Utah Weekend

My sister Erin wanted to visit the family in Utah and show off little Alesa June. Well, I couldn't stand to be away from Alesa for two whole weeks so I decided to fly into Utah on a Friday night and return to Maryland Monday morning with Erin. It was a crazy afternoon trying to leave work and get to the airport since I was experiencing the typical parking lot aka rush hour.

I flew to meet Drew to get Alesa's carseat as I would be bringing them home. I watched as Drew and his brother Joe driving the Subaru like two teenage boys! :) Joe literally threw the carseat in the back and I flew off to get back on the road and fight my way to the airport! My stress of that moment is coming all back to me! AH!!!

I made it with twenty minutes to spare and was so excited to see my family that I couldn't sit still on the plane! My brother Logan picked me up and drove me to Tooele to meet with some of the siblings. The next morning it was off to Salt Lake to have breakfast with friends and the to Provo for a luncheon date and a tour of my friends office on BYU's campus. From Provo, I quickly drove home to Tridell with only a minor scare of the vehicle I was driving having transmission issues. I was so excited to see Mom and Dad! I loved being home even though it was less than 24 hours... I then drove back to Salt Lake for a BBQ with the siblings! I made a midnight stop to wake up an old friend and say hello before trying to sleep the three hours before getting back to the airport!

It was a whirlwind trip to Utah, I kept wishing I had more time to spend there. I even loved the concerned lecture from an older sibling whose name starts with "G" about my still being single - little does he remember that he is older and in the same situation. I informed "G" that I would look further into the situation when he called and informed me he had a date himself... "G" still waiting!

Farm Trip

I was invited to a friend's farm in Virginia for the weekend to relax and enjoy the countryside. Growing up in the country, I was excited for a trip to see the stars and have no neighbors/police sirens/traffic/crap loads of people!

As my luck goes Saturday dawned dull and rainy! My roommate Andrea and I started the two hour drive with excitment brewing as the cement city fell behind us in the distance. We made it to the farm with little trouble, which always surprised me because the friend who wrote the directions and gave me the map is blind. Mrs. Price is absolutely amazing! We showed up in time to enjoy a light lunch and have a nice tour of the 80+ acre farm before sitting down to an excellant dinner.

Mrs. Price and her daughter Debbie were the best! Debbie was a wonderful cook (although she claimed to be out of practice), and Mrs. Price was full of wonderful historical stories! Mrs. Price tried scaring me by telling me about the bears that come right up to the house and eat the bird seed... Don't tell her, but it worked! We went to a berry farm on Christmas Tree Lane (no joke) and we were given fresh peach jam and honey with the honeycomb in the jar!!

After a relaxing Sunday morning, Andrea and I went to Lurray Caverns. Andrea was very helpful with my questions since she graduated with a biology degree! We had a good time viewing the cavern and the little auto museum connected right next door. We went to a show by Mark Russell and had a good time on the front row! He made a comment to me that made my face bright red and I was nervous that Mrs. Price would ask me to explain (it was about texting - that's all your getting).

John Adams (should be your Favorite Founding Father) Memorial Footrace

I did it!!! I went all over the Washington DC area using only the metro and my two legs to figure out clues similar to the "Amazing Race." I had two wonderful and very fit teammates who kept me going to the bitter end. Unfortunately, we ended up in last place but it was probably the best day of my life!!!

I had a blast figuring out the clues and finding the "bonus" clues such as a child on a leash! Yes, we did actually find a child on a leash and they posed in a picture with us, the little boy was adorable! We walked all the way (which is long!) to the National Cathedral and it was the wrong church!

All in all it was a great day! Way to go TAMANAHAWKS!!!!

Anyone there!?

How terrible am I that I can't even keep a simple blog updated! Well, be prepared because I have a ton of things to say!!

Happy Easter!

Well, Easter is upon us.. Okay, it has almost passed for me. I had a wonderful day with the sun shining and the earth literally springing beautiful flowers and waking up right in front of me! I even had my friendly black squirrel attempt again to get in my house!

I wasn't able to attend my grandmother's birthday bash on Saturday in Utah, so I had to do something to keep my mind of missing things. What do I do in that case? I shop! Yes, I spent four glorious hours shopping in Target, Giant, Dicks, and wandering around the little shopping center near my house. It was amazing and definitely did the trick in keeping my mind of not being in Utah!

Easter Sunday dawned bright and early for me! I dawned on what I considered a Spring looking outfit and went to spend a wonderful time at church. Afterwards, I had Molly and my roommate Andrea as my dinner guests. We enjoyed an afternoon of Thai Chicken, Pear Sundaes, and Cuppa-Cuppa-Two popcorn. It was very relaxing for me! The girls even helped me pick my magical musical number for tomorrow's Open Mic Night at the church. I will let you know how that goes! :)

Here is a picture of the dessert I copied from a French Restaurant I went to in Bethesda... What do you think?

Sisterly Love!

For those of you who may not know Erin and I are pretty much opposites. Erin loves the rugged outdoors, not showering for two weeks, and drinking water straight from the river (fish pee in that, yuck!) I am what one would call a "glamper," which is a glorious camper, meaning hotels/cabins, hot streaming water and flushing toilets, with restaurants near by.

But our differences aside we have had a ton of fun together... Erin making fun of me and mirrors or watching me barely squeaking out "Person! Person!" when a pedestrian got in our way while she was driving. Plus, I have taught Erin the lesson of the black boots and she never criticizes my shoe addiction. Having Erin close by has also been handy by becoming my GPS when I am lost in Southeast DC or giving me advise on the East Coast Singles Life.

Also, thanks to Erin and Drew who had little Alesa, I had the opportunity to have my mom and sister's visit the two of us in DC. Although I was constantly reminded that they weren't here to really be with me or when I was limited to only staying at Drew and Erin's a couple of nights while the parade of Merkley's was in full force - I had a GREAT time with my sisters and most especially my mom!



Okay I can't find pictures with Mel and Mom, which means the pictures were taken with their cameras.... Dang! Here is one of Kari and me on our pamper night... I LOVE being a girl!










Here is an adorable picture of little Alesa, proving to the world that...
I am her FAVORITE aunt!!!

Forgive me!

Okay - in all fairness to me - I have been extremely busy the last month! For those that don't know this is my favorite time of the year!

MARCH MADNESS!!!!!!

Ah! I love watching the fun and engaging sport of college basketball. Not only do we see some amazing talent and watch the rise of the underdogs but I love a sport where I get to watch boys become men on the court!

I can almost smell the sweat and feel the adrenaline rush as they battle to protect their basket from the opposing team. I watched as a player from Wyoming after dunking the ball into the basket did a complete flip in the air landing on his side, not hurt but embarrassed! Ha ha! Obviously, he still had some growing up to do...

I have done pretty well on my bracket and at last count was in first place! All I need is UNC to seal the deal for me! Then it will be back to my normal non-sport self. Credit for the love of this game should be given to Julia who introduced me to the wonderful world of college basektball. She put up with my constant questions and even tried to teach me. Well, the teaching lasted for about 15 minutes - before she threw the ball down and said some people just can't play sports! Ha ha! (I already told her that.)

I ♥ March Madness!