Two Temples and a Terrific Surprise

It looks like we can now add another couple of temples to our list of different temples that we've attended. With our recent road trip to Oklahoma City, we were able to attend that temple.


We also made a stop at the Denver Temple as we were passing through that city.


After the session, it was time for lunch and I suggested we find a place to eat close by before we got on the freeway. Glen assured me he had it covered. We drove for a few minutes and then turned into a parking lot where my eyes beheld the big, majestic restaurant Casa Bonita.


I screamed in surprised delight!! I could hardly believe my eyes!! Let me explain... When I had recently graduated from high school and had just barely met Glen, I left town for a few days to attend a national typing contest in Denver. That was a big time experience for me because it was the first time I'd ever flown in an airplane, it was the first time I'd gone on a big trip like that without parental supervision and it was the first time I'd been to Denver.

I came home telling Glen about how a few of us had gone to this gigantic, impressive, fun Mexican restaurant and how much I'd enjoyed it. My mind kept that memory alive for many, many years because it had been what felt like a once-in-a-lifetime dining experience. Keep in mind that growing up in small-town Ogden didn't lend itself to such grandiose restaurant choices. Our family didn't go out to eat often and when we did it was either to Utah Noodle with Grandma and Grandpa Malan or else it was Arctic Circle. Casa Bonita was bigger and grander than anything I'd ever done or could even have imagined. For years and years I'd told Glen that if we ever got to Denver, I'd want to go back and eat at Casa Bonita--the grand restaurant in my now-very-distant memory.

That all happened nearly 33 years ago, but I will admit that I've kept the wish alive of visiting there some day. As we were nearing Denver on our drive towards our Oklahoma goal, and knowing that we really were only taking time to stop in Denver to attend the temple, I had a very short and fleeting thought about the restaurant, but immediately dismissed it because I knew it would have to happen on another trip to Denver--when we were actually spending time in Denver. And, to tell the truth, I hadn't thought about that restaurant in so many years that I'd forgotten the name of it.

And then all of a sudden--there it was!! Glen hadn't forgotten the name or my wish to go back there if I ever got to Denver. What a guy! Who says he's not a hopeless romantic after all?!? This proves it!!


I love you, my darling husband! Thanks for helping to revive my extremely dimmed memory and helping me make a wonderful new memory of the place that made such a positive impression on my young mind all those years ago.

Let's face it--the restaurant is along the same lines as the Mayan Restaurant in Sandy (only Casa Bonita has much better food) with a show every few minutes where someone jumps into the water a few times and the small kids in the restaurant are totally excited about all of that.


The show held little appeal for me this trip, since I've seen things like that before. Glen enjoyed a Kodak moment with me and the gorilla who was in the show.


I don't really remember a gorilla--or any of the show--from when I was there before, but I did remember and again took pleasure in the magical quality of the restaurant and really enjoyed being in the same place I was in all those years ago. Fond memories then and fond new memories now. I loved it!!!

Jeff and Sarah Here For Spring Break

Jeff and Sarah came up for their spring break and it was fun to have them here. I especially enjoyed seeing the pregnant girl in person and it's always nice to have Jeff around. Sarah feels like all the pictures we took were of her eating. Let's face it--that's pretty much what she did the majority of the time they were here!



On Saturday the three of us, plus Rebecca, went to the Draper Temple in the middle of the blizzard and no one was willing to pose for pictures there. After the temple, we met Dallas, Brooke and Caroline for dinner at Macaroni Grill. Brooke enjoyed digging in to help eat dessert.







Jeff and Sarah were finally able to go to one of my Mom's monthly family dinner parties. It was a first for Jeff. Sarah was looking forward to the delicious roast beef dinner and had requested Nani's scrumptious strawberry trifle for dessert. YUM!!






Brooke preferred eating the dessert with her fingers rather than using a fork.



Rachel proudly showed us her toothless smile.


We were glad Glen returned home from his Vegas basketball trip with Kenny in time to join us for the family dinner.









Before they left town, Sarah insisted that we take Jeff to Pace's Dairy Ann to show him where she spent 2 years of her life working--but mostly so she could eat a rainbow.




Thanks for coming to visit. Looking forward to the next time you can come up to spend some more time with us. Happy spring break you two!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ABRAHAM

Happy Birthday today my good man Abraham.  We hope you have a great day. 

32nd Temple In 32 Years

A family that I home teach had both of their children in a play at Snow College.  The play was West Side Story so I thought it would be a fun excuse to have a get-a-way with Kimmy so we planned on going.  We stayed at a little hotel right by the Manti temple.

When Kim and I were first married I set a goal to go to a different temple each year on our anniversary.  Life ended up getting in the way of that goal and I really lost track of it.  I have, though, kept track of our temple attendence together and as I was recording this temple visit, I counted up that this temple marked our 32nd temple in 32 years so maybe I am reaching that goal after all.  Especially since we went to this temple in our anniversary month.

Here is a night view of the temple.

A little bed and breakfast place that we had dinner at before we went to the play.

Alas, when we awoke on Saturday morning we found 4" of snow.  This was when we were glad we listened to the forecast and took Kim's car so we could get around in the snow that morning.






 After the snow was cleaned off, it was off to the temple.  This was fun for me because my mom and dad were married in the Manti temple and I remember it as being a special place growing up.  In fact, back in the day when we made little missionary cards as we went on missions, I chose the Manti temple to be the temple on my cards because of the significance that it had to me growing up.

For those that do not know the story.  Shortly after my mom and dad were married, my dad was called to go on a 3  year mission to New Zealand.  Little did he know when he got home he would have a 2 year old boy waiting for him with my mom.  I kept thinking about that as we went through the temple and as luck or fate would have it, the High Council talk that I was giving the next day was on the Law of Sacrifice and Consecration.  My parents certainly showed an example of that from their sacrifice in the early days of the church.


It was a great day and I would highly recommend the Manti temple to any and all.