Get your kicks on route 66!

9 HOUR ROAD TRIP

There were some very pretty moments on our drive.  With a strong emphasis on moments.  There was also a whole lot of nothing.  But we listened to Of Mice and Men the whole way there, in preparation for my next adventure of teaching 12th grade Language Arts.  Pretty amazing book, though the language made us blush!

WELCOME TO HOLBROOK!

Because Holbrook is the home of our first ever gig, I did some in depth research on Wikipedia to find out a little about the town.

First of all, the town has about 5,000 people and is the county seat of Navajo County. Pretty cool, huh?

Below in red are what Wikipedia lists as the "points of interest." For such a little town, there are some pretty cool things it claims. I will give brief commentary about each point based on my two day experience. 

• Petrified Forest National Park is located 28 miles (45 km) east of Holbrook, the nearest city to the park.

Lane and I visited what Lane called the Walmart for petrified wood.  I thought this sign was positively delightful. What a beautiful concept to not be in a hurry.  I learned that small towns are a whole other world.  Lane's dad owns an A&W gas station where you pump gas first, then go inside to pay!! In today's world, that is truly amazing. How lovely to know places like Holbrook still exist.

If you haven't seen petrified wood, you are missing out.  It's incredible! They had rocks you could buy and take home to crack open.  If you were really lucky, you'd get a geode full of exquisitely beautiful crystals. Or, you could get a dud.  Lane said his cousins had a blast buying those and going back for more.  It's like finding buried treasure!

They had this awesome old car out front that we were permitted to take pictures in.  Holbrook is a huge car town- wish my dad could have come!

• The Historic Navajo County Courthouse and Museum in Downtown Holbrook. Built in 1898, the courthouse is now home to the Navajo County Historical Society and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 We drove through the Indian reservation on our way to Holbrook.  I am huge fan of different cultures.  I think it's amazing that the kids in Holbrook grow up side by side with a culture so rich with history and tradition.  Lane filled me in on "skin-walkers", however, which was not my favorite piece of information.  I wasn't sure if I bought it, but I was not about to broadcast any disbelief...just in case.

• Wigwam Motel on Hopi Drive. Built in 1950, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as Wigwam Village #6.

This hotel is featured in the movie Cars!

There are incredibly cool old cars just parked normally next to the wigwam rooms as though they belong to guests. Those teepees are, indeed, motel rooms.

• Historic U.S. Route 66 runs through Holbrook.

Lane's best friend growing up is the high school choir teacher. He and his family are pasisonate about helping building the community in Holbrook. His sister, Kathleen, was in charge of this first annual two day festival.  There were tons of fun activities planned at the West End park.

There was a car show (Holbrook sure does love cars!).  I took a picture of every car and texted them to my dad. Above is just a sample.  My favorite thing was to see the inside of the VW bus.  It felt like going back in time.

Kids could design their own potato car.

They raced them down this ramp.  There were prizes for the fastest cars!

Some of Kyle's students performed before us. This cute girl did some contemporary Native American dancing.  We couldn't believe how much energy she had.

This girl had an awesome voice- she sounded like she could be on the radio.

Lane brought the percussion set up, of course!  It really is amazing how he crafts an entire one-man-band out of things he finds at D.I. or around the house.  This was the first time the "bass drum" had it's own microphone!

We had a BLAST performing our entire set for his family, who were seated on the front row! There were maybe 3 or 4 other people there when we performed the first time.  We came back an hour or two later and performed half our songs again. Our audience doubled that time! It was absolutely perfect just the way it was.  Every minute I'm singing or playing for even an audience of 3, I feel like I'm living a dream.

Kathleen made sure our gas and food was paid for- that was so kind. 

Thanks to Andrew Farr for taking pictures!

We did it!

I (sort of) won the clock pictured in the top left! I was STOKED.  I had my eye on it from the beginning!  They had kids come and teach swing dancing after we were done performing.  This was especially for a group of girl scouts earning a merit badge. So fun!

• Bucket of Blood Street was named the sixth wackiest street name according to a 2006 poll by Car Connection website.^[9]

 It's true. I saw it.

I felt truly blessed by the hospitality of Lane's parents, Nancy and "Vinny".  They always had food on the table for us, and his mom made a special effort to make sure the meals were gluten free, which was so sweet.  We had lots of good laughs. Lane and his dad sound IDENTICAL at times.  I can definitely see where his sense of humor comes from! It was so fun to get to know Lane's little sister Laurie and her husband, Chad (and their dog, Dillon!), and his little brother Andrew.  I learned a lot about the trouble fun kids find in small towns! What a fun weekend.

Staying in Holbrook was a unique experience that I would gladly repeat.  Lane's dad kept joking that Holbrook was the first stop on our national tour and pretended like we were famous. It was so funny.  Lane's favorite line is that we are going to make tens of dollars.  Truly, I wouldn't trade this summer band experience for anything, even if we never play for anyone ever again.

Friendunion 2014

I am such a lucky girl.

Some of the greatest blessings of my life have been the friendships I have made with my roommates over the past 13 years.  I feel enormous gratitude for the women who have taught me, cried with me, laughed with me, understood me, uplifted me, spiritually fed me, and so many other things that are invaluable to me.

This weekend, I reunited with Kate (Wyoming), Tessa (Ohio), and Melissa (Orem), my roommates from Millrace #3 the year after I graduated college.  We were three teachers and a social worker, all working professionals and navigating our way through difficult changes, decisions, and the general ups and downs of life.  I am forever grateful for that time!

Our first item of business as reunited friends was to eat at Cafe Rio.  Ohhhhh man.

My parents generously let us stay in their condo for one night.  Melissa had the brilliant idea to give Tessa a little surprise baby shower. I was in charge of secretly decorating before everyone got there.  When Tessa walked in, she said, "Who had a baby shower here?"  to which Melissa replied, "You!" It was a really fun moment.

For the baby shower activity, we made baby mobiles (inspired by Scotty Pendleton's mobile).  It was unanimously one of our favorite parts of the entire weekend, and they were so inexpensive to make.  While working, we were highly entertained by the movie Sydney White with Amanda Bynes.

For dinner, we hit our favorite roommate restaurant, Magelby's (now located in Springville).  They had their seasonal strawberry shortcake this time! I was very sad to miss out on that, but I enjoyed ice-cream with raspberry sauce and frosting from the cake!

After spending the night in the condo, we worked together to make a killer GF breakfast. Tessa made the pancakes, I made the syrup, Kate did the fruit and whipping cream, and Many did the bacon. It was a true team effort and was VERY delicious.  My sissy and my Scotty joined us, which was delightful.  I love how comfortable my sister is with my friends and vise versa.  Scotty continues to be hilarious and adorable and can now wave and give five!

Our reunion was in Park City. We headed first to the Olympic Park.  I LOVE THE OLYMPICS! I loved this activity...and it was FREE! I would love to go back again soon.

I was shamefully proud of the reflection picture (top right).  The bottom two pictures are props and costumes used in the opening ceremonies!

They had ski uniforms on display from different decades.  Our personal favorites were the ones from the eighties, as pictured above. Check out the leg warmers on the top right!

Olympians have a tradition of exchanging pins. They had a display with lots of pins from the 2002 Olympics, including the "Mormon Muffin" in the top left corner! Top right picture are the Olympic mascots. The bottom right picture is the pool where the ski jump aerialists practice year round.  More on that later!

I was excited about the ski boot from the 1930's.  We also had the chance to have a virtual "experience" ski flying. We even got snowed on!

After our park visit, we headed to Main Street for lunch.  This delicious restaurant now has a gluten free menu! Yessssss! I was stoked about the Mug root beer (my all-time favorite) and excitedly bought a fountain drink.  Many had to sit me down when I got to the table and break the news that the syrup was gone. I was devastated. But, I found a frozen lemonade that eased my aching heart and the waiter even brought me a free bottle of root beer :-).

So what did we do on Main Street, you ask? Well, we went shopping for expensive jewelry we can't afford, which may have included Melissa and I trying on several wedding rings (though neither one of us are engaged).  Good times. Really good times.  I find my style has changed very little in the past several years!

After our Park City jewelry tour, we checked into our hotel for a little R&R.  Kate got a KILLER deal on a beautiful Marriott hotel.  We all crashed on our beds and played each other in Scramble with Friends, Words with Friends, and Quiz up for a good solid two hours.  This was one of my top three favorite things we did on the trip! It was so fun.  We then went to Red Rock for dinner.  At Kate's suggestion, each of us took turns telling the others about our lives as high school students.  We learned so much about each other! I didn't remember that Kate was involved in mock trial, that Tessa had won 2nd place in a talent show singing a Jewel song, or that Melissa was the mom in Bye, Bye Birdie! We then came back to our hotel and hit the jacuzzi and pool and talked about our favorite musicals.

While at the Olympic Park the day before, we saw an advertisement for the Flying Aces show, a team of ski jumpers who train at the park.  We decided to come back on Saturday with picnic lunches.  It was $10 a person but was so worth it! In the top right picture, the athletes have climbed to various points on the ramps from which they will take off. On the bottom right, you can see the bubbles that are used to break the tension of the pool surface so it won't hurt when the skiers hit the water.

The announcer walked us through the steps of those who begin training in this sport.  Top left is the trampoline where they first learn to flip.  Top middle is the carpeted mini ramp where they first jump.  We saw kids as young as 5 jumping! And the top left is the highest jump they have! There are a couple of other heights in between the second and third picture :-).

So many people came to watch!

After our picnic, we went to Cow's Ice-Cream on Main Street. This shop holds significance for us.  We discovered almost exactly five years ago in Prince Edward Island where it originated.  We took a picture on the cow (top right picture).  Five years later, we recreated the cow picture (bottom left), which was slightly more difficult. Getting on and off a giant cow is not as easy post 30 years old (not to mention Tessa is 4 months pregnant!).  But we were pretty proud of ourselves.

I introduced the crew to my boyfriend the bear. I was a little jealous of all the attention the other girls were giving him, but I am learning to share.

We got pedicures, took pictures of our matching bracelets from the Olympic Park, and saw the moose with jeans on.  We also did a little outlet shopping (I got J Crew wedges for $21.99!). It was such a wonderful day!

Our final dinner of the reunion was Bandit's BBQ on Main Street.  The top right picture is in the hotel just before we left.  The food was INCREDIBLE!  I definitely think we'll be back.  During dinner, we wrote down all our memories from the trip (bottom right picture) to put in our time capsule for the next reunion.  We made a time capsule before we all went our different ways as roommates back in 2009 and revisited it during one of our reunions. We decided it was time for an update!

It was an unforgettable weekend.  At dinner, we all went around and said our top three favorite things from the weekend.  Melissa talked about how fun it was to remember all the things we love about each other. I loved that and it has inspired me to spotlight something each of these women bring to our friendship.

Many is so smart.  If you need to know what to say in a text to a boy you like, ask Many. If you don't know where you are, have Many look at the map and figure it out. If you aren't sure what a word means, Melissa knows it. She's like our informal leader whenever we go anywhere because we trust her to do what's best for all of us.  She's got the street smarts AND the book smarts!

The perfect word to describe Kate is gracious.  She is loving and kind and looks to see that each of our needs are met before her own.  She is supportive and makes us feel like a million bucks.  Shopping with Kate is the best because she is so positive.  She has a clear understanding of what is most important in life, like meaningful relationships and spending time with the people we love. She is integral in making sure these reunions happen. 

Tessa never complains. Tessa is up for ANYTHING! Tessa is a fabulous, sympathetic, and thoughtful listener.  We find ourselves pouring out our concerns to Tessa, because she always knows the right thing to say.  We joke all the time about her "Missing Out Syndrome" because she always loves being part of the fun and hesitates to leave the room for fear of missing out on the party! She is an absolute joy to be around.

Thank you Kate, Tessa, and Melissa, for enriching my life so greatly!

June is just getting started...

Girls Night!

The girls went to Pizza Factory while the boys went camping.  It may look like it was a special occasion...but no, every day is a Disney day for Princess Paige!  Like mother, like daughter! Everyone thought she was so darling and I was so proud to be part of the group.  Love these girls!

Graduation

My seniors graduated!  These seniors I had for three years.  Next year will be the first batch of students I've had for all four years!  We sang the Star Spangled Banner and the school songs, as per tradition.  Next year, if all goes as planned, I'll have my master hood to wear just like my buddy Erin, the dance teacher! Let's all keep our fingers crossed...hard.

BYU Dance Lab Performance

It was so fun to see Anna's spring ballroom team perform three different numbers.  She was dynamite. She is such a graceful, beautiful dancer.  As you can see from the video below, Lane (who has become a great family friend) and I needed some serious help in the dancing department so Tina gave us some tips while waiting for the performers to come out.

Home Sweet Home

One thing I love about coming home are all my mother's special touches.  Above right is a little bunny she sewed nestled on top of a shelf in her room.  Above left is a little frog jewelry box she bought when I was working at Present Time next to Longs on Calle Real.  I noticed she strategically put a little crown ring in his mouth, which I know was not coincidental.  She is a lover of fairytales and books!  Below is the seasonal display next to the front door that changes depending on the time of year. I LOVED the beach theme.

While home, I've been doing a lot of reading and watching Hallmark movies. It has been so relaxing and really a dream. I have felt so little stress.  There is nothing quite like being home! I've also been practicing guitar and I went to Super Saturday with the relief society sisters.  I learned about crock pot cooking and helped my mom make the birthday celebrations board above.  On Sunday, I noticed the Young Women board at the church and realized my sisters and I are now all part of it now that Anna has finished YW and is in college. That was sweet to see.

Fav Santa Barbara Spots

My mom and I hit Blenders (every city needs a Blenders) and got pedicures on my first day in town. That was the great start to a lovely vacation.

Cat Love

Before I met my neighbor Allie, I never knew someone who loved cats as much as my mom and my sister, Anna.  When I got home, I decided to show Allie what a kindred spirit she has in Santa Barbara!  I took a brief little jaunt through the house finding any and all cat references. It didn't take long!

This particular collage was all from Anna's bedroom and desk.

Niece and nephew...just because.

No post is complete without a little niece/nephew tribute.  I made a pendant with the little pic stitch above at Super Saturday.  It didn't quite turn out, but I still love looking at this picture. 

As I passed a wall with all our baby pictures, I decided to compare Scotty with his Mommy. Love seeing the similarities!

Birthday Dinner

My Dad took my Mom  out a little early for her birthday (I got to tag along- perks of being the only child at home!) since we will be driving to Utah on the actual big day.  Their coconut cake it TDF, which was awful for me because this is the first time I've been to the restaurant as a GF person.  I couldn't resist a few bites! The flourless chocolate cake made it a little more bearable :-).

 High Tea

We've been wanting to try high tea at Anderson's Bakery for a long time, so I decided to make going together my birthday gift to my mom.  Selfish, I know, but it really was lovely!

They surprised my mom with a piece of birthday cake at the end!

Stake Dance Decor 

I am in charge of the "photo booth" area (just a wall, really) for the stake youth dance this weekend during youth conference weekend. The Aloha sign will go above them, but I thought maybe the kids would want to hold up dorky signs (all of us in the presidency are bringing silly things for them to dress up in like hawaiian shirts, leis, sunglasses, hats, etc.). Any ideas for funny things to put on the signs? I'm not as in touch with what teenagers like anymore!