summer.

girls camp.  ah yeah. check out my friend Renae's more cowbell shirt.  love this girl.

batman a la backyard.

nice indian.  oh good.  we don't want the scalping kind...
stopping at the road side jewelry stands in nowheresville, az.

checking out the merchandise.

seeing my sister again after way. too. long.

playing with grandpa's new pup, Tucker.

sa-weet dog. semi-sweet kids.  haha.

the wasatch back.

the team: "No More Runs."  pun. intended.

my longest run.  7.4 miles on a gravel road climbing avon pass.  hot+hills= he**. just kidding, it was awesome, but the hardest run of my life.  look at hard core me go.

the baton hand off, and a kiss.  double bonus.

woo, and a hoo.  only 2 more runs and about 25 hours to go.

Craig literally chucking his water bottle back to Justin, who was (obviously) not ready for it. 

done with run 3.

hubs, me, dad-in-law

not loving a 15 hour car ride.

the grand canyon.  meet the scruffy family.

all my favorite people.

the 4th of July

watching the fireworks

he had a big day.

happy kids.

a fishing we will go.

that's not blood under his nose.  it's chocolate.  yummy yummy boy.

fishing without fish.

precarious.

hannah the vampire. tee hehe.

6th birthday ear piercing.

showing off  our earings.  as hannah said, "we match mom, but our earings aren't the same."

just hanging out.

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he pillow bet.

helping. 

the end.
for the record, bloggers new picture loader sucks.  and i can't remove the extra picture of ethan.
oh well.

happy summer to you.

my new hobby... or blog at least.

I was walking out of a young women's activity this last Wednesday and talking to my friend about what we used to wear in high school. (insert laugh) It got me thinking, which by the way always produces interesting (at least to me results). When I was in high school, living and wearing mostly hand-me downs from my younger sisters (I was the smallest) and whatever I bought with the money I earned babysitting, brand recognition was vitally important to me. As in, "I wanted everyone to know that I got this shirt from Gap and look how conveinent(!), it says GAP right on the front of it." And, "I most certainly must where my plaid shirt hanging open and loose so that everyone can see that the shirt I'm wearing under it is from Abercrombie." Now I think back on this mind set, and it was/is, well ridiculous. There are a number of reasons. First, they were just dumb t-shirts. Really, does stamping GAP or Abercrombie on the front of it make it any cuter? No, my dear, it does not. It's still just a t-shirt. What made it cuter was the idea that the person wearing it, shops at those desirable stores, instead of well, Ross. This is sad because, basically, it's a promotional tee. Whoever created this concept is beyond brilliant, and the people (ie: sheep-like teenagers like myself) buy right into it. See what I didn't (and apparently none of my friends either) realize was that I was a walking advertisement for Gap, Abercrombie and whatever other popular store had items on the clearance rack. That would be fabulous, if I were getting a commission, getting store credit, or at least a discount of 30 percent. But no, I walked right in to that store, picked up their shirt and paid them to have me advertise it. That's like asking someone if you can pay to give them a foot massage. Not really. But really.

What is my point to all of this? Coco Chanel (loooove her!) once said, "Fashion fades, only style remains the same." How brilliant is that? I wish I had heard that quote as a teenager; it would have saved me alot of years blundering around like a goober trying to figure out if what was "in" was in my price range, instead of figuring out if I even liked it. And more importantly, it would have sent me searching for something infinitely more desirable than fashion, personal style. Fashion comes and goes, and then comes again and goes again, but when you develop your own unique style--a look that you feel comfortable in, a look that defines your character, and sings to your creativity, a look that compliments your body type (very very important!) well that's never going to go out of style.


And personal style goes beyond clothes. It lives in the way we decorate our house, fix our hair, the color cell phone we pick, which accessory we choose, the way we set a table, speak in public, the way we write our emails, the way we wrap a gift. Like Miss Chanel said, "Fashion (or style) is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening."


And finding that style is my mission peeps. Styling every aspect of my petite life. Welcome to the blog. Stick around...

happy birthday hannah.

you are six. holy cow. how did that happen so fast?

i miss you as a baby.

but i love you as a six year old.

happy.birthday.hannah.banana.

when in heat...

I am, apparently unable to update my blog properly. That isn't to say that I don't get online quite often, because I do... too much. But lately, my little mommy blog has felt well, flat. And honestly, I'm pretty swamped everyday trying to decorate, clean, placate and hold down the fort here while Craig hits it hard on his MBA. And so this little blog, which I used to love and cherish and update so darn regularly gets the shaft. BIG. TIME. I am, however, very happy to report that it is now 1/2 way through my second summer in Arizona and I'm still loving it down here (even if I did get mild heat exhaustion bringing in my bulk items from Costco today). I love the weather-- especially the other 2/3 of the year when it is perfect cardigan weather all the time. Oh how I love love love cardigans. Oh, how I can't wait to wear them again!--Sorry for the side note. I love all the stuff to do, I LOVE the shopping opportunities! I love our house. Everyday, I walk around in amazement that it is mine. With such a lovely open floor plan, and so much space, a fenced backyard with GRASS! I love all the fabulous people I've met down here. Especially all the AMAZING women that I've gotten to know. They must grow them good down here in Arizona. I'm so glad that we've both been able to go back to school, even if it is expensive and STRESSFUL! And even though I miss Craig when he's gone all the time.

Anyways, no idea where I am going with this, expect that I actually felt like updating my blog for the first time in, like. forever.

I would like to pose a little question. Does anyone ever get decorator mania? I feel so manic about decorating my house. Like it is just constantly on my mind. Perhaps this is because I am totally at a loss in several rooms as to what to do with them. And also, I have to stare at the unfinished spaces all.day.long. Not good for the obsessive nature.

How do you cope you decorating obsessives out there? I am dying to know...

And also, I put up wainscoting in my family room when Craig was in China, because I am one fabulously motivated woman, and also because my dad is a saint and drove all the way from Logan, UT (carting all of the tools in his repertoire) to assist me in my renovation project and make my home feel much less cookie cutter. Thanks pops. You are the best.

Here's a little preview of the room, for your viewing pleasure, as well as an awesome shot of us practice fishing off the back of my new sectional. It turns out it was a good prep for the real thing. The carpet produced the same amount of fish as the lake. Nada. Zero. Zip.

The end.

m.i.a.

this blog is seriously neglected.

but i'm still alive.

i promise.

just not in the mood for blogging...


i'll post pictures of the summer thus far soon.

ps. it's hot here. like HOT. 114 degrees.