Anyway - she was married yesterday and she looked beautiful and so happy. I am very happy for her and Danny.
I forgot to take any pictures, so I had to steal this one form one of Kati's friend's facebook pages.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Congratulations!
Tuesday was a big day for one of my favorite people in the world. My cousin Kati got married. Now Kati has always been someone I look up to. She is just a few months younger than my older sister, and I must admit that there were times when I was a little girl (don't read this Chrystie) that I wanted to trade!
Anyway - she was married yesterday and she looked beautiful and so happy. I am very happy for her and Danny.
Anyway - she was married yesterday and she looked beautiful and so happy. I am very happy for her and Danny.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Christmas Time is Here
Christmas is coming fast. I think now we have 12 or so days until it is here. Like every year I am trying to jam as much Christmas fun as I can into my weekends and after work hours. I have been recording all the good Christmas shows that come on TV and trying to watch them when I can. I listen to Christmas music while I am at work. We put up our tree and have started to buy presents and even wrap some of them.
One of the things I like to do every year at Christmas is go to the Journey to Bethlehem put on by the Mountain View Baptist Church in Layton. I started going to this several years ago. It is near my parent’s house and we would drive past and see the city of Bethlehem being built each winter. I have taken Matt with me to this for the past few years. We like to invite different people to come and experience it, because most people don’t know about it. This year we again invited Matt’s Aunt Amy and her family to come with us.
It was actually really great weather this year. It was a little foggy, but it had to have been 30 degrees warmer than last year. I didn’t have to bundle up nearly as much. We arrived early and still had to wait quite a while for our tour. Luckily Matt has discovered that his ( and my) new phones are really a good way to keep kids entertained while waiting, so his cousins had a good time playing Angry Birds while we were waiting. The actual journey was fun this year. Our guides put a little more humor into the tour than they usually do. I really enjoyed it. I hope the other Clarks did too. (after the journey to Bethlehem we went back to Greg and Amy’s for yummy soup and Birthday Pie. Happy Birthday Greg!)
And then last night I hosted my first ever Christmas Party! It has been a while since my Mom’s family has gotten together for a Christmas party. I decided to offer my house as a place to host it, since most of the family lives in the area and we have a big open room in our basement. I will admit I was pretty stressed out about the idea after I got it rolling. I am not a great hostess – mostly due to lack of practice. My great plans of sending out invitations fell flat when time just ran out on me. So in the end I had to rely on Facebook to get the word out – and it isn’t always the best way to go. But we ended up having my Grandma and one of my cousins come over, as well as my sister and parents. So it was a good crowd and we had fun. The food was good and we played (or tried to with the little kids around) BINGO for presents like we did when we were kids. I thought it was mostly successful and I may try to have people come to my house again someday – maybe.
On Friday night I went to the Christmas Carol at the Terrace Plaza Playhouse in Washington Terrace with my friend Dawn. It was really fun. We had front row seats, which took me a while to get used to because I felt a little awkward being so close to the people. But it ended up being really fun. They are basically doing the same show as the Scrooge movie my Dad always loved (including the Thank You Very Much song). It was a lot of fun and put me in the Christmas mood.
We had a ward Christmas breakfast on Saturday. I don't know why they have a breakfast, but it has worked out well so far. I guess it gives us a different time to be there instead of in the evening like everyone else. I know most people probably have no problem being up and to the church by 8:30am, but we are still people who like to sleep in. But it was nice, lots of yummy breakfast and cut kids doing the nativity.
So we have been having fun so far this Christmas. I am starting to list all the other things I want to get done and it is going to be a busy couple weeks ahead. Busy – but fun!
And just so I don't have a pictureless blog - here is our Christmas tree!
One of the things I like to do every year at Christmas is go to the Journey to Bethlehem put on by the Mountain View Baptist Church in Layton. I started going to this several years ago. It is near my parent’s house and we would drive past and see the city of Bethlehem being built each winter. I have taken Matt with me to this for the past few years. We like to invite different people to come and experience it, because most people don’t know about it. This year we again invited Matt’s Aunt Amy and her family to come with us.
It was actually really great weather this year. It was a little foggy, but it had to have been 30 degrees warmer than last year. I didn’t have to bundle up nearly as much. We arrived early and still had to wait quite a while for our tour. Luckily Matt has discovered that his ( and my) new phones are really a good way to keep kids entertained while waiting, so his cousins had a good time playing Angry Birds while we were waiting. The actual journey was fun this year. Our guides put a little more humor into the tour than they usually do. I really enjoyed it. I hope the other Clarks did too. (after the journey to Bethlehem we went back to Greg and Amy’s for yummy soup and Birthday Pie. Happy Birthday Greg!)
And then last night I hosted my first ever Christmas Party! It has been a while since my Mom’s family has gotten together for a Christmas party. I decided to offer my house as a place to host it, since most of the family lives in the area and we have a big open room in our basement. I will admit I was pretty stressed out about the idea after I got it rolling. I am not a great hostess – mostly due to lack of practice. My great plans of sending out invitations fell flat when time just ran out on me. So in the end I had to rely on Facebook to get the word out – and it isn’t always the best way to go. But we ended up having my Grandma and one of my cousins come over, as well as my sister and parents. So it was a good crowd and we had fun. The food was good and we played (or tried to with the little kids around) BINGO for presents like we did when we were kids. I thought it was mostly successful and I may try to have people come to my house again someday – maybe.
On Friday night I went to the Christmas Carol at the Terrace Plaza Playhouse in Washington Terrace with my friend Dawn. It was really fun. We had front row seats, which took me a while to get used to because I felt a little awkward being so close to the people. But it ended up being really fun. They are basically doing the same show as the Scrooge movie my Dad always loved (including the Thank You Very Much song). It was a lot of fun and put me in the Christmas mood.
We had a ward Christmas breakfast on Saturday. I don't know why they have a breakfast, but it has worked out well so far. I guess it gives us a different time to be there instead of in the evening like everyone else. I know most people probably have no problem being up and to the church by 8:30am, but we are still people who like to sleep in. But it was nice, lots of yummy breakfast and cut kids doing the nativity.
So we have been having fun so far this Christmas. I am starting to list all the other things I want to get done and it is going to be a busy couple weeks ahead. Busy – but fun!
And just so I don't have a pictureless blog - here is our Christmas tree!
Saturday, November 27, 2010
I love holidays! I guess most people probably do. I love holidays full of tradition where you get to spend time with family and friends. I also love holidays that don’t have any set things to do and are a really nice day off of work! November 11th was Veteran’s Day. I was trying to plan something to do that day to enjoy my time off of work. I thought about going to Salt Lake and getting a haircut and massage, and Matt suggested that I take the Friday off and we go for a mini vacation. We are lucky enough to have Matt’s dad living in Mesquite, which is just a nice warm place to go.
So Wednesday after work we packed up my cute little Corolla and headed out. We never seem to get on the road early enough for my taste, but since it gets dark at 5:00 now it didn’t really matter when we left.
The weather in Ogden and Salt Lake was not too bad. It started getting a little snowy and wet in Utah County, and by the time we got to Nephi it was definitely snowing. This was sad because I hate going over the passes in the snow. So we pulled the weather up on the phones and hoped that it would be OK farther south. It wasn’t bad enough to scare us off yet, so we kept going – knowing very well that we may end up spending the night in a fancy hotel in Scipio or Fillmore.
The weather was yucky all the way down. We made it over the passes going at a comfortably slow speed. I am glad my Matt is such a good driver. I knew he would do what he needed to so we could be safe. We were happy to pull over in Cedar city and take a break. It was snowing pretty bad there too, but we needed to get out of the car and relax a little (and I had a bad cold, so we stopped to get some Kleenex). Back on the road it was all downhill from there and we made it to Mesquite safe (a few hours later than we planned, but safe).
I was zonked out with my cold, so I went to bed but Matt stayed up to talk to his dad for a while.
The next morning we slept in. Ahhhh- that is one of the best parts of vacation! We were not sure what we wanted to do that day, but I had read that it was free admission into National Parks for Veteran’s day, so we made the decision to drive up to Zion’s. We got a pretty late start, and by the time we got into the park it was about 3. We knew we were not planning on any serious hikes that day, so we were OK taking it slow. We did the emerald pools (which is one of the first ones you get to) and it was nice to get out and hike around. By the time we finished that it was getting darker and we knew we didn’t have much chance to see anything else. We took the super short drive up to weeping rock and that was it. The day was over. The sun was down by about 5:00! Oh winter!
On our way out of the park we encountered a very stubborn deer. He was just standing in the middle of our lane. We waited behind him for what seemed like 10 minutes before we finally realized he wasn’t going anywhere and drove around him. Silly deer.
We stopped in St. George on our way out of Zion’s to do some shopping. I had a 30% off coupon to Old Navy and we found a bunch of t-shirts for Matt for about $3 each. Very nice. We had a nice dinner and then took in a movie before heading back to Mesquite. (we saw Red. Matt had been wanting to, and it had good reviews, but it was only OK).
Friday we slept in again before heading out to the Valley of Fire. It is a Nevada State park located between Mesquite and Las Vegas. To get there we drove through the Moapa Valley. I have to admit I was blown away! I had no idea that there were so many people living in what I thought was just the middle of the desert. There is a high school and a community college and lots of houses. It was a cute little area. Soon we made it into the park and had a good time walking around and taking pictures. It is a small place, and we were able to see pretty much everything we wanted to in the few hours that we were there.
The park closed a sunset, which was 4:30, so we got out of there early. We headed back to Mesquite and looked around for a place to have dinner. The casinos were crowded for the weekend and the buffet was marked up, so we didn’t do that and instead found a little Mexican restaurant that ended up being pretty good. We went to another movie, this time we saw Unstoppable (I think that was the name). The train movie with Denzel Washington. It was good. I think that both me and Matt liked it – which is rare .
Saturday we slept in again. Then we took some time to hang out with Matt’s dad and watch the U of U lose to Notre Dame (bummer). Then we headed out for a fabulous night in Las Vegas. I wanted to go to Freemont Street. I have never been there, but I heard good things about it, so I was excited to go. Matt was more skeptical about us having any fun, until we got there. It was so much fun! Like an amazing little street festival! There were lots of people dressed up so you could take your picture with them (for a price). There were artists and street magicians and it was just a lot of fun. We walked around there for a couple hours then headed in to the Strip. Matt had purchased us tickets to see Mystere by Cirque De Soleil. We picked up our tickets from the discount ticket place (totally awesome!) and then went to the buffet at Treasure Island. That was nice! We got it discounted along with our tickets and had a good time. They had really good food – cook to order pasta – their own pastry chef making desserts. I just wish I could have eaten more!
Then we went to the show. I had never been to a Cirque De Soleil show before, and it was awesome. It took me a minute to really get into it because at first I was trying to have it fit a plot line – which it doesn’t. It is just a circus – and an amazing one!
The show was really good and then it was time to drive back to Mesquite and get some good sleep before our drive home.
Sunday was sadly the day to go home. We took the morning slow, but soon we had to pack and get on the road. We were lucky with the weather until about Fillmore, where it started to get wet. The roads were busy, but not as bad as we have seen before. We stopped at a little diner in Fillmore and got hamburgers and shakes. It was pretty good. We may have to make a tradition of that. It was rainy and snowy all the way home from that point, but we made it safe! And that ended our Super fun mini-vacation!
So Wednesday after work we packed up my cute little Corolla and headed out. We never seem to get on the road early enough for my taste, but since it gets dark at 5:00 now it didn’t really matter when we left.
The weather in Ogden and Salt Lake was not too bad. It started getting a little snowy and wet in Utah County, and by the time we got to Nephi it was definitely snowing. This was sad because I hate going over the passes in the snow. So we pulled the weather up on the phones and hoped that it would be OK farther south. It wasn’t bad enough to scare us off yet, so we kept going – knowing very well that we may end up spending the night in a fancy hotel in Scipio or Fillmore.
The weather was yucky all the way down. We made it over the passes going at a comfortably slow speed. I am glad my Matt is such a good driver. I knew he would do what he needed to so we could be safe. We were happy to pull over in Cedar city and take a break. It was snowing pretty bad there too, but we needed to get out of the car and relax a little (and I had a bad cold, so we stopped to get some Kleenex). Back on the road it was all downhill from there and we made it to Mesquite safe (a few hours later than we planned, but safe).
I was zonked out with my cold, so I went to bed but Matt stayed up to talk to his dad for a while.
The next morning we slept in. Ahhhh- that is one of the best parts of vacation! We were not sure what we wanted to do that day, but I had read that it was free admission into National Parks for Veteran’s day, so we made the decision to drive up to Zion’s. We got a pretty late start, and by the time we got into the park it was about 3. We knew we were not planning on any serious hikes that day, so we were OK taking it slow. We did the emerald pools (which is one of the first ones you get to) and it was nice to get out and hike around. By the time we finished that it was getting darker and we knew we didn’t have much chance to see anything else. We took the super short drive up to weeping rock and that was it. The day was over. The sun was down by about 5:00! Oh winter!
On our way out of the park we encountered a very stubborn deer. He was just standing in the middle of our lane. We waited behind him for what seemed like 10 minutes before we finally realized he wasn’t going anywhere and drove around him. Silly deer.
We stopped in St. George on our way out of Zion’s to do some shopping. I had a 30% off coupon to Old Navy and we found a bunch of t-shirts for Matt for about $3 each. Very nice. We had a nice dinner and then took in a movie before heading back to Mesquite. (we saw Red. Matt had been wanting to, and it had good reviews, but it was only OK).
Friday we slept in again before heading out to the Valley of Fire. It is a Nevada State park located between Mesquite and Las Vegas. To get there we drove through the Moapa Valley. I have to admit I was blown away! I had no idea that there were so many people living in what I thought was just the middle of the desert. There is a high school and a community college and lots of houses. It was a cute little area. Soon we made it into the park and had a good time walking around and taking pictures. It is a small place, and we were able to see pretty much everything we wanted to in the few hours that we were there.
The park closed a sunset, which was 4:30, so we got out of there early. We headed back to Mesquite and looked around for a place to have dinner. The casinos were crowded for the weekend and the buffet was marked up, so we didn’t do that and instead found a little Mexican restaurant that ended up being pretty good. We went to another movie, this time we saw Unstoppable (I think that was the name). The train movie with Denzel Washington. It was good. I think that both me and Matt liked it – which is rare .
Saturday we slept in again. Then we took some time to hang out with Matt’s dad and watch the U of U lose to Notre Dame (bummer). Then we headed out for a fabulous night in Las Vegas. I wanted to go to Freemont Street. I have never been there, but I heard good things about it, so I was excited to go. Matt was more skeptical about us having any fun, until we got there. It was so much fun! Like an amazing little street festival! There were lots of people dressed up so you could take your picture with them (for a price). There were artists and street magicians and it was just a lot of fun. We walked around there for a couple hours then headed in to the Strip. Matt had purchased us tickets to see Mystere by Cirque De Soleil. We picked up our tickets from the discount ticket place (totally awesome!) and then went to the buffet at Treasure Island. That was nice! We got it discounted along with our tickets and had a good time. They had really good food – cook to order pasta – their own pastry chef making desserts. I just wish I could have eaten more!
Then we went to the show. I had never been to a Cirque De Soleil show before, and it was awesome. It took me a minute to really get into it because at first I was trying to have it fit a plot line – which it doesn’t. It is just a circus – and an amazing one!
The show was really good and then it was time to drive back to Mesquite and get some good sleep before our drive home.
Sunday was sadly the day to go home. We took the morning slow, but soon we had to pack and get on the road. We were lucky with the weather until about Fillmore, where it started to get wet. The roads were busy, but not as bad as we have seen before. We stopped at a little diner in Fillmore and got hamburgers and shakes. It was pretty good. We may have to make a tradition of that. It was rainy and snowy all the way home from that point, but we made it safe! And that ended our Super fun mini-vacation!
Halloweeny
Halloween has come and gone. I am a little disappointed in myself this year because I never got around to putting together a good costume. I have done good the past couple years with getting something cute together for me and Matt, but I just didn’t feel the Halloween vibe this year. I had been planning on having us be Mythbusters, until I realized I didn’t really want to have a beard, and that good lab coats cost about $20 each – way out of our Halloween budget. For a while we were going to be characters from Angry Birds (the cell phone game) but I just never did anything about it. I will blame the fact that we were out of town for the week before Halloween, and I will also say it was because we just didn’t have anywhere to go on Halloween to show off our costumes. It just didn’t ever become a priority.
We did however carve our pumpkins. The pumpkins are really the only thing that survived our disaster of a garden this year. (we had some tomatoes, but a lot of them rotted and they were way late in getting ripe). The pumpkins were not ripe, so we made some green Jack-O-Lanterns, but it was still fun. I was very brave and pulled the pumpkin guts out all by myself this year even though Matt offered to do it for me.
I am also not a huge Halloween decorator. I have some light up mummies that my sister Val and I made at a relief society thing back when we lived at home. (sadly, probably the last time I went to a relief society thing). And I have a light up plastic pumpkin I bought when I lived in an apartment and wanted something festive, but that is about it. So we also picked all the pumpkins in our garden and lined them up on the porch. Matt was not going to be content with just pumpkins out there, so he added some old acorn squash we hadn’t eaten from a few weeks ago, an apple and an onion. It made me laugh.
Then we settled into watching scary old movies and running up the stairs to hand out candy every time the doorbell rang. We ended up going to my sister’s house to watch movies later that night, and I was feeling really bad about leaving the poor trick-or-treaters candyless. We decided we would set out a basket with some candy in it for them to pick up as they came by. I don’t remember this ever working when I was a kid. I remember going up to a lot of empty bowls with a “take one” sign. So I figured when we put it out we would make one or two kids really happy, and the rest would wonder why they walked up the entire front yard for a stupid empty basket.
I was pleasantly surprised when we got home that night and there was still some candy in the basket. Obviously these kids are better behaved than the kids in my neighborhood growing up. I was impressed.
So overall, it was a good Halloween. I am resolved to get a jump start on planning my costume for next year. Any ideas what we should be?
We did however carve our pumpkins. The pumpkins are really the only thing that survived our disaster of a garden this year. (we had some tomatoes, but a lot of them rotted and they were way late in getting ripe). The pumpkins were not ripe, so we made some green Jack-O-Lanterns, but it was still fun. I was very brave and pulled the pumpkin guts out all by myself this year even though Matt offered to do it for me.
I am also not a huge Halloween decorator. I have some light up mummies that my sister Val and I made at a relief society thing back when we lived at home. (sadly, probably the last time I went to a relief society thing). And I have a light up plastic pumpkin I bought when I lived in an apartment and wanted something festive, but that is about it. So we also picked all the pumpkins in our garden and lined them up on the porch. Matt was not going to be content with just pumpkins out there, so he added some old acorn squash we hadn’t eaten from a few weeks ago, an apple and an onion. It made me laugh.
Then we settled into watching scary old movies and running up the stairs to hand out candy every time the doorbell rang. We ended up going to my sister’s house to watch movies later that night, and I was feeling really bad about leaving the poor trick-or-treaters candyless. We decided we would set out a basket with some candy in it for them to pick up as they came by. I don’t remember this ever working when I was a kid. I remember going up to a lot of empty bowls with a “take one” sign. So I figured when we put it out we would make one or two kids really happy, and the rest would wonder why they walked up the entire front yard for a stupid empty basket.
I was pleasantly surprised when we got home that night and there was still some candy in the basket. Obviously these kids are better behaved than the kids in my neighborhood growing up. I was impressed.
So overall, it was a good Halloween. I am resolved to get a jump start on planning my costume for next year. Any ideas what we should be?
Vegas Baby
Last week I had to attend a conference in Las Vegas. I have been working to convince my bosses that I needed to go to this conference that is held every year. A couple years ago (when I REALLY wanted to go) it was in San Francisco. Next year it will be in Orlando, but the year I go – it is in Vegas. I am not a huge fan of Las Vegas, and I had a really bad attitude about having to go there again. Luckily Matt was willing to go down with me – that made it much more fun.
We flew down (yes I know silly to fly to Vegas, but it was cheaper for me than mileage reimbursement) on Sunday. I hate flying, and this flight was particularly yucky. We sat on the tarmac for an hour at the gate because our pilots were late. There was no air and the lady next to me was really getting on my nerves. Then the flight was bumpy and the window we had to look out had this weird wave it in that just made me sick. Sadly it was so bumpy on the flight that they couldn’t even do beverage service, so no diet coke to make my head feel better.
I was so happy when we finally landed! It took a while to walk to the carousel and get out bag and then get a cab to the hotel. But I was so happy when we finally arrived and I was able to just lie down and relax for a moment.
About this time I decided I was starving and we decided to go in search of one of the famous cheap Las Vegas buffets. Tragically, the time of cheap buffets is apparently gone. I thought out best chance of finding a cheaper place to eat was to go to a less fancy casino, so we walked up the strip and ended up at the Excalibur. It is kind of sad to see that place, because I remember when it was all shiny and new, but it is kind of run-down and yucky now. But hey – the buffet at a run down and yucky hotel has to be cheaper than at a nice one, right? Wrong. But I was so hungry by the time we got there that we ate there anyway.
The rest of the night we walked around and enjoyed watching the crowd in Vegas. I was in a better mood after eating and relaxing a little. We were able to watch the Bellagio fountains and see the volcano go off at the Mirage.
I had classes all day on Monday and Tuesday. I was able to take a break at lunch and meet up with Matt on both days, and we got together for dinner. I thought I would want to go to one of the fancy new restaurants in Vegas, like Bobby Flay’s (the iron chef) place, but when it came down to it I was way too cheap to try it (and I wasn’t sure the Credit Union would want to reimburse a very expensive dinner). So we will go back someday and eat a fancy expensive dinner and see what I was missing out on. We were thinking about going to a show one night too, but I had classes starting at 7 each morning, so we are putting that off until we feel like going to visit Matt’s dad again in Mesquite and make a night out of it.
Matt was able to meet with his cousin for a little while one of the days and catch up on all the family gossip. I was in class during that time, so it was great that he was able to have some entertainment during the day.
Then, as fast as that (or slow if you were the one sitting in the classes for 11 hours a day) it was over and time to come home. I was happy to have missed the first real snow fall in Utah (though it made it kind of cold in Vegas too). I didn’t want to come home at the end of it, but I was happy to be home when I got here.
We flew down (yes I know silly to fly to Vegas, but it was cheaper for me than mileage reimbursement) on Sunday. I hate flying, and this flight was particularly yucky. We sat on the tarmac for an hour at the gate because our pilots were late. There was no air and the lady next to me was really getting on my nerves. Then the flight was bumpy and the window we had to look out had this weird wave it in that just made me sick. Sadly it was so bumpy on the flight that they couldn’t even do beverage service, so no diet coke to make my head feel better.
I was so happy when we finally landed! It took a while to walk to the carousel and get out bag and then get a cab to the hotel. But I was so happy when we finally arrived and I was able to just lie down and relax for a moment.
About this time I decided I was starving and we decided to go in search of one of the famous cheap Las Vegas buffets. Tragically, the time of cheap buffets is apparently gone. I thought out best chance of finding a cheaper place to eat was to go to a less fancy casino, so we walked up the strip and ended up at the Excalibur. It is kind of sad to see that place, because I remember when it was all shiny and new, but it is kind of run-down and yucky now. But hey – the buffet at a run down and yucky hotel has to be cheaper than at a nice one, right? Wrong. But I was so hungry by the time we got there that we ate there anyway.
The rest of the night we walked around and enjoyed watching the crowd in Vegas. I was in a better mood after eating and relaxing a little. We were able to watch the Bellagio fountains and see the volcano go off at the Mirage.
I had classes all day on Monday and Tuesday. I was able to take a break at lunch and meet up with Matt on both days, and we got together for dinner. I thought I would want to go to one of the fancy new restaurants in Vegas, like Bobby Flay’s (the iron chef) place, but when it came down to it I was way too cheap to try it (and I wasn’t sure the Credit Union would want to reimburse a very expensive dinner). So we will go back someday and eat a fancy expensive dinner and see what I was missing out on. We were thinking about going to a show one night too, but I had classes starting at 7 each morning, so we are putting that off until we feel like going to visit Matt’s dad again in Mesquite and make a night out of it.
Matt was able to meet with his cousin for a little while one of the days and catch up on all the family gossip. I was in class during that time, so it was great that he was able to have some entertainment during the day.
Then, as fast as that (or slow if you were the one sitting in the classes for 11 hours a day) it was over and time to come home. I was happy to have missed the first real snow fall in Utah (though it made it kind of cold in Vegas too). I didn’t want to come home at the end of it, but I was happy to be home when I got here.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The Rest of the Summer - Summary
I am trying to catch up on my blogging for this summer. Somehow I just never got back on the computer to update anything. This is going to be pretty short, but I want to get some pictures on the blog.
After my last blog I had a fun summer. First we made another trip to Bear Lake, this time just with me and Matt and my parents. We hoped to have everyone come up and have fun, but instead it was going to be cold, so we just went up to have a break from the world. It was windy and cool, but still fun. We took my dad to Minnetonka cave, and we had the WORST tour guide ever. I wish I could think of something nice to say about him, because I do like to be nice, but I can't think of anything.
Then it was our anniversary. Matt and I went to Salt Lake and stayed in the Little America. It was really nice. We had a great day and then went to see The Lion King Broadway show. The show was great, except I was sitting behind the woman with the longest torso ever. Seriously, I thought she was sitting on a booster seat. But I was able to lean around a little and still have a good time.
The day after the Lion King was the Weber County Fair demolition derby. It is our little tradition to enjoy some redneck fun for a night. This year it was Crazy! It ended with one of the drivers getting hurt and a fight breaking out in the stands. It was very intense.
Then before I knew it, the summer was over and it was time for our trip to Disneyland for the half marathon. This trip was extra exciting because Matt's sister and her family came along too! We had a lot of fun playing at the parks and even visiting the beach. The half marathon went well, I didn't break any records, but I did run the entire thing with Matt (which is a record for us). It was fun and I didn't feel too bad afterwards.
We had a fun trip, but it was over too soon, and we had to come home.
The end of summer blended into the start of fall. We have had some birthdays since then, and some other get-togethers. This last weekend we drove up to Bozeman Montana and spent some time with Matt's Grandparents. It was a nice relaxing weekend. The drive up ended up being very nice, and we had a good time spending time with the family.
Here is another slide show for your entertainment.
After my last blog I had a fun summer. First we made another trip to Bear Lake, this time just with me and Matt and my parents. We hoped to have everyone come up and have fun, but instead it was going to be cold, so we just went up to have a break from the world. It was windy and cool, but still fun. We took my dad to Minnetonka cave, and we had the WORST tour guide ever. I wish I could think of something nice to say about him, because I do like to be nice, but I can't think of anything.
Then it was our anniversary. Matt and I went to Salt Lake and stayed in the Little America. It was really nice. We had a great day and then went to see The Lion King Broadway show. The show was great, except I was sitting behind the woman with the longest torso ever. Seriously, I thought she was sitting on a booster seat. But I was able to lean around a little and still have a good time.
The day after the Lion King was the Weber County Fair demolition derby. It is our little tradition to enjoy some redneck fun for a night. This year it was Crazy! It ended with one of the drivers getting hurt and a fight breaking out in the stands. It was very intense.
Then before I knew it, the summer was over and it was time for our trip to Disneyland for the half marathon. This trip was extra exciting because Matt's sister and her family came along too! We had a lot of fun playing at the parks and even visiting the beach. The half marathon went well, I didn't break any records, but I did run the entire thing with Matt (which is a record for us). It was fun and I didn't feel too bad afterwards.
We had a fun trip, but it was over too soon, and we had to come home.
The end of summer blended into the start of fall. We have had some birthdays since then, and some other get-togethers. This last weekend we drove up to Bozeman Montana and spent some time with Matt's Grandparents. It was a nice relaxing weekend. The drive up ended up being very nice, and we had a good time spending time with the family.
Here is another slide show for your entertainment.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Summer Summary
It has been a Long time since I posted to this blog. It has been a crazy summer and I just kept getting farther and farther behind. So I will try to sum up most of my summer in one post and keep it simple.
Back in June, right after the half marathon, I started having a horrible migraine. I took a couple days off of work and hoped that things would get better - they didn't. I tried to keep going and have fun, but really I was coming home after work and just sleeping, trying to feel better. Finally after a couple weeks of just dying, Matt and I decided it was time to go to the doctor. I don't really like going to doctors. I dont' like it at all. But it was time, so after 2 weeks of feeling like death, we called and got an appointment, for a week later.
I went to the doctor, and he decided that I had a sinus infection that was probably causing the headaches. So I picked up some antibiotics and a week later I started to feel better. Sadly, by the time it was all over I had spent over a month hiding from the world and I missed most of the summer! I didn't train at all for the half marathon I have in a couple weeks. We did have fun at the 4th of July at the parade in Riverdale, and we had fun with our niece and nephews in Bluffdale, and even had a good trip to Bear Lake. Here are some pictures of the fun part of the summer.
Back in June, right after the half marathon, I started having a horrible migraine. I took a couple days off of work and hoped that things would get better - they didn't. I tried to keep going and have fun, but really I was coming home after work and just sleeping, trying to feel better. Finally after a couple weeks of just dying, Matt and I decided it was time to go to the doctor. I don't really like going to doctors. I dont' like it at all. But it was time, so after 2 weeks of feeling like death, we called and got an appointment, for a week later.
I went to the doctor, and he decided that I had a sinus infection that was probably causing the headaches. So I picked up some antibiotics and a week later I started to feel better. Sadly, by the time it was all over I had spent over a month hiding from the world and I missed most of the summer! I didn't train at all for the half marathon I have in a couple weeks. We did have fun at the 4th of July at the parade in Riverdale, and we had fun with our niece and nephews in Bluffdale, and even had a good trip to Bear Lake. Here are some pictures of the fun part of the summer.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Summer-Summer-Summer Time
This weekend summer hit hard. It was nice and warm outside. I love it!
Friday we wanted to take advantage of the warm summer night and make s’mores in our backyard. We have a little fire pit that we purchased last summer. We didn’t use to much last year, so I was excited to pull it out this year. We even had lots of fire wood from cutting down trees at my Grandpa’s house.
Matt had the honor of starting the fire, and like a real Boy Scout he started it without matches or a lighter. That is right folks – NO Matches! I am sticking with this guy when the end of the world comes; I think he will be able to take care of me. Anyway, we had a nice fire and just hung out and chatted. My Brother BJ got off of work and came over and hung out with us for a while. Sometimes the hardest part of making roasted marshmallows is waiting for the fire to burn down so you can make them! I love the fire, I love looking at it and it is fun, but I really wanted my treat.
Finally the fire reached the end and we were able to make yummy marshmallows. Mix those with some graham crackers and some quality chocolate and you have a wonderful treat. I remember as a kid when I could pack away 5 or 6 of these babies. I must admit I reached my sugar limit after 2. But it was a lot of fun!
Tragically when we went back in the house we smelled horribly of smoke! I guess that is the drawback of a camp fire.
Saturday was another great day! We had a nice slow morning, then went for a run. We are both in training for the Disneyland Half Marathon again. We probably waited too long to go outside to run, since it was a warm day. We went down to our river trail and had a fun time. It was a 5 mile day – not too bad. But with the heat and the headache I have been fighting for a week, I didn’t go too fast. But not bad either. Matt seemed to have a good time too. We finished running and got home just in time to watch the USA World Cup game. I did get some mosquito bites while we were running. I am bummed about that because the one on my left arm still itches. Sad.
So we watched the soccer game. Sad ending, but still a fun game to watch. Then we decided it would be fun to drive down to SLC and go to the Arts Festival. We have gone for a few years now, and it is a fun thing to go walk around downtown and enjoy the summer. We got there about 5 and looked at some art. I took the camera, but didn’t take any pictures. I am sometimes just the biggest slacker with taking pictures.
We wanted to get some dinner, and rather than pay $10 for food at the festival (which we would have to stand in line for and then eat on our laps) we hopped on trax and went to the Atlantic Café. I had never been there, but Matt used to go with some of his buddies before we were married. It was a cute little Mediterranean café. We ordered an appetizer (so good – feta cream cheese with pita – SO GOOD). Then I had a sandwich and Matt had the Greek plate. Very good food.
After dinner we went back to the Festival. We decided to watch the Utah Short Film Festival. It took about an hour, but it was fun. Who knew that BYU even had an animation department? I didn’t. But it was fun to watch the movies. Then we went back to look at more art and listen to some music before calling it a night.
Ahhh – summer is officially here!
Friday we wanted to take advantage of the warm summer night and make s’mores in our backyard. We have a little fire pit that we purchased last summer. We didn’t use to much last year, so I was excited to pull it out this year. We even had lots of fire wood from cutting down trees at my Grandpa’s house.
Matt had the honor of starting the fire, and like a real Boy Scout he started it without matches or a lighter. That is right folks – NO Matches! I am sticking with this guy when the end of the world comes; I think he will be able to take care of me. Anyway, we had a nice fire and just hung out and chatted. My Brother BJ got off of work and came over and hung out with us for a while. Sometimes the hardest part of making roasted marshmallows is waiting for the fire to burn down so you can make them! I love the fire, I love looking at it and it is fun, but I really wanted my treat.
Finally the fire reached the end and we were able to make yummy marshmallows. Mix those with some graham crackers and some quality chocolate and you have a wonderful treat. I remember as a kid when I could pack away 5 or 6 of these babies. I must admit I reached my sugar limit after 2. But it was a lot of fun!
Tragically when we went back in the house we smelled horribly of smoke! I guess that is the drawback of a camp fire.
Saturday was another great day! We had a nice slow morning, then went for a run. We are both in training for the Disneyland Half Marathon again. We probably waited too long to go outside to run, since it was a warm day. We went down to our river trail and had a fun time. It was a 5 mile day – not too bad. But with the heat and the headache I have been fighting for a week, I didn’t go too fast. But not bad either. Matt seemed to have a good time too. We finished running and got home just in time to watch the USA World Cup game. I did get some mosquito bites while we were running. I am bummed about that because the one on my left arm still itches. Sad.
So we watched the soccer game. Sad ending, but still a fun game to watch. Then we decided it would be fun to drive down to SLC and go to the Arts Festival. We have gone for a few years now, and it is a fun thing to go walk around downtown and enjoy the summer. We got there about 5 and looked at some art. I took the camera, but didn’t take any pictures. I am sometimes just the biggest slacker with taking pictures.
We wanted to get some dinner, and rather than pay $10 for food at the festival (which we would have to stand in line for and then eat on our laps) we hopped on trax and went to the Atlantic Café. I had never been there, but Matt used to go with some of his buddies before we were married. It was a cute little Mediterranean café. We ordered an appetizer (so good – feta cream cheese with pita – SO GOOD). Then I had a sandwich and Matt had the Greek plate. Very good food.
After dinner we went back to the Festival. We decided to watch the Utah Short Film Festival. It took about an hour, but it was fun. Who knew that BYU even had an animation department? I didn’t. But it was fun to watch the movies. Then we went back to look at more art and listen to some music before calling it a night.
Ahhh – summer is officially here!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Good Vibrations
I don’t know how many years ago, but I was probably about 10 when my mom and dad piled all the kids (and some cousins) in the car and drove us to Provo to see the Stadium of Fire. That year the Beach Boys were performing. We had so much fun! There were dancers and even, oh yeah, John Stamos was there.
Fast forward about 10 years and the U of U was trying to compete with BYU and had a Red Hot 4th (or something like that). We again went, partly because the first act was the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy. You can guess who the second act was, yep, the Beach Boys.
So at this point I had seen the Beach Boys live in concert 2 times in my life. I had a good time at both events. So when we saw that the Beach Boys were going to be performing at the Peppermill Concert Hall in Wendover, we thought it would be fun to go out. It happened to correspond nicely with Mother’s and Father’s day, so we got tickets for my parents to come to.
So Friday I hurried home from work early and we quickly went and picked up my parents. Then we were on the road (the very boring road) to Wendover. We did stop in Erda (near Tooele) to eat at Matt’s Great-Grandma’s old restaurant Virgs Fish and Chips (Virg is short for Virginia). Matt had fun talking to one of the guys that used to work for his Great Grandma. The rest of us had fun eating. Food was good, but I was getting stressed out about time. It is a LONG way out to Wendover, and I didn’t want to show up late.
So after we ate we jumped back in the car and set off! The drive is about as exciting as I remember it. We were even in too big of a hurry to stop and take pictures of the beautiful art work along the way (giant cement tree). We pulled into the city at about quarter to 8 – with the show starting in 15 minutes. Almost perfect timing!
We picked up our will call tickets and found our seats. I had been told that the concert hall was about the size of a high school auditorium, so there are no bad seats in the house. It was true. I didn’t feel at all bad for being in the cheap seats.
The concert started right on time, no opening band or anything. In fact, the concert may have started before the Beach Boys were ready. I don’t want to be spreading any rumors, but I am not totally sure they didn’t lip sync the first set of songs. We were far enough away that I couldn’t tell, but I was getting the feeling that they were singing along to a CD.
I hadn’t really thought through how old the Beach Boys would be. They were talking about how they recorded this song in 1960, and I thought, WOW, that was 50 years ago! No Wonder Matt and I are the youngest people in the audience! But that isn’t to say it wasn’t a lively crowd. They were up dancing and having fun. One old guy in the front was having an especially good time. I was happy for him (and glad he wasn’t my Dad - My Dad didn’t dance in front of everyone at the concert). But it was fun. I like the old songs. They are good, fun, Summertime songs.
The concert lasted almost 2 hours then we went to check in to the hotel. I wasn’t a big fan of the casino – mostly because of the smoke. So we went up to our rooms and let me just say I love the black-out curtains at casino hotels. I didn’t wake up until after 10 and I would have kept sleeping except we had to be out by 11.
So we packed up and loaded the car with our stuff. Mom and Dad offered to take us to the Buffet for breakfast, so we agreed. Then I did something I am ashamed to blog about. We ate at the buffet from breakfast to lunch! Yep, we showed up just in time to grab some of the last breakfast items as they were being switched out for lunch. So my first plate was a nice omlet and bacon (very appropriate breakfast) but my second plate (which is required at a buffet) was lunch food. Crazy. But Yummy.
Then when we were all full to bursting we rolled ourselves out to the car and headed home. The ride home is kind of a blur – I may have been sleeping. But before I knew it we were back home and unloading the car. It was a fun little mini vacation.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Bear Lake 10 K
Sometime last fall I found out that my little sister signed up for a half marathon at Bear Lake in June. Not to be outdone, I considered signing up myself. I knew I would be doing a half in February, and thought maybe June would be a nice motivator to keep moving. Then I thought a little bit longer and realized I didn’t want to do a half marathon at Bear Lake! I like to do half marathons down where there is a lot of oxygen, not up at high altitude. I didn’t want to totally wimp out, so I signed up for the 10K. Great.
So, as we get closer and closer to the day of the race, I am feeling good about my running. I am doing a mix of running and walking, running for 2.5 minutes, then walking for 5. Not bad. I feel good. The thing that has me worried is the weather. I keep checking the forecast, and I don’t like it! What started as potential for a nice run around the lake is now looking like it will be a run in the cold rain (40 degrees and rain – not ideal).
Matt and I drove up on Friday night to sleep over at our trailer at Sweetwater. Mom, Dad and Val went up earlier that day. We are driving up and it is raining, the whole time. We decide to drive over to my starting line and see what the race will be like. I notice deep puddles on the route, not feeling too good about that.
We finally get to the trailer and settle in. When we go to bed I hear the rain pouring all night. I am trying to decide if I just sleep in and forget about the dumb idea of running in the rain in the cold. Why? Why and I doing this? I actually had a dream that I woke up and finished the race and it was all dry and I was happy. Then I woke up and realized I hadn’t done it yet and I was bummed.
So morning finally comes. Val and my Dad set off early, because the half marathon starts before the 10K. I get ready slowly and have Matt drive me to the starting line rather than driving to the finish and taking the bus. It was about equal distance from where we were staying. As we drive the 3 miles to the start line it is raining, then raining harder. I have a pauncho in my little bag, so I am not too worried, but I still don’t know why I am running in the cold rain, and I am worried I am going to be one of like 4 people that show up to run. I sit in the warm car with Matt until the bus shows up. A bus load of people get out, and I start feeling better that I at least won’t be the only dummy running in the cold. So when they get to the starting line I say goodbye to Matt and go stand with them. Little did I know that we would be standing there for another 20 minutes waiting for another bus to show up. It wasn’t too bad, because I was able to talk to other people in the race. Then, FINALLY, it was time to start.
The race was pretty uneventful. It didn’t rain at all on us while we were running. We started by taking up the entire road, and as people moved and thinned out we were over on the left side. The road was open during the race, but it didn’t seem to be too much of a problem. I was having fun. I took my camera and tried to take pictures as I went. I was passed by the first half marathoner at about my mile 3 (so he had gone 10) and I was very impressed. All the halfers that passed me were covered in mud. I didn’t know yet, but they had to run along a dirt road for part of the run. Not so much fun in the rain.
But I finally made it to the end, still feeling really good. I had a time of 1:16 – which for walking 2/3 of the race was not too bad at all. Just under a 12 ½ minute mile. Still pretty good for me. Matt was there waiting at the end of the race (he was awesome and followed me a lot of the race, so I had my own little cheering squad every couple of miles!) We stuck around and waited for my dad and Val to finish. They did awesome. In fact my dad won his age class! Too bad there were not any real prizes for that. But I think it is awesome, especially since he was injured for most of the run. Way to go Dad. I can say that I didn’t get anywhere near to winning my class, but I still had fun.
We spent the rest of the day visiting Minnetonka Cave. It seemed just like the thing to do on a cold rainy day.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Happy Birthdays
June 6th we attended a party for my Aunt Janice and my sister Val’s birthday. We were lucky enough to have Janice here for her birthday because she was on her way to Central Utah for a business trip.
So here are some pictures I took at the party. I haven’t had a chance to clean them up at all, so here they are in their original form.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Life since Cayman
Well, sadly it has been about a month since we got home from our trip to Cayman. We packed so much fun into that week! It took me so long to get it all written out that I haven’t been keeping up with what has been going on since I got home.
It was a couple weeks ago, May 8th, I signed up to do the Race for the Cure 5K in Salt Lake. I thought it would be a fun race (which is was) and also thought it would keep me motivated to run (which it didn’t). But anyway, The race started at 8:30, so we left the house bright and early. Matt was wonderful enough to be my chauffer. That turned out to be a good thing because there were around 20,000 participants in the race, and most of them brought cars. Matt dropped me off and went to find a parking place.
This is when I realized that you are not supposed to do this race by yourself. I was one of very few people that wasn’t there with a large group. It was fun to see all the shirts people made and how much fun they were having. I had about a half hour before the race to just mill around and wait. Then it started. It was madness! The first 5 minutes of the race we all just walked slowly because the traffic was too thick to move. Finally it thinned out a bit and I was able to hit my stride. We came to a sudden halt about 100 yards from the finish line while everyone tried to funnel into the Gateway. But it was a lot of fun.
Since the 8th was the day before Mother’s day, we spend the rest of the day in Salt Lake hanging out with Matt’s mom and Grandma.
Last weekend was the Ogden Marathon. We didn’t run, but we volunteered. That was a blast. We signed up several months ago as part of the Disney Give-a-Day Get-a-Day program. We thought we would use our volunteering to get a free day at Disneyland. We ended up getting a really good deal on our Disney tickets, so we will probably use them to get super fast-passes when we go for the marathon.
Anyway – we volunteered in the Runner’s only area, which is where the runners go to get drinks and food and stuff after they finish the race. At first they were going to assign us to the food tent, where we could have spent hours cutting oranges, but instead we were pulled to do traffic control (because we are big and people would see us) right at the end of the finish chute. It was fun because we were able to chat with the people that we knew when they finished the race. We also got some awesome orange shirts out of the deal, totally worth it. We are now considering doing the marathon relay next year – anyone…anyone…
But that is our life since our trip. We were able to squeeze some fun in between the rainy days. Here is hoping for sunshine soon.
It was a couple weeks ago, May 8th, I signed up to do the Race for the Cure 5K in Salt Lake. I thought it would be a fun race (which is was) and also thought it would keep me motivated to run (which it didn’t). But anyway, The race started at 8:30, so we left the house bright and early. Matt was wonderful enough to be my chauffer. That turned out to be a good thing because there were around 20,000 participants in the race, and most of them brought cars. Matt dropped me off and went to find a parking place.
This is when I realized that you are not supposed to do this race by yourself. I was one of very few people that wasn’t there with a large group. It was fun to see all the shirts people made and how much fun they were having. I had about a half hour before the race to just mill around and wait. Then it started. It was madness! The first 5 minutes of the race we all just walked slowly because the traffic was too thick to move. Finally it thinned out a bit and I was able to hit my stride. We came to a sudden halt about 100 yards from the finish line while everyone tried to funnel into the Gateway. But it was a lot of fun.
Since the 8th was the day before Mother’s day, we spend the rest of the day in Salt Lake hanging out with Matt’s mom and Grandma.
Last weekend was the Ogden Marathon. We didn’t run, but we volunteered. That was a blast. We signed up several months ago as part of the Disney Give-a-Day Get-a-Day program. We thought we would use our volunteering to get a free day at Disneyland. We ended up getting a really good deal on our Disney tickets, so we will probably use them to get super fast-passes when we go for the marathon.
Anyway – we volunteered in the Runner’s only area, which is where the runners go to get drinks and food and stuff after they finish the race. At first they were going to assign us to the food tent, where we could have spent hours cutting oranges, but instead we were pulled to do traffic control (because we are big and people would see us) right at the end of the finish chute. It was fun because we were able to chat with the people that we knew when they finished the race. We also got some awesome orange shirts out of the deal, totally worth it. We are now considering doing the marathon relay next year – anyone…anyone…
But that is our life since our trip. We were able to squeeze some fun in between the rainy days. Here is hoping for sunshine soon.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Cayman Trip - Day 10: The long way home
Sadly, the day came that we had to go home. We had to be to the airport around noon so we planned accordingly and got ready. Matt, Preston, and Val went to do one last snorkel. Preston read that there was a place with HUGE starfish that wasn't too far from our blue house, so they hurried out to get one last swim in. Matt was kind enough to take some pictures for me. He said these are the size of your head.
I stayed back and helped pack up, mostly because I didn't want to have to wash sea water and sand off of myself one more time.
Then we loaded up into the cars and headed away from the blue house one more time and off toward the airport.
I have never seen a more crowded airport than the one in Cayman. There was no where for all of us to sit because there were probably ten flights leaving in the same hour. Some folks hit the snack bar in the airport, but Matt and I were too cheap for that, and we just walked around and ate some free samples of Rum Cake (YUMMY!).
The flight from Cayman to Atlanta was not so bad. Our strategy finally worked and we had an empty seat between us! My cute niece came back to sit by us in that empty seat and we had a fun flight. We reached Atlanta and went through customs, where we had to pick up our bags, and then check them again (so much fun!). We found a place to eat and had some good food at TGIFridays. Then went to our gate, to wait and wait and wait. We took a ride on the train a down and back to burn some time and entertain the kids. Then we waited some more. Our flight was delayed and we were in the airport for what seemed like forever, but finally we got on our plane and headed back to Salt Lake.
It was midnight before we got home, so we sleepily grabbed our bags and found our cars and said goodbye to our vacation. It was so much fun! I was sad to get back to reality.
Here are some parting shots
I stayed back and helped pack up, mostly because I didn't want to have to wash sea water and sand off of myself one more time.
Then we loaded up into the cars and headed away from the blue house one more time and off toward the airport.
I have never seen a more crowded airport than the one in Cayman. There was no where for all of us to sit because there were probably ten flights leaving in the same hour. Some folks hit the snack bar in the airport, but Matt and I were too cheap for that, and we just walked around and ate some free samples of Rum Cake (YUMMY!).
The flight from Cayman to Atlanta was not so bad. Our strategy finally worked and we had an empty seat between us! My cute niece came back to sit by us in that empty seat and we had a fun flight. We reached Atlanta and went through customs, where we had to pick up our bags, and then check them again (so much fun!). We found a place to eat and had some good food at TGIFridays. Then went to our gate, to wait and wait and wait. We took a ride on the train a down and back to burn some time and entertain the kids. Then we waited some more. Our flight was delayed and we were in the airport for what seemed like forever, but finally we got on our plane and headed back to Salt Lake.
It was midnight before we got home, so we sleepily grabbed our bags and found our cars and said goodbye to our vacation. It was so much fun! I was sad to get back to reality.
Here are some parting shots
Cayman Trip - Day 9: the last day
Saturday was our last full day in Cayman. We wanted to pack into it all the things we hadn’t done yet on the trip. Our first order of business was to drive into Georgetown and see about taking a glass bottom boat ride. We had tried something similar on Monday with the semi-sub, but it wasn’t going that day. We were sure the kids would like it, so we all drove to the city. One of the hardest things about this little adventure was finding a parking spot. We lucked out on our first trip to Georgetown because we parked in the parking lot of the submarine place. But this time we were not so lucky. Matt pulled a great move and found a little side road with no one parked on it. Very nice.
My brother in law Preston found the place to make reservations and let us know that it would be a semi-submarine ride and that it had a snorkeling stop. We ran back to our car and got our snorkeling gear. Then we loaded up onto the boat.
A Semi-submarine ride is very similar to the submarines at Disneyland. You are sitting in the bottom of a boat, but there are windows cut out so you can look out into the water. They had fixed it up to look like a sub also, with a big wheel in the front and everything. There were only 2 families on the boat, so they took the front, and we took the back.
We all had a good time looking at the fish. The sub went over some ship wrecks in the harbor and that was pretty cool too. I do think some of the kids got a little bored and were happier to spin the wheel than to look at fish, but we all had fun. The boat put a diver in the water and he swam across the windows feeding the fish, so there were TONS of fish that swam in front of each window. That was pretty cool, made sure that everyone saw a lot of fish. They say that the fish they fed are scavengers anyway, and would eat whatever. I guess that makes it OK.
It was here that we were able to get out of the boat and snorkel around a little. It was fun to get in the water (I was getting a little motion sick in the boat) and to just swim around. There were a ton of fish, especially the Sergeant Majors (the yellow striped fish) and the big gray ones. They were everywhere. There were also some Tarpon. I saw one swimming toward us and I thought it was a shark. These are some BIG fish. Luckily they stayed along the bottom so I never had to freak out too much.
We got back on the boat and headed back to the dock. Then we wanted to eat. We couldn’t find a place right there in Georgetown, and everyone was too hungry to wait, so we grabbed some Burger King and headed to the beach at Cemetery Point to eat it, picnic style.
After eating we headed out to snorkel again. It was a beautiful day and we went out and saw some amazing fish again. I was lucky and didn’t have any close encounters with Jelly Fish this time. Matt took me out farther than we had been before and we saw the beginning of what I think is an artificial reef, though at first I admit I thought Mines.
The kids were tired and so Preston loaded them up and went back to the blue house. He left Chrystie with us because we had one more objective for our last full day, and that was shopping! We wanted to stop in Georgetown and see what kind of stuff there was to buy for our last souvenirs. Unfortunately the town was shut down! We went driving in the same way we had a few times and the road was shut off, right before we got into town, they forced us to turn left and drive inland. We followed the detour. I frantically tried to find where we were on our little tourist map (which only labeled about ¼ of the streets, which is OK, because only about ¼ of the streets had signs). Every time I would come up with a way for us to get back to the main road, the way was blocked. A few crazy roundabouts and some stop lights later we made a good and we were headed in the almost right direction. Matt made a great choice to turn onto a nameless road, and we were back!
Tragically this little safari into the city had cost us some time and now it was after 4. See, in Georgetown, and probably in most cruise port cities, things shut down after 4 when everyone gets back on the boat. We had to walk past a couple of closed shops before we found one that was open. Luckily this little open shop had a nice variety of things for us to get, and soon we were all a little lighter in cash and a little heavier in t-shirts and other tourist stuff (I bought a cute little rock turtle. Yep, I like it).
So now we were hurrying back to the house because we knew we had taken a long time up to this point and we wanted to save Preston and my dad from being alone with the kids. What should happen? We got stuck in a funeral procession! It took us FOREVER to get back to the house.
We decided since it was our last night we would go out to eat. We called the Kaibo to see if they could fit us in that night, and soon we were set with a reservation. We quickly got ready and headed over. It started as a nice quiet time. We all ordered our drinks and just started to relax when a boat arrived from the other side of the island. This boat was filled with people who had obviously started drinking hours ago. Very loud, very drunk people. They descended upon the place and took it over. We were still able to eat our food, which was good, and there was a beautiful view of the ocean from the table, but it was loud and crowded.
Then we went back to the blue house for the last time (so sad) to pack for the next day’s trip home.
Coming Soon – Day 9: The long way home
My brother in law Preston found the place to make reservations and let us know that it would be a semi-submarine ride and that it had a snorkeling stop. We ran back to our car and got our snorkeling gear. Then we loaded up onto the boat.
A Semi-submarine ride is very similar to the submarines at Disneyland. You are sitting in the bottom of a boat, but there are windows cut out so you can look out into the water. They had fixed it up to look like a sub also, with a big wheel in the front and everything. There were only 2 families on the boat, so they took the front, and we took the back.
We all had a good time looking at the fish. The sub went over some ship wrecks in the harbor and that was pretty cool too. I do think some of the kids got a little bored and were happier to spin the wheel than to look at fish, but we all had fun. The boat put a diver in the water and he swam across the windows feeding the fish, so there were TONS of fish that swam in front of each window. That was pretty cool, made sure that everyone saw a lot of fish. They say that the fish they fed are scavengers anyway, and would eat whatever. I guess that makes it OK.
It was here that we were able to get out of the boat and snorkel around a little. It was fun to get in the water (I was getting a little motion sick in the boat) and to just swim around. There were a ton of fish, especially the Sergeant Majors (the yellow striped fish) and the big gray ones. They were everywhere. There were also some Tarpon. I saw one swimming toward us and I thought it was a shark. These are some BIG fish. Luckily they stayed along the bottom so I never had to freak out too much.
After eating we headed out to snorkel again. It was a beautiful day and we went out and saw some amazing fish again. I was lucky and didn’t have any close encounters with Jelly Fish this time. Matt took me out farther than we had been before and we saw the beginning of what I think is an artificial reef, though at first I admit I thought Mines.
Tragically this little safari into the city had cost us some time and now it was after 4. See, in Georgetown, and probably in most cruise port cities, things shut down after 4 when everyone gets back on the boat. We had to walk past a couple of closed shops before we found one that was open. Luckily this little open shop had a nice variety of things for us to get, and soon we were all a little lighter in cash and a little heavier in t-shirts and other tourist stuff (I bought a cute little rock turtle. Yep, I like it).
We decided since it was our last night we would go out to eat. We called the Kaibo to see if they could fit us in that night, and soon we were set with a reservation. We quickly got ready and headed over. It started as a nice quiet time. We all ordered our drinks and just started to relax when a boat arrived from the other side of the island. This boat was filled with people who had obviously started drinking hours ago. Very loud, very drunk people. They descended upon the place and took it over. We were still able to eat our food, which was good, and there was a beautiful view of the ocean from the table, but it was loud and crowded.
Then we went back to the blue house for the last time (so sad) to pack for the next day’s trip home.
Coming Soon – Day 9: The long way home
Cayman Trip - Day 8: Scuba
I really wanted to go Scuba diving while we were in the Caymans. I had heard that there was some amazing diving there. The snorkeling was so great that I knew the diving would be amazing too. I have only been ocean diving on 2 other occasions. Both of these were excursions booked through the cruise line. So it was a new experience finding a dive shop to take us out.I knew that the little rental place at Rum Point did dive tours, and I thought it would have been nice to go out and not have to drive all around. Unfortunately when Preston talked to them, they said that if we hadn’t been on a dive in the last 2 years we would need to take a refresher class. Since 3 of our 5 divers met this category, we decided not to go with them. That is when the calling started. Preston and Matt started calling around, and finally we settled on a little outfit that was over on the West side of the island, out on 7 mile beach. They seemed really cool and casual. I was ready for some fun!
Well, we finished our swim and all jammed back in the car. We needed to get home and save my mom and dad from their babysitting duties. It was just after 5 and we totally ran into rush hour traffic. You wouldn’t think there would be much rush hour traffic on such a laid back island, but we were jam packed into our lane for a while. But finally we made it home to the blue house.
(Our Dive guides)
We did an afternoon dive. Most of the morning dives were booked up, probably from the cruise ship passengers. We were good with this because we had a long drive anyway. Matt took us all in the Corolla (I didn’t care I was in the front, but I bet it was cozy in the back seat). We drove to the other side of the island and found our boat. I was happy to find out that there were only the 5 of us on the boat! We explained that we were not expert divers. My sister Val hadn’t been since her certification quite a few years ago, and they said we would just do a couple of shallow dives. So we climbed onto the boat and set off.
(Val, Chrys, and Preston on the dive boat)
The first dive was in a place call the Fish Tank (or Fish Bowl, I don’t remember) because there were so many fish there. We went down, I had a little trouble because I didn’t have enough weight and I kept floating away. But the guide stole some weight from Matt and put it in my vest and I was set to go. We were having a great time when I turned around and noticed that my sister Val wasn’t behind me where she had been. When I was having trouble sinking I noticed she was too. But I looked back and couldn’t find her. I found Matt and tried to ask him, without being able to speak, if he knew where she was. He didn’t. I grabbed my sister Chrystie and tried to ask her. I spelled VAL with sign language and Chrystie just looked at me like I was crazy. Finally I gave up. About this time our guide realized she was missing and went to look for her. She had had trouble getting her ears to equalize and ended up back on the boat. The rest of us kept on going.There were tons of fish here, including some HUGE lobsters. After a while they did an air check and sent the boys back to the boat (note to self, don’t get stuck in a bank vault with Matt or Preston, they use too much air) and Chrystie and I looked around a little longer. Matt was able to get some pictures of us at this point. Pretty cool.
(Me - blue flippers, Chrystie and our guide)
We got back on the boat and headed to the next location. This one was called Spanish Anchor, because, well, there is a Spanish Anchor under the water; from long, long ago. It was really neat to see that. I also saw an eel and some other really nice fish. We saw some turtles on this dive (happy free turtles!) Also on this dive we tried to keep our eyes on Val, so she wouldn’t get lost again. She made it down just fine, and we were all having lots of fun. Then at the end of the dive, Val was gone again! I had been keeping my eye on her, and then suddenly she was gone. The guide went off looking for her, and she was fine and at the surface (having had trouble clearing her mask). So we were all fine and made it to the boat safe and sound.
(Eating on the beach)
We were HUNGRY when we got back to the beach, so we stopped at a little place right there on 7 Mile beach. I was so thirsty too, so I was glad to have some water. The food I had was good.Now happy and full we decided to do some snorkeling. We were directed to Cemetery Point, about a mile or so up the road. There was some really good snorkeling here. You had to swim out a ways to get to the good fish, but there were SO MANY of them. I was taking pictures with our little underwater camera like crazy. Suddenly I thought the band of the camera was poking on my hand. It was stinging and itchy and hurt. I kept swimming and having fun, not sure what had happened, but planning on investigating the camera strap when I got back in. We chased a bunch of fish around when I turned and saw a little transparent jelly, just like the ones back at Rum Point. Suddenly it made sense! My itchy burning hand was from a jelly fish sting!Well, we finished our swim and all jammed back in the car. We needed to get home and save my mom and dad from their babysitting duties. It was just after 5 and we totally ran into rush hour traffic. You wouldn’t think there would be much rush hour traffic on such a laid back island, but we were jam packed into our lane for a while. But finally we made it home to the blue house.
Coming Soon - Day 8: The last day
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