Utilities on the Up & Up

Imagine for a minute living in a huge house with all your favorite amenities. Ranging from a heated pool, hot tub, jacuzzi in the master bath, big screen tv, central heating and a/c, washer and dryer, dishwasher, latest fridge, and an electric oven. Now, imagine that electric bill. Pretty high huh, maybe close to $200 a month?

Now imagine a one bedroom apartment. Imagine it with an older fridge, a stove from the seventies, a water heater that is not even in the unit, and a LCD tv and a wii, finally, wall heaters. Living in a small apartment such as this, in an older building with pretty solid walls there is no need to use the heaters unless you are losing heat through the windows. To combat this, put a piece of cardboard between the two window panes and you find a lot more heat stays in your apartment. So... With the heater breakers turned off, everything unplugged but the refridgerator and tv, what do you think your electric bill would be now?

Try...$121.

Not even kidding. This was our electric bill for January. We have had some problems with our fridge freezing food, and not even getting cold. After numerous fixes it is finally working how it should! A tub with a constant stream of hot water leaking no matter how tight you have turned off the faucet may cause the water heater to continuously heat water as well... No one told us that! After loosing tons of groceries to the bipolar fridge, and lots of wasted hot water, our bill kept moving higher and higher. After further investigation, we were able to reduce our rent due to our problems with the appliances!

Thank goodness for understanding power companies!

Next bill...<$50 would be appreciated!

Hope you are all having better luck!

Stress Relief

Its that time again where it feels like everything you do is working and then something is thrown in your face that is new and you have to learn to deal with it. It always seems like right when we get our priorities straight, they are thrown way off balance and what/who should have been first, without even realizing it, ends at the bottom....Again.

This happened today! Justin and I felt impressed to attend the Draper Utah Temple on Saturday. We spent 4 hours in the safety of God's house. A day as spiritual as this particular Saturday could not stop our spiritual progression so we continued through church on Sunday! After spending a beautiful day learning of the gospel and spending time with Darin and Jolyn and the kids, we got to come home and rest. The worries of the next day (Monday) were placed at the back of our minds and all we focused on was rejuvenating our bodies just like our spirits had been rejuvenated.

And then Monday hit.... After sleeping through the alarm, rushing to get ready, nearly being late to class, it was almost too much! About five minutes into class, Justin & I noticed that we were five assignments behind in one of our Accounting classes and four assignments behind in the other! What a mess! The adversary sure does know how to get in our way when everything was/is going so well. After my last Accounting class of the day, I normally get to sit down to lunch and get my mind in check for the work hours ahead of me. Keep in mind.... its Monday.

Today already started off on an interesting foot, so of course, lunch was going to be different too! As soon as I stepped foot into the office I knew something was up and that I just needed to start working. From that point on, it felt like the world stopped turning and everything that was running smoothly before suddenly stopped! And all the things that were moving with the world, fell in piles on the heads of those directly associated with getting these processes done. The week of tuition deadline is always the hardest for people in the finance department. I don't think some of the students realize how much goes on behind the scenes!

When the processes to run checks quit working and we had hundreds of checks to work on and tax forms to get out, I ended up working an hour later than I have ever been scheduled. With deadlines coming up and lives outside of work to focus on,  my life just got harder!

So... My stress relief today has been focused on Crocheting with our Suki on my lap, and watching TV dramas that have characters with lives harder than mine! Oh boy.... Get ready for a great week of school, work, religion (THE most important), and last but almost as important as religion, spending time with my best friend.

I love you Justin!!

Have a good week everybody!

Hobbies or Habits?

Each one of us has our favorite things to do everyday. Some like to read while others like to cook. When do our hobbies cross the line to a habit? Do we do it everyday? Once a week? Do we work on our "hobby" while our spouse is in the room? Do we use this time to better ourselves or to just take up the empty time in our everyday lives?

These are a few questions plaguing my mind today. Everyday I like to walk home from work, sit on the couch and watch a TV show. Sometimes I'll do dishes, exercise, play with Suki, or even cook.  Yesterday, I decided to watch a TV show, cook, and... Do the dishes! Would my watching a TV show be considered a habit or a hobby? I believe it has become a habit. Reasons Why: I do it everyday, I manage to perform other tasks while watching it, and I still have time to take advantage of having a spouse and an adorable kitty to play with!

Did it start as a simple hobby? Yes... I used it to calm down and relieve stress for the first couple of weeks. Now it has become an everyday thing and the stress-relieving meaning has now flown out the window. Its not as easy anymore for me to slip into the show's character's lives as it used to be. I don't forget my problems, I don't let the time slip by quite as easily either.

Take my advice. Watching TV can be fun and entertaining at first. But after continuous use, it just becomes the noise in the background while you focus on other things. Do we really want all that noise in our lives? Can you feel the spirit as your constant companion while you are watching TV or playing video games? I believe these distractions make it harder to feel the comfort offered to us when we allow these worldy influences as a constant. Do we spend as much time making a habit out of scripture reading as we do everything else?

What is your priority? When does it go from hobby to habit?

Sushi Mania

Reasons I love Simply Sushi:

• Delicious Sushi at an inexpensive price.
• Fun sushi chefs that talk to you while you are eating!
• Deliciousness that I can't get enough of!
• Fish on demand!
• Food that fills my stomach!
• Something that Justin and I can do together.

Justin and I are sushi lovers. We used to go all of the time! Simply Sushi is the restaurant of our choice because you can have all you can eat sushi for a small price of $19.99 a person! We had made a goal to wait until April 14 (graduation day) to go again because it is so expensive. However, just four weeks after setting the goal we couldn't stand it anymore! I have this insatiable craving for fish all of the time and last night, Justin had it too. But now we will do it! From now on, we will not go to Simply Sushi until April 14! Last night was our last trip and we WILL stick to it! (I'm working on my self-discipline and will-power if you couldn't tell!)

The Joys of Graduating!

Today I took it upon myself to apply for graduation. It was going to happen sooner or later, and now, its done! There are many things involved with getting graduation applications filled out. This process includes many interviews with Advisors and Directors of various programs.  The time came to meet with my academic advisor and her assistant looked at my transcript and proceeded to tell me that I was missing a class! Not only did my heart stop and all feeling in my body fled, but the dreams and plans we have been making to move to Missouri started to seem so far away and a distant memory. After stewing over this new information for a few minutes, I decided to meet with the Program Director and see if he approved me to graduate.

And... He did! Bro. Finn was shocked when I told him the story I had just heard. He commented on all the credits I have taken and the many qualifications I have to recieve my degree in Financial and Managerial Accounting. So of course, he signed off and I was able to see the dreams come flooding back to me and my heart started beating again at a normal pace. All the worrying was for nothing!

So... After all of the events of today, the plans continue and we are still moving in April! (Justin's fate is still undecided!)

Changes are FUN!

In April, Justin and I will graduate from LDS Business College each with an Associate's Degree in Accounting and a Certificate of Accounting.

Yes... The rumors are true. We are moving to Missouri that following week (the week after graduation). Justin and I are getting assistance from Mom and Dad Furnell when they come out to our graduation ceremony. We (Justin and I) will be staying until Easter Sunday and we WILL attend one night of the Stringham/Pritchett reunion. Excited to use those new sleeping bags Dad!

After a quick shower and packing Suki in the car, we will be on our way. A straigh-through drive to the land of our desire!

Many circumstances and events were taken into consideration for this decision. One of the major decision-making events happens to be that my time as a student-employee at LDS Business College is up after graduation. I will no longer be a student so my position goes to someone else. Finding an employer willing to hire someone knowing that they were moving shortly after they start seems pretty impossible to me.

Justin and I have made the decision that is best for us and as a married couple, that needs to be our main focus. Plus... I ABSOLUTELY love Missouri! I'm excited to be back in a "small" town atmosphere, and to meet lots of amazing people!

See you there when the time comes! Don't worry... We'll keep in contact.

The Church is TRUE!

Winter 2011 Semester

Classes started today. Justin and I only have three classes together this semester! And they all happen to be accounting courses. I am also taking a religion class, the continuation of the Church History course I started last semester, and Advanced Quickbooks. Yes... That is a total of four accounting classes! Total of 13 credit hours.

This semester will be a little more laid back than last semester but I have a lot of personal goals to work on this semester for improvement in my life and in my outward appearance! Good luck with the new semester everyone who is in school!