Christmas!

Christmas was a lot of fun. Brock and I first went to Denver to meet up with his family, then we made our way to Seattle be with the Skeens.

On Christmas Eve, Cliff treated us and Brock's brothers, Ross and Devin, to some excellent downhill skiing at Loveland ski resort. It lived up to its name, because the snow there was SO LOVEable!

The conditions were just right: sun shining, enough powder to play on along the sides, smooth, little to no lines, and very few people in relation to the size of the mountain. Great day! Speaking of great day, Brock's hair had a great day.

It was so much fun to all ski together. We all stayed about the same pace, though Devin, Brock and Cliff were more daring than I. Thanks to Cliff for such a great memory. It was a real treat.

Our first night in Seattle, Mom and the family held off our Christmas dinner tradition so we could enjoy it with them.... a Seafood and vegies FEAST. We had more crab, shrimp, sourdough bread, asparagus and potatoes than our tummies could handle! This was Brock's first true seafood feast experience, so it was fun to share it with him!

A tour of Seattle for Brock would not be complete without a bike ride over I-90 bridge to Mercer Island. It was a beautiful sunny day, but it was BITTER COLD. If we were to do it again, we would definitely dress differently! Nonetheless, we had a great time together. I love Lake Washington and all the surrounding beauty from the trail by it. I am happy Brock was up for yet another adventure!

We also enjoyed a day in downtown Seattle where we spent time wandering Pikes Place Market and more. We had lunch at the Pink Door... the more delicious Italian ever (homemade noodles and mushroom sauce). We also indulged in a few delicious French bakery treats (saved for later enjoyment) and gourmet chocolates.

We spent some time in the "Ye Ol' Curiosity Shop" as well... a trip into downtown Seattle with a Skeen would not be complete without it!

Other elements to complete the trip: a trip to the mountains for sledding with Mariah, time playing with Hayden and Joey, take-out Tai Ginger meal with Mom and Dad, and a trip to Coulon Beach Park and Ivar's for their delicious Clam Chowder and unbeatable Fish-n-Chips!

We miss Seattle and Mom and Dad (and Joey) already! Thanks for such a great visit!

Some fun with friends and family

I am getting further behind, so these are not in order, but they will have to do for now. It was a really nice November with holidays and great start to December!

In December, Conz treated us all with tickets to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional on Temple Square. It was a foggy and cold evening, so we didn't stick around long, but we did stay long enough in the parking garage to eat chili and rolls! It was fun to meet up with Rebs there and to spend time with Brock, Conz, Brandon, and John.

We went on a date with the Skeens to a local rec center. We loved the kid pool with Kai, and even took a trip down the dark water slide and let the bucket-o-water dump on us. And... the hot tub was REALLY nice. We will seek to find more hot tub time this winter! After swimming, we grabbed frozen yogurt together. It was cold out, but the yogurt was still oh-so-good!
In November, before Thanksgiving, Joseanne invited Brock and I join her and Conz in making pies! I am an apply pie, and Brock made lemon cream pie. They both ended up tasting delicious. We still have some experimenting ahead to perfect our favorites... stay tuned!

This is my apple pie (Lion House pie filling recipe with a Betty Crocker recipe for the crust)
Here is Joseanne's (I love the way she did the leaves on hers- so pretty!)
Here we all are (thanks Brandon for taking the picture!)
Joseanne was dubbed "Martha Stewart" for the night... she is really good at this!

In December we had a "Stairwell Jingle" with our neighbors. There was no singing, but there was music. It was nice to visit with a few neighbors who we did not know. We had a special visit from the fire department and got to treat them to some hot cocoa as well.

I made my first attempt at creating a cheese ball and was not disappointed.

Skeens at The Meadows

Para los americanos, "Las Vegas" significado "The Meadows" en ingles.

At the start of November, Mom, Dad, Brian, Megan & Hayden traveled from the great NW to Vegas, and Abes, Rach & Kai, Brock & I, made the trek down to meet up with the current Las Vegas crew.

What for?! We love spending time together AND Maraea Papaea had a dive meet, so we all got to cheer her on Saturday morning! She did a great job. She's had a fantastic season and has more still to look forward to! She places 3rd on the medium-height (3 m?) and 1st on the spring board again Colorado State. That's my sis!

The cousins love spending time together. They are so cute when they hug. Madi and Kai are both such sweet girls.

The whole crew, minus Brock, got to cheer on Maea (he was on the plane at the time). The little ones all did so well, and it was so much fun to support auntie Maea together!

These shoes...

made S-man the #1 stylish UNLV diving fan! He's already a crowd pleaser.

He also currently holds the #1 handsome and favorite Skeen grandson! Watch out!

I love my lil sis. Okay, so she's not so little, and she could whoop me on the board any day... unless I challenged her to a swan-diving contest.

This man had to miss out on the dive meet, but he sure made his presence know on the golf course!

Brock and I had never been "real" golfing before, so this was quite the treat. We both have learning to do, but Dad was so patient and taught us some tricks. I have a lot more practice ahead than Brock does, but we hope we can take some lessons down the road so we can improve before we play with Pops again.

Abes and Rach, Dad and Kev were tons of fun to spend the afternoon with. They are excellent teachers and golfers.

In the evening, we all went to the Bellagio and watched the water fountain show twice. This was such a sweet show! It was my favorite part of Vegas. We didn't see much else, but I am happy with just this.

For a late night dinner, the whole crew was treated by Pops and Mom at Four Kegs. They heard about it a while ago on Food Network as one of the best "dives." It was tastey. I don't think anyone left disappointed... more than satisfied :)

We all stayed at a condo for the weekend, and Dad's favorite part was the hot tub, of course.

Kai had so much fun playing with grampa in the warm water!

Madi was a tease, and Pops got dunked by her.

To redeem himself from being dunked by a toddler, Pops showed off his huge muscles to Brock and I. Wow.

What a great weekend! The nieces and nephew are all growing up so fast, and they are ever so darling and handsome. They have great parents, I have friends for sibling, we have incredible and fun parents, and we had a great time together. It was too short, as it always seems.

Thanks goes to Pops and Mom for bringing us all together and building memories as a family. We love you (and Joey)!

'Twas a Happy Birthday

This year marked the beginning of my 28th year. To celebrate, a Pre-Birthday, Birthday dinner, and Post-Birthday dinner were enjoyed with friends and family.

Monday night, Joseanne and Stef prepared a delicious taco salad dinner to share with Conz and Brandon, Brock and I. Then after home evening at my bishop's home, we all reconvened with Andrew, Rach and Kai at their home for cupcakes and wassail. Conz made themed cupcakes that wowed us all (pics coming from Brock's camera). There were ferocious sharks, squishy octopi, lifeguard rings and more. I have such thoughtful and kind friends and family.

Wednesday, the actual birthday, Brock prepared a delicious shrimp "Ratatouille" (that's what I like to call it) and gourmet green beans for dinner. Dinner was then followed by divine homemade lime custard made with fresh squeezed limes. He then surprised me with a trip to the ice skating rink. I love to ice skate in the winter, and it was even more fun with Brock. The night was not over after ice skating... Dad had come in town earlier in the day, so we got to drive up to the Skeen home where we visited with Dad, Andrew and Rach for a bit before it got too late. It was a very good birthday. I am a very lucky girl.

Thursday, post-birthday, Dad took us all (the Skeens, Brock and I) out to dinner at Carrabba's Italian Grill. Dad and I both enjoyed a ginormous plate of lobster linguine. Everyone's dishes were delish. Then we went for ice cream at Cold Stone and let Kai run around the mall for a bit. It was really nice to get to have dad here to celebrate this year- it's been some time since he's been in the same state on my birthday!

In all, it was a GRAND start to my 28th year. I am most grateful for good parents who gave me life and provided a loving home to grow in, super siblings who are examples and so fun to have as forever friends, many dear friends of past and present who so thoughtfully remembered me with a phone call or digital message, and an incredible boyfriend who continues to bring even more joy into my life. It's great to be 28!

Take a Hike, a First, and a Visit

Hike: In early November, we had some random blissfully warm days and we hiked to the Y! Not only was a nice evening with short-sleeve temperatures, but we enjoyed an amazing sunset over Utah lake.

First: Brock's ward had a chili cook-off, so we entered with some White Chicken Chili. The best part was testing it until we got the spicy and cream balance just right. It must have been a good balance, because our chili took 1st place!!! Our prize was party poppers.

Visit: DeEtte came to town! Her job requires that she make occasional trips to Salt Lake City, and this time, though her trip was extremely compact, she made a point to come visit me! She is such a dear friend. It was a privilege to spend some time with her.

Not the Hair!!!

The eve of Brock's haircut, Joseanne and I had the honor of straightening his hair. It really was supposed to be a favor for the hair stylist, but she has other magic techniques.

What do you think?

I like the curls :)

Happy it's in the past

A lot has been happening on this home front...

Last month (wow. yes. it's been that long), Brock got pretty sick... we thought it was just a bad cold or strep... then there was vomiting, so we thought it was the flu... then he ended up in the ER, and we learned it was a more serious infection from there.

We are grateful he is feeling much better than this now! Thank you for the prayers in his behalf. Really.

After a day at the hospital, Rach and Andrew had us over for dinner, along with our dear friend, Ann. We love spending time with them!

Happy Halloween!

Just in time for trick-or-treating, we spent the eve of Halloween with Kaili, Andrew and Rachel. Kaili was an adorably energetic and giggly lady bug this year. She knows a lot about candy for a 21-month-old! She loves it.

Andrew and Rachel were heroic ninjas, taking her to more than 6 houses after only planning on 3! After trick-or-treating, Brock and Rach made incredible homemade carmel that we dipped apples in. Gourmet goodness. Don't hesitate to beg Rach for the recipe. Your life will improve by at least 10 points.

On Halloween day, Joseanne, Steph and I made Dinner-in-a-Pumpkin and had Brock and his roommates over for a costume-by-name evening meal. The pumpkin and goolash were tasty. I think I will make this a tradition.