a fourth of july baking story...

We had a sweet and slow forth of july, friends. 

Slept in. Check. 

Snuggled. Check. 

Rolled out of bed, and looked for something to eat in our kitchen. Check. 

We've been out of town a lot this summer, which has resulted in a pretty skinny kitchen. There was cereal, some fruit snacks, and a couple onions in the fridge. (Okay, maybe there were a few more things, but those are the only items I remember...)

So we took a quick run to the market, and grabbed the essentials for a terrific fourth of july treat. It made for a sweet and patriotic afternoon; the perfect thing to do before taking a walk through sugarhouse and enjoying the afternoon activities and evening fireworks. A lovely fourth, though we really missed family- normally we spend this holiday with Gideon's relatives in Salmon.

Wanting to remember our delicious afternoon, we recorded a small video of our holiday fruit tart. Enjoy friends. Keep an eye out for a sparkler video next...

Wishing you all lovely memories from this fourth,

One Year Ago...

I was preparing for my first semester of graduate school.

I was terrified. Terrified I wouldn't be good enough. Terrified to move to utah. Terrified of living in an apartment smaller than our last one. You know- its funny. Not a whole lot has actually changed. I still have days where I feel like the worst dancer ever. I still get super annoyed by lame utah drivers. And sometimes I have to go outside because our apartment is just too suffocatingly small (though impeccably decorated).

I finished my first year of grad school wednesday friends. It probably doesn't sound like a big deal, but I'm so proud of myself. Meetings with a few of my professors reminded me of how much has changed since I entered the department of modern dance. My technique. Views on certain ideologies. My appearance (remember how I had a pixie cut last summer?).

me. 

I've changed. 

You know though- everyone changes. I still would be a different person than I was last year regardless if I was dancing my rear off every day. I guess I'm just really happy to be where I am right now- my life is sorta awesome.

Summer is almost here friends. 

I can't wait to put my sundresses and flip flops on and bask in its glory.

Happy Friday, Friends!

It's Back!

I've decided to start posts on my blog that I'm going to call 20 days of thanks. I want to write a post on different things that we're thankful for in our lives. Summer is one of the best times for me to find things to be grateful for, so I decided to start my 20 days of thanks with a post dedicated to SUMMER!

Summer is usually not one of my favorite seasons, I've always loved fall the best. Something about the leaves falling, and the crispness in the air around Thanksgiving is so refreshing. It's like the start of something new. Makes me want to buy school supplies. The last several summers of my life I've been incredibly busy. I think I associate Summer with hotness (and not in a good way), and with busy craziness. Last summer I was booked with wedding photography, and the insane stress of planning my own wedding by myself. The three summers before that, I was busy going to school full time and trying to balance being on a dance company and keeping up with my photography work.

This summer is totally different. Gid and I are both working full time, but we've been able to plan several weekend getaways that have been super fun. This is the first summer in a while that I'm really looking forward to. I miss school like crazy. Working a 9-10 hour day five days a week gets old really fast, and I often find myself missing homework which is the weirdest thing in the world. When I was in school, I couldn't afford to take off a week from school without it affecting my grades. This summer we're going to be able to take several trips, and all I have to do is find someone to cover me at work. I wish I could've found someone to cover me at class when I was in college. Summer in Texas is hot and miserable; I have these flashbacks of gymnastics practice during the summers, and driving with the ac on high. Summer in Boise is still hot, but I wouldn't go as far as miserable. It's actually been pretty chilly the last few weeks, and just started to warm up. This last weekend was just gorgeous. And the cool thing about boise is that when the weather is nice- the city becomes alive. Everyone is out on the greenbelt running or biking. Tons of people are fishing in little lakes, and rivers. It's the most active place I've ever lived. Nice.

Summer is wonderful for many reasons. These are only a few:

1. the sun is out and feels wonderful on my skin!
2. going running isn't miserable (not that I actually run- but I'm going to start)
3. the days are longer, and the breezy air is refreshing
4. it's swimsuit shopping season
5. family finds eachother during the summer season

LOOKING FORWARD TO THE NEXT FEW MONTHS!!