Laie Temple day - Families are forever!

Tonight we walked over to the temple with the girls. Kelty wanted to pick the pretty flowers but Teagan she wanted to go into the temple. She asked me if she could go in the door and I told her she had to be bigger and she raised up on to her tippy toes and said I am bigger mom I want to go in. Then I tried explaining she needed a piece of paper called a temple recommend to go in to the temple and I asked Brett to open his wallet and he pulled out our temple recommends. I showed her what it looked like and explained how we got one and then she grabbed mine and said Ok mommy I am going into the temple. What a smart cookie. There was no stopping her and I pray she will always be that determined to get to the temple. Also, this morning Brett and I did a session at the temple and our session was so full. They brought in folding chairs and tried to cram as many people in. This is a good problem to have. The cute native lady sitting by me named Ada said I guess everyone had the same idea we had to come to the temple. I told her I was visiting and then she told me how the temple is closing next month on the 29th for 18 months to be renovated. She then told me, "Where am i going to pray for 18 months?" It is too expensive to fly over to Kona and it is cheaper to fly to vegas but I can't afford a plane ticket so I will come to the temple every day it is open until it closes next month. I asked her if she lived in this city and she said she was from the other side of the island and that it take her an hour and a half to drive to the temple. I realized how much I take the temple for granted. Brett and I made a goal before we married to go to the temple once a month and there have only been a few months that we have missed in our 9 years of marriage but I thought of this sweet lady who will have to wait 18 months to attend again and I told her that I will go for her as much as i can. I have made a new goal now. The temple will have a new meaning for me now. I am so thankful for teaching moments like today. It was touching to teach my daughter, Teagan about the temple but I realize that my Heavenly Father taught me a valuable lesson as I heard those words today, " Where am I going to pray the next 18 months?" We need the temple more then ever to face the adversary and trials in our lives.

We have the sweetest view from our rental house. It is fun to eat outside on the patio and to hear the waves crash against the rocks. Yesterday we hung out at Waimea Bay. I love this place. Every time we come to Hawaii we have to come here. One of my favorite places. Brett is in the waves kicking.

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

I have many reasons to be thankful. I am thankful for Heavenly Father and our Savior, Jesus Christ who created this beautiful world we live in. I am thankful for my parents who have taught me, loved me unconditionally and are great examples to me. I am thankful for my two daughters, who teach me about love, the world around them, patience and forgiveness and most of all I am thankful for my Husband, Brett who is the best husband ever. How did I ever end up with this guy is beyond me but I hope he knows I love him so much and I am thankful for the Father he is to our girls and the husband he is to me. I am thankful that he honors his priesthood and that he is such a great worker and supporter for us. Life is good and I feel so blessed!

We are having fun and eating lots!

ALOHA!!!

We made it to Hawaii and the girls did surprisingly well on both flights. Thank goodness the girls slept for 3 hours on the longer flight to HNL. Teagan always wants to leave and go somewhere and when we get to the place or we are on the way after 10 minutes she says she wants to go home. So after we were waiting in the airport for several hours Teagan said she wanted to go home and didn't want to go to Hawaii no more. I told her it was too late to return back home. She had to toughen up and go to Hawaii. Now that we have been here 24 hours. I think she is loving it and may not want to go back home.

This is what i call a piece of heaven. I love walking bare foot on the beach.

My two little mermaids.

Polar express a Christmas favorite

We have a nephew who is an elf this year on the Polar express train ride in Heber City. Thursday night was dress rehearsal night and we were invited by Grandma and Grandpa to go. I told Kelty and Teagan there was a special surprise after school. When we arrived at the train station Teagan was excitted to go on the train but Kelty had no idea what was really going on until I told her she was riding the polar express to go to the North Pole. When we walked to the ticket booth Kelty asked me where her pajamas were becuase she saw lots of kids wearing them and I told her I didn't bring them then she said did Grandma bring them? FYI - if you do this don't forget to dress them up in their pj's. Kelty loved it. On the train ride she kept saying, "I have never been to the North Pole". They loved seeing Santa and Mrs. Clause. They especially loved getting the bell from Santa's helpers and having the conductor punch their tickets. What a fun way to kick off the holiday season. Kelty wants to go back again with her dad this time and she wants to wear her pajamas.

It pays to run!

No, I haven't won any money in the races I have ran in. Although, I could make a living out of running professionally but that is out of my league. Over the last 11 months I have collected change along my several running paths. Yes! Yes! I am embarrased to admit I stop and pick up all the shiny pennies or dirty dimes on the road. On Saturday I counted the money a total of $41.53. Not bad for a street rat! However, it won't pay for the next race I decide to register for. And just remember Finders keepers, losers weepers! I don't want anyone trying to claim back their dirty money. Oh yeah and running is good for the heart so it pays to run!

Sisters

I am way excitted about these pictures. My friend Heather took them. She really did capture their personalities. Thank you for being patient with my Teagan! I can't wait to start working on the christmas cards now.

Seriously...

If Arlington, TX is selling Unleaded fuel for under $2.00 why isn't Utah? I spent the last 3 days near Dallas, TX for a seminar. I had to pinch myself everytime we went by this sign. Just a few weeks ago we were paying over $3.00 a gallon. Hopefully in the next few weeks we will be under $2.00. The weather was so nice and sunny in Texas. I invited my mother to come along and had a nice time visting and enjoying mother daughter time. When we left Salt lake it was a blizzard but luckily we came home to nice weather today.

We stayed on Ballpark avenue in Arlington. We were near the new Dallas Cowboy stadium and some other ballpark fields. Enjoyed running in 80 degree weather. I think I could live out here.

I am so excitted for my brother and sister in law!!!

They made their annoucement on Halloween and it wasn't a trick!

"Kiss the Girl" and "Arrrr Matey"

Teagan was so excitted to be a Pirate!

Kelty was another princess this year. Does this stage end? The last 3 years she has been a disney princess. I told her next year let's be a cowgirl. She told me she was going to be Cinderella.

So many halloween parties this past month thanks to Krista and Sean and Ariel. The girls had fun dressing up in their costumes for school and Halloween. We have had the most perfect fall weather and nice tempatures for running, playing outside and trick or treating. We started off Halloween day going to visit Brett's grandparents. Grandpa Marshall had fun showing off his great grandchildren to everyone and offering free rides to the girls on his walker. We then drove over to visit Brett's parents and show off the girls in their costumes. They had fun playing on the "park" at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Thanks for lunch. Then on to Kaysville to trick or treat around the neigborhood. This year was especially fun to see the girls run from door to door. After coming home and rummaging through her candy, Kelty said, with excitement, I can't wait now it's christmas time. Not quite but it's just around the corner. Then off to visit my parents and to show off the girls to some of the nieghbors around there and to see some fun pumpkins carved by Sean and Ariel. All I have to say is, "I knew it!" then off to get the last candy stash at Mike and Jen's before retiring at the Cabin for the night. What a fun eventful day. I am glad Halloween is over! It was great sleeping in today and finding 3 deer outside our window this morning. Can I just say I love 4-wheeling and the great outdoors! We went on some fun rides today with the girls and Heather please check out Teagan's face in all our pictures. It's the camera I tell you. Oh and we put up the christmas tree at the CABIN not our house. I mock people when they put it up earlier then Thanksgiving and now I have to mock myself since we wouldn't be up there till December. And yes, Brett also, put up our christmas lights at our house this afternoon. I know when you have nice weather like this you can't pass up the opportunity!!

Playing outside with Teag! She told me she beat me down the sidewalk.

Happy "Late" Birthday post to my Dad!

Well October is here and almost over and I some how forgot to make a post on my Dad's birthday. We have a tradition to carve pumpkins on his birthday and eat cake and ice-cream. This year, however my parents went to Nauvoo during the week of his birthday. Not jealous at all. Thanks for bringing back fudge. So we celebrated a little earlier. I had to find pumpkin pictures from my archive folder last year since this year no one brought their cameras!! Dad, I love you and hope you had a nice relaxing birthday in Nauvoo.

What's on Teagan's wish list......

Today was stake conference. It's difficult for me as a parent to get my girls ready for a 2 hour session when I think I already know what the outcome will be like but every conference we go and try to last just a little longer then the last time. This particular day the girls did very well for the first hour and then their little busy bodies just couldn't sit any longer. Brett and I took turns walking the girls around. I was walking Teagan around and she was noticing all the little babies and telling me how cute they were. I would agree with her. She even saw a friend of hers from pre-school and tugged on my hand and said mommy she is my friend with a huge smile. That was comforting to me to know she has a friend at school. While standing in the back I said hi to our relief society president, Monica who was holding her 1 month old baby and Teagan asked if she could touch him. She put her hand on his arm and looked up at me so sincerely with those beautiful big eyes and said mommy, I want a baby brother, please mommy please. I gave her the only answer I could think of quickly since it is getting close to Christmas and this is my reply to whatever the girls ask me for........ You will have to ask Santa..... ?????

"it's not winter till Warren Miller comes to town"

This weekend was jammed pack. Brett and I have a tradition of attending Warren Miller ski movies every year in anticipation for the ski season. This is something I use to do when I was younger with my Dad and my second dad, John Payne. I have lot's of fun memories skiing in Alaska. I started skiing in Junior high and haven't stopped since. We use to go skiing on Christmas day. Why not? After all the presents are opened before 7am what else is there to do the rest of the day? I love skiing and I love that Brett loves to ski. This, I think, is the only sport we share in common and enjoy doing together. A fun memory I have was one of the years we didn't have the extra money to purchase warren miller tickets so I rented an older movie and bought treats to throw out to my only member in the audience and he even won a door prize, ski hat, at intermission (there has always been a raffel for give aways during intermission for ski's, trips, etc.). I love all the ski shots but I can tell I am getting old because the loud music didn't help the headache I already had from attending a viewing that evening.

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

You are thoughtful and care very deeply for your family. A loving home is of great
importance to you and you always try to make people feel welcome. Although you have a great capacity to love, you also have a great capacity to hurt, so at times you can be
sensitive. You're firm when you need to be, but people trust your judgment and
appreciate the kind way you always handle things.

Exactly! My sister took this quiz and she is an Esme too!