my little friend gwen

Mike and I love our little niece Gwen! She is too cute for words and is our favorite little friend! She's a ball of fun and growing up so fast. A couple weeks ago we took her to Red Mango and then to Costco. She wanted a toy and picked out these little puppet dogs. I'm not sure if she had more fun playing with them or Mike :)

labor day in vegas

Vegas has seemed to be the central meeting spot for my family of late, as it's halfway between my family's two locations. We missed Mike over the weekend, but had an amazing time, as always. I'm so blessed to have such a FUN family. There is never a dull moment, especially with Steele running around and making us all laugh.

We stayed at Mandalay Bay, we love their pool! It was perfect for the hot weather. We had fun riding our the waves in the wave pool.

Yes. This is what my brother looks like... when he's NOT flexing. Man I wish I had his 'problem'.

It was Trygve's birthday the week before so we celebrated at Capital Grille. It was so good! Steele loved his lobster!

My brothers are the best! They may be five years apart but they are so close. Steele looks up to Chad so much. It's the sweetest thing.

On the way home Shelby picked up some shock tarts, or shockers, or whatever they're called (I forgot how good those things are!) and was making the FUNNIEST faces! She couldn't help it... and I
couldn't help laughing.

Here's to another amazing weekend with my family! Thanks mom!

And can you believe how nice Steele is.. he gave me his iPad! Last time I was at home he noticed that I was playing on it a lot and so he wanted to give it to me. How lucky am I to have him as my brother!

forever family

I'm so grateful that I'll be with my family forever.

 

So happy Chad is here, but not sure how I feel about these sprint workouts!

Saturday morning football game

Snow cones are our favorite

DARK KNIGHT - so good

He loved riding my bike everywhere :)

Second time last week the sisters wore the same outfit on accident haha

Dinner at Happy Sumo

Watching Mike's flag football game

Fun day at Seven Peaks

Never want to let this guy go!

Because my family lives in California, it was such a treat to be with them for the past month. We spent a weekend in Vegas before a week at Powell, followed by two and a half weeks in Provo. I'm so grateful that I didn't have to say bye to Chad (he's starting BYU in a month), but already miss my sweet mom and Steele. They are the most fun people to be with in the world! I'm jealous of all the parties those two are going to have :) Thanks mom for making the month of July one of my best! I wish they lived in Provo with the rest of us, but am beyond blessed to have my brother and sister right next door. There's nothing like family.

sprinkles

My sister Shelby had a birthday this month... 21! In honor of her special day, I made one of her favorites - a cake with lots and lots of sprinkles. It was pretty to look at, and even yummier to eat. Happy birthday to the most incredible girl in the world.

I attempted to use a recipe I found, but didn't have the time (or patience) to make the cake from scratch, so I cheated and used a store-bought vanilla cake mix. It still turned out amazing though! If you're feeling extra ambitious I highly recommend going for the gold and using the full recipe.

Thank you Sweetapolita for this fun recipe!

lake powell

Another incredible trip to Lake Powell! My family and the Weekes had houseboats next to each other so we enjoyed time with both our families. It was a party! There really is no better place on earth than Powell. It is absolutely beautiful, perfect weather and water, so serene, has breathtaking rock walls, it's a break from the world, and on and on... We had a wonderful time and made unforgettable memories.