thanksgiving

We had quite a whirlwind adventure for Thanksgiving. Not a week after getting back from Disneyland (luckily I had recovered from my flu by this time) we re-packed our bags and drove over to Utah. We stayed with John's cousin Kristi and her husband Kingston and baby Knox. It was so fun seeing them and loved their new house in Draper. We really wish we could go back and see them again soon.

The first day we were there, we went straight to BYU to visit some of John's friends, and had lunch in the MOA cafe. Since we were there, we had to sit in on a Men's Chorus rehearsal. I loved being there again, but it just made me emotional and made John sad. And we got to see Sister Rosalind Hall! I cannot tell you how much we love and adore that woman. I'm not sure there is a more beautiful, talented, and kind-hearted woman in this world. (Can you tell I'm a big fan?)

After that, we did what was one of my favorite parts of the trip. We went and visited with Amanda, went to dinner with her, Victoria, and Victoria's fiance to all you can eat sushi, which ended up being really good. After dinner we completed our years long tradition and saw Breaking Dawn Part II at midnight. I can't say it was a great movie by itself, but compared to the others, it was pretty fantastic. I really enjoyed the ending.

The next day was spent with our family, after seeing Amber, who drove up to Draper to visit very briefly. We saw Beth's apartment and met her roommates, then went to Jacob's and visited, met up with Hilary, and we treated them all to Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. The night ended at Hilary's house in Alpine watching The Artist and White Christmas. We had to have some culture after the previous night. I loved being with my siblings-in-law. I really feel close to them and really miss them a lot.

The last day we were there we met with a few more of John's friends at a Thai place in Orem, stopped by to see some of our friends Drew and Julie, and Curtis and Jessie and their new baby (I wish we had had more time with them) and then raced back to Kristi's to get ready and see the new James Bond movie, Skyfall. I'm not the hugest James Bond fan, so when I say that I wanted to read my book through only half of it, it was pretty successful.

Well, that ended our Provo trip, and I was tired enough to be ready to go home! But instead, we made the 5 hour drive to Boise to visit with John's parents. It was nice to relax downstairs and have the whole floor to ourselves! We don't have that much space to ourselves nowadays, so it was a great change.

John was sick for the first few days we were there, so Starla and I went to the temple to do a session by ourselves and I got to see the newly remodeled temple. It is absolutely gorgeous. It's my favorite temple inside that I have ever seen, and I am jealous of their bride's room! The only way I can describe it is "Rivendell." I can't wait to go back with John so see can see it. After the temple trip, we had a quick girl's day that was really fun. We went to the mall and found some boots, got lunch, and picked out a pound of See's Candy.

Beth and Jake got there not long after, and the whole family was together again. It was fun to see them, watch movies, and of course, have a huge Thanksgiving dinner. We ate at a friend's house and had a great time eating and visiting.

The next morning we did some Black Friday shopping. We didn't go all crazy and get to the store at 4 AM. We just went to Best Buy around noon and actually found everything on our list that we wanted! I was so excited and didn't think I would have such luck. That afternoon we went up to the cabin and had a great time. I spent most of it reading by the fire. I loved being back at the cabin. It's where John and I spent part of our honeymoon, so I have a special fondness for it.

Finally, we drove back home to Nevada. It was quite the month for us! I will say that it was really fun not having to work for three weeks, and I feel that it was worth it being able to take a great vacation. Now we just have to work and work to save our money for the grad school applications and (hopefully) lots of interview trips John will be taking the next few months.