Life as we know it

Life in Hawaii is great. School, school, school; Work, work, work = our lives. The ocean is beautiful - everyday as we pass it by, biking along to begin our daily routines. Every once in a while we have some fun. A couple of months ago we had a Honolulu getaway. We had such a great time! But nonetheless, we are so blessed. Prayers were definitely answered- the tsunami came to us and caused no damage. You never think that will happen to you - that in a matter of hours you have to pack your life up and head for the hills and pray that your home, your community do not get too demolished. We were too lucky. Heavenly Father was truly looking out for us.

Counting down the days til my parents come visit Shaun and I in Hawaii! I miss everyone in the mainland - family, friends, the quad cities, Arizona, old hangout spots, even Idaho.

Shaun's 24th Birthday

My lack of posts are a great example of my horrible habit of keeping up to date and in touch! Sorry! So LOTS has happened - I will try to update you in a random series of updates!! First, if you don't know I held a surprise 24th birthday party the Friday after his birthday! It went really well!! Shaun was soo surprised, he STILL thought we were going to Honolulu!! Haha silly husband! Jeremiah and Michelle Taylor seriously made everything happen! THANK YOU FRIENDS!! They made the most amazing dinner (Shrimp Alfredo -Shaun's favorite) and an amazingly beautiful super man themed cake!!!! So many people came (even those we didn't invite and ate our food and left without saying a word to us!! Don't get me started) and thank you friends that came and celebrated Shaun's birthday!!! (His actual birthday I made him a cake - not as good or pretty as his superman one!!!)

tis the season for change

I know that we are not the best at calling or emailing our loved ones to fill them in on our lives, so this blog is to let you in on our lives. So Shaun and I have been very busy with our school work. We are SOO excited for the Christmas break, even though we will not be home on the mainland for Christmas! I know there are 24 hours a day, but it honestly does not feel enough.

Time has flown by, the Fall semester is coming to an end, the Thanksgiving season has passed and the Christmas season has begun, and Shaun and I have been married for around 7 months already. Wow, time has flown by. This Christmas is very unique for both Shaun and I - for it's my first Christmas away from home, away from my family, and our first Christmas married and in a warm place! We were sad at first, but now we see it as an opportunity to create The Nelson family holiday traditions (I don't know what they will be yet, but there will be some ;) ). I guess Hawaii will be our new home sweet home. SO Decorations are a must so I created a Christmas Countdown poster and put it on our door. I also got a gold "Merry Christmas" wreath and wreath holder as a welcomer to our home. Oh yeah, I got the stockings! Stockings are one of THE MOST IMPORTANT things about Christmas! It's a start. My mom called me yesterday and said she is going to send us some Christmas decorations and since we can't be home for Christmas dinner, she is sending a Sam's Gift Card to buy the ingredients and is going teach me how to make a Christmas dinner via phone! That made my day! Thanks Mom you are really the greatest!!

Other than that, Shaun and I have started making some good married couple friends! Which makes me VERY HAPPY! Especially when we didn't have any for months! Yesterday was great because for one, Michelle and Ashleigh both offered us rides to church! Where is all this love coming from?! Haha, well Michelle and Jeremiah are so kind and gave us a ride to church. I can't wait to hangout with them over break and do some hiking! Ashleigh and her husband stopped by and we are planning to go ice-skating and to dinner on Friday! We are very excited!! Something to look forward to! They are such a fun couple! Then Ashlin and Mika came over for dinner! What a great evening! So we are planning to hangout for the Christmas break!

Hopefully Shaun and I will be able to visit the Big Island and go to the temple, it's been way too long! Also, we might go to Mulaki (I don't if I said that right) to stay with my mom's friend. That would be great!

Tis the season for change friends and family! We love you!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

La Playa

Even though our lives mainly consist of school and work, we SOMETIMES have fun! Right behind our home is a beautiful beach, but we rarely visit it (sad I know)! But when we have a chance we go out and swim in the perfect temperature water! I think its one of the nicest beaches around for sure. Not that many people go to it, so its not crammed with people!

I am so grateful to live a walking distance away from one of the most gorgeous creations of God- the ocean. The ocean has always been a place of peace and beauty for me, a place where you can collect your thoughts and just reflect on life. Its the perfect place to take the time to find yourself. But as shown by our pictures, its a place to have tons of fun and be goofy!

Our Home

my college house. yes, thats where kelly and i live.Kelly has to wake me up by ramming a log into a bell every morning, its my alarm clock for my house. Hahaha ok so we WISH this was our house. It's actually one of the main attractions at Valley of the Temples, like 20 minutes from us. It was soo beautiful! We also saw crazy huge goldfish and one with a massive tumor on it, weird.

missing the mainland

Soo I know I am bad at updating this blog! Shaun and I have pictures and more stories to put up but we have been so busy - but they are coming so don't worry! Life is crazy busy for Shaun and I, especially Shaun. Being a business major means pretty much you are putting a life outside of school aside! Crazy! I am just preparing to graduate next semester! Way exciting! We miss the mainland SOOO incredibly much! We miss everyone back in the mainland for sure! Hawaii is great but life could be so much better with the family and friends around for sure. You guys are terribly missed by us - so come visit us! Shaun and I are tired of everything being overpriced and far away!! So send care packages if you love us hahah!

By the way, I have to announce that one of my best friends -Jen Retherford- is PREGNANT!!! I am so extremely excited! I know she and cragen will be awesome parents! I can't wait to meet the new addition (9 months from now!) I am just so sad I can't be there with her!