Joys of Utah

Chris and I had a great weekend so I wanted to quickly tell you about it...

First: We rented the three Lord of the Rings DVD's and watched them. I want to know one person who doesn't like that trilogy. Legolace and Aragorn... they're my heros. I suppose Froto is as well. Chris kept calling the other two hobbits pippy and longstocking...haha. I know it's not that funny but it made me laugh.

Second: We got to go to our friend Becky and Jason's wedding at the SLC Temple. My first time in that temple, other than to do baptisms. Really fun experience. Jason's uncle is actually one of the 70s (Elder Zwick) who was the area authority over Chris's mission so Chris was happy to hear him talk again and do our friend's sealing. It was special for them and for us.

Third: equally as exciting was that Chris and I got to see Julie and her new companion for a few minutes before the wedding on Temple Square. It was perfect timing, pretty much bumped right into her, so we said hello for a few minutes and got to see her in action. Made me miss her even more though, so we'll have to keep the drop by visits to a mininum. She seems happy though and like she is doing wonderfully. Keep up the good work Sis!
Here is her new address on Temple Square so write her lots of letters:
Sister Julie Rathgeber
UT SLC - Temple Square mission
50 N. West Temple St. Rm BSVC
SLC, Utah 84150

Fourth: because Chris and I had stake conference in our ward today we decided to go to church at the facility Chris works at. His Healthcare Center has its own branch so it was really cool to be a part of it. Even more awesome was that President Monson showed up and was the main speaker of the meeting. We got to stand around with him after for a few minutes and shake his hand. What a great opportunity it was to be in the same small room with the Prophet of the Lord and feel of his great spirit. We love you President Monson.

It was a great weekend!
(again, you should all probably move out to Utah)

Snowy Morning

We woke up to snowcovered trees, cars, streets, walkways...very beautiful. Me and my camera decided to meander around Sugar House Park and take some shots of the lovely scenery.


of course, a shot of the acura in all her glory

Its about a 1.4 mile loop through the park, I love running around here.

the ducks walked right up to me, it was so funny. Sorry fellas no bread crumbs today...

Brother

Oh, did I forget to mention that Jake, my brother, has been crashing with us? It's been a great time. We recruit him to play games with us at night; generally against his will but once in a while he'll come quietly.

Jake's new haircut, looking sharp.

and us at Cafe Rio...the happy family.

Other weekend activities included shooting Chris's shot guns.

Chris's accuracy = 94%

Cassie's accuracy = 5%

Mine was a pathetic attempt but still quite fun.

A lovely weekend.

Bring You Up To Speed

A lot has happened in the last 6 months or so. Here's a little recap of all the action:

We got married in August of 2009. The wedding was incredible. We had a great time at all of the festivities and hope everyone else did too!















After the wedding we moved into a place together in San Diego, finally :). Then 2 months later Chris got a job offer (unexpectedly) in Salt Lake City. We said a few prayers, packed our belongings and headed north! Chris's sister Amy and her husband Scott were so great to us when we got to SLC b/c we crashed with them for about 2-3 weeks. We found a duplex in Millcreek (no we didn't buy, still renting unfortunately) and because Chris is working in Holladay it only takes him about 8 minutes to get to work, perfect. That is a lovely blessing after all the driving we Chris and I both did in San Diego.

Since we've been in SLC we have had a great time! Although it is cold, we both love the outdoors so living near the mountains and snow there is always a lot to do. More importantly though, it has been so nice living near family and friends. There's nothing like it!

Chris has done a fabulous job at his new position at Highland Heathcare thus far so we are really proud of him! He officially has secured his position as Administrator once he is done training (around April or May hopefully), so we are planning to be here in SLC for the next few years. It is so CRAZY, I know, but such a wonderful opportunity for us. So we feel very blessed. Me, on the other hand, I am looking for a job and keeping myself busy in the meantime. So anyone who come visits, you always have a place to stay with us.

We're thankful for all the blessings we can see in our lives each day and a so happy to be married to each other!

Some of our recent activities include:

CURLING WITH AMY & SCOTT.

Everyone should try this, it's so fun!

SNOWSHOEING IN OUR LOCAL CANYON.
So hard but of course so beautiful!



















And of course, the BYU Games. GO COUGARS!
(And Seasiders!)





Last but not least, a few shots at Chris's basketball game the other night with my NEW CAMERA! Happy Birthday to me. Now I just need to learn how to use it...







We will add more later but hope you enjoy seeing the beauty and enjoyment SLC has to offer. Everyone should probably move out here...