Our Trip Home

After Maya's week long birthday celebration came to an end we hopped on a plane to go visit our family in Utah! We left on September 24th at 6:30 AM!!! It was so stinking early, I hated it. It was nice to get into SLC so early though, we landed at 10:00 AM and after picking up our luggage, car seat, etc. etc. went directly to one of the restaurants on my list....Arctic Circle :) It wasn't as good as I remembered but at least I could take it off my list. Then I got in touch with my girlfriend Maren and we went to our appointment to get pedicures. I can't tell you how much fun it was to just catch up with her and talk with her about her upcoming wedding and to see how excited she was to take that step.

That night I visited with my sister Missy and her two little ones, Carson and Ellie. My dad got into trouble by Missy for pulling Carson too fast behind the four-wheeler on a sled. I'm glad Carson was safe but it was pretty entertaining to watch Missy yell at my dad. I can't blame her for getting upset, it was funny because right after they went home and my dad was still on the four-wheeler he looked at me and asked if I wanted to let Maya take a ride - are you kidding me!?!?!

The next day was Maren's wedding at the Salt Lake temple. The sealer was an amazing little guy and performed a beautiful sealing. It was so special to be there for my friend and think about us growing up and knowing each other for nearly 21 years. Amazing! Afterwards I went home to see my girl, Maya, and to find out how she did with Grandma. Of course she did fine, she never has a problem getting attached to my mom. I took Maya to the luncheon with me and was so grateful to see my old friend, Martha, there! I didn't really know who would be there and felt a little worried that I'd be a loner. It was GREAT to catch up with her.

That night was the reception and it was beautifully done! They had it in a friend's backyard and it turned out so nice. I got to catch up with some more really good friends from high school and from my home ward - I had a blast. My mom and dad also came to the reception and my sweet mom offered to keep an eye on Maya but got busy chatting with me and my friends a couple of times. (We always had the "Cool Parents") All of a sudden we heard a large group of people gasp and we turn around to see little Maya sitting on the grass underneath this big, beautiful, handmade quilt that was sitting on a wooden stand. The cake was right next to the quilt so I sprinted over there to pick her up and try to pick up the quilt as much as I could. I could totally see her pulling on the table cloth AND bringing the cake down with it. I'm so glad she didn't. What a stinker! You cannot leave her alone for 1 minute. Anyway, it was a wonderful day and great to see Maren as a beautiful (brown-haired) bride! She's always been blond but over the past couple of years has decided brown hair is the way to go - haha. Someone asked us if we were sisters in the temple, I don't think we've EVER gotten that in the 21 years we've known each other!

The rest of the trip we mostly spent eating and visiting. (My 2 favorite things) Maya got to also spend some time with Gramma Vickie and Uncle Michael (Nick's mom & brother) and it was so nice to catch up with them even though we didn't have much time. Maya was really sweet with Gramma V and kept giving her hugs and kisses.

Maya and I are finally adjusted to being back in Michigan and while I miss everyone in Utah I'm reminded how tough it is to travel with kids and to live out of a suitcase. It's going to be a definite challenge in December when we're back for nearly a whole month but we're excited! Hopefully we'll get even more Cafe Rio in and more visits too!