Apples and Kings

A few weekends ago I decided I just needed to not be in DC.  It's the fall!  Why not!  So I spent the morning in Shenandoah picking apples with Simone and Lauren and some other friends. 

It was a beautiful day, and I got to make brown bag apple pie!  (Big hit with everyone, by the way.)

Maybe that would be enough for someone, but not me.  After I got back, I went down to Kings Dominion with Jocelyn and Jeph.  They haunted it for Halloween! 

 

I'd never been before and I was impressed with the wide selection of roller coasters.  

And of course, we had to play on the bumper cars. 

We made friends with a little 13-year-old girl who was there with her family but kept going on rides all by herself.  We bumped into her a few times throughout the course of the night.  Brave girl!  Her favorite ride is Volcano!  I'm just glad she befriended us and not someone else who was...not us.   

My newest favorite boys

I'm pleased to introduce Asher Matthew Scott Croshaw...

...and Cole Wright Croshaw.

They are the newest additions to my ever-growing list of nephews and nieces, and by some astounding stroke of luck, I've gotten to visit both of them over the past week. Each is a miracle, and is perfect in every way. This brings my total of those with whom I have aunt stewardship over, to 11. (And 12 is coming soon!) And you know what? It never gets old. Every single one of them is exactly the same amount of exciting as the one before. They're all favorites.

Unfortunately, my trip to see Asher was a quick one, and was spent entirely at the hospital. But there will be more soon. :) I did get to spend a little time in Cleveland while visiting Cole. Colin and Lori took us kids to the Science Center (Mia: I am NOT a grown-up!), and we got to explore around all the fun exhibits. After that, Mia and Jack completely wore me out by playing tag and tackling me on the grass outside. I loved every bit of the whirlwind trip.

Here's a few of my favorite shots from the weekend.

Ben, Ben, and Ben's

That is correct.  Three of them, all on the same night.

Not too long ago, I bumped into an old friend from the BYU days, Ben (1).  Turns out he's out here going to school, too!!  And he's been here a year!!  First time I saw him was just a few weeks ago.  I'm excited about this.  He's my favorite Salsa dancing/skiing buddy, and I haven't been doing either of those as much as I should.  Anyway, last week we went to see Ben Folds (2).  Dude is amazing.  I was inspired.  Here's a taste:

After that, all I wanted to do was go to school the next day and bang on one of the practice pianos on campus.  ...I didn't, but I definitely thought about it a lot.

Ben (1) humored me by letting me stick to my usual concert tradition of visiting Ben's Chili Bowl (3) after the show.  Good times were had by all, thanks to Ben (1,2,3)!

Colonial Idol

Here's a vid to tide everyone over.  This guy just finished singing "Hinges," complete with all the actions and a pretty impressive handstand.  I keep hoping someone will send me a Paula picture they took when I wasn't paying attention, but this fuzzy, far-away image will have to suffice unless I hear otherwise...

UPDATE: I heard otherwise!!  Not close-up or anything, but here we are with all of our contestants.

Retreat from real life

So, I don't have class on Wednesdays, isn't that cool? Last week I decided to take advantage of it. Jeph and I headed over to the waterfront and went kayaking on the beautiful, clear Potomac River - something I've wanted to do for some time, despite the actual disgustingness of the water. It was a great time exploring under Key Bridge and around George- town (pictured behind us) and discussing how we wanted to invent a combination kayak/paddle boat and call it Kttksvrdrdgn. Marcia and I have since decided that Jeph has secret Jedi powers that enable him to convince people that not only do they want to do whatever Jeph wants to do, but also that it's the greatest and most fun idea they've ever heard. And in all fairness, it usually is.

This weekend was my ward's annual big "camping" trip/retreat at Camp Greentop. Always a fun chance to make new friends, catch up with old friends I'd been thinking about, and just chill out and enjoy the beauty that is nature. Which I needed. We even pulled out our home-made game of horseshoes (except it's with golf balls on strings that you try to wrap around PVC pipes. It's more fun!)

and we got some new fans!

Our service project got rained out, so a few of us took a side trip to Gettysburg, which I'd never seen before.

Very sobering, although I've never seen such an abundance of monuments in one location before. And I live in DC!!

Marcia and I kept the tradition alive by doing a dance for skit night. Last year we fulfilled my dream, this year it was her turn:

My hands are actually bruised from how hard we clapped. We put that together in two weeks! Not bad, if I do say so myself. We also did a spoof on American Idol with all the contestants singing Primary songs. I was Paula. (I've never worn so much makeup and bling. Ever.) I told everyone they were beautiful and unique and authentic. I think I told one girl I wanted to hang her from my rear-view mirror. While this skit came secondary to me in importance, I got a lot more compliments on my Paula performance. Oh well. Sad to say, I have no pictures. You'll have to take my word for it.

Nuggets of awesome

So, two completely unrelated people told me today that I need to give an update. I had no idea my adventures were in such high demand. School has been a crazy adjustment but it hasn't been hard enough to slow me down yet...I've just never had a camera when fun goes on. But since everyone asked so nice, I'll dredge up what nuggets of adventure I can think of to share...

Lately a lot of friends and family have been sending me pictures of the new additions to their families. Well, here are MY newest additions. I'd like you to meet Strategy, Statistics, Economics, and Accounting. They're very nice. 

Labor Day was a day of spontaneity. I went swimming with Lauren, and I went to a Nats game in the new stadium with Jocelyn and Jeph. (First time I've been inside - it's pretty nice! And they have Ben's Chili Bowl inside, can life get better? I submit that it can NOT!) Nats

actually beat Philly soundly, which is odd. After that, we all went to a cookout we'd heard about. Not one thing planned in advance. Love it. Here you can all see the wonder that is Nationals Park, made famous by a visit from the Pope earlier this year.

I messed up my ankle right before my race and wasn't allowed to run again until my ankle stopped swelling. Doctor Dad's orders. All the pain finally went away earlier this week, so I got to run!  I explored the neighborhood near campus. Nice area. I found Yuma Street, isn't that awesome? Some lady tried to solicit me to sign her petition to let her run for some public office as I ran by. I love that it's that simple to be eligible. Hooray for Democracy.

I found the piano practice rooms today at AU and got to bang away on the keys for a bit.  Joyness!

Let me introduce you to my Salsa dancing shoes. I bought them in Spain, which is ironic because no one Salsa dances there. 

I feel the need to make introductions because it has been so long since I have crossed paths with said shoes. But tonight we got to spend a little quality time together when I went with some classmates to Club Lima. (Restaurant by day, Salsa club by night! Lessons every Monday night and ladies are free until 11!) It felt so good to be dancing. Worth every blister that I now have.  (Also of note: you see a small portion of the amazing quilt my mom made for me.  One example of her coolness.  Here's one more: today I got a little surprise package from her in the mail.  One of them was a note that said, "I accidentally opened your fortune cookie." with a fortune that says "Soon you will be sitting on top of the world."  See what I mean?  Coolness.)

The upcoming weekends will be replete with awesomeness of blissful proportions.  There's some good stuff on the agenda.  I promise to share it all with everyone as quickly as possible.

It's a race!

This weekend I ran in a triathlon in beautiful Luray, VA with my friends, Lauren and Kara.  In celebration of current world events, my friends and I did the Olympic-distance tri.  And, in celebration of not having enough time or motivation on our hands, we did a relay, each of us contributing just one leg of the journey.  That actually ended up being very cool because I got to watch and enjoy the rest of the race.  I did the run, and I'm pretty sure it was the fastest time I've ever gotten in a 10-K.  Yay, me!  (My motivation: I had to finish before a girl whose teammate had been trash-talking one of my teammates during the bike leg.  Not cool, biker dude!)

I think we finished in about 3 hours.  Action shots will be posted once they become available.  The whole race was very scenic and beautiful, and only a little bit hot for my leg.  (But not humid, which was a dream come true!)  Humor me, while I share just a few examples of the scenic beauty.  It makes my mountain/lake-loving heart smile.

This little boy was cheering for his daddy.  He was definitely the biggest fan in attendance.

(I had to sneak in just one cool DC shot that I got when I went to see Superman at Screen on the Green for FHE. :o)

Finally I see the Baltimore aquarium

That's right, and it only took me 3 years to do it.  I went up with a couple friends, Jen and Nick, and we had ourselves a grand ol' time.  I must say, it really is pretty awesome.  Worth the hype - but I'm not sure if it's worth the $29 entry fee.  Good thing Nick hooked us all up with his military discount.

They've got a three-legged sea turtle,

(I hear they're making a prosthetic leg for the little guy. So nice of them.)

more different turtles with really long necks,

 anemones,


frogs, birds, and lots and lots of beautiful fish.  And some that aren't so beautiful.  

My personal favorite was probably the Marbled prehensile-tailed lizard, for obvious reasons.

The stars at night!!! Are big and bright!!!

Huzzah for getting together with the Croshaw ladies last weekend!  (Plus Jason and Colby.  Thanks for putting up with us, boys! To the rest of you sisters: you were definitely missed.)  Location of choice: Dana's new digs in San Antonio.  Our time together was most enjoyable - although I must admit, it really doesn't matter where we met up, it was just really really fun to be together. Lots of laughing. I just love that we all have more or less the exact same sense of humor.  We even went out and got pedicures...and for whatever reason, three of us independently chose to paint our tootsies the same shade of hot pink.  Here is a sample of the fun.

"Wow," Dana reflects on the icon of her new home. "It's so tiny."

And it really is.  Everyone says the size of 

the Alamo is underwhelming.  It is true.

Stopping for an ice cream break as we strolled along the 

Riverwalk.  I guess DC is doing me some good - I wasn't 

as miserable in the humidity as everyone else.

The billboard: "EVERYTHING'S BIGGER IN TEXAS."  Just a 

block away from the itsy bitsy Alamo.  Other than that, 

and the women's bathroom in the airport, yes.  Tis true.

And of course, the darling children.  Little Lilia 

has such a sweet personality already.

Note: Colby's waffle is in the shape of Texas.  If there 

was any doubt, once again, Texas pride is very real.

Ultimate Adventure 2008, Part II

This next one is of a different nature than the usual adventures. Hopefully it won't slow down my other adventures too much.

No, I'm not getting married.

In three weeks I'm quitting my job and going to school full-time. While normal people plan for things like this way in advance, I was sort of blindsided when this option fell into my lap at the last minute (as was my boss, when I told him). I was pretty nonchalant about the application process and getting the GMAT taken, so even though I've been sensing that it's time for some changes, I didn't see this one coming. It is the end result of about two solid weeks of lots of pondering, praying, endless discussions with roommates, co-workers, family, college admissions advisor, Justin, and a blessing from the Home Teacher. After all that, I'm jumping in with both feet and I'm totally excited, albeit just a teensy bit wary of acquiring all that debt from tuition and having no job. Guess that's why the Prophet is always encouraging us to build up our savings - so I can actually have the option of making choices like this.

I broke the news to everyone at work today, and I'm trying not to think about that part too much. I'll be really missing a lot of people once I leave.

If you're curious about the details, I'll be enrolling at American University, in their Kogod Business School's MBA program. I've been to the campus a few times before for some concerts and it's really beautiful. I'm definitely not moving closer to campus because I just love my living situation so much and no WAY could I afford rent in DC. The only other detail I know is that orientation starts on August 19. Hopefully they'll be telling me more soon. Go class of 2010! :o)

Ultimate Adventure 2008, unfolded

I decided! You get it all at once. Brace yourself, it's a little long. More pictures are on my previous entry.

MAGICAL KINGDOM LEG - I won't say much about our flights out to Asia, except that Princess and I were stranded in LA for 36 hours. We went to Disneyland and saw Kung Fu Panda. (Fitting, yes?)

CITY LEG – Bangkok. We got the cheapest massage ever (and continued to do so about every other day) and explored one of the most popular night markets, Kao San Road. We spontaneously decided to get weaves in our hair from one of the street vendors. They said it'd take 2-3 hours. It took 6. I had blond and purple hair. Princess had brownish blond and pink. Aw yeah. That was our one night in Bangkok.

We only ended up getting about an hour and a half the next day to see the Grand Palace (a golden and sparkly assault on the eyes) and the largest reclining Buddha statue in the world. It is seriously big.

BEACH LEG – Phuket (Poo-ket). We filled our time with SCUBA diving (not even certified!), snorkeling and a hike on Phi Phi Island, and plenty of chilling out. We also had a very non-American zoo experience, with pictures with tigers and pythons, and a dude putting his head in a croc's mouth.

BOHEMIAN LEG – Chiang Mai. I'm a big fan. We spent the first two days on a crazy trek adventure outside of the city that included hiking about 18K over some mountains and through some rice paddies and under a waterfall, sleeping in a bamboo hut under mosquito nets, taking a ride on an elephant, and going down a river on a bamboo raft.

We found a local massage therapist who gave us a crash course in arm and back massage. Princess also found a Buddhist university and we got to help the monks practice their English. It was fascinating. 

HISTORICAL LEG – Cambodia. We saw Angkor Wat and WOW!! I usually get bored pretty fast with historical landmarks, but we were having a great time exploring! Is it Hindu? Is it Buddhist? Yes! We spent two days there – one on foot, another on bikes.

We also visited a monastery that had been built where the killing fields had been from the days of Pol Pot. Princess and I realized that most of the people we saw had probably been here for it all - even our tuk tuk driver friend. So we asked him. He was there, and he told us all about it. It was very sobering.

BOATING LEG – Vietnam. My strongest memory of Hanoi is of the scooters. I've been to a few countries and seen some pretty insane driving. But Hanoi is in a league all of its own. It is the most organized chaos on the road I have ever seen.

We took a day trip to see Ha Long Bay, which is in the standing to become one of the 7 natural wonders of the world. There are about 1900 small rock-cliff islands in this bay. It really is breathtaking. We were with a tour group, but we did get a chance to jump into a kayak and explore on our own around a few caves.

Princess and I had an unintentional extra day in Hanoi. (I won't go into the details of “why.” Suffice it to say, Delta left us high and dry, for the second time. Bad Delta!) BUT it gave us a chance to enjoy the lakes. Hanoi is full of them, and each one is surrounded by a beautiful park. We spent a few hours just coasting in a paddleboat on one of the lakes. It was the picture of contentment.

Some random tidbits I noticed:
*People drive on the left side of the road in Thailand, but not in Cambodia or Vietnam. Also, cars don't have heating - only air conditioning. 

*American music is prevalent, but they're a little behind. I heard The Cranberries' "Zombie" five times.

*It's offensive in Thailand to let the soles of your feet show.

*It took six men to get my Cambodian visa - one for each step of the process. There's efficiency for you.

*More often than not in Cambodia the price is listed in dollars instead riel (Cambodian $), which is weird.
*I really love Cambodian curry, even more than Thai, which I did not expect.
*Crossing the street took us at least five minutes everywhere we went in Vietnam, regardless of the size of the street.

After all is said and done, I couldn’t have made that trip at this point in life with anyone but Princess. She handled all the stress and unexpected changes like a champ, and she made the most of every moment. Everyone says that now we should apply for Amazing Race. We think they’re right, and we're already working on it.

Southeast Asia in a Prehensile

I am back from my Ultimate Adventure, 2008 edition. The stories will come later. I may do them in installments. I haven't decided yet. The pictures tell it all better, anyway. Hope you enjoy!

Hi. I'm in Delaware.

I went to a wedding last weekend with Justin in the small town of Seaford, Delaware. It was a nice, quaint town, and much more diverse than either of us expected. The most fun we had was definitely browsing around Wal-Mart and playing in the toy section...or maybe it was walking to Dairy Queen in the middle of a rainstorm...or climbing all over this strange lopsided picnic table-hiking boots-basketball hoop structure that we could only assume was meant to be art...?

In any case, it was a fun little road trip, and the couple was surely a happy one.There was only one picture captured of us on their big day:
Yep, we were so enthralled with the party favors (bubbles!) that we didn't bother to look at the camera.

Sure, we'll grow up some day. But not today.