How Noah does his best work!

The good birdie we once had is finally coming back around. He flew from the floor up and landed on Noah's head while he was working on the computer. I promise this was not posed! He is still a little crazy, but it's actually because he's molting. We're looking forward to a nice birdie with new feathers in the near future!

Robinson R22 Beta II

I wanted to post a picture of the Helicopter that I am training in. This helicopter is called a Robinson R22 and it goes about 100mph. It's so much fun to fly! The school I am going to has about 8 or so of these little guys and then several bigger ones too. I will do about 3/4 off my training in one of these and then I'll get to fly a slightly larger one. (I'll post a picture of it when I reach that phase) I'll post a video sometime or a picture with me actually flying it! See you guys later!

Our Baby Nieces!

Here are our baby girls! Mia and Olivia are almost the same age, and it is so fun to see them both grow and learn! They are different in a lot of ways, but they are definitely both CRAZY! We call Mia "Kamikaze" because she's way too brave for her own good, and every time I hear a story about Olivia (like when she locked herself in the house and her mom outside) I get scared to have children for fear they're going to be as crazy as Nik and Noah!

They are both so smart and cute. They are irresistible and it's impossible to tell them no. What cuties!

Harry Potter fans in the BIGGEST way!

Just so everyone knows, we already have our midnight tickets to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix on July 11th, and my copy of the final book (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows) is pre-ordered to be picked up at midnight on July 21st! I am so stinkin excited I have recently listened to book 5 in preparation for the movie and book 6 in preparation for the final book of the series!

Happy Father's Day to our M.I.A. Dads!

I love my Daddy so much! He is the toughest and sweetest man at the same time and has taught me so much about hard work and setting goals. He's never met anything he can't conquer, and he seems to get younger and stronger every year. He is a wonderful teacher and a heck of a farmer, but most of all, he's my Daddy. Dad, I wish you were here in Utah to celebrate Father's Day, but I'm sure you're enjoying the Dominican Republic. Be safe and come home soon!

Lary the Bear! I am lucky enough to have been blessed with one heck of a father-in-law. Noah got a lot of his craziness and humor from his Dad, as well as his ability to be a jack of all trades and a chameleon. Lary is always working on the next project, and he's so young at heart and energetic. We hope we can keep up with him when he gets back from Louisiana!

My Little Girls...Kind of...

I love these little girls like they're my own! I get to see them at least 3 times every week, and I get to teach both Ellie and Tess dance lessons. I always tell Billie Jo that if she needs to get one of them off her hands, I'm the one to call.

This picture of Ellie looks so grown up! She is becoming quite mature, being the oldest. She comes to Orem once a week for Ballroom classes at Center Stage and gets to stay over with me every Wednesday night before she goes. Although she thinks my house is a little boring, being devoid of toys, she and I have lots of fun together running errands and playing in the pool.

I love how you can still sense Tess's personality in this photo even without seeing her face. She is so dainty, and loves being girly. She likes to have her long hair flowing down and loves dancing more than any child I've ever met. She begs me to help her stretch and spends every minute downstairs in the studio, whether it's her class or not. She is very fragile, but just as sweet.

Mia makes me want to have a little girl. She's always been the best cuddler of the three, but now has a fiery personality to show you just to prove she's tough. She is the toughest of all three, I think, and has a strong will that's unmatchable.

Crazy Bird

Our crazy little pretty bird, Petrie!

So I know this photo is a little fuzzy, but it shows just how crazy our parakeet is! Ever since we left him and went to Europe, he has become a crazy bird! He runs around his cage like a gerbil, and he attacks us if we try to get him out of his cage! He especially likes to hang upside down from the top of his cage and from the balls and rings which hang inside. He loves to eat apples, and because his wings are clipped, he's great at falling with style, but can't really fly too well... That's the only time he's nice to me anymore, when he flies down and needs me to lift him back up to his cage!

My Husband the Helicopter Pilot

It's finally here! Noah began his training at Silver State Helicopters this past Tuesday, and it seems that he has really found his niche in life! He has wanted to be a helicopter pilot since he was litte (his first ever journal entry says so) and has brought it up to me several times since being married. When our possible plan to move to Arizona to pursue advertising fell through, we took it as a sign that we should change career paths.

The estimated time for school is a year to 18 months, but Noah has CRUISED through his first lessons. He is scheduled everyday this week (instead of the normal 3/week) and has covered 5 complete lessons in only 2 scheduled lesson times. His instructors are already amazed with how naturally talented he is and he's ready to soar through. He's expecting to be finished in about 8 months.

When school is over, he will get a job as a certified flight instructor for 1-2 years (hopefully in Utah, but no promises) then we will be heading off somewhere to build up enough hours to get a long-term job. This will probably put us in Texas or somewhere along the Gulf of Mexico for a couple of years to fly for the big oil rigs.

I'm sure you'll be updated more than you even want to on this topic--but here's a good start!

Our Europe Pictures

If you enjoy the posts below, check out our entire album. Here's the link:

http://picasaweb.google.com/noahrasheta/EuropeTrip2007

Venice, Italy

Venice...the ultimately romantic city! We fed the pigeons in St Marks square and had an amazing gondola ride in both the Grand Canal and all the side canals in Venice. The feeling of this place is unlike any other. It is like a fantasy, so far away from what normal life is. Life just moves more slowly in Venice. You can't speed anywhere in a Gondola, and there are no quick undergrounds or trains or high speed cars. Waterbuses, water taxis, water everything...the slow pace was so refreshing!

Isle of Barra, Outer Hebrides, Scotland

Barra was the biggest surprise of the trip. We headed out there expecting to land on a little island and see Kisimul Castle, the stronghold of the Clan MacNeil.

We found instead that Barra is one of the most beautiful places we've ever seen. It was like a clip from Tristan and Isolde or Braveheart...so pretty. There were white sand beaches with turquoise, clear water...but way too cold to actually get in.

There is no real runway there; they land on the beach in a twin otter during low tide. There aren't many experiences I've had much cooler than our visit here.

Rome, Italy

Roma, Roma, Roma...

Home of the most expensive beverages ever sold to tourists by street vendors. Also, home of the coolest ever sights. The Colosseum and the Roman Forum from the ancient Romans were amazing, and St Peter's Basilica in Vatican City was incredible!

We were really hot in Rome! It probably wasn't that much hotter than here in Utah in the summer, yet it felt like it because we were walking all day in the sun without shade or air conditioning anywhere. Gelato was the only thing that could quench our desire to cool off. If you've got money to spend, take a trip to Rome. It was easily the most expensive leg of our trip, but it was so worth it. Amazing, amazing, amazing...

London, England

London was the first and last stop on our tour. In this photo you can see the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben behind us. We are standing on the pier where the London Eye runs.

London was overall my favorite place--the city we visited where I would most like to live. It was bustling with people and things to do and see, and the shows there were amazing! We saw Stomp, Wicked, and Les Miserables. This is also where we did most of our shopping!

Paris, France

Ah, Paris.

Don't be fooled, this is not a stock photo. I took this myself standing at the foot of the Eiffel Tower. It was amazing! We visited Paris 2nd on our tour around Europe.

Noah had been to the Eiffel Tower before, but hadn't been up to the top. He had waited for me and he didn't even know it was me he was waiting for. We got to share this amazing experience together for our 1st Anniversary.

Add that in with Notre Dame, Champs Elysees, and endless crepes, and Paris was a beautiful and romantic city for us.

Thank you Chelsea...

Well Chels, here's to you. It didn't take much to convince me to start a blog...I think it will be a fun way to keep up with my siblings (hint hint, to my other siblings). I'm a long winded person, but I'll try to keep everything concise as to not bore you.

With Noah starting at the Flight Academy on June 11th, there should be plenty to mention, and I will be a senior at UVSC this year. I'll be the first to receive the new Ballroom Dance degree, and I'm very proud.

Lovies to all!