Last week of January

After getting to San Francisco Sunday evening, we took an Uber to our hotel.  We then went and got a bite to eat, and then came back for bed.

My first hotel room for 1 night by the SF Airport.

We left the hotel on Monday morning after checking out, around 7:20am.  We then took an Uber over to our Burlingame branch, where we ran our team meeting.  We explained the difference between our AI (artificial intelligence) tax transitions we can run on taxable accounts vs our IM (Investment Manager) Hypos, which we have to send our team for a human to look at and run a tax transition.  We then had 2 groups we met with afterwards to discuss even further and give examples.  I also met w/ reps individually to help answer their questions and teach them.  I even joined my very first client appointment in person!  It was literally my first time ever being in our branches before, and my first time joining an appointment in person.  It's kind of crazy since I've been at Fidelity for over 18 years now, but only been in our regional center the whole time, and always joined via phone or Zoom.

That evening we went to dinner at a pizza place with 4 reps from the branch.  We then took an Uber to a different hotel more downtown San Francisco.  We stayed at this hotel the rest of the time.

The 2nd hotel I stayed at in SF.

Hudson w/ our neighbors Taft and Tate Evans.  Monday night, Hudson had his karate class.

Tuesday, we were in the SF branch, which is downtown.  We walked over to the branch and spent the day there.  This time, we had one of our Investment Managers with us (Erin) to further explain what our IM Hypos look like and things they consider.  She also had her manager w/ us (Emily) and a new rep (Pranav), who also helped explain things.  We then had 4 group sessions, as the SF branch is large.  All 4 sessions went really well, thankfully.  Again, in between, I was able to help further teach reps there in the branch.  That evening we went to eat w/ Emily, Erin, Pranav, and 3 reps from the branch.  It was great to get to know them better and learn more from our IM team.

Wednesday morning, we took an Uber over to our Marin branch.  Our VPRPC Bita, who also lives in SLC, also came w/ us, along w/ a new rep, Brett.  Erin and Pranav also met us there.  It is across the bay, so we went across the Golden Gate Bridge, which was cool.  We had Erin explain her process again, then we had a group session afterwards, as well as a few other topics we discussed.

Golden Gate Bridge

Hudson's preschool class went to Thanksgiving Point to the Dinosaur Museum.  Steve went w/ Hudson.  They sang a few songs while they were there.

Hudson trex song

Another dino song

On the way back from Marin, we took the ferry back to SF.  It was fun to take the ferry and see more things than just cars.  We passed the San Quentin prison, and there were deer outside eating the grass.

It was a beautiful view of SF, the bay, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Alcatraz.

We then walked over to a place for dinner.  Erin, Pranav, Bita, me, Eldon, and Brett.

I ordered steak for dinner.  It was super yummy.

On Thursday, the others were going to a conference, but it didn't really involve me, so I decided to walk over to the SF branch to spend more time w/ reps there.  It was great to meet more reps in person and help them in person, vs over Zoom, like I normally do.  Overall, it was a very productive week in the SF area.  I'm so glad I was able to meet reps in person, many of whom I have supported for over 2 years.  We also got our messaging across well, not only creating awareness about AI/IM Hypos but also more conviction on what we can do for our clients in tax transitions, with the help of our IM Erin to tell SAI's story.  It's always a question of whether we have enough budget to travel, so I'm grateful I was able to get out to all 3 of my branches I support in one trip.  I'm not sure if/when I'll be able to go back again.

Our flight left at 7pm on Thursday evening from SF to SLC.  I didn't land until 10pm Thursday evening.  Steve came and picked me up.  It was foggy as we were driving home, but we made it safely, thankfully, by 11pm.  We were both tired and went to bed after I unpacked.  Steve did a great job at home, taking care of the boys and getting them to and from the places they needed to be.  I'm thankful I could go and didn't worry about the boys, as I knew Steve would take good care of them.

Me at the SF office and Piper at home :)

I worked from home Friday.  Steve let me sleep in a little as well, which was nice.

On Saturday, Carter had a basketball game and flag football game.  I was feeling pretty tired though, so I stayed home while Steve took him to his games.

Carter's basketball game.

Carter's football game.

Hudson played w/ our neighbor Tate.  I went outside w/ them for a minute and played w/ Piper.  Her new toy is a Princess Leia, which is super soft and lightweight.  We let her play for a few minutes, still trying to take it easy w/ her legs.

After Carter's football game, his friend Colin came over to play.  Then Nyles' friend Lincoln came over to play as well.  They ended up going rock climbing that evening.

Our Sandy rock climbing place was closed, so they went up to the Midvale one.  It is pretty new, and a lot bigger, they said, so it was fun to try new courses.

They had a lot of fun on the new obstacles.

Sunday evening, we had our family get together at Dave/Joann's place.  After dinner, the kids made heart decorations.  Then we sang Happy Birthday to January birthdays (Ethan and Alexa) and February birthdays (me and Carrie).  Diane made her chocolate cake, and I made funfetti, including one that was gluten-free.

It was an eventful week.  I had a great work trip to SF, but I'm thankful to be back home.

Great quotes:

3rd week of January

The day after we got home from San Diego was a holiday (Monday, January 19th), Martin Luther King Day, so we didn't have work or school.  Steve, Nyles, and Dave went out fishing.  

They caught a few Rainbow Trout.  Nyles ate the fish that night.

On Tuesday, the boys had rock climbing and then Young Men's.  Nyles also stayed after school for play practice.  

On Wednesday, Nyles had a combined band concert at Jordan High School.  Eastmont Middle School also came and combined w/ the high school band.  Each middle school played a number, along w/ the high school, then they played one together.

Nyles playing w/ his middle school band, then w/ everyone.

Nyles' playing w/ the combined band, "Storming the Castle."

Dave came to watch, which we appreciate.  They didn't have a live stream this time, unfortunately.

On Thursday, the boys had rock climbing.  That evening I had an Auxiliary Training for all the Primary Presidencies and music leaders in our Stake.  Our theme for this year is Stand in Holy Places.  We're learning and teaching the stake primary kids the new song "Holy Places" in hymnbook #1026.  It's really pretty, and the words are amazing.  

You can watch it here.   

Friday morning, Steve, Dave, and Hudson went up to the cabin at Strawberry Reservoir to get it appraised.  There wasn't much snow, so they were able to drive in.  Hudson and Dave wanted to take a walk while they waited for the appraiser.  They had so much fun they decided to go back up after Nyles and Carter were out of school.  

Hudson and Dave taking a walk, then later up at the cabin.

Hardly any snow at the cabin, which is crazy for January.  Usually, you have to snowmobile in.

Steve drove back down after the appraisal, got Nyles and Carter from school, then went back up to the cabin for the evening.  I was preparing to go on my work trip to San Francisco, so I stayed home.  Rob and Dave's friend/neighbor Duane Bates also went up.  They picked up Papa Murphy's pizzas for dinner and watched Star Wars movies.  

Back up at the cabin.  Nyles practicing driving by the cabin.

While they were up there, Steve let Nyles try driving.  I also made sourdough.

Steve and Hudson walking home from church.

Hudson is doing upstart, and hit a milestone this week!

Sunday morning, I went to the 9th Ward Conference at 9am.  We stayed both hours to help w/ their music 2nd hour.  We then had a quick orientation for the new Primary Presidency.  Afterwards, I came home and finished packing up to leave to San Francisco for a work trip.  Steve then took me to the airport that afternoon.  I flew out w/ a coworker thankfully, so I wasn't by myself.  We were going to be there most of the week, until Thursday evening.

Great quotes:

USS Midway Museum, then heading home

On Sunday, January 18th after breakfast, we walked over to the shores to go to the USS Midway Museum.  It didn't open until 10am, so we walked around for a little bit.  There was also a 5k run happening for Martin Luther King Jr Day (the next day), and activities downtown, so there were a lot of people around for that.

Cool ships along the port.  This is where cruise ships take off too.  No Disney ship today though.

More cool ships.

Then we went into the USS Midway Museum.  When I was there back in May for my work conference, we had dinner up on top of the USS Midway and got to learn more about it.  It was really neat so I wanted to take the boys there.

Inside the USS Midway, then up top to sit in the cockpits of different planes.

The boys had fun getting inside the planes and pretending to fly them.

Pretending to send the planes off and flying them.

Pretty views around the bay.

More fun up top, then we went inside to tour it.

We went in the tower and got a tour also.  View from inside the tower.

We were there several hours, and still didn't see everything, but we needed to head back to finish packing up to go home.

Hudson pretending to drive the ship. Headed off the ship!

After we got back, we grabbed a cookie at the Club as a snack, then Steve took the boys to go swimming one more time while I packed up our suitcases.  We had late check-out at 2pm, but I lost track of time and was only thinking we needed to get a Lyft by 2:30pm.  Steve was coming back to the elevator at 2pm, and his room key stopped working.  I had to call and tell them I needed Steve's help to get our suitcases out, so they said he needed to stop by the front desk to activate his room key again.  Thankfully, he got it activated and was able to come up and help w/ the luggage.  The boys quickly changed out of their swimsuits, I packed them up in a vacuum bag, and we went down to get a Lyft.  Though it was a little hectic getting out of the room, the Lyft came quickly, and we had plenty of time at the airport before we took off. 

The kind card the hotel manager gave us.  I had emailed the week before, letting them know we were celebrating our 17th wedding anniversary.  The free upgrade to a King Studio room (700 sq ft), a free rollaway bed, plus the kind card, sparkling cider and chocolate covered strawberries were all very kind gestures, which we greatly appreciated :)

Flying home to SLC.

Rob picked us up at the airport at 7:30pm.  We then unpacked and got ready for bed.  It was a fabulous weekend full of family memories, which we will treasure forever!

Hop on Hop off Bus Tour around San Diego

On Saturday, January 17th, we went on the hop on hop off tour around different parts of San Diego.  There was a bus stop right behind our hotel at Seaport Village, so it was easy to do.  We started at 9am after getting breakfast at the Club in our hotel.  We used the City Go pass for tickets to the Zoo the day before, the bus tour, and tickets to the USS Midway.

On the open bus, ready to go!

The first stop we were going to get off at was Coronado Island, across the bridge.

Going across the bridge to the island.

We made it to Coronado Island and hotel.

The boys were excited to play in the sand!

So fun to be by the ocean!

There was a gold shimmer in the sand; it was so pretty! Nyles and Steve found hermit crabs.

Pretty ocean and waves.

Hudson holding a hermit crab.

And we found lots of seashells and clamshells.

We even saw a group of dolphins swimming by.

Dolphins swimming in front of us

And a fighter jet kept going by us.  Carter's sand structure.

After a couple hours we got back on the bus and went back over the bridge.

We then got off at Balboa Park, which is right next to the San Diego Zoo.

There was a cool tree and lots of neat buildings and museums.

The kids were pretty hungry by this time, so we didn't stay very long.

We then got back on the bus and went over to Old Town.

Fire station along the way in Little Italy.  Hudson then fell asleep, as did Carter.

We then ate lunch at Cafe Coyote, a Mexican Restaurant.  

I ate there when I was there w/ my team last May.  Yummy chips and salsa.

People come and buy just their tortillas from the street, which is pretty cool.

The food was super yummy!

We then walked up to the Mormon Battalion Museum and got a tour.  We thought it was just going to be artifacts to look at, but they actually walk you through what happened and why.  It was really neat.  It's interactive as you watch videos, and the characters come to life.  The boys got to dress up w/ the supplies they had while marching in the battalion.  When we were done the kids mined for gold.  Sister Missionaries help w/ the tours.  They are called to serve there 6 months, then are reassigned to another proselytizing mission, which is neat.

At the Mormon Battalion Museum.

Signs around Old Town.  We got a picture at the Mormon Battalion Museum.  We just barely made it back in time to get back on the bus, back to our hotel.

Seagull on a light post, cool ship on our way back to the hotel.  The boys each got a glow-in-the-dark 3D dragon w/ a blue light in Old Town at the markets.  Coming back to our hotel.

The boys wanted to go swimming again.  The boys glow-in-the-dark 3D dragons.  

Cute Carter w/ his milk mustache after desserts at the Club.

Boys swimming

We had another great day w/ thankfully warm sunny weather again.  We only got off at 3 stops on the tour and it took all day!  We were w/in walking distance to the USS Midway though, so we decided to just go there the next day before we had to fly home.