HHF - Life Adventures of the Bontrager's

Well i don't think i've blogged about this before but i started making jewelry a while ago and just today picked up some fabulous finds that i HAD to come home and make into necklaces. :) thought i'd share some of the outcomes.... (thanks sarah mast http://ssmast.blogspot.com for coming and helping! :)

So i have ONE exception to my non-messy kitchen rule: CHRISTMAS COOKIES!!! :) they are the only thing that i allow to TOTALLY dirty up my kitchen..and i love it! :) here's my sugar cookies and some yummy quiche i made for our snow day today....we got over a foot of snow yesterday!! :)

well i'm offically a horrible blogger. But here our Christmas card and letter that will hopefully catch you up on all the things i haven't blogged in the last few months. :) Merry Christmas! While Dan is working on house projects right now, I decided it was time to write our Christmas letter and we can’t believe it’s already been a year since our last one! Time sure does seem to fly. This year was full of blessings and we are thankful for such a wonderful last 12 months. For all of our family and friends that don’t live in Nebraska and might not now what our last year has been like, I will try to give you a “nutshell” of our adventures.  In January, Dan and I went skiing with my parents, Alyssa, my uncle Greg and aunt Kolleen and cousin Taylor in Colorado. It was a wonderful trip and definitely one of our favorite New Years to date. We welcomed in the new year at Copper Ski Resort with music, dancing, fireworks and cheer in single digit weather and enjoyed every minute ...

so here are some pics from Eryx's debut show...i went with my friend Alicia and Laura from the barn and the "boys". we had so much fun! :)

well, could i POSSIBLY be worse at this blogging?! i think not. excuse my lacking ability to keep this updated. However, i will try to fill you in on the last few months.... May - Best month of the year for sure! went on our AMAZING trip to Europe and saw most of Italy, Greece and went "island hopping" on the greek islands. FABULOUS. June-Not too exciting...just working a TON and took on some more horse clients..i can't believe how wonderful my job is! July- Alyssa's best friend Chandler and i took her on a suprise trip to Chicago for a weekend "away" from wedding stuff to gorge on amazing food and shop til we dropped. :) we had way too much fun. i also debuted my horse Eryx Meridious in his first show and he did INCREDIBLE. he really was an angel and i was SO proud of him! dan came to take pics and just be moral support..it was a great weekend as well! August- has been INSANE so far...first week was filled with county fair where many students showed their h...

well the last week has been quite busy for me as i was going full time to a clinic to become a certified riding instructor. The information below is what the program is about and what it means. it is a fantastic program and i'm excited to begin teaching with the set of skills and exercises that the program promotes. i'm really excited to be done and ready to go on our trip! we leave wednesday! :) more pics will follow.... Secure Seat© is a means to a deep, balanced seat on a horse that results in a rider who is less likely to fall. It has been used by the American Association for Horsemanship Safety for about ten years. "It all started with a champion bull rider friend named Pat who came out to go horseback riding with me one day. He got on a horse, and I was stunned by the grace of his position, considering he rode bulls more often than he rode horses. He reminded me of the best riders I had ever known. I knew that I wanted my seat to be as good as his, but I also knew ...

well, i finally did it...i'm offically graduated! :) and, as of a few days ago, i am an offical Certified Surgical Technologist. (i found out i passed my board exam! yeay!) so, another huge hurdle of life is done...and i'm very thankful for it! :) here are some pics from the festivities of the evening...