Quick Visit with the Kiddos

After Jen was married, I made my way up to my brother's home in Renton, WA. I got to spend some fun one on one time with my niece and nephews. My little niece actually warmed up to me and even said my name. I was thrilled. Sunday morning I got to watch the kids while Debbie was at a church meeting and Tony was working.

Evie wanted to play dress-up

When Debbie got home we drove up to my cousin's home in Marysville. He was blessing his little daughter in church and I was so glad I was in town to go to it. Afterwards was a picnic dinner/lunch at his home. I got to see a bunch of my cousins and my Aunt Geniel and Uncle Phil.

 

 

After we ate and chatted, I had to get back down to Seattle to take my rental car back and catch my flight home. We made it back to Tony and Debbie's place in plenty of time. I got to take one last picture with the little ones and chat with my brother for a few minutes. I got the car back and made my flight. It was a great trip.

My Best Friend's Wedding - Whirlwind weekend in Seattle

So about seven months or so ago, my best buddy Jen starting dating this guy named Mark. They both kinda liked each other so soon I got a phone call from Jen telling me she is engaged. So of course I was NOT going to miss her wedding. I took a Friday off work and traveled up to Seattle again.

My adventure didn't start out well. I had a late night flight out of Vegas on Thursday but during work that day we heard the rolling thunder of a Vegas monsoon....that always means flight delays galore. And yep, even before I had left work my flight was already delayed an hour. My mom and brother drove me to the airport but it was slow moving because there was a seven call accident taking up three lanes of traffic. People really have a hard time driving here when the roads are wet.

I did make it to the airport and found my gate crowded with three other flights. I found a spot on the floor and listened to the impromptu folk band. Four people with a banjo, a fiddle, and a couple guitars, sat on the floor next to me and started playing and singing some folk songs. It kept the tension at the gate down. I texted Jen and told her not to wait up for me. My flight was now leaving at 10pm.... After a gate change and some long boring hours at the airport, I finally boarded a plane. After a stop in San Jose, we landed at SeaTac at 3:30am.  

This was my first time renting a car by myself, so being half awake it was quite the ordeal. I was offered the option of renting a pickup truck, a mini van or a Prius. I took the Prius...never driven an electric car before...so it was a bit of an experience, turning it on and trying to drive it half awake. Some how I made in one piece to Jen's. My kitty Styder met me at the door and even laid down with me on the couch for a bit. That was a nice homecoming.

My ride...and my nephew Ryan

Jen woke me up early, but I was excited to see her so I got up. I was running on just 4 hours of sleep but ready to go. We took Jen's two other house guest to the car rental place, so they could get a car. Then Jen and I headed over to her chapel to start decorating for her reception.

 

The rest of the day was a little more relaxed. I got a nap in and she and Mark had some last minute song selecting time. We had dinner over at Jen's parent's home. And them Jen's old college buddies came over and we helped her figure out her hair style for the next day.

 

After making yummy cupcakes and sharing old stories. We called it an early night and headed to bed. In the morning the girls worked on Jen's hair and I made sure everything we need got into the car. I was in charge of getting Jen up to the Seattle Temple on time.

Traffic was great and I got Jen there in plenty of time. The ceremony was sweet and they both looked great. Then it was time for pictures:

Happy Couple

Jen's family had set up a lunch-an in a neighboring chapel. And it was made in such a way that if someone needed to leave they could just grab some food and run. Picnic box style, very cute.

Then it was time to drive back down for the reception:

 

 

Cutting the cake:

 

Then time for the dancing:

Bustling up the dress...so complicated

 

And as it was coming to a close...I made sure they got some of the food they were paying for.

And then it was over and it was time for them to run out to the car....which was lovingly decorated by these two mischief makers:

The car:

The loot:

And there they go:

My best friend is now married and Mark is pretty cool so I can't complain. I hope they live happily ever after. :)

Visiting the Past...road trip!

A few weeks back I went on a road trip with my parents up to Utah. We visited my Aunt Judy and Uncle Dave. They wanted to go check on my mom's mother's grave. She died giving birth to my mom and her twin and she is buried in a small town outside of St. George, UT. It took us a little while to find her grave because the cemetery is a little over grown and not really taken care of. But we found her. Here are a few photos of the place:

Geniel Wood Jenson (Jan. 30, 1930-April 29, 1955)

 The red rock mountains that surround the town are just breathtaking.

I was there too...not the best selfie but oh well:

After cleaning up the grave and getting strange looks from the locals, we headed off to the west of St. George where there is a town called Pine Valley. In this town is the oldest LDS chapel still in use today. Built in 1868. We got to take a tour of it. Very neat.

 

Original glass sacrament cups

I love old building and so this tour was awesome. When we got back to St. George we had dinner at the Pizza Factory. Then after that we head home to Vegas. It was a great little day trip into the past. I'll have to do more trips like that.