Trip to Utah, Part 2

Saturday

We enjoyed another yummy breakfast at the hotel buffet. This time they had raspberries, hashbrowns, AND biscuits and gravy. Breakfast doesn't get better than that. :) After eating we drove down to Pleasant Grove for...a Nauvoo reunion!! I was so excited to see these friends whom I love so much. It has been about 4 years since I've seen them. I've kept in touch with Anne and Ali, thanks to blogging, but that's about the only people I had heard from. So I was very much looking forward to our little donuts and juice picnic in the park. We got there late (Andrew's dad loves to talk to him about AF things and sometimes it runs overtime a little...) but still earlier than some. Seeing Ali Flegal and Anne Lee was the highlight of my life, I think. I just love those girls! The other attendees (as pictured below) were Scott Clarke, Paula, Cami, Ali holding her beautiful baby Henry, Jennifer, Anne Lee, me with my belly and Eva, and Sam with her darling little girl Brooklyn.

We all just sat around chatting for a long time. Cheryl Lauritzen, whom I also love to death, came a little later. Eventually everyone left, except...

possibly 3 of my favorite people in the world. Cheryl looked totally hot, by the way. She was going to a wedding and I got to meet her boyfriend Kyle. They were probably the hottest couple in the world in that moment.

The husbands watched the kids for the most part. Eva played in the bark and had a great time.

I just LOVED being able to hang out and talk with just the girls. Just like the old days. Seriously, I think in heaven everyday will be like that. We'll get stuff done, of course, but it will be with our favorite people from earth. And Ali and Anne will be with me. Thanks to them for planning this so I could see them. It was awesome.

After that had to end (I wish we could have talked all day), Andrew and I (and Eva, of course) headed to Orem to pick up Talon and Annie and then go to another place that I'm positive they'll have in heaven...Target. You see, I don't have a Target anywhere near me, and so when I get to go to one it's like a BIG deal to me. We bought Andrew a couple of shirts (as he had only packed one to fly in thinking he wouldn't be able to stay) and me some Vaseline, as he left mine in the chapel on Friday. Pappy also spoiled Eva by buying her one of those ugly Little Pet Shop stuffed animals that look like something off of a Japanimation. You know, like with the big stars in their larger-than life eyes. Eww. But Eva was VERY excited, and the look on her face as she ran across the store to show me was probably worth every penny he spent. :)

It was so great to see Talon and Annie, especially. It has been almost a year since we saw them and we loved being able to hang out with them. We also stopped at the Distribution Center, again for Andrew, and then went to lunch at Noodles and Co. I love that place--especially the Wisconsin Mac and Cheese and the Pad Thai. Yum. The rest of the afternoon was spent just hanging out with Andrew's parents and Talon and Annie. We went and looked at a townhome that Talon and Annie are thinking about, and then went for a late dinner at La Vigna. I had heard from Anne that it was awesome, so I really wanted to try it. I thought it was very good. Annie and Talon were not so impressed. They got a salad that was drowning in dressing, and then they found a hair in their soup. My soup was hair-free so I kept eating, but they (along with Andrew's parents) were pretty disappointed. But the dessert, they liked. :)

Eva was REALLY struggling by that time. She had slept for about 20 minutes in the car on the way down from Salt Lake that morning and that was IT for naps. I felt like a horrible mother depriving her of sleep like that. Amazingly, she did very well--MUCH better than she normally would. After her 2-week bout of terrible behavior, she seems to be back to her normal easy, awesome self. I love her. :)

She fell asleep in the car on the way back to Salt Lake and, for the first time, she stayed asleep when she was removed from her carseat. She has NEVER in her life stayed asleep, and I was absoulutely amazed. She slept on Pappy's shoulder all the way back to the room and stayed that way when she was laid on the bed.

Unfortunately we had to wake her up to change her diaper and into her pajamas, but she was so totally exhausted that she slept like a log once in her crib. I was pretty exhausted myself, and we slept well that night. I'm pretty sure my sleep number is 35.