{snow canyon}

last thursday danny and i decided to leave town for a little weekend get-away. mike and bekah are moving to oklahoma next week, so we joined them for a camping trip down in snow canyon. we pulled up to the campsite around six-thirty thursday night and met up with mike, bekah, and the girls. they already had their tent set up, and their tin foil dinners cooking, so while danny put our tent up, i got the dinners ready. we ate a little later and then made some peach cobbler in the dutch oven. so SO yummy. while that was cooking we went on a hike, which was beautiful! i love the red rocks down in st. george. we hiked up to this little overlook and enjoyed the gorgeous view.

after hiking we headed back to camp to eat cobbler, relax, and play frisbee/catch. there were so many little bats flying around and when we told mariah what those little "birds" were she said, "bats are extinct." she's so cute. she sat with me for a good ten minutes while we tried to spot all the bats in the sky.




getting ready for bed is always awesome while camping, but to make it even more awesome we decided to use our headlamps. yeah. it was awesome. danny even killed a black widow right outside the men's bathroom. he's so brave. i was a little worried that a critter would find its way inside our tent...but luckily that didn't happen.



friday morning we woke up and bekah made a delicious breakfast casserole in the dutch oven. after breakfast danny and laney put on quite the show for me. words wouldn't do it justice so i thought i'd let you watch the video yourself. my husband is hilarious, and laney is the cutest chubby baby. {i couldn't figure out how to turn the video...so it's staying this way...sorry!}





mariah LOVES animals, and there were so many little critters around our campsite. danny and mariah chased many jack rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, and blue birds around. mariah was loving it, and so was danny. mariah found some pretty {wild} flowers, that she decided to pick for bekah. she's one funny girl.



we packed up camp and then headed to the sand dunes. gotta love those. besides the fact that it was super windy...we had a great time! {i thought i'd throw in a little picture of the baby bump. it gets bigger every day!}



at lunch, laney was getting a little impatient with us because we were taking too long to cut up pieces of cantaloupe for her...it was hilarious!

on our way out of snow canyon we hit up some slot canyons. it was a nice easy hike, and i'm always amazed at slot canyons and how narrow and beautiful they are.




thanks mike, bekah, mariah, and laney for inviting us to snow canyon! we had a BLAST and are definitely going to miss you guys when you leave.
{ps. sorry about the excess of pictures...we had a little bit of fun with the camera this trip!}

{raindrop gifts}

i got an email today about this new little boutique opening up...and they have got some cute stuff! this week they are doing a giveaway for a $25 gift certificate.
you might as well enter, what have you got to lose??

simply click here and enter to win!

every "drop" of profit is lent at 0% interest to an entrepreneur in a 3rd world country. so it's a pretty neat idea. help them change the world one drop at a time.

{the past few days...}

i have a little bit of catching up to do on this blog of ours...surprise, surprise!

better late than never, right?

saturday, may 23, danny had a soccer game here at BYU where they defeated the hollywood hitmen 1-0. it was a pretty dirty game--apparently the hitmen don't like to lose. but it was way fun and even more fun was being able to watch my amazing husband tearin' it up on the soccer field. brittany came during the second half to cheer them on, so it was a great sitting with her and danny's parents.


sunday, may 24, after we got back from my parents for sunday dinner, we decided to finish up this puzzle that we've been working on. yeah...we love puzzles. danny's grandpa let us borrow this one (since he's big into puzzles too) and every single piece was shaped so uniquely--giving us quite the challenge. but we did it and had a blast.



monday, may 25, was memorial day! yay for NO classes. i started it out by going to cemetery with my mom, cami, and my grandparents. (my mom and i got extra credit in floral design for going, so that was a nice added bonus). we made boutonneires so we took them with us and gave them to some of the veteran's who were enjoying the band play.

later that afternoon, we headed to seven peaks for the first time this summer! gotta love those season passes. brittany came with us, along with danny's brother matt, and our friends emily and elliot. it was a little over-cast but danny and i both got FRIED. guess thats what we get for thinking we didn't need any sunscreen. {oops}


danny and matt talked britt into going on freefall! i couldn't believe it. how many years have i tried to get her to go on that slide with me?? too many. haha. and of course, the year i can't go...she decides to go and be all brave. no, i'm kidding. i was super proud of her...and what's even better is that she loved it!thursday, may 28, was danny's last day student teaching at diamond fork junior high. we can't believe how fast the semester went by! he had so many wonderful experiences and the kids absolutely adore him. i decided to ditch stats lab {wasn't that hard of a decision} and go with him...i am so glad i got to go! his sixth period class is angelic {danny always says they are all going straight to heaven} and the class president bore a very sweet testimony. some of the kids prepared musical numbers--they varied from piano arrangements to singing "i know that my redeemer lives" in tongan--with was so cool. little did i know, danny had prepared a little musical number of his own...and invited me to be the guest singer! we sang "if the savior stood beside me" {one of my favorite songs}. what an awesome experience this has been. we can't wait to see what timpview will bring!

{sixth period}

{seventh period}

{the diamond fork crew}

friday, may 29, danny left early in the morning for california with the soccer team. since it was the last day of school for the cami, i decided to go support her in her end-of-year dance festival. she did great sporting her home-made surf board and rockin out to "surfin usa." mariah came with my parents and in between the dances we played on the swings. i love her.

so there you go. still to come: the latest pictures of the baby bump. get excited!

{the baby BUMP}

so as of today i am exactly 21 weeks and 2 days along...and i still haven't put up pictures of the little baby belly. i honestly haven't taken hardly ANY pictures because, my baby bump, has been m.i.a. for the last five months. until last week. pretty sure ever since we found out we were having a little boy, he has wanted to prove just how manly he can be. he moves around like crazy the second i lay down for bed, and he has been growing constantly. {don't worry, i'm not complaining...i'm glad he has finally decided to show himself} it is so amazing to me every time i feel him move. {even if it is right when i am trying to fall asleep...} there really is a little guy in there, and we are SO excited to see his cute face in just four short months.

{20 weeks}

{this is in the parking lot of our doctor's office. moments after finding out we are going to have a BOY!}

{21 weeks}

{happy birthday alli bug}

my beautiful sister, alli, had her 19th birthday yesterday! she is amazing. here are a few of the many reasons that i love her guts:

she can always get me to laugh. either by quoting emporer's new groove, or bringing up some funny memory from our past

she is gorgeous

she is so dedicated to what she does, and ever since she graduated from high school she has been working two jobs to save up money for hair school. she starts hair school this september! yay!

she loves seven peaks as much as i do

she has a great sense of style, and has had to deal with me borrowing her clothes all throughout her life...even now

she is just plain sweet

she wanted to go to five guys for her birthday, and i was lucky enough to tag-along with the fam. we had a delicious dinner of hamburgers and fries...i LOVE that place.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALLI! WE LOVE YOU!

{top ten}

my husband just left for the weekend with the byu men's soccer team...again. this weekend they are going to be in chino, california. (everytime i hear about chino i think of ryan from the o.c. ohh the good old days.) anyways. i already miss him. so i thought i'd make a list of ten things that make me happy as of late. then i'm going to go out and bask in the sunlight.

it's BEAUTIFUL outside.

{one}

these babies. danny got them for me as a late birthday present and i LOVE them. these sperry's will be much loved by the end of the summer. {two}

young-adult fiction books. i went to this class last year for my job, where the english teacher from provo high talked about all of her favorite books. {and holy cow, she's read basically every single book that has every been written}. but it was a super fun class, and made me want to start reading books for fun again. she compiled a little book of all of the "must-reads" for the past year and gave us all a copy. i'm slowly making my way through it. these three books i've read/am reading. and they are so. good. (girls, if you're in the mood for a super dramatic/love story...read the luxe. it won't disappoint. i mean, just LOOK at the cover!)

{three}

these.
i just went to wal.mart and bought a box of 100. i'm betting they will be gone before danny even gets home.

you think i'm kidding...

{four}

finally having a fridge again!! going a week without a fridge, while being pregnant, is not easily done. i don't really know how we did it. but we found a sweet deal on ksl.com and it's so nice not having to worry about getting electrocuted every time i go to grab a bite to eat. PLUS the freezer is about four-times bigger than our previous freezer, which allows room for all of my otter pops. yay.

{five}

bringing home fresh flowers from lab every thursday. seen below is moluccella (more commonly known as bells of Ireland). it's fun learning all of the botanical names of flowers. i feel so smart!


{six}

speaking of feeling smart...this is what i saw on the testing center screen yesterday after taking my family finance test:

96% Fantastic!

i seriously almost took a picture of the screen, because i've always wanted to see that after taking a test, but it's never happened before. i was so pumped. i only missed ONE question. some girls say their memories get worse when they are pregnant...i'm almost positive this little boy inside of me is making my memory better!

{seven}

the fact that my husband is going to be teaching seminary at my old high school! how crazy is that?!!? we found out about two weeks ago that danny was one of the four teachers they were asking to come back to teach! we feel so blessed. we're hoping that after this semester the "hiring freeze" defrosts a little bit, so that our chances of getting hired are higher. but until then, danny is going to be teaching all of those T-BIRDS! if any of you have younger siblings going to timpview next year, have them go say hello to brother mckinley! or even better, have them sign up for seminary 3rd or 4th period. he teaches the second period every day.

{eight}

fruit. period.

people always ask me if i have been craving anything weird...and honestly, i haven't. but i ALWAYS, always feel like eating fresh fruit. of any kind. (at the moment i am eating a mango. it is delicious!) last week i bought a little watermelon and i probably ate 3/4 of it all by myself. we're going to have one healthy little baby.

{nine}

little baby boy clothes. aren't baby clothes just adorable? except i do have ONE teeny, tiny complaint...ok...it's kind of big. the fashion industry definitely caters to little baby GIRLS. every single store that i go in has walls and walls covered in pink

...where is all the blue stuff??

{ten}

this boy.

p.s. no, that's not our dog...even though danny wishes it was. this is his physical therapist's new baby german shepard. so cute.

there you have it. a LONG list of ten things that make me very happy.
if you're feeling a little down (i.e. your husband just left for the weekend) you should try it. reminding yourself what brings a smile to your face works wonders.

{drumroll please...}

danny: what's that??

doctor: HIS thing

danny: i don't get it...

doctor: umm. that's the thing that tells us he's a boy.

danny: ohhhhhh. WE'RE HAVING A BOY?!?!

jessie: i don't know how to change boys' diapers.

danny: you'll figure it out.

jessie: yeah right! you're the dad. good luck when he shoots at you.

{our reactions, seconds after finding out that we are having a little baby BOY.
ps. those were danny's exact words. it was hilarious.}

yeah. we are ECSTATIC, to say the least. the ultrasound was absolutely amazing. we got to see his brain, his cute little heart, his lips, hands, feet, and his little profile. whenever the doctor was focused in on his legs he was kicking like crazy! we already have a little soccer star in the making. he weighs three-fourths of a pound and everything is in great condition! after our appointment today, everything feels SO much more real. now all we need to do is decide on a name for this little boy...any ideas?? four months to go until we get to meet this little baby boy. what a miracle it is.

life is good.

tribute to mom

where do i begin?? my mom is absolutely amazing. i love her smile. her kindness...to every single person she meets. her positive attitude. her cooking. her love for the gospel. her love for her family...the list goes on and on. i look up to her in so many ways, and i am so blessed to have been raised by such an incredible woman. i love you mama!

not only do i have one amazing mother, but my mother-in-law is wonderful as well! she is so supportive of all that we do, is extremely generous, kind, and has quite the sense of humor! our kids are going to be very blessed to have such fabulous grandmother's.


yesterday for mother's day, danny was still traveling back from california (he was gone all weekend with the byu soccer team), so i got to spend the day with my mom. (actually i spent the whole weekend there, because i hate being home alone...but that's besides the point) we got to go listen to my brother and his wife speak in sacrament meeting, and they did a wonderful job! i love hearing the testimonies of my older siblings--they are such great examples to follow. since they were speaking, we got to watch the girls! i am in love with my neices. little children are so innocent and pure, and being around them makes me that much more excited to meet this little baby growing inside of me.

speaking of that little baby...TODAY is the day. at 3:30 pm we will be arriving at the doctor's office to get THE ultrasound. yeah. i'm freaking out right now. we are both so excited to find out who is going to join our family first. i don't know about you, but i think this is basically the best mother's day gift any (soon-t0-be) mommy could get.

fridges and french fries

The Fridge from Hell... Michigan... actually it was made in China... actually idont really know where it was made but thats as good a guess as any! (Hell, Michigan is a place) (Jessie made me clarify that) thats what me and my seminary students say becuase they're so innocent and cute that they don't like saying the word "hell", so they add "Michigan" on the end. I love my seminary students! quite the intro eh? so our fridge is older than most of our moms (no offense mama) and ours had tons and tons of ice everywhere. in the freezer it snowed every time we got something out and brushed any part of it. in the fridge we had a glacier growing against the back wall. so on monday night i had this bright idea to take our fridge out front and defrost it the Argentine way (for those who served missions in south america know what im about to say). it took a kneeboard and lots of pulling to get our fridge slid out our door; it weighs mucho! once outside, i started filling pots of hot water from the tap and told jessie to start chucking hot water on all the ice. i equipped her with a screwdriver and a spatula to start chipping away at the ice. how ghetto is the argentine way?! yeah iknow! so after lots of splashing and chipping all the ice was magically gone. it only took half hour.... blah blah blah we got it back inside. we plugged it in and whaddya know... jessie now has a perm due to the electric shock that the fridge gave her! and her dumb husband wanted to find out if she was lying by grabbing the door handle which just so happens to be very metal. we are a very strange looking couple lately! (because of the perms). we checked the cord and wires and everything but it was just shocking us for no good reason. then we came back later that night and voila it was fixed. then today voila it was shocking again. and coolant is leaking in it. way to go danny and the argentine way! so we're in the market for a new, cheap, used fridge if you have any suggestions. now the big question is "will our baby come out with a perm?"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i secretly hope so. ps due to the fridge ihavent slept much, which could explain the randomness of this post.