Our Date...Me and Andrew

we whent out to minis and office Depot and got pencils and pencil sherpner and i laghed so hard and fell on the floor. and we are home its me mel and jefrey skousen.

I'm back and here to stay

It's been a whirlwind lately and I have decided to rededicate myself to blog. Actually seeing that I never was faithful to start out with, this will be more of a dedication. The thing is that throughout the day, sometimes I think, "I should blog about ____,"but I never do.

Last Sunday morning Grani passed away from a 14 month battle with brain cancer. It has been sad, but we have been partying with lots of family. Her funeral was yesterday and it was incredible. If I become half of the woman she was, I will be happy. She loved to work and loved music. She used those two things as vehicles to become a better person. During the funeral, I understood with more clarity the importance of life and work. It has given me more direction in my life and I hope I can live up to Grani's standards. Grani, you are amazing and I love you!!!



On a brighter note, I have been in Las Vegas for a while. I went to the strip with my brother David, his wife Emily, her sister Sarah, and our cousin Maddy because it was Sarah's first time in Vegas. We had a blast the few hours we were there. The highlights were watching the fountain at the Bellagio and eating scrumptious crepes. OK, the crepes were a little pricey equaling the cost of our lunch, but it was well worth the experience.

Car

I was driving home from work and was on a hill. My palms got sweaty, my heart was pounding fast, there was a car coming up behind me. The tension was building and building.... I put in the clutch pressed on the gas, took off the e brake and successfully got going. The past little bit I been having to drive a Manuel to work. I do ok for the most part, but I am not so good starting on hills yet. I didn't realize how stressed I was about the stop light on a hill until I got past it with flying colors. You know when you do something that is kind of scary and afterwards your heart just has a relieved feeling? Well, I totally felt that way. I know this all sounds very pathetic, but true none the less. It is also a little embarrassing to admit that I am indeed 23 years old and not able to drive stick with ease, but then again I think, "Oh well, at least I'm learning now."

Pool Days

I absolutely love my job!!!!! I work at two pools: Timberlane and Covington. Between my two pools, I work about 60 hours a week which leaves limited 'me' time, but for the most part that is ok. Timberlane is an outdoor pool that is in a lower income neighborhood. Everyday I have new experience and great stories. Many of the kids that swim every day come from very broken homes and are living with people other than their parents. These kids have become my friends. They are great. I love them and that I have the chance to have an impact on their lives.

One of my new friends is living with her aunt and uncle because both of her parents were in jail. She brings joy to my life every day. I wish she could live with me. Yesterday we talked about making choices. She told me that she is going to make good choices unlike her parents. She said she knows she can't be perfect, but she wants to try. I wanted so badly to teach her about Christ and what I believe. She is so pure and innocent but at the same time has a knowledge of things I had no clue of when I was 8. I can't imagine the things she has already had to deal with in her short lifetime. I'm so grateful that she and the others can come to the pool and leave their worries about life behind them and just have fun.

On a lighter note, there are the 12 and 13 year old boys who are so great! They try to get hugs from us and will do just about anything for us to like them. One of the boys wrote his phone number on my arm... its gone now, but its sure a good thing I snapped a picture of it first! To call or not to call, that is the question.

Western Washingon

People always ask the question, "Where do you want to live?" I've always thought, "Anywhere but Washington." Lately, I've become converted to Seattle. The weather has been more than amazing. I've now decided that it's the best place ever. I couldn't ask for anything more... weather in the 80's, the sun is shining, water close by, great stars every night, Mt. Rainier looking over me, hikes to go on, places to go and people to see. Before I head back to Provo in the fall, I want to discover Western Washington like never before.