i'm feeling twenty three

i don't know about you, but i love birthdays!

last year was an absolute blast..

here are some of my favorite memories from year 22:

each year just keeps getting better and better, and i'm excited to see what year 23 has in store. 

(cross your fingers for getting into med school and moving somewhere crazy!)

^this was my last day of being 22^

 the birthday started out with a glamorous breakfast, 

and of course a birthday morning ski.

we also celebrated a "gave-birthday" 

get it?

 and did lots of boarding with my boys.

my birthday wouldn't be the same without a theme....

this year happened to be a cooking themed party with silhouette decorations 

they come from my other blog that i haven't put together enough to make a big deal of, but it is fun.

i got some super some fun presents,

including a four leaf clover from guatemala!

mom never disappoints, and these cupcakes were delish!

 it's official. 23!

 after getting all glammed up, we headed into town.

i missed having my sis around, but i sure love these brothers of mine.

i love all these guys, and i wouldn't want to spend my day with anyone else!

after some tasty pizza and a stop at the candy store, it was show time.

 my birthday also wouldn't be the same without a trip to the playmill theatre.

this year marked birthday number 16 there!

 with the whole family in tow, you know you are in for a good time.

 of course i got to go up on stage for a birthday song...

and I loved seeing all my lovely playmill friends.

they put on a great show. 

and it was a great day.

one of my favorite gifts was this adorable mini polaroid camera i got from andrew.

 i love celebrating with my family, but i really love celebrating with my favorite guy.

he is my everything.

thanks to everyone who made my day special. 

i felt so loved! 

the year of the trick shot

we've been going to hebgen since 1996 and every year seems to have a theme.

we've done friendship bracelets, window art, hat looming, knitting, crocheting, music videos, road rallies, more friendship bracelets, shrinky-dinks (so cool), hair wraps and pretty much any other klutz book you can think of...

this year just happened to be

the year of the trick shot

it was one of our best "themes" yet! my brothers dave and mike and my cousin stephen spent the whole six weeks in montana coming up with and executing all kinds of awesome trick shots on a mini basketball hoop from stephen's childhood. dave used his go pro to capture all these sweet shots. 

almost every visitor that came our way got to participate, and dave complied all the shots (of all levels of difficulty) into an awesome video. i loved that he let everyone in our family participate! it turned out great. so, so great. and i think you'll like it quite a bit. 

so take a look, add your view, and share it if you love it like we do. 

pretty sweet right? 

dave did such an awesome job. 

of course a tradition that will continue every year... 

boating. 

there's nothing better than hitting a beautiful glassy lake first thing in the morning

having the ski run of your dreams

dreamy, right?

 and maybe another

(go mama, go mama!)

 and maybe another

(mike has become quite the skier this year too!)

 and after the skiing is done, slowing the boat down for some nice, eassssy surfing.

sitting on the back in the sunshine watching everyone surf... 

it doesn't get much better!

whether you are surfing in sweats...

 or a speedo...

 surfing is sweet. and who can complain about being on a boat in the most beautiful place from nine to noon! (or longer)

 andrew kept getting better and better!

everybody surfs!

we might even have a few wakeboarders if we are lucky. 

(and this year we were especially lucky, the water was beautiful all day long)

and on the off-chance we aren't so lucky, tube wars are always a good second option.

they take the war part pretty seriously...

boating all day every day, and we just can't get enough.

 is it possible to complain about perfect water at seven?

 sunset ski? yes please.

 boating from sun up to sun down?  perfection.

 our week on the boat couldn't have been better.

we love you, boat, thanks for all the fun.

burley, idaho

the past few weeks have finally felt like summer because i went on vacation!

the first trip we took was to burley, idaho for a family reunion with my mother-in-law's fam. i was a little apprehensive when i found out we would be sleeping in tents (which isn't something i have ever really done), but it was perfect. they rent out a beautiful campground right along the snake river with a big barn and plenty of working bathrooms and showers...

 it was more of a glamping* trip if you ask me, which is right up my alley.  

*glamorous caming

here are some of the highlights:

on our way up to idaho, we stopped at the point of the mountain so andrew could go paragliding!

i gave him a groupon for his birthday, and we were finally able to use it. it was so fun to watch him floating around in the air. wild.

 we arrived at the campground friday afternoon, and it was just beautiful!

 our tent before:

 our tent after:

 it was a super easy pop-up tent that required little to no effort to set up... perfect for a glamper such as myself. we also had an air mattress which apparently makes camping way better. 

just hanging in our tent...

 i'm happy to report that no animals attacked us and we slept quite well in our tent, and we woke up to a beautiful morning along the snake. 

i told you it was beautiful...

the days were filled with kayaking, boating, volleyball (so much volleyball), obstacle courses, talent shows, and lots of tubing down this crazy waterslide. some attempts were more successful than others.

 everyone had an opportunity to prepare a meal and we ate it outside along the river. there was plenty of story telling, crafting, catching up and getting to know more family!

my MIL Ruth grew up in burley, and grandpa adams was actually quite the influence on the little city. we got the full tour of the main street, the home where momma barrett grew up, and lots and lots of farmland. it was fun to learn about this little piece of family history and hear all kinds of stories and memories that came with driving up main street. 

we had to stop at this little gas station among the farmland for a treat. 

 my favorite part of the trip had to be the D.I. fashion show.  we stopped in town and tried to find the best outfits at the local thrift store... andrew and i decided to enter the couples 80s sportswear category. i think we did pretty well. 

 the talent show was full of laughs. 

i whipped out another D.I. find for my talent. 

family time is the best time. 

 and i survived sleeping in a tent. 

note: glamping does NOT mean that you have to look glamorous.

thanks for the fun, burley.

more summer vacation updates to come!