ulcer

I'm pretty sure that the health community has discredited any correlation between stress and ulcers. But I think they're wrong.

It was last Thursday when the reality of the semester ending and finals coming set in. Since then, I've been a slight nervous wreck.

I wake up in the middle of the night with cold sweats for no apparent reason. My thoughts automatically reflect on my Chemistry class.

My Chemistry final is this Wednesday. 45% percent of my grade. Yeah. I am terrified that my 96% grade in the class right now will be blown to bits by a few wrong answers.

I need some Valium.

coldplay

They've been my favorite band for years. I can never get sick of their songs. I've never seen them in concert though; until last Saturday night.

I remember a call I got from my dear friend Tara back in 2006 while I was living in Kauai. I couldn't really hear her, but I could hear a familiar song in the background. One of my favorite Coldplay songs. Tara was in Las Vegas at the Coldplay concert. Without me. It was one of the few times I truly wanted to get off that Island.

Since that day, I've had an ever-increasing urge to see them live. Finally, the opportunity came to purchase tickets in the Springs. They were finally coming to Salt Lake City. We purchased our tickets, but the best seats we could get were the front row of the upper bowl. It didn't really matter, though. I was going to see my favorite band.

We arrived at the Delta Center (yes, I still call it that) and I immediately headed to the gift counter to purchase my concert t-shirt. I usually get one at the concerts I attend. After I put it on, we headed up the long flight of stairs to our seats.

We found our portal WW and I started to walk through the double doors. I noticed soon that Tara, Sarah, and Kelly were not following me anymore. I turned around and saw them talking to two British strangers. I went over and joined their conversation.

Marta and Stephanie introduced themselves to us in their British accents. They asked us if they could kindly see our tickets. We handed them over and they examined our seats. Marta said, "You paid all this to sit clear up here?" Um, yes.

Stephanie went on, "How's about we play a little game with you? A game of trivia - no, trust. A game of trust?"

I suspiciously looked at them, but soon my tension eased because they wore the Official VIVA band jackets. They had to be trustworthy to wear those. They continued, "You hand us all of your tickets, close your eyes, and we'll put different tickets in your hands. You must trust us that they will be better. Don't open your eyes."

I've never closed my eyes so tightly before. I didn't want Marta and Stephanie to think I was cheating in anyway. Too much was at stake.

They placed new tickets in our hands and said, "Open your eyes. You've just won 2nd row tickets on the floor!"

As you can imagine, we screamed, cried, cheered, and hugged our new friends. We were pretty much in shock. Then we screamed, cried, cheered and hugged our friends again. We seriously couldn't believe it. So lucky.

We made our way to the floor and watched as they really did let us through and lead us to our 2nd row seats. Front and center. It seemed like a dream. My favorite band. Right there. Just mere feet away.

Well, the rest is history. Chris Martin and Co. came out and put on one of the best shows I've ever seen. It was so incredible and intense being right there. I yelled out, "I love you Chris!" once, and he actually heard me. Too convenient.

Thanks Tara, Sarah, Kelly, Marta, Stephanie, Chris, Guy, Jonny, and Will for making it such a fantastic night.

flu vaccines

Hey peeps.

So with winter around the corner, so is the flu.

My office has been giving out flu shots for a few weeks now. I have become extremly jealous of those who administer the vaccines. Because, after all, that's what I'm going to school to do one day!

Anyway, my co-workers got brave all of a sudden and decided they would let me practice a bit on them.

Do you notice the look of slight panic on my face? Don't worry - I'm cool. Just concentratin'...

Another awesome shot.

Thanks to Deana, Sean, Kindi, Megan, and Deelisa! You guys are tough.

feelin' patriotic

I am feeling very patriotic today.

You could probably tell by some posts from the past, that I have been looking forward to election day for a while. I remember a year ago thinking, "Why are they campaigning already? It's a year away!" And to think it's finally here.

Anyhow, I woke up a bit earlier than usual today so I could get out the door at 6:45 AM. I was trying to beat all my neighbors to the Orem City Center where we unite in voting. Unfortunately, my crafty neighbors had the same thing on their minds. There was already a hefty line by the time I got there.

It was pretty interesting though. I mean, four years ago I voted as well, but I went then as a child; walking in the shadows of my parents. This election, I went alone. At 7 AM. With true convictions.

As I walked up to the library and viewed the growing line within, I could see my old Bishop, my fifth grade teacher, high school friends, my neighbors. It was cool to see the community come together and cast their votes. I couldn't help but feel extremely patriotic. I love this Country.

Took this pic on my phone so I could show off my "I Voted Today" sticker. It's the best part.

pumpkin carving

Last Saturday Nan, Joe, Scott, and I sharpened our knives and embarked in a pumpkin carving competition extravaganza.

As you can see, Joe carves best when he is shirtless. I came up with this beauty.

We sent Nan out at midnight to pick up some candles so we could get the full effect. After polling numerous individuals, the Halloween cat came out on top. Good effort to all contestants.

still here

I've been racking my brain the last few days to come up with something to blog about. I know you all anxiously await an update from me.

To be quite honest, nothing too awesome has happened lately. I'm basically in school mode. BOORRRING.

But, in any event, here are a few that have been on my mind...

1. You know you're becoming an adult when 10 PM hits and you not only tell yourself its your bedtime, but it feels like your bedtime. This waking-up-at-5:40-AM business is cruel.

2. I am tired of hearing about the upcoming presidential election. I am sick of hearing about how awesome Obama is because he's a Socialist who thinks that the government should do EVERYTHING for you. How we did anything for ourselves before him is beyond me. Capitalism people, Capitalism.

3. I am sick of celebrities endorsing him because its the cool thing to do. In fact, I don't want to hear anything you think because most of you are irresponsible and immoral.

4. My little brother baptized someone in the Atlantic Ocean the other day. I thought that was awesome. He's awesome. (Not being facetious.)

5. I've taught Sunday School Book of Mormon every other week since February. I just told my friend John (the SS Pres) on Sunday that I'm going to be switching wards. I am bittersweet about the whole thing. I've gained a lot from teaching, but oh yeah, I'm going to love having that bit of stress relieved for a while.

6. I can't help but be disappointed in my sports teams this fall. The Cowboys are faltering with Romo out for a few weeks. The Yankees. Oh the Yankees. WHY do you do this to me every fall? And BYU. You broke my heart last night. Please Jazz - give me something to look forward to this Spring.

7. I love the Fall and Halloween. I do not like, however, snow coming in and ruining it just when its getting good. Please, leave us be.

8. I saw my first UGG offender at the BYU game last week. It's going to be a long winter. (Read UGGLY)

9. I love any food item that has pumpkin in it. Pancakes, cookies, rolls, pie, etc. Delicious.

10. I don't know if I'm allowed to announce this yet, but I've waited so long! Please forgive me Stacey. My sister-in-law is pregnant! That's right, Brandon and his wife Stacey are having a baby in May and making me an aunt again!

Well, there you have it people.

bones

So, this is pretty much my new favorite show. Bones (a.k.a. Temperance Brennan) is a forensic anthropologist that works with FBI Agent Seely Booth. Together, Bones and Booth work to solve weird unsolved cases. I just purchased season one last night from Graywhale (got a great deal by the way). Sorry Ash.

I've noticed a pattern among my own television choices. I have figured out I am attracted to shows that have to do with the LAW. For example, I love: Alias (CIA), X-FILES (FBI), 24 (CTU), Bones (FBI), Law and Order SVU (NYPD?).

Forget medicine, I should have gone into law enforcement. I think that's where my passion may lie.

In any event, check out "Bones" on Wednesday nights on FOX. 7 PM. It's pretty good.

youth restored

It's a Christmas miracle. That's all there is to it.

If you read the post below, you would know about my little "jaunt" to Havasupai. And if you've been around me at all in the last month you've had the great fortune of hearing me talk about my knee. And how I can't run. Or hike. And how it has ruined my life.

I have a certain mentality that I am young and invincible. I am 22 years old and my body should be able to withstand anything. I should be able to climb a mountain or swim across a lake or get thrown across an arena by bull and be able to get up, dust myself off, and carry on my merry way. I should be able to hike 35+ miles over the weekend and not be affected. Thus far in my life this has rang true.

That is why having this ailment has been extremely disheartening. I was told by my Doctor (okay, nurse Val) that I was not to do anything physical or too outdoorsy until the knee stopped hurting. She also had me do a regimen of 600 mg of ibuprofen 3 times daily, along with heating my knee as often as I could. This routine provided relief (I no longer was limping around), but the pain would never fully go away.

I finally made the decision the last week of August to make an appointment to meet with an Orthopedic Surgeon. You know I've reached a point of desperation and/or "giving in" when I finally make an appointment to see a doctor. I just don't like them. But in any event, the date was set for September 5th.

If you've had the pleasure of visiting Cascade Springs up past Sundance, you would know that that place is very leisurely. The entire place is paved and not-hilly enough that even Kim can go around in her wheelchair. On September 1st, Labor Day, I was there for about 15 minutes just walking around and enjoying nature. At the end of this quarter-hour, my knee was aching and I was once again disheartened.

Cascade Springs

I decided that day that I was going to matters into my own hands. I headed to the local drug store (okay, Walmart) and picked up a bottle of "Triple Flex". I had heard rumors of the great miracles that glucosamine had done for aching joints. I figured I had nothing to lose and started my own treatment plan.

I started taking two pills a night before bed and watched for some signs of a difference. The changes were very subtle. But I decided that I would keep giving this a chance and I canceled my doctor's appointment. It didn't me long to convince myself that I didn't want to go to the doctor.

Then came Saturday September 6th; just five days after that beginning of my health plan. I woke up and didn't really have anywhere to be or anything to do. I watched three "Friends" episodes with Ally. Around noon I hit a point that only one who has lived a sedentary lifestyle for a month could hit. I decided it was time to test my "new knee" and go to the gym.

I knew it was risky considering how many times I had been told to take it easy. But as soon as I mounted the treadmill, I knew it had to be right. I started off slow, but gradually increased my speed. As I was running, I kept looking and feeling for signs of a sudden collapse. But none came. In fact, my knee felt really good. I had healed myself.

Since then, I have been to the gym a few times and my knee doesn't hurt. I'm not sure if I can completely give credit to the glucosamine, but who knows? All I know is that on Monday my knee hurt from walking around Cascade Springs, and by Saturday I was able to run pain-free at the gym.

A Christmas miracle? I should say so.

*Some of you may be thinking, "Tawny, couldn't you have wrapped that story up in one sentence: my knee was hurting so I took some pills and now I feel great." Yes, I suppose I could have just said that, but where's the fun in that?

havasupai pictures

Havasupai

After months of planning, preparation, and purchasing, we finally got to Havasupai. There were 19 of us total that made the journey down: Tawny, Daunetta, Jordan, Talley, Alan, Scott, Sarah, Kally, Heather, Jory, Brian, Tyson, Jon-o, Cabe, Johnny, Brecca, Ryan, Dallas, and Cameron.

Here's how it all went down.

Day 1 (July 31): All of the different cars made their way to the trailhead to start the 12 mile descent into the Grand Canyon. My car (Daunetta, Jordan, Talley, Alan, Scott, and Sarah) got to the trailhead around 6 AM that morning. The hike down was started by about a mile or so of steep switchbacks. Once we reached the bottom of The Canyon, we hiked along a dried up river bottom. Our journey that morning was mostly shaded - otherwise we would have died of heat exhaustion. After about ten miles, we reached the town of Supai. This town is occupied by the Havasupai Indians. It's a pretty interesting place. Like out of an old western film, complete with the dirt roads. By the time we reached Supai, the sun was out and we were HOT. We stopped in a makeshift grocery store and cooled down by a giant fan. After paying our fees to the office, we put our heavier-than-ever packs back on and continued hiking to the final two miles to the campgrounds. Those final two miles were sheer torture. We were exhausted and the sun was beating down on us. But, alas, we finally made it to the shaded campgrounds. I was utterly spent at that point. But the shade helped and we set up our hammocks along the river and relaxed for a bit. We soon threw on our swimsuits and headed for the nearest attraction: Havasu Falls. This place was amazing. The water was the color of light-blue Koolaid. At the bottom of the falls, there are travertine pools that allowed for much exploration. We chilled here for a good part of the day before returning back to our campsite to heat up some dehydrated food. Yum.


Day 2 (August 1): You'd think since we hiked 12+ miles the day before that we would have wanted to relax the next day, but no, that's not our style. We started toward a place called Beaver Falls. We heard it was about four miles upstream. We first encountered Mooney Falls. As you hike along, you come to the top of this Falls and you must make the steep and slighty insane descent to the bottom to continue along. You basically had to go down a sheer cliff by hanging on to some rusty chains. It was a little nerve-racking. But we made it to the bottom of this beautiful spectacle. We continued along the river and came to this very quaint pool amid the river. There was this awesome rope swing set up in a tree. So we decided to stop for an hour or so and frolic there. This was one of my favorite spots. When we had enough, we kept going. And going. And going. Yeah, it seemed much longer than four miles. Most in our group were not equipped for an eight mile round-trip hike. Food and water was scarce. But soon the group reached Beaver Falls - which was nearly by the Grand Canyon National Park. Yikes. After our lengthy hike, you'd think, once again, that we'd want to rest a bit. Nope. Jordan, Talley, Alan, Scott, and I decided to hike to the Village (about four miles round-trip) to partake of their delicious Supai Tacos. This "restaurant" wasn't your normal eatery. You ordered from an Indian's family room window and sat on picnic tables in their backyard. This yard had a makeshift stage built where the contestants from "Miss Supai" were practicing. Classic.


Day 3 (August 2): We woke up early and ate some delicious blueberry pancakes. That's right folks, we made a poor mule carry in our camp stove. Don't tell PETA. But I can't say I'm sorry. I needed the carbs. Anyway, we went to possibly the coolest waterfall that day: Navajo Falls. This place was truly a magical place. There were so many nookes and crannies to explore. So many places under waterfalls to see. We didn't have as much time here as we would have liked, but it was amazing. When I come back, I will definitely spend at least a day there. We were going to hike out around 4 PM when the weather started to cool down, but it was cloudy out so we thought we would get a head start out. So we started to long journey to the Village two miles away. About 20 minutes into our hike out, the sun decided to show itself for the first time in two days. Great. It was so hot. I mean, I really hate the heat (and actually cold too, but whatevs). My body wasn't built for extreme temperatures. We started at a good pace and would rest when we hit shade. It was our only chance of survival against heat exhaustion. When we finally hit the mile or so of steep switchbacks up to the car, I wanted to give up. I mean, I try not to be too dramatic, but I couldn't help myself at this point. By the time we got to the switchbacks my foot, KNEE, and hip (all on the right leg) were aching. Most of our group was at the car, and my Mom and Talley were about a half mile behind Scott and I. I begged Scott to leave me to die about seven times during these switchbacks. And I was dead serious. I really wanted to be left behind. I as SO tired and my whole leg just hurt so bad. Praise the heavens for Scott talking me through this end part. I wouldn't have made it. Well, I would have...about three days later. So, after what seemed like nine days of hiking, we reached the car and headed back to Kingman, Arizona. We ate a delicious Denny's meal (bet you don't hear delicious and Denny's in the same sentence often) that was served by a fantastic waitress Gayle. Back at the hotel, I've never slept so well.

Day 4 (August 3): Not much happened this day except many hours of travel. I mainly wanted to mention that after months of searches and disappointing gift shop hours, I finally was able to purchase my highly coveted Hoover Dam pin. It made my trip.

All in all this was a pretty amazing trip. We were very glad that we made it there two weeks before the whole dang place completely flooded over. It has taken over a month for my knee to finally heal, but it was well worth the heat, injuries, and near-death experiences we encountered.

snake in the grass

I'm not sure when my interest in politics and government started, but I credit my high school government teacher Mr. Miner. Being in his class didn't fill me with the same boredom and uninterest that most of my other classes held. I could listen to him for hours; going off on politics and what is right and wrong with our system. This is where my love for the Constitution bloomed. We picked it apart and translated it into a modern language that was easy for us to understand. Since graduating, my interest remained.

This election time has got me all sorts of excited (and scared, too). In the light of the Republican National Convention, I am going to list a few reasons why I will be voting for McCain and NOT Obama.

1. Sarah Palin. Enough said. I'm impressed.

2. If Hollywood supports Obama, it's a sure indicator that I DO NOT want to vote for him. I won't be listening to the immoral to sway my vote.

3. Obama is a fancy orator, but I haven't heard him say anything that he'll actually do except for raise my taxes and impose a Socialist government on me.

4. McCain is not afraid to stay in Iraq to finish this thing up. Obama wants to pull out to stay popular with the mainstream media and liberal nutcases.

5. While filling our tires can be slightly helpful, its not a solution. McCain will drill. Obama will not.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from last night by Sarah Palin:

"[Obama] can give an entire speech about the wars America is fighting and never use the word 'victory' except when he's talking about his own campaign."

"In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change."

"What exactly is our opponent's plan? What does he actually seek to accomplish after he's done turning back the waters and healing the planet? The answer is to make the government bigger and take more of your money."

"I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a 'community organizer,' except that you have actual responsibilities."

Okay, so most of these reasons have to do with why I think Barack is a snake in the grass. Although I would have much preferred Mitt Romney in the Whitehouse, McCain will be a million times better than Obama and his unpatriotic wife.

i can't be trusted

So I got a mysterious email from an Elder Larsen yesterday at 12:30 PM that read,

"1:30 today! At your place of employ! What!? Yes. See you there. But, really, you'll probably only see me."

What!? Automatically the wheels in my advanced head started turning. Did he really think he could come by my building and not expect to see me? Was he playing a trick on me? Was this message really from Chad?

I started to conjure up a plan that would satisfy my best interests. He had an appointment on the third floor around 1:30 PM. Missionaries normally have better habits than normal 20 year olds. I had to be downstairs at least 15 minutes early to make sure I didn't miss him.

So around 1:13 PM I headed to the pharmacy on the first floor of our building and purchased him numerous candy bars as a means of getting on his good side. After all, this was totally breaking the rules.

I made my way to the empty bench right next to the main front doors of the building. And I waited. A part of me was still not convinced that he would really show up. I scrolled through pictures on my camera and anxiously waited longer. I kept seeing patients of my clinic walk by. I didn't really like that.

Finally, at 1:33 PM, I looked up and saw my kid brother, dressed in his sleek black suit, waltz unsuspectantly through the front door. He saw me sitting on the bench, and froze. By his expression, I guess he didn't really expect to see me stalking the hallway awaiting his arrival.

"Oh hey Chad" was my normal greeting to him. He had that Chad look on his face like what the heck and replied, "Oh hey Tawny. Didn't expect to see you here. Waiting for me."

"Chad, did you really think you could tell me your appointment time and expect to not see me?"

He was late for his appointment and kept awkwardly walking to the elevator so the Old Dude who was escorting him wouldn't get too mad. He stopped before he got on the elevator.

"Chad, I know that this is totally not allowed, but can we just take a picture of this? I need picture proof for the fam."

I handed my camera to Old Dude and he shakily took our picture (this accounts for the slight bluriness of the picture). Chad made sure to put on his "guilty" face. But really, we all know that he couldn't have been too surprised.

We quickly said our goodbyes and he took the elevator, while I took the stairs. And that was that.

I was pretty stoked about our encounter, but I somehow exercised enough patience to wait to tell the fam until I got home from work around 5:30 PM. I had devised yet another plan. I walked through the kitchen and, very conveniently, most of my family was gathered in the family room. I strolled right in and said to my mom, "Look who I ran into today."

She stared at my camera for a moment and then yelled, "What!? Are you kidding me?! You saw CHAD today??" It didn't take long for the rest of my family to run over and see my awesome picture. Needless to say they were all pretty jealous.

tube run down provo river

It's pretty much my favorite thing to do during the summer. Load up the truck and head up Provo Canyon. We launch just right before the dam and sail down the river until we reach Vivian Park.

Normally for me, being a seasoned tuber and all, I usually get down the river scotch-free. Sometimes, though, some of my friends haven't been as fortunate. I think it has a lot to do with their inexperience. Poor fools.

At any rate, I love the peace and calm the river brings. But just as much, I love the rapids, rocks, and bridges. There is always a surprise waiting for you on the River.

miles away...

While I was on my trip to Havasupai (sorry, still working on that post) my little brother Chad, who is in the MTC right now, had a doctor's appointment on the third floor of my building where I work. Chad, knowing I was out of the office, slipped this little note on my desk.

I got to work on Monday morning and saw this waiting for me. All my co-workers saw him in his suit and tag. They chatted with him for a minute and he told them he wouldn't have come if I was there. Rude. Anyway, it was weird to me because he is still here in Provo - yet so far away.

chaco lines

If you've ever been around the Larsen fam you've probably noticed the family footwear. Now, we're not "Granolas" (as some ignorant people immediately assume when you wear these), but we do love these shoes. Up until last night, we all had them except for Kim (see above picture, the green Crocs.)

We sent away for these beauties the other day and she got them just in time for her birthday.

Chaco Challenge: Try a pair. I promise you will love them. The Larsen's have converted numerous people - all of which are happy customers.

Happy Birthday Kim

Dear Kim,

Happy Birthday! I can't believe you're 28 years old!

I hope all your birthday wishes come true - even though your birthday wishes have remained the same year after year: BOOKS, DVD's, BOOKS, CLOTHES, BOOKS.

Tonight when we do your favorite things (BOWLING, PIZZA, ROOTBEER) at your party, I am going to break your bowling record. It's on!

Maybe if you're really nice (and promise not to tell Mom or Dad) I'll let you look at Chad's "Completely-Off-Limits-To-Kim" Bookcase. Hopefully Chad won't notice if you borrow one. Just have it back in 23 months.

I would tell you that I got you a pretty awesome present, but you already know that when you sneakily awaited my return from Borders yesterday and spyed on your gift through the front room window. I know you'll still act excited and surprised when you open it.

Also, we have to get you out in the sun more so you can work on your Chaco lines. That gift was my idea.

Well, Miss Kimmy, I hope you have a fantastic day. You're still my favorite oldest sister.

Love, Tawny

don't wake me

I had an interesting night of sleep last night. My right knee has been killing me from my recent ascent out of Havasupai (look for more in an upcoming post). So last night I wrapped bags of ice around my knee with an Ace wrap. I then slept on my back. That's uncomfortable in itself. I woke up from knee pain around 2:30 AM.

During those moments of half-awake consciousness, I discovered a problem with my left ear. I started feeling it with my hands. It felt unusually large and hot. I ran into the bathroom and to my immediate horror, my ear had tripled in size! It was a total Will Smith moment.


I immediately start looking for some sort of bug bite to explain this hideous swelling, but nothing to be found. My early-morning mind starts racing towards possibilities: ear cancer, Indian diseases, cellulitis... I finally resorted to some good old Benadryl and went back to bed.

I woke up around 8 AM to get ready for work. I had hoped that the whole ear deal was just a bad dream. Not so. Although the swelling did dramatically decrease, my ear is still slightly swollen, red, and hot to the touch. Not to mention it just looks bigger than my other one. Dr. Jones offered to cut it off for me to stop the undoubted infection raging thru my ear.

Another added bonus is that because of the consumption of Benadryl, I woke up more drowsy than usual. You know the feeling you get when you're really tired and if you stop moving at all, this warm feeling comes over you and you're ready to fall into a deep sleep. Yeah, that keeps happening to me at work today. I made a sign for the patients that reads, "If I'm asleep, don't wake me."

I Want to Believe

It all started one fateful summer evening. The smell of Orem Summerfest was in the air. Not only was I all alone in the house, but the entire city was deserted. I was stricken with a mysterious illness that forced me to keep a bucket near. As I lay there in the eeriness of the quiet family room, I knew I shouldn't watch it alone. I knew it scared me. The music alone was enough to make one's skin crawl. But the curiosity defeated my logic. I started to watch what would become a converting marathon.

From that night on, I couldn't get enough. I knew what days and times TNT would play the old reruns. I knew they wouldn't be shown on the weekends. In those instances, a certain lonliness would ensue. But soon, it wasn't enough. The random episodes only gave way to more curiosity. I wanted, no, I needed to know the whole storyline.

I soon found myself watching auctions on Ebay for the seasons. Nine to be exact. Nine seasons were taunting me to be viewed. I had to have them. I finally broke down and purchased them all. Best decision of my life.

To those who have never devoted hours upon hours to this religion will never know. They look at and think: Aliens. Dumb. To you I say you couldn't be any more wrong. I was once in your shoes and saw only cliche flying saucers and green men. It runs much deeper. I can't even begin to explain to one who knows nothing about it. Conspiracies. Mystery. Mulder. Forbidden love.

And now, the day has finally come. I have spent countless hours scouring the internet for news about this rumored movie. To be honest, I didn't think it would ever come. Or at least not until December 22, 2012.

*view the trailer

MTC

So as most of you are aware (because I keep crying about it), the little brother entered the Missionary Training Center yesterday. My older brother Brandon went on a mission about ten years ago, so I thought I would be sufficiently prepared. I was wrong.

We gathered at the parents' house in the morning and ate wheat pancakes. Around 10:40 we headed to Provo to drop Chad off. All the Mission Presidents are training this week at the MTC, so we got bumped to the Stake Center by Lavell Edwards Stadium. We got there and white tents were scattered throughout the vast parking lot. We were shuffled towards them, where we met a kind old man who checked Chad in. We then put yellow tags on all his luggage.

He was then sent to another tent to get his nametag. It was weird when he put the tag on with his suit. It made it all more real. It was interesting to see all the different families and the different missionaries scattered about in the parking lot. For some reason I only felt sorry for my family. I know, I shouldn't.

Our family next took a picture by the church before we went in. Once in the Chapel, we took our respective chairs and waited for the inevitable. I was fine during the talks, but once they had us sing "Called to Serve", I could barely make it thru the words. It was ridiculous. Then they had us watch the movie titled (you guessed it) "Called to Serve". I lost it. As dumb as it sounds, I couldn't really contain myself.

As soon as the movie was finished, we said a prayer and were asked to say goodbye. A quick, band-aid like goodbye, was what they encouraged. If you could have seen my family, you would have laughed. It was quite a scene. All of us have tears streaming down our faces, and as an added bonus, Kim had her head back wailing. That was the saddest part.

Chad then left out one door, and we went out the other. When we got back to the Suburban, we watched as the missionaries marched to the bus. Chad wouldn't look over at us. Jerk. Kidding. And that was it. My family headed to the Olive Garden to start the grieving process.

I really don't remember it being this hard when Brandon left. But then again, I was in Junior High when he went in so I didn't care because I was Awesome. I'm sure these next two years will go pretty fast, but I can't seem to believe it right now.

But I really am glad that he is finally out there. He's going to be an amazing missionary. And I'm sure my family will stop being such a bunch of babies soon...hopefully.

Capitol Reef

So a few weekends ago, the friends and I took off to Capitol Reef. For those of you unfamiliar, Capitol Reef is located about three hours southeast from Orem. My family camped here often when I was a youngster, but its been a few years since we've been in the area.

We normally try to camp at the Capitol Reef National Park (because its pretty much amazing), but it was full by the time we got there. But no worries, we headed a half hour up the Dixie National Forest and set up camp. It was pretty secluded, so we could be as noisy as we wanted.

On Saturday, the Crew hiked Sulphur Creek. This is one that the fam did a few years back, and it is one of my favorites. You hike along side (or in) this creek and you come to several waterfalls. The falls aren't too big, but tons of fun.

Me, Heather, and Katie strolling up the creek. And in this one, Danny carried me up like this the whole way. Not.

Just exploring the nooks and crannies of the rocks.

Here we are back in Torrey. This is the town right before you hit Capitol Reef, and let me tell you, this place rocks. Time moves just a little bit slower in Torrey. This little ditch runs along side the whole town. Here, my friends conned me into climbing onto this abandoned rope swing; assuring me they did the same. It wasn't until I was 15 off the ground that they fessed up and said they hadn't really gone up the swing. Great guys, how do I get down?

Mele, Tara, Sarah, and I checking out this Kiva in the middle of town. We also found these abandoned cars in the wilderness of Torrey. If the doors are wired shut, does it means "Keep Out"? Doubt it.

So, pretty much Capitol Reef, the Dixie National Forest, and good ole Torrey made for quite an enjoyable weekend. Apart from the fact that many of us were sick (refer to blog: "brink of death"), it was the kickoff to a great summer.