sun valley 2012

hard to believe the annual excursion to sun valley has already come and gone.

we look forward to this trip every year.

it's a family reunion of sorts mixed in with games, swimming, ice staking, eating, golfing, walking, shopping, late night chatting, biking, and making memories.

my grandparents are two of the most generous people i know, and i'm thankful that they make this trip possible.

saint george

we had a fun weekend away in st. george with my family.

highlights of the trip:

*driving through a smoky but beautiful sunset. it made me so sad to see the mountain burning.

*playing in the pool

*jack's swimming suit, sunglasses and adorable hat

*playing catch phrase. "what comes out of a milk's utter?" and "this is something you do in gym class..." were our favorite clues

*kennedy and paige trying on the most stylish one piece ensembles 

*farmer's market at tuacahn

*a smiling camel named jorge

*driving home with no a/c

it's awesome how a few days of vacation can send you home feeling like a completely different person. we are both feeling much better than we were when we left.

thanksgiving in paradise

now that i have done 100 loads of laundry, restocked our fridge with food and finally taken down halloween decorations to get our home ready for christmas, i want to tell you about our thanksgiving in paradise!

simply put, we spent a week where the hardest decision we had to make was what to eat for dinner. believe me, sometimes that was a hard decision. when we were on the ship our schedule went a little like this: eat breakfast, lay out, eat lunch, take a nap, eat dinner, visit the spa, go to sleep. see a theme here? clearly we did a lot of eating and sleeping. just how a vacation should be, right?

i didn't take many pictures because i was just enjoying myself the whole time. our first stop was cabo san lucas. we went snorkeling, saw a couple of whales and walked through the historic area of cabo which included an old church that was built nearly 300 years ago. we also ate lunch at a cafe where we were serenaded by the cutest little mariachi band. that moment was one of my favorites of the trip. i was thinking of everything i normally do on a wednesday afternoon and it felt a little bit surreal that instead of the usual routine, we were sitting in mexico, enjoying the warm sun, and eating lunch while we had our own private musical performance sung by a few men who are just trying to provide for their families.

after two days in cabo, we sailed to puerto vallarta. it was just as hot and humid as i remember. we took a cab downtown for some shopping and explored the city a bit. it's very green and pretty. we ate thanksgiving dinner on the ship. mike had their version of thanksgiving dinner, and i ate shrimp.

i'm embarassed that i didn't get a decent picture of mike and i (hello missed christmas card photo opportunity!) but we did get this awesome picture of me, evan, and crista:

there are photographers everywhere on the ship taking photos in front of the most ridiculous backgrounds. we thought it would be funny to indulge some of the many photographers who wanted to take our pictures. we also took a few pictures wearing sombreros and ponchos, and i entranced the photographer with my "fierce and seductive eyes." 

so there you have it. if i could, i might spend every thanksgiving in mexico. it was perfect. 

we recently took a drive up the beautiful alpine loop which may be the most photographed road in the state right now. there's a good reason, too. the trees are still vibrant and gold and the air is definitely easier to breathe up there.

october is one of my favorite months. we sent it out with a bang by eating the halloween treats we bought since we didn't have any trick or treaters, and i decided that i like chili. but not just any chili, chocolate chipotle chili.

i'm equally excited for november, maybe because we're leaving the country for the longest vacation we've ever had and definitely because it's now acceptable to listen to christmas music. who am i kidding....i've been listening to it for weeks now :) leave it to michael to get you excited for christmas!

on saying goodbye

i took a little road trip this weekend with my parents to drop kennedy off at college. we drove through herds of buffalo, deer, and a few grizzly bears to get to wyoming where she'll be playing basketball for the next couple of years.

it still makes me cry that she's living 8 hours away. gosh i'll miss the convenience of having her close! thankfully she plays a few games in UT and we have christmas to look forward to. i just have to keep reminding myself that november is not THAT far away.

i'm so proud of my little sister for chasing her dreams, for not taking the easy way out by going to school where it would be more convenient or easy. she set her mind to playing basketball and getting her schooling paid for and she made it happen. she reminds me that i should be more quick to do what i love rather than what's easy.

she left me a list of rules about borrowing the clothes she left in her closet. i really only have one rule for her: STAY AWAY from those wyoming cowboys unless they plan on making utah home.

i'm baaaack

hello friends! i've had a nice little blogging break, but i want to feel good about writing on this public space again so i'm going to give it a shot.

several things have made me want to start blogging again. first and foremost, we moved and now this little space will have to be used to keep in touch with those we left in logan. more on that later. and second, i recently read annie dillard's the writing life. i loved so much about this book and it made me miss writing, even if only about my insignificant little day-to-day activities. for now the quote that i keep coming back to is this:

"One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good...The impulse to keep to yourself what you have learned is not only shameful, it is destructive. Anything you do not give freely and abundantly becomes lost to you."

how selfish of me to hoard what seems good in my life!

lots of good things have happened to us in the last six months.

mike had a new job opportunity with the same company he had been working for. it seemed promising and exciting but after a few months of thinking it would happen, it fell through. we learned about forgiveness and prayer and patience and that things really do work out but usually not how we expect.

he soon got a better job opportunity with a better company in a new town. we lived apart during the week because his new job was two hours away. that got old. fast. after doing that for a few months, we started looking for a new place to live together and closer to his new job. we got discouraged as we walked through tiny apartments that would cost us more in rent than what we're paying for our house. we waited, searched some more and found a cute little house for rent. it's old but charming with great rounded doorways and windows and a gazebo, not to mention hardwood floors and counter space! oh, the counter space.

we still haven't sold our house, but we here we are: a family again, learning about our new town, driving roads we've never driven, enjoying this beautiful place (have you seen the back side of timpanogas? or strawberry reservoir? it really is beautiful) and feeling a bit like we're just on vacation. some day it will feel like home. until then, we're just happy to be together.

you say goodbye, i say hello

summer 2010 was all about
taking a break,
feeling the best i've felt in months,
acupuncture,
weddings, weddings, weddings,
grilling our food whenever possible,
watching 24, friday night lights, and food network,
showing my stuff on the golf course and proving to the husband that the golf lessons i had in 9th grade were worth every dime,
boycotting night games at the parents' house so that i don't run in to a snake,
shopping at the farmer's market,
blasting california gurls at every chance (and laughing when mike sings + dances along),
reading extremely loud & incredibly close, i need thee every hour, history of love,
re-reading old favorites crossing to safety, a wrinkle in time, the cricket in times square,
vacationing with family + friends,
experiencing tuacahn for the first time,
growing our first garden: cherry + roma tomatoes, corn, and peppers,
staying up way past my bedtime, and
a priesthood blessing of strength + courage

i think i'll remember summer 2010 as just what i needed. the perfect kind of summer, really. but i think i'm ready to see fall teach summer who's boss. good luck, fall, you have big shoes to fill.

oh what do you do in the summertime?

california

we are always looking for reasons to go to california. mike feels it's his second home since he served his mission there. my cousin ashley got married last weekend so we had the perfect excuse to go. it just so happened that one of my favorite bloggers, marta, was in attendance at the wedding. she is just as adorable and sweet as i imagined. i kept telling mike that i felt like i knew her, yet i had never met her before. i guess that's a sign of a great writer. i'm pretty sure i acted like a deer in the headlights when my cousin introduced us; i want to be like her when i grow up :) in addition to beach time and family time, mike and i went to an angels game to cheer for the opposing team, the a's. mike informed me that the next time we go to california, we should go to oakland so he can see them play on their home field. baseball is not my favorite sport, but it was a bit more exciting in real life :)
and the reason we went: ashley and peter. weddings make me cry. happy tears, of course, and this was no exception. they are darling. the wedding was exquisite: pink, tiffany blue, flowers, a big band, delicious dinner and hand-dipped ice cream bars for dessert, dancing and sparklers to end the evening.
and just for giggles, my cousin's adorable claire, who decided that she really wants to be a pole dancer when she grows up.

we hope it doesn't take 3 years to make it back again. thank you, california, for sending us home with color to our skin, less stress in our heads, and a skip to our step. you really rejuvinated us.

the "coughs" go to salt lake

please excuse my lame title. but i just realized that my last name sounds a lot like cough. i guess two weeks of dayquil, robitussin, and cough drops will do that to you. but i can't help but wonder...if my last name were spelled krough, would people have an easier time spelling and saying it?

anyway. i gave mike tickets on his birthday way back in october to see brian regan this weekend. we had been looking forward to it for months, and were planning to go to park city and spend a couple days with bethie and jacki after the show. however, mike got sick last thursday and i got sick on sunday and we have both been miserably sick. coughing nonstop. no voice. terrible headaches. but we couldn't cancel our tickets or hotel reservations so we went anyway. we had a great time. brian regan is hilarious. i coughed through the whole show because i couldn't stop laughing. they say laughter is the best medicine, and it was :)

this is one of my favorite bits of his.

the good and the bad, part two

the good:

spending time with family.

roasting hot dogs on the fire.

banana boats.

cool weather.

relaxing.

listening to the elk bugle at night.

signal mountain nachos.

driving around the park in search of animals.

baby moose.

hiking to hidden falls.

the view from the top of signal mountain.

sweatshirts and blankets.

the bad:

mike got the flu bug and has been one sick boy for the last few days.

no sleep.

everything we brought home smells like smoke. including my hair.

i didn't see any bears. i didn't die. i actually had a great time, even though i came home completely exhausted because i maybe got 12 hours of sleep over the three-day weekend. sleeping bags are not my forte, as i move around waaay too much when i sleep to be confined to such a small space. mike had the same problem. we tried sleeping in the car one night, and i don't think that was any better than the sleeping bag. but that's really my only complaint. other than i'm still trying to catch up on laundry and i hate feeling dirty which you feel the whole time while camping. okay, done complaining. we love the tetons, and it was surely an experience to enjoy them while camping :)

the good and the bad

the good:
no blackberry, no laptop, no voicemail
no yard work or house work
no coco
spending time with family
four whole days with mike
enjoying the beauty of nature :)
relaxing, reading, and writing
canoeing and hiking

the bad:
BEARS
sleeping in a tent
cold and wet weather, while sleeping in a tent
no shower
dirt under my fingernails
mud everywhere
camping
spending time with family
packing for a camping trip...i have no idea what to take??

i am not a camper. i am freaked out that a bear might eat me. i hope it doesn't rain all weekend, but most of all, i hope we survive my first camping trip since i was....12. please pray we don't die in the tetons this weekend.

sun valley

we had a great trip to sun valley this week. i got to meet these darlings-

and i already miss having a baby to hold. as if i wasn't baby hungry when we left, i'm really baby hungry coming home!

people always ask me what we do in sun valley. there are basically four things: eat, play cards, swim, and relax. in between those activities, we find time to shop in ketchum, take lots of pictures, catch up with family, and ice skate. i am lucky that i get to spend a week with all my family every year and in such a beautiful place

better late than never

we spent the 4th of july in island park with my grandparents. it was weird not having my family there, (they ditched us to go to oregon. rude.) but my grandma really spoiled us! as trips to the cabin always are, it was perfect weather and very relaxing.

we spent the 4th with my aunt and uncle and cousins. we didn't do fireworks, but we watched the sandlot, and you can't get more american than that, right? we finished off the trip in yellowstone and enjoyed watching the elk, buffalo, and grizzly bear. it was one of those weekends where i was reminded about how much i have to be grateful for!

a winner and a weekend

according to random.org, #5 is the lucky winner! millie, i will be sending your cd this week.

coco got to spend the weekend with steve and diane (thank you!). she loves them and their poor dog buttons. i don't think she left him alone all weekend. when we walked in with coco, buttons ran and hid under the couch and didn't leave his spot for most of the weekend. she also loves riding in the car. she can't get her head far enough out the window to take in all the smells. can i just say that she has been a terror lately? she ruined the linoleum floor on one of our stairs, ate a pair of shoes, and found another way out of her kennel all in the same week. crossing my fingers that she behaves this week, or else....

anyway, mike and i headed to ikea in search of patio furniture. three hours and our savings account later, we walked out with a patio set, bookshelf, and new wall unit for the tv. i just can't get enough of that store.
we spend the rest of the evening with bethie and jacki. we ate dinner at macaroni grill and went to see the play beauty and the beast at an outdoor theatre. we thought the rain had cleared because it started out pretty nice, but after about 45 minutes, the rain settled in and never went away. they cancelled the show because there were puddles of water on the stage and they were a little concerned about the safety of the dancers. we still had a good time, and i want to go back to see another show at this cute place.

Jackson Hole

Jackson Hole was beautiful. The pictures don't do it justice. We did lots of driving, lots of relaxing, and way too much eating, including this pile of nachos from Signal Mountain. I don't think we even ate a quarter of them.

Sun Valley 2008

I left my camera in Sun Valley. Luckily my parents were still there and brought it back for me. All pictures have been shamelesly stolen from Kennedy. Thanks, Ken.

Our favorite things about Sun Valley....

hopefully the captions on the pictures are readable

The Swimming

The Company. I tried to put this first but blogger won't allow it. Of course, the company is my favorite part of Sun Valley. I love catching up with everyone, spending time chatting, eating, and playing. All of my aunts, uncles, and cousins were at Sun Valley this year. We were only missing Drew. And the babies. Oh, how cute are the babies!