Cheetah ALWAYS goes with stripes...

 

Artist: Brennan Gregory

 

Subject: his wife

 

Time: Approximately 8:30 pm on January 23rd, 2014 after his churchball game

 

Location: Domino's Pizza

 

Canvas: their chalkboard for kids to draw on while waiting for our pizza

 

Meaning: Contrary to what my husband thinks, cheetah ALWAYS goes with stripes.

 

 

 

...Thanks for not forgetting the curves, babe.

 

 

 

 

Date Night!

Brennan's birthday present from my parents was tickets to the Jazz vs. Thunder game. They know how to make him happy! He loves both teams so much and couldn't wait for the game. So when we realized that the game was on the same night as his first night class of the semester, we made the right decision and still went to the game. (The first day is only going over the syllabus, right?) Then, I had a bright idea...

I was rrrrreally craving The Dodo, so I even tweeted Kevin Durant that he had to pull through for me, just to seal the deal. And off to the game we went!

Well, Durant didn't seal the deal. And Hayward didn't miss a shot, and is probably the next Lebron. (Like how I can talk sports now? I'm an NBA wiz.) I was still secretly so proud of the Jazz, and started preparing myself for Settebello. 

But guess where we ended up?

THE DODO! What a team player. He's so good to me. 

I give this date night five stars. 

Crazy to Think

One of my favorite wedding pictures.



It is crazy to think I love him even more now than I did on this day.

It's crazy how much more I know about him.

(Like the fact that he likes to hit his snooze button 12 times.)

It's even crazier to know that even though being a bride was the best day of my life,

it doesn't even compare to being a wife.

bride < wife

And to the people who say we are in the "honeymoon phase",

we plan on being in the honeymoon phase our whole lives.

You can quote me on that.



And no, that doesn't mean that our whole life is going to be a walk in the park,

but what it does mean is that our trials and hard times won't be quite as bad

as if we were doing it alone.

Because isn't that what marriage is for?

We don't both have to be at our strongest all of the time.

Whenever I am having a hard time, Brennan is strong for me,

and when he is struggling, I am strong for him.

That's how it goes.



The secret to a permanent honeymoon phase

is always putting your spouse before yourself.

Brennan is flawless at this.

It took some adjusting for me.

But because Brennan truly is our better half,

it's never too hard for me to do.



Side note:

I think that's the moon in our picture.

We got married on a full moon.

Brennan laughs and thinks I'm crazy.

He says it's a light.

But it's totally the moon.

Someone please back me up.

Hello 2014

We celebrated the last night of our favorite year yet with only the best. One of the things I love about Brennan is his group of friends he's had since high school. They are some of funniest and best people that I'm lucky to know. Our night was spent snacking, taking pictures, playing games, drinking Martinelli's, watching the ball drop, and then back to more games. 

And then at 3 am as we were falling asleep and discussing New Year's resolutions, Brennan told me that your goals aren't real until you write them down. So here are my resolutions for 2014 in writing:

Drink more water. And less Dirty Diet Coke. Water solves so many of life's problems. It's just the right thing to do.

Be smarter with money. I feel like I can find more ways to save Brennan and I money. Things will be tight this year while Bren is switching jobs and finishing school so I need to do everything I can to help us be smart with the money we have! 

Be on time. Brennan is always waiting on me and it's just not nice. And there's no reason to be late to 11 am church.

Go to all three hours of church every week. Ya it's hard but it's about obedience. 

Spend way less time on my phone, (there's more to life)

and pick up a book instead. (like Brennan)

Get back into a workout routine. I have always been big into exercise, and somehow I lost my motivation for it after getting married. I'm going to find it again.

Blog more. Not to make money, not to impress anyone, just for me.

Live life like the message from the movie About Time. You know those movies that just change your life? This is that movie. When you tell people what it's about, it always sounds kind of dumb, but please don't let that stop you from seeing it. (STOP READING HERE if you have not seen it!) It's about a guy who has the ability to go back in time. He learns that he likes to go back and live each day twice, because the second time, he enjoys the little things. But you don't have to time travel to enjoy the little things. You just have to slow your life down. 

Pray for miracles. Brennan taught me this New Years Day. We were driving downtown and he was telling me a story from his mission. The stories from his mission are INCREDIBLE. So many miracles happened to him and the people he taught. I won't go into the whole story, but I told Brennan that I feel like those miracles don't happen in the real world, only on missions. He said he had so many because he was taught in the MTC to pray for miracles. He prayed for them every night. So I am going to do the same. Not for miracles to happen to me, but just to witness miracles happening around me. 

And no baby, even though Brennan jokes that 2014 will be the year we have one. When we were laying in bed yesterday morning, he said to me "I hope we have a little boy and he comes running in here and wakes us up but he wakes me up first because he likes me more." As darling as that sounds, I'm selfish and want a few years of my husband ALLLL to myself. 

It looks like I have a lot to work on...wish me luck!

A Year in Review

I used to think 2012 was the best year of my life, because on March 31st of that year, I met the best person the world's got. I knew he was special from the moment I saw him, as he ran down the stairs and all of his friends yelled "BRENNAN!!!!!!" like he was the most loved kid of all time. I knew I had to make him a part of my life. A big part.

What I didn't know is that my wildest dreams never even compared to my reality in 2013. I was married and sealed to that person. I still don't know how I got so lucky. I still pinch myself daily.

I've been extremely blessed these past 2 years. And now I'm ready to take on any year, because I'll never have to go a day without that person. It really will only get better and better, but 2013 will always hold a very special place in my heart.

2013 in Review

January: I told Brennan I loved him for the first time, and thankfully he said it back. 

February: We had our first Valentines Day together, where he gave me the journal that is the whole reason for this blog. 

March: Brennan went on a cruise with his friends for spring break, and surprised me by coming home a day earlier than I thought he was. 

April: We took a trip to Vegas with my family to see Rihanna & Jerry Seinfeld.

May: Brennan & I went to the Taylor Swift concert, a magical night. 

June: We got ENGAGED, and spent my 20th birthday in Park City.

July: Wedding planning was in FULL swing. 

August: Brennan & my family took an unforgettable trip to New York City. 

September: Married in the Salt Lake Temple, and then honeymooned in Scottsdale.

October: Moved into our first little place. We spent most of this month without a couch, cable, internet, a dishwasher, or washing machine and it was a blast.

November: I got a new job. Brennan studied three hours a night this whole month for his insurance test. 

December: Brennan turned 26, passed his insurance test the first time, and we spent our very first Christmas together.  

I am grateful. I am blessed. I am happy. 

And excited for 2014. 

Our Very First Christmas

We...

spent 30 seconds in a money blowing machine,

(Ashley- $15, Brennan- $31... we'll leave the money making up to him)

got a visit from Mr. & Mrs. Clause,

ate & ate & ate,

saw Frozen,

balanced spending time with both of our families,

the ones who matter most to us,

played hilarious games,

watched a ba-jillion Christmas movies,

and got to WAKE UP TOGETHER on Christmas morning 

and have our very own little moment. 

Just the two of us.

It was the merriest Christmas I've ever had.

And the $75 in Chick-Fil-A gift cards didn't hurt. 

Or my new bag that I had been dreaming of for months, and thought it had sold. (You sneaky Santa Brennan)

But I would trade it ALL in a fifth of a second for Bren any day.

He's my favorite present of all time you know. 

Happy Birthday, Handsome

I am behind on blogging
and this post is long overdue
(sorry future children, who I will force to read this blog)
but it was my (way) better half's birthday last week.
He's 26 now!
I think he's the best thing to ever happen to this world.
And it's because of everything he's taught me.
I have learned so much from him on how to be a better person ever since I met him,
but especially in the last 3 months and 1 day we've been married.

Here is a list of things the birthday boy has taught me:

1-Don't compare yourself to your friends.
This is one of the biggest lessons he's taught me. I have an amazing group of girlfriends. A lot of us got married around the same time, and it's only human to compare yourselves! Your engagements, your wedding budgets, your bodies, your rings, your honeymoons, your flowers- anything and everything. It was tough, and I was tough on myself. Brennan picked up on that, and told me that I had to stop comparing myself to my friends. He flat out told me that guess what, their weddings may be better than yours, and who cares? Because we have each other, and we know what we have. And the moment I realized that, I was at complete peace for the first time during the whole planning process, and I could enjoy life so much more. It's still true to this day, and it's always a process, but I'm much happier when I focus on just my life with my Brennan.

2-Teasing is necessary.
Brennan feels it is his duty to tease me since I didn't grow up with brothers. So when he comes home from work and licks me like a dog, tickles me TO DEATH, or tackles me to the floor, I try to enjoy it. ...And fight back. This has taught me not to take myself so seriously.

3-Have good people skills and good things will happen to you.
Brennan has taught me this one only through example. I just watch him in social settings. He is so nice, funny, and generally interested in what people have to say, it blows my mind. He isn't just friendly, he is your best friend after 10 seconds of knowing you. And you know what's happened because of it? He gets offered jobs by people he helps at the bank. His professors love him. His institute teacher added him on Facebook and messages him every class he's not there. I didn't have to worry about taking him to my company Christmas party last weekend. He talked to my coworkers more than I did, and had plans to watch the Jazz game with one of them after the party. I am always so proud to call him my husband, especially in those situations, and I strive everyday to be just like him in social settings.

4-You don't always have to look perfect.
I've always loved hair, makeup, and clothes. But Brennan likes me best with no makeup and in jeans and a t-shirt. If he had it his way he would throw my makeup away. It's been so refreshing for me. He's made me so comfortable in my own skin, even when I wake up with a zit or my hair is going every direction possible, he makes me feel so pretty and has never pointed out a flaw (and I have many of them). There is so much power in realizing you aren't perfect and don't have to be.

5-You do not need to spend $250 on Christmas decorations.
The day after Thanksgiving, Brennan had to work, so my mom and I headed out to find me some Christmas decorations. I love having our own little place and wanted it to have some Christmas cheer. Well, Christmas cheer isn't cheap. My mom even let us have one of her smaller trees, and the decorations from Target were almost $250. I payed for most of it with gift cards from our wedding, but Brennan didn't like that, and wanted me to take it back. We compromised, and I took half of it back, which I was bummed about, but really not too bummed because I'm so happy I married someone who is smart with money.

6-Wish people GOOD birthday wishes.
This one is funny because it's something that has always been important to me and when I learned it was also so important to him I loved him even more. He is so against only saying "happy birthday" on someone's birthday. If you know the person well enough to know their birth date, you can write something a little more creative than happy birthday. And those birthday wishes are the ones that really make someone's day. My friend the other week told me that Brennan sent her the nicest birthday message and I really loved that.

7-Get off your phone.
I love my phone. Not even as close to as much as I love Brennan, but I enjoy social media, unfortunately. Brennan is much less into it (another reason I admire him so much). He has taught me to get off my phone and live in the moment. That you can make every minute memorable, but you probably won't remember what you read on your phone a week from now.

8- Exercise, but eat treats too.
Brennan has such a happy medium when it comes to this. He rarely misses a day at the gym, but if he wants a cookie sundae from Chick-Fil-A on the weekend, he will eat it, and if drinking Coke makes him happy, why stop? He's definitely taught me that life is too short, and to eat the dang cookie sundae.

9-Family is everything.
Sometimes he texts his mom goodnight. It melts my heart. And if he has a day off and I have to work, you better believe he is spending the whole day with his family. I love this about him.

10- Pray together. On our knees.
We have never not prayed on our knees. Brennan always makes sure of it. He is much better at praying than me, but somehow I always say it? He probably thinks I need the practice.



10 lessons and 10 moments when I realized I love this boy even more than I did before.

Happy Birthday, handsome.