Jackson Hole Day Trip

Last Saturday Randy & I and Blake & Diana decided to go to Jackson Hole for the day to the Elk Refuge sleigh ride. So we piled in the car with all of our snow gear and set out for Jackson Hole.

When we got to Jackson Hole we had to find the visitors center so we could buy the tickets for the sleigh ride. Well we didn't make the first one so we had to wait about twenty minutes for the next ride. So we decided to hang out at the visitors center and walk around. We bought some souveniers and took pictures next to some of the animal displays. We went to get dressed and then boarded the bus that would take us out to the elk refuge where we would get on the horse-drawn sleigh.



We had to get all bundled up in our winter snow gear because it was really chilly and we were going to be sitting on the sleigh for about an hour. We got on the sleigh and then our tour guide took us out to see the elk. The herd of bull elk were close which was fine because they are cooler to look at then cow elk. We were out there for about an hour and we took lots of pictures. Here are just a few because I didn't want to post 200 pictures of bull elk on the blog.

After our sleigh ride was over a man told us about a herd of big horned sheep that was just down the road a ways so we decided to go try and find them. So we got back to the visitors center undressed and hit the road again. We found the herds of sheep and they got really close to the car in fact they were licking the salt off of the car. Here are some pictures.

After we were done looking at the big horned sheep we headed home and ended our days adventures at Applebees. It was a fun experience and I had a ton of fun.



How Handsome!

Yesterday Randy and I spent the day hanging out together watching movies, eating lunch, shopping, etc. For a while now Randy and told me that he needs a new coat because all he had been wearing was sweatshirts and light jackets that aren't very warm. So yesterday we went on the hunt for a new winter coat for him and we were really successful. We found this coat at Cal-Ranch for only $44. He loves it and was like a little kid that when we got outside of the store he took off the tags and wore it the rest of the day he was so excited. I must admit and I might be a little biased but I think he looks handsome!

Golden Orange Moon

The other night Randy and I were driving home from Blackfoot and we looked up at the sky and this is the sight we saw. This moon is gorgeous. I have never seen it look so orangey and golden before. I made me reflect on the beauty of this earth that we live on and how I don't appreciate it as much as I should. This is a reminder in my life that the Savior is real.

Relief and oh so Happy!!

This is how I feel right now. Earlier in the week I posted about how stressed I was because I a ton of things to do. Well I feel so HAPPY right now because I just finished my unit for my senior practicum course and it was a huge project. This whole week I worked a total of 54 hours, six days, and came out with a grand total of 67 pages. That is the longest and biggest project I have ever had to do in all of my education. I can now relax and my stress level is so low right now. I have six more assignments left to do in my college experience and I can't even begin to tell you how happy that makes me. It is now 12:30 on a Saturday so I need to go and get ready for my day of relaxation.

Crunch Time

Well I am down to my last two weeks of my college career. I can't believe I am almost done. I have waited five long years for this. I am very stressed and I am super worried I won't get everything done I need to get done. This picture describes how I am feeling perfectly:

I still have a million things to do such as:

• finish my unit by Friday December 9th (just barely started)
• type up four lesson plans
• put together my portfolio
• create an affective assessment
• take my math diagnostic test #2 re-take
• write up three informal lessons
• say goodbye to my 5th graders:(
• take 7 finals
• teach MLA lesson #2
• write reflection on MLA lesson #2

The list seems to go on and on. I have not been feeling the greatest for the last two days either so I am really starting to worry whether or not I will make it through the next two weeks. My two number one concerns are the unit and math test so if you read this blog in the next 24 to 120 hours PRAY FOR ME is all I have to say because it is crunch time.



Jack and Jill

Yesterday Randy and I rode to Pocatello with Blake and Diana to meet Jack and Jill. Jack and Jill are the newest members of the Purcell family. You might be wondering what I am even talking about well here they are people introducing Jack and Jill....

Jack and Jill are brand new 2012 Ski-Doo E-tec summits. Blake traded in his two 2008's for these two beauties. We got them loaded and headed home. When we got back to Blackfoot Randy and Blake unloaded them and then put on the screws and things that will hold seats into place. Let's just say I am super excited to go snowmobiling this winter.

Randy unloading one of the 08's

Saying goodbye to Lexie and Willie

Getting ready to lead the first new snowmobile 

Thanksgiving 2011

For Thanksgiving this year Randy and I spent it with his parents Blake and Diana in Ogden. We stayed at a resort called Wolf Creek by WorldMark. We stayed in a two bedroom suite and spent Wednesday through Friday there. We relaxed, hung out, watched movies, ate Thanksgiving dinner, went deer watching, and had a great time. It was a great holiday and one what we will remember for a long time.

This deer was right outside of our room

This is a picture of the ski hill you could see from our balcony

Outside of our room, we stayed on the bottom floor

We went for a drive looking for deer and ended up going up a very steep hill. This is a picture of the valley on the way down. It is really beautiful.

Catching Up with Good Friends!

While in Utah I spent some time with my good friends Ashley Shippen and Emilee Harmon. We have known each other for about 15 years. We met in the third grade and grew up on the same street. We have been great friends ever since. While I was down there Emilee invited Ashley and I over to dinner with her and her husband Jeff. We talked and laughed for hours. I was over there till about one in the morning and even though I was tired it was time well spent. I love spending time with these girls whenever I come to Utah because we always have a good laugh, catch up, and talk about old times. I am grateful for their friendship and hope it continues for many more years! Love you EM and ASH!

Christmas Decor is Up!

Randy and I came home from our vacation at Wolf Creek in Ogden, UT and decided to put up our christmas decorations. We sort of had a dilemma that we had to solve. This will be our third Christmas together and we have lived in a very small apartment so in theory our tree was small as well. Well this year we are living in our house and the living room is much bigger that our old small tree looked really dinky in our new living room. We did have a bigger tree in our basement that used to belong to Randy's mom. The thing was that it wasn't pre-lit, it made a huge mess, we had to put all the branches and lights on which would take forever, and we didn't have enough ornaments. So this was our dilemma so we decided to go to Wal-Mart to see if they had a bigger tree for not very much money that was pre-lit. Well it just so happened they did so we bought a 7.5 foot tree and we bought new ornaments and decorations to go with it. It turned out great and it looks great in our living room. We bought red, green, and gold ornaments, and red fringe to go around the tree. Our other Christmas decorations include a snowman, train underneath the tree, our boots, nativity set, a wreath, and lights around our banister. I love decorating for Christmas because it makes me really excited. I can't wait for Christmas this year and I think our tree turned out great!

The tree before it got decorated

After it is all decorated

The tree when it is all finished

The tree finished complete with train set underneath

Our snowman a gift from my grandma

Our Christmas Boots

Our colorful banister(Randy's work)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Peyton's 2nd Birthday

Last Friday I went down to Utah to hang out with my family for five days. My niece Peyton had a party while I was down there on Saturday November 19th. She turned two years old. She had a Minnie Mouse themed party because she loves Minnie Mouse. My sister Megan made all the decorations for the party. She is really creative and it turned out to be a lot of fun. I can't believe that my niece is two already. The last two years have flown by so fast. She got a lot of stuff and had a great birthday.

Randy and I gave Peyton a stroller to push her dolls and things in and she loves it. She pushes it everywhere.

The Birthday girl and her cake

The Cake

Peyton loves the movie the Little Mermaid. For her birthday she got a singing card and she loves it. After every present she had to look at it and make sure it still sung. It made her smile and she got so excited every time she looked at it. In the picture above she is waving at the mermaids.