Whilst in Kaysville...

     Well, no Easter egg hunts for me this year. I somehow got tricked into working on Easter (cause I'm a sucker like that) and while you are all eating your Easter hams I'll be staring at blood through a microscope. But it's ok. I got to spend yesterday with my family who was in town from Seattle, and when my dad is around you know you are in for a good time. (and really, I don't like ham that much anyways) 
    My sister Bethany blessed her baby and her little boy Kyle got baptized. We brunched, we talked, kids fought over toys, we attempted to do crazy balancing moves we saw in videos- it was a typical family get together. And, as usual, my pictures only tell half the story. 

Thanks for looking Baby Blue Eyes. (yes this was the best shot, oh well)

Ellen's little boy Gabe intruded on this picture with his oversized cowboy hat- but it was still my favorite shot of these girls so I couldn't resist posting it!  (I think Olive inherited my Sisters bright blue eyes, heaven knows they didn't come from me!) 

Baby Callie :)

OK, the next pictures were taken at my sister's in-laws house and it is straight out of a movie. It is so enchanting and magical- there is even a hobbit hole there. 

Yes. A hobbit hole. I told you it was amazing.

Happy Easter Everyone. My family is the most important thing to me in the whole wide world. So, instead of Easter Egg hunts this year I'm going to reflect on Christ, his life, and the many gifts and blessings he has given me. HERE is a talk I love from one of my favorite people. You can read anything by him and your heart will melt. I have never regretted anytime I have spent with my own little family. And besides, I foresee many Easter Eggs hunts for us to enjoy in the future with little Olive (and whoever else joins us along the way.)

Our weekend at Camp Cloud Rim.

     My cousin Nate Hawkes has a pretty legit job. He maintains a Girl Scout camp in deer valley. The girls are only up there for 3 or 4 months during the summer, but the land needs to be kept up all year long. During the winter it's a little wonderland. It's remote and quiet and just divine. My husband, Olive and I drove up to a little gate where my cousin picked us up because we had to make the rest of the trip up in a sled pulled by a snow mobile. (cool right?)

    We absolutely loved our time up there. We had dinner, we played games, we spent time chatting and laughing, we rode snow mobiles, we snow shoed, and really we just enjoyed living life. Thanks Nate, Mandy, Mille and little Alfie for putting forth all the effort to bring us up there and for being amazing hosts.  

Camp History. Looks straight out of the parent trap!

Plenty of space for Olive to crawl around.... if she could crawl :)

Dad. He is always so distracting. (But I don't blame her, he IS pretty charming)

After riding snow mobiles Kc and I snow shoed around this frozen lake with Maybe and Sancho. (whose energy knew NO ends) I was so taken a back by the beauty and stillness. It made me feel as though I had walked out the back of the magic wardrobe in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. (And I half hoped Aslan would suddenly appear through the woods) And as always I can never quite capture the real essence of my surroundings in the pictures I take.

Kc and I can't wait for our own little rebel rousing dogs.

That one Day in Salt Lake City.

    I've never been a very good photographer in that I always forget to take pictures! I find myself so lost in the moment and then I realize- whoops, I forgot to capture that :(
     I envy those who are able to live and experience these moment through a lens because then they can cherish them forever. Maybe some day. But until then I'm stuck with what moments I was able to capture on our mom day out on the town. Enjoy. (we did)

The Crew. 

Oh yeah, this was for real.

Hot Butts.

Little Nixon did something to capture all four of our attention.

That's all folks. But be warned SLC- we will be back. Strollers and all.

Hello  There. 


     You know, I really should be in my bed right now.  But I'm not. My little girl's sleeping schedule has been- should we say- not ideal as of late. 

*sigh* 

     That's all I have to say. And, somehow, sending all this exhaustion out into the universe is a little therapeutic. So if I am being honest (and I am)- I am lucky I did not get arrested today- because Olive and I drove to babiesrus to do a little shopping and we both fell asleep in the parking lot for over an hour before we could even go in. 
   Over an hour.
      And we were like RIGHT in front of the store. On top of that I know for a fact that I looked like one of those really gross sleepers- you know the ones you see on the planes with the mouth gaped open slumped over their shoulder. I mean being awakened by your own drool coming out of your mouth is a pretty good indication that things are a little sketch. But thank you mothers entering babiesrus for just knowing that I was an extremely exhausted overworked Mamma. (instead of the hangover druggie that I probably appeared to be) 
  But then we woke up. 
     We bought some diapers, went home, planted some peas, and all seemed right again with the world. Until bedtime. For heavens sake child whatever is causing your change in sleep schedule PLEASE go away soon. Before I gouge out my eyeballs. Thank you. 

Here is little banshee bones after we woke up. She thought it was perfectly normal to sleep in the car (i mean like duh- I do it all the time mommy)

A little ride on the Front Runner 

Kc and I took a little trip on the front runner a couple weeks ago because he got some free passes from work and school and we wanted to see what it was all about. 

And, we LOVED IT! (oh, and so did Olive... if you can't tell from these pictures!)I would recommend it to anyone, best way to travel. Especially with a little one.

We met up with my sister, her husband, and their new little babe Callie. 

I guess Olive didn't like me holding another baby so much.

And then we went home.

Till next time Front Runner. 

We sure loved you!