G.I. Joe visits the Capitol

Joe came to visit his army buddy Nick. Nick and his brother scored us suite tickets to the Georgetown vs. Providence basketball game at the Verizon Center. They were great seats and the Hoya's won!!

We also went to Mt. Vernon the last day he was here. It was good to see you, Joe!

Resolutions of 2008 to 2009

My new years resolution this year is to finish the ones I didn't accomplish last year. I accomplished #2, #3 and #6. I only completed part of #4, trained for #1 and I'm still planning on doing #5. Hopefully 2009 will be the year that I'll be able to cross all of these goals off of my mental check list.

2008 New Years Solution IDEAS:
1. run the Top of Utah 1/2 marathon in September
2. Celebrate Birthdays of friends/family. (i.e. make a treat or send gifts/cards)
3. Take the GRE
4. Apply to 5+ grad schools
5. Take a trip to Europe
6. Visit all free tourist-y crap in DC!

Sister Rindlesbach

My good friend/old roommate Morgan Rindlesbach is serving a mission in Baltimore, MD and I was finally able to catch up with her yesterday at the DC temple visitors center. We watched the Joseph Smith movie with some investigators and I really enjoyed it. It was a great film and it reminded me of the history of my faith and encouraged me to never be discouraged. Joseph Smith sacrificed everything for the things that he believed in and was a great servant to the Lord and His work. I know that the things I believe are true and that Jesus is my brother and that we can all return to him if we live worthily and believe in his name.
I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and I wish you the best in the New Year!

D.C. Temple lights with the Fishers

We finally made it to the temple together! My sister and I have been trying to coordinate this trip to see the lights for 2 years. It was a short trip but we had a good time walking around the temple. Afterward we went to a Jewish Deli in Wheaton, MD. It was amazing, I strongly suggest the Shawarma with everything on it.

Christmas Soiree with the House of Payne girls!

We had Christmas Dinner at the Founding Farmers in D.C. It was pretty cool, all organic food. I'm glad we were all able to get together during the Christmas season. I love these girls!

Scottish Christmas Parade

The Scottish Parade was last weekend in Old Town Alexandria. Kami and I had fun watching all the bagpipes and scotty dogs parade around. We sat right outside of the famous 7 ft. house that I tell everyone about. Click on this link to see inside the quaint blue house (it's the second page on the link).

Thanksgiving in South Carolina...

Carlie and I went to Thanksgiving Dinner with Nicole's Family in Columbia, South Carolina. The Lyman family all flew in from Utah to meet up at her sisters' house in Columbia. Somehow, I didn't take many pictures but the dinner was amazing and her family is so great. We basically vegged and hung out for several days and had a blast. Since Nicole is moving back to Utah over christmas, she packed her mini cooper full of bags for her family to take back with them. Needless to say, it was a very cozy ride from DC to South Carolina!

Inauguration Tickets

Last week I received a call from Congressman Bishop's office confirming that they have 2 tickets for me for Inauguration. There has been some talk in D.C. that there is supposed to be about 5 million people coming to town for Obama's big, monumental inauguration on January 20, which is going to make it debilitating to live here. I started thinking that it would be a great time to leave town (visit my sis in Denver or my friend in Florida) but now that I have tickets to be part of the madness, I just might stay in town to witness the Obama Mania first hand!
I have more posts coming, patience...

Palmyra/Niagara weekend

This past weekend, Kami, Carlie, Nicole and I drove up to Palmyra, New York and Niagara Falls, Ontario. It was a lot of driving, but it was worth it. My favorite part of the drive was a city named Cohocton that we drove through. Cohocton is a run down city with lots of character and scary barns, cemeteries and lop sided houses. I wish we had the time to stop and snap some photos.
Anyway, Palmyra, New York is a quaint town with beautiful houses and lots of trees. (L)This is a picture of one of the four churches on four corners that is talked about in the Joseph Smith History. (R) One of the many beautiful houses that we drove past near Palmyra.










(L) The Book of Mormon Publication site where the original 5000 copies of the Book of Mormon were printed. It took over 2 years for this project to be completed and each book was sold for around a $1, which was 2 days of work at the time. (R) Kami outside of the print shop.















(L) Inside the Bookshop where the Book of Mormon was originally sold. (R) an exhibit in the book store that has a Bible from the time the BOM was printed with one of the original copies of the BOM. I love the picture that is hanging above the books because it shows the time/place of the Bible vs. the BOM.













(L) This is what the Sacred grove looked like in my mind. (R) and this is what the grove actually looked like by the time we got there. Daylight Savings is making me crazy with everything dark at 5:00 PM and apparently NY lost their leaves about 2 weeks ago. Sad...



























(L) the American side of the falls (R) The horseshoe falls









Look at all of the mist coming from the falls...




























We were given these neat-o rain jackets to go behind the falls and to take a closer look on this balcony.

Drag Queen Race 2008

The DC Drag Queen Race is one of the Washington, DC area's more unique Halloween events. Each year on the Tuesday before Halloween, thousands of spectators flock to Dupont Circle to watch costumed drag queens show off their elaborate outfits and race down 17th Street. The informal block party lasts a few hours and attracts a diverse crowd. Keep in mind this is a very liberal party, so viewer discretion is advised!

(L) Princess Di and her body guards. (R) Kami with Gov. Palin's hubby.

(L) This butterfly headpiece is pretty awesome. (R) The Washington Monument with a Park Ranger.














(L) The FLDS Women. (It was actually pretty funny, I tried really hard not to be annoyed that they were carrying our scriptures). (R) Some crazy costume.













(L) Marilyn Monroe, Kennedy and I chilling. (R) Sarah Palin stops to pose with Kami and I.













(L) Check out Miss Chanel spraying her hairspray. (R) Miss Mary Kay was pretty glam herself.













(L) Joe the Plumber. (R) The popular/handsome Mayor Adrian Fenty (the actual mayor of D.C., not a look-a-like)













Wayne and I after the crazy drag parade/race. It was so cold, I couldn't feel my face or my feet.