Life so Far

It's been a while, but so much has happened in the last 3 1/2 months that I just must update y'all!  Not to mention... my gramps has been on my case.  So here are 10 pictures of the last 100 days!

1. 

I love Monterey!  A town where the ocean, sailing, and succulents are all a very big deal is the perfect town for me.  I love this picture of the wharf and the blue sky.  I spent a lot of days chillin' around here just looking at the shops, taking walks, watching the boats, and eating seafood.  

2.

Something else cool about Monterey... I made friends!  Weird, I know, but I hung out with a lot of people my age.  In this picture is Autumn, another intern from Sacramento State.  I had a blast going on hikes, visiting the farmer's market, and going out to eat.  I also lived with an AMAZING family named the Leach's.  I love them, although I have no picture with them. :(

3. 

This is a grainy picture of most of my co-workers at CHOMP, the hospital in Monterey.  I was really intimidated at first, but ended up LOVING work at the hospital.  I learned so much about physical therapy and health care in general.  I loved meeting the patients and their families and finding ways to help them.  I also got along well with my co-workers and learned a lot from them.  

4.

This is one of the best sunsets ever.  This big rock in the back is called Bird Rock and is on 17 Mile Drive in Pebble Beach.  It was the closest piece of ocean to my house and I often walked, ran, or just got lazy and drove there.  By the time November came, I would stop there on my way home from work and watch the sunset.  The closer rock in this picture was my special rock where I would climb up and just watch the waves crash and think about stuff.  

5.

My dear little sister Chelsey got to visit me!  Not only was the weather perfect while she was there, but we got to do lots of fun stuff like drive down to Big Sur and see this amazing bridge.  We did get a good picture with no crazy hair, but this one was better!  We went to the wharf, she met my friends, and we saw Pitch Perfect together, probably the best movie of 2012.  Chelsey is lovin' BYU-I, but it was great to have her in CA too.  

6.

So this is kind of a big deal... I took a job in Santa Barbara, CA working for Aegis Therapies.  Although I will be the first person to die in the next tsunami, I will also really enjoy the beautiful view every day before that.  My friend Andi and I drove down to visit the town and my new job and I just fell in love with it.  I will be working at a rehab facility called Valley Verde and hopefully learning how to surf, sail, and sea kayak!  Another very important detail... there is a Chick-fil-a and Cafe Rio about 25 miles from my new work.

 7.

On Thanksgiving day, MY LITTLE BROTHER CAME HOME!!!  He has honorably returned from a two year mission to the Philippines.  This is mother's first hug and yes... she was that happy!  We are loving having him home, even when he annoys the crap out of us.  He has matured quite a bit, and then sometimes not at all, and that's just the way we like him.  We have been playing tons of games and getting ready for Christmas and stocking up on family time.

8.

This is our first professional photo that I think we all actually like, maybe ever.  Why you might ask... first of all Brittany Nair took our pictures and she is amazing.  Second of all, I picked out the outfits.  We went to Fair Hill, a park by our house, and had fun.  Seriously... Brittany is great.  Here is her facebook info:

https://www.facebook.com/BrittanyNairPhotography

9.

Yet another big deal... I GRADUATED!  I am now an official Doctor of Physical Therapy.  I even got a nice little award from my school called the faculty recognition award, basically for being awesome.  It was a grand day and definitely long awaited.  This picture is of my 3 favorite men at school and my trusty study buddies, Stewart, Donny, and Chris.  We worked hard together and it finally paid off.  Now I just have to study for and pass my licensing exam and I will be in business!  

10.

Last, by definitely not least, I met and started dating someone very special named Junior.  We met in Monterey at church and started dating in November.  Falling in love at the beach is definitely the way to go!  He came to Utah for graduation and to meet my family and friends and everything went very well.  I am very grateful for him and for all that he has taught me in our short time together.  He is kind, respectful, very sweet, and originally from Tonga.  We are going to continue to long distance date and see where life leads us in this new year.