Lovin' Every Minute of It

Today is the 9 year anniversary of the best decision I EVER made. I snagged Noah. Or rather, we snagged each other.
Noah is my compliment in every way. And he's seriously funny.

If I could have any wish for my children, it would be that they are as lucky in love as I am.

Happy anniversary Noah!

The Pie

I've made an interesting discovery as of late, hoping I'm staying within my budget is different from actually staying within my budget . The thing that really bugs me though is I have nothing to show for my lack of budgeting--no fancy clothes, no jewelry, no new electronics, and no expensive dates (unless you think $1.06 on a redbox movie is expensive). I've been continually baffled by the fact that it feels like we're scrimping and saving but somehow we're also living pay check to pay check some months. Noah and I even went cash based for a while, but didn't seem to get anywhere because I was always "borrowing" money from one category to use on another (for instance, if I saw a box of Jello pudding pops smiling at me in the freezer section, I wouldn't hesitate to borrow money from the car maintenance envelope and add the piece of happiness to my basket).

Knowledge is power though. Now that I know I have to actively follow my budget, I've actually been sticking to it and guess what--we're not worried about making it to the next pay check now. And I have to say that the fun of spending money on a whim has been mostly replaced by the challenge of staying within a certain dollar amount in my budget categories, the toughest one to keep: food.

We're back to cash now, but this time around I'm only pulling it out for the week not the month, and only if I need it.

You can now see me at the grocery store carrying my husbands gigantic TI-86, weighing produce and adding up totals to be sure I'm within budget. I've also become the cashier's biggest fear because I know how much I'm supposed to be paying for everything in my cart and I make sure I get that price (unless it rings up for less in which case I just grin thinking of where I can spend that extra 35 cents).

This week, I had a whole $9.00 left over after all the grocery shopping was done, you know what that means? Family luncheon at Wendy's (dollar menu only)!

Added bonus: Noah is a happier husband and who knows, maybe we'll even make it to Europe next year after all.

Some Things I've learned in the Last 9 years

1. I scored in marriage department (no pun intended).
2. I can be happy regardless of where I live or how much money we're bringing in.
3. Lifferth genes + Fox genes = Really beautiful children
4. Worthwhile things tend to require a whole lot of time, patience and effort.
5. In my life, worthwhile things include, but are most certainly not limited to: having a good marriage, getting a college degree, raising three spectacular children, being a full-time mom, developing my talents, learning to live within my means, being healthy, traveling, and yes even going to church.
6. "Good communication" does not mean point out the flaws of the other person, but rather find common ground and see where my own responsibility lies (i.e. the speeding ticket I got two weeks ago was not Noah's fault at all, and yelling at him because I didn't want to take the responsibility for it was lousy communication on my part).
7. Being a mom is way harder than people let on.

What have you learned in the last 9 years?

Two Things That Have Made My Marriage Even Better

This book:

Which I blogged about here a while back.

Another thing that has greatly influenced my marriage/ life was reading a talk by Elder James E. Faust kind of by accident (generally I'm not one to rush out reading the latest Ensign issue)

This is the part that really stuck out to me:

Let every mother understand that if she does anything to diminish her children’s father or the father’s image in the eyes of the children, it may injure and do irreparable damage to the self-worth and personal security of the children themselves. How infinitely more productive and satisfying it is for a woman to build up her husband rather than tear him down. You women are so superior to men in so many ways that you demean yourselves by belittling masculinity and manhood.

The whole talk is worth reading.

I've found myself searching for that talk on a few occasions (one being yesterday in preparation for a lesson I gave) so I thought I'd stick its location on my blog so I always know where to go.

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

I met Noah just over nine years ago, when he looked like this:

My first memory of Noah is him entering his apartment and walking behind the couch I was sitting on. I was frightened, yet strangely attracted to this mysterious man. Okay, in reality I just thought he looked like someone I would never date. And then he asked me to go on a date with him (all his roommates were dating all of my roommates, so it was the logical thing to do). That was December 17th. We spent just about every day together during Christmas break and got married 11 months later after a few hiccups along the way.

Some things you should know about Noah:

1. He hears his name every where, like when people can't make up their mind and they say, "no...uhh..." or when someone yells "No One come in here."
2. He can't hold still if he's talking on the phone. He paces back and forth from room to room.
3. He loves to travel. Did you know that we spent the first six months of our marriage in Xingang, China (the province right above Tibet that borders Afghanistan)?
   This is Peggy, one of our students. In the background you can see the school we lived at.
   
   

Noah and I got to spend just about every every waking moment together while we were in China. We wouldn't change that opportunity for anything.

4. Noah is an incredible, interactive father.

One thing I absolutely love about Noah is that when he's home from work, he's home. He plays with the kids or helps me if I need help.

He's the "Cool dad"

6. Noah is the ultimate underdog. Did you know he barely graduated high school? He's now just three classes away from his masters degree (he would have finished it by now, but the move kind of interfered with school). Oh, and he has a 4.0 GPA.

7. Noah can do anything. Remember this house?

Every time I look at the pictures of this house, I'm blown over by how much Noah did while being a full-time student and working as a machinist part time.

8. Noah is no complainer. Unfortunately, I was the primary complainer during the house- building project. I'm sorry Noah.

9. Noah can make me laugh harder than anybody else.

10. Noah is the love of my life. And he's an awfully good kisser. 11. He was born on March 3rd.

Happy birthday Noah.