Football season has officially begun, which means I'm a widow on Monday night, Saturday and Sunday night.  I'm kidding, sort of.  This weekend BYU plays University of Texas and Dave went to Texas with his dad to cheer on the Cougs.  I'm so glad he got to be there to watch BYU dominate the Longhorns!  

I always get crazy productive when Dave leaves town so we got ready and headed out for a long day of shopping. (Not the Nordstrom kind of shopping though. Boo.)  First things first....food.  I am a cranky lady when I am hungry and my sweet little Tenners definitely got that same trait from me.  A quick stop at In-N-Out and we are both so much nicer to each other. 

Next stop, Home Depot.  I have been wanting to re-paint our kitchen table and chairs FOREVER and I deduced this would be the perfect weekend.  Everything is a phone to her lately, so she "talked" on the paintbrush the entire time we were in the store. I should quit buying toys. 

Finally we made our way to Target.  Because I figured with a newly painted table, I would want to add a rug, and some pillows and some storage.  This is normal, right?!  

Most days she is just a dreamboat and makes me want to have 10 more just like her.  She was getting a bit restless by now, but she just laid her pretty little head on these pillows until we left.  Now home for nap time while I attempt to paint. 

Kelli & Jason Wedding

My little sister is now Mrs. Larson! 

It feels like just yesterday we were taking this picture on my wedding day. Kelli was such a beautiful bride. 

Kelli & Jason had their luncheon at Heritage Gardens, which is where Dave and I had our reception. It was fun reminiscing of our wedding day almost 6 years ago!

Tenley was loving her dress and was dancing and twirling all day long.

So glad Dave could join us for the temple sealing and luncheon.  He's my hard working man and had to get on a plane back to California after the luncheon. 

Later that day, we went to Heber for their reception. T's favorite part was the Cold Stone ice cream.

Logan Temple

I can't believe my little sister is about to get married! I'm so lucky I was able to come to Utah for a few weeks before her wedding.  Today we drove up to Logan so she could take out her endowments and have all my grandparents and relatives there.  It was such a special day.

Growing up in Cache Valley for 16 years, I've always loved the Logan temple. 

I love the feelings of peace and clarity I feel within these walls.

Utah Bound

Road trip time with my munchkin. I am always amazed at how well she travels.  I was prepared with lots of snacks, toys and new movies on the iPad to help us endure the long drive.

I've never felt so happy to see that "Welcome to Utah" sign!

We stayed in my parents house in St. George to break up the long 11 hour drive.  T was pretty happy about not being in the car anymore!

Hollywood Beach

We live less than 10 minutes from some pretty amazing beaches and I've decided I need to take advantage of it more than I have. This week we went to Hollywood Beach.  I loved all the houses along the coast, especially this one.

One of the things I love most about Oxnard Beaches, besides the wonderful sand, is the lack of people.  As usual, we had the place all to ourselves.

Tenley showing me the correct way to sit in the beach chair.

She loves the ocean so much. I try to keep her playing in the sand as long as possible because once she dips her toes in the water, there's no going back. She has no fear of the ocean and would dive right in if I let her. 

Riverwoods

Before heading back to California, I was able to meet up with my family at the Riverwoods in Provo for dinner.  Oh how I love these girls (and my dad and brother too, of course). 

After dinner, we walked around the most adorable toy store.  We left with all sorts of old fashioned candy and some darling books for Tenley.

Au Revoir

One of the reasons we came back to Utah was to get all of our belongings packed up and in storage so that our renters could get moved in.  We packed up most of our things when we made the move to California back in April,  but I was amazed at how much we still had left.  I was so thankful Dave was able to come with me to move out all big furniture while I packed up everything else.  We could not have done any of it without help from his family.  

It felt so weird as I handed the keys over to our renters.  I know it's still technically my house, but it doesn't feel like it. This was our first house and so many memories were made here.   I have lived in so many different parts of the country, each great in their own way, but Utah will always have my heart.  I loved living in Highland and being so close to the beautiful mountains and great running trails.  I will miss my beautiful kitchen and spacious walk-in closet.  Sigh.  I am excited to see where life takes us in the next few years.  I know eventually we will end up back in Utah, but until then, au revoir.