St. George and Zion

We recently took a little trip to St. George to visit Darin's parents.

On the way down, I noticed about 15 police cars pass us.

Then, I looked behind us, and saw about 15 more.

I called my dad, to find that it was the funeral procession for the recently killed officer.

It made the drive more exciting, as we saw all the overpasses were filled with firetrucks, and people waving flags.

Right when we got out of the car, Lindsay saw "a friend" and immediately had a new pal, Adaline.

Andrew and Grandpa playing the piano.

We spent the next day exploring Zion's National Park.

It was BEAUTIFUL!!

Darin and his Dad spent an afternoon golfing.

So naturally, we had to play a little golf too.

And Lindsay had fun exploring in mom and dad's beautiful backyard!

It was a great trip!

Thanks mom and dad for everything!

Lindsay Ballerina

I have been waiting for this day for 3 years...and 9 months.

Pretty much since the day I found out I was having a girl!

Today was Lindsay's first day of ballet!!

Love this little ballerina!!

Sochi Winter Olympics

We had a fun day of Olympic Games with a few friends.

We started with a little international potluck.

I made this cake that I thought turned out cute--and tasty!

We had Alpine Skiing and Ski Jumps.

Next we played ice-hockey (which, surprisingly, was one of my favorite activities).

Then we did curling--which actually required a little skill.

We had a little biathlon competition--I was terrible!

We did Cross Country Skiing.

We did bobsledding--

And ended with couples figure skating--which was hilarious!

We have such awesome friends to put up with our silliness!  

Chinese New Year

We had a fun Chinese New Year celebration this year.
My parents’ had everyone over for a big Chinese potluck!
I LOVE being in a family full of excellent cooks!

We had ham fried rice, shrimp fried rice, lo mien, sweet and sour chicken, lemon chicken, beef and broccoli, lettuce wraps, egg rolls, pot stickers, lucky oranges, and more.  

It was a great night!  Thanks fam!

Happy Chinese New Year!!

Once Upon A Dream

Last week Lindsay and I went on a date.

We went to see CAA’s “Sleeping Beauty” ballet.

(Thanks for the tickets mom).

CAA REALLY does an amazing job with their ballets.

It felt professional!

It was especially fun for Lindsay to get to watch her cousin, Eliza preform.

And Lindsay is REALLY excited that she gets to start ballet THIS WEEK!!

After the ballet, I took Lindsay to get a treat at Starbucks

 (with a gift card that I’ve had for about 7 years).

It was a really fun night, and I love any 1 on 1 time with Lindsay!

When Life Gives You Lemons.

As previously mentioned, we’ve had a rough week.
It did, however, get much better when I found a bright yellow package on our front porch.

The tag said, “When life gives you lemons, here are a few ideas.”

Inside the package I found this:

The tags were every bit as cute as the actual gift--she is so clever!

“When life gives you lemons make lemonade.”—with lemonade
“When life give you lemons eat them, they’re good for you.  Life knows best.” –with lemons
“When life gives you lemons sell them on EBAY.” With lemon meringue gum and cash
“When life gives you lemons be grateful life gave you something.”—with lemonheads
“When life gives you lemons throw them back and yell I wanted chocolate.”  --with m&ms
“When life gives you lemons forget the lemonade, squirt them on lobsters.”—with a giftcard to Red Lobster

Since only about 5 people are aware of our situation, I was 98% sure it was from my sister, Heather.
I went to her house and asked, “Why didn’t you stay and visit when you dropped off the package?”
She said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I turned to my niece, Rachel, (who I knew had stayed home sick from school that day),
and I said, “Rachel, did you come to my house today?”
Rachel said, “Yes!  And I was the one that got to put the gift on your porch!”

Ha ha ha!  Love that girl, and I love my “anonymous gift.”

33

Darin turned 33 this week.

It has been a crazy, trying week--not the greatest for a birthday.

Somehow, through it all, Darin continues to be amazing.

A few days before his birthday, we went to City Creek, to get Darin a new pair of shoes.

They look really handsome on him.

His actual birthday was Monday, and it had potential to be a major bummer day.

But, thanks to an optimistic husband, and GREAT friends, it turned out to be a good day.

Happy Birthday Darin!

I LOVE YOU!!