Getting to know Kevin...

Kevin is a very unique individual. He's very sensitive and is a good listener. When we were dating, I always appreciated how he took the time to know the real me. I always felt like he was looking me in the eye, trying to understand what it was I was saying, which helped me to feel very close to him. One of the things I love about Kevin is that there are a lot of male stereotypes that he just does not fit: he is never afraid to stop and ask for directions, he always reads the instructions all the way through before assembling anything, he can appreciate good music or a movie or play that has a good message, he owns no power tools, and he hates the commercials that play on male stereotypes which seem to dominate during ballgames on TV.

On the other hand, he loves sports, is very competitive no matter what type of game he is playing, can always put the TV/VCR/cable wiring back together (something I won't even attempt!), and loves to wolf down pizza and junk food -- typical male stuff. :) In the picture below Kevin is standing in front of Wrigley Field in Chicago, one of our stops on a road trip to his nephew's wedding during the summer of 2007. Kevin definitely got a kick out of visiting this historic ballfield.



In our church's singles ward, Kevin was nicknamed "the Professor" because he always had so much to contribute in class. While the nickname was a joke for most, to me, his professorial nature was one of the most attractive things about him when we were dating. In this picture, though, you can see that he has more than brains to offer. :)





Another thing I like about Kevin is how well he gets along with my family. In this picture he is sitting with my niece Emilie, who has always had a good relationship with him. Whenever we get together with my family I hardly see him because he is always off with my brothers and stepdad, talking sports, while I'm with my sisters and my mom, talking girltalk.

I am lucky to also get along very well with Kevin's family. His parents live nearby so we see them often. His sisters, on the other hand, both live out of state and yet we somehow have managed to see them nearly every summer since we've been married. His oldest sister has four grown kids whom I've really come to know and love. This picture was taken at Bryce Canyon, where we stopped on our way to Utah to visit Kevin's family.





Here is Kevin eating Mexican food (our favorite!) on our first anniversary trip to Santa Barbara. Mmmm, yummy.













In the picture below, Kevin is showing off his "flying fish" that was caught on our second-anniversary trip to Catalina Island.







When we bought our home it was approaching 30 years old and needed some cosmetic upgrades. I took this picture of Kevin scraping the popcorn off the ceiling in our entryway to document our home remodeling efforts.








In general, Kevin is a likable guy whose goofy side is often more visible than his serious side. Because of this, people always like him and feel at ease with him. But he is also a serious person who wants to make the right decisions and live his life right, which is the thing I love about him. Hopefully these pictures have given you a good feel for him.

Getting to know Cindy...

I consider myself pretty shy, and I'm always hesitant to seek attention. But I'm usually in the background, working hard to make sure everything goes right. In school, I was always the student who never raised her hand (too shy!) but whose grades reflected a pretty studious side. Once you get to know me, however, I'm very open, caring, warm, and funny (at least I like to think so!).

When I was 11 my parents bought a piano from a family at church and I began taking piano lessons. I discovered early on that I had been blessed with a talent for playing the piano as well as a love for it.

I love music in general. I love classical music and a lot of eighties and nineties rock and alternative music, but my favorite is musicals: I love Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, The Sound of Music, West Side Story, Show Boat, My Fair Lady, etc.

My true love, however, is literature. At the bottom of this blog I put a link to my "shelf" on Shelfari.com, a website where I can keep track of all of the books I have read, the books I want to read, talk with others about books, and even rate books. I am almost always in the middle of reading a book. Some of my favorite authors are Thomas Hardy, George Eliot, Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters and Leo Tolstoy.

Here is a picture of me when I graduated from BYU. This was in my bedroom...my roommate and I had decorated it like "a romantic Italian restaurant" with vining ivy and white lights wrapped around the ceiling (and a moon and sun motif).

Here is a picture of me with my two oldest friends on the day I graduated from Chapman. I am proud of my college education and truly identify myself as an "English major."


This is another picture from my bedroom at BYU. I don't really play the guitar...that's my roommate's. But I do like to act pretty goofy sometimes, and I like to rock it out once in a while, too. ;)






One more picture from BYU days...I dressed up like a pirate one Halloween for work. I was a waitress at a Mexican restaurant in town, probably the funnest job I've ever had!












After I graduated from BYU, I moved back to California and worked at an environmental engineering firm (the same company my dad worked for) as a technical writer and editor. I enjoyed the job because I got to work with my dad for several years and really got to know him a lot better. Here is a picture of me in the office, showing my "professional" side.





My dad passed away suddenly after I'd been working with him for four years. Losing my dad was the worst thing that ever happened to my family and me, but we all agree that it made us closer than ever because we know what it's like to lose someone.

While I worked for the environmental company, I attended a singles ward and met Kevin during this time. Kevin took this picture of me in the living room of the house I was living in while we dated.

My whole life has changed since I married Kevin. I'm never more happy than when I'm at home making plans for our family. I love to make plans for home improvements, vacations, dinners, and picnics or other ways to spend our Saturdays. I also love to arrange get-togethers with my family.

I really love my family more than anything in the world, so I'm going to end now with some pictures of me with my family. First, here is a picture of my sister and me (in the white shirt) on our uncle's boat, sailing past Laguna Beach.





Here I am with two of my youngest nieces, Kali and Kaytlin.

Here Kevin and I are on a camping trip with my brother and his wife.

And finally, here is a great four-generation photo of some of my family, taken at one of our get-togethers at my mom's house. This includes my grandpa (who passed away in 2008), my mom, three of her six kids (one sister holding her son, one brother holding his daughter, and me holding one of my nieces), and five of the grandkids (there are now eight, with a ninth on the way).


Thanks for taking the time to learn about me! :)

Introducing our cats...

A little about our cats, Shadows and Mitch...

In 2006 we adopted two male cats, Shadows and Mitch, from a family we knew through our church. Shadows was one year old and Mitch two years when we adopted them.

Kevin and I both grew up with pets; my family always had dogs and at least one cat at all times, while Kevin grew up with a dog and two cats. However, neither of us realized how much fun cats could be until we brought these two guys home. Even as I type this they are chasing each other around the house like the little wild animals they are. They keep us laughing with the way they hunt and pounce on each other (and occasionally on us), talk to the birds and rabbits outside, run away from the "cat bogeyman" (any noise or movement that startles them), and play with their favorite toy -- one of Kevin's discarded shoelaces. They are also very sweet and give us lots of cuddle time full of purrs and love. I've learned that there's nothing nicer than a warm kitty cuddling up next to me and purring himself to sleep.

Some of our favorite scenery shots from vacations we have taken...

Why we like our scenery shots...

I have added in the posting above a slideshow with some of our favorite "scenery" shots from vacations we've been on. I like all of these shots because they are so physically beautiful. I have to give Kevin credit; I think he actually was the photographer on all of these, though I was always close by offering my "artistic" advice. :)

I love the pictures of the California coast--they seem like professional pictures to my amateur eye. I included the picture of the Neptune Pool at Hearst Castle because that is one of Kevin's favorites. The Alaskan sunset picture is one of my favorites because it has some of my favorite colors -- cool blues and purples -- which are very soothing to me. The pictures of the old homes in Georgetown, TX capture two things: first, one of the things we like to do when we travel, which is to explore the "real life" wherever we are; and second, my obsession with old homes (I love HGTV!!). Hopefully the pictures of the Nauvoo Temple in Illinois and Mt. Rushmore speak for themselves...what more can I say?