Kids Kids Kids

I teach first grade now.  I love it!  I love these kids so much!  All 28 of them!  I wish I could post a million pictures of them and tell you all of their favorite things and how awesome they're all doing, but I can't (privacy laws).  I can tell you some funny things they've said though!  

Me: Hey Josh, are you following the instructions?

Josh: Yes, I'm following the destructions! 

While reading with a kid:

Book: Where did the piglets go? (The picture had little curly tails sticking out of the hay stacks)

Student: They made them into pork chops!!  

I was dying at this one!!  

While walking away from reading groups:

Student: Miss Teichert, you're a pretty good teacher.  

I just wish I could tell you these lines in person!  As I was typing them up I realized that their facial expressions add a lot to these quotes! Haha

Don't be fooled though by the up-beatness of this post.  First grade is hard too.  28 kids is a lot.  Five of them are pretty hard.  But that means that I have 23 that are pretty great!  And let me tell ya, when the stars align and one or two of those five boys have a great day, I am pumped!  So far they've made me smile more than they've made me scream :)  

Also, if you ever need a good confidence boost, teach first grade!  I get told at least 20 times a day that they love me, get about 40 hugs a day, and am constantly told how funny, smart, pretty, ect I am :)  Six and seven-year-olds are the best!

And, because I can't get enough of kids I went home to spend time with my nieces and nephews this weekend.  

Kids+a ski hill=GOLD!  

We had so much fun up Pine Creek!  It was a warm, beautiful day!  Few things make me happier than seeing kids learning to love skiing, and when it's my nieces and nephews it's even better!  

Raw

I've been crappy at blogging lately, but I've been rocking at emailing Tessa on her mission!  I figured I'd just copy and paste part of the letter I wrote to her.  It's a little more raw than my blogs normally are, more personable.  Life's so great :)  

  Tami came on Friday and it was so fun having her!  I just love her!  We had so much fun shopping and talking all evening Friday.  We went to dinner at Zupas and then to Cold Stone where we met up with Mary and Ryan.  When we got home we talked with Ashlee and her sister-in-law for quite a while and talked about how we wish we were as good as you at turning awkward situations onto the other people around you!  Haha!  Every time you get in an awkward situation, you are so good at getting out of it!  Example A: Your birth control shot and Toomer and Thompson.  Example B: When you farted on that date.  I literally have NO examples of getting myself out of humiliating situations.  I normally just make it worse.  haha! Anyways, we were talking and laughing our heads off!  I seriously haven't laughed that hard in quite some time!  Then Tam and I came into my room and talked for far too long!  I slept on the floor and her in my bed.  I love that us sisters all have such awesome relationships.  Seriously.  Taffy is 12 years older than me and Tami 10, and they both have come and had sleepovers with me this semester.  I'm so lucky to have my sisters as my best friends.  

  We shopped all day again Saturday.  It was so fun to shop with her because all I ever shop for is clothes, and I have done NONE of that this semester. (I'm so poor!)  We shopped for all of this fun home decor stuff and storage and home improvement stuff!  So fun!  I just dreamed of how I'm going to decorate my log cabin some day ;)  We left Provo around 3:00 and parted ways.  I went to Taffy's and she went home. 

 I went to Taf's to babysit her kids Sunday.  Her and Tone are in New Zealand and Mom was in charge of the kids.  Well Mom needed to go to Mya's blessing, so I went to get the kids up and dressed and to church and then took them to Angela's.  There's a reason why we have children one at a time.  Zero to 5 overnight probably isn't the best way.  haha!  They were really good though!  We had a little birthday party for Mariah (she turns 8 tomorrow?!)  It was fun and the kids were just so cute!  They were excited to see me, which always makes ya feel good ya know?  Us adults need to love more like kids do.  

  Anyways, I sure love ya Tess!  Sorry there's not much about school, but I figure it would be super boring to you.  My brain is going a million miles an hour about a million things right now though.  Boys, school, future teaching plans, January plans, my next trip, how I'm going to have $5 after I pay rent next month, ya know, all the things :)  I do know that my Savior loves me though.  He wants me to be happy, and he's trying to help me continue to love life!  I'm not sure what He's got up His sleeve on this next one, but it's gotta be good, I'm sure!  In Relief Society today it just really hit me that I need to just rely on him.  I'm just so dang independent that it's killing me to not feel good about what I WANT to do and that I actually NEED to do something else.  I'm going with it though Tess.  I'm taking a leap of faith!  Look out world!  Thanks for always walking by Faith.  Thanks for serving a mission.  I am just so proud of you!  You are definitely toppy on my list of awesome/best people and I feel so blessed that I get to be so close with someone as great as you!  Love you Sis!  Can't wait to hear from you!  Have the best week!!  

Love, Livi :)  

The Green River

So I've never really thought much about the Green River, but this year I've been able to be right on it 3 different times?!  It's not super duper exciting or anything, but I thought it was pretty neat :)  

First, I helped the Child's cross sheep over a bridge on the Green River.  It was the coolest old bridge, and it's always a great day when you're with the Child crew!  

Then I went camping and hiking down in Moab with Kalbie and we pitched our tent right down by the Green River!  

We also got to see it when we were at Dead Horse Point.  

The end of July I had the opportunity to go camping with my parents and Tami and Casey's family at Green River Lakes.  This is the head of the Green River.  The setting of the lakes was absolutely beautiful!  Well, I guess I only got to see the lower lake, but some day I'll be back and see the other one :)  

Moments

Today Harold Hatch spoke in our ward at church.  I really enjoyed his talk.  He read a quote from Elder Neal A. Maxwell that really got me thinking.  

"Moments are the molecules that make up eternity."  

I just loved it.  Then I got to thinking about all of the moments this week.  

Monday morning I went on a trail run with Taffy.  I just remember getting to the end of the trail and being there with my sister and just soaking in the beautiful view.  Great moment.

I made bread this week.  As I worked with the dough I knew it was going to be good.  I pulled it out of the oven and it was the most perfect bread I think I've ever made.  Great moment.  

My dad and I got to go and watch my nephews play soccer up in Afton on Wednesday.  Owen didn't see us before his game started.  As he was running down the field after he had scored a goal he noticed us cheering for him.  He yelled out, "Hi Livi!! Hi Grandpa!!"  Great moment. 

Friday I got home from a branding (thanks again Trev!) and there was a letter for me from Tessa.  I just dropped everything and read it.  She's doing so well and I'm just so happy for her.  Great moment.

Friday night I went with friends up to a roping in Afton.  They roped well and it was so fun for me to be there and watch.  When it was over I told them great job and they were like, "Thanks Liv!"  Just a reminder of how great of friends I have.  Great moment.  

At the roping I got to sit and talk with one of my little friends, Mason.  He reminded me again how wonderful kids are.  They're just so loving and honest and real.  We laughed all night!  Great moment.

Saturday morning I got to help my mom arrange all of her lovely flower pots in front of her greenhouse.  We set them up mixed in with all of the fun, old furniture and equipment that she has collected over the years.  After all the switching pots and moving them back and forth, we finally stepped back and decided we found the perfect balance.  I love doing this each year with my mom.  Great moment.  

Kalbie and I had to take one of our riding lawn mowers to Logan for repairs.  We loaded it, strapped it down, drove there, and unloaded it all by ourselves.  No men minds involved!  It was a good learning experience for both of us.  When we finally got that thing unloaded we both breathed a sigh of relief! haha  Great moment.  

On our way home from Logan we decided to stop and hike to the Wind Caves.  Neither of us had ever been.  We had the best conversations and I was repeatedly reminded about how thankful I am for her in my life.  The hike and the view were beautiful!  Great moment.  

My life is full of moments like these.  Moments that go undocumented.  Moments that get looked over.  Moments that seem unimportant.  BUT, these are the moments that make my life so happy.  Don't get me wrong--I love the big trips, the fun weekends, the picture worthy moments, but nothing quite beats these small, everyday, great moments.  

Spring Fun!

This spring has been one for the books!  Since I've been home I've been able to do some really fun things!  Some of my favorites include (in no particular order): 

Branding with the Cornia's

Spending a day with Tami in Idaho Falls

Helping the Child's with sheep

Recovering Kelly's truck seats

(The coolest cloud over Deseret on the way home)

State track with my dad and the Micheli clan

(State Champs!)

Visiting my friends in Provo

Helping Taffy fix up their playhouse

Branding with Nate's

Walks with friends

Docking sheep with Child's

(Lunch Break)

Fires with friends

Working out with Kalbie (she's a fabulous workout partner!)

Getting the cemetery ready for Memorial Day

Sulli's graduation

Becoming an aunt again

Moab with Kalbie

Having all my sisters and their kids come for a day

Skyping Tessa on Mother's Day

Walks with my mom

Taking over the bread business again

As you can see, it's been pretty stellar.  I feel so blessed that I get to do such a wide variety of things with my days :)

The Cemetery Girls

This post is LONG overdue, but I just needed to write a post about three of the most influential girls in my life.  They all have something in common--they were all my work partner up at the cemetery :)  When you spend about 30 hours together every week, just you and them, you get to know each other pretty well!  

Holly and I worked together the first two years.  Boy was it fun!  Neither of us had any clue what we were doing, but we had fun figuring it out together!  We were pretty good friends all growing up, but in those two summers she became one of my best friends!  I was lucky enough to get to watch her fall in love and marry Ryan.  Now she has a baby and lives in Germany?!  Where has the time gone?!  I can't go too long without a good chat with Holly.  Since she's moved to Germany we've had some good skype chats.  I just love her and her little family!  Holly has taught me to never give up--even when there seems no way out.  She taught me to laugh when you want to cry.  She inspired me with her diligent training for her half marathon.  She's a great friend to all, and I'm so glad I was able to spend so many hours with such a great girl!  

She came home for a little bit to bless her baby, and I was lucky enough to get to visit with her and snap this picture :)

After Holly decided she wouldn't be coming back, I was devastated.  I didn't think that I would ever be able to find someone that great to work with.  Then along came Sierra!  In high school Sierra and I referred to each other as "church friends" cause we were besties in our ward, but we both had different best friends.  Well, we became more than church friends that summer.  We did literally everything together!!  The summer started out pretty rough, but we got it turned around.  At the start of each week we would plan all of the fun things we wanted to do, and then we would plan our work schedule around it.  We did so many fun things!  From fishing to shopping, we did it all!  Sierra has such a deep love for our Savior.  She knows that He knows what's best for her, even if it doesn't make sense to us.  Many of our conversations revolved around the Gospel, and she was so good about sharing her testimony with me.  She taught me to love our little valley more than I ever thought was possible.  All summer long we would say we were the same person because we thought so much alike.  Most days we laughed until we cried.  This last month I was lucky enough to be one of her bridesmaids.  I was so excited for her to meet and fall in love with Trevor.  All the heartbreaks were worth it--he's great!  I felt so honored, and I absolutely LOVED getting to spend some extra time with her and her family preparing for, and enjoying the day.  She was a stunning bride, and had the happiest, best attitude the whole day!  What an awesome, inspiring girl!  

Her wedding day was seriously the best!  She didn't seems stressed at all and was smiling to the last minute!  

When Sierra wasn't coming back, I really thought I was in trouble.  I had already lucked out twice, and there was no way I was going to find a third girl that I would get along with that well.  Then along came Kalbie!  I cannot even begin to tell you how much this girl has impacted my life.  When we started work up there in May we had only talked to each other like 3 times.  We were practically strangers.  After the first day, I knew we were going to be great friends!  She is so happy and outgoing and fun!  You can't help but like Kalbie Harmon.  She has that same love for the outdoors as me, and we had fun doing a few adventures together.  We were always thinking about the next place we wanted to go hiking or running.  It's also convenient that she married one of my best friends from high school, cause now I get to see both of them often!  Kalbie taught me about how important it is to constantly be progressing.  She is always trying to become the best person she can be whether it is spiritually, physically, or improving her relationships with others.  She greets everyone with a big smile, and she just makes you feel so loved!  It wasn't unusual to see Kalbie and I talking for another hour after work, because we never seemed to run out of things to talk about.  I'm glad she lives in Cokeville and that I get to see her, but I also love a good phone chat with Kalbie.  She's just so great!

We actually do have a photo of us in nice clothes, but I just like this one better :)  

When I started working at the Cokeville Cemetery in 2012 I had no idea it would have this large of an impact on my life!  I'm forever grateful for these girls and the things I've learned from them.   

A Hike a Week

At the start of the summer I set a goal to do a hike a week, and it turned out to be one of my favorite things of summer!  I was lucky enough to never have to do any of them by myself, so that was great!  I didn't post the location with any of the photos, but here's my list of hikes :)

1. Top of the old life at Pine Creek

2. Rocky Peak

3. The ridge above Backdoor at Pine Creek

4. The first road on the left of Pine Creek Road, then up the mountain a ways after the trail ends :)

5. Trillium Falls Trail in Redwoods National Park in California

6. Grade Creek

7. The top of Waterfall at Pine Creek

8. The ridge to the west of Sam's Creek

9. From Cokeville to Bear Lake

10. Tri-State Monument--Wyoming, Utah, and Idaho

11. The mountain behind Child's house

12. Bear Lake at Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado

13. Corral Creek Lake

14. The ridge west of Sam's Creek until we could see Hobble Creek 

15. Top of the lift at Pine Creek

16. Lake Alice

There ya have it, folks.  I don't even know if some of them were normal hikes that people actually do,  and we don't really know the names of them, but we did them.  Some were more adventurous.  Some were kind of idiodic.  Some were close to home.  Some tested our endurance limits.  Some we hurried to do, but we did it!  One.  Each.  Week.  16 weeks of summer.  16 weeks of happiness.  16 weeks of finding our own adventures.  

Best Summer 2015

This summer has just been so great!  I don't know why I never expect summer to be so awesome, but every time I come back to live at home for these few months, my life is better than I ever anticipate.  The past few weeks I've gotten pretty bummed every time I think about leaving.  It's not that I'm sad about what's coming (school and the crazy life), but I'm just so sad about what I'm going to be missing here.  The summer has been packed with the funnest stuff with some of the best people you'll ever meet.  I seriously lucked out in the friend department!  I don't know if I've ever been more comfortable just being myself.  I also don't know what I did to deserve this life, but I'm so thankful for it. It's just been the best.  

Hikes, hikes, and more hikes!

Some days up here with Kalbie.  I just want to be more like her.  

Family reunions (I have some of THE cutest nieces and nephews)

Camping

Some upholstery (I finally got all my tools and I'm so excited!)

Laughing my head off with this girl

Martina McBride concert

 Seeing siblings

Scalp treatments with Sierra

Watching my friends at rodeos (one of my favorites!)

Beautiful sunsets

Cheyenne Frontier Days

Rafting the Snake River

Saying good bye to the Hammond house (this was actually super sad...)

Running the Vaquero

We also went fishing some, rabbit hunting a bunch, a beautiful ride up to Graham's Peak, ate raspberry shakes, golfing off Big Hill, and sat and visited around fires.  I just tried to soak up every second in this wonderful place I call home.  It's a close call, but I think I've got a new top favorite summer.  Life is good.  So good :)

June 7th Already?!

I can't believe it's already June 7th.  Where has the first month of summer gone?!  It's been a busy month, but a great month!  

I started work up at the cemetery again for the 4th year in a row.  I guess it's safe to say I love that job.  I got a new work partner, Kalbie Harmon, and she's great!  We've had a good time working together.  The first three weeks were busy trying to get ready for Memorial Day.  We were up there lots of hours and we got wet lots of times.  I haven't been alive for a long time, but this was definitely the rainiest May I've ever experienced.  I just felt like I was always soggy... It was all worth it though, cause the cemetery ended up looking pretty great for Memorial Day, and I got to know Kalbie a TON better.  Very successful month at the cemetery.  

At the start of the summer, Tess decided our family needed to set some goals.  So, we had a family home evening activity where we each wrote down some goals we wanted to accomplish this summer.  My favorite one so far has been "a hike a week."  Because of some crazy schedules, I haven't been able to be as adventurous on the hikes as I've wanted to be, but we've gone on a hike each week none the less.  This next week's hike is going to be pretty legit, so stay posted :) 

Up Rocky Peak.  I love these three.  

What would I do with out this sis?  

Tyson and Candace came down for a few days here this last week and we had a fun time with them.  Sunday afternoon Dad, Tyson, Tess, and I went on a drive up to my Uncle Ron's summer range and Tess and I got to hear story after story of my dad and Tyson's days out cowboyin'.  It was a good afternoon! 

Ron's horses.  Everything was SO green!

One night we all met Tami, Casey, Tel, and Kimball up in Jackson at the Bar J.  It was so fun being together, eating good food, and listening to some great music and jokes.  Those guys are hilarious, and so talented!  

The five members of the Bar J Wranglers.

This past week I've been able to go docking.  I sure do love doing that, and the Child's are nice enough to keep letting me come back!  It's made for some long days, but it's been so worth it! It's so fun being out there with all of them.  They're the best!  Tyson and Candace came out for a few days so that was fun! Tess came out for a day as well.  It was fun introducing her to it, and now she understands why I like going so much :)  So, thanks Child's for yet another fun week out dockin!!

Cute little Mason and Katelyn with some lambs.

Finally, this weekend Tel got baptized.  I'm so proud of him and the choice he made to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  As I watched the baptism, I thought about the covenants I made at my baptism 14 years ago.  I covenanted to take Christ's name upon me, to always remember Him, keep His commandments, and serve Him til the end.  Since I was baptized, I've messed up plenty!  I've had moments when I didn't represent Christ well, when I didn't serve when I could have, and plenty of times when I didn't keep His commandments.  Luckily for me, each week I get to renew these covenants as I take the sacrament.  It's kind of like getting baptized again.  I get to repent of all of the things of screwed up on during the week, and resolve to try my best the next week.  I'm so thankful for the ordinance of the sacrament and the chance I have to renew those baptisimal covenants I made when I was eight, just like Tel.  

One of the most handsome 8-year-olds ya ever did see! 

So, as you can see, my summer is off to a great start!  It'll be fun to see what the next three months will bring :) 

The Real Life

So, I've been doing a million fun things lately.  Anyone who follows my Instagram or who is friends with me on Facebook definitely knows that.  I went to...

Zions

Stewart Falls

BYU Sporting events

the ski mountain 

Laramie

1st grade for a month

home

birthday parties 

Moab

fires

Questival

the Bean Museum

California

and some other fun places!

While all of this was going on, so were some real life things.  I was taking 16 credits, working, exercising, and just being a human.  I worked hard, met some goals, and didn't quite reach others.  Some days were awesome, some days were normal, and some days were just plain crappy, BUT every single day had something wonderful.  Whether it was the clear blue sky on my way home from a frustrating day at work, or a killer morning hike up the Y with Rachel and Tess--each day had something good.  This semester I was the happiest I have ever been. It's amazing how when YOU choose to be happy, happiness surrounds you.  Now I've moved home for the summer and some days are tough.  The rain just keeps coming (we really need it, but it makes work a little worse...), but I've been lucky enough to get a great work partner, live with three of the coolest people, and spend every day in this great community.  So, here's to another one of the happiest summers of ever, and I'll try to do a better job at keeping you all posted.  Not just on the fabulous, adventurous days, but on the regular days as well :)