The Gapinskis

..a happy ending

2012-02-09T16:08:00.000-08:00

For those struggling with conceiving.. don't give up hope.

**Disclaimer** I don't wish to make ANYONE feel hurt by this post because I know that there are SO many couples out there that had/are having a much harder time then we did conceiving. I just want to document this mostly for myself & for those who may be in a similar situation.

Our journey began July 25, 2008. We decided from the beginning that I wouldn't be on birth control & that we would just see what happened - leave it in God's hands. Little did we know, we would have to put our faith in God's plan more that we expected.

After over two years of no pregnancies, no scares, we started to wonder why..
The rest of the story is told through excerpts from my journal.

November 2, 2010
"A week ago I went to see a new doctor at the Circle of Life Women's Center. She did an ultrasound on my uterus to see if everything was looking right, everything seemed normal. She seemed very surprised that Tyler & I had been married for over 2 years & that I have never been on birth control & have not become pregnant. She advised that Tyler get tested to see if perhaps the problem involves him before they run any painful tests on me. She also prescribed me Clomid which is suppose to help with fertility."

**6 months later**

"On Thursday, I went to my fertility doc, for my monthly follicle check. I also got the results from Tyler's test. It came back pretty normal - good news. She told me we would be great candidates for an IUI procedure. (Intrauterine Insemination) We will probably try it next month if we don't have any luck.
I wish sometimes that I could know when and how God wants us to have kids. But I know that's not how life works & it's perfect like that. I am grateful for what I am already blessed with & I just need to look forward with faith."

"Well January came and went with no luck... I will admit that an extremely hard part of this whole process is the unknown, the guessing, the hoping, the heart breaking news each month. But also that it seems everyone around me has such an easy time becoming pregnant. I can't wait for that month that that person is me.
...A couple weeks ago I read about a girl Tyler was friends with in HS, she explained that after a year and a half of trying to get pregnant they decided to look into adoption. This kind of got my mind reeling - thinking we were in the same situation (only at this point it had been almost 3 years). I was thinking that I may never become pregnant - that I will never experience my baby inside of me, feel them move or kick - I may never experience the doctors appointments with Tyler by my side, gleaming when we hear the babies' heartbeat for the first time, seeing their tiny hands and feet growing and developing inside of me. But I can't think like that. I have to be positive and to remember that God has a plan for each one of us and that whatever we experience is for our benefit and for our own spiritual growth. Whether it's what we've always pictured our life to be like or if it's the complete opposite. All we can do is trust in the Lord and know that He knows what is best for us."

**3 months later**

"Tyler switched companies so we are without health insurance for 90 days. In the meantime, we've had to pay everything out of pocket as far as the infertility treatments. We have done two IUI procedures which have not been successful. We are spending around $700 a month on treatments & it's taking it's toll when this is money we have no idea if it will help or not. We decided I should take a break from the fertility drugs and seeing my doctor monthly. My doc recommended Tyler see a urologist before we keep spending copious amounts of money on treatments.
I feel like my life is on hiatus right now. I feel like I am wasting so much time and energy and am not seeing any results from it. We have been trying for so long with no success that it seems like it will never happen and that I should be focusing on other things."

**3 months later**

"Tyler went to see a urologist & luckily I was there with him because he passed out in the room. I was scared to death because I thought he was having a seizure or something. The doc reassured me that he was completely fine. When he came to he told us that because this happened it explained to him what may be our problem. Tyler has something called a Vasovagal Response. He said that if Tyler is stressed or anxious or worried that he can trigger it & that it can pertain to reproduction systems.
Tyler came home last night and told me that his friend's wife was expecting. I couldn't even respond because I was so disappointed. I felt so sad, angry, frustrated, heartbroken, ashamed and discouraged. I couldn't even muster up one ounce of happiness to feel for them. This is so wrong for me to feel this way and it is no doubt un-Christlike. It's hard for me to accept the fact that I can't control when it happens for us. I have amazing friends who talked to me and gave me advice. I just need to remember always that someday I will have children and that God has a specific plan for me."

I was so upset for the next two months that I didn't want anything to do with trying to get pregnant. I was SO miserable & finally told myself that the only way this situation was going to turn around was if I changed my attitude about it. It was my choice how I viewed this situation my life had fallen into. I told Tyler that I didn't want to stress about it anymore, I was so sick & tired of the continuing heartbreak I was feeling month after month. It was taking such a toll on me emotionally. I wanted to just have an amazing relationship with my husband - I think this is the way Tyler always wished the situation to be like. It took the stress out of all of it & in the end I think that may have been our answer.

**2 months later**

"Karli & Chase are married! The sealing ceremony was amazing. The sealer said some very cool things & everyone felt the spirit so strong. Tyler & I particularly remembered when he spoke about the people who had gathered to witness this sealing not only on Earth, but those on the other side of the veil. He started to talk about some of those spirits were future children. Then he spoke about the fact that they may not come through biological birth but that they may come through adoption. He emphasized that either way they are your children & are sealed to you and that this was pre-determined before this life. We couldn't help but think that he was speaking to us. Laura & my Mom both mentioned the same thing after the ceremony. It's harder for me to accept that we may only be adopting - but of course that isn't a for sure thing yet."

**4 days later**

"A few days ago we found out that I am pregnant! It's kinda a funny story...
I originally took the first test about a week ago. I looked at it and was immediately disappointed. I thought the positive sign was supposed to be two DARK pink lines and on my test one of the lines was extremely light pink. So- I threw it in the trash & texted Tyler to tell him it was negative. (Later found out that he threw his phone at the ground when he read it because he was of course so disappointed & so frustrated). A few days passed & I was looking at a friend's blog reading her pregnancy announcement. She showed a photo of her positive test & I looked at it & immediately my jaw dropped - it looked identical to my test! I ran to the bathroom & dug it out of the trash - I could not believe it!! I told Tyler the news that night just before bed by hiding the test in my reading glasses case & scaring the crap out of him - I told him I had caught something earlier that day and that I needed his advice on what he thought it was. (He is thinking it's a snake or something) Needless to say, when he saw what it really was he was ecstatic! It was an unbelievable moment - so hard to put into words all the feelings! It was so amazing to see how incredibly excited Tyler is to be a Daddy - he will be such an amazing father I have no doubt in my mind.
I am so grateful for this tremendous blessing! I feel so blessed and I know this miracle wouldn't be possible without the grace of God. He has trusted me enough to allow me to go through this journey of pregnancy & birth & I am so thankful - more than my words can express. I am so excited for what lies ahead!"

**2 weeks later**

"Well we had our first appointment yesterday and Tyler was able to come. Dr. Alejo did an ultrasound and we saw the heartbeat! It was so neat & crazy to imagine this tiny baby growing inside of me. I feel so special!
We told our immediate family the news on Sunday and it was just awesome. I was so excited to tell them that I was nervous! Everyone was so happy. Tyler's Mom screamed & his Dad was shocked I think. My parents of course were thrilled as well and my Dad got a little teary (he wanted this for me almost as much as I did - he had given me a blessing several months prior to comfort me and reassured me that I would have children someday) - he was so excited he called his mother (my grandmother) right away and told her the news. My grandmother then preceded to point out to him that the same exact week that my Great-Grandmother Hazel had passed away is the week that we conceived. We joked that Hazel probably got to Heaven & told my child to "stop stalling & get down there already" which is probably what really happened! :) But in all honesty I don't feel like it was a coincidence at all - I feel like it was meant to happen that way.

An amazing long life ends & a brand new life begins.
I am so grateful for that."

Zac Brown Band Concert

2012-01-30T14:57:00.001-08:00

For Christmas, I bought Tyler tickets to see Zac Brown Band in concert. It's one of his favs as of late & I really enjoy them a lot too! The concert was a little over a week ago & I decided to take my 5D Mark II to try and get some good images of the concert. It was so incredibly heavy that I only had it out for the very beginning of the show - enough to get a few images of Zac at least.
We had pretty good seats, but it was still far enough back on the floor that with my vertical challenges it was hard for me to get good views :)

Nic Cowan & Sonia Leigh opened for them - we liked Nic but weren't too excited about Sonia

They were SOOOO good live & I am so so glad. I hate to see an artist that sounds nothing like they do on the radio. That's one of the reasons I am such a big Rascal Flatts fan.
He sang almost all of his popular songs & the ones I wasn't as familiar with I still enjoyed a lot!
I am so glad Tyler enjoyed it & I am pretty sure Baby did as well - dancing like crazy in my belly!

19 Weeks

2012-01-30T14:38:00.000-08:00

{profile}

What a little STINKER our child is!
As you can see on my side bar, I have re-opened my poll for guessing the gender because we are only more in limbo now than ever!
At my appointment today, we were so excited to finally get a confirmation on the gender only to be pleasantly surprised when my doctor said the complete opposite of what he thought 4 weeks ago. He wasn't able to get a good view either because the umbilical cord was in between baby's legs - as well as it's hand! Baby was even awake & moving it's legs and fingers but would not budge to let us see a thing!

I don't even know what to think at this point, I was pretty set on it being a certain gender we had even narrowed down the name. Now I have to retract and start all over - haha. I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, after all, it wasn't a for sure guess in the first place.
Now I have to wait 3 weeks until my targeted ultrasound! Lets hope Baby cooperates next time - it would be the best birthday present ever! :)

Mother Nature

2012-01-26T11:22:00.000-08:00

I have a gorgeous sister don't I? I was just posting her session on my photography blog and it reminded me of a funny story. We decided to shoot her bridals/groomals in an orchard & as we were nearing the end of the session we were finishing up with some images by the tree stump (pictured above). After about 5 minutes, I suddenly realized that there was a tiny pair of baby shoes just sitting nonchalantly on the exact tree stump we had been using. I couldn't believe I had just barely noticed them! Well needless to say, I was indeed pregnant at the time but had NO IDEA. Maybe Mother Nature was trying to tell me something??? :)

15 Week Appointment

2012-01-03T09:53:00.000-08:00

Tyler & I went in yesterday for my monthly appointment. I was about 2 days shy of 15 weeks. It was my first stomach ultrasound which I must say is much more convenient than the other! :)

Little Baby Gap was nice enough to give us a glimpse at revealing it's gender! My doc used the words, "Looks like your having a [blank]" He said he was "pretty sure" so I am hesitant to tell until after our next appointment. SO I have put together a poll that is located on the sidebar. I want to know what you think Baby Gap's gender is!!

Everything checked out wonderfully & on schedule which is always great news! My tummy is finally starting to push out a tiny bit but I am afraid I just look like I ate too many sweets over the holidays (who knows maybe that is really the reason..)

Between now and my next appointment I am looking forward to A. Feeling great - 2nd trimester has been so good to me so far! and B. Feeling this baby move!

December Recap

2012-01-02T08:19:00.001-08:00

I was horrible at taking pictures in December, and especially on Christmas Day.

We started out the month by going in for our doc appointment where we got to hear the heartbeat & see our baby's little arms and legs squirming around.

My doctor got this cool picture on the ultrasound, I am a couple days shy of 11 weeks along at this point. This appointment made reality set in that I really had a baby growing inside of me, I could see it's head, limbs, body, brain, and it was moving around - it was such a neat thing for me to experience after not knowing for so long if this was even a possibility for me to carry a child.

My parents, Devanee & I were able to go watch our sis-in-law Meghann perform a Christmas show with a group of other girls. They sang a slew of beautiful Christmas songs. It was great! And Meghann even sang solos & did wonderfully!

Of course, Tyler's birthday but I already posted about that :)

We made it to Temple Square again & it was freeeeezing cold. There were lots of people there, so walking around was difficult. It was so fun to see how excited Porter & Emerie were at all the lights. Holidays are so much more fun with little kids, I think!

There were of course lots of sweets the whole month of December, and my sister Devanee & I made sure no one went empty handed. We made peppermint kiss brownie cupcakes for a bunch of her friends, and from what I hear they turned out pretty delicious!

My parents, Devanee & I were able to make a quick 24 hour trip down to St.George to see my grandparents before Christmas. I wanted to give them their present in person & of course I always LOVE seeing them. I always miss them & wish I could see them everyday!

My Grandpa made sure to play me a concert of Christmas songs.

I only took one picture on Christmas Day, and it was with my phone. Tyler and I opened our presents to each other late the night before because we knew we wouldn't have time on Christmas. We went to bed late & woke up SO early to go over to the in-laws for presents & breakfast. This pic is what Ty & I got from his parents, all we need for Dutch Oven cooking! It was very thoughtful & we are very grateful. This year we had names for each other and Kalen had us - he got us a Magic Bullet/Baby Bullet so we can make our own baby food - thanks Kalen! We had monkey bread for breakfast & it was delicious!

We hung out for a little while & then headed home to pack up the car again with presents & our church clothes, then headed to my parent's house. Tyler & I made aeblskivers for lunch & then got ready for church at my parent's ward. It was a beautiful program done by the choir which helped bring the spirit of Christmas to the day.

When we got home we started preparing the Christmas dinner of Ham, Grandma's potatoes (aka funeral potatoes), homemade rolls, & jello dessert. Mmmm.. my mouth is watering just thinking about it. I am definitely a bigger fan of this meal than of thanksgiving!

By this time, my other brothers and their families had joined us & we all relaxed and enjoyed each other's company. Eventually we decided to open presents. My parents always spoil us rotten, even if they tell us they aren't going to do as much this year, we end up being spoiled anyways. Tyler's highlight was getting snow tires for his civic & I got clothes for my growing belly & a new purse.

One of the presents that we all got this year was a book of Christmas stories. My Mom & I (and a few other helpers who assembled) worked hard for the couple weeks before Christmas - retyping old stories from the books we read from as kids. It was a tradition to read a Christmas story each night & I have good memories of doing this when I was little. I am grateful that I can now start that tradition with my family.

We spent more time as family & later in the evening is when Tyler & I drove to his Grandparents to announce our pregnancy that I previously posted about.

The next day we had a fun time at the Gapinski side Christmas party, and it was also my parent's 30th wedding anniversary!

We celebrated the next day by everyone going to Tucano's thanks to my uncle Randy. It was fun & delicious!

We had such a lovely holiday & we have SO much to be grateful for. I could sit here and list them for hours. But to name a few - a home, jobs, family, the gospel, the birth of our Savior, our strong marriage, our growing family. We are looking forward to see what 2012 will bring for our family!

Christmas Pregnancy Announcement

2011-12-29T09:59:00.001-08:00

Tyler and I decided to wait until Christmas to announce our pregnancy to everyone. There were a couple reasons for this - First, I would be pretty much into the second trimester so a significantly smaller risk for miscarriage & Second, we thought it would be so neat to send out our Christmas cards announcing (previous post) & also surprising his extended families at their Christmas parties.

With Tyler being the oldest grandchild on both sides - we are making both sets of his grandparents, GREAT-grandparents. We thought it would be special to surprise them with Christmas gifts announcing that they would be Great-grandparents!

On Christmas Eve, we were at the Robert's side party. Towards the end of the party was the time where we all exchange gifts. We gave Tyler's grandparent's their small boxes and we took a video of it all in action!

Notice his Grandma cannot read the necklace because she doesn't have her glasses on! Love their reactions! Nobody else in the room besides Tyler's parents, Kalen & Braden knew we were pregnant - so it was an announcement to everyone. It was also special because we could finally tell Carson (Tyler's youngest brother) & he is over the moon excited!!

The next day, on Christmas, I realized that I had accidently sent Tyler's other grandparents their Christmas card with all the others. Not realizing that there was no mail service on the day after Christmas, I was panicked that they would get the card before we saw them at their family party on the 26th. SO Tyler & I made a special trip to their house on Christmas night to give them their gifts to make the announcement. (So bummed we don't have a video - my camera decided to mysteriously run out of battery) It was kind of funny because when his grandpa opened his he thought we had just gotten him a keychain to tell him he was a "great" (as in wonderful) grandpa, then his grandma read hers and shot straight out of her chair with excitement & then his grandpa realized what was going on. They were beyond excited!! We sat and talked to them about everything for quite a while & then told them we'd see them the next day. They promised they wouldn't tell anyone so we could make another announcement the next day at the Gapinski side party.

The next day, we stalled making the announcement for a few hours. We could tell it was eating his Grandma from the inside out. She kept whispering "if you don't tell soon I am gonna burst!" She finally got too inpatient and decided we all needed to go around and say what we were thankful for this Christmas. Of course she wanted Tyler to start so he said, "I am especially grateful for family this year because as some of you may know I will be graduating in May & so this will be our last Christmas in Utah.......................long pause........................... without a baby!" We thought it would be funny to trick everyone into thinking we were moving out of state and then surprise them with the real announcement. It was funny, but everyone was thrilled!

I honestly can say that making the announcements were my favorite part of this year's Christmas season. We have been waiting so long for this & it's finally here - it is pretty surreal. We couldn't be more grateful & we feel so very blessed!!

Merry Christmas & a very SURPRISING New Year!!

2011-12-27T11:09:00.000-08:00

Tyler's 24th Birthday

2011-12-16T09:19:00.001-08:00

Last week we celebrated Tyler's 24th birthday! He was already finished with all his finals for school so this year he didn't have class thank goodness! He came home from work a little early & I took him out to buy his birthday present - new dress shoes!

Meanwhile, I had a surprise dinner I had prepared. I forgot to take a picture but it is his favorite meal called Pork & Seeds that his best friend's mom used to make them all the time. He was so happy when he realized what the amazing smell in the house was. We were happy to include most of my side of family in on the dinner, there was barely enough to go around - everyone loved it!

After dinner, Tyler's fam showed up for cake & ice cream.

I had baked a Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pudding bundt cake & got our favorite holiday ice cream - Peppermint Stick.

Tyler was spoiled with gifts from everyone.

{Emerie terrorizing the birthday boy}

{Me & Miss Ava}

{Dev & Emerie}

That weekend we had planned and invited family to join us for a birthday lunch at Tucanos. We showed up a little early to put our name in only to find out the wait was TWO HOURS!!!

We were appalled - and I was a little bit mad at myself for not making a reservation. But who would have thought I'd need a reservation for 3:00 in the afternoon?!

Anyway, we were all more than a little disappointed & stood there trying to decide where to go instead. We finally decided on Biaggi's because most of us had never been there.

One word of advice - DON'T go there. It was not at all worth the money!

It took FOREVER to get our food & it was barely even warm. Needless to say, Tyler & I at least were pretty disappointed in it. It put us into a slump so we decided to spend the night shopping for Christmas gifts to lift our spirits. I told Tyler we would try again to go to Tucanos before the end of the month so we will see if it works out the second time around :)

Thanks everyone who helped us celebrate Tyler's birthday!

Happy Birthday Tyler!

2011-12-07T13:28:00.000-08:00

Today is this handsome man's 24th birthday! (Not the other handsome man with the bowtie)
I can say for the next two months that he's as old as me.. until I turn into an old fart again in February.
I just wanted to give a shout out & let him know how much he means to me & that I am forever grateful for him in my life!

LOVE YOU TY!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Finally finished! Kitchen Update

2011-11-25T15:28:00.000-08:00

Well after several months of procrastination, I finished redoing my kitchen cabinets!

Before:

After:

Close-up:

I did an antique glazing technique, but didn't want it TOO glazed like you see sometimes.

I am so happy with the outcome - I love how they turned out! I think my kitchen needed the update & with the new appliances it looks perfect :)

.Halloween.

2011-11-07T08:19:00.001-08:00

It's not uncommon for us to have a semi-uneventful Halloween. This year I decided to find our dogs costumes at the last minute. We scored big at Petsmart where all costumes were 75% off. We got three costumes for $8.

A cute Halloween tutu for Roxi...

a Clown for Toby...

& a basketball player for my parent's dog Shelby... awesome, right?

My lil sis was the only one in our family who dressed up.. What a cute nerdy ladybug she made!

Enjoy a short video of Roxi dancing & doing tricks in her tutu :)

October

2011-10-27T12:12:00.000-07:00

October flew by so fast. Most of the month I was consumed in getting ready for Karli's wedding. She had her reception at a beautiful place, but it did require us to decorate ourselves. So we spent the weeks prior to her wedding day making center pieces, making poms, decorating & painting mason jars, making thank you tags, painting frames and other things. Gosh writing it down makes it seem like it wasn't that much but it was A LOT.

{a lot of our nights looked like this}

{we made around 300 of these tags to go on these IBC root beers}

It was all worth it though. The wedding day couldn't have been better. It was gorgeous!

I will do a post all about it once we get the pictures back but for now I'll let you see one of her bridals we shot in September :)

One Sunday this month, I decided to experiment and make some donuts I found on Pinterest. Tyler helped me of course and they were SO delicious!

Pumpkin Donuts with Maple Glaze

September!

2011-10-06T10:58:00.000-07:00

We had a fun month in September! There's lots of pics as evidence :)

We had a backyard campout over Labor Day weekend with the whole fam & that's where most the pics are from.. So many good ones!

{Tyler with Miss Priya}

{Meghann & Priya taking a little nap}

{Emerie}

{Porter LOVES horses & he wanted to give this one a kiss}

{Emerie helping Grandpa sweep}

{Slam dunk!}

We sold one of our cars {pictured below} & as of right now we haven't found a replacement. So yes, we are sharing the murano - it's not the easiest thing to do! Luckily a few days Tyler has been able to borrow his Dad's car - Thanks Jeff!

We will hopefully find the perfect vehicle sometime this month but things have been crazy busy so we will see!

My sister Karli has had two bridal showers & lucky for me, one of them was at my good friend Jacque's. I hadn't spent time with her in quite some time so I made sure to get a pic or two. We had a little too much fun as you can see..

Only 8 days until Karli is a married woman!

We went to the Blue Iguana to use a Groupon before it expired & Tyler ordered the Grande Burrito. Little did he know it was MUY GRANDE!

We weren't insanely impressed with the Blue Iguana & it definitely wasn't worth the effort to get there (downtown SLC, parking, etc etc)

My sisters and I were able to attend the RASCAL FLATTS concert! Dev & I arrived early to get good lawn seats but lucky for us we got our tickets upgraded to actual seats for FREE!

While we were waiting around for the concert to start, it started to rain.. & by rain I mean DOWNPOUR! and scary lightening & thunder I swear was less than a mile away. They don't allow umbrellas so we got DRENCHED (see pic above). We found shelter standing on top of a picnic table under the table umbrella standing oh-to-close to a few strangers! haha. It was a memorable experience that's for sure.

It cleared up just in time for the concert to start (and Karli to show up). Justin Moore & Sara Evans opened for them & they were awesome! I prefer Sara over Justin personally - she sang amazingly! Of course, Rascal Flatts did not disappoint either - they are addicting! This was my 4th time seeing them in concert & I just keep coming back for more! I highly recommend going to anyone who hasn't - it is great for all ages too! It was a little different this time around because I have been so spoiled previously with front row tickets BUT who needs to see up Gary's shirt anyways?! Haha. It was still just as good from a little farther back ;)

Special thanks to Karli & Chase who got me the tickets as a thank-you for shooting their engagement pics!

Speaking of.. we just got Karli & Chase's Engagement video done by my bud, Kale Fitch! It is SO SO cute, you've gotta check it out below!

chase + karli from Kale Fitch on Vimeo.

I cannot forget to mention that September was also a bittersweet month. My Great-Grandmother, Hazel Doty, passed away at the ripe age of 95. We attended her funeral to celebrate her life & to reminisce the memories we will all forever hold dear. She was an amazing woman & we are so happy for her & the reward she is reaping in heaven for a life filled with righteousness, service & love. She is finally with her husband, Sam, whom she had been without for 25 years. We will miss driving down to Provo frequently to visit her, but we know we will be able to visit with her again someday.

Get Air - Happy Birthday Chase!

2011-09-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to Get Air for my sister's fiance, Chase, birthday party.

For those who don't know, it is a trampoline playground type place!

We had so much fun doing flips into the foam pit, basketball & our favorite, dodgeball. We were all so worn out afterward for jumping for 2 straight hours!

Watch the videos at the end to witness it for yourself!

{Karli & the birthday boy himself}

Keep Trying

2011-09-02T09:57:00.000-07:00

~I am pretty sure I found this for a reason today~

GIVEAWAY!!

2011-08-22T20:34:00.001-07:00

I NEED YOUR HELP! And in return.. I am giving away a $500 voucher towards photography services with me, Rachael Tyler Photography!

KARLI & CHASE are in a contest to win a free wedding cake!
I need you to go to One Sweet Slice's facebook page & like their page. THEN click onto the photo gallery for their WIN A FREE CAKE CONTEST & find this photo of Karli & Chase & LIKE it!!

Then, leave a comment here or on my facebook page to enter into my giveaway & I will be checking to make sure the winner has liked Karli & Chase's photo before I announce the WINNER!

and please... PASS THIS ON!!

If Karli & Chase win I will also giveaway a free engagement session!

Alaskan Inn

2011-08-21T15:26:00.000-07:00

Last week, Tyler & I had the opportunity to spend the evening & night in Ogden Canyon at the Alaskan Inn. We had originally bought a groupon & intended to use it for our anniversary. But plans changed & we found ourselves approaching the expiration date. So no special reason as to why we stayed here but it was a very nice & relaxing evening we spent together.

We stayed in the room called "Bear's Den"

We decided to go on a short hike on the Indian Trail. We wished we had had more daylight so we could have hiked the whole way, but what we did hike was beautiful!

We went to dinner at The Oaks, which we weren't totally impressed with but it was nice to sit outside by the river & enjoy the scenery. It was a nice ending to our short summer getaways since Tyler goes back to school tomorrow! Only 2 semesters left!! :)

Vegas Weekend

2011-08-18T14:45:00.001-07:00

I found myself shooting another wedding in Vegas this year almost exactly a year to the date of last years Vegas wedding! Lucky for me, Tyler was able to take the time off work again to join me, so we made a little weekend getaway out of the trip.

I just so happened to have a wedding at the Oquirrh Mountain temple the day before so Tyler & his brother Kalen made the drive down to Vegas on Friday & picked me up at the airport that night after I finished the reception.

On Saturday we spent the majority of the day photographing the wedding. In between the temple & reception we found a place to have lunch that was featured on Diners, Drive-ins & Dives. It was called Four Kegs & it was pretty Dive-ish! It was delicious to say the least but I would have never picked it from the look of it that's for sure!

Immediately after the reception we raced to The Venetian Hotel to see Phantom of the Opera! We made it with only a few minutes to spare & we even ran into Tyler's friend, Austin! Small world.

This show was INCREDIBLE!!

We had trouble debating on whether to get floor or balcony seats & I am so glad we decided on the balcony because it was the best view for this show! There were so many special effects & the parts with the chandelier were in perfect view. Christine Daea & the Phantom were UNBELIEVABLY talented! I was in awe the entire show & I will admit I got pretty emotional at some parts! I just love the music for this show & to hear it live & so amazingly performed was surreal! Needless to say, I am SO glad we chose to go to this show!

The next day we decided to stick around for a few more hours and do some exploring. We of course had to visit M&M World and I even allowed myself to buy a bag full of them :)

And we stopped inside the Sugar Factory. I had never seen it before so maybe it is new? I'm not sure but the huge hype apparently with this store is the bedazzled lollipops you can buy that Kim Kardashian promotes - haha!

{you can see a girl on the right posing for a pic with her bedazzled lollipop, lol}

We had lunch at America in the NYNY hotel & then we headed to St.George to visit my grandparents and stay the night. I was so excited to see them even though it had only been 3 weeks since my last visit :)

It was such a fun weekend, even though there was some working involved. I'm so blessed that I have opportunities like this with my job!

Moab

2011-08-11T12:29:00.000-07:00

Several months ago, I saw a deal on Groupon for an overnight river rafting trip in Moab. It sounded like so much fun so we told our friends Kaley & Jeremy about it & decided we would all go together! We headed down July 30th & came home on August 1st.

The first day when we arrived, was definitely the hottest part of the day! We decided we would do some hiking & site-seeing.

{Tyler, Me, Kaley & Jeremy}

We did the hike up to the Delicate Arch, which was highest on my priorities of what I wanted to see while we were in Moab.

{Can you see us?}

{Kaley & Jeremy posing for a sun flare shot :)}

A couple other places we saw..

That evening we went to dinner at the Moab Brewery & then walked around & went in all the different shops along the street. We ended the night by grabbing some ice cream & were all thoroughly entertained with Kaley's disaster she created :)

We stayed the night in a tiny little cabin, and in the morning we headed straight to Red River Adventures to start our rafting trip.

I'm bummed I didn't take more pictures but it was just too risky pulling my camera out on the raft. The first day on the river was super chill. For most of the time, we didn't even wear our life jackets. We stopped for lunch on the side of the river - delicious turkey wraps with no details left out.

A couple hours later, we arrived at where we would camp for the night. We hung out & set up our tents & before we knew it dinner was ready. Pasta, veggies, salad & garlic bread. Cheesecake for dessert - definitely not what we expected to be eating while camping!

We hung out & got to know some of the other rafters & then as the sun went down the mosquitoes & gnats came out like a nightmare. They were driving me absolutely crazy so despite the fact that our tent was one million degrees - I just wanted to be inside of it.

We woke up to a "first breakfast" of yogurt, fruit & granola. Then a little bit later we had breakfast sandwiches. Definitely not my typical breakfast routine but we didn't know when we would be able to eat again since we were doing most of the river rapids on this day.

After we got all packed up, we were back on the river.

We were thrilled because this was going to be the most exciting part of our trip.

We went through several rapids & as we were rafting down the river we saw Danny Devito's house, a crazy old car that was upside down from a drunk driving accident several decades ago, & gorgeous scenery.

We approached a rapid called "Dead Dog" which was named because it killed a dog at one point in time.. sad {aren't dogs supposed to be good swimmers?}

At the beginning of the rapid, our guide decided we would try "surfing". I don't really want to try this ever again because I was instantly sucked into the river and stuck under the water being churned over and over. When it finally spit me out I was choking on water only to realize I was headed straight for the rocks & more rapids. I saw Tyler & Jeremy who had fallen in as well & they told me to swim towards the opposite side of the river. It was harder than I imagined it would be & even harder because I kept being hit in the face with more water as I was trying to swim in the rapids. I was starting to panic & I think that's what made me feel as though I was drowning.. scariest moment of my life thus far!

Tyler was lucky & got out quick by finding an eddy in the water. I gave up swimming on my stomach and went in the white water swimming position which is belly up with your legs out in front of you. As soon as I did this and started doing a butterfly motion with my arms I quickly found my way to the other side where I got out on the shore & I won't lie I was pretty upset!

Tyler says he is glad he found me before my guide did or else I probably would have ripped him a new one! haha.. That may be true.. I was worked up for a little while & didn't want to get back on the raft but I did knowing we would be done with the trip pretty soon.

When we got to the end of our trip they made us amazing BLTA's for lunch & then drove us back to downtown Moab. After tipping our guide & changing our clothes we were headed home!

We had a blast, despite my dramatic experience - I know I probably made it a bigger deal than it actually was anyway :)

3 Year Anniversary

2011-07-27T21:24:00.000-07:00

July 25th was our 3 year anniversary!

We were able to celebrate by going shopping at the Park City outlets like we do every year & then we had the opportunity to stay the night at the Homestead Resort in Midway. Thanks to Tim & Megan who we got a gift certificate from, we only paid a total of $8 for everything.

After several hours of shopping, we checked into the Homestead & found our room. It was really nice & cozy. We ate dinner at the restaurant there & splurged for the special occasion. It started to rain as we were eating & didn't stop until the next morning. So we decided after dinner that we would go swimming in the indoor pool & hot tub. We were brave and ventured out to the outdoor hot tub despite the fact that we saw lightening several times.. luckily it wasn't too close :)

I would be lying if I said we slept wonderfully.. we both tossed & turned all night (I think we missed our own bed) & at 2:00am we were awakened by the TV mysteriously turning on! Ya, we were a little freaked out by that!

We woke up & went back to the restaurant for breakfast & I ordered whole grain banana pancakes thinking I was being fairly healthy.. when it came out I couldn't believe my eyes. It was 3 HUGE whole grain pancakes covered in bananas, granola & powdered sugar - with maple syrup to pour on top. I was starving so I attempted to eat some of it.. about 1/3 of the way in, my stomach was NOT happy. I am not used to eating that much sugar so early in the AM. After breakfast we both felt like death & were so very grateful that we don't eat like that on a daily basis!

After breakfast, we went on a walk around the resort to try and burn off the food we had just consumed. Tyler found a lady bug friend & we had fun seeing the Crater. (It's a big hole in the ground with mineral water that you can swim in). We were going to attempt to go golfing.. but decided against it because the course was PACKED.

We loved the Homestead, it was a peaceful place & we are grateful we got to spend our anniversary there together! It's crazy to think that 3 years has already passed since our wedding day.. and even crazier to think that we have been together for almost 5 years!

Here are some pics that I managed to take while celebrating.

Summer time is a special time.

2011-07-20T13:54:00.000-07:00

We love the summer.

Here are a bunch of reasons why.

{FAMILY & FRIENDS}

{DELICIOUS BBQ'S}

{BEING TOGETHER}

{MESSY ICE CREAM FACES}

{COOLING OFF}

{LOVING OUR NIECES & NEPHEW}

{SEEING GRAMMA SMILE WHEN SHE SEES HER GRANDBABIES}

{SPLASHING}

{SWIMMING...even Roxi}

Independence Day

2011-07-11T10:30:00.000-07:00

We had such a fun filled 4th of July this year. It was busy all day long & so much fun being with family & celebrating our country's birthday & our freedom.

We started the day off at the Kaysville Parade.

{Aaron & Meghann}

{Porter loved the parade}

{Porter & Grandpa}

{Ty getting his Porter time :) }

{Karli, Me & Dev}

{Tyler & I}

{Grandma & Priya}

{Micah & Devanee}

{Most of us at the parade}

We all went to my parent's house to spend the rest of the day. Meghann & Aaron had fun with Porter cutting out shapes in watermelon. He loved it!

My Dad filled up a little pool for Porter to have fun playing in with his daddy.

And Micah & Tyler even got in to cool off.

We had so much fun just spending time together!

Tyler & I cooked a couple things dutch oven style. I did most the prep & Tyler did the actual cooking. They turned out so delicious!

While the food was cooking, Porter was wandering around & started heading straight for the dutch ovens - so Tyler ran over to keep him away & in the meantime stepped on a hot coal with his bare foot! OUCH!

Dutch Oven food #1

Cheesy Potatoes

*FYI there are no calories on the 4th of July ;)

We had our traditional homemade vanilla ice cream for dessert.

Along with Dutch Oven food #2

Peach Blueberry Cobbler

We grilled hamburgers, hot dogs & tilapia on the grill. As well as grilled pineapple. And of course yummy watermelon. It was sooo good & even better sharing it with family!

After dinner, we decided to play wiffle ball baseball. With the rule that you could throw the ball at the runner to get them out as well as touch the base.

Not sure if that rule was the best idea because Tyler gave Chase this welt..

And I gave Micah this welt...

When it got dark we sat on the back deck & watched fireworks happening all around us. We could see the fireworks at Davis High, as well as about 5 other areas!

We then set off a bunch of our own fireworks & then started playing around with sparklers...

I got my camera out and decided to make pictures of people drawing things with the sparklers.

It was lots of fun, check out what we got:

{Tyler attempted to write his name. Keep in mind you have to do it backwards}

{I believe this was Micah doing a star}

{This is me writing "Love"}

{Devanee - Peace Sign}

{Karli - Flower}

{Jake & Dev - stick people holding hands}

{My Dad's cool shape}

{Micah's fiery circle}

I always love Independence Day because of how much fun we always have with family & spending quality time together.

I am grateful that we live in this country & have the freedoms we enjoy.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

Bonfire

2011-07-10T09:56:00.001-07:00

Tyler & I had been wanting to build a fire pit in my parent's backyard for quite a while now. The only thing standing in our way was deciding how to build it & where to put it.

Tyler had the majority of a Saturday off work, so we decided it would be a perfect opportunity to finally build it. We wanted to be as cheap as possible, so we decided to just dig a circular hole & lay landscaping bricks around it. We paid about $20 for the bricks & that was all we had to purchase!

It may not be the prettiest, but it does the trick & it will create many many memories I am sure!

{Tyler working hard digging the pit}

{We then of course needed firewood}

{later that night we made Reeses Smores.. Mmm..}

{Carson even joined us for a while}

{Mmm.. ignore my no make up face}

{Micah}

{Devanee & Jake}

{Karli & Chase}

{Tyler & I}

Ragnar 2011

2011-07-06T12:04:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago we ran the Ragnar Wasatch Back Relay. I originally was not going to be running, but 3 days before the race Tyler's brother Kalen crashed his motorcycle & split open his knee. So needless to say, I ran without training!

The Wasatch Back Ragnar this year was 191.7 miles & we ran it with a total of 12 people - with 6 of them being my siblings. I was so proud of my younger siblings for committing to running & not giving up. I know when I was there age, I dreaded running..

We got an insanely late start time of 2:30pm which was pretty much when all the cross country teams were starting - come to find out most teams lie about their 10k times to get an earlier start time. I guess we will know better for next year.

Because I hadn't trained for this race, I ended up getting what is assumed a stress fracture on my left foot so I was unable to run my last leg. Three people from Van 1, including my brother Aaron stepped up & split up my final leg.

It was definitely exhausting, and the no sleeping was really hard. We couldn't find a 15 passenger van to rent like Van 1 did so we had to settle with the cramped Tahoe.. it was pretty miserable to try & sleep in to say the least :)

We will know to book one way in advance for next year!

{Karli & Devanee}

{Tyler finishing his 2nd leg}

{Micah during his 3rd leg}

{1/2 of van 2 - looking ready to be done!}

{Cameron getting ready for his last run}

{Cameron & Tyler tackled this}

{Tyler feeling pretty good as he starts the infamous "Ragnar Hill"}

{They had to snow plow the road just for the race - Look at those walls of snow!}

{The whole team running through the finish line - notice Porter on Aaron's shoulders - he was screaming as his dad was running with him - he was so excited!}

{The team shirt "We've Got Sole" was our team name & my photography business sponsored}

{The whole team}

{Van 1}

{Van 2 minus Cameron - Karli wasn't feeling well after the race so we weren't able to take a van pic until the next day}

{my siblings who ran - Tyler, Me, Micah, Aaron, Karli & Devanee}

A few videos I took during the race:

2011-06-28T14:09:00.000-07:00

This morning as I opened up this little book:

I read just what I needed to.

June 28, 2011

"To be angry is to yield to the influence of Satan. No one can make us angry. It is our choice. If we desire to have a proper spirit with us at all times, we must choose to refrain from becoming angry"

-Thomas S. Monson

"It may not be easy at times, but we can choose to control our emotions and not become angry at people, events, & circumstances. Sometimes people believe their agency or accountability can be suspended when experiencing the heat of an emotion. However, we are still agents, even when we experience life as though we are victims of our emotions. The apostle Paul exhorted, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you" (Ephesians 4:31-32). To be Christlike requires self-regulation. Being agents and being accountable signifies that self-regulation is always available to us, as are repentance and forgiveness. With the Lord's divine assistance and loving grace, we can change, overcome bad habits, put off the natural man, and refrain from becoming angry."

-Lloyd D. Newell

For the past several months, I have been feeling a sense of resentment, stronger at times than others. I felt angry towards certain women/friends for reasons that should be bringing happiness & celebration.

I blamed God for my unhappiness.

How could I want something so bad & be ignored?

Now I know, it was my choice to have these feelings.

I have the agency to choose what kind of spirit I will have.

And I choose God.

Heavenly Father has a plan for each one of us.

It may not be exactly what we had envisioned, or it may not happen on our schedule.

But through faith, we can have peace in knowing that he loves us, that he wants us to be happy.

I'm learning & growing.

Through this experience.. one of the hardest in my life.

I love my Texas familia

2011-06-27T13:36:00.000-07:00

This is my Texas family.

They live in Texas... Duh.

This picture was taken right after baby Olivia's blessing. Which just happens to be the main reason for my visit - but definitely not the only.

I had lots of fun spending quality time with my Texas family & here are some pictures to prove it.

We went to get Olivia's ears pierced.

{She had no idea what she was in for..}

{Poor baby - Emma was scared for her she was clinging to my leg as I was taking this picture}

{but Liv was tough & cried for only a few minutes & then fell fast asleep}

We went to the batting cages.

{love this chees-er}

We got pedicures.

Cody did, too.

We went to an authentic Greek Restaurant - Belly dancer & all!

{Emma was in awe & kept saying "i like that!"}

We had a blast going swimming, being lazy at home, watching Olivia roll over for the first time, shopping, going to the gym & seeing gross guys in booty shorts, & making these videos...

This was taken right before I left for the airport.. I already miss my Texas family :(

Boise & some family fun

2011-06-23T15:17:00.001-07:00

We took a quick 24 hour trip up to Boise a couple weeks ago. It was a lot of driving for one day but we pretty much had no choice in the matter. I was shooting a wedding up there & Tyler came along to help me & to keep me company.

It wasn't all work though, we planned to go to a couple places featured on the Food Network & drive by the Boise Temple.

We ate at Big Juds for lunch which was featured on Man vs Food & is famous for their out of this world huge burgers {see clip below}

We didn't end up getting one of these burgers we shared a regular sized one so that we would have room for dinner later that night. It was pretty tasty but I can think of a lot of other burger places I would put above this one.

After the wedding was over, we went to dinner at Donnie Mac's Trailer Park Cuisine which was featured on Diners, Drive-ins & Dives. {See clip below}

It was definitely our favorite out of the two we visited.

Tyler got the mac n cheese with hot dogs & I got the chicken fried steak sandwich. The mac n cheese wasn't very good but the sandwich - AMAZING! Good thing I'm a nice wifey, and was willing to share ;)

{notice the police officer in the background? When we were walking up to the restaurant we heard the sounds of a terrible car accident probably only 500 feet from where we stood!}

The next day was our newest niece, Priya's, baby blessing. My brother did an amazing job & it is one of the few blessings I have ever cried during.

Afterward, we all went to the park for her big brother, Porter's, 2nd birthday party!

I can't believe he is already 2 - he is growing up too fast!

{my dad proving he is a weirdo}

{Tyler spending some quality time with our niece Avalynn}

Next post is all about my 2nd time this year visiting San Antonio!

Dev. The Graduate.

2011-06-15T12:55:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my littlest sister is officially graduated.

I can't believe it's now been 6 years since Tyler & I graduated.

Crazy to think we are more than halfway to our 10 year reunion. Makes me feel old..

{The graduate - she graduated with high honors - her GPA was something like 3.95}

{You can't see it very well but I drew an arrow pointing to Dev}

{Dev & her bf Jake}

{Proud parents}

{Dev with Aaron, Meghann, Porter & Priya (she's hiding)}

{Sisters}

We are proud of you Devanee! Now on to bigger & better things right? ;)

Ogden Marathon 2011

2011-05-29T11:01:00.000-07:00

Last saturday was the Ogden Marathon & we were able to head up to the course to support my oldest brother Aaron as he ran his first full marathon! Meghann (& Priya), Karli, Tyler & I made it to the halfway point on the course to cheer Aaron on.

{Waiting impatiently to see him!}

{Halfway done & such a huge smile on his face!}

We then headed down to the finish line!

I must admit that being there at the race & seeing all the runners - it made me reminisce about my experience running this same marathon last year. It made me wish I was running it with him. Maybe next year? ;)

{Aaron looking like he's ready to be finished :)}

{Crossing the finish line! Official time was 3 hrs 58 min & he was 36th place out of 466 in his division}

{Aaron exhausted & not feeling too well afterward}

{good thing his daddy was there to take care of him ;)}

{proud wifey}

{proud Porter - so excited to see his Daddy}

Aaron's goal was to finish in 4 hours & I am so proud of him for working & training so hard to not only accomplish his goal but BEAT it. It takes so much dedication to prepare & run a marathon & I am so amazed at how his dedication never waivered. Not only did he train & run 26.2 miles - he did it by himself - something I look up to him for. It is hard to keep motivated when there isn't someone there to encourage you, run with you, know the pains you go through during the whole process. I am so grateful that I was able to be apart of this amazing day for Aaron & he constantly reminds me that I am the reason he was inspired to do it in the first place & that makes me feel amazing :)

Farewell to Davis Softball

2011-05-25T17:47:00.000-07:00

Today was my littlest sister Devanee's last game of her high school career! We've been watching Davis High softball for several years so it's pretty bittersweet to be saying goodbye. Hopefully there will be lots of grand-daughters in the family who will play so we can be involved again in the future.

Dev played all four years & lettered every year. This year they played 3 state tournament games & Dev went 4-4 hitting against Hunter High to help Davis advance to the next game. Devanee also got Academic All Region - such an awesome achievement!

We have another niece!

2011-05-08T10:26:00.000-07:00

Our third niece was born April 15th! And I had to wait almost two whole days to go visit her for the first time! She is the cutest little thing, and we are so excited for Aaron, Meghann & Porter to have added this little girl into their family. We love her so much already!

A little peek at her newborns I did when she was 7 days old!

And a pic of my two little babies :)

I must be a grown up....

2011-05-03T21:34:00.000-07:00

.....because I was beyond excited for our new kitchen appliances to arrive!!

I had to wait a whole WEEKEND in anticipation, it was awful.

Tyler's dad gave up pretty much an entire day to help us (who's joking I can't take credit for any of it) But we definitely couldn't have done it ourselves - so thanks again Jeff!

We made sure to measure the fridge to insure it would fit before we bought it - it was going to be a close call so we were a little nervous when they delivered it. Turns out that it wouldn't fit but we weren't about to give in & go with a smaller fridge. We had to actually grind down some of the tile countertop next to the fridge! It made the BIGGEST mess & there was dust everywhere for DAYS. But in the end - with the help of Jeff yet again - we were able to make it fit!

I am in love with stainless steal - and to make it look even better - I am antique glazing all of the cabinets so stay tuned for that post ;)

Here is a pic of our old appliances to compare.

Priya's Shower

2011-04-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we were able to throw a baby shower for Meghann & Priya since she was having a girl this time around. Lucky for us we held the shower just in time because Priya was born this past Friday night at 9:37pm! We are so happy to welcome another niece into the family!

Anyway, we had lots of yummy food & desserts - thank you to everyone who brought stuff! And Meghann got lots of great gifts.

I had a friend of mine make cupcakes for me in the colors of Priya's nursery. They turned out AMAZING. Thanks Ashley!

{Meghann's mom brought desserts from Granite Bakery, Mmmm....}

{Lucky for us, we got to hang out with little miss Ava the whole time}

{lil miss ava & skinny grandma - I just have to give a shoutout because I am so proud of her - she has lost about 25 lbs since March! Way to go Mom!}

{Most of the guests, there were a few who came and went that aren't pictured}

{Meghann opening some gifts!}

I am so anxious to meet Priya, I haven't been able to see her yet because I had a wedding to photograph all day yesterday so I am counting down the hours until I get to see her TODAY! I'm sure I will have pictures to share soon!

we love our dogs THIS much

2011-04-04T21:41:00.000-07:00

Our bed is pretty tall.. our dogs are very small.

They whine and they weap, because they can't leap

as high as this bed does stand.

So we build them a ramp, so they'll feel like a champ

when they can do it all on their own.

What wouldn't we do for a our sweet little things?

After all, we love to treat them like kings!

So now everyone's happy & without getting sappy..

I adore my lil' family of four.

I've gotta be honest. I can't take any credit for this ramp. It was all Tyler.

He drew up the plan for this bad boy - it even folds up and slides underneath the bed!

I am grateful for a husband who is creative, hardworking, and handy.

our last day in San Antonio

2011-04-01T12:24:00.000-07:00

Our final day in San Antonio was jam packed. We woke up early to make it to the San Antonio LDS Temple and it was so beautiful! I absolutely loved all the stained glass. It was super busy which was awesome to see.

Then we headed to our last "food network" restaurant - Chunky's

It was featured on Man vs. Food for it's Four Horseman burger.

Cody, Laura's hubby, decided he wanted to attempt this challenge while we were there.

{cute Laura}

{read the words in this death wish.. I would have backed out at this point}

{Cody before the torture started}

{if you eat the entire burger and keep it down for 5 min then you get your picture on the wall}

{this burger contains ghost chilis, like the hottest pepper in the world! On the hottness scale a jalepeno is like a 10 and the ghost chili is like 1 million! Cody had to wear gloves so that the burger wouldn't burn his hands}

Cody managed to eat 2/3 of the burger and then couldn't keep it down any longer. He went outside and puked his guts out, almost literally. He looked MISERABLE.

He later expressed that it was the most painful thing he has ever experienced, worse than breaking his ankle!

We are convinced they put extra chilis on his than on the one they gave the guy on the TV show, because it was loaded with them & if you've seen the show it doesn't look as loaded. But that's just what we think...

{what was left of the burger}

You can watch the video of him doing the challenge at the bottom of the post.

We hurried home so I could take newborn photos of sweet Olivia. Our flight left at 5pm so I had about an hour to do most of her pics (I had done a few the day before as well) I wish we would have had more time, but Olivia just did not want to cooperate every time we tried. Luckily she slept super well for me at my last attempt & we got some darling images.

Here is one I'll share :)

Taking a step outside the city

2011-03-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, we had the opportunity to drive just outside San Antonio to a place called Gruene which is near New Braunfels. Tyler's great aunt, Lisa & hubby live in New Braunfels & we met them at an amazing place for dinner. When we drove into Gruene, it was quite surprising. It was a drastic scenery change from the city. It had quaint little stores & buildings with an 'old time' feel to them. When we got near the restaurant, there was NO where to park nearby so we ended up parking about a quarter mile away in a dirt parking lot. The place we ate at was called Gristmill & I wish I would have taken a pic before the sun went down because this pic doesn't do it justice at all.

This place is HUGE & I couldn't believe how many people were there and all the tables everywhere. We asked our waiter if this was considered "busy" and he laughed and said "not at all - in the summer we have about a 3-4 hour wait & 80 waiters on duty at one time!" We were shocked when we heard him say this because we had never been to a restaurant so big and popular! Lisa made sure to request our table be down by the river which I was happy about because it was a great view from where we were eating. The food was great & Tyler said it was the best steak he has ever had. We definitely got spoiled by Lisa & Stan because they paid for our meal & we know it was pretty pricey - so thank you again you guys! We loved seeing you & were so glad we got to experience this place!

You might recognize this place pictured below. If you've ever seen the movie Michael with John Travolta - it's in that movie!

The next day, we got to drive outside the city yet again to Atkins, which was more of a cowboy country feel. We found another restaurant that was featured on Diners, Drive-ins & Dives there called Texas Pride Barbecue. Before we left on our trip I had been watching Groupon for food deals we could use in San Antonio & this was one of them I purchased!

We were way excited to eat here because we had heard such good things about their food & Tyler & I are both big fans of barbecue. We walked in & it's such a laid back place. You told the meat cutter what types of meat you wanted and he would cut it & throw it on butcher paper & into a glass bottle crate & send you on your way. There are no plates so you just eat off the butcher paper! We got brisket, chicken, sausage & ribs (and shared of course). Tyler & I decided the ribs were our favorite - they were so moist & just fell off the bone. Well needless to say, they did not disappoint, the food was AMAZING! And we got peach cobbler for dessert, that was so delicious!

Here are a few pictures of the place.

They had a live band playing

One of the coolest things about this place is the parking attendant... just a guy on his horse!

{Emma being brave & petting the horse}

It was so nice being able to see a different side of Texas than what we had been seeing in the city. It was nice to experience what I had imagined Texas would be like!

Downtown San Antonio

2011-03-24T11:31:00.000-07:00

Tyler & I spent one of our days in downtown San Antonio. The most annoying part was parking, it took us at least a half hour to find a place to park. We went to see the Alamo & the Riverwalk. We also wandered around at the huge mall & even went to a movie. We ate at two delicious restaurants for lunch and dinner right on the Riverwalk. It was a great day for just the two of us!

{the mall}

{it was refreshing to see flowers after such a long winter in Utah}

{we ate lunch at Hard Rock Cafe because I had never been}

{the riverwalk}

{the Alamo}

I had to throw these two pictures in because they are so adorable & I miss them already.

{miss olivia}

{emma - in the outfit I brought her}

Texas: Laura's Birthday!

2011-03-22T19:16:00.000-07:00

Tyler flew into San Antonio on Sunday night & I was SO excited after being away from him for a WHOLE week & I was looking forward to spending an entire week just hanging out with him & our friends. Monday was Laura's birthday and we celebrated by going to dinner & then back to the house for cake & presents. Me being the dedicated Groupon addict found a groupon for a little mexican restaurant called Marianito's. If you've been following our blog for a while you might have caught on that Tyler & I love going to restaurants that are featured on the food network {diners, drive-ins & dives, man vs food, outrageous foods} This place was featured on Outrageous Foods for it's massive 7 lb burrito eating challenge. Tyler ordered the mini version of it & could barely eat half of it.

{the birthday girl}

{this place is also famous for their fried oreos}

{we had to give them a taste - Laura ate 4}

{Tyler with his new bff Emma}

{the party}

{they let everyone write comments onto the wall about the restaurant so we thought we'd leave ours}

{Laura & Cody had never had better than sex cake so I chose to make it for her bday - it was a hit!}

I'm so glad that I was able to be there for Laura's birthday - it's been quite a few years since I've been able to!

I'm an auntie, again!

2011-03-11T20:14:00.000-08:00

I had the opportunity to take 2 weeks and fly out to Texas to be with my bestie as she delivered her second baby girl yesterday! We headed to the hospital around 11:00pm on the 9th and Laura, Cody & I ended up walking around the halls for 2 hours to help move things along quicker. She got admitted around 1:30am and progressed quickly! She had her epidural around 2:30am and by 4:35am she was ready to push. Lucky girl pushed for only 8 minutes!

Olivia Ryan

March 10, 2011

4:43 am

8 lb 1 oz

20.25 inches

Olivia and Laura are doing fabulous and are expected to be home tomorrow - yay!

Meanwhile we have been loving our days chillin' in the hospital room, chatting, laughing & admiring a beautiful new baby!

Congratulations Laura & Cody!! You make beautiful little girls!!

Size Sexy

2011-03-05T12:30:00.000-08:00

I started a blog in an effort to help not only myself stay dedicated. But also help others become educated about living in health & to hopefully help in their journey of weight loss & lifestyle change. Take a peek & follow if you want :)

http://sizesexie.blogspot.com

birthday update :)

2011-03-05T10:35:00.000-08:00

so I feel a little bad about my birthday post, I was in a funk & I think I just wanted to feel sorry for myself for a minute. My family made my bday last about 2 weeks with little get togethers. Last weekend I was able to go to Pepper Bellys with my fam & Ty & we took fried ice cream to go. We met up with my brother Aaron's family and enjoyed cupcakes & the ice cream and I was finally sung Happy Birthday :) My mom got me a Jillian Michael's workout DVD & yoga mat, Dev got me a Yogotogo giftcard, Aaron's family got me a beautiful simon dewey picture of Christ, and Tim's family got me a cute sweater! (Can't forget that I got my awesome camera a month ago from my hubby & a case for it from Karli & Chase). Tyler's family got me tickets to see Hairspray at the new theater in Centerville which I enjoyed going to this past week with Amy (Tyler's Mom) & my Mom! I got lots of cards in the mail & money from Ty's grandparents & my cute friend Desiree got me some adorable flowers.{pictured below} On Sunday, Tyler and I had a fun day going to his parent's to celebrate Kalen's birthday. I made a caramel brownie cheesecake for him & it ended up being delicious! {pictured below} Then we headed over to my parent's house for my last bday celebration where I got sung to AGAIN :) but this time I got to blow out candles! My Mom made 'better than sex cake' and it did not disappoint!

Thank you to everyone who made my birthday SO great, I am grateful for each and every one of you & it feels great to be so loved by such amazing people.

Antique Glazing

2011-02-26T14:11:00.000-08:00

Over the last week I took on a project which is a preliminary project to the one I am planning on taking on. I wanted to make sure I liked it enough to do it on ALL my kitchen cabinets. So before ruining my kitchen, I decided to give it a trial run on my laundry room cabinets. Pictured below you can kind of see the cabinets before. They were just a boring golden oak (this is how all the cabinets in the house are). Special thanks to my friend Nicole for giving me the idea & giving me pointers on how to get it done. And another thanks goes out to the random guy who's youtube video helped me tremendously :)

First I took all the doors off & handles. Then I primed everything twice with KILZ. (I found it easiest to use the spray paint on the doors since I could take them outside). Then I got a high gloss latex paint and had it colored ANTIQUE WHITE. I only had to go over everything once because the primer did so well. I let everything dry overnight just to be safe.

Then I got an awesome oil based glaze from Benjamin Moore in Kaysville (they are awesome there & helped me out) and the guy tinted it to be VERY dark brown.

I learned that using an oil based glaze is best because it doesn't dry as quickly as latex so you have more time to work and make things perfect. You also have up to an hour to remove with water.

{Pictured below is the doors after paint, before glaze}

I just used cheap foam brushes for all my painting. I painted with the glaze all over where the cracks on the doors are & then using a very damp cloth I wiped off all the excess. It's not important to be careful when applying the glaze because it wipes off super easy. You just want to make sure you get it into those cracks super good so that even when you wipe along the cracks the glaze stays in there where you want it to be.

If the cabinets are somewhere used frequently you should go over them with a clear coat so that the glaze doesn't wear off over time. I chose not to do that with these ones since they are in my laundry room but with my kitchen I will be sure to!

{Picture below is the cabinets all finished!}

What do you think?!

Happy 24th bday to Rach!

2011-02-26T09:22:00.000-08:00

My birthday this year was quite boring. I was still sick with the flu so my older siblings didn't want to bring their families up to celebrate with the chance of getting the kids sick. So needless to say we never really celebrated my bday. The highlight of my birthday was all the birthday wishes I received on facebook, a sign made for me by my family & dinner at Red Robin which made me feel sick & the cupcake they brought me made me feel even more sick just by looking at it. Thank you to all my grandparents for the cards in the mail & thank you to those who got me gifts, I appreciated them!

Hope my 24th year gets better than it's been so far - haha - I'm getting old!

{the sign my family made me & hung out their garage}

Valentines Dinner

2011-02-25T18:06:00.001-08:00

We had a fun Valentines dinner with some of our family at Bandidos (One of Tyler's most favorite restaurants currently) I took a photo of each couple just to remember this day and remember how loved I am and how much I love my husband and family!

I was sick so I hardly ate a thing but I didn't want to miss out on the fun :)

Feelin' the love

2011-02-14T14:38:00.000-08:00

My husband is so sweet.

Even though I knew what he was up to when he told me he "forgot his socks" as an excuse to have to come home in between school & work.

I was still surprised that the flowers were SO beautiful.

And I never expected 3 perfect cupcakes.

We shared one together {not pictured}

He knows how to make a sick girl feel better on Valentines Day. Now if only I had the strength to do something thoughtful for him..

I love you Tyler, more than you know. You are my best friend & you make me so happy. I can't wait to see what life has in store for us!

My dad never forgets his girls on Valentines Day either.. a single rose speaks volumes from a father to his daughter. I love you too Daddy!

I'm sharing a secret...

2011-02-06T22:02:00.000-08:00

For the past while I have been putting my cooking skills to the test every night making homemade meals for my family at my parent's house. It's great practice for my future family & I have come to enjoy it a lot! I think Tyler likes it too, because he gets a home cooked meal every night when he comes home from work.

Well for those of you who know me you know that I am a crazy psycho about eating healthy. Don't get me wrong I don't forget to indulge a little every once in a while but for 90% of the time I am pretty darn strict. So how do I come up with yummy healthy dinners you ask?

Meet my secret weapons...

These beauties are my favorite cookbooks so far that I've obtained. Prerequisites are that they must contain meals for 400 calories or less, use wholesome ingredients, & taste delicious!

...and boy have they yet to disappoint.

Some favorite meals pictured below.

{Buffalo Chicken Blue Cheese Sandwiches}

{Chicken fried steak with turkey sausage gravy}

{Loaded Nachos}

{Lasagna}

{Chicken Noodle Soup}

Other favorites:

*A-1 Swiss burgers

*Cheesy Turkey Enchiladas

*Apple butter pork chops

*General Tso's chicken

*Chicken nuggets & steak fries

*Chicken Parmesan pizza

*Fettuccine Alfredo

*Baked potato soup

*Chicken pot pie

*Mac n' cheese

*Crouton breaded chicken

*Spaghetti w/ meatballs

*Spaghetti Carbonara

*Chicken Cordon Bleu

*Bacon burgers

I know you're probably asking yourself, "how on earth can these be healthy meals?!"

They are.

And since I know you don't believe me.. I DARE you to go buy one or all of these books & see for yourself.

You can thank me later..

{happy birthday to me}

2011-01-23T09:51:00.000-08:00

My family often teases me about getting presents on other sibling's birthdays. Apparently when I was younger I seemed to always receive gifts on my other sibling's birthdays. I don't remember this but it is a general consensus in the family that it truly did happen.

Well this year I will admit that this statement, whether true or false, has become a reality.

On January 19th, aka Devanee's 18th birthday, I received this beauty...

{Canon S95}

My husband's birthday gift to me. What a nice husband.

& this...

{a leather case}

from sister Karli & bf Chase. What a nice sister & bf.

Before you form a negative assumption about this selfish indulgence..

Let me tell you - I have been searching EVERYWHERE for this camera..

It was out of stock in EVERY store in Utah.

SO I was anxious to get my hands on the first one I could find.

This camera was the last one left at Pictureline & I barely snagged it in the nick of time..

POPULAR much?

As it should be.

I love you Canon S95, you make me happy about throwing my Samsung at the wall.

Devanee's 18th Birthday

2011-01-20T10:09:00.000-08:00

So yesterday was my littlest sister Devanee's 18th birthday! It made me feel old because I swear I just turned 18. It was a busy day for most of us running around doing things in honor of Dev's bday. Karli & I made a huge sign to put on the garage of my parents home (sorry forgot to take a pic) then we went to Davis High & found her car with the help of her boyfriend Jake. We decorated it & filled it with balloons!

Later that night we had a homemade meal, Devanee's choice, of Chicken Cordon Bleu, salad & carrots. It was DELICIOUS!

Karli & my mom were the master chefs for the evening. I made the carrots.

{The birthday girl with niece Avalynn}

{Big girl Emerie with her daddy}

{Everyone hung out & enjoyed each other's company}

{My mom & Karli slaving away}

{Dev was spoiled with lots of presents!}

{When each of us girls in the family turned 18, my Dad got us a special keepsake with our names engraved. Usually some type of jewelry box & inside is a necklace with our name or initial}

{Dev & Jake}

{We picked up yummy cupcakes from Cutsie Cakes in Layton}

{Mine & Tyler's picks - Peanut butter & Red velvet - mmm...}

Only one sibling left to turn 18 & officially be an adult. Crazy how fast life seems to fly by..

I'll leave you with this video of Roxi from last night :)

LG Quantum

2011-01-09T20:13:00.000-08:00

**UPDATE-- THIS PHONE HAS BEEN SOLD! **

This is probably way lame to do this again, but it worked last time so I am willing to try again. But I promise I will try to make a habit of not just posting when I am trying to sell something!

Tyler won a brand new cell phone through another contest at work & so we are trying to sell it. It is the new LG Quantum which is one of the new Windows 7 phones from AT&T.

It is a slider, with a full QWERTY keyboard.

It has a 16 GB memory, a 5 megapixel camera & it also does video.

Asking $375 or best offer.

It really looks like an awesome phone so if you're interested or know someone who is, send us a text (801) 628-6261.

TV anyone?

2011-01-05T12:11:00.000-08:00

*UPDATE**** IT HAS BEEN SOLD!

Tyler, being the amazing salesman that he is, won, yet again, a BIG SCREEN TV at work.

This would be great, only it seems that we are running out of room in our home for these monsters.

So that's where you come in, or your mom, aunt, cousin, friend - whoever!

We are selling this monster for $998 OBO.

It is a 55" LCD Vizio - still in original box - NEVER opened.

Call/Text (801) 628-9772

Email rachael@gelter.com

...Christmas 2010

2010-12-31T11:01:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year, jam packed with family, presents, food, & fun. I always love the Christmas season with the music, the decorations & the reason we celebrate it.

{our Christmas tree}

*it looks better all lit up but this was taken during the day

{We always put all the cards we get up on our back door windows so that we are constantly reminded of how lucky we are to know so many wonderful people}

We decided not to do a huge Christmas for each other this year so we got a few things.

I got Tyler the new book by Jay-Z called Decoded. He got me books as well, a new cookbook (yay!) & He Shall Fulfill All of His Promises by Lloyd D. Newell.

We also purchased this..

{Finally decided on a new comforter!}

On Christmas day, we are always awakened by Tyler's bro Carson telling us to get up & come over so that everyone can open gifts. So this year was the same & we were up at 7:30am.

{Tyler's family's humongous tree}

{We decided to get Tyler's family lots of gifts this year, this is the pile we gave them}

{I printed and framed a bunch of the family pictures we took back in October for Amy}

{We got Braden his dream gift, a Kevin Durant Jersey}

{Kalen was so excited to get the Curious George 2 movie}

{One of our gifts to Jeff was 6 months of Netflix}

{We got Carson the NERF gun he wanted, it's HUGE}

This is my favorite picture of the day, Tyler captured Amy opening the new computer monitor from us & as you can see she was shocked. She was in dyer need of a new one.. the one it replaced was ancient, huge & weighed about 80 lbs!

We got season tickets again to the Desert Star Theater from Amy & Jeff. I had told them it was all I wanted! I enjoyed going this past year with them & it's something we can all have fun together doing.

After we were finished opening gifts, we ate German pancakes for breakfast, yum! And then relaxed for a bit before it was time to head over to my parent's house to start making "brunch" which was the traditional Aeblskivers.

My Mom had to work a graveyard shift the night before so this was perfect timing for her waking up & having breakfast ready.

* I am super bummed because Tyler & I left our camera at home on accident in between his family & my family's get togethers..

After we ate we all exchanged secret santa gifts. Tyler had Aaron & he got him a water belt for running. I had Devanee who I made a big print of one of her senior portraits & had it framed. Megan had me & I got a UofU snuggie (yay!) & Tim had Tyler & got him a movie bundle from the Megaplex with vouchers for tickets, popcorn, drinks & lots of candy.

We then did stockings & then opened gifts from my parents. They always outdo themselves & we are always SO spoiled on Christmas. Tyler had to get used to this when he joined our family because his family is kind of the opposite!

We got spoiled with clothes, new tools, a new blender I had been wanting, gift certificates - I got a new purse & shoes & I can't even think of everything because there was too much!

We got my Dad a digital photo frame which he loved. And my Mom we had a print made of our family portrait taken in October & had it framed.

We then got to go to Tyler's grandparent's house for Christmas dinner. It was great to see lots of Tyler's Aunts, Uncles & cousins that we only see a few times a year.

Now that Christmas is over, we can reflect on the past year & make new goals that we want to accomplish in the new year. Tyler and I have made a couple & we are SO excited to accomplish them! Here's to 2011! Happy New Year everyone!

Scavenger Hunt & Sugar Cookies!

2010-12-29T11:21:00.000-08:00

Last year we started a tradition of having a scavenger hunt around Christmas time. The past two years it has been at the Gateway in SLC. Last year Tim & Megan organized it, this year it was Aaron & Meghann's turn. Of course, Tyler couldn't make it again this year so I was paired up with my lil bro, Micah. I was totally fine with this because he & I were team mates last year & we totally kicked butt & won 1st place!

We all get a list of things we have to find. Some are physical items we have to bring back & some are things we have to take pictures with. Micah is a trooper because I make him pose for every single picture. Here are just a couple from this year...

{Picture with a "build - a - bear"}

{Picture with a hat (most clever wins the extra credit point & I am happy to report that this beauty from Urban Outfitters won us that extra point!)}

We always have started & ended at Barnes & Noble. While we were meeting back there we just happened to run into Elder Holland who was shopping there. I saw him shopping around & had to look at him a few times before I really realized it was him.

Devanee & her bf Jake were outgoing enough to go up to him & say Hi, I guess I am a coward but I just tell myself that I was respecting his space :)

Anyway, they got this picture with him & it won them an extra credit point for "picture with a genius" on the scavenger hunt.

Well after all the scores were tallied, Tim & Megan came out on top & won 1st place. Micah & I were slackers this year coming in at 3rd. Oh well there is always next year...

On Christmas Eve, Tyler & I left his family party at his grandma's a little early so that we could decorate sugar cookies at my parent's house. It was lots of fun & they were yummy too. We decided to dye the frosting neon colors which made them look extra fabulous :)

I apologize yet again for the horrible quality of the pictures. My iPhone just isn't the same as my 5D..

{a few I decorated}

Temple Square

2010-12-26T11:47:00.000-08:00

We went to see the lights at Temple Square this year on December 23rd. We couldn't believe how many people were there. We literally had a hard time walking around! I am sure all those out of towner's visiting family for Christmas were there & that is why it was so hectic.. so next year we will be sure to go earlier in the month!

{My beautiful sisters & I}

{Tyler & I}

{Devanee & Karli}

{Tyler & I, again}

I am grateful we live so close to this beautiful place and that we can visit often. The lights were beautiful but every time I see the Salt Lake Temple at night I am reminded of it's magnificence & meaning. I truly cannot believe such a gorgeous structure was build so long ago & with so much patience over 40 years by those constructing it. I can only imagine the way the saints must of felt going into this temple for the very first time. I am also so very grateful that Tyler and I were sealed together here!

...Happy Holidays!...

2010-12-24T11:09:00.000-08:00

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas & may we all remember Christ & his birth at this special time of year! Tyler & I are so grateful for all that we have been blessed with this past year & we hope that this season finds you all happy & well!

Love,

The Gapinski's

Tyler's Birthday

2010-12-21T11:57:00.000-08:00

First of all, I am going to have to apologize for the horrible pictures. They were taken with my iPhone so the quality is far from perfect. Tyler had more of a birthday week rather than just one day.

We started of the week on Sunday by having his favorite turkey enchiladas as his parent's house with the biggest chocolate mint cake my eyes have ever seen.

Monday we had the privilege of going to the executive suite for the Jazz game.

This would be what we ate while watching the Jazz dominate Memphis. Not to mention the amazing desserts at halftime. Thank you Tyler for winning a contest at work!

Tuesday was his actually birthday but it was a busy busy day for him. He had to work (BOO!) & then had to go to his night class (BOO, again). So by the time he was home to celebrate it was nearing 9pm. We had loaded nachos waiting for him to eat &....

A delicious carrot cake.

It may not be the best looking carrot cake, but for my first ever attempt, I will give it a thumbs up.

(Do you like the ghetto coca-cola plate it's on? Haha.. lets just say I didn't think about the fact that the cake was going to be stuck on this plate for good when I started icing it.)

Tyler got one HUGE present from everyone. Maybe huge is the wrong word?

It was quite expensive -

He got an electric keyless start installed in his car & he had no clue!

(He also got the awesome Ute shirt he is wearing from Tim & Megan & "the best socks ever" from me.)

Funny story about getting the electric start installed.

I had been worrying for almost the whole week prior to his birthday, how I was going to get him to take my car to work on his birthday. I knew he would be suspicious no matter what excuse I pulled & the best one I thought of (Hun, take my car to work since it's in the garage & not covered in ice) wasn't working out too well because it had been SO WARM the past several days.

SO.. on his birthday I woke up early to make him a nice breakfast in bed which included a cinnamon roll (he craves these from time to time yet never gets them because they aren't allowed in my house, haha). While I was downstairs cooking, I took his car keys and hid them in a VERY good hiding place. My hopes were that he would look for his keys, not be able to find them & then take my car to work.

Well the plan worked but not until I tried for 30 minutes to convince him to just TAKE MY CAR ALREADY!

He was looking everywhere imaginable & I swear if I would have let him look for 5 more minutes he would have found them.

After he finally left, I hurried & got ready so I could take his car in by 10am. While I was driving to the place, I get a call from Tyler hysterical. He had MISSED his marketing FINAL EXAM. What? How could this happen? Well, come to find out it was the teacher's fault he had missed it, he failed to tell Tyler the right dates when Tyler asked him. SO, luckily he was allowing him to take the test but by noon THAT day. (Great!)

No... not great.. Tyler was coming HOME! His car.. it's not AT home. He is going to wonder- what am I supposed to say? This is a disaster.

I don't know how, but somehow I convinced him to come to my parent's house to get his backpack & then he went & took his test & went back to work.

{Relief}

When Tyler got home that night & opened his present it all made sense to him why his keys were missing. It was quite funny to see the look on his face when the present he opened was just his car keys. But needless to say, he was very happy with his birthday gift & he is getting better at remembering to use it!

On Thursday, we went to Tucanos with Aaron, Meghann, Porter, Karli & Chase to celebrate yet again! We had to use his free meal coupon he got for his birthday :) Good excuse right?

Well it was yummy & I enjoyed getting plenty of cuddles from my nephew during dinner.

I can't speak for Tyler but I assume he had a fabulous birthday this year, minus the stress of finals week of course :)

November

2010-12-17T11:39:00.000-08:00

We didn't have a very eventful November but of course if I stayed up to date on this blog maybe I'd remember more from this month. There was, of course, Thanksgiving to look forward to.

We had Thanksgiving this year at my parent's house. Tyler's family goes to Island Park each year & have Thanksgiving dinner and stay a week in cabins. They also go there to get Christmas trees & the past few years they have been generous enough to bring home extra trees for Tyler & I but also my parent's as well. We wish we could go up at least every other year with them but because of Tyler working in retail, the day after Thanksgiving (aka Black Friday) is a must work day for him.

I did a lot of cooking this year which I didn't mind at all. I enjoy it.

I made 2 pies, one pumpkin & one apple. Tyler & I made the mashed potatoes & deviled eggs. My little sister Karli was a master chef this Thanksgiving, she did the turkey! She also made banana cream pie, chocolate satin pie & creamed corn to name a few.

I really wish I would have taken pictures on Thanksgiving & I have no excuses as to why I didn't.

But it was a fun day & I loved spending it with Tyler & my family.

In November we also had the opportunity to help out my good friend Dustin Izatt. He was teaching a photography workshop & needed us to "model" for him & his students for a mentoring session. We gladly accepted & I have posted a few of the photos we have received from a couple of the students.

[warning - if you don't like to see kissing you may want to close the page now :) ]

{we watched Tyler's family's dogs while they were out of town & I took this picture with my phone because it was so cute. Toby & Roxi finally accepted Brian (he is actually Roxi's baby from her last litter) & they were all curled up on the doggy bed together napping}

Halloween

2010-12-13T22:20:00.000-08:00

Before I tell you all about our Halloween this year, I have to give a shout out that on October 17th we became an aunt & uncle yet again. My brother Tim & his wife Megan added a second daughter to their family, Avalynn. She's super tiny & super beautiful... see for yourself...

{I painted this owl for Avalynn's homecoming}

HALLOWEEN

Halloween this year was pretty much the same as usual. We didn't buy any candy because no one (& I mean NO ONE) comes to our townhome. So like every year, we go to my parent's house to hang out & help out. Every year my Dad grills hot dogs on the bbq & hands them out to the trick-or-treaters. We also make hot chocolate & for those who only want candy.. well we have that, too. :)

Tyler helped grill most the hot dogs this year & I think the grand total was around 100 hot dogs.

After the trick-or-treaters died down, Tyler & I went to our friends & watched The Fourth Kind. It was SUPER strange.

{Carson (Ty's little bro) always comes over for a hot dog- he also always dresses up as a football player}

{He always gets the chicks}

{Tyler grilling his heart out}

{A few of the pumpkins we carved}

{my pumpkin, Bob}

{We also made caramel apples this year & they were SO delicious}

Happy Birthday Tyler!

2010-12-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

It's my love's birthday today! He is so stinkin' old, 23!

And even though he has to take a final exam, go to work & then go to his last night class - I hope that today is still an amazing day.

Mostly because there is a SURPRISE for him when he gets home & there is a carrot cake baking in the oven.

I love you Ty!

...The Gelter's

2010-12-04T10:14:00.001-08:00

These were taken one week before Miss Avalynn was born so believe it or not these are already out dated.. just an excuse to do it again soon I suppose! :) But even though she will deny it, I think Megan looks absolutely fabulous at 9 months pregnant- wouldn't you agree?

Meet my cute family.

Gapinski Family Photos 2010

2010-11-30T21:56:00.000-08:00

Back in October we had the chance to take some family photos before it got too cold. We actually did both my family & Tyler's family on the same evening which worked out SO great! I will post my side's photos next but first here is a few of the GAPINSKI'S...

A recent project!

2010-11-21T13:37:00.001-08:00

So a couple months ago I had the random desire to redo a chair that I could use when I shoot family portraits. I didn't want to spend a lot of money but I wanted the end result to not be just a boring white chair. I asked my cute friend Emily Flannery for some words of advice & she helped me a lot!

I started by finding a plain old kitchen chair from DI for $5

The hard part was sanding all the shine (top coat) off of the whole chair. With all the little nooks and creases it made it very tedious.

I had pre-determined that I wanted the chair to be gray & white to easily match anything I may want to use it for. So after I finished sanding I painted the entire chair with gray primer spray paint.

After it dried, the next step was to coat the entire chair with crackle glaze.

After the glaze had dried it was time to paint the white top coat.

It was pretty cool to watch the paint crackle as I was going over with the white paint. The nice thing was that I didn't have to be too careful about making everything look perfect because the end result I wanted was for a weathered old look.

After it dried, I sanded some of the edges of chair just for effect & then put a clear sealant top coat so that the paint wouldn't chip off with use.

And the end result...

I really loved learning how to redo this chair. It wasn't difficult but it took time. The end result made all the time well worth it!

On a side note... Did you guys see this sunset the other night?? GORGEOUS

The Buddy Walk

2010-11-11T16:56:00.000-08:00

Dang.. I'm behind.

Every year we have the privilege of going to the Buddy Walk to honor our amazing nephew who has downs. It's such an awesome time & we enjoy spending time together as a family.

I was also super happy that Tyler was able to attend this year.

We enjoyed a concert put on by Signing Time which is a DVD series and TV show that teaches kids sign language. Kids with down syndrome do well with sign language and my brother and sister in law have been doing such a great job at teaching Porter.

{Emerie enjoying the concert}

{Porter Ray enjoying time with Daddy during the concert}

{The Signing Time crew}

{Isn't he just the cutest?!}

{Em & Karli during the walk}

{Em & Chase}

{Waiting patiently for lunch..}

{Devanee enjoying her cotton candy}

{Tim & Megan enjoyed it as well}

{Tyler & I}

{Dev found some sweet glasses & decided to give them a try}

{Dev, Em & Karli enjoying the huge blow up slide}

This was such a great day, and we have always looked forward to the Buddy Walk every year. We are so blessed to have such an amazing nephew - he is such an incredible guy & we are so excited to watch him grow up! WE ARE LUCKY.

Home FOR SALE!

2010-10-23T15:04:00.000-07:00

Our townhouse is up for sale!

So.. tell your friends :)

It is located in Layton right on the Kaysville/Layton border.

It is approximately 1200 square feet - 3 bedrooms & 1.5 bathrooms.

$139,900

Take a peek inside...

{View into the living room from the entryway}

{Custom built gas fireplace in living room}

{Living Room}

{Kitchen Area with doors that go out to the backyard}

{Kitchen}

{Laundry room}

{Half Bathroom - downstairs}

Can you see me standing on the toilet in my PJs? :)

{View of part of the stairs}

{Hallway upstairs}

{Full bathroom - upstairs}

{A glimpse of the Master bedroom - it's a lot bigger & has a walk-in closet}

{Bedroom #2}

*I don't have a photo of Bedroom #3 because it is full of photography props and backdrops because I use it as my studio currently. It has new wood flooring, is painted an off-white/beige and has a walk-in closet.

The house has been recently painted, & has cast iron railings, light fixtures & faucets.

We also got brand new carpet after these photos were taken!

Call or text Tyler if you are interested & would like to come see it!

(801) 628-6261

P.S. Can you find Roxi in 3 of these photos?

California: Santa Monica, Disneyland & Corona Del Mar {Post 2 of 2}

2010-10-18T20:20:00.000-07:00

The last few days in California were spent visiting the Santa Monica Pier, Disneyland & California Adventures, and also visiting Corona Del Mar.

The easiest way to document is of course by pictures so scroll down & see how much fun we had!

[Santa Monica]

{A guy parked his bike to grab some lunch.. there's 4 parrots on it! They were chatting away at all the people passing & didn't try to leave or anything - those are some well trained birds!}

{Jelly fish in the Santa Monica Aquarium}

{We got our names painted by a talented guy on the pier}

{The Bronze Robot Man - so much better to see in person}

We had the privilege to see Arthur Nakane 1 Man Band at the Santa Monica Pier. Some of you may recognize him from being on America's Got Talent and Jimmy Kimmell.

He sang two songs for us - one dedicated to Devanee, Me & Tyler {video below} & one dedicated to my parents {video also below}

It was quite interesting to say the least.

{Dev had to have her picture taken with him}

{the view from where we sat and soaked it all in}

{Porter did a lot of sleeping in the car.. this was one of those times.. extra cute}

One of the nights we ate at Mama Cozza's in Anaheim. We wanted to make this a priority because it was featured on one of our favorite shows "Diners, Drive-ins & Dives". It was INCREDIBLY delicious italian food & it was quite the experience.

{I was extremely hyper at dinner & Karli got proof.. Poor Tyler was prob so embarrassed to claim me.. haha}

[Disneyland. California Adventures]

{Karli found her inner 5 yr old on the way to Disneyland, she wanted to re-enact what it would have been like going as a child}

{It's a Small World ride.. Tyler's worst nightmare}

{Devanee is stoked}

{Porter showing us how cool he is}

{Me being sarcastically excited to be riding the teacups}

{Porter's first ride!}

{From a distance: Dev, Karli, Micah & Chase about to have the ride of their life}

{Me, Mom & Ty}

{Another fun ride we got to experience with Porter}

The last day of the trip we decided to head out to Corona Del Mar & try to take some family pics for Aaron & Meghann. It had been overcast over the past several days so we were banking on that being the case.. but it was bright and sunny which wasn't ideal for photos but it was still beautiful there.

{Karli, Me & Dev}

{Tyler & I}

We had such a blast on our vacation & it was so great to be with able to spend all day everyday with each other. Once we got home we went through withdrawals because we had to go back to hardly ever seeing each other. It was rough but we just look forward to Sundays and our NEXT vacation ;)

California: Disneyland Marathon {Post 1 of 2}

2010-10-08T09:21:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of September we got to go on a vacation to California for a week with most of my side of the family. {We missed you Tim, Megan & Emerie!} Some of us drove & we were the lucky ones because we got to see my Grandma & Grandpa in St.George and stay a night with them. I drove my younger siblings and it was quite fun! We had to stop along the way to get a picture by this sign---

{Chase, Devanee, Micah, Karli}

{Dev, Me & Karli}

{Dev & Karli happy to be headed to Cali}

We ended up getting there before the other's flights arrived, so we checked into our hotel in Anaheim and then headed to The Block (an outdoor mall like the gateway). There we shopped around and then ate at TuTu Tango. While we were there a lady made us balloon characters...

{Dev holding all of our balloons: Buzz Lightyear, Goofy, a monkey, ladybug, & flower}

The next morning was the Disneyland 5K which 3 out of the group participated in.

{Micah, Meghann & Dev at the starting line}

{Dev had to get her picture taken with this guy before the race}

{This isn't a very good picture they were just running TOO fast! :) Micah you can see plain as day but Dev is a little bit hidden behind that lady..}

{Meghann at the finish line}

They all did great!

We then spent the rest of the day hanging out at Newport Beach

{Dev got buried alive}

{I was enjoying reading all the advertisements being written in the sky above us}

{It was Porter's first time ever at the beach and seeing the ocean- he absolutely loved it!}

{Tyler & I}

The next day was the day of our race, the Disneyland 1/2 marathon!

We woke up around 4am to eat and drive over to the starting line. There were about 13,000 runners and we were lucky enough to qualify for Corral A which meant we got to start first- this was awesome because we didn't have to deal with much congestion at all during the whole race! Karli & I ran together almost the entire 13.1 miles but towards the end I lost her & soon found out she was only about 500 feet behind me when we finished. Tyler started to have knee problems at around mile 8 which was a total bummer but he, being the determined person he is, still finished! My oldest brother Aaron smoked us all finishing in 1 hr 48 min. I had a goal time of 2 hours and I hit it right down to the very second! I was super satisfied with my time & everyone was so happy when we found each other at the finish.

{Meghann took this picture of me running through Angel Stadium at about mile 10}

It was a great race, we had fun running through California Adventures & Disneyland and also running through Angel Stadium was WAY cool! You could see yourself up on the huge screen and there were so many people in the stands cheering us on. One thing that I thought was particularly cool about this race was that on our bibs they put our first names so that as we were running people would call out your name and cheer you on! It was a great idea for some extra motivation.

After the race we all decided to swim in the pool or hot tub at the hotel to help our muscles relax- we then all took a nice long nap!

This was only part of our adventures in Cali.. next post is all about Disneyland, Santa Monica & Corona Del Mar!

August Adventures

2010-09-30T12:17:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty exciting August this year. Here are some pictures to prove it!

{Swimming - check out those sunglasses on my cute neice, can you be any cuter?}

We all celebrated my Mom's birthday - she gets August all to herself.

{we got a cake made at coldstone especially for her & it was delicious!}

{my mom is a lover of brownies, especially the corner pieces. So we got her a pan that will make every piece a corner piece!}

We had a blast playing softball together as a fam!

{Tim all geared up and ready to play}

{My cute softball lovin' sisters}

{Tyler with his usual 'why must you insist on taking a picture of me' look}

{We played until we could play no longer..}

We had the opportunity to go to St.George & Vegas on a business trip for Rachael Tyler Photography. I shot a wedding at the Vegas Temple. Tyler was able to take a day off work to come which I was super happy about & my little sis Karli & her bf Chase came along for the fun.

One of the nights, Karli and I decided it would be fun to take Tyler & Chase around town and show them where we used to live & other fun spots from our childhood.

{Karli & I in front of our childhood home in Bloomington}

We spent all day Saturday in Las Vegas and didn't get back into St.George until around 2AM. Besides shooting the wedding and reception we..

{experienced life as a bug}

{watched the fountain show in front of the Bellagio}

{Karli & Chase}

And walked along the strip for a while until we were too tired to walk any further.

{Tyler and I}

Sorry for the crappy quality of pictures, I didn't want to hold my big camera for any longer after I was done with that wedding.. you understand right? :)

Next post.. our vacation to California!