Some may view autumn as the beginning of the end. As a close to the long sunny days of summer and knowing that {realistically} the first days of snowfall aren't far off. The actual autumn season is brief. If you take even a moment of it for granted, it is gone, but that is part of the appeal. It is a time of year that I wait around for, and the fact that it only stays for a moment, keeps me wanting more. It is something to look forward to, and when it's here, I know I have to make the most of my time before its abandonment.

It's a magical time of year when nature is at its peak. The colors are vibrant, the air is crisp and even people seem to change a little bit, too. With the warm sweaters and cozy scarves, it seems that everyone softens their spirit {if just for a moment} and absorbs the excitement of change.

I'm thankful for my life in Utah which allows me to experience the happiness {and necessity} of change. I am thankful for the crisp orange leaves which remind me of how vibrant life is. Most importantly, I am thankful that autumn is short and fades before my eyes. It hasn't taught me that all good things come to an end, but rather, that all good things in life should be enjoyed while we have them here. My love for autumn is only surpassed by my love for life. My love for life is only enhanced by these months of autumn.

This photo was taken last September just as the leaves began to change. The landscape was beautiful, and my cute brothers didn't turn out too bad either.

Enjoying the beautiful scenery with my amazing brother {a man who has overcome trial after trial and still has a smile on his face}

Photo credit: the one and only Sharon

Vivian Park, Provo Canyon. Photo credit: the one and only Sharon

The happiest days are always spent in a pile of colorful leaves.

The Last Day of Summer

Living in Utah, it seems we spend 9 months out of the year waiting for summer to arrive. Before you know it, it has come and gone, and I always wonder if I made the most out of those sunny months. This year, before its arrival, Wyet and I made a few goals of the places we wanted to go and the things we wanted to do. As the close of summer rapidly approached, I knew it was time to finally cross the one activity that I had been avoiding off of our bucket list, hiking Mt. Nebo.

Wyet had already hiked Mt. Nebo once before so he knew what he was up against. I, on the other hand, had no idea what I was about to encounter. As we set our alarm clocks for five a.m. and went to bed the night before summer's end, I was excited about the adventure we were about to have. I never knew it would be one of the most taxing experiences my body has ever felt.

When we woke up the next morning, we were both excited and feeling well rested and ready for our big day. Wyet prepared us a filling breakfast, and then we were on our way. A drive up the canyon is always a picturesque experience, but with the sun just peaking over mountaintop and the green leaves changing into the beautiful colors of autumn, this drive was better than the rest. We arrived at the trailhead, put on our packs and we were off.

About twenty feet later, I already needed a bathroom break. About thirty feet after that, I needed to shed a layer of clothing because I was already warming up. Rather than walking you through every detail of this eight hour adventure, I will just say it involved a lot of burning legs, out of breath breaks, seven liters of water and the feeling of being so small against the magnitude of nature.

On the way home, after kicking off my shoes and thanking God that I was able to make it, Wyet asked me if I had fun. My response, "Fun? No, I wouldn't say 'fun',  but I am still glad that I did it." To those who hike this mountain regularly {or at least with more ease than myself} I commend you. Hiking Mt. Nebo was challenging, breathtaking {literally} and surreal. It showed me the raw beauty of Utah, and more importantly, it showed me that I could accomplish something difficult. Undeniably, this experience has been one of my greatest accomplishments.

The goal. Mt. Nebo 11,900 feet.

Here's to a guy who looks hardcore but is actually as granola as it gets. I love nature, I love this person and I love our life together.

One small human against one big world.

 The product of a lightning strike, a hallowed out tree.

A breathtaking view. At this point it finally kicked in.. I am on top of a mountain.

Resting at Wolf's Pass right before the final stretch to the North Peak {3 hours in}

In his element

And then, my legs turned to jello and I wondered "How in the hell will I ever finish?"

Accomplished! This guy tolerated my frequent breaks, tears and complaints. I wasn't the easiest person to climb a mountain with, but this guy managed and even high-fived  me after {high-fives are still cool in our book}. Next goal: that peak behind us.

According to Plan

I wonder if anything has ever gone according to plan. The way we envision that plan in our minds is always a little bit off from how it actually pans out. I suppose that's just life. There are hiccups and there are bumps, and they always seem to show up at the most inconvenient moments. It has been said that during life's little mishaps, wonderful things can happen. When one plan fails, it is opening the door to countless other opportunities to fill its space. It all depends on how you decide to view the situation. In my experiences, I have learned that you can figure out a lot about the nature of a person by their reactions. Especially, their reactions to unfortunate circumstances.

Thinking about the way my life has played out, I realized that nothing happened the way I thought it would. I had planned to study journalism, only to switch during my final years. I had planned on moving to a big city to figure life out, instead I moved into tiny home in an even tinier town with the one person who made life make sense. I thought I had accomplished my scholastic goals, only to start thinking about grad school. Nothing ever has went according to plan, and I can only thank God for that.

Turns out, that major life plans aren't the only things that can get off track. Anything can get off track. Even what is supposed to a fun and simple weekend getaway. That's what happened to us last week as we headed out for our annual Lake Powell trip. The first few days weren't quite what we expected. The weather was going to be in the upper 90s everyday {it wasn't}, the boats were going to take us on long cruises throughout the day {they didn't} and the calm nights were to be spent around a fire with a drink in hand {not quite}.

I began to think that our retreat was going to be one unfortunate event after another. However, just as easily as things fall apart, they can come back together. We were fortunate enough to catch a few rays of sunshine in between the storms and to experience a couple of eventful boat rides. There was still laughter and smiles and of course a few drinks. Our trip wasn't what we were expecting, but it was definitely memorable.

Not exactly the way I envisioned our first night at Powell. Wyet is digging trenches around our tent in prepartion for the storm.

Hiding out in our tent while the wind and rain approach. Ironically enough, I spent this time reading Life of Pi {a story about a boy who is stranded on the ocean}, and I felt a little stranded myself.

As quickly as the storm approached, it passed, and we spent a few fun hours on the Lake.

Soaking up some sun with this babe

Wyet taking us for a little cruise around our camp.

Two little people in one little raft.

Words cannot explain this picture. Priceless.

Wyet and Jed- they are more like brothers than anything else.

Our turn for a tube ride!

Jeri and I enjoying the sun that finally came out.

Happiness Is

In a world filled with so much beauty and happiness, I certainly still find a lot to complain about. Not that complaining is all that bad {sometimes, it’s down right necessary}, but I have been known to go overboard on the negativity.

Today, rather than complaining about all of the things I dislike or go on about what’s not going my way, I have decided to do just the opposite. I wanted to take a moment to reflect on all of the wonderful things around me, and to let you all in on what I love the most about right now. It's the small things like this, that I never want to forget.

Lazy days spent in bed watching Grey's Anatomy with the puppies {using every pillow of course}.

The only thing better than walking into a bookstore, is leaving with a new book in hand.

My love for coffee is only matched by my love for weekend mornings enjoying an entire pot with Wyet. Oh, and this cup.

These three. They each have their own bed but, just like all sweet souls, they would rather spend sleepy moments together.

 You can never go wrong with Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, or any film from the 60s. To top it off, this was a surprise gift from my mama who knows me better than most.

Whether it be a lunch date, coffee date or a simple text message- any interaction with this lady will put a smile on my face.

Fresh flowers on the countertop = instant gratification.

I have a love for all things miniature and homegrown. It just so happens that Wy grew this himself in our own little garden.

Waking up for work to notes stuck on the bathroom mirror. I'm convinced there is no better way to start your day.

Craftin'

There are always those mornings when we wake up and can think of a dozen things we would rather do than go to work. Sometimes, we get lucky and actually want to be where we are forced to be. This happened to me a couple of weeks ago.

I work for a company that specializes in my most favorite past-time. Scrapbooking! {I'm not joking when I say I'm an old lady at heart.} Every six months, there are tradeshows which bring together all the best in the business to display their products and creativity. I have had the opportunity to attend two of these shows since I began working for American Crafts, and I have to admit, each one has been just what I needed.

These tradeshows help me to remember that I too am a creative person. I have a creative outlet, and I am lucky enough to have an incredible life that drives me to express it. I am a firm believer in that we need to live this life to its fullest capacity. {Why squander such a gift?} Better than just experiencing our moments, we need to remember them. By documenting the ins and outs of my daily life, I am giving myself {and family} the gift of memories. There is nothing better than opening up an old photo album and being instantly taken back to that very day.

I scrapbook because I want to remember everything. I want to share my memories with anybody that's willing to look at them. Life is beautiful and ugly and crazy and boring all at the same time. That's what makes it perfect. I want to remember these moments just as they are. Perfect.

This little space in our home is my sanctuary.

Feeling inspired, I wanted to document some of my most precious memories. This is my very supportive grandpa and I at my graduation. {2012}

Another memory that will always have a special place in my heart- spending time with my best friend on the most important day of her life. {Clearly, this page is still a work in progress.}

I need to finish this little book I started years ago! This book is filled with pictures of Wyet and I during 2011- this year will always be special to me because it's the year everything in our relationship {finally} fell back in place.

Let's Run Away Together

I have to admit, life over the past few years has treated me well. Of course, there were disappointments and bad days, but overall, I experienced more moments of happiness than not. Regardless, there are still those days in which I want to just run away. I think {I hope} that everyone experiences that need to just get away every once in awhile. While we are all out there trying to make others conceptualize our lives as being perfect, we forget that we're all writing a less than perfect story. There is nothing wrong with admitting that life can just be too much at times.

Over the past few weeks, work has been hectic, trying to maintain a decent home and yard has felt like a never ending job and finding time to workout or even go for a walk has been nearly impossible. I have felt overwhelmed; like there weren't enough hours in a day. For living under the same roof as Wyet, I was starting to wonder why I hardly ever spent time with him. Then I decided, enough is enough. We need an escape.

I have never successfully surprised Wyet {probably because I can't keep a secret, and I think he is a private detective}, but this time was different. I knew that Wyet would be completely exhausted after the Spartan Race so this was my prime opportunity to really blow him away with a fun, yet very low key weekend getaway. I packed our bags, stuffed them in my trunk and he was none the wiser.

Once the Spartan was over, we jumped in the car, and Wyet thought we were headed for home. He was so distracted looking at the photos I had taken on my camera that it wasn't until we had almost arrived at our destination that he asked what was going on. Moments later, I rounded the corner and pulled up to The Homestead Resort. He sent me a confused glance before I burst out, "We are staying here!" He was completely shocked.

We spent the remainder of the evening soaking in the infamous Crater mineral water, eating a delicious meal at Simon's and listening to a little bit of folk music from the Midway Summer Concert Series {we got lucky by booking our room on a night that a free concert was on the grounds}. When we went back to our room, we spent a few hours sitting on the balcony talking about life and just being together. It was calm, and it was wonderful. The next morning we stopped by a local cafe and had pastries and coffee. This was the life.

I can't help but smile at the reason this short retreat was so satisfying. Sure the beautiful landscaping, live music and serene atmosphere helped, but the best part about the experience was being together. It seemed we hadn't spent that type of quality, up all night talking, kind of time together in months. It was just what I needed to get me through the hectic ins and outs of our sometimes less-than-perfect everyday life.

I love gazebos! This was right outside of our room.

The beautiful grounds at the resort. There were fountains and flowers everywhere!

This picture doesn't even do the Crater justice. This mineral water was the perfect temperature, and it was inside a cave with an open top to see outside!

After our relaxing little soak!

We climbed to the top of the Crater to check out the view. Wyet was so sore from the race he could barely make it!

Feeling refreshed and ready for life!