August 2014

How do you say goodbye to your home for the past 7 years? It has had it's problems so I won't glamorize it but it has always been our home. Since we have been married we have had apartments we have lived in away from home with our internships and travels but we have always come home to the same 4 walls of our little condo in Holladay. Brad picked me up for our first date from this condo, we had our 1st kiss making brownies standing in this kitchen, we said our I love you for the first time sitting around the kitchen table, he proposed (for the first time) on a cold winters night when the power went out. We opened all of our wedding gifts here, we had our 1st Christmas together here, and 5 Christmases to follow. We grew our 1st garden here, and had some lovely summer porch evenings. We've had some of our most beautiful moments and worst moments here.  

Before Brad came in the picture I remember buying this condo was my leap of faith. But it was so right. I just knew this was the place for me. Buying it was so fast but so right, One morning my plan was to take a job in NYC, and the next thing I knew the spirit was kicking me into action and I made an offer on this condo. I knew I needed to stay here and gain some independence. A month or so after I moved in I met Brad and we started dating and now here we are.

It was so fun to plan and decorate each room just the way I wanted it. When we got married Brad just moved in and I already had it decorated and all the furniture so there were no arguments about differing decor styles. Since buying it with the help of a few beaus (pre Brad) and lots of family and friends we replaced ceilings, painted, ripped out the astro-turf on the patio, tiled, redid the kitchen and bathroom, painted a lot more, and replaced the carpet with laminate, It has been a project that has helped us work together the past 6 years and it has turned our beautifully.

We have had our crazy moments here as well. We had a small grease fire and burned a whole in our carpet (which we then replaced with tile). Brad thought that was a watershed moment for our marriage.We had 2 mouse incidents (a couple years apart) 1 on the patio and 1 that was found in our bedroom! Our antique refrigerator broke on us and we had to search for a new one but then the refrigerator started working again. Other than that we have had good luck with this little place and our 1st experience as home owners.

This has been our home, Our refuge of peace, love, and hope. Thank you sweet Lincoln Manor condo #11, we will miss you.

July 2014

July was a month of celebration, anticipation, and big decisions. The 4th of July was a weekend celebration with hiking, festivals, and the Stadium of Fire. Carrie Underwood came again this year and it was fabulous. Our favorite thing every year is seeing the parachuters come into the stadium with the flags- never fails to be amazing. July was also a month of lots of hiking. Our goal was every week, and then Mary got the horrendous 2 week cold that was going around so hiking was on hiatus. We did manage to be 15 year olds at seven peaks a few times this month. There is just something about a water park that brings out the 15 year old kid in everyone. Brad's big accomplishment was making it over the yellow slide and Mary still reigns champion in the green slide race- 2 years now! July was a big decision making month because Brad decided to take a hiatus from academia (though he does love teaching) and pursue a job with his skill set doing international business. His rational was academia is always still an option but taking a chance in business and learning a new skill set would be a great growing experience at this point in his life. Because of this decision we decided to put our condo on the market and prepare to move wherever he got a job. He was looking at jobs across the country and out of the country. A week after we put our condo on the market he officially accepted a job here in salt lake with Washakie Renewable energy (a growing company wanting to expand into lots of countries including Turkey). Our condo is under contract and we are under contract for our new home. If all goes accordingly we will be moving September 13. "A change is a brewin."

June 2014

June has been an emotional month. Angie & Ryan decided to give Link and Odin a better life. They gave them to a family who has a yard to run in and a few older kids to play with. We took one last walk to say good bye. Brad is allergic to dogs so this may be the closest I will come to having my own dogs. They were such good boys, they would get so excited every time I came over. I will miss taking them for walks and snuggling with them. I'm sure they will be happy in their new home but it is hard to say goodbye under any circumstance.

 We had a Dennis family reunion to celebrate Mom and Dad Dennis' 50th wedding anniversary. It was fun to help with the decor of the open house and see every one. Brad gave them a special gift of singing "Misty" one of their favorite romantic songs.

And of course we made it to the Arts Festival. Scallops, ribs, perusing art and outdoor concerts are something we look forward to all year. 

And finally we found a hiking book worth having with all of the unknown trails in salt lake area mapped out. The funny thing about being on top of the world...it's addicting.

Cheers to a fun summer!

May 2014

May... wow. May was crammed with too much busy busy busy. We barely saw each other and our home turned into a bed stop and then off to more work or errands or just busy. It doesn't matter how much the extra pay and benefits are we decided this crazy month of may; too much work drains you, makes your life feel meaningless because your too busy running to the next thing to experience the moment, and makes you not enjoy or really be present for any of it and anyone in it. So the verdict is... never again! Keep things simple- or less is more is our new motto. Cheers to a simplified minimalist summer.

We were able to celebrate Brad's birthday with some friends at The Naked Fish (best sushi bar), and then celebrated our anniversary with getting Backpacking gear and taking it all for a spin in the wild. While doing so we ran into a moose! It was snowing so we just backed of the trail and waited for it to leave. It was pretty exciting. We found "our spot" protected by a huge pine tree and with built in hooks for our backpacks. Nothing beat the vacation view we awoke to in the morning. It was so romantic and a perfect anniversary mini vacation.

April 2014

April flew by so fast- too fast! In April I went with friends to sunny St. George for spring break, and Brad took his U of  U students to DC for the Model Arab League competition. All professions should have a week off to welcome in spring. It was perfect to be in sunny Zions and kick off the season with hiking, biking, and pool lounging.

(this is my favorite tree in all of Utah)

We celebrated Easter with the Jefferson annual easter egg hunt and brunch, and had a delicious dinner with the Dennis family. The best thing about this time of year are the pansies and tulips- yes we are ready for sunny spring.