Over Labor Day Weekend we decided to take a little spur of the moment trip with the Freeman's to Silver Dollar City in Branson Missouri....

It was so green and pretty but there were little touches of fall here and there.....

We went through Marvel Cave.....which was actually amazing....they played some epic music as you walked down this long staircase to the bottom of the cathedral room....it was so neat it gave me chills and I got a little teary eyed...I know it sounds weird but it was really that cool.....

Went on some really fun rides!

Joel won a cute little blue monkey for Carson.....

We saw a little humming bird

We went to the candy shop and tasted some fresh peanut brittle and bought some taffy, they had all sorts of flavors we'd never tasted

went to a Christmas Store....all Christmas, all the time....which to me was Heaven!!
The next morning we went canoeing...

Everything along the river was so gorgeous.....

Canoeing was pretty hard work, after we got out of the river we were starving!! So we went to Steak and Shake for lunch and had hamburgers and milkshakes........

Later that night we went to this scary haunted 3D House of Chaos ride...
(ok fine, everyone else thought it was funny and I was the only one who thought it was scary. It was just creepy and I am a huge chicken.....)

We also went to a house of mirrors that was really fun, I scared myself twice with my own reflection and Cameron ran right smack into his.....
(All my pictures of it turned out dark and blurry so i stole this from the internet:)
then headed to a wax museum.....

Eeeeewwwww! I know!

Even Eeeeewwer!!

Had dinner at Landry's Seafood House and I had a delicious crab cake.....

we also had some pretty good Key Lime Pie....
(sadly nothing compares to the triple layer creamy key lime deliciousness we had at
Flounder's Chowder House in Florida)

Monday morning we got up, ate our free continental breakfast and played a little mini golf.....

And then we were off! We packed a lot of fun into 2 days....and we were exhausted!!!

Thai Peanut Noodles
(Recipe from: Our Best Bites)

1/2 C. chicken broth
3 T. creamy peanut butter
1-2 t. Sriracha chili sauce
1 1/2 T. honey
3 T. soy sauce
1 1/2 T. fresh minced ginger or 1/8 t. powdered
2-3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
8 oz. linguine noodles
Chopped green onions
Chopped cilantro
2 limes, cut into quarters
Chopped peanuts

Cook noodles in salted water. In the meantime, combine chicken broth, peanut butter, chili sauce, honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk until smooth and remove from heat. Toss cooked noodles with sauce and divide among 4 bowls. Sprinkle with green onions, cilantro, chopped peanuts, and garnish each serving with 2 lime quarters. Before eating, squeeze lime juice over noodles and stir to combine.

So Good!!!

Ahhhh....September.......Fall is on its way!!!

Yesterday morning we got up before the sun and started our drive to Memphis.

An early morning road trip with us is not complete without McDonald's delicious $1 sausage breakfast burritos, slathered with hot sauce.........

Its always a blessing to go to the temple....this time we got to help the youth with baptisms. It made me think back to my first times to the temple in young women's. I have always loved being there, its so quiet and peaceful, and so many important things are happening there, all day long.... Although not as quiet this time, with 14 silly teenagers, but still so good to be there.

Afterwards we headed to the Peabody hotel to see the duck march. In a perfect world where I got dressed a little faster and didn't like to talk so much we would have seen 5 or 6 cute little ducks waddle out this elevator........

down their little red carpet, and into the fountain......which they do everyday at 11am and head up back to the roof every evening at 5pm....so cute!

But we got there about 3 minutes too late and the were already in the fountain......

So I watched it on YouTube when we got home. :)
Next we headed to Beale street which is the home of the Blues and had a great time!
We ate a delicious lunch at BB King's Blues Club....
Mmmmmmm......grilled Mahi Mahi......
Listened to some great Blues music.....
and Joel enjoyed an icy cold, frosty Rootbeer
All that and we were back home in bed napping by 3:30 pm....

Life at 29.....

is much different than I ever thought it would be. By 29 I always thought my house would be filled with the screams and laughter of 2 or 3 kids, I would be busily rushing around the house picking up messes, cooking delicious meals and sitting around the table as a family, probably driving a minivan and running kids here and there, throwing birthday parties, doing endless loads of laundry, kissing owies all better, helping with school projects, reading bed time stories, snuggling my little babies, feeling crazy in all the chaos at times, but feeling so overwhelmed with more love than I've ever imagined possible at others.....

But.....that's just not my life quite yet. I have had a lot of time off lately, which has been a lot of time to sit in my house, my very quiet house, while Joel is gone at work all day and think......

I'm not the worlds most patient person. And I tend to worry and stress a lot if things don't seem to happen in the time frame I think they should. For as long as I can remember I have been waiting and dreaming and planning for the days of becoming a wife and a mother. To me nothing would make me happier. I didn't become a wife as soon as I thought I would. I thought by 21 I was totally ready.(looking back now....I totally wasn't) And I spent a lot of time worrying and wondering and stressing and watching other people who seemed to be falling in love all around me and experiencing what I thought I should already have.

Single life would have been much more fun had I known I was going to get married. Even though I really did have tons of fun, I also spent way too much of my time over thinking everything. Worrying every time I moved to a new place that somehow I might be missing the opportunity to meet him. Every time I moved I would think "What if I moved and he was back where I just came from, and I just didn't stay long enough to meet him? And now I never will??" Wondering if I left him in Oregon or Utah, or each city I lived in between....when in reality he was just waiting patiently for me to finish up all my moving around and come home. And look at me now, I'm a married woman! Am I the amazing, wonderful, perfect wife I always dreamed I'd be?? No. But I'm working on it. :)

When it comes to having babies. I am trying to be more patient. And I think I have been more patient than I was waiting to get married. It probably helps having the love of my life by my side trying to patiently wait for the same thing. I am so grateful for him. I don't feel alone this time. We thought we were ready 2 years ago....but here we are 2 years later learning that we weren't.

I never want to be one my friends or family feel sorry for. Or one they are nervous to share their exciting news of being pregnant with. I am not resentful. I know when its their time its their time, and I will someday get mine. Whether it ends up being through my belly or the wonderful, giving belly of some other precious woman. I will have a family. I will get to be a mommy.

I am learning that Heavenly Father knows me so much better than I know myself. He knows the time line of my life. He knows when things are supposed to happen. And he will give me the amazing gifts in life I desire the most, he'll just wait for the perfect time to give them to me. I really need to learn to be more patient and fully trust in him.

So I will be more patient, and I will be more content, working and cooking and cleaning for our little family of 2. And work on learning the things I need to know now to become a better wife and person each day and prepare myself to someday become the best mommy I can be. I am excited to see what our future holds. As hard as it can be in the middle of it all, I know when I get to the end of my time here on earth I will be able to look back and know everything happened just when it should have. And it will be perfect.

I saw these online a long time ago and finally made one....

and here are some alien cupcakes I helped Hillary make for Carson's 3rd birthday last weekend!! Think we're Cupcake Wars worthy yet?? :)

Thursday night was Joel's white coat ceremony. I can't believe we are halfway there already! He is DONE with class! He has worked so hard this past year and has been through a lot.....The last 2 months alone he has been dealing with some anxiety and sleepless nights, a horrible case of poison ivy and salmonella just to name a few.......and somehow through it all still managed to get a 4.0! I am so proud of him!!!

And there he goes!!! Off to his first day of rotations this morning!