Get Prepared!...Financially

I am currently taking a stress management class as part of my major and so far it has been so inspiring and helpful. I would honestly recommend it for everyone! Not only does the class cover how to manage stress it includes a section on time management as well as a section on financial management. Right now we are studying financial management and truly it's been so helpful. One of our assignments is to read the Church's online financial plan: Peace in Your Hearts.

The First Presidency advises all to, "prepare for adversity by looking to the condition of your finances. We urge you to be modest in your expenditures; discipline yourselves in you purchases to avoid debt.... If you have paid your debts and have a financial reserve, even though small, you and your family will feel more secure and enjoy greater peace in your hearts."

I'm grateful for my parents who have set a great example and have taught me about financial management. However, like many of us it is something I still struggle with. Along with all the other challenges and adjustments of being newly married, financial management is one adjustment that require work, a lot of practice, and learning from our mistakes... And believe me we are learning! I have found the counsel from "Peace in Your Hearts" to be truly helpful. I think many of us have goals we would like to accomplish but sometimes don't always know how to go about accomplishing them. This is how I felt with some of our financial management goals, but now I feel like I have a lot more direction and tools to effectively help in accomplishing them.

Collin and I aren't in any really financial distress but I think it is important to start early in creating a financial plan, prepare for the future, and setting aside a savings in case of an emergency. Again check out Peace in Your Hearts, it great!

Off to the right I've posted a SNL skit on finance called "Don't Buy Stuff!" It's pretty funny so I thought I'd share. Enjoy.

Another Dean Family Adventure

In case you don't already know, BYU does not give a fall break— we work straight through without a break until Thanksgiving. This however was not going to stop me, so I took the liberty of creating my own fall break.

I spent every minute of the days before working hard to get all of my assignments and tests done and then Tuesday at 4p.m. I left for St. George. Really the first part of my trip was for my gerontology class but I had so much fun it was a vacation in itself. My teacher, Rilla, drove a group of us down to St. George to help out with the health screenings at the Huntsman World Senior Games. We drove down Tuesday night, the night before the screenings began and stayed at Rilla’s condo. I spent the next two day doing health screenings for seniors…and I must say it was a BLAST! I worked mainly doing bone density tests, eye exams, and balance testing but it was so fun meeting all of the seniors who came to participate in the games. It was truly inspiring meeting people into their eighties even nineties who were healthy, fit, and still doing what they love. I hope I can be like that when I get older. While I was performing balance tests there was one gentleman who was eight years old who has better balance that I do! Also we were able to watch some of the volleyball tournaments because they were held in the building we were at. Most of the teams were local, but they also held a world tournament where teams from around the world came to compete. I sat in on the USA vs. Russia men’s volleyball game and it was like watching a college game—so intense! (If you were wondering USA unfortunately lost, but still it was great game) Apart from the great learning experience and fun time I also gained some great new friends. All in all it was a fantastic experience and I hope to go back next year!

(Me and my classes mates who helped at the senior games....they even gave us a sweet t-shirt!)

Collin drove down to St. George on Thursday and picked me up after the health screening got over. We originally planned on camping that night up in Zion’s National Park but by the time we got there the campgrounds were full so we drove back to St. George, went out for a nice dinner, and spent the night at my aunt’s house. We got up early the next morning in order to get a campsite before they all filled up. Luckily we were able to get one and we spent the rest of day enjoying the beautiful weather and relaxing. Later that afternoon we went and hiked the Narrows. The scenery was phenomenal and it was refreshing hiking through the water (although it was rather chilly)…pictures are coming soon! We also went to “Toy Story 3” at the Zion Canyon Giant Screen.

Saturday we packed up and drove to Logandale to visit Grandma and Grandpa Bohn. It was so good seeing them and spending time with them. Grandma showed us all of their old pictures including Grandpa’s mission pictures. Did you know missionaries were allowed to go swimming back then? Anyway later that night we played spinner (basically dominoes with a twist) and I actually won! It must have been my lucky day!

Sunday Grandma packed us up a box of goodies and we began the long drive home.

Grocery Shopping Blues

After holding off going grocery shopping for two weeks (and eating roman noodles and mac & cheese for the last two days) I finally pushed myself to go. I got out of class a little early so I thought I could quickly run to the store, pick up the items we needed then be home by the time I usually get out of class....oh what a JOKE! I drove all the way to Buy Low to realize that I didn't have my wallet with me so I had to drive clear across town and back to my apartment to get it. By 6:30pm I was headed back to the store. A quick trip to the store turned into two hours of my night devoted to grocery shopping! Now maybe I'm just a slow shopper, but between marking out the sale items we needed from two different grocery stores, to the time I spent wandering through them both, somehow it became almost 8:30pm by the time I got back to our apartment-- dinner uncooked, laundry unfolded, and the apartment in some need of cleaning.

As I was driving home from the second store I past several fast food restaurants and it got me to thinking. Being a Public Health student we always discuss how our country's obesity epidemic is partially due to people not eating the way they should, eating to much of the unhealthy foods, and lack of physical exercise. Many families don't have the time or the money to prepare a home-cooked meal every night of the week so they often resort to fast food. I could finally understand why this option is so often chosen and for a moment it became very tempting. Just think! No spending your whole evening grocery shopping. No cooking. It is quick and can be relatively cheap (if you order from dollar menus). And the biggest perk of all-- there are NO dishes to wash afterwards!

Unfortunately, I have learned too much of what that kind of food can do to your body/health if eaten on a regular basis. All in all, even though I truly do hate grocery shopping and washing dishes, I would still choose to make the healthier choice. Although it may take a little bit more time and maybe some more money, living a healthy lifestyle can end up saving you hundreds, even thousands, in your later years (However, I'm still trying to convince Collin of this healthy lifestyle/eating thing. I'm certain that he would be satisfied eating only Popsicles, brownies, and Mac & Cheese for the rest of his life!). I ended up making pork chops, oven-baked potatoes, and cooked squash from my parent's garden. It was very tasty and just happened to be done by the time Collin got off work at 9:30 (yes, we are still working on eating at a decent hour). I even found time to pick up our apartment and also watched my cute little niece, Sophia, for couple of hours....I will have to get to the laundry tomorrow.

Provo Movie in the Park

Every Monday night in August Provo Parks and Recreation shows a movie in the park. Its been a crazy month so I haven't had time to attend the previous weeks but since we finally had a free night Collin and I decided to go.

So we packed up Collin's huge Red Sox blanket, got our favorite pizza and headed to the park. Surprisingly there were a lot of people who came. Online they have the list of movies they play each week however we didn't look before we went and decided to just be surprised. Turns out it was Disney's "Enchanted". Collin had never seen this movie and I don't think I've seen it since theaters so it was fun to watch. We both had a lot of fun and really enjoyed doing something new.

If you've never been before go! It is a fun experience and it FREE!

Vegas Vacation

After a long summer of working we decided to take a week off for vacation before school started up. So we left Happy Valley and took a little road trip to Las Vegas.... Well Pahrump to be exact.

We left Monday morning and made it 1 hour outside of Pahrump when our car decided to stop working (not a great start to our trip). Luckily we broke down right next to a gas station and were able to call a tow truck. After about an hour wait the tow man arrived and took us and our car to the dealership. While we were on our way to the dealership my phone rang and Sara reached to turn down the radio when the tow man suddenly yelled "NO!!!!!! never touch a black man's radio" It just about scared Sara right outta her panties.


Unfortunately we had to spend almost our whole vacation without a car, but we didn't mind too much. It was just good to get away and have a break for a while. Plus we were able to spend time with our family, and just enjoy a nice relaxing week.


We were also able to get out and do some pretty fun stuff as well. Mom took us to the Broadway production of The Lion King.... That was amazing!


We went to the RV park and played water volleyball in the pool with the old people and got insane sunburn on our shoulders.


We ate at the best resteraunt in the world... (Buffalo Wild Wings). We also road the New York New York roller coaster, and last but not least Sara had the time of her life at the Miss Pahrump Pageant....(we're being sarcastic of course).


It was a great week, but we are happy to be back behind the Zion Curtain in our little apartment.