Hawaii!!

To celebrate our anniversary, David and I went to Hawaii for 10 days and stayed the entire time on Oahu. There is so much to see and do. The weather was perfect and we had a great time. Since we have been home, I have been asked what my favorite part was and I must say I liked SHOPPING the best - :o). Actually, at the Polynesian Cultural Center, you can go to the different "Polynesian countries" and get a demonstration of what their culture is like. I especially liked Samoa - their show was really entertaining and the young men giving the presentation were very funny. I also quite liked the Parade of Canoes, where each country presented their native dance and music. We went to Pearl Harbor, went shopping, took the Circle Island Tour, went on a lunch cruise, went shopping, went to the US Army museum, went shopping, saw the King's changing of the guard drill team, took the bus to the swap meet at the Aloha Stadium, and then we did a little more shopping. Here are a few pictures.

The view from our room

Yummy slushies in a real pineapple at the luau at the Polynesian Cultural Center
The memorial wall on the USS Arizona
On the way back to the hotel after visiting Pearl Harbor

All of the above pictures were taken at various places on our trip around the island. We also stopped at the Dole Plantation and a macadamia nut farm.

Lunch cruise to see some dolphins - there really were quite a lot of them but I'm not a very good photographer and didn't capture them when they were jumping up out of the water. We also saw a couple of whales and a turtle poked his head up out of the water and spit at us.

Our last day in Hawaii (*heavy sigh*). We had a wonderful time but we were glad to be home, until it turned REALLY cold and windy here in Palmdale. Now I wish I was back in Hawaii, enjoying the sunshine and warmth. Oh well, until next time...

Stuff

It's such a nice evening - the sun has gone down and there's a little breeze blowing. It has cooled off from earlier today. I was sitting outside and thinking about the craziness that comes with children and grandchildren.

Saturday, October 10th, we took Ethan and Tai to see Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3D. They seemed to enjoy the movie, kept their 3D glasses on most of the time and sat pretty still. We met up with Heather and Cody who were babysitting 5 children for some friends. One of the kids was with her friends and didn't come to the movies. I must admit, I was a little nervous about having 6 children at the movies, age 12 and younger. But they were all really well-behaved. Even the youngest, Adam, was really good through both movies.

Lunch before the movies

Just got our tickets

After the movies, sporting our cool 3D glasses! (Left to right - Herschel, Cody, Shelby, Tai, David, Jill, Ethan, Adam, and Camden)

Then on Tuesday, October 13th, my oldest brother turned 50! I can't believe it! I still feel like we're kids. Anyway, Cary and I work in the same office, so I did a little decorating.

Here's Cary in front of my work of art. Everyone was asking, "Why black??" Some even thought it is because I am a Raiders fan (Cary is not). I kept telling them "It's because he's OLD, over-the-hill, catch-up eligible (a little retirement speak there), etc!"

Then we took the old guy out to dinner at Dr. Hogly Wogly's in Panorama City. This place has the best brisket and fresh bread anywhere! Dinner was delicious!

Cary, mom, David, Jill

On Wednesday, October 14th, Derek and Naomi dropped the kids off at David's office before going to the Temple. I sent the camera to work with David that day and here are the pictures he took....





Oh, that's right - he forgot the camera on his desk so no pictures of the kids at his office or mine. But everyone at both offices now knows what cute grandchildren we have because they've seen them in person!

Now on to Friday, October 16th. David, Nathan, and I went to the National League Division playoff game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies. The first 7 1/2 innings were pretty uneventful. The Phillies scored early on a 1 run homer and then nothing happened until the bottom of the 8th. The Dodgers scored 2 runs and the rest, as they say, is history.

Today, October 17th, was our Stake Relief Society Temple Day and Heather and I went together. On the way home, we stopped to eat. There was a gentleman having quite a conversation with himself right behind us. I went to get a drink and when I returned, Heather was talking to him. He asked her if she liked the Old Testament or New Testament best. She said she likes the New Testament because it tells us so much about Jesus. He agreed but said he likes the whole Bible. She told him he should read the Book of Mormon and to find the missionaries. She also told him it shouldn't be too hard to find them because, "Mormons are everywhere." Someday, I want to be a good missionary, just like Heather! :o)

What will the next few weeks hold for us?

Saturday, October 3, 2009 - What a Day!!

What a busy day... Up early to do some grocery shopping; set the DVR to record Conference; made up Conference Bingo cards; shopping with Jesi for wedding stuff; decorating the house for Halloween; sent the boys off to the General Priesthood meeting; girls off to have some fun!; grandkids over while Derek and Naomi went to dinner with friends; and finally, watching the Dodgers clinch the National League West title.

I love Halloween!

David, Shane, and Cody, all spiffed up and lookin' good!

Mmmmmmm, guacamole...

Before...

After...

The cutest grandchildren EVER!

Evey helping Grandma and Grandpa celebrate the Dodger victory!

We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family - how did we ever get so lucky?

Napoleon Dynamite

I have been looking for the following pictures for quite some time, wanting to put them on the computer. I had forgotten that we lost the memory card that they were on but then found them printed out in my picture drawer so scanned them in.

My mother grew up in Preston, Idaho, where the movie "Napoleon Dynamite" was filmed. In 2005, my mother's side of the family held the family reunion in Preston, as usual. While there, we got a map from the Chamber of Commerce and proceeded to take the "Napoleon Dynamite tour". The kids loved this movie and could quote several lines from it. Holly used to be able to do the Napoleon dance - maybe she still can :o). Here are some of the pictures we took.

Jesi & Holly under the Napoleon Dynamite Lane street sign

Napoleon's house

Pedro's house

Preston High School (my mother attended this school in the '50s)

The following pictures are from the family reunion. We had more, but these are the only ones I could find that were printed out. Don't know how Uncle Benson scored the van.

Guess how many tater tots are in the pocket

Uncle Rico's van

Only Jesi and Holly were able to join us that year. I thoroughly enjoyed watching them and laughing about the different parts of the movie as we took our tour. What great fun!

FHE... and the Dodgers

Take me out to the ballgame...

David and I love our family. We also love the Dodgers. So for a recent family home evening, we went to a Dodger game. Since we have hungry boys, we decided the all-you-can-eat pavilion was a good choice. Here we are, enjoying being together and watching the Dodgers. The only disappointment of the evening was that the Dodgers lost - boo hoo :o(...

Nathan, David, Jill, Holly

Jesi, chocolate malt, Shane

Cody and Heather

Morris Minutia

David & Jill met in 1999 on LDS Singles Online. Seven months later we were married. David is the Chief Financial Officer for a plumbing company in North Hollywood. He is also serving on the High Council in the Palmdale Stake. Jill is a Compliance Specialist for Kravitz, Inc. where she has worked for over twelve years. She is serving as Primary Secretary in the Palmdale 5th Ward. Sports is our passion, second only to our family. This year, we decided to begin a baseball journey. We are planning to attend a baseball game in every major league stadium. We have been to three stadiums this year - Petco Park in San Diego, Anaheim Stadium, and Dodger Stadium. This is only the beginning...

Heather & Cody were married on January 31, 2009. Heather nannies two or three days a week while seeking other employment. Cody works at In-N-Out and will also be attending school. He wants to be an Air Traffic Controller when he grows up :o). They are currently living with us. Both have been on the Activities Committee but word is there is another calling coming soon. Heather is very helpful around the house and is a much better cook than I am!


Derek & Naomi will celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary in November. Derek owns a Martial Arts studio where he teaches Martial Arts classes as well as Japanese language and culture classes. Naomi stays busy raising their three children - Ethan, who will be 4 in September, Tai who is 2 1/2, and Evey who is almost 7 months old. They recently moved into their first home and it is lovely.

Nathan works at Pharmacy Rideshop where he is a manager. He has also done "extra" work in movies, videos and TV. This is a picture of him with short hair and the beard is gone - isn't he cute? Those who know him, please encourage him to return to his unhairy self...

Jesi received her Associates degree in 2008. She is currently working as a Photography Manager for Lifetouch School Photography. She is engaged to Shane and is planning their wedding on February 20, 2010 in the Redlands, California Temple. She is serving as a Primary teacher and Shane just received a call to be a teacher in the Elders Quorum.

Holly will be returning in 10 days to BYU Provo for her sophomore year. She has been working this summer and has been without her car (hear the screams in the background?). She recently attended the YSA conference here in California and is helping out in the Nursery. We miss her when she's away but know she's studying hard (after procrastinating a bit) and is in a good school with like-minded individuals.

Nephi has been part of our family for six years. He is almost always somewhere close to David or me. When we read, watch TV, and even while we're sleeping, he is usually nearby. His only fault is the amount of fur he leaves on the carpet.

So there you have the Morris's in a nutshell. I will post more pictures of the grandkids, and yes, Shane, I'll even put one on here of you!

We are a crazy and busy bunch but WOW, I love these people!

I can't believe I'm finally blogging...

I have been wanting to set up a blog for quite a while. When Heather lived in Orange County, I followed her blog and saw she was doing well and was happy (okay, reasonably happy while waiting for Cody to return from his mission). It's fun to look at pictures and see what the family is up to. I finally joined Facebook, after resisting for a long time. I have found lots of extended family members and old friends and am quite addicted. So the next step was a blog. With OODLES of help from Heather, here we are.

This is just the start. More to follow when I'm more awake - it's been a long day!