Brigham City Temple and Willard Bay

A few weeks ago (okay, maybe more like months ago) my sister Julia invited us all up to her house in Perry, Utah for the Brigham City Temple Open House. We drove up on a Saturday and got to spend time with my parents, Julia and her family, Laura and her family, and my brother Mark even came down from Idaho.

Of course the temple was spectacular and beautiful. Because Nayeli doesn't take a bottle, it was the first time I'd been in a temple since she was born. I love the feeling inside of the temple. There's nothing that compares to it.

All the grandkids that were there

Showing Nayeli the fountain

She wasn't sure what to think about it

With my sweet niece Makayla

Our family

Our whole group together

After the temple open house, we went to Willard Bay, a small beach by Julia's house. It was so much fun- Julia and Terry had brought all kinds of water toys and even a jet ski. It was a blast.

One of my favorite pictures of Nayeli... ever. She was trying to be brave and not cry when I put her in the slightly cold water, and this is the face she made.

With my brother Mark and his wife Malinda

Nayeli with Aunt Laura

After Willard Bay, we went back and had a barbeque at Julia's house and then drove home that night. Thanks to Julia and Terry for hosting us. It was so much fun.Who knew you could have such a fun time spending a Saturday in Perry, Utah? :)

Three trips in one

On July 20th Ben, Nayeli and I all embarked on three trips in one. It was a good adventure and though I didn't take very many pictures, I wanted to record what a wild ride it turned out to be.

CASSIDY AND MATT'S WEDDING

 Cassidy and Matt with her parents

Our first stop was at one of my best friend's (Cassidy's) wedding in the Bountiful temple. Even though she planned the wedding in only a month, it turned out great! It was especially special because since she's a convert to the church and the only member in her family, I was her escort. It was such an honor and I was so happy to be there. My awesome sister Christina even came up to watch Nayeli so Ben got to attend the sealing as well. I love attending sealings with Ben and this one was good for Ben to be at since Cassidy was instrumental in setting us up. She was the one who gave Ben my phone number.

With Nayeli at the wedding. Ben objected to me putting this bow in her hair because "It's way to big". I'm sad to admit he was right. It was a little over the top.

Bridesmaids and Groomsmen

Yep, one of those pictures

MONTANA

After the wedding festivities, we slept the night at Ben's mom's house and then drove to Montana the next day. We had so much fun relaxing in the cabin, eating until our stomachs were going to burst, and getting out. We hiked, had a target-shooting competition with our new gun (yeah, we bought a gun- future post to come) and explored the big-sky country. And I only took two pictures. Lame.

We hiked with Emily and Laura's families to a beautiful lake. It was seven miles but all the grandkids did it, even my four year-old niece Bridie. 

So Montana was a blast (like always), and we loved it (like always). And Ben, thinking that it would be fun to film his friend on the Snake River, decided he would take a day of work while we were on vacation. And that's how we ended up in...


JACKSON HOLE

We arrived in the afternoon, and Ben filmed all day while I shopped. Let's just say shopping in Jackson Hole has gone to pot. When I was a kid they had a Benetton and J-Crew outlet, as well as a Gap. Now it's full of designer boutiques and souvenir shops that all carry the same things. What was foreseen as a fun day of shopping ended up being a day of walking from souvenir shop to souvenir shop, trying to entertain a three month-old and myself. And just when I thought I'd found a safe haven in a designer pearl boutique that was very interesting (I struck up a conversation with the owner who was wearing a $10,000+ pearl necklace), Nayeli had a blowout onto my shirt. Yeah, it was one of those moments.

By the time Ben was done filming at 8 pm I had hit my limit. We had agreed to go camping (to save money on hotels and because Ben LOVES camping) so we rushed to get to the campsite before dark. As soon as we got there, we began unpacking and realized... Ben had forgotten his sleeping bag. 

I had a severe moment of "we are getting a hotel room and don't think you're going to talk me out of it", but Ben calmed me down and told me that he had the perfect solution. He said he would sleep in his clothes, wrap himself in a blanket, and stuff his feet in my partially unzipped sleeping bag. So the two of us shared the sleeping bag until about 3 am when Nayeli got cold and I put her next to me. By the morning, all three of us were sharing one sleeping bag. Yeah, it was one of those camping trips :) 
 
 

 In actuality, it didn't turn out awful. At least we look like we're mildly enjoying ourselves here :)

Our little monkey

And in the end, it was probably worth it. Most adventures are, right? At least we got a great YouTube video to show for it.

Adaptation

Today I had a realization: I don't like change as much as I wish I did. When we heard we had the opportunity to move to DC I said, "Let's do it! What an adventure!" However, if I was to describe it more accurately I would have said, "Let's do it! Let's live in a small dorm room in a freezing and expensive city, walk nearly everywhere, share a kitchen with 20 single guys (think freshman dorm), and while we're at it, Ben won't enjoy his internship and I'll go without work! Now that's an adventure!"

I think some of those statements are a bit radical, but they describe a few of my (and maybe Ben's) attitudes in the past few weeks. I know many would say, "Are you crazy? You're living in the middle of one of the greatest cities in America?" and if you did you would be right. I wish I could say that I moved here and right from the beginning I loved it. That I was captivated immediately by the museums, history, and shopping. But that's not true. The adjustment has been harder than expected. In the past few weeks we've had things turn out differently than anticipated, and that's called for change. Or maybe the word would be adaptation.

But yesterday and today it was a relief to note that I'm starting to adapt. And Ben too. We went to the Eastern Market yesterday to enjoy delicious Blueberry Buckwheat pancakes for breakfast. I bought a fun pair of knit gloves from Ecuador. We walked to the Library of Congress and got library cards, then explored the National Botanic Gardens. And then the highlight of the day was we went to the temple with our little branch. Out of about 70 active members, there were 22 in our session. They are so faithful. And I felt such a confirmation that we need to be in that branch, even though it's been an adjustment to attend in Spanish.

Then this morning we waited at 8:15am in 25 degree weather for the bus to take us to church, but the bus didn't come. Oh well :) So we trudged to the subway, where I realized I'd left the bread (that I'd promised to bring for the ward luncheon) at home. So Ben valiantly ran back to our apartment and came back just in time to catch our train. We arrived at church late, but with enough time so Ben could play the piano for the choir to practice. He's been such a trooper playing the piano for the branch, and I love him for it.

I tried to hide the bread in the kitchen, but after the meetings I found that the priests had used part of it for the sacrament. We had a good laugh about it. I guess I should feel honored they chose our bread. Thankfully there was plenty of food, it was delicious, and we had a great time talking with the members. After, we did some single young adult visits in a car (what a joy to ride in a car again!) with some members and took the subway home. It was a long day, but it kind of feels like the mission again. Tiring, but equally rewarding. And tomorrow Ben will begin another week of his internship that's he's beginning to enjoy.

So back to the idea of adaptation. It takes time. It's a process. The things that bother me don't go away, it's just that I don't let them bother me anymore. I'm beginning to focus on the good. Like what a beautiful and amazing city we're living in, what a great husband I have, and what wonderful memories we're making.

We're Married!!!

On April 23, 2010 we were sealed as a family forever in the Provo Temple.It rained on our wedding day, but we barely noticed. Who could pay attention to the rain after having had such an amazing experience? What a blessing to be so in love and marry someone so wonderful :) We're so excited to see where life takes us.