Summa summa time!

Hello hello! 

Summer is here and we're LOVIN it! 

Kyle finished his first year at Oak Canyon Jr High!! It was definitely a successful year and Kyle definitely loves teaching. He ended the year with an amazing "around the world" themed concert. It ended with the combined choirs singing "It Takes a Village". I'm so proud of my hubby and all he's accomplished with these students. 

Summer has been treating us well, thus far. Kyle and I are training for triathlons in August and we are busy training every day! It feels good to finally get back into shape after having Zoe over a year ago. Better late than never, right?

Zoe also keeps us busy as she insists on being outside every second of the day. Basically, she hates being cooped up in our apartment and would much rather play outside- with or without the neighbor kids, although she definitely loves playing with other kids- or out running errands with mom or dad. We've gone to the pool a few times and she LOVES playing in the water!

A few weeks ago, our niece, Genevieve, had a birthday party in fairy forest up in Kamas, and Zoe definitely enjoyed running through the forest, and trying to eat everything she could find- rocks, pinecones, dirt, etc.
I'm excited to take her camping and hiking this summer. I think she'll have a blast.

the fairy land Genevieve and her friends created for the fairy forest!

In other news, Kyle is getting ready for scout camp next week and we're also getting excited for our family reunion in Newport, OR on the coast! Should be a blast!

I am a Warrior.

Weeeeelllll HELLO blog! Long time no write......

Welp. A lot has happened in the approximate 18 months since the last post.

Firstly, we have a child. She's pretty much the cutest thing EVAH. She's 13 months old and as of this week is WALKING!! WHAAAAAAAAAAAA????? Time sure flies when you have a cute baby.

Kyle is almost finished with his first teaching at Oak Canyon Jr High. He LOOOOVES it, despite all the bumps that come with the first year of teaching. He still loves it and wants to keep doing it, so he picked the right profession for him. *phew*

I am....at home. Nothing wrong with that, except that I get....bored. So.....I've been pursuing my passion for photography. I don't claim to be a "professional" - I'm no where near the skill level to claim that title. But, since getting my Canon Rebel t4i Christmas 2013, I have been having lots of fun learning and snapping away! If you want to follow my photography journey, you can follow my blog: shanikayphotography.blogspot.com . Like I said, I'm not a professional, so this is more like a photography journal documenting my learning experiences with the camera.

I've also started getting back into racing! Saturday, my sister-in-law, Jamie, and I participated in the Goldilocks race in Daybreak. We participated in the 30 mile bike race.....IN THE POURING RAIN. It wasn't so bad, until about the last 7 miles. My feet were numb, my fingers were numb, my legs were starting to cramp, but I was DETERMINED to finish. Anyone who knows me well, knows that I AM NOT A QUITTER. Especially when it comes to athleticism. I can be quite competitive. So, even at the 2 mile mark, when I got a FLAT TIRE (my first one ever), I refused to quit. Jamie and I stood at the corner of the intersection for 20 minutes waiting for the support car to come help me change my tube. It was COLD. sooooooo cooooold. The guy eventually came to my aid, fixed my tire in a jiffy and Jamie and I booked it to the finish line!!

I feel like a warrior. and I'm ready for the next race!

Kyle is signed up for the Saratoga Springs Tri in August and I am debating between a Sprint Tri, Half marathon or mountain bike race.....we'll see what I end up I doing. Who knows...maybe all three!
Signing up for a race is pretty much the only sure fire way to get me motivated to exercise. Unfortunately.

Sunday was Mother's Day. My second as a momma, but last year being a mom still felt surreal. I definitely feel more like a mom now that my kid is over a year old, so I could truly appreciate the holiday this time around.
I woke up to the delicious aroma of bacon and a few minutes later, Kyle walked into the bedroom with a tray of a most bounteous breakfast. YUM. I could get used to that tradition.

Eggs with fresh salsa and Mexican crumbly cheese is DELISH, just FYI.

We decided to dress up all matchy-matchy for church- complete with mommy and me skirts! 

 We're totes adorbs.

Welp, that's about it for now! Stay tuned for more adventures!

Here's to my fourth attempt at keeping up with this thing! (Obviously the third time was not a charm.)

I forgot I had one of these!!

Hello friends, family and all!

So, Kyle and I started this blog about a year and a half or more ago.....

Time for an update, yes?

I think I didn't like the name of the blog very much and couldn't figure out how to change it and just...pretended it never existed...maybe?
Anyways, I thought this would be a convenient way for everyone, mostly family, to keep up with us.

So....where to start? Well, I had a birthday yesterday. I was so tempted to delete my birthdate off of my facebook info. I figure, if no one else knows or acknowledges it, then I wouldn't have to, right? It's not that I feel old or anything, it just feels like another day to me. 24. Nothing super special about that age. Of course it's not that I dislike birthdays- there are definitely some great perks, i.e. gifts and money, which I happily spent yesterday.
Despite my mixed feelings about being one year older and (I would hope) wiser too, I had a FANTASTIC birthday yesterday!

Day started at 7:00 am. Kyle and I continued our triathlon training (more info to come later) with a 5k run. Came home. Showered. Kyle surprised me with banana pancakes and a raspberry sauce (one of my favs!) and also surprised me by taking the day off of school to spend the day with me! He's just the best.
We went up to SLCC to see some of my friends in the Utah Shakespeare Festival Educational tour production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, which was wonderful, and then went out with said friends to lunch at Blue Lemon, which was delicious! (Shout out to Kaela- thought of you as I ate!)
We then went to the new City Creek Center to shop, then went down to American Fork to shop some more! Kyle was happy the whole time, which was a gift in and of itself (he's not much of a shopping for shoppings sake type of person). We went to the Olive Garden for dinner, then went home and played my favorite games.
I just have the best husband. He made just another birthday one to remember.

In other news, as mentioned, Kyle and I are training for our first triathlon! It has been on my bucket list for a long time and Kyle said he'd do it with me! It's sprint triathlon which consists of a 5k run to start, then a 10 mile bike ride, and a 350 meter swim to finish. It's at the Orem rec center on April 14th. Two weeks from Saturday! We even bought pretty new road bikes for the occassion. #legit

Kyle is still working hard in school. Poor guy is getting burned out, but he'll get a break for a bit this summer. He went for a full straight school year (including spring and summer semesters) last year and then went straight into Fall semester again. He gets a much needed break come June. He is studying Music Education, choral emphasis, with a minor in theatre education at BYU and love, love, loves it! Of course the education profession does not allude to a life of luxury and glamour, but I feel perfectly content about my husband doing something he loves and is passionate about for a living. Couldn't be happier for him.
He will (finally!) finish his degree Fall 2013. You can do it, baby!

I just got a new job working for BYU A.R.T.S., which is a program under Americorps VISTA- a federal organization aimed at fighting poverty in the US. BYU A.R.T.S. is apart of the Center for the School of the Future- a program which works to improve education. BYU A.R.T.S. works to implement the arts into underprivileged schools in the Northern Utah area. My job as a VISTA (as they are called) will be to help with the behind the scenes work to keep the program running. I feel like I'm gonna like this job. I love the arts, and I love education...and I'll be working with both. Awesome.

No, I have not been doing any performing lately. Not since Little Women back in September. Mostly by choice, I haven't really tried to go out and do or get involved in anything. I might this fall....I don't know. We'll see.

However, Kyle is involved in the spring opera at BYU- The Mikado by Gilbert and Sullivan! He was asked to be a part of the ensemble, and he's excited to get back out on the stage again. We'll be sure to let you all know when it is.

Well, there you have it! I hope to be able to keep up with this so you all can keep up with us! We love you all!

(below: Kyle and I and friends at the Hunger Games premiere! We got to see it several hours earlier than everyone else- it was awesome.)

Married Life!!!!!

I'm Lovin' it!

I Love Shandra Kay Harper

YA I LOVE HER!!!