3 week adventure in Utah

Real soccer game with my parents. Gotta love Big How's smile

Isn't it freaky how much the four of us look alike? My mom and I on the left and Erin and her mom 

I loved babysitting my brothers for the week while my parents were in Prague

(wind blown hair and a chinese up do, awesome)

 

Cousinly love

Back in Utah Jensen insisted on getting a large bowl of soup at Zupas. He promised me he would finish the entire bowl. I told him that we would not leave until he did. Jensen agreed and said that if he finished his soup he could stay up till midnight. (psh midnight, sweet thing) 20 minutes later Jensen had half a bowl left. I stuck to my word and sat there till he finished it all. This is how he felt afterwards

Lesson learned.....

We celebrated Jensen's birthday which falls on the 4th of July with family and friends

Watching Fireworks....(Jensen posing for GQ) We miss you Josh

Jensen and I at Chick Fil A waiting for Josh's flight

This day was so exciting because Josh was coming to Utah. I hadn't seen him for 3 weeks. I came to Utah to teach 2 dance camps and babysit my brothers. I was so happy when he said he was flying in so we could enjoy a weekend with friends and family before we went back to Seattle. I almost forgot what it was like to be married. Needless to say I was a happy girl seeing his handsome self. 

I took Josh to my trainer Ron because his hip alignment was off. Josh has had a hard time sleeping and his back has been killing him. I knew he was in pain because he actually let me take him to my trainer. 27 is really hitting him hard...;)

Josh and I went to dinner at Vinto in SLC and then took a scooter ride to get snowcones

Poppy Ball took us to the Country Club for dinner Friday night

Saturday we celebrated Kennedy's birthday in South Jordan. Water Party! (kate pretending to like me)

Time for the Oakley Rodeo. We went with a huge group to dinner on Main Street and then headed to the Oakley Rodeo. Afterwards each couple took a blow up raft and floated the lake till 1 am. 

Monday we sent Jensen off to Boy Scout Camp. It was his first time! Doesn't he look like a character from the movie UP?!

Monday night we picked up Olivia and my parents from the airport. Welcome home International Champions

Goodbye Utah, it was fun! Luckily Seattle is now sunny and its high is in the 80's

Overall my 3 weeks in Utah were amazing to say the least. Both of the dance camps went really well and it was nice to see my old friends. You never realize the importance of family and friends until you move away. Josh and I have grown so much closer since living away from home and I am so glad I have him with me. Getting to spend a week watching my brothers was so neat for me because I learned a lot about each of them. They have grown up so much and are the best boys ever. Anything I ever asked them to do they did without hesitation. You can tell Howard has really been pulling the reins at home. Josh and I will be back to Utah in 2 weeks for our Bear Lake annual trip on Josh's side of the family. Life is good. Ciao for now

Leaving on a jet plane

On Father’s day Josh dropped me off at the airport for my flight to Utah. I was able to spend the day with my family and cousins at my grandparents for Father’s day. It was so good to be with everyone. As much as I love Seattle it can get hard because I don’t see people I know very often. I am so glad I have Josh, Lisa and Oliver though. That night I drove to Blackfoot, Idaho to teach a dance camp for the next 3 days alone. The drive was actually really pretty! I enjoyed being with the team and loved seeing them progress throughout the week.

Thursday was my parent’s birthday. Yes they have it on the same day; its actually really convenient. My mom and I went to breakfast with her parents and sisters to The Pancake house. That afternoon I made an appointment for my mom and I to go get massages and then we went to get sushi for lunch. Later I picked my dad up at the airport with my brothers and we went out to dinner. Since we were on a roll with the whole eating out thing we decided to finish off the night with some frozen yogurt. It was a pretty eventful, jam packed day! It all ended when we saw that Miami won the championship. How disappointing.

Friday all of us went to a fun little consignment store that was going out of business. Everything was 50% off! I definitely used that to my advantage and bought some décor for the house that Josh and I don’t even have yet. Ha We stopped for lunch and headed over to my grandmas pool to enjoy the sun. I can’t believe how hot Utah is right now.

The rest of the night we spent up Millcreek canyon for Jenni’s wedding reception. She is a good friend of our families and it was the most beautiful wedding. It was really fun to see all of my old friends and family.

Saturday morning rolled around and Olivia, Karli and I went for a run. We planned on doing 6 miles but shortly realized after about 2 miles we were done. How embarrassing. The rest of the day was pretty relaxing. I choreographed a whole dance for another camp I am teaching in August and learned the dances I will be doing for Regional camp at UVU in Orem this Monday-Wednesday.

Every night I talk to Josh I ask him what he found to eat for dinner. He either says eggs and beans or turkey and cheese. I feel so bad for him but he loves that kind of food.  I had told him before I left that I would put together crock pot meals in the freezer he could throw in every night. He said he would be just fine without it. I guess we can’t all appreciate gourmet meals. Josh is so great and very independent. I don’t worry about him because he manages just fine on his own. The only problem is I really miss him. This will be the longest we have been apart since we’ve been married.

Friends

A candid moment of Jack and i…

Date night out with Lisa and Oliver. We went to Matador Mexican Restaurant in Tacoma.

Everytime Josh drops me off at Lisa and Olivers house he says, “Alright sweetie, have fun at play group, and be nice to the kids!” We laugh about it. This day was the last day I would be seeing Lisa for a month and a half. I head back to Utah for a couple of weeks and when I go back to Seattle she comes to Utah. We made no bake cookies, which were a healthier treat. 

Lisa dominated the whole bowl (I of course helped) and then she texted me saying she made more for the next day.

One night I made café rio salads with homemade dressing. It tasted just like café rio! Travis, Danny, Trent and Josh loved it. Guess I will be making it more often. Just don’t ask what is in the dressing….kind of depressing

Thursday we went to the temple together. I had never been to the Seattle temple. It was way pretty!

Friday June 15^th I surprised Josh and planned a fun little date night for us. I wanted to celebrate Father’s day even though he isn’t a dad yet….no rush! I was also leaving Sunday on Father’s day and was having a hard time grasping the fact that I wouldn’t see him for 2 weeks.

We went to eat at Trappers sushi, which has the best sushi in Seattle. It is so fresh and the rolls are very unique. I highly recommend it for anyone who comes to visit. Of course we did all you can eat! Afterwards we went back home and I surprised him with homemade cinnamon rolls I had made earlier that day. It was a new recipe but unfortunately once I cooked them I shortly realized they were well....not edible. A for effort! Anyways, we watched the movie Thor because the next night we planned to see The Avengers. Later he opened his presents and we enjoyed the rest of the night together.

The next day I drove to Issaquiah to meet up with an old co-worker and his friends. They were in town for a wedding and stayed at one his buddies parents place. Check it out.

We all went to Poo Poo trail (yep you heard me) and endured a 4 mile hike.

Pikes Market place for lunch and to enjoy being tourists

 

Pike's Market Place to eat food and be tourists

Gloom June weather, but happy people

                                     Last Friday I met my Oliver, Lisa and Jack at the Tacoma Mall to do some shopping. Later we went and ate at a local burger shop called Paddy's. The feeling of the diner was so fun and I would give the burgers an A+. I will for sure be taking Josh back there.

Saturday I woke up very sick. My stomach was killing me and I will save you from hearing the other details. ha Anyways I spent the whole day watching TV; which is rare. I can't say that I didn't enjoy myself. I watched, A Walk to Remember, The Cinderella Story, Kardashian Reality show, Mrs. Eastwood and Company reality show, and Wedding Crashers. Pretty much covered all my bases! What a successful Saturday. Later all of us went to Cheesecake Factory. On our way there Josh insisted that we put 6 pieces of gum in our mouth. He said it would take our minds off of our starvation. Never a dull moment!

After a long wait to get in to Cheesecake Factory I disregarded the sharp pains in my stomach and devoured the food. We headed to Walmart later for our Saturday night ritual and prepared for Sunday. Sunday I made everyone the usual...Roast and Mash Potatoes. Boys are easy to please.

Monday Josh and I headed to the gym in the rain...Gotta love that face

Tuesday Lisa and Jack came up to Auburn to hang out with me. I was so excited to see them. We went to Panera Bread, Trader Joes, and the park. On our way home we grabbed some delicious doughnuts. I appreciate Lisa and her love for sweets; two peas in a pod.

That night I made brownies and bought ice cream to celebrate Trent's birthday!

Wednesday Josh took me to the doctor bright and early to see what was wrong with me. Of course they never give you a direct answer but from the looks of it I had the stomach flu. We went to Walgreens and got the medicine the doctor suggested. It meant so much for Josh to take his whole morning off to take care of me. Luckily Josh was driving to knock in Lacey so he took me with him so I could see Lisa and Jack again. Lisa and I took a girls night out and went to a Thai place that everyone raves about. The doctor specifically told me to not eat spicy food but I couldn't pass Thai food up. 

and then we played...

a

Totality of your being

*Open to the totality of your being. Once you do this you don't pretend that your life is perfect, or even hope that it will be. When you acknowledge the less than perfect parts of yourself, something magical begins to happen. Opening to the totality of your being is like saying to yourself, "I may not be perfect, but I'm okay just the way I am." Rather than judging and evaluating yourself simply because you're human, see if you can treat yourself with loving-kindness and great acceptance. 

Happiness

*Be happy where you are. The truth is, there's no better time to be happy than right now. Don't wait to be happy when you're married, or when your kids are grown up etc. Life does not begin when obstacles stop. The obstacles are your life! Happiness is the way.