60 is the new 40!

My darling mom turned sixty in April so we decided we better have a PARTY!! My dad reserved the banquet room downstairs at the Market Street Grill and we had all of our family and close friends come celebrate. We had the cutest little rakes that Andrea and Rachael had gotten at each seat as a party favor since my mom loves to garden and Andrea of course did cute flower centerpieces for each table. We had a fun program where Rachael, Tyson, and my mom's best friend Sandra talked about funny moments with my mom, and then we all took a survey on how well we knew her. It was so much fun to get together and celebrate such an awesome lady! We love you mom!

Two New Additions: Mark Ellis and Claire

In January I got a new neice and a new nephew! They were born almost exactly twelve hours apart. Rachael finally got a boy and Andrea finally got a girl! They have been so much fun to have around. Claire is very calm and so so cute with bright blue eyes and tons of dark hair. Mark is much more intense and keeps his mom up all night but thank goodness his little face can melt your heart so you can't get too mad! In April both of them were given their blessings and I have the funniest story I just have to tell about Claire's blessing..... So the whole family is there and it is time for everyone to go up for the blessing and Ty stands up and starts making his way across the row of people. All of a sudden my mom grabs his arm and pulls him down. Well unbenounced to me their Stake President had just sent out an email asking for just the fathers and the grandfathers to be in the circle. I have never seen Ty's face that red in my life! He was so mad at me but I had no idea! I was laughing so hard I couldn't even pay attention to the blessing!

This is the only picture I have of Mark on his blessing day!

The Rest Of April.....

5 guys and a girl
So Ty's friend Firmage got married in LA and made Ty one of his groomsmen so we figured we'd better go :) even though we had planned on going to New York that week. Well Ty's four other friends came; Ryan Jensen, Josh Ison, Cam Castleton, and Quinn Kimball and of course Quinn and Cam's wives at the last minute weren't able to come. That left me with the five boys. But wait it gets better........ Ty and I thought sure why not let's share a hotel room with Jensen to save money. It won't be that bad. It's only fours nights and we won't be in our room that much. Well then when we met Cam at the airport and his wife wasn't able to come we thought sure just bunk up with us on one of the hotel room's rollaway beds. We already have Jensen in our room and boys don't take too long to get ready so it won't be a big deal. Well then lovely Josh and Quinn come rolling into town in Josh's beater civic and you guessed it! They didn't want to spend the money for a hotel room so they slept on the floor of our room. WOW! New York was really looking good at this moment! HA HA! But I made the best of it and we had a good time. Here are a few pictures of our weekend.
We spent the whole first day doing all the touristy stuff..........

This elvis guy was so nasty!
Ty and I on Rodeo drive!Dinner with the groom before the big day!
L.A. Temple....... so pretty! It is crazy how it is planted right in the middle of the city on a really busy street!The lovely groomsmen. They had to wear no tie and flip flops with their suits which really threw Ty for a loop since he hates wearing flip flops let alone with a suit!The last night we drove down to Anaheim and saw an Angels game. It was so fun! We had awesome seats and the Angels played great!

I know I am finishing this post without one picture of the bride and groom but during the reception the whole time I was worrying about videoing everything since Ty was in charge of the video otherwise I would like to think I would have done better at taking pictures. But congratulations to the new Firmages! We wish you the best! (I also apologize for the amount of pictures. I don't know how to do slide shows yet. I am just happy to get a post on here!)

Where did April go?

Well I doubt anyone even checks our blog anymore cause we never update it but we have been crazy busy! I have so much to talk about but I am really tired so I am going to start at the beginning and see how far I get tonight:

Ty and I decided we needed to get away at the beginning of April so when our niece Hadley had a dance competition in St. George we jumped all over it. The two of us left on Wednesday night which was really fun cause we got to drive down there just the two of us and stay at Megan's mom's house for the night. It was so fun to just drive and chat like we used to do on our drives to Idaho Falls that I miss so much. Our lives are so crazy now with conflicting schedules and tight knit families that we don't get the opportunity to hang out with each other just the two of us as much as we'd like so it was fun catching up. Then Ty's family came and spent the rest of the weekend with us. We had so much fun swimming, playing tennis, watching Hadley dance, and most of all just relaxing.

The whole Perry clan at the Pizza Factory!
Ty's cousin Al's cute wife Jane and her adorable baby were in St. George nannying her cousins and met up with us for the dance competition. Is he not the cutest baby you've ever seen?

Ty's nieces Hadley and Maggie enjoying the sun. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of Had in her dance costume.... but she sure looked cute!

Happy Birthday Ty!

Ty is now officially 27! He is getting so old! I just want everyone to know how grateful I am for him! He is such a hard worker and such a good friend to me! We had a great time celebrating all weekend in St. George with his family and then on Tuesday we went to Uinta Golf and picked him out a new putter and then went to Tiburon and enjoyed the best food ever! Happy Birthday Ty! I hope you have another great year of your life and I am so happy I get to be apart of it! Love you!

SPRING and SHOPPING!!!!!!

I know I haven't posted in awhile but I broke my camera and I know that posts with pics are so much more fun but for now my picture of blossoms on the tree will have to do. Yesterday was the first day of Spring so I wanted to congratulate everyone for making it through the dreary months of Winter!!! There is nothing better than driving with your windows down, taking a walk in the evening with a light jacket, feeling the sun beat down on your back, running outside without your throat burning, and most of all SpRiNg ShOpPiNg!!!!!

I don't know about anyone else but I love to shop in the spring! You walk into JCrew or Anthropologie and you want to buy everything because it is so colorful in there. This year is extra fun cause I no longer live in Idaho Falls where the shopping is terrible. I have found my new favorite store..... Frolics! It is just a small boutique in Holladay. I went there last year one time when I was visiting and had forgotten about it. But Rachael and I went there last week and they had so much fun stuff. If anyone hasn't been there you should check it out. It is right by The Store.

Anyways, everyone keeps getting mad at me for not updating but we really haven't had much going on. We are going to St. George next week with the Perrys and then Ty and I are going to LA for one of his friend's wedding. (We just got him fitted for his suit and he looks really cute. I will make sure to have a camera by then!) Then in May I am off to Scottsdale for the annual sister's getaway trip! So I promise I will post more pictures and updates coming up but for now I wish everyone a very happy SPRING! :)

MIDWAY

Ty and I have been trying to get up to our cabin for the past month and we were finally able to go with some of our friends on Friday. It was so fun and a much needed getaway! We just relaxed, ate dinner, played a serious game of guesstures, and enjoyed the hot tub. We will definitely have to make this a more common occurrence!

This picture took some serious work with the camera timer!

Thanks boys for putting up with us crazy girls! :)

KISS THE COOK

Happy Valentine's to everyone! I want to tribute this post to my one and only valentine who I love so much! If any of you know Ty he is the happiest and most loveable guy in the world and I am so happy and grateful to be married to him! I appreciate all that he does for me and for us as a family.

For our Valentine's we got to spend the afternoon demonstrating our "expertise" in making banana foster. We were asked to be on the channel 2 cooking show for sweetheart's week along with Governor Huntsman and his wife, Salt Lake City mayor Ralph Becker and his wife, and Salt Lake County mayor Peter Caroon and his wife. Ya! I know! I don't know where we fit in but I must say I was not made for TV. I posted the link to watch the two clips of us only for all of you to enjoy a good laugh! I realize that I must laugh at myself for how goofy and awkward I am on TV or else I just get embarrassed. I am just really grateful I am not the one trying to make a living as a journalist!

http://www.kutv.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoid=33251@kutv.dayport.com&navCatId=34

Just so you all know the recipe is fabulous! I recommend it to everyone!

¼ cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ cup banana liquor

¼ cup rum

4 bananas, quartered

Serve with: Ice cream, waffles, crepesMelt butter, add sugar and cinnamon until mixture forms a syrup. Add banana liquor, then bananas and cook until bananas start to turn brown. Remove from heat and add flame, return to heat and cook for about 30 seconds. Alcohol will cook off. Cool slightly and serve over ice cream, waffles or crepes.

We Thank Thee Oh God For A Prophet

We just wanted to make a post in honor of President Hinckley. At the time of his death we want to take time to celebrate the life that he lived. He was and will always be an example to us and our family as how we should live our lives. Not only was he a great prophet but father, husband and friend. If we can have as much love, humor, and faith in our lives as he did we will live a very happy life. We love you President Hinckley!

KUTV Contract

I don't know how familiar everyone is with the news business but it is cut throat! Ty has been working night and day since we moved back from Idaho Falls as a freelance reporter. That means that he wasn't officially part of the 2news team but just an on call reporter they could call if they needed him. Luckily Channel 2 has needed him to fill in usually more than 40 hours a week. But it has been nerve racking because he has had to be available every minute of the day. He has worked every single holiday and has been called in at 3 in the morning too many times for me to count. All this time we just had to hope that they were liking him and would eventually give him a contract. Well it finally happened! Yesterday Ty was officially offered a job to become apart of the 2news team! I am so proud of him! He has worked so hard these last 2 years hoping that some day he would be a "Channel 2 reporter". He promised me I wouldn't have to be in Idaho for the 2 full yrs and he did it! He got me home in 18 months and has now officially landed his dream job! I love you Ty and I know you will be the best reporter out there! I can't wait to see where you take your career next! :)