to locals, it's called "Lovul" (Louisville)

IT'S OFFICIAL.....2nd YEAR IS OVER!!!!!!!! We have a husband/daddy again!! Brett took his board exam on Monday and we couldn't be happier to have his full attention and time devoted to us and NOT studying! Shortly after Emri was born Brett had finals for winter quarter, then he was so busy with spring quarter and studying for boards we have really missed him...although, I must say I am really proud of him for being so great to manage his time well. Even though he's had a lot on his plate he hasn't neglected his fatherly/husband duties! We love you and are so grateful for your dedication to our family, church and school responsibilities!

We keep hearing about how great 3rd year is...the best of all 4 years of dental school, so we decided to start it off with a bang! We spent a couple of days in Lousiville, Kentucky for our first "official" (much needed) family trip together! This is one of the many bridges over the Ohio River as you arrive in the city of Louisville.

We first stopped at a place called GlassWorks which is a glassblowing studio. I never knew the process of making glass and it was actually quite interesting to see these artisans creating vases and such....Below one artist is blowing into the end of the pipe while the other works with the hot honey-like glass that just came out of 2200F hot furnace! Very cool!

We stayed at a hotel in kind of a sketchy part of town....Brett said on our next trip he is in charge of booking our hotel. I guess I didn't really research location as much as a decent price! I was really nervous driving there for the first time. It's the kind of neighborhood that you can't stop staring at the people walking down the street, but at the same time you don't want to stare too long for fear that you might be gunned down or something for looking at someone the wrong way! Ok, maybe it wasn't THAT bad, but I was still nervous! Emri liked being in the pool...although it wasn't heated! It was like a giant (cold) bathtub to her!

Some family friends of ours used to live in Louisville and recommended eating at "Lynn's Paradise Cafe." I was laughing when we pulled up and was like, "are you kidding?!" The look of this place was very unique with the strangest decor in and outside the building, but the food was fabulous! We shared 5-potato pancakes with a goatcheese dipping sauce for an appetizer. Brett had Sausage Penne Jumbalaya and I ordered the Portabello Mushroom and Spinach Sandwich with pan fried apples on the side!

This place is known for a few crazy happenings during the year...one of which is an "ugly lamp shade" contest! Each table in the joint was lit by one of these ugly lamps! There were random trees throughout the room with even more random decorations hanging from them! I was definitely preoccupied the whole time we were there as I looked around at all the funky stuff! I would totally recommend this place to anyone going to Louisville!

We went to Churchill Downs, and the Kentucky Derby Museum. We took a tour of the place and it was so cool! The Derby is called the "Greatest 2 Minutes in Sports." It takes place the first weekend in May every year.

We entered into the museum through a starting gate (just as the horses begin the race)! There were exhibits, art work, stories and artifacts of previous races.

Brett and I mounted this horse and tried to get into jockey position. Most jockeys are only 4'11" to just over 5 feet tall and only can weigh between 115-120 lbs. They are tiny little fellas! I am too big to be a jockey! Good thing it wasn't a life-long dream of mine!

Brett went through the tutorial on how to wager on a horse race! I can't believe the amounts of money that go through this place on wagers!

This is the resident thoroughbred that is a retired racer and the miniature is kept here for companionship to the big boy!

The grandstands....it costs anywhere from $100-1,000 to sit in the stands....it costs more the higher up and closer to the finish line you are. The general admission for a "grass spot" in the middle of the track costs $40, but it's first come first serve and some people sleep out to reserve their spot in line. Our tour guide said you would have a great time in the middle of the track, but you probably wouldn't see a horse at all! I guess some people just go for the party?!

These are some of the stalls where the horses get prepped before the derby....not really barn stalls like I was expecting, although they do have those too.

E and I standing next to a model of "Mine That Bird," and his jockey, they were the winners of the 2009 Kentucky Derby.

We also visited the Louisville Slugger Museum & Bat Factory. I think this was our favorite stop! Here's Brett and E standing in front of the world's biggest bat!

The museum was full of historical baseball memorabilia, including some old bats used by big hitters in the major league from back in the day....one of which was Mickey Mantle's bat....Brett, Emri and I all took advantage of being able to "touch" the bat!

We weren't allowed to take pictures on the actual tour of the bat factory which was the best part of the day by far! When woodworkers used to make bats in the beginning of baseball times, it took them 30+ minutes by hand to down the wood to the shape of a bat. Now, by machine it takes less than a minute to make a major league baseball bat! It was amazing to see how fast a millet of wood turned into a bat! The major leaguers each have a wood (either maple or ash), length, weight, and finish color preference so each bat is specifically made per players requests. The bats being made while we walked through were specifically designed for Kevin Youkilis of the Boston Red Sox. It was really cool to see it all happening!

We had a fun, much needed break from the real world! Although Brett starts back to school on Monday I'm hoping we can do lots of fun things and take full advantage of our summer this year!

I hate goodbyes! The hardest part about being at this stage of our lives is that many others started this stage before us....and that means they move on before we are done :( Lots of great people from our ward here are moving or have already left. We went to dinner with the Royces this week for our last hoorah before they take off. They were planning to be gone a month ago, but their 2 year old son was diagnosed with cancer just before their move was scheduled. He's been having chemo and radiation treatments and he's doing well. He's such a cute little guy! The doctors have given them the ok to move and continue his treatment in their new area, so they are headed out. We love you guys and will miss you a ton!!

Me and Emri, Heather, Mindy and Jersey

Brandon and Isaac, Brett, Dallin flyin solo (Amanda is in Utah), Kayce and Trav

Emri and Jersey girl! They were born about 4 1/2 months apart. Jersey is the youngest of 5 kids....all 4 older brothers! She's gonna be one protected little girl! Isn't she adorable?! Good luck with your move Mindy and Travis!