Birthday Weekend

This weekend we had two birthdays to celebrate. On Friday night Leon's nephew turned 5. We had cupcakes and tacos and played outside with the new toys. Then on Sunday Leon's brother also had a birthday. I tried packing him a carrot cake but the pan cracked in two in the oven. We kind of saved the cake and it tasted ok. We also took him to Godfather's pizza and then went a swam in the spill way. The water was cold...but everyone got in except for me and had a good time.

Look how our garden grows!

We were so excited to check out our garden when we got home. We had full sized radishes, spinach and lettuce that we harvested and brought to Leon's family BBQ Saturday morning. It was so fun to have something fresh from our garden to share. I have not seen it lately...but Leon reports that it is growing well, especially the beans and that we have pumpkins sprouting.

We are back!

We made it back from Costa Rica early Sunday morning. It was a great time...nothing like what we expected but we still enjoyed ourselves. We spent a couple in Arenal near an active volcano. We never got to see the hot lava but we could see rock tumbling down it and did a lot of hiking around the rain forest. We hiked (it was considered a mild hike but was so steep and muddy!) to the top of an inactive volcano to swim in a beautiful lake that had formed up there. It was chilly but so refreshing after our long walk. We do explore the Venado Caves where we saw bats, huge spiders and fish. It was so fun to explore in there. We had to crawl through water and shimmy through tight places. It was one of our favorite spots.
The next couple of days were spent in Monteverde where we toured a cheese factory (they made chocolate cheese there) and zip lined through the canopy.
The last couple of days we spent at the beach. We did some buggy boarding, kayaking and snorkeling. We also built a HUGE sandcastle.
We really enjoyed our time together. We can't wait until our next vacation. We think we will
head to New York City!

OFF to Costa Rica!

This evening Leon and I fly out of Denver for Costa Rica. We have a lay over in Texas so won't actually get there until tomorrow around 11. We are so excited. This is Leon's first time leaving the country and my first time leaving the country as the most experienced traveler. It's a little nerve racking because I really don't know that much...but I guess it will be an adventure nonetheless. When ever Leon tells anyone about are trip he gets so excited and starts talking faster and faster. I'm glad he is looking forward to it so much.
Here is our rough agenda. We will be flying into Libera, finding a taxi to La Fortuna where we plan to hike around the active volcano at night so we can see the lava floe. We also plan to go spelunking in a cave with water in it as well as spiders, bats and fish. Its called Vernado caves I believe. After a few days in La Fortuna we are going to Monteverde where there is a Cloud Forest with suspension bridges and ziplines. There is also a cheese factory, butterfly farm and snake farm. After Monteverde we plan to just relax on the beach for a couple of days before returning home.
We will post pictures when we get back!

Graduation

Since I will be missing graduation Leon had me put on my cap and gown and walk through the house to Pomp and Circumstances while he blew noise makers and whistled. It was probably the most ridiculous thing I've ever done...but now we have officially celebrated it and I've officially passed all of my finals. Yeah!

Last Day of School!

Today it my last final...finally! I am really excited to be done with school, at least for a little while. I'm not actually officially done because I have to start my fieldwork experiences in about 2 weeks but I'm done here at the college and will be "graduating." The fieldwork rotations are each 2 months long and I will be doing two. The first one is in Billings which means I will be away from Leon. I am not yet sure how I will be able to do it...but I just try not to think about it cause it makes me sad.
Anyways, I have really learned a lot and am thankful for the education I've gained. Despite how much a complained, it actually was pretty fun learning.
Thanks to everyone who helped me get to where I am!

May 2...THE BIG DAY!

Wow! We made it and I'm officially Mrs. Miller. As the day came to a close I was absolutely exhausted but I just couldn't go to sleep because I didn't want it to all be over.
My sister and mother spent 2 days before the wedding in Billings getting food and last minute stuff. They then came here that night and we spent the day before making some preparations. They were soooooo much help and were patient and loving to me through my stresses.
The evening before we had a rehearsal dinner at the hotel my parents and several of my aunts were staying at. We ordered pizza and had dinner in the hotel lobby. The hotel was so kind to allow us to take over their space like that. We had to wait for my dad and little brother to arrive before we could practice so we let everyone swim while we waited. Leon was a great sport while we were swimming. All of the kids would hold on to each other to create a huge chain and then he would pull them all around.
When my dad arrived no one was ready to change out of their suits, so we just rolled out the runner in the hotel lobby and practiced in our dripping wet suits. We had a lot of fun practicing and the hotel guests found us to be cheap entertainment.
It was a great evening to prepare us for the next day.
The morning of we headed up to the lodge bright and early to get started with decorations and food preparations. We were blessed to have so many helping hands there. Everyone pitched in and did a wonderful job. Everyone contributed something. For example, my dad picked my flowers and brought up his old remodeled Ford pick up, my little brother picked my veil, my mom did so much planning and preparing she deserves a million bucks and my sister was right there by her side, my sis-n-law Mary Ann said an opening prayer, my aunts and cousins were there from all over the country to help decorate and the list goes on and on. I just couldn't ask for a better family!
My sister did my hair and make up and really made me look good. Thank you!
The ceremony was simple, but amazing. We worried about doing it outside but the snow really did add a beautiful backdrop. My little brother played Ashokan's Farewell on the Mandelen for my wedding march and that made it extra special. My dad gave Leon and I some sweet advice about picking the very best things in life and not letting things get in the way of our relationship and commitment because we were the best for each other. Leon and I had written our vows and the judge we used was so kind. At the end, I kicked off my high heels so that we could skip away through the snow. The judge picked up my shoes and Lily grabbed his hand to walk with him. It was just so cute!
At the reception we ate, talked and danced. It was so nice to see everyone and to have so much love and support.
The day ended up amazing. It wasn't what I had dreamed of, but I don't think anyone could have dreamed of something so good.
I loved it and am soooooo sooooo soooo thankful for everyones help!
I put a few pictures here but if you want to see more check out this webiste...
www.cwenskyphoto.printroom.com/marsieandleon
the password to get in is Miller

Celebrations

In anticipation to the big day we have had many celebrations. While I was in Worland doing some school stuff at the hospital the Trombley's threw me a huge bridal shower. There were so many people there from the ward. It was so neat to see them all again. My amazing sister packed up her kids and drove all the way from Lovell to come for the evening. I felt so blessed to have her and her little girls there.
My old roommate Yolanda and some friends also put together a little bachlorette party for me. They made me wear a silly banner out to eat at Sanfords. We ate and talked and then ate some more. That night Yolanda and I stayed up late discussing the thrill and trials of life.
It fun to celebrate with friends and loved ones and I feel so blessed to have so many of both in my life.

Gardening

In early April we started our garden despite the fact it was still snowing. Leon had this great idea to build greenhouse boxes out of old pallets and plastic to place over the top of our plants to protect them from the cold and rugged never ending Casper winds. Leon's niece Devon came over to help us build. In no time we had four boxes built and seeds in the ground.
Within about 2 weeks things started popping up. It has been soooooo excited to watch them grow. We already have radishes that are big enough to eat, chives, lettuce, spinach, peas, beans and sunflowers. I just can't believe it! Leon's half of the garden is doing substantially better then mine but oh well! I'm sure he'll share.
It fun to have a project that takes nuritioning and that reaps rewards. We just love our little garden!

Wedding Preparations

Planning and preparing for a wedding is NOTHING like the movies. I don't care what they say. It just isn't that fun. The anticipation for the wedding is fun. Thinking your going to spend the rest of your life with the one you love is fun. But actually getting the stuff for the wedding...just not that much fun in my opinion. It's probably due to the fact that I hate make decisions, big or small, and I'm not that picky. So, I've mostly left the decorations up to my dear mother and helpful sister. Thank goodness for them or I would probably not have one.
I went wedding dress shopping with a friend and my mother in Billings. We found a gorgeous dress. More then I wanted to spend...but oh well I guess.
I also went with Leon to try on tuxes the other day. I made him try on EVERY color in the whole store and he did so so willingly. At the end I just decided on the original black and white though.
I really can't wait for the big day! It's so excited that I will soon be Mrs. Miller!

We're engaged!

March 2, 2009 my honey asked me if I would be his wife. I obviously couldn't pass up an opportunity like that! Leon is so patient with me and so much fun to be around. He loves playing with kids and he works really hard. I just couldn't ask for me.

I knew he had been working on getting a ring because he had to have a jeweler make the one he like in yellow gold and it took over a month. Talk about a trial of patience! Thus, I was expecting it, but I just didn't know when. One day when I had to stay late at school he called me to see if I could come jump start his truck at the river. It's likely his truck could use a jump because he doesn't exactly drive high class vehicles. It is also very likely that he would be at the river because he loves the outdoors and loves fishing. When I showed up at the river and crawled up to hook the cables into his truck, the whole engine and stuff was covered in beautiful roses and lilies. When I turned around he was on one knee with an absolutely beautiful ring that I just love!
That evening I just couldn't stop smiling. We went to the Platte River Restaurant to eat and I wanted to just tell everyone.