Life Must be Lived as Play

On Saturday, Tony and I went on a run and found ourselves soaking up autumn's beauty in the coarsely gritty sand hugging the ocean.  Coincidence?  Definitely not :)

We adore living so close to the beach, and although we previously assumed beach time primarily occurred in the summer, the assuming grandeur of the ocean proved our theories wrong.  The ocean is breathtaking... 100% of the time.  

taking long walks on the beach... so romantic :)

Monday was Kalaela's first birthday!  Cheryl and Stephen threw a little party for her and invited us, so Tony and I spent the evening spoiling Miss Laela.   I must say, Cheryl's cake turned out sooo cute... and so creative!

Oh that puppy... certainly the way to this little gal's heart!  I literally have NEVER seen a child get so excited about a gift, but Kalaela ADORES her new puppy.  I would honestly be surprised if she ever lets it out of her sight.  Pure bliss.  She wouldn't even let it go long enough to eat her cake!  

7 Things

7 BEST things about being married that I never expected :)

1. Waking up in the morning with a smile on my face

2. Holding the entire world in my arms each time he pulls me into a hug

3. Praying together... for each other

4. You know what?  He wakes up early every morning to make sure I have a lunch packed.  He gives me the best apples.  He carries my backpack.  He tells me I am beautiful every single day.  He inspires me to do the right thing, but doesn't judge me if I don't. 

5. When he says I love you, he doesn't just say it with his words.  It penetrates deep inside me... so every corner fills with knowledge that it's true.  I feel it!  It's literally warm.  

6. When I feel discouraged, I can look at him and know that I can overcome ANYTHING with him by my side. 

7.  Every day is a better day than yesterday. Which seems crazy, because every day with my best friend is perfect. 

Apple Festival

Fall seems like the most impossible season... when leaves dream up the most beautiful things to whisper in your ears before drifting off to sleep.  Trees throw the party of the year, dressing up their wiry limbs with explosions of color.  And my absolute favorite part... harvest time :)  Tony and I went to the West Haven Apple Festival this weekend and enjoyed bags full of tangy, juicy apples, hot kettle corn, and all-around fabulous caramel apples dipped in peanuts!  (shout out to Mekell.... yours are still waaaaay better... love you!)  I loved getting the chance to walk around the park with my handsome man, holding hands, laughing, and creating memories.

mmmm :)

Tony and I went to a little get-together for all the people in Tony's major.  We had a lot of fun bowling, and Tony scored a personal best.  This picture is pretty fuzzy... but he got a 186!!! Go Tony!

My husband showing me how it's done...

aww :D

Where there is Love, there is Life

Conference weekend!

We had such a wonderful weekend! Saturday was spent playing a little volleyball (we won!) and enjoying conference.  Tony is now referred to as the "team hubby"  because he comes to all the games and is definitely our biggest fan!  That being said, the girls refer to me as "team mom".... hmmmm..... hopefully that's an endearing term :) Sunday, we got to watch the morning conference with the Staus family and they made an AMAZING breakfast.... bacon, cinnamon twist bread, blueberry pancakes and more.  Add in an amazing conference session, card games, and playing with little Kalaela, and anybody would agree we just had a fantastic day!  

Conference in PJ's... love it!

I love her face in the picture.... "not sure what to think here!!!!"

She kept chewing on Tony's feet during conference.. so cute :)

 I spent Monday running around West Haven like a crazy person.  I was so behind on "home" stuff and "wife" stuff so it felt wonderful to get a few projects done. We love the new additions! 

Odds n' Ends

And the rain came a tumblin down....

Holy smokes!  That song takes on a whole new meaning when you find yourself wading through a foot and a half of water to get to your drowning car.  I had been cleaning away in our apartment before I left to catch the team bus to our out-of-town game, so imagine my surprise when I walked out the door with my little pillow and blanket nestled in my arms and I see this.  OH NO!  The picture doesn't show it well, but when I waded through the water, it reached my knee. I called my dad and asked, "how much water is safe to drive in?"  He laughed and said, "maximum of 6 inches."  So, despite the foot and a half of water, I told him, "Okay, Dad, no problem!"  and drove away :)

Oh, and of course Tony and I watched the presidential debate.  I think I enjoyed it more than Tony (this is him doing statistics homework and laughing about all the Big Bird comments!"

Studying in the library.  I have never studied this much in a library before.  Tony must be a good influence on me! 

Heading to class!