Rodeos and Jonas Bro's!

I I had missed the 4th of July for the past three years but this one really made up for it.

My family was in town at Park City so I spent the whole weekend up there with them. On Friday night, I took Ashley and we met up with some of my friends for my first ever rodeo experience in Oakley, Utah! I loved it. At times the calf wrestling got a little violent, but I was willing to overlook that because the rest was so amazing. It even ended with some pretty sweet fireworks! Yeehaw!! Here's some pics....

The next day we headed down to Provo for the Stadium of Fire! We used to go when I was little so it was super fun to go again. They had two of my favorites- SheDaisy and Jonas Brothers! Okay I've only recently become a fan of the Jonas Brothers but I love them. My little sisters' twitter-patted crushes were contagious. I sang and danced along with the rest of the little tween fans and loved every minute of it.

Exploring the Beehive State

Oops I've already gotten behind on the blog. Well I'll try to update over the next few days. I've been busy with school, family, and those lovely research projects I love so much.

At the end of June I went on a fun trip with some ward friends to Zion's National Park! I feel bad after living in the wonderful Beehive State for a good three years I still haven't explored much. I was beyond pleased with my Zion's adventure. We drove down one night and camped on a random dirt road. The next morning we ate cake for breakfast, shot potato guns, hiked the Narrows, had a BBQ, competed in a rousing game of kickball, and played MASH until the wee hours of the morning. Talk about a good day! We finished off the trip the next day by going to a reservoir to cliff jump. If this wasn't enough already, for our last meal we stopped at In N Out in St. George. I'm still a California girl at heart.

Our makeshift campsite on the side of a dirt-road right outside the park....

Morning activity: shooting the potato gun. Oh and Lisa pulled out some amazing skills hitting our target (the cake box) the first time! Go girl!

Hiking up the narrows

This is just a glimpse of the madness.

Lisa and I just floating at the end!

Here's the whole crew

Some of us made a goal to have a squirrel on Nick's head... being good little Cougars we are very much goal-oriented.

This was the result.

Nick, Lisa, and I at the Reservoir the next day!

Hopefully Mother doesn't read this, but here's proof that I jumped off that cliff!

Crazy photo courtesy of Lisa's camera...

I promise there is more to come!

I'm not ashamed to say it

I'm ecstatic to see these boys tonight....

My family and I are going to jo bro's tonight and I couldn't be more excited. When I heard they were playing at the Stadium of Fire, I frantically called my mom to find out what our 4th of July plans were. It all worked out and we are going tonight! I'm mildly obsessed with anything Disney and Jo Bro's are no exception. I will be there singing with all the tweens! Yessss... Happy 4th! 

I heart my Jeru Fam!

So about a year ago I returned from my study abroad in Jerusalem and I still miss it... a lot. I got to see and experience so much while I was there. My cousin, Stephanie, is there right now doing the same thing and I am so jealous! I look at her blog and just wish I were her. 

Although I am far from the city and probably won't go back any time soon, I am still in contact with a ton of the friends I made there. Way back when I think I posted about our little "Jeru Family." We were the best of buds while studying there. We each had a role like the crazy aunt, rebellious teenage son, grandma, etc. It was wonderful. Here is a family portrait we took back in the day. 

Well, the other day one of the family members, Micah, said he was going to take Jenna and I out on a date. We are all best friends and I thought it was just him being sweet. We were waiting in line at Diego's (our favorite Mexican food restaurant) when in walked our "mom" Lauren Nutall!!! Lauren has been working in Oklahoma for the past year so it was so exciting to see her sweet face!

We were so happy to be reunited! After dinner, we went over to our "father" Ted's house to surprise him. Here's a shot of mommy Lauren waking up Teddy from a nap.... 

 

It felt so good to be reunited with so many of my Jeru friends. It wasn't the whole fam but I think it was most we've had together since we got back. Hooray for study abroad besties...