Like Father, Like Daughter...

Kaitlyn thinks that both of these pictures are of her. Yes, the one on the left is actually of her dad, Steve! Now I need to find a picture of me at that age.

Ward Valentines Dance

We had a lot of fun at our ward Valentine's Dinner Dance. I love the Angel Park Ward! Everyone is so friendly and so much fun. I'm thankful for all the friendships we've made. Now I know there are some pretty awesome dancers in the neighborhood, too!

Tag--I'm It!!

1. Rules of the game are posted at the beginning of post.
2. The player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves
3. At the end of the post the players then tags 6 other bloggers, and posts their names.

Well, here it goes...I've been racking my brain to think of 6 things about myself that other people might enjoy reading. Hopefully you'll learn something new about me.

#1 I love children's books!

I started buying children's books when I was in college. I was studying to be an elementary school teacher, and so I wanted to start a small collection for my classroom. I bought a lot of used books at libraries, and went to any book sale I heard about. After getting my degree (I went to Ricks for 2 years and then graduated from Utah State) I became a teacher.

I had my first interview while I was student teaching. I went into the interview hoping to get the position of a 4th grade teacher. By the end of the interview the principal asked me if I wanted to be the school's music teacher! I accepted and it ended up being a really good experience. I taught 1st-6th graders. The next three years I taught 4th grade.

Anyway, I kept buying books while I was a teacher. I'll admit...it was kind of an addiction. When Kaitlyn was born and I decided to stop teaching, Steve said, "You better not bring home all those books." I gave away a couple hundred books, and now I have over 300 childrens books in our house. Maybe this is why Kaitlyn loves books so much!

#2 The custodian at my high school thought I was an exchange student!
I lived in Albuquerque, New Mexico from age 5-16. One day in high school I was eating lunch with a few of my friends from our ward in the cafeteria (there were about 20 L.D.S. kids in our 2500 student school) and the custodian came up to me and said, "So where are you from?" I just looked at him and he continued, "Well, what country are you here from?" I guess that mistaking me as an exchange student in my own country might have been because I was just part of a handful of people with blonde hair. Ok, I know my hair is probably considered brown, but it was naturally a little lighter in high school and when you are one of the few that don't have black hair, it's just considered blonde. My high school was probably about 75% hispanic, 20% black, 5% white. It definitely made for some interesting moments! I loved living in Albuquerque. I think I was able to have a lot of experiences that I wouldn't have had living here in Utah. Here are a few:

In high school I was able to play volleyball my sophomore year (those of you who have played ward volleyball with me know that I am no good).

I was always in the "Top Ten" students of highest GPA in my grade (I think when I moved to Utah my GPA put me at about #150!)

One day in my Sophomore Honors English class, a note was brought to my teacher from the office. It instructed her to send all the "minority" students to the office for scholarships. When all but about 5 or 6 of us didn't go to the office, I somehow felt like "minority" was a poor choice of words. Maybe I should've been getting a scholarship!

It rarely snowed in Albuquerque. It would snow a couple times a year, and only a couple of inches. When it did, though, the entire city would shut down. School would be closed over an inch or two of snow. It was usually melted by the afternoon, but we enjoyed sledding and attempting to make snowment with the little snow there was on those snow days with no school.

I LOVE green chile! Growing up with really good Mexican (or New Mexican) food I'm always hesitant to go to a Mexican restaurant here in Utah. I do love Cafe Rio, though. FYI--their green chile is grown in Hatch, New Mexico. Also, the Blue Iguana is really tasty!

Living in Albuquerque I was able to have a lot of missionary experiences. One of my really good friends in high school got baptized and this is what made me want to serve a mission.

One of the traditions that I remember and loved about living in New Mexico was putting out Luminarias (loo-mee-nah-ryahs) NOT Luminaries at Christmas time. Sorry that's a little pet pieve I have about how that word is pronounced. Anyway, every Christmas Eve we would get brown lunch paper bags, fold down the top about an inch, fill it with a little bit of sand and a tea candle and light the luminarias lining our sidewalk up to our door. One year my sister Lori was helping light the candles and her long hair fell into one of the bags as she was lighting the candle. Let's just say burning hair REALLY stinks!

#3 I love Sushi!

F.Y.I. Sushi doesn't necessarily mean raw fish. However, I do think that raw fish sushi tastes the best! The word for raw fish is "sashimi". I guess I acquired this love for sushi from serving a mission in Japan. I was in the Kobe and Nagoya missions (they realigned the missions while I was there). I learned to speak Japanese, but I don't think I was ever really that great at the language. I seriously couldn't understand a single word when I first got there. I slowly learned enough to be a good missionary and teach the gospel. It was a great experience. I learned so much about myself, and I loved teaching and serving the Japanese people. Here are some things I love about Japan:

The Japanese word "Kigatsuku" means “an inner spirit to act without being told what to do.” I don't know a one-word english translation for this Japanese word, but it basically means thinking of others before thinking of yourself. A simple example someone once told me was this: When sitting down for dinner and someone's glass of water is empty, if you are "kigatsuku" then you will fill their glass with water before they even ask for it. The Japanese people are definitely so kind and willing to do simple service like this.I hope that I can be more like them in this way.

Japanese is read in Kanji characters, along with hiragana or katakana alphabet characters, vertically, from right to left. So basically when you pick up a Japanese book it looks like it's backwards...the binding is on the right side.

My maiden name is "Dahl" (pronounced "Doll"). In Japan, though, they can't really make that sound, so I had to change my name to Sister "Daru" (prounounced da-roo shi-mai).

Japanese food is oishii!!! If anyone ever wants to go to the restaurant "Happy Sumo", then call me-it's my favorite place to eat!!! It's in the Gateway in Salt Lake and it is SO good!!!


#4 Here are some random (but not so exciting) things about me:

I love ice cream, especially if it has Reeses or any form of chocolate and peanut butter.
I have a bad habit of looking for split ends in my hair.
My favorite TV show is "The Biggest Loser".
I like to color.
I love digital scrapbooking.
I love my husband and my kids.
I don't like it when people talk during movies.
I like to vacuum.
I love cleaning the wax out my ears.


#5 I Have a Talent That Get's You No Where!

Does anyone know of a job where good handwriting can make you some money? Ya, I don't think with computers that there is really any point to having nice handwriting anymore, but that is one area where I have some talent! Yes...making posters, calligraphy, bubble letters, hand-made certificates, I can do it all! But honestly, who needs that when you can whip out the computer, download cool fonts and digital scrapbook? I have heard of being able to make a font with your own handwriting. I think that would be pretty cool. Then I could use my own handwriting on my scrapbook pages and for typing in my journal. Has anyone heard or know how to do this?



#6 I Love to Mow The Lawn!

Yes, I know this is a little wierd, but there's something about mowing the grass that I just love! Ok, I will admit I am a little obsessed with having perfectly straight lines in my grass, but don't you think it just looks so nice that way? I'm sure as the neighbors saw me mowing the lawn last summer as I became more and more huge and pregnant they thought either I was crazy, or Steve was just lazy (he's definetely not). I will also admit...it really, REALLY gets on my nerves when my lawn has been newly mowed and the lines are all nice and straight and then I look out my back window and see that someone has ridden their bike around in circles and has messed up the grass! Steve has reminded me several times that this is not a big deal and I need to stop being so obsessed over the way our grass lines look. I am excited for Spring to come. Warm weather, being outside, mowing the lawn--it sounds so good right now!



Ok...I want to tag: Kami Wood (no pressure Kami, let's figure out how to get a blog started for you), Michelle B., my sister Natalie Dahl, my mom Lorraine Dahl, and I'm going to see if my husband reads our own blog and so for the fun of it I want to tag Steve!

Puppies for Lunch???

A few days ago I asked Kaitlyn if she would like a hot dog for lunch. With excitement in her voice she exclaimed, "Puppies...lunch!"

Happy, Laughy Michael!

Michael is such a happy baby. We tried to catch him laughing on video, however you can also hear Kaitlyn laughing in the background. Oh well, two happy kids is never a bad thing! Michael is a great baby--already 4 months old. He rolled over for the first time yesterday.

I Am a Child of God

I can't believe how much Kaitlyn is growing up! Just in the last week she has surprised us in being able to sing "I Am a Child of God" and also saying an entire prayer from start to finish--all on her own!

We sat down for dinner a few nights ago and Steve said, "Let's say the blessing." Kaitlyn folded her arms and proceeded all on her own with these words:

"Heavenly Father: Thank you for this day. Thank you for the food. Families. Name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

Steve and I actually opened our eyes during the prayer and looked at each other with amazement. I couldn't believe that our 25 month old daughter just said an entire prayer with no help at all! That is a precious moment in my life that I hope to remember forever.

Kaitlyn's recent experiences have helped me to realize how much children are always listening and watching, whether we know it or not. She is the first to repeat anything I say or do. I also have realized how much Kaitlyn learns from going to nursery at church each week. She has wonderful nursery leaders who teach her so much. Thank you!

Kaitlyn's favorite songs she loves to sing are: "I Am a Child of God", "Once There Was a Snowman", and "Ring Around the Rosies". Check out her rendition of "Ring Around the Rosies" in this video:

Remembering President Gordon B. Hinckley

President Gordon B. Hinckley

June 23, 1910-January 27, 2008

Steve and I were able to go to President Hinckley's funeral in the Conference Center this morning. It was a neat experience to be there in that beautiful building that came about because of his efforts. I was doing pretty well holding the tears in until they showed pictures of the prophet throughout his presidency. A fountain of tears streamed down my face as I felt how much I loved this prophet. When his casket was being wheeled out of the conference center, I remembered when President Hinckley would leave each session of Conference out that same door and would wave his cane to the audience. I felt a sadness as I realized I would not see him wave his cane again. I will miss the love he showed toward all of us. He truly was a great man and is a prophet of God. I am thankful for the things he has taught me, for the spirit I have felt in his presence, and the teachings that he leaves as a legacy for us all.