what a week

this week you guys... has been stressful, but yet very rewarding!

this week i took my final tests to be able to get my cosmetology license. i had to do a written and practical test at my school, and a written and practical for the state.

the state tests were absolutely terrifying. especially the practical. i am so glad i had 3 other friends from my school come with me to take the practical, because it is super intimidating!

about 4 hours later taking the practical at the state we got to see our results, getting that piece of paper and seeing that i passed was like winning the miss america pageant. no joke. i started bawling, i was so relieved! all my friends told me to stop crying, but i couldn't! 

yesterday i took my written at the state, that wasn't as terrifying as the practical, but i still had butterflies.
when you finish your test and are ready to submit it, it asks you twice if you are sure you want to end your test, then it takes you to a 10 question survey about the testing center, then asks you about 3 more times if you are ready to submit, asks you to type yes that you are ready then you FINALLY get your score. holy hannah i just want to know my score! after i got my paper saying i had passed that one i was just even more relieved!
no. more. studying. i can just relax for this long holiday weekend! my school is awesome and gave us today off! a saturday off! yes! 
i'm so glad i am done with these tests, i can enjoy the next 3 weeks at school just finishing my hours. i'm so excited to get out there and start my career!

PASS! PASS! PASS! :)

3 years

this post is a little overdue, but better late than never.

last week on the 15th, nick and i celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary. it's so crazy how fast time flies. i still remember our wedding day as if it  were yesterday. i remember waiting to go into the sealing room with nick, we were just sitting there admiring the temple and how pretty it was and then nick leans over to me and says "i helped build this temple" definitely something nick would say to me, haha! i still remember how i felt on our wedding day. i still get butterflies just thinking about it. it was an incredible day. a long day too.

the night before a wedding nick posted on my old blog without me knowing, when we came home from our honeymoon i found it, and i just recently read it again:

HEY GUYS!! just to warn you first and foremost, this is nick typing without denise's knowing :) 

so here i sit, on the night before the big day, and i just am soaking in the moment. my wonderful fiance is making the final touches to my groom's cake, (which i cant look at yet) while i am putting together a playlist for background music to the reception. things are just good.

i cannot explain how grateful i am for the last eight months of my life where i have gotten to know my soon-be-wife, dated her, asked her to marry me, and just gotten to love her like no other girl i have ever known. she is just downright AMAZING and i simply cannot and will not imagine my life without her. we are taking a huge step tomorrow and may not know what exactly the future will hold for the two of us, but i know-and trust me on this one- i KNOW, that with her by my side, we can do anything. 

tomorrow i will be sealed to the love of my life in the draper, utah temple. she is my best friend, my one and only. she is the half that makes me whole. 

i cannot wait to spend eternity with her.

(i love you honey!!)

i remember being so excited to say fiance, but i absolutely love calling him my hubby. we sometimes joke to each other still and will say "hey, guess what? we're married!" i love it :)

this year for our anniversary we didn't do much, and that's ok. we are both so busy, and nick had to work that night of our anniversary. he called me when he was off work and i told him i had presents here waiting for him and he quietly said "yours isn't wrapped yet..." but when he got home, he had been so clever to wrap my gift in a mcdonald's bag with napkins as the tissue paper, totally a nick thing to do :)

we opened our gifts and then went and got slurpee's and went on a drive and talked. my favorite thing to do with him. it's so nice and relaxing. 

i have loved these past 3 years, we have had our ups and downs, we have had many adventures and i can't wait to see what the rest of eternity brings us. i wouldn't want to spend it with anyone else. :)

#usetheinternetforgood {my story} part 2

 about a month ago i posted a blog about a trial that nick and i went through with church. if you haven't read it, you can read it here. and to those of you that have read it, shared it on facebook. thank you. i do appreciate it, more than you know. 

tonight i had the amazing opportunity to go to one of al fox's firesides. and i got to go with my friend shanelle, the one who introduced to me al's blog. to finally hear her tell her story in person was amazing. she has such an amazing personality, and an incredible testimony of the gospel. 

when she first arrived shanelle and i were able to go up and talk to her. i was able to thank her for writing me back and giving me some advice, she grabbed me and gave me the biggest hug and was so excited that shanelle and i came. she is such a sweet girl.

in her fireside tonight she said a few things that stuck out to me, one was:

"trials never go away, but neither does Christ."

Christ will never go away. he is there for us, he is there for us to help us, to answer our prayers. we have to listen. Christ can, and will help us. all we have to do is ask.

when she was telling us about moving here to utah, she really had no idea why she needed to move to utah. and there were so many times she wanted to give up and to move back home. but she had a choice, to give in... or to keep going. to not stop.

i, personally know i need to keep going. i cannot, and will not stop going to church. i will not let satan tempt me again. the church gives me happiness. i know it's where i'm supposed to be.

i know nick and i got called to teach the sunbeams in primary for a reason. i know those little kids will teach me something that i need to know, as long as i keep going and don't stop.

Christ is real. the church is true. and i know the church gives me happiness. 

and i know all of you can feel that happiness too.

i don't ever want that happiness to go away, i've been down that road and don't want to go down it again.

i will keep going. i will not stop.

ah, i am back.

finally have internet. i've missed blogging. so stay tuned for some upcoming blog posts.

:)