Skyline Drive

Last night, Mike and I took the 4-wheelers up to ride the Skyline Drive Trail and watch the sunset. Skyline Drive is located right by the Bountiful 'B', so it is nice to have a trail that is so close to home.

The weather was beautiful! By the time we got to the top of the mountain, the air felt crisp. It was so beautiful - the birds were chirping, the flowers were blooming...

There is one part of the trail where you can look to the west and see the Great Salt Lake and the Wasatch Front:

If you look towards the east, all you see is mountains. You can also see a little bit of Echo Reservoir.

This is our view of when we were watching the sunset. It was so beautiful and peaceful!

It was so nice to go up and enjoy the mountains. I told Mike that it is sad that we live so close to them, but don't take advantage of them being so close. Hopefully we can keep planning some more trips and enjoy them this summer.

Charleston/Nashville Vacay!

Last week, Mike and I went on a fun-filled vacation to Charleston, SC and Nashville, TN with our families. We have been planning this trip to Nashville forever...we went so that I could participate in graduation ceremonies! We figured that since we were kind of in the area, we should also go to South Carolina, since that is where Mike went on his mission. My family and Mike's mom, sister, and step dad came along with us to Charleston, and then my grandparents also joined us in Nashville.

Day 1: Travel...not much to report other than we flew into Atlanta and then drove to Charleston.

Day 2: We took a walking tour of historic Charleston. I absolutely loved seeing all of the old buildings! It was amazing to see all of the history; it almost reminded me of stepping back in time.
This was also a neat day because Mike's family got to call and talk to his brother, Trevor, who is on his mission!

Khemia, me, and Beth

St. Michael's Church: I believe that this church dates back to the 1600's. Two of the signers of the Declaration of Independence are buried in its cemetery.

Historic "Rainbow Row": this row of houses got its name because each house is a different color.

A view of the cobblestone streets.

Day 3: We headed out to Fort Sumter, which is where the Civil War began. The Fort is located on an island just outside of Charleston Harbor.

It was pretty interesting to learn more about the Fort and see all the cannons. There are a few places where you can still see cannon balls lodged in the side of the wall.

Day 4: We went back to downtown Charleston to do some more exploring and then went to Folley Beach. The beach was great! The water was warm enough to swim in...it was so wonderful!

Khemia and Beth in the Pineapple Fountain. We were joking about how there was a sign that had tons of different rules about wading in the fountain, such as not blowing your nose.

Mike and me at Folley Beach

Mandy and me

Day 5: We travelled from Charleston to Nashville...it was a LONG drive, but the scenery was beautiful. We drove through the Appalachians and the Blue Smoky Mountains.

Day 6: We visited the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and explored downtown Nashville. We also grabbed some lunch from a DELICIOUS BBQ place called Jack's BBQ.

Me pointing out Elvis's start on the walk of fame..

Beth, me, and Khemia in downtown Nashville.

For dinner, we went to the Loveless Cafe. While we were waiting for our dinner, my dad, Beth, Kristin, David, and Khemia decided to pose for a picture.

Day 7: GRADUATION DAY!

Vanderbilt's graduation ceremonies are pretty formal. After doing some ceremonies with all of the graduates, each school broke off and did their own event. During the nursing graduation, I received my academic hood. It was so hot and humid in that cap and gown, but I am also really glad that I decided to go out and participate in commencement. It was really neat to see the campus, since all of my classes were done online and I had only visited it once before.

Later in the afternoon, we got a HUGE rainstorm, which I loved. The house we were staying in had a screened-in porch, so I sat outside and enjoyed most of it. Later, we went out for more BBQ at Judge Bean's. It was way good!

Day 8: We visited a Civil War battlefield in Franklin, TN. This site was significant because a nearby plantation was turned into a make-shift hospital. You could still see blood stains on the floor in a few rooms. Also, this is the site where four Confederate Generals were killed and their bodies were laid out on the back porch.

The site is home to the largest private military cemetery in the United States. After the battle ended, the plantation owner buried all of the bodies. A few years later, the bodies were moved to this cemetery.

Later that night, Beth, Mandy, and I decided to go back into Nashville. We went to a few different bars and listened to some live music. Unfortunately, it seemed like each time we got into the bar, the band was just finishing and we had to wait while the new band set up.

Day 9: We left to come back home. It was so fun to get away, and I am so thankful to both of our families for taking the time to come out and support me during my graduation. Thanks for the fun times!

Happy Birthday!!!

Happy Birthday, Mike!!!

Earlier this month, Mike turned the big 3-0! We had some friends over to BBQ and celebrate the occasion. Unfortunately, the weather didn't really cooperate, but we still had a good time. We had some friends come that we hadn't seen for a while, so it was great to be able to catch up with everyone. Besides the food, we also enjoyed a few card games and a sweet game of Pictionary Man...I will never be able to play that game again without laughing.

Thank you so much to everyone who brought food and celebrated Mike's big day with us. I know it really meant a lot to him!

Ready to Run

On Saturday I ran the Salt Lake City 5K. I decided to sign up for this race a few months ago because I figured that it would give me some good motivation to get out and exercise/run. I was planning on running the race alone, but then I got an e-mail from my dad on Thursday asking me when/where we were going to meet up to run together. My dad is an excellent runner, and apparently he had told me that he would run with me, but I had spaced it. It totally made my day!

Before we began the race, I reminded my dad that I am not as good of a runner as he is and that it wouldn't hurt my feelings at all if he did not want to keep pace with me. He was so nice and said that "he wasn't there to win anything" and he stayed with me the entire time.

Mike took this picture of my dad and me just after we had crossed the finish line. Mike was so sweet to get up so early on his Saturday morning and be my cheerleader! My original goal was to complete the race in 35 minutes (I know, not super fast), and I am pleased to say that I ran it in 35 minutes, 31 seconds. I think that is close enough...goal met! I also finished 19th (out of 80) in my division, and right about in the middle of all the participants.

While we were cooling down after the race, we ran into Jen and Grant Bay. I had no idea that they were running, so it was fun to see them unexpectedly.

I am really glad that I stuck with it and ran this race. It was good to have something to focus and something healthy to keep me motivated. Maybe I will start training for a 10K next...

First Ride of the Season

Mike and I heard that the weather was supposed to be nice this past weekend, so we decided to take a quick trip down to Five Mile Pass to do some riding. Mike asked me to come along with him, and it was fun to be able to just spend that time together. However, this was the first time Mike has gone out since Trevor left for his mission and I think that he was missing his riding buddy a little bit. :)

Unfortunately, the weather wasn't as warm as we were hoping for. It was really windy, and the sun didn't start to come out until we were getting ready to leave.

Despite the wind, we still had a good time. I will be the first to admit that I am not very good at riding the quads, but Mike was super helpful and patient in teaching me how to ride. I think that I am starting to catch on, so hopefully I will do a little bit better the next time we go out.

Easter Weekend

We hope that everyone had a very happy Easter!

I really enjoyed having general conference be the same weekend as Easter this year...it was like a double helping of spiritual and uplifting thoughts.

While Mike was at the Priesthood session of conference, I had a girls' night out with my mom and sisters. It has been a LONG time since all of us went out together, and we all had a good time. We just went shopping and then out for a treat after, but it was still a lot of fun.

On Sunday, we had my family and Mike's mom, her husband, and Mike's sister over for dinner. This was my first time hosting a family holiday dinner, but I think that everything turned out really well. I was a little nervous because I was trying so many new recipes, but everything tasted really good. I should have taken some pictures...but since I didn't, you will just have to take my word for it. :)

Go Jazz!

Lucky for Mike, he married someone that really enjoys watching Jazz basketball games - so much so that I hate to miss seeing them on TV and was SUPER excited when he gave me tickets for Christmas! The long-awaited game finally arrived last night, and we had a great time. The Jazz were playing the Timberwolves; a team that they should beat, but have lost 2/3 of the games they had played against them this season. There were a few tense moments, but fortunately for us, the Jazz did not disappoint with a fabulous win.

Thanks for the fun night, babe...can't wait for our next game!