East Coast Fun

About two weeks ago, Boyd and I took a little adventure out to the East Coast! While essentially it was only a two day trip, we still had a blast and fit A LOT in. We figured that we traveled to 8 different states in the three days! First, our adventure consisted of taking a red eye on Friday night out to Boston where my parents picked us up from the airport. Then we drove to Vermont for my cousins wedding. We spent Saturday in Vermont, and on Sunday we drove out to Maine, and hung out on the beach and played. Then Sunday night we drove to Boston, and flew out early Monday morning and headed back home! While it was a whirlwind of a trip, we managed to take some pictures.

York Beach, Maine. This is the cutest light house you have ever seen. And housed right next to it, is a little restaurant with the most delicious lobster you have ever tasted.

My parental unites in York Beach. (My mom would spend every summer in York Beach when she was a kid, so we had a blast going to all her "usual" spots!)


Vermont is to die for. Honestly, just so beautiful. The whole state looked incredibly green and luscious.

My cousin got married on Lake Champlain in Burlington, Vermont. It was so picturesque, and a perfect day for a wedding.

Lake Champlain


We also went to a maple syrup farm! It was so yummy, that we bought tons of tiny little 3 oz bottles of maple syrup to bring home with us in our carry-on. I think we have enough for about 3 pancakes.
We had such a blasty blast, and my parents are some of the best travel partners you will ever meet. They are so easy going and always up for an adventure. Boyd and I are so blessed to have such a wonderful relationship with my family, and have the opportunity to spend so much time with them.

Keeping things Weird.

This last weekend, Boyd and I went to Portland, Oregon. Random? Absolutely. Fun? incredible. Place I would live? No doubt about it. Boyd and I honestly believe that our souls led us to to this little place of green trees, cloudy weather, and misfits. Don't believe me? You soon will.

We needed to get away because it has been a stressful as of late, with our new jobs, and all three of my grandparents passing within the last couple months. So Friday morning we hopped on a plane to Portland, Oregon. We didn't have any plans and thought we would just wing it. It was absolutely gorgeous and green and we had a blast!

Down Town Portland.



We went to the Saturday Market, where all different artisans gather and sell their hand made products. You wouldn't believe all the creativity! It was amazing. I love to sew and haven't done it for awhile, and it totally inspired me to get back to the thing that I love!
As some of you may know, my rockin husband can play the accordion. Yes, the accordion. While there, we found this man on the corner playing one. Of course, boyd went up and talked with him and they decided that they should "jam" together and put together a street corner band.
Another thing about us, we LOVE doughnuts. I think I even have blogged about doughnuts in the past. Well Portland happens to be the home of the famous VooDoo doughnuts. We waited in line for an hour for two doughnuts.. and it was worth it! They were all shaped funny and had silly flavors like chocolate and Bacon.
One day, we rented a car and decided to drive to the coast. We got to Cannon Beach, and found some of the most beautiful beach scenery I have ever seen. It was so different. Loved it.

Doesn't he look like Boyd??
When we got to Cannon Beach, we were hungry. So we stopped in for some tasty clam chowder in a bread bowl.

We then kept driving up the coast to Astoria, Oregon. It was this quaint little industrial beach town.

All the houses were these pretty little victorian cottages painted with bright colors. They told us it is nicknamed little San Fransisco because of the steep hills. LOVE it.

Pics are out of order, VooDoo.

Astoria. (The movie Goonies was filmed in this sweet little beach town).
Astoria.


We were talking to the man at the rental car place and he told us that people are rarely "from" Oregon. Most residents are people who visit Oregon, and find that it is the only place they fit in. And let me tell you, that is kind of how we felt.

Things I love about Oregon: The trees, people, city life, the fact that everyone has frizzy hair not just me, quaint homes, fun tunnels, beautiful beaches, yummy food, cloudy weather, dog friendly, easy going atmosphere, and really the overall culture and feeling.

Things I Loved about our trip and traveling with boyd: Not having a plan, Duck store, exploring, notoriously getting lost (we ended up in Washington), people watching, naps, long drives, making friends on the public transit, talking to the homeless, flying on planes, buying magnets, taking pictures.

I think we would do an awesome job at keeping Portland Weird.

Tribute to Grandmas

This blog post is a tribute to my sweet grandmother Nancy Williams. She passed away Dec. 4, 2010 in Plymouth, MA at the age of 84. This woman was literally a Saint.

For as Long as I can remember, my grandma has been the most giving person I have ever met. She has knitted thousands of hats for babies in the local hospitals, knitted many sweaters for the cold children in Afghanistan, and been a friend to countless old widows who needed a friend. When my mom was young, my grandma taught herself how to read braille and bought a braille machine (looks like a type writer). Every night after dinner, she would translate books to braille and then send the transcripts to libraries all over the country.

Not only was she extremely selfless, but she was so thrifty and creative! My grandparents used to drive in their motor-home from Plymouth to San Diego every other summer to come visit my family. One summer, they were passing through the agricultural check point coming into California. The man asked if they had any fruits or vegetables. My grandpa told him that they had a bag of apples. The man told them they had to give them up, but my grandma refused to waste perfectly good apples! So instead.. my grandpa put the motor-home in reverse and parked on the side of the road while my grandma made the apples into applesauce. When they passed through the check point, they told the man all they had was applesauce, and he let them through without hesitation. She is truly an inspiration.

At her tallest, she was only 4 foot 11 inches and probably only weighed about 80 lbs. But she showed more strength and resilience than most.

My grandmas funeral was held at, The Second Church of Plymouth, the church my grandma attended faithfully for many many years. Both my mom and uncle gave beautiful memories of their mother. Here is a quote from my uncle Craig; it pretty much sums it up:

"Let's imagine a passer-by out on the sidewalk, a person who doesn't know that we've gathered to honor the memory of a tiny old lady, a lady whose name is almost unknown outside of her family and circle of friends. The passer-by notices the large number of people gathered around the church. Through the windows he can see that the building is full. He says, 'Wow! a crowd like that must have come together to honor a great and powerful person!' And you know what? He's right... because the power to do good in the world has nothing to do with physical size and strength, and mom achieved greatness through countless acts of kindness that serves as an inspiration to us all."

Reflecting on my grandma’s life makes me realize how much more I could be doing. She dedicated her entire life to serving others and never thought twice when the opportunity arose to show love toward others. I'm grateful to have had two wonderful grandmothers that have been such great examples to me. Unfortunately, both of them have passed away within the past couple months, but I'm grateful to have had them in my life for so long.

This picture was taken just a couple weeks ago. It is a picture of my grandma standing in front of a loaf of bread, a pound of butter, a bag of flour, dozen eggs and a couple other things. With all of her coupons and rewards card, the grocery store ended up owing her 17 cents! The manager told her he couldn't give her 17 cents and so she said, " oh that's fine. The free food is enough." She walked out of the store with a bag of free groceries. (and yes, she knitted that sweater). My grandma rocks.


My Uncle Kevin, mom, grandpa and Uncle Craig.


The family with my grandpa! (I dyed my hair dark)


All my grandmas grandchildren were able to make it to her funeral, except for one, my brother Steven who is currently deployed.


The whole Williams gang.

Side note: I have always been able to knit. I don't actually remember being taught. I always assumed it was my mom because she is the one who taught me how to sew and garden. But I knit back-handed (backwards) and my mom doesn't. I always thought it was weird. Well I found out this weekend that it was my grandma who taught me how, and she also knits back handed! I better start putting those skills to use. After all, there are still babies who need hats and children who need sweaters.

The Pace Visit

Well Boyd and I have had a very Eventful month. So I thought I would start at the beginning. Early this month we had the Pace clan come and visit!! It was so much fun. My mom and dad caravan-ed with my brother and his family from southern California. We started off the family weekend by going to an apple picking orchard by Zion National park. (Photos courtesy of Annie, thanks!!)

I love this little family! Tom, Annie, Darcy & Kayla.
My mom and dad.
My Nieces were so good about helping me fill my bag up with apples!
Boyd and I currently live across the street from the Sand Hollow Reservoir. It is such a fun place to go swimming and play in the sand.

We also went to the Dinosaur Museum, I have been wanting to go ever since Boyd and I moved to St. George. The girls were a little disappointed that there were not actual dinosaurs, but it was still pretty interesting.
We also drove through Zion National Park. Earlier that day, I got bit by what I now believe to be a black widow spider, yes a black widow. My leg swelled up and bruised, but of course I was not going to go to the doctor. I would take some Benadryl and press forward through the day. Unfortunatly, the medicine made me sleepy, and I slept most of the way through Zion. But from what I saw from the pictures it was beautiful!

As some of you might know, I am the youngest in my family. My siblings aren't that much older than me, but growing up we were always in different stages in life. I have always had a very close bond with my family, But I am grateful for this time in our lives where life has evened out our age differences. It is no longer a "my older sibling" type of relationship, but a real and sincere loving friendship. Love you Paces, hope to see you very soon.

Real Salt Lake

I think I have mentioned in previous posts that Boyd and I love sports. We have made it a goal to see at least one game (in person) of every professional sport. So far we have crossed off the list: football, baseball, basketball.. and most recently soccer! we went up to Salt Lake to see their professional soccer team. Our friends Robby and Jessica came with us and we had so much fun! The stadium and the crowd were amazing. Unfortunately, Salt Lake tied.. but an exciting game it was.

Stadium Arcadium...



These guys played the drums throughout the entire game. They had fog machines, confetti and drums... perfect recipe for an awesome cheering section.
We also had the opportunity to visit Boyd's grandma and grandpa. We love them so much.

Next up: Hockey!

Guadalajara, Mexico 2010

This last week Boyd and I went to Guadalajara Mexico with my family! My dad teaches at a Univeristy in mexico for the summer. This is the second time Boyd, me and my mom were able to visit him and this time, my lovely sister was able to go. We were there for 8 days and had an absolute blast. We spent the vacation eating, relaxing, enjoying the beautiful weather and sight seeing.

Boyd me and Kim at this awesome restaurant, Adobe. It was a giant furniture store and a restaurant.

It is amazing how beautiful it is there. The trees are so mature and everything was so green! partly because it was rainy season.

We went to the movie theatre, and the only movie playing in English was Toy Story 3 in the VIP theatre. Turns out, the VIP theater was a little more expensive, but... we sat in lazy boy chairs and had waiters! They had Delicious chocolate cake.

Talaquepaque..

This is the Glorita, On sundays everyone comes here and brings puppies, crafts, and food and walk around this little park.
Famous painting by Orosco. (not sure about the spelling).


It would all of the sudden start to pour, then it would clear up. My mom didnt have an umbrella, so she was struggling with this pancho.

After Mass, the catholic church would sell these divine churros. They cost like 20 cents, 20 cents of heaven.

We went to this orphanage that houses about 200 children. My dad's students put on a party for all these sweet children. They brought three different pinatas, one was a life sized clown. While I was freaked out by it, the children seemed to rather enjoy it.
These two ones are brother and sister, my sister almost took them home.
This little guy is Bruno. He is one year old, and the most adorable child. Turns out, he didn't fit into my purse. Oh don't think I didn't try! All the kids wore red shorts and white shirts. They didnt have shorts to fit the little ones, so they would just waddle around in giant pants.



They had a music program, so the kids played us a couple tunes.

We ate at a lot of different delicious restaurants. One of my favs, La O.

We ate on a porch of a mansion.
The gang. . .
Universidad de Iteso.



Iteso..



Thanks everyone, we had a blast. . . . Love you!!!