I wish I'd taken more pictures! One, now I need to rely on all you photo hounds to post your shots so I can unabashadly steal them (thanks to those of you who have started).
And two, I don't have shots of all the friends we met up with in Provo and Orem. We really worked to squeeze them all in--from my UVSC colleagues and Uchenna's BYU research group that we saw on Wednesday, to former roommates and our Country Springs Branch family that we saw Saturday and Sunday. Plus we stayed with our good friend, Eugene, before and after the reunion.
You can't help but feel warm and fuzzy about people who seem so glad to see you, and I wish I had pictures to capture the moment. Ah well, I was too busy enjoying the moment to whip out the camera.
Anyway, we started our trip by leaving our car at the Mistubishi dealership in Tulsa. We had to get new tires and some other maintenance, and they said we could leave the car there rather than paying to park it at the airport. They shuttled us to the airport and back. Pretty handy. Okay, maybe the cost of airport parking would've been a lot less than the $700 we spent on maintenance, but we had to get the stuff done, regardless.
Once we got to Utah, we got to work visiting people, as I mentioned. Actually, it was a good thing we spent a little time at BYU Wednesday afternoon, because Utah was surprisingly chilly. We had packed for the weather in Oklahoma, which has been HOT. It is summer, after all. But when Provo was fairly cool, we knew we'd be in trouble up in the mountains. So at BYU I bought school sweatshirts. As Jason said, that's why we looked so school-spirited.
By the way, here's a grateful shout-out to all those who gave us rides. Hilary and Kojo Davis took us from the airport to Provo; Eugene shuttled us around town; Aaron Nakkos drove us up to Aspen Grove and back to the airport. You guys are all lifesavers! And an extra-special thank you to the incredibly kind people in our Ponca City ward--Steve and Barbara Wood--who mowed our lawn while we were gone. You know how this Oklahoma grass can go crazy.
Of course Aspen Grove was a highlight of the year. Since you were there, I don't think I need to recap everything. I'll just say that while I didn't get much better at bad minton, I think I did improve my ping pong skills.
We loved meeting the new kids on our family block. I felt like I knew Anna, since she's the star of the De Marco blog, but turns out you can't just know someone from their pictures and anecdotes. Plus, I know this is a cliche, but I can't believe how all the kids are growing up. Time really marches on--which is basically its job, I guess.
And we really enjoyed seeing everyone in person. The phone is great for chatting, but there's no real substitute to being able to see and hug the people you care about, and talk and laugh all together in a large group, and converse casually over meals or while waiting for the ropes course. Ahh, family reunions--and we didn't even have to do the dishes.
Thanks to Grandpa, for bringing us all together, and to Mom for doing the leg work, and to all who worked behind the scenes. Thank you, thank you.
Coming attractions: Part 2 of the Big Trip--San Francisco!
