Vegas!

At the beginning of November, we had the opportunity to fly to Las Vegas and meet up with Adam's dad and step-mom (Jay and Clare). We all stayed at the Luxor Hotel and Casino. While there, we saw comedian Carrot Top's show (SO funny), the Bodies exhibit, and walked around seeing the many sights Vegas has to offer. Adam and I are not big gamblers but we did come out $5 ahead on the slots we played :). We had a great time; thanks for inviting us Dad and Clare!

The Strip

The Luxor

The Luxor at Night

Inside the Luxor... cool architecture!

Monte Carlo

Caesars Palace

Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas

Paris Las Vegas

Fountains at the Bellagio

The Venetian

Us in front of NY-NY

Us at MGM (if you look close, there is lion behind us)

Dad and Clare

Just wanted to post some more pictures of the beautiful things we have seen here. We have been working very hard this past 10 months and overall, we have enjoyed our time here so far. Despite the challenges of living in a big city, we are thankful every day to be in such a beautiful place and to be doing so well with our financial goals.






Point Reyes National Seashore

Summer '08 #2

At the beginning of August, Rachel's grandma (Gladys Whiting) passed away at 93 years old. Rachel flew to Salt Lake City for the funeral. While there, she was able to spend time with both her extended and immediate family, as well as enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery.

Hiking in Big Cottonwood Canyon with some of our cousins.

Us with our cousins

Rachel and Mel

Jenny and Rachel

Val and Rachel

Silver Lake

Rachel and Angie

Pretty mountains :)

Between all of our visitors, traveling, and working, we have found time to continue to explore the city and surrounding areas. Since Adam loves aviation, we decided one day to check out the Hiller Air Museum. We enjoyed seeing all different types of aircraft at the museum and even got to play in a real 747 cockpit.




747 engine


Adam playing in the cockpit of a 747

Summer '08

It is hard to believe that summer is drawing to a close already (especially because most of the summer was cold and foggy and it is now hot and beautiful)! It has been a busy, but fun, summer for us between working,visitors, and exploring the area. We will have to make this 2 posts because there is just too much to fit into one!

At the end of June, Rachel's brother Brent had leave from the Army and decided to come out for a visit. We had a great time showing him around the city and wished he could have stayed longer!

Rachel and Brent at Twin Peaks

Cable Cars

Arm Wrestling at the Musee Mechanique... we both lost!

Brent and the Golden Gate Bridge

Alamo Square, a familiar view from "Full House"

Ginger... the mattress killer! Poor Brent had to sleep on our couch all week after he woke up on a flat air mattress the first night. The naughty little kitty bit through the air mattress and then made herself comfortable.

In mid-July, Rachel's parents came out to San Francisco for her dad's work. Again, we had a great time showing them around the city for the week. We even got to see some things we hadn't seen yet!

Coit Tower

Pier 39 (view from Coit Tower)

Looking West: Lombard street is seen at the top of the picture.

The Bay Bridge

Downtown: The Bay Bridge and Transamerica Pyramid

Transamerica Pyramid

Redwoods in a park near the Transamerica Pyramid

Fountain at the Transamerica Pyramid

China Town

China Town

Fortune Cookie Factory!

Flowers at Golden Gate Park

Val's Graduation

Rachel found a great deal on plane tickets to MN in late May and thought it would be a great opportunity to go home. It just happened to be the weekend Val was graduating from high school, so it was perfect. Unfortunately, Adam had to stay back in SF to work, but Rachel had a great time hanging out with her family anyway.


Sisters! (Mel, Rachel, Val, Angie, Jenny)


Dad, Val, and Mom


Rachel and Val


Rachel and Val


Mel and Rachel