Happy Birthday to Ryan!

Ryan and I love that we get to celebrate birthdays all through December. With his just 6 days before mine, and mine just 9 days before Christmas, it's a treat filled time. Even so, for his birthday I did my best to recreate the P.F. Changs Great Wall of Chocolate cake. Unfortunately I bought the raspberries for the sauce and forgot to make it! The cake was awesome!

Five Star Painting Training and Family Time

Putting this painting company together has been a lot of work! Before the training, the company sent Ryan all kinds of training materials that he worked through. Lucky for him he doesn't have a job right now, so it's given him a lot of time to do it. The training was Dec. 3-7. Ryan went out for the whole week, but I couldn't take all the time off work, so I flew out Tuesday after work and joined him for the last 3 days. The great thing about all this---the training was in Utah. Can you believe it? The company happens to be located in Spanish Fork, UT, of all places. The guys who started it are all LDS, which we found out during our validation process, and they are all great. We were lucky because we had family to stay with, so we didn't have to pay a hotel, my brother Matt let us borrow a car, and we flew out on plane vouchers from when we got bumped on the flight to Cameron's wedding in AZ in August. So for us, it was a low cost trip, which was great because we are totally in budget mode right now.

The training was great. We learned TONS! All about paint, setting up the business, how to estimate a job, how to present the sale. And that's just for starters. Ryan's got another training he'll go to in January to fine tune the estimating and sales training. I think learning the estimating was the most fun part of the training for me. We went to Scott's house, the CEO, and Chad's, another exec. and put together interior and exterior quotes for painting their homes. There were 3 other guys out there for training also, so we'd all compare quotes and usually we were within about $100 or less of each other on price.

Here's one of my favorite aspects of the training. So like I said, almost all of the guys at Five Star are LDS. On Monday one of them told the crew (none of them LDS), "Hey tomorrow night at my church a bunch of guys are getting together to play basketball. You should come!" One guy spoke up and said he'd read about Mormon church ball on the internet (no way!) and he understood it could get pretty brutal. Haha! Well, I think most of them went and played. (Ryan did not as he was picking me up from the airport that night.) Wednesday night, the company took us to dinner at Tucano's. Oh, I love it. Well, of course none of these guys drink, plus we're in Utah, so no one even asks really. All the execs order lemonades, as do Ryan and I, so the other guys mostly follow suit. Later the one that didn't order lemonade and just had a coke or something, asked if there was alcohol in the drinks. The CEO was like, "Nah, of course not. It's lemonade!" Then after dinner, the CEO invited everyone over to his house to watch a movie in his theatre room in the basement. Ryan and I passed because we were seeing family that night, but the other three guys went. The next day we asked them how the movie was. One guy said, it was great, but they started late because on the way over, Scott (CEO) remembered he needed to set up chairs for the church Christmas party, which was the next night. So he just took everyone with him and put them to work for an hour setting up all the tables and chairs for the party! And then of course, the next night everyone was invited to the party. I love how natural it was to just involve all the guys in church stuff on this 5 day trip they were in Utah. So funny. Welcome to the Kingdom.

The trip was also great because we got to spend time with may family and also see Ryan's brother Cameron and his wife. It was so fun to have my parents come down since we were so close. We all had some time to spend with Matt's family and with Grandma Stewart. Jason is such a cute little man. He was pretty excited about his "Neeeuuuwww Uncle Rynan!" I think he loved playing with Ryan. We were only missing Dan at this get together, but we had fun with having as many as we did together. 

Thanksgiving

So, I didn't remember to take many pictures at Thanksgiving this year. We went to Ryan's parents' house and had several friends join us. A few from the book club came since they don't have family in the area and our friends Jordan and Jenny brought their cute baby and came from Penn State to spend a few days with us. 

Thanksgiving day we took everyone for a little exploration. This was a continuation of Ryan and my exploits last spring. The woods get too dense in the summer to see anything, so we needed to wait for the winter when all the plants die. We found the old jalopy we'd heard about, but we found untold treasures in those woods! I forgot to take my camera, and it actually got dark pretty soon after we went out, so we did most of our exploration with flashlights. We found old bus seats, thousands of old bottles, and old refrigerator, tin mess kits, and tons of other old stuff. Now that we found so much more than we knew was there, we are planning a return trip in the daylight.

On Friday we took Jordan, Jenny, and Tanner to the National Zoo. They had it all decorated for Christmas and it was the first day of zoo lights, but we didn't stay long enough to see it all lighted. We loved seeing the animals and the lion even stood up and roared for us. It was a good show. 

National Zoo zebra

 We learned that cheetahs are the only variety of the large cats that can be domesticated. Ever since then, Ryan is looking forward to someday having a yard so we can raise some cheetahs. We figure that will require some land so they can run. :)

We thought they were going to feed them while we were there. They were all prowling around the feeding area. 

The Thanksgiving break was really great. I'm so grateful for the time to relax and spend with people we love. I have so much to be thankful for.

Ahhhh.. Thai Massage....

A couple weeks ago, Ryan found an awesome deal on Living Social. It was a full day class where they teach you Thai massage. That's right. Not just one of those where you pay $50 to GET a massage, but you actually learn the techniques to give a Thai massage. What was even better, it was a deal for two. It is one of the BEST things we've ever purchased. The class went from 9 am to 6pm, so it really was a full day, but it was a full day of relaxation in our pajamas.

By the time we left, we were feeling so good, and we got bona fide laminated certificates that certify our completion of the introduction to Thai Massage course. We came out of the class with a book of Thai massage techniques and we went over enough moves to give a 30 minute massage. It was an experience that just keeps on giving!

Certified!

Miracles and a Painting Company

At the beginning of November Ryan lost his job, although I have to say, it was an experience full of miracles. I really feel like the Lord’s hand has been in this. Ryan hds been with NII for about 2 years. For about the last 8 months or so, he had really not been happy there and his discontent had been increasing. He felt his job just didn’t allow him to really utilize his talents or grow. Ever since college, he’s wanted to own his own business. He did some entrepreneurial ventures back then and since he tasted that experience, he’s never been fully satisfied at another job. So back in July we sat down and created some goals. We set a goal that he could be out of NII by January, we would save a certain amount of money by that point, and we could launch some kind of business if he would create a plan for what he wanted to do. Well, as time went by, it was very apparent we were nowhere near our savings goal. Although we had saved some money, it certainly wasn’t accumulating at the rate we had anticipated. We weren't even close. In September they announced that there would be layoffs in November, but Ryan really didn't think he’d be on the chopping block at that point. As things drew closer, more information came out and we learned the cuts would be much more severe than we had anticipated, though we also learned that there would be a nice severance package for those leaving. We began to feel that that would be a great blessing for us. The week of the layoffs Ryan found out he would be getting let go, and then when the actual day came we were surprised to find out that the severance money was nearly double what we were anticipating. What this ultimately meant was that we now had a clear slate to pursue a new career option, and we had the funds in our account that we had planned on. I attribute this blessing fully to the Lord and to paying tithing and fast offerings. I know that He blessed us for our faithfulness and it is He who made it possible to achieve our goals in this area. I’m so grateful for a knowledge of the gospel because it provides a key to blessings we so greatly need in our lives. When I think of this experience, I feel the hand of the Lord so greatly in our lives.

And that is just the beginning. Also in August or September, we started looking into various franchise options. We weren't even really think of doing it right then, just "someday in the future." We just wanted to see what was out there. Well, we found some that looked like they had potential, so we decided to talk to them a little bit and see what we thought. We started with four, and by the time my parents came had it down to two, but felt pretty good about one in particular. We still didn't know at that point if Ryan was going to be let go. When he did lose his job, I just had a peaceful feeling. We were prepared for that and we had a plan we could immediately get into action on. We decided to buy a painting company called Five Star Painting. We had a ton of criteria on any business we would buy in to, and this fit everything. It was incredible. More to come on how this all goes in the future. 

Happy Birthday John Milton

So it may or may not actually be John Milton's birthday. I didn't actually look it up. But it was the birthday of the book club we created in his name. It was about one year ago that we formed our book club. And it has evolved a lot over the time. The book club is pretty significant to Ryan and I because it was kind of how we started dating. Here's the story of the birth of the John Milton book club:

Ryan's best friend, and roommate, had taken me out a couple of times. One day after we'd been out the previous night he texted me to find out if anything was going on that night. I told him I was headed out to the outlet mall with a friend of mine. He invited us to come over after since they lived close to there (and far away from everybody else in the ward). We decided to watch a movie, but before we got it going, I was perusing some of the book shelves in the house. There was a book that talked about John Milton's Paradise Lost. This book has been on my to read list for years, but it's long... and hard. Ryan said he'd had a class on it and we talked about how cool it would be to read it out loud for discussion. About a month later, the book club was born. We started as a fairly small, intimate group. Our invitation list grew, but many would come once and not ever show again. It seemed to weed out a lot of people, but we had a stable group of regulars. Every Sunday evening started with a potluck and then we'd read and discuss. Aside from being a goal of mine, and being fun to hang with friends, the spiritual insights from the book were incredible. It's all about the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Reading that book, I know that Milton was a very inspired man. He connected points of doctrine that have been revealed in our day, but were never taught by other churches. Those who stayed the course all felt the same.

Milton's birthday cake!

Since it's inception, we'd read a variety of books: The Importance of Being Ernest (Oscar Wilde), Lectures on Faith (Joseph Smith), An Ideal Husband (Oscar Wilde), The Constitution, The Weight of Glory (C.S. Lewis), and The Mansion (Henry Van Dyck). We love finding something that has depth and gives something great for discussion. Books are always read out loud and we all read together. Our book club has grown in number and we now have several members from the Langley Ward, Potomac Ward, and Shenandoah Ward. Plus, we've had one baptism! The book club has been a great way to see friends, discuss ideas, and of course, eat great food.

Mom and Dad Visit Virginia

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

Ryan and I really enjoyed having my parents here this October. On Saturday we took them to Harper's Ferry because it is such a beautiful drive, and only about 45 minutes away from our house. It's right at the border of Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia. It's a really old, really small civil war town. Ryan and I have been there before, and we took them to some of the same places we've been. The fall colors have been so gorgeous this year. They were a little past their prime on this trip, but still beautiful.

In the evening, we met Dan and went down to Old Town Alexandria. We walked around the pier, ate dinner at a fun seafood restaurant, and then took a ghost tour. The tour guide was fun and she had some great stories.

Old Town Alexandria Pier

They flew in on Friday and it was supposed to be a short trip. However, due to Hurricane Sandy, the visit ended up lasting longer. They were originally scheduled to fly back to Boise on Monday, but on Sunday morning, all the schools preemptively cancelled school for Monday and Tuesday, and all the airlines cancelled the Sunday and Monday flights. We weren't sure how long it would be until they were able to get out! Their flight got rescheduled for Wednesday morning, but then on Monday, that one got cancelled too. They weren't going to get out until Thursday at that point. They made some calls and ended up refunding half their ticket and buying a Delta ticket out Tuesday night. We loved having them for the extra days, and it was great because Ryan and I both had work cancelled so we were able to just spend the time with them!