Monday, August 24, 2009
Happy Birthday Chad!!
I'd post a really good picture of him so you can see how he just gets handsomer in time, but alas, we don't have any pictures on this computer. But here's to a great birthday to a guy everybody loves, me most of all! Thanks for all you are, Chad, you deserve the best birthday anybody could have!
Sunday, August 2, 2009
10 Things I've Noticed About Georgia
1. Georgia loves skin, and my skin loves Georgia.
2. Georgia has a fascination with peachtrees. If you drive from point A to point B here, chances are you'll drive on a street that has the word "peachtree" in it. Like Peachtree Corners Circle or Peachtree Industrial Boulevard or Peachtree Dunwoody Road or Peachtree Parkway. And the funny thing is, I haven't seen a single peachtree in this state as of yet. (But I've seen plenty in Utah.)
3. Another thing about Georgia roads--they just can't seem to make up their minds of what they want to be named! One minute you'll be on Old Milton Parkway and then it'll turn into State Bridge Road and then it'll turn into Pleasant Hill Road. Make up your mind, roads!
4. The Alpharetta, Georgia police and car registration people are out to make your life miserable and complicated and difficult.
5. A brilliant person came up with this brilliant idea to have a weekend before school starts as a tax free weekend. That means no tax on computers, school supplies, and clothes. And Georgia is apparently brilliant too, because it said, "Hey, that's a good idea!" And I love Georgia for it.
6. Georgia has really pretty birds in all sorts of colors! And then at night it has bugs that make really pretty sounds. And if you're really lucky, early in the morning you might see a fox in your backyard or a bull-frog by your side door.
7. Georgia has really sweet rainstorms, with LOUD thunder and cool lightning and really strong downpours.
8. Chocolate fondue in Georgia just tastes better than chocolate fondue I've had anywhere else. I'm still unsure of why this is, but I think it might have something to do with the fact that Audra and Jessi and their families live in Georgia.
9. The people who go to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Georgia are really friendly and welcoming and good at fellowship. In fact, most the people that we've met in Georgia have been really friendly and nice.
10. Reading "Ava's Man" while in Georgia is a very fun and culturally enriching experience.
2. Georgia has a fascination with peachtrees. If you drive from point A to point B here, chances are you'll drive on a street that has the word "peachtree" in it. Like Peachtree Corners Circle or Peachtree Industrial Boulevard or Peachtree Dunwoody Road or Peachtree Parkway. And the funny thing is, I haven't seen a single peachtree in this state as of yet. (But I've seen plenty in Utah.)
3. Another thing about Georgia roads--they just can't seem to make up their minds of what they want to be named! One minute you'll be on Old Milton Parkway and then it'll turn into State Bridge Road and then it'll turn into Pleasant Hill Road. Make up your mind, roads!
4. The Alpharetta, Georgia police and car registration people are out to make your life miserable and complicated and difficult.
5. A brilliant person came up with this brilliant idea to have a weekend before school starts as a tax free weekend. That means no tax on computers, school supplies, and clothes. And Georgia is apparently brilliant too, because it said, "Hey, that's a good idea!" And I love Georgia for it.
6. Georgia has really pretty birds in all sorts of colors! And then at night it has bugs that make really pretty sounds. And if you're really lucky, early in the morning you might see a fox in your backyard or a bull-frog by your side door.
7. Georgia has really sweet rainstorms, with LOUD thunder and cool lightning and really strong downpours.
8. Chocolate fondue in Georgia just tastes better than chocolate fondue I've had anywhere else. I'm still unsure of why this is, but I think it might have something to do with the fact that Audra and Jessi and their families live in Georgia.
9. The people who go to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Georgia are really friendly and welcoming and good at fellowship. In fact, most the people that we've met in Georgia have been really friendly and nice.
10. Reading "Ava's Man" while in Georgia is a very fun and culturally enriching experience.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Road trips = Happiness
You'd think Chad and I would be road-tripped out after our cross-country trek last month, but we've been on two road trips the last two weekends. The weekend before last we drove to Tennessee to go river rafting with his work friends. And boy was it fun! I was sufficiently scared beforehand, but I was pleasantly surprised at how fun it was, and much less scary than I had anticipated. And there were even class 3+ rapids!
And last weekend we drove to Pennsylvania to attend the wedding of Chad's old roommate. A lot of his old medical school friends were there and it was a blast! I got to meet a lot of his friends I'd never met before, which was nice. And it was super fun to catch up with Mitch & Wendy and Lindsay & Alan, who we've hung out with before. Mitch and Wendy were so nice to host us and Lindsay and Alan! After the wedding celebrations, the six of us hung out and talked late into the night. Those people are so funny, by the end of the night my cheeks hurt from laughing so much. I sure do like them.
During the 22 hours of driving in just over two days, we read "The Mysterious Benedict Society" (which I highly recommend), talked about what was on our minds, ate, took cat-naps, and enjoyed the pretty scenery. One of the things we talked about was how many states we've been to together--27 in all. And between the two of us, we've been to 44 of them. Only Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, North Dakota, and Maine to go!
As we drove, I thought about how much I love this country. It is seriously so beautiful! In college I was blessed to be able to travel to a handful of European countries, and absolutely fell in love with Europe. I loved traveling and I loved Europe! But since marrying Chad, he's taken me on several roadtrips throughout the US, and through them I have fallen in love with America. Like when he took me to Washington state (where I lived for seven years!), I was like, "Woah!!! This is so beautiful!!! This is amazing! How did I not realize how spectacular this was when I was a teenager?" I used to dream about traveling to Europe (and I still do occasionally), but now I mostly dream about the places in America that Chad's taken me to. We really do have such a gigantic, diverse, beautiful country, and I wonder if most of us don't even realize how many amazing places there are to visit just hours away from our homes.
In Utah, the beautiful things made me think, "Wow!!!" And here in Georgia, the beautiful things make me think, "Ahhhh." The beauty here is more charming, quaint, relaxing, secluded. The beauty in Utah was more majestic, awe-inspiring, magnificent, and grand. But I really do love them both.
I love this country, and I love taking road trips through it. But mostly, I think I just love Chad, and any place feels beautiful to me when he's there with me.
And last weekend we drove to Pennsylvania to attend the wedding of Chad's old roommate. A lot of his old medical school friends were there and it was a blast! I got to meet a lot of his friends I'd never met before, which was nice. And it was super fun to catch up with Mitch & Wendy and Lindsay & Alan, who we've hung out with before. Mitch and Wendy were so nice to host us and Lindsay and Alan! After the wedding celebrations, the six of us hung out and talked late into the night. Those people are so funny, by the end of the night my cheeks hurt from laughing so much. I sure do like them.
During the 22 hours of driving in just over two days, we read "The Mysterious Benedict Society" (which I highly recommend), talked about what was on our minds, ate, took cat-naps, and enjoyed the pretty scenery. One of the things we talked about was how many states we've been to together--27 in all. And between the two of us, we've been to 44 of them. Only Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, North Dakota, and Maine to go!
As we drove, I thought about how much I love this country. It is seriously so beautiful! In college I was blessed to be able to travel to a handful of European countries, and absolutely fell in love with Europe. I loved traveling and I loved Europe! But since marrying Chad, he's taken me on several roadtrips throughout the US, and through them I have fallen in love with America. Like when he took me to Washington state (where I lived for seven years!), I was like, "Woah!!! This is so beautiful!!! This is amazing! How did I not realize how spectacular this was when I was a teenager?" I used to dream about traveling to Europe (and I still do occasionally), but now I mostly dream about the places in America that Chad's taken me to. We really do have such a gigantic, diverse, beautiful country, and I wonder if most of us don't even realize how many amazing places there are to visit just hours away from our homes.
In Utah, the beautiful things made me think, "Wow!!!" And here in Georgia, the beautiful things make me think, "Ahhhh." The beauty here is more charming, quaint, relaxing, secluded. The beauty in Utah was more majestic, awe-inspiring, magnificent, and grand. But I really do love them both.
I love this country, and I love taking road trips through it. But mostly, I think I just love Chad, and any place feels beautiful to me when he's there with me.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Phew!
What a month we've had! It's been full of big changes and big fun!
Here are some photos of our day in Nauvoo:
We got to go to a temple session there. It was so inspiring and wonderful!
We visited the old historic sites, like this home of Joseph and Emma's:
We stayed in this fun old building called Hotel Nauvoo:
Chad started his new job at the Centers for Disease Control on July 1st. It is going really well so far.
We found our new home! We went under contract on July 3rd, but it is still in the process of being built. It will probably be finished mid-October, and we will close on it then. It is north of Atlanta and in a beautiful neighborhood with tennis courts, walking paths, swimming pool, basketball court, a pond, and a playground. We can’t wait to move in! Here are some photos of it:
Us putting the "Sold" sign over the previous "Available" sign:
We moved into our temporary housing—Mike and Audra’s friends Andrea and Reed are so kind and generous to let us live in their basement until our home is finished. Their home is super duper nice, and so are they. We feel so blessed!
We both got new cell phones, Chad has already changed his phone number, and I will change mine soon too.
Our road trip out here was a ton of fun, with stops at Rocky Mountain National Park, Winter Quarters, Nauvoo, and the Grand Ole Opry, as seen here:
On our anniversary we took the CNN tour and visited the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site in Atlanta. We also got to see our nephews kick some trash at their swim meet. It was such a fun day! Happy 2 Years to Us!
The weekend after we arrived, my sisters and I took a blissful trip to Asheville, NC to visit the Biltmore House. It was so so so so so fun to spend a whole day having fun just the three of us. We will definitely have to do it again! Thanks to Chad, Mike, and Dave for making it all possible. We laughed so much when we realized that for a one-night trip, we packed six boxes of cereal. Are we P* or what?!
Chad and I went to a Brave’s game on July 2. They beat the Phillies! Go Braves!
We had a family reunion with my family on July 3-July 9, which included awesome 4th of July festivities, family pictures, a trip to the Georgia Aquarium, a day of swimming and skiing at the lake, and lots of fun time talking, eating, laughing, and playing games. My family also did other fun things that we weren’t able to attend. I love my family and am just thrilled to be living closer to them!
In summary, we are so excited to be here in Atlanta, and we want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has helped us in the process. Thank you for your prayers, kindness, and help. And to all our Utah family and friends, we miss you and think about you very often!
BIG CHANGES
We’ve each slept in twelve different places in the last month
June 11: Grandma C*’s home
June 12, 13, 14: Chad’s parents’ home
June 15: Bighorn Lodge in Grand Lake, Colorado
June 16: Peak to Peak motel in Estes Park, Colorado
June 17: Super 8 motel in Gothenburg, Nebraska
June 18: Microtel Inn and Suites in Urbandale, IA
June 19: Hotel Nauvoo in Nauvoo, IL
June 20: Sleep Inn in Nashville, TN
June 21, 22, 23, 24: Fairfield Inn in Atlanta, GA
June 25: Abbi at Red Roof Inn at Asheville, North Carolina; Chad at Jessi and David’s home
June 26, 27, 28, 29, 30: Fairfield Inn in Atlanta, GA
July 1, 2: Audra and Mike’s home
July 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9: Reed and Andrea’s basement (aka, our home for the next three months)
June 11: Grandma C*’s home
June 12, 13, 14: Chad’s parents’ home
June 15: Bighorn Lodge in Grand Lake, Colorado
June 16: Peak to Peak motel in Estes Park, Colorado
June 17: Super 8 motel in Gothenburg, Nebraska
June 18: Microtel Inn and Suites in Urbandale, IA
June 19: Hotel Nauvoo in Nauvoo, IL
June 20: Sleep Inn in Nashville, TN
June 21, 22, 23, 24: Fairfield Inn in Atlanta, GA
June 25: Abbi at Red Roof Inn at Asheville, North Carolina; Chad at Jessi and David’s home
June 26, 27, 28, 29, 30: Fairfield Inn in Atlanta, GA
July 1, 2: Audra and Mike’s home
July 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9: Reed and Andrea’s basement (aka, our home for the next three months)
Here are some photos of our day in Nauvoo:
We got to go to a temple session there. It was so inspiring and wonderful!
We visited the old historic sites, like this home of Joseph and Emma's:
We stayed in this fun old building called Hotel Nauvoo:
Chad started his new job at the Centers for Disease Control on July 1st. It is going really well so far.We found our new home! We went under contract on July 3rd, but it is still in the process of being built. It will probably be finished mid-October, and we will close on it then. It is north of Atlanta and in a beautiful neighborhood with tennis courts, walking paths, swimming pool, basketball court, a pond, and a playground. We can’t wait to move in! Here are some photos of it:
Us putting the "Sold" sign over the previous "Available" sign:
We moved into our temporary housing—Mike and Audra’s friends Andrea and Reed are so kind and generous to let us live in their basement until our home is finished. Their home is super duper nice, and so are they. We feel so blessed!We both got new cell phones, Chad has already changed his phone number, and I will change mine soon too.
BIG FUN
Our road trip out here was a ton of fun, with stops at Rocky Mountain National Park, Winter Quarters, Nauvoo, and the Grand Ole Opry, as seen here:
On our anniversary we took the CNN tour and visited the Martin Luther King, Jr. Historic Site in Atlanta. We also got to see our nephews kick some trash at their swim meet. It was such a fun day! Happy 2 Years to Us!The weekend after we arrived, my sisters and I took a blissful trip to Asheville, NC to visit the Biltmore House. It was so so so so so fun to spend a whole day having fun just the three of us. We will definitely have to do it again! Thanks to Chad, Mike, and Dave for making it all possible. We laughed so much when we realized that for a one-night trip, we packed six boxes of cereal. Are we P* or what?!
Chad and I went to a Brave’s game on July 2. They beat the Phillies! Go Braves!We had a family reunion with my family on July 3-July 9, which included awesome 4th of July festivities, family pictures, a trip to the Georgia Aquarium, a day of swimming and skiing at the lake, and lots of fun time talking, eating, laughing, and playing games. My family also did other fun things that we weren’t able to attend. I love my family and am just thrilled to be living closer to them!
In summary, we are so excited to be here in Atlanta, and we want to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has helped us in the process. Thank you for your prayers, kindness, and help. And to all our Utah family and friends, we miss you and think about you very often!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Whirlwind Week
The last week has been a rollercoaster week for us. We packed up our suitcases to spend the summer in Atlanta, moved out of our house (well, I should say the movers moved us out of our house—they are putting all our stuff in storage in Atlanta until we get into a home there), cleaned our home, closed on our home, said good-bye to all our dear friends and family in Utah, I was down sick for the whole weekend (don’t worry, it wasn’t the swine flu), and then on Monday morning we left on our road trip to Atlanta. We are taking it nice and easy, enjoying a lot of scenic spots on the way. The drive on Monday was gorgeous. Sorry I didn’t take any pictures, but it was just grand. Let’s just say it started through Provo Canyon to Heber Valley, went on State Road 40 through Utah and Colorado, and ended in Grand Lake, Colorado. Anyone who’s been to either Provo Canyon or Grand Lake knows how beautiful it must have been. (Jessie, I’m in love with Colorado! It’s so beautiful!)
And then today we spent the day in Rocky Mountain National Park. Wow!!! We drove the Trail Ridge Road (which opened today by divine providence!) through the park, and enjoyed some fun hikes. We did a peak hike, a lake hike, and a waterfalls hike. It was just magnificent. Have I mentioned that I’m going to miss the mountains? I am.
Here are some photos to document our last week:
Good-bye Housey! We'll miss you! (And our neighbors even more.)
Here I am getting everything ready before the carpet cleaners came and we locked up the house forever.
This is our view from our hotel in Grand Lake, CO:
Carol and I hiking up to the summit of a mountain in Rocky Mountain National Park:
Rocky Mountain High!
Our trusty Hondas that are taking us all the way across country.
P.S. To all the Utahns out there, I want to say we love you and will miss you terribly! And also, we want to recommend two companies that really helped us out in the last month. They are Brokerage Windows and Doors and McKay and Associates Real Estate. Five stars, two thumbs up, 100% recommended, gold star to each of these companies from us.
And then today we spent the day in Rocky Mountain National Park. Wow!!! We drove the Trail Ridge Road (which opened today by divine providence!) through the park, and enjoyed some fun hikes. We did a peak hike, a lake hike, and a waterfalls hike. It was just magnificent. Have I mentioned that I’m going to miss the mountains? I am.
Here are some photos to document our last week:
Good-bye Housey! We'll miss you! (And our neighbors even more.)
Chad made our yard look 100% better than it did 3 years ago. We really hope the new owners will keep it up nice!
Here I am getting everything ready before the carpet cleaners came and we locked up the house forever.
This is our view from our hotel in Grand Lake, CO:
Carol and I hiking up to the summit of a mountain in Rocky Mountain National Park:
Rocky Mountain High!
Our trusty Hondas that are taking us all the way across country.
Look how happy we look! We are apparently quite excited to be going from the Pacific Ocean drainage to the Atlantic Ocean drainage! :)
Alberta Falls.
This was a storybook forest we walked through. I just loved it!
There were Elk all over the park! How fun!
Alberta Falls.
This was a storybook forest we walked through. I just loved it!
There were Elk all over the park! How fun!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Central Utah Trip
Here is a photo tour of our trip last month with Adam, Jessie, Caytee, Preston, Jon, and the H* clan. (Sorry, I don't have any pictures of the H* clan.)
Upper Calf Creek Falls in Grand Staircase/Escalante:
Lower Calf Creek Falls:
Snake we saw on the Lower Calf Creek hike. Mike, is it poisonous?
Goblin Valley:
Little Wild Horse Canyon/Bell Canyon Hike:
We had to shimmy over water in a lot of places:
Adam carried Jessie and Chad carried me through the water in some parts:
What a fun trip! Thanks y'all for going on it with us!
P.S. I didn't get any pictures of Sue's amazing cabin or Capitol Reef--so Jessie, could you post the ones you took?
Upper Calf Creek Falls in Grand Staircase/Escalante:
Lower Calf Creek Falls:
Snake we saw on the Lower Calf Creek hike. Mike, is it poisonous?
Goblin Valley:
Little Wild Horse Canyon/Bell Canyon Hike:
We had to shimmy over water in a lot of places:
Adam carried Jessie and Chad carried me through the water in some parts:
What a fun trip! Thanks y'all for going on it with us!P.S. I didn't get any pictures of Sue's amazing cabin or Capitol Reef--so Jessie, could you post the ones you took?
Saturday, May 30, 2009
The Joys of May
May in Utah is one of the most beautiful things I've ever experienced. Everything is so green and alive and BEAUTIFUL. This is my fifth May in Utah and I think it might be my favorite. I'm sad it's almost over! Knowing that I'll be leaving soon helps me appreciate everything all the more. I just can't get over how perfect everything is. The mountains are just so magnificent and green, the temperatures are ideal (we are hardly have to use the AC at all!), the flowers are blooming everywhere, it's light far into the night and early in the morning, and everything just feels light and happy. It's the funniest thing to think that it used to be Christmas and white and snowy here, because everything just shouts SPRING.
Here it is. I think it's so beautiful!
Plus, we have done some really fun things this May as well.
-We went to Capitol Reef, Grand Staircase, and Goblin Valley (pictures to come in another post) with Adam and Jessie, Caytee and Preston, Jon, and some of the Joe H* family. We stayed at Sue and Cless's AWESOME cabin and had lots of fun hikes and adventures.
-We got together with Chad's mom's side of the family to play a super-fun game of dodgeball.
-We went to Ephraim for Chad's 15 Year High School Reunion.
-We got together with all of Chad's family to do a session at the Salt Lake temple--we surprised his mom there and it was so special, and then we had a fun dinner together afterwards.
-We went to see the movie "Star Trek." I loved it! I still think about it from time to time. I think it's so funny that I liked it as much as I did, because I'm not a big Star Wars fan and I knew nothing about the previous Star Trek movies.
-I've gotten together with my neighborhood friends to watch Twilight, have a picnic, and have the monthly book club. I love them so much and am going to miss them so much! Here's a picture of the picnic we had that was a good-bye party for us and our other friends in the neighborhood that are moving as well.
-We finally had an offer made on our home! Hooray! Our home is currently under contract and everyone pray that everything goes well so we can close on time!!
-I've gotten together with my London friends, a friend from Romania, and friends from college.
-We went to a ReAl Salt Lake soccer game that had perfect weather and was so close and exciting!!!
-And last, but not least, I've been able to visit my Grandma quite a few times and had a blast every time. She is seriously the funnest person to be around!! I love her so much and am going to really miss visiting her. We have so much fun.
Two days ago
Here it is. I think it's so beautiful!
Plus, we have done some really fun things this May as well.-We went to Capitol Reef, Grand Staircase, and Goblin Valley (pictures to come in another post) with Adam and Jessie, Caytee and Preston, Jon, and some of the Joe H* family. We stayed at Sue and Cless's AWESOME cabin and had lots of fun hikes and adventures.
-We got together with Chad's mom's side of the family to play a super-fun game of dodgeball.
-We went to Ephraim for Chad's 15 Year High School Reunion.
-We got together with all of Chad's family to do a session at the Salt Lake temple--we surprised his mom there and it was so special, and then we had a fun dinner together afterwards.
-We went to see the movie "Star Trek." I loved it! I still think about it from time to time. I think it's so funny that I liked it as much as I did, because I'm not a big Star Wars fan and I knew nothing about the previous Star Trek movies.
-I've gotten together with my neighborhood friends to watch Twilight, have a picnic, and have the monthly book club. I love them so much and am going to miss them so much! Here's a picture of the picnic we had that was a good-bye party for us and our other friends in the neighborhood that are moving as well.
-We finally had an offer made on our home! Hooray! Our home is currently under contract and everyone pray that everything goes well so we can close on time!!-I've gotten together with my London friends, a friend from Romania, and friends from college.
-We went to a ReAl Salt Lake soccer game that had perfect weather and was so close and exciting!!!
-And last, but not least, I've been able to visit my Grandma quite a few times and had a blast every time. She is seriously the funnest person to be around!! I love her so much and am going to really miss visiting her. We have so much fun.
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