1. A morning walk with Mama in South Provo. Sometimes I hear myself say that Utah spring makes Utah winter just a bit more manageable. Being native Texans, we were pulling out our cameras every other minute to try and catch a quail or a red-bellied robin. And, the flowers... oh, the flowers.
2. A graduation dress! Mama and I went shopping after lunch with Sam at Vivint. After searching for months and months, I finally found the cutest dress to wear for my special day. There are three girls in my family, and my mother is an expert seamstress. So, our holidays consisted of a calendar of new dresses for every holiday or special event. My graduation would be no exception. After finding this cute dress at Apricot Lane (a new boutique in Riverwoods), Mama took it home and fixed it up on my little Singer.
3. Standing backstage for the last time with my beautiful girls. The convocation was held at the DeJong Theater, where Contemporary Dance Theater performed this year. I am going to miss these girls so much, but I know that we will see each other often. Let me tell you, these girls are going to be stars!
4. So many graduation presents! It really was like my birthday... but better. Thank you so much for all of the generous gifts sent snail mail from Texas! Also, Daddy gave me a gorgeous, vintage gold ring with a creamy, coral stone. (See if you can spot it in the pictures). Mama and Chad gave me my very own pearl necklace, just like the one Mama let me borrow for my wedding day. The Grays gave me a new cookbook, the cutest gardening tools, and gift money. Finally, Desi, Danielle, and Wilson surprised me with "sister time" down in Arizona this week. On Wednesday I am flying out for three days of sister time, including an appointment at Curls Gone Wild (read about it here), pedicures, and tickets to see Billy Elliott at Gammage. I feel so loved!
5. A graduation bar-b-q complete with hamburgers, hotdogs, salad, beans, and potatoes. It was so great to have my two families together for dinner. The Grays brought over food to add to the table, while Sam and Wilson manned the grill. Mama and the girls helped make the cutest cupcakes with the Meri Meri Tweet Tweet Cupcake Kit. Aren't they darling? I also made a version of the famous lemon-berry bundt cake that Miss Whitney Bush made for our wedding reception. It was a hit. We all ate dinner, watched a few past BYU performances on DVD, and even caught a show from baby Nola as she danced and rolled around our living room.
6. Did I mention that my family was in town? Well, let me tell you again. Mama, Wilson, Desi, Danielle, and Daddy all flew or drove into Utah to see me graduate. I think my most favorite thing from this weekend was having all of us sleeping under one roof in our little home in Provo. Everyone was spread out on air mattresses and couches, and we ended the night with a brand new copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I love my family.
7. A surprise easter egg hunt. The "easter bunny" hid eggs all over our house. I found the first one in our medicine cabinet, and the rest revealed themselves throughout the morning. One of my favorites was the egg nestled between my spools of thread, or this pink one perched on the top shelf in the kitchen. (I think I spotted a couple of knowing smiles from the Luongs!) The plastic eggs were a perfect edition for my Easter lesson in our primary class on Sunday. And, I'm not going to lie, I have already eaten all of the jelly beans.
8. A few nature drives with Daddy. After the rest of the family headed back to Texas, or vacation adventures to Vegas, Daddy stayed a few extra days to hang out with Sam and I. Sadly, Sam spent most of the weekend in bed with some sort of cold/flu. (We are nursing him back to health.) But, he did get enough energy to drive Daddy and I around to see some of the beauty of Utah. We saw a little of Mt. Timpanagos at Sundance, Lincoln Point at Utah Lake, and Rock Canyon. We also managed to visit Vivint again, and grab some lunch and sweet potato fries at Guru's. I was sad to finally send Daddy back home.
These are a few of my favorite things. Thank you for a beautiful weekend!
You have a happy life, my darling girl!
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