Happy February!

I really thought that after I graduated I'd have so much free time and I'd update our blog all the time. That hasn't really happened! Turns out that real life is just as busy as school! TONS has happened since Christmas...so I will try to keep this concise.

1. We MOVED! We are officially living in Salt Lake City! At first it was really strange to not be living in Provo, but we're pretty used to our new life now. We do miss our friends in Provo, but luckily the trek there isn't too far! Ricardo is finishing up his dental school prerequisites at the University of Utah and I am working at Watson Pharmaceuticals in their research lab. We are living right downtown, a few blocks east of Trolley Square. We couldn't have asked for a better location. It takes us five minutes to get to school and work and neither of us has ever lived so close to the freeway ever (especially Ricardo). Despite that, our neighborhood is really quiet. It doesn't really feel like we live downtown at all. People always tell us how lucky we are to live in the city because there's so much to do, but the truth is that we're poor students and we don't do much! However, it's cool to live in a place with so much history. We have also really enjoyed attending the Salt Lake City Temple. It is BEAUTIFUL and I am amazed every time I go that people constructed it in the 1800s.

2. We decided where we are moving in May. I was accepted to PA programs at Midwestern University in Glendale, Arizona and Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. After much deliberation we have decided that Ft. Lauderdale will be the best place for us. We are thrilled to be moving back to the Sunshine State (no more winter! hooray!) and to be closer to our families. I start school the first week of June, so we will be packing up and leaving Utah towards the end of May. I've never actually made the cross-country road trip before, so hopefully the novelty of it will make the long trip less painful. Plus, what's more fun than a road trip with your best friend?

3. We are attending a Portuguese ward this semester. We were looking up wards when we moved and we thought it might be a good idea to go so that I could learn a little more Portuguese. The ward has turned out to be really great. Everyone is super nice and helpful. I'm improving slowly but surely. It's hard because I have absolutely no background that has prepared me for this. I took GERMAN in high school! In fact, at first when people would talk to me in Portuguese, my first instinct was to try to respond in German, since it's the only foreign language I know. :) And while there are a lot of German people in Brazil, German and Portuguese are not at all similar. Just being exposed to it for three hours a week has helped a lot of though. I can understand a lot more than I ever could before. We also just got a calling. We are teaching Primary together, the 5-7 year olds. All the kids are bilingual, so they've asked us to teach in both languages, which is probably the best situation for me. We are excited to have this fun calling together!

Life is crazy and busy, but we really do have so many blessings. We could not be happier. Love and miss you all!