Wednesday, April 25, 2012

When the snow starts to melt...

Ok, so we didn't get loads of snow this year like we have in years past, but our winters here in Flagstaff can be bitter, windy, and downright cold (and sometimes flat out miserable). So when the snow starts to melt and the air turns warm and the temperature gauge on my car hits 55 we grab our sandals and shorts and head south. 

This weekend we hit up the Verde River, Fossil Creek, and Bullpen/Clear Creek. My camera cord has gone MIA so I only have pictures from my phone from Bullpen.


 On the way there, I had some fun with Instagram - the desert has so many pretty flowers this time of year! Can you see Sam in the background of the bottom picture?

This is part of Clear Creek called Bullpen. The water is  very clear and warm. Until this weekend, Kona didn't really know what to do about the water, she didn't like getting wet very much. But it was 90+ degrees outside and I think she thought she was melting, so the instant she got her toes wet she was holy moly this feels amazing - look I can swim - and jump and play - omg it's so fun! She was an entirely different dog this weekend, she definitely found her inner water-dog. 

 Fancy shamancy dinner of P.F. Changs orange chicken ala JetBoil - that's our master chef there and our 5 star hotel room for the night. Nothing beats my two favorite people snuggling in the bed of a truck under the stars on the first camping trip of the year. 

And when we got home, this is all Kona had the energy to do - sleep on a big ol' pile of pillows on my bed. I think she slept for about 36 hours straight, guys, that was the best weekend of my whole life! 

Back to the work week.

Monday = yucky. 
Tuesday = awesome new red kayak, thanks babe! 

Kona didn't like sitting in it though, we struggled to get one picture of her sitting in it. Hopefully many adventures will come from the use of our pair of red kayaks!

This week, my Dad is coming through Flagstaff on his way to Florida. We're SO excited to see him and spend some time together. Sam hasn't seen him since Thanksgiving when he asked for my hand in marriage, and I haven't seen him since Christmas. 

And next weekend, I'll hopefully be visiting the good ol' 805! Tentative plans include a toasted turkey sandwich at my fave downtown cafe, hemming my wedding dress, and checking out our venue. Give me a call if you're in the area and want to say hello!! 

Have a great Wednesday, we love and miss you all!

PS - don't forget to become a follower of Sam and Leah get HITCHED - all you have to do is click join this site at the top right of the blog and follow the steps - super easy and you'll be the first to know when we make a new post, plus it makes us feel good, the more people that "follow" the more friends we have ;)

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Dangerous Weapons

Sam has been an amazing helper when it comes to taking our...mostly my, vision of our wedding and turning it into real life, one DIY at a time. This past weekend we turned 12 (hideous) picture frames into 12 adorable chalk boards and finished some key details of the ceremony decorations. I don't want to give away too many details of the wedding, but here's some pictures of the process:

Ok, this isn't wedding related, but it's my first real project on the sewing machine gifted from my wonderful mother, and I'm pretty proud of it.
Better watch out for this guy, dangerous with that hot glue gun.


Drying frames (they really were ugly before, you'll see the finished product on August 11th!)

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Mom - in - laws

This week I get the extreme pleasure of hanging out with my Mamma Dearest! It's the first time we've seen each other since Sam and I got engaged. She's been SO excited to see the ring, the dress, all the ideas that we have, and spend some quality time with her kiddos!

Wedding plans are full swing ahead - we have spent the week putting invitations together, which Sam and I designed and are putting together by hand. Here's a pic of my Mom and my new Mom working hard with those invites, which BTW are beaUTIFUL! I am so grateful to have such wonderful women in my life who are handy at the sewing machine, great at paper cutters, and just down right support-full of Sam and I's new life together.

It's been a while since I've posted so here is a look back over the last few months of our engaged lives.

This is our ridiculous puppy, Kona. She's a yogurtaholic.
This is how she likes to sleep at night. A blanket MUST be wedged all around her.... ok, I'll admit she's spoiled, but we love her, and in return, she loves us right back!
Sam took me out on a Heffelfinger Adventure to Grand Falls, AZ. This little gem is located on the Navajo Reservation about 40 minutes outside of town and only flows when the snow is melting. In this picture it's only flowing about 1/4 of its capacity, but still beautiful. (Please don't make fun of my paleness - that's the first time I've worn a tank all year!)
 We were able to make one more trip to Telluride, CO in March for our dear friend, Chad's, birthday. We even managed to catch a few inches of soft powder on the second day. This picture was taken on St. Patty's day, we were eating lunch and experiencing our first GREEN beer!
And lastly, like every soon-to-be bride, I've been hitting the gym to get in shape for the big day!... ok, that's a lie, because technically I teach the classes that I go to - including cycle so I'm obligated to "hit the gym". But I've been putting in at least 1 extra day at the gym, outside of classes. BUT, look who decided to join our cycle class! Lil' Brother Weston!! He even admitted that my class kicked his butt! It's been a family affair at the gym as of lately, our cousin Kylie Powell works there, Weston works out there, Sam comes to my classes, and I'm an instructor. We've definitely made our legacy at Northern Arizona University.

And speaking of NAU, Sam is on his last leg of finishing his MASTER's in engineering at NAU. I'm so incredibly proud of him, he's been working so hard to get this done, on top of planning a secret proposal, and now a wedding, and working full time as a design engineer, AND writing this brilliant thesis, I don't know how he isn't going crazy. Please send your thoughts and prayers during these final weeks before he defends his work and becomes a MASTER OF ENGINEERING!!