What runs in Vegas, Ragnars in Vegas

Chad and I must be gluttons for punishment or we just needed to make our schedules more complicated. We just ran the Las Vegas Ragnar with our South Jordan Slackers team. After this summer's Wasatch Back, our team was lured into signing up for the Vegas Ragnar with the promise of a special "Saints and Sinners" medal. The temptation was too much and we all caved. It all seemed like a good idea....back in June. As the weekend of October 23 approached we found this time of year to be much busier to arrange family schedules. The distance also complicated the logistics of pulling it together. We all wondered what we had gotten ourselves into and if we could pull it off. However, once we were actually in the car, we quickly remembered why we did this and why we love our team so much. As was expected, we had an awesome weekend. Not expected, was the non-flatness of Nevada. You thought Vegas was flat, too, huh? Well, it's not. It's quite hilly actually. There seemed to be a disconnect between the printed elevation gains and losses given to us in our race manual and what really was really in front of us. We also found the overall crowd to be much younger (and more crass...to say there were some interesting team names and vans is an understatement) than the Wasatch Back. It was like a weekend fraternity race...we felt old! We may have been the "senior team", but we kicked some young booty. We came in 29th out of 276 teams in our category. We beat our projected time by over an hour. Our time was 28hrs and 38m. And yes, we got our "Saints and Sinners" medal! Go South Jordan Slackers!

By the way...pack an overnight bag

I knew Chad had made dinner reservations and arrangements for the kids to stay at my mom's on Friday night. I was looking forward to a quiet night at a clean home (it doesn't stay clean for more than 10 min at a time) after dinner and a movie. However, Chad had made different plans. As we were discussing the plans to get the kids to my mom's house, he casually said, "You might want to pack an overnight bag." Well okay! I was totally surprised and couldn't wait to hear about what he had planned.

We had dinner reservations at Tiburon in Sandy. It was delicious. I had the lamb and Chad had the roasted chicken. We will definitely go back sometime. Next we headed to the Grand America dowtown. Have you ever stayed here? This was my first time and wow, it is amazing. Our room was just beautiful. It had a sitting area, huge bathroom and a gorgeous view of the east side of Salt Lake. After check-in we headed to the Gateway for to see the movie, "Salt." After the movie, we enjoyed an evening walk throught some of the gardens at the hotel. When we returned to our room, we found our bed turned down with a robe, chocolates and music softly playing. In the morning, we had breakfast on the patio next to the beautiful grounds.  As if this wasn't enough, Chad made spa appointments for us at Sego Lily Spa. We both had 90 min treatments. What an indulgence! This was such a relaxing fun weekend with Chad. I can't thank him enough for going out of his way to surprise and pamper me.

39 and holding....

Chad just celebrated his 39th birthday and he handeled it like a pro. One more year until.....well, until he's not quite as young as this year. Aren't we both still 25? Weird how time flies...we are all headed in the same direction and fast, too! He had a nice quiet celebration this year. Chad's parents took us to Flemings for a very delicious (and pricey) steak dinner. After dinner, we enjoyed some decadant cupcakes with the kids. There is no one else in the world I'd rather have next to me to grow old with. Love you, Chap!

It just keeps getting better...

Chad and I just did our second Wasatch Back and it was pretty awesome! We had a great time with our team...no surprise there...we pretty much have the coolest team! ;) It was so great watching Chad run this year...injury free. His last run was a killer and he pushed through like a pro. As for me, I was a bit faster this year which always feels good. I felt like a rockstar on my 2nd run...the best I've felt on a run. It was really nice for a change. Lest you think I'm getting cocky, dont worry, my level of rockstar is still far below most. This year we were in van 1. This means we get a better sleeping time, which consisted of  3 1/2 hours in a church parking lot in who-knows-where. The sprinklers went off and Chad didn't wake up...he got soaked. Good times. I think I am already looking forward to next year. However, I'd better not get too happy about it or our team captain just might up grade my runs. I am perfectly happy with having the easiest legs in each van! :)

A day for DAD!

A simple breakfast in bed, 3 handmade cards and one totally rockin' dad playing a licorice guitar (made by Sarah), and lots of love for the one we call the best dad in the whole world. We are blessed to be family. We are blessed to have Chad as the head of our little family. He loves us, he takes care of us, he honors his priesthood. Yes, he really is the best dad in the world.

Church bench reunion...

After 5 1/2 years, our family is reunited once again on one church bench. Today Chad was released from serving as a counselor in the bishopric. This calling has span a ward split and two bishops. It was definitely a bittersweet day. With the length of time he has served, we sensed his days were numbered. Chad has loved this opportunity to serve. The bishop joked that there might be a revolt among the youth. Chad was especially connected to the youth and will miss being with them. I, for one, will miss seeing Jenna sit with him during the closing hymn. (The bishop has a son the same age and both kids would sit on their daddy's laps during the closing hymn.) However, I am looking forward to having a shoulder to lean on and a hand to hold. Oh yes, sleeping in and watching the CBS Sunday Morning News in bed won't be so bad either. :)

Some of you might find it interesting to know that Nick Madsen, a dear friend from Colorado, was called to replace Chad. We had fun teasing the Madsens that our plan had worked....now they know why we wanted them to moved into the ward! ;)

One memorable night....

  ...and to think he almost missed it! We had made some weekend plans with friends before we realized the conflict with the Daddy Daughter Date night for the Activity Day girls. For about 1/2 a second we thought, "Eh, we can miss it." So glad that insane thought quickly left. I don't think I've seen Chad and Sarah have this much fun in a long time. Chad texted me a couple times through the night to let me know and I think the pictures speak for themselves. They were both beaming! What a special night!

Brrrrr.........Chad is awesome!

Early this morning, Chad ran his first 1/2 marathon. I say first because I have a feeling he is going to keep this running thing going. He has been a real natural! The race started at Aspen Grove above Sundance and made it's way down the Provo River Trail ending in the River Bottoms of Provo. Chad ran with two of his Brother-in-laws; Cameron and Shawn. Let me just say it was COLD and they are AWESOME! While Amy, Megan and I waited to cheer them on at Nunn's park, my thermometer read a balmy 30 degrees. It felt colder. It was so cold that as the runners ran by, you could see that their sweat had turned to frost on their clothing. Chad said he actually felt a bit hot (Yes, he is!). The first 5 miles was a steep downhill...easy on the heart, killer on the legs. It began cold and foggy and it ended beautifully...sun and warmth! I was so impressed with the guys, they all did a great job and ended within 10min of each other. Oh, and they got really cool skull shirts and medals to boot! Chad was amazing and the long run didn't even seem to phase his body too much. Really great news given his I.T. band problems earlier in the summer. Way to go, Chad!!! (truth be told, I'm jealous...I wish I could run with as much ease and enjoyment as he does!)

Celebrating CHAD!

In between the chaos that is the end of school and the blink of our summer, we celebrated Chad's 38th birthday. Happy Birthday Chad (and Marc!!)! Chad is way too modest when it comes to his turn in the spotlight. I'm not sure why he quickly brushes off any birthday wishes or attention given to him. Maybe he has figured out it just means we are all getting older? ;) With his birthday falling on a Sunday, we had a low-key gathering of a few friends for cake and ice cream. Chad even blushed at this small get together in his honor, but I didn't care....he deserves the love and a little roasting! Most of his gifts fell into the running category and with his I.T. band injury they were rather anti-climatic. He can't wait to get full use of them once his knee feels better.

The fact that Chad is a part of our lives deserves a whole lot of celebrating. I have no doubt that my life, the life of our children and so many around us are blessed because of him. He is hard worker; committed to taking care of his family and honoring his duties at church and work. He is thoughtful; I have been hard pressed to hear about any other husband as thoughtful as Chad...he plans ahead and really thinks about his gift-giving, he loves surprising me. He is patient; he listens to me talk in circles and he patiently puts up with my short comings. He is still my best friend; we still love being together any chance whether its going to Costco or going on a vacation.
Happy birthday Chad....here's to many more years of making you blush under the spotlight on your birthday. I love you!

CHAD rhymes with DAD

Sarah proudly announced she just noticed this a few weeks ago.
CHAD is one great DAD. The kids idolize, adore him, follow him and love him. It's no surprise they often prefer him, too. (can that be a good thing sometimes?? lol) We love all our DAD's on this day...Papa Bruce, Papa Rick, Papa Pat...and we remember and love the DAD's that are no longer with us. Happy Father's Day!!

We did it. We survived. It was HARD. It was fun???

South Jordan Slackers finished with the very respectable time of 28:17:42.6!

It just dawned on me last night why you train. Yes, you train so your body can do it. But, more than that, you train so that during the race you don't have to think about what your body is doing and you can focus on the mental part. This was seriously hard. It wasn't so much the distances you had to run, it was that you had to do it 1- crammed into a car (just when your muscles have cemented into position, you have to run again), 2- no sleep, none (yes, there are periods of rest, but you try to sleep in the car or in some crazy campground with hundreds of people) and then 3- you have to do it three times.
I am so proud of Chad who ran two of his legs with excruciating IT Band knee pain. Seriously, he's amazing. 30 yards into his 2nd run he was crumpled over and we had Terry (the Superman of runners), ready to jump in. Then Chad stood up and kept going. For 7.8 miles. No kidding. He ran with a great little, stiff-legged hobble, but he did it. AND...he barely lost any time off his predicted time!!! My husband is cool.
I can't decide if this was as hard as I thought it would be or harder than I expected. Either way, it was dang hard. Like, I started my third leg with tears in my eyes hard. Yep, brought me to tears. This is when I realized what a mental thing it is. I can't tell you how much I DID NOT want to run at that point. I was SO done. But, I did it. I even sprinted to my finish.
I guess you could call it miserable fun, which is exactly what I had hoped for. We had such a great time with our team. I was so impressed with our team...what animals. Feeling as good as I did with what I accomplished, made me that much more impressed with what they did. Wow. The distances, the up hills and the down hills...really, really hard stuff. We bonded over laughter and a whole lot of sweat. Our motto..."what happens at Ragnar stays at Ragnar." Chad's already talking about next year. Me? Ask me in 6 months.
(pictures to come)

Bringing down the house...

...the church house???!!!

Last night our youth had a talent show. I was thrilled to hear how many of them participated from skits, to camp songs...even a dolsimer performance! I don't know that I would have had the confidence to do it...I probably would have played the "I'm too cool for that" card (ie...I don't have the guts to put myself out there).
Josh has been working hard on the guitar for the past year. In fact, he just got his first guitar and amp for Christmas. It's been great seeing his desire to play push him to practice and improve. I loved that he didn't hesitate at the chance to get a shot on stage (uh-oh...should I be worried?) Whenever he had a free minute, he'd be in his room practicing. Now being Josh, he had to inject a little humor into his performance. Hence the sunglasses. He thought it would be funny to pause before he started and put the glasses on. I think he got a few laughs. This persuasive child also got Chad to follow suit. It's not that my men think they are "too cool for school"...they were just trying to be funny. (I think...I hope). Josh (who recently complained he was born in a time with no good music) played "Sweet Child of Mine." What?? I have a child playing the guitar...and playing songs that I grew up with?? Life is funny. Josh did a wonderful job. During his performance he got little relaxed doing a Jack Black jig and lost his strap...he didn't lose a beat going to one knee to play. Gotta love it. Chad also got the chance to play...so far it hasn't kept him off the stand on Sundays. ;) Love it or hate it, we've got Rockers in the house!

15 years in the making...

It has only taken Chad and I 15yrs to go on a cruise and it was worth the wait!

Imagine my surprise when I opened a cruise itinerary for Christmas...and I thought I was getting new faucets (and I would've have been totally thrilled with that). Yes, Chad managed to pull off a huge surprise. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Chad really is so thoughtful and awesome with his gift giving. He'd even already asked my mom and dad to stay with the kids while we were gone.

We were scheduled to sail on the Norwegian Pearl from Miami on January 25, returning on February 1. Our ports of call were: Roatan (Honduras), Belize, Cozumel and a private NCL island in the Bahamas (but was changed to Key West).

By far, the highlight of the trip was experiencing the people. Whether it was on the ship or on one of our excursions, I loved meeting people that were so different from me.

I was amazed to learn that the ship had over 1,000 crew members from 65 different countries. They sign 10 month contracts and work 10-14hrs a day, 5-6 days a week. Wow. They work hard and are so grateful for these jobs (unlike the NCL American ship that can't stay staffed because the Americans won't do the work). Our last night there, we met the cutest married couple from the Philippines...they were hoping to take 3 months off to start their family. We also loved talking to Emil from Jamaica. He teased us saying he knew where we were from because he recognized the Book of Mormon in our room. I asked if he had read it. He said he had, but that religion wasn't for him. I told him to give it another try. ;) We also met such a wonderful couple from New Hampshire. We enjoyed having Mary and Glenn join us on many activities and look forward to keeping in touch with them. We also had a great time being with another couple from our neighborhood, Jackie and Eric Peterson. It was great to get to know them better and even tease Jackie about her fear of new foods. The Peterson's are such wonderful people!

Roatan, Honduras was our first port of call. While I loved each stop for different reasons, if I had to pick a favorite this would be it (maybe because it was our first stop?). When we got off the ship, I couldn't believe how huge the ship was against this tiny village and port. I loved that this port was less developed and less prepared for the tourist...it made the experience feel so much more authentic. (although they were constructing new shops to cater to the ships). When we arrived it was gray and rainy, I was touched to see the people lining the streets just watching us drive by...maybe hoping for work...maybe just with nothing else to do. The next thing that struck me was the homes. Rusted roof shacks on stilts. I've seen pictures like this, but to see it in person is a humbling experience. As we drove up over the hill to the other side of the island, I felt like I was in "Romancing the Stone". I was half expecting to be slipping down a muddy hillside (remember that great scene) as the bus struggled to get up the rainy slope. When we arrived at the beach, it was still wet and gray, but we opted to head to the water and snorkel anyway. Can I just say, "Wow!" The reef was right there in the calm, clear waters. We headed out and snorkeled out as far as we could go. As we headed back, we got a bit off track and ended up on top of the reef with inches to spare before our tummy's were toast! While in the water I got a few small jellyfish stings...when I got out I had little red dots on my arm. Before we got out of the water, the sun was shining. The sand was so beautiful...I even brought some home and have run my fingers through it wishing to be back there. It was also fun to see the wild iguanas on the cliffs. The food. Oh the food! Lunch was prepared by the locals. Jerk chicken and rice and beans. It was so good!

Our next port was Belize City, Belize. We planned to do cave tubing. When we arrived, we were one of the last to meet up with the group. This was actually quite fortuitous. With the bus full, we got to ride in a van (this is where we first met Mary and Glenn) with two of our guides, Minor and Mark. What a wonderful experience getting such personal insights on Belize. After a bit of a drive, we arrived at our stop and were outfitted with headlamps and giant inner tubes. Now, this is the part where I feel like Indiana Jones. We had to hike a bit through the rain forest to get to the launch spot. As we crossed a river, hiked through caves and trees, we were given great bits of information about the forest. Like, "eat this if....," or "avoid this when..." We even got to sample an alternative source of protein. Termites! Yes, we really did. Our guides told us they tasted a bit minty...and well, they did! As we hiked these muddy paths, I could totally envision the Mayan living here (or Indiana searching for treasure). We finally arrived at the cave entrance and jumped in the chilly water with our headlamps and tubes. What an amazing experience to float through these huge caves...there was even a fresh spring waterfall inside! As we headed back, we had another local lunch of jerk chicken and rice and beans again, it was delicious. As we came through Belize City, our guides drove us by the local LDS chapel. Mark commented that the high fence made him feel unwelcome. I didn't want to offend him by telling him the fence was for obvious reason...the rest of the city was run down and full of vandalized buildings. Instead, I challenged him to be proven wrong by going behind that fence and seeing just how friendly and happy the people on the other side were!

Cozumel, Mexico was our next port. We scheduled to snorkel here. After meeting our boat and guide, the five of us headed out (us, the Peterson's and Glenn). Our first stop was two sunken ships. Very cool. While there our guide did a free dive to the bottom (about 30 ft) to show us a big conch shell and big starfish. We all got to handle them. Very fun...except for the small jellyfish stings my leg incurred. Somehow I was the only one the jellyfish seemed to like! The bites were a nuisance more than anything...not too painful. Next we headed to the other side of the bay to a reef. The snorkeling was okay. I understand there was a big hurricane a couple years ago that severely damaged the reefs. We were able to see the huge fallen piers under the water...amazing they could be destroyed. After our snorkeling we were ready for food and shopping. This was definitely the place for shopping and haggling. While shopping we asked some locals were they eat and decided we wanted to venture out of our way a bit. (not too far...neither of us speaks Spanish) Ohhh yum. What a delicious adventure. We had an unusual queso with the chips and a lentil soup (mmm!) to start. Of course we had to get Coke and Coke "light" in bottles. I had steak and shrimp, Chad had a chicken with black bean sauce. It was so good!

While on the ship we enjoyed the shows. They had a fabulous couple that did amazing and graceful acrobats, a great comedian and fun juggling/comedy act. The crew also did a talent show. I even got to dance with the group from the Philippines. What fun.

Okay, so I do have one negative review: the food on the ship. Maybe I'd heard too many stories of bountiful and incredible food that my expectations were too high. Yes, the food was plentiful, but incredible? Chad and I concluded that quantity was being confused with quality. The other problem was there were only 4 "free" dining rooms, but 7 restaurants with cover charges. So to get some better food, you had to pay for it. I did eat plenty of banana ice cream in the buffet!

Because of bad weather our last stop was changed to, Key West, Florida. I think had we planned to go here and it hadn't been so chilly and windy, we would have enjoyed this stop a lot more. It is a tourist town with lots of charming,quaint buildings....kinda like Park City with palm trees. While here, we had to sample a piece of key lime pie. Here, I ventured off on my own to the local Mel Fisher museum. He was a diver that recovered the treasures from a 16th century Spanish Galleon ship. It was cool to see what was recovered and how it would have been to travel by ship back then (nooo thank you!). For a mere $65,000 I could have purchased a gold trinket box recovered from the wreckage.

We arrived in Miami on Sunday morning. Since we were in Miami both Sundays, we were able to attend a local ward twice. We visited a small, struggling ward. Another humbling experience. Humbling to see many new converts and diverse members working together and showing so much love for each other. Also humbling to recognize what a blessing it is to be in a large ward the functions with more ease. I felt for the bishop. A young father of three boys under the age of five who had just moved from Riverton, Utah 10 months ago. Can you imagine the adjustment?! What a treat it was to attend this ward. After church we did some site seeing along South Beach. I loved seeing all the Art Deco buildings. What a beautiful community. And umm, also diverse. It was hilarious driving by a proudly gay cafe with a drag dancer in the middle of the street stopping traffic. All the while, men screaming and taking photos! It was wonderful walking along the beach and enjoying homemade churros from the local restaurant, Manalo.

So worth the wait....BUT I do not want to wait 15 more years to do it again!

Viva Las Time-Away-From-Kids!

Yes, this is unusual, very unusual. And, I will take unusual because I'm sure it won't be back for awhile. Chad and I took a quick trip to Vegas with some friends from our neighborhood, April and Wade. I've been through Vegas and around Vegas, but I've never directly experienced the downtown "Strip" in its current form. We found a great deal (sit through a time share presentation) that offered 2 nights at a resort (an interesting place to sleep) and some tickets and coupons for local food and entertainment (buffets and shows that no one goes to and at times you wouldn't go). Before we arrived we found out we had actually been bumped from the the resort to a Hilton down the road (which I thought was actually more clean and quiet). April and Wade were still at the resort so we had access to all the amenities. Kind of funny they expect us to be interested in buying a property we don't even get to stay at, huh?! Since I already sound like I'm on a negative rant, let me quickly say that aside from the sales presentation we had a wonderful weekend.

Our first night there, we had reservations at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill at Caesar's Palace. We knew this would be a splurge and mmmm....was it worth it! We couldn't resist tasting each others dishes. I had a Mahi with mango, Chad had Salmon with a black bean sauce, April had a Halibut with a red chili sauce and Wade had Pork Tenderloin. Wow. They were all so tasty. I think April's was actually my favorite...the red sauce was such an unexpected yet delicious combination with the halibut. (sorry, I'm not a "foodie" so my descriptions are not great) After dinner we walked around "the strip" a bit. We watched the fountains at the Bellagio. Wow. That was an amazing site. They were all synchronized to music and shot so high into the air. The water pressure was so intense that is almost sounded like fireworks going off. Also, so beautiful at night with all the lights. Definitely one the trip highlights.

The next day began with sleeping in and relaxing by the pool with a book. Then it was off to the time share presentation. I will spare you the details. Lets just say I'm still undecided as to if 90 minutes of being very uncomfortable is worth the good deal on the accommodations. Luckily, the cringe moments with the salesmen quickly became a memory with a massage. Ahhh. We then headed to Isla at Treasure Island for dinner. I had the most delicious shrimp tacos. After dinner we walked "the Strip" some more. This time we headed over to the Wynn. This was another highlight of the trip. The way it was decorated was just amazing. The floral tiles and carpet were so colorful and vibrant. There were also these amazing Asian-type lanterns that moved up and down. It was a really fun place to walk around. We then went through the Palazzo. Another beautifully decorated casino. These both seemed to be a step up from Caesar's and Treasure Island.

Our last day began with sleeping in (I have to include that because it never happens at home!). After checking out, we headed to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. (These were the only worth while tickets given to us from the time share presentation) As if all the casinos weren't big enough, this place just seemed even bigger! As we walked through the game floor, we noticed they had a "House of Blues." What a trip this place was. The decor seemed like it was inspired by some one's acid trip in the 70's. Almost everything was done with bottle caps, license plates and other random bits of metal. So cool to look at. This was another trip highlight. We then headed to the M&M store to get some goodies for the kids.

Seriously, Vegas is crazy. Talk about sensory overload. I was astounded by the sheer size of everything and how they fit so much into one building. I was struck by each casino's ability to offer something unique and fabulous. It was also interesting to observe how deceitfully well everything is planned out. There was no straight shot from point A to B....you are hypnotically led where the casinos want you to go (you can't even cross a street with going up escalators, over bridges and through casinos). Everything is cleverly crafted to benefit the casino and satisfy the worldy appetites and passions of man. I was slightly surprised that we didn't see too much overt filth. I'm certainly not ready to call Vegas family friendly, but we didn't see or experience some of the shocking things you hear about (gone were the hoards of nasty fliers being passed out and all over the ground). I am so grateful that Chad and I had the opportunity to get away (again!) and we had a wonderful time with the Morden's.

This is free? Really?!

This is what we heard from the kids throughout the night as we attended Chad's company wide party. We have never been part of a company that does nice little things for their empolyees, so the kids were a little surprised at all the great things the company did that night. This year's theme was "Carnivale" and they went all out. An entire park at Thanksgiving Point reserved jsut for the company. It was filled with all sorts of activities and treats that were all free! We had a great time riding the ferris wheel. The kids loved the Tornado...Chad and I passed on that. Jenna loved the little cow train. They also had all sorts of bouncy, blow-up toys. In addition to the rides, they had all sorts of activities: family photos, face painting, caricatures and tons of games with prizes. One of the best things were all the consession stands set up throughout the park. Snow cones, cotton candy, soda, popcorn, churros, candy...all free! The kids just couldn't believe it...so fun to see their surprise as they could get whatever they wanted. Dinner was served as well. The evening ended with a live band and fireworks. We also got free passes for the dinosaur museum, farm and gardens to use anytime this week. I'm thinking we like Chad's job! :)

Happy, happy, happy, happy, happy anniversary!

(sung in my best Mike Myers as the father on "So I Married An Axe Murderer.")

Today Chad and I celebrated our 14th anniversary! I wanted to make some joke about it feeling so much longer, but really it hasn't. Time has flown by (except at the movie tonight). ;) Chad and I still love hanging out together...he is my best friend and I am so grateful we are a team.

Chad gets major kudos in the husband gift giving department. A couple weeks ago, I saw a lady w/ a super cute purse and I asked her where she got it. I haven't thought about it again until....I opened up the same purse this morning! How great is he that he totally took note of that. He always listens and observes so well when he's planning something for me. He is so sweet about it. He loves surprising and spoiling me (and I love it, too!) Thank you Chad! :)

Chad made reservations at Epic, a great restaurant in Fort Union. They have the most delicious flat bread; we had one with dried cranberry English cheddar, grilled chicken and a parsley aioli. The salads are just as delicious. We tried one with grilled poblano chili, mango and a white basalmic vinaigrette. For our entrees, Chad had a shrimp pasta dish with a ginger soy and pineapple sauce. I tried the marlin with a 3 olive and tomato sauce. Are you hungry yet? We've eaten here once before and liked it even better the second time around. Mmmmm!!

We then headed to the movie. We were looking forward to seeing Batman, BUT we had to get some dessert first. We went to Marble Slab to get our favorite ice cream. For any Coldstone fans our there, Marble Slab is much better. More choices, better ice cream. The ice cream is so good, I don't even get the mix-ins! By far, my favorite is the the coconut.

It was such a wonderful night. 5 consecutive hours together, uninterrupted by kids and responsibilities; I can't think of anything better. Thank you Chad!! Happy Anniversary...I look forward to infinity more with you!

Good times with the "Mead-e-air-os" family ;)

The last week of June, we were lucky to have visits from some of Chad's family. Chad's granparents came into town to celebrate G'ma Ginger's 90th birthday! Yep, NINETY years, isn't that amazing? We met for dinner at Magelby's where she was personally serenaded by the restaurant's manager. She just loved the attention. We were also able to have them over for dinner. We love having the opportunity to have them in our home. G'ma Ginger even played some of her songs on the piano. It's so fun to see her play and to hear her personality come out through the music. The music she plays is so telling of the time in which she grew up. She did lots of singing and dancing in the Pre-WWII era.

Later in the week, we had another special visit. Chad's twin, Marc and his boys came to visit. We absolutely enjoyed every minute we got to spend with them. In the past, we've only gotten to see him and his boys about once a year...a record we hope will soon improve! :) I can't believe Chase is going to be a senior; it seems like only yesterday day he was clinging onto my wedding dress as we came out of the temple! We had fun teasing Chase about his girlfriend and we loved hearing about all his plans for college and the future. It was so cute to see how much Jenna took to him. She is very selective to whom she gives her attention. Even after they left, she continued to ask, "Where's Chase?" The boys also loved spending time with Chandler. This cutie has the most gorgeous blue eyes and awesome blond hair...look out girls! Josh and Andrew loved hanging out him....playing the Wii, basketball, swimming, the computer...they just had a great time!

I'm so glad Chad was able to spend time with Marc. It's been a tough several months for him and I know there is no better healing and strengthening power than that of family. They share a bond that few can understand. There are the inside jokes, the music, the memories, the sports and so much more. More importantly, they had the opportunity to be together and just talk.

*

PS...Lest you think you've been saying our last name wrong, I should mention that the name pronunciation in the title is not really how you say our name (just the way the temple sealer decided to say it, so we always joke about it)