dreaming of the california sunshine

As the snow keeps pilling up and the temperatures dropping,  I find myself thinking more and more about the beautiful California coast. It's my home. My happy place.
Bear and I took a trip to California for the holidays. As i've mentioned before, it was one of the best times I have had. Everyday I miss the ocean. The smell of the salty water, the sounds of waves crashing, the cold sand, and the peacefulness that it brings.

Over the holidays, Bear and I spent as much time as possible at the Beach. And although the weather was chilly and overcast most days, it was still wonderful.

We walked along the beach looking for anything that caught our attention. Seashells, sticks, sea anemones, and glass. 

Shento loves the beach. He finds it very entertaining to run as fast as possible kicking sand up all around him. He is also very curious about the waves. He'll walk up when the wave is out and sniff around, but as soon as the wave comes back to shore he immediately runs backwards.

All these pictures are taken in Venture, Ca. A place that will forever have a piece of my heart.

weekend trip

Bear and I were going stir crazy the past couple weeks being locked up in the house. The freezing cold temperatures and the inversion layer has made things miserable. After our 100th game of pentego we decided we needed to do something.  Something out of Utah and away from our house. 

We came up with the perfect solution.. a quick trip to Mesquite, NV. We could breath some fresh air, enjoy the sun shine, and hang out with my parents. 

And that is exactly what happened. The trip was indeed quick but we had such a good time.

We rocked out to a journey tribute band on friday night. We danced, laughed, and sang out loud. Even my parents got up and showed us their moves on the dance floor. 

Saturday we went to the night glow. Hot air balloons blew up and lit their flame making the entire balloon glow.  Seeing the massive colorful balloons light up in the night sky was magical. 

I don't have pictures of the wonderful meals we ate, the beautiful walk we went on, the champaign tasting, the golfing my Dad and Bear did, and the swimming.  For some reason I always leave Mesquite with very few pictures. That must mean that we are having to lots of fun. 

2012 in review

January was still a time of transition. We were settling into our new home in Provo. We were buying furniture, organizing our little house, and getting to know our new town. 

In February, I was offered a job at a local bank doing marketing. Bear was busy teaching at UVU and was just beginning to figure out what he needed to do to start researching.  

Ryan, one of our dearest friends came to visit. Bear and Ryan went skiing, we all went out to eat, and had a blast having him around. 

March started to warm up and we took full advantage. We explored a lot of the trails around the area and hiked up to the 'Y' on the mountain. 

April was a quiet month. We celebrated Easter with my Parents here in Provo. And someone hid easter eggs all around the yard for Shento to find. 

In May we had some car problems and decided it was time to buy a new one. After many hours of test driving and researching, we finally decided on one to purchase. We took a road trip to Moab and almost got blown away with the wind gusts that were going through the canyon. After Moab we ventured onto Colorado to spend a long weekend with family. 

June was a busy month. A lot of my family came into town and we enjoyed spending as much time with them as possible. We went out to lunch (and ice cream), went shopping, and had dinner outside in the summer sun. 

          

Bear and I celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary. We enjoyed a walk to the lake with Shento and an evening out at Maxwells Pizza. 

  

In June I also celebrated my 26th birthday. Bear planned an entire day of events for me. We first went out to lunch at one of my favorite cafes, Gourmandise. They have they best peach dessert I have ever had. We later went to Tracy Aviary and had a great time looking at all the birds. We walked around the park, Bear went on the carnival swing, and we ended the day with slurpees.

July was filled with fireworks, fresh fruit and veggies from our farmers market, and watching Tyler Glenn from neon trees perform Tom Petty songs. 

August was an end to a good summer. We took another road trip to Colorado to visit family and we had a blast. We went on a beautiful hike, had a bbq dinner with a live bluegrass band, and ate way too many chocolates from the local chocolate store.  

In August my parents welcomed Sadie May to the family. The laberdoddle that stole our hearts from the moment we saw her. She became our entertainment for the next couple of months. 

September we went to the Greek Festival and ate lots of food. So much food that people actually commented on the amount of food on Bear's plate.

Our good friend Kenny came to visit. We explored Antelope Island and had a picnic lunch yards away from a heard of buffalo.

We celebrated Shento's birthday with a cake bake-off. Bear and I put our dog baking skills to the test. It was hysterical for us, but poor Shento had no idea what to do when we presented him with two cakes.  

October was beautiful in Utah and we tried to take full advantage. The leaves were magnificent colors and we spent many weekends taking drives up the canyon and walking around Sundance. We went to a pumpkin patch and came home with a lot of pumpkins and squash. 

 In November we explored the Great Salt Lake. Celebrated Bear's 28th Birthday. And enjoyed a relaxing/crazy Thanksgiving in Nevada with my parents. It was so crazy that the only pictures I got were of my Dad teaching Bear how to golf. Which was an adventure in itself.

December was magical. It was by far the best month out the entire year. Bear and I made an effort to enjoy the holiday season in Utah. And we did. Almost everyday we had some type of holiday activity planned.

However, the best part of December was spending the holidays in California with all my amazing family. 

Saying goodbye to 2012 and all of the great memories that Bear and I were able to make together. Here's to even more memories and fun times to come.

saying hello to 2013

As I sit down to write this I feel like I have a lot to say but nothing will come out in a cohesive sentence.  All my thoughts are there, it’s just that they are scrambled up in my head.  That’s very similar to how the past year went. Everything seemed to be scrambled together.  2012 was a year of challenges. It tested me in all areas of my life.

Thinking back on 2012 I tend to think about how bad of year it was. However, I have to quickly remind myself that the bad challenges made me learn about myself; I had to dig deep to find out who I was. What I loved about me. And honestly, I am still searching. I have a pretty good base of who I am but I have accepted the fact that I will continue to change and grow, and that it’s okay if I don’t have it all figured out right now. Honestly, we will never have it all figured out. That’s the beauty of the journey.

This year has brought new trials to my marriage. It wasn’t always easy, it was actually really hard at times, but it made me have to understand the true meaning of commitment. Together we learned how to work and understand each other.  Because of that work, I am more in love with my husband than I have ever been.

2012 was full of wishing to get to the next step in life and not being content in what was happening in the moment. I had to step back and realize that everyday is valuable.  Now that seems a lot easier said than done. It took soul-searching, tears shed, and lots of bad days, but I did it. I learned the true meaning of the quote ‘life is about the journey not the destination’.  Each day is extremely special. No, everyday will not be cupcakes and fireworks but each day there will be something to be grateful for.

Although 2012 was a challenge, one that I am glad to put behind me, I learned a lot of valuable lessons. I am so excited to say hello to 2013 and for all the exciting things that are in store.

It’s going to be a good year, I can feel it.