Steph's Dirty 30

My sisters and I went to a Pin Up Girl themed party for our good friend, Stephanie Bennett.  I've known Stephanie since our Legacy days at UVSC back in 2004.  Yes, UVSC not UVU.  How dated does that make me?  Wow.  Anyway, after our Legacy days we danced together for other groups and competed together.  I'm retired from dancing since having kids (LOL) but Steph is still going strong!  Love this girl and hopefully one day I will be in good enough shape to dance with her again ;)

Can I just say how fun it was to thrift shop with my sisters for this pin-up girl theme??  We found most of our clothes at D.I. and just put it together with things we already owned.  Total cost of my outfit (shirt and skirt).....$15.....shoes included!  Who can beat that?  D.I., you freakin rock!

We were so excited for the party that we even watched YouTube tutorials for hair and make-up from the 30's.  A bit extreme?  Maybe.  But it was sooo much fun!

I Heart Potlucks

My good friend, Cheka, holds a potluck at her house every few months so everyone can stay connected.  It's always nice to catch up and talk stories with old friends.  All of us were part of the original Provo 7th singles ward and it's crazy to see how far we've all come with school, jobs, family life, etc.  This latest potluck was a farewell of sorts for Tali, Noke, and Amalani who are moving up north to Glendale to start the next chapter in their lives.  Good luck to them and hopefully we will see them at the next potluck :)

 Can you tell the kids did not want to take a picture together?  Lol!

Look at all those teeth!

Should we be scared?  Hahaha!

Ski Lifts at Sundance

Did you know they do scenic ski lift rides during the summer?  Well, now you know.  It was hot that day but the scenery was absolutely stunning.  It was nice to go out and do something we've never done before and thanks to our workplace for letting us use them for the day.  Next time I think we'll stay and eat at one of the restaurants up there and maybe do the moonlit ride.

Biggest shocker:  Both kids weren't afraid of heights.  I thought they would be clinging to us for dear life but they actually enjoyed it.

 

Bridal Veil Falls

Vili and I just decided that it would be healthy to try new things as a family and as a couple so we woke up on a random day and took the kids out for a little adventure.  (Yes kids, we are pretty awesome parents!  Lol.)  We grabbed some Kneader's for breakfast and headed for the Bridal Veil Falls.  After a short 10 minute "hike" we were there.  The water was freezing but that didn't stop the girls from getting their feet wet.  Elina didn't seem to mind the cold water at all.  She was in there the longest and she was barefoot!  She is her father's daughter!

After Bridal Veil, we came back up the canyon and found a little park for the girls to play.

Isn't Vili the coolest Dad?  I think so ;)

Traditions

I wish I could post a list of Tongan traditions that I wish we could just get rid of but I won't.  All I will say is that I am proud to be Tongan and that I love my culture.  I will also say that there are some Tongan traditions that make us lose sight of what is really important and that are not centered on the teachings of the gospel. 

Here's a note to my future self and also to my children in case I happen to forget:

Uphold Tongan traditions that bring us closer to each other and to our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Forget about the one's that do the opposite.  People and relationships are more important than upholding an old tradition so if it means chucking them to the side to make your loved one's happy, then do so without hesitation.   

Pin Masters

The ladies in my ward are so cool!  They started a little Pinterest Party group where we can make the cool things we pin on Pinterest as a way to get to know each other while getting some "me" time away from our hubbies and kids.  I got the chance to plan the latest party because Josie is currently out on maternity leave.  Haha!  I love that we all get along and that the ward isn't super cliquey.

The invite I made for the party.

I think we did pretty good ;)

The lovely ladies that made it minus a couple who had to leave early.

Here's a couple pictures I found on my Facebook of our very first Pinterest Party.

Splish Splash

We went to the Riverwoods splash pad for the first time a couple weeks ago and the kids had so much fun!  Nothing beats something that is fun and free!

Talanoa would touch the water and start running

toward me the second it touched her hand.

Elina kept running to different holes and putting her hair and face in front of it.

She'd also let it squirt her butt and yell out, "Oh no, butt!"  Hahaha

Lynnea would walk right up to the middle where there were the biggest splashes 

but would just stare at it and never go through it.

Ta'anea Reunion

Yup, this reunion was over a month ago which tells you just how behind I am on blogging.  The girls are asleep and I'm not tired so I might as well start catching up.  Anyhoot, Vili's family is from a village called Ta'anea back in Tonga and this year the reunion was here in Utah.  Talanoa did a tauolunga so Mepa decided it would be cute if Elina had a matching costume since Elina loves to dance.  This is officially her first tauolunga and surprisingly, she was very cooperative considering she wouldn't even try on her costume the night before.  Here's to many more tauolunga's to come, my little dancer ;)

Baby Talanoa and Lynnea decided to join in on the fun.

That night while driving home Talanoa wouldn't stop crying.  We stopped at a gas station thinking maybe she needed a diaper change.  As soon as we head for the gas station door her little head pops up as she says, "Beeear!"  as in teddy bear.  It was silence all the way home after she picked out this monkey! :)

Saturday was hosted here in Provo.

Here are the girls and their noodle/cereal necklackes.