Updates of all updates...

Every time I look at Julia and Dave's blog I get upset that there are no new posts to look through (I mean how else am I going to keep in touch with my twin sister who's 2,000 miles away? I know, phone, email...but it's just not the same). Then I realized others might feel the same about our blog, seeing as my last post has been up just as long as Julia's. So, I think it's time I updated our loyal readers of our life here in Boston.

So Phil and I have been her in Belmont for 3 months. We currently reside in the "Yellow Room" in the Barbara Rd. house while our stuff resides in storage. Both of us have actively been pursuing gainful employment. We have written numerous emails, sent in a plethora of applications, had phone interviews and real interviews...but to no avail. We are still looking! It doesn't seem like the best time right now to be looking for jobs with the way the economy is going. But we're pretty sure higher ed, health care, and nonprofit organizations aren't suffering as bad as financial institutions, so we're hopeful.

But with all our free time Phil and I have discovered a love for the local Belmont Library. Sure, it's old and smells funny, but it has lots of great books. Those of you who know Phil know that he is an avid readers, reading 2 or 3 books at a time (I'm a one book kind of girl) and since all of our books are in storage and we don't have the money or the space to purchase new books, the library has been our closest resource for our reading enjoyment. Here are two recommendations that I have:
1. Leaving Microsoft to Change the World, by John Wood is a really good read about the struggles of starting an internationally operated nonprofit, plus I really enjoyed his casual style of writing.
2. North and South (this one is more for the ladies, unless you gentlemen get as much enjoyment out of a love story) by Elizabeth Gaskell. I read this book because my sister-in-law Hannah recommended it. And let me tell you ladies, this one is great. I would also recommend viewing the the miniseries BBC produced, I would put it on par with the miniseries A&E did for Pride and Prejudice.


I guess another update that needs to be done is on my diet. As many of you may know, I have been on the Atkins diet for the past 12 weeks. I have never really done any dieting in my life and I felt it would be a waste of time to try because I just wouldn't have the sticktoitiveness (many may think this is not a word, and it most likely isn't, but dictionary.com has it, check it out) to see it through. Surprisingly I have been able to stick with it rather well and I have lost...drum roll please...28 lbs! I know I know, you want to see pictures, but I promise that results will be better when January comes and I have hit my goal...then I will share pictures of my new frame. For now, I still have a lot of work to do. I work out three days a week (on Erin's treadmill in the attic) along with the diet, which I think helps. Although, technically you don't have to work out to lose weight with Atkins, I find I feel better if I do. Well anyway, I don't usually like to talk about my weight...but I wanted to share this accomplishment with all of you.

So that's pretty much the Jen and Phil update. If anyone knows of any good jobs available in the Boston area, let us know! For now, I will leave you with some pictures from a trip we took up to Kittery, ME this past Friday. (the last three pictures were taken at a beach in York, ME just past Kittery)

pretty tree

another pretty tree

pretty jen and phil

pretty beach

pretty beach houses

Twinship

Today is the 24th anniversary of my birth, when I came into this world following one of the most amazing women I know. I was born September 13, 1984 10 minutes after Julia. Growing up, Julia would always tease me by telling me she was older (yeah, I know just 10 minutes, but somehow it worked) but then I would just tease her back and tell her I was taller (half an inch but that only lasted until ninth grade I think). But despite the fact that we were twins and I was taller, I somehow always looked up to Jules. She is one of the strongest women I know, who can take ANY challenge that is thrown at her. I mean, she beat CANCER of all things! She really has been a saving grace in my life. I want her (and everyone out there on the blog-o-sphere) to know how much I love my twin sister and what an amazing woman she is. So, here's a few pictures for your enjoyment.

Funny, now it's the other way around...I wear glasses and she doesn't.

Jules on the beach in Hawaii. Sisters trip '07. Thanks Erin for having a business trip and giving us the excuse to soak up some sun on the beaches of Hawaii!

Here's Jules in the sunset in Hawaii...I told her to smile, she took a bite of her ice cream, figures.

Here we are sporting the fashion choices of one Sue Clark. Even at the age of 21 mom felt we needed somewhat matching things. Fuzzy coats mom? really? (There is another version of this picture where you can see the humongous night shirt that Jules is wearing, sporting a frog I think, which was also a part of the plethora of strange gifts that Christmas) But we quickly forgave our mother and realized she had done all her Christmas shopping at T.J.Maxx on Christmas Eve (considering she couldn't fly gifts over from Rexburg) and was at the mercy of what was in the store!

Here's Jules sporting one of her more creative Halloween costumes...dressing up as our friend Amy, crutches and all.

Jules being Jules!

Twins being Twins
(I'm still not sure what we were looking at here)

Jules, I can't imagine a person that I would rather share my birthday with than you. Happy 24th.

MOZY.com

So I have recently noticed how old my computer is getting (over 3 years, which is OLD for a computer) and hoping that it won't crash and Phil and I won't lose all our files.... so I decided to sign up for a free service that automatically backs up my files. I got 2GB of free storage space, but if I refer others, I get more free storage space and so do you. So, if you have also been looking for something to back up your important files, click on this link:

https://mozy.com/?ref=NXFMSH

Or you can enter NXFMSH as a referral code during registration.

It's really easy to sign up and use. You have to download something onto your computer that locates your files, but it's easy and simple. You can set it to backup as often as you would like. I have it set up to backup every week during the middle of the night, so it won't slow down our computer when Phil or I am using it during the day.

So if you want this service and want to help me and you get some more free space, just click the link above!

New Blog

So I started a blog of my very own. I decided to dedicate space just to my obsession with digital scrap-booking and blog templates. It's called Singer Designs. Yes, I know, rather cheesy, but I couldn't think of anything better. Take a look and let me know what you think.

holla atcha boy***

So I just want to give a shout out to my wonderful husband. He started his own blog (PMSinger). Every Sunday he does a spiritual post with his testimony and thoughts about the gospel. (If you aren't familiar with the LDS church, check out www.LDS.org) Anyway, I think he has some great insights and I encourage you, our faithful readers, to take a look. Besides, he's a pretty interesting guy and his other posts are pretty great too....and occasionally humorous.

***translation: please check out Phil's blog at your earliest convenience

Little Boys and Wild Turkeys

So I have two topics that I want to touch on today and I will do so in one blog post. First, I would like to dedicate some of my blog space to two little boys named Mason (2) and Kade (4). They are by far two of the greatest little boys and they are so fun to play with. A couple weeks ago while driving home from church we introduced them to the fine world of dance parties in the car...after that Mason walked around the house saying "dance party, dance party..." as his 2-year old little arms started swinging back and forth trying to resemble dance moves. We have since had dance parties everywhere, including on our bed. Here is a video for your viewing pleasure.




Onto my next topic...wild turkeys. I had never seen a wild turkey walking around this house while I lived here and Erin and Brian had always told us they had seen them. But about two weeks ago, while sitting in the front living room we looked out the window and there were about 15 wild turkeys walking along our driveway! I had never seen such a sight. They are pretty cool to look at. Then yesterday morning I was making breakfast and there they were just in the backyard nibbling at the grass and perching on the swing set.






The first thing I thought of when I saw them was how my mom always uses "turkey" as an insult. For example, when she's driving and someone cuts her off, she puts her fist up and shouts "you turkey!" and then immediately apologizes for using such a bad word.

If you would like to see these wild turkeys in action, here is a video. Man, I should work for National Geographic with these skills!

My new diet...

I've never been one to diet...ever. I have been known to cut certain things out of my diet, but I have never quite limited myself completely. I never thought I had the self control to ever do a diet until now. Yes, I have gained quite a bit of weight since getting married and starting graduate school. But I figure, now that we've been married for almost two years and I have graduated that it's about time for me to get my act together.

My sister Erin (who's house we live in) just had a baby and decided she needed to lose some weight too (even thought I think she looks great!). In the past Erin has gone on the Atkins diet and has always lost a lot of weight, so she started it again and a week later I joined her.

So the Atkins diet, as most of you know, is a low carb diet and claims to burn more fat. I've always been a skeptic about these things. It seem intuitively wrong that by eating lots of meat and cheese you can lose weight. But I started this diet hoping it would work for me. I thought it was going to be really hard, but it has helped to have Erin in the house doing it too. (Now I just need to get Phil on board to make it easier for me when we move out!) No matter what foods you eat, you will always eat better when you plan your meals. Each day I like to plan what I'm going to eat the next day, this way I don't just walk into the kitchen and scrummage though the cupboard landing my hand on a big box of crackers. It also helps to only keep things in the house that you can eat (not so easy with a 4 year old and a 2 year old running around).

Erin has shown me around the grocery store and pointed out the foods I can and cannot eat. Did you know they make sugar free Reese's Peanut Butter Cups?? Well, they do and they're delicious. It's always nice to have a piece of candy once and a while, because even when you're dieting, you always have to satisfy your sweet tooth. I have to say that the one thing I really miss is fruit. Fruit has always been so refreshing to me, but at this stage of Atkins it's not allowed because of all the sugar in it.


Yes, there are stages to Atkins. You start at the induction phase, which limits you to 20 grams of carbs a day, which is not a lot at all. You stay in this phase until you have reached a certain weight, or BMI range, or something like that. I'm going to stay at this phase until I lose 20 lbs. Then each week you can add 5 more grams of carbs to your daily allotment. You do this until you're not losing weight anymore and then you scale back 5 lbs until you find your ideal carb count.

So it's been a week now and I have lost (drum roll please...) 6 lbs already! I figure that in a month or so I can reach my 20 lbs goal and move on from there. And no worries, I'm not going to use my blog as my diet journal, I just wanted to tell you all about my new venture, because I figure the more I talk about it and the more people know that I'm doing it, the more accountable I will feel to stick with it!

Jen's Barber Shop

I gave Phil, Mason and Kade haircuts today. I was surprised at how good the boys were at sitting still...even though the wind (we did it outside on the porch) blew hair in their faces and into their mouths. Yes, I had to sway Phil with a lollipop, but he was a good boy and sat very still. Here are a few pics of Phil and the boys with their new 'dos.




Kade and Mason love their Uncle Phil. They were crawling all over him while watching the Incredibles down at Andrew and Rebekah's. They're the cutest little boys.

We are enjoying ourselves here in Belmont. We are still both on the job hunt and we will keep our loyal readers (yes, I know you're out there!) posted on any developments. Cross your fingers for us!

Wicked!!!

Well folks, its official. Phil and I are moving to the Bay State. Phil has decided that he wants to work for a couple of years before graduate school, and of our options we figure Boston will be the best place to be right now.

We made this decision Monday night (yes, just 4 days ago) and we're leaving this Wednesday (yup that's just 5 days away). Phil's dad is flying out to help Phil drive the truck. I, on the other hand, will be flying on jetBlue in the comfort of my leather seat, free Direct TV, and free snacks.

Roses???

So, Phil came home last night and brought home roses for me! Why you might ask would Phil bring me roses on a day that's not any more special than another and the week of his birthday? Well, the only answer I can come up with is that he's a thoughtful husband and knows how much I LOVE fresh flowers. I'm a lucky woman.

Also, here are some pictures from our trip last week to Boston.

Mason playing with the hose

Kade with his really awesome water gun. These boys LOVE playing outside in the water. They even love playing in the water in the sink in the bathroom...water babies.

Phil and baby Matthew

We have a new nephew and a new niece we were able to meet in Boston! In this picture Matthew was about a week and a half old and still weighed as much as when he was born. He's a skinny little thing. I didn't take any pictures of Rachel, who's about a month old! But check out Andrew and Rebekah's blog for some pictures of their beautiful little girl!