PoW : Sept 4-11

Utah State Fair 2011

I'm in trouble once the Instagram fad is over.

PoW: Aug 28 - Sept 4

Summeryishesque

I know the end of summer isn't technically until September 23 (I think?) but in my mind it pretty much ends once August is over. Which happens today. So Happy Last Day of Summer! I got to take some pictures, see Celine Dion (wait until 1:03 - it was honestly breathtaking live), turn 27ish, eat lots of yogurt, scorch my hair (almost at an inch of growth now - another month and I might be able to wear my hair off my face again!), camp, and have my fair share of outdoor concerts and movies. Summer really brought his (her?) game this year. *The following over sized collage is brought to you by Instagram ... and isn't nearly as many pictures as I actually took. I suspect I may have a problem*

 

Summer, it's been great. Really. But here's the thing: I've been seeing way too many cute boots and scarves and hats all over Pinterest. Daydreaming of pretty leaves in the Avenues and drinking hot cider. Making pie and chili. And pretending I'm in love with football so I can bundle up at a game and eat nachos. Oh and I have grand plans of mastering this at some point before October 31st:

See! It's cheesecake disguised as candy corn! Genius! C'mon Summer - admit that you kinda want a piece of the candy corn cheesecake. I know I do. So without further adieu ... Welcome Fall! Now to backing up and cleaning up my phone. Need to make some room for a thousand photos of the fall leaves.

PoW : Aug 21-28

Well. From a nice family evening walk at Willard Bay to a creepy (but pretty cool!) thunderstorm in Salt Lake. Quite the contrast for my Sunday!

PoW: Aug 14-21

These kind of days make me wish summer would stick around just a tad longer.

Photo of the Week: Aug 7-14

Another summer evening walk at Wheeler Farm. I've never met a hay bale I didn't like.

Kristin S.

I haven't posted too much relating to photography lately. This is Kristin and although it may look like she's graduating from high school she's actually graduating from college -- and not for the first time. Inspiring, right? Maybe. Yes because that's awesome and no because I get tired just thinking about it.

Photo of the Week : July 31 - Aug 7

Fillmoreish

Photo of the Week : Jul 24-31

Viva Las Vegas!

The Big 3-0

Anyone who knows me well knows that I felt some anxiety about my recent birthday. Dreaded it, actually. Which is sad considering how much I love birthdays. But 3-0 is kind of a big deal, you know? And sometimes feels even more so when you’re single. (Don't worry -- this isn't a "oohhh why am I still single" rant.)

I generally avoid talking about the “woes” of single hood on my blog because I’d rather not have it become all about that. But in an effort to not have it become all about that I’ve inadvertently left out a very big part of my life. The part where I’m a 30 year old girl who happens to be single and sometimes it can really suck.

In a place where so many people get married at such a young age, it’s all too easy to feel out of place when you haven’t done the same. Sure – you don’t have to coordinate your schedule with anyone else’s or you can go on impromptu trips because you don’t have to find a babysitter (which, don’t get me wrong, IS really great). But in the end you can also feel pretty left behind. You can feel inadequate. You sometimes worry that you’re doing something wrong. But push all of those insecurities aside and you suddenly realize that you’re not alone in feeling that way – married or single. In talking with different people over the years it's always amazed me how so many of those feelings are often the same. Someone who faces infertility feels a hole from something good that they can’t seem to have. Someone who has health problems feels disappointment and frustration over not being able to do some of the things they love. Someone who is struggling in their marriage feels lonely and uncertain about the future. The situational details are different – and some things definitely deeper than others -- but often the feelings are similar.

This all may sound trite to some. But it’s been an awesome lesson for me to learn for myself. No matter your marital status, we can call relate more than we think. Which makes me wonder -- why in the world can we be so critical/judgmental of one another at times? It just seems to be a waste of opportunity and energy.

I may not be very happy about my big 3-0, but I do know that amid the frustration and disappointment I may feel, life really is full of good stuff if we're looking. There are a lot of things that I love and a lot of things that I’m super excited to bring to the table when I do get married and have a family of my own. So I guess as far as the number 30 goes I’m not too bad off. And I'm grateful for the things I'm learning.

But I’m still telling people I’m 27. (Kidding … sort of)

So what did we do to celebrate my 27th birthday? All sorts of goodness. Family, friends, and calories = a good birthday in my book.

And that's not all. My birthday "activity" of choice is a good one this year: the Celine Dion show in Las Vegas. I've always loved Celine (despite some of her apparent cheese) and she'll always be a favorite choice for my shower singing tunes. I can't wait to hear some of this on Saturday!

Photo of the Week : July 17-24

Got lots of time with these two little chicks this weekend!

Photo of the Week : July 10-17

Maybe airplaneing is the new planking.

Photo of the Week : July 3 - July 10

The many sides of our sweet Aubree ... no prompting necessary.

Kids these days ....

This ad made me laugh:

I love how she says that she read the majority of an article online. Isn't it sad that our attention spans are shortening so quickly? Maybe I'll join a book club in an effort to combat that. 

Related: I saw online today that some public schools will be permanently replacing cursive writing with keyboard proficiency. As someone who loves a beautifully HANDwritten word, this makes me very sad! When I have children you better believe I'll have them practice penmanship. They may not love it, but they'll at least be able to whip out a lovely handwritten note if they ever wanted to (and I hope they do).

I'm all about the awesome things that the internet and technology can provide us -- I think it's pretty exciting, actually. But can't things like social skills and penmanship still exist in that world? I sure hope so.

I suddenly feel like I'm 95 years old, chewing out the neighbor kids for cutting across my lawn. Whoopsy.

Photo of the Week : June 26 - July 3