Modest Swimsuit

I have been in dire need of a new swimsuit for a while now. The fabric on my old one is very obviously wearing thin. I found this website that makes 2 piece swimsuits that are a dress and leggings. I almost bought one but then decided that I could make the pattern myself because I have some free time. I used AutoCAD to draft the pattern from scratch which I found to be much easier than the traditional method of paper and pencil I learned in my patternmaking class at BYU. I really like this style because it has a higher neckline than most 1 piece suits and I do not have to find a pair of shorts to wear over because I do not like showing all of my legs, it is kinda uncomfortable. It will be great for boating, I can sit on the boat in it and then also jump straight into the water or wear walking around on the beach. It is more comfortable also because it has no vertical stretch so I don't have a permanent wedgie. I can worry less than wearing a rash guard and shorts because the skirt covers the waist.

So I really like it and it was not very hard to make. For me it is the perfect combination of comfort, security, freedom of movement, and modesty.

Universal Studios

Brian surprised me by going to Universal Studios for our two year Anniversary. It was really fun. I enjoyed all the shows and they also have a few rides. My favorite was the Jurassic Park ride because at the beginning the plants and flowers look so nice and it is calm and then you drop and get wet like Splash Mountain. I don't usually like getting wet at amusement parks because it is usually not very hot but that day it was nice to get wet. My favorite show was the Water World show based on the movie. One thing I really liked is when we got some popcornand they let you refill it as many times as you want that day so I was eating popcorn a lot.

Grandpa's House

Here are some pictures of where we are living right now until sometime in July, these are mostly for my family because the Olson's have been here before. This is the backyard with the avocado tree and the patio. Our bedroom window is on the top closest to the tree.

This is the living room downstairs next to the front door and I have been using it for sewing because the empty bedrooms upstairs get too hot. Right now I am working on making a pattern for a swimsuit for myself. I will update more on that later.

This is the family room and kitchen. All of the furniture is Eric and Desi's but they let us use the table and couches. I like all the large windows in the kitchen, most of the day we leave the lights off.

California

We made it to California! After driving about 12 hours on Saturday we dropped off the boat and unloaded the U-Haul at Brian's parents house. We had a little bit of help but it wasn't much so we were tired after. Then we reloaded everything going to Grandpa's where we are staying and then unloaded it once we got there. We have been pretty tired lately with all the packing and unpacking. On Sunday we had church at 9 and then went to Reese's house for easter dinner and an indoor egg hunt.

Monday Brian called Penske to see if he would get that job and it did not work out because they needed someone who could work until the end of August but he is now working for Reese at the dental office sterilizing instruments during lunchtime and at the end of the day. He is getting about 10 hours a week at $18. So that should be alright for the summer. Brian is also looking for people who want their home videos on blu-ray or dvd, starting with Reese's videos. So if he gets a few people's videos to work on that would keep him busy.

I have been looking for a seamstress job doing fitting or something similar. There was a perfect one in Redondo Beach at a tuxedo shop but that is to far away. I also applied to Joanns yesterday so we will see how that goes. I called Disneyland about that job and they said it usually takes 4-6 weeks to process the applications. That is way too long, but maybe I get the Joanns job and then switch to Disneyland after a few months.

We are still setting up everything in our bedroom but we got some food yesterday and have been borrowing Leanne's semi broken car to drive back and forth. We keep forgetting things we need that are back at Brian's parents house.

Eric and Desi are the married couple living here at Grandpa's with us and they are really nice, we enjoy talking and hanging out in the evenings when they get back from work. Cherissa also lives here but we never see her.

We grabbed some lemons from a tree in the olson's neighbors yard that hangs over their fence. We got about 20 and they are huge, we made some lemonade and it was good. These lemons have quite a bit of juice in them, I think for a 2 quart we used like 6 lemons. There is also an avocado tree in grandpa's yard and from our bedroom on the 2nd story we can just reach out and pick them.

So we are having a lot of fun, there are nice parks nearby so we have been running and riding bikes in the morning.

Moving Troubles

On Friday Brian and I were leaving for California to drop off all of our stuff. We had the car and boat loaded and drove for about an hour when the Durango stopped working and a large grinding noise happened. We pulled off the side of the freeway and opened the hood. After it cooled down we tried to start it again and the oil cap flew off about 30 feet away. Our insurance covered a tow truck to tow us back to the dodge dealer in Provo. We got there late when all the mechanics were going home so we left all our stuff at the dealer overnight and found a ride home from a friend and also found an air mattress to sleep on for the night. Saturday morning the mechanic called and said that the engine threw a rod and we need to replace the engine but they are not sure if the long block or short block needs to be replaced. They quoted us $5,000 or $8,000 depending on which needs to be replaced. Obviously somewhere else can do it for much cheaper.

So all of this got Brian and I thinking about our summer plans and we have decided not to go to Florida for the summer and just drive straight to California after graduation. Brian got referred a temporary job at a place similar to a U-Haul at the sales counter and it is looking very good that he will get that job for the summer. He doesn't have an interview yet but the guy who referred him is his brother's bishop and they need lots of people. As for me, I am looking for a job nearby Placentia as a seamstress or something similar. Maybe fitting, alterations, upholstery. I found a job listing for a Casual Regular Seamstress for Disneyland and it includes fitting and altering costumes for people in parades, shows, or costumes like the princesses. I just hope disney will let me work because I am not sure if not showing up to florida would break our contract, we need to call them on Monday.

In august we were going to live at Brian's Parent's house but right now there are still a few single girls renting rooms so we might live at Grandpa's house which is pretty close with another one of Brian's married cousins. The house is in the courts right now and they are still deciding what to do with it but in the meantime some people are just living there for free except utilities. We can move into his parent's house in July when the renters move out.

So that is just what we are doing for the summer, we are optimistic about graduating and moving to our next period of life.

Motorcycle

So Brian got a motorcycle about a month ago. We were thinking about in CA getting a 2nd car, just an old cheap one that gets better gas mileage then our Durango. So we got thinking about motorcycles because they get great gas mileage (Brian's gets about 80mpg) and cost less than an old car in the same condition. We decided to get a Honda Rebel 234cc because we heard it is great for learning and not too much power. He got a Utah driver's license and a motorcyclepermit that lets him drive but without passengers, at night, or on the freeway. He is now taking the class at SLCC that will give him the license when he finishes, then he can let me ride on the back. He always wears his full face helmet, jacket with armored shoulders and elbows,pants with armored knees, and gloves with armored knuckles. He got some bags to put his pants and other stuff in when he gets to school or work. He also just got a sissy bar which is a backrest for me and a larger bag that slips on the sissy bar to fit his jacket and strap a helmet on top. He gets really good parking at school, his classes are all in the Smith Field house and Richards Building so he parks right next to the building. In driving it around town he has begun to enjoy it, he thinks it is fun to ride. We got a carrier for our Durango that is like a bicycle carrier but the bike is supported under the tires, you use the ramp to push it up onto the rack and then strap it on so it doesn't roll off. We are going to take it to florida with us.

Kindle

I have been talking about getting a Kindle for a while now. I was thinking maybe getting one in July after we have saved up some more but this week Brian surprised me with a Kindle. It is so great. I started reading Treasure Island which was free. All the old classic books that don't have copyright are free. I also found some games like word games and a really fun maze game where the mouse has to get to the cheese.

I just got the Olson family cookbook on PDF and it looks great. The thing about PDFs are that they are usually too small to read because it scales a whole 8 1/2 x 11 down to the screen size but the cookbook is easy to read.

Last night I also sewed a case for it. I had some leftover cotton fabric and bought suedecloth for lining so the screen would not get scratched and some neoprene for inbetween so it would have some padding. The amount of padding or squishiness is perfect, not too thick but enough to protect it. I also made a pocket on the back for headphones or the power cord. It is nice to have stuff like that handy. So with buying all the fabric for the case it ended up costing me only $7 instead of buying a case for like $20-$30.

I also like the internet on it. This is kinda like my substitute for a smartphone sort of. And with this I have no monthly fees like a smartphone but it does not have as many capabilities as a smartphone. Just what I need though. I can check my email anywhere and look at facebook too. Google maps works ok, you can get the written directions but the visual map part of the screen is not very big and you can't zoom or pan. But it would still be very useful in the car if you needed to know how to get somewhere and I don't really like GPS because I want to see the big picture and not have a computer talk to me, that is weird.

I also got the scriptures on it, it is fairly easy to navigate to a certain verse. But I have yet to find a hymns that includes the notes, all of them are just the words which doesn't help much.

I also like that is plays audiobooks so now we can just get some on the kindle instead of cds from the library, we would probably only get free ones though. I can also listen to music while reading or playing games or looking at the internet on the speakers so I don't need headphones.

Well, I like it. I hope to be using it for recipes a lot and for fun too like games and internet and I can read books easily too while laying in bed because it is not heavy.