The Best Fat Lip Ever

Another basketball injury:

This is Steven the next morning:

Action Jackson

Here are a few pictures of Jackson's latest adventures:

Mom is trying to take a nap, but Jackson wants to play!

TP down the hall!

Jackson wants to help in the kitchen!

Book of Mormon

Steve and I have been trying to get more involved with missionary work while we are here in LA. We've be going to "lessons" with the full time missionaries and getting to know the investigators. I've also been trying to be more outgoing and initiate more conversations about the gospel.

Last week a man came over to inspect our air conditioning system. Before he came I challenged myself to have a missionary experience with him. So I welcomed him in and asked if he minded if I played the piano while he worked. He said he didn't mind, in fact he wished that someone played at all the homes he visited. We talked a little bit about his involvement with music. I started practicing the Hymns that I was supposed to play on Sunday for Sacrament Meeting. To my surprise, he started singing along to "Count Your Many Blessings". I stopped playing and asked how he knew the song, to which he replied he used to sing it at church growing up. I asked which church he attended, and he told me the name, but said that he hasn't gone in a long time. He said "Maybe you can tell me what church you go to". So I wrote down the address of the church on a pass-along card and gave it to him with our phone number. He finished his work, and before he left, I thought I'd give him a Book of Mormon I had. So I pulled it out of my bag and said, "Here, this is what sets us apart from other churches" and as I handed it to him, he looked surprised and said "I can take this?" And I said "Of course. Read it. It will change your life". I remember those words because they just came out and he looked kind of emotional and said "Thanks, I really need that". And then he left.

So, I'm a missionary in training.

Here we are with the Elder Byron and Elder Parker.

(Elder Parker is from Rire, ID)

Day at the Beach and Etc.

Wait for it! Wait for it!

Where did Aunt Liz go?!

Monday we went to Crystal Cove Beach. It really wasn't the greatest beach, or the greatest weather. But our Utah/Idaho family were grateful for the sand and ocean anyway.

(See the whiteness!)

Here is Uncle JD holding Jackson. He was surprised by a wave.

MOM! SAVE ME!

We took a walk to look for tidepools (which were all covered in high tide water). When we returned to our towels we found that we had been visited by seagulls.

We love the beach!


Tuesday we visited Steve at USC campus. Here is Jackson looking like Uncle Bilbo Baggins from Lord of the Rings, when he wants to see the ring one last time:

We took JD and Liz to the AMAZING fabric district. Jackson loved feeling the different fabrics. He has a compulsion to put his face on anything soft!

Good thing we brought the stroller along to carry all our great finds.

We stayed up late every night playing board games, Settlers of Catan, Agricola, Thurin and Taxis, Ticket to Ride. I actually won Settlers the last night, but I can't find the picture of my happy face.

JD and Liz, thanks for coming, we loved it!