Boston + Family Pics

We made it to Boston! It was a very long move, but we are so grateful for all the help from family and friends. 

We've been here for over a month now and are so happy it's starting to feel like home. We love our ward, all the things there are to do here, and any family time we get exploring Boston! 

We've loved vising:

Nahant Beach

Rockport

The Charles River

Fenway Park

Walden Pond

and The Boston Public Gardens

This is the first time I've ever lived outside of Utah, and I still can't believe we live on the East Coast now! But Kenzie is having a blast and loving all these new places to explore. 

Also, baby sister is due in three weeks!

Ballet Perfomance

I'm a little behind, but I really wanted to share this performance and beautiful song.

In June I got to perform with the School of Ballet Arts in this beautiful piece choreographed by Shauna Wilson, the director of SBA.

I was 5 months pregnant at the time, so getting off the ground was a little more difficult, but I feel so grateful to have been given this opportunity to dance in this number. When I looked into the audience and saw my little toddler watching, I was brought to tears. It was such a sweet moment.

The song is in the video is called Glorious and is featured on the film Meet the Mormons. I love, love, love these lyrics. You can watch the full video of the performance below.

Also, if you're in Utah and looking for a great adult ballet class, check out The School of Ballet Arts!

You can find more videos on my youtube channel here. Have a wonderful day! 

How to throw an awesome party and stay stress free!

It's no secret, I love planning parties and events. I remember when my published my first novel, my publisher asked me to throw a launch party event.

The thought of throwing a big event terrified me! I realized I needed to figure out party planning details asap.

Fast forward a few years and 2 book launch parties and several blogger parties later, I have come to absolutely love throwing events! Whether It's a large event like a book launch, or even small family parties, you can have a great time and stay stress free with these easy tips.

1. Choose a Theme.


This seems obvious enough, but it's something that can get out of hand quickly if you don't reign it in! My favorite apps to use to help me brainstorm and pick great themes are Pinterest, A Joyful Riot, and Kara's Party Ideas. All of these sites are full of incredible themed parties and ideas that will leave you in awe. And remember to put your own special touch to it. That's what makes your event memorable!

My first book launch party was themed after my book cover, so I used red and black and tried to make everything sleek. Book launch number two was mermaid/siren themed and I used blues, greens, and pearl tones. And my daughter's first birthday party was a pink and gold glitter explosion.

Deciding on two or three colors is a great place to start for a theme!

2. Start planning way ahead of time. 

It's another tip that might sound obvious, but somehow party preparation has a sneaky little way of taking just a few too many hours than you had planned.

Make sure you've worked out food/catering, event location, and decor weeks before your event. It will keep you calm and collected on the day of your special event.

3. Use apps to take the stress out event planning. 

Eventbrite is a great site that lets you create an event, get the word out, and even let's attendees pay online for your event ahead of time. It's an easy way to stay organized and stress free while party planning. As for online shopping, Amazon Prime and Etsy are my favorite party supply sites and so much better than running from store to store the day before.


4. Enjoy the time! 

When you're in charge of a major event it's so hard to actually enjoy the moment. However if you start early enough and make a clear plan, you'll have so much for fun and be able to relax at your event.

Here's to many more awesome celebrations throughout the year!

Summer 2016 Updates

Oh my goodness, it's been a while! 

I'm sorry for the overdue update, but we've been keeping busy! Here's a little rundown of what's been going on in our family for the past few months :)

December: I launched my tee shirt company, Happily Hezface Tees! It's been a huge learning experience, and I'm still figuring out how to run a small business, but there's something I love about creating these fun shirts!

I'm glad I decided to just jump and start this adventure, even though it has been a lot of work! I'm also so grateful for all the support from friends and family. Thank you! <3

You can see what's new with my shop on instagram @HappilyHezface, and let me know if you have any suggestions for designs you'd like to see. So far the favorite has been the purple Best Day Ever Tee. Go Rapunzel!

January: We found out we were expecting baby number two in October!!!! The first trimester was hard. I get really sick and have no energy for weeks, so chasing around a busy, hyper active toddler was near impossible. Thank goodness for all of Kellen's help, he really is Super Dad, and thank goodness he was okay with frozen pizzas for dinner during that time!


March: Kellen got accepted to Harvard and we went to Boston to check out the area! You can find a little Vlog of our trip here.

April: Kellen graduated from UVU with honors! Woot woot! So so proud of this boy and how incredibly hard he worked to get here. He went to school through summers, over family trips, and had to sacrifice a lot, so we're so happy to get to this point and so excited for him to spend more time with us this summer!

Sooooooooo, we are getting things ready to pack up and move. It's exciting, and scary, and feels like a big new adventure, and I'm hoping that I can handle a toddler and a newborn while in a new state!

We're also finding out the baby's gender this week! I really go back and forth daily on whether it's a boy or a girl. I've had a lot more people say they think it's a boy...so we'll see!

June will be a big month for us, Kellen and I celebrate our SEVEN year anniversary, and Kenzie turns 2! I've been planning her party, so stay tuned for that :)

It's been a little chilly so far, but I know that warm weather is just around the corner! I'm getting my Summer fun check-list all ready.

Summer, here we come!