The Love of My Life

I put this video together with images of Julie taken over the last few years.  She is wonderful and I love her so much.  Click here if you can’t see the video or here to watch in HD.  Enjoy!  Julie is an amazing woman!

The Red Rocks

I remember scrambling up the red rocks of Southern Utah when I was little. Now I watch my children do the same thing, just as happily.

Don’t mind my weird smile in this one.

Some scenery.

 

With Beard

Rob has always wanted to grow a beard. Well, in St. George, he finally had his chance. Stunning, eh? Actually, it surprised me that I didn’t dislike it as much as I thought I would. It was kind of fun to have him extra manly for a few weeks :)

Slow Design

I found the blog Opal Never Shouts via an interior designer friend and I’ve enjoyed browsing through it very much. The latest post about the Slow Home Movement caught my eye. Here is an excerpt:

 

 

We live our busy lives running here and there, working to pay this bill and that bill, buying up goods that last till they break, and filling our lives with many things that may not be of much importance.

We just love what Ecodecorista, has to say about the slow design movement in her recent blog post:

"I think what we are actually seeing is the start of a paradigm shift in the way we think of our homes and communities. Instead of moving every four to five years, and thinking about houses as commodities that only need to last until the resale, conversations about what makes a home last for a whole lifetime are emerging. Decorators are blogging about incorporating your collections and all the things you truly love – and about choosing vintage furniture and new custom pieces with heirloom qualities. Instead of being caught on an earn-and-spend consumer treadmill, people are changing their consumption patterns, simplifying or downsizing their lives, and making things themselves."

"At what point did the house become more about the future tenant than the current resident? It’s hard to trace the moment, but let’s hope it’s passed. Because for too long, home design has been hijacked by the allure of resale value. Maybe now we can begin again to think of our houses not as investments but as homes."

We love the idea of a cozy home that doesn't come with a huge financial strain. A home that reflects the family's personality and isn't a replica of the house next door, and a home that that is timeless and quality craftsmanship instead of trend driven and impersonal.

I LOVE this!! Don’t you?

I’ve definitely been caught in the trap of thinking of my house as an investment instead of a home. I’ve definitely been caught up in the “buy what’s cheap now” thought. Obviously, there are many things that are best to buy from Walmart, Target, and Ikea. But lately I really have started to shift into the slow design train of thought.

Just last Sunday I set my eyes on a china cabinet my grandpa built from scratch and with pride decades ago. It will be mine as soon as we move into our new home and it is beautiful!!! It’s also of very high quality. Go to any store and take a look at the cheap, fake wood furniture that is mass-produced and even my very untrained eye can see a gigantic difference. This is a piece that will last decades longer (for his great, great, great grandchildren probably). 

Another example is the baby’s nursery for which I’m currently gathering items. I’ve decided to go less “cutesy” and more “natural”. Interpretation: Wood, earth tones (with a few pops of color), and texture. It’s going to be different than what you might expect for a baby’s nursery, but I think it will still work because babies are about the most organic, pure, and connected things on earth! It will also be less expensive to decorate because most of what I need is coming from our own storage closet, will be handmade, or will be refurbished second-hand items. I am STOKED to see how it turns out. 

One thing I’ve struggled with a little is how do I incorporate refurbished and handmade and recycled design into my home when my taste isn’t shabby chic but more modern and clean? Ideas??

Sarah & Vance

On the 4th of July we took portraits of our niece and nephew.

This is Vance. Isn’t he so handsome in his tux?!

This is Sarah. She is growing into such a beautiful young woman.

We love these two very much!

Nate’s Latest

Nathan is just growing like crazy and he is really developing into a SMART, FUN, and HILARIOUS boy. Some of his favorites are:

The old Transformer cartoons
Building spaceships with his Trio blocks
Playing outside with his friends
Coloring and writing letters
Reading books
Running, throwing, jumping
Lucky Charm cereal
Babies
Music with electric guitars

He also loves to ride his bike. At the beginning of the summer we got him a bigger bike with training wheels. One day Rob was sitting in the living room and saw Nate ride by on his friend’s two-wheeler! What?! He had decided that since his friend could do it, he could too! So he practiced and before too long he was flying!! What a great feeling for a little boy! Rob was a little disappointed that he didn’t get to teach his oldest son how to ride a bike…it’s such a dad thing. But we’re super proud of Nate for his motivation and perseverance.

Here’s a funny story…

I was in the house one afternoon and suddenly heard all the neighborhood kids kids run up to our porch and begin chanting, “Do it! Do it! Do it!”. Then one kid said, “Just do it, we won’t laugh.” Hmmmmm. I opened the door and Nate was standing in the middle of the crowd with another little girl from the neighborhood. I asked what was going on and Nate said they all wanted the two of them to kiss!! (But he didn’t want to.)

I asked Nate to come inside so I could talk to him. I asked why they wanted them to kiss and he replied, “Because we’ve done it before.” Oh! Wow. Trying not to laugh I asked why he had kissed her before. He said, “Because she was being nice.” I then asked how long they had kissed and he acted it out for me. We’re talking a good 5 seconds! Sheesh!! That’s a pretty good first kiss!!

I tried not to make a big deal about it and just said it’s a good idea to wait until he’s a lot older to start kissing girls. I then praised him for not doing something he didn’t want to do just because all his friends wanted him to. He seemed pretty proud of himself for that and now he’s decided kissing is gross. Thank goodness! He’s such a cute and nice boy that I’m sure he’ll get plenty of kisses later on (sigh).

Grumblings

Why, hello there 2am. Nice to see you….AGAIN.

Itching, twitching, restless legs PLEASE relax!

It’s so hot in here!

I’m sooooo tired from waking up all night long last night, WHY can’t I fall asleep??

Can’t even count how MANY times I’ve had to go to the bathroom…must be a THOUSAND.

Shut off, brain. You’re shut off during the day, what’s wrong with staying off at night?

Dry throat…must…get…another drink of water.

Oh, PLEASE, don’t need to roll over. My separated muscles and taut skin can’t handle it even ONCE more.

Back pain, hip pain, pelvic pain. Why isn’t a memory foam mattress and three pillows enough?

I feel Rob breathing on me…argh…

Now I’m breathing on myself…argh…

Adjust arm positions. Adjust leg positions. Adjust head position. Repeat, repeat, and repeat.

 

Don’t mind me…only 28 more nights of this.

Pine Valley

While in St. George we ventured 40 minutes away to the Pine Valley Mountains to cool off (it was 106 degrees much of the time in St. George). It is a lovely little drive past a few volcanoes, through the tiny village of Pine Valley, and up into a small canyon.

Rob’s job was to get our supplies for the day and he somehow forgot most of what we needed. First, he realized he forgot to get cash to get us into the canyon, but the nice ranger let us in without having to pay the $2. Next, he forgot matches for the fire. We stopped at a little country store and the owner gave us some for free. Later, he realized he forgot ketchup for the hotdogs. I’ve never had a plain hotdog before and it surprisingly wasn’t bad, no doubt due to the fact that they were Nathan’s brand hot dogs. We didn’t have any skewers so we hunted for sticks. Just call us good, old-fashioned pioneery!!

The kids had a great time playing in the gentle stream among the trees, dirt, and Dale (a chipmunk). We cooked our hotdogs and had delectable fire-roasted marshmallows and then headed for home (but not before stopping for pie in Veyo).

This is how Nate’s first marshmallows came out.

After that, Rob showed him how to properly roast. This is Nate checking out the progress of his marshmallow.

  Awwwww. Perfection!

We had such a pleasant time that we headed up to the same area the next Saturday and had just as good of a time.

Does Anyone Else Miss Summer?

Simple Pleasures in St. George

Most of our trips are very planned. I love to make the most of whatever area we happen to be in.  But this time I just wanted to R-E-L-A-X. So we did!!

This was Rob’s office.

We went swimming.

 

We played at the park...

 

and in the backyard in our underwear. Well, some of us did…

      

 

We built spaceships for Abby the Cow...

 

Visited the temple…

And played in the red sand.

We spent some good, quality, unstressful family time together and we all agree it was great! Here’s to feeling refreshed.