Missionary Update

More than ten months has passed since Elder Moore entered the MTC in Provo, Utah. Eight months ago he landed in Resistencia, Argentina and began his adventure of serving the people of Argentina. Where does the time go? For several months, Taylor was not able to send us pictures with his emails because his camera cord was not working. So, we sent him a card reader and have since received some fun pictures of our missionary son and his happenings in a foreign land. Taylor is currently serving in the city of Corrientes. In fact, that is where he has been for over seven months. He has had three native Spanish speaking companions and one companion from the U.S. He has had four baptisms and a lot of frustrations. He has the feeling that he will be transferred in the upcoming transfer. Here are some of the pictures he has sent.

Elder Moore visiting Itati

Elder Moore's love for food! Thumbs up!

Elder Moore is learning to budget his money!

He needs to write down everything that he spends.

A taste of the city!

A Little Piece of Paradise

Why didn't we do this sooner? Two weeks in Hawaii...childless (well, mostly childless)...perfect weather...great food...beautiful beaches...you get the idea! As we near our one week mark, I thought I should blog some of our experiences to this point.

Diamond Head Volcano

We arrived on Thursday evening after an uncomfortable flight from Phoenix. We had an ADHD dad sitting in front of us who kept telling his young son to settle down, we had a family behind us who were loud and bumped our seats continually, and I had to climb over a slightly ornery man to use the bathroom a couple of times while on route to Hawaii (what do you expect when you are five months pregnant?). We were relieved when our baggage arrived with us, came off the carousel early, and the shuttle stop was right outside the airport doors. We were so ready to be at the hotel, check in, and get some dinner. I was so ready to remove the support hose the doctor ordered me to wear on the flight! We had an awesome shuttle driver who gave us a million ideas and hints for making the most of our Hawaiian vacation.

Staci waiting for the Waikiki Express!

On Friday and Saturday, our quest was to find a grocery store so that we would not have to eat all of our meals out. We did not want to spend what they were asking at the ABC Stores that are everywhere! We found a Walmart on Friday, but it did not have many food items. On Saturday, we were directed to Foodland where we happily stocked up on food items for our stay. Both days, we spent some time at the beach as well.

First day at the beach ~ Don't you love my new maternity swimming suit?

On Monday, we went on the Circle Island Tour. It was awesome! The tour was 120 miles and circled most of the island. I will share some of our stops with you.

Hanauma Bay (We will be snorkeling here next week!)

Larry at the Byodo-In Temple
(We rang the big gong for good luck.)

La'ie Point (75% of the land in the town of La'ie is owned by the LDS Church. The land is very well taken care of. The Polynesian Cultural Center, BYU Hawaii, and the Hawaiian LDS Temple are all located in La'ie.)

A basking turtle at Laniakea Beach. The turtles were playing in the water as well.

Larry and Staci as Hawaiian pineapples!
(We visited the Dole Pineapple Plantation, had yummy pineapple ice cream, and learned how pineapples are grown around the world.)

Two things I have learned up to this point in Hawaii... First, there is nothing I can do to keep my hair straight while in Hawaii; I have tried. The humidity loves my wavy hair! Second, it is very uncomfortable to sunbathe on your tummy as an expectant mommy; Larry dug a hole for my belly. Isn't that cute?

Today was another day at the beach... strong waves, warm temperatures, lots of surfers, and time to read and finish a book for the first time in months. Perfect! I will share more Hawaiian experiences after our trip to the Polynesian Cultural Center tomorrow.

Life's "Little" Mysteries

As I sit here and cuddle in my newly purchased "Boppy" pillow, I marvel at life's little mysteries. I decided that it was time to share our new phase of life with those who have not yet heard. On April 1st, Larry and I arrived home from the store with an early Easter gift for our children - a basket filled with Easter eggs. We told them to split up the treats that they would find inside the eggs. After opening the eggs, each child began to happily indulge in his/her treats. What I failed to mention is that while opening the eggs, the children found little toy babies inside as well. They commented on how cute the toys were. After the eggs were all opened, I asked them why they thought there were babies inside the eggs. Miranda nonchalantly commented that someone must be pregnant. Within seconds, the look on her face changed and she said, "It's not you, is it?" Larry and I smiled as we acknowledged that yes indeed it was true. It took us forever to convince the kids that we were not joking - due to the fact that it was April Fool's Day - not the best timing in the world! Over the past 17 weeks, I have experienced every emotion humanly possible... denial, anger, disbelief, uncertainty, resignation, acceptance, happiness, and excitement. After having spent so many years struggling to conceive Sarah, it amazes us that this little one will arrive nine years later much to our surprise. It was not a planned event in our lives but one in which we are now enjoying together as a family. The children are all excited about the new addition, and Taylor pointed out in his latest email that the age difference between him and the baby will be nearly the same as it is between him and me. Thanks, Taylor, for reminding me how old I am!

Considering my "Advanced Maternal Age," we have already had genetic testing and two ultrasounds. This past week we found out that our "little" one will be a boy. Larry commented that the Lord knows me well; I need order in my life and the need to keep the "pattern" going...boy, girl, boy, girl... boy. I am excited to have another boy. It really did not matter whether it was going to be a boy or girl; we have to buy all new baby gear anyway. So, as I experience the extreme fatigue (falling asleep on the couch at 4:00 after a long day at work) and feel every body ache and pain (hence, the new "Boppy" pillow), I remind myself how grateful I am for this little life I will carry inside me until his due date on November 24th. Here is our little boy's first photograph at 12 weeks:

Sprinklebelle Cakes

Sprinklebelle Cakes is a locally owned company operated by Jill Taylor. She makes the most creative cakes and more! Click on the link in my sidebar to learn more about her company and to enter to win a cake of your own!

Bonding Time

A bright red bottle of nail polish. That is all it takes for brother/sister bonding. I haven't had time to paint Sarah's nails lately, and she keeps asking. So, she asked Ethan and he said yes. It was the cutest sight ever! Ethan's first polishing experience, and Sarah's brightly colored toes and fingernails. Check it out!

(And, yes, Sarah was on the edge of the counter the whole time!)

Out With the Old, In With the New

The dreaded day arrived. Sarah stayed in bed as long as she could. Time for a trip to the dentist's office. Today was the day that Sarah would have some baby teeth pulled so that her permanent teeth would have some space to grow in.

After getting dressed, having breakfast, and taking Sarah's "before" pictures, Sarah and Mom left for Dr. Johansen's office. (The only thing Larry was worried about was whether or not I would actually make it through the surgery! No problem. I even stayed in the room the whole time!)

Sarah was so cute through the procedure. She laughed at the numbness in her mouth and tried so hard to smile. She said she felt like a bunny rabbit with her puffy-feeling face. She kept looking in the mirror to see if her face was swollen. She drooled all the way home! Now that the procedure is complete, let the new teeth move on in!

A Visit From Elder Snow and Elder Frost

You know the saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade?" Our darling little Sarah did just that. As the rest of us grumbled about the spring time snowstorm, Sarah donned her snow gear and headed outside. She was thrilled to have enough snow to finally make a snowman again. Her last snowman was in December. We had planned on making snowmen at the annual Allen family party this year, but in January there was not enough snow to make a snowman. We had planned to win the snowman building contest by making missionary snowmen. So, we made laminated tags and all. Since the idea was lost to the lack of snow, the missionary tags were put away with the snowman kit. Larry and I left to run an errand, and when we came home, we were welcomed by Elder Snow and Elder Frost. Miranda had gone out to help Sarah lift the snowballs onto the snowman and stayed outside to help her make the pair. What a sweet sister!

Elder Snow and Elder Frost