30 days to....something

 

Ever hear of a 30-day challenge? Usually it has something to do with exercise or pictures or reading or Harry Potter or something (for some silly reason) a strong desire to do one! Seriously! I know, right?

Now, to figure out what to do? Hmmm, 30 days of better eating? Nope, got three trips coming up. 30 days of exercise? Nah, did I mention I had three days of business trips coming up? 30 days of squate? ummm, NO, NO, NO!! 30 days of the perfect picture? Whatever. 30 days of me? Not my style. I got it!

My 30-day challenge is to..... (drum roll please) ... 

Yup, as simple as that. Do good every day. No list to follow, no following someone else's agenda, just doing good. So, for every day in September (yup gonna give myself a couple of days to get psyched up for it) I will do something good for someone else. This will be tricky (did I mention that I'm traveling?), but I know I can do it!

Oh and one more thing. Here are the rules. Apparently, you have to have rules for a 30-day challenge so here are mine:

Who's with me? 

emptynesshood

   Today is the day. The first day of an empty house. I know it will be an adjustment, but I'm looking forward to the challenge!! :)

Stay tuned.


   

an extraordinary experience

I have been trying to sum up this experience, but have been having a hard time with it. Kaitlyn just posted the following on facebook. It is poetic, beautiful and perfect. I'll let her words speak for me.

No one will understand the trials we went through as we poured that roof, dug dirt with sunburns, or watched as the burns and rashes got worse. No one will understand the sore muscles, strange food, or love for the locals. No one will understand the joy of jumping in the ocean, bittersweet goodbyes, or the longing to be a part of something bigger again. No one will understand that you had to be there.

As we go home and upload our pictures, wash our clothes, and sleep for hours, we reflect on our experience. How can we describe the past two weeks to those we've returned to? Well, we can't. Our experience was our own. Others will appreciate it, sympathize with it, and be in awe over it. But no one will truly understand all of the fun, tears, aches, joys, complaints, jokes, sights, or stories that we explain to them.

For me, this experience was one of the best that I have had, and will have in my life. It taught me how to live with others, trust others are doing their part, and how to have fun while working. Those are lessons that I'll never forget, and I know everyone learned something as well.

We found hope and love in a place where there is nothing. We found hard work, desperation, and frustration in a place where others vacation. We found joy in the suffering. And we found friends among the strangers. All of you have blessed my life. 

Thank you,
Marty

As the sun sets on this indescribable experience, I say a fond farewell. Did I have a good time? Yes, moments were pure bliss. Others were not. Would I do it again? Maybe. Am I glad I went? Absolutely. 

HEFY - Belize #2 - Day 2

First full day in Belize! Today we went to breakfast about 7am. The restaurant was a short walk away. In San Pedro, everything is a short walk or golf cart ride away. The only cars are taxis. Everyone else uses golf carts. Another boat taxi picked us up at the hotel, took us to another pier where we loaded up on snorkeling gear and loaded up on a nice sized catamaran. We ended up spending the day on the cat. It was interesting.

First, fully-guided snorkeling tour. I have to admit, I scored on the guide. James was the best! He pointed out everything and even brought some things up from the bottom for us to hold.

Next, a quick stop at the shark and ray reef. First, they chummed the water for the sharks. Then, they chummed the water for humans! How do you chum for humans? You catch a shark of course!

Next, a boat ride down the coast, a quick walk through the water to the beach and lunch...on the beach! It was yummy. Back on the boat and home.

Then, we played in the hotel pool for a bit, ate some pizza, played more games, had devotional and went to bed. Another big day. We soon discovered that EVERY day was going to be a big day.

 Some people should NOT be allowed to apply their own sunscreen. Seriously.

 Isn't she beautiful?

 Our hotel was a series of cabins. Aren't they cute?

 The beach at the hotel.

 Getting ready to snorkel. Yup, we are so ready.

 Eric and Dre practicing. Can we get in the water yet?

 Finally! Enjoying the sea life in front of us.

 That wore us out. Time for a short (hour) nap in the sunshine. I hope everyone reapplied the sunscreen!

 James washing our dishes off the side of the boat in the ocean.

 James cutting a coconut for us. Did I mention how cool James is?

The beach where we ate lunch and climbed for coconuts.

 Dinner! Pupusas tonight.

HEFY - Belize #2 - Day 1

Let's get started. Humanitarian Experiences for Youth (HEFY) is NOT affiliated with the LDS church. However, all their directors are members, the trip leaders are usually returned missionaries, the adult coaches (parents) must have a current temple recommend, and the youth (at least on my group) are all members. The program is geared towards teenagers. In fact, you must be between 16-19 to go on an expedition. Adults (parents) are only allowed to go if their child goes with them. And on my expedition, there were only two parents. Our group consisted of two parents, two trip leaders, and 20 youth. We hailed from New York, Virginia, California, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, and Utah. We had never met before this trip but quickly formed a tight bond. Ready for the story? Here it comes.

Day one is a travel day. Fourteen of us met at the SLC airport at 4am to check in for our 6am flight. That was the first time most of us had met. We played some get-to-know-you games and went on our first leg of the trip, Dallas. At the Dallas airport, we met up with the rest of the group minus the trip leader that was already in Belize. More games to get to know everyone and then we were off. Next stop, Belize! The flights were not that long and we ended up the same time zone as Utah so for Kaitlyn and me, it was not a big deal.

In Belize, we met Peter and Herbie. Peter was the other trip leader and Herbie was our bus driver. Here we split our luggage and sent our big bags on to Corozal were we would stay the majority of the time and grabbed our smaller bags for our weekend venture to San Pedro, Ambergris Caye. From Belize City we took at a 1.5 hour taxi (boat) to San Pedro. Right off the boat, we ran into the church on San Pedro and met the missionaries. That was a surprise! A quick dinner and then we were off to our weekend resort, the Royal Caribbean Resort. Our first devotional and then off to bed. It almost 11 when we said good night, which made for a long day.

 Our first dinner. The first of many burritos. :)

 Go ahead and sing with me! Getting to know you. Getting to know all about you. Getting to like you. Getting to hope you like me.

Random tower in the middle of the ocean. Maybe a lighthouse? Maybe just a random tower in the middle of the ocean.

a peek at who i am and what makes me tick :)

My Personality

Neuroticism	36
Extraversion	58
Openness to Experience	66
Agreeableness	55
Conscientiousness	43

You are a calm person who is considered almost fearless by some, however you feel strong cravings and urges that you have difficulty resisting. You tend to prefer short-term pleasures and rewards over long-term consequences. People generally perceive you as distant and reserved, and you do not usually reach out to others. You tend not to express your emotions openly and are sometimes not even aware of your own feelings. You are willing to take credit for good things that you do but you don't often talk yourself up much, however you are not affected strongly by human suffering, priding yourself on making objective judgments based on reason. You are more concerned with truth and impartial justice than with mercy. You are not an overly cautious person.  You will think about alternatives and consequences but make up your mind fairly quickly.

Free Personality Test

sr. prom....last high school dance...ever!!

Kailtyn was asked by a good friend to Logan's Sr. Prom. They decided to go in garb instead of fancy formal wear that neither of them would wear again. This decision started a flurry of decisions, shopping, and sewing. It was excruciating. I had to share my sewing machine for two whole weeks! :)

But the story goes a little further than that. Several garb enthusiasts decided to hold a Disney challenge within our Kingdom later this year. The challenge is to create period garb inspired by a Disney character. Kaitlyn went through several choices and decided to go for a female, Tudor version of Captain Hook. Red coat, gold trim, fluff at the sleeves and neck, big hat with puffy plume. She totally nailed the underdress and thank to some awesome help, nailed the coat! We quickly sewed some gold ribbon on it to make it more Hook-like and give it a more finished look, and I think she is still planning to actually applique a ribbon design on it.

So, first the dress...

Then the hair...

And finally, the date...

The date was actually very eventful getting stuck on the mountain with a totaled four-wheeler and all. But that is a story she will need to tell. :)