♥ back in business...

ruby is back in business after a few days of feeling sick. you know it is bad when she keeps asking to watch "spaceballs!" i don't know who is more excited to get out... her or me! we are ready to paint the town red {in the non-hooligan way}...

{check out ruby's most recent shoot here}

st. george

Just rolled in from warm[er] St. George. Nothing like a weekend vacay to rejuvenate you. We tried to make the best of the fact that Ruby woke up with a croupy cough the day we drove down there (last Thursday) and it has continually gotten worse since then! She was sick the whole time. Besides the lack of sleep and always being armed with tissues... we had a pretty good time. The point of the trip [really] was for Adam to golf with his pops... that, he did. We basically just tagged along. You have heard the low-lights of the trip. Now for the highlights:

In-N-Out Burger on the way down.

A day trip to Vegas to meet up with Andrew, Callie, and Baby Steve. A stop at Serendiptiy3 for the beloved Frozen Hot Chocolate. We also hit Town Square Mall for the kids section at H&M thankyouverymuch. BTW... um Kate... madewell is not in Vegas anymore:(

Vegas is not my favorite place on earth but I am good for about 6 hours there. I will however say... that it is PRIME for people watching. I really wish I would have pulled my camera out for more of the characters that we encountered... this is all that I got though. What you don't see in this photo... are the other matching triplets that the dad is pushing in that stroller!!! And I thought we our hands full with ONE toddler!

Hiking in Snow Canyon was definitely one of the highlights.

Other highlights include: Going out to dinner with my little bro Dan who is down there for school. Getting new running shoes. Eating lot's of yummy food, Jimmy John's and Neilson's Frozen Custard to name a few. Reading an entire book (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close), hanging with the Joneses, taking baths, and listening to some great tunes in the car.

she is still cute... even when she is under the weather...

this and that

i have been feeling a little lackluster about everything in my life these days. not really sure why. wait.. yes i am... it is january and i despise january. not to be a debbie but i really just don't like this month... or the next month for that matter. the only thing that i can really think of that is good about these two months is snowboarding. but, since i've got a little "mini-me" on my hands... i am not able to do that several days a week like i did in college. i have been desperately trying to find things that i love to do and to dig deep for that motivation to get out of the house, to exercise, and to be cheerful. alright... there you have it. sorry for my venting. here are a few things that i am looking forward to in the next little while:

i am thrilled that this month is almost over with, and with it... the inversion is heading out too!
i have a few things up my sleeve in the photo department, a few fun shoots that i can't wait release.
i am unhealthily excited for the olympics... i love watching people accomplish their dreams via gold medals.
i will be having a birthday in the next 3 weeks.
i hope to sight some stars up at the sundance film festival this next week.
i plan on catching up with LOST.
i just downloaded some fun new music.
i am cracking out the guitar and trying to write a song:)
i am shamefully loving the bachelor this season!
i am planning on hitting the slopes with ruby tomorrow and a few more times this month.
i am pretty excited about the start of our long awaited Kindermusik semester.
i might go ice climbing in the very near future!!
i can't wait for our 4 day vacay to southern utah next weekend.
in just over a week... i will be diet coke/soda free for one month... my only new year resolution.
i just started reading "extremely loud and incredibly close."
i am trying to be a super supportive wife, while adam studies for the series 7.
i am also trying be be SUPER patient while waiting for the house we want to buy to be available (short sale).

and that my friends is basically it.

the DEW tour

Laura, Ruby, and I headed up to Snowbasin this morning to check out The DEW Tour. My awesome friend Emily called me the other day offering her "ActionZone" passes to us. We had SO much fun. This was such a cool event. My favorite by far were the SuperPipe events. We had special passes so we could hike up right next to the halfpipe and we were literally five feet away from the skiers when they did their flips and tricks. It was AMAZING. It was fun to run into one of my best friends, Kate who was up there working the event.

We scored some sweet swag (like these cool shades) at the vendor village in between the events.

This made me laugh so hard. Laura was seriously screaming with no shame at all to try to get Ruby to look at the camera. But Ruby was just staring at the "Snow Monster" and like a broken record saying "Hi, I'm Ruby" over and over again.

the GREAT ESCAPE from the inversion...

I am having a REALLY hard time this year with the inversion in Salt Lake City. We have THE worst air in the country! I feel like I am breathing through an exhaust pipe when I step outside. I absolutely HATE it. So... any chance I get, I escape from it. I have been up to Park City at least three times a week since it got really bad. Today, we headed up to Deer Valley for the Freestyle International World Cup with our good friends Emily and Otis. This event is FREE... so if any of you are looking for something to do during the next few days... go check this out. It was a BEAUTIFUL day. There was not a cloud in the bright blue sky and the air was crisp and clean. I didn't realize how much I take that for granted. It was a trek up the mountain to the event area with these tots on our backs but it was totally worth it. The athletes were incredible to watch and it got me SO psyched for the Olympics to start. Ruby made me carry her in my arms all the way back down the mountain, through the endless parking lot to the car.... I am going to be SO sore tomorrow:)

{Emily, Otis, Ruby, Molly}

This is really random and actually terrible video quality but this lady from the Sprint booth came up to us and asked us if we would let her make a video of us cheering on USA in Vancouver. So... here you have it:) Aren't we enthusiastic.

our tradition

This photobooth strip has been in my scanner since October 10th... Ruby's birthday! Tonight... I finally got around to figuring out our scanner that has been on the fritz. So, without furhter adieu... here is Ruby's 2-year photobooth picture. See last years photo here. I tell you... getting these done this year was quite the production. I finally found a K-Mart with a working booth... and drove all the way there only to find that I had no cash and a missing debit card. Drove ALL the way home.. to find the card and turn back around, by the time we got there... Ruby was asleep. Bust. So, again, three hours later...with a happy little girl, I drove back down to K-Mart to get the "money shots."

p.s. yes, i do have the exact same hat on. isn't that a little embarrassing:)

weFLEW

Adam and I wanted to bring in the new year with something fun and out of the ordinary. So... we trekked up to Ogden took our turns at the indoor skydiving facility iFLY. It was so fun and much more difficult than it looks. Dusty was the best instructor... on our second time around, he took us all the way up to the top of the tunnel. Check out our videos if you are curious. After we were done... Dusty jetted around the inside of the tunnel so quickly, doing all sorts of tricks. It was amazing. It was fun to see my friend Emily from up there who stopped in with her kiddo's to see us fly. If anyone needs something fun to do... I recommend iFLY for sure... and make sure to get some extremely delicious grub across the way at Sonora Grill. Happy New Year everyone!!

christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. Man.. it sure did come by fast though. It seems like Thanksgiving was literally yesterday. I was not as prepared as I would have liked and never got around to doing a bunch of things... but oh well. My sister Kate and her family are in town for the holidays as well as my Grandpa Loran. We have never had him around for the holidays, so it has been quite the treat. On Christmas Eve, Adam woke up early with Ruby and made pancakes. He really is the best daddy. When he is home... he is basically 100% on "Ruby Duty." He is very involved and it is so nice. I got to sleep in a little. Then, we bundled up and hit the sledding hills. After a quick shower... we were off to the crazy mall for lunch at The Cheesecake Factory with the Joneses. Can I just say that... The Cheesescake Factory NEVER disappoints. Really. It is so good. Then we went over to my parents and visited some friends. My mom made the best bean soup for dinner... a family tradition. Later, we went home a little early to do some family things of our own. We watched a great film about Christ and his birth and put Ruby to bed. Adam and I watched "Elf" as he tinkered around, putting her new trike together. I was so tired... I fell asleep during the movie. Adam stayed up until around two though! It was so cute... he takes this "Santa" thing very seriously. I felt like kind of a dud because I had only gotten Ruby a little music box. Well... Adam had gone shopping and taken care of things. I woke up around four in the morning and went in the front room to see his work. In the light of the Christmas tree was her shiny new trike, and on the sofa were 5 or six wrapped presents from Santa... one of which was a set of little golf clubs! Typical:) I had nothing to do with it whatsoever.... I thought it was so cute. I love how magical a room on Christmas Eve is.... lit only by twinkling lights...

We take this family photo on this same sofa every year. This isn't the best of the self timers that we got... but I just love Salta's (dog) position and my mom's & dad's expressions.

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Christmas Day was so busy... we had three "Christmas mornings!" It was busy... but fun. We love our families.
Here are a few snapshots of Christmas night. Ruby's cousin Hazel had this "Pretty Pretty Princess" game and Ruby was ALL over it. Who knew? What am I going to do with a princess??? AND... look how chubby little Wells is... he is 6 months old and almost as big as Ruby in this picture! He is THE cutest and sweetest little boy. I just love him.

Check out cute Baby Steve's Santa outfit. Love it!

a little trip down memory lane...

I was sifting through some old files tonight and came across some adorable photos of our first Christmas with Ruby. It was so much fun. Look how tiny she is... maybe 9 or 10 lbs! I am so grateful for my little family, especially our little Ruby. She brings SO much joy into our life. It has been amazing watching her grow and teaching her new things. She is a little person now with an awesome personality. She is pretty excited about this whole Santa thing. Her favorite thing this month has been eating her chocolates out of her advent calendar every day when her daddy get's home from work.

this and that

This post is extremely random but I didn't want to leave these details of our month out. This first photo is from one of my best friends Erika Rock Reber's surprise birthday party. Her birthday is actually on Christmas Day and we have never done anything for her really... until now. We surprised her with a big ol' birthday bash... and it did not disappoint.

{some of my best friends L to R: Megan Rampton, Erika Reber, Kate Whitchurch, Me, and Lynsie Mortensen.}

He are just a few snapshots from the past few weeks. This holiday season has been especially fun with Ruby a little older and starting to understand the excitement of the season.

giveaway {on my photo blog...}

I am offering another photo session giveaway!! One lucky person who comments on this post or my facebook page will receive a free photo session AND the digital images, after I edit them a bit. Whether it is for your little one, your family, or whatever. Just leave a comment by Sunday, December 27th, midnight. I will randomly select the winner and announce it on Monday the 28th. If you become a fan of my Facebook page and leave a comment there... your name will be entered in the drawing twice! Please only comment if you live in or near Salt Lake City... or if you will be visiting anytime soon. Good Luck!

"shredding the nar"

So you know how I mentioned that I LOVE UTAH in my last post... well... I meant it. Thanks to my wonderful sister Laura, who watched Ruby so I could have a much needed "day off." I went snowboarding with these awesome ladies. It was sooo fun to get up on the mountain again. It has been far and between since my pre-ruby days. It was a gorgeous day, and we had too much fun boarding, taking pictures, and speaking in "snowboarder lingo ;) ."

{Me, Kasi Lemons, Ali Lemons}

my little skier

Ok... I know I am biased, but this kid might be the coolest kid ever. Really. I think it is safe to say that today was one of the happiest days/most fun moments of my life. I took Ruby skiing again... but this time, I actually strapped on the ski's and skied with her. She was such a champ. Let me tell you though, it was exhausting. Picture me... in ski boots holding her in all of her ski gear with her ski's and boots on AND holding my ski's in the other hand, hiking up 100 yards(ish) just to ski down and do it again!! SO tiring. Then, I got smart and went over to the FIRST TIME lift at Park City and asked them if I needed a lift ticket to ride up... and they said... "well, normally you do, but since that ticket office is closed, you can ride up to ski down to the other ticket office." Saweet! So, I managed to get us up the lift which was fun for Ruby in itself, then as we got off the lift, Ruby yelled "we did it mama!" She was in pure glee as we skied down the hill. We cruised too, and she loved it. I don't know what it is about teaching your children how to do something that you love so much... it honestly made me so happy. She did so great and never even complained once. Success. I stopped by my parents on the way home and told my dad all about it and he started crying:) I guess there is something about watching your grandkids do things that you love too!! I love Utah.

a little angel

I had the opportunity to photograph this cute family last month. We had to reschedule from a few weeks earlier because little 4-month old Makenzie had to have some kind of surgery due to some health problems she had been having. Even though she was a little underweight, they thought that she was doing ok. The day after our session, little Makenzie had to go back into the hospital. And now... a month later... on Sunday night, she passed away. She had a rare neuromuscular disease. I just met this family, but have been so affected by this little baby. It makes me SO grateful for what I have. AND, I am so grateful that I was able to photograph her/them before things took a turn for the worst and before Makenzie was hooked up to all of those tubes. THIS is why I take pictures.