Exclusive

I don't know when it happened, but I think I'd call Kelsey an exclusive walker. I haven't seen her crawl in a while so I guess we are there. Sometimes when we are outside and she wants to chase kittys or go really fast she will crawl, but I think even then she is a walker. Its so weird because people kept asking and asking, and then finally I could say yes. She was 50/50 for a while and was able to stand in a room on her own, but now I'd say she is a 100%. When I'm holding her and put her down, we put her on her feet. Weird!

Scooter Ride

Thursday August 8th we were going to go on a double date to Seven Peaks but the weather decided to be too cold to swim. Since we had the babysitter lined up we decided to go for a ride up the canyon instead. It was gorgeous as always but I actually took pictures this time so that we can remember how beautiful Salt Lake is when we move away.

 Oh and I just love Kelsey's little ponytail and gym shorts!

Holladay

Moving is going to be so difficult. I have met some incredible people and will be leaving some of my very best friends. After bawling my way through Sunday, I think I have finally excepted the fact that this is real, this is happening, and it will all be okay. I can even say that sometimes I get excited for the adventures that lay ahead.
That being said, I can not even express how much I am going to miss my friends and my ward.

On Monday a bunch of us went up the canyon and roasted marshmallows kinda of like a going away party. I mean my friends are seriously the coolest. They knew that roasting and a camp fire were on my Salt Lake bucket list and so they had a party for Ethan and I up the canyon. It was beautiful and so much fun. I felt so blessed to know these people and hate to say goodbye.

Pineview

Tuesday, August 6th, we took a break from life and spent the day at Pineview Reservoir. Perfect weather, perfect beach spot, perfect water, and perfect company. It was  very enjoyable day. I will say though going to the beach with a 14 month old is much different and much more difficult than going to the beach with a 3 month old. None the less, still very fun and delightful!

Kelsey kept swipin this chair from Harps and so Harper started standing her ground. 

 Not a fan of the hat, BUT it stayed on so can't complain

 Mannings

 Some enjoyed the water...

 

And some did not :)

(if you didn't notice, you can't even see the water from where the picture was taken. That's how much so tried to avoid it)

Trek

I wish I could say that I was a supportive wife through the whole trek process. When I first found out that we may have to go I was a little bummed. When I first found out that Ethan was going to go and I was not invited (because they didn't have room for more women leaders) I was really really bummed. I put up a real stink about it and felt totally justified. I was not justified but here were my reasons to complain:
1. We still did not have a place to live
2. I thought it was lame that Ethan would used his "summer family vacation time" without the family and not really on a vacation
3. I hate being a single parent and being a single parent for a week left like a really long time.
Those are my reasons. Terrible reason, but there they are.
Luckily I married a wonderful man, who does what he is asked because the Trek experience was so positive for Ethan, for the youth that he worked with, and for Kelsey and I.
4. Ethan's knee was still messed up from the race and so I was worried about him hiking 35 miles in 3 days,.

It started Monday July 29th. He got home from work, ate dinner, packed, and headed to the church where he helped organize and pack everybody's stuff. After about 4 hours, he came home exhausted and ready to go to bed.
Tuesday, everyone had to meet at the church at 4:15 AM because the buses were leaving at 4:30. Ethan was up by 3:30 and out the door by 4:10. I'll tell you what, Ethan is the most positive person in the whole world, EVEN AT 4 AM!!!! He was up smiling, quizzing me about pioneers, making eggs, and whistling. When it came time to leave, he grabbed his travel bag, slung it over his shoulder, and while dressed completely like a pioneer in the pitch dark of morning shouted, "HOORAH FOR ISRAEL!!!" and left whistling some pioneer song. I mean who does that! I was so grumpy and I got to go back to bed.

Kelsey and I stayed very busy with weddings, shopping, cleaning, dinners, play dates, and the like. She was so good for me the whole week. Sometimes she wouldn't go to bed so we just sat up eating popcorn and watching TV, but it was really fun. It was almost like she could tell that something was wrong. She could tell that I was feeling very sorry for myself and needed a friend. She was such a happy girl and for that I am grateful. Thursday got to be a little difficult just because we both wanted Ethan home, but he came home Friday so with the help of naps, packing, and a wedding reception, Thursday flew by.

On Friday August 2nd, Kelsey and I just kinda waited for the call to tell us that they were close and approaching. The call came around 3:30 pm and we hopped in the car and rode over to the church. We live only 1 min driving from the church, but I couldn't have driven fast enough. I was so excited to see Ethan. Just like when he left, Ethan jumped off the bus smiling and happy. He was much dirtier, much more tired, very sun brunt, and smiled like who knows what, but he was so happy. It was great to see him!

 Kelsey was a little nervous at first, but once he took his hat off she started to recognize him. His bread probably threw her off. We gathered his stuff and headed over to where the rest of the youth were unloading and waiting for rides.
The moment I stepped into the youth circles, I heard nothing but "OH My GOSH Cami!!! Ethan is so funny!!" "You should have seen when Ethan..." "I wish you could have heard Ethan..." " Ethan, Ethan, Ethan!! It was hilarious. They had some very funny stories mostly about singing Disney songs, a broken stake on a tent in the pouring rain, and his debate voice. It was great to hear and a great reminder to me why Ethan went. He was such a good influence on the youth.
I can honestly say that I am grateful Ethan went. Despite my nagging and complaining, he was needed, and we were very blessed. I married Ethan because of his devotion and dedication to everything in his life and I am grateful that he didn't change this time just because circumstances were harder and his wife was so naggy!
I was asking Ethan about trek and he said that the best way to describe it would be positive. It was not a vacation, it was not fun, and it was not easy, but it was positive. He got to see all the pioneer famous spots in Wyoming, got great food, had fun games, and had a positive experience with our youth right before we moved. I can even say that I am a little jealous that he got to go and that I didn't. It seemed like a great experience.

Eating Around the Nation

I'm DONE!!! All 50 states have been eaten!

Alabama: Fried Green Tomatoes

Alaska: Salmon

Arizona: Chimmicanga

 Arkansas: Catfish

California: Salad with Avocados

Colorado:Denver Omelets

Connecticut: Apizza (clam pizza)

Delaware: Roasted Chicken

Florida: Key Lime Pie and Cubano Sandwiches

Georgia: Fried Chicken and Peaches

Hawaii: Kahlua Pork Rice with Spam and Pineapple

Idaho :Chicken Fingers and Potatoes

Illinois: Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

Indiana: Sugar Cream Pie

Iowa: Maid Rite (sloppy joes)

Kansas: BBQ Ribs

Kentucky: Hot brown

Louisiana: Shrimp Gumbo

Maine: Lobster

Maryland: Crab Cakes and Crab Legs

Massachusetts: Clam Chowder

Michigan: Michigan Pasty (Meat Pies)

Minnesota: Juicy Lucy (Stuffed Hamburger)

Mississippi: Mississippi Mud Pie

Missouri: Fried Ravioli

Montana: Bison burgers

Nebraska: Runza

Nevada: Buffet

New Hampshire: Corn beef and Potatoes

New Jersey: Hoagies

New Mexico: Green Chili Enchilada

New York: Buffalo Wings

North Carolina: Pulled Pork

North Dakota: Knoephla Soup (Butter soup with Potatoes)

Ohio: Chili

Oklahoma: Corn Pudding

Oregon: Mac and Cheese with Marion berry Pie

Pennsylvania: Philly Cheese Steak

Rhode Island: Johnny Cakes

South Carolina: Grits and Shrimp

South Dakota: Chislic

Tennessee: Memphis Ribs

Texas: Chili con Carne

Utah: No communication, bring-what-sounds-good Pot Luck

Vermont: Ben and Jerry's

Virginia: Ham and Biscuits

Washington: Cheap Chicken and Pasta Salad

West Virgina: Pepperoni Roll

Wisconsin: Cheesy Brats

Wyoming: Cowboy Grub

Cami
Favorite to Eat: Ohio
Favorite to Cook: North Dakota
Least Favorite: Arkansas
Easiest to check off: Utah and Nevada (I didn't have to do anything. Just showed up and took a picture)
Hardest to check off: Alabama (I had a hard time finding green tomatoes people were willing to give) 
All the meals were either very easy to make or normal for a dinner. If I had to pick a  most difficult to cook then I would probably pick Nebraska, Michigan, West Virginia, and North Dakota because there were so many steps involved. They weren't hard just time consuming. 

Ethan
Favorite to Eat: Louisiana
Least favorite: Arkansas

This idea started because one time in March I was tired of making the same meals over and over. I love what I cook, but it was getting boring. I opened up a cook book and it happened to be a recipe from Louisiana. After we ate it and liked it, I thought, why don't we make a meal from all 50 states. I researched on line via blogs, Wikipedia, and different cooking websites. I would compare like5 different sites and if they matched, I had my meal. If they were off, my research got a little more extensive. If I couldn't narrow down one meal (because a lot of states don't have official meals) I would either ask people from that state or I would research what the state veggie, fruit, drink, dessert, etc was until I found something that was state appropriate. I set up an Excel document with all 50 states, with their main meal, main dessert, main veggie, and main fruit accompanied by the website where I could find the meal. With all that, I just started cooking.  I started March 26th and ended July 29th. I had no set pattern and no set time frame for when the meals were cooked. Sometimes it was when food was on sale, sometimes it was when food sounded good, and towards the end it just came down to wanting to be done. It was super fun to have something to look forward to. I think I would do this again but maybe countries next time. I really enjoyed cooking the states. Some I liked better than others, and some I would even make again, but over all it was fun to have a project to work on. It kinda made dinner exciting for Ethan and I.