Today was a perfect day!

I made Doug take this picture of us because when I posted our "anniversary" post the most recent picture I could find of us together was 2 years ago- not good!

Wow! These days don't come around too often. But I love them when they do! Since Monday was our anniversary and we've had such a crazy last few months and Doug is going back to his crazy work schedule on Tuesday we decided that we needed to "run away". We took off yesterday as soon as the girls got home from school (I love that Katie is getting old enough we can leave her in charge for a couple of hours) and went to the movie "Angels & Demons". Great movie, a little violent but very intriguing! Grandma Meikle came and got the kids and they had their own fun. After the movie we went to Dinner at the Bluebird- it used to be one of our favorites but it's been a long time since we have been there. We still love their prime rib! I will never forget that was where we went to eat the night before Katie was born. I still have great memories of that night together, we knew it was our last night as "just us" and we made the most of it! (but that's another post...) Then we drove up the canyon to Beaver Creek Lodge. What a beautiful canyon! We spent the night relaxing and reading and enjoying the beautiful scenery.

We slept in (well, kind of, after we woke up at 5:00 then I went back to sleep at 7:00- what's up with that!?!) and then got ready and went on a short hike to the Limber Pine. The Limber Pine is a HUGE tree that is thought to be over 550 years old. There were beautiful flowers (lots of different kinds) and still big piles of snow. We had such a great time enjoying the smells and sights. We then drove down to Bear Lake where we browsed the gift shops (I found furniture I really wanted for my front porch, but I resisted and didn't buy it even though it was a good price) and dinner at Hometown Cafe and then drove home through Strawberry/Emigration canyon. It was soooo beautiful! I love those little farming communities. I saw many people out talking over their gardens and farmers chatting it up. It took me to a slower, simpler time. We stopped at the Preston cemetery and picked up our vase and the color bowl (we hope it's what Carol left) off of the Austin's graves. I love that little cemetery and I love those people who are buried in those graves- great memories!

We got home and I did a foot zone and Doug went over to work on my mom's add-on. After the zone we got ready for Bevan's birthday party. Katie was such a terrific helper! These are the days that make me so grateful for what a great little girl she is! We had a wonderful birthday party, but I'll put that in another post. Thank goodness for these kinds of days. They remind me how wonderful life is and give me a deep feeling that things are "good".

California

I had such a nice little vacation to visit Holly. My mom and I flew in Friday afternoon and I was able to stay until Tues afternoon. Mom is staying for most of the summer, she gets to be the "nanny" so Holly can get back to work.

I had my first experience with sushimi (sp?). I'd had sushi rolls before but didn't love them (just kind of liked them), but I LOVED my sushi experience. I made them go eat it 2 more times, that's 3 times in 4 days! Yum! This weird little picture is Holly & me ordering our sushi and eating edamame, yum! (Sorry I can't figure out why the picture is so small!)

We had a relaxing time hanging out with the baby and waiting for Holly to feed Isabella. (Remember how much time that take at first.)

On Saturday we drove to Half Moon Bay. They had all these little fruit and veggie stands. We stopped at one and bought fresh, organic; peaches, grapes, cherries, pears, peas, raspberries, strawberries and corn on the cob. Oh, so good! We ate the raspberries and peas right then. Then every night we made sorbets out of the peaches and strawberries. Yum! So good! I have to say, that would be a wonderful thing about living in California, longer growing seasons and plentiful fresh fruits & veggies. Here are Holly and I with those yummy raspberries.

Every morning my mom and I went walking. We found this little canyon just a 1/2 mile or so from Holly's house. It was a very narrow road that went straight uphill. It was a beautiful walk full of wildlife; wild turkeys, deer, birds, and squirrels. At the base of the hill there was a small ranch that had goats and horses and sheep. Wow! Who would have believed we were in a major city!

Mom and I were so good and got up on Sunday morning to go to church. We drove down to the church only to find it empty and the cute little old man told us it was Stake Conference. Oops! It's the thought that counts, right?

We were able to watch Frank play softball. Then we helped them put the finishing touches on their nursery. Because, they didn't know what kind of baby they were having they painted it green and had cute neutral bedding. We added ribbons and pink to make it more feminine. This picture is me and Isabella at the scrapbook store trying to figure out stuff for her room. I'll post pictures of the projects later, they turned out really cute!

It was so fun to be able to spend some time with Frank, Holly, Isabella and my mom. Thanks so much to Doug and his mom for making it possible for me to go!