Whovians

I think I've talked a bit about Dr. Who.  I wrote a post when Natalie had her "Weeping Angel" Photo moment awhile ago, and I think that's all I've said on the subject.

Well currently my house is overrun with Dr. Who fanatics (myself included). Apparently fans of this TV show are called "Whovians." Now I don't know weather to consider myself a "Whovian" or not, as I'm not sure what exactly transforms ordinary human beings who merely like a show into a "fan." I suppose the hardcore Whovians are obvious about their obsession, dressing up in bowties and suspenders and wielding sonic screwdrivers (unless they are David Tennant fans, in which case the bow tie and suspenders would be exchanged for a trench coat and a smaller sonic screw driver)

Side Note: Just in case you were wondering, the main character of the show, The Doctor, has the convenient ability to regenerate when he is dying, which makes the TV show easier to run because as soon as one actor is done with the series, he just regenerates into another actor and the show goes on! Matt Smith was the most recent Doctor and he was preceded by David Tennant. Matt Smith has been around for awhile, but there are some David Tennant admirers that are still clinging onto his time as "The Doctor" Also, the Sonic Screwdriver that I previously referred to is what the Doctor carries around with him. It's kind of his main tool along with the Tardis, his time and space traveling space ship. 

So am I a Whovian? Am I related to a bunch of Whovians? This is really turning into an identity complex for me! I must know where I stand on the spectrum of fandom!

In an attempt to discover the truth of this matter, I made a list of all things we do pertaining to Doctor Who:

1. We watch it whenever we get a chance. If our parents give us a movie night, there is an unspoken agreement that we will be watching Doctor Who
2. We quote the TV show incessantly. We even have Matthew, the three year old, saying "Bow Ties are cool!" 
3. David and Matthew now want to watch Doctor Who over their little kid movies
4. Elizabeth drew this picture and stuck it on her door
   
    In Case you haven't brushed up on your ability to read 6 year old phonetic spelling, it says: "The Tardis is Broken" 
   
   
   
   
   
   5.  We have all learned how to play the Doctor Who Theme Song on the piano, even Elizabeth and she doesn't even play piano!
   6. David and Matthew sing the Doctor Who Theme Song!
   7. Natalie takes weeping angel pictures on my camera (we already established this, but for the sake of organization I felt it would only be proper to add it to the list) 
   8. The highest compliment Elizabeth can pay anyone is that they look like Amelia Pond (one of the main characters in the 5th and 6th season) 
   
   
   Well are we "Whovians" or not? 
   What do you think? :) 
   
   
   ~Keep Smiling!~ :) 

The Temple

This last weekend I had an amazing opportunity! I got to go through the temple for the first time. Now I didn't write this post right after this amazing event because I really wanted to gather my thoughts and contemplate the beautiful experience I had before I wrote it down for the whole world to read. 

First of all, for those who don't know anything about temples, I am going to give a quick overview! :) 

First, have you ever seen a temple? A temple is a lovely white building usually with a spire and a golden angel sitting atop that spire with a trumpet. The Seattle temple (the one I went through this weekend) looks like this:

But you may be more familiar with the Salt Lake Temple which looks like this:

Temples are buildings constructed and dedicated to the Lord. It's a sacred place where we go to learn, make sacred covenants (or promises) with God and draw closer to our Savior. On lds.org it says: "In the Temple we are taught, we make covenants and we are promised blessings. We receive ordinances that enable us to live in the presence of God" If you look through the Bible and at the history of the world, God has always instructed his children to build up temples to him (2 Chronicles 5:1-14, Ezra 3:1-13) and it's not any different today. 

Of course, in order to enter the temple you have to be worthy and living your life in accordance with God's law and you have to be prepared spiritually. You must make certain covenants before you enter the temple (such as repenting and being baptized by the proper authority) because God is a God of order. You cannot make the serious covenants in the temple if you have not made or kept your baptismal covenants. 

So really anyone can enter the temple and Heavenly Father wants everyone to go through the temple, they just have to be willing to keep his commandments, live his gospel and keep their baptismal covenants. :) 

If you want any more information, you can go to to lds.org and read up on it a bit. 

Now I want to talk about my experience going through the temple: 

Here is Me with my Lovely Parents right before we went in! 

I was not quite sure what to expect because the covenants that are made inside the temple are so sacred that we do not discuss them outside of the temple. I was told beforehand that the experience would be overwhelming and there would be a lot that I wouldn't understand but that it was important to focus on the spirit and how I felt. 

I was overwhelmed and I didn't understand a lot, but that's the beauty of the temple: you get to keep going back!

These are my thoughts after mulling the whole experience over in my head for a few days:

1. There is an undeniable peace in the temple, you can really tell it is the house of the Lord
2. Christ is at the center of everything you learn and do in the temple. As our redeemer and Savior, He is the focus of all the promises we make. 
3. Our Heavenly Father loves us and wants so badly for us to return to Him
4. I felt Love. I felt Love for those around me and I felt Loved by those around me, especially my parents. At the end of the session, I walked into the room and my Mom was waiting for me with outstretched arms. I walked into her arms and felt encircled by her Love. It made me realize that the connection of families is really an eternal thing! I am sealed to my family forever and they are sealed to me forever and no matter what happens in this life, we will always be together. Death may separate us for a time but I feel confident that when we leave this life our family will be waiting for us, just as my mom was waiting for me, with outstretched arms.
5. I need to go back! Like I said, there is so much I don't understand and probably won't understand for some time but I need to go back and try and learn all that I can! 
6. If we are righteous, we are blessed! God loves us and is ready and willing to bless us! The temple is a blessing he wants all of His children to receive. This is why missionary work is so important, so that we might bring others to know of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and eventually enter the temple and make those same sacred covenants! 

I am grateful for all that I have been given! I am grateful for the opportunity to go through the temple. When I was finished with the session, one of the temple workers told me that my mission was for 18 months but that the promises I made would last an eternity! This is true! 

~Keep Smiling!~ :) 

Masi Samoa

Do you remember that one brother I have that's on a mission in Samoa? You know, the one who forgets to write to us for months on end?
Well, that dear brother of mine sent us his memory card (FINALLY) and so we got to look at some fun pictures along with a few short videos.
Apparently while in Samoa, Jake learned how to play the Ukelele and has picked up a song or two. Here's a video of him singing and playing a song about Samoan food called Masi Samoa.
Now, I don't really know what he is saying (since it's in Samoan and there is no such thing as google translate for Samoan) but it's a pretty fun catchy tune and I'll just state the obvious here: my brother is super talented! :)

Also, this is slightly unrelated, but if you wanted to catch a video of me opening my mission call, here it is (a little late, I know :)

Yes, I do start to kind of freak out and then cry, but it's all happy tears :)
Well, Have a great Tuesday!
~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Dr. WHO?!?!

Have you heard of this TV show? It's about a time lord who travels through space and time and brings along normal people for the ride. Well, I came home from college to a bunch of siblings who are enamored with the show. Then I started to watch it and now I'm just a little bit addicted too! It's funny, clever, has lots of foreshadowing and who doesn't love a little bit of sci-fi once in awhile? :)

So, why am I talking to you about this TV show? Well, it's because of some pictures I found on my camera. Allow me to explain :)

In the show, the Doctor goes around and fights different Aliens and monsters and saves the earth and the universe on more then one occasion. One species of Aliens that he fights are known as the weeping angels. The Weeping Angels are basically stone statues of angels that only move if you aren't looking at them. They start with there hands over their eyes and get progressively closer to you each time you blink or turn away. They look perfectly innocent until the last second when they bare there fangs and suck the life energy out of you. Nice right? Well, Natalie decided to take a series of pictures depicting the progression of weeping angel. Super duper cute right! :)

 They start with their hands over their eyes because if they happen to look another weeping angel in the eye, they die... or something like that :) 

 They get up close and personal

And then the fangs come out! :) 

Isn't Natalie hilarious! This was definitely a treat to find on my camera! :) 

~Keep Smiling!~ :) 

Lyon France

So, just in case you didn't read yesterday's post, I got my mission call to Lyon France. I leave in 144 days for the Provo MTC! On October First I am going to be a missionary for 18 months and I am sooooooo excited!!! :)

Here is a map of my mission. I'm serving in the Southern part of France and part of Switzerland, so that's the white area outlined in Red :) 

Yesterday, I was coming home from a job interview and I called my Mom to verify the fact that I was picking Elizabeth up from school. When I was on the phone with her, I asked if she had checked the mail and she laughed and said she hadn't gotten around to it yet. I guess that while she was talking to me my little brother Mason dashed outside to the mailbox, grabbed my mission call and raced back inside to hand it to my mom. While I was in the middle of saying something my Mom interrupted and said "Alina, I have your mission call! I am holding it right here in my hands!" 

I freaked out! :) "Mom, are you serious!?! You aren't kidding me right? You really have it!?!" 

Anyway, I drove quickly (obeying the speed limit of course :) to pick up Elizabeth and get home as quickly as possible. Mom asked me if I wanted to wait or open it then. I think I already let you know I'm not crazy patient... so I opted out of waiting for people and tore it open right there, giving mom just enough time to grab the camera and get Dad on the phone :)

I read the beginning and completely freaked out! I have ALWAYS wanted to go to France so you can imagine what a dream come true this is for me. I took French in high school and college and fell in love with the language and I have been dying to go visit or live there ever since! :)

People tell you that if you want to go someplace on your mission, you probably won't. Well, that just got disproved! I think that Heavenly Father is the type of parent that just is waiting for us to do good things so that he can bless us. It makes Him soooo happy to see us happy! :) Obviously, we don't always get what we want in the way that we want it (or at all :) but that's just because there is something He has that is better for us. :) I am grateful that I got what I wanted (this time around.... :), but more then that, I am grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves me and is so willing to bless me when I do something just a little bit right :) The process of deciding to serve a mission, putting in my papers, and then receiving my call has been one of the most spiritual and amazing things I have ever gone through. It has really strengthened my testimony in the power of prayer (better believe I was praying for France :) and the unconditional and unceasing love of Heavenly Father. I am sooooo humbled and so grateful to be called to serve in Lyon France.

So now let's talk about that France Lyon Mission! :)

Thank heavens for the internet! There are many many mission blogs of Sisters and Elders who have served or are currently serving there. You better believe I have been pouring over them, looking at pictures and reading the entries. Also, my mission has a blog! The mission president posts pictures of incoming missionaries, transfers, new companionships, events and when missionaries leave. It was super fun to scroll through that as well.

Fun Fact! Sister's in France are called "soeurs" which sounds like "sir" (but with a french accent). Another fun fact, they don't say "h's" at the beginning of words so my last name is not "Haws" but "aws" which sounds like "Oz." So for a good 18 months, my name is going to sound like "Sir. Oz" So I just turned into a Wizard from the Emerald City!  haha!!!! :) Isn't that funny!?! :)

Well, that's all for now! :) I will keep you posted of my findings as I continue to research Lyon France! :)

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Dear Sister Haws...

That's right! I got my mission call today!!!! :)
And I have been called to serve in the Lyon France Mission!!!!!


AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! I cannot even express how excited I am about this! I love French, I kind of speak it already and it has always been a dream of mine to go to France! :) I will be serving in Southern France which also includes a part of Switzerland! I leave October 1st and will serve for a period of 18 months! This is seriously the BEST decision and most EXCITING decision of my life!

I will post more later! :)
~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Patience is a virtue

Nope, not feeling very patient! I have checked the mail everyday, multiple times a day for the past week and my mission call still isn't here! I want my mission call!!!!!!!

I think the Lord is trying to teach me patience...but I don't really want to be taught patience like this! :) The sad thing is, it hasn't even really been that long and I am totally crazy impatient!!! haha :)

Maybe it will come in the mail tomorrow!

Maybe I should stop thinking about it and then it will come quicker...

Maybe I should just learn to be patient...

~Keep Smiling!~ :)

Happy Birthday To You

So this is a few days late but here we go anyway! :)
May 3rd is honored annually in our house with a delicious breakfast, yummy dinner, cake and ice cream and presents for one very spunky little girl. Today is Elizabeth's birthday and she is 6! It's hard to believe that she was born that long ago because I honestly remember it like it was yesterday!
It was a Saturday, like today, and I woke up early(ish) because Jessica and I had choir practice in Bremerton at 9 but Jess came down the stairs and told me we weren't going to go that day because Mom felt kind of sick.
So the rest of the day went on and then in the later afternoon Mom called us all from our rooms and told us that she and Dad were leaving for the hospital right then. Natalie, who was about 7 or 8, asked "Wait why are you going to the hospital?" We all kind of looked at her and then she started to laugh sheepishly "Oh right, Mom's pregnant... got it...."
They headed off in our Silver Suburban and we all sat around anxiously awaiting the phone call. When the phone finally rang, Dad was on the other end and told us Mom had a beautiful little girl and they named her Elizabeth Emily Haws. Then the screaming from all 6 of us kids began and didn't stop for quite some time. Apparently Dad had to hold the phone away from his ear so as not to blow out his eardrum :)
Elizabeth came home the next day and made herself a permanent fixture in our house :) I remember, the first morning she was here, Jake Rachel and I all snuck into her room to watch her sleep. Then when she started to wake up, we booked it out of there real fast so Mom wouldn't know we were the ones to wake her up.
I know I posted this picture a few days ago, but this is me and Elizabeth during one of our finer moment.... :)

She was an adorable little girl who just got cuter as she got older. I love this picture of her. The lighting is absolutely gorgeous! 

She has also always been way to cute for her own good! I mean how could you say no to a face like that?

The answer is, you can't... so she often got what she wanted. Yes we spoiled her rotten because she was supposed to be the last kid, and youngest children must be spoiled at least a little bit :)

But apparently Heavenly Father had other plans and decided that she wasn't the last kid after all. Elizabeth very gracefully relinquished her spot at the baby of the family and took on the role as the older sister quite well

See, Mathew looks happy to be held by her! 

She's a good buddy to her little brothers :)

And even though she plays the part of a big sister very well, she will still always be a little sister :) 

Here she is seated between myself and Mason when we flew to San Diego for Christmas 

Elizabeth has big eyes and a very expressive little face. The funny thing was we found out later that she gets all her funny faces from her Dad! I love this picture right here because she and Dad have exactly the same facial expression. They both looked up at the right moment! :)

Here she is making more funny faces :)

Look at the natural curl in her hair in this picture! I am so jealous!!!

I Love you Elizabeth :)

Happy Birthday 

~Keep Smiling~ :)

Throwback Thursday

Throwback Thursday is a thing. Have you heard of it? It's all over Facebook! Basically what it means is you post a picture of you when you were younger so that people can see what you looked like before  facebook was invented :) It's also known as TBT, which I think personally sounds like a deadly disease or virus, but I digress :)
Well, it's Thursday so I am going to take a second or two to have a throwback moment and talk to you about my past :) I always think it's fun to review pictures, so you just are going to have to bare with me :)
This is actually a series of pictures that I would like to show you today, and all of them have to do with babies (since there are nine kids in my family and babies has always been a big part of my life.)

Our first picture is a throwback to almost 19 years ago when I, myself, was a baby. Here is picture of Jess holding me. Wasn't I cute?!? :)

This next picture was taken about five years ago when I was about 14 and Elizabeth was one. Obviously, it's a little less peaceful then the previous picture of Jess and me! :)

At the time, she was screaming and crying and mom was busy talking to people so I got stuck holding her. I have no idea who took this picture, but I vividly remember that moment! The look of frustration on my face is pretty obvious! :) haha

Since that time, I have gotten a lot better at handling small children, though it does help if they aren't screaming and crying. This next picture was taken about a year or so ago. This is me and Matthew before we head off to church Sunday morning.

He is, as my mom would say, a "lovey boy" :) What a sweetheart!

This picture was taken this last Christmas....maybe I haven't gotten so good at taking care of small Children. This is Me trying to handle David in the airport.

And then, this picture was taken just a week ago. This is me and Matthew again, sitting in the Doctors Office waiting for Matthew's checkup! :) He is wearing my cat eye costume glasses and my yellow scarf. What a stud! :) I will definitely use this as blackmail on him someday! :)

And of course, our last picture is of David, because David has to be included! :) Notice how Matthew copies my sticking my tongue out and David looks completely uninterested in anything I am doing. Matthew is a people pleaser and David doesn't give a care what anyone thinks! :) It's so funny to see two kids born at exactly the same time and realize the we all have personalities from Day One! :) I love my boys! They are such cuties! Also notice that we have entered the era of 'selflies' None of my previous pictures are selfies, but once you get social media and I-phones, you just have to take selfies, I think it's a rule! :)

Oh how times have changed!
Hope you enjoyed my Throwback Thursday! :)
~Keep Smiling~ :)