Our First Thanksgiving

     So it has been awhile since I have posted so I will give you an update on our fun, little lives.  For Thanksgiving, Ryan  was given 2 weeks off of school due to he finished his first quarter and then it was Thanksgiving.  So we headed home to Idaho the week before and stayed for the whole week and then we flew back and spent the holiday in Arizona because I had to work Thanksgiving week so we can go home for Christmas.

     First of all, Idaho was so much fun.  Ry and I miss Idaho so much.  We really do love being in Arizona but it just isn't the same.  We wanted it to snow so bad in Idaho while we were up there and luckily 2 storms came through right before we had to leave.  It was unfortunate that we missed the huge blizzards that hit home right after we left.  Anyway, while we were up in Idaho we were able to see tons of family and friends that we have missed!  One of the funnest things that we were able to do was go Christmas Tree hunting!!! I love hunting haha! Ryan's sister goes every Christmas season to get a few real trees.  This year we went with them to Knox's Canyon up in Arbon Valley.  We put on all of our snow clothes and had a blast! After we found the trees we decided to do a little bit of sledding.  The snow was like ice on the top layer so we were cruising and then would have to bail off of the sled before you ran into all of the trees!  Unfortunately I forgot my camera but it was so much fun!  We were also lucky enough to be able to baby sit my cute little nephew Gunner for a morning.  It was so fun to see Ryan and Gunner play.  Gunner was a little sick and had a hard time falling asleep but Ryan new exactly what to do.  He would start to play the piano and Gunner would fall right asleep.  He is so awesome!

I don't know where he gets sucking those fingers....it can't be from his Aunt Kali

      After we had a fun week in Idaho, we headed back to Arizona.  I worked every night and we played all day long and had so much fun.  It was so nice to not have Ryan worrying about a test or doing any homework!  On Wednesday before I went to work we went to the grocery store and did all of our Thanksgiving dinner shopping and Christmas candy ingredients shopping.  I didn't have to work on Thanksgiving so I decided that I would make us Thanksgiving dinner!  Of course, I have started to make Ryan become a little more domestic in the house so he cooked all of the dinner with me.  Here are a few pictures of us cooking.

Ryan just had to put on his Anatomy dissecting gloves to clean the turkey.  He said he was "practicing."

Notice I don't need gloves...haha

     After we put the Turkey in the oven, we decided to go on a hike at an area about 2 miles from our apartment called Thunderbird.  We hiked for a good hour or so.  The weather was beautiful probably 60 degrees or so but some may call us crazy but we really missed the snow!

This is on top of Thunderbird with the view of Glendale behind us

    Ryan really likes Lemon Meringue Pie and wanted that instead of pumpkin pie.  So we called up my dad who makes amazing lemon meringue and he told us what to do.  I helped Ryan make his first pie! He really did most of it on his own and it even tasted AMAZING!

Making the Lemon

Putting the Meringue on....

The finished product....he was so proud

     Next, we decided that we had nothing better to do then to join the BLACK FRIDAY CROWDS starting at Walmart at 12 am, walking through the mall from 1 am to 3:30 am, Target at 4 am, and finally our lovely beds at 6 am.  It was one of the most fun times that we have had.  There was so much laughter throughout the morning.  We slept for 5 hours and then started our day again.  We both decided that we will probably never do that again when we have kids, they can just go without haha just kidding it really was a lot of fun.

     I am so thankful for such a wonderful, amazing, fun, and crazy-like-me husband.  Ryan never ever murmurs or complains when I drag him to the kitchen to cook with me or run around and go grocery shopping with me.  He makes me laugh anytime of the day and is so selfless.  I really have been blessed to find the best eternal companion for me who makes me look at the bright side of things daily and helps me be a better person.  Thanks for the best "First Thanksgiving" together Ry.

IdaHOME

     I don't know if I have ever told anyone, but I have the Best Family that I could ask for and now that also includes my great in-laws.  My dad always told me, "Kali you can't pick your relatives but you can pick your In-Laws!" haha and I would have to say that I give myself an A+ for picking my in-laws.  Anyways, my family surprised me with a trip home to IDAHO for my sister Kodi's little boys baby blessing.  My mom had harvest break the following week so I was able to stay with my family for 8 days! Ryan had a test the Friday before the blessing and the Monday after so he wasn't able to make it.  Even though I really really missed my husband it was very fun to be back home.  I froze half the time ( Arizona is still 90 degrees) but I loved the cool, crisp Fall air and of course the amazing colors of the leaves turning.

     So my big trip started with a flight up north to Salt Lake where my sister Jami and Brad with their adorable little girl Harper Jo (yep, she is named after me!!) picked me up.  She is now 5 months and is the cutest thing ever.

   Harper and I played and played all the way home to Idaho, until she just wanted her mom haha.  Once we got home I had a little present/surprise for my mom and dad.  I had already told my sisters that i got accepted/transferred into pharmacy school at Midwestern where Ryan goes but hadn't said a word to my parents.  I wanted to tell them in person.  Here is a little history....so my parents were super excited about me getting married to my wonderful husband but were a little hesitant because I was going to be giving up Pharmacy school and they knew how hard I had worked to get in.  Parents are funny, sometimes they have a harder time letting something go then their kid who is making the decision.  So on that note, I wrapped up a T-shirt that said Midwestern University CPG (College of Pharmacy-Glendale) haha and of course they didn't know what CPG stood for so I had to help them out and tell them, then they got really excited and all happy.  It was a nice surprise for them.

     Sunday came around and little Gunner LeRoy Twiss was blessed by his dad.  It was a beautiful blessing and great to have all of my family together.  It is amazing how 2 little beautiful babies, Harper and Gunner, have truly blessed my family's life.  Friendships have been renewed and love is even stronger in the Hess clan.  This was my first time seeing my little nephew and he is a cutie.  He looks a lot like his dad but is getting physical features from Kodi everyday.

Gunner, Me, and Miss Allyiah my niece

    To sum it all up, I am the Favorite Aunt.  There is no competition and my nieces and nephews love me! haha Here is a picture of Kindi's little family minus Trey.

     Before Sunday could end we had to get the usual "sister" pictures.  It was hilarious! Even though Kindi is the oldest she still is the most teased and the funnest to laugh at! haha here are a few pics.

Kindi, Kali, Kodi, and Jami

   
     I love my family and couldn't ask for better sisters.  If they only knew how much I look up to them all, they have truly helped me become the person that I am today!

     Later on in the week I was able to have some dinner with the Finn Family and it was great! It was very fun to see them, but you could tell that they really missed Ryan! Don't worry guys you will see him in November!  But I was able to go on a FUN horse ride with my sis-in-law Tiffany and the cutest little boy Tanner.  Little does Ryan know that when he isn't around me Tanner totally has my heart! haha this little guy is adorable! Oh and Tanner calls me "Kaki" it is the funniest thing ever.

Tanner kept telling me through the horse ride, "Kaki i do it by myself" he just turned 2 and has the mentality of a teenager!

   When Tanner was done riding he decided that he was going to walk Rival around.  It was the cutest thing.  Good thing I have great horses that I can trust.  Rival would walk super close to Tanner and then hurry and take a bite to eat of alfalfa before Tanner would start tugging on the lead rope.

     Before my time was up in Idaho I was able to watch my nephew Trey play football.  He is a good QB and the funniest kid I know.  They ended up losing but it was fun to be out in the cold all wrapped up in blankets to watch him.  It reminded me of the good ole high school Friday Night Lights.

 
     All in all it was a super fun trip home and I realized just how much I love Idaho and can't wait till we can call it our home again!

Our FINNtastic Life!

     So, I have had many friends tell me that I need to start blogging since Ryan and I live in Arizona now, so here I go.  Here is a little update on our fun life.  Ryan is currently in his first year of Medical School at Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona.  I just barely got accepted/transferred into Midwestern University Pharmacy Program and will be starting up/finishing my PharmD in June.  I transferred Texas Roadhouse restaurants down to the Peoria, AZ store and love it.  As Ryan would say, "I am the Sugar-Momma" right now.  I am so excited to be able to finish my schooling.  I had just finished my P1 (first Year) of Pharmacy school at ISU, but with marrying my sweet husband, I decided to take a big chance at transferring pharmacy schools to be with my husband.  Ryan and I spent a lot of time praying, going to the temple, and my husband telling me to be "patient" in waiting to find out if I could transfer pharmacy schools. About a week in a half ago we got the A Okay for me to finish school.

     Ryan and I were married for Time and All Eternity in the Idaho Falls Temple on July 23, 2010 and have been completely happy!  It has been the best decision that I have ever made.  I never knew that I could truly love someone as much as I love Ryan.  I have learned a lot on what it means to sacrifice for not just yourself but your family.  We moved to Glendale, AZ July 31st and Ryan started school August 3rd.  It was a very fast move and a crazy first couple of months to just be by ourselves in AZ but we LOVE IT! Even though we miss our families tons we do like being able to just have life be about us.

   Ryan is such an amazing husband and student.  He can juggle so much at one time with tests and me pestering him to go outside and play.  I don't even know if he knows what a B or C or D is in school.  He has been getting his A's and works very hard for them.  I am afraid that once I am able to start school up in June he is going to see that I am not as smart as him, that is for sure.  

    I have learned a lot just these last 2 1/2 months of being married.  I truly have a love for going to the temple and love the gospel even more then I ever have.  I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for putting Ryan in my life.  I appreciate every minute that Ryan makes me laugh.  Life is so fun and being able to be with my best friend everyday is the greatest.  You think that you love someone so much the day you get married, but I could never imagine how much my love has really grown for Ryan every day.

Ryan headed to his first day of Medical School!

   
     We only live a half a mile from school so he rides his "green machine" every day.  I try to get him to ride my Schwinn to school but Ryan worked at Barry's Sport Shop before we moved and is an "avid" bicyclist so he only rides "Specialized."

                                     
I surprised Ryan with this cake after his first day of school