Thursday, December 28, 2017

Christmas in Utah

This year, Ricky and I had our first Christmas together in Utah! When we first got married, we were in Utah for the wedding and reception on December 19th, right before Christmas, and then we headed to San Diego for the honeymoon, Christmas with Ricky's family, and a San Diego reception. The next year, we had Christmas with Ricky's family in San Diego again because his grandparents were moving and it would be the very last Christmas with them in their Van Nuys home. We wanted to be there for that. But this year, we finally got to have Christmas with my family! It was a wonderful trip! I want to share the few pictures that I did take and document what we did!

On Thursday, our first full day there, I went shopping with my mom and sister. We finished Christmas shopping and we got some groceries. Brittany and I made dinner, white chicken lasagna soup, a recipe I've been wanting to try for awhile! Then Brian, Brittany, Ricky, and I met Lisa and Travis at the Hogle Zoo for zoo lights! It was fun! There were lots of fun lights, and we got to see some animals that are more active in the night. Although I didn't get a picture, the polar bears were my favorite. They were running around and being so fun! I have never seen them so active! I think they were enjoying the weather!


They had a light of the lion drinking fountain!!!
After the zoo, my family went to Christmas in Color, which was a drive-through light show. It was pretty crowded, so there was quite a wait to get in, but it was really cool!

Singing light bulbs!

On Friday, we went downtown to eat dinner at Little America and to see the lights at Temple Square. Dinner at Little America was delicious and the window displays at Grand America were fun. There was also a huge gingerbread house there this year that was awesome! Staying in or eating at Little America at Christmastime has been a tradition for my family for awhile, but lately it's getting so much more popular and crowded. Temple square was packed as well! Despite the crowds, we had a great time!

So much gingerbread and rice krispie treats!


On Saturday, Ricky and I went to visit Uncle Dean! It was so fun seeing him again!!! When we first got there, he put us to work, just like old times. Then, we went to dinner at Mandarin in Bountiful, which Ricky and I had never been to before, but wanted to try. It was really good! And because we called ahead, we got seated right away when we arrived. It was so crowded, but the service was great and we really enjoyed it! After dinner, we drove around Becky's neighborhood to see the lights and decorations, and then we visited Becky and her family. It was fun to visit. Uncle Dean is doing so well, and it was so good to see him again!

Sunday was Christmas Eve. We went to church for sacrament meeting, which was the only meeting held since it was Christmas Eve. My mom was actually one of the speakers, and did so well! It was fun being in my home ward again. It's been awhile! After church, we went to my Grandma and Grandpa's house for Christmas Eve with my mom's side of the family. We ate dinner, did a talent show, acted out the nativity and sang, and then opened presents.

Monday was Christmas Day. We opened presents in the morning. Then Ricky and I got to Skype with Ricky's family and his brother Alex who is on a mission right now. We got to talk to Alex for like an hour, so it was great! Then we went to my Grandma and Grandpa's house for Christmas day with my dad's side of the family. We had lunch, then we did our white elephant gift exchange! Then, we "kids" (Lisa, Travis, Brian, Brittany, Ricky and I) played a game downstairs just like old times.

I got my dad an essential oil diffuser

And a cute skull pillow
I got my mom a presto salad shooter and a cookie sheet
Brian and Brittany got Ricky soda and candy and Brian got me gel pens!

Brittany got me a coloring canvas!
This is what I got Brittany! It's from a shop on Etsy called Sydni Stitches.

Ricky and I had a flight home the day after Christmas. It was such a fun trip, but went so fast! It was so fun being with my family for Christmas and doing all of the traditions I remember from growing up.

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Two Years!

We've been married two years today!!! Here is a short video I made to remember these first two years of our marriage. I'm excited for many more to come!

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Family Vacation, Part 2: Santa Cruz

Day 3: We went to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park in Felton. We hiked around on our own for a bit, then we went on the popular Redwood Loop Trail. The trees were so huge and it was fun learning about them. After that, we went to Natural Bridges State Beach and admired the view. Then, we headed over to the Santa Cruz Wharf for our Thanksgiving dinner.

This tree was growing when Jesus was on the earth!

It was crazy to look at the timeline and realize how old these trees really are!

I read about banana slugs on Yelp, but doubted we'd actually see any. I was wrong - they were all over the place!


"The Giant" - Over 270 feet tall and 17 feet wide, almost as tall as a 25 story building!!!

I look tiny!
Some of the trees got hollowed out when there were fires. The Fremont tree was especially neat to go into!


After the Redwoods, we went to Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz. I hadn't realized this, but Ricky and I have been there multiple times before, we just always called it cliff beach.

Natural Bridges

The sky was beautiful!




Then we went to the Santa Cruz wharf, where we ended up eating our Thanksgiving dinner. The place we went to dinner had a Thanksgiving special, and it was packed! I was thinking the locals go there for Thanksgiving dinner. It was delicious!

A view of the Boardwalk from the wharf

The sea lions were waking up from their naps and we were wondering how they got up there. We think they got up there when the tide was high, and then it got lower as they were napping.




We decided on Firefish Grill for our Thanksgiving dinner this year. They had their normal menu, as well as a Thanksgiving special. My dad and I got the Thanksgiving special - a turkey dinner with stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, yams, cranberry sauce, and a slice of pumpkin pie, which was amazing!
Day 4: My family's last day in San Jose. I had to go back to work and Ricky had to get back to studying for the CPA. My family went to the Tech Museum in downtown San Jose. Then, my mom cooked us spaghetti dinner in my apartment. I ran to Savers with Brian and Brittany to get more chairs, which we needed! We found a nice pair of wooden chairs for $5 each. Ricky still used his desk chair and I used the ottoman. Next time, we'll need to see about getting a bigger table!

Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Family Vacation, Part 1: San Francisco

My family came to San Jose to spend Thanksgiving week with us! It was so fun having them here!!! We played tourists and did some fun stuff while they were in town.

Day 1: My family flew in and we spent the day in San Jose. My family went to a movie while Ricky and I were still at work. Then, we went on a walk and had dinner at our apartment.

Brian was tuckered out from the flight

We were not prepared with seating for a family dinner of 6 people. My mom is on an upside down laundry basket with pillows. I'm on a nightstand with pillows. Brian's on an ottoman. My dad and Brittany used our actual two dining chairs, and Ricky used his desk chair.
Day 2: This was our San Francisco Day!

We went to Golden Gate Park and spent the majority of the day there. It was awesome!

The view was amazing!

We could see the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance

I loved seeing ducks and turtles swimming around in the water!

We went to the Japanese Tea Garden within Golden Gate Park



The strangest bridge - so steep!


We're so glad someone told us to go to the Harmon Tower! Take the elevator to the 9th floor and you get a great view of San Francisco

A small portion of the view

The sprinklers were so misty and made for a cool picture spot!
Family Selfie in the Harmon Tower
We went to the beach right outside the park
Lastly, we went to Fisherman's Wharf and ate dinner at Wipeout, The Christmas decorations were fun!