and so it begins...

Jeff's crazy schedule, that is.  He officially starts school today which means we'll be back to the 8am to 11pm schedule.  It's a long day for both of us.  I'll admit I have it way easier, but still we miss him all day long.  I feel the worst for Jeff because he only sees Blakely for about 15-20 minutes a day.  That's what is so hard on him.  With Blakely doing new things everyday and just being the funny crazy little girl she is, Jeff feels like he misses out on a ton.  We'll just have to sneak over to his work to have lunch with him whenever we can, so they can have their daddy-daughter time!  Since we're getting back to "the grind", we decided we needed to send off the summer the right way.  What's that, you ask??

It was hot hot hot, but we had a great time.  Just the two of us.  Blakely spent the day with my mom, having a blast!  We wanted to soak up all the time we had left to just be with each other.  I know that sounds a little dramatic, but seriously this full-time work and school stuff is hard on us.  Good thing the light at the end of the tunnel is growing closer and closer.  Next spring can not come soon enough!

On another note....

HEEELLLLLLOOOOOO PIGGIES!!

I have been so excited to put this little munchkins hair in pig-tails!  Aren't they adorable?!  I'm sure I will have plenty of time to do hair.  I am going to try to tackle other projects with all my alone time too.  I have a ton of craft and sewing projects I have in mind.  Spending way too much time on pinterest!  

Our trip west

We're home!  It feels good to be home and back to our normal routine, but boy did we have a good time!  We started off our vacation at Jeff's parent's house in Fruit Heights, just outside of SLC.  We took a day trip to a working dairy farm still in Jeff's family.  Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera, but once I get my mother-in-laws pics, I'll post them.  It was so fun!!  We got to see all the calfs that were from 2 days old to a month old.  SO freakin cute!  Then we went over to a barn that held all of the pregnant heifers.  The farmer told us that one cow in particular was close to giving birth.  Right after he said that, Jeff was like, "Uh, I see hooves!!!"  It was hilarious!  The mama cow was giving birth right in front of us.  We all decided to give her some privacy and went to go watch a group of them being milked.  It was cool to see how it all works.

The day we were going to drive to St. George {about a 5 hour drive} we all went to the zoo in the morning to get the girls nice and sleepy for the long drive.  It was so fun.  Blakely LOVES to zoo and looking at all the animals!  I do think that the highlight for the girls was riding the ferris wheel.  We went to the bird show they had and were entertained by all kinds of birds swooping above us.

The first day we were in St. George, we took the whole group to Zion NP and went on an easy hike that the little girls could enjoy.  The scenery there is absolutely breathtaking, so please excuse the picture overload!

The next day was for the grown ups.  We hiked Angel's Landing.  It's elevation is 5,790 feet and the hike itself is about 6 miles total.  BUT a half mile of that hike is on an extremely narrow path with sheer cliffs on either side of you,  You only have a chain to hold onto to brace yourself.  Talk about extreme hiking!  I'm not afraid of heights, but with cliffs on either side of you, you can't help but be a little freaked out!

So that gives you an idea of our trip.  It was awesome.  Being in that environment is good for the soul.  It makes me appreciate how big God is and how small I am.  Several friends have been going through some rough devastating times involving their babies.  Some still fighting for life, and some that have sadly lost their battle and returned to our Heavenly Father.  I said prayers for both of these families while I was perched way up there on Angel's Landing.  More on this later---

I can't wait to go back to Zion.  It was magnificent.

sorry for the picture overload, I couldn't help myself.

a little park action

It's finally a little cooler outside today.  I don't mind cloudy days, not one bit.  Especially when it's been upper 90's like all month.  I took advantage of the weather and took Blakely over to the park.  She loves being able to run around and pick up mulch off the ground.  Our only outside adventures lately have been at the pool, so it was a nice change of scenery. 

We've been having a lot of fun this week, now that we all feel 100% again.  Just in time too, we're headed back to Utah next week.  I couldn't be more excited!  We have a lot of fun things planned.  Some for the little girls, and some for the "adults".  Jeff and I will be doing some major hiking in some of the most amazing scenery that Utah has to offer.  Since we're flying on our actual anniversary, I think we're going to have a little date-night when we're out there.  We'll be celebrating 3 years of marriage!  The time has gone so fast, but I really do love every second I get to spend with Jeff.  I'll touch more on that later.  Our anniversary deserves it's own post! 
For now, I need to get thinking about dinner.  Maybe an Italian theme, in honor of the new Jersey Shore tonight!  haha......guilty pleasure!!