Let the good times roll

May... come and gone

2011-06-02T09:14:00.001-07:00

So May has just flown by like all the other months...I feel like our baby girl will be here before we know it but there are days where it feels like it's dragging. The uncomfortable stage is setting in more and more each day and I realize I'm more tired and sore than ever before. The joys of pregnancy! But I am going to miss the kicking and movement down there, even if some of the movement or poking is uncomfortable, I love the feeling of her moving down there letting me know she's still alive and that she's uncomfortable too. :)
Here's a couple highlights from May:

Memorial Day 2011

We had Shannon, Toran and Tygun come down and stay with us for Memorial Day weekend since there was still ice on the lake up at Jackson Lake (our traditional Memorial Day weekend trip). They got in late Friday night, the boys went fishing the next morning up at Strawberry and didn't have much luck with fishing not to mention it was freezing cold. Glad the girls opted to sleep in and stay out of that trip. So we went to the Nelson's Grove park and then went shopping and to Zuppa's for lunch. We totally relaxed that afternoon and then BBQ'd that evening. SOOOO much food!
We made french toast the next morning and then we went to the Living Aquarium which was fun to see Tygun get pumped about the fishies...hit Olive Garden for lunch and then came home and played Poker where Shannon once again kicked everyone's trash. The next morning we did omlets and biscuts and gravy..ughhhh....so much food once again (this is more food intake than at Thanksgiving!) Thanks for coming down to hang with us guys! It was a blast!!!

Feeding the ducks and playing on the slides

Jelly fish and sea horses

Petting the sting rays

Toran, Shannon and Tygun- Family Pic

PHOENIX'S BAPTISM May 21st 2011 Thayne WY

Phoenix and Paylan..best pals

Phoenix's Baptism

This is why our lil girl has no hope...After what Brandon has done with his nephews/nieces...our kids haven't got a prayer! Brandon letting Trapper go to town on Costco's 7 lb chocolate cake.

The SHAW/LOVELL FAMILY baby shower...May 14th 2011

Playdough baby sculpting...I had to choose the one that I thought would look most like my baby.

Baby belly posts- 32 weeks above (day of shower)
33 weeks below

The party!!! Great support from family and good help from Eva and Sophie who were so excited to be apart of the big girls party :)

Joy and my mom totally out did themselves on this shower. Fun games, great food and great company! Thank you both so much!

My cousin Becca's mother in law is amazing and super crafty- she made the cutest hats for our lil girl, bath mittens and a super soft blanket. Our girl is already SPOILED!

Brandon's Annual BBQ
Dutch oven ribs and potatoes
Brandon with Doug and Lisa and their lil boy Jake. Good friends from Maui

Kirk and Serena, Eric with Molly and Dad

Gpa and Gma with the granddaughters- Eva, Serena and Sophie

Serena with Gpa

Arches Trip April 2011

2011-06-02T08:40:00.000-07:00

We were in some desperate need of sun and warm weather after all the rain we've been getting, so we took a trip to Moab to show Brandon and Uncle Rich Arches National Park for their first time. I was worried about not having a bathroom on a 3 mile hike but did just fine and just had some pain and cramping on the way down the Delicate Arch hike.

Belly picture...Our lil' girls first outdoor outing

Trail markers...

Taking a breather in some of the only shade the whole hike...good thing dad talked us into leaving early that morning to avoid the mid-day heat. And good thing for the nice breeze!

One of our first family pics Brandon, me and baby girl

The girls and then the guys

Underneath the arch...one day this puppy will fall. Good thing I've got plenty of memories and pics of it.

Pine tree arch

What a fun trip! Thanks for the great memories mom, dad and Rich!

Baby Shower in Wyoming plus 2 new posts following

2011-05-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

So my amazing family in Wyoming threw a couples Baby Shower for Brandon and I last week and we had a ball. They totally went overboard including a family BBQ over at Tyson and Hayley's, followed by fun couples games, delicious desserts and some great gifts! Thank you thank you so much for everything!!! We had a blast and celebrated Easter the next day. We always have fun when we go to WY! I got to see Shannon and Toran's new house. Congrats to them!

They gave us a bag of lil smoky hot dogs to put inside water balloons- first one to get them all done won...GO TEAM! We totally smoked everyone!

Toran and Shannon

Eileen and Alan working on it- Eileen's nails kept ripping the water balloons!

I won't go into much detail about this one but let's just say we were blindfolded and got a nice surprise!

Pin the bottle on the baby- couples were blindfolded and had their hands tied together and had to agree on a spot to pin the bottle on the baby.

Opening gifts- we got so many great things to get us started!

Eileen and Shalynn made this adorable diaper cake. I know we'll go through these things like crazy. Thanks!

Paylan and Tygun hangin' with aunt Shannon

Brandon and Paylan getting Easter eggs...she was so funny. She wouldn't pick up any eggs at first since they were "dirty". She is getting to be more of a princess everyday.

25-30 week baby bump pics

2011-05-02T18:57:00.000-07:00

64 Days til I'm a MOMMY!

So I have been a super slacker to the blogging life but wanted to post some pictures of my ever growing baby bump. I can't believe it's 64 days until my little girl is here. Brandon and I are getting so excited! We are hoping he passes his linear algebra spring semester class so he can take the summer semester off to hang out with me and the baby. It's gotten really uncomfortable with sleep, work and just most anything I do. Wish me luck with an Arches National Park I have planned with my parents and Brandon this weekend. I don't know how much hiking I'll be doing but we'll give it a try!

Heber Cabin Friends Getaway

2011-05-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

The end of March, a group of friends that I get together with once a month decided we'd do a close by getaway. It was just what we needed and we had a blast of a weekend. We got up there Thursday night and then watched Last Song and talked while soaking in the hot tub. The next day I made crepes and we got ready for a day of shopping at the Park City outlets. We split up and conquered as much as we could until 8pm that night. Then we went to dinner and went back to the cabin where we did a fashion show of our new purchases for ourselves and kids (future baby clothes for me). Then we talked til the early hours of the morning, woke up, cleaned up and went to the outlets again to find the deals that we missed but were spotted by others in our group. It was so much fun to be with these girls and have some good quality girl time. Thanks to Steve, Laura's brother for letting us stay at the cabin. It was sooooooooo beautiful! What a nice retreat!

Here's some pictures from the weekend:

All the girls-Emily, Hannah, Trisha, Laura, Daisy, Kathryn, and Me
Top: Steph, Alisa, and Julia

Our pile of purchases- this was just from the first day, we went back for one more trip the next day. Crazy women!!!

The beautiful cabin

Kat and Emily getting ready for a day of shopping

View from the back- the lake down below is owned by Steve as well. What a pretty view!

Grandma Shaw's Funeral 2.21.10

2011-02-24T17:34:00.000-08:00

Grandma Shaw, my LAST grandparent on my side living passed away peacefully on Thursday, February 10th. We will miss the Grandma we remember and were so grateful she could return and be with her sweetheart for Valentines Day. Grandpa had passed away 4 years ago so that was a happy reunion. We will never forget her love for a clean house, Potato Noodle soup, Divinity, and her homemade bread. Her love for family and children, singing and her act of conversation. The fun afghans she would crochet us, her imagination and sense of humor. We will miss you Gma and won't forget the wonderful woman you helped inspire us to be.
Here's some pics from the viewing/funeral

Grandma's viewing at the Berg Mortuary in Provo. Reuniting with Uncle Wayne and Aunt Sherri who we haven't seen in forever! So good to catch up and spend some time with them. Aunt Linda next to me. She spoke at the funeral and did an awesome job. I was able to learn some new things I hadn't know about Grandma before.

The pallbearers: Uncle Dallas, Kirk, Bryan (Jess's husband), Brandon, my dad Randy, and Uncle Wayne

Kirk dedicating the grave site. Beautiful blessing bro!

Little Serena was intrigued with Uncle Wayne, and Uncle Wayne- the pro with the babies!

Aunt Claudia- Grandpa's sister and her family that came to support

The Shaw siblings- Uncle Dallas, Uncle Wayne, Dad, Aunt Rebecca, and Aunt Linda

The Shaw's with spouses

The whole Shaw family minus a few that couldn't make it! We missed seeing them!!!

Aunt Julie with Serena, and Erica, her daughter with her cute lil Esper

The Shaw cousins that could make it: Erica, Melissa, Jess, Kirk (representing the guys), Allison, Sarah and myself

20 Week Bump!

2011-02-24T17:26:00.000-08:00

So some think I am barely showing for 20 weeks...It is my first, and the past couple of weeks I have been expanding more. My situation is just like my mother, who carried the baby all in her back and didn't show for a long time either. Which makes me nervous for the last trimester and delivery since I have a herniated disc in my lower lumbar and no liquid in that disc to take on extra weight or aggressive pressure. So far so good, it's just starting to act up when I am sitting or standing for very long, and sleeping has now started to aggravate it. BODY PILLOWS are my friend now... :)
Here's some proof of my long belly bump at 20 weeks, the day we found out it we were having a little girl.

It's a GIRL!

2011-02-17T21:06:00.000-08:00

We're having a GIRL~ Brandon and I are so pumped! I don't think we've been this happy and excited for something so much! We went into the hospital on Tuesday afternoon to find out the gender and Brandon asked the technician to show us his little boy. It didn't take her but 20 seconds to search and say, well, your baby boy has girl parts. It's a girl! We were both so excited and loved seeing her moving around in there. She was so active I am still surprised I haven't felt her move yet. She has Brandon's luscious lips and my length. In her toes, legs, arms and fingers. I was surprised how developed and long she is! Heart beat and everything looked good so we are glad for a healthy baby. She was crossing her legs at her feet from the beginning, my lil lady already! :) Afterwards we went maternity clothes shopping since I am on my last pairs of pants that I can button. Looked at baby clothes...so fun! The next day Brandon had his buddy's wife who makes cakes deliver a Blue poka dot cake that said "It's a girl!" to work. It was so fun and I think he did it since everyone at Pinnacle was teasing him about him thinking it was a boy and it ending up being a girl. Can't wait for our lil girl to arrive...Plenty to do before then but SO PUMPED to know what we are having!!! It makes it so exciting! Brandon is already thinking about Barbies, prom dresses and weddings! We'll take one day at a time :)

Here's some ultra sound pics:

Her long long legs!

And arms/fingers

She has my long finger toes as well.

Crossing her ankles, such a lady!

Baby Baby Baby

2011-02-13T16:17:00.000-08:00

In September 2010 Brandon and I started the InVetro Fertility process after 8 failed attempts with Artifical Insemination. We were lucky enough to have the chance to do this process but it was not easy. The process seemed to go by quickly but had it's up's and down's. The hormones you have to inject yourself with are pretty powerful and can really change a person. I am grateful to a husband who stood by my side and supported me through this emotional rollercoaster. Besides all the pills you stagger through the month and a half process, I injected myself with 3 different needles a day. Talk about some bruising and sensitivity after you do that day after day. Anyways, I had a lot of support from friends and others who have gone through this process and that helped me a lot to be able to relate to and be prepared for what I was facing during this risky process.

We had 3 embryos fertilize on their own with just the regular InVetro process- yeah swimmers!
The rest of the eggs/sperm they performed a process called ICSI where they inject the sperm into the eggs to help them to fertilize. None of them were of quality worth freezing so we won't have any for back up but at least we had these three!

We decided after counsel with the doctor and the risks with carrying 3 babies and complications to the babies health/development that we would only put in two embryos back in.After the first process of having the doctor extract my eggs to fertilize on Tuesday, we went back in on Friday afternoon to have the process of the doctor putting the fertilized embryos back into me. It was similar to the artificial insemination process and Brandon could be in there with me so that was a bonus. The two little dots to the left of the big white spot and above the other big white spot are our little embryos. Praying for a miracle!
And a miracle was granted! We went back for blood tests 10 days later where they tested the hormone levels of HCG in my blood. I have had so much disappointment in the 4 years we were trying that when the nurse practitioner said, "Congratulations, you are pregnant," I still didn't believe it. We went in a couple days later and she said they keep doubling like they should...you are "Chemically pregnant". That was what we told everyone for a while that we were still waiting for further info but at this time we were chemically pregnant. We just wanted to make sure the baby would get to 12 weeks and then tell everyone at that point. This was our first ultrasound at 6 weeks 3 days old- it was amazing to see it in there! Both Brandon and I could feel more blessed that we had gotten this far!What was even more realistic was that same day hearing the heartbeat at 133 mps...that was so cool we wanted to keep hearing it!This was the next and last appointment with the fertility clinic- at 9 weeks 2 days. The heart beat was up to 168 beats per sec. The baby was the size of a gumi bear at that point. I loved our clinic, they were so great to us and gave us exceptional service and care.It came more to life with additional proof. My first positive pregnancy test! What a happy day!

Since then, we have a great doctor we are going to, the first trimester was really rough- not throwing up (I only did 2x's) but the nausea all day long especially in the mornings. I have been able to enjoy pregnancy a lot more in the 2nd trimester and am at 5 months now at 20 weeks Tuesday. Brandon and I get to find out the gender on Tuesday so place your bets. I have had two dreams we are having a girl and the Chinese gender predictor says it's a girl, however Brandon is keeping his fingers crossed he will get a boy so he has a little hunting/fishing partner. We'll see soon! I am finally popping out a little more, it's taken a while since I am so long and there is plenty of room for her to hide but at the size of a cantelope now, there isn't much room for her in my back anymore. Maternity pants...here I come! I love pregnancy and can't wait for the baby to arrive.

Things we've been up to...

2011-02-13T14:14:00.000-08:00

Birthday Party for the January Birthday's
Mom- Jan 3rd
Gideon- Jan 9th

Gideon,Eva, Gma and Sophie blowing out the candles on their cake- Jan 2011

Being goofy at Gma Shaw and Gideon's B-day party
Sophie showing off Gideons gifts

I was lucky enough to get to go to my niece Eva's dance recital in December. She did so well and is a natural! The best part was seeing her check herself out in the mirror from behind to make sure her tutu looked good from behind. She is such a little diva!

Eva warming up for her recital

This glider/chair was wrapped to represent that was my Christmas and I needed to go pick out the one I wanted. Yeah- I so wanted one of these for the baby!

Brandon got some camo gear :)

Eileen trying out the X-Box Kinect boarding game

Gma and Gpa Merritt made matching booties/hats for all the grandchildren

The Christmas Story

Shalynn with the "T" boyz- Trapper, Tayven and Tygun

Talkin' story

The Lovell Gang

Serena at Thanksgiving...this girl is adorable!

Joy, Serena, Katie and Mom

The Lovell Girls at Women's Conference

Lil Serena enjoying Women's Conference too...

Pinnacle in December

2011-02-13T13:51:00.000-08:00

Account Administration Employee of the Year- what a sweet surprise!
For a bunch of the main departments at Pinnacle they awarded an Employee of the Year. I never saw it coming but feel honored they chose me. I had just helped the company with their first Food Drive to help the community and so I got honored at our Pinnacle Year end party and picture with Steve Hafen-COO and the owner Kelly Walker along with my boss Wayne Tomlinson. There are a lot of people who are deserving of this award so I was shocked it came my way.
Thanks!!!
Celebrating the holidays at workChristmas PJ's Day
In the month of December our department had dress up days for each Friday in December

Crazy Christmas Hat Day

Ugly Sweater Day

Brandon and I at the Jazz /Miami Heat Game
I won tickets at work

A proud day

2010-09-13T17:54:00.000-07:00

It's a proud day in a man's life when his wife gets her Hunters Safety so that includes another activity they can do together...

Hah! I finally did it- after a year, I went with my friend Rachel from work (currently dating a hunter) to complete my Hunter's Safety course up Parley's canyon.

It was actually empowering and we had smiles all the way home knowing we completed the final written and range test and could officially go hunting with our men this winter. Brandon's family goes duck hunting every year for Thanksgiving so we will be practicing up for that.

Is it funny that I like the smell of gun powder. I had a thrill standing there on my own (first time shooting without Brandon) and reloading those bullets and working the rifle on my own. I am so cool :) I still have a lot to learn- like closing my one eye when looking into the scope...I think I may need to practice with glasses and taping off one side until I get it done but whatever it takes.

Catch up to missed posting...

2010-08-26T22:49:00.000-07:00

Before the Anniversary post I have loads of pictures from Memorial Day through the summer to catch up on what the Merritt's have been up to. Feel free to check it out since you may be in some of those pics!
Hope everyone's summer has been awesome! I am so excited for Fall however I am not ready to let summer go yet. :(

Anniversary Trip to Cali

2010-08-26T21:38:00.001-07:00

Our surprise Anniversary Trip to the Pacific Coast Aug 17-22

We had so much seafood on this trip! Starting with the Rio buffet in Las Vegas on our way over to Cali...I planned the trip and Brandon had no clue where we were going. I actually surprised him before he found out for once!

Next on our stop was Disneyland...yes, Disneyland- Brandon never got to go as a child so I figured it was about time he got to experience the place where all your dreams come true. You'll have to ask him if that is really true.

Look who's in the dog house...ha ha

This was one of our favorite rides- Buzz Lightyear- you get to shoot targets with laser guns (of course this was a fave of Brandon's he got target practice and kicked my trash)

Space Mountain was probably our #1 ride-

We left right after the awesome firework show- I can't believe they do one of these every night. I once heard that Disneyland is able to pay for the whole firework cost by the revenue they've collected by 10 am!

The next day we made our way down the coast to Dana Point and checked into probably the 2nd nicest hotel I've ever stayed in next to the Grand Mayan in Cancun. Our good friend Kit hooked me up with the St Regis, an exclusive hotel on Monarch Beach at Dana Point. They had their own private beach that they take you down to and provide towels, umbrellas and chairs. However it was a little windy that day but it still felt so nice and relaxing especially after a long day at long and traveling.

The view from the hotel- fountain to the pool, golf course and then ocean- at their pool they served you chilled grapes and cold wet towels to cool off with. It's not too bad being waited on hand and foot :)

For our Anniversary we ordered room service for the first time in my life. It was delicious and romantic The next day we checked out and drove to San Diego and checked out Old Town- walked around the shops, ate and checked out the new Mormon Battalion Museum

The next day we did breakfast at the Hash House- that's right...they aren't know for "special brownies" but for their award winning breakfasts. Their portions are huge as you will see below so check it out.

Yes- I really did eat on a platter 2 1/2 feet long! Best french toast I have EVER tasted

Brandon had Biscuits and Gravy- we couldn't finish either plate but it tasted so amazing!

I swear it looked like all we did was ate but I had to take a picture of us on the harbor at the Fish Market Resturant...this was our last night in San Diego and of our trip so we celebrated and Brandon found the closest thing to Ahi Poke' a hawaiian classic that is his FAVORITE meal. It was an appetizer and then he had shark for dinner. Earlier this day we went down almost into Tijuana to a huge shopping outlet- bigger than the ones in Park City. We did our "school shopping" and got new clothes. Poor Brandon is such a good sport to hang out at the outlet for 1/2 the day!

Statue in the Harbor right next to the restaurant we ate at that night

After a rough sleeping experience at the Sheraton on the Harbor we traveled over to Coronado Island to stay at the Marriott for our last night of our trip and hit the hot tubs which was heaven after our rough night, end of the trip, walking all day and last relaxation...

View off our balcony of the bay

We hurried to the beach on Coronado before sunset our last night...so beautiful- I had to walk in the sand one last time before we left...oh how I miss the beach life!

Thanks to my honey for who he is and the difference he has made in my life. I love him so much and want him to know that he means everything to me. I can't believe it's been 4 years already. We've experienced a lot and have so much to experience together. We have been saving and after 8 artificial insemination's to try and start our family with no luck, we are starting in vetro in October. Here's to new opportunities!

Catch up for missed posting Vol 5

2010-08-26T20:31:00.000-07:00

Bear Lake Lovell Family Reunion Aug 6-8 The cousins
Jill-Melissa-Becca-Katie

Cousin Tracy and Aunt Lois

Jill and Melissa enjoying the wave runner

Gideon building in the sand

Brandon and Eva on the jet ski

Bear Lake-Idaho side

Melissa- Brandon-Ben-Rich and Dad keeping warm during the random rain storm

We got a double rainbow- I haven't seen one of these since Hawaii--- I miss rainbowsMy aunt Ann dancin' in the rain with aunt Joyce- they are so much fun!

The P boys came and stayed with us since Tyson- my brother in law is working in Provo with the rail road right now. Brennan our neighbor came and had a sleep over with them and they did an Alvin and the chipmunk puppet show- it was great- they were singin' everything from "All the Single ladies by Beyonce' to I am a Child of God.

The last goodbyes before Keith and Natalie left to go back to Kentucky :(

Singing Head Shoulders Knees and Toes and Popcorn Popping with Kenzie-

Slipin' and sliding in our back yard...so much fun!

Porter-Parker-Phoenix...the "P" boys!

Keith had more fun on this slide than the little kids...we needed a longer runway with this guy :)

Keith and Kenzie goin down

Catch up for missed posting Vol 4

2010-08-26T20:00:00.001-07:00

Keith and Natalie come for a month to visit us from Louisville KY! We miss having them around so we did as much as we could with them while they were here in July

We had a BBQ at our house one night in Orem

Mom and Gideon swinging on the hammock

After our BBQ we decided to dig out our favorite tulip bulbs and build us a fire pit to roast marshmellows :)

Sophie, Eva and Kenzie- the cousin's just chillin'

Kenzie loved chewin' on this Rib bone- it was hillarious- she wouldn't put it down she just kept chewin...

Cheesin' it up for the camera

Aunt Joyce and my cousin Melissa came down with Mom and Dad so it was fun to have the extra company.

This hill is classic for racing, rolling, slip sliding down- Uncle Keith had just as much fun if not more than the kids.To end the night we did fireworks and sparklers

Before the BBQ earlier in the week the Monday after the Fourth of July Keith and Natalie had just come in and I had the day off so we did a dinner and pool party at my parents

Gma and her grandkids blowing bubbles

My mom had found the cutest ballerina skirts at Costco she gave the girls for their birthdays

Okay- so I had to post this pic of my niece McKenzie before her parents gave her her first hair cut. Her mom has been dying for her hair to get longer but of course it's not going to grow in even. Kenzie had a mullet and a chunk in front that just cracked me up. It worked perfect when they put her hair in a pony- the thing is she is going to be a gorgeous girl as she grows up and we have to have something to tease her about and blackmail her with :)

Celebrating Eva's birthday

Pool Party

Making homemade root beer- Kenzie loved the smoke that would come up from the dry ice

This was the cutest thing ever- McKenzie came in right when we got there and cuddled up to Brandon...we hadn't seen her since Christmas and we were all shocked she went right to Brandon and snuggled up with him. He does have a magic touch

Brandon and I at Scofield Lake - the day before the 4th of July

Uncle Rich riding his boat up

Dad, Brandon and I on Uncle Rich's boat. I had so much fun I probably caught 30 + chubs as well as a Rainbow trout and Tiger trout- it was lots of fun!

Catch up for missed posting Vol 3

2010-08-26T19:36:00.001-07:00

Our 2010 Pioneer Trek Experience...
Truly one of the coolest and most spiritual experiences I've ever witnessed

Our amazing Bishopric- they were put in a month before Trek and we really got to know them better with this experience.

Trek Pioneer Olympics- The saw horse

The stick pull- go Jordyn...she won the whole stake group for the girls challenge

The pole toss this looks as hard as it was

And of course...the tug o war-

Our Family's flag

Our Family together for a devotional off the trailOur amazing young women after the woman's pull up the rocky path- these girls were my heros- The boys and leaders couldn't help which was so hard for me but worth the experience to see the inner strength and faith everyone had that they could do it!

Before we left on Trek- 6/23-26 our ward at the Bishops house

The YW sporting their hot Pioneer get up :) We totally win the award for the brightest clothing!

Me and my neighbor Becki Webb. We got to be in the same family. Brandon couldn't go :( so Becki and Chris were the Ma and Pa and I was an Aunt.

At the top of Rocky Ridge after we pulled the handcart to the top- what an accomplishment...thank goodness for sunny weather. I can't even image the thought of doing that in the rain or snow

We hike the Pleasant Grove "G" in May/June before Trek with our family. Here are some of the pics- family bonding.

Catch up for missed posting volume 2

2010-08-26T18:43:00.001-07:00

My cousin Laura did her Eclipse Party in June the night Eclipse opened. We had so much fun- Stephanie, Laura, Megan, Emily, Kathryn and I all got together for the movie and hung out after for our girls night out for the month.

Getting our picture with the hotties- as my cuz Laura would say and I would have to agree- Lover of Edward in the Books and Jacob in the movie- I just have a hard time with the actor Jacob being that he was like 8 years old in the movie Cheaper by the Dozen.

Catch up for lost posting

2010-08-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

So I have been out of the blogging world since April! I just wanted to share some highlights of the summer with you all so you can see what the Merritt's have been up to...
These pics are from Memorial Day weekend we went camping/fishing with Brandon's family at Jackson Lake in Jackson Hole...as you can tell, snow still covering mountains and we were fishing on the boat in the snow one of the days...burrr- we have to go Memorial Day since it's better fishing than the summer when it's warmer. The sacrifices we make for good fishin' :)

Brandon and Alan before we went out fishing on the lake

We all walked down to the beach for sunset- I felt left out as every sibling in Brandon's family owns a dog, I guess we need to go dog shopping so I can fit in :)

I usually get the bigger fish and Brandon out fishes me in count, but this time he beat me-

The crew- Brandon, Alan, Shannon, Logan and Toran fishing in the snow

Goblin Valley- April 2010

2010-05-03T18:35:00.001-07:00

We had a fun getaway to Goblin Valley in April. Kirk and his family, with Mom and Dad. It was so needed and in the 80's! The last time I was here was when I was five or so. It was fun to play hide n' go seek in this place and we had water guns to keep us cool and have fun with the kids. We had great fun playing cards and eating yummy food. Thanks for the great weekend fam!

GOBBLIN VALLEY

Me and my hottie of a husband

My cute parents at the top of the hike- they are so amazing!

Heading into the bat cave

Gideon showing off his mad skills

Gideon and Me hanging out

Water fight in the goblins-Eva shooting Brandon in the bum

Sophie and Joy- cute girls enjoying the sun

Grandma and the kids sliding down the hill next to our campsite

Cute lil Sophie

Brandon convinced us to shimmy through a couple of really narrow spots to get to the top- Mom was such a good sport

We made it to the top- beautiful lookout

The beautiful night landscape

Crazy kids!!!

Heading into Goblin Valley to explore the first night
Eva

Our Campsite right up next to the rock. Mom and Dad got a new Dodge- finally traded in Old Red.

New Moon Party!

2009-11-22T18:03:00.000-08:00

My cousin Laura rents out a theater and puts on "Twilight" party and this year a "New Moon" party with raffles, trivia, and a little gift bag of fun items. She gets the whole theater riled up and has them all screaming when Edward or Jacob come on screen and especially when they would get some action. This year I got all of my high school friends to join me and Joy to be apart of the action. Even Kathryn, my friend who had a baby two days prior came out for the movie! We did dinner at Carinos before and had a blast at the movie. 4 out of 7 of us got raffle prizes which was awesome! Thanks for the great party Laura! You are amazing and we can't wait for Eclipse in June!

Here are some fun pics from the night

Em and I had matching shirts (not planned) so we had to get a pic of our psychic powers :)
Oooo la la- Laura, Me, Jacob, Emily, Steph, Edward and Marie
The ladies
Marie and I showing off our HOTT black boots
This is a hideous picture of my double chin but cute of the darling Laura, our host who put this whole thing on. She dressed up as Alice.

Halloween in a flash

2009-11-22T16:20:00.000-08:00

We decorate our work area each year for Halloween and came in 3rd place this year. For our "carn'evil".

Jack Sparrow came to our work and so he asked if I wanted a picture. He was the real thing- he had the lines down and acted just like Johnny Depp!

We had a monkey bike which was quite entertaining, and Cassie in the gorilla outfit

I was a gypsy

I had dry ice for my crystal ball but it didn't work as I had hoped it would.

Best overall costume went to Jennifer in our dept. She made this whole outfit herself.

My niece, a princess fairyMy nephew dressed up as Indiana Jones
Cute Sophie as a ladybug!

I was awarded "Painter of the Month" for November at Color Me Mine in Provo for a "Blessed" platter I painted.

Rexburg Temple/Midway detour

2009-10-16T22:05:00.000-07:00

My Brother and sister in law just got sealed in the Rexburg Temple last weekend. We are so happy for them as they are about to have their first baby any week now. Congrats!!! Rexburg hasn't changed since I left there back in the college days- the wind still blows that freezing ice cold breeze. On the way home from WY, the provo canyon was closed so I decided to go up and over the mountain through Midway/Cascade Springs and came out through Sundance. It was a gorgeous ride but reminded me of Hana in Hawaii with all the curves and dirt roads. It took me an extra 1 1/2 hours to get home but worth the new ride. Especially in the Fall. What a view!

Antelope Hunting

2009-10-16T21:40:00.000-07:00

Brandon and I went hunting with his dad, brother Toran, and brother Tyson and his family the last week in Sept. It was so much fun and such a great spot, we want to come back next year.
We had a great lake side camp spot and great, lazy hunting. By that, I mean sleep in til 9/10 am, and then hunting by driving around in the truck and "fencing" the antelope. it was pretty redneck and I loved it! Here's some pics from our weekend.

Thanksgiving Point Aug

2009-10-16T20:58:00.000-07:00

Mom and Dad told us about $2 Tuesday at Thanksgiving Point instead of the $8 dollar fee they usually charge. Who would have thought they had such gorgeous gardens. You can't see a thing off the freeway but it took my breath away!

Fun change

2009-09-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

Feels like HOME

So I was just telling Brandon how I really needed "CHANGE". So he went and got a really nice black leather sectional from a friend he was doing work for who was moving and getting rid of it. It's a really nice sectional. One side has two lazy boy recliners and the other side has a hide-a-bed that pops out. We love the change and Brandon laughs because I was against it at first, saying that all of our furniture is brown, and our carpet is brown. I had a certain couch style in mind, but this will work great for us for a long time. So, to make this black sectional feel comfortable in our "brown" living room, I decided to paint the lamp stand and a bookshelf black to make it fit in better. Spray paint is an awesome way to go. It was so easy and dried so quickly. It makes our home look new and more open. Here are a few of the new shots.

Bookshelf Before
Bookshelf after
Nightstand after

Summer Fun

2009-08-03T17:49:00.000-07:00

Where did summer go? I know we have one month left, but I swear July just got skipped this year! :0 Here are some of the fun moments we've shared with friends, family and youth group.

Girls Camp Fundraiser Luau

I taught the girls the Hukilau Hula Dance...they did awesome!

We gave the YM in our ward free food and they helped us by dancing the Haka War Dance!

Entertainment for all ages

We had a great turn out. Thanks to great members and friends in our neighborhood.

Our hosts

We held a dessert auction that same night to earn some extra cash

Stephanie's baby shower back in November- I never got this cute picture up from our party.

My sister in law Joy made the most adorable summer dresses for all of my neices- here's Eva wearing it

And McKenzie....

We got together lots before my brother Keith headed out to Louisville KY for dental school for 4 years. So we dined out, had some great BBQ's and spent some great time together. We miss you Keith, Nat and Kenzie!

Joy and her adorable Sophie

We had been promising my neice and nephew a sleepover at my house forever and finally did it. It was so much fun with bubbles, movie, games and a picnic in the backyard.

They couldn't get enough of the bubbles. :)

FAMILY PICS

Taken by our good friends Ron and Kit Norris

Here are some of our faves

Keith, Nat and Kenzie

Kirk, Joy and their kids Eva, Sophie and Gideon

Mom and Dad with the grandkids

GRANDMA LOVELL'S FUNERAL- JULY

Me and Gideon

Gideon and Eva

House guests for a week- how do you keep 4 boys entertained for a week at our house?

Brandon created a water slide for them to keep busy day after day. It may have ruinned the grass for a bit, but it was worth it for the fun they had that week!

Porter, Pheonix, Parker, and Dawson

Then we had the Merritt reunion last week at Palisades Lake in Idaho. So much fun jet skiing, fishing and jumping off bridges. I had a really bad sun burn so I passed on this bridge jumping experience :) But it did bring back memories of college when we hit all the bridges around to go cool off from the summer heat by bridge jumping. This is my brother in law Shawn doing a back flip. You can't tell in this picture but the bridge was probably 30-35 feet but still fun to see the stunts.

Sorry for such a long post but I really wanted to catch up on some of the fun memories we've had so far. We just finished girls camp and one of my counselors has my CD of pics to make a movie, so as soon as I get that back I will have to post a few fun pics from that.

Hope you are all enjoying your summer! Hope to see or hear from you soon. Let the good times roll~

Trying to survive!

2009-04-08T21:07:00.000-07:00

Well, it's that time again! Horrible finals are creeping up again and I am trying to stay focused on finishing papers and assignments for my portfolio and get ready for graduation!!! I am so looking forward to being done with school and being able to spend more time with Brandon and spending my time on what I want to. I finish on May 1st- so I am so close I can't hardly wait. My family is coming into town for Easter too so I am really trying to get things caught up before they come because I know I won't get much done while they are here. :) My brother Keith and Natalie and their adorable lil girl will be here all week starting Saturday so I am pumped to see them before they pack up and head to Louisville KY for 4 years for dental school. Good luck Keith and Congrats on graduation at BYU-I! We will miss having them close but are planning a trip to go out and cruise Louisville. My sister in law Shalynn got married in Twin Falls in March. Congrats Shalynn and Logan- I will have to post the pics I took of their wedding soon.

Work is super busy at Pinnacle, getting ready to unleash the crazy summer bang having close to 90 offices open through the country and 35 of them are my offices! Yikes...remind me how quick the summers fly by and how much more organized and on top of things we are this year compared to in years past. Young Womens is just as busy with our annual camp fundraiser coming up mid-May. We are planning a Luau food and entertainment, so any ideas, pass them my way! Brandon never reads blogs but I have to mention how amazing he has been to support me through all of my stress melt downs. He is so good to me and understanding...I am so lucky! I am aiming for balance in my life and wonder how those with kids do all of this but they do, and survive, so I know I am learning lots and am were I am right now for a reason. Sorry to all of my friends who have been neglected through this year...I honestly have been the worst friend and think of you all often, I just need to let you know! Thanks for putting up with my pathetic way of staying in touch. :)
Here are a couple update pics from the past couple of months to show you what we've been up to!

YW/YM Combined Mystery Dinner .....SO MUCH FUN!!!

My hubby the cop

Me with the Laurels...

The whole group- we had an amazing turn out and great costumes- 1920's
Caught in action

Me and McKenzie

Gideon and his favorite aunt- my family all surprised me for my b-day

I know everyone may be sick of Twilight, but I never posted my opening night pics with the cousins- so much fun! And NO- I am not wearing a wig as you can tell from other photos...I had dark and bangs for a month and a half but decided to grow the bangs out again and go lighter...

Cousin Kristy, me, Laura, and my sister in law Joy :)

Valentines Day!

2009-02-15T10:07:00.000-08:00

Valentines Day

We had an amazing day today. We started it off with some service for the ward. Our YW and YM were asked by the First Presidency of the Church to collect food for a church wide food drive. We started at 9 am which was a bit of a damper at first to have to miss our chance to sleep in, but such a blessing! We love serving with the youth of the ward. We actually got a pretty decent group for it being Valentines Day and Brandon had picked up some Krispie Kreme's to thank them for their effort. It has been snowing all night so we had a lot of fun crusing around the neighborhood gathering all the food.
After that, Brandon and I played games (I got slaughtered in Canasta) and then we just relaxed. One thing I haven't been able to do for a really long time. Although I had a million things I wanted to work on, it was really nice to just focus on my honey and I- we needed that! I made him an amazing Mexican dinner. Homemade tortillas from a recipie I got from a friend at work -Thanks Sariah! And made some pretty amazing fajitias if I do say so myself.
We stuffed ourselves and then met up with good friends Dave and Alyssa for NEW IN TOWN- a hilarious movie, and chick flick of course!
After we got out we couldn't help but watch as people were sliding on the ice right outside the theater. Girls in the stilettos and heels were sliding all over the place and men couldn't stop the slickness of the sidewalk either. I felt guilty not warning them, but we were laughing so hard at the entertainment. Cars were getting stuck, or not stopping because they couldn't, it was SO SLICK!
This morning I awoke to some yummy heart shaped French toast made by my one and only! I even used the last of the Liliokoi syrup we got in Hawaii last time we went. It's my favorite!!! How perfect!
Brandon has somewhat figured out by my hints that he is getting his Ahi Poke- raw Hawaiian fish from one of our friends who should be getting home tomorrow from Hawaii. It's Brandon's favorite thing in the world, and I was excited that it would arrive right around Valentines Day.
I love you Brandon!!!

1 year anniversary for Gordon B

2009-01-27T07:35:00.000-08:00

I have been dying to make a post to my ever neglected blog, but had a goal to get through New Beginnings and school this week and reward myself this weekend to catch up from months of neglect...but I couldn't help myself.

Today is the 1 year mark of when President Gordon B Hinkley passed away.

What sad day that was. But happy that he could once again be reunited with his sweetheart! :) I thought it was really neat how that day, kids dressed up to go to school in honor of him. I was listening to the radio this morning and some kids were dressing up again today to go to school in honor of our prophet. I wish I would have thought about doing that, but I have my art center painting with the preschool kids today and I don't think that would be a wise idea. One other thought I couldn't help to remember about today is that we were in Hawaii a year ago today. Boy, do I wish we were there now- with the huge snow storm we had yesterday and the 14 degrees it is right now, I would LOVE to be soakin' up the sun and swimming in the ocean in 80 degree weather.

Shawn's wedding...OLDIES STYLE

2008-11-25T23:23:00.000-08:00

You've got to know my in-laws, well, more my brother in-law's style of dress. They love to wear random get-ups for any occasion. So why not their own wedding? Our brother Shawn met Amber out in Cali when he moved out there in Dec/Jan of last year. Brandon and I take credit that they met because I encouraged him to go to the singles ward out there and meet hotties at church...so what does he do? Yep- and now they are married! Here are a few fun pics from the ceremony/weekend. We love you guys!

Shawn, Amber and Kylie

Toran did his hair special...mohawk style!

You have got to love Brandon's bell-bottoms and HOTT purple shirt!

My in-laws can still fit and sport their high school get-up!

I can't get over how cute Brandon looks in this outfit!

Halloween...Better late than never! :)

2008-11-25T22:48:00.000-08:00

So I have been busy with a new calling as the YW President and Finals coming up that I really haven't blogged for a while and have some fun new pics. Halloween was a blast. At work, we were competing with other departments for the best decor'...my dept. decided to do a "haunted theater" in the room we are in. We all wanted to dress in such random costumes that we decided a movie theme would be the best to use. So I was Maggie from Million Dollar Baby so I could be a boxer. We had a lot of fun other movie costumes:
Here is the entrance to our "Haunted Theater".........

Part of our decor' for the room and my cubicle right underneath. We all decorated our cubicle to fit our costume.

Later Halloween night we went to Heber to our good friends Jeff and Libby's Halloween costume party. It was pretty cool but we had to bail out early to get on the road to go to WY for Shawn's wedding...to be the next posting :)

Pics at the Park

2008-10-18T19:28:00.000-07:00

Well, I had a blast today doing a photo shoot for my bro and sister in law and their kids today at the park. I need more practice with my camera I got for Christmas last year, so here we go! These kids are so adorable and despite a few ansy moments, I think we got some cute pics out of them. Here's a few of my favorites! :)

Here is a few randoms from Kirk and Joy's house and an amazing sky out in Eagle Mountain one day.

Okay- and one last post. Brandon wanted to do apple sauce and apple pie filling canning since the neighbors had a lot of extra apples left and he couldn't stand seeing them go to waste. So we decided to do one more canning day one afternoon with mom and dad's help. After the last canning day I swore I was done canning (we did salsa, peaches, peach pie filling, and green beans all in one day!)

From Summer to Fall

2008-10-18T13:09:00.000-07:00

Well, from the summer craziness to being back into school part time and working at Pinnacle still full time, I have been well past due for a post. So here are some of the highlights from end of August to now- mid October...where do the days go? :)

Toran and Shannon got married Aug 16th in Star Valley

Coriann, me and Shalynn

Mr. Bashful

Doesn't this only happen in Jewish weddings??? That's how we do it in the Merritt family!

The whole fam

Porter's "mean deer" face

Brandon and I
The Masked Men

Ocktober Fest up at Snowbird
Tapping the beer keg- I love German's leiderhosen and fun attire!
My favorite thing we ate were the roasted cinnamon almonds.
We did try the brats and sauerkraut...
We couldn't ask for a more perfect day!
Guten Tag! Es ist fantastish!!!

The Mustang show @ Park City
Bronco's colors Mustang- this one is for Tyson and Hayley
Sparkle Mustang- this is my kind of ride! :)

2008-08-07T18:55:00.000-07:00

So I am use to posting at least once a month since I started this blog and well...summer has come and gone! I have the last month of the summer to relax a little. After a fun and successful Girls Camp in July, finishing summer school, a few family reunions, surviving Pinnacle's Security heavy selling summer months, and a few upcoming wedding that pretty much concludes our summer! This summer has flown and we have had a lot of fun memories and accomplishments. I am excited to have a little more time with my honey before school starts up again the end of August but it shouldn't be as heavy as last semester. Here are a few fun pics from our eventful summer:

Girls Camp 2008 @ Mia Shalom

Our "shoe" awards- this was fun!

Waiting for the buses we got bored and started a beauty parlor

Our theme was "Standing in their Shoes" and our ward theme was "Daughters of Heleman...Standing a little taller..."

The ducktape, pipe cleaner and straw birthday hat! We had 3 birthdays up at camp and one of them was a sweet sixteen!

Our hike...I had so much fun with these girls!!!

Yes, that is snow in the background...but it was perfect weather!

Me and the girls after canoing on the lake

I was lucky enough to be surprised by my sweetie on Friday with the Bishopric for dinner. We played the fameous "Adams Family" game with him and the bishopric members and boy was it great! He stayed over so he could help us take down camp the next day! What would I do without him?

This is my craft wall that was in our second bedroom but now that my sister in law is here it has been taken down and simplified into my bedroom~ :) One day I will have my craft room back, or in Brandon's words my "crap room." I do have quite the stash!
This is the picture that comes to mind when I hear "Lovell Reunion" or Uncle Georges Cabin.
Two big steel slides that I use to be more brave going down when I was younger...which is crazy that I have become such a wuss.

The TOP of the bigger slide
Coming down, burning and flying!!!
The Waterslide...that as you got older you had to push yourself down or needed an extra slippery mat which caused a tidal wave and drowned the kids in the pool below. :)
Grandma and her hot shades with Uncle George, celebrating birthdays...
THE GANG...smaller than in years past but sure a fun group!
The Ray Lovell Family
THE GIRLZ...we always have to do a pic with the Lovell girls, it's sure grown!
THE END!
So that is my long catch up post. Sorry about having to scroll forever! I promise I will do so much better on my posts! Love and miss you all! Enjoy the rest of your summer, what's left of it!

Brandon's Birthday 2 partay's in 1 day!

2008-05-28T23:31:00.000-07:00

Well my honey turned 28 on May 17th. We had a BBQ at our place, and then later on went to my parents house to celebrate Dad, Joy and Brandon's birthdays. Hence, why we look so tired and partied out by the end of the night. I am so grateful for such an amazing husband who has so many talents and loves me for me. Here's a few of the pics from the day:

The BBQ- Kart and Laura, their kids Aidan and Emma, Lisa and Doug with Keaton, Brandon, Scott and Katie (mission buddy)
Alyssa and Dave (mission friends), Chris and Kelly with Dallin
Lisa, Doug and Keaton- our good friends from Maui
Keaton got this from Doug for Mothers Day as a joke- I had to get a pic of it!
Mom with Gideon and Eva coloring on the deck.
My adorable niece Eva- she is so much fun!
Me and the Birthday Boy after a LONG day!

Four Generations!

2008-05-28T23:17:00.000-07:00

So I have never seen this picture of me with my mom Joan, grandma Florence, and great-grandma Viola. My parents have been going through old slides they are making into prints and thought I might enjoy this. This is so you can see my where I get my good looks! LOL :)

Stilettos Italian Resturaunt Camp Fundraiser Dinner

2008-05-28T22:47:00.000-07:00

So for the Girls Camp Fundraiser this year our YW's President had a great idea of hosting and preparing a dinner for ward members, family and friends in order for us to have some extra spending moolah for camp. Boy did we have our work cut out for us. We offered Chicken Fetticini Alfredo or Spaghetti and meatballs, with a salad, garlic bread, appetizers, drinks, green beans and then for dessert, an italian cookie with ice cream on top. We played the Girls Camp movie from the year before and had Josh Groban (closest to Italian as we could find) playing in the background. The YW helped host, serve, bus, help out in the nursery(provided so couples could come and drop their children off for a romantic date night), and last, anyone else was in the kitchen working like mad. There was NEVER a pause, in fact, we learned what we would do differently next time, since the girls all said they would love to do that again. We had the option for Take out if they couldn't dine in so those were hard to do along with a delivery or two through the night along with all the people coming in. We had reservations but even though we planned, we still had the unexpected. However, it was a fun, rewarding night to see the girls take responsibility and step it up and they all seemed to have a fun night, even if we were all exhausted afterwards. We had a great turn out and amazing support from the ward. We had over 100 people that night! And made more money than last year so that was nice! The reason for stilettos as our name is our Girls Camp theme is "Standing in their Shoes" and we are "Standing Tall" in stilettos, to go along with President Hinkley's theme. Here are a couple of pre-shots. I couldn't get anymore after since I was in the kitchen and didn't leave until the end of the night. Good times! I can't wait for camp. We have such a great group of YW!!! I am so lucky to be apart of the YW, I am really learning a lot.

Mainly just the Mia Maids and Beehives- the Laurels had to work so they helped earlier.
Our hostess's
Our set up

The Zoo!!!

2008-05-28T22:24:00.000-07:00

Well it is tradition for Brandon's family to come down to Salt Lake and bring their kids/grandkids to the Hogle Zoo. It was fun to go since I haven't been since a high school dance date. My nephews and nieces are always so much fun to be with. It was Mother's Day weekend so we all got Mom n' Me at the Zoo shirts. All the adults paired up with a child so we knew no one was wandering off and out of sight.

Here are the little monkeys in front of the monkey gym. Speak no evil, hear no evil, see no evil!

I have a picture of me as a little girl at the zoo with this Lion drinking fountain- had to relive the memories. ;)
Brandon with Kami Woo and Kaylee in the background- checking out the elephants.

Yes, this is my husband riding in the wagon we got for the "big kids"...he is such a big kid and I love it! Parker is trying to get his spot back.
Don't forget the souvineers at the zoo. We went through the park but the toys didn't compare to the massive suckers they ended up with!
We went to Tucano's in Provo for Brandon, Hayley, and Phoenix's May birthdays and then went back to our place and watch home videos we put on DVD for Brandon's mom and dad. It was great to watch them with all the kids and comment on the memories. They all stayed over at our place except Eileen and Alan, so we had a full house of Tyson, Hayley and their three boys, Toran and his recent fiance' Shannon.

FINALS WEEK!!!

2008-04-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

I am so close to being finished for the semester I can hardly wait. This semester feels like it's flown by so fast but this last week of finals couldn't go any slower!!! I have been trying to juggle work and school which has been bearable but I am looking forward to just having one night class two times a week this summer for two months and have a break until Fall semester. I won't talk about how much fun that will be. But that is what I get for trying to get my teaching certificate in a year while working 30-40 hrs a week still! I'd have to say I am pretty proud of my dedication and focus to school under those circumstances. It's a breeze for some people but I have come a long way from my Freshman year of college. My classes have been pretty easy for the most part but they have also required mounds of work on projects, papers and observations, which in return has given me some great new knowledge in child development and regulation. I am so excited to work in the preschool at UVU for my practicum in the Fall. One day soon I will have my own lil' preschool and I can't wait! Good luck to all the rest of you who are finishing finals or just super busy with life! I keep telling Brandon it's going to die down and be better but Pinnacle is just about to boom for the summer months, okay just kidding, it already has. So work has been insane with prep for the summer and with summer, also comes Girls Camp. I have been meeting with my YCL girls and leaders planning Girls Camp for July. Wish me luck! :) I guess we just have to take one day at a time right?!

Early Easter!

2008-04-07T20:12:00.001-07:00

I don't know if you were all thrown this year having Easter so early. I felt like it came and went way too fast. But we did have a really fun celebration with the family. We invited everyone over to our house to help us with the yard. (Brandon got this sudden urge to start a vegetable garden). Which is great because we have the perfect spot for it. We have three raised beds off of the terraced landscape in the backyard. So mom and dad came to the rescue and helped us get that all planted in the morning. Then Kirk and Joy and the kids came later for an Easter lunch, egg hunt, and egg dying party! It was so much fun and as if we weren't doing enough that day, Brandon and I had picked up lumber for a picnic table the night before and Brandon whipped up an amazing King size picnic table that morning while mom, dad, and I put the garden together. He is so amazing! I am constantly impressed with what he does to stay busy and create new projects to make our home look great! Here are some pics from the day:

Dad and Mom (our yard slaves) :)Kirk and Gideon dying eggs. Kirk was explaining the difference between dying with color and someone passing away dying. This is why Gideon is super smart for his age!

Eva got a hold of an egg and we knew it would probably get smashed any second!
A little parachute fun with Gma and Gpa
And they all came tumbling down... Eva had the hardest time trying to balance on this hill and Gideon would be running so fast that he face planted it a couple of times.

Kirk~Gideon~Joy
Eva you better keep an eye on your candy before Gpa takes all of your good stuff! :)
Gideon and Aunt Katie
Look! I see one...
This is probably the only time Eva was holding her basket, during the hunt she would have her mom hold her basket while she had her hands free to grab eggs. She wouldn't let go of them and couldn't keep everything in her hands but it was sure funny to watch her try.

Eva was cracking us up with loading as many Robin Eggs in her mouth as possible. It was so cute.

Out of the cold and going tropical!

2008-02-10T21:25:00.000-08:00

Katie Loves Brandon!

We were lucky enough that Brandon's company he works for provides a week long, expense paid trip to Hawaii for all their employees. We left the last week of January and in time to avoid that string of horrible storms that came into Utah. Unfortunately, it followed us to Hawaii and we had snow on top of Mauna Kea (Big Island) and then we heard that Maui-the Haleakala crater had snow too! The trip started on the Big Island for four days and then Oahu for the last three. Although it was 65 for a low and 80/85 for a high, most of our trip consisted of light rain the whole time. I can't complain, I did get to wear my swimming suit and capri's the entire time. :)

Akaka Falls- 440+ ft.

We swam in volcanically heated pools...

View from our hotel room

Our hotel was on Kona side but we spent most of our time on the Hilo side. We hit the Hilo Farmer's Market for some fresh fruit and souvineers, went snorkling, saw the Volcano National Park and drove across pretty much every inch of that island.

Brandon and I about to enter a
lava tube at Volcano National Park.

Our last day on the Big Island/Hawaii we went to the Kona Temple where Steve Young got married. That was awesome!
In Oahu we just cruised over to the north shore a lot to check out the kite surfers and "beach it."

Again, lots of rain, but it didn't bother us after awhile. We hiked Diamond Head It's an awesome morning work out with lots of steep stairs However, with rain and then sun, comes the rainbows!

This is out of our hotel on Waikiki.

We then went to the Laie Temple where we ran into a good friend of mine from Maui that I didn't know was going to BYU-Hawaii. Good times! Brandon got plenty of his favorite food Ahi poke (raw fish with seaweed and green onions) he ate it pretty much morning, noon and night. We went to a really fun resturant on Waikiki beach where you get to order your own fish/steak/meat and cook it yourself on grills and then they had an awesome salad bar with everything from coconut, to all the local Hawaiian salad faves. It was great! Sad to come home but we really needed to catch up on school and work. It was such a fun trip and nice break to rejuvinate us! Me in front of Diamond Head and Waikiki Beach

Our last night on Oahu we had a killer sunset! What a way to end our vacation! Aloha Oi!

What a year, what a month!

2008-01-02T18:52:00.000-08:00

Well, I have decided the first New Years Resolution I would make would be to stay in better contact with friends and family and so I am joining the ever so popular Blog chain! I want to tell all my friends and family how grateful I am to them being so dilligent in keeping in touch with me. I have loved seeing what everyone is up to as we have all split from college and high school and different places we have met.

So Brandon and I have had a busy year, but December was extremely crazy! We both got new callings, Brandon as an assistant scout/deacon leader and I got called to serve as the YW Camp Director (so you all have to send me some fun camping ideas to do with young girls.) These callings came as we finished up the year on the Ward Activities Committee. We had a great turn out for our Ward Christmas party and I had put together a "Teach the Children" skit with a professional Santa and some ward members. It was so rewarding by the end of the night. However, we were extremely glad when that night was over so we could focus on my younger brother Keith's wedding the following day! It was such a nice wedding and we are so happy for Keith and Natalie! They had a nice honeymoon and made it back for the next family wedding on the 22nd of December for our cousin Lindsay. We spent Christmas with my parents in Taylorsville, and it was lots of fun. Then we cruised up to Wyoming to spend New Years with Brandon's family. We got to go see the Rexburg ID Temple open house which was fun to go back to good ol' Iceburg and remember the fun memories but also why I am glad I don't live there anymore.