Exciting month!

There are some exciting things coming up for us in the next month. 
My sister Emily is going to come home from her mission in ITALY on December 3rd (3 1/2 weeks!). 
Then in a month from tomorrow, my brothers and their wives and babies are coming here to visit for our family Christmas celebration!  Then of course Christmas is always wonderful. The whole season is. And no, I don't want to be different by choosing another favorite holiday. :)

I just have to declare that I'm 100% sentimental 
(surprise) and nostalgic, so getting together with my 
family + celebrating Christmas = an overload. 
I even had a dream recently about my brothers coming home and hugging them and crying (don't doubt that'll actually happen when I see them). I can hardly wait to see Ty, Elisabeth, Luke, Jake, Kari, Abigail, and Emily!!!!! 
My family is so important to me. 
I don't know if I'll ever get used to living in a different state than they do and only seeing them a few times each year. But at the same time, that probably makes it even better when I do get to see them.

I have missed Emily so much over the past year and a half. And the last few months senti falta dela (I missed her) even more because I started to let myself get anxious to see her, knowing it was coming fairly soon. She has been doing such an amazing job spreading the Gospel and bearing testimony of Jesus Christ. She has had a lot of health issues relating to her jaw, her stomach and hips. The worst has been her hips, since she relies so much on them for walking many miles each day. I remember feeling pain in my hips my first week in the mission field in Brazil, but then it went away as my legs got used to so much walking. I'm sure her difficulty is different than mine because it's still plaguing her. But she has persevered and continued with so much faith and long-suffering. 
I am proud of her for having such a great attitude.

 Emily and me, the night I said goodbye to her before she left on her mission.

I'm also excited to get to know her again. That doesn't mean that she'll be a completely different person. I just mean that I'm sure she has changed and grown in many ways, and it'll be fun to spend time together. Before she left, she had been up at Utah State for school, and I didn't see her very much and regretfully didn't even talk with her much on the phone. At that time, I was very busy myself with my last semesters of school and working full-time and performing with choir, etc. Now I'm only working and have more time to be nostalgic. :) In fact, I realized that since I got married, I value girlfriends so much more that before. I need girl time! 
...Which brings me back to my last post...

GIRLS

Girls need girls, and guys need girls. Aren't we wonderful? 
Everyone needs us! Kidding... kind of. 

I know everyone is different and not everyone will agree with me, but one thing is certain: most girls literally need time with girlfriends, whether that's a mom, sister, relative, neighbor, friend from school, coworker, etc. Most guys just seem to be content with their wives or girlfriends on a regular basis and don't feel that strong need to spend time with other guys.

Don't get me wrong: when I say that I need girl time, that in no way means that I'm mad at Bryndon or am bored with him or he doesn't make me happy and content. I absolutely love spending time with him--in fact, I'm always desperate to spend more time with him. He is so fun and loving, and I need time with him way more than anyone else in the world. I'm talking about an emotional need for additional time with girls that cannot be fulfilled by any man. Girls understand girl emotions, girls want to talk and talk and talk, and we somehow enjoy all talking at the same time. 
Girls are silly, girls are girly, girls are fun, girls are sensitive, girls are crazy, girls are friendly, girls are sweet. Girls will be girls.

(Picture: me and my cousin girlfriends, the "Beach Babes" on the "banana" at Hebgen Lake years ago)

There have been times when I have really missed certain friends from high school, institute/sorority at the U, old neighbors, old coworkers, and mission companions, and felt a lack of girlfriends who live within a drivable distance. I love making new friends and am often eager to become closer. It has been fun to be in two different wards since we got married, giving me the 
chance to get to know some special women in each area. 
Of course it's the best when you find someone you feel a special connection with, someone with whom you find many commonalities, and someone who is as eager to develop a friendship as you are. That can and should definitely happen within your own family, besides with friends outside the family. And something I have always felt strongly about is that two girlfriends need to put equal amounts of effort into the relationship to get the maximum enjoyment. It's just like a dating relationship in that there needs to be a balance between the two people. 

One of the best feelings in the world is to know that you cherish someone and they cherish you, no matter what kind of relationship.

As I search for new girlfriends and hold on with my might to those I already have, I invite every girl to value their girlfriends. Coordinate a healthy amount of husband/boyfriend/guyfriend time (obviously essential) with some occasional but regular girl time! We all need it!

Pictures at Wheeler Farm

Bryn and I went to Wheeler Farm on Saturday for a little bit to appear at our extended Madsen family reunion and to take some pictures! We decided on a new tradition that we'll take pics of us every two years (last time was our wedding). It was kind of weird because we felt like we were engaged again and there were plenty of people around who probably thought we were. But who cares! Being engaged was fun. 

And being married is more fun. 

I liked the picture above because it was a little more spontaneous 

than posed (believe it or not) and I like Bryndon's "smile lines." 

. 

Totally a posed shot... 

(we were there to take pictures, weren't we?)

I thought Bryndon looked particularly handsome that day.

Don't we women like when a beautiful man looks at us like that? 

Yay for the "Rec Mode" on our camera!  

It allowed us to have our professional photographers 

(my sister Grace and aunt Marcia) 

to hold down the button while the camera took a whole bunch 

of pictures in a row. That way we could move a little bit to 

try different poses and most likely (most hopefully) there 

was at least one where we both have a normal smile.  

And by the way, the weather was gorgeous. 

September is Bryndon's favorite month of the year 

and it is quickly becoming mine as well!

HEBGEN ON EARTH

Ok, I know this is WAY late to be writing about HEBGEN as it's about time for fall, but I thought I'd share some of our favorite pics. I was way rusty on the ski, and always lament that recurring fact each year when we return to Hebgen, because we don't waterski at any other time during the year. So we are able to ski a few times each summer then kind of have to start over again the next year getting ourselves back in the game. But we love it! It is such a thrill to be in that refreshing water (after getting used to it), then get pulled on top of the glassy (at certain points in the day) water while you look across to the gorgeous mountains surrounding you in 360 degrees. We were sad to have only 2 1/2 days there this summer, but grateful to be able to go at all!

This is the HUNK of my life... look at those arms!! Bryndon was amazing on one ski this year!!! I loved watching him---he never gave up and kept getting better each time. He has made fast progress over the last few years, especially since he wasn't brought up skiing every year, and is now totally comfortable on the slalom (I've never written that word before and it looks weird). Anyway, this is a great shot of his manliness. :)

What Bryndon is up to now...

Since Bryndon is not posting anything on our blog, I'll have to report on what he's doing. (Clarification: this is not written in frustration as if I wished he would. I simply acknowledge the fact that most blogs are written and managed by the wife in a couple, but named for both. Am I right?) About a week ago (Monday, August 16th) he officially started his 3rd year of Medical School at the U of U. Just a couple of weeks before that he took his Board Exams, which he's been studying for the last 2 years. It was intense, to say the least. He thinks it was like taking the MCAT times 3. These students have to study and remember material from their entire first 2 years of medical school. Bryndon chose to take his exams at the end of the summer, using up his break for more study and preparation. Others in his class took the exam at the beginning of the summer. There are pluses and minuses to both. It was very tedious for him to have to only study all day long every day, and got stressful at times.

In the end, Bryndon felt pretty good about the test. When he was getting to the last sections, his brain felt sluggish and hazy... but that is to be expected.  We will probably get back his scores very soon. Cross your fingers for us! The score you get on the Board Exams weigh heavily on your chances of getting into the kind of residency you want--especially if you're interested in one of the more competitive specialties. 

After taking his exam, Bryndon and I moved about 1/3 of our things to our new home with the help of my parents and sister Grace. The next morning we left on a little get-away to Wendover (yes, it was my first time, and no, we didn't gamble). Even though there's hardly anything to do there, just relaxing and being together was really great. We came home the next day so I could get back to work. That Saturday we finished moving to our little duplex about 5 minutes away. Then on Monday of the next week Bryndon's sister Beth got married. The next morning we left to drive up to Hebgen Lake, Montana--"Hebgen on Earth" as we call it. That was one of the best parts of our summer, even though we only got to stay for about 2 1/2 days. We were there for most of that time with my entire family (besides Emily who is in Italy on a mission)! Little niece Abigail and little nephew Luke were adorable! It was very weird to not have any cousins around, but was also very peaceful. That area is a sanctuary. Gorgeous. 

The last 24 hours of that week and of Bryndon's summer (besides Sunday) was spent at the Madsen Family Reunion that my mom put together up at Heber Valley Camp. We were exhausted from all that had happened in the last couple of weeks. Sunday was nice and quiet. We love our new ward, even as we miss our old one. The next day (getting back to what I originally started this post about), Bryndon started his first rotation at Primary Children's Hospital! He is in the Pediatric rotation and he has loved it so far. Besides thoroughly enjoying the much-reduced amount of studying he has to do each day, he gets to do some hands-on work with darling little babies! He started in the Well Baby unit, and was doing physicals on newborns only an hour or two old! Sadly, he probably saw them more after the birth than the actual mothers did. But he was doing Apgar tests and making sure that they were healthy. 

His second day he observed a Caesarean-section and was on the newborn resuscitation team to stimulate the baby to breathe, etc. It all sounds very exciting to me! He has enjoyed it, even though he has 10-12/hour days and this is one of the "low-key" rotations, and it'll only get more intense from here. He's grateful to not have to drag himself through endless hours of studying day and night anymore. He's applying some of what he has learned! We'll see how demanding future rotations are and I'm sure I'll write again then. :) Way to go Bryndon! 

2nd Post ... Here we go!

This is probably just a test because I'm still figuring out how to do this whole blog thing and how to arrange it the way I want, etc. I might erase this very soon, but it was depressing to only see my one post up on the page. I did get some pictures in though! Hooray. I want to put up a few from when we were married and a few from fun things we've done in the last 2 years, and then I might consider that caught up.

Enough for one day. Phew!

The beginning of our blog...

I never thought my life would come to this.

I hardly ever even check out other people's blogs, which takes all of 2 seconds to type into the lap top that sits in front of me about 9 hours a day. How could I expect myself to actually post pictures and write on my OWN blog?? But... I took that big step. What a leap of faith.

Kidding--it's not going to be that painful. I've just got to make sure that I don't end up spending all my time at work doing this instead of being productive. Like today! .... hehe

Actually, I have recently started looking more at the blogs made by my siblings, other relatives, and friends. And it made me want my own! I look at how cute they are designed, and more importantly, how cute the pictures are that they're sharing with those who care about them. My plan had been to start one once I had a baby, because come on--let's be honest: babies are the central feature and purpose of blogs! (To me, at least...) But I figure there's no harm in getting started with just me and Bryndon, even if our lives are lacking in true excitement right now. Eventually we'll have a baby to add to our blog (no, I'm not pregnant).

So get excited, folks! Any tips for how to put "CUTE" into this blog will be accepted gratefully! (Look--I already have colored text!)