Hawaiian Cruise

We had been trying to decide on a trip we could take with my sister and her husband and their youngest son, Danny for quite awhile. I was so excited when we finally all came to the decision to take a Hawaiian cruise! This was our ship -- The Pride of America by NCL.
Our friends, Marc and Emily Tingey, were in Maui the same week we visited, so we met up with them at the aquarium and had lunch. It was so much fun! Emily is also my visiting teacher, so we decided that counted as a visit!
The Black Sand Beach on the Hilo side of the big island of Hawaii. It is a beautiful place with lots of turtles sunning themselves on the beach.
I think this is my favorite place in the whole world. It's a secluded beach on the big island that we have visited before. Not many tourists know about it, so it's quiet, relaxing and beautiful!
In Kauai we kayaked up a river! It wasn't as hard as it sounds because the winds off of the ocean actually push you upstream.
After the kayaking, we hiked up to see a gorgeous waterfall. This is on the way to see the waterfall. All the land you can see is private, protected property.
At the waterfall! The guys all swam and jumped off of the waterfall, but I designated myself as official photographer, so I didn't get wet!
We also went to a Luau in Kauai, at the Kalamaku plantation. It was a wonderful show and the food wasn't bad either!
The whole gang at the Luau: L to R: Debbie, Karl, Danny, Devin, Me and David.
On our last day while we were in Oahu, we visited the beautiful Laie Temple grounds. It had been a hectic day, we had gotten lost for an hour, visited the Pearl Harbor Memorial, and been to the flea market at the Hula Bowl. But as soon as we reached the temple grounds, all the tension and stress left me and I felt at peace. Even just walking through the grounds and in the visitor's center, you could feel the spirit, and I was thankful for that. What a great way to end a fabulous week in one of our favorite places on earth!

Redneck Living Room

Since we haven't sold or given away our old family room furniture yet, it is still occupying our garage. Devin and his friends have enjoyed sitting out there and eating ice cream, talking, and hanging out. Last night they decided to set up a screen and watch movies on the projector, and so we have officially titled it our "Redneck living room."
If you would like to make a redneck living room of your own, you first need a high quality movie projector propped up on some pillows and tupperware containers.
Then you need an old blanket to hang up on the inside of your garage door.
Some attractive wall hangings add a homey touch.
And, of course, a beautiful blue tarp to serve as carpeting finishes off the look! The answer to your question is yes, we have been watching HGTV! Who says you can't learn things by watching television?

Molly and Me

The other night I was home alone with my cute dog Molly. David was out of town on a business trip and Devin was sleeping in the trailer with his friends. I was channel surfing when I came across the movie "Marley and Me" and started watching it. I had seen it a couple of times before, but I like the movie and there was nothing else to do, so I watched it. In the movie, this couple adopts a dog that is literally a dog from hell. He is the worst dog in the world, chewing up furniture, pooping in public places and just creating havoc wherever he goes. But in the end, he turns out to be a lovable sweetheart and an important member of their family.

As I lay on the bed watching this movie and sobbing my eyes out, I had to go find my own little tornado of terror and have her watch with me. She really liked the movie, and was glued to the screen whenever that rascally Marley was on! It was kind of a bonding moment for both of us, I think. It made me realize that this little pup that we bought in a parking lot on a whim on New Year's Eve is a big part of our family now. Yes, she has ruined furniture, chewed up my kitchen cabinets, pooped on my carpet, shredded several kitchen rugs, and cost me probably thousands in vet, grooming and kenneling fees, but I love her! It has been so much fun having her in our home! She brings such energy and excitement to our lives that would be hard to imagine what we would be doing without her. Just taking her for a walk through the neighborhood, playing fetch with her or snuggling with her when she is sleepy -- these are the simple things that make her happy. She doesn't demand or expect anything from us other than food, water, playtime and sharing our treats with her.

Molly is the first dog we have ever allowed into our home, and I am so glad we made that decision! She is a 3 pound bundle of energy, love and fun!

My First Rag Quilt

I bought a sewing machine on sale at Christmas time with the intention of making a rag quilt. I love rag quilts and I have always wanted to make one, but have never taken the time to do it. So after letting my new machine sit in the box for close to six months, I finally decided to give it a try.
I looked up instruction videos on the internet until I kind of had an idea of what I needed to do. Then I bought the cutest flannel fabric I could find and went to work. It was pretty easy, just a little time consuming. Cutting the fabric squares and batting squares probably took the most time. Here are the simple instructions in a nutshell.

1. Buy 5 coordinating flannel fabrics (I bought 1 1/2 yds of each to make a 47 x 47" throw.) Also, buy 100% cotton needled batting ( I only used one small bag.)

2. Cut all fabric into 7" squares. Yes, they do need to be exact. I bought a cutting mat, rotary cutter and one of those sewing ruler things. These made the cutting way easy.

3. Cut batting into 5 1/2" squares.

4. Make a "sandwich" with two squares of the same fabric and batting in the middle, right sides out.

5. Sew an "X" in each sandwich, corner to corner. This will keep the batting in place.

6. Lay out your quilt in a pattern you would like.

7. Pin each row together and sew 1/4" seams. Pin so that one seam faces opposite of the other for easier sewing. (one up, one down)

8. Now sew all the rows together with 1/4" seams, again making sure the seams face opposite each other.

9. Snip all the seams with rag quilt spring hinged scissors. Don't try using regular scissors, your hand won't like it. :(

10. Be sure not to snip too close to the seams, I did and I had to mend some holes after washing.

11. Wash on regular cycle in your washing machine. I added 3/4 cup of vinegar to keep the colors from fading. I also added a little bit of laundry detergent. Dry in the dryer on regular and you have your very own rag quilt!

For better instructions go to: www.beverlys.com/rag-quilt-how-to.

The Grand Canyon!

Over Easter weekend we decided to take a trip to the Grand Canyon. No one in our family had ever been there, so it sounded like fun. Not everyone could come though. Sadly, Michael and Corinne had a wedding to attend, and Jaron had his show going on, so from our family it was just David, Devin and me. Debbie and her family also came, minus Danny and Nikki and Stephen. We missed the ones who couldn't make the trip, but it was still fun. Devin had a great time playing and helping with the twins. They both seem to love him so much!
We stayed in Flagstaff and had a chance to explore some of the historic downtown areas. It is really a nice place to visit.
The canyon was spectacular, and the weather was even sunny and mildly warm. It felt great to see some blue skies again!

This is the home we rented in Flagstaff. It had four bedrooms plus a loft so it had lots of room for all of us. It was nestled in the pine trees above a beautiful golf course. We couldn't have asked for a nicer place to stay. Next time we want to take the whole family and stay a little bit longer. I think June or July would be the perfect time to visit this beautiful, peaceful place.

A Good Neighbor

Today I went to my friend's funeral. She was my backyard neighbor but Selma was also my friend. After hearing the talks about her life and how funny she was, how great her faith was and how devoted to her family she was, I realized something: I didn't know her well enough.

When I first met Selma, I thought she was a little bit crazy, and I found out later that I was right! But I came to realize that that was why I liked her so much! She wasn't afraid to be herself, reach out to people, give them compliments and joke with them right off the bat. She was truly an original.

When we were going through the trials of last September, Selma knew something was up because she noticed that my blinds were closed during the daytime. She called me, emailed me and talked to me in church to make sure I was doing okay. She didn't know exactly what was going on, but she cared enough to notice something as small as my blinds being closed.

I decided today that I want to be more like my friend Selma. I want to notice the little things about people, reach out to them when they look like they might be having a bad day, joke with people and make them laugh a little, not be afraid to show them who I really am.

Every time I look out my back window at her house, I think of her. I will miss seeing her out on her patio reading a book or playing with her grandkids. I will never forget that cheerful little lady with a beautiful smile and a great big heart.

How fitting that in my scripture study today I read the parable of the good Samaritan.

"But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed...when he saw him he had compassion on him, and went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him."

"Then said Jesus...go and do thou likewise." Luke 10: 25-37

"We need to remember that though we make our friends, God has made our neighbors -- everywhere. Love should have no boundary; we should have no narrow loyalties."

President Howard W. Hunter

I'm thankful that God sent Selma to be my neighbor, because she taught me what it really means to be a neighbor to everyone.

First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage...

Michael and Corinne got married in the Bountiful temple on March 5, 2011.
It was a wonderful, crazy, hectic, exhausting and fabulous day!
Everything turned out great -- the Open House in West Jordan, the luncheon at Corbin's Grille and the reception at Jensen Park. They had a great turnout of guests, and it was a really fun evening for everyone.
Can't get too many pictures of the three of my boys together. What a special day for all of us to be together!
The beautiful couple -- don't they look stunning?

Congratulations Michael and Corinne! We love you so much and are so happy your wedding day turned out to be so beautiful!!!