Leaving in Two Days...

I have a lot of mixed feelings before our crazy road trip and move to Texas. I think even though I say right now that I'm not going to miss Provo...I will. And even though being in Texas again is going to be so awesome, it's going to be a lot different without a lot of the people who make it what it is. There are some things I won't miss, like the crazy rushed marriages and the corny BYU memorabilia, but I am sure I will still hear those stories from my friends in Provo and I can always buy stuff online from the BYU bookstore if I start missing it. I'm going to miss my co-workers, my great boss, Classical 89 in general, our awesome apartment, the lack of humidity, and I'm going to really miss not getting to see Adrienne and Andrea. Ben and I have spent so much time with them and I feel like all of us have gotten really close this semester. I will miss my favorite restaurant in Provo:

Lots and lots of great memories at this place. I will also miss the amazing cheap dollar theatre with all the fun Friday nights it has provided to us over the past few years. I'll miss all of my amazing friends that have made Provo and going to BYU such a fun place. But, I am excited and ready for our new adventure. I would list all the things I'm excited for...but...I think that would take too long. Besides, Ben is done studying for his final and it's time to continue our Smallville marathon! Next post...probably when we're in Texas...

Countdown

10 days until Ben and I are back in Texas!

Laura Bow and the Dagger of Ammon Ra

So, lately Ben and I have been playing old computer games from our childhood days and it's been a lot of fun. Yes, we're kind of nerdy, but when you think about it, there aren't too many board games that are that fun or interesting to play with just two people. So, Ben told me about his favorite game as a kid, "Day of the Tentacle". I played it, (with him giving me lots of hints), and I totally dominated if I do say so myself. So, we decided after that we would play my favorite computer game, "Laura Bow: The Dagger of Ammon Ra". I remembered this game so difficult my dad had to help us out a lot, but also being a lot of fun.

Well, playing this game a second time around was not only difficult, it was practically IMPOSSIBLE! We had to look at the walkthrough almost every time to figure out what to do next. Here's an example:

This Act is really fast paced, so you better be on your feet! You are in the mastodon room with the murderer chasing you. You have to run away fast or be killed! Run to the pterodactyl room and shut the door behind you by using the hand cursor on it. Wrap part of your wire on the door to temporarily seal it shut. This will help to slow down the murderer. Run into the medieval armor exhibit, close the door, and slide the bar across it. This will also help slow down the murderer. Go to the locked room that had the faded "Employees Only" sign on it. Let's confuse the murderer. Move the nearby chair in front of the locked room's door. Stand on the chair, and open the transom (window) above the door. Now run into the ancient Egyptian exhibit and hide in the empty mummy case. The murderer will enter, not see you, and head for the locked door. The murderer will think you climbed through that little window that you opened, and will decide to break down the door.

I mean, c'mon! This is supposed to be a kid's/teen's game. Anyway, we made it through the game all the way to the last act, only to find out that we didn't have enough snake oil to kill the king cobras, and...we died. Thank you, Sierra Games, for making this game so difficult. And thank you, to all the contributors on YouTube, who were kind enough to put up a video of what happens when you get past the snakes and win. That was the only way I was able to get closure.

1950s Christmas Party

On Saturday Ben and I got all dressed up and went to my friend Brittany's Christmas/Birthday party. It was 50s themed, so we did the best we could to look authentic. I honestly just wanted to wear my new pencil skirt that I got for $10 at Dillards, so I tried to make my outfit fit the theme. There was a lot of bubbly (Martenelli's of course) and it was really fun. We took tons of pictures, but here are some of my faves:

Almost a Christmas card photo.

My sister Adrienne and I

First time ever kissing under REAL mistletoe.

Posing with the birthday girl.

I think themed parties are always the best ones.

Thanksgiving!

So, I would have blogged earlier, except that my computer has been going wacko lately...and I haven't been able to get on until now. I took my laptop (MacBook Pro) to the "simply mac" store and they told me I need a new computer battery and a new power cord. So, I'm using Ben's power cord for the time being while I wait for my lovely new gifts in the mail from Amazon.com. Anyway, Thanksgiving was an absolute blast! Ben and I went to the Gordons' house in Queen Creek, Arizona and spent hours and hours of fun eating, laughing, talking, and relaxing. Here are some fun pictures:

Me and Andrea

All the boys playing "Medal of Honor"

The best part of being in Arizona was forgetting about life for a little while and just being able to spend time with people we love. Thank you everyone who made Thanksgiving so much fun!

Old Moon

This weekend my sister Adrienne and I went to see New Moon. Ok, I'll admit it, my freshman year at BYU I was way way into the Twilight books. I read the first two in a period of two days and anxiously awaited the third book. I raced through them all and desperately hoped I would find someone like Edward. Now that I am a few years older and much wiser, I have to say that I am so glad I am not married to Edward, and that I married a wonderful, amazing REAL man vs. a fictional vampire. Some reasons why I am now in love with Ben and not Edward:

-Ben is constant and practical...not moody and emo

-Ben's eyes are a beautiful blue...not a weird red/goldish color

-Ben cares about me and loves me...he would never leave me to fend for myself for four months

-Ben eats food...not blood

-Ben's family is really nice and normal...not made up of unrelated vampires

-Ben is always warm...not freezing cold all the time

These are just some of the reasons I thought of. Oh, and Ben can pull off the angry/sexy look better too.

Basketball and Country Dancing

This weekend Ben and I went to the BYU men's basketball game with two of his old roommates, Pete and Mitch. They both have girlfriends, so it ended up being a triple date. It was a lot of fun, and the game was pretty good. We were playing some team called, "The Bradley Braves". I had never heard of them before the game. After the game we went to YoZone and got some delicious frozen yogurt. I liked the date because it was fun and not too long. Sometimes when Ben and I go on double/triple dates they can go on for a long time. Don't get me wrong, we love to do stuff with other people, but it's nice to be able to have some time after the date to hang out at home just the two of us.

Here's a picture from a basketball game Ben and I went to last year:

Then on Saturday, Ben finally went country dancing with me! I've been trying to convince him that we should go for the past couple of weeks, and he finally gave in. We hadn't been in about a year, and I had to re-teach him some of the moves, but we had a really great time, and I think

he likes dancing more than he'll admit. Funny how country dancing brings out people of all different heights, weights, and ages. It's kinda cool to see everyone dancing and having a good time.

To Blog or Not to Blog

Well, I've debated for months about starting a blog. I didn't want to be labeled as one of those people who gets a blog right when they get married, but I knew I was going to have to jump on the bandwagon sooner or later. For the record, Ben and I have been married for 6 1/2 months now, so I would just like to point out that I am not part of that crowd. I waited approximately 6.5 months. I have been blog-stalking for the past couple of days, trying to figure out exactly what it is that makes a post funny or interesting, (hoping that I could copy-cat some ideas) and I've realized that everyone's blog is unique to them and who they are. So I hope that as I blog, people will read this and go, "Yeah, that sounds like something Elena would say". Yes, it's true. I tried many times to commit Ben to one or two blog posts a month, but his response was, "How about once or twice a year?" so, you'll be hearing mostly from me. Hope that's ok. I'll try to post about twice a week, unless nothing interesting happens. And hey, feel free to blog-stalk me. Because if you're on my list of blogs I like, then I blog-stalk you plenty. Hey, even leave me a comment so I know you're doing it.