For Good

Our lives have been richly blessed through friendships and memories in NYC. It's time to move forward to a new chapter.

We're treasuring every last minute of the city. Soaking it all in! It hasn't hit me yet how much our lives are about to change.

I keep telling myself this. So much lies in store for us. I can't wait to meet our little Peanut :)

NYC you have been good to us! Thank you for giving us a home, a place to grow, and life-long friendships!

I'm trying to do as this says. I woke up from a nightmare and couldn't sleep, so this is me trying to keep calm.

This song so beautifully articulates how I feel about the friendships and ties that we've made here.
 Each life that touches ours for good
Reflects thine own great mercy, Lord;
Thou sendest blessings from above
Thru words and deeds of those who love.
 What greater gift dost thou bestow,
What greater goodness can we know
Than Christlike friends, whose gentle ways
Strengthen our faith, enrich our days.
When such a friend from us departs,
We hold forever in our hearts
A sweet and hallowed memory,
Bringing us nearer, Lord, to thee.
For worthy friends whose lives proclaim
Devotion to the Savior’s name,
Who bless our days with peace and love,
We praise thy goodness, Lord, above.

Thanksgiving 2010

Thanks to the Gibson's for hosting! It's been another lovely Thanksgiving in NYC with dear friends. I completely fell behind on my gratitude list on the blog. oops! This was the first Thanksgiving that we didn't get up early to watch the parade. We caught the last thirty minutes on TV. oops again! Sleep just sounded so much better this year. We have a Black Friday story for ya...

Nate has been wanting a TV since we moved to the city. We've probably had at least 3 of those ancient boxes that weigh a ton from off the street. Nate was determined that this was the year. I told him that if he got a new TV that I would have to redo the apartment. The new place needs major work in the organization / decor department. So, we hightailed it to Target at 3:50 am and strolled to the back of the line that wrapped the Costco parking garage for what seemed like miles. By 4:30 we were in and all of the TVs that Nate wanted were gone (mind you, they opened at 4). LAME! We perused the store for a bit in search of some good deals. We ended up at the checkout prepared to splurge on movies. I was totally annoyed that we woke up that early to buy a couple of movies. Just then, Nate walked away to find a shorter check out line. In the mean time he sees a lady abandon her cart that happens to have the exact TV in it that he wanted. He asked her if she still wanted it, and she said no. He proudly walks back to me and says, "Look what I got!" Immediately, my annoyed scowl turned upside down and I smiled my frown away. "Okay, I guess getting up at 3:30 in the morning was worth it." I was so glad that we didn't have to fight anyone or attempt to steer that baby down the aisles amongst the masses. We simply spotted it, checked out, and peaced out of there real fast. Now, I get to start redecorating / organizing. Let the fun begin!

And just because I need to finish what I've started; some random bits of gratitude in no particular order...
Day
10-Water
11-America
12- Music
13-Christmas
14- BYU-I
15- Sadie Bear
16- Jack
17- My VTing comp and those I get to "teach"
18- Seeing Nate's happiness with the sight of a new TV
19- Mountains (UT was beautiful last week!)
20- The doctors, nurses, and family members taking care of my grandparents
21- Nieces and Nephews: Ry guy, Ash, Addi, Naveya, and David :)
23- Thanksgiving Break
24- Christmas candy (Blue Tootsie Rolls and Hershey Candy Cane Kisses are the best!)
25- Our calling as ward missionarios
26- HUGS
27-Sleep! (I've already mentioned that I'm thankful for sleep, but you can never be too grateful right!)

Day 7

I'm grateful for our families and for Sundays. I heart the Sabbath day and dear friends who feel like family when we're so far from home. I'm grateful that NYC feels like home now after 2 years!

Had To!

Ta Duh!! There she is . . . Rachael Russell.

This little girl is growing right up!

I love her!

and her mommy!

Hello Summer!

For Memorial Day we went to the beach with tons of friends from the ward. The day felt different from Memorial days in my childhood. We've always celebrated in somewhat more patriotic ways, but it was a great day to get away from the city and to get some sun...perhaps too much sun for Nate and I. Sunblock is our new friend for the summer. If you can't tell by the pictures, I'm a little obsessed with the girl in the pink hat! Little Sadie had a darling new swim suit, lots of new words, plenty of snacks to share, and a love for the sand! We took the train with Becky and Brandon in the morning. Nate can't get enough of Caden. Needless to say, we had tons of fun and we all got in the ocean this time, not just the boys. We had a blast. Now it's back to business. Seven more weeks of school, and then we're off to St. Louis for a family reunion. Can't wait!

Dear Beach,

Thanks for distracting me from midterms!

We'll meet again.

Love,

Rach

13.1 to Coney Island

I ran my first half marathon last weekend. The Brooklyn Half Marathon starts at Prospect Park in Brooklyn and finishes on Coney Island. All of us ran on our own, but it was fun to all be together to support and encourage one another and to party after. Cara Newman, Amber Dalzen, Sam and Genevieve Brown all ran too! Nate came with Ryan who was watching Xela. She is such a pumpkin! We hungout on the beach for a while and the boys jumped in the freezing ocean (Crazies!). It was an overcast day and the race began at 7 am. This meant we had to leave before 5am to get to Brooklyn. I didn't sleep the night before. Between homework and anticipation, my mind would simply not shut off. The first few miles of the race I kept thinking about how I didn't sleep, but I finally got in the groove after a bit of a chaotic start. Let's just say we had to sprint to the start and the finish! Right before I started I realized that my I-Pod didn't sync my playlist. I ran without music for the last half of the race. I learned a lot of things for the next one. To name a few: A) get rest, B) don't carry anything (jacket, phone, etc.), C) make sure music is ready to go ahead of time. Now I just need to keep running!! Dustin and Melissa have been my running buddies from the beginning. If it weren't for them I probably wouldn't have trained consistently. Thank you D & M!! I was thrilled when Melissa was game to train and run together back in November. They're moving really soon and running in the park won't be the same without them.

Where to Begin?

There is so much that we haven't blogged about. I didn't really blog about our summer, or any holidays, or any changes or events that have recently occurred. So here is a recap.

June- We went to TX for a week to see Nate's brother return home from his mission, but he ended up getting an extension and didn't come home until July. We made a trip to the beach and called it a summer vacation. I went to St. Louis to see my Hoefelmann family after that. My trip overlapped with my Dad and brother's trip so I got to see them and it was great. Nothing better than Ted Drewes with Dad and a nice summer BBQ with the family. My cousin Karri had recently had a new baby girl, so it was my first time meeting Launa. I was also able to be there when my cousin Elizabeth announced that she was pregnant! It was a tender moment and she is due any day now. Hoping I can make it out there again this summer to meet her little guy, Riley!
July/August- Nate and I spent the 4th of July in Washington DC. We were on TV with Aretha Franklin on PBS for the Capitol Concert. I don't remember if it was July or August, but we made a trip to Palmyra and Niagara Falls with The Gibson's. Great memories!! We went to the Palmyra pageant and it got rained out with two scenes left. What we saw of it was awesome! We'd love to go again this summer. In August we celebrated our 2 year anniversary and my cousins Kristen and Karley came to visit for a girl’s trip just a week after we moved into our new apartment. It was so much fun to have them here and experience NYC.

Palmyra Pageant

Frozen Custard in St. Louis

Me with Launa and Lily

Elizabeth just told her mom she is pregnant!

Me with 3 of my 4 brothers and Dad

Kristen and Karley in Time Square

Kristen and Nate love to be goofy!

Sept- We went to Utah for my niece’s baby blessing. It was a quick trip, but it was so wonderful to see my family! We also saw Nate's brother Brent for the first time sine he had been back from his mission to Milan, Italy. (He'll be getting married at the end of April so we'll get to go back to Utah for that!) We also spent a night in Rexburg. It was so much fun for Nate and I to spend time together. We loved the drive to Idaho and seeing friends from our Idaho days. Rexburg was beautiful as ever.

Sept/Oct- Honestly, everything is a blur. Nate started studying for the CPA exam. He would come home from work and study till bedtime...nothing has changed or will change until next Fall probably. Sometime around there our friends the Abels came to visit and stayed with us for a couple of days. There were lots of visitors that stopped in and stayed a night or two during the summer, but we were so glad to see the Abels! In October Miss Sadie turned one and we went to her first birthday party! My mom came out in October for her own birthday! We loved having her here and she was really happy to see our new apartment (elevator/dishwasher and all!) It is always fun to have her come and sad to see her go, but hopefully she'll get to come out for her 50th too!! Some time in Oct or Nov we went with some friends (including Sadie bear) apple picking and decided that should be an annual outing.

My niece Naveya! sweet girl

Friends from Idaho: Brett, Eric, Julie, and Julie's comp. from mission

The Pecks and Broden, The Ellis' (just had new baby!), & us!

Cherise, Barbara, and Amy Abel

Friends at Grimaldi's under Brooklyn Bridge

Apple picking!Sadie

Nov- We were very blessed to have a couple of Thanksgiving feasts! We were able to spend an early Thanksgiving with the Gibson's. Kris' family was in town and we had a blast getting to know them and then seeing the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade with them from Kris' office in Herald Square. It was an awesome view!! Thanks again Kristi-Lynn! Then, we spent Thanksgiving Day with the Monroe's and the Weirs. It was a beautiful Thanksgiving and we were really happy to spend it with great friends!

Macy's Day Parade

Thanksgiving at the Monroe's

Dec- Oh December! In December, Nate's brother Aaron and his wife Sam came to visit us! It was their very first time to NYC, but it wouldn't be their last trip. Sam stayed with us to see a doctor in NYC. Sam made herself well acquainted with the city while Nate and I continued working our regular shifts. We became fans of toasted marshmallow shakes from "STAND 4" thanks to Shannon! We all made it out of NYC and home to Texas within a day of each other right before the big snow storm. It was the Lauritzen's first Christmas with all of their boys home in 5 years due to all of their mission's over lapping. Nate's parents made it an extra special Christmas for all of us, and we all went a little overboard on the gifts. It was a nice break from our busy lives in the city. We hadn't even had time to think about Christmas until we got to Texas. Nate spent the entire trip studying for the second part of the CPA exam. On Christmas Eve, Nate received the good news that he had passed the first exam. Upon returning from Texas Nate took the second exam and we are still waiting for the results. So we have two down, and two to go! Go Nathan! In December I started training for a half marathon with Melissa Monroe and we are still going strong. Dustin is awesome and runs with us too...now if we could just get Nate out there with us. Nate doesn't handle the cold too well...and the rest of us have all invested in winter running gear so we are official. haha Our races are coming up in April and May.

Aaron, Nate, Papa Noel, & Brent in Christmas PJs

Jan- I came home a little sooner than Nate to finish working my last full week for the Gibson's. It was a bittersweet week. I truly love Sadie and am so grateful for the opportunity I had to share in her first year. I've missed seeing her daily and chatting with Kristi-Lynn about the ins and outs of our lives. It was a busy week for everyone! I started school online through BYU-Idaho that very week. I have midterms this week. Sam and Nate both came back to NYC the same day and shortly thereafter Aaron came. In all, Sam was with us for about 2 months and in that time we all got to know each other really well! haha That's what happens when you put two married couples in a studio in NYC...craziness. We're glad they were able to come and gain the experience they needed, though it didn't go as planned. We love them and are grateful for all of the time we spent together over the Holidays and in NYC. In January we celebrated Melissa's birthday! hurray. She had her party at our place and it was a hit. (She has been more diligent in her blogging so catch up on her page for details :) ) When Nate returned from Texas, busy season officially began with JPMorgan's earnings release...He has been getting home pretty late, but I've kept busy with school, running, and good friends who take care of me.

Sam & Aaron

Feb- We also hosted a super bowl party with the Monroe's this year. It was pretty sweet because Dustin hooked up his projector and created an 84 inch screen for everyone. (Again, check out the Monroe's blog for pics.) Parties in NYC are crowded and wonderful! This month we celebrated my 22nd birthday! woot woot (That was for Brent and Kate :) ) I was able to go to brunch with Kristi-Lynn and Sadie bear at Alice's Tea Cup! It was so much fun to catch up and to see how big Sadie has gotten. Thank you again Kristi-Lynn!! I got a priceless picture of Sadie sucking her thumb and sleeping on her mommy's back. Love it! My birthday was lots of fun between brunch, a movie, and pizza and games later on. Thanks to all who celebrated with me!!! Valentine's Day was sweet. We finally framed our picture of the St. George temple and made a goal to attend the temple more often. We are currently getting used to staying up much too late to watch the Olympics, working on our taxes...hmm, looking forward to Spring which won't come for a while, and loving our little apartment which is finally fully furnished! Nate says, "Hi guys!" Love, Rach....hopefully I don't wait another 6 months to update. We were just a little busy!

Sadie Bear sleeping after birthday brunch!