Halloween

Happy Halloween! Here we have pictured Lord Jason and Lady Rachel.

Jason and I had fun dressing up, mostly for the kids at school. We were hoping to go to a couple party with friends, but it ended up not taking place. Those who saw us said they liked our costumes and that they were looking forward to seeing our costumes this year. Last year we were Fiona and Shrek and got a lot of compliments. We were also happy that we had about 30 trick-or-treaters come to our house instead of 3 like we had last year. Well, we hope you all had a Happy Halloween!!

Reflections on Funeral by Rachel

We drove to California this weekend for the funeral of a friend of my family. It is a long drive and it was hard to decide on going, but I'm glad we went. It was wonderful to see many people who have meant so much to me and my family for so many years. My hometown has changed a lot. It keeps growing.
The funeral was peaceful and made me reflect on a lot of things. It made me think about my dad's funeral, which I could not attend because I was out of the country. I often wish I had been there. Part of me though, is glad that I wasn't. The body of a loved one once dead is no longer the same. Yet, it gives some closure to the loved ones to see them that way and say their good-byes. It was also hard for me because we were back in the church where I grew up, the church that holds so many memories with my dad. We were even surrounded by people who knew him and loved him. Still, it was also somewhat joyful and made me feel at peace. I look forward to when I can be with him again.
I think it's important to stop once in a while and reflect on how we are living our lives. Are we showing love effectively to our loved ones? Are we doing our best? Are we reaching our goals? Are we where we want to or should be? Are we living in accordance with our beliefs? We have the opportunity every day to do better, to be better. I should do this more often.

I've Been Tagged by Amanda!

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
1. Running and RUNNING in Cross Country and Track (I was watching what I ate and was in really good shape--at my lightest weight)
2. Turned 16 in January and was driving by July
3. Wondering if I would ever really date, but enjoying time with friends anyway
4. Playing church basketball--we were the stake champs
5. Living in California with my whole immediate family. Sharing a room with my sister.

5 Things on my T0-Do List today:
1. Go to school, take school pictures
2. Lesson Plans, lesson plans, and more lesson plans
3. Art Workshop
4. Call doctor to ask some questions
5. Teach English to neighbors (if I'm back from workshop)

5 Things I would do if I were a millionaire:
1. Pay off debts (car loans, etc.)
2. Buy a house
3. Travel
4. Donate to charities (including family members who need it)
5. Invest money

5 Things I'll never wear again:
1. Spandex shorts without anything else over them
2. tapered pants/jeans
3. plastic glasses (besides sunglasses)
4. body suits (those leotard things)
5. Short, very short, running shorts

5 Favorite Toys:
1. Jason :)
2. cell phone
3. computer
4. Shut the Box (game)
5. My gigantic hackie-sack from Guatemala

5 People to tag:
Julie
Alyson
Mo
Christie
Todd

Us in New York

This last summer, we took a trip to New York City to attend a friend's wedding and stayed to see some of the sites. This is us at the Statue of Liberty (just in case you couldn't tell). We also visited the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, the World Trade Center, Central Park, Ellis Island, The American Museum of Natural History, and saw The Lion King on Broadway. We really enjoyed riding the subways, trains and buses (it's really cheap and a good idea to see a lot of the city). The taxis were a little too expensive for us, especially when they got lost (that happened to us twice, both at very important times).

Butterflies

So, this summer we went to Phoenix, AZ. While we were there, we visited the Phoenix Art Museum. It was pretty cool. In this picture you see the first piece of art that we saw in the museum. We thought it was pretty colorful, however, we didn't realize why it was so colorful until we looked at it a little more closely. The whole thing is made with real butterfly wings! Crazy, huh? We thought it was very interesting and wanted to share it with all of you.

Did it right this time

This is us at the Green River. I'm glad that i got the picture in the post this time.

This is us

Here we are standing in mud at the edge of the Green River.

First Try

Hey, this is our first blogging attempt. We are hoping that we can stay in touch with our families and friends better as our lives progress.