Raiyah is FIVE!!!

 Recently Raiyah watching Angelina Ballerina on Ice (a movie), and read a book about Pinkalicous going ice skating. Ever since she has said she wanted to go skating for her birthday. It turned out to be so much more fun than I anticipated. The kid skates were double bladed so it really helped the kids feel stable. By the end of the night they both were jumping and doing spins on the ice. We skated for 2.5hrs. I couldn't

Jinny Kim was so nice to help me make this cake. Raiyah's request was only: I want a Cinderella cake with her mice. I was so excited with the outcome. Raiyah actually helped us make the cake and thought it was so fun to design her own beautiful princess. At her friend party the cake was the biggest hit. All the kids just kept walking around it and staring. Thank you Jinny!!!

What a great year for Raiyah. She has truly started getting her own personality. It's a little scary seeing that she emulates so much of her parents. But I like to think she is putting her own nice twist to things. She is exactly who I hoped she would be.

Thanksgiving at the Beach House

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner at the Beach House. It was so strange to be away from family, and not heading to visit all the different relatives. We had the Vawdry Family over from our ward. I have really enjoyed getting to know Catherine. She is a wonderful, selfless person I learned a lot about being charitable from. Brother Jensen from the ward was also able to join us. I don't think I have ever learned so much from a Sunday School teacher. Wonderful humble man. We were excited to also have David and Linda Block over. I actually think this is the only picture we have of them which is sad. They are the owner's of the beach house and became our "parents" in Virginia. Anything we needed and they were willing to assist. We also loved just hanging out and spending time with them. Raiyah and Malakai would light up every time they came around.

I decided to go all out and cook most everything from scratch. I was so busy I forgot to take pictures of all the food. The kids and I made home made crescent rolls, they loved rolling the dough and cutting out the triangles. I also made a turkey which was fantastic. I made homemade stuffing which I cooked in the turkey. I think that was my favorite part of dinner. The stuffing was absolutely wonderful. (Linda Blocks recipe). I also made the gravy from the turkey drippings which was so tasty. And the thing I most surprisingly liked was the cranberry sauce I made from fresh cranberries. It was mouth watering. I had it on many sandwiches afterwards. :)

We have many things to be grateful for this year. The things I am most thankful for are for sure my family. I feel at home anywhere we go, not because of where we are but becuase I am with my family whom I love spending every minute with. Moving aways has also made us closer to our families. I don't think anyone can explain that unless they have moved away from family. But when you don't live a few minutes away from someone, you take the time to talk to them and hear how their life is. We have been so blessed on this journey and hope to continue to grow every step of the way.

Sandy Bottom State Park

Goodbye to our Bay

 This was our last true walk out on the Bay before we said goodbye. What a beautiful night.

Oceanview Pier

Pictures seem to define our life living at the beach house. We have spent many wonderful days here. Although we loved every minute we only look back with fond memories, but no longing to. We know we have not found our true home yet, and are still loving this journey. But we are so blessed to have lived in such a wonderful area.

Fort Monroe, Hampton, Virginia

The Great Dismal Swamp

The week after we arrived in Virginia the Great Dismal Swamp caught on fire. It smoldered for weeks buring a lot of land. There were days I didn't leave the house the smoke was so bad, and we live about and hour and a half away. We had heard it was a place we needed to go to. So in Novemeber when the fire was over, and trails were open again we decided we better head over there. We rode our bikes four miles in on a road dug out by slaves Washington had put to work. For what reason there needed to be a road dug for carriages to drive to the dismal swamp is beyond me. The ride was straight and flat the whole way. If we would have not had eachother to talk with it would have been very dreary, and a little eerie to ride. Would I recommend people go see it, yes. But I have no idea why. It was a very strange place to see. The swamp really is dismal, and very strange. Maybe I will think of some way to describe it one day but as for now I will just say the trees were beautiful for the fall weather, but all else was very dismal indeed.