Friday 3:09 PM

It's a Friday and everyone is home from school, yay! We survived another week. Melodie and Ethan are in their default Friday after school mode, aka crashed out on the couch.

Correction: last week they were crashed out on the couches, this week they're crashed out on the recliner and the ottoman. Last week they both slept until 6pm. We'll see how long they sleep this time, they gotta lot of sleep to catch up on. Hyrum is having a snack in the kitchen. Wes, Abi, and Sophi are all playing outside in the snow.

Lily is playing sweetly by herself in her room ~ Say cheese Lily

Joseph, who is usually the first one home, is our last one home on Fridays. Everyone else has early out day (Joseph has late start on Mondays, which is okay I guess, but I think I like early outs better). I asked Joseph to tune the ukulele for me.

Owen took a break from eating the wipes to listen to him.

(Love that little face!!!!)

Slobber Man

Owen constantly had a bib or a little receiving blanket wrapped around his neck, cause he is Mr. Slobber. He's got a leak or something...

Just look at that shiny wet chin! We love to kiss that face. 

And we love to hold him in the air above us, but that is a dangerous move, and both Joseph and I can testify that those drops of drool falls fast and without enough warning to move out of the way. He'll get ya! We try to patch up the hole every now and then, but the drool still leaks out.

He's our sweet little slobber man. 

6 Months

Today was a busy day. First the morning school rush of course, then I started to get the little girls ready at 9 so we could leave for the church at 9:30 for a scripture study group. I had to leave that a bit early because Owen had his 6 month check up at 11. He passed with almost flying colors. He's nice and big and healthy, all his insides sounded good, also he's sitting up great, almost like a 9 month old she said. The only concern she said was this fold of skin on his leg. I've noticed it, I just thought he was chubby, and that might be all it is. (We jokingly say he has two butts) Anyway, I guess a deep thigh crease like that could mean that his legs aren't growing at the same rate or that his hips are out of line. So like Natalie, might mean there's some hip dysplasia. So after his check up and immunizations, we went over to the x-ray place and he got his hips x-rayed.

He let me get his bottom undressed and move him around without waking up for the first x-ray, but after that he had had enough and woke up for the second x-ray when they put his legs straight. Cause no relaxed baby likes that! So they held him down and then we got him dressed and headed home for a quick lunch. Then we were off again to pick up Hyrum for an Orthodontist visit. Went to Plewe for a consultation this time. I'm doing all my homework this time, just to be sure I've checked out all my options before we start forking out another $4800, yikes. I get that braces take a long time and it's a slow process, but I don't think that's should mean that braces cost as much as a car. Is it cause the metal providers have really jacked up the price somewhere along the line? Is there a Braces Union that escalates the costs? One thousand, maybe two - that would be reasonable, right? But 3 and 4 thousand? Almost $5 thousand, it just seems like a bit much. But I guess people pay it (like we are for Joseph) oh well. So at Plewe's office they were nice enough and it would be $700 less, but we definitely like McDonough better. I have a few more free consultations over the next week and then we'll give our official endorsement with all the price quotes for you (since none of them would give us a quote over the phone).

SO, after Hyrum's ortho appointment, we went to my mom's to drop off all the kids so I could go kids free to a dental cleaning for myself. It's been, gosh, probably 5 years since I had one. I'm pretty sure I did it shortly after we got home from Chile in 2011. I'm going back next week to get some of the sealants on my molars done again. Then we had the crazy busy Wednesday evening with music and activities and scouts and all that jazz. Tomorrow is Friday eve, yay! I live for the weekends. Love having all my kids home.

Here's Hoping

I like living in my bubble. Life is happy here in my bubble, in our little corner of heaven in this neighborhood with wonderful neighbors and children for my children to play with. I am most happy when I have all my children at home with me. I feel like we are safe. But then I read the news. And then my heart starts to fail me. I really don't want to know very much about what's going on in the outside world. I have pretty much been avoiding it until Corey shared with me lots of garbage about how horrible Donald Trump is on our date last Friday night.

I am shaking my head so much right now as I think about the 2016 election.  It's not even fun for me, cause I don't have a team to cheer on. I still wish Mitt had won. 2008 or 2012, either one would have been great, I guess it would have given me faith that our country isn't going to hell. But after the 2012 loss, I decided I just can't care, I can't control it, I can't make a difference other than casting my vote. If Mitt would have won, I probably would have put my faith in the government and in who our President is. So maybe the Lord is letting this happen so I will not put my faith in any man or in the arm of the flesh, I need to put my faith in Christ.

While we were living in Brazil, I read the Old Testament from cover to cover for the first time. That was the first time I read the book of Daniel from front to finish, and when I discovered Daniel 4. Two verses from that chapter impressed me to trust that God knows who the Presidents and kings of each nation are, and HE is in control and HE puts even the basest of men there for his own purposes. In verse 17, Nebuchadnezzar tells of a dream that he had of a great tree with much fruit that a holy one came and cut down ~ for "the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men."

Daniel interprets the dream and says Nebuchadnezzer is the tree and that (verse 25) "they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field, and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven, and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will."

Then in verse 30, Nebuchadnezzer is admiring his great Babylon, his great kingdom that he thinks he has built up: "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? While those words were still in his mouth, a voice came from heaven declaring (verse 31-32): "O king Nebuchadnezzar, to thee it is spoken; The kingdom is departed from thee. And they shall drive thee from men, and thy dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field: they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen, and seven times shall pass over thee, until thou know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will."

My take away - our country is in God's hands. God rules in this nation and he giveth it to whomsoever he will. Why he willed Obama to be president, I do not know, but his ways are higher than my ways and his thoughts than my thoughts. And I trust that HE ultimately is in charge of this next election. (God help us!)

So, I've been in a bit of despair this morning. Obama and the current election isn't the sole purpose for these thoughts, but the corruption and evil things in this country have (and I tend to pin those on Obama and liberals like him). I was awakened today to how bad things are when I read today that Dave Daleiden, the man behind making those Planned Parenthood videos, has been indicted by a Grand Jury in Texas for attempting to buy baby parts. Yet Planned Parenthood is not guilty of selling them. Again: Planned Parenthood is innocent of selling baby parts to Dave Daleiden, but Dave Daleiden is guilty of buying baby parts from Planned Parenthood. But how could the buyer be guilty of buying but the seller not guilty of selling?

To quote Matt Walsh: "The only way these charges could look even remotely honest is if Planned Parenthood had been brought up on them as well. In that case it still would have egregiously unfair considering Daleiden didn’t actually intend on purchasing any human tissue, while Planned Parenthood did intend on selling it, but at least they would be making a minimal effort to give off the appearance of impartiality. Even that, apparently, was too much to ask."

I just feel sick for our country, that abortions are performed and celebrated, that there is such disregard for chastity and that 50 Shades of Grey and Game of Thrones are enjoyed as entertainment. I'm sick about Human trafficking, gosh I feel like things are so bad. Yet, here I am in my little bubble and my children are safe and we are happy (unless I read the news) so I'll avoid it and I'll just keep watching BYUtv and will "see the good in the world." In my home I'll teach my children to read the scriptures and to believe in God, and they are already becoming great people. I know there are lots of great people out there, and that brings me back to hope. There are people out there like Timothy Ballard who really have seen how bad it is, they've been on the front lines. If he still can go about doing good and fighting evil and if he still believes in America, then I guess I can believe too. And there is lots of work to do.

Wickedness is all around us, evil is called good and good is called evil, but my trust is in God, not the world around me. He is in control, he is at work, Zion is growing stronger as are the forces of evil that oppose her. I will look to the prophets for guidance and keep my family close and take care of them. That is the most important thing I can do with my time. God will make all things right in the end. Which makes me want to sing the song from the Savior of the World play "Come in glory to the earth, come to us to rule and reign. Ready us to be thy people. Come, Lord Jesus, come!" I pray and yearn for the day when he will come again, and I know he will come. I will immerse myself in the scriptures and listen to General Conference. I read Alma 58 today, before I read about Dave Daleiden, and that kind of prepped me for that news. There are so many stories in the Book of Mormon that can help us and that show us how the righteous live when they are surrounded by evil and corruption. Verses 9-10 - Like Helaman and his army, I am "grieved and also filled with fear, lest by any means the judgments of God should come upon our land, to our overthrow and utter destruction. Therefore (I will) pour out (my soul) in prayer to God, that he would strengthen us and deliver us." And I trust that he will, as in verse 11: "...it came to pass that the Lord our God did visit us with assurances that he would deliver us; yea, insomuch that he did speak peace to our souls, and did grant unto us great faith, and did cause us that we should hope for our deliverance in him." Here's hoping! So there is my rant for today. Back to my bubble! I'm going to go kiss my beautiful baby.

Snow Fort

It snowed a ton on Saturday night. Corey and the kids were at his office and didn't know it was snowing outside until I called and told them. Corey tries to avoid driving in the snow at all costs, so I told them they better hurry and leave. I called because, around 10:00, after assuming they would be home soon, I had gone out to shovel the driveway. But it was coming down so fast, it quickly covered areas I had just cleared. It was also super slick snow. I didn't even have to walk down the driveway, I had my feet planted and I just slowly slid down shoveling in front of me. So those two things made me call to tell them it was snowing, mostly so that they would tell me when they were almost home so I could go shovel right before they arrived. I'm the chief of the "do not drive on the driveway if there is snow on it at any costs because we live in a north facing house and it will be there all winter if you do" police.

So, they leave. Corey couldn't hear me very well when I called (which I didn't know) and didn't hear me say it was snowing. But then Joseph told him, because I called him because Corey hadn't let me finish with my instructions, which was that I wanted them to call me when they were close so I could clear it on the driveway before they drove on it. Once Joseph was gone and I didn't even know it had snowed and he called me from the street so I could go clear it off real quick. What a good boy! So then Joseph told Corey it was snowing, and they left. It was super slick on the road ~ there were cars stuck and cars that had slid off. They didn't come on the freeway, Corey was nervous the whole time. As they turned off of 13th to come up the hill, they were spinning their wheels and Corey didn't think they were going to make it. Luckily they had a small miracle - a small patch of the road was cleared off - whether by some person clearing it off in front of their driveway, or from a sewer under neath? Either way, that blessed patch of cleared asphalt helped them make it up the hill without sliding off the road and getting stuck. Then Joseph called and I cleared off the driveway and phew! Everyone was safe at home.

So, the snow was so deep, after church I told the kids my idea. It is an idea that I always have when I see the snow up to the level of the slide in the backyard...all you guys would have to do is cover that and finish off the walls around that backyard playset thing and it would be like an igloo. So they set out to work. Wes started his own fort in a corner by the fence, and Hyrum worked on the igloo...

Abi asked if I could come help. Ethan said he would watch Owen, so I geared up and went out to play in the snow. (Because I was quite the snow fort builder when I was a kid). I thought Ethan would come get me after an hour or two, but he never came. We started around 3 and played in the snow until it got dark at 6. Check out our work: Mel wrokign on the wall, Abi peeking up through our "gopher hole" which I thought was really funny

We used a few of the boards from Corey's ice rink from last year to help support the roofs.

And the lids from a few rubbermaid bin. on the other side, we used some snow tires for an entrance. We need to finish off the roof there where Mel is standing, or maybe we'll use it as another gopher hole. After we finish the fort, Mel is going to furnish it. She started making a a chair but I told her she had to wait cause it was in the way. She called it a "snow-fa" which I thought was so funny. "Did you just make that up yourself or have you heard someone else say that?" Get it? sofa, but made of snow? Snowfa! Such a funny girl. Wes helped us too, but he and Hyrum were having a snow war when I was taking pictures.

It was really fun. I haven't gone digging in the snow for a few years. I do remember making a snow cave when we were living at the Crosswood house. My arms might be sore tomorrow from shoveling so much snow during our three hours out there! It was fun to be a kid again and play and talk with my kids. 

Ukelele

Literal translation of Ukulele, from Hawaiian to English:

ʻuku - flea
lele - To fly, jump, leap, hop, skip, swing, bounce, burst forth

The guy at the Hawaiian village at the Polynesian Cultural Center said that when the Portuguese machete de braga was introduced to the islands in the 1870s, they were amazed by seeing how fast the players were able to move their fingers around on the instrument. It was so fast it looked like a flee jumping around, hence their name for the little guitar: jumping flea. So there is some fun history for you.

I don't know or can't remember when it started, but for many moons Lily has said she wants a pink guitar. Corey said she's so little, she should play a ukulele first, it's like a small guitar. So Lily wants a ukulele. And Corey's put it off for several months, convincing her that she wanted to wait until we could get her a real ukulele from Hawaii! So she waited. We saw some at the PCC but I wanted to wait until we could find some that were less expensive. Then, as we browsed through the stores in the Waikiki village shops, there it was - a pink ukulele. Only $30, vs. the ones at the PCC starting at $60. So, ok, you have my approval. It's just a toy ukulele, but that's okay cause we're going to let small children have free reign with it. Corey decided to go with the natural colored one with "Hawaii" painted on it instead of the pink one. But we might need to get a few more of them now... the kids have all been having fun with it but Lily's not too eager to share. If you're not going to let the other kids play it, YOU better start playing it Lil, not just carry it around like a trophy prize. So yesterday I gave her a lesson, and gave myself a lesson as well. Soon she was frustrated and said it was too hard and she'll play an instrument when she's older. I told her it takes practice, but let her go play cause I was eager to use it myself, it is really fun! In the simplified hymns book we have, it has along the tops of each song the guitar chord you can play, so we've been practicing, I can kinda do like 5 songs, it is really fun. We all want to try and are all having to be patient to wait for our turn. (Do you like how Hyrum is accomanying Mel on the toy piano? Nice touch.)

Luckily I'm the boss, so I can do whatever I want. But I'll be nice and try to get my fill of practicing in while the kids are gone at school and I get the jumping flea all to myself.

(Well, I guess I have to share with Natalie...)

Back to the Grind

We're back and life is in full swing. I shall try to catch up on my Hawaii entries over the next few days. I took a lot of pictures, so hard to narrow it down (from the PCC) or to find one that does the scenery justice (going through 200+ pictures I took of ocean waves, the waves were just soooo cool, none of my pics really do them justice. So, yeah, will try to blog about our great little trip when I have a spare moment. We're all pretty busy right now with the usual - band, school, changing diapers, housework, etc. Ethan stayed up last night until 2 working on his science project. We both stayed up and helped him make his trifold board a little bit. Then when he woke up he felt too sick to go to school. Stomach ache.

He might have the flu... there's a good chance the throw up bug will be making the rounds... it started last night with Natalie throwing up two different times at the top of the stairs. Followed by Sophi throwing up first all over her bed and then on the area at the top of the stairs at 6 this morning -

She got the same spot that Natalie got last night. (I'm glad we moved her off of our shag carpet where she fell asleep last night. So after catching up on vacation laundry for everyone yesterday, I've got loads to wash again today of floor towels and bath towels (had Sophi sleep on a towel, it caught a little bit of the damage) blankets, sheets and mattress covers. Natalie seems totally better, but she also was very cute and happy last night right before we all saw her throw up during scripture time. Owen was up early, then he took an early nap. He's so cute, look at that little exhausted mouth

So, we'll see if we have a full on barf week with everyone getting the sick bug, or if it's will just be, like, only half of us!

Good to Be Home

Our flight arrived this morning at 6:15. An hour earlier than scheduled, but my mom still got us right on time ~ we got our luggage, sent one text, and then we all met up at the passenger pick up 7. Owen was awake and in the car - I couldn't squeeze him while he was in his carseat - but after we got home I broke him out and kissed those cheeks and that little slobbery face, I missed this little man soo much!!

Hawaii was great, but I would rather have this angel in my life than have a life on that perfect island without him. It was nice to sleep through the night, but maybe it was a bit over rated. I'm glad to be back to my sweet baby and my sleepless nights.

Oahu Sight Seeing

We woke up early this morning to go see Pearl Harbor. We got there around 7:25 and were able to get two tickets for the 7:45 departure time to go to the Arizona Memorial.

It was a sober visit. Oil is still leaking, about 9 quarts of oil a day of the 500,000 gallons still in the sunken ship (see history fact 3).

After we returned to the land, Corey and I spent two hours walking around and reading all the information on the monuments and in the museums. They had turned one of the USS Arizona's anchors into a memorial 8.88 metric tons. I was amazed at one memorial where they had a little stone pillar and plaque for each boat that was sunk during World War II. There were 53 pillars, and each one of those had another list of another 60-80 people who lost their lives. Such sacrifice, so sad. I'm grateful for all those who fought for us.

Dear Lord, 

Lest I continue 

My complacent way, 

Help me to remember that somewhere, 

Somehow out there 

A man died for me today. 

As long as there be war, 

I then must 

Ask and answer 

Am I worth dying for?

That poem above was Eleanor Roosevelt's Wartime Prayer that she kept in her pocket during the war. I enjoyed having time to walk, read, and ponder life and death, peace and war, the purpose of this life. It was the one time that I was glad we didn't have the kids with us, cause I'm sure they would have gotten tired and would have been ready to leave. We were happy to be able to take all the time we wanted.

We were finished at Pearl Harbor around 11 and then went on a drive around the island - enjoying the sights of beaches and mountains. The mountains look so big and far away. We took the 63 highway and it seemed like just a 30 minute drive from Pearl Harbor before we were on the east shore looking at the other side of the mountains.

We drove up the east shore toward Laie. We stopped a few times for a quick quiet moment of contemplation at the beach. At Punalu'u:

So nice, to be at the beach, alone, just the two of us ~ I took off my flip flops and walked in the sand. Ahh, I'd like to take a picture to remember this lovely moment. Corey, let's take a picture of our foot prints in the sand. I make a foot print and ask Corey to make one. But he didn't want to take off his shoes and get sand on his feet. So he bends over "Will this do?"

I think he's still in "I'm a tired dad" mode? We're here without kids, Corey! We can relax like all other people on vacation do if we want! Don't you want to relax? Funny man, he make me laugh. When we got to Laie, we parked and walked around the BYU Hawaii campus. That was great. That would have been fun to go to school there.

Corey's only comment was that he thought it would be bigger. It was a Saturday, so nothing was open except for the library. Still we wandered around for a bit, then back to the car for a short drive over to the Temple. We had plans to go to the temple yesterday before going to the Polynesian Cultural Center, but when I checked online for what time the sessions started, wouldn't you know it's just our luck we just missed it.. it's closed for cleaning and opens again on Tuesday morning, when we arrive back in Salt Lake. Bummer. But I guess that means we for sure get to come back!

The visitors center was nice. We had a theater all to ourselves and watched two short films on the history of the LDS church in Hawaii. So cool, I love this church, it's missionaries, it's history, the testimonies of those early converts. I love the Gospel of Jesus Christ restored in these latter days. It's all true! Then we headed back to Kapolei, which took a good 3 hours cause I kept making Corey stop so I could take pictures of the ocean. There were layers and layers of waves coming in - big ones breaking really far away in the back, waves breaking in the middle, and waves crashing into the shore, I loved it~

Ok, you can drive... hurry stop! Wow!! (take 50 pictures of the same thing) Ok, we can go. Wait, stop!

Wow! Look at those waves! (take 100 pictures)

Ok, go. Stop! WOW! Now those are really cool waves! Over and over again. Corey was very patient with me. He'd sit and wait as I pretended to be a photographer. Knowing he was just stopping for me, I thanked him and asked "So, what do YOU want to do?" His reply "Take pictures of waves. Lots and lots of waves." We took a break from my ocean photo shoot and enjoyed some lunch at the "Famous Kahuku Shrimp" food truck. I wondered if their food menu crate is related to our crate furniture in Brazil. That's just all I think of whenever I see a wood crate.

The sun had set during our drive, so it was dark when we got back. Hyrum called to tell us that Natalie missed us and kept going to the door and Grandma's house and saying "Mommy, Daddy?" So I talked to her and she sounded so sweet and cute. "You at Grandmas?" I asked her. "No, I Natanie." We wanted to Skype, so after getting that up and running on both ends, we called and chatted for a bit. We couldn't see them, their webcam wasn't working, but they could see us. We put on our leis from the luau yesterday and thought we were so clever as we waved and said "Aloha from Hawaii!!"

"You guys look weird." We're on vacation in Hawaii! Come on! Everyone is dressed like this. I've had a flower in the hair this whole time! (not really) So it was great to talk with them. We shared Corey's computer screen and showed them all the pictures I'd taken so far, but we skipped over most of the waves. Near the end of the pictures, they saw one of the last pictures I took before we left of... OWEN!!

So it's all quiet on their end as they looked at the pictures as I explained them, then comes a picture of Owen, and all of a sudden I hear all this "Oooh!!" and "Owen!" and wimpering as they say "HE IS SO CUTE!!!"

They were missing Owen as much as I was, since we had him stay with other family cause he's kind of a full time job. I love my children, so excited to see them again. Makes it easy to go back home. We should have brought them with us, that way we would never have to leave!

Polynesian Cultural Center

This morning we tried to really make it a vacation morning, by 1) sleeping in just a little bit, 2) getting in a morning workout - first at the gym together and then I went for a little jog along the shore. Then 3) taking a bath! You know you're a living it up Mom when you can exercise and bathe without an interruption. Then the luxuries continued as I 4) painted my toenails and fingernails. And finally, the perfect morning concluded with 5) Read the scriptures (Book of Mormon) while I sat at he patio and enjoyed the ocean sounds-

This is going to by how every morning goes when we're empty nesters, right? Yes! So, the Polynesian Culture Center opened at noon. We left around 11:15... later than we wanted, but oh well. Traffic got a little slow around the Wiamea Valley, took an hour and a half to get to the PCC. It was kinda drizzly, so we bought ponchos, then off to wander and explore the cultures of the Pacific!

I personally, loved the differences between the the genders that seemed to prevail, seems like without them you don't have a culture at all. Girls all had long hair and dresses, took care of children and making the hut a home. The tapa demonstration in the Tonga village was awesome. Who told them that you could smash bark and it would do that? Like, seems there would have to be some angelic visitation to guide them in figuring all that out. Smash the bark and it won't break but will be a long strong sheet of cloth. Incredible.

They just have so much culture, made me feel like my US or Utah culture is either totally non existant or a complete fraud. No dances that tell stories of our ancestors, no generational poems we pass on to our children, no ceremonial clothing we wear to the village gatherings. I've decided I would like to identify culturally as Polynesian. I think I'll start by beginning to compose poetry about how Corey and I met and our travels. Loved all the dances, especially the Samoans with their run in place fast at the beginning, looked like a good fun workout (although it's probably rich in meaning and symbolism, not just for exercise, right?) Sigh, what a boring American society I belong to with my treadmill.

This guy was from Samoa  too, He was really funny. You crack open a coconut with a sharp rock. Roca in Spanish, Little Rock if your from Arkansas. He said silly things like that. And I was also kicking myself for not making baskets from the leaves of our coconut tree in Brazil! I was sitting there wishing I could weave and braid grass!

We went to one more place in the Tonga village before the Luau dinner. We were laughing so hard we cried. He called out three reluctant volunteers from the audience. He'd show them how to dance, then they'd have to repeat it. He'd show them how to yell, then they'd repeat it. Lastly, he showed them how to drum and chant at the same time - and they repeated it.

The first two Americans did pretty good, then he got this poor Japanese guy up there who was such a good sport, but he didn't know what the drummer man was saying, but he did try to repeat everything...

And when he did a good job, he wanted to give him a high five, but Mr Japan as he was called just tried to copy what he was doing in giving a high five to the air, it was so funny, eventually they did high five each other (with some help from his friends in the audience translating)

Also, that knock that people do on doors with a "ba-ba-ba-ba-ba..... Bum Bum" (how do I write that out?!) He did that on the drums and they had to repeat it, but Mr. Japan would do three "Bum Bum Bum"s instead of two, they did it over and over and over again and he kept doing three, until his friends who were dying of laughter helped translate and he did the two. It was great, we were laughing so hard we were crying, so funny.  Then over to the Luau ~ I saw some pretty flowers on the way~

Great food, fire dancers, (update with more pics later) then looking in the souvenier shops and we ended the evening with the "Ha- breath of life" show. Great stuff. A nice drive back home and we went to bed around 11, living it up on vacation!

Ko Olina, Hawai'i

Well, we're here, our first time to Hawai'i. It is pretty darn pretty. Temperature is an amazing and heavenly 71 degrees! And the hotel is just lovely too, gotta like Marriott - as Corey said, they are "made to please the eye and gladden the heart."

We arrived in Honolulu around 12:30, spent an hour getting our car (long line) and then came here to the resort to check in. Then we walked around. View from our deck - we're on the lowest level, so we can walk right down the grass and on to that little sidewalk which leads out to the pools and bbq pits and beach. Little slice of paradise.

We walked around the grounds. One look at the pool, and all I could think ~ "The kids would love that!!" I personally don't want to go swimming, but feel like I need to take a swim through the cave on their behalf. We'll see.

(They really would have loved it!) Then we continued our meandering, out along the path by the shore, there are four little man made beaches. Pretty cool. We walked as far as we could (blocked off for construction) then we walked back. The sunset was awesome. I could watch the sun hang in the sky all day.

One more cool plant. Gosh I love all the plants and flowers and creations on this planet. I love the sun, the moon, the ocean, the sky.  

Scripture for the day ~ Mosiah 4:9 "Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend." I cannot comprehend how I am on just a small island of the Pacific, but I get here and drive around and see that I'm surrounded by huge mountains and huge sky, and this is just one little island? The world is so small, but it is so big, I can't comprehend it. but I know the Lord can. He created all these wonders and beauties for us to enjoy, his children. It's just amazing. The attention to detail that He gives to it all, from the colors on that all leaf plant there (no flower blossoms, just amazing tie-dyed leaves!) to the flourescent red sun setting in the sky, to knowing it's really the ground beneath our feet spinning while we're rotating around the sun, it doesn't stop. It's just amazing. Everything is amazing, so be happy!