Trip to Zions - Part I

As I mentioned before, to celebrate our Anniversary & take some time away for Spring Break, we headed down to Southern Utah & spent some time at Zions National Park! We went for 4 days and took way too many pictures to post, so I'm posting in small segments so that I can try to keep myself organized and in check!


We stayed at the beautiful Desert Pearl Inn in Springdale! If you ever make a trip to Zions and need a place to stay, we definitely recommend this Hotel! It was gorgeous and fresh and built to suit their patrons! And, it's only a 2 minute drive from the park entrance and I-Max movie theater!



We enjoyed breakfast on our deck and were pretty amused by the dishwasher in our room!



We also had a beautiful view from our room! We loved waking up in the morning and looking at the mountains through our window wall! It was gorgeous!!

We had decent weather for the most part, but we did see some snow! It was chilly, but we didn't let it ruin our fun :)




We also tried out some local cuisine and fell in love with Oscar's Cafe! I opted for the free range chicken sandwich complete with yummy sweet potato fries while Nate went all out and got the "Murder Burger." The menu said that it was "to die for," so Nate decided he better try it! All that I can say about it is that it was huge and burgery and Nate looked like he enjoyed it - a lot!


So there you have it! The technicalities of our trip! I'm still organizing and editing our pics from the park, but you can bet we'll be posting them soon!!

10 Years!

Nate & I celebrated our 10 year anniversary last weekend by heading down to Zions National Park for a long weekend! It was fun and perfect and gorgeous, but I'm going to post about that later! On our actually anniversary, which was the 10th, we both had to work! After work, however, Nate picked me up dressed in his best and surprised me with some gorgeous tulips and a nice dinner at The Coppermill! Here are a few of the pics that we got from our camera phone:



He also surprised me by purchasing "This Is It" (the MJ movie - don't judge me, I'm still a big fan) and leaving it on our Entertainment Center for me to find when we got home from dinner!

I have said it before and I'll say it again, but I am so grateful for Nate! He truly is my best friend and the best husband ever! Happy Anniversary Babe!

If You Need Us This Weekend...

It's Too Bad!

We are getting away.
We are going to have some R&R.
We are going to a hotel where this will be what we see when we walk out our door:


And we only feel a little bad about leavin' ya'll behind!

Grandpa

This is my sweet grandpa.


My sweet grandpa passed away early last Monday morning.

This week has been a week of tears, a week of rejoicing, a week of reminiscing, a week of family, and a week of love. I have been able to spend some wonderful time with two of my sisters and my brother:


And I have seen family that I have not seen for years. Literally.

The services for grandpa were held yesterday. It was a beautiful, bittersweet day. Grandpa was a wonderful man. He was kind, he was honest, he never said a bad word about anybody. He is known for saying "I may not have any money, but I am the richest man in the world." Grandpa loved his family. He was so proud of each one of his family members and he loved us all so unconditionally.

Grandpa is happy now. He is healthy and he is better. I am so grateful to know that someday I will see him again. I am also grateful to know that he will be up in Heaven fighting for me.






I am so grateful for my grandpa and for the example of love and marriage and all around goodness that he was. I will miss him, but I know that I will see him again, and that brings me joy.

Nikki the Nikon

Here she is. Nikkie the Nikon - in all her beautiful glory. And being loved by me.


It's been three days since we made this purchase. And we LUHV it! No buyers remorse here!

The first day it was dark. Rascal was my subject. She didn't like it. Oh well.


The second day we worked. We worked then we shot. I went to the park. We went to Third Dam. It was AMAZING!



Today. We woke up. We got Jamba's. We drove. We shot. We shot. We shot. And shot. And we talked. And we had a great morning.


Check out my photo blog for more. If they're not there when you look, check back, they'll be there soon!

Happy Tax Returns!

Today was a giddy little day for us!

After sitting through six l-o-n-g hours of classes, we headed down to Inkley's and got us one of these:


Isn't she BeAuTiFuL?!? She is! And she is ours!

I am quite looking forward to working tomorrow. Why? Because the quicker I get to work the quicker I can leave...

Then...

I get to go shooting! Just me and the camera!

Check out my photo blog in the next few days, I'm sure there will be some new posts!

Belgium Bound

My sister and her family are headed to Belgium, but they made one last stop in Utah before their big trip! We had such a great time hanging out with them and playing with the kids!

Some of my favorite activities while they were here included:

Snuggling our nieces and trying to sneak pictures of Hallie G!


Watching Nate woo little J! She ADORED him this trip!!


Hanging out & playing cards with Ty & Dev!



Getting a very special manicure and pedicure from Hallie! My nails were SOOO pretty!



And, of course, cleaning the sink at Angies!


It was tough for us to say goodbye to so many people we love in a matter of 48ish hours, but as with Nate's parents, even though we will miss them fiercely, we are excited for Jess & Phuc and for the opportunities that they will have!!

Hardware Ranch

This last weekend we headed up to Hardware Ranch with my sister and her kiddos! Growing up here, I'm kind of ashamed to say it was my very first time up there, but I finally made it! :) We had a good, chilly time! Here are some pics from our adventures!

The New Yorkers

And it's done. They've officially done it. The New Yorkers have settled ... until they find a house ... then they'll settle there!

The last few months have been a hubbub of activity and preparation for Carl & Lynnette to sell their home and make the move to the Big Apple! We have been spending an enormous amount of time with Nate's awesome family - cleaning, eating, organizing, reminiscing, talking, memory making and picture taking!

It was sad to walk through the empty house on Thursday. It was sadder to say goodbye to them on Saturday. But even through the sadness, we all know that this is the right move for them and we are so excited for the opportunities that they are going to have! And, I'll be honest, we're really excited to go and visit them :)

Here are a few of the photos that we got over that last little while...









To Carl & Lynnette - we love you and we wish you the best of luck!! AND, we'll skype you later!! :)

Happy {Heart} Day

Our Valentine's Day this year was pretty low key because we had so much going on! On Friday evening we went to "Valentine's Day," (it was your typical Valentine's Day type of love story, so I, of course, enjoyed it a lot), on Saturday Nate surprised me with some beautiful flowers, and on the actual day of, we hung out with Nate's family to celebrate birthdays and to enjoy each others company before the big move!

To Nate: you already know this, but some days I can't believe how lucky I am to have you in my life. Not many people have a husband who supports them so much, who loves them so unconditionally, and who is truly their best friend. I Love You! XOXO

The Little Clar That Could

"I thought I could, I thought I could, I thought I could" ... and so far I have.

This is my crazy week. You know, the one that I wanted to punch.

And I'm surviving.

Do any of you watch "Reba?" I don't really, but this morning in the shower her theme song came into my head. I don't really think that her theme song was written about the craziness that is my life right now, but I liked the thought of it anyway. (If you don't know what her theme song is, it simply says "I'm a survivor" over and over and over.)

Today is Wednesday. I have successfully picked up my sister from the airport. (And may I add that I also accomplished my very first drive to Salt Lake City ALONE, EVER! It's kind of a big deal for me.) I now have a piano in my bedroom (yes. in my bedroom. don't ask.) I have written two papers that are due tomorrow. I am taking a break from studying for two tests that I have tomorrow.

After tomorrow, it is all about the family.

It is about spending quality time. It is about taking lots of pictures. It is about saying what you mean to say. It is about saying "skype you later" and "see you soon." It is about being brave and wiping tears.

This week is almost over. I've done it. My hair hasn't been ripped out. My Dr. Pepper supply is still available. My husband still loves me.

Three more days. "I know I can, I know I can, I know I can."