Memorial Day Fun

Memorial Day was a bit different for me this year. I missed being with family but we had a great weekend with some adopted family. Chandler and I and Danielle went down to Blanding, UT this past weekend, which is about an hour south of Moab. Chandler served in the area for about 6 months of his mission and has many, many stories about his days in Blanding. After he got off his mission, he went back and stayed with a family that was in the ward, Bruce and Patty Lyman and their two daughters, and helped them with their farm and the other property that they own. We have tried a couple times to make the trip down there but one thing after another happened and either I ended up working or the weather wasn't very good, so I wasn't going to let anything stop us from going this weekend. We left right after work on Friday, which is what everyone in the state of Utah did, so traffic was a little slow, but we made it to Dan's apartment just after she had gotten off work and headed down. It was a long 6 hour drive but we watched a few movies and shot the breeze and finally made it down there about midnight. Their two daughters, Sydney and Rylee, were still awake so we talked with them for a couple hours and finally went to bed. The next morning, we were going to go to Lake Powell to go boating but the wind was so bad that it was blowing dirt everywhere.  We literally could not see more than a half mile around us. So, we decided it would be better to just stay there for the day so we went to breakfast with Bruce, Sydney, and Rylee. The food was delicious but Bruce and Chandler were feeling a little sick that night. :( After breakfast we went to check on their cattle to make sure they had enough water. The property his cattle are on also houses a gigantic house/cabin/garage/bigger garage. It was very nicely built and I'm sure very pricey. But, it was beautiful nonetheless. We headed back to their house and then decided to go visit the lady that Chandler stayed with on his mission. She has housed 35 missionaries since Chandler was there! She was so fun to talk to and is such a sweet lady! After a couple hours there we headed back and took a nap, then made a delicious steak and potato dinner. We were very proud of ourselves. After dinner we decided to make a bonfire and roast some marshmallows to make smore's. It was still a little windy but it had died down significantly! A good time was had by all! Patty also came home from being in Logan with her mom so we caught up with her before watching a movie and then going to bed. Sadly, I don't have many pictures up to this point. Most of them were taken Sunday and Monday.

Sunday morning Patty made us crepes before we went to church. I haven't had crepes since I was living at home so it reminded me how much I love them. After church we grabbed a quick lunch and then set out to see some sights. Our first stop, some old Indian ruins that are being preserved by the state.

This one was still in really good condition considering how old it is. Still had a window and everything! 

I'm not quite sure the name of the next place we stopped, but it was gorgeous. 

Look, more Indian ruins? See them? Me neither.

And a crazy rock that hung way over the edge. Chandler was scared to come all the way out. I'm kind of sad we didn't reenact a Lion King scene here.

Next we went to see the Natural Bridges. 

The first one we actually hiked down to. It was a good 15 minutes through rock, stairs, ladders, and sand-like dirt to get there, but it was worth it. I can't remember the individual names of each of the bridges though, but I think this one was my favorite.

Then off to the second one. We just went to the lookout.

And then to the third.

Then we went the scenic route through Valley of the Gods. It was pretty much a long, windy dirt road with lots of cool rocks that look like different things and someone has named them all. We took the liberty of naming them ourselves too.

This one could be many things. First we thought of Scooby Doo. Then, Peach from Mario Kart. And then a lady in a bathtub. We were right! It was a lady in a bathtub. Thanks to my madly awesome photog skillz this is one of my favorite pictures!

This one looked like a horse chariot. Maybe not so much the chariot part, but the front part looked like a horse's head and the back part looked like a person riding something. What was interesting though is how much different angles and perspectives changed what it looked like.

Now you see it looks like a sumo wrestler playing chess with a snail.

And lastly, we cheated on this one. This one is named "The Seven Sailors." Thanks again to my photog skills, this is my second favorite picture that I took.

And of course, Danielle had to get a good sunset shot. Here are a few fun ones.

Just before we got home, we stopped at a yummy restaurant, named Twin Rocks, in Bluff and got Navajo Tacos. They were so gooood! 

As mentioned earlier, when we went to check on the cattle on Saturday there was no water left for them. So, guess what we got to do Monday! That's right, herd cattle to a new area. Danielle wasn't feeling well Monday morning so she stayed home and slept a little bit more, but Bruce, Patty, Chandler, and I went bright and early at 8:00 AM to move some cows. Patty led the way with hay in the back of the truck and the three of us saddled up on four wheelers and dove right in to herd the cattle to the truck. 

Moo

 A few more people showed up a little later to help. We were grateful for the company!

Helping a lame cow hitch a ride on the truck.

No, this open field is not the place.

"This is the place"

Helping a stupid cow get to the water. Right after he came back up he said, "I need a shower now. Right when I picked the cow up it farted on my arm!"

After four long hours of riding through dirt, sagebrush, cowpies, and trees, we finally got them to water. I got  a wicked sunburn that covered my arms, hands, face, ears, and neck, but it was a lot of fun. And this is what we came home to...

This was a little bit of our view on the way home. This is only about half of them. It was so pretty though.

As you can see, we had a great Memorial Day weekend. We are so thankful that the Lyman's let us invade their home and take their Sunday for sight-seeing, but we were so glad we were able to finally make it down to the infamous Blanding, UT. Hope you all had a great weekend as well! Love and miss you all!

88 Days...But Who's Counting

It has been way too long since I have written on this and a lot of things have happened! First of all, we got a new ride. This is probably very old news by now, but we are still in love with our Pacifica.

We also decided one night to go on a hike up to the top of Ensign Peak. I quickly found out that I was very out of shape, and got very dizzy a few times. But we trudged along and reached the top in no time. The view was as beautiful as ever. I love that hike and I love being able to look out over the valley and see 4 beautiful temples lit up within your view.

In April, I graduated with my Associates Degree in Accounting. I was so grateful for all who came and supported me, and I was thankful Chandler BARELY made it before it started! 

The next week, I was able to attend Amy's graduation from BYU! I am so proud of her, especially with being a new mommy! 

The next week, I was able to go down to Arizona with mom and dad and Danielle to attend Matt's graduation from Thunderbird and to see the Matt and Jessie clan. I have missed all of them so much. I realized that I hadn't seen them since Kenzi's baby blessing which was almost 10 months ago! It was way to long! 

Matt had the honor of leading the class and carrying the United States flag in for the flag ceremony and gave a quick address on the US. He did a great job and was even really serious, something I'm not used to. We went to breakfast with all of them right before we left. It was hard to say goodbye again and I can't wait until we can go back to visit again, if they'll let us. hehe. One last picture from the trip, we took this right before we left. Kennedy finally warmed up to me at breakfast and her playful attitude really came out. She is such a cutie and she definitely takes after her sweet mommy, not in the playful attitude, but in the looks. ;)

Right before we left for Arizona, we stopped and visited Kevin and Tiffany and their new bundle of joy, Peyton. He is such a cute little guy. There were a few complications with the delivery but, in the end, baby arrived safely and they are both very healthy. Tiffany looked so good for just having a baby! I couldn't believe it! Such a cute mommy!

I also start my last semester of school on Tuesday. I know what you guys are thinking, "Why is she still taking classes when she has already graduated?" (I totally wrote that with a Dax Flame voice going through my head. Reference for Dustin and Danielle.) Well, I only have 3 classes left to take and I wasn't going to come back next April to "graduate" so I decided to walk 3 months early rather than 9 months late. Chandler is already counting down the days until I am done with school, even though I haven't even started yet. Thanks for making it drag out, Chandler. haha So, hence the title, 88 days left until I am done with school forever. Chandler and I are excited to finish up our time down here in Salt Lake and move on to bigger and better things in Idaho. It's bitter sweet, sad to leave the friends and family here, but SO excited to be closer to more family, old friends, and make new friends. One last thing, we are so excited for Chandler's brother, Chris, who got engaged a couple weeks ago to a cute girl, Janelle. 

They will be getting married July 14 in the Redlands Temple. That's right, we HAVE to take a trip to California this summer. Darn. :) Also, Chandler's younger brother, Spencer, will be getting home from his mission in August and will be coming up to BYU-I in September. He has been serving in the Ghana Africa mission for two years and has been in the office for the last little while as their mission was split into two missions. He is now back out in the field for his last two transfers and is loving every minute of it! We can't wait to have him back, but I'm sure he will miss Africa immensely. That's all for now! 

(Spencer is the one on the very left.)

Just an update on January

So, here I am sitting at work on a Saturday. It is completely slow. So, what do I do? I look up stuff on stumbleupon and feel compelled to write on our blog. Chandler and I have had a good year so far. We were excited when little Luke was born the day before my birthday and it was so fun to see them a few days later. We can't wait to go back and visit!

Chandler took me out to dinner for my birthday. I ended up working until about 5 so there wasn't much more we could do that day. We ended up going to Applebee's, our favorite! We rented a couple of movies from Blockbuster and just spent time relaxing at home, which is my favorite! I guess I'm a little like dad in that way. Anyway, the next day we slept in, (!) something I haven't been able to do lately, and then he took me shopping. We decided to get a down comforter, which I love! He also got me some lotion from none other than Bath & Body Works. Then we headed down to Provo to meet up with mom and dad and see Dustin, Amy and baby Luke. He is the cutest little guy! Later that night we headed back up to Salt Lake to go get some dessert with some friends. It was super snowy and the place we wanted to go to, Spoon Me, was closed because the power was out on the entire block! Actually, it was out for about 4 blocks! Crazy snow! So we went across the street to Luna Berry, which did have power! We had a good time catching up with everyone, but were really excited to go back and try out our new down comforter. It was a little warmer than expected but we have figured out how to make it work!

Last Monday we were able to go to the Jazz vs. Portland game. Chandler's old roommate is a season ticket holder but gives out most of them. It was a pretty good game, but we decided to leave after 3rd quarter so we didn't have to deal with all the traffic. It's a shame, because they ended up winning by 3 points in the end! But, it was very fun! Overall, we just enjoy spending time together and hate being apart for 12 hours on Fridays since I go to school at 7 and don't get back from work until 6:30. I can't wait until the days I don't have to do this whole juggling work and school thing. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy my job and the people I work with and school has been such a great learning experience. It just makes me excited for when I can devote my time to just my job or just my family. Anyway, hope everyone is doing as well as we are!

Year in Review

I feel like I have so much to be thankful for this year and I would feel completely ungrateful if I didn't take a second and write down a few of my thoughts. And, it has just been a really long time since I posted anything. As always, I fail at taking pictures. I especially failed at taking pictures during Christmas. But I will scrounge up the few I have access to.

January:

I turned 19, started my second semester at LDS Business College, and continued living in my apartment on 4th Avenue. My friend from Shelley, Laurel Corless, made plans to move in with me and the following month finally got all of her stuff moved in and started living there. Chandler continued working at Mail Operations for the church and at the Alta Club working as somewhat of a night security for them. He also continued his schooling at LDS Business College.

February:

On February 13, my life changed forever. Chandler and I met and went on our first date the following week. We went to an International Folk Dance performance by dancers from BYU at the Conference Center on the 19th. The next day, we went to an "Interfaith Music Tribute" at the Tabernacle with some friends after our church meetings and the following Friday took me on a date up to Ogden on the Frontrunner, since I had never been on it before.

March:

March 3, Chandler and I went on a group date to the musical Hairspray put on by some local youth in Centerville. I went to Boise that weekend with Kevin, Tiffany, and Danielle to attend Baby Carter's blessing. We went on a trip to St. George the weekend of the 11th so that Chandler could attend his missionary friend's wedding. The Monday following this trip, Chandler asked me to be his girlfriend and I excitedly accepted the invitation! The following weekend Chandler and I, along with our friends Mike, Chelsie, and Casey, went to California to see the Broadway musical, Wicked. It was WICKED and awesome! We also went the Santa Monica Pier, Venice Beach, and the Los Angeles Temple Visitors Center. As we were driving back Sunday, we stopped at the Las Vegas Temple and the St. George Temple, and stayed the night at Casey's parents house before heading home the next morning.

April:

On April 2, I attended General Conference with mom, dad, Danielle, Danielle's roommate, and Chandler! This is the first time Chandler met mom and dad. I think they approved. ;) Friday, April 8, Chandler rented a 2011 Dodge Charger as a promotional deal and took me on a date down to Orem. I met his grandparents and we went on a drive through Provo Canyon. We soon turned around, after seeing two car accidents only 15 minutes into the drive, and went bowling instead. We grabbed some Taco Bell (our favorite!) and drove up to the Mt. Timpanogos Temple, then headed back home over the mountain through Highland, Suncrest, and Draper. It was beautiful and snowy, but we saw yet again, another car accident. Are you noticing a pattern here? As we got off of the 600 S exit, a car pulled out of a Maverik and went right in front of us. The airbags deployed and the Charger was toasted! Luckily, we were both safe and unscathed, except for a bloody nose and sore bodies the next day. The following Wednesday, April 13, we celebrated Chandler's birthday. Chelsie and I made dinner for him and Mike, whose birthday just happens to be the same day, and then had cake and ice cream and a couple of pinatas with some close friends and Chelsie's family. The next week, Chandler and I decided to do baptisms at the Salt Lake temple, a lot. We went to Idaho on the 22nd for Easter and also attended the Idaho Falls Temple to do baptisms. I also received notice that I had been hired at Bath & Body Works and was to start the following Monday!

May:

Chandler quite his job with Mail Operations and began working for Cashman Services down in American Fork. I decided to change my major from Interior Design to Accounting. Chandler's mom came out to Salt Lake for a quilting convention and I was able to meet her and go with her one day around to all the fun fabric and craft booths. The end of May, I found a job working at an inbound call center for a windshield replacement company and started at the end of the month.

June:

June was a pretty uneventful month. I officially started my job on June 1. School started the first week of June as I took two classes and Chandler took one. We continued to date and knew we were falling in love with each other. We talked a lot about marriage and both felt that it was completely right. Near the end of June, we went to the Manti Pageant with a couple of our roommates and friends.

July:

Chandler and I headed up to Idaho for the 4th of July so we could attend Baby Kenzington's blessing. He was able to meet the rest of my family, something I really hadn't expected. He was able to go golfing with my brothers and my dad and we had a bbq with the family later that day. That night, Chandler said he had a cool place he wanted to show me. He took me down to an open field between Shelley and Firth and got down on one knee and proposed to me. I can't tell you how excited I was! It melted my heart to see the man I loved kneeling down in front of me holding a sparkly ring (it helped that the sun was setting and making the ring gleam) and asking me to spend eternity with him. 

Chandler and I were also able to attend a Kenny Chesney concert because of his job. Uncle Kracker was also there and we had a really good time, until all the ATMs started running out of money. People and their country songs and beer. Gotta love 'em.

For Pioneer Day, Chandler and I went down to St. George to visit Burke and Lonette, grandma, and to meet our friend Ciara there who came up from Arizona. We went out for a while to try on wedding dresses and went out and got ice cream and went to the temple with Ciara.

I didn't end up getting this one, but I thought it was really pretty!!

August:

I moved out of my apartment on 6th Avenue and moved in with some girls in the apartment complex Chandler was living in. I spent a lot of time at his apartment because I had no internet and a bare kitchen at mine. Chandler and I finished another semester of school and took engagement pictures! Chandler's dad also came out to Utah for his parent's 60th wedding anniversary. I was able to meet him and have a picnic with their family. We also spent a lot of time together apartment shopping and planning for our wedding. 

These were the three pictures we decided to send out with our announcements. Although, I had many favorites. Here are a few of my other favorites.

September:

I moved into our new apartment in West Jordan. Chandler and I also were able to fly out to Illinois the first week of September before school started and visit his family. We went straight up to Nauvoo and drove around seeing many of the sights and watching a few performances. We visited Carthage and made it just in time for the last tour of the night. We then went back down to O'Fallon, where his parents live, and visited St. Louis and saw lots of cool things there, and just spent lots of time with them. I continued with school and did an internship through the windshield company I was working for. Chandler decided to take the semester off of school and work full time. 

October:

THE BIG MONTH! Chandler and I were married for time and all eternity in the Mount Timpanogos Temple with many family and friends in attendance. I could post millions of pictures, but I will refrain. If you want to see more, they are on my facebook.

I also quit my job at Bath & Body Works and for Halloween, Chandler and I went down to Kevin and Tiffany's to carve pumpkins and have yummy Chicken Pot Pie. Dustin and Amy also came over to join the festivities, along with Tim and one of his friends from BYU.

November:

November wasn't quite as eventful as October, but Chandler and I were able to make a quick trip up to Idaho for Thanksgiving. We had to return Thursday evening because we both had to work the following day. I'm not sure why, but it was particularly hard to leave my family that time. It had been too long since I had seen them and I cried all the way to the freeway. I am so grateful for my family and for all that they have done for me, for the examples they are and for being there for me. It was so good to see most of them for our wedding and we appreciate all the work and help that went in to it.

December:

December marked the end of another crazy semester for me. I finished up my internship and was able to pull a nice 3.93 GPA. I guess I really have found a major that fits me much better. Chandler and I were able to go out to Illinois for Christmas. Kevin was able to take me to the airport on the 22nd and I had a great time waiting at the airport for my flights. My first flight was delayed for about an hour because of the snowy weather in Denver. My second flight was delayed almost three hours because of mechanical issues and I ended up leaving Pheonix the time I should have been landing in St. Louis. It was the longest flight of my life, with plenty of drunk people to annoy me. Needless to say, I finally landed in St. Louis at 2 in the morning their time and I was exhausted. I was so thankful for Jane and Amanda for coming that late to pick me up! Chandler arrived the next day at about midnight. It was so nice to wake up to him crawling into the bed and saying hello. It felt like such a long day, and it was so nice to see him. We did many things with the family, including going to a butterfly house in St. Louis. We had a great Christmas with Chandler's family. It was a little different from Christmas with the Hanson family, but it was nice to be with them and to be able to talk to Chandler's brother, Spencer, on Skype who is on a mission in Ghana. Here are the few pictures I could scrounge up. Like I said, I was horrible at taking pictures! I didn't even pull out my camera once! :(

 Our nephew Blake, I had so much fun with this little guy! He fell asleep on my chest almost every day. Here he is one day after he had just woken up, perfectly content and happy snuggling with me. Best. thing. ever!

 Our nephew Austin, he loved playing in the snow the one day we had it. He is such a funny little guy.

Chandler with Blake at the butterfly house. He is such a happy, smiley little baby.

Needless to say, I have so much to be thankful for! Hopefully I didn't bore everybody but I loved the opportunity of looking back on so many good times during the year! I love you all and miss you all like crazy! Here's to another great year!