Fall/Winter Photoshoot

Spencer and I decided to do a session/photoshoot this year for our christmas cards to family and friends. We contacted a friend that I met through my cousin Verlynn, named Alvin Aquin. I met Alvin at one of my nieces, Chrislynn (Spencer's side of family) wedding where Alvin was one of the photographers. I loved the way he worked with the wedding party and how beautiful his pictures came out. I called Alvin and asked him to do a photo session for us. He was more then happy to do it. As you could tell by the pictures, we had a blast. My husband, as some of you who know him, does not like to take pictures, but you would have never known that with the way he was posing for the camera this day. My husband even admitted to Alvin that he enjoyed the photo session. Alvin brought along his beautiful wife, Moana who was a great help in making sure my hair was in it's right place, and giving Alvin some suggesstions to what we could do. We had a great time with Alvin. If you're looking for someone to take your family photos or romance photos with your hunny, Alvin is your man. Just drop me a message and I'll give you his info.

Thanks a Bunch Alvin and Moana Aquin.

Koral Siona Arnold

Introducing my new niece and the new addition to a long line of "Purcells". This is the adorably beautiful, Koral Siona Arnold. Koral was born on November 10, 2009. She weighed 9lbs and 9oz and was 20" long. Yes, she is a big baby girl. I told her mother (my sister) that Koral took on all that samoan food she ate when she was in samoa, lol ... Welcome to the world Koral!

My Beautiful Mother

Tauaipolu Motu Purcell

Sunrise: July 24, 1951

Sunset: September 29, 2009

This is my beautiful mother, Tauaipolu Motu Purcell. It's been a few months now and I've been meaning to post a little blog about her, but it's taken me a few weeks to build up the strength to write about her without crying and typing at the same time. Well, here it goes ... I hope through this blog you will have a sense of they type of person my mother was. Enjoy.

My mother was someone with a lot of toughness and strength. She did not shy away from any challenges she had in life. As a women who fought and denied till the last day of radiation that she did not have breast cancer, she defeated it twice. She did not let a minor stroke stop her from traveling, driving, dancing, laughing and yes, even getting angry. My mom was a fighter and she fought hard against the illnesses that threatened her health. She defeated all of them and won. I only hope to have that same strength and fight if ever I were to have those same challenges in my life here on earth.

My mother was honest in her feelings. She did not hide her thoughts or feelings from anyone. She told you like it was and she would tell you how she felt about you, weather she liked you or not. Often times, while we were growing up, mom use to embarrass us, by saying things to people that weren't very nice when she'd get mad. But, as I have moved away from my parents and have lived on my own ... I've come to realize that my mom was straight forward and did not beat around the bush with what she felt. I use to feel bad for people who were on the receiving end of my mothers wrath of honest words. Trust me, my sister and I have been on that receiving end many times. My brothers on the other hand, I dont recall, ever being on the other end ... lol ! The boys were her boys!

There were many times when my mom would say things that came from left field. These were the best funniest times, because she would crack us up ... literally! I have many friends and family who can back me up on this one. She would say the darnest things that just would make us laugh. My mom had no shame in cursing. She use to tell us ... "What? What is wrong with saying the "F" word?, It's just a word! ... we would get into debates/arguments with her over that and finally give up and let her win, cause there would be no way of changing her mind. lol! I remember a story told by a friend name Moroni Quiocho of my mom ... He was with my mom and sister one day and they were on the road, my mom driving and Ruby and he were in the back seat of our Minivan talking. Ruby had made a comment to something Nai told her "That's Fucked Up", then from the drivers seat, my mother says ... "What Ruby? What's Fucked Up?" ... LMBO!!! Like I said, outta left field.

My mother would always drill us about our education and how important it is for us to have higher educations. She was so proud when all four of her children graduated from hight school and two of us from universities. She did not care if we had jobs in high school because she wanted us to finish school and get into college. My mother was a school teacher in Samoa and while growing up from elementary to junior high she made sure we knew our math and english. She taught us our multiplications table when we'd get home from school. I recall having to say our multiplications every week and pass or we'd get sasa'd ... My mother was my supporter throughout my college years. She use to visit me every week and bring me food and made sure I was okay. She didn't care how long it took me to finish college, cause all that matter was that I finished. It was my mother who encouraged me to live at school and experience the college life. It was my mother who encouraged me to stick it out. It was she, who was my greatest supporter and motivator.

There are so many things about my mother i could write about and share with you all, but these are just a few of the memories of her that I wanted to share. I truly miss her and the daily phone calls I use to get from her just calling to say hello. It use to irritate me sometimes when my mom would always call, but if I could have that chance to hear her voice again, I'd want her to call me everyday. I would love to hear her laugh and tell me stories of samoa that she loves to tell. I would love to hear her tell me again ... "Lisa, au'a ke soga a'i" (Lisa, don't eat too much). I still remember the day my husband and I left my parents in Cali and moved to Utah. I cried like a baby saying goodbye to my mother because she was healing from her surgery and I was leaving. We were both crying like babies and I remember telling her how much I loved her and she said the same to me. It was from that day, that I realized how much my mother had been through with her illnessess and how strong of a woman she was. I realized how much of an impact she has had in my life.

My last days with my mother before she left to Samoa were the best days I had. I am left with wonderful memories of my mothers laughter and story telling. I am left with the memory of her spending quality time with two of her grandkids, Isabella and William. I am left with the wonderful memory of her cooking on Labor day for us and then walking over to the park to hang out. I will cherish these memories of her and hold them dear to my heart.

Mom ... I LOVE YOU SO MUCH and I MISS YOU!!! I know that you are with our heavenly father and you have a strong healthy spirit and are no longer suffering. I know that you are watching over us and waiting for us to join at a later time. I just want you to know that I am happy to be your eternal daughter and I wouldn't have picked anyone else to be my eternal mother. Till We Meet Again, MOM!!!

Summer Swimming

Summer comes around and we all dread the heat. It is our excuse to go to the pool or hit the nearby lake or beach (depending where you live). In our case though, cause we live in Utah, where there are no beach's, we have to settle for the near by pool. We could go to a lake, but we'd have to pack some food, grab some chairs, get the canopy, get the kids ready and the list goes on. Too much work into planning a lake day, when we could just go to the pool. Plus, all those scary stories of creepy things in the lakes on the discovery/animal channel has me thinking twice about swimming in the lake now days. Anyhoot, just thought I'd share some photos I took of my niece, Isabella and nephew, William in their swimming attire. These two love the water and it helps that their mother loves the water too. Next stop, water park!

Birthday BBQ for Sherwin Magalei

This is the beautiful cupcake cake that Siniva ordered for her husband. She went with the whole "Lion King" theme in tribute to the animal channel that he loves to watch.

As you could see, the birthday boy is BBQing while my husband, of course, is the taste tester! He's really good at it too... ;)

Leina and Alana with their Nana!

The party planner herself(Siniva) and her daughter Alana (the surprise spoiler) ... she gave him his gift before Niva could say "GO" ... lol

So, Alana loves to pose for pictures and I love to take pictures! I think we make a great team... lol! Hey, if anyone needs a child model, this is your girl! She loves the camera!

My favorite one I took of her!

This is my favorite shot of Leina, who can't stand still long enough for me to get in a good one of her, but I guess it's the ones' where you catch them off guard doing something totally adorable!

I love these patio lights that Niva put up. It was really romantic, okay, maybe not with family around!

On Wednesday, July 22nd, Siniva had a little family BBQ for her husband Sherwin. Sherwin turned 33 on Tuesday, July 21st, but decided he wanted to celebrate it on his day off with his family. We have Spencer and Sherwin's parents(my inlaws) here with us for the week, and so Sherwin, a.k.a. SHOLUV, wanted to just have it with the family.

So, Siniva(being the good wife that she is) planned a BBQ for her husband. She made her checklist of things she needed to do and get. 1. Get the chicken, burgers, hotdogs, buns, lettuce, tomato's etc. for the food... 2. Order the cupcakes for his birthday cake(best idea ever)... 3. Go buy his gift(s) that she thought he'd want and not need... and finally, make sure everything was ready on the patio for everyone to relax at. GOOD JOB NIVA!!! The one funny thing though is that the birthday boy had to BBQ, cause my husband and their dad weren't any help... lol, sorry Sho! ;)

The food was awesome and hanging with family was priceless.

Happy Birthday Mom

Okay, so my mom turned 58 yrs. old today! I just want to share a little bit about my mom with you.

My mother was Born, Tauaipolu Motu in 1951. She is the eldest child of my grandmother Lotu. My mother has 5 siblings, 4 sisters and 1 brother. She actually has a sister older then her, but my grandmother gave her up for adoption back in Samoa. My mom married my dad in 1971 in Malaela, Aleipata, Western Samoa. She had her 1st born (Robert Alapati) in Nov. 1972. Then in 1974 she had ME!, her most favorite, okay maybe Dicky's her fav... the baby of course. In 76 she had Ruby and in 77 she had Mackey(now known as Dicky...that's another story). My mom has done so much for our family while growing up. I always remember my mother working hard outside the home and even harder when she was at home( every time she came home from work). My mother did not like depending on the government (welfare) to help support our family. It's actually funny how she hates depending on the government, but she sure is quick to vote Democrat ... lol!!! She always stressed the importance of having an education, finishing school(graduating) and furthering our education. As much as my mom worked, she always seemed to find the time to be involved with our school activities and attending our parent conferences or back to school nights.

Now, I'm not saying that my mom is the perfect mother. She has faults as well, just like any other mother probably would, NO ONE IS PERFECT, right?! RIGHT! My mom, loves to speak her mind, those of you that know her (close family members), know that she doesn't hold back when she wants to say what she has to say. We've all felt that wrath(craziness) at one time or another in our lives. Anyway, we like to make fun and tell my mom that the older she gets the crazier she gets(that's not the good kind crazy... lol). She gets a laugh at it too and tells us she just gets wiser. That's my mom!

I know my mom probably won't get the chance to read this (unless, Robert opens this and lets her read it), but I just want her to know that I am truly grateful for her and all that she has taught me and done for me. There are many things throughout my life that she has helped me with. I love her with all my heart and there is no other mother I'd want to trade her for. She has certainly taught me how to be a strong polynesian women.

FLAT TIRE...!!!

Today was such a nice relaxing day to begin with. I took my husband to work this morning, came home and slept in for about another 2 to 3 hours. Woke up showered, cleaned up a little and then made my way over to the computer to get on my blog, facebook and myspace... these are my addictions! LOL...can't get enough of facebook and blogging!

Anyway, left to pick Spencer up at 1:50pm, cause he gets off at 2pm. Got home, relaxed and of course got on facebook again and did more editing on my blog. Watched the NBA draft with my husband, then took off at about 6:45pm to run some errands. My errands included: going to the bank atm, went to Smiths to get dinner stuff and sandwich stuff, then finally head over to the pharmacy to get some things for my husband. It was on my way home that the "FLAT TIRE" happened. Uggghhh!!!

I was so nervous when the wheel started to turn to its left on its own. Then I heard the tire/rim scrapping on the road. Luckily I wasn't too far from my house. I was in our neighborhood and so I pulled over on 400 east. The still small voice told me exactly when and where to pull over. Why, because as I was sitting in the car, talking to my husband on the phone to get someone to pick him up and come get me and change the tire, a really nice tongan guy knocked on my passenger window. He said he saw me and came out to see if I was okay...only in Utah, this would happen. Oh, and all I could think and say to myself was: "I know I ran over some nail or something from the stupid construction going on by the house and around our neighborhood". As my husband was try'n to find someone to help us out, the tongan guy ( his name is Viliami Pita) offered to drive me home and take my groceries. I had to make sure it was okay with my husband first, to have another man bring me home...LOL, he's funny like that! So, anyway, Viliami brought me and my groceries home.

A few minutes later brother Fano from our ward came by to pick up my husband so they could go back to our car and fix the flat. Thank goodness we have a ward member that lives just down the street from us.

I'm so grateful for the still small voice and the holy spirit that I have with me to guide me and help me through tough times. I'll tell you that I hate having that feeling of helplessness. I am however, grateful for members of the church who are willing to lend a helping hand. What a way to end my day... let's pray that it doesn't happen again.

My Daddy: HAPPY FATHERS DAY...ALAPATI IAKOPO "SAILI" PURCELL

My Dad: What can I not say about this man, who is my father, my hero, idol and much more. I wanted to give a little tribute to my father for this Fathers Day. I figured I write a little blog about him and all that he has done for our family. My father is the second youngest of 12 children. He was born in Malaela, Aleipata Upolu Samoa. His parents are Ropati and Faagalo Purcell. My father married my mom in 1971 and had their first child (Robert) in 1972. I came along 2 years later in January of 1974. For all of my 35 years of life, my dad has always worked hard to provide for our family. No matter how tired and sick he got, he always was working. I remember growing up as a little girl, when my dad was less active in the church(LDS Church). He would always come home with treats or toys for us.. we especially loved it during the fourth of July season when he'd come home with boxes of fireworks. Once my dad became active again in church, he was the greatest dad I could've ever asked for. He took our family to the Hawaii Temple and we were sealed as a family for Time and All Eternity! That was one of the best days of my life. Throughout my teenage years, he always reminded us of how important school was for us to complete and graduate. One of the greatest things I remember most about my dad while growing up was when he'd tell us that he didn't want to see us bring home a boyfriend till we were like 20 something. That stuck with me, cause I didn't take one home till I was 30 years old...LOL, you think I was traumatized?! NOT!
My dad is very passionate about our culture and I love that about him. I love that about him because, it keeps me in tune with my culture and I appreciate my culture because of the things he has taught me about our Samoan Heritage. I've learned thru him that being "afa tasi" (half breed) doesn't mean your "palagi" (white/caucasian)...it means you have the best of both worlds/cultures. Appreciate both your backgrounds and understand it. Do not be ashamed of your samoan side just because you are proud of your palagi side, vice versa.
My dad is a humble, loving, sometimes hardheaded (what samoan man isn't?) funny man. Some people may not like his strong personality at times, but he tends to grow on them once they get to know him. My brothers and sister and i love to hear my dad tell a story, cause he gives us a great laugh when he tries to tell it in English (FOB). I love my daddy and I thank Heavenly Father every day for blessing me with a man like him as my dad.
So, this Fathers Day, I want to tribute this Blog to him and tell him I LOVE YOU, DADDY...and HAPPY FATHERS DAY! I pray that he will continue to have many more strong, healthy years of life.

Temple Day

Spencer and I went to the Timpanogos Temple this morning to do a session(the Lords work). It wasn't a very nice morning, the rain was not helping. Anyway, our session was wonderful and I totally love this Temple. It is really beautiful outside and inside. Once our session was over and we were walking out to the lobby we noticed there were lots of people waiting for the rain to die down or go away. There were a few weddings going on, so the lobby was a little crowded with families. Those poor brides were having to take their pictures in the rain(when it wasn't pouring). So, Spencer goes to get the car while I wait for him up by the temple pick up area where it's dry. While waiting for him, I decide to pull out my camera and take a few pictures of the beautiful plants and flowers that were outside surrounding the temple. I've posted a few of these pictures below to show you how beautiful they are. If it weren't raining I think Spencer and I would've taken pictures outside of the temple too, but the rain killed it! Boo for the rain! Anyway, hope you like the pictures from my point of view.

FINAL DAYS OF VOLLEYBALL CAMP

Volleyball camp is finally over and I already miss it! The week seemed to have gone by too fast. Day 4 and 5 of Volleyball camp was basically review for the girls and playing different types of games. Our campers received their camp t-shirts today as well. Thanks to "Seti Matua" for the shirts. They look great! I look forward to next years volleyball camp and working with a new group of girls along with any returning campers. Thanks to my two assistant coaches, Amber Johnson and Melissa Nielsen for their wonderful job and hard work. Also, thanks to the Timpanogos Volleyball team for their assistance as well. Till next year...

Day 2 and 3 of VOLLEYBALL CAMP

Alright...I didn't get the chance to post anything about day two of my volleyball camp, so I'm putting it together with day three!
Day 2: The kids learned how to serve and set this day! They were awesome! They did so much better then we had thought they'd do. As you could tell by these pictures of some of the kiddie campers in action. Maggie(the little girl passing in the picture on the right) is very coordinated for her age. As a matter of fact, I think all of the little campers are well coordinated for their age. We lowered the nets so it was more realistic for them when trying to serve the ball over the net. Surprisingly they all did very well in hitting that volleyball over the net...from the 10' attack line of course. We played a game where they had to serve the ball over the net and try to hit some of the older girls, who were laying down on their stomachs/backs. The little campers enjoyed this little challenge because they were determined to hit the girls...it was hilarious the determined look on some of their faces.
Setting was a little more challenging for the kids. As much as I wanted them to NOT slap at the ball, or look like they were shooting a basketball, they did fairly well. Rosileni shows us her setting skills in the picture on the left.  An example of how fast these kids are at learning and picking up on the skills is Rosileni. She was not there on day 2, but she showed up on Day 3 and learned the basic setting and serving skills.  As you can see, she picked up right where the other kids left off.   She shows off her perfect form...must be her mothers side of the family (LOL, that's my side of family too!). We also played a setting game with the kids that was a challenge. This time however, they teamed up with a big girl. I have to tell you this little funny bit of a story about Tommy(the only boy in the camp). In this challenge, I had the little campers chose who they want as partners. I had thought that maybe he had a little kids crush on one of my girls, because he was always wanting to partner up with her or he was always laughing or acting shy around her. Well, of course who does he walk straight to when I tell them to go and stand next to the girl they want for partners?...that girl! Won't tell you her name, cause it doesn't matter...it's just cute how he is! Anyway, the challenge was to see how many times they could pass the ball overhand/setting without it dropping on the ground.
Day 3:
Today the kids learned how to approach, jump and hit the volleyball on an attack. I was excited this morning on getting to camp and teaching them how to attack/hit a volleyball. Let me tell you, how impressed I was at how well these kids did. As I said before, these kids are fast learners and they picked up on the steps, jumping and swinging at the ball quickly. Alison was the one who impressed me the most in this skill because she really had the concept of what she needed to do. I think she's going to be a great volleyball player when she gets older.
To the left here, you could see how well Rosileni's approach is. Yes, we did lower the net for them so that they have the opportunity to hit it over the net. With all the hitting that they did today, I wouldn't be surprised if they showed up tomorrow complaining about their arms being sore. Or maybe they won't complain, because I haven't heard them complain about any soreness yet. I remember what it was like to be a kid and play all day and not be sore! If we could be young forever! After practicing their approach, jump and hit, we played another challenge. This one similar to the serving challenge where they had to try and hit the older girls with their serve. Except this time, they were hitting/attacking the ball while the older girls laid on the other side of the net. The first round they hit the older girls 8 times...the second time they only hit them 7 times. It was still very good for them.
To the right here, we have Alison jumping and taking a swing at the ball that my assistant coach Amber is holding for her. Alison as I said before is a very good player and learns really fast. She shows that in this photo of her hitting.
I am so grateful for this blessing that I have to be able to teach little ones how to play volleyball. I know it requires a lot of patience to work with little kids, but having this group of 6 kids has been anything but stressful. They are eager to learn and play everyday that they have shown up. They pay attention, ask questions, work hard and say or do the darnest things to make us laugh. I look forward to another day with these kids as they learn more about volleyball for the next two days.