alooooooooohhhhhaaaa!

So we went to Hawaii. It was fun. Actually that is an understatement - it was fabulous. I say that everyone should do that for Thanksgiving - just go to Hawaii. You won't regret it. You won't. So here is a brief rundown of it all:

1) The beaches were fabulous - we happened upon this beach that was totally deserted (maybe because it was in a sketchy area of town)- nevertheless it was bea-u-tiful.
2) I protected my money maker pretty much everyday by wearing this $10 hat from wal-mart. Sure, maybe I looked like some sort of bee-keeper. . .  but no wrinkles.
3)Greg - looking ridiculous at the Dole Plantation
4) Just pretty stuff.
5) Speaking of the Dole Plantation - Shave Ice nothing - the Dole Pineapple Whip is where it is at - so maybe we ate it three times. Don't judge. We were on vacation.
6) The Luau at the PCC. I took this picture simply to document that there was a total white guy amongst a bunch of Polynesians in the show.
7) This was our hotel. Just kidding. But close.
8) Shrimp from one of the famous shrimp trucks. I tasted it for like 3 days after - gross.
9) and 10) - the Laie Hawaii temple was dedicated while we were there - thus we got to do a session - it was pretty freaking fabulous
11) Greg wanted to wear his aloha lei to church but I made him take them off - it just didn't go with the Mr. Rogers sweater.
12) And a shout out to Emily and Dan  for a delicious Thanksgiving feast. Emily made 9 pies for 6 adults - NINE! And homemade rolls - we'll be coming back next year.

prepare to be impressed . . .

We went camping this weekend. I went camping this weekend. Yep. And my one goal? Not to complain . . . at all. It helped that we were with some friends so I was on better behavior than usual. But I have to admit - the ten mile hike in was worth it to see this:

Havasupai is beautiful. Greg will post real pictures soon (I hope). In the meantime - I just wanted to post and also complain (only a little) that this week is education week on campus . . . which means I need to time my trips to the bathroom to avoid all the many women and their capri pants and fancy fabric bags.

re-no? re-yes!

This weekend we took a quick (and by quick I mean very, very, very quick) trip to Reno. We met up with my good friend, Paul and his lady friend (Paul hates the term lady friend but I like it and since it is my blog I'm sticking to it).

When agreeing to meet up, I erroneously thought that Reno is about halfway from Provo and San Francisco. I should have looked at a map - it's actually, practically San Francisco.

Here are the details:

1) Went to Barenaked Ladies concert (awesome awesome awesome people watching)

2) Hit a buffet ($9.99 was too much for the food that was served)

3) Checked out Lake Tahoe - gorgeous!

4) Packed too much (of course)

5) There is a place called "Kit Kat Ranch" - disgusting!

6) There is also a candy shop called "The Chocolate Nugget" - that too, was disgusting.

7) Arrived home at 3:00 am Sunday morning

8) Listened to a book on tape - after all that work we heard the ending and we both just looked at each other . . . that was it? (I don't recommend it - "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro).

P.S. Are you impressed that I am blogging about this AFTER the trip - that way no burglars can read this blog and think that our home is empty because it's not - we're back. I'm so clever.

packer extroadinaire

I found it to be imperative that I take this with me to Chicago. Imperative.

Sure, I haven't used it yet. And sure, it was a big fat pain to carry around but I have no doubt that when I start using it - Greg will take back all those things about it being ridiculous that I pack this. He'll just be jealous of the amazing-ness thing that I make. Totally.

no need to be alarmed

but I really can't find my wedding ring. I'm sure it's around the house somewhere. Probably next to a sink. But it's not in all the usual places - hence - today I'm going single.

Also - the Philadelphia famous cheese-steak was disgusting. Greg ended up eating his and then mine. I don't even want to think about what his arteries look like.

I learned a lot on this trip. For example, you can like the movie "The Blind Side" but when an airline plays it on the way to Philly and on the way back - it really is too much of a good thing. I also learned that Toddcat thinks America's history is the most boring history on the planet. I think he yawned 100 times when we went to see the Liberty Bell (blast it we should have played coin slot with that big crack in the bell). I also learned that tights are, apparently, pants and that it really is always sunny in Philadelphia - we enjoyed temps of upwards of 50 degrees. Just a delight.

Posting from the city of brotherly love

I am sitting at Cosi - enjoying freshly baked bread and using the wi-fi to catch up a little on my email and do some work (boo). I thought we needed to post a quick update to our weekend in Philadelphia. I will post pictures later, but here are our highlights so far:

• The Liberty Bell and Independence Hall
  
• Not being able to find a proper Benjamin Franklin impersonator
• Waiting for 45 minutes in a line around the block to eat Cheesesteaks made with Cheese Whiz (that's right cheese whiz)
• Really missing Trader Joe's - we can only hope one will turn up in the UT
  
• Eating an entire bag of Cuties from TJs
• Climbing the Rocky steps
• Finding a stylish hat at H&M
• Finding out that the Constitution Museum is WAY too noisy/busy for it's own good. Not from all the people mind you - but from the audio tour and all that talking exhibits they have going on - it's all too much. Just watch Stephen Colbert's visit instead - much better than the real thing.
• A meal based on chocolate - so so good
• The art museum - which is fantastic. We saw some really great stuff there.
  
• Watching the Oscars in our hotel room
  
• A romantic walk along the river
• Being in a real city
• And not least - seeing the Toddcat - who "conveniently" was in the region for work
  

one project at a time

So I'm working on making good on my promise to knit/crochet a bunch of fantastic things for those who break the silence and comment. But you know - these things don't happen overnight. Or even over-month. But I'm happy to report that I managed to deliver two projects over the weekend - in person! We had a very, very, very quick trip to Chicago where I managed to hold Senor Eli and even have a baby shoot where I got to see what he looks like in this pretty awesome looking blanket (if I do say so myself). Pretty sweet. As for the other gift - well I forgot to take a picture of Alissa with her requested baby booties.

Our trip to Chicago was perfect - and yet we didn't manage to see everyone or do everything but really that's okay - it just makes us want to go back. A lot.

And for the rest of the projects - I'm working on it. Kind of - but really I should be studying for the bar.

and we're back

You probably didn't even know we were gone - but we were. We did a quick va-cay to Orlando. We met up with Laurie S. and the Toddcat for some good times. I would post pictures but I think I only took one or two pics and one of them is totally blurry (riding on the "safari" leads to jostling photos). Highlights of the trip?


1) Ross ate a cuban. Well alright, Ross ate a cuban sandwich. And he is still talking about it.

2) HGTV - I watched this on the plane - there and back. It was like I was addicted. I need a break from seeing people demolish their rooms and then fixing everything for $500.

3) Laurie S. is fantastic for putting up with me and Toddcat - Ross relished being able to share his "misery."

I've been racking my brain to think of more highlights. I can't. Oh except one more thing - Ross freaked out that we wouldn't have enough sunblock and we totally did.

we're back!

We spent this long weekend hanging out with these two chicks at Disneyland. I think we pretty much made Charlotte's life because we sacrificed and stood in line for an hour so that she could meet Minnie Mouse. And I must also admit that seeing this made our admission tickets to Disneyland worth every penny. We also got to cart around Mr. EZ - who loves just about anything he can put in his mouth (just look at the size of those cheeks!)

And for good measure - I thought I'd also post a picture of Charlotte's helmet head. This is what happens when you have a can of extra strength hair spray and a great mom that does not let other things get in the way of her ability to do good hair. We miss them already!

Snoop is my pilot of choice

We flew from Chicago to Las Vegas with some people that wanted to get the party started early. I think they actually ran out of alcohol to serve to the rowdy group at the back of the plane. I wasn't sure at times whether I was flying or next door to a huge party (that we weren't invited to). There were several "announcements" to the plane directed to this one group. If they had that much fun on the flight, I wonder what happened all weekend? It's probably best that the details stay in Vegas. I never saw Soul Plane the movie - but I imagine it was a lot like our flight. If only Snoop would have been our pilot . . .

China Pics

It has taken me too long, but I finally got some pictures organized from out trip to China. Here is a sample:




We took about 700 pictures while there and didn't want anyone to fall over asleep looking at all those pictures. So we have been busy selecting our favorites. The full set is on our Flickr site (Link). As usual, photos just don't do the trip justice. They are mostly just place cards for our memories, but some of them did turn out well. It was such a beautiful place to visit. Hopefully you will at least get a glimpse of the China we enjoyed.

Road Trip or Bust!

Ross and I decided to throw caution to the wind and do nothing . . . that's right, absolutely nothing responsible this weekend. So we packed some stuff and headed to the world's greatest amusement park (at least for the past nine consecutive years), Cedar Point. It was about a 4.5 to 5 hour drive. Getting a late start on Friday night and trying to stay on our "el cheapo but still fun-o" budget we ended up staying at a very delujo (that is deluxe for all of you heathens who don't speak the espanol) motel--the "Arrowhead motel" where it was only $48 dollars a night. It probably ranks as the worst night sleep we have ever had but hey---it was cheap. Saturday morning we raced to the park and quite honestly it was awesome. Our favorite was probably "Top Thrill Dragster" where the coaster goes from 0 to 120 mph in four seconds and carries you up and over the tracks . I think the best part about amusement parks is not only the fact that you get that stomach in your mouth feeling and the adrenaline rush that comes with it but also the fact that there is some great people watching. For some reason the girls in front of us thought it would be a good idea to stand in line without shirts and instead just some bikini tops (trust me, that is never appropriate they were not very modest) but what made it even better is the fact that they had frightening tattoos on their back. Speaking of amusement parks I had no idea that tattoos, bikini tops and men in tank tops was such a fashion trend and that soda is so expensive [$3.00!]. Oh well it was worth it . . . the rides were awesome.