Steve ~ Crystal ~ Gracie

Our Florida Vaction

2010-09-23T08:23:00.000-07:00

We just went on our first family vacation to Florida! It all started about 2 years ago, when BYU announced that they would be playing Florida State. My 2 brother-in-laws both went to BYU and are big BYU football fans, but live in Tennessee and North Carolina. So when this announcement was made, a trip to Florida was instantly in the works! We decided that if we were all going to go to the game, why not make a family trip out of it!!!!

We flew into Tampa and rented a beach house in Siesta Key, about 1 hour south of Tampa. We were only 1 block away from the beach......which was sooo beautiful! The sand is so white there, that it actually reflects the sun and is not hot! Here is our trip in pictures and I'll explain them as I go along! Enjoy!

This is Gracie's 2nd flight (first time with daddy)

She made lots of friends on the flights!

We were in the Chicago O'Hare airport on our way to our gate, and we passed this sign. I made Steve stop and take a picture because I work at Mont Blanc Center for Dentistry! So funny! I bet people thought I was crazy! Oh well, I am a little!!!

She is getting so big!

This is the airplane we flew to Tampa on.....the flight was so empty, Grace had her own seat!

Reviewing the safety instructions, just in case!!!

I'm sure she was thinking 'Ok mom, enough pictures already!'

This is Grace and Mark. This is the first time Grace had met Mark, her cousin. We went to the beach on Sunday night to watch the sunset.

I am so blessed with a happy baby....in these pictures, Gracie has an earache and a VERY sore throat (white spots)!

This is Grace's first time in the sand

She didn't like it!

AT ALL!!!

On Monday morning, Arick, our nephew, was complaining of a sore throat, so we took him and Grace to the doctor. Turns out, Grace had a virus that was causing a sore throat with nasty spots and an earache and Arick had STREP :(

Hangin' with dad before nap time.

My baby is such a little beach bum! Even though she didn't like the sand, she LOVED the water!

Most nights, we would go to the beach for sunset and play Bocce Ball. This is Mark and grace watching us play. They are soooo cute!

The bigger kids loved playing with the babies.....I don't know how many times Arick asked me 'Are you sure we can't take Gracie home to Nashville with us?!?!'

So excited to go to the beach for the day.

We normally didn't head to the beach till noon or so, because of morning naps, but Grace had NO problem falling asleep on the beach for her afternoon nap! I have the best baby ever!

Our shade set up.

Steve, Andrew and Bri building a sand castle.

The best thing about vacation! My feet in the sand!

(Notice my toes....I did them myself! Grace had hers painted the same color to match mine!)

Steve's hair was out of control due to the length, thickness, humidity and wind!

Andy and Steve playing bocce.

That's my happy baby!

Grace playing with Bri and Arick. (She started tolerating the sand better mid-week)

So is so loved by her cousins!

BEFORE

Steve decided to have Arick help give him a new look!

AFTER: So much better

I'm a mean mom.......

I have this on video too!

Nap time!
(Notice the leg up.....pure relaxation!)

The last day at the beach :(

Liking the sand more and more!

I call this pose her Sports Illustrated pose.

'Freeze Hands'

Mommy and daughter

The family

Daddy and daughter

Couldn't resist writing in the sand!

That's right....I love my hubby!

My little beach bum!!!

Grace and Mark

I love that he is covering her bum crack!

'Why are we naked?'

'We don't mind being naked....just wondering!'

This one is my favorite!!!

Look at those rolls!!!

Some of my nieces and nephews......what cute kids!

Gracie with Auntie M!! Grace loved her!!!

My cute family!!!

Waiting for a shower

Showing her Cougar pride!

All the kids.....the 2 babies stayed at the hotel with Auntie M, and had a blast!

The Cougar buses

At the game.....it was so incredibly hot!!!

Sunday morning we drove around Tallahassee and checked out the FSU campus. This is the football stadium....it was amazing!

Aren't we cute!

'Delta Delta Delta, how can I help ya help ya help ya?!?!?'

(Love that SNL skit!)

Mommy loves Gracie kisses!

I Houston wait to board our last flight.......Steve was keeping grace busy and I had to sneak these pictures.

She also had her own seat on this flight, and it was a good thing she did......she fell asleep right before we took off, and woke up right after we landed in Salt Lake! It was a VERY enjoyable flight!

We had a blast hanging out with family and playing on the beach, but it is always nice to get home and climb into your own bed!!!!

Our computer is broken at the moment!

2010-05-22T19:35:00.001-07:00

I have been really bad at posting on my blog since having Gracie. Now that I have some time I was going to post a lot of pictures, but our computer is not working....the screen need to be fixed! So all I can say is that all is well at our house and Gracie is growing like a weed! I have been busy working and settling into our house, while Steve has been working so hard to get our grass in and finish basement so we can rent it out. Life is great and we LOVE being parents! Pictures to come soon!

She's here!!!!!!!

2009-11-29T22:11:00.001-08:00

Saturday was the big BYU vs. Utah football game that we have season tickets for. Steve and I thought that Gracie would be here by then, so when I still hadn't had her....we decided that I may as well go and enjoy the big game! When we got there, I started having pretty strong contractions, but nothing too regular. By the second quarter they were getting stronger. During the second half of the game they had pretty much stopped....(the second half was not as exciting as the first half for BYU until the end.) When we were headed home, my contractions were back with gusto! But still only 7-9 min apart. We decided to go home and see if they got closer. By 10pm I was having really strong contractions 2-3 minutes apart......so off to the hospital we went. I was admitted at 11pm and had Gracie Sunday November 29th at 11:14am!

Grace is already daddy's little girl....she waited till after the game to make her appearance!

Telling mom & dad that it is go time!

For being 1 week late, she was pretty small - 7lbs 1oz 19 inches

Our first family photo

Grace Taylor Smith

Steve and I couldn't be happier! We absolutely LOVE our beautiful little girl, and feel so blessed to finally have her here!

Still No Baby....Update Instead :)

2009-11-27T19:21:00.000-08:00

Steve's Re-Kindled Love:

In high school and in college, Steve loved doing ceramics, and he is very talented! He promised one of his best friends, Mark, that when he got married, he would make him a bowl for a wedding gift. That is just what he is doing in these pictures. I loved watching him work.....it was so fun watching him do something that he loves!

He came home and announced that he wants to turn one of the unfinished rooms downstairs into a ceramics studio.....I'm all for it.....when the time is right! Then he can teach me a thing or two!

Mark & Monica's Wedding:

Our good friends Mark and Monica were married on October 11th......it was a beautiful day and we were so glad that we were able to be there with them on such a special day! My heart was so full as we sat with our friends in the temple. Gracie was moving so much, and I couldn't help but think how blessed I am to be married to Steve in the temple and

that we will all be together forever!

I love him so much!

The Boys
(TJ, Evan, Mark, Steve, Alan & Joe)

Isn't she a beautiful bride!

It was such an amazing day!

The mom's to be!
(Me, Kara & Sarah)

Fun in a photo booth

It was so much fun to spend time with good friends who we love so much! We miss you guys!

Baby Showers:

My sisters threw me a baby shower at Cami's house in Orem for family and friends who live in Utah County, and my mother-in-law(Rita) and her sisters threw me a shower in Bountiful for the family who live in Salt Lake and Davis County. It was so much fun to see so many friends and family who I love so much!

Rita, Grandma & Me
(Steve's Grandma)

Me & Logan
(sister-in-law)

36 weeks

Halloween:

This is the first year in a really, really long time that I didn't dress up on Halloween. Steve was working at the fire station, so I decided to hang out with my sisters and their cute kids. I started at Cami and Rob's, where I saw the most beautiful Giselle and the cutest Minnie Mouse I have EVER seen! I love my Kate and Andie!

Then it was off to Lara and Bryan's. Bryan was out taking the kids trick-or-treating, so I handed out candy with Lara until the sweetest Alice and the most adorable Nemo came home! I love Sara and Blake!

I had a blast with my family on Halloween....I just missed my hubby!

Girls Night:

My nieces have been wanting to have a sleepover ever since we moved into our new house, so I thought that it would be good to have a girls night before Gracie arrives. Steve was working, so it was perfect! We called it a 'Girls Only, Pajama Party Sleepover'......so fun!

We ate pizza and watched Enchanted.....

So cute....they were OUT!

The next morning they watched cartoons in my bed!

It was fun hanging out with my girls! We'll definitely have to do that again when

Gracie is here and a little older!

Firecracker:

Lara's old roommate, Sarah who lives in Texas, came to town to visit. When she and Lara lived together, Sarah was given the nickname Firecracker. One summer when our family came to Utah to visit, we spent a lot of time with Firecracker watching 'Can't Hardly Wait' everyday and drinking virgin pina colada's. We all love Sarah and it was so much fun to

spend some time with her!

Baby Update:

As of today I am 1 week overdue! This little girl has her own schedule and does NOT want to be rushed! I am scheduled to be induced on Monday Nov 30th, so we are just going to enjoy our alone time until then. Tomorrow we're going to the big BYU vs. Utah game and can't wait! We'll keep you updated and let you know when our little one arrives!

Things we have been doing

2009-09-18T09:15:00.000-07:00

As many of you may have noticed.....I have been really bad at keeping my blog updated! So I decided a catch-up post was in order. Here are a few things that we have been up to lately!

My good friend Elizabeth (aka Bubby) is also pregnant and is having a little boy, Nicholas, in October. I grew up with Bubby in Batesville and it was so much fun to see her and her cute belly! She is due almost exactly 1 month before me, so our kids will be really close in age!

Bubby and I

Nicholas & Gracie's 'first kiss'

Batesville girls!

( Katie, Bubby, Me, Cami & Lara)

My Mountain Man:

Since Steve and I have been working on getting our house done this summer, we haven't been able to go camping very much. Camping is one of our most favorite things to do in the summer. So right after we moved in, we went camping with some of our friends. We had a blast! We made tin foil dinners and had smores! Steve decided that he wanted to try to start our campfire Bear Grylls style. It didn't work very well, but it was a lot of fun to try!

Kindling

Steve trying to get the fire started

Despite his effort, it didn't light, so we used the blow torch instead!

Blake:

I spend a lot of time with my sisters when Steve is working. One Monday night I was over at my sister Lara's for dinner and Blake (2.5 years) is super excited for Gracie to get here. He will look at my belly and say 'Gracie get out!!' My bro-in-law asked him how we were going to get Gracie out? He thought about it for a minute and then ran to his room and brought out his....

Chainsaw! When that didn't work, he ran into his room and brought out his.....

Skill saw! When that proved unsuccessful, he decided to try his........
Drill! After much effort, we came to the conclusion that
Gracie needs more time to grow inside my belly!

I love the logic of a little boy! Gracie is defiantly loved by
Blake and all of her other cousins!

Grace's Room:

Blake's enthusiasm rubbed of on me and I decided it was time to get started on Gracie's room and bedding.....which I am making! Here is what her quilt will look like.....

the colors are green, brown, pink and cream

This is the nursery which I am sooo proud of! Steve helped me with the green walls, Cami helped me with the brown wall, and I did ALL of the stenciling by myself!

It took FOREVER!

Once we have the crib set up and all of the bedding done I will take a picture of the finished product!

St George:

My sister's and I have been talking about going to St George to see a musical, Aida, at Tuachan for a while and finally decided that it was time to follow through! We left last Saturday morning and had a blast! The only thing that could have made it better, was to have mom there too! Hopefully we can go next summer when she is out here!

On our way south, we stopped in Provo at the farmer's market and got these adorable headbands.....we all 3 have one!

Us during intermission

With 3 of the 4 leads after the performance! It was an amazing show!

By the way, Thayne from so you think you can dance was a dancer in the musical we saw, but he is the lead in Footloose which is also showing at Tuachan. This is Cami and I being dorks!
Boy he is cute, and he sure CAN dance!

Amy

2009-08-20T22:22:00.000-07:00

My sister-in-law Amy is a great photographer......so while she was in Utah she was kind enough to take some pictures of my belly.......here is one. I'll post more when I can!

Have I mentioned that I absolutely LOVE being pregnant!

Indiana

2009-08-20T20:00:00.001-07:00

I was able to go home to Indiana and spend some time with my mom and dad a couple weeks ago! It was so great to be home, but especially good to see my parents. Here are some pictures of my trip......my only complaints are that Steve wasn't able to make it and 1 week just wasn't enough time with my parents! For those of you that know my parents, you know how amazing they are! I am so lucky to have such amazing parents!

It's funny how you start to miss little things.....like signs with street names instead of numbers!

The Batesville Fireman's Festival

Good friends that throw you a surprise baby shower.....
where you get adorable things for Gracie!

Mowing the lawn.

Watching dad play with his toys!

I miss how many trees there are in Indiana....and how green it is!

Brookville Lake memories......

(Bubby.....double date...lost car keys in Lake....stranded!)

Most of all, I miss these two amazing people!

Mom and Dad, thanks for everything! I had so much fun just being able to be with you two. I can't wait for you to come out in December! I love you!

We're Movin' In!

2009-07-21T18:53:00.000-07:00

We passed our inspection for our temporary certificate of occupancy on Monday and now we are packing up and moving out of my sister's. They were kind enough to take us in back in February and let us stay with them until our house was done......thanks a ton! We love you so much! Here are some newer photos of the house....we now have power, a kitchen and carpet! There's still a lot that needs to be finished, but it finally looks like home!

This is how I have spent the last few days at the house!

(barefoot and pregnant! ha ha)

Everyday it looks more and more like home

This is the nursery

The loft with carpet and lighting.....yeah electricity!

Office

I still love the stairs!

Master bedroom....I painted the brown accent wall on Friday.

These next few pictures show how we poured our own concrete counter tops. If I do say so myself, they look amazing and it was a lot of fun making them.....let us know what you think!

Waiting was the worst part.....we were so anxious to see how they turned out.

Steve was so excited to use his new toy....I mean tool!

Now all we have to do is seal them.

Our kitchen....still not quite done, but you can see where we are going.

Steve's siblings are all in town this week. We loved spending time with them this weekend, and can't wait to go camping this weekend! We could use a break!Steve and his brothers

More family hangin' out at the house.

For those of you who don't know, I am married to a very talented man. He took ceramics in high school and in college and has made some awesome pieces of art. This talent must run in the family.....Steve's sister Jaime is also extremely talented when it comes to ceramics. She is in town from North Carolina and brought us our first house warming gift (that she made!).....check it out! It is amazing! Thanks Jamie...we love it!

By the way....Jamie and her husband are also expecting a little one in January, and we are so excited that our little Gracie will have a cousin just a few weeks younger to play with!

It's a.........

2009-07-05T21:18:00.000-07:00

You know what 'G' stands for right?!?!?!?!

...........What can I say.......it's a little girl! We are so excited and it is nice to finally know!

Steve kinda wanted a boy first, so when we walked into the room he told the ultrasound technician that we weren't leaving till she found a boy. When we started the baby wasn't in the best position to be able to tell the sex, but the tech said to be patient and maybe it would move. Just after she took the measurements of the belly and moved to another area......the tech paused the screen and then looked at Steve. She said you're not going to leave until I find a boy right? Steve said yes, and then she said that we would be there all night because we are having a girl! I think it took Steve a minute for it to register, and we both couldn't be happier!

The other day we took some pictures of the baby bump that is slowly getting bigger......have I mentioned that I LOVE my belly and LOVE being pregnant! I especially love the little one growing inside......I just started feeling her move and it is amazing!

Me at 20 weeks

Steve loves my belly too!

This little girl is already loved by so many!

Almost there!

2009-07-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

We are coming down to the home stretch......over the last two weeks we are seeing everything come together. It is really exciting, and I just want to be moved in already! It has been a good experience, but not one I would like to undertake again anytime soon!

Here are some pictures that shows our progress.

Our back patio

We have a driveway now!

Paint is done!

2nd bedroom upstairs

I'm in love with our stairway!

Master bath.....we have tile. I love slate!

Master Bedroom

Our trim is awesome!

Mudroom is tiled too!

I can't believe that we are this close....I can almost taste it! Cabinets are going in tomorrow and hopefully tile will be finished by Tuesday (grout and all)! I am so grateful for my sweet husband who works so hard. He works a full time job and then goes straight to the house and works another full time job building our home! I am one lucky girl!

Honey, I love you so much!

(thanks, i love you too!)

What Do You Think?

2009-07-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

So we find out what we are having on July 6th......what do you think we're having? We know it's a baby, but do you think it will be a Boy or Girl? Let us know what you think!

Too Busy Building to Blog!

2009-06-16T19:30:00.000-07:00

I think the title of this blog says it ALL! Steve and I are soooo exhausted, but soooo excited that the end is in sight! Here is the progress that we've made on our house so far.......

This is the most wood floor that Steve has laid......it is gorgeous!

(Approx 1,300 square feet)

Once the wood was laid, it was time to fill all of the holes. And boy there were a

lot of holes to fill! After the holes were filled it was time to sand,

and sand, and sand and sand some more!

Then we had to vacuum up all, and I do mean ALL, of the sawdust!

Steve was so excited to stain the floor.

The finished product! Beautiful huh!?!?!

My brother-in-law was nice enough to let Steve use his mini-ex

for some excavating we needed to do in the yard. You should have

seen him.....he was like a kid on Christmas morning!

Then it was time for the finish work......lots and lots of finish work!

(Keep in mind...Steve did all of this finish trim)

This is the dining room and part of the kitchen.

Family room

Formal Living Room

*we are going for the craftsman look with the paneling and fancy headers*

The stairs.....view from the front door.
I am so grateful for Steve and his construction knowledge!

Top of the stairs looking into the loft.

Not only have we been building our house, but I am also 'building' our little one. I am currently 17 1/2 weeks along and am so excited to be pregnant! I'm still at that stage where sometimes I just look chubby rather than pregnant, but again I couldn't be happier!

Here are a few pictures of my growing belly.....it's ok if you think I just look chubby.....it's just a matter of time till I am ginormous and wishing I was back at this stage!

Hope you enjoyed the 'tour'......paint will be done this Saturday and the driveway, porch cap, front walk and patio will all be laid this weekend also. We are hoping to move in around July 13th. Things are moving!

Good News!

2009-05-11T21:54:00.000-07:00

That's right......my eggo is preggo!

Giddy As A Schoolgirl

2009-05-10T20:36:00.001-07:00

Yes, Giddy.

After much stress and many much hours pulling wire, framing walls etc.

We did it.

Ok, not did it done, but did it getting there.

We got all our plumbing, heating and electrical (a billion thanks to the Yoda of electricity Alan for helping me through the dizzying process, even though he was packing up all his stuff before a cross-counrty move to IOWA for med school) DONE!

Drywall was started one morning and by that afternoon was 75% hung. After only a couple hours the next morning they were done and ready to tape and mud. The whole house is moving along pretty well. The exterior is almost done and all the siding has been painted. (thank you Crystal for working extra hard, even when I'm not there cracking the whip).

The only painting left is a bit of touch up and painting the trim around the windows and doors white. The stucco will go where all that black paper is and then POOF!

The home that sat for two years is transformed. We'll be ready for finish work and wood floors to go in by the middle of next week and hopefully completed a week and a half after that.

Not Giddy-worthy you say? well I hope you noticed that pine tree in front of the garage. It's one of two cut down this week by yours truly.

It's not that I don't like trees, I just love a good photo opp.

with the rest of life going so well and our house moving AHEAD of schedule, (yes I said AHEAD)

I think i'm entitled to a bit of Giddy-ness.

It's Ours!

2009-03-29T21:45:00.001-07:00

On Thursday March 26th we finally closed on our new home! We have a lot of work to do before we can move in, but we couldn't be more excited! We closed Thursday and had one of our subs start working the next morning! Steve and I spent all day Saturday working there together, and boy was I tired! I just keep telling myself that it will be worth it. If anyone wants to come by to see it sometime, the address is 220 North 200 East in Alpine......we'll be there a lot for the next few months!

Our new home

The south side of the house

This is the kitchen from the mud room

This picture is taken in our formal living room

This is the upstairs

I know it is hard to see what is what now, but I'll post more pictures as we go. Our house is going to be so awesome! We feel so blessed that everything worked out so well.

And the best part.....I'll get to enjoy this view EVERYDAY!

I am one lucky girl!

We're Back!

2009-03-19T21:43:00.000-07:00

We're alive! It has been one hectic month! We are living with my sister and brother-in-law and waiting to close on a home in Alpine.....boy is that an ordeal! Life has been great and an adventure....to say the least. Last Wednesday night I was driving on State Street in Lindon and I hit a deer....I know, the last thing I expected on such a main street in town! Luckily I was able to slow down enough that the damage was not too bad. The deer got up and ran away, and this is what my car looks like......what do you think? I was pretty lucky, it could have been so much worse......I was going about 40mph!

The hoodSomething to remember the deer

(gross)

Steve and I left for Las Vegas the next day......we needed a vacation! We got into town and met up with 4 of our friends at the Dan Marino Restaurant in the Hooters Casino.......I know Hooters, but Dan makes yummy ribs. Then we were off to see the Cirque de Soliel show at the MGM, KA. Our friend Kara had been in town on a business trip and she was able to snag us all FREE tickets! It was such a cool show! That makes 2 free Cirque de Soleil shows for Steve and I.....thanks Lance and Kara!

After the show

The next night we walked the strip and saw the normal Las Vegas sights.....the Volcano at the Mirage.....Shops at the Miracle Mile......The Gardens at the Bellagio.......and my favorite the Fountains at the Bellagio. We had a blast!

On the way home, we drove past the Las Vegas Temple........it was beautiful! It was a much needed vacation, but we were ready to get home.

The weather was perfect....we actually spent a few hours on Saturday at the MGM's pool....or should I say pools. They have a few pools and a lazy river! It was a great trip!

We will keep everyone updated on the progress of our home.......thank you to everyone who has been praying for us......we are very grateful!

It's Official

2009-01-29T20:24:00.001-08:00

We sold our first home! Since both Steve and I are working in Salt Lake now, we decided that it would be a good idea to move a little further north. After much deliberating, we decided to list our home with a realtor. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that after only three and a half weeks on the market (keep in mind we are in a recession) we would sign the papers to sell our home! Not only that, we have only a week and a half to move! We didn't have anywhere to go, so my amazing sister and her husband are going to take us in until we find a place, or figure out what to do. Don't get me wrong I feel so blessed that we sold so quickly, but I feel like we just finally got things the way we wanted. Here are some pictures of my cute little house.

The living room....Steve put in this beautiful wood floor.

Dining room

Kitchen.....we glazed the cabinets, added the black accents, tiled the floor and counters, and put in the new back splash.

I love how the office turned out.

Our bedroom.

I am really going to miss our first home, but I know that it is time to move on. We have made some really great memories here, and I can't wait for the adventures that lie ahead for us!

Firefighter Smith

2009-01-29T19:45:00.000-08:00

So my husband is amazing! He is now officially a Salt Lake City firefighter. He was sworn in on January 9th and is at station 13. It is kind of difficult getting use to his schedule, but I love it when his days off and my days off line up! It is awesome to think that he is helping people everyday. I love him so much and am so proud of him! Here are some pictures of him in uniform.

These are the guys he trained with for 12 weeks.

The helmets

Aren't we so cute!

Us again...he looks so good in uniform!

Firefighter Smith.....my hero!

Our Trial

2008-12-31T14:47:00.000-08:00

I know I have been a horrible blogger lately.....life has been crazy! We had a great Christmas and a wonderful New Year. My parents came out from Indiana and it was so nice to have them here. It was nice to have some time off work to spend with them! For family home evening right before Christmas we had a special visitor........

It was so much fun to see the kids faces when Santa walked through the front door! They were so cute....they all sat on Santa's lap and told him what they wanted him to bring them for Christmas. I even had a chance to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what I wanted most of all for Christmas.......

I asked for a baby! For those of you who know me, I am a very open person. That is putting it VERY lightly. If you want to know something......all you have to do is ask me. So here it goes. I am very open about how badly Steve and I want to have children. Here is our story, or as I like to say.....our trial.

Steve and I decided in January 2006 that we were ready to make your family a little bigger. We started trying in March. I found out I was pregnant in June 2006, but miscarried at 6 weeks. Then it took us almost a full year to get pregnant again. I found out this time in May 2007, and miscarried again at 6 weeks. Since then I switched doctors and have been diagnosed with Poly cystic ovarian disease (PCOS). I have been taking chlomid, a fertility drug, along with metformin (for my PCOS)for the last 3 months with no luck! It is rather exhausting physically and emotionally! No matter what we do, every month we are devastated to not be pregnant. I cry every month. I feel like we are on the right track with doctors who seem to know what they are doing. Every month I take chlomid on days 5-9 of my cycle, I go in for an ultrasound to check my ovaries(follicle study) on day 13 and then they give me two shots of the HCG hormone to make me ovulate! Then we get to wait for about 2 weeks to find out if I'm pregnant! Sounds fun huh?!?!

Anyway, this trial has helped me to become stronger and has made mine and Steve's relationship better! I just can't wait to be a mom someday! Hopefully soon! I hope that by sharing our struggle, we are able to help someone who may be having a similar trial in their life. Having faith in our Heavenly Fathers plan helps me when I am feeling hopeless. It helps to realize that everyone has trials......this is mine.

Christmas Here We Come.....

2008-12-06T16:29:00.000-08:00

November was a busy month. I was getting used to a new work schedule, and Steve was SO exhausted from going through another fire academy! It made the month fly by! For Thanksgiving, we went to Steve's parents house and had a great day of food and naps! I'm not one of the crazy's that is willing to get up early and go shopping on Black Friday...I need my sleep. Instead my wonderful husband, who didn't think that we should put our tree up so early, decided to make me so happy and take me to pick out our tree.

Growing up in small town Indiana had it's perks around Christmas time. Every year we would drive for 5 minutes to the next town over and go to this Christmas Tree farm. They had a pony that we could ride and a tractor that would take us on a hayride to go pick out and cut down our own tree for only $10! That is a little harder to do here, but the tree we did get is really nice. I just love the way a real tree makes your house smell! We brought it home and immediately got out the tree stand and started decorating. This is the finished result.........

I bought most of these decorations the winter that Steve and I were married (3 years on the 16th of this month!). I figured that if I didn't buy most of my Christmas decorations then, it would be harder in the future. If you can't tell, the ribbon and the tree skirt match! My favorite new addition to the tree is a picture of my mom when she was 3 and my uncle when he was 2 sitting on Santa's lap. Mom and dad are coming out for Christmas this year, and I can't wait! I miss them so much! There is nothing that can compare to having your family here for the holidays!

California

2008-11-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we were able to fly to California to be with Steve's sister Jamie and her husband when they were sealed in the San Diego temple. It was so beautiful and it was so nice to get away. With Steve in the academy again, we feel like we never get to spend any time together. We just started riding to work together, not only to save gas, but so that we could spend another hour and a half together. We were able to spend lots of time with family and my sister-in-law Amy was kind enough to take some great pictures of us, here are some from her and some from me! Enjoy.

At the beach

Steve 'Putting out the vibe'

At the temple

The Smith Family

Brothers

Bonfire at the beach

Amy the photographer took this of Steve and I....I love it! Thanks Amy!

Halloween

2008-11-16T19:09:00.000-08:00

Here are some of our pictures from Halloween! We went to our ward party for chili, and then went to hang out with some friends. It was a blast to be able to relax and hang out with friends.

Steve as Michael Myers and I was a Firefighter

Steve being scary

The group

Isn't he cute!

To Spokane We Go!

2008-11-11T20:21:00.000-08:00

So when my amazing husband found out that he would be starting with SLC Fire Department on Oct. 20th, his first thought wasn't 'lets go on vacation'......it was 'lets go to Spokane and finish a basement'! Steve's sister and her family live there and he loves helping his family, which I LOVE! Did I mention that my husband is amazing?!?! We were there for about a week and a half, and we had so much fun hanging out with Paula, Ben and kids. It was really fun getting to know our nieces and nephews, and seeing their little personalities! We didn't get very many pictures of the boys because they were at school.....Paula I need to get those pics from you.......but because the girls were home during the day we have a few of them. We made so many trips to Home Depot that I lost track, but we had a blast!

Steve unloading drywall! I helped too!

Hard at work.

One of my cute nieces ;)

She wanted to take a picture of Auntie Crystal

Me and the baby......no! If you have met this little one

you know what that means!

If you haven't met her, this should explain a little.........I think her favorite word in her vocabulary so far is NO!

[video to come]

This was a highlight of the trip! I still watch this video and crack up! Sorry about the shaking....I couldn't keep from laughing.

Me Llamo Jonas

2008-11-09T18:21:00.001-08:00

Wow, a whole month behind. I feel bad for making all of you blog addicts have to wait so long to read about the best concert of the year! September 7 2008.

WEEZER

Without a doubt the best show I've been to in years. Even my friend Mark came up from Vegas to see it with us. We had wicked good seats too. Dead center and about a dozen or so rows up, just high enough to see over the sound and light board guys equipment.

I listened to my first Weezer album in 97' after borrowing, and yes... never getting around to returning it, from my sister in law Amy. (sorry Amy, I owe you a blue album) I was hooked, from "surf wax America" to "my name is Jonas". That was the summer we moved from Hawaii to Utah and it just felt like home to me. I think I even wore that disc out before Andrew and Amy moved out.

Anywho, Weezer has come to Utah before, in fact, they have come a few times. Twice while I was on my mission. But its ok, Dave went to those shows for me, and then told me about them in letter. He didn't even leave out the part about seeing my then girlfriend at the show.

Well, after a decade of loving their music, album after album, it was finally time to get to their show. I even kept track of the play list. And if anyone I don't know is reading this, and happened to be at the show, feel free to let me know what the "unknown" song was. I know it wasn't one of theirs, but that's about it.

I'll set the stage for you. Before they came out, they had a little exercise trampoline and a rubber ball placed on stage. Throughout the show Rivers (lead singer) would just head over to it and jump around for a little while then hop off and get back to rockin'. And the ball, best described as the kind of ball that's in those big tall cages at wall-mart, was played with on stage for a song or two and then kicked into the audience.

(if you don't know/like Weezeer, this next paragraph can be skipped)

They opened with "My name is Jonas" One of my absolute favorites, and threw in some of that es-pan-yole. Then it was "pink triangle" (a song about being in love with a lesbian who does not share the same feelings with him. Oddly enough, the lesbian couple a few rows in front were barely moving for that song. ODD) "perfect situation" "Say it aint so" EXCELLENT! "Suzanne" Off of a rare tracks album, i think "Waste my Days" and then the song I do not know... It said "I'm king" in the chorus a lot. go figure. "Undone, the sweater song" "pork and beans" "Dreaming" "Dope Nose" "Trouble Maker" "Automatic" "Hash Pipe" "El Scorcho" then they covered "Morning Glory" by Oasis. Then they hit my new personal anthem, "I am the greatest man that ever lived" ;) "hip hip" "Beverly hills" "heart songs" then a Nirvana cover of "grandma take me home" "Buddy Holly" (soo good) And then they brought out a bunch of local people, about thirty different contest winners who each played an instrument. They called it the Weezer hoot-n-nanny. They played "island in the sun" and one other.

All in all it was a phenomenal show and I'd do it again if I had the chance.

My Turn to Brag

2008-09-24T18:05:00.000-07:00

HE DID IT! You are looking at one of Salt Lake City's newest firefighters!

For those of you who don't know this already.....my husband is amazing! Not only does he work hard around the house fixing it up for me, but he works hard ALL the time! When he sets his mind to do something, he works hard to accomplish his goal. This being said, last September he decided he wanted to change his career. He had been going to school for construction management, and decided he wanted to be a firefighter. That caught me a little off guard to say the least. By April he had graduated from the fire academy and started testing for fire departments, which is VERY competitive! We just found out that he is going to be hired by Salt Lake City and we couldn't be more excited, and I couldn't be more proud!

I feel so lucky to be married to such a wonderful guy!

Check out other posts about Steve:

Guess who has two thumbs.....

Shout Out to Captain Steve!

One of our new favorites!

2008-08-22T23:13:00.000-07:00

Somehow Steve and I have gotten really out of shape! Our friends Alan and Kara mentioned that they had been hiking the Y a few times a week for exercise, so we decided that we would tag along. One of our goals as a couple was to be in good enough shape to do a much harder hike by the end of the summer. We hiked with Alan and Kara a few times, Dave and Logan, and then when Steve's sister Jamie and her husband Andy came out to visit they also came along. We like to start right around 7:30pm so that we will be at the Y for the sunset. Needless to say, we have some really amazing photos of Utah Valley that I thought I'd share.

When Jamie and Andy hiked with us.

One of my favorites!

I mentioned before that one of mine and Steve's goals was to be in good enough shape to do a much bigger hike, but this is not just any hike! We wanted to hike to the summit of Mt. Timponogos, the 2nd highest peak in the Wasatch Front. This is approx a 16 mile hike round trip, and the best time to make this trek is at night. Our good friends Alan and Kara, who I've posted about before, came along and made this journey with us. We started at about 2:30am from the trail head that is just above Sundance. After about 4 hours of hiking, we made it to the Saddle.

Just as the sun was rising.

Just being ourselves.

One of the most breath-taking views I have ever seen.

After watching the sun rise and resting for a while, we continued on to the summit. About another hour later we were there! In one direction we could see all of Utah Valley including he Great Salt Lake, and in the other direction we could see all of Heber Valley. It was amazing!

At the summit!

There is a glacier on the back side of Timp that you can sometimes slide down, saving a lot of walking down some really rough terrain. We thought that we would give it a shot, and we were pleased to find out that it was a perfect time for us to safely slide down. It was soft enough that we were in complete control, and it was a blast!

At the top of the glacier.

We slid down from the very top!

Since we hiked up in the dark, coming back down was fun because we were able to see just how beautiful the trail was. At a few points during the hike you walk through meadows of wild flowers that are absolutely gorgeous! And I lost count of how many waterfalls we passed. As hard as this hike was, it was absolutely worth it!

One of the meadows.

Look how happy we are to be hiking down and not up!

This picture does not do this waterfall justice! It is the one that is near the beginning of the trail, and we are planning on hiking to it again within the next few weeks and I will try to get some better pictures. Steve grew up in Hawaii and we both agreed that this waterfall looked like it could be in Hawaii. It was covered in beautiful green moss and was breath taking! It was an adventure that we will never forget!

PS-It took us about 9.5 hours round trip!

4th of July

2008-08-22T22:49:00.001-07:00

For the 4th of July Steve and I had a few BBQ's with family and friends, and then went up on the side of the mountain and watched the fireworks from Stadium of Fire. They were beautiful, but we were far away. It just wasn't the same as being close enough to smell the fireworks. I love that smell! Good show, but it just didn't feel like the 4th. We had made plans to go to the Salt Lake Bees game the next day with our friends Alan and Kara. Little did I know that there would be a fireworks show after the game! So we sat in the grass seats and enjoyed the game.

Kara and I

It was sooooo hot outside!

After the game, they announced that everyone who was seated in the grass area would need to go down onto the field because they were going to be launching the fireworks off behind where we were sitting. So we were able to take our blankets onto the field and watch the show from there! We were so close that when we laid down, the fireworks were right over us! I had to put on my sunglasses because ashes were falling on my face and I didn't want them to get into my eyes! It was so much fun and I think that this may become a tradition for us!

All of us in left field before the show

Fun in May

2008-08-22T22:24:00.000-07:00

In May I turned 25, so to celebrate we had some friends over to have a fire and play Rock Band. It was so much fun! I can't believe I'm 25. Sometimes I feel like I am still in high school, but then I remember that I am in far worse shape now than I was back then! Here are some pics from my party. I was the photographer and got some good ones of Steve rocking out!

One of the things that Steve and I love about living in Utah are the mountains! We love going for rides up into canyons. One weekend we decided to go up to Sundance and walk around. We like to watch the glass blowers. Steve always says that that is something that he wants to learn how to do someday. Sundance is a beautiful place to go, and there are fun little shops to walk through. It is such a beautiful setting.

Catching up......

2008-08-22T21:58:00.000-07:00

So while Steve was finishing up at the fire academy, I decided it was time to get a new job. Now, I had been considering this for a while, but I hadn't come across anything that I felt was right. So I stopped looking. Then I got a call from a friend who said that she knew of someone who was looking for an office manager, and I knew that this was the right move for me! I started the end of April, and I love what I do and the people I work with.

So....new job, Steve done with the academy, and what do you think we do to celebrate? Go camping of course! We love to go camping....actually Steve proposed to me where we would always go camping and off-roading in Wallsburg. This time we went with a group of friends to Five Mile Pass. It was really cold, but we had so much fun! With Steve being gone so much while he was in the academy we didn't get to spent much time together, and so now we enjoy being together even more than before! I love my hubby!

Aren't we cute!

Stuff We've Done This Year

2008-08-13T22:05:00.000-07:00

So after much consideration we have decided to join the blogging world. We didn't feel much of a need to have a blog since we don't have any kids yet, but I decided......why wait? So here we are. We have been very fortunate to do some fun and amazing things, and we want to share them with you all. Here are some of the things that Steve and I have done this past year:

Last December Steve and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. We were able to stay at a beautiful cabin in Timber Lakes, outside of Heber City, UT. It was beautiful and very cold!

Us in front of the cabin.

Timber Lakes....Beautiful view!

Me!

In January Steve started the Utah Fire and Rescue Academy. Despite his decision to show up to his very first class with a full beard and mullet (keep in mind this training is military-like), he was chosen to be the Class Officer. Being Class Officer is kind of like being the Captain of the class. He loved what he was doing and graduated in April.

My honey in his gear

RCA Class 48

Me spraying the fire hose

Steve and I next to Engine 3 on Graduation Night

Now I'm going to jump ahead for a second. For those of you who don't know.....becoming a firefighter is really competitive, and it's definitely not easy! Now, getting a job that is the hardest part. Fire departments test about every 2 years. It starts with a written test and if you make the cut there are at least 2 to 3 more steps before receiving your rank. Now when the department is ready to hire they will hire in groups of 10-16 depending on how many positions are available. They hire in order off of the list that was compiled from the testing. For Salt Lake City Fire about 560 people tested. They had approx 164 make the list and my husband was among these numbers. Not only was he among these numbers, but he is #4 on this list! I am so proud of him and it is looking like this fall Salt Lake City will hire and he will officially be a SLC firefighter. We can't wait! I am so grateful that he has found something that he loves to do!

That is all for now, but there will be more to follow. We have been very busy this summer and have a lot of catching up to do, but right now it's time for bed.