Brigham Young University

One of the places we were looking forward to visiting was the BYU Campus. Chad and I always talk about going to BYU and of course we root for BYU! The boys have heard so much about it that they were excited to finally go there.

Since we arrived in Utah earlier than we excepted we decided to go to campus right away with my sister Layne and her family (they had arrived a couple days before us). It was so fun driving down to the Y! We haven't been back to Utah since we left eight years ago. Chad and I were amazed at how much had changed and how much more traffic there was. It seems Utah Valley had blown up since we left. A lot has changed, but many things still remain the same. It was great to drive past the Provo Temple and the MTC and tell the boys about when we were there. Then we drove past DT (where I lived my Freshman year) - it was gone. I knew they were tearing them down, but it was weird not to see them.

We quickly found a parking space and then made our way to the BYU Bookstore. Since we have been gone so long most of our family were running low on BYU apparel. To remedy the situation we all got new shirts (which you will see later in a family photo). We also got some yummy treats from the candy counter.

After exploring the bookstore we made our way out to explore the campus. One of the first things we saw was the Indian statue, so of course the boys had to take a picture!

Being back on campus was an interesting experience. It brought back so many wonderful memories. It was weird to be back with five boys in tow. It made me feel a little old, but it also made me excited for my boys to (hopefully) attend here one day.

For the most part campus looked the same, but there have been a couple of additions since we left. The SFLC (Smith Family Living Center) where I spent most of my time, has been totally rebuilt. It is a beautiful building. I didn't get to go inside, but Layne assures me that it is really cool. We also got to see the new athletic buildings (new to us), the Tanner Building addition and the new Hinckley Building. The new buildings are wonderful.

After checking out the new buildings we had to stop by the Brigham Young statue for a photo op. Interesting that one of the only buildings that hasn't been redone is Administration Building (directly behind the statue).

As I was taking my sister's pictures the boys discovered the hill by the Library. It is the perfect hill for rolling down!!! The boys had a blast! They kept asking Chad to push start them. We had fun watching them roll down and run back up to try it again. The boys were having so much fun we inspired another family to give it a try!

Our trip to campus didn't last very long, but it was a fun visit. I am so glad I was able to attend BYU. I hope that my boys will have the opportunity to go to BYU as well. It was so nice to attend a school were I could gain spiritual knowledge as well as worldly knowledge.