Utah Trip

Alright, to start, I should let you know that I got a 4.0 for Summer B term.  I think that's my first ever 4.0 in college.  Pretty sweet huh?  Anyways, class got out on the 9th and I hopped a flight on the 11th to go back to Utah over the break.  In the future, remind me that even if it's a little cheaper to fly out of Orlando, it's not worth it.  Not only is it a little further drive than Jacksonville, but there are toll roads and the parking is twice as expensive.
Oh, and did I mention that I almost missed my flight?  Well, I did.  They were even paging me as I was running up to the jetway.  The flight left at 6:55 AM.  I was in my seat at 6:50.  How's that for cutting it close?  But, it's OK.  What matters is that I made it, right?

So, this is a post about my trip to Utah.  Much of this is going to be fairly uninteresting to you, but this is my only journal, so I'm including everything I can.  I really should have been writing stuff down each day, but I was never around my computer, so most of this is going to be done from memory. 

Aug. 11
I landed in SLC at about 1:45 PM and went to pick up my car.  While I was in line at the rental car counter, there was a family in line behind me.  The dad was decked out in a Tampa Bay Buccaneers polo and hat.  Turns out they were up in UT from Florida to take their son to the MTC.  Man, Mormons are everywhere :)

Let me tell you something, it was sooooo good to see my family again.  I missed every one of them so much.  I can't believe how much kids change in just 2.5 months.  I talked to Grace almost every night on the phone and at least once a week via video chat, but I was still surprised by how grown she seemed.  And don't get me started on Abby.  She's turned from a little chunk into a bigger chunk with teeth.  She is the sweetest little baby ever with so much personality.  She's so smart and inquisitive.  Whenever she gets something in her hands she's never had before, you can see her actually inspecting it.  Most babies will just stuff the new item in their mouth, but Abby feels all around it, visually examines all sides of it before subsequently cramming it in her mouth.  It's like she's studying it.  And she loves to mimic; sounds, actions, doesn't matter.  She's so smart.  And HAPPY.  She's so content...most of the time.  So ready to smile.  No wonder people are just drawn to her.

I'm not really sure if we did much that afternoon, but that evening, all four of us went out to Brick Oven. 

They're doing this great Tucanos-style thing now where they just keep bringing around different kinds of pizzas to your table and you take a couple slices of whichever ones strike your fancy.  It also comes with the salad bar and dessert.  Really not a bad deal for $13 if you can eat enough.  Check it out next time you eat there.

The balloon animal guy was there too.  Grace wanted a purple unicorn, which shortly turned into a purple horse after I accidentally popped its horn in the parking lot.  Many tears ensued because a purple horse is not the same as a purple unicorn.  (Don't worry, she got over it).

Aug. 12
The 12th was a Sunday, so we all went to church with the Jenks.  That's where I got this munchkin on camera.

 Innit she cute?  Also, this is something she likes to do when she's mad, but she'll also do it if you ask her nicely.

 Man, she cracks me up.

After church, we drove up to SLC to spend the evening with our besties, the Roberts.  Man I miss those guys.  It was good to be at their house, nerding out, and playing Dominion again.  Those were always good times.

Aug. 13
Monday morning, I went to Lowes with Grace to pick up a new deadbolt to replace the crappy one in Becky's front door that I may or may not have made worse by squirting graphite in it.  Gracer loved playing in the model kitchens.  We also spent about 10 minutes looking at all the light fixtures they had.  She liked the white one with black outlines of flowers.  I think she just really enjoyed being able to walk around and dictate where we went.
After I fixed the front door, we got to spend the afternoon at the pool.

Grace is getting to be a great swimmer.  She still doesn't like to go underwater, but she's getting there.  Abby loves the water.  She loves it so much, she likes to put her face in it and try to breathe.  She doesn't know that it doesn't work that well.

After swimming, we went to eat at one of the best places in all of Utah County, CHUBBY'S. 

If you haven't eaten at Chubby's, go there.  Right now.  If you are in the tri-state area stop what you are doing right this second and go eat there.  I promise you will not be disappointed.  I highly recommend either the Jalapeno Deluxe Burger or the Shrimp Po Boy.  I'm so sad that I only discovered this right before I moved to FL.  

Aug. 14
Today was kind of a lazy day.  It must have been because I can't remember much of what happened.  Becky has been taking a piano tuning class at BYU.  Since I was around to watch the girls, Becky took the opportunity to go up to SLC and apprentice with Jyll Roberts' mom who's been a tuner for many many years.  I know that I took the girls and ran some errands around the valley.  Then we stopped at a park on the way home.  Grace (sorry, Captain Polly) and I played pirates while Abby napped in her stroller.  I'm not even sure what we ate that night for dinner.

Aug. 15
Becky got to go tune again on Wednesday, so I got the girls all to myself again.  So, we headed off to one of our favorite places, the Orem Public Library.  I don't know what it is about books, but I love them and I love libraries.  Luckily, Becky and I seem to be passing that on to the girls.  It was really hard to leave the library without checking out any books for myself, but Grace got her usual haul.

That night, we stayed at home for dinner again.  Then we just spent the evening outside on the porch and front lawn.  And, I got to take more picture of this girl.  Look at her!  She's so cute!

 Abby also thought she was at the right age to learn how to ride a bike.

Abby also loves to be outside because she gets to eat grass.

Aug. 16
Thursday was a GREAT day.  We did so much.  First, we went to a movie at the Scera.  It's this great, old, community theater in Orem.  Becky has passes to their Summer movie series.  They don't show super current movies, but they're really cheap and a great place to take kids.  That day they were showing Hugo.  Becky and I have both wanted to see that movie.  The cinematography was great, the acting was spot on, and the story was intriguing.  All that said, it scared Grace quite a bit.  Not that it was a "scary" movie.  It was just a little...intense at parts.

After the movie, we picked up some food at McDonalds and headed on up to Salt Lake to spend the afternoon with Jyll (Chloe and Coen) and Shannon (Joseph and Olivia) at

For those of you that don't know, this is what used to be Raging Waters.  I grew up going to this place every summer.  And, strangely enough, it has not changed at all in 20 years.

Then, Jyll, Becky, and I (and the kids of course) all met up with Reed at a Utah staple...Cafe Rio.

Pork burrito enchilada style (hot sauce of course), no beans, extra rice, with pico but no lettuce.  It was perfect.

After that, I know we went over to the Roberts' again, but I can't remember what we did.  Probably played more Dominion.  I told you.  We're nerds.

Aug. 17
Friday was really fun too.  We took Grace ice skating for the first time.

 Balancing was a little tricky

But she got it

I was sooo impressed with Grace.  She did AWESOME on the ice.  Ice skating can be really tricky for big people, but she got the hang of it pretty quickly.

See.  This really was her first time ice skating.  Promise.  I think we could have her prepped by the time the 2024 Olympics roll around, don't you?

When we got home from ice skating, the house was kind of a mess, and none of us wanted to clean up, so we went out to another of our favorite restaurants

I love brinner.  It may be one of my favorite meals.  And, it's something that we never have to talk Grace into eating.  That girl put down 6 or 8 mini pancakes with no coercion.  She loves pancakes.

Aug. 18
Saturday, we decided to go to Trafalga in Lehi. 

Trafalga is this little fun center with laser tag, mini golf, an arcade, a rock wall, and a few little rides inside and outside.  Grace loves it, and if you have the Pass of All Passes it's a super cheap afternoon activity.
If you don't know this, Grace responds really well to bribes.  So, Becky told her that she could have an Icee if she made it to the top of the rock wall.  Grace was utterly determined.

This is not photoshopped.  She made it so high but couldn't get past this one spot two feet from the top.  The poor girl spent at least 5-10 mins trying her best to get up those last 2 feet.  We kept asking if she was done, but she kept shouting down, "NO.  I WANT MY ICEE."  Don't worry.  We got her an icee. :)

That evening, Becky had plans to get a pedicure with a friend, so Gracie and I got to have a movie night.  We watched Pinocchio.  It was awesome.

Aug. 19
This Sunday, we went to the good ol' Suncrest 2nd Ward for church.  The people there were so welcoming.  I didn't hear a single negative comment the whole time.  It really is a fantastic ward.

When we got home, Becky and I spent the afternoon getting ready to have friends over for dinner.  The Strassburgs were moving the next week, so we had them over as well as the Jenks and the Roberts.  It was nice to have a great dinner with so many good friends (Becky made homemade spaghetti sauce from scratch and it was amazing).

Aug. 20
Monday was my last full day in Utah, so we saved the best for last.

I love Lagoon.  This place holds so much nostalgia for me.  We came down to Utah almost every summer of my childhood, and Lagoon was always a mainstay.  It's not the best amusement park in the world, but it holds a special place in my mind.

But, what I was most excited about was how much Grace was going to love it.  I was not disappointed.

This was her first time driving bumper cars and let me tell you, it's like she was born to drive.  Guess all those practice sessions in the parking lot have paid off.

Grace loved her elephant enough to hug him after the ride.  I seriously have the cutest kids.

Around 5 PM, we left the park to drop the kids off with the Roberts in West Valley.  They were so nice to watch the kids for the evening so Becky and I could go back and enjoy some of the big-kid rides for ourselves.  I've been to a few amusement parks during my life and ridden some pretty great roller-coasters, but Colossus will probably always be my favorite.  It's mostly a nostalgia thing, but I love this ride.

After the park closed, Becky and I went to Leatherby's in Taylorsville for some post-amusement-park ice cream.  I recommend Emily's Raspberry Chocolate Rhapsody.  It was delish.

Aug. 21
Tuesday morning, we didn't do a whole lot.  I just had one errand to run before I left and that was to exchange the stethoscope that my fantastic coworkers from the hospital got me for one that was a more appropriate color...Gator Orange. :)

Then we ate at Wingers.  I love that place.  I'm pretty sure I could drink their wing sauce straight from the bottle.

Then, I dropped the family off at home, said a very sad goodbye, and headed back up to SLC to catch my plane.

I got in to Orlando by 11:30 PM, which means I was home by 1:30 AM, and in bed by 2:30 AM, just to be up at about 6 AM to get ready for school.  Was I tired?  Yes.  Was it worth it?  A million times, yes.