Newport

Not even a week after moving to Houston, we packed our bags again for Newport Beach, California!  This was a nice break from the 110 degree heat in Houston.  We played lots of Tennis, Brady ate his first Balboa Bar and many more, devoured Rose's Bakery sandwiches and donuts, played my first game of Settlers of Catan, and enjoyed a week of beach, family, and sunshine!

it was sunny

Brady teaching one of the girls to boogie board, they adore him.

Notice how Vanessa and Jake are in on the action of burying Brady...

But they disappeared for the finished photo.  Ellie worked, Ella and Ava were cheerleaders.

Ella fell completely in love with Brady at this moment.

Ella in love 

Darling family on the beach for a walk 

He is enjoying the fact of not having to cut his hair for BYU

Notice Colton at the bottom of the photo also soaked.  A wave took Colton down, and my dear mother went to pick him up and a wave took her out!  All the adults couldn't stop laughing... sorry mom!

This was such a fun trip!  We wish we could have stayed longer, but back to the heat we go!

The Move

This summer, Brady and I packed up our 600 sq foot apartment and took off on the adventure that will encompass the next ten years of our lives.  Our last days of work were triumphant, and the cleaning, packing, and sleeping on the floor was back-aching.  But we did it!  The day before leaving, we went to pick up our moving van and they told us they had to upgrade us so we could pull our car . . .

The lovely Birdie/Burt/Bart (his name kept changing)

This vehicle was massive.  So we packed it up, with the help of friends, and said our goodbyes.  Even though we were going to see some of our family in a couple of weeks, it was still a sad goodbye!

And we were off!  The drive brought along some fun surprises including:

-brakes shaking

-witnessing a car accident INTO a hotel on the side of the highway

-Panera Bread and hanging out with Jess & Russell

-Sour Watermelons and Bridge Mix from the Reids (yes, Brady is an old man)

-Bums at gas stations

-Driving through Brady's mission

-THE HELP (audiobook MUST)

And then we got to Texas

But the drive wasn't over.  Our first stop in Texas was at Witchita Falls.  I never want to go there again.  It was late, and we were going to break our long streak of no soda.  This was a horrible place to do this because the water is terrible!  We stopped at Wendy's and McDonalds, and both were horrible.  Brady claims this was where he got nervous... "oh no, she already hates Texas..."

Then came the hotel.  Motel 6 in Fort Worth is not the place to take a family.  Or anyone you love.  The truck parking was full (really?) and there were bars on the windows for the office (we had to stand outside to pay).  Again, loving Texas at this point.

But the next day, Potbelly's (the BEST sandwich) was found and we arrived in Houston!

Houston, woohoo baby!!

Things I Am Getting Used To...

This past weekend, lounging around our apartment and doing errands, I realized there are a few things I'm really getting used to during the week that are throwing off my weekends...

1. Not Driving.  Brady and I bike to work and school, being very green and environmentally friendly, but really just saving money.  There is a Kroger half a block away from us, so if I need something in the day, I bike over.  We mainly only drive on the weekends.  Places we go:  H-E-B.  The greatest grocery store in America with samples better than Costco.  And Church.  (We are Christian, contradictory to what Jeffries said about Mormons.  Go to mormon.org to learn more).  
2. The warmth.  It is sunny and warm here everyday.  At first this heat was unmanageable.  But now, we take a break for a moment by sitting in our camp chairs on our balcony.  It is amazing to still be walking around getting hot and sweaty.
3. Not Flushing the Toilet.  This isn't as weird as it sounds.  The toilets throughout all of the medical center are automatic and I am there all day everyday.  So now I'm thinking of having these installed in our home.  

Now Watch This.

ALSO, we now live in Houston!

And we love skyping.  Call us.

Year ONE in pictures

Here's a little recap in pictures of the best year!  I can't wait for all the memories to come!  

p.s. Houston countdown is 4 days