Fishing in Idaho

We took the annual fishing trip to Idaho this past weekend. Unfortunately not everyone could make it, but that just meant more fish for us!
My dad, the pro, showing us how its done. He always says, "Let me cast first and see if there are any fish in there." After he catches all the fish in the hole, he says, "yep, the fish are there!"
"Here fishy, fishy..."
I got one!
He may be small, but its more about quantity than quality anyway.
Staying focused...
Got him!
The proud fisherman.
We only fished for a few hours and caught over 100 fish! It was the most fish I have ever seen. In just one hole, I caught fourteen. It was crazy!
Its tradition to visit good old Uncle Erwin in Idaho Falls on the way home. Erwin is my grandpa's oldest sister's husband. We always take him the biggest fish we caught (which just happen to be mine this year), play the pump organ, ride the barrel horse in the backyard, and eat huckleberry ice cream.
Uncle Erwin always tells us the funniest stories. He has macular degeneration and can hardly see, but that doesn't stop him from walking 4 miles each day. He hasn't been sleeping very well lately so one morning he went on his walk while it was still dark outside. The next day he decided to wait until it was a little lighter outside...he ran into too many mailboxes!
Conner was all tuckered out after partying with Uncle E so he slept the whole way home!

Happy Birthday

Another birthday has come and gone. #25 doesn't seem as exciting as the others, but Conner actually made my birthday really special. I had to work due to the fact that I spent the first part of the week in Las Vegas with my mom. Las Vegas was fun. We went with Karla and Lacy Jenkins. We went to the World Marketplace for a gift show, out to dinner, and shopped 'til we dropped. Unfortunately, I had to come home to work the entire weekend. Some of my friends at work made me a birthday crown and made me wear it throughout the day. I'm not sure how professional it looked, but it was really cute.
I came home that evening to a kitchen full of balloons, a homemade birthday banner, my favorite Angel Food cake, and presents. What a wonderful husband I have!
We finished off the night with a good old fashioned married activity...watching television. Lucky for me, the television activity came with a foot rub. It was just what I needed. Another year older, and hopefully wiser too.

Newport

We took the annual trip to Newport beach with the Nielsen family. It is always a week of relaxation and fun.
Conner and I built a sand castle volcano village.We strolled up and down the beach, rode beach cruisers to Huntington beach, took the ferry to Balboa Island, went to the movie theater to see "Inception" which was fabulous, and shopped at Fashion Island.
Grandma Carol Nielsen started this tradition years ago and we are so glad she did!
The entire Nielsen crew. Doug and Jami with Ava, Sophie, and Corbin. Shannon and Steve with Samantha, Mara, Amy, and Brynna (asleep under the umbrella). Chase and Danielle with Scarlet. Craig and Jerrie. Dave and Sue with Meg, Rosie and Jesse. And finally Conner and Marielle.

Egbert Family Reunion

Grandma and Grandpa Egbert invited us all down to St. George for a family reunion. On the drive down, we passed these beautiful lavender fields...I can't believe I have never realized they were there before. It was beautiful.
Conner went golfing with the boys in the morning and we spent the afternoon at the pool with a few cousins. There was no way to survive the 120 degree heat outside of the water! That night we went to dinner and a show at the Tuacahn Amphitheatre. We saw Disney's Tarzan. It was fabulous despite the heat. Thanks to grandma, we had mini fans to blow hot air in our faces.
Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Egbert. We had a great time and we love them so much.

2 Wonderful Years

We celebrated our 2 year anniversary on July 18th. These two years have flown by and we have loved every second! In order to celebrate, we went to dinner downtown and then Conner took me on a shopping spree. He didn't know what he was getting himself into when I found the sale rack at the Gateway. We were very successful and although Conner thought we spent too much, we definitely found some great deals. That night, we stayed at the Anniversary Inn. We reserved the Wild West room and it was so fun.
The entire room was created to look like a real cowboy scene. We loved watching "Lonesome Dove" from our covered wagon bed. It really set the cowboy mood!
Complete with saloon doors...
A shower that came from an old tin bucket...
And sparkling apple cider with crystal glasses.
We even went for a little swim in the river behind the saloon. (Appropriate swimwear was included)
And we woke up to a beautiful breakfast...yogurt parfaits, ham and swiss croissants, and a cinnamon roll. It was delicious. Happy Anniversary Sweetiepiekins!

Storm Softball

Conner and I have loved watching Storm Softball over the years. Its their last summer as a team and they have all become so talented. My little sister, Marissa, is so fun to watch. Look at that stance!