Aloha and Maholo!

We just returned from a pretty amazing Thanksgiving celebration in beautiful Hawaii. Or, as Julie and none of the locals call it, Havaii. Since Julie also calls this our totally private online journal, the following is our trip recap for posterity. Knowing how annoying it is to read about someone else's vacation, if your name is not Julie or Kristen, feel free to stop reading now and check back in next week.

Since Kristen had a big birthday this year, we were looking for a big way to celebrate. The stars all aligned for us, and we were able to go to beautiful Oahu for a combo birthday/Thanksgiving how-do-you-do. And let me tell you, this is how I want to celebrate every major holiday from now on! However, getting there proved to be a little tricky. We tried to be frugal, and had a stop in Seattle on the way there. Upon our arrival, we learned that our 1 hour layover had turned into a 4 hour layover due to bad weather in Minnesota. Boo toMinnesota! Luckily, Steve Jobs had the foresight to invent the iPhone for just such an occasion! Delta also felt real bad, and provided us with drinks and snacks to prevent a riot. We were thrilled to find that those snacks included baby Twix', because when do you ever get those on a plane? As an aside, we later found that they charge $5.50 for said Twix on the plane! So we totally stuffed those babies in our cheeks for later. We finally got on the plane and made it to our destination at 2:00 am, or 5:00 am Salt Lake time. But I'll tell you what--the 80 degree weather made our jet lag disappear.

We love to play high/low when we travel, so here is our week in a high/low format:

• High: The resort was beautiful. This was our view every day. Oh, hey Kristen.
  
  



• High: Coconut syrup! We went to breakfast the first morning, and had this little treat. Where have been all my life, coconut syrup? It was delicious, and I wish I had some in flask right now.
• Low: Say it with me Julie--We were incredibly full. Man, life is hard.

High: Hiking Diamond Head. Kristen already mentioned this, but the views were amazing! A secret bonus high was that we learned to appreciate the altitude here, as we felt we were able to tackle the hike with more gusto than some of our neighbors.

• High: Beach/pool. Our daily schedule consisted of going to the beach in the morning, lunch, the pool in the afternoon, and then getting ready for dinner. How can I get paid to adhere to this schedule in real life? Oh, hey Julie's feet.

• High: The temple. We did a session in the newly remodeled temple, and it is gorgeous!
• 

• Low: When I literally face planted getting out of the pool. I don't think I was drunk yet, but I took one step out, and I was on my stomach. Julie had to ask if I broke a tooth for Pete's sake! That is one video I don't want to see replayed in heaven. So sad.

Other highs from the North Shore include Giovanni's shrimp truck on the coast, with the splendid corn. We also discovered a chocolate and haupia pie that was a-mazing.

We also enjoyed the luau at the PCC, with the amazing purple poi rolls and the keiki's performing. I won't tell you how many rolls I ate, but I am not proud of myself.

Low: The wind! The one day we wore skirts, there were gale force winds! It made me wish I was wearing a tropical muumuu. Hmm, that would also help when I am incredibly full--Julie, please have a muumuu shipped to me for Christmas!

High: Thanksgiving dinner that we didn't have to cook! We had a delicious dinner, and we also didn't have to do any dishes! Yes, please!

Low: Coming home. I about cried when we had to leave, and I am still experiencing withdrawals. My boss didn't like it when at 10:00 I told him it was time for me to go to the beach until lunch. Jerk.

We had a great time, and loved being able to get out of the cold for a few glorious days in heaven/Hawaii. Like Oprah said on her last episode, "I won't say goodbye, I'll say until we meet again."

30 Before 30: DONE!

Yep, I did it!!! Some of the items on my list I chose to get off on a couple of technicalities. But I have really been hustling these last few weeks - and days - and hours.

Here's an update on the final few:

#9 - Submit at least one family name to the temple - DONE.

In our Stake Conference a month or so ago, one of the stake presidency told an interesting story about how he thought his Aunt Edith had done all his family history for the family (and every family has an Aunt Edith). But someone else who started looking into his line identified 500 names that still needed ordinances! And a few months later, that person found 500 more. That was encouraging to me - but trying to get involved in family history has been hard. The new.familysearch.org website has a handy little temple icon that lets you know which ancestors need work done. But more often than not, that person is a duplicate that someone has put in twice. And in most cases not all the information matches. In the new system, all the information people put in about their ancestors are called "opinions." Isn't that telling? I hate to submit something that's not right. But I managed to find two names on my dad's side: Absalon Elliott and Robert Elliott. It's gratifying when you can find a name that time has overlooked, and I am grateful I could have a little part in that.

#15 - Take piano lessons - KINDA DONE.

Here's one of the aforementioned technicalities. It was getting down to crunch time, and I still hadn't signed up for lessons, so the morning I left town for my birthday I watched a YouTube lesson and followed along on my keyboard - even playing one song. I'm counting this, but I do intend to sign up for lessons.

#19 - Learn to swim - DONE!

This one has been paralyzing to me for years, ever since I dropped out of swim lessons as a kid. I'm not afraid of the water, but not knowing how to swim definitely holds me back. Some people are naturally good swimmers, and some are more naturally born...rocks, shall we say? Swimming has never come easily to me, but I got up the gumption and signed up for adult swimming lessons at the Steiner Aquatic Center (one of the only places in the valley that offers them). I even got pink goggles (not pictured). The classes were only for four weeks, so I wasn't able to learn a ton, but I feel a lot more comfortable in the water, and by the end of the last class, I felt like it was kind of coming together. I'm proud of myself for tackling this one.

#22 - Write a note to someone each week - DONE!

There were one or two weeks where I didn't get this done, but then again there were some weeks I wrote more than one note. Some weeks I literally had no idea who I would write to, but I was surprised that a name would always come into my head. It's been a really good thing for me to do, to think about other people and how grateful I am to have good people in my life.

#28 - Read the missionary canon - Preach my Gospel, Jesus the Christ, True to the Faith, Our Heritage - DONE!

I started on this one almost immediately after I made my list in February, and finished it with only about a week to go. Let me just say, Jesus the Christ is an everest of a book. It's not an easy read, and it was a triumphant day when I finished it. That said, I really learned a lot from it and it really made the life of Christ become more real to me. The other books, too, were all great (just easier reads). Glad to have checked this one off.

#30 - Be a tourist in my own city and take a tour of Salt Lake - DONE, KINDA.

I am signed up for a tour in December (more to come on that). Plus I toured the Bingham Copper Mine, did the "famous people" cemetery tour, and did a home tour in Park City. Counting it.

#8 - Climb Diamond Head - DONE!

This is a last-minute substitution on the list. When I found out I would be spending my birthday in Hawaii, a little idea started forming in my head that I had never hiked to the top of Diamond Head but always wanted to. Melinda came with me and we did the hike on my actual day of birth. What a great way to cap off my list:

Takeaways from my 30 Before 30 Project:

• Why shouldn't someday be now? I like the fact that I'm making things happen instead of just kind of letting things happen to me. The things that I've always thought I will do "someday," I have just gone ahead and done! "The list" gave me an excuse to do the things I've wanted to for a long time.
• It takes a village. I HATE feeling like I'm imposing on people, but my family and friends have joined me in many of my adventures - from rowing to bobsledding to curling and caramel making and everything in between - and not only that, but they seemed genuinely excited to participate.
• Some things on the list I'm glad I did, but never want to go near again (I'm looking at you, bobsledding, giving up candy for Lent, and drive-through charity), but for the most part I loved doing the things on my list.

30 Before 30: DONE!

(view the whole list)

Grateful

Thanksgiving is always a good time to reflect on things that I am grateful for.

. . . My job. After not having one for several months, I have a new perspective on my job and am grateful for it. Last week I was even surprised by a ten-year award that was given to me with a celebration of treats and a gift. I started at this company in 1993 . . . I was a baby! With an 8 year break in between to learn and grow somewhere else, I was grateful for the chance to go back and work with the same people as I had before. Combined, I now have ten years there. Wahoo! Now, if they would only give me my pension back I would be even more grateful. :)

. . . My family. I love our family and am glad that we do things to stay close to each other. We love Lisa and Lilli who have joined us and for our fantastic nieces and nephews. We are glad that we live close and get to spend so much time together. I am grateful for forever families and the chance that we can be reunited with our sweet Mom who is our angel up above. We also have the best Dad. Melinda and I were talking to someone recently who said that even though she was married and supposed to have her Prince Charming, she was very much on her own. When she and her daughter were caught in the rain with a flat tire, she called her husband to come and help her. He said that it was raining and he wouldn't leave home to help her. She had to call AAA instead. Our sweet Dad is always there to help us with whatever he can and always has the best for his family as his motivation for everything that he does. If we call . . . he is there.

. . . These lovely ladies. As soon as I was called into Young Women's, I knew who I needed to have alongside me to serve with. It seems our new Relief Society President thought the same thing because after a brief break, we are back serving together. And, we wouldn't want it any other way. We have fun with each other and know that we can count on each other. I am excited for the new adventures together.
. . . Great neighbors. I have fantastic neighbors who look out for this single gal. If I need anything, I have great people who spring to action when needed. And I appreciate that so much. Sometimes I wonder why I am out here by myself . . . but then I think of the relationships I have and realize I wouldn't have them any other way.

. . . My iPhone. This is my other appendage. I can't leave anywhere without it. I was pretty hesitant to get it (right, Brent?), but, oh how I love it! It helps me when I get lost, schedules TV shows when I forget, helps me keep my bills in order, plays music to help me get through the day, helps to keep me in touch with everyone and keeps me entertained when I am waiting or have down time. Love it!!

Happy Birthday Kristen!

Happy Birthday Kristen!

It's finally here . . . Kristen's big day! It's been fun to read about her 30 goals this year in anticipation of this birthday and she'll have to update on how the challenge ended up. Melinda and I wanted to tell some of the things that we love about her with our own virtual birthday balloon message.

K - Kaleidoscope: Kristen is a combination of lots of things to make her uniquely her. She is driven, interested in a lot of diverse things and likes to learn and continue to stretch herself and grow.

R - Responsible: Kristen is very responsible. She works hard at keeping her commitments and doing what she is supposed to be doing whether it is work, at church in her callings or her personal life. She is also a Runner and has worked hard at improving her personal best.

I - Independent Woman: Just like Beyonce' and Destiny's Child, Kristen is an independent woman. She has a job that she really enjoys, a house that she has made a very warm and inviting home, and she has a strong sense of who she is.

S - Sassy and Sarcastic: Kristen's second language is sarcasm. She is quick-witted and always enjoys friends that "get" her sense of humor and fun. She is also great at Self-Portraits or "Selfy's" as we call them. It takes a lot of skill to take a picture of yourself, and she has it figured out. I find lots of great surprises from her when I am downloading pictures. See, Kristen . . . you never know where these little gems might end up. :)
T - Thoughtful: Kristen is very thoughtful. She remembers birthdays and is very thoughtful. Once when Melinda worked at an insurance company that will remain unnamed and her heinous boss had given her a bad year-end review in a two-hour meeting that made her cry, she emailed Kristen to tell her what had happened. Kristen wrote the sweetest email titled the Real Year End Review and listed 10 reasons why Melinda was a great person.
E - Effervescent: I like this word. . . apparently for both of my sisters who are bubbly and fun to be around. I feel lucky to have my sisters as great friends and travel buddies who make things more fun.

N - Nice: There is the saying, "It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice". Kristen is a genuinely nice person. She never says a bad word about anyone and tries to always put a positive spin on things. As we meet people she works with, they are always glad to see her and speak very highly of Kristen.

We're happy to have Kristen in our family and wish her all the best for this birthday and the year to come.

Birthday Bash

Fall is a very busy time for Bird birthdays . . . every week there is at least one or sometimes two big days. We have a lot of fun traditions that have been carried through the years - some new and some old - that show the birthday person how special they are. When we were little, we would be so excited for our birthdays that we would open presents before school. And, Mom figured out that it doesn't take very long to unwrap the gifts, so we started hiding them and giving clues for kind of a treasure hunt to the gifts. We still continue to do this. It doesn't matter how old I get, I have to work a little for my gifts . . . it's great. So, instead of doing things before school we now get together in "Betty's Ballroom" and have a family party on a Sunday near the person's birthday.

From Lilli's family, we have recently adopted the tradition of having the birthday person pick whatever they want for their birthday meal. It's fun to try and make a meal of mac 'n' cheese and flavored Jell-O which sometimes is the request. Here is Jacob with the sparkling cider he was excited to have for his birthday meal.

We have recently resurrected the "Special Plate" that we had when we were growing up as well. The dinner place of the birthday person gets a special place setting . . . and with twins in October, we had two special plates.

Then we search for presents and have fun playing "hot" and "cold" to try and find them.

Our cute Dad has kept up with some other traditions that Mom started. He decorates with balloons, including a special one that is custom made for the birthday person with descriptive qualities for each letter of their name. It's fun to see what he comes up with.

I have always loved my birthday and appreciate everyone who calls or texts their well wishes . . . (which I make a little harder since I don't do Facebook with birthday reminders . . . kind of means a little more to me when people remember and go to the extra effort). We love these traditions that Mom started and have fun continuing with them together as a family.

#24: Pay for Someone's Meal Behind me in a Drive-thru - DONE!

Well, this one took me a while to get up the nerve to do. I selected Wendy's because their drive-through is the most efficient known to man.

Here's how I imagined this scenario going:
I'm waiting in line for the drive-through. I see a car pull up behind me. It's a woman, perhaps with a small child in the car. She looks like she could use a pick-me-up.

I ease up to the pay window, slide my card to the cashier, and say "can I pay for the car behind me too?" With little fanfare, the transaction is complete. I grab my to-go items, and BOOM. I'm outta there. The car behind me is like, "woah, where'd that car in front of me go?"

Here's what actually happened:
I'm waiting in line for the drive-through. I see a car pull up behind me. It's a business man in a nice car, who can visibly afford his own meal.

I ease up to the pay window, slide my card to the cashier, and say "can I pay for the car behind me too?"
Cashier: [long pause] "Um...sure? I guess? May I ask WHY?
Me: "Oh, you know, just want someone else to have a good day. A random act of service."
Cashier: "A what?"

The transaction is complete. I grab my to-go items, and BOOM. I'm outta there. Except I'm not. The line to turn on to the street is three deep because the Wendy's I've picked is in a construction zone. I keep watching for the car behind me to catch up and I don't want to make eye contact if it does. I keep inching up to the car ahead of and slamming on my brakes. Finally I get on to the street. A dark car turns in front of me and I hit my brakes. It's HIM. He had gone out a different exit and then he cut me off!

A random act of service gone awry. Oh well - check it off the list!

The Final Countdown

Let me tell you, I have been hustling trying to mark items off my list. Here's an update of what I've done this week:

#3: Take a glass-blowing class: DONE!
That is not me in that chair. But it was, when I was making my glass flower at Thanksgiving Point! Did you know they do this? Two heavily tattooed but kinda foxy guys help you out the whole way. Working with liquid glass is FASCINATING!

It's heated to 2200 degrees. Then they pull out the molten glass and you pull out the "petals" with special tweezers. THEN you pull the whole thing out to form the stem. This is the result:

Kinda cool, right? I totally loved it.

#4: Start my food storage: DONE!
Yep, it's a can of beans and some water. But it's a start!! Especially the water. I feel like I have enough food in my pantry to last me for...maybe a week. But water, I had none. Now I feel at least a little more prepared.

#14: Take curling lessons at the Utah Olympic Oval: DONE!
Well, this was a hoot. I managed to wrangle three other people who were either a) up for anything, or b) didn't know any better to come with me to learn how to curl.

Because, what other Olympic sport can you do in slacks and a polo? Here's what it should look like:

Looks totally easy, right? It is not!
Here's me giving it a go. You have to put your weight on the leg that is opposite your intuition and wear a special slider shoe that slides you down the ice. What I usually did, instead of sliding, was more of a slide-wobble that usually ended with me in an awkward sitting position on the ice.

The fun also comes in the sweeping. Our drill sergeant, wait, instructor kept yelling at us to go faster, yet we weren't supposed to run because we didn't have her special sticky shoes. A tricky balance for sure. Also - did you know that if you stand on ice for two hours you can no longer feel your feet?

Sara, Kristy, me, and Melinda.

We had a great time doing something that's not your typical weekend activity. AND, I got a souvenir from all my sliding around:

#17: Learn to knit: DONE!
Did you know that Kamille's at Gardner Village teaches knitting classes almost every night? Did you further know that there are only two stitches in knitting? Guess what, guys. I totally know them both.

Me and my friend Anne at our knitting class.

That picture was taken BEFORE I got home, tried to do some on my own, and threw my knitting needle in frustration. Lessons learned: unpick before it's too late. Don't knit when I'm tired. And if you can't notice your error on a horse riding by, it's ok. Or something like that.

But check out the finished result. Not too bad. And the scarf's not too bad either - HA!

#29: Read the Lectures on Faith: DONE!

I bought it, I read it, I learned a lot.

Wish me luck this week as I power through the rest of my list!

Theater Tale

Took some of the kids to see Dolphin Tale the other day. For a while, we were the only ones in the theater and they loved the idea of sitting wherever they wanted to. And, since we had some time to kill before the movie they had some fun in a photo booth. I love how the kids got to pick their own title for the pictures and they chose "Little Devils". Hmmm . . .could it be because not all of them made it into all of the pictures.

Heart Attacked

I came home the other night to this fun surprise from the cute Beehives . . . love them!

It's been a while since I've initiated a heart attack and you know what's genius about this one . . . most of the notes are Post-It notes . . . easy on and easy off. Brilliant!

Can I just give you a gift card?

The other day I got a Facebook friend request from a girl in my ward. I was hesitant to accept her - we've only talked 2 or 3 times, and she's getting married, so I doubt our paths will cross again. Then, on Saturday, I got a call from her cousin, who needed my address so she could invite me to this girl's bridal shower! Which is this coming Saturday! Really, a week's notice??

If that weren't bad enough, it's a "time of day" shower where you get the person a gift based on the time of day you're assigned. My time of day? The middle of the night! So now, not only do I barely know this person, but now I have to buy her lingerie??

PS. I felt obligated to accept her friend request. Wouldn't you?

PPS. Anyone have any non-lingerie ideas for "middle of the night?"

#2: Try 20 new recipes - DONE!

This one took a little longer than I expected! Turns out I make a lot of the same stuff from week to week, and then remembering to take a picture of it was also a challenge! Look too closely at this collage and you'll note that there are two of the same picture. There's a butternut squash soup I made a few weeks ago that I never got a picture of. Hence, only 19 pictures.

#21: Learn to Make Grandma Ruth's Caramels - DONE!

Every Sunday growing up we would load up in the brown van and go to our grandparents' houses to visit. Grandma Ruth was always our first stop. She was an amazing woman. She was a widow ever since I was a baby but she had the most positive outlook on life of anyone I knew (and even people I know now). One of Grandma's specialties was her caramels. Many Sundays they'd be sitting out in a little bowl for us to eat (along with her equally-famous peanut brittle). And, each Christmas she would give each of her grandchildren a crisp $10 bill along with a small bag of caramels.

Caramels = the taste of childhood.

I've always wanted to learn to make them. But I've heard how difficult they are to make, and I've never made candy before. There are thermometers involved, people! So my Aunt Lois, toting a GIANT mug of Diet Coke (love that!), was kind enough to come over and show Melinda and me how to make Grandma's caramels. Lois is Mom's older sister and the only one of Grandma's daughters who learned to make the caramels.

We had a grand old time, reminiscing about Grandma while stirring and stirring...and stirring. Lois said even she doesn't know where the caramel recipe came from...Grandma just always knew how to make them.

The results, if I may say so, were perfect. My childhood came flooding back. And I ate them rapidly, usually at a pace of 2-4 per day (and I cut them VERY generously). I'd like to try to make them unsupervised around Christmas time - wish me luck!