Early Christmas, Christmas in Colorado, Late Christmas, 1st Anniversary, Apartment Hunting and 2009

My Grandpa lives in Colorado and was going to be all alone for Christmas, my family decided they were going to spend Christmas there to keep him company. Marc had never met him so we decided we would go with them. We had Christmas with my family a few days before, my parents got my brother and sister Guitar Hero World Tour and wanted them to be able to play a little before we left, and they didn't want to haul all our presents up. We were very happy! We got a Kitchen Aid mixer for a Christmas/Anniversary present from my parents, my little brother and sister got us a Nerf Gun set, we each got some clothes. It was fun to get stuff early, especially since Marc hid my present so I couldn't even guess!
Here we are playing Guitar Hero!

That night we came back to his parents house and all his dad's siblings and their families came over for the annual Chase Family Party. We had yummy mexican food, and took family pictures. We also sang Christmas songs, and talked with the grandparents about their Christmas traditions as children. It was fun to see everyone, especially since that is the only time we see some of them! Then after everyone left, Marc siblings and their families stayed, we had fun playing with our niece and nephew, Tyler our 6 month old nephew even fell asleep in my arms! He is such a cutie! Our niece Teagan is almost a month old, and she slept the whole time, but she was super cuddly! We are so happy they have kids for us to play with!

The Monday before Christmas we drove to Colorado with my family! It took us about 14 hours, we did have to stop to let the dog run and play, and it did snow on us pretty hard, but we made it! The next morning we went to my grandpa's and spent some time with him. I also took Marc on a tour of town, all 10 minutes of it! We also went out and bought some sleds and went sledding. I had not been since I was little, but it was so fun! The dog would chase us down the hill, jump in front of us, then jump out of our way just in time to get away! The next day was Christmas Eve. We went to my Great-grandparents ranch, they have passed on, but their kids now own the property. My dads uncle and his wife live there. The house is really old, but it does have some fun memories! We also got to play in the Snow Cat, it is like an off-road golf cart with tank treds for tires, it was a bumpy ride, but had a cover and was heated inside! That night we had a feast of Honey baked ham, cheesey potatos, rolls and broccoli. Then we watched A Christmas Story, a family tradition! Christmas morning we got to talk to my brother in Madagascar. It was so fun! My dad used Skype, and called all our phones, we each had 5 minnutes to ask questions, but we all stayed on the phone to hear what others asked! It was so nice to hear his voice, and we got a good laugh when he called my grandpa and when my grandpa asked who was on the phone, he forgot his name! Then we went back to my grandpas and gave him our presents. The boys all wanted to go shooting, so I decided to tag along. We went to some land near the family ranch. A good chunk of the land used to belong to my grandparents, they sold it to fish and game a long time ago! We found a spot perfect for shooting, just at targets, and set up. We built a fire and set up a nice spot. We had fun trampling around in the 2 foot deep snow, so did the dog! When we were all frozen to the bone, we packed up and left! We got home and realized that we had eaten far more the night before than we thought and had no food for dinner. There was a Chinese restaurant open, and we found it fitting since we had just watched A Christmas story the night before. On the was we passed a taxidermist that even had a leg lamp in the window! The next morning we packed up and headed home. In Blanding, Utah it was snowing lightly, but there was quite a bit of snow! Some people were really snowed in their homes!
Here are some pictures of us sledding:



At the ranch...

With Grandpa:



Shooting Trip...




Snowed in... Glad I don't live here!


Saturday after we got back we got to open presents with my moms side of the family, then made a mad dash to Marcs to open our presents and give our out. We got fun stuff then too! We got a cast iron casserole pot, a cookbook, monopoly, and a few other fun presents! We had fun playing and visiting with them too! We love our family so much! We are so happy to be moving home!

Monday was our one year anniversary! We can't believe how fast time went! It really feels like it has been just a few months! I guess that's a good thing! We got married a day after my cousins birthday, this year she had a build-a-bear party on our special day! I decided I would got meet my family out in Chandler and celebrate her 4th birthday. It was fun to watch all the little girls make their bears! Little girls are very creative with their bears, really who would think of a Cinderella Koala with glass slippers, a wig, and hello kitty undies? Not me! As we were leaving we spotted the Hickory Farms cart in the mall, everything was 75% off! Marc LOVES summer sausage and cheese, especially Havarti, which is hard to find, so I bought him a little present! We then went to Famous Daves, which is the best BBQ ever! If you have never been, you are missing out! It was so delicious and I was stuffed! I came back and Marc had been hanging out with his little brother. We played some games, then Marc and I went out to celebrate out happy day! We went to California Pizza Kitchen which is one of our favorite places! Then we went and saw The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I was so proud of myself! I tend to fall asleep in movies, but I managed to stay awake for all 167 minutes of it! It was pretty good too! It was really late when it got out and all the shops were closed, but I did get to pick out a new book at the bookstore!

Tuesday we took Marcs little brother and looked for apartments! We will not be back until July, but we wanted to get some ideas. We had fun thinking about when we live here again! We don't like just visiting! We went to FatBurger for lunch, and were too tired to look at more places! We came home and all took naps! It was so nice!

Wednesday we went to my parents to eat the top of our wedding cake that they saved, and we forgot! Good thing we have a few more days here! We also went to visit Marcs grandparents, we love listening to their stories. His grandpa was the US Marshall in AZ and has lots of good stories! Then we played Mario Kart with my brother to help him unlock all the fun things! Then we headed to Ben and Danielle's, Marcs brother and his wife, for a New Year's Party. We decided we are getting old because Marc was tired at 11! We played some games and chatted, and had a lot of fun! We got home around 1 am and went to bed! We did have fun remembering we were in Hawaii last New Years...maybe we should make that a tradition?!

That is what has been going on with us! Happy 2009!

Drive to AZ!

So yes, basically I think we are crazy, we drove to AZ for the second time in 2 and a half weeks! We planned on leaving Sunday after church, then we heard that there were going to be snow storms, so we decided to leave Monday mid-day. We woke up Sunday, and decided to leave after the 1st hour. When we walked outside it was snowing really hard, and it was freezing. We packed up the car and headed on our way, it took us about 1 and a half hours to get on the road after frantically packing, and finding a last minute home for our fish, thanks Beth! We drove to Salt Lake and stayed the night with my aunt. That night on the news there were tons of stories about avalanches and all sorts of scary things because of the horrible weather. We didn't sleep really well, but got on the road by 7:30 am. We drove through tons of snow, actually, Marc drove while I held onto the seat, I was so scared! I do not like snow one bit! The whole tome he drove there was snow falling, plows at every exit, and we couldn't see more than 40 feet in front of us, if that! We had already planned on going through Vegas on the was since Flagstaff was getting about 14 inches of snow! As we got to St. George it was snowing and raining, We planned on stopping there but Marc didn't realize how small it was and drove right through it! From there it rained...HARD!
Here is the snow my hubby so lovingly drove through about 2 hours outside of SLC, it just got worse!


About an hour outside of Vegas Marc decided that he couldn't drive anymore, so he gave me the privilege! The rain seemed to get harder as I started driving. We also made the mistake of printing directions off of google maps and not mapquest, there is a big difference! We felt like we were so lost, it took us on so many little roads! But we made it to the Hoover Dam! Usually it takes a long time to get through, but it was pretty empty! Unfortunately, there was an accident that had just happened, since the tow trucks hadn't come yet, we only had to wait 15 minutes! The roads through there were pretty slick, we saw a sweet blue Mustang that had spun off the road. The lady's front tires were on the road, her back tires were on the mountain, so her car was level, but there was a good three foot ditch underneath the car! She looked fine, but I was so scared, there were cars sliding everywhere! Luckily we made it through that and crossed back into AZ! We made it from SLC to Phoenix in about 13 hours, we did stop twice to eat, but despite the weather we were pretty proud of ourselves! Now we are enjoying the 50 degree temps, and the absence of snow everywhere! We will keep you posted, there is lots to come!
This is the canyon on the way into the Hoover Dam, the clouds were so low and it was so cold! We were glad to get out of there safely!

Arizona, Thanksgiving, and Marc's New Hair!

I know I have been slacking lately, but I have a very good reason! Marc and I were not planning on going home for Thanksgiving, then one day I decided that there was no reason that we couldn't, other than plane tickets were expensive and so was gas, but we wanted to be with our families. So we planned on spending about $3.00 a gallon on gas, and the day we filled up it was $1.97, we also found gas cheaper along the way! We were so happy to cut our budget way down, and spend some much needed time in 70+ degree weather! So, we packed up the car and made the 14 hour drive to our favorite place...Arizona!

We left the Thursday before Thanksgiving and stopped in Provo, Utah for the night. We made arrangements before leaving to stop and visit with one of Marcs favorite mission companions. We went out to dinner at a really yummy Chinese restaurant, and visited with them for a while. Luckily for me, they didn't speak in Russian too much, so I could join in on the conversation too! We woke up early that next morning, ate breakfast in our hotel, and started driving for the next 10 hours! We really didn't have to stop too much on the way, we had leftovers from the night before that we were able to keep refrigerated over night and keep in the cooler on the drive. Unfortunately, Marc decided that he wanted one of the REALLY hot peppers that was in the orange chicken, not a good idea! I spent the next 10 minutes or so giving him drinks and chocolate trying to cool his mouth off so he can focus on the drive. We stopped in Kanab, Utah and got an ice cream cone at McDonalds. Marc decided that he needed a rest, so I took over the driving for the next 6 hours! We were so tired when we finally got to Marc parent's house. We sat in the hot tub for a while, then went to bed.

Saturday we went shopping with Marc's parents and filled up on samples at Sam's Club. They were sampling all their holiday treats and appetizers, it was a great lunch! We then drove out to my parents house to spend some time with them. We went to on of our families favorite restaurants. It is this great little Ecuadorian place my family found after I left for school. They make the best tamales, my favorite is the Ecuadorian tamale, it is wrapped in a banana leaf instead of a corn husk, it is basically heaven to my mouth! Marc and I also shared a delicious Carne Asada salad YUM! Then we went back to my parents and played Wii sports with my brother and sister. Then Marc's family called, they were all going out to dinner at a burger place by his brother Bens house. We were still full from both lunches, but somehow we managed to eat again! It was fun to be with his whole family! His oldest brother has a baby who is almost 5 months old, we had fun playing with him, he was such a happy baby!

Sunday we went to Marc's parents ward. We also stopped by his grandparents house, they live in Arizona in the winters and had just gotten into town. His grandpa told us some pretty fun family stories that we hadn't heard before. Then we went to my parents house for a little Thanksgiving dinner with my family, they went to Safford for Thanksgiving so we celebrated with them early. It worked out perfect too, my brother forgot he had to create a device to drop an egg in for his Physics class. Marc loved his Physics class, so we set the two of them to work! The teacher had given them a list of supplies they could use. They spent a while putting together the egg device, and I must say they did a great job! The teacher first dropped the eggs from 3 meters high...it survived! Only a few students moved on after that, next the teacher dropped the eggs from the top of the stadium bleachers...again, it survived. Finally he dropped the very thick Physics book on it, unfortunately it didn't live through that, but only 2 students did. Marc was pretty proud of himself for his mad Physics skills.
Here are the boys hard at work:


Monday, I went with Danielle and Whitney, my sisters in law and mother in law to see Twilight! My family was lucky enough to see it a few days before it came out, so I was glad to have people to go with! It was great! Such a fun movie! I am not ashamed to say I LOVE Twilight! Marc stayed with his Ben and their baby while we went to the movie, he had fun playing with the baby, and his brother! We spent some time playing and talking with them after. Then back to my parents for some really yummy tortilla soup, gotta love moms home cookin'! We sat around the table talking and playing games for a long time after dinner.

Tuesday we woke up early and headed to Marc's grandparents, they live just a few minutes from my parents, they had asked us to help them clean their house. It was pretty dusty after being locked up for half the year! We chatted with them then headed back to my parents to clean up ourselves. Marc then went to lunch with his brother and a friend from work, while I took my mom and sister to lunch for their belated birthdays. We went to this fun shopping center on Happy Valley and I-17! If you are in AZ you should go! It is newer and pretty empty, but there are tons of fun places to eat, and tons of fun shops! We found this cute little gelato place and of course we couldn't pass it up! Then it was back home to spend time with the family!

Wednesday, we took my brother out of school, my sister had the week off, and went to see Bolt. It was really cute! We had fun with them at the movies and staying with them, but we had more plans! Marc's brother Ryan and his wife Whitney had planned a murder mystery dinner for the family! Marc was the groom of the deceased bride "Taffy Puller", she had been found before the reception started! I was the half sister of the bride and a former grateful dead groupie! We had fun dressing up and piecing together all the clues! Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures of everyone all dressed up! After everyone left Marc and I and his little brother Stefan made Carmel Apple Cheesecake for Thanksgiving dessert!

Thursday when we woke up it was really wet outside, it rained all day Wednesday, so we weren't surprised. It was really pretty, so we took the camera outside and took a ton of desert pictures, Marc has become quite the photographer! We then got ready for everyone to come over! Marc let me watch the Macy's parade and hangout for a little while. We then got put on mashed potato duty! When the rest of the family came over, the boys all hooked up their xboxes each other and played while everyone else sat around and talked. Marc took some cute picutres for Ben and Danielle to send out for Christmas, we had fun making the baby laugh in them! Danielle made a yummy apple dip for us to snack on while we waited, it was super addicting and super delicious! We then enjoyed a huge feast and all gained about 20 pounds! We then sat around and talked until our food settled. Marc's aunt came over later for dessert, and our cheesecake was a hit! We filled up on cheesecake, lemon cream pie, pumkin pie, and chocolate covered creme puffs! Then we all went outside and the boys all played pickle. I played a little at the end, but the grass was cold and muddy! Then Marc, Ben, Danielle, and I all went into the hot tub while it rained on us! It turned out to be a fun relaxing day!
Here are some of the cool shots Marc took:





Friday we met my family and my grandma in Mesa for lunch. After that we went to my Aunt's house for a family dessert day since we were all apart for Thanksgiving. My mom made a delicious pumpkin pie, and my Aunt made a yummy berry pie! We had fun spending time with everyone, and Marc had fun playing Super Smash Brothers on Gamecube with all my boy cousins, they are all younger than me, but he loved it! We then said goodbye to them and went to back to Marc's parents. They took us to a yummy sushi place for dinner! Then we went to Ryan and Whitney's house to visit one last time before their baby comes...any day now!:) We then packed our car with a few more wedding presents. We visited with the family, polished off our cheesecake, and got some rest.

We spent all day Saturday and part of Sunday driving back. It was so nice to be back, and there was not any snow!!!! But, it's coming...

Sunday night Marc decided he needed a hair cut. We have clippers, but I have never cut his hair! I cut my bangs and that it about it! So he gave me a quick lesson, and I think I did a pretty good job!
Before:

After:


Thanks for reading this really long post and catching up with our crazy lives!

AZ Trip!

So we have been home from Arizona for about a week and a half, and I still haven't put anything about our trip up! So, here it is! We had so much fun seeing family and swimming! When we got to AZ we had a BBQ with Marc's family and got to meet our nephew for the first time! We didn't take a lot of pictures, but on Labor day we went with my family hiking to one of our favorite places! We took a ton of pictures there, and thanks to my dad and his fun new camera, he got some great ones of Marc and I.

This is one of my favorites of Marc and I, he really knows how to sport a bucket hat!


This is at the top of the trail. You start here and hike all the way down in. It takes about 45 minutes to an hour. There is a creek that runs through here and you have to hop rocks about three times. It is a lot of fun though!


When you get down into the canyon there are a few places to stop. My family has a spot that most people stop at, there is a very rocky beach, across from that is a very rocky part of the canyon that you can cliff dive from. We usually stop there with a lunch that we bring in. My mom and I usually watch everyone jump, the water is freezing and we stick our feet in just to cool us off. This is a picture is in the canyon, the rocks are pretty high, but the water is deep and so it is pretty safe, although I was scared when Marc jumped in!


We had so much fun while we were there, but we were so busy eating at the places we miss, and visiting with family the time slipped away from us! We are excited to come home at Christmas and see everyone again, and hopefully spend more time with our friends and family! We got a little home sick after we got back, it seems like all the people we love the most are in Arizona and we can't wait to move back out there and be with everyone! If we didn't get to see you when we were there this last time we will make time for you the next time around!

See Ainsley, I told you I would get this stuff up here!

San Diego Trip

Last weekend Marc and I were able to take a much needed trip to San Diego, California. Marc's parents and brother were there as well. It was a quick trip, but it was nice to get away from work and school for a few days! We had a ton of fun hanging out on the beach and soaking up the sun. After two days of laying on the beach, and swimming in the ocean we were pretty sun burnt. We did enjoy ourselves though! We played frisbee on the beach with a huge frisbee and after a while had to stop, the beach was really crowded and the people that were napping didn't like the sudden blast of sand rudely waking them. 

We went for a walk on the pier in Oceanside, but that turned out to be less fun than we hoped. There were tons of people fishing all around and the dead fish smell was quite heavy in the air. Not to mention the large amount of fish guts so decoratively covering the railing. There was a restaurant on the end of the pier, it is actually one we like, it is called Ruby's. Unfortunately we were placed at a table right next to the door for those sitting on the patio. Every time the door opened we were blessed with the smell of dead fish. If that isn't a way to get people to leave quick, I don't know what is. We quickly left after losing our appetites for our Strawberry-Banana Milkshake, not without eating the cherry! 

We took a ton of pictures, Marc laughs because I like to take artistic pictures, so there are tons of rocks, the pier, the water, and seaweed. But I just keep telling him that one day he will appreciate the fun pictures and silly memories that we have while it is still just the two of us!