another two week summer break at home!

my brain is a little out of wack, why?

cause i've been spending my last 2ish weeks

recovering from europe, enjoying being home, and preparing for study abroad. 

apart from the minimal stressful moments, ive had the best few weeks being home

 olivia and my sweet mama were there to greet me outside baggage claim at LAX! 

i couldn't have been happier to see them!

then mom went to utah for britt's pageant,

leaving me as the mom of the house!

so we rode our bikes, went on walks and went surfing! love my family so dang much! 

 my mom's side of the family was in town and we went whale watching off dana point!

we saw a zillion dolphins and a few whales! 

there is something about the pacific ocean that just feels like home!

 shari cushman gave us a tennis lesson! she is the sweetest lady and i just love her! she makes the best cookies on planet earth! these are my best friends!

 no one really knows me like these friends know me and for that, 

i am so grateful for them and the friendship they offer me. its so good to be home with them!

we went swing dancing!! 

there is this club thingy place in the LA area that plays jazz all night long and you just dance away!

we all caught on pretty fast and had the best time! 

these girlies are so kind and caring and so good to me! gosh i love them.

i was lucky enough to babysit this sweet thing for a week!

violet fielding is a genetic masterpiece! 

look at her! 

i loved playing with this little fire cracker

big papa turned 51!! we celebrated by going to this japanese restaurant where they cook it in front of you. it was so delicious and we had so much fun together! i love my dad so much!

 i was finally able to attend jenny evan's cooking class! we made a delicious salad,  all kinds of grilled pizzas (the one to the left is a lobster pizza!) and a berry pie that is making me salivate while im typing! it was so much fun to chit chat with other moms and listen to all kind of hilarious advice ( i was the only lady there with out a child). yum! yum!
 

porky and i went hiking! she is truly such a ray of light and a beam of energy!

so, one morning, olivia and i thought it would be a good idea to do this....

 we painted our face, put dresses on and acted like little girls again

did anyone else have dress up photo shoots with their best friends when they were young?

my best friend growing up, chloe goings and i would have photoshoots on the daily!
i have a zilllion hysterical pictures of us so similar to these, taken 10 years ago.
hooray for childish fun! i highly recommend it!
im so thankful for olivia and our best friendship. i dont know what i would do with out her. 

 sammy surfed!!...however, there were tears. he is our little drama king!

im so proud of my him! now lets see when he will come out with me again!

tyler kesler, the pro at everything and anything,
 attempted and was successful at flinging a playing card into that watermelon!

we had a game night at my house with a few BYU friends and it was so fun to see all them again.

we all live so close but are so busy with work and such so sadly we havent spent too much time together but when we do its a guaranteed good time!

for nicole's birthday we went on a sun rise hike!

unfortunately our tardiness resulted in jake louie and i just wandering and playing music.

finally after a few miles we found the crew!

then ate some cupcakes, sang some more and celebrated the coolest girl ever, nicole hawkins! 

the ever so beautiful lady, mrs annabel ashton is now married!!

her wedding was stunning, just like that couple!

i'd be lying if i said i didnt cry when they were having their first dacne. 

their love is electric and im so SO happy for my dear friend!

mama and i had some fun paddle boarding! 

we laughed and chatted and just enjoyed being with each other and i loved it so much.

love you mom!

sooj's going away party was such a blast!

he is leaving for korea to serve the country for 2 years as part of his duel citizenship. 

it was so great to chat with friends! freakin kai gayoso is going to be famous, mark my words! 

love my fab 4

 ...and my toddler friend, connor cushman :)

 

dinz the lemon head! every villain is lemons! ...and SURPRISE to the world! carter came home!

(disclaimer: if you dont know these two boys, please know these were total jokes and carter, on the left, doesnt typically play the electric guitar shirtless! ha!)

last and best beach day with my biffles! 

...well last until i get back from my study abroad but still, take any reason to celebrate, right?

we all headed down to victoria and spent the day flailing to catch footballs, sucking big time in a volleyball match, burning our feet, basking in the beautiful sunshine and giggling all day long! 

i love my friends so much and although we are all growing into our own individual people, 

we share a bond that is unchangeable.

after another round of goodbyes and hugs were given, i am off on another adventure!
 australia, new zealand and fiji, here i come!!
ill be spending the next month and a half:
scuba diving on the great barrier reef, going hiking/camping through the outback, exploring sydney, bungy jumping in new zealand, sea kayaking to and from the fijian islands, and other activities and give me tingles of excitement just thinking about it!
i feel so blessed to be able to travel the world this summer!
God created this masterpiece we live in and i'm loving the opportunity to explore it!