Another day on the farm

I LOVE the Farmers Market. Always. In my dream world I would have a huge garden, lots of veggies, berry bushes, a mini orchard, herbs, my own bee hive (I swear this will happen one day), even some chickens! And every morning I would go out for a nice run or bike ride or something and then come home to take care of my plants while the dew is still fresh on the grass.
THAT dream obviously isn't happening at the moment. So my next best thing would be to buy everything at the Farmers Market. That STILL isn't 100% realistic, but I like to go and get a few things.

This Saturday I got to the market at about 10:00 (after an awesome spin class, i'm still sore) and was looking for a few things. For about a year I've been itching to can some peaches and pears; something about doing that just says home and fall and cozy and safe. So I was on the lookout for a killer deal on peaches. Well I found one! There was one farms little booth that had a big excess of their lemon elberta peaches and so they were only $10 a box! I've been keeping up on prices for a while so I knew I wouldn't find cheaper. I told the 2 ladies working there that I would pull my car up in about 20 minutes to get the box. Meanwhile on my way to the car I picked up some amazing pineapple salsa, a watermelon and a few apples and pears.  (I love the people working at the market, a lot of them are native spanish speakers and it's so fun to speak spanish with them! It's amazing how many of them realize I served a mission and then so genuinely thank me for doing that...I love latin people!)

Here's my treasure trove

As I pulled up behind this little booth to pick up my peaches the 2 ladies were kind of franticly running around to get things done and I realized that one of them was leaving so the other would be there by herself with lots of work to do! Before I knew it she leaned over to me and said
"are you in a hurry right now?"
"no"
"will you go to the store and buy some more sample size cups for me? I'll give you those peaches for free"
...umm no brainer. She gave me some cash and I was in the grocery store in no time.

When I got back she (her name is Chelsie) was by herself and so busy! So I just asked her if she needed any help. With a relieved face she gladly accepted. So there I was sorting peaches, nectarines & apples, answering questions about the different types, putting together boxes, pouring samples of the most amazing apple juice etc etc.  It was so fun!! Seriously I was loving it. Then this old man named Greg randomly jumped in and was helping us too! It was nice to do a little bit of service and get a little different taste of the Farmers Market.

My new friends Greg and Chelsie

So when I was getting ready to leave at like 12:45 Chelsie wouldn't let me pay her for anything! By now I was getting 2 boxes of peaches and a bag of nectarines. After some convincing I finally convinced her to let me pay her the $7 for a gallon of that amazing apple juice. So I got 2 boxes of peaches, a bag of nectarines and the apple juice for just 7 dollars!
Win.
Thanks for the adventure Farmers Market.

Now our house is full of fruit, lots of peaches in the freezer for smoothies, others waiting to be made into jam and tons to be canned! Can't wait.

I love making watermelon bowls :)

Mr. Engineer

Guess who is the newest employee at 4D Engineering?

You guessed it.

This guy.

This whole thing kind of happened in a blink of eye. Sometime last week they called Russ about his application and said they would be interviewing in the next few weeks. Then on Tuesday they called to ask if he could interview on Thursday afternoon. If you know Russ then you know that he loves expressing himself verbally....NOT. So we were definitely coming up with as many potential questions they might ask him as we could! It was kind of fun asking him questions actually. Also we both were like "in every interview I go to they ask me about what questions I have for them at the end and most of the time I can't think of anything and draw and blank and kind of look like an idiot" so we also made sure we thought about what he really wanted/needed to know from them. 

Thursday he went to the interview and as soon as he got back I was of course asking him for every detail! He felt really good about and was surprised that they hardly asked any tough questions at all! They seemed to like him and Russ liked the way the engineering firm is set up. But he was telling me that "well they though my resume rocked so they didn't need to ask alot...oooor they already found their guy so they were just hurrying through my interview" (always so humble). They told him they would probably get back to him early next week sometime.

Well wasn't I surprised when I got out of class on Friday (the very next day!) and had a text from Russ saying he got the job!!! WAHOO!!!! So proud of that smart guy :)

The awesome thing about this job is that they aren't just looking for an intern but someone who can be a long time employee. Sounds great to us!

He's hardworking, smart AND good looking!

Let the birthdays continue

Today is my big brother Ben's birthday, the old man is turning 31! But i'll definitely be one of the first to tell you that this guy is a kid at heart.
So here is a few random facts about Ben, why I love him, admire him, and hope that he has a GREAT birthday!

John Mayer Concert 2008 - our wedding gift to Ben. He makes everything fun.

I grew up playing sports with my brothers. When I was in elementary Ben & I played in the backyard everyday. He was always making up games. We even had a 1v1 wiffle ball world series in the backyard and he would mow the lawn with base paths and everything.

Ben has always been supportive of me in everything I do.

These 3 helped me SO much on my mission, don't know what I would do without them. Heroes.

Ben the business man. Not only is he an attorney but also always has some creative project going on. This is him at their "Peaches & Cream" booth at the Utah State Fair. If you go to the fair this week be sure to go get your ice cream and peaches from Ben and Ali!

He's also a marathon man. I love that when Ben sets his mind to doing something you know that he will somehow accomplish it no matter what.

He's a hard worker. Here he is covered in mud helping to get the yard ready for our wedding.

Isn't he handsome?

Ben LOVES his grandma. It is great to see how much he values her and has always counted her as one of his best friends.

He's just a good brother.

Have I mentioned how he always has been and still is a beast on the basketball court? 

He has a beautiful family, and they're adding a new baby girl this December! I can't wait to watch him to be a great dad.

There he is on the right...how could you resist those dimples?

I love you Ben! Hope that you have an excellent birthday!!!

A Very Merry Un-Birthday To You

August 31st 1989 was a big day people. That's when 2 of the most important people in the history of my life were born. You guessed it, everyone's favorite wombmates who put the win in twin - Russ and Lindsay Irion!

I really like celebrating this particular birthday. (am I the only one that loves birthday EXCEPT for my own?) 3 years ago a bunch of our friends surprised the twins with tickets to the John Mayer concert all together. Unfortunately for Russ he had been home from his mission only a couple of days so a concert had him a little bit out of his element. But that was pretty much the first time the two of us hung out after his mission and to put it lightly I was loving every minute talking/sitting with that boy and thinking "Do dreams come true?! Could I date him?!" Crushin hard core....still am.

John Mayer concert August 31st 2010

Last year Kody and I started scheming weeks in advance for how we could plan an awesome birthday date. First we took them to Tucanos - one of their favorites, especially Russ. He LOVES it! Then we had this video made of all their family and close friends telling them how much they love Russ and Linds and why they're awesome etc. THEN a ton of our friends came over to Robbie & Angie's house for a bonfire and especially TRIFLE as the birthday dessert made by the incredible Christie Beck.

This year we did quite a bit of celebrating not on the actual birthday. First, a few days before we went to Tucanos for lunch with Linds and Kody. You could definitely say this is turning into a tradition! It was funny to think back to when the 4 of us had gone a year ago. Both of us were just dating, and our server first asked if Russ and Kody were brothers - strike one. Then the same server asked how long we had all been married - strike two. This year we didn't get any funny questions but the food was delicious!

Tucanos 2013

Even though we had such a blast on August 31st down in St. George camping with the cash (boating, frisbee & football on the beach, campfire dinner, and blowing out candles with birthday blondie brownies...yum) - I still didn't want to miss out on some of the "typical" birthday festivities! I wracked my brain for how I could make it all happen while we were camping...but having Liz Jorgensen bring the dessert that Liz Olson made to surprise Russ was the best I could do. So I waited until the following Sunday since it was a busy week. Saturday night we ended up staying at my parents house in Murray. That made it way easier for me to do all the prep to make the traditional Irion birthday breakfast "Eggs -a-la-Goldenrod" the night before while Russ was distracted with my family. Sunday morning I got up a little early and finished making the yummy breakfast - Russ eventually started walking into the kitchen half asleep and looking at me like he was definitely confused and I just started singing "A very merry un-birthday to you!" So surprise birthday breakfast was a victory :)

I had also organized a mini "birthday dinner" for sunday dinner that day, since Russ had missed the family dinner the week before while we were camping. So we had a yummy meal with Robbie & Angie and Lindsay & Kody in Provo. Complete with a whole bunch of Russ's favorites - chicken cordon bleu with a bunch of yummy things and cheesecake for dessert! Finally Russ and Linds got to blow out candles together! You can't miss that when you have a twin! 

Overall it was a fun day, I'm a gift giver so I loved giving Russ his little present throughout the day. Seriously surprises and giving gifts are some of my favorite things!

About 20 years ago 

Still as cute as ever :)

If you made it this far then I commend and congratulate you - this was a marathon post. But I couldn't end it without saying that I am SO grateful for both Russ and Linds.

Lindsay is my absolute best friend, I have no idea where I would be without her. She is one of my greatest examples and has gotten me through some of the toughest times of my life. We always have a blast together and I'm so lucky to have her as my TWIN-inlaw!!

Russ, it goes without saying that I LOVE this boy! Wow, what I would do without him I could never say. He puts up with all my crazy and quirkiness, shows me he loves me everyday and is so reliable. Lets be honest...I'll probably take an entire post to gush about why he is the greatest.

He's my #1, always will be. I am the luckiest.

Happy Birthday to the cutest twins in all the land!!!

Ca$h Campout 2013

Ok patrons of the interwebs - if you're going to read this blog, or even just visit it occasionally there is one thing that you'll have to understand a little bit.
Let me introduce you to the CMC/Ca$h Money Crew/the ca$h. You may think it sounds like an innovative investment firm, or an exclusive biker gang, or maybe even some kind of work crew. 

But would you think that it's what a group of 9 or so white guys from Utah who have been friends since forever used as their rap group name and still call themselves that?

Yea, most people wouldn't. But it's true.

"The cash" (which is how we most typically refer to said persons) is a bunch of Russ's best friends. At least half of them have been friends since elementary school, and the rest since Jr. High. So to put it briefly they've all had a crazy experience or two together. Even though they tend to act like 14 year olds around each other sometimes they are a pretty tight knit group. 

One thing that is pretty neat is that almost all of them have married a girl from Murray, so we all do fun things together pretty often and it's a really good time! So whenever I refer to "the cash", that is who I am talking about.

In particular there is always the CMC Trip every summer. Last year we went cam[ing and had quite the adventure - but that is a story for another day haha. This year we did the Cash Campout down in St. George at Sand Hollow Reservoir. It was absolutely gorgeous and so much fun! We went over Labor Day, from Friday - Monday.

If you haven't ever been to Sand Hollow you should go sometime! Everyone kept saying how they felt like it was a mini Lake Powell. The water is super blue and a good temperature, the red rocks are beautiful and the beaches are great!

Friday night we just got everything set up and had fun sitting around the camp fire.

Then Saturday (Russ' Birthday!) we spent the whole day boating and playing on the beach (while Liz Jorgensen and Tom also tried to get enough service to hear football scores). 

That's a happy birthday boy :)

Boating is probably the number 1 thing that Russ loves to do, so this was a PERFECT birthday, spending the day out on the lake with his best friends and a nice boat. 

One of our favorite places to be

 In the morning while some people took the boat out early I went for a run around the perimeter of the lake. It was GORGEOUS! It was the perfect temperature for a run and the scenery was so great! There are sand dunes, big hills, pretty beaches and then of course all the beautiful mountains in the distance. A lot of it was kind of trail run which is my favorite, so I was loving every second! It was a long run, but so worth it! 

One of my favorite things on the boat that day was watching people tubing, especially Jeff. He hit one wave and seriously FLEW! He popped straight up and was just floating and then landed perfectly like nothing had happened! It looked so funny! Watching his face was awesome, Russ and I were still laughing about it like 10 minutes later. 

May I introduce you to my freakishly athletic husband?

Yes he caught that, passes delivered by yours truly.

Leisure Dive

After a long day of boating and playing frisbee/football on the beach we went back to make dinner. Originally Zach & Heidi were going to make dinner but then Zach got a slight concussion tubing (no worries, all's well) so Russ and I switched with them and made our dinner that night. We didn't fajitas and corn on the cob - it was so fun to cook over the fire and what not. We discovered that making loaded quesadillas right in the fire was delicious! That was definitely a favorite. 

Then the clouds rolled in and it started to rain! We all huddled under this easy-up tent we had and the whole time the guys were trying to fix the leaks and what not while we played games. Playing catch phrase was hilarious! We all secretly decided to purposely not guess it right when it was Tyler's turn - so funny! "So not closed but..." "SHUT!" He was so frustrated and we couldn't stop laughing.

Last but not least we sang happy birthday to Russ. I had asked Liz Olson to make blondie's for a birthday dessert, (one of his favorites!) then Liz Jorgensen was nice enough to pick them up and bring them down to St. George so Russ would be surprised. He was definitely surprised and it was a great end to a great day!

Sunday we did something I love - Hiking at Zion's National Park! If you know me you know I love to hike. Especially big hikes that usually take a while and you get to the tippy top. I hadn't done Angel's Landing since before my mission so I was way excited! The whole hike was an absolute blast and of course - GORGEOUS! 

Everyone that came on the hike, Irions, Tom, Jorgensens, Andersens & Townsends

CMC gang signs....they love themselves

We made it to the top!

How can you not love that view?!

After the hike we decided to go down to the lake and do some cliff jumping! There are some perfect spots and Sand Hollow and we were pretty much the only ones there. I love jumping off of things so it was great! 

That night we once again had a yummy dinner and then hung out around the fire making s'mores and quesadillas and having a really interesting gospel discussion. It was a great experience.

Monday morning I went out for a run early. I went up this big hill on the other side of the lake where you can then look over the whole lake. It's really peaceful and I was loving being up there...until I realized I was getting EATEN ALIVE by mosquitoes! **nasty alert** Like there were so many mosquitoes that I was squishing them easily and blood was smearing...eww. Seriously the next day I counted at least 25 on my legs! Other than that it was a great morning run haha

The rest of the day we spent climbing around the rocks, cliff jumping and going out on the wave runner. Russ and I had a blast on the wave runner! It had a little bit of a problem that even when the emergency tag was pulled the motor didn't completely stop so it would still slowly be moving away. So if BOTH of us got thrown off then we would have to swim and chase the wave runner! Because of that when it was my turn to drive Russ decided not to hang onto me because with him being bigger than me on almost any turn his momentum would for sure pull me off...and we would be chasing our wave runner. While Russ drove I held on as tight as I could - I was determined to not get thrown off! And I didn't! But then when it was my turn to drive Russ was just hanging onto these awkwardly placed handles on the back, not super stable. Every time that I would make a sharp turn or brodie he went flying! One time in particular I brodied and thought that I still felt his weight back there so I gunned it! After a few seconds I brodied again and could feel a weight difference in the turn so I stopped and looked back to see where he was in the water...couldn't see him...couldn't see him...i was so confused! Then I hear some faint yelling "I'm over here!". He was way over where I had done the FIRST brodie! I pulled over to where he was and we could NOT stop laughing! I seriously had NO idea that he had been dumped off! It turns out that he had barely held on as we had turned through the brodie, as soon as we straightened out he put his hands up in celebration that he had held on that time...and that was right when I gunned it and he went flying off the back unbeknownst to me! Haha good times. 

Overall the trip was a blast! It really is a fun group of friends, love them lots.

Hello Interwebs...the Irions have now arrived in the blogging world.

Typical schmypical I know I know; we're a newlywed couple who now has a blog to document our lives. Congratulations to us. Some people might think that there is some unwritten code around here stating "thou shalt have a blog once the bells of matrimony are ringing for you". But the honest truth is that I like to blog, always have. That doesn't mean that I'm particularly good at it, but I think it's a good time. 
Also I am the WORST at journaling - it's bad, embarrassing, pathetic; remember that part in The Sandlot where Smalls first goes to play baseball and he can't even throw so he has to run to the mound and hand the ball to the pitcher? "the kids a square Benny!" That's a pretty accurate equivalent to how I feel about my journaling performance in the past. Yikes.

So if Smalls can learn to throw, then I can blog it up.