OneRepublic Concert

Robbie and I were stoked when we heard OneRepublic was coming to perform at the USANA Amphitheater in Salt Lake. They are one of our absolute favorite bands. Robbie told me he had scored some awesome seats for pretty cheap, but I didn't realize how awesome they really would be.

A Snapchat we sent to some family members. 8th row, baby!

The view was incredible, but if we ever sit that close again, we will not forget ear plugs. Robbie had trouble hearing in his right ear for a day or two after the concert. Yikes. But oh my goodness, the concert was SO good!!!!!

American Authors and The Script opened for OneRepublic and we especially enjoyed American Authors. 

American Authors

 The Script

We thought this guy looked just like my cousin, Spencer Bean. Bald and bearded.

It's so weird to me that the concert "starts" at 7:00, but the main group doesn't come on stage until at least 2 hours later. Go figure. The crowd went absolutely wild when OneRepublic finally came on stage. Speaking of the crowd, Robbie and I were so entertained. Everyone has their beer and they even pose in pictures with their beer as the focus of their picture. Once they've had a few drinks, they're dancing and singing at the top of their lungs. It gave us a good chuckle. At one point, Robbie turned to me and said, "I'm so glad you're you and I'm me." They live such a different life than we do. We are so thankful for the life we choose to live.

Man, such a great concert.

Beans in Bean Town

The week after school ended, I flew out to Boston with my parents for Mark's graduation from HBS. We had the best time and it wasn't too hard to say goodbye because we knew Mark & Elissa were moving back to Utah the following week (best news of 2014).

Mom and I got on the plan and realized we had brought the exact same book. Typical.

Let's talk for a minute about how proud I am of Mark. He gave us a tour of Harvard and I instantly felt smarter being on this remarkable campus. Harvard is a special place. It was so interesting to hear of his experiences and the people he made close friendships with. It's hard for my brain to comprehend the hard work and time he's put into this accomplishment. He's always been an influential role model in my life and I have such high respect for him. He's going places.

 Touring Harvard

 Mount Auburn Cemetery

 We walked up to the top of the tower to overlook the cemetery

Mark was given 2 tickets to commencement, so Elissa and dad went. Mom and I watched it on TV with 15-20 other people on campus. However, later we were able to meet up with them and sit together for convocation. Mark was one of the first to be called and it gave me the chills to hear his name. We then waited a couple more hours for the rest of the names to be called (let's just say I got pretty far on the book I brought) and then met up with him for lots of hugs and pictures. He found his LDSSA group and took oodles of pictures with them. After their smiles started to look fake from the hundreds of pictures, we walked down to a tent area where they had so many food choices. Holy cow. I felt like I was at a super nice wedding reception. They had tables and tables of desserts and finger foods. Thanks for dinner, Harvard. It rocked.

Mom and I watching Commencement together! Winner picture on the left. She's just on her phone way too much.

 Dad keeping it classy in the heat

 Isn't Elissa so cute and classy?

 HBS Graduates

 Harvard Library

Besides the big graduation event, M&E took us to some of their favorite dinner places each night. We loved walking around town and crossing the Charles River. The day after graduation, we drove to Maryland to see a lighthouse, which was breathtaking. We drove to Louisa May Alcott's home where she wrote Little Women, and our final stop was Walden Pond, where Mark proposed to Elissa last year. It was beautiful and the pond was more like a lake--much bigger than I pictured. Our trip wouldn't have been complete without multiple stops to bakeries.

 Was this before or after I slipped and drenched my whole left foot in water?

 Little women in front of Louisa May Alcott's home

My favorite part was just being with Mark and Elissa. They truly compliment each other and are the kindest people you'll ever meet. I loved getting to know Elissa better and I'm so happy she's a part of our family. I learned that M&E are going to live the longest out of our whole family. They eat super well, exercise every day, and stretch any extra time they have. Seriously, you're having a conversation with them and they just start stretching...well, mostly Mark. Haha, love them.

*Many of these pictures were taken by the talented Elissa and I give her full credit for them!

Happy Father's Day!

My dad is one of the most interesting, kindhearted, knowledgeable, hard-working, dedicated, open-minded, intelligent, and helpful men you'll ever meet. He knows something about anything and everything and is one of my favorite people to have a conversation with. I always learn something new from my dad. His opinions are thought out and I value those opinions very much. He happily gives of his time and service in the Church, and does so well on the Lindon City Council. He loves antique stores, books, and he's a boss at making homemade ice cream and cinnamon rice. He is loyal to his family and I can't wait to see him be a grandpa someday. I sure love this man.

My father-in-law is one of the most generous people I've ever met. He keeps us all laughing and gives the best hugs. He sets a wonderful example for Robbie and I'm so thankful for him.

It makes me smile to think of Robbie as a father someday. Sure love him.

Walkin' and Swingin'

One of our favorite things to do together is go on walks. We live in a community where it makes the perfect walking circle. We'll go a few times a week and wave to neighbors, swing on the swings as we pass the park, and just chat about anything and everything. I love this time with Robbie where we can just be outside together. I usually end up hunched over in laughter at some point during the walk, but what's new?

 Robbie was swinging all weird-like--leaning back with his ankles crossed. Whatever floats your boat.

 Best sign in Marrcrest. We love seeing the ducks!

1 Year Anniversary of Proposal

One year ago today, Robbie asked me to marry him. We had known for about a month that we wanted to get married, had a ring picked out, and were on our way home from a trip to Portland. He had actually mailed the ring to the hotel in Portland so he could save money on sales tax. Genius, right? It killed me to know he had it for part of our trip, and he totally faked me out a few times driving back to Utah as we stopped at random places to "look at the gorgeous view." However, he completely caught me by surprise when he proposed the night we got back from our trip. He says I just started laughing "at him" after he said lots of wonderful things and asked, "Will you marry me?", but I was just so caught off guard and hadn't really registered what was happening. What else could I do but start giggling? Long story short, I said YES and we are living happily ever after. Doesn't he look so handsome in this picture??

Last Day of School!

Friday, May 23 was the last day of school! I had spent the past few days cleaning and packing up things I wanted to keep. I used my students multiple times to carry books out to the recycling bin, which they ended up loving (who knew?). I guess there's just something super fun about chucking books into a ginormous bin. Whatevs. Anyways, having them help me saved me a TON of time. Robbie had planned to come the last day of school and help me do any last minute cleaning and packing and organizing, but by the time Friday arrived, most everything was done! He brought Todd with him, and Richard & Emily showed up about 30 minutes later. They were in town for Emily's best friend's wedding, so it was a real treat to have them visit my school. They bring a party wherever they go, and I couldn't have imagined a better way to end the school year than to have so much family there with me! They were playing on the smartboard, fencing with the curtain rods, you name it.

 Richard read a lovely story to us about winter

Todd's form is impeccable 

 Yeah, they didn't get into it at all

 Love these guys!

Hahaha this one still has me laughing. Oh, Todd.

What better way to end a school year than cartwheels down the hallway?