Magical Moments

Family traditions are something that I have missed being a part of over these last few years of being a young single adult and being away from family. Between serving a mission, traveling to visit loved one it just hasn't been the same without young children being a part of the experience. Since being in Portland I have experienced the value of tradition with small feet running around and joyous giggles celebrating with Christmas cheer.

Each morning the first thing the little ones do when they wake up is look for the elf on the shelf that they named "Tink". They know the rules of no touching and are completely dedicated to being good because they want Tink to tell Santa all good things when he returns to report. Also, each day there is a count down to Christmas chain and an activity is written on it for each day. Today was to have a Christmas dance party. Along with the count down chain is Grandma and Grandpa Jones cousins count down to Christmas advent calendar. We're always excited to see who is next! Then with the fun activities of the day and spending time with the family there is a gift that is opened each night. It is a Christmas book that is read out loud to the children around the Christmas tree.

Tonight as things were settling down, after the Christmas dance party, Derek was reading a Christmas book to the kids around the Christmas tree. Luke (the 2 year old) wasn't as easily entertained. He has an eye for noticing anything going on that is exciting around him and if there is a train within sight at any point of the day. He looked out the window and noticed a glowing cho cho train drive by. At first he was the only one to see it and the boy was glued to the window with his jaw dropped and eyes wide open. I wanted to see what had this active 2 year old so captivated. To my surprise I saw the train go by, then a tractor driven by Mrs. Clause, then a lit wagon driven by Santa Clause himself. Wow that was enough for me, I knew everyone else had to see this. I started yelling for everyone to quick come and look. I must be easily excitable because at first no one but the children took me seriously. Once they made it to the window and were excited then the adults got interested and saw how incredible this really was. Quickly we each picked up the smallest child in our reach and took of running. We had to see more of this! It was a Christmas parade driving through our very own neighborhood filled with fire trucks, tractors, wagons, trucks, cars, and more that were each filled with a creative variety of Christmas lights and Santa Clause decor. We ran around the neighborhood several times, most of us in our bare feet, so the children would get the full experience of this Christmas surprise. The joy of these children were full with smiles on their faces, mouths open, and wide eyed in wonder at how lucky they were that Santa Clause came to their very own neighborhood in preparation for Christmas. It truly was a magical moment! These must be the luckiest kids in the world!

Tiz The Reason For The Season!

Sitting around the room, family all spread out, my heart is full as I reflect on this past year. There hasn't been one day that I haven't had to worry about having a roof over my head or bed to rest. How blessed I feel. I recognize that during this Christmas season some people experience the Holidays with different traditions and receiving various gifts. Yet sometimes there are those that have nothing to give and nothing to be received. What a sad place to be, yet how humbled I am to recognize how easy it could be for any single person to be in that position. As I recognize this my understanding of my dependence for my blessings on my Savior. His birth truly is an event to be celebrated.

If there are those that feel that they are in a position to not give of worldly means, or even in a position that you will not be receiving of them, then it is time to step outside yourself. Some of the best and most important gifts that are given are those of a listening ear and comforting a sadden heart. When you feel that you are in a position to not receive as you step outside yourself and give then that is the greatest gift you can receive. I am one that believes it blesses you more then those that receive.

As we remember Christ and think of more ways that we can become more like him then our lives will truly be filled. I am continually inspired and touched by  those that reach out and do kind things for me and those that are around me. It are in those moments that I am able to see a small reflection of Christ in others, and thus for a moment I feel that much closer to him and remember that he is not that far away.

It Isn't About Me Anyways

I am so grateful for each opportunity that I have to serve others. This weekend I have had the opportunity to serve many in unique ways. For the most part it has come in the form of listening but in others it has been in the form of humbling myself enough to focus on others more then me (and yes that is a form of service because it sometimes takes concentrated effort). For example. I am going to teach the Relief Society lesson today. Through out the week I would remember that I needed to teach and prepare but I kept on remembering and forgetting because it was easier for me to put it off because the topic overwhelmed me. Well I put it off until Saturday and my heart was crushed because on Saturday morning I found out that someone that is very near and dear to my heart had gotten a divorce.I was a lot more devastated over it then I expected to be. As a result preparing the lesson for relief society and the topic of eternal marriage hurt my heart because this couple was married and sealed in the temple. Throughout the day and the preparations I kept being blessed with tender mercies along the way. The right people would visit or call to help me get perspective. Then today before church I was able to do my visiting teaching with my visiting teaching companion. As I prayed in preparation for the lesson a very specific scripture and thought came to my mind. I didn't think much of it but I was grateful and went on with my preparations. At the lesson my companion started out and then I tied in what I had gained and felt I should share. I wrapped the lesson up and hadn't payed much attention to what was going on around me. I went to let my companion say something at the end and she couldn't speak. I looked at her and through her tears all she could say is "thank you, that is what I needed to hear". Those are the types of moments we live for. When we try to do what is right and do what the Lord would have us do, it is then that we are able to speak his words and touch peoples hearts.

This is a lot of detail for me to get to the end result of what I learned. I learned while preparing this relief society lesson that the Lord is aware of the needs of these sisters that I will have the opportunity to teach as much as he is aware of mine. This lesson isn't about what I need to learn and gain it is what I have to give. I truly know the Lord is strengthening me and blessing me in the process but I have had experiences that have strengthened me on the path to eternal marriage that I need to share because these sisters can be strengthen by them and find their own path of hope that I have so graciously found through the atonement of our Savoir. Thus in the end sometimes I think I get lost in thinking of how services can be challenging for me but in the end it isn't about me anyways. It is what the Lord has given me to share with others and in the process he will heal and strengthen me in the ways that he needs me to grow. Wow, what a miracle and blessing the gospel is! He truly does work in mysterious ways and I know with all my heart that it is the path that leads to true happiness in this life and in the life to come! Mosiah 24:14

Friday: A Day of None Stop Fun

King of the Tube

7 peaks is where the fun began.

The rules of the game is kind of self explanatory "King of the Tube". The last person on the tube is the winner and the goal is to throw everyone else off. I'd say Jace was the over all winner. He put up a good competition although Austin and Carson both took their fare share of winning rounds as well.

Sara needed to leave and Jace went with her so I was able to stay at the pool a little longer with Carson and Austin. I felt it a compliment that Sara trusted me enough with the boys to leave them with me. I expressed this to Carson saying "it makes me feel good that your Mom trusts me enough to leave you with me" and I had to laugh because his response was "her! I trust you enough to stay with you. Plus you are awesome and you should feel honored because that is coming from the cool boys". It still makes me laugh. The kid is cool and he knows it.

After that off we went to ride down the boomerang with the 3 of us on the 3 person tube. The boys got me to go down that slide backwards, TWICE. It is way scarier going down backward then forward and the first time going down I even hit my head on the slide. I knew I automatically wanted to do it again because I don't want to be afraid of anything so I got right back up and the boys were more then excited to do it again. It was much better the second time. 

Then we went and traded the 3 person tube in for 3 individual tubes. It turned out to be a good trade because we went on some other fun water slides one by one and then ended up back in the wave pool and created another game with the new tubes. Austin was the master mind behind these games and Carson was the trickster that always got everyone in the water. Basically the game had a lot of the same concepts as king of the tube but with different dynamics and you had to be holding on to the other persons tube with your left at all times so you were only able to get the others off with one hand. It worked out rather nicely and the single tubes flipped a lot easier. It was definitely a good work out all at the same time.

With all of this activity we took a short break. Carson sat in a tube and Austin automatically started stacking them, then he jumped on them to see if he could do it. He could and did and then fell over. In the mean time I happened to capture a picture of it. Austin did it to Carson first and then it was Carson's turn. 

SUCCESSFUL TUBE JUMP!

Austin was trapped 

so Carson took the opportunity to mess with the poor guy a little bit. First by rubbing his head and Austin couldn't do anything about it and then he sat on his head. Enough said and very entertaining, that didn't last long and Austin was a good sport about it.

After swimming we picked up some pizza and went to my house because I had to get ready for work as quickly as I could and the boys got to explore new territory. This was fun because they helped me find and use things in my house that I wasn't even aware of, like the entercom system. I knew it was there but I never paid much attention to it. It turns out that it actually works!

Guess what! They are normal kids, just like the rest of them one of their favorite things to do was to test out the vibrating machine. I'm pretty sure that alone could have kept them entertain for hours.

They also loved the back yard. They went exploring to see all the types of things that they could find, which Carson also somehow found a random lacrosse ball. We went black berry picking as well as picked some grapes, strawberries, and tasted some of our apricots.

 

The day was a blast! Each time when either at the park or my house Carson would say to Austin "come on Austin, this will be great! We are creating more memories!" That boy has got it right! It was fun getting to spend more time with them and getting to know them better. I enjoyed the day every bit as much as they did. It was a great way to end the summer semester and kick off my two to three week break. 

(Come to think of it I ended my Spring Semester with a day adventure with these guys too. We're on an end of the semester roll!) 

Here's to creating more memories!

Janae's Baby Shower

Good Food

(Plus)

Good Company

(Plus)

 Good Presents 

(Equal)

A Good Time!

Laura and Aunt Kathy put on a nice baby shower for Janae. It was so much fun to have just the girls around and being able to catch up. Thank you so much you two for providing this opportunity for all of us to get together as well as showing Janae your love and support of her having a baby. We really do have such a great extended family support system!

Grandpa Hale came with his new wife Ruth. They did just get married Saturday and Grandpa wanted Ruth to come to the baby shower but he didn't want her to have to go alone so he came along with her. He is a brave man for having come with all those women but it was great to see them both there. I have had this internal battle of trying to accept Ruth because my heart is so loyal to Grandma Hale (the first Ruth) but seeing them together and getting to spend more time to get to know her, it is just hard not liking her. She is so kind, has a golden sense of humor, and is as quick as whip when coming up with funny things to say. Plus it is so comforting to see my Grandpa so happy again. He really struggle so much when my Grandma Hale passed away and to see him sincerely happy again, well you just can't beat that.

Here is to accepting change!

Cheers

Did this seriously just happen?

Real Life Entertainment

I had just gotten off the train and I had to wait fifteen minutes for Janae and Jaymes to come and pick me up because they were both at a Chiropractor appointment. It was beautiful outside, sunny, the perfect temperature, and dry. I went and found a nice spot in the grass and was laying down, reading a book, and minding my own business. I paused for a moment to take in the beauty of the day and was feeling so grateful for the nice sun and what I thought perfect weather when all the sudden out of no where I feel a rain drop. I had my book open and I thought to myself "no way is it going to rain any harder then a drizzle. It'll probably be a few drops and then go away." Just as I thought that it was just like someone turned on the shower head right over me and I couldn't escape. I got up, laughing at myself, and started walking to find shelter. Shelter wasn't that far so I got to it some what quickly and still by the time I got there I was drenched (you should've seen my back pack). Then on top of that it stopped raining about two minutes after I found shelter and by the time Janae and Jaymes got there it looked like it hadn't rained at all. I had to laugh because it was a laughable moment and I had to think to myself that God has to have a sense of humor. I mean common it was perfect and I loved that it happened to me because if I was a God I would totally do something like that to someone. It was seriously one of those moments that you would see in a movie where the rain cloud is directly over the single person and if they moved it moved with them. That is how it felt and I thought it was so funny!

This is my, did that seriously just happen face

THEN

This is my celebrating and laughing at the fact that yes that really just happened to me and it didn't even look like anything hardly happened not even five minutes later.

A Moment Worth Remembering

I was going through some pictures and ran across this one. This was a moment to remember and never to be forgotten!

It was the last day of my mission on transfer day. I was being transferred to no companion and I was at the office. My Aunt Kathy and best friend Annie showed up and it was the best reward I could  have received at that moment after a year and a half of serving the Lord. I gave my all and then when I saw them I knew I made it! I had literally given everything that I had for every second of that year and a half. It was the hardest thing I've ever loved and I lived it with no regrets. There was a ton of success and lives changed but no life was changed more then mine. I had my ups and downs and now looking back at all I went through I can finally feel gratitude for all of it, understanding that the Lord has given me so much more then I could have otherwise had if he didn't allow me to struggle and fight to build his kingdom and serve his children. There really must be opposition in all things and along with that opposition come the great blessings. 

It has taken me a long long time to get to this point but I have come out on top and I am grateful for the journey I have traveled. I don't think I could do it twice but for what I have gained for having done it once the price is worth it.

Grandpa Hale's Second Marriage

Ruth and Grandpa at the luncheon for the family.

Ruth and Grandpa went around and introduced every person and explained where they fit into the family.

After the luncheon Janae, Jaymes, and I went out for ice cream at Peach City. It was all fun and fine until the ice cream straight up fell off Janae's cone. It was the funniest thing and something that would totally happen to a kid.

Look at that happy face when not only did they give her another ice cream cone but it was HUGE!

(Max saw this picture and was a little jealous.)

The most entertaining part of the ceremony was when Ruth went to put the ring on Grandpa's hand and it wasn't going on, it was to small, until they realized that they were putting it on the wrong hand. Once they got that figured out it worked fine but the whole experience was a show.

Whenever I am with Ammon and Jillian's family in church or some place that we have to sit still and be mostly quiet for long periods of time this little guy knows exactly who to come to for silent entertainment and lot of hugs.

This is my first hug with Grandpa after he is married. 

I went up to congratulate him.

This is the only picture I could get of the three of us. Ruth was talking to my cousin Steven and I can't even tell if Grandpa was looking. He at least tried to pose for a picture. 

I love that man!

Provo Canyon Trail

Sara is so great at helping me to remember taking pictures. For that I can thank her for this blog post. So THANK YOU!

Today our activity of choice was riding a bike. We did more exploring of the Provo canyon trail. It is such a simple ride and yet one of my favorites. It is pretty flat and the little ups and downs along the way gives it a little bit of character and enjoyment. Not to mention the beauty of the outdoors that come along with it. I think I found my new running trail that I am going to utilize when I am in the being out door mood, which is basically all the time!

Since I don't have a ton to write about this adventure I wanted to take the opportunity to write a little bit about Sara. I tell her all the time that she is literally one of my favorite people and that is the honest truth. Even since our first class together at BYU we have always clicked and things have just gotten better from there. She has seen me go through a lot of craziness over the last year and she has been nothing but a blessing. We started going on outing adventures in the Spring and that is when the real fun started to begin. Along with all this fun we have some of the best conversations. I learn so much from her and appreciate the enjoyment that she gets from listening to my stories. Some of the things that I have learned from our conversations are things that I will cherish and remember for the rest of my life. How blessed I feel to have Sara Hansen as a friend and to have the privilege to enjoy her company. It really are the good relationships in life that make life that much sweeter.

Happy Pioneer Day!

 The Best Ways To Celebrate!

 Donut Hole Falls

Yes, this is the hike Paul and I started off the day with and how fitting to have donuts to go along with it. This hike is up Big Cotton Wood Canyon.

 There were a ton of other people on the trail causing a lot of traffic. That didn't stop Paul. He found his own path and it was very entertaining to watch him scale the random rocks and logs to get to where he was wanting to go. In these pictures there are so many people I think of Waldo, but instead of who can find Waldo it is who can find Paul?

Paul had this great idea earlier this week that we look up our Pioneer Ancestors in Utah and go visit them on Pioneer Day. He loves his genealogy and to help me out he dedicated a good amount of time and found both his and my ancestors that were pioneers. We decided to just stick to finding the ones that were in the Sale Lake Cemetery since we both had about ten each to find in that one grave yard.

One of the first graves that we ran into was that of Jon Taylor one of the Prophets. We were way excited about that and then we ran into a good 4 or 5 more prophets graves. We didn't take pictures at everyone of them but there are still a few more pictures to prove it.

WE FOUND IT!

This is one of the graves that I wanted to see that Paul showed me. This is one of the tombstones for one of his ancestors and it one of the best that I have seen. I love the creativity and beauty of it!

A few more of Paul's pioneer ancestors that we found...

I also have to say that Paul knows some great stories of his ancestors so when we would find one he usually had a story from their life. It was such a faith promoting experience because these pioneers had such miraculous experiences and such faith in God. It was inspiring to remember where we each came from and to learn from the examples of those that have gone before us.

We also found quite a few of my ancestors as well...

BASEBALL on the 24th!

Orem Owels Vs (we may never know)

What would be the 24th of July without a baseball game, hot dogs, pop corn, and sun flower seeds. These kiddos got it all. They were so much fun, adorable, and they made the game as lively as can be!

In the middle of the game the 3 kids started playing their own version of baseball. Basically Max and Grace took turns batting, and catching the ball. While Jack was more then enthusiastic to play the role of the ball. Basically this translated to Jack getting jumped on and thrown around.

Max face expressions during the fireworks were adorable. He was captivated and would say when a new firework would go off "that one was my favorite" so basically they all were.

The day sure did end with a bang!