Author: Abe Darais

Happy Birthday Ammon!

Today our beloved Ammon turned 8! To start the day, Lily made delicious waffles while I ran to the store and cut up melon so we could give Ammon his breakfast of choice in bed. Here is a video:

We also downloaded Minecraft for Ammon, and he was glued to it almost the entire day. He was so happy to get Minecraft. At one point he told someone it was his favorite game, even though he had never played it before. He has asked for it multiple times, and it was fun to see how much he loved playing all day. I also watched him play for a bit and that was fun. During the day, I went on a run, and did some yard chores, and then around 5:00, we all went to the Korean BBQ place that we just went to a couple of days ago. Ammon fell in love with it and requested it again. He was also delighted when their staff sang to him with music, and brought him cake.

We had a great time wtih Georgia, who joined us for dinner, and then Lily took her home before we all enjoyed Menchies together. Ammon got a massive wallfe-cone concoction and we also let him buy a Menchies stuffed animal. Then we went to Target and bought him a Millenium Falcon Lego set for his birthday present.

At night, Lily and I both spent time tucking him in and giving him a back massage. We told him about the things we love most about him which are his outgoing, warm, and friendly nature and his beautiful dancing.

Ammon, we love you so much. You brighten up our family and make us smile every day. We love you!

Farmer’s Market and Hike with Baps and Bapa

This morning I was very tired, but once I finally got out of bed, we all rolled out to the Farmer’s market. The market was so fun. There was a dog costume contest we got to watch (one dog had a Jack Sparrow costume), great food and smoothies, fun produce to buy and great weather. After the market, we dropped off a smoothie to our friend Lauren who lives in downtown Salt Lake.

Then we went to the Living Room trailhead where we met up with my dad and Suzanne. It was so fun to hike the trail with them! Not only did they bring great snacks including grapes from their vines, but they were awesome trail company. Also, my dad spent a lot of energy trying help calm Ammon down in a kind and graceful way. Ammon was losing his mind and sobbing because of the wasps on the trail (and there were a lot), and I was struggling to be creative on how to help him. My dad talked to him and told him a story of when he got stung and patiently encouraged him along the trail. It was very sweet to see. The weather and the scenery were all so gorgeous. Utah is so beautiful!

At home, we let the kids fend for themselves while Lily and I went on a date to Red Tacos, and we also got desert. It was so fun to have deep time with my Lily, my heart, especially since I’ve been traveling so much!

Utah is Gorgeous in the Fall & Lucas Birthday Party

Here is a picture I took from Qualtrics. Utah is so pretty in the fall. After work, Lily and I went to the Homestead in Midway for my old boss’s 40th birthday party. Lily and I spent most of the time talking to old Qualtrics connections, Benji & Aubrey Wohan, Dan and Christina Watkins, and Chris Adams and his wife. It was so fun to relive old times with them, and all share the latest thoughts and insight into the company currently. Lily and I had an awesome time and were some of the last people to leave. We also got to chat some with Lucas and Kim who we love so much. They are such great people, and it is no surprise so many people showed up to celebrate Lucas today!

Visiting Nana and Korean BBQ

Lily and Mary visited Georgia during the time between dropping off the other kids and dropping off Mary at Foothill. They had a wonderful visit, and Lily gave Georgia a foot rub.

I had an insane day at work and was delighted to see the family arrive at Qualtrics so Lydia and I could go into Qualtrics to get our flu shot. Lydia and I didn’t get ours when the rest of the family did because we had her harp competition that day.

Then we all stopped by Zion’s bank so Lily and I could take care of some business there, and with the 40 minutes we had until Ammon’s math tutoring, we stopped into a Korean BBQ place we’ve been eyeing for a while. It was delicious!

Home at Last!

Today I got home from being away from the family for a very long time (I left the Saturday before last, and have had only one night home since then), and it has felt amazing. I feel like a different person at home, flooded with good feelings, comfort, security and love. It was so so nice to be back. To top it off, Lily prepared shrimp scampi and a delicious salad for everyone.

Also, Lily has been thinking and researching deeply about the conflict in Israel and researching it extensively. She will no longer travel there as planned in December due to the conflict. We hope deeply for peace there and the safety of our friends who are there.

Fun in the Yard

Today Lily spent time in the canyon and captured these beautiful photos:

Here are the kids, I assume they are eating their after-school snack:

Today Ammon and Clarissa saw a pigeon in our yard and they were very excited about it.

Here are Ammon and Clarissa talking about the Pigeon:

I’m away on business, busily working away at the HLTH conference. I got a video of how the laser works on the luggage bag tag giveaway we had at our booth.

Lydia’s “Purse” Creations

Today Lydia crafted beautiful felt purses and the rest of the kids had fun marketing them to Lily (see video below). The brand name is “Purse”

Meanwhile, I was at a networking dinner at the Wynn or Encore hotel (they are adjoined sister hotels and styled the same, and I’m not sure which one I was at). In the video below, you can see the new sphere everyone is talking about. You can go inside for concerts and right now U2 is playing for just under $600/ticket.

Inside the Wynn or Encore

A Glorious Saturday

Today was just what I needed. Last night was the first time I slept in my own bed for 6 nights. I slept very will (and loved cuddling with Lily!) and then we went on a family hike on the Summit/Primrose trail (where Provo Canyon and American Fork Canyon connect).

On our way up, we took a quick stop on the Squaw Peak road to see the beautiful colors there.

Then we proceeded to drive to our trailhead. We were blown away by the fall colors on the drive up and we were fortunate to get a parking spot right where the trail started (parking was crazy). The weather was perfect for hiking (low 60s) and the colors were unbelievable. Here are some pictures and videos (I’ll try so hard to be selective!).

We had an incredible time and afterwords we went to Chipotle with Georgia, and then we split up for desert. Lily got Starbucks and then took Mary and Clarissa to Sweet Tooth Fairy for cupcakes, and I took Georgia, Ammon and Lydia to Cold Stone for ice cream. Ammon got black cake batter ice cream (a special Halloween flavor) and it made his mouth all black!

At home I packed and went to the airport and got into Las Vegas late. I Traveled to Vegas for the HLTH convention.