A little bit of this and a little bit of that

I re-arranged my entire bedroom. I love it! Mind you it took a day and a half but I am so happy I took the time to do it. I went through every box in my bedroom. I emptied my entire closet washed it down and then re-organized. I wish I had a picture of the pile of stuff I threw away and the even bigger pile of stuff I took to D.I. Why do I hold onto so many things? The tricky thing about my bedroom is that the vent is right where you would want to place the bed. LAME! It makes setting up the bedroom very challenging. Ok my way over-sized treadmill is also a little bit of a problem but what do you do.

I biked a few times this week. I did squaw peak on Monday. That was hard. I probably should have done a flat day and given the climbing muscles in my legs one more day to rest since I did the alpine loop Saturday but oh well. I also did a little playing with my cousins kids. We watched a tutorial on you-tube and made duct tape wallets. Very fun. Oh and I wore a hat. Mainly because I biked and played soccer yesterday and didn't wash my hair when I showered. But this is big for me because I am self-conscious when I wear a hat. Probably because I feel like a look a lot like my brothers. So I don't normally chose to wear one.

Shaanta and Emily showed up at my house about 2 minutes after I finished my bike ride. So here is some shots of Shaanta and I in our biking gear. Her bike goes a little faster than mine and luckily for her the clothes she wears when she bikes aren't as tight as mine.

I also finished all my work hours this week. Halleluiah! Unfortunately I also got my letter in the mail from the school informing me of when I go back. I hate that letter. It makes the end of summer seem so near. It is a bummer every year. I have two more projects I need to complete before I head back to school and hopefully I can fit in some time for hiking. So much to do and so little time!

Did I mention I took Jana to COSTCO and she bought the entire store out? I wish I had pictures of the two carts. Shopping for 40 is crazy talk and we only covered a small portion of the list.

The Alpine Loop

It still looks like spring in the mountains and canyons in Utah. The weather has been so mild. On Saturday I decided to bike the Alpine Loop. It was 47 miles round trip. Not a bad workout. For some dumb reason I didn't start biking until 2pm so I got to bike during the hottest part of the day.

I rested and took some pictures. The downside is that it is all uphill one way and then you just coast pretty much the entire way home.

My favorite/awkward moment on the ride was when I stopped at Sundance to refill my water bottles and I was walking through the gift shop and a man in his 40's started yelling at my from across the shop. Yelling congratulations for making up the hill and telling me how proud he was of me (apparently he passed me in his car on the way up). Picture me in my spandex, lots of people looking, feeling very weird, and thinking I have still got a long way to go to the top. He meant well but I was a little embarrassed to say the least.

I also saw a huge moose close to the top of the loop. It was a beautiful animal with horns (is that what they call them on moose?) and everything. Unfortunately I didn't get any good pictures of him.

Today Katie stopped by on her way through town. It was super fun to visit for a few minutes and catch up on life.

And tomorrow is a Utah holiday so lots of people have the day off work. What could be more exciting then that?

FuN iN tHe SuN

Jana, Rose, and I took a trip to Payson Lakes to check out the campsites and lakes. It was really beautiful and the weather was amazing. It made me realize I need to camp this summer. Anyone up for it?

Rose just chill'n' in the kayak.

Self-Portraits are not the most attractive.Rose was great. When she did get a little fussy she just drank a bottle while Jana kayaked. Just like all of Jana's previous kids, give them a little food and they are happy:)

Rose playing with the tires while Jana and I loaded the kayaks.

Today Sam and I went mountain biking and kayaking at Deer Creek. I remembered this trail I had done 4 years ago that was pretty flat and beautiful and I convinced my brother to spend his day off with me.

Poor Sam, he will probably never do anything with me again. It was not flat at all. I mean I was so convinced in my mind that it was flat that I didn't even bring water. DUMB!

I am sticking my tongue out here because I need extra help to make it up the hill. Mountain biking is exhausting.

Even though it was more of a workout than we expected it was still beautiful.

And the lake water felt amazing after 12+ miles of biking.

I am in love with Mt. Timpanogos. It is so beautiful. It was our backdrop for all activities today.

Love playing in the sun. I am really trying to be in a swim suit more so I can work on my biker tan line. It is nasty.

Utah is beautiful!

T-shirts Finally

I might have had to talk them into giving us shirts but finally I am getting a t-shirt. I loved 3v3 soccer. I think there were a couple of factors that contributed 1. I really liked the people I played with, that always makes it more fun and 2. the smaller field is great for me in my old age and my long legs aren't bad either, and 3. our team really was good every game was competitive but we usually won, awesome.. It was really fun and I loved playing twice a week. I felt like I was actually improving on some of my skills. I am bummed it is over but maybe again in the winter, PLEASE!

Family Reunion

My family was in town for 10 days! It was a busy 10 days with lots of game playing, visiting, soda drinking, eating, and hanging out. My parents stayed at my house for the first two nights. Their first time actually staying with me. We woke up early on July 2nd and went to the balloon festival. My Dad likes to do things while in town so we did it!

Afterwards we went out to breakfast and went to look at Bridal Veil Falls. The canyon is so beautiful this year because we have had so much water. It really is amazing up there. Then we went to Home Depot and bought ceiling fans which my Dad taught me how to install. Two new ceiling fans in the upstairs bedrooms. They are so nice.

This trip we were able to visit with all of my Mom's family that is in Utah. That was fun as we don't see everyone very often. It was never all at once but through various barbeques and gatherings we saw lots of people. My Mom's brother Dave was down from Washington as well so we got to see their family also. Here is my Mom with 5 of her 9 living siblings (12 total). Her brother Dave is sitting down. This is his 70th birthday.

It is hard to comprehend that my Moms siblings are so old. It is crazy and you think how did that happen?

Here is my aunt Linda, aunt Nancy, and myself. We are wedged in this bench. Like no one is getting up because it was a tight squeeze. We had so many laughs this Sunday afternoon. I was totally patriotic for church Sunday July 3rd and my ward didn't sing one patriotic song. That was kind of LAME!

We ended the 3rd by playing a little croquette. Apparently my uncle Mikes family always play for his lettermans jacket. He had told me that the night before and so I told him I would bring a real jacket to play for. I brought my letter-mans jacket but I am sad to report I did not win. Next time.

4th of July Barbeque at Aunt Loralie's was also a hit. I didn't take as many photos but again a great opportunity to see and visit family. We also played some bocce ball, which I forgot is quite fun!

Me and my Dad chilling on the porch swing. I had to cut Aaron out of this picture because he seriously looked like a goof in every single shot.

My first time eating cake balls and they were delicious. I am not a huge cake fan but my cousin Heather made these and they were soooo good.

My Aunt Nancy provided fireworks on the 4th, I don't have any pictures, but they were a hit. Ben and Katie also bought some fireworks and they let them off at my house on the 5th.

Here is Dan dancing behind the fireworks. I have not laughed so hard in a long time. He is hilarious. It was so funny to watch.

On the 7th, 8th, and 9th we headed up the Heber Canyon to a cabin up there. It was an amazing cabin it had plenty of room for everyone and it was great to have a huge kitchen area as well as a large area to play games.

Eating all together was actually one of my favorite activities it was nice to just sit down together and have dinner. We always had dinner together growing up and it was just fun to eat and visit. I am not sure how it ended up this way but the boys and girls all ended up on opposite sides at the table.

Family pictures. My cousin Cody and a friend were traveling through Utah while we were at the cabin and so they stayed a couple nights with us. Good timing.

Sometimes I just need to punch Dan and then I feel better about life . . . just kidding.

We were all a little bitter that Anthony didn't make it. Three years in a row. Two years he was on his mission which is understandable, this year not so much.

Olivia's face sums it up: the cabin was fun. We stayed up way too late playing games and we ate way too much food but hey it is vacation.

I watched Olivia on Sunday while Ben and Katie were visiting friends. I volunteered and man I have not been so tired in a long time. That girl has got some energy, but she is so cute. She calls me Nell which is adorable. She will call for me and then totally be shy and not let me hold her . . punk. It was so fun to spend the day with her. I think these are carrot crumbs on her face because obviously I wouldn't feed her chips:)

Everyone took off Monday morning and I headed to Park City for a two day PE conference. I went to a resistance band training on Monday and I definitely ripped some new muscles on my inner thighs. They are so sore. It has been a busy summer so far and I am looking forward to a little down time.

Stadium of Fire

Stadium of fire was amazing. Thanks to Jana for finding cheap yet awesome seats. I loved the show and could seriously consider making this a yearly tradition. Caleb loved it as well and he was a good partner since he knew every single Brad Paisley song performed.

Brad was amazing and I am pretty sure we are on a first name basis now that I have been to his show.

The fireworks were amazing as always. Obviously lots cooler inside the stadium. It was a great way to be reminded of the freedoms we enjoy in this country and celebrate in true American fashion: country music and fireworks!

My family just left town today after being here for quite sometime. It was tons of fun and I have lots of pictures to post but it will not happen tonight. I am attending a PE conference today and tomorrow and I am just not used to getting up early. It is definitely summer.

When Pigs Fly

I am not sure what will happen when pigs fly but today on big ole pig flew at the balloon festival. This morning I got up way to early and went to the balloon festival. It was really cool and I am glad I went. The good news is I have all the time in the world to recover with a nap......yo yeah!

The yellow balloon pictured below was my favorite.

It was just really cool to see all the balloons. They are really quite large.

And for all you Star Wars fans out there Darth Vader was there all the way from Belgium. He is one ginormous balloon. They had storm troopers and other characters visiting as well (not in balloon form).

Really fun morning. The balloon festival happens tomorrow and Monday morning as well so if you are in the area you should check it out. It starts at 6:30 am but it is worth it,

These ladies accompanied me and then we went to Magleby's for french toast. Yummy!

I have a goal to take at least one picture a day this summer. I will not necessarily post all the pictures but I thought that would get me using my camera more. I have only had the goal for three days. Today I took plenty of pictures at the balloon festival. Wednesday I took a picture at Dan's he smoked ribs for some people. Nothing better than barbeque in the summer.

And then my bike. Love the bike. The weather is finally cooperating so I have been more consistent about biking. Gotta love the summer.