The Sheriff and her possy

For Happy Halloween 2011, my deputy was caught at work...all night.  So my possy and I were left to fend for ourselves... even though my voice was barely beginning to come back from having a nasty cold. 

(I even had a stranger ask if I had smoker's syndrome because of my voice.  Um...what? weird.)

Ah...the possy.  They sat and waited as back up each time I opened my door for ghosts and such.  The townspeople sure got a kick out of my babies.

Although Duke wasn't too partial to his adorable outfit...

Dundee sure thought he was HOT STUFF...

As for me?  I just felt darn lucky that I could see and hold this adorable buggy on Halloween!

more work don't hurt nobody

unless you don't get paid for it that is!

Shane was paid for 24 out of the 72 hours he worked last week... because 48 out of the 72 hours were spent precepting for nursing school.  Shane has worked very hard to earn his RN and he is finally at the tail end of finishing school!  He just has to endure 3-4 more weeks of working full time, with no paycheck.  In my eyes, it is all worth it!  Shane is getting AWESOME training by precepting in the shock trauma ICU at IMC.  It was such a blessing that he was chosen to be in this ICU because there are so many patients that have endured life or death accidents and who are in need of critical care.  Shane's eyes have been opened wide to how delicate life truly is, and he is now starting to understand the depth of his own injury 2 years ago.  

Currently, Shane is back at the hospital working a 7 PM - 7 AM precepting shift, then working again from 3 PM - 11 PM.  (Keep in mind this guy has to commute 40 minutes just to get to work!)  I am so proud of him and hope that I can give him all the support he needs during this tiring time of his life...

 What he REALLY needs are some extra hours in the day for homework, and SLEEP!

Dance is more than a way of movement...

It's a way of LIFE.

The body...

Says what words cannot.

At times we may fall,

But we know how to pick ourselves back up again.

The work is most often aggressive, but the reward is BLISS

We can always look to the sun

even on days when rain clouds gather.

And if the rain does fall...

We find no need to wait.

Dancers need SPACE



 









to EXPRESS, MOVE, & CREATE








Dancers find inspiration from seeing,

But discover it through experiencing.

It isn't ever easy

But the effort made is always worth it

And no matter which direction we turn,

Dancing always faces us toward HEAVEN.

*Special thank you to Marla Lofgreen, Debbie Webber, and Clytie Adams' School of Ballet for helping my passion come to life through photography!

my farm

As many of you know, Shane and I are the proud parents of one handsome goldfish - Gus, and one adorably feisty kitty - Duke.  To add to the mix we recently adopted an incredibly smart and lovable dog - Dundee. 
I wasn't ready to be a dog owner.  I never expected to be a dog owner.  I was already overly concerned about smells and extra hair in my house.  However, Shane and I have known Dundee ever since he was a puppy, and as much as I may not have realized it, even I had secured a special place in my heart for him.  Because of certain circumstances, Dundee wasn't happy in his home anymore.  Both my family and Shane's family worked together to find what home would best suit this almost 2 year old sheltie...it boiled down to either my Mom and Dad, or us.  Shane and I immediately knew what we needed to do, and we haven't viewed our decision with one ounce of regret since that day.

We were worried however; how would Duke react?  How would I train this dog to stay off of my sofas?  Could I handle the smell?  Here's how things are:


*Duke and Dundee have surprisingly become friends - no kidding.  Just today I caught them sleeping RIGHT next to each other.  They easily respect each other's privacy and don't become jealous for attention.  Who ever knew a 2 year old cat and 2 year old dog could get along so well?

*I told Dundee ONCE to not get on the sofa.  BINGO. 
*Dundee is NOT a smelly dog.  I didn't think this was possible!  Plus I have scentsys, candles, and oil burners to make a meat market smell GREAT so as far as I know, the smell hasn't been a problem.
*My sweet sister made the transition much easier by surprising us with all of our very favorite treats, including goods for our kitty-cat.  I LOVE MY SIS.  She is the most thoughtful person I know.

So, if you ever feel like visiting a farm (without the smell and mess that is...) you are more than welcome to our home!  We may not have human children in our home just yet, but our animal babies give us fantastic company... oh how we LOVE that!

And we sure love this puppy of ours...

 

slipping through my fingers

I have made my way into the basement more than once to carry upstairs that one measly, halfway filled box of fall decorations that I own, only to find that I just haven't had the mental strength to do it.  This could be because I have no desire for decorating my house season by season, or because I am just NOT ready to LET SUMMER GO.  The signs of autumn are in no doubt already approaching, and with them my hot summer, sunny filled days are slipping through my fingers.  I have found my mood a little less than optimistic as I feel the cool morning air, or watching as the dim sun climbs into bed earlier than usual.  I just didn't get enough of days packed with swimming, walks with Shane in shorts and flip flops, sun-kissed skin, popsickles on Sunday afternoons, and barbeques outdoors in the late evening. 
When Shane and I were dating I asked him what his favorite season was.  He thought for several minutes as he stared up into the cold winter sky...finally he replied, "I can't pick just one.".  I pried and prodded, feeling slightly annoyed that he couldn't make this decision.  He went on to explain to me what he enjoyed about each and every season, down to the miniscule details.  When he asked me the same question, of course I stubborly responded, "SUMMER.  hands down.  no question.". 
My sweet husband still just can't find it in him to 'number' the seasons from favorite to least... and that's exactly what I LOVE about HIM.  Yes, I might always have a sweet spot in my heart for summer, but what's so wrong about autumn, or even winter?  If Shane can love it, so can I... and to be completely honest, no matter what the temperature is outside, days spent with my love always feel warm. 
I adore that.

This is your LIFE

fall in love.  believe in magic.  LAUGH EVERYDAY.  find a passion and PURSUE it.  look with optimism to the future.  learn more.  create.  never GIVE UP.  give someone a reason to SMILE.  spend time with family.  be HAPPY.  FORGIVE even when it's hard.  smile often.  try new things.  work hard.  follow your dreams.  tell stories.  ADMIRE someone.  make TIME to enjoy the SIMPLE things in LIFE.  embrace change.  be NICE to EVERYONE.  TRUST in yourself.  LIVE in the MOMENT...live for today.  be understanding. keep your PROMISES.  share.  think of OTHERS before YOURSELF. listen to your parents.  say I love you. be your BEST SELF. say please and thank you.  DREAM BIG.  eat great food. be thankful, be grateful. DANCE often.

be true to who you are...

be YOU.

I'll take what I can get!

Shane and I only had three weeks of summer together before school started... at first I had a terrible attitude that three weeks was such a measly amount of time, but before I knew it we had plans every single day to do something FUN. I had been able to create such valuable memories with my love in the past few weeks than I had during the entire year!

On one of the days we took some friends out boating...

Kenzie & Rachel

Although this picture doesn't show it, we were flopping around like goldfish out of water... WOW.

Shane...my MR. INCREDIBLE

Oh yes, I had to prove to Shane that no matter how hard he tried to get me off...

I STAYED ON THAT TUBE!!

Really it was just that I was terrified of the tiger muskies eating me alive... but hey, it worked! ;)

Welcome, baby angel

Halo Serene...

7 pounds

18.5 inches

Grandma, Aunt Kenzie, and baby

baby and Mommy... Nina

Look at that adorable face!

Grandma and baby

Happy family... Nina, Eric, and baby Halo

Eric (my brother), Me, and Halo

It is hard to try to explain with words how touching it has been to have this baby here. Nina allowed me to experience so much of her pregnancy, including being at the ultrasound where we found out that Halo was a girl. Eric and Nina have been so good to allow me to be a part of their experience...it has filled a small void that my own heart has been yearning to fill.

Baby angel,

On Christmas Eve I heard the incredible news that you were on your way... my whole body was filled with excitement, so much so that it poured out of my eyes! As tears ran down my cheeks I noticed that Uncle Shane's did too; we were so happy for your Mommy and Daddy to have you...you were a miracle for all of us. As you grew stronger I thought of you... I wondered what you would look like, what kind of personality you might have... I yearned to hold you and tell you how much I loved you.

The night you arrived my heart grew. The moment I held you my love grew.

You are a very special one, Halo...

You are our very own baby angel.

I will love you to the heavens and back...always.

Unexpected Adventure

Since Shane was finding his own adventure at scout camp a few weeks ago, I found some for myself! My oldest brother invited me to go hiking up Bear canyon early on a Saturday morning because Shane was gone. 6:30 AM rolled around on Saturday and Cory (my oldest brother), Danny (my other brother visiting from Texas), Mat (my brother in law), me, and Dundee, Griswold, and Fletch (a shelty and 2 golden retrievers) prepared ourselves for the hike.

It was gorgeous! About halfway through we came to a jungle. HUGE ferns were growing everywhere (most of them taller than ME), and the trail could hardly be seen!

Eventually, despite our unpreparedness, we all decided that the hike would only be worth it if we could go all the way up to the radar towers. This picture is showing the last tiny bit of the hike UP (it seemed straight up) to get up to the trail leading to the towers.

Almost there!

Made it! (Cory, Me, & Griswold)

I can now say that I have hiked up to Francis Peak and all the way back down! It was a challenge, but it feels so darn good that I did it!

7.27.2011 = 4 YEARS!

Our anniversary started off with Shane riding up into Snow Basin to arrange the most beautiful bouquet of wild flowers for me... Shane is so sweet! That arrangement of flowers meant SO much more to me than if he had run to the store and bought some just like it!

That evening Shane surprised me with dinner at The Roof in Salt Lake. We had $96 saved up in our piggy bank...a perfect amount to spend on an incredible dinner spent with an even more incredible man!

We then took a stroll around temple square...


Then relaxed by the water fountains to watch other couples just beginning their lives together. We saw three couples taking wedding pictures and one girl get proposed to!

We then wanted to go up to the roof of the Conference Center. We hopped on an elevator with another couple who were visiting from China. None of us could figure out how to get up to the roof! (we also didn't know that the elevator requires a certain "key" to make it up there...) The couple we had just met seemed sad that we couldn't figure out how to get up to the roof, so we had them follow us to find someone who could take us there. We eventually ended up with a VIP tour of the top of the building! Most people don't get to walk and see what we were allowed to see. It was so fun, and at the end of our tour, our new friends gave us each a penny to make a wish into the fountains. What a fun way to finish out our anniversary date!

I feel so blessed to have Shane to share eternity with. We have had our fair share of trials over the past 4 years (resulting in health insurance paying over $100,000 for us), but each of those difficult experiences were accompanied by many, many blessings. What an amazing experience it is to spend every moment with the person you are madly in love with!

Now let's just keep our fingers crossed that the wish Shane and I both made with our pennies at the water fountains comes true...soon!

xoxo