Fall Break

So I have been trying to post about this last weekend for awhile, but my turkey of a husband has been on the computer every night! ;) (For some reason, he has to do his homework;) (I'll probably get whacked for that comment!;)

But anyway, the state of Utah has a Fall Break about the middle of October every year (Nevada never had this one..... we did always get Halloween off though! Gotta love that Nevada was formed on October 31st!) I really wanted to do something during those couple of days, so we decided to hit up the good 'ole town of Salt Lake City. We recruited my sister Tasha and her little girl Mylah to come with us, called up one of my really good friends from my mission (Cally Ashton.... well her last name is now Johnson, but she will forever be known as Ashton!), and headed on down. We decided on IKEA and headed towards the wonderland of shopping. I'm not sure how many of you guys have been to this Mecca of all wonderfulness, but I ADORE this store! I had been to it before when I lived in Spain, but to have that here in the U.S. is a piece of heaven on earth! (There are a couple of stores, for those that know about the area.... Barrio 2,5,Alcobendas, etc) I seriously could just wander for hours (which we have done before ;) and not worry about anything but the hundreds of displays in front of me. Ahh.... heaven..... We even made it out of there with spending only $10! Yeah for staying on a budget! (Well, Cally had even more fun than us and bought a new bedroom set ;)

So after this adventure, we had a great lunch while Cally headed to her doctor's appointment (Congrats on having another little one on the way!). Another round of shopping and we were headed home to a dinner with Tasha, Justin and friends. The next morning we were even able to sleep in! (I NEVER get to sleep in! It has been ages!) THAT was definatly a highlight of our long weekend!

This past week has been crazy, but one of the fun events was a 3rd grade program we had on Wednesday. It was a musical program about the history of Cache Valley. So cute! The students did a great job and we all had a fun time with the program (OF COURSE I forgot my camera and didn't get any pictures.) Adam surprised me by showing up to watch the whole crazy production! (He was suppose to have classes until after the program, so I was really surprised to see him.) I am so grateful for his help in so many areas...... I sometimes feel so overwhelmed, but my wonderful husband supports me so much. I just stinking love that kid!

Football and Seasons

This weekend included a rousing BYU and USU game with my parents and sister making the long jaunt up from their homes. It was really great to hang out with all of them! We had a lot of fun enjoying the game and conference all in one weekend. It was wonderful to see the fam and doubling the fun were the great talks we were able to hear from our church leaders.


In our down time, we were able to escape up the canyon and enjoy the colors of the season. I love this time of year! It always makes me so excited and I feel like a little kid again! I think I have really started to enjoy every season again, because of my job. Being around kids all day that can't stop talking about their excitement is hard to ignore! It just seeps into everything (their stories they write, their spelling sentences, etc) I have also loved the intense colors that come with this season. Growing up in southern Nevada, we didn't always get the deep reds and oranges that appear up here.
What a wonderful time of the year! ;)





(What's so random is that I absolutely adore the Fall Plain M&M's. I know there is absolutely no difference between these M&M's and normal plain M&M's, but there is no reasoning with a girl that loves chocolate!!)

Being a teacher

So I stumble into work this morning thinking, "Wow! I'm so glad it's Friday!" I was trying to balance my breakfast, two textbooks, my keys, and papers I had graded the night before, when I looked down and saw a paper that had been pushed under the door. I bent down to pick it up and promptly dropped the granola bar, orange juice, and triscuits that had been balancing precariously. I flipped the paper over and read the words that made my morning and tears come to my eyes - "Dear Mrs. Crawford, you are the best teacher!" That is why I am a teacher. I absolutely love the students. They make everything worthwhile.

This year has been quite the adjustment, but I have loved my new school. I was afraid to leave my wonderful school down in Provo, but this school has been just as great! I was able to continue teaching 3rd grade and now I have an aide that does the work of 15 people! She is wonderful and I wonder "How did I do this last year without an aide?!"

Adam is doing really well in his Master's program (He is such a smart turkey! I wish I could get through school as easily as he does) A lot of doors are opening up and I can see how much he is loving all of it. He is really in his element when he can help the adults and children that are around him. I really do love seeing him so excited.

My Grandma

So I had a wonderful and witty blog planned, with all sorts of details about the first couple weeks of school (from a teacher's point of view ;), our Labor Day weekend down in Alamo, NV, and even a wonderful barbeque we had with a high school friend, Sadie (Perkins) Lyman....... but then I got a phone call last night.

My Grandma Whipple died yesterday afternoon.... she was and is a truly amazing woman. She married my grandfather on the faith and belief that he was a strong man and would support her in this life and through the eternities. It was her strong example of getting up every Sunday and taking the kids to church that sparked his interest in the Church. If it wasn't for her, their family of 3 living children and 17 living grand children, wouldn't all be active members of the Church. I have always admired her poise and ability to stay calm (whenever an accident happened on the ranch, and there were A LOT, we all ran to her) These past few years have been harder on her, because of the effects a stroke had left on her. She was such a strong example of patience, even when she was frustrated with her slower speech and a walker to help her get around. I will miss her smile.....

I selfishly would like to see her one more time, but I know she is having a wonderful time with the several family members that have made it up there before her. I love her dearly and can't wait for the time when I will see her again.


The picture was at our Wedding. Her and my Grandpa Whipple are on the right side of the Photo.

The Beach

After we were done touring the great Province of British Columbia, we then headed south to Seattle. We were able to spend a wonderful time with some friends of ours, Raj and Summer. We hadn't seen them for over a year (they had moved up there from Provo) and it was really great to catch up with them.

After exploring around Seattle and it's market place, we then journeyed down to Portland, Oregon. On our way there we decided to stop in at Mt. St. Helen's and we were fogged in the whole day!!! So we don't have any great pictures of that really cool Volcano..... Someday......







Next was Portland, where we met up with Adam's family and spent some time touring around the town.





The Rose Garden









Pittock Mansion.... My future house? Anyone agree? :)















A submarine in the Willamit River. The coolest guided tour ever!!!

Then it was off to the beach..... It was so nice.....

This is the lighthouse at Yaquina Head. It was alot of fun to tour and check it out.





Adam, Bev (my mother-in-law) and I were able to find a deep connection to sand castle construction while we were in Lincoln City!!! These are just a couple of the great sand castles that were created. (Adam even expressed a desire to leave our normal cushy lives behind and head into the competive life of sand castle competitions.... hmmmmm...)

Next

After our canoeing trip we then made it to the top of Whistler Mountain. Seriously, this area was one of the prettiest places I have EVER been. In the past couple of years we have been to 3 continents and 7 different countries, so I was actually very surprised that it affected me so much..... I wanted to stay right there on top of that mountain and live out the rest of my days! So peaceful.....




This is the Inukshuk image that will be used in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics






I truly loved our time in Whistler and would jump at the chance to head back!!

Wow, what a month......

So this past month was a doosy but boy was it a fun one! We had such a fun time being nomads and living out of our car! ;) (Have I mentioned lately how much I love my husband? We are always out and about touring the world. How can you not love that?!) So anywho, we were all over the place and took over a hundred pictures, so I figured I would break up the chaos and post the pictures over a couple of blogs.

The week in Canada


We started the vacation up in Whistler, Canada. The 2010 Winter Olympics will be in Vancouver, Canada, but the downhill events will be held in Whistler, which is about 2 hours north. Seriously, this place is one of the most beautiful places on earth! I truly loved visiting this place!


It was so cold!!

We were attacked by mosquitoes! I haven't seen that many since Alaska!










A couple of days later.....


We then decided to take a canoe trip down a couple of lakes and rivers that were several miles long.

So beautiful!!!


A nice calm moment!


My cutie!!!












We had a lot of fun and truly enjoyed our time together. I always come home from these trips and cry because I know I won't be able to have my best friend with me 24 hours a day any longer....