Getting To Know Utah...

Boy, do we have news for you! But, that will have to wait...first, let us tell you all about the week that we had...sorry there aren't really any funny stories this week, but we will post some pictures!

     Last Saturday we had the chance to see some of the beauty that Utah has to offer. We went hiking with Papa G up at Alta Canyon. It was absolutely gorgeous! It is so weird to see snow covering mountains at the end of July. Unfortunately, there are no funny stories about Papa G tripping this time, but he did lose his glasses. haha.

         Later that night, we got to do some catching up with a long-time friend, Analise. We went and saw the newest X-Men movie (which is super good, even the second time!). James McAvoy......Scrumdiddlyumptious! And who doesn't love Analise's innocent commentary on jokes that she doesn't understand in the movie? 

        After the movie, we got some frozen yogurt. When we got up to pay, the cashier told us not to worry about it. So naturally, as girls, we think some cute guys paid for us, right? haha. Wrong. They were just having a promotional and we were under the yogurt weight limit. Oh well, free yogurt!

      

      Sunday......singles ward. What's the first lesson on? DATING. What else? Enough said about that...

      This week was incredibly boring for both of us....let's just say I (Elizabeth) finished watching the Harry Potter series in my spare time. haha. 

       

      Over the weekend though, there was a YSA Summit. Before the conference, we couldn't pass up the chance to go see where High School Musical was filmed. (Probably because we could sing along with every movie because all the dance camps we did...haha). These are our best High School Musical impressions...

        On to the conference...It was a super cute idea. On Friday, there were a whole bunch of Minute To Win It games, food, and fun. It was like a mini carnival. Caitlin pretty much creamed me at all the games, except for my perfect aim with a squirt gun :). Later that night, there was a dance. It wasn't bad...the DJ and music were super good, but let's just say that they don't know how to do dances like the Sac YSA's do. 

        As we walked out to take a breather, we were approached by two super cute and funny guys. I think we burned at least 1,000 calories just laughing with them for the rest of the night. I guess guys really know how to divide and conquer here though...Caitlin's guy? 27. Mine? 29. Age difference? Big no-no. In our defense, they looked like they were only 24, or so, which fits into our 5-6 year age difference limit. In my guys defense, he thought I was 22 or 23. I guess I should be flattered. haha. Friday night was a blast.

        Saturday night, there was a concert. The bands were actually really good. It was a nice, chill evening.

         Time for our big news.....After a lot of prayer, each receiving a blessing from Papa G, phone calls and advice from family, more tears and then some, and other things here just so not happening to work out...we have decided to move back to California! Caitlin could no longer financially stay at Paul Mitchell because her hours were being dragged out, and after I met with my scholarship advisor, it turns out that with no actual guarantee of a scholarship next year, it just makes more sense to go to Sierra College and have that completely paid for the entire time. Utah is still always going to be an option in a few years when our lives have a little more security.

         Yes, we feel dumb for not exploring all of our options a few months ago, but this has taught us a good life lesson. Some people may think that we are making a mistake, but we have prayed and put a lot of thought into this, and we know that this is the right path to take at this time in our lives. God works in mysterious ways, we just need to trust Him completely. My sister Shanae gave me this advice,

Someday everything will all make perfect sense. So for now, laugh at the confusion, smile through the tears, and keep reminding yourself that everything happens for a reason.

       Our short stay in Utah has been a blast. We have loved living with Mama T and Papa G. We've learned some things too...My toothbrush is the purple one, not the green one (I think I learned that one too late...oops! haha). The wood plank in the bathroom is not meant to be stepped on...poor Analise fell right through the floor! And we've learned some more important things too, like our family is amazingly supportive, caring, and loving, and church can seem like it's specifically just for you.

       

We have also learned to bake...we're especially proud of Caitlin ;)

                                                

We're even cooking dinner tonight!

      

 Lastly, we've learned a super important life lesson that has become our motto:

"Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain."

One of the many Utah summer thunderstorms that we loved.

:) 

Our First Week In Utah...

Well, we have finally settled in! And what an adventure it has started out to be...

       Day 1- We said goodbye to our Mom and Gare-Bear, and we were officially out on our own. How much trouble could we possibly get into, right? Well that's what we thought too. I bet Aunt Tammi and Uncle Glen weren't expecting us to destroy there house, on the first day no less.
       We wanted to make our room more home-like, so what's better than ordering pictures of all our friends and family? I had yet to buy my laptop (this is Elizabeth by the way...Caitlin is cutting Papa G's hair) so I needed to use their computer. I had a flash drive and I go and plug it in and the entire computer goes black.  I seriously thought I had broken their computer. Turns out every time I put my flash drive in, the computer would go completely black. Needless to say, I haven't used their computer since then.
       Then, we had a load of laundry to do. Mama T said that their washer was a high-energy one, so it can handle large loads. Caitlin and I already have a bad reputation with our Mom about overloading the washer, so what do we do? We pack it full. Their washer already shakes the entire top floor, so we thought nothing of the noise and movement we were hearing and feeling. We go to put our laundry in the dryer and the washer had moved itself halfway across the floor, almost unhooking itself. Yeah, we were pretty embarrassed having to ask Papa G to put the washer back. But hey, they said it's happened once before....
        Alright. Bed time. No more problems. Not. Caitlin was making her lunch for the next day, and keep in mind that we are still getting used to their kitchen. I start walking down the stairs and I stop because I can see Caitlin's bright red face, and she's busting up laughing. (Papa G and Mama T are in the other room) Caitlin had broken off the front of their drawer. It was super funny watching her trying to put it back on. Don't worry, Papa G came to the rescue yet again.
       We were off to a great start right? Oh, we did go see Captain America that day too, and it was really good. We would recommend it :)

       Day 2- Caitlin was off to school....she goes to school at the Paul Mitchell in Provo. I was hoping that she wouldn't get lost....we will save that for a little later....
       I was home, nothing to do, just hanging out. So, Mama T suggested that I watch a movie. Our friend Kelsie had us start watching  the Harry Potter series before we left, so I decided to continue watching with the second one. They have an awesome surround sound system here, so you can get pretty into the movie. Papa G got really into the movie. He came up for some lunch and was watching the movie from the stairs with his bag of cheetos. I can see him from the corner of my eye start to walk down the stairs. Then, the next thing I know, Papa G is face planted on the floor with his cheetos flung everywhere. I didn't want to seem mean, but it was freaking hilarious! All he says when he gets up is, "I guess I miscounted my steps. Now I have to clean up my cheetos." hahahahahahahahahahahaha. It was so funny! I wish I got it on video!
        Caitlin calls me at about three-thirty saying that she's on her way home. It should be about a 45 minute drive, but she got home around 5:15 or so. Needless to say, she was taking a "scenic route" in the mountains above Sandy trying to find her way home. Oh, and she had no gas. And she had a GPS. She would.
         On the plus side, The Eagle is a good movie. Channing Tatum....YUM. ;)
         Day 3- No school for Caitlin! It's time for an exploration day! We decided to drive down to Provo so that Caitlin could show me her school, check out BYU's campus, and of course shop at the University Mall. It really is a long drive down there! We were going to walk around the BYU campus so that I could compare to my beautiful campus (just kidding), but we didn't know where we could park without getting towed. So, we just drove around...and guess what we found?! The MTC! All the missionaries were out walking around in little groups. They were so cute! It kind of felt like a proud mama moment for us. haha. The shopping trip at the University Mall was successful too!
          Now we were on our way to Salt Lake to explore the University of Utah and get some questions answered...and boy, did we get some questions answered! We of course got lost trying to find where to park, but did find the HUGE Institute building. (NO! We're not twins! haha). Then, we were on our way to the student services building. I got sent up to talk to admissions, and what do you know? The most BEAUTIFUL, HOTTEST, GORGEOUS, (and any other flattering term) man walks over to help me. You know how in movies people begin to stutter and totally forget what they were going to say? Yeah, that was me...the babbling idiot. But man oh man, he was sooooooooooo hot! I don't think I heard half of what he said because let's just say I got lost in those beautiful blue eyes of his. hahahaha. Caitlin was standing behind me, and she was blushing just being there! We were going to take a picture of him, but that would be creepy...but probably totally worth it. Just saying. ;)
          Day 3 was....pretty much amazing. Enough said.
          Day 4- This day SUCKED. Bad. Homesickness definitely kicked in. We did find a pretty walking trail overlooking a valley though. That will be our new venting place. Enough of this day....like I said, it really sucked.
          Day 5- Today! Caitlin was rocking it at school. Enough said.
          I've been extremely bored, so what does Papa G have me do? Clean windows! He said that I'm so good I could start my own business, so if you're looking..... ;)
          Today has been better. Just relaxing.

So, now we are ready for the weekend. We are ready to meet new people, and are really hoping to have an awesome Single's Ward. We're looking forward to next weekend's YSA conference, and starting to make new friends here. That's all for tonight!
       Signing off, Caitlin and Elizabeth