UPAA Conference

I am very spoiled! Each year, usually around the end of May or June, the Utah Prosecutorial Assistant's Association hosts a conference specifically for the support staff of prosecutors. I usually ask to go because they are awesome conferences. I didn't go one year and I was very sad when I heard about the awesome presentations they had - I mean who wouldn't want to hear about the prosecution of polygamists?

The conference was being held in Logan and I asked Dustin if he would be willing to come with me and take care of Grant while I was in the conference. He was a little unsure at first but it turned out to be A LOT of fun. (At least I thought so.) Our first night we went to the Beehive Grill for dinner, we heard good things about their menu. And they make their own root beer. I love root beer!

 The second night, the night of our sixth anniversary!, we went to an Indian curry restaurant and IT WAS SO GOOD!! Look at the size of their naan bread. I mean seriously, we had to roll ourselves out of there. I love Chicken Korma so of course I ordered it. This seriously rivaled the Masala by Greg's house in Seattle that we went to TWICE!

We came back to the hotel and watched a movie and vegged. It was awesome to get through an entire movie without having to pause it once or have someone talking throughout the movie.

 Unfortunately I discovered later that Grant DOES NOT like curry and would not nurse later that night. I guess it will be a while before we have curry again.

Our hotel room was pretty nice and lucky for us, Grant is a great sleeper. Just keep the room dark and both Dustin and Grant will sleep the morning away. Plus there was a really good breakfast provided - I love waffles.

The presentations planned were really good. Here is a K-9 dog that the Logan PD brought to show us and demonstrate their awesome skills. Dustin sneaked in to see some of this presentation when they took everyone outside to watch the dogs do their stuff. The officers will put on some protective gear and have the dogs practice attacking. You see full sized grown men who are pushed around by the force of these dogs. One woman actually volunteered to be the person the dogs were trying to catch. A little scary when you see this small woman standing there when a dog starts running towards her full steam ahead!

The last presentation was from a military officer that has spent some time in Iraq and Afghanistan. He brought the clothes he has from that culture and shared his experiences. His presentation was mainly on Domestic Violence in the Military but that was only a small portion of his presentation. He did a slide show about the women and children from those countries and how they do not have any freedom at all. A lot of us were in tears by the time he was through. We really are truly blessed to live in the U.S. and we have so many opportunities that women in other countries do NOT have. It really made me appreciate the things I do have. One story that really touched me was when he showed a picture of a man who is actually part of the military in wither Iraq or Afghanistan. Because he does not share the beliefs of the Muslims in his country, he is continually persecuted. He actually had to watch as his daughter was killed in front of him while he watched. But through all of this, he still stands firm to his beliefs and is still a happy person, not one who continually focuses on that bad. What an example. Instead of focusing on the negative and difficult things in our lives, we need to appreciate the things we do have and the freedom we have. He was also a great example of standing firm in our beliefs. I hope that I will never be in a situation like that but hopefully I can stand firm in my own beliefs.

The speaker also had a burqa that muslim women wear. He passed it around for others to se what its like but I couldn't resist putting it on. It was so stuffy and I couldn't wait to get it off. I don't know how anyone could stand wearing that for long periods of time - especially in the heat. How thankful I am to be an American and have the freedom to wear what I want.