JULY

Since I haven't blogged pretty much all summer I am just going to do a month by month.  So bare with me, there will be a lot of pictures :)

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It got quite hot this month.  I was finally able to get a little tan and not burnt to a crisp every time I was outside!  There is something so wonderful about soaking up some sun, listening to the waves crash on the shore and relaxing with your best friend. 

July was the best because my roommate flew out to see me for a WEEK!! I am a lucky girl.  

We took a trip to the Chicago Temple

Showed her that Lagoon is pretty much a carnival.  Poor people in Utah.....

Sarah got to experience Summerfest, her mind was opened!!

The 4th of July was a BUSY day!! We started out running the Race for Freedom in Antioch and walking in the parade to advertise the play house for our Relay for Life team.  

Miss. Ruthie and I getting ready to throw some candy! - what a CUTIE!

We also celebrated Anthony's 19th birthday!

Later in the afternoon we headed to Lake Michigan with a bunch of friends to BBQ, swim, frisbee, volleyball, people watch, cards and fireworks.  It was VERY crowded and I am so glad we were able to find a spot.

We spent a day in Chicago and showed Sarah all the wonderful spots every visitor needs to go to when visiting this wonderful city.  We took literally a thousand pictures, so I just picked a handful of them to post.  

Dad and I got some Blackhawk hats!!

Navy Peir

The Bean and Millennium Park

I am so grateful to have such a wonderful girl to live with.  She is truly a blessing in my life and is always there for me.  It was so fun to share my "home" with someone from school!  

Steve, Tommy and I went and watched our good friend Preston do amazing in one of his plays.  Preston has an amazing singing voice and I am so proud of all the hard work he puts into his job.  

SOOOOO I got to do some fun things for my birthday.  I got to see Thomas Rhett, Jake Owen, Kelly Clarkson and Jason Aldean at Wrigley field!!  We walked through Wrigleyvile and got some good Chicago food.  A lot of funny things seemed to happen throughout the night.  I found a good amount of money on the ground, then we tried to find the owner of a wallet that had their phone and SS card in it, as well as some girls that obviously had to much to drink felt the need to hold my hand, dance with me and invite me to come home with them and "get wasted."  No thank you :) It sure did give us some good laughs though!  

I turned 22 this year!! Golden birthday, man I feel old. 

Steve took me to one of my favorite restaurants!  They have wayyy to many options of food and cheesecake!  How is a girl to decide?!  It was really nice to get some time with Steve before he leaves for Portugal tomorrow.  I will miss him!

Relay for Life was extra special this year.  Sometimes it is hard to always stay positive. Sometimes it is hard to keep a smile on your face when negative news keeps coming.  Sometimes it gets hard to always stay "strong."  What helps is the continuing love from family and friends.  The support we have is out of this world. I am so very grateful to each and every person who has taken a time to say a prayer, text, call, write a letter, make dinner, given a hug, made gift baskets, hats, and just offered a helping hand on our behalf.  Every little act of service done for our family has helped us get through the hard times.  There are days when I have no idea how I got through them- and then the thought hits me.  The prayers of others on our behalf do make a difference.  You can feel that extra strength.  The wonderful thing about Relay is that you are surrounded by people who have been, or are going through the same thing as you.  They can relate, they know the toll it takes on your heart and are there with you for the same reason.  To remember, celebrate and fight back.      

Mary Wang spoils me every year for my birthday!  So a little later in the week she took me to this AMAZING sushi restaurant in Milwaukee that is right on the river.  Lets just say I was speechless, it was that good.  I recommend it! The place is called Screaming Tuna. 

One of my dear friends is leaving for her mission in a month!! Sofia is going to serve in Argintina.  She is beyond excited because that is where her family is from.  I enjoyed our lunch date talking about all the things going on in our lives!  I will miss this beautiful girl.