School is OUT!

Yahoo!  Its over!  My second year of teaching 8th grade is complete and I am SO HAPPY!  Its officially summer and its time to get some sun, relax, and get back into shape....again. (How many times do I have to get back into shape?)  It has been a great year and so much easier than last year thanks to Tim, the best collaborator and support ever - love that boy!  I had so many plans for the summer and now that its here, they've all kind of evaporated and I'm left with no plans and a summer job (how did that happen?!)  Well, I will enjoy every second of this vacation and hopefully by the time school starts again, I will be ready (though right now, school is a four-letter word).

Beautiful Place

Tim and I went running this morning and decided to start with the hardest hill first....not smart.  After huffing and puffing up the hill, I was too tired to run the rest of our workout.  Instead, we just walked the four miles home and enjoyed the incredible morning.  St. George is one of the most beautiful places on earth!  The sky is almost always blue and when it is cloudy, its even more beautiful because the red rock is such a cool contrast!  The weather is never too cold and it rarely snows.  If snow does fall, its great because we know it will be gone the next day or more likely, that afternoon.  Tim and I are having the time of our lives here and could not be more grateful to live in such a beautiful city!

Spring Break 2

Disney World

Day 1: Magic Kingdom

Day 2: Universal Studios

Waiting in line....I was sick of it by the second day..so was everyone else

 Universal Studios had completely remade the Harry Potter village with Hogwarts sitting on a hill overlooking the town.  It was so fun!  We drank Butter Beer and Pumpkin Juice.  The actual Harry Potter ride was amazing.  We were standing in the 2-hour wait line when a magical thing happened!  Since all eight of us weren't carrying any bags (they make you check all bags in lockers before the ride) and since Tim was extra cute that day, a ride worker took us to the front of the line!  Instead of waiting two hours, we waited five minutes!  Highlight of the Day!

Day 3: Epcot

It actually smelled like strawberries around the Toy Story garden!

Day 4: Animal Kingdom

The Animal Kingdom was one of my favorites!  It was like a glorified zoo, only better!  We got to go on a jungle safari and see the animals close up without fences or walls...so cool!

Day 5: Hollywood Studios

We left our camera in the car and only got it towards the end of the day.  The highlight of Hollywood Studios was the AeroSmith Rockin' Roller Coaster and for everyone else, the Tower of Terror which I happily skipped!  Throughout the week, Tim and I made some observations about Disney World: 1) It is like the Mecca for all white middle class families  2) Disney World is much cleaner than Disney Land 3) The rides are more detailed and seemed to be a little bit longer in the Magic Kingdom. 4) The Haunted Mansion is much cooler in Disney World. 5) Pirates is much cooler in Disney Land. 6)  There are fewer lines in Disney Land. 7) Disney World is a once in a lifetime experience!

Spring Break

This Spring Break was for the history books!  New York and Orlando!  Tim and I had the best time walking around New York and the Disney World parks.  Thanks is not nearly enough for Tim's parents.  They took their entire family on the adventure of a lifetime!  Becky and Tony, THANK YOU SO MUCH!  You guys are the best parents any daughter-in-law could ask for!  

New York

 

Our airline was a big disappointment.  Our flight to New York was delayed two hours and I was tired!  That meant I was NOT happy!  Nothing could dampen Tim's spirit though....he was going to see the BIG APPLE BABY!

After getting kicked off the subway early (I guess it broke down...how often does that happen), we got lost and ended up walking 25 blocks until we finally found our hotel.  As soon as we checked in, we power-walked to Time Square.  We made a quick visit to Toys-R-Us, the M&M factory, and stood in line for discount tickets to Broadway.

  

We ate real New York pizza..

We visited China Town and Little Italy. Tim discovered a Connoli.

Tim had never seen The Phantom of the Opera and since it was the practically the only show left at the TKTS booth, we thought it an excellent opportunity!  The show was fantastic!  You just can't come to New York and not see a Broadway show!

 

The Empire State Building

The Financial District was my favorite part of New York this time around.  It was Sunday so the streets weren't too crowded but what a cool place...this is where the action happens.

 While I shopped on Fifth Avenue, Tim studied the Subway map; he took it upon himself to get us from point A to point B in the fastest way possible.  As we walked down the street in the financial district, a tourist stopped us at a crosswalk and asked Tim how they could get to the Brooklyn Bridge.  Like a pro, Tim showed them which subway line to get on, the transfer they needed and where to walk after getting off.  The tourists thanked us and we moved on down the street like it was no big deal.  I slyly looked over at Tim's profile, he was BEAMING!  He had mastered the subway system!  He was no tourist!

In the day that we were there, we saw and did as much as we could!  Our feet were about to fall off at the end of the day but we had a blast and next time......we will be here for hopefully more than 24 hours!

I Love the Sun!

I attended my first education conference last week in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona!  I lived in Gilbert until I was eight so I tried to make a short walk down memory lane before we headed back to St.George.

We picked oranges....and bought a few boxes.  Arizona oranges are amazing!

We ate a lot of Mexican food....I'm still recovering...

I found my dad's old building where he worked all those years ago.  I thought I might have a few memories to bring back the nostalgia; I was disappointed.  The memories were so faint it was more like a familiar scent that came to mind rather than an actual picture.

And of course, I sat in classes most of the days and learned about how to become a better teacher (which is why the trip was free)!  I had a great time but missed my husband terribly!  We hadn't been apart since our wedding! You would think after being married five months, life would settle down and time away from each other would be a nice little break.  The nice little break came when I made it back home.

Happy Valentines Day

This is what I saw when I opened the door......Need I say more?

Arches National Park

 Tim and I did this photo shoot last October in Moab with the famous Clayton Austin.  Our trip to Moab set some pretty important precedents in our marriage.  First precedent: we will never stay in a Motel 6......again.  Tim had been trying to convince me for months while we dated that Motel 6 was a  chain of fabulously unfrivolous hotels.  Perhaps he was just testing my high maintenance meter but I decided to prove to him that I could take any hotel as long as there were no spiderwebs all over the walls.  To my horror, that is just what I got!  After a wide eyed night, we wrestled out of our sagging bed, got ready and had a blast touring Arches National Park!  I convinced Tim that I wasn't crazy for driving us all the way to Moab for a photo shoot (that took some time) and we even got our "we were here" magnet!  We had such a good time together - I love being with Tim!