I'm Dreaming of a....(fill in the blank)

If you guessed white Christmas you are totally WRONG! Summer has quickly come and gone. We've already had a few small snow storms. The temperature is getting more cold every day (look at the lows on our forecast...so cold!!!).

As I lay on my couch wrapped up in a blanket, I am definitely dreaming of laying by the pool on a HOT summer afternoon. This past summer I spent many Saturday afternoons by the pool eating a popsicle and reading a book. It was wonderful! I miss it. You are probably thinking laying by the pool is a random goal. I'll admit that it is kind of random, but I put it on my list because the last few summers were super busy and I didn't take time to play at the pool. Summer isn't really summer for me unless I spend some time at the pool.

During the summer when I was younger, I would wake up and go to swim practice. After practice I would go home and do my chores as fast as I could so I could go swimming in our backyard. My brothers and sisters and I would spend all day in the pool. We would take a few breaks when we heard the ice cream man coming or when my Mom made us get out of the pool to eat lunch. My hair would turn a different shade of green every day from all the chlorine. Summer was wonderful.

Laying by the pool is such a little thing to do but it made my summer complete this year. There is something so therapeutic about relaxing by the pool. I have a long cold winter ahead of me, so I'll keep dreaming of laying by the pool on a hot summer day.

Much Needed Massage!

After riding 111 miles my neck was killing me and my legs were very sore. I desperately needed a massage. So I called Alisa. She has the most amazing hands. It felt so wonderful! I will be calling Alisa again soon....

Flowers Have Been Sent...

"Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul."-Luther Burbank

Giving flowers has been one of my favorite goals so far. I have given out flowers a few times because I have enjoyed it so much. I think it makes me more happy than the people I have given them to. I was once told that if I was having a bad day, I needed to stop what I was doing, and do something nice for someone else. This is definitely a remedy for feeling bad about yourself or having a bad day. I double dog dare you to try it next time you are having a hard day...

A Windy 111 Miles

I did it! I rode my bike 111 miles!!! It was as hard and as crazy as it sounds. It took me over 8 hours to complete the entire ride which started and ended at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi. I officially hate the wind. In fact, I REALLY REALLY hate it. We had the presence of a head wind for over 95% of the ride. Every time we turned a corner I hoped that the wind would go away but it did not. It just kept on blowing and blowing.

Even though this experience was hard it was well worth it. I learned so much about myself. I learned I couldn't have done it on my own. Luckily I had a great group of friends enduring the wind with me. I knew I couldn't give up because they wouldn't let me. I am so grateful for my biking friends. They are my heroes. They are the reason I love biking.



I also learned that when I didn't think I could pedal anymore because my toes were numb and my legs were tired that I had to keep trying and keep going. I learned that when you spend a day on your bike grapes taste really good and peanut butter taste really gross.


Finally, I was reminded that I can do hard things.

Sweet Summer Time!

2 for 1...Stewart Falls and a Date!

Meet Joe...
Joe called me after work on a random Thursday and invited me hiking and to have a bon fire. We headed up Provo Canyon with a few other friends. I was very excited when I found out where we would be hiking....

I LOVE HIKING STEWART FALLS!!! It is the perfect hike. The terrain isn't too hard but it is more than a walk in the park. The scenery is breath taking! It's only 2 miles so it isn't painfully long. The best part is the beautiful waterfall at the end. It's been a few years since I've taken the time to do this hike which is why it made my list for this year.

We got a little bit of a late start on the hike so we had to hurry because we had limited daylight. It's hard to describe the beautiful scenary. I'm really sad because none of my pictures turned out except for the Stewart Falls sign. When we got to the waterfall we could only stay for a few minutes because it was getting really dark. A waterfall at sundown is very beautiful. We finished our hike out in the dark. It made for some extra fun adventure. I think the boys planned it this way so we had to hold on to them on the hike out....convenient!

After our hike at sundown we headed back to the house we met at to have a bonfire in the fire pit in the backyard. Bon fire treats are the best. I love a good gooey s'more. Summer is not summer without lots of s'mores.

A combination of hiking Stewart Falls and a date with Joe made for a great night.

Fireworks on the 4th of July!

Many people have asked me why I put watching fireworks on my list. Somehow last summer I went the whole summer without watching fireworks at all....shocking right? I LOVE FIREWORKS!!! Summer isn't summer without watching fireworks. I was so sad at the end of last summer so I wanted to make sure that I watched fireworks this summer. I got to see some amazing fireworks this year. I went to the Stadium of Fire on the 4th of July. Carrie and Vicki had two extra tickets from their work so I invited my friend Mark. It was such a perfect night....great weather, fun people, patriotic music, the Jonas Brothers...well, I didn't care much for the Jonas Brothers actually but it was fun to watch and listen to all the young girls freak out. There is something so magical about fireworks and a warm summer night. I left feeling so grateful to live in this wonderful country. I'm hoping to see fireworks one more time before the summer ends....fingers crossed!

Here's What Else I've Been Doing...

June Book Club!

My first book for this year was The Alchemist. The Alchemist is a story about a shepherd who sells his sheep to go in search of his personal legend. This is a story that will motivate you to be better and try harder to accomplish your goals.

Quotes I Loved:

"It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting."

"When someone makes a decision, he is really diving into a strong current that will carry him to places he had never dreamed of when he first made the decision."

"People need not fear the unknown if they are capable of achieving what they need and want. We are afraid of losing what we have, whether it's our life or our possessions and property. But this fear evaporates when we understand that our life stories and the history of the world were written by the same hand."

"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure." "...when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too."

"No matter what he does, every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world. And normally he doesn't know it."

Next Book: The PeaceGiver

Lovely Lashes

One random fact you may not know about me, I hate not wearing mascara.  I really, really, really hate it.  I can go all day without wearing any other make up as long as I have mascara on. About a month ago I was getting a pedicure with some friends and found out it is possible to get your eye lashes tinted.  I was so excited to try it.  Monday was my big day at the spa.  Here in Provo we have a spa school called Acaydia.  You are treated as if you are at a real spa but all of the services are super cheap because they are done by students.  I figured for $7 it was worth a try.  It took me less than 1/2 hour.  I love it!  It is so nice to not have to worry about wearing mascara to the pool or when I'm working out.  If you have light eyelashes and hate not wearing mascara, you need to try getting your lashes tinted.  Here's to lovely lashes....!

Happy Birthday!

Today I turned 31 years old. Many people have asked me how I feel about turning 31. So, in case you are wondering, I FEEL GREAT!!!! Seriously! I am so excited about this year! I am determined to make this the best year of my life so far. With some inspiration from my good friend Marianne (she ran 31 miles to celebrate her birthday. she is amazing!), I have decided to set 31 goals for the year. As I accomplish each of the goals, I am going blog about them. Below is my list of 31. It is not in any special order. Some of them are just fun things I like to do but never take the time to do them. Some of them are going to be very challenging. Some of them are just for fun because I deserve to have some fun this year. Here is my list:

1. Do a triathlon
2. Run a 5K
3. Run a 10K
4. Play Tennis
5. Hike Stewart Falls
6. Do a Century Bike Ride (100 Miles)
   
7. Go to an Oakland A’s game
8. Go to the beach
9. Make my bed for 31 days in a row
10. Play Whiffle ball
11. Learn to cook something (I haven't decided what yet. Any ideas?)
    
12. Eat a Sprinkles cupcake
13. Organize my closet
14. Get an Eye Lash Tint
15. Lay by a pool
16. Watch Fireworks
17. Go on a date (Yep, just hoping for at least one this year)
    
18. Learn a new song on the piano
19. Learn to use my expensive out of date camera
20. Buy flowers for someone
21. Do a session at the SLC temple
22. Keep a gratitude journal for 31 days
23. Send thank you cards to 31 people
24. Get a Massage
25. Read 1 book a month
26. Be on-time every where I go for 1 week
27. Learn to golf
28. Create and stick to a budget for a month
    
29. Do 31 random acts of kindness
30. Have a dinner party
31. Send birthday cards to all family members

I would love help accomplishing these goals so let me know if you want to join me on any of them.

Here's to a 31-derful year!

PS...Happy Flag Day!