Independence Day

Independence Day! I just love July. So many fun things to do everyday! And it comes in with a bang! This year, we started our long weekend with a visit to Grandpa Merrill's house. We just sat and talked for two hours. I don't do that enough. I love the man, and he won't be here forever. We talked about school, jobs, family, health, and dogs. He is a rock, completely immovable. That night we watched "Monument Men" which I of course slept through. 

The next morning, Chase and I went on a lovely bike ride with the Fowlers. We had no agenda for the day, and I LOVED IT. I love being involved and busy, but every once in a while, the lack of schedule is so pleasant. We really like the Legacy bike path because there are no cars and we can easily bring Hudson along in the bike trailer. Chase and I continued on to Kaysville to the parade. I am most definitely not a parade person, but it was actually really fun! We got to see Chase's cute cousins in the parade, one playing the drums (eh hem, leading the drums) and the other running the security (eh hem, being scoped by all eligible bachelors). We then went to aunt Tiff's for a celebratory BBQ, only to have her whisked away to the hospital to save a life. We also got a chance to go by a lovely little house in Bountiful that is for sale. Uncle Henry is helping us get started on the hunt, although it might be another year before we find/afford what we want. I am excited to start the process of looking! 

That night we went up to Snowbird with my family. "The Steak Pit" for dinner (note the hilarious Father of the Bride line) was yum, but we can talk more about that later. The next morning we watched Zach KILL his bike race! This kid is crazy. He raced his first Semi-Pro division. As in, he is getting paid to race! In the money! He has worked so so hard to get really fit and it is paying off! The course was awesome because we got to see him go by twice on each of four laps, six miles each. Zach's start was perfect, and from the get go, he was leading the Semi-Pro division and only a few PROFESSIONAL riders were in front of him! I mean the kid has only been riding for like a year! He tore it up. He had one crash that set him back a few seconds, and then he had to stop at the feeding station and get his handle bars straightened. Then a lap later, he got a flat and had to borrow a CO2 cartridge from another rider (bless him) who happens to work with my dad (yes, a grown ace man). THEN he lost his tire again! As he was going by the last time before the finish, he yelled, "I need CO2 to finish the last hill!" At that, Zach kept moving, and dad and I ran to the car, grabbed a cartridge, and I took off booking it running the end of the course backwards trying to catch him before he reached the last up hill. My knee might never forgive me, but it was really fun trying to find  him and help him out. I ran about a mile and a half before I got to him and he used the cartridge and took off again. As he pulled away he said, "Thank you so much! Way to use your running skills!" It's the little moments for 15 seconds on a bike path, covered in sweat, that bring siblings together. I missed the finish, obviously, but he won! And when I finally did get back to him, he said it really was vital that he get a cartridge. In fact, he was going to get off his bike and would have had to carry it for the last up hill mile with a completely flat tire had I gotten to him any later. He is a stud, and I had fun playing pit crew. I can't wait to see where he is next year. Europe world cup maybe??

And so the rest of the weekend, we all got to relax up at Snowbird. It's nearly as much fun in the summer as it is in the winter! Alpine slide, sky coaster, the tram, the pool, and sun! And it isn't too often that the whole crew gets two whole days together. And when we do, there's nothing better. 

Finally, Chase and I got home early Sunday night and watched The Pianist, a movie my dad gave to my for Christmas. He is a real history buff, especially war time stuff. This movie is not for the weak. It made me feel sick and cry. But the reality of WWII is that people suffered. The kind of suffering that is not even real in my world. Nothing will make you appreciate what you have like imagining life without it. So, happy Independence Day. I am so grateful for my freedom to walk, talk and dress how I want. To work and study and live where I want. To worship how I want and not be discriminated against based on my genetics, my beliefs, or my heritage. I am so grateful for my grandfathers, and all those who have fought and worked and sacrificed to create the world I live in. I pray everyday, though, that my husband and my sons never have to go to war. God bless America. 

Vision

On June 30th, I had the most amazing opportunity to get LASIK, a procedure that can fix eyes. Think about that. Broken eyes that don't hardly work at all are made whole. A few weeks prior (well, years really) I had been seriously considering getting lasik. I shopped around for price, facilities, doctors, and referrals. The best price came with the worst reviews (but are we really bargain shopping for new eyes? No.). And the highest price came with a long drive. The best reviews came with a home town doctor that I wanted to give my business to. I decided to go with Dr. Ballif at the Mt. Ogden Eye Center. At my pre-op appointment, my eye exams taught me more about my eyes. I have huge pupils. Normally scan A is taken with the lights off so pupils will dilate. Well, I had to stare at the light before the scan to make my pupils shrink. Also, I have worse vision than I thought I did. The scans (effortless measurements of the geography of the eye as well as prescription) revealed that I had been under correcting my right eye. My contact strength was 3.75 in my left eye and 5.75 in my right eye, but I should have been 6.25 in my right eye all along. In fact, when they asked me to read the smallest letter I could, I just laughed out loud and said "what letters?" My left eye was 20/400 (I see something at 20 feet away as clearly as if it were 400 feet away) and my right eye was off the charts, meaning I could barely see how many fingers the nurse was holding up when she stood 6 feet away. I also have a type of cataract on the backs of both of my lenses. It is shaped like an X because when my eye was forming in utero, it didn't quite finish up and left an X shaped scar on the backs of both of my eyes. It is more severe in my right eye, hence the worse prescription.

When I arrived at the surgical center, I got a little nostalgic taking off my glasses for the last time. I remember when I was in first grade I got glasses for the first time--literally the first time trees had leaves, clouds had texture, signs had words, etc. My teacher had called home and mentioned that my behavior was not good--I didn't pay attention during board work and I bothered my neighbors. When my mom and dad talked about it that night, my dad put some letters on a paper and taped it to the door. "Chloe, what does that paper say?" And my 5 year old self said, "What paper?" Because I couldn't make out the white paper against the white door. I soon after got my first pair of glasses, only to be made fun of at show and tell. For the next several years, I kept my glasses in my desk so I could slip them on to see instructions, or to read, and then remove them. One terrible time, I lost my glasses on the zip line in Park City. How mortifying to not be able to see for days or longer? I distinctly remember hating walking down the halls in sixth grade because if someone I knew was walking past me, I wouldn't be able to tell who they were, so I wouldn't be able to say hi, so I always looked at my feet when I was alone in the hall. In seventh grade, I begged for contacts, and I got them for Christmas. That night I ripped one trying to take it out of my eye, so I started sleeping in them so that I wouldn't rip them and run out. I got used to wearing them until it hurt (usually close to 60 days) and did that for over ten years. I am not complaining, I am reminiscing. Not being able to see properly was a really hard thing for me for a lot of years.

Prior to surgery, they re-examined my eyes and started the anesthetic drops and gave me a valium. In all honesty, I was not nervous at all, likely because I had resisted watching a lasik procedure on youtube. But hey, the valium sure kept me calm anyway. My mom, Connie and Megan came to watch. After I laid down in the chair, it wasn't 10 minutes before I was walking out of the room. First, Dr. Ballif put a plastic ring on my eye (pressure) used a non-burning, blade free laser to cut my cornea into a flap. Then he swiveled my chair and put me under a laser for about 20 seconds. Then he laid the flap down, and the left eye was up. That's it. I laid down in that chair hardly being able to see where I was putting my feet, and stood up looking a nurse in the eyes. I turned around and looked at my mom who was 15 feet away through a window and said, "I can see you." I have to admit, that was really emotional for me. For the next couple hours I slept through the anesthetic wearing off (thank you loratab) and woke up completely fine. For the next week I dealt a little bit with a cloudy haze, some glare, and halos at night. But it has been a full week now, and I haven't had a problem. Some antibiotic drops, steroid drops and artificial tears have helped with the comfort level. I really am amazed at the whole process. It really is a miracle. I am so grateful that I grew up with glasses and contacts so that I could see. And I am now so grateful that modern medicine is so sophisticated that I have perfectly good eyes. I feel like I have left a handicap behind me. My left eye now sees 20/15 and my right eye sees 20/25. My eyes are now a crystal clear window to my soul.

June

What a month June has been! After getting home from San Francisco, we quickly got into the swing of summer. There is so much fun to be had in the summer! On June 7th, I did the dirty dash with my old Tanner friends. Of course I got there late and started in a wave behind my group, but I caught up to them, covered in mud and had a blast! Although, those novelty events (mud runs, color runs, etc.) are not at the top of my list. They are on the list, because they can be really fun, but they aren't at the top. The more fun part of the day was meeting Chase in Park City after the run to go to Oakley and do a bike ride! Sarah Diamond had invited me to be on her Ardura relay team - an all women's road bike relay. So I wanted to practice ride my leg. It was a blast! I am really loving the road biking I have been able to do this summer. Such a fun sport Chase and I can do together. He is much stronger than me, but he never pulls ahead to wait. He always lets me lead and goes my pace. He was a particularly good sport that afternoon because that morning he was in a golfing accident (yes, it's possible). He had a golf cart roll and land on him and it really tore up his ankle. He's tough and went on the planned ride anyway, only because he knew I really really wanted to go. xoxo.

The following weekend was our anniversary. My favorite holiday all year. But first, on Thursday night, we went to Snowbasin for Ethan Annis's wedding, a good friend from high school. It was gorgeous! Seriously the most beautiful wedding I have been to in a long time, and we all had fun too! We had Hudson with us for the night because it was Lauren and Sean's anniversary. Hudson is a good little date and everyone loves seeing him. Sarah and my mom also drove up with us so it was just a big party. After we had been there for a while, and my mom was getting down on the dance floor with Hudson, Chase came over to me and said, "Walk with me?" We walked hand in hand out side and over to the grass and the bottom of the mountain and Chase said, "This is our spot." "Yes it is." "It's where you said yes." "Are you glad you asked me?" "Of course. And are you glad you said yes?" "Well, I don't know if I actually said yes, I think I mostly screamed and ran around." "Well maybe I can make you do that again." And he pulls out a ring box! WHAT?! I opened the box to find a perfect wedding band. I didn't know what to do at first. I got choked up and teary eyed as I put it on. Chase's smile was darling. "Happy Anniversary." How perfect? There are moments that stick out and are seared into my memory forever. How I felt right then and how he was looking at me... I will never forget. 

We continued the weekend with dinner at The Roof and a stay at the Grand America on Friday night. We had breakfast the next morning, did some shopping, and headed up to my dad's house for dinner. We ran out to do a quick bike ride up Trappers Loop (another part of my leg on the Ardura relay) and then had smores back at dads. All while keeping on on the world cup. We woke up the next day (our actual anniversary) and went up to Pineview for an early morning Father's Day ski. I all always be grateful that my dad in so adventurous. I love that he taught me to ski and run and hike and bike and he instilled in me a desire to try new things and use my time and my body to be athletic and see the world. After the best breakfast ever, we went home, cleaned up, and went to Father's Day dinner at Uncle Jeff's and then again to Grandme Nolene's. Everyone wished us a happy three years. I love fun filled weekends. And I am so looking forward to the next year of our marriage. I love Chase with everything I am. 

That Wednesday, my best friend Emily Ann Steele became Emily Ann Bernier, a married woman. The wedding was fantastic. I gorgeous day. The sealing was intimate and personal with only immediate family in attendance, just how they wanted it. Emily's mom helped her dress in her fantastic gown before they made the grand exit. What a beautiful couple. The pictures were fun, the weather was perfect, her flower hair wreath was perfection and so her. The dress screamed her name. And the groom looked strapping on her arm. The dinner was delicious at a unique location, Sea Salt, in Sugar House. Excellent food and better company. A 95 year old sax player, an icon of Ogden, was the entertainment. The photography was stunning. And everything throughout the whole day was so on point and reflective of Emily's style. And she looked so happy. She has been such a blessing in my life, and I look up to her so much. She conducts her life in a such a genuine, caring way. Congrats dear! Welcome to married life, you will love it here. 

That weekend I got to do the Ardura relay! It was so so so fun! I had a blast. We started out with a little miscommunication about the course that got us about 20 minutes behind. But we made it all up! My first leg was from Huntsville park, over Trappers, and into Morgan. Just under 25 miles in 1:24. I was really happy with it! The thing I love about biking is that you can stay at about 85% effort for a really long time! It's a different kind of effort than running. And I love it! I felt really strong up Trappers and I made up some time. I was only 9 minutes behind our A team (We had an A, B, and C team) at the top of Trappers and when I finished my leg we had passed the B team and we were only 2 minutes behind the A team. By the time we got to my second leg (I was leg 2 and 6 out of 8), we had just passed the A team and we were just behind a handful of other teams. The Oakley ride is 12 miles up, turn around and come straight back and it is a blast! After passing a few teams, I road hard to try not to get passed again. What a fun adrenaline rush! Our team was such a fun group too. Sarah, Catherine, and Jessica (Sarah's cousin) and CF was our driver. I will definitely be doing that again!

Finally, the last weekend in June, I was a part of a Ragnar team! Friday morning I got a text saying that we were two hours ahead of schedule because one of our runners was getting his appendix removed and three people had to drop out. I learned this while sitting in a dentist chair! We scrambled to find a few people to fill in. It helps to have athletic friends! We found subs in no time. Meanwhile, a monsoon was hitting the valley where we started. But over the next hour, the rain stopped and it was a perfect 58 degrees and overcast. We hubbed at the Green's cabin. When we headed over to Van 2 start location where I ran into my mom! She did the race with a group of her high school friends. They ran for all of the people from their class that had died and were promoting suicide prevention. How cool is that? Anyway, my first leg (leg 7--first runner in t Van 2) was great! Flat, 4.7 miles. I was so nervous my knees wouldn't hold up. In fact I was so nervous, that I didn't train. I ran probably 50 miles in the last few months. Not enough. But it was a choice between training my body and hurting my knees, and protecting my knees and running on my biking fitness. So I chose the latter. I was able to do my first leg in 36 minutes. 7:40 miles. It's not great. But I was happy with it! It was faster than I thought I would be able to do. After several hours in the car cheering my team on, we went back to the cabin to clean up, rest, and eat. I was taking as much advil as I felt safe taking, rolling out, messaging my legs, and icing. But nonetheless, my knee was really sore. We got in the car to drive to leg 12, my second leg. It's 3.6 miles up Hogs Back hill by east canyon. I ran it in 31:30. Slower at 8:45 miles. But for the first half mile I though I was going to have to stop. Luckily my legs loosened up and I was able to keep moving. And I passed a couple people on the hill, that was fun! As we drove through the night cheering each other on, Kirk told radio fortunes, and I was in and out of sleep. We finally made it through our second legs and headed to the start of leg 31. We slept out under that stars for a few hours before I had to run my finally leg. I woke up to "Hey you need to be ready to run in ten minutes." Well ok! That last leg hurt pretty bad. It was 4.7 miles in 39 minutes (I think). My knee never really loosened up, but I made it. And it felt so good to be done! I was happy I didn't have to run in the middle of the night, or in the heat of the day on Saturday. We took a few more hours to finish up in Park City, and all ran across the finish line with Kirk. Chris organized the whole thing and a lot a people put a lot of work into making it happen. Thank you to all! 

After the race, I went to Pineview to meet Chase and Fowlers for a little sun, BBQ in Huntsville, swig cookies, truffle salt popcorn, and a James Bond movie. And rather than waking up for an early morning ski, my body decided to sleep and recover. Probably a good idea. To finish up June, I will be getting LASIK tomorrow. I am so so so excited!! I can't stand it. I fell really blessed to be able to have the procedure done while I am young so I don't have to pay for and deal with contacts for ten more years before finally being done with it all. Bring on July!

Real Life and Vacations

Holy Cow. Life is so amazingly fun it's unreal! I am so happy, sometimes it hurts. Chase looked at me a couple months go and said, "I am the happiest I can ever remember being in my whole life right now." What better words could I hope to hear from my husband? There are so many things that can change life dramatically, with or without warning or permission, that I just pray this overwhelming happiness lasts as long as we can handle it. I just can't get enough.

Of course, having endless fun does not mean we aren't working really hard to keep moving forward. I started a new job six weeks ago and I am loving it! I have quite a bit more responsibility than I did at my last job, more freedom, and I think I am adding real value to the company. I work for Tom Stuart Construction, technically. I spend the vast majority of my time working on the accounting for several partnerships and properties that are not part of the construction side. I really like what I am doing now, and I really like the direction that the position is heading.

In the last several weeks, Chase and I have been able to go on a few little vacations. For Memorial Day weekend we went to Jackson Hole with family. We drove up Friday night and stayed with my mom and siblings. We went on a killer ride bike ride the next morning along the Tetons. I love that Chase and I have a sport we love to do together (I also love that we have sports we don't do together-- golf, running--I think it is perfect). That afternoon we met Chase's family, did a little shopping, and went to a darling Italian place out side of town for dinner. We picked up Phase 10 and a frisbee on the way back to the hotel and made good use of both the whole trip. Then next day we did a long drive through Yellowstone. I had seen Old Faithful before, but I didn't remember it very well. I had never seen the hot pots, so that was new and really interesting to see. That part of the world is really beautiful. We saw all kinds of wildlife... including some serious people watching. I think my favorite part of the trip was when Chase asked me if it would be ok if we rented an SUV that we could all fit in for the Sunday drive. His parents had planned this trip and wanted us all to be together so having two separate cars would not be ideal for having the whole family together deal. He arranged for the car and everything. He's a sweet heart. The next day Hudson joined us while Lauren and Sean did a mountain bike ride! We went to breakfast and played at the park. He seriously has me wrapped around his fat little fingers. I didn't know being an aunt would be so emotional, and it keeps getting better! Anyway, we then went to Jenny Lake, rode the ferry across and did a lovely little hike to a waterfall. After dinner at Bubba's (yuuum), we drove home through the gorgeous terrain, back to real life.

So, let's talk about that concept really quick--real life. My perception of "real life" when people referred to it as I was growing up always had a negative connotation. But seriously, every day that goes by my real world becomes better and better. And I think that's the idea, right? Why would we live in such a way that we were moving towards a worse and worse reality? Strange concept. I think real life means getting older, one day at a time, getting more responsibility as well as opportunity, and having the chance to make it whatever you want. Real life is awesome.

Anyway, the very next weekend we took off to San Francisco! Lauren had planned the trip for Sean's birthday and invited his siblings and us (I can't wait until Ave and Zach can come with us on trips like that.... MY POINT MADE--Real world = real job = vacations). We flew out early Friday and got to our hotel in the middle of the city before lunch. Speaking of food, wow. San Fran for the win. We started off with Sushi, of course. We then walked to the Fisherman's Warf. There was so much to see! Street performers (some better than others), the ocean, the Golden Gate Bridge, the bay, etc. We picked up some fish and chips to share (sharing is key, so that we never had to pass up the next opportunity for food) that were AMAZING. We walked around taking fun pictures and taking our sweet time. We walked up to Lombard street because that is a must, through China town and little Italy. That night we went to a yummy sports bar and grill to watch a Stanley cup final game. We are Chicago Blackhawks fans (the kind that watch the game and don't even remember who won). Later, and ever night on the trip, we went to bed early and exhausted. For breakfast the next morning, I ruined my ability to eat a normal donut and enjoy it via the Cronut--the love child of a croissant and a donut. Stop reading now, and go find one, preferably at the Posh Bagel in San Fran. It will be worth it. Then we rented bikes and went all over! We meandered through the city to the farmers market, stopped at Pier 39 for fresh crab cakes, road through fisherman's ward again, stopped at the swag center for a big triathlon in the bay, and headed straight for the bridge with plenty of photo opps along the way. Did I mention we all looked special in our rented helmets? Because we looked so so special. The view from the Golden Gate was spectacular. There was a little fog, but not enough to obstruct the view. We continued on to Sausalito for lunch--fish tacos! Where we saw a very patient man stacking rocks. Big rocks on little rocks. It was really cool, despite how it sounds. Then we road back across the bay on the ferry, passing Alcatraz, and saving our legs. That night we went to another yummy sports bar because when the NBA finals are on, that's what you do. That night we RAN through the streets to the Ghiradelli shop for sundays before we realized the stupid Apple maps are unreliable and the shop we were trying to get to was half a mile away and closed in two minutes. Needless to say, we were mortified. Then, Sunday. I woke up at 2:30 am throwing up and really wanting to take back whatever it was that I ate that made me sick (I literally ate roasted brussel sprouts for dinner!). On Sunday we walked to the warf to get breakfast (toast and sprite for the sicky) and Ghirardelli sundays (see what we did there?) but I did not partake given the straight of my insides. At this point I was the walking dead and we all headed back towards the hotel via the cable cars! The driver was hilarious, asking Mallory, "Where's your boyfriend? What happened?" He then assigned her to be apart of me and Chase, welcome to the family! Upon arrival at the hotel, I laid down for a three hour nap and everyone else went shopping. When I woke up I felt amazing and hungry. We went to dinner (you guessed it, sports bar) and then headed to the most darling dessert shop--very chic and contemporary, serving drinks and desserts. Apple crumble HELLO. Monday we rented bikes again. We anxiously went miles out of our way to get to Fillmore's, reportedly the best Cronut shop in San Fran, only to learn they are closed Mondays. We were all silent while we ate our baked goods from a cute bakery around the corner which, on any other day would have been delicious and exciting. We finally made it to the Palace of Fine Arts. This was a must on my list of to-dos. It is HUGE. And gorgeous. I learned that it, and many other elaborate structures, were built for the worlds fair years ago, but they were all built out of chicken wire and paper mache. Thus, the all deteriorated and are no longer around. But the palace was saved and rebuilt out of concrete. Really a gorgeous place right on the water. Then we road to Golden Gate park. The weirdest weather phenomenon happen--the second we got the the park the air dropped 20-25 degrees. It went from pleasant to frigid very quickly, and as soon as we left the park it was warm again. Weird. Then we went to Ashbury street for the best burger I have had in a long time. And the kid at the counter was hilarious. "How is the portable burger?" "Well, it kind of looks like a foot. The foot off that Adman Sandler movie? Black and wrinkly." "I will have the Avacado burger then!" He told us that he pays $850 a month to live on someones couch. He doesn't have his own room, he has a couch to sleep on and a bathroom to share. Talk about high price of living. On our ride back we stopped for calamari. If I am honest, it was not the best I had ever had. Then we turned our bikes in, took one last run around the shopping district, and headed for the train. The train to the airport is a fabulous feature I might add, very convenient. It was so good to spend quality time with friends. No agenda, just taking it slow and getting to know a gorgeous, vibrant city. We had an absolute blast.

365 Days Later

So, one year ago today I wrote a post about the demise of my running career. I promised that I only needed one year. One year and I would be back. I had a perfect plan that couldn't fail that would get me back into running shape all while healing my knee. I didn't stick to it as closely as I hoped I would. I think I am actually in about the same shape. I have done some running, but not enough. The developments pretty much include buying a road bike and taking running easy like the last few years. I am doing a 5k Dirty Dash and Ragnar in June, so that will be fun. In order to train for Ragnar I bough some Altera zero drop ultra fusion square toe box shoes that I really love. I have had the normal knee pain around 20-30 minutes of running, but just this week I did a run that included substantial downhill without pain - I'll take it! I am pretty much praying I can get through Ragnar without a problem, and after that I will reassess. I am disappointed in my lack of improvement in running, but I am excited about biking! I am doing a relay in June that I am also training for, so that should be a blast. I am hoping I won't have to replace running with biking, because I hope that biking will help my knees and my strength. *sigh*

Busy Season and Graduation

We arrived home from the cruise on Sunday night around 8 pm. The next morning I began an internship with Tanner LLC, a public accounting firm in Salt Lake, and Chase continued full time employment with Utah Broadband. And we both began our last semesters of school! Chase had a full schedule and I had one class. He was working 40 hours per week and I was too, until busy season started. In accounting, the months of February through April and August through October are "busy." These are the months leading up to tax filing deadlines. Thus, in February I worked 55-60 hours per week, in March I worked 60-65 hours per week, and until April 15 I worked 70 hours per week. Let's be honest, there are many accountants (and other professions) that work more hours than that. But it was hard. Being at work all day everyday wasn't the hard part. The hard part was getting home, getting straight in bed, then waking up and going straight back to work. Chase and I had time to chat a little before bed and in the mornings, and I called him everyday while I ate dinner, but it was tough. I don't know how some people spend half of every year doing that. I enjoyed my experience and I learned a lot. The people at Tanner are great, and I made some good friends. But after the April deadline, I took three days off and went to St. George with my family for Easter. I got to mountain bike with Zach for the first time ever and it was a blast! I am already addicted and I need a mountain bike! Maybe next year. Anyway, I came home, went to work on Monday and decided it wasn't something I wanted to do long term. I went to graduation that Friday without a job, which was hard for me to swallow. I am a bit embarrassed because I have planned on this for so long. But I am really excited about a job prospect coming up. We'll see how that turns out. 

Graduation! What a fun day. My dad wasn't able to come to the ceremony so he invited Chase and I to breakfast that morning before he had to leave town. Yummy Moore's! When Chase and I pulled into the parking lot at the Dee, we got out to put our caps and gowns on and just laughed at each other! We, and everyone, looked so goofy in the traditional get-up. We then walked inside, lined up, and waited with our respective colleges. It's a very long process, and rather boring, but it feels good to put a cap on our degrees. Our friend Abe spoke at commencement and did a great job, the symphony was beautiful (really), and we were able to spot each other from across the Dee. We moved out tassels, and that was that. We had to move quickly to the Browning Center for my college's ceremony. I lined up, walked in, and listened to some more speakers. And then, I was hooded by my two favorite professors. I was actually really excited about this part. It's just cool to be recognized for the degree earned. It was quick, and I really enjoyed it. After, we took pictures outside with our supporters. Parents, Lauren, Avery, and some of our grandparents were able to be there. Then, it was time for Chase's college ceremony. He graduated from the college of Arts and Humanities, and his ceremony was a party! A far cry from the traditional ceremony of the college of business and economics. They played music and performed and it was a lot of fun. Chase was darling walking across the stage as he winked and gave a thumbs up. He gave his favorite professor a bear hug, and just like that, he was done too. After more pictures outside, we went to my mom's house where she hosted lunch for those that came to be with us. Thank you for everything, parents, for never missing a chance to cheer us on. Thanks to Lauren and Sean, perfect examples of hard work, particularly in school. Thanks to grandparents for being supportive. And thanks to Zach and and Ave for working so hard, having a few years to go, and being happy for us. It was a good day. That evening, Sean got back into town and wanted to celebrate with us, so we spent time with the Fowlers, and the following night they took us to dinner to congratulate us. It's really cool to have your sister and brother in law be your best friends. I recommend it. 

And now, we are done. It's the first summer in a few years that we aren't taking classes. Chase is still enjoying his job and I am looking for a new one. It's weird not constantly having a to do list; study, read, homework, exam, repeat. Real life, or post college life, is sort of fun! Chase goes to work, I take care of everything else, and following on this job prospect (cross you fingers!) and we still have time to do fun things together. I am really excited to enjoy the status quo for a while. No moving, no new cars, no school (no tuition!), but yes, I will start a new job soon. It's a great time to be 23, graduated, married, and absolutely loving life. I couldn't be more grateful for where I am and where we are. When Chase and I got married, he had one semester of school done and I had two years done. And now, between the two of us we have three degrees, no student loans, a healthy savings account, and the world is our oyster. Toot, toot!

The Cruise

So, cruises. I had never been on one, so of course I wanted to try it out. Chase and I had talked about going because he had been with his family when he was younger and loved it. A few months before Christmas Mom announced it was booked! We didn't know where we were going immediately, and when we finally found out we were obviously excited - St. Thomas and St. Martin for New Years! It was perfect. After all of the crazy business from Christmas, we packed our bags and got on a red eye to Florida. I don't know if I have ever been so tired in my life. I don't know what it was but I was a zombie. That painful kind of tired. I am sure we all looked pathetic laying in a heap in the middle of the airport. When we finally got to board the ship, I was mostly surprised. It's like a small city. I was completely disoriented for three whole days. I never got sea sick, but the boat definitely rocked. We were on the Freedom of the Seas - Royal Caribbean. It's huge. The first day we basically had time to get settled, watch some football on the upper deck, and go to dinner. I was really looking forward to the food part of the trip. The dining rooms are massive and very fancy and the menus each night were unreal. Steak and lobster and escargot and everything else under the sun. By the end of the week I almost couldn't think about eating a big dinner again. Can we talk about the all you eat pizza? Seriously, all you can eat, 24 hours a day. Luckily the pieces were smallish, but I am pretty sure I ate multiple full sized large pizzas that week. Also, the french fries... battered and crispy to perfection. Yum! I had intentions of working out at the gym on board everyday and I think I did once. 

Each day we had a million things to do - flow rider (I really thought I would be good at this, but I am so so not), ice skating (yes on a cruise ship, with my mother, wearing helmets, so hilarious), mini golf (in 100 mile an hour winds on the front top deck of the ship), karaoke (with Lauren and Avery - Avery chose the worst possible song "Say My Name"... remember the part where Beyonce sings a million miles a minute? Well we looked like fools in front of a bunch of 13 year olds), basking in the sun, reading good books (Women and the Priesthood - excellent for anyone who wants to understand that relationship better), endless pina coladas, and the casino! Chase and I faced sure addiction had we been on that ship too much longer. But seriously, it's fun. We came out about even playing blackjack, craps, and roulette every night. We came home and bought a set of chips at target so we can play at home! 

The days on the islands were my favorite. Day two we stopped at a tiny island owned by Royal Caribbean and played in the sun, sand, and ocean. We also found some Brazilians to play soccer with on the beach! Definitely a top five moment of the cruise. We white folks held our own and had a bunch of fun. 

Day four we were on St. Thomas. We signed up for an excursion to snorkel and it was fun. We rode a boat to the opposite side of the island where we snorkeled and saw a few turtles and stingrays. I just loved swimming in the ocean. The salt was a little much (dry lips!) but I was just happy to be in the sun with the family. Unfortunately, we only had a bout 6 hours on the island and we were on the excursion most of that time. 

Day five we were on St. Martin. And I seriously would move there tomorrow if I could! What a gorgeous place. We decided against the excursion so we could stay together (Huddy couldn't do the excursions) and see more of the island. We found a man (who was a body builder and a very massive human) who took us around the whole island and recommended all the best places to see and eat. We had smoothies and seafood on the French side of the island and hiked to the top of an old fort on a hill. On our way back to the other side, we stopped at airport beach. How had I never heard of this place before? Chase had seen it on the travel channel or youtube or something. Apparently it is world famous. It's this wide but very short beach. There was probably only 30 feet of beach in some spots before you run into a two lane road and a fence. On the other side of the fence is an airport and landing strip. So you have people swimming in the ocean about 60 feet from where 747s are taking off and landing. CRAZY. The planes were coming in only a few minutes apart and every time you thought they were going to hit the fence, or your head, because they flew so low. And when a jet took off with its back to us we could feel the heat from the engines and it nearly blew us away from the fence! And the beach it's self was awesome too - the water was so so blue and deep too, so we could swim close to shore. This was the highlight of the trip for me. So beautiful and so fun. 

On the day that we got off the ship, we went to Orlando for the afternoon before going to the airport. Such a beautiful city! I pictured it more like Miami - very tight and concrete. But it is actually very open and the are cobble stone streets and a huge farmers' market and a beautiful park! I would definitely go back there. We ate lunch on the patio of a yummy restaurant (before learning that inside it was a drag show!) and headed back to the airport. Back to real life. Thanks for the memories and experiences mom! You are so generous and good to us kids. We all had a blast!