"I looove this place!"

Some of my best childhood memories are of my family's weekend getaways to Fairmont Hot Springs Resort. Every single person in the family enjoyed being there, which is saying a lot because it can be hard to please seven different people all at once. We spent every moment we could swimming and sliding. Whenever I think of Fairmont, I can hear my mom saying, "I looove this place!" in a really silly and enthusiatic voice. And she will still say it the exact same way anytime someone mentions Fairmont. It makes me happy!

On our drive up to Montana, my brother Andrew and his family met us at Fairmont.  It was wonderful to have so much time to swim and play with our nieces and nephew since we don't get to see them very often. It was our first time meeting our little niece, Carlee. She is such a sweet and beautiful baby. Both Patrick and I both feel in love with her instantly.

Sterling

Quincey

Baby Carlee

These two spent a lot of time together.
Carlee's little floater was awesome. Kind of wish they made them in adult size...

She could be a Gerber Baby model.

Sweetest thing ever.

I loved introducing Patrick to Fairmont and sharing with him fun memories and stories from my childhood.  It was such a perfect time and we have wished we were back there already many times since our return to Utah.

P & M in Montana!

I am so, so happy this fortune came true! After several failed attempts in Patrick being able to join me on one of my trips to Montana (due either to his work or school schedules- not lack of desire), we were finally able to hit the road together this month and head to Big Sky Country!

An excited Patrick.

The reason I am a mountain snob.

 Six whole days in one of my very favorite places with my absolute favorite person. What more could I ask for?!

A Year of Dates: April

*Click HERE to read what my "Year of Dates" is all about.

April's date was a trip to the Loveland Living Planet Aquarium! Both Patrick and I were so excited to visit but we worried this outing might have to be postponed to a later date because the aquarium's expected grand opening in December 2013 was delayed several months. However, the doors were officially opened the end of March welcoming in visitors and we were able to make our date happen as scheduled. Phew!

So, the aquarium was beyond amazing and beyond busy.  Yesterday was cold and rainy and it seemed all of Salt Lake decided to stay dry by spending their Saturday inside checking out the aquarium. One of the Aquarium Presenters we spoke with said it was the busiest day they had had yet. Luckily, the aquarium is offering bounce back tickets so visitors can come back for free sometime in the next few months. We'll make sure to go on a sunny weekday next time!

Inside the jaws of a Megalodon.

We watched "March of the Penguins" in preparation for our visit.

Both Patrick and I agreed the penguins were our favorites.  They were so entertaining (and fast!) and I could have watched them playing and swimming for hours. 

Patrick's Graduation

Last Friday was a perfect spring day. Patrick and I drove downtown to Temple Square for his graduation from the LDS Business College. The sweet scent from all the lovely flowers was so strong you could smell them from inside the Tabernacle where the graduation was held.  It was one of those days that felt like the world was celebrating right along with you.

I am so proud of Patrick for finishing up his Associate's Degree.  He has been working hard to figure out what he'd like to do for a career and how to go about it.  He still has more schooling ahead, and although we don't know the exact steps we'll be taking next to accomplish that, it was just nice to recognize what he has accomplished so far.

The Graduate

The Proud Wife

A Favorite Story

The story of how my parents met is one of my favorites. I never get tired of hearing it. The Reader's Digest version goes something like this:

Once upon a time, a twenty-something named Nancy decided to leave city life behind and move from Minneapolis, Minnesota to Missoula, Montana. She packed her VW Bug with her belongings and drove out west for a change of scenery and new adventures.  Nancy informed her new friends and acquaintances that she was looking for a red-headed farmer to marry.  Well, one day it turned out that some friends did know a red-headed farmer and she was promptly set-up on a blind date.  The farmer's name was Garr.  On the first date, he thought the city girl asked lots of silly questions about farm life, animals, and the such but the two continued to go on more dates and eventually fell in love and were married.  If you ask Nancy the moral of this story, she will tell you, "It pays to advertise!"

It wasn't until recently that I found out that my parents went rollerskating on their first date. When they were younger, my mom was super athletic, but my dad wasn't. However, he did love rollerskating and went often enough that he was pretty good.  My mom said she was so impressed by his skating abilities and got very excited that her red-headed man was not only a farmer, but an athlete, too!  It wasn't until later that she learned he didn't quite excel in all sporting activities. In the end it didn't matter because all of his great qualities made up for him not being an Olympian. (And because my mom was so athletic, all those brothers of mine still had someone to teach them to ski and throw a ball so it all ends well.)

We've been trying to get together with my parents once a month for a double date.  After learning more about their first date, we thought it was only fitting to headed over to Hollywood Connection for some skating.  

  At the end of the skating session, everyone was invited to participate in the game Shark Attack.  Two skaters were designated as the sharks and they went around tagging people out. The last skater remaining won a free skate pass.  And what do you know- my mom still has it after all these years... She won! If you look at the above photo, she is the blur on the left side.  Looks like we'll be going skating again soon!

  

Shows, Shows, and More Shows

Salt Lake City never seems to have a shortage of plays, concerts, or a performances to attend. And being in theater, many of my friends are actors so there is always someone to go to see on stage. Here's what kept us entertained over the past couple of weeks...

Utah Symphony's Tyrannosaurus Sue 

(Yes, it was a symphony for children but Patrick and I still enjoyed it thoroughly.) 

I was really excited to attend the symphony so I could see this amazing sculpture in person.

 Blue Man Group at Kingsbury Hall

Noni and Pete spoiled us by treating us to such a fun night out!

Riverton Arts Council's Shrek

Fiona and Shrek were played by Angie and Dan Call. It was so sweet to see a husband and wife play opposite of each other. Being in a play with Patrick has officially been added to my bucket list!

Lovely Logan

This week I was able to take a quick trip to Logan to spend the day with my sister-in-law, Aubrey, and the kiddos. (Jay was busy with school and work but did manage to make a couple of appearances.)  We had a fun agenda planned, but since Aubrey is still adjusting to being a mommy to a toddler and a newborn, we may have been a little too ambitious. (We didn't quite get around to crafting.) I'll just have to make another trip soon. And I definitely wouldn't mind because Logan is just lovely.

The drive up to Logan was breathtaking. I am a sucker for blue skies and snow-capped mountains!
After getting into town, I took a minute to stop by the temple to walk around the grounds. It was too beautiful of a day not to!

I definitely feel I missed out a bit by not having a sister growing up, but with all brothers comes the nice perk of sister-in-laws! Aubrey and I haven't really had any chances to spend time together outside of family get-togethers, so it was a long overdue girls' day. (Ok, it was a girls' day with children but I still think it counts!)

We wanted to take Grant to the Baby Animals Days that were being held at the American West Heritage Center. It took awhile to get everyone fed and changed and out the door and we began to wonder if it was even worth trying to go. I think we were meant to though because when we got to the Heritage Center parking lot, a women who was pulling out to leave came over to our car with two extra tickets that her group hadn't used and gave them to us. Wahoo!

I think it's safe to say Grant had a good time!

It was definitely a rainboot type of day.

:) Happy feet.

Grant loooooved petting the pigs. He did a great job being "soft."

After visiting the baby animals, we went back to back to Jay and Aubrey's apartment to cook dinner with Aubrey's friend, Sushila. Sushila is from Nepal and she helped us prepare goat meat soup. Since such meat is not readily available in Logan, Aubrey had me pick some up from a middle eastern market in Salt Lake. I had never eaten goat meat before, much less purchased it, so imagine my shock when the man at the meat counter slapped a large six-pound goat leg on the scale and asked, "This is what you want?" I just stared at him for a moment. "I'm not sure. Is that how it always come?" I had to call Aubrey to ask if that's what she wanted because I didn't think she had a pot big enough to cook it in.  In the end, I had the man cut the meat into chunks and I was on my way.

Aubrey is such a great mom. I love watching the thought and energy she puts into caring for her family. She is such an example to me!

xoxo