rex reunion 2013

we celebrated the fourth of july in utah at the rex family reunion. we watched a small town parade in parowan, camped in navajo lake, ate delicious dutch oven food, hiked to a waterfall, walked in caves and spent good quality time at the rex reunion. i am really happy that i love tyler's family so much, some people don't get awesome in laws, but i totally did. other than the crazy rain storm that kept us up one night, it was a great trip!

beach bonfire

we got the cousins together and did a bonfire at the beach. it took forever to get the wood to light, but once it did, it was all hot dogs and marshmallows! it was great to be with family and enjoy the beautiful weather!

hoover damn, again

while our friends were in town from france and greece we took them to see the hoover damn. after they headed to arizona, tyler and i decided to explore in town and check out some of the little indian shops. it was super hot, but really fun.

our foreign friends

tyler's mission companion, his sister, her husband and her sister-in-law came to visit us in vegas all the way from france and greece! first off, they all had amazing accents. why couldn't i have been from some exotic place? i would be SO much cooler! we took them to grimaldi's for pizza, down to the strip and to the hoover damn the next morning before they headed to the grand canyon. they spent 3 weeks touring the united states and i am super jealous. they've seen more of my country in 3 weeks than i have in 26 years! i need to get on it! also, tyler and i have decided that we have to go to europe now. for reals.

knott's berry farm

dad did some signs for knott's berry farm and was invited to the opening of a new part of the park. he got some free tickets so we tagged along. it was nice to be with brylee, kim and my parents and walk around the park for the first time in years! thanks dad!

26 years old

i think i've gotten to the age where i have stopped caring about birthdays. for some reason i just didn't feel the need to make a fuss this year. but tyler and i went out for a nice dinner and it was good to just spend time together. maybe next year i'll be more excited to celebrate getting older!

happy father's day

it was really fun to be able to spend time with my dad and our families on father's day. my dad is one of the funniest guys i know and i am so grateful for him in my life. love you papa!

my first time

i finally ate off of a gourmet food truck this week! have you ever done it? when i worked for my dad's sign company we did quite a few vinyl truck wraps and i always wanted to try, i just never got around to it. then last time i was visiting california i noticed that they advertised for tuesday night food trucks at my old high school. this time we made the time for it and i am sure glad that we did. SO yummy!!! now i just want to try them all! 

joey and jill got married

joey and jill got married! we are so happy for them and so glad that we got to be there for them on their day! they were sealed in the los angeles temple and had their reception in la habra. they're reception was adorable... they did all the decorations themselves! and my sister in law julia did all the flowers. she is amazing!!! if you are in the market for some flowers for any event you need to call her. i get upset every time i think about how good she is and that she hadn't tapped into her floral design talents when we got married. i love her work!

oh hello summer

summer is here and i am happy about it. i busted out the sandals and headed to newport beach with some family. my how i love the feeling of sand between my toes. the sound of the waves crashing. the sight of little foot prints all along the shore. i also don't mind a trip to seaside donuts. yum. 

spending time here in socal has been very healing for my soul. today i walked along the beach and thought about my life and our future. i feel so hopeful and excited. although these past days without tyler by my side have been difficult, it has been good for me to be here and think about me, who i am, and what i want for my life and what kind of person, wife and mother i want to be. i feel like i have made somewhat of a breakthrough... now i just have to keep it going. maybe falling down again has helped me to realize what i want to be when i get back up. realize what i am willing to sacrifice in order to have the life i so desire. how hard i need to work to live the way i want to live.

something a friend said recently has really stuck with me, i would rather struggle for money than struggle for my sanity and happiness... or something along those lines. i wholeheartedly agree. life isn't about how much money you have in your bank account. it's about being the best person you can be, about serving others, about being faithful to your beliefs, about finding joy in the journey. i am still climbing this mountain of mine and i know that my Father in Heaven wishes happiness for me in this life. i will continue to be faithful and to do everything i can to live the best and happiest life possible. i can't give up. for me, there is no other option than to keep moving forward and looking to the future with faith.

jack's eagle court of honor

my brother jack has become an eagle scout! to celebrate we threw an eagle court of honor ceremony. it was really great to hear from jack's leaders about how he has grown over the past years. i am so proud of my brother and i love that he has such a good heart. congrats bro!