A night in Idaho

Last Friday we headed up to Idaho to go check out BYU-Idaho because Heather will be attending there in the fall. We met at my parents' house in the morning and then bummed a ride in their van during the trip :)  So, the 3 of us plus mom, dad, Amanda, Heather, grandma, grandpa, and Halle went. Abbie was very good in the car and even napped for awhile, and Heather and I played lots of Mario party. We ate lunch in Idaho Falls by the river and then drove up to Rexburg. We got to see where she will live and then Heather, Brandon, Abbie, and I walked up to campus to see where her classes will be, etc. We were lucky enough to get a quick private tour on a golf cart of the campus. 

Afterwards, on our drive back to Idaho Falls (where our motel for the night was), we stopped at a county lake to swim. The lake was really fun. We especially loved the the slide out in the middle on a floating raft. 

 

 Abbie swam for a bit and loved it but she got really cold and I made her get out, so she played in the sand and on the playground for most of the time with Brandon, since he doesn't even like to swim (he did go down the water slide one time).

 

For the rest of the night we just chilled in our motel rooms and watched the opening ceremonies of the Olymipcs. Speaking of which, I am very sad that we don't have tv, so I probably won't get see anymore of it. :(  

Our room actually consisted of 2 rooms so there were plenty of beds and 2 bathrooms, one of which was Abbie's bedroom.

Saturday morning we packed up and checked out. Then we headed over to check out the mall. Heather got a bunch of school clothes, and Abbie (and grandma) got to go on some fun rides.

On the way home we stopped in Tremonton at our favorite pizza place there (I don't even know what it is called). They have the most delicious breadsticks. Once again Abbie found another fun ride.

Even though the trip was quick and not very far away, we had a blast!

Sweet's

One day last week my mom, Amanda, Abbie, and I all went to the Sweet's factory to take a tour. We had to wear the awesome hairnets in the factory and got to see how the candy is made. We even got a few samples. We had a lot of fun!

Abbie loved wearing her hairnet because she thought it was 'pritty'. She even kept it on for awhile after we had left the factory. I think she looks like Thing 1/Thing 2 from the Cat in the Hat :)

Pioneer Day

Brandon got up bright and early because that was the day (and the next day) he had to take the infamous Bar exam. He is so glad it is over and feels like he did well enough to pass. Whew, so glad that is finally over. Abbie and I also got up and got ready early because we went to the Days of '47 parade downtown. It was pretty hot, thankfully the people in front of us brought umbrellas and we were able to steal some shade :)

In the afternoon, we went to the Butlerville days parade. Abbie didn't go because she was a sleepy head. Too bad though because they were throwing lots of candy to all the little kids, not so much to us :(  and Syd was in the parade. After we picked up Abbie we went to the carnival. Abbie loved the slides! She was so sad when we left.  It was pretty funny to watch this little girl go down all the big slides and participate in the big kid activities.

In the evening I went to watch fireworks with the Crowther clan while Brandon stayed home to get to bed early for the next day of testing.  After much anticipation and waiting I finally got to see my first firework show of the year. 

a whirlwind of a weekend

It all started Thursday afternoon when we went swimming at the spa with grandma W, Amanda, and g-grandpa Mc. Unfortunately right after we got there the pool closed down for 30 minutes because someone had pooped in the pool.  Abbie played and wandered and ate an ICEE. She was even nice enough to share some of it with the rest of us.

After swimming, Amanda and Syd came home with me to sleep over and we went to the Days of '47 Rodeo with the Crowthers. Brandon got a bunch of free tickets from work. It was a lot of fun to watch. Abbie handled it very well for being so long and going so late.

Friday morning we just hung out. In the afternoon my fam came out to pick up the girls and then they dropped me off downtown at Brandon's work. From there we headed up to Logan to go to dinner and a musical, both of which were free from radio contests. In between while trying to kill time, I got to go use some of my birthday money at the mall. We had a great time! I love going to plays and musicals. We didn't get home until about 12:45 am.

Saturday morning we woke up early and headed down to Fountain Green, about 2 hours away, with all the Crowthers for Lamb Days. We watched the awesome parade (awesome because they threw candy), went to the fish hatchery (which Abbie thought was absolutely fascinating), and then went to the park for the festivities. Abbie loved the train ride (sheeper creeper) and eating a blue snow cone.  We also tried the famous lamb sandwich (not very tasty, kind of plain in my opinion). We had a fun time, but the drive was a little long because we were cramped with 1 person too many.

(my view of the parade because everyone was anxious to catch the candy)

Today after church and nap we headed over to my fam's to celebrate Janessa's birthday. We had yummy homemade Cafe Rio salads, played mafia (we are seriously addicted) and hung out. 

Needless to say we had an awesome weekend, but are very exhausted! On the way home from the party my 2 cuties passed out- Abbie because she has lost a lot of sleep and Pepper because, well, I guess that's just what cats do :) 

meet Pepper

Okay, so last thursday my mom came over to work on a project with me. While doing that she asked me like 20 times what I wanted for my birthday. Of course my response was I don't know. So we decided we would just go shopping and I would choose something. I don't know why we started to talking about cats but my mom was like hey do you want a kitty for your birthday. I sat and thought about it for about 2 seconds and said yes but we have to get Brandon's approval. With a little persuading he agreed.
So when Brandon got home from work we all went over to the the animal shelter. It didn't take long to decide on this cute little 10 week old gray kitten. On the way home, the kitten was freaking out in the box, and Abbie was mad and wanted him out, so Brandon let him out. We learned that he likes being in the car and will just freely roam around.  It was actually hard to pick out a name but I finally decided on Pepper.
It didn't take long for him to get used to his new home. Thankfully he was already potty-trained so we haven't had any accidents. He is super playful and loves to climb. He is also obsessed with our food. Anytime we try to eat he is at our side trying to grab some food. 

Abbie and Pepper have gotten used to each other and like each other.

 When he is not being super crazy and playful, he likes to cuddle as close to anyone as possible.

Here is a little clip of Abbie playing with Pepper. Its so cute when she says his name :)

 I love having him as part of our family!

my birthday

 Yay, for being one year older :)

Saturday we had pizza and went to Seven Peaks with the Crowther side of the family. Unfortunately it was cold and raining lightly so we only stayed for about an hour. But, in that short time I tried the super crazy, scary slides where you go face first on a mat down a super steep hill. I only tried it because Amber did. It was scary, but we lived :) and I actually kind of liked it.

Saturday night Brandon took me to the movie Brave. And he let me get movie treats at the theater- that's how much he loves me. (in case you are wondering, he is a cheapo and would not usually do that)   We loved the movie!

Sunday, my actual birthday, we got up and went to church and I taught primary, a typical day. After Abbie's after-church-nap we headed over to my family's for my birthday dinner. We had yummy enchiladas, pretzel jello (so good!), homemade rolls, and cookies and cream ice cream. And even though I am not eating treats, I figured it wouldn't be much of a birthday without them so I ate all the yummy-ness. And we played mafia like a million times.

I was pretty spoiled with money, gift cards, Toms, a new kitty (post coming), and lots of love. Thanks for making my birthday special!

7-11

Happy free slurpee day!

They were delicious!

16 months

Abbie is already 16 months and a few days. She is still her cute, little, bubbly self. 

A few new words are pretty, ew, Abbie, and wawa (water).

She is still a great sleeper. I think I forgot to mention last month that we moved her into her own room (Breanna's old room). Seriously the best decision, we have all been happier since that change :)

She has the cutest smile. But what is even cuter is when I ask her to smile she will put on this cute grin :)

She is totally a girly girl. She loves wearing shoes, bracelets, and necklaces. And she loves to put things in her hair. Every day I ask her if we should go make her hair pretty, and usually she will run to the bathroom so we can. Oh, and speaking of her hair, its a little curly in the back. I think it is so cute! (this picture just doesn't do it justice)

She LOVES her milk, just like her daddy! Every morning the first thing she says is mil (milk).

She does the funniest things all the time. She loves to look at books- sometimes by herself, sometimes with someone. She is so good at communicating. If she doesn't know the word, then she will point or take us to whatever she wants. It's cute how much she can remember.

She has 12 teeth, weighs about 23 lbs, and is about 32 inches tall.

And here is a cute video for your enjoyment.

Independence Day

We celebrated up in Park City!  I am so grateful for this wonderful country and the many freedoms we enjoy!

Sadly we didn't get to see any fireworks because of the ban from all the fires in Utah.