Hi guys!
I have bad news.
I accidentally deleted a REALLY important file for this blog on my computer.
Pretty much everything to do with settings for this blog are toast...
It makes me so sad, because I really love this blog, and we just started it!
But we must move on!
Brantley and I are starting-yet again- a new blog! (hopefully this will be our last)
I have complied all the blog posts about Brantley and I's history from this blog, as well as my previous blog I had when Brantley and I were dating. I posted them all on our NEW blog, so we can have them all in one place :) It really was fun to remember all those fun dates we had!
I hope you do not feel burdened by all the changes, but I'm hoping this will be the last one! :)
Thanks for your support!!
Love, Claire and Brantley
LINK TO NEW BLOG: http://hubbywifeybrooks.blogspot.com/
Friday, November 21, 2014
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Happy Birthday Mom!
November 3 is my mom's birthday!
She truly is the best mom in the world and I love her so much.
Brantley and I wrote a little song for her on skype to the tune of "A boy named Sue" by Jonny Cash
(ha)
 |
| she's the best |
I have a mom and I call her mama Freeby
She is so darn good to you and me
I heard from a bird she's turning fifty,
You know what, I think that's pretty nifty
Oh mama dear you sure are loved
we wish we were there to give you a hug
you've taught me so much about love and trust
you even gave me rides when I missed the bus
So we wanna tell you on this special day
and really there is no one way to say
how awesome you are and how much you are loved
mother dear you're a gift from above.
We love you mom!!
Happy Birthday!
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
we love fall
This fall has been wonderful to us.
The most perfect weather you can imagine.
It is slowly getting colder, but I love all the colors fall brings.
Thanks Rexburg.
Natural Grocers
Brantley and I had the AWESOME opportunity of going and learning about Natural Grocers in Idaho Falls, a 100% natural grocery store.
The thing I found most interesting about the store is its founding principles. It is so different than any other business I have ever encountered.
-Its a Family Store beginning with a simple nutrition book
-Dedicated to provided nutrition education (they hold seminars 10x a year for their employees just so they are educated about health and nutrition)
-Everyday affordable pricing. I was a little skeptical about this one at first. Who knows of 100% natural foods as ever being "affordable" but as I looked around the store I noticed it really was! They can do this by saving money elsewhere (like no plastic bags or paper, only reusable-how awesome) so they can lower the prices for produce.
-committed to community. They provide free classes and one on one private nutrition coaches weekly in the store.
They have classes on...
Heart Health
Bone Health
Brain Health
Weight loss
Food Jungle (reading food labels)
Gluten Free Living
Meal Planning
(and more)
(I really want to take their cooking classes made with all natural ingredients)
-committed to employees. They provide their employees with a "living wage" rather than a minimum wage. It was cool to learn that when the company wasn't as big, the owners would take all the employees to lunch.
Basically the whole point of Natural Grocers is to inform others of the benefits of natural eating so that they can then make better decisions.
I love that.
 |
| Trevor Benion is the Nutritionist at Natural Grocers and put on the seminar |
I really enjoyed this seminar, partly because an AMAZING display of food was given to us. All made with 100% non artificial, organic and natural ingredients (that is HARD)
YEAH IM SERIOUS. All of these things were delicious (which I did not expect to be honest). It really is amazing all you can do with real ingredients. and they taste normal and GOOD. I don't know why we all don't all make these changes. I would eat like this everyday.
Top Left: Sausage and egg casserole
Top Right: curry and BLT lettuce wraps (my favorite)
Bottom Left: Vanilla Greek yogurt with Brazilian nuts and raspberries
Bottom Right: Dairy free blueberry cheesecake (so stinkin' good.)
I would recommend everyone go learn about making healthy alternatives and becoming educated in nutrition and other parts of your life!
PS) Natural Grocers also has a "health and beauty" section. I was in heaven.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
October-the love month
 |
| On October 17, we celebrated 6 MONTHS as husband and wife. We went to Applebee's and reminisced about our adventure so far as a duo. We both agreed it was pretty great. :) we started thinking about all of our "firsts" October 2013 was a pretty packed month for our "firsts" and I am so glad we wrote them all down :) |
 |
| On October 1, we celebrated the one year anniversary of the day we met!! Exactly one year ago on that day, we were in Room 214 in the Clark building in our Family Foundations class. I had talked to Brantley once before on the very first class when he asked me if I was trying to add it (I was on the wait list and so was he) But we never had really "met" (I also thought he was WAY too cute and I was like a little girl too nervous to look at him. true story.) BUT on October 1, he came up to me while I was packing away my notebook in my brand new backpack "Hey, is your name Claire?" My heart stopped as I looked up and saw that cutie. I also think I started sweating. He complimented me on my blue flower dress and asked if he could walk me to the library. What I thought: UM YES ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! What I said: "ya sure" haha He walked me to the library (actually showing me where it was-I still got lost on campus a lot) he asked me to "lunch sometime" my heart was his right then. I was so mad I forgot my phone that day when he asked for my number. I had to wait TWO whole days before he texted me. But it was worth it :) On my walk home from the library, A voice came into my head "This one is different, be yourself with this one" I will never forget that walk home It was the perfect day and I love that story and that man with all my heart. |
Our Story
October 1-First meeting
see above
October 4-First date at the Haunted Straw Maze and cocoa bean(So fun. I was so scared and grabbed on to Brantley's arm a couple times on accident...maybe not on accident ;) We went with two other couples (first time I met either of them) and this year we went to the sealing of Ben and Kenzie! They are our favorite. We celebrated our one year anniversary of our first date with them by going back to the haunted maze and cocoa bean :)
 |
| sorry bad quality |
October 8- First time I saw Brantley play basketball and met his parents.
Oh boy I was scared for this one.
Brantley invited me I think the day of, I think not expecting I would say yes
(we were texting and I asked him what he was doing that night because I wanted to know if he was with a girl
and he invited me!) and I was so there.
It was a 30 min. drive to Idaho Falls. When we got there, I sat with his mom.
That was so scary.
But I loved them from the get go! :)
I think this is when I really started liking him because his mom was telling me all these wonderful things about him :)
also he was really quite attractive making every 3 pointer he shot.
I will just list them from here. I have way too many good stories about us
October 12- Tennis and Subway date
October 13- Talk at the Temple (PIVOTAL)--this comes into play when he proposes :)
October 15-attended first devotional together (at BYUI thats a big deal)
October 17- swimming date and we told each other we had crushes on each other <3
October 18-Deep Love concert and 4-wheeling
October 20-dinner with family and holding hands
October 25-26-Took a trip to Utah! (we stayed with separate friends) and this is where we had our first kiss in the BYU gardens in Provo :)
October 30- Boyfriend Girlfriend :)
As you can probably tell, from day 1 we spent all our time together.
I loved October and all the months after :)
Thursday, September 25, 2014
strands of rope
Hey! Its Brantley. I am blessed to be in a Book of Mormon class at BYU-Idaho and for an assignment I have the opportunity to share on a blog a part of a lesson we have been learning. So here goes!
Recently, I took a trip down memory lane and was able to watch one of my favorite childhood movies: The Three Ninjas. The premise of the movie involves 3 young kids who are training to be skilled ninjas from their grandfather. Every year, they spent their summer learning from their grandfather new moves, but more importantly learning from his wisdom. One piece of wisdom he shares with them is that between the four of them, they represent four pieces of rope, which separately are not very strong but together, can hold the heaviest of burdens.
I related this to my marriage (to the breathtakingly perfect Claire Brooks). I am so grateful that we have a strong marriage. However, I learned a lesson this last week that I hope to never forget. Things were good, as usual, but on this particular night we decided to discuss our marriage. We began talking and as time went by, the conversation got deeper and deeper. We both shared things that we adore about each other and things that had been weighing on our souls. Before we knew it tears were flowing and we embraced realizing that talking to each other and seeing from each other's point of view is one of the best ways to bring us together.
After this experience, I was reading the Book of Mormon. I read of Lehi and Sariah when they were put in a difficult situation. At first glance, in 1 Nephi 5, I was almost sad to read that Sariah was murmuring when they were in such a difficult situation. But the truth of it is, she was asked to give up a lot of things: her spacious house, her wealth and riches, her friends that they left behind in Jerusalem. And now what does she have? She is living in a tent? she does not know if her four sons will ever return from her journey? Of course she would voice her concerns! No mortal can experience that amount of trial without feeling some measure of an overweighing burden.
Sometimes in life, we have a tendency to judge others for their lack of faith or "dignity" in hard times, but that is not our place. We are not aware, fully, to what people may be battling inside. Only our Savior who died for us and took the place for our suffering knows. We have no place to judge or to look down upon others when we do not understand the trial that has been placed upon them.
Striving to understand people's feelings will add an extra strand of rope to our relationships with our husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, friends, parents, etc.
-Brantley
Recently, I took a trip down memory lane and was able to watch one of my favorite childhood movies: The Three Ninjas. The premise of the movie involves 3 young kids who are training to be skilled ninjas from their grandfather. Every year, they spent their summer learning from their grandfather new moves, but more importantly learning from his wisdom. One piece of wisdom he shares with them is that between the four of them, they represent four pieces of rope, which separately are not very strong but together, can hold the heaviest of burdens.
I related this to my marriage (to the breathtakingly perfect Claire Brooks). I am so grateful that we have a strong marriage. However, I learned a lesson this last week that I hope to never forget. Things were good, as usual, but on this particular night we decided to discuss our marriage. We began talking and as time went by, the conversation got deeper and deeper. We both shared things that we adore about each other and things that had been weighing on our souls. Before we knew it tears were flowing and we embraced realizing that talking to each other and seeing from each other's point of view is one of the best ways to bring us together.
After this experience, I was reading the Book of Mormon. I read of Lehi and Sariah when they were put in a difficult situation. At first glance, in 1 Nephi 5, I was almost sad to read that Sariah was murmuring when they were in such a difficult situation. But the truth of it is, she was asked to give up a lot of things: her spacious house, her wealth and riches, her friends that they left behind in Jerusalem. And now what does she have? She is living in a tent? she does not know if her four sons will ever return from her journey? Of course she would voice her concerns! No mortal can experience that amount of trial without feeling some measure of an overweighing burden.
Sometimes in life, we have a tendency to judge others for their lack of faith or "dignity" in hard times, but that is not our place. We are not aware, fully, to what people may be battling inside. Only our Savior who died for us and took the place for our suffering knows. We have no place to judge or to look down upon others when we do not understand the trial that has been placed upon them.
Striving to understand people's feelings will add an extra strand of rope to our relationships with our husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, friends, parents, etc.
-Brantley
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
