Randy+Brooklyn: April happenings 2015

April '15

Health Update
This whole experience with my tumor has truly been a good experience for me. I am not saying I have loved every single moment but I am truly grateful for what I am learning. In fact, I made a list of all the things that have improved since I began working with Tracy and I can honestly say I was able to write 20 things that have improved in my health! That's right--20 things that are better because of the changes I am making! In fact, when I went home this month, my mother looked at my back (I have a "scar" there because I have had scleroderma since I was pretty young) and she began to tear up and almost cry. "It looks SO much better Brooklyn!" I was elated to hear this from her--my mama don't lie!

Doing a little juicing :)

Fruit is becoming a huge part of my life!

Easter Egg Hunt (no kids allowed)
Have I mentioned how great Chris and Jill are!? They are full of spunk, loads of energy, and both of them really enjoy the simple things in life--like egg hunts! No, there were no kids in attendance. Yes, the four of us "adults" hunted for eggs. It was girls versus boys and it was a blast.

Chris and Randy closing their eyes while the girls hide the eggs in the backyard.

They may have won.

Jill asking for hints from Chris.

Gettin' stealth

Other April Happenings

Surfing at Turtle Bay with Maria Bonita!

Isn't she adorable?! Our niece getting her dance on.

I loved watching Nadia's dance lessons. These girls were hilarious--and graceful ;)

Hiking the Lanikai Pillboxes
Randy and I drove down to Kailua to meet up with this girl named Emily. She is really good friends with my buddy Lauran. We decided to meet up and go on this hike since Emily was in Kailua for a vacation nannying a bunch of kids. I don't think I can ever get sick of this hike though--the water is incredible!

Randy I and I

Randy on L&L Fire
The fire that broke out happened to be next to the fire station Randy is located at! L&L (located in the Aikahi Shopping Center) caught on fire from a stove being left on overnight. Randy and his crew received a call early in the morning (around 3 am) on Thursday, April 30th. They were able to put the fire out pretty quickly and no one was injured or hurt. Here is a quick news clip covering the fire.

Trip Home to Blythe (April 16th-27th)
I was able to go home and see all my family (besides Landon who is on a mission in Mexico) on the mainland! Jennifer was so kind and picked me up from the Phoenix airport and took me to this healthy cafe and we got some yummy juice and breakfast to make the drive to Blythe. I loved every day of being with my family. My mom made so many delicious and healthy meals I couldn't believe how easy it was to stick with my good ole' fruits and veggies!

My family is pretty quirky but I absolutely love it! We spent a lot of time laughing and cracking jokes. We also went to the river and Jen taught us how to golf (country style). Went to church in my home ward and felt so good catching up with many of the amazing people I grew up with. Some of my other favorite memories were of watching Pride and Prejudice--the director's version with the clan. My family is mildly obsessed with this movie. Yes, even my dad! Although, I am not sure he would admit to it.

We went on some walks out in the desert and on the canals. My family quoted Master of Disguise frequently and we played some niners (one of my dad's favorite card games) and we even had a pancake breakfast with some of my high school buddies.

Another cool thing was that I was able to meet Tracy (I like to call her my health guru) in person for the first time! Her and her husband came over for Sunday dinner and we had a great time getting to know one another and sing happy birthday to her! It was such a good feeling to meet her in person and to take in pieces of her wisdom and knowledge. We also met one other time for lunch and discussed health for hours--I loved every second of it.

At the river with Jen and Brent.

Jen teaching mom how to golf.

Connecting with my inner Michelle Wie

Putting a plug in for river golfing!

Love these two cute peas in a pod.

The water was pretty cold as you can tell from mom's reaction.

Attempting to pull dad it--it didn't happen.

Trying out some wrestling moves before we go to the river.

The cutest right?! Dancing on the river :)

The fam with Tracy

My health guru

Road Trip Part 1: Irvine
Jen, my momma and I ended up taking a girl's road trip to visit some family in in the Irvine area. We were able to see my aunt Tanya, eat some good food with her and visit at her house. I also got to visit my sister-in-law (Randy's brother's wife) Robyn and her kids! We went out to eat at this delicious and healthy restaurant and talked about life--probably two of my most favorite things to do! While we were traveling we actually were able to save some money and eat healthy because everyone had their own massive, designated salad containers we kept in the car. My mom bought a HUGE bag of cabbage to make salads with while on the road and brought a cooler for a bunch of fruits and veggies. For some reason this was one of my favorite memories from this trip. I love how much my mom cares about health and how she is always trying to make it a priority--even on our girly road trips :) You really can have fun and eat healthy.

Jen, Tanya and my mama

Visiting Robyn and the fam in Irvine

Road Trip Part 2: Vegan in Vegas
After visiting family in California we drove to Vegas to see Elise (my youngest sister). She drove down from Provo and her fiancee Jonathan got us the hook ups for a nice place to stay. We had such a good time together from playing bananagrams, attempting to go hot tubbing, doing yoga in our hotel room and cracking up as we try to do different poses. We also went on a hunt with Elise to find her some good shoes (this girl is so dang thrifty and is always trying to make things last waaay longer than they should). One of Jen's old roomies came over to the hotel and partied with us too!

We also went to this tasty raw cafe and our food was pretty dang good. We each ordered something different and sampled a little bit of everything from one another's plates. I also got to fulfill a small "dream" of mine while in Vegas--we went to the bodies exhibit!!! Yes, I may slightly be a nerd but I have been wanting to go since college!

Oh and it's official--my sister Elise is getting married! It was nice to talk with her since I had not seen her since before her mission. She is such kind and loving soul. I am so grateful I got to visit with her and have late night chats about her future.