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.
:)
