Spontaneous

I am not a very spontaneous person. Never have been. I like schedules, lists, routines, plans... and I actually get a little irritated with last minute changes. So when Chris called me last Friday at about 12:30 saying our friends had extra tickets to 'Les Miserables' in St. George on Saturday night my first impulse was to list all the reasons why it wouldn't work... and I'm pretty sure I did (Who would watch the kids, what about the dog, what about the very long list of things we had planned to do Saturday, etc?) He told me to think about it for an hour and call him back. The truth is, I really wanted to see the show, but I honestly didn't know how we could pull it together so quickly. I called Cassidy first and she was available to babysit. That was a huge relief because she knows our house, where things are, the routine, the kids, the neighbors, who to call for an emergency... that cut out a lot of prep and cleaning and laying things out and explaining and all that other stuff... I didn't even have to find someone to take the dog! Perfect. Now I just had to get over my mental hang-up of sticking to the plan and the fact that our Saturday "to do" list could be postponed without the world coming to an end. I think Chris was pretty shocked when I called him back less than 15 minutes later and said we were all set to go. We left home Saturday around 11, had a pleasant drive (with no kids), checked into the hotel and took a nap before going to dinner and then meeting Derek and Emilie for the show. Aah, the show... the show was great... we really enjoyed it. It is probably as close to Broadway quality as you'll find anywhere. And, we were thrilled to learn we had friends in the show.This is our good friend Mindy Smoot (now) Robbins. I actually performed with her when we were kids (she was about 10 and I was 14 when we met) and Chris performed with her when she was in high school. She also went to BYU with us and majored in the same thing, although Chris graduated before she got there. Anyway, she was awesome. This girl has the most amazing voice... seriously. We actually lucked out because she isn't even usually in this show. She has been performing the part of Maria in the 'Sound of Music' at the same theater on opposite nights of 'Les Mis' (SO wish I'd known so we could have tried to see that too) but they had her play the part of Eponine 3 times during the summer (I think because she played it on Broadway- that's right- BROADWAY!) and we lucked out because the last one just happened to be this night. Anyway, I can't say enough good about her. She's an amazing person and a performer that can't be matched. Hopefully you'll get a chance to see her perform someday. She actually lives in Alpine and teaches voice lessons... if you are interested let me know and I'll give your her contact info. I'm actually thinking of signing Abby up. Anyway, she's beautiful and did great!I don't actually know this guy, but Chris and I LOVED his performance. He played Marius beautifully... we were really impressed. I thought he looked familiar and while reading the program realized he was THE John Preater from THE American Idol. So, of course, I had to get a picture with him... I actually was a fan of his. Turns out we have friends in common because he also went to BYU and majored in the same thing as us (way after us). He was really amazing.... one of the best parts of the show. (How scary do I look in this picture?!?)This is beautiful Malinda Lockwood (she's married now but I can't remember her last name). We've known her since she was a very little girl (I choreographed her in a few shows and her mom was Chris' and my voice teacher at BYU, and we know her extended family pretty well). She played the role of Cossette and Chris and I both swear we've never heard anyone sing it more beautifully (and we've both seen the show more times than we can count!) Hopefully you'll get to see her someday too... she's local so you might. Hard to believe she's all grown up... not hard to believe she's so amazing!Here we are with Derek and Emilie. We were laughing that we took a similar trip together as couples 14 years ago! Man, time flies! Thanks for thinking of us and inviting us to come along!

(**Special Note: 'Les Mis' plays at the Tuachan Amphitheater in St. George until mid- October... we highly recommend it if you get a chance to go. We're actually thinking of heading back down so the kids can experience it. And if you've never seen a show at this theater you definitely have to someday... it is an amazingly beautiful place!**)

The rest of the trip was relaxing. Sunday morning Chris golfed and I slept in and read. Then we had lunch and headed home. We were in St. George for less than 24 hours, but it was fun to relax and be alone. We returned home to find the kids safe and sound, Cassidy still sane, our house in one piece and Chris' parents even fed us dinner. A perfect weekend... I'll need to try and be a little more spontaneous from now on!