12:04 AM

Last week I visited my sister Aimee in California. She is about to pop out a baby boy (so excited!) She has two tiny precious busy little girls, and her hubby was out of town for the week So I went down to help her out. She just moved to Riverside. I had never been there. They live on a pretty cool property with cute little places to walk, and orange groves, and a lemon tree. California is my very favorite. I would never abandon my Utah but every time I go to California I realize how deprived of vegetation we are. I want a lemon tree!
This is the first time I have every driven anywhere like that by myself. 6 hours in a car alone with myself is a long time and I am terrified of driving in unfamiliar places. I left home at 2:30 in the morning so as to miss all traffic and it was nice, just me and a few other cars out there in the desert. I was seriously thinking it was a very probable possibility that I would somehow end up dead on my way there. The scenarios that went through my mind include getting run over by a semi, death by decapitation. Needing to pee so bad that I'm forced to stop at a seemingly empty rest-stop, killer is waiting in stall next to mine, death by decapitation. Etc, most ending with losing my head for some reason. Needless to say I am a bit of a worrier. I've accepted this, I'm okay with it, and I just have to remind myself that things always turn out fine. And they did. I made it there with my head and only had a couple of terrifying moments. I did really really need to pee so I got off on some exit south of Vegas and totally got lost, ended up giving up and trying to get back to the freeway, and accidentally turning sooner than my GPS was telling me and driving onto a road with "WRONG WAY DO NOT ENTER" signs all over it. Thankfully it was empty and I found my way to the right road. Phew! Pretty much almost a decapitation!

Before, I pretty much would not drive anywhere but Saint George. Now that I have done this, I feel like a bit more of a woman and I don't have to be afraid anymore. Maybe.

Here are some pictures I took when we went on a walk by Aimee's house.

Aivree.


Aria.








Pretty Pregnant Aimee.




Under the pepper tree. Did you know black pepper comes from trees? I didn't. They looked like little pink berries. But they smelled like pepper! Amazing.

I had so much fun just hanging out with my sister. I haven't done that in a long time since we both got married. We spent most of the time playing with the kids, making owls for Moxie Owl and reading Do Not Reply emails. And trying to induce labor which totally didn't work. Does spicy food ever work for anyone? I think it's a myth. Now I am back and I miss them so much!