life as we know it

my next post will be all about why i'm such a slacker in pretty much every aspect of life, so you'll get all of the excuses i have in a short matter of time.

for now, though, this is what we've been up to since december.  yes, december.  what a joke.

we met up with some of our favorite pals to wish the Bates bon voyage before they got the heck outta dodge and into the hawaiian sun.  i don't remember the name of this little greek cafe we ate at, but i do remember it was horrible.  luckily the day only got better from here.

we made our way over to the gallivan (?) center for some sweet ice skating.  richard and sam got so serious that they pretty much had to strip down, and we got to see the steam rising off of their sweaty bodies...and feet.  true story.  gross, but super funny.

clearly, i'm a professional.

proving you don't have to be a good skater to have fun on the ice.

melissa, melissa, rachel & rachel.  no lie.

our last rendezvous and picture with our bff's, the bates in utah.  right outside the hatch family chocolate shop in the avenues (they're little people, and that is seriously the only reason we ventured there and paid too much for hot chocolate...totally worth it).

celebrated christmas w/ my fam a little early since we trucked it down to st. george for the real deal.

surprise.  everyone got these for their gifts.



me showing off my gift.  sarah being a little creepy.



my guys.

christmas eve party w/ the smith side of our fam.  everyone's favorite little smokey's were the star of the night.

talking to richard's sister heidi on her mission in uruguay right after we'd opened the presents she sent us.

richard played a new year's eve set at uncommon grounds (which is sadly now closed).

my momma w/ her sisters dayna & laura.

my daddy & me.

jeremy & amanda talked us into ringing in the new year at chili's.  how could we say no to faces like those?  impossible.

nothing makes us happier than bottomless chips and salsa.  i like to say salsa.

happy new year, baby!  our first documentation of 2011.  classic.

saw chelsa off to her preference dance.  i'm now the designated pinner of the date's flower.  its nice to be needed for the important things in life.

we've been exploring the restaurants in ogden we've never been to before, and this was our first time at javier's.  we told them that and they brought us a large complimentary pink drink (that was delicious).  its my new favorite place to go.

took a trip to sundance w/ our buddies the johnsons & my girl jenkins.  we couldn't resist taking this pic since we have the same one from our honeymoon almost 5 years ago.

played in a sweet volleyball tourney w/ my favorite girls in the world.  i don't get to act like this near often enough.  kaycee brings out only the best in me.

didn't get a shot of our entire team together.  mind you, this was at approximately 3:00 AM, so forgive me for forgetting.  i seriously felt like i'd been hit by a train (the fast one from that denzel movie) by the time i got home.  totally worth it.

sang a little karaoke.  as you can see, richard & jeremy have a very special relationship.

kept with tradition and enjoyed a heart-shaped pizza from papa murphy's on valentine's day.

played another tournament in jackson hole.  because we just can't get enough!  and we like to relive our glory days.

we bruise much easier now.

had to stay an extra night because a crazy person used us to stop her car on the ice.  made for a very exciting weekend w/ my oldest and most favorite bff's.

and i honestly have no idea what happened to march.  we have not one single picture from that month of our lives, which might make a little more sense after i tell you what we've been up to.

anyway, because this is pretty much my journal nowadays (the actual thing hasn't been written in for eons), i've got to get my act together.  shape up or ship out, isn't that what they say?  oh boy, we'll see what i can do.