Canada eh?

The grand finale of our summer... CANADA!!! Yes I, Haley Anderson, got to be the person who crossed the border for the first time with Trevor. HaHa and oh what an adventure it was. One of my cousins that I adore with all my heart was getting married! And they just happened to be Canadians. How could we resist the trip? So we hopped in a mini van along with grandma and Aunt Tonya, placing our lives in the hands of Uncle Tim and Bud. 12 hours later we were in Canada! And trev discovered that it's a lot like the states, just with more fields and cooler temperatures. The first day we were there we got to go to the Cardston Temple, and attend the session where Tiff took our her endowments. It was so special to us! Much too emotional though, reminding me of when I got to go through and how amazing it is for the first time. Then, because we only had two days there we decided to do some sight seeing. We all settled on Waterton National Park. Driving right into the park we came across a Black bear in the middle of the road! It was like animal planet in 3D baby, only better because it was real life! Later we saw another bear as well! We did everything we could including eating 2 of the finest hotdogs in canada, the famous waterton Weiners. they actually were quite delicious. And of course, we had to stop at the Welch's chocolate shop!

Grandma and Aunt Tonya decided to shop around in all the boutiques main street had to offer. Pretty much the only thing trev found entertaining were the creepy animal binoculars.

Instead he decided to try and teach me to skip rocks right on the shore below the Prince of Whales lodge. I love this place because we've come here every trip I've ever taken to Canada. Me and the girls would go right up to the ledge and throw rocks over. I was always too afraid to get close to the edge so I would throw them from much farther back. I think a few of them got hit in the head. Oops!   After our 1 day of being tourists we got to spend a whole day immersed in on of the most gorgeous wedding's I've ever been at! Tiff, The bride, asked me to sing at her reception as well so we practiced all day long to try and remind me how to carry a tune. The temple ceremony was incredible and I felt so blessed to have attended. It went by so fast and then we were back in the car for 12 more hours. It was so worth it though. We had so much fun on our last minute adventure. Once we came home we had 24 hours to pack and be ready to head back to Logan. Now here we are,ready to start a whole other type of adventure come Monday. Senior year! It feels like we never left. Home feels great.

We Love Birds... Apparently.

Somewhere in our last weeks of summer me and Trev managed to fit in a few last minute adventures. We had a weekend free so we decided to bring Addisyn, my little sister home with us to play. She is turning 13 in a few weeks, and started junior high this year. I had been having so many mixed emotions about her growing up so fast so I just wanted to steal her away for a few days to myself. I've never met a busier 12 year old so the fact that she fit me in was quite a big deal. The three of us decided to take a trip to the Tracy Aviary in SLC. If birds are going to be exciting to me at all then it's going to be with these two people. We had way too much fun.

The fact that we were matching was not on purpose at all! But it was still kinda fun.  We got to see turkeys and peacocks just roaming around, and I became informed that owls would never make good pets, no matter how tiny and cute they are. We also got to watch the pelican's feeding process which was an experience for all 3 of us!




The aviary had swans that were so pretty! Ever since watching the swan princess as a little girl I've had a love for them knowing they all could be princess's in disguise! Can you believe they are such ugly little ducklings? I couldn't help but just love this little guy. I decided to take it's picture because I felt sure that he doesn't get enough camera time.

After we'd seen all we could at the aviary apparently we couldn't get enough of birds! We took a whole loaf of bread ( it was a bread making disaster loaf) to liberty park and got swarmed by geese. Addi found it hilarious to trail the bread right next to me and watch me scream as they got way too close for comfort.

It was so much fun having her out hang out with us. When I first moved out addi was only 9 and still just a little girl. But since I've been at college for the last 3 years I feel like I've missed the whole process of her getting older. It makes me so sad! But she's amazing, and done very well the last few years without me, so I guess she will be ok =). I have such a great family!

Run Haley, Run!!

Ever since me and Trevor got married I have been training to run the Top of Utah marathon on September 17th. When I first started training I couldn't imagine how I was ever going to get up the strength and endurance to even run a half marathon. Now, here we are 6 weeks out from the full and I've already run 3! I'm pretty lucky to have my own personal trainers to push me beyond what i would be capable of on my own. My mom and dad have been running for almost 15 years and the two of them just never seem to get enough miles under their feet. So I feel this awful obligation to carry on their passion and run one of my own. This last weekend was my 3rd Half and it was by far the hardest one. My first two were awesome, and I felt great afterwards. But this last one was not so peachy. I've been fighting off an injury in my hip and it has only been getting worst the farther I run. About mile 6 i wanted nothing more than just to be done! I was so ready to text trevor and tell him to come get me! He isn't a big runner and doesn't quite undestand why people do such things to themselves. I can't say i understand either but I've been sucked in one way or another. Luckily I had mom, dad and chantal to cross the finish line with.

Somehow we finished!!!  Me and dad run a 16 mile run yesterday, and just like my race, I wouldn't have finished without dad. Hopefully he's up to getting me through the next 6 weeks and through 1 marathon. It really is just as much of an emotional battle as it is a physical one. Let's keep it together hay!

So much to do, so little time!!

Me and Trevor have been up to absolutely no good lately!! Just teasing.... The last few weeks have been packed full with something going on at every moment. Trevor was so excited that I finally turned 21. He claims it is a good thing to know if we were to walk through a casino I wouldn't get kicked out. Trevor made my birthday one of the best yet. I got to go out to lunch with one of my best girfriends during the day and then spend the rest of the night with my hubby. We went to dinner, caught a  movie, and ended the day with birthday Creme Brulee. The red sparkle candles were my favorite. Have I ever mentioned Trev is a dang good cook? Not every girl get's gourmet dessert for her birthday. So far 21 isn't half bad.

 That same week we got to attend the zoo together with Craig and Lindsey. We've come to the realization that any time us 4 are together, it's bound to be an adventure full of laughs. Rio tinto felt like it needed to rent the entire zoo out for a few nights for it's employees so we got the royal treatment the whole time we were there. If the free food and dorky visors werent' enought, the face painting made this night worth it.My zebra ended up leaving glitter in my pores for days afterwards but it was totally worth it. I was also very proud of Craig for even getting his face painted. After seeing Trevor with eyeliner on half his face I think he figured it couldn't be worse than that and he caved.

 

We also discovered that Trevor would get his butt kicked if he ever were to fight a chimp! He just doesn't have long enough arms...

I turn into a little kid when I go to the zoo. Something about seeing all the crazy animals in real life is a blast. I can only watch so much animal planet before i want to see the real things. I'm no bear grills though, so the zoo is perfect for my little adventurous heart. The hogle zoo didn't have very any animals this time but I learned a few interesting things about tigers from the animal trainer, and Trev learned how to make a cockatoo very angry. I can't wait to actually have little kids to take and show them the animals as well!  Nieces and nephews will have to do for the next few years.

A Celebration of Trevor... 24 years and counting

Trevor and I just barely made it through another crazy busy week. We knew that this summer would fill up fast, but we didn't understand how fast, and just exactly how full it truly would become.  Luckily, we got to have a relaxing weekend up at a cabin with some of our best friends, Craig and Lindsey Allen. It is sad how you lose touch with friends along the way, but these two are sure to be around for the long haul. We spend 3 days at a cabin with them and their family. It entailed many games of cards, a few neck and neck games of horse shoes, and one very eventful round of Mario party. It was so good to just get away and relax. 

Wednesday was Trevor's 24th Birthday!!! I think I was more excited than he was actually. I hate that birthdays aren't as big of a deal to guys as they are to girls. Either way, I was not about to just let this slide by.  We spent it with just the two of us, and I wanted him to know exactly just how important he is to me!! I made him my first ever birthday cake from scratch.  Dont' judge the writing... I never claimed to be a cake decorator. But I wasn't about to let him get off without candles and the whole shebang. He pretty much thought I couldn't get any cheesier, but being Trevor, he was happy just having things to light on fire. 

Birthday kisses.. doesn't everybody do those? Spankings just hurt. Plus I wanted to let him know that I better get 21 kisses on my birthday =)  

We had ribs for dinner and ate chocolate cake together right out of the pan. What more could you ask for on a birthday?  Trev was trying to guess his birthday present when I somehow managed to lead him into thinking I got him an ultimate breakfast sandwich maker ( who knows if they even exist). He was playing along so cute like he really would have been so excited. The sense of relief in his eyes when he saw his golf bag was priceless. 

My life would be completely dull without Trevor in it. This summer may be insanely busy, but it was so much fun to have a day just for him.And it was even better that the only thing he wanted for his birthday was to be together and relax for a night. The chocolate cake was just a bonus!  Happy Birthday Trevor! I love you!

Some things just Bug me...

Trevor had to leave for work this morning at 5 AM! I think it is downright wrong for people to be expected to even be awake before that time in the morning, let alone awake AND leaving for work! It's always hard for me to get back to sleep after  he goes, so I toss and turn until I convince myself to get up. This morning I was walking around our apt around 6 or so. I don't think I was expected so early, because there were bugs everywhere! The king of all potato bugs and his followers have claimed my kitchen as their own. The spiders on our walls aren't helping my bug phobia anxiety disorder either. So here I sit, living in fear in my own apt. Me and my sister have this awful habit of putting bowls and cups over anything living so that our husband's can deal with it when they get home. Immature? I say logical. Last year me and my roommate Telisha had some dumb boys set a whole pack of pet store crickets free in our apartment. We were traumatized! They were the nasty type that blend into everything, and you can only see them when they're jumping at your face.  We ran out of bowls all too quickly, and I had to face my issues. We resorted to Tupperware.  I'm a big girl right? Wrong. I hate bugs with a passion. But, having Trevor around to be the brave one has been a perk of being married I could never have imagined. Plus he never fails to get a good laugh at the situation. Next time I'm just going to stay in bed and pretend not to be paranoid.

Life is too short..

Me and Trevor had an experience this weekend that I wouldn't wish on anyone in the whole world, nor would I ever want to go through it again.

Our plans for this weekend were simple; quiet weekend in St. George with the family. Friday afternoon we both got off work, packed up and were off. The drive was peaceful. We stopped for dinner, stopped to go to the bathroom, and swore that we wouldn't need to stop again before we got there. That was before we saw the accident.

As we came up on one of the first exits to go to Parawon, we saw flames up ahead of us directly under the overpass. As we drove by we saw a landrover completely smashed into the center pillar with a body laying next to it. A couple of cars pulled off ahead of us but farther away. Trevor got out of the car, told me to dial 911 and sprinted towards the burning vehicle. He was the first one on the scene, and as responsible for pulling the man out of the fire and trying to bring him back to consciousness. By the time the highway patrol was on the scene and ambulance on their way, CPR had been attempted and failed. I knew in my heart when I saw them trying to bring the man back that it wasn't going to work. The Landrover continued to explode over and over. I could feel the heat on my body, and Trev being so close, I panicked. I've never gone into shock before, but I'm told that's exactly what I was experiencing. Everything but the explosions sounded so far away. I began to shake uncontrollably, watching the medics immediately place a sheet over the body was too much. People don't just see these types of things every day, and I definitely did not know how to handle it. I could see people talking to me, but couldn't comprehend what they were saying.  There were so many people around but I could only concentrate on making sure Trev was OK.
I had just witnessed a man's death. A complete stranger who I would have never met in this world otherwise. But for some reason, it still hurt. I couldn't stop thinking about the family that was going to be called with the tragic news, and the life that is now completely over.
I've never felt so fragile. The rest of the drive to St. George was terrifying. The storm we were driving through seemed so intense and even 40 mph seemed too fast. I started getting angry that life can be taken so quickly. I felt completely powerless and wished there was a way I could ensure nothing bad could ever happen to Trevor. witnessing someone being taken from this earth so quickly makes you want to hold on to those you love and never let go.  Watching him respond so quickly, and becoming so close to danger made me also wish he wasn't so brave. I was so proud to see him being strong, but it didn't make it less traumatic. Not only did he have to be there for that man, but he also had to talk me through what just happened afterwards. I didn't let go of him for one second for the rest of the night. Nothing seemed stable.
By the time we made it into town, we were exhausted. The event seemed surreal. Sleep wasn't happening either when every time we closed our eyes all we saw was tragedy. I can't image being someone who has to deal with these things on a daily basis.
Now that we've had tome to separate ourselves from the accident things have been able to settle down but I still feel like I take every day for granted. It is sad that it takes an accident like this to make me truly think about the plan of salvation, and what it means to me. If it wasn't for that plan, this life would be so hopeless. It is calming to realize I will get to be with those I love forever, no matter what this world has in store for us.
It has been an emotional weekend. I hope and pray we will never have to experience things like that ever again, but it is a comfort either way that I have Trevor by my side. 
My heart goes out to the family that lost someone they loved this weekend.

www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52159471-78/crash-suv-uhp-utah.html.csp