Date Night

Josh has recently started taking the girls out on dates. Once a week he takes one of them out for an ice cream or frosty at the place of their choice. The girls love the one on one time with him!!! Tonight was Emma's first date, and she had a blast. According to Josh she was quite the little goof ball. She kept running back and forth on the bench to get bites of her ice cream, all the while squealing.

10 Year Anniversary

After ten years of marriage, Josh and I finally got to go on a trip together. We celebrated in San Francisco.

The first day we spent exploring Chinatown and ate at the best Chinese restaurant ever. We had to wait over a half an hour to be seated and paid $40 just for lunch, but it was so worth the wait and money. You know its authentic Chinese food when you're only given chopsticks to eat with and the waiter doesn't speak English (he only understands it).

Then we explored Pier 39 a bit.

The next morning we headed back to the Wharf and got to walk by Boudin. That place was packed morning, noon and night. Not only do they have a restaurant, but they have a big glass window where they make the bread for you to see. Check out the huge sourdough crocodile.

Then we did a little more exploring of Pier 39.

Next was our ferryboat ride around Alcatraz.

 

Brady and Jordan gave us tickets as a Christmas gift. We were super excited but even more so when we realized it was taking us under both the Golden Gate and Bay bridges. 

It was pretty cold and super windy but it was beautiful and I'm so glad we had the chance to go!

We even had a great view of the famous sea lions as we pulled into shore.

That evening we headed to the AT&T Ball Park for the BYU bowl game. This is the view from the stadium. I wish I could have gotten a picture looking the other way because the sunset was beautiful with vibrant pinks, oranges, and yellows.

Josh tweeted out these pictures of us at the game and we got on their jumbotron. I felt famous.

Our seats were pretty high up there. As a matter of fact no one was even behind us even though we were on the second to the last row, but at least we were directly above the fifty yard line. Unfortunately BYU didn't play well and lost the game.

Day three we got on a double decker tour bus and took a tour of the city. Our tour bus guide was fantastic. We couldn't have asked for better. He was super funny and was constantly telling us interesting facts. Our tour included a bus ride across the Golden Gate bridge to Sausalito. Had we known we wouldn't be able to stop before the bridge on the way back, we would have gotten off and walked across the bridge.

From there we took a shuttle bus to Muir Woods, a redwood forest. We didn't know what to expect, but it was full of paths and trails and we could have easily spent another couple of hours there had we had the time. Unfortunately, when we arrived we only had an hour until it closed for the evening.

It was beautiful and the trees were huge.

That night we switched hotels. We wanted to be able to stay in a fancy one at least one night. Our new hotel was the Intercontinental near Union Square and this was our view.

I hadn't ever set foot in such a fancy hotel. Not only did we have a gorgeous view, we had a bench by the window, bathrobes, and a huge room. The hotel had a bellhop, a concierge and everything you touched cost money. It was super fun for one night. Josh and I walked to the mall that evening and ate out. We talked about how nice it would have been to have had another couple of days to explore more of Union Square and to see a broadway show. The next day we headed to the airport and flew home. Sadly, our trip was over. However, it was the best way to celebrate our 10 year anniversary and we will always carry those memories with us.

BYU Football

Josh and I haven't been to a BYU football game in probably five years, yet we watch them religiously. Yesterday Brady called up and asked if we'd be interested in going to a game. He was able to get us a set of front row tickets to the George Tech game for free. We jumped at the opportunity and had a wonderful time.

It was the perfect game to watch too. Not only were we this close, but the weather was great and we won the game. Afterward we took a stroll down memory lane as we moseyed around campus and talked about all our fond memories of dating and our first year of married life.

Josh's Birthday

Unfortunately Josh had to work on his birthday. But in order to make it a special day, we made sure he woke up to presents on the piano bench. The girls did an excellent job making him some special gifts. Sadie gave him a homemade card with very kinds things written on it and Kali made a horse (Josh's favorite animal) out of paper. She had Ashlyn help her color it. It was very cute.

Real Salt Lake Soccer Game

We had the chance to go to a Real soccer game today. Unfortunately, Sadie started throwing up the night before so I stayed home with her and Emma while Josh, Kali and Ashlyn went to the game. Grandma got to go too which made it all the more fun for the girls. Josh said she kept them entertained with snow cones, nachos and cotton candy. They loved it! Oh, and the game was good too.

Surgery

Josh injured his shoulder about ten years ago while lifting weights and has lived with the pain and inconvenience of it until this year. The pain was getting worse and affecting him on a regular basis so we decided to do something about it. At first the doctors sent him to physical therapy. When that just seemed to be aggravating the problem, they decided to do an MRI and discovered that he had a torn labrum and needed surgery. So Josh had his first surgery. When it was complete, the doctor told us that it was one of the worst tears he had ever seen. He said he normally only has to put one little stake in, but Josh needed three. He also had a cyst under the tear that had to be decompressed. Thankfully the surgery went well and the doctor said Josh's quality of life should improve significantly. His recovery has been a bit rough as he has been dealing with a lot of nausea and trouble sleeping comfortably, but hopefully all of that will improve with time.

King Daddy

The girls spent a lot of time preparing a birthday present for Josh this year. Kali learned how to play a simplified version of his favorite Hymn (How Firm a Foundation) on the piano. Sadie and Ashlyn colored him pictures and then all three of them worked together to make him a crown so he could be a king. They actually made him two crowns because they didn't know how big his head was. It was pretty cute.

Scout Master

Josh has had the calling of scout master for a little over a year now and this is pretty much how we see him all the time. Between his monthly campouts and weekly scouts, he's always doing something scout related. Today he just got home from his big summer scout camp and is glad to have it off his shoulders. He puts so much work and effort into his calling that it's amazing he survives everything else he has to do.

Also, this is probably the only picture I'll ever have of Josh with somewhat of a beard. He doesn't usually go more than a day or two without shaving, but this is what he looks like after a week.

Provo Freedom Run

Josh and I signed up for the Provo freedom run this year, partly because we thought it would count for his work's fitness goals this quarter. But we ended up finding out that it wouldn't count unless it was a half marathon, and it's not. Josh did the 5K and I did the 10K.

It still worked out fine because my goal this year is to do the Provo half marathon in October and this was a good mid-progress goal to work toward. I've jogged more than a 10K plenty of times on my own, but it was nerve racking to actually participate in a race. I was so nervous that I was practically drenched in sweat before the race even began. Thankfully I was pleased with my outcome. I finished in 61 minutes which means I ran just under a 10 minute mile. Josh obviously finished first and did awesome. Last year he had to walk during part of his run and this year he ran the whole way. And because he finished first, he was able to get a picture of me crossing the finish line. Now it's time to focus on my October goal. Wish me luck!

Bedtime Routine

Following our bedtime routine, Josh usually takes the girls to their bedrooms in some creative fashion. Sometimes it's a piggy back ride. Sometimes it's over his shoulder in what he calls "sack of potato" and their new favorite is a horsey ride (all three girls at the same time). If ever Josh forgets, the girls are quick to remind him that they need a ride into their bedroom. They look forward to it every night.

Birthdays

For Josh's birthday this year, we surprised him with breakfast--french toast. Sadie came up with the idea because Josh will occasionally make us french toast on Saturday mornings. And since it reminds her of dad and she likes to eat it, there couldn't be a better combination. All three girls made him cards and we had a birthday present waiting for him on his plate. We also made him cupcakes the night before so we could surprise him, but he came home from work just as I was cleaning up the mess. The girls tried to keep him in the garage, but finally I told him to come in to act surprised when we brought them out. Sadie unfortunately couldn't keep the secret and I later learned she had told him weeks before what his birthday present was.

My birthday turned out to be a real treat. Josh surprised me by taking me out to lunch at The Olive Garden. Then he got permission to work the rest of the day from home so that I could relax. And for a present, I got a patio umbrella, which I have been wanting for quite some time now. The day turned out better than I could have hoped for.

5K

For those of you that don't know, I am an avid exerciser. Over the last 2 1/2 years I have exercised between 3 and 6 times a week. The only weeks I did less than that were when I had the swine flu, the week Ashlyn was born and one week in December. I have been lucky to be able to attend Zumba and kickboxing classes at a church nearby and on the other days I jog or use my elliptical. Jogging hasn't ever been on the top of my list as far as "fun" is concerned, but it helps me maintain my weight the best and provides me with a challenge. Recently, Josh set a goal of jogging a 5K for a work fitness program. I typically jog 3 to 4 miles each time I jog and never considered a 5K to be much of a challenge but decided it would be fun to participate in an official race so I signed up too. I decided to push myself by jogging it faster. I was jogging 3 miles in about 42 minutes (according to my treadmill, which we think is off) and worked my way down to about 33 minutes. I would jog an hour at a time so I was typically putting in 5 1/4 miles each jog. As the race neared, I was a little nervous because I rarely jog outside. The 5K we would be jogging was at Sugar House Park and I knew the inclines would have an affect on my running as well as the temperature. My goal was to complete the race somewhere between 30 and 35 minutes. Well, I did. I ran it in 28 minutes 33 seconds and came in 4th place in my age group. I was only 8 seconds shy of coming in 3rd place and would have gotten a prize. Next time I just need to sprint that last little bit. I'm really glad Josh ran with me otherwise I don't know that I would have done it. I've wanted to do a half marathon for quite some time but am glad that I started out with the 5K. Now I even think I had better do a 10K before the half marathon just for the added experience. What fun.

MBA Graduate

Okay he's technically not a graduate for another 10 weeks. The U only holds graduation in the Spring and since Josh finishes his classes in the middle of the Summer, his only choice was to walk in May. Kind of lame, I know. But I'm proud of him and it's fun to celebrate. He even managed to keep a 3.8 GPA. Wow!!! I don't know how he does it all. The girls and I are looking forward to being able to see him around a little more, that is until they rope him into one of those heavy church callings. I think our ward is just as excited to have him be done with school as we are. But he did mention that a doctorate isn't out of the question for the future. We just have some student loans to pay off first.