Legit Campers

Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE camping. The mountains are my favorite place in the whole world to be so naturally camping is one of my favorite things to do. Well this weekend we had a legit camping trip :)
I say legit because we parked the car and hiked up a big ol' mountain and pitched a tent in the middle of the wilderness. Soooo much fun! When I say we, I mean Me, Bo, Melinda, and Nate. Nate knew about a cool place up at Brighton ski resort so we all agreed to take the trek up. At first, we were a little apprehensive when we saw how much snow was still up there. I cannot believe there can be that much snow in the month of July... crazy! But we had a blast. It was a beautiful hike and it ended at this little lake that was incredibly gorgeous! It was seriously one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.
We found a little spot to camp and while the boys set up the tent, Melinda and I went firewood hunting. Let me just say that we are dang good at finding firewood. We could have definitely survived back in the mountain man days. The guys did a great job of starting the fire and then we made s'mores and roasted starbursts. Although we joked a lot about bears, we didn't see any, or anything scary for that matter while we were there. We did see a cool moose on our drive up there though!
When it was time to go to bed we all got in the tent and laid down when Bo decided that we definitely needed to switch our heads to a different side of the tent cause it was slanted. Well, it turns out that the side we had to turn our heads to was the short side of the tent. So we all slept in a pretty small space, especially considering that we are four grown adults. But since it was cold we decided that it might be a good idea to sleep close haha. Oh geez this was a hilarious idea. For one thing, Bo really needs his space when he sleeps, so he had a couple little claustrophobic moments during the night and we all tossed and turned quite a bit. It was pretty funny.
 But morning came and we were up and at it pretty early. Our hike down was just as beautiful as the hike up. I really can't wait to go back to that same place again someday. Thanks for a great weekend guys! 

Independence Day!!!

Since the 4th of July is Bo's 2nd favorite holiday (a very close second behind only Christmas) we had to make sure that this past weekend was a great one.
It all started when Bo won tickets to the Stadium of Fire on sports radio. The story is actually pretty hilarious. So Bo ALWAYS listens to sports radio. And last week he called in to win Stadium of Fire tickets. He was one of the first two callers, so he and the other caller had a trivia war to win the tickets. Well since Bo is a sports fanatic, he naturally won the contest, therefore winning the tickets. However the funny part of the story is that Bo was embarrassed when he was one of the first two callers (he would never want his friends, who also listen to sports radio, thinking he was calling in to win tickets to the Stadium of Fire where David Archuletta would be performing) so on live radio he said that his name was Jo. Hahahaha... Then when he won the contest and had to talk to the radio dude off the air, he had to verify his name, so Bo said "oh you must have heard me wrong, my name is actually Bo". Oh I love my husband. And I'm soooo glad he called in and won us tickets!!! Thanks "Jo".

Well it turns out that the Stadium of Fire was AWESOME! David Archuletta opened for Brad Paisley who is always incredible. The fireworks after the concert were some of the best I've ever seen. Overall, it was a great night and it was all made possible because my cute husband called in and won tickets :)

The 4th was a lot of fun too. Both Bo and I woke up very early to start the day off right. I went and ran in the West Point 5k while Bo went golfing with my Dad and brother. The 5k was a blast. I actually ran very well with a time of 21.25. I finished first place in my age group and 2nd place in the women's overall. That dang girl that finished in front of me really ruined my day! Haha just kidding it was fun and I felt really good about my time.
After our morning activities we went and spent some time at the West Point park. How funny was that! Since both Bo and I grew up in West Point it was very interesting to go back together and see a lot of random people and kind of reminisce about our past memories in that park. Neither of us really enjoy that scene so we didn't spend much time there. We got starving and decided to eat at Costa Vida... great choice! It was delicious and I tried my first cinnamon tortilla and OH MY GOSH I seriously cannot wait for the day that I have another one of those heavenly things.
When we left Costa Vida we headed for Barnes Park for 3-on-3 sand volleyball with my fam. Me, Bo, and Kins vs. Dad, Ty, and Mitch. Needless to say we won the best out of 5 contest in only 4 games. Wow it was a blast though. We are always competitive no matter what we do so you can imagine that our tournament got a little heated. Especially when the 3 boys were losing to there 2 sisters and brother in law.

Then it was off the Bees game for me and Bo. Good choice for a 4th of July activity. We really had so much fun. It was so funny though because by the 9th inning everyone was so ready for the fireworks. Going into the inning, we were winning 10-2. Well our closing pitcher wasn't so hot and gave up a grand slam and 6 runs total. So the game got to 10-8 and everyone was going crazy wanting the game to get over. It was pretty funny. Luckily we finally got three outs and ended the game before it had to go into extra innings. The fireworks afterward were pretty good. We were exhausted when we got home, we had a very long day but it was so much fun! Love you Bo! Hope your 4th of July was all you dreamed of and more :)

HoNeYmOoN CaNcUn

Oh our wonderful trip to Cancun....
The morning after we were married, Bo and I took off to Cancun for our honeymoon! It was sooooo beautiful and we had an incredible time!
There were so many great memories in Cancun, but some of my favorites were...
-Our long walk on the beach down hotel row while the sun set.
-Free gelato ALL DAY EVERY DAY
-Our jungle tour (Bo was the driver and he was loving life)
-The Croc that just swam right up to us while we were walking down the road
-Our stop at the drugstore for pepto bismol.... (Mexican food can really take a toll on the stomach)
-Trivia night where we answered 0 questions
-Senor frogs where we became Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
-Free pina coladas by the pool
-Calling Bo my Husband :)
-Hearing Bo call me his Wife!
-Hanging out with my best friend all week long in paradise!

 

The Steeds!!!

On May 21, 2011, Bo and I were sealed for Time and all Eternity in the Bountiful Temple. It was an absolutely incredible day. The feeling that we both had that day was a feeling that we will never forget. Being sealed in the temple was a dream come true.
We were sealed at 12:15, which was a perfect time. The weather was so beautiful that day. In fact, the weather was a miracle since it literally rained all week and then cleared up Saturday. It could not have been any more beautiful.
After the temple we had a luncheon at the Wight House in Bountiful. It was just a small gathering with our family and very closest friends. It was exactly how I always wanted my wedding day to be. We were done with everything by 4:30 that afternoon.
I could not have possibly dreamed a more perfect day.
And... I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with my best friend!

INCREDIBLE week!!!

So it was quite the week to say the very least. The good news came Tuesday night when Bo and I met his mother in Salt Lake to open a long awaited letter that had finally arrived. We were so excited to find that we would be able to be sealed in the Temple for Time and all Eternity.  Not two minutes after opening the letter, Bo was on the phone with the Bountiful temple scheduling our wedding for the 21st of May. On the ride home we realized that we were going to be planning an entire wedding in 11 days. But the excitement far outweighed the stress of it all. By the time I left Bo's that night I just couldn't hold back the tears. They were tears of happiness and gratitude as I felt so extremely blessed. We were able to get our letter back in just a short 4 weeks after submitting. I still just feel so blessed to be getting married next week and am so grateful to my Father in Heaven. 

  Wednesday and Thursday I was able to really put a dent in all my planning. Wednesday I spent the entire day taking care of the necessities... honeymoon, luncheon, photographer, flowers, etc. Thursday and Friday were equally as busy. But really the best and most memorable part of my week was today. This afternoon I was able to go through the temple for the first time to receive my endowment. It was an incredible experience, one that I have waited my entire life for. It far exceeded my expectations and I could not be more grateful to be a member of the only true and living church on this earth, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I'm so glad that Bo was there with me. I cannot wait to go back with him next weekend and then again and again throughout our lives. It was also a wonderful experience to have my mother as my escort. I will always remember that time with her and I am so grateful for her and the example she sets for me. Thanks also to My Dad, Ty, Karen, and Staisha. It meant so much to have them there as well. It was truly the perfect day :)

On April 16th we had our engagements pictures taken at Wheeler Farm. We just got all of our pictures back! Here are a few of our favs :) 

~NEW YORK~

Well this past week was incredible to say the least! Going to New York with my mom and little sis was amazing. We had so much fun and the time went entirely too fast.

Our week started when we flew to New York on Tuesday (4/5), we didn't get into New York until about 7:00 pm. By the time we got to our Hotel that night we were exhausted. So we found a cute diner  right next to our hotel and ate a quick dinner and headed back to get a good nights rest before the mayhem started on Wednesday. Our hotel was awesome. It was right in the middle of Manhattan... 44th street between 5th and 6th avenue. It was one of the oldest hotels in Manhattan and it was very antique feeling. We loved the hotel and especially the famous cat that lived in the lobby hehe. 

Wednesday Morning we woke up and went to the Statue of Liberty. It was my first time on the famous ferry ride over there. The cold weather put a bit of a damper on our visit to lady liberty but it was really neat to be up so close and take in the history that was there. When we were back on dry ground, we headed over to Canal Street (a personal top 3 favorite places in NY). We shopped, or should I say we bargained on Canal Street for quite a while. And let's just say our arms were full with proud purchases after a couple of hours. After we headed back to our hotel, we made our way down the street to Virgil's BBQ. Since Virgi's was famous for their slowed smoked meats, we decided that we better try some. So we ordered a huge plate of meat to share. This puppy had ribs, pork, chicken, briquet, and a link of some sort. The meat was dang good but I'm not much of a meat eater so let's just say that I ate enough meat to last me the rest of the year.

My first time up close to the Statue of Liberty

Thursday was 5th avenue shopping day! We made our way through the great shopping district of New York City. We started off the day in H&M and did some major damage. After hours of clothes shopping, we ended our 5th ave tour with a trip into FAO Schwarz, the HUGE toy store. Our next stop was the temple. Luckily we walked through Central Park to get there (I love Central Park). When we made it to the temple it was just so awesome to see such a beautiful building in the middle of Manhattan. Obviously, after that much walking we were starting to work up an appetite. We had lunch at Harry's Burritos. Yes this was one of my favorites from my previous trip to New York and I had to let my mom and sis partake of the deliciousness. Our food was amazing and we topped it off with the best cupcakes in the world from Magnolia Bakery. It was then time to head back and get ready for Broadway! Lion King was the show of choice and it was MAGNIFICENT.  I, of course, cried during the opening song because it was so beautifully powerful. The whole show was breathtaking and we loved every second of it. 

Central Park

The Temple... Love this!

Bein dorks in the Bathroom at Lion King

Friday it was time to head to Brooklyn. We ate lunch at the famous Grimaldi's Pizzeria. We waited in a line outside for an hour or more before we were finally seated. But let me tell you, it was well worth the wait. I deem Grimaldi's the best pizza in the world. I would give anything to eat it again right at this very moment. I just can't explain the amazingness of that pizza. We naturally followed lunch with some ice cream. It was then time to go back and spend some time in Times Square. What a crazy place that is. After a much needed nap we went back to Times Square and shopped again for bit before going to Bubba Gumps for a nice shrimp dinner. We failed the Forrest Gump quiz but the food was fantastic and the bread pudding was the best I've ever had.

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Waiting in line at Grimaldi's... soooooo worth it!

Saturday morning we hit the Empire State Building. Luckily the line was really short so it was a pretty quick trip. After that we spent some time in the world's largest store.... Macey's in downtown Manhattan. That store is frickin huge! Then we basked in the sun at Times Square because it turns out the day we were leaving was the warmest and sunniest day of the week.... go figure. We topped off our week with the an amazing lunch at the Europa Cafe before catching our shuttle back to the airport. We were definitely sad to be leaving NY but we had such a great time while we were there!

Wow what an amazing trip it was.... Thanks Mom and Kins for an unforgettable week!!!

A shot of NYC from on top of the Empire State Building

Times Square

More Times Square... we stayed 2 blocks from here

Big Things to Come

In exactly one week from right now I will be packing for NEW YORK! I am stoked. I feel like my trip to New York is really going to propel me into a crazy couple of months. Going on vacation and then coming back with graduation and a wedding staring you right in the face is a little intimidating. I'm so excited to have a couple days to leave and forget about all the stressful things and just have a ton of fun with my Mom and Sis. But when I get back I will be hittin the ground runnin.
Luckily this week Bo and I were able to find a place to live once we're married. It is a little apartment connected to a home. It is the cutest little bungalow and we are so excited to move in. It's also right across the street from Chris Beottcher's house. We are thrilled to be so close to his cute family.
We are really looking forward to the next 2 months and the crazy fun things that lie ahead!!!
Bring on New York baby!!!!!

March Madness

March = one of my favorite times of the year... Here's my top 5 reasons why:
1. NCAA basketball at it's finest. The NCAA tournament is the best tournament in all of sports. So exciting and soooo much parity. I LOVE it!
2. The weather starts to warm up a little. Although the weather has been pretty schizophrenic lately, it's nice to have a few warm days sprinkled in here and there. It gets me so excited for summer.
3. The NBA playoffs are right around the corner. I am a big NBA fan and I love the playoffs, so I start to get giddy about this time of year.
4. Shopping. Time for all the stores to bring out the spring and summer clothes!
5. Running outside. No more treadmills for another 8 months!!!

BlogTime

So I decided it's my turn to start blogging. I have no idea how to do this but today I am turning a new leaf. Consider this my apology to all those who I've teased about blogging before. But seriously I suck at keeping a journal so I've gotta start doing something to document all the fun things that happen in my life. So here goes.....
Ok so just a little run down about my life these past few weeks -- First of all, I just recently got engaged. Yes I feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now. On February 12, Bo proposed at the Ice Castles in Midway. He surprised me, I thought we were meeting friends but it turns out it was just us. I of course said yes and I couldn't be more excited!

 Planning so far has really been a lot easier than I thought it would be. We aren't having a reception (which I'm really excited about. I'm not really the type to stand in a line and wait for a billion people to walk through and say "oh congratulations, we are so happy for you" haha). So there just isn't too much to plan. Instead of a reception we are just going to have a nice dinner with our family and close friends and then we are outta there. We're getting married in the Bountiful temple.... BEAUTIFUL. Can't wait!