Kindred Spirits

Tan and Jake meet for the first time on Earth.



Preschool graduation 2008




Doing what boys do best




Eating pizza and slurpees



Jake was happy to pose for a picture until he
came around the cut out to see what
he had just posed in.



Dance, Dance







Saying good-bye, having too much fun!



These 2 boys have been on my mind a LOT lately. Jake is one of Tan's best little friends. They have known each other literally since the day Tan was born. I am pretty sure they knew each other pretty well in heaven though. They just are special little kindred spirits when they get together. Time and distance has never changed a thing when they see each other again.

We first met Jeff and Heidi in our married student ward (Brett did know Heidi from growing up....). We started hanging out and pretty soon realized we were both due with our first child within weeks of each other, and both with boys! A few years later, we found ourselves distanced with school and work. Things changed in our lives, as well as theirs and we ended up in the same neighborhood as them. This gave these 2 boys a perfect chance to always play. In fact, when Jake came over this time, he said, remember how I used to spend every day here except for probably Sunday. I had to laugh. They did spend a lot of time together. Fast forward a few years and they have moved, things in our lives keep us busy and these boys don't see each other near as much as they used to. But, like I said, you would never know it.

Jake was diagnosed with leukemia when they were 5. He went through 3 1/2 years of grueling chemotherapy treatment to beat it! But, he recently relapsed. It isn't fair that any family should have to go through this once, yet alone, twice. Before Jake started his aggressive chemotherapy treatment, I had told Heidi I would pull Tan out of school so they could play. Tan was worried about the amount of homework he would have (he really must be my kid!) from missing school, but once he got with his buddy, he realized it was going to be a day of none stop fun. I let the boys decide what they wanted to do. After some thoughts of McDonald's, Olive Garden and Chuck E. Cheese, I threw out the idea of Planet Play. Jakers had never been there but it didn't take any convincing. They had fun eating whatever they wanted, playing laser tag, miniature golf, go-kart racing, bumper cars and video games all afternoon. They played each thing over and over again. When it was time to go, Jake didn't want to leave being with Tan. He told us he wanted to stay until midnight. I would have kept him, but he had to start his chemo the next day. 

After spending the day with him and letting these kids just be kids, I couldn't help but think about the journey he was about to embark on. He is so healthy and strong right now that it is hard knowing what is coming. The drugs and chemo he is going to be on are going to be so hard on his body! It has been difficult to answer some of my own little boys questions as to what is going to happen. They are only 9 for pete's sake! These are some big questions for some little kids. We pray for these guys everyday in their upcoming battle. If you would like to follow Jake's journey go here: http://heidi-jeff.blogspot.com/. I have learned so much through their faith, perseverance and love in this difficult process and am grateful to have them as part of my life!

Beach and Pool, Day 4

Internet access in our room for free!

 



It's going to be a wet one.



Part of our beach villa.



We were in the bay where all the cruise ships came to port.




Best sunset shot we could do at the beach.





Today we did what Hawaii is really about. We hung out by the pool and the beach. We read, we slept, we relaxed. We did what we aren't very good at, but we enjoyed it. The day started out a little soggy, but cleared up. We ate at Kauai Pasta, YUMMM and even ended up eating there a second time later in the week. We walked the beach, watched the paddle board surfers and enjoyed the sunset. We had a shave ice. And learned that you really do need to get it with the ice cream! 



Church of Saint Matress, Day 3

Disclaimer: I am pregnant on this trip....4 months so no judging!

We went to the Lihue Branch for church on our 3rd day. It just happened to be fast and testimony meeting. Boy, I thought I had heard some good testimonies throughout my life, but I think this day topped them all. The first guy up had just been let out of prison after 5 years and was telling how grateful for his wife he was-yes, she actually waited for him. Then we had someone talk about the Church of Saint Matress and how all of her kids were a part of that church and how her husband was King Saint Matress and to pray for him. The next lady told us how her husband was NFL today not LDS. Everytime someone got up they would say Aloha and everyone would respond Aloha back. I felt like we were down in the Southern part of the States. Loved it! It actually had a very down to earth feel and the people were so loving and caring. You could tell they really tried to take care of each other. We met an awesome couple from South Jordan there as well. More to come on them later.

We decided to do some waterfalls and a small hike that day as well. The first stop was an off the map waterfall called Secret Falls. We had to traverse down some private lane. I felt like we were going to get arrested, but it was worth it! Such a beautiful area that we found. We drove to Opaek'a Falls and Wailua Falls where I got one of my favorite pics of Brett!

Waimea Canyon, Day 2

The Grand Canyon of the Pacific did not disappoint. It is a beautiful canyon with wonderful views and hikes. I think I was a little less prepared than Brett for some of these hikes. I didn't realize that Hawaii was so full of them. We took off after some people at our first stop having no idea what we were getting ourselves into or where we were headed. After about an hour, it broke off into two different trails. Unsure of how long each was and where each headed, we decided to turn around. Apparently we missed a beautiful waterfall, only about 20 more minutes to go. We didn't have any water with us though, so we didn't worry about it. I had bought myself a sparkly white pair of new running shoes that I took on the trip with us. I didn't know that Hawaii had "RED DIRT" and having rained every day, it was tough to keep them clean. It was funny how many people would actually comment on how white my shoes were as we hiked passed them. Our next stop we tried to hike but everyone we talked to had turned around because of how muddy it got. Didn't sound fun to me, so we did likewise. The views were spectacular but a little cloudy once we got to the top. Definitely worth the trip despite the twisty, whindy roads that made me sick.

Since we were out by Poipu I talked Brett into stopping at Spouting Horn. This land mark is a blowhole that is different from others found throughout the state as another hole nearby only blows air, making a loud groaning sound. Legend states that this coast was guarded by a large mo'o (lizard) who ate everyone who tried to fish or swim here. One day, a man named Liko entered the water When the mo'o went to attack him, he swam under the lava shelf and escaped through the hole. The mo'o became stuck and was never able to get out. The groaning is the cry of hunger and pain from the lizard still trapped under the rocks. There really was a load moaning sound, but much to Brett's dismay, he couldn't believe people actually stopped to look at water blow up out of a hole.

We also went snorkeling at Poipu and saw some pretty fish. There were two turtles just hanging out near the shoreline but way too many rocks to get close to. The sunset was awesome on the way home and we had to stop and get out of the car to enjoy it.

Kauai, Hawaii Day 1

Since I have to start somewhere to catch up, I decided to start with the easiest....our trip to Hawaii. I decided I needed a trip to Hawaii and since Brett is graduating, I jumped at the chance to make this his graduation trip. We wanted to go in January, but with his torturous Bar prep class that starts 2 days after Christmas we decided to head out over his fall break. I label this day 1, but it really is day 2. We had a rough start that I forgot about until just typing this. We left SLC around 11:00, got into LAX and were supposed to leave there around 2:00. Five hours later and a measly $6 voucher for each of us, we finally boarded the plane. I guess I should be grateful Delta decided to fix the door latch so all of us passengers weren't sucked out into infinity and beyond, but the wait was brutal and we lost a night in paradise.

Because of the time difference, I found myself up with the crowing of roosters, literally around 5:30 am. Then we happened upon these on our walk. Wandering around. Everywhere. We later learned that during a hurricane back in the 90's, roosters and chickens who were "cock fighters" escaped they rudimentary home to roam Kauai quite freely. They are known as the Kauai chickens and apparently are not very good to eat. I was told it would take a full day to marinate them long enough to even make them remotely soft enough to chew. Sounds appetizing.

I accidentally woke Brett up trying to figure out the Internet and we decided to take the chance to explore the resort grounds. Absolutely breathtaking!

This is a view of the beach from our room. We were right on the beach and had Kauai Lagoons golf course very close by. So, Brett being the avid golfer that he is, just had to find the world famous "HOLE 16".

I realize this picture doesn't do the hole justice, and I admit it was a very pretty hole, but it just a golf hole! We continued exploring the grounds and came upon this crazy spider. I can't believe how hard it is to see it in this picture, but it was one of the craziest spiders I have ever seen. It looked like it only had 4 legs, and they were so long! After googling it I learned that it was just a black and yellow garden spider, writing spider, or corn spider that is COMMON to the US of A.

We found this fun little cove with warning signs everywhere that you could be sucked out into the ocean and DIE if you tried to swim in the water, so we observed it from the rocks. We were so exhausted after our tour of the grounds that we decided to take a long nap. The rest of the day was spent relaxing and enjoying the POOL.

11-11-11

I decided 11-11-11 is one of those dates that makes you stop and really think about things. What was I doing, where was I, did anything important happen? And then the true answer comes: nothing, not a thing, usual routine. Except, I realized how far behind I am on my blog.

I guess the easiest way to sum up the last 6months of things is to say this: I am pregnant with child number 4. I think that is enough said. It explains why I am too tired or sick to post. I am still working, running kids around like crazy (what was I thinking when I signed all 3 up for soccer????), and also got put into Young Womens. I should also mention number 4 is another GIRL. Brett is quite worried about the level of estrogen already floating around the house; he can't imagine what more might do to his already calm and drama-free sanctuary.

But most importantly, Brett only has 1 month of school left. Typing that makes me want to cry. I think of all we have been through and accomplished and I really do get a feeling of triumph. Better yet, he has a job he will start January 1, 2012. Paying him while he studies for the Bar. I am counting down the required shifts I have left to keep benefits and as of today I have 16. More than I like to admit, but do-able. These nights are so much harder being pregnant and OLD. But it doesn't mean I lack the ambition to get caught up~

A Moment in Time

Today is one of those days, when I look back at things and think how life is just slipping me by. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I have been away from my family for practically the last week. And a lot to do with the fact that my kids really are growing up. I think of all the little moments to be cherished with them and those big moments that will never be forgotten. If only to capture it all. KK asked me the other day why Heavenly Father made her the way she was. I asked her what she meant, and she said, "blonde". She informed me she wanted to be like Dawson. Brought a smile to my face.
My friend is doing a picture a day for a year. I haven't really checked it out, but was killing some time on the internet and decided to revisit it. I realized it was a great way to capture the moments of the day and thought maybe it would help make those moments in time not seem to slip away like so. I guess I don't have to start on January 1st. Today is always a new day.
I am excited to have the next week off. The sky is the limit when it comes to deciding what to do to fill these summer days. And who knows, maybe I will take my camera along and start to capture those moments that seem to be forgotten.