Trek, car detailing & more

      Mark, Isaac and Carter arrived home from our ward pioneer trek Saturday evening and they seemed happy. A neighbor shared a few photos from trek. Mark was a Pa and had a family of about 8 kids. From what I've heard he was very good and helpful.

This is Mark and his 'family'.

And here's another one of Mark and his 'family'.

Isaac is the boy in blue and this is his trek family.

Here's Carter arriving home.

Isaac arriving home.

Mark arriving home.

     I love to see the bonding of the youth after a trek experience and I'm glad three of my boys got to be a part of it this summer.

      Greg spent the better part of Saturday digging post holes in preparation of hanging up a double gate on the west side of the house. Charlie was a perfect 'measuring tool'.
      I don't have photos of the gate hanging yet because I'm waiting for the whole thing to be done but he did get the double gate hung and now needs to add a little metal and put up fencing on either side of the gate to finish it off. It's going to be awesome and hopefully done this weekend or early next week.

     Don't judge, but Greg couldn't resist snapping a photo of all the youth in the ward up on the stand Sunday singing a song together to honor their pioneer trekking experience. The performance may not have been perfect but the large group made it impressive.

     Monday was pioneer day and I had the privilege of getting my car detailed by Jonathan, Tanner's mom's husband. He did an amazing job and spent about 7 hours waxing, buffing and power washing it. Roiann, Tanner's mom, took these before and after photos. He really did an incredible job and buffed out a lot of the scratches on the exterior that have been bothering me for a long time.

These are before photos. Note the filthy engine.

Look how shiny the engine looks after the power wash!

Ignore the torn seat and focus on the beautifully shampooed carpet.

      And while I was getting my car detailed Greg was busy at home adding corrugated metal to the top of the fence and I love it. Over time it should rust and be even more rustic but I actually kind of like the shiny look.

The sky is pretty spectacular too!

     In wedding planning 'news' I ordered a few things including plates and napkins and this is what arrived. You may be thinking the plates are way too tiny, but they're actually the perfect size for the donuts we're planning on serving it's the napkins that are ridiculously too big. The napkins are 8X8 inches folded and the plates are 6 inches, so clearly not the best match.

I bought these today and they're a much better match! If this is my only major mistake I'll count myself lucky!

      Tomorrow Kayli will be taking her bridal photos so we've spent a little time working on hair ideas and Roiann's been spending lots of time getting Kayli's dress just perfect. As of yesterday, the dress looked great and just needed the bustle hooks attached and a little of the Tulle trimmed so I'm sure it will be all ready for photos tomorrow. Things are really getting REAL! I mailed invitations today and will be hand delivering the rest Monday! I gave Tanner and Kayli one last chance to back out last night before the majority of the invitations went out but they both stayed quiet so I guess they're still IN LOVE! So that's all for now!

Bridal shower and a little more.

     Kayli's soon-to-be-mother-in-law, Roiann, hosted a very nice bridal shower for Kayli on Saturday. Kayli got lots of great stuff and despite being a 'little' uncomfortable being the center of attention, she felt loved.

Charlie was being very helpful.

I'm glad my best friend and walking buddy, Cammy, could be there since none of my sisters or mom could be there from my side.

     Saturday night we enjoyed the fireworks that ended Steel Days. This year we watched from a little further away but they were still spectacular.

     Also this week Greg was able to pick several hot peppers from his garden and when he stuffs them with cream cheese and wraps them in bacon, there's nothing BETTER!!

If this was all we got from the garden I'd be satisfied.

     And Thursday our three boys, Mark, Isaac and Carter left on a two night, three day trek with the youth from the ward so its just been the three youngest at home and it's been pretty awesome. They rarely fight and they play great together.

This 'cards & gifts' sign has been sitting here all week and not one card or gift was left! What a rip off!

      So those are the weekly highlights. The three 'trekking' boys will be home this evening and I hope they've had a good experience. Carter was the only one who really wanted to go so we'll see how they all feel when they get home.
      Wedding plans are still going well. I've got all the invitations ready to mail or hand deliver, which will probably happen in a little over a week. The happy couple is still happy and mostly I'm just looking forward to having Kayli married off and out of the house so I can start rearranging bedrooms!

Steel Day fun and mo

     So we've managed to do a few fun things this week. Last Saturday was the car show in American Fork. I took photos of a few of my favorites.

This blue Corvette is at the top of my list for 'dream car'.

      Wednesday I treated the kids to a few hours at their favorite pool, the Provo Rec center, and I even managed to take a few photos to document the day.

Isaac and Carter were with us too but I didn't get a photo of them.

     Greg got a new work truck. He had them both home so he could transfer all his tools over.

    To end the week we had fun attending the A.F. parade this morning.

All our kids were there. It was fun! The best part is when he kids beg for money and get mad when they don't get a free t-shirt! (Insert sarcasm for this caption!)

There were a lot of USA themed floats.

This was a Model A parade within a parade.

    This afternoon Kayli, Charlie and I will be at Kayli's soon-to-be-mother-in-laws house for Kayli's bridal shower. Wedding plans are still moving forward. The invitations are here and I'm slowly addressing envelopes. I'm glad I'm not feeling rushed with the invites at least. Getting Tanner ordained to an Elder and ready to go to the temple for the first time is causing me a little stress but I think it should be fine. We still have lots of fun stuff to enjoy and worry about before the big day!

Family, independence and anniversary!

   We were so happy Tad and his cute family could spend a little time with us last weekend. The kids were especially thrilled to spend a little time with their cousins.  

They weren't here for too long but they made the most of their time with us.

Can't pass up a chance to go for a motorcycle ride.

    Unfortunately Charlie learned the hard way that the motorcycle exhaust pipes really are hot.

This burn might leave a scar!

    Tanner's learning the hard way that his soon-to-be-mother-in-law likes to snap photos when you least expect it.    

     Charlie let me doll her up for the 4th of July long enough to snap a few photos then she was in her swimsuit the rest of the day.

    These kids enjoyed some pre-fourth of July fun out front in the water. And Greg took the opportunity to show his patriotism with a flag and a few motorcycle rides around town.

The boy on the back is a neighbor, not one of our boys, just in case someone thought Carter looked a little different.

     I decided the Fourth was the perfect time to taste test this four layer white/white chocolate cake from Costco. It was yummy!

Happy birthday America!

     And what would we do if we didn't have the 'Sidewalk of Fire' festivities to enjoy!?

This is the beginning of the neighborhood fun.

Fun with neighbors, friends and soon-to-be husbands!

     This year we even had a LIVE band! It was pretty awesome. "Parkway Avenue" played five songs for us and were pretty good considering they've only been playing together for a few months. 

In case you didn't recognize him, Marcus is the lead singer!

     After our fun July 4th celebrating it was time to get back to reality, which meant a little shopping! Kayli and I found a great dress for Charlie to wear to the wedding reception.

She'll most likely look more like the girl on the left, with a mouthful of donuts, but we might get a cute smiling girl like the girl on the right for a few minutes if we're lucky.

     This is what I got when I asked Mark to take a photo of Greg and me to document our 22nd wedding anniversary. What a goofball!

    I finally have a helmet that fits me just right! I've been fighting a helmet that was a little too big and having one that fits is amazing. This was a perfect early anniversary gift.

Sweet husband, sweet new helmet and a sweet treat! 

     Time to put my new helmet to the test! We took a fun ride up Provo Canyon/Squaw peak, had dinner at a yummy Mexican restaurant and dessert at Dairy Queen.

Such a great way to celebrate 22 years together!

There's nothing better then a banana split from Dairy Queen!

     A fun week with lots of fun stuff and a small dent was made in wedding prep! I love summer, I love my life right now! I'm a lucky girl and life is good, for now!