weekend warriors

(no, not the HGTV show)

welcome to summer at the Treasure home
Monday-Friday= work hard
Saturday= insane outdoor activity
Sunday=wake up sore and hobble around in recovery, thank goodness this is a day of rest

week 1:
mountain bike 16 miles along Kechless Lake by Snoqualmie Pass. Beautiful, but my butt felt it the next dayWeek 2: Hike Big Si

None of this Little Mt. Si business, we went all the way. 4 butt-kicking uphill miles, and 4 long trudging miles down. But quite the accomplishment to say we did it. The view? cloudy, but pretty amazing.(lesson learned. you may think you know where north is, but you can be wrong. the iphone compass is always right)

Week 4: Hike Tiger Mountain
A walk in the park compared the the last few activities (but maybe because my dad was hauling 30 pounds of pack and I had nothing.) lovely hike. I felt like I was in Twilight, except Edward jumps, not hikes
For the record, I do wear makeup and do my hair during the summer, but that tends to kick in around noon on Saturdays, long after the morning adventures are done.

22 by 22

Today is my half-birthday. woohoo. Happy 21.5 to me. I can hardly believe that it was six months ago when I woke up to the worst blizzard I've ever seen, spent seven hours on an icy bus, and ended the night around an iphone fire. time flies.

To celebrate 6 months until I hit the ripe old age of 22, here are the 22 things I vow to due by February 6, 2011; my 22nd birthday:

1. Do baptisms in 4 new temples
2. Host a swanky dinner party
3. Ride a roller coaster
4. Read the Book of Mormon
5. Meet someone famous
6. Sew a piece of clothing and actually wear it
7. Visit 2 new states (kind of a cop-out because I'm already planning Christmas in South Carolina, but oh well)
8. Make 5 free-throws in a row
9. Go on 3 new hikes
10. Make a movie
11. Go geocaching
12. Try a new mode of transportation (segway, sailboat, mule, whatever)
13. Paint a picture (on a canvas like a real artist...hello Van Gogh!)
14. Go on a roadtrip
15. Run a 5k (distance, not actual race)
16. karaoke to cheers, not boos
17. make Cafe Rio pork (bonus points for selling it on the side of the road)
18. Bowl over 200
19. keep a plant alive for more than 3 months
20. crash a wedding (doesn't count unless you get food)
21. learn to whistle
22. have a movie-worthy kiss (ala Never Been Kissed or Princess Diaries or HP 5...yeah right)

I'm a Mormon...

I spent my Sunday evening watching the new I'm a Mormon videos on the updated mormon.org.

They are fabulous! The church isn't just old men, but real people living their lives and trying to have faith and become like Christ.

my favorite videos are Emily, Jane and Ryan, but they are all wonderful

summer adventures

I'm loving summer at home. perfect weather days, small children and the start of tan lines, even though it's july. Besides forgetting how to rotate pictures, here are some other recent adventures:

hiking with Janice and the children. 4th of July weekend, and we're wearing coats and layers. love washington.

Lacey got married at a beautiful wedding. her dress was amazing!Grandpa rocked suspendersand even in heels, I was the shortest of all the cousins we could gather at the reception.We finally stopped at the scenic view we've been driving past for years.Mom and I went to visit Grandpa. we went to a museum in a jail turned girl scout camp.Grandpa and I enjoyed nature.

and we rode on da boat.

love summer.
one month left...and I'm soaking up the sun!

What a lady

Last Fourth of July, every member of the extended family was summoned to Coeur d'Alene, per Grandma's request for a big family picture. We gather for the Fourth every year, but it was one of our best visits, with the cousin parade, baseball game and fireworks. and those family pictures sure are a treasure.This year, every member of our extended family once again descended on my grandparent's river house, but for a more somber occasion--to say goodbye to Grandma.After an intense 4-month battle with cancer, my Grandma B passed away June 23rd. Her last few months of life were difficult, but she was an incredible woman. I had the blessing of spending my week between DC and spring term helping my grandparents. It was a difficult week, but I am so grateful for the chance I had to spend that time with my grandma. From weeding her garden to taking her hand and walking her into her chemo and dialysis appointments to watching her speed around the grocery store in the motorized scooter, I treasure all of those memories.
My grandma was moved to a hospice room the day I came home from school. I am so glad I could be there with the rest of my aunts, uncles and cousins as we gathered that weekend to say goodbye to Grandma. As she slipped out of this life, our family rallied together to support our grandma by camping out in the hospice.

(Grandma's funeral was on her and my grandpa's 55th anniversary. Here they are at the family celebration for their 50th)

She was just 72, but what an amazing woman she was. She loved her kids and grandkids so much. When we were little, she and her sister took their grandkids to a week at the beach house in Lincoln City, where she would take us exploring and to the teddy bear store. She loved to sew, and made me the most elaborate doll clothes. My favorite article of clothing from the ages of 5-7 was the magenta sweatshirt with the ballerina hippos she sewed on. She had the best arts and crafts and the best stories and was the best grandma, always so devoted to the family. Like her obituary says, she was the consummate grandmother.It was tough as everyone gathered in the river house this weekend, because it is so grandma's house. Her purse in the closet. Her flowers in the garden. Her decorations everywhere. She was the leader of the family--the one who cooked delicious meals for crowds, kept us on our toes and just loved us.

I am comforted by the Atonement, the fact that I will be able to see my grandma again and the fact that she is somewhere better--free from the earthly body that gave her so much pain at the end.

"and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" -Revelation 21:4

Goodbye, Grandma. I sure do love you!

o say can you see...

"...that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." -Abraham Lincoln

Happy Birthday, America. you sure are great!

(pictures from a snowy visit to the Lincoln Memorial and the licence plate preamble at the American Art Museum)

epitome of epic.

my thoughts on the matter:
1. has there ever been more acurately placed epic music in a movie trailer?
2. there goes my childhood
3. "I have something worth living for"=kind of lame, but whatever Harry, we all know it's all about love
4. Ron
5. so soo excited
6. I have the urge to re-read all Harrys Potter right now
7. I'm thinking I'll be Bathilda Bagshot for the midnight showing. or Pansy Parkinson
8. this will be...wait for it...legendary.