14 Years

Today (March 9), Nathan and I have been married 14 years! We celebrated this anniversary in style. Friday night, we checked into a Bed & Breakfast on Capitol Hill in Salt Lake City, just blocks from Temple Square. I love staying in these old grand mansions full of history and charm.





After we checked in, we drove to Holladay to have dinner at Franck's, a fancy four-star restaurant that served French American cuisine. We were very impressed - from the appetizer to dessert. Everything we put in our mouths was absolutely de-lish! Nathan fell in love with the carrot cake nested in a tower of swirled white and milk chocolate. I had the lemon creme brulee with a tiny scoop of house-made lemon ice cream. Oh-my-gosh!

When we got back to our room at the Inn, there were candles lit and music playing. Very romantic. Nathan and I laid on the bed for a while (to let all of that yummy food digest) and our thoughts reflected back to when Nathan proposed way back on December 23, 1995. I asked Nathan, "If 35 year-old Nathan could go back in time and talk to 21 year-old Nathan right before he proposed, what would he tell him?" Nathan thought about that for a second and responded, "He would tell him, 'Go for it, because it's going to be awesome!'"



The next morning, we were served breakfast in bed and then we headed out to enjoy some downtown urban living. We shopped at some vintage stores and found this:



For lunch, we stumbled upon this amazing Italian market/deli called Tony Caputo's. I died over the parmesan cheese that was sprinkled all over my pasta cacciatori, so I bought half a pound of it in the market!





Nathan and I also found and tasted to best chocolates ever. Chris Blue is a genius chocolatier and only sells his handmade and painted chocolates there at Caputo's and in his store in Berkley, CA.




I had the lemon truffle and the passion fruit caramel. Nathan tried pistachio and grapefruit & rosemary. Pistachio was the best.


We also made a quick stop at Les Madeleine's Bakery for a Kouing-aman and went to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building for some Mormon "essentials". As we walked through Temple Square, we saw many new brides having their pictures taken. As we passed one newly-wed couple, the bride looked away from her photographer and caught my eye. I silently told her, "Today is magical, but in 14 years, if you're lucky, you'll be just like me - still in love with the man I married, with four incredible kids at home waiting for us to return (and to give them the treats we bought for them). That's real magic."


So, Nathan. Thank you for the last 14 years - the good, the bad and the fantastic. I love you!




And 34 year-old Allison would definitely urge 20 year-old Allison to say "Yes"!