Autumn

We have been so very busy with school and work lately that it feels like there is barely any time to sit down and take a breather! We have been married for 3 whole months now ♥ I am so lucky to be married to such an amazing man and to have such a wonderful relationship with him! Mark and I have had so many adventures the past couple months that it is hard to remember them all.  We have loved the Fall weather in Logan... giving us an excuse to wear jackets and boots, which I adore. 

We LOVE Logan

One of my best friends Susan Lindley Piquet got married on September 29, 2012 and we were able to make it up to Idaho for her beautiful day. It was so much fun to be there with her and to be able to see her beaming smile on her face. Susan also waited for her missionary Kolt so it really hit home. We have been friends since kindergarten and were able to go to Western together as well. I was thinking about some of the long talks that we had together driving to and from school... I am so thankful for her and am so happy that she has her happily ever after as well. 

We were also able to attend General Conference which is always such a blessing. Mark's parents were able to get us tickets to the Saturday afternoon session ( love his mom and dad) Luckily Susan was there in SLC too so we were able to roam around temple square while the men were in Priesthood session. Mark and I feel so blessed to be members of the church and to have the direction of a living prophet. We love the Gospel. Mark was just recently called to be the second counselor in the stake young mens presidency... ahhhh. He is going to be great at that, I am so excited for him. I was just recently called to be a primary teacher to 8 energetic 4 year old girls as well as the Relief Society Activity Planner. We had our primary program and it was interesting to say the least. Shoes were thrown at the pulpit... dressed tied above their head... tissues on some faces but we made it through. Lets just say it is going to be an adventure!  

We both were also able to start some new jobs... yay! I am working at Access Home Health and Hospice with my CNA license. I drive around and visit various patients. I am really enjoying the job and I love that I get to actually spend quality time with my patients. It is always so nice to feel like I am establishing positive relationships with others. I have been thinking lately that I would love to focus on geriatric counseling. Mark was able to start a job at Opinionology and is liking it! It is a survey company so next time someone calls resist the urge to hang up... it might be someone nice on the phone ;) We are blessed to both have jobs that we like and that work within our schedule! 

School is going fantastic we will both be able to pull off our 4.0 which will be great in order to keep our scholarships. We also get to register pretty soon for next semester. Mark and I get to take a STAT's class together. I am not excited for the class but I am excited that I am able to be in a class with Mark. It feels good to have the semester almost over and to be able to be moving forward in life... can not wait till we graduate! 

We were also able to make a trip to Idaho to visit my side of the family for the halloween weekend. We watched my little brother Braxton play in the championship for grid kid football. It was way fun to be able to watch him and to be able to see him stick it out even though the field was covered in snow. We were also able to watch our cousins Derek and Jason Ostermiller kick butt in the Holt Arena for football as well. It was so much fun being able to make it to their game. I was super grateful that their cleats stood out from the others so we could tell them apart :) We carved pumpkins with Bay and Brax... i love those two so much. I am so blessed to have such wonderful siblings and now i have 18 of them ah! We were also able to watch Jordon play on his BYU-I competitive team and he played so good! We went to my high school friend Kyle Andrews homecoming talk on Sunday. He returned from Belgium and the Netherlands and was a fantastic missionary. We were also able to go and visit my friends from the Homestead Assisted Living Center. I love going back and visiting the residents there, they have such a sweet spirit. It is such a blessing to be able to work with such tender people everyday. I love listening to their stories and showing them that little extra ounce of appreciation for their life. 

Tanner and Mark warming up!

Mark has been such a sweetheart this week... and every week of course. I have come home to beautiful flowers and nice gestures all week. He definitely knows how to make me feel special. He has such a happy personality and it is impossible not to be happy around him. I love that no matter what kind of mood I am he knows how to get a smile on my face. I am so blessed to have him in my life. I love him so much! He has been playing on a 3 on 3 basketball league with a rival from Shelley High School, Tanner Higham... they are so good! As well as on a rec team in Logan. I love to watch him play basketball/ 

Life is wonderful for us! We are so happy and have so much to look forward to! Plus... our cruise begins in almost a month, yay! 

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Love,

Jocelyn 

love my husband!

Sunday Walks and Long Talks

Mark and I love to go on walks around beautiful Logan. I always say that we are going to go for a “run” but then it ends up being a walk J This week I have been able to contemplate a lot about our life and what we have to look forward to. We are living in a basement apartment that is literally on the block across the street from the temple. When we come out our door we can see it, when we look out our window we can see it. We are so blessed to be able to live so closely to such a beautiful temple. I am thankful that I married a man who makes it a priority to attend the temple regularly.

temple

This past week we were very busy in school. It was the third week of school so that means that it was about the time for the first tests, papers etc. Mark and I are able to be up at school the same time with similar class schedules which is really nice. I am really enjoying my classes because they are interesting to me and I feel like it is exactly what I want to learn about. I am taking a dress and humanities class… which sounds easy right? Our first assignment was literally making an outfit out of recycled material from scratch… yeah… not my forte. The professor told us that we could partner up so I partnered with a girl that was sitting next to me. I have learned my lesson… I would SO much rather work on my own then in groups. We just have a different vision of what work ethic is and how much time we want to put into getting a good grade. Needless to say… it is due in the morning… and she still hasn’t gotten back to me with her part of the assignment. I am crossing my fingers that it will turn out good. I will post a picture of the finished product, if that ever happens, ugh!  

The weather has been beautiful here lately so I have decided that we need to take advantage of that. Our house overlooks the valley part of Logan. If we just head out the door and down a little hill there are plenty of places to go walking and lots of really fun parks. I like to be outside to do my homework so I have really enjoyed going to the Merlin Park here in Logan and sitting at the picnic table doing homework. Sometimes we don’t really enjoy homework, but we do it anyways:

I am such a snacker… I love everything that has to do with snacks. But not anymore… I have set a new goal! From now on my snacks will consist of fruit, dried fruit, nuts and granola bars. This is going to be the first week of trying out my new goal… we will see if I hold strong to it! I will keep you updated! :)

Last Saturday we were able to meet up with my good friend Susan Lindley (soon to be Piquet) and her fiancé Kolt and have dinner. It was so much fun to be able to sit and laugh and talk with her. We are so excited for them and I cannot wait to see her on her wedding day. I remember growing up with her in middle school; staying in touch after she moved away and then being blessed enough to go to Western Wyoming with her. We used to have countless talks on our drives back and forth from Wyoming to Idaho about Mark and Kolt on their missions… and now look we will both be married to them! It is crazy how time flies and how much we have grown since then. We are super excited to attend their sealing and to be able to be part of their special day, love you guys!!

We are also very excited to share this news… if you didn’t already know this… My big brother is getting MARRIED! :)  I am so thrilled to have his fiancé Shay be a part of our family. She is such a sweetheart and I couldn’t have wished for a sweeter person to be my sister-in-law. We are looking forward to their wedding on October 27^th! It is so crazy to think that Jordon and I are really grown up now. I remember being little with him and having Aunt Kathy dress us up. Or being in junior high and thinking it was so cool that my older brother was shorter than me ;). Or in high school loving that I had someone to protect me and care for me. When Jordon left to go on his mission I truly realized how much he meant to me and how grateful I was for him. He is one of my best friends. And how could I not love him… he introduced me to Mark!

I feel very blessed to be part of two wonderful families and to have wonderful friends. There is so much in life to be happy about. I think the biggest part about being happy is choosing to be happy. It all depends on how we see the world around us. I hope that I will always be able to have a positive outlook on life and be able to acknowledge the blessings that come into our life. I know that we have a loving heavenly father who wants the best for us and who strives to help us realize our full potential. I know that he knows me that he understands my needs and that he answers my prayers. I am so thankful for the gospel in my life and for the blessing that I have to be a member of this church.  I am thankful for a husband who holds the priesthood and who loves the Lord. I know that if we put our faith in the Lord and trust him he will help us have the little extra ray of sunshine we need to get through the day.  Mark and I feel the blessings of the gospel in our lives. 

sitting on the "blog" bench, our view.

I hope that everyone has a happy week, miss you all and we will see you soon! Until next time…

Love,

Jocey 

He is home... and we are hitched!

We are married :) I love my life!

So much has happened in our lives the past few months and there is so little time to explain how truly happy we are! I have become a horrible journal writer since Mark has been home... so this is my new goal to update our blog once a week with photos and stories from our newlywed life. I am so very grateful to be married to such an amazing man. Mark is such a wonderful husband, I love being able to spend time with him. Well here is our story:

I met Mark  the end of my sophomore year of high school. My older brother Jordon played sports against him and I always thought he was so cute. One day I noticed that Jordon had posted about track on Mark's Myspace page... so I decided to add him. We began messaging back and forth and had talked about going on a date or meeting up sometime. It is so funny how when you are that age you can talk about things like that but when they really come true you don't know what to do haha. I remember watching Mark a few weeks later at district track but I didn't dare talk to him. I think we secretly both knew that we wanted to talk but we both never go the courage. Mark shot me a text that night apologizing for not talking to me and told me that if I went the next day he would talk to me. I begged my parents and Jordon to let me miss school and go back to Shelley to talk to him the next day. Again... I never got the courage to talk to him. Jordon was not going to let that fly, so he went over and got him so we could all talk. I remember Mark and Jordon talked... I barley made a peep.

 Over the next couple months we would text on and off until one day he asked if it would be okay if he came to Rexburg to go on a date with me. I said yes, but my stomach was so nervous! I waited with my mom on July 18,2008 in the formal room of our house looking for their car outside the window. Mark called me to get directions and I had never talked to him on the phone so I was so nervous to answer. He had brought his two best friends Nathan Stokes and Nathan Nooner. I had nothing planned for us to do that night so we just went to Monkey Rock with Jordon and his friends. That night Mark and I stayed up talking for hours in my kitchen. Mark still denies this... but when Nooner came downstairs Mark let go of my hand... must have been embarrassed. The next day we went mini golfing and bowling, which was really fun. Mark ended up going home and I was not sure when I would see him again. Luckily I was able to see him the next week... and now we were official :)

(Us in high school)

To make a long story a little bit shorter, Mark and I dated through the rest of my high school years. Just short of 2 years when he left to serve his mission. One thing about Mark that I always admired was that I knew that no matter what he was going to serve a mission. Mark got his call to Chihuahua Mexico on March 11, 2010 and left on his mission June 30,2010. While Mark was one his mission I was blessed with the 

opportunity to play volleyball at Western Wyoming. We honestly lived two separate lives... but at the same time we stayed so connected. Mark never missed a week of writing me while he was serving. We both grew in ways that I never thought possible during our time apart. I was able to experience new things that made me a stronger and better person while he was able to serve the lord with great obedience. There were great times while he was gone and hard times as well. I missed my best friend so much but I knew that he was doing the right thing. Two years actually goes by a lot faster than you think. Mark came home from his mission on July 3,2012. I was able to go to the airport and be with his family to welcome him home. Mark has such a wonderful family and I am so blessed to be a part of his family. We were engaged within a week of him being home... after 4 years of knowing each other. The Saturday after Mark got home he was able to speak at his nephews baptism. 

While I was listening to Mark there was no doubt in my mind that I should marry him. I knew that I needed and wanted that strong spirited man to be my husband and the father of my kids. I was playing volleyball at Utah State and had to be there in a month so it left us with limited dates to get married. We decided July 27, 2012 would be our special day.... yes we know it was fast but we loved it! After a few really solid days of planning (thanks mom!) our wedding was on its way. We shared a beautiful wedding day with gorgeous weather, friends and family. Mark and I moved to Logan the next week into our cute tiny apartment. We love living in Logan and we love being together. I began volleyball practice and liked it but i found that I was not as focused as I wanted to be. Of course not... I had my best friend at home. I realized that my priorities changed... Volleyball was great for me while Mark was gone but now that I have the chance to be with him and to be a wife my priorities are different. I was blessed to get to know some wonderful girls on the Utah State volleyball team. After deciding not to continue with volleyball I have felt the blessings that have come into my life. I am able to attend the temple more regularly and have more time to be a wife and to spend with Mark. I was reading President Thomas S, Monsons talk entitled "The Race of Life." I really love this talk and think that there is so much to take in from it. You should read it: 

http://www.lds.org/general-conference/2012/04/the-race-of-life?lang=eng&query=things+matter+most

I have learned that it is so important to slow down and be thankful for all you have. I am so blessed. I have  wonderful family, friends and husband. I am able to live in a great town, get an education and live in a cute apartment. I know that there is so much to look forward to. Were ready to welcome it with open arms.

Until then, we are the Hobbs and this is our story ♥

♥/ Jocey

Change of plans :)

Change of plans... surprise! So much has happened the past few months and there are so many things to look forward to! First off... Jordon came home! Wahoo! It has been really nice to have him home and to be able to talk with him. Things are different then I thought they would be... It is weird to think that we both have such different lives now and it is not the same as it was when we were in high school. I am thankful for the lessons I was able to learn while Jordon was gone and to be able to have him home safe and sound. I am excited to see where both of our futures take us; I hope our future entails all that we have hoped for one another. 

 I just graduated from Western officially... only 2 more graduations until I will be done with my Masters! I got this, I am so excited to know that my future is making way and that I have great things in store. It was great to be able to go back and be with my friends and to play with them. I loved my time at Western Wyoming, it has helped shaped me to be a better person and has taught me the importance of taking risks.

 It was humbling to see all the accomplishments that my team and I were able to accomplish at Wyoming. It is even more humbling to know the hard work that we put in to it paid off. Because of this I feel more motivated to work harder at Utah State. I am ready to head in the gym and give it my all, leave no regrets. Hopefully this time our hard work will pay off even more.

Overall my life is wonderful. I am ready to face to future with faith and to trust in the Lord. I look forward to  the next few months and all that's in store. I know that things are going to work out great and that I will never be happier. I move to Logan July 1st ... life is moving so quickly. I just hope I can keep up with it. 

Here is my motivation for the next few months:

‎"You can be excellent in every way. You can be first class. There is no need for you to be a scrub. Respect yourself. Do not feel sorry for yourself. Do not dwell on unkind things others may say about you. Polish and refine whatever talents the Lord has given you. Go forward in life with a twinkle in your eye and a smile on your face, but with great and strong purpose in your heart. Love life and look for its opportunities. "

~ Gordon B. Hinckley

Some Day...

Okay so I just need to get a little venting off my shoulders... nothing serious just some things I have been thinking! You know when you have that one like super boring day where you just think and think and think... well yeah I seem to be having those a lot lately. So these are some of the things that I have been thinking about.

Lately I have been missing these girls. I think that a lot of the time I took for granted my time at Western. I love the feeling of being on a team and feeling that team bond. I have been talking to some of the girls and they all seem to be doing good, every where throughout the country now. I have to admit that I am glad that I am not up for conditioning in the morning; now I just got to find motivation to keep working out and stay fit. I got it in me :) Some of my best friends are on this team and I miss them like crazy. It is weird to be moved back to my home town and have my friends be married or away at school so there is like nothing to do. I get major family bonding time though which is nice. Also I am able to play ball with Susan Lindley on Monday nights which I love so much. It is great and it brings back some of that competition into my life... which I need. It is fun. My little sister Bayli is going to play ball. I convinced her of the beauty of the sport. I will post pictures soon.She looks so cute with her spandex and knee pads... gosh i love her.

I have been thinking about how everything is going to work out. you know when you just have that feeling like I have a plan A... but my plan B needs to be worked on. Yeah that's how I am feeling. I feel like I am in this awkward stage of my life, at least for the next few months. It is like when you are in limbo state because you just honestly don't know what is going to happen next. I have given up so much of for sure things for the "possibility" of something else. I do not regret giving those things up because that possibility is what I truly do want, it just makes me nervous thinking that I now I could not end up with any of it. I have reached the point where I just have to learn to trust God and to know that he knows what is in store for me. I am very grateful for the opportunity that I have to take this risk; but sometimes I wish things could speed up a little for me. Uncertainty is not a walk in the park.
Do you ever have those people who just nag and nag you about a certain thing or just don't know when to be quiet? I do! I have been trying to tell coaches that I am not interested in playing anymore. I have come to the conclusion that my "possibility" is better than what they can give me right now. I feel like I have this hole that is waiting to be filled. I know that it may be filled in a different way than i hope for but it is still the possibility that keeps me going. I have been accepted to Utah State University for 2 full ride years... up to my bachelors no student loans whoop! Hard work does pay off. I have been trying to tell coaches that or people that and this seems to be the favorite response... " If you have to go into debt, go into debt and take loans." I don't know if that sounds insane to you, but it does to me. I understand that some girls love volleyball enough to pay to play and I honestly do feel like I love it more than that but right now that just does not fit into my "plan". I think that if there is a way for me not to have to take out loans and to stay debt free that's the better option. Maybe i'm psycho? I don't know, what are your opinions? I feel like I have made my decision... so let me move on PLEASE.
I have been thinking about where life has taken me. I never imagined that I would be where I am today. I honestly can not believe that I only have 144 days left until my best friend gets home. I think that the past 20 months I have grown up and learned to be a better person through all the ups and downs. There have been many things that I have been blessed with the past few years. I have been able to get two years of college paid for, play on an amazing team and did fantastic as a team, made 20 new best friends who i love dearly, and been able to have the worlds best roommate. Although I have never told Candace this, she impacted me so much for the good. She is one of the sweetest girls I know, looking back I wasted a lot of time with other people instead of taking advantage of my time with her! She is a stud! I never would have thought that I would be at home for the last 6 months of Mark's mission... never. And even though I miss the "college life" I know that this is where I need to be right now. Quality time with the family is irreplaceable. I am beyond excited for Jordon to be home in almost two months; seriously once he gets home it it all down hill from there. A-M-E-N.

Life is good. Just remember to find joy in the journey and face the future with faith! Where there is no struggle there is no strength ♥