Two years (and a couple months....or five)

I started making this video for Preston for our 2 year anniversary (which was August 5th) and just got around to finishing it tonight. Enjoy!

purpose

Sometimes the monotony of doing the same thing over and over each day leaves me in a bit of a "funk".  A funk where I have zero creative ideas and very little ambition.  I guess that happens when a creative person like me hovers over a computer screen examining one Excel spreadsheet after another, EVERY SINGLE DAY.  These times usually leave me wondering what my purpose is and anticipating something exciting in my life that is days, or even months, away.  I know I shouldn't complain because I really do have a great life.  I have a wonderful job, an amazing husband and all of the things I need right now.  But, I'm also human and there is always seems to be some discontent in life.

I remember Preston and I having a discussion similar to this a while back.  We talked about when we were younger and all we could think about was turning 16 and being able to date & drive.  "Once we can do that, we will be SOOOO happy", we thought. Then, that happened, and we started looking forward to graduating high school and going to college and going on a mission.  We were sure that was when true happiness was achieved.  Same thing with getting married (that did bring true happiness, actually), getting a dog, getting a grownup job, having kids....yada yada yada. 

But the funny thing is, every time one of those monumental times in our lives has come and gone, something else comes up that we start looking forward to, leaving us unsatisfied with our current state once again. 

I, for one, am sick of living my life like this.  So many times I think to myself, "man, when I am done working and get to be a stay-at-home Mom, I won't ever want anything else. Nothing could make me happier than that!" But, from experience, I know that there is always going to be "something else" I am going to want or do.

So I am going to do my best to stop having this type of attitude.  I feel like when I am constantly counting down the days until that "one big day we have been looking forward to for so long" finally gets here, we will have wasted so much time in the meantime.  We just have to be willing to find the excitement in the little things and not get discouraged when every day isn't a birthday or Christmas or a day off from work.  So here's to committing that even though it is just an ordinary Wednesday in January, it can still be awesome and I am going to make it the best dang Wednesday I have had yet (even if it is a workday) ! :)

"The trick is to enjoy life. Don't wish away your days, waiting for better ones ahead." -Marjorie Pay Hinckley

four seasons

The thing I love most about living in Utah is being able to experience every season.

 In the summer, I am convinced that nothing can possibly beat the sun, warm weather, and days at the lake.

But then fall comes and I am in awe of the changing leaves and cool, crisp mornings and slightly cooler days. My mind changes once again and fall is then my favorite. :)

And then there is winter. And the first snow fall comes and I am in love once again.  I know, I know, the snow is terrible for driving in. But the snow is only here for a couple of months before it melts and we are enjoying warm weather again. And honestly, everything looks ten times more beautiful with a blanket of snow covering it. I love it! I love being able to bundle up in scarfs, boots, and jackets. I love spending the day skiing with my hubby.  Nothing beats it. Nothing!

Until, of course, spring comes and I change my mind all over again! :)

(my Hunter boots and I have become best buds this winter)

(the result of her playing in the snow - she becomes a snowball!)

So Utah, you're my fave. Thanks for never ceasing to disappoint me.



some words about blogging.

Lately I have had this monkey on my back telling me to blog.  But there is one little problem with that, scratch that - a BIG problem - I feel like there is nothing going on in my life worth blogging about. Sure, I usually do something fun and out of the oridinary on Saturdays & Sundays but as for the other five days of the week, not so much.  It's hard to come up with things to talk about when I am confined to a cubicle forty hours a week.

But then it occurred to me.  Why put off blogging until I am a "stay at home Mom with cute kids to blog about" person? Is my life not important enough now to keep a history of? That answer is obvious - of course it is! But it's not always easy to remember. 

Most bloggers in the "blogosphere" are cute, young Moms with cute, little kiddos. Most of the time their blogs are devoted to documenting everything about their cute kids. And I am by no means saying that is a bad thing.  Let's be honest, those are the ones I read on a daily basis and can't wait to be like someday.

But then I realized, I have a great life now! And ten to twenty years from now I want to look back and remember how great our life was when it was just the two of us (and little Millie, of course).  So I am recommitting to myself (and to anyone else out there that ever stubbles upon my blog) to be better at documenting the story of our life.  Not just a "this is what we did over the weekend" post either but rather a journal that we can look back on and remember the day-to-day, good and bad times.  Because they happen every day, not just on the weekends. :)

And since I feel like a post is never complete without pictures, here is what life has been like for us according to my iPhone:

family time

Family time is the the best time, in my opinion.

Last weekend we rented The Avengers and decided to watch it and have a sleepover in our front room. It was so much fun! We both ended up falling asleep half way through and it was perfect because we didn't have to wake up and go to bed - we could just keep sleeping! So much fun! I plan on doing it again. :)

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I also went on a bit of a crafting spree last weekend. For some crazy reason I woke up at 630 on a saturday morning and couldn't fall back asleep! 

I gave up trying and got right to crafting. I might be crazy ;)

Burlap Fall Wreath

Polka Dot Pennant Banner :)

This is our "Thankful Banner" thanks to pinterest :) I love it so much! Each day we right a little something we are thankful for. 

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On Friday my cousin Brendan was married in the Bountiful temple. He and his wife Lexi are so cute! They are very much in love :) 

It was so snowy on their wedding day and some of us forgot to bring an umbrella so we had to use our scarfs to try and protect our hair :) Love my sissys! I got to see all of them this weekend!! :)

In between the luncheon and the reception, we went and checked out Sheels, the new sporting goods store. The Hubby loved it! And I didn't mind it either. :)

Riding the Ferris Wheel at Sheels :)

Some of my cute nieces! :)

I finally got to hold this little bug this weekend!!! :) He is an absolute doll.

Beckham Mathew, my newest nephew :)

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On Saturday we woke up to a winter wonderland!!!! Some little doggie loves the snow....

We took a drive up to Sundance with my parents and Emily to check out the deals they were having on ski gear. We found some steals :)

Anyone else think my husband looks a little bit like my dad? Notice their hats, fleece jackets....

They even walk the same! It was cracking us up! 

Cute sissy:)

My parents hadn't seen much of City Creek so we headed up there for the rest of the day. It started to snow again as soon as we got there! I love this time of year! 

I have the cutest hubby :)

We ended the day with that delectable caramel up there. Perfect ending to a perfect weekend with some of the ones we love :)

little sister visits :)

Every couple months Preston and I have the chance for my little sister, Emily, to come and stay with us for a couple of days. 

She likes adventure and experiencing new things so we really try to get our creative juices going when we know she is coming to town. This time around was easy. As much as she has visited us, she's never hiked the Y. So that is what we did.

Emily, Millie and I spent the morning hiking the side of Y mountain. Luckily, it's just a short hike but it was a little steeper than I think Emily was anticipating. She finished though and was so proud of herself! 

The main event of her visit was by definitely the Haunted House we went to. I'm so sad we don't have pictures to document it.

I'm not big into them and neither is Preston, but it is totally worth it to see Emily's reactions. We got a good ab workout from how much Emily always makes us laugh.

The rest of her visit was pretty low key. We did some shopping, ate some delicious pizza at CPK, indulged in frozen yogurt (always on the agenda when Emily comes) and visited with dear friends of ours that touch Emily's life more than they will probably ever know. 

Thanks for visiting, Em! We love you! 

halloween

This was a halloween that went down in history for the Bishoff's....we FINALLY dressed up! 

Every year since we have been married I have wanted to dress up but every year we haven't had a good enough excuse to do it. 

Well, this year (thanks to our bro & sis-in-law) we had an excuse! 

We were crunched on time as far as coming up with a costume goes so we decided to be super traditional and go as MUMMIES!  

The costumes only lasted about half way through the party but I definitely have to say getting ready was the most fun part. (it's not every day you get to do your husband's makeup:))

So here you have it: 

The Mummies and.....the lady bug (random, yes. but we couldn't not dress her up!) 

This was such a quick and easy and CHEAP costume! We bought plain white fabric at walmart, tore it to shreds and wrapped ourselves up. 

If I had more time I would have made it look more old and tattered but I think it turned out pretty good for being last minute! Not to mention, my goal of dressing up as a couple on halloween finally happened!! :)