Ben's DC trip Part 1

Here are a few shots I took while staying in DC. I was there on business for two weeks.

Late Posting - Easter

This is a little "Happy Easter" poster I made for Ben. I was trying to think of something creative and cute, but inexpensive. The coolest part was I taped those paper eggs in a way that they popped out. I had lots of fun making it.

Here I am on Easter Morning my basket from the Easter Bunny. The Easter Bunny was very good to me and gave me lots of treats. Yum.....

Here's me dying Easter eggs. And......

...look what colors I did!!! My favorite. I even put flower stickers on them. They were so pretty I had to take a picture.

The Cheese Cake Factory

Since our bad experience at The Mayan, we haven't ventured too far out of our dining comfort zone. But this weekend we decided to try eating at The Cheese Cake Factory. Above is a picture of our appetizer which was about three times bigger than we were expecting. Between that and the tasty bread basket, by the time we got our entrees we were nearly full. But it all tasted so good we ate until we were stuffed to the rafters. It was a beautiful day and we ate outdoors. We took a slice of strawberry cheesecake home with us and it was divine.

Catching up

Now I will attempt to catch you up on the last 4 months of our lives...

Back in March the Dodds family came to Utah for a visit and we all went to the zoo. Brandon and Melissa traveled from Boise and Elizabeth traveled from BYU-Idaho in Rexburg. We had a great time being all together.

Sisters!

Jenna and Aunt Andrea

Cute picture of Sarah, Melissa, and Brandon. We even got the giraffes in the background - they're pretty amazing animals.

The bears were pretty fun too, especially when they would play/fight with each other (depending on how you looked at it).

Andrea thought this penguin was so cute, she had to get a picture!

You've got to love the Elephants - their just so cool!

Jimmy is a friend of mine from college and we went to his reception. He played the bass guitar when the band debuted with "Play that funky music" at a ward talent show.At the reception I couldn't help noticing the table cloth was spring time green, one of Andrea's favorite colors and the same color she happened to be wearing that day.

On April 6 we celebrated our second anniversary. We didn't really do anything too extravagant because we're hording all our money so we can buy a house. We went out to dinner at The Mayan which features a jungle-like interior with divers that dive into a pool 30-40 feet below. Almost anyone who has even heard of the Mayan will tell you in the same breath that their food is not all that great, but the atmosphere is a must see. So we thought we'd give it a shot, and it was true, the decor inside was really cool and the food was really bad. Even the chips and salsa weren't that good. Seriously, how do you mess up chips and salsa!?!?

Yesterday we went down to Provo to visit Emily and Craig and their new baby Hyrum.
Now you're all caught up.

Long Time...no C

I apologize for not posting anything for a while. Andrea and I just have not been taking any pictures lately and that makes for a boring post. I can tell you that we have been on the hunt for a home here in the Salt Lake Valley. With interests rates at there lowest in years we are trying to strike while the iron is hot, so to speak. We hope to have more pictures up in a short while. In the meantime, thanks for checking out our blog.

Sailing Expedition

We left Chico at 7:00 a.m. and drove for 4 hours to the Berkeley Marina. Dad, Nate, Ryan, and I helped set up the boat on Monday. It was almost 60 degrees that afternoon. So nice! It took about an hour and a half to "step" the mast and secure it.After another hour to launch and unfold the boat... ...and after encountering some engine trouble, we were ready to sail!

YARRRRRR! Where be the best sailing waters me harties? There be no talkn' back to the cap'n or you'll be walkin the plank matey.

I think these two were trying to get wet.

This be Ayala Cove on Angel Island where we spent the night. A couple of scurvy rats row to shore in the dingy to pay the park fee. (We're honest pirates).During the night a thick fog rolled in. Around midnight a large vessel sailed right by us and blared his fog horn about every 20 seconds. After he left, we slept great. I'm rowing Andrea to shore so we can go use the facilities and walk on the beach. (Scurvy land lovers!)

After the fog started to lift we set a course for the Golden Gate Bridge. While in route we saw sea lions, pelicans, geese, and dolphins. We heard of a grey whale sighting in the Bay over the radio, but we never saw the whale.

On the first night, just the boys camped out on the boat, the second night we be joined by yon fair maidens. Ahhhhh a pirates life for me. YARRRRRRR!