Heart to Heart

Tonight I said goodbye to my "buddy" that I mentioned in the previous post. We started our time together by doing the hard stuff, the saying goodbye part. I do a little goodbye ritual with my kiddos and to be honest I think maybe I should revise it cause it often leads to a good amount of tears and heartfelt messages (okay I know I won't change it, but it is tough sometimes). So this is how it went.

I reminded him that we were going to say goodbye tonight. I asked him how he could remember me and he said "in my heart." (I had previously talked to him how he would always be in my heart and that he could think of me in the future even though we don't see each other again and if he every was feeling sad he could just think about me and that his heart would feel better etc.)
I then taught him how we would say our goodbyes which included putting our hands on each other hearts and then sharing a message of any kind to the other while our hand is on their heart.

I went first, I put my right hand on his heart and looked into his eyes and I explained to him how he has left a handprint on my heart and how that handprint can never be taken away. I told him about how I will always remember him, how proud of him I am, and what a great little kiddo he is (he is 6). I told him how he can think of me and reminded him of what he has learned in therapy. I wished him goodluck and said goodbye.

He had tears in his eyes, me too, and then his teacher at school walked in. It was his turn and he just froze. I then asked him if he wanted to continue with our goodbye with his teacher in the room or if he wanted her to leave. He then said that he wanted her to leave because what we were doing was "special, just for us."

After she left the room it was his turn.

My little buddy then proceeded to put his hand on my heart, his cute little tiny hand, looked straight into my eyes, with glossy little brown eyes, and said "I will never forget you."

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And this is what it is about.

I could not believe it. This kid, a six year old boy, did what so many adults can't even do. He spoke the truth, from his heart, stared me straight in the eyes, dealt with some big emotions and one of the hardest things to do in life...Say goodbye. Man I couldn't be more proud, so touched and so happy. I of course have cried a handful of times tonight retelling this story and just thinking about it.

I will always remember this little buddy. His cute face, sitting on his grandma's front porch stairs playing games, his puffy spikey hair, his grumpy face, him always talking about my TOMS shoes I wear, his smile, the way he would smirk when I would catch him lying, him running up from behind me and surprising me with a hug, how he once asked me right after we met if I was a boy (I had my hair in a pony tail and was wearing a polo...note to self get ready more for work), and of course his last meaningful words he shared with me.

I needed tonight with my little buddy.

My soul is smiling

Things lately have been...well...crazy. No complaints as things have been good, but busy nonetheless. Aaron started his new gig full time here in LA, and we couldn't feel more blessed. It just so happens that his new job is right around the corner from where we live and has made us feel more at home here in Los Angeles. While we could live a few different places and be super happy we have really felt such a connection to LA and feel that this is where we need to be at this time in our life. Of course that means continuing to trade in our home in SLC for our apartment in the city. But what a wonderful city it is. I know for some LA may seem like the complete opposite of where they would want to live. Afterall it is busy and crowded. However, the neighborhoods in West LA where we live are as charming as could be. Tree lined streets, park, community rec centers, museums and of course amazing lil eateries. Needless to say we are pretty smitten with LA and are so thankful to be able to call this our home for now.

So here we are living our lives in LA. Aaron is working his 10+ hour days, me my 10 hour days, Aaron is doing scouts, me Young Women's, and trying to fit in as much time to enjoy the great city we live in with friends, family and our dogs.

In the midst of all this business I have had some great moments lately that have rejuvenated my soul:

• I have been working with this 6 year old little boy and well the time has come for us to part. He has made so much progress in therapy and he is ready to move on and spread his wings and fly. I had to break this news to him a couple of weeks ago and even though I tried with my cheer and attitude to help him understand what a good thing this was for him, he was not having it. He started to cry and got pretty upset. When I asked him why he thought he was so sad and angry he replied "you are not supposed to split up buddies." True my little one, you are NOT supposed to split up buddies. How do you reply to that one. He is right. You may be wondering why this is on the list of great moments, well it was just a sweet tender moment and made me feel so lucky to be considered this little guys buddy.
• I have been spending lots of time with the young women of LA at our church and I must say this is one of my most favorite things. Last week I had two great moments with them. One was at our weekly activity on Tuesday night where one of the girls talked about her receiving her Young Womanhood Recognition (Personal Progress awared, the Eagle Scout to girls) and she talked about one of her favorite activities was when she imagined that Christ was with her at all times for 1 week. I love that she said "I am a good girl and it was still hard." Could you imagine if we lived more like this, imagining the Savior by our side all day. I just loved that she did this as one of her projects and it made me really think about how different we would all treat eachother, act, and do if we did this.
  
• Last week I went and supported our ladies doing baptisms at the temple. It was such a treat. I got to help the ladies when they were done and just look after them. I loved sharing such an intimate experience with them and being there to great them after they did work for the Lord. It was so great to see the ladies who work so hard to keep themselves clean to entire the Lord's house and to be there with them as they sacrificed their time to serve the Lord.
• I booked a flight to visit my lil nephews and that alone has filled me with so much joy I can barely contain myself. I have missed them and Matt and KT so much lately. They are coming out here in April, but I just could not wait that long. It is lil Georgie's 1st Birthday this week, and although I can't be there for his Birthday celebration, I will be there the week after, similar to last year when I had the privilege to spend time with them after he was born. I can't wait to see them and squeeze them.
• The beauty of LA has been amazing lately. It has rained off and on and it has been just stunning. We visited Griffith Park and the Observatory the other day and took in the breathtaking view of LA. The coolest part is that this is a canyon that makes you forget you are in LA, it looks like a canyon in Utah, all lush and green. I love being able to explore trails in the hills at one point of the day and the beach at another. It really seemed like we were somewhere else. We even got to see a coyote run by our car. We stopped and ate this to die for apple pie at this little cabin on our way down the canyon, it was simply divine.
• Homemade bread!!! Aaron's parent got him this book How to Make Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day, and it really and truly is incredible. He makes the most beautiful loaves of bread every week. We deliver them to friends and neighbors and enjoy some fabulous grilled cheese too! I love that my Aar Bear loves to cook so much. He finds so much joy in it and he is pretty fab at it. We have so much fun in the kitchen and exploring all the eateries around town.
• My Dream is getting married in May and I can't wait. Aims is so great and I am so happy that she has found such a darling man to marry. I almost feel as happy as I did when I was getting married. It will be the ultimate celebration.

What is making your soul smile these days?

Olympians

What am I going to do when I have kids to make sure they go to the olympics. I mean of course I would want them to get a medal, but I would be cool even if they just made it there. Does this seem like too much to ask and hope for? Are kids will be short though so I got to think about the sports they would be good at. Gymnastics, ice skating (I am flexible and let's be honest much better when they are super flexible), snowboarding, surfing (maybe by then this will be in the olympics), soccer.

Our kids have a lot of expectations, dreams, and hopes already so they best be ready.

Modern Family

I just want to put it out there that I LOVE Modern Family. It is so brilliant. Anyone else find as much joy in it as I do?

Some favorite holiday pics

I finally got around to going through the abundant amount of pics from the holidays. I came across some adorable ones of my nephews. I have to say I love them. It is true, I love them like crazy. It was so much fun spending time with them at my parents house. A few things about Liam: He loves his Peppermint Ice Cream, is in love with his trains, likes to fix things, and is the sweetest brother in the world. A things about Georgie: he moves fast, is super smiley, and a big cuddle bug.

Liam enjoying his Peppermint Ice Cream. I think it is too funny that this kid loves peppermint ice cream, york patties, and candy canes.

See the smile on this kiddos face. How adorable is lil Georgie.

Me and my buddy Liam. We would go on mini adventures in the backyard. So cute he would say "Krissy you want to go on an adventure with me?" How could I say no. He loves to explore and is so interested in the world and how things work.

Liam checking on his train that Punka puts out for him. When the train would not start or would get stuck you would hear Liam say "I think it's out of gas," "I think the engine is broken," "I think we should call Punka and have him fix it." Too cute. He loves to work on his train.

This lil guy was moving around the entire time. Crawling super fast all around the house. He even started to walk while in AZ over Christmas. You can tell he wants to be right there with his brother.

Me and the kiddos on the morning of my birthday.

Some of my most favorite ladies. I used to work with this crew in Salt Lake. I had some of the best memories, learning experiences and crazy days with them.

Great friends is what makes life even better!!!

Mr. Murray with his buddy Bear.

Our family on Christmas Eve.

Stir Crazy

I don't know where the saying comes from, but I have been going stir crazy the last couple of days. On Wednesday I got a minor surgery done on a mole I had removed a month ago due it coming back precancerous...YUCK. So since it was on my tummy I haven't been able to do much for the last couple of days. On top of this I got a cold...super rad I know. So I have been in bed pretty much for 2 days. Today I started to feel a little better in terms of my tummy soreness, so I took some cold medicine and Aaron took me to Malibu for a few hours. We finally ate at the dive on PCH Neptune's Net. I had been wanting to go for awhile now. It was pretty yummy. The shrimp basket was delicious and I am for sure going to head back there. Such a short drive from where we live so why not. After we ate we headed to watch surfers and the ocean for a bit. We stopped at El Matador State Beach and walked around a bit and enjoyed the scenery. Of course the natural beauty was amazing, but the homes honestly were NUTSO!!! There were starfish everywhere and I was like a little kid running around, pointing to them and being super stoked. It was a great lil getaway and helped me not feel so cooped up. Now that I am home I am ready to head back to bed. But thought I would get back to being a bit more regular on our posts. So check out a few of our pics from the day. Speaking of pictures I finally started clearing off my pictures off my computer onto my external hard drive. I moved 4, 000 over today and still have 5, 000 to go. Needless to say it cleared up some extra memory space on my computer.








Thanks to my Aar Bear for getting me out so I do not loose my mind.

Holiday Time

No lie it has been tough to get back to life the last few weeks after the holidays.

It was a great time away. Aaron and I started our break in Utah and then ended it in Arizona. We were able to fit in time with family and friends and it really was the perfect holiday. It was cold in Utah, but I feel like we timed it perfectly and had pretty skies and no driving in snow. I loved it, I really did. Nothing beats AZ in the winter it was so green and beautiful and we got lots of time with my buddies Liam and George...really if I love them this much I can't imagine how much I will love our own lil ones someday.

While we took lots of pics, most are on Aaron's computer which has recently run out of battery and his charger no longer works...well it sparks, so it is a hazard. So not a big photo post, but I will post a few. Of course the best pics, with the lil guys, are on Aaron's computer

It really was a great trip. It was nice to have 10 days off work where I did not have to worry or look at my computer once. I turned 27 and started to feel pretty old I must say. One thing is for sure, we are ready for 2010.

Aaron and I on my birthday, Christmas Eve. We did a birthday breakfast in the morning and then spent the evening at his parent's house. I love being able to be with those I love on my birthday every year.

Since we stayed at Matt and KT's while in UT we were able to take Bear to the park everyday to play some fetch. He was in heaven and it was so cute to watch him go crazy in the snow.