Life In Pictures

I wish I could capture life in words as well as I do in pictures. I'm hardly saying that I am a good photographer (because I'm not), but taking a pictures is so much easier than painting one with words. Elliott has the gift of words. Many of my friends do too. I read their posts and leaving feeling... kind of magical. I think this is something I will try to improve on, because I don't want to be a blogger (and I kind of hate that word) blog writer who just lists what we do. A..B..C..D. I want to come back to these posts years down the road and be able to re experience the joy, sadness, beauty, change that fills our days.

And lately most of those feelings have been joy. Elliott and I  feel that we are exactly where we are supposed to be. We commonly talk about how we love our city and how lucky we feel to have friends and family to share it with. We've really lucked out as far as friends go- both those we have met through our church and those we have not. I don't think we will ever be this lucky again so we are enjoying it while it lasts. 

There are two friends that we have particularly become close with. The first time we hung out we invited them over for dinner. We were all newly weds- we all got married within three weeks of each other and moved into the ward on the same day. We even went on the same honeymoon as one of the couples- they left Kauai the day we arrived. Anyway, the dinner had the normal awkwardness that comes along with trying to make new friends. It was more formal and full of get-to-know you conversation. Three years later- almost to the day- we laid on our empty apartment floor with the same friends with pillows and blankets watching Mad Men and joked about what our kids will look like, among other things. It was very fitting, very informal. They were the first and last people we really had in our old apartment, and it was a great send off. We usually never end up planning anything with each other but end up hanging out until 10 or 11 at night. Last night was an impromptu movie we decided to go to 30 minutes before it started. They grabbed treats and picked us up, and we didn't get back until 1:00. 

I know I've said this before, but the older I get the more I enjoy simple things. Now I do not mean that I do not like adventure and spontaneity, because I love them both. But walks with the dog, feet in the stream, sun going down, cooking, long conversations.... they seem to fill me up more than anything else. I guess a little more camping wouldn't hurt.

But since I am still working on my words, here is life in pictures:

Mollie's favorite spot in the house::: Cool spring river:::Mollie conquering her fear of water::: Mollie staring down the water moments before::: Summer walks:::Last pictures shows effect of dental work and a numb face.

We took on a local hike a few weeks ago: Bell Canyon Reservoir. There was a one mile up hill surprise at the end of the trail but the view was worth it, the waterfall was beautiful and refreshing.

Memorial Day hike: Bell Canyon Reservoir::: Planted pots

I found and tried a new recipe that's definitely a keeper: Creamy Avocado Pasta. It seriously is the bomb and super easy to make, and really healthy too! In other news, I finally finished my quilt after two years of procrastination. It was a lot of fun and I already want to make another.

And finally, we went to the Bon Iver concert. Man, that guy can tap into your emotions and make you feel pretty dang good. Highlight? When he played Re:Stacks. One of those songs that is amazing, but is even better live.

P.S. to future self: Remember when you followed The Rockstar Diaries? (mostly because she has such good taste) You especially liked this post  about siblings and want to remember it.

Dog Lake

Yesterday we hiked dog lake. It was perfect fall weather with blue skies, fluffy white clouds, and changing colors in the tress. I hope I never forget how beautiful Salt Lake falls are. Every time we do something in the mountains (hiking, mountain biking, skiing, picnic) I wonder why I don't do them more. It's all only a 15 minute drive away.... I don't think I'll ever live in a place with so many great things to do so close again.

On the hike: my parents, two uncles, two aunts, and one cousin. Elliott hung out with Nick and they watched college football and went to lunch. They also went to the Utah football game last night which turned out to be a giant disappointment. I went shopping with my mom....

I want to hold on to the weather we had yesterday for the next three months....We'll probably have at least one snow storm in the next month in a half. 

I love fall!

Timp

Yesterday we spent all day hiking. We hiked up the back side of Mt. Timpanogos and it was the perfect hiking day. Not too hot, blue skies. Note to future self, don't forget that you love hiking, especially in Utah.

This is one of the glaciers

If you ever want to see the most amazing wild flowers, this is the place. We love Utah summers. Fall temperatures are starting to replace the summer heat. I'm getting excited to turn 24, have canyon BBQs with tin foil dinners cooking on a fire, and fall recipes including curried pumpkin soup and halloween cookies.

I am now a primary teacher at church which means I get so spend 2 hours every Sunday with 3 and 4 year olds. I love it and they have some great things to say. Today we talked about missionaries. When asked who wants to serve a mission, no one in our class raised their hand. My teaching partner asked one of our little girls if she was going to serve a mission. Her response: "Na, I'm going to Disneyland so I'm good." Love it.

Wipe That Smile On Your Face

The past few weeks have been great. They've been full of school, hiking, a little sun, blooming flowers, and a Real game. I was lucky enough to head down to Zion last weekend with my family (elliott had to stay behind for school). We hiked the east rim of the canyon and the weather was absolutely perfect. I was starting to forget what it felt like to spend an entire day out in the sun. The water level was really high which made the hike ammmmazing. There were a ton waterfalls and pools of water you could dip into. Gear up for a lot of pictures....

First of all, this was Mollie while we were loading up the car. She always sneaks under there probably thinking it will keep us from leaving.... it breaks my heart.

But Elliott kept her company over the weekend, so off we went:

Feels good on the feet:

And...my mom fell in. Obviously I thought it was pretty funny:

These trees are in full bloom all around the valley:

On Campus

Bruges Waffles!

Last Wednesday, we were lucky enough to go to the Real game. It was a huge game, and unfortunately, they lost. But the atmosphere was great and it was the most fun game we've been to.

And finally.. Mollie went in for a teeth cleaning a few days ago and ended up getting 9 teeth pulled due to infection. If you can't tell from the picture, she's on strong drugs and a little out of it. 

Oh how I love her

And that's what we've been up to!

Also noteworthy:
1. Elliott received a scholarship from the Salt Lake Tribune (local slc newspaper).
2. Elliott was offered the editor position of the arts section of the Chrony (U of U newspaper)

Elliott and I graduate this week (after a long week of finals). His parents are coming up on Thursday and we're ready to see them and take them to our new favorite restaurants!