Priest Lake, ID

Shad and I had an AMAZING anniversary weekend together!! We were given a condo up at Priest Lake, ID by a family in our ward, who couldn't use it. It was totally free, and totally awesome!! We had the condo to ourselves right on the lake! We packed up on Friday afternoon and got there around 4, its about 2 hours away... ish. I made sure to come totally and completely prepared with food and snacks for the entire weekend, so the first night we made DELICIOUS foil dinners and explored the new diggs. Then Saturday we woke up early and found a hike we wanted to try, it was about 4 miles round trip and was pretty steep, but doable. However, the WORST part was that we ran into a forest of mosquitos!! It was AWFUL, they totally ate us alive. Which consequently made the hike less enjoyable. The next day Shad counted 45 Mosquito bites on me...yup 45!! It looks like I have a rash on my back. EW! PLUS at the top of the hike, when we finally escaped the mosquitos, I got stung by a bee!! So if you ever go to Priest Lake, make sure to stock up on bug spray. Seriously... Sheesh! After the hike and some lunch, we headed over to the beach!! The water was SO beautiful, clear, and clean! I have NEVER been to a lake that was this clean. I am usually not a lake/ocean swimmer, but the water there was SO inviting I just had to go in! Plus it was in the 90s outside, so the water was perfect. After a nice long day hiking and beaching it up, Shad and I decided to try the local cuisine for dinner. We found a place in the tour guide and ventured out. It was called "Ardy's Cafe", it was cute, small, and quite delicious. Huckleberries are a big deal up there during the summer, so Shad HAD to try the homemade Huckleberry pie. But they had everything from Huckleberry ice cream to shakes to jam! I wasn't brave even to try it, but Shad sure scarfed it down! Then we explored the lake some more and drove around while the sun was setting and took some pictures. It was so beautiful up there. Sunday before we left we decided we wanted to have a little bit more beach time... so we headed over the beach and had it to ourselves for a little bit in the morning, and reluctantly we came home Sunday afternoon. Overall a VERY memorable trip and anniversary. We're thinking we will have to go back there sometime soon. 1.5 - 2 hours away is just too close to not enjoy!

The View from our condo window!! Beautiful!

The dreaded Mosquito hike:

The nice thing was we were the ONLY ones there on the hike.

The awesome view:

The Beach:

Now you cannot tell me that water doesn't look SO inviting!!

Shad swimmin'

That's his head there poking out of the water!

Ahhh... the beach!

Ardy's Cafe, cute huh?!?

Diggin' into some Huckleberry pie!

Pretty Sunset:

3 Years Down... Eternity to Go!

Happy Anniversary to Us!!! Three years ago today, Shad and I were sealed in the Seattle Temple for time and all eternity. It was pretty much the best day ever, perfect weather, perfect reception, perfect place, and perfect man. Here's to another 4th year of bliss...plus eternity!!

These past three years have been wonderful. I remember thinking, "if the 1st year's the hardest, my life is going to be perfect!!" We've had challenges just like everyone, but it was always something we faced together, and never one day have I thought that being married to Shad was hard or difficult. He has been so great to me, and has always put me first. Maybe I'm still naive and still have those newlywed rose colored glasses on... but so far life great!! Maybe once those babies come, we'll really see what we're made of!! Haha!

Tonight to celebrate, Harry Potter!! Whooop! Then this weekend we've been so generously offered a (FREE!!!) condo up at Priest Lake, ID by a family in our ward!! It's complete with full kitchen, BBQ pit, 500 ft from the beach, and paddle boat!! I think we're going to have a GREAT time this weekend. What a fun getaway! We're so excited!

Here are some pics from my favorite day:

The Classic Wedding Pic:

We did it!!

Glenn Miller's Moonlight Serenade first Dance:

The Wedding Party:

Nature Photography

As most of you know, I am a huge photography fan. Love it... and it is something that I am always trying to get better at. I know that I am still pretty amateur and still have SO much more to learn. But with the summer season upon us, and the opportunity I've had to be outdoors lately, I have been trying to take some fun nature pictures. Especially at Mt. Rainier a couple weeks ago, and then last Sunday Shad and I went on a evening stroll in the park, and he humored me by letting me take pics all afternoon. (Many of him as well!) Nature photography is something I continuously struggle with, because there are so many ways to take a picture of a mountain without it looking boring and like all the others. So I struggle sometimes with finding a unique angle, but here are some I've enjoyed taking and I really like the colors. So here is me... trying to share my amateur "talents":

Big trees at Mt. Rainier:

Waterfall, now this is without my tripod, so don't look too close! Hehe

Shad, as my faithful photo subject:

More big trees!

Mt. Rainier... and Weekend Road Trip!

The weekend before the 4th of July Shad and I took an AWESOME road trip with our friends, the Greens, to Seattle. We stayed with my parents and had an amazing time! It was a short weekend, but totally worth it. It was perfect weather in Seattle, between the 80s and 70s, which is not always common over there. We went to the zoo on the Friday after we got there, and had a blast. Then Saturday we woke up early and took the drive over to Mt. Rainier. I have been wanting to take Shad to Mt. Rainier ever since we've been married and three years later... finally!! It is one of my favorite placing ever. It was an incredible day there, and it was actually really warm! We stopped first at he Grove of the Patriarchs, where they have these amazing huge trees. Unfortunately the trails up at the top still had TONS of snow over them, so we didn't do too much hiking. But the views were spectacular. I have TONS of pictures, so enjoy! There is a lot to show!

Point Defiance Zoo:

Shark Attack!

Shad's Photo skills... not bad! I guess I can teach him!

The Shark Tank

The Grove of the Patriarchs:

Shad Meets 1000 year old tree:
We had fun with the camera... These roots were HUGE!
The BIG one: Cedar Tree

The Mountain:

The surrounding view, this really does NO justice to the view. You can see Mt. Adams in the Distance!

Some Sweet Summer Skiing (Right before Shad wiped out)
Can't get enough of this Mountain!
Shad exploring the view

We had a wonderful time, and cannot wait to go back. Love it!