On Saturday Laurie had even more surprises for me. It was a beautiful, sun-filled morning in Park City. She first drove us over to the Park City Hotel and we spent some time at the golf course driving range and putting green. I'm not the best golfer myself, but I enjoy going occasionally. It was fun trying to teach Laurie how to hit the different clubs. Golfing is tough to learn at first, but she picked it up better than I thought she would. We survived the driving range without breaking any windows or clubs, so it was a success. We then went on a longer drive up the canyon to East Canyon reservoir. We had a nice picnic next to the reservoir. And to my great surprise the chocolate zucchini bread and bar-b-q sandwiches were not actually thrown at at all, but Laurie had included them in our tasty picnic. After our picnic in the perfect weather, we rented paddle boards and headed down to the water. Neither of us had ever paddle boarded before, but we thought it would be fun to try something new together. Laurie jumped on the board, sat down and started paddling away to the east side of the reservoir. I was quite a bit slower, but once I got up on my knees I was able to start catching up to Laurie. As I got closer to her I wanted to show off and show her that I could stand up on the board and paddle like you are supposed to. I carefully stood up, my legs wobbling the whole time. I paddled a couple of times before my legs started shaking and the board started wobbling left and right under my shakiness. Next thing I knew I was immersed under the water and the board flew over to the shore. I swam over, jumped on the board again, but after a few seconds I was under water again. Eventually both Laurie and I got the hang of it and we felt like pros heading east with the wind at our backs. Unfortunately, when we turned around to head back to where we started the wind was a lot stronger it took quite a bit of effort to paddle our way into the wind. We eventually made it back just as dark clouds were gathering and the pouring rain started. We made the scenic car ride back to Park City and headed to Park City main street. We borrowed an umbrella from the hotel and enjoyed a nice walk up and down main street before deciding on a nice, quaint Italian restaurant to eat at. After dining to our hearts' (and stomachs') desire, we headed back to the hotel. Laurie let me watch a BYU football game, where BYU surprisingly beat the University of Texas. We spent some time at the hotel pool, steam room, and hot tub, and overall had a really nice, fun time at the hotel. Sunday morning came too fast and we had to pack up. On our way out of Park City we found a church building to attend sacrament meeting. Apparently Park City has a sacrament meeting just for visitors and vacationers. After sacrament we ran into one of Laurie's best friends - Elizabeth, who lives in Park City and it was fun to catch up with her.
It was a fabulous anniversary weekend and we were both exhausted as we made it back to relax at our home in Sugarhouse. As we relaxed I had some time to reflect back on the past year. It seems like the past year has flown by, but at the same time it seems like we have been married for several years. Sometimes I feel like Laurie knows me better than myself. As I think back about where I was a year ago compared to now, I feel like I have grown so much and have had so many new experiences. My life feels completely different than a year ago, and my life is so much better now. Some of the many new, great experiences Laurie and I have enjoyed this past year are as follows:
- Being sealed in the Salt Lake City temple
- Enjoying our wedding day (luncheon, sealing, and reception) together with so many wonderful friends and family
- Enjoying our wedding night in nicest suite at the Park City Marriott
- Having an adventure of a honey moon in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico -- the first time I have ever used my passport. We had fun adventures taking fishing boats out snorkling and to hidden waterfalls, and spent a lot of time relaxing at the resort pool.
- Buying our small house in Sugar House. It's small, but it's perfect for us and we love it. We love the location. It seemed a little crazy to buy a house so close to our wedding day. It was a crazy few months home searching and wedding planning at the same time -- but I'm glad that we had a place to move into together right after our wedding, and we bought the house right before interest rates and home prices started going up.
- Just before our wedding Laurie started a great job as an administrative assistant for the Utah Lieutenant Governor - Greg Bell. It was neat to be able to rub shoulders at some parties with the Lieutenant Governor and even the Governor at a few events and parties, and to have an inside look through Laurie at the impressive men that help make Utah such a great state to live in.
- Within a month or two of getting married we also did some serious car shopping together and found a used car that we both liked. We decided on a 2010 Toyota Rav4, which has been a great car in the snow and it's extra cargo space compared to our Honda Civic has come in handy several times, including our many trips to Home Depot and Lowe's as we've made some home and yard improvements.
- In May we took a trip of a life-time to New York City and Washington DC. Laurie did an internship in Washington DC as an intern for Senator Hatch and then she served her mission in the New York City North mission. So it was perfect to have an experienced tour guide who was familiar with both of the cities. I had never visited any city in the North Eastern U.S., so it was a thrill for me to see the big towering buildings in New York and exploring the busy streets and subways. It was also so neat to see all of the national monuments and history in D.C.
- I had a lot of rewarding callings in the many singles' wards I had attended over the years, but none of those wards had the calling of 11-year old scoutleader. I was blessed with this calling in April, and it's been a lot of fun teaching the 11 year old's in our stake and helping them to develop the attributes that are important in scouts and in becoming strong young men.
- I have thoroughly enjoyed Laurie's cooking. She cooks the most delicious, healthy meals. I have been spoiled to have a mother and then a wife that cooks nearly every single night.
- Laurie has been a great sport to take part in my interests with me. I was so proud of her that she ran two half-marathons with me and also the Moab Red Rock Relay all within just a few months. It's a good thing that she helps encourage me to exercise, because with her good cooking I'm sure I'd be gaining a lot of weight without the exercise.
- It's also been enjoyable working on our yard and garden with Laurie this past year. This past spring and summer we planted raspberries, blackberries, peas, carrots, spinach, zucchini, basil, cantaloupe, jalepenos, red peppers, yellow peppers, tomatoes, asparagus, and most recently a nectarine tree. We've also discovered that our neighbors have a large walnut tree that overhangs into our yard, and we have a few plum trees in our backyard. It's been very rewarding to me to prepare soil, plant seeds, and then through sufficient sunlight and watering to see the great fruits of our labors that we've been able to enjoy in the delicious meals that Laurie is so great to prepare.
