Dun Dun Da Dun......

That's the wedding march, by the way.... My friend Chad is getting married!! Wahoo!! And to a great girl, Kandace!!! They are so freakin' cute together. They asked me to take their engagement photos!! Of course, I was excited!!!! So here is my first real attempt on doing engagement photos, what a cute couple. They were incredibly patient with me and such good sports. It was a lot of fun. Take a look and tell me what you think! I'll also be doing their Bridals/Goomals (meaning Bride and Groom). So stay tuned!!

Let the Halloween Festivities Begin!!

Here comes Halloween!!! That means, pumpkins, corn stalks, haunted houses and much much more!! Here is the beginning. Me and a few friends went to Thanksgiving Point for some fun! We went through a 3D Fun House, a Corn Maze, and bounced on a bubble!!! It was a blast!! There are also pictures from Dustin's birthday! Happy Birthday Dust!! You're such a good sport for gettin' on that saddle! haha

Cali

Yes yes..... I know..... Cali again!! But what can I say, I love it out there! I was able to spend time with my Grandma and Cousins. I also went to the beach. Corona Del Mar. It was beautiful and I swear, everything is so much better at the beach, it makes my day and is probably the most relaxing place on earth for me. Water, Sun, Sand, what else do you need!?!? Love it! When we left, people were setting up for a little ring ceremony. How perfect.

Birthdays!

Happy Birthday Owen and Jesse!! These boys are getting so big and are so freakin' adorable!!! They both crack me up. They also both had their birthdays in September. Owen turned 3, he had a Cars birthday. and Jesse turned 6. Jesse had a pretty awesome party, it was a pirate birthday, he was Cap'n Jesse Sparrow. It was a lot of fun for the kids, but a lot of work for the adults haha. Take a look!

Mt. Timp

Here I go, I'm going to finish updating the past little bit. This one will be about Mt. Timpanogos, I headed up with some friends and their family. We just hiked up and went through the cave. It was the first cave I've ever been in. It was pretty cool! Here are some pics!

Lagoon

Who loves Lagoon??? I do.... Every once in a while anyway. I went to Lagoon on August 20th. It was fun and it wasn't too hot so it was great. When we went on the train to go see all the animals. First of all, those poor little animals they don't deserve to be locked up cause where they live is horrible and not taken care of. They'd be much better off in the Zoo! Anyway, while riding the train, I noticed that a poor little chicken was stuck on the barbed wire, we tried to get him off, but we ended up calling someone that worked in the park, he got gloves and saved the little guy. Poor thing. We had fun though. Wicked still gets me every time! Gotta love it!!

Company Party

My Company party was at Boondocks this year. And it was the best Company Party yet! It was a blast. Go Karts, simulators, and Laser Tag with the people in our group, loved it! It was nice for a change and it was definitely the most fun. I only have a few pics. You know me! It's not a post unless there are pictures! :)

Updates!

I am going to post a few updates so keep your eyes open, it may take me a bit to get completely caught up! But here I go! I left off at Maggie going to the hospital. I'm sorry I'm just now letting you know. But she is doing much better, with her infection anyway, she was able to get rid of it. She is gaining weight, but slowly, her hips are weak and so are her legs but she still tries to crawl, and tries to pull herself up to the table to stand. She's freakin' cute, she's also learning sign language. I gave her her blanket and she told me thank you in sign language. Maggie was also blessed, so I have posted some pics from that day then I took some other pics of her in her pretty dress. Maggie is still having heart problems and will be getting leg braces soon and she still has her hip brace, and she still may need to have the surgery on her head. I will keep you updated on her!! Love to all and thanks again for all the love and prayers for Maggie.

Please please please pray for Maggie!

Maggie is back in the hospital with a very bad infection, they don't know what kind, where it came from, or how to treat it. She doesn't look like her self, she's pumped with so many fluids and just looks miserable. She needs so many prayers. She went into the hospital last night with a fever of 105. She hasn't improved from being in there all day. We are praying that she will start to improve by tomorrow. So please, any prayers would help. This little girl has been through so much, it's time for her to catch a break! Here are pics I took of her on July 24th. She's such a doll and strong little girl.

Ok.......

I'll FINALLY update. Let's see......Well, I had a birthday!! That was sure exciting. It was great! I celebrated with my friends on July 1st, me and Errin spent the day at Lagoon, man I love that place, especially cause they have Dippin' Dots!! :) It was a lot of fun. We then met up with some more friends for dinner at Rodizzio's Grill, first time I've ever been there and it was yummy and the workers were great! I even got an awesome birthday song sung by some pretty good lookin workers ;-) All in all, it was great!! On my birthday, July 2, I worked unfortunately, but I was lucky enough for my friends, Kristin, Dustin, and Chad took me out to dinner at Texas Roadhouse! They are great for coming all the way out here and taking me out. It was fun and good to see them. I also got a BBQ from my family for my bday!! I love it and am so happy to have it!! Thanks everyone for an awesome birthday!!

I had my first BBQ on the 11th, I invited a few friends over, we ate and talked for hours, it was a really nice get together and it was great that everyone could make it! On the 14th, I went to dinner with some girlfriends, it was great to get caught up with each other.

I've got good news now.... Maggie's home!! She was in Boston for 4 weeks!! Man, did we miss her. I've been over to visit a couple times now. She's gaining a bit of weight which is exciting. She now weighs 12 lbs 7 oz. Still little, but she looks a bit chubby now! She's adorable, and is trying so hard to be strong, it's amazing. She sits up on her own and plays with her toys, it's great!! But please still keep her in your prayers cause they still don't know what's ahead for her and her family. And there's my quick update!! Enjoy the pics!

Michael Jackson

Yes yes, I know what you're thinking... "Haven't we heard enough of Michael yet?" I'm sorry, but my answer is no.... I'm a HUGE fan of Michael Jackson, along with my family. He was an amazingly talented man, through singing and dancing. Who else can move like him?? No one could do it quite as charismatically as he did. I just wanted to post a little tribute to him, cause that may have been one of the most amazing concerts to go to, his comeback tour. I would definitely have paid for that one! Hopefully now that he has passed. People will stop ridiculing him and just enjoy what he brought to this world. Rest in Peace Michael. You are one of the most amazing performers I think this world will ever see. I posted one of my favorite videos of his. "Smooth Criminal" What amazing dance moves!!

Update

In this post, you will see a couple different occasions. The first one is from when me and a couple friends went to the the Circle Lounge for some good music and yummy sushi! The next pictures will be of Amy, one of my best friends! She just had her first baby girl, Taelor Jeanne. She was born on June 17th. Congrats Amy and Phil! Love you guys! And let me tell you, they make beautiful babies! She is so cute! And I'm so excited for them, what a great adventure for them to experience together! The next fun thing I did, was go on an overnight camping trip, me Mason, Kristi, and Errin went camping for a night up in Farmington Canyon, what a crazy but fun night! We couldn't have asked for better weather, it was perfect!! Despite the fact that it was pouring rain on our way up there, but once we finally got there, it was perfect, no wind and not too cold. We really did have a lot of fun.

St. George

Catchin' up! So I went to St. George on June 5th. It was a blast!! I went down to visit my friend Naomi and we always have fun. It was a much needed get away. We were able to go to Zion's, it was my first time ever going, it was beautiful. I would love to hike Angel's Landing someday! We also were able to go to Vegas for the day we went to the Shark Reef and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe, which unfortunately took us a long time to find :) But after several miles of walking, we found it! Thanks again Nay for another great time in St. George! Miss and love you!

Las Vegas!

I've been lucky enough to go on many weekend excursions lately. They've been fun!! But it does make you appreciate being home a lot more. :) On May 22nd, I went to Vegas with Christy, Jodee, and Amy. We stayed at the Monte Carlo and our days consisted of laying by the pool and taking a tube ride in the lazy river..... Sun, Palm Trees, and a Pool.... Heaven :) My favorite part of the vacation, also the Bellagio fountains, I can never get enough of those! The night we got there, we went to Planet Hollywood....It was all right, no really my scene. The second night I was exhuasted so I stayed in and watched a movie :) Also, because they didn't go out till 1 AM, I was too tired by then. The last night we were there, Christy and I went to Margaritaville with Lora and her sister Shannon, then off to the Club at Caesars Palace, Pure. It was fun!! Short trip, but fun! Pics below :)

Hope for Maggie

Maggie's fundraiser was a success!!! It was a lot work for her neighbors to put together this whole thing, but they did an Awesome job!! I know Michelle and Sean are truly grateful for what they have all done. And us, being family members, are also so grateful for them in helping out little Maggie and her family in ways we never could have without there tremendous service. The fundraiser was great and a lot of fun! I got to know Michelle and Sean's neighbors a little better and they are so nice and hilarious! I had a blast helping. Time flew by cause there was always someone to talk to. Thank you thank you thank you for everyone's help, donations, and prayers!! Maggie is going to be our miracle baby!! :) Here are some pics of the Fundraiser.

In Memory of Leo Mckinney (Grandpa)

My Grandpa. What a wonderful wonderful man. He could always make you laugh no matter what. He brightened my day every day I would see him. Even if it was just because he called me "bubble butt" Or even when he would ask me if my face hurt cause it was killin' him. haha He was a major jokester, I think that's one thing we will always remember about him. Even if he did use the same joke a few times ;-) I remember when I was younger, we would go visit him and my Grandma in California, he would take each of us back, one at a time, for maybe an hour or more, so he could have us listen to his German music as he talked about politics and the past. He's so freakin' cute! He would be so excited to have us back there with him. As we got older, he started bringing us in one at a time still, but now it was to see his new electronic toy!! Whether it be a new computer, printer, picture editing software, tv, or camera's. He was definitely up to date on his electronics! Usually ahead of me!! Every time I would go visit, he would talk to me about my Digital SLR camera and his new Olympus camera. Always telling us what was better quality. My Grandpa was the most amazing scenery photgrapher I think I have ever seen and this was back when it was just slides!! I saw some of his work and I was blown away. That's one thing I struggle in when taking pictures. But he's an inspiration to make me try harder. He loved having his grandkids over, even when he wasn't feeling well he would try to spend as much time with us as he could, he even got a little more energy being with us. One women gave him his happiness and his twinkle in his eye though, and that is the one and only, Betsy Mckinney, my amazing Grandma who has done an AMAZING job taking care of him and just being at his side. These two people are people to look up to. So giving and loving. I can't express how much they both mean to me. My poor Grandma had to watch her husband pass and a week later, the other love of her life, her dog Gretchen. I can't imagine going through all that in such a short time. Man, she is one strong strong woman!! Love you Grandma and you are a great example to us all.
A few of us were able to head down to the funeral in California. Melissa, Melanie, and I sang "God be with you till we meet again" at his funeral. We got through the first verse just fine. Then my Grandma started crying so all three of us broke down at the same time and literally blubbered through the rest of the song when we should have just stopped. It was quite embarrassing. I just hope it made my Grandpa laugh, I'm sure he would have enjoyed that :-) In fact our uncle came up to us after and said "you started out like beautiful songbirds and ended up like the chipmunks!" haha I was glad I was able to sing with my sisters though. Here are a few pics of visiting at the funeral and also when we were able to spend time with family Kareoking and at the beach! Enjoy! We love you and miss you so so much G-pa! xoxoxo