Tis The Season . . .

. . . to freak out. It's that time of year again. No, I'm not talking about Christmas, although that may be happening too. No, I'm talking about FINALS. That dreaded time of year when I am faced with a brutal understanding of just how much I DIDN'T learn this semester. Ugh. Well, at least I have a nice desk to study at, comfy PJs, a space heater to keep my toesies warm, and a coco motion that makes the PERFECT cup of hot chocolate to keep me going. Oh, and I have 2 cases of Diet Coke. They are already almost half gone. But hey, I only drink them during finals, so I am allowed. 

Also, I wrapped, packaged, and sent all my Christmas packages today. Yay me! They went to New York, New York; Phoenix, AZ; and Berlin, Germany. I hope they bring my brothers and brother-in-law some smiles. 

Oh, and my husband has been wincing in pain all weekend from a toothache. Poor guy. I had to take care of him, but I don't mind. I love him, so it's OK. He's at the dentist right now. Thank heavens for good friends that are dental hygienists and so they can get him a last minute appointment on a Monday morning!

Well, that's it for me. Time to get back to freaking out, oh, I mean studying. 

Here's a picture of our Christmas decorations. I love our little tree. Did you know I collect nativities? I just love them. Joe had to point out that we have seven baby Jesus-es in our living room. Isn't that just great?!

Thanksgiving 2010

 The Lord has truly blessed me this year. Here are a few things for which I am grateful:

A loving Heavenly Father that never abandons me.

A Savior who died for me.

A testimony of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

A handsome husband that loves me in spite of my many faults.

Caring and supportive parents who taught me correct principles and gave me opportunities to grow. 

Fun and intelligent siblings that have made ever family vacation an adventure.

The opportunity to get a legal education at a great school.

A healthy body and mind.

This beautiful Earth in which we live.

Isn't it a wonderful time to be alive? I feel so very blessed.

For Thanksgiving, Joe and I, along with my pal Valorie, headed up to Syracuse, UT to spend the time with my Uncle Jared and his family. We had a wonderful dinner with all the fixings! Their five kids were as cute as ever and it was great to spend time with them and catch up. Joe got to watch a football game with the boys and Val and I played on Christine's iPad and watched the silliest Christmas movie. It was great!

I was in charge of making the pies. I think I went a bit overboard. I had to make 2 pumpkin pies, and I wanted to make a caramel apple pie that I had seen my sister, Allie make. Well, I cut up enough apples for 2 pies, so that is what we got! I have to say, the apple pie was divine!

Here are the apple pies right before I put them in the oven. This is my first lattice top and I think it turned out OK. You can find the recipe here. The only modification I made was to mix 1Tbsp of cinnamon with the apples.

Here are the pumpkin pies. I used my Mom's recipe (which is just the Libby's recipe) because it is the best. You can find it here. Yes, I bought store bough crusts. Hey, give this law student a break!

And here are the baked caramel apple pies. They were SO yummy! I think this might have to come a Thanksgiving tradition in our home!

STUMP the Professor

So, I said that I was going to post every week, and after one week I failed. Sad day. But to be fair, I did have a midterm (that was actually a comprehensive final) on Monday morning that I had to study for. I am so glad that is over, but finals are right around the corner and I am NOT ready at all. Oh man.

This last week was STUMP the Professor at school. I, along with 2 other girls, have been planning this all semester. We've easily put 30 hours into it each. I am so glad that it went off well! Basically, STUMP is a charity event that benefits the local battered woman's shelter. Students buy tickets and then they get to submit questions that are submitted to 2 teams of law professors. If the professors can't answer the question, then they are "STUMPED" and the student that submitted a question gets a prize that has been donated by local businesses. All the proceeds and left over donations go to the battered women's shelter. It was a lot of work to put it together, but it was a lot of fun too! We raised over $1100 for the shelter, and that's a new record for the law school! Wahoo!

The winning team: Professors Fee, Baradaran, Scharffs, and Gerdy

The runners up: Professors Daniels, Baradaran, and Anderson-Jones. (Professor Moore not pictured).

The Party Planners: Me, Stefanie Franc, and Camille Borg

The Pumpkin Incident and a Simple Equation

Well, this week has been a much of the same as old: school for me, work and school for Joe. In fact, there isn't really much to report except for the pumpkin incident. You see, I got a little ambitious and decided that I wanted to make a pumpkin pie from actual pumpkins. If you know me at all, you know I absolutely LOVE anything pumpkin. So, I thought it appropriate for the pumpkin fanatic to make an authentic pumpkin pie. I bought special pie pumpkins. Did you know that pie pumpkins are a different kind than Jack-o-lantern pumpkins? Supposedly they are sweeter. I followed the directions: cut them up, cleaned them, baked them until they were soft, let them cool, scooped out the meaty insides, mashed it all up to a puree, and then put it in a glass mixing bowl to store for the night. It was pretty late and I figured I'd make the pie the next day. As I was putting the bowl of pumpkin in the fridge, for some reason unknown to man, the bowl slipped out of my hands, hit the bottom of the fridge, and then smashed into a bazillion pieces on my kitchen floor. It was a pumpkin glass mess, which was horrible to clean because I couldn't just sweep it up. So yeah, I never got to make that "real" pumpkin pie. Oh well, it will have to wait until another day. Good thing I still like the canned stuff. Moral of the story--don't use glass mixing bowls.

Other highlights of the week include buying Christmas presents for people, a trip to Costco with Joe where we ate a record number of samples, hearing a speech of a man who has been in prison for 18 years for a murder he didn't commit, and having yet another week without snow. All in all, it was a pretty good week.

On a more spiritual note, I have re-gained a testimony on the power of scripture study. This last semester, I have felt like I haven't been as happy, effective, or energetic as I usually am. I just felt like I was in a funk. It's hard to explain. Anyway, I realized that I've been slacking on all the little stuff, you know, the daily prayer and scripture study. It's not that I didn't want to do it. It's just that life had gotten so busy that after nights of falling asleep during my prayers and scripture study, I just got out of the habit. So, I decided to repent. I say repent because that's really what it was. I changed my heart and made a decision to put those little but oh so important things back into my life. So every night BEFORE I was tired, I took some time to myself and read my scripture for about 30 minutes. I am reading the Doctrine & Covenants and have fallen in love all over again with that book. Can I just tell you that this last week was one of the best weeks that I have had in a long time? I slept better. I studied more effectively. I could concentrate better. I felt happier. I wasn't annoyed as much. I wasn't as stressed. It was great! I know it's because by doing those important little things, I qualified myself for blessings and to have the Holy Ghost with me. You know, it's such a simple equation. Obedience to God = Happiness. I don't know why I allow myself to get so off track. I think it's because we have a lot of opposition in this life and we forget how important those little things are. Well, I am going to try my hardest to not forget again. That's why I am telling you. So if I ever get off track, you can remind me of this experience so that I will get back on it again.

I have a testimony of the power of the Scriptures. I am so grateful for righteous men and women who sacrificed so that we can have the teaching of God. I am grateful for prayer. I know it is a direct conduit to God. I feel so very blessed.

I have decided to be better about blogging, but not for the sake of blogging. I have two amazing brothers on missions and I feel I need to be better about writing them letters every week. I remember when I was a missionary serving in northern Spain, letters from home were a major source of strength to me. I don't know why, but they were almost rejuvenating. So, I am going to try and write a letter once a week to them and post it on my blog. I guess it will be hitting two birds with one stone. I am hoping that posting my letters here will provide me some accountability. So, here we go!

My Dear Missionary Brothers,

How I miss you! I drive by the MTC every morning on my way to school and my thoughts always turn to you and I say a silent prayer that you will be safe, healthy, and find those who are honestly seeking the gospel of Christ. I love reading your letters. You make me so proud.

Things are pretty crazy in the Flager home! The semester is drawing to a close and so things are picking up. I heard Christmas music playing on the radio the other day and it sent me into a mini panic. Isn't it sad that Christmas means FINALS? I can't wait until the two aren't always associated.

I am really enjoying my First Amendment class. The more I study about our Constitution, I am convinced that it is inspired. We are learning about the freedom of religion right now and I find it fascinating. I am helping to plan a charity event that will benefit the local battered women's shelter and so that has been keeping me busy in addition to school. I am hoping that we will raise at least $1000 for the shelter. I have been making good headway in reading the Doctrine & Covenants recently and have a goal to finish it by the end of the year. Also, Grandma Harris sent me a bunch of family names to take to the temple. She has worked on our family history for 40 years and now I am trying to help her finish what she has done. Joe and I went and did baptisms last weekend and I felt the spirit so strongly. I don't know if it was because I knew it was our family that were getting the ordinances done, or what. But, I have no doubt that they have been waiting for that to get done. I can't wait until we can get all their ordinances done!

Joe is one busy dude. He leaves at 7am every morning for an hour long commute to work, works until 4:30pm, and then on Tuesdays and Wednesdays is in class until 9pm, and still has an hour drive home after class. The nights he is not in class he is studying. He is working really hard and will be excited when the semester is over. Sports season is in full force and so our home is filled with football and basketball every weekend. I have learned so much about sports. You'd be impressed.

Well, there isn't much more to report. School and work keep us pretty busy. But, I hope you know that we love you and are so proud of you. I know that you are doing the Lord's work and serving His children. Stay obedient so that the Lord can bless you. Remember that you will regret the things you DON'T do. I know you are doing your best and can't wait to hear about how the Lord has blessed you this week.

Love Your Sister, Megan

Halloween Part 2

Saturday we invited some friends from our ward over to celebrate Halloween. Dinner consisted of taco soup, a veggie tray, homemade caramel apples, and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. We carved pumpkins, watched the Oregon v. USC game, talked, and laughed the evening away. I absolutely LOVED having trick-or-treaters knock on my door! All in all, I couldn't have asked for a better Halloween!

Making caramel apples!

With almonds of course!

Get a look at those eyelashes! I saw them at Wal-Mart and just couldn't pass them up. The remind me of the ice princess. Joe didn't like them at all and kept asking me to take them off. I think they freaked him out a bit, but I thought they were fun!

This is the BEST pumpkin I have ever carved. We used a pattern and it turned out pretty good. I have to say, I proud of my Batty!

The Siezmores and their impressive wolf pumpkin.

The Steeles and their cute owl pumpkin.

All three jack-o-lanterns in all their glory!!

Happy Halloween!

Pac-Man for Halloween!

Every year the law school puts on a big, and I mean BIG party for Halloween. There's a costume contest, a skit, they feed lunch (pizza) to everyone, all the students bring their spouses and kids, and then the kids go "trick-or-treating" at our desks and at the professors offices. People go all out. My favorite part is seeing all the kids dressed up. They are so cute!

This year my friend Jen had a brilliant idea that a bunch of us should dress up as all the characters from Mrs. Pac-Man. So, we made ghosts, dots, fruit, and of course, Mrs. Pac-Man. I was the strawberry. I consider myself as having absolutely NO artistic ability, so I have to say, I was pretty happy with how my strawberry turned out. We were in the costumer parade and then, just for kicks, we decided to go the the BYU main campus across the street and just walk around the commons area and see what kind of reactions we could get. Needless to say, it was a blast!

Heidi Moss, Me, Hannah Porter, Nakisa Otaku, Mary Ditto, Lornalie Merideth, Alex Hulme, Camille Borg, Lauren Shaw, and Jennifer Rajan. 

Me, Melanie Grant, and Camille Borg.

P.S.: I love ALL these girls! I'm so grateful to have such great classmates!

Sometimes. . .

. . . life is just so stinkin' hard.

A Sunday Drive

 It's been a GREAT weekend. October began and that means that fall is fully upon us. I LOVE this season!  So, after being uplifted at church, Joe and I decided to take a drive up the Provo Canyon to see the changing colors. 

We saw a MOOSE!! Actually three of them. We first was two adults but there were too many things in the way to get any decent pictures. There were so many people taking picture there that we decided not to stop and kept driving around the next bend. Joe had to slam on the breaks though because there was another moose staring straight at us in the middle of the road! It was just a baby, but it was still cool and incredibly cute! He/She walked right in front of our car. Sadly I couldn't get any really good pictures. 

(You can see him/her in the middle there looking right at the camera.) 

I was a fun drive. I has been so hot lately that I needed to get up into those mountains to actually feel like it is autumn. I absolutely LOVE this season and have already broken out my pumpkin scented candles and sweaters to celebrate. 

Montana and Famous Dave's

A few weeks ago Joe and I headed to Montana for the wedding of a family friend. It was only a 7 hour drive and his family was going to be there, so we made the trip. We had a great time. The wedding was beautiful. The weather was perfect. The hotel was VERY nice. The family was fantastic as always. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera with me most of the time. But I did have it with  me to document this lovely eatery.

(Sorry for the blur.)

Yes that is a Pig BBQing ribs. Oh yes. Famous Dave's was everything you want in a BBQ joint and more. The restaurant was complete with antler chandeliers, deer and moose heads mounted on the walls, and other hunter-esque decor. Oh, and the tables each had a whole role of paper towels just to make sure you didn't make too much of a mess. 

(Mother-in-law Gloria, Sis-in-law Julie, and her sometimes-boyfriend Luke.)

The menu had ribs of almost every kind and variety of sauces to compliment them. My favorite was Devil's Spit. Doesn't the sound of that just make your mouth water? 

Don't forget the wet naps. I especially enjoyed the sayings on each one.

All sarcasm aside, the ribs were really good and I really liked my corn bread. I would go there again. 

It was a great weekend with family and friends. I had never been to Montana before and I have to say, it was great!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

We never seem to be able to finish all out bananas before they ripen too much. I only like bananas if they have a little green on them and Joe won't eat them if there is any brown. So, I am always looking for good recipes for ripe bananas. This muffin recipe is just yummy. The muffins are light and not too sweet, just how I like them.

1/2 c. vegetable shortening

1 c. sugar

2 c. all-purpose flour

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

3 large very ripe bananas

1tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

2/3 c. mini chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar. Add 1 tbsp flour to the mixture. Beat eggs in one at a time. 

2. In a separate bowl mash the bananas to a soft pulp.

3. Set aside 1/2 c.  flour. Add the remaining flour and the banana pulp to the creamed mixture, mixing it in bit by bit.

4. In a separate bowl, stir in the reserved 1/2 c. flour with the salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Add the chocolate chips, tossing to coat.

5. Stir together the dry and creamed mixture. Pour the batter into well-greased muffin tins and bake for 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean.

Nutrition facts: Calories 304, Fat 13g, Protein 4g, Carbs 45 g, Cholesterol 31 mg, Sodium 235 mg

Founders Day Dinner

At the start of every semester, the law school puts on a grand dinner in downtown Salt Lake to commemorate the founding of the law school. Prominent attorneys from all over the region come (Elder Dallin H. Oaks and Elder Christofferson as well as many members of the Utah Supreme Court for example). The  school also gives awards to distinguished alumni. The school gives the law students the $45 meal for $15. So, it's a great excuse to dress up and feel like real fancy lawyers for an evening.

Here's our table. Unfortunately the girl who took the picture failed to focus it so it is fuzzy. But as you can see, the food was fantastic!

Here's some of my favorite classmates: Jennifer Rajan, Kandis Bryant, Heidi Moss, and Lauren Shaw. 

Some of my other favorites: Camille Borg, Lornalie Merideth, Rachel LeCheminat and her husband Casey.

And here we are! Don't Joe and I just look so professional?

Just so you know, it wasn't all about the food (although Joe might argue otherwise). I found the speaker's remarks really interesting. Chief Justice Christine Durham of the Utah Supreme Court spoke on the quality of our elected judges and the recipient of the distinguished alumni award spoke of her struggles in being a woman attorney in the 1970s when she graduated from law school. Overall, I really enjoyed the whole evening!

Sometimes Law School is Like High School.

At times I feel like I am right back in high school (except the homework is harder and all the students are over achievers).

Take this week for example. We had the Law School Student Body Association Opening Social. This consisted of free pizza for all who attended (we get WAY too much pizza), all the student body leadership dressed up as make shift super heroes (think thrift store leotards) and a hoola-hoop contest between the faculty and students. It reminds be of spirit week at my old high school. I'm sure that we seriously scared all the first years. The truth is, it was fun. Where else can you get footage of your Constitutional Law professor's hoola-hoop skills?

Professor Anderson-Jones is on the right with the pink hoola-hoop. The funny thing is, after this, she proceeded in lawyerly fashion to argue why should should win anyway, as she continued to hoola-hoop. She is one of my most favorite professors, I have to say.

It's a Great Day to Celebrate . . .

. . . Grandma Harris! This birthday girl has graced this world with her kindness, service, and beauty for 78 years!

Happy Birthday Grandma! I love you!

Back to School.

That's right. The school year has started again and I find my self spending endless hours in the library reading from black and white pages already. I'm taking:

Civil Rights

Wills & Estates

Evidence

The First Amendment

Basic Mediation

Overall, I'm pretty happy. My professors seem really great and I feel like I have a better grasp of things. At least I think I have a better idea of what I am supposed to be doing. The fact that I don't have any class on Fridays may have something to do with my optimism. All I can say is that it is WAY better being a second year than a first year. 

This picture of my study group (some of my very favorite people, you know) was taken last April after our last final. Don't we all just look so tired and ecstatic to be over for the year? Just imagine how we'll look at graduation!

Daa da da da daaaa daaaa....

After four years of hard work, my dear sister Allie and brother-in-law Chris graduated from BYU!

We headed to the Marriot Center to watch the first day of festivities.

Cecily and Nathan kept themselves entertained as we waited for all the grads to come in.

My proud parents. Isn't my mother just beautiful?!

The next day we went to the Fine Arts graduation and got so see them walk the stage.

Chris graduated magna cum laude and Allie graduated cum laude. They are top of their class!

Now these two have moved to New York city where Chris is in a Masters/Ph.D. program at Columbia and Allie is getting her Masters in Art History from NYU. I am so proud of them. They have worked so hard and deserves those degrees! Joe and I will sure miss them! 

There's a Ute in our house.

Joseph Flager: Graduate student.

That's right, Joe got into grad school! He'll be getting his Masters of Accounting (MACC) from the University of Utah. He's doing the part-time program. So he is still working full-time for the police department (Did I mention that he got hired on a permanent basis which means he got a raise and full benefits? YES!) He is taking two classes a semester, but with all the work that entails, that means he doesn't get home until 10 pm Tuesday through Friday. He will graduate in the spring of 2012, so we will graduate at the same time!

I am so proud of my sweet husband.