Chicago!

A few weeks ago we were able to take a quick weekend trip to Chicago to visit some of our friends from college! Ben and Megan are living in Chicago while Ben goes to medical school. We haven't seen them since they left for school about 3 years ago, so it was really fun to be able to hang out with them! 

After we landed in Chicago we got on the train and headed to downtown to their apartment. Of course the first thing we did when we got there was plan out what we were going to have for dinner. We obviously needed to go get some deep dish pizza, so we went to Giordano's. It was delicious! After pizza we walked around downtown exploring the sights, we saw the bean and even watched a little bit of a gospel music group at Millennium Park. After all of the walking around and touring, we obviously deserved to go get some donuts, cause if there is anything I have learned from being married to Brayden, is that there is always room for some donuts but only if he has some milk to go with it! The rest of the night was spent relaxing and catching up with Ben and Megan!

The next morning as soon as we woke up we headed to Wildberry Pancakes. This place did not disappoint. It was so so good! The rest of the day we walked around exploring some more of Chicago. We walked down Michigan Avenue going in and out of all of their shops and of course that worked up a bit of an appetite but we were all still in a food coma from breakfast that we just decided on a little snack. We stopped at Garrett's Popcorn and got some of their "Garret Mix", which is a mix of caramel and cheese popcorn. It was a perfect snack to have while walking around and shopping. Unfortunately there was not a Cubs games while we were there but we still wanted to at least go see the field. We were so bummed when we found out that there wasn't a game, but it was still fun to go see it! We went to dinner later that night at Butcher & the Burger. Then after dinner we went to a little bakery, I can't remember what it was called... but we got the best rice krispie treats! Once we got back to their apartment after a busy day we all got comfy and turned on the Cubs game and played some Settler's of Catan.

Sunday morning, we obviously went to go get some donuts before church. And naturally Brayden wanted to try two different places to see which donut he liked best! So we went to Stan's Donuts and then went down a block and got some Do-Rite donuts. I personally liked the Do-Rite donuts better, because I am more simple when it comes to donuts, I don't need a ton of random fancy toppings on my donuts. Give me a chocolate or maple glaze and I am good to go. Once we got back from donuts, Brayden and I walked down to the Navy Pier and explored a bit. Chicago is so clean and pretty! After getting back from our walk we got ready for church. On our way to church we stopped to see a beautiful, FREE! view of the skyline. It always helps to be staying with some locals because they teach you all the tricks, so instead of paying to go see the exact same view from the SkyDeck, Ben and Megan took us to another tower to get a beautiful view. After church we decided it was time to compare some chicago deep dish pizza by going to another restaurant. So we headed to Lou Malnatis. Obviously, it was so good! That was a theme with chicago..we loved it!

It was so much fun to be able to visit some friends and catch up with them. They are about to have a baby in a few days and we are so excited for them! Megan was such a trooper walking around everywhere being our tour guide while 8 months pregnant. We loved being able to see them in their city!

** After writing this whole thing out, I am kind of embarrassed of how much I talk about food...ha! But we seriously loved the food in Chicago, everything we had was delicious! **

Camping

when you think of camping, you probably wouldn't associate my name very closely to that word. but guess what, i went camping. and i enjoyed it! i honestly love getting outside and going on hikes and being in the mountains, but i also love showering and sleeping in my own very comfortable bed. but a couple of weekends ago some of our friends asked if we wanted to go camping and we couldn't turn down the offer to be in the mountains. i have really missed being close to the mountains and being able to go on day hikes whenever we were bored or wanted to get out of the house. don't get me wrong, i absolutely love living on the coast near the beach!

it was a blast! the cool mountain air was just what we needed. jake drove down early friday morning to get us a spot on the campgrounds and the rest of us drove down late friday night after we got off work. it was really nice to drive up to the campsite and have all of our tents already set up and ready to go, thanks jake! the rest of the night was spent hanging around the campfire just talking with everyone.

saturday morning we woke up, made some breakfast and got ready for our hike! we talked the night before and decided to go on an 8 mile hike. we all got ready to go and were off! since i had my watch on i kept track of how many miles we were going and when we got to 4 we all expected to be there...but we weren't, so we all kept on going. another mile passed, then another, we still weren't there! finally after awhile we got to the lookout point, and it was beautiful!! we sat down and enjoyed some snacks while looking over the mountain range. we headed back down and the last mile i got bit by some sort of bug on my leg and i had an allergic reaction to it! so the last mile was not the happiest for me.. i still have a large circle from the bug bite two weeks later but the itching has gone away which has been amazing. once we were done with the hike we realized we hiked about 13 miles, which was quite a bit farther than we were expecting but it was still so beautiful and worth it! the rest of the night was spent around the campfire roasting hot dogs for dinner and then of course making s'mores!

the next morning we were planning on maybe going on another hike, but we were all so exhausted from the last hike that we decided to pass. so we cleaned up camp and headed back home. on our way home we made a little pit stop at cheesecake factory for lunch. we ordered it to go and then went to a park to enjoy the food. it was delicious! it was one of our go to places back in utah and california, so we have really missed it out in south carolina! **confession: right when i heard we were going camping i looked up a couple of our favorite food places from back home to see if there were any on our way! to our luck i found cheesecake factory! once we got to the campsite brayden told everyone that i knew there was a cheesecake factory on our way home and they all definitely agreed we would have to make a pit stop there. that is when i knew we would all be great friends.**

it was so good to enjoy a weekend away with friends! i am so glad we were able to go, it was a perfect escape from all our responsibilities!

Bachelorette Party!

I have some amazing friends that threw me the best bachelorette party up in Utah. It was a small little group with just Rebecky, Cydsqui, Des, Emily, Kenzy, and even Christie was able to come to Utah for it! I was a little nervous what these girls had up their sleeve for this night, but I was excited to just spend a night with my best friends, something we hadn't done that often in awhile.

The night started with Brayden dropping me off at Becky's house. When I got there I had to change into workout clothes for the "workout class" we were headed to. Of course I knew this meant going to a pole dancing class. They assured me though that they had checked out the place and made sure it was a fun and clean environment, so I was good to go. Surprisingly to me we all had a blast! Our instructor was so fun. It is seriously a workout, one that I am not cut out to do everyday haha The whole class was just spent laughing and trying not to fall off the pole :)

After the class we needed food. Obviously. And what better place to go for food, treats and drinks than the Squire's house! I absolutely love going to the Squire's. They make every one of Cydnee's friends feel like family. They are the best. It also doesn't hurt that they basically have a Sodalicious shop in their garage. Once we got to the house we ate so much Costco pizza, brownies, chips, and soda. It was delicious and I loved every moment.

It was a great night with the greatest friends! Love you guys!

Bridal Showers

My fun pre-wedding activities consisted of two showers, one in California and one in Utah. They were both so much fun. The decorations were perfect, but I wouldn't expect anything else from my mom and sister Whitney!  At the California shower we had Cafe Rio salads and then a yummy bundt cake for dessert with homemade animal cookie ice cream. We played a couple of games and opened presents. I am so grateful for everyone that came to my bridal showers, it was a perfect way to start off the best time in my life!

Summer 2015

The summer of 2015 was filled with many fun adventures. It felt like I was gone every weekend, it was great.

First, right when I got back from my study abroad I went home to California for a couple of days with my family before going back to Utah.  Those few days were amazing. I love being home. We went shopping, ate, and just hung out with family. Then it was time to go back to Utah. Taylor flew up with me because my best friend Ryan Halls was getting married so she wanted to be there! I love when Taylor comes to visit Utah. When we flew in I had arranged with Becky to pick us up from the airport because Brayden had “work” and couldn’t. I was a little bummed he couldn’t come pick us up because I hadn’t seen him in about 2 months, but I had a little hunch that he was lying and was going to surprise me. I didn’t want to say anything, but of course I hoped it would happen….and it did!! It was the best surprise and was so great to be back in his arms again. On our way home from the airport we stopped at In-N-Out, of course. It was phenomenal, but it always is so that wasn’t a shock. The next few days were spent hiking with Taylor and Trevor, visiting the Alpine slides, Ryan’s wedding, and just hanging out with friends.

A couple weeks later was the Jimmerosity tournament. Jimmerosity is the foundation that I interned for this summer. It all went pretty smoothly. It was exciting to see all of our hard work come together. Brayden and I were even able to be referees for the tournament. Bad choice. Especially when you have overprotective parents that think their son/daughter are going to be the next kids in the NBA. But even after all the yelling it was still fun!

After we finished the tournament in Provo, Breck (another intern who happens to also be my cousin) and I were asked if we wanted to go to Glens Falls, New York. So of course we jumped at the opportunity to go to New York. It was a good experience for both of us, but also very stressful.

When I flew back from New York, Brayden and Whitney picked me up and we drove straight from Salt Lake to La Verne for the 4^th of July. I love the 4^th of July in La Verne. The small town parade, carnival and fireworks are so fun to me. We went to the parade, but then headed to our Newport beach house after it was over. In Newport we rode bikes around the beach, ate, and then watched to fireworks on the beach. The next day was the Disneyland day! Brayden has never been to Disneyland so we wanted to get a whole days worth of Disneyland. It was such a good day; I love everything about Disney. We got there when it opened and left when it closed. It was a perfect Disney day.

A few weeks later it was the annual Zylstra Newport vacation. This is my favorite time of the year. I love being with family and just hanging out with them all day. We spent most days by the pool, eating, paddle boarding, and playing games on the beach. We were able to go to some of our favorite places and enjoy our time together, unfortunately Rylee and Tanner couldn’t come because of school. We could all tell a difference without them there, I hate school.

When we got back to Utah we were able to hang out with our friends Ben and Megan Hopkins one more time before they left for medical school in Chicago. We went to the Lady Antebellum concert, not the best concert I have ever been to, but still a great time with friends!

At the beginning of August Brayden and I went to Bear Lake with Emily Egbert, Kenzy, and Kenzy’s family and friends. It was such a good time! There was so much to do, and Kenzy’s parents were great hosts. We rode 4-wheelers, dirt bikes, went boating, and played games at the cabin. It was a perfect weekend with friends. After that trip Bear Lake is one of my favorite places to vacation. Thank you Busby’s!

The rest of the summer was basically spent with Brayden and Kevin Johnson, Brayden’s friends from Boise. We loved spending our time with Kevin, just sitting by the fire at King Henry, barbecues, In-N-Out trips, and watching the Warriors beat the Caveliers. We are really going to miss being with friends when we move! The summer of 2015 will be hard to beat!