Back to my Roots

Two weeks ago I returned from an amazing 10 day vacation. Paul and I hit Idaho, Utah, and Vegas- with Wade joining for the second part of the vaca. We got to spend time with my family, as well as spend some quality time with old friends.
The trip was designed with Paul's Take it From the Top Workshops in mind. Paul taught workshops in Rexburg, SLC, Park City, and Vegas. I have loved traveling with Paul when he teaches. He is not just a great performer, he is an excellent educator and motivator and it is exciting for me to watch kids learn from him and adore him as much as I do.
The first workshop was in SLC and the highlight was when old friend Brittani Brown came with her family. Paul and I were able to catch up with them over pizza dinner after the workshop. Brittani was my college roommmate, one of my dearest girlfriends, and one of the all around most amazing women you will ever meet. Gorgeous, talented, smart, funny, loyal, great mom, etc... I could go on all day about Britt.
As is often the case when visiting Utah, at dinner we ran in to old NYC friends Brandon and Amy Jameson. While brief, it was a great surprise reunion with old friends.




After dinner with the Browns, we headed up to Idaho to spend Easter weekend with my family. I am pretty lucky to have the best family in the world, and I appreciate the luxury I have of being able to enjoy spending time with my family, without any of the anxiety that often accompanies family get-togethers. I was able to spend time with my niece and nephews, and while I know they like me, I think my coolness factor totally jumped because they really liked Paul. He is a good time.
I have to say, I especially enjoyed the Rexburg workshop as my niece Avery got to come take his class. It was also great to have the kids of old college friends Russ Stenquist and Jake Haeberle there as well. Has it really been that long since the Showtime days that you guys now have ten year olds?!?!
After the workshop- Paul, the Haeberle clan, and me and my fam went to Millhollow- a Rexburg favorite. My favorite moment was when Paul and I drove the girls in our car and I heard them giggling and saying "I have never been in a car with a famous person before!"





After Rexburg, we spent several days back in Utah. As we drove back to SLC from Rexburg, we picked Wade up from the airport and hit the Wasatch Front together. We were able to stay with the remarkable Melanie and her family where we were well taken care of and enjoyed the benefits of alkaline water. While in Provo, we were so looking forward to creating one of our favorite Utah memories- putting on some Indigo Girls and enjoying a leisurely drive up the Canyon to Sundance. Imagine our disappointment when we woke up (in mid-April) to 8 inches of snow and hazardous driving conditions.




While in Provo we were able to catch the BYU MDT (Music Dance Theater) program Senior Showcase, as well as watched a Young Ambassador rehearsal. It was great being back on campus seeing old friends and reliving our glory days as college students.
We hung out with an old/new friend Daria and were reminded that for all the glories of urban living, there is something about big houses, carpet, cars, etc... that we missed. It really hit home when we experienced the MOVIE THEATER in Daria's basement. Of course, no trip to Provo is complete without going to Brick Oven. This pizza joint was often frequented by our group of friends, mostly because Paul is the blond child featured in the advertising sign (see pic below). Yes, his dad is an amazing designer and back when Paul and his sis were young, they were the kids in the Brick Oven ads. It will be a sad day when we return to Brick Oven and find that picture is missing.




Due to the snowy weather, we were unable to do a drive up to Sundance as planned,but Paul and I still had to make the trek to Park City for the scheduled workshop. It was a terrifying drive with almost zero visibility, totally white out blinding blizzard, and semi trucks passing us on a winding canyon road. At least we were together, and while we would be driving in silence and focused terror, every now and then we would glace at each other and just bust up laughing at the situation.
We made it to Park City and once again Paul dazzled.
The best part of Park City was a planned reunion with an old high school friend Rachel. Now, to say we were friends in HS is being very liberal. Rachel and I had some common friends, but barely knew each other. We saw each other a few years ago at a friends wedding, but never really spent much time together. Thanks to blogging and facebook, we have developed a cyber relationship and I have to say... not only was Rachel was one of the cool kids in HS, but she remains one of the absolute coolest women I have known (seriously, she is up there in the Brittani Brown category). I regret all the years we could have known each other, but never got the chance. She is another example of my long held belief that extraordianry people come out of Rexburg, Idaho. Beautiful, smart, funny, talented, great mom, great friend, etc...

While in Park City, Paul and I also got to visit with Molly, one of our dearest college friends. Molly and her husband Vic have gone through a rough year following the death of their 2 year old daughter Lucy. Molly has been in my thoughts all year and it was wonderful to see her and catch up. She had just had her son Peter the week before and it was exciting to see her with the newest addition to their family.


Before leaving Utah to head to Vegas, we had one last lunch with friends. Since our time was limited, we combined lunch with several friends. It was great to see Dave Kimball, Natalie Hill, and my cute cousin Ashley.


Goodbye Utah. I will always love you. Thanks for another unforgettable trip!