It's a school night....

...and we are snuggled up with blankets, a fire in the fireplace, movies, and plenty of popcorn! It has been a very chilly day and is expected to be a chilly night with possible freezing rain/sleet. All after school activities were canceled, including a special performance by the third grade that was scheduled for this evening. We have consumed LOTS of hot chocolate, and I made my mom's homemade beef stew--hearty, comforting and warm! Sus was not feeling well and stayed home from school today. I learned later that 10 kids were out of her class today! Truth be told, I am very sorry that she is not feeling well, but I actually love being home and fussing over her, making sure she has everything she needs and is comfortable. I am happy to put aside the fact that it is a school night to do the same for the rest of my family and enjoy the time together!

Maui trip wrap up

We were at the very beginning of whale season in Maui. I am not a big animal lover, but for some reason I LOVE to see the whales! My kids enjoyed the trip (although a few of them didn't feel so well toward the end, but no one threw up) and spouted off (pun intended) many whale facts later that they learned about on the trip. They also became great whale spotters--Natalie especially--and saw many whales right in front of our hotel and could also see them off shore while driving around.


The cousins at the Banyan Tree in Lahaina while we were waiting to board for whale watching.




I could not get very many good shots of the whales even though we saw many. I just could not steady myself with the rocking of the boat. The boats are not allowed to get within a certain amount of feet to the whales, but at one point, the whales were coming toward us. They call it being "mugged" and they shut off all the motors. It was very cool to be close to the whales, but the waves/boat/motion was awful!






We did have one rainy day while we were there. We did lots of exploring around the hotel.


We checked out the gingerbread house display...


...and went to lei making class.





One of the companies I like there was offering a moolight tide pool exploration. It is one of the things in Maui that hardly costs any money! It was a full moon, so we headed to south Maui to check it out.



The company gave us a little information about what kinds of things we might see, and why with the full moon we might see even more interesting creatures. We saw sea cucumbers, sea urchins, many starfish, all kinds of crabs--one really fast one that got Anna's leg! Susanna was scared after that, so we had juice and snacks while the others kept looking!



Dad, you'll notice which flashlight Samantha is using to explore with!


More beach time playing dumptruck and burying themselves in the sand.



Our last night was more hula pie with John and Maria and girls!



Aloha Maui!! We hope to return again soon!! (maybe next time sans kiddos!)

A much needed night out

....with some of our favorite friends Paula and Greg! After a long and busy week, we were so happy to go out and enjoy some great company, great ambiance, and food! Paula and Greg are so fun to be around--we talk and talk and talk, laugh until we cry, etc. Paula and I go WAAAAY back--we knew eaach other at BYU and once spent a week together at Lake Powell with another gal and a few guys! The 2 Gregs ended up working together a few years back and have become great friends! We love to go out to dinner with them, see movies, hang out, and have even traveled to Europe together--they are just super! We lucked out and were able to get the girls favorite babysitter, so they had a great time at home without mom and dad!

More Maui--Part 2

The girls were really looking forward to a luau to see some "real" hula girls. They were also excited to see the fire dancers, which of course was at the very end of the show. I was a bit disappointed with the luau because the "mistress of ceremonies" was a little crude. So unnecessary and would have been so much better if she had kept it classy and clean!



Natalie, Anna, and Miranda went on stage to learn how to hula at the beginning of the show. We had great seats and the kids could see what was going on.


One of the fire dancers at the end. (didn't look that much different from twirling fire batons, which I did in high school!)

We had lots of beach time!!! And pool time!!!







Greg and John taught the girls how to snorkel. Susanna didn't want to do it in the ocean, so she tried it out in the pool.


The water was a little cold--Natalie was shivering after her turn, which now that I think about it, is nothing new--she is cold all the time!

Our Maui vacation--part 1

The last time we were in Maui we decided that the next time we went we would take the whole family--so we did! Someone asked me why we like to go to Hawaii in December and I am thinking in my mind--because it is heaven on earth! The girls LOVED it and had a great time! They told us several times how much they enjoyed it. However, it is not heaven on earth when we get back! VERY hard to catch up from being out of school for a week, jump into the holidays, birthdays, baptisms, etc. Thus, the delay in getting some photos of our trip posted.


I just love this picture of Nan looking out the window and Sam sleeping. They did really well on the long flight. They all wanted to sit by the window of course, so we had to take turns.


Waiting for the rental car. They loved their new luggage and could spot the bags from a mile a way!


Nan showing Greg a find. We arrived a day before we could check into our villa at the Westin, so we stayed one night at Kaanapali Shores. We walked on the beach and investigated some of the places and things we wanted to do. On Sunday morning, we went to church in Lahaina. After, we moved over to the Westin villas and awaited the arrival of our cousins! The girls were so excited to have Uncle John, Aunt Trina, Anna, and Miranda arrive!


Samantha showing off a shell for her collection.


We loved walking on the beach. The mornings were so beautiful! And thanks to a 4 hour time difference, the girls were up at 4 in the morning so we had plenty of time to enjoy them!


We of course enjoyed lots and lots of pool time.


The girls enjoyed being with their cousins. They loved to play wave tag and would go from beach to pool, pool to beach, many, many, times.


Wrapping up some pool time with Anna.


We enjoyed Leilani's at sunset a couple of times during our stay, and everyone devoured the Hula Pie! (It's a super tall dessert with macadamia nut ice cream, chocolate graham cracker crust, chocolate, whipped cream, nuts......delicious!)

Susanna's Baptism

We are so happy that Susanna made the decision to be baptized last Saturday! It was a beautiful day--outside the sun was shining and it was warm, and inside, we were together with family and friends and had very warm hearts! It was the first time for the new Stake baptisms so we were not exactly sure what to expect. It turned out to be a wonderful experience--three children were baptized that day. There were 2 very good talks. The talk on the Holy Ghost was given by my dad and it was great! Susanna went first and was baptized by her dad. After, we went to the primary room as a ward, where Sus was confirmed and welcomed by the Bishop and the Primary Pres. A wonderful experience that we were so glad we could share with family and friends.




A little side note--Sus was worried that her dress was a little bit see through and was starting to get very worried before we left the house. I dug around in my room a bit and found an old slip that was perfect, but a little too long. I said I would just cut it off to be the right length for the dress and Sus said "Mom. you would do that for me?" I of course did do it for her. A very small thing to keep it from becoming a big thing....

New Year's

Our friends Derek and Meredith hosted a super fun family party for New Year's Eve! I copied this picture from Meredith's blog--I hope she won't mind and I hope I don't get into trouble with copyright laws. Collages are way too advanced for me, and Meredith is a great photographer! We spent the evening with friends playing games and chatting and eating. Meredith had the kids trying and doing all sorts of New Year's traditions from around the world. We had a super time and truly appreciate being able to be a part of the evening! Here's to a great 2009!!

It was Merry and Bright!

We celebrated Christmas at Mama Leslie's and Grandpappy's. We were especially excited to be able to be there with my sister Deanna and her family and my Mama Judy! The cousins had a great time playing together. We watched movies, made a gingerbread house, baked goodies, delivered goodies, ate lots of goodies and enjoyed a special treat of chicken and sausage gumbo the day after Christmas! The guys did some shooting (my brother in law Chuck won the shootout), the girls did some shopping--it was a great time all the way around. We listened to Christmas music all day long each day and enjoyed being together to celebrate the birth of our Savior! Thanks again Mom and Dad for all you did to help us all have such a nice time!! Here are some highlights:


Sus, Sam, Nat. It looks like Sam's eyes are crossed in this picture.


Deanna, Chuck and Sophie were Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. Our girls were the "host" of angels. My dad read from Luke and we sang Christmas carols together.


My girls were especially looking forward to playing "the game". My mom calls it the chinese gift exchange. Everyone draws a number then chooses a gift and unwraps the gift. The next person can steal from anyone's unwrapped gift or they can choose another one from the pile. We had to modify the rules for the kids because they did not like the idea that someone could take what they had. It is always fun to play this. The gifts are super fun--tools for the guys, gift cards, candles, cash. There was a "mystery gift" that could not be opened until the end. It had lots of "junk" in it like dish towels and note pads, oh, and a $100 bill!


My super crafty sister Deanna made these darling bath wraps for my girls!


Movies and popcorn.


We were able to take a 4 generation photo with Mama Judy, Mom, Deanna and me and our kids.