.engaged. our story.

.thursday night andrew told me to not plan anything on friday. that it was our day.

.so i didnt. woke up. took a long shower, curled my hair, and than cuddled with scottie watching one tree hill.

.it was the start of an amazing day.

.after cuddling for 2 hours the journey began.

.climbed into the car and started driving to somewhere i didnt know. got there and it was BEAUTIFUL.

.a ski resort during the winter called sundance, and during the summer... a beautiful nature sight. it was beautiful, as you can tell from the pictures.

.we had 5 o clock dinner reservations at a place called the tree room. we got to sit on a couch, with a table in front of us. i loved this cause i didnt have to sit across from andrew, but more right next to him :) we ordered salad, with pasta and steak, and dessert. YUM! It was delicious! And expensive. fifty dollars a plate :) but beautiful as well.

.after dinner we got on the ski lift for about an 30 hour to 40 minute scenic ride. up, up, up we went higher and higher, and what i sight it was. we got to a place where you can get off and take more pictures. as i get off the lift, i see this sign....

.it is normally a ski run during the winter, called "wedding ring" Andrew got down on one knee and asked me to marry him with a BEAUTIFUL ring!. it was wonderful. and amazing. than we got back on the lift, continued riding further up the hill, around, and back down. here are pictures of our trip :)

.yes. i am officially engaged. and loving every minute of it.

.gratitude.

.arizona was a blast.

.i loved it so much. i loved being able to spend time with my sisters and my NIECES. they are growing up so fast, and i cannot wait to see them in November :) .

.the 12 hour drive there and back was definitely worth it. the 115 degree weather was worth it. the 90 degree room temperature we would fall asleep in, was definitely worth it. the headaches of wedding planning was worth it.

.thank you to my sisters, ronnie and kris, and also my mom. they were such a help and were so willing to help plan the reception and sew the table cloths, and drive to many stores and try on many dresses, and really help meet my wants for my reception. thank you, thank you, thank you. i cannot say it enough, and words cannot express my gratitude for you guys.

.i am in utah now. went out to dinner with debbie & roger (andrew's mom and dad), aunt lisa and uncle dave (andrew's relatives) and terri and melanie (friends). it was lots of fun, and they are so willing as well and help with whatever needed :)

.saturday i go home, i am ready for the aspect of finding a second job and start earning money to pay off my dress and save for our future. but i am not ready to leave, because i have been truly enjoying myself. i guess my vacation needs to end sometime... it just seems too soon :(

.summer time.

.my trip so far has been . . . amazing.

.got off the plane, walked through the airport to find Scottie standing waiting for me with roses. on the drive home i saw on one of the overpasses, I Love tash. as i turned to exclaim that some other girl in utah had the same name as me, i saw the smile on scottie's face. when he had told me the night before he was at "wal-mart" he was...but for red cups to do the overpass.

.i have spent days of ring shopping. trying on many rings. finding one that just makes my heart sink. loving the sight of it, its beautiful. wedding dress shopping with andrew, heather, and debbie, and my sister. trying on many dresses, from size 2 to 6. and finding my perfect dress and spending maybe a little TOO much on it. however, i was informed by debbie that it was perfect, and that it was my dress, as she handed over her credit card....FOR NOW PEOPLE> she isn't buying the dress...she is giving me a loan.

.i have spent 12 hours in the car. LONG car ride.... i guess only getting 4 hours of sleep before you have to drive 12 is a bad idea. with the cold air blasting, and singing many songs. scottie and i kept each other up.

.arriving in arizona to my smiling nieces. i love being here. i love interacting with them. i love hearing them say "thank you tasha" and asking me

to "paint their nails" and sitting outside watching the lightening show together.

.boating. wow, how i miss this. we were able to go out friday. it

was only 115 degrees and the water was 85 degrees. i learned this new sport how to "wave surf" (videos posted below). its VERY addicting. and LOTS of fun. when suddenly the clouds turned very dark, and started pouring down rain. it is monsoon season, and we got to experience one. with rain pouring, dark clouds, thunder, lightening, it was amazing. we had to pull out of the river early...but no worries.

.we played rock band (first time i have done that) and than finally got to bed around 12:30...and got up at 4:10am to leave by 4:30am and get on the lake again at 5am th

is morning to boat more :) not only did we wake surf, but we got to tube :) scottie and i caught a wave and was thrown 5 feet in the air...and this is what we were told, we just knew we were up on the air, and above the water, holding onto nothing. i ended up landing on scottie....who was on the tube, which meant.... WE LANDED IT :) It was AMAZING.

.came home, wedding shopped, excited for the looks of the recep

tion. finally decided on colors. and came home, watched a movie, and than watched a lightening show with my niece and scottie :)

.my vacation is going great.

This is what was written on an overpass... over a pretty busy highway

(i was giving him the whatever look)

(beautiful mykial miller watching the lightening)

My Niece MyKial (Mia) & I out watching Lightening Show.

Video of me trying to wake surf...FIRST TIME EVER!!!

This is my sister wake surfing... what it is suppose to look like without a rope.

.short.

.last night i was reminded that life is too short.

.i wasn't REALLY close to ryan pincock... but i had classes with him, and he could easily make ANYONE laugh. he had a strong sense of humor, and was so sweet... once you got past the humor.

.i feel like i am re-living my senior year. another death, and scarred to log onto facebook or myspace, or pick up the phone, for the next one. Thats how i felt after my september-with emma passing away. october- with nicole passing away. and november-with my best friend, chelsea passing away. hearing about ryan passing away, i almost put up a guard, so i am prepared for the next thing.

.rest in peace ryan. you will be missed. you have people in heaven who will embrace you with open arms.

.little moments.

.lately, i have shifted my life into a lower gear, a slower gear, where i have been able to see the little moments more.

.i have realized that i am not perfect. that i make mistakes. but it was brought to my attention by a friend that i really try to stay in contact with people. that i really go out of my way to make sure that everyone is taken care of. that i would set everything aside, and not get sleep, if it meant talking to a friend.

.however, i am not saying that i am the best example ever, but i have realized too often i have passed by the little moment in life. little moments that i will long for when i move in december.

.little moments from holly- her hugs whenever she sees me, her kisses & tears when i leave. her laughter that just makes you laugh, her smile that is so big and bright and can make any frown go away.

.little moments from kian- his "eye" when he is ready to do something to his sister. his laugh, when he have a pillow fight. his smile, when he is excited to see me, but doesnt want to admit it.

.little moments from tammy- her "sister/mom" figure she is to me, her talking to me into the early hours of the next day, her inspiring words she shares, her faith in God. kyle your cool too.

.little moments from my mom- her laugh when she made a good joke, her worries for me, her "not enough sleep" moments, her hugs, her laughter, her love.

.little moments from my dad- his smile- when i am funny, his "pushes" when he walks past me, his breakfast meals, his "after family-prayer hugs.

.little moments from my sister- her calling me bobo-in front of people, her hilarious jokes, her stupid smile, our "sister talk"

.little moments from my dog- his whining when we come home, his 3 legged running. his nasty licks, just sitting with him.

.i have more people, but these are people who have really been here for me since summer started. people i have grown close to, but soon will move away. dont get me wrong, i have others who have been there for me, but they are away already, and do moving, really isnt a HUGE factor.

.lyrics to a song that has really been on my mind lately.

"Little Moments" Brad Praisley

Well I'll never forget the first time that I heard
That pretty mouth say that dirty word
And I can't even remember now what she backed my truck into
But she covered her mouth and her face got red
And she just looked so darn cute
That I couldn't even act like I was mad
Yeah I live for little moments like that

Well that's just like last year on my birthday
She lost all track of time and burnt the cake
And every smoke detector in the house was goin' off
And she was just about to cry until I took her in my arms
And I tried not to let her see me laugh
Yeah I live for little moments like that

I know she's not perfect but she tries so hard for me
And I thank god that she isn't 'cause how boring would that be
It's the little imperfections it's the sudden change in plans
When she misreads the directions and we're lost but holdin' hands
Yeah I live for little moments like that

When she's layin' on my shoulder on the sofa in the dark
And about the time she falls asleep so does my right arm
And I want so bad to move it 'cause it's tinglin' and it's numb
But she looks so much like an angel that I don't wanna wake her up
Yeah I live for little moments
When she steals my heart again and doesn't even know it
Yeah I live for little moments like that

.lifes journey.

.i havent written in forever.

.not worries. its been a crazy, hetic, stressful, figuring out life, couple of weeks. and even though my life isn't completely what i thought it would be right now, or how the whole situation was going to go down. life is great.

.so as my mom, and sisters, janelle, and tammy kirby can all say...i have had ALOT of thoughts on my mind, lots of tears cried, and lots of heartache. but through faith and prayer...i have found my way back on the road of life. a good road.

.i promised keith and andrew that i would tell them what my decision would be, when i received an answer to my prayer. well i broke one's heart, and filled another. i still have not heard from my best friend of 7 years (8 years in September).

its hard. very very hard. for someone who was always there when i needed him, someone i created so many memories with, for someone who loved me for me, for someone who was such a role model and inspiration to me, for someone who loved Chels and was there for me when she died, for someone i have seen reach just a bit of his potential this past month, for someone who has laughed with me, who has cried with me, someone who made me smile, its hard for that to be gone.

.i hope we have a deep enough friendship, where at least a bit of contact will come back. i promised chels i would watch over him for her, and i feel i am not doing that. sunday june 28- was a hard day. everything went down, keith left and was missing. i was scarred but knew he needed his space. i walked up the small hill to the gravesight, with a picture of petey and i together, got to her tombstone, fell to my knees and cried. i sat there crying, and through the tears told chels how sorry i was for being a horrible friend, and that i needed to be a bestie to keith, respect his wishes, and give him space. that i needed her to watch over him for a little bit for me, because i couldnt at the time. keith is a unique individual. he is strong, and such a role model, he just doesnt know it. he has strength beyond belief, and has such high potential...he just hasnt realized it yet.

.andrew and i have been enjoying each other's company. taken alot of pictures. has alot of talks. spent alot of time with family/friends. its been great. i am happy. it feels right, as much as i didnt want this to go down the way it did...i know its for the right reason, and i have my faith completely in God. i know that i am doing the right thing, and that my life is laying out as planned. here is my favorite picture from the past week. his mom got us matching sweatshirts from the beach. she is thrilled for us. i get to see him friday :) WHOOP!