Kevin and Gretchen

Kevin and Gretchen

Friday, October 18, 2013

San Francisco '13



In June, Kevin and I went on a little trip to San Francisco, CA with my mom and Wayne! It was so much fun and we really enjoyed our time there.  We decided to drive as that would be much cheaper than flying 4 people.  On our way there we split the drive up since we left after work one night; we drove to Elko, NV.  We drove the rest of the way the next day and arrived in Windsor, CA about 5pm.  (Windsor is about an hour north of SF) We stayed at a Worldmark by Wyndham resort just off the interstate and it was super nice and quiet. We had a small condo with 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a kitchen, dining room and living room.  Our patio looked out over the pool and it was so nice to sit out there when it wasn't super hot! That night we got some groceries, barbequed some dinner and went swimming! The pool wasn't heated much so it was chilly but still fun! Kevin and I are fish so we love the pool! My parents really enjoyed the hot tub haha. Then we stayed up late playing games and we always enjoy that!


Our first drive over the great Golden Gate!!
















The next day we ventured down to SF with our City Passes in hand.  Our first stop was pier 39, but before that we got to drive across the great Golden Gate Bridge! This was Kevin's first trip to SF but we were all excited.  We went there as a family when I was 13ish but the bridge was so much more remarkable to see as an adult, for whatever reason.  Driving in SF is almost impossible and according to the GPS it takes 30 minutes to go 8 miles! We finally made it to the pier and our first adventure was going on the Blue and Gold Fleet Bay Cruise.  This took us out on the bay under the Golden Gate Bridge, around Alcatraz, over by the bridge connecting SF and Oakland, and back to port. We even got the see a bunch of seals! It was an amazing cruise and we had so much fun!  When we were packing, I told Kevin to grab a jacket and he didn't think he'd need it until we got out on the water and put it on. It was chilly but amazing! That day in SF the skies were blue and and it was pretty warm so we picked a PERFECT day to go on the cruise we that we could see everything around us!

Next we explored the shops at pier 39 and found a place to eat some lunch, where Wayne and Kevin could get some fish, before we headed over to Candlestick Stadium where we took a tour of the SF 49ers stadium!  Even though I'm not the biggest sports fan out there, seeing things like this are amazing! I was worried Mom and Wayne might be bored, but we all thoroughly enjoyed it, especially Kevin!  We walked out on the field, in the locker room, sat in the players chairs and got to enjoy the view of the field from luxury suites that are quite spendy, $25,000 per game! We learned a great deal about the history of Candlestick and the 49ers.














By the time the tour was over we were all tuckered out so we decided to head back to the resort and swim! It took about 2.5 hours to go 60 miles because the traffic was horrible.  We left SF at 4pm, right in the middle of rush hour!  Once we arrived at the resort, we went swimming but all ended up in a small hot tub and had it to ourselves for the night and it was great! The temperature was perfect and allowed us to sit in there til our skin wrinkled haha! We all slept sooo good that night!

The next day we went back to SF and headed to Golden Gate Park to explore the California Academy of Sciences musuem! This museum had so much cool stuff like an earthquake section where we actually got experience an earthquake in a simulator they had; we watched an awesome video in the theater room about earthquakes and fault lines and the screen was so amazing, it felt like we were in the video. 








Next we went back to the pier to shop and eat before heading back to the resort.  Due to traffic and difficutly getting around we ended up not making it to the last museum that night, so we made plans to come back the next day.  That night we swam once again, surprise surprise!

The following day we were treated to a breakfast at the resort and then we headed to SF one last time to the Exploratorium.  This museum had all sorts of hands on activities that people had invented and we got to play with them.  Some of them were things for kids and we could've spent all day in there but after a few hours we decided to head back to the resort to spend the rest of the day swimming and preparing for our trip home the next day. We stopped next to the GG Bridge to take some pictures and we got to walk out on the bridge too! It's a pretty amazing thing!







We made it back home in about 13 hours and it wasn't that bad of a drive at all.  I took 5 books with me and read 3 of them and plenty of candy crush was played on our trip haha! We broke a lot of laws while driving in CA with those crazy Californian's but we came home with no tickets! Some of those broken laws include speeding, and making left turns when there was a no left turn sign, and that's just the 2 that come mind.  We had many many good laughs with my parents and we all thoroughly enjoyed the trip and the time we spent together.  We  managed to get lost A LOT even with GPS but between my GPS and Wayne's, we managed to get around pretty good!!

Monday, September 30, 2013

Opporunities to do good!

 
I know I am really behind on updating our blog from the summer, and I'm working on it, but I just had to post this one tonight! You know how you make plans and think you have everything figured out? You know just the way you want your life to be and then the inevitable happens and things don't work out according to your plans. It's the worst right?? Well the inevitable happened to me and I felt so lost and confused for months! After graduation I had no idea what to do besides go to work each day. I was fortunate to get a second job and it has been a HUGE blessing in our lives. But in the back of my mind I couldn't help but feel like I had been cheated! For months I have felt a little lost and I just pretended like I had it all figured out, going about my day to day activities, trying to have a good attitude. Trying to get past those thoughts of failure has been more difficult than I imagined it would be but this quote below has really helped. 
 


Now that Kevin is back in school, (and super busy!!), I have found myself wanting to be busier. My 2 jobs keep my pretty busy, but then I realized that I actually missed school. Weird I know! Although school is a lot of work, learning is such a great thing and something I enjoy! About a month ago I was contacted about volunteering with the Idaho Food Bank as a teacher for the Cooking Matters course. At first I was really nervous about it and wasn't sure I would be good at it, but I decided that this is a great opportunity, something I can't pass up. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about being a Dietitian one day and I'm not going to let anything stand in my way! "Never give up on something you can't go a day without thinking about." So, tonight I went to my training for teaching this class, and I am so excited!! I get to teach teenagers basic nutrition and cooking skills and hopefully I can make a difference in at least one of their lives!

For whatever reason my plans didn't work out, so, now I have new plans and they are exciting! I'm still working on my new plans but one step at a time is all I have to take. For now I have put my trust in the Lord and I know that He will guide me in right direction. I know that I was not supposed to be in school this year and I will never have this time back, so I am going to make the most of everyday! So, here's to new opportunities to do good!


Monday, May 20, 2013

ISU Graduation...I did it!!

The BEAUTIFUL flowers Kevin got me for graduation!! This is the first time that Kevin has gotten me flowers and I was surprised. His philosophy is that "big occasions deserve great gifts" and it means so much to me,  The flowers were perfect!!

The awesome girls I went through the Dietetics program with. I made some great friends and loved my experience there!

My sweet, amazing husband who I can never thank enough for all that he does for me!

My dad, lynn and niece Summer who were at graduation! Summer wanted to be in all the pictures!

My mom! I love her sooo much! Wayne came to graduation but I never got a pic with him.

3 of my sisters and my cute niece Summer who came to graduation, Abby, Natalee, and Courtney!

My awesome friend Becky who was also in the program with me.  She's joined the peace corps and is going to Zambia, Africa! I'll miss her!

My grandparents who I love so much! They are fantastic people!





I was practicing throwing my hat!

Going to ISU was a great experience and although it was tough at times and definitely challenging, I learned so much and loved every day of it! The Lord guided me to go there and I'm so thankful I listened because it was exactly what I needed to do! I have gained a great passion for nutrition and for helping others, as well as pursuing more education! My family and friends and most importantly Kevin have helped me get through these past 2 years and I'm grateful for them!! Can't believe I have my bachelor's degree!