE YEAR wedding anniversary by dining at the restaurant where we had our pre-wedding family dinner.

Karin's little sister turned 8 and we went to Merced for her baptism.

July 2013 - 

Ben competed in his first triathlon - a little "Tri For Fun!"

We were put in charge of our ward's Pioneer Day Celebration (and we're glad that's over).

Karin turned 24!

August 2013 - 

We found out that we had conceived after our first round of fertility medications!

Ben accomplished his New Year's Resolution of gaining "Yelp Elite" status!

Ben bought a new road bike!

Ben's parents came out to California to visit us for a whole week around Labor Day!

Karin quit her job on the last day of August!

September 2013 - 

At 7 weeks, we found out that my pregnancy was ectopic and that we had miscarried.  :(

Ben competed in the Pacific Grove Olympic Distance Triathlon and got 12th in his age group!  Karin loved cheering and Mom came over from Merced to help cheer Ben on!

Once back on her feet, Karin spent her job-less time crafting and flower arranging and baking.

We enjoyed our first "Yelp Elite" perk - free tickets to CalShakes!

Karin's parents came up to the Bay Area to take us to the San Francisco Symphony!

Karin took advantage of not working and spent two days babysitting her sibling in Merced.

October 2013 - 

Karin signed up for ballet classes at the local ballet studio - it is nice to have that love back in life.

We visited our friends, the Dorffs, who now live only an hour away!

Karin got a new job!  She now works with seniors and mentally delayed adults at Rehabilitation Services of Northern California.

We spent a weekend in Merced - the girls getting pedicures and the boys cycling.

November 2013 - 

Ben traveled to upstate New York for a week of work training.

Karin spent a whole week in Merced babysitting her siblings. (Unfortunately those were different weeks.)

We spent Thanksgiving week in Utah with Ben's parents and sister's family.

Karin had a Hysterosalpingogram - sounds fun, eh?

December 2013 - 

We accomplished our New Year's Resolution for temple attendance!

Ben ran the Walnut Creek Half Marathon!

We spent Christmas with Karin's family in Merced and at the beach house in Cambria.

super saturday & visit to the dorffs

I started a new job yesterday!  I am doing the same thing - activities with the elderly and those with dementia - but now I am working at Mt. Diablo Center, part of Rehabilitation Services of Northern California.  Instead of a home where people live 24/7, this place is a day-care facility where families or board-and-cares can drop off their loved ones for a day of activities from 9:30 to 3:00.  This means that I won't have to work evenings, weekends, or holidays . . whoooo hooooo!!

But before I started this new job, we had a fabulous weekend!

Ben went on a long bike ride on Saturday while I went to ballet class.  Then I had Super Saturday - a many-hour-long Relief Society event where we craft, eat dinner, and do service projects.  Apparently everybody knows what Super Saturday is, but I'd never heard of it until we moved here.  The theme this year was Super {Slumber} Saturday so I got to craft, etc. in my sweat pants!  Best.  Here are the two cute things I made - 

On the left is a wreath made out of paper flowers made out of old book pages.  Let's be honest - Shelley made most of my flowers because I am not that talented . . but I glued them all to the wire-hanger-turned-wire-circle!

On the right is a Christmas advent calendar made out of/on to a 24-count mini muffin tin!  Each muffin space is covered with a square piece of cardstock, with Christmas patterned scrap-book paper glued on top.  Then we stamped numbers on and added any embellishments we wanted.  To secure the cardstock, we cut sticky magnet strips really small and stuck them on each corner.  To count down to Christmas, I will put candy and/or a Christmas-related task like reading a scripture, watching a Christmas movie, etc. in each square.  I'm excited!  It turned out way cuter than I imagined!

~~~

Some of our very best friends, DJ & Laurel, moved to California to attend Stanford Law and we are so stoked to live nearby again!  We spent all of Sunday after church down in Stanford with them.  What fun!  We enjoyed a lovely lunch, a delightful walk around campus, and some good old catch-up chatting.  Oh, and let's be frank - little Lincoln was terrified of Ben, but he sure loved me!

 We also discussed what personality types we are according to the Myers-Briggs test and how they match up to the Harry Potter characters' personalities charted using the Myers-Briggs test.  If you're trying to figure out what I'm trying to mean, look here and here.  Well, Ben & I hadn't taken the test so we did, and it turns out that I match up with none other than . . . Neville Longbottom!  HA!

they say the funniest things

My peeps, that is. 

For example . . 

The other day we were playing a game where I say the beginning of a popular phrase and the residents, as a group, finish it.  Things like "Practice makes _________" (perfect), or "A friend in need is __________" (a friend indeed).  Lots of good old ones I've never heard before and that I can't think of right now. 

One of them is "Time is _________."  The answers are "the best healer" and "of the essence."  

We have one resident who is tiny, so cute, and from the east, with a thick eastern accent.  She is from a town called "Cutler" but according to her she is from "CUTluh."  She answered "Time is _______" with the word "skass."  I'm thinkin "Skass?  Time is skass? What the heck?!"  I repeated it back to her and she said, "Yeah, time is skass!"  I said "Oohhh, okayy" and moved on.  Then one of the managers came into the room just to listen in and I said "Hey, listen to this - I just learned that 'time is skass' . . ?"  She said it a couple of times and thought about it and then said "Scarce!  Time is scarce!"

That gave us a good laugh.

Yesterday we were talking about travel and I asked the residents to think back to the first time they took an airplane.  I'm not allowed to say "Do you remember?" but I wanted them to think about it.  

I asked one gentleman where he flew the first time he took an airplane trip and he said "TO THE AIRPORT!!"  Oh dear goodness he thought he was so funny!  We all did.  Another good laugh.

They are hilarious.

Christmas Beginnings

Christmas time is here!  And it is so fun to decorate!

We love our little pre-lit four-footer!  At Christmastime last year, we gathered all of Ben's personal Christmas ornaments and when we unwrapped and put them on our tree this year Ben was so happy I thought he might cry!

Also, Ben's sister Kristi made this angel tree-topper and gave it to us last year.  Isn't it so perfect?

Kristi also made us these Christmas stockings and gave them to us when we got married.  They are too cute!

Ben's other sister, Ashley, made us the advent calendar.  Apparently it was a pretty big deal in their house growing up because I have heard so much about it!  The poem reads:

December first to Christmas is the longest time of the year.

Seems as though Old Santa never will appear.

Untie a candy every night when the Sandman casts his spell,

And Christmas will be here by the time you reach the bell.

Ben can recite it by memory.  You should ask him.

I sewed a piece of candy to each date's little circle thing and we get to take one off each night.  Attached to the final date is a bell that we can ring on Christmas day!

I am super impressed by Ashley's cross-stitching; the advent calendar is gorgeous.

I made this pennant banner one night and I am really proud of it!  Just a little ribbon, some cute paper, some hot glue, and a brown colored pencil!

I love our Christmas centerpiece, too!

Okay new topic.

Ben's company had their Christmas party on Saturday!  It was at the Exploratorium in San Francisco - how cool is that?  The dress code was cocktail attire/black tie optional and that proved to be a bit of a struggle.  I borrowed a dress from Mom and two from a friend in the ward, as well as some jewelry and tights.  I decided to actually try things on the night before which wasn't smart because nothing was really working.  Two of the dresses, I couldn't even zip up!  That has never happened to me before.  So it was like 9:30 the night before and I'm swearing off of ice cream (but not really) and wondering what to wear.  We decided we could go out shopping the next morning before I went to work but that was kind of stressful, so we were looking online to get an idea of where we could go and what we would find.  Then we saw that Kohl's is open until midnight, so we got out of our pajamas and back in our jeans and did some late-night shopping!  We had such great luck!  We found an adorable, affordable dress.

The party was fun.  Good food, good live band.  It was just so fun to have a dressy night out with Ben, and of course, I got to meet all of his co-working and they all raved about Ben's work.  No surprise there!

And last but not least, on Sunday we had our traditional Christmas sugar cooking decorating evening.

YUMMY!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving in pictures.  [I'm too sick to write anything clever.]

forever & ever

Yesterday at work we were playing balloon volleyball.  One lady just couldn't figure out the game and she kept asking things like "Well, what's the point?" and "What do I do with the balloon now?"

Then she asked "How long is this gonna go on for, anyways?"

I said "Foreevvvver and eevvvver."

Another resident then said "Aahhmen."

Haha!

What I Do at Work

I am loving work.  I love what I do!

Each week I work two full days and two half days planning and doing activities with "ma peeps."  Ma peeps = my old people/my favorite seniors/the residents. The first activity each day is called "Wake Up With Karin."  For 30-45 minutes in the morning I greet each resident, ask how they are doing, and do some quiet activity to stimulate their minds like looking at pictures of old movie stars, arranging Dominoes in a line to knock down, or batting a balloon back-and-forth.

*Funny - One morning, one of my favorite ladies and I were flipping through some pictures of old-timey actresses.  We came to this picture and she said "Ohhh . . she must have a headache."  Haha!

After we wake up, we exercise.  On Wednesdays we do Tai Chi (sitting down, of course) and on Thursdays we do Totally Chair Yoga.  It's a blast.  Especially the "Wind Relief Pose" when the lady on the DVD says "This is called the Wind Relief Pose so it's okay if you relieve some wind."  Haha!  It gets me every time.  While we exercise, I walk around and strongly encourage all of the residents to join us.  Sometimes they hate me.  Haha.

To finish up the morning with often have outside entertainment come in.  This could be a lady who plays the guitar and sings, a man that sings karaoke-style, or a man that plays the accordion.  All provide a good time. There is one resident that just loves to dance.  Whenever there is any kind of musical entertainment, she can be counted on to be dancing around the front of the room while holding on to her really heavy purse.  It's awesome.

After lunch, any number of activities could be going on.  

One day each week, a lady comes in to do some dancing with the residents sitting on the couches.  

We play BINGO.  

We do "chores" - washing dishes and folding laundry.  It's fake, but its good for residents to feel useful . . so hey, why not.  

We have sing-a-longs which put me way out of my comfort zone because I have to sing really loud . . but I am learning a lot of new songs!  Songs like Let Me Call You Sweetheart, Ballin' the Jack, My Wild Irish Rose, Shine On Harvest Moon . . etc., etc.  It's a good time.

We do arts and crafts.

We have Book Club - I read them stories from Chicken Soup For the Golden Soul and they love it.  Me too, actually - those are good stories.

We have Cooking Club - basically I do a cooking show for them and then whatever we make, we have for our snack later in the day.  After the first one I did, the residents gave me a hearty round of applause!  If that's not good for my ego, I don't know what is.

We do crossword puzzles as a group.

We play table bowling.

I give hand massages with lavender scented lotion.

There are several outside entertainers that come, usually to play the piano.

Basically, we have a great time!

Two funny things that happened this week:

*We were doing a crossword puzzle and the word was "rear."  I gave them the clue by putting my hand on my rear and saying it's a name for this.  After they guessed it, one resident told me that I have a big rear.  Anything but, thank you very much!

*When I got to work this afternoon the Little League World Series was just beginning.  I turned the volume down, put on some music, and left the room.  When I came back one resident was messing with the TV and the rest of the residents were all up in arms.  Apparently, one lady was trying to tell everyone to leave the volume down and everyone else disagreed.  They wanted to watch (and hear) the game!  I told them I would turn the volume back up, but that in 10 minutes I was going to turn the TV off and it was time for BINGO.  Big mistake on my part.  That sent the room into a commotion and one lady called the lady that wanted the volume to remain down a b*&^%!  I could see in about 10 seconds that we were not going to be playing BINGO this afternoon.  So, I popped a whole bunch of popcorn, passed it out, and we all enjoyed the game! 

Soo . . basically, I love what I do.  It wears me out - that is for sure!!  But it makes me happy and (most of the time) I have so much fun!  What a dream.  :)

new things

New things in the Myers household!

Ben and I have new callings!  Ben is now an Assistant Ward Clerk over Finances and I am the new Relief Society Secretary.  We are excited and we love the ward that we are a part of.  After just a few weeks we have already seen our schedules get a little busier!

Also, I have a little change at work.  What I want to be doing is Activities.  When I was hired, they only had room for me to do Activities one day per week, and I've been working in the Dining Room and at the Front Desk other days.  Well, as of tomorrow, I am a full-fledged Activities Assistant and I will do Activities 4 days each week!  Probably a 5th at the Front Desk, but I'm not sure yet.  Anyway, woo hoo!

And here's a picture for good measure.  Giant's game a few weeks ago with the awesome hats they were giving out.

nothing exciting

Nothing really blog-worthy is going on in the Myers household, but I haven't blogged in 11 days (gasp!) so I thought I'd record a few of the things going on around here.

Work for me is going great!  Currently I am working in the dining room for the 3 hour dinner shift 3 days per week.  A 3 hour shift?  Yes, that's my kind of employment.  I'm glad I'm a woman and that my divine calling is to be a stay-at-home mom.  I know when that time comes it will be a lot of work, but it's not "employment" per se.  Then, on Saturdays I work for 4 hours in the afternoon running the activities.  It's a bummer to work on Saturday, but I don't have to get up early, and I get off with plenty of time left for a great evening with Ben.  And, I love doing the activities.  I am on-call for working at the front desk and covering the other activities assistants during the week as well.

Work for Ben is going great!  He is busy-busy-busy!  I'm not the one to explain all that he is doing and he won't want to blog, but I do know that he is getting a lot of really good feedback from his superior co-workers!  Surprised?  Not a bit.  He is doing great.  He's learning a lot and being courageous and getting out of his comfort zone.  As a stat, I think he is working about 50 hours each week with 2 hours of commuting each day.

The duck couple at our apartment complex had babies!!

Earlier this week a lady at work had a stroke during dinner time and the paramedics had to be called.  Three or four men came to take her to the hospital, but one of them was more interested in me than in the resident.  When they were leaving, he put his hand on my back and said into my ear: "Now, you have a wonderful evening."  Ha!  If only he knew I'm happily married!  I was shocked and flustered.

Ben and I have a few things that we do weekly.  Every Wednesday we watch Survivor and we are quite into it.  Excited for the conclusion this Sunday!  We go to Costco once a week for a cheap dinner - love us some pizza and a hot dog!  Then we walk around to try the samples, see what new books are popular, and test out the bikes.  We've recently discovered the magic of dessert at Costco as well . . . last night Ben got a churro to eat right then and an ice cream bar to bring home to the freezer.  I stick with the fro-yo.  We have also been frequenters of Baskin Robbins dollar night every Tuesday, but when we were there this week there was a new sign up and dollar night is no longer dollar night, but dollar-fifty night!  Lame.

reasons #2, #3, #4

2.

A gentleman needs help buttoning the second-to-top bottom on his button-up shirt. I lean in to help him and he says "Ooh, you're almost kissable!"

3.

A lady wants me to give her two candies even though she didn't win the round of BINGO.

Me: "I can't! You didn't win BINGO. Let's keep playing!"

Her: "Poop-head."

4.

I come home and talk to Ben in a really loud voice.

Even though I'm an "activities person," I'm being trained for 3 different jobs/responsibilities in my Company. Today was my first day doing Activities and it was just so great! I love what I do! Hallelujah!

reason #1

Reason #1 why I enjoy working with seniors.

Man: I've never seen you here before.

Me: Yeah, it's only my second day here. I'm new!

Man: Oh. Well, you sure are attractive!

employed at last

Yes . . the rumors are true . . I have a job! And not only that, I have a job that I am going to love!

After applying for 26 + jobs (I've lost count) and submitting just as many resumes . .

After 7 + interviews (I've lost count again) during which I have honed my interview skills . .

I have been hired by a great company called Carlton Senior Living and I will be working at the perfect location for me called Chateau at Poet's Corner! If you so desire, you can read about them here and here.

During my internship in Provo I fell in love with working in the Enhanced Care Unit for those with Alzheimer's/Dementia. Chateau at Poet's Corner is a location particularly for those with such struggles. I will be working with the activities on Saturday's and I will be the one in charge of planning and conducting those activities! This is perfect because my "career goal" is to be an activities director specifically for those with Alzheimer's/Dementia. During my interviews, the activity director even offered to train me in the duties of an activities director. I will probably build up more hours doing activities during the week the longer I work.

I will also work as the Director of First Impressions, a.k.a. the front desk receptionist on-call and in the dining room when needed. As I continue to work, my hours per week will build up and I will get to experience different aspects of the community. There will also be opportunities for me to work in the other Carlton Senior Living Communities.

I am so excited! And, a total plus, is that work is 1.1 mile away from our apartment! Awesome.

Very blessed and very excited!

an honor

Today marks three weeks into my internship, and guess what!! I was offered a real job there beginning next semester!

In the Enhanced Care/Alzheimer's Unit, there is a girl who works with the activities all day, every day. She is so great and I love working with her. She is having a baby in December, and today I was told that they are going to split her job into two part-time jobs and that they would love to have ME fill one of them! I feel so honored! Such a compliment!

Unfortunately this is a dream-come-true and I won't be able to take it because we're graduating and moving to the Bay Area. BUT, it still makes me happy and feel so good!

I would love a job like this - maybe I'll be able to find another in California!

:)

anniversary

June 18, 2011 = Our one year anniversary!!

This year has been the happiest (and quickest!) year of our lives!

How fun for us that we were able to celebrate by returning to the Oakland Temple and remembering the promises that we have made!

Then we celebrated with a dinner out to P.F. Changs!

Love. Love. Love.

We love love!

Also,

today is Ben's first day of work!

BIG NEWS

BIG NEWS in the Myers family household:

Ben has been offered an internship followed by a full-time position at Ernst & Young in San Francisco! And we have accepted!

After this school year ends, we will move to San Francisco for the summer where Ben will intern in the Financial Services Office's Business Advisory Program.

Following the summer internship, we will return to BYU for one more semester and graduate in December.

Then, we will move to San Francisco permanently where Ben will begin working full-time!

*~*~*~*

This is the day we got the offer in the mail . . . we thought it was the whole offer but just the internship part came that day. It was exciting . . . but a little anti-climatic. Haha.

Later that week, E&Y had a "congratulations" dinner in the Hinckley Building for all of the students that had been extended an offer. I decided that I approve of E&Y because of the extremely cute center pieces. :)

I ditched Ben mid-way through the dinner due to a stomach ache, and when I came back to pick him up, he was carrying the center piece! They had announced that whoever's birthday was closest to that day got to take it home, but because I was the only female at our table everyone just figured I could have it. We gave most of the cupcakes away and kept the vase/cupcake display so we can use it for our own parties.

THEN, the official full-time position offer came!

Ben signed everything and we sent both the internship and job acceptances on their merry way!

We celebrated our exciting future last night with an outing to Olive Garden and Coldstone followed by the viewing of Rocky IV!

Who knew when we stood on the Golden Gate Bridge on our second date that one day we would be real people in San Francisco!? [GO GIANTS!]