Celestial University

Our Stake Presidency has recently handed out booklets that explain a Celestial University program. So I guess I've gone back to school. Basically it is just a way for us to set goals and improve our life. And seeing how I love to set goals and work towards goals and accomplish goals, I had no trouble filling out my book and getting started. One of the goals I decided to set was to update my blog page once a week to keep friends and family informed. So make sure you check in every week. (I will most likely work on it every Sunday so you can check it on Monday.) This will be a good way for me to be held accountable for getting it done as well. If you would like to try the program out for yourself here is a good link.

copy of this program in MS Word format Celestial University developed by Kristen

The Great Ice Storm of 2010

It shall go down in history, that January of 2010, when Columbia suffered the great ice storm.

I suppose I shouldn't kid too much because I've heard that some places lost their electricity. And well, earlier in the month our pipes busted twice. (The second time we had even insulated the pipes to try to prevent it.) It has been very cold for this region and I'm so tired of my frozen hands because we can't keep the downstairs of our house very warm. But the last two days have been amazingly beautiful. It has been a few years since we've been able to see the trees sparkling in the sunlight. The kids and I enjoyed our drive to church and back as the skyline glittered. But I'm still the same Teresa. I want the spring to come right now. I don't like the cold, no matter how lovely it is. I can enjoy the photography of it all : )

Christmas lights at the Zoo

It was such a big hit to go to the zoo at Christmas time last year that I didn't want it to pass us by this year. It was the last night they were going to be open for the Christmas lights so we bundled up on that cold, cold night and drove out to the zoo. We even brought our neighbor friend along with us. Here they are being my little meerkats : ) I will miss not being able to do that again. But hey, there's a cool trolley around Honolulu for Christmas lights.... and we won't have to bundle up!

Christmas Morning

I still get all giddy whenever Christmas Eve comes around. I still remember what it felt like to be excited to go to sleep just to wake up and see what was under the tree. And now I get to be the one that helps put it all together. Santa of course adds the finishing touches.


Clarissa wanted to get make-up yet again for Christmas. But to be honest with you, I am so sick of seeing make-up all over the house. Molly enjoys getting into and putting it all over the carpet and walls that I'm going insane with having make-up around. And so I convinced her to ask Santa for a really fun Spa Science kit. She and I made her own fizzy soap with peppermint oils. She also used the oils and rose petals to do a little experiment. She rated which were more relaxing and enjoyable. It was a lot of fun! And no more messes for me : )


When Santa asked Molly what she wanted for Christmas this year she simply stated, "Candy!" That was easy enough. But Santa said he would try to find a nice toy for her to open up. I think he found the perfect gift. One of her favorite cartoons is "Wonder Pets" and she plays it around the house everyday. So Santa gifted her a cute little school house that houses all three wonder pets, the fly boat, and a little pig that needs saving. She played with this most of the day. It was cute listening to her sing all the songs that go along.


Just having returned from Ohio Adam decided he wanted some Lincoln Logs for Christmas. (He actually wanted to ask Santa for a Wii gaming system but I informed him that Santa had too many kids to take care of and that he shouldn't be so greedy.) So he really just settled for the logs. Anyhow, Great Grandma Adams has a set from when we were kids and he loves playing with them every time he goes. So now he has a set of his own and he'll mix them in with some of his lego creations to build a little city of sorts.



But wouldn't you know it, the kids ended up with a Wii after all : ) I finally broke down and told Todd that okay, let's go ahead and get one. I liked the idea of us being able to play games together. We have once so far and it was a blast! I also like how Adam and Clarissa will play together. Most of the time, not always mind you, they will encourage each other to do well and help each other to play the game. We had a fun day! (Molly of course is playing with another game system's wheel but hey, she felt included : )

Christmas in Ohio

Two weeks after Thanksgiving it was time to go back to Ohio. (See van vs. deer photo in next post.) I felt that it would be best to go ahead and have a small Christmas gathering at that time. I just didn't think I would have the energy to drive back to Ohio for one more trip. We had a wonderful time. We made a couple of yummy pizzas, enjoyed some fresh fruits and vegetables and the plan was to watch a Christmas movie or two. But the kids were having so much fun playing around that we turned it off and enjoyed their squealing instead. Molly was so tuckered that she feel asleep in Aunt Kim's arms. Clarissa and Adam stayed up so late that they slept most of the way home the next day. It was the fastest trip to Ohio in our record but well worth the great time we spent with them.

Our Thanksgiving Trip

I was excited about our trip to Ohio for Thanksgiving. It had been awhile since we had seen everyone. I had been driving for some time and Todd decided to take over for a bit. I welcomed the rest. I sat back, had my iPod going and my eyes closed when all of a sudden a felt and heard a thump! I was certain that "Tailgating Todd" managed to hit someone and all the years of him holding his military safe driving awards over my head were finally over. Luckily, he didn't hit another vehicle. And no one obviously was hurt. There was a deer that jumped out of nowhere. His safe driving awards actually were very helpful. He was able to maintain total control of the van during the whole incident. I probably would have panicked, swerved all over the place, and therefore smacking into another vehicle. We were just 40 minutes or so away from my Dad's house so he and Uncle Jim drove out to pick us up. Our van was towed to a place near Dad's house where we hoped they would be able to fix it up before we had to leave. But who were we kidding! It was Thanksgiving, of course it wouldn't be repaired in time. USAA has wonderful coverage so we were able to rent another van to use until ours would be ready.


The best part of Thanksgiving was getting together with the cousins. The girls found plenty to do to occupy their time. They even locked themselves up in Papa's shed. Abby "saved" the day by breaking the window and climbing out to get help. Only, the door was just stuck. They were so frightened by the experience we couldn't help but chuckle.



Adam has never been the same since our visit. Isaac brought his Wii system along. These boys only moved from this spot to eat. And well, probably for bathroom breaks too. But I'm sure they would have been willing to wear a diaper if they could. After this trip he wouldn't stop asking for a Wii. He would tell us that he was dwiihydrated and really needed to go back to play some more. Honestly!

Another big highlight was seeing Uncle Robbie. Clarissa is his little skittle so she snuggled with him the entire time he was at the house. I think he liked it too : )


Robbie's friend Jaime recently had a new baby boy. He is so lovely! This was my big dessert. I loved holding him so much. I can't wait to see him again.