California dreamin'

Both of us had been to southern California before but neither of us have ever done much outside of Disneyland. On the third day of our trip, we headed to some sites such as the Hollywood sign, the LA temple, Rodeo Drive (not pictured), the Chinese theater (not pictured), and Highway 1. We drove along Highway 1 for several hours, taking in the picturesque coast and then stopped at the Santa Monica pier to walk around and eat. What a beautiful day!

LA skyline

The Hollywood sign 

LA LDS temple

Hello LA temple!

Santa Monica Pier

I love this guy!

Sorry...another kissing picture :)

The pier again

Beautiful beach and scenery

It was a gorgeous setting! Glad I got to spend it with this dude! He makes every adventure a lot of fun!

The happiest place on earth

We made it to Disneyland!

I enjoyed going to Disneyland with my best friend. Here are just a few highlights:

Space Mountain is always a favorite

Yep, we had to get a kissing picture in front of the castle. It was the romantic in me that made it happen.

Hanging out with my sister Chrissie and her kids after getting soaked on the Great Grizzly Run ride at California Adventure

We shared a Monte Cristo at Cafe Orleans. So good but wow the sugar!

Yes, sourdough bowl and clam chowder. It made me miss California!

On the Jungle Cruise ride

How could I not include a jumping picture in all of this?

Fantasmic was a hit! So amazing.

We enjoyed seeing a lot of pumpkin decor around Disneyland before Halloween.

It was a grand time! Here are a few random thoughts about Disneyland in general:

1. Wow it's crowded!

2. How do people with children not get absolutely exhausted? Us single people needed a vacation after this one!

3. We should never go during Fall Break again. It's worth it to go when there are less crowds

4. I don't want to go on my Honeymoon there

5. Matterhorn single riders saved us an hour of time

6. Haunted Mansion Halloween style is pretty cool

7. The Cars ride was a 90 minute wait! Holy cow!

8. We got stuck in Small World for 15 minutes

9. California Screamin is well worth the adrenaline rush

10. Thank goodness for the Aladdin show. We were so tired--it was a much needed break!

See you in 5 years or more Disneyland!

Time for General Conference!

2 years in a row I got to attend LDS general conference with my Canadian convert, Phil. He and his wife were in town and we got to see them again! It's just one of many benefits of serving your mission in North America.

Here we are. It was great to chat with them and hear their Canadianisms and to see Phil so engaged with the Gospel. He is my miracle story from my LDS mission and he is always so quick to tell me how much he loved me as a missionary. It's always very validating.

And here's one with the man. He was so great to come with me and hear me rehash my mission stories again. 

General Conference itself was fantastic. Go to lds.org to learn more. This event--being at conference with Phil--was just another reminder of why I'm glad I served an LDS mission. Phil, you were worth it!