Merry Christmas! Happy New Year!

Here are a few quotes and a few pictures to cap off some of the happenings this year. To all of you, I wish the richest blessings.

Quotes:

"I can't believe you took the wrong exit?!" Me to Dorian 40 minutes before my flight was to depart for LA and connect to my flight to Fiji & New Zealand.

"I am the strongest kid in the whole world. I can lift a motorhome!" - one of my Kindergarten students.

"Aren't those the same mountains we just left when we were coming out of Canada and hour and a half ago?" - Me to Dorian on our trip back from Canada...finding that we had made a circle almost right back to the border!

"When I grow up I am going to be a rockstar and you are going to be in my band." - Kindergarten student to me.

"Have you heard of the LDS Primary School in Suva? Do you know where the Mormon temple is?" -Me to the policeman who had just pulled us over while driving in Fiji. A little more sweet talk and using the church (Fijians respect the Mormon church) got us out of a speeding ticket. Phew! Have you ever had a policeman flag you down for speeding (not in a car but waving from the side of the road)? A true mark I was in Fiji!

Travel mania:

Fly 10 hours to Fiji from LA. Rent van, take 3 hour drive to Suva (Fiji capital). Spend a day and a half in Suva. Drive 3 hours back to the Nadi airport (Fiji). Fly 4 hours to Auckland, NZ. Rent a car, drive 6 hours north to hometown Kerikeri. Next day have my Dad's 80th birthday celebration. Next day drive 6.5 hours south to Hamilton for my brother's wedding. Have a family bachelor party (that was fun). Next morning go to the temple wedding. Afternoon go to the luncheon. Drive 6.5 hours north to Kerikeri. Next morning drive an hour to the reception. Spend all day at the reception. Drive an hour back. Sigh. All that in a 5 day period! Thank goodness I had a week to take it easy after that before taking 24 more hours of travel flying to get back to Utah and try to pick up teaching again after leaving a sub to take care of my class for 2 weeks (after only having my class for one week after school began before I had to go).

Trip 2: Drive 12 hours to Canada with friend Dorian. Stay 1.5 days. Drive 12 hours back.