St. George with Amie

Amie and I needed to get out of town. Have a day away from Las Vegas for the day and just forget about the worries of school and life and everything. It was so relaxing. We did a little bit of shopping at the smallest mall in America. We ate ranch burgers at Arctic Circle and enjoyed one of their yummy shakes. On the way back I found out that the road construction on the southbound 15 through the gorge was still going on. We took the other way around through Santa Clara. Super cute little town. On the way, we found this little cave (could be big, we didn't get in it, and we couldn't see the back) it smelled like urine and there was broken glass on the ground. There was also all this graffiti that dated back to the 70's.

Red Rock, Bellagio Garden & Ethel M's Adventure With Dad

In early January of 2012, my dad came to visit for a few days. One of the many adventures we had was driving up to Red Rock, just west of Las Vegas, to take a look around, look at the petroglyphs, and to see the beautiful bright red rock piled on top of the white sandstone.


I know that  my dad doesnt really like the parts of Las Vegas that most people like, but I knew that he would like the Musical Bellagio founatins and the Bellagio Gardens.  He really liked the unique fall display they had up.



The day of my dads flight we stopped by the Ethel M's chocolate factory and cactus garden. We had a free sample and then got a chocolate/carmel covered apple to share while we walked around the cactus garden.

The Girls Are Back In Town! - Aug 2012

Roommate Reunion August 2012

 We made a pact during this reunion. "If no one gets married in the next 5 years, thus pulling us together for that celebration. The next reunion time that must happen, with no excuses is in 2017 - 5 years from now."

  Hopefully we wont have to wait that long to see each other again!

The weekend started with a meeting at Ikea with lunch and a stroll around the store. Always love seeing the new styles and ways  to organize and the new color combinations. Followed by heading over to BreAna's house where we spent the next few hours catching up and visiting while we waited for Amy to get off work and join us. Alton came home from work and then proved to us how amazing he is. Without anything being said he made us all smoothies.  Such a sweet guy! Then after a few more hours of talking and laughing we decided that we needed real food and we drove over to Cafe Rio for dinner. So yummy!

Pam watching BreAna's girls while we got pedicures.
Krystal and BreAna got theirs first and then Leslie and I.

After our pedicures at the Aveda salon school we were all craving some yummy Arctic Circle.  Yukon Gold fries, fry sauce, delicious shakes, and ranch burgers. I would have a problem if I lived near a Arctic Circle.  Good thing the closest one is about 2 hours away. While we ate, an employee came over and gave BreAna's girls a courtesy cone - little baby cones for free. How fun!

After lunch we went and walked around the Provo Mall, BreAna and her girls went on a ride on the train around the mall while Leslie shopped for Mormon girl clothes - apparently they are hard to find in Albuquerque.

This group of girls will always be so special to me.

Posing by the creek inside City Creek and inside a really fun store.

L-R Merika, Leslie, Pam, BreAna, Amy and Krystal.

City Creek is a really cool place, I can only imagine the construction mess it was to create. The end result is beautiful. This is just a taste of that it really holds.

These girls are so amazing, I really feel like they have become such awe inspiring women.
BreAna is such a good mom and wife. Seeing her with her girls... she is super mom! I love how dedicated to family she is. She is still one of the most beautiful people I have ever known, inside and out. Her husband Alton really puts the bar high for amazing husbands.
Pam is so strong, she has really blossomed into a fantastic person, over coming challenges, taking risks and making differences in the lives of the kids she meets and teaches. I am so glad that she has put up with all of us for so long. She may have been better than us all.
Amy is just as kind and funny as ever, I really look at her and see an amazing joyful brilliant girl who some guy is missing out on. I am so glad she stuck with me after my freshman year together. I know I am not the easiest person to live with and she put up with me the longest.
Leslie is so classy, so put together, this girl has style in spades! I love the care and concern she holds for all the things and people in her life. I really feel like Leslie is so kind and good. I can't remember a time that she spoke a mean word to someone.
Krystal is fantastic. I am not sure I have ever had a friend who has known me and my struggles like this girl has. I think that we have had some similar struggles and that is a huge part of why she gets me like so few do. The second night in the hotel, we were all tired and I am so thankful that she stayed up with me and talked, listened to me cry and told me about how she overcame some of her own struggles. her stories gave me a little bit of strength and the support that I needed. I hope that Krystal sees in herself, the person that we all see in her. Strength, intelligence, woman of God,kind and most likely the funniest person I know.

After walking around City Creek we decided that with the SLC Temple was closed the next closest was the South Jordan Temple. We drove over and then the girls all went in for a session. We were able to grab someone coming out of the temple to take a picture of us. I chose to use my time reading, grabbing a snack, perusing facebook and taking a short nap. The nap was really needed! I had a very difficult time sleeping during the first night in the hotel.

 After the temple we met over at the Cheesecake Factory a few miles away. It was the perfect end to a perfect weekend. We ate, chatted, laughed, smiled, bonded, and then shared some amazing cheesecake.

I could not ask for better friends than these!

Death Valley & The Amargosa Opera House

Badwater Basin...

The Paint Pots...

The drive in and out of Death Valley.

On the way back from Independence California and Manzanar we drove through Death Valley. After you leave Death Valley, and are headed towards Pharump you pass Amargosa California. We stopped at the haunted Opera house in Amargosa CA. It was really creepy because there was actually a show going on and this lady popped her head out the door, asked us if we had tickets (in a very mean voice) and when we replied no, she slammed the door shut on us! So creepy. We didn't stay long, just long enough to snap a couple of shots and read the plaque. - not that there is much more to do....

Independance, Manzanar, and The Still Life Cafe

Independence California was such a fun and interesting little town. The sidewalks rolled up early, but there was one thing that was absolutely amazing... the Still Life Cafe. We had the best pork loin I have ever had, all of the veggies were grown in their own little garden and everything was fresh and tasty. It was possibly the best thing I have ever tasted! The restaurant was owned and operated by a french couple who had immigrated to the US about 15 years earlier.

We stayed at the Mt. Williamson Motel. Owned and operated by a elderly couple from Sweden I believe. It was a bunch on small cabins that were clean, tidy, and comfortable. In the morning, the wife made all the guests from the night before a hot breakfast of toast with homemade jam, sausage, a pancakes. How amazing is that?!

 

Manzanar was incredible, visiting, learning and seeing what the US government put the Japanese people of America through during WWII is so heartbreaking. I am so glad that we as a country are not trying to sweep this indiscretion under the rug, rather we are inviting our citizens to come and learn and see what not to do in the future when faced with a similar situation.

Aliens on the road!

This was a few months ago, but I am only now getting around to posting them and I cant remember exactly when we went...
On the way to Independence California for a road trip and for a educational visit to Manazar. We saw these cut outs on the side of the road and knowing us.... we had to stop and have a good time with them!

PS - Amie likes to look at my ear when we take pictures.

Stargazing with friends & Dominos with family

On my way home from my Utah vacation this August I stayed with Jessica for one night. There just happened to be a meteor shower happening that night. I am so glad that she and her brother Jacob and his new wife were going out to watch. We packed up the car, picked up the married couple and then blasted BSB on our way out to where we were going to layout and watch. We drove east on 189, passing bridal veil falls and then pulled off the road onto W. Main Canyon Road and then pulled off the road in a farm driveway. We set up the blankets and got ready to watch the meteors shoot across the sky.

The next morning I was driving down the road that leads to Jessicas house as I drove over to my Grandparents house. I love the view from Jessicas route. The "Y" is so fun to see.

Before I left town I had to stop

 and drive by my Grandma Andersons house,

 just to see the changes since she moved to Twin Falls ID.

On the way home on the I-15 I had to pull off the road to snap these awesome sunbeams near Nephi UT.

That night I spent with Jeffs & Suzannes family in St. George. I am always so glad to spend time with them and their adorable family. I got there just in time for dinner and games before the kids went to bed.

 

 

The next morning, the view was so amazing. I love the Red Rocks of St. George. I treated my family to my favorite resturaunt in St. George - Mongolian BBQ. The lady ther ehelped the kids use their chopsticks, or in her words - to be chinese. She loved Branson! She was about to take him home with her. We found out that Branson is really good with chopsticks... who knew!

After Jeffs family left to go home I stopped at Dandylion wishes - a scrapbook store, and while I was shopping I found out that the I-15 through the gorge was totally backed up because of the construction going on in the gorge. It normally takes about 35 min to drive through the gorge, with the construction it was taking 3-4 hours! Luckly I was able to ask the shop keeper about another way around the gorge. I was able to drive north toward  Santa Clara and then through the Native American Reservation and through the montain and then meet up at the I-15 right as it came out of the gorge. Saved myself some major time! 

While I drove I saw a minor brush fire.



My Christmas - 2010

I too had a different sort of Christmas this year. With the lack of money and the fact that I was moving over my Christmas break it was just not feasible to travel home for the break. I instead opted to stay in Las Vegas and packed, and packed and packed. I have too much stuff! I love my stuff so it is hard to downsize, but I have too much stuff.
My roommates Shanna, Skyler & I decided that we would wake up Christmas morning and open our presents to each other and then we would go over to their parents house on the other side of town. From Skyler I received a beautiful necklace and a photo album, and from Shanna I received a few books, some scrapbooking supplies and a bottle of balsamic vinegar. I love balsamic!

Skyler loves the Atari that Shanna and I got for him.

From my Christmas family (Jeff's family) I was so happy to receive a movie that I love and did not own "Leap Year" and a gift card to my favorite place to eat... Cafe Rio!

From Mom & Dad I got some really pretty picture frames, nice grading pens, some Boston items from moms trip this summer(since she knows Boston was my favorite city when I lived in Palmyra) and some great scrapbooking supplies.


Warming ourselves by the fire - TV style.


We went to see the new movie Tron Legacy; it was great! I had never seen the original Tron, so I prepared myself the week before by watching it. So great!
After the movie we went back to their parents house and hung out for a while before we headed up to the Mt. Charleston Lodge for dinner. It had been snowing heavily for days before Christmas, so we were pleasantly surprised that it was open for business. We had a wonderful dinner while we wondered at the snow out the window and warm fire in the center of the room. (Pictures coming soon, my camera ran out of battery and so Shanna had to take the pictures.)


Two days later Dad came to visit me for a four day mini-vacation. Unfortunately, The day after he arrived it was move day.( BTW he knew that I was moving, and he still came to help - Amazing dad!) With all his experience with packing vans and driving Uhauls he was indispensable. Shanna was originally the one who what going to drive the truck and she was very nervous about that. Dad was a champ and took that off her very nervous hands. With the help of a few others and several hours we got everything over to the new apt and were able to treat ourselves to dinner at a great restaurant here in Las Vegas called "Super Mex". Then once we got home we were able to fall into bed in utter exhaustion. Later Shanna commented to me about how amazing and hard working my dad was. This was not news to me or any of you I am sure, but to her a hard, laborious, working dad was cool. She then commented that her dad was so wussy (sp?) compared to my dad, and that hers would have complained the whole day about everything and she thought it was really cool that my dad was so willing to help and was able to fix a few things, and hang a few shelves along the way. (her dad cant fix anything!) Shanna asks me to help her fix things; not her dad.
Dad and I were able to take some time and play and just visit. He helped me out by replacing a tail light that had gone out and her also helped me get my car ready for my registration smog check. So good to me! He and I drove out to the Hoover Dam and to see the new bridge that spans the gorge that the Hoover Dam is in. We also visited the Temple, but drove up just as they were locking it up for the next month while they did some work on the Temple. So I was unable to show him the cool atrium inside the temple that people are able to go into.
I was so happy to have dad out to visit me since I was unable to go home for the Christmas break.




Dad in Nevada and Merika in Arizona