25

Last month, Chris turned 25! I know, this post is way overdue (like every other one).

I have been married to this wonderful man for almost 3 years and I can't believe each day how much he amazes me. For his 25th birthday, I'd like to share 25 reasons that make me love him more each day...

1. He took my breath away the second I met him and he still does every day.
2. He has more patience than I thought could ever be possible to have.
3. Want to know the meaning of hard-working? Take a peek into his life.
4. He always sees the glass half full. The glass is NEVER half empty.
5. I've never met someone who didn't get along with him. He always sees the best in others.
6. He always finds a new challenge to tackle.
7. He can make me speechless (that's a feat, trust me).
8. His smile is always on.
9. He is a really good cook.
10. He is the most handy person I know.
11. He never lets you down.
12. If he doesn't know how to do something, he'll learn and get it done.
13. He puts up with me on a bad day and always finds a way to tell me how much he loves me.
14. He always makes time to listen to me.
15. His testimony of the Gospel is unshakable.
16. If I can't believe in myself, he sure does.
17. He is the best friend I can't live without.
18. He is everything I ever dreamed my husband would be and more.
19. Chris never says never.
20. His blue eyes melt my heart every day.
21. His best friend is Jesus.
22. He sends me roses randomly.
23. I love to hold his hand and know that he is there.
24. He believed in us no matter what came in between.
25. His love makes me love in a way I never thought possible.

               He is my best friend, my true love. I have no doubt we were meant for each other.

                                                  I love you Sweetheart. Forever and more.

A sweet visit

Lincoln Memorial

On the ferry...

Fort McHenry (Baltimore)

Great Falls Virginia

Waiting for our ferry...

In the NYC Metro

Times Square

In October, my mom and sister came for a two weeks visit. It was such a good feeling to have them here with us. They visited every inch of DC they could, we went on a trip to NYC and had fun together. I love them so much and so grateful to have them in my life. Let's hope the next visit is soon.

There is a plan.

My friend Megan passed away. That same week, one of my co-worker lost her grandma on her birthday. A few days later it was my grandma's 2nd anniversary of her death. Tough week it was.

Despite the losses and the pain, I know without a doubt that Heavenly Father has a plan. A perfect plan. We will see our loved ones again and live with them forever. We must rejoice for the lives that have been lived and the moments shared on Earth. We must learn from them and continue to move forward. God will never leave us comfortless and always has a plan.

Whatever the plan may be for each one of us, it is a perfect plan, the road is bumpy but the end glorious.

Jen

Pray for Megan

My friend Megan is fighting a really acute leukemia and has had difficult complications. She is an amazing person and a wonderful example of love and kindness.

Please keep her in your prayers and if you can fast for her, please join us. You can read her story at www.prayersformegan.com

Megan, we love you. Keep fighting this, thousands are joining in prayer each day to implore Heavenly Father to give you the miracle you need. Stay strong. We love you. You will beat this.

Sabbath Thoughts

Jen: Today was a wonderful Sabbath. Well, it's not over yet. I'm going to the Youth Standards Night tonight with my Young Women, they will be singing and I'm just so proud of them. It's only been a few weeks that I've been in Young Women, and despite my initial scare (I mean..come on..teenagers are scary!), I love it more and more every time. Those girls teach me so much and I'm so grateful. Today, I taught a lesson on "Wise Choices" and all I want to do is share this quote from President Spencer W. Kimball:
"Life gives to all the choice. You can satisfy yourself with mediocrity if you wish. You can be common, ordinary. dull, colorless; or you can channel your life so that it will be clean, vibrant, progressive, useful, colorful, rich. You can soil your record, defile your soul, trample underfoot virtue, honor, and goodness, and thus forfeit an exaltation in the kingdom of God. Or you be righteous, commanding the respect and admiration of your associates in all walks of life, and enjoying the love of the Lord. Your destiny is in your hands and your all-important decisions are your own to make." (The Miracle of Forgiveness)
We are all free to make our own choices and with that come the responsibility to accept and live the consequences that come with those choices. I hope I can always choose what will make me happy, bring me closer to my Savior and worthy of Eternal Life.

Chris: I am always excited when General Conference comes around. I know it is still a couple weeks away, but I am excited anyways. Today the Stake President was visiting and he talked a little about one of his experiences with General Conference. He had just had a child, and his wife was in the hospital, and he was going to General Conference. He explained that with everything going on in his life, and he being bishop (which takes up an enormous amount of time), he felt that maybe he should slow down a little on the church stuff. Not a testimony problem, but a problem of, "man, I'm really worn out from all this and I don't know if I have what it takes to put everything in there and have left over for everything else." He went on to explain that he went into General Conference with the attitude of, "if I don't get something that will really boost me, I'm cutting back." Well, he came out with over 25 pages of notes and plenty of steam to keep moving on. I have often felt a little tired and worn out, and I really connected with what he had to say. I love General Conference because it has always been a time to recharge my spiritual batteries. I know that as we go into General Conference time prepared to ask questions and seek answers for problems or situations in our lives, that the Lord will pour out His Spirit upon us and will inspire and teach us in ways that go beyond the already very inspired words that are being spoken. I know that my Savior lives and that He loves me. I know that I have a loving Heavenly Father who listens to my prayers and answers them exactly how and when I need it the most.

Happy Sabbath.

Chris' New Adventure and Blog

Chris has wanted for a while to get into cycling, triathloning and other endurance sports. Lack of money and time make it difficult to make such things come true. However, he decided that somehow he would make the time and find the funds to make his dreams come true (with my complete support).

He decided to top it all off to start blogging about it. It will help him stay motivated, keep a journal of his adventures and maybe get others interested along the way.

So here is his new blog!

Congratulations to him for signing up for this crazy event!

He is beyond thrilled and I can only keep on grinning...his excitement is priceless.

Love that man!

VegFest!

Well, for all of you who say that it's boring being vegan, we have photographic proof that it is positively delicious! We had fun at the annual DC VegFest with our awesome friends, the Marshalls. There were tons of booths with lots of free samples, as well as speakers ranging from Oprah's chef to a vegan bodybuilder. It was a lot of fun, and very informative! Ready to go vegan with us?

Sabbath Thoughts

Sunday is "Share a Spiritual Thought Day" at the Dean Home. We probably've got more than one thought to share, but we'd figure we'd start sharing one thing each of us learned on Sunday.

Chris: "In Sunday School we were talking about Job, and it reminded me about when we first moved here and I was riding my bike what seemed like a million miles every day, and it was really hard for Jen to find a job. Every morning at 3:00 AM I would leave the house in work clothes on my 1987 Peugeot and ride to UPS. The 12-mile ride gave me time to think about life, and often I found myself asking questions like, 'I wonder what I'm supposed to get out of this?' or 'Why is this happening to me?'. Two points that I was reminded about today that hit me: First, Elder Scott said that it's okay to ask questions during trials, but not all questions will get you somewhere. Second, the Lord is always protecting us, but sometimes allows us to pass through trials so that we can be refined and purified. I am grateful for the events, both good and bad, that the Lord allows to come my way, and I know that He is there to help me through them."

Jen: "I was called to Young Women a couple of months ago and it's been an adjustment. I've never taught Youth in Church, just nursery kiddos and new converts. I'm trying to find a way to adapt my teaching so it connects with the girls. Today's lesson was on self-mastery, I was so grateful for the manual to have simple activities to illustrate the principles being taught. I think it truly made a difference to show rather than simply explain. One of the things that stood out to me was this: "Decide what you're going to do, find the steps to accomplish it and then make yourself mind it so you can do it." Self-mastery doesn't come in one day and we sure need to take things one step at a time. We don't become perfect in one day. The important part is to choose one goal at a time, find how we can accomplish it and then do it. And build on from there.
This little exercise stuck to my mind: We sow our thoughts and reap our actions, sow our actions and reap our habits, sow our habits and reap character, and from our character we reap our destiny. What kind of destiny do I want? Exaltation and Eternal Life. With that in mind, I can't give up, I must keep trying. I love that Heavenly Father takes us as we are and refines us. We just need to trust in Him."

Happy Sabbath from both of us.