Girls Weekend Getaway Day 2

Day 2 of our Girls Weekend Getaway was packed with a full day of activities. We started out the morning with an 8am girls trip to the temple. Mom, Grandma, Lisa, & Kippy did a 10am session a little later since they wouldn't be joining us on the morning hike afterwards. It was such a great way to start off the day, and how cool that we could just walk down the sidewalk to the temple. It was perfect! (no pics of this one)

When we got done, we headed back to Grandma's and after changing and grabbing some light snacks- fruit, and yogurt, we headed off to meet Kimber's in-laws and enjoy a hike with our own personal tour guide- Mike! He has lived in the same place his whole life, so he knew of a great nearby hike. It was such a great experience to go and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors while also getting in a good workout! Nettie went to catch a quick hair appointment, and the rest of us started out on the hike with cute little Tyler in the backpack.
The hike consisted of two parts. The first section, about a mile in distance, was up to a lake. It was nice, but with the current season, the lake was pretty low and not much to look at. Still it offered a beautiful view over the valley and was a great spot to wait for the group to catch up and take a water break.

(I especially love the orange, stuffed into my pocket for most of the trip :)

The second part of the hike was a much more rigorous hike up to a waterfall. It was about 1.5 miles up, and was a pretty steep climb. I was very impressed with Mike taking Tyler up on his back. I was feeling it just from hiking by myself. We wanted to pack as much into the day as possible- so we hiked at a pretty fast pace, and we could definitely feel the burn! It was so nice to finally reach the waterfall. Mike said it wasn't much to look at at that time, that usually it's even better- but we thought it was beautiful! Of course, we had fun taking some fun, and silly pictures as well.

Interpretive Dance? :)

Tough Stevens Girls- look at those Guns!

The trip back down the mountain was great. Again we tried to go as quickly as possible. The first part down we had to go a little slower because of the steepness and rocks, but the second half down- is mainly a trail with rocks and we were able to book it! Gina had her GPS on and clocked us at a top speed of a 5:45 mile pace on the way down. Yes we're a little crazy. I'm just glad no one took a digger because it really would have hurt. :) When we got to the bottom, we waited for Mike, Kimber & Tyler (obviously with a baby on your back, you need to be a little more responsible:) and Nettie to get back from her hair appointment. Which also allowed us more time to take some funny self-portrait pictures.
From the hike we headed back downtown for some tennis. It was fun being able to talk together in the car on the way, and I think we had some good and memorable open conversations and bonding time. When we got to the courts, we met up with Mom, Grandma, Kippy, and Lisa. Amy also made it down to Salt Lake City from Boise and we were so happy to have her there! She hadn't been able to get off work until then, but we were just so happy she was able to make it. She is so much fun to be around and definitely fits in with the Stevens Girls group! Kimber was amazing and put together a fabulous lunch of sandwiches, fruit, etc. We just enjoyed the afternoon playing tennis and enjoying the time together. I just couldn't believe it was the end of September because it was super hot! Originally I thought I would need pants and sweaters, but I'm glad I changed the plan to shorts and t-shirts after seeing the weather report.

(Kippy & Lisa- a team not to be reckoned with!)

(Mom and Amy)

Amanda with Grandma Forman who provided great side-line cheering for the tennis teams!

We played until the very end and then had to rush back to Grandma's so we could hurry and get ready for the Relief Society Broadcast. Nettie was amazing and scored us 11 tickets so we could all enjoy the Relief Society Broadcast at the Conference Center. I've never seen so many people get ready so quickly. We literally had just 15 minutes to change and freshen up before walking down to the Conference Center. It was such a great evening. The talks were absolutely wonderful. I love being able to listen to the Relief Society General Presidency and especially our Prophet- he truly gave a wonderful, inspired message.

(The Forman Girls with their 'Golden Tickets')

In front of the Salt Lake Temple

fter the conference, we headed back once again. We enjoyed a yummy dinner of chicken salad croissants, and then were spiritually fed by a wonderful letter shared to us by Grandma Forman. She put together an amazing folder of family history, records charts, photographs, and family stories. It was such a sweet moment and I'm grateful we could share it together. We each were the lucky recipients of a copy of this wonderful history folder. It represents hours of work and is truly a treasure for our family!
From there, the night started to get a little crazy! We broke out the treats and games and played the night away. It never ceases to amaze me the colors that can start to come out when you combine a big group of tired women. Grandma had to keep reminding us that she had neighbors- hopefully we didn't get her into too much trouble. The whole night was just so entertaining. I think we all laughed harder than we have in a long time- even with the cheaters in the games! :)

This picture pretty much sums up the evening. :)

It really was a blast, and hard to believe that this was our last night of the trip. We ended up calling it a night earlier than the previous one, but we were all so tired we could barely stay awake. Gina, Amanda, Amy and I still managed to stay up visiting together while we laid on our sleeping bags and beds. Those are some of the best memories.