Night Lights

We love to spend time out on our patio.
We have amazing camp chairs that are wonderfully comfortable
and outside is often more cool then our apartment.
(You have to love having no air flow - other than fans)

We recently added these lights to our patio.
We love them!

They add a little extra sparkle to the nights.

After I took the light pictures above we slowed down the speed
of the shutter on our camera and we got these gems.
Can you see the "J" for Joe?

I made circles.

I wanted to see how much the camera would catch...
the answer to that is a lot.

A Trip to the Museum

Joe and I went to the Museum of Art at BYU.
We wanted to see one of the exhibits downstairs.
(All landscapes)
And enjoying the air conditioning on a hot day was just another perk.

This is a giant block of books.

This is in the exhibit upstairs.
It is an exhibit all about words.

Isn't this block cool?
It is full of donated books of all different sizes.

There were some sections where you could really see the movement
of the books.

Little did we know we were not supposed to be taking these pictures.
We had a security guard come over to us and tell us to stop.
And then for the duration of our visit at the museum, there was a guard on our tails.
I promise I stopped taking photos once I was asked to stop.
And, by the way, how can they blame me for trying to take a few pictures
of cool stuff when there are NO signs telling me otherwise.

A Vacation Inbetween Semesters

Joe took his final and turned in his paper on Wednesday
and on Thursday we were off for a vacation in Midway.

We had a great time with family eating fabulous food and relaxing.

We also took advantage of all the great places to fish!

Here we are enjoying the wonderful surroundings.

This is the river we go to a couple times a year.
The fish USUALLY bite here.

This is what we were hiking through to get to the river.
Not only was the river high but so were the weeds!

We enjoyed our vacation
and were grateful for the break from our day to day life.

Joe is back in school today for the beginning of summer semester.

My Birthday Celebration

This year for my birthday we were vacationing
up at a cabin in Midway Utah with Joe's family.
I was spoiled on my birthday!
We started the day with breakfast at Chick's.
The breakfasts there can never be beat.
The scone I got even had a candle on it!!!

Joe gave me a fishing pole for my birthday
so we thought we would put it to use and go fishing!
I did not catch a birthday fish but it was fun just to try.

Joe's dad creates amazing "camp spuds."
I wanted these for my birthday.
These were one of the best presents I received!

It is tradition in Joe's family to have eclair cake on your birthday.
AND when it is your birthday you are in charge of the cake.
Everyone gets one free piece of cake
but if you want another piece you have to ask and or bribe the birthday person.

23 years young.

YUM!!!
We have the leftovers in our fridge
and have been enjoying them for breakfast lunch and dinner.

A Summer Treat

Apricot Bars!!!
These are a delicious light summer treat!

Ingredients

• 1-½ cup Flour
• 1-½ cup Oats
• 1 cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 1-¾ stick Salted Butter, Cut Into Pieces
• 1 jar (10-12 Ounce) Apricot Preserves

Preparation Instructions

Mix together all ingredients except apricot preserves. Press one half of the mixture into a buttered 8” square (or small rectangular) pan.

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Then spread with a 10-12 ounce jar of apricot preserves. Sprinkle second half of mixture over the top and pat lightly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until light brown. Let cool completely, then cut into squares.

Recipe Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

The Ward BBQ

Joe's calling in our ward has been the elder's quorum activities co-chair.
(He was released today and is now the ward choir director.)
He has been planning away to make this BBQ a success.
Joe was in charge of cooking the burgers and the hot dogs.
They were delicious!
(He has found a craving for BBQ cooking.)
There was so much food!
We had so much fun eating and talking with our neighbors.
There were even two little boys that found a mud puddle
and came out covered in mud!

It was a really great event!

My New Job

I have a job!!
What a blessing it is to say that.
I will be working at Eagle Valley Elementary in the Fall.
I will the be 5th and 6th grade resource teacher.

I am so excited to be moving into an elementary school!
I love this school already.
The people I will be working with are really great.
I have even met some of the students I will be teaching next year.
I am so excited for this next year!

Can you guess what I will be doing all summer??
...anticipating my new job and the challenges that I will face
AND
looking for new resources for MY classroom!!