BYU Fan Fest

BYU Fan Fest Came to St. George today.  It was lots of fun chatting with coaches and players.  I told Coach Rose I spent a week at Lake Powell with his son a couple years ago.  He responded, "Oh, you must know Kevin Markham."  It would have been fun to meet Bronco Mendenhall but he did not make the trip to Dixie today.

 

 

 Tyler Haws! 

 

 Taysom Hill!  Kortney obviously has no idea who this guy is!  Come on Kort, where's the enthusiasm?!?  She'll know his name all too well in a few months when I'm screaming his name at the TV.

 

 KVN!  Kyle is a lot bigger then he looks on TV.  I was surprised how big he was when I asked him for a photo and he stood up next to me.  He will be a first round draft pick in the NFL next spring.  Just 3 more months till BYU Football starts.

Christmas in Dixie

Happy December from St. George.  As we were putting up Christmas lights today we looked at our greenish yard and noticed our green tree hadn't even threatened to shed any of her tender leaves. 

I think my Dad's trees in Cedar all dropped leaves shortly after labor day....like 3 Long Months ago.  Gotta love St. George.  I have to cut this post short because I need to go turn on our Air Conditioner. 

The Fast and Furious

On Monday I had to take Kaitlyn on a quick trip up to Orem and didn't trust my 18 year old car would make the long drive so I jumped online and reserved a small economy car for $29 bucks.  When I arrived at the Budget Rental the next morning the agent told me he didn't have the little kia I had reserved but happily informed me that he had another car that I could rent for the same price.   He added, "I'm sure you'll like it!"

 

 

 He led me outside and pointed to what I thought would be my $29 economy kia....It turned out to be  a 2013 Mustang GTO!  Complete with 444 horses ready to charge to Orem. Cue the horse whinny sound:

 

 This car was sweet.  I have never driven a convertible sports car before so I didn't know what I was in for.  As soon as I started the car and revved the engine, I knew I was going to have a good day!  Donna said she heard me driving up to the house from a couple blocks away.  Kaitlyn was very surprised when I picked her up at school to start our trip and I was not in my old, little honda.  I was driving a Mustang now baby!

 

 

One glance at the speedometer and I knew that today was a special day. I was finally going to be a member of the century club.  Our trip was fun and that long 4 hour drive to Orem felt totally different in my new ride.  I was flying by vehicles and enjoyed driving most of the way with a fast pack of 4 other cars as we weaved in and out of slower traffic.  On our way home I entered the Fillmore valley and knew that this was the moment.  The valley is the stretch of freeway I dread the most when traveling on I-15.  It is a long, dusty, boring 40-mile long valley filled with dusty boring sage brush.  I looked around and didn't see any other vehicles.  My cruise was set at 80 and all I had to do is lightly tap the accelerator and all 444 horses reared up and charged toward the century mark.  Cue the horse whinny sound again.  Within 5 seconds the needle hit the magic number and I quickly backed down to my cruise control setting of 80 mph.  As luck would have it in those 10 short seconds that I was exceeding the speed limit I managed to pass a Highway Patrolman. 

He was on me in no time and the dark night suddenly exploded in blue and red flashing lights.  I had that sinking feeling as I watched him speed up behind me.  I immediately called Donna and told her I was being pulled over.  She was not surprised and actually warned me before I left that I was going to get a ticket.  I put the cell phone on the passenger seat and let her listen to the stern scolding I received from the officer.  He refused to cut me any breaks and issued me a $240 citation!  Dang Mustang....ughhh.  My $29 fun rental suddenly ballooned into a $300 nightmare. 

 

Well, the fun wasn't over yet because I got to keep the car for a full 24 hours which meant I could drop the top and drive the girls to the bus stop the next morning!  They all loved the ride and I have to admit I was a bit sad to drop off "My" Mustang at the Rental Center (the rental agent had to tug the keys out of my hand) and slowly climb into my old honda.  Back to reality as I slowly sputtered off down the hot Dixie road, exhaust backfiring along the way, to my office cubicle where I began working off my pricey adventure to join the Century Club.

 

 

The Rockwood's Maiden Voyage

 We picked up a used tent trailer and took it on its maiden voyage to Pine Valley on Friday.  The girls were very excited to head for the hills for the first time with it!  Who knew a minivan could double as a truck?!?

This beautiful rainbow was in the skies of St. George as we left.

Donna whipped up some of her dutch oven potatoes for dinner.

Kortney was extra happy on the trip.  She wouldn't sleep throughout the night which turned into a very long night for mom-n-dad.  Too much excitement for a two year old.

The girls were anxious to try out the new beds in the tent trailer.  A mountain lion had been spotted in the campground this summer so the girls felt safe in the trailer.

Morning finally came and I cooked up some bacon and eggs for the kids. 

We went on a fun hike the next morning and looked for animals in the wild forest.  We found this cool log that we could "Walk the Beam" like Gabby.  Our girls have loved the Olympics this summer.

Looking for frogs is always great fun

We came across some cute chipmunks during our hike and chased them up the trees

Fishing in Pine Valley Reservior

Unlike Kyle, we never seem to catch any fish so we resort to seeing who can "Catch" the longest piece of seaweed!  Kortney drug in this beast and was very proud of herself.

The new campground is very family friendly and includes hiking trails with benches.  We loved the camping adventure and are already planning the next one.

Justin's Wedding and City Creek

We enjoyed our trip to Salt Lake this week. One of the highlights was touring Temple Square and I always like going to the Admin Building to see if we can "Run" into anybody there. The last time I was there I met President Monson. We got lucky this time around and the girls got to meet President Uchtdorf. He was very gracious and had the girls give him a high five. I wish I would have snapped a quick picture.

I feel bad I didn't have my camera at Justin's wedding. Everything turned out really nice. Andrea and Justin make a great couple. It was fun to visit with so many of the family that we don't see all that often. The next day we went to the grand opening of City Creek Center.

Chik-Fil-A served up a delicious lunch at the new food court.

Look who visited the Disney Store! That is the Presiding Bishop of the Church.

There was lots of media at City Creek. It was fun to talk with some of the news reporters we watch on TV.

There was a waiting line at the Disney store and the girls kept saying it felt like they were at Disneyland! They loved it.

Miss Utah has a baby?

The girls got butterfly face paints at Macy's

The Church did such a great job with this development. It is absolutely beautiful. We loved the live music all throughout the mall.

New Years Eve

For New Years we traveled North to Utah County to visit family. We stopped at the ice rink in Provo and the girls tried Ice Skating for the first time. They used these skate aids which made it really fun for them.

We met up with Mike and his family at the rink telepathically. We both happened to show up with our families at exactly 3PM on New Years Eve. We had lots of fun skating around, trying not to crash into people and fall down.

Next we were off to Kim and Shaun's house to partay with the fam.

Colby hadn't even drank any bubbly yet and he is already 1 sheet to the wind.

We ate a yummy dinner. I'm still dreaming of that delicious fruit and cream dish Sydna made.

Now we're talkin' I'm not sure what the brocolli is doing amongst all this goodness. Are those gummy bears by the twizzlers? Just for the record, Shaun had purchased a 6 pound bag of those puppies and I would be surprised if there was more than a couple ounces left by midnight!

Phase 10 Baby!

The cousins all raced outside at the stroke of midnight with their pots and pans.

Now we break out the Bubbly. Kassy: 2 Sheets to the Wind.

Kim: 3 Sheets to the Wind. Even Little Macy was puttin' it back at midnight.

The next day we gathered at Mike's ward to repent of our midnight misdeeds...and join Matt and Ashley for the blessing of little Jake. Afterwards we met at Mike's seminary to enjoy a luncheon. It was great to see so many of our Northern Utah family. We always have lots of fun together.