Babymoon: San Diego Zoo 2016

||One day Michael turns to me & tells me I'm a vixen. Confused I asked him what he was talking about. All he said to me was "What? I'm a meerkat." Apparently Michael assigns animals to humans. This is his spirit animal.||

|| Michael asked the zookeeper all about this Hippo. He loves when they turn on the water & he gets to massage his gums! ||

||I found out this trip I have a thing for ducks. They are adorable! ||

Going to the San Diego Zoo was something I'll never forget. I absolutely love Zoo's. I know some people are majorly against them, but I find them intellectually stimulating. Michael spends his time running around & reading the plaques for every animal. You have to keep a close eye on him though because one minute he's standing next to you & the next he's across the exhibit talking to the zoo-keep asking all sorts of questions. One thing I picked up on about Michael pretty quick is that his brain has a knack for storing random facts that you will probably only be able to whip out once in your life. It's times like the Zoo when he pulls them out & I am always so fascinated by what he has to say. He definitely keeps me on my toes!
Since the Riding clan was with us this day, we skipped the usual plaque reading & enjoyed looking at the animals quickly as to keep up with the group. Also, it rained on us, so we hurried along our way. Each time we visit an animal park/zoo/sanctuary, I am so blown away by all of the different species of animals we have in this world. All are absolutely beautiful & serve a unique purpose. This is what keeps us coming back for more.

That night, we were going to go explore the Gas Lamp District, but it was raining & we were exhausted from the years worth of walking we had done that week, so we opted for a movie back at the condo. Honestly, as great as these adventures are, a movie & some snuggle time is just as good to me so I wasn't disappointed.

Also, the bump really started to make an appearance this trip! Hooray for this growing alien!

Babymoon: MCRD || USS Midway || Dinner CruiseI

||MCRD: Marine Corps Recruit Depot||

This picture needs it's own explanation. I think with everything we did the entire trip, showing me this base was Michael's favorite part & definitely the most memorable for both of us. This is where Marines go for the 1st & 3rd phases of boot camp. You show up, jump off a bus, & are immediately greeted by screaming Drill Instructors. (DI) Every time we drove/walked past a DI, I tensed up & immediately started sweating. Michael kept telling they could smell my fear which of course made me even more anxious, but I have so much respect for what they do. We drove the perimeter of base 4 times, parking in spots Michael wanted to tell me a story about. As we were making our last loop, we passed a platoon falling into formation. I'm not sure what happened but all of the sudden, the DI turned & walked the row of his recruits until reaching his victim. Then, the screaming began. I have always appreciated Michael's service, but never have I realized the extent of what he went through to earn the title of a United States Marine. I know I get overly patriotic when I talk about it, & I won't ever fully understand what Michael went through, but I sure have a new found respect for the man I married. He is truly the strongest man I've ever met & he is a hero. Our kids are lucky to have him.

The USS Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum is unreal. If you've never done it, make sure you add it to your list of things to do. We Americans take for granted the sacrifices of our service men & women. I always get nervous doing things like this, because Michael gets so inspired by these stories. He wants to be a part of it, Goodness me I'm so lucky to have him!

If you want romance, be sure to check out the Horn Blower Dinner Cruises. We decided to do the 3 hour dinner cruise around the San Diego Harbor. It was a 3 course meal accompanied by dim lighting, romantic music & a beautiful view of the city. While Michael was in the restroom, I requested the DJ play "The Ballad of Love and Hate" by the Avett Brothers which is kind of "our song." I'll never forget watching Michael stop talking mid-sentence once he noticed what song was playing. Yes, I may have gotten a little emotional, but I mean... What else is new? I'm so grateful for moments like this when we can slow down & just be us. Life happens so quickly it's rare we get moments like this one. I just love this man. 

Babymoon: Disneyland 2016

||Ezra's first visit!||

||We watched a girl take a million pictures in this position until she got the one she wanted. Turns out, the position was harder than it looked!||

||While waiting in line for the Monsters Inc. ride, a worker gave us this pass that allowed us to skip the entire line! We were PUMPED!||

||While we were on our Honeymoon, Michael put on these glasses & gave me this half smile I just couldn't help but laugh at! The tradition continues!||



||I was unable to go on Space Mountain but our friend Spencer told us they had changed the ride, so Michael went on it & told me what they updated! I can't wait to see all the changes for myself! Also, fat face because what else do you do in roller coaster pictures?|| 

||Left: Honeymoon 2012  Right: Babymoon 2016||

Not many people understand our NEED to have Disneyland in our lives. Being young & having Michael in college makes affording trips difficult, however, we have yet to skip an opportunity to go. This particular trip was special not only because Ezra was able to join us, (I felt him move for the first time on this trip! EEK!) but because we were able to have some of Michael's family come along! A few weeks before leaving, Michael's parents European vacation fell through & deciding to make the best of the situation, asked to come along! Michael's 2 youngest brothers had never been & although they are in high school & act too cool for school, you could tell they were just as giddy as our niece. It was important to Michael & myself to have some time to ourselves, so we did take a day to just walk around, take in the smells, eat a few to many churros, enjoy the shows & explore different aspects of Disneyland we normally wouldn't have. I will say being pregnant in Disneyland did limited the "thrilling" rides, and although I missed them, exploring outside our "norm" brought a new light to the Disney Magic.

We're Having A Boy!

About 23 weeks ago, our lives changed. (It's about to get real here, so if you care not to know the details, skip to the next post.)

1st of all. Let me start by saying last March, Michael & I experienced a miscarriage. I do not share this because we want sympathy, but because we feel like this experience could be helpful to someone somewhere. Michael & I have been off birth control since October of 2013.

I feel like no one tells you how difficult it can be & how traumatic of a process it is. Every month, you wait hoping you'll get a tiny hit of a plus sign. We tried for over a year & a half before it happened in March 2015. We were absolutely 100% over the moon about it!

I wish I would have written about this then because now the details of how we found out are a little hazy, but we were pumped. 1 week of thinking we were having a baby was all it took to experience total heartbreak. It took time, but with lots of prayer & priesthood blessings, we moved on. During that time, it felt everyone & their dog was getting pregnant. I had such a hard time dealing with that. Why not me? I thought that people didn't know how lucky they were when they got pregnant. I'm truly ashamed of thinking this way though because you never know what is going on behind the "happy go lucky" instagram post. Eventually, I got over myself. Then, 9 months to the day of the miscarriage, we found out we were expecting again. We were terrified. We wanted to be excited, but didn't want to get our hopes up again. About a week into finding out we were expecting, my back started to hurt just like before. Like period cramps, but much more intense. We thought for sure we were going to lose this little one. We just kept on praying & kept our faith. 7 weeks of back pain & still, our ultrasound showed a strong heartbeat. We entered into the 2nd trimester & finally felt we could breath again.

Getting pregnant is hard. Losing a pregnancy is hard. Finding out you can't have kids is hard. But it's real. So many of our friends, co-workers, family members go through this struggle alone. Michael & I are absolutely thrilled for our baby boy, Ezra, to come to our family.

This week, we started to feel him kick for the first time & it's unlike anything we've ever experienced. Everyone tells me I'll regret saying how happy his kicks make me when it's in my ribs, but never in my life have I felt more joy than when I get a swift kick to the bowel & I instantly have to poop. I am so grateful for Ezra. I love him more than I knew & I have only met him through tiny flutters & teeny kicks.

Anyway... We're expecting a Boy!

-Goose

The Perfect Christmas Tree

This year, we had our work cut out for us when looking for a Christmas Tree. We couldn't make it up to get permits for the place we normally go, so this year, we tried new terrain. We had no idea what to expect! So, we packed the pups, our snowshoes, a few saws, rope & lots of warm layers. We drove south for a little over an hour until we turned off plowed roads & continued in 4 wheel drive up the mountain. The pups were going crazy! They were so excited to get out in the snow! Well... Raven was pumped. Frank doesn't last very long but that doesn't keep him from getting excited! Finally, we turn off the road, park, & are off up this mountain in search for 2 perfectly lopsided trees.

My favorite part was watching Raven light up in the snow. She loved jumping around & running circles around us. Frank tried his hardest to keep up but when the snow is over your back, you get cold pretty quick. So we wrapped him in a blanket & stowed him in Michael's backpack. Although I don't think he enjoyed it,  he seemed grateful for the warmth.

Surprisingly, this year it didn't take us too long to find our trees! I was surprised/embarrassed by how quickly my parents were moving & how out of breath I was! They probably could have lapped me. It was rough. After finding our trees & dragging them back down, we loaded them, tied them then headed back down the mountain. My Mom is the sweetest person, by the way. She had hot chocolate & wassail waiting for us in the car! I hope I am that thoughtful when I have children!

Marine Corps Ball 2015

I'm We just found out that Michael will be getting out of the Marines August of 2016. That being said, I'm so grateful that even though this will be our last official Ball, I'm so glad we ended it on this one.


We decided to make this years Ball one to remember. We have met some amazing people through the Marine Corps. But Mitchall & Rae Bierma have got to be our greatest blessings.
This year, Rae came down from Idaho Falls for the weekend. While the boys were off doing their civic duty, we drove up to Park City & shopped till we dropped. They had just found out that they were having a boy so we may have gone a little overboard, but we sure had fun!


Then, we went back to our hotels to get ready.
I felt like I was back in high school getting ready to go to a dance! Rae came down to our room & let me curl her hair! I absolutely loved it!
Then, once the men were ready, we headed to the Marriott for the ceremony/dance party.
Honestly, my most favorite part of the entire evening is when they explain the table in the corner.
Obviously I'm paraphrasing, but it goes something like this...


"Every year at the Marine Corps Ball, a tbel is set with a black cloth draped over it. A single candle is let and the dinnerware is inverted. This table honors those Marines who have passed on defending our freedom."


Whenever they recite this, I think to myself how lucky we are to have men & women willing to put this great country first. I'm so proud to be a part of this! I love the Marine Corps family & more than anything, I love my Marine.

Sunday Funday

Generally, when Michael is at drill, I stay home from the first 2 hours of Church. Why? People know i'm married to Michael & when I go to church without him, I find people treat me different. It's like they automatically assume we are having problems. Which isn't true.

Anyway, that's my reasoning. This Sunday, I picked up the house, did the laundry, made Punkin Chocolate Chip Cookies, watched many a Disney movie, & snuggled with my pups. Sunday well spent if I do say so myself.

With our lives being so busy lately, it's been tough to take a moment to relax. Thankfully, we have Sundays. 

Disneyland 2015

I know, I know. Another Disneyland trip? 

This year, Michael were able to check a few things off our Disney Bucket list! 

First of all, normally, when we go on the Toy Story rides, Michael almost doubles my score. Not this time! I crushed Michael's score! 

W H A T ! ? 

This year, we tagged along with 2 other couples. Michael met Kevin at work & he sure loves that boy. So, meet Kevin & Ellie Burton. They are absolutely hilarious together! Plus, just look how adorable they are!

K E V I N  &  E L L I E   B U R T O N 

Michael also met Spencer while he worked at Wells Fargo for a short time.  These 2 are some of the most genuine people I've ever met. We were so lucky to have them along! They are just the cutest.

S P E N C E R   &   M A D I   H A R R I S

We hit 2 Birds with 1 stone on this trip.
 Not only did we make it for Disneyland's 60th Anniversary Diamond celebration, but we were able to see all of the beautiful Halloween decorations! Punkins everywhere, characters all dressed up, & everything was covered with the most beautiful fall colors!

How beautiful is this castle? At night, it lit up the sky! The last night we were in the park, we decided to stick around to watch the light parade & let me tell you, it was gorgeous!
Every child ( &  a d u l t ) felt the magic as the characters came out singing. 

Once Mickey made his appearance &
the parade was cleared away, we all filed in to watch the fireworks. 

I am not even lying 1 bit when I say their was something spiritual about it.  They played a collection of songs from the classics while projecting the corresponding movie onto the castle. When "Let it Go" came on, snow fell from the sky. It was like the heavens parted. I cried through pretty much the entire performance.
 Michael & I have just had a really hard year & it felt so good to get away. We are great, don't let those words scare you. We are more in love than ever & our spirits are high, we just have had a trial or a few come our way this year & sometimes it can get you down. They say what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. Lemme tell you, we feelin pretty strong!
That night, we felt anything was possible & we have tried to take that little bit of magic with us.

On Sunday, we decided to go to the beach. We left around noon, stopped by in & out for a quick bite, then spent our day chillin on the beach & relaxing all cool & all thowin some football/frisbee outside of the ocean... ( F R E S H   P R I N C E  ,   A N Y O N E ?   A N Y O N E ? )

They dug a hole. 

Before I left, I went & got my nails done. How cute are they!? Unfortunately, they didn't last very long, but I sure enjoyed them while I had them!

We grabbed dinner about a mile down the beach. We walked. It felt like forever, but the walk back was so worth it! Ellie, Kevin, Madi, & Spencer were quite a ways ahead of us. It was dark, the eclipse was going on, the houses along the boardwalk were gorgeous, & I had my arm hooked around my best friend. Life couldn't have gotten much better than at that moment.

The next day, it was back to the grind! Just kidding. It was back to the fun! 

All in all, it was a good group. 

An exhausting trip. 

A happy trip

We are counting down the minutes until we find ourselves back. 

Anyone wanna go next year?

X O X

K A T I E   G O O S E 

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