Roommate Reunion 2012

I loved my four years at BYU, but I especially treasure the friendships that I made there.  Five girls in particular.  Every few years, my college roommates and I try to get together for a little reunion.  Since I graduated in 2002, we've met up a couple times - we met up in Boise in 2007 (minus Sunny who was in California for a wedding), in Utah in 2009, and then again just this week in Sun Valley.  I think it may have been a couple of the shortest two days ever... I needed at least twice that much time to get caught up with everyone!

We strolled through the Ketchum Arts Festival.

We ate delicious food:

• Chicken ranch tacos
• Oreo milkshakes
• Creme brulee french toast
• Costa Vida style sweet pork salads with cilantro rice, tomatillo ranch dressing, and cilantro lime vinaigrette
• Apple pie bites
• Baked oatmeal

We gave ourselves pedicures.

We did some shopping.

And of course we talked and talked and talked some more.  It's interesting to me how our lives have evolved.  We were all single when we first met and most of us hadn't had any major trials in our lives.  Now, in our group of six, we've had our fair share - a brain tumor, miscarriages, divorce, a stillborn baby, separation, major sickness during pregnancy, trying to raise kids with a husband in medical school, etc.  As we talked, we were able to console one another, lift one another up, share tips we've tried that have worked, share about the joys we've experienced, etc.  The last couple reunions, I've been the only one without a child, so it was fun this time for me to be able to relate to and contribute to some of the child raising experiences/stories.

I look forward to our next get together in two or three years, and will always hold these ladies in a special spot in my heart.

"I Miss Jesus"

Matt and I are always trying to teach Kylee (as we should, right!?).  One thing we regularly try to talk to her about is her Heavenly Father and Jesus.  Each Sunday after church we talk to her about what she learned in primary.  We have Family Home Evening every Monday night where we read scripture stories. And every single night, before Kylee goes to bed, we kneel together as a family and say prayers.

I know what we are teaching her and what she is learning at church is starting to sink in.  And that makes me happy.  One of the sweetest things I hear come out of Kylee's mouth (besides the fact that she has consistently started calling me mom/mommy!) is when she says, "I love Jesus" or "I miss Jesus."  I think it is so cute when she literally gets a little teary eyed as she talks about how she misses Jesus and we remind her that one day we will get to live with him again.

Recently, when Kylee said she was scared to have her lights off when it was time for bed (this is new... not sure where this comes from?) we talked to her about how she can say a prayer to Heavenly Father to help her to not be so scared.  She was so excited the next morning when she told me how her prayer had worked - that she wasn't scared after she said her prayer... and there have been a couple times since then that she has told me that she said "lots of prayers" so she wasn't scared.  We have talked to her about how Heavenly Father and Jesus are in heaven and can watch over all of us, and Kylee periodically out of the blue will say how Jesus lives in the sky.

I am proud of my little girl and love watching her learn and grow.  I am excited to watch her continue to grow in her testimony and knowledge of what is good and true.

Camping at Clear Creek

Matt was working all weekend, so I jumped at the chance to join the Bradley family for camping at Clear Creek, just south of Cascade, ID.  Jen has talked about Clear Creek many times since I met her, so I was excited to see this camping spot where she has such fond memories of camping with her family.

Typically camping is a ton of work to prep for, but this time is was super easy for me... since I was just a tag along, all I had to bring were my personal items, a blanket, and a camp chair!

Most of the Bradleys had been up camping since Wednesday, but I rode up Friday after work with Brooke.  When we arrived, camp was all set up and dinner was ready for us to eat :-) Mmmmm, I love me some dutch oven food.

I took a quick evening 4-wheeler ride with Jen.  I can see why she loves Clear Creek.  The majesty of the mountains, the literal "clear creek" meandering near the road, the perfect 4-wheeling trails, the large campsites right along the creek, the gigantic trees offering the perfect shade on a hot day...

The girls all slept in the trailer with the boys in the tent, and boy did we sleep - nobody got up until 10:30!  In all fairness, I did lay in bed reading for a bit before getting up, but it sure was nice to sleep in!!!

Joe made us breakfast - bacon, eggs, hash browns, and chocolate chip pancakes, then we were off for the first 4-wheeler ride of the day.  After a couple hour ride, we spent time relaxing, reading, took a quick drive to town, read some more, made dinner, then took off for another 4-wheeling adventure.  Rough day, huh!?!  That's what I love about camping.  No schedule.  No pressures.

On our way back from our evening ride, we ran across these cows who were fighting along the edge of the road.  Not sure what they were fighting about, but they didn't look like they were planning on resolving their issues any time soon.  We finally drove around them and let them continue their head butting.  I had to take a video... we were so close we felt like we should have been with National Geographic!

We ended the evening with sitting around the fire, eating dutch oven chocolate cake, reading, roasting marshmallows with rolos, roasting strawberries with marshmallow cream, etc.  Thanks Bradley family for letting me tag along... I sure had a lovely weekend!

Daisy Day Designs

My boss's wife Rachel recently started a cute little hair accessory business - Daisy Day Designs.  A couple weeks ago, I stopped by her booth at a local festival, and immediately fell in love with her work.  I haven't really accumulated much in the way of hair things for Kylee yet, so I picked up the following:

A Fourth of July "corker" bow:

Some cute lady bug clips:

And my favorite, a couple butterfly clips:

So if you're looking for something cute and fun for your little girl's hair, check out her website: www.daisydaydesigns.com!

Red, White, and Blue!

Happy Independence Day!  

After spending the day with Matt's extended family, I can see why the 4th of July is Matt's favorite holiday!  We celebrated all day long with probably close to 50 of Matt's relatives.  The morning started out with a family flag ceremony, complete with the presenting of the colors (by some of Matt's cousins - all dressed in their scout uniforms!), the story of why the Star Spangled Banner was written, the singing of our national anthem, thoughts on how our nation's forefathers truly are heroes, and the reading of the Airman's Creed.

As soon as the flag ceremony was over, we headed down to the parade, where every car/float/horse threw candy into the crowds.  Kylee probably got at least 3 pounds of candy!  Oh dear... good thing she has a couple parents willing to share in her bounty so she doesn't have to eat that all on her own :-)

After the parade, it was time to eat... and eat we did!  There was a big beautiful spread of chicken, sandwich fixings, fruit and veggies, salads, baked beans, and of course dessert.  I didn't get a picture of all the delicious goodies (including chocolate covered strawberries, brownies, red/white/blue popcorn, red licorice, etc) but I did get a picture of this awesome flag cake.  I'll definitely be pinning a recipe for this one!

We spent the rest of the afternoon napping, shooting, swimming, lounging, talking, etc. before Matt, Kylee, and I headed off to Idaho Falls for the fireworks display.  The display was touted as one of the top 10 fireworks displays in the nation, and the biggest this side of the Mississippi. averaging over 9 shells per second during the 31-minute show.  This really was the best fireworks show I've ever seen.

Kylee pointing to the temple before the fireworks show starts.

Not only did I get to watch the show with Beki and Bryce (thanks for saving us a parking spot and a spot on the grass to watch the show!!!) but Kylee literally squealed with delight over and over and over again throughout the show.  She would yell "That one is my favorite" followed by the same line two seconds later.  She yelled so much I thought she might lose her voice.  It was just so much fun to see how excited she got over the display.

I am one blessed lady and am thankful for freedoms, fireworks, food, and family this holiday.