I suppose I can see the resemblance...

First off, I have to give a shout out to my new job at COS. The people I work with are awesome and I love what I do. Added bonus... everyday is a new adventure. Last night I was proctoring a test for one of our distance ed classes, when a homeless man walked through the doors in the back of the classroom and gave me the "peace sign". I walked over to him, and he explained that I reminded him of "Mary Magdalen" and he gave me a copy of the New Testament. Hmmm.... I'm still trying to figure out exactly what this means, but I can sort of see a resemblance. No?

Tax Season (Part 2)

So Matt and I finally decided to just go to H&R Block to get our taxes done because I wanted "people" like the commercials said. So I got online, looked at some employees profiles, and on an individual with a lot of tax experience... 38 years seemed good enough to me. Not once did it cross my mind that 38 years of experience meant that this person could be close to seventy. When we got to our appointment, we were greeted by an elderly lady who had to wear special shoes to help her walk evenly. At her desk, she had a coughing fit for at least ten minutes, and kept touching Matt's arm. Matt kept kicking me under the table everytime she touched him which of course had me cracking up the entire time. The whole time she was fillng out the form little error windows kept popping up and she would turn to us and ask "Now what does that mean?" Uh... lady... we are not "tax professionals" that's why we are here. Everytime we said something she would shout "HUH?" and halfway through the form she had to ask another elderly lady dressed in a full purple polyester suit named Bobbie to help. They couldn't figure out the problem so decided to just move on. Needless to say I'm a little bit concerned about an audit, but after asking her several times if H&R Block was going to back us up if the IRS came after us, she assured me that they "guaranteed their work". So it looks like we may be going to prison afterall. At least we will have the Golden Girls keeping us company...

Our Little Man(n)

We got big big news today! We are going to have a baby boy... and we couldn't be happier about it. Matt literally has not stopped smiling since we found out. Here is some pictures of our baby's first photo shoot...

Tis the Season... Tax Season.

Geh. I don't know about you, but tax season has always had a way of bringing me down from this high I call "life". Does anyone else find this whole process confusing? I finally got the last of Matt and I's W-2's today. Now I have a whole stack of papers and I have no idea where to begin... Do we file in CA, UT or both? Who is claiming who, what about deductions, tuition breaks, and where is the best place to take them? I'm turning into a hot mess! I'm one step away from a fit and I'm starting to wonder if this is even worth it. Maybe we should just risk it and try not to end up in prison... However, if prison is our only option, I have done a little research and I feel like this place would be the best fit for me... I dunno, it doesn't look all that bad.

Our newest news...

Surprise! WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A BABY! And we couldn't be happier about it. :) Right now I'm about 13 weeks... and my first trimester has gone pretty smoothly. Other than being hungry and tired all the time, I have felt really well. Today Matt and I went to the doctor's office and through an ultra sound we got to see our baby for the first time. It was almost overwhelming to watch its teeny tiny heart beating. I couldn't help but start tearing up (thank goodness the lights were off) because it's the first time it felt really "real". Matt says the whole thing is still sinking in, and has been busy picking out nicknames for his "son" even though we won't find out the gender for another month or so. It is a pretty exciting time for us and our little family is going through a lot of changes. We will keep you all updated!

Dear Economy...

Could you please shape up? Okay, okay, I'll even throw in a "pretty please"... It's getting rather annoying trying to find a job when there are none available. It's not that I don't love selling over-priced lattes to assholes driving brand new BMW's, I just wonder if there is something more fulfilling I could be doing than answering the question "Are you sure that this is milk is non-fat?" I spent a pretty good portion of my day filling out more applications. Normally, I love talking about myself, but for some reason writing resumes and cover letters just aren't doing it for me. I tried to think of some of the "skills" I have to offer, but I don't know that there is a job that is centered around eating and sleeping in excess (if you do, please email me the link) but I have yet to find these requirements in any job description.

I was then reminded of someone who I had the pleasure of meeting last week. He is called "The Bushman". Ever heard of him? His career of choice is hiding behind a couple of branches on the pier in San Francisco and jumping out and scaring people. First of all, I don't know that this is the most clever disguise, considering you can see him and he parks it in the middle of a sidewalk on a dock where bushes cant physically grow. Nevertheless, I can't help but admire him. He actually gets paid to do this. See the can next to him? Yup, full of tip money. Wouldn't that be the life?

Thank you Bushman... you have inspired me to continue in my search for my dream job. If you can make money pretending you are a poorly built tree, maybe there is a chance I will find something equally as pointless. :)

Christmas in the Saltiest of Cities

Happy Holidays everyone! The last couple weeks have been so much fun, I'm sad to see it all end. Matt and I flew out to SL to stay with the family for Christmas, and this is what we came home to. What a nightmare! Matt was only able to stay a couple of days because of work but I got to stay a little longer which was fun.

It wouldn't be Christmas at the Nielsen's if someone didn't get a new gun, and this year was no exception. Curt got a new camo-colored one and Matt and I got a 9MM handgun from my sis and brother. We were all so excited! Naturally, the next day we all piled in the car to go shoot our new toys.

Aparently it is a team effort.

Christmas family photo.

I told my dad to pose like "Charlie's Angles". I don't think he really understood.

Mostly we just hung out with friends and family. It was good to see all of my cousins and my Grandpa Coy. If you are wondering if Ryker's mouth is full of dog food, you are right... Hilarious! Em, I can't believe he is getting so big!

It was a great trip! Thanks everyone I love you so much! See you in a couple months.... :)