Friday, September 5, 2008

Visit to Utah...

So the first leg of our end-of-summer extravaganza vacation was to visit friends in Utah. We got to stay with our dear friends the Allreds, who recently moved from Colorado to Lehi. It was so wonderful to see their new house (and I am glad that now when I chat with her on the phone, I can picture her in her house). We had the opportunity to attend church with them, enjoy a delicious family dinner, and of course, watch the Olympics.

It was also wonderful to see our friends the Mollers (they live in the Allreds neighborhood!) and Dr. Bush. Kacy, Doug, and I all went to high school together and it is so fun to catch up. Dr. Bush was one of mine and Ken's favorite professors while we at BYU. In fact, Ken and I started hanging out because of an assignment in Dr. Bush's class. Several years later, we moved into his ward and got to know him and his family very well. He became a true mentor to us and we love him dearly. It has been several years since we have seen him and our visit with him was such a treat! We also got to see his daughter Elizabeth and her family. Years ago she was one of the Young Women I taught. Now she is married to a wonderful man, has beautiful twin boys, and is pregnant with a girl. I love the Bushs so much and it was great seeing them.

On Monday the kids and I, along with the Allreds, went up to Bountiful. We went to our friend, Kirsten's beautiful home. The kids had such a blast all playing together -- Morgan and Trevor have really missed Shannon and Conner. I loved sitting with Kirsten and Rochelle and just talking. (I have missed my friends!) We enjoyed a wonderful afternoon together and took the kids to this amazing park overlooking the valley. So beautiful!


Another fun visit was with my friend, Ami. We were both in the music program at BYU together and had just about every class together. She even helped me write thank you notes after my wedding! We had not been in contact for several years, but were reconnected through facebook. We took an hour or so and got together for some snacks and chatting. It was so wonderful to be together again!

I then made a quick stop at my friend Libby's so I could meet her new baby Ella. Ella is absolutely beautiful and Libby is such a great mom!


We met the boys (after they finshed work and went golfing) for dinner at Brick Oven. I always have to eat at Brick Oven when I am in Utah. So yummy, but I admit it is better without a bunch of kids. Then we watched the Olympics together and cheered on the USA. It is sad for me to leave the Allreds, especially Rochelle. At least I get to see her next month for scrapaway.

On the way home we got to spend some time with our dear friends, the Garrards. Ken and Stephen have been friends since high school and he was even the best man at our wedding. When I told Stephen that we would be there on a Sunday, we arranged to sing a duet in church. Stephen has the most amazing, flawless voice. I always love singing with him, but, truth be told, I get nervous because he is sooooo good. Whenever we get together, with Ken at the piano, we could easily spent hours singing together. So fun! Anyway we sang a nice arrangement of one my favorite hymns, Be Still, My Soul. Stephen and Ashlyn even made us a mouth-watering meal before we started our drive home to Colorado.

3 comments:

Elizabeth said...

So glad we got to see you why you were here! It was great to visit and has been such a long time.

Blaine and Tirsa said...

How fun for you to get together with Rochelle and Kirsten...and you all even match! Did you plan that for a really great picture??? :)

Steve Garrard said...

Oh the flattery!! Carli, you have a fantastic knack for exaggeration and ego inflation. (Ashlyn thanks you!!) And you are far too modest yourself. You could sing the birds right out of the trees! You are among my FAVORITE people to sing with and it was an absolute PLEASURE to perform with you & Ken. Thanks for choosing to spend time with our family on your hectic road trip - we'll see you again soon!