Remember When?!?

Remember when, all my roommates knew you but I didn't and you came to our party and sat in the same windowseal as I did but somehow we didn't even get introduced?



Remember when, we finally met and then you realized I was a "shiner" so you started asking me out on dates but we weren't yet dating?



Remember when, Elder Cox asked us if we were dating and we didn't really have an answer for him so then that night we had a conversation and decided that we wanted to officially start dating?



Remember when, I was so nervous I almost chickened out but you brave soul kindly asked if you could, and so we shared our first kiss underneath the stars?



Remember when, we had to say goodbye for a whole summer while I went to Mexico and you went to Holland but the night before we were separated we said "I love you" making the goodbye ten times harder?



Remember when, we saw each other again for the first time and it was almost like a first date all over again because the butterflies in my stomach were so intense but ten minutes later it was like we had never been separated in the first place?



Remember when, we were finally reunited for good in Provo (after 4 long months) for another semester of happiness which meant we were pretty much inseparable?



Remember when, you totally surprised me and proposed ten minutes after I got back to Utah from Christmas break and I said yes even though it was negative 5 degrees outside and the i-pod setting the tone with romantic music stopped playing because it froze?



Remember when, we took some really pretty engagement pictures in the pouring snow and they turned out so dang cute?



Remember when, we got married in the Bountiful temple for time and all eternity and it was the most glorious day of both of our lives?



Remember when, a week after we were married we moved to NYC to spend our summer working hard and had no idea what we were really getting ourselves into?



Remember when, 4 months later we moved to Texas and discovered that it is actually true...everything really is bigger in Texas?



Remember when, 4 months later we moved back to Provo to finish our degrees together hand in hand and side by side?



Remember when, we moved across the country again but this time for longer than just 4 months and made Arlington Virginia our new home?



Remember when, I became the worlds luckiest girl because I am the one who gets to spend the rest of ETERNITY with you!?! Thanks for the best 2 years of my life Broderick V Buttars! Here is to the rest of forever that I get to be with you!

Real Busy But Never Too Busy For Family!

You know sometimes life gets really really busy! But thank goodness it never gets too busy for family time! We have certainly had our fare share of family time in these last few weeks!

It all started over conference weekend with my parents! I've been trying to get my pops to come down and see our little place since we moved in and I was finally victorious! He and mom drove down on April Fool's day and tried to trick me into thinking that they were not going to make it in time for dinner! The original plan was they would come down early enough to spend Friday evening and then leave early Sunday morning to get home in time for other commitments! Well, Friday at 3 when my mom was saying they still hadn't left I wasn't fooled!! As anticipated, we ended up enjoying a nice dinner with my parents at an Italian restaurant called Maggiano's (Thanks for the tip Emily!) Soooo good!



Saturday was packed with Cherry blossom sighting, Costco runs, real estate investigating and conference watching! Phew! It was a fun fun day and we were sad to say goodbye on Sunday morning but happy that they both could come for a quick visit!

Then two days later Uncle Joe and Sam came to stay! WAHOOO! We had a full house once again and oh boy did I love it! We played games, watched movies, went out to dinner, visited the temple, went to a free performance at the Kennedy Center and so much more! We even made it to the bowling alley! Talk about a blast! It was such a sad day to say goodbye to them at the airport but we were so happy that it all worked out and that they could come and stay with us!



It's amazing because even though I am in crunch time right now with classes I have somehow managed to fit it all in! Like I said before...life is real busy but NEVER too busy for some good family time! Thanks for all the visits family! Keep 'em coming please! ;)

Live a Little!

Sometimes you just have to live a little...so I decided that this weekend we would live it up with my good friend Elizabeth in town! Now let me just say that Elizabeth, my twinner, is amazing! This girl has stuck it out with me since tenth grade and oh boy have I put her to the test! But over the last 7 years (can you believe it's been that long!?!) she has been the best friend I've needed to keep me happy and sane! Pretty much I have loved knowing Elizabeth and look forward to the many years ahead that we will continue to fill with memories!



The weekend started with some crazy tennis playing in which all three of us, Broc, Elizabeth and I were a little bit rusty! But we played through the cold and survived the freezing fingers long enough to get in some fun games and a good warm up to the season! We returned home to a yummy enchilada dinner! Thanks Elizabeth for the help! :) We then finished off the night with a few rounds of Rummikub! Fun game!



Saturday morning we whipped up some yummy waffles and even made a delicious banana topping for them! It pretty much could not have been a better start to a super day! Once the waffles were gone we took off for the National Zoo! Although we didn't get to see the sloth bear eat, we did get to see some of our favorite animals including the apes, an emu, panda bears and of course the elephant shrew! Don't know what an elephant shrew is? Click here to find out and your life will be changed forever! Promise! ;)



Once we were all animaled out we made our way over to the Tidal Basin for the opening of the Cherry Blossom Festival! Wowie was it beautiful! Elizabeth went trigger happy and took over 180 pictures but it was all for good reason! The blossoms were absolutely beautiful! It was a little cooler than we had anticipated but when all was said and done we each got some sun and loved being out for the start of spring! Thank you D.C. for this wonderful tradition! We hope to be around again next year when the blossoms come out!



That night after giving our feet a little rest we went to P.F. Chang's for a delicious meal! With all the walking earlier in the day we had no problem going out for a nice, big meal! It was divine! And then to finish the weekend off right we snuggled up in our jammies and with full bellies watched an episode of Matlock! All in all I think I can honestly say that we certainly lived a little this weekend! A special thanks to Elizabeth for being our first non-family guest! We loved having you Elizabeth so please don't be a stranger and come back soon! :)

Something Fishy!

Well we decided to go for the fish this time! And I dare say I think it went over pretty well! Little did Emily and I know that Amy doesn't even like fish but she wanted to join in on the adventure and so she did! Way to be a trooper Amy! We made a creamy cilantro fish dish! Though we didn't have this one planned out quite as well as the others I think we pulled it off with flying colors!



To my dinner group ladies who always put a smile on my face, thanks for that little something fishy! Boy oh boy did it taste good! Cannot wait to see what next month will bring! ;)

March Madness...But Not That Kind!

This month has been a blast! So many fun things to do and somehow enough time to do them all! Good stuff! It all started with this little guys baby blessing (click here for more info)!



And then a trip to Utah for Spring break which involved snow, skiing, dinners, family and sunburns!



Broc's family came up to our Park City condo one night for dinner which was delicious and fun! We had some fish and then topped it off with Marie Callender pies! Yummy!



Then we hit up the slopes! It was a blast! It was Broc's first time and although he got a little roasty his first day on the slopes he did great! See the completely covered face above? Well this little burn might explain why he felt the need to cover up!



We loved going out to Utah and spending time with both my family and Broc's family! It was a blast seeing our grandparents, meeting new cousins and just having some good quality time with our loved ones!

This past week has been a whirlwind of crazyness! We got home late Sunday night, were asked to speak in church, I had a dinner group Wednesday night, had a St. Paddy's day party with some friends, made cupcakes for a baby shower and watched the BYU game! Phew! Talk about a good week to ease our way back into things! Time for another vacation I think! :)

P.S. Next week my good friend from high school Elizabeth is coming into town and I pretty much cannot wait! Let the March Madness continue! Hooray!

Weekend from Heaven!

So I went home this weekend and it was seriously a weekend from Heaven! Minus the fact that Broc was not able to come along I had such a wonderful time at home! The weekend started with this little nugget of joy and fat rolls!



Don't ask me how I got Carissa to agree but she let me babysit the little one all by myself on Friday night! At least I was all by myself for about an hour and then my mom showed up but it was so good! I love that little nephew of mine!

The next big part of the weekend was picking this one up from the airport!



WELCOME HOME SISTER SHEILA MICHELS! It was so fun seeing Sheila after a year and a half! We went to get bagels, ate at Cosi, talked all day, ate cookie dough and went out to dinner with all our families! It was amazing to hear her stories and reminisce on the good old days!

After two nights of very little sleep I got to end the weekend with this one at her home coming talk!



WELCOME HOME SISTER ELIZABETH CLARK! It was really great to see her and her family again after a year and a half as well! Her Spanish was really good and I forgot how much I missed her happy face!

When I got on the bus to come back home I almost cried because it was just that good of a weekend! Heavenly Father has blessed me with great friends who I admire deeply and a lovely family I feel blessed to be close with! Thanks all for a great weekend! Let's do it again soon okay!? :)

Speak Up !

Like I've admitted before to the world by way of this blog I tend to have a pretty loud voice! So one would think having a loud voice means I also have a strong voice...FALSE! I happen to have a loud voice but really, not so much a strong voice! And can I just say that it is the PiTs! I love talking! I love expressing myself through words! I love blabbering on about nothing! In other words, I love being loud!

Now please explain to me how I can be loud if I cannot even talk!?! Exactly the problem I am facing! You see I always knew I had a weak voice but it didn't so much bother me until high school when I really started to notice how much not having a voice impacted me! It was a regular occurrence for me to not have a voice in high school which I subsequently blamed on the lack of sleep and freezing winters!

Fast forward 4 years and I find myself at BYU! I still lost my voice from time to time but not nearly as much! I mean you can ask my roommates! They heard my squeaky voice once or twice and even tried to record it but this was not a regular thing! Thank goodness! Fast forward again to the present and I am back on the East coast living full time (something I haven't done since 2006) and all of a sudden I am loosing my voice all the time just like in high school! What gives with my voice!?! I think I found the link! I really think it's the East coast! Anyone else agree? I love you East Coast but give my voice a break! It really comes in handy like, oh you know, pretty much every day of my life! Phew!

Bring on the cough drops and herbal tea! It's going to be another silent week in the Buttar's household! Please speak up? Sorry it just isn't going to happen until the weakling becomes strong! And yes I would appreciate any suggestions on how to fix this annoying problem! ;)