hiking the Y baby

Meg, Hannah and i decided we wanted to hike the Y yesterday morning! i try to do this once a year. haha most people who hike the Y go like every morning. i try to do it at least once a summer though! and just as a side note, our goal: to be able to run the hike to the Y.

 it was hot, but luckily we started hiking before the sun peaked over the mountain!

yes. we did have a photo-shoot on top of the Y.

such an amazing view. i plan to hike the Y again with my cousin {WHO COMES TOMORROW} next week. the view is definitely worth the hike up there. in other news: sorry i have barely posted this week, but in my defense, i warned you. and like i said earlier, the wait is finally over, and my cousins come TOMORROW. i couldn't be more thrilled! 

happy saturday! AKA: happy cleaning day in my house!

PS: remember how i went to THIS event? pictures coming from that really soon!
PSS: don't miss THIS post!

youth conference 2012!

thursday

Malia, my mom + dad and i arrived at the stake center at 7:00. we put on our costumes {the whole point of this youth conference was Book of Mormon reenactments. WE were the Nephites.} after finding our 'tribes' for the weekend {i was in the yellow tribe. AKA: Celestialites {we sound so cool, i know}} we drove up Payson canyon where we were camping!

{don't mind how we look. keep in mind its 7:00 in the morning and we're going camping}

yes. I KEENA HORTON set up this tent. 

with the help of my trusty side kick: Malia. our cute little 2 man-er tent

there were 7 girls total going in my ward. {we have a small Young Women's... obviously} but we all mostly stuck together. especially us 5! me, Tara, Malia, Sarah, and Camisha

on thursday we played team games, went 'treasure hunting', watched reenactments, ate meals, socialized with the stake, did some service, and got pretty gosh dang sunburned. 

friday

we got MORE sunburned, watched MORE reenactments, ate MORE meals, etc etc etc. we did a couple different things on friday, but for the most part in the day, it was the same. 

one thing we did differently on Friday was, we had a war. a LEGIT war. {pool noodle} swords slashing each other! i was a medic. along with Camisha. we saved those who had been slashed by those noodle swords

and here is me and dad. watching the reenactments together {which happened to be REAL cool. we were basically watching a movie in the woods. surround sound baby}

friday night we also roasted smores. I LOVE SMORES. 

and may i say, i am definitely pro at making them. just sayin.

my favorite sweatshirt. mmhmmm

saturday 

more reenactments in the morning, then we packed up camp! by saturday, we are all FRIED {yes i know you can't tell. but believe me. by the look of my peeling, skin cancer/burn victim/splotchy face, you'd know i got fried}

oh, and don't mind my dad. shaving. i guess he got sick of the scruffy man look.

overall? SO MUCH FUN! i really wasn't expecting it to be, but i had such a fun time, and i am so glad i got to enjoy it with Malia and my parents! some of you may say this is embarrassing, but..... i love church activities & trips. whatcha gunna do bout it?

are you going? i am! round 2!

i had such a great time at THIS event in February, and when i heard about another one coming up, i got so excited! i'll definitely be attending this event down at Soel {in Orem, UT} tomorrow night. if you read my blog and happen to go, don't feel shy; say hello!

yes, blogger cards were made again & will be passed out {don't let me sound too official, i made them myself} can't wait to show up in color and meet some new bloggers!

picture credit {see jane blog}

sunday memory!

 past 4th of July's. my all time favorite holiday. it's always spent with my favorite cousins and family. so many fun traditions are kept with my family for this holiday! 

July 3

- having dinner at grandma and grandpas with the whole family
- roasting smores around the fire
- sleeping at grandma and grandpas that night outside, on the deck and in tents
- staying up late talking in our sleeping bags for hours and hours

July 4

- waking up bright and early {at 6 to be exact.} to go see the balloons {getting woken up by grandpa is always fun}
- coming back to grandma and grandpas to enjoy a luxorious breakfast with the whole family
- chillin in the sunshine all day long. {some years we go swimming, slip n' slide, some years we also go to the parade}
- dinner at the park {the same PARK every year. for as long as i can remember}
- walking down to the fireworks from the park
- eating a bunch of candy, and doing sparklers, while we wait for the fireworks
- watching the fireworks in front of the church, across from the stadium, in the same exact spot.
- riding in the back of my grandpas red truck on the way home from the fireworks

see why it's my favorite holiday? cause if you were in my family, it would be your favorite too! 9 days till i get to celebrate it again. i can't wait

these pictures are from the 4th of July in 2004
see 2010 HERE and 2011 HERE

PS: im {obviously} home from youth conference! i have many pictures to share of the fun time i had.
PSS: it's my last week of work for a whole month. bear with me on the amount of posting i do....

guess

guess who's comforters came? ours
guess who hates their comforters? us
guess who has to find new comforters in a week? WE DO
guess who has no idea where to look? US

guess who has youth conference tomorrow? we do
guess who hasn't packed yet? us
guess who's gonna procrastinate a little longer? us
guess who's parents are coming with us tomorrow at 7 am {A.M. yes, as in, THE MORNING} ours
guess who wants to wear pants in 1028943798 degree weather tomorrow? NOT US

BUT, guess who is best friends AND sisters. miss malia and i. forever and always i will love her and everything she does.

see you Saturday blogging world

dear future

my motto lately. remembering that even though that life is absolutely fabulous right now, this is isn't even the BEST of it. life is being thrown at me 1849778338 MPH and sometimes i can't believe the fact that i am already 17 years old. seems like just yesterday i was in elementary school at recess.

obviously i am LOVING life right now, and i am so blessed with everything i have {and this is definitely not a complaining post.} but, the best is yet to come. there is always something to look forward to! even if it is very far in the future. there are things to always look forward to, even if it is simply: tomorrow. some things i am looking forward to in the moment include:

1)  my cousin coming to Utah. i don't think i have ever been this excited IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. i just know that when she walks through my front door i'll start bawling. i miss my best friend more than anything, and i can't wait any longer until i get to spend the whole month of July with her. I LOVE YOU NAN
2)  my new comforter to arrive. Malia and i finally finished painting our room, and now we're just waiting for our new comforters to get here! we have a few more things to add, then our room will be complete
3)  to start my new medical program senior year. i will be taking 3 Concurrent Enrollement classes at MV, doing an internship at the hospital, and doing MATC to get my CNA down at UVU. lot's of big words, i know. but i have always wanted to be a nurse and i can't wait to get going on it next year!
4)  half marathon round 2. March 2013 baby
5)  the 4th of July. my ALL time favorite holiday. {2010 :: 2011} we have so much fun every single year and i just can't wait!
6)  to feel sore tomorrow. {who wishes for THAT?} but really, i like the feeling. Malia and i got up and ran just over 7 miles today and HOLY COW IT WAS HOT. we got out by 7:15 ish but even by then the sun was blazing. and those hills we ran up? dang. those hills kicked my butt.

happy Monday! looking forward to everyday, + these things in the near future

swimming + more swimming + the zoo!

thursday

more painting in the morning {shocker... i know} then after lunch my family and i headed to Veterans pool down in Provo {one of my families ALL time favorite pools, just cause of the awesome slides!}

Quincey is a better swimmer than me. no, im serious! she just got finished with swimming lessons and she is now considered the little fish of the family. and how cute is she in those goggles!

yes, Malia and i tanned basically the entire afternoon. since really, that's our greatest talent.

after being at the pool all day and getting slightly burned, i went home, took a bath {cause that's way more relaxing than a shower} and hung out with my girlfriends!

friday

Cailey Marriott invited me and Hannah swimming at her grandmas! i was basically in Hawaii. i have never been to a better pool that is just in someone's backyard! water-slide, waterfall, shallow end, 12 feet deep end, + a little island right in the middle! it was divine. my dream backyard

jumping off the top of the waterfall was definitely scary at first {i'm no daredevil and i have a serious fear of water} but it was crazy fun! Hannah even did a flip off of the waterfall!

we also went and got Luke who came swimming with us as well!

this sign is great

after swimming all day again on Friday i went to dinner with my family, then hung out with some girlfriends again playing games and eating food!

saturday

Saturday afternoon my family and i {and Kelly, Laura, G&G} went up to the Hogle Zoo!

i haven't been to the zoo in Utah since kindergarten! we had so much fun looking at all the animals. and of course all of the typical jokes were said, like "oh hey Marcus that monkey looks so much like you!" and "Kylie look this is where we picked you up 8 years ago, the monkey cage!"

some of my favorite animals

:: the mama and baby elephant ::

:: the giraffe. AKA, Melman from Madagascar ::

:: the rhino. i swear, i was 2 feet away. he was huge ::

:: the gorilla. he just sat there and sat there. basically posing for all the pictures. ::

yes, i chased that rooster around. me and my 5 inch heels chased that rooster until he hated my guts

the gorilla statue. what a manly gorilla 

and we definitely took a ride on that train which seems to me like it's definitely been there since kindergarten! rickety and old i tell you. and actually decently fast for being so ancient

i work 2 days this week, then i am off to Youth Conference with my parents and Malia. we are headed up Payson canyon Thursday-Saturday. i'm actually excited; i know it may be hard to believe, but i actually am pretty fond of camping! so i am up for the adventure

happy Sunday, and a happy fathers day to ALL fathers and grandfathers out there! i definitely appreciate mine, and i hate to break the news to all of you, but mine is the VERY best. the best of the best. i love him so much! he is such an example to me and i don't know what i would do without him. i am so much like him {my mom says it scares her how much we're alike} and i don't know what i would do without him in my life! love you dad