christmas at the cabin
CHRISTMAS HIGHLIGHTS!
snowmobiling
sledding
sledding behind the snowmobile
making ornaments for the tree
making cookies
playing board games
gnome for the holidays
christmas highlights
decorating gnome sugar cookies
sledding
snowshoeing
snowmobiling
playing board games
sleigh ride
being together
as you wish...
The Princess Bride
poppies
J and I have been wanting to see the poppies here in Utah for a few years. Last year we went and we only saw two flowers. This year we hit it right at full bloom and WOW! The poppies are really poppin that’s for sure! The more we discover the more we realize how BEAUTIFUL Utah really is.
These photos are taken in Mantua, Utah!
birds of a feather
I have an enormous love for animals…wild animals to be exact. There is something so magical about seeing them in the wild doing their thing. I grew up in Star Valley, Wyoming with wildlife EVERYWHERE, it was amazing. I remember one night my Dad came home from a late night shift as a police officer and found a huge bull elk sitting in our yard. He woke us up and took his police spot light and we just stared at this amazing creature. The quiet of the night, the snow falling, and this elk just sitting there all confident and majestic. I will never forget it!
I could spend hours watching wildlife and the last couple days I have done just that at the Farmington Bay Wildlife Refuge! I don’t have a great lens for this kind of photography, but I think I captured some amazing shots of so many different kinds of birds. Apparently, February is national bald eagle month in Utah. The eagle’s migrate here for the winter and I bet I saw over fifty! There were SO many, it was incredible.
If any of you know the specific species of any of these birds let me know in the comments! Also, can you find the picture of the bald eagle going after the golden eagle?
white christmas
CHRISTMAS HIGHLIGHTS:
- being with my family
- playing with the neighbors new puppy aka polar bear
- sledding behind the car (until someone called the cops, haha)
- making snow angels
- dancing in the snow with my sisters and mom
- watching bubbles freeze
- playing board games and laughing until it hurts
- going for a walk on christmas eve night while it was snowing
my family
- The lovely and talented Jamie Findlay from The Landlocked Mermaid took our family photos and we couldn't be happier!! The more I look at them the more in love I become.
- The second Jamie and I met we were best friends! Haha, she is just so cool.
- Thanks to Jamie for capturing our family so beautifully!
- Here are a few (ok, a lot) of our favorites:
get your freak on
- Halloween 2017 did not disappoint.
- I don't decorate for Halloween, but I did make some delicious and freaky treats. I loved making this creepy doll cake. I can't think of anything creepier than possessed kids! So scary to me.
- J dressed up as a Kings Ranger of Aurelian (from one of her favorite books). K dressed up as a Stormtrooper.
- I hope you all got your freak on and had a great Halloween!
**Printable's from Party with Alison!
heaven on earth
My parents farm-garden-house is seriously heaven on earth. We come every summer and it recharges me for the whole year. If you are ever curious what heaven will be like just come and visit my parents! We love picking peas and carrots from the garden and eating them dirt and all. They taste better that way! Jocelyn loves the chickens the most and loves to hold them and carry them around the farm. My favorite are the pigs. They are just the funniest things.
The kids directed and took most of these photos! I am so proud of them. They are learning so much about photography and getting so good!
Thanks Nana and Papa for putting up with us and sharing your beautiful farm and home with us every year.
easter
"Even with the trials of life, because of the savior's atonement and his grace, righteous living will be rewarded with personal peace." -- Quentin L. Cook
"Today we celebrate the victory over every fall we have ever had" -- Jeffrey R. Holland
I love Easter and I love my family! So grateful for my forever family.
year in review 2016
Wow, what a year! It wasn't my favorite of years. So much that was horrible, painful and hard. BUT, going through all of my photos from the year, (which is something I do every year) something happened. I realized how grateful, blessed, happy and loved I am. This is my favorite thing about photographs, and probably why I take so many. They seem to always focus on the good parts. My camera has taught me a very valuable lesson. To focus on the good, so that is what I did. Here are my favorite moments from the year! Our family had quite a few firsts... and it just might be one of my favorite years after all.
- We explored Ice Castles
- We went Snow Shoeing
- Rode Ponies for the last time. (My babies are getting too big!)
- Became an Aunt again
- Explored Snow Canyon, Utah for the first time
- Went to Zion National Park
- Went to Carlsbad, CA
- Kai played quarterback for his flag football team
- Went to Cancun
- STARTED THIS BLOG
- Spent time with family
- Learned how to use a Swiss Army Knife
- Kai got his first injury using a Swiss Army Knife
- Conquered fear of diving
- Kids had their first doggy play-date
- Went to Yellowstone National Park
- The kids fell in love with photography
- Went to our cabin in Island Park, ID
- The kids learned how to start a fire
- Celebrated 15 years of marriage
- Visited my favorite place in Wyoming, Crystal Lake
- The kids killed their first fish and it about destroyed them
- Went Glamping
- Learned how to Box
- Jocelyn tried out and made the Aces Volleyball team
- My brother left for Romania on a 2 year mission
- SO BLESSED
sami jo photography magic
My sister Sami just took our family pictures and I could not be more happy with them. She is seriously so talented!! You can find more of her amazing work HERE. I love my family so much, they are my everything.
- Wreath from Freckle Farm and I love how it turned out!
- Photos taken in Afton, Wyoming.
halloween, pumpkin patch and witches brew
We had the best Halloween! Jocelyn dressed up as a Viking Warrior Princess and Kyler was a Skeleton Warrior. I dressed up as a witch from a black and white movie.
If you are looking for more sugar, which is always a good idea, a recipe for our Witches Brew is at the end of the post. This is a fun tradition the kids and I have been doing for almost 11 years!
We hope you all had a fun Halloween!
artfully uncommon
A couple weeks ago we had the opportunity to get pictures of the kids taken by Julie of Artfully Uncommon. She was SO great with the kids. She truly captured their personalities and the kids had a great time with her. It was so nice to have her take the pictures at our house. She also did the kids hair and styled the photoshoot. Stress free for me! She is very talented and I loved all of the pictures. Here are my favorites!
JOCELYN'S SKIRT: vintage JEANS: target JACKET: zara SANDALS: joyfolie
nature trading club
Happy first day of summer! We are so excited to be part of the Nature Trading Club started by Little Cottonwood. Such a great idea to get your kids creating and out in nature.
Little Cottonwood challenged us to go out and explore our surroundings. To gather any unique pieces of nature and were then challenged to get creative with our nature treasures. After we gathered and created we sent our nature box off to Illinois! They assigned our exchange partner to the kids before we started. We are so excited to get our box in the mail from the family assigned to us.
Our family decided to go to Red Rock Canyon in Las Vegas to explore. Living in the desert it is a little more difficult to find nature. We found lots of sand, lot of rocks and a few leaves. Haha! We love how unique our area is and did our best to create some fun nature projects. The kids found some small rocks and we made a tic-tac-toe game. The game is perfect to take anywhere. Just put the rocks in the bag and when you are ready to play, just pull the rocks back out. We put our very HOT sand into a bottle and they loved to look at the different layers of sand. Our last project was to make animals that are native to Las Vegas out of leaves. They turned out so cute! So cute in fact that they didn't want to give up their creations. Haha! They were proud of their rattlesnake and bunny.
I loved this project because it got us out of the house. This is the first time we have ever hiked Red Rock Canyon in the summer. It's HOT here! We loved it though. We brought plenty of water and a picnic and it was a perfect summer day.
Follow Little Cottonwood on Instagram @littlecottonwood for more information on when the next trading club will start. Your kids will love this!! It's a great way to kick off summer fun.
sunshine and snow
If you didn't notice before, you will now. We have sensitive eyes! Haha! Especially when we are playing in the snow or water. The sun reflects off the snow and makes our eyes water and our faces squinty. It didn't stop us from having fun in the snow at Nana and Papas though. Getting pulled behind a sled on a snowmobile is just the best. We love being outside even if we can't see. Luckly, some clouds came in and helped our poor eyes!
Have you heard of Mini Rodini? Jocelyn's coat is from Mini Rodini. If you haven't checkout out the clothes yet, you must. SO adorable. I love what they say on their website, "it is important that children have clothes that match their own personality, mood and creativity." These clothes do!
life with these two is pretty beautiful...
I took these pictures in my parents backyard in Star Valley, Wyoming. It wasn't the best idea to be outside without a snowsuit. It was 20 below zero!! Jocelyn said, "this can't be safe". Its the kind of cold that hurts you. Kylers face in the second picture was when his nose hairs froze and it gave him a brain freeze! Haha. So we were really quick, and these two kids are just so fun and cute. I love their personalities. They make life so beautiful and fun.