Sunday, March 29, 2009

Camp-a-roonies take 2

MOAB- Arches National Park


Ben, Liz, Laur, Ali and Brian at Delicate Arch

There's just something about the Great Outdoors...(although Liz, Ali and I only ever really need each others company to be thoroughly entertained!)

Trip Highlights:
Tattoos
Tent snuggle bunnies
new "bum touching" techniques
Rolled-down windows...AH
Corona Arch sun bathing
Delicate Arch











Wednesday, March 25, 2009

My Spanish Sistas


Liz, Laur, Sarah, Alex, Kendal

With Kendal's looming wedding day I had to come to term with the facts ... our 5-some is done forever. But it did cause me to reminisce on the good ole' days traveling the world with Team-A.

Camel riding in our Kandurum dresses in Morocco


Our many "hostel" nights with 5 in a bed..Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Style


Siestas in Porto


"Team Africa" Family photo shoot...complete with the dog


Let's face it...we were "kind of a big deal"


I love you guys! And don't forget,"I'm not like a regular mom, I'm a cool mom"

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

"I'm Lovin' It!"







Has anyone else noticed that these yellow arches have taken over the world? What is it about the greasy burgers and fries that have captured so many hearts?
I must admit that this blog was inspired by my recent previewing of photos from my Spain Study Abroad. I was reminiscing how every place we went (and Alex will attest) McDonald's was the most posh "restaurant" in the city! I'd like to know their secret...

This is a picture of a McDonald's in Porto Portugal

Monday, March 16, 2009

Grandpa Prince


Sometimes it's weird to think about your parents or grandparents before you knew them. What were they like? Were they spontaneous, did they do anything crazy? How did they compare to me at my age?

I started an Oral History Project with my Grandpa where I just ask him questions about his past, he talks, and I transcribe it. He was just a little older than me when he was in the Navy in WWII and it's always fun for me to listen to his stories because it's a side of him I never knew. A side when his life was so hard and sad, but he also had some crazy and adventurous experiences.
I wanted to include two new stories he told me that I had never heard before.

Prince: While we were over seas the first time, we were the first cargo ship that went from New Maya, New Caledonia to Guadalcanal. Guadalcanal was the point where we stopped the Japanese from any further expansion.
Uh, one day I was talking to the armed guard personnel that were on board and we were back on the fantail of the ship. And I’m walking forward and I look out and here comes this torpedo wake right at our ship. And I started screaming, “Torpedo, torpedo!” And I ran up the stairs to get as high as I could so when it hit I’m out, you know, your out of the way a little bit. And the thing went under the ship and exploded on the beach! (Laughs)

Prince: The first nine months we were in the Pacific and then we came back to Panama. We went through the Panama Canal and ended up in a place called Sparrows Point, Maryland. For nine months I never saw a soul that I had known before, and I never hear a word from my family.

Prince: When I was through in New York I had a friend, his name was Floyd Roach and he was from Park City. And, uh, we went all through our training together ...
When we finished school he was transferred to a destroyer in Mare Island, California. That destroyer took off to go to Hawaii and they’ve never, to this day, determined what happened to them. They just disappeared.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Pinch me!

Has it really been 23...yes...23, months since I had to say adios to my best friend in the whole world? I would say the time has flown, but lets face it, that would be a complete lie!
However, today is monumental that's for sure! I can't believe we're on the month count-down! I think Liz and Ali want to kill me for over-obsessing....I can't help it!

What a STUD!


Jeff's Farewell


Saying Goodbye...glad that day is over!

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Camp-a-roonies


There's just really nothing like embracing the beauties of nature! Not showering for days, smelling your worst, cooking over a campfire, and peeing behind a big hill over some sticker bush...oh ya, and lets not forget spooning all night in a tiny tent trying to keep warm!
I LOVE Camping!
Nathan was nice enough to invite us to go camping this weekend at Goblin's Valley. Friday we met up with about 15 other friends and set up camp, roasted mallows, sang kumbaya while holding hands...you know, the usual campfire rituals. Friday night was absolutely bitter cold and I don't know what Liz and I would have done with out Brian to keep us warm all night! It was quite the experience! Saturday we hiked up Bell and around Little Wild Horse canyon trails. It was absolutely gorgeous. Camping always reminds me of my insignificance in the world and definitely puts things in perspective. I can survive with just a tent, sleeping bag and hopefully a fire to cook the wild animals I hunt for food! I mean is that new sweater really a "must-have?" It's sometimes nice to remember how vast and amazing the world is that God created, and that I'm only a tiny part of it. The canyons we hiked were so awesome because not only were the rocks shaped in the craziest forms, but it was always amusing to see that one huge tree that sprouted out of a rock. Or all of the vegetation that could live in such a desert. Or, as Brian so eloquently put it ; "Something beautiful can blossom amidst adversity... Just like all of us!" - one of Brian's many sentimental take-home lessons!