St George Festivities!...and other random April things

Jayde's first face painting at the Art Festival. I didn't know how well she would do sitting there so I had Skittles for her to focus on while she was being painted. She also got soaked playing in the water features/splash pad they have there, but loved every minute of it!

First Easter egg hunt held in the park by our house. She didn't understand the whole concept of getting as much candy/eggs as you can. Once she found something edible she would plop herself down and try to pry it open.

 

 I'm loving the fact that the weather is nice enough to set up our little $10 pool outside for her to play in.

 

 Playing in the splash pad/kiddie river on Main Street with some neighbor friends. She also rode the Carousel for the first time which she enjoyed as well as was freaked out by. When we left she seemed to want to go again though.

 More swimming and splashing in the backyard pool.

 Supposedly when Tyson takes her to the store without me he lets her roam free while he gets the groceries. On this occasion they somehow found a mini shopping cart that Jayde pushed around the whole time. She would put the food Tyson gave her into her cart and would pop a couple grapes in her mouth while they went down the aisles.

 The St George Kite Festival was fun to go to. We met our friends Ann and her girl Ava there and walked around, got homemade ice-cream and home-made root beer. Jayde played some games and rode their little train twice. She got a kick out of riding the school bus from the parking lot to the festival and back.

Halloween Festivities

To Semi-Celebrate Halloween we went to the Witches Festival at Gardner Village while Jessi and Ryan were up in town. Some of us had never been, and it was fun seeing all of the witch displays people put out and the cool witch costumes some were wearing. They had lots of little shops witch were cute!

Then all of us headed over to the Utah vs Air Force game...witch of course we won. That makes them undefeated in the games that Tyson and I have gone to this season witch makes it even more fun. Plus most of the food booths are very delish! We all loved seeing the fly over at the end of the National Anthem. Gotta love this country!

DC in bloom

Tyson and I went on a date night to the Cherry Blossoms last week. I got off work a little early (LOVE my job), and he was done with class. We hadn't seen them at all this year and I was really worried that they would be all gone because of the rainy weather lately and the peak season was past. We took the metro over to the Jefferson Memorial and saw a few sparse trees attempting to still hold tight to their blossoms. As we walked up further we realized there were more blossoms still there than we originally thought. It was a gorgeous day, and I am so glad we went when we did to see the blossoms at their last stages. We took a few shots and kept walking around to take it all in. It was kind of sad and surreal to think how this will be the last time we will see these gorgeous blossoms for a very long time, but we feel really lucky to have experienced them at all. Here are some of our shots.

When we were walking back to the metro we were starving and opted for a vendor hot dog. After she gave us the dogs she said it we owed $10! Are you kidding? When did those prices go up, I've never had a hot dog on the mall for 5 bucks. I thought she was crazy but we paid up and they were actually pretty good which made me feel a little better about the steep price. We took the metro to the Pentagon City Mall and people watched while we shared a malt and fries. It was fun to be able to laugh and joke around with each other without any stress. I haven't had enough Tyson time lately with finals coming up so I'm glad to have that whole afternoon with him all to myself. Thank you Tyson for the wonderful date night, you're the best! Good luck with your last finals!

Inauguration 2009

On January 20, 2009, Barack Hussein Obama became the 44th President of the United States of America.

It was an exciting time living so close to DC. We were able to watch as all of the decorations gradually went up. Bleachers showed up all over the mall and the Capitol was transformed into red white and blue. Patriotism was seeping all over the place and we could feel the buzz in the air wherever we went. On the actual Inauguration day I was working from home, and Tyson didn't have school so we watched it in our warm apartment on our TV. I'm sure a lot of you are wondering "What were you thinking by not going?!". First of all we didn't have one of these, and even most of the people who did have one of those still didn't get in:

Second was we didn't want to have to deal with this:

There were millions of people on the mall that day and Tyson turns into a whole other person when he gets around crowds this huge.

However, we were able to watch the whole thing on the news all day in our warm apartment and pajamas. The cold weather was another factor that I wasn't excited about. I think the main reason was we wanted to make sure we were safe, and honestly it wasn't. My friends told stories of security letting people go through even if the metal detectors went off, and not checking purses etc. They basically let everyone go through if they didn't look suspicious or weren't practically carrying any guns or bombs. I'm just so glad that nothing happened during the whole event because of a lot of my good friends who witnessed it live! Seeing it in person just wasn't worth the risk, and all of the Obama-mania around here has gotten very old/annoying.

The inauguration was great though and I liked Obama's speech. I think he has a lot of potential to be a great president and I am glad people are inspired by him, but what was up with that benediction? “Brown would stick around,” the “yellow would be mellow,” the “red man would get ahead, man,” and the “white would embrace the right.” That was a little weird...I wonder if anyone else thought that.

One worry I have is some people regard Obama in a god-like way and I worry that if he screws something up that people will not notice and continue to think he is perfect. I also don't like that the media doesn't cover everything and also holds him in that same light - I mean how come we haven't seen ANY pictures of him smoking? He is set on such a high pedestal right now and I just hope that he will only change this country for the good (so far I'm not exactly impressed). So congrats on Obama for being the 44th white and at the same time 44th black president of the US of A.

I always joke around with Tyson that if things continue to get a lot worse we can always move to Mexico and live with my parents. Either that, or a beach house in Mexico would be awesome!

DC Christmas Trees

During the Christmas season out here in our nations capital there are a lot of fun things to see. One of these is the National Christmas Tree which is right in-between the White House and the Washington Monument. They change up the decorations for these every year so of course we went, and it didn't disappoint. All around the area are other individual trees that represent each state, and a really cool train set. It was freezing cold when we went, but still pretty fun.

Capital Christmas Tree which doesn't even come close to the National Christmas Tree! But it was still fun to get a picture of it in front of the capital.

The Amazing Race

Tyson's sister and I decided that we are going to apply to be on The Amazing Race when the next application process comes up. Tyson jokes around saying if the two of us were paired on it, we should go in with either divorce papers or a Will put together...heh. Jessi and I are trying to think of some good ideas for the video part. It's 4 whole minutes!! Let me know if you have any ideas that would have us stand out. Hopefully we will get in! (Eventhough neither of us has a good sense of direction...at all...)

BORN IN THE USA!

I know that this is super old but I still needed to post about it. Tyson and I voted in this last election. It was a first for me so I was nervous and excited at the same time. Last year I was living in Utah and didn't register early enough...I know...I know. The GREAT thing was our apartment was one of the polling stations. We rolled out of bed at around 5:55 and were in line at 6am which is when they were supposed to open. I was shocked to see all of the people already standing in line in the lobby. Then I was a little annoyed when I saw how long the line was outside in the cold. I knew we should have either gotten up earlier, or just voted later. I kept telling Tyson that I bet nobody would be in line during work hours and that I would vote then. He didn't go for that so we were in line for about an hour and a half.

Anyways despite the fact that the outcome of the election wasn't what I was hoping for, I am very interested and excited to see how everything unfolds. And excited to not have to see those commercials anymore for 4 years. I'm just so glad we live in a country where we have the freedoms that we have today.

That night was another girls night, and to support our privilige to vote we made an american flag OUT OF CUPCAKES! It was really fun, and a great idea. Thanks Rach! Oh, and trust me - the cupcakes were as good as they looked.

You Scream, I Scream, We ALL Scream For Cold Stone!!

TODAY IS FREE COLDSTONE ICE-CREAM DAY!!!

I was so excited when I got their email! Tyson and I live literally a block away from ColdStone (which is probably one reason why we haven't lost weight while training for this marathon). We use this perfect arrangement to our advantage, maybe a little too much. But hey, I seriously have a special place in my heart (and a second stomache) when it comes to dessert. And Especially when that dessert involves Chocolate. So we made our treck out to ColdStone and enjoyed our free Make-A-Wish creation which was marshmellow ice-cream with fudge, oreos, and chocolate chips. And, as always, it tasted great. The reason for this promo was so people could try their new flavors and donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. What a great idea, I totally second that! It feels so good getting free ice-cream and being able to donate to a great foundation.

The Oral Arguments

WOW!!! What an AMAZING experience!!! There is no better city than DC to attend law school because we have the opportunity to witness US Supreme Court oral arguments and witness the legislative process. As a disclaimer....this experience is 5 posts long. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed being part of this.

This case was an amazing oral argument to witness. This could be the first time that the US Supreme Court actually defines the Second Amendment. From the questioning presented by the Justices, it seems as though they truly want to establish a good precedent to be followed for years. In general, I got the impression that most of the justices were in support of individual rights in reference to guns.

So as a law student I think the oral arguments had an added intrigue for me. I have read many cases written by these justices so it was interesting to actually hear them question the attorneys. Justice Scalia was probably my favorite. He sure knows how to command a courtroom but is also comical at times. Justice Alito was firm in his questioning and is definitely Scalia, Jr. Chief Justice Roberts was very involved and seemed to care a lot about the origin and intent of the Second Amendment. I was most surprised with Justice Kennedy. We was much more aggressive than I expected him to be. Sadly, Justice Thomas was himself and did not speak much but it was still great to see him in person.

The Big Day FINALLY Arrives

So luckily Monday night into Tuesday morning was not nearly as cold as Sunday night had been. The lack of wind made all the difference. Sadly, I was wide awake at 4:30 am because the media was showing up and starting to set up.

Before going into the building, I was interviewed by CNN, ABC World New & Report, Washingtonpost.com, and the NRA news. As of right now I have not heard about any of my interviews being showed, but my mom and Laura both said they could see me really well in the background on CNN.

This is a photo of the "Original" Seven. We were the first seven people to show up. From left to right we have Jason and Dan (PA), me (UT), Ryan (AZ), Shiloh (MT), Matt (NJ) , and Ben (AZ). From left to right is the order of our arrival.

At about 7 am, the line was moved up onto the steps of the US Supreme Court where we were to wait until about 9 am. This is a picture of the line looking back from where I was standing. The line just grew and grew. The people towards the back of the line did not like us all at the front. I think it was mainly because blogs started to get out about us "early" arrivals and that triggered many others to show up earlier than they had wanted.

Here is a picture of all the protesters/demonstrators and the media outside of the US Supreme Court. This was after the oral arguments.

Ryan's wife Lindi was kind enough to drive in earlier in the morning and pick up our bags and chairs. She also dropped off hot chocolate Monday morning. Monday night Laura, my wife, and Rachel, Shiloh's wife, came and visited us for dinner. We had pizza delivered and ate right in front of the building. Us guys were lucky to have such wonderful wives that supported us in our urban adventure!!

The "Cartridge" Family

These were two men from Phoenix who flew out to DC just for the hearing. They usually have guitars but were worried that would not be allowed. They were really fun to hang out with and were very nice.

Monday the line grows

So when the sun finally came up on Monday morning, the fun began. Throughout the day the line continued to grow. At the beginning of the day there were 5 of us, but by the end of the day there were over 100. It was a beautiful day so I had the opportunity to sit there and do my homework and people watch. I got a little sunburned but it was worth it. Most the tourist people that walked by were kind and asked what we were camping out for, but of course there were some who could not resist initiating a debate. I usually just sat there and laughed at them. These people need to realize that they are not going to change my views just as I will not be able to change theirs.

While I was studying I was interviewed by the Legal Times. You can see my quote here. I have also found out that I was the quote ending an article in the Washington Times. This can be viewed by clicking here and I am at the end of page 2. Our group was also mentioned on The Volokh Conspiracy.

The Urban Campout

When a US Supreme Court case comes along that could have national ramifications, how could I sleep at home in my warm bed next to my loving wife? As some of you may know, the US Supreme Court was set to hold oral arguments about the constitutionality of the DC gun ban and possibly define the Second Amendment. Something that has never fully been done. I talked Ryan Haws and Shiloh Allen into joining me for our 40 hour endeavor. In reality, it did not take that much persuading as they both viewed this as a great opportunity.

We debated when to show up to get in line and ultimately decided to go at 11:30 pm on Sunday. The oral arguments were not until 10:00 am on Tuesday. We did not want to run the risk of missing out on an amazing experience. When we arrived there were two people in front of us. They both were from Lancaster, PA and had arrived at 5:30 pm Sunday.

Here is one view from my sleepiong spot.

This picture is not the best but it is my view of the US Supreme Court from my sleeping bag.

Here is a picture of the "First" Five. Sunday night was FREEZING cold!!! The wind went straight to the bones. This was one of those nights where you looked at your watch at about 3 am and were excited that the night was half over.