The perfect Farewell

Dad's funeral was just the way he would have wanted it. It was the perfect farewell....

Aloha Oe

Love, Uncle Clay, Uncle Mike, Grandma, Aunt Mag and Uncle Rob

We love you Dad!

In life, wherever grandpa went Jayce was not too far behind.

We just can't get enough of little Maile! (We love you too Kendee!)

Thank you Aunt Mag for the walk down memory lane. I still chuckle when I think about all the stories you shared and the time we spent reminiscing. Thank you Uncle Mike for reminding us what it's all about. Everything just makes sense when we look at it from an eternal perspective. I am so thankful for the great plan of happiness, for that is truly what it is. The peace that I now feel comes from my understanding of God's plan. I can't talk about Dad without smiling...oh how I miss him...but I know that he has fulfilled what the Lord has required of him here. I am confident that he is still with us and he will continue to watch over and protect our family. We often tease eachother that his first order of business on the other side of the veil will probably be to help his family grow...by sending more grandkids! Good luck Margayle:)


Thank you also to those of you who have expressed your love and served our family this past week. Your kindness has not gone unnoticed. You are indeed the angels spoken of by Elder Holland in his October 2008 general conference address.

A Letter to my DAD

Dear Dad,
I just want to tell you that I love you. I know we'll meet again someday, but saying goodbye for a time is not easy. It is hard, but I am comforted by the Spirit and rejoice knowing that you are still surrounded by people who love you. As I look back on the 26 years we had together, my heart is full of gratitude. Thank you Dad for being an example. From you I learned what it meant to truly love the Lord. Thank you for teaching me to pray, for explaining the scriptures to me when I didn't understand, and for allowing me to rely on your testimony until I gained my own. Thank you for helping me realize the power of the atonement, encouraging me to serve a mission, and supporting me in my callings. I have come to know the Savior better because I have known you.

From you I learned the importance of family. I know that you worked so hard to keep your family close...and for that I am grateful. Thank you for teaching me at a young age that when you say "YES" we all say "YES"! I still at times wonder if you ever knew how to say no!?! Thank you for always involving us kids in everything you did. I will cherish memories of service projects we attended as a family, ward and stake activity assignments (that you were in charge of the meals), Aloha Festival committees, and the list goes on.... You are the reason we know what it means to work. Thank you for also encouraging us to play as a family. I smile through the tears as I think about the "campouts" on the trampoline in the backyard, the neighborhood barbeques in the front yard, the horse rides in the mountains and the golfcart rides in the desert. I remember all the vacations we took, holidays we enjoyed and the Sunday meals we ate together. I will miss that Dad.

From you, Dad, I learned what it takes to make someone feel special...I know what you are thinking...not that! I have never been an only child, but at times you made me feel like the world revolved around me. I will miss laying beside you in bed with you scratching my back and singing "go to sleep smolly molly". I will miss calling you when I help in the kitchen. I will miss walking with you and sitting beside you in church. I will miss you dad.

Lastly, I want you to know how you inspire me. I want to live my life so that I can come where you are. I miss you Dad. Until we meet again,

Love
Maili

Are you ready for battle?

I love waking up at 4:30 am for days like this....

With helmet in place with sword in hand

With the shield of faith we are worthy to stand

With the gospel of peace our feet are shod

WE have on the armour of God...

DO YOU?

Camping...for "real"

When Whitney asked what I wanted for my birthday I said I wanted to go camping...for "real". (Up to this point in our marriage our idea of camping has been defined by running water, showers, and a semi comfortable bed...)Why I would would want to subject ourselves to pesky mosquitos, smelling like a camp fire, and sleeping on the ground...I don't know. Something about a weekend in the woods sounded appealing at the time.

We left most modern conveniences behind and headed for the hills on Friday afternoon. Just Whitney and I... on the road again! We arrived at Canyon Point (east of Payson) a little before dark. I knew it would be cold, but I wasn't quite prepared for how cold it was! Our first order of business was to put together the tent we borrowed. This, for me, was going to be the "real" test of the entire weekend... and our marriage (from what I hear:)) All things considered, it went surprisingly well. Whitney later admitted that he had practiced putting it up before we left to avoid any marital conflict. What a smart guy!

The weekend was full of fun...good food, hikes, games, gifts, naps and lots of laughs. From our experience Whitney and I have compiled a list of things we learned (often the hard way)

1. ALWAYS BRING AN EXTRA CAMPING CHAIR...just in case one blows into hot ashes and burns while you are taking a nap!

2. THE EASIEST WAY TO START A FIRE IS WITH FIRE STARTER BLOCKS...just ask Whitney. Although the boy scout thing works...the fire starter block works faster! In 20 degree weather time is of the essence.

3. YOU DON'T HAVE TO GIVE UP THE SEMI COMFORTABLE BED TO CAMP FOR "REAL"... Anyone who disagrees must be oblivous to the fact that the ground is hard! No matter what anyone else says...its still camping if you are sleeping on an air mattress.

On a side note...

4. WHO EVER SAID THAT 'TO GIVE IS TO RECEIVE' MUST HAVE UNDERSTOOD THE WAY WHITNEY THINKS... He is a great gift giver and this year was no exception. In addition to a video camera, he gave me a hydration pack (for hiking)...not 1...but 2!! AWESOME!...one for the front and the back!?! Not so! Whitney quickly informed me that he gave an extra one so that I could give one to a friend...wink wink. Well I bet you can guess how that went! I don't think he's realized what he's started...can't wait until his birthday...

Snow Day!!!

We tried all winter to get the snow to come to us, but in January we finally conceded that if we wanted a snow day, we would have to leave the valley to go up north. Thanks to Margayle, we were able to spend the weekend in her family's cabin in Strawberry. Much to our dismay, when we arrived at the cabin there was no snow there either! Determined to use our sleds, we drove up to the rim country and this is what we found....

It wouldn't be a fun snow day if it didn't end in casualty...and Kamee happened to be the lucky one! After the initial shock of having your face used as a sled, we finally convinced her how cool it was and that she would be able to show grandpa how much fun she had... She bought it till we got back to the house and had to clean it....That part was not so fun but she was a trooper!

What do you love about Christmas?

I know its a bit late...but I love Christmas and am sad that the season went by so fast... The holidays for me were such a whirlwind of activities. I went from one activity to the next without any real time to think about what actually needed to get done. It seemed I left everything to the last minute and even had to put on hold some of our normal holiday traditions. No worries...my new years resolution is to start planning for the holidays in about March. Maybe that way I will be ready when they arrive!

This year Whitney and I decided to give each other homemade gifts. It seemed as though he knew what he was going to make for me since before Halloween. I tried my darndest to get him to crack (it has worked every other time), but this time his lips were sealed. On the day before Christmas he told me that I was not allowed to come home until 4pm. That was unusual...he must have been up to something so I questioned him further. He still wouldn't budge, but he told me that no one was coming over. So I went to lunch that day with a friend from work and happened to drive by the house (it wasn't on purpose...I live about 1/2 mile from where I work and you can see the house from the main road) Guess what I saw? yup you guessed it... a car that looked strikingly like his mothers.
When I got home she was gone and I had new shelving in the laundry room. Thank you so much! That was incredibly thoughtful and exactly what I wanted.

But wait...Whitney wasn't done. He got me the leather bound set of church history books (SCORE!), some jewelry, a cute outfit (thanks again to his mom), a computer, and my most favorite gift of all...a homemade scripture case with pictures of the Savior, of us and my family on it. I couldn't have asked for anything better myself. It meant the world that he would take something that I treasure so much (my scriptures) and combine that with the people that I love the most. If there was really a "perfect" gift that would be it!

As for my homemade gift to him you might ask? Homemade Salsa and chips! I know it seems a little lacking and it is...but he LOVES it or he just tells me that. Either way I know he still loves me!

Here are a few photos detailing our Christmas day:

Congratulations ASU graduate!!

I am so proud of you Whitney and everything you have accomplished. ASU will miss one of it's finest...but I can now say...welcome home! All of the papers you had to write (and I had to edit), the projects that you had to stress about, the powerpoint presentations you had to create, the computer malfunctions you had to endure, the miles you had to drive, the meals you had to skip, and the nights you hardly got any sleep... are all worth it in the end! Four years of hard work has finally paid off. A bachelor of science degree in construction management!

Who would have thought hard hats would come in so handy? It was about the only way we recognized Whitney...well that and the fact that he was larger in stature than most of his Indian engineer friends. I love you!

Congrats!! Whitney Buhn...(pronounced BOONE). Sorry about the delayed celebration. We almost didn't recognize your name!




Now you are on to your next big adventure. CORE is lucky to have you!

1...2...3...Shopping?!?

This year for the holidays CORE was having a toy drive for kids. Whitney and I decided that we wanted to participate and since we are severely lacking in the "cool toys for kids" department, we decided to invite Jayce and Kamee with us to show us how to pick out "cool" toys. Before we embarked on what some may have considered "mission impossible", (shopping for toys with kids?!?) I briefed the youngsters on the purpose of our shopping trip and explained that some little kid's parents can't afford to buy Christmas gifts and that we were going to buy some gifts for a little boy and girl their age so that they had something to open on Christmas. Before we left the car I thought we needed a peppy type cheer to really get us in the mood so I said "put your hands in and on the count of three say... "Shopping"!! Whitney gave me the most pathetic look...All you could come up with was shopping? I know it was lame ...but it didn't matter. The only thing that did was finding the perfect toy. We all parted ways and...

the boys found...

A Soccer ball and some transformer toy

And the girls found...

A barbie and stuffed puppy

We sure had a fun time...maybe this is the start of a tradition for the years to come!!