Uncle Bob followed through with another great Christmas present this year...tickets to the circus for the whole fam. (If you want to see ALL the pics, click here.)
Yes, gray and gray. Sometimes it just happens...
These freaky little Chinese girls were insane! Their legs could go where no leg should!
Mark and I enjoyed the nice weather last Saturday by taking an afternoon hike at Sweetwater Creek State Park.
Hiking shoes...check. Camelback...check. Zip-off hiking pants...check.
Later in the week, we observed the awesome lunar eclipse...Mark even got a few cool shots (thanks to our Christmas present).
Last weekend, my brother Matt and his girlfriend Ashleigh came up for a visit. They were in town for a few days (for a concert) and I tried to think of something fun we could do to entertain them...since the weather was amazing, we decided to check out the Atlanta Zoo (cross another item off my "To Do in Atlanta" list!). Matt's friend Samantha, who they were staying with, came along too, and we had a really fun time.
Ashleigh, Matt and Samantha
My parents came for a visit...about a month ago...and I've been meaning to post some pics of the fun times we had. We had a super busy weekend, starting on Friday afternoon. They got to town around 4, and we met at the temple to do some sealings. Mark was still at school, so he met up with us for dinner at Cafe Intermezzo. Saturday we had early reservations at The High, and really loved the exhibits (which were on loan from The Louvre). Of course my dad took about 45 minutes longer than the rest of us, but it was still fun.
It was a pretty funny experience. It turned out to be the Kite Festival, which is apparently one of their largest holidays. We were approached by a few of the people, and they were very nice, explaining their worship and the building. We were able to go inside (where I think I was converted, since I gave an offering to one of their gods) which was insane...the marble was so intricate and just incredible. It's really hard to explain; just totally unlike anything I'd ever seen before. We didn't get to see the entire building because "the gods were sleeping" when we visited, so it looks like we'll be making a round 2 trip sometime in the future.
On December 31st, Mark and I took advantage of the holiday and visited some Georgia attractions that are typically only open while we're at work/school. We started the day visiting the State Capitol. Since we were the only 2 people for the 11:00 tour, we had quite the VIP experience, and really had an interesting time. Our tour guide took us around for about 30 minutes, telling us the basics of the main rooms and statues, and then let us wander around for as long as we wanted. She told us to be sure to stop by the 
Governor's office, to sign in the visitor's book, and we ended up getting a tour of the office as a bonus. 
Me and Mark, after a fabulous birthday dinner with Chad and Stacey at The Cheescake Factory. Don't I look old?!
The color version of our Christmas card...don't be too sad if you didn't get one...it's our first year sending them out, so we're still learning.
My niece, Maddalyn, getting excited for Santa to come.
With my other niece, Emma, before the annual Christmas Eve party.
My little sis Wendy and my mom. (Side note: I've gotta give my mom a shout out for looking super skinny after losing an "undisclosed number" of pounds over the last year. I didn't get a swim suit shot, but just you wait until summer!)
Back in Atlanta, we celebrated Mark's birthday with a fun dinner at a Hawaiian restaurant, followed by some HOT donuts. 
Bertie tagged me, so here goes…
6 things you may not know about me:
1. I love show tunes. Seriously love. Probably most people know I love the theatre, but I also love the music. Mark just bought me the Rent and Hairspray soundtracks for my birthday…Rent has not left the CD player since; I’m obsessed with it (although Hairspray will get its turn soon enough, I’m sure!). Some other favs are Aida (also my favorite play) and Les Mis of course.
2. I am terrible at sports. This is likely due to the fact that I was never involved in any team sports growing up, and has bothered me a lot for the last few years. But I’m just not Sporty Spice.
3. I’ve lived more places than pretty much anyone else I know. Count em…
4. I’m extremely frugal. Or you can call it cheap. I’m a big saver and hate spending money on things that won’t last. I think this partly comes from the fact that I love to move, and buying lots of material possessions ties you down. I try to fit most of what I love in a suitcase…makes it easier when saving for things I really want, which would typically be a vacation. Which leads to #5…
5. I love to travel. LOVE it. More than pretty much anything. I want to visit all 50 states (only like 10 more to go) and pretty much every major country. I’m dying to go to
6. If I could go back in time, my college career is the main thing I’d do differently. I never had to work to get good grades, and basically skated through high school and college without putting in any effort, and I wish I had gone down a more challenging path. I wish I’d spent more time figuring out what I wanted to do with my life, instead of just playing and dating ½ of
