Can't get enough of Kate

September 2012 Just because I can't take enough photos of my little girl :)

A Visit from Our Friends from Down Under

Our dear friends from Melbourne, Australia came to visit us. Theresa was thrilled to have her sister and brother-in-law here for a few days. We took them to a lot of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sites around here. We loved exploring those and going out to eat (American-style). It was so wonderful to finally meet Lupe and Tony! Excited for the time the entire Mahina family can come visit!

Reading the Book of Mormon

September 2012 One day I caught Jackson curled up in our blanket, reading (aka looking at pictures) in our large-sized Book of Mormon. Precious moment.

Visit from Grandparents, Uncle Chad and Aunt Pam

September 2012 My grandparents, Uncle Chad and Aunt Pam arrived in Kansas City late September. It was such a joy having them in our home overnight and for a few hours the next morning. We enjoyed showing them around our new hometown and catching up with them. They are so much fun and we hope they come back soon to visit.

Jackson starts preschool

September 26, 2012 Jackson on his first day of preschool. He attends St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Preschool in Leawood, Kansas. His teacher is Mrs. Sherwood. We arrived at school early which was a blessing as we ended up walking right through a mud puddle and had to clean his shoes before we could go into the school. He was teary going into this classroom. And my eyes were watering, too. I gave him a big hug and walked away as he kept crying. Hard experience for a mom but I know he will soon love going to school. His teacher is amazing and his classmates look like they'll be a lot of fun.

Happy 3rd Birthday Jackson

September 22, 2012 We celebrated Jackson's 3rd birthday "Thomas Train" style. He loves Thomas and Friends and all that comes with it. We invited several of his friends to his birthday party. We rented an inflatable jump house and slide. The kids had a blast.

We ate pizza and birthday cake.

We topped off a fun-filled party with the local ice cream shop stopping by for the kids to get their favorite treat.

Later that day, Uncles Jeff and Jimmy, Aunt Sandy and Annalyse flew out to visit. We loved having them here and celebrating Jackson's big day with them.

At 3, Jackson loves trains, riding his tricycle outside, going to the park, reading Curious George books, building with blocks, etc. We love our little boy. Happy Birthday Jax!

Sweet ride

September 2012 We have the sweetest neighbors whose children (a few years older than Jackson and Kate) are adorable with our kids. They came over to pick up Jackson in their Jeep and take him for a ride. He loved it!

Hold my hand

September 2012 - I caught a rare moment while waiting for a traffic light to turn green. Jackson and Kate wanting to hold each other's hand. Precious moment for a mom.

Mud puddles

One late summer evening, I took the kids to the park right after a rain storm. They were full of energy and I wanted to wear them out before bedtime. When we arrived, I saw that there were a lot of puddles in their favorite spots. Normally, I would've insisted they avoided them (the mess, etc.) but that afternoon I let them have at it and boy did they have fun! It was worth the extra laundry and cleaning. We'll definitely look for more mud puddles in the future!

Preschool orientation

Jackson and I attended a preschool orientation in late August/early September (can't remember what date exactly). He attends a Catholic preschool just five minutes from our home. We met his teacher Mrs. Sherwood and her aide Mrs. Meyer. We also met the nine girls and two other boys in his class. Jackson is the youngest in the class. He loved all the new toys though I don't think he really understood what going to preschool would be all about. He'd soon find out :)

Our little librarian

Kate loves books. She'd rather look at and read books than do anything. It's so fun to see her interest expand to more complex books. She'll even repeat common phrases in her Curious George or Thomas the Train books when she recognizes the page. The picture above was taken in September 2012 right before we left for church.

Swimming classes

Jackson and Kate are learning how to swim! They love it. They go each Tuesday evening for 30 minutes. Swim U is just around the corner from us so it's an ideal location. Look forward to swimming a lot in the summer!

Kate's first haircut

Kate received her first hair cut on August 20, 2012. She had grown quite a mullet. And, why I know that's a fashionable hair do in some parts of the world, it wasn't working for my little girl. She loved her new sassy short do!

Happy Birthday, President Monson!

On August 18, 2012, Jason and I flew to Salt Lake to attend President Monson's birthday celebration. It was such an honor to be there that evening. He is such a kind, loving prophet. I am so grateful for his example of service and the countless ways in which his deeds and words have blessed our lives.

KCTV 5

Upon returning from our summer fun, I started freelance reporting for the local CBS affiliate in Kansas City. One of their general assignment reporters had a baby and I was asked to fill-in for her. My first day, I was sent on breaking news where a man had forced his way into an apartment, threatening the owner and his children with a gun.

Talk about getting tossed back into the fire. I remember we arrived on scene at 11:52. I had 8 minutes to find out what was going before my noon live shot. One minute before we went live, the public information officer for the police department told me the stand-off was over. So, I ended up interviewing him live and then proceeded with my day of finding neighbors, witnesses, etc. I LOVED my time at KCTV 5. I loved the people I worked with. I loved the people I met. It was a great learning experience and so fun to be reporting again in a large market!

Utah in August

When we returned from Russia, we had a lot of things we wanted to do before leaving for Kansas City. We spent time swimming with my family at Jim's and Sandy's place in Bountiful,

I went shopping with my mom for my birthday, and enjoyed Cafe Rio with Stephanie and Lindsey while at the park. We loved our time in Utah.

Baby Annalyse

While we were in Russia, my brother's wife Sandy gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on July 27. I thought it fitting as her birthday is 7-27 - the same name a type of plane is given which is Jim's love. Annalyse Salene Palmer is adorable and we love her lots! Welcome to the family!

Russia: Vladivostok

After our week in Moscow, we headed for the airport. I'm always one to get to the airport in plenty of time. So, given the fact we were flying from Moscow to Vladivostok, Russia, I wanted to make sure we made the flight. But, Moscow traffic that afternoon was horrendous. It took us over and hour to get to the airport, which normally takes about 20 minutes. Once there and after waiting in line for over an hour (so we're now one hour away from our flight departing) we learned that we were in the wrong terminal. We ran outside and hopped on a commuter bus to the next terminal. I thought it would be a five minute ride. More than thirty minutes later and nearly dying from a bus that almost slammed into us, then running for 10 minutes, we arrived at the terminal security checkpoint just to go through it before they closed the flight. We had just made it. I was so relieved! We had a nice 8 hour flight to Vlad. Downton Abbey was my best flying buddy during these long trips. Love that show. But, anyway, when we arrived to Vlad, we were exhausted. Russia is such a large country. Here we are after arriving.

One thing I had to get used to in Russia were the variety of smells, which included body odor as many of the people there do not have great personal hygiene practices. We were thrilled to be greeted by Sally and the mission driver Posha. It was so fun to see her! She looked beautiful. Vladivostok, in my opinion, is the San Francisco of Russia. A bay city complete with beautiful bridges, a pier, and hilly terrain, it really reminded me of northern California. We arrived at Greg and Sally's apartment and I really just wanted to go to bed. But, knowing we had to adjust to a new time zone, we ate lunch and then decided to go exercise before enjoying a delicious dinner at one of the local hotel restaurants. Greg was called to serve as the mission president of Vladivostok. They had only been there since the end of June, so they were adjusting to all things Russia, too. The mission home there is an apartment. It's actually quite large compared to most Russian apartments. The next day we visited the mission office and met some of the wonderful missionaries with whom they are getting to know during their time there. We also ventured out to explore Vladivostok and ran across this LASIK vision center.

We enjoyed a fun walk along the pier before going to a North Korean restaurant for dinner. The dinner was - in and of itself - quite an experience. The restaurant which is in Vladivostok is owned and operated by the North Korean government. The staff are North Koreans, on special assignment from the North Korean government to go to Vladivostok to run the restaurant. I felt like I was being watched and/or listened to the entire time there but the staff was very friendly and the food was delicious. A must go to if anyone is ever in Vlad. That weekend we traveled to a nearby city where we witnessed the baptism of an older lady. She said she had returned to Russia four years earlier in search of the Holy Spirit. After she was baptized that day she told me she felt the Holy Spirit and knew the gospel was true. It was such a special experience. Sunday, we went to church at the Vladivostok branch. It's always interesting listening to the entire fast and testimony meeting in another language, but the Spirit of God can be felt even when you don't understand what's being said. Monday was our last full day in Vlad. We spent it touring the city with Greg and Sally, even finding a Cinnabon at a nearby mall and then going for seafood and ice cream on the pier. It was a wonderful day. We are so proud of Greg and Sally and the wonderful work they are helping perform in that mission. We left on for our journey back to the U.S. by way of Tokyo, Japan, then Los Angeles, then San Francisco to Utah the next day. We were exhausted when we arrived home but we had a fantastic time in Russia and look forward to going back.

While we were away, the kids played and played and played

During the two weeks we were gone, the kids stayed with Stephanie and Lindsey Parker (Jason's sister), my parents, and Theresa came over to visit family and helped out. The kids loved going to the Discovery Children's Museum

and riding on TRAX.

They also loved bedtime rituals with Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Lindsey. Going to grandpa's and grandma's on the weekend was a special treat, literally, as I'm sure they were stuffed with all the fun things of life: cookies, candy, chips, etc. They LOVE going there! We missed Jackson and Kate so much!

Russia: Tula

July 28-29, 2012, Jason and I joined the Sorenson's as they journeyed to Tula. Tula is a city south of Moscow. Jason opened this area during his mission in the late 90s. I think this was one of the many things Jason was most looking forward to when we went to Russia. Tula is much different than Moscow. It gave me an up close view of the poverty so many Russians live in from day to day. During our time there, we were able to meet many of the people Jason had worked with on his mission, included Natalia.

Jason and Natalia have remained good friends since that time. I believe he even traveled to Europe to join her as she went through the temple for the first time. She is a wonderful woman who can cook a seriously good batch of Borsch (the Russian beet soup). It was great to hear her talk about all the many things she loved about Jason and how he had touched her life. Though she is currently not active in the LDS church, I knew she remembered those special feelings she had when she was converted to the gospel. Her son and his wife gave us a wonderful tour of Tula, even stopping at a children's bookstore where Jason and I loaded up on Russian books, DVDs, coloring books for the kids (Jason only speaks Russian to Jackson and Kate so this will help him in his efforts to teach them the language). We also attended a special church fireside the Sorenson's held that night.

I played "If You Could Hie to Kolob" on a piano that was apparently donated to the church by a rather famous Russian musician (can't remember his name). I'll always remember my interaction with a little boy named Elusha (I think it's Elijah in English). He reminded me of Jackson so, missing our kids, I eagerly wanted to play with him while his mother helped Jason translate his talk. In his eyes I saw the life of what many Russian children are like. He was hungry and I found some Jelly Belly's in my purse. He loved them and kept coming up to me for more. On Sunday, Jason was able to talk and many of the members there remembered him. I sat in that small branch where less than 20 people gathered that day and was reminded that God's church is true and that it really is spreading throughout the world. I was inspired by the sweet men and women who go from day to day surviving on little to nothing but who have such an incredible amount of faith. Visiting Tula was one of the most tender parts of our Russian adventure (now the three hour ride back to Moscow was a different story...).

Russia: Moscow

On July 23, 2012, Jason and I departed Salt Lake City for a two-week adventure in Russia. We flew to New York City then direct to Moscow. I have to say up front I was nervous about this trip. First of all, it's always difficult to leave our kids for that long. And, then there's the whole mystique of Russia that piqued my curiosity and scared me silly. But, I wanted to see this country that Jason so dearly loves so off we went. Our first stop was a week in Russia. We were greeted at the airport by the mission driver for the Moscow Russia mission. He drove us to the mission home where we were able to meet our dear friends the Sorenson's who are currently serving there. Jet lag was terrible and the traffic was worse. Let's just say their drivers are "creative" with how they use the shoulder as an extra lane when they need it, which, let's be honest, is most of the time. The area the Sorenson's live in is a suburb of Moscow, about 45 minutes via subway from the center of the city. It is very Americanized, in fact a lot of diplomats live there; still, I quickly realized that Russia, even at its finest, is much different than America. Guards secure the entrance and exit to most housing complexes, buildings, stores, etc. Labor there is cheap and crime can be high so it's worth it to most people to pay the extra cash to have someone standing guard. But, despite my apprehension going in to this trip, I quickly fell in love with this place of the world. It's beautiful. It's rich in history. And it's people, though they come across as somewhat cold and bitter, are some of the kindest people I've ever met. We spent a few days just exploring Moscow. Jason was in heaven. We saw the new stake center in Moscow - the first stake organized just a year prior to our visit.

We explored Red Square and saw Lenin's Mausoleum.

We saw the Kremlin and the magnificent government buildings on that historic square. We walked about 10 miles one day going from museum to museum and church to church

and everything in between.

We love getting out on foot in a new city to explore what's around us. It's, in our opinion, the best way to see a city. We ate some delicious Russian food which put my mind at ease that I could actually eat some of the food there. Did I mention that Russians love ice cream? Yes, I can fit in very nicely.

I love the Russian grandmas who carry large, heavy bags on their backs and plop them on a street corner and try to sell whatever they can find. Jason tried to help one of them out while we were there. She was shocked someone would help her and we were shocked that she could carry such heavy bags on her back for miles. We traveled to a district to explore Russia's classical music history. When I heard the Russian piano students practicing the likes of Tchaikovsky, I smiled. I love that music and I loved hearing the amazing musicians perform it. It was also interesting to see the tall, crumbling apartments buildings where families live in cramped quarters to cut costs where millions of people live. I immediately became more grateful for America and the great living conditions even the poorest of people here live in. Every night we met the Sorenson's for dinner. Sister Sorenson is an amazing cook and I'll admit it was nice to eat American-like food each night. We would talk about all the wonderful things of Russia and how the missionary work is progressing there. I came to relish this time each day. I am so grateful for the Sorenson's and the great friends and examples they are to our family. One of our bags didn't arrive on our flight. I guess it never made it out of New York. So, one day, Jason journeyed by train out to one of the international airports to get his luggage. And, I (shh, don't tell my dad) journeyed solo via subway back to where we were staying.

I wasn't as scared as I thought I'd be. It gave me time to just think about how Jason must have felt those many years ago as a missionary in this big city trying to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people there, in a language he barely knew. My love for him increased as I realized how brave he was. Then, I started realizing the difference he had made during his two years there (posts that follow).

Park Valley 24th of July Celebration

July July 20-21, 2012 One of the highlights living in Park Valley, Utah as a child was the annual 24th of July celebration. This was the event of the year - the one you always looked forward to and talked about long after it had passed. I had always wanted to go back - it has been some 16 years since my family moved from Park Valley - so July 2012 was the year. We traveled out to meet my parents and Jeff. Jackson and Kate loved roaming in the wide open country spaces that are Park Valley. Jason thinks Park Valley is straight out of a movie as my friends still living there don cowboy hats and boots as part of their daily attire and can often be seen riding on their horses. I love Park Valley. It's still home sweet home to me. It was great catching up with my childhood friends - some of whom I haven't seen since we left Park Valley in 1996. We enjoyed dancing under the stars at the Friday night dance, and eating our way through most of Saturday, starting with the famous country breakfast and ending with a Hamdinger (a cheeseburger with a slice of ham on it) and visiting the school I graduated from in 10th grade.

I loved being able to share this part of my life with my husband and kids and having my parents and brother there too. It was a wonderful weekend.

Utah

We traveled to Utah in July to spend time with my family and Jason's siblings still living there. We actually flew on Frontier into the Provo airport. Weird, but it worked well. We loved being able to spend my mom's and brother Jeff's birthdays with them. We also journeyed down to American Fork to hang out with Jon, Leann and their amazing four kids.

Jackson and Kate really love their cousins so it's extra special when we can get them all together. We were able to meet up with our wonderful Iowa friends - the Davis'- in Heber for a morning waterskiing on the lake. Jackson even skiing solo for the first time (should clarify here it was one of those inflatable skis, but nonetheless, he did it).

Summertime fun in KC

July 2012 We loved being able to do so many fun things in Kansas City with Jason. We love going on bike rides as a family and used the time we had with Jason as an opportunity to explore many new trails around this area. For a large city, Kansas City isn't very biker-friendly. But, we've found some routes we love to take with the kids. Among our favorites is biking a couple miles north and stopping at this fountain in the of a neighborhood. Jackson and Kate love to walk around it and then put their hands in and splash the water. On one occasion, Jackson got a little too close to the edge and fell in. He was startled and didn't want to visit the fountain for a while after that. We also enjoyed regular trips to Deanna Rose Children's Farm. I love that place! It's a way to share my country childhood with them and they enjoy it too. We loved going swimming at the neighborhood pool. Kate is our daredevil. She went up the slide and down it - without a life jacket - multiple times. Thank goodness Papa was always there to catch her. Jackson, on the other hand, is very cautious, except when his friends Ryan and Chelsea - our darling next door neighbors - are around. Then, he liked to show off for them. I also took the kids to the Kansas City Zoo on what I think was one of the hottest days ever! After three hours, train rides, and multiple drinks of water, we still only made it around half of the zoo. Sheesh!

Lots of fun summertime memories made this year in Kansas City

Iowa fun

In July, we took a trip to Iowa to visit some of our friends and family. Jackson and Kate loved going back to the Iowa City Children's Museum. I think it's the best of it's kind I've been too. Afterwards, we met Amy and the boys (who had driven down from Wisconsin) at Coralville Reservoir for an afternoon of fun in the sun. It was so great to spend this time with them. On the way home, we ate at a sushi restaurant and Jackson started throwing up soon after that. I'm not sure he's going to follow in Jason's footsteps of loving seafood :)