Seems like just yesterday I was updating this blog, but then when I look it’s been almost a year! I hate that life gets SO busy that time for self-reflection, celebrations and sharing our successes gets lost. I can’t say honestly that I will make drastic improvements in trying to keep this thing updated, but I will savor this very moment when I get a chance to share the exciting things that have happened in my life just within the last week!

We are expecting...

Wade and I were so happy to learn in November that we were expecting again. We wanted Bryden and his sibling to be about 3 years apart so we are so ecstatic about the timing! However what is even more exciting is the fact that we just found out we are having a baby GIRL!!! Words cannot even begin to express how excited we are and how much we are looking forward to the arrival of our new little princess in July!

The Wonderful World of Drill..

Anyone who knows me fairly well can attest to the fact that High School Drill Team is still a very big part of my life. To be honest it is probably the one thing I HATE to love! The time commitment is huge, the hours are crappy and the pay is not good at all, but the memories made are something that just can’t be replaced. And as quickly as it seems to have begun, the competition season is sadly now over. This year however has seemed to be much different than any other. When I first started I had more girls on my team than we had ever had before. I had more beginning dancers than I did advanced. And I had the least amount of motivation from over half of the girls, something honestly I had never had to deal with before! The year started out rough to say the least. We attended camp as a team in June and I can honestly say it was probably one of the most stressful times I ever had coaching. My girls did not pick up on the routines quickly, they had to be pushed to even practice and the attitudes overall were just so negative. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect for the upcoming season, but being pushy like I can be, I kept pushing these girls until they were about to break. In October we joined the Shakespeare team, and competed as the dance ensemble team. I choreographed apiece entitled “The Kill” which physically, mentally and emotionally took its toll on my team day after day. It was a very dark piece about fighting our demons and letting go of what holds us back. The girls were very receptive the choreography and to the message that we were trying to portray. Every time after the piece was performed I had 11 girls sobbing, shaking and trying to come out of and get away from what they had feared. Once we competed the piece our statement seemed to have been made very clear. The audience members, judges and other dancers were left speechless! We on the other hand were a new team, had a new vision and a first place win! That was honestly the turning point for my team. For the next 3 months we practiced and competed. We swept 3 of our competitions winning overall awards, many first places and even showmanship awards! We knew this was our year and we were determined to prove ourselves at the State Competition.

Last week we had the opportunity to compete for the State 1a Drill Team Championship. My girls placed first in 2 of the 3 routines (Military and Dance) and placed 3rd in our kick routine. Because of the lower placement in kick we ended up tying for the overall State Championship title. This forced the judges to go into a tiebreaker situation that we ended up loosing by 1 point. While we were extremely disappointed at the time, our success spoke for itself… Suddenly everyone knew who Rockwell was, team after team congratulated us, we took awards in every category and when we left we had other teams chanting our name as they walked past our bus! It was a feeling that no state championship could have ever replaced. I am honestly so proud of these girls for all of their hard work and dedication. They definitely turned from my nightmare into my dream team. March 14th (when our season officially ends) is going to be one of the hardest days in my coaching career. I will be loosing 6 seniors and a team that I will never forget. Thank you girls for making me the proudest coach ever!!! Overall State Awards: 1st Place in Military Category 1st Place in Dance Category 3rd Place in Kick Category 2nd Place overall 1A State Champions Maddie Beck, Kathryn D’Albini and Brianna Bailey were awarded All-State Drill Team members. (We were the only 1a team to have all 3 girls make the team) Madison Bartell won a $200 UDDA Scholarship Becca Wadley won 3rd place in the State Drill Down And I won Coach of the Year! (Huge honor I am still not sure I am worthy of)

2-Year Anniversary

This year our anniversary fell on the ever-dreaded Tuesday. I say ever dreaded because Tuesday’s are my long days normally, as I go straight from work to teaching at the studio. But this Tuesday right after dance I had to judge a talent show. Soooo it made the day even longer! As a result we didn’t quite get to celebrate like we had hoped to, or even more so get to see each other for more than 10 minutes. Luckily tonight Wade and I will get to go out for a nice dinner and celebrate the last two years we have been married! And even better we leave Friday for a week long vacation that is so needed!!!
Although Tuesday was very long, Wade as he always does, made it a very special day for me. He had Bryden carry in a bag of goodies, he delivered beautiful flowers to my work and when I got home he had dinner waiting with a card and a cute message written on my mirror.

I am a very lucky girl to have found such an amazing man. Here are just a few more reasons why I think he is so great…

~ Wade is one of the hardest workers I have ever met. No matter what needs to be done he makes sure that it is done perfectly, no matter how long it takes.
~ He is a handy man. And can fix or make anything you can think of.
~ He is an amazing daddy to our beautiful son.
~ He doesn’t put up with any bull crap, and will let you know if you’re being ridiculous!
~ He is the biggest social bug I know. There is never a weekend that we have off when we aren’t hosting a get together.
~ He has a beautiful smile and contagious laugh.
~ He is the most amazing cook ever. I never have to cook and we always end up with gourmet meals. Even a salad is not simple!
~ He is so handsome!!!
~ He is my hero. And a hero to so many others!
~ He supports me in everything I do even though it takes so much time away from us and our family.
~ He makes me laugh and smile every single day!!!


I know there is a reason why we ended up together and our lives have played out the way they have. Together I know we can do anything, and having a fast start together has only made us stronger. Thank you for an amazing 2 Years Waders!!!

Self Reflection

Over the last couple of weeks I have been doing a lot of thinking. Thinking about where my life has been, where it is now, and thinking about where I see myself going in the future. I guess you could say things over the years have been turbulent, much like anyone’s life. We all have a lot of ups, a fair share of downs and lots of time of just seemingly being content with where we are. I can’t trigger exactly what has spun me into this world of self-reflection, but whatever it may have been I am truly grateful for it.

It is no lie to anyone who truly knows me that my past has been rocky. I come from a family who practices the LDS religion and was raised in such a household. Growing up I didn’t always see eye-to-eye with my parents but always knew what was “Right”. Over a series of events that would take place a few years after graduation what I was taught all growing up seemed to have been broken. I was angry at first; I was hurt but knew that these things happened for a reason. Life continued to take me on the roller coaster path, much like it does. During the next few years I was able to experience and rebuild relationships that once had been broken, discover new talents, change career paths and explore new highs. But as expected there was another world of low’s to follow. Again trusts were broken, friendships halted, sides taken and rumors a float. Those are the things so easily focused on. Even though I spent a fair share of my time trying to explain myself and my decisions to myself, friends and family it didn’t seem to make a difference. I too was living in all the negative, when really I made a life change to make myself happy. It took a long time for me to look at the negative and make it a positive or look at the “opportunity” as new doors opened. A chance to find myself, redirect my focus and choose a path that would truly find me happiness. To some this may have seemed selfish, inconsiderate, and heartless, you name it. However the one thing I have come to realize is that there are always two sides to a story. It was time I focused on what I needed and me. To stop doing everything for everyone else and enjoy doing things to better myself. I still reflect on these situations. Not in anger, not in sorrow but in how it would continue to shape the woman I was to become, much like my parents did while I was growing up.

And for those past mentioned instances I am forever grateful. Grateful for the good times and the tears that came along with the hard times…Why? Because the path that I had chose, the road that I was taken on eventually shaped me to be where I am now. I now am married to an amazing man who I share my ups and downs with. Someone who accepts me for me, who sees my true beauty, someone who supports me unconditionally and strives everyday to help me become a better wife, mother and support to so many around me. I have a beautiful son who betters my life and gives me something to live for every single minute of every single day. A son that I can help teach what is “right” much like my parents did. And a son that shows me what the true meaning of happiness is. I have a career that I love! I am blessed to have an opportunity to be the Assistant Director of a Charter School that serves so many amazing students. Having the opportunity to work with teenagers and help them see there true potential is the most amazing feeling. They help me probably more than I help them. All of these things help to complete the person I am today. And for those I may have not seen for a while, I think you would be impressed!

I am to a point now in my life where I am finally feeling like I am 100% happy with the woman that I am. Does that mean that there is still room for improvement? ABSOLUTLEY!!! A lot of room. But I also realize that I am a person who knows herself. That others opinions of who I am don’t really matter, because everyday I can wake up, look in the mirror, and be perfectly happy with the person I am looking at inside and out. I know that I have a long road still ahead of me and there are plenty of trials waiting for me. But knowing what I bring to the table, what I have to offer the world and the person that I am is more than enough to help me through those trials. And if that ever gets lost or forgotten I know I have an amazing group of people that surround me that will help me get back on my feet.

I guess the one thing that I have truly come to realize is who are we to judge one person, when the only person we should be judging is ourselves? I know easier said then done. But over the last few months this saying has rung true in so many instances I have dealt with on both a personal and professional level. Judging people doesn’t define who they are, it defines who you are. So what do you choose to do? Just remember that it takes less effort to be happy than it does to be miserable.

An Update Finally...

After seeing an old friend this weekend and talking to each other about blogs, I realize that I better get mine updated. ☺ It seems like there is just not enough time in the day to do everything on my list led alone update a blog. That being said I am making a commitment to myself to not let this thing go another 3 months before I update it again!


Drill Team Review




I just finished yet another year of Drill Team at Rockwell Charter High School. This year we competed on the 1 A state level and had huge success. We placed within the top 3 at every competition we attended and so we were really looking forward to State. Unfortunately our State performances were not our best, dropped props, injuries and sickness for the girls, but we walked away without any kind of penalties and ended up taking 4th place overall at the state competition!!! Not to bad for our little team that started out with over ¾ of the girls having NO DANCE EXPERIENCE what so ever!

Thursday we wrapped up our year with our Drill Team Review. It was a very fun night and I just want to thank the girls for all of their hard work and dedication all season long. Not sure how we can top this year, but I am looking forward to my 4th year as a drill coach next year. ☺

My little Bryden…


Is really not so little anymore. Bryden just recently turned 18 months on the 26th of February. It’s hard for me to even remember what life was like without him. I can definitely say there is never a dull moment with Bryden around! He is a VERY active boy who has to have his input and hand in everything. He is talking like crazy and learning to count. (He is pretty good up to 7) Wade is in the process of trying to grow Bryden’s hair out. He wants him to have “surfer” hair for the summer. Right now it is in a really awkward stage so he looks homeless most of the time. But Bryden is definitely taking his dad’s side on this one because anytime I even joke about cutting his hair he gives me a scowl and says “No”. He is probably the most polite 1 ½ year old I know. He says please when asking for anything and always replies Thank you when you hand him something. Even when he is done eating he will hand me his plate and say Thank you, then follows it up with “ I U” which means I love you. This little man absolutely melts my heart with his kisses and always wants “to hold me” which means cuddle. He loves bath time and playing with balls. I am convinced he is going to be a baseball player because the boy has an arm. He is definitely an outside baby because you can’t keep him away from the doors or outside when it is warm enough.

We have been fortunate enough to spend some time this winter in Mesquite at Wade’s parents home and have loved playing on the golf course. Bryden typically hangs out in the golf cart but every once in while likes to swing the club. If Papa has his way Bryden will be golfing within the next year.


I love this little guy so much and can say that I feel as complete as I have ever felt having him in my life. I wish that my job didn’t take away so much time of us playing together but am so grateful he comes to visit me often. I love you B!!!

Family Pictures 2011

We finally got around to having our family pictures taken this last week. I am so grateful that I have an amazing friend with an amazing talent! Thanks to LaRee Photography we were able to get some adorable pictures of our family. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!!!!