a winter of getaways.

Winter 2017 has unintentionally been a winter of getaways, and it has made it fly by! You won't hear me complaining about Spring being right around the corner. I've loved having something to look forward to every couple weeks.

A quick overview (sorry it is so lengthy!)....

We kicked off the New Year in one of my very favorite places--Hawaii. Nothing feels more rejuvinating, refreshing, and happy than starting a new year on a warm, sandy beach with the people I love. We soaked up every minute of those rays, continued with tradition and did all the things we love to do, and truly enjoyed the peaceful Hawaiian life.

About a week after we got home Dan and I cruised up to Sun Valley with my parents for a quick 3 day weekend. Talk about going from sun to snow--Sun Valley had about 5 feet of fresh snow when we got up there (and it really still hasn't stopped snowing all winter)! It is my favorite version of a Winter wonderland. We had a phenomenal ski day and spent one afternoon making fresh snow shoe tracks along the golf course. Dan and I also had one epic sledding adventure from the tippy top of the steepest hill. I had a face full of snow halfway down the hill, and I could not stop laughing. When it comes to snow I'm all about "Go big, or go home", and Sun Valley definitely went BIG this year.

A few weeks later I was on a spontaneous, somewhat last minute trip to visit my best friend, Ann is San Francisco. Ann called me up to see if I wanted to come stay with her for a weekend while her husband was out of town. A few other phone calls, a group text, and a screenshot of a plane ticket later it was a 321 reunion trip! 321=myself, Cath, Ann, and Abs. We all went on study abroad to London together, and then lived together at BYU. They are some of my best friends in this whole world. It was a much needed weekend together! We did a lot of site seeing, but also a lot of catching up in the apartment, laughing, drinking diet coke, and just being together. Ann was the best hostess and we all hated it to end. I can't wait for the next reunion trip--hopefully sooner rather than later.

Last weekend for President's Day we made our way to Laguna Beach with Carli and Daniel. I've gone to Laguna over this weekend for the past 5+ years. It is one of my favorites. Well this year CA decided to have one of its worst rain storms it has had in 6 years, and it definitely lived up to the hype. Luckily, we were not to be deterred by the rain. We went shopping, saw a movie, ate good food, went to Balboa Island and Newport, and made a spontaneous trip to Disneyland! While we would have loved some sunshine, we still had so much fun. Until next year, Laguna!

In between all of these getaways Dan and I have filled our Winter with cross country skiing, climbing, skiing, reading books (Dan's resolution is to read one a month, and I'm jumping on board), house sitting, watching The Goldbergs, hanging with friends, teaching a lot of dance and High Fit, helping our grandparents, and celebrating every night when it stays light just a little bit longer. 

Spring, we are ready for you! 

(kacey.ism 388)

hello 2017.

After a 6 month hiatus, I've made my way back to the blog.
And we've made it to 2017!
2016 was an interesting year in the world. Most people were not sad to see it go.
For me personally, I loved 2016 and all the good it brought to my life. We bought a house in 2016, we celebrated one year of marriage, we traveled to new places, we made new friends, and we achieved new goals. (more posts to come regarding all of this)
I was sad to see it go, but I am excited to see what 2017 will bring.

2017 has started on an interesting note (understatement) in the world. I go from feeling discouraged, to overwhelmed, to frustrated, to hopeful, to uncertain, to optimistic and around and around it goes. I've tried to look at social media less and focus on what's going on in my own personal life more. I've pondered a lot about what I stand for and what message I want to be promoting. And at the end of the day I just want to choose kindness. I want to choose goodness. I want to share the light of the Gospel and treat every individual with respect. I want to love my neighbor, and trust in my Heavenly Father.
I believe that the majority of people have these same feelings. We live in a vast variety of circumstances and viewpoints, but I truly believe that if we put worldly things aside, we would be left with a similar desire to love one another (something I try to remind myself of often).

It's with this choice to choose goodness that I hope to do my part make a small difference in the world. If I want to see a change it must begin with me.

(kacey.ism 386)