15 Year Reunion

Lovely ladies from the Oly Class of '94.

There's actually a pretty good story that goes along with this picture. Wanna hear it? Well alright. Here's to hoping that no men read my blog...and I'm pretty sure they don't...except for Nate (but he's already heard this story...and rolled his eyes at all the appropriate moments).

So just before this reunion I was at youth conference with our ward. While there, one of my gals got a horrendous picture of my backside in a swimsuit. People- it was awful. I truly looked to be about 500 pounds. She showed me the photo and in my best no-nonsense voice (with some threatening undertones) I told her to "DELETE IT. Immediately."

(Good golly- I hope she really did. What if it's still out there??)

Anywho, when I got home I was still a little annoyed about this picture and decided that surely, surely the reality could not be as bad as the picture made it appear. So I again donned my swimsuit and asked Tess to snap a few pictures of my backside from several different angles. "Mom, why am I taking pictures of your butt?" (Cringe. "Tess- it's 'bum' not 'butt' and I need these photos for research purposes. And Tess, always remember, it is much more important to be beautiful on the inside than the outside.") Super pep talk, right?

Well, I'm happy to report that while Tess' photos were by no means pretty, they weren't nearly as bad as Erica's shot from youth conference. Erica must have searched out the worst possible angle. Sneaky gal.

Fast forward to that evening at my 15 year reunion. Time for the girls shot. We hand our cameras off to our old friend Jared. Luckily, luckily I decide last minute that I want to change one of the settings on my camera...because when I took it back from him, low and behold, there is a giant (yes, closeup) shot of my rear end on the screen. Awesome. "Hi Jared, I haven't seen you in years, but here's a nice juicy picture of my tooshie for your viewing pleasure."

I'm so smart sometimes.

(And no, I don't think he saw the picture. At least he didn't act like he did. And if indeed he did- I hope to never find out.)

Viva Italia!

In July, Nate and I went to Italy. Nate had a conference in Rome at which he gave a presentation about his research in "cancer genes in zebra fish." Sounds fascinating, eh? Well, I can't tell you a thing about it because I wasn't there for it (wasn't invited), but we were able to go out a week early and spend some time with just the 2 of us touring the beautiful countryside. It was molto romantic and relaxing. Then I hopped on a plane home to be with the kiddles and Nate stayed on for another 10 days. Seriously, sometimes his job is so rough.

FLORENCE

Duomo

Atop the duomo

(This is my supermodel, wind-in-my-hair look.)

Eating in the Piazza del Grano after visiting the Uffizi Gallery.

• PISA
  

• CINQUE TERRE
  Five villages along the rugged portion of coast on the Mediterranean Sea.
  

The trail that winds from town to town. In all, a 5 hour walk.
Completely breathtaking.
Our absolute favorite part of the trip.

Spectacular views along the way.

This is the B & B where we stayed in Monterrosso al Mare. Really, it wasn't that nice. But this wall sure was pretty.

Scuba diving in Riomaggiore.

Also known as the day Erin almost drowned.

(Folks, it's imperative that you fully inflate your BCD when on the surface.)

Also ALSO, my 33rd birthday.

• LAKE COMO

(No we did not see George Clooney.)

Residence La Limonera where we stayed in Bellagio.

Castle of Vezio

• DANG (dang!) GOOD EATS
  

Nate's fave- a seaside restaurant in Vernazza, Cinque Terre.

My fave in Varenna on Lake Como

Doesn't that look yummy? (It was.)

And no trip to Italy is complete without a daily dose of gelato.

The pistacchio/ hazelnut/ chocolate combo is beyond delectable.

(How is gelato sooooooo much better than American ice cream??)

Nate waiting for a train. Apparently, if you stand at the edge and look down the tracks, it comes much faster.

• NATE'S ADVENTURE SANS ERIN
  

Pompeii. Just so we're clear...I think death by volcano sounds horrific.

Can't wait to do it all again someday.