THE GRANDEST CANYON OF THEM ALL

A little while ago we received a voucher in the mail for 3 free nights at a Las Vegas resort that we had stayed at during a previous trip to Las Vegas. We figured that since we had the weekend free then we would take Tuesday off and head down to Las Vegas for Memorial Day weekend. It was nice to go somewhere just the 2 of us. We had a lot of fun stuff planned for the trip that wasn’t the typical “Vegas” stuff to do. Sunday morning we got some breakfast and headed out to Red Rock Canyon for a hike. We heard that was pretty cool from some of the locals and we were sure glad we went. They had all sorts of trails and we found a great one!

 

At the end of the hike there was a little pond where we could cool off then we hiked up around the cliff to get a great view of downtown Las Vegas. We both agreed that next time we head to Vegas we’re doing more hikes at Red Rock Canyon!

 

After some rest we set out that evening and bought half priced tickets to go see a Cirque du Soleil show that we both wanted to see. It was amazing! Some of the stunts they do are absolutely mind boggling. Early Monday morning we headed off to see the Grand Canyon! It was something we just couldn’t miss and we had always wanted to go there. Although it was a longer drive we decided on the much more spectacular South Rim to visit rather than the West Rim and it was well worth it. We stopped and saw an IMAX movie all about the Grand Canyon while we were eating lunch then we entered the park and walked a 3 mile trail along the rim to really take it all in. It was gorgeous. Words don’t do it justice so we’ll let the pictures speak for themselves…

  

 

   

The entire trip was so much fun! We had a blast, made some good friends, and planned some really cool things we’re going to do next time we head down South. Are you in?

AND JUSTICE FOR ALL

It’s the 2010 Law Day Run 5K! Each year the law firms here in Salt Lake City hold a 5k and give the proceeds to “And Justice for All” that helps raise money for civil legal aid programs in Utah. This will be our 3rd time running it. It’s always fun because it runs through the University of Utah campus and we get to invite all the friends and family we can. All expenses paid! Colton was aching from a very physical soccer game the night before and was worried that he might not perform well. All worries were put to rest though as the gunshot sounded and we were off. We ran together the whole race and finished in about 24 minutes. Our friends Brett & Jenny and Chris & Lisa ran the race with their dogs and had a great time as well. Until next year!

       

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MACADOO!

On Sunday the family got together to celebrate McGavin’s Birthday! With Brooklyn and Kyle in Oregon and Ash and Spence and the boys in California it wasn’t a big party. Man we sure do miss everybody. The party was pretty funny though. Mom as usual went over the top in “Star Wars” decorations and even tried to get us to tattoo our foreheads to match her and Mac.

      

The best part was the trivia game that mom had us play. She cracks us up! She would ask questions like: “Did Mac ever get baptized?” which isn’t a bad question, but then she would follow quickly with “Well if he didn’t get baptized then what did we have instead?” Haha. Before the game started though she made us stare at past photos of Mac and said the questions would be based on those photos. She would then ask us questions like: “What was McGavin’s given name at birth?” LOL. Colton asked “How are we supposed to know the answer to that from one of those photo’s Mom? Seriously.” It was just pure chaos. But Mom made light of the situation and Danielle and Colton ended up tying in Mac Trivia. Afterwards Mom would tell us funny stories about McGavin as a boy. One of our favorites was when Mom and Dad went to the movies with him. After coming out from the movie they found Mac at the concessions with both hands pressed up against the glass and slobber coming down everywhere. The employee scared out of her mind behind the counter and says “I think he wants some candy.” After dinner we took Mac home and during the car ride we rolled the windows down and turned the music up because Mac loves it. He was pretty happy because he put his head and both arms outside the window like he was flying and wouldn’t stop laughing. It was hilarious. The best part of it wasn’t seeing how much fun Mac was having but instead seeing the reaction on the people’s faces as we passed them in the carpool lane. Oh Mac we love you buddy. Thanks for all of the good memories and many more to come. Happy Birthday Buddy!

IT FEELS LIKE TONIGHT

    

So we haven’t been too lucky when it comes to going to concerts together. Over the past 2 years we’ve tried 4 different concerts and each time something prohibited us from attending. Our troubles began first with the Dashboard Confessional concert out at Thanksgiving Point. On our way down south around the point of the mountain traffic came to a complete halt. We were already running late to make matters worse. We sat in the car at a dead stop for over an hour. It took forever just to get moving again. After a few hours we made it through to find out that a boat had tipped over on the freeway causing quite the pile-up. We took the next exit and grabbed some food then headed home. It was just not our day. The next trial came when we bought Secondhand Serenade tickets out at Thanksgiving Point. The day before it had rained so hard though that we got there and waited for over 2 hours and they still weren’t letting people in. We had to wake up early the next day and decided it was going to be done too late so we gave our tickets to some people and headed back. It surely can’t happen again right? Well our next try was to the Jack Johnson concert out at Usana amphitheatre. We were so excited to go only to learn later that the family would schedule a trip to Laguna Beach during that time. It was the week that worked best for everybody else so once more we forfeited our tickets to some friends of ours. Wait though it gets even better… Our next shot was at the Dave Matthews Band concert at Usana amphitheatre. What could possibly go wrong you ask? Well about a month before the concert would be held their lead saxophonist, LeRoi Moore, passed away and they cancelled the concert. But we are persistent and so this year for Mandy’s birthday Colton bought her tickets to go see Daughtry performing with Lifehouse. These are 2 of Mandy’s favorite bands and last night the much anticipated concert finally arrived. And guess what? We finally went to a concert together! It worked. No rain, no car wreck, no trip, no deaths. Just a great night at the E-Center seeing Daughtry and Lifehouse perform. We had great seats and here are some of the pics throughout the night! Happy Birthday Mandy! The 5th time’s the charm. haha

 

 

        

SICK LIKE A DOG

Colton was so sick Monday! He rarely gets very sick so this sort of thing was very unusual. Most of the time he can eat or take something and just power through it but this was bad. He was throwing up constantly and couldn’t keep a single thing in him. It was basically a bad case of the NVD’s (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea). His body was in so much pain and he was feeling so sick at around 8 p.m. we decided to go to the hospital to see if we could get something to help. The ER was packed Monday night and it took us nearly 2 hours just to get in to see a nurse. They got us a room and the doctor came in and explained the situation. We knew it wasn’t food poisoning because that sort of thing goes away quickly. Apparently he had some bad stomach virus but in his case because of the severe dehydration it really took a toll on him. Sunday was fast Sunday so that probably didn’t help either. He had to get some IV’s with fluids going right into his system and some good pain medication injected in as well.

We finally left the hospital at 1 am. What a day. Soon his appetite will get back to normal and hopefully be back to the normal Colton we know.

EASTER TIME IS BUNNY TIME

This year General Conference landed on Easter weekend so we had quite the juggling act to perform between the 3 families we would end up spending time with. We figure that while we still don’t have kids this sort of thing is bearable but you can see how it may get unmanageable. Conference was great and Colton’s Dad even flew in early from California to make it to Priesthood Session Saturday night. Later that night we met up with some friends at a Brazillian Pizzaria called “Central do Brasil” where they do a Rodizzio of all-you-can-eat Pizza! We had a great time. All day Saturday we were either playing soccer or trying to catch as much of Conference that we could. The juggling act began Sunday morning as we met at Colton’s Dad’s house for Easter Breakfast. We had the complete works. Everything tasted great and the eggs benedict were a huge hit as well. After our breakfast feast we headed to Mandy’s parents’ home for the afternoon. Our nieces and nephews were there so that kept us occupied pretty much the entire time. Colton retired quickly to take a much needed nap. We had no room for food either. Later that evening we headed over to Jewelya’s home for the much anticipated Easter Egg hunt. But before we could begin the hunt or even receive our Easter Baskets we had to recite “Easter Time” by James J. Metcalf. Colton had grown up listening to this poem but Mandy memorized the entire thing in just a day. Show Off! It goes:

“Easter time is bunny time, to hunt for colored eggs. But only for the tiny tots unsteady on their legs.

Easter time for grown-ups and for children not so small, is time to worship Jesus in His miracle for all.

His resurrection from the grave, the only Son of God. Who gave His life for every sin committed on this sod.

So let not eggs or pleasure be the object of our search, but let us seek His guidance as we pray to Him in church.

Let us rejoice as He arose and opened Heaven’s door, where all the good and pure of heart may dwell forever more.”

The easter egg hunt was great! We weren't exactly being great examples of the poem but some could argue that we are a little “unsteady on our legs".” At the end of the hunt we managed to rack up the egg count for a cash total of over $70 plus a load of candy to go with it. Brooklyn found a pair of lost keys which earned her an extra $50 and Dano found the golden egg with a $50 bill inside! Nice work guys.

1 YEAR DOWN, MANY MORE TO COME

It’s officially been 1 year since we were married and what a year it’s been!

Taking a chance to look back we remember all of the good times that we’ve had together. It has been an incredible journey that has flown by so fast and we look forward to the many years to come.

1 year ago around this time we were on our honeymoon cruise so we decided it would be good to give you a little recap of the fun we had. It was a week long cruise to the Western Caribbean with stops in Cozumel, Grand Caymen Islands, and Ocho Rios Jamaica. The ship was great and we had so much fun on our “Days at Sea” but the real fun came at the ports where we stopped.

                 

In Cozumel we took these little buggy cars and drove around the island. We stopped at the tequila factory, had some lunch along the beach then on to swim with the dolphins!

  

 

 

 

This is our friend Estefan!

     

Our next stop was at the beautiful Grand Cayman Islands. This was our favorite stop of all.

Here we went on a private tour with Neil our tour guide. He took us on Sea-Doos through a cool mangrove area then on to Stingray City. Neil was the coolest. He brought squid in order to attract the Stingrays to him. Then he would hold them and pass along the fun to us. It was a blast! We tried catching some live lobster and on the way back Mandy went wild and threw Colton off the Sea-Doo. Before we left we had lunch on the pier and did some shopping. Of course!

         

Ocho Rios Jamaica was our last stop before heading back. There we of course had to hike the famous Dunn’s River Falls. It was a lot of fun. We also took a ride to the top of the mountain and rode this bobsled ride all the way down. No problems man!

 

It was a wonderful week in paradise and we wish we were back there now. The honeymoon came to an end and the journey began for the two of us. Our first year together flew by so fast and we are excited for what’s ahead. Is it possible to have too much fun?

Happy Anniversary!

WINTER WONDERLAND

      

Happy Birthday “Mai”

                     

In celebration of Mandy’s birthday we decided to venture off to the cabin (Mather’s Last Resort) for a retreat with some friends last weekend. Although there wasn’t much snow here in the valley, up at the cabin there was over 3 feet which made for some GREAT sledding! We arrived at the cabin Friday afternoon and immediately headed out to do some pre-sledding in hopes of making it easier for everybody else who would be arriving late that night and sledding Saturday. Once everybody arrived that night the party began! Cake time came and so accordingly Strawberry Shortcake was served! “Yes Porter, we did save some for you and your brother".”

Saturday morning we couldn’t wait to hit the slopes with our sleds so after some “Colton Rod Toast” for breakfast we hiked up to the killer rock slide. From there the rest was history and we think the pictures do a much better job of describing the day.

What a Weekend!

Photos from the Cabin Sledding Trip