The Moonrise

Date night on Friday: Loaded Sammy in the car and we drove to Cafe Rio. We (me and Josh, obviously) shared a pulled pork salad, yum! Then for dessert we drove to Zaxby's and got a batch of WAY overpriced fried pickles.

I finished reading Carol Burnett's This Time Together: Laughter and Reflection. What a great read! What a great lady! The book had me laughing at least every other page. I really enjoyed her writing style...if I could learn to write more like Carol my journal (and blog) would be irresistibly fun and enjoyable to read. Until then if you're up for a good read and laugh read her book. :)

Moonrise. I LOVE watching the moonrise. It takes me back to the very first date Josh and I went on. We set out on our bikes (well actually it was borrowed bikes from roommates) to find some haunted swings. I had heard about them and that they were just a few miles out of town. So we set off. We ended up having 16 miles worth of conversation and good times (and sore legs the next day). The haunted swings are out on Poleline Road on the outskirts of Rexburg. As we were biking and searching I saw the lights in the distance of the approaching moonrise. So we kept waiting for it to come over the horizon. It was BEAUTIFUL. Finally it made its appearance. Except it wasn't the moon. It was the headlights from a tractor harvesting potatoes. So then we laughed the rest of the way to the swings because the long anticipated moonrise was a tractor!

Since then we've watched many moonrises together. We visited those haunted swings countless times and a few of them just to see the moonrise and watch the stars (which I ABSOLUTELY LOVE TO DO). Other times we watch it as we are driving, or as we are out on a walk together. That is one of the many things I miss about Idaho...we'd often times just drive those few miles out of town to enjoy the simple beauties of nature.

Well, good news. There is a moon rise in Utah too! Upstairs in Sam's room I was rocking her to sleep and looking out of her window which faces the mountains to the East. (Not sure which mountains they are, but they are big and cool and close.) And there it was....the lights, announcing the soon approaching moon! I ran in our room and woke Josh out of dreamland to come and see the moon rise! He comes in and the three of us stand there at the window (well, Sam can't stand yet so I'm holding her) watching the beauty unfold before us. Josh finally says, "Aubrey, it's not a tractor hahaha, but it is just the lights from the ski resort." I look at him and he winks at me with a smirk (a rather handsome smirk). And me secretly hoping that he's just pulling my leg. And then it appears! The moon, it's really the moon. In its full glory. I cannot even explain how exciting that moment was for me. Then Josh went back to bed and I held Samantha and while rocking her I continued to look at the moon with the mountains lit up around it thinking about everything that's transpired since that tractor-haunted-swing-bike-ride-night. There have been many moons since that first "moon rise" and all I can think is "how did I get so lucky?" Lucky to go on that first adventure with him and lucky enough to have an eternity of adventures to come. And so lucky to have such a wonderful daughter that lights up our lives brighter than any full moon ever will. I am so blessed. And so so so soooo grateful.

We went to the right ward on Sunday, 1 point for the Cook family! Everyone was nice and friendly. This is not the highlight of church but I just thought it was rather funny that the Relief Society has a closet full of blankets and before third hour (which is Relief Society) they pass around the blankets. I thought the cool air was refreshing but the other ladies were bundling under the covers wishing the heat were turned up a notch or two. It was just quite the sight to see all these ladies under blankets during class.

The highlight of church was Sam. It was bound to happen sooner or later, I guess. She unloaded her bowels during the passing of the sacrament, loud and proud. And then smiled a smile of relief afterwards. Josh and I had to stifle our laughter.

 Sam in her Sunday best.

 Sam waking up from a nap. That's how I feel too when I wake up from a nice long nap.

 She LOVES her dad.

 He's pretty in love himself.

 Can't get enough of her!

 Those cheeks!

And those eyes! This is probably the BEST picture my phone has ever taken. And it only begins to capture the beauty of her blue eyes. She is so full of life, laughter, and smiles.

Love, Aubrey