A Short Getaway

Last weekend we decided to get away and take in a show at the Tuacahn, near St. George. Duncan had to help administer a tuning exam on Saturday morning, so we left early Saturday afternoon. It rained/sleeted/snowed through much of the drive, but we managed to stay entertained, as you can see by the short video clip of "Corny Collins" (from "Hairspray").



We stayed at the Abbey Inn, where you can get a reduced room rate and discounted Tuacahn tickets with their Tuacahn package, something I had done a couple times before with a group of friends. Here I am in our hotel room showing off my growing belly. :)

We had a little time to relax and then it was off to the show--42nd Street. It was quite windy and cool, so we bundled up for the outdoor, evening show. Well, the wind only got worse, and by intermission they canceled the rest of the show. :( We were disappointed, but happy to get out of the wind! Since we had a little extra time, we decided to go to one of my favorite St. George spots, Nielsen's Frozen Custard....mmmm. Then we went back to our room and played Scrabble....no, we really did. The next morning we filled up at the complimentary deluxe breakfast (they even had grits!), hit the road, and made it back for our 1:00 church meetings. It was a quick trip, but fun!

Oh, Baby!

Here's the latest picture of our little one--a little girl--at 22 weeks! We look forward to welcoming her into the world in February.

Happy birthday Hudson!

Nick, Kathleen, and Hudson arrived in Utah on Monday, Sept. 24--Nick on military orders, and Hudson and Kathleen to see Grammy and Papa before they leave for their mission to Korea. Monday also happened to be Hudson's 4th birthday...

... so Grammy and Papa treated the Utah crew to a night at Chuck E Cheese. Here are Kathleen and Madelaine, already picking out the prizes they hope to acquire.

Everyone had a good time with his or her ration of tokens!

Happy birthday Duncan!

Duncan turned 31 on Sept. 21 (the same day that Maizie and Chad welcomed their new little one, Olivia).

To celebrate, we finally made it to....The Melting Pot (after making reservations a good two weeks in advance).

My favorite part was the traditional Swiss cheese fondue.

Duncan loved the meat and the lobster!

By the time we got to dessert we were pretty full, but it all tasted so good!

Coming in February...

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Our due date is February 15, and we're so excited!

Gotta love ME

Our trip to Maine began when we arrived in Boston on August 3 and met our friend, Brad Barrick, at the airport. We stayed Friday night with Brad and Melanie and family in Norton, Mass., then it was off to Raymond, Maine on Saturday afternoon. Duncan’s parents have built a cozy bungalow near Panther Pond (actually a lake) in Raymond.

We really enjoyed staying with them in their lovely home, which features a swing in the living room.

It was just a short walk through the trees to get to the lake where the Petersons have several rental cottages and their grandparents’ summer home. Duncan grew up spending his summers there.

Other adventures included yummy clam chowder at Gilbert’s Chowder House in the Old Port section of Portland (a lovely city)

A bike ride around Peak’s Island (and a speed boat ride in a water taxi)

A walk along the Marginal Way in Ogunquit

Picnic supper on the beach

A sweet stop at Len Libby’s Candies in Scarborough where there is a 1700-pound chocolate moose named Lenny, the world’s only life-size chocolate moose

A visit to Portland Headlight

We also enjoyed hours of driving through the countryside looking at the beautiful New England-style homes. What’s more, Duncan got to see several old friends and reconnect with his roots. Most of all, we enjoyed spending time with Paul and Nancy, Duncan’s parents. It was a great vacation!

OPIc

OPIc stands for Oral Proficiency Interview-computer, which is what I have been learning to rate over the past couple days in White Plains, NY. I flew out Sunday and attended training on Monday and Tuesday at the LTI office (Language Testing International) in White Plains, about 45 min. north of NYC. All of the training and travel were paid for by LTI so it was a great opportunity for me. LTI/ACTFL has contracts with some Korean companies (like Samsung) to test their employees' English speaking proficiency, so all of the tests that I listened to during the training were of Koreans speaking En-gueuh-lish-ee. It was great! :) My training class had about 15 other people in it, so I got to know a few folks. There were two ladies from Cornell who have worked with Mormons before and who would love to recruit some more to come teach ESL there! :) Now I'm back home. Duncan worked so hard around the house while I was gone. He's so good to me!!