three years down, and eternity to go

3 years. that's how long it's been since that day. the day i put on my white dress and finally married my best friend. in these last 3 years i have learned more about him and myself than i thought was possible. on that day i thought i loved him more than i ever could. i was wrong. i am pretty sure i fall a little bit more in love with him each and every day. i feel like 3 years of marriage means we go this thing down for the most part. sure, we have our times when things aren't perfect but, that is what makes it amazing! 

i could list a million reasons why i love daniel  and love being married to him but, watching him become a father to our babies has been one of the most amazing experiences thus far. he is amazing with them. i always knew he would be but, seeing him hold our babies for the first time was overwhelming. i was overcome with an amazing amount of love for him and our family. 

marriage isn't always easy but, it's so worth it. i even wrote a post about that once. read it here. 

xoxo

here's to an eternity of being stuck with me!

talking about love...

i've been thinking about love lately. like, how there are many different forms of love. you can love your spouse, family, friends, an item, a place, hobby, etc. love is one of my favorite things. love is also universal. love is something we all feel in different ways. 

via

i love this quote from emma so much. so true, we all love different things and that is okay. below is a few things that i love: 

my membership in the church//i am a member of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints. having the church in my life has blessed it in so many ways. i am so grateful for my knowledge of the gospel. 

daniel//i love that guy so much, it's not even funny. i am so glad we get to spend an eternity together. 

my parents//i am a child of divorced parents. it happened when i was a little so i don't really remember it any other way. both my parents are re-married and i am blessed to have 4 parents who have taught me to be the type of person i want to be. 

friends//growing up i always had more than one best friend, i have many friends. i believe in surrounding yourself with good people who help you be better. i love each and every one of my friends that i have made through out my life. i love my friends all equally. so, thank you to my friends for being the best! i love you. 

blogging//it may seem rather silly to say i love blogging. but, i do. blogging has really helped me be less shy and really open up. i have also grown a lot as a person through this blog. it has also introduced me into so many wonderful friends. {see above}

maxi skirts//okay, this is one time i truly love. i mean you can't go wrong with a maxi. 

myself//this is something that isn't always true but, is something i strive to love everyday. being happy and loving yourself is so important. especially us girls. we are always so hard on ourselves, that it's good for us to work on this every single day. 

books//i love loosing myself in a good book. there is something magical about reading. i love transforming myself into a different time, place or situation. i love reading so much. 

chapstick//i cannot live without it. faves include-burts bees and baby lips.

family//i have a large family. that happens when you have 4 parents but, i wouldn't trade it any other way. i love it. some of my best friends of my cousins from my dads side. i love families and love that we can be together forever. 

green smoothies//this is something that is a new found love. i drink one everyday {when we have groceries. haha} so yummy and healthy! 

children//children is something i have always loved. i love when a child smiles at me or when they give me a hug. i work with little children on sunday at church. it is hard but, i really do love it. it's so fun watching them learn and grow. 

see i told you can love anything. trust me i could list more but, i'd rather not make this nove....haha. some of serious and some are silly but, i love them all. so, if you were to write a list of a few things you love. what would you add? 

what two years has taught us

on the 12th we will celebrate our 2 year wedding anniversary. 2 years?? where is the time going? 

during the 1st year of marriage everything was so new and uncharted. we really had no idea what marriage would be like, we knew it was going to amazing and hard. there were lots of dinner fails, tears, learning, laughs, bicker fests, love, memories and just happiness. the 1st year was easy at times and so hard at others but, i loved it all.

we then jumped into our 2nd year of marriage. during the 2nd year things were more comfortable. we knew each others quirks, and such. we then started to toss around the idea of growing our family sometime during this 2nd year.

that leads into the one huge thing i have learned during this 2nd year of marriage. patience in all things is a must. not just in the whole having a baby thing, but in all things. in a marriage you need to have little patience. trust me, that is something that was hard for me to understand, i am not a patient person. one example of patience in our marriage is;

as bad as i want to add a little one to our family, i know with patience, faith, and trust in our heavenly father the time will come for us to be blessed to be parents. that leads into one last thing, something else i have learned is to be grateful for the time dan and i have together as just us. i will always cherish these times and love that we have had this time to really focus on our marriage.

i love being married to my best friend!

happy love day

while looking through these photos i am flooded with memories i have shared with this guy. some make me laugh, some make cry with joy, and all of them make me smile. he is constantly reminding me why i feel in love with him, even if he doesnt' know he is doing it. i feel so lucky to have this guy as my husband. i love you babes!! 

wishing you all a happy valentine's day!

xoxo

an example of love

this photo above is of my dad's parents. i believe this was taken before they were married. almost 60 years ago {they will celebrate 60 years in december}. look how cute they are!

the story of them meeting goes a little like this {thanks aunt dianne for helping me!} grandma was selling tickets to a dance and grandpa was buying tickets to said dance. he then asked her to the dance, right on the spot after just meeting her. && that was it. so cute right? guess you could say he was inspired. these two have always been an example to me of how a marriage should be. 

they have had their share of trials in their almost 60 years of marriage. from, infertility, health issues, raising several children through the miracle of adoption and everyday marriage trails. they have even served 5 missions for our church together. even missing several of their grand-children's births. it's okay because they were serving the lord together and blessing our family from afar.

i have many memories of spending time with them when i was younger. my parents are divorced and have been since i was little. so, i spent many weekends being shuttled around. my grandparents were often the ones who picked me up and would take me to my dad. at the time i didn't really appreciate those times. thinking back on it, i loved them. i got to have many conconversations with both of them about life topics. i have fun memories of baking with grandma, and learning about the gospel from grandpa. 

as i got older they would teach me about marriage and how to have a good one. when dan and i got engaged i called them to tell them and they both started to cry. they kept telling me how proud of me they were and how excited they were i had found a young man to take me to the temple.

they have are and have always been such a great example to me and our family. i feel so blessed to have them in my life! 
 

in honor of valentine's day tomorrow, i just felt like i needed to share a little about these cute grandparents of mine. they are a great example of true love.

but, it's so worth it

sometimes i feel like those who aren't married yet think marriage is all roses and gumdrops. trust me, it is not. there times when i want to rip my hair out. mind you those times are few and only last about 30min. i have some friends who say they never fight and when they say this i roll my eyes and scoff. like for reals, you never fight. are you robots? 

i have been thinking about it and fighting or bickering is healthy to a certain extent. obviously if you are fighting everyday then you need to do something to fix it. im talking about the normal/every now and then disagreements. those are normal and totally healthy in my book. you aren't going to agree on everything. in our house our disagreements don't last very long. no more than 30min. i love that we can't stay mad for very long it's pretty awesome considering we are both so stubborn. 

with all this said in a marriage you obviously have to put forth work. it's an everyday thing. below are a few things i believe help strengthen your marriage. {mind you these are my words and thoughts. i am no expert...trust me!}

supporting your spouse//i believe in showing and telling your other half how much support them. they may know it to be true but, it's good to reassure them by really telling them. 

give more hugs//i believe in hugging my husband all the time. sometimes hugs say more than words.

say your sorry//i believe in saying sorry after a disagreement. 

pray together//i believe in praying together. it really can bring you closer together. we believe god should be the center of your marriage and praying together can really help that be a reality. i love hearing my husband pray for me, us and our loved ones. 

date nights//i believe in dating your spouse. we don't have children so it's easy for us to make time to go on a weekly date. im sure when we do have kids it will be a lot harder but, it's something i really love and look forward to every week. good thing we have family close to babysit when the time comes. our dates are never super fancy. we usually do dinner, or a movie. some of my favorite dates are the ones where we go to dinner then come home and watch a movie. {maybe ill do a post later on with date ideas!}

show your affection//i believe in showing affection. we have this silly thing we do all the time. when we are holding hands, sitting next to each other, riding in the car, or whatever. we will squeeze each others hands, leg or arm 3 times for i love you. i love when we are riding in the car and his hand is on my knee and he will out of no where squeeze it 3 times. it brings a smile to my face everytime. it's a little thing, but it is just a little thing we do to show our affection. 

make time for each other//i believe in making time for intimacy. life can get busy and hetic but, you need to take time out of your schedules to unplug from the technology, put away all distractions and be intimate. again, we don't have kids yet so we have more time for this. but, i believe when we do have kids it is something we will work hard to still make time for. this doesn't just mean make time for you know what...it could even be just talking with no distractions. 

say i love you//i believe in saying i love you often. 

love notes//i believe in leaving notes. 

there are just a few things i believe in helping strengthen your marriage. what are somethings you believe in helping strengthen your marriage? do share in a comment below. other posts from different bloggers about marriage here, and here.

i love being married to the love of my life. dan really is my best friend and i cannot even imagine without him. he knows how to take care of me when im sick, how to make me laugh all the time, how to comfort me when im sad, and how to love me for me. i love being married to him. it's the best....even when we disagree on things! :)

happy friday, loves. hopefully i dont feel sick anymore {had the flu yesterday} this weekend and we can do something fun. 

xoxo

love of my life

this weekend we heard a girl dan works with, had tragically lost her husband in a shooting accident. she is the same age as me and her husband was the same age as dan. i cannot even begin to imagine what she is feeling. it breaks my heart that she has to feel this pain at our age but, it makes me all the more grateful for eternal families. 

since hearing this, i have been thinking how truly grateful i am for dan and all he does for me. he is my rock. he always makes me feel beautiful, when i don't. he knows exactly what to do when i am feeling down. he loves me for me. he helps me be the best me. he is the best shoulder to cry on. he gives the best hugs. his kisses make me weak in the knees, every time. he is my best friend. he knows what candy or sweets can make my pms better. he really is the love of my life. 

i try my best to be all those things for him. {well, all but the bringing candy for the pms part. haha!!} life is short and i believe in always showing your love to your loves ones. so, do you show your spouse or loved ones how much they mean to you everyday?!

i love you daniel bruce. thank you for being my best friend. i am so grateful we can be together forever and ever!

xoxo

currently obsessing over

Lauren Conrad's Fall collection. I love me some LC. I have adored her since Laguna Beach {only the best show ever}. Then on the Hills. Sometimes I wish I was her. haha jk! Her Fall line is beyond amazing. I want to own every piece. See it here. 

Happy Weekend Loves! 

xo

love

{print via}

{photo by valory jean photography}

feeling very grateful for daniel and all he does for our little family of two.

i love you babes, thanks for being you. 

xoxo

the first anniversary

Today is the day. Our ONE YEAR anniversary. Geez, I cannot even believe its been a freakin' year! The first year of marriage flew by, oh boy did it. All last week I thought about this first year of marriage and all the memories we've made and I thought about the day in which we are celebrating.

I remember our wedding day like it was yesterday. I remember all the emotions I felt. Even sitting here typing this I am overcome with tears of joy. 

The night before the our wedding Dan's sister, Dan and I were at my mom's house. {Steph was playing "chaperone" haha} He was getting his stuff and gonna sleep at his parents hotel that night. Anyways, I remember saying good night to him and being SO happy that, that was the last time we had to do that. 

That night before bed I remember talking to my mom about how it was finally here. There was hardly any sleeping that night, I was too excited to sleep. When my alarm went off at I believe 6am {it may have been earlier don't remember}. I shot outta bed and said aloud "I am getting married today!!!!!". It was a wonderful feeling. 

As my friend did my hair, I just sat in silence I was feeling so many things. It was a weird/happy/exciting feeling. Dan and I drove to Sacramento Temple together as our families followed behind. I can't tell you what we talked about the drive there because I don't remember. 

Once we were at the temple most of it was a blur up to the part when Dan and I sat in the celestial room all by our selves just taking in the spirit we felt that moment. We knew we were doing the right thing. We knew this was a special moment. A moment when we could feel close to our Heavenly Father. I loved that moment. It was my favorite of the whole day. 

We then were sealed in front of our family and friends for time and all eternity by my grandpa. What a special time that was. I will never ever forget that. 

The rest of the day went so fast. It was filled with family, friends, love, happiness, laughter, tears and pure joy. I cannot believe that it has been one year since that very day. This year has been amazing. I love being able to see Daniel every single day. I love sleeping next to him, saying our prayers together, spending our weekends, laughing with him, snuggles, cooking him dinners, and I love learning new things about him and me everyday. 

This has been the best year of my life. I look forward to spending an eternity as Husband and Wife. I love all the memories we have made in this first year as a little family of two. I will cherish these times forever! I am so excited for the day when we will become a family of three. I know that day will come when the time is right. I love that we and our future littles can be together forever because we got married in the Temple.

Happy Anniversary Babes. I love you oh so much! Thank you for being the best Husband I could've asked for. Love you! {MUAH}

Love, 

 Your Wifey

{all photos from valoryjeanphotography}

just a baby craving.

Hi, my name is Eryka and I have a problem. You see I love to look at baby things online. GASP! I know. Sometimes it craves my baby hunger and sometimes not so much. 

In this case, these adorable little clothes from zara.com have not helped me in the "I WANT A BABY" moment. "Someday, Eryka. Someday, Eryka you will have little one!" {ignore that. just talking to myself} haha.

 {Seriously, are these not the cutest. EVER?! Well, they are. That sweater with the elbow patches is adorable and let's talk about those little baby boy jeans. I die! && the flannel...I love! I used to think baby boy clothes weren't as cute...boy I was wrong!} 

{Those coral skinnies are the cutest thing I have ever seen. Well, next to those baby oxfords and that gingham dress. I sure hope I have a little girl of my own someday. So she can wear pretty little dresses and shoes. I love it!}

Did you guys die of the cuteness? I did. Yep. Well, obvi not caused I am still here! haha!

 Even though I am eagerly looking forward to the day when we have a little one to hold, kiss, dress, snuggle, and love. I will continue to cherish these times we have as just hubby and wifey. We are getting close to our 1 year anniversary and I have loved every second of this time in our lives! 

saturday sayings.

today i am feeling extremely grateful for the love of my life. i love that he is my best friend, and i love being with him every single day. don't you love, love?! 

i love you daniel. <3

what im thinking//saturday sayings

...love.


it's probably the fact my cousin annie just recently had her missionary return home from his mission, that has me thinking about the power of love. but, i have so many thoughts about it i have to write them down. 

the whole day of their reunion, i was so happy and excited for them. i know how in love they are and i was just so excited for them to be together again. the whole day i kept thinking about love, and how lucky we are to have such a thing in our lives. 

wether it be love to a spouse, boyfriend, parent, sibling, child, pet, family member, or your heavenly father. love is a wonderful thing. i am so grateful the power of that four letter word. 

when i think of the word LOVE i get goosebumps all over my body and tears in my eyes. i love, love. i love the feeling of having someone who loves you, with all their heart. someone who will always be their for you no matter what. i feel very blessed to have an amazing group of people surrounding me who i know love me. 

isn't it wonderful to know, you have someone you loves you. no matter what stage you are in your life?! trust me, its true. even if you think you don't have someone you do. it's your heavenly father. he loves you for who you are. pretty powerful huh?! i love my heavenly father with all my heart, and i know he loves me even though i am not perfect. let's face it nobody is. right? 


the next powerful love i think is, the love between husband and wife. when i think about the love dan and i have, i literally start to cry with tears of happiness. i feel so lucky to have found someone so loving, and caring as he is who loves me for me. i am so grateful for him and our eternal love. i get a sense of peace to know i will be with dan literally forever. how awesome, to have the love of your life with you for an eternity. 

ok, ok i know what a sappy post about love. but, like i said i have been thinking about it a lot and felt like i needed to share these thoughts with you. why, i dont know. i was inspired i guess. 


who do you love with all your heart?!  

xoxo

e

all images via pinterest

happy saturday blog friends. have any sayings you love? please share. send me an email: erykaann88{at}gmail{dot}com :)

uno.

playing uno with your husband and watching lord of the rings {nerd alert} is the perfect activity when you have a FAT headache. of course, i would get sick on the first sunny day in a week. {face palm}


lucky me daniel is the best, and is so good at taking care of me. im pretty sure ive asked him to do like a million things for me. "can you get a cool rag?", "can you get me a drink?", "can you turn it down?", "can you get me something to eat", "can you do this and that!" haha thats probably what he has heard all day, and he hasnt complained yet. ha. i love you babes. xox.


the end. 

just a love note.

dear you,


i love that you finally sunggle with me in your sleep. its cute. i love you hubby. 


love, 
me

via pintrest.com

happy mothers day.

it's mothers day which means it's time to recognize all the amazing mother figures I have in my life. since last year's mothers day post, i now have one more to add to my list. 




{dear momma,}
thank you for being the best mom i could've asked for. thank you for all the love and support you gave me over these last 22 years. now, that im an old married lady i really appreciate the example you were to me on being a wife, and when the time comes i know i will be a good mom, since i have to look up to. you are the funniest lady, i know. i think i took for granted all the times we would go on our sushi and pedicure dates. {i miss those. maybe you should come to utah and treat me, wink wink} i love you so much, and miss you to pieces. 


{dear heather,}
you are the best stepmom ever. thank you for always being there to talk. you are a great listener. i love you and the great example you are to me on how to be a good wife and mother. {someday that lat part will come} ha. thank you so much, i love you lots. 


{dear susan,}
you are the newest mother to me, what can i say you are the best mother in law i could've hoped for. you welcomed me into the family for day 1. i remember meeting you for the first time dan said: "this is bruce, and this is susan" and you responded with "or we are mom and dad". i love you so much, and am grateful for you and your example to me. you raised one amazing son and i am so lucky i met him and now can be with him for time and all eternity. thank you for raising him right. i love you my amazing mother in law. 




{love, eryka}


....how could i leave out my grandma's all of them. {yes i have alot!} they all are amazing women and i love them all dearly. i feel very lucky to have most still in my life. {i miss you grandma do-do} thank you for being great examples of wonderful wived and equally wonderful mothers. i hope to follow in your footsteps! i love you all.


&& thank you to everyone else in my life who has been a motherly figure to me. i love you all dearly. xoxo. <3 

wish list:toms.

i am head over heels in love with toms shoes. {i have one pair and wish to own more}. 

these, these, these, oohh these too, and these.

holy cow, i need them all! <3

thats all for now, kthankss. oh, and HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!

happy list: may.

it's happy list time. 

the sun
tulips
family
tears of joy
cousins
running down hills like your 5 again
love
sleeping 
laughing so hard you cry
adorable nieces
having good hair days
new clothes
babies
marriage
cooking dinners that dont suck
being me

{running down a hill at the tulip festival, ya know acting like we're five again. more pictures coming tomorrow}

whats making you happy? {please, share!}

cray cray.

Yep, I'm one of those cray cray girls who up watching the royal wedding. I mean how can I not watch. This is a real life fairy tale, and history in the making! I hope to tell my daughter, or daughters, son or sons ( hahaha) I watched William and Katherine get married. :)
So call me cray cray, don't care. I am enjoying it, and getting an awesome texting convo with Kattera outta this. (Miss you Kattera!).




Mmkay back to the royal wedding!
Loves.
Xo


***post wedding thoughts:***


The best part of the whole wedding was when Will sneaked a peek of Kate right before she got up to the altar, and then he made it better by mouthing the words "you look beautiful". Awww is right! Second favorite part, is when Harry giggled during a song. He is adorable!! Will and Kate were so sweet, with each other. Reminds me of our wedding day. Oh, how I loved that day!

via

huzzah.

we got our wedding picture cd and let me tell you its so awesome its ridic. 


hi, my name is eryka and i have a new hobby, its to look at our wedding pictures over and over again. holy cow they are amazing. val did such an amazing job, go over to her blog to see more of her work. ready for a picture overload?! if these arent enough for you to look at go over to my facebook and see the rest! 

oy vey, that was alot of pictures. {haha} 




ps. easter pictures coming soon....