Our life; Our Journey

My life is now turning to Our life once and for all.

Alex proposed on 04/23/2015 at the upper falls of Bridal veil. Our love story is nothing short of a miracle. And I say that because he was my miracle. God was looking out for me and knew the exact person I needed and when I needed him. Those that do not know me and Alex met at 16 years old. We were both newly planted to Utah County and began our high school journey at Spanish Fork High. I did not know it then but this was the beginning of what was going to be the best thing that has ever happened to me. We dated for 2 years of high school. Young and having no clue our potential we broke up before school was even over. This was the best thing for us. We both went our separate ways; gained life experience, life lessons and grew into the people we were meant to be.

Fast forward to us now, at 25. I have never had more confidence in a relationship then I do with this incredible man. Our love is real: It comes with pain, heartache, laughs, stress, joy, tears, and above all happiness. I have found someone that wants to build a life together. Together is that key word, he includes me in ever decision of his life, he wants me around even when I am incredibly cranking after a graveyard shift. He fought for me when I wasn't worth fighting for. These things may seem very minor in nature but these are the things that I have never had. When Alex came back into my life he knew what he wanted....it was me. I was broken, I was sad and the only thing that made me smile was him. I will say that our "2nd" love story came when I broke my foot in March 2013. Alex had no obligation to me but he was by my side every second that he wasn't at work. He would stop by my house at 445 in the morning to make sure my ice bucket was refilled, water and pain pills were close and that I had anything I needed why he was gone. After he would get off work the same routine would happen except he would stay by my side all night long. Of course there were better things for him to do, but he CHOSE to never leave, he CHOSE to make me the priority. Since the beginning I have never once questioned that I am his priority. I am beyond blessed to feel this comfort.
I tell people something that I admire about Alex is his generosity and the amazing ability to always see the positive in people. His attitude for life is contagious.

The Proposal:
I had worked a grave shift Wednesday night but Jadi and I had to go to a meeting for IHC Thursday afternoon (Kill me, I could have slept easily 3 more hours). She had asked if I wanted to go on a hike after because her and her husband needed out of the house (they are remodeling). I, of course, said yes because anytime with friends is worth being tired and spending time outdoors. Anyways we got to the top of bridal veil and to my amazing surprise he got down on one knee while taking pictures next to the falls. Through the shaking and tears I felt a overwhelming feeling of calm. A calm that comes with knowing my "YES" was the best decision I will ever make.

The wedding:
January 21st, 2016 is the date that our lives change forever. We are getting married in Kauai, Hawaii. An intimate, small wedding is just the ticket to appreciate the joining of US! We are so excited! We will be doing a open house upon the return from our honeymoon. We are equally excited to share our ceremony video and happiness with everyone here in our home town.

Overall
I am happy he chose me to be his wife. I am happy that I get to have him as my husband. I am happy for him to be the father of our children. I am happy that he will be a part of all my memories.

I am happy to soon be Mrs. Nichole Chalise Nelson

2014 summer, lessons learned

I am sure many people would agree that this summer has FLOWN by! But for me this was such a surprise. If you know anything about my life you know that Alex headed out to Oklahoma for the summer to sell for Vivint. I thought my summer was going to SUCK, I dreaded the thought of doing everything by myself. This included taking care of a house, pets, vehicles and anything else that came my way. This note has been on my board the whole summer.

When Alex wrote it I thought he was psycho because no way was 4 months going to feel like "a couple weeks" but really it has. I admire so many things about Alex but his positivity in any and all situations is something I truly aspire to be more like. This time away from each other is really something that has turned into such a positive for us.

Lesson 1-Don't take others for granted

It is crazy how much our relationship has strengthened because of the distance between us. I see now that it is so easy to take our significant others for granted, like they will always be here. The first weeks Alex was away I clearly saw all that he had done for me because I now had to do them myself. My appreciation for my amazing relationship is at an all time high. Al never once had an obligation towards my crazy life. He started loving me when I didn't even love myself. You know that saying, "If they don't love you at your worst, they don't deserve you at your best". Alex never blinked an eye when I felt defeated and broken, he simply loved me through it.

Along with this lesson comes the appreciation of my friends and family that have helped me while Alex is gone. I never hesitated to call and ask for help. Some of the best memories this summer have come just hanging out weekends with the besties.

Lesson 2-I am stronger then I thought

This summer has been so rewarding and filled with so many changes. I really am so proud of my accomplishments and even more so that I did them alone. I would have never gave myself credit for my amazingness if I wasn't forced to take care of our life here in UT alone. I take on a lot within my careers and school schedule but seriously everything has worked out so perfect. I took an awesome class that led to one of the best adventures on the green river. I studied and took my GRE for graduate school and got my applications in. I recently switched jobs as well and I am LOVING it! It is so different and a lot of information to know but I am taking 1 shift at a time so I can excel within my career.  

Lesson 3-Commitment matters

I have seen that even with miles and miles apart that relationships are all about commitment. After many failed relationships I was at the point of giving up because I felt like I couldn't trust that someone else was as committed as I was. It is sad that Alex got the brunt of such a bad attitude but instead of giving up I saw someone for the first time fight for me. He has continued to fight for me too! It is amazing to know that no matter what happens or however many miles are between us that I am his forever. I never question his intentions or doubt his sincerity. I say this with such confidence; this man will be my husband.

 

ALEX GETS HOME IN 5 DAYS!!! 

WOW, CRAZY, EXCITING

Life is not slowing down for us just quite yet though. We both start school next Monday and he goes back to work here. We have so many fun things planned though. Alex has worked his butt off all summer so we get the luxury of 2 all paid vacations coming up and many camp trips and Teryx trips planned. I am so excited for our future and the many things we will accomplish by each others side.

Cowboys don't die, they just ride off into the sunset



   Grandpa

      Eldon Adams

      10/19/1935  -12/29/2013





Graduation 2008



Christmas 2010

Pheasant hunting 2mo ago

I never want to forget my Grandpa Eldon and even though I think that's impossible this blog is for me. It for me and my future family to look back on. Although this will be one of the least organized blogs it will have the best memories.
My grandpa has had a huge influence on my life, like huge!!! Because his son, my dad, acts just like him; the good and the bad. And certain people tell me I am my fathers daughter. :)
All growing up I looked up to my grandpa and I thought he was a true John Wayne....he even had a missing thumb from roping and I just loved hearing that story. It made him look like a true cowboy in my eyes.
I remember the old house we went to at least 2-4 times a week to team rope, I remember the hill we walked up at least 2000 times to get to that arena. The awesome hill we'd all roll down and sled in the winter. Yup Grandpa's house is where I wanted to be. There were always kittens around every spring, and always plenty of fresh air. His house was an Ol' farm house. He had this old A tractor too that I would always play on. On his same lot he had another run down house that we would always walk through and I am pretty sure all the cousins can agree I swear it was haunted.
My greatest memories though are with him, rodeo and the open road to get to them all. My grandpa shared the same love of horses and rodeo with me and was always there for our rodeo's or the long days of horse shows. He was there at the beginning and all the way to the end.

Yup that's me and our pony scamper. That pony was amazing and everyone feared him :)
I really can't remember a time where my grandpa wasn't around. Growing up my whole families life revolved around rodeo. We ate, slept and breathed it. When my parents were opening the Spanish fork location of ambers it was just me and my grandpa to make it to the high school rodeo's every weekend. It never mattered how I did he always would just say good job. He was always proud of us.
It goes without saying that if you talk about my grandpa later in his life then you knew he rode Roni or Ol' Red. This horse is still alive today. Everyone knew this horse cause he is an awesome head horse, especially for kids. He always put you exactly where ya needed to be. I rode him all of my team roping years. I loved when all the cowboys would come up and ask, "Did ya convince your grandpa to sell me that horse yet?" I would just bat my eyes and say, "Nope, he's mine". They'd always reply, "He must love you then". That was the truth. I think for him he got more pleasure out of seeing us do well off his horse then him actually roping himself. There was one rodeo I remember clear as day. It was in cedar fort, just a small July 4th rodeo. My sister and I were team roping together. Lets just say we won first and we were the ONLY girl team. I remember my grandpa and dad just had smiles ear to ear cause all they could say was "You kicked all the boys asses, thata girls!!" We were the little granddaughters that acted like grandsons.

Random memories in a list (cause it's easier):
-When I walked into the farm house and a guy was stealing grandpa's chain saw. Anyone who knows this whole story, don't judge, all I wanted was a cookie, and Sam was a real person lol
-Eating the dog treats that looked identical to puffy Cheetos and yes I had seconds, thirds and maybe even fourths before grandpa walked in and busted out laughing
-When he lived with us he would get so bored and constantly annoy me and sister, we couldn't blame him though and we laugh about it now.
-He always had cookies, and I always ate them.
-playing duck kill on the old school Nintendo w/ the guns.
-His laugh. Oh his laugh. It was contagious to me. It was like a silent laugh but his whole body would move. I loved it.
-He came for every Christmas to our house. He was always there when I accomplished something. He was at my graduation and every finals rodeo imaginable.
-His old Chevy that my dad used to make fun of.
-He had a lot of dogs but I remember cash and tango the best.

He will be missed by many and I know is legacy will carry on. I am an image of the generation he has passed on. I will share his stories with my kids and teach them all what he has taught me. I am sure he was greeted by his family that has passed on and him and Marvin can rope together all the time now. Love you too much Grandpa!!!! Rest in peace

I would love if anyone has memories of him to please comment on this blog, that way I have them all. I love hearing memories and most likely I'll remember them too.



My house, My home

HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS

My first home purchase is something that I want to remember forever. Mainly because 7 months ago it wasn't really possible. I never could have imagined that 2013 would be the year that this goal would become a reality. First thing is first, a pic :)

Not the best pic cause it's blurry but the point is that it is mine. There were certain things that I had to have in my house and this house possesses all of them
-2 car garage
-vaulted ceilings
-2 bathrooms
-large yard......for none other then a brown lab puppy coming this spring :) :)
-patio area
-walk in closet
-lots of storage
-1 level
-good neighborhood
I feel so blessed and lucky that everything in my life lined up perfectly in order for me to buy this.
It is so exciting and a little stressful to be a home owner. It scared me to jump into such a large purchase by myself but at the end of the day I know I will never be alone. My family has been here and supported my every decision and this was no different. Moving was no fun but after standing back and putting all the frames in place and furniture where it went I couldn't be more proud of myself.
There are still some days I stand back and think wait is this really MY HOUSE?? It is such a relief to have the stability of a HOME. No one can take this from me, it's officially mine.
Moving forward I can't wait to have a husband join me in this amazing place and show my kids through the front doors, but for now it is just me and this little man

Chevy

 

He was my moment of weakness. I am so puppy hungry I took the edge off by getting a kitten. Geesh he's a handful.

I am so excited to capture the many memories that these walls are about to see

 



New goals, new life, new adventure

Goals. What is life without them.
Here is to accomplishing many and making new ones.
One of the most amazing things about life is there is no way to predict what might come of it. At times it can be so hard to see the positive in every situation but for me I know all the trials and tribulations I have gone through up to this point were because of the amazing opportunities that were forth coming. The last 4 years specifically I made a goal to become an RN. At the time it was a goal that seemed far fetched and that I may never reach it but I DID!! I am officially a Registered Nurse. Wholey cow I could type that a million times. To say I am proud of myself for this accomplishment is an understatement. It wasn't easy, it brought mounds of stress to not just my life but the people around me, but wow what a rewarding feeling I feel today because I reached it. I get to make a career out of helping others. I get to be part of people's stories. Pics from the day of graduation.

Me and Julee have LITERALLY been at each others side through all of nursing school.
We have laughed and cried our way through this. Could not have done it without her!!
Life long friends for sure

That little pin took 2 years of hard work and dedication to earn and you betch ya it's
hanging in my car for me to see every single day!!

Thankful for the people were able to attend by graduation. Family means the world
to me. Alex and Ben were there too!!

My education doesn't stop here. I am applying to bachelors programs to start in the fall :) 

Another new goal that I am going to try my hardest at is enjoying life a little more. I have always been a crazy work-a-holic and now I just want to see a little pay off. So every month I am promising myself to go do something completely fun!! No work involved. SO here is the last 3 months (little behind on the blogging) of my fun :)

MARCH

March was still a very crazy month for me with school and balancing new emotion but I did go out to Mesquite with my family for spring break. This turned out to be one of those times I will never forget!! I met a older gentlemen when we were playing cards that in the end turned out to be such a blessing. I have always wanted to learn to swing dance because lets face it I just LOVE to dance. Anyways this man not only taught me but danced with me for HOURS!!! I had the hugest smile on my face. I was in dance heaven. I had forgotten my problems, my heartache, my stress. He made me smile and truly laugh since my break-up.

APRIL

Moab time!!!

For the past 3 years my family has made it a point to go down to Moab for the car show. I was so excited to go. This year was such a blast! My uncle was down there with his '72 Ford so I got to drive main with my cousins (seriously so fun). My dad rented a 4-door jeep so I cruised that around which isn't like me at all. I am usually very cautious and don't like driving around down there just because I don't feel safe, but this year I drove for hours. I did little lions back, most of fins and things, and first part of poison spider. In the end I was so proud of myself for taking a risk and learning something new.

  MAY

May has been such an amazing month. Aside from my graduation I have been SPOILED!! I got an amazing graduation date that included yellow roses, dinner at Iggy's and fun night at color me mine.

Endurocross in Herriman was the night of my graduation so we all headed up there to watch

 

 

I passes my state boards on the 13th

 

Interviewing for many jobs (still waiting to see where I'll end up)

 

Camping this past weekend

Our cute camp site up diamond fork

Four wheeling and don't mind "The Boot" goes everywhere!!
;)

 

Doesn't stop there. I then just spent 3 days in Park City at an amazing lodge.

The Châteaux

 

We enjoyed everything this gorgeous place had to offer. 3 hot tubs, heated pool, jetted tub, towel warmer and the perfect view.

We ate plenty of food but the place worth mentioning is called the J and G bar at the St. Regis. I would recommend this place to anyone and everyone!! It's pricey but so worth it.

You take a finacular up to the restaurant

 

These pineapple mojito's were seriously to DIE FOR!!!

 After our amazing dinner we got massages and then hit up the hot tub to watch the sun set.

We woke up early this morning to go on a hot air balloon ride but unfortunately it got cancelled because of wind :( Next time for sure!!

 What a perfect graduation trip!!

 

All in all the last 3 months have been some of the most rewarding. I am so excited to see what my future holds. Between experiencing new things every month and working hard towards some other goals I think my life is going to turn out pretty good!! I am starting to take life as it comes, learning that I can't control everything and that's okay cause spontaneity is much more fun!

It's always a good time when the Blazer comes out

This weekend was so much fun I thought I'd share, that way i can alway remember it as well. Weeks really are long sometimes and thursday night after a HORRIBLE night at work I was so ready for a fun weekend. Friday night I had bought tickets months ago to see George Strait in concert!!!! Mike and I love this man. He holds some pretty serious significance in our relationship as well.
-When I first met Mike there was not a night we didn't listen to his music. It is always smiles from me when I hear his name cause it brings back some of the best memories I have shared with Mike.
-In 2009 we had went to Usana to see him and concert. Mike and I were not together at the time but it was one of those night I WILL NEVER FORGET. I was still so in love with Mike. We still danced together as he changed the words to the songs to fit us, which lets face it George has some of the best love songs ever written so of course I pretty much bawled the whole concert. Anyways that night I knew somehow, someway we were going to be together again.
-And this year I really wanted to attend the concert cause I still remember those feelings from 4 years ago. I sat and listened to the songs and I couldn't help but think of how far me and mike have come. The challenges haven't stopped for us, the stress levels haven't lessoned and yet we are here, together and stronger then we ever have been. I love this man more then words could ever describe.

Just have to point out my amazing cute new boots. Wish you could see the amazing torquoise detail

 Love gorgeous george and I will be walking down the aisle to one of his songs!!! Can't wait

After that amazing night Mike asked if I wanted to spend the rest of our weekend in Birdseye and that we would be taking the Blazer :) And when the Blazer comes out we always know it's going to be a good weekend. We packed everything up and headed our way up the canyon......

He's a mommas boy and loved the camera!!

Love me some Blaze time!!!

He loves army crawling through snow, it's the cutest thing

We saw lots of turkey's

 And today when we woke up we decided to play around on the four wheelers. It's quite the trick to get around in snow with them


Me waiting cause I knew Mike was going to get stuck where he was going :)

Gorgeous country!!! Especially with snow covering it
 

 

Such a fun weekend!!! Both the boys zonked out on the way home!!!

I love spending time will all my boys, there is never a dull moment for sure!!!!

Crazy thing we call life

I haven't posted in a while because lets face it life hasn't slowed down at our house. Between planning a wedding, finishing my fourth (yes fourth) semester of nursing school, getting settled into a new job and balancing home life I feel I don't have the time to type everything up. I am thankful though that I can say we are busy....we are busy with one AMAZING life. Things just keep getting better for me and for us. I finally see some of the good that is starting to come because of the hard work that I am putting in and the events I have had to miss because of it. I can't tell you how many times people say, "wish you were there" but all I can think of is how proud I am of myself for missing out and doing what I know I need to do to make a better life for myself. What I am doing means more to me than any one person will ever understand. I am starting to accomplish goals I set out to reach 4 years ago. WOW, CRAZY,  I LOVE what I am doing with my life. I have one of the most rewarding and humbling jobs that I could ever ask for. I've made good friends in the wee hours of the night with my co-workers and my patients. Not a night goes by that I haven't left feeling accomplished and honestly a better person. But enough said, here's what we've been up to :)

 

Taking lots of pictures for the wedding before snow fall was a must in my book. Mike was such a good sport about getting drugged along to all our photo shoots. These are some of our engagement photos. I haven't got my bridals back yet :(

Here's one my mom took though

 

 We try and go out with friends whenever possible. These two (Cody and Mike) are like two peas in a pod!!

 

Deer Hunt 2012

Of course we've been hunting (I swear it's a year around thing at our house)

Pheasant Hunt 2012 with Kanyon, Wyatt and Bear dog

 

 

 

We also got a awesome oppurtunity to go out to Wyoming to goose hunt. This was my first goose hunt. How freaking fun even though it was fffffrrrrrreeeeezzzziiiiinnnggggg!!! We hunted out of a ground blind (That was heated). Our lodging was a sweet old farm house that made the experience that much funner!!!