"The Park"

WARNING--This slideshow is really long!

Last week I went on the best vacation ever! (That's what I say about all vacations, but this one was really amazing!) We went to Island Park and Yellowstone with my family and my Aunt Paula's family. Greg had to work (or so he says) and wasn't able to join us. (I think he is saving his days off for hunting season!) We missed him, but had a great time.

We made reservations several months ago to stay in a cabin in West Yellowstone. Just a few days before we were supposed to leave, we found out the cabin in West Yellowstone had been condemned (or "cadammed" as Brooklyn says). We went into panic mode and spent a full day on the phone and Internet trying to find a place. Miracuously, we found a brand new, very nice cabin in Island Park to rent. It was amazing and we had a fabulous time.

I just heard on the news today that a fire is burning in Yellowstone and one of our favorite roads is closed, so we're very relieved our trip was last week!

Here are some of my favorite lines from the trip:

Brooklyn (as we're driving): "I think we're almost to Alaska. Let's go see Brett and Chels!"

Brooklyn (looking at the jetted tub in the cabin): "That's a big bathtub for a four year old!"

Brooklyn (crying because Sean had to work and couldn't come): "I wish my daddy was here. I'm going to be all growed up when I get home."

Brooklyn (looking at a bull elk in awe): “My Uncle Derk (Greg) would shoot the antlers right off that thing.”

Mom: “I could care less about a wolf. It’s just a glorified dog.”

Brooklyn: “Nat, come sit on the stairs and talk with me.”
Nat: “Okay. What’s wrong?”
Brooklyn: “I asked Marlee to dance with me and she said no.”
Nat: “I’m sorry.”
Brooklyn: “It ruined my life.”

Brooklyn (after seeing a bear): ”Nat, do bears pee and poo?”
Nat: “Yes.”
Brooklyn: “In their beds?”

Brooklyn: “I amaze you, don’t I?”

Brooklyn (driving through Yellowstone): “When do we get to go to the park?” (We had been calling Yellowstone “The Park” and apparently Brooklyn thought we were going to a giant playground. OOPS!)

Brooklyn (looking out the window): “I see a bear…and a buffalo…and they’re kissing!”

Brooklyn (after I had given her my change): “Nat, are you and Derk rich?”

This is just a small sample of many wonderful moments! We’re already planning our return to the “The Park." Anybody want to join us? I'm thinking next week sounds great!

My Faith

I have been pondering my beliefs lately and feel compelled to share a little bit more about who I am and what is important to me. I have felt inspired to do this for some time now, but have resisted for several reasons.

1. I figure everyone who reads my blog is already a member of my Church and therefore believes the same things I do.

2. I don't want anybody to think I am being self-righteous or ultra-pious.

3. This is important to me and I don't want anybody to think I'm stupid.


However, I read an article by Elder M. Russell Ballard (one of my Church leaders) encouraging members of our Church to use the Internet and current technology to help share our beliefs. He specifically mentioned blogging as a great way to share our testimonies of the gospel, and I realized this is something I need to do. I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly known as "The Mormons."

We believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of the world. We believe that through his Atonement, we can be forgiven of our sins and if we do our best to live righteously, we can return to live with our Heavenly Father again. We believe Jesus Christ is a resurrected Being and lives today. We believe we are children of a loving Heavenly Father who knows us personally, loves us, has a plan for us, and wants us to be happy.
We believe that Jesus Christ established his true Church on the earth during his mortal ministry. As time passed, the Church fell into apostasy and was eventually taken from the earth. We believe Heavenly Father and his son, Jesus Christ, appeared to Joseph Smith and through him restored the gospel of Jesus Christ to the earth.
We believe Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon from gold plates. The Book of Mormon is a record of the ancient inhabitants of the American continents and along with the Bible, teach the fulness of Christ's gospel. We believe Jesus Christ visited America after his crucifixion and a record of his visit can be found in the Book of Mormon. Like the Bible, the Book of Mormon testifies of the divinity of Jesus Christ and teaches us how to live better and find true joy throughout our lives.

We believe that throughout time God has called prophets to serve as His messengers and teach His gospel. We read of great prophets in the Old Testament, New Testament, and Book of Mormon. We believe God has called Thomas S. Monson to be his prophet upon the earth today and counsels us through him. It is so wonderful to know we have a living prophet to help guide us and teach us.

We believe families are ordained of God and we can live together forever with our families if we are faithful. It is so wonderful for me to know I will see my loved ones who have passed away again and we can live together eternally. I think of the love I feel for my family and am so grateful to know I will carry that love with me even after I die and those we love are not lost. The gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us to love our families and serve others. I know my life is better and my family is happier because we are members of our Church and strive to live its teachings.

Our Church has a wonderful website http://www.lds.org/ if you would like to learn more. I love the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and am proud to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Hawaii--My 2 Year Anniversary!

This week is the anniversary of my trip to Hawaii and I've been feeling a bit nostalgic the past couple of days. I started looking through my pictures today and decided that I would share my wonderful experience with my faithful blog readers. :) (Don't worry--my house is spotless, my laundry is done, my bills are all paid, Garrett has already had tummy time and we've read 5 stories--so I have absolutely nothing else to do. If only...)

My cousin was getting married on the beach in Maui and so a group of us decided it was the perfect excuse to finally take our dream vacation. It was kind of a random group--my mom, my sister Emily, her husband Sean, their daughter Brooklyn, my cousin Janalee, friend Karen, and me. (Greg had absolutely no desire to go. Weird, I know! His idea of a dream vacation is hunting in Spanish Fork Canyon. No beaches for him!)

I can't remember exactly, but I think we spent six days in Oahu and four in Maui. We crammed as much fun as we could into ten days--The Polynesian Cultural Center, Dole Plantation, Waikiki Beach, Pearl Harbor, The Road to Hana, snorkeling (my favorite), swimming, surfing, flea markets, parasailing, you name it! I started each day with a piece of pie from Ted's Bakery. It was an amazing vacation and it's a good thing Greg was at home or else I might have never left the islands.

Just like my keychain reads, "What happens in Hawaii stays with you FOREVER!" (A much better logo than stupid Las Vegas!)

Another Fun Weekend!

We had another busy and fun weekend! Friday was Willy's birthday (Greg's dad) and we were so lucky because he chose to spend his big day with his favorite (and only) grandchild. We had a fun mini-party and Garrett loved celebrating in his party hat!


On Saturday, the Petersen gals got together at Willow Park for a little picnic. A few of my cousins are visiting from out of town and we are always looking for an opportunity to get together and party. It was so fun to see each other again and to watch our new generation of kids become friends. I have so many great memories of playing with my cousins at my Grandpa Claude and Grandma Vone's house. My grandma and grandpa were such great sports and we could talk them into letting us do just about anything. We would spend our summers sleeping in their camp trailer in the backyard, watching "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers," playing Annie-I-Over, doing gymnastics in the front yard, and eating Grandma Vone's yummy cheesecake. I really hope my kids have as wonderful of a childhood as I did.

Here are a few of our pictures from the day. The kids loved walking through the zoo and seeing the animals. The highlight of the day was watching the turtles. I never knew that watching turtles could be so interesting, but it was actually really cool! One of the turtles climbed on top of the other one and got knocked over and upside down on its shell. The kids (and their parents) were worried about how it was going to get turned over, but the other turtle came right up and just gave it a big push and knocked it back over. (Of course my camera died during the middle of this, but I did get a few pictures!)

And while I was out partying, here is what Greg was doing. (Sometimes I love being a woman!)

We are building a garage/shed and the guys from our families have spent the last few weekends working on it. Thanks so much to everyone who has helped! It is looking great!

I about died when I pulled up and saw Greg sitting on top of the building.

Men are crazy! :)

Tag--Seven Random Things

So my best pal Karlee tagged me a few months ago and it has taken me this long to come up with seven random things about myself. (Let's just say I'm not the most exciting person in the world!) I don't want seven years of bad luck from the blog gods, so here goes. Prepare to be amazed!

1. I HATE running! I think I have post-traumatic stress sydrome from tripping and then barfing after running the bleachers at Lewiston Elementary. Just the thought of running makes my lungs hurt and my stomach upset. (However, I do LOVE to go for walks!)

2. I am TERRIFIED of snakes (what girl isn't?) and bears. I got a nasty email showing pictures of someone who had supposedly been attacked by a grizzly and then I had a nightmare about it and have been scared of bears ever since. (Greg has had a few bear run-ins while fishing in the wild. He came face-to-face with a bear and lived to tell about it. I'm glad it was him and not me!)

3. I LOVE bubble baths. I should probably put that in the past tense and say I LOVED bubble baths. I think I've probably only had about two since Garrett entered the world, but that's okay. Now I'm lucky to get a two minute shower in every other day. (TMI-I know!) I used to always watch the news at 10 and then have a bath and read until about 11:30 and then go to bed. Speaking of bathing, I really DON'T LIKE bathing/showering at other people's houses. Hotels are okay and I love the bathtub at my parents' house (I grew up using it, so it's okay), but other than that, I try to avoid showering away from home anytime I can. I'm not sure what it is, but it just gives me the creeps to think about bathing in someone else's tub.

4. I am FASCINATED by medicine and health care. I have always wanted to be a nurse, but am not so great at math and science, so I was too chicken to major in nursing in college. I love English and am grateful for the chance I have had to be a teacher--I wouldn't trade that experience for anything, but sometimes I wish I would have just tried nursing. Occasionally I get a crazy idea of going back to school and becoming a nurse, but I don't think it will happen anytime soon.

5. I can probably count on both of my hands the times I have blow-dried my hair in my lifetime. My hair has no curl/wave and is as straight as a stick. I wash it at night, sleep on it wet, and get up and go. I didn't even own a blowdryer until a few years ago until someone was visiting me and I was so embarrassed because I didn't have a blowdryer to loan them. I bought one to keep on hand, just in case.

6. I LOVE cooking! I love making up recipes and trying new things. I try to make things low-fat as often as possible. (Greg doesn't always like that, but he's a good sport!) I inherited a sweet tooth and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE treats, but I try hard to take a dessert recipe and make it a bit healthier. (It doesn't really work that well because I just end up eating more because I can justify it in my mind, but oh well.) I love fun mixing bowls, utensils, appliances, cookbooks, and basically anything that has to do with the kitchen. My Grandma Vone was an AMAZING cook and my dad is a great chef as well, so I am working on filling their big shoes.

7. I am the oddball of my family. My siblings all have brown hair, brown eyes, and middle names. There is Brian Craig, Emily Sue, Brett Wright, and just plain strawberry-blonde, green-eyed Natalie. This was quite a sore subject for me as a kid. I would tell people my name was "Natalie Sue" and my dear sweet sister would quickly correct me and let everybody know that she was "Emily Sue," but I was just plain "Natalie." (Don't worry-It still hurts, but I'm dealing with it. I'm just waiting for Em's husband to finish school and become a licensed therapist and then I'll make him counsel me for free in order to compensate for the years of heartache suffered at her expense.)

So there you have it--I am now tagging Mallory (she really needs to update her blog), Keri, Aunt Mainie, Chelsea, and every single blogger of the Anderson clan. Adios amigos!

Bear Lake

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Garrett and I spent the week in Bear Lake at my family's cabin. Unfortunately, Greg had to stay home and work so the little guy and I can afford to play. It was the longest Garrett had ever been away from his daddy and he really missed him! Despite missing Greg, we had a fabulous time and Garrett even got to swim for the first time. I was very nervous to take him in the water, but he did great! He was so chill and even fell asleep! He loved just floating in the tube and we decided he just needed a DC or Pina Colada and he would have been set to float all day.

My dad wowed us all with his cannon balls and quickly became the most popular guy at the pool. The kids would start chanting, "Cannon Ball, Cannon Ball" until he would do one and then they would all erupt in applause. It was hilarious! My dad has had a rough year with his back and hasn't been up to doing much, so it was wonderful for us to see him clowning around again. Enjoy the video!

I know I am biased because I am his mother, but I do have to admit that my little Garrett is pretty darn cute! I love this video of him laughing. It's funny because you can make a fool of yourself putting on a production to make a kid laugh, and they will just look at you like you are a complete idiot and not crack a smile. But then, when you least expect it, they will just burst out laughing at absolutely nothing at all. These moments make everything worth it and I wouldn't trade this little guy for anything.

Here's my little giggler!

Awesome Uncles!

We spent the weekend in Salt Lake visiting Greg's family. Greg's little brother, Mike, is in his fourth year of medical school in Wisconsin and finally had a few days off so he could come home and meet his new nephew. We had a wonderful weekend and Garrett was quite taken with Mike (and vice versa). Garrett is looking forward to having a "rich uncle" who has already promised to pay for his college and fly him to New York for the weekend to watch the Yankees.

Matt, Greg's youngest brother, also received his Eagle Scout this weekend and we are so proud of him. Matt is an excellent young man and Garrett is so lucky to have him as an uncle. Way to go, Matt!

Above is a picture of Greg and his brothers at the Court of Honor. Greg and I were talking the other day about how lucky Garrett is to have such amazing uncles. Every single one of them on both sides of the family have received their Eagle Scout awards and have served missions. WOW!