What I've been up to....

http://www.refuge.com/hydro_thermal_waterfall.html

 

First off, our camera broke and that is mostly the cause of the lack of posts. I hope to be able to replace it soon. I think it must have gotten sat on on the way back from girls camp this summer. 

 

This past Saturday Albert and I had our date night at the Refuge in Carmel Valley. It was amazing. Talk about relaxation! So, you go through these cycles of hot and cold that both relaxes and invigorates your body, releases toxins and endorphins, and basically just really relaxes you. First you have the choice of going into a Eucalyptus Steam room or a Dry Sauna and get nice and toasty hot in there for 5 to 10 minutes. Then you walk through a cold water pool. You have the choice of an icy river or ocean water temperature. It is cold! But not as hard to do as I thought it would be. You are just in that pool for 10-16 seconds and enough to put your heart under the water. Then you go lay on a zero gravity bed and relax for 10-15 minutes. Then you can do the round again or go explore waterfall hot tubs before repeating the round again. Each round, the relaxation is deeper and body-tingling-feelings more intense. Overall, it was very cool and I want to go back.

 

  Another bit of news is that I obtained the best oatmeal cookies recipe ever. I was visiting teaching my friend, Pauline, and she concocted this recipe for a big party she was throwing and she shared her cookies and recipe with me. Pacific Grove has this quaint, delicious French restaurant called the Red House Cafe. It's one of my favorite places to eat and I'm kind of picky about where I eat. They serve these yummy oatmeal/apricot cookies and that is the cookie Pauline was trying to recreate. I think hers is even better. 

Pauline's Oatmeal/Apricot Cookies

Mix with a wooden spoon: 1 tsp. vanilla, 1 c. butter (soft!), 1 cup brown sugar

Then mix: 2 c. instant oats (I used regular and it was fine but probably a courser cookie), 1 c. flour, 1 tsp. soda, 1/2 tsp., salt

To prepare the apricots, fill a pot with a couple cups of water and boil, then add apricots and just simmer until they are good and soft. Then drain and dry with towel and chop finely. It'll be a little messy.

Mix all together with 3/4 c. chopped pecans and 3/4 c. chopped apricots.

 

Bake at 350 degrees about 8-10 minutes until done.

 

We've also been making lots of jam with our summer berries. First I made ollalaberry and it was so amazing. Then I made strawberry and its good but not as good I don't think. The kids love it anyway though and I don't think I can even eat store bought jam now.

 

Our weather all summer and now continuing on has been cold and cloudy and foggier than usual even. I've been wondering what has happened the the usual Indian Summer that we usually have in September and October and sometimes even into November. Now yesterday all the sudden the sun peeked out and it was gorgeous. We went tide pooling after church with some friends in order to enjoy it a little. Today is supposed to be almost 80 degrees which is almost unheard of here! 80 degrees here feels like 95 degrees in a drier climate! Maybe we'll have time to go to the beach. Hope so. Maybe our warm weather is just coming a month late. By next weekend its supposed to be 60 degrees again though.

 

I've been busy with my calling, feeling utterly humbled and out of place serving in the Relief Society Presidency. I absolutely love Relief Society though so I am glad to be there.

Hope you are doing well and enjoying your October! Can't believe its already October! I love the fall even though it usually doesn't feel like fall here.

Happy Birthday Albert!

Happy Birthday to my sweet husband!

Here we were when we first met and little did I know I would someday marry that boy!

I'm so glad I did. We aren't perfect but we are perfect for each other.

I hope he enjoys his gifts of a new jacket and shorts, the movie Mormons and Mobsters, and tickets to the BYU game. Micah and I made some pretty awesome cupcakes for him and we played Chinese checkers as a family. I also organized and cleaned his chest of drawers and closet as another gift to him. I love this man and hope he had a nice birthday.

A few pics...

 The kids have been LOVING to roller blade. They do it in front of the house or across the street at the track. That was probably one of their favorite things to do this summer and still do when they find the time. Here is Linnea rollerblading.

I finally got a picture of Micah actually looking at the camera without closing his eyes for a picture! Yay! Hope this will be a trend. Isn't this the cutest picture? I think so. (: He is three and wants to go to preschool but I'm putting it off for a bit. I love spending my days with him! He is so fun and such a good little guy.

Tide Pools with Our Chinese Girls

In July and August we hosted two Chinese girls. They were here going to school in Pebble Beach, studying English and learning about American history, as well as visiting some of the sites California has to offer. It was so much fun to have them stay in our home and get to know them and learn a little bit about Chinese culture and language. We will miss Susan and Yi.

Micah always closes his eyes when I take a picture!

Susan and Yi were very interested in the tide pools and finding treasures there. They both live in big cities and are not used to all the nature we have here. They were enthralled.

 Unfortunately the tide was really high the whole three weeks they were with us during the day. Low tide was during the middle of the night. However, we still found lots of hermit crabs and some big crabs and sea anemones. They loved finding those things. This is Susan with her tidepool treasures.

 Yi is wearing the hair bow. Yi is 12 and Susan is 11. They became quick friends with Gavin and then when Linnea came home from Girls Camp, they also became friends. They loved painting nails with Linnea and playing with their i pad. Gavin and the girls loved playing tag.

Gavin finding cool things.

 Linnea looking pretty.

Snorkling and 4th of July comments

This is Gavin and his friend, Lily from a couple of weeks ago at the beach. Lily's Dad is a diver and brought snorkeling gear for the kids and took them out snorkeling. Gavin LOVED it and that's an understatement.

I'm sad that we didn't get any pictures of our Fourth of July yesterday. Jacen still hasn't taken the Fiji pictures off the camera and I'm afraid to use it and have something happen to them. I will probably do it for him though because we need to take the camera to Bass Lake this weekend. It was a very fun filled day even without fireworks (which are banned and there are no shows around here either). We started with a 5k run for me (I was very happy with a 23:10 time, 7:28 pace) and then a nutritious breakfast with our ward at the greatest-park-ever, Dennis the Menace Park, and a 1k run for the kids and families. Micah ran the whole way and Gavin led the pack. We played at the park and then headed off to the parade. Thank goodness Monterey had a return of their parade. It wasn't quite as good as it has been in years past but I'm not going to complain. At least it was a Fourth of July parade. AND it was pretty cool when the Navy SEALS dropped from an airplane in parachutes on the lawn of Colton Hall. Cool. We came home and the kids played with friends and then we headed down the street to a friend's house for a barbeque/pool party. It was a cloudy, cool day so it was great that their pool was indoor. We were exhausted and glad to get into bed early after watching Albert interviewed on television about what its like to celebrate Independence Day as a Latino. As usual, the kids will wait until the local Feast of Lanterns for their fireworks at the end of the month. I'm so grateful to be an American and enjoy the freedoms that are ours. I don't take them for granted. At least I try not to. I think its noble and I am proud that America stands for freedom, no matter who or where. No matter if the oppressed is on our soil or not. I'm proud of that. And I pray that God will continue to bless America.

Future Missionaries

Here is another picture from Fiji..future missionaries.

This trip has been like a little mini mission filled with fun and tons of service and has been a spiritual boon to Jacen. I'm so glad that he could go. He comes home on Thursday night!

A few Fiji Pictures

 Jacen had a couple of awesome days on a small island that he said was like paradise before boating back to the main island and then busing across to where they would be working the remainder of the trip. Jacen said that the bus ride was long and difficult and this picture shows why. (: I guess they had to push it out of the mud. I was amazed that it rains SO much in Fiji. In the month of June they average 8-9 inches of rain! They get way more in one month than we get all year. No wonder it gets muddy. (Jacen is the one in the dark orange shirt.)

 Here is a picture of the whole group. I love that Jacen looks so happy. (:

 Last night they went to the temple. Jacen is in the middle/left of this picture but he's behind a girl's head. Too bad we can't see him in the picture but I'm so glad that he got to go to the temple there! What a great experience.

Jacen isn't in this picture but this boy is one of his group working with native Fijians. It shows the work that Jacen is also doing.

Jacen leaves for Fiji!

I don't have any pictures. Sorry! We only have one camera and I sent it with Jacen on his trip with a promise from him that he would take LOTS of pictures! He left yesterday. Last minute, we bought him a ticket from San Jose to LAX so we wouldn't have to drive him all the way to LA.  It was a great idea. San Jose is far enough to drive with my kids! It was kind of funny at the airport because everything there is so foreign to me. I haven't flown since my college days (seriously, I don't know how people can afford to fly their family places) and everyone could see how clueless I was. Oh well. Jacen gave us each a hug and he boarded the plane. Gavin cried for several minutes. We're all going to miss him. He arrived in LA before we even got home from San Jose. He met up with his Humanitarian Experience group and called me to let me know he found them okay. He flew out of LAX at 11:30, Tuesday night, and arrived in Nadi, Fiji Thursday morning at 5:10 a.m. (that's about 10:30 Wednesday morning our time). We got an email saying they arrived safely. So today they were going to take the bus to the Marina and then boat out to a little island where they will stay in a little grass hut on the beach for two nights and do some snorkeling and beach activities, watch some resort shows and do a service project tomorrow. Saturday he'll go back to the big island and stay there the remainder of the trip. Next Monday he'll start on the work projects (building bathrooms for people that currently do not have any indoor bathroom) and his Eagle Scout project.  For his Eagle Scout project he will be helping a small, rural school. The school is very limited as far as their school supplies goes. He will be taking many school supplies such as paints, paper, pencils and pens, art supplies, posters, learning games and so forth to donate to the school in addition to books that he has collected from local schools here in Pacific Grove. He has also researched how to create an effective lesson plan and has created six lesson plans in the subject areas of math, science and language arts for lower and upper elementary levels. He and his traveling companions will deliver these lesson plans. I'm excited for him to have this opportunity and I hope that he will learn and grow from it. I want him to get to know these wonderful people from Fiji that are poor in material possessions but rich in their faith and love of their family and friends. I hope he will let down his thick barrier and open himself up to them. Upon his return he has decided to create a blog in which he will post pictures and document them and write about his experiences so that his family and friends can see. For now I will try not to worry if he's remembering to put on his sunblock and insect repellent. (:

End of School, Memorial Day and Micah is 3!!!

 No more lunches to make for a while!

I'm thinking of the positives. In reality, summer is hard for me. No breaks and over time work.

I do; however, look forward to long warm days at the Carmel Valley Pool and getting to take extra long runs in the mornings.

To celebrate the end of school, one of the things Gavin's class did was a square dance/ice cream party.

 For Memorial Day we went to the Monterey Cemetary by Dennis-the-Menace Park to visit my Grandparents grave and take flowers and see the breaktaking display of flags.  It was beautiful.  We talked about our gratitude for our freedom and also about the role Grampa Neufeld played in World War 2. We met up with the Snyder family and talked about how Grampa's life was miraculously spared. Apparently he needed to be on Earth a bit longer. I LOVED seeing all the huge flags lining the driveways and the small ones at each military gravesight. I want my children to know why we have a holiday for Memorials Day and that its not just a day to play only.

 Here we are with my sister's family. I wonder if my grandparents knew we were there. I miss them. I bet they did.

 Today is also Micah's 3rd birthday! He has been waiting for this day for months and months.

Unfortunately he had a cold but he still had a great day.

Jump-N-Around was his choice and he wanted his cousins to be there.

 Then we came back to our house for some cake and ice cream and presents.

He was surprised this morning with a tricycle. Then this afternoon he got some kitchen/food items, cool light up cars, a xylphone, a water toy that hooks up to the hose, dinosaur magnet toys, a car carrier that hold little airplanes and a puppy to take for a walk.  So fun.

 His cousin, Maila, shares his birthday! She turned 9 today! She helped him blow out the candles.

Love this little guy and so glad that he's in our family. Three years have gone by way too fast.

Albert's Hurt

Albert hurt his knee...badly.  It's been 3 weeks I think now.

He was playing soccer, playing on a team in a league game and was running for the ball. He was kicked full force behind his knee and he went down hard. I saw him laying on the gound moaning in pain and I knew it was bad. Poor little Gavin was saying, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy..." He had to be carried off the field and when we made it to the emergency room he was seen quickly, as his pain was intense. After an MRI we found out that his ACL and MCL and Meniscus (spelling?) were all torn as well as a bone fracture.  He was stuck on the couch for a week (thinking he needed a little bell!) and then slowly began recovering.  He could drive after a little over a week (because it's his left knee) and now is doing physical therapy. Surgery looks inevitable but we will see. Our insurance will only pay for a teeny tiny portion of it. He is exercising so well to keep his body strong and improve the movement and healing.  I'm so proud of him for that.