Our Little Drops of Sunshine: January 2011

1/27/11

ELDER MALIG

This is my big little brother, Yken

Today is his 21st Birthday!

Today, he also got his mission call...

...and he will be serving for 24 months in the PHILIPPINES BUTUAN MISSION

We love you dear brother!!! We know you've been preparing for this all your life! We are proud of you!!!

1/3/11

The year that was - and our New Years Roadtrip to Southern California

Its quite interesting to think that we did the exact opposite for New Years 2010. We were still living then in Southern California, and we took a road trip to Las Vegas all the way to Utah. It was a very memorable one, and that road trip was very humbling. Both Carl and I were jobless and all we had were each other, and wonderful family and friends. I will never forget what our very good friend Liz said as we welcomed 2010 in flamboyant Las Vegas. She said, "2010 is going to be an awesome year!"

For many reasons, she was right. By the end of February 2010, Carl and I found ourselves packing our things and moving north to Utah - Carl was offered a job with the LDS Church Headquarters, and I was eventually admitted to BYU's graduate program. It was quite a year - and we had so many things to be grateful for. It was quite an adventure too. I had to take an emergency trip to the Philippines to renew my student visa. While I had the opportunity to spend time with family back home, Carl and I missed each others' birthdays and 2nd anniversary. When I came back, we had the opportunity to celebrate all three wonderful occasions.

The rest of the year flew by so fast... and next thing we knew, the snow has come and we were putting up our Christmas tree and Carl has learned to snowboard.

Taking the road trip to Southern California was an emotional one for me, but above and beyond that, it was a celebration of everything 2010 has blessed us with - family, friends, and countless blessings from the Lord!

STOP OVER: Circus Circus in Las Vegas, NV