tallinn, estonia

After getting acquainted with the ship (finding our life jackets and emergancy boat in case the ship sunk) we had a day at sea to catch up on sleep before our first port in Estonia. I get a little car sick and don't do well in the crazy taxi cabs so I was nervous about sailing. My mom reassured me that it wasn't that bad and she threw in some Dramamine just in case. Well, we were up north and the waters were a little rough the first night. At first I was having a really hard time and it was driving me crazy that there was nothing I could do to stop the spinning. Of course the Dramamine was lost in the luggage so a nice crew member told me I could go to the infirmary and tell them I lost my luggage and they would give me something to help. It turns out there is something better than Dramamine that doesn't make you sleepy and luckily it seemed to do the trick.

Before we left on our trip my mother and I decided that it would be best if only one of us brought the hair supplies (shampoo, hairspray, blow-dryer and straightener) to conserve on space in our tiny bathroom. Unfortunately, it was my mother who volunteered to pack it all so there we were with our frizzed out hair, and nothing to help calm it down. My hair actually wasn't that bad and the ship did provide us with a blow-dryer but my poor mother has very course hair and needed something to calm her wild mane. Luckily cruise ships have everything, including a salon, so she made friends with the workers, told them her sad story and they were nice enough to let her use their straightener. I will add that my mom was such a trooper and never once let the fact that she didn't have her luggage, ruin our trip.

After our day at sea we sailed into Tallinn bright and early and were ready to embark on our first little adventure. Every day before we set out we would read up on the city we would be visiting that day to get us excited and that day they described Tallinn as being: The beautiful capital city of Tallinn is one of the Baltic's great surprises, a fairyland jewel of medieval architecture perched dramatically above the sea. So after learning this we were very excited (my mother and I are both very gullable so anything you tell us we believe. That being said ... it doesn't take much to get us excited)

Tallinn was a lovely little country that in 1991 won it's independence from the Soviet Union. We took the Medieval tour that included the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Alexander Nevski with the infamous onion tops, several tiny cobblestone streets with their parliament buildings, scenic views of the lower town with its red rooftops, several Amber shops (too expensive to purchase but fun to see), and the market square where you can purchase several local wool and linen products. Of course, my mother and I had to taste the local toasted almonds and we both had to buy a woven linen scarf to wear in the cold winter months.

Our tour was short, but fun to see such a quaint little medieval village. Estonia is a small country with a total population less than NYC. I was shocked, but it was interesting to learn that most of the Scandinavian countries don't have a large population (to cold I guess).

The Russian Orthodox Church


Lower Town


Along the cobblestone streets


S&J outside one of the Amber shops


A cute little restaurant along the street


The Market Square


The girls that toasted the almonds


One of the towers at the entrance to lower town


Sadly, my mom's luggage was not in our room when we returned from our tour of Tallinn. They told us that the airlines would not deliver it to Russia so she would not be receiving it until Finland. We were spending two days in Russia so this meant my mom wouldn't be getting her luggage for 3 days. At this point we both started crying but realized there was nothing we could do. My mom made do with what she had, had her clothes dry cleaned at night and took over my wardrobe. Maybe it's a good thing my dad didn't come?

cruising time

**Warning: This is the first of many long posts, so feel free to skip ahead to the pictures.



At the beginning of August I was able to go on a cruise with my mother along the Baltic Sea and it was so nice to spend this time with my mom. Originally my parents had planned to go but unfortunately (or fortunately for me) my dad wasn't going to be able to make it so I go to go in his place. This was the first time I had travelled out of the country and I will admit, for some reason this thought made me a little nervous. We went with a touring company and I knew everything was taken care of but it was my mother who was making the plans so I felt like I didn't really know what was going on, for those who don't know I'm a planner and I always like to know where I'm going.

The plan was for my mother to fly from SLC to Atlanta and then on to Newark where I would meet her and together we would fly to Copenhagen. Well, things didn't really go according to plan (a common occurrence on this trip) and due to a two hour thunderstorm in NY my moms flight wasn't going to make it in time to make the flight to Copenhagen.

So there I was at Newark with no mother, no itinerary and no idea where I was going once I landed in Copenhagen. Meanwhile, my poor mother was trying to stay calm in Atlanta. She kept asking the airlines if there was another flight that she could get on to Newark and they told her no, she would have to wait. So when her flight finally started to board they put her on the front row of the plane so that she would be the first one off to try and make it to her connecting flight. She finally got on, got seated and then received three crazy phone calls from me, my father and the travel agent telling her to get off the plane, she was never going to make it to Newark in time and that there was another flight going from Atlanta to Copenhagen that they would try to get her on. So right before the door was about to close my mom told the flight attendant that she needed to get off the plane, and surprisingly they let her off. So there we were, me and my mom, alone in two different airports on our way to Denmark.

Now I'm not complaining because my commute to Denmark was a lot less stressful then my moms but I can not get comfortable on plane's and 7 hours was long enough for me. Before I left for Copenhagen my mother had gotten on the plane from Atlanta and she told me that her plane would be arriving at the same time, so I went through customs alone (I was really nervous for this but it was no big deal) then I found my luggage and patiently waited for my moms flight to show up on the screen. After about 20 minutes of waiting I realized that my mom had probably given me the wrong information. As I was sitting on the bench with all my luggage a nice gentlemen that worked at the airport had obviously seen that I looked like I was lost and asked me if I was okay. I was fine; I am a big girl and have flown several times by myself, I was just confussed and I guess ... a little lost. With a some help from the nice Danish man I learned that my moms flight wouldn't be there for another two hours so I decided to make myself comfortable and bust out the ipod. Every once in a while my little friend would come back and make sure I was okay and ask me if I wanted some coffee or tea and after several no's I think he learned that I really didn't want any. I really loved this little Danish man; he was trying to make me feel so comfortable. We chatted about life, he asked me what my mom looked like, and as people walked by he would ask me if they were her.

Finally, my mother arrived and we had a joyous reunion for about 2 minutes and then went to look for her luggage. Of course, her luggage stayed on the plane that she had been told to get off of and was now in Newark. But we figured this was the case and was reassured that her luggage would be on the next morning’s flight from Newark to Denmark. So we didn't let it spoil the day, said our goodbyes to my little friend and headed for our lovely hotel.

Now you know when you watch a movie and the characters are traveling to Europe and they get stuck in this crazy little hotel where nothing works? That's exactly where we were staying. We checked in and found out that our room was on the main floor, but realized that the main floor was basically the lobby. Come to find out, you have to go into the elevator, push a button, and the other side of the elevator magically opened up to a hallway full of rooms (very sneaky). We decided we would unload our luggage (my luggage), try to some rest for a little while and then go explore all of what Copenhagen had to offer. We were so tired that we didn't even bother messing with the lights or the AC and fell right to sleep but woke up in a sweat about 2 hours later. My mom tried to look for a thermometer to adjust the air and I tried to turn on the lights but only one little light by the door seemed to work, there was just a little brown box but no thermostat. Now I think we would have cared more if we had, had a little sleep but we were too tired to worry about it.

We weren't going to sleep through our day in Copenhagen so we decided to get up and check out the sites. Just down the street was a beautiful canal that I can't pronounce with ferry tours around the city. Now you would think before traveling to a foreign country I would make sure I knew what each countries currency was and the conversion rate, but I didn't. I guess I just thought they all used the Euro and that I would be able to exchange my worthless dollars anywhere. In Denmark they have the Danish Krone but the nice ferry boat we got on took our dollars.

The tour was lovely; we were on the last tour of the night so it was just me, my mom, the tour guide and her friend, so we got our own private tour. Copenhagen was a beautiful city on the water with several canals and waterways connecting all the islands. A few highlights of the tour was the royal palace, the mermaid statue, the hippy island (yes hippies still reside there and refuse to follow the laws), the parliament buildings, the royal ship (the royal family was in town)and many other beautiful sites that I can't really remember.

After our tour we walked down to Trivoli Gardens, a famous square in Copenhagen, with several high-end shops and boutiques and even more 7-11's. I don't know why but on one street there were three 7-11's. No gas, just the convenient store. We found a little hidden street with a few little outdoor cafes and had some dinner. The one thing I loved was that it got a little chilly at night so the cafe provided a blanket on each chair to wrap up in while you ate. My mom wasn’t too excited to wrap up in a blanket that someone else had used but I thought it was a nice little touch, and everyone else was doing it, so I did as the Danish do, and wrapped the blanket around me and ate my pasta.

That night we returned to our dark, stuffy hotel room and tried to get some sleep. After bearing it for long enough I went to the front desk and asked the (not so fluent in English) worker if there was AC in the rooms. She told me no and the rest of the night we just sweated it out. A few days later we learned that the little brown box by the door had a slot in it that you put your credit card in to pay for the AC and lights. (Who knew that AC and lighting were an additional charge, and why didn't they explain this to us at the beginning? Or at least tell their workers what AC means in Dutch)

The next morning there was no sign of my mom’s luggage, apparently the flight from Newark had been canceled and she was promised she would get it when we arrived at our first port in Tallinn. So we got on the bus and were on our way to board the Eurodam (the name of our ship).

The canal


The Mermaid Statue that gives you good luck (our tour guide compared it to our Statue of Liberty)


The old stock exchange building




Next stop … Tallinn, Estonia.

so proud

I've been on vacation with my mother and Jason is still in Utah and I haven't seen him yet but I just wanted to congratulate him. While I was gone Jason received a job offer from the firm he worked for over the summer and I am so proud of him. He had such a great experience during his internship and from the first time he was introduced to White & Case there has always been something about this firm that stood out to him. He has been able to get to know so many great people and I am so excited that he now has the opportunity to work with them.

My last post was our 4th anniversary and it seems like law school has always been apart of our marriage. After we were married Jason started preparing for the LSAT, then it came time to apply to law schools, the decision to come to New York, leaving our families and moving across the country, and dealing with the stress of studying and finals. It has been such an exciting adventure for us, and while I realize we still have a ways to go (3rd year and the bar), it feels like we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Jason has worked so hard to get where he is today, I have never seen anyone more dedicated to something in my life. I know this is something I could have never done but I just want him to know that I am so proud of him and I feel so lucky to be a part of his exciting adventure. New York - we are here to stay!

4 years ...

and I love you more and more every day.



I'm so sorry I'm not there to celebrate our special day.
-Love you

a night under the stars

Last week White & Case held their annual end of the summer event for all the summer associates and a guest at the Elevated Acre downtown. I had never heard of the elevated acre and apparently a lot of people haven't because our cab driver didn't even know where to go. When we finally found the address amongst the crowd of tall buildings there were a set of escalators and at the bottom there were ropes and bouncers only allowing White & Case guests to enter. As we were riding the escalators up we really didn't know what to expect and as we reached the top it opened up to an acre of land in the middle of all the buildings facing the East River. It was beautiful, I love that there are all these hidden gems in the city that we are still discovering.



There was a live band playing in a big white tent with a dance floor and a ton of amazing food everywhere. Although we didn't set foot on the dance floor I did enjoy meeting all the people Jason has been telling me about all summer. It was so fun to finally put a name with a face. Jason has met so many great people this summer and I loved seeing him interact with them on a professional level. I know he acts differently with me at home and it's always fun to see what others think of him and have to say about him (don't worry it was all good things). Once again I was "the wife". I love this title, for some reason people were a lot more interested in meeting "the wife" then others dates or girlfriends. I guess it means a little bit more, and you become a little more important, when you are actually one of the few who are married (Or at least that's what I hope).

As we were enjoying the food and company the band stopped the music and asked all of us to make our way to the boardwalk facing the East River for a special surprise. As the crowd gathered we were suddenly surprised with an amazing firework display. I thought it would be just a few fireworks and then we would get back to our dinner but it went on for at least 15 minutes (Ten times better than the Lewiston show). It was so fun to stand there and watch our own private show as the fireworks shot out in front of the South Street Seaport and Brooklyn Bridge. The show ended with an amazing finale while Frank Sinatra sang "New York, New York" in the background. Apparently this was the first year that White & Case has had a firework show at their annual ball and I am so glad they did. I had a wonderful evening feeling like I was someone important in this amazing city.

"If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere" - Frank Sinatra, New York, New York

(I didn't take this picture but this is exactly what it looked like)

311 & snoop dog

Before I begin I would like to put the CNN rumor to rest - Snoop Dog is definitely NOT a Mormon.


Now, I know I already told you how much Jason loves Pearl Jam but take that love and times it by ten and that will tell you how much more he loves 311! If he meets someone that has heard of 311, and likes them, then he thinks they're cool but if he meets someone that loves 311, they are an instant friend.

Last night was my 4th 311 concert and we've only been together for 5 years. I know I'm a little too conservative for 311, and especially Snoop Dog, but what can I say, I love my husband. I will admit after my 4th concert I have gained a great appreciation for 311 but I wouldn't go as far as saying that I love them. I can sing most of the songs and I've learned to jump up and down to the beat so I'm starting to look like I belong in the crowd.

Last night was probably the craziest thing I have ever done in my life. Usually we are in the seats behind the standing crowd but this time we were right in the center of all the action and if you've ever been to a concert with a standing section, you know what the action consists of. The show opened with Fictionplane (Sting's son's band) and it got a little crowded but I didn't think it was so bad. Then Snoop came out and it got a little more crowded and I got stepped on a few times but again, not so bad. Finally, 311 was getting ready to come out and that's when the pushing began. We were front and center (right where everyone else wanted to be) and that's when the chaos started. I was pushed and shoved from every direction, covered in a lot of other people's sweat, trampled by crazy fans and I was still smiling at the end of the night.

I loved Snoop Dog. I know he's awkward looking and some of his songs aren't very appropriate, but he is so cool. He came out strutting his stuff with his "blinged" out microphone and the crowd went crazy. He started with some of his new songs but then he took us back to the good old "Doggystyle" days. Every time an old song would start I would be reminded of the times when I would sit in my brother, Ricky's, room with the speakers blasting while he and Trevor listened to Snoop. I was a little disappointed that he didn't sing "Murder was the Case" but he did sing several other classics.


And, of course, 311 was amazing as always and this year they sang ALL of my favorites. I have never been so close at a concert and it was so fun to see Doug's dance moves in person. I think Jason was in heaven all night. It's like he goes into his 311 mode and becomes a completely different person when they start playing. Although, last night most of his time was spent protecting me from the crazy "moshers" but he still loved it in the end. Looking back I really can't believe I actually participated in the chaos, but this will probably be the last time I ever do something like it. Next year I will be back where I belong - the seats!

Nick Hexum


Matis Yahu came out to help with "Love Song"


My favorite - Doug Martinez

fast food

There are always fun new restaurants popping up around the village and the other day we happened to walk by the newest sushi place in the neighborhood and noticed it was conveyor belt sushi. We had heard of this concept and remembered seeing it in a movie, so we decided to go Friday night and check it out. The concept behind the conveyor belt sushi is to offer the freshest sushi at an inexpensive cost. Allowing diners to view the food and see what they are getting up front. With the use of the conveyor belt you get less interaction with the waiters and it makes it easier for you to get in, eat, and get out.

You walk in and are seated in a row of booths with a little conveyor belt that runs down the center. At each station there is a computer where you can check out the menu, read up on what everything is and even place an order if there is something you want but don't see on the conveyor belt. Our favorite was watching each plate as it passed and trying to figure out what it was. The plates are also color coded so you know how much it will cost you. I know the concept is to offer inexpensive sushi but once you start grabbing plates you can get carried away and it starts to add up. Jason isn't a huge fan of sushi, so I don't thing this will be a regular thing for us, but he humored me and it actually turned out to be a fun dinning experience!
After our sushi we walked over to the dessert truck for some wonderful chocolate bread pudding. The dessert truck is new to NY this summer and was started by one of Le Cirque's former pastry chef's. This truck is parked in the same place every night and provides a variety of gourmet desserts out of their truck. On the website it reads, "At our mobile food truck, there's no BS, no pretension. Just really good desserts." And that is just what you get. We were a little leery at first but we loved our bread pudding so much that we went back with some friends the next night.

I love that New York is so fast passed that everyone is starting to catch on to the idea and have started to provide good food to the impatient consumer. I am loving this new concept of "fast" food.

on the streets of philadelphia

One of the great things about living on the East Coast is that all the states are smaller - making it easier, and faster, to travel from one state to the next. Our goal is to try and visit all of the major cities, so we decided to take advantage of the long weekend and hop on a bus to Philly.

The first thing we noticed when we arrived in Philadelphia is that it doesn't hold a candle to NYC. I expected it to be much larger then it was. There were only a few sky scrapers and everything was within walking distance. I guess I had imagined it being more like Boston but it was very small. I may be stretching it, but I would say that their downtown wasn't much bigger then SLC. Their buildings were a lot taller but there weren't that many more than Salt Lake. Okay, I may be exaggerating a little, and they do have several monuments and museums that Salt Lake doesn't have, but I just wanted to prove to you that it wasn't that big.

First on our list of things to do was jump on the double-decker tour bus and check out the city. For those of you who don't know - tour buses are our favorite. We've been on the NY bus 3 times and the Philly bus didn't disappoint. We learned all about the history of the city, saw the Rocky steps, Independence Hall, Reading Terminal Market and Betsey Ross' house, but our two favorites were Elfreth's Alley and the Eastern State Penitentiary.



Betsey's House



Elfreth's Alley


Jason - trying his hand at photography


The ESP was the first Penitentiary, built in the 1800's by the Quakers to help prisoners become "penitent" (hence the name penitentiary). They believed that every person had some good in them so they locked prisoners up in complete isolation in hopes that they would find the good within. Unfortunately their plan failed and most of the prisoners went crazy. Now you can only imagine the crazy things that happened here and, of course, we loved hearing about it. It was so creepy looking in their tiny stalls and imagining someone being locked in one for 23 hours a day with only a bible and no contact with anyone. Throughout the prison they have statues of white cats in honor of the cats that lived in the prison after it was closed in 1971. The cats alone freaked me out. After our audio tour and a guided tour about the riots that took place in the prison, we learned there is a haunted house in the prison for Halloween. We also LOVE haunted houses and haven't been able to find a good one out here. It looks like we will be returning to Philadelphia in October so we can freak ourselves out.

The creepy cats inside ESP


The little doors are entrances to the cells


Al Capone's cell


After our creepy experience at the prison we couldn't get enough of the scary stuff and decided to go on a candlight ghost tour of Philadelphia. We learned that a lot of our founding fathers still come back to haunt this great city and that Benjamin Franklin was a ladies man even after he died. Our tour was kind of boring, so after walking around with a broken flip-flop and our tour guide making a couple of rude Mormon jokes, we decided we had enough and ditched the end of the tour.

The rest of our trip was great. We relaxed, ate Philly cheese steaks, walked around the city, ate more cheese steaks, brushed up on our history and ate a few more Philly cheese steaks. I think Jason's mission on this trip was to find the best cheese steak in town, and after trying out a lot of places, he concluded that Jim's was the best. I don't think I have ever eaten so much of one food in a weekend, but I do have to say that the cheese steaks in Philly are AMAZING!!



We were able to catch two different firework shows in town and had a wonderful time celebrating the 4th of July in the city of brotherly love. One common phrase used on our tour was when the tour guide would describe a building or monument they would always say it was the 2nd largest of its kind next to NY or that it was the most famous behind NYC!! We quickly discovered (and laughed each time it was said) that no matter how hard they try, Philadelphia will always be the second best - and that is why we LOVE NYC!!



* This song was in my head the entire trip.

4th of july - lewiston style

This year, Jason and I will be celebrating the birth of our independence in the town where it all started - Philadelphia. But I am a little sad to be missing out on all the festivities in Lewiston. Growing up the 4th of July was like Christmas to me, I remember sweeping the gutters, planting flowers, pulling weeds, and cleaning the store, all in preparation for the big day. Each little town in Cache Valley hosts a celebration and the 4th of July (the best celebration of them all) is Lewiston’s. For one day - Lewiston is the place to be.

It all starts with the firing of the canons at 6 am that use to always blow me out of bed. I would jump up and get ready as fast as I could so that I would be one of the first in line at the fireman's pancake breakfast. My dad was a fireman so it was always so fun to walk over to the rodeo grounds with my mom and brothers and see my dad back in the kitchen running the show. After filling our belly's we would run back home and set out our chairs for the parade (before someone else parked their car in my parent’s driveway - it really happens). My parents live in the center of town (the prime location for watching the parade) and the streets are lined with cars and flat bed trailers several days before the big day to save their spots.

After the parade the celebration continues across the street at the park with several food booths, entertainment, 3-on-3 basketball tournament, dunking machine and - my favorite, the firetruck hose. The fire truck would pull up on the lawn and turn on the big hose, spraying water in the air for all the kids to run through (Lewiston’s version of a water park).

When the park got boring we would usually go back to my parent’s house and play on the sports court or walk over and watch the rodeo. Later that afternoon we would watch the softball tournament while waiting for the sun to set for the big firework show. I had a perfect shot of the fireworks from my parent’s front porch but for some reason it was always more fun to go over and lay out our blankets on the baseball diamond and watch the fireworks fall onto the horse tracks. The night would end with a dance in the church parking lot for the youth and our own little firework show in my parents driveway. It was a perfect day and I was always so sad to see it end. Although I won't be able to make it to Lewiston this year, I can't wait to carry on the excitement of the tradition with my own kids someday. I hope you all have a happy 4th of July, wherever you are.

The church across the street from my parents house where all the booths are at.


Downtown Lewiston: The library, town hall, and the theater


The bank, the gas station, and my parent's store

pearl jam

For as long as I have known Jason he has loved Pearl Jam; most guys on a first date try to impress a girl with some romantic mood music ... not Jason. I remember riding in his silver rodeo to our first date while Pearl Jam played in the background (so sweet).

A few months ago Jason told me that the one band he really wanted to see in concert was Pearl Jam. Ironically, that week one of the guys at work told me he was really excited because Pearl Jam tickets were going on sale. I was soooo excited! The guy at work told me to get on Ticketmaster right when the tickets went on sale or I wouldn't get any. So I literally had 5 people waiting to search for tickets right when the clock struck 11, and thanks to Holly, I was able to score two tickets before they all sold out in 11 minutes (for both nights). At the time Jason was in the middle of his finals crunch so I decided to give them to him as a "Happy end of finals" present after he took his last test. He was very excited and even more so when he found out that it had been 5 years since their last appearance at the garden.

Last night was the big night and if you ask Jason, the concert exceeded all of his expectations, so much that the first sounds of Eddie's voice gave him goosebumps. I'm not a huge fan of Pearl Jam (I just don't listen to them enough to know their songs) but I have to admit that Eddie's voice was amazing live. The garden was pact with several 30 somethings trying to relive their youth and despite a few spilled beers and no "Yellow Ledbetter", I had a great time. I don't know what it is about concerts but even when I'm not a huge fan of the music it's so fun to be surrounded by all the crazy fans who are. And for those of you who aren't familiar with Pearl Jam, I've added a few of my favorites songs for your listening enjoyment.

Eddie shinning the light off his guitar

goodbye seniors

My first and only calling since moving to NY has been in the Young Women's and I have loved getting to know all of the wonderful girls and leaders in in our ward. This year we will be losing 3 of our seniors and I am so sad to see them go. Each girl will be moving on to college and I am so excited for them to start this exciting new chapter of their lives.

(Melissa, Denisse, Jenny)

When I first moved in Melissa was a recent convert to the church and was so shy. She is now one of the funniest, bubbliest girls I know. She has lived in NYC her whole life and has decided to make the plunge and move to "Happy Valley" Provo, Utah to attend BYU. I am so excited for her. I know this decision wasn't any easy one and that she is nervous to go, but she has been so brave and I can't wait for her to be among so many wonderful saints and experience BYU.
She was able to visit Provo a few months ago and when I asked her what she thought she said all the open space made her nervous (now that's a true New Yorker). One of my favorite memories of Melissa was the first conference session I watched with her after being called to the YW's. We were all sitting around listening to the membership report and they had just given the number for the new members in the last year and Melissa turned and told me that she was one of them. She was so excited to share that with me and it instantly brought tears to my eyes. This number is always exciting to hear but it meant so much more when one of those numbers was sitting next to me.
Jenny is also a native New Yorker, and one of the smartest girls I know. She has honestly read more books then I can even count and if you ask her a question about anything she'll more than likely know the answer. She is so strong, she attends an all girls catholic school and has had to defend her religion on more than one occasion. This fall she will be starting at Fordham College with hopes to become a doctor and I know she will become whatever she puts her mind to.
Denisse, will be the first person in her family to graduate from high school and the first to attend college. She is such a strong, beautiful girl and everyone who knows her, loves her. She always comes to church with a big smile and a hug for everyone. She is known as the ward babysitter and there are going to be several sad mothers in our ward when she moves upstate this fall to attend Buffalo College. I know she is scared to move away from the city that she has known her whole life and like Melissa, a little apprehensive of living in a much smaller city, but she knows what she wants, she's worked so hard to get it, and nothing is going stop her.
Last Saturday, we had a party to honor our seniors and luckily all the seniors were able to make it. We ate pizza and battled it out on the guitar hero. Jenny killed us all with her mad guitar skills and was so good, that she didn't even have to stand up to win. I had so much fun spending one last activity with these girls.

(Jenny - winning while sitting)

(Denisse and Melissa batteling it out)

I know you always hear stories of women talking about the impact their leaders had on their lives when they were in young women's but I can truly say that these girls have shown me just what it takes to stand strong and be a daughter of god. They have faced more challenges then I could ever imagine and each has touched my life for the better. I am so grateful that I was able to be their leader. I'm so proud of them and all that they have accomplished and I am so happy to know that there are beautiful young women like these 3 girls out there representing our church.

star struck

One of our favorite things about living in New York is the random encounters we have with celebrities. Usually Jason will spot one in passing on the street and then get upset because I missed them or because I disagree that who he saw wasn't really a celebrity. Obviously, I don't pay attention when I walk down the street, I guess I need to start looking at who I'm passing.
We've seen a few big ones; Julianne Moore, Johnny Knoxville, Tim Gunn and Ryan Gosling (to name a few) but on Friday we were truly star struck when we walked out of the theater and ran right in to ... Adam Sandler.


It was crazy! We were walking out of the movie and for some reason there weren't very many people around us but a few people ahead of us were staring at something. All I could see at first was a man shaking hands with all of the workers and then Jason stopped and said "You've got to be kidding me ..." (for those of you who don't know Jason, this is a common phrase he uses when something surprises him). We just froze and finally managed to say hello as he looked straight at us and said hello back. It was AMAZING!! He was going into another theater to surprise all the movie goers that were in watching Zohan. After a few minutes of regaining our thoughts and realizing just what happened we were a little upset with ourselves for not following him into the other theater. But I love that he was shaking hands with all of the workers, he seemed so down to earth. Despite his outfit (he was wearing a long brown trench coat with shorts, old shoes and an out grown mowhawk) he was all smiles. He is a little shorter than I imagined; I could see the top of his head so I'm guessing he's about 5'6".
Ironically, several clips from the movie Zohan were shot in front of the building where I work and last year, as they were filming, I got to see his stunt double film the scene where he is riding on top of the car (pictured above). I was so disappointed that I kept missing him when they were filming but seeing him up close is so much better.
The rest of the weekend Jason kept spotting people and saying they were a semi-celebrity but I didn't recognize any of them.

spiderman vists ny

Not one ... but TWO men scaled the NY Times building yesterday. Unfortunately, I missed out on the action but I found some great pictures of Alain Robert's climb and ascent. You would think the second guy could have been a little more original and at least try to scale a different building. Let's hope this doesn't spark a stream of copycats. Just one more reason to love NY!