a visit to ohio

Posted on August 16, 2016 by tara

A week and a half ago, we went to visit our friends, the Allens, for the first time since they moved away. It was my very first trip to Ohio!

Kaya had been saying for weeks on end that she was so excited to see Mia, so I was really anticipating watching them meet again. They were a little shy around each other at first, but their reservedness turned to pure joy very quickly. I loved seeing my little girl so very happy.

Katherine made some delicious homemade pizza!

We spent most of the time we were at their house out in the yard. My girls thought that sliding down into a baby pool was pretty much the most fun idea ever!

Popsicles on the porch at the end of the night made for some happy girls! We went to the zoo (which will be another post, since I took too many pictures to include here), played some Blokus, laughed over the oddness of the Olympic opening ceremonies, had Chinese food, and made amazingly-huge brownie sundaes when the kids were asleep. It was so refreshing to see our good friends, just relax, and spend time together.

On Saturday morning, Katherine and Matt watched our kids so we could visit the Columbus LDS temple. We haven’t been to the temple since last October, so this was a treat for us. I love the temple and the peace I feel there. Somehow, when I’m inside, most of the things I spend my time worrying about on a normal basis don’t seem to matter all that much. It doesn’t hurt to have a pretty studly date, either. 😉 It was a very small temple (maybe even tinier than our chapel building back home), but it was, of course, perfect.The gardens seemed extra beautiful, too.

We headed back to their home and stayed until just after lunchtime. I’m learning that my kids just don’t seem to do well with traveling- they seem to have an exponential increase in meltdowns and tantrums when we’re not at home, so they were more than ready for some naps on the drive back.

The only cool way to drive home is with pink sunglasses. Obviously.

We had such a great time. It’s not easy having friends move away, but I guess the silver lining is that eventually, you have friends in all different places to go and visit!

temple trip weekend

Posted on October 28, 2015 by tara

I’m definitely writing about our weekend on a Wednesday… whoops. Our past few days have been jam-packed, so that’s just how it goes sometimes!

This weekend was our stake temple trip. We’ve been talking about this for weeks, and I always get excited to visit the temple, but I think Kaya had me beat this time. Her excitement was through the roof, and she couldn’t wait to take our “long ride in the car” (about 4.5 hours) to get there.

It’s always a good idea to burn off some energy before a road trip, though, so we were sure to get some exercise on Friday morning. 🙂

Both girls really behaved fantastically in the car. Kaelyn napped for most of the ride, and we stopped for dinner at Kaya’s favorite place (Wendy’s). When their crankiness could no longer be assuaged by snacks and books, we brought out the tablet. This Daniel Tiger app kept Kaya entertained in the car when we otherwise would have had a huge meltdown.

She was almost as excited about sleeping in a hotel as she was about visiting the temple. Haha. Both girls were more than ready to get out of their car seats (and yes, she’s singing “one little monkey, jumping on the bed”)!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIv5algJ1KM

We (barely) made it to the temple in time for the 9 am session with our stake. It was so wonderful to be there with my sweetheart. I always feel our Heavenly Father’s love so strongly in the temple, and this time was no different. The temple president spoke to our stake for a few moments, and referred to the temple as our “home away from [a heavenly] home”. I couldn’t agree more with that simple statement.

The whole reason we were able to go into the temple together as a couple is my amazing mom-in-law. I had casually mentioned to her that we would be at the temple that day, and I had hoped she would be able to come up and spend time with us and her grandbabies. She stayed with our kids for hours while we were inside and while I did some family photos for the stake. She took them to the bookstore, fed them the yummiest snacks, and walked them around until they fell asleep. Basically, she’s amazing. The only letdown of the day was that Kaya absolutely did not want her picture taken. Oh well. _MG_9686 We also goofed around with my DSLR and ultra-wide lens, seeing if we could take our own picture with it. That guy in the background pulled off the perfect photobomb!
_MG_9700 We drove straight home with no stops. By Sunday night, I think we all felt a lot like this…

thanksgiving 2014

Posted on December 9, 2014 by tara

We spent Thanksgiving weekend with my side of the family this year. It was the first time in a while that we didn’t run back and forth between both families’ homes, and while we definitely missed having more time with Michael’s family, it was nice to stay in one place. These goobers weren’t really interested in having their pictures taken… … but at least they humored me for a decent mommy-daughters photo.
This was the biggest dinner I think my parents have ever hosted. The picture doesn’t even show how long it really was, but there are two tables combined under those tablecloths!
My dad always always always carves the turkey.
Karl brought his girlfriend, Kaitlyn, who put up with all our shenanigans (and Karl’s loudness!) for the duration of the weekend.
Kaya only wanted to eat her utensils. I don’t think she even took a bite of her Thanksgiving dinner. She ended up having a yogurt, and if you know her very well, you’re probably laughing, because that’s what she eats every single day. Why have turkey when you can have the usual?
Kaelyn just enjoyed her toys.
My mom was the only person that could really hold her (and at times, even look at her), without making her upset. I think she was just sleep-deprived and a little unsure of all the chaos. I felt a little disappointed that my family didn’t even get to enjoy Kaelyn as the happy baby she always is!Kaya didn’t have any good naps, so she was a bit tired too.On Friday, we headed up to the temple with Michael’s family. It was the first time we’ve gone in over a year. It felt so amazing to just be there with my best friend and feel the quiet and peace the temple offers.
We had such a great weekend surrounded by our family.

temple square

Posted on August 14, 2013 by tara

Last time I went to Utah, we actually visited Temple Square twice, but I loved it so much that I was adamant about going again. So, the evening before the wedding, we headed up there with Michael’s parents and grandpa.
We toured the Conference Center (where the Church’s biggest meeting, General Conference, is held twice each year)! I’m not sure if you can tell by the photo… but this room is HUGE! We got to sit and listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir practice for a bit. It was just as beautiful as ever! You can actually get up on the roof of the building too. One thing I love about Temple Square is all the flowers… and someone else has started to notice them too (and wants to grab any that she can get her little fingers on).Don’t be fooled… this is a fussy face. She was so tired of the stroller.

We knew that our friend Ali, from our college days, is serving a mission there, so we tried to find her. Lucky for us, we did! We love to see the temple.

utah randomness

Posted on August 12, 2013 by tara

We did a whole bunch of fun things on our trip, but some of them aren’t big enough to dedicate an entire post to, so I’m just going to mash them all together right here!

My in-laws watched Kaya so that Michael and I could go work in the temple together. I LOVE the Jordan River temple, and it was such a blessing to be there with my best friend. We finished up pretty late (it was nearly 11pm), but it was so peaceful to sit together outside in the cool night air and gaze at the temple.

Here we are in front of the temple together (it was the best we could do to take a photo ourselves), and here’s Baby Bird at dinner just before that. She’d rather eat the table than the food! (Although we did let her try a little Chinese food, and she seemed to like it!)

My dad in-law found the best way to spend $6. That’s right. The shirt. Spongebob swag all the way!

We had a fun dinner with one of Michael’s friends/coworkers, and then we met up with some of his old mission buddies at the Provo temple. He finally had a mini “mission reunion”, which he’s been longing for for a few years now. Kaya was cranky and more than ready for bed, so I just walked her around temple grounds while Michael chatted.

_MG_8777 We ended our trip with a visit to our former Institute teacher, Brother Bowman! It was so good to see him and his family and have them meet Kaya. We left for the airport straight from their house, and it really was the perfect way to finish our adventure in Utah.

home sweet home

Posted on August 7, 2013 by tara

We’re finally home from our trip out to Utah! The wedding was beautiful, we went some fun places, and made some great family memories. Hopefully I’ll be recapping everything and sharing my photos in the next few days, but here’s a little sneak peek (our first photo in front of the temple as a family of three)!

We took a redeye flight back to Virginia at 1 am on Tuesday morning, and then visited with my parents for the rest of the day before driving home. We finally drove into town around 11:30 pm. Our internal clocks still seem to be on Utah time (which is strange because after my last trip out west, I had no trouble at all adjusting either way).

on the last plane home!

A certain four-legged someone didn’t do so well without us home… Thankfully, Ben and Brittany (who were puppy-sitting) are probably two of the most patient people ever and went above and beyond to help us take care of Jax. We ended up boarding him at the vet (after he chewed through his crate and a few other things…), and I was so excited to go pick him up this afternoon. He is definitely happy to be home.Kaya is also loving being back in her own space and playing with her own toys. This is the first time that we’ve come back from a trip where I can definitely say that she knows this is our home and is happy to be here. It’s so fun to watch her enjoy everything she loves again.

ten things that make me happy

Posted on May 21, 2013 by tara

I saw this “Tuesday Topics” link-up, and it sounded pretty fun, so why not join in? Here ten things that make me happy, in no particular order… 🙂

1. falling asleep cuddling with my best friend
2. waking up to my sweet, smiling baby girl _MG_3687 3. my pets (and really any animals in general)

4. photography
5. running
6. baking (and eating!) sweets
7. weekends (because that means family time!)
8. writing in my journal (I do it every single night)
9. visiting the temple10. my whole crazy family

utah

Posted on May 3, 2013 by tara

(Jordan River LDS temple)

After a week out in Utah, I’m finally back on the East coast! It was my first trip out west, and I certainly did enjoy myself. Utah definitely has its own beauty (hellooo Rocky Mountains!), but going somewhere else helped me realize that my heart really does belong to Virginia.

There will be a lot of fun posts coming up (as soon as I get the time to sort through my bajillion photos), like flying with a baby, all the temples we saw, hearing the Mormon Tabernacle choir (IN PERSON!!), and the engagement and wedding photos I shot while out there.

In other news, I’m starting this photo-a-day challenge. I’ve always wanted to do one, but I usually chicken out of it because I fear not being diligent enough to do it every day. Now I’m just going to go for it and see how it turns out!

Happy Friday everyone!

jeff & lelia’s wedding

Posted on January 4, 2013 by tara

On December 28th, our family got to drive up to the LDS temple in Washington, D.C. to witness the marriage of Jeff and Lelia for both time and all eternity. One year ago, when Jeff and Lelia first met, I never would have guessed that she would officially become my “sister”. I’m sure glad that after all my begging and pleading, they humored me and went on a first date (probably just to get me to stop bugging them)! I guess they ended up liking each other just a little bit, because there were more dates, a ring, and now a wedding!I am so grateful for my beautiful family. Life gets more and more fun as we keep adding people to it!

I felt so privileged to be able to be with Lelia as she got ready for the ceremony. Watching her put on her makeup and helping her step into her dress was such a special experience that I’m grateful we were able to share.

I was also one of the photographers, so here are a few of my favorite shots!

You would never know it by looking at those two supermodels, but it was FREEZING. Here we are behind the scenes, cuddling to get warm.

Lelia wanted everyone in the family to wear either silver or blue for the wedding. Since I knew it’d be hard to find a dress that was the right color, modest, and nursing-friendly, I had my mom-in-law help me make my dress. As a surprise, she made a matching one for Kaya to wear! Here we all are in our wedding clothes.

I’m so thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and that we can have temples on the earth today, which allow us to be sealed to our families forever. I love my family so much and can’t imagine not having them after life on earth is through.

PS- This is my 300th blog post! 🙂

family temple trip

Posted on July 1, 2012 by tara

On Friday, all of Michael’s immediate family went to the temple! It was the first time that all the boys could go together since about 6 years ago, because all their missions overlapped!

I was looking forward to taking this photo all week long, and I’m so glad that everyone humored me, posed, and smiled for it despite the 116-degree heat wave we had.

I was so grateful that we had the opportunity to serve in the temple. I love the cleansing and eye-opening feelings that we can experience there, and the strong Spirit that can enter our hearts. This is probably my favorite place to go, especially with my family!

If you want to learn more about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, click here.

Michael and Tara

It's Us!

Category Archives: temple