has it really only been 2 years?

brandon and I celebrated our two year anniversary last tuesday
it's funny how it all has become this time warp
it feels like it wasn't that long ago
but at the same time, i don't remember life without him
he makes every day so much better
just because i get to be with him
i couldn't ask for a better, more thoughtful husband
and he is such a good daddy to hazel

on tuesday i woke up to a bouquet of flowers perched sneakily on the shelf
i took him to work and met him later for lunch
he had no idea at the time, but i spent the morning trying to recreate one of the flavors of cheesecake from our wedding
i made the lemon raspberry one
then made a few things for a picnic lunch and met him at work
we found a little picnic table and had a delicious lunch full of his favorite things
guacamole, homemade salsa, and hummus with foccacia sticks and simply lemon, lemonade
it was perfect
that evening we got ready and dropped hazel off at a friends house
brandon had done some research
and found this little seafood place called Surf in downtown Nashua
everything we ate was fantastic!
we had calamari with this great dipping sauce for an appitizer
then he ordered cod, but this wasn't just any cod, it was crusted and laid on a bed of chowder with this pesto sauce around it...it's hard to describe, but it was very tasty
i got a virgin pina colada,
and what i thought would be a simple salad
with shrimp, tomatoes, proscuitto, some delicious cheese, and dressing
somehow they turned this normal sounding $10 salad into this perfect blend of flavors
brandon and i traded bites, and loved every minute of it
the restaurant has a great ambiance too
it's right on main street with these pretty round paper lanterns hanging
and wonderful service

then while we waited for dinner, brandon presented me with four options for weekend getaways
he had done a bunch of research, but wanted my input on what we should really do
the options were NYC, the coast of Maine, Cape Cod, and 6 Flags
(i've been wanting to go to an amusement park since I was prego and couldn't)
we decided that we would do a short day or two trip with camping to Cape Cod last weekend, then a trip to the coast of Maine in the next few weeks
We'll go see NYC sometime when it is all lit for the Christmas season
too bad hurricane bill threatened Cape Cod, but we ended up having such an amazing time at the beach on Thursday and Burlington and Sharon, Vermont on Saturday that our anniversary week ended better than i could have ever imagined!

sorry i forgot to take pics on the day of

downtown Burlington, VT

what a fun city!!
after we went to Sharon
we came here
the whole downtown is blocked off to cars
so we just wandered and looked in shops
they had some fun little boutiques and i got the most amazing mustard yellow rain jacket!!!
brandon convinced me that i needed it
i can't wait for cool weather so i can wear it!
Burlington is right off Lake Champlain
so we walked to the waterfront too
we ate at a little pub and had their fresh made root beer and ginger ale
it was delicious
brandon said the ginger ale reminded him of what you would find in England

Sharon Vermont

this is where Joseph Smith was born
it's only about 1.5 hours from us
so we went for a little drive on Saturday
it was beautiful
just pretty through provoking
to think where he started out
in a humble 20ft by 20ft little house
there was music on the grounds
and we just wandered and appreciated the beauty
i didn't realize before what a beautiful little monument and visitors center there is
i would highly recommend it to anyone in the area!

hazel has teeth!!!

can you see the two little stubs coming through
i think this is the first pic where you can really see them
she seems a lot happier now that they have come through

hampton

we decided that we would love to buy a house in this area
we drove through and looked at houses for sale just for kicks
we are in no place to buy a house
just had a little afternoon of daydreaming after our morning at the beach
then we found this gorgeous bridge
you'll notice hazel trying to eat me in one of these
that is how she kisses
if you give her a few kisses
she'll look at you, grab your face and come towards you with her mouth wide open, it's hilarious and oh so cute
i can't get enough
and i don't even seem to mind the pile of drule left on my face
those are the moments that make being a mom soooo worth it
it gets better and better by the day
this was a perfect little day trip!

i love beach cleanup days!

we went to jenness beach for the nemo beach cleanup last thursday
and we hung around for an extra hour or so at the beach
it was beautiful!
what a perfect day
we too a walk down the beach
set up a tent for hazel to play in while we ate and I sunbathed
then we went for a little drive along the shore
i can't believe that we live only and hour from this
we had way too much fun!

pilates time!!

hazel and I doing a little pilates
and the bicycle
it was great
she was kicking
and giggling and screaming
hilarious!
brandon had to get a shot
haha

sweet baby girl is getting so big

this is right before church last sunday
what a doll
she really is soooo good
she just plays
and is starting to get into things
but dang she is cute
i have way too much fun!

swimming

this is what we did most days while we were in layton
played in my mother in law's pool
it was perfect swimming weather
we also went to brandon's trade show
which was so cool
tons of companies
and we got to see all of their 2010 stuff
not to mention a few freebies and Nemo's awesome booth
what a great end to a trip
got to see family and have a blast

blythee sharing her bed

hazel took at little nap in blythe's bed
blythe was quite willing
she came and shared and helped her with her bottle, how sweet

I won honorable mention!!

so i went to vegas for my furniture competition
it was great, they paid for my hotel, flight, had a fancy awards ceremony with a 5 course dinner
it was sooo much fun!
amelia came with and we played and shopped most of the days
we found this great little place for breakfast called house of blues
i got my first pencil skirt
and we roasted in 110 degree weather
Oh, and I won a prize!!
Honorable mention in a national competition
and $250 bucks! I won't complain....