the past month has been crazy busy. there is so much that happened. i'll just share the highlights here which still makes for a stupidly long post.
12/10-12/14
ricks marathoned his way through 3 finals! craziness! i packed for our 3 week trip and got everything in order to leave.
12/15
lunch at communal with my sisters and parents. we spent the evening watching the bourne legacy. that movie has the longest chase scene known to mankind. it was a bit ridiculous, really.
12/16
my dads side of the family gathered for a christmas party! i made mousse. it was fun to see everyone. we made it a point to show paulina the tizzle wizzle show.
12/17
we finally got to see ricks' parents. we went to see their new house which had just been framed and afterward they took us to see Lincoln and out to dinner.
12/18
all my siblings, their spouses, and my parents, along with an investigator from my brothers mission that was visiting, gathered to drive to Vegas together in a 12 person van. it just so happened be snowing like crazy that night so it was one of the longest drives to Vegas that i have ever taken. super uncomfortable (the van), but super memorable.
12/19
VEGAS- in the morning we all gathered for breakfast at the TI buffet before heading out for the day. we walked up and down the strip trying to fit in as much as possible! ricks had never been so everything was new to him. probably the most memorable part of the strip was racing to see the bellagio fountain and arriving just as the show finished. luckily we were able to catch the next show which was nice. however, while we were standing there, some idiot rode up on his board and asked if we want to buy some weed. ricks may have said some choice words... next, we had reservations at joel robuchons. when the fountain show ended, we intended to rush back to TI to change and drive to MGM Grand. however, motsu (my brothers friend from japan) got lost. so, half of the group stayed at the bellagio waiting for him while the other half of the group went to treasure island to see if he showed up there. (btw, he speaks no english). long story short, we found him and made it to the restaurant in time for our reservation. that dinner deserves a post unto its own. suffice it to say, it was magnificent. after dinner we got the chance to see cirque de soleils ka. it was a pretty awesome show with a crazy stage.
12/20
the cursory rest day post vacay. we watched oceans 11 to stretch out vegas.
12/21
ricks was a lawyer boy this day and i went with my mom to the leonardo exhibit in slc.
12/22
once again, we gathered the fam together and ate! round 2 was a catered dinner with like a bajillion courses and wayyyyy too much food. the drink was super memorable as well as the wasabi amuse bouche.
12/23
after 2 long years we finally got to see cyndi and jed again! we were able to attend leighs blessing and then spend a lovely few hours chatting and catching up. man, we love them and their family. it was so nice to reconnect.
12/24
christmas eve. it snowed alllll day long. luckily, the roads were magically clear so we had no issues driving all over the valley. we spent most of the day at neals house. we played dominion a few times with kenton, merrill, and hampton which was super fun. those boys are so smart. they are destined for great things. we ate really well and enjoyed the company of the davis family.
12/25
christmas day. it was such a joy to spend the day with my parents, my siblings, my nieces and nephew, and even the stupid dog and to just enjoy each others company and soak in the best part of life: family. we ended the day with a homemade mulled cider sorbet that i have craved everyday since.
12/26
finally i was able to get my bean burrito with extra cheese from taco amigo. i am addicted to that stuff. we also went to see wreck it ralph which is probably my favorite animated movie ever. it was so good. i actually really loved it.
12/27
this was another marvelous day with cyndi and jed and mindy and clint and kiddos. we were able to eat lunch at the dodo but only after waiting for a few old ladies to finish their convo so we could take their table. it only took an hour and a half... afterward we went to the living planet aquarium. on our way home, cyndi and i stopped at ikea while the kiddos rushed back to orem to go swimming. we finished the night with pizza, stone age, and spot it. it was a pretty stellar night.
12/28
i went to lunch with my sistahs while ricks played lawyer. that night, we played games with the davis'. im pretty sure everyone was tuckered out as it was pretty low energy. fun, nonetheless.
12/29
our 2 year anniversary. we celebrated with 2 movies: django and silver linings playbook. we had super high expectations for django and although it was really good, it wasnt as charming as some of tarintons other movies. pretty heavy subject material. however, silver linings was a surprise win and we are super glad we chose to go see it. way funny, too. we ate crabcake and steak at flemings which was delish, of course.
12/30
sunday means family dinner. i freaking love my sisters babies. they are so cute.
12/31
ricks played lawyer while i went to the hobbit... which i enjoyed. we spent new years eve at alicia and dans and lit those fire lanterns and made pomegranate sorbets.
1/1
we celebrated the new year traditionally by launching rockets and eating cocoa and hot dogs. this is such a fun tradition that my family still carries on from when i was little. even though it was frigid outside, it was a lot of fun. that night we spent some time with my grandma ruby before visiting our good friend, will. it was nice to catch up with him plus we learned why people watch, do, and care about sports.
1/2
i spent this day tending to some pretty cute babies and it was so fun. they had some new bouncing play gyms that when they are in them, they just giggle and giggle and giggle and it is pretty hilarious to watch. that night, we met up with my cousin lindsie and her husband jonny. we ate and then went to see django again. liked it the second time, too!
1/3
ricks was a lawyer boy again and i spent the day with my mom and then i went with some cousins to see the new adobe building in lehi. it was very impressive.
1/4
we went to the temple as a family this day and completed some endowments for family names. afterward, we caught up with lindsie and jonny again and saw their newly completed basement/man cave. it so fun to hang out with the mendenhalls. we love them. also of note, i got my toffee smart cookie fix.
1/5
we went to see wes and danae. as always with the snows, we ate well, played some fun games, and had really good conversation. the snows are the kindest, best people to walk the earth and we are so glad to call them friends.
1/6
the big event of the day was sunday dinner which consisted of dans bbq baked beans and bacon wrapped smoked chicken, ricks' pulled pork, moms coleslaw, and my buttermilk corn bread. that dinner was so good i could have died and gone to heaven. yuuuummm.
1/7
on our final day in utah we went bowling, ate lunch with grandma jane, shipped some things, saw adriane again, went back for more moochies after wes introduced it to us, and then got on a plane and left utah.
1/8 - 1/10
back to school. back to school, to prove to dad that im not a fool. i got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, i hope i dont get in a fight.
and thus ends the longest christmas recap in the world.
disclaimer: i listed the things that we did and we certainly stayed busy the whole break. however, the best part of the break was simply spending time with family and good friends. the things we did were fun but more important are the memories attached to the listed activities. we miss utah not because of the weather (sarcasm) or because of its amazing attractions (again, sarcasm, although it is getting better) but because so many people that we love are still there. home truly is where the heart is and our hearts are permanently tied to utah. each day was filled with love and happiness as we saw and interacted with loved ones. i am so grateful that i have a relationship with so many great individuals and cannot wait to see them again!
merry christmas to all!
No comments:
Post a Comment