I haven't posted in a while and so many things have happened since!

So Kevin and I are enjoying our life as the newly weds. Though since our nuptials, we have seen many many pictures of other couples getting married this season.

For those of you who don't know our story, we have been together long before our engagement, lets say our first kiss was in 2005... So we have been through a lot, but nothing prepared us for what marriage would mean. We have loved every moment of our married life, but we have also experienced a few trials along the way. What we have realized is that God places these trials in our life so that we  choose to follow the right path and when we do so, it makes our relationship much stronger.

So life has been crazy/beautiful for the both of us, and we decided that we needed a break from the busy every-day life of the american workaholic lifestyle.

We took a short 3 hour road trip through the beautiful evergreen forests to end up in a small German-Style town named Leavenworth. 

A long the way we passed through the beautiful cascades and forests. Alongside the rivers and streams where the salmon abounded and the bird wildlife sung beautiful melodies.

What a beautiful place the Lord has created for us to enjoy!

We arrived for a 3 day stay in Leavenworth at the beautiful Scandinavian Escape Bed and Breakfast.

For the weekend we decided to try to see and do Everything that Leavenworth had to offer.. for those of you that know Kevin and I.. guess which of us wanted the relaxing trip and who wanted the adventurous.. ha, well we did a little of both i guess!

Our hike lead us to the top of a near by mountain overlooking the Wenatchee river and the Leavenworth country side! We saw tons of cute critters like chipmunks and grasshoppers, and some not so cute snakes!!

After hiking, we went back to our BnB for some relaxation in their pool and hottub (pics above). We had such a beautiful view that it was hard to leave to enjoy the town further!

After some R&R we decide to enjoy the finer things in town and go for a few wine tastings! Leavenworth is covered in vineyards, so it wasn't hard to find a great place to enjoy our sips. We fell in love with a place called Icicle Ridge Winery. We enjoyed flavors from chocolate flavored to maple flavored wines. Kev and I decided to take a bottle of their award winning raspberry wine home with us - "Rasmatazz".

Our last day we spent most of our time tubing down the Wenatchee river! Oh so beautiful! It was the perfect weather - 90 degrees outside & ice cold river water! It is so funny to see that Washington has this beautiful weather just 3 hours northwest of our house! We will have to take the time to visit again!

On our road trip back home, Kev and I pulled over to the side of the road after seeing many cars parked on the side. We followed a trail to find this beautiful spot!! A huge platform of rocks hidden away, where the locals come to cool off, play, and I guess camp out too!!

Got a new haircut! I felt like I needed a dramatic change to boost myself into interview mode! So, i traded in my long locks for a short bob to look more "business professional". Hope this brings some good job offers my way! :)
I surprised Kev at the last moment, he just thought I was going in for a "trim", but I neglected to tell him that trim was going to be 10" off of my ends!! ha Well luckily he likes it!!

Here's a video of one of our latest adventures!! We hiked through the Olympic National Forest! Zane had a blast!! This was before we knew he had Hip Dysplasia. We are continuing to pray for his recovery. Update: we are in process of scheduling his surgery.

While it's still summer here in Washington, I figured I would try to continue working on the garden infront of our rental home! This morning I was so excited to begin.. I went to home depot and bought lot's of plants and garden soil to finish the project - in hopes of surprising Kevin when he arrived home from work today.. Planted two bushes and pulled some weeds, then out of nowhere I began to get attacked by dozens of tiny spiders and giant white moths from the dirt below!! I put my project on hold for now, until Kevin can arrive home and protect me from all of these creatures with his strong arms and man-like qualities as men do!

I gave up and began doing something inside the house... Baking something sweet!!

I made homemade Power Bars! They smelled so delicious in the oven! Now the house smells like sweet fruity apple spices and cinnamon!! They took 5 minutes to prepare and 30 to bake! Best part is I already had most of the ingredients around the pantry! I added a hint of Cardamon to bring out the apple cinnamon flavors!  
If you want the recipe to try for yourself, Here it is: 
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/jo-anns-power-bars/

Introducing Zane's new Orthopedic bed!

 We recently learned our pup Zane has developed severe Hip Dysplasia. This condition is hereditary and so he was born with it, but the disease doesn't begin to be problematic until adult-hood. We are very upset to see our beloved Border Collie experience such pain each day, but we are trying our hardest to prevent his anguish by giving him the best food, bed, and family he could have. We are so very thankful to our family for the moral support they are providing to us and hope that soon we will be close to home so that Zane can experience the support from them for himself. 

As you can see, our kitty Ezra comforts Zane every day as well. Its so amazing to watch these two guys care for one another as they do. When Ezra comes inside after a long and tiring day of rummaging around the world outside, he finds his best friend to curl up next to. 

Our two babies... 

We are so blessed!!

After a loooong lonely, Ice-cream & cookies, girly romantic movies, and then sugar headache filled night, I awake to this beautiful and thoughtful gift from my husband. He ignites something in me every time we are together: a passion to be a more thoughtful, loving, and caring wife. This is all so new to me, and when I stop to think about what God has given to me, my heart is so filled with thankfulness, joy, humbleness, and so many more unexplainable emotions. So how do I give to God and to others I care about the LOVE that God has shown me? It's so hard to not think selfishly every day, which is a struggle I battle with as now I am only part of a whole. So when Kevin does even these little things, it reminds me that I have a wonderful example to follow after, a husband that can lead me to be a much better wife and person all together.

So as I see his loving face everyday, I am reminded how great love is, and how much more I need to love, to give, to learn, to grow with God's Love.

The two boys! Zane and I are so jealous! We want to be in this cuddle fest!! We are so blessed to have such wonderful moments :) If only Ezra smelled good enough to do this all the time! I always thought Dogs were supposed to be the messy ones, but Ezra has made it obvious he is definitely not the standard good-smelling, clean, and timid cat - he's more like a cross between a mini panther and street dog... I love my 3 boys!

Newly Weds!!

Now, the Wedding Day has passed, and we are so excited to begin our life as a Family!!

Bridal Tea

Suprised by our wonderful friends and family!! Truly we are so blessed by such amazing people!

Engagement Party!

The wonderful Goodwin gang made us feel so special by throwing us a SUPRISE engagment party! What a wonderful event it was!! Full of excitement, games, wonderful food, and great friends and family!

Engaged... When is the BIG day?

Picked out the ring... and the date!

Engaged on an Island

Engaged on Orcas Island - Part of the San Juan Islands (off the coast of Washington). Best proposal ever!

A new beginning

As sites like Facebook continue to reek havoc on the net, it's time to turn to a more secure and private social media outlet. An escape from the entire Facebook frenzy and so-called "friends" who can partake in every public photo and commentary that is posted. No more "pokes", "invites", and unwanted stalkers on this page. No, this is purely for our beloved friends and family members. Here's to the hope that this becomes our NEW favorite social media site!