on sundays we picnic

sunday was an absolutely beautiful day, and Kendrick and I both felt like being somewhere other than a dark basement (which has lately seen quite an influx in spiders). it didn't take long for us both to agree on a picnic at Daybreak Lake. as soon as Kendrick was finished with his home teaching, the food was packed, the blanket was folded, and we were on our way (along with a particularly cute and fluffy brown thing).

we had a wonderful time enjoying the scenery, reading our books, and eating the delicious food we packed. Maizee also definitely didn't mind being out of the house, and enjoyed running around and seeing all of the other dogs. while Kendrick took a short nap, I walked Maizee over to the lake, where we both cooled off our feet in the shallow water. 

let's just say... I'm cool with all Sunday's being like this. 

definitely cool with it. 

into the wild...

we really wanted to do something fun and free for the 24th, so the idea of camping was pretty much a no brainer. granted, we didn't have any camping gear of our own, but after the help of an Amazon gift card and some awesome deal-finding, we had a nice tent and air mattress purchased for around $40 (these purchases were obviously easy to justify, as they can be used over, and over, and over). 

we had already recently scouted out some camping spots in the Bountiful mountains, so already had the location picked out as well. We were ready!

kendrick was off work around 2 'o clock on the 24th, so as soon at that hit, we were on the road and on our way. once in the mountains, it didn't take long for us to land upon the perfect camping spot. we set up our tent, blew up the air mattress, and got the bed put together.

I'd have to say that the most memorable part of the camping trip was getting the fire started. there were some scraps of bark and branches laying on the ground, but certainly not enough to keep a fire blazing until night time. also, a lot of the wood that was on the ground was wet from the rain that we had a few days prior, so none of that was really even usable. so, we had to resort to what made the most sense at the time- setting large rocks underneath fallen down trees, and having Kendrick jump on one end, in hopes that the weight would get the wood to snap. after much trial and error, we were finally able to cut the wood into fire-pit sized pieces by having Kendrick run over it with his car. ridiculous, yes? impressive? you betcha. admittedly, I wouldn't let Kendrick purchase a hatchet before this trip because I really didn't understand the need (he tends to make impulsive purchases whenever he finds something "cool"), but I get it now, honey, I get it!

before we got dinner started, I took a short stroll to get a good view of the sunset (and to take some pictures, of course). I don't know what it is about Bountiful, but it just knows how to do a sunset.  

while we still had a little bit of light, we decided to bring out the pellet gun and do some shooting. kendrick set up empty water bottles on severed tree trunks, and we took turns shooting them down.

our fire burned until it was dark, which allowed us to roast hot dogs and s'mores, the two components of any respectable camping trip. when it was time to call it a night, we realized something else we forgot- water to put out the fire! sure, we had a cooler with about 3 frozen water bottles, but those were the "ice" that was keeping everything in there cool. it was at this point that one of our worsts habits paid off for us as we were were able to round up about six half-full water bottles in the back seat of Kendrick's car (we are both terribly guilty of drinking a water bottle halfway, forgetting about it, and then chucking it in the back seat when it's too warm to drink).

it was a particularly cold night, but that could be due to the fact that we brought a few blankets rather than sleeping bags. once morning came, we were up and ready to head out. we were going to make breakfast, but our camp stove wasn't functioning right and Kendrick obtained a pretty gnarly battle wound from trying to break a large branch off of a tree.

we were on the road and headed home by noon (after some scenery pictures, of course). 

kendrick and I are both really excited to get more into camping, as this trip was a huge first step in learning what we need and don't need... because basically, we needed everything that we didn't bring. but, I'm always up for any kind of adventure with my best friend. :)

the big 25

as silly as it sounds, I've been excited to celebrate Kendrick's birthday since we got married. something about "married birthdays" has always seemed like so much more of a party. so, you better believe that by the time Kendrick's birthday came around, I was ready to go big.

the weekend started early, as we both decided to take Friday off work. we spent the morning at Lagoon, trying out the new roller coaster Cannibal (amazing... seriously), and then doing a little shopping at Nordstrom Rack. I let Kendrick pick out something for his birthday, and he decided on an awesome button up shirt. I have a hard time leaving a store empty handed, so grabbed a couple of darling candles that were on sale.we headed home after shopping, and took a quick power nap before our dinner reservation at the Copper Onion. 

the Copper Onion is an awesome restaurant downtown, and the food certainly did not disappoint. I settled on the carbonara pasta, while Kendrick stuck with the obvious choice- steak. in retrospect, I wish I had gone with another option, but Kendrick loved his dish- and that's really all that matters!

(I let him open a couple of presents at dinner- he was pretty pumped, as you can see)

we walked around downtown a little bit after that- which of course included City Creek.

saturday was a long and ridiculously fun day. the morning started out with some sleeping in, and then breakfast at Eggs in the City (one of our favorite spots). after breakfast, we headed over to the Cinemark theater in Sugarhouse where we saw the new Terminator (Kendrick's choice- obviously). this was hands down the best theater I've ever been too! it was recently remodeled, so all of the seats are huge, comfy leather recliners with foot rests. pretty amazing. 

we met up with Tawny and Keegan later that night, where we had dinner at Zupas, and then played some laser tag at Laser Quest. kendrick scored higher than all of us that night- he takes his laser tag pretty seriously.

sunday morning started out with me bringing Kendrick breakfast in bed. I made him eggs, hash browns, bacon and toast- and I was sure to make everything look super nice on a pretty silver tray- that included the smoothie being presented in a tall and fancy glass. however, as fate would have it, once Kendrick had the tray on his lap, he scooted up a little to get more comfy when BAM- there goes the smoothie, all over Kendrick, his food, and the bed sheets (you never really notice how sticky smoothies are until they are all over everything). luckily, all but the toast and half the hash browns were still dry, so Kendrick was still able to enjoy his breakfast in bed... just with a little less bed sheets this time. ;)

that afternoon, we had a birthday party at Kendrick's parent house. my parents ending up coming as well, along with our great friend Kamiya.  Kamiya surprised us by walking in with this huge present for Kendrick, which ended up being about five different sized boxes and lots of packing peanuts, which eventually lead to the beautiful Nixon watch that Kendrick has wanted for a while. well done, Kamichi! 

we ended the evening with a drive around beautiful Bountiful, looking at all of the gorgeous homes and enjoying the view of the valley. our last stop was at the Bountiful temple, where we had the perfect view of the sun setting.

also- I have to mention, Kendrick's birthday is also the day we got engaged last year, so it was fun reminiscing about that perfect day in Hawaii one year ago.

happy birthday Kendrick! 25 sure looks good on you, you handsome thing you.

family, fireworks, food

We decided to repeat our plans last year, and head out to Richfield for the 4th of July... which definitely is never a bad idea because Richfield knows how to do that holiday! With Friday the 3rd being a company-observed holiday, Kendrick and I were able to hit the road right after work on Thursday. Everyone was skipping out South for the holiday weekend, so traffic was insane at first, but we quickly made our way to Richfield in about three hours.

With Kendrick's parents living out in Bountiful now (we used to always stay at their house in Richfield), we were able to snatch up a room in his grandparents house, where most of his extended family was staying as well. In retrospect, a hotel may have been a wiser choice, as we soon realized that middle-of-the-day naps don't mix with a houseful of excited children- but either way it was fun being around everyone- Kendrick has the cutest cousins!

A large majority of our Friday was spent helping out at Kendrick's parents firework booth. Kendrick became quite the salesman while I had fun taking control of the cash register. However, it was so hot, so we were sure to take plenty of necessary snow cone stops throughout the day. That night, we watched an amazing firework show in the back yard of a neighbors house. It was hands-down one of the most outstanding shows I have ever seen, especially considering it was at someone's house!

Saturday, the Fourth, was obviously the funnest day of the weekend. The festivities began with a delicious family breakfast, and then enjoying the city's annual 4th of July parade down Main Street. The most memorable part was watching the little kids run out and gather as much candy as they could before the next float would come by and throw out even more candy.

We made our way to the city park right after the parade, where all kinds of food stands, shops, and inflatable rides were set up. Kendrick grabbed some delicious chicken wings while I opted for a large plate of nachos, and we both tried some deep fried cookie dough (don't know if I'll do that ever again, but Kendrick loved it!)

That night we had a fun barbecue on the grandparent's patio, and it was so nice being able to catch up with Kendrick's extended family, and even meet some new people! Dinner was followed with fireworks, fireworks, and even more fireworks! The city put on one heck of a show this year, and then Kendrick and his dad did one nearly as cool right after. It was so amazing being able to lay on the grass, watching fireworks explode right above my head, literally making the entire sky sparkle. Some of the fireworks felt so close that I had to cover my face, in fear that they would come down right on top of me!

Basically, to sum it all up, I'm already excited for the 4th of July next year. Really, really excited.

tawny and keegan

One of my best friends, Tawny, just got married, and I couldn't be more thrilled for her. Her and her mission met while on their mission, which reminds me a lot of Harmony and Jeff, which makes me love their story even more!

They were sealed in the Oquirrh Mountain temple on a beautiful and very sunny (hot) day. The sealing was absolutely perfect and I couldn't be more proud of my friend!

Their reception that night was at the cutest place called the Old McMullin house, and they had a s'more bar, which I thought was the coolest thing ever (little fire pits and everything).

Also, our husbands get along pretty great, so that's really awesome.

Congratulations, Tawny and Keegan! So, so happy for you.

animals, baseball, and rides

Life has been super busy lately- it feels like we have plans every single day/night. Kendrick and I are constantly checking our shared Google calendar, just to make sure that we haven't scheduled anything over an existing plan (wow, I just made us sound really important... but reality check, we're not.)

I could complain about how busy we have been- but we've actually be doing some pretty fun things!

About two weeks ago, we spent the morning at Hogle Zoo with my family. Too be honest, admission prices to the zoo have skyrocketed, so I was super grateful when I found out that Wendy was getting us all in for free! (If you have nothing to do for a summer- volunteer at the Zoo, it will pay off!) The highlight of our Zoo extravaganza was definitely the bird show- you see some incredible birds, and they fly so closely to your head that you can't help but wait for a bird's foot to get caught in some innocent bystander's hair. Another highlight was the half-priced food that we were able to get throughout the park- thank you again, Wendy!

Last week, we attended a Bees game with my parents. There is something about the atmosphere at a baseball game that is so incredibly satisfying. I don't know if it's the thrilling people watching, the deliciously over-priced food, or the game itself- but I love it. We each got a free hot dog that was included in the price of the ticket, and then Kendrick went back for a bratwurst while I treated myself to a chocolate ice cream cone the size of my head. The highlight of this night was definitely running into Danny and Wendy's cute little family- we had no idea they were going to be there! It makes me happy to see how big of a baseball fan my nephew Boston is already.

Each year, Kendrick's grandma does a large "birthday party" for all of her grandchildren, seeing that celebrating the birthday of each individual person in a constantly growing family is hard! Genius, in my opinion. This year, the celebration happened at Boondocks, and took place last Saturday. We had a great time driving go-carts, playing mini golf (this didn't last long, it was 100 degrees!), and trying out all of the arcade games- which was then followed by cashing in our tickets for multiple Fruities and Laughy Taffys. I truly felt like I was nine years old again.

Kendrick and I were lucky enough to get Lagoon season passes this year- and we have been adament in getting our moneys worth. So far, we have gone on two Saturday afternoons and one Tuesday night. As you probably already guessed, going Tuesday night was far more rewarding. We were able to jump on rides as soon as we got in line, and the sun was already on its way down so it was not nearly as hot. The highlight of the day was definitely going on Rattle Snake Rapids four times in a row (we were literally able to walk on each time). The first time around, everyone was scrambling around the small raft, desperate to avoid any and all contact with water. However, I thought up a fun and torturous game for the second round, where everyone had to stay in their seat and keep their hands on the middle wheel for the entire ride- no dodging water! As karma would have it, I was hit with the first huge wave of water, but everyone ended up getting their fair share soon after. By the fourth time around, we were all so completely drenched that the water didn't even bother anymore!

I'm so excited to see what else summer has in store for us!

worthy of a dance in the elevator

last Friday, I received the best news that I've had in a while- I was offered the Executive Assistant position that I had applied for at work!

I had been stressing about this position for about a month, because I really wanted it and interviews were taking so long to be conducted, which made me pretty discouraged. when my interview was finally scheduled, I had less than two hours to prep for it- it was so last minute! luckily, Kendrick works just down the street, and he came over as soon as he got my panicked text, just so that he could help me prepare and keep me calm. after a pep talk and quick prayer in his car, I was ready to slay that interview.

surprisingly, the interview was more of a discussion rather than the typical game of twenty-questions, like most interviews normally have. we got along great, and I could tell that our communication was on point, so I was able to fully relax. at the end of the interview, I was told that if two more interviews didn't have to be conducted- the job would be mine.

UM, yes! (I did a dance and three fist pumps in the elevator on the way back down to my desk).

I didn't find out if the job was mine until the very end of the next day. I had developed an intense stomach ache due to the unsurity of the situation. what if he met someone he liked better? what if I didn't meet all of the qualifications? yeah, I'm just super positive in situations like this.

at 4:55 on Friday afternoon, I finally went into the HR managers office. there was no way that I was letting the weekend go by without knowing! Greg, our HR manager, had promised me that he'd let me know by today, and I was going to hold him to that.

he smiled as soon as I sat down, "of course you got it!" he replied. turns out, Steve (the person I'd be working for) wanted to call me and extend the offer himself, but he got too busy. greg went on to tell me that Steve had even canceled his other interviews after meeting with me, except for the one that he conducted on the same day as mine.

we talked a bit more about the job and the compensation- which ended up being a lot more than I had expected, and I would officially be on salary- for the first time in my life!

unfortunately, Kendrick and I weren't able to celebrate that night because my stomach ache was getting progressively worse by the hour (apparently it didn't get the memo that I got the job), so we settled on watching movies while I kept a heat pad on it.

if there's one thing that this experience has taught me, it is that the blessings of tithing always come through. money has been tight lately- it feels like everything came at us at once. from a significant amount put into car repairs, unexpected tuition payments that we thought were covered, and car registrations, we have made sure to pay our tithing with each and every pay check. would that tithing money have helped with all of the money that we owed? definitely. would it have been worth it? no way. the Lord watches over those who obey his commandments, and that's something that I will never compromise.

also- on another note- Kendrick has been killing it at his job lately. he started just a month ago, and has already been approached by his supervisor twice, telling him that he's doing better than anyone on the training team, and that he's keeping her busy with all the works he's completing. I know that this isn't a job that Kendrick loves, and that it probably won't be long term, but I sure am proud of my husband for his amazing work ethic and devotion.

so in conclusion, all I can say is that we are both feeling very blessed lately. very, very blessed.