Aloha!!!

Brandon and I had the great opportunity of going to Hawaii for a week with NO KIDS!!! Thanks Nanny, Papa, Shauna, Justin, and Amy for taking shifts watching the kids so we could go! My parents have 2 timeshares there, and invited us this year along with my sister, Brittany, her husband, Rick, and my dad's brother, Uncle Steve and his wife, Aunt Suzie! We had a very relaxing break! We spent some days visiting the sights and some just relaxing at the beach. I kept asking Brandon why the food tasted so much better and everything was so much more beautiful than I remember it being 4 years ago when we came. He reminded me that I was pregnant with Sarah then. Ahhh! THAT explains A LOT!

So here's a photo-journal of our trip:

Here we are (a little wind-blown) after our trip on the Catamaran! We saw a mother humpback whale with her calf. We also got to jump out for a little snorkeling and had lunch on board. Then they turned off the motor and we went sailing. Poor Brandon got a little seasick!

We went to Hilo Hatties to do a little souvenir shopping. We played a great April Fool's joke on my dad. Mom told him she had volunteered him to buy all of our souvenirs for the day. So we each took a basket and LOADED them up with stuff while Dad stomped around the store glaring at our filling baskets. It was hilarious to watch him. He was SO mad! But he was SO relieved when we reminded him of the date! You're a good sport, Dad!

Here's Brandon and I at the Polynesian Cultural Center for a luau!

Uncle Steve, Dad, Mom, Brittany and Rick at the luau!

Here's the roasted pig we ate! Yum! The food was great. We all tried new things. None of us cared for the poi. It's an acquired taste! Sorry, Grandpa (he developed a taste for it while serving his mission in Hawaii)!

The dancers were beautiful during the performance after the luau! We LOVED the fire dancer!

The temple is currently under construction, so we just stopped by to take some pictures.

The Visitor's Center was open, though. And they had a lovely display of the Savior. Here we all are at the Christus.

I also got to visit my high school friend, Audrey, there by the temple. Her husband is a professor at BYU-Hawaii.

Brandon and I at a shrimp-shack off the road. They have live shrimp farms and cook it fresh. Eww! Brittany and I hate shrimp! And everything about that place screamed poor sanitation! But Brandon and Rick enjoyed sharing some! (And lived to tell about it!)

We stopped on the side of the road at a beach where the turtles come to lay their eggs. Here I am by the lava rocks.

A sea turtle Brandon found in the rocks!

We also went to the Dole Plantation to get a pineapple and some pineapple whip (pineapple ice cream). It was yummy! Here's Brandon with a pineapple plant. What a hottie!

Pineapple Brandon playing the ukulele!

Pineapple Amanda doing the hula!

And this? Well, this is paradise where we stayed. This is a picture taken from our balcony overlooking the resort. Does it get any more beautiful? We were happy to know that while we were in Hawaii it was snowing most of the week at home!

And He's Off . . .

Well, here's Jonah finally walking! It took him a little longer than his older 2 siblings, but he finally took those first steps around 13 1/2 months old! For now, he still prefers crawling, but I catch him walking more and more every day. Now if I can just get something done around here before he tears the house apart!

Our Own Family Easter

We had a wonderful Easter! I've decided (Brandon doesn't know yet - oops!) that next year we'll celebrate all of the Easter Bunny stuff on Saturday so we can focus more on the Savior on Sunday. We really tried to emphasize Christ with the kids, and read the true Easter story together. We're so grateful for His atoning sacrifice, and the chance to be together forever as a family. Sarah even gave her first little talk in Primary today on Jesus Christ. Here are a few pictures of our special day!

Jacob, Sarah, and Jonah in their new Easter clothes! Thanks, Grandma! Poor Jonah, taking pictures can be such torture!

Jacob thought of this pose all by himself! Hmmm . . . unique!

Sweet Sarah!

Darling, darling Jonah! I swear I spend most of my day kissing those sweet, little cheeks!

Best friends!

What did the Easter Bunny bring this year? Jacob got Nephi and Jacob scripture action figures. Sarah got pink work gloves and Play-Doh (obviously she's more interested in showing off her chocolate bunny instead).

Jonah got these apparently very yummy plastic blocks!

Family Easter Egg Hunt

Nanny and Papa do an Easter Egg Hunt every year at their house for all the grandkids! There's a toy for each child, plus lots of candy and eggs hidden (including some eggs with money in them - yeah!). The kids LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this tradition and look forward to it every year. Luckily the weather held (barely) for this last egg hunt!

Here's the whole crew of grandchildren, all 14 of them! (Jacob tripped on his way up the steps, so Papa's giving him a little love!)

Jacob got a fun bubble blowing gun, Sarah got a puzzle, they both got sidewalk chalk, and Jonah got a train to push around! Thanks Nanny & Papa!

Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

We LOVE Easter Egg Hunts at our house! Saturday morning we began with our neighborhood egg hunt that my amazing friend Circe puts on every year! It's so great to not have to fight the big town crowds, and the kids get LOTS of eggs! Thanks Circe for another great year!

Here's Jacob with his cousins, Lincoln & Brigham! Jacob seriously idolizes these boys!

Even Jonah got in on the fun with his token single egg! As long as he had something to slobber on, he was happy (until he found the playground bark, that is - yuck!)!

Sarah was like a girl on a mission! She was filling her basket with eggs as fast as she could!

Sarah with a basket full of eggs! "When's the next Easter Egg Hut? I'm ready for MORE!"

General Conference

A week ago we enjoyed watching General Conference. It can be pretty hard to catch everything that's said with 3 little people running around. So the words of wisdom we actually DID hear were relished! Thank goodness for the Internet and Ensign so we can read everything we missed!

Brandon has a Conference tradition that he started with his father: polishing shoes. Here's Jacob joining in on the memories. His job in the process is to buff the shoes to a shine! And notice his "Conference Tent" in the background:)!

Is This The Face of a Thief?

What do you think? Is this the face of a thief?

Yesterday I threw the kids in the car to make a mad-dash to the mall to find an Easter dress for Sarah. (Can you make a mad-dash to the MALL with 3 small children? I don't think so!) We raced around the mall while I dressed and undressed Sarah in various dresses in the middle of the stores (poor girl!). Thank goodness the Easter Bunny was there with goodies to hand out . . . which is a great bribe for little children being dragged around a place they don't even want to be. (The Easter Bunny is actually a little scary. Sarah kept as wide a distance as possible from him, and Jonah started crying.) I was pushing Jonah around in the stroller while I ran, paying very little attention to him, when I looked down and noticed my 1-year old son had shoplifted a pair of shorts from the previous store! Ahh! I grabbed the kids and dashed back across the mall, to the store where the shorts belonged, and apologized to the store clerk for my small thief! I guess I should pay better attention to ALL of my children and what they're getting their little hands into!

In Loving Memory

Maurine Brady Allred
January 7, 1925 - March 25, 2009
Grandma, you are truly one of the most beautiful, pure, and righteous individuals I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Thank you for your example, your service, and your love my whole life. I'll miss you until we meet again!