Sunset on Key Bridge

Isn't this the most lovely picture? Sunday Sunset overlooking Georgetown and Key Bridge from Roosevelt Island. I love DC!

Grandma's Birthday Celebration!

What a WONDERFUL reason for the family to gather in Utah!!! We had such a FANTASTIC TIME seeing Grandma again in her LOVELY apartment. Grandma knows how to make a party fun, we just loved being able to gather around her and feel the love!
Debbie surprised us all by showing up, and so all of Grandma's children (living and deceased, I'm SURE) were there for her party. Here is my favorite picture from the party!

In Honor of Grandma, I thought I'd post what I wrote in her book:

Dear Grandma,

Happy 90th Birthday! This is such a great time to celebrate you and all of your wonderful accomplishments, and I'm glad that we can all be a part of this wonderful time with you!

Thinking back to what I remember most about you, and probably the first thing that comes to mind is when you were coming back from one of your missions, I went with my mom to your house (that other people had been staying in while you were gone) and the first thing I said was "But Mom, it doesn't smell like Grandma's house. We need to make it smell like Grandma before she comes back!" I LOVE the smell of your perfume. It's classy and rich and flowery. It's everything wonderful that you are.

One of the many wonderful things about you is the ability you have to make us all feel special and talented. You've always encouraged us to find our talents, whether it be in stitchery, knitting, crocheting, cross stitch, or "craft projects." And you have made so many amazing treasures as tokens of your love that we can keep with us now as a memory of you.

I used to love staying in your "Doll Bedroom." I always felt like a little princess in the tall poster bed surrounded with dolls. It was any child's dream, and you made it such a special treat to stay with you. When I went home at Christmas to see Mom and Dad, I stayed in the same poster bed, and the warm memories of your house made me feel like I was right back at home in Rexburg with you and the family.

Thank you for being an example of strength, courage, and faithful endurance to each of us. We love you much, think of you often, and pray for you daily.

Love, Janey

Crazy Hair Day!

Christi had Crazy Hair Day at her school, and I was trying to convince her of all the advantages of doing her hair crazy....so I thought I'd share an example with her. Funny, after seeing this, she decided NOT to do her hair crazy... :) (I think she's a pretty smart cookie.)

Shane thinks I look like Marge Simpson, and Seth wondered if that meant he had to be Homer. I just don't think he could go bald that easily!

Pretty Close, huh!!!

You'd be Shocked to see how I got this picture...

But I REALLY wanted it! Heather can vouch for me...i was down ON the ground with my bum in the air, turned sideways in a knot, leaning the camera up so it would catch both the tulips and the temple! Yay for Temple Square!

HELLO UTAH!

I got off the plane and was welcomed with LOVING ARMS by dear sister CAROL (THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE RIDE!!!) and we took off for Logan! Carol is so cute, I got in the car and she had bought me a YUMMY Raspberry Limemade from Sonic (Brought me back to the good ole days!). On the way back, in midst of fabulous conversation, I got DARK CHOCOLATE KISSABLES and ARBYS! Man, it was like dying and going to YUMMY FOOD HEAVEN!

A special thanks to Carol for picking me up and treating me like a queen. It was just so nice to have a warm welcome and great catch up with Sisters. We're so lucky to have each other!!!

Right away, I got to go see ANGIE and Hallie!!! Yahoo! Hallie is all grown up! She can roar like a lion, ah ah ah like a monkey, and she says "SEEEEEEE" really well, it's my favorite! What a little doll. I was lucky to get to stay in Angie and Matt's lovely guest bedroom in their FANTASTIC House, and Hallie even let me share the bathroom with her (and I'm sure she would have let me use her bath toys, too!)

It was also SO FUN to see Christi and Brandon! They are both the most Polite, Charming, Witty, and adorable kids.. (oh, excuse me, Girl and YOUNG MAN ;). Brandon made me laugh every few seconds with his quick wit and great personality, and Christi made me feel so special with her cute notes, special presents, and fun "sleepover" talk! And who can forget playing DDR and LEGO Starwars on the Playstation!?! Brandon might want to forget how terrible I am at Lego Starwars...but we had fun, right, Brandon?

All in all, I was just SO LUCKY to get to spend time in Logan with the Sis and the Cuz...both were so welcoming and provided every opportunity for fun, relax, SHOPPING, and enjoyment! THANKS to husbands of both for letting me take your wives' time and space!

Goodbye Chicago!

Well, this is it! We made another trip to Portillos, and then Rob and a sick lil' Seth took off for the Airport! Jen and I stayed behind to have a final evening with the Petersons. We went to Breech, a really great espionage movie, and got a good nights rest before our trek West!!!

The Museum of Science and Industry

I've been looking forward to going back to the Museum of Science and Industry since we went the first time when visiting Amy and Wade! First, we went to the omnimax and saw "Hurricane on the Bayau," a story about Hurricane Katrina. Since we've met Sean and Tina, we've learned a lot about the effects of Hurricaine Katrina, but we've never actually seen them. I was in awe at how people survived such a horrific tragedy, and my heart really empathizes and goes out to the people effected by this disaster.

Next up, Body Worlds 2! I was surprised that I wasn't icked out by Body Worlds...I was rather fascinated and surprised at the way they put this exhibit together. I'm not sure how I feel about the concept, but it was a learning experience, especially the prenatal section. (for the weak stomached, i'll leave it at that!)
One of the newest exhibits is the new INDOOR U-505 Submarine that was captured by the US in WWII. http://www.msichicago.org/exhibit/U505/index.html It was really neat....and a lot larger than I expected!
We also loved the chicken hatchery and it was really interesting to learn about the Coal Miners. Ohhh, and can't forget the Toy Factory, I felt like we were back on Mr. Rogers all over again!

Easter Sunday Afternoon at the Peterson's

Here we are at the Peterson's House. Isn't this a classic? ;) haha.

Scattergories!

Thanks Heathy! This is FUN!

Your Name: Jane

1. Famous Singer/Band: Jack Johnson (DOUBLE POINTS!)
2. 4 letter word: Jane!
3. Street: Joyce St.
4. Color: Jade
5. Gifts/Presents: Jewelry ;)
6. Vehicle: Jeep (Carol's Favorite!)
7. Things in a Souvenir Shop: Jug
8. Boy Name: Jackson
9. Girl Name: Jenell
10. Movie Title: Jaws
11. Drink: Java (Don't worry, I don't drink it!)
12. Occupation: Janitor
13. Flower: Juniper
14. Celebrity: Jewel
15. Magazine: Jane (I don't suggest reading it, it's racey!)
16. U.S. City: Jamestown
17. Pro Sports Teams: Jets
18. Fruit: Jackfruit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackfruit)
19. Reason for Being Late for Work: Just forgot!
20. Something You Throw Away: Jack O Lantern (after Halloween, of course!)
21. Things You Shout: Jell-O!
22. Cartoon Character: Jane of the Jungle

Here are the rules: Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following...They MUST be real places, names, things...NOTHING made up! If you can't think of anything, skip it. You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question... Now Go!

Anyone who wants a fun creative activity who reads this bloggity-blog-blog is tagged on this Scattergories.

Frank Lloyd Wright

Saturday afternoon, we decided to head to the Frank Lloyd Wright Home. I remember that we drove past it when I was in Chicago visiting Amy and Wade, but I don't remember ever going in it, so we were lucky to go inside! His Architecture is interesting...they said on the tour that he was the antithesis of Victorian Architecture, and I realized throughout the tour that i really LIKE Victorian Architecture! I think many of the things that he did were unique, and probably pretty shocking for the time. One thing that I thought was really cool was his piano--he didn't have room for a grand piano in his room, so he cut a hole in his wall and suspended his piano over the stairwell, so from the room it looks like a stand up piano, but the entire piano is actually in the stairwell! I think that was the first In-House Speaker System :)

The Architecture Tour, Sears Tower Edition

Next stop, Architecture Tour! This was a 60 minute tour that took us up and down the Chicago River to see the different styles of architecture around the city. It's a fun tour to take, mostly a relief from having to walk all that way to see GREAT sites. It was FREEZING out on the water, but I had Jenell's Coat (thanks, Jen!), a warm boyfriend, and gloves (Good reminder, Seth!) so I was alright! :)

Portillos and Giordano's!

Portillos = the best hot dog i've ever had. Hands down. (Not a terribly hard contest to win, but they still did it and should be given credit ;)
Giordano's = the second best pizza I've ever had (Yay for Amy and Wade's homemade Dutch Oven Chicago Style Stuffed Pizza!). Giordano's was a close second though. Somehow I thought they did the whole olives the way that Amy and Wade do it, but they didn't. I LOVE having the sauce on top with the cheesy pepperoni in the middle...MMM MM MMMM YUMMMY!

The Sears Tower!

Up, Up, Up, to see the city Bird's Eye View!

It was a great day for a lovely view! We got personally escorted around by one of the workers (thanks for that, ROB!) and had a lovely visit at the top of the Sears Tower. I have to say, I'm disappointed that they didn't have the computers to "send messages to space" in. I've been looking forward to those since high school when Kerby Young told me about the "space computers" that you can transmit messages up to the aliens. I guess the aliens will never know how much I love my Seth :)

WICKED!!!!

At long last, we have FINALLY seen Wicked! It was every bit as great as I thought it would be, we LOVED IT! I was concerned after listening to the CD over and over and over again that I would be disappointed with the different actor's choices, but I was not AT ALL. Everything has a different meaning to me now!
I love wicked both because it is brilliant in its writing and clever in its lyrics, and it has a good message. Everyone feels misunderstood in some form, and this only goes to show exactly HOW these misunderstandings get started!
So the SHOW itself was GREAT, and it was even GREATER to see it WITH SETH, IN CHICAGO, IN a BEAUTIFUL theater!!! It's like a dream come true... :)

Wait Wait...Don't Tell me!

We started the chicago trip out with a Bang! by going to Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me, the NPR News quiz on Chicago Public Radio! It's our favorite Radio Show, so we couldn't miss this opportunity. The picture is the four of us with Karl Kassell, "The Voice" of Wait Wait. He reminds me of a general authority from the 60s, he's just so cute, and has the quickest wit and humor, kind of like Dad's.
It's fun to listen to Wait Wait now that we've seen it, because now we can picture where everyone is and what it's like to be there. Yay for Radio!

Ready....Set....BLOG!

It's been a busy few weeks, so I thought I'd get started blogging all the adventures...StAy TuNeD!

In Utah!

Chicago was SO GREAT, and SO IS UTAH! Details to follow, but I just wanted to post and let everyone know that I'm currently still alive and kickin' in Utah. I miss my Seth, but being with family and in the West again is great! Can't wait to see a lot of you soon :)