The Frosty Darling and other such things that make me happy.

I love Salt Lake City.
I love walking into a store that is brimming with creative energy.
I love handmade one of a kind treasures, and unique quirky finds like at the Frosty Darling.




I love having my haircut by my sister-in-law Melinda at her and my brothers salon The High Life. She works magic go in you'll see.


I love being inspired while listing to great music (bon iver LOVE them!) at a twilight concert.


I love eating ridiculously delicious food EVERYDAY, some of my favorites: A Scandinavian breakfast from Finns: Norwegian waffles with lingonberries and sour cream


Raspberry Milkshake from Iceberg, Concrete from Neilsons Frozen Custard, A Gigantic plate of Nachos from the Porcupine Grill, Cheeseburger and Fries with fry sauce from Apollo Burger, any dish from the Red Iguana Yummo!


A big bowl of Sundance oatmeal (not from SLC but Sundance of course Secret Recipe: you will love this... 1 C oatmeal 1 C heavy cream 1 C water, 1/4 C brown sugar, 2 T dried friut, 1T toasted nuts bring liquid to a boil, add oatmeal & sugar & fruit simmer 10 min. top with extra fruit and nuts) . I could go on and on and on. So I think I will...

While I was in St. George, I was also introduced to chocolate chip cookies from Grandma Toblers, and frozen yogurt from Spoon Me. I crave the acai berry yogurt topped with fresh raspberry, mango, and kiwi, every afternoon.


I love the Salt Lake Art Festival and watching my kids hang out with their cousins.


I LOVE being around my family. I miss them like CRAZY.

Park City

Grandmas house for dinner

Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house

outside the Mayan restaurant

The Family Cabin

Grandma Dixie and Papa Joe years ago at the family cabin

We packed up the kids, dog, and a months worth of gear, and ventured out on a 3,000 + mile road trip this summer.
Our first stop was the Cannon Family cabin in the High Uintas. We love the cabin, and the kids loved spending an entire week with their cousins & Wrigley was in Heaven!

Hour 7: Somewhere in Idaho

Outside a Crappy Budget 8 Motel in Ontario, OR (right on the border of OR/ID)
Ontario's slogan: "Where Oregon Begins"
Amy's slogan for our motel: "Where Horror Films Begin"

15 hours of driving, a couple of detours, a bag full of suckers, over $600 in gas (our cruiser gets 13 mpg) lots of crying, tantrums and spontaneous outbursts and finally we had made it.

We were so excited to be secluded in nature.
The first hike we ventured out on was a "short, easy" one to the lake. It had been raining for days at this point and so at the first glimpse of blue sky Chad and I took all the little kids and the dog out. Mid way through our hike it started to rain, and after a few minutes it started to hail... hard. We hid out under tree branches waiting for it to let up but it never did. So I ran ahead to the cabin with the older boys. Poor Finley, completely soaked, was on top of Chad's shoulders and started crying when the hail began pelting her already wet legs. I was afraid she would be traumatized and not want to go on another hike but she forgot all about it the next morning.

With no cell phones, Internet or TV it was a true vacation.
We enjoyed gorgeous views, the sound of the river out back, a good book, bonfires, hiking and great company. Fin and Tuck loved the treasure hunt, feeding the horses, fishing and eating loads of junk food. We can't wait until we can visit again.

The whole crew

Pictures of the The Kitchen Remodel for Papa Joe
It's not quite finished, they are continuing the counter top to the right of the tall pantry
and are purchasing a new kitchen table

A photo shoot

A darling family from Chicago came into town for a wedding and asked me to take some pics of their cute kids. Here are a few. It was a great shoot until the bouquet of white helium balloons we were using came untied after a minute and 1/2 and flew away. Try calming a kid down after that.

Grandma Soto

1998

I love my Great-grandma, Francisca Alsina Soto. She is an amazing woman.

She was born and raised on the beautiful island of Puerto Rico.
She was married to my Great-grandfather Salvador for 74 years and gave birth to 11 children.
She lived 105 year and passed away this morning.

1996

I will always remember her patterned dresses that she wore every day of her life. With the collar buttoned, or zipped to the the very top and pockets filled with things that jingled. She had the softest skin and would hold my hand or arm when she would talk with me. She always made me feel important.

Grandma Soto was funny. She had a great sense of humor and the most incredible smile and laugh. Once you heard it you couldn't help but laugh right along with her. I loved her thick Spanish accent and listening to her stories of when she was young and of coming to America. She talked often about my great-grandfather and how much she loved & missed him.


Christmas Eve 1993

When we were little she would play football with us in the front yard, and take hikes with us in the mountains. She stayed with us for Christmas one year. On Christmas morning she made her way down our staircase and through our "Santa Trap" without ringing the bell. She slid down the staircase on her backside and laughed the whole way. We couldn't believe her!


Christmas morning 1993

My Grandmother cooked the most delicious food. We loved to visit her. When you walked through the screen door into her home you were always greeted with "un abrazo y un beso" (a squeeze and a kiss) and the mouthwatering smells of Puerto Rican arroz con gandules, platanos fritos, carne asada, and pastalillos. We loved her cooking.

Grandma Soto, Her daughter (my Grandmother Eva),
my Grandfather, and my Mother (the baby)

I remember my Grandma Soto as a kind, hardworking, happy, life-loving, determined and beautiful woman. I always felt incredibly loved by my grandma. I am going to miss her dearly.

photos taken 3 weeks ago
we were able to capture 5 generations