Friday, September 16, 2011
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Kauai
So we just got back from Kauai this last week. And yes I wrote down what we did everyday so I wouldn't forget. So now I'm going to blog about it and it might be kinda long (just a warning)... But it was seriously sooooo beautiful!! I had no idea what a jungle it is there. I knew Hawaii had palm trees and beaches but I didn't realize how many different kinds of trees/plants there are in a 20 foot radius!
Anyways, about the trip. The morning of our flight neither of us woke up to our alarms and had to grab everything and rush to the airport. Luckily we didn't miss our flight! We got to Hawaii at about 11 am so that was nice because of the time difference we still got most of the day to play. The first day there we just went and ate and played at the beach and got some groceries for our hotel room.
The next day we went to the beach again. Then we went to a waterfall called Kipu Falls. We picked up a local hitchhiker on the way there.. little did we know he was actually a monkey! But I'll get to that in a minute. So we get to this beautiful place and hike a little bit up to the waterfall. At the waterfall you can jump off and there is also a rope swing. It was so great watching people jumping into the water below. I even worked up the courage to jump off.. and it wasn't as bad as I thought! But this monkey boy was crazy on the rope swing and he was climbing a big tree out to the very end branches and jumping into the water which is about a 50 foot drop I think (I don't judge distances very well). So this was one of my favorite parts of the vacation. We went to the beach and a couple other places this day and then in the evening we went to the Marriot and played frisbee on the beach there and swam. We got this amazing dessert called Hula Pie... best dessert ever! It was an ice cream pie with oreo crust and macadamia nuts, whipped cream, and hot fudge. I'm craving it right now.
The next day we went snorkeling at Tunnels Beach. This was my first time snorkeling ever. Let's just say I didn't catch on immediately. I was so scared of that water getting in my snorkel tube. And so scared of everything basically. But when I finally got out there and saw the amazing fish and everything under the ocean I LOVED it!! We even swam with a sea turtle for a while!
Right after Tunnels we hiked the Na Pali coast. It was actually a pretty big hike, and all we had for shoes were water shoes that were falling apart so it was a bit uncomfortable. But it was so cool when we made it to a private beach on the Na Pali coast. It was just the most beautiful hike.
Anyways, about the trip. The morning of our flight neither of us woke up to our alarms and had to grab everything and rush to the airport. Luckily we didn't miss our flight! We got to Hawaii at about 11 am so that was nice because of the time difference we still got most of the day to play. The first day there we just went and ate and played at the beach and got some groceries for our hotel room.
The next day we went to the beach again. Then we went to a waterfall called Kipu Falls. We picked up a local hitchhiker on the way there.. little did we know he was actually a monkey! But I'll get to that in a minute. So we get to this beautiful place and hike a little bit up to the waterfall. At the waterfall you can jump off and there is also a rope swing. It was so great watching people jumping into the water below. I even worked up the courage to jump off.. and it wasn't as bad as I thought! But this monkey boy was crazy on the rope swing and he was climbing a big tree out to the very end branches and jumping into the water which is about a 50 foot drop I think (I don't judge distances very well). So this was one of my favorite parts of the vacation. We went to the beach and a couple other places this day and then in the evening we went to the Marriot and played frisbee on the beach there and swam. We got this amazing dessert called Hula Pie... best dessert ever! It was an ice cream pie with oreo crust and macadamia nuts, whipped cream, and hot fudge. I'm craving it right now.
The next day we went snorkeling at Tunnels Beach. This was my first time snorkeling ever. Let's just say I didn't catch on immediately. I was so scared of that water getting in my snorkel tube. And so scared of everything basically. But when I finally got out there and saw the amazing fish and everything under the ocean I LOVED it!! We even swam with a sea turtle for a while!
Right after Tunnels we hiked the Na Pali coast. It was actually a pretty big hike, and all we had for shoes were water shoes that were falling apart so it was a bit uncomfortable. But it was so cool when we made it to a private beach on the Na Pali coast. It was just the most beautiful hike.
Saturday we played tennis at the hotel in the morning and then went to the beach. We played at the beach most of the day, and then went shopping and to dinner.
On Sunday we went to church in the morning. It was really fun to go to a Hawaiian ward. At the end of the meeting they stood up and sang all the visitors a welcome song and gave us a homemade lei! After church we went up to see spouting horn. It wasn't super interesting- just ocean water that shoots up from rock- but I'm glad we went and saw it. Then we went to see Waimea Canyon, which is called the "grand canyon of the pacific." It really was like going to the Grand Canyon, it was so pretty. After we went to dinner that evening we sat out on the beach and watched a gorgeous sunset. I have so many pretty pictures of it!
Monday was the day of our expedition! We were going on a sunset sail to the Napali coast. This was so much fun- mainly because I love boats. The boat ride over to the Napali coast was so much fun, there are trampolines on the front of the boat so me and Preston sat on those in the sunshine with the water misting us, while we were served fruit! We stopped along the Napali coast and went snorkling. There were so many fish around us! The captain of the boat would tell us about landmarks along the coast and where movies were filmed. We stopped the boat and had a dinner onboard and then we started back home. On the way back the sun was setting behind us. It was so great.
Tuesday is the day we came back to Utah. Our plane didn't leave until the evening so we went to the beach in the morning and then hung out by the pool until we left. We had a red eye flight on the way home that was pretty much the worst experience ever. We were so scrunched in the plane and couldn't sleep, so it was a long, long night!
So that is our vacation in a nutshell! It was so wonderful and I am already dying to go back!
Sunday, July 31, 2011
The Father's Eyes
Preston and I gave a lesson in our sunday school class today about fathers. I know it's a little past Father's Day and all but I just thought I would share this touching story I found. :)
This teenager lived alone with his father, and the two of them had a very special relationship. Even though the son was always on the bench, his father was always in the stands cheering. He never missed a game.This young man was still the smallest of the class when he entered high school. But his father continued to encourage him but also made it very clear that he did not have to play football if he didn't want to.
But the young man loved football and decided to hang in there. He was determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice nor a game, but remained a bench warmer all four years. His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him.
When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a "walk-on." Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach admitted that he kept him on the roste because he always puts his heart and soul into every practice, and at the same time, provided the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games.
This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in the game.It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big play off game, the coach met him with a telegram. The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?" The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.
Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful teammate back so soon."Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today," said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in. "All right," he said."You can go in."
Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown.
The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you've never heard! Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that the young man was sitting quietly in the corner all alone. The coach came to him and said, "Kid, I can't believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?"
He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, "Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?" The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, "Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!"
But the young man loved football and decided to hang in there. He was determined to try his best at every practice, and perhaps he'd get to play when he became a senior. All through high school he never missed a practice nor a game, but remained a bench warmer all four years. His faithful father was always in the stands, always with words of encouragement for him.
When the young man went to college, he decided to try out for the football team as a "walk-on." Everyone was sure he could never make the cut, but he did. The coach admitted that he kept him on the roste because he always puts his heart and soul into every practice, and at the same time, provided the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.The news that he had survived the cut thrilled him so much that he rushed to the nearest phone and called his father. His father shared his excitement and was sent season tickets for all the college games.
This persistent young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in the game.It was the end of his senior football season, and as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big play off game, the coach met him with a telegram. The young man read the telegram and he became deathly silent. Swallowing hard, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this morning. Is it all right if I miss practice today?" The coach put his arm gently around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off, son. And don't even plan to come back to the game on Saturday.
Saturday arrived, and the game was not going well. In the third quarter, when the team was ten points behind, a silent young man quietly slipped into the empty locker room and put on his football gear. As he ran onto the sidelines, the coach and his players were astounded to see their faithful teammate back so soon."Coach, please let me play. I've just got to play today," said the young man. The coach pretended not to hear him. There was no way he wanted his worst player in this close playoff game. But the young man persisted, and finally feeling sorry for the kid, the coach gave in. "All right," he said."You can go in."
Before long, the coach, the players and everyone in the stands could not believe their eyes. This little unknown, who had never played before was doing everything right. The opposing team could not stop him. He ran, he passed, blocked and tackled like a star. His team began to triumph. The score was soon tied. In the closing seconds of the game, this kid intercepted a pass and ran all the way for the winning touchdown.
The fans broke loose. His teammates hoisted him onto their shoulders. Such cheering you've never heard! Finally, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach noticed that the young man was sitting quietly in the corner all alone. The coach came to him and said, "Kid, I can't believe it. You were fantastic! Tell me what got into you? How did you do it?"
He looked at the coach, with tears in his eyes, and said, "Well, you knew my dad died, but did you know that my dad was blind?" The young man swallowed hard and forced a smile, "Dad came to all my games, but today was the first time he could see me play, and I wanted to show him I could do it!"
 |
| Me and my Dad |
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Happy 4th of July!!!!
This 4th of July weekend was the best!!!
Preston and I love the 4th of July! We had such a fun three day weekend.
Friday after work we went to Seven Peaks for a little while and then we went to a little fair here in Provo. It was so much fun walking around the booths and getting some yummy food. I can't wait until Fair Days in Heber and I'm way excited for Swiss Days! Anyways, after that we went back to Seven Peaks for some after hours fun with Rob and Tawni. There's a new slide there that uses mats so we decided to take the mats down a bunch of slides. It was really fun, except I hit my head way hard at the bottom of a slide (my head seriously takes a huge blow at least once a year!)
The next day, Saturday, Preston went golfing and I went with my sister and my niece to the fair again. There was a reptile show that was so cool! I'll put up pictures of the animals... it was for little kids but I loved it! That evening we had a family barbecue with Preston's extended family. I got stuck sitting with all the guys and heard about sports and politics the whole time.. so exciting :)
After the bbq, we got to go to Stadium of Fire!!! It was my first time going and we got to sit on the field because we were with Qualtrics. I'm not even a huge fan of Brad Paisley but I LOVED the whole thing! The fireworks were amazing, especially watching them right over us! Ok, but the scariest thing ever was riding home from Stadium of Fire. We brought the scooter for a quick getaway, but there were still tons of cars to get through and Preston was swerving in and out of them and I seriously saw my life flash before my eyes more than once that night! It was Scary!
I'm not done there folks, this weekend just gets better and better!
Sunday was good, we just had church, a nap, and some Sunday dinner at Preston's house.
Monday was the 4th of July!! We went golfing, swam at the golf course, played tennis, had another barbecue, and made homemade ice cream! It was the perfect day!
I can't wait till next year!!!
Preston and I love the 4th of July! We had such a fun three day weekend.
Friday after work we went to Seven Peaks for a little while and then we went to a little fair here in Provo. It was so much fun walking around the booths and getting some yummy food. I can't wait until Fair Days in Heber and I'm way excited for Swiss Days! Anyways, after that we went back to Seven Peaks for some after hours fun with Rob and Tawni. There's a new slide there that uses mats so we decided to take the mats down a bunch of slides. It was really fun, except I hit my head way hard at the bottom of a slide (my head seriously takes a huge blow at least once a year!)
The next day, Saturday, Preston went golfing and I went with my sister and my niece to the fair again. There was a reptile show that was so cool! I'll put up pictures of the animals... it was for little kids but I loved it! That evening we had a family barbecue with Preston's extended family. I got stuck sitting with all the guys and heard about sports and politics the whole time.. so exciting :)
After the bbq, we got to go to Stadium of Fire!!! It was my first time going and we got to sit on the field because we were with Qualtrics. I'm not even a huge fan of Brad Paisley but I LOVED the whole thing! The fireworks were amazing, especially watching them right over us! Ok, but the scariest thing ever was riding home from Stadium of Fire. We brought the scooter for a quick getaway, but there were still tons of cars to get through and Preston was swerving in and out of them and I seriously saw my life flash before my eyes more than once that night! It was Scary!
I'm not done there folks, this weekend just gets better and better!
Sunday was good, we just had church, a nap, and some Sunday dinner at Preston's house.
Monday was the 4th of July!! We went golfing, swam at the golf course, played tennis, had another barbecue, and made homemade ice cream! It was the perfect day!
I can't wait till next year!!!
 |
| Steve Irwin back from the dead! |
 |
| Huge huge huge snake! |
 |
| Me and my baby at Stadium of Fire |
 |
| David Archuleta= Amazing voice! |
 |
| American paraglider that almost hit us! |
 |
| Brad Paisley was a foot away from touching my hand! |
 |
| Best fireworks show ever! |
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Update on the Phillips
It's been a while since I've written on here. But that's because I've been SO busy! I got another job- I am now a salesman! ha ha I never thought that would happen. But it's not so bad. I am selling Fluency Translation Software, it's a computer program for translators. I also still have my job at BYU, so I work at Fluency in the mornings and then come to my office job at BYU in the evenings. I am also taking a class this semester- media writing- I really like the class and the teacher, and the homework has not been bad at all yet!
Preston is taking two classes this semester and still selling websites at Only Websites. So basically, we don't have as much free time as we had earlier this summer. It's good though, for me, because I definitely needed to be working more and I like staying busy.
We also got a calling a couple weeks ago to teach a marriage and family sunday school class! It has been really good so far, we like teaching and we LOVE our ward. I really am so happy we live where we live and have such great neighbors!
Anyways, I know that's short, but that's what's going on in our family! I'm going to try to start writing on here more often and hopefully have some cool things to write about!
Preston is taking two classes this semester and still selling websites at Only Websites. So basically, we don't have as much free time as we had earlier this summer. It's good though, for me, because I definitely needed to be working more and I like staying busy.
We also got a calling a couple weeks ago to teach a marriage and family sunday school class! It has been really good so far, we like teaching and we LOVE our ward. I really am so happy we live where we live and have such great neighbors!
Anyways, I know that's short, but that's what's going on in our family! I'm going to try to start writing on here more often and hopefully have some cool things to write about!
Friday, June 3, 2011
Just a little thought...
"Did you know there are thirty-two names for love in one of the Eskimo languages?" August said. "And we just have this one. We are so limited, you have to use the same word for loving Rosaleen as you do for loving a Coke with peanuts. Isn't that a shame we don't have more ways to say it?"
-from The Secret Life of Bees
I read this this morning sitting out in the sun on the back porch in Florida and I just thought it was so true. We should have different words for love! Anyways, I am just on a vacation out of my dreams!!! I'll post pictures when I get back!!!
-from The Secret Life of Bees
I read this this morning sitting out in the sun on the back porch in Florida and I just thought it was so true. We should have different words for love! Anyways, I am just on a vacation out of my dreams!!! I'll post pictures when I get back!!!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Lately
Just thought I'd catch up a little with what's been going on with the Phillips.
We went to St. George last weekend! It was wonderful! We went with our good friends Rob and Tawni. We only had one full day there, so we hiked, played tennis, swam in the pool, went to dinner, went to lunch, went to dessert, went bowling, and shopped a little. It was so nice to get some sun since we don't seem to be getting much in Provo lately!
Preston got sick this last week. Poor guy.
Cassidy (Preston's sister) is graduating tonight!
Besides St. George, we've just been working.. that's mostly it. I'm still looking for another job so let me know if anyone knows of anything!
We are getting ready to leave to Florida in 4 days!!!!!! SO excited for that!
And when we get back it's Kelsey's wedding!!!
We went to St. George last weekend! It was wonderful! We went with our good friends Rob and Tawni. We only had one full day there, so we hiked, played tennis, swam in the pool, went to dinner, went to lunch, went to dessert, went bowling, and shopped a little. It was so nice to get some sun since we don't seem to be getting much in Provo lately!
Preston got sick this last week. Poor guy.
Cassidy (Preston's sister) is graduating tonight!
Besides St. George, we've just been working.. that's mostly it. I'm still looking for another job so let me know if anyone knows of anything!
We are getting ready to leave to Florida in 4 days!!!!!! SO excited for that!
And when we get back it's Kelsey's wedding!!!
 |
| Bowling in St. George |
 |
| Cass- the gorgeous Timpview graduate! |
 |
| Soon to be Mr. and Mrs. Stiles |
Thursday, May 12, 2011
ACCEPTED!!
This little post is for Preston:
Preston got his letter of acceptance into the accounting program at BYU yesterday! He worked so hard to get in and I'm so proud of him!! He had to get really good grades in the prerequisites and he just finished applying about two weeks ago. He got an answer really soon, so that was good that we didn't have to wait long! It's going to be a lot of hard work in the accounting classes, but Preston can do anything he sets his mind to! Way to go honey!!!!
Preston got his letter of acceptance into the accounting program at BYU yesterday! He worked so hard to get in and I'm so proud of him!! He had to get really good grades in the prerequisites and he just finished applying about two weeks ago. He got an answer really soon, so that was good that we didn't have to wait long! It's going to be a lot of hard work in the accounting classes, but Preston can do anything he sets his mind to! Way to go honey!!!!
Good Books???
I like reading. A lot. I have been so excited for summer not only because of the sunny weather but because I finally have time to READ! And the best part is I don't have to read some dumb ethnography or textbook for classes I'm not interested in, but I get to read anything of my choice! And I have already gotten started- I've read two books this summer so far. One was a LDS story about a family in Germany during WWII. It was called We Were Not Alone. Preston recommended it and it was cool to read about all the little miracles they experienced while waiting out the war.
The most recent book I read was The Hunger Games! Ok so I know that most people have already read this, but if you haven't you NEED to read it!!! I seriously could not stop reading, I only did because I know that's very unsocial of me to be reading all the time. But it's so good! It's not like inspirational or cute or anything (the idea of it actually makes me sick) but it is so intense and interesting! I borrowed it from my mother in law and I haven't had a chance to go get the next two books, but I plan on doing that today or tomorrow. I'm so excited to read the rest of the books in the series!
Sorry to bore anyone who read this, but I like books and I like when people recommend good books to read! So I'm going to recommend a couple other of my favorites and let me know if you've read any good ones!
The most recent book I read was The Hunger Games! Ok so I know that most people have already read this, but if you haven't you NEED to read it!!! I seriously could not stop reading, I only did because I know that's very unsocial of me to be reading all the time. But it's so good! It's not like inspirational or cute or anything (the idea of it actually makes me sick) but it is so intense and interesting! I borrowed it from my mother in law and I haven't had a chance to go get the next two books, but I plan on doing that today or tomorrow. I'm so excited to read the rest of the books in the series!
Sorry to bore anyone who read this, but I like books and I like when people recommend good books to read! So I'm going to recommend a couple other of my favorites and let me know if you've read any good ones!
 |
| Amazing book/true story!! Couldn't believe this really went on only 17 years ago!! |
 |
| Anything by Nicholas Sparks is great! |
 |
| This is a sad one, but really interesting! |
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
The Beginning
So, I don't know exactly how to start this blog... I should have started it when we got engaged or married or something, but I didn't.. so I guess I could just give a little description of all that and then just jump right into our life together now.
Preston and I met in January of 2010 at a Noah's party (well we didn't really meet but he first saw me there). He added me on Facebook and we planned to hang out sometime. Well we didn't end up going on our first date until about March. We went to dinner at Gurus and that was it. I didn't really think anything of it until our second date. We went to get ice cream and while eating I realized that I was really interested in him. After that date we went out all the time and had a wonderful summer together! We went on vacation to San Diego with my family and one night sitting on the beach, we talked about getting married. I was a little nervous, but as time went on I knew that I wanted to marry Preston! I knew that he was everything I had been looking for in a husband and that I never wanted to be without him.
We got engaged in October and then we got married in the Salt Lake temple on December 28th. It was a crazy time before the wedding trying to get all the wedding preparations done, study and take our finals, and get our Christmas shopping done. But, we pulled it off and then enjoyed a much needed vacation in Isla Mujeres, Mexico for our honeymoon!
When we got back from our honeymoon we had to go to class the next day (well I didn't because I hadn't signed up for classes yet!) and we still had to decorate and furnish our apartment. It was so fun though, we went shopping everything weekend returning things and getting things for our apartment. I loved it!
So, there's my little summary of our life together so far! Hopefully I'll make another little post sometime soon!!!
Preston and I met in January of 2010 at a Noah's party (well we didn't really meet but he first saw me there). He added me on Facebook and we planned to hang out sometime. Well we didn't end up going on our first date until about March. We went to dinner at Gurus and that was it. I didn't really think anything of it until our second date. We went to get ice cream and while eating I realized that I was really interested in him. After that date we went out all the time and had a wonderful summer together! We went on vacation to San Diego with my family and one night sitting on the beach, we talked about getting married. I was a little nervous, but as time went on I knew that I wanted to marry Preston! I knew that he was everything I had been looking for in a husband and that I never wanted to be without him.
We got engaged in October and then we got married in the Salt Lake temple on December 28th. It was a crazy time before the wedding trying to get all the wedding preparations done, study and take our finals, and get our Christmas shopping done. But, we pulled it off and then enjoyed a much needed vacation in Isla Mujeres, Mexico for our honeymoon!
When we got back from our honeymoon we had to go to class the next day (well I didn't because I hadn't signed up for classes yet!) and we still had to decorate and furnish our apartment. It was so fun though, we went shopping everything weekend returning things and getting things for our apartment. I loved it!
So, there's my little summary of our life together so far! Hopefully I'll make another little post sometime soon!!!
 |
| San Diego trip |
 |
| The night we got engaged |
 |
| Honeymoon in Cancun |
 |
| Our wedding day |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)