bountiful harvest

have I mentioned how much I love fresh vegetables?

it's thrilling to plant seeds and watch them grow into recognizable produce

(I never knew onions grew on the surface like this)

With all our wonderful fresh ingredients, Ally and I have been doing a lot of cooking. She loves to help measure, mix and of course eat!

Vegas Vacation!

at Excalibur for the Tournament of Kings
fountain show at the Bellagio

ready for a comedy show (Josh got called up on stage but I couldn't take pictures!)

Josh gambling (or trying...)

our suite at the Riviera

We planned a vacation with another couple, who couldn't come due to a deployment, so Josh and I ended up spending 4 nights in Las Vegas by ourselves. My parents came to visit and stayed with Ally while we were gone. Leaving her for the first time was one of the harder things I have done in my life (and remember, I completed a triathlon the day before).

We ended up having a great time, seeing lots of shows and basically being tourists for the week. With temps always above 100 and some days closer to 115, we were literally baking out on the strip during the day, but it was an experience to remember.

During one show, Josh was the audience "volunteer" on stage, and I wish I could have gotten it on camera! He was picked on quite a bit, since we ended up in the front row at most of the shows we attended. Luckily he is not fazed by crowds of people and was very gracious about being the brunt of jokes. Of course, I was laughing hysterically with my husband on stage holding a flower in his teeth.

Our time in Vegas was a lot of fun but also exhausting. We were both ready to come home and relax after our vacation, and see our darling daughter =)

We came home to a well-stocked kitchen, a clean house and a happy daughter, so no complaints about my houseguests/babysitters!

Triathlon 2010

Due to peer pressure, I began training for a Triathlon about 3 months ago. I like to keep in good shape but I haven't trained for anything since the 5K in high school. I began by moving my workouts from the gym to outside. Luckily, the weather here in ND is perfect for morning exercise; a little humidity and not much heat.

here is my little trainer

and me coming in for the final run!

Since I did most of my training either pushing a stroller or pulling a trailer, I did fairly well when it came to the final event, which consisted of a 400 meter swim, 12 mile bike and 5 kilometer run. I accomplished my goal which was to complete it without stopping.

The group of ladies at the top are all moms in my ward. We encouraged each other and talked up the race so much that others wanted to join too!

One year ago today

In the past year I have learned to love and appreciate so many things about living in North Dakota. I have to admit, I was not thrilled to move here. But, being the positive person that I am, I made a list of possible good things. Here is my new list:



Awesome thunderstorms

enough rain my garden grows without watering it

so many mosquitos I always carry bug spray

appreciating small things like IHOP

all the great people in my ward

all the programs for small children

the fact that I can leave my car running in a parking lot and not worry about it being stolen

the wonderful athletic facility that has rekindled my relationship with personal fitness

no traffic, ever!

wedding

Ally and I took a trip to Utah for my sister's wedding. While we were there we did some other fun things too.

Here is my cute sister, all ready to get married!

What someone did to their car...

Outside the temple, after being sealed for time and all eternity.

At the dinosaur museum. Ally enjoyed seeing all the exhibits, especially the big bones (she calls them di-so-saurs).

Ally with her cousin Leona. She acted like an older sister, showing Ally around.

Checking out the horses at grandparents house.

Of course we spent a day at the zoo. It was a little windy, but we appreciate any weather above 50 degrees so it was great. Here is a mother elephant with her baby in the background. Ally's favorite animals at the zoo were the tigers. Actually, her favorite was the random goose that flew in, but tigers were her favorite caged animal.

Now that we live twice as far away from family and make less trips, we have to cram in as many activities as possible while we are there.

miracles of life

A robin built it's nest along the fence in our backyard. Thankfully the dogs haven't bothered it so Ally and I were able to watch as four little birds emerged from the eggs. We check on them every morning as the mama bird chirps angrily at us from further down the fence line.

Here is my little munchkin who has discovered the fun part about Mom cooking.


Don't be jealous! This is just how cute she is =)

My motivation

First of all, I am the kind of person who loves projects. If it is something I can do that takes effort, I am ready. I love hard work and seeing results. I also believe that I can do anything.
In the past I have built furniture, tilled yards, erected fences, painted houses, installed sprinkler systems, and mucked horse stables. I love learning new skills and feeling the sense of accomplishment associated with work.
So when a friend asked if I was interested in helping with her garden, I was very excited and immediately agreed. Along with the garden, she has decided to raise chickens (I might have encouraged that a little bit...). With her husband gone for the next two months she really needed some assistance.
My wonderful husband already has a lot on his plate. He has a very stressful and intense job which occupies a lot of his time (and includes being on call 24/7). He is happy with his life and family but really has no interest in additional duties. He did a lot of work on a ranch growing up so he is very handy but not especially willing. Unfortunately for him, he is stuck with me...

So basically I signed us both up for some very hard work. In the past few weeks we have transformed a shanty into a chicken coop (painted red like a barn) and a weed-choked lot into a garden. I am revelling in my work while J is looking forward to the end. Being the wondeful man I married he has stuck by me but recently pleaded "Amy, please don't make any more friends with big projects!"