Heaven's in New York...

or at least my brother Elder Morales is!

My brother Joel, left for his mission in New York, New York South this past June. He will be teaching and finding those ready to accept the gospel for the next two years. I am so proud of him and he is such a great example for me. Selfless is the one word I would use to descibe Joel, he is always willing to put others before him and this will help make him a great missionary.

I also thought this post was quite fitting as there just happens to be a popular trend of writing songs about New York. Such as Jay-Z and Alica Keys, and I quote "Lets hear it for New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of, there's nothing you can't do. Lets hear it for New York, these streets will make you feel brand new, these lights will inspire you." Wyclef Jean has also been on board with his "Heaven's in New York".

My brother is doing something so great and so brave. He was willing to leave his family and friends to venture to the big city to preach to some who might not accept it. I admire him so much and I know that he is doing the right thing.

School, Changing leaves, Baking, Or in Other Words.... FALL!

Today I woke up to the sound of rain, is there any better feeling than that? Well it just kept on getting better!

All day I could feel the "fallness" around me! I saw leaves on the rain covered pavement, leaves in the process of changing/falling, and even my binders made fall seem, not even on the horizon, it's HERE!!

It inspired me. Today I came home, changed into my comfiest clothes (that did not quite match)and put on my slippers. Then I finished my homework as fast as I could and enjoyed a dinner that even included SQUASH!

Then started my baking adventure. I decided that I could wear my mom's apron sense she is not present in the household and I hoped it would channel her abilities into me! Well... it didn't quite help! These are my peanut butter/chocolate cookies in the shape of pumpkins!! I thought these would be great, but I thought I would test one out first. Good thing, because it turns out the oven was far to high!

Despite my setback I thought that the rest turned out pretty well!

I hope that this post has inspired you to embrace the "fallness" around you! Go and bake... Just make sure the oven isn't too high!

I Call Shotgun!

Is there a rule within every household which entitles the eldest child to receive shotgun? Well this is one rule that has stuck in my family, and you can just imagine how long it took for me to go through 6 kids in order to be placed in that wonderful seat!

Though I have been able to control the radio for some time now, they still mange to bump me down a seat whenever they come for a visit! But now that I have my "L" it shouldn't be long until I am calling to be the one in the drivers seat!

Who Needs Disneyland?

They say that Disneyland is the place where you never grow up, and that when you go there you are free to act like a little kid again. Though this is true, I have found that you can get the same effect while playing with a little boy! This past summer I have been able to spend a lot of time with my little nephew, and each day he is ready to experience something new. He really feels like each one of us is the same age as him, whether some days we are all 20 months old or he has grown up to act like us! He really does bring out the inner child in all of us and he does it without traveling across boarders or meeting Mickey Mouse!

... And its two bare feet on the dashboard, young love, and an old Ford... Sweet summertime!

As I can feel summer coming to an end and the start of leaves changing and school is on the horizon, I feel that my 16th summer is one to remember forever.

It started with a trip to Hawaii to visit my sister Katie, while she was living there for the summer during her practicum. Oh, how I loved the view of the ocean, not to mention the surfers that happened to be in the ocean as well! There is something about Hawaii that just makes me think of every Kenny Chesney song I have ever heard. It may just be the mix of how everyone walks around in their bathing suits and how suddenly I have more "cousins" than I knew!

Visiting the Polynesian Cultural Center, BYU Hawaii and the Temple were main highlights! We loved experiencing the amazing cultures of the islands.

Right after I came back from Hawaii, in true jet setting fashion I met my family in Seattle and left for my sister's wedding in Mexico the next day!

This was such a fun trip! We were able to spend such a great time together and it was so relaxing! Not to mention the wedding was beautiful and I am so happy to have a new brother in-law!

The final trip of my summer, was attending EFY in Calgary! EFY always finds a way to make my summer even better, no matter how fantastic it has already been! There is no better feeling than knowing that there is a group of about 400 youth surrounding you that believe in everything you do!

All in all, as much as I wish summer could last forever, I feel that I am prepared to sit in a desk as I watch the leaves fall!

The Youngest

Being the youngest child in a family of seven could be taken in two ways. In one direction you are the baby, your parents and siblings look after you and while in your younger years you would very rarely have to be responsible for duties and chores, life is bliss. Although in the second direction (also known as the older years) you are now a teenager and being known as the "baby" is not really something to be adored. Also the way of life that you used to know, is disappearing. You are required to help as much as you can, and older siblings begin to realize how easy you have had it in past years.

This was and is the life for me, Hannah. But don't get me wrong, I still love being the youngest and I wouldn't trade it for being the oldest or to be in the middle for anything!

Though I have some competition for the title now about when there was a new baby added into the equation. When my sister Naomi and her husband Adam welcomed a beautiful boy, Oakley! But when he looks as cute as he does, I don't mind sharing the wealth!