Wednesday, October 28, 2015

8 States in 48 Hours!

I know many people think I'm crazy to jam in so many states in such a short period of time but it really wasn't hard at all to fit in 8 states in 48 hours.  The flight on the plane was actually longer than the time spent in the car driving!  And since I only needed 3 of the 8 states as ones to check off my list, I accomplished my goal and then some...

State #1 - New York.  John and I flew on a red-eye to JFK Sunday night.  Usually I LOVE when pilots get me to my destination ahead of schedule but when I'm trying to get as much sleep as possible I was a little grumpy when our 4-hour flight became a 3-1/2 hour flight!  We landed at JFK at 4:30 am and had our rental car on the road by 5 am heading toward Greenwich, CT.


State #2 - Connecticut.  Since it was only a 45-minute drive, it was still pitch dark and nothing was open at that time of day.  We drove around downtown a little and it "looked" like a neat place.  
Connecticut - CHECK!


State #3 - New Jersey.  Drove many miles on the New Jersey turnpike and paid lots of tolls.  I've already been to New Jersey so it wasn't one I needed to check off.

State #4 - Pennsylvania.  Philadelphia was the bait to get John to come with me.  He has wanted to see Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell forever so he was excited to get the opportunity.  We spent a half day in this city and John got his fill.


This room had special meaning to John since he played the role of Josiah Bartlett in 1776 at Rodgers Memorial Theater several years ago.  He loves anything dealing with American History--especially the Constitution and signing of the Declaration of Independence.


Walked around Independence Hall square and surrounding areas and toured the US Mint where they make our coins.


I thoroughly enjoyed the Reading Market Terminal... that's probably why I had two different types of Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches from two vendors, homemade pretzel and THE BEST donuts I've ever had by an Amish family.  Half the fun of trips for me is experiencing the local food!


State #5 - Delaware.  We spent the night at a hotel in Delaware and the area was beautiful.  The Fall is such a great time to be back East.
Delaware - CHECK!


State #6 - Maryland.  Already visited this state so we just drove through on our way to the next one.


State #7 - Virginia.  Again, just a drive through.


State #8 - West Virginia.  This was the 3rd state on the trip I needed to visit so we went to Harper's Ferry, WV and spent a couple of hours touring this cool historical town.  It's situated right where the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers merge and where Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia meet.  It's also almost the exact middle of the Appalachian trail.  It's best known for John Brown's raid on the Armory in 1859 and its role in the Civil War.
West Virginia - CHECK!


We flew out of Reagan International Airport and had a 2-hour layover in Florida before landing in Utah exactly 48 hours after we left.  I guess if I count those last two we covered 10 states!  I've only got 4 states left to visit--Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky which I can't wait to see with Hailey when she returns from her mission!

Weekend Warriors!

When Hillary called to say she was flying up to run the SL Haunted Half Marathon, I thought it would be fun to sign up and run with her.  I'd planned on being done with races for the season but the course sounded great and I love running races I haven't tried before.  I also signed Garrett and John to run the 5K.  The Half Marathon started 8-1/2 miles up Emigration Canyon with the headless horseman as the race leader.  It was really cold while we waited an hour for the race to begin but once we started running the weather was perfect.  We talked the entire 13+ miles and cross the finish line together at 1:46.  John and Garrett ran their 5K together too, then Garrett hopped on front runner to Provo to attend the BYU football game.


After the race, we had brunch at our favorite Penny Ann's Cafe, went shopping at City Creek and Park City and had dinner at Bombay House.


Grayson didn't run with us because he was participating in WXHS Sadies activities with Berklee.

Fun weekend for us all!



Sunday, October 25, 2015

UEA Weekend 2015

We love having a home in St. George that is available to use any time we want/need to get away.  It completely feels like our home and John, the kids and Cooper enjoy every minute we're there...


We have a few favorite places we frequent like Bear Paw Cafe, The Crepery, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, etc.  I introduced the boys to Fractured Prune doughnuts this trip where they make you a hot yellow cake doughnut and then let you choose your glaze and toppings.  Yum!


We also enjoy pool time, tennis, pickle ball and usually a movie and shopping.


This trip John and I found a new hiking spot up by Leeds that we absolutely loved and will return to when we're back at Thanksgiving time.  Saw dinosaur tracks, red rock and slot canyons.


We packed in a lot in 3 days and can't wait to return "home" in a few weeks...

Monday, October 19, 2015

Let's Celebrate October!!

October has turned into a month of celebrations--
Dad turned 83 on October 10 and a few family members who were available at lunchtime took him to Rio Grande for one of his favorite Mexican meals.



I adore the ladies I work with in Primary--Shannon, Melissa, Kathy and Kacee (missing).  We celebrate our birthdays with lunch or going out for our favorite treat... Shannon chose gelato!


Sister Tebbs is celebrating her last transfer as Sister Cook's trainer and I'm celebrating that it's Sister Tebbs' last transfer!!


Our family celebrated Ashton's Oct. 19 birthday.  He would've been 25...  He was just too perfect for this life and we're looking forward to celebrating with him in the future.