Like my bracelet?

It was my first gift from a student this year!

He knew what I needed!

So I checked off a bucket list item today: driving East Canyon!
I was feeling a little overwhelmed and I just needed a quiet drive today, so I went up East Canyon and did the whole loop. It's something I've been wanting to do for years. It was spectacular! I'll be posting all 50+ pictures on Facebook and linking them here soon.
The things I saw and felt on that ride were the inspiration that I craved and so desperately needed. I am amazed at how perfectly my Heavenly Father knows me. He truly speaks my language.
Here's the picture allegory of how I was feeling today:

Sometimes we feel broken, shattered and beat up by ourselves, others, and circumstances. However illogical or overanalyzed or misinterpreted, it's how we feel - and God allows us those feelings. They aren't inherently bad, they're part of the process.

But in those moments, it is nice to see and feel the rainbows, and the light of peace and His infinite love breaking through the clouds.

I needed that today.

 More photos of my drive can be found here:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10100590826465999.2555188.17803337&type=3&l=60d162fab5

My little sous chef

"I'm a great sous chef!" He says as we leave the pool. He helped me make a chocolate zucchini cake. It is quite yummy, if we do say so ourselves!
Oh and he's obsessed with Hunger Games. We watched it while we made our cake!
I'm glad his parents don't mind sharing him with me!

We ARE Wasatch

In case you're wondering, this is what my school district opening retreat looks like. We're pretty much awesome.

The list

Here's the list of things to do for back to school night tomorrow!

We found the decoy

So tonight we wanted to send Forrest off in style since he is moving to Provo tomorrow morning. We started by kidnapping him and going on a ride on the Lake Creek to Center Creek loop. On our way down the Center Creek side, our headlights hit a rather large velvet buck. We stopped to admire, and then, since he wasn't moving at all, began to debate rather heatedly whether he was real or not. We were pretty sure he wasn't, so Forrest decided to get out and make sure. We snapped pictures, and laughed really hard as he spun its head around.
As he came back to the car, we saw four flashlights coming up to the truck. We thought it was angry hunters. Instead it was national wildlife officers asking what we were doing, what Forrest had done to the decoy, and whether or not we had guns or alcohol. Pretty soon they realized we were just a bunch of ridiculous kids out on a drive and we all had a good laugh that we continued as we drove home.
Yep! That was the kick off of Forrest's going away party. Pretty sure we couldn't have planned it any better!

Mayflower on fire

As we drove home today from Dingle, there was a wildfire right by the highway in Mayflower. It was pretty intense!

Be still...

This weekend we got to go to the Coombs' ranch in Dingle, Idaho.
We enjoyed devotionals, good food, pictures, time on the lake, karaoke, movies, and great friends.
As we were going to sleep tonight I talked with a dear friend and we both mentioned how wonderful it has been to take a break from our cares and concerns, and a scripture came to mind: "Be still and know that I am God."
How grateful I am for the opportunity to be still this weekend and refocus and rejuvenate!



Dingle Trip photos:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10100587367707379.2554373.17803337&type=3&l=a6f7cfb3c4

Swimming and a red sun!

Man, I'm great at this posting everyday thing, aren't I?
Here's Wednesday and Thursday's pictures.
Wednesday I went swimming with some cute kids. And yesterday we drove up to Dingle for Grown Up Girls Camp. Because of the fires in the area, the sun was red!




More pictures of the Dingle Trip here:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10100587367707379.2554373.17803337&type=3&l=a6f7cfb3c4

Kelsey wuvs me!!

My former (but forever) roommate Kelsey sent me a package that arrived today! It had a family feud game, two geocache containers (pill bottles) and a wash cloth with a moosen on it. She wuvs me!

Picture a Day catch up...

So, I haven't done so well with posting a picture everyday in about the last 3 weeks, but that doesn't mean I haven't been taking pictures!
Here's the catch up post, hopefully in the order they were taken.
A pretty sunset
A full rainbow over Cedar City
A cool crayon art project at the fair
The sky diver landing at the Rodeo
Driving to scout camp
A smoky sunset from my bishop's back porch
Forrest's cartoon beet from the garden

Even when I don't post, I like seeking the beauty that us aroundme and capturing it with my phone, my camera, or sometimes just my memory.

Tyler is home!

Tyler made it home...but his bag did not... Chelsea's flight curse has changed targets... Bummer.

Our butterfly friend

This little guy lives in our flowers and he was kind enough to poise for me. Isn't he pretty?!

Look who I adopted!

I found him at Kohl's for $5 and I think he's adorable. Welcome to my classroom Skippyjon Jones!

Nikki gives good hugs!

My parents' dog Nikki sat on my lap today, which she never does, and kept leaning her head against me like she was giving me a hug. She's such a cute sweet dog!

My new toy

My family switched to Verizon's Share Everything plan, and in order to get rid of my internet card, I had to get another phone. That made my sister happy because she got my old phone. Now everyone, including my parents, has a smartphone. Mom isn't quite sure about it just yet, but we're convincing her everyday.  ;-)

Rainbow!

Long day at church. It was essentially a Herring/Dudley family show. My sister and I got there early to practice a song. Then I played a piano/organ duet of I Know That My Redeemer Lives. My cousin and grandma spoke, then my sister and I sang a duet of Rob Gardner's arrangement of Savior Redeemer of My Soul. After sacrament meeting, my mom and I both taught primary.

After my home ward was over, we stayed for the single's ward since my dad is in the bishopric. One of my other cousins spoke in their sacrament meeting, and I gave the closing prayer. I played the piano for relief society. Then we stayed for Munch and Mingle taco salad that my parents (with a little help from us) provided and prepared.

After cleaning up, racing home to put the food away, let the dog out and change clothes, we headed to Grandma's!

Just another Sunday at the Herring's! The rainbow on the round-about ride home was perfect! :)

I caught a fish!!!!

My very first fish ever! I cast the line, set the hook, and reeled it in all by myself! He was a croaker, he made sounds like a frog. When my uncle told me to kiss the fish and I was posing for the fake picture, the little bugger tried to kiss me first, and freaked me out.
It was a great day, even if it ended with a broken boat and a broken trailer. Don't worry it will all be fixed on Monday. As my uncle said, "If nothing's wrecked, you weren't doing anything!!" I like that philosophy!
I took lots of pictures and learned to edit them on my camera. Here's an album to check out if you want to see our entire adventure:
I Caught a Fish!

I have a fishing license!

So, for years I've been wanting to go fishing with my dad and my Uncle Glen on his boat, but schedules have never worked. Well, the stars have aligned and we're going tomorrow!
I guess we go deep sea fishing? I don't know exactly what it's called but I DO know that this is on a boat, in a river or off the coast, and it involves some nasty bait I intend not to touch!
In order to go I had to get a temporary fishing license - my first such license ever!
Well, enough blogging for now. We're leaving at 3 AM!!!! So I need sleep.

From epic pinterest fail to pinterest triumph!

So last night we tried cookie cups using store bought cookie dough without looking at the post for the recipe. It was a epic fail.
Tonight, however, we tried apple quesadillas. Pinterest triumph!!! They were super tasty!!
Recipe can be found here.