Adoption.

Well, it's true. James and I have started our adoption journey. Before I go into any detail.. any advice, suggestions or keeping an eye out would be much appreciated seeing as how we are SO new to this. We have decided to journal aka blog our journey to remember our feelings and the experience of it all. So therefore this is more for us than you. Ha! Just kidding you can enjoy too and be updated with this new and way important part of our life. 

How did we decide to look into adoption more and get started? Funny story.. there was an ad on Facebook of an adoption agency looking for a family with no prior children and is of the LDS (Mormon) faith to adopt a baby boy due in December. Well I had seen these ads many, many times and just ignored them. For some reason this one stuck out to me and I had the prompting and feeling that I needed to contact them to receive more information. So I decided to go ahead and email them.. then tell James and I did. Oops.. probably should of informed him first but I just did and went for it. James has been very open to the idea of getting all the information we need to pursue our feeling of needing/wanting to adopt. So far this has been the best decision. Me personally I feel even if we don't get the chance to adopt this little boy that there is a lot that we can learn from this experience. And with that said we have already learned SO much! Right now our current step is to move forward with our home study and classes. This way we are prepared for our future in adopting.  

This is all so crazy and such a new experience. But, we feel hopeful, happy and anxious. We are ready to grow our family in whatever way that may be and we have truly turned our trail and newest adventure (missed that post? check it out here) over into the Lord's hands. We have the most trust in him that whatever is meant for us will happen. We also feel that it is closer than it has been in the past. It is all exciting. It feels great to finally have the peace that I have personally been looking for, I can honestly say this is the happiest I have felt in a long time. It is wonderful. But with that said, it doesn't mean that James and I still aren't confused at times. In fact, we still are confused about this whole adoption thing the process, the money. Adoption is super expensive so we are looking into all of our options there on how we can best afford it! Like I said at the beginning, if you know anything about this stuff please, PLEASE help us!

As the picture states above we are now just trying our best to take it all one day at a time and enjoying the journey! This is a very exciting time for us and we can't wait to see what the future has in store for us. Thank you all so much for your continued love and support it truly means the world to us. We love you all! Thank you for being a huge part of our life and our story. We hope you enjoy going on this journey along with us! 

Soda Hot Springs Adventures!

This last week my friend Shikira came up for a visit! We had a packed full of adventure week that was a total blast. My favorite day though was when we went to Soda Springs to do a little exploring. And of course I just had to show Shikira around and introduce her to the soda water and the geyser!

Our first stop was to see the lava flow. Sadly we had juts missed it so we weren't able to see it. But we for sure got a picture with the bucket and orange flowers so we will count it. Ha! It is such a pretty place because of all the beautiful flowers. I was super bummed that we missed it and Shikira wasn't able to experience it. Oh well, maybe next time. 

The second stop was to Hooper Springs to taste the soda water from the spring! Thankfully there was a nice gentleman who was willing to take a picture for us. The soda water is in a little enclosed part with benches as you can tell so that people can go and collect the water or just sit and listen to the soothing sound of the water rolling in. 

It is like the cleanest water ever! It is so pretty ha ha. When Shikira first tried the water I told her to try it plain because the water tastes a little like blood because there is so much iron in it. Some people really like it (like my niece Nico..) and some don't like it at all (which would be me). When she tried it her response was, "this is interesting.." then I added a raspberry lemonade powdered mix and she loved it! It is always kind of fun to make your own soda. So if you are ever in the Soda Springs area make sure to bring an empty water bottle and a Kool-Aid packet to make your own soda! You're welcome. Ha ha.

After making our own soda we hit up the geyser! We got there just in time. There was a light breeze so we ended up getting pretty wet and walked away smelling like rotten eggs. The fun thing about this geyser if you don't know it is cold water! So a lot of people go there and play in them. 

It is always a good time being able to explore Soda Springs! But, it is even more fun when you get to show your friend around and introduce her to all the fun things that there is. 

25 Get to Know Me Questions

I thought this would be fun to do today on the blog so all of my lovely readers could get to know me a little bit more! I hope you enjoy getting to know who I am. 

1. What is your middle name?: Lynne. Apparently it was pretty common in the 90's I just learned this. HA! But most people spell it Lynn. So thanks mom and dad for making it different.. just like the rest of my name. 

2. What was favorite subject at school?: History! It was so fascinating. I especially got into it in 10th grade, I loved my teacher! 

3. What is your favorite drink?: Oh goodness. I have a few favorite drinks and they all tie so I will give you the list. Ha ha. Vanilla Coke is the bomb, when I need a little pick me up I usually go for this beverage. My favorite "winter" drink is definitely Hot Chocolate. I mean I could live off of this! And lastly I love Kool-Aid, all flavors! Oh my yummy. 

4. What is your favorite song at the moment?: I have a few that are my go to songs lately and they are: "Like A Boy" by Nick Pitera, "Ain't Your Mama" by Jennifer Lopez, "Elevator" by David Archuleta, and lastly "Say Your Love" by P-Square 

5. What is your favorite food?: Chicken Fried Steak, Orange Chicken, Jollof Rice, Pizza, Potato Soup, Potato anything, and Hamburgers. PS. These aren't even in order.. Pizza would be first. Pizza is always first. 

6. What is the last thing you bought?: Umm, groceries. Woo, food, drinks and the necessities. 

7. Favorite book of all time?: Well, I really don't like to read too much but lately I have really gotten into it. Currently my favorite book is a series by Lauren Conrad called "The Fame Game" they are fantastic ha, I am into dramatic "Hollywood" stories. 

8. Favorite Color?: Light yellow, any shade of purple, bright blue and pink.

9. Do you have any pets?: Indeed I do! My pup Maggie Barnaby, my kitty Ollie Popsicle and my kitty Edwin Stinky Richard Voldemort!! I love them all and treat them like humans. They are my babies ha ha. 

10. Favorite Perfume?: Ari by Ariana Grande. It smells fantastic! 

11. Favorite Holiday?: Christmas. Always Christmas. It is just such a happy holiday! I love decorating for it and most of all celebrating with my family and friends!

12. Are you married?: Yup! Obviously.. the blog is called The Mr. & The Mrs. for a reason. Ha ha. I've been married for just over three years. Can't wait for many, many more years!!

13. Have you ever been out of the country, if so how many times?: Nope. I wish. 

14. Do you speak any other language?: Yeah, Shelsey. It's a language I speak when I get really sleepy. James aka The Mr is the only person who can understand it too. So it's special. 

15. How many siblings do you have?: Two! I have an older sister and an older brother, I am the baby! Spoiled too. 

16. What is your favorite shop?: TARGET. Then Kohl's, oh Kohl's. And Seagull Book. Oh how I miss ALL of these stores so, so much. 

17. Favorite restaurant?: The Chuckwagon, Red Robin and uh, Panera! 

18. When was the last time you cried?: Last night. Enough said.

19. Favorite Blog?: At Home With Kristyn Cole. It is so pretty!

20. Favorite Movie?: Cinderella (live & animated), Grease and Winnie the Pooh. 

21. Favorite TV shows?: The Big Bang Theory, Glee, Born. This. Way, Crazy Ex Girlfriend, When Calls The Heart and Burn Notice.

22. PC or Mac?: PC. Mac's are way, way overrated. 

23. What phone do you have?: Samsung Galaxy s6.

24. How tall are you?: 5’4″ 1/2. Don't forget the half. Ha!

25. Can you cook?: You bet I can cook! Why do you think The Mr. has gained so much weight? Ha ha. Just kidding. I actually really enjoy cooking. Especially coming up with new recipes.. which reminds me I have a few I still need to put on the blog so stay tuned. 

Well, there you have it! I hope you enjoyed these 25 get to know me questions! Do you know me a little more? Well, I sure do hope so!

Yee-Haw!

After everyone left I'm not going to lie.. it was nice to sit back and relax and not having to rush to get to the fair ha ha. It is always nice to have visitors but it is also nice to have your home back ha! 

On Friday my animals and I decided to enjoy the great outdoors! We relaxed in the shade for awhile then Maggie and I decided to play fetch for awhile. Of course her and Edwin had to have a little sibling time. They are so cute. I have some of the best animals!

Friday night James and I headed down with his grandparents to go to the rodeo! It was a fun night filled with good entertainment, delicious snow cones and as always wonderful company! We even ran into James' cousin and his girlfriend and they joined us for a little while. 

My favorite part of the rodeo was when they introduced the new colts! They were adorable. I love baby horses. I told James that we needed to get one and raise it up. I think it would be a great learning experience and I mean come on.. a horse? It would be a fun time ha ha.

I love living in Idaho and being able to have all these fun experiences! It has been a great adventure so far and I can't wait for all the memories that James and I are going to be making while here. We sure are blessed for sure!

Building stuff, my seester, & a fair oh my!

Last week my sister came up from Utah for a nice visit! I was so exited to be able to spend some time with her and her cute kiddos, I love them so much and have missed them very much. Our week together was packed full of a lot of adventures! From building stuff, seeing fake monkeys, real elephants and oh so much more. It was a total blast having them here and enjoying all the fun things the County Fair had. 

Seth was so adorable! He asked James grandpa if he would help him make an airplane to give to his dad for his birthday. And of course Grandpa was thrilled to help him out. I think it made Seth's entire day/week! He was even so excited that once he got home he couldn't wait until his dad's birthday so he went ahead and gave it to him early ha ha! 

Since Chloe and Seth were able to make a bird house with James grandpa the last time they were visiting Nico felt pretty left out so of course Grandpa was kind enough to help her create her own! She decided to fix it up and paint it a light green color. She also decided to give it to her dad for his birthday. Once again, she couldn't wait until his birthday so she gave it to him early ha ha. I told you.. they are some cute kiddos! 

My sister brought me up a selfie stick so we decided to give it out a try! It worked pretty good to help capture us celebrating International book lovers day. Woo-hoo! We went to my local library and checked out about 30 books that included mostly look and find books! ha ha. It was so much fun.

On Monday night we went to see the horse pulls. Whitney, her kids and I got bored after we were done eating and it got super chilly so we decided to head home and play some games. 

On Wednesday the kiddos got the chance to ride the elephant! Talk about a memory to last a lifetime. The elephants name was Patty and she was ADORABLE! After the elephant they got to meet Iron Man. How lucky are they? They even got a sweet picture with him ha ha. And at the end of the day we all enjoyed our time at the parade! Check out the loot we got! We had enough candy to last a lifetime ha. And I even got a sweet hat!! Thanks Piney! 

Also on Wednesday after they kiddos rode the elephant we sat back and enjoyed the very cute show! They did all sorts of tricks. Such talented elephants. I wish I could have a pet elephant they are adorable ha ha. 

On Thursday before my sissy headed home we were able to see the Utah Reptile Show! They had so many different reptiles it was neat. My sisters kids were able to pet a tortuous, get licked by a lizard and they also got to pet a giant snake! 

At the end of the show the kids were able to feed an alligator! It was kind of neat to see how they fed them and to watch how excited the alligator got. 

I am so thankful that my sister and her kids came up for the week to come visit and enjoy the fair with me! The days were packed full and so much fun. I love them so much. Thanks sissy for coming to visit.. and now you know where I live... ha  ha. 

Camping, Hurt Puppies & Much More!

Today's post is a mixture of things that the Mr. and I have been up to lately. Enjoy our adventures we have had in the last month! Hope you enjoy as much as we did. 

James cousin had her mission farewell and funny story.. she actually had two farewell talks. They had recently moved so both of her wards old and new wanted to hear from her. So James and I were lucky enough to attend both. They live about and hour away so it was pretty easy to get there!

Isn't she so pretty? Emily did wonderful on both of her farewell talks. She is going to be one amazing missionary. The land of the llamas is very lucky to get her and her sweet spirit! We sure do love you Emily and we are going to miss you!

James and I got a new tree! We have been fixing up the outside of our home since we have had all this warm weather and have taken a break from the inside. With that being said, we have A LOT of dead tree's so we have slowly been cutting down a few to help make out home beautiful. So when the grandparents had an extra tree and offered it to James and I you bet we said YES! I am so grateful to them and all their help. We can't wait for out cute little willow tree to grow big and strong! And we cannot wait until all this hard work is paid off.. and our home is the way we love it ha ha. But in due time.. I mean we haven't even lived here a year yet so we got awhile! 

While in Pocatello with the grandparents I saw this amazing truck! I LOVE it! I wish that I owned it ha! Don't you just love it too? 

Poor Maggie got a hurt paw. It was the saddest thing ever. Her foot got soo swollen and even started bleeding like crazy. Poor girl had to wear a cone so she wouldn't lick it and irritate it even more. We even had to spray medicine to clean it and help it. After the swelling went down a little we were able to see the cause. Maggie had stepped on a broken beer bottle (we later found it.. which this is another story..) that was just thrown in our yard.. and got a piece of glass stuck in the middle of her paw. I feel so bad that I didn't notice before and I wasn't able to protect my poor puppy. But now that we got it out and all cleaned she is doing MUCH better and the swelling and everything has gone down.

It was that time of year again for the family reunion on my moms side. Well the night before we headed we started packing and getting everything ready. Miss Maggie was very concerned that we were going to leave her behind so she got in her pillow and stayed there so we wouldn't forget her! Silly puppy. I sure do love her.

While camping we went to this amazing store called All This Stuff in a Barn. They had so much fun things! I think this became my moms new favorite store because she spent about a million dollars there.. ha just kidding..! But look how awesome this shelf was! If James and I had an extra $100.00 it probably would of came home with us. I absolutely loved it!

Later that day after the store we had the big party part of the reunion! Where we had delicious food, good company and awesome games. This year reunion was a blast and I am so grateful that James and I ended up being able to go! Woohoo! I sure do love my family and getting to spend time with them. They are all amazing.  

Washington/Portland Mini Vacation!!

This is a long awaited blog post! James and I went to Washington a month ago! Ha. Well, anyways, here it is! Hope you enjoy the rest of our trip. It was a total blast and can't wait to go back sometime!

James and I headed out on Thursday pretty early! It was such a long drive but we made it! It took us about 12 hours, thank goodness for bathroom stops!

Speaking of bathroom stops.. our first one was at The Garden of Eden Idaho! I thought this fountain was pretty darn cool! They also had animals in the fake tree's. This was one of the best places to stop!

I thought when we crossed the border from Idaho to Oregon that their sign was pretty awesome! So of course I snapped a picture. 

On of the highlights of the trip for me was my visit to Target! This is my favorite store and I absolutely miss being able to go there. So I was super excited when James too me there. I was in la la land the entire time!

The best part of the trip was when my bestie Sabrina and her other half drove up to visit me! We were able to spend the entire day together it was fantastic! A great way to spend a Sunday! 

We went to Applebee's for lunch. As you can tell we splurged and got a lot of delicious food. Props to the Vancouver Washington Applebee's you do a job well done! 

After we went to Applebee's we headed out to go for a mini shopping trip because nothing is better than going shopping with your best friend! 

And of course.. we went to Target! ( this is a different Target than the one I went to the first time!)  We both are addicted to Target so of course we went there. 

And we goofed off and tried on hats! I kind of wish we would of bought these hats because uhh we pull them off pretty well! Don't you think so Sabrina? After we went shopping and then to Sonic to get some slushies it was unfortunately time to say goodbye. I am so glad that I was able to spend some time with Sabrina! I can't wait until we get to hang out again and I hope it is for more time! I sure do miss my bestie!! Love you Bina Boo! 

The following day James and I decided to go and explore Portland! We first went to the zoo! Best decision ever!! This is is amazing! So many wonderful animals. It was a lot of fun.

We first hit the great northwest! We saw some bears, a bald eagle and a few other birds, some fish and a lot more animals!

Look how pretty this cheetah was! It was neat that he was sitting so close to the window! He kept looking at us so I think he might of been hungry. Just kidding!

The best part of the zoo.. was..

The giraffes! DUH! They are so beautiful. I LOVE them!! I was in heaven and might of spent a little bit of time staring at them and snapping pictures. If I could I would totally have a pet giraffe ha ha! 

After the zoo we headed to the Portland temple. Either of us had ever seen the temple. It is so pretty! If you get the chance definitely stop by and visit. The grounds and the temple its self is so gorgeous. 

After we went to Portland we headed back to James grandparents house to go and see a movie. We saw the second Independence Day movie. It was a lot better than I was expecting it to be. I would recommend it! We haven't seen the first one so now both of want to see it so maybe we know more of what is going on. Ha ha!

On Tuesday it was the day to go home! We left bright and early so we could get home at a decent time. Which.. didn't necessarily happen ha! We got stuck in construction traffic which was a pain in the rear end but we eventually made it home safe and sound! 

We were both very thankful that grandma made us sandwiches! They were delicious! She makes some of the best sandwiches out there. Thanks grandma for making the best sandwiches ever. You rock!

We stopped in Pendleton, Oregon for our last potty stop! This is also a very fun place to stop! They have fun things to look around at.  We even made a new friend who is picture above. Ha ha!

And we ran into some bears! Don't worry they were nice!

It was such a fun trip and we sure did fit a lot into our schedule. It was good to see all the family and spend quality time with them! It was also really good to see some friends and hang out with them. I love being able to go on vacation! Can't wait until we have our next one.