Pre-planting View

This is a full picture of my garden before it was planted. Mom and I had spent the entire morning the day before shopping for them. They are so pretty!!!

Freeway Adventures

If I have learned one very important lesson in the last couple days it is this, never leave the house without the proper amount of gas in the car....

On Tuesday afternoon after volunteering at the fish hatchery down on the old Evergreen Highway i happily and obliviously made my way home. At first everything went great... Then I noticed the cop behind me. He is not what this story is about, however, as I uneventfully (Thank heavens) left him behind when I switched from the 14 to I5. It was just a couple minutes later that I started my true adventure. It was around 5:30 in the afternoon or in other words rushhour and so at first I noticed no problem as the cars were all going slow. Then traffic picked up and when I pressed on the gas in an attempt to follow their receeding figures I found out I had a big problem. When I pressed the gas it was like hitting the brakes. Now being the brilliant person I am my first thought was not, oh I bet I am out of gas, it was more like this... OH MY GOSH... Crap(insert glare at car) this car had better not blow up in my face. Now I should probably explain that thought. You see when I was young (no I don't remember exactly how old I was suffice it to say I was young) I had watched a program at my grandma's house where a woman had stopped to get gas. No biggie everyday occurance you are thinking, except for this particular woman forgot to remove her keys, created static electricity by getting up that transfered to her key, started to fill her car and BOOM! Her car blew up in her face. So since I was young adn impressitionable this has always been my secret greatest fear. My second greatest fear also has to do with cars it is of getting hit by a car going 60-70 on a freeway. So my thought immediatly after Crap this car had better not blow up in my face is... Get off the freeway..Get off the freeway.. Get off the freeway! Sort of like Mulan chants when she is on the roof and the fireworks are about to go off. Get off the roof, get off the roof, get off the roof. So I slowly but surley exit the free way my next thought being that i can pull of to the side of the road. But as luck would have it there is no where to pull over. Then I spot a road that leads off to teh left... I had always wondered where that went when we drove by to drop teh kids at school and had never seen anyone on it so in my mind it was an old abandoned road adn I could stop right in teh middle of it. Luckly when I got to the road i spied a parking lot at the base of the hill and managed to crawl into it because as I soon found out it was not an old abandoned road. It lead to a park. At this point I am thanking God that my dad just replaced my lost cell-phone and I call mom. While i am doing this I notice that the gas, thought the car is off, seems low. So one and two get put together in my mind and I figure out this is the problem. Mom calms me down, and then has me call dad on his cell. Dad asks where I am, luckly I am good at knowing where I am so I was able to give him really good directions. Next problem I am in our only car at the moment. So Dad gets a ride with Brother Azar. They show up about 45 minutes later. Lesson well learned. I will never forget to moniter my gas again.

In other news

I have discovered a new passion! Gardening!!! It is so much fun, plus very relaxing when you need a break from life. I have created a flower garden in our front yard(will post pictures later). It is beautiful and it took a lot of work. WE have also started our vegteable and fruit gardens as a family.

Yesterday we all went to the temple grounds to take my senior pics. For those who don't know I told mom and dad that if we went as a family and took pics that could replace professional senior pics. They look really good and we had a ton of fun plus we got some cute shots of the little kids too. WE all dressed in red shirts of various shades for the family pics even Koda ( we put a red bandanna-okay it was a small apron folded to look like a bandana but it was cute, on him). The next step will be to pic out my favoraties. When I do I will post some.

Today we finally installed the doggy door into our back door so hopefully we will stop having those icky accidents in the house when someone forgets to let Koda out. I think so because he is already using the door to get in and out of the house at will.

-taytay

Happy Birthday to me

I am 18!!! YEA! I really can't believe I am able to say that. It is a little wierd. I had a super fun birthday though. Mom and I went to the gardening centers and got all the flowers for my flower garden. It is so pretty! They are all planted now and I should have pictures up soon. When we got home, Annie had a super fun suprise party set up for me with just family. It was really fun. I am also thouroughly enjoying my gifts. My new scriptures have all the scripture masteries highlighted and it is really nice to wake up to the nature sounds on my new alarm clock then the horrible beeping that came from my old one. We didn't make it to our lunch date on my birthday due to Johnathan's unexpected appointment with the doctor to inspect what turned out to be pink eye. But we did go the next day. We went to sweet tomatoes and it was super fun. I am also loving the new cell phone (kind of an early birthday gift) that dad gave me adn have even given in and learned how to text. Mom and I were also supposed to go out to the movies but we didn't get to go till Friday. It was a lot of fun when we did go though. We went and saw the one about the numbers on teh paper. It was good but a little to intense adn I am still not sure about the ending. Anyway that concluded the birth day celebrations

Temple Reflections

So I went to the temple last night and they have remodeled the baptismal font room. Among other things that are different are teh doors to the rooms where you get confirmed. They are now clear glass with a wood frame. Anyways right after I was done with my confirmations when I opened my eyes I looked at teh door and the door reflected Christ giving a blessing to someone in a painting that was behind me only I could not see the person he was blessing in the painting because my own reflection started there. It was really neat to see and it reminded me whose work we are truly doing when we go to the temple.

Poems from the Heart

Well,

sorry it's been months since I posted. Got caught up in life. Everything is going great. I thought I would post my poems that I have written since they are about the most important things in my life and are ussually promted by a big event in my life.

Watching My Sister Fall in Love

Watching my sister fall in love
I’ve realized how little I know

Love is a thing hard to describe
It is sharing your life
Your stories, your friends
It is showing your faults
And not trying to hide

It is a glow, a change
A difference in your very being
It is trying your best to become
Better than you are

It is telling and sharing and laughing
Together
It is hope and a joy
It is commitment to each other

It is growing, it is striving
It is working together
It is recognizing how you change
One another

Watching my sister fall in love
I’ve realized how little I know

A sister is there to help you to grow
To lead and to guide
And sometimes to tell you no

A sister is there to comfort
To laugh with and cry with
And enjoy growing up with

A sister is there to show you the way
To set the example
That you always will follow

To create memories
Pure and sweet
In the high times
Or the low
A sister is there to dance with
To sing with
To imagine a world beyond our own
And make it true with

She helps to show you
That tears are okay
That laughter is medicine
And that fairy tales
Can be true

For that sister that
I have watched fall in love
I LOVE YOU!!!


Memories of You

Memories of you
When we were still young

Of our room during nap time
Voices quietly playing
Statues or dolls

Of playing elves
Of princesses
Ordering our poor servant
Kristi around

Of adventure and
Excitement
Exploring something new

Of growing up
Staying up late
And talking of dreams

Of dancing on the beach
Or in a thunderstorm
On our driveway



Of sweet voices
Singing me to sleep
At girl’s camp
Late one night

Of water fights
Getting soaked to
The skin

Or of being locked outside
And racing
To all the doors
To get in

Memories of toilet paper
Flying through the night
As you taught me
A new kind of art

Of the moon
Bathed in red
As we watched
An eclipse

Or of discussions
About what
Harry Potter would
Face next

These memories of you
Are bright shinning pillars
Showing me what
To do

Because these memories
Cherished and sweet
Are my way of
Remembering

Just why
I looked up to you

I wrote those two poems when Bri got engaged. I read them at her wedding reception.
This next one I worte in response to a question Brother Norton asked in Institute, he asked who taught us what we know about love

What I've learned about love

What I've learned about love
I've learned from my dad
who guided and counseled
and shown me the way

What I've learned about love
I've learned from my mom
who saw past the
faults mistakes and the flaws

What I've learned about love
I've learned from my brothers
who forgave and forgot
the things that I've done

What I've learned about love
I've learned from my sisters
who've shared in my joys
my pains and my griefs

What I've learned about love
I've learned from my teachers
who shared with me
their great knowledge and truths

What I've learned about love
I learned in school
from fellows reaching out
for caring and comfort

What I've learned about love
I learned from my Brother
who laid down His life
that all might live

What I've learned about love
I learned from my Father
who provided the plan
to lead me to Him

Finnally my last poem I wrote in response to a recent crisis concerning Koda. On monday I got out of school to find out that Koda had bit Matthew when Matthew tried to take an icecream container away from him that he had found. When dad had called the Humane Soceity to find out what to do they had told him that because Koda had bit he would have to be put down. This was written durring the hieght of that crisis. We learned the next day by calling our vet, animal control, and teh health department that the humane society was wrong. All that happens the first time they bite is a ten day quarentine(they have to stay in your house or backyard) to make sure they don't have Rabbis.

My best friend

You were the one
I came to with problems
Who listened to me
As only you could

You were the one
Who cuddled and snuggled
Deep into
All hours of the night

You were the one
Who loved me to bits
Who didn’t care
About looks or smell

You were the one
Who smiled without fail
When that was what
I needed the most

You were the one
Who was happy to wake up
Who grinned at the chance
To spend one more day with me

You were the one
Whose bark full of joy
Who would not be silenced
Whatever the neighbors said

You were the one
Who tore stuff to bits
Despite all protestations
And scoldings of NO!

You were the one
Joyful to see me
Grinning around corners
And saying catch me if you can

You were the one
Who taught me patience and love
Through all the midnight hours
Full of potty training trips

You were the one
Who taught me no mess
Is to big
To forget to laugh about it

You were the one
Who taught me how to comfort
As I saw you lying sick
In those first few months

You were the one
Who taught me to hold on tight
Because you were the one
To jump after the squirrels

You were the one
Who taught me to face my problems
As I watched you learn
To get over your fear of other dogs

You were the one
With that big puppy grin
That told me everything
Was going to be all right

You were the one
Who was ready to play
Fetch or tugtug… whichever
Just for the fun

You were the one
Who taught me
How to teach as I taught you
To sit, lay-down, and to stay

You are the one
That I will always remember
Because Koda You were always the one
-Tay tay

General Update

I am going CRAZY!!! There is so much to do. I have to finish my senior paper, all my articles, adn study for finals. AHHH!! I am going to be super busy this weekend. On the brightside, the most important thing, missionary work, is going great. Amanda came to institute and loved it!
I have a crazy consultant but it looks like that is looking up too. Finally! oh well talk to you all later adn love you
Tay Tay