cutest blog on the block

Saturday, December 20, 2008

Cute Random Pictures

Here's Brecken practicing for his modeling career. We wanted to showcase his cute church outfit.


Brecken trying out his rain boots in our recent inclement weather.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Family Pictures





We had Kiwi take our family Christmas pictures and here are some of my favorites. Brecken is rather difficult to photograph, but they turned out super cute!
On an unrelated note, can I just say how excited I am? The longest week is over: finals are over, my big project at work is done, and I'm over the stupid stomach flu/cold. Yeah!!! I am really looking forward to taking it easy for the next couple weeks. And we're going to Colorado for Christmas to see my family. I can't wait. HAPPY HOLIDAYS, indeed!

Sunday, November 16, 2008

California Fires



Here is a picture of the brush fire that started on Friday morning. Our house is down this burning hill and across the street, so they evacuated us & turned off our water on Friday in the late morning. We weren't really in any danger, the fire wasn't super close, but the air was filled with smoke and you could actually see the flames of the fire as it spread down the hill. It was pretty crazy. Luckily, we were able to get back into our house by that evening.

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Funny Story

Ok, so I don't have any pictures for this story b/c Tim wouldn't let me take any. But here's the story: Tim was bent over on the ground picking up Brecken's dinner, which, as usual, was more on the floor than in his tummy. Meanwhile, Brecken grabbed the nearly empty milk jug out of the recycling bin, walked over to his daddy, and poured the last few drops of stale milk down Tim's plumber's crack.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Happy Birthday, Tim!

On Monday, we celebrated Tim's birthday (actually, we celebrated it all weekend). Tim & I got really wild & crazy and went to a Death Cab for Cutie concert. It was a good concert and we haven't been to a concert in forever, so that made us feel cool. Unfortunately, we didn't feel quite as cool when we were both tired by 10:30 p.m.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Barack the Vote!

Yeah!!! I am so excited about the election. Now, I realize that many of my dearest family & friends (including my own little Red husband) are Republicans and are probably feeling sad right now, so this is not meant to rub it in. I am just thrilled that for the first time in my relatively short voting life, the person that I voted for won! Yeah! And to all my fellow Obama supporters: WE DID IT!

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Happy Halloween!


Here's our cute little dragon posing for his Halloween picture. He's not really into modeling...




Grandpa Jones helped us take Brecken trick-or-treating. He was a little nervous and he kept wanting to go inside people's houses. He was uncertain as to why people looked so weird, but he liked picking out candy for his basket.



Here's my adorable little dragon helping "clean up" before the festivities. We went to Matt & Gilen's for pizza and then all the kids went out together. They all looked so cute! Brecken was stinking adorable.
We also had fun at the ward Trunk or Treat on Tues. Brecken was super tired, though, so he was very quiet the whole time. He even layed down on the gym floor during the Parade of Costumes, so we cut it short and went home.




Monday, October 13, 2008

Celebrating Fall



Today to celebrate the "holiday" and the beautiful 85 degree weather, we went to Avila Barn (which has a petting zoo and lots of treats). Brecken loved the animals and Tim & I loved the fudge!

In other news, I have been "tagged" (thanks, Camie) and, thus, must post 7 previously unknown facts about myself, so here goes:

1. Brecken doesn't call me "mama," he very clearly (and loudly) calls me "Arya."
2. I have run 2 marathons: Kansas City, MO 2003 and Logan, UT 2004.
3. I am obsessed with my split ends. I can spend hours looking for split ends, literally.
4. I like creepy TV shows, such as Dexter and The Sopranos.
5. I have been married for 4 1/2 years.
6. Tim & I were married in the Denver, CO temple.
7. I have moved 11 times in my life, not including college (17 times if you count college).

Now, I get to pick 7 people to tag, who have to post 7 unknown facts about themselves. My choices are (drumroll, please): Elizabeth Z., Carolynn C., Amy V., Kiwi A., Vanessa S., Lindsey W., and Brooke J.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The Ride of the Century



So, I don't know how anyone else spent their Saturday, but we...rode our bikes 100 miles! Yes, that's right. 100 MILES! On Sept. 27, Tim, his brother Matt, and his dad Ernie, and I all completed the Lighthouse Century. The course runs along the California coast, up Highway 1 past San Simeon & Hearst Castle up to Piedras Blancas past the lighthouse and back. It took us 9 very long hours and we were so tired & sore afterwards! But it was exhilirating and we had a good time.
I'll post some better pictures later...when I get around to it.

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Sleepless in Seattle

Tim and I took a little vacation to Seattle. I had never been there and we have family & friends we could visit. It was beautiful! I loved the greenery and the mountains right next to the water. It was so pretty.

We went hiking, went to Pike Place Market (where we saw them actually throw fish), rode a ferry, went to the top of the Columbia Tower (taller than the Space Needle--and cheaper), went to the Science Museum, went to an island, and had lots of good food. It was a perfect vacation...except that traveling threw off Brecken's schedule and he got back at us by giving up sleep altogether.
We saw our good friend from Laramie, Mike, his wife, Claudia, and their adorable baby, Michael (or "Mikito"). It was really fun to reconnect with them.


Here is my dear friend, Gwen Bushey. She is an excellent cook, hostess and hiker. We picked blackberries by hand at a local organic farm, which made me really appreciate the work that goes into getting fresh produce. It's kind of a dangerous process.
We also stayed with Tim's sister, Alyson, and her family, the Sweetnams. Thanks to Alyson's Korean roots, we got to eat authentic Korean food, shop at a Korean market, and watch Korean soaps (shockingly, even more cheesey than American ones). I found out I like "Milkis" (soda plus milk: 2 things I don't normally like that taste really good together). And Kacy, Michael & Bailey were so great w/ Brecken!
You will notice Brecken is looking very alert after snacking on the local berries. He's such a good boy, but a much more difficult traveler than he used to be. He screamed for about 30 mins. straight on the plane (which was delayed an hour and a half), much to the joy of our fellow passengers.


Monday, August 4, 2008

Beach Time


Here's Brecken enjoying some beach time. This boy loves the beach. Mostly the sand. Nice shades.

The Last Goodbye

I can't believe that summer has gone so fast...and that Amy is leaving.
She's been my nanny all summer and I honestly don't know what I'll do without her. As it turns out, good help is hard to come by. Almost as hard as quality childcare. She has seriously been a lifesaver. I am so sad to see her leave. Thanks a million for all your hard work, Amy!

Here we are hiking Bishop's Peak, Amy's favorite pasttime. :)

Garten Family Visit


My mom and two youngest sisters came to visit us. I had a great time! They loved going to the beach, so we went almost every day. They were even brave enough to get in the water, which was impressive because I thought it was freezing. I was very sorry to see them leave.


Brecken's 1st Steps

Monday, June 23, 2008

Anya's Wedding



My little sister Anya (she's only 16 months younger) got married on May 24th to Adam. She looked gorgeous in her dress and we had fun going to Colorado and seeing my family.














And here we get a good view of my brother-in-law's artistic leanings as a backdrop to my beautiful sister's dress and my two youngest sisters.

Friday, May 9, 2008

HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY!!!!


















Brecken celebrated his 1st birthday on May 1st. His golden birthday was his first birthday, crazy. He is one year old now, which seems amazing. It's gone by so fast, but at the same time I can hardly remember a time without him in my life. What an amazing baby he is.


He had party cake, chocolate cake and mint ice cream. Shockingly, he likes chocolate!


Monday, April 14, 2008

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


On Saturday, I celebrated my 27th birthday! Oh my gosh, I can't believe it. I actually feel kind of old! Tim, of course, had to work, as he is in the final lap of tax season, so...we went out to dinner and on Sunday night we had a few friends over for cake & ice cream. It was really fun. I just can't believe I'm 27.
P.S. A word to the wise: do not marry a tax attorney if your birthday is April 12. It's not the best timing. Other than that, they make great husbands!

Trip to Orangevale


In March, I went to visit one of my favorite people, Elizabeth (and of course, Tommy & Jason). We had a great time. Jason did not really know what to think of a wild man like Brecken. Brecken sort of terrorized Jason by taking his toys and talking loudly at inopportune times. But I'm sure in a couple years, Jason will appreciate my party boy, right?

Baby & Me Swim Lessons


I decided to take a Baby & Me Swimming Lessons class with Brecken. It's about time to start working on his water skills if he's going to be a water polo player like his dad. He loved the water! And I had a great time, too.

Amy's Visit

My sister Amy came to spend her spring break with us in San Luis. We had a great time because she is such an adorable sweetie. She was very patient about scheduling her sight-seeing around Brecken's naps. We loved having her and I am trying to convince her to come back.

Our New "House"


So, we've finally spread our wings and left the nest...again. We moved into our own little apartment. It's definitely a step down from our beautiful house in Utah, but it works. And besides, brown shag carpet and popcorn ceilings aren't that bad.
It's a humbling experience. :)

Watching the Elephant Seals



Brecken and I went for a little hike with some friends to see the elephant seals during their prime mating season. There were tons of them! Brecken liked the hike, but didn't care about the seals that much.

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Happy Anniversary!


We just celebrated our anniversary on Feb. 7. We have been married for four years! Can you believe it? I feel like I've definitely grown up in the last four years. And we've had some crazy times (lots of moves, buying a house, having a baby, leaving our house, marathons, one bike century, many vacations)...but it's been great. And it's just beginning. Here's to eternity, Babe.






Brecken's crawling like a champ and has four teeth now!