The Bridge To Nowhere

We had an awesome day on Saturday. Some friends in our ward invited us to go hiking. Something we've been wanting to try since we've been here in Cali. We've been a little sceptical about finding good hikes and places to "get away". However, Cheryl and Kirk helped us realize that there really are pretty places to see here in So. Cal, besides the beach. We did an 8 mile hike called The Bridge to Nowhere. It was in the Angeles National forest only 45 minutes from our place. In the 30's, a road was built through the San Gabriel Canyon, with a large bridge toward the middle of the canyon. However, shortly after it was destroyed by floods. The road was taken out, but the bridge remained. So now there is a bridge out in the middle of nowhere. It's kinda funny. It is now used for bungee jumping and sight seeing. Here we are next to the river that we followed the entire hike. It was very pretty. Different terrain than we are used to, but very pretty.
Our guides, Cheryl and Kirk. Thanks for opening our eyes!!
The Bridge to Nowhere. (with people trying to get psyched up to jump off the bridge!!)

We ran into some awesome mountain goats along the way. I think they liked the photo shoot because they stood up there for a while looking in different directions and waiting for us to get our pictures!

As you can see, they were pretty big. We saw 3 total. It was a really fun day!! We are excited to start exploring other canyons and hikes around here!!

Oh What Fun!!

I know it's only January, but I figured I would enjoy a Valentine background for a little while before that holiday flies by...like Christmas did!! Although it seemed to fly by much to fast, we had such a great time in Washington!! It was so nice to have a long break and to be with so much family. Here are just a few of the highlights from our trip.

-Visiting Emily and Ryan's home in Seattle for the first time
-Playing with Maya...thanks to Falycia and Kirk- you guys are great for bringing her!!
-A girls day out (plus Jason) at the Olive Garden and The Nutcracker
-Caroling with my sister Amelia and her family
-Spokane Discount (one of Spokane's best kept secrets...being so great, it must not be a secret anymore)
-More shopping
-A wonderful Christmas and New Years with several family parties
-Family Flag Football with minimal injuries and lots of fun
-Games, Games, and more Games
-Oh, and lots of partaking of delicious holiday treats!!

We really did have a great time. We also loved getting a taste of winter. We miss being able to cozy up next to the Christmas tree and enjoy the lights and having everyone around. Here's a few random pictures from our trip.

Jason and Brandon at Pike Place Market in Seattle.
Maya being lazy and spoiled on the bed...where she got to sleep every night.
Amy, Sarah, Peggy, Becca, Lori, and I on Christmas Eve. Peggy taught us how to make her mom's yummy fudge!!
Me and my bro.
Our fun girls night out at The Olive Garden and the Ballet! (Jason felt a little out of place, but there was an extra ticket that couldn't go to waste!!) It was my first time seeing the nutcracker and it was awesome! Thanks Mom!!
Our little Christmas Baby!! Mae loves Elmo, so I couldn't really pass up this little Christmas dress at Spokane discount...especially for 2 bucks! She's just so darn cute and so fun too!!
Some of our cute and maybe a little crazy nieces and nephews.
Beth and Avery at the Christmas party!!

A Much Needed Visit

As some of you may know, this week Jason is wrapping up his first quarter of dental school!! What a stud! So this week he has been taking finals, which has been pretty brutal. With finals this week, it meant that last week Jason was gone a ton studying and preparing for his 7 finals this week. Luckily, my sister Becca decided that she and Mae would come visit while Jeff was in Houston. She was here for a week and we had a great time. This first picture is the only one with Jason in it because he was only around on Sunday really. The LA temple has beautiful Christmas lights up, so we took a stroll around the grounds and Mae loved it all the lights! It's definitely the most Christmas lights anywhere in LA!!
Although the weather is starting to get a little too chilly for playing at the beach, we picked the warmest day and headed to the ocean. It was really low tide, so it was great sand castle material. Mae had a blast playing in the waves, gathering sand dollars, making sand castles, and most of all, eating the sand!! Not too appetizing if you ask me!
I loved how the wet sand looked like glass. Their reflections are perfect.
Being a kid!
Mae had a great time playing on the toys at our apartment. She was much stronger than we thought. She would hang on these rings for quite a while and not get scared. It cracked us up!
Mae helping me get ingredients out to make banana bread. She's really into cooking and baking- which I love too!!
We went to the original farmers market here in LA. I think it's the oldest in California too. We browsed and ate lunch there. Lots of fun stuff to look at. Mae enjoyed the fish pond.
As you can see, this tree was ginormous!! It was really pretty and helped me get more into the Christmas spirit...it's kinda been hard since it's in the 60's and the closest thing we get to snow is a little rain.
Proof the we were here together. I like the sign in the background too. Definitely a motto I live by. :)
Thanks Becca for playing with me all week! It was so fun to have other people around and especially a little one full of energy!! I love you guys and miss you already. Good thing we'll see you in couple weeks!

Another Year Older

Although my birthday was on Sunday this year, there were some definite advantages to this. A two day celebration instead of one day, and Jason didn't have school either of those days!! So we had a great weekend together. Saturday night he took me to Natalee's Thai Restaurant for dinner. It was really yummy and had a fun atmosphere. Afterwords, we went to the 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica. The street is closed to cars and is lined with shops and restaurants. There is lots to look at, including crazy and interesting people!! While there, someone tried to sale us "fresh homemade cookies", teenage boys asked Jason to buy them alcohol, we saw lots of brake dancing and street musicians, and we watched a lively debate between an atheist and a christian (which was pretty heated). Lots of entertainment! This picture is kinda hard to see because it was dark, but it's a big dinosaur. They have a bunch down the center of the road. Kinda fun!!

After browsing 3rd Street Promenade, we went to the Santa Monica Pier, which is always fun. That is a big ferris wheel in the background, whic is on the pier. We haven't been on it yet, but maybe someday. There's other carnival type rides and lots of vendors to watch. It is one of my favorites.
On the second day of celebration, Jason got up early and made me breakfast before our 8:30 church! He made me bacon, eggs, toast, and orange juice, which was delish!! Thanks hun! That night our friends Daniel and Kylie came over as well. They made me a yummy multi layered chocolate pudding, whipped cream cake! It was tasty!! We also played some pit and Settlers. It was a fun night for sure!!
Our camera battery died after pictures of the cake, so I couldn't get pictures of anyone else. So here's one of Daniel and Kylie from a few weeks ago. Thanks so much for the cake and for playing with us, you guys are great!!

Halloween Fun in Utah

Last weekend I was lucky to be able to go to Utah while Jason was in St. Louis for a dental convention. It was so fun to be there for Halloween and to spend time with family. It seems like there are so many people to see and so little time.
Luckily I was able to spend lots of time with my nieces and nephews. Mae was so much fun!! She is so happy and full of energy! Becca and Jeff took me to Costa Vida, which was so yummy!! Mae loved the beans and rice the most!
I spent a couple nights with Falycia and Kirk as well, which was great! We ate caramel apples and spent lots of time chatting-can't get much better!! Falycia also made some delicious rolls for Halloween! mmmm mmmmm!!
The weather was beautiful on Halloween and we were able to spend lots of time outside. I think the sun must have followed me from LA or something. Carving pumpkins was a lot of fun with Kyler and Alyssa. Maya liked it too...eating it anyway.
Of course I had to go to the park while I was there and enjoy the openness there. It was great to play ball with the dogs and swing with the kids. I wish there were big parks like that here!
Man do we miss her. It was fun to see Maya again and spoil her a little more. She is very well taken care of at Jannae and Victor's though! Thanks you guys! And thanks everyone who ran me around Utah County. It was so fun to see everyone- we miss you!

Our Haven

Although Jason and I really miss the mountains and the open spaces found in Utah (and pretty much anywhere else), we are really enjoying the beauty of the beach. We have been to several beaches and are figuring out which ones we like the most! There is something different at each beach. Some have very little people, others are great for people watching, and some will be great to take Maya to. This beach is actually up north close to Ventura. It's called Mandalay Beach. We really liked this one. There were hardly any people there and the ones that were there were playing with their dogs in the ocean. Our kind of beach! ;) There was a big black lab that acted just like Maya. Never wanting to quit playing fetch and just full of energy! It was great.
Jason and Daniel doing a little studying for their first anatomy midterm. (and Kylie enjoying the sun!)
This pictures isn't the clearest, but it was so pretty that day. This was at Santa Monica and there were so many sailboats out that day. We counted 21 from where we were sitting. The pelicans were also diving for fish. It was really pretty! So pick your beach and we'll take you there!! ;)

Fall is here...right?

So, like I've said before, California is different. That's the best way to put it. We are still enjoying the beautiful beaches that are so close and the warm weather is a definite plus. However, Jason and I are both missing that fall feel. The cool crisp air, the leaves vibrant with color, and the excitement of college football- especially BYU football. So, to make it feel more like fall, I have been making some of my favorite fall foods. The other night I made some yummy potato soup and homemade rolls. I think I will make some pumpkin cookies this weekend too. Mmm mmmmm.
It made a huge pot, so we have been eating lots of left overs!! I should've fed the other poor dental students. ;)

I love adding pictures of my hubby. Poor guy is always starving when he gets home from school. I guess he needs a lot of energy to feed that big brain of his while he studies!! :)