Feelin' 21

I know I am not the only one out there that as soon as summer hits, you feel like you might have all this spare time...then all of sudden all of your weekends are booked up and your busier then the rest of the year. Summer has literally slipped away from me, leaving me with little to no time to write on my blog. That's life for ya! What was going to be a short post back in June has now turned into a summer recap.

I don't care who you are, but everyone loves having a birthday at some point in their life. My birthday was on the 22nd of June so I am a little past due on telling everyone thanks for the birthday wishes! I had an awesome weekend and it was full of fun. I know there are some people out there that celebrate their birthdays just like I do. They tend to turn into an all weekend extravaganza some years. I think I honestly just like to use my birthday as an excuse to spend some time with friends and family and sometimes just get out of town. Dakota and I planned ahead and decided to go to Lagoon! I have been determined to go for a few years now. It is a little harder to make it to Utah now that I am living in Rexburg. We invited Sierra and Justin (our fun newlywed friends) to go as well. Previous to this, Dakota told me to pack an overnight bag and be ready to leave our house at 3 PM the day before Lagoon. So he surprised me and took me to City Creek in Salt Lake to stay the night and of course to do some shopping! He's seriously the best and just knows me so well. We had a blast at Lagoon the next day, but were worn out from the fun and sun.

The Log Ride at Lagoon                          Shopping at City Creek, UT

Time Lapse in front of the SLC temple.

Fourth of July came around! Everyone has to love some aspect of this holiday, whether is be the BBQ's, fireworks, family get-togethers, parades, warm weather, festive clothing, or simply having a day off work. I was not so fortunate. Usually it is me that has the day off and Dakota has to go work. It was the other way around this year. The Jean Girl was at three locations for Fourth of July selling clothes for the day. It was fun to get out in the communities and do a little bit of people watching as I worked. Dakota is seriously such a trooper. He had the day off and still came with me to sit in a hot booth for a majority of the day. Afterward we went to a BBQ and watched the Idaho Falls fireworks that are put on by Malaleuca. If you are ever in the area, it is a great show to watch. It lasts long enough to be worth traveling a little way for it. However the crowd is huge. Unless you have connections with someone somewhere, it is hard to show up spontaneously and get close to watch. The week previous we went to Huntsman Springs in Driggs to watch the firework show there. We loved it! The environment is laid back and super family friendly. However I must say that I am partial to the events that happen in the upper valley in the Jackson Hole and Driggs areas. We were surprised by the amount of people that were there. They had a few bands playing throughout the evening including some of the original Beach Boys. They also honored Mr. Huntsman himself. He seems to have a pretty incredible life story. This firework show is one we will more then likely be attending in years to come.

Huntsman Springs Fireworks, Driggs, ID

 
Malaleuca Firework Show, Idaho Falls, ID

The next fun getaway we had was going to Bear Lake! The VanOrden's always have a little family reunion in Bear Lake during the summer. It always happens to fall on the same weekend right before spring finals at BYU-Idaho. However Dakota and I were lucky enough to have most of our finals over and were able to make it. All growing up, my family owned rafting boating instead of boats for lakes so I had never been to Bear Lake with my family. So this year was my fourth time going. It is an amazing lake and really fun for families. The beach is awesome to just play around on and enjoy the sun. We had a great time and it is always fun to get out of town to be with family. I always seem to leave with a good sunburn and even better memories! My skin is still in recovery.

The week after getting back from Bear Lake was full of packing our whole apartment and moving to our new apartment. We love our new place. We literally didn't even move more then a quarter mile from our previous apartment, but dang did we find out how much stuff we really have.

Well as busy as our summer has been, it hasn't slowed down yet. August will be full of more fun weekends. We have a Fisher family reunion in Jackson, weddings, and welcome homes. There will be some more fun pictures to come!

P.S. I'm not one to make up my mind easy. So bare with me as I may change my mind here and there about naming this silly blog. I will eventually settle with something. Until then...

It Started With A Fence

Dakota and I have come across such a fun opportunity! I have to start by saying, my husband just completely rocks! He puts up with all my little ideas, but better yet he helps me make them possible. So I don't know about you guys, but when we first got married I just really wanted our apartment to be "homey" and to be decorated well. Buying decor is hard for me to do since I'm just barely getting into it. As newlyweds you don't necessarily have a bunch of money to spend on stuff like decor either.

So this is where the fence comes in. We are now making barn wood frames. I am seriously IN LOVE with these! If you are a sucker for rustic, aged wood then you will love them too!

We are excited to be able to start making more of these and selling them! We would LOVE your feedback about this! You can vote right here on my blog, right under 'About Me' in the right column of the page. You can also leave comments or contact me if you are interested in buying one!
We are looking forward to seeing your feedback!

Catch Up! (A Lot Of Pictures!)

What a crazy few weeks it has been! May and June is a beautiful time of year! Graduations, weddings, warm weather, and finally getting outside are such refreshing things. A few weeks back I had a photography project that I needed to finish up. PORTRAITURE. I feel strongly that this could be my downfall when I am behind a camera. I love being able to take a great photo of someone, don't get me wrong. But practice, practice, practice...right?! I took some pictures of Kristi and Kort, Cody Martin, Lacey Hokansen, Cassie Albertson, Hayley Harrington, and Dakota. All of which are friends and family who were fairly easy to work with. Come to find out I actually do like taking pictures of people with the things that they love or what their lifestyle is. Kristi and Kort's lifestyles revolve around the gym, being trainers, and working for specific goals. It was fun to see them in their "natural habitats". Plus they have to be one of the cutest couples I have ever been around!

Next we had Cody Martin. I tend to really like "vintage" things so I chose to shoot him and his motorcycle. Plus, I think it shows a little more about him if you don't already know him. 

Unfortunately when I shot Lacey and Cassie we ran short on time and missed the good lighting outside. I only walked away with a couple descent shots.

It was good to get a hold of Hayley and catch up while I shot some photos of her! I loved her hair color in the shots. Plus she made a huge sacrifice and faced some stinging medal while we shot! She's the best!

And last of all I was able to shoot my very patient husband! He kinda hates being my model but he is just so great. I shot him when he was getting off work at the recycling yard. There is always some thing to look at there which made for fun backgrounds!

All of it was fun practice but it is always a good feeling to be finished with a school project. Next was Memorial Day weekend! Dakota and I were having a hard time deciding what we were going to do with a Monday off of school and work. My good friend Sierra got sealed in the temple the Saturday of that weekend. We were able to go watch them be sealed and spend the day at their wedding events. Everything was beautiful! Seeing others get sealed in the temple is such a great thing and is a sweet reminder of the day Dakota and I got sealed. Gosh, they are just the cutest couple though!

So when Monday rolled around we had decided to go drive through Yellowstone National Park. As some of you may know, making one of the full loops can really be quite the day. But we were up for the challenge since Dakota had never actually been past Old Faithful (coming from the West entrance). I definitely wanted to make it to the upper and lower falls. Right into the park we were in a line of cars for 9 miles and one hour because of buffalo in the road. We stopped at the popular turnouts and took a look around. We actually ended up running into Sierra and Justin on their honeymoon. Eventually we made it to the falls and they were just as great as I had last remembered. Fortunately the crowds had slimmed out past Old Faithful and it made it a little more enjoyable.

The following week were were able to go to Blackfoot to watch Dakota's sister Annie graduate from high school. I was able to see some friends and some of my old teachers there. I remember the day that I graduated and how important it was. Three years ago I would have never guessed that I would be married and going to school at BYU-Idaho, but it has become such a huge blessing in my life. It was fun to see Annie start this new part of her life!

And lastly... summer has finally gotten here! I kicked off summer with a fire by the river and a new job! You heard it!...it actually is possible to get a job in Rexburg. I am now working for The Jean Girl, a fun little clothing boutique. Check out their website full of cute, modest, and trendy clothes! You'll love them!
The Jean Girl

We definitely got a good start to summer and are looking forward to any adventures that are headed our way! 

Where The Red Rock Is

On our honeymoon we took a quick trip to St. George, Utah. After a long semester we were honestly just so glad to be going anywhere at that point. I had never actually stayed in St. George before that. We went to Las Vegas the first day and into Zion National Park the other two days of the vacation. I am a sucker for national parks and new adventures to places I haven't been before. So... I did a little bit of research before we went, looking for ideas of what we could do in the park. Some of you may have heard of it, but we settled on hiking The Narrows. For those of you who don't know, you hike up the river through the towering red rock canyon. We were there in April, what they would consider to be their potential "flood season". Dry suits/splash jackets and pants were high recommended for the temperatures were to be chilly. On day 1 in the park we just scoped things out and enjoyed the scenery. We observed the people coming out of the Narrows to try to decide if we actually wanted to rent all the gear, or if we wanted to just bag it all together instead. We checked out the water levels, air temps, water temps, etc. We came to the conclusion that we would go for it and just see how it would go. We just wore what we normally would if we were white water rafting. A definite must have for the hike through the river was a good pair of closed toe water/hike shoes, like Keens or Tevas. We luckily already had these from rafting. Initially the water was chilly but once we got used to it the temperature wasn't bad at all! It was such an awesome hike and I would recommend it if you are headed that direction. I do love the strenuous/difficult hikes but this once was one of a kind. Everything towers over you and for a moment you feel tiny compared to the rest of the world. I love how nature can always surprise us in those ways. It such a beautiful thing to know that God created these "nooks and crannies" and "surprises" for a reason and we are able to go out and enjoy them!

The Wedding

On April 11, 2014, Dakota and I tied the knot at the Idaho Falls Temple. It was such a great day and I wouldn't have traded it for the world. It was probably one of the best decisions that we made as a couple. We were sealed together for time and all eternity on Friday evening of the 11th. The next evening was our reception. The reception turned out great! We decided to go with a light beach theme following how our engagement happened. I got my dress from David's Bridal, my flowers were done by Lacey Secrist at Elegant Blooms, and our decor by Kim Hardy at Unforgettable Events We loved everything and the businesses were so great to work with. We also hired Carolyn Anderson to do our photos. They turned out great and we loved them! She is awesome and super fun to take pictures with. All of the links are included to see their other work. Everyone was just so great to us! It was great to have friends and family to come out and support us!