I'm Officially A Tween

Today I was on the elliptical at my club house, and I saw two women approaching the clubhouse. I frantically grabbed the remote and changed the channel so they wouldn't know I was watching "Melissa and Joey" on ABC Family (to be fair, there is nothing good on in the 5:00 hour).

Then tonight I downloaded Selena Gomez's new album. In its entirety.

Beat that.

I Heart my Visiting Teachers

I have the best visiting teachers. A few weeks ago (not on the last day of the month like how I was out tonight), I came home to this little surprise along with a couple of sweet notes. It was a Wednesday and already the week had been terrible. They couldn't have known . . . but this thoughtful little delivery was just the pick me up I needed.

Family Reunion Fun

We had a family reunion over the weekend. A big hit for the kids was the slip 'n' slide down the side of the park. It was the perfect activity for a crazy hot day as it provided endless fun for the kids - both big and little.

Grace and Lauryn

Jena has the best smile


Brent with his wet girls - Grace and Maggie



Jacob and Emma are soaked too!

Lilli and Davis with his wet hairdo . . . thanks, Dad.

Stephanie, Shelley, Melinda and Kristen

Jacob cruising down the slide

Kristen racing down the slide with Emma and Jacob . . .

And, she got a little wet . . .

Grace and Kristen. Grace would rotate between coming for a bite of food and then was quickly back in line for a turn down the slide.

Brent and Taylor had a competition to see who could go the farthest OFF the slide. Brent was pretty good, but Taylor had a tight form that sent him a little further . . . even with the extra soap Brent added to the slide.

Grace

Jacob

Brent and Davis

Kristen and Davis

Julie with a nice wet hug from Jacob

Making Cookies

If at first you don't succeed...

Try

Try Again*

*Note: It helps to remember to put all the ingredients in the batter.

#16 Pay off my car - DONE

It was a glorious day today as I made the last payment on my car! I kind of expected my bank website to light up with little graphics of streamers and fireworks like they do when you win solitaire, like, "Congratulations!! You paid off your car!"

Instead, I got this:

But it's a beautiful thing to behold.

That Bugs

So, I totally had a bug fly down my shirt tonight. And then he kept moving around, so I got to try to discreetly fish him out in front of a large group of people. And I say that it was a he, because my mom always told me that men like "that area."

Parade of Homes

We had fun at the Parade of Homes this year and especially loved the "Up" house. They paid attention to every detail from the movie and the night we went there was a man that looked like the main character going up and down the driveway greeting people and a scout on the porch with his backpack. We were surprised how functional the house turned out to be. We loved it.




In order to maximize our time, we focus on homes that have a larger sales price because we really like to be wowed. Sometimes we get great ideas from checking out the houses. Look at this great tie organizer which would be perfect for Dad . . . who has many, many ties.

#18 - Take a Photography Class - DONE

I wish I was one of those people who took really good pictures. And I wish I knew how to take pictures NOT using my "easy mode." F-stop? ISO? No idea what those are.

So I took a one-day class up at the U, where they gave us ten tips for getting better pictures. It wasn't too techy, which I liked, but was enough to make me want to try out the different settings. The teacher was pretty funny and made for an entertaining class. Kudos to the Lifelong Learning program at the U - they've got a nice thing going there.

One more off the list!

It's the Final Countdown

Emma made this fantastic countdown chain to keep track of the days before our big family vacation that we have been looking forward to all year. We can't wait!

I'm Addicted

I'm a fan of kettle corn. I love the salty sweet combination and how it's usually made fresh outside somewhere. Thank you Harmon's for introducing me to Angie's Kettle Corn, which tastes just like it was made fresh. Not only did my beloved grocery store offer samples (can't resist that), but then they were 2 bags for $5 - so of course I had to get two different kinds. I'm addicted . . . it's so yummy!

Loved This Movie!

Saw this over the weekend and LOVED it! Very inspiring!

We Put the Fun in Funicular!

Allow me introduce you to my new favorite word: funicular (fyoo-nik-yuh-ler).

Adjective: Worked by a rope or the like.

Fun to say, and even more fun to ride! Ever since the St. Regis came to Deer Valley and I spotted the funicular, I knew that I had to ride in it. Fate was smiling on me this weekend when the Park City luxury home tour opened its doors to us. This is truly a magical event for people like us who love to see how the other half lives. So for the tour, five residents of really swanky homes in Deer Valley open their doors to let us snoop around their homes to raise money for charity. And how were we going to get to these homes? By riding in this baby:


It was everything that I hoped for, and I totally felt like George and Weezy. Once we got to the top of the hill, we were off to the massive homes and all of their stairs. The first home was 27,000 square feet for Pete's sake! It was bigger than the Blue Banana, wasn't it, Julie? The bottom three floors were dedicated to a basketball court, racquetball court, bowling alley, running track and 6 story climbing wall.

And these are signed jerseys from Brett Favre and his friends in one of the 4 full size locker rooms. Oh, and the owner had a picture of himself with George W. Bush. Who I think used to be the President. Here are Julie and I by the basketball court, and Kristen and Julie are outside one of the amazing decks. See that tiny dot of water behind them? That would be Jordanelle. Which I think is only 24,000 square feet.

We ended at a home dubbed the Casa Nova, which makes me want to name my home something fancy. This place sleeps 28, and has its own spa, house staff and a locker room on the top floor so you can ski right onto the mountain. It rents for $25,000 per week, so I only need to find 27 other people willing to pony up $892 apiece for a week of wonderment. That's a good deal, right? If not, I guess I will have to be happy in my 1,800 square foot home, Casa Funicular.

YW Changes

While I was gone this weekend, I was also released as YW President . . . which is bittersweet. I love these girls, but I am excited for an instant raise (ward budgets just are never enough) and no more meetings. When our ward split a few years ago and I was called to continue being the YW President, I quickly snatched up three key ladies to help me before any of the organizations even knew what was going on. I knew that with Camille, Mandy and Meredith working together with me that we could do great things. I had worked with Mandy and Meredith before, but didn't know Camille that well, although I had been aware of her, and boy was I right to get her as part of the crew. All of these ladies are so much fun, do whatever is needed and always come through in addition to being strong in spirit. We split the ward with 36 girls, then had a small group again, but as our new ward continued to grow, we added advisors and other leaders to our YW leadership. I definitely think we had a dream team of leaders.

Now, we are hoping that somehow we can all stick together, while keeping a low profile from the Primary leaders (shhhh. . . . don't tell). So far, we have come up with being the Sunday School Presidency - we can be bouncers making sure the kids go to class - and talk in the hall together. Or, the other alternative is to go to dinner and review restaurants for the as of now, non-existent Relief Society newsletter, which we would happily start. I also threw out Activities Committee but Mandy was none too happy about that.

One of the cute Beehive girls asked why I was released and what was wrong with me . . . a good question . . . but it's nothing more exciting than it's just my time. And, we're tired. And another Beehive said that now that we were released, she was going to quit Young Women's and go to Young Men's instead. Another reason it's good to switch up the leaders every few years so that they don't get more attached to us than to the church.

We had dinner together this week at Paradise on Tuesday . . . since we were free from our responsibilities . . . for a bit. Love these ladies and am grateful to have served alongside them.

Mandy, Meredith and Jenn

Rachel and Jen


Me and Camille


We gave the girls framed pictures of the temple with the words, "I'm Going There Someday" as a little farewell gift. And, look what I got in return . . . this great picture made with the fingerprints of the young women and young women leaders. I love it!

Cal-E-Forn-Eye-Ay

I went on a fun road trip to California last month. Picture this: five girls, one minivan cruising the California coast. We flew into San Diego, drove up the 1, and ended in San Francisco. Here are some highlights:

Lunch at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego. Overrated? Overpriced? Well, yeah, but it's the experience!

A session at the San Diego temple was a highlight. It's beautiful on the outside, and it was super fun to see the inside. We got to go up to the sealing rooms where they have a glass roof that lets you look up and see the angel Moroni. Awesome? Yes.

Universal Studios was less cool than we all remembered (we decided once every 10 years is good). But the Jurassic Park ride was pretty great, and I got soaked.

Staying at the Ritz Carlton in LA. I'm sure the valets thought we were a clown car when we rolled up in our minivan. Not exactly their core clientèle. But man, was it awesome! Once we pulled up we decided we would not be leaving the hotel that night. I think we stole everything that wasn't nailed down. Here we are crowding in the bathroom figuring out how to work the TV in the mirror. Don't even get me started on their private rooftop pool!

Carmel-by-the-sea is GORGEOUS!! One day maybe I'll be rich enough to live there.

Here I am in front of the adorable Cottage of Sweets in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Four words: sea salt caramel fudge.

Hearst Castle

I had always wanted to see Hearst Castle and its iconic pool. The pool was more amazing in person than in the photos, but I was fascinated by the whole house and how rich people use their money.

A pool's great, but dearer to my heart were the two LIBRARIES.

In Santa Cruz, we rode a 100-year old merry-go-round where everyone tries to throw rings into a giant clown's mouth. Harder than it sounds!

I had the pleasure of introducing Emily and Anne to the wonder that is the FUNNEL CAKE. Can you believe they had never had one before?

We had a ton of fun, saw some beautiful scenery, and more importantly, after a week in a minivan, we are still friends!