Hiking with Family

Shortly after returning from our Honeymoon we made fun Saturday plans :) We went out in the truck to this place where Nathan likes to go shooting.  There I got to shoot my new birthday present, a handgun from Nathan!  We had to first stop by Mom and Dad Andersen's house to pick up some guns and ammo.  We were going to meet up with both of our families at Mount Charleston afterwards for lunch and to spend some time with them.  I love how our families can all get together, it makes it so very nice for Nathan and I!

Here's us just leaving Grandma and Grandpa Andersen's house in North Las Vegas(our first home together!)

My new AWESOME little sister Ellie!!  Geez, I love this girl! 

Nathan trying to set up targets when it's really windy, isn't the easiest thing ever.

Nathan LOVES this truck!  Dad's old Toyota Tacoma that Nathan drove through High School and that we are driving now.  A huge Thanks to Mom and Dad Andersen for letting us use the truck as we start off our marriage!!  If they hadn't we would have no car...that'd be bad!

My new birthday present gun kept jamming! :( Nathan was getting so frustrated...

Oh my goodness! This is MY HUSBAND!!!  I can hardly believe that I am married!  Do you ever look at the person sitting across from you and it just hits you...I live with him!  We share a bed!  I cook him dinner!  We holds my hair back when I'm sick and throwing up!  He's now the person I turn to for everything!

WE'RE MARRIED!!  HOLY COW!!

:) THAT'S TOTALLY and ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!

After shooting Nathan and I met up with our families :) With just being married, we have just left our families and it's kinda weird to not be around them every day so it felt good to see and squeeze on them again!  Well us girls had to use the bathroom and I couldn't resist...there was a urinal and we're a bunch of girls...hehe...these are our "Posing Pics"...

Liz getting caught

Whitney nearly wetting her pants

Ellie just loving that backside pose...a little realistic... 

and Jenna's excitement is just too much for her to handle

Up in Mount Charleston we tossed around a volleyball, ate lunch, sat and talked, some went around the camp ground playing frizbee golf and giving whitney a piggy back ride was included.  It was sure good to see this little girl again!  I'd missed her and I think I always will!  Our late night talks and laughs in bed and never getting a good nights sleep cause we were having too much fun

Aren't these just the three cutest girls you have ever seen?!

We wanted to go on a hike and Ellie wanted to join us so off we went.  Hiking is such a blast and it's so neat to struggle and work, and climb and then to reach the top and see that incredible view and how far you came.  I love it

The top!!!  We made it!!

crabs: the spider of the sea

HoneyMoon

For our HoneyMoon Nathan and I went on a cruise with Carnival to Catalina Island and Ensanada, Mexico!! Our wedding night was spent here in Las Vegas at the Renaissance Hotel, the absolute nicest hotel I've ever even been in! It was huge and we loved it. On Sundayn we went to our new ward and I got to introduce myself as Sister Andersen (That was so cool) and everyone was so excited that we had just gotten married the day before. After church we headed off to California but we had completely forgotten about all of the horrible traffic from Vegas to California on Sunday nights so what should have been a 4 hour car ride turned into 6. But its okay, I was with my honey. I tried to stay awake to help him...but failed miserably...he, on the other hand was a sport and stuck it out.



Monday moring we went over to Doug and Jens, where we played with the kids a bit before Jen Dropped us off at the ship. TALK ABOUT HUGE!!! This Ship was ginormous and we were so excited! So, for those mof you that have never been on a cruise I'll just tell you...it is awesome but if you stay on them too long you'll jsut get lazy. When Nathan and I got back we had to face the reality that people are no longer going to wash all your towls, make your bed twie a day and leave a towel animal ontop for fun, cook all your food and clean up all the dishes. That you can't just sit around all day doing whatever you want (playing miniture golf, running, eating at the buffet, swimming, watching shows). All your needs are taken care of and its true, you just get lazy! But after the craziness of summer school, full time work, and wedding preparations it sure felt nice to finally just be able to sit for a while...

Tuesday we spend the day at Catalina Island snorkling (thanks to Jen for letting me borrow a set) The water was freezing but the fish that we saw were pretty. I was so proud of myself for swimming all in the ocean and by seaweed, Go Me...and guess what...Yup, Didn't get eatin' by sharks!! I rock! Nathan and I got out shivering and starting catching crabs (well, trying to...we did catch a few; they're so fast. they're the "spiders of the ocean")


Thursday was spent in Mexico. Nathan knows a bit of spanish and talked to Natives about where a beah was. We had to walk a ways to get there but we were the only foreigners there. The ocean was so warm and the beach sand glittered with gold flects. We found tons of whole seadollars. I loved walking hand in hand down this beautiful beach with my new husband. It was pretty there but we could not snorkle there and so Nathan pulled out his spanish again and found out where a good snorkling spot was. Again, we were the only white people in the area. (After this trip we'd really liketo pick up snorkling as a hobby) We saw jelly fish and sea slugs, brightly colored fish and crabs. We shared some buritos for lunch at a little place up the hill and went back to snorkle again. We did that all day and the way my head is peeling now from my sunburn proves it! haha


We got all cleaned up on the boat for dinner and then went back to Ensanada where we found a nice restaurant. It felt neat to be among locals (we probably get that from our missions...we didn't want to do the tourist stuff, we want to do what they did)


The whole day Thursday was spent on the boat as we made our way back to Long Beach. We went in the hot tubs and met this really neat Jehova's Witness couple. Mostly we just enjoyed being together! I loved all the time I got to be with Nathan. We felt like we just couldn't get enought of each other. It was hard knowing that in a few days we would be going back to school and work (the real world) and we probably wouldn't get much time together.


So Thurday night Nathan got sick and so out I went on my own. First I just read my scriptures in the hallway right outside my door. I got some strange looks but then this chinese couple came out. She saked if I was reading the Bible and I told her it was the Book of Mormon. They told me that their great grandpa was LDS and had helped translate the BofM into chinese! Cool huh?! Before they left I told them that they should get their hands on a copy of that book and read it because of what that grandpa did. They said they would! Yay for missionary experiences! I went and watched a show and walked around the ship...you couldn't see the stars really good...that was disappointing. I checked up on Nathan one more time before I went to eat at restaurant by myself. That was a lonely dinner but that steak was AMAZING!!!

So we coulkd eat at the restaurant every night, which we did 3/4 of the night...well, at least I did...but what we didn't know until late Thursday is that you could go there for breakfast or lunch too and order all myour meals...we were bummed that we didn't know that(...so learn from our mistake!)


Friday morning we landed at Long Beach. We got all ready then ran to the restaurant to grab breakfast. We sat down then a couple came and sat down by us. I turned to Nathan, "they're LDS" I told him (he was thinking the same) and sure enough they were and they were on their honeymoon too! Then two more couples came to sit down and one of them was LDS too, also on their honeymoon! Haha, fun small world huh?!


Now its back to life! Washing our own clothes and living with crazy school schedules. We couldn't be happier!!!

Really, its "lucky I'm in love with my best friend!"