Fireworks, Pinewood Derby, Birthday Weekend, Cap and Gown Day, and Three Fabulous Years!

Man! I thought May was a busy month for us!  July was even worse!  I can't say for certain, but I'm pretty sure my boss was so sick and tired of me by the end of the month seeing as I have asked for time off every day I was there, or at least that's what it seemed like. Now that things have died down a bit (for now!) I have time to sit down and write all of the happenings of July.  So much has happened so be prepared for lots of words and LOTS of pictures! (Cause who really cares more about the words? Let's be honest.)

First let's start with...

The Fourth of July

This Fourth of July was a big first for Peter.  It was the first time, in the three years that we have been married, that I got to show Peter where I was born and spent most of my childhood- Montana! It was pretty sad that I have flown to see where Peter grew up multiple times and we haven't driven a few hours to see where I grew up.  We were there to celebrate the Fourth as well as celebrate my grandpa's 80th birthday.  Going back really brought back a lot of memories for me and Peter was pleasantly surprised by how much he liked it.  I believe he was expecting Montana to be some run down, trashy, ugly state, but I was proud to show him how fun and beautiful it really was.   

We left July 3rd and the drive was 4-5 hours. But when your car doesn't have air conditioning and you're driving during the hottest part of the day, 4-5 hours feels like 4-5 weeks.

What the roads in Idaho looked like...

...northern Idaho started to show more promise...

...and Montana roads!

Don't let his handsome smile fool you.  It was a miserably hot drive!

 We met up with the rest of my family in Stevensville, Montana.  I wasn't born there but that is where my mom and her siblings grew up and I remember going there many times to spend time with cousins and my grandparents. Going back years later, it didn't change one bit!

The next day was the Fourth!  So Peter and I accompanied my brothers to go pick up the fireworks for the Sangster family fireworks show later that evening.  It was fun seeing what options they had and to watch my brother try to haggle down the prices from an unamused sales clerk.  

 Later that afternoon, we had to do some family photos (hence me and Peter wearing matching colors) and after that, we went with my brother Daniel and his wife Cassie on a pretty hike following a creek.  

Just some random dog we found that belonged to some hippies we ran into along the way.

 We went back and had dinner and there, we watched some family members play a game of volleyball before we all met at my aunt and uncle's place for the firework festivities and to celebrate how awesome my grandpa is.  The weather was perfect and the fireworks were amazing!  

The man of honor!

Believe it or not, that is my father in the Uncle Sam outfit.  He was the host of the show and decided to start it with a bang!

The next morning, Peter went on a hike with my family (I didn't feel too well so I stayed behind to take it easy) and he was able to take some awesome pictures of the hike they went on.  

After they were done with their outing, we spent the rest of the day going down memory lane.  We first went through Stevensville to look at some places my mom wanted to see.

This was the place my mom first lived in when her family moved to Montana when she was just five years old.

One of the first churches in Montana.  It was closed so we couldn't go in, but still cool to see!

We then drove a half hour north and went to Missoula, where my siblings and I grew up.  I was really excited to show Peter all the places I remember going when I was just a wee lass!

I love this carousel.  Period.

My mom wanted Thomas to be 'in' the photo with us.

We came back to where the rest of the extended family was meeting so we could watch the movie 'Old Maid'.  It's a movie starring Bette Davis and my grandpa was an extra in it when he was about five years old!  

A day of nostalgia pooped Peter out.

We left early the next day so we wouldn't have a repeat of our car ride there.  I don't know when I'll be back in Montana but I loved being there.  It's one of my favorite places on Earth and I hope I can go back soon.  I love being with Peter down south and seeing him in his element but it was a lot of fun for me to see him in mine.  I'm glad he enjoyed it as much as he did.

The next event on our July experiences was

Peter's Pinewood Derby Race

Our ward was doing a Pinewood Derby race and Peter signed us up for one.  He went to work on that thing for quite some time and the result was an awesome, lit up contraption that didn't win the actual race, but won an award for best looking.  

The third exciting thing that happened was 

Peter's 25th Birthday Weekend

Peter and his good friend James' birthdays are only a day apart and we figured out that it was the last big hurrah we could do before James and his wife Kayle were going to leave for dental school.  So they decided to spend the whole weekend to do some fun stuff!

First, on Peter's birthday, we had people over for some peach cobbler for Peter and cake for James.

Peter loves Spongebob.  The wrapping paper was on sale.  It was fate.

This one is a bit blurry, but I had to show that Lori and Zach joined us for a little bit before they went back to their busy, busy lives.

The next day was James' birthday and he really wanted to go to Texas Roadhouse in Idaho Falls.  So, we grabbed our friend Shane and that's exactly what we did :)

We finished the weekend by going out by Twin Bridges and camp out.  When we got there, we set up our tents and then headed to the river nearby where the boys took a little dip in the water...

...to which they realized how cold the water actually was and stepped out.

Later that evening, we got a fire going and Shane came to join us just in time for S'mores.

We spent the night on the hard ground and woke up to some bug bites but all in all, it was a lot of fun and I wish I could do it all over again with them.  If only dental school and Nebraska didn't get in the way.  We miss them so much!

I've known James since 2007 and Peter loved serving with him while they were in Chile.  He and his wife have become life long friends and we were sad to see them go.  But we are very excited to see them embark on the next chapter of their lives.  Peter was very excited to share his birthday with James and we consider him a part of our family.  This was a fun birthday and I'm glad that I was able to be there to celebrate with them.

Whew!  Almost done, folks! Just a couple more to go!

The next exciting thing that happened was when

I became a college graduate

I have made it very apparent to friends and family that I have never really enjoyed school.  I didn't like it when I was younger and, to be honest, I don't think I ever will.  So you can imagine my relief and excitement when I finally applied for graduating and was able to put on that cap and gown and grab my diploma.  Well, I got the cap and gown, and the diploma cover, but I am still waiting for my diploma in the mail...

While I was excited to finally be done with it all, I think I was more excited to see my parents who were coming up for the graduation.

Can you find me?

My cousin Lexi was sweet to come and support me while she was in the middle of finals!  I just love that girl!

 I last minute switched my major to University Studies and I, for a minute, I felt a bit embarrassed.  University Studies is a general degree and to be surrounded by people who had specialized degrees, it made me feel like my degree wasn't valid or that I wasn't as smart or educated as some of my fellow graduates (and that might be the case for some of them), but when I was walking with my husband and talking to him about it, he was sweet in reassuring me that a degree is a degree no matter what it's under and that I should be proud of my accomplishment.

And I am.

Last, but certainly not least...

Our 3 year Wedding Anniversary

Peter and I celebrated our third wedding anniversary.  It's still crazy to me to say that Peter and I have been married for three years.  It doesn't feel like it's been three years (some days it feels shorter and some days it feels longer). We spent the day hanging out in Idaho Falls and went to Reed's Dairy where they have the BEST SHAKES EVER!  They have a bunch of farm animals nearby and I had to go see them.  We may have been trespassing.  Totally worth it.

You have no idea how excited I was to see the pigs.  No. Idea.

 The rooster started freaking out when we came closer and I have never heard a rooster crow before.  I felt like I stepped into the movie 'Babe'.  It was magical.

I love looking back on our wedding day.  I have the pictures cycle through on the desktop on my computer and sometimes, I just catch myself looking at them, reminiscing about that day.  How nervous I was, how excited I was, how hot it was that day, how handsome Peter looked, how great my dress was, everything!   I have attended many weddings since my own and, while I have seen some receptions, dresses, flowers, etc. that I thought were beautiful and creative, I wouldn't change anything about my wedding.  It was by far one of the best days of my life.   

I have written a lot of words on the post.  But I don't have enough words to describe how much I love Peter.  Our relationship is special and, though these three years have been far from perfect, it's been a blast.  I am incredibly lucky! 

This past month, though very busy, was an amazing month.  I am sad that it's over but we have some fun things planned for this month!  I promise I will post those experiences quicker than I did of the ones in July. 

Until then!