First Swimming Lesson

Jaxon and I went with our friends to the pool today (indoor pool, of course...). It was Jaxon's first time! I'm not quite sure what he thought of it. He wasn't crying, so that's good, right? His face in these pictures express his feelings best. (Note: We didn't have our awesome camera with us on this outing, so the pictures aren't very good, but our little camera was better than nothing.)

Good boy, Jax!

A Fall Getaway

What started as an idea to go on a nice afternoon hike up the canyon, turned out to be a 2-day getaway trip up to Heber to enjoy the fall air. We spent much of our time swimming, fishing, and just enjoying the beautiful fall colors around us. It was a little spontaneous, but that's partly what made it so fun, and we figured we deserved it since we hadn't gone on a trip (just the two of us, now the three of us) for a long time!

Pumpkinland

Fall is here! This is my favorite season- it's such a pity it's so short here in Utah. Today, Jaxon had a play-date with his friend, Bennett, at Pumpkinland. Jaxon slept the whole time, but it made for some good pictures. 

We got a dollar off admission if we came in costume, so we did. :) My friend and I are excited for next year when they'll actually be old enough to walk around and enjoy it more. But there's no rush- I'm enjoying this small stage while it lasts.

The Space Center

Yesterday, we accompanied our friends to the Space Center in Pleasant Grove. Travis, Colby, and Rob had been there multiple times growing up. I had only been there once in sixth grade. We signed up for a mission simulation aboard the U.S.S. Phoenix and we each had a different job/title for that mission. I was in charge of operations, which was in charge of communications and my favorite, transporting people and things on and off the ship. Travis was the engineer, of course. :)

Our mission was to save hostages from this evil guy, and stop him from destroying another ship. My favorite part was when our captain, Colby, just ordered Rob to blow up the bad guy's ship 20 minutes into the mission. The people running the simulation didn't expect that, and though they complimented us for our quick thinking, reset the simulation and asked us to think of another way to handle it. The whole mission was about two hours long. It was so much fun, and we won!

Two-Year Anniversary

Yesterday marked our two-year anniversary, and we decided to celebrate by going to the Anniversary Inn in Salt Lake. We've never been there before, but had always wanted to go, so this was the perfect opportunity.

We stayed in two different rooms during our two night get away and both were fantastic! Last night, we dressed up and went to a nice Italian restaurant. It was so wonderful spending this time together as we reflected on the past two years, and talked about our hopes, goals, and dreams for the future.

I'm so grateful for a wonderful husband like Travis, and that we've been sealed in the temple for time and all eternity! I really can't imagine my life without him, and frankly, I don't want to. Our love for each other has grown so much since that day we were sealed together as a family, and we know it's only growing stronger everyday!

Clear Creek

Friends always ask me what I do over the summer now that school's out. Well, I work! Last summer, I was hired on to be a teacher at Clear Creek Summer Camp, which is basically a week-long outdoors camp near Scofield where we teach fifth-graders about the trees, flowers, animals, and the history of that area. It's a lot of fun, and I've learned a lot from working there these last two summers. My favorite part is catching pot-guts in homemade traps! My least favorite part is being away from Travis for the week. There's no cell phone reception, but there is a computer from which I can e-mail him.

(Don't worry, we only use the mouse traps to open
and close the trap's door...)

Last weekend, when Travis picked me up from camp, he surprised me with, lo and behold, another camping trip! My clothes were already dirty and still smelled like smoke from the long week, so why not? We met up with Rob, Kim, Colby and Kat around Payson Lakes. We always have so much fun together! I love this picture- it looks like I've been camping all week, and I love the difference in our sticks. I guess Teddy Roosevelt said it best: "Speak softly, and carry a big stick!"

Father's Day Fun

To celebrate Father's Day, I decided to surprise Travis with a canoe trip down the Provo River. We had a blast!

We rowed for a couple of hours down to Utah Lake and back, and had so much fun together! I am so grateful for Travis and the wonderful man that he is. He is such a strength to our family, and a wonderful influence to everyone around him. He'll be an amazing father one day!

Happy Father's Day! :)

Flashbacks

Last week marked the two-year anniversary of our engagement, so Travis and I decided to relive some memories of that day and go to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point.

This was the first place Travis took me on our engagement day. The entire week before, he had doorbell-ditched a poem on my doorstep every night, telling me about some of his favorite times we've had together. When he picked me up on the night of our engagement, he had rolled out a red-carpet from the car to my door- a real gentleman! We drove up to Thanksgiving Point and walked around the beautiful gardens (it was during this Tulip Festival), then had an elegant dinner at the Harvest restaurant. After dinner, we drove up Provo Canyon and visited the bridge where we had our first kiss. :) After dancing on the bridge, he knelt down and opened this beautiful ring box, in which he had installed a light (being an engineer...) that would turn on whenever the box opened. It was perfect because it was already so dark outside, and the light made the ring just sparkle! The best part of the whole night, though, was Travis asking me to spend the rest of time and eternity with him. And I said yes! :)

We had so much fun being together, looking at all the beautiful tulips and reliving memories. This will have to be a tradition for our family in years to come.

Wonders of Utah Valley

Knowing that winter is well on its way, Travis and I decided to enjoy was what left of the beautiful fall weather. So, hand in hand, we went on a short walk to the base of Bridal Veil Falls. I forgot how much more beautiful it is up close than when you're driving past it. It made me realize how lucky we are to have grown up in Utah Valley and be surrounded by all its beauties. Seeing the sunset glimmer off Utah Lake, the tall, majestic snow capped mountains, scenic drives through the canyons, so many things it has to offer! I don't know where Travis and I are going to end up as we travel down the road of life, and though there's no doubt we will be surrounded by other beautiful scenes there, I will forever be grateful to have been born and raised in Utah Valley.

Also, there's a company that wants to rebuild the old tram that used to run up to the top of the falls. That might be fun, but I'm not sure if they're going to get a lot of support for it. I could see it being a very profitable thing if they handled it correctly. It would definitely alter the natural appearance of the falls, but...I don't know. I guess we'll see what happens.

Fall Colors on the Heber Creeper

This past weekend, Travis and I were able to accompany my family on the Heber Creeper. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's a slow moving train that takes you on a scenic tour from Heber to Provo. It was tons of fun, but the best part of all was seeing the BEAUTIFUL fall colors! The colors seem so vibrant this year! It reminded me of how much Heavenly Father must love us to give His children this beautiful earth with all its creations to live on. He didn't have to do that, but He did because He loves us.