Traitor

Here is another new book I have just started reading. This one was reccomended to me by a co-worker. He found out I was done with the Harry Potter series so he thought I should take this one up next. This is the first of, so far, a two book series. This one took a couple of chapters to really get me hooked and now that I'm this far into it I can't put it down. I've never read a fictional book by an LDS author so it's been fun. It's a story set in World War II so I get into the war part of it then I'm thrown off guard when the author mentions things about The Holy Ghost. Haha. But I like it so far. Here is what it's about:

With the war raging in Europe, the only way Marie can be with Felix is to join the Allied forces. However, as Marie parachutes into France to join the Resistance, she not only lands into the arms of her fiance, but also drops into the hands of the enemy.

Major Rolf Shulmann has been struggling between personal convictions and his duty to the German Fatherland. Now he must decide what to do with the captured fiance of the man who gave him a new chance at life-a man he once loved as a brother. The Gestapo will do whatever it takes to dispose of Marie. If Rolf helps her escape he will have enemies on all sides-is it a sacrifice he is willing to make? Can Marie possibly trust her life to a man torn between two masters?

Join acclaimed suspense writer Sandra Grey on a journey of unexpected twists and turns through the trenches of love, suspicion, and faith.

Check it out!

Valentine's Day

I just LOVE Valentine's Day! I love having a day where couples can express to each other how much they mean to them. Of course, you should be doing this on a daily basis, but I love having an official holiday dedicated to celebrating it. It gives us an excuse to do fun, expensive stuff. :) Howie started out by buying me a dozen roses. I have always loved roses. They are just so classic. Nothing beats a beautiful dozen of roses. I put them in two vases because I love to enjoy them in multiple rooms.Howie offered to buy me this beautiful pink vase when my eyes lit up when I saw it at the grocery store. Isn't it cool? I just fell in love with it. I'll be able to use it every February now! I keep this one in my room so I can wake up to it every morning.Here are my other 6 roses. I kept these in the dinning room.Here is the super yummy breakfast Howie put together! We had PERFECTLY cooked cinnamon rolls, fruit, and juice. It was such a good way to start off our fun day!After breakfast we got ready to go and get our professional massages! This was entirely Howie's idea and I couldn't have been more thrilled! I LOVE getting massages. We went to a place called Massage Envy in Sugarhouse and they were amazing. I want to go back for one every month now! My surprise to Howie was to make a yummy fondue dessert. He was so excited about it that we ended up doing that BEFORE dinner! I got the cutest fondue set for our wedding and I couldn't wait to use it. It has a cute bowl shaped like a big apple for the chocolate, one shaped like an apple for apples, banana for bananas and one for strawberries. I just think that set is the cutest thing. Here is Howie dipping into his chocolatey goodness!I melted down a few creamy milk chocolate Symphony bars for it. It was the PERFECT flavor of chocolate.After dessert, we watched the second installment of The Work and the Glory. I have seen it before but it had been a while. It was good to see it again. I have yet to see the third but maybe sometime this week we'll finish it up. When the movie was done it was time to start the preparations for dinner! Howie is a soup making master. He makes this cheesy potato, vegetable soup that is to die for. He promised to make it for Valentine's Day so here he is!

A master at work!Our cat has had a bit of a cold lately so I found it quite funny when I came into the front room to find him like this. Poor kitty. He's so cute.This was such a fun Valentine's Day. I did not want it to end. I hope to have many more just like this!

A Neat Experience In An Unexpected Place

I wanted to share with everyone something that happened to Howie and I tonight. It's the little serendipitious moments like this that really open my eyes to the wonderful people around me. This evening we went out to eat at a local Sizzler's. We don't normally go out on Sundays like this, but Howie had Army stuff all weekend and this was the only night we had to spend together. Anyway, right after we sat down at our table an older gentleman came up to us and said to Howie "You probably don't deserve a pretty girl like that, do ya? I don't think so." Howie just laughed and the man turned to me and said "But you probably do, don't ya?" And I said "Yes, he's a good guy." The old man continued to tease us by saying to me "Did you have your glasses on when you first saw him?" I laughed and said "Actually, these glasses came a little while later." Then he said to us both "I just love to see young couples. It reminds me of my wife. We used to come here." His eyes suddenly filled with tears and I could see the pain in his expression. He then turned to Howie and said "Never let her go." And then he walked away. I didn't know what to say after he said that and my eyes instantly filled with tears after I noticed that his did. I was completely speechless. After the man left, his words were all I could think about. I felt sorry for him and what he was going through. I can't imagine what it's like to go through the emotions of losing someone you love. I've never lost anyone I've been super close to. I've lost Grandparents, but they were all when I was quite young. This experience has made me not want to take any moment for granted. We only get one shot at this life and I don't want to look back at the life Howie and I shared and think there could've been so much more I could've done to make the most out of it. I want to enjoy the journey now. I am glad that we had this experience. I truly believe we were supposed to be there at that moment. It did us good because Howie's hand didn't leave mine for the remainder of the evening and I could tell there was just a bit more of an urgency in opening doors for me. This mans words meant a lot to us and I'm glad he said them. I will remember this instance for a long time to come.

Two down, 11 to go!

Yesterday, Howie and I attended a session at the Jordan River Temple. This is now the second temple that I have done a session at. My first being at the Salt lake Temple for my own endowments. Again, our goal is to visit every temple in Utah this year and I fully plan to stick to this. Which means, we'll have to visit about one a month. I've looked up photos of all the Utah temples and I'm so excited to visit them all and see how they are different and alike. So far, the Salt Lake is my favorite. Who knows if that will change. The Salt Lake Temple has always held a special place in my heart. I'm a bit partial to it.