Argentina Here I Come

Brittany went to the MTC today. She is so excited to go to Rosario, Argentina to serve her mission. She will be at the MTC until April 27 learning Spanish. It was a hard day letting her go, but knowing that she is doing our Heavenly Fathers work is worth it. (good thing for sunglasses)

Brittany's Farewell February 15, 2009

Brittany had her farewell today. She gave a really good talk and made her mom cry. The choir sang her favorite song, "Sisters In Zion" . We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family who always supports us in all that we do. Thank you everyone for all of your help with the food (it was wonderful) . Also thank you for your examples and for all of the fun times that we have when we are with you.

Draper Temple Open House Feb. 10, 2009

We went to the Draper Temple open house. We parked at one of three churches that was by the Temple. They had us watch a 12 min. movie about the Temple and then we took a bus ride to the Temple. The Draper Temple is the 12th Temple in Utah. The inside stone was brought in from France, the outside was from China, and the cherrywood inside the Temple came from Africa. The last room we went in was the sealing room. They had us sit down and told us a story. After our tour they handed out yummy cookies and water bottles. It always amazes me to see the beauty of our Temples, the chandeliers were beautiful especially in the celestial room.

Devins fish caught at flaming gorge 2008

Devin caught this lake trout at Flaming Gorge on Thanksgiving day while waiting for his Thanksgiving turkey to get cooked. It was quite the fight which lasted approx. 25 min. on 10lb test it was neat to see the grin on his face as he brought this monster on the boat. we all could not believe our eyes that it was so big. at first we thought it was a snag that moved... this fish weighed 30lbs and 40" long. it was almost as big as devin. {age 13 what a lucky duck!}

Tahiti Jan. 30, 2009

Tahiti Moray. We took a 10 minute plane ride to get to Moray. It felt like we were crashing during the landing. Very rough. The island of Moray looked like paradise. White beaches, palm trees, little huts, no commercialism. We went snorkeling with black tip sharks. They were between 3 and 6 feet long. They look alot bigger in the water. When you look into their eyes they look pretty scary. It was alot of fun. We also swam with the stingrays. You dont know what is swimming around your legs when something comes by. We had lunch on the beach then Cal got to shuk a coconut and then break it open. We got to sample it. Yum yum!! It was very humid in Tahiti and about 88 degrees. When we got back to Tahiti we went walking around the town. It was time to get back on the bus and no buses came by. We finally got an old truck like bus to stop and take us back. We were able to drive by the Tahiti Temple which made the day. We had a wonderful trip it was alot of fun to go with Dave and Vicky. We got to see alot of beautiful country, how people live and most of all spend quality time with each other.

Sydney Australia Jan. 28, 2009

Sydney Austraila Day 13. What a wonderful sight to see the opera house and the harbour bridge from our balcony. We stayed at The Rocks Hotel. Toured the opera house which was amazing, then did some shopping. Had a hard time getting back on the bus, we were always on the wrong side of the road or in the wrong place. Very pretty place.

Melbourne, Australia Jan. 27,2009

Melbourne, Australia Day 11. A Day On The Bay With Dolphins. We wore wet suits and flippers. The water was freezing. When you jumped in, it took your breath away. First we swam with the sea lions. They were so big, about 500 pounds. Two of them were coming right at Cal then they split apart right when they got to him. Keep your fingers in so they dont get chewed off. We saw some dolphins, six in a pod. They swam away before we got to swim with them. We put on our (bathers and swimmers) . Very pretty beaches and lots of palm trees. It was the Australian open today also. A lot of tennis fans got off the ship to watch them play, the weather was finally warm.

At Sea Jan. 26,2009

At sea. Day 10. The sun finally came out, it was so nice to see a blue sky. It was a relaxing day. Sun, movies, and naps.

Hobart Tasmania Jan. 25, 2009

Hobart Tasmania, Day 9. Bonorong Wildlife Conservation Centre. We fed and pet roaming kangaroos. One kangaroo had a babies head sticking out of her pouch and another had two legs and a tail coming out of her pouch. We pet the koala bears, seen tasmanian devils, wombats, and wallabies. When we got back to the ship we watched the "Tasmania Police Pipe Band". They played bagpipes and had dancers. They were really good.

At Sea Jan. 24, 2009

At Sea Day 8. We took a tour of the galley (kitchen). It is amazing! Some interesting facts: On an average day Dimond Princess will use 130 tons of food, approx. 18 tons a day. 16,000 meals served each day. 6,000 pastries and 7000 lbs. of fruit each day. Thats why we always take the stairs.

At Sea JAN. 23,2009

At sea Day 7. Rough seas 16 feet high and 60 mph winds. Very cold. We watched a famous artist paint today "Wyland". He is known for painting whale murals on big walls all over the world. His 100th painting was done in Beijing for the Olympics.

Fiordland Jan. 22, 2009

Fjordland Day 6. We seen dolphins following the ship and seals sunbathing on rocks. We went to Milford Sounds which is a national park. It was very green, waterfalls flowing down the green mountains coming from glaciers. It was cold and foggy and the seas were rough.

Port Chalmers Dunedin, New Zealand Jan. 21,2009

Taieri Gorge by Train And Larnach Castle. The train crossed 19th century cast iron bridges and went through 10 mountain tunnels. Beautiful scenery! Lots of sheep. Then we went through a 1870's castle. Awesome wood work inside and the gardens were breath taking. A man was outside playing the bagpipes. It looked really hard to play.

Lyttleton, New Zealand Jan. 20, 2009

Day 4. Lyttelton, New Zealand. Christchurch is the main town here. We went through a tunnel that went through the mountain. A little claustphobia. Then whitewater rafting through the Rangitata Gorge. Two sections of class five white water. I thought I was going to die, but it was alot of fun. The water comes from glaciers. Way cold. We wore wetsuits, stinky shoes, and helmets. Cal and I hit heads on one of the rapids, and Vicky and I kept getting soaked. Our paddles would not even reach the water in some spots. We were paddling in the air. It was funny. It was about 60 degrees today.

At Sea Jan. 19, 2009

Day 3 At Sea. We had a relaxing day at sea. Weather is a little chilly.

Tauranga, New Zealand Jan. 18, 2009

Tauranga, New Zealand. Day 2 We went on a high-speed jet boat ride up the narrow gorges of the Kaituna River. We went with Dave and Vicky it was alot of fun. Cal sat in the back and lost his favorite Alaska hat when we did 360 degree spins! It looked like a rain forest going up the river.

Aukland, New Zealand Jan. 17, 2009

Day 1 We made it to Aukland New Zealand after a long plane ride. We went to Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World. We saw penguins, stingrays, sharks, eels and even Nemo. Did a little shopping.

Devin's Eagle Project

For Devin's eagle project he decided to help the Huntsman Cancer Center. He made 25 fleece blankets which he cut and tied the ends. He also made 21 scarfs. They will be donated to the patients having treatment. He delivered them today and was able to take a tour of the hospital. It was a neat experience. Thank you everyone that helped out on his project. February 4, 2009