Happy Grateful

Today at work I had an aha moment that both hurt me and made me smile.  A girl came in.  She was wearing this adorable winter hat with earmuffs and was probably in her mid teens.  She was with a middle aged woman and as they came in, I noticed the younger girl's smile.  She came abruptly up to the counter and proceeded to pour out a dollar bill and a bunch of change.  I was busy helping some other people, but I heard some of the conversation.  She was counting the money out loud and looking at the menu board.  She had $2.36.  She was trying to explain to the older woman how much money they had and the older woman kept saying she wanted a hamburger and a fry.  The young girl (I found out later her name was Christina) told the woman (I don't know if it was her mother or grandmother, but I assumed it was her guardian whichever) that they couldn't afford that.  She kept asking me how much something would cost.  I told her I had country chicken sandwiches on special and they would be able to afford 2 of those, but the older lady kept saying how she didn't want a chicken sandwich; she wanted a hamburger and fries.  My first thought was how ungrateful this woman was and Christina was ever patient trying to get something that would make her happy.  Looking back on the whole exchange, I wish I would have just given it to them, on a coupon which they didn't have, and taken the loss, but I didn't.  Finally Christina ordered a country chicken sandwich and paid for it.  She then counted out the rest of the money and I pitched in 12 cents so she could afford to buy the older woman a hamburger.  She smiled even bigger and told me I was nice.  As they went to sit down, Christina's smile never faltered.  After they had eaten, she came up to get courtesy cones and then merrily wished me a good night and walked out the door, smile in place.  I turned to Morgan, the girl I was working with, and told her that Christina probably had a really hard life.  She said that she noticed too, how grown up Christina was acting and how she was obviously the "grown up" in the relationship and how sad it was that kids had to be adults so early in life.  The whole scenario really hurt me emotionally.  I wonder what she has to go home to, if she has a home to go home to.  I was awed and amazed by her attitude.  She had $2.36 to her name, and came into Arctic Circle for a nice dinner out.  She was so happy and cheerful about everything and a part of me envied her.  I have money in the bank, a nice place to come home to, a wonderful family, amazing friends, and everything I need and I'm not that cheerful.  It was definitely eye opening and I told Morgan that I was a horrible ungrateful person.  If I learned nothing else from Christina, it is that I am so enormously blessed and I need to do more to help others.  I had money in my back pocket that I had pulled out of the bank for a pedicure.  I wish I had given it to her.  I wish I had been less annoyed by her insistent questions about how much things cost.  I wish I could change the fate of that poor little girl, who never got the chance (I imagine from the exchange) to be little.  Today I weep a little for that poor little girl, and vow to be a little more grateful and a lot more cheerful.

Merry Christmas

The Christmas Spirit

The older and busier I get, the harder I search for ways to feel the Christmas Spirit and the more abundantly I fail.  This year has been no exception.  I always try to find ways to keep traditions alive and motivate myself to remember what Christmas is all about and more and more I feel like I'm not getting it somehow.  This year, I am frustrated by the fact that Christmas is on Sunday for several reasons.  One is that I won't get my extra day off work, because we're already closed on Sundays.  The other one is trying to put a brief Sacrament meeting in the middle of commercial merriment has me twitching.  I know that Jesus is the point.  I know that we are celebrating Him and what better way to do so than partaking of His sacrament and remembering Him through song and word.  On the other hand though, I struggle with not being able to go to my Sacrament meeting and my parents (one of my favorite traditions) because they are at the same time, and I really want to enjoy Christmas breakfast without having to get dressed up and run off to 45 minutes of church.  I AM A WHINER!!!  Today in Sunday school we had a brief Christmas program that started me off thinking how ungrateful I am and then an afternoon filled with remembrances as I sat alone in my apartment watching Mr. Krueger's Christmas, Nora's Christmas Gift, and The Forgotten Carols.  The last one hit me like a ton in the stomach and I felt myself tearing up as Jeff McLean belted out the immortal words "Let Him In."  If I am struggling with the Christmas Spirit, it is because I have forgotten the whole point.  As the play continued (and please understand I have seen this play probably a hundred times), I found myself crying at the small things.  The Shepherd's testimony that "He was here!"  The amazing spirit behind, "I cannot find my way." And my all time favorite, "Arise and Shine Forth."  These may be the forgotten carols, but for me they are the ones that find a way into my heart and make it possible for me to remember the Christmas Spirit.

Still here

It's been ages since I posted and I just wanted to say I'm still here.  Things are crazy and I'm still trying to wrap my head around most of it, but I just wanted all you loyal readers to know that I'm still alive.  I'm trying to think of something fun I can do for December so stay tuned...

New Calling

Today I got a new church calling.  I have been called to teach the 12 and 13 year old Sunday School class.  I think they didn't want me to feel too bad about leaving young women's because 3 or 4 of my young women are in there!!  I also get a few of the young men, and I have a co-teacher so I don't have to teach every week.  The curriculum is The Presidents of the Church and I'm pretty excited!!  I think it will be a fun experience and I really do enjoy teaching.  Wish me luck as I strive to learn more about our prophets!!

"My heart is full; mine eyes are wet"

Last night I received a surprising phone call.  I was told by the second counselor in the bishopric that I was being released from my calling as second counselor in the Young Women's presidency.  I knew that it was looming.  Our President has been in nearly four years and we all knew her days were numbered, and as things work in the church, that meant our release as well, but I still was surprised.  When I hung up the phone, feeling a little cheated, because I didn't get a say; I also felt a strange sense of accomplishment.  We were allowed to finish the Temple Walk and really that was my only assignment as second counselor.  I was only in that calling a couple of months even though I've been in Young Women's for more than 2 years.  It's a little bit bitter, knowing that these Young Women that I have loved for so long will continue their journey without me.  I know they are in good hands.  The new president is the former secretary and I just love her, and know she will do a fantastic job and carry on everything that was good about the old presidency.  So today, I took my place in the back row with the other leaders for the last time.  I'm still in the ward.  I'll still have association with these amazing women, but it's a little bit difficult to walk away from the best calling in the church.  The Bishop promised me that I wouldn't be bored for long, and now I'm anxious to see what the Lord has in mind for me next.  So here I leave my last memory of my best calling:

General Conference

I have sat through many a General Conference, and many a General Conference has touched my heart and soul, but none like this weekend.  I'm so grateful for Living Prophets and Apostles, who teach with the Spirit and touch my life in ways that teach me what I should do.  I have been sufficiently fed, rebuked, and called to repentance and today I am making some changes in my life.  I need to choose to give up my summer home in Babylon and while that is my personal choice and I'm definitely not in the business of judging others and their possible summer homes, I just wanted to share.  Pray for me.  I have a lot of sins I'm not sure I'm ready to give up and I need all the help I can get.  May God bless us to follow His prophet.

Forget Not

I love General Conference time! It starts for me with the Young Women or Relief Society meeting and then goes for a week, and then ends up when I get my Ensign and can mark up all those great things the prophets said.  This week I was especially moved by President Uchtdorf's talk and so now my blog sports a forget me not, so I'll not forget!

Raise your hand if you're crazy!!!!!

Before you start reading... I don't have pictures yet... I may add them later.  Also the tense changes a lot, so if the grammar bothers you... I apologize.  I'm not turning this in for credit, and this is how it came out of my brain.  I guess that's the good thing about putting this on my blog, I can write it anyway I want and you can choose not to read it   :)  Also... it's long.  It took us almost 11 hours to do the Temple Walk and it'll only take you 11 minutes to relive it!!


"So was it fun?"  What is it with that question?  A few months ago, I would have hit the person/people who asked that kind of a question, but today... yeah it was kind of fun.

It all starts when the alarm goes off at 1:30 a.m. and you jump out of bed after sleeping 8 1/2 hours.  You grab your running shoes, and pack your backpack with Gatorade, band-aids, extra socks, and some other odds and ends, then head to work to meet Holly at 2:45 so you can fill 5 water coolers with ice and water.  Then you drive over to the church and realize you're not alone in your insanity, because the church parking lot is full of youth and their parents, and all those other leaders who are just as crazy as you, and the funny part is, only a few of them look miserable.  I think secretly, they are all excited to be up at 3 in the morning.  Holly gives a few last minute instructions, everyone grabs a pen and a piece of interfacing that will eventually be pinned to all of our shirts, with two names penned on.  One for a person we're walking in celebration of and the other someone we are walking in memory of.  It is hoped that these people will be the motivation behind this insanity.  At long last, we pack up in as few vehicles as possible (it was a lot,  there were about 50 of us) and get on the freeway to drive 45 minutes south just to walk more than half way back.  It's a little after 4 and you can't see our destination because they haven't turned on the lights yet.  Before we leave though, those beautiful lights come on and in the "shadow" of the pre-dawn morning, we gather in front of the Draper Temple for a picture.  The "Before" picture. When the photographer is satisfied, we start down the hill.  The goal is 22.7 miles away and we are so eager to get going.  The moonlight helped us see our way, with the help of some flash lights and head lamps.  Our first stop for bathrooms and breakfast is 3.3 miles away and we start off at a good clip.  About a mile and a half into the walk we hit the Porter Rockwell trail, a nicely paved trail that keeps us off Draper's busy roads (because there is a TON of traffic on Saturday morning at 4:30).  Keeping an eye out for wildlife, we spot a small frog.  I was pretty sure it was a grass hopper until my light caught it.  That was the extent of the wildlife on the trail, aside from a few rowdy young men, but we made good time getting to the park.  After a potty stop and some muffins and juice, we fill our water bottles and head for the hills.  Literally.  The biggest hill on our journey was just out of the park and we conquered it in a few short minutes.  The next stop is another 3.2 miles away and has been slightly modified from our original plan, since Sandy City doesn't open it's park bathrooms till 9:00, so we got a really nice man to open a church for us at 6:00 in the morning just so we'll have a place to pee.  We fill up water bottles yet again and grab granola bars and trail mix to snack on and head off again.  The light is starting to show from the sunrise and as we continue on we realize we're not alone in our journey.  There's another group of young women walking and surprise, their destination is the same as ours.  I call Mom and Dad to tell them we're almost to their neighborhood so they can come meet us, but we walk too fast and they miss us.  I told them to go back for the car and meet us farther down the street.  They meet us at 7-11 and we stop long enough for a quick hug and then the light turns green and off we go.  By now we've walked nearly 9 miles and I can't believe how far we've come.  This area is where I grew up, and I can't believe that I have walked from Corner Canyon in Draper to this point.  Only 14 miles yet to go.  We stop again to use the bathrooms at Harmon's and after filling water bottles again, we continue down the trail.  Wheeler farm is our next stop and the half way mark.  We stop for bagels and chocolate milk and some blister treatment from our capable first aid team.  About a half hour later we head off again, and see yet another group walking.  These girls are in pink tee shirts with the temple spires on the backs and they are moving quickly.  We make it to the Walmart, 14.2 miles into our journey for another potty stop and a potassium boost.  Bananas are handed around and we take advantage of a first aid need to rest a minute.  We start again and I proceed to walk the LONGEST 3.6 miles of my life!!  Our next destination is Fairmont park, but somewhere along the way my right knee starts to hurt and I'm not entirely sure I'm going to make it all the way there.  Another leader, Jessica, is having the same problem and so she and I take up the rear and slowly plod on together.  WE WILL NOT GET INTO THE CAR!!  We are WALKING to the temple.  After an eternity of pain and fighting, we make it to the park where the first aid team is ready with ice and tape and they tape up my knee while I ice it.  Everyone eats Gogurt, and after a really long time, (We weren't the only ones in need of first aid) we start again.  My knee still hurts and the tape is uncomfortable, so I'm still slow going, and I begin to count the blocks.  IT'S A REALLY LONG WAY!!!  We make it to Liberty Park and a few people run to use the bathroom, but I know I won't make it all the way to the bathroom, so I decide I'll go when we get to our lunch stop.  As we are getting ready to leave the park, I realize that there's something on my foot that feels like a giant blister and I can feel the liquid, so I'm sure it's going to pop.  It's only a mile and a half to the lunch stop so I grit my teeth and start walking.  Again, I'm taking up the rear, but I'm still walking and that's all that matters at this point.  We're two and a half miles from the temple.  As I round the corner to the church, where lunch and bathrooms are waiting, I see something that makes me smile big.  It's Sister Elaine S. Dalton, the YW general President, and it seems that Holly's letter worked.  She wrote to her a few weeks ago, but we were told that if we wanted her to visit officially, we'd have to have the stake president submit something official.  If we wanted to try our luck, the secretary could tell Sister Dalton where we'd be and she'd be there if she could.  We were about an hour behind schedule and Sister Dalton was originally told the wrong church, but it turned out that she saw some of the other groups walking and got to totally surprise them so divine intervention must have been behind our first aid needs.  We go to the bathroom and then head outside where we grab our lunches and Sister Dalton speaks to us about the walk and what we've learned.  She then encouraged us to find "our" spot on the Temple when we get there, and to make it ours.  She told us to touch our spot on the Temple, and then when we meet our Eternal Companion to take him or her there and show him our spot on the Temple and share with him our experience of walking and then have him put his hand there with ours.  Then when we have kids, to take them to our spot and tell them of our experience and let them touch our spot.  She then took out a flashlight and a piece of glass. She shined the light on the glass and you could see the light go through the glass.  She then took out a piece of crystal from a chandelier in the Provo Temple, and shined the light on that.  It reflected the light brilliantly and she compared it to living with virtue.  After she was done speaking Holly asked if we could take a picture and so we gathered together, and Sister Dalton is standing next to me with her arm around my sweaty body!!  She headed out, we got our few first aid emergencies treated (including my blister which was by the way as big as a quarter and full of junk...it was like walking on a water balloon) and then Holly asked if we were ready to walk the final mile to the Temple.  We were so ready and off we headed.  We turned onto South Temple and although I was in a lot of pain from my knee and my blistered feet, I was completely oblivious to anything except the fact that I had almost walked from the Draper Temple to the Salt Lake Temple.  We got to State Street and crossed the street, turned North so we could enter the plaza from the East.  As we got to the steps, I looked up and saw that temple and immediately said to Jessica, "I want to cry."  I have NEVER in my life been so excited to see the Salt Lake Temple as I was in that moment and then almost in the same breath I was sorry it was over.  I was sore, tired, overjoyed that we had finally made it, but at the same time, we'd been building up to this for nine months and in that moment it was gone.  Accomplished, finished, and now all I was left with was the memory.  Yes I wanted to cry.  On one hand, because that temple was the most beautiful sight EVER... but on the other hand, I didn't want it to be over.  My life has been consumed with weeks and months of preparation and it was over.  Sister Dalton had said something about knowing we could do hard things and I had.  I had conquered something that 6 months ago, I would have deemed IMPOSSIBLE!  I had walked nearly 23 miles and it didn't kill me.  I gathered with everyone by the fountain by the Church Office Building for the "After" picture and felt AMAZING.  Later I walked up to the Temple.  It was busy.  Brides, grooms, families, and the other 5 wards that did something hard.  I walked around to the west side so I could find "My Spot".  I didn't want it to be in a crowded spot.  I chose the South west tower and picked a place on the north side and smiled to myself as I claimed it for me.  I then sat on the wall and called my mom and Nicole to tell them I'd survived and then slowly and painfully got up and headed home.  A few more days of slow and painful followed, but in my memory and in my heart, I know I won't remember that it hurt.  I'll remember that I walked from the Draper Temple to the Salt Lake Temple, and it changed my life.

T minus 10 days and counting

We are now 10 days from The Walk.  I've been preparing my mind and my body and I've got to be honest, I'm still scared to bits!!  Last Saturday we walked just short of 13 miles and I could barely move for 3 days.  I'm so afraid of not making it.  I'm afraid I'll walk too slow and they'll force me to go into the support vehicle to catch up!  I won't do it, I won't go!!  I want to walk from the Draper Temple to the Salt Lake Temple and I don't want help!!!  I'm being stubborn.  I know I am, but this is something I've been working toward all year.  A friend of mine offered to use her fast Sunday in my honor, well actually in honor of all of us walking, and I told her I'd join her.  If anyone is looking for a reason for their fast on Sunday and there is nothing else you can think of, I'll take your prayers... all of them!!  This sounds selfish as I write it, but I know that this is a good thing, and I have such a testimony of it that I want to make sure it's a great experience for everyone involved and I have a testimony that Heavenly Father will carry me when I can't do it myself.  I'll do everything I can to be prepared and ready and rely on Him for the rest.  Good metaphor for life huh??

For Nicole... Michayla's Baptism

Last Saturday Michayla was baptized.  Since Todd and Nicole couldn't make it, they asked me to take some pictures of the kids so they could see them.  They've been living in Arizona for the last almost year, and the last time they visited was New Years, so it's been awhile since they've seen anyone.

Jaydon 2 1/2  and Karson 23 months

Spencer, Karson, and Katie and baby Gardiner due in January

Michayla asked all of her cousins to sing with her.  They sang When I am Baptized with Aunt Katie accompanying.

Malerie 13

Rachel 11 1/2 months

Best friends and cousins, Michayla and Colin-- both 8 (they are 1 month and 3 days apart)

Hailey 5 1/2

Michayla and her daddy

Karson

Kaitlynn almost 11

Tidbits

I know, I know... it's been ages!!  I should be doing dishes!!!  I just wanted to quick share.  I've mentioned  briefly the Temple Walk our young men and young women are doing, from the Draper Temple to the Salt Lake Temple.  Well now we're about six weeks away from the big day and so that means I get to train... a lot!!  We were given a training schedule by the ward that did this last year, and you walk 4 days a week, between 3 and 13 miles.  We've done five 3 milers, three 4 milers, a 6 miler, and an 8 miler.  Tomorrow I have to walk 4, Saturday we are walking 10.  It nearly kills me every time.  That may be a slight exaggeration, but this is the hardest thing I've done in a while.  Last Sunday we had a meeting to get our ward on board to support our effort and we talked about how this experience isn't about walking.  It's about showing our youth that the Temple is important.  It's a metaphor for them to prepare to be worthy to someday enter the Temple and partake of the work and the Spirit there.  It's an opportunity for them to sacrifice and to find out that they can indeed do hard things.  In the midst of teaching them this lesson, I too am learning what it means to sacrifice and to accomplish something hard.  There are a few of our youth and probably some of the leaders that could wake up that Saturday morning and walk 22 1/2 miles with very little thought or preparation.  I am not included in that number.  I can barely walk 3 miles with very little thought or preparation.  Last Saturday, we walked 8.  I'm learning with every week, that even though I think I can't make it, I can.  I may make it a few minutes behind the rest, but I am present and accounted for.  I've been thinking a lot about that.  Each of us is at a different place in our lives.  Each of us is striving to be the best we know how to be, and it doesn't really matter how we do it, or how long it takes... as long as we all end up in the same place in the end.  Holly, our YW president has mentioned before, that like this walk, some of our youth will probably make it to the Temple without much preparation.  They will probably end up in a place in their lives where they are worthy to enter and receive the blessings of the Temple, without having to endure the hard things, but how much stronger will they be if they figure out they can in fact handle hard things.  I believe with all my heart, that those are the kids that are going to endure to the end and make it back to Heavenly Father.  This walk is inspired by John Rowe Moyle, a stonecutter on the Salt Lake Temple, who walked this distance every year for 20 + years and then after being kicked by a cow, walked on a homemade wooden leg, and carved "Holiness to the Lord" on the east wall of the Temple.  There is a movie about him called "Only a Stonecutter."  At the end of the movie, it says "John Rowe Moyle was not just carving words.  He was setting in stone what it was that motivated him to act.  Holiness to the Lord."  I want to be motivated to act by Holiness to the Lord, and that's why I've chosen to do this hard thing.  I believe that this experience will change my life.

The final Alabama post... finally

Okay so let's wrap up May!!!  Wednesday was my last day in Alabama and I had to leave Florence at about 1:30 to catch my plane on time.  It was the day we had to pack in everything else that I wanted to do.  I had no idea that Helen Keller's birthplace was just minutes from Lynae and Tyler, and I decided I'd feel really bad if I didn't take the opportunity to see it.  Tyler went to work and Hannah, Lynae, Camden, and I headed to Tuscumbia to take a bite of history in.  Lynae decided to stay outside with Camden, so Hannah and I went in for the tour.  It's a pretty small house, and I didn't learn a whole lot I didn't know, but it was really fun.  Here's a few pictures:

The house Helen Keller was born in.

 Helen's parent's bedroom, with Helen's dresses hanging in the closet.

 The dining room where the incident with Annie happened. 

 Hannah standing in front of the cottage where Annie and Helen went.  They put Helen in a buggy and drove her around for a few hours and then went to the cottage.  It's about 15 feet from the main house. 

 The famous water pump, where Helen finally spelled "water" to Annie.

 Me, Lynae and Camden

 Lynae and I

After walking around for a little while, we met Tyler for lunch at Ricatonis Italian Grill.

This was the restaurant that Vance said I had to go to before leaving for home.  I asked Cheryl what her favorite was and she said "I can't remember what it's called, but it's got chicken in like a lemon mushroom sauce."  Well that was enough description for me to find it on the menu.

Rotolo di Pollo (al prosciutto e formaggio)  

IT WAS AMAZING!!!  Everyone who gave me suggestions on what to eat, was right on!! It was delightful!! Lemon mushroom sauce is a great idea!!  They also had this AMAZING bread!!  So yummy!!

This is really a terrible picture, but it's the only one I have of everybody.  

When we were done, we went out and I took this picture of the Alabamites!! 

It was nearing time for me to head south to the airport.  Lynae didn't want to take Camden in the car for 5 hours down and back and had an interview with the Bishop before she would make it, so we decided Hannah would take me.  

My last picture with Camden!! I'm missing this face!!!

Lynae asked if I'd mind driving to Birmingham so Hannah only had to drive one way.  I told her I didn't mind, but we'd need Kiki Von Garmin, to tell us where to go.  She hooked it up and I had fun following the directions.  I need to get me a Kiki.  We got to the airport safely and I bid farewell to Alabama!

A big shout out to Lynae and Tyler for letting me crash their house for a few days, and to Hannah for sleeping on the floor in the living room and letting me sleep in her bed.  It was probably one of the best vacations I've ever had!! Love you guys!!

Alabama: Tuesday

On Tuesday, Lynae had to go to work for a little while in the morning and then she and Tyler had an appointment for life insurance.  Hannah and I got Camden up and ready and waited for Lynae to come and pick us up.  We were going to go with them to the life insurance place so that we could go to lunch before Tyler had to go back to work.  Lynae ended up being late from work so Camden and I entertained ourselves with little kid youtube videos.  Camden really likes this one version of Old McDonald Had A Farm, and while it was annoyingly 2 year old, it was pretty cute.  When he (I) got bored with that I went to the Boowa and Kwala website and played silly songs from that and he really seemed to like that.  When Lynae got there, we left to go get Tyler and Camden and I waited in the car while they went in to the life insurance place.  Due to some technical difficulties, it ended up taking much longer than either of them thought it would, and there is only so much you can do to entertain an eighteen month old in the car, so I pulled out the camera.  Here is the result of two people trying their best to be entertained:

Camden took this picture of himself.

When Lynae and Tyler came out, we headed off to Singletons BBQ.  I figured that as long as I was in the South I'd better fit in as much barbecue as I could.

At Singleton's you order your meat and sides and then they have different sauces on your table and  you go wild.  I had pork and chicken and Tyler recommended his favorite sauce and it was delightful!!  Seriously, aside from the company; the best thing about Alabama was the food!!  After Singleton's we went home to put Camden down for a nap and Tyler headed back to work.  Camden doesn't sleep if it's at all noisy, so Lynae and I were really careful to be quiet.  We grabbed the computer and watched the latest episode of The Bachelorette.  Hannah came home and Camden woke up after only sleeping for about an hour.  It was kind of evident to us that he wasn't done sleeping, but he wouldn't go back to sleep.  Lynae said she'd pack up the house for our next round of adventures if Hannah would take me to get the car from Tyler on her way to work.  I memorized the route so I could find the house again, and successfully drove back.  We had decided that day to go to the visiting center and the 5 star Marriott Hotel where Hannah works and to see the fountains.  The point of the visiting center was to see if I could find a souvenir.  I found some free maps and a pen that writes better than any pen I've ever written with.  I love free souvenirs!!

After the visiting center, we took Camden out to the playground and to the fountains.  It's a lot like the fountains at the Gateway mall in Salt Lake, but much bigger.  I am a total failure, and left my camera in the car, so there is no picture evidence, but it was funny!  We hadn't put him in his swimsuit, and so it was like a joke trying to keep him from getting in too far.  We only had one moment when he went running and I had to go running after him, and so resulted in a little soakage, but not too bad.  We laughed about it, and headed back to the playground!  After we left the hotel, Lynae wanted to stop by one of her visiting teaching ladies that lived near there, so we turned on Kiki von Garmin (the GPS system) to find her house.  After a quick stop we decided to head into town and visit Cupcakes and Co.  We'd seen it a few days before, but it had been closed for the holiday.  The lady at the visiting center told us they had happy hour from 4 till 5 every day and so the cupcakes were buy one get one free.  It smelled amazing when we walked in.  They had 6 different kinds and we decided that for 2 for 1 we'd try all 6.  There was strawberry, M&M, red velvet, white, triple chocolate, and my personal favorite, Mississippi Mud.  We grabbed some forks and some water, and went at it.  We each took a few bites of all of them, and then took the leftovers to Tyler.  The only one we didn't really like was the Red Velvet.  It was really dry.  And like I said before the favorite (for me anyway) was the Mississippi Mud.  It was more like a brownie than a cupcake and had lots of chocolate and marshmallows and YUM!!!

Camden and I trying the Strawberry one ( I think this was Tyler's favorite)

Our "Six" cupcakes   The strawberry one was already on our plate!

The spoils.  

For the record, Camden's favorite part was just the mini M&M's from the top of the M&M one.  

After Cupcakes and Co. we went to get Tyler from work so we could go to dinner.  Like I said before, the food was one of the best things about this trip and our choice for Tuesday night did not disappoint.  We ended up at the local Mexican place, Rosie's Cantina.  Jocelyn told me that we needed to go there and since the Cinnamon ice cream with chocolate chips experience, I don't doubt what Jocelyn tells me.  It was DELICIOUS!!!  I ordered Pollo Fiesta!  I think Lynae was jealous!  It was so good!!

After dinner, we had about an hour to kill before Lynae and Tyler's softball game so we drove around and saw some fun sites.  There is this park right near the river.  I took some pretty cool pictures.  Apparently it used to be a golf course, but anytime the river ran high, it got flooded so they just turned it into a park.

I really liked these cliffs reflecting in the water... it was a really cool view. 

They had all these teepees set up.  Tyler took Camden on Saturday while Lynae and I were at the temple.  Pretty cool!

There was something about the bridge and the cliffs and the water.  So pretty!

We also drove to The Rosenbaum house.  It was designed by famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright.  I thought it was a little weird.

We headed to the ball park where it was evident that Camden was overly tired.  It was hot and humid and he was so cranky.  He was super sweaty, so Lynae gave him a new spiky hair do.  It was pretty funny.

Anytime Lynae and Tyler went to field or bat he'd throw a fit.  It was hard to take care of him when all he wanted was mama.  If I had it to do all over again, I'd encourage them to take Camden and I home and I would have put him to bed while they played.

 However, if I had done that I wouldn't have gotten these cool sunset pictures.

After a win, and a complete melt down from Camden, we headed home to put him to bed.  As soon as he was settled and Tyler was talked into staying with him (not that that took much), Lynae and I headed back to Ice Cream Corner.  It was actually closed when we got there, but they stayed open to take a few more orders.  Lynae was in the mood for something refreshing, so ended up mixing orange pineapple ice cream with orange sherbet in a waffle bowl, and I got Coconut cream pie in a waffle bowl.  It was so amazing.  Cheryl called while we were out, and was very jealous of us. We told her we'd be sure to have a few bites for her.

This is their mailbox.  It made me giggle!

After our ice cream binge, we headed home.  We sat in the car in the garage for a while and talked about some stuff.  Besides the food, the other thing I miss is just being able to talk to Lynae about anything.  I know I could call her, and chat, but it's just not the same.  While we were talking in the garage Tyler came out and told us he was tired, and ready for bed, but we wanted to play a game.  Hannah came home and we played 5 phases of Phase 10, which I think Tyler won.  Surprise, surprise!!  It was a long day, but very fun and we went to bed exhausted and sad that there was only one more day.