Yay for Andy!

My little brother has officially traveled tens of miles to the MTC to get ready to go to Mexico!! This farewell has been so different compared to others in a lot of ways. The whole MTC drop off is completely different and probably horrible for first time missionary moms. I wasn't really sad this time around, not because I don't love him and am going to miss him, but two years doesn't seem like that long anymore and I think moving out was more of a goodbye than this was. I've just felt really excited for him! That's pretty much it, I just wanted to say how excited I was for my little bro!

I hope you've got a minute

I promised a long update at the end of the semester to end my hiatus and here it is! It's been another great semester, but I can't be happier it's over. Here are just a few of the happenings of the past few months. I got accepted to one of the hygiene schools I applied to!!! I got accepted to the private school in Orem and I won't find out about UVU until around February/March. Everyone keep us in your prayers that we make it into UVU because it will save us a pretty penny. I'm grateful that I know I've accomplished the first part in a major goal of mine. Andy got his mission call!! He gets to go to Guadalajara, Mexico. (I don't know if I spelled that right) But that's where he gets to go!! Andy and I had our last brother/sister day before he left. He leaves in a couple of weeks and I'm so proud of him!!! A bittersweet announcement is that I don't get to take care of DJ anymore! It worked out perfectly because with the classes I'm taking next semester, I would've had to quit. DJ's mom said that his other caretakers that take care of him during the week have quit again and she needed to find another program to put him in. She was able to find an awesome program that keeps DJ busy and lets him make a lot of new friends. Unfortunately, it would use up all the money they get for DJ so I wouldn't be able to come anymore. I'm glad I've been able to have DJ as a friend, he's taught me so much. I'm sad I don't get to take care of him anymore, but it couldn't have worked out any better. Colin is still being awesome and also had a great semester. He found out that he gets to be a TA again next semester! We were so excited! Colin and I have also been experimenting with some new yummy recipes and they've all turned out delicious!! Here are some pictures to illustrate my stories.

A tribute to DJ. One of our last adventures was to go to Pioneer Village.

This was the pseudo hospital. It was neat to see all of the tools doctors used back then.

Deej was really excited about the wheelbarrows for some reason...

After trying to push DJ in gravel, we decided that the train was the best way to see the sites.

Deej loved seeing all of the old pioneer houses.

I think one of the best trips we had was to the fire department. They were so great with DJ and let him see so much.

DJ was in heaven with all of the things he could feel!

He thought he was so cool when they let him wear all the gear.

Awww

They even hooked him up to the heart monitor and let him hear his heartbeat!

Our last day! :(

I'm gonna miss this guy.

The call.

Opening the call with his little lady.

I can't call him my little brother anymore!

Last bro/sis day! No better way to celebrate than with some In N Out!

Slick.

Me wishing I could pull something like this off.

Our camera doesn't do any of our recipes justice, but they were so yummy!! Let me know if you want any of the recipes! This was Chicken Pad Thai. Delish.

Nothing warms your soul like some yummy Peach Cobbler and ice cream.

This one turned out to be so yummy!!! It was just fresh tomatoes, spinach, onion, minced garlic, and olive oil.

This one was still pretty yummy, but not my favorite. Colin really liked it. It's a lot of fresh vegetables again like tomato, red onion, spinach, avacado, and onion. That's two recipes with fresh veggies in it and I ate it. I think hell is getting a little colder...

Blogging Hiatus

Okay, so school starts tomorrow and I'm going to be VERY busy. I've noticed lately that when I'm very busy, I somehow find myself surfing the blogs of everyone I've ever know or met (even some I don't even know!) and then I'm mad at myself for not getting anything done. This semester is very important, not only because of school and work, and I NEED to focus. So, here's to my last time having fun catching up on everyone for a few months! I'll have one huge blog at the end of semester because a lot will have happened. Maybe something to look forward to? I'm sure everyone is just heart broken, but I actually wrote this blog so I wouldn't break my promise to myself to not surf the internet. Wish me luck!!!

They rock... period

I don't know how many people are fans of America's Got Talent, but this season my absolutely wonderful and amazing clogging teachers are on it and they're kicking butt!! They just performed tonight for the quarter finals, and I hope that if you watched it, you voted for them!! On top of being great dancers, they're amazing people!!! Anyway, proud to say I know them! I know this picture doesn't show all five of them, but this was the only pic I could find in a jiffy.

This...

Just made my day. Want more? Check out awkwardfamilyphotos.com

Finally!!

It's been forever since I posted anything, but our summer ended up being a little bit busier than I planned on. Colin and I have both been working and taking summer classes (nerds, I know. I knew what you were thinking before you even thought it!) We have been able to fit in a couple of fun things in between work and school. We went to Lagoon and had such a fun day there. I don't think I've ever been to Lagoon when I wasn't there for a dance competition which made it nice, because I wasn't stressed out! Colin and I also got to run in the Freedom Festival 5K which went really well. Colin has asthma and struggles with exercise, but he raced in 30 1/2 minutes!! I was so proud of him!! We also got to meet our future nephew Trey when Colin's sister Andi and her husband Tate came to Utah to visit. He's adorable! Anyway, that's pretty much a summary of the past month, I've taken random pictures of things so here ya go!

DJ got fireworks painted on his forehead for the 4th of July!

We got to biking on the pretties trail out to Utah Lake! Once you get past all of the trailer parks, it's gorgeous!

Summer, Picnics, and Strawberries

Even with school and work over the summer, we've been able to do a couple of fun things! There are a few fun little trails you can hike and fun little parks to picnic at!

Wild flowers are so pretty!

Even when you're up close to the mountains, they still look too pretty too be real.



The views of the valley were really pretty too, minus the power lines...

Yay for summer and strawberries!

I LOVE ramen chicken salad. Thanks for the recipe Mom!

Um, I think I love him.

Canteloupe makes me smile!

It was so pretty and quiet where we ate!

It was also right by the river!

I don't want summer to end!

Really.