Birthday Present

http://youtu.be/YC_R5evGpCM

 This is what my best friend gave me for my birthday. It was so fun! The best part is that she was here!!!

Okay, I know it's been a thousand years since I added anything to my blog. But today I just had to take a minute to tell you what happened...

 Twice a week I go to Zumba at the church. It's SUPER fun and I love it! The other days of the week I walk because it is the only thing that keeps my back from hurting. (I know, boring. But relevant to the story.) So my friend, Julie, and I figured out that Zumba is fun but not so good at keeping the back pain down. So... we figured out if we WALK TO ZUMBA we can have fun and not hurt. Okay, one more bit of relevant information. Julie started babysitting a newborn a few months ago. Now the story.

We were walking to Zumba and the baby, Conner, was fussy because he needed to burp. I offered to burp him while we walk because he was crying. So we were walking along the road and talking away. Somehow my foot twisted. I don't know if I stepped in a hole or stepped on the side of the asphalt or if I just tripped on myself. But because I was holding the chunky monkey, it threw off my balance. The next thing I know, I am falling forward and watching Conner's head plummet toward the asphalt. The only thought going through my head is, "SAVE THE BABY!" So I reached out and caught his head. We landed and everything was fine. Julie picked up Conner and he screamed for 5 seconds and then he was fine. I stood up and checked on Conner. Then I noticed a lady honking her horn. I looked over and the stroller was rolling down the street and it fell over. (Later I realized that she thought the baby was still in the stroller.) So we gathered up all of our stuff, put the baby back in the stroller and told all the people who had stopped (in traffic) that we were fine. We went into the church and I washed off in the bathroom and shed a few tears while I thanked Heavenly Father for protecting Conner. Then we did Zumba and it was great! I have some road rash on my right leg, elbow and the palm of my right hand. I will probably be hurting pretty good tomorrow but for now, I'm good.

 Here's part of the story form Julie's perspective. As we were walking, she saw me fall holding Conner and watched his head plummet toward the pavement. Then out of nowhere, my hand caught his head about an inch from the road. (I think she's going to have nightmares about this!)

 I've had a few hours to think and talk about this and here is what I have taken away from this experience. It is SO important to live our lives in a way that allows up to be worthy to have the spirit in our lives. I have very rarely had the spirit speak to me in an audible voice but I know that he did today. I know this because I struggle to give my kids basic directions because I'm old now (I just turned 35!) and I can't come up with words like "shelf" or "basket." When the pressure in on I can barely remember my name. Yet in the moment I was directed, very clearly, what to do. I'm pretty sure that if I had not been living my life the way I should, I would have been left to my own devices. Scary!

It's easy to ask for the Lord's help when we are facing a huge trial or dealing with a tragedy. Do we remember to ask for his help on a daily basis for the small things? Recently the youth daily gem from lds.org said, "Little children, young people, and adults alike, please believe how very much your loving Heavenly Father wants to bless you. But because He will not infringe upon our agency, we must ask for His help. This is generally done through prayer. Prayer is one of the most precious gifts of God to man." (Elder J. Devn Cornish, "The Privilege of Prayer", General Conference, Oct. 2011) So, here is what I have been trying to do. Ask Heavenly Father for His help. It's that simple. I see it with my kids all the time. I try not to intervene when they are working on something until they ask for help. It is good for them to learn how to try and IT IS GOOD FOR THEM TO LEARN TO ASK FOR HELP! It is that exact same thing with me and my Heavenly Father. I am so grateful for His constant guidance and presence in my life!

I am grateful for the spirit which helps me in SO many ways! And even though I'm starting to feel the pain of my fall, I'm thankful for the lesson I learned today. I KNOW my Heavenly Father loves me!

Red Dirt Cars

So the favorite Christmas present for all the boys (including dad) was the R/C cars. That is what the boys did all day on Christmas and Jeff took them out to the beach last night and they found some mud. How is it that if there is a mud puddle anywhere within a 1 mile radius that boys will find it?

2009 in Pictures

I know it's a surprise but this year started out at the beach.


It is hard to tell in this picture but the waves behind the boys are 30 foot waves! It was crazy. This beach is usually calm and it was like a washing machine, there was foam flying up into the air, it was so cool!


I was lucky enough to need some dental work in February and my dentist is in New Mexico. So I got to take my little self to Silver City for a week.

This is Lane, I am his "other mom" and boy how I miss him and his WHOLE family!


I couldn't go to the mainland without a quick trip to see my parents. Jeff went to a Concrete conference in Vegas so we went from NM to NV together.


My dad and I drove to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. It is amazing! You can only get to this place on dirt roads with 4-wheel drive.


Jeff's sister, Kirsten, and her family came to visit in February. Oh, we had so much fun. The kids are posing on the roots of trees that have been exposed by erosion. The beaches here are so sweet!


I took this picture of my nieces and nephews while they were here and I just love it! Partly because I picked out their outfits while their mom was in Oahu and partly because they are just so DARN cute!


Jeff's parents came over for part of Dave and Kirsten's trip and after Kirsten's family left, we had them all to ourselves for awhile. Jeffrey and I got to take a whale-watching trip with Grandma and Grandpa. It was pretty amazing. We saw lots of whales, I think I took about 500 pictures (and when I got home I realized that I need a telephoto lens.) But the trip was wonderful and I am so grateful for this fun memory with Jeffrey and his grandparents, he loved it.


Late in 2007 we discovered a sink hole in our front yard. We had some problems with our septic system. It took us several months but we finally got it fixed. What a crazy mess.


This is Jeffrey as Mr. Bucket in Willy Wonka, Jr. What a cutie!


Grandma Lucy made it for the play and I think this is the only picture of Jeffrey in his oompa-loompa costume because he whipped that wig off so fast as soon as the play was over, he hated it! He was Mr. Bucket in the first act and an oompa-loompa in the second act. I think he had fun being an oompa until he saw the costume.


I never have to search for Kevin after school, I just look at the top of the tether-ball pole. This is Kevin demonstrating his skills on the fire pole in our backyard. (This playhouse is an ongoing project.)


Jackson won the Maui Poetry Peace Prize in April. He wrote a fabulous poem about Martin Luther King, Jr.


Each spring, Kalaheo school puts on a May Day Performance and each grade performs a cultural dance they have spent months learning and perfecting. Jackson with his mini ipu.


Jeffrey's class did a really cool stick dance.


And last but not least, Kevin.


It's rare but occasionally the castles don't make it through the carving process. Jeff swears that he had too much help on this one.


This is me with some of my hula sisters in the King Kamehameha Day Parade. Sadly, I am taking a break from hula right now. It turned out to be too hard with seminary. I will get back to it someday. I really miss it and my hula sisters.


When we asked our kids what they wanted to do on vacation this summer, they said, "City of Rocks!" So we headed off to New Mexico. We stayed with our dear friends for a week and it was a blast!


After New Mexico, we were able to meet Jeff's family in Yellowstone for a reunion. It was so fun. We haven't seen Eric for several years and we had a great time at the cabin. The kids didn't even want to go into the park, they just wanted to play with their cousins in the loft.

This vacation turned out to be epic. I logged 4,500 miles on the rental car (not exaggerating.) We were in 10 states in a month. It was insane - and fun.


This is another one of Jeff's castles. I love the dragon on the side.


Our good friends from the U of U came to see us in September. This is Jeff and Danny on the surfboards. Unfortunately, no one was taking pictures when Kiersten and I stood up!


The Lai'e temple is closed for remodeling right now so Jeff and I headed to Kona for a temple trip. Lucky for us, Kona has PHENOMENAL diving. The clarity of the water is unbelievable over there.


My mom met us in Kona and we had a little mother-daughter weekend. It was pretty cool. We even got to see some lava flowing. When we got back to Kauai, we sat at the kitchen table for a week and made chunky watches. It's hard to tell which was more fun.


It is so fun to have the opportunity to visit all of these amazing temples. But it definitely makes us realize how much we took it for granted being close in the past.


Jeffrey was growing his hair out for a while. Just about the time when mom and dad couldn't handle it anymore, he decided that he wanted to have a mohawk for Halloween. So we put up with it for a few more months. It was so funny because I was on the big Island with my mom when Jeff did this. I got home and I was so relieved to be able to see his eyes again. I couldn't believe that I like his hair better in a mohawk then long and in his eyes.


The Porters came to see us for Thanksgiving. We both surprised our kids, their kids found out when they arrived at the airport and our kids found out when we picked them up at the airport. It was such a fun visit. We had a great time at the beach and boy did we eat. (We had 6 pineapples in a week!) I probably gained 20 pounds that week. This is Kristi and I (looking beautiful on the way to the beach) at the lighthouse where we surprised them with our Porterson brick.


This is the newest member of the Peterson family. Ralphie is a very sweet dog. We have really enjoyed having him here. Now I just have to convince him to stop licking my toes!!!

Thanks for strolling down memory lane with me! I hope you have a Happy New Year!

I love Hot Chocolate!

It has been so hot! It is so hard to believe that it is Christmas. Oh how I am dreaming of a White Christmas! So today I went to the local coffee shop and I ordered a hot chocolate. Then I sat in my car with the air conditioning on high so that it was freezing and I closed my eyes and imagined snow.

Happy Thanksgiving All!

Aloha!

I just wanted to take 5 seconds to list the things I am most grateful for!

My Husband (Always and Forever the top of my list!)
My Boys (Usually a close second.)
My Family
My Testimony
My Friends
My Seminary Students

Happy Thanksgiving!
Dawn

I know, I know, I know...

I know you are tired of seeing "Tears at Scripture Time." (That is if you even still check my blog for updates - If you are seeing this, thanks for not giving up on me.) It has been a crazy couple of months and I seem to have a hard time finding time to sit at the computer. However, since this is my only form of journaling, I suppose I should at least attempt to catch up once in a while.

Life here is good. We are just finishing soccer season, HOORAY! I always love it when soccer starts and I love it even more when it ends. It has been a good year. All three boys played on different teams and it has been a really positive experience. Jeffrey played U12 and even though he is more academic than athletic, he had fun. Jackson had a fabulous coach (Jeff) and they had a lot of fun. Kevin's coack is Brazilian and calls his the White-Brazilian-Goalie.

Seminary is good, it still consumes a huge part of our lives but we love it. The youth of this generation are amazing, they face temptations that I can't even imagine.

I am doing pretty good. I have been struggling a lot lately with my depression. But I feel like Heavely Father is really trying to teach me something and I know that I need to be patient and learn to depend on Him more.

I am missing the fall like crazy now. I want to see fall leaves and put on jeans and a sweatshirt. Instead, I will put on some shorts, turn on the fan, pray for a breeze and pretend that GREEN isn't driving me insane!

Jeff and I were able to go to the "Hoedown For Hope", a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society, a few weeks ago. It was so much fun. That boy is H-O-T in a cowboy hat!

Tears at scripture time...

In our family scripture study, we have been reading the account in the Book of Mormon when the Savior appears to the people in the Americas. Tonight we read about the time when the Savior gathered all the children around him and prayed to Heavenly Father. I was struck by the simpleness of the love that our Savior has for all of us but especially for the children. No wonder He asks us to be like the little children.

I can think of only a few times in my life when I have submitted myself to Heavenly Father with child-like faith and the outpouring of love is astounding. I am so grateful for the knowledge that my Heavenly Father loves me and the testimony that Jesus Christ died for me that I can be with Him and my family forever!

Oh yeah, after we finished reading scriptures, Jackson said, "Yes, we finally made mom cry during scriptures!"

I love Hawaii

I just had to share this really fun picture of our seminary graduation last week. The kids have so many leis that you can barely see their faces. I wonder what high school graduation is like...
This is Ryan, Kainalu and Caira (We miss you, Shatell!) - We are so excited for these guys!

This is the 15 graduates from our stake.

Windshield Wipers

I have been thinking a lot about windshield wipers this week. It has been a VERY cold and rainy winter (sweatshirts every night and morning - it sucks) so I have seen a lot of my wipers over the las few months. They were very obnoxious. They would squeak if the window was even a little dry and there was always a stripe down the middle of the swipe. The back window had a rather wide line that was being missed. But I just ignored them and cringed everytime they made that awful sound. Then the back wiper up and fell off. I decided that it was definitely time to invest in a new one. At the store I decided to splurge and buy 3 new ones. I put them on and would you believe that the swipes, smears, lines and squeaks all disappeared?

It is amazing how clear my windshield is now.

It occurs to me that our spirits are like windshields. When our "wipers" are strong and well maintained, our vision is crystal clear. There are no swipes or smears and the squeak is completely forgotten.

So, how are your wipers?

Awesome Movie!

A few months ago, Jeff and I decided that we would start a reward program with our boys. We set a goal with each one and when they work on that goal each day, they earn a "bead." When their bead jar is full, they get to go on a special date with mom and dad. Kevin has been working so hard and finally filled his jar. So last night it was his turn.

First we stopped at Burger King for dollar-menu-dinner and then we were off to the Lihue Bowling Lanes. It was an amazing game of bowling and no one bowled higher than a hundred (with bumpers.) It was so fun.

Then we decided that we (okay, I...) needed to see Inkheart. (It was the last night and I so wanted to see it in the theatre.) Can I just tell you that this is a FANTASTIC movie. It was suspenseful and exciting but there was no swearing (that I blatantly noticed) there was no sex, there was no gore or graphic violence! It was so great. Kevin said it was a little scary at the end but not too bad. I was so happy. But here is the big news... this is the first time ever that I can honestly say that I liked the movie better than the book. Can you believe it? It was a great flick! I have to say that it is very high on my list of favorite movies!


Oh yeah, and here is a picture of Naiya and Holly with the super cute mermaid onesie that I bought her. It has nothing to do with the movie but isn't she darling?

March Already?

First of all...

This is my birthday month so please feel free to tell me how much you love me. (I told my kids that they needed to tell me everyday.) Also, I gave myself a birthday pedicure and in the spirit of St. Patrick's Day, I did a French manicure in greens. I must admit, it's pretty fabulous - sorry, no pictures today... you'll just have to imagine.

Second of all...

Whew. February was full of amazingly fun trips and visitors. My house is a disaster but I am hanging on surprisingly well. (Thank You Celexa!) Anyway, I hope to post some pics of my crazy month. If not, I want the world - well, at least my world - to know that I love my best friend so much and that it is super hard to be so far away especially when times aren't easy. Thank Heaven for the gift of prayer and fasting on the behalf of others. And... I love Jeff's sister super lots and it was so much fun to have her and her family here! I really do hope that some day we can live closer together so we can spend more time together (Hey Kirst, let's move to Silver City!)

How do I love thee?

Just like every Domestic Goddess (Wife/Mother), I do a lot of things everyday to show my family, especially my kids, how much I love them. I cook for them, I pick up their toys, I hug them when they need it and I laugh at all the jokes. Today I am convinced the biggest sacrifice I make every week is 10 loads of stinky-boy laundry. Man, I love my boyz!

By the way, we had 30-foot waves last week on the North Shore. It was wicked!

Priorities...

So even though laundry, budgeting and dishes are my priority today I had to take a minute to show you this. We had the missionaries, Elders Hatch and Vea, over for dinner on Christmas Eve. In our family we always open up one present on Christmas Eve - pajamas (I know it's not very original.) So I made some t-shirts for the missionaries to open. Here is the cool part. They actually sent us a Thank You note. I have never in my 10 years of feeding missionaries gotten a thank you note. So, in honor of the mothers who taught these boys right - here it is, the First-Ever-Missionary-Thank-You-Note.

eeehhh....

For anyone who thinks that it is always wonderful in paradise...
Here is an after picture of an hour of my life today. (I spared you the "before" because it is way nast-o!) These are my garbage cans after they have been bleached and scrubbed. I have to do this about every 3 months because of all the disgusting green and black mold that grows on everything is paradise. I even have to use a clorox wipe on my shoes if I haven't worn them for a while.

Thank Heaven for clorox!

(Emily, if you ever need a vacation from cleaning your own house, just call me and you can come and help me clean mine!)

2008 - Peterson Style!

Finally, as promised... our year in review. This has been a fun and adventurous year for the Peterson Ohana. We started off this year in Utah. On January 2nd, Jeff's little sister was married to Jon Call in the Salt Lake Temple.

Those of us who married into the Peterson family are known as the "Outlaw Posse," and now the posse is complete. Jon is the fourth proud member of crazy people who picked this family! I love my in-laws - I couldn't ask for better! The wedding was so fun, the only person from Jeff's family who couldn't make it was Eric. (Guess what Adi, I finally found my purple shirt!)


The best part of our trip to Utah was all the beautiful snow. Oh, how we miss the snow! We had just enough snow gear for all the kids and the dad so they played in the snow until their noses were pink and their toes were frozen. Then it was back inside Grandma Nori's house for hot chocolate and Nintendo. There were so many cousins running around that house, I'm amazed that the roof didn't fall in.


In May, Jackson was baptized. All of his grandparents were able to attend and both grandpas and Uncle Dean participated in the confirmation. Jackson was given 9 leis of various styles, what a fun memory. It was a neat experience.

For the musical number, Jackson wanted to play the ukulele and he asked Jeffrey to play the piano. He chose the song, Baptism, and he asked Jeff, Kevin and I to sing. That was the first (and probably last) performance of the VonPeterson Family singers.

Jackson is such a sweet boy. We are so proud of the decision he made to be baptized and to try so hard to do what is right. I couldn't ask for a better boy! It's funny how much Jackson reminds me of my brother, Sam. I have started seeking advice from my big brother on how to work with this special spirit.





While Jeff's parents were here in April, we decided to take a trip to the big Island, Hawaii. We spent a few days hiking in Volcano National Park. What a treat! This was probably our favorite adventure this year. The best part was our helicopter ride. It was a doors-off tour and we were able to feel the heat of the lava flowing under us. We were also able to see the lava flow into the ocean and explode! It was a dream come true.


Most of the black sand beaches are gone from Hawaii. This is a relatively new beach and it was amazing! I had seen pictures of the black sand but it just doesn't do justice. The sand literally glistens. It was fantastic! We spent a few days on the Kona side of the island, too but it wasn't nearly as cool as the volcanoes. We did get to go to the temple and that is always a wonderful experience. We also were able to do a night dive with the manta rays. I'm not a diver so I snorkeled with Jeff's dad. The manta rays were amazing. They are up to about 16 feet across and so graceful. They naturally don't have stingers so it is safe to be around them. Anyway, you hold a flashlight above your head and the rays swoop down to eat the plankton that follows the light. It was pretty freaky (Jeff called it wonderful.) If you want to see the company we dived with, check this out www.konahonudivers.com.


We always have a lot of fun when people come to visit us! (Don't you wish that you were visiting us... it's not too late!) But when Jeff's parents are here, it is marathon tourist time. I'm pretty sure they have seen more of this island than we have. We usually get distracted by the beach.

On one of our adventures, we found this cool waterfall. I love this picture even though I'm in a swimsuit.


May Day is a holiday like no other at Kalaheo Elementary School. Each grade performs a different hula. The third graders showed off with a contemporary hula. (Jeffrey is really turning into quite the little performer.) He is playing the clarinet in the Kalaheo School band (this is their first year, thanks to a Vh1-save the music grant.) He told Mr. Griffith, his band teacher, that he wasn't challenged enough so he is starting to learn some new notes on his own.

Jeffrey is also playing Mr. Bucket in the school play now that he is in fourth grade. Needless to say, he's having a lot of fun!


Jackson's class performed a Tahitian style dance. (He pronounces it, Ti-hee-shon!) I don't think I have every seen him so excited to do anything in his whole life. He practiced so much. We are fortunate enough to have a full-time music teacher at our school. He works with all the grades and his love of music is contageous! It is a huge blessing in our lives.

We are also blessed to have Hawaiiana teachers in every grade. The kids have learned so much about the culture and the history of the Hawaiian people. I am so grateful that my kids are having this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Even if they do speak pidgen more than I'd like.


The kindergarteners performed a traditional knife dance (with cardboard knives, of course!)

We have been so blessed this year with an amazing teacher for Kevin! Mrs. Garlie loves him to pieces and he is blossoming in her care. I couldn't have hoped for more. It's amazing how much a teacher who cares can change a child's desire to learn. Thank Heaven for all the teachers who have blessed my children's life (and mine!)


Cubscouts has been so much fun, too. The boys have amazing leaders and they look forward to scouts every week. Jackson earned his bobcat in June.

When they give the award, they put the patch on upside down until the scout does a good deed and then they can turn it around. But instead of just putting the patch on upside down, they turn the scout upside down to pin it on! It's a good thing that Jeff is tough because my boys are not light! (Well, maybe Kevin is.)


A few years ago, Jeff's mom and dad gave us a piano because they wanted our kids to have music in their lives. This year we are really beginning to see the blessing of that gift. The boys had their first piano recital. What a sweet opportunity to see them play for friends and family. Jeffrey even did a duet with Miss Jackie, his teacher. Kevin hasn't started playing yet but his days of no piano practice are numbered.


This is our new rock wall. Our backyard used to be a big, ugly hill. Then it became this big beautiful wall with so much potential. Now it is a big wall with lots of weeds. We are having a hard time finding time to finish the planting, building the sprinkler system, all that stuff. Someday...


Kevin took a pretty good tumble on his bike in the fall. The boys were riding down a hill and Jeffrey cut in front of Kevin and clipped his tire. Kevin flew over the handlebars and split his eyebrow open. He ended up with 3 big 'ol stitches and some serious road rash. Since he was closer to his friends house than ours, he went to Debbie. She is such a sweetheart that she cleaned him up and called me to come and get him. So when I got there, most of the gore had already been cleaned up and I just had to take him in for sttiches. Now he has another cool scar on his face to go with all the rest. I think he's going for the rugged look when he gets older.


My mom, Lucy, my grandma, Inga, and her sister, Mary, came to see us this fall. It was a wonderful opportunity because this was their first time in Hawaii (except my mom who has been here 3 times now and 4 in the spring!) My great-grandparents served part of their mission in Oahu when they were waiting for their visas. So we were able to go over to the Lai'e Temple Visitor's Center where my Great-Grandpa worked as a construction supervisor. It was so fun to see how excited these sweet ladies were to see the place that their parents served part of their mission.


I went all out (or I went crazy, however you want to look at it) and I made a costume for Jeff this year. My mom made my costume and I thought it would be fun for Jeff and I to go together this year so I made him a pharoah costume to go with my Cleopatra outfit. It was pretty fun.


One of my favorite things is my hula class. My kumu hula (hula teacher,) Auntie Nani, retired last fall and we joined a new halau (group.) I love my new kumu, La'amea, so much. She is a wonderful teacher and an amazing dancer. Most of the time I would just rather watch her dance! Hula is really hard and so many times I almost quit. The words and the moves seem to leave my brain faster than they enter but I push forward and eventually enough sticks that I can follow. And every week I am excited that I have learned a little more and that I am getting a little better. This picture is me with my Kumu La'amea.


This is my whole Halau at Ho'ike. This is a celebration of hula and all those who have come before us to pass on this beautiful culture through songs and dance. I am so grateful for this opportunity!


Last but not least, I pay homage to the amazing Jeff. His sandcastle building skills are AMAZING! Can I just tell you how impressed I am by him? It is so fun to watch him spend 5 hours on a castle and to see the amazed beach-goers. He has pretty much forsaken all activities in the water because he loves these castles so much.

Well, 2008 has been an amazing year. It has been filled with many wonderful adventures and many wonderful friends. We have also had some major disappointments this year. but we learn through them all and we learn to turn more and more to our Heavenly Father for comfort, peace and direction.

My God Bless you today and always, my friends - Aloha!