September

Last Sunday we decided we needed a snack so we waited until midnight and headed to Waffle House. It did not disappoint...and neither did our awesome waitress Janae. 

While Eric has been working so hard studying and in clinic with patients, I have been hanging out.

 I met Lauren at Lake Anna for a day at the beach! It was so fun, I am so glad she is out here finally. She was so cute to pack us lunches (dirty diet cokes included) and to bring me a birthday cupcake!

 

After Eric's school on my birthday he sent me on a scavenger hunt in our house and backyard to find my gifts. It was pretty hilarious, especially when there was a fake out and there wasn't gifts when I thought there would be. I wish I would've taken better pictures, but hopefully the neon yarn that I followed is visible!

 Included in my gifts were gift certificates from "the Love of my Life" which I will definitely be cashing in on soon. I especially love the part that says "emoneycleanssomeseriousshiz.com"

 The next day Eric gave me a freakin awesome spa day and then we did some more celebrating at Julep's, which was SO good. Eric sure made this birthday a fun one!

Barbara's Funeral

Eric and I were so sad when we heard the news about his grandma, but we were glad we got to go home and be there to celebrate her life. She was so amazing! We will definitely miss Barbara. 

Some of the handsome Pallbearers-

"Barbara Emily Jacobs Wood11/27/1925 ~ 7/23/2013 Our beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, sister and friend passed away on July 23, 2013 due to natural causes. She slipped away peacefully early Tuesday morning surrounded by her children. She is loved and will be missed by all who knew her. Born November 27, 1925 in Salt Lake City, Utah to John Campbell Jacobs and Elida Paulina Iverson. She married Robert William Wood on August 24, 1949 in the Salt Lake Temple after waiting almost three years for him to return from the Argentine Mission. They shared a beautiful 57 years of marriage and were blessed with 4 children, 15 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren. Barbara was a beautiful, talented, independent woman who loved life and lived it fully. She attended the University of Utah where she received her Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education. She was a devoted elementary school teacher for many years and had a deep love for children. She was creative, vivacious and athletic. She enjoyed riding horses, snow and water skiing, and even played tennis into her 80's. Lake Powell was the favorite family vacation spot where choice memories were created for the entire extended family. Barbara was a truly remarkable woman in every sense. She was lovely even in her later years both inside and out, blessed with uncommon grace and dignity. Her life was filled with charity, always loving and serving others. Her countenance radiated goodness and light with a never-ending smile. Her appreciation for the beautiful things of this earth helped her create a heavenly home filled with unconditional love for her family and friends. Sunday family gatherings became a tradition that will always be cherished. She was the heart of the home and her legacy will continue to live on for generations. Barbara was blessed with profound wisdom and a testimony of the gospel, serving faithfully in many positions in the LDS church. The highlight of her life was serving in the temple with her beloved husband. Barbara enjoyed her life-long friendships with the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority, tennis mates, book clubs, "Los Ches" (Argentine missionary group), kind neighbors and friends. She is preceded in death by her loving husband Robert William Wood, granddaughter Heidi Miller Smith, parents, and two sisters, Helen Anderson and Dorothy Jo Martin. She is survived by her four children Shellie Miller (Terry), Jackie Miller (Gary), Alan J. Wood (Kris), J. Todd Martin (Kimberly), her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Services will be held Thursday, August 1, 2013 at 12:00 noon at the Cottonwood 14th Ward chapel, 5165 South Highland Drive (2080 E.). Viewings will be held Wednesday, July 31, 2013 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 South Highland Drive and prior to the funeral services from 10:30 to 11:45 a.m. at the Cottonwood 14th Ward Chapel. Interment, Wasatch Lawn Memorial Park 3401 South Highland Drive."

I stayed a couple extra days before flying back to Richmond. It was good for us to be with family!

Long update + visitor

Summer doesn't really mean summer for the two of us right now because we have a bunch of boring tests to study for. But, in between the studying, we have fit in a few fun events: a day at the pool, showing the Ashton's our favorite donuts, going on the canal tour, Colonial Downs Horse races, a VERY eventful day at the river, a holiday BBQ, the reenactment at St. John's Church, etc. 

  

On the Fourth of July, we talked the Ashton's into "tubing" the river with us. Last minute, we decided to follow the rules and grab life vests that were required that day. Little did we know, we were tubing over the Z dam, which is a man made hydraulic system. When we went over the dam, we all flipped backwards and got stuck in the water because it has a constant spin cycle. Eric had to pull me out of the water, after which we were stuck in place for about ten minutes, screaming for help! Long story short, we were very lucky to get out and felt very lucky to live in a place where so many people rush to come help you. The firemen/all the helpers told us that 28 people have died at the Z dam since 1990 and that they usually come to pull out bodies, not rescue people. Counting our lucky stars!

Eric is currently training for a marathon (go Eric!) and gets soaking wet every time he runs. It is so crazy I had to document. On a side note, we are getting overly attached to our cute little plants. Check out the change in tomato color! We watch them grow everyday and totally celebrate when our tomatoes turn red.

At the branch, Eric and I got called to the Young Mens and Womens. We LOVE it. A few pics from a couple activities...

Winnie's Visit!:

When Winnie told me he had a work meeting in D.C. I was so happy that he would be coming to Richmond for the weekend! We even got lucky because his meetings got out early so we got him for an extra night.  I picked him up from D.C. and the two of us grabbed lunch. After dinner thursday we took him to the Byrd Theater to see 42. We went on a short run that night and Winnie made sure to distract us with interesting convo topics so I wouldn't give up and run home. Naturally, we had to do a late night run to waffle house, which was followed up with some Mario Kart. 

The next day, we showed him infamous southern waffles and chicken, did the pipe-line walk, Belle isle, and took a little walk along the river. We showed him our favorite Richmond neighborhoods and then introduced him to some delicious barbeque food! To add to the over eating, we did a little red velvet test taster from a couple cupcake joints. Frostings still wins!

 Saturday: Eric woke up really early (and I told him I wasn't quite ready to wake up) so he decided to go on a quick hike. When Winnie heard him, he asked Eric what he was up to. Eric heard him wrong and said "just go back to bed." 

When we were ready, we made a pit stop to South of the James Farmers Market (of course) and then were off to Virgina Beach. The traffic was pretty bad, which made it even worse that I plugged in the wrong address that caused a 30 minute detour. But we got there and had the best weather! Winnie is one of the more fun people so the weekend was a blast. We totally missed Sara and the kids and wish they could have been here!