Last change in plans... I hope.

We have Changed dates and changed cabins hopefully all for the better.

The new dates are June 22- June 26

Here is the cabin!

ARROWWOOD LODGE











Ammenities and features at the Arrowwood Lodge:

3400 sq ft, 6 bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms, and large loft, washer and dryer, 4 Tv's, DVD player stereo system, hot tub, gas grill, game room with pool table.
The master suite has cable tv, private bathroom with jetted tub, private second story deck.
All bed linens are provided for 11 queen size beds, 2 gas fireplaces, one in great room and one in family room. A portable crib and high chair are at the lodge. Towels are provided.
There is a fire pit, The Arrowwood lodge sits on a three acre lot.

For more information Click Here

Updated Blog!

So I finally got our blog (preston and mine) updated. I also put the link to my blog for my bows and bow holders, so if you know anyone interested with little girls, send them my way!!!

And Lisa those pictures were great!!!! I am so glad you found a dress for Sydney, you both looked great. And those pictures of the kids in animal costumes made me laugh so hard, they are great.

Steve and Amanda thanks for posting those pictures of the cabin, it looks too good to be true, we will have so much fun!

Love ya guys

linds

I had to add this pic of Emma cause I think it is too cute

Summer Vacation, June 27- July 1

Three Bear Lodge
Welling - 3627 Bay View Drive

Features:

• Bedrooms: 4
• Beds: 1 King, 2 Queens, 2 Singles, 2 Full , 1 Futon, 1 Inflatable mattress
• Bathrooms: 3 Full
• Deck/Patio: 2 wrap around porches
• Amenities: Satellite TV with DVR, DVD, VCR, Propane Fireplace, Foosball Table
• All kitchen and bedding needs.
  
• No Smoking No pets.
  
• Sleeps 14 people.
• Click Here for more information and pictures of the cabin.
  

Other Amenities: Beautifully decorated with comfort in mind. Water views from both decks. Close to Yellowstone, snowmobile/ATV trails, low traffic area, in a gated community.

This is the cabin that we were able to reserve!!!
The dates that we Reserved the cabin are June 27- July 1

Click Here to see the cabin on Google maps. (I think that it is the one on the corner of Crebes tongue bay and Bayview Dr. with the big blue roof.)

It should be full a vacation full of boating, canoing, fishing, gaming, eating, and yellowstoning.
So get off work and buy plane tickets if need be.

Hope to see you all there!

What a Burrito!

Tonight we had our Relief Society Birthday Celebration and I just had to take a picture of this awesome food. It was one REALLY long burrito with all of the lettuce, tomato, and olive in the middle. I thought it looked fun for us to try sometime. Anyway, the women will appreciate this. The other picture is of Sydney and me in our white dresses. We were the mom and daughter who was going to be baptized in the song "What Heaven Sees in You". It was a great night.

Love you all!

My Pets

Matt's work is always doing some sort of guessing game with the patients. So this month, it is "Match the pet to its owner". Seeing that we have no real furry pets, we dressed our often animal-like children in costume for the contest.

Week 12

Hello Family,

The time is here for update! We are still doing great. We have had a busy week and not all with just work so here it goes:

Sunday we attended church and then we had a dinner appointment with two of our friends to play games. The point of the evening was to get together and play Puerto Rico since Matthew and Lisa had taught me how and we had been yearning to play again ever since. There should be a sidenote that Alan is much more versed in the game than I and so I will add that sidenote...done. So, after a month of trying to find a date (obviously problems with there schedule, as you get all of our schedule and are thinking to yourselves, why couldn't they find a date?) we settled on last Sunday and it was great! Alisa, is an excellent cook so she made a tomato soup and believe me...it was worth all the time she put into it. She made it at her house and transported it to our other friend Alison's house. Alison had made cheese sandwiches on Sourdough which were marvelous. While we were eating we asked Alisa how the soup was made because it was tasty and we know that she has all these great recipes. It was like a 10 hr process where you roasted your own tomatos and squeezed your own chicken broth. (just kidding about the chicken broth part) It was an intense process and it was well worth the effort because we loved it. The game was a huge success too. We also learned to play Ticket to Ride (US version) and we really enjoyed it! We planned to repeat the whole event again.

Monday we planned out the rest of the week. It was like family home evening but only the week part...it is amazing how long we can make that part go. We went shopping at Sam's Club for milk and party items (details to follow). Tuesday I was on call and Alan did lots of exciting things around the house. Wednesday I was post call which I love! I was extremely productive and read some Anesthesia and planned my Primary Sharing time for Sunday and went on a long walk down and around the lake. I also painted the background for our living room art piece which turned out to be a complete disaster and I was laughing so hard over how terrible the background looked that I stopped production so the Alan could witness it when he got home. He came home late because he had to stop by and renew his temple recommend. That night, and every other night this week since Sunday, we played Carcasonne which we borrowed from Alison on Sunday. It too is a great game!

Thursday was pretty laid back...just relaxed. Friday I had to work late and got home around 10pm and then we had some major shopping to do. Thursday was my old roommate Abby's birthday so we decided to host a party for her on Saturday. The invitee list kept growing and by Saturday we anticipated about 30 people for our little "cookout" (thats what they call a barbeque down here in the South) Because we had so many people coming we decided we would 1) need food, and 2) need to decorate the house finally. So, we shopped on Friday night and on Saturday. We cleaned all Saturday morning and made baked beans, cake and salads. Alan worked on selecting and sizing pictures to put in the frames that have been hanging in my dining room for 1.5 years and still had the pictures in them that came in them when I bought them. (Everyone always says, who are these two people? and I say, "I have no idea!") So, Alan resized them on the computer and submitted it to Sam's one-hour print and I prepared food. Then Alan painted the living room picture over again which was a huge success! Here are the results: The first picture was our online inspiration...the second is our creative interpretation of it displayed proudly in our living room (yes...we are going to be those kind of parents!)

Then in 20 minutes we redecorated the whole downstairs prior to guests coming. So, when guests arrived the house looked somewhat put together, however we had still to cut and plate all the burger condiments, toppings and frost the cake. It was a little slow getting started, but it was, we felt, a huge success in the end.

It was planned to be a barbeque, however at 5pm, just when the party was supposed to start, it started raining, so we moved everything into the garage and opened up the garage door into the house and people just moved between the two. Luckily our garage is very organized...thanks to Alan and everyone I think had a great time. We were exhausted though and when the last guest left at 9:30 we left the kitchen a mess and went to bed!

Today we attended our church meetings and I gave the Primary Sharing time for the first time. It was a steep learning curve. The junior primary was crazy and I could not get them to listen for the life of me and then when I started to bear my testimony at the end and unexpectedly started crying (I know, don't let them see your weakness....Lesson 1) But, when I did start crying unexpectedly I was touched to see one of our 7 year olds start crying too! What a sweetie.

Well, thats about it! Another week, another large blog. Just three more quick fun points...1) Last week we went stargazing one night with our friends who own a telescope and I saw Saturn up close and personal! With rings and everything, it was amazing. 2) Last week we planted a little garden in styrofoam cups and kept them on a shelf in the garage that Alan hooked up a light to and we started our own little greenhouse. Right now we have tomatoes, onions, leeks, dahlias, pumpkins, basil and broccolli growing in our garage...everyday we go outside and see what else has popped up! 3) Last week Alan replaced both axels on my car...it is still running great! He is very handy.

We hope you are all doing great! We love to get Chris's letters and love when you post!

OH NO!!! The downhill!!!!‏

Hey Everybody,
I am going to start posting Chris's letters here on the blog for those of you who don't get Dad's posts. If post comments about his letter I will copy them and put them in a letter to Chris.

Steve


DOBRI DEN MUJ RODINA!!!!!

Thats czech for you, doesn't make a lick of sense. A little background I dont think I told you guys. So Czech for the year of 2008 is now tied at number 3 or 4 at the hardest languages in the world to learn, I think they just classified on catagories, like mine is a slavik language, but I am not 100%. Oh, and we are the only language in the world that can spell without using vowels in our words, we can go full sentances on just consonants. Such as SPRS VRS PRST KRK which is like somewhat of an insult. Its when someone makes you mad, it means stick your fingers through your neck, so basically like be quite I guess?!?!? OH, and we are the only language that has a R with a little v over it called a (hacheck) hacek, which makes the r go rolling R + ZH its a joke.

So I forget what I write to you guys every week, so I feel like I am repeating myself, but then I get your guys letters and they tell me how great mine are, so I am assuming that I am doing ok.

Mark came in this last week which was a surprise to me, I though he wasn't in for another week, it was good to see him. He was super excited to be here and its fun to have him to talk to. HIs companion is from Indiana, or Illinois, or one of those I states. Anywho he was way excited to be her and learn the language. let me tell you it is hard. But its fun, especially now that we are freeforming our own sentances and talking a lot in the language, its crazy how fast it is clicking. Yes there is still so much I dont know, but thats ok, its coming and as long as I keep studying I will catch on quickly I am sure of it.

THis last week was hloupy (crazy). we had to teach the first discussion which went moderate at best, we forgot a lot of our lines and our guy was having a bad day. But it doesn't matter grow and learn, and so we did, this week we are much better prepared and are going in ready to kill with kindness. We had a guy come and speak to us who was incredible. Marlin K. Jenson I believe is his name, he is a 70 and is heading the New Joseph Smith documents thing for the church. He was incredible and so humble, he kept apoligizing in the talk, because he thought that he wasn't teaching with the spirit. I dont know, I thought it was great. Tonight eveyone is hoping for a general authority, they say they have one like every 5 weeks, well we have been in here for 6 now and nothing. THe antisipation for one just keeps growing. The MTC is great, the food is getting old sad to say but winter is gone, and all the snow melted so it is so nice. And in the day the sun comes out and we can do our studies out doors, and the birds are chirping, ugh, in here its just the little sign that life goes on outside that matters.

Mom I love you so much. we go to the temple every tuesday in the morning, like an 820 session usually, its fun and very rewarding. I dont know i fyou have talked to nate or his mom yet mother, but I would love it if you would and tell him congradulations for me, please.
Matt and Lisa, thank you again for the package it was awesome my whole district loves the easter eggs even if they were a little premature. we are most excited to get over there for easter, its the biggest holiday that they hold usually, but no one knows what its really about. And our teachers have told us all these awesome traditions that go on, I am so excited, there is one about eating a cake shaped like a lamb, yeah knowing the story of crhist makes it a little creepy, but we saw pictures of the cakes and they look hilarious. Easter over there I BELIEVE si called Veli venoce, you can look it up on the internet if you want, or just type in Czech Easter, they have crazy traditions I catn waint to participate in.

I am so happy to hear that the family is all doing well and that everyone is getting married, I think its hilarious that its all going down at once. I am also very happy to hear that Abram is born, I want to see a picture of him, I am sure that easton and megan will love him so much (maybe a little to much loving). Dad it was hilarious to hear the stories of whats going on at home, especially that adam roped russ, man just when I thought they couldn't get any goonier.
I dont know if I told you guys but I have been released as Zone Leader. I was really sad about it, I came to serve and loved to be involved in my small world at the MTC, also I loved to help people out. But the half stay was up and the switch came and our new ZL's are doing fine. like I said everyone who was in a calling was happy to be released. I dont know I looked at it like I am out here to serve, and if the Lord thinks that giving me a calling to make taht a little easier to serve is the right thing than i am more than willing to serve in that capacity.

Other than that nothing really is going on in the Empty Sea. Alan and Lindsay I still need your address, like your one in NC and alans family. Jeffs tie he gave me is the hit of the building, I am the envy of the tie tradeing game. Angela and Jed and Sarah and Ellie, I love you all so very much, I konw I don't tell any of you nearly enough, but its true, I love you all. And not just them, but all of my siblings. We are so close as a famly and nothing shows that more to me than when I see other missionaries complaing about how bad their families are. I was so blessed to come into such a loving rodina. I love to watch Legacy and the Joseph Smith movie and how they portray him with his family, and how they are all so close knit and love eachtoher, because it makes me realize that that is what I had when I was young, even if sometimes it did seem like I was picked on, it was all worth it to see the blessings. I hope that all of you are holding on strong. Sorry I dont really have time to put a quote on the bottom of this one, I have many I will give to all of you. Mom, Dad I love you so much I I hope that you are doing awesome. GO ON DATE NIGHTS!!! YOU NOW HAVE NO EXCUSES!!!!! I hope you are noticing the blessings the lord gives you for my service, and your great parentship, and thanking him for them every night.
Love you all
Chris HIll