A Trip to Moab with Quasimodo

For the Memorial Day holiday, the Cranes took a little trip down to Moab for some camping fun. We filled our weekend with mountain biking, hiking, and just having a good time. It was fun to see everyone and watch all the little boys play together.

Janet with little Wyatt.

Eric at Delicate Arch.

Me and Eric at our camp site.

Me--Quasimodo. On Sunday morning, I woke up like this!! I had an allergic reaction to something and my eye was swollen shut. I couldn't see out and after many stares from the other campers, I decided to wear my sunglasses for the rest of the trip. I finally went to urgent care and had to have a shot of steroids in my butt. It definitely was a memorable trip.

The List

Throughout my life I have compiled a list of the things that pick me up and never let me down. Whenever I start to feel frustrated or like I want to just have "one of those days," I think about my list and the mean reds just go away. I wanted to share my list with all of you to mostly say thank you to those on the list for always finding a way to brighten my day. There are so many wonderful things I can say about these people, but I'll keep the comments short. Now these aren't in any particular order.....except for the first one.

1. Eric-- Of course he tops the list. I love him for always being so consistent, loving, kind, appreciative, and thoughtful. I love the way he smiles and how he can make me laugh like no one else can (can you tell that I miss him?)

2. Catherine-- I love her for always having a good story to tell. I love that I can sit with her for hours without having any awkward moments and talk the entire time. I love it that she values my opinion, especially since we often think the same thing. I love it that I can tell her anything.

3. Aunt Lynda-- She always makes me feel loved and wanted. I love it that she often tells me how happy she is that I'm apart of her family! She's the greatest!!!

4. Gram-- How do you not love this woman?! I love it that I can sit on her bed and talk to her about what I want to accomplish and the fears that I have. Most of all, I love it that she can sense my excitement about things and shows her excitement as well, even if it's not that exciting.

5. Andrea-- I love her for helping me gain the confidence that I lose sometimes. I often call her to practice the things I want to say to people or wish I had to someone who angered me.

6. The Cranes-- I love it that they have been so accepting of me and that I feel comfortable enough to hang out with them, even when my husband is out of the country. I love it that it is always a party at there house, especially when Joe invites me over to watch Gilmore Girls with him. I love you Joe!!!

Holla at my Girl!!

I just wanted to make a post to say how proud I am of my best friend Catherine!! She graduated from the U last weekend and we are so happy for her. Catherine and I met in a freshman seminar class and have been great friends ever since. We love you Catherine!!




Krysta, Catherine, and Steve (Catherine's boyfriend)

The Chachas Family

Go Speed Racer!!!

So a week ago last Tuesday, I was on my way to my sister-in-laws house, Amber, to have lunch with her and her boys. As I was getting ready to hop on the freeway on 4th South, I wasn't paying attention and came over the overpass going 52 in a 35 mph zone. And I'm sure you can guess-- I got my FIRST ticket. I thought I had been doing really well in life not speeding too badly, but it finally caught up with me. As I was speaking with the officer, I thought of my father-in-law, Joe. I've been working for a while now, saving, and thought, "I can afford my mistakes just like him." For those of you who know Joe, you understand what I mean.

So yesterday I hopped online to see how much this ticket was going to cost me. I figured it would probably be around $30 or so since the officer only wrote the ticket for 5 mph over the speed limit. To my surprise, this ticket cost me $82!!! I've decided that through this I can't afford my mistakes and that I should be a little more cautious. For those of you coming to downtown, drop me a line and I'll tell you where all the cops like to hide.

Another Race!

This past weekend, we spent our time throughout the state going from race to race. On Saturday morning, Eric had a ride half way between Toole and Wendover.

Not far into the race, Eric had a bit of a crash. He bent his back rim and was unable to finish. We rushed to a cycle shop to see about fixing the wheel before the next one. Unfortunately, the wheel won't be ready until Thursday, but one of Eric's teammates let us borrow one. So he was right back in the race at 4:00.

This next race was a time trial. It was about 8 miles long with rolling hill. Here is Eric at the start. Each rider starts every 30 seconds. Eric did extremely well and passed the rider that started before him.

These last pictures are of the crit race. This race was held at the DMV driving range in Taylorsville. The riders are timed 30 minutes and have to do as many laps as they can. Just up this hill is the finish line. This picture is of John, Eric's teammate who took first place.

Eric did extremely well for his first crit. For a couple of laps, he was in second place. The hill got him in the end and he ended up finishing seventh.

a pat on the back

If I could just toot my own horn for a second-- Over the past few weeks I've had to study and prepare for some wicked hard tests. I'm happy to say that I have completed both with flying colors and I can now go back to being stress-free! YEAH!!!

On your mark

We spent this past weekend in Grand Junction, Co not only to see the hospital that Eric was born in, but to watch the races! Eric participated in his first cycling race with the University of Utah team and did an extraordinary job for it being his first race. More than once I heard other team members say to him, "Man, you really are fast!"
Here are some pictures of him and the team.