ROAD TRIPPING: CAPITAL REEF

we started our weekend roadtrip a little hesitant- still debating until the night before if we should go out of town this weekend or wait for a better time. to begin with, we'd both picked up a cold somewhere earlier in the week, and were feeling pretty lousy by the time the weekend rolled around. plus, we've been worried about jared's grandmother's health and wanted to be there for her and the family. it just didn't seem like a good time. on top of all that, the forecast was predicting rain... and who wants to sleep in a tent in the cold rain with a sinus infection?

still...i knew i would kick myself for weeks if we didn't go, besides jared was convinced we HAD to go since we'd already paid for the campground. so we decided to take our chances and head down to red rock country.

here are a couple photos from our first stop, capital reef. we were basically planning to kill some time in capital reef on our way to arches and canyonlands since moab was expected to get their majority of rain on saturday. what started as a quick sightseeing trip through capital reef turned into a 7.5 mile hike through one of the most beautiful canyons i have ever seen. we hiked almost the entire way to the golden thrown without seeing another person. it was just gorgeous.

we also made a quick stop at my great great grandfather, elijah behunin's cabin. i would totally love to live here, lij. tiny home with amazing scenery? count me in.

THE CRATER: MIDWAY'S GEOTHERMAL HOT SPRINGS

in our effort to experience everything cool within an hour drive of salt lake city, we discovered this little gem- the crater. the crater is a 10,000 year old geothermal hot spring in midway, ut. the spring is surrounded by a rock dome with an opening in the top for light to filter through. you can visit year round because the water is always a nice warm 92 degrees. plus... it's the swimming hole from 127 hours!

it was cool and rainy outside but the crater was still hot and steamy. we soaked for about an hour and, i have to admit, by the end i was a little motion sick. the warm water bubbles up from the middle of the crater, creating a current which constantly pushes you toward the edges. we tried to fight it at first, but eventually we gave in and floated on our backs over to the rock walls.

it was fun watching everyone bobbing around in the foggy scene, looking like they are about to climb aboard hercules' boat on the river styx. have i mentioned that utah is the coolest?

thanks to this guy for making every saturday a memorable saturday. i hope you are all having a great weekend and are opening the windows and listening to the thunder and rain. love ya lots!

A COOL, RAINY, TULIP KIND OF DAY

jared's parents were in town for the weekend, so we all met up at thanksgiving point for lunch and spring tulips. we had a great time walking through the gardens chatting, and watching jared's dad wear out the grandkids (i think he has more energy than the rest of us combined),

jen, looking lovely in the tulips.

these guys are all snacking on the kid's peanuts. yep. stealing peanuts from babies. as you can see, jared is still holding the evidence ;-)

can you believe laurie is already halfway through her pregnancy!?! they'll be having a little baby girl sometime in september and then are planning to ditch us all and move to a foreign country in october! not cool, jake & laurie. not cool. we'll miss em' but i'm sure they'll have lots of great adventures and maybe we'll come out and stay at their new digs. 

just hanging out with the fam

we had a great time exploring the gardens, and partying it up at jen's house afterwards. thanks for the good times and the crazy conversations. love ya lots!

DAFFODILS AND APRIL HAPPENINGS

the last few weekends, jared and i have been spending lots of time at the park or out on the trails. sometimes sitting in an office all week gets a little dreary, so when the weekend comes it's nice to break away.

we've finally reached some amazing spring weather in slc (which i think is finally sticking around!), and the blossoms are all in bloom...it's one of my favorite times of year.

this weekend we visited red butte for the bulbs and blooms festival. even though the entire garden was buried in snow 3 days ago, by saturday things had already warmed up to 70 degrees and 220,000+ daffodils were back to their golden radiance.

the children's garden has really blossomed- i love to see all of the cute and creative flowerbeds all in bloom. plus, it's fun to climb around and act like a kid again (notice jared in the little garden house).

we've made a few hikes up to the "living room" in the last few weeks (one of salt lake's busiest hikes) mostly because it's a lower elevation hike and isn't covered in snow, but also for the beautiful views of the valley and the lovely vibrant wildflowers.

-wildflowers along the trail-

our fellow hikers enjoying their rock chairs. gotta love meeting all of the other people and dogs on the trail. everyone is just happier and friendlier in the great outdoors. i wish we could bring lola out with us...one of the benefits of having a dog instead of a cat.

plus, we're working on getting in shape before our 16 mile backpacking trip in Zion next month! it might kill us, but at least it'll be an adventure.

i hope you've having a wonderful spring and spending some time outside in this beautiful weather! love ya lots!

HAPPY EASTER, PEEPS!

i hope you've all had the loveliest easter weekend with lots of yummy food, and a little extra time spent with family and friends. we were planning a trip to southern utah to celebrate easter with our families, and watch my mom blow out candles on her birthday cake. but, after an unexpected hit-and-run in my work parking lot (which smashed up the front end of my car), we decided to stick around the salt lake area and celebrate with our salt lake city family. we were lucky enough to color eggs with my siblings, and watch a little easter sunday general conference with jared's siblings and grandparents. it was a relaxing easter weekend, and a wonderful excuse to celebrate family, life, spring - and remember the divinity all around us.

happy easter, my friends! eat some peeps and spread some love. love ya lots!

EARLY SPRING FEVER

it's almost spring, the daffodils are sprouting from their bulbs, and we've been itching to get outside and do something- anything. i'm feeling all kinds of waderlust and summer festival angst (listening to the sxsw lineup as i blog). plus, with easter around the corner, and the season of rebirth, i'm getting impatient for babies and houses and deep roots. i know i am so incredibly blessed to have our families, and lola. and my mom is the sweetest woman on earth. and jared is the most loving and caring soul mate a woman could ask for. but something about the human condition always leaves us wanting to move forward. onward. progress.

the last few years have taught me a lot about patience. about delayed gratification. and about loving and/or accepting the here and now. i've learned that life basically never turns out the way you plan. good or bad, it kinda moves along and we enjoy the scenery and learn to cherish each other.

although we may have to keep waiting a while for the ever elusive future, let the wind blow where it may. we only really lose when the present is lost.

so with all the sweat and tears swirling around in the beautiful spring breeze, we've decided we gotta get out and do more with family, and more in nature. it's still too cold and snowy for spring hiking, so this last weekend we met lisa, nate, and their babies down at wheeler farm to see the new baby animals.

i have to quickly point out here lisa's two blonde babies next to her blackish-brown hair. it's really cool to see how each addition to the family is so different and unexpected. when zach was born, i remember lisa saying, "i wouldn't have picked that baby out of a lineup. he doesn't look anything like me." and it was completely true. now she's got two blondies, and a new understanding of her (apparently) recessive genes.

i can't believe this little girl is already pulling herself up to a standing position. plus, look at those awesome teeth! it kinda makes me sad to see her growing up so fast. i wish she could just stay in this sweet little baby stage forever.

zach really loved all of the big farm equipment and couldn't wait to sit in this big seat. he's only about a foot tall, so he couldn't quite reach the pedals and levers, but thankfully jared was there to help him out. thanks, uncle jar.

whitney was too small to sit on the big tractor, but she did have fun standing in a truck, watching the birds, playing in the dirt, and trying to snack on bales of hay.

as for me, i just loved seeing all the animals and hanging out with family. i'm kind of an animal lover, an aspiring st. francis, and a bleeding heart. so it's nice to see these animals at a happy little farm, where they have space to roam... sad knowing most of them will be sold off in the weeks and months to come. but, i'm practicing living in the present, and focusing on the beauty we have around us today. siblings, goats, babies, and spring.

i hope you all had a great week and are enjoying the beginnings of spring. love ya lots.

A TIME FOR LOVE

this year i decided to have some fun with valentine's day and surprise jared with random valentines throughout the month. this fun-loving fella woke  up to paper hearts, came home to mini cheesecakes, and had his car filled with valentine stickers...which are now permanently attached to the dashboard of the geo (sorry lis).

here he is, pictured snacking on a strawberry butterfly cupcake after a long night at parent teacher conference. sometimes you need some valentine's season sweets to make it through the week.

jared, as usual, did lots of nice things for me as well, including buying me a few bath bombs from lush (i need to gush about lush for a second here, because they are a really cool animal rights/eco friendly beauty supplier and since jared and i are vegetarian environmentalists, it's nice to buy products that promote those values).

one of the best valentine's jared gave me was to come along when i got my hair cut and highlighted at a local hair school. this was actually the first time i'd ever tried a hair school and i was a little shocked when the whole process took over four hours. neither of us had any idea it would take that long, but jared hung out, went on walks, and checked up on me. he never got annoyed or mad or impatient. when the rookie hairstylist finally hung up her clippers, we busted out of there and bought ourselves two giant burritos.

if you ask me, that is what love is all about, my friends. sticking through grueling appointments and meetings, sitting in uncomfortable chairs, until you finally get to scarf down 2lbs chile rellono burritos.

is it just me, or has this valentine's day been extra awesome?

plus, look how amazingly good looking he is. i hope you all had a fabulous valentine's day & an eventful president's day weekend! love ya lots!