A Dream Come True! I'm a MAC Artist!!!

October seems to be a great month for me. On October 14th, I interviewed with MAC cosmetics for a free-lance make-up artist job. They did a one-on-one verbal interview and afterwards a demo. My beautiful friend Colleen was my model and totally worked it with the MAC artists. They LOVED her. During the demo the artist asked me to pretend that Colleen was a new mother of triplets and wanted an easy everyday look that she could put together in 10 minutes. He gave me 20 minutes to put it together. I used shimmery peaches on her eyes to bring out the blue and a sweet pink lipstick (of course with full foundation, blush, mascara, primer etc). If I do say so myself, she looked hot! My evaluator told me he liked my look. Overall I think it went well because they called me the next day to let me know they wanted to hire me. I won't work much because it's basically an on-call position when they get a new collection. I'll probably start after Thanksgiving! YEAH!!!

I wish I had a picture of me after the interview. I wore my black hat with black layered zip up shirt, knee length skirt and high heeled knee high boots. Mark, the sweetie gave me these gorgeous flowers after the interview as a congrats for the interview. He didn't even know I'd gotten the job. What a doll. PS- The pic of these flowers was taken with my phone but you'll see a better pic of them in my Bridal's. These flowers inspired our wedding colors; deep violet, pink, celery green, sage and bronze. Yeah it's a lot of colors but it's a concept right????

December 30th 2008

Friends,
It's official. The wedding will be December 30th at 9:40. Our reception will be at the River Oak's Club House in Sandy, UT. Here is a little sneak peak at the bottom of my dress.

Grandma Ryser

I feel a little hesitant to post this as I know many of you are reading this to hear about the engagement but I had to pay tribute one of the most wonderful women I've ever known. My grandma, Maxine West Ryser passed away today. She was such a kind and optimistic woman. She was never critical of me. She loved me unconditionally and always had hope for me. She told me I was beautiful for years after she lost her eyesight. She rarely complained about her physical pain although I know she was suffering in her body for a while (we recently found out her spine had been fused due to arthritis). Ok, I can't write more now because I want to cry but keep my grandpa in your prayers and read on about Mark's and my good news!!!

It's Official. We're Engaged!

So, Mark's basically the most incredible, kind and generous man I know (No offense to the other men I know). He and I went to "Mormon Night" at Fenway Park (Saturday the 30th). The game was fabulous and the Sox WON!!! It was a magical game. Afterward, we were on the train going home with Shelly when Mark told me we should get off the train early to "get ice cream". We got off at Arlington and Shelly didn't suspect a thing (she thought I was hungry, which is a rational thought BTW). Well, we didn't get ice cream but walked to the Boston Public Gardens (see picture but picture it at 10:30 p.m.). He put his sweatshirt down on the ground for me to sit on and we sat near a charming pond (with ducks, reflections, and weeping willows). We talked how Boston had brought us together and Mark said a few other "sweet" things, then knelt down, which was actually up because I was on the ground and asked me to marry him. I said "Yes" and then we let it all soak in for a minute. It was a sweet experience and the ring was PERFECT! It's a princess cut solitaire with a platinum setting. It was exactly what I wanted and more.

We've now reserved the Salt Lake Temple for a sealing on December 30, 2008 at 9:40. We are so excited and can't wait to share it with you. Any advice??? I'm open for wedding suggestions.

Love Ya!!!

Moving Day!!

Yup. Tons going on right now! Shelly and I decided to move to Medford because it's loads more space, $200 less expensive and closer to my work. Unfortunately we kicked out our dear friends Audria and Tara to stay here ;). We are living with Janae Kraus and we love our new place. Come visit any time. We have lot's of space for you!! 580 High St. Medford, MA 02155. Mail or visit any time!!

Road Trip Day #3

Today was Sunday so we went to church and then stopped back in Palmyra to visit the Sacred Grove (where the prophet Joseph Smith saw God the Father and Jesus Christ). The day was beautiful and the spirit was immediately present, even as we entered. We also saw his log home and farm. This is where the Book of Mormon was hidden for a time and where Joseph Smith saw the last prophet of Book of Mormon (Moroni). Moroni came to Joseph Smith and told him where to find the plates of the Book of Mormon. It was a very sweet place. This is a picture of the temple taken from the Sacred Grove.

Road Trip Day #2

So today is Mark's 32nd birthday! I surprised him by getting him tickets to the Red Sox's/Blue Jay's game in Toronto for tonight. Mark was super excited and I was so happy he was happy. Unfortunately the Sox lost by a landslide but it was still fun to be at the game. Later that night we went to Niagara Falls in ON, incredible! Our little hostel was run by a crazy Canadian named "Charlie" of course pronounced /Sharlie/.

Road Trip Day #1

Mark and I decided to take a road trip for the weekend. On our first day we ended up in Palmyra, New York. We visited the hill Cumorah (where the prophet Joseph Smith received the Book of Mormon) and did a session in the temple. It's a gorgeous temple with amazing stained glass windows. You can see the Sacred Grove from the administrative offices in the temple. Here is a picture of the temple and a picture of Mark in front of the Sacred Grove.

Nantucket

What a fabulous day! Mark was out of town and Jodi flew out just for the day. We took an early ferry to Nantucket, and then biked to shore side beach. It was amazing!!!

Make-up Genius

So, I pretty much rock at make-up. Not that these girls even needed it. The rockin' expressions on their before pictures help too. Honestly, make-up's starting to become an obsession. I do free make-overs if anyone is interested. That is until I become famous and then I'll charge $200 per hour ;).