jonathan + jamie

Nice & Avignon, France

2011-11-12T13:37:00.001-05:00

Day 7 - August 16th

Similar to every day on this trip, we had an early start on the train to make our way from Genoa, Italy to Nice, France. After a day of intense hiking, it was nice to relax on the train and enjoy the beautiful coastal views as we made our way through the last of the Italian Riviera and into the French Riviera.

Our first destination when we arrived? Crepes, of course! Our mouths were watering as we ordered - crepes with lemon & sugar and banana & nutella. After inhaling the deliciousness, we walked around and enjoyed the old city of Nice.

Second stop? Gelato!! Luckily enough, Nice is close to the Italian border and carries on the tradition of yummy gelato.

Day 8 - August 17th
One of my favorite parts of Nice was the market. They had everything imaginable - fresh fruit, flowers, breads and more! We packed our bags with breakfast / lunch and made our way to the beach where we enjoyed a couple hours on the French Riviera.

That afternoon, we strapped on our backpacks and made our way west and a little north to a quaint, charming town called Avignon. This little city is bordered by medieval walls and is often referred to as the City of the Popes as it was once the capital of the Catholic church.

Pont de Benezet

Day 9 - August 18th

This picture is for my uncles sport the brand "Carhartt" - they always joke how they can't wear this brand anymore because it has been trendy. Looks like it has made it's way to France!

Back on the train - making our way to Barcelona!!

Cinque Terre

2011-10-03T20:50:00.001-04:00

Day 6 - August 15th
Early Monday morning we made our way to the Roma Termini and caught a train to La Spezia. Upon arrival we stored our backpacks at the station and caught a local train to Monterosso, the northernmost city of Cinque Terre, where we began our hike through three of the five cities.

The trail from Monterosso to Vernazza was by far the most difficult. Although the hike was demading, it was absolutely breathtaking as its path wound through olive orchards and vineyards. Vernazza reminded me of a mini Venice. Very quaint, yet packed and touristy. Corniglia was my very favorite. It seemed like many hikers bypassed this town. Too bad for them as it seemed to offer the most authentic Italian coastal living.

Monterosso

Vernazza

Corniglia

Rome, Italy

2011-09-17T08:26:00.001-04:00

Day 4 - August 13th

Early Saturday morning we left Ghana to kick off our backpacking trip through Europe! First destination? Rome, of course. Jonathan will find any excuse he can to make his way back to Italy. After eating rat, whole fish and other obscure meals, he was even more excited to get to Rome and eat!! Pizza, gelato, pasta, gelato, gelato...

We got in late afternoon on Saturday, so we only had a day and a half in Rome before we were off to our next destination!

We stayed at a little bed & breakfast right near the Pantheon. It was the perfect location - within walking distance of so many of our favorite sights, restaurants and gelaterias!

Day 5 - August 14th

We packed as much as we could into our 60 hours in Rome. Jonathan spoke the language beautifully, and I attempted as much as I could thanks to his training. We did the entire day on foot, which looking back now was a good decision considering we made 3 different stops for gelato.

I absolutely loved being in Rome again and not feeling the pressure to see everything. Instead we were able to meander through one of our favorite cities in the world and enjoy the things we saw along the way. Our stops included:

Piazza Navona

Piazza del Popolo

Villa Borghese (Rome's Central Park)

The charming streets of Rome

Pizzerias

Gelaterias - favorites include Frigidarium & Giolitti

Vittorio Emmanuelle II

The Forum & Colosseum

Accra, Ghana

2011-08-27T20:02:00.002-04:00

Day 1 - August 10th
After about 15 hours in flying, I arrived in Ghana at 11am. I anxiously got off the plane and made my way through passport security where they took my picture and finger prints of all 10 of my fingers. Precautionary measures in case I lose a finger, I guess. Next I grabbed my backpack, walked through customs and made my way toward the exit signs. As I turned around the corner I saw the familiar faces of my husband and mother-in-law. I started running and with tears in my eyes ran right into Jonathan's arms. Finally we were reunited!!

The ride home from the airport was quite adventurous. We were waved down by law enforcement for inconveniently changing lanes. During his time in Ghana Jonathan developed a bit of a Ghanaian accent. His accent certainly came in handy as he talked the officer through the situation, and after a small donation of ₵10 cedi (the equivalent of about $6) we were on our way home.

After cleaning up and putting some things away at home, we met up with Lee at the West Africa Area Church Office Building where he was assisting with a missionary training meeting. Because I was never a missionary, it was fun to sit in, learn more about missionary work and watch Lee and Jane in action.

Day 2 - August 11th

We woke up the next morning to attend a session at the Accra Temple. It is such a beautiful building and is easily the most beautiful building in the entire city.

After leaving the Temple, Jonathan hailed a taxi, and we made our way to the market. Taxis in Ghana are not equipped with meters, so instead you negotiate the price to your destination. Thankfully Jonathan had a lot of experience with this during his prior two and a half months in Ghana. I would have had no clue what to do or what was a fair price!

As soon as we walked in to the market, we were greeted by a couple of men. They quickly learned that Jane and I were new to Ghana and wanted to take us to their shop to perform a welcome song for us on their drums. We were very impressed!

The market was just an amazing experience altogether. As we walked through the streets of dirt lined with shops built from what to us would be shacks, my heart was overwhelmed. We are blessed with so much.

Jonathan was quite the celebrity at this market. Everyone knew him and had nicknamed him Mr. Ghana.

Day 3 - August 12th

The next day we took a five hour drive west to Kakum National Park where we did a canopy walk through the rainforest and visited the Cape Coast Slave Castle. Once again, the driving is adventuresome in Ghana!

On the way we passed a couple hair salons. Since I work in the industry I was fascinated to see what their salons look like!

We also saw a lot of signs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It's amazing how quickly the church is growing in this part of the world! The Ghana - Accra mission alone baptizes over 200 people a month. It's amazing!!

I am amazed by the women in Ghana. They are tough. If they don't have a baby strapped around their back with cloth, they are carrying something atop their head. This was by far the most impressive object I saw carried: a sewing machine!

The people in Ghana absolutely love Obama. We saw President Obama's face on billboards and even carved into bowls at the market.

The canopy walk consisted of a hike across 7 different rope bridges that were elevated about 150 feet in the air. It was a litte nerve-racking, but it helped that you could hardly see the ground through the lush rainforest.

Our last stop of the day was the Slave Castle. During our tour we learned of the history of the slave trade and saw their poor living conditions.

On the drive home we did some grocery shopping at a stand on the side of the road. The mangoes and pineapple in Ghana are delicious!

It was an amazing three days in Ghana! I loved being able to see firsthand and have a better context of the world that Jonathan had been living in and the amazing adventure that Lee and Jane are just beginning. I left with a greater perspective on life, a greater appreciation for the many blessings that I have and a greater desire to share my blessings with those around me.

new home in westport

2011-07-24T16:46:00.001-04:00

living room

bathroom

kitchen

bedroom

at the end of june, with the help of my sister, ethan and ward members, we moved from our apartment in south norwalk to the second story of a home in westport (only 10 minutes east of where we were living previously). after one month of being here, everything is finally stowed away and pictures are hung. all i need is for my husband to return, and this will officially be our new home.

4th of july weekend

2011-07-07T21:34:00.001-04:00

thanks (but really no thanks) to being sans-hubby, i made my way to utah to spend a much needed 5-day vacation with family & friends. we packed the days full with all things summer. now if only i could've been able to stay for my family's 2 week trip to lake powell!

met up with lee & jane, steph & kids for lunch

played tennis with mom, marie, ethan, nick & trevor

spent two perfect weather days on the boat

saw stadium of fire with david archuletta & brad paisley

4th of july traditions with cousins

woke up to this view every morning

(see the hot air ballons?)

made stove top s'mores

(it started raining on our outdoor fire pit)

pictures from ghana

2011-06-11T11:36:00.003-04:00

here are some pictures that jon sent me after a week long outreach at a rural village about 5 hours away from accra:

teaching children

eating local cuisine - fufu & grasscutter

watching the fisherman out at sea

he knows how much i love the beach. i miss him

memorial day weekend with j&a

2011-06-07T23:14:00.001-04:00

we spent our memorial day weekend with two of our favorite people, jonathan & ashley! friday night we enjoyed staying in, eating homemade pizza and catching up. saturday we made our way to new haven where we toured yale's campus, ate falafel at mamouns and enjoyed ashley's ice cream (it was only appropriate since ashley was with us!). after the grand tour the boys golfed the course at yale, the best collegiate course in the nation, and ashley & i headed to the beach - where else? it was the perfect holiday weekend.

he made it to ghana!

2011-06-01T22:30:00.001-04:00

he made it! after a lot of goodbye tears, a 4 hour flight to atlanta and an 11 hour flight to accra, jonathan is settling into his home for the next two and a half months. that's right, months. luckily my sister is living with me until july, so she is keeping me busy and my mind preoccupied.

the ironic part of this whole thing is that jonathan's dad was recently called to the first quorum of the seventy, and his first assignment starting in august is west africa with headquarters in accra, ghana - the exact same location that jonathan is currently! he and his parents will actually overlap for about 2 weeks, and then i will meet up with them mid-august. i'm counting down the days...only 70 more to go!!

jonathan is documenting his adventures on an old blog he used to sometimes update with funny teaching stories: http://levinsscythe.blogspot.com/. you should definitely check it out - if you don't know one thing about jonathan you should know that he is a very talented and entertaining writer.

ragnar relay: new haven to boston

2011-05-22T21:53:00.002-04:00

this past friday to saturday jonathan and 11 friends ran the overnight ragnar relay race through 200 miles of new england. they started in new haven, ct and ended in boston, ma with each member running three different legs of the race. jonathan ran two legs on friday - 5 miles @ 1:30 pm and 6 miles @ 11:15 pm - and one leg on saturday - 6.5 miles @ 8:45 am. although he didn't get much sleep and is feeling stiff today, jonathan had a blast. way to go team "unconquerable soles"!

after leg 1

gearing up for leg 2

finished leg 3!!

the whole team - unconquerable soles

daniel & aubrey's wedding

2011-05-22T21:29:00.000-04:00

last saturday we made our way to washington dc where jonathan's cousin was married to his beautiful bride in the washington dc lds temple. it was a beautiful day, the couple was stunning and we loved spending time with family!

marie & ethan visit ct

2011-05-22T21:09:00.000-04:00

the weekend before marie's orientation at georgetown she & her boyfriend came up pay us a quick visit in connecticut. the poor girl flew into dc around midnight, ethan picked her up (he lives in dc) and they headed straight for the mega bus that arrived in nyc at 4:30am where we met them. after catching up on some sleep, we enjoyed going to church, driving through scenic ct and of course eating yummy food. sadly we were only able to spend about 15 hours together, but it was definitely worth it! thanks for coming to see us you two!

crocs

2011-05-02T20:21:00.000-04:00

two years ago i bought one of my very favorite pair of shoes. they are a khaki colored canvas "santa cruz" style shoe - versatile, cute and comfortable. and they are crocs (please don't judge). unfortunately the design of the shoe is defective, and after about a year of wear, a hole formed in the toe. because of the common defect, crocs no longer makes these shoes in women's, so i've kept this pair around hoping people overlook my toes popping out and thinking that crocs will someday bring them back.

for easter, my sweet husband performed a miracle. in my easter basket were a pair of these exact shoes in light green! he quickly explained how he had been searching and tracked down the manufacturer in china. after my excitement in seeing they were the exact same as my old pair and not knock-offs, he later confessed that he didn't just buy 1 pair. he bought 5 in total. all in different colors. at this rate, they should last me about 10 years. maybe if i'm careful the will last even longer.

what a gem this man is. does anyone wear a size 7?

coloring easter eggs

2011-04-26T21:33:00.000-04:00

while in utah, my family & i celebrated the easter tradition of coloring easter eggs. thanks to marie's online research, she found a new twist to coloring easter eggs - wrapping a raw egg in silk & white cloth then boiling in water & vinegar. my dad donated a couple old ties that he hadn't worn in a while, and we came up with some pretty eggs!

marie's graduation

2011-04-26T21:22:00.000-04:00

last weekend i snuck in a quick trip home to watch my little sister graduate from brigham young university's college of life sciences in public health. it was so fun to cheer her on with my parents, little brothers, grandparents & uncle. way to go, marie!

nurse marie

2011-04-14T20:31:00.000-04:00

this adorable little sister of mine was accepted to georgetown university's accelerated nursing program starting this september!!! i'm so proud of marie and cannot wait for her to be our neighbor on the east coast!

nick & trev's duet

2011-03-31T22:33:00.002-04:00

how adorable is this? every time i watch my little brother's duet i can't help but smile. my favorite parts are nick's jumping wrists, trevor trying not to smile and their bodies leaning in tandem with the dynamics. now if only i could be there in person to give them a standing ovation! thanks to marie for recording & sharing!

lunch with ashley

2011-03-20T18:35:00.000-04:00

ashley was my roommate for two years at byu, and i absolutely adore her. she is currently on a mission for our church serving in the new york, new york north area which includes all of manhattan, a bit of upstate new york and western connecticut. right now she is assigned to the upper west side and harlem. yesterday jonathan and i met up with sister coleman and her companion for lunch. we enjoyed laughing about funny college memories, catching up and hearing about her experiences as a missionary. who knew that 4 years later ash and i would be sitting at a restaurant in new york city eating lunch? i love how small the world can be!

newport, rhode island

2011-03-13T21:34:00.000-04:00

i woke up at 8am saturday morning to jonathan coming up our twirly stairs saying, "jamie, wake up! it's a beautiful day, so we're going to rhode island!" the weather report promised mid-50's, so we quickly got ready, were out the door by 9am and in rhode island by 11am. i love how it's not unusual on the east coast to cross multiple state boundaries on the same day. you know, i work in new york city, live in connecticut and go to rhode island on the weekend like it's no big deal.

some of my favorite things during the day were...

a "cliff walk" along the rocky shoreline with beautiful ocean views and gigantic mansions

brightly painted historic doors & homes, all of which are still lived in & were built c. 1760

trinity church built c. 1726

i must say my favorite thing of all was this lighthouse that we chased down at the end of the day. i've never seen a prettier sunset on the east coast. the view made me feel like we were walking across the scene of a postcard.

point judith lighthouse & sunset view across the bay in narraganasett

curtis family visits ct

2011-03-10T21:13:00.000-05:00

last weekend jonathan's parents and sister + family came to south norwalk! although their visit was quick, we packed in the fun with a visit to yale's campus, a trip to the infamous stew leonard's grocery store, dessert at chocopologie, church and a birthday celebration.

jonathan is currently on spring break (lucky guy), so he went back with our visitors to philadelphia for a day where he spent more time with playing with the kids and following his mom + sister around philadelphia's international flower show.

thank you for the fun visit! we hope to see you again soon!

missing in action

2011-02-21T11:59:00.002-05:00

i've been on a social media fast for the past 3 months - no facebook and no blogs (not even looking at other people's blogs) since just before Christmas. it started off thanks to my youngest brother, 10-year-old trevor, who made a wise comment during one of our phone conversations: "facebook and blogs are a waste of time." i found his statement quite profound, so i dismissed myself altogether from the online world of networking.

yesterday, however, jonathan reminded me that the main purpose of our blog is to stay connected with our family and friends who are spread across the world. he also had a good point - even my sweet grandma has mentioned a few times that she checks up on us through our blog every now and again (hi grandma!!).

so here i am, balancing the wisdom of my brother and husband and giving a sliver of my attention to updating our blog.

here's what we've been up to in the past 3 months:

Christmas & New Years in Utah

Christmas Eve fort

curtis crew at the byu basketball game - go jimmer

trevor's favorite Christmas present

jonathan plowing snow on the 4-wheeler

snowshoeing in the heber valley

Brunch & The Museum of the City of New York

herbert katzman's glorious sky exhibit

Yale Winter Ball

when it comes to the day-to-day, we don't find too much empty space on our calendars.

for me i'm staying busy with...

work. my boss moved to another brand within l'oreal at the beginning of the year. no one has filled her position yet, so i am currently reporting directly into the assistant vice president of haircolor. although my responsibility and time commitment has drastically increased, i still love my job. additionally, during the month of january i was gone for a total of 12 days on three different consecutive business trips to las vegas, nv, charlotte, nc and richmond, va. luckily i won't have to travel again until may...travelling on business is not my idea of fun.
being sick. after my body finally had time to rest, i was sick for 2 weeks with the flu. jonathan being the public health whizz that he is claimed that i wouldn't have been sick had i gotten the flu shot. he got the shot and never got sick...

church. i was recently put in the young women's presidency for our church and am working with the mia-maids (14-15 year olds). luckily in connecticut they hold mutual on wednesday nights (when i was in young women's in the city, we held mutual on friday nights!). i love being with the youth again, although we do miss our adorable 9-year-old primary kids.

everything else. when i'm not occupied with work or church things, i stay busy teaching yoga, reading jane austen novels, attending craft night, running, spending any moment possible with my husband and enjoying time with friends.

my dear husband stays insanely busy with...

school. he's taking 6 classes, although it is recommended you only take 4, 5 at the very most. in addition to regular course work, jonathan is the communications chair for the yale school of public health. he also just finished a huge research proposal for the downs fellowship to support him during his 2.5 month study that he will be doing in Ghana this summer.

volunteering. on thursdays jonathan volunteers at a clinic in bridgeport (about 20 mins east of where we live) where he shadows doctors, assesses patients and helps with administrative work.

research. aside from his research preparation for Ghana, jonathan is also doing a research project through the rudd center for food policy & obesity that studies the effects of flavored milk on school-aged children's food choices and prevalence of obesity.

tutoring. on tuesday and thursday nights jonathan spends 3 hours tutoring a high school student in a neighboring town called westport.
scouts. jonathan was recently asked to be an assistant scout master in our ward. he's very excited to work with the scouts again.

thanksgiving in philly

2010-11-29T22:20:00.000-05:00

this year we gathered in philadelphia for thanksgiving with scott + jessica, matt + barbie and jonathan's parents. as tradition holds, we went bowling on thanksgiving day and enjoyed a delicious feast. while there, we also toured the franklin science institute and ate a good ol philly cheese steak - when in philly, right?

work and play

2010-11-21T19:00:00.002-05:00

these past two weeks have been a whirlwind, and we sure packed them full of a lot of work and play.

thomas visits connecticut:
thomas is another one of our good friends from the city. he and i became instant friends while we worked together at l'oreal, and he and jon became pals while he was our neighbor on the upper west side. now that thomas lives on the lower east side and works at ralph lauren, and we live in connecticut, we were due for a nice, long visit filled with shopping, seeing the historic sites of mystic and eating delicious new england clam chowder.

business trip to new orleans:
this week i attended divisional meetings in new orleans where i presented upcoming redken haircolor launches and promotions to our field sales team. the hotel was right around the corner from bourbon street, and i had no idea what that even meant before my trip. now i know. let's just say i was glad to be with co-workers who enjoyed eating beignets at cafe du monde.

in the heights:
on friday night jonathan tested our luck at getting lottery tickets for a broadway show called "in the heights," and we won! front row seats for $25 dollars!! we absolutely loved it - the setting takes place about 60 blocks north of where we lived in the city, so we were able to catch on to a lot of the cultural and neighborhood references. the music, dancing and story is fantastic and highly recommended.

yale vs. harvard football game:
yesterday we attended "the game" in boston. this was the 127th time the schools have played, making it the second oldest continuing rivalry in college football. admittedly, i didn't even know ivy league schools played sports; however, i quickly learned that they do, and in fact, they even play pretty well.

after the game we spent some time walking around downtown boston (i fell in love) and ate some delicious lobster at america's oldest restaurant - the union oyster house.

employee hair day:

one of the perks of my job is called "employee hair day." a few times a year some of the redken artists come into the office and do our hair - for free! this time i decided to be a little more adventuresome. i work for a hair company, so i figured why not? if i hate it, i certainly know plenty of people who could fix it for me. so, with the help of a consultation from the artist, i decided to go for an auburnish brunette color. i'm still a little surprised when i look in the mirror - it's definitely darker than my natural haircolor - but it's a fun change for now.

weepies concert

2010-11-11T23:02:00.002-05:00

last night we saw one of our very favorite bands of all time - the weepies - at the hiro ballroom in the meatpacking district of nyc. they are a folk band that is made up of a husband and wife (i just love that). we played a lot of their songs at our wedding, so they have a special place in our hearts.

this was definitely one of the best shows we've ever seen. we knew the songs and loved the music. after the show, on our way to the subway, i couldn't stop singing, and i still have songs stuck in my head...we absolutely loved it.

greg tannen (steve's brother) opened and did one song with them.

the weepies: steve tannen and his wife deb talan.

the venue.

some of our favorite songs: gotta have you, world spins madly on, all good things, orbiting, be my thrill, please speak well of me, add my effort, antarctica...okay we pretty much love everything they do!

happy halloween!

2010-10-31T21:37:00.001-04:00

homemade costumes: salt + pepper shakers

thank you jane for the idea - this isn't the first time we've used this costume!!

the mckays in nyc

2010-10-31T21:29:00.001-04:00

jonathan's sister jessica and her cute family moved to philadelphia this summer, and we are trying to take advantage of having them so close to us. on saturday we met up in the city - scott and jess did a session in the manhattan temple, and anne, megan, riggs, naomi, jonathan and i played in central park's playgrounds. we had so much fun collecting acorns (megan found over 50 acorns...and kept them in her pockets!), playing catch (riggs has an arm!), swinging on the monkey bars (i'm pretty sure anne is a monkey) and eating fruit snacks (i couldn't feed naomi fast enough!). later that afternoon we met up for yummy pizza and pasta at patsy's. we love having family on the east coast!

camping with the millers

2010-10-27T20:12:00.005-04:00

last weekend we went camping at clarence fahnestock state park (about 2 hours north of the city) with our dear friends, mark and libby! our adventure started friday evening, and after a dinner stop at a yummy greek restaurant in tarrytown, we finally made our way up to pitch our tents in the dark. the next morning we awoke to a peaceful, gorgeous scenery of fall leaves, and later that afternoon we headed west to harriman state park for one of new york's favorite hikes. during our little adventure we enjoyed...

hot chocolate around the campfire.

beautiful trees and landscapes.

good friends.

lib and i are wearing twinner jackets!

mark miller photography.
their camera ran out of batteries, so we were lucky to let them borrow ours!

breakfast by whisper light.
(instant oatmeal has never tasted so good)

taking silly pictures.
(and wearing 3 layers of clothing)

hiking through harriman state park.

quality time with mark + libby.

ice cream at the blue pig.

best of both worlds

2010-10-19T22:48:00.001-04:00

this past sunday we attended stake conference in ossining, new york [about an hour northwest of where we live in connecticut]. rather than driving i-95 to get there, we decided to take the more scenic route - and it was absolutely beautiful! breathtaking, really.

later that day we drove into the city to spend the rest of the afternoon wandering through central park. i love that in one day we can experience the best of two completely opposite worlds.

mystic, ct

2010-10-14T20:14:00.003-04:00

we're a little city sick at the moment, so we're trying to find and do fun things that will help us fall in love with connecticut. don't get me wrong - we like it here, we're just still finding our groove. this past sunday we took a drive to a quaint, historical coastal town called mystic. it was a gorgeous day and fun to spend some quality time together.

apple picking in new england

2010-10-10T22:08:00.001-04:00

fall is definitely my favorite time of year. i love all things associated with it - the colors, smells, food, spices, holidays (minus halloween...i'm not particularly fond of this one), weather, clothes, everything!

yesterday we celebrated the new season with our friends jt + lizzie by picking apples at a local farm in connecticut. while there we ate delicious apple cider donuts, walked through the pumpkin patch, rode on the back of a tractor (to get to the orchards) and picked a variety of apples: sun crisp, candy crisp, cameo, mutsu and autumn gala.

i must admit, these apples are absolutely amazing, and who knew there were so many varieties? (at this farm you pick different kinds each weekend...perhaps we will have to go again). our kitchen is now busy with all recipes apple. i love it.

now if only these leaves would turn a little more!

the hansens visit

2010-10-03T19:46:00.002-04:00

some of our very best nyc friends, jonathan and ashley hansen, spent the weekend with us! as we dropped them off in the city earlier today, my jonathan and i both agreed that this was one of the best weekends we've had in a long time! we celebrated jonathan hansen's 28th birthday, ate at yummy restaurants, watched general conference, the jonathans played a good 18-holes of golf and ashley and i had a successful trip to the outlet malls. and we laughed the entire time. thanks for coming you two!!

namaste nyc

2010-09-26T13:57:00.000-04:00

this summer a couple friends and i attended the free yoga classes on thursdays in bryant park. this has been by far one of my favorite summer-in-the-city activities. it is quite a remarkable feeling to be in the heart of the city, stretch your arms up overhead and have your view surrounded by all of the tall buildings above. add to that the noise of the sirens, horns, airplanes and swarms of people. this experience is unlike any other yoga class i have attended or taught.

i can't think of a better way to enjoy this incredible city.

happy bday mr curtis

2010-09-21T19:55:00.001-04:00

birthday celebrations last at least one week in our house, and as you can see from the pictures, we like to celebrate with delicious food! we kicked off this man's birthday with sunday dinner and later in the week with a night out to pasta nostra for dinner + chocopologie for dessert. happy 28th birthday, my dear!

first day of school

2010-09-07T12:11:00.003-04:00

this year he's going back as a student!

fun in philly

2010-09-02T22:36:00.004-04:00

thank you mckays and drapers {so sad we didn't get a picture with you!} for moving to the east coast. it's so fun to have family and friends a little closer!

utah!

2010-08-29T19:42:00.028-04:00

a couple weeks ago we escaped our crazy lives on the east coast and went home to enjoy some time with family and friends. some highlights of the trip:

the cabin

a couple days on dad's boat

yummy pizza at settebello

nick's 13th birthday

tennis

other things we enjoyed but didn't get to capture on camera are jonathan and his dad golfing, a delicious dinner with ryan + erin young, sunday dinners, jamie seeing tehmi (and eating her amazing chocolate chip cookies!), bbq's and just relaxing at home. thanks for such a wonderful trip home!!

dinner on the beach

2010-08-11T20:05:00.007-04:00

i just adore melissa - she and i were visiting teaching companions during our two years in the city, and she is an absolute gem. luckily we are only 45 minutes away, so we still get to see her! last saturday we had dinner with her and some connecticut friends at rowayton {bayley} beach. perfect setting with wonderful people. we are so lucky.

andrew bird at the guggenheim

2010-08-06T22:00:00.008-04:00

andrew bird is one of our all-time favorite musicians, and last night we were lucky enough to see him perform at the guggenheim. although it made for a tremendously late night in the city, this certainly was one of the best instrumental performances we've seen. ever.

{images from brooklynvegan.com, gothamist.com and jonathan's phone}

can you find us in the third picture?

he plays every single instrument, sings all of the vocals and even adds his own whistling into each piece he performs - both recorded and live. during last night's performance he track-looped his songs: he recorded measures strumming his violin like a guitar, clapping his hands, whistling, playing the violin and singing at the same time - and bit by bit, as he continued on, he used a foot switchboard to layer each recording on top of each other to create the entire piece. amazing.

if you don't know who he is, i highly recommend you check him out.

the manhattan temple

2010-07-25T17:54:00.004-04:00

although we moved to connecticut, we are so blessed to still belong to the manhattan temple district. what a blessing it is to find such peace in this crazy city we love.

mamoun's falafel

2010-07-25T17:43:00.004-04:00

our favorite nyc treat - it's fresh, cheap {only $2.50!} and incredibly delicous. go to the st. mark's place location and you can also get a yummy mango juice for an additional $1. lucky for jon, one of their three locations is situated in new haven, ct.

fresh peach pie

2010-07-18T18:37:00.002-04:00

my favorite dessert in the whole wide world: soda cracker crust, fresh sliced peaches and homemade whipped cream. i only wish peaches were in season a few more month's out of the year!

a perfect saturday

2010-07-18T18:09:00.009-04:00

for jamie, a day at the beach.
for jonathan, a lobster dinner.
saturday was a wonderful day!

sunday drive + walk

2010-07-11T20:19:00.009-04:00

we made it to connecticut

2010-07-11T19:42:00.006-04:00

thanks to the help of jed, robert and thomas we successfully packed up our manhattan apartment into a 14 foot u-haul.
jonathan, thomas and i then made our way up to connecticut. we hired the help of 2 football players from a local community college {they have a moving business to help them stay in shape for football season} to carry all of the heavier items up our new three story walk-up. within the middle of a few hours we went from city-dwellers to country-folk.

we are loving life in connecticut. the first couple days were a little odd {where is everyone? we have to drive to get places?}, and we found ourselves a bit homesick for the city. living in nyc demands that you learn how to live a new life - you do everything differently:

grocery shopping: you visit the grocery store at least four times a week. there is no such thing as shopping in bulk.

laundry: laundromats are the cheapest, fastest way to go. while you can get all of your laundry done in one visit, you still have to carry your laundry around the block and time it just right so you actually get a washer and dryer.

transportation: your schedule is dictated by the subway. every time you ride you get to see the most interesting people!

exercise: you walk everywhere - to the subway, up and down stairs, to the grocery store, etc - this definitely counts for exercise! if you want serious exercise, you have multiple parks, sports clubs and yoga studios right at your fingertips!

we're slowly unlearning the habits of the city and taking on the way of life in the country. every day we are feeling more and more settled in!

a scooter ride to staten island

2010-06-24T18:50:00.017-04:00

{future} father's day

2010-06-21T19:24:00.006-04:00

because most of us live away from family and don't yet have any children, we celebrated the greatest future dads in our lives complete with a delicious picnic in central park, perfect weather and a debut guitar performance from andrea.
jonathan and i also celebrated our wonderful fathers throughout the day by sharing some of our favorite memories of two of the greatest men we know! how did we get so lucky?

red bull air race at ellis island

2010-06-21T18:49:00.012-04:00

saturday afternoon we spent the day with some of our lovely friends on ellis island watching the red bull air race. i had no idea what this event was, and even after going i still can't explain it quite right, so i looked it up: it's an international series of air races in which competitors have to navigate a challenging obstacle course in the fastest time. pilots fly individually against the clock and have to complete tight turns through a course. the races are held mainly over water near cities - and this year was the first time it was ever held in nyc.

let's just say the boys loved it! {ps - all pictures below are from jonathan - he was in heaven!} although we didn't pay as close of attention, the girls had a blast chatting on blankets, eating yummy treats and watching the boys get so excited!

south norwalk, ct

2010-06-16T21:01:00.009-04:00

it's official: at the end of this month we're moving to south norwalk, ct. what? we're asking ourselves the same question! this wasn't our original plan {you will remember, about a month ago we were 99% sure we were staying in the city}. we searched high and low from east harlem to the upper east side to midtown east to tudor city. everywhere. but nothing felt right.

so we explored connecticut. after a great amount more of searching, we found a place to call home for the next two years!

these were some of the key selling points:
- perfect location between new york city and new haven {45 minutes to the city; 30 minutes to new haven}
- two blocks away from the metro north train station
- a few blocks from the beach {!!}
- cute, charming neighborhood
- so much more space for so much less money {our favorite game to play is "what can we get in ct for what we pay in nyc" - a four bedroom, three and a half bath, swimming pool, chef's kitchen..okay, maybe i'm exaggerating - but not by much!}

for a frame of reference, this is what my commute will be to work every day. back and forth. every day. luckily my office is a couple blocks north of grand central! i'm arming myself with books, podcasts, journal and secretly looking forward to the peaceful time to myself.

overall we're excited for a new adventure! at the same time, we're sad to leave so many wonderful friends. but please, please don't be strangers - we're only 45 minutes away, living in "the country."

soaked

2010-06-15T18:45:00.004-04:00

we got caught in a rainstorm on our scooter ride home from church. this is the second sunday in a row that this has happened!

i tried to convince jon to let me pull out my umbrella, but he wasn't too keen on that! he only let me open it at stop lights. lucky for me {as you can see from the pictures} he took the brunt of the rain anyway!

memorial day

2010-06-06T11:13:00.008-04:00

we spent our memorial day at long beach with good friends from our ward! we had a blast playing games, eating treats, telling stories and just laying in the sun. it was the perfect way to enjoy our day off!

may 23, 2008

2010-06-01T20:28:00.007-04:00

last sunday we celebrated 2 wonderful years of marriage! happy anniversary, darling.

a glimpse into jon's world

2010-05-25T20:11:00.002-04:00

dear jon,

the reason why i'm writing ou this letter today is to talk about my behavior on thursday may 20th, 2010. i'm truly sorry for my inappropriate comments in class on that day. you're a great teacher and i love your class. this why i tooked to write you this letter to apologize for my behavior. to improve my behavior i want to make a deal with you from wensday to next wensday i will like to try not to walk out without permission, complete all my work and no outburst. if i can pull this off you can give me a good phone call home, so may 26th - june 2nd, 2010.

deal or no deal?

thanks for you support and believing in me.

love,

a suspended student

p.s. i know i can do it. you've seen me work at my best.

graduation

2010-05-23T17:31:00.014-04:00

jonathan graduated yesterday from fordham's graduate school of education with a master of science in teaching! the day started off with a school-wide commencement including an impressive processional, an address from mary mcaleese {the president of ireland} and a lot of medieval pomp a circumstance.

next was the diploma ceremony for the graduate school of education where jonathan actually received his diploma. i'm so proud of him!!

my birthday!

2010-05-22T15:57:00.004-04:00

may is the month of birthdays in the bond family. it all starts with my mom's birthday on the 14th, my birthday on the 19th and marie's birthday on the 22nd! let's just say in this month we have a lot of breakfasts in bed, delicious dinners, yummy cakes and fun parties. so fun!

i always miss being close to home around events like this, but jonathan sure made our one-on-one celebration special! thanks to everyone for all of the birthday wishes!

we {heart} nyc

2010-05-11T23:15:00.013-04:00

during one day of his spring break, jonathan and mark {a good friend of ours} palled around on the scooter with cameras around their necks. here are some images jon captured and a few of the reasons we absolutely love this city.

the other "y"

2010-04-14T21:59:00.006-04:00

it's official - we submitted our notice of intent to yale! it sure feels good to make a decision, and we're really excited about it!! after a lot of pondering and praying we felt like this is the best fit for us, and we're excited to start this new chapter of our lives.

an added bonus: we can keep all of our byu gear!

right now our plan is to stay in manhattan and migrate somewhere closer to metro north on the east side. jonathan would commute about an hour and forty-five minutes to new haven and use that time for studying, class prep, etc.

we've also considered moving to connecticut, but this would mean both of us commuting over an hour, buying a car so we can actually go places in a suburban area, moving away from the city (and from family in philly this summer!) and seeing a lot less of each other. because we love nyc, our scooter and being together, we most likely won't go this route. in good jonathan curtis fashion, however, we haven't completely ruled it out either.

as you can see we still have a little bit of figuring out to do, but at least we know where we are going! we'll keep you posted.

next steps

2010-04-08T19:26:00.004-04:00

this is a favorite phrase at my office - "next steps." after the close of a promotion or launch we have to determine the action plan for moving forward. jonathan and i are kind of at that phase in our lives right now. he's wrapping up his 2nd year of teach for america, and with this coming to a close he's getting ready to move on to the next big adventure.

our next steps:

master of public health. jonathan was accepted to columbia, yale and nyu. we've ruled out nyu and are trying to decide between columbia and yale. a couple weeks ago he and i both took the day off and headed up to new haven for an open house. as soon as we got there i felt like hermione from harry potter. if you haven't been to yale's campus, it looks just like hogwarts!

jonathan is off to columbia's open house tomorrow. hopefully that will help us solidify this decision that we have to make by next week! from there everything will fall into place.

the next big step after that is medical school. jonathan's summer break will be spent studying for the good 'ol mcat, and he'll apply next may. it's a year away, so you never know what other ideas we will think of, but that's our plan for now, at least. we're just taking it one step at a time.

as for me...i'm still loving my dream job!

Tampa

2010-03-07T10:59:00.007-05:00

I used to think my dad was the luckiest man when he would go on business trips - he was going to some cool place, flying on an airplane, staying in hotels and eating out! It seemed like he was practically on vacation. Ha - after one business trip of my own I quickly learned that these trips are definitely not vacation. They aren't as glamorous as I expected...

During the week of Valentine's and President's Day I had to go to Tampa for some business meetings. Luckily Jonathan was on mid-winter break that week, so we decided to make a little vacation out of it! Unfortunately the weather wasn't as warm as we anticipated, but it was still nice to have a change of pace and scenery. The beach is always good for my soul!

Christmas 2009

2010-03-07T10:05:00.015-05:00

"There's no place like home for the holidays..."

We loved being home for Christmas spending time with our families, eating delicious meals, skiing beautiful Deer Valley and just being home. As I'm looking through our photos I wish we would've taken more pictures. I guess we were too busy having fun!!

While in Utah, we were also able to attend our nephew Thomas' baptism. What a special event - we were so glad we could be there!

We were also able to get together with a few of my friends from high school!

What a good bunch!

Bear + Katrina

2009-12-20T20:55:00.005-05:00

I love these two, and I love that we live so close to them!! Who would've thought that 6 years after high school Katrina and I would both live on the East Coast and only be 45 minutes apart from each other? I absolutely love it!

We had a lovely evening together last weekend seeing the Christmas sights in the city: the Rockefeller Center tree, sipping hot chocolate, window shopping, finding Christmas ornaments in Macy's and strolling through Bryant Park. Thanks for such a fun night!!

You know you live in NYC...

2009-12-20T20:46:00.003-05:00

...when you wake up one morning to look outside your window and see a movie set with old cars, actors / actresses, fake snow and lots of cameras. This isn't the first time movie sets have crowded our street, and I'm sure it won't be the last. We don't blame them - our street is beautiful! Maybe one of these days they'll actually ask us to be in their movie!

Miss Marie in NYC after Italy

2009-12-20T20:23:00.009-05:00

Marie and her roommate, Elizabeth, stopped by for a couple days on their way home from studying abroad in Italy {sounds like a rough life, right?}. Oh how happy I am that she's back!! I missed so much our very frequent phone conversations and text messages for three whole months. iChatting once a week was just not cutting it. She's now home and my call list in my phone once again reads "Marie." Hooray!

What we did:

Attempted to walk to the Rockefeller Center to see the tree lighting {didn't happen..it was packed}, Mary Poppins, shopping in SoHo, brunch at Kitchenette and yummy dinners both in and out {she makes a killer chocolate tortina - yum!}.

{Marie took a cooking class while in Italy. I'm trying to convince her to live with us and be our cook, but I don't think that will happen. Her lucky future husband...}

Thanks for a fun visit, Marie and Elizabeth!

we don't get pictures of us together often enough!

Thanksgiving

2009-12-16T20:51:00.010-05:00

We were so lucky to have Jon's parents, Lee and Jane, join us for Thanksgiving! They found a great deal on tickets and decided to pay us a visit. I absolutely love their spontaneity, and I love New York City's accessibility!

This year I realized how much of an effort Thanksgiving dinner really is! I always helped my mom and grandma with the cooking in prior years, but I had never been a host. We had so much fun cooking a Thanksgiving feast for four people in a tiny one bedroom city apartment. Thanks to Jane and Jon everything turned out wonderfully! What a fun memory this will be!

Fun highlights of the trip: ice skating in Bryant Park with Jon's students, Radio City Christmas Spectacular, Jersey Boys, Met Opera, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Thanksgiving Dinner {turkey, cranberry ice: a Curtis family tradition, homemade rolls / orange rolls, mashed yams, parsnips, pecan pie, apple pie, homemade vanilla ice cream}, watching the movie Up, playing Rook, beautiful weather and scooter rides. Thanks for a wonderful, memorable visit!!

Motorino

2009-10-05T20:02:00.004-04:00

No it's not a quarter year life crisis, no I don't think we're crazy, no we don't live in Europe, but YES we did buy our own little motorino! Can we just say, "When in...{New York City}?"

With a little help from our scooter-riding friends in our ward, nice deals at the Vespa dealership {thank you, Leonard} and some logical reasoning {believe it or not there was some rationale to this purchase - i.e now we have a way to get out of crazy NYC in any event} we purchased a midnight blue Vespa LX150 and are loving every minute of it!!

- 25 minutes to get from Broadway and 107th to Prince and Mercer {for our out of state friends: from the top of Manhattan to the bottom}

- no stinky, smelly, dirty subway

- we get to see so many parts of the city that were lost as we traveled underground

- PARKING...anywhere!!

- playing chicken with taxis and giving high fives to people hailing a taxi {not really, but I want to}

- more time to hug Jonathan

- 10 minutes to church

- winks from male passersby {"You know, chicks, motorcycle..."}

Caramel Apples

2009-10-05T19:26:00.008-04:00

Fall is certainly in the air, and we are loving it!! With this beautiful change in season comes one of my favorite Bond family traditions: caramel apples. This was my first time making these on my own without the help of my darling mother, but with her over-the-phone encouragement, a little creativity {chopsticks as sticks and parchment paper to wrap} and fantastic help from Jonathan, I think we can call our first run a success!!

Step 1: Wash apples, make homemade caramel and dip.

Step 2: When apples cool, dip in chocolate {we used dark chocolate and white milk chocolate}.

Step 3: Let sit for about 15 minutes and decorate {dark chocolate with pecans and, my favorite, white chocolate with cinnamon and sugar}.

Step 4: Wrap, give away, enjoy and thank mom {and helpers} over and over for making about 120 apples to serve at our wedding luncheon!

Ours weren't nearly as beautiful as these:

Happy 27th Birthday Jonathan!

2009-10-05T19:11:00.007-04:00

We celebrated this cute boy's birthday on September 15th! He wasn't the most chipper that day as all he could say was, "I'm one year closer to 30..."

To lift his spirits and get him ready to face a wonderful year ahead, I decided to throw him a surprise birthday party that weekend. Thanks to my good friends Jill, Thomas and all who attended, we pulled off a fantastic SURPRISE with Jon not having even the slightest clue. Sadly we didn't get pictures of his face as he walked in the door, but I can promise you he was certainly surprised.

First Day of School Year 2

2009-10-05T19:06:00.004-04:00

Just look at that determined face! Now that he has one year under his belt he's ready to face any challenge that comes his way. This year Jonathan teaches:

- 9th grade Integrated Health and Math

-10th grade Advisory

- 12th grade Senior Seminar: Engineering and Robotics

Homepage Fame

2009-09-18T17:29:00.004-04:00

Just go to teachforamerica.org and scroll to the second picture. Yep, that's Jonathan Curtis!

Italia

2009-09-13T20:15:00.077-04:00

Miss Marie is studying abroad in Siena this fall, so my family {Dad, Mom, Marie, Jonathan, Uncle Bill, Aunt Jackie and Cousin Dallin} immediately jumped at the opportunity to drop her off and tour the beautiful country for 11 days. My hubby is Italian at heart {his family lived in Padova from ages 15-19 while his parents served as mission presidents and went back for one year to do a study abroad / olympic volunteer work}. Naturally, due to his Italian ties, Jonathan was the driving force behind this trip planning our day-to-day schedule, coordinating transportation, suggesting hotels, speaking the angelic language and packing all of this information into a quite impressive itinerary!!

ROMA

We spent the first two days in Roma seeing all of its ancient history. It's incredible to see in real life old Italy really is! Every thing was all so magical to me as this was my very first time in Italy.

Highlights: watching Jamie eat real gelato for the first time {says Jonathan}, watching dad eat gelato {says Jamie}, the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo's Moses and Pieta, the Colosseum.

St. Peter's Cathedral

Gelato!

The Colosseum

San Pietro in Vincoli {Michelangelo's Moses}

Trevi Fountain

Spanish Steps

The Vatican Museum

St. Peter's Cathedral

The Pantheon

Joe-lato!

FIRENZE

Riding on the train from Rome to Florence was an adventure. Thanks to ferie, all of Italy was returning from their 2 week vacation leaving Jonathan, Marie, Dallin and I 1.5 hours of riding in a stairwell between the train cars. Luckily Florence is a gem, and definitely worth the uncomfortable ride.

Highlights: singing with the missionaries in Piazza della Republica, shopping in the Florentine Market, Ponte Vecchio, staying in beautiful apartments that overlook Piazza della Signoria, the Uffizi, Michelangelo's David at the Galleria dell'Accademia.

Santa Maria del Fiore

The Baptistery Doors by Ghiberti

Ponte Vecchio

VINCI, PISA

We picked up a 9 passenger van in Florence and made our way towards the countryside. Our end destination for day five was Lerici, but we made stops in Vinci to pay tribute to Leonardo and Pisa {it's a checklist item, right?}.

LERICI

Lerici is part of the Italian Riveria {across the bay from Cinque Terre} and is breathtaking!

Highlights: delicious seafood, relaxing on the beach.

MODENA / MARANELLO

On the way to Venice, we made a memorable stop in Modena. Ask the boys, and they will probably tell you that this was their favorite stop! Although it's a baby compared to the Vatican, I'm pretty sure we spent more time per square foot in this museum than we did in any other throughout this trip.

Highlights: the looks on Jon's and Dallin's face after driving a Ferrari for 15 minutes.

Dallin driving a Ferrari!

Jonathan's dream come true!

VERONA

Along the way to Venice, we stopped in Verona {Jon says that if he had to live anywhere in Italy, he would probably live here}. It's charming, quaint and beautiful.

PADOVA

This beautiful little city holds a special place in the Curtis' heart as this was the place they called home for three years while Lee and Jane served as mission presidents. Unfortunately this mission has now closed, and as a result they have also torn down the mission home. It was fun to stop by, tour Jon's old neighborhood and eat at one of his favorite pizzerias in all of Italy - Dove Come Quando.

VENEZIA

I loved Venice. I have bits and pieces of every stop that I absolutely loved, but Venice was my very favorite to photograph. Every turn around its windy streets was as incredibly picturesque. We also took a boat ride to a nearby island called Murano where they specialize in glass blowing.

SIENA

Marie will be studying in Siena this fall at the Dante School. Lucky girl...Siena is beautiful. We purchased beautiful hand-painted pottery, ate yummy Tuscan food and walked around the beautiful streets.

RADDA IN CHIANTI

Chianti is heavenly! It's a quaint town about 20 minutes outside of Siena in the Tuscan countryside. We stayed in an incredible villa that overlooked the breathtaking landscape that is filled with olive trees, vineyards and beautiful rolling hills.

Highlights: riding scooters, eating breakfast on a patio with a beautiful view, the villa!

Dad's Boat

2009-07-09T22:00:00.019-04:00

Last summer my father became a different man. About one month after Jonathan and I moved far, far away he purchased a boat, and this purchase has completely changed his life.

My dad used to pick up my phone calls saying, "Hey Jamie, I'm on a call with some clients...can I call you back?" Now he picks up and I hear wind blowing in the background as he says, "Hey Jamie, we're out on the boat..." Sad, I know. We're missing out. I guess that's what we get for moving to the other end of the country.

4th of July weekend we joined in on the fun. I saw dad in his element with a big goofy grin, mom wakeboard and wakesurf like a pro (she puts anyone to shame), Marie glide across the water (she's good too!), Nick fearlessly jump the wake, Trevor sing "goofy goober" while riding on the kneeboard and Jonathan do a great job wakeboarding in choppy water.

Dad, we're officially converted.

Dad sure does loves his boat!

Mom is the best at trailing the boat! Even the guys trying to load up next to us were VERY impressed!

I can get up! I even got outside the wake but laughed so hard (I was surprised I did it) that I didn't stay up too long.

Nick, Jon and Trev.

This is one of his smaller jumps. Way to go Nick!

The cutest flag holder!

Trevor on the kneeboard is prime entertainment! He does tricks like no hands (demonstrated above), air guitar and jumping all while singing (we could hear him from the boat!).

I love my sister.

This is just about the cutest thing ever - Mom + Trevor wakesurfing!

I loved watching Jon try and change his body from snow skiing mode to wakeboarding mode. He did so well!!

Dad is a true wakesurfer! Although he still has to take it easy, he sure tears up the wake!

He is adorable.

Marie made this look too easy. Just ask Jon.

New York Botanical Garden

2009-06-28T21:00:00.012-04:00

These past few weeks have felt more like April and less like June as the days have been filled with one rainstorm after another. This weekend the rain finally let up (at least during the day), and we enjoyed a beautiful day at the New York Botanical Garden.

The current event that's going on now and started just yesterday is The Edible Garden - a summer-long celebration of growing and eating good food. To kick off this event, celebrity chefs like Martha Stewart (see below...yes, that's Martha!) were brought in to give food demonstrations. We opted out of the $20 fare for the festival and instead walked around the grounds soaking up the green trees + grass, beautiful flowers and time together. It made for a lovely Saturday afternoon. We highly recommend taking a visit!

Haircut

2009-06-28T20:26:00.008-04:00

I've always had a strange obsession with hair. I can't count the number of times I was in trouble for cutting Marie's hair, dyeing my hair with friends (Lindsay + Camille) or giving Jack highlights (sorry, Grandma).

One of the many times I highlighted Jack's hair using the cap / pull through method. I don't think you can even see the highlights.

Eventually I gained some experience and was allowed to cut Nick + Trevor's hair - an event they absolutely dreaded and I absolutely loved. For some reason I could never quite convince dad to let me touch his hair. Now I have a dear husband who finally (after much convincing) let me cut his hair. Thanks for amusing me, honey.

Before

After

May 23, 2008

2009-05-28T22:46:00.006-04:00

Just over one year ago I married my best friend. It was a beautiful day, one that will forever fill my mind with wonderful memories. Jonathan and I were married in the Salt Lake Temple where we were sealed to each other for time and eternity and surrounded by dear family and friends. What a blessing to know that we will be together forever!

I'm incredibly blessed to have my sweet husband. How lucky I am to be married to a man who inspires me to be a better person, loves me unconditionally and helps me to achieve my goals and dreams. I love you, Jonathan. Thanks for an amazing first year of marriage!

Jerry the Mouse

2009-05-20T22:30:00.003-04:00

My preface to this story: don't get grossed out. We keep our apartment very clean.

A few months ago Jonathan woke up to find a big water bug by our front door. Luckily I was still in bed, so I didn't have to see it. Insects are incredibly disgusting to me. Thankfully our building employs an exterminator to stop by every apartment on the second Saturday of each month. On his very next visit he sprayed our apartment with insect repellant and tossed sticky pads underneath our oven and refrigerator, and we haven't seen an anything since...

until this past weekend.

Jonathan and I were in the kitchen, and we heard a little squeaking noise about every thirty seconds. At first I thought it was the floor, but once we figured out it wasn't that, I dropped to my hands and knees. Jonathan brought a flash light, and I started my search under the oven. Nothing. Only dust balls. I checked under our small table. Nothing. Finally, I looked under the refrigerator. As I flashed my light to see what I could find the squeak came again. I found the culprit - a sad, cute baby mouse awkwardly trapped on the sticky pad. Oddly enough, rodents don't give me the heeby-jeebies like insects do. I felt so sorry for the innocent mouse. Jonathan laughed and grabbed the camera as a couple tears skimmed my cheeks. Poor Jerry.

Mr. Bond is Home

2009-05-13T20:27:00.002-04:00

I'm writing this update as we watch a season two episode of 24 - our new found addiction. Nina Meyers is the mystery who keeps coming back. Jack Bauer is a hero who survives it all.

Much more important, however, is an update on my dad:

Last Thursday dad was moved from the ICU to the Critical Care unit where the doctors kept a close monitor on his heart rate. One thing we did learn from this is that my dad's heart is in excellent condition resting near 50 beats per minute. He's not a marathon runner, though the doctors asked several times how he was in such great condition. I attribute it to his daily runs on the treadmill and nightly bowls of Schwan's ice cream.

He was discharged from the hospital on Saturday night and is still in recovery mode at home, but he is making progress (and is enjoying not eating hospital mystery food)! The doctors continue to monitor his blood level which requires three visits a week to the cumidin clinic. His head still aches, but the pain is in control. A funny side note is that dad gained twenty pounds during his one week stay in the hospital. One of his many IVs consisted of sodium chloride to retain water in his body and keep pressure off of his brain. While at home he continues to take three salt tablets three times a day for the next two weeks, so it will be a couple weeks before he loses the water weight. It's quite funny - his concern now is not that he still has a blood clot in his brain, rather, it is how soon he will lose this weight. The blood clot should dissolve within six months to a year. It takes time to break down, but he will return to full strength soon.

I'm grateful that dad came home before I left for New York. I didn't want to have the image of my dad with oxygen tubes, IVs and heart monitors left in my memory until I see him again. Thanks to so many friends and family members for your love, support and prayers. We are seeing so many blessings from the Lord pour into our family.

Icey You -- I see you -- ICU

2009-05-05T18:10:00.004-04:00

This entry comes from the hall leading to the University of Utah's Neuro Intensive Care Unit. Jamie is inside visiting her dad who is being treated for a blood clot in a vein in his brain. Normally most patients who suffer a similar illness recover to full strength with no lasting effects. It's a little scarier in her dad's situation, however, because his family has a history with blood clots --his mom, oldest sister, and two brothers have all suffered from them. His oldest sister passed away from a blood clot in her brain. She reacted with the blood thinner medication and her brain hemorrhaged. Jamie's mom is a nurse, so she has been able to communicate with the doctors and make sure they take extra precaution with his situation.

So far no neurological damage has been found with her dad. He is alert and responsive, but also very tired and on a lot of different medications. The pain is diminishing, but the pain killers have taken a toll on his heart rate (he has been dipping into the low 30s). Right now the doctors are giving him additional medication to help speed up his heart rate. The doctors are hoping to have everything stabilized within the next day or so. I'm optimistic that her dad will pull through. Her mom is having a harder time (her being a nurse has been both a blessing and a curse - -she knows too much and has seen too many situations go different ways). But we are confident and faithful that all we be well. We all feel that this is an eye-opening event--one from which we are all gaining faith and insight.

Jamie and I received a call from her mother early Sunday morning and were on the next flight out. Being back around our families and in the "shadows of the everlasting hills" has made us realize just how wonderful it is to be home.

We've been looking back on the past month and realized how many blessings we have: we had visits from both Jamie and my family. I led a service project with 12 students where we provided free HIV/AIDS testing for people in the Bronx; additionally, we worked with an AIDS organization in the city to help educate others and serve food to people with HIV/AIDS. Afterwords I had a nice spring break where all I did was study for the MCAT. I will be taking the MCAT near the end of the summer.

Jamie has been busy at work, and despite her last entry, she shined during the GEMS hair conference. One of the head directors called her the "American Idol of GEMS." Jamie is a great presenter, though certain eccentric Frenchmen find perms distasteful--he must have had a run-in with a young Howie Mandel. She is looking forward to her next (and last) rotation where she'll be working with Redken's US Marketing team on haircolor.

We feel blessed to have so many good people in our lives. No matter where we go, we tend to attract wonderful friends and family members. Joe (Jamie's dad) is such a happy guy--it really is amazing. He has remarked how much like heaven it is to have his two daughters nearby. He is in good spirits and continues to share valubale insights that he is gaining from this recent challenge. We are hoping that he will be moved from the Nuero ICU to the neuro floor soon. Until then, we'll keep praying hard and bringing in chocolate malt milkshakes.

GEMS

2009-05-01T15:33:00.004-04:00

I rarely blog about my job. After coming home and debriefing Jon on my day, the last thing I ever want to do is write about work; however, I think my most recent experience definitely deserves a post.

To give you a little background: I currently work on the global marketing team at Redken. This team concentrates on the development of brand strategy, products and concepts. In other words, this is the more creative side of marketing. Every country around the world that carries Redken has its own domestic marketing team that is in charge of taking what we (global marketing) develop and implementing and promoting the strategies/products in their respective market. Once a year all of the countries come to New York for an event called GEMS where global marketing presents their plan for the upcoming year to the domestic teams. GEMS is a huge event - it started on Sunday and went through Wednesday, and I worked long days from 7am to 11pm.

I work on the Color and Texture team. My boss and I oversee the development of our color collections (if you are a Redkenite Runway Reds or Mahogany Glam may sound familiar...past collections) and perms (Vector Plus, Creative Curl, anyone?? probably not). Lucky me being the lowest on the totem poll, I mostly manage our perms. I know, I know - perms are so twenty years ago. It's true! But believe it or not, there are some countries in this world that still use perms.

On Tuesday, I presented our 2010 plan for texture (I like to use this word rather than perms - it makes the product sounds a little more modern, right?). The countries were split into two groups, so I gave this presentation twice. The first presentation went really well. Everyone was on board with the strategy and thought it was a great plan for the tiny texture category.

The second presentation unfortunately didn't go as well. It wasn't a mistake that I made - I 'm completely comfortable presenting in front of big groups - rather, it was an important man in my audience that helped my second presentation become a little more dramatic. We'll just say he's much higher up on the totem pole than I am, and he has opinions (lots of them) about the texture category. Two minutes into my presentation I delivered my analysis concerning the current texture business and our opportunity for growth. This high totem-pole man in the audience started rolling his eyes, breathing audibly and finally threw his hands in the air, stood up and headed towards the door (I wish you could've been there - words can't explain what this man was doing). Granted, perms aren't a big generator of revenue in the countries that he oversees, however, he didn't even give me a chance and listen to the rest of my presentation. "C'mon...it's her first GEMS," everyone started saying, but he continued to walk out of the room. I paused, waited for him to exit, and then started right where I left off. I was so confused - I knew this guy was important and opinionated, so I was quite alarmed that he caused such a scene and left.

The rest of the presentation went smoothly, but on the inside I was so confused on how to react. After I finished I headed straight for the bathroom, shed a couple tears and came back to the end of the workshop. My high totem-pole friend immediately came up to me and apologized: "I was extremely disrespectful, I'm sorry. You see, I've been hearing about texture for 20 years now..." as he tried to explain his behavior. After three long days of working and weeks of late nights and preparation for this presentation, I was feeling all kinds of emotions. There I stood, tears running down my face, as this high on the totem-pole man tried to apologize for his inappropriate action...and all I could do was cry.

Family Visits

2009-04-15T21:45:00.017-04:00

April has been such a great month. The first week was filled with a wonderful visit from Dad, Mom, Nick and Trevor. A couple days later Jonathan's Dad and Mom also paid us a visit. Our apartment is now fully broken in, which is better than being broken into!

The Bond Visit
Having my family here was such a treat, though we missed Marie (come visit soon, Muz!)! I was lucky enough to have a couple days off from work and show my family around. With my two younger brothers, Nick (11) and Trevor (8), we were able to see a view of the city as kids do, making multiple stops at the NBA Store and Nintendo World. We also enjoyed Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, the Statue of Liberty, General Conference, Silver Moon Bakery and delicious restaurants - Bubba Gumps, Quality Meats, Shake Shack, Gray's Papaya, and Kitchenette. Jonathan's lasagne also made it as one of the highlights of the trip!

My Dad and I on the Staten Island Ferry.

One of my very favorite parts was riding the subway with Nick & Trevor. They loved swiping their metro cards through the turnstiles and trying to get it right the first time, hanging on to the poles and trying to balance, watching the street performers, etc.

I have the cutest little brothers.

One day we had great weather and enjoyed some time in Central Park. Jonathan, Nick and Trevor played frisbee while Dad, Mom and I soaked up the sun.

Cutest husband. Cutest little brothers. Hands down.

Dad, Mom, Me, Nick and Trevor.

The Curtis Visit
This is Jonathan writing. Mom and dad's visit to their 20-somethings in Manhattan chased away the grandparent blues by showing them just how cool it is to have cool children who live in cool places. My parents' typical "vacation" these days involves changing diapers, running to Costco, or taking grandkids to the park--their stay in NYC was a little different. Highlights include sipping hot chocolate at Cafe Lalo, going to the temple, strolling down 5th Avenue, visiting my school in the Bronx, a farewell to retirement funds on Wall Street, visits to top museums, authentic Italian food, and lots of walking. Mom dragged dad and I into the American Girl Place--4 floors of overpriced dolls and rediculous amounts of accesories. (This is Jamie again - for every girl this is a dream come true!). Thanks, Jamie...I am not a little girl, and it was not my dream come true. We played hard and had a blast--I just hope that we didn't march mom and dad around too much!

Wall Street! Goodbye 401(k)...hello 201(k)!

Jonathan gave his parents a tour of the Bronx Lab School where he teaches!

Although it was a rainy day, we enjoyed wandering around The Cloisters and viewing its beautiful Medieval Art.

One of our many strolls through Central Park.

80's Dance Party

2009-03-01T19:29:00.008-05:00

Last night we danced the night away with our friends at the Morningside Heights Ward 80's Dance Party. The party was complete with leggings, pegged pants, high bangs, big hair, belted waists, bright colors and impressive dance moves.

As Jonathan and I left our apartment to head over to the party we were a bit embarrassed to be seen dressed up - Jonathan with big hair and sweater vest (my sweater vest that I still wear...) (think Duran Duran meets Ferris Bueller) and me in a bright pink sweater, oversized t-shirt and leggings. Once we walked down Broadway and hopped on the subway we realized that pretty much anything goes in New York. People don't bat an eye at anything...they've seen it all.

Jonathan, Charles, Marydee (loved her bangs), Madeline, Ashley and Jonathan
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!
We won 2nd place for best dressed...I'm pretty sure it was Jonathan and his dance moves that came through for us!

Dear Dad,

2009-02-24T21:11:00.002-05:00

Today I wore a black sweater, black pants and brown boots. I must confess it has become quite the trend here in the city, so I thought I'd give it a try. To my astonishment I really liked how the brown boots with an all black ensemble tied my outfit together, and I think I'll do it again.

I'm sorry I ever criticized you for wearing black and brown at the same time. While my rule still holds true that your belt and shoes should match (especially when it comes to Sunday attire), you now have my full permission to mix as you'd like...not that you ever needed my permission!

Love,
Jamie

Little Korea

2009-02-22T17:46:00.002-05:00

There are a lot of "Little _____" (anythings) scattered throughout this wonderful city. Last night we explored a piece of Little Korea with some of our ward friends. Thankfully we had Ryan and Brooke, our Korean experts, who helped us interpret the 12 page menu and place an order. Our meal consisted of delicious Korean BBQ complete with numerous unidentifiable side dishes to wrap in lettuce. In addition, Jonathan and I also ordered a giant stone bowl of rice, beef, mixed vegetables with a raw egg cracked on top. We probably would have made an alternate decision; however, once Ryan informed us that this dish was Michael Jackson's all time favorite, we were sold. "The Jacko Special" or "MJ" turned out to be quite delicious...all we had to do was "Beat It" (to cook the egg).

Sisters

2009-02-19T22:25:00.003-05:00

I was looking through some old photos a couple days ago and came across one of my all time favorites. Every time I pass this one by I can't help but smile. It's not the flower patterned spandex shorts, San Francisco sweatshirts or the Keds that get me. It's knowing and seeing that we have always been the best of friends...and that we always will be. I love you, Marie!

Valentine's Day

2009-02-18T21:04:00.011-05:00

Friends have mentioned the silliness of the celebration; that there shouldn't be just one day devoted to celebrating love. Rather, they claim this holiday's spirit should be felt on a more regular basis. "Why devote one day to celebrating the person (and people) you love most?" they say. I say why not? I had a good discussion with the lovely ladies I work with in Young Women's at Church, and they made a very good point: we devote one day in the year to celebrate Thanksgiving, but we really should be showing thanks all the time. The same argument can be made for Christmas. So why not Valentine's?

Our Valentine's Day was absolutely lovely. Time together is something Jonathan and I seem to never get enough of these days, so it we made the very most of our holiday:

Cleaning and organizing closets
Brunch at Kitchenette
A long walk around the neighborhood
Dressing up and staying in for dinner and dessert

Main Course: Braised Lamb Shanks with White Cannelini Beans, Green Apple and Walnut Spinach Salad

Dessert: Panna Cotta (YUM)