Wrigley Field...

Even though it was a few hours out of our way, Raymond HAD to stop and see Wrigley Field.  He was in heaven being there!

Love that man!

 Sitting in the Dugout!

 Even big kids still have dreams! :)

Our first experience with tolls...seriously!

Nauvoo & Carthage...

We headed to Nauvoo after Winter Quarters and we found the cutest little town along the way in Iowa.  Raymond is seriously contemplating moving there one day! It was a little Dutch community called Pella and the bakeries there were amazing! 

The Dutch Letters were probably our favorite!

We were in Nauvoo at the perfect time and got to see the Nauvoo Pageant.

Being in Nauvoo made Raymond and I think a lot about how peaceful living simply can be.  You could feel spirit there so strongly and we are so blessed to have so many faithful people go before us and be such a great example to us. 

 Carthage Jail

 Being in Carthage was such a testimony builder for both of us.  Even though it was chaotic with all the tour buses full of teenagers, there was a definite spirit there that you couldn't deny. 

Just another reason why I love driving through the countryside!

Summer Break!

This post is long overdue! Raymond & I had such a fun summer break this year!  It all started with his old mission companion inviting us to come and visit him and his family in Cincinnati and ended up being a VERY long road trip! A Baseball/Church History/visiting people we love trip!  Be ready for a picture overload! :) We started off heading to Salt Lake to be there for Ammon's blessing and then headed to Nebraska.

Omaha Zoo

This guy was our favorite! They were fun to watch!

The look I get from Raymond when I wake him up! :)

We went to the Winter Quarters Temple/Visitor's Center.   It was such a special temple with beautiful stained glass windows! 

 

 Don't mind the sweaty pictures! It was so humid!

 The water was so high because of all the flooding but we had to go to the Pedestrian Bridge.

Kanesville Tabernacle

 We had such a gorgeous drive across the country!

My love/hate relationship with Tomato Soup...

    So to give a little background: I was just diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome, which explains A LOT! Raymond and I have been trying to get pregnant for over a year and  I went to the doctor a year ago because I was gaining weight and no matter how healthy I ate and how much I exercised I couldn't loose any weight.  I asked my doctor to check my thyroid because that is the only thing I could think of.  He checked it and it was fine.  It was frustrating not to get any answers but I just figured I wasn't doing the right combinations of things.  I finally went to a different doctor and almost immediately she knew what was going on.  I wish I would've gone to her from the beginning because it's such a relief to finally know!  The good news is that it's something that can be fixed by a change of diet.  To make a long story short I can't eat food with sugar in it.  Just LOTS of meat and veggies until I can get my body stabilized.  I've been trying to be creative with what to eat because everything has sugar in it!
    It's been raining today so I decided to make tomato soup.  Of course I had to make it from scratch and everything was going great until I had to blend the soup! I couldn't get my blender off the stand and before I knew it tomato soup was going everywhere! I accidentally hit a button and of course , I had already taken the lid off! It was all over my kitchen, dripping down my hair, and I just wanted to cry.  You should've seen Raymond's face! He was trying so hard not to laugh and made me go and get myself cleaned up while he tackled the kitchen! What a sweetheart!  Needless to say I won't be making tomato soup anytime soon! :)
    It's been pretty hard going through this trial without my family and friends close by, but it's made me realize how much Raymond means to me!  He's been my strength through all of this and it's really brought us closer together.  What a blessing it is to know and understand that Heavenly Father has a plan for us and I know one day we'll look back, so grateful for the experiences we've had! I just have to keep reminding myself that right now! :)

4th of July

Before we went on our LONG road trip (posts to come on that!) we went down to Salt Lake for Ammon's Blessing and the 4th of July!  It was so good to get to see my family...

 Look at that proud daddy!

 We were so happy that we finally got to see him, even if he slept the whole time! :)

 What a stud!

 Atta boy, dad! :)

 We also got to stay with my best friend from Memphis and they invited us to go to the Bees game with them...definitely didn't have to ask Raymond twice! All of my pictures with Jess were blurry but thanks Jess and Adam for taking us! We sure do love you guys!

They had awesome fireworks after the game! What a perfect way to start a summer! Proud to be American!