surprise! josh is going to ucla. absolutely, positively, the final decision is finally made. not ONCE (since we've made this decision a few times by now) but definitely for ALL. that's right, we're leaving utah on friday, august 21st, to arrive in our new home in los angeles on saturday the 22nd. (the photos are of ucla's campus, from march when josh went out to visit and interview at ucla...)
some of you are imagining we're heading to duke and north carolina next month. yes, that was plan A. then, ucla complicated things by offering josh a sweet scholarship. so we thought about it and decided that it was already a close decision before, now the scales tipped in favor of the west coast. then, to complicate things FURTHER, we thought we'd wait and see if duke would pony up. of course, neither of us thought they would. these mba programs have about 20% acceptance rates, and given that they still admit about 400 students a year...well, they obviously don't exactly need to pay people to get them to show up. and competition is fierce for any funding they do offer. so we just threw that in for entertainment's sake. lo and behold, duke came back with lots of $$! i should have known better than to underestimate my hard-working 4.0/780-on-the-GMAT/Goldman Sachs-loves-him smarty-pants. of course they're willing to pay to get him there! unfortunately, they were willing to pay almost exactly what ucla was (despite having no idea of his other offer). that put us back to square one. good thing is by now we have housing and schools for the kids set up in both places. we've been in touch with people in josh's program and their spouses and people from church. etc. so we would be set either way...
6.10.2009
the city of angels
Posted by j janell cf at 8:19 AM 12 comments
3.29.2009
three men and a lady
lately i've been thinking how fun it is being the only girl in this family--me and my three boys. there's a few reasons for this. one is how much of our activities revolve around sports. joshua just finished jr. jazz, which was a major hit. he has started getting pretty aggressive and playing defensively--it's so fun to watch!
(go byu!)
wrestling meets, bike riding, and of course march madness complete with in-house dunk contests...
(sorry, but i think this white boy can jump)
the fun never ends! i like sports well enough, but for me it's more of a social event. i don't really know or care much about what's going on on the field/court/etc unless it involves one of my boys scoring (or getting hurt--then i REALLY care.) right now march madness is in full gear, and the boys watch and play basketball while i'm off studying. it's so cute to me! and although i may miss out on some girl things, these boys definitely let me know i'm special. my favorite is when jacob says "i love you mom" out of the blue. then i say "i love you too jacob." without fail he responds "i love you too mom." cutest thing.then there's me, the sole female of the house. this means that i get to be something i never got to be growing up with a 3 sisters. i get to be the princess! i get to be the girl. when i get a pedicure, my boys are fascinated by my toes--the things girls do! when i wear fishnet stockings, it kind of creeps them out, but i tell them it's a girl thing. when i wear big earings, they say "cute earings mom!" when i buy new shoes or clothes, they say "girls just need a lot of stuff, huh mom?" i get to have the car warmed up for me, doors opened. i also get to be moody. sorry, but it's part of the package and sometimes mom needs alone time. i get to take bubble baths and eat gourmet chocolates. it's wonderful being a woman! the funny thing is, this is a new found joy for me. i've never been a tom boy, but never a girly-girl either. i'm pretty practical and down-to-earth. but i'll tell you what, some of the finest things in life are monopolized by woman kind, and i am taking full advantage.
so if i end up the lone girl in this family, i'm perfectly happy with that. my boys are FUN! besides, if a little girl ever comes along, i'm not sure i'll be ready to relinquish my princess status...
Posted by j janell cf at 1:00 PM 6 comments
1.14.2009
some things i love
christmas cards! it's so much work that every year i wonder if i'll ever do it again. but then seeing those smiling faces on my mantle--the faces of all those people i love--well worth it.
this family. it makes me happy to see us because i think we look as happy as we are. from christmas lights at temple square.
Posted by j janell cf at 2:59 PM 6 comments
1.12.2009
1.06.2009
what i'm happy about...
i've been sweetly commanded to blog, and it's just as well, since i'll be back to school on tuesday the 13th and don't imagine i'll be blogging for awhile. my final semester of school, and it will be a rough one. but four months and i'll be an MPA grad! even though i'm nervous about ALL i have to do before then, i think i'm about ready to go back. this break has been wonderful--just what i needed. i feel renewed. we had a relaxing and fun christmas and new years, and we got to spend good time with both of our families, and--yeah!--with each other.
now that it's 2009, my goals are very meager.
1) graduate
2) move
that's about it. sure there are all kinds of things i'd like to do, but in all honesty that's pretty much what i'm aiming for. finish and move on! it's time.
i feel unbelievably happy lately. i think part of that is that i'm getting sleep. the other part of that is that i've got the greatest family ever. we were sitting around playing cars with the boys on sunday and i felt like everything i need is right there. so happy. josh is amazing, and joshua and jacob are so much fun! really. i love being with them--they make me very happy. i am a lucky woman.
my big boy joshua. recently he and i have read james and the giant peach, ralph s. mouse, and sideways stories from wayside school together. right now it's boxcar children. it's one thing just he and i do together, and it's probably my favorite mom thing to do. i love it. joshua has taken to spontaneously giving me hugs and saying "i love you mom." such a sweet, sensitive boy.
i can't even say how happy this mischievious little boy makes me. he is a one compact bundle of joy. and he loves to give hugs and kisses. "i wanna give you a kiss mom! i wanna hug you!" he has the silliest giggle and, although he has a temper to run from, he so quickly recovers and gives you that killer smile that you can hardly hold it against him. and i don't. he's his mom's son, after all.
josh turns 30 next week--crazy! i'm close behind. we're moving on up. josh is too good to me, unbelievably thoughtful and forgiving and supportive. it has been so nice to relax with him and enjoy his company. he is one an amazing dad. i hope some day my boys know how lucky they are to have him. josh recently got a big promotion--goldman's latest associate! he deserves it, i don't know anyone who works harder. now he's applying to business schools and we both are so excited for it--somewhere new! we're ready to move on and see what life holds next. i love him, and feel very content with our life. i think we're where we want to be. i can't think of anything more i could need...
look at these beautiful women! my mom is the best, and i love my sisters. there is so much in them to admire, and i often feel woefully inadequate compared to them. it was great spending thanksgiving with them all, some christmas time, and a hilarious new years. i haven't laughed that hard in a long time! it is such a gift to be by family, and we are appreciating it extra as we know we may be leaving soon.
Posted by j janell cf at 1:31 PM 10 comments
11.09.2008
a list
1. firebirds soccer.
the fan...
2. kindergarten fieldtrip to the zoo...
i was one of the chaperones, and so got to tag along with my little group of five for the afternoon. all i have to say is BOYS and GIRLS are so different! these cute little girls wanted to hold my hand and tell me everything. the boys are off and running. pretty fun.
3. the circus...
we did it! josh and i ran 26.2 in st. george. it was freezing cold and rainy the entire time--we're talking SOAKING wet clothes, soggy feet, etc. my ipod died at mile 11 from getting too wet (luckily it revived the next day!). it was tough. but we finished it, and are so glad we did. we went down to st. george with my good friend from school/work lissy, and her husband dan ran it as well. such a fun weekend!
7. voting. and REVELING!
this was a cool little project. one of my professors does this election blog with some other collegues at caltech, MIT, reed college, and the european institue--called election updates. he asked myself and a PhD student at caltech to work on the blog the week around election day, since they were in new mexico observing election procedures. we read all the news we could possibly find about election administration, voting technology, any kind of polling place/pollworker problems, etc. it was CRAZY!! really busy. but the fun thing about it was that i felt very involved with what was going on around the nation. it was a great way to be really engaged in something i've been so excited about for so long.
9. the ER anyone who knows this adorable little guy will be sad to learn he needed 3 stitches on his eyebrow, but not at all surprised that he tripped at the playground and bonked his head. we've been anticipating this, and know it will not be our last trip to the ER. our pediatrician was AMAZED at how great the stitches look--and you probably are too because you can't even really tell they're there. bruise on the bridge of his nose, puffy left eye, three stitches on the end of his left eyebrow. when the accident happened i was pretty calm, despite blood everywhere, but i lost it when the stitches were put in and my sweet, happy little guy screamed and cried his head off. "hold me mommy! hold me!" rips your heart right out. after probably 5-10 minutes of screaming at the top of his lungs, he gave up and just said "i'm sad!" and sobbed his sweet little heart out. i was right there with him...
10. anniversary getaway at the beach!
7 years on monday. that's right. and we had the perfect celebration. a beautiful resort, perfect weather, a generous mother-in-law to watch the boys, and then days that pretty much went: run, pool, beach, beach, beach, get ready, fancy dinner out, hot tub. and again the next day. who could complain! i love you josh.
Posted by j janell cf at 10:09 AM 7 comments
9.17.2008
yee haw!
BUT it was fun. a cultural experience, no doubt. and, who knows, if i had met a cowboy as cute as these two, i could very well be a cowgirl!
Posted by j janell cf at 11:50 AM 9 comments