The Velezes!: Four Years

Pablo and I were married August 29, 2009 in the
LDS Winter Quarters, Nebraska Temple.

Four years later and here we are, back in Nebraska and, if it's possible, happier than we were four years ago. Love is an amazing thing, the way it snuggles up into your heart until life without the other person just seems impossible. I still feel like the luckiest girl :)

This year we handed PJ over to his grandparents for a day, night, and the next morning so we could stay in a hotel and visit downtown Omaha like tourists. We first walked over the Bob Kerry Pedestrian Bridge; a bridge that crosses the Missouri River into Iowa. Our favorite part was getting to the middle and feeling it sway a little, even spending some time watching the water flow underneath us. Back in Idaho where we went to school, 'bridge-jumping' is really popular. I never got a chance to do it, but Pablo did once. The bridge was not even half the height of the Pedestrian bridge and he said it still hurt. Looking down into the flowing Missouri, I couldn't imagine free falling from that height.

Just down the riverfront, back on Nebraska soil, is the Lewis and Clark Landing Visitor Center. We stopped in and learned more about Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery.

Trying our penmanship with a quill

We're located right under Omaha, where it reads "Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Headquarters"

I stole Capt. Meriwether Lewis's outfit

Next we visited the Joselyn Art Museum, which has free admission to the end of this year, thanks to a member of the Warren Buffet family. It has a great collection of contemporary work and abstract pieces, as well as artwork from different eras of European and American history. The building itself is beautiful. It's made out of this stunning pink marble, with pillars, etchings on the walls, and steps flowing down from the front doors.

The grounds of the museum is a sort of exhibit in itself. There was an interactive piece of work dedicated to the river-scape of Nebraska. It was humid and sunny out, so the cool water was refreshing on our feet :)

We finished the day off in the Old Market of Omaha. The Old Market is known for it's cobblestone streets, remodeled brick buildings, contemporary dining, and artistic expression. We ate Italian, a place called Vivace, but walking around after dinner we saw Persian and Indian cuisines, as well as an oyster bar and an Irish pub.

The Old Market in the late evening was the perfect close to our anniversary. A fusion of blue, pink, and purple made the evening sky and the air was warm with a cool breeze flitting here and there. We stopped and listened to a saxophone player on the corner and took a picture of a dog relaxing on the horse carriage. It was busy for a Thursday night, busier than I thought it would be. But Pablo and I are both bit of people-watchers, so we enjoyed strolling along the cobblestone streets and talking.