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| This picture reminds me of you because the other day you were telling me that you are excited to go whitewater rafting. I think that will be a very fun tradition for our family when the kids are older. This is a lookout point several hundred feet above the river, and if you squint you can see kayakers in the river below. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because Nutella is more popular in England than peanut butter. It is a milk chocolate hazelnut spread. I had never tried it in my life before yesterday, and it was delicious. The people her could not believe I had never had it, and I don't think you have either. You would absolutely love it. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because this is the forest where a lot of the last Harry Potter movie was filmed. I still remember ordering the 7th book for you weeks in advance and waiting in line with you at midnight to pick it up. The next day, to show your gratitude, you told me I was not allowed to talk to you once while I drove us down to St. George so you could read the book. We were about halfway there when I asked if we could talk to help me stay awake. You replied, "Jesse, you promised!" So, I figured Harry Potter's most devoted fan might appreciate seeing where he found Godric Gryffindor's sword. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because we normally make these cookies together, and because the cookies in the middle molded together serendipitously to show you how I feel about you. Making them was a bit of a nightmare. They don't have shortening here, they have lard. Everything is in grams, and the oven was a little weird. Plus, it just wasn't the same making them without you. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because you're working on losing baby weight, and this is a weight loss program especially for that. The British word for Mom is Mum. I thought this was a clever rhyme. I pass this almost every day and think how glad you should be that your kids don't call you 'Mummy'. And when I get home I will help you continue your 'Mums Bums & Tums' fitness program. I love you. You are gorgeous. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because it looks just a little bit like parts of the hike up Mill Creek Canyon in Salt Lake. I'll always remember our day-long date up there. We had a great hike, a delicious picnic, and lots of time to talk. I was about halfway through Pride and Prejudice when we went. I was trying to impress you by reading your favorite book. I quoted a couple of passages from the book, and you looked at me like I was speaking another language. When I realized you weren't impressed, I stopped reading. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because you spend more time at the hospital or doctor's office than anyone I know. This is Birmingham's new medical center. In 5 years you've had 3 babies, which have included pre-natal check-ups, deliveries, and post-partum appointments. You've also had hernia surgery, several exams with thyroid specialists, strep throat, and immunizations for our Fiji trip. That was all just for you. Including Landon's speech pathology appointments and our recent string of dental appointments, you are in a doctor's office almost weekly and sometimes several times a week. Thank you for all you do to keep yourself and our family healthy! |
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| This picture reminds me of you because you love Penny so much! Okay, that's not always true, but I think you love her deep, deep down even when she annoys you. This was a big poster in front of a booth in downtown Birmingham where they were giving out free dog food samples. I did a double take when I saw it because it's almost exactly life-size and it looks just like Penny. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because it was taken while I was looking in your direction. I climbed to the top of one of the highest hills in the Birmingham area to watch the sunset this evening. I was thinking about you while I looked southwest for a few minutes. Maybe you were looking northeast at that very same moment and our eyes met...sort of. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because I really wanted you with me on my walk this afternoon. I went on a two-hour walk through Cannon Hill Park, along the River Rea, and into Holders Lane Woods, where this picture was taken. There was no one around and all I could hear were birds singing and squirrels playing in the trees. I saw this bench and decided it is 'our bench'. I did not sit on it because I want you to be with me the first time I do. I promise I will bring you back to this exact spot, and we will sit on 'our bench' for the first time together. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because you hate guessing games. Example: I say, "Guess what?" You reply, "What?" I say, "Just guess." You reply (sternly), "Jesse, just tell me." There are no full-time caretakers at the Gadfield Elm chapel, and probably not enough visitors to make it worthwhile, so they have a combination lock for people to get in. The code is not given, you have to figure it out using the clues in the picture below. The Wards made me do it before we could go inside. See if you can figure it out. And then figure out why that combination is signficant. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because we did baptisms for the dead in the Manti Temple when we were dating. I remember it being a cool experience. I already knew I was going to marry you at that point. It was just a matter of convincing you. This is part of a much larger stained glass window in Gloucester Cathedral. It seems strange to see this in a 16th century Anglican church, but the temple baptismal font was actually described in detail in the Old Testament. It just doesn't say what it was used for. It took a modern day Prophet to figure that out. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because I'm pretty sure daisies are your favorite flower. This is at the Gadfield Elm, the first LDS-owned chapel in Church history. It was donated to the Church by the United Brethren, an entire Christian sect of about 600 members who were baptized in just a few short weeks. I was going to doctor the photo to reduce the glare on the daisies, but then I realized that this is actually a very rare photograph in England. It's the brightest sunshine I may see during my entire stay. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because I thought you would laugh at this. Most of the cities in England are several hundred years old, and they can't just tear down historic buildings. So they make do with what they have. You may have wondered if KFC would have looked a bit out of place on a 19th century British street. Now you know. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because you often describe yourself as being too blunt (and I sometimes agree). I thought that the Surgeon General in the U.K. must share that personality trait with you. This is what it says on every cigarette carton I've seen here (and I've seen a lot, smoking is much, much more common here). |
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| This picture reminds me of you because several scenes from Harry Potter were filmed in and around this cathedral. I saw the hallway where they faced a troll and the lawn where Harry had his first quidditch lesson. It was cool but I was only excited because I knew you would be. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because every time I eat lunch on those picnic tables I look at these roses and think about walking with you in the rose gardens at Thanksgiving Point when we were dating. I think some of my greatest memories of us have been talking to you during long walks. When I look at these, I also think of Lily's nickname for you: Rose. In her letters she used to write: "You mustn't let your Rose wilt." |
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| This picture reminds me of you because I would be dry if you were here. If you were here you would have followed me to the door and made sure I took an umbrella with me this morning. I thought about that every time I stepped in a puddle, every time I hunkered under a tree waiting for the rain to let up, and especially every time I passed a dry person who had an umbrella. |
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| This picture reminds me of you because your single biggest pet peeve about me is my piles. I tend to stack my to-do lists, receipts, and "3 x 5 cards of good ideas" next to my bed. My argument is that I need them (which I do) and I use them (I always intend to), but you still ask me at least once a day if you or I can throw them out. You proposed a compromise by buying me a "Bedtime Buddy", which is your name for a small notebook for my to-do lists and "good ideas". Unfortunately, I didn't bring either of my "Bedtime Buddies" with me (you're the other one), and you can see the messy (and all too familiar) consequences. |
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| This picture reminds me of you, of course, because of your love for chocolate. Since arriving here I've told you a lot of things about Birmingham, but the only thing that has really sparked your interest was the fact that the Cadbury Chocolate Company was started here. This is a typical British advertisement. There's something very strange and different (and creepy?) about the whole thing, but I can't seem to put my finger on it... |
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| This picture reminds me of you because we just finished Skyping, and I was telling you that I am going to bring home a British license plate as a souvenir. You thought that was weird. I found this one on the way to the shop this evening. The first four on the plate clearly describe you and the kids, so I figured the last three must be about the same thing; I'm just not sure what they stand for. Here are some of my ideas: (a) Forget Your Sanity; (b) Frown, Yawn, Smile; (c) Frustrated, Yet Satisfied; (d) Found You Sleeping; (e) Fortunately Young Still; (f) Family's Yielding Slave; (g) Finally...You Sit! |
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| This reminds me of you because every time the bell tolls I am fifteen minutes closer to seeing you. This clock tower is in the center of the University of Birmingham campus. It can be seen from almost anywhere in the city. This particular picture is blurry because it was taken in the rain. Noticing a theme here? |
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| This reminds me of you because your favorite song to sing with the boys is 'I'm Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee'. They sure love their Mom. I must admit, it took me 20 minutes and 14 photos to get this. Apparently bumblebees are camera shy. It didn't help that I was up to my neck in brambles during an afternoon downpour. I considered acting out the second verse: "I'm squishing up the baby bumblebee!" He must have sensed my frustration because he posed at just the right moment. |
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| This reminds me of you for two reasons. First, you let me make one decision for our wedding: the flowers. I'll never forget how beautiful you looked holding that bouquet of lilies. Second, Lily is Kaitlyn's middle name. When it comes to your best friends in the world, I come first and Kate comes second, but not by much. |
