devins dream mini

this past week devin got an early birthday present: a test drive in a old mini cooper. they have many in san fran and we drove an hour after dance to take one for a spin.
a few of the things that surprised me about the ole cooper:
-power steering. for those of you that dont know what that means, and i didn't, you are literally the one turning the car, aka its really hard.
-the trunk was big enough to put my lunch bag and nothing more.
-the walls of the car are almost as thin as tin foil(turned me off to ever buying one).
-it's height!! my head touched the ceiling in the back, what would someone reasonably tall do?
so very cute. so very fun. so very glad we aren't going to buy one-don't let devin see that. ps its his GOLDEN B.DAY TOMORROW!!!

take me out to the ball game

just as a disclaimer this is devin posting not mare, so if it seems different my apologies.

we had the opportunity to go see a sf giants game at at&t park, or a baseball game if that's easier. i speak for mare too when i say that it was a blast! the main reason for this was because we got FREE BOX TICKETS. it was a first time in a box for the both of us, and there is no better way to go. at&t park is located right on the ocean (which you can see in the third pic below) in downtown san francisco. we lost, but needless to say, it was a good first time experience.

when i think of san fran i think of:

LONG days full of beyond marvelous dancing.
sore muscles.
train rides into the city with devin.
and missing trains.
bums and hobos on the street.
story-book colored houses.
Becca Henderson. period.
rainbow flags.
the Lefrandts and eating a whole carrot cake together.
brown sugar with ginger caramel swirl ice cream at bi-rite...highly recommended.
dolores park
the beach...we hope to fly kites there soon.
oakland temple in all its glory. and it is glorious.
spreading the good news of the gospel.

that red tie

i still remember what devin was wearing the day he walked across the chapel room and i got a crazy feeling, fell head over heels in love with him, and was smitten. it happened to be this exact outfit + a suitcoat. it still gets to me. and adding an ocean view that is just a stone throw away from our place makes it even better.



ps. it was this past weekend that convinced us that we like it here- more to come.

lake tahoe done right.

once upon a time we went to lake tahoe on our honeymoon. it was a lovely honeymoon, but it had its rough spots along the way. let me share:
as opposed to being right on the lake with breathtaking views like we had thought it would be, the timeshare we were staying at was actually in reno NV-my cousin calls it the armpit of the world. it was pretty ghetto. there was no shuttle from the airport(it was very decieving online) and we didnt want to rent a car (devin was one year short of being old enough to pay the normal fee) so we took a taxi and were stuck in our hotel for five days- not a bad sentence for two lovebird honeymooners.
but almost a year and a half later we went back to tahoe in the summer and saw the real deal.
here is proof:
we stayed right on the lake, and got to use our new camping gear.
we made scary faces in the dark, and played bananagrams on our sleeping bags.
life is good.


ps. on our honeymoon we did pay the extra 100 dollars on the last day to rent a car, went up to squaw valley, made a candle, ate out for the first time(we walked to the nearest grocery store in reno and made food in our little kitchen for the first 4 days) and went ice-skating at the top of a peak at the ski resort.
it was a dreamy honeymoon, regardless of our funny circumstance. and we are still in love.

a visit to paradise, or just kate kelly's house

I'm grateful to call kate harline my friend because not only is her brother famous(she would be the first to admit it), but because she has a heart of gold. not only does she offer me to drink out of the jonny harline's cup when i'm at her house, but she has a sense of humor like none other. not only does her mom have the best sense of style ever, but she does as well. to prove it look at this first pic: ha. devin and i visited their new home in the historic distric of provo. it would be my dream come true to have a house half this neat one day. thanks for the inspiration!

i love you kathleen kelly.
ps. we're in san fran safe and sound!

up to the highest height...

....oh lets go fly a kite.
our dearest of pals, the johnsons, accompanied us to fly kites this past weekend. they are leaving to med school while we're in san fran. i cried saying goodbye yesterday, feeling truly grateful for all the spirits heavenly father lets us know and admire while on this earth.
nevertheless-it was beyond glorious, minus the fact that any wind you wanted had to be created by running. ha
afterward we made sushi with the killpacks.
heavenly weekend to be sure.
ps- we leave for san francisco in a little less than an hour. we are camping tonight on lake tahoe rather than paying for a hotel. estimated time of arrival in the bay: saturday afternoon. utah- we'll see you in six weeks!

my surprise

about a year ago devin and i invested in a quality antique chair from d.i. :) we, including myself, tried to reupholster it over christmas break- until i broke down after failing to sew something right.
when i returned from tour devin had surprised me with a new chair, and even more importantly different fabric than the $2/yard fabric we tried using the first time. it was a successful surprise. one of my favorite things about devin is his ability to try something new and with persistence become skilled at whatever it is.

welcome to tour overkill:

snippets of the byu tour experience:
Liberty jail.Adam ondi ahmen.Nauvoo, Carthage.Workshop class we taught at detroit school of the arts.Hats at the henry ford museum in Detroit.Lake michigan and lighthouses.Cheesecake Factory visits and motel 8's.Ferris wheel at navy pier in chicago and deep dish style pizza.The most generous host families: one let me put on a bee mask and look at their beehives afterwhich they graciously gave me their homemade honey, another had a house built on 35 acres of land.Typical visits to elementary schools to teach them dance and eat school lunch yum.Mall of america's rollercoaster rides.Museums, museums, and more museums.Minniapolis minnesota(my favorite city from all of tour)Wearing matching outfits and name tags.Antique tractors that you're not supposed to sit on in Nebraska. Winter quarters NE visitors center and temple(when immigrants came to the us by ship, they had to sleep four to a bed this size- i'm so grateful for them)