Destination 23: Riverton, Utah

I know this post is long overdue but for the sake of our enjoyment, let's pretend that today is July 22nd or 23rd :)

After our most wonderful experience at Yellowstone, we continued heading west towards Riverton, Utah to visit the Peltiers, a family of dear friends who moved to Utah not too long ago. They attended Calvary Chapel East Anaheim and were involved with the Newcomers' Dinner that my parents hosted once or twice a month so I got to know the family well.

Anyway, we were hoping to make it for dinner but we ran a little late and didn't arrive until 7 p.m. Luckily, everyone who went to the Peltiers' were still there when we arrived, so we got to chat for a little bit before they all took off. Meanwhile, I explored their beautiful home and backyard, ooing and awing at their hens and roosters and their amazingly large dog, Cooper. The moment we opened the car door, Daniel, Mary and Robert ran off to play with the Peltier kids. The evening flew by too quickly as we spent time catching up and learning more about their house and neighborhood. Before long, lights were out and everyone was sound asleep, gaining their energy for the next full day.

The following morning, Mom and I went for a jog around the neighborhood. I thought it would be easier to jog since Riverton wasn't so rural and hilly as the previous stops. But the altitude made it too difficult to do any kind of intense running or jogging, so Mom and I decided to walk briskly instead :) It was a great way to start of the morning and enjoy the beautiful mountain views.

When we got back, Hannah was making some potatoes, eggs and bagels for breakfast. We fueled up and then, Mom and I took Daniel and Mary to the doctor's office to check up on their never-ending cough. The diagnosis was simple: allergies from all the traveling. With a new prescription in hand, we made our way back to the house to get ready for the next adventure of the day. When we drove up, the kids (sans Daniel) all ran up to the car yelling, "Daniel just went to the hospital! He jumped off the hill and fell and hurt his arm! He was screaming in pain!" After lots of yelling, we finally got the story straight: Daniel had jumped off of this tiny little hill in the backyard and fell on his right arm. He landed on it and began crying so Dad decided to take him to the hospital just in case.

Meanwhile, everyone else went to some water fall for a picnic. I decided to stay at the house and do some job hunting for Korea. Although I got the job that I interviewed for in New York, I turned it down because they wanted me in Korea by August 17th, giving me only 2 weeks after I return from this road trip. Rather, I decided it was best to look for something that didn't feel so rushed and unorganized. Thus, the search continues.

I had a solid 2 hours to myself before Dad and Daniel returned to the house with...a temporary cast and sling! Daniel fractured his wrist and needed a cast for 4-6 weeks. Although he was absolutely bummed out, I kind of chuckled at the fact that he was the first in the family to break something. It was kind of like a coming-of-age thing. Rather than feeling sorry for him, I was happy he was experiencing it. He probably preferred the sympathy.

The rest of the gang returned shortly after. Robert and Mary felt very sorry for Daniel. At one point, I asked Robert why he was looking so sad (I thought maybe he had gotten in trouble). He said, "I'm just sad for Daniel. It makes me sad he broke his arm." How thoughtful :)

That evening, we went to church with the Peltiers. It was a lot of fun to see the McCormicks again and so many others from CCEA. We didn't even feel like visitors because we knew so many people! It was really quite wonderful.


After the service, I played with Vickie's precious little girl, Hannah Lily McCormick, and rocked her to sleep! I can't even put into words how sweet she is...you'll just have to look at the pictures!

[Mom LOVED Hannah]

[She's so cute!]

Everyone, including Pastor Joe and Vickie McCormick, drove over to Sub Zero, the local ice cream parlor, where they make the ice cream right in front of your eyes. First, you choose between milk, yogurt or soy milk. Then, you choose a flavor and a topping. The employees get your picked ingredients, add the liquid nitrogen to freeze it in front of your eyes and mix it altogether. You can even order it "extra hard" since they control how frozen your ice cream gets. Mom and I shared vanilla with Heath Bar topping...yum!!!! It was absolutely, positively one of the most delicious things I've ever tasted.

[Dad and Pastor Joe catching up]

[Robert and Daniel--with his sling--waiting for their ice cream in anticipation]

[The crew!]

[Mom with Hannah again]

[Her little tiny baby feet]

We stayed there until it closed and even a little after since we were all having such a blast catching up. I ran into an old friend and spent the next hour talking about our lives since traveling together to Costa Rica in 2004! Finally, at around 11:30 p.m., we headed back to the house and knocked out in a matter of seconds.

No one wanted to leave the next morning. We took our precious time packing our things and eating breakfast. In fact, we didn't walk out the door until well past 11 a.m. We were just having too good of a time to end it. Mom kept saying, "Gosh, I don't want to leave" as she got up and then, she would just sit down at another chair. But our next (and last) destination was awaiting us, so despite our every desire to stay and continue chatting, we packed up the van and rounded up the family to say our very last "goodbye" of the trip!