All Grown Up

In the middle of April, the nice weather lured us outside for a picnic.  We got some drinks from Smiths and picked up some subs from Sensuous Sandwich.

The weather and food made our little picnic great but we had an uninvited guest join us who made it even better!

This little guy came bolting at us and joined us for about 30 minutes with no owner in sight.

One can only guess why he hung around for so long...

Ok, ok... this broke my heart!  The poor little thing followed us to the car and hopped right in.  However, he did look well groomed and (a little too) well fed so we left him at the park to find his way home.  

This past weekend was an exciting one.

Drumroll please...............

MARK GRADUATED!!!

Mark's wonderful parents flew in for the big event.  Before commencement on Thursday, we went to lunch at Los Hermanos. We met up with Mark's old roommate Dan and his family.

Commencement had L. Tom Perry as the speaker.

(Left: Mark and Dan during the procession) 

Such a special boy...

Mark and Dan were roommates since freshmen year and graduated together 7(ish) years later.

So proud!

Friday morning we met up with our bud, Cecil...

...and took some pictures with our grad:

Again, so special. 

Before Convocation, we went to the BYU Bookstore and Mark was so excited that his mom bought him a chemistry model kit...

(Ha! He pulls off 'excited nerd' well, don't ya think?)

 and then the parents took us to Tucanos for lunch.

Then we got to see our Marky get his well-earned diploma!

Kelsey graduated too!

The Cousins:

The Morrisons:

During the capture of the above picture, Mark said "One of these 

things is not like the other." 

Below is my attempt to fit in:

(Mark is a December Graduate.)

We're so proud of you Mark!

Only 4 more years of school to go! (Maybe.)

Fun March Weekend

We had a busy weekend!  Mom and Dad came to town for a weekend full of family events.  We had a cousin's wedding reception and a cousin's mission farewell.  On Saturday morning we had a 5K run fundraiser for my cousin and his family.  He has been in the hospital and some of his students from UVU put this run together for him! There was an incredible turnout and it was fun to participate in. 

 Here are a few pictures from that run:

Just a quick shot of the starting line:

All of Nick's relatives who attended:

After the run, we went with Brandon, Scott, Mom and Dad to the BYU spring scrimmage. The weather was incredible!

Mission Reunion

This weekend we attended a Guadalajara, Mexico mission reunion that Mark's mission president was hosting in Saint George.  President and Sister Watkins are now serving in the St. George temple visitors center and invited any missionaries who could make it for a couple days of fun.  

We arrived on Friday night and after a short visit we headed over to an authentic mexican restaurant, El Coyote Charro.  The food was delicious and the small group had fun visiting.  We stayed the night in the ever-so-luxurious Super 8 motel... Our motel room was actually bigger than our current apartment so it felt very spacious to us.  We relaxed by drinking hot chocolate and sticking our feet into the hot tub which felt incredible in the comfortable night air.  

The next morning, Sister Watkins took all the ladies out to all-you-can-eat french toast at Kneaders.  It was tasty and we all shared stories of how we met our husbands.  After breakfast and after checking out, Mark and I enjoyed some shopping before visiting the temple grounds.  The day was very comfortable and the sun was out!!! I have missed that sunshine.  

We then headed to a nearby park for the main event: A picnic with carne asada and cebollitas ("little onions" which Mark has been raving about for a few months).  A good sized group attended and many many mission stories were shared.  

After a couple of hours visiting in the wonderful weather, we played a game of volleyball in the sand courts.  After the game and getting nice and pink from the sun, we took some group pictures.

Top: All the missionaries

Bottom: With the wives

Then and now....

It was a fabulous getaway and we had an amazing time.  Although it wasn't quite the same as the beach, it felt good to be in the sun and have my toes in the sand. 

Welcome to the Family

On January 24th, much of Utah Valley experienced some freezing rain.  The moment the rain hit the windshield or the concrete it turned into ice, creating the illusion of just being wet when in reality it was all black ice.

On Mark's way to work at 7:45am, he was stopped at a light on University Parkway going towards I-15.  In his rear-view mirror he watched a couple blocks back as some cars get into an accident.  As he was thinking how thankful he was that it wasn't him, he got rear-ended by a car that slid on the ice.

Luckily, everyone involved was fine and Mark only had a sore neck the next couple days.  A couple days after the accident we went to the tow-yard and got everything out of the car and said our goodbyes.  Mark took me on our first date in that car!

While we waited to hear from insurance, we were given a cute Fiat to drive for a little over a week.  I loved this little car! It was a lot of fun to drive but absolutely TERRIBLE in the snow.

After a week of car shopping, we bought our new little family member: 
A 2005 Kia Spectra5

 We love it! It is a manual so I am learning and Mark is working hard at teaching me.

On our first day as insured car owners, we drove to Salt Lake for a lunch date to Gourmandise Bakery.   Mark has been craving this sandwich since the last time we went, 8 months ago: 

Curry Chicken Salad Sandwich!

While we were waiting for our food: Sometimes Mark lets me take pictures of him...

A Little Bit of Green in Winter

Back in October I found some seeds I had bought a while ago.  I had some soil from a school project and so I planted a few seeds.  I planted Daisies, Cosmos, Zinnias, and I was most excited about the Chives! A few days later I had cute little green plants for all of the flowers...and the chives never came in.

Left Pot: Chives, Center Pot: Cosmos, Right Pot: Daisies and Zinnias

I'm surprised at how long they have lasted, living on our tiny and cold windowsill.  I'm also surprised at how ridiculous they look 

3 1/2 months later:

The Cosmos just look like a bushy and friendly weed:

The Daisies look like a tangle of stems at the base of the Zinnia with one TINY flower:

And the Zinnia's flower is really pretty...

But it's a little ridiculous how tall it is!  

Are they supposed to be that tall!?  

I've enjoyed having my green friends to keep me company this very cold and snowy winter!