Dr. Campbell, Brigham Young, and Me

A Trip to the Cemetery

Being a TA (teaching assistant) for my program at school, I was invited to take a tour of grave-sites of the prophets. I thoroughly enjoyed the day and the opportunity to pay my respects to the late President Gordon B. Hinckley. While I was also there, I took advantage of the opportunity to visit Grandpa Van Tielen's burial site, which I had never been to before. It was truly an unique and spiritually humbling experience to stand "at the feet" of the prophets.

The Easter Egg Hunt

Easter Weekend

For Easter this year, we decided it would be fun to dye eggs with Kelly. She had a blast doing it! She didn't want any help from mom or dad once she figured out what to do. She even dipped eggs in boiling hot water to put those "shrink wrap" decorations on the eggs by herself (of course we were right there with her when she did it). She could have done that all night that night. We then hid the easter eggs out in the lawn the next morning and had an easter egg hunt. Once Kelly got the idea of what to do, she was on the go to find more eggs! Of course, once she knew she had candy in her basket, all she did for the next few days was ask for a "bite" from her basket. She's got a sweet tooth already!

A Day up the Canyon

It was a cold day up the canyon but we wanted to just get out and spend some time together. It really was quite beautiful (and much colder than expected, too). We spent our time playing on the playground and looking at the river from the bridge. Kelly had a good time. She loves being outside and playing outside!

Kelly's Potty Training

So, we bought a kiddie toilet and stand, all-in-one type deal, and Kelly loves it! She wouldn't let the thing out of her sight for the first few days we had it. She is now on her way, by her own choice, to being potty trained!

Kelly being Kelly

Lots has Happened

Well, like writing in a journal, lots has happened over the past few months and I haven't kept up with our posts! So, the easiest, quickest way to update everyone on what's been going on, I'm going to post a bunch of pictures and short blurbs about each picture. For those of you who want more details, post a comment and I'll see what I can do to get you all the details about a story or picture! In the meantime, hope you enjoy!

Nice Weather Setting In

So the nicer weather has started to set in (even though it actually snowed today and a little yesterday). With Rachel's work schedule, I get to spend more time with Kelly during the day. That means, we get to go to the park more! Of course, we never leave Rachel out if she can come. And, as you can tell by the pictures, we always have a fun time!

One Spoiled Child

Just thought I'd post another picture of Kelly having breakfast in bed...again!

Most Recent Adventure

With me in school, working, and in the bishopric, we don't get out too often. So, when dad came into town we all went up to visit Kim and Nick over a weekend. We decided to go sledding with everyone, and Kelly loved it! She kept asking to go again and again. So, after carrying her up the hill over and over again, we decided to send her down herself. No, we didn't climb to the top and let her go by herself, but she did go down about half the hill multiple times alone. And of course, she loved it! She actually went pretty fast! She laughed every time she went down. This is Kelly below.

Starting Young

Thanks to Uncle Zach, we thought we'd get Kelly snowboarding early in life. The sooner she learns, the better!

SKANSKA and ASHRAE

For those of who you have no idea what the above names refer to, SKANSKA is on the world's largest construction companies. They're based out of Sweden and are currently the number 1 builder of health care facilities in the U.S. ASHRAE is a national association for HVAC engineers. I recently received scholarships from both. SKANSKA hosted a national research competition in which my team took top honors (that's the picture of the judges and the BYU teams that participated). ASHRAE's Utah chapter opened up a scholarship to students in the area, and I was fortunate enough to receive one of the 3 that were offered. SO, a little hard work has paid off this year for us! Rachel, of course, is the one sacrificing the most in all this since she gives up time with me to let me do these things. She's really the one who has earned the honors!

Our Christmas Vacation

Well, we finally took a break from the apartments and school. This year we traveled home to spend the holiday with Rachel's family. The night we left was extremely snowy, but for the most part the roads were good for our trip. We spent time visiting everyone in the family and got there a couple days before Christmas Eve. That night, Santa made a surprise visit and gave everyone an early Christmas present. All the kids were really excited! Kelly didn't really know what was going on, but when her name was called she knew that the guy in the big, red suit had something for her because she instantly put out her hands and starting asking for whatever it was she was going to get. It was really cute! Christmas day was a blast! Kelly woke up that morning and we took her out into the living room. She instantly focused on the tree and all the presents and started picking up presents in hopes of opening them. It really was a lot of fun this year with Kelly. The rest of our trip consisted of helping Mike and Gretchen with the house they are building and playing with all the cousins. We went out on the frozen lake one day with the 4-wheeler and I pulled Rachel and Kelly behind me on a sled. Kelly loved going over all the bumps out on the lake! She laughed the whole time! Kelly also went sledding by herself for the first time and loved that just as much! Of course, Rachel's parents really enjoyed having us there (actually, really enjoyed having baby Kelly there at home). The best part of the trip was that Rachel's sister, Kelly, came home with her new baby and we were able to bless him. That truly was a great experience together.
Well, we wish everyone a happy new year! We are looking forward to everything that's going to happen this year and can't wait to hear from everyone whenever you have a chance!!