Inauguration

Monday night Trent, Kim, Wayne, and I made our way into DC. Where we stayed the night in order to prepare for an early awake time to attend the inauguration. My friend Wayne, whom got us our tickets to the big event, has a co-worker that lives in DC and allowed us to camp out at her apartment. We found out that the very same apartment was President Obama's apartment when he was in the senate!! So yes, I stayed at Pres. Obama's old apartment on the eve of his inauguration.

Us at President Obama's old apartment

We left the apartment at 6:30 am, walked through the Interstate 395 underpass, and made our way to get into the SLOWEST MOVING LINE IN HISTORY!!!! I believe that we moved one city block in three and a half hours. We were all standing shoulder to shoulder and back to back. Soon we stopped moving all together. People were getting antsy so they climbed on top of their friend's shoulders and on to light poles to get a better view of what way to go. Every time we would move a few feet the crowd would cheer. The crowd was pretty polite. They even started to chant "LET US IN..... PLEASE." Then we could go no further. We were stuck behind a cement barrier, a metal fence, and two plastic fences. We were all frustrated that there was so much room in the section that we were supposed to be in but we could not get there. Then it happened. The people would be heard. The crowd started to chant, "Tear it down, tear it down." Then the gate and fences went down and people started to rush into the open area near the capitol. Police tried to hold us back but soon stopped when they realized that we were not running over the barriers but were being pushed over them from the people behind us. I will be honest...this scared me. I was sure I would be trampled. We got over the barrier and had a pretty good spot. Once we were in our spot things seemed to be more cheery.

The inauguration itself was a momentous occasion. It was a wonderful opportunity to be present during the inauguration of the first black president. I found his speech hopeful yet honest about what America is facing economically, nationally, and world wide. The prayers were heartfelt and full of hope and praise. Throughout the inauguration a woman behind me was crying. She was a young black woman that was overcome, I am sure, by the historic occasion that she was witnessing. I wonder what it meant to her to have someone from her race that has been historically kept out of such positions in America. I wonder how this will change America. I hope it will be for the better. As I handed her a tissue, I felt connect to not only her but to all mankind. It was a wonderful moment that I will not forget.

MLK Weekend

A few months ago, Mary called me and shouted, "I want to go to Paris for my birthday." We got really excited about going to Paris and then realized how cold it would be in January. That idea was out. Then Mary called and said "Lets go to Florida." We got excited and then again threw it out. Third times the charm. Mary called with the idea of a "chocolate covered birthday weekend." She suggested that we spend her birthday at the Hershey Spa. I jumped at the chance to pampered for the day and we made a weekend out of it.

The first day were joined by some friends. I had read about this hill where if you put your car in neutral it would take your car up the hill. The legend is that a bus full of school children ran off the hill and died, and now the ghost children push the cars up the hill. Well, I had to try this out. Freaky enough, it actually worked. We were all delighted by this find.

The goal for our trip was to eat chocolate at every meal. It was met through cake, milkshakes, cookies, hot chocolate, and all kinds of Hershey products. To set a precedence we started off our day at the Hershey Factory. We took their Disneyland type ride through the factory were we saw singing cows and lots and lots of chocolate. Later that evening it was time for dinner, more chocolate, and hot tubbing.

So Much Candy!!!

Sunday we made our way to Harrisburg, PA where we visited the capitol building. We walked around Harrisburg (which looks lovelier in the pictures than it really is in person.) Monday was Mary's birthday, and we spent most of the day in the Hershey Spa. The spa treatments were relaxing especially when I got to eat chocolate in the milk and honey soak. Oh, it was heaven....audible sigh.

It was a great weekend. Happy Birthday Mary!

Christmas Highlights

I had a wonderful Christmas break that lasted three weeks long. It started out right by visiting Disneyland. From California, Trent and I flew to SLC where I spent a few days with him and his family. To be honest, I was a little nervous since this was the first time to meet them. The nervousness quickly melted away by Trent's mother's warmth and kindness. Thanks Ruthann and Dakota for making my time in SLC comfortable and enjoyable. The trip was complete with a Bowen family Christmas party where we had a white elephant gift exchange and I was interrogated about my intentions with Trent from his uncles. I ensured them that my intentions were honorable. The last night in SLC my mom, brothers Justin and Eric, Kami, and Collin joined the Bowens and I at the SLC temple to see the lights. Dakota and Collin had a great time together by jumping in the snow and throwing snow into the fountains. They are such cute boys!

Trent and his little brother Dakota

Then I was off to home sweet home Arco, Idaho. The days leading up to Christmas were full of baking, watching movies, and having sleepovers with my nephew Collin. On New Years Eve, we had our annual Brewer Christmas party. I had a wonderful time spent with my whole Brewer extended family and our adopted family Rhonda and Joe! The picture below is of my mother after she jumped out of our car and chased down the FedEx truck in hopes that he was bringing her the grand kids present. No such luck but I thought the picture was funny.
We woke up early Christmas morning to find 15 inches of freshly fallen snow. It was beautiful. My parents had to plow their way through the snow to get to my brothers home to watch the grand kids open gifts. Once they got there, my cute father shoveled a pathway to the door for my mom.
The kids had a great Christmas. Santa seemed to think that they were good this year because they got all of the presents they asked for. Collin even got his "rock and roll guitar." My favorite gift that I gave was to my father. He loves McDonald's and loves to tease me about how I should eat there more instead of real restaurants. After all his teasing, I decided to give him some gift certificates. Well, he seemed to have the same idea because he gave me a McDonald's gift card. We all laughed pretty hard.

A few days after Christmas Trent and his family came to visit!!!! I was excited to show them the sites of Moore and Arco. The tour lasted about an hour and then ended with a visit to "The Deli." The next night my entire Brewer side of the family plus some friends got together for dinner and games and a chance to meet the Bowens. I believe that we all had a good time playing Scum and Guitar Hero World Tour.

Then Trent and I were back in DC before we knew it. We landed just in time to attend Mary's New Years Eve party.
Happy New Year dear friends!!! This has been a wonderful year for me and it lived up to its motto: Everything will be Great in '08. This years motto is yet to unfold but I am sure all will be fine in '09.

The Happiest Place on Earth

So it turns out that Disneyland is in fact the happiest place on Earth. It takes a special place for me to remain happy through wind and rain. Trent and I met Derek and Joni for a two day Disneyland trip. We had been looking forward to this trip for a few months. Trent and Joni are the biggest Disneyland fans that I know so it was great to experience it with them. They knew all the good places to eat, stay dry, and shortcuts through the park.Our first day in the park it rained the entire day. I think the rain let up for about an hour but then continued to fall. We took the rain as a blessing because there was hardly anyone in the park and we walked on to all the rides!!! However, we did make a bad decision going on Splash Mountain. We had thought that it would be okay since we were already a little wet. We were loving the ride until the water came in over the sides and soaked us. After the ride, we were all very wet. It was worth it! For dinner we at The Blue Bayou, which is the restaurant that is at the beginning of the ride The Pirates of the Caribbean. The restaurant had the ambiance of eating outdoors yet is not outdoors. It was perfect for a rainy night. The first night there we also had a chance to meet up with my friends Leah and Jon and their 2 children. It was wonderful to catch up with them even for just a little bit of time.

The castle decorated for Christmas

After Splash Mountain
A Small World

The next day was warmer so we wandered outside and went on the big roller coaster. We had yummy food, churros, and anything covered in chocolate. We spent some time with Joni's sister Janna. She is a cast member at Disneyland and graciously got us in the park for a very low fare. Plus, she is quite the cute Gingerbread Man in the Christmas parade. My favorite parts of Disneyland has always been the parade and the fireworks. After the fireworks, it started to snow...fake snow made of small suds. It was perfect!! That night we were able to meet up with our friends Jane and Seth that now live in LA. With so many friends to see it makes me think that it really is a smal world after all.

Our reaction on the roller coaster