It's What You Believe

I've had a little bit of a wake up call from the workshop I did over the weekend for the Mrs. Idaho Pageant. I have been looking on the internet for hours trying to find cocktail dresses and evening gowns that I could wear with my garments. I'm not gonna it hasn't been very frustrating to look at litareally hundreds of dresses that are to short, sleeves to small, no sleeves, no back and so on. I've tried on several evening gowns and every time there is something that doesn't work with my garments. I recognize that a large percentage of people don't care whether it has sleeves or a back or its halfway up their thigh so its understandable that alot of dresses are not made garment worthy.

The part that is an eye opening experience for me is how many people don't understand that even for one night I am not willing to change who I want to be and what I am for a dress. I am a daughter of God and I want to do everything in my power to show my children that that is something so special and important in our lives. Being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a blessing beyond words. It has given me strength when I didn't think I could go on, it has shown me more happiness being dressed up in a pretty dress going to prom or doing a pageant. It is something that I hold dear to my heart and am always striving to be a better servant for my Heavenly Father.

In today's world I think there are so many things that can distract us from what is truly important. Being a role model for a positive influence is what my goal is for my children, family and women in general. Coming back to the dress, I was told multiple times that if I just took of my garments off for one night then I could where the dress and wouldn't have to alter it or find a different one. Each time I firmly said "I will not take my garments off" and each time the person I was speaking to seemed just a little annoyed with the fact that it seemed like I was making things harder. When in reality by making the choice from day one to not remove my garments so I could wear something that was in style or for that special occasion I have been blessed with a love for the gospel, a love for my savior and a love for my self. I can look in the mirror knowing I made the right choice for me and for my children.

So even though this is about evening gowns and cocktail dresses, I feel that I have a responsibility to be an example to all women, LDS or not, that sticking to the things you believe in will taking you places you could have never dreamed of. Don't let someone talk you out of your beliefs for just one night and don't talk yourself out of something because its to hard. You will be blessed in your life for sticking up for what you believe in and for being an example of a strong woman.

I will not change who I am to be something for someone else.

Raising Money for the Pageant and Something More...

Here is the link to sponsor or donate!  DONATE HERE!

As such, your sponsorship and donations will not only go towards helping me push out of my comfort zone and become better with something I feel inadequate for, but it will also help those that suffer from a disease that most of us will never understand. My goal is raise $5,000 for the Mrs. Idaho pageant, some of this money will help me to run for Mrs. Idaho, but also, it will be used as a donation to help those that suffer from Anorexia and Bolemia.
Thank you so much for your support and helping me and other overcome our own fears and challenges. I look forward to representing you and hopefully the State of Idaho!


For me the opportunity to become better, progress and grow is what life is all about. As such running for Mrs. Idaho pushes me out of my comfort zone more than anyone would ever know. The reality is running for Mrs. Idaho isn't just for me, but it's also for those that suffer from the debilitating desease Anorexia and Bolemia. I have a close family memeber that is controlled by this desease. I have often wondered what I can do to help others that struggle to move past something so controlling. This is where Mrs. idaho comes into play for me.
I want to use this opportunity to not only become better and overcome my fears of being in the spotlight, but also help those that suffer from eating disorders.

Here is the link to sponsor or donate!  DONATE HERE!

Hidden Falls at Grand Teton Nation Park

We had a great weekend with the Johnsons. We went to Hidden Falls which was a short 1/2 mile hike but so fun for the kids. We didn't see any bears but did see some squirrels. We enjoyed having them here and spending time. They even caught a fish in the pond we have a our house.

Beauty Pageant

A couple of weeks ago Nolan and I decided to make goals to just be better. My goal was to try to be more outgoing and gain some self confidence in front of people. I figured I would just be better about making conversation with new people and be more outgoing in groups of people and this would definitely meet my goal. Well... Sheena Daniels, Nolan's friend from college messaged me on Facebook and asked if i would want to do the Mrs. Idaho America Pageant with her. I'm pretty sure I laughed out loud!!! A few conversations later and I was signed up for the pageant thinking what did I get myself into! Luckily I don't have to have a talent otherwise there would be no pageant in my future.

I am excited to be a part of the pageant to be a good example to Reese of doing things outside our comfort zone helps us to grow and that even though I'm going to be in a fancy dress I can still be modest and live my standards. I really want to focus on being healthy in mind, body and spirit. I have several people that are close to me that have eating or image disorders and its been hard to watch as someone you love is slowing dying in front of you and doesn't want to see what they are doing to not only themselves but to all those that love them. Focusing on ways to help them and help them see the importance of understanding who they are and how special they are.

As a family we have been doing good. We have started to get settled in in Idaho. The kids are getting use to living with Grammy and Grandpa. We've traveled a lot to Utah but its been fun to see family and neighbors and be able to spend time with them.  Reese is such a funny thing, she is doing better with not being terrified of spider and bugs and has enjoyed getting her face painted several times a week. Ethan is silly boy! He wants to only ride the four-wheeler with dad or grandpa and recently has discovered how delicious raspberries are. Nolan has been working hard at getting the business going and we love that his commute is even closer than before.

Land Rich

This week was full of fun negotiating and big checks. You've guest it we bought some land in Ammon Idaho. When we moved to Idaho we wanted to be closer to Nolan's family and let our kids get to know there cousins better. We took that to a whole new level by buying property right across the street from Shanna, Nolan's sister. We are excited for the opportunity to live in another fun neighborhood when the time comes for us to build. Hopefully sooner rather than later.  

We are enjoying living at Grammy and grandpa's house. We've been trying to do updates on the house and are currently working on one of the bathrooms. Its taken a long time but i think it will look so nice when its done. Not to mention having a bathroom that is bigger than a shoe box would be wonderful. Going from double sinks, shower, tub & separate toilet room to one sink, toilet and a shower/tub with about a 2 x 2 foot extra space to stand in its pretty squishy! Ill show some before and after pictures when its completed. Hopefully by next Sunday:) 

Reese and Ethan are adjusting OK to the change. I think Reese is still getting use to the idea of living here and sharing a room. She says that Ethan is loud at night. That he talks a lot! Nolan seems to be getting the hang of being his own boss although I think he misses having an office full of fun people to work and visit with. I am feeling good about living here except for the fact that every time i go outside i have at least 2-3 mosquito bits added to my already covered body:-( And there are so many bugs everywhere. I promise I am not a wimp but always dealing with bugs gets a little old. I'm pretty sure I'll survive. 

Potato Adventure

We've started a new adventure in Rexburg Idaho. We know, you all think we're crazy for moving somewhere colder than Utah and more windy. But Idaho is a beautiful place and has a lot of fun things to offer. We hope we can figure out what they are!

Here is how the adventure began. We were driving home from Rexburg after a fun weekend with the Hill clan. Nolan mentioned that he felt the only way for him to get his own businesses going would be for us to move to Rexburg and live with his parents. I thought he had been abducted by aliens. I couldn't believe my ears. We had just started doing some upgrades on our current home of beautiful wood floors, white ceilings, painted walls and white columns in our living room. I said we could think about it, but I honestly thought it was just a passing thought and would fizzle out.

About a week later Nolan was out of town for business.  I told him that I thought we should consider moving to Rexburg. He was shocked and said lets talk about it when he got home. So we did, and prayed about it and went to the temple about it. The answers we got to all was Move. Yikes, what did we do!!!! Moving to rexburg was the last thing I thought we would be doing this year. We decided that if we got the right amount of money from our house then we could move forward. So we listed our house and within 24 hours we had our full asking price. HOLY CRAP that was fast!

Fast forward a couple of weeks. Our neighbors the Moons ended up buying our house and we moved out the middle of June. Its been a crazy couple of weeks living in Rexburg. We've remodeled to bedrooms and are currently remodeling a bathroom in Nolan's parents home. We have enjoyed living with Grammy and Grandpa Hill! Ethan loves his grandpa and loves going for four-wheeler rides. Reese has loved playing with all her cousins and seeing her Grammy every day.

As a family we know that this will be hard at times but we're also looking forward to being together and growing together.

Easter Sunday

So its been way to long since I've posted anything and I decided this would be a good way to keep a family journal. Here is what has been going on since my last post. Reese turned 2 which has been so much fun. She is such a sweet little girl and brings so much joy to our family. She was potty trained a month after she turned 2 but it only lasted for 2 weeks. Poor me! But it was a good decision for all of us. The drama of going to the bathroom on the toilet was more than we all could handle. Especially Reese!

Nolan and I took a cruise for our 4 year anniversary to the Eastern Caribbean with Brian and Monica. I was 5 months pregnant but that didn't slow us down. The water was beautiful and we enjoyed the beaches in Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk and the shopping in Nassau. We snorkeled in Grand Turk and got chased by a VERY scary barracuda. If you've never seen a barracuda they are very ugly and scary. And from what I understand very mean. So even though it was playing follow the leader with us, we didn't play back. On Half Moon Cay the water was so clear you could see the bottom of the beach. The sand was so white and the sting rays, star fish, barracudas and all the other fish were the same color as the sand. Which was a little crazy cause they were right under you and you didn't know it. We did get to hold a Star fish, that was fun! Then we took a nap in a hammock right on the beach. The food was good but the thing that I enjoyed the most was just relaxing with my best friend and having fun with Monica and Brian.

So Reese just had her 1st birthday... okay really it was over a month ago.
But I thought i would post some pictures of her eating her cake. And of course, we thought that she would love eating her cake and getting all messy. So we stripped her down to her diaper and put the cake in front of her... And that's about how it ended as well. She literally picked at the cake with two fingers and ate maybe 2 bites total. Apparently, she has picked up on my need to be a clean freak.

Yikes... poor thing:O)

Movie Here

The Lost Elephant

It was a traumatic day on Saturday. Maybe more for me than for Reese, but still traumatic. We were out shopping and running errands when we stopped at Costco. Which is a great place by the way:) So anyways, Jeri (Nolan's Mom) asked if I wanted Reese to bring in her elephant. I said yes, because she has done it before, no problem.

We do our shopping and browsing, checkout, drive home and BAM!!!!

The elephant is gone. No where to be seen in the car or in the house. Small tears come out of my eyes... Okay maybe not tears, but I was kind of in a panic.

For those of you who don't know, this is Reese's buddy. She LOVES this elephant, also known as Ellie. If she is grumpy, you can give her, her elephant and she'll be happy. If she is not wanting to sleep, give her Ellie and she is rubbing her face with it's tail or trunk and puts herself to sleep. It's so cute to watch.

So anyways, back to my story, I am in a panic. Jeri even has to tell me to calm down cause I am pacing and quite frustrated. So I call Alta View Hospital cause that is where I thought Cheree bought it for her. But the girl tells me "I don't think we have elephants". Hello can't she check...gosh, incompetent people drive me crazy!

So I get online, hoping that i can find one and buy it. And in the mean time, hope that we can find something else for Reese to "love". So I do the search "Pink Elephant Beanie Baby". And guess how many new ones are available, 1, that's right just one. And the price is.... $40 bucks!!! HOLY CRAP

It's a retired beanie baby, go figure right. I actually contemplated buying it for $40 bucks, but dang that's a lot of money.

After much deliberation and pacing, I finally decide to just get a gray and pink elephant that is just like her other one, but gray.

And Reese does just fine without the elephant. I think I was missing it more than she was. But let me explain, I wanted to keep it, so when she got older I could give it to her and explain that it was her lovey.

She did have a "replacement duck", but she didn't love it the same. So today the elephant from eBay arrived in the mail. I ripped it open and gave it to Reese. (I'm pretty sure I was more excited than she was).

Her face lite up. Like it was Christmas. She was so excited to get the elephant and she went straight for sucking on the truck. Her little arms just squeezed it and she hugged it. So adorable. My little heart was just smiling.

I think the gray elephant will work just fine. Thank goodness for eBay:)

Trying to Get back in shape!

So Nolan and I have decided its time for us to get back in shape. As most of you know, before we got married we hired a trainer to kick us in the butt. So our plan is that we will use the same workouts and diet to get us back in the same shape as before.

Good Luck to both of us huh!

Here are my pictures of the first time I did this diet, as I have had a couple of people ask to see them. Beware... the before picture is pretty scary.

Reese Laughing

Nolan loves to kiss Reese on her checks and she seems to love it too! You'll notice Nolan does have a little bit of a scruffy face so she starts to get mad. Enjoy!

Our New Addition!

We know that most of you have seen pictures of our little Reese but i though it would be fun to post some anyways its been a really really long time since we have posted something so here you go.

Reese Kira Hill was born June 10, 2009 at 3:40pm. She came out screaming! The first thing the doctor said was those are the biggest feet he'd ever seen. They are rather large but still so dang cute. She also wanted us to see how long her tongue was. She has a tongue like her grandma Jeri! She weighed 7 lbs 4 oz and was 21 inches long. She was also born with a fair amount of hair and very distinct blue eyes. I know that seems a little strange cause most newborns usually have black or gray eyes but not hers. They were dark blue.

A couple days after Reese was born Nolan got up with her at about 5 am to feed her and change her bottom. What he was unaware of was that when she pooped it was more of a squirt! Which was she did all over him. He had poop on his chest, down his stomach and on his legs. And she managed to get it all over the floor! What a fun surprise for him. That was the first of many squirts some including on Linda's and Brian & Monica's floor. She just wanted to leave a little piece of love for them!

At 2 months or 11 weeks she weighs 11 lbs 11 oz and is 23 inches long. She is growing like a weed! Reese loves to show us her long tongue its out more then it is in. She is smiling lots for us and when you sing to her she'll smile and sing back. At least we think that is what she is trying to do.

One of my favorite things is when she is waking up from a nap. She opens one eye at a time, like she is checking to make sure your around and then she stretches so big with here little arms above her head. It's adorable.

It's so much fun having her in our family. She brings so much love and joy to our home. Plus she is the cutest baby ever! Yes, we are proud parents. We will do our best to keep you updated as Reese gets older

Why Sven?

So I've had some people asking about Sven... Really it was a name given to our baby, either boy or girl, by Scott. He decided that it would be the best name ever. And it stuck. So its baby Sven. Sven Hill, doesn't it just make you so excited for the kid (boy or girl) to grow up? We thought so too.

Is Baby Sven going to be a Boy or Girl?

So some of you may know that we are going to have a little Nolan or Autumn running around June 21st (or around that time). This is the first ultra sound (10 weeks) we got which I think looks like a little bear in a cave. And I like that you can see a large head and little body with starts of arms and legs. Sooo Cute!

Nolan and I are excited and nervous for the new adventure. Nolan will be an amazing dad, and I hope I can keep up as a mom.

I haven't really been sick, but I am starting to feel a wee bit chubby. which I don't love. But its all for a good cause!

So we will find out what it is on Feb. 2nd... tune back in.

Yellow Stone Trip

The reason for the ugly face (from Autumn) is the sulfur smell. YUCK!

This is my first official blog entry. :) Autumn wanted me to add my own thoughts so here I go. As you can see we went off to Yellowstone so Autumn could see it the for the first time. We went with my sister Cheree and her family. We both loved spending time with them and getting to see Yellowstone as it prepares for winter.

The best part was in Mammoth where we witnessed a young bull elk pushing his herd of cows through the town. He had an impressive rack on his head. For those hunters I think he was close to a 400 point spread. And for you hunters you will realize that by me stating that line I have no clue what I am talking about. he he

So enjoy the pics and let us know how you are doing!

Our Trip to Europe

So I though would tell you all a little about Europe!!! Other than it was absolutely amazing and something that is so indescribable. I could never explain the feel of the historic sites that we went to and walked through. My favorite place was Venice, Italy. I loved the food; WOW. I still think about it and crave it.

These are Nolan's thoughts; he wrote emails as we visted countries so here ya go.
Venice:
So its 8:00 am here in Venice, which means you kids are currently sleeping. I must tell you Venice is amazing!
Absolutely enchanting in every way! Even Marlin thoroughly enjoyed it and I didn't think he would.

Today we are heading up to Austria; it is there I will begin practicing in the Alps on my Sound of Music score. Watch out Julie Andrews, there is a new Nun in town! Uhhhh well, I mean, well you
know what I mean. he he.

Austria:

I am from Austria isn’t that weird!

Wilkommen from Austria.

I am super duper excited for you to come here. Truly Austria is so beautiful with the most amazing manicured farms and land. It’s like everyone here spends their time making everything green and perfect.

So we rented a car and drove 50 miles south of Salzburg yesterday. That was interesting and scary. Marlin was driving me nuts, but I guess it was to be expected when we both thought we could handle driving in Europe better than the other. We rented a BMW 3 series, but we got in much later than expected so the stupid lady gave it away. We have a Renault Laguna, which is cool, but I want my Beemer!

The train ride was very cool. I think at one point we spent 20 minutes in 1 tunnel. The Austrians are not afraid of tunnels. We would come up on a massive cliff faced mountain and then cut right through it and end up on the other side.

Today we are heading to Hitler's Eagles Nest (his vacation home on top of a mountain), then visit some castles in Salzburg.

Tomorrow I think we are going to catch a high-speed train to Vienna, but we will see.

Btw the keyboards here are weird the y and z are in opposite of each other and the @ symbol changes every time I’m at a new computer.

Auvitizen for now!

Nolando

Austria Continued
The Autobahn, Me, and a Station wagon

By reading the title one of those things doesn't fit, and no it is not me. That’s right kids, here I am driving down the Austrian Autobahn, the excitement and rush of no speed limit, cars flying by like there is no other and I've got my little Renault Laguna Station wagon floored to 130 KPH. Not sure how fast that is, but lets say I definitely wasn't keeping up with the BMW's and Mercedes. Oh well dreamed fulfilled!

It is 5:00 am here and we are heading to Vienna for the day on a high speed train.

Yesterday was wonderful, we went to Hitler’s Eagles Nest high on an Alp (I used his toilet and ate a Wiener Snitchel, nice guy I'm sure if he were alive and man what a view) That Hitler new how to choose a good elite view!

We then went to Salzburg, but sorry no rendition of 16 going on 17. But I will see if we can sneak in a do-re-me at the train station today!

If you would like to unsubscribe to this email list then tuff luck! :)

Auviderzan


Denmark & Sweden

Hamlet’s Castle, Sweden, and a lot of Pastries

Not in any particular order, but yes we have visited all three titled in the subject line.

Hamlets Castle is about 30 miles north of Copenhagen located right on the ocean. It is a pretty amazing looking building and although Hamlet is fictional and Shakespeare only used the Castle as the basis of his famed story it is pretty cool to see. We got there late so we didn't get to go in, but none the less fun to take pictures and claim we have been there.

Denmark has consisted of a lot of driving, Marlin decided that a car would be the best way to see all his old mission areas, mission home, chapels and what not. So needless to say I have spent more time in the back seat of a Volkswagen than anywhere else. It's still fun to watch my Dad get all excited though about being back and I must say he has picked up on his Danish quite nicely again. Not that we really need it since almost everyone here speaks amazing English its still fun for him.

In 2002 Denmark and Sweden finished a 15 mile long bridge and tunnel that spans the channel over the Baltic Sea, so off we were to have lunch in Malmo Sweden! Two things I noticed about Sweden vs. Denmark.

1. There people are much better looking.

2. They have great shoe stores! (Yes we have visited them and yes I bought a pair and yes my Dad thinks I am weird because I love shoes!)

All in all it was a lovely afternoon in Sweden and more fun to say we have been there. I'm pretty sure I won't make it back there unless its all paid for by someone else. :)

Back in Denmark we went to Thavelsdons (sp) Museum this morning. Thavelsdon was the person who sculpted the original Kristus Statue back in the 1800's. I guess that President Spencer Kimball saw it on a visit to Denmark in the 70's, saw it, loved it, and paid a lot of money to whomever so the church could use the copyright. It really is pretty amazing to see the original a lot dirtier but still cool.

Well pretty much intermittent with all our travels are pastries, pastries, pastries! The one thing I will miss most about Europe are their pastries! They know how to make them over here and I think we buy at least 2-3 everyday just for a snack. If I wasn't walking 10,000 steps a day I would be a bit worried about the extra calories. Any who, they sure know how to make a good flørævej here. He He (Not even sure if that’s a pastry I just wanted to use the funny letters on the keyboard! lol)

Any who, tomorrow we are off to Paris for the final stint of our trip. Much to see and do in good old France so I will have plenty to report on whether you want to hear it or not. :)

France
Bonjour!

Welcome to France! Even though I may write it, doesn’t mean we heard it that much.  The French have some pretty amazing things to show off. The Effeil Tour, Notre Dame, Good Food, even an impressive Euro Disney, but dang they sure like to be polite.

That is right, out of all the places that we have been and visited they French by far win the please speak my language award and rude award. Regardless it was still fun and amazing to visit.

One of my favorite things about Paris is how beautiful the architecture is. They really know how to make a beautiful building. Most of their buildings were so grand and regal. It makes many of our buildings in the US seem so plain and ordinary.

For the 4 days we were in the city of lights we spent 3 nights out by Euro Disney. The resort was nice, but it was hard having to drive so far into the city and see the sights. So for the last night we stayed right in the heart of Paris by the Louvre Museum. The cost was quite a bit more, but in my opinion worth the extra money to have at least one night in the heart of one of the greatest cities in the world.

I loved driving in Paris… For as crazy as they drive you would think it would have been nerve racking, but honestly it was a thrill and I seemed to fit right in. Not once did I get nervous or apprehensive in any situation. I simply seemed to fit right in and enjoyed that everyone else is a horrible driver like me. 

The Palace of Versailles is something that everyone in their lifetime should experience. The Palace itself is huge and grand, but the breathtaking part are the actual gardens! Nothing could be so amazing as to imagine what it was like 4 centuries ago and see the royal French family enjoying such grandeur. Regardless of thousands of people there it seems as if the gardens were just for us to enjoy and explore. I highly recommend any visiting if they have the chance.

Paris itself has so much to see and do, that we will definitely go back. We had enough time to see the major sites, the Arc de Triomph, the Eiffel Tour, Notre Dame and the Louvre, but there was so much more that can be enjoyed. Autumn and I both agree that we need to come back and enjoy the city and really get to know it better.

All in all the best part about Paris, and Europe is that I fell in love with my beautiful wife all over again. It is such a special thing when you get to experience something on such a grand scale with the most important person in your life. Your True Love.

I can’t wait to go back and see more with her!

Nolan is the true love of my life and it was a phenominal experience and I look forward to many more wonderful adventures with him!

Wedding Pictures... a Year Later

So we realize its been over a year since we've been married. But as you can tell we have bee n a little behind on updating our blog.

Anyways.... thought you'd enjoy some wedding pictures. It was the best day of our lives and a day that we will always cherish. Thank you everyone for supporting us and being good friends.

Its our first Time!

Hello friends and family!
You get to now hear all about the life of Autumn & Nolan and if your lucky get to hear all our secrets! Ha ha ha
We'll write again soon