The Tool Man

Owning a home has it's perks- as I've mentioned before- but sometimes it just stinks.

The other day our washer had decided to go out. It worked for a little bit, but then would just stop. Me, being my father's daughter, had to figure out what was going on. I googled it and figured out it probably was the lid switch and an easy fix... off to YouTube. I'm a fan of YouTube- it's help me learn how to do quite a few things.

Needless to say- about an hour later-- we were pretty proud of ourselves:

Getting Cultured

A few days ago we had the chance to take a quick trip down to Cedar City- about 4 hours away- to see a few shows at the Shakespeare Festival. We left Monday morning and that afternoon caught the 2:00 show of "Peter and the Starcatcher". It's a fun show about how Peter Pan became Peter Pan. Rick is a good sport about it all and lets me drag him along. After the show we went out to eat with my friends who are down there for the week interpreting the plays. (I did it a few years ago... it's SUPER fun, but SUPER tiring!) Who doesn't love a little Pizza Factory after a long day of driving and play-watching?

Once we checked into the hotel at about 7, we were reminded of what boring people we've become- doesn't everyone watch Full House for a few hours at night while on vacation? Of course! We really didn't have a whole lot planned and I wasn't smart enough to bring shoes to walk around in. It worked out though... we both like not really having to be somewhere.

On Tuesday we moseyed around Cedar City and found a Heritage Museum. It was deserted but we had fun checking things out, playing checkers, and practicing our lassoing "technique". (Basically, Rick is pro.)

King found a job if being a Guide dog isn't right for him- a Wells Fargo Pony!

Okay so he won... 

He legitimately roped that "cow"... really.

Before heading home we watched "12 Angry Men". It's a really interesting show and definitely more Rick's style. There was an after show talk-back with a few of the cast members. That was interesting... there are a lot of things involved in that show. If you haven't watched it- you should. It will change your perspective on what it means to be "100% certain"...

Only a few more days left until school starts up again and life gets a little more boring.

CA, Cali, California

Last week we got a chance to head down to southern California for my cousin's wedding. We had a blast and it definitely was NOT long enough. Here's a run down of the adventure:

WARNING: This is a long post... but full of awesome so you should still read it. 

We left Tuesday afternoon with 5 adults (2 of us and 3 of my siblings) in our little Suzuki... don't ask me how, but it happened.

Taylor was doing a little iPod Idol for us... Good game.

We stopped in Vegas about 9 p.m. after Rick had to stop for some Cane's Chicken. (Apparently it's big in Louisiana?) We all wanted to remain friends here, so the break was planned. We stayed at South Point Casino and Spa. If you're looking for a good place to stay in Vegas, this was a pretty good deal. It ended up being about $65/night, but well worth it. The pool was pretty awesome too.

Leaving the Vegas hotel.

The next day we hung out around the strip (M&M World and Coke World) for a few hours, made it to the Disney Outlet store (another worthwhile stop on the way to Disneyland.), then headed to Redlands, CA about 4. Another squished car ride, but everyone sucked in their guts and we made it. A huge thanks for my Aunt Cathy and Uncle Jeff for letting us crash at their place for a few days.

On our way to Disney! Excited face!

Thursday, the whole family (all 12 of us) packed up for Disney! Best Day EVER! We love Disneyland! It was really fun to go with the little kids. Cheese walked around the park "Mitey Mouse! Mitey MOUSE! Where are you?!" It was fun to watch Ali (the 5 year old), who is in love with everything, see Minnie and go on the rides. She said her favorite ride was "Small World".

About half way through the day we met up with our friend Brooke, who took us to California Adventures. She works there and gave us the grand tour. We were in charge of Philipp (10) and Aden (8) along with the other older kids (Keil, Spencer, Kaleigh, and Taylor) I'm pretty sure Disney was made with Magic.

Rick's face was covered in about 1/2 of the pictures... Tall brother problems.

With only one day in Disney we were determined to stay until it closed... too bad we are old people and ended up leaving about 11:30. Not bad though. We were probably all walking funny because we hurt so bad and we dragged through the last ride... needless to say we've learned that one day at Disneyland is not enough and can't wait to go back again.

Ali and Rick dancing

The next day was the wedding in L.A. We got up early and made it to the temple on time- only to realize I had left my temple recommend in Redlands. Awesome. We got to stick around outside the temple with the little kids and help them stay entertained for the 2 hours everyone else was in the temple. (Yay for iPads!) After a "recovery nap" that afternoon we headed out to Huntington Beach for the reception. Rick wasn't super happy about the pasta bar, but I definitely was. (Seriously, who doesn't like pasta?!) Rick got to dance with his girlfriends. Ali is pretty sure one day she's going to steal him from me...

Saturday was our day to just hang out. We made it to Downtown Disney, ate some beignets, Rick was weak and bought Aden a Lego set from the Lego store, drove to Corona del Mar beach (hoping to see the tide pools, but couldn't find them.), and got to watch my cousin open his mission call. (L'viv, Ukraine Mission) Super busy day = Super tired Rick and Mickelle...

They made a pretty awesome sand castle

Rick and Aden, Eating beinets

Sunday was church day and we walked around Hollywood before heading home on Monday (Luckily we traded one of the backseat adults for a much smaller backseat 10-year-old.). We made it home by 8 pm and were VERY glad to sleep in our own bed again...