Ramblings of a Lozon

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-01T06:25:00.000-08:00

So there I was....doing regular "real world" job stuff, and all I could think was...

I want to go back!

(photo courtesy of Philmont Scout Ranch Facebook page)

Mid-January

2012-01-22T18:13:00.000-08:00

Well, we finally got snow! We have only had snow I think twice now since before Christmas. Yesterday's storm wasn't even a good snowstorm. It was blizzard-like snow for about 2 hours, and we ended up with half an inch. I think the snow just blew around for the 2 hours and then when the wind stopped the 1/2 inch finally settled onto the ground. We also have ice though, which made the roads and sidewalks pretty slick today. Amber took a picture of our backyard during the "blizzard."

Yesterday was also the SUU Coaching Factory Hall of Fame Coaches Luncheon and Honors Night. All graduates of SUU who are currently coaches and had a state championship or runner-up during the last school year are invited back to be recognized as part of the Coaching Factory.

The event consists of a luncheon at the Student Center, and then we are recognized at the halftime of the basketball game later that evening. I have been lucky enough to get invited to this event for the last 4 years now, but this was the first time I was invited as a state championship coach!

The basketball game that was included in the agenda for the coaching recognition was against Indiana Purdue Fort Wayne, so Jonathan wore his Indiana University hoodie. The game was a close game but SUU was able to win in the end, but only by 2 points. This year the alumni association came to the luncheon as well, and they brought some SUU alumni apparel to give out to the coaches, so I now have a new SUU Alumni shirt!

Yay for Southern Utah University!

Jonathan has registered for his first race of 2012 (Frozen Hog Bike Race), and my first race will be the following week (Run Like a Girl Half Marathon). So we have been spending most afternoons and evenings after work getting our training in. Jonathan has been spending more time riding his new single speed mountain bike on the trails in Southern Utah.

Cozy Comfy Christmas

2011-12-25T13:52:00.000-08:00

Our friends used the term Cozy Comfy Christmas on their cards this year, and we liked the idea. This year Christmas was just us, and we did in fact enjoy a nice quiet Cozy Comfy Christmas!Merry Christmas!

Stranded Grebes

2011-12-21T07:46:00.000-08:00

Last week Jonathan and I were walking home for our lunch break when we saw a bird that had been hit by a car, as we got closer we noticed it looked more like a duck. That's kind of odd, but maybe the poor little duck escaped from the CAL Ranch store nearby. A little bit farther down the street we saw another one of these duck-like birds trying to run away from people, it was having a hard time and it was leaving a trail of blood in the snow. Poor little guy was injured. Some high school students pulled over and helped the duck. We were discussing how odd it was that there were 2 of these little birds in that short area.

At home we proceeded to shovel off the 1-2 inches of snow, and that's when we saw this little guy hanging out in our gutter. Something had to be going on! Within a half mile we had now seen 3 of these duck-like birds.

While checking my facebook and twitter feeds a short time later I saw this article from AliveUtah! Apparently there were several thousand of these grebes throughout town. The grebes need water in order to take flight, and because of where their legs are located on their bodies, they can't really even run. They really were stranded here on the ground.

We called the DWR and they said they would send someone to come pick up the stranded grebe in a few minutes. Jonathan walked up and down our street and found another one. So now we had a box on our front porch with 2 little grebes hanging out. They both seemed to be ok, no signs of injury like the other bird we had seen earlier. Jonathan ended up taking an hour or so break from work, and he drove around Cedar to see if he could help rescue any other grebes. Upon knowing that these grebes were actually everywhere in the city, I was a little more observant on the walk back to school, and saw 4-5 more, unfortunately they were all dead.

Apparently several people throughout Cedar had taken it upon themselves to collect grebes that day also, and there were tons of boxes out at the DWR office.
Walking home from work that night Jonathan decided to take a route through the soccer/football practice field just to see if there were any grebes still stranded in the field. Sure enough sitting in the middle of the field was another grebe. He began carrying it home, shortly thereafter he found a DWR truck and was able to pass it off safely. The DWR guy told him that the city had rescued about 3-4 thousand, and once the birds get into water they were doing just fine. Unfortunately there were just as many found dead as there were found alive. With the light dusting of snow the snowplows had gone out on the roads that morning, and we had seen several birds in piles of snow on the side of the road. I have a feeling that Cedar is going to be finding grebes for a while.

We went back to the soccer field that night with headlamps to look and see if there were any other grebes just waiting to be rescued. It was clear outside, which means it was going to be a cold night. We didn't find any that night. KSL had an article about the grebe crash landing as well.

The next day on the way to the dentist we found another grebe on our street, this one was injured and had now been out in the cold for 2 nights. We took it home, put it in a box with some towels and sugar water. The DWR office was closed for the night so we couldn't take it in. Zoeken was on high alert since every once in a while the grebe would make a noise. "What is in that box?" For one night we had a little pet grebe hanging out in our kitchen. Jonathan took him to the DWR office the next morning.

Happy St. Nicks Day!

2011-12-07T16:20:00.001-08:00

Yesterday (Dec. 6th) was St. Nicks Day. Luckily Jonathan and I were good and found our stockings stuffed with treats and even a few presents from St. Nick!

We celebrated by putting up our Christmas tree!

I ended the evening with cookies and milk. Yum

Fall Recap and Welcome to Winter!

2011-12-04T16:14:00.000-08:00

A lot has happened since I last posted, and here is my hopeful recap of our life.

House for sale: we put our house up for sale in hopes that someone might see what we saw in the house and decide it is just what they are looking for and buy it. Our current plan it to move at the end of the school year. Hopefully it can all work out for us. We had a minor emergency with keeping the house looking presentable when a windy morning happened to knock over one of the aspen trees in our front yard. Luckily it did no damage to the house, we just had to move it out of the front yard (currently hiding in the backyard behind the fireplace).
Wherever we end up with moving, we do think it would be fun to build our own house. We have been checking out house plans from greenhomebuilder.com and have found some pretty awesome houses. Now to just figure out where we will go, as well as some land to build on.

Cyclocross: Jonathan has competed in several cyclocross races this season, most of them at Wheeler Farm in Salt Lake City. The most recent was a snowy, muddy mess.
Amber and I were both there to watch and cheer on the cyclists!
Dentist: I have had more "mouth trauma" (as my dentist calls it) then I care to think about, but thankfully after 1 more visit I should be done with the dentist for another 5 months. I should also be relatively pain-free and actually be able to eat like a normal person again. It has been a long (and sometimes really painful) process. With all the dentist visits and pain associated with said visits, I have not run as much as I would have liked.

Thanksgiving: Indiana with Jonathan’s family. We ran a race while we were there (Jonathan remembered that he dislikes running and why he switched from triathlons to just cycling, besides the swimming part). Jonathan did the traditional Thanksgiving day shooting of guns with family.We went and saw a movie (Muppets), and a play (The Scarlet Pimpernel at the Kentucky Center for the Arts),and while waiting for the play we happened to see a Christmas parade going by! We had two thanksgiving dinners over the course of the week, and just enjoyed spending time with family. The time flew by and before we knew it we were traveling back to Utah. I spent Monday afternoon driving to Fillmore to pick up Zoeken. She had spent the Thanksgiving week with my parents and playing in their backyard, chasing quail, barking at the neighbor's dog, and she even got to play with Glenn and Natalie's new little beagle, Karma.

With December starting we decided to finally put the Thanksgiving/Fall decor away and get started on Christmas decor. We aren't sure how much decorations we will put up, because we don't want to have our house look cluttered since we never know when someone might want to come and see the house.

Mother Nature made sure that it at least feels like December and we got about 8-10 inches of snow on December 1. Welcome to December!t.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T20:03:00.001-07:00

Happy 1st Anniversary!

2011-10-16T10:27:00.000-07:00

Today marks our 1-year anniversary!1 year ago today two individuals were joined through marriage and started on a new adventure together!

For our 1-year anniversary we decided to keep with the "tradition" for gifts. The traditional 1st anniversary gift is paper. Our paper gifts ended up being: 2 panoramic posters of the view of Louisville from the sunny side of the Ohio River, and 2 posters from where it all began - Philmont.
It's been a fun year. We were hoping to make it to Duck Creek for dinner, but with the canyon being closed (due to a massive landslide that broke and buried the road), the trip there is now double for time. Last week we had a pre-anniversary getaway when we went to the Hardin wedding, and this next week we have half a week off for my fall break that we are going to use to enjoy the fall season as well.

Yesterday we did enjoy the fall day by going to the New Harmony Apple Festival! We came home with apples, honey, and of course a caramel apple! Success!

Happy Anniversary!

Hardin Wedding at a Castle!

2011-10-16T09:16:00.000-07:00

(Picture overload in this post)
A year ago Jonathan's buddy Chris came out for our wedding, while he was here he made a trip to the Grand Canyon and there he proposed to his girlfriend. So now, one year later we were making a trip for their wedding. They chose to do a destination wedding, at a castle nestled in the trees in the Smokey Mountains just outside of Asheville, North Carolina!

After a long day of traveling(flights getting changed, missing flights, standby flights, and changing a rental car since we ended up flying into Charlotte instead of Asheville), we finally made it to the castle at 11:00 pm that night. The stars were amazing that night as we sat out on the deck visiting with Chris. Seeing the stars, smelling the mountain air...it made me want to go out hiking, or at least camp out under the stars.

The weather cooperated wonderfully for their fall wedding day at the castle. We spent the morning wandering the castle and enjoying the mountain air.The wedding decorations were a rustic wood theme with C&C on many items. The ceremony was later that afternoon and it was a very nice ceremony just for Chris and Crystal. It was fun to watch Crystal walk down the stone staircase from the castle to the lawn below for the ceremony. Jonathan was one of the groomsmen for the wedding, so he was involved with lots of pictures with the wedding party.No unity candle for this couple, they chose to do a unity tree with dirt from both of their parent's yards. I kind of liked that idea, it was different and yet still just as symbolic.

After the wedding and reception we headed to Waynesville where we got settled into our Bed and Breakfast Inn. This inn was only a half mile off the main street, but you would never know because of all the trees that still surround the area. It was a nice secluded spot. We are looking forward to a chance to go back another time and be able to actually spend some time exploring the area.

We had an afternoon flight back from Asheville, so we had some time to wander the downtown area and see the little local shops. Here Jonathan is pointing out where the wedding was on the giant map at the airport.It was a fun mini weekend getaway, and a good pre-anniversary adventure for us!

Time to catch up post

2011-10-16T08:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, it has been over a month since the last post, but here is a quick recap of things that have happened since the last post (Krystal will like this post because it is mostly pictures):

SEPTEMBER:
Wedding for our friends Ryan and Stephanie. We happen to have nice fall dress clothes from our own wedding and yes we did match the wedding party).
Wilson Family get together in Orem for the baby blessing of Glenn and Natalie's baby girl, Chloe.
Cross Country meets with Amber
Cyclocross started for Jonathan Don't the bubbles look like fun?Krystal brought Katryn and Martin to a cyclocross race to cheer on Lozy with cowbells!
Top of Utah Marathon for Heather
House decorated with fall decor (and moose trophy from Top of Utah marathon)

OCTOBER
St. George Marathon to cheer on friends with Amber
Teaching Amber how to drive stick shift with the Golf that we finally got to work again (replaced the battery with a new one that will hold a charge and not die every time we turn off the car).
More posts to come in the next few days (unless I get really ambitious today).

Fall is Coming!!

2011-09-11T15:52:00.000-07:00

The weather this week has taken a turn towards fall, and it makes me excited. The fall weather is much nicer than summer heat. We have been enjoying the nice change. In the next couple days we will get out our fall decor and decorate. I did however get us a new quilt that is fall, I like it!
With fall means cyclocross is getting closer for Jonathan. He made his own barriers not too long along to take to parks to practice. This last week he spent an evening playing on a grassy hill and with his barriers. We had them at my parents house with us on last Sunday and they were a hit with the nieces and nephews, just the right size for hurdles! They couldn't stop laughing and kept running and jumping them.

Fall weather also means garden produce. Our garden is not producing a ton right now, but it might be because of the late start (due to snow almost until June). On Saturday we went to the Farmer's Market and got a half bushel of tomatoes and some peppers to make some salsa. Two batches so far, and enough tomatoes to make probably one more batch!

Fall also means Halloween. Last year Halloween was spent at a cyclocross race, and our costumes were the Incredibles. I am trying to come up with some good ideas for this year, any suggestions?

Is Summer Over?

2011-08-30T18:28:00.000-07:00

That seems to be the question we have been asking ourselves the most lately. Summer has been just hot. We are ready for fall. The cooler weather, the change in colors, the crisp air, Jonathan is ready for cyclocross to start (ok, he has been ready for cyclocross since about June...). Maybe this fall we will be able to fit in some hikes and camping trips before the first snow. Although we do have snowshoes and we would be so ready for that also.

The school year has started, and with it comes the routine that takes place which is nice. I got to start the school year off with flowers from Jonathan. 4 years ago on the first day of school was the first time he sent me flowers, it was then that I knew there was something more with our relationship and that he might actually like me. It was a nice reminder of all we have been through and where we have come to be in the last 4 years.The not so nice thing that comes with school starting is I feel like I don't have much time anymore to get everything done. I just get the feeling of being so busy. One new thing this school year is when my prep period is on B-Days. For the last 6 years I have had it in the afternoon (because of coaching). This year they had to change my schedule to get the math classes when they needed them, so I have a first period prep instead. With that I have taken to trying to get a morning run in, since I don't have to be at school as early to get ready for my first class (I am still at school before it starts like a good teacher, but just not as early as I used to). So far I am enjoying the variety of cooler morning runs with our after school runs in the heat.

This upcoming weekend (Jonathan's birthday), we are trying to figure out what to do to celebrate it since we have it off. Currently we are looking at going up to the Tushar Mountains (where the Crusher race was) and going camping. With it not being as "popular" we might luck out with crowds since it will be Labor Day weekend. I would really love to go camping, it just seems like it has been too long since we last went.

July Catch Up

2011-08-06T14:40:00.000-07:00

How is it August already?

Here is how the rest of July went for us (as quick and abbreviated as I can do it with all my rambling).

July 17-Crusher in the Tushar race. This race was the brainchild of Burke Swindlehurst, and it was tough! While waiting for the finishers to get to the finish line Zoeken and I wandered around the Eagle Point Ski Resort in Beaver. So pretty! Usually in races that I watch there are some people that are tired, and some people still look pretty good finishing. This race: EVERY single finisher looked completely spent. Professional cyclists that completed it were commenting on the difficulty and how tough this race actually was. It probably didn't help that the last 1 mile of the 70 mile race was all uphill! Check out the elevation here. They did the alternate course due to snow and trees blown down covering the trail. The race was on road and dirt, each cyclist had to choose their bike carefully. Did they want to use a mountain bike and know it would slow them on the uphill road sections? Maybe a road bike, and just slow down (a lot) on the gravel washboard downhills? Or maybe try a happy medium and ride their cyclocross bike? This race had all 3 types of bicycles competing, and as the race director put it, "No matter what bike you choose, at one point in the race you will think your decision might have been wrong." Jonathan rode his cyclocross bike and finished the race in just under 7 hours.Post race with friend Alex.

Last week in July-Vacation Road Trip to Indiana! We loaded up the Prius (complete with both bikes on the back) and headed east. After 2 days of driving (we were able to stay with Emily and Bill in Colorado to help break up the long drive) in the car across some pretty boring views along Interstate 70 we arrived in Indiana for a week of playing. The weather was close to a record of consecutive HOT days while we were there...now I can see I have definitely experienced heat and humidity! Not fun!

Chasing (and catching) fireflies/lightning bugs for the first time!
Louisville Science Center with Jonathan's parents and sister Katie.
Bike ride to Huber's Orchard and Winery to pick our own blackberries to make into some yummy jam later that day.
Lousiville Zoo with Jonathan's parents and sister Emily.
It was a fun-filled week. We were originally planning on driving back by way of Philmont to visit, but while we were in Indiana Jonathan's grandfather passed away. He had been recently admitted to the hospital for pneumonia in both lungs, and we knew it was just a matter of time. We changed our returning plans so we could stay in Indiana for the viewing and funeral, and be there with his family during this time. It was a nice service and I am glad that things worked out how they did for us being there.

After another 2 days of driving (I think Zoeken thought we were homeless since it seemed like we were always in the car), we arrived home. After checking things in the house, picking up packages from the post office that the neighbors had gotten for us, etc. we noticed that the fence fairy had come while we were gone. A few months ago during the massive spring wind we get, our fence (lacking proper support) blew down. Apparently our neighbors took this chance to do a good deed and they mended our fence and reinforced the supports so it will hold. I am so grateful that we have such good neighbors!

And that is how the month of July ended for us.

Fire Road Cycling

2011-07-10T19:09:00.000-07:00

This race was a first of its kind in Cedar City, their plan was to have it be a cross between road and mountain biking. Unfortunately due to the downhill sections and the terrain of the roads, mountain bikes were probably a better bet for this race. Jonathan decided to race this race on his cyclocross bike.

One of these bikes is not like the others.

He was the ONLY cyclocross bike in the entire race. With that being said, he was also probably the only bike without front suspension...He should have has his own category, CX bike!

The first 17 miles or so was all uphill and apparently he ran out of gears quickly. After climbing that first climb he decided he did not want to do the second climb, (course profile) so he turned and ended up doing the 60K event instead of the original plan of the 100K.
At one turn onto an ATV trail (so there is no way to pick the best route to make the corner, you kind of have to follow the specified trail), Jonathan took a tumble on his bike. Nothing too serious, just some scrapes on his arm and leg (and somehow he managed to get a scrape right next to his eye as well). Apparently all the mountain bikers passed him on the gravel washboard downhill...go figure.

I went to the park early to watch some of the finishers for the shorter race, and it is a good thing I did, otherwise I would have missed Jonathan finishing! He ended up 2nd in his division and got on the podium! The awards were some mugs with the logo of the race on them.

After the race we were talking with some of our friends, and I was asked why I didn't race. I pointed to my bike that was there and said my road tires would not survive. Then they made the comment, "There was a cyclocross bike in the race today." We laughed and pointed to Jonathan's bike, "Yes, we know, it was him." I guess he didn't recognize Jonathan on his cyclocross bike, but he had been impressed that someone rode that bike.
This race was a good trial run for his next race, The Crusher in the Tushar. This race WILL have a lot more cyclocross bikes, a few of his friends will be riding this race as well. After riding the Fire Road race, he has decided to make a few changes with his bike for the next race.

All in all a good experience!

Tuacahn Presents Little Mermaid

2011-07-07T07:43:00.000-07:00

I always thought it would be fun to go see a show at Tuacahn, and this summer we did. The Little Mermaid was our show of choice.

After Jonathan got off work we went out to dinner at a Mexican restaurant, then we went home to play with Zoeken until we had to leave for St. George. Right before going to dinner a quick summer rainstorm hit and it poured rain for a short time. I was kind of looking forward to going to an outdoor theater with the chance of rain. We arrived at Tuacahn to realize that it really is tucked away surrounded by red rock cliff walls. After wandering around for a little bit, we made our way into the theater itself and found our seats, 3rd row! The stage is pretty impressive on its own with the giant backdrop of red rocks. That bridge there, yes it was used as a bridge when the water came onto the stage.We were surrounded by little girls everywhere that were so excited to see Ariel. The little girls next to us kept asking their parents when Ariel was going to come out. They were ready for the show, they even had their Ariel dolls with them there. (Later during the show while Ariel was singing and dancing, the little girl with the doll was having her doll dance along). There was even a few girls dressed up in their own costumes from Little Mermaid. We knew this show was going to be awesome! How could it not be?We were not disappointed, the show was amazing. For underwater shots they had literally a wall of water so it even seemed like you were underwater. The choreography was fun and rather well done since the fish and mermaid costumes are not the typical outfits you plan choreography around. They even had some silly dances done with black lights to really add to the already fun show.

Shortly after the intermission it started to rain, they held another 20 minute intermission hoping that this rainstorm would be like all the others this week, short. We were prepared with our rain jackets and an umbrella, and after the rainstorm let up a little, the show continued on.

Some quick cast shots after the show:

FlounderScuttle the SeagullKing TritonAnd of course: Prince Eric and Ariel

I wish we could have gotten more pictures of the cast (like Ursula and her pets, Sebastian), but with the weather and the delay, not as many cast members came out to visit after the show, and we wanted to get on the road to get home and go to bed.

It was a lot of fun, and a great evening. I am so glad that we went!

Puppy Post About Our Hike

2011-07-02T15:37:00.000-07:00

By: Zoeken

Well, my people decided we should go hiking today, but I did not see the memo about the hike, so I did not realize that I would need lots of energy. Had I known we were going hiking maybe I would have eaten my breakfast, but I did not. They put my pack on me, which I am not used to and I kept running into the edges of the walls with it, and every time I moved I could hear my treats/food inside.

After getting in the car I was on high alert. Where were we going? Luckily, the drive was short. We got out and the Mister decided that he would carry all my stuff so I didn't have to wear that stupid pack, it gets hot enough with this fut coat! I had my new leash on and the Lady hooked it to her pack and we set off. There were so many smells everywhere, I was loving it! We started off and the trail was mostly uphill. After about a quarter of a mile I was beginning to wonder just how far we were going. It was hot people! We stopped in the shade at one of the benches and I got some water, I drank it all really fast. Then the Mister played with the camera, I was a good puppy and even looked for one of the pictures.After a little bit longer uphill, I was quickly slowing down. No longer was I pulling on the leash and leading the hike up the hill, I was walking slower and next to the people instead of in front. Thankfully the people realized that meant I was tired and we turned around and headed back down the rocky trail. This time I was hooked to the Mister instead.We made it back to the car, and I did what I usually do after a hike, I immediately plopped down in the shade under the car. With some coaxing I decided I would get into the car, and we headed back to the house.

We got home, and after some more water and a few ice cubes (my favorite), I even finished my breakfast finally. It's never easy to burn that many calories before eating anything. Even though we were inside, the house still felt hot, luckily the tile is cooler, so I laid down on the kitchen floor to rest.The Lady must have felt sorry for me, she pushed a button to turn on the fan so it would blow air right onto my little bed by the door. That was really nice of her, and I napped there for a good couple hours.

The people are playing with ice cubes, I think they are making something, but I bet they don't share with me. As long as I can keep getting some ice cubes I will be ok.

Summer Games Time Trial

2011-06-24T07:54:00.000-07:00

Summer Games Cycling has started. Jonathan raced his first event (of 3) last night, the time trial. Having no TT bike, he still managed to take 2nd for his age group!Woo!

Today is the Crit race and then tomorrow is the road race.

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-19T18:12:00.000-07:00

Today is Father's Day! In church today the primary children got to sing to their dads a couple of songs we have been working on in Primary. One of the songs was "My Dad" and I thought I would put the words here with some pictures I have of my dad.

My Daddy is my favorite palAnd I help him everyday
It's plain to see I want to beLike him in every way.He teaches me that honestyIs best in all I do.I'm very glad that he's my dadAnd I know he loves me too!

Enjoy some pictures of my dad, and yes some of them are a little old.Naps are a must in our family
(this is Amber and Chisai taking a nap with my dad probably 1993)Glenn flying high in the air (our best guess is around 1990-1991? My mom would be able to tell)Pedro the Burro from Boy's Life (aka my dad) came to visit us!
(Amber looks really little, so maybe 1993?)

Happy Father's Day to some of the other fathers I have in my life as well!Grandpa Wilson

Grandpa Barnes

Jonathan's Father

Jonathan's Grandpa Klein

Summer Beginnings

2011-06-13T20:44:00.000-07:00

Well Summer is off to a good start, a busy start, but that is the usual case. With not having work during the day I have been trying to work on getting a few things done around the house and yard that we have been procrastinating. We have an entire list of things that we need to get accomplished around the house and yard, hopefully before the end of the summer.

We have planted some garden plants (mostly tomatoes and peppers so we can make salsa). We also have our strawberries going really well. We have 4 self-irrigation totes (peppers, garlic, spinach, and blackberries). Hiding amongst all the weeds in the back=backyard we have two garden boxes that are home to some tomato plants and strawberries.

Yes one of the things on the to do list for the summer is to weed-eat the area of 3+ feet tall weeds that is surrounding the "garden" area.

We are also working on getting the house cleaned up and organized inside. Recently we set to work on the first room on our list, the guest room. Next week during the Summer Games Cycling event we will be having some guests, so we wanted to be sure it was all ready and looked more like a guest room than a spare storage room (even if it actually is both--isn't that the alternate purpose of a guest room anyway?). With all these attempts at cleaning and organizing we are getting quite the pile of things to get rid of (through either donation to thrift store or just plain thrown out). I have always known that I am a pack rat, and this is only reinforced when I try to go through a box and I just don't know what to do with what is in the box. Oftentimes I feel like I am not making any progress at all. I end up putting over half the stuff back into the box but call it a success because the box is not as full. Anyone have some good tips on organizing and de-cluttering your house?

State Champions

2011-05-29T15:43:00.001-07:00

Spring or Winter?

2011-05-18T11:24:00.001-07:00

Mother Nature has been a little indecisive with the seasons this year. Yesterday I walked home at lunch and had to dodge sprinklers, and today I walked home in this...Good thing we learned our lesson last year and didn't bother planting our garden outside yet. We will wait patiently until the blizzards are over for the season.

Happy Mothers Day!

2011-05-08T16:27:00.000-07:00

Of all the things I have learned from my mom and other mother examples in my life, I think the most important thing they have taught me is that it is ok to be me, and being me is enough!

I love all the mothers in my life!

Haircut

2011-04-24T17:37:00.000-07:00

I decided to cut my hair. I was going to do a trim, but it ended up lopping off 10-inches to donate to Locks of Love. It has been a LONG time since I have had hair this short, but so far I think I like it. I just need to get used to it.

Amber said she is going to cut her hair, and I was trying to convince her to donate her hair with me. She was going to have no part of that, she hid her hair and cowered in the corner. Ha ha.

We had a good weekend visiting my family, I will post some pictures soon.

HAPPY EASTER! :)

Easter is Coming...

2011-04-20T15:58:00.000-07:00

Easter is getting closer, and I finally had a spare moment to put up a few little decorations around the house.

The plastic Easter Egg Garland is hanging up in the living room windows.

The Easter baskets (or in our case, buckets) are out. Jonathan already has one present in his! HOORAY!

Random plastic eggs placed on a shelf with the regular decor.

And yes I happen to have some stuffed Easter Bunnies (and FYI they are puppets) that are now sitting on our bookshelf.

The Easter towels are out as well. I had a couple already, but Jonathan's grandparents got us some more fun spring towels as well to add to our collection and can stay up after Easter.

I even put our spring quilt on the bed, even though it is not completely finished...I still need to stitch the corners.

Oh and we left our front porch light open when we tried to change the light bulb, we would have closed it and replaced the light bulb, but the bulb broke, and we haven't pulled it out yet. Apparently a mama bird decided that was the prime location for a new home, so now we have a birds nest all snuggled inside of our light fixture.

SPRING BREAK just started for me today, and I decided to spend today cleaning up the house. We are looking forward to our weekend together and enjoying another holiday!

Zoeken just laid in the sunshine amidst all her wood chippings from chewing up a stick in the house.

Emily and Bill's 1920s Wedding

2011-04-03T09:21:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we went to Indiana for the wedding of Emily and Bill. They had picked out a theme wedding of the 1920s. Decorations, outfits, food, music, etc. was all picked out with this theme in mind. It was a fun weekend, and it went by much too fast (as does any time we get to spend with our families). So as a recap of this fun event, I will post some of the pictures that were taken that weekend (they are also posted on facebook, so you may have probably already seen them). Enjoy a glimpse of our fun-filled family weekend!

Rehearsal dinner fun times..."Look at you!" Laughter and smiles were abundant all weekend!

Getting hair done all fancy at the hair salon with the rest of the bridal party.

Finished look!

The beautiful bride, Emily!

Such a fun group of ladies!

Bridal Party fancy shoes! (I have the chaco tan lines you can still faintly see ha ha)

The complete bridesmaid outfit! Complete with feather hair accessory and sequins and beads all over the dress (hard to see, but trust me they are there).

Jonathan, his dad, and his godfather (who performed the marriage ceremony for Emily and Bill)

Emily and Bill's first date I believe was the Philmont staff dance at the beginning of the summer season, so this sign was fitting since a lot of the wedding party could somehow be tied back to Philmont and summer jobs there.

Playing with Jonathan's hat

Ice cream bar!! Great idea!

Matthew and Tyler were thrilled at all the choices to put in/on their ice cream!

Siblings!

Dancing is always fun! And as a side note, yes the guy in the background is in overalls, he did have a tie on, and claimed they were brand new and never been worn for work, Philmont people make me laugh!!

The best picture of us from the wedding weekend!

Spring Is Coming...

2011-03-13T13:05:00.000-07:00

Spring is getting close, or at least closer. Sometimes we may think it is spring and then Mother Nature decides to remind us that she picks the seasons, and she still wants winter...so we get snow. Lately though we have had more spring days than winter, so it is coming!!

With some of the nicer weather we have managed to get some spring activities done.

Spring Cleaning: organizing the garage...... and finding room for the bikes (there is one more bike in the house still, hooked to the trainer).
Spring Garden: garlic is coming up from planting it last November.
We also have a few starts going in the house that we will transplant outside in a few weeks.
Spring Training: With races now on the schedule, training is now getting a little more serious.

Spring Sunshine: With the nearness of Spring, comes the sunshine! Oh how we love the sunshine! Zoeken enjoys the sunshine, and could play outside with her ball all day if we would let her.Spring Clean-Up: Our city has now told us when our spring clean-up will be, which means we can get all the branches in the backyard hauled away for free if we get them to the curb on the spring clean-up day. Woo!

HAPPY SPRING! What has everyone else been doing with spring getting closer?

Long Weekend

2011-02-21T15:20:00.000-08:00

Happy President's Day! Mostly, just Happy Day Off!!

Yay for 3-day weekends (or 4-day weekends if you are Jonathan and already get Fridays off)! Saturday was spent inside most of the day watching it snow. However, even with the slushy snow coming down, we both ventured outside to get our training done. I did a 9 mile trail run in 3-4 inches of snow, and Jonathan did about a 1.5 hour ride on a snowy side road (he got to test out the new fenders for his bike). After training outside we then had no desire to go back outside to do anything, so we spent the rest of the day inside and watched FRINGE (yes we have now finished the entire second season in just one week....).

We did make some Chili - perfect for a cold snowy day!
Sunday we decided to go on a little family walk in the snow. We drove out to the start of the trail I had run the day before and walked the length of the trail before heading back. Roundtrip it was about 4 miles. Zoeken loved it! She wandered around sniffing at the sagebrush, following rabbit tracks in the snow, and just being herself...excited to be outside!

After enjoying the fact that we could sleep in today, we got started on a few different things to get done on this day off we both had.

We rearranged pictures in the living room, and hung up some more, along with some little ledge shelves on the wall. So far we really like how they are turning out. One of the shelves is perfect for the little orchid plant I got for Valentine's Day from Jonathan. Now we just have to figure out where to put the other 2 shelves and what to put on them. (Yes they are level, I just can't take pictures straight)

We also did a few things in the kitchen today. We started this morning making yogurt (it is definitely an all day process). We just checked it and it looks like it is turning out pretty good, we will try it for breakfast tomorrow and find out. We tried a new recipe in the crock pot today for some chicken and veggie enchiladas, they smell pretty good! And homemade bread was on the agenda as well. Now to clean up from all this...

I took Zoeken on part of my run with me today. She did almost 2 miles! She is getting better at running next to me instead of everywhere else. She also is learning quickly to not start the run with sprinting (she had to learn that lesson the hard way when she sprinted for a half mile and then had to run for another mile to get home). She loves getting out and going for walks, hikes, runs, really anything as long as she is outside with us. Then she proceeds to pass out for the rest of the day because she is so worn out! :)

All in all I would say it was a pretty productive weekend!

Vote for Krystal!

2011-02-12T05:22:00.001-08:00

My little sister Krystal has had a rough year, so I wanted to do something for her. I entered her in a contest to win a free photo session so she could get a really good family picture (she has not had one since her baby boy was born). She was picked as a finalist in the contest, and now I need some votes. The voting is easy, swing by Abbey's blog and leave a comment to vote, or email a vote. Please help me out and vote for Krystal, nominee #5! Pass this along to any and everyone, and let's get Krystal to win! Thanks!

The SPREAD THE LOVE contest is now in full swing!

I wanted to let you know that your nominee was chosen...so now its time to get voting!

I would suggest you email everyone you know, post it on facebook, blog it, and do whatever you can

to encourage your friends and family to go on and vote for your nominee...

The rules are simple...

They can vote on the BLOG www.akstudiodesign.com/blog

-or-

vote by sending me an EMAIL at akstudiodesign@yahoo.com casting a vote for the nominee.

One thing...they can't leave comments on facebook {its against facebook rules} so make sure you tell people that!

Only one vote per person!

Voting ends Midnight on Valentines Day

Good luck to your nominee!!!

Now go SPREAD THE LOVE!!!

Word(less) Wednesday

2011-02-09T18:38:00.001-08:00

Started on the cleaning of the basement tonight. In the process I found some memories. 2 staff polo still in their plastic bags from the trading post...

All in all the cleaning spree was productive, a trip to the thrift store and we now have a couch to sit on in the basement. The desk is ready to go next. Yay for progress!

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Sunday Cookies

2011-01-30T22:16:00.000-08:00

Jonathan made chocolate chocolate-chip cookies tonight for us! Yum!

Snowshoe Adventure

2011-01-29T16:10:00.001-08:00

Since the weather has been really nice (low to mid 50s all week), and we had a free Saturday with no major plans, we decided to break out the snowshoes (while we still can), and go into Cedar Breaks from the BrianHead Ski Resort side. During the winter Cedar Breaks National Monument has a winter yurt that offers hot chocolate to people who wish to stop by while cross-country skiing or snowshoeing through the area. The road is closed to vehicles all winter, so you have to ski or snowshoe in for the most part (I guess you could snowmobile). Apparently A LOT of other people also thought a little winter adventure was a good idea, the small parking area was packed (tour bus included). We got our gear on and started out on the road/trail into the area. We got to the yurt about the same time that a group of about a dozen people on skis were there. We talked to one of my former PE professor who was up there with a tour group. We may have to borrow some of his cross country skis sometime, the last time I went cross country skiing was the Winter Biathlon with the Venturing crew probably 10 years ago.
We followed the ski trail through the trees, and stopped along the way to see the views of the red rocks with snow on them. Because of the lack of recent snowfall, most of the trails were more ice and really hard snow, so it was not as fun as if it was fresh powder, but that also meant it was not as hard as it is when it is fresh powder. We made it a little over 2 miles into the park before turning back. When we got back to the yurt (with one VERY tired little puppy), we stopped and talked to the staff for a little bit before trekking the last mile back to the car. Grand total it was about 4.5 miles of snowshoeing!All in all, it was definitely a great day! Next Saturday is currently unplanned...maybe another winter adventure?

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-26T19:08:00.000-08:00

Zoeken is pretty well trained, she sees us putting on our coats in the morning and she goes and climbs in her crate and waits for one of us to go and close the door. She even climbs in there at lunchtime when we are not leaving right away. Silly Puppy.

Lazy Sunday

2011-01-23T19:57:00.001-08:00

I woke up this morning with a headache and feeling dizzy. I couldn't find a piano sub for Primary so I went. Luckily we were combined for junior and senior primary so I was able to go home early. Zoeken and I spent the rest of the day being lazy and taking a nap hoping to sleep off the dizzy feeling. I am feeling better and hopefully it was just a short-term one day event.

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Coaching Luncheon

2011-01-22T21:11:00.000-08:00

Jonathan and I got to go to SUU and enjoy a nice luncheon today. The luncheon was hosted by Dr. Steve Lunt, recognizing the coaches throughout the state that have taken 1st or 2nd place in a state championship. I have been fortunate enough to be invited to this luncheon for the last 3 years because of the success of my girls on the track team. Sometimes I feel I can't really take any credit for this award because I was not the one that was out there on the track actually competing, I was on the sidelines yelling.

After the luncheon we were given tickets to attend the SUU men basketball game, they were playing IUPUI so Jonathan was pretty excited, he even donned his IU hoodie. At halftime we go out onto the court and Dr. Lunt presents each coach with a plaque.I always feel really honored to be able to be there surrounded by all the great coaches throughout the state, I only hope I can continue to live up to the legacy that is the SUU Coaching Factory.

Dehydrator Test Use

2011-01-18T18:44:00.001-08:00

We are trying out our dehydrator tonight and making some dried Apple snacks. We also want to try fruit leather at some point, but we will have to work on that.

I am also learning how to use my new phone. :)

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New Phone

2011-01-17T19:36:00.000-08:00

I know this weekend was already a weekend with a really big new item for us, but today we went and got our phones consolidated to one plan and got me a new phone. I have a smartphone (htc droid incredible) for the first time (my brother Glenn would be so proud, and also shocked). All of my phones (3 of them) were the very basic call/text phones. Now I have a phone that can check my email, the weather, twitter, facebook, even do posts for this blog. We will see how this all works out, mostly I need to just learn how to use all the features on this phone!

Healthy Snacks/Cookies

2011-01-16T21:51:00.000-08:00

Sunday evening was spent at my parents house and I did what used to be done every Sunday growing up, I made cookies. Jonathan helped this time, so that was fun. We picked a healthy version of Pumpkin cookies, they had oatmeal and whole wheat flour in them. We also used dark chocolate chips since those are the better choice of choc chips, right?

Anyway, now we have some healthy snacks (or cookies) to munch on during the week which I am looking forward to. My sister Amber will probably be eating them for breakfast this week!

Pumpkin Cookie Recipe
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 teaspoon each cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla
2 cups flour
2 cups oatmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 cups chocolate chips (entire bag)

Cream the sugar and shortening together. Add eggs and mix well. Stir in the spices and vanilla. In another bowl combine flour, oatmeal, backing powder, and salt. Alternate stirring the dry ingredient mixture and the pumpkin into the wet mixture. Add chocolate chips, stir evenly to get them good and mixed into the cookies.

Bake at 375 degrees for 12-13 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

Side notes: If you use an entire can of pumpkin-about 1/2 cup more than recipe calls for-add about another half cup each of flour and oatmeal...we didn't really measure this part out. Ours were extremely dense, and did not spread out at all, the first batch looked exactly like they did when we put them in the oven, still in ball form. The rest of the batches we smashed with a bottom of a cup so they would look more like cookies when they were done cooking (dip cup in bowl of water do cookie dough does not stick to the cup).

New Car!

2011-01-15T20:24:00.000-08:00

Today was quite the day for us, we went in to look at getting a new car for us. We had picked one out from online to test drive, we showed up and went for a drive. It went well, but as we were walking around the car we noticed one side didn't quite match up with the other side. When we opened the trunk we found out there was two little cracks...this apparently certified pre-owned car with a clean title history had been in a wreck, maybe just a small little bumper accident, but still...the fact that the car had body work done on it we knew it was not a car we wanted. So we kept looking and found a different one, and although we had not planned on looking at a brand new car, we did. This car had a few more of the extras that we had discussed would be nice to have, but not necessarily something we needed. We thought about it for a few hours, and we also played with the numbers a few times to see how this could all work with our budget. After mulling it over, we ended up going back to the dealership and we ended up buying the car.We are now the proud owners of a 2010 Prius III! :) Now to try to learn all about the things this car can do. We are looking forward to our new car and the fun adventures and road trips we can take in this little car and test out the 48-51 mpg!

Silver Bullet Version 2.0!

Friday Photo Birthday Party

2011-01-14T20:10:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to our little niece, Katryn! She is turning 3 on Tuesday, but we celebrated tonight with chocolate soup (super thick hot cocoa), lots of flavor stir-ins for said chocolate soup, cupcakes, ice cream, oh and there was some veggie lasagna and stuffed pasta shells for "real food" as well.She loved playing with her cousin Kyla because they were able to play Ring Around the Rosy together, which they played for like 30 minutes straight.The puppies had fun playing together and running laps around the front yard and chasing each other nonstop. They are starting to wind down now and sleep will set in easily for them (at least for Zoeken) tonight.

Now the boys are playing xbox games, and my sister and I are getting ready to do a workout together.

Three Things Thursday

2011-01-13T20:14:00.000-08:00

1.) It is almost our 3-month anniversary, and we now have all our wedding pictures that we got printed from our photographer, as well as the wedding album with 300 prints of our pictures, and the final disk of ALL pictures taken by our photographer.2.) Looking forward to seeing family this weekend, and go to our niece's 3-year old birthday party! There is bound to be good food, her mom is Krystal!

3.) Going to test drive a car this weekend, so who knows....we may be new car owners soon!

Wordless (almost) Wednesday

2011-01-12T17:29:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when you have a zucchini in your fridge that needs to be used up, and then you find the recipe! WIN!

Fresh homemade zucchini bread!

And this is a new addition to our kitchen - a dehydrator! If our garden works out as good as Jonathan hopes, we will need this dehydrator. We are excited to try it out.

Cold Commutes

2011-01-11T15:43:00.001-08:00

Lately the mornings have been downright COLD! We are talking low single digits, sometimes even low single NEGATIVE digits! Luckily the walk to work is only 10-12 minutes, but those 10-12 minutes are chilly that is for sure.
This morning Jonathan was nice enough to make me some hot apple cider (he even put caramel in it - YUM!). We both had our little Sigg thermos mugs for some nice warm drink when we got to work.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-01-05T19:01:00.000-08:00

Here is how my Wednesday started...FAIL.

A Long Winter Nap

2011-01-04T18:37:00.000-08:00

Lately it has been rather cold here as a cold front has moved through the state. It's always cold this time of year! However, I feel this picture describes describes what most of us would love to spend the winter doing...napping in front of the heater, curled up in a nice soft warm bed. This is Zoeken's absolute favorite place since she has recently discovered the heater blows nice warm air. Toasty! The funniest part is that she barely fits into that small bed, and only fits when she is all curled up. I like our puppy, she makes me smile.

Sunday Walk

2011-01-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

Since it is a new year that also means the changing of the time for church. Since two wards/congregations share our church building we rotate who has afternoon and who has morning church. I prefer morning church, and now that is the rotation we are on! After church got out Jonathan and I decided to take Zoeken for a walk up the canyon to see the frozen waterfalls. It was a nice walk and it allowed the spastic puppy get some energy out!

Start of the Year

2011-01-01T20:10:00.000-08:00

Snowshoeing at Cedar Breaks! The temperature was in the high teens, and then there was the wind...COLD! However as soon as we were moving, we warmed up pretty quick.

There was about 5-6 feet of snow, we stuck mostly to the snowmobiling groomed trails since they are easier to walk on, especially for Zoeken.
Check out the sweet gear Zoeken has for winter snowshoe adventures! We need to get her a jacket if we keep going on adventures in weather like this...if she wasn't moving, she would be shivering.

2010 Year Summary

2010-12-14T18:32:00.000-08:00

This year has flown by! This is a very brief summary of our adventures we have had this year! There were so many things that happened, it was hard to narrow it down to 12 main things. It has been a good year, and we are looking forward to 2011 and all the fun things it may bring!

So here is to a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Thanksgiving Weekend

2010-11-28T08:24:00.001-08:00

How we spent our first Thanksgiving! (the picture collages were not resized, so if you want to see more details...or read the text, you should be able to click on the picture collage and see it bigger).
We cooked all of the meal ourselves and were pretty happy with how it all turned out.
Zoeken enjoyed getting a chance to see just how much fun snow can be, especially when it is as deep as she is tall!
We tested out the snowshoes our first night there, just wandering around the cabins and the trees around the Pinewoods Resort. It was so much fun!
Friday we headed out on an actual little wander around in the trees and meadow nearby. A hike of sorts, except with 2 feet of snow, you definitely don't go very far in all the time you are spending out there. :)
It was tons of fun, and a great cross-training activity. I think we are both hooked and want to go more often, and now that there is snow now, we are already planning our next snowshoe adventure! Anyone want to come join us?

Snowshoe Sports!

2010-11-25T16:46:00.000-08:00

Sports are a lot easier when there is 2 feet of snow and you have snow shoes to stand on that snow! Happy Thanksgiving from Duck Creek Winter Wonderland!

Thankful Turkey!

2010-11-23T18:31:00.000-08:00

So I was checking out my sister's crafty blog (Check it out here if you want), and I saw the thankful turkey that she made for her family. As I mentioned in an earlier post we had one growing up and we would stuff it completely full. It almost became a game to see if we could stuff it so full that we could barely get the papers to go in the slit at the top.

Well after seeing Jenni's approach at making a thankful turkey with a basket, I decided I would try that method. We have several baskets sitting around leftover from miscellaneous things dealing with the wedding, that need to be used for something (or given to the thrift store). So for about $2 total (if you count the basket I already bought for the wedding), we now have a Thankful Turkey for us!

Step 1: Cut handle off basket (the basket was originally $1 at a clearance last year, so even though I did not buy it for this project, it still keeps this project very affordable).
Step 2: Cut out a turkey neck/head...I am no artist, and I don't pretend to even come close, so after examining pictures online I managed to make a turkey neck and head to attach to the basket. I didn't want to stuff it, so I just used a popsicle stick to hold it stiff and upright (we will see how long that lasts).
Step 3: cut out felt feathers. I had to go to JoAnn's Fabric Store (that is now just a 1 minute walk from home) and buy some more felt pieces (they are 4/$1 this week). I had some felt pieces already that were leftover from a felt Nativity I did a few years ago, but needed some more fall colors, so off to the store I went.
Step 4: glue everything together. I am a little lazy, and used my hot glue gun for sticking everything together instead of sewing it or anything fancy.
Step 5: stuff the turkey with things that we are thankful for!

Thanks for the great idea Jenni! Who knows what crafty idea I will come up with next to do for our home?

1 Month Anniversary

2010-11-16T19:33:00.000-08:00

Anniversaries are for remembering your wedding day right? What better way to remember your wedding by using actual decorations from your wedding!
I really am glad that we got this little hiking couple statue, we did not use it as a cake topped, but rather just a centerpiece that we felt helps to define us and who we are. Maybe a little tribute to the fact that we met when we were both backpacking guides at Philmont...For dinner we even had little candy dishes, and yes those dishes are full of the candy, nuts, and wedding mints still leftover that we are trying to use.

October Recap

2010-11-12T10:47:00.001-08:00

Well I would probably have to say the main event for October was our wedding! :) It was great to have all the family from both sides at our wedding, and it was fun to visit with people that we don't get a chance to see as often as we would like.

October in and of itself was super busy with wedding events: Bridal Showers,
Open House in Orem, the actual Wedding, Open House in Floyds Knobs...

Throw in a couple of Cyclocross races - including watching races in Louisville, Jonathan racing a Halloween double cross weekend, homemade Halloween costumes for the Incredible Lozons, and finishing up of the Cross Country season and you have one SUPER BUSY month!

September Recap

2010-11-12T09:32:00.000-08:00

I realize that September has long since come and gone, but we were busy and I never got around to posting things that happened until now. I think I need to do scrapbook pages for each month like my sister and post those to summarize all the things that go on in our busy lives!

September:

Jonathan's birthday weekend: took Zoeken on her first hike in Parowan, and also able to go up the canyon and just enjoyed a nice day together.

Formal Wedding Pictures: to free up some time on the actual wedding day, we did some formal pictures beforehand.

Cyclocross: Jonathan started the cyclocross season! He LOVES cyclocross, possibly more than road bike racing.

Enjoy the pictures!

Friday Photo-Give Thanks

2010-11-12T09:31:00.000-08:00

FRIDAY PHOTO

Can you believe that it is November already? I will one day catch up on this blog and get a few things put up here that summarize our adventures for the last month or so.

November is the month for the Thankful Turkey. Growing up we had a plastic container (usually a cleaned out butter tub) that had a turkey cover on it. We would write on slips of paper things we were thankful for and the days and weeks leading up to Thanksgiving we would work on stuffing our Thankful Turkey. Thanksgiving morning at breakfast my dad would take the turkey cover off the container, and he would go through all the slips of paper and read all the many things that we were thankful for.

What are some things that you are thankful for? Now is the time to remember and to count all your blessings!

Wedding Events #1

2010-10-12T09:23:00.000-07:00

Here are just a few of the pictures from the Open House in Orem this last weekend! We had a really simple outdoor yard open house for friends to drop by and say hi. We got all dressed up fancy, there was a few fall refreshments (apple cider, cookies/brownies, fresh fruit with dip, and miscellaneous candies and nuts-those were a favorite of the small children), a crisp fall evening, and great friends to share this day with! It was a great weekend!

Fun times, and even more fun to come with 3 more events!

August Recap

2010-09-16T08:50:00.001-07:00

So I realized it has been a while since we posted anything on this blog...life got kind of busy.

Here are some highlights (and pictures if I can find some good ones).

Cross Country Meets started - the girls have had a GREAT start to the season, it's exciting. I am looking forward to seeing what they will accomplish this season.

Zoeken - She is continuing to grow (currently in mid-Sept she weighs almost 30 pounds). She loves being around us, and gets super excited to see us coming home. She also enjoys naps, but then again who doesn't enjoy a good nap every now and then? She enjoys riding in the car (which is good for us), but she does like the passenger seat and not the back seat or the floor.
Concert in Vegas - A long night, but a fun one. Jonathan found out that Yonder Mountain String Band was coming to Vegas (not quite the venue you would expect for that band, but it is the closest venue for us to attend, so we were excited). Some friends from Cedar also were there, so we were able to go down, hang out with friends and enjoy some live bluegrass music.

Garden - we pulled up all our carrots, they were slightly mutated, but they still tasted like carrots, so that is good. I think we just need some better soil so they can grow straight.

Back to School - This year I have a student teacher so that has been helpful with staying caught up on grading (I am taking a lot less school work home to work on). It has also been easier to leave for cross country meets because I already have a teacher. With the start of the school year, they also started the track project. After 5 years of being promised our track would be getting replaced, it is finally actually happening. I watched them tear up the original track, pour new asphalt, and then last step is supposed to happen soon...the rubber surface. I am so excited and look forward to the spring and track season when we will get to use this nice new track.

Cedar City Half Marathon - I was invited by a parent to join the "Fabulous Five" committee in planning and preparing for a Half Marathon race in Cedar Canyon. This is the first year for the race and there are lots of details to work through. We really want this year to be just amazing, so people will continue to come back and the race will be here to stay. I am so excited that there is a local race taking place. It is different to be behind the scenes of a race, but it has been enjoyable to see if from the other side. Maybe next year I will run in it.

Park City Marathon - This marathon did not go really well, but I still enjoyed the race (entire blog post is posted on my running blog). It was a fun trip though with Jonathan and Zoeken.
Tour of Utah Circuit Race - While up in Park City we went to the pro criterium race for the Tour of Utah...lots of fast cyclists! We both ended up sunburned and had a VERY TIRED little puppy by the end of the day.

Wedding Planning - Invites are getting mailed out now. It is exciting that the wedding is getting so close now.

That's the summary of August. In just a little bit I will post about September.

YARD

2010-08-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the pictures before and after of the backyard. It looks so nice right now, and we are loving having grass in the backyard instead of sticker weeds and hot dry dirt.

Backyard Project

2010-07-20T11:26:00.001-07:00

Our latest project was the fence to block out the neighbors. I was sick of having trash blow into our yard, having their annoying dogs barking at me, stray toys ending up in the yard, and to keep our the mating dogs...yes I had to chase off two dogs from out of MY GARDEN!

We got pre-built fence panels from Home Depot, which made the project go much quicker.

The posts were mostly already there (we did have to mix up some concrete to redo 2 posts, and play with attaching a post to a post stump). We ended up putting the panels up, and just nailing them straight to the posts...instead of using the brackets and putting them in between 2 posts. We still have a little reinforcing to do on our side, and we need to fix the gate (so they can have access to the irrigation water ditch), but for all intents and purposes, the fence is up. I really hope that after we do the reinforcing it will not blow over in the wind that is so common here all year. We are so thankful for our neighbor and his shed of tools that helped make this project a little easier since our tools are still limited.

BEFORE

AFTER

And yes, the weeds in the backyard are almost as tall as some of our garden plants...but that is ok. The back-backyard we are not worried about.

Next project: GRASS! We will have a yard, it might take a while, but we are determined to make this house/yard a better place so we can enjoy being here. Maybe even have dinner guests over to eat on our patio.

Wedding Site

2010-07-03T08:53:00.000-07:00

This morning Jonathan, Zoeken, and I headed up the canyon to go for a little wander around the cabin we have reserved for the wedding. I had heard there might be an outside amphitheater that I wanted to check out for a ceremony site. Zoeken loved the wandering around, she is going to be a great hiking dog! She likes her new retractable leash...it allows her to wander farther, but she still can't completely get away from us so we like it too.We found the amphitheater, it was a short (0.1 mile) walk up a nicely groomed trail. As soon as we saw it, we both loved it. It was definitely US! There was a small stage where we could have the wedding ceremony take place. The audience seating is log benches (similar to Philmont campfire areas). There are plenty of folding chairs (and we won camp chairs) that we could also bring up for guests to sit in.

So, provided it does not snow (not completely unlikely in October here), we are thinking of having our ceremony at the amphitheater and using the wonderful nature (lots of pine trees) as background...no decorating necessary! This also makes it a little more casual of a wedding, which we are perfectly ok with...think wedding party in chaco sandals! If we have to walk up the trail, I don't want people to think they have to wear heels or dress shoes. Any comfortable shoes (or sandals) will work.
If it does snow, there are still 2 pavilions outside that we could choose from and have a ceremony outside, or there is the big room inside the cabin. We will have to wait until that week to see what we are going to do I guess.

Life and More Wedding Crafts

2010-06-30T15:31:00.000-07:00

With weather in the 90s, I have no desire to go outside. I did yesterday, and this is what I accomplished...BARK!We dug up all the bricks from the yard, and used them to make the border. Then I went to WalMart with the Zoeken in the car to pick up several bags of colored mulch (that is the technical name) and spread it out. I love how it looks! We are making progress, we will start at the house and work our way to the end of the yard.

When I am confined inside, I either nap (Zoeken's favorite pastime, so I figure why not join her?), clean/reorganize, or I work on wedding stuff. With the wedding, it is all coming together so well. Yesterday (after the yard work session), I sewed cloth napkins (to put underneath the centerpieces). After the wedding I will have several cloth napkins if anyone is interested (harvest gold and orange colored).

(see, they look pretty good under the vase of leaves)

Centerpieces: We don't want to have to worry about using the same decorating stuff at each open house (and transporting it in between each either), so we are coming up with different ideas. I have the centerpieces for the wedding and the Utah open house, so we still needed something for Indiana. This was the latest idea. Jonathan liked the idea of using a canning jar, but we couldn't find candles that were big enough for the pint jar size we originally were going to use (or we couldn't find them in a fall color). I stumbled across these votive candles at WalMart one day and they were the perfect color! Cranberry Mandarin is the supposed scent. We put it in a small jelly jar and realized it was perfect. Last night I played around with different combinations of jars/candles/ribbon/raffia...and this is the product that got Jonathan's approval (I think because I used the mini pumpkins).So today I got some jelly jars today and within an hour I had 12 more little centerpieces ready to get sent to Indiana for the open house there.
Baskets: We have lots of random baskets sitting around the house, and I knew we needed some for the wedding, so I sat down with the ribbon and leaves and now we have 2 more decorated baskets. One will hold the wedding programs for people to pick up, and the other one will be for cards.There will be none of the cardboard wedding cake card boxes at our wedding:
(I uploaded the full images, so you should be able to click on them and view them better if you want...it will be much easier when we have our own internet this Friday instead of stolen wi-fi with a low signal)

Engagement Pictures + Colors

2010-06-24T09:07:00.000-07:00

With almost a month of summer come and gone, the wedding plans are moving forward. Decorations are getting finished, or at least almost finished. We have started the invitation process and have made some progress with that. It's fun to see all our ideas start to come to life and become something real instead of just an idea in our head or written out.

The next big step in the wedding plans is our engagement pictures. They are scheduled to happen in a little over a week, so we are trying to figure out what we could wear so these photos will turn out nice. The hardest part I think is that we are both rather casual people, and we want that to reflect in our pictures. We don't want formal pictures of us all dressed super nice (that will happen with the wedding), because it won't reflect US and who we are. These pictures are to show us being us and happy together.
Colors...Our photographer gave us a few pointers about colors to wear for certain locations for our pictures, and I have looked into tips online as well...summer heat kills all desire to get things done in the yard, so I resort to the computer instead. We want to complement each other, but not look too "matchy." We already have matching photos of us wearing our Philmont staff uniforms. Last time we talked to the photographer we mentioned doing some shots at a playground with the bright colored toys, and some pictures in nature (we met at a camp as backpacking guides, surely pictures with trees and dirt would better suit us). The problem we face is not in coming up with outfit option ideas. We can coordinate colors and/or styles to each other, or at least we like to think we can. The problem we face with colors comes in a certain shade of orange...Jonathan's hair. :) Red-heads can only wear so many colors and have them look good on them. Normally photographers tell you to have the girl pick her outfit and then outfit the guy accordingly. We are doing it the other way...we are figuring out what Jonathan can wear, and then picking something for me to wear to go with it. We never were ones to do things like everyone else. So now we have a week or so to pool our ideas together, this weekend to get anything we might need, and hope that our pictures turn out how we hope...A-MAZING! :) Wish us luck!

Friday Photo

2010-06-18T16:43:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I have done a Friday Photo, but I did this collage in honor of my mother...today is her birthday! Happy Birthday Mom!My dad loves growing orchids, and loves having them in the house when they are in bloom. He inherited this love of orchids from his father. Personally I think it is a neat hobby.

First Road Trip

2010-06-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

Zoeken had her first road trip...5 hours in the car in just one day! That's a long time for a 2-month old puppy!

Her basket fit nicely on the floor of passenger seat...with the seat completely back. She was able to get some air conditioning blowing on her, and slept most of the way.

We found a gas station that had a pet area, she was more intrigued by all the smells of other dogs to make any use of the pet area.

We got to my parent's house and let her run around in the yard for a while to get out some energy. It is so nice to have a fenced in yard and let her run and wander safely. Then we continued on to our other errands. I got my ring cleaned and checked for the 6-month inspection. We went to Porcupine and used some of the cycling team vouchers for food. Then we went to Greg's house to pick up a new bike saddle for Jonathan and give Zoeken a chance to run around in a yard again. She loved playing with Greg's little boy and chasing various soccer/tennis/whiffle balls around the yard. Greg even gave her a new rope bone that is as big as she is!

When we got back to my parent's house, she ran around the yard again this time with Katryn. Katryn loves dogs, and the fact that Zoeken is small like Katryn, she had a blast running around the yard with the dog chasing her and making her laugh.

On Saturday we played outside all morning (she loves bounding through the snow and summer plants and exploring the grapes). Then we headed to my 10-year high school reunion at the park. It was about what we were expecting...LOTS OF KIDS EVERYWHERE!! I know most of my class is married and has a family, but still...it was kind of odd to see all my classmates with kids. We went as our little family...us and Zoeken!
Most of the kids all wanted to leave their moms and dads to come see the puppy (do you blame them, she is a cute puppy). I am glad that she is getting used to being around people...I don't want her to be a dog that hates anyone outside the family.

It was hot at the park, so we brought her back to the house to relax before heading back home. She is one worn out little puppy, which means she will probably sleep most of the drive back, if it is not too hot. Glenn has been great playing with Zoeken, complete with the "Eat Grass Cow" game that was so popular with us growing up.

All in all, I would say it was a good weekend, and we are glad that Zoeken does good in the car, since we tend to travel quite a bit to get to races and other activities.

Happy Birthday to Emily and Glenn this weekend! :)

Wedding Crafts

2010-06-03T06:15:00.000-07:00

With summer vacation officially started, I have used the time to finish some wedding crafts...the centerpieces!

We bought some fall leaf wreaths when Roberts Crafts was going out of business, and cut off the leaf bundles. I cut off sections of the leaves and rearranged them with the berry stems (also Roberts clearance). The vases and rocks were from the dollar store, and the ribbon was from Wal-Mart. It is nice to have them completed, even if it means they will just sit somewhere for the next 4 months!

Here are some individual pictures to get a better idea of the centerpieces and fall theme we are having for the wedding.

Wedding Photographer

2010-05-23T18:05:00.000-07:00

Well, we found a photographer for the wedding!

Timeless Creations: DarLa Reid, a local photographer here in town, who I happened to find online (yay for technologoy). We met with her in person on Friday and saw some of her work and talked to her about what we want for the wedding photography. She seems really easy to work with, and just laid back, so I think it will turn out good having her as our photographer.

With school finishing up, we can start moving forward with the wedding plans!

Salem Touring

2010-05-23T17:55:00.000-07:00

When we went to Boston in April, we spent a day sightseeing in Salem. Here are some of the pictures (thanks to Picasa Collages) from our day of being a tourist.

Plants and Bikes

2010-05-02T18:31:00.000-07:00

I still to update this and write about our trip to Salem, but that requires some actual writing. So for now I will post some pictures of what we have been up to this last week.

We planted some seeds to get our garden started.
Jonathan got his new cycling team kit.

Easter Weekend

2010-04-04T17:53:00.001-07:00

For Easter weekend, we headed north for a bike race and to hang out with my family.

Jonathan's race went well, he took 5th overall and he LOVED the entire race.

We colored some Easter eggs...

...and played with Moya (or watched Glenn and Katryn play/attack/tease Moya).

Spring Fail!

2010-04-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

April 1, 2010...April Fools Day

Well, Mother Nature sure fooled everyone here! We all thought it was spring, but this morning we woke up to a foot of snow (and still snowing). I guess Mother Nature wins for the best April Fools Joke!

Wedding Planning

2010-03-27T16:42:00.000-07:00

So the wedding plans are moving forward, even with our busy lives and it sometimes feels like we have no real time to plan things. Oh well, I guess that is just how life in general is.

A few weekends ago I went up north to visit Krystal in the hospital. While there I was able to spend some time getting a few little things taken care of. With the wedding being in the fall, we want to incorporate colorful fall leaves into the wedding decorations. However with the sporadic and randomness that seems to be Cedar weather, we have no idea if we will be able to have real leaves, or if we will have snow...so plan B is the one we are kind of going with, and that is to use some fake leaves that at least look good. We found some leaves that we like, so I had a little craft night with Katryn helping. We put together some of the leaf bundles (currently just held with twist-ties - don't worry I will use floral tape and wire in the final products), berry stems, and little twigs. Some of the larger bundles will be used with the bridesmaids bouquets instead of flowers, and then the small bundles we will use as centerpieces for some of the tables at the luncheon.

It was exciting to put together these arrangements, and see the things I have imagined up in my mind becoming something real instead of just a thought or picture in my mind. I enjoy being able to do crafts (however I don't consider myself a super crafty person, it is jut something I enjoy).

Another major step in the wedding planning happened this week. We found a suit for Jonathan!Pictures never really show it exact, but it actually is the right shade of brown we wanted. The best part is that it fits, the pants are actually REALLY long! Now that we know the brown of the suit, we can start to get the rest of the wedding party attire figured out and finalized! Yay!

Snowy Sunday

2010-02-21T16:19:00.000-08:00

Our 50 degree weather quickly changed this weekend, and we got dumped on with snow. For the most part the sun comes out later on and the snow is so wet that it melts quickly. We took the opportunity of a lazy Sunday morning to head up the canyon and wander up the little bike path trail and maybe catch a few pictures of the snow. Here is what we have from this morning.

Save The Date!

2010-02-16T17:00:00.001-08:00

Ok, so the other night while watching the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics, Jonathan and I sat down and began the little project of our Save The Date cards. Since we are just having a small ceremony with our closest family and friends there were not too many cards to make. We got a new paper cutter at Roberts Crafts with a 50% off coupon to help with the cutting out...I think every card is a slightly different size, but they all meet the minimum postcard size, so that's good.

Things are starting to come together for the wedding, and we are starting to get more things finalized and put together, so it is kind of exciting. I will try to keep this blog posted with the latest information.

We did set up a wedding website on "The Knot" that will list all the hotel information when we find out about hotels for all the out of town guests. This website also has our registry information on it (currently we are registered mostly at Target).

Weekend Wedding Road Trip

2010-01-20T13:16:00.000-08:00

Tom Hill and Becca Walker got married! We took a road trip to Santa Fe for the event.

Friday as soon as school was out Jonathan and I packed up the car (ok, so it was already packed up), but we were on the road headed south. The plan was to stop somewhere and get something to eat along the way...unfortunately, the route we took ended up not really passing anything except sketchy gas stations, Indian Trading Posts, and a whole lot of NOTHING.
We ended up making it all the way to Flagstaff, Arizona before finding something that looked decent enough (4.5 hours later). We were staying in Flagstaff for the night, and there was a Village Inn next door to the Super 8, so we went over there and ordered some dinner to go, and went back to the hotel and watched "A League of Their Own" while eating our breakfast dinner meal.
Saturday morning we woke up early and got on I-40 headed East towards New Mexico. The sun was just starting to rise, so that was kind of fun to see as we were driving...until the sun was actually up, then it was right in our face and made it hard to see while driving.

We eventually made it to the Land of Enchantment, and then to Santa Fe - the final destination for the day. We checked into the hotel and tried to see where everyone else for the wedding was. Ended up going next door to the Flying Tortilla for some lunch. Tom came over to the diner and met with us to give us some details of where the chapel was (30-40 minutes depending on lights), and directions so hopefully we wouldn't get lost on the way there (we are Philmont rangers, we should know how to read directions and an atlas).

After getting changed into something other than traveling clothes, we headed out to the chapel. Tom said they had found this chapel through google and they fell in love with it the first time they saw it. It was a little white chapel next to the Buffalo Thunder Resort (I know, the resort's name is a little odd). Inside the chapel it was set up for the ceremony in the front and a few tables at the back for the dinner after. It was a really low-key event, nothing too fancy or elaborate, I liked it. Becca looked so great when she walked in, but the look on Tom's face was even better...he was so happy to see Becca coming down the aisle. I was happy for both of them. After the ceremony and a few pictures we moved to the back of the chapel for the dinner and some visiting with friends.
Our table was the Philmont staff table, which made it lots of fun, we all had things to talk about (even if it all resorted back to a certain ranch in Northeastern New Mexico). Reminiscing and story-telling took up the time during the meal.

Once the dinner was over Becca and Tom invited anyone that wanted to, to come over and join them in the VIP area of the Blue Lounge. Jonathan and I headed back to the hotel to change into slightly more comfortable clothing/shoes and then we went to join our friends. It was a more relaxed atmosphere and it gave everyone a chance to just sit and visit. There was some dancing, Tom and Becca had their first dance to Lady Ga Ga. There was mostly just visiting, I was able to visit with Becca and actually get to know her a little bit better. She asked about our wedding plans (told us to elope - it's easier), and explained some of the things she found out from hers. Jonathan was able to visit with some of his close friends from Philmont and catch up with them, so all in all it was a good evening. Thanks to Liz we actually have a picture of us from the weekend (we somehow managed to not take any pictures of us).

Sunday morning came and after hitting up the hotel for their continental breakfast and saying goodbye to the new Mr. and Mrs. Hill, we were on our way back to Utah. 9.5 hours later we were in Cedar City and ready for the holiday on Monday and a chance to sleep in.

Photography?

2010-01-20T10:29:00.000-08:00

So Jonathan and I have been looking around to see what options we might have to get a photographer for the wedding. This is one of the local photographers that I have found, and I have been impressed with the pictures she has on her blog. And as it turns out she is doing a drawing for a free mini-session! :)

If you get a chance, check our her website and let us know what you think.

Holidays Together :)

2010-01-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

I know I already posted this in my weekly rambling, but I figured it would be good to post it here as well.

Jonathan flew out to Indiana on Christmas Eve early in the morning. I stayed with my family for about a week before flying out to join him.

The first day (Tuesday) I got there we had a late lunch with his parents at Wicks Pizza. That night we decided to go to a Providence Basketball game at the Holiday Tournament at Silver Creek High School. It was nice to go out to the game and watch it.

On Wednesday we went for a run on Knobstone Trail (Jonathan's favorite trail). We went by and saw Deam Lake.
As we were running the trail I was starting to struggle. I couldn't get enough air, and I was starting to get a dizzy and light-headed feeling. Jonathan quickly realized that I was having a hard time, so we turned back. The run ended up only being 2.5 miles, but we were able to get a run and I was able to see some of the trail that Jonathan grew up and loves. One day we will be able to make it back and hike more of the trail. That night we watched some old family movies from when Jonathan and his sisters grew up. It was fun to see them and get a better glimpse into Jonathan's past and some of the things they did as a family growing up in Indiana.

Thursday we did a run around the roads right by Jonathan's house. It was an easy 4 mile run, and we were both glad that we made it out to get the run in. After lunch with his parents at Ramsi's, we went around to a few places ourselves. We stopped by Pacers and Racers (where I picked up 2 new Christmas ornaments that I love!)...I always find so many things that I want when I go to a running store. We went by Quest (where Jonathan used to work), and visited with some of his former co-workers (outdoor gear stores are not much better than running stores - so many things that would be fun to have). We were also able to drive past the Louisville LDS Temple while we were in the area. New Years Eve was spent with Jason and Lindsey at Jason's house. We picked up some carryout food from Tumbleweed and then we sat around and played wii. I have decided that I am better at wii bowling than regular bowling, and I am not good at wii tennis at all (Jonathan and Jason enjoyed playing that one against each other, and that was fun to watch). We watched the ball drop, the subaru car jump, and then we called it a night and headed home to watch a movie.

On New Years day after sleeping in (yes, we both took full advantage of the no work during the holidays and enjoyed a chance to sleep in), we got things together and headed to the Kleins for a nice family meal. It was a great meal (as they always are), and it was fun to visit with his extended family. After the meal was picked up we got out the dominoes and began a fun game of Mexican Train Dominoes.Jonathan ended up winning I think (even though we made him keep his extra dominoes he drew one turn), and I was a close second. I always enjoy games, especially ones with family or friends.

On Saturday we packed up everything and left the house to go to the airport. We had flights out of Indianapolis (they were cheaper than Louisville for some reason), so we had to drive about an hour and a half to Indianapolis. Before we knew it our trip was over, and we were sitting in the airport at the gate waiting for our first flight of the day.We had a QUICK stop in Milwaukee to change plans, and then got to Denver. The flight was delayed, and we ended up sitting in Denver for a little while waiting. Too bad security is such a pain in airports, or I could have gotten a chance to visit with Jenni, since she only lives 10 minutes from the airport. Oh well. We finally landed in SLC and my mom brought us back to Orem. After some sleep, we packed up the car and headed back to Cedar.

It was a good vacation for both of us, and we are looking forward to more vacations together. The next trip we have will be to New Mexico for our friend Tom's wedding.

Birthday

2009-12-14T13:49:00.000-08:00

Saturday December 12 was my birthday, so Jonathan and I decided we would go out that night. We went to dinner at The Old Spaghetti Factory (no long wait even with 30+ people standing around waiting, since we were a party of 2). After dinner we ventured to downtown Salt Lake City to go look at the lights. Traffic was awful!! Finding a legal parking spot was almost impossible. We finally found somewhere to park up in the avenues by the Capitol building and walked down to Temple Square.

We wandered around Temple Square just looking at the lights. They decorate every branch on the tree and I think it looks so cool. It was crowded, which made it not as fun, but that's what we expected since we were going on a Saturday night. Some of these pictures we took, and some we stole off the internet since we didn't take that many (there were so many people there - as you can see from one of the pictures, that stopping to take a picture was too much of a hassle).

I love Christmas Lights and so it was fun to bundle all up and walk around looking at all the lights.

Wedding Location

2009-12-06T13:44:00.000-08:00

Jonathan and I were able to reserve the SUU cabin up Cedar Canyon for our wedding. We thought this would be perfect for us.

If the weather cooperates we could do something outside with hopefully some fall colors, and if weather is miserable we can move inside.

I think it will be a nice location. It is about 10 miles outside of Cedar, so we will pretty much have the location to ourselves with just our family and close friends around to share in our special day.

We will be going out in the next couple of weeks to look at the cabin closer and make sure it will work for us (and of course to take some better pictures). We will post pictures when we get them.

Wedding Date!

2009-11-30T15:56:00.000-08:00

As of right now this is what we have:

We will be getting married in Cedar City, Utah on October 16, 2010
(which just happens to be Sweetest Day!)

We will be having a reception in Indiana on October 23, 2010
Possible casual open house/get together in Utah the week before on October 9, 2010

Engagement

2009-11-30T14:44:00.000-08:00

On November 21, Jonathan and I went for a hike. We were kind of in need of some sort of out-of-house activity. We decided to go to Zion National Park and do one of the longer hikes there (Observation Point). I was looking forward to going hiking, since we are both so busy, we don't get to go nearly as often as we would like to.

We got to the trailhead early enough that there was still parking spots available, and soon we were on our way. It was actually paved for part of the hike (woo for trails in a National Park), and so we were able to walk next to each other and just enjoy the slightly overcast morning. Since Observation Point is a longer hike, it is not as popular as some of the other hikes, so that limits the people interested in hiking it. It was also a rather chilly morning (perfect hiking weather), so that also limits people wanting to get out (they will wait until the sun is up all the way, and it is warm).

A little over an hour later we got to the top of Observation Point. It is right at a bend in the canyon, so you can look down the canyon towards the park entrance. It is higher in elevation than Angel's Landing (a very popular hike), and so you look down on that also. We had some snacks, and wandered around trying to find good spots to take our picture (what is a hike without pictures taken with the self-timer?) As people started to leave, we found a good spot to ourselves and set up the camera. After the picture took, we were standing there looking out at the canyon, the cliffs, and the little road at the bottom. Jonathan reminded me that a little over 2 years ago on a hike was when he asked me to go out with him and we "officially" became boyfriend and girlfriend. That always makes me smile when he brings up little things like that. Then he said, "I want to ask you another questions now." I looked at him as he got down on one knee and opened a ring box. "Will you marry me?" I gave him a huge hug and kiss and told him yes. Then I had him put the ring on my finger. It was perfect!

We stood there and enjoyed the moment for a little while before heading back down the trail. I don't remember much of the hike down, it was all kind of a blur, but I remember just feeling so excited and just plain happy. Jonathan makes me so happy, and I know that we can be happy together. He had called and talked to my dad earlier in the week when he got the ring, and wanted to make sure they were ok with him asking me. I am so glad that he included my parents in this, my family means so much to me, and I know they also appreciated that effort on his part.

We headed back to Cedar and then the phone calls started. I called my family to tell them I was engaged, Jonathan sent a picture message of the ring on my hand, "She said yes" to his family. We called friends to share our good news, and just enjoyed being with each other to tell our loved ones the exciting news.

Jonathan thought for sure that I kind of knew it was going to happen...I did not! I was so surprised when I saw him on one knee with a ring! I am so happy that we are now engaged.

Our journey is just now beginning!