Now we can look back at the days as newlyweds in Cleveland and just laugh... and secretly make the vow that we'll never live in that place again.
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Here are some Cleveland Experiences I will never forget:
-Driving across the country to Cleveland and stopping in some sketchy places like Gary, Indiana to get gas. Imagine being two young college kids with a car full of stuff and Utah licence plates going into one of the worst crime-infested cities in the country (un beknownst to us). I swear we were almost shot, but I can say that I am a survivor of that bathroom break!
-Moving into our first place which was an adorable little duplex in University Heights.
-Learning that my husband hates putting together things, and will swear up a storm until it's done. I must admit that we do have a few pieces of furniture that are a little off-kilter, but that's ok with me. Tyson didn't want to let me reassemble it...I think it might have to do with him losing part of his manhood or something. I dunno I don't get it.
-Going to DC for the first time (for me), with my wonderful hubby being my tour guide and showing me all of the things he loved about the city making me love it just as much as him!
-Learning how to actually drive in the snow.
-Shoveling the show for the first time. To be quite honest I kind-of enjoy it.
-Having our first Valentine's Day as a married couple sitting on the couch with our delivered Chinese watching movies and just laughing together. I didn't have to work and Ty didn't have school because of the huge blizzard that day.
-Going to Niagra Falls in the winter.
-Celebrating my 21st B-day!
-Seeing Amish Country for the first time.
-Going to my FIRST Bronco's game.
Then we were off to DC that first summer so he could work at a lobbying firm. We were so excited to live in that wonderful city and wanted to take it all in and experience as much of it as possible because we had no idea Tyson was going to transfer to GW. It was fun subletting a tiny apartment in downtown DC. When we got the acceptance we were thrilled to say the least!
While I worked at my job Ty was apartment hunting. He came up with a few he really liked. One wasn't really what we were looking for and I asked him why it was on the list. He said it was possibility because the lobby had fresh cookies daily for their residents...yup...that's my hubby! We ended up choosing a different apartment which led us to be in the wonderful ward that we're in right now, and that we will miss so much.
I always tried to be the one that gave Tyson all the support and motivation he needed. It was hard because I'm kind of high maintenance when it comes to attention and I know it was hard for him to juggle his time between me and school but he was good at making sure I was taken care of and at the same time getting great grades. Tyson is amazing in all that he does and it was no surprise to me that he would give law school 100% which he did. I am so proud of him and everything that he has accomplished.
He printed out his offer letter that he got in an email instead of telling me over the phone. I was asleep when he got home and he woke me up and put the folded up email next to me as he changed into something nicer. I was irritated because I thought he was just throwing the contents of his pockets onto me. I unfolded the paper and started to read. It said your normal rejection line that we've heard from hundreds of firms and I was overwhelmed because this meant we were at square one with the job hunt...again. I kept reading thinking of how Tyson felt about this whole thing when I came upon the paragraphs that stated they would love for him to join their firm and the tears came gushing out without any way for me to stop them. I honestly didn't think I would cry when he found something but that's just what happened.
This whole experience of job hunting has been a roller coaster with it's ups and downs. I've had so much stress on my shoulders and so quickly it was all gone! I'm glad I was able to help Tyson apply for jobs but it is very overwhelming trying to be the strong one and comfort him when the rejections would come in the mail. I am so excited that we found something and that we will be closer to family. After I bawled for awhile I got ready and we celebrated by going to Carlyle. That whole night we talked about how fun it will be living in Utah but how we will greatly miss living in DC. We even wrote a long list of the things we still need to see. I know a lot of them won't be crossed off but we're planning on for sure coming back to visit!
It's amazing to me that he is almost done just because I feel like these three years have lasted a really long time, and that he would be in school forever! Tyson says that the whole experience flew by for him. It was the last semester that really flew by for me but now it's done and a celebration cruise, graduation, and a move to Utah is almost upon us! To be quite honest I always thought we might end up in Utah after maybe 10 years after law school was over, but never thought it would be so soon. I'm kind of hesitant to move to Utah and I'm not really sure why, I mean I only really lived there for 8 months out of my whole life. Tyson says that Californians just have a biast against his precious state. I've just really loved diversity and having friends of different faiths my whole life, and I'm nervous that I won't really get that in Utah unless I search high and low. I'm also not a fan of snow and cold weather...not a fan at all.
In spite of all of this I can say that I am excited to be closer to some family so when we have a family we won't be across the country while raising the little tikes. I'm also excited to be closer to Cali to be able to see my family more as well. And I do like building snowmen and sledding so I guess snow isn't all bad. Taking into account all of the places I have resided I can honestly say that DC has been my favorite place to live and that means a lot coming from a die-hard, born and raised Californian. I will never forget living out here and will cherish all of our DC memories forever!
A tid bit of DC memories:
-Subletting a tiny apartment downtown and discovering we had a few mice living with us.
-Seeing the White House (my first), and all the monuments. I didn't understand that when Tyson talked about 'The Mall' he meant the stretch of DC with all the monuments.
-Riding the metro, and telling Ty that I never want to ride it alone - good thing I got over that!
-Eating crab freshly caught from the Atlantic Ocean, and going to the Atlantic Ocean.
-Really truly experiencing a DC Fourth of July which included an evacuation of The Mall because of a tornado warning...which made us get a great spot right on the Lincoln Memorial steps when they let us back in.
-The first time I stepped outside in DC humidity and almost couldn't inhale it was so thick!
-Listening to the president speak in person at Arlington Cemetery.
-Experiencing the Cherry Blossoms and their grandure.
-Going to New York City which was a blast.
-Training for and finishing the DC marathon.
-Starting up Girls Night with some great friends, a lot of whose husbands are also in law school...and staying up into the wee hours of the morning just hanging out.
-Seeing the look on Tyson's face after each semester was over because it was just one more hurdle that he successfully jumped over!
So here's to reminiscing about some amazing memories we've had in DC these last few years, and here's to many many more memories to come. 
Room-Service breakfast french toast
Hotel Park City
Jayde's view while we drive around and look at trees
It was a fun trip and nice to get away from our normal lives.
As most of you know Tyson was laid off a few months ago from the firm here in Salt Lake (clients weren't paying). Since then he has been super motivated and determined to find another job quickly especially with the baby on the way and all. With this legal job market it was difficult because most firms aren't hiring. However, he just accepted a job offer from a REALLY great firm in St. George, UT (about 4 hours south of Salt Lake) called Snow Jensen and Reece. He starts December 1st which we are both excited about. I was even able to meet with the attorneys there and they all seemed very honest and genuinely great people which I'm glad about. I know he will do very well there, and I'm SUPER excited that we will be living in the warm weather of St. George!
OH! Just as a side note - I am posting from my first self-owned computer, a new Dell Inspirion laptop that I got so I could work from home. No more using Tyson's 5 year old computer. I absolutely love it!
We have had so many wonderful experiences these last three years and even though we've had many ups and downs I am so glad I was able to experience this with Tyson and didn't marry him after he was done with his education. We knew each other for 8 months before we were hitched, and two weeks later he started law school at Case Western out in Cleveland. It was the furthest East I'd ever been and to be completely honest I hated Cleveland with a passion...hated it! I think it was the weather that got to me the most with two feet icicles hanging from our windows in the winter and the temps not even going above zero for two weeks. There's also the fact that it snowed a crap load and I pretty much didn't see the sun for three months straight. I almost totaled our car multiple times while driving to work in the ice-storm aftermath. Despite all of that we did have some fun times out there, meeting great people in our ward and seeing things I've never seen before. 
I started this post October 4th with the full intent to put it on the blog that day. Tyson read it and said he didn't want to put anything on the blog about job hunting in case a future employer saw it and decided not to hire him....I got pretty mad about it but got over the fact that he was probably right. I'm just glad I can finally post about our job hunting experience.
updating each cover letter, and stuffing envelopes that I realized how much work this really took. Tyson and I put hours and hours into this, and I just know that it will pay off soon (little did we know that soon would be about 5 months away). Tyson and I joke around that he wishes I could take his tests for him sometimes, and I am glad that this is actually something that I can do to relieve some of his stress. It makes me feel pretty good. I have loved just going with the flow and seeing where our law school adventure would take us, and so far it has been a great adventure.
Every year my work has their "Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest". 
Yes my friends...my husband is currently in LA, relaxing at the beach...without me. So while I brave the storm and keep an eye out for flying objects from people's balcony's my thoughts will go out to him, his warm weather, and beautiful palm trees. Actually I'm glad that he is able to go to the beach today. He flew out for an interview in LA and had some time to kill. He has been working so hard with school and his job, he deserves a little bit of relaxation. Just want to send a shout-out to my wonderful husband who is working so hard to make us have a great life after law school! Love you babe! Oh...and I decided that if he gets a call-back, I am definately going with him next time!
