St. George

St. George Temple 

A little cave like tomb built into the red rock.

"The Narrows" 

We have had a wonderful trip to St. George. We planned going on this trip last year after seeing The Little Mermaid at the Tuacahn (which was amazing). This year the Tuacahn was playing Aladdin and it was equally good. The staging along with everything else is so well-done! Lily was in heaven when the magic carpet flew right over her while Aladdin and Jasmine sang "A Whole New World." She stayed up past 10pm for the entire show.

Above are some pictures of the kids exploring the red rocks just above the temple in St. George. The tiny narrow canyon is called "The Narrows." Eryn is the only one who decided to climb all the way through it up to the top.

It has been so nice having my parents come along on this trip. They are so helpful and fun to be around.

First Day of School

Today was a pretty exciting day, sending everyone off to school. Anna is in 5th Grade, Eryn is in 3rd. Joseph is in Kindergarten!!! And Lily is starting 3 year old preschool (two days a week). Joel made breakfast for the kids and walked to school with us. Then he stayed with Joseph for his kindergarten orientation. I got to take Lily to her preschool orientation. She appears to be pretty excited about going to preschool. Only time will tell if she really loves it. 

Smith Family Reunion - Summer 2012

My entire family came together this summer for about a week. We had a very nice time together. It is always sweet to see cousins reconnect and play. Emily and I forced everyone to take a family picture on Sunday before church. Ammon who is on his mission in Peru is the only family member missing.

Trip to Hawaii

These two pictures are my favorite from our trip. 

We spent a lot of time swimming and playing together as a family. 

We ran into one of Anna's good friends from school at PCC. Small world!

The kids loved spending time with Grandma and Grandpa. They had sleepovers and played games and went on outings and just hung out together. 

We were married in the Hawaii Temple 12 years ago!! 

Four kids later, we are still very happy and in love.

Joel's favorite part of the trip was taking the big girls horse back riding up behind Gunstock Ranch. They are pictured here with Anna's best friend from preschool when we lived in Hawaii.

My favorite outing was taking the two big girls to explore the tide pools at low tide at Shark's Cove. We caught little fish, hermit crabs, opihi, shells and spotted lots of big fish.

On our last trip to the beach with some friends we saw a Hawaiian Monk Seal resting on the beach! 

Visiting Betsy's Family in Washington

We stopped in at the American Girl Doll Shop. All of the girls loved wandering the store and picking out a small purchase. Three of the girls got their doll's ears pierced at the store.

We went to the Seattle Aquarium on our last day. It is an amazing place. We all loved it.

I love my sister!

Anna and Rachel are the same age. We got to attend church there where Jose is the Branch President of the Spanish Speaking Branch. Betsy put Joel and I on the program at the last minute and we sang a hymn in spanish with Betsy on the piano. 

Washington is a beautiful place. We really enjoyed our visit. The weather was really nice while we were there. Betsy said that it was unusually sunny. No rain at all.

Eryn's Baptism - July 7, 2012

Eryn was baptized this summer by her dad. It was a very sweet day (even though we were all a little jet lagged from returning only the day before from Hawaii). 

We sang "When I am Baptized" as a family during the program with a short solo from Eryn. I got emotional when she sang because of the strong spirit in the room and because of the sweetness in her little voice. I love opportunities like this to be together with my family. It was a very happy day.

Both sets of grandparents were there as well as Eryn's Great-Grandpa Anderson.

It was a special treat to have all of the Kongaika grandkids together. Rob's kids were here on a visit from Egypt.

Happy 8th Birthday Eryn

We arrived at my sister Betsy's the day before Eryn's Birthday. So we were able to spend Eryn's special day with cousins in Washington. Her favorite part of the day was probably spending time with Betsy's two dogs and four puppies. We made a big breakfast for all of the kids in the morning. Then we went sight seeing and ended the day at a Chinese Buffet.

Trip to Texas

I took a short trip to Texas last month to visit my brother and his family. Mike and Shawna were generous enough to take in my sweet friend, Damaris to live with them. I got to help get her settled and ready for school to start. I knew Damaris as a 12 year old on my mission in Guatemala. I can't believe she is now a returned missionary going to college. It was wonderful to reconnect with her and to spend time with Mike's family in their last few days of school. Joel and I feel blessed by the opportunity to help Damaris on her way to getting a great education. Mike and Shawna are also making a huge contribution to her growth and her goals. I am so grateful for their support.

We put this little desk together from a kit one afternoon when I was there. She needed one in her room for studying. It looks so easy and simple to put together from this picture. Not so simple in real life. :) I'm just glad the drawer actually opens and closes.

Support Group Bowling Party and more . . .

Lily, my mom and I went to our Spina Bifida Support Group's Bowling Party over Memorial Day weekend. I always love being with other SB families. I get so much strength and encouragement from being with them. Lily had a great time bowling with her grandma.

Anna performed with her class in a melodrama play about Timpanogos and the Moon. I spent hours volunteering for this: teaching the boys dance, arranging costumes to be fixed, practicing narrations with the kids and running the entire play multiple times.

Here's an action shot of Eryn playing soccer in her last soccer game.

Tongan Dance Recital

The girls continue to learn Polynesian dances through ATOP Dance Studios. This week they performed three different Tongan dances. Joel and I are so pleased that the girls learned to sing and dance in Tongan. I have to admit, I got a little teary-eyed watching them. They looked so beautiful and I just felt so happy, knowing that they were learning about their culture. Thank you to Liana for making their shirts and feathers! They looked great.

Anna sitting and performing in the opening group number.

 Eryn dancing the Tau'olunga.

 They performed with their cousin Ileina.

Aunty Liana even made Lily her own costume. She was proud to wear it and cheer her sisters on.

Here is a link to a youtube video of part of their performance. If you don't want to watch the whole thing, go to 1:50 and watch Eryn for about a minute. Very cute of her singing in Tongan and dancing.

http://youtu.be/kMENfer2skM