Spudman

It's official: I am married to a triathlete! I can't believe JD can check "participating in a triathlon" off his bucket list. It just seems like such a hard, unattainable accomplishment. . . but, he rocked that thing like a champ and had a fun time with his cousins, brother, and uncles. Go, JD, go!!

Sparkle and Shine

During the initial stages of planning my golden birthday party, I decided I wanted to base the decor on  the words "SPARKLE AND SHINE." Those two words guided all my decorating decisions! I looked up different quotes with the words "sparkle" or "shine" or some variation of those two words to use in frames as centerpieces. Here are a few other ideas I utilized as focal points and accents on the tables:

• Empty jars with gold ribbons and/or buttons housed inside
• Paper & ribbon banners on shiskabob sticks, planted in mini mason jars of dirt
• Gold doilies
• Gold candle roses (found in the wedding section at Hobby Lobby; just for decoration, as no open flames were allowed at the park)
• Spray-painted plastic lion
• Fake flowers taped to jars and "planted" in dirt
• Scrapbook sticker numbers "25" on old mirrors and in frames
• Reese's and Rolo candies sprinkled down the middle of the tables

I was so excited about these tables! Instead of using the typical plastic party tablecloths, I lined the tables with rolls of brown kraft wrapping paper. There were crayons out on the tables for guests to doodle and draw with as they chatted. I thought the fancy gold contrasted well with the rustic brown. . . perfect combo!

"May you always have work for your hands to do. May your pockets hold always a coin or two. May the sun shine bright on your windowpane. May the rainbow be certain to follow each rain. May the hand of a friend always be near you, and may God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you." 

-Irish Blessing

Golden Birthday

I turned 25 on July 25th. For some inexplicable reason, 25 seems like a landmark age to me. It's kind of a big deal, I suppose. As a teenager, I remember thinking, hypothetically, "By the time I'm 25, x, y or z." You know, like I should be accomplished and have stuff to show for myself by now? Haha. . . I definitely DO think I've done some pretty neat things so far in my life and so I decided to throw myself a golden birthday party to celebrate the big day. JD was my right-hand man through it all. I sent out invitations, reserved a pavilion at a park, made gold frosted cupcakes, assembled gold centerpieces, and even bought & altered a gold-toed boot piñata. Talk about a party ;)

It was stressful to have the party outside when the weather forecast was expected to be gloomy. I was so anxious! However, everything went off without a hitch (thanks, in big part, to my family who was in town from Texas). Thank you to everyone who came to help me celebrate! To me, it was a magical evening of good conversation, good friends, and good food. All the makings of a good birthday.

Prints for sale!

BIG NEWS. Over the past several months, I have been learning, experimenting, trying, crying, failing, growing and creating in the process of converting my handwriting to digital format and vectorizing the letters for poster/printmaking purposes. I'm still a rookie, but I finally posted three prints for sale in the shop today... and I AM STOKED ABOUT IT!

Go to the shop to check out the excitement!

First funnel cake

I love summer in Utah. When the sun sets, the air cools down and it's magic. Last month, we went to a local city festival with JD's parents and little brother. We mostly just wandered around the booths and people watched in anticipation of the fireworks. Then, out of nowhere, I smelled the intense aroma of funnel cake and my mind whisked me back to a good ol' Texas rodeo. I love me a good funnel cake! I mentioned how sweet and delicious the air smelled and how much I enjoy those tasty treats. . . and was surprised to find out no one in JD's family (including him) had ever tried one. Well, that was that: FIRST FUNNEL CAKE ALL AROUND. 

Tenley, lately.

Tenley is at the cutest stage right now. She's learning how to say words and picks up on so many everyday happenings going on around her. She love, love, loves giving hugs, squeezes, kisses, high-fives, and fist-bumps.  She keeps us entertained all the time and we're so glad to have her in our family!

Here's a few examples of the adorable things she's been doing and saying lately. . .

My sister is a Sister.

Today I dropped my sister off at the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, UT. She will be serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Las Vegas, NV area for the next 18 months (To learn more about what missionaries do, go here). During her service as a female missionary, she will be referred to as "Sister Robinson," rather than "Lindsey."