Thanksgiving '13

This year for Thanksgiving we spent a few days in Salt Lake City with my sisters. Maren found a great house (I kind of loved it) that we could all stay in for the week. It was a ton of fun staying together and seeing everyone. We missed Mom, Dad, Reid, and Malinda though! Anthony and I drove down from Rexburg on Tuesday after I got off work and had a late birthday dinner for Anthony with our friends Brad and Autumn at The Cheesecake Factory. It was so good to see our Hawaii friends! They moved to Utah last spring and we hadn't seen them since then. We had a really good time laughing and catching up with each other for a few hours!


Wednesday we woke up and played with Easton and Jude (so much fun to see them all day, every day) before we all got ready to go to the "This is the Place" monument/park. I hadn't been there in years, so it was fun to go back and actually read some of the educational stuff this time! After we were done there we went back to the house and just hung out for the rest of the afternoon. The twins came up after work and we all went out to Mexican food in honor of our parents. Besides the fact that there was some sketchy "Gentleman's Club" next door to the restaurant, it was actually really good food and we all ate til we were sick! We then spent the evening prepping for our Thanksgiving feast back at the house. It was so fun that Easton snuck out of bed 3 times because he didn't want to miss the party!


Thursday was Thanksgiving so we woke up and did some last minute meal prepping while we started cooking. We obviously had to do some kind of physical activity since we were going to stuff our faces that afternoon, so Hayley picked a hike that everyone could do. It was such a pretty hike, and I got to carry Jude in the front pack. Even though I was huffing and puffing, it was so cute to hear his little snores. The best part of the hike was trying to keep Easton from falling off the side of the mountain.....kid needs some work on his brakes! I love him though, he kept us laughing the whole trip. Also, he informed Bryan and I, on the hike, that he wants to be a tree when he grows up..... hmmm. Anthony and I watched Rio with Easton after dinner and we couldn't stop laughing at how funny he thought the movie was. He was laughing to the point of tears and then terrified to where he would cover his eyes (when the mean white bird would come on..for anyone that's seen it). He was more entertainment than the movie.


Friday was our last full day together. Everyone had a few things to do in the morning, so Anthony and I went out to breakfast with his sister and brother (they were so kindly watching Gemma for us).  After breakfast we hung out for a bit before going back to the house. We spent the afternoon playing with Easton and Jude (there is a pattern going on) before we all went out to see the lights at Temple Square (minus the twins, we missed them!). Temple Square was SO pretty and I even ran into a classmate from Hawaii who is serving her mission there! It was awesome. I was really sad Friday night because we were all going our separate ways in the morning, so it was nice to spend the night wandering around Temple Square together.


Saturday Maren and Bryan left and Easton almost made me cry saying goodbye. He has a habit of hitting my soft spot, as does Jude (and he can't even talk yet!). Anthony and I spent the night in Provo with his Aunt. I was driving home solo the next day so we went to bed pretty early. The next day, we picked up Gemma, I dropped Anthony off for his work trip, and I started the journey back to Rexburg. The drive isn't too bad, just kind of boring by yourself. I'm glad Gemma can't talk or she probably would have told me to stop singing multiple times. I hate how empty the house is without Anthony. It's a good thing I have Gemma though. She is good company and spends most of her time sleeping with her head in my lap. Last night it snowed A TON so we had fun going out and playing in it today. She loves the snow. It's pretty funny to watch her jump around and stick her head in it.

Anyway, this was a boring post. Probably way too detailed and I'm pretty sure no one but my mom reads this. I love you mom!

Oh, and here are some pictures:

Anthony and I also took some family photos for a Christmas card while we were in Utah, but I can't post those because we haven't decided which one we like...

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is enjoying this Christmas season!

Quick trips

It's been a busy weekend, but one I am so grateful I had. Friday after work I hurried home to pack an overnight bag for my quick trip to Salt Lake. I was pretty excited to see my mom one last time before she heads back to Mexico. (I was excited to see Hayley too, but I know I will be seeing her again at the end of this month!) It's about 3 1/2 - 4 hours from Rexburg to Salt Lake so I had to get some soda and treats to keep me alert. I hadn't ever done the drive alone before this weekend! It was a pretty quick drive down there (I made it in a little under 3 1/2 hours) because the weather was really good and there was no traffic. By the time I got to Hayley's it was a little after 8 pm so we just hung out and talked for a few hours. It was really nice to see them both again. Also, they both looked awesome considering what they have gone through! I was amazed at how quickly they have been recovering. 

On Saturday we woke up and got ready to go to brunch. My dad told us we HAD to try Big Ed's (I think that's what it's called) by the University of Utah. So that's exactly what we did. It was so delicious too! I'm not going to lie, I was impressed how good it was. Especially because it's just a random hole in the wall! I would definitely recommend it to anyone. After breakfast we went to City Creek Mall for my moms favorite kind of bonding (anyone who knows my mom knows how much she loooooves the mall - and how sarcastic that statement is). We had a really good time wandering around talking and shopping. My mom was a serious trooper to walk that much, with a brand new hip, around a mall. After the mall we decided to head home so naps could be taken. We hung out at Hayley's for a little bit and ate lots of leftover Halloween candy. I decided to leave a little earlier than I had planned because I was worried about driving late and hitting a snow/rain storm. It's never easy saying goodbyes and yesterday was no exception. It was just like saying goodbye in June all over again. I really realized how much I miss my parents. I am so glad I can talk to them and see them on skype whenever I want, but it's never the same as seeing them in person. I am grateful for their example of faith and know they are doing some amazing things in Mexico. I love them both so much and am so very grateful I got to spend time with my mom yesterday. I can't wait to plan a trip to Mexico to see them both!! 

Although it was a quick trip, it was totally worth it! I'm excited to see my siblings for thanksgiving in a few weeks and I know that will be a good time!

Adios til next time!

P.

New Jobs and New Additions

It seems like there has been a lot going on around here lately (well compared to the last month and a half). Anthony and I got called to teach Sunday School at church together, I got a job, I finished a sewing project (finally!), and we took a trip to Utah (with another this weekend!)...oh yeah, and we got a puppy! Maybe that's why it seems like there's been a lot going on.....


Getting a job meant no more partying(alone) all day while Anthony works....although, my job is only 2 hours a day as of right now ;) So there's still lots of partying going on! haha. Anyway, I got a job at one of the local elementary schools as the Assistant Secretary in the office. I absolutely LOVE it and adore all the cute kids I get to see every day! I am so grateful to have this job! I really do love it so much. I get a little sad everyday at the end of my two hours and find myself wishing I could stay a little longer. Yes, it's that much fun! (maybe I just need more hours, but I like to think that's not the case! :))


Our calling at church is awesome. We teach 12/13 year olds and were literally shocked at how well behaved and interactive these kids were. The girls take NOTES while we teach. What!? I know, like I said, it's awesome. We team teach so we decided we would switch off weeks of being the "lead" teacher. Anthony taught last week so I'm up this week! It should be interesting since I always get nervous when I teach... I will let you know how that goes.. Oh, we also got asked to speak in church on November 11! I am kind of excited (more nervous) because it's been a while since I've gotten to speak in church! The last time was when Anthony and I had first started dating...seems like forever ago (in the best way, of course).


I am excited to go to Utah again this weekend..who thought I would ever be excited to go to Utah! :p juuust kidding. We will get to see my mom one last time before she jets back to Mexico and I am really looking forward to that time together. Our last trip was a bit of a whirlwind since we got in late Friday and left Sunday afternoon. I think we spent most of our time in the car... Not to mention we had just adopted our puppy that same Friday....ha. It was still so good to see everyone. We got a glimpse of the twins on Sunday, and spent the rest of the time with Hayley, Maren, Easton, Jude, and mom. It was really fun seeing everyone and adventuring through parts of Utah together! I miss getting to hang out all together on a regular basis!!


Our new little family member has adjusted super well to life with us and totally fits right in. Gemma is a 4 month old white/yellow lab. We adopted her from the animal shelter here in Rexburg and she is probably the best behaved, sweetest, cuddliest, and smartest puppy I've ever met. She's so obedient and mellow (most of the time, she's still a puppy after all!) it blows my mind. If I lay down to take a nap, she curls up next to me and sleeps as long as I do. It's awesome. haha. We all know how much I love my naps! Also, we let her off her leash and she doesn't go further than a few yards without looking back at us and waiting for us to catch up. Miracle, since the last dog my family owned would look at you and keep running as far away as possible and the word "come" was not anywhere in his vocabulary (it actually meant "run" to him). Oh, Kobe. Anyway, we've love having her be a part of our lives and are always laughing at the weird things she does (especially when she wants our attention).


My sewing project really wasn't that exciting. I made my self a skirt because I am always searching for church clothes (and now "professional" work clothes too)! It's not much to brag about and I always tell people not to look too closely at the seams/hems. Still learning over here....


I don't have a ton of pictures, but here are a few worth sharing:

Salt Lake City

Provo morning

More Salt Lake adventures

Gemma wanting a piece of those ducks!

Our FHE one week:)

My pumpkin!

Passed out puppy

One day I will get better at this blogging thing. Until then, I guess you will have to put up with my sporadic posts!

Photo Overload

I finally have something fun to blog about! Yesterday we went to a place called Bear World. Its like a reserve where they have all kinds of animals, but of course the most exciting animals were the bears! I have wanted to go to Bear World since I was up here as a freshman in 2010. It's normally about $16 a person but yesterday we got to go for the low price of $8.50 each. We crammed in a car with two other couples (Tiffany, Brent, Nick, and Laura) and drove through the park. I took pictures (they will be included in this post) and had a lot of fun playing with my camera, seeing some "wild" animals, and hanging out with our friends. The husbands were so excited about the bears I thought some of them might wet their pants. hahaha. Boys. Anyway, it was a pretty cool experience since I would prefer to be in a car next to bears rather than in a tent next to bears....

Ok, here are the pictures:

 A White Elk (made me think of Christmas...ha!)

 Some Buffalo

 There were two wolves in this picture, but you can only really see one.

 aaaaaand the bears!

 These are the "babies" you can feed if you pay a lot extra.

 Then we went and catapulted some potatoes because, well, we are in Idaho!

The bears were extra chubby because they are going into hibernation next week. It was pretty cool being so close to these bears and watching them wander around and interact with each other. There were two grizzly bears too, but I couldn't get a picture of them because they were sleeping and blending in with the grass. They looked scary asleep, so that was good enough for me!


I was looking through my camera and realized I had a bunch of pictures from when we were in San Diego before moving up here. I thought I would share a few of my favorite pictures from that trip:)

Molly the Cow

 

 Our unplanned trip to the beach with Maren and the boys. (Easton getting ready to splash Uncle Amfy)

 "Come in with me!"

 Sand, mmmmm mmmmm!

Sorry for the long post:) I am excited for the next couple of weeks and the adventures that are coming our way (new jobs, school, Utah trips, etc). We will be in Utah next weekend with my family so I am sure I will have more pictures and stories to share!


Love you all!! I will be back soon ;)
P.