The New Semester...

... brings stress ...
... brings 7:30 classes ...
... brings homework ...
... brings nights of ignoring Nate while studying for tests ...
... brings hikes up old main ...
... brings long walks across campus ...
... brings less money ...
... brings a crazy work schedule ...

... brings happiness to me ...

I don't know why, but I LOVE going to school! I hate realizing that in most of my classes, I am the oldest student, I don't enjoy the stress that it brings, but I LOVE learning new things and feeling my understanding of the world and of people expand ... I think that if I could have it my way, I would get paid for going to school for the rest of my life ... anyone here who can make that happen??

Baby Evangeline

Meet our sweet new niece, baby Eva! She was born in July and we got to meet her for the first time a few weeks back! (It's been a really crazy couple of weeks - thus the delay in posting). Her parents were nice enough to finally move back from Texas so that we could meet her and see her big sister, Lizzie!





We are so excited that they are going to live close for some time so that we can get lots of snuggles and photo shoots in!!

Random Acts of Kindness

Today, when I got home from work and grocery shopping, there was a big zucchini on our doorstep. Random act of kindness? I think so! (Although I have since found out who gave it to us, it was totally random because we don't know this person well at all.)

I started thinking about other random acts I had seen throughout the day today... Nate unloaded most of the groceries when I got home without me asking him to... I got a smile at the store from a person in a motorized cart (is it stereotypical of me to think that I should have been the one smiling at them?)... I got an unexpected raise and complements at work... I had some very nice things said about photos I have taken...

These things are all very small, but in their own way made my day a better day... it got me thinking - what random acts of kindness have I given away? I'm going to be better at this - because if my day was made better by these tiny little things, I could be the person that helps to make someone else's day better...

I'm going to work on that...

Random Summer Fun

It's August! My sisters have come and gone! We had many late nights, lots of serious and silly discussions, lots and lots of photo ops, and a wonderful, wonderful time! I've blogged about all of the main events but wanted to add these blog worthy pictures before school starts and my life gets too crazy!! Enjoy!

Pizza & a Makeover

One of the things that I love most about being an aunt is spending 1 on 1 time with the kids! While my sister was here from New Jersey we took the kids out for some fun and a sleepover at our house!

We hit Fredrico's and Aggie Ice Cream with Kaobe and had a very ... lovely ... makeover session with the girls! We always have a great time when we're hanging out with our nephews and nieces, the cutest kids in the world!

"Sew" Crazy

One of the things my sister wanted to do when she was here was make grocery bags! I made some for her for Christmas and she loved them and wanted more! We bought some fabric, set up the machines and sewed away for two days! We ended up making 29 bags in about 15 hours - surely we are crazy indeed!

Cleaning the Sink...

At Angies...

What do you do when it's hot outside and you're in the mood for something sweet? Easy! Head over to Angies and order the sink!



I will issue a word of warning: this sink is not for the fainthearted! When we reached the bottom of the sink we all felt a little queasy and sugared out (especially Kaobe and Nate, who sucked out the ice cream after it turned to liquid to earn the awesome bumper sticker)!

All in all, however, it was a fabulous and tasty time!

... A RARE Opportunity

Introductions: You know Nate - my husband, the love my life. The other occupant of these pictures is Jacie, our sweet niece. Jacie is quite shy because she doesn't see us often, and she took quite a while to warm up to Nate this trip. These pictures of them playing are definitely a rare opportunity - I love the smiles on both of their faces, they are so genuine!

Sweet Smiles & Smores

It is inevitable that we are going to have a good time when we hang out with Bob and Britt and their sweet kids - but throw in a fire pit and some smores and you've got a full on party goin' happening!


The food was great, the dessert - especially delicious, the company was wonderful and the laughs were many! Thanks guys!

Pioneer Day

On the 24th we were both able to get some time off! We ended up spending the afternoon with Sam and Jack at Willow Park for their Pioneer Day Celebrations! They had a great time playing on the bouncy toys! We wandered around to see the animals and then headed to Caspers to cool off with some ice cream! We had a great time with them, as always!

... Sweet Angel Faces...

Although... getting them together for this photo would have been easier if they were behaving like angels!! It took us a couple of tries, but getting perfect smiles on 10 kids ranging 2 - 11 is, I've decided, pretty much impossible!!

Fireworks, Food & Fun

Posting about the 4th of July on the 24th of July seems a little silly, but I'm playing catch up, so I'm gunna do it!

We spent our 4th of July weekend with my family! We went to the parade in Hyrum, watched the Hyrum fireworks and ate a lot of tasty food! It was a fun day and a great way to celebrate the freedom that we are blessed with!

Tie Dye Birthday Bash

My sister and I decided to through a big birthday bash for all of the kids while they were here! We thought for weeks of a theme and an activity and we finally decided on Tie Dye! We bought a bunch of pillow cases, had an awesome cake made and filled a swimming pool with ice! The party, as they say, rocked! The kids had a great time and it was a fun way for us to celebrate their birthdays all together!


Getting the pillowcases ready for their color!



We were brave and let the kids do their own color - they did a fabulous job!


A quick hug in the madness!

The tie dying was followed by a cold and wet water fight! We wrapped up the party with this awesome cake:


And this attempted group photo:


And then we passed out the presents! The girls got their sock monkeys that I feverishly finished the week before everyone got here, and the boys got hackey sacks!



Just a few more random pictures:





And some tie dye results! We had so much fun doing the pillowcases that we all hunted down some of our favorite whites and did those too!

WaTeR TiMe

Something you must know about my family - we are jokesters! When we all get together, it's guaranteed that water is going to be used maliciously to startle someone - whether it's a sprinkle of water on the head, an ice cube on a neck, or a bucket of water balloons - water is a big part of the fun when we all get together!

Ryan's Place Park

Before I begin this post - I will apologize for so many collages! I'm a big believer in putting a lot of photos on blogs, and normally I'd post one photo at a time because as a photographer, I enjoy being able to actually see pictures on peoples blogs, but the last month has been jam packed with so much fun that my posts would be very, very long, thus... all the collages!

As most of you know, it has been extremely hot here - seeing as how we live in the desert, that's probably how it should be... but there is not much outside play - which is tough when there's kids abound! Last week, to take a break from being indoors and going stir crazy, we headed over to Ryan's Place Park! We played some tag, ate some pizza, and had a good old time running around!!