All New Adventures . . .

Happy Birthday, Evie!

2012-01-29T15:21:00.002-07:00

Evelyn turned 2 on Friday. She is now sleeping in a big girl bed and sharing a room with Ainslie. We can hardly believe she is getting so big. We are so glad Evie is part of our family.

Merry Christmas

2012-01-13T16:10:00.005-07:00

Primary Program

2011-10-16T17:33:00.002-06:00

Ainslie was in the primary program at church today. At all of practices she had a hard time getting her line right. She was supposed to say "I can follow God's plan." And although we have practiced many times at home and during the practices at church she always said "Families can be together forever." Some how between her nervousness and the fact that they sing "Families Can Be Together Forever, right before her part she just couldn't seem to get it to come out right.

But today she did it. She said her line perfectly for the real program. Josh and I were so proud. She is a great little person.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T21:05:00.001-06:00

We Bought a House

2011-03-03T08:39:00.004-07:00

We bought a house in Sandy. We think it is a great fit for our family and hope to live here for a long, long time. I will put more pictures on my blog.

"Santa Claus is Coming to Clown"

2009-11-29T17:18:00.014-07:00

Haven't been on here in a while. Here's a bit of what's happened in the last month or so . . .

It's now official. Josh became a real lawyer.
It was great to have family come to the swearing in ceremony. Ainslie was especially glad to have a few extra people to play with.Halloween came and went. Ainslie seemed to have pretty mixed emotions about Halloween. She liked running around the house in her costume, and she liked carving her pumpkin. She was particularly proud of the cat face (on the left side). But she really, really didn't like some of the decorations in the stores. When the time for trick or treating finally rolled around, Ainslie told us that she didn't want to go. "Too scary." So we stayed home and watched Halloween episodes of Ainslie's favorite shows. Fall came . . .
and went.
This last week we had a great Thanksgiving. We enjoyed getting together with lots of Janae's family for dinner, but we weren't quite sure what to do with the rest of our evening since we didn't go anywhere else that evening. So we decided to take advantage of the time and decorate the tree that Janae may or may not have put up a week or two ago. Fortunately, Ainslie has been very excited for Christmas for a while now, so she was lots of help. We even hung a few lights outside this year. On Friday evening we decided to join everyone else who has ever heard of Temple Square for a chance to see the lights. We didn't know that Friday was THE day to go see the lights, but we enjoyed spending time with Sue, Adam and Angie. This is the first year in a long, long time that we won't any finals this Christmas season, and we couldn't be happier about it. We have a lot to be thankful for, and we're looking forward to the rest of the holidays.

Bob Dylan

2009-10-17T21:33:00.010-06:00

This past Thursday we headed out to California for a quick trip. We flew out Thursday afternoon, and we were home Friday afternoon. Why such a quick trip? Well, Josh's mom had some great tickets . . . To a great concert, and she and Michael asked us to come along. How can you say no to this?Before the show, we had fun hanging out in Hollywood with Jody and Michael, checking out several of the tourist-y things to see around those parts and watching for movie stars. Then we headed over to the Palladium for the show. We had some great seats in the VIP section. We all knew the tickets were good, but we were pretty surprised when Johnny Depp and his entourage walked in and sat down just a few tables away from us. We even got to say "hi" to Mr. Depp at the end of the show.

The concert was amazing. Dylan is still going strong, and he and the band put on a great show. After the concert was done we headed out to haggle with a few vendors on the street for some concert shirts before we found ourselves at Denny's eating some midnight breakfast slams. It was quite the night. And to top things off, when we got back to the hotel we sampled some fantastic Amano chocolates that Josh's mom brought along for the trip.

Great concert. Great chocolate. Great night. But mostly great fun with family.

Saturdays . . .

2009-09-27T15:10:00.012-06:00

Since Josh has started working we're feeling like real grown-ups. What do real grown-ups do on Saturdays? Chores, projects, stuff like that. So Janae has been working on things to keep us busy. Her first thought was finding a solution for this:

She did some looking on KSL.com and found this:

Then we borrowed a saw from Sue, and Janae talked Josh into cutting the thing in half:
Now it looks like this:

We like having things tucked away a little more. It's nice. With that out of the way, Janae's moved on to the furniture . . .

But our Saturdays haven't been all work. We still managed to squeeze in some celebrating last week for Josh's birthday. We had fun with family coming over to our house, and as usual in this family, the party continues with more family this weekend.
We were also celebrating because we found out that Josh passed the bar exam. For a combined birthday/bar present, Janae got Josh some chocolates from Chocolatier Blue. Fantastic.

Prince Edward Island

2009-09-12T09:17:00.034-06:00

Part of the reason that we wanted to go to Maine was the relatively short distance that it is from Prince Edward Island. Janae is a long-time fan of Anne of Green Gables stories, so she has always wanted to visit the places that served as the inspiration to Lucy Maud Montgomery's stories about Anne. Plus we'd never been to Canada before . . .

We crossed the border much later in the day than we thought we would, so it was getting pretty dark. And it was very foggy as we were driving in. We didn't think about potential currency issues until we hit our first toll booth. We fumbled around looking for something to throw in the bucket, and finally Janae ran over to one of the booths with an attendant to get change. The whole ordeal ended up taking a few minutes. Fortunately there was no traffic that late at night, but we did thoroughly frustrate a Canadian man behind us who yelled at Josh as he switched lanes to go around us, "You could have killed me, eh!"

The fog stuck around for one more day, and we were sad that we didn't really get to see much of St. John, New Brunswick.

St. John sits on the Bay of Fundy, which is home to some of the biggest tide changes in the world. The water fluctuates 28 feet between high and low tide. This change causes a unique phenomenon called the reversing falls on the river as it flows into the bay. We weren't able to see the falls at their peak, but we hear it's pretty impressive. We decided we'd had enough of the fog and headed on towards PEI.
Fortunately things did start to clear up when we got closer to the island. We got some great views as we were going across the Confederation Bridge. We were amazed at the bridge. It's very long (about 8 miles) and very tall (almost 200 ft). Pictures can't do it justice. It's also very expensive - $42.50 - but only on the way back to mainland. You can visit from Prince Edward Island for free, you just can't leave. We were also surprised at how big the island is, and how many beautiful things there were to see as we drove to the place where we were staying. We managed to get lost a few times trying to find our B&B, but were very pleased when we finally made it to the Misty Meadows. Janae picked the place partially because of it's convenient location, and the next morning we headed out to Avonlea village to get a taste of what life was like in the world of Anne of Green Gables. We started out at school . . .

Then we played dress up . . .

Yup, ALL of us played dress up . . .
We made crafts with Josie and co. (characters from the stories) . . .
Drank raspberry cordial (but not until Josh made Janae confirm that it was non-alcoholic) and ate chocolate covered potato chips . . .
And met Ms. Of-Green-Gables herself . . .

That afternoon Hurricane Bill threatened to hit the island. The storm ended up as a near-miss, but we got hit with a lot of wind and a lot of rain. So we ended up spending time in the car looking for lighthouses. We found some pretty good ones . . .
While we were at the Avonlea village we met someone who was born in this lighthouse . . . But Josh's favorite was this one. The storm was really blowing when we found it, but he decided to jump out for a picture anyways.

The weather cleared up the next day, so we headed back to Avonlea to go for a spin on the carriage ride and give the pony ride a try. Ainslie loved them both.

After that we headed over to the real Green Gables house that was the inspiration for the stories. We took a little tour of the house . . .

And we even put Ainslie in the "special backpack" for a stroll through the haunted forest and down lover's lane.

Sadly, we had to leave Prince Edward Island and head back home, but we loved the time that we spent there.

Maine

2009-09-06T17:36:00.046-06:00

A little while back we decided that we wanted to try to squeeze one more trip in before Josh had to start work. Several attorneys at Josh's firm had suggested that it's good to take advantage of the time while you can . . .

So, we headed out to Maine to check out the coast and drive to Prince Edward Island. We saw lots of lighthouses, ate some great food, and had a good time. Maine is lots of fun. We flew in and out of Portland, Maine. Ainslie was pretty good on the planes. She loved The Incredibles and Hannah Montana on the planes that had TV's in the seats. We had a few layovers each way, so we ran around the airports trying to get her good and worn out in hopes that this would happen . . .
Ainslie was good in the car too. We spent a LOT of time driving, but with the help of a few DVD's, a laptop, and Phineas and Ferb on the iPod, Ainslie did just fine.
She did get burned out on the videos every once in a while and took it upon herself to come up with other entertainment. Like experimenting with her wardrobe while giving some goldfish crackers a chance to take a swim . . .
And we'd stop to run around or play at McDonald's when we needed a break.
The drive was worth it. We saw lots of beautiful lighthouses.
And there were lots of other beautiful things to see too.
We stopped in Freeport to see the LL Bean headquarters and check out some of the other stores there. Janae wanted to see the giant LL Bean boot, but Ainslie was kind of scared of the boot and opted to relax on some of the chairs they had out front.

We loved the view from the top of the Penobscot Narrows Bridge.
The weather didn't really cooperate when we visited Acadia National Park, but we loved Bar Harbor and want to go back to see more of what the fog was hiding in the park.
Ainslie was especially fond of the fountain in the city park in Bar Harbor. That night there was a jazz concert in the park, so we bought a pizza and had a picnic on the grass while Ainslie danced away to the music. When the pizza was gone we moved on to blueberry pie and blueberry ice cream. Delicious.Maine is pretty proud of their blueberries, and we ate lots of them. We also ate whoopie pies. But our favorite was the lobster rolls. We loved the lobster, Ainslie loved the lobster buzzer they gave us to let us know when our food was ready. She also loved posing as a lobster ("crabby") when we ate at Shaw's Wharf.
We ate some great food, but Ainslie's favorites were the "worm babies" and other treats that she ate in the car. Lots of candy. We stayed in some pretty good hotels as we went. We found some online beforehand, but other nights we took our chances and stayed wherever we could find a room. One night turned out extra adventurous when we got into Camden a little later than we thought. Most of the places to stay were starting to close, and we ended up staying in a little cottage that was threatening to fall off the hillside. The shifting had left a sizeable opening under the front door. This left plenty of room for a mouse who decided to join us for the night . . .
One of our favorite parts of the whole trip was the sunset boat ride that we took around Casco Bay. We had been hoping that we would find a windjammer that would be Ainslie-friendly, and Frances was perfect. The sights around the bay were amazing.Ainslie loved to ring the bell on the boat more than anything else about the ride.

At the very end of our trip, we drove down to Boston to walk the Freedom Trail. Our hotel in Boston was very fancy, and being in the big city really made us feel like we were in a different country. But we loved Boston. Once again, Ainslie was more interested in the playground at the park, but we managed to drag her along as we walked the Freedom Trail. We loved seeing Paul Revere's home,

seeing where many of the important events leading up to the Revolutionary War happened in downtown Boston,

and although we decided not to go onboard the USS Constitution (they say ringing bells on the ship is a big no-no, and Ainslie REALLY liked ringing the bell on our boat ride) we thought the ship was amazing.

We also got to see the church where the lanterns were hung before Paul Revere's famous ride.Lots to see in Boston. Lots to see in Maine. And we haven't said anything about Canada. It was a pretty big trip, and we all came home exhausted. But it was great.

Summer's over . . .

2009-09-05T10:12:00.012-06:00

Josh officially started work on Tuesday. That means that September is here. Summer is over. It's been nice to have the month of August to relax inside where it's nice and cool. But we didn't just hide insde all day. We also had fun discovering the parks in our area in the evenings when it cooled off a little . . .

Ainslie liked to pick dandelions.

Some friends here in our new ward were nice enough to give us their old slide, and Ainslie has had lots of fun climbing and playing in our backyard.

Ainslie wasn't the only one playing around here. Josh decided to give growing a beard a shot. Things were looking pretty good until he decided to give the trucker look a try. That didn't stick around long.

In anticipation of Josh's new work schedule we decided that it was finally time to buy a second car. Ainslie was excited to help Josh put the plates on the new car.

It's been a great summer, but we're ready to move on to new things. He's only a few days into it, but work is going well for Josh. He likes the people that he's working with, and although it's challenging, the work is interesting. Janae and Ainslie are having fun at home, learning new things and playing together. We'll miss the carefree days of August, but we've still got it pretty good.

Not a Chicken Nugget . . .

2009-08-31T21:32:00.004-06:00

When we first found out that Janae was pregnant, Josh asked Ainslie if she wanted to have a baby brother or a baby sister. Ainslie paused to think about it for a minute, and then she answered, "I want a chicken nugget."

Thankfully, we found out today that Ainslie is getting a little sister instead.

Janae's first thought when the nurse told us that it was a girl was "Matching Easter dresses!" We're excited to have two girls, and we're pretty sure Ainslie will be happy too.

One on the way . . .

2009-07-19T21:37:00.002-06:00

Our family is going to be a little bit bigger this January . . .

Webb Family Reunion

2009-07-14T08:23:00.012-06:00

This year for the Webb Family Reunion we went to Zion's National Park. Although we had a quiet a few kids in tow, we still managed to do some fun hikes. This is Grandma pushing Ainslie on the River Walk Trail.

Jed and Amanda won the award for best baby hiking gear. Even though we gave them all a hard time for how much space it took up, it came in really handy. Thanks for sharing guys.

After the rest of us were worn out from the River Walk; Jordan, Alyssa, Jed and Amanda continued hiking up the first part of the Narrows Trail.
We stayed at this classic motel in Mt. Carmel Junction. It turned out to be rather nice, and it was so fun to be together. Thanks Mom and Dad for picking this great spot.

The swimming pool was esspecially a big hit.

Happy Fourth!

2009-07-05T16:42:00.017-06:00

Our Fourth of July started with a trip down to Provo for a picnic not too far from the Freedom Festival. It was lots of fun to catch up with Jordan and Alissa, and Jed and Amanda, since we don't get to see them very often. Ainslie enjoyed the picnic, but it was pretty much torture for her to be that close to the pool without being able to go swim. She was bound and determined to get in, even if it meant she had to climb the fence. After a sno-cone and an interview for some infomercial thing, we headed down to Spanish Fork where Ainslie worked up a little masterpiece. She also had fun stomping on some snappers.
Ainslie also spent some time getting to know Jordan and Alissa's new dog, Tucker. And we picked a cherry or two before we took off for a nap in the car. We spent the evening at a barbecue in Lehi with some of Josh's family. The food was great, and Ainslie had a lot of fun playing on the tramp, as usual.
We all enjoyed some deliciously patriotic cupcakes,

and at the end of the evening, Ainslie was looking smashing in a pair of new sunglasses.

This Fourth, we were also happy to see Major League Baseball's efforts to raise awareness about ALS. One of Josh's favorite professors, Michael Goldsmith, first proposed the idea last year, and since then the MLB has been working to make it happen. You can read more about his efforts and success here, here, and here.

We wish Professor Goldsmith all of the very, very best in his efforts to fight this disease. He is a truly great example of how to live a "can do" life.

Auf Wiedersehen!

2009-06-21T21:43:00.002-06:00

This last week we said sad goodbyes to our friend Bjorn. He's been living with Josh's parents for the last year, but on Wednesday he headed home to Stuttgart, Germany. We hope we'll get to see him someday soon - here in Utah or in Germany (if we're lucky).

The New Place . . .

2009-06-13T18:19:00.004-06:00

After looking at dozens of places, we've finally figured out where we're going to live for the next year (or so). All three of us are very excited for the new place. It will be nice to have a little more room to stretch out, have a yard, and be just a few minutes from Josh's work.

We're going to miss Provo and the friends that we have here. We'll miss being so close to family.

It's a little scary to be moving on. It's nice living here on our oddly numbered street . . .
It's been a good place for us. Life has changed a lot, but we're excited to see what comes next . . .

The Happenings . . .

2009-06-07T19:05:00.015-06:00

The summer has been pretty busy so far. Josh has been attending his bar classes for the last few weeks now, and he's well on his way to being ready for the test in July.

Janae and Ainslie have made it to the pool a few times, and they've been busy working on their dance moves at home.We've also been eating some delicious food.Josh took a trip down to Moab with a few of his brothers to ride the slick rock trail. We also took a trip out to the Hogle Zoo. We went to the zoo last year, so we were excited to see if Ainslie was more excited about the animals this time around. We had fun at the bird show, and we saw lots of other fun animals. Ainslie's favorites this time around were the giraffes. We managed to catch them getting a bit of lunch.

Our biggest time commitment lately has been the ongoing search for a place to live. We're looking for something closer to Josh's work. We've seen a lot of different places, and we have one that we think would be great. Crossing our fingers that it works out.

This last week we also went to Mat and Breezy's wedding. The day was great, and the wedding was beautiful. Ainslie looked pretty cute in her new dress, and she loved playing at the reception. We were all very happy for Mat and Breezy. We love you guys!

Pearl Harbor

2009-06-07T17:39:00.018-06:00

When we were planning our trip, we knew that we wanted to visit the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. The memorial was one of the more serious stops on our trip, but we were very glad we had the chance to visit the memorial and think about what happened there. From the memorial, we could see a few places where the Arizona still reaches out of the water.But for the most part, the ship lies beneath the water.At the memorial, we were reminded of how many lives were affected by the attack at Pearl Harbor when we found Chandlers and Webbs listed among those who died that day.After visiting the memorial, we spent some time exploring the U.S.S. Missouri.The Missouri ("Mighty Mo") fought in WWII and more recently in Operation Desert Storm, but the ship is best known as the ship where the peace agreement was signed, ending the war in the Pacific. The agreement was signed right here . . . While walking around the upper decks, we were amazed at the sheer size of the firepower on the ship. We took almost two hours wandering around the seemingly endless halls inside of the ship. Josh was excited to see that the Legal Officer on board had a relatively spacious room towards the front of the ship, in the air conditioned section. We were both intrigued by the bread dispensers that we found in one of the cafeteria areas.The boat really was huge. We couldn't believe how much there was to see, and we were amazed when we saw that this little steering wheel steers the ship. We imagined something a little more of this variety . . .
It was pretty amazing to visit Pearl Harbor and the Missouri to see how the war started and where it ended so close to each other.

Polynesian Cultural Center

2009-06-07T17:00:00.016-06:00

One of Janae's favorite parts of our trip to Hawaii was visiting the Polynesian Cultural Center. She liked it so much, we ended up going twice. We missed a few villages on our first visit, and Janae was more than happy to go back and re-live some of the "memories" from the first day.

We enjoyed learning some of the history of the Polynesian islands and seeing some of the great displays/demonstrations that they have there. This double-hulled canoe is similar to those that the earliest Polynesians may have used, and some students and BYU-Hawaii learn how to sail it as part of a class. Not bad homework . . . The cultural demonstrations for each of the different islands were very interesting. It was fun to try our hand at a few things. Janae got adventurous with a Fijian tatoo . . .

And Josh got roped into some adventurous Tahitian dancing . . .
The word "volunteer" only loosely describes his decision to dance, but he didn't do too bad . . .

After a full day of exploring the villages, we headed over to the luau for more dancing and some delicious food. Janae has a post about the luau here, and more about the other great food we ate in Hawaii here. After dinner we watched another show with more dancing. We thought we had seen it all by this point, but this show definitely took things up a notch with more dancers and some pretty amazing fire dances.

The Cultural Center was definitely more relaxed than some of our other activities in Hawaii, but we thought it was great.

Snorkeling, Kayaking, Hiking . . . Oh My!

2009-05-18T21:28:00.045-06:00

Looking at our Hawaii posts so far, someone might think that all we did in Hawaii is take pictures and eat cookies, but the truth is that we were pretty active while we were there.

One of our favorite activities was snorkeling. We headed out to Hanauma Bay on our first morning and we couldn't believe how many beautiful fish were there. The bay is beautiful and the little video they make you watch has some catchy music ("Don't feed us at Hanauma . . ."), but the best thing about about Hanauma Bay is the amazing variety of fish there. We saw some really beautiful fish.We also went snorkeling on the North Shore in the tidal pools at Shark's Cove. Shark's Cove was pretty rocky, but we hopped out to some of the deeper areas and had lots of fun swimming with very different fish than those we saw at Hanauma. Shark's Cove seemed a little more wild. We went back to Shark's Cove a few days later when the surf was high on the North Shore, and we couldn't believe how much the place had changed. Occasionally, the big waves would crash over the outside wall of the tidal pools. The waves were kind of fun until a couple of them pushed Janae up and over some of the rocks. Ouch.Kailua is a great place to go kayaking. After we saw these guys take off one morning, we had visions of gracefully paddling the smooth waters around the island. Unfortunately, our two-person crew was a little less graceful than the one we saw that morning. But we still managed to have a lot of fun kayaking. Right away we set our sights on the Mokulua islands and started paddling. The one on the right is closed, but the one on the left is open to kayakers.The islands are a long ways out there, and we nearly got stranded on a coral reef that we didn't see coming, but we managed to make it. The islands are protected refuges for shearwater birds that nest in small holes that dot the hillsides.After conquering the Mokulua islands, we wanted to stop by the appropriately named "Flat Island" that is just a little ways off from Kailua Beach. The only downside to kayaking was the crazy sunburn that Janae got when she missed a spot on her shin with the sunscreen. Sunburn aside, we really enjoyed kayaking. Even though the beaches and the ocean were wonderful, we didn't spend all of our time in the water. After some snorkeling one day, we hiked to Manoa falls. The hike took us through some great jungly areas. We couldn't believe how green it was and how thick the different plants grew.We liked the bamboo.Although we were mostly interested in seeing the waterfall, the trail itself was pretty fun to hike.We could see the falls from a little ways away. Sadly, you can only see the bottom half of the waterfall from the bottom. But the view is still pretty great. We also went for a hike on the Kuli'ou'ou Ridge Trail. Josh really wanted to hike along the top of one of the ridges, and this hike was a pretty accessible route to get up on top. It was surprising to see how different the vegetation was on this trail. This hike was quite a bit more strenuous than the waterfall hike and a lot longer, but we managed to make it without too much trouble.

After hiking back and forth up a lot of switchbacks that didn't offer much of a view, we noticed this little bench in a clearing. We figured that meant the view was about to get good.And we weren't disappointed . . .

Once we reached the ridge top, things got fun. We were almost running from lookout point to lookout point to see everything we could. The views were amazing.We were up so high, that only the clouds and a few tree branches blocked our view.We wanted to keep going along the trail, but the clouds rolling in threatened to hide the sun away before we got back to the car. We were frequently surprised at how quickly things got dark, so we decided that we should head back down.Hawaii is an awesome place to get out and explore.

Wally Amos

2009-05-13T10:20:00.005-06:00

When we pulled into Kailua, Josh noticed a cookie store called "Chip and Cookie" and decided that he wanted to give it a try before we left. Well, it turns out that the store is the new cookie venture started by Wally Amos, inventor of "Famous Amos" cookies. While we were there we found out that Wally comes to the store on Saturdays to read stories to kids. Josh has loved Famous Amos cookies for a long time (and these new cookies are amazing), so we decided to go by on Saturday to try to meet Mr. Amos.
Turns out he's a very nice guy and was happy to let us take a picture with him - one of Josh's favorite parts of the trip.

Turtles

2009-05-12T21:23:00.016-06:00

If we do plants, we have to do animals too - right? Our favorites were the turtles that we saw out on the North Shore. We spent a while watching them on the beach, and chatted with the "Honu Guardians." Honu is the Hawaiian word for sea turtle, and the guardians are volunteers who watch the turtles 24-7 to protect them while they bask. The turtles really are beautiful. We're glad that there are people watching out for them. There's something very peaceful about watching the turtles sleep, but it was also fun to watch them when they would flip sand up to cool off.

While we're talking about animals, it seems appropriate to include a picture of "Ace." One evening while we were watching the turtles we met this old surfer, Ace. We talked for a while about topics ranging from the turtles' personal lives to . . . well, lots of other random subjects. Mostly, we just listened, and then he told everyone on the beach to "Watch for the yellow flash!" (he was wearing a yellow shirt), and paddled out into some insane waves. Total animal. If you want to meet Ace and learn about the advocacy work he's doing ("Keep the Ocean Blue"), you can find out more here, and watch a video here.

Flora

2009-05-11T22:31:00.010-06:00

One of Josh's favorite things to do on a trip is take pictures - lots and lots of pictures. These are a few of our favorite plant pictures that he took in Hawaii.

A Little Aloha . . .

2009-05-07T17:45:00.018-06:00

A few months back, Janae found some great tickets to Oahu that we could buy with the frequent flyer miles that we've been sitting on for a while now. We jumped at the chance to give ourselves a graduation present, and we've spent the last few months counting down the days to the end of the semester and our trip to Hawaii. So a few days after graduation Ainslie headed out to spend the time with her grandmas, grandpas, and a few aunts and uncles, and we headed out to an island paradise.
After she found the plane tickets, Janae also tracked down a fantastic place for us to stay, just a few steps away from the beach in Kailua and Lanikai (above). The location was perfect, and the people we rented from were very nice. We'd recommend it to anyone who's looking for a place to stay without the Waikiki traffic.
We expected to find some beautiful beaches in Hawaii, but we weren't prepared for how amazing the mountains would be.
And the beaches definitely did not disappoint. We loved to sit and watch the beautiful waves.
And it was fun to watch some crazy surfers take on the big waves of the North Shore.
We also liked watching the sea turtles and other wildlife that call the island home.
We ate some great food. And made some fun friends.

In short, there's lots to do in Hawaii, and we had a wonderful time.

Ainslie's Birthday

2009-04-27T18:11:00.011-06:00

Saturday was Ainslie's second birthday! We had a great little party with everything that birthdays should have. Like balloons . . . And cake for tasting.There was lots of other tasty food including some extra fancy hamburgers. Ainslie liked the broccoli cupcakes.Ainslie got some fun presents. Some familiar. . . And some new . . . Grandma and Grandpa brought the big surprise . . .And Ainslie already loves going for a spin.Unfortunately, the rainy/snowy weather left us feeling a little bit like this poor guy. Good thing we're headed for warmer weather!

Graduation

2009-04-24T20:50:00.014-06:00

It's hard to believe that we are done with school, but after today it's official. We started the day out at a breakfast reception for the students in Janae's Public Policy program.

Janae decided to walk at the law school's convocation ceremony, so it was nice to see friends from the MPP program.

While we were walking across campus we wanted to stop for a quick picture in front of this statute. We matched up pretty well.

In the afternoon we headed over to the Provo Tabernacle so that Josh's dad could take a few pictures before the crowds showed up. As usual, Ainslie was very excited to "Papa."

One of the best parts of today was the chance to see so many family members who have helped us make it to this day.

Long ceremonies aren't really Ainslie's thing, so we tried to get her worn out before things got started.
And we were very grateful to everyone who took a turn outisde while Ainslie was running laps.

Although we're happy to be finished, after as much time as we've spent, it's a little hard to say good bye. We're definitely going to miss the good friends we've made.But friendships go on. Fortunately, homework does not, and we're done.

Bring on the rest of our lives!

All Done!

2009-04-21T16:42:00.008-06:00

Somewhere around two years ago (four semesters back, to be exact), Janae headed back to BYU in pursuit of a Masters of Public Policy . . . Yesterday she took her last test, and today she handed in her last two papers. Four semesters, way too much homework, far too many late nights, and now it's all done. Today Josh picked up our robes for graduation, and Friday we'll walk. This is real people, this is not a drill . . .

First day heading back to school:After the last test:

A Tale of Two Breakfasts . . .

2009-04-19T21:46:00.004-06:00

As you may know, Janae is pretty amazing in the kitchen. In fact, she has a blog that documents some of her kitchen adventures. Josh, on the other hand, tends to avoid the kitchen when possible. This morning, Janae made a delicious fritata with broccoli, peppers, and crab. Josh doesn't do crab (they're too much like underwater spiders), so he thought he'd try making breakfast for himself. Smelling the fritata, it was clear that cereal couldn't compete with Janae's work, so he thought he'd actually try cooking something. It's probably no surprise whose breakfast came out better. The visual evidence is particularly telling:

Done with Law School . . .

2009-04-17T20:52:00.011-06:00

Josh took his last final on Thursday afternoon.

That's it . . .

He's done with law school . . .

Incredible . . .

Janae still has a couple tests and a few papers left, but she's really, really close. Graduation isn't until next Friday, so what do we do until then? Well, here's a glimpse of what Josh has been doing with his free time . . .

We got a ton of snow over the last few days. That was disappointing, but Josh got some fun pictures of it melting.
The snow took down several trees in our neighborhood, but he still managed to get a few pictures of the spring flowers. Josh and Ainslie are looking forward to some quality play time together. While Janae is wrapping up her studies, they'll be at home knocking over domino stacks.

Unfortunately, Josh's bar study materials showed up in the mail today. His prep classes don't start for a few weeks, so we're going to pretend the bar exam doesn't exist until then. For now, that box of books makes a great slide.

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T21:29:00.014-06:00

Easter really snuck up on us this year. With finals and other end of the semester things in full swing, the Easter Bunny didn't even have anything to bring to our place. But fortunately, we were able to be a little bit festive with friends and family at the Webbs' house.Ainslie was pretty excited to go looking for easter treats in the backyard. Janae was happy to help while Josh took pictures. Each find was placed in the bag, but a few were opened right away.Once her cheeks were full, Ainslie was willing to share a few of the Reese's eggs.But Josh didn't need to rely on Ainslie alone. he got out and found a few chocolates to take care of his own sweet tooth.The most popular finds of the afternoon were the kites that Grandma and Grandpa hid in the backyard. We didn't waste any time opening this one up. Ainslie was excited to see it go.And when the wind out back wasn't very good, we headed to the front to see if the ol' reliable canyon winds of Spanish Fork would be enough to get this kite going.The winds were great, and Ainslie loved flying the kite!Everybody else had a great time with the kites too. Kate and Brady were pretty good at getting the kites flying and doing tricks. Ainslie wanted to make sure nobody missed the excitement.

It was fun to spend time with some of our family. We hope that all of you had an enjoyable holiday and had the chance to think about the meaning behind the holiday.

ABCs

2009-04-05T21:22:00.001-06:00

Awards

2009-03-29T21:28:00.004-06:00

This past Wednesday the law school held their annual awards banquet at the Provo Library. The dinner was very nice, and it was fun to see friends from the law school there. Josh was honored to receive the A.H. Christensen Memorial Award for Excellence in Advocacy, as well as an award for Meritorious Contribution and Distinguished Service to the Law School. Josh and Dave were also recognized for winning the Linda Anderson trial competition last fall.
The banquet marks the beginning of the end of the year at the law school, which means that graduation is coming quickly. We're both excited to be done with classes, and nervous/excited for whatever it is that comes when we're both (finally) done with school.

Ketchup and Carrots?

2009-03-27T20:36:00.002-06:00

Yes, those puffy cheeks are full of carrots dipped in ketchup. Pretty weird, but she likes it.

Good to be Home

2009-03-15T22:24:00.022-06:00

Josh got home from Florida yesterday morning, and he couldn't be happier to be home (although he did confess to giving some thought to figuring out how Janae and Ainslie could join him in Florida, rather than him joining them in Utah). The whole point of the trip was to represent BYU in the ABA National Moot Court Competition. But there were lots of other fun things to do in Miami. On Wednesday night, everyone got to see the Miami Heat beat the Celtics. The hotel where they stayed was pretty amazing. Valet parking, hot cookies, they had it all. They stayed in a condominium unit that had lots of room for relaxing and some great views of the ocean.

The room really was fantastic, but staying on the 32nd floor was a little bit dizzying.

Miami Beach was just a quick 5 minute drive away, and the team made a couple of trips out to enjoy the beatiful scenery and to eat.

It was pretty incredible to see all of the Lamborghinis, Ferraris, as well as a few classics out under the neon lights on the beach.

On Friday morning, everyone headed out to Key Largo to go snorkeling at John Pennekamp State Park.

Josh had never been snorkeling before, but after a few mouthfuls of sea water he had a great time. (Thanks to Amy for taking and sharing the pictures)

The trip was a lot of fun, and the competition went well. Both BYU teams did a great job, but unfortunately, neither team will be moving on to the finals in Chicago.

It was a little disappointing not to advance, but at the same time Josh's chances of graduating from law school are much better now that he won't be spending all that time preparing for a competition. He's got some catching up to do . . .

Miami . . .

2009-03-13T22:08:00.007-06:00

This morning Josh woke up to this view from his bedroom window . . .

Yup, moot court definitely has its perks, and attending the ABA National Moot Court Competition in Miami is one of them. It's been a big time commitment this semester, but it also made it also made snorkeling in Key Largo this morning possible . . .

The competition is going well so far, and the team is doing pretty good. Everything wraps up tomorrow, and the team heads home on Sunday morning. Josh is very excited to get home, even if it means leaving the beach behind . . .

Graduation Pictures

2009-03-11T16:16:00.008-06:00

A couple days ago we got some family pictures taken for graduation. It wasn't our best session, but there were a couple that turned out pretty cute.

Ice Cream?

2009-03-09T23:00:00.002-06:00

Ainslie surprised us tonight when she decided to have some ice cream. She found this orange, stuck it in a cup and announced to us that she was having ice cream. She spent the next ten minutes trying to share her ice cream with us and telling us how "nummy" it was. We have no idea where she came up with this idea, but it looks like Ainslie's got some of her mom's creativity . . .

Favorites . . .

2009-03-08T22:25:00.005-06:00

This morning Ainslie surprised Josh with the declaration that the movie "Cars" is her "favorite." Every day we're surprised with her new words and emerging personality. To go along with today's new word, here are a few of Ainslie's current favorites.

Ainslie loves to color. Whether it's a crayon, her magic markers, or the magnetic doodle pad, she loves it when people sit down and color with her. Ainslie is also pretty crazy about shoes lately. She's been very reluctant to give up some of her old shoes (ones that are way too small), but the other day, she went for a pair of Janae's shoes.

Ainslie also loves to sing these days. We have a pretty solid group of primary songs and nursery rhymes that we go through just about every day. This is a recent rendition of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star:

Saint George . . .

2009-02-18T20:31:00.011-07:00

Last weekend we took advantage of the holiday and made our way south to sunny skies, warmer weather, and family that we don't see nearly enough. On Saturday we told Ainslie that we were going to see "Papa" and she was so excited that she didn't sleep at all on the drive down. Every time we suggested a nap, she told us "Papa" and kept on kicking . . . When we got there we were all excited to see family, but Ainslie was especially excited to see Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle Seth (she was excited to see Aunt Jessie too, but a busy work schedule kept Jessie away from the camera).While we were there Seth was nice enough to teach us how to play Rock Band on the Xbox. We were bad, really bad. Josh only got 1% better than Ainslie did on the drums. Bad as we were, the game is pretty addictive. Josh has always been a bit of a rockstar at heart, so he got a little intense playing . . .

On the way home we got to see Jed and Amanda's house in Cedar City and had some great lunch with everyone there. We also made a stop in Payson for Heather's birthday party. It was a great weekend with lots of family.

DC Wrap Up . . .

2009-02-18T18:07:00.027-07:00

Josh's competition in DC went great. The BYU teams were very successful. Both teams advanced to the semifinals and since they were the only two teams left representing the prosecution, one of them was guaranteed a spot in the final round. Josh's team didn't get that spot, but the other BYU team ended up winning first place. The competition had 24 teams participating from many prestigious law schools. Everyone on the BYU team was excited about their success in the competition, and it was great to have their hard work pay off.
Both teams and the judges from the final round (BYU on the left): With all of their winning in the competition, the team didn't end up with a ton of time for sightseeing, but they did manage to get out some. It stayed cold for the first few days, and it was absolutely freezing when Josh went to see the capitol and the Supreme Court.

As you might imagine, a group of law students was excited spend some time inside of the Supreme Court. They also got to spend some time admiring the Library of Congress .

Josh also got to spend a little bit of time in the American History Smithsonian Museum where he got to see a great exhibit on President Lincoln (that's the President's top hat). Though not as historically significant, he also got to see the painting of Stephen Colbert that hangs near the bathrooms on the fifth floor.

Speaking of Colbert, the group also dropped by the offices of Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who was featured on the Report a little while back. Josh was surprised with how easy it was to find the representative's office and how friendly the members of his staff were. The group got a tour of the capital building with one of the interns. They ventured into the tunnels under the capitol and got to see some of the cooler things in the capitol building.

One of Josh's favorites from the last trip to DC was the old Supreme Court room in the capitol. He snapped a couple pictures of the dark, windowless courtroom this time.

Trying to make sure they saw the DC essentials, the group also swung by the National Archives to see the copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights. It's pretty amazing to think of how much these documents have influenced in the last 200 years.

While there wasn't much time during the day, Josh also braved the cold a few times to get some pictures of the monuments at night.

On Sunday, the group slipped into the first part of church where the Hyatt's attend, and that afternoon Josh got to go back for a little visit with everyone.

That day was Emma's birthday, so it was lots of fun to be there. But Josh is pretty sure it's always a party at the Hyatt house . . .

On the last day, Josh got to visit the branch of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum that is located out by the Dulles airport. It was awesome . . .

As much fun as the trip was, the best part was coming home. Six days is a pretty long time to be away . . .

It's cold in DC . . .

2009-02-04T19:58:00.004-07:00

This morning Josh headed off to Fairfax, Virginia to compete with 5 other BYU law students in the John C. Costello National Criminal Law Trial Advocacy Competition. The team has been working hard to prepare for the competition, and they're looking forward to the start of competition tomorrow evening.

Basketball!

2009-02-04T19:36:00.004-07:00

Last weekend we took a little time on Saturday afternoon to get out of the house/library and watched BYU beat Wyoming at the Marriott Center. Tickets were only a dollar and our seats were pretty good. It was fun to get out and do something, and Ainslie had fun cheering for the Cougars. She's a champ when it gets to the "ra ra ra" part of the fight song.

One of the funnest parts of going to sporting events like this is eating the crazy food. Josh tackled the BYU treat, the Brat tail. Legend has it that Josh's former hometeaching companion is the mastermind behind combining a maple bar and a bratwurst. A little different, pretty tasty.

Ainslie opted for the more traditional tootsie pop and whatever other candy she was able to get from the nice lady who was sitting behind us (mostly licorice and sour patch kids).

It was great to spend a little family time together before Josh heads out to DC this week. We even managed to get a a family picture before we left.

It may not be our best, but it turned out better than this one.

Fish, fish . . .

2009-01-19T21:05:00.015-07:00

Today we decided to take advantage of the holiday and do something fun. We slept in, did very little school-related work, and headed north to check out The Living Planet Aquarium in Sandy. Ainslie is still a pretty big fan of fish, so we thought this would be right up her alley.
The aquarium is really pretty cool. The first thing that we saw were these amazing jellyfish.

Ainslie loved the big aquariums with lots of bright tropical fish.

We saw all kinds of colorful fish, and we even found Nemo . . .

Ainslie also enjoyed the motorboat,
and she had a great time with the "hands on" exhibits. Her arms were just a little too short to reach the stingrays and the "crabbies," but she would have jumped right in if we would have let her.

The trip really was for Ainslie, but we all had a good time getting to know some of the aquatic friends at The Living Planet. It was a fun place to spend the afternoon.
But, that wasn't all the fun we had . . . burgers at Chadder's and a trip to what has become known as "the dream house" rounded out a rather pleasant day off. Too bad it's back to the grind tomorrow because we could get used to this vacation business.

The Break . . .

2009-01-04T18:39:00.036-07:00

Farewell Christmas break, we barely knew ye . . .It really is incredible how quickly two weeks of Christmas vacation can pass by. We had a wonderful time spending so much time with our friends and family. The fun started with chocolate dipping with the family in Payson . . .

The table was covered with lots of tasty treats, and the Christmas music got Ainslie in the mood to dance. It was all lots of fun. Josh was pretty excited to see that some of the souvenirs he bought on his mission had found their way out of storage. His favorite was this one:

The parties continued with Ainslie's friends at Cindy's. Ainslie always has lots of fun with her friends there, and Janae had fun that day when she joined Ainslie for the party.

Before we knew it, Christmas Eve was here. We had fun with the family in Spanish Fork while we waited for Joe and Karrie's plane to come in, and we decided to open all of our presents that night, rather than wait for the next morning. Ainslie loved the doll she got from Johnson and Cory, and we were happy to get some great things for our emergency preparation stuff.

We were pretty excited to see how Ainslie would react to presents and all of the fun on Christmas morning. It didn't take her long at all to figure everything out.

After opening our presents at home, we headed down to Spanish Fork for some delicious Christmas breakfast and a chance to say hello to Joe and Karrie. As always, Ainslie had a great time playing with Jay Jay, and Janae wowed us all with her Christmas carols on the piano.

Then it was off to Payson where we came face to face with a giant blow-up octopus. Ainslie loved it, and she spent a long time crawling on, wrestling with, and lounging in the "spider."

But that wasn't the only present . . . there were lots of other great presents waiting for us.

It was lots of fun to see everyone, eat a delicious dinner, and spend time together on Christmas.

The next morning we cautiously ventured off to New Mexico for Jordan and Alyssa's wedding. After seeing several cars slide off the road, and suriving a brief choking incident in the back seat, we were very grateful for the offer to have Ainslie stay with Josh's family in Payson. We knew the drive to Albuquerque would be long, but when the roads got bad we were even more grateful that Ainslie didn't have to endure the long drive with us.

The weather was pretty rough at times, but this meant that there wasn't a lot of traffic on the roads. That made it nice and easy to just stop in the road and snap a few pictures along the way. The scenery was pretty nice (when the snow let up enough for us to see it).

The wedding was beautiful, and it was great to spend time with family in Albuquerque and on the drive home. We were very happy that we made the drive.

After we got home from New Mexico we got together with more of Josh's family for even more Christmas presents.

Once again, Ainslie got some very fun new presents. The giant Elmo book and blocks have been especially popular around here.

Lots and lots of fun. Unfortunately, its back to school tomorrow. We think we've got our schedules all figured out, and this semester promises to be a good one. If nothing else, it should be the last one, and that's pretty exciting.

Candy Windows

2008-12-24T18:52:00.012-07:00

On Tuesday evening we found ourselves with a little bit of time and an intense desire to get out of the house, so we decided to check out the decorations downtown. Each year, some of the businesses along center street create window displays made entirely from candy. We're not sure if Ainslie realized that they were all candy, but she seemed to think they were cool.

After seeing all the windows, we ventured a little further - waving at cars and enjoying the Christmas decorations.

Ainslie was excited to touch every tree that we passed . . .

And she insisted that she be the one to push the button for the cross walk.

By the time we got back to the car we were all pretty frozen. Ainslie wasn't very good at keeping her mittens on, and she loved walking in the crunchy snow (getting her feet wet).

But when we got home we warmed up quickly with some delicious hot cocoa.

It may have been really cold, but it was lots of fun.

Christmas Activities

2008-12-16T00:08:00.016-07:00

On Monday, Josh took his last final of this semester. Janae still has more work to do, but the end is in sight. On Saturday, we decided to go do something "Christmas-y" for a little break from the studying, so we headed down to Spanish Fork for the Festival of Lights.
If you've never been, the Festival of Lights is a fun way see some good ol' fashioned Christmas scenes illuminated in thousands of small, twikinling lights (some of them are even animated!).

They've got everything. Even Santa's there, staring at cars as they drive by.
There were also a few unique displays as well. Not sure what Rams butting heads and cowboys mid-rodeo have to do with Christmas, but they did have a certain charm.

There were also a few reminders of what Christmas is really about.
Ainslie loves the lights.
But, you don't have to go all the way to Spanish Fork for great Christmas lights. Just like last year, we have been scouting out some of the impressive houses in Provo. On our way home Saturday we stopped by a house in the river bottoms that has the brightest trees we've ever seen.
The pictures can't quite do it justice. The trees look like they've been dusted with candy canes. They're incredible.
So, if you're looking for something fun to do or just a way to entertain your toddler, we recommend the lights.

Pea Candy

2008-12-15T23:43:00.002-07:00

When Josh was little, his mom successfully convinced him that frozen peas were a special treat - pea candy. Even now, eating peas right out of the freezer is something Josh loves. These days Ainslie is getting to be a pretty picky eater, and "candy" is becoming a new favorite word. Inspired by Josh's mom, Janae has successfully convinced Ainslie that frozen peas are really just little, green popsicles. It's great. Ainslie loves to eat candy, and we love it when peas are candy.

Curlers . . .

2008-12-07T19:45:00.003-07:00

On Friday, we were invited to the annual Christmas party at the firm where Josh will be working next year. While Janae was getting ready, Ainslie wanted to get in on the fun. As you can see, Josh isn't too experienced with putting curlers in, but Ainslie didn't seem to mind the haphazard placement. They definitely had the desired effect . . .
Curlers are fun!

November

2008-11-28T18:33:00.019-07:00

And November's gone . . . What have we been doing to keep ourselves busy? Plenty, we've both been busy with lots and lots of school. Things started to get really busy for Josh with the Rex E. Lee Moot Court competition. And it continued with the Linda Anderson Trial Advocacy competition. The moot court competition went well (Josh and another student organized and oversaw it), and Josh and his teammate Dave won the trial advocacy competition. It was almost four weeks straight of nothing but long days, but he had fun.

With the weather getting cold, Janae has been looking for creative ways to keep Ainslie occupied in doors. One particularly popular activity is ripping up the junk mail. Try it, it's great.

When it's Josh and Ainslie, they like going for car rides. Josh usually takes a camera along, and the two of them have had fun taking pictures of the last few days of fall.

More recently, we had a great time spending Thanksgiving Day with our families. We started out the day in Layton with Janae's family. The food was delicious, and Ainslie had tons of fun dancing on stage during the "production." After that, we headed down to Lehi for more food and fun at the Davis' house. "Ains-o-wee" had lots of playing with Trey.
And she had fun playing on her own. There were lots of great toys, including some fun cars (Ainslie really like cars these days). And, she really enjoyed reading stories with Grandma Sue.
Life is busy, but we have lots to be thankful for. Wonderful family, great school opportunities, and this happy little girl.

Halloween

2008-11-02T21:26:00.008-07:00

Despite Josh's persistent efforts to expose Halloween as a terrible excuse for a holiday, candy and costumes won in the end. Halloween wasn't half bad. In fact, it was pretty fun.

Ainslie dressed up like a ballerina. Actually, we dressed her up as a ballerina, but she didn't seem to mind. She was a huge fan of the frilly tu-tu, and even put on a few little dance shows for us. Unfortunately, the costume wasn't quite warm enough for trick-or-treating, so we had to throw a few extra layers on when we went out in the evening.

It didn't take Ainslie long to figure out what trick-or-treating is all about. The knocks gradually got more assertive, and by the end of the night she would just walk right into the house and look for candy on her own. We had a good time visiting some of the people in our ward, and Josh was more than willing to carry Ainslie's candy while she pushed the stroller from house to house. "Candy" has become a very common word around our house these days. Fortunately, Ainslie didn't catch on to just how much she was getting as the night went on. We tucked it away on top of the fridge, and we're hoping that she forgets it's up there.

So, maybe Halloween isn't that bad afterall. If nothing else, Ainslie learned some fun new things to say . . .

Pumpkins!

2008-10-19T20:45:00.003-06:00

Josh hates Halloween. Janae remains undecided. But, Ainslie is loving it. For Ainslie, Halloween means three things: 1) dressing up like a ballerina, 2) more frequent discussions related to candy, and 3) pumpkins. The third is definitely the most important to her. Ever since the light up, inflatable pumpkins went up across the street, Ainslie has been in love. She can spot a pumpkin from a parking lot away, and demands that we take her outside to see them at least 5 times a day. Fortunately, some other neighbors put up a pumpkin that Ainslie can see from our window, so we can admire the pumpkin from the comfort of our own home . . .

Transcript:

A: Daddy, Daddy, Daddy.

Janae: What does a pumpkin say?

A: Boo!

Josh: What's out the window? Do you see pumpkins?

A: Yeah. Yeah. Pumpkin. Pumpkin. Pumpkin! PUMPKIN! Uh, uh, uh! (general excitement)

Happy Birthday Janae!

2008-10-18T22:03:00.002-06:00

Just a little over a week ago Janae celebrated the big 27. If you think that's old, you're wrong. At least she'll always be younger than Josh . . .

We had lots of fun celebrating with our families (thanks everyone!), and Ainslie is getting pretty good with candles. It's too bad she has to wait until April to get some of her own.

Daddy-Daughter Date

2008-10-09T21:35:00.018-06:00

This semester Josh is taking a beginning golf class at BYU, and he got a discount pass to Cascade. The pass comes with one free round of miniature golf, so Josh and Ainslie hit the "links" this Wednesday while Janae was in class.

The two of them had a great time. The rules of golf proved to be a little too much for Ainslie to follow (namely, hit the ball with the club), but she helped out on those rare occasions when the ball went in the hole.

But some holes didn't make much sense at all.

More than anything else, she had a lot of fun running all over that little mini-golf course. It was probably the biggest, greenest playground she's seen.

With all of the running from hole to hole, it was hard for Josh to keep up.

But even at Ainslie's quick pace, the two of them managed a minute or two to stop and appreciate the flowers.

In the end, Josh only hit the ball about four times, and Ainslie packed it around the rest of the time. But, the two of them had lots of fun enjoying a little bit of daddy-daughter time together.

Bargain Shopping . . .

2008-10-05T21:05:00.016-06:00

The big news this week is that Janae found some truly awesome bargains. Ainslie's winter wardrobe has needed a few additions, so Janae picked up a new coat for the winter cold.
But, the coat was just a little too big. Janae did a little more looking, and she found this coat for $10!
We've also been looking for a new carseat for Ainslie. Janae found a great one when she bought the big coat, but she decided to take it back when the coat went back. That evening, craigslist brought us this beauty for $10!
It's a better car seat, and it was a lot less money. Ainslie definitely likes the new perspective while riding around in the car.
With the new carseat, we decided to go for a little drive during the Sunday afternoon session of conference (and, Ainslie really, really needed a nap).
The drive was nice. We're loving this fall weather, and the leaves are beautiful. We even saw some wildlife while we were out and about.

After Ainslie woke up, we headed down to Payson to celebrate Michael's birthday. On the way into the house, Josh stopped to snap a few pictures of his mom's beautiful flowers.

We had lots of fun playing Ticket to Ride with everybody, and the dinner and cake were delicious. Ainslie always manages to find something fun when we are down there. Today it was the foosball table . . .

Always lots of fun at Grandma and Grandpa's house!

Back in the Saddle . . .

2008-09-30T15:13:00.012-06:00

This past weekend, Josh's brother Michael was nice enough to pump up the tires on Josh's old mountain bike, and the two of them went for a ride down the Bennie Creek Cutoff trail in Payson Canyon. The trail has changed some in the last few years (seems like more people are riding it lately), but it was as much fun as ever.

It was a great time to be in the canyon. The leaves have really started to change. It's beautiful.

Josh had such a good time getting back out on his bike that he wants to go again this weekend. It's a good thing he didn't get hooked like this any earlier this year. Nobody knows how much Josh, or his bike, can take. They're both a little out of shape . . .

Josh's Getting Old . . .

2008-09-21T21:51:00.018-06:00

We had a great weekend. It all started on Friday evening when we went for a big birthday dinner with our friends Rick and Natasha Harris. We've known Rick and Natasha since the Villa Maria days, and it was lots of fun to spend an evening of delicious food with them. On Saturday Adam and Angie were down from Logan, so we got together for a little dinner at our apartment. It was lots of fun to catch up with them and Sue. And, as if it wasn't enough fun to just get together, Sue gave everyone souvenir socks that she picked up on her recent trip to South Dakota. The three of us got some great, matching Wall Drug socks (it's hard to beat "Free Ice Water").

On Sunday evening we headed south for a little party with Josh's Mom and Dave. Although Ainslie was excited to see everyone, it was pretty hard to get her away from the trampoline in the backyard.

Put that little girl on the trampoline and she can really go . . .
Josh's mom made his favorite soggy lemon cake, and Ainslie helped him blow out the candles. She's got this birthday thing figured out.

It's a little odd to think that Josh is 27 and Janae's 27th is just around the corner. We're starting to get old . . .

Rise and Shout

2008-09-21T21:42:00.007-06:00

Last week, Janae's brother Jordan invited us to go to the BYU-UCLA football game. We had lots of fun watching BYU cream UCLA, but it was even more fun to spend a little time with family.

When we left to get Ainslie the score was 42-0. We may not be the biggest football fans around, but there's something very fun about seeing the team play so well this year.

Kite Festival

2008-09-13T10:29:00.026-06:00

Last weekend we headed south for the first annual Spanish Fork Kite Festival, held to celebrate the completion of the new "wind farm" at the mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon. We weren't really sure what to expect (it was the first annual, after all), but we figured that, at the very least, it would be a great location for a kite festival. The wind is always blowing up there . . .

A little while back, Janae picked up this nifty Elmo kite for about 80 cents at K-mart. Anyone who has spent more than two minutes with Ainslie in the last month or so knows that she gets pretty excited about Elmo on the TV, computer, doodle pad, coloring books . . . and this kite was every bit as awesome.
Janae helped her get it going . . . Turns out, Elmo was a great kite, and we all had fun taking turns with the kite.
Josh got it to fly clear to the end of the string. Right next to the public kite flying area, there were some professional kite flyers. Ainslie loved watching the big, fancy kites. Her favorites were the "kitty" and "fsh fsh fsh" kites that were getting pulled around by four wheelers.

It was lots of fun to see all of the cool kites. Over on the little reservoir they had some great trick kites that were being pulled by a wave runner.

There were also lots of windmill-esque decorations all over the place. Ainslie was pretty excited to say hello to this fish. She loves fish, almost as much as she loves Elmo.
There were lots of friendly city employees who were offering golf cart rides to get from the bottom of the hill (where the kite flying was) to the top of the hill (where the promotional booths were). We were probably a little too happy to skip out on walking up the hill . . .
We definitely thought the kites were fun, but the best part of the festival may have been the free Segway rides! Josh has been trying to figure out how to test drive one of these for quite some time now, so when we heard that the demos at the festival for free we knew we had to do it.

It's a bit awkward at first trying to figure out how to manuever one of these, but they turned out to be a lot of fun. Even Grandma Jan gave it a try. Ainslie was a little too small, so she just worked on her yoga moves while we took turns on the Segways.
They called it the "first annual" kite festival, so we think that means it will be back next year. And if it does come back, we'll be excited to go again.

Shakespearean Festival

2008-09-07T21:17:00.015-06:00

Last weekend we headed on down to Cedar City with Josh's family for the Shakespearean Festival. Unfortunately, quick overnight trips with family aren't quite as easy now that Ainslie's getting bigger, but we still had a lot of fun spending time with family and enjoying the play. Thanks to Mom and Dave for making it possible!Janae's been to the festival before, and sitting on the stage in the middle of the replica Globe Theater brought back lots of fond memories. Ainslie didn't get to go into the play, but she had lots of fun running laps around the campus at SUU.And she loved playing with the girls. Saturday afternoon we got to see Cyrano de Bergerac. Janae missed the first half of the play while she and Ainslie were taking a nap, but Josh thought the play was great. We're pretty lucky to have the Shakespearean Festival so (relatively) close to home, and we're looking forward to going back (once Ainslie's old enough to enjoy a play or two).On a different note, Josh inadvertantly caught this humorous series of pictures while we were in Cedar City. Binky falling in mid-air - distress over fallen binky - wiping it off - putting it back.

There's some problem solving skills for you. We're trying to be good parents by helping Ainslie realize that she doesn't need to have a binky in hand all of the time. But, that little green monster (the binky, not Ainslie) is proving to be quite the foe . . .

Summer at the Pool

2008-09-06T21:46:00.018-06:00

This summer, Janae and Ainslie spent a lot of time at the Veterans Memorial Pool here in Provo. Almost all of these pool trips happened while Josh was in Salt Lake working, but we lucked out and were able to get the whole family at the pool on the last day it was open this year. Ainslie absolutely loved the pool, everything about it: her swimming suit, her swim diapers, her hat. She knew exactly want needed to happen before a trip to the pool. The pool was a great place for Ainslie. She loved playing in the shallow splash pool and jumping off the sides of the big pool. You may not be able to tell from the picture on the right (you should be able to click on it for a better view), but she really did enjoy going down the big slide with Janae.

The little slide was a little more her speed. Ainslie's tube-suit helped keep her head above water when she got a little overly brave. As much fun as the pool is, you have to wrap up in a towel and head home sometime. The pool really was one of our favorite things in Provo this whole summer. We're going to miss it during these last few warm days of the summer. We're all a little worried about what we're going to do this winter when it's too cold to go play outside . . .

Harmonica!

2008-08-24T22:01:00.002-06:00

Her style may be a little different than Wilco's, but we're huge fans of this little girl . . .

WILCO!

2008-08-21T19:24:00.025-06:00

Way back in May, Josh saw that one of his favorite bands, Wilco, was coming to Salt Lake in August. It didn't take much for Janae to realize that this concert was a big deal, so we snatched up two tickets just before they sold out. Since then we've been counting down the days to the big show (August 18 was a long time coming). But, it was all absolutely worth it - the show was incredible. We showed up a few minutes before the gates opened and ended up pretty far back in a line that had obviously started with people camping out a long time before we even left Provo. Once we got inside we staked out a great spot towards the back. We were pretty surprised at how full the place was - the people just kept coming and coming. Apparently Wilco has a pretty good following around here. We watched a little TV on Josh's iPod while we waited for the show to get started until The Fleet Foxes came out to open things up. They sounded pretty good, but it was no secret that everyone was there to see Jeff Tweedy and Co. Wilco took the stage right around 8 o'clock and played for over two hours. Josh was happy as could be snapping pictures through the whole show. As the sun was setting some turned out better than others, but we walked away with a few pretty good ones.

When he wasn't taking pictures or singing along, Josh was keeping track of what songs they played. By the end of the night the list had 24 songs on it! They played a great show and then came back for two encores. It was awesome.
When things wrapped up we decided to hang out for a few minutes and let the crowd clear out before we headed back to the car.
While we were waiting, we took advantage of some cowboy's forgotten hat for a perfect souvenir shot to remember how perfect the show was. But, that wasn't the only souvenir. Josh has been longing for some nice office art, and when he saw this art deco concert poster, he decided that it would be the perfect addition to any office. It's hard to imagine that Josh could be any more of a Wilco fan, but this concert just might have done it. And after a show like this Janae can definitely understand why.

What Does a Cow Say?

2008-08-10T21:46:00.016-06:00

This weekend we headed out to check out a few of the animal attractions here in Utah county. Ainslie's getting pretty good at her animal sounds these days, but she's been working mostly with the magnet farm on the fridge. We thought it might be fun to check out some real farm animals. Sippy cup? Check. Pig tails? Check. Here we go . . . We know that fish don't really make a sound, but ever since she saw the fish in Uncle Steve's office, Ainslie loves fish. Cabela's has a great aquarium with trout and other fun fish. Ainslie was really excited when she realized that we were surrounded by fish. Big fish. Swimming fish. It was awesome. After that we headed over to Thanksgiving Point to see the farm animals. Ainslie had fun with the animals, but we found out that Janae has Dr. Doolittle-like abilities to get the animals to come say "hi."

Goats, sheep, cows, everybody was drawn to Janae. The turkeys freaked her out, just a little, but Ainslie thought the they were pretty funny.

These chickens were a little less threatening. Even Ainslie could tell that they were just babies.

Why do these pigs look so content?They apparently just had their fill of bagels. Our favorite friend was probably this little calf.

These guys added a certain degree of personality to the farm. The donkey was really ornery, but his alpaca pal was totally chill.
But, our favorite character was this guy. With a face like that, how could you not put a picture of this guy on your blog?Lots of friends, lots of fun.

Mommy's Little Helper

2008-08-07T21:52:00.002-06:00

While Josh is gone at work, Janae and Ainslie have been working on lots of fun projects around the house. It doesn't matter what Mommy is doing, Ainslie loves to help.

The Staycation. . .

2008-08-03T19:37:00.018-06:00

When our car broke down earlier this summer we decided that our dreams of visiting some tropical paradise over the 24th of July would have to wait. But, since Josh's Mom and Dave had volunteered to watch Ainslie while we were gone, we decided that we still needed a vacation. We just stayed a little closer to home . . .

We took one afternoon and went hiking around Sundance. We're pretty out of shape these days, so we thought it would be best if we took the easy way up to the top of the mountain.
After cutting out the difficult part of the hike, we had lots of fun walking around and taking in the beautiful scenery.
We did feel a little guilty riding to the top, so we decided we needed to do some hiking. We followed one trail out to some great views of Stewart Falls.
For some reason, while Ainslie was playing with Grandma, Grandpa, Michael and Heather, we ended up spending a lot of time eating at all the restaurants we could (Ainslie has made the last few restaurant trips a little too crazy). The first night we went to the Cheesecake Factory, and really enjoyed the food. Unfortunately, we didn't take camera. The food was beautiful.

The next morning we headed out to our favorite place for breakfast, the Blue Boar Inn.

The breakfast there is always amazing, and we had a great time remembering Switzerland while we chatted with the Innkeeper.

Could the food really be that good? We'll let these satisfied smiles speak for themselves.That afternoon we played around in Park City for a while and then headed in to Salt Lake. The Utah Museum of Fine Arts has a fantastic exhibit right now called Monet to Picasso. We highly recommend it if you can go. Looking at these amazing paintings reminded us of how much we enjoyed our time admiring the works of the Impressionists while we were in Paris last summer.

Although we had originally planned to have Ainslie spend two nights with the Reids, we gave in and went to pick her up that evening. We just missed her too much to be gone for two nights. But, we decided to squeeze one more meal in before we went to pick her up. We grabbed some sandwiches at Caputo's. Delicious.

If you're looking for colorful imported foods, try Caputo's. We had lots of fun vacationing close to home, and Ainslie had lots of fun playing with everyone in Payson. It was quite the weekend.

If you give a baby chocolate. . .

2008-07-31T17:38:00.009-06:00

Ainslie loves chocolate. We have a little bit of food storage under our kitchen table, and just about any time Ainslie gets quiet in the kitchen you can be sure she's digging for something sweet. Every once in a while Janae will give in and unwrap a chocolate for her (usually Ainslie just rips it open, she's getting a little too good with her teeth). This is what happens . . .

This little girl may have her mamma's eyes, but she definitely has her daddy's sweet tooth.

4th of July

2008-07-07T06:47:00.009-06:00

For the last few years, we've enjoyed volunteering with the Freedom Festival as part of our 4th of July celebrations, and this year we volunteered to help with the Freedom Festival Run. We reported for duty at 6:30 am, which was too early to be awake on a holiday, but it was just the right time to catch the hot air balloons taking off.

Our job at the race was to direct traffic and inform disappointed drivers that there is NO WAY they can drive across or down the race course. Josh made friends with a friendly BYU police officer who offered an authoritative voice to back Josh up when people insisted on driving past the barricades. Some people get pretty impatient, but we managed to keep the peace. As far as the race itself goes, we couldn't believe how many runners there were . . .

What do you get for volunteering? A warm feeling of patriotism, a very green t-shirt, and a picture with some friends from the ward. It's worth it.

In years past, we volunteered for Parade Patrol with the Freedom Festival, and we were also judges at the baby contest. In case you were wondering, you do get to wear a uniform when you're on Parade Patrol. Look how intimidating Janae looked in hers. Better not be throwing anything at the bagpipers when she's looking . . .

That afternoon we headed down to the Webb's for a little pool time. Ainslie and Bronx absolutely loved it.

Ainslie was very excited to get in the pool, so we didn't have time to change her into a swimming diaper. Turns out the regular ones really soak up the water.

Makes it a little tough to get around when your diaper is holding a gallon and a half of water. . .

Overall, it was a great 4th of July. We feel very fortunate to live in such a great country.

BYU Law Review

2008-07-02T22:25:00.003-06:00

Looks like the trip to North Carolina worked. On Monday Josh received an invitation to become an editor on the BYU Law Review. That means this next year is going to be very, very busy.

Webb Family Reunion

2008-07-01T21:48:00.001-06:00

This weekend was the Webb family reunion. We had a fun time staying at a nice cabin up above Heber, exploring Park City, and playing at Deer Creek with almost the entire Webb family.

There were lots of fun activities for the few days of the reunion, but Ainslie's favorite was playing in the water. She just charged right in.

Josh had to work Thursday and Friday, so he wasn't able to join the party until Friday evening, but that still left some time to enjoy the scenery around Deer Creek and snap a few pictures.

We spent all day Saturday swimming, digging in the sand, and playing on the waverunners. Unfortunately, Josh didn't follow Johnathan's example of proper sunblock application and forgot to put any sunblock on his feet. He's been limping around on swollen, red feet for the last few days now.

On Saturday, Ainslie's favorite activiy by far was playing in the tube. It was like her own little swimming pool. She loved it.

Everybody at the reunion had a lot of fun. For more pictures of everyone enjoying a little time on the beach, you can go here.

Ainslie's New Favorite Bottle . . .

2008-06-30T22:16:00.002-06:00

For some reason Ainslie loves to drink the water out of this thing . . .

Busy days . . .

2008-06-19T21:19:00.013-06:00

Wow, it's crazy how a final in Macroeconomics and a bunch 11 hour work days can lead to fewer blog posts. The lack of posts is definitely not due to a lack of things happening in our lives. It's the exact opposite . . .

This last weekend was packed with family get-togethers. It all started Friday when we headed off to Manti to see the pageant with the Reid side of the family. We were a little surprised at the traffic on the way down . . .

It was fun to be back in Manti and to sit outside the temple where we were married. The pageant hasn't changed much over the years, but it was fun to sit outside with a great view of the temple as the sun is setting and the stars come out.

We all had a fun time watching the show together and taking turns trying to keep Ainslie within eyesight.

She seemed to enjoy the pageant as well, but mostly because of the opportunity that it gave her to stay up late and run around in the dark. She was especially intrigued by the flaming volcano dance, and she was generous with applause whenever the music died down.

Josh had fun taking pictures of the temple as the night progressed.And he got a shot of the drinking fountains as well.That night we stayed there in Manti (Thanks Mom and Dave!), and we enjoyed a delicious pancake breakfast at one of the local churches.After that it was off to Logan for a little picnic with Adam and Angie. They took us to the Logan's first dam park. Once again, Ainslie loved running around looking at the ducks and wading out into the water. Adam and Angie provided some delicious hamburgers, and a little bit of whipcream-jello salad.It's amazing how Ainslie can run all afternoon and won't lose interest or even slow down until we get her into the car.Her new hat was a total hit on such a sunny day. It was a good thing we had several people to take turns adventuring with Ainslie (did we mention how she doesn't slow down?).We wrapped up the afternoon with a little bit of pinecone hot potato and juggling lessons . . .

A family picture, and then we called it a day. By Sunday, we were simply exhausted. Following in the chocolate success that was Mothers day in our ward, the bishopric decided to give chocolate covered oreos to all of the guys in the ward. Earlier in the week we got together with the Washburns (Fred is the other counselor in the bishopric), and we dipped a little over 200 oreos. From what we can tell, they were a total hit (the ones we "sampled" were delicious). And, believe it or not, it's the weekend again. This weekend promises to be a little bit slower, and hopefully more relaxing. Here's to catching up, and recharging before another week of working the summer away!

Mesa Verde . . .

2008-06-09T21:15:00.012-06:00

This last week we really wanted to take a little trip somewhere since it was pretty much the only time off Josh will have this summer. After realizing that Belize, Hawaii, and other exotic locations were slightly out of reach, the three of us headed off to Mesa Verde National Park. It was a different kind of trip for us, but we had lots of fun. The drive down went great. Ainslie slept for a good part of the drive, and we enjoyed seeing some of what Southeastern Utah has to offer.

Unfortunately, we didn't get to see much on the drive. We ended up leaving Provo later than we had hoped, and things were getting pretty dark as we passed through Green River. To make things worse, we made a wrong turn in Cortez, CO (it was too dark to see that the mesa was directly behind us), so we didn't pull in to our hotel until 2 am. Our room was in a great location, but the view wasn't much when we pulled in . . .
After all that sleeping in the car, Ainslie decided it must be morning when we got to the room. The poor little girl was still tired, but she just couldn't go back to sleep. After about 2 hours of intense negotiations we were finally able to convince her that it really was night time, and all of us fell asleep for what was portion of the night was still salvageable. The next morning we enjoyed some delicious breakfast and headed out to see what the park had to offer. We hiked to one of the better preserved cliff dwellings, and were amazed at how the buildings have survived.

We talked to one of the park rangers, and he told us that 50-60 people would have lived in this community. We figure that's probably about how many people live in our apartment building, but we're happy to have indoor plumbing and doors that lock (even if you can hear the neighbor's dance party upstairs at all hours of the night).
There really is a lot to see. Janae got to explore one of the many Kivas.
And, afterwards we went on a little 2.5 mile hike to see some petroglyphs.

The trail took us through some pretty fun little obstacles in the rock . . .
And we got to take a few pictures of the plant life along the way. When we got to the end, we thought the petroglyphs were very impressive. Definitely worth the hike.This family seemed kind of familiar. Judging by the way these parents are waving their arms around, they were probably up until 4 in the morning with their baby. We can sympathize.After the hike, we drove around the park and saw several more cliff dwellings. And we also got to meet some of the local wildlife.
Ainslie was always glad for a chance to get out and stretch her legs a bit. She's become quite the little stair climber these days.
In the evening, we headed into town for some dinner, and we found a great park where Ainslie was able to run around and get really worn out. We were prepared for another rough evening, but when we got back to our room she went to sleep in the crib without crying at all. It was wonderful.While Ainslie was drifting off to dreamland, we slipped out onto the porch and enjoyed the fresh mountain air while we watched a little bit of the Office on Josh's iPod.
Saturday we headed home, prepared for a long daytime drive with Ainslie. With the help of a few new toys (baby's first laptop) and a park or two along the way, we were able to make it home without any major trauma. And, Ainslie even went to bed at a reasonable time that night.

While we were in Colorado we decided it was a very good thing that we decided not to try to take Ainslie to Hawaii (that would have been a VERY LONG plane ride), and we also saw that some pretty nasty storms had caused flooding in Belize. Good thing we ended up picking Colorado . . .

Summer Work . . .

2008-06-02T13:06:00.007-06:00

For the last four weeks, Josh has been working as an intern at the Utah Supreme Court. Last Friday he finished up the project he was working on, and now he has a week to sleep in and play with Ainslie while Janae studies for a midterm.
Josh really enjoyed the work at the court, and he learned a lot while being there. The courthouse is pretty cool.

At lunch time, he had some time to get out, walk around downtown, and take some pictures . . .
It really was a great experience at the court, but next Monday it's back to work for the rest of the summer. This time at Durham Jones & Pinegar (the firm where he worked last summer). He's looking forward to going back.

It's a Zoo in There . . .

2008-06-01T21:45:00.006-06:00

This is a little late, but we wanted to post a few pictures from our recent trip to the zoo. With the rainy weather on Memorial Day we almost decided not to go, but by lunch time we were all getting pretty stir-crazy and off we went. The weather cooperated most of the time, and we were able to hang out inside when the rain was really coming down. Even with the bad weather, we all had a great time. Here's a few of the highlights . . .

The zoo has really been promoting the albino aligator they have. We thought it was pretty cool. They weren't the most exotic animals in the place, but we spent some time hanging out with these crazy looking turkeys.
Janae had fun playing with these rattlesnakes. Josh wouldn't even get close (had to take this picture with the zoom).
The Asian Highlands exhibit is very cool. We loved the big cats, especially this amazing snow leopard.

We probably had the most fun watching the different primates (who were mostly located in enclosed buildings that provided a nice shelter from the rain). These guys were pretty fun to watch.
And this guy really freaked us out (yup, that is Janae's startled exclamation you can hear in the video). No one knew there was anything in this enclosure, and without warning he jumped out of his box and came running at the glass like a ghost. Scared us all . . .

We also got to see the rhinos, elephants, giraffes, and several other fun animals, but when the rain threatened to pick up one more time, we decided to call it a day. Even with the rain, it was a great way to spend our day off.

Will you please let us put you in your crib?

2008-05-25T19:38:00.002-06:00

I Want to Ride My Bicycle . . .

2008-05-25T18:48:00.008-06:00

Lately it seems we haven't been taking advantage of the great outdoors quite as much as we could be, so on Saturday we rented a couple of bikes and a baby trailer from BYU and headed out on a ride to Utah Lake.We had a great time riding along the Provo River Parkway Trail. Even though the trail was paved, flat, and we didn't go very far, we were still exhausted and sore by the time we got back. Seems like lots of classes and a couple of desk jobs have left us pretty out of shape.

Ainslie had a pretty good time. We took a break to let her run around at a cool little park that Janae found the other day, and Ainslie had some fun playing on the swings.After a few minutes at the park, we slipped on down the trail, and Ainslie slipped off to sleep.Apparently the trailer was pretty comfortable because she slept the rest of the way to the lake and most of the way back to BYU. While she was dreaming, we were enjoying some of the scenery on the way to the lake. And Janae made a new friend along the way too.As we rode back up to BYU we were all wishing we could be the one riding in the trailer, but we pushed onward, motivated by the thought of lunch at the Creamery. Mmm, burger and fries. A great way to spend a Saturday . . .

Josh and Michael Still Love You Boris Yeltsin

2008-05-21T12:57:00.011-06:00

Tuesday night Josh and his brother Michael went to see one of their favorite bands, Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, play at The Kilby Court in Salt Lake. It’s been a while since Josh has been to a rock show, but this concert was totally worth coming out of "retirement" for. He took his camera along and snapped a few pictures:The music was great. Kilby Court is pretty small, but it's a great place for shows like this. SSLYBY have been touring with another Missouri band called Ha Ha Tonka. They've got a pretty cool southern rock sound.But, we wanted to see SSLYBY. While Ha Ha Tonka was wrapping up their set, Michael went to buy a t-shirt, and we got to talk to Phil (from SSLYBY) for a few minutes before they took the stage. We told him that this was Michael's first concert and asked if we could get a picture. He didn't seem to mind . . . During their set, he even dedicated a song "to Michael, because this is his first rock show.” Very cool. Here’s a clip of the song they played for Michael:
The band sounded great. Everyone had a lot of fun. After the show was over, we met Will, and talked to Phil again (who wanted to make sure we heard his shout out to Michael).

The guys in the band were all really nice. It was a great show. Lots of fun. Hopefully they'll come back soon . . .

If you're curious about the music, you can listen to Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin here.

More Pictures

2008-05-20T10:19:00.003-06:00

Here are a few more . . .

Real Family Pictures

2008-05-20T09:59:00.003-06:00

We got our real family pictures in an email from Target today. Thankfully, we think they turned out better than that other picture we posted . . .

Family Pictures

2008-05-14T20:30:00.003-06:00

We took family pictures today.What do you think?

Happy Mothers Day!

2008-05-11T21:02:00.005-06:00

Happy Mothers Day! We're so grateful for all of the mothers we have in our lives. We love you!*Sorry one of these pictures is a little old, and we couldn't dig one up with Grandma Raven. We need to do better . . .

Summer . . .

2008-05-10T21:16:00.008-06:00

Summer is great. There's nothing quite like having the time to sit back and enjoy a brownie without worrying about school or work. Well . . . Janae still has school, and Josh is working some pretty long days. At least Ainslie gets to enjoy a brownie!
Fortunately, Janae is only taking one class during the spring term, but even one class makes for some homework. So, Josh and Ainslie headed out for a little adventuring today while Janae got a few things taken care of for class. Up Hobble Creek Canyon the leaves were starting to come out.

A few miles up the canyon there are a couple of beaver families that seem to have taken up residence. Josh was excited to get a few pictures.
For Mothers Day our ward is giving out chocolate dipped strawberries to all of the sisters. So, on Friday night we got together with our friend Veva (her husband is in the bishopric with Josh), and we dipped around 150 delicious strawberries. We think the final product looked pretty great. And, everyone was happy to sample a few of the strawberries.

For more on the strawberries, head on over to Janae's blog for food and stuff . . .

Hilton Head

2008-05-06T14:03:00.010-06:00

While it was snowing in Utah (and Josh was working on the write-on), Janae and Ainslie decided to escape to sunny Hilton Head, South Carolina. Hilton Head is a charming island in the heart of the South, where a nautical influence can be felt everywhere you go.

Right outside our doorstep we found a sign warning us not the feed the aligators, and then we quickly discovered exactly to whom it referred.
Grandma Jan, Aunt Jana and Janae were proud to have finished off an overflowing bucket of crab legs, lobster, oysters and shrimp (along with the traditional Southern accompaniments of corn on the cob, potatoes, hush puppies and cornbread). Janae took the brunt of the oysters and found them quite enjoyable after figuring out how to crack the shell.

Ainslie didn't try any of the seafood, but she really liked the plums!

The beach was delightful. Ainslie took Grandma and Aunt Jana on a long walk where she chased seagulls and small dogs. Two dolphins swam up very close to where we were.
One of Janae's favorite things was riding bikes around the island, past the huge mansions, to this little fishing village and even on the beach. Ainslie liked the bikes, too.
We all had to get into the southern charm with our big brimmed hats. Thanks Mom and Jana. We had a great time!