{ new york }

Kat found a great deal on plane tickets to New York and one of our childhood friends is out there for school, so of course we took a fabulous girls trip! It was my first time in New York and I loved it! A HUGE thank you to Amber for being such a great host!
This is a shot of the street right by the twin towers. It was crazy to imagine the chaos that took place right there!
The fire station across from where the twin towers were.
Fondue! Does dessert get any better than that? Luckily we didn't catch anything on fire.
One of my best friends from high school, Sydnee, is living in New York now. It was so fun to see her!
Valentine's Dinner!
Kat and I went to the broadway play Memphis!
Cupcakes! The key lime one was delicious!
A ferry ride to see the statue of liberty!

Other highlights included: Hour long foot massages in Chinatown, following some man forever to a park full of sketchy jewelry and purses, late night talks, seeing the temple, lots of shopping, and yummy food!

I can't wait to go back with Jared someday!

{ Utah Trip }

I had a much needed trip home to Utah at the end of January! It was a very full and fun week! Me, Heather, Heather's kids, and Dustin all got a nasty sickness while we were there! That was a bummer. Who has time to be sick on vacation?! Not me. But we still managed to party it up and have fun! Here is another photo dump.

Girls weekend with some of the cousins and my Aunt Dicksy. I love all of these ladies so much!

We all share a love for Target! Heather what was the name of the guy that took this picture? I really wish he was in it! JK

My sweet mom and sisters threw me a baby shower while I was home! It was so adorable! I'm so grateful for all the people that came to support me in this new adventure! Me and this baby got very spoiled and felt very loved!

Spending time with the nieces and nephews is ALWAYS a highlight for me! They are just he cutest things and they are growing up way too fast!

We have a tradition of taking balloons and letting them go at my grandparent's graves on their birthdays. This year we even made some little snowmen.

I am the luckiest girl to have my sisters and mom! They are the best friends I could ever want!

This might seem like a photo overload, but due to illness the camera really didn't come out nearly enough! I can't believe the next time I go home I will have a baby with me! How crazy!

{ New Years }

I really need to be better at updating my blog! Maybe this blog wouldn't be so lame if I wasn't updating about January when it is almost April... I'm really going to try harder to be better!

New Years Eve with the Meier's.

Jared is Kev's mini. They are such kids at heart and I love it! (Even though their firework adventures scare me just a little. )

-Jared and Ashley-

The night was full of fireworks, LOTS of games, Wii dance party, and good food!

I love celebrating and New Years is no exception! I always think of my cute grandparents on New Years. Even when they were in their late 80s and early 90s they loved to celebrate! My cute grandma was pretty much bedridden, but she would stay up and be sure to have her pots and pans ready to bang! I hope so badly that Jared and I can be just like them someday- Always celebrating life and making it fun no matter what!

I feel so lucky to have had my grandparents influence in my life! I miss them lots, but I'm so grateful we can be together again!

{ christmas }

We were able to have Christmas in Dallas at Katie and Adam's house. They were so nice to host all of us! It was lots of fun to all be together. The holiday was full of all the good stuff- family, friends, good food, ticket to ride, minute-to-win-it games, a puppy, presents, the Christmas Story, and lots of laughing.













This was the first year we had a real sized tree in our apartment and I loved it! I loved having a house full of Christmas music and decorations.

I really love Christmas time! I love that we get to celebrate Christ and the wonderful life he lived for us. I love how easy it seems to make him the center of our home at Christmas time and I hope to try even harder this year to make that last. This last year I was able to understand the atonement more fully and feel my Savior's love for me so deeply. I am so grateful for my Savior.

{I definitely missed my family lots though. I don't think I'll be going a whole December without a trip home to Utah again... I'm a little spoiled I know.}

{ Mouse in OUR House }

One day when Jared and I were taking a nap back in December we woke up to what sounded like someone typing on a computer. It sounded like it was coming from right under the bed. We were certain there was some critter somewhere stirring about. We searched everywhere but didn't find anything. We only heard it once more, and then we'd sort of just put it out of our minds.

Well while I was gone last week Jared saw a little mouse's tail hanging out from under my nightstand. NASTY!!! After he told me I literally had nightmares about mice. Naturally I'm thinking Jared would go buy a trap, clean up the poo, and take care of it before I got home.

Not so lucky. My husband, who usually is not one for emotion, is a huge softie! He kept begging me to give him one more night to CATCH the mouse and let it free outside. He kept saying, "I'm not sure why you are so set on killing the mouse."

He didn't catch it before I got home and I made him go buy a trap! Sorry I don't have a soft place in my heart for a little nasty critter that has been running around my house peeing, pooping, and probably eating stuff.

Last night the trap went off! HOORAY! Jared felt so bad that he could hear the little thing struggling that he took it on the patio and drowned it.

He just informed me that he used to have a PET mouse named Pete. Maybe that's why it was so emotional for him.

I love him. He adds so much to my life every single day.

{ We did something CRAZY }

This story begins back in December when we babysat this little puppy, Oscar, before Katie gave him to Adam for Christmas. We had so much fun with the little thing that after he was gone we started to feel some major puppy hunger.

So innocently we browsed some classifieds for puppies just to SEE what was out there. Nobody just looks at puppies though...
One day I had sent Jared a link to an ad of a cute little maltipoo. (Jared refuses to call it that... it is a mix of a maltese and a poodle.) When Jared got home at 7 I hadn't so much as spoken to the owners of the dog, but by 8:00 I had a puppy on my lap! It all happened so fast. I felt rushed. I was excited/nervous/regretful/in shock- pretty much just an array of emotions. (If I called you frantically in the moment you know I was being a crazy person!)
So we brought home this little girl.

We named her Pippa. She was so worked up the first night and I wasn't a fan of that. She diarrhea-ed on my kitchen floor and I really didn't like that. She cried in the night. I wasn't sure I could deal with that. Jared and I layed in bed that night and confessed to each other that we were afraid we didn't love her. :) We thought it was a bad sign that we loved Oscar more.

So the next day before Jared left for work he told me to make the ad. (He claims that he just meant make it in case, he wasn't thinking I'd actually post it!) He helped me take a few pictures before he left for work and by lunch time the ad was posted!

In those short hours I had her, I realized I had a very NEEDY puppy on my hands. She literally cried if I wouldn't hold her when I was going to the bathroom. When I got in the tub, even though she was right next to it and I was even petting her, she about had a heart attack. She was always right there wanting me to hold her. It was so silly.

( I don't let her get on my white rug, but she LOVES it

So before we sold her we let her nuzzle into it! She was so HAPPY)

Well within hours of posting the ad I had TONS of people wanting her! Again I didn't even really have time to think about it. Before I knew it Jared and I were on our way to meet her new owner with her crate etc. in our hands. Of course the girl wanted her. Who holds a puppy and doesn't buy it?

The story doesn't end there... Our 24 hour dog turned into our permanent (or permanent for now) dog.

The next day I woke up kind of sad that she was gone. I was regretting that I didn't give it more time. It was this little puppy's first day away from her mom and sisters so I should have given her some slack. When I came home from the gym to an empty house I was really sad. I was thinking a crazy, needy dog is better than an empty apartment all the time. So after talking to my sister, she said I could just text the girl to see how it went. I was sad when she responded that it went well. BUT....
a few hours later she texted me to tell me that she was worried because she works 6 12 hour shifts every other week. We texted back and forth a little more, with me trying not to steal the puppy back but desperately wanting her.

I went that night and got our puppy back!

Ashley LOVES puppies! -Especially ones that love to snuggle-

We love her so much now! We still have to work out some issues with her. She is slightly psychotic. :) Anyone that is pro at training dogs I'd love your advice!

I know we are crazy! Who gets a puppy when they are pretty much 6 months pregnant?!?

My belly has popped & I couldn't be more in love...

Pippa already looks so much bigger and cuter to us after just about a week.