Hawaii 2010

Well, we've been home from our fabulous vacation/2-year anniversary celebration in Hawaii for two weeks now. Here are some (ok, way too many) pics to prove that we were once in a tropical paradise...

DAY 1: Fly to Honolulu with a layover in Portland (no pics taken--Scott was shocked)

DAY 2: Explore, try to attend church, & relax

drinking a delicious ginger limeade our first day on the beach

a pretty LDS church in Honolulu--we tried to attend but were too late due to stake conference

Scott standing next to a statue of King Kalakaua in front of our hotel

our first Hawaiian sunset together--super romantic!

DAY 3: Dole Plantation, North Shore, Polynesian Cultural Center, & Hawaii Temple

Scott learning about pineapples on our train tour at the Dole Plantation

eating the best ice cream in Hawaii--Dole Whip--YUM!

watching the surfers on the North Shore

Scott LOVED watching the huge waves!

Samoan guy at the PCC cracking open a coconut

the coconut cracker climbed this tree like a monkey--totally awesome!

canoe pageant at the PCC

We took advantage of the tram tour that took us to the beautiful Hawaii temple and to see the campus of BYU-Hawaii.

delicious luau at the PCC (I actually like this pic of us)

night show at the PCC--gotta love the fire dancers

our hotel room--I loved the tropical decor

Scott relaxing in the room

We spent most of our nights with me looking up our next day's adventures on mapquest and Scott watching the Australian Open.

our mini-kitchenette really came in handy--we saved a lot of money by eating breakfast in the room and packing snacks & sandwiches with us

the view from our balcony--it was a 7-minute walk to the beach through this beautiful park--Can you see the ocean beyond the trees?

Day 4: Beach, pool, beach, shop, & eat

our beautiful park and beach--Ft. DeRussy

our pool was a little chilly but still fun and relaxing

Waikiki Beach was a 5-minute walk from our beach. Here Scott is participating in his favorite Hawaiian past time--tormenting pigeons. He would lure them closer with pine nuts and then throw sand on them. Good times...

gorgeous sunset at Waikiki Beach--Scott claims that I am obsessed with sunsets, and maybe I am :)

shopping & dinner at the International Marketplace--I loved my macadamia nut-encrusted opaka paka, but Scott didn't love the shrimp that he had to peel or his tough steak.

DAY 5: Pearl Harbor, Aloha Stadium swap meet, & sushi

Scott looking at the sunken USS Arizona from the memorial deck

Pearl Harbor was a much more sacred experience for me than it was when I was 10 years old.

eating a shaved ice at the swap meet--Scott also thinks I'm obsessed with taking pics of food, and okay, I am :)

It rained lightly part of the afternoon (the only time), and we saw this rainbow from our balcony.

We played Solitaire & War while it rained. Playing cards in Hawaii is a Clayson family tradition.

a rainy, cloudy afternoon made for a beautiful sunset

We walked all over Honolulu before we discovered this yummy sushi place near our hotel.

DAY 6: Beach, whale-less whale watching, & steak

We went on a fun whale watching cruise, but the whales were hiding. Don't worry--we got a rain/whale check. (That's Diamond Head Crater in the background.)

another beautiful Hawaiian sunset--nothing beats watching the sun sink into the ocean

GORGEOUS!

Scott grilled us some delicious steaks.

DAY 7: Diamond Head Crater & snorkeling at Hanauma Bay

These are just 99 of the almost 300 stairs we had to climb, in addition to regular trails, to get to the top of Diamond Head Crater.

The view at the top was well worth the trek!

Doesn't Scott look thrilled to have made it to the top?

Hanauma Bay is a gorgeous nature preserve.

I know I look like a weirdy. We saw tons of beautiful fish and even a sea turtle. Way cool & fun!

It was a hazy day, so the sun actually set in the haze. Kinda cool.

DAY 8: Beach, whale-ful whale watching, drive around island, & more beach

our last day on our beach

one last pic of Scott tormenting pigeons

This time we saw plenty of whales on our whale watching cruise. Super fun!

The bright blue blob is a baby whale--super cute!

We started our drive around the island with a quick stop at the Dole Plantation for more ice cream and a pic of the cute baby pineapples.

We had to get shaved ice at Matsumoto's to eat on the North Shore (note the lack of huge waves in the background).

Matsumoto's puts ice cream & black beans at the bottom of their shaved ice. Sounds (and looks) nasty, but it's surprisingly tasty!

The prettiest part of our drive around the island was the super green east coast and Pali Lookout. Gorgeous!

We ended the day and our time in Hawaii on the dry, ugly northwest coast, but the beach was still pretty. Let's just say we were a bit nervous to find ourselves in the ghetto of Hawaii.

Apparently, a lot of people have died on Nanakuli Beach. Needless to say, we barely touched the water.

DAY 9: Loooooooong trip home

After an all-night flight from Hawaii to Portland, we were delighted to eat a delicious omelette breakfast in the airport. I didn't get a "drunk Mexican" picture of Scott on this trip, but I did get this "crazed Cougar fan" pic. Good thing Scott loves me. :)

One last pic on the flight to SLC. Scott was a little sleepy.

If you made it to the end of this post, you are a real trooper. Mahalo! We had a fabulous time in Hawaii, and we have plenty of pictures to help us remember it forever!

This is the tree that never ends...

..it just lives on and on, my friends!
So we just barely took down our Christmas tree yesterday--exactly one month after Christmas--and there's a good reason for it. I swear. We were going to take it down a few days after New Year's, but then we discovered this:

Yes, folks. Those are new buds on the ends of the branches. Scott and I just could not bring ourselves to take down a tree that was not only not dying but actually thriving. We decided that we would keep it up until it died or until we left for Hawaii on the 16th. Well, when it was time to leave on our trip, our tree was still alive and thriving. So we decided to experiment to see how long it could live without us. And when we arrived home from Hawaii on the 24th, this is what we found:

Our tree was a little drier than when we left but still very much alive. Not surprisingly, spending a week in a tropical paradise made us more than ready to take down our still-living Christmas tree.
Now seriously, isn't that the freakiest tree you've ever heard of? It was up for 7 1/2 stinkin' weeks! And it still wasn't dead! Pretty amazing, eh?
**P.S. Pictures of Hawaii coming soon!

late Christmas letter

Here's the Christmas letter we sent out this year. If you didn't receive one, you're in the vast majority. That's why I'm posting this.

2009—Year of Firsts

Merry late Christmas and Happy New Year!

January—I ventured into the world of Facebook, and Scott and I enjoyed our first stay at a bed and breakfast in St. George to celebrate our one-year anniversary (early).

February—Scott and I celebrated our actual 1^st anniversary eating Indian food, and a few days later we went to the Melting Pot for Scott’s first time to celebrate Valentines Day.

March—We started our first blog, and I spent my first weekend away from Scott at a cabin with some girlfriends. On our annual trip to Arizona for Spring Training, the Cubs won both of their games (a definite first).

April—I gave 2 months’ notice for the first time ever, and we planted our first garden on our balcony.

May—I decided to start my first business, a private practice for mental health therapy. Lots of firsts there.

June—My car was stolen for the first time (not fun), and Scott and I went to Alabama (first for us both) and DisneyWorld (Scott’s first) with his sister and her family (very fun). Scott also got his first pedicure and liked it.

July—I started running a couple of victims groups for the Children’s Justice Center. Scott and I also went to Brianhead (first time together) for the Clayson family reunion (super good times).

August—I bought a new car (second time ever—not first), and I finally completed reading the Harry Potter series. Scott and I hiked and camped in the snow (a first) in the Uintas with his family. And we got lost there (another first).

September—I had my first major dental work (tooth extraction and bridge) thanks to biting into something hard in an ice cream bar that broke my tooth in half. We also took Scott’s 22-year-old cousin to see his first ever baseball game (I still can’t believe it). I later met former Cubs player Luis Gonzalez at another Owlz game.

October—We canceled our gym membership and got one at the rec center for the first time. We also had season BYU football tickets in the student section for the first (and hopefully last) time as non-students (too old for that).

November—I tried an eggnog shake (at Iceberg) and a sculpting class (exercise at the rec) for the first time. Scott and I also went to the symphony for the first time together (quite romantic).

December—We got our first Charlie Brown Christmas tree (Scott’s choice this year, but it’s grown on me), and we saw the lights at Thanksgiving Point for the first time. I also got called as the 1^st counselor in the RS presidency, and Scott serves as an assistant ward clerk for about his 5^th first time. :)

We’ve done much less traveling this year, although I didn’t mention several quick road trips we’ve taken. We are headed to Hawaii next week (Scott’s first time) to celebrate our anniversary. Yay!

We love you all and hope you had a fabulous holiday season!

Mary Ann & Scott

Sleepover

Just wanted to post a few pics of the sleepover we had with my niece and nephews last Friday...

We had a fabulous evening of eating pizza, playing board games, playing wii, drinking hot chocolate, eating popcorn, and watching my favorite Christmas movie. Oh, and of course, hanging out in our awesome aprons. Love the poses.

I got the kids up bright and early to make it to Faith's first Junior Jazz game at 8am in Santaquin (Scott was still sleeping soundly). Faith was so fun to watch, and she won the "good sport of the game" prize--a drink at the local gas station. Super cute!

Then I took the kids sledding on the hill next to their house. If there was a prize, Clay would have won it for biggest dare-devil. Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE these kids?!?!

In N Out at last

Last Friday I decided it was time to finally brave the crowds at In N Out. So after a 45-minute cardio workout at the rec, I felt somewhat justified to eat lunch there. And for the record, I made it *in and out* in record time:

12:58pm--I arrived at the end of the line of about 15 cars.

1:00pm--An In N Out worker took my order.

1:10pm--I paid my $5.

1:11pm--An In N Out worker handed me my double cheeseburger (I was hungry) with grilled onions, my fresh cut fries, and my Diet Coke with lemon.

1:12pm--I tore into the deliciousness in the Burlington Coat Factory parking lot. (I apologize to the worker who had to clean up the tomato I threw out the window--I forgot to ask them to hold it.)

The food was well worth the less-than-15-minute wait (which I'm sure would have been even less if I had gone inside).

Welcome to Utah County, In N Out!

**Due to Scott's earlier post claiming that I am an In N Out addict, I feel the need to clarify a little. One of the reasons I like In N Out so much is because the food is fresher, tastier, and less greasy than any other fast food I've tried. And I'm a total sucker for fresh cut fries. But the main reason I love In N Out is pure nostalgia. When I would visit my grandma in Southern California the last few years of her life, she often wanted to eat at In N Out because it was the easiest thing she could eat with her hand tremors. So we'd pick up our burgers and fries and then drive to the beach to watch the surfers while we ate. And we'd always save a few fries to throw to the seagulls. Oh, the memories.

Happy New Year!

The week after Christmas, my two older sisters came into town to visit. It was so great to see them and to play with their adorable kids! We spent lots of time playing games, playing in the snow, drinking hot chocolate, and laughing.

My mom and Melissa and her kids watched my favorite Christmas movie with me--"One Magic Christmas." I love that Rylan is half-naked--what a silly kid!

Scott and I spent New Year's Eve with his family and ate lots of good food and played some fun games. (I probably only remembered to take a picture because Scott's nephews were there.)

On New Year's Day, my family all went out to lunch to celebrate my mom's birthday. It was fun to be all together! Although it wasn't so fun to discover that my 13-year-old nephew is now taller than me. All the kids are just growing too fast!
I hope you all have a wonderful year filled with peace and joy!

Christmas 2009

We had a fabulous Christmas this year! I think we are getting the hang of splitting time between our families.
We spent Christmas Eve with my family at my grandma's house. We had our traditional dinner of cheese and chocolate fondue, and then we acted out the nativity.

I love this picture of "Mary" stealing a kiss from "Joseph." The shepherd is pretty darn cute too.

The fam at Grandma's. Scott really was there--he just didn't fit in this picture.

We slept at my parents' house on Christmas Eve, and we thoroughly enjoyed watching the kids tear through the paper hanging in the doorway to see what Santa brought them.

Faith, Clay, and Cole in their new jammies, excitedly waiting to open presents. I LOVE these kiddos! They make Christmas SO much fun!!
After playing with the kids and eating a delicious turkey lunch, we headed to Scott's parents' house to spend the rest of the day eating more delicious food and playing tons of games. I don't have a Christmas picture with the Carters, probably because there were no kids around to inspire my picture-taking.
I love Christmas!!