July Recap

July seriously flew by so quickly...it seemed like it was such a busy month for us, but in talking to others, it sounds like it was that way for everyone else, too.

Our family was able to do a lot of fun "summer" stuff this past month, which I loved. The kids are getting to an age where they really enjoy doing things away from home (especially Jaxson). Here are a few highlights:

We finally made it up the canyon for a campfire dinner. I love going up to Mueller Park for dinner...it is nice and close to home, plus there are some good picnic places and lots of shade. Jaxson was fascinated by the campfire and wanted to help Mike set up the fire and cook dinner. He was pretty disappointed that we didn't let him make his own hotdog and s'more on his own. Jax is definitely getting to that stage where he wants to be as independent as possible. We also learned that Aynsley seems to have the makings of being a true camper. She kept putting her food down on the ground and rubbing it in the dirt before eating it. No matter how many times we tried to distract her, she just kept going back to the dirt.

We were able to go for a long weekend trip to Bear Lake with Mike's family, and we had so much fun! It was really nice to take a break and just relax. I was pretty nervous about how well Jaxson would do because he typically won't sleep anywhere besides his crib, but he did great! He absolutely loved being able to play with his cousin and Aynsley became best friends with her Aunt Mandy.

While we were there, Jaxson was able to go on his first 4-wheeler and waverunner rides. He was pretty hesitant at first, but then ended up enjoying both. On his second waverunner ride, he kept looking up at me with the biggest smile on his face; I could tell that he was just loving every minute of it.

While we were waiting to switch out riders, we put Jaxson on the waverunner by himself so that we could take a picture. As you can tell, he was not very happy about that!

Hanging out by the beach...although the shore wasn't too great for playing, we were able to still find a pretty nice beach that worked out really well for the afternoon that we had the waverunners. It wasn't crowded at all, plus there was sand and shade for the kids. We had such a great time and are hoping to be able to go back again!

Recently, Jaxson has been really interested in farm animals. Last week, I took the kids to Wheeler Farm, and he absolutely loved it. I think that his favorite animal right now is a horse, so he was so excited when he got to see one up close. Unfortunately, Aynsley wasn't so into the horses, and she burst into tears while we were up close to one.

One of the employees was really sweet and let Jaxson "help" take care of the pigs. He was able to help spray them off and give them a drink. Later, the same employee helped Jaxson pet and get a few licks from Snickers, which is a pony. His whole face lit up when he was able to be that interactive with the pony. Once again, Aynsley wasn't too stoked about this, but I think by this point she was just ready to get out of the stroller.

Both of the kids really enjoyed being able to feed and look at the ducks. I think Jaxson was enjoying it a little too much, because he kept trying to pet them.

Besides the outings, the kids are keeping us as busy as ever! Aynsley started walking about three weeks ago, and I swear she is already going to be running soon! She can also say Momma, uh-oh, and that.

Jaxson is getting more and more grown up all the time. We have slowly started potty-training, and have even seen a few successes! He is getting very good at following directions, and is always trying to help his sister. He is such a sweet older brother. He loves going to nursery and playing with other kids.

St. George!

Jaxson loved playing in the sand with his cousins.

Our family was able to head down to St. George to spend some time with Mike's family over Memorial Day weekend, and we had such a good time! It was so fun to just relax and spend time with everyone. Jaxson LOVED being able to spend time with the other kids that were there; he is such a social little guy, so he was in heaven.

I was surprised at how well the kids did in the car...this was Aynsley's first long car ride, and the first long trip Jaxson had taken since he was about six months old. Fortunately, both kids were great! Even though they didn't sleep for too much of the drive, they weren't too restless. Having the portable DVD player was a huge help on the way home, although we did realize that Aynsley is a little frightened of 'Beauty and the Beast'.

We spent most of our time playing in the pool, going to the park, and exploring the desert. Jaxson loves to play in the sand, and the house backs the open desert, so Jaxson loved playing in "nature's sandbox". He got a little frustrated when he couldn't go outside to play whenever he wanted.

Mike and Aynsley are all ready to head out for a walk. 

Jaxson loved hanging out with his Grandpa...they would go for walks in the desert, and Jaxson just loved to explore and check everything out. 

On Sunday, we took a picnic to the park. Jaxson got so excited when he saw the playground equipment...too bad it was a little too hot. He kept trying to go down the slide, but as soon as he sat down, he kept saying "hot". 

At first, the kids were a little nervous about playing in the pool. This surprised me, because they both absolutely love playing in the bath, and Jaxson really enjoyed his swim lessons last year. After a little while, they both warmed up to the idea of playing in the water, so we will need to plan some more trips to the pool.

Aynsley loved lounging around in the float. She was so relaxed and looked like she was trying to lay out and get a tan. 

All in all, this was such a great trip, and the perfect "first vacation" for our little family. We really enjoyed just being able to spend quality time as a family. It is so easy to get wrapped up in everything that is going on in everyday life, so we really appreciated all of the family time we had this weekend. Now, I just need to convince Mike that we can handle a trip a little further from home... :)

Easter Weekend

We had the opportunity to escape the cold and head down to St. George to spend Easter weekend with Mike's family. It was SO nice to get away, enjoy the sunshine, and spend time with everyone!

While we were down south, we took the opportunity to take a driving tour of Zion's National Park. I had never been there before, so we figured it would be a good way to enjoy the outdoors with Jaxson. I was a little bit nervous that the car ride would be too much for him, but he did a great job. He loved being in his stroller and being able to look around.



On Sunday, Jaxson had his first Easter and was able to "participate" in his first Easter egg hunt. Good thing he had dad and grandpa to help him! Jaxson got his first sippy cup, a new outfit, and a movie in his Easter basket, and then found another sippy cup, toys, and a Utes t-shirt during the egg hunt.



I had to include this picture of Jaxson. I took it right after he finished eating his dinner. You can tell he is a happy boy!

Blog Challenge, Day 7

Today's post is about a picture that makes me happy. This picture shows my family, Mike, and me in South Carolina at Folley Beach. I love this picture for two reasons: first, I had such a great time with my family; second, I absolutely love being on the beach/near the ocean. I could not have asked for a better day!

St. George Getaway

Last weekend, we were able to get away to St. George with some friends. The Knaubs had won a free stay at a villa for the weekend, and we were so excited when the invited us to come along.

There were five couples that headed down: us, the Jaques, Olsens, Sandersons, and the Knaubs. This is the villa that we stayed in while we were there.

The girls: Ashley, Lori, me, Camille, and Barbara

While we were down there, we spent time relaxing at the pool, went to the movies, shopping, played games, ate a ton of delicious food, and headed down to Vegas for the night. It was such a fun and relaxing getaway! Thanks again for inviting us to come along, Knaubs!

Big John's Flats

Mike, Faline, and I spent Labor Day weekend camping with his extended family down at Big John's Flats. This area is in the mountains east of Beaver. This was a tradition when Mike was growing up, and it has been started as a tradition again. It is nice because so many people from Mike's mom's side of the family come, so it really is like a family reunion with everyone camping together. I was a little worried because when we went last year, it was SO cold and Mike ended up getting sick, but this year we had pretty nice weather.

We were able to take Faline for her first 4-wheeler ride. I was a little nervous about how she would do because she gets nervous whenever the 4-wheelers are even turned on, let alone if she was on one. Mike's cousin was nice enough to let us borrow his 4-wheeler, which is quite a bit roomier than ours. I was able to hold Faline on my lap, and she settled down and I think even enjoyed the ride. Mike drove us up to the top of the mountain - it was so windy, but the view was pretty cool.

On our way down from the mountain, we stopped at Mud Lake so that Faline could walk around before we kept 4-wheeling back to camp.

Another activity that was planned was the first annual Anderson Family Dog Show. One of the kids organized the whole thing, which was a good idea since there was seriously like eight dogs there.

For the dog show, each family had to present their dog and show any tricks that they could do. Mike took Faline into the ring and showed everyone how she can sit and stay until she is released, even when there is a treat waiting for her. Faline did pretty good, but there were a couple of other dogs who showed her up. Lucky for her, she still won third place and she also won the award for "Best Scrapper".

Mike and Faline after the show

Faline basking in the glory of her winnings :)

Besides 4-wheeling and the dog show, there were also horses, good food, games, shooting, and just a lot of visiting with everyone. We had a great time catching up with everyone, and it was nice to escape to the mountains for a few days.

Island Park

This past weekend, Mike and I had the opportunity to go to Island Park, Idaho with his family for a little getaway. We had a great time! Mike's mom and her husband rented a cabin for everyone to stay in. We spent the time playing cards, riding 4-wheelers, and enjoying the scenery. Mike and I also drove into Yellowstone for the afternoon, which I loved. It had seriously been around twenty years since I was last in Yellowstone, so I hardly remembered anything.

We found an old train station (from 1906-1907) a few miles away from where we were staying. It had some really cool places to take pictures. In this picture, Mike and I are standing in front of the ticket booth.

This is our niece, Kambri. She learned how to say Mike's name during the trip and it was really cute!

Jessica, Kambri, and Derek on the 4-wheeler

Mike 4-wheeling

Some of the beautiful scenery in Island Park

Mike and me in Yellowstone

Old Faithful

Mike and me in front of Old Faithful

Charleston/Nashville Vacay!

Last week, Mike and I went on a fun-filled vacation to Charleston, SC and Nashville, TN with our families. We have been planning this trip to Nashville forever...we went so that I could participate in graduation ceremonies! We figured that since we were kind of in the area, we should also go to South Carolina, since that is where Mike went on his mission. My family and Mike's mom, sister, and step dad came along with us to Charleston, and then my grandparents also joined us in Nashville.

Day 1: Travel...not much to report other than we flew into Atlanta and then drove to Charleston.

Day 2: We took a walking tour of historic Charleston. I absolutely loved seeing all of the old buildings! It was amazing to see all of the history; it almost reminded me of stepping back in time.
This was also a neat day because Mike's family got to call and talk to his brother, Trevor, who is on his mission!

Khemia, me, and Beth

St. Michael's Church: I believe that this church dates back to the 1600's. Two of the signers of the Declaration of Independence are buried in its cemetery.

Historic "Rainbow Row": this row of houses got its name because each house is a different color.

A view of the cobblestone streets.

Day 3: We headed out to Fort Sumter, which is where the Civil War began. The Fort is located on an island just outside of Charleston Harbor.

It was pretty interesting to learn more about the Fort and see all the cannons. There are a few places where you can still see cannon balls lodged in the side of the wall.

Day 4: We went back to downtown Charleston to do some more exploring and then went to Folley Beach. The beach was great! The water was warm enough to swim in...it was so wonderful!

Khemia and Beth in the Pineapple Fountain. We were joking about how there was a sign that had tons of different rules about wading in the fountain, such as not blowing your nose.

Mike and me at Folley Beach

Mandy and me

Day 5: We travelled from Charleston to Nashville...it was a LONG drive, but the scenery was beautiful. We drove through the Appalachians and the Blue Smoky Mountains.

Day 6: We visited the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and explored downtown Nashville. We also grabbed some lunch from a DELICIOUS BBQ place called Jack's BBQ.

Me pointing out Elvis's start on the walk of fame..

Beth, me, and Khemia in downtown Nashville.

For dinner, we went to the Loveless Cafe. While we were waiting for our dinner, my dad, Beth, Kristin, David, and Khemia decided to pose for a picture.

Day 7: GRADUATION DAY!

Vanderbilt's graduation ceremonies are pretty formal. After doing some ceremonies with all of the graduates, each school broke off and did their own event. During the nursing graduation, I received my academic hood. It was so hot and humid in that cap and gown, but I am also really glad that I decided to go out and participate in commencement. It was really neat to see the campus, since all of my classes were done online and I had only visited it once before.

Later in the afternoon, we got a HUGE rainstorm, which I loved. The house we were staying in had a screened-in porch, so I sat outside and enjoyed most of it. Later, we went out for more BBQ at Judge Bean's. It was way good!

Day 8: We visited a Civil War battlefield in Franklin, TN. This site was significant because a nearby plantation was turned into a make-shift hospital. You could still see blood stains on the floor in a few rooms. Also, this is the site where four Confederate Generals were killed and their bodies were laid out on the back porch.

The site is home to the largest private military cemetery in the United States. After the battle ended, the plantation owner buried all of the bodies. A few years later, the bodies were moved to this cemetery.

Later that night, Beth, Mandy, and I decided to go back into Nashville. We went to a few different bars and listened to some live music. Unfortunately, it seemed like each time we got into the bar, the band was just finishing and we had to wait while the new band set up.

Day 9: We left to come back home. It was so fun to get away, and I am so thankful to both of our families for taking the time to come out and support me during my graduation. Thanks for the fun times!