Let the games begin

Check this out!!! The Olympians aren't the only ones that can stand in Tianamen Square in Beijing. Here we are barely a year before the Olympics and it was amazing how excited and proud the chinese were to be hosting the Olympics. They had this giant clock-like thing counting down the days until the start of the games. I know the Chinese government is atrocious, inhumane and unjust, but the people are wonderful and the suggestion of the US boycotting the games would have been a huge blow to the people. I'm glad to see they got their day.

(Make sure you click on the top picture to see Chairman Mao in the background.)

I hope they call me on a mission

I can't believe I haven't shared this completely awesome, wonderful picture we took when we were in Korea (as part of our China trip). It was so wonderful to see these fellows and they were so excited to see us. Only one of the elders was Korean, the rest were Americans.

Love is a many splendored thing....

Michelle and Aaron are officially wed and they have the happiness to prove it. It was wonderful at their wedding to have all our children in the Temple together for the first time. These are the truly great moments of our lives. We love Aaron and we love Aaron and Michelle together. After celebrating our 33rd wedding anniversary this month I can say without a doubt, marriage is as close to bliss as is possible here on earth. Sure it has it's ups and downs, but the ups are out of this world. Here we are in romantic Italy. I don't think I will ever tire of vacationing with Chris. We have the best time together and so many times to look forward to as we explore the world. It just doesn't get better than this and we have the happiness to prove it too.

Going to the Chapel

What a great time I had in Las Vegas attending Chelsea's wedding. Since none of you could attend check out the pictures of Chelsea and Bryce aka Mr. and Mrs. Bohman. Chelsea looked absolutely gorgeous. Bryce is one lucky man. I can't believe she is all grown up and MARRIED. I know it's cliche, but it seems like yesterday she was a little girl with those adorable dimples and curly hair. Wow, look at her now. If you read this Chelsea please know we love you and wish you all the happiness your heart can hold.

I also had a great time hanging out with Dianne and being her moral support. Dianne handled everything beautifully, but it's hard marrying off a daughter. She was a trooper and we had lots of fun together just being sisters.(Please excuse the "eyes" on my pix--technical difficulties.)

A League of Our Own

Some traditions just seem to come out of nowhere . . . like bowling on Black Friday instead of shopping. This year we bowled "league style" which means we alternated between two lanes just like the pros. Our pros for the day were Dad with the high score of 159, and Jamie with an almost equally high score of 140 (I don't think the bumper pads had anything to do with it). I personally bowled a 104. It was awesome. Aaron forgot his bowling ball and shoes so he was alittle off his game, thank goodness. After we bowling we adjourned to Olive Garden for a farewell meal to Michael as he headed back to BYU. What an amazing Thanksgiving we enjoyed, almost perfect (thanks to the brined turkey), except for the absence of some of our most favorite family. Look out Christmas, here we come!

Aloha

We're back from our wonderful visit to the Garden Island of Kauai. We had an awesome time! The weather was alittle on again off again with the first storm of the winter coming our way--tons of rain but always warm. We relaxed and read and read and relaxed. We self-toured the island and enjoyed it completely. One of the highlights was our helicopter ride. Many parts of the Jurassic Park movies were filmed here and we saw them all including the waterfall where the helicopter drops them off and picks them up at the end of the movie. We actually went down, down, down into the once active volcano and then up, up, up again. Thank goodness for those barf bags--LITERALLY. Inspite of queasy stomachs it was great fun.

We also made many feathered friends as Kauai is populated with wild roosters and chickens (no wild cows however). This is due to the hurricane a couple of years ago that liberated the birds never to be recaptured. At any time of the day or night you could hear roosters (that's a big plural) cock-a-doodle-doing. It is part of the charm of the island and the natives love it. We came to understand anew phrases such as "pecking order" and "ruffled feathers". Chris fed the birds everyday and can now add birdman alongside his previous lizardman title. Needless to say he was a big hit.

All in all we had a good time and are considering a new second address for the Steilacoom Stevens. In the spirit of Aloha we will invite you all for a visit.

The City by the Bay

We just returned from a short trip to San Francisco. It was great. The weather was beautiful and the city is gorgeous. We walked everywhere, took BART, walked and ate in Chinatown, climbed up Nob Hill, went to Fisherman's Wharf, and just plain enjoyed ourselves. Of course we went to SF because of the ADA meeting, so I was doing most of this stuff alone, but it still was a great adventure. For those of you who don't remember we honeymooned in San Fran. In fact one day while Chris was in a dental meeting I decided to walk down to the Wharf. The awesome thing is, I just happened to come down on the street where the Fisherman's Wharf Travelodge is and, here comes the awesome part, we spent one of our honeymoon nights there!! It was still standing even though it was barely standing when we were there so many years ago. It was so nostalgic I actually teared up thinking about us as a newlywed couple just starting out. No kidding. Too bad Chris wasn't there to share the moment. Anyhow I have spent 32+ years with the most wonderful man in the world. I knew I picked good, but even I am amazed at how good. Hope all of you will feel the same way after you've been wed 32+ years.

So I decided to dedicate this post to the best friend, companion, and husband a girl could ever have, yesterday, today, and forever (OK Michelle, you can pull out the barf bag now).

Here's to you sweetie!