Christmas is Coming!

This past week has been a very memorable and difficult week, but now Nick and I are looking forward and are super excited to be leaving for Arizona in a couple of days. We are going to start traveling on Wednesday! It has been a long awaited trip for Nick...we haven't seen his family together since last Christmas. I stopped down there in August for Niki's baby shower, but Nick has been very patient to wait so long to see his family. The Taylors are saying that they are going to "convert me" to Christmas in Arizona! ha ha. We will see! It will be different having Christmas without snow, but I know it's going to be tons of fun! Nick and I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas and a holiday filled with happiness and fun memories! Happy Holidays!

Indoor Soccer

Nick has been playing indoor soccer with a guy from our branch and his friends. It has been so much fun to watch him and see him score goals!! This is a video of his second game, which he scored 3 goals in! Good job Nick! The only bad thing about the night was that he ended up pulling his left quad muscle. He has had to stretch it and ice it quite a bit but has loved playing so far. They have about 10 games this season.

Becoming a mother for 10 days...

Nick and I offered to help babysit our friends kids for 10 days the middle of September while our friends went to Hawaii. I was a little overwhelmed with the task at first, but once we broke the ice with the kids and they felt comfortable with us....I HAD A BLAST! They are such cute kids and I really feel attached to them now. Thanks to the oldest, Emily, I was able to keep the house clean and the dishes done, but I really enjoyed every day. It was so much fun to play soccer with Corbin, help Marlie with her homework and hear her laugh everyday, to go to the movies with Emily and watch Megan build a swing-set out of paper and string. They all have their own unique qualities that bring them together and I loved getting to know them. We can't wait to see them again.


Here is Marlie putting baretts in Nick's hair. She was having so much fun! We were all laughing at the cute hairstyles that Nick had :)Nick sent me this cookie basket towards the end of our babysitting adventure. It was such a surprise and so sweet. It made my day. He wanted to thank me for all that I had done while we had been babysitting and I thought it was the best! The next day, I received another surprise...a edible arrangement! I was so spoiled! Nick is the best husband and so good to me.

All around...it was a wonderful week, but if I babysit them again, I am going to get work off. I realized how difficult it can be to work full time and have four kids, dinner, and a house to take care off. At times it became overwhelming, but I wouldn't have traded it.

A weekend at Lake Powell!!

The Barneck's, Martin's, and McMillan's spent Labor Day weekend at Lake Powell and we all had so much fun together. We went exploring up canyons and even found this little cave that we all swam under. The last picture is of Chelsea, me, Lindsay, and Chelsey. The only thing that would have made the trip better would have been to have Troy, Brooke, and Jackson there with us, but they are working hard in Arizona in medical school.

The best parents in the world....my dad and mom! Thanks for taking us to Lake Powell with you!

I got to waterski and wakeboard. I am not very talented on the wakeboard, but I was able to get up and ride inside the wake for a while. Waterskiing was so much fun....I haven't done it for a couple of years, but the water was smooth and not too cold either! Perfect!

Nick and Justin went tubing and were tossed around all over the lake. Everyone in the boat was cracking up as they flew over the wake. Justing tried his hardest to stay on the tube with Nick's help, but the weight of them both pulled the tube upside-down. Don't worry...they didn't get hurt - they fell on their heads.

One Year Anniversary

Nick and I had our one year anniversary on August 14th. It was extra special because our good friends were getting married that day and we were able to be at their sealing in the temple. It brought back all the special memories of when I got to marry by best friend. This past year together with Nick has been a wonderful time of my life and I know that the future is going to be filled with even more happiness. I love you Nick.

Niki's baby shower in Arizona

I had so much fun traveling to Arizona to go to Niki's baby shower with the Taylor family. It was great spending time with the girls and celebrating little "Tink" that will soon be coming to our family!

One of the games we played at Niki's baby shower was a "battle of tasks" to let her see how busy she might be with a baby in her arms, laundry to clean, and phone calls to make. It was so hilarious. The challenge was to talk on the phone continuously (talk to yourself ha ha) while holding the baby in your arm and hanging up the laundry. Whoever hung up the most laundry in 30 seconds won!

This is the cutest girl in the world....my neice Katie. She was carrying a baby doll around and having so much fun with us.

Happy Birthday to me!

My birthday was on July 29th (I'm slow to blog), but I wanted to show these pictures because Nick made me an icecream/brownie cake for my birthday. If anyone knows me well, they will know that brownies and icecream is my absolute favorite treat. Nick started making this cake the night before by baking the brownies and then the next day had to put it together and even put fudge around the entire cake like frosting! Mmmm...it was so delicious. My husband is so sweet.