Energizing the agony of de-feet!

So after day one our feet were sooooooo tired, we started a nightly ritual...Ben, Bella and I would put on our shorts fill the tub with the Aromatherapy Energizing Bubbles and soak our feet! Afterwords we would rub energizing lotion on them...it was almost as good as a SPA! (actually better cause we had so much fun)...Bella's watching Another Cinderella Story on the Walkman while she soaks!

SPRING BREAK in DC...PICTURES are coming!

The Spring Break DC Extravaganza recap is coming...

So for Spring Break this year I went to Washington DC with Melanie and her kids Beth, Nick, Ben and Bella...the idea for the trip actual began a couple of years ago when Isabella decided she had to see the Lincoln Memorial. We would "wish" plan what we were going to do when we went to Washington DC...and low and behold...everything just fell into place for all of us to go...Even with the very tired feet, We had a great time as you'll see below...

DAY 1: Leave Marysville at 4:30 am to get to the Airport...Anne and Bella flew from Sacramento to Salt Lake City to Baltimore, Mel, Beth, Nick and Ben flew from Sacramento to LA to Nashville to Baltimore...Once we got to Baltimore we took a Bus to the Metro Station, rode the Metro to Bethesda, took a shuttle to the Hotel, Checked in and Ordered room service!

DAY 2: Smithsonian... Air and Space Museum, Museum of American History, Museum of Natural History, Washington Monument and the World War II Monument.

Smithsonian Castle...right outside the Smithsonian Metro Stop...When we got outside and Bethany realized the National Mall was lawn not a shopping center she was very disappointed! A few days latter everything was fine after spending time at Union Square!

At the Air and Space Museum we ran into Harrison Ford, actually he was being ushered into an elevator and I only saw the backside of him...But it was still exciting...We had a lot of fun playing in the airplanes, looking at the planets, planes, war stuff, Wright Brothers, Bomb sites etc. Isabella looked so Cute in her Red White and blue outfit, we called her Capital Barbie!

Next Stop...American History Museum...Here we saw the LARGE stars and stripes flag that inspired the Star Spangled Banner. This museum has been remodeled since I was last in DC and just opened in November. There was a large Lincoln exhibit which pleased Nick, Beth and Bella who have each studied him this past year...

Museum of Natural History was next on the list...The kids had a great time here...Isabella and Benjamin had a check list in their head of what they wanted to see...Animals check, Hope Diamond check, Anthropology Lab check, Fossils check, it was fun to see them enjoy such an educational place...

Just a brief stop to rest our tired feet before walking to the Monuments!











After eating lunch from a Street Vendor next on our agenda was the Washington Monument and the World War II Monument...

After this our feet were to tired to continue on to the Lincoln Memorial, so we saved it for the next day! Stay tuned for Day 3 and 4!

April has 30 days but where did they all go?

Just a glimpse of how crazy my APRIL was...I really racked up the miles this month...

APRIL TRAVEL LOG:

March 30, 31 and April 1,2,3 Scottsdale, AZ
April 4 Utah (had to come home and wash my laundry!)
April 5, 6,7 Sacramento, CA
April 8-13 Washington, DC (including Maryland and Virginia of course)
April 14, 15 Marysville, CA
April 16 Pocatello, ID
April 17-21 Utah (Laundry time and compliance audits what a great combo!)
April 22,23 Denver, Colorado
April 24, Utah
April 25-29 Columbus, Ohio
April 30-May 1, Denver, Colorado

Of the 30 days available, I was in Utah for 7 of them...so much for "moving home"!

Better Late than Never

So I don't know what happened to APRIL...it was gone in a flash! With all of the travel (vacation and work) April was over before I even blogged about it starting...So here are a few make up posts...First the long awaited Manti Temple pictures. We went to the Manti Cemetery for Aunt Darle's funeral, and I looked up from Grandpa's grave and saw the beauty of the Temple! I grabbed mom's camera and the result is below...

These three are from the cemetery...Then we went driving and looked up and WOW...there was the temple...

This last one is from the Front of the Temple, just below the BIG hill we used to roll down, which didn't seem so big anymore, however, if I had been rolling, I'm sure I would still become DIZZY!

The pictures below are of Grandpa's grave and dad's old house

(across the street from the temple)

Pay it Forward...from LK to EKS to HSC to ABH to AS

Pay it FORWARD

How it works:The FIRST THREE people to leave a comment on this post will receive at some point during this year a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive will be a total surprise--to both of us.The CATCH is that YOU MUST PLAY TOO! Before you leave your comment here, write a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going (you can cut and paste these instructions). Then come back and let me know that you are going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift. It's THAT easy! Remember, only the FIRST THREE comments will qualify.

A stroll down memory lane..lined with Shamrocks!

So today we had our traditional St. Patty's Day (week) feast complete with Corned Beef, Cabbage and an assortment of vegetables...Which really has nothing to do with this week's post except that we looked at old pictures before and after dinner!

My mom found an old box of pictures in the back of the closet so of course we had to go through them...Most of the pictures were either Grandkids or Missions! (Ben and Tyler's as well as a few from Andy's one from Matt's, but I didn't see any from Jon's)

This first set made me laugh outloud...apparently my parent's couch makes people SLEEPY! Very, Very SLEEPY! The funniest part is that there are several years between each of these pictures...and yet, we all sit and sleep! (There were a couple more of Tyler, so he wins the prize for the most sleeping couch photo's!

My favorite part of looking at old pictures is seeing HAIRDO's and GLASSES! I may have to do a post of the many hairdo's of the Sorensen's but here are few examples...The first one was during a "perm phase" in the 90's...The second is in NAUVOO, and I got a kick out of My mom's hair and Heidi's Glasses! So that's it for now...It took me way to long to figure out how to load and arrange these pictures, so the rest will have to wait for next week!

March Madness...2 for 2

I'm talking about the non-basketball March Madness known as this past weeks travel schedule!

Tuesday drove to Pocatello, Idaho...worked with an Agent all day on Wednesday and drove home through a Snow storm...There were a couple of points where I was literally white knuckled, but I made it through! As LT say's "Yeah Me!"

Thursday morning I had to be at the airport at 5:50 am to catch a flight to Denver (really I was in Littleton, CO)...I flew back home that night which makes for a long day!

Friday was my great aunt Darle's funeral so that presented the opportunity for another roadtrip...this time to Provo and Manti...I'll post pictures next week.

Saturday was the Nationwide Nascar Pit Stop in Layton...I don't have to work many Saturday's which makes it harder when I do...It was sssssooooo cold! But I was introduced to the interesting world of Nascar Fans! They are definitely passionate about their sport and drivers. I also discovered I'm not a fan of LOUD, NOISY, CARS! The event was right across the street from NorthRidge High School in Layton, UT which is right by the South Gates of Hill AFB. They must have been doing some testing in the desert because the Fighter Jets were coming and going all day, and when they made their engine noise, the driver, Gene felt it necessary to revvvv his engine. It was a battle of the engines all day long!

In an effort to do my part with Corporate expense reductions I booked a red eye flight for my week in Columbus, OH so I was back at the SLC airport at Midnight on Saturday! When I made the flight plans I hadn't remembered that it was Daylight Savings Weekend! So, at 1:00 am SLC time (which I guess was really 2:00 am) I boarded a flight to Atlanta...from there I was just a hop skip and jump away from Columbus, or so I thought....my connecting flight was cancelled so I had to be rerouted on another flight, which meant a stop in Philadelphia! After a couple hours in Philadelphia I was on board another plane bound for Columbus, OH...Little did I know my luggage was bound for Columbia, South Carolina! Apparently someone had difficulty reading the luggage tags correctly, or they got their gates mixed up...So I made it to Columbus and after a stop in Columbia and back to Atlanta, my luggage made it just a few minutes ago!

Needless to say, even with the crazy travel week, I still made it 2 for 2 in the weekly blog department! Next week I promise I'll be more interesting...For now, I'm tired! So I'm going to sleep! But happily I have pajamas to put on!

New Year's Resolutions in March!!!

Okay so I'm a little behind in setting my New Year's resolutions, but better late than never...!

So my resolution? To blog (a form of Journaling) every Sunday! That way not only can I share my thoughts and doings with those I love but also remind myself of the experiences I've had over the past week.

So today is March 1st, not January 1st...But here is my first blog of 2009!

This year I resolve to:

Connect with my extended family more!

A week ago we had a Kearl Girl Game night. It wasn't anything fancy or elaborate but it was so much fun to visit, giggle a realize that there really are generation gaps between the mom's and the girls! Thanks to all of you who took time out of your busy schedules to come! I hope we do it again soon!

Read the scriptures daily

Yes it's something we all should be doing anyway, and I'm usually pretty good, but this year I want to be faithful 100% (Like Horton). About a month a go I was called to be the Gospel Doctrine teacher in my ward...A calling I've never wanted and had hoped to never receive, but alas the call came! Perhaps it was a little nudge from Heaven to help me with this resolution!

WOW myself (aka as Obeying the word of wisdom)

In the past I've made a resolution to loose __ pounds and I was usually unsuccessful! This year I'm taking a different approach. The goal is the same, but the methods are founded in the scriptures (that I now study daily per resolution #2)... Rather than just loose weight, I want to more fully understand and live the word of wisdom. I gave up caffinated beverages when I was 15 and haven't ever gone back, but there's more to it than that! So my goal this year is to WOW myself! Bring on the fruits and vegetables...

Choose to be Happy

Life is all about the choices we make...and I'm a firm believer that daily we have to choose happiness! I was recently reminded of words of wisdom from Dumbledore to Harry Potter,
"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." -- Dumbledore, page 333 Chamber of Secrets

So I will choose to be happy!