a farmers market to mark my last day of freedom this fall

saturday was my last day of freedom this fall.
pumpkinland is only 4 weeks away and i needed to escape the store and enjoy one last day out and about.
we invited faith to stay over with us friday night and join us saturday in slc
and we also went to see the city of bones movie in the afternoon. {it's our guilty pleasure}

joe, alyson, mom and dad dayley, ashley and kennady joined in our morning adventure at the farmers market.
there were a few things that i was determined to acquire
heirloom tomatoes for next growing season,
the best dog treats we've come across
hot sauce and jellies.
and naturally there were many other items calling to me.

after the farmer's market we attempted some antique hunting.
kudos to alyson and ashley for their hidden treasure.
mitch and i haven't quite found the thrill of it yet.

for lunch we went to the copper onion.
it was delightful!
mitch and i are determined to go to dinner there sometime.
their brunch was superb and we can only imagine the dinner menu.

i'm so grateful for our friends and family.
especially being able to create wonderful memories together.

Mr. & Mrs.

Finally the day arrived.
Mitchel and I were so excited to be a part of their wedding.
we planned to leave early to be safe with the traffic.
surprisingly we didn't have any troubles in the morning and arrived waaaayyyy early.
i dosed off and on in the car waiting for joe and alyson to arrive
with less than 6 hours of sleep.... we were in for a long day
9 am arrived and joe and alyson still hadn't shown up.
joe's family had made it and we patiently waited for the bride and groom.
turns out they had been pulled over for speeding and joe had been detained
not necessarily the best way to start your wedding day....

eventually they made it and i went up with alyson to the brides room.
after dressing her and meeting joe in the hallway
i headed up to the sealing room to wait for them
it was a privilege to be alyson's escort.
sitting in the sealing room and watching them enter...
i was reminded of our special day.
{being sealed to mitchel was the best day of my life}
the words of the sealer were perfect.
a reminder that once married husband and wife become one and build their own family.
i don't think i can adequately describe the feeling of the spirit in the room.
once again i am grateful to be a member of this church and to be sealed to my spouse for time and all eternity

after the sealing i joined her in the bride's room to help her dress for pictures.
i'll treasure those moments with her, helping lace her dress...

we joined them for pictures around the temple grounds.
family, bridal party and couple photos....
the weather was perfect and the humidity was bearable.

after the temple we headed towards the vineyard were the reception and ring ceremony would be held
lunch in a darling historic down town
{sadly i don't remember the town name.}
a quick stop for caffeine and then all hands on deck to finish setting up for the evening.
the vineyard was breathtaking
i wish i managed to sneak more pictures of the grounds and so forth.
mt. airy called to my soul.
i'd be tempted to move there and live among the rolling hills and beautiful farm lands.

the ring ceremony was absolutely perfect
they balanced both worlds the families come from beautifully.
commitment, love, and covenants.
listening to them exchange vows brought tears to my eyes.

the evening was filled with pictures, laughter, and family.
drama was kept to a minimum and new friends were made

shortly before 10 we made our goodbyes and wished joe and alyson good luck.
we had another long drive ahead of us...

Dinner in Balitmore

Thursday night we had the wedding rehearsal dinner at Amanda's. {Alyson's sister}
We had spent a little time relaxing pool side at Karen's friends home after the zoo
and once i map quested our drive
i knew we were behind schedule leaving.
we were looking at a 2 hour drive.....
shortly after we turned onto the belt we hit horrific traffic.
it took us over 50 mins to drive 5 -6 miles.
we began to get nervous that we wouldn't make it on time.
gratefully the drive was beautiful and there is nothing that quite compares to driving through the greenery out east.

dear utah, i love your wide open spaces.... however you can't compete with their green back there...

we did make it on time. {barely}
amanda her back yard decked out like you wouldn't believe.
breathtaking and very pinterest-y.
it was magical to say the least.

2 hours later we decided to make our long drive back
we would be meeting joe and alyson at the temple around 8:30 the next morning
and we were crossing our fingers the drive back would magically shorter than the drive out....

we arrived back at my aunt's around midnight

a perfect afternoon

wednesday we did a session at the washington DC LDS temple 

it'd been far too long since mitch and i went to the temple together.

i had the privilege of being alyson's escort.

the day was beautiful

but the time spent inside was memorable, perfect and peaceful.

weekend adventures -- zions

is it sunday yet?

the weather has been dreamy this week.
sunday evening after i woke up from my nap i took my bike out for her first ride
it was amazing

monday night we went shopping for new furniture.
{thank you tax return}

tuesday we had a movie night with joe and alyson.
i think the boys finally made friends with aspen.
cezar needed a little convincing....
but jake and aspen came to terms with each other :)

wednesday night we join joe and alyson for a trip to the home goods store in murray.
mitch and i were on the hunt for curtains.
we are finally putting some 'cozy' touches on our home.
we managed to find a set of curtains we liked
but once we got home we realized that they weren't wide enough

thursday after work we attempted to shop for more curtain panels
we struck out at ross but did find some curtain rods that were perfect
luck was on our side though at wally world and we found the perfect ones to pair with our first finds.
our couches were delivered earlier in the afternoon and with the curtains....
the living is looking really cozy and perfect.
we are in love

friday i was determined to spend the evening at home and relax.
work has been demanding this week
a crazy amount of shipments arriving and plants that are waiting for me to get around to planting...
i'm the only full time employee in the store right now... i'm relying on part time staff to help cover....
i have an fabulous staff but it's hard to get everything done that i need too
anyways... i came home to mitch cooking dinner {thank you sweetheart}
curling up on the couch and relaxing was the perfect way to start the weekend...

seedlings and sandwiches

our primary children are turning eight this year and will be getting baptized. they truly are my most favorite children and teaching them is my favorite calling yet. as an example for teaching we planting a tomato seed with them and will show them the progress of growth as time passes. we are trying to help them grasp the concept of 'planting a seed of faith and watching it grow'. it has been very exciting for them to see the growth of the seedling so far. they even asked to help plant it once it's ready to transplant outside. i'm thinking their plant will make it's home in the front yard, that way they can walk by and see the progress during the summer.

my seedlings are growing. i absolutely love checking in on them throughout the day and seeing their progress. i can't wait til every one makes their presence seen. saturday my second batch of seeds arrived from baker creek heirloom seeds.  hopefully i'll get them planted in the next day or two. i'm trying two new plants - ground husk tomatoes and litchi tomatoes.

one of the best parts of bed time is the snowball sandwich. without fail jake and cezar will curl up on either side of me for snuggles before bed.

on another exciting note.... we bought me a darling bike this weekend!! i picked out a cruiser with a big comfy seat, a basket on the front and i can't wait to take it out for a ride! alyson {joe's finance} has one too and we are eager for the spring weather so we can go on bike riding adventures. the guys will most likely spend their time playing video games... {lame}. i really am super excited to finally have a bike.

a little bit of february

february is almost over and it seems like yesterday was the first.
it's been a wonderful and full month so far.
i spend every day at work and barely squeeze an hour or two off right now.
on the bright side i truly love my job.

we are attempting to get into a solid work out routine and improve our nutrition.
p90x is quiet the program and we'll need to work into it {that's for sure}
it does feel good getting into healthier habits.
however we have had quiet the week of indulgence....
who could resist with valentine's day and brunch with close friends
and meeting up for dinner with them before a chick flick last night.
alyson and i decided we need to 'practice' girl's night... because the boys tagged along.
i suppose that might be the case for the rest of our lives.... partly because mitch and joe are like brothers.

spring is starting to tease us.
and my flower beds at home are showing signs of life.
i seriously can't wait for the days to lengthen and for it to gradually get warmer.
my life needs more color and the garden is the ultimate source

we said goodbye to the jeep
{what a nightmare of a story}
and i now inherit the hybrid and mitch is driving his {current} dream vehicle - a big bad truck.
{oddly enough} i already love it.
comfortable, smooth ride and huge cab - with plenty of room for the boys.
i strongly believe that dogs should never ride in a truck bed!

next friday is the first of March
and it's the beginning of my most favorite month.
{i'm crossing my fingers the snakes stay out of my greenhouse}
the greenhouse will quickly fill with all my 'baby' plants and my soul will be happy.
and my body will be tired.... in a good way.

ending the year with a bang

this year mitch and joe made plans to ring in the new year in wendover. i wasn't necessarily on board with this idea but ended up sucking it up and going with them. gratefully alyson would be there to keep me company. originally mitch was supposed to work until 7 and then we'd head out around 8pm. as the afternoon progressed things slowed down at his firm and he was able to take off early. hooray for the holiday. we still didn't leave until just after 8. joe and alyson picked us up. as i was walking to the truck, i slipped on the ice on our front stairs and landed on my hip and hit my head. i couldn't get up at first and just laid there on the ground. i finally sat up and mitch noticed the cement was pink. at first he thought i had split my head on the stairs but gratefully it was just my pink rockstar that had spilt all over. alyson offered to stay home with me and let the boys go and have their fun. i was hesitant at staying home, and decided i'd rather be with everyone especially after hitting my head so hard. after we loaded up we realized i cracked one of the drinks in my purse and it was completely full of rockstar {i had to be prepared for our all nighter}. it was a nightmare, especially since my camera was in there too. gratefully mitch cleaned off my camera and made sure it wasn't damaged, alyson helped clean everything else off as much as possible. and of course during all of this i was in horrible pain. it was quite the start to our night. a quick stop in salt lake for a bite to eat and we were finally on our way to wendover. we made it just before midnight. we rung in the new year together. mitch and i happened to stand under one of the confetti bombs (?) and were covered with it. it was very festive. i quickly gained the nickname of gimpy for the night. i limped everywhere, unable to put any weight on my left leg due to the tenderness in my hip. mitch and joe found a table to play at and alyson and i looked for a place to sit down and keep each other company. we had a lot of fun people watching. we had breakfast around 3 and then the boys headed back to the table to play. finally we called it a night around 5 and headed back to utah. our trip ended up being free with mitch's winnings. {phew} and i got to spend some good time talking with alyson. besides my fall, i was surprised by how much fun i had. we got home just after 7am and i had officially pulled an all nighter. {i honestly don't remember the last time i pulled one.... maybe studying in my first year of college}. i told mitch i deserved a gold star for being a trooper with no sleep and being in so much pain. after a quick shower and kisses from the boys we crawled into bed and napped for awhile. i guess we aren't always old farts :) happy new year and i pray that none of you suffered any tragic accidents with ice.... i will say i'm glad to report i got a wicked bruise on my hip. i would have been disappointed if i didn't... i needed a battle wound outside of the obvious limp and moaning and groaning from the pain.

thanks for the memories 2012

2012 was quite the year for us. i had high expectations and gratefully the year did not disappoint. it really was my year.

january started out a bit rough.... mitch and i stayed home and rung in the new year playing games and spending time together. cezar injured his leg somehow new years eve and wouldn't use it. actually he could barely walk. a trip to the vet on monday showed no serious injury and seems to have sprained it somehow.  the jetta died on us at the car show mid january and we got lucky with an incredible deal on the Z. i also found out that i had mono on top of being hypothyroid.

february things started to swing upwards for me. i was still feeling the effects of mono and was learning how to deal with my health limits. we celebrated valentines and i managed to surprise mitch with a car full of ballons and a few gift cards to the car wash and his favorite smoothie place. work was showing all the signs of spring. which is undoubtedly my favorite time of year there. grandma holdaway was struggling with her health and we thought we were going to lose her. i was able to extend myself and help out at the house with her and grow to love her in a whole new capacity. i also started practicing yoga and it brought a new balance and happiness to my life.

march. all my spring shipments started arriving. i was feeling a bit better health wise. i located some darling baby silkie chicks which started my desire to have chickens. mitch and i finally conquered our main wall and painted over the not so lovely nutmeg color.

april i tackled more than i could handle. i was busy in the greenhouse trying to keep on top of everything. amy texted me to see if i'd be interested in helping her out again with the boys. i absolutely wanted to do so and figured out a way to squeeze her into my schedule. mitch was hesitant and i felt like i could be superwoman...... i quickly realized that 50+ hour weeks weren't going to be in my favor and that the garden center needed my full attention. not to mention i felt like i was taking way too many steps backwards in my health.

may. the busiest month of the year for me. april showers bring may flowers... and mother's day brings out all our customers. i managed to get my garden started and spent as much time with the boys as i could.

june. we celebrated mitch's birthday. spent time with friends and family. i was finally feeling on top of the world health wise {as much a possible} i was started to enjoy the first of my garden harvest. we squeezed a few hikes in with the boys. abby had my take her and russell's engagement photos too.

july was a busy month for us. we started out celebrating my birthday and having an adventure down in zion's subway. nanna joined us on our vacation along with mom and dad dayley and ashley and brendon. abby and russell got married on the 14th. plus we survived all the smoke in the air from the many many wildfires.

august i was thrilled with being able to harvest lots of goodies from my garden. we added a few new toys to the household - mitch got his fourwheeler and i in turn got a camera upgrade :) we attended the salt lake city farmers market. i got to being the 'photographer' for my cousins wedding. plus we managed to fit in a boating trip with joe and his girlfriend. on top of everything... i seemed to be the only employee that was able to work that month. everyone one had vacations and previous engagements.

september we celebrated cezar's 2nd birthday. made a day trip to idaho to surprise grandpa hatch for his 80th birthday and visit my grandpa taylor. harvest season was in full swing and i finally got to taste the joy of digging in the garden for the potato harvest. it's like a treasure hunt. finally manged to get back into the swing of yard work. the summer heat had taken it's toll on me and the yard. plus we had a overnight camp trip to the dunes with joe and alyson. it was quite the adventure sleeping under the stars, joe burning his hand on the camp ring and a fox sneaking into camp. it was the perfect little getaway.

october came and so did pumpkinland. the 2nd busiest season for me. {a double dose of birth control} our theme was alice in pumpkinland which was by far the most favorite from all the years. we also made an unexpected trip to idaho to be with family with grandma dayleys passing. we were grateful we made it in time to say goodbye. mitch was also studying for his 66 license exam. gratefully he passed even with all the current challenges. we also celebrated our 3rd anniversary. worked on conquering my fears of snakes and scary movies and haunted houses.... i'm better than i was. and we also traded in the Z for a hybrid. the Z was allergic to snow and we are old people now and enjoy the comfort of a full sized car ;)

november brought new changes to work. sanna left and i became the manager. there was a lot of clean up from pumpkinland to be done and getting ready for the holiday season. yay poinsettias. we went shooting with abby, russell and nanna. i got to try out my new gun. and it was a perfect way to dispose of some excess pumpkins. and of course we celebrated thanksgiving with the people we love the most.

and last but not least december. we had beautiful weather for most of the month. i managed to plant garlic around the 7th. i also got to take abby and russell's christmas photos/we are having a baby pictures. after 3 years of marriage we finally made it to temple square with the dayley family. enjoyed a wonderful dinner and mom dayley said we should offically adopt nanna into the family since she is always joining in on our fun. plus i am tickled to say that we had the best poinsettias sells in the past many many years. at least in the 10 years i've been working. it feels good to see so few at the end of the holiday. we also enjoyed a very wonderful and blessed christmas with each other and our families. and i've finished the year out with the week off and enjoying time with the boys!

2012 had some ups and downs and some health challenges. but i'm so blessed and have truly felt like i have come into my own self. i have to declare that it is the best year yet!! i am sure that 2013 will be filled with it's own challenges and good moments but 2012 has been very good to me. i may just be a tiny bit sad to say good bye to it. thanks for all the memories this year... and here's to the next. may you be just as wonderful and fulfilling!