St. George, Utah will always be my special place. My own personal greenhouse where I grew into womanhood. I learned to love in new ways, to explore with abandon, to spread my wings, to soar.

My first year out of college I took a teaching position at Westside Christian School and formed precious friendships with the people there. One of my former students, Blair, was married at Westside Baptist on June 8th, and we drove up for the wedding and weekend.

The drive through Arizona took us along historic Route 66 in Kingman, AZ. Someday we’d love to take a road trip to explore Route 66.

Pastor Greg Wright and his wife Merri Ellen invited us to stay in the basement apartment of their beautiful desert home, and Stephen and I loved catching up, sharing our hearts, and learning from their wisdom.

I had forgotten just how gorgeous St. George is. The red cliffs, the black lava fields and cinder cones sit in stunning contrast to the blue sky and green trees–yes, trees!

We discovered a little water park downtown that was perfect for Silas and grabbed dinner at the Pizza Factory. There’s nothing like Pizza Factory parmesan bread twists.

As we drove around the area to soak in the scenery, we passed the cinder cone I had climbed with my then roommate, Tara, back in 2006. See that vertical rock slide on the side of the mountain? That’s the trail we hiked. It was insane! Good times.

Blair & Brad’s wedding and reception was beautiful. Seven summers ago Blair had played her violin for my wedding, so I was glad to come celebrate her special day with her. I loved seeing old friends and showing off Cooper and Silas.

Visits with dear friends, a dip in the pool, a look at the Hoover Dam on our way home, and supper at a Vietnamese restaurant rounded out our trip.