41 Weeks Pregnant (Blah!)

I'm a little miffed to say I did not think I would get to this point but here I am. The part that is slightly relieving (and slightly stressful) is that I've been scheduled to be induced for tomorrow Monday morning apparently at 6:30am! Umm, we were told to call and pick a time...obviously we would have chosen a more reasonable hour like 8 or 9am or something, but oh well. I guess she'll be here sooner than we thought! I'm slightly stressed because I did not want to be induced and it makes me anxious that we now know when we are going to the hospital and that after that we will have our baby girl here, but I am excited, too. I haven't been scared about the giving birth part for a while, but I am scared about being put on Pitocin since that is most likely what they'll do, and it bothers me knowing that almost everyone who is put on Pitocin needs an epidural because it brings the contractions on so suddenly and intensely. I really don't want one. I am not opposed to epidurals, but I do not want to pay for one. So my plan has been to try and go natural this whole time but I feel like that dream is slipping out the window. I'm really frustrated about that but I can't let myself get stressed out or I'll probably get emotional. My doctor told me I'd be in charge but the lady on the phone from the hospital didn't make it sound like she was taking requests. If I had it my way, I would have them first try using just Cervidil to see if that was enough to push me over from a 3 to a 4cm (it worked for my friend), and if that didn't work, put me on Pitocin for a short while--just enough to get me going.

I just learned that my mom was on Pitocin the whole time when she was induced with me and she still didn't get an epidural so I guess it's not impossible. That's slightly relieving. I hate that I'm getting induced because I hate that I have time to attempt to plan and worry about the situation. If I had just gone into labor in the middle of the night I would just be worried about getting the baby out, not about all the stupid drugs everyone is trying to give me. So frustrating.

Well I'm trying to stay positive and have courage because I am really excited for our little girl to be here. More likely than not, we'll have her by tomorrow!!!!! So unreal. She has been very much anticipated for practically a year. (I can't believe I've been pregnant for 41 out of the last 52 weeks of a year...that's such a long time!) Week 40 went by a little faster than week 39 because I took everyone's advice and kept as busy as possible. When I get the time, I will share what's been going on lately. It's been awesome having my mom here and I can't believe she leaves in 10 days. We have plans to go to New Hampshire in 15 days! Our little girl will be two weeks old! I guess August has kind of flown by even though I didn't think so the last two weeks. 

Dalin is so ready for her to be here. I catch him in her room pretending to change her diaper and sitting in the chair in there. He tells me he is going to just hang out in there while she's sleeping and watch her and read to her. He always gets so happy when we talk about her being here. I'm convinced he's going to be the cutest dad of all time (I'm sure every wife thinks that, but I know it's true for him:). I can also tell he's going to be the nicer parent of the two of us, but we'll talk about that another time...

Wish me luck for tomorrow! Thankfully I have Dalin who can give me a blessing beforehand. I'm so blessed to have him! 

One of the last times it will be just the two of us! I love our family! 

Maybe I Do Have What It Takes

It's July!!!!! FINALLY! I can't believe it's finally here! The last month before our little daughter joins our lives! 

Our apartment at Wymount is hotter than heck right now (seriously, it has to be at least 80 degrees in here because I am sweating everywhere) but I am in a surprisingly good mood because I've been spraying myself with this little water spritzer thing (I got that idea right here -- yes I googled that, haha) and drinking lots. Plus, I don't really have to wear a lot of clothes in my own apartment so that helps. 

This morning, our little girl was bouncing around and kicking like mad. I didn't know what time it was (I'm blind without my contacts) but I got up to pee, get a drink, and try to calm her down a little. I heard that you can get an idea of what your baby's routine will be like based on his or her activity in the womb. I sincerely hope that isn't the case or I can say good morning at 6am every day (which, it turns out, is when she woke me up with her movement this morning). Although that is admittedly better than 2 or 3am...The good thing about this morning was, after getting back into bed, I realized I apparently do have the ability to get up (even against my will) in the early hours of the morning to take care of our baby. I am sure the crying will be enough to motivate me as well, but it was a comfort to know that I subconsciously am getting into the "Mom zone" and mentally preparing for taking care of our sweet baby. 

For those of you who don't know, I was worried about getting up in the middle of the night because I am the type of sleeper where, if my sleep gets interrupted, I have a hard time going back to bed after. Once I'm awake, I'm usually awake for good. Maybe the exhaustion (or heat exhaustion...) took its toll on me. Either way, I am more excited than ever for this month to go by. We have lots of plans for this month (most involving family visiting and fun work activities) and I am hoping they will be enough to keep me distracted and make the month fly by...

That's all I have for now, but I am wondering if anyone has any creative suggestions for keeping cool. I work from 10-5:30pm, so during those hours, it isn't much of an issue, but the evenings and weekends aren't too fun. I've already closed all our blinds and kept our windows closed during the day and open at night. Why can't it be raining here like it has been for weeks in New Hampshire?? I would gladly trade at this point. Plus I love rain. 

Anyway, please tell me how to keep cool!!!

Homesick and Baby Hungry...in a different way

Every morning I wake up and say to Dalin, "Why can't she just be here already??" Then I say something along the lines of, "I wish we could just go to the ocean today or walk around Portsmouth. Or visit Boston. I miss Dad. And Payson. And Mom and Donovan. I am craving a clam chowder bread bowl from Faneuil Hall and a smoothie from The Monkey Bar." This morning, I said, "When I wake up in my room in New Hampshire, you can hear boats or jet skiers out on the lake. It makes me want to go boating." Then I said, "I can't wait until she's born and we can go to Central Harbor and bring her to all the little shops in Meredith and everyone will see her and ask, 'Is that your baby?' and we'll be like 'yup!'" 

I could go on, but you get the idea. I want our baby here NOW and I want to be in New Hampshire. My family goes to the ocean or lake like every day in the summer so it kills me when it's nice here in Provo and the ocean is a few thousand miles away. 

Besides missing my parents and brothers, (and our dog...and everyone else) I really miss the awesome places in New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont that my family visits frequently during the spring and summer months...

I miss:
Kittery Trading Post
Loco Coco's Tacos
The Ice House
Lago's
Fort Foster
Downtown Portsmouth
Fort Stark
Lake Winnipesaukee
Gilford Tennis Courts
The Gilford Public Library
Andy and Molly's House
Mill Falls
Gilford House of Pizza
Moulton Farms
Bean's and Greens
Gilford Beach
Nana and Grandpa's house
Moultonborough Country Store
Sawyer's Dairy Bar
Beech Hill Farmstand
The Joseph Smith Memorial
Johnson's Restaurant
The Boston Temple
Laconia Ward 

I'm sure there are others, but these are just a few of my favorites. 

What other great places do you love (or miss) in the east? 
Is anyone else homesick?

Olivia's Famous (& Favorite) Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

Are you looking for the most delicious pie recipe you've ever tried? Congratulations! You've found it! 

But seriously, this is my all-time favorite pie by far. I even make my own pie crust. Back in New Hampshire, my LDS ward used to host an annual pie and cake auction every June or July to raise money for Girls' Camp and Scout Camp. It is our one fundraiser a year, so it's kind of a big deal. My signature dessert was this exact recipe. People would bid somewhere around $100 for a good cake or pie, and since a lot of people had tried my recipe, my pies always did really well. I tell you this not to brag, but to convey how serious I am about this being a sweet recipe (literally, ha ha...).

So when I cook or bake, I'm all about using as few dishes as possible. For this dessert, I usually get out two big bowls, one spatula, measuring cups (which I barely use if truth be told), a rolling pin, and of course a pie plate. 

Pie Filling Ingredients Needed: 

2 cups sliced strawberries (fresh are better!)
2 cups sliced rhubarb (1-2" pieces)
2/3 cup flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp butter

Instructions: 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mix the first four ingredients in a bowl and allow them to sit for a while...the sugar will liquify and create a pinkish glaze on the fruit. Begin making the bottom pie crust. 

Pie Crust Recipe (made twice...once for the bottom crust, once for the top--I prefer not to double the recipe):

1 stick of salted butter (softened)
3 Tbsp shortening
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups flour
3-5 Tbsp cold water (start with 3, add more as needed)

Instructions (continued):

I think homemade pie crust is always better. I have never made this pie with store-bought crust, but you may try it if you dare. Otherwise, mix the pie crust ingredients in the order they are listed with a spatula (I usually just rinse the spatula I used to mix the pie filling). It won't look like much until you blend everything thoroughly. I start with 3 Tbsp of cold water and add additional as needed. Be careful not to add too much or you'll just have one soggy crust (which adding additional flour would probably fix). Take off any rings you might be wearing, and blend the dough by hand after mixing the best you can with the spatula. 

Now you have a few options for getting the pie crust to come out successfully in one or two tries. First, you really need a pretty wide space...wider even than the circumference of the pie plate because the dough needs to extend over the sides. A wide counter (cleared off) or a kitchen table should work fine. Next, you need something to roll the dough onto. My mom uses pieces of saran wrap on the counter sprinkled with flour to roll the pie crust out on. I use that method sometimes, but I also have a large plastic cutting board sheet that I can roll the dough onto (lightly floured also) and I tend to use that more often.

I usually flatten the ball of pie crust the best I can with my hands, then flour the rolling pin before beginning to roll out the crust. If the rolling pin begins to get sticky at all, flour it, or it will pull chunks of your crust off the cutting board. Roll the dough out as evenly as possible and as thinly as you can without it tearing. It should look something like the picture below. 

Once you have reached this stage, you will want to place your pie plate nearby. You don't need to treat the pie dish with cooking spray or anything because the pie dough has so much butter and shortening in it that it doesn't stick. 
Carefully (super carefully, or you'll have to start over) flip the cutting board over the pie plate so the crust covers the entire dish. The dough does not move easily, so it's important that you aim well the first time. My cutting board is super flat and bends like paper, so it is really easy for me to maneuver the crust over the dish. It should like something like the picture below. If it doesn't look perfect, just remember it's the bottom of the pie so no one will see it anyway.

Using a knife, carefully cut the excess dough away. I just set my knife against the edge of the dish and saw around it so all the extra falls off, leaving a nice smooth edge. Next, use the spatula to carefully scoop the pie filling into the dish. It should look moist and be spread around as evenly as possible like the picture below. 

Now comes the most challenging part--the top pie crust. This part is mostly hard because you want it to look nice. I sometimes do the top crust over if it doesn't roll out nicely the first time. Use the same steps mentioned above for rolling out the top pie crust. When it is time to place the top pie crust, ask someone to help you if you have unruly dough. Two extra hands can make this much easier. The crust should cover the entire pie dish and run over the edges when placed like in the image below. 

Now you can try different techniques for sealing your top pie crust to the bottom, but I like to cut off the excess (not right to the edge of the dish like the bottom one--it still needs to be a little bit longer) and then fold the sides under all the way around and pinch the dough like the birds do on Snow White. Here is a little video to show you what I'm talking about: 

She makes it look super easy, but I wouldn't pick the pie crust up like she does...it doesn't work. 

Anyway, you can pinch the edges, or you can create ridges (which kind of looks more professional...) as shown in the pic below. 

Once you have sealed the top pie crust, cut some slits in the center--unless you want an explosion in your oven. I like to do five slits evenly around the center like the five legs of a star. You can get crazy like Snow White and add things on top made from the leftover dough (my mom will roll the extra dough out and cut out mini hearts with cookie cutters to place on top) or you can carve patterns like the person did in the picture below.

Pre-baking. In my hand is the recipe card I use when making my favorite pie.

Whatever you choose to do is fine. Now the last step before putting your precious pie in the oven is to stick that 1 Tbsp of butter (mentioned under Pie Filling Ingredients) on the top of the pie to melt into the slits you carved. My mom puts it under the crust, I put it on top. It doesn't matter either way. 

Now just stick the pie in the oven (which you hopefully preheated to 425 degrees) and set a timer for 30-40 minutes. (Start with 3o or 35 and check on it). The edges of the pie should be a light brown when it is ready. You'll be able to tell. The pie crust pictured above is a little too dark for my taste as you can see from the very first image, which is the only one here that is actually mine. 

Note: It may be a good idea to stick a cookie sheet or some foil on the rack below the pie--especially if yours is overflowing with pie filling. The juices in the pie boil and leak out making a messy oven. If your pie crust is flat across or shrunken in, you probably won't have that problem, but it's better to be safe than sorry. 

When your pie is baked to perfection, let it cool for a while and serve with vanilla ice cream if desired. If it isn't delicious, you may have made a mistake. I really hope you love it.

My pie :)

Please let me know if you try this recipe! I would love to hear about how it turned out--good or bad. Chances are, this will become your new favorite pie. 

Just not my thing

Anyone who knows me well enough, knows that Utah is just not my thing. I do not really enjoy living here or much about this state in general because I was raised in a place that was simply so awesome, it's sad to even compare the two. My family isn't here, and I miss the landscape and greenness of New Hampshire. But, I will say, that today was a nice day here in Utah. Don't get me wrong, it was freezing rain out and deathly slippery, and the nasty smog was trapped around us, but it was nicer than it has been in a while in my humble opinion. I like the rain. I liked that 32 degrees felt kind of warm. I liked that I was able to stay inside most of the day because of my job and that I didn't have to expose my little one to the poor air quality by being outside. It was just a better day. 

At work, we had a discussion about Utah in comparison to New Hampshire. It sounds like the majority of people involved liked or even kind of liked Utah. This came as no surprise to me. But in my defense, I am brutally honest when it comes to my personal opinions. The conversation started out innocently enough: I was just suggesting that my favorite types of pizza are all New Hampshire types. I had not even realized that that was the case until that moment, but as I listed off Pizza Express, Gilford House of Pizza, and Papa Gino's, I thought, "What the heck--none of those are out here." When someone asked me why I dislike Utah so much, my first thought was the people. Then right away I felt bad about that because I have met some wonderful people from Utah. I certainly know they are not all bad. But the culture of the Church out here is tremendously different from what I had expected and from what I'm used to. I quickly discovered this as an innocent east-coast Mormon girl on my first visit to Utah when I was a Junior in high school. I had been so excited to come to a new place and be surrounded by members and feel like I was a part of a huge LDS community. I thought that I would get to see the best parts of the Church and feel empowered from the experience. Then I came out here and the people were not what I expected. They say the Church is true, the people aren't. That proved to be the case for me during my visit. The competition within the Church out here is something that truly bothers me. Who cares about whose house is bigger or nicer? Who cares about having nicer clothes than your neighbors? Who cares about having expensive things? Why do people judge each other on their Church attendance or calling? That stuff doesn't matter! 

I was raised in a small house in the east. When I was in middle school, I was embarrassed because our house was small. It was only one story. Yet for some reason, people always just wanted to come over to my house. I did not really understand why. Most of my school friends had way bigger houses than me. I wondered why they didn't mind that my house was small. It wasn't until high school that I realized that they probably could feel the Spirit within my home. My mother kept our house extremely clean and full of good books, beautiful paintings (some Church-related, some not), and full of things to do. It was around then too that I realized I loved my home. I loved it and wanted to have one just like it someday. I realized that no one cared about the stuff we owned. When I went to the homes of my friends who similarly had small homes, I didn't judge them. That was not an important part of my upbringing. My more wealthy friends didn't judge us either. It just wasn't a big deal. 

When I think of my home ward, I think of how wonderfully strange the people are out there. And how wonderfully black and white their "status" is. No one pretends to be doing all the right things and goes to Church to put on a facade of being righteous. More than half of my ward members live in humble homes. They manage their money and do not go into debt for a home or for expensive luxury items just for show. No one would be impressed by that. There are so many peculiar people who live such different lives than the people out here. I cannot imagine a person going out to bars and drinking and then going to Church the next day. If someone chooses not to live the standards of the Church, they just don't go. They don't fake it. I was so shocked when I saw how the youth dress out here. This is supposed to be a gathering place for the Saints! We were a little strange in our high schools because we did not wear immodest clothing and so we stood out. Many people in my high school asked me, "Why are you so happy all the time?" and "It is so cool that your family is religious. I wish I had that." They would ask me about what Mormons believe in and I had so many sweet opportunities to share my testimony and give a little insight into what Latter-day Saints are really like. I brought many friends to Church, efy, Girls' Camp, and Mutual activities. I loved those missionary opportunities. It felt so good to bring a little light into the lives of those who were surrounded by moral darkness. I love those non-members. I love how imperfect they are and how much they appreciate kindness and the good they see in others. 

Since I have lived in Utah for more than a year, my insights have changed. Just a little. Yes, Utah has cool mountains and some pretty cool parks. Yes, I love how there are dozens of temples here and knowing that the prophet is nearby. And as I said, I have met many wonderful people from Utah who are just as great as one would expect for a place where there are so many Latter-day Saints all together. I am still disappointed with how many of the members choose to live when my little tiny stake in the east lives in the midst of moral chaos and still manages to follow the standards of the gospel with careful diligence. We have hardly any examples around us except each other. It is something that I truly don't understand about the culture here but I am trying to. And I accept that I do not have to feel like a part of it and that it is okay if I don't want to be. I need to make sure that I do not make assumptions about all of Utah just because my experience here has not been very positive. I will not be here forever but while I am here I need to strive to set an example and not be guilty of the judging of others that bothers me so. I am not even close to perfect. But I am thankful for my upbringing which has given me a very clear perspective of people. I love the people of this world who are just looking for something greater. They live imperfectly but they are real. I miss that about my home. 

I am not sure what the purpose of this post is. It certainly was not intended to bash Utah or the people who live or love it here. But I do think the members should know that they have it pretty good out here, and so many do not even realize it. Practice what you preach. Do not judge others. And most of all, do not compare yourself to those around you. Like I said, it does not matter who has a nicer home or more Church members in their family or fewer family problems or what your economic status is. In the eyes of our Father in Heaven, we are all equal. We are born into different situations, but we can all be the type of people we ought to if we are trying hard enough. We had better start treating each other like we are all children of God, because I know--whether you believe me or not--that all of us are.  

Do you agree with me? Or do you completely disagree?

Do you think the culture of the Church is different in Utah? 

Or maybe just different than you expected?

That Time My Mom Came to Utah

My Mom flew in from New Hampshire yesterday. I so wished we could have been flying out there instead, but I am just grateful she could come at all before Christmas!

I picked her up from the Salt Lake Airport around 1:30pm and we drove back to Provo.

Side note: That was the farthest our car had ever driven. 

It wasn't even that far. But our car hit 200 miles...it's getting so old!  ;)

I totally cried when I saw her. I was the only weirdo standing almost directly on the "Do not cross" line where everyone who comes into Salt Lake exits and I was hopping up and down excitedly, craning my neck to see her. Her dumb plane was twenty minutes delayed which I did not realize until later as I began to wonder where the heck she was...but I was just so happy to see her. We collected her luggage and drove home chatting. 

I dropped her off at the Wilkinson Center (the Wilk) so she could browse the bookstore for an hour or two while I returned to work. When Dalin and Mom and I were all back at the apartment (which was not as clean as I would have liked), we talked and visited, Shaina and Layton came over and then we had a wonderful conversation. It was a great night and I was just so excited to have her here. We were exhausted by midnight--Mom had had to get up at 4am in New Hampshire to make her early flight and Dalin and I had gotten up at 7am (not so bad, but we're tired college students) to take Christmas pictures--so we fell asleep instantly.

Then today was great, too. Dalin and I went to work and school and my mom got to sleep in a little. When she woke up, she got right to work. She did so much laundry (I felt so bad but she insisted), and washed our dishes (which has to be done by hand), then she vacuumed, tidied up everything, and made our bed. Coming home after work was a huge surprise--it looked so wonderful. It was such a huge burden that was lifted off of me. 

Even though she did NOT have to do those things for me, I am so grateful to have my mom here to take care of us for a few days. I wish it could be longer.

Plus, we went to the mall and had a ton of fun looking at shoes, clothes, and showing her stores that we don't have in the east. Dalin has a sweet new navy down jacket that he looks SO hott in, a light denim shirt (which I have been wanting to buy for him forever...), and two v-necks (one teal, one maroon). I got some sweet shoes that I LOVE, a cute jacket that was on sale at Forever 21 (it's pinkish-purple which is a color I am not overly fond of, but I had to admit that I really liked it on), and a sparkly mint scarf. 

We got some chocolate at See's (of course)...Dalin got key lime as always, and for my mom and I we bought my new favorite, dark chocolate California peanut brittle. It is so delicious and it's the best kind of peanut brittle because you can actually bite it.

After our shopping spree (Dalin had finally had enough), we stopped by Sarah's apartment to visit with her (except, we totally have to see her again before she leaves for New Hampshire and then for her mission to Ecuador). We had a nice time talking and laughing until it felt late and we returned to the apartment to wind down.

I am so glad my mom is here. It makes me just so happy!!!!!!!!!!! I love her so much. And I do not want her to leave.

Did we even have October??

What. Just. Happened. 

October, how are you already over? There are 5 days left of the month! And I love October...so very much. I love every connotation associated with October--especially the burst of color that takes place around us in nature. This is true in most places, but no place more apparently than in New England. The maple trees there just ooze colors that seem unnatural. Driving through my neighborhood in New Hampshire during the fall is like being in Candy Land. There are pink trees! It is gorgeous. 

I get oh-so-excited for Fall clothes. I love wearing jeans and boots and scarves and sweaters and hats and leg warmers and clogs and tights and everything else.

I also love Halloween! My family was never extremely into it, but we did trick-or-treat and carve pumpkins, and my brothers and I dressed up. Dalin's family on the other hand, hosts an annual adult Halloween party and the two times I have gone have been a blast. 

Last year, we owned everyone with our creative and somewhat creepy costumes as entertainer stick people. Can you imagine these stick people creepily walking toward you down the street?? By the way, those are axes in our hands. Also, I wish we had a picture of our bums because we attached two circles to them haha. We won a soft orange blanket with little ghosts on it, and a black ghost throw pillow. Cute right? 

Guess which one is me, hahah....

This year, the theme for the Halloween party was nursery rhymes or fairy tales. Dalin and I chose an obscure fairy tale and dressed as an ogre and his maiden daughter. We literally put this costume together twenty minutes before the party. Pretty decent for such poor planning. 

 

This weekend, we had planned to go up to Boise for a quick trip with Shaina and Layton, but what with our crazy schedules tomorrow and Sunday, it just wasn't going to work out.  Dalin is Sunday School President and had to teach on Sunday, I'm the Primary President and need to help out with practicing for the Primary Presentation coming up in November, we have planned a walk to the temple to take pictures with the children's families, we both need to be present at Ward Counsel on Sunday morning, and we both need to do our home/visiting teaching.  Not only this, but we have a Trunk-or-Treat activity tomorrow night!  Clearly, the timing was just unfortunate. 

Still, October is just magical.  And let's just say, there will be even more magic over the next two months...

;)

It was only just a dream...or was it?

Well, we are home. Our home is at little 300 Wymount Terrace in little Provo, Utah. We just returned from a marvelous trip to my lovely home state of New Hampshire. While Utah will never be my real home, I am starting to accept that it's okay if it is my temporary home...for a little while. We have about two years left of school at BYU and then we are free to do as we like. 

Can I just say, that being married while in school is so much easier. Probably because the boyfriend who was a huge distraction before is now a permanent, less obvious distraction that I see daily and who is more helpful and less likely to make me want to skip class. Our overall priority is to learn, earn some major moolah, graduate, and begin our family a.s.a.p. So far, the only thing we have succeeded at doing is learning. In our marriage, we are learning lots of things, like how to communicate better, trust one another, have patience, and share our thoughts. It is a lot of work--equivalent to a full-time job--but it is the best job I've ever had! ;)

Now it's time to re-cap our trip. 

A Little Visit to New Hampshire 
August 4 ~ Our travel day & arrival

Finally got to see my mom after an entire year. Wayyy  too long. 

I cried the second I saw my family waving to me from behind the glass. Especially when I saw Donovan. I can't believe I am missing him during his growing years. He is going to be a teenager this month which is simply unbelievable to me. It was so nice also to get home and see Payson again, hug my mom and dad, and to see my little doggie back in the comfort of my parents' home. 

August 5 ~ Visit to my old ward & visit with my 96-year old great grandmother

How nice was it to be back in my home ward? So nice. I realized I had missed everyone and just the spirit of the meetings back home. After church, we visited my great grandmother, Nana Kane, at the nursing home where she lives. It brought me to tears seeing how tired and worn she is, but she still brought smiles to our faces as she hugged and kissed her great grandson, Donovan. It was so nice to catch up with family. 

August 6 ~ Pirate's Cove beach, downtown Portsmouth & lobster with best friends

Today was a good day to visit the ocean. We opted to go to Pirate's Cove, which is more public than the beach we typically go to, but Donovan had wanted to show us how he could wakeboard and so we humored him. It was a very pretty, sunny day. As you can see, we all enjoyed the soft ocean water. 

  Donovan and I had fun burying Payson in the sand. 

Then Donovan had fun dumping cold sea water on me. 

Here's us, being a cute married couple out on the town haha. We ate chips and salsa in downtown Portsmouth then headed home where we had Megan and Sarah over for lobster (which, for those who do not know, is my absolute favorite food)! 

Hanging out with my best friends, eating some amazing lobster. Or as they say in New England, "lobstah." ;)

August 7 ~ Haircut, trip to Boston Temple, Quincy Market & Red Sox game
On this morning I got a haircut. Finally. Then we headed down to Boston with Donovan and Mom so that Dalin and I could do some sealings at the temple where we were married just over a year ago. We had a fun time taking some pictures in front of our gorgeous temple, too. 

 

After our visit to the Boston temple, we took the T to Quincy Market for a clam chowder bread bowl and a delicious $7 smoothie. But it was totally worth it. We had had both on our honeymoon  the year before which is why we made it a point to stop there for dinner.

After, we took the T to Fenway and watched the Red Sox play the Rangers. We had ridiculously good seats and had a blast even though we lost the game. 

Home-run smooch

Please notice how amazing our seats were. My dad is awesome for getting those for us. Also notice how cute my little brother is. I love him so much! Anyway, it was a terrific day in Boston.

August 8 ~ Beans & Greens, Mill Falls, Jetskiing, & Johnson's ice cream
We began the day by visiting my old workplace, Beans & Greens farm, and getting some delicious panini sandwiches for lunch. Then, Donovan, Mom, and us drove to Mill Falls and walked around the fun bookstores and quaint shops. We also spent some money at the candy store. 

 

After, we jetskied on Lake Winnipesaukee and then went out for ice cream with the family. 

With my boys :) Dalin, Donny, Payson, and Dad. 

August 9 ~ 21st birthday, Ice House, Fort Stark, mall trip, steakhouse & Silver Fountain Inn

Well today I turned 21. I really had nothing in mind for my birthday, so naturally my decision was to go to the ocean. We went to Fort Stark and scoured the beach for sea glass. We ate lunch and ice cream at the Ice House, and then went to the Fox Run Mall to shop. The only thing I really wanted for my birthday was a cute toe ring. We found two, and I love them. After the mall, we met my dad at a steakhouse for dinner. The food was extremely good. Then, as a little surprise for my birthday and for our upcoming anniversary, my mother reserved a place for us at the Silver Fountain Inn--the very place we stayed on our wedding night. It's a complicated explanation, but basically we ended up staying at home with the family despite her really thoughtful gift. We wanted to save Mom's money but more importantly, we knew we only had limited time to spend with the family and so we made that choice. 

August 10 ~ Rainy day, Moultonboro Country Store, & Moulton Farms
It poured today, and I loved it. I had been waiting for rain for too long. We decided today to visit one of the oldest country stores in the country--Moultonboro Country Store. It has lots of fun gifts and old fashioned candy there, too. We walked around together and then headed to a local farm-stand to get fresh food for lunch.

View of the store in the pouring rain

Who got me those sweet blue jeggings, you ask? None other than my smart, tasteful husband.

August 11 ~ Kittery, Maine, Fort Foster, & Bugaboo Creek
It was another ocean day today. We went to Fort Foster and even though it was overcast, who doesn't love a sweatshirt day at the beach? I endured the windiness, knowing once I returned to Utah I would regret not loving every moment spent at the ocean. 

Skipping rocks at the ocean

With my best friend and eternal companion

After the beach, we drove to downtown Kittery, Maine to visit a huge candy store and Kittery Trading Post. We ate at Bugaboo Creek for dinner. 

With two cuties in Kittery

August 12 ~ Church, Andy & Molly's lake house, water volleyball & word games
After Church on Sunday, we took a few family pictures outside. They came out pretty great, and I especially like this one where everyone is all smiles...and no one blinked. 

My eternal family :)

I cannot share how much I love this picture

We headed to Andy and Molly's lakehouse for some water volleyball and quality family time. We stayed late and played word games like Boggle and Bananagrams. It was a great Sunday/family night.

August 13 ~ Fort Foster, browsing around downtown Portsmouth & ice cream at Annabelle's
Very nice day today. Because the weather was good, we went back to Fort Foster (my favorite beach because it less busy than most) and soaked up some sun. 

I loved watching them play :) Dalin, Payson, and Donovan

Once we were tired of the beach for the day, we packed up and went to downtown Portsmouth for ice cream at Annabelle's. We finished the day with another lobster dinner.

Eating lobster (again!) at home. The best.

August 14 ~ Lunch at Uno's, Tilton Outlet Mall & friend's night
We had a difficult time deciding what to do with the day, but since we were exhausted, we ended up taking it easy and going out for lunch--just the two of us--then we did some light shopping at an outlet mall. 

We had friends over for a game night later on and it was really enjoyable. 

August 15 ~ Funspot, dinner with grandparents & parenthood practice

We tried to take it easy today as well. We went to Funspot--the world's largest arcade--located in Meredith, New Hampshire, and played lots of games just for fun. On one game, I won the "Monster Jackpot." Not even just the regular jackpot. I won over one thousand tickets and it took forever to get them all. But it was so cool, so it was definitely worth it. 

Shortly after I won...these are only a fraction of the tickets 

Later that night, we went back to Andy and Molly's lakehouse to babysat our cousins, Jack and Cael for the night. My grandparents took us all out for dinner then brought us some ice cream. They are so wonderful :)

He is going to be the best dad. The boys loved  him. 

Out to eat with my grandparents

Handsome boys :)

August 16 ~ Panera Bread & Canobie Lake Park
We went out for lunch at Payson's favorite cafe chain and then to New Hampshire's amusement park called Canobie Lake for our very first time. My dad couldn't make it, which I felt bad about, but we had a good time--particularly on the water rides. 

After getting soaked on "The Boston Tea Party" ride

A really good picture of us on the log ride--pre-getting soaked

Waiting in line to ride the Corkscrew...ouch

My mom came on a ride with us! She hardly ever can, but it was so awesome that she did! 

In the photo booth...with our own camera ;)

We stayed until 10pm, when the park closed, and slept on the way home. It was a really good close to our trip. 

August 17 ~ The Sad Return 
The dreaded day. I was so anti-leaving, I would have been willing to quit my job and switch schools if I didn't have Dalin. But life can be hard, and though leaving New Hampshire and my family was really hard (and we were all in tears at the airport though we had promised we wouldn't be), I am comforted knowing that my family is forever and that no matter how long we are apart in this life, I have them for eternity. Knowing this, and having the loving hand of my husband to hold as we went through security leaving my family behind, were the only things that comforted me as we got on our plane to return to--what is temporarily--our home. 

Bye New Hampshire. I love everything about you. 

Our backyard on a wonderful rainy day

Gorgeous oceans