It happens to be Tuesday

First of all, this Phoenix weather is confusing...come on heat!!

This last weekend was a fun and busy one! And this next one is going to be pretty busy as well! On Friday we made our first trip of the year to Bartlett Lake! The water wasn't too cold {or so Taylor told me, I still didn't get in..} and my husband was patient enough to teach me how to back up the truck WITH the trailer!! 

On Saturday we got a few chores done and then went shooting with Paul and Emily out at Sycamore! Emily was the least experienced with a gun, but she did awesome! We had a lot of fun at Bass Pro Shops afterwards as well where I got suckered into buying 5 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies {of which I will most likely eat every cookie but 3, I am predicting Taylor will eat one of each kind..}

{my husband is SO hott!}

{this bad boy has less of a kick back than our shotgun! can you believe it!?}

{Paul and Emily}

{I am AWFUL with a handgun, my little arms fling over my head almost every time!}

Sunday was nice, I got to interpret in Primary {I've missed interpreting!} and we had a nice relaxing day {we did the laundry on SATURDAY this week, go us!} 

I started a new class this week, its only 8 weeks long, so I'm pretty excited about that! School is going well, work is going great, Taylor's work is super busy but good work, and Taylor is brilliant at this job and still LOVES it! 

My brothers Levi and Micah {the twiners} are coming on Wednesday to stay a few days with Taylor and I and we're excited to {hopefully} show them a good time! I need ideas what to do with {2} 13 year olds!! Help!! The week after that we are possibly {most likely} taking another trip to my favorite place on Earth, Jackson Hole, Wyoming!!!! I couldn't be more thrilled, when Taylor and I got home from work yesterday we had a mock-wyo-day, cuddled in bed and watched movies from 6 to about 7 this morning! It was WONDERFUL, and we're getting excited to get some us time for conference weekend again!!

Also, an interesting bit: we discovered that our friend Paul's mom went to high school with my mom! I've known Paul for almost 2 years and we JUST barely figured that out! It certainly is a small world! 

{and getting smaller}

{honestly, not even sure what I mean by that, but I'm pretty sure I heard it in a movie once..?}

LOVE

This is probably a really silly post, but I'm sitting here waiting to go to a 3pm appointment, there are no shows to watch on Hulu, I already gardened for 3 hours this morning, and played my piano, and finished a book, and filled out an application for school, with 40 min until I need to leave. So why NOT post all of very favorite engagement photos for no particular reason other than the fact that I have the time, miss my pretty hair, and love looking at my hott husband??? 

It's been over a year since these were taken, and just for a little background...Anthropologie is my VERY favorite store, Taylor knows this, so does just about everyone else who knows me at all...And so, for an engagement present {as if my perfect RING wasn't enough! it was by the way..} my man bought me the most adorable little red dress, and it was glorious, and it was made for my tiny frame, and I wore it, again again...but most importantly I got to take cute pictures in it, pictures I can look back at whenever I so desire and remember how fun it was to be engaged, and how glad I am that it lasted only 4 months :)

{I know, I attacked you with photographs...deal with it, they're cute, you like them}

Okay, so I underestimated the amount of time it takes to UPLOAD pictures on here, my bad. I got about halfway through the uploading before I had to take off for my appointment {I bet you're wondering what kind of appointment...I'm not telling :)}

I have a confession to make, I have a pleasure, one I feel guilty for {guilty pleasure, get it? hah, I'm clever}. I absolutely LOVE to have my picture taken, I will not lie, I am SO vain {and yes that song IS about me}. Also I think it'll be fun when I have kids for them to be able to see that at one point I DID look good {I yoke yoke, I kid I kid, I will ALWAYS look good...I am my mother's daughter after all...}

I guess I might as well include our little engagement story as I don't think I've written it down anywhere else, and it might be good to remember {and this blog is pretty much my journal these days}

It happened one Janurary evening {the 29th to be exact} in the year two thousand and ten...

I was in the middle of planning a dinner I was preparing for dinner that night for Taylor and I {I was TRYING to impress him} when Taylor called to inform me that his kitchen was flooded and therefore disabled {as in, I couldn't make dinner because water was pouring out of the ceiling, and there were buckets all over the counters attempting to catch it...} We decided he would come out to Mesa and pick me up and we'd save my special dinner for another night. Little did I know...

Taylor picked me up and we ran a few menial errands {nothing to hint towards anything}. Once we were finished, Taylor started driving in the direction opposite of mine {or his} home, I asked where we were going and he replied "On an Adventure!!" {I am QUITE the adventurous girl, if I do say so myself, and we typically had many adventures, so this didn't hint towards anything either} We to drove to this little orchard in Mesa that I LOVE where we had our first little DTR {again, I honestly was no where near suspicious}. It had rained the night before so we hard a good hard {muddy} time getting to the middle of the Orchard where our little windmill is. Taylor gave me a piggy back ride the majority of the time, we fell a couple times {I learned later that he was nervous the whole time that I would notice the ring-box bulge in his jacket pocket}...no biggie. We arrived at our destination and climbed up to the tippy top of the windmill to watch the sun set {unfortunately I did not know this was a special windmill climb so I did not bring my camera} where Taylor bent down on one knee and asked me to change my last name {different words, but also, kind of special, and I don't feel like sharing}. After I made sure he was joking {I asked him at least 6 times "are you serious?" before I realized he was waiting for an answer...I honestly had no clue he was going to ask me any time soon, I thought he was going to wait until he was done with school in May, boy am I clueless} I told him of course I would! By the time I was off my high, it was too dark to take any photos with Taylor's flash-less iPhone, but we don't need one to remember how we both felt! After we climbed down and made our clumsy giddy way back to the truck we made our way over to Flemings where Taylor had a table ready for us! {and in case you've forgotten the whole Gloria thing, I did make him celebrate our one-year-since-engagement, and we did go to Flemings..yummm}

Being engaged was fun, and super stressful, we were both in school full time, and working almost full time, and planning a wedding was tough, honestly about half way through the only reason we didn't run off and elope was because I knew my wonderful mamma would be SO pissed if we did...I'm glad our engagement was only 4 months, and I'm so happy that now we're married {almost one year!} I love Taylor with everything I have, and we are so blessed to have found eachother! Maybe one of these days I'll blog about the wedding :) we'll see...It's not like anyone really reads this...

p.s. photos were taken by the wonderful ms. cami dunn check her out! she's fantastic!

just so you know

My husband was THE cutest baby in the world!!

{I would know, I've met every single baby there has ever been}

I hope our chillens look like their daddy

{in four years when we start thinking about having chillens}

{awwww}

Capable

I have a new life motto for myself, it is profound and true! and further more, susan, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if every one of my {limited number of} reader's decided to adopt my new found motto as well!

I've always been {more than} a little bit of a perfectionist, in the bad way. But when I found this quote by David Allen {whoever that is..} I realized how true it is, I am capable of doing ANYTHING, but I cannot do EVERYTHING! Epiphany!! 

I've lived my life desperately trying to be the Best at not only the things I enjoy...but EVERYTHING else as well! I hate to lose, and I hate to come in second, I hate to be showed up...on the other end, I LOVE to win, I LOVE to come in first, and I LOVE to show off! I guess I thought that beating everyone at everything would make the people I care about proud of me, that it would somehow get me where I wanted to be in life, but it did just the opposite, by trying so hard to be perfect I made my life stressful and hard, I made myself anxious, telling myself that if I WASN'T perfect at everything I was a failure, and life was worthless. But its not, I was SO wrong, and by thinking perfection should be my ultimate goal I made myself inefficient, I was too worried about doing EVERYTHING to enjoy myself!

Thank you David Allen {I'm guessing he's some sort of...physicist? Doctor? philosopher? poet? writer? artist?} for slapping me in the face and helping me realize how IMPERFECT and WONDERFUL I am :)

p.s. all of this applies to you too!  

Singing Singing all day long

All motivation for anything has completely left me. All I want to do is sit around and read my book and eat brownies {or cookies} and ice cream all day...scratch that, all MONTH. But unfortunately I realized yesterday {I'm slow} that after spring break {during which I am working lots, because my husband doesn't get spring break} I have another class starting, plus organ lessons {which I am so super excited about!} and work, so no, Kelcie doesn't get a break, Kelcie doesn't get to sit in her jammie's and watch movies and read and eat junk all day, because {as I have to keep reminding myself} Kelcie is a full fledged adult now, no beating around the bush, I have responsibilities, and goals {which are rapidly changing to staying home and doing whatever I want, unrealistic, yes.}, and a home that needs cleaning, and dishes that need doing, and a yard that needs pruning, and homework that needs doing, and work that needs me! Life is staring me down, and honestly I'm a little more scared. 

Fortunately I have something called a TAYLOR {or Samuel Taylor if you will..} who loves me and takes care of me and has fun with me and accepts me even when I'm acting like NOT an adult :) I am just the luckiest!!

Sometimes I wish me and Taylor had more time to ourselves, I love helping other people, and it makes me feel good...But so does cuddling with my man watching movies, or going out because we AREN'T exhausted from everything we didn't get asked to help with that week {this never happens, we are always exhausted, and always doing something}. I know this may sound selfish, but sometimes I get angry when people ask for my help {I also LOVE helping I really do, I just wish it was spread out a little thiner}. I guess thats what we get for being Mormon, and owning a truck..and a trailer...go us. I have compiled a list of things Taylor and I COULD do if we ever get a weekend to ourselves:

Take a spur of the moment trip to Sedona to just RELAX {or anywhere else for that matter, but alone ;)}

Take the dead bushes out of our yard

Weed our yard

repaint the Arizona Room

shooting

camping

go on a picnic

movies

rock climbing {it has been SO long, but we're always so busy and tired}

bowling

ANYTHING TOGETHER

I don't every to think I'm a brat, or selfish {even though sometimes I am} I just look at our life now and I realize we will never get a break, we're always going to be busy and we're always going to be helping, and it will only get more so from here on out I am sure. I guess I shouldn't complain, I do know that because of all we do for others blessings are poured down on us like an Arizona summer monsoon {at least how they USED to be}. We have noticed these blessings and are grateful for them, but sometimes I don't know if its worth it.. {again, I sound stinky, but SOMEONE out there has to understand...?}

Well, my rant is over, there is nothing else new to share. PLEASE if you read this and were going to ask us for help, please still do, I don't want people to think we don't enjoy giving service!! I just had to vent a little, you understand..

Never enough time

I am a slacker! {in fact right now I'm avoiding yet another school assignment, I hate school right now, have you heard?} I just wanted to update every one the happenings of the last few weeks!


Our end of February getaway was the last of our road trips hopefully until summer, Braden and Heather's sealing was BEAUTIFUL!! I've never been in a more beautiful sealing room than the one in San Diego Temple, jaw dropping and the spirit was so strong! We are so excited for Braden, Heather, and baby Hatch on the way, it was so special to know they will be an eternal family! 

{fuzzy, but you get the idea! San Deigo Temple may be tied with Mesa in my book now...}

My best friend from growing up in Holbrook, Stratton, and his lovely girlfriend Jessica rode with me on the 6 hour drive, Taylor had a scout campout on Friday night so he rushed back early from parson and was lucky to get the last boarding pass for his flight to San Diego, where we pikes him up on the way to the temple. I am so grateful that he was able to be there with me for such a special sealing! He got the last seat on the plane after literally running through the airport to make it! MY HUSBAND LOVES ME!!

I had my own get-to-SD scare! At 7pm on Friday my ride called telling me they couldn't go after all! Taylor didn't want me to drive alone, and I freak out over spending money {flight for me there, then 2 more for us to get back to Phoenix!!} Luckily by 9 I had another plan that worked perfectly and I am so grateful, the Hatch's were the only people who HADN'T left for California already!! It was so fun to catch up with Stratton and Jessica, not to mention on the way home I fell asleep mid conversation and Stratton kept my husband awake through the drive! :) I'm so glad everything worked out the way it did, 
there was no way I would have missed Braden and Heather's special day!

{it snowed on the 8 there & back! crazy crazy weather!}

{i have skills, and my husband is such a hottie!}

Me and Jenna Bowman decided to become hiking buddies, YAY! We hiked Camelback this last Friday morning! It was great! We took {more than} a few breaks {I am SO out of shape} but the view from the top was GORGEOUS! I love the Valley of the Sun!! We had a good time and decided to do it once a week!! I love that from the top I can see every place I've lived since Taylor and I got 
engaged {Guest house at the Robinson's, The lodge 201 & 325, and our lovely Clarendon}

I've also had a little sinus bug, but {against Doctor's beliefs, as well as many members of my family} I CAN get rid of a sinus infection WITHOUT drugs, thank you very much! {also, don't try and tell me it wasn't a sinus infection, I've had enough that I know when I have one} School is...BLECH!! Almost half way through the semester...then SUMMER! :) Other than school and work, me and Taylor have been trying desperate to have some time to do the things on OUR to do list, but getting a free-from-something Saturday is probably the most difficult thing we've attempted to do since we've been married, we are ready for a break!! We have lots of work around the house that needs to be done, among other things, it'll be nice to {hopefully} have a Saturday after March is over!

This Saturday is Stephanie and Ben's wedding and I AM SO EXCITED! {as I'm sure they are too} CAN'T WAIT!!

Now back to my homework...