Liz & Jon

Happy Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!

2011-10-31T14:52:00.000-07:00

Our collection of Halloween costumes. As you can see, Liz has all the creative genes in our relationship She dressed up as a Harry Potter character and Marry Poppins this year. Marry Poppins is our favorite Broadway show...seen it three times and could see it ten more. The picture of the PB&J is from 2010 friend's Halloween party. Liz had the idea and it was pretty cool. Unfortunately, Liz had to fly solo this year. I was on rotation in New York City for the month of October. Although it was a cool rotation and New York is never lacking in things to do. It didn't have Liz. I'm excited to see what she comes with for next year. It should be fun!

Run Liz Run!

2011-10-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

Liz is an avid runner and was able to run in a Ragnar Relay Race this October in Las Vegas, NV with her Dad's company team works. A Ragnar Relay has approximately 12 people on a team and they each run three legs to run a total of 150-200 miles. There is always one person on the team running so the race never stops until all teams reach the finish line. She ran three 5-7 mile legs! She liked it so much she signed up for another one in Phoenix, AZ this February! It's one more running event she can add to her list of accomplishments. For a woman who has only been running for three years she has done a lot of races! A great picture of Liz and her Dad post race. I'm suprised they are still standing!

Happy 60th!

2011-10-07T15:02:00.000-07:00

Celebrating my Dad's 60th Birthday! Happy Birthday Dad! All four of us kids flew out to suprise him at work. Thanks to Melnee's sneeky planning we were able pull it off. The least we could due for such a great guy.

Outdoor Adventure in good ole' Jackson Hole

2011-08-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

Hanging out with our oldest nephew Tolton in Jackson Hole. We had a great time vacationing with Liz's family on this trip. It was nice summer weather and a break from the hot Arizona summer. We rented two cabins in Idaho near Jackson Hole, WY. Liz and I split a two room cabin with her younger two brothers CJ (20) and Matthew (15) which was a ton of fun staying up late and watching movies. I lucked out when it comes to great in-laws. We spent most of the time relaxing, playing card games and watching movies during down time. We also spent a few days on the ATVs courtesy of Liz's Dad, riding the Wyoming white water on a raft, and zipping down an Alpine slide with our nephews. Our river rafting guide was well trained and amazing. She guided us through some great eddies and currents and let us hop of the raft during calmer waters. ATVing on the four wheelers, dirt bike, and rhino allowed us to explore some picturesque canyons and scenic views. It was a great trip all-in-all and Liz's parents do a great job balancing out down time and adventure on vacations. PICTURES: Above left is Tolton, our oldest nephew sneaking in a pic with us after he cruised down the alpine slide. Right is me and my oldest brother-in-law Josh relaxing in cool water during a break in the rapids while white water water rafting. Bottom left is Steve (Liz's Dad), Liz, me, and Jon (our brother-in-law) rafting together. Matthew and Josh were on the other side of the raft. Bottom right is Liz and I posing for a pic after an afternoon of ATVing. Liz's parents, sister Jessica and her husband John, and us all took turns driving the different ATV's. A lof of fun! Great vacation!

Escalante - Lower Calf Creek

2011-06-25T14:39:00.000-07:00

Standing next to one of my favorite places in the world - Lower Calf Creek Falls, Escalante National Forest in Southern Utah! Second only to Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. I first did this little three mile hike in college on a weekend camping trip in 2007 and have been waiting to take Liz here ever since. Four years later we got the chance. It couldn't have been better...well, the water could've been warmer. Overall, we had a blast swimming, hiking, and hanging out near the waterfall. The night before we got in so late we couldn't find our campground so we ended up camping in a nearby forest off the freeway. It was so windy camping our tent was being lifted off the ground with us in it. Liz enjoyed it too and we can't wait to go back and camp, hike, and swim in Upper Calf Creek Falls in the near future. Southern Utah offers some of the best camping in the United States and probably the world. This is one of its gems!

Running, Running, and Running some more

2010-01-31T11:45:00.000-08:00

Running has been one of are favorite activities to do together. Liz joined a running group this year and it has got her hooked on running and has pushed me to be more aggressive with my own training. This year we both decided to run a half marathon with the long term goal of a marathon for Liz and someday and ultra-marathon for me. (An ultra-marathon is any running race longer than a marathon; most are 50km, 100km, or 100 miles. They are quite different than marathons because the majority are run on trails and rural roads so the combination of running and the great outdoors makes it appealing especially after reading Ultra-marathon man: Confessions of an All Night Runner.) Liz found a half marathon called "London's Run" which benefits families who have a child with cancer. This hits close to home for me due to three grandparents and a mother who had their own battles with cancer. Liz and I both finished. We both hope there will be more races to come.

Guatemala - a first of many medical missions & vacations

2009-06-19T11:28:00.000-07:00

Guatemala was a wonderful country full of green mountain tops, smouldering volcanoes, colorful Catholic churches, and flavorful latin food. Liz and I went with a group called DOcare which sets up medical clinics in rural areas of third world countries to treat patients who don't have access to standard health care. Physicians, medical students, and other volunteers triaged, diagnosed, and treated patients at three different villages around Antigua, Guatemala. On days off we took time to visit Ancient ruins at Iximche , visit local markets at Chi Chi, hike a Volcano, and topped it off with a day at Lake Atitlan where we swam in hot springs. Guatemala was a great trip both for the patients we were able to treat and the trips we were able to take together!

Broken Bones

2009-03-15T23:09:00.001-07:00

An uneventful intramural match of soccer got exciting in the second half, when I was making a run up the left sideline and was knocked off the ball. I heard a "crunch" upon falling. Looked at my arm, looked at Liz and then hustled over to the car to drive to the ER. I knew I had broken the radius bone in my forearm and the x-ray confirmed the diagnosis. For you medical nerds out there, I broke the medial and lateral sides of the head of my radius and the lateral portion of the styloid process of my ulna. Luckily, no surgery is needed and my cast will be off in six weeks.

Disneyland

2009-03-15T23:03:00.001-07:00

After a rough quarter of med school and averaging 3 hours of sleep a night for the previous week, we enjoyed a weekend excursion to Disneyland with our friends Steve and Kara and Brian and Kristen. This is a picture up in Tarzan's Treehouse right after we got off the Pirates of the Carribean ride.

Arizona Living - Moving down to AZ, Honda broken into, Sedonna Camping

2009-03-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

Publish Post

Mexico

2008-08-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

We went on a cruise to Mexico, stopping in Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, and Mazatlan. We went snorkeling in Cabo, Canoeing in Mazatlan, and went shopping at the local markets in all three ports for authentic vanilla and local grub.

Friends & Family

2008-08-09T22:06:00.000-07:00

Wedding Bells

2008-08-09T20:53:00.000-07:00

August 9th was the big day when we were sealed for time and eternity in the Salt Lake Temple

Dad vs. 50 caliber

2008-08-09T20:23:00.000-07:00

The morning of our wedding the guys in both families and some friends went pistol and rifle shooting. We ended with a few rounds off a friend's 50 caliber rifle. We all escaped injury free besides my dad. The scope on the 50 cal caught my dad above the eye brow on the rifle's recoil. Like the awesome dad he is, he went to the temple for the wedding and then went to urgent care. Thanks Dad, you're a trooper.

NYC Summer

2008-07-29T19:44:00.000-07:00

It was an awesome summer living in Mahattan. Liz was able to get a 12 week multi-cultural advertising internship with Mindshare World Wide. We ended up living down the block from one another. We spent most of our summer site seeing the five boroughs. Trying out new restaraunts (we recommend Max Brenners, Grimaldi's Pizza, Empanada Mama), seeing broadway shows (Wicked, Mary Poppins, In The Heights, Stomp, and Young Frankenstein) and walking all over NYC were our favorite activities. Central Park was a common hang out place for us because it was a few blocks from both of our apartments. My dad and brother Joe came out and Liz's brother Jeremy visited which was a lot of fun too. All in all, it was a blast and a great city to live in!

First Date!

2007-12-15T19:30:00.000-08:00