PORSCHE-A

NEW BLOG!

2010-04-11T17:27:00.001-06:00

Porsche-a is now retired. Visit http://carriegrantshow.blogspot.com/ for our new (still under construction) blog!

2010 Utah State Legislature Internship

2010-03-16T09:09:00.006-06:00

Back in August I applied to participate in an internship offered by BYU. I was accepted and after taking a prep. course during fall semester, I started my internship at the Utah State Capitol.

Brief facts about the Utah State Legislature:

The Legislative Session runs for 45 days (every state is different, for example, California's Legislative session is ongoing!). It generally starts the third week in January and adjourns the second week in March.
The House of Representatives is composed of 75 members, each representing the district in which they live.
The Senate is composed of 29 members, each representing the county in which they live.
Each representative and senator is part of two or more committees. Bills must pass committee hearings in order to be voted upon in the Senate or the House.

Facts about my internship experience:

I was randomly assigned to work with Representative Jim Dunnigan and Representative Jim Bird.
I woke up between 6:00 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. to catch my carpool up to the capitol five days a week.
Grant woke up with me to make sure I had breakfast and a lunch to take. He also made dinner about 3 times a week. 500 gold stars to you, babe!
I arrived in Salt Lake everyday at 8:00 a.m.
My day consisted of attending committee meetings, tracking my representatives bills, preparing committee binders, responding to emails, tabulating survey data, sending out weekly legislative highlights, setting up appointments, and anything else they wanted me to do. I was their right hand woman.
I got home everyday around 6:30 p.m. Long day.

A few things I learned:

Not all politicians are dishonest, un-ethical (bold statement when the stories of Killpack and Garn are taken into consideration, I know), power hungry, insert other descriptions of politicians here.
Utah is very Republican. Wait, I already knew that.
Utah Democrats don't stand a chance here, even though they have sound arguments. Wait, already knew that too.
The process of a bill becoming law can take TONS of time and LOTS of work.
There are more less informed citizens than informed citizens when it comes to state issues.
It is possible to be involved and to make a difference in the world of politics.

It was a very rewarding internship, one that I will always remember and be grateful for.

The view from Rep. Dunnigan's Office

The corridor I passed many times a day

Outside the House Chambers. Rep. Dunnigan is in the back (tall, dark hair/suit coat).

Rep. Dunnigan speaking to a group of junior high kids.

A common sight. A rally in the rotunda.

The House Floor

A visit from Grant!

The session is over and now it's back to school, work at the beloved Copy Center, and skiing while the snow lasts!

Matrimonio!

2010-03-03T14:17:00.010-07:00

Saturday, Dec 19th, 2009
Draper Utah Temple
9:00 a.m.

Temperature: FREEZING
Wind Chill Factor: -20, at least it felt like that
Morning Light: very, very bright

Needless to say, it was hard to get pictures with the conditions of the morning. Everyone was COLD and it was hard to get people together. There are tons of photos to sort through and edit, including photos of the reception. Hope you enjoy this random sampling and hopefully I'll get more up sooner than later (no promises, however.)

Two months ago today...

2010-02-19T14:09:00.002-07:00

Happy two month anniversary, babe!
I've never been happier.

The Aftermath

2010-01-24T18:59:00.004-07:00

The semester ended, the wedding is history, Mexico was 80+ degrees, Ouray was 17 degrees, the Grand Junction reception was splendid, and we are finally getting settled into our basement just in time for Grant to focus on school, work, and skiing, and me on my internship.
But before any blogs are posted about those, I've got to rewind. I realized I never put any engagement photos up. So here's a sampling of the photos we didn't use at the reception. Thanks again to Jackie and Jourdan for the photo shoots!

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-28T15:40:00.007-07:00

(Mom tried to get everyone to write down what they were thankful for. Special note: I wrote Marg's and she wrote mine. : )

Our Thanksgiving feast was delicious! We stuffed our faces full of turkey, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, yams, rolls, cranberry sauce, green beans, salad, pie, sparkling cider, etc. etc. etc.

The whole fam was here (except for Andy and Grant) along with Paul's brother, Jesse. After eating activities included watching football, playing outside, and a special surprise organized by Dad (visiting the Taylors).

Getting ready to eat

Preparing plates

The kids digging in and chowing down

Cutest ever Flora chillin with Grandpa

Marg and Owen

Newest edition to the fam: Cole

Working off the food

Most of the grandkids

We all have so much to be grateful for!

2009-10-25T15:01:00.012-06:00

I have been meaning to get this post up for about 2 months now but in between school, work, wedding plans, and Grant, it never happened. Before we became overwhelmed with papers to write, research to do, and tests to take, we took advantage of the weekends and beautiful fall weather. We went to Zion and hiked the narrows with Mom, Dad, and Tom. The next weekend Grant and I hiked Timp. And the weekend after that we biked 50 miles of the Heber century ride cold turkey. We'll have to actually train next time so we can do the whole ride. No time for captions so enjoy the pics!

ZION

MT. TIMPANOGOS

HEBER CENTURY RIDE

A Roman Rendezvous

2009-09-20T13:49:00.032-06:00

It had been two months since I'd seen the kid I'd come to love and adore. Although we had emailed everyday and spoke on the phone a dozen times or more while he'd been gone, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous to see him. Shel Silverstein's infamous "what if's" pranced around in my head as I waited for Grant at the Roma Termini train station, our agreed upon meeting place. "What if things were awkward between us? What if we didn't have anything to talk about? What if he showed up walking hand in hand with a new Italian lover?" What if he DIDN'T show up at all?"

As I waited outside of the McDonald's at the train station, I remembered back to when I was a missionary, and how nearly 2 years earlier, I had waited in the same spot a number of times to meet up with new companions and head to new areas. An hour went by and I asked a young Italian couple to watch my bag so I could take a quick glance around the station just in case Grant was waiting somewhere else. He was nowhere to be seen and so I went back to my spot and continued to wait. Fifteen more minutes passed until finally, I saw him walking up, unshaven (I've always been a fan of scruffiness), and sporting his slumdog shirt. The roman rendezvous had begun!

The next thirteen days were spent traveling our missions. I was in charge of the first half of the trip and Grant, the last half. The pictures that follow provide an in-depth (hence there being around 70 photos, yikes) look at what we were up to, including....drum roll please....our engagment! Did I know he was going to propose in Italy? The honest truth is that I had no expectations. If he did, 1,000 gold stars, if he didn't, I would be just as thrilled to be with him in Italy and back visiting with people I had grown close to while on my mission. It was a win win situation and since I was already going to be in New York, why NOT just hop on over to Italy? With that, welcome to Carrie and Grant's Italian extravaganza! (Warning: It was extremely HOT and HUMID the whole time we were there = lots of sweaty face pictures.)

Days 1 - 3:
Tuesday, Aug. 18 - 20
ROMA

Outside La Chiesa di San Giovanni in Laterano.

A visit with Yana, who was baptized the week before I left the mission (L) and her mom, Tania.

We took the train forty-five minutes outside of Rome to Tivoli. Although we got off at the wrong station on the way there, we arrived in time to enjoy two beautiful gardens. I had always wanted to go here while serving in Rome on my mission but never got the chance.

First stop was the Villa d'Este, a villa/garden built during the renaissance. It served as an escape from the hot city and was commissioned by Pope Alexander VI's grandson, Ippolito II.

Grant's favorite fountain

Second, we went to the nearby Villa Gregoriana, where there were spectacular views of waterfalls and lush vegetation.

We got back to Rome later that evening and went to some of the famous sites: Piazza del Popolo and the Trevi fountains.

While in Rome we stayed in the beautiful, spacious mission home. Thank you, President and Sister Acerson!

Our last morning in Rome we went to the Vatican Museums. It was super crowded and very unorganized but we held out long enough to see the Sistine Chapel at the end.

Days 3 - 5
Thursday, Aug 20th - Saturday, Aug 22
Sardegna

The third city I served in while on my mission was Oristano, Sardegna.We flew from Rome to Alghero. And here's where my version of our engagement story begins. Our flight from Rome got in around 6pm and we took a bus to the small town of Fertilia. We were told that we could find a hostel here (It was the only night we hadn't found a member to stay with) and we did. After leaving our huge, heavy backpacks there, we took a walk over to the beach. It was a beautiful night and we'd arrived just in time to see the sun go down. We wandered along the beachfront, skipped some rocks, and talked. As we were talking, I noticed that Grant was getting nervous by the way he was responding to me. That's when I knew. I knew he was going to propose to me and I then I started getting nervous. Before long, he pulled me up from where I was sitting and without getting down on one knee or any cheesy introduction, asked me to marry him. I was completely overwhelmed and without any hesitation, said yes. After I contained my tears, he pulled out a purple and silver ring for me and said that he wanted to take me to Florence to get me a real wedding ring. It was absolutely amazing and I NEVER would have imagined my engagment going down like it did. So, 1,000 gold stars to you, Grant.

A few minutes before Grant popped the question

Minutes after he proposed

The next morning we went back to the place we got engaged and saw what it looked like in the day. SO pretty.

Before heading down to Oristano, we stopped at the beach in Fertilia. Can you say wedgie?
Nice bum, where you from? Definitely saw things on Italian beaches we had never seen before.

We stayed with the Angius family in Oristano. While I was serving in Oristano, he was the branch president and she was the Relief Society president. They are amazing members and it was great to stay with them. We also had fun visiting with other members.

My old mission apartment

Italian grafitti at its finest

After our short stay on the island of Sardegna, we took a ferry up to Livorno. We paid 8 Euro each for these seats and slept horribly.

Our Sunday morning arrival into Livorno.

Days 6 - 8
Sunday, Aug 23 - Tuesday, Aug 25
Prato/Firenze/Livorno

Sunday afternoon we took the train from Livorno to Prato, my first city.

Me, upset that we missed the bus from Prato to a lunch appointment near Florence.

We were an hour late but still had time to eat lunch with Sorella Sonnellini and her son Andrea.

The ponte vecchio where Grant bought me my ring and were I bought him his (both rings purchased in under an hour! Now that's my kind of ring shopping!)

Then it was back to Livorno where we visited Jantina (she was baptized while I was in Livorno and has since made it to the temple!) in her art shop.

Eating the best frozen yogurt ever with the one and only Sister Eubanks.

Days 9 - 14
Wednesday, Aug. 26th - Monday, Aug. 31st
Cinque Terre/San Remo

It was almost as HOT and HUMID as it was beautiful. I'd been to the Cinque Terre a number of times before and was anticipating a nice dip in the crystal clear, blue water. In our rush to leave our bags safe at the train station and catch the connecting train, I left my swimming suit in my bag. So instead of swimming in the cool water, we swam in our sweat. : (

Grant's member friends in San Remo own a pizzeria in Monte Carlo. We woke up early and hitched a ride with one of them. It's a beautiful port city full of millionaires and nice cars.

A rare sighting of Ariel

Ciro and Francesca, Grant's good friends treated us to a sushi dinner.

They live out in the beautiful country side, where grapes, figs, pears, basil, and every other delectable food imaginable grow.

Ciro taught us how to make a sicilian dish with eggplant. Heaven.

And took us out for our last Italian pizza of the trip.

The incredible view from Ciro and Francesca's house. We had breakfast here every morning.

And with that, it was up to Milano on a crowded train to catch our flights back to the U.S.

The trip was a total blast and confirmed once again, that I am indeed, the porsche-a girl.

check out grant's blog for additional pics/commentary.

Marching Bands of Manhattan

2009-09-07T16:19:00.014-06:00

I LOVE big cities and, therefore, LOVED New York City. Although the heat and humidity were rampant, Tom and I marched all over Manhattan...

We dreamed of ice skating during winter at the Rockefeller Center,

imagined ourselves counting down the seconds to the new year in Times Square,

found Dave,

and took a rainy walk through Central Park.

We visited museums...

saw the skyline from the top of the Rockefeller building,

shook our fists at the UN,

and couldn't believe nearly 8 years had passed since the towers came down.

We walked down Wall St,

then searched for another street,

that would lead us to the ferry and Lady Liberty.

This would have been my reaction upon arriving to Ellis Island in the early 1900's

and this may or may not have been my view.

We walked from Battery Park to Brooklyn for pizza (Grimaldi's) and a concert (Animal Collective).

And yes, we even took some time out of our Sunday activities to go to church at the Lincoln Center and to see the temple.

Central Park on a Sunday afternoon = one giant tanning bed.

Although we bought the cheapest tickets for In The Heights, the ushers told us we could sit in a closer section, so we did, and enjoyed it thoroughly. I gave it two thumbs WAY up.

After the show I took one last stroll through Times Square.

The next day it was off to la terra romantica! details to come...

A Wedding, a Visit, and a New Addition

2009-08-05T20:59:00.012-06:00

The Wedding

Last weekend, Mel Moorhead, a friend from my mission tied the knot. Although we were never companions, we had many mutual companions. I drove up with the lovely Gianina Bruno and before we knew it we joined the corner full of former Rome missionaries for a mini reunion. Even President and Sister Rhien made an appearance! The reception was gorgeous, as was Mel.

My former comps Olmstead and Bruno

Le Sorelle della Missione Italiana di Roma = coolest sister missionaries ever, hands down.

The Visit

It's hard to call a party a party without Marg and Nate around to liven things up! They arrived Saturday afternoon and came just in time to celebrate Bailey's blessing and Rod and Jourdan's 7th anniversary. Mom had a customized cake made which read, "Bailey, Broadheads, R & J heart." My only question toMom: Couldn't you have told them to leave off the huge pink flowers and used the space to write "Carrie, our favorite daughter" instead?

Chillaxing on Sunday afternoon

The boys wrestled in the backyard.

Setting up for the grandkid shot.

Everyone in the middle of saying "Dinosaur!"

CHEESE!

On Monday, Marg, Nate, Maura, and Cameron hiked to Timp Cave. After their hike, we met up and say Disney's new movie, UP, in digital 3D. The movie was great and the obligatory fee of $2.50 for the glasses (on top of the price of the movie) proved to be well worth it. Even as the Broadheads left for SLC today, Cameron was still wearing them.

We spent Tuesday evening up Provo Canyon; how nice to take a break from the valley noise and heat. We roasted hot dogs, enjoyed the delicious watermelon and cantelope, and couldn't stop ourselves from eating Mom's macaroni salad.

Making sure we get our money's worth by wearing the 3D glasses.

Even Owen couldn't resist 'em.

The kids were extremely busy the rest of the evening making "potions," featuring Jade's special dish, "rice and cat."

(Apparently I missed the "stick out your tongue" memo)

This proved to be the most effective way to keep Owen from crawling all over.

Roasted to perfection.

Even when the glasses were covered in marshmellow, Cam still kept 'em on.

It was an absolute BLAST having the circus in town. Can't wait till we can put up the "big top" again! (We hope Cash and new baby brother will join us next time!)

It's about time Maura got some more girl cousins.
Maura and Bailey

Porter

Milo and Owen

Cameron

Jade

Owen

Friends

A quick visit with some of the best buds ever: Kyle, Jackie and Molly, Jess, Jenn, and Eric.

The New Addition

Flora Jane Boynton
Born August 4th, 2009 at 10:50pm
8lbs 5oz.

Congrats Rod and Jo, Milo and Elliot! And welcome to the world, Flo.

Call of the Wild

2009-07-26T14:10:00.006-06:00

We spent Pioneer Day weekend at Payson Lakes. Although it rained for the better part of Friday evening, we had a lot of fun cooking, taking walks, riding bikes, eating, singing, laughing, and everything else that camping entails.

Steam rising off of the glassy lake

The campsite, surrounded by beautiful pines.

Shirley getting ready to dig in...or on her way to feed Bailey.

Queen of camp cooking dinner in the rain.

Elliot, looking cute as always.

Porter, Milo, and Jade watching a chipmunk.

Steve on Bailey duty.

Jade looking adorable and keeping herself protected from the rain.

Going on a nature walk down to the lake.

Cousin love.
This was candid, I promise. I didn't say anything to the effect, "Okay, now give each other a big hug!" Uh, so maybe I did but was surprised when they actually did it!

Bailey sitting comfortably as we broke camp.

Luckily by morning the rain was gone and we were able to swim at the lake. Unfortunately, by that point, my camera battery had died and I missed out on getting pictures of the water trampoline contraption, which had the whole beach in laughter ( I think Jourdan got some photos of it but I don't know if she's going to post them). The trampoline was in the middle surrounded by a big inflatable rectangle on one end and a long inflatable cylinder on the other end. Everyone was entertained as people tried to run across the cylinder and into the lake without falling off and as people were catapulted off the rectangular blow-up by each another. Great weekend!

2009-07-11T13:35:00.003-06:00

Arcade Fire meets Johnny and June...
...that's how NPR's Stephen Thomspon describes Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zero's in their debut album, Up From Below, which comes out July 14th.

Number of times I've listened to it today? Probably 10.
Needless to say, I HIGHLY recommend it.

2009-07-08T15:05:00.002-06:00

They call themselves Blind Pilot, and I'm loving them...

2009-07-07T19:55:00.018-06:00

Boynton 4th of July Bash
McCall, Idaho

Day 1: Friday
We arrived at the cabin on Friday morning after staying with Aunt Lynne in Boise Thursday night. We met Ell, Paul, and Cash who came over from Portland.

Elliot was ready to swim from the get-go.

Although we saw a fox and an elk (did we ever decide what that really was?) during our stay, the true wildlife was caught on film below! Never a dull moment with Milo and Elliot around!

We swam at the Lake within the first hour.

Enjoyed a visit from our friend, the fox.

Despite the pesky mosquitoes, we made a fire and cooked s'mores.

Day 2: FOURTH OF JULY!
We hit up the craft fair 10 miles south of McCall. Perhaps the most interesting craft was the one-man-band who played the guitar, fiddle, and drums. He had strings attached to his hands and feet allowing him to play the drums, which were strung down his back.

The wildflowers were to die for. The poppies were my favorite.

We waited over an hour at the lakefront for the fireworks to start. The spectacular sunset, however, gave the firework show a run for its money.

Elliot got cozy with a new friend.

The firework display over the lake was accompanied by many ooohs and awwhs.

Day 3: Sunday
We slept in, had a huge breakfast, and headed to the fish hatchery.

Not only did we see tons of salmon...but we got a visit from this guy...

Aunt Lynne and I fashioned our fresh daisy bracelets.

Next, we relaxed and ate lunch at the rotary park.

We stopped and ate delicious ice cream and enjoyed the scenic drive through Ponderosa Park.
The boys were all tuckered out and took a synchronized, Sunday nap.

The viewpoint at "Lover's Leap."

We took a leisurely stroll around the swamp/meadow.

We finished out the night with another delicious bbq at the cabin, followed by games and much laughter. . Monday we packed up and headed out. What a shame that it had to come to an end. If you ask me, this is what summer is all about! Is it too early to ask when the next trip will be?
Hollerin'....Aunt Lynne, oh, Aunt LYNNE?!

Be sure to check out Ell and Jourdan's blogs for their take on and pics the trip!

2009-06-29T09:58:00.011-06:00

Let's get this show on the roll! - Milo

And what a show it was! After driving through rain and dodging the occasional lightning bolt, we joined Rod, Jo, Milo, and Elliot at Bear Lake. We arrived just in time for a delicious dutch oven dinner.

Elliot looking especially cute with Taylor's bow in his hair.

Digging in to the delicious dutch oven dinner.
(that caption's for you, Rod. haha)

And as we stood on the lakefront, we heard a cry from the brush!

Milo had bushwhacked his way over and before we knew it...

...was stuck between the lake and the bog.

Tom brought a HUGE plant press and collected some of the local flora.

The sunset was amazing!
We decided this photo would be great for an issue of Sunset Magazine, maybe we'll submit it.

The camera actually did a pretty good job of capturing its magnificence.

Later that night, we sat around the campfire, roasted s'mores, and LAUGHED uncontrollably as Jourdan and Rod entertained us with stories of shoes being melted and 12" poop being filtered.

Saturday morning I got up and went running while the others ate breakfast. We then headed down to the beach where the beautiful, blue water awaited us. It was freezing but we managed to stay in for a few minutes. Although we did put sunscreen on, there were parts we missed and now we're paying royally. Nothing better than the first burn of the summer, right?

Tom, Casey, Me, and Milo went for a canoe ride.

The beautiful blue water!

The Bear Lake area is famous for its raspberries and raspberry shakes. We drove to the other side of the lake and enjoyed eating them. My friends, Camie and Nick, were in the area so we sat and enjoyed our shakes with them. They had spent the day on the river, hence, the awesome swim trunks (looking fabulous Nick, in those Nike shorts.)

The Saturday night sunset was different but just as amazing as Friday's. After the sun went down, we had another fire, roasted more marshmallows, and had interesting discussion on guns, evolution, knowledge and truth.
Not to be missed were the stars. I was reminded of the times Mom whipped out her star charts in Yosemite and pointed out constellation after constellation. Tom and I pointed out as many as we could and were pleasantly surprised to see a couple shooting stars as well.

It was great to be camping and I can't wait for the adventures of next weekends Idaho trip!

2009-06-21T14:39:00.004-06:00

A Fond Farewell to a Friend -elliott smith

Grant, my best friend of 6 months, has been planning on doing an internship in Italy ever since he got back from his mission nearly two years ago. Last Friday, after taking the MCAT on Thursday, he took off for his great adventure! It was a sad day for me but I'm glad he gets to live in Siena, one of the greatest Tuscan jewels. Boy am I gonna miss you (and already do)!

But before he left we took one last trip to the place where we spent nearly every Friday afternoon skiing during winter semester...Sundance. It was absolutely gorgeous and extremely green.

Although it was threatening to rain, we hopped on my scooter and made it all the way up and back without a single drop of rain.

I took Grant to the airport at 4:00am Friday morning so that he could catch his 7:00am flight out. I drove back home and slept from 7:00am until I had to go to work at 1:00pm. Grant's awesome Mom and two sisters invited me to go to dinner that night. Afterward, I ate the most heavenly ice cream (black raspberry chocolate chunk) and watched a movie with his sisters, Greta (right) and Megan (left).

Needless to say...August can't come soon enough. In the meantime, you can check out his blog at ghepardino.blospot.com (or hit the link on the side of my blog).

2009-06-14T14:50:00.002-06:00

Number 13?!

I think those of us who live in Utah can consider ourselves quite lucky when it comes to temples; Elder Scott thinks so and I'd have to agree. The Qquirrh Mountain Temple open house is going on now so if you haven't been, go!

The Oquirrh Mountain Temple is the 13th temple for Utah.

2009-06-14T14:21:00.003-06:00

Ouray, Colorado

A couple weekends ago we got to visit Grant's cabin in Colorado. Even though it rained for the majority of the weekend, we had a ton of fun with his family. We hiked, went to the hot springs, explored the area, and hung out at the cabin. Ouray is BEAUTIFUL!

The driveway to the Gebhard cabin

The Cabin

Hiking in the mountains with the fam

If you look hard enough, you can sort of see the town of Ouray back there in between the mountains. They call it "the Switzerland of America." It is a great little town nestled in the mountains and was a mining town back in the day.

Grant and Michael (little bro) sporting their matching sunglasses
(you can see some old mining remains in the back)

Pretty waterfall

After Grant's sister-in-law fell in the river, I decided to take the safe way back across, with a little help from his dad.

There were waterfalls literally everywhere we looked!

If you look REALLY close, you can see the cabin rooftop in the trees near the end of the river.

While the boys went mountain biking, the girls went exploring near the cabin.

Greta (sis), Annalisa (sis-in-law), me, Helen (mom)

And before we knew it, we were headed back to P-town.
Great sunset!

2009-06-13T16:17:00.002-06:00

A New Purchase

I've been meaning to post these cutest pictures of Elliot and Milo with my DI glasses on, so here they are.

Hey boys, want to come and build another fort with me?

2009-05-19T19:32:00.002-06:00

I can't wait for this!

SLC's 2009 Twilight Concert Series

I'm especially looking forward to:

Bon Iver
M. Ward
Sonic Youth
Iron and Wine
Okkervil River

What a GREAT line-up! Did I mention it's free?!

2009-05-19T18:59:00.004-06:00

Camilla and Nicholas Hansen
Married May 9th, 2009

Finally, a wedding of one of my best friends I could attend (after having missed Jenn, Jack's, and Aub's while I was on my mission.)! Definitely one of the prettiest weddings I've been to! Well done Cam!

They were sealed in the Logan Temple

The Camie/Nick fan club

The Maud Squad

Passing time at the farmer's market between the sealing and the luncheon. SHAKE it grels!

Even after all the hula hooping Jack did, Molly still waited a week to come out.

The luncheon was beautiful. Nick is an artist and did all the decorating. He painted the panels and the bird tessellations. Who ever thought a 'bird' theme could be pulled off? Just leave it to these guys...WAY creative and they pulled it off with flying colors.

Congratulations!!!

2009-05-18T21:11:00.005-06:00

Babies Galore! Welcome, little ones!

BAILEY
Sunday, May 10th
Congrats Steve and Shirley!

Molly
Monday, May 18th
Congrats Jackie and Kyle!

2009-05-18T11:23:00.005-06:00

COLORADO
May 7 - May 10

A wedding of Grant's childhood friend in Denver brought us to Colorado. We first stopped at Grant's house in Grand Junction for some biking! Thursday night we went mountain biking. It was my second time desert riding and although it was the most technical ride I had ever done, we had a ton of fun. We woke up Friday morning and went road biking with Grant's dad at Colorado National Monument. It was a beautiful, 30 mile loop with spectacular views. With Grand Junction sitting near 4600 ft. and the top of the climb sitting near 6600, we climbed nearly 2000 vertical feet! Grant blames his "tight shoes" on me beating him to the top but I would argue otherwise (only kidding Grant!...but not really).

After the ride on Friday, we drove 4 hours over to Denver. Needless to say, our butt's were definitely hurting after that day! I'd never driven that stretch of road in my life (I-70) and was surprised at its beauty! We passed all of the big Colorado ski resorts before arriving in Denver. We stayed with Grant's older brother, Nate, and his wife, Annalisa. They live close to downtown Denver in a quaint, studio apartment (the purple house below.) They were great tour guides and took us around the city and we enjoyed visiting the Denver Art Museum. What a COOL city!
After touring Denver all day, we headed to the wedding reception (Nate and Grant rummaged through Nate's closet and came out looking pretty sweet in his thrift store outfits! haha). Sunday we drove back to Grand Junction for dinner with his family. Great times!

(I don't know why the font size is so huge at the top and smaller at the bottom. Before I post they are the same size....Anybody? Anybody?)

2009-05-10T23:45:00.016-06:00

winter semester ended and CALIFORNIA called our names...so we went

Day 1: Kolob Canyon and St. George
Thursday, April 22
We stopped in Kolob Canyon for a beautiful hike up to Double Arch Alcove.
After the hike we stayed with Aunt Pam and Uncle Dean in St. George.

Day 2: Red Rocks, NV
Thursday, April 23
We left St. George and headed straight to Red Rocks. We stopped and saw some petroglyphs, ate lunch, and did a sweet hike up a canyon. The hike ends at a couple natural pools. We spent the night with Marg, Nate and Co. in Vegas before we headed to Cali.

Day 3: Yucaipa/Pamona, California
Friday, April 24th
After stopping at the outlet stores in Primm, we arrived in Yucaipa where my friend, Aubree lives. Way back in February, Grant surprised me on Valentine's Day with tickets
to go see my favorite band, Mates of State (he quickly became a fan upon
meeting me, btw!). That night, we drove an hour to Pamona and watched
them jam live! I'd been waiting years to see them live and I wasn't disappointed!
They were great and we had a lot of fun singing along!
(the fun band Black Kids opened the show)

(below: Black Kids)

(Mates of State)

Day 4: Laguna
Saturday, April 25th
Aubree and Taylor took us to the beach on Saturday. The water was a little too cold for swimming but it sure was nice to get some sun! We drove up and down the
highway and oooed and awwed over all of the HUGE homes along the coast.
Then, we spent the evening hanging out with some of Grant's friends. We stayed
at Aubree and Taylor's again and then went to church with them Sunday morning
before heading back to Vegas.

Day 6: Zion National Park
Monday, April 28th
After staying with Marg and Nate and hitting up a few other Vegas outlets, we headed
back to Utah. We stopped in Zion National Park and did the Emerald Pools hike.
It was absolutely gorgeous!

And then it was back to reality...I started spring semester on Tuesday and Grant started studying for the MCAT, which he'll take on the 18th of June.

But the fun doesn't end there! Check back soon for our trips to Grand Junction/Denver and Logan!

2009-04-19T15:49:00.003-06:00

Spring Has Sprung!

Easter Sunday at Mom and Dad's

Mom preparing the food and Rod getting excited to eat

The spring fruit salad was delicious to the taste, as was the lamb (for those who liked it), the potatoes, the rolls, the veggies, and the strawberry pie!

The weather was sunny and warm

Porter and Grant had fun playing croquet

The porch swing even got some use after a long winter

Spring= weddings = Camie's Bridal Shower
Can't wait to see her and Nick seal the deal in Logan on May 9th!

Jenn, Katherine, Jack, Me

Inappropriate? Naw, it was a shower filled with laughter! What do you expect at shower full of college girls?
(Some of the Maud Squad: Jenn, Katherine, Cam, Jack, Me, Jess)

Yay for weddings which bring us together!
(Isn't jackie the cutest prego you've ever seen? I think so!)

2009-04-19T13:00:00.002-06:00

Like Father Like Daughter

When I saw these pants at Dillards I just couldn't pass them up!

2009-04-01T19:34:00.004-06:00

Carrie: "Mom and Dad, I have something to show you!"

APRIL FOOLS!

It was the obvious prank, so I pulled it and Tom got the shot.

2009-03-22T13:59:00.006-06:00

Struttin' Our Stuff

Here's Grants amazing mute grab and my attempt at a 180. There are a few more videos still to come!

2009-03-21T18:09:00.004-06:00

Back from the Blogging Dead part 3

A trip to Grand Junction, Colorado

We took a weekend to visit Grant's hometown/family. Amazing place and amazing people!
Since it was so warm we traded in weekend skiing for a hike in the morning and biking in the afternoon.

An absolutely amazing day for biking. That's the Colorado River in the background.

We hiked to Liberty Cap which boasts great views of Grand Junction.

Can you spy Grant's mom?

Grant's Dad, bro, and sis. making the final ascent.

View of Grand Junction

2009-03-21T17:48:00.002-06:00

Back from the Blogging Dead part 2

Skiing Sunny D a.k.a. Sundance

Just about every Friday afternoon this semester has been spent on the slopes with Grant and his little sister Megan. My goal was to be able to pull a 180 by the end of the season...(coming soon as part of part 4)

2009-03-05T22:37:00.012-07:00

BACK FROM THE BLOGGING DEAD part 1
As of late, blogging has taken last priority. Here's an attempt to catch up on what I've been doing the past couple months.

A fun get together with some old mission companions.

(Sis. Bruno, Moorhead and I)

Sis. Olmstead, Call (my trainee!), me

Sis. Harvey and I

Trip to Las Vegas!

Eating pizza at Sam's Club with Maura, Cam, and Marg

Sibling affection in the maze

Cool kid Cam

Cute Maura

Secret rendezvous in Vegas with Grant!

Milo, Elliot, and Cam at Circus Circus

Getting ready for the roller coaster ride!

We got the very back four seats! Best place to ride, for sure!

Elliot was a little worried for Rod to be going on the ride...

But soon found out everything would be just fine!

Draper Utah Temple Open House

Dad, Mom, Tom, me, and Grant

BYU's Annual Hunger Banquet

Tom and Katy sat among the 'poor' class and shared one bowl of beans and rice with 5 or so other people while Grant and I were lucky enough to sit among the 'middle-class' and got a slice of pizza and a hot dog.

check back soon for parts 2 and 3

Enjoying..........

2009-01-16T13:28:00.002-07:00

...this new song, Family Tree, by the band TV on the Radio.

SNOW!

2009-01-06T17:42:00.004-07:00

Ell wanted to see the snow so Mom took the pictures and I'm doing the blogging. She took these this afternoon, however, the snow is still coming down as we speak...err....type?!

Christmas 2008

2008-12-26T17:06:00.011-07:00

Temple Square Lights
Once with some of the family, once with sisters from my mission.

Andy and Elliot

Elliott and I

Ell and Cash enjoying the nativity presentation

Rod and Andy

Paul, Ell, Cash, and Grammie

Mysterious, run-away elf spotting

Mission buds: Baker, Moorhead, Olmstead, Jones, Hudson, and me

First ski trip of the season with ski-extraordinaire, Grant

Andy's friends wishing him luck as he left for his mission

Sweater party with high school buds

Mom's Birthday! Dec. 21st

Three Cups of Tea From Tom and I

And Dad suprised Mom with a new digital camera!
"You mean I've become digital???"

CHRISTMAS EVE/CHRISTMAS DAY Dec. 24th-25th

We had a great Christmas Eve dinner with Steve, Shirley and Co. Dinner included Pork, stuffing, red potatoes, green been casserole, crab, rolls, salad, followed by Mom's "snowballs," a creation her mother, Nanna, used to make for her family. There were also tarts of every kind, biscotti, popcorn, baklava, etc.

The lighting of the snowballs!

CHRISTMAS MORNING: Tom and I slept in until Mom and Dad finally woke us around 10am.
We opened some gifts, then headed to Steve and Shirley's.

Tom got some new pants.

Annual Christmas day hike up Rock Canyon

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

2008-12-07T13:02:00.002-07:00

BREAKING NEWS: never before seen footage of the polyg at work.

Okay, not really. But I found these on Andy's camera and thought they were worth posting.

2008-11-25T00:10:00.006-07:00

Che nostalgia!

I don't know about you, but I can tie specific songs back to specific times in my life. For example:

whenever I hear All That She Wants by Ace of Base, I'm quickly taken back to my high school years, running around wild with all my girlfriends, making up a dance routine.

whenever I hear Josh Rouse's Quiet Town, I think of running or riding the bus around the island of Oahu when I was having the time of my life in Hawaii.

whenever I hear Bach's Christmas Oratorio, I think of the good times learning to sing it for the stake Christmas concert in London.

whenever I hear the song of a bird or look at the blue, blue sky.......just foolin!

I think you get the point and know that the list could go on for pages and pages. However, coming across the songs posted below brought me straight back to Italy. I know what you're thinking, "Why was she listening to this music on her mission!" Let's just say one can only handle listening to EFY and MOTAB for so long! Just kidding. Fact is: you just hear it as you walk around and are immersed in the culture, whether it's blasting out of car speakers or being played in stores or in homes.

These are quite funny and cheesy in retrospect but take me right back to Italy (guess it goes to show you how music deprived I was on my mission!). The first one is a band from the island of Sardenga, so they sing in sard! I know they don't have the same sentimental value for you but take 'em for what they're worth! Enjoy!

2008-11-13T16:39:00.012-07:00

Sisters From Sweden
My friend Jenn posted them on her blog and I couldn't resist. They are Klara & Johanna Söderberg and together they are First Aid Kit. This is actually a cover of the song called Tiger Mountain Peasant Song by a cool band from the Northwest called Fleet Foxes.
By the way, I think I'm quiting school....if you can't find me know that I'm gone with my guitar to the woods somewhere to write some sweet melodies.

2008-11-12T22:12:00.003-07:00

Song of the Day

Cuz Katy and I work with a music guru, Paul. He showed us this song today at work by Ben Folds and Regina Spektor. I quickly became a fan. Maybe you've heard it, maybe you haven't but regardless, it deserves a listen. Click here which will take you to npr's "song of the day" page, then click on the red speaker and enjoy. So catchy and creative...lovin' lovin' it.

2008-11-04T23:14:00.003-07:00

How 'bout three cheers for the happy couple?
Hip Hip, HOORAY! Hip Hip, HOORAY! Hip Hip, HOORAY!

2008-11-02T13:03:00.008-07:00

HALLOWEEN
a few pics
(check out Jourdan's blog for complete coverage)

Polyg: props to mom for doing a GREAT job on the hair!
I did my best to avoid mirrors because it freaked me out to see myself!

Mario getting 'flower power'!

Off to see the wizard!

And a few polyg dance routines!
(sorry it's so dark!)

Thanks Jourdan for your hours of labor in the kitchen, yummy food, and for being a great hostess!!!
We look forward to next years party!!!

2008-11-01T22:01:00.002-06:00

Two years ago today...

Nov 1st, 2006

It's really quite crazy how fast time flies. I remember the day like it was yesterday!!!

A Few New Tunes

2008-10-11T12:23:00.004-06:00

RADIOHEAD - Album: In Rainbows (Jan 2008)
The songs great...don't quite know about the video (it's someones animation vid that won a competition)...but the song gets two thumbs up.

Radiohead - Reckoner - by Clement Picon

SIGUR ROS - (they're from Iceland) Album: med sud ieyrum vid spilum endalaust (June 2008)

listen to this song..."goobledigook"....another two thumbs way up.

http://cdn.stereogum.com/mp3/Sigur%20Ros%20-%20Gobbledigook.mp3

2008-10-11T11:37:00.004-06:00

Tagged...
I was tagged by aub

Instructions: go to your fourth picture file, post the fourth picture, and tag four friends.

The fourth picture in my fourth file is this:

This is a picture of a trip to Goblin Valley. I went with Steve, Shirley and Porter ( and maybe Jade? can't quite remember.) while I was living with them before going to Hawaii. Steve and I were climbing around the cliffs right above our campsite! I remember it was really windy that day and scared of getting blown off! Good times.

I tag...(no obligations) : )

Ell
Marg (maybe this will get her blogging again)
Jourdan
Shirley

2008-10-07T18:47:00.006-06:00

TEMPLE SITE ANNOUNCED I was right, might I add!
more pictures from when I was there...

If you look near the top of the map in the center, you'll see an area labeled "Cinquina." From there, if you go down about a pinky width from "C" in Cinquina, just below the yellow line, that's where the temple site is. It amazes me how close it really is to all the famous sites in Rome. Where it says "Roma" on the map is where the famouse sites (colloseum, trevi fountain, spanish steps etc.) are located. Also notice the distance from the Vatican.
Now look at the bottom of the map. See where it says "Torre Spacata?" That's where I lived when I served in Rome!

View Larger Map

2008-10-05T21:27:00.009-06:00

GENERAL CONFERENCE WEEKEND

Of the many bustling activities of this weekend, I'd have to admit the most exciting news was the announcement made by President Thomas S. Monson that Italy will finally get a temple of its own!
Many cheers followed and it was hard to keep back the tears thinking of what a blessing it will be to the wonderful saints of Italy!

On my first day in the mission field we got to visit the site that many call "the future temple site," although there has been no official statement saying that this is where the temple will be built, my bet is this that this is the place! (I'm not aware of any other huge piece of land the church owns in Rome.)

The Rome mission reunion brought many good friends to Provo. A few of us went to the Sunday afternoon session at the conference center in SLC. We tracked down the Italian sister assigned there and shared our excitement of the temple announcement!

( mission buds: Bertrand, Greer, Boynton, Terry, Olmstead)

(former comp: Olmstead and I)

(a whole slew of former Rome missionaries!)

(My first mission president and his wife: President and Sister Rhien! Some of the most incredible people I've ever met!)

And then it was off to the huge ranch near Fairview where Andy worked all summer, to relax and enjoy the Saturday sessions of conference. It was rainy and cold but absolute bliss.

Between sessions we went and took a stroll on the ranch.......

(Milo and Porter got to four-wheel out to the horses!)

(My good bud Stacie who I grew up with!)

Then we had some lunch.....

(after finishing his 5 veggies, Milo got to chow down on this bad boy, while.........)

(......... Elliot ate a big slab of ham.)

And then......

We, er...... "listened" to the afternoon session of conference!

Okay, so maybe I did fall asleep for 10 minutes...I guess we can be grateful for modern day technology which should have the transcripts ready within the week.

All jokes aside, I really enjoyed conference. I think it took my mission to finally realize just how lucky we are to have living prophets and apostles who stand at the head of the church; men and women who relay messages directly from the Lord. I know they do receive revelation for our day and that true happiness comes through faithfully following what they say.

2008-10-05T20:54:00.003-06:00

my favorite time of the year...

FALL

Last weekend (before the snow set on the mountains!), we took a hike up to stewart falls. The colors were amazing as they always are up the canyon. How nice it is to live so close.

2008-09-22T20:45:00.002-06:00

the presenting....
the brand spankin' new 2009 buddy 125

90 mpg
$5 fill-up
stats on number of ears lost due to winter driving still to come!

After much thought and lots of help from scooter-extraordinaire, Dad, I'll now find my way around the streets of Orem and Provo on this bad boy.

2008-09-22T19:59:00.010-06:00

a baby blessing and
Celebration for Owen Bruce!

A carpool full of crazy boys over to the Broadhead's!

The Babe Owen

Marg and Andy visiting followed by a big hug for Andy's recent call to the
ROMANIA BUCHAREST MISSION!

The kiddies doing what they do best.

Jade, attached to her Dad as usual.

Absolute STUD...Cameron and his Spiderman book.

Maura posing by her heart that she designed and colored.

Nate, the proud father!

Proud Grandpa!

The Broadhead Family

The proud mom!

Simply splendid!
other photos here

Never a dull moment

2008-09-22T19:50:00.005-06:00

Thanks to the coolest Grels ever for a fun birthday lunch!!!
What would I do without you???

BEIRUT *** Nantes

2008-09-15T17:15:00.003-06:00

Yeah, I realize it's a year old but I missed out on a lot of good stuff while I was gone so now I'm playing catch up. This one's a good one, so good i'll probably be buying it soon. I love music.

Check out their site and listen to other great songs at beirutband.com

REWIND a quick look back....

2008-09-14T15:55:00.006-06:00

Never quite got around to blogging a few fun things that have happened in the past month
so here's a brief glance!

The Rock Slides sat, aug. 23
the sliders: Rod, Jo, Milo, Elliot, Tom, Me, Andy
number of steps Milo took on his own to get there: MAYBE 5.
water temp: icy but refreshing.
largest splash: Rod
best scream award: Jourdan (listen to it in the video!) although mine is a close runner-up!

rewind cont...

2008-09-14T13:41:00.014-06:00

Happy Birthday to STEVE and DAD!
sep. 10th and 12th

YUBA LAKE TRIATHLON sat, sep. 8th (my first OPEN water swim tri!)
participants: Dad, Me
distances: Dad 1 mile swim, 24 mile bike, 10k run
Me 1/2 mile swim, 12 mile bike, 5k run
support crew: Mom, Summer (mission comp)
scariest moment: first 5 minutes of the swim...talk about claustrophobia!
overall feelings: fun! why don't I do more of these!
special thanks to: Rod and Jo for hooking me up with all my gear.
results at racetri.com

TIMP HIKE sat, sep. 13
hikers: Dad, Mom, Tom, Me, Summer
start time: 10:30am
finish time: 6:10pm
nap/rest time: at least an hour
regrets: not putting on sunblock...ouch my neck!
highlight: the absolutely gorgeous weather!

2008-08-25T22:31:00.003-06:00

A Guilty Pleasure...
a commercial that aired frequently during
the olympics and since I've watched the
games faithfully the past 2 weeks, I've come
to love love love it, especially the song.

2008-08-23T18:41:00.012-06:00

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

During one of the long drives on our California trip this summer, I asked mom and dad what siblings I reminded them of most. They quickly responded that I reminded them most of Ell and Rod. "What a compliment!" I thought, as I went over in my mind all of the many things I admire about Ell and Rod. As my mind tried to wrap around the possibility of being the fortunate possessor of their best qualities, I was quickly brought back into the conversation as Mom and Dad continued to explain their reasoning: "You are all hard-headed and do what you want!" Not quite the qualities that were passing through my mind at the moment but okay, okay, I admit, I do fit quite nicely into that category and those who truly know me can attest. The point is, Ell and Rod have many traits that I hope to one day call my own!

I've always thought of Ell as a good definition of someone who is INDEPENDENT. She's SMART and CLEVER. Gatherings are always more fun when Ell's around because she's FUNNY and knows how to entertain. Ell is a great STORYTELLER; her stories always packed with EMOTION. She's ADVENTUROUS. She's a LEADER. Very CREATIVE, CRAFTY, and STYLISH. She's OPINIONATED and WISE.
Thanks Ell for leading the way!
HAPPY 35th Birthday!

And then there's Rod. An ACHIEVER. MOTIVATED and THOUGHTFUL. INTELLIGENT and EASY - GOING. SIMPLE yet so CAPABLE of thinking through and explaining mathematical theories and things that I can't even begin to understand! I've always admired Rod's ability to be SUCCESSFUL and PROUD yet
HUMBLE and TEACHABLE like a child.
Thanks for sharing your B-day with us!
Happy 31st!

I LOVE YOU GUYS!

REVVV your engines.....

2008-08-19T15:52:00.007-06:00

Spanish Fork's 1st Annual Demolition Derby!

Katy and I talk about a lot of things at work. One day it came up that we wanted to see a demolition derby, seems random, I know. We got online and saw that there would be one this summer in Spanish Fork and decided that we would go! Saturday night was the night! We were accompanied by Tom, Andy, Lucy, Tucker, and Anders! None of us knew exactly what to expect but as the night unfolded we were pleasantly surprised as we watched car after car SMASH into each other with dirt being thrown every which way into the audience and engine's catching on fire! Katy and I decided that we are going to enter the "powder puff" division next year to earn some money for our trip to Australia in 2010! Right Katy?

Definitely a shocker!

And a few smashes captured by Andy...

2008-08-16T14:34:00.004-06:00

My turn! Me....through the ages!

What do you think?

2008-08-08T14:08:00.012-06:00

NADA SURF

Live in SLC!
Sooo fun!

Nada Surf has been one of my favorite bands for a while now. My favorite part of the night was when the lead singer explained the inspiration behind the song See These Bones (cool acoustic version! The last couple minutes of the song are amazing!). It was inspired after they had toured Rome and came across a church full of bones of ancient monks and priests! While in Rome, I visited this church a couple times on p-day so when he was explaining this church filled with old bones, some forming chandeliers and other crazy stuff, I was so excited to not only know what he was talking about, but also to have walked in that dark church among those very bones! In the church, one of the plaques says, "What you are now, we once were. What we are now, you will be." which Nada Surf then used as lyrics in the song (changed slightly).

Great show!!! and thanks Ell!

Nothing Better

2008-07-30T16:42:00.002-06:00

-A Warm Summer Rainstorm -
and playing in it like there's no tomorrow. . .

Thanks for the hour break from 100 degree temps mother nature!