Back to Germany!

Friday, May 13

This past Christmas, Jaren's parents gave us (and all of his siblings and their spouses) tickets to visit them in Germany! I couldn't believe it! I jumped up and down screaming with excitement for about a full 10 minutes (well, off and on the whole day)! I didn't think we would be able to go back to Europe for a long time... So this was quite the surprise! All of Jaren's siblings are visiting at a different time of the year. We decided (back in early January) to visit them in May! I'm so happy we have the opportunity to go back to Germany and see some sites we didn't get to see last Fall. This was so nice of Jaren's parents to give us this gift!

Today we landed in Frankfurt, Germany at 9:45 a.m. (1:45 a.m. in Utah time.) After flying for over 14 hours (including an hour layover) we were happy to arrive! By the time we went through customs and collected our luggage, we left the airport about an hour later.

Once we arrived at their apartment, and after visiting for a while, we took a nap from about 1 to 3 (we were exhausted since we didn't really sleep on the plane). Jet lag is real! Last time it took me a little over a week to adjust, so hopefully I'll adjust quicker this time.

After our nap we visited the Braunfels castle. It was closed, unfortunately, so we walked around the grounds. Next, we went to the Weilburg palace and walked around there. I can't believe how many castles there are in Germany! And each town surrounding the castles is so charming! Afterward, we ate dinner at Jaren's parents favorite restaurant near their apartment.

Braunfels castle...

Here is a picture of Braunfels castle that I found on Google...

At Weilburg Palace...

View of the city from the palace grounds...

We are so happy and excited to be back in this beautiful country!

Saturday, May 14

This morning we woke up and went to Ronneburg for a festival! This festival was medieval-themed and right inside and alongside the Ronneburg castle grounds. The castle was built prior to 1258 and is open for everyone to explore. I enjoy viewing these super old, authentic castles and it's fun to think about the real people who actually lived in them such a long time ago.

Inside the castle (we were able to explore most of the entire castle and its many rooms, but I only took a few pictures)...

Here's a picture of Ronneburg castle that I found on Google...

We climbed that really tall tower you can see in the picture above, and there was a great view of the city and the festival!...

There were 2 peacocks inside the castle grounds, a male and a female. The male peacock kept showing off...

The festival was fun! There were lots of booths, with people dressed up and selling a variety of things. I enjoyed walking around the food stands! The food was traditional German and European food. There were many choices that looked delicious. We ended up buying Baumstriezel, which is a type of bread/cake wrapped around wood and baked over hot coals creating a sweet, crispy crust! You could choose from a variety of toppings, and we chose cinnamon and sugar. Jaren's parents chose to top their bread with coconut. It was delicious! Hot and fresh! They cooked the dough right in front of us. After, we purchased some apple cider.

Here is what the bread looked like (I forgot to take a picture, so I searched on Google and this is exactly what ours looked like)...

There was entertainment, too, including jugglers, sword fighters, and a jousting competition...

I think we were the only tourists there! Lots of German families came to the festival with their children.

After the festival we went back to the apartment. Jaren's parents had a church celebration to attend that night, and told us we didn't have to go if we preferred to rest. We were still feeling the jet-lag so we decided to stay home and rest. Tomorrow we will be going to church!

Valentines Day

I love Valentines Day. I understand some people do not celebrate this holiday, but we do! I always look forward to February for this reason! When Jaren and I were first married, Jaren started a tradition of giving me a ring every year for Valentines Day. He also comes up with a meaning for each ring he chooses. I LOVE this and always get excited to see my ring (and it's meaning) each year.

This year Valentines Day was on Sunday. On Friday night we went to a movie and celebrated Saturday afternoon with lunch at Settebello Pizzeria in Station Park in Farmington. The food was great, and I LOVED spending time with Jaren. This restaurant reminded us of Italy. We had fun reminiscing and talking! That night Jaren let me pick a movie for us to watch. I picked Shrek. We both hadn't seen it in a while and that movie makes me laugh!

Sunday he gave me my ring and a card where he wrote it's meaning! I love my ring so much and had fun wearing it to church!

Some years we celebrate Valentines Day more than others... But I always look forward to my meaningful ring!

My most surprising Valentines Day was back in 2012... Jaren was working as a CNA at the McKay-Dee hospital. He had told me months before that he was scheduled to work and could not get Valentines Day off. I was ok with that and told Jaren we would just have to celebrate sometime after Valentines Day. Well, Valentines Day came and Jaren got ready for work. He left but then knocked on our door 30 minutes later dressed-up and holding flowers! He had always had Valentines Day off and had planned this surprise for me months in advance! We ate dinner at the Timbermine and he gave me a beautiful ring on a necklace!

Another memorable Valentines Day was in 2014 in Montana. I had to work that day, but I came home to a meal made by Jaren and we watched my favorite chick-flick, Ever After. What made this Valentines Day memorable was that we were both feeling broken-hearted from infertility. My ring that year had an extra-special, personal meaning. I always have felt so much love and support from Jaren, and I really needed it at that time. To this day I think this ring is my favorite, because of it's meaning.

Jaren wantes his hand be in this picture too. Lol!

I have saved all of my rings and their hand-written meanings. I sure do love my sweet husband!

Still googly-eyed in love with each other!

Girls Night With My Nieces!

I love being an aunt. When I married Jaren I instantly became an aunt to many children! My heart, of course, continues to ache for my own children... but I do love these nieces and nephews of mine that I inherited through marriage.

When Adam and Lara moved back from Colorado, I REALLY wanted to have a sleepover with their little girls! They're adorable, fun to talk to, and very smart! (Too bad my cute niece Jessika wasn't here from Georgia! It would have been so fun to have her come!)

Jaren wanted to spend the evening with us too. (He adores his nieces and nephews and will be such an amazing father someday!) While shopping a few days ago, I was looking for a craft to do with the girls. Jaren ended up picking out our "craft!"

Here's how Friday night went...

We picked up the girls at their house in Provo. They were so excited!! On the way to Clinton the girls came up with their own princess names. Lucy: Princess Giggles Jo: Princess Sweetheart Siya: Princess Pinky-pie

When we arrived in Clinton we made a stop at Cherry Berry and let the girls pick out their frozen yogurt and toppings!

Afterward, we went home and helped the girls with their "craft" which was painting ponies! I honestly would have never thought to do this! (Painting ponies was Jaren's idea, he saw this in the store and thought it would be a fun activity for the girls.) They LOVED it! I also painted their nails, they each chose a different color.

The finished ponies...

Next the girls changed into their pajamas and we watched Maleficent. I thought they would fall asleep for sure, but they stayed awake through the entire movie! We are freshly baked chocolate chip cookies during the movie.

After the movie the girls went to bed. I read them a bedtime story and they fell asleep fast!

I will also add that Gus loved having the girls over, especially Lucy! She gave him extra special attention and it was hard to separate the two of them. She played with him almost the whole night and he loved the attention from her!

Saturday...

When the girls woke up I turned on some cartoons (Sofia the First and My Little Pony) for them to watch on Netflix while I made breakfast. We had pink pancakes (Jo's request), eggs, and raspberry hot chocolate.

Jaren went to play church ball and the girls decorated an Elsa (from Frozen) story book while I cleaned up the kitchen.  They also played with Gus.

Jo with her decorated Elsa...

When Jaren came home we got ready for the day. The girls let me do their hair, I had fun curling it! Then we headed to the movie theater to watch Kung Fu Panda 3. Everyone loved the movie, I thought it was hilarious.

Lucy's cute curled hair...

At the movie theater...

After the movie we went to Chick-Fil-A for lunch. The girls loved it! When lunch was over we went home and packed up to take them back to their parents.

I really enjoyed talking to and spending time with these sweet girls! They are so smart and caring. I loved hearing their thoughts on different subjects. They made us laugh and we all had such a great time! I love children and their tender hearts. I'm glad I could "borrow" these sweeties for a little while!

The ride home (we were all exhausted)!...

2015 in Review

 Review of 2015!

2015 has been an amazing year for us! This year has definitely been one for the books. Here are my Top 10 favorite memorable experiences from this year (from earliest in the year to later in the year)...

(1) Gus!

In January we brought home this fluffy, curly, little pup. He is a part of our family now and has been the perfect family pet! He loves to play, snuggle, and he loves belly rubs. He loves when our nieces and nephews come over, because they will run around and play with him! We never planned on buying a dog until last December. We watched a clip on Youtube that showed happy reactions when people get a puppy for Christmas (random, I know). For some reason, this made us really want a dog. I'm so glad we have Gus in our family!

(2) Zion National Park!

Can you believe Jaren and I grew up in Utah and had never been to Zion National Park? I can't believe it either. We went to Zion over Memorial Day weekend this year. I absolutely loved this trip! The scenery was gorgeous! We hiked just about every hike possible in 2 days! Jaren's aunt is super nice, and let us stay with her over the weekend (she lives in St. George). I love this park!

(3) Jaren's Graduation and Job!

Jaren's graduation was very special. I can't believe he is done with school! When we were married back in 2008, Jaren didn't even know he wanted to be a PA yet. At times, Jaren felt graduating from school was so far away... but time came and went and now he's done! He worked very hard to become a PA, and I couldn't be more proud of him! I love him so much and am so grateful for his dedication and hard work!

Jaren working as an Orthopedic Physician Assistant at Ogden Clinic has been wonderful. Jaren always hoped to work in orthopedics. We love this company, and are so grateful for this opportunity! (Plus, we have a LOT of student loans to pay off!)

(4) Going to Europe for 5 weeks!

I doubt we will ever go on a 5 week vacation again (until we are retired). Everything somehow worked out and fell into place to allow us to do this. We figured... while we don't yet have children, Jaren doesn't begin his job until October, Jaren's parents are already in Europe, and we are young and healthy... why not?! I am SO GLAD we went to Europe and took this time to explore the world and spend time together. The memories we made were worth every penny.

The next few experiences have to do with our trip to Europe (I loved every day we spent in Europe and everything we saw and did, so it's hard to choose)...

(5) Seeing Jaren's parents, spending time with them, and seeing their mission headquarters!

I loved spending time with Jaren's parents while we visited Germany. We miss them, and loved exploring the country with them! We LOVED Germany! I loved their apartment, visiting their mission headquarters, and seeing the sites! They took us to amazing places and we saw castles that were unbelievable. They are so fun to be around and they made Germany so memorable for us!

(6) Hiking through Hallstatt in Austria AND the Cinque Terre in Italy AND the Swiss Alps!

I couldn't decide which hiking I liked more... it's a tie!

Hallstatt- The scenery was breathtaking!

Cinque Terre- Amazingly beautiful!

Swiss Alps- Just perfect in every way possible!

(7) ART!

I never knew I could become so passionate about art until I began studying (yes, I studied a lot) to prepare for this Europe trip over a year ago! The David in Florence, Italy... the Borghese gallery in Rome, Italy... The Louvre and Orsay Museum in Paris, France... these were all my FAVORITE places to see art!

(8) Paragliding in the Swiss Alps!

This was an experience like no other! Pure exhilaration! Seeing the beautiful Lauterbrunnen valley beneath us while soaring like a bird high in the Alps was unbelievable! Every time I think about it I get chills... did we really do that?! It was a spontaneous decision to go paragliding while we were in the Swiss Alps and I am so glad we did!

(9) Eiffel Tower!

When we went all the way up to the Eiffel Tower it was a cold, windy night! But the view was stunning and worth bracing the chilly wind!

View from atop the Eiffel Tower...

Near the Eiffel Tower...

Looking at the Eiffel Tower from atop the Arc de Triumph...

(10) Disneyland with my family!

I love Disneyland. LOVE! We spent Thanksgiving here, which was memorable and so fun! My parents brought us here as our Christmas gift this year. Disneyland was celebrating Christmas AND their 60th Anniversary. We enjoyed every moment at this magical place!

Honorable Mentions...

*Thanksgiving Point Gardens

Jaren and I went with my family to see the Tulip Festival in April. I love the beauty of these gardens!

*Summer Fun!

We hiked all over northern Utah this Summer. I love hiking... it's a fun activity and it's FREE! We also went to Bear Lake, Lagoon, Real Salt Lake games, and drive-in movies!

* The Little Mermaid at Hale Center Theater

I went with Emily to The Little Mermaid to celebrate her birthday! I had never been to Hale Center Theater before this... the show was amazing!

Emily's birthday...

*Ancient Ruins in Rome, Italy

The Colosseum, Palatine Hill, Roman Forum, and the Pantheon... it was amazing to think how OLD these were! (And how such a strong civilization crumbled.)

*Versailles in Paris, France

Just beautiful!  The gardens of Versailles went on and on and on for days!

*Cutting my hair and growing my bangs out!

This may seem silly, but I have had long hair since I can remember! It was time for a change. I have a lot of hair, but no one would ever know because it is so thin! It has always been thin. Shorter hair and no-bangs this year has been nice. My hair is much easier to manage.

Before (Best photo I could find to show my long hair and bangs. This is in 2013)...

After...

As I say goodbye to 2016 I look back with many fond memories... here's to 2016!