October 08

I have a rash forming on my left hand from some unknown mystery skin abcess (to much information? sorry...keep reading, it gets cleaner), so I decided I better start updating my blog before the rash overtakes my entire hand and I can no longer type anymore. And yes, it takes a rash for me to finally start posting again.

Back in oh, let's say, October....Brandon had his best-friend-mission-companion-for-ten-months-on-the-mission come and visit. Normally friend-visits would be blog-worthy, but this visit was particularly worthy because well...they came ALL the way from Australia! For disclosure reasons, I won't give you their full names...but I will tell you that B, C and L are the COOLEST people I have ever met! I was already excited for the BCL family to come and visit because I had heard so much about them from Brandon. Is it weird if I say I was also excited to listen to their awesome accents? Because, I was. And they were awesome. We spent the time with Brandon's Mission President and Wife (coolest couple combination you will ever meet as well), and BCL. It was soo much fun! We went to the MTC Sacrament meeting for the Japan District, we ate at Brick Oven and Costa Vida. We played games. We went four-wheeling. We played RockBand. We laughed. We loved. Pretty lame recap of such a fun week, but....since it was 4 months ago...my mind can't really remember all of the details.

Here are C and L. The cute little L is holding her pet Ladybug, affectionately called "Squeezie".

With the Wilkinson Fam

B,C,L with the Mission President and Wife...any former missionaries will recognize the statue in the back.

And, if you've ever heard a cuter Australian girl laugh then let me know...because I don't think it's possible to be cuter than this. Note, she is referring to Squeezie again.

Not Caught Up

I know, I have tons of catching up to do...what with all of the HOlidays (and I still haven't even updated what we did in October with our friends from Australia....post to come soon)...but, I thought I would give you an answer to what I've been doing when I'm not blogging:


Now I'm famous in the local newspaper!

Stockings are hung NEAR the chimney with care

Since it's that holly-jolly time of the year, I thought I would reminisce on one of the best Christmas presents I was ever given from Brandon. The first Christmas we were dating, we were still in the 'awkward' should-we-get-each-other-presents-for-Christmas, stage. Brandon didn't own a cell phone back then (I know, can we even remember people who don't own cell phones? Weird.), so I decided to buy a mini cell phone from Dollar Tree. That was my "meaningful" Christmas gift. It obviously outdid Brandon's gift, because, well....he didn't get me anything. You can imagine what that'll do to a girl's analyzation skills: "Does that mean he doesn't like me?" "It obviously means he didn't think enough about me to get me a gift." But, no, I never thought that way. ::sheepish grin::

Well.... by the second year of Christmas (still dating, but a little more serious to know I could at least EXPECT a Christmas gift this time), I came into my house on Christmas Eve to find this:

Santa? Is that you?

No, it is his little Elf helper, Brandon! Brandon and his mom slaved away at making a life-size stocking for me. It was filled with gifts and candy....that Elf sure knew what was on my Christmas list.

Here he is in *Santa's workshop,

So cute
The sneaky Elf made it into our house while we were celebrating at my Dad's house!

And now I have my very-own Christmas decoration to "hang" by the chimney every year. However, it still ::sadly:: sits in my Mom's storage because the stocking won't fit in our house. Boo hoo.

*The "Santa" reference is for any children that might be reading this. I don't want to spoil the surprise. And, you never know if your kids are reading blogs. Kids these days....

Wrapping

If you were to have been wrapping gifts with us in our kitchen last night, this might have been something you would have overheard:

Erica: Oh shoot, I cut the tulle and now I can't find it. Do you see the tulle anywhere?

Brandon: Uhm, this? (Pointing to a screwdriver)

Erica: What? No...the TULLE. Oh, hahah...funny. You don't know what tulle is (finding the tulle and showing Brandon the tulle).

Brandon: That's a ribbon, not a tool.

Erica: (laughing) You are so cute. hahahahaha.....that is funny.

Brandon: You're going to blog about that, aren't you?


You know it, baby.

Another reason why I can appreciate the difference between a man and a woman.

Missing You

It's not even Finals week around here, and he's already pulling an all-nighter at the University. And, I know I should find other things to do than come home and blog about Brandon...but, to tell you the truth, the only other thing I would do is eat an entire bag of chocolate chips. So, to blogger I go.


This is my Eagle Scout. Cheesy grin and all. And you wonder what he does in his spare time?

Be PREPARED

He loves to work on his tractor(s)...yes, he has more than one. In fact, he has more than three. Don't get me started.

And, because he is so manly he also like to clean up dead mice that I find on our kitchen floor in the mornings. No this isn't a frequent occasion, because my husband is a Boy Scout.

From the mouth of babes

Okay, I know I know...I have blogged now ::THREE:: times in the last week. Miracle? yes. Habit? no. However, I did receive this email (which means you have probably received the email too, but what the HEY, it's Christmas). Wanted to post these letters from kids.
Nan, Joyce and Elliot say it best.

Welcome Weston!

My best friend from the womb (practically...okay, from the 9th grade) just had her first baby!
Weston Reed Nielson was born last night in Bloomington, Indiana to Eric and Chelsey Nielson.

I can't believe that Chelsey's teeny body could birth an 8 lb. 8 oz. little boy, but she did it!

Congrats!!!

More Thanks

I don't want to spoil you and make you think that just because I have now posted 2 times in one day, this is my way of saying "The spark is back!". But, I wanted to share this quote from Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin from our Church. He passed away last night, and he certainly was an incredible leader, speaker and man of God. I thought this quote was very fitting for the season:

"Gratitude is a mark of a noble soul and a refined character. We like to be around those who are grateful. They tend to brighten all around them. They make others feel better about themselves. They tend to be more humble, more joyful, more likable."

Giving Thanks

Remember how in my last post, I had this *sigh* of relief for the fact that I was all caught up blogging, for Thanksgiving? Silly, foolish me. I don't know about you, but I feel like me and the blog have gotten over our Honeymoon phase. The first few blog posts, I was so excited...checking my blog everyday to see if I had a new comment...blogging weekly about some great story. But now, the excitement has worn off. Anybody have any ideas on how to get the "spark" back between the blog and me?

Enough boo-hooing.

Thanksgiving was great this year. My mom's entire family came out for my cousin's wedding, so we had a big brouhaha on Wednesday night. My mom is quite the party planner, and she rented out a reception hall for the party. She went out and bought a Wii and the American Idol game JUST for the party. SEriously...she knows how to throw a party.

Grateful for this Hunk

Rebecca and Keith...the blogger and photographer

My H.O.T. mom and my H.O.T. aunts. Seriously..hoping I look as good as these 50 somethings when I'm their age.

K-Sis and Timbo (F.Y.I. they are expecting a little baby in May!)

The whole clan

Thanks for the pictures again, Becca.


On Thursday we had Thanksgiving with Brandon's family at his GrandDad's...but, since I didn't take my camera I will have to rely on some other family member to post pictures...and then I will steal them off of their blog :-)


So many things to be grateful for: Brandon, my family, in-law family whom I love and have relationships with, my health, our friends, our home, secure jobs, education, family, Brandon and especially our faith.


I absolutely love this time of year. December is my favorite. Especially since it hasn't snowed yet. Thank you Mother nature.

WELL HELLO THERE!!


I know. I haven't been a blogger lately. And I'm afraid I'll sound cliche if I say that it's not you. It's me. But...it's true. I just find myself coming home after a day's work, making dinner, spending time with my sweet husband, and thinking that the last thing I want to do is upload pictures from our Halloween. But then, today as I noticed on my computer that it is already November 12th, I remembered that if I don't catch up on my Halloween then I will get behind on our Thanksgiving. And ::gasp:: the thought of not posting about our Christmas is a shame.

And do you know what? I have found an answer to my don't-want-to-make-time-to-upload-pictures-after-dinner problem. The Answer? The World Wide Web. It is amazing what happens when I have memories with family who also choose to blog and use Facebook. It's almost like we all share the same pictures. So, I took the liberty of "borrowing" some pictures from my family about what we have been up to. And, don't worry...I will give credit where credit is deserved.

Remember this picture that the Wilkinsons tried to take?

Well, we finally found a beautiful Saturday...and these were the results:

(photo credit: Marquelle and Kimberly's Facebook)


And, the Wilkinsons also had their annual family Halloween party. As many know, Brandon has possibly consumed over 10,000 bowls of cereal in his lifetime. So, in honor of his accomplishment:
(photo credit: Aunt Amy)


And if I had a blog last October, I would have spent an entire post on our Halloween costumes alone...but, since I didn't blog...you can go HERE to see our *sweet* costumes:


And on Halloween night, we went to Lehi to spend time with my family and see the cute little nieces and nephews in all of their costume glory.


But since there are too many cute photos to share. You may visit my sister's blog HERE:

(thanks Rebecca!)

Okay...now I think I am in the clear for Thanksgiving.


And also...let me mention that I love my husband. I just do.

I know...it's been too long. And I WOULD post about our Halloween parties and costumes right now but there is something much more pressing that is needing airtime right now...and it is this blog:

http://ourheroscott.blogspot.com/

My sister and bro-in-law, Krista and Tim, have spent the last five days with Tim's family, praying unceasingly that Tim's Dad will recover from the heart-attack that he suffered on Thursday. Please keep them in your constant prayers.

Go the Distance 2008

I am absolutely convinced that you are not a real BYU Cougar unless you have experienced a BYU Homecoming Dance. Unfortunately, my husband is convinced that you are not a real BYU Cougar if you ever GO to a BYU Homecoming Dance.

Last Monday, I went to bring Brandon lunch on campus. Much to his dismay, I noticed "BYU HOMECOMING" banners adorning the campus, to which I exclaimed, "Honey! You haven't creatively asked me to Homecoming yet and you only have five days!" Brandon must have thought I was not serious (pssh...silly), because he said, "And I won't be asking you to Homecoming. Only losers go to Homecoming." ::this is the part where I make a blanket apology statement to any of my [5] readers who attend Homecoming every year:: Well, lucky for him, the prodding didn't stop there on that beautiful Monday afternoon. Since we live in the heart of Provo, we were lucky to drive past a Homecoming banner on our way to work, school, football games, church, and even walking the dogs. (okay, we don't have dogs...but seriously, if we had dogs and walked them...we would have seen these banners). So, I kept on keeping on. "Honey! You only have 3 days to ask me to Homecoming!" and you know what? The response never changed, "Only losers go to Homecoming."

Come Friday night: I was sitting on the sidelines of our husbands' flag football game with Tiffany, and she said, "I want to go to Homecoming." Of course you can imagine the crowd reaction THAT statement got from me. I told her how I had been wanting to go all WEEK, but that Brandon was adamantly opposed to frolicking around BYU campus in a suit and tie. She said that her husband had said he would take her to Homecoming if she wanted to go. ::insert screeching halt noise:: "Your husband will take you?!" I was obviously green with envy. So, the rest of the night involved Tiffany and I trying to convince our husbands that we needed to go to Homecoming, as this would be our last chance! We bargained, we bartered, we bet, and we plead with our husbands. I even made a deal with Brandon that if he threw the football to me, and I didn't catch it: we would go to Homecoming. Fair Game.

Well, Saturday was just any other day. We watched the BYU Football game and then went home, thinking Brandon would go back to work on the *cute* laundry room, and I would go grocery shopping. I was a little bummed, so I stood in the kitchen ready to head to Macey's. Brandon beckoned me into our bedroom, "Baby, come give me a kiss." To which I slowly schlumped into the room to give him a "wish-we-were-going-on-a-date" kiss. I went in the room to find Brandon dressed up in his suite and tie.


Yes, that's right folks! My Prince Charming took me to HOMECOMING!!!

And, here is our couples picture:

Parts of the evening Erica enjoyed:
1- Dressing up and wearing diamonds
2- Going on a date with her Prince Charming
3- Dancing to "Hannah Montana"
4- Seeing Tiffany, and realizing that we won.
5- Watching the gross skinny white boys try to have rhythm
6- Watching the gross skinny white boy's date utterly embarassed
7- Being the only two couples dressed up at the "casual" Homecoming dance.

Parts of the evening Brandon enjoyed:
1-eating dinner at GoodWood
2-leaving the dance


And, I do have to say that the "Dance Patrol" that walk around with their saber lights think they OWN the dance floor. During the slow dances, they patrol the floor to make sure nobody is "dancing too close". Well, Miss Light Saber Patrol...I am MARRIED. And, I guarantee you that I will be dancing close to my husband. I had an urge to freak dance Brandon, but ran into two obstacles: 1) I don't know how, and 2) Brandon wouldn't let me.

The VERY happy couple

The other Happy Couple

Skinny white guy trying to either do the "ants in his pants" dance, or the "I'm too sexy for this Dance" dance. Not quite sure what he was trying to accomplish. (Please note the embarassed date in the brown shirt...poor poor girl).

And, in other news: The Wilkinson family planned on getting their family pictures taken on Saturday up in the Canyon. The snow made for a rough photo-op, so we rescheduled the pictures. But, this didn't stop us from showing off our freshly cleaned hair and makeup. On our way down the canyon, we stopped at a park for a quick shot.

And, the Happy Couple's One Year Photo

Happy Homecoming from the Wilkinsons!

Ireland Part Deux

And, I failed to give this picture any air time, but I thought I should direct your attention to the corner of the red door where I am posed. We thought we would cleverly pose a "Senior Pictures meets Anthropologie" -esque picture...and do you know the only thing I got out of it? A humongous cobweb caught in my hair and all down my back! Seriously. Disgusting. And, you can bet your bottom dollar that I felt like I had creepy crawly heebie jeebies for the remainder of the trip!

Where I Been...

Would you believe me if I told you the reason I haven't been blogging for the last three weeks was because I was in Ireland? My extremely generous Dad took my four sisters, aunt and me to Ireland for 10 days. He just retired from his business, and to celebrate his retirement he treated US to Ireland! Not the most typical retirement party, seeing as how he did all of the buying. But it was amazing. It was a wonderful opportunity, and such a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We saw the lights of Dublin, the Castles of Dungairre, the sheeps of Dingle, and the rolling hills of Ireland. It was beautiful! And, since I took too many pictures, I of course, will direct you once again to my slide show...and as they say in Ireland, "Please mind the captions on the pictures". (a.k.a. make sure you remember to read the captions!)
And, what better to compliment a slide show than a Top 10 list?

Top 10 Things I learned from my trip to Ireland
1. Even if you get seated on the plane next to an Irish girl with an awesome accent, tell her you have to sleep the entire flight...or else she will talk for the duration of the flight...and you will be very tired.
2. Just because the Euro money is cute and shiny does NOT mean it is play money. It actually means you only get $.76 for every US Dollar. Ugh.
3. Irish accents are the coolest, but NOT if you try to imitate one. The Irish don't think that is funny.
4. My Dad knows the entire song of "Whiskey in the Jar," which allowed us to fit right in at every singalong night at the pubs.
5. Rush hour traffic is actually when the cows/sheep are crossing the road.
6. Driving on the wrong side of the car AND the wrong side of the road can be very very scary.
7. Don't talk politics with my Aunt.
8. Chips are french fries and Crisps are potato chips. And, if you order a "grilled cheese sandwich" they will have no idea what you are talking about.
9. Chocolate in Ireland is delicious, and my Dad never seized an opportunity to stop at the local market to grab a chocolate bar.
10. If you are trying to search for your Irish Ancestors in Ireland, make sure you have the right information. We just might be from England after all! :-)

And, of course I was jonesing for my sweetheart every single day, so I made sure to get a calling card and check-in with him every single day. And, do you know what HE was doing while I was away? Surprising me with my very own pink laundry room! Our laundry room was just in our unfinished basement, so Brandon spent every waking moment painting/drywalling/building a laundry room for me! I LOVE IT!

He even decorated it with a sign!

Notice the shelf, the paint job, and the wooden border around the wall. Such a handy man!

And, he even put in a sink! If you can read the sign, it says "Welcome to Extreme Home Makeover: Ireland Edition"!!! So cute!

The Luck O' De Irish