Lately I've been so overwhelmed by the Spirit. I've been brought to tears at the thought of my Father in Heaven and His very many blessings. More and more I continue to realize how blessed I am. I've always recognize my Father's hand in my life. I've always be grateful to Him for all that I have, for all He continues to give me. But lately...lately these blessings have been so much more magnified. My prayers have become so much more heartfelt. I find myself "counting my blessings" more often than not.
I questions myself and wonder, "why now?" Why are you feeling so much more grateful? As I sit and contemplate these things, I begin to realize it's because of the temple. Going to the temple has enabled me to feel so much more closer to my Father in Heaven. It has given me a sense of peace and hope. I often think of how much the temple has blessed the lives of those around me. How making sacred covenants with our Father in Heaven has changed these people for the better. How I have been touched by their examples of faith.
This summer Paaga and I were able to attend Ben and Priscilla's wedding. We had a wonderful time. Of course there was tons of laughter and tears, but one of the things that has stuck in my mind is my dear Ula. She, too has had the opportunity of receiving her own endowments. So when I talk to her, I can see and hear the blessings of these sacred ordinances she has made. I love what the temple has done for her. Thank you Ula for your example.
My own sister Paaga and her husband, Sai. They have been married for 3-4 years now (?) and I have seen how they have tried to make their family eternal. Seeing them each weekend go to the temple. Seeing how they make it a point to go together. Knowing they are constantly trying to raise their little family so they will reach their celestrial goals. Thank you for your examples of faith.
I am falling "in love" with the gospel all over again. Heavenly Father's blessings have indeed been abundant in my life. I thank Him everyday for all that I have. My hope is I will continue to be worthy to receive these blessings. :)

Lesson learned.

Alma, thank you for reminding me how important it is for us to share our blessings with those who need it most. I am humbled by your desire to serve your fellow man. My testimony is strengthened by your example. You're right, everything we have is because we asked for it. Why not help someone else who is "asking for it"? I love you.

Another great weekend.

Mom, Aunty Pela, and Bobo were with us this past weekend. It was really great to FINALLY have mom come see our house. Aunty, too. :) This weekend was a great opportunity for Mom and Aunty to get some R&R and for Bobo and I to get some new clothes. sweet! We loved having this opportunity to spend with Mom. We rarely do get this chance when we're in Tacoma because she's always working or going to the gym. Two things I don't do; work or work out. lol.
It's just really nice to have a place where my mom and family can just come and relax whenever they want to escape from their lives. Thanks Mom and Aunty for giving Alma and I a chance to spend time with you. We love you so much. Thanks a ton for feeding our faces and buying me new clothes and especially for my uber cute J.Simpson bag. :) Come back soon!
Bobo: You've got big things ahead of you. You can EVERYTHING on your list. I just know it! You're a super great guy and I love you. I can't believe you're so grown. It makes me feel so old. lol. Thank you for visiting. VIVA LA OSU!!! lol. But first, get good grades, do awesome on your SAT's, because remember it doesn't matter how pretty you are or how good you are at football, if you're a dum dum they won't take you! lol.
P.S.
Thank you guys so much for cleaning our yard! It looks FANTASTIC!!! I'd tell you we'll keep it up, but I'd be lying. I hate yardwork. haha.

$10 pilates dvd and equipment...waste of money.

This weekend we will spend it in Tacoma with mi familia. yay! In preperation for our weekend getaway, Alma and I always clean our house before we go. Today while he and Noah are putting up our fire alarms and fire extinguisher (safety first!) I am folding laundry and cleaning our room. We're all jammin' to music and having a good time getting the house together. I'm feeling good, they're feeling good. Everyfing is kewd. :)
I begin cleaning out our closet; getting rid of clothes we dont' fit or wear. Mostly don't fit. hehe. Getting rid of Alma's 5 pairs of tennis shoes he has never worn...ever. They're still BRIGHT WHITE. Waste money this guy. hehe. I find random things in our closet; a receipt from Walgreens in Vegas (good times), .25 (yes!), random socks, a G.I. joe figurine, and my lovely coach purse. :) An awesome gift from the bro-ham Tim last Kirisimasi.
I'm still cleaning and dancing. Still feeling good about myself even after I find my favorite pair of jeans I haven't been able to fit since I got married. Tell me again, why did I get married? It's totally ruining my life. lol. j/k. My last find in my quest to clean my room in great spirits...2 $10 pilates DVD and workout equipment Alma and I bought 3 months ago. I laugh to myself remembering what I told Alma when we bought them. "Babe, it's only $10! I've done pilates before and it's great! This is so cool. We can start doing pilates together." I'm laughing because, 1. We've done pilates a total of ZERO times since we've bought them. and 2. They're still in their packages...unopened. lmbo! Wait. I lie. One of them is opened. I opened it when we got home the day we bought them just to see what the equipment looked like. Since then, they've been pushed against the wall, behind our computer. haha! But today...today I've decided I will no longer let these potential "miracle workers" stay hidden behind the computer. Today I will pick them up... and put them in my closet with those jeans I no longer fit. haha!
Here's to wasting money on workout DVD's and equipment!!!

Happy Birthday, Tina.

Today you turned the big 83! We called you today to wish you happy birthday. Of course you didn't remember. :) You actually told me, you forgot it was your birthday. haha. Alma's been trying to "forget" his birthdays since he turned 30...3 years ago! lol. You are so funny. Between our trying to wish you happy birthday, the first thing you asked me was, "How are you two doing?" I answer, "fine" You said, "good. I want to hear that." Even on your own birthday, your concern is whether or not I'm being a good wife. In fact, you're not the first person to ever ask me that? Why is that? Did Alma say something to you? lol.
I am so grateful you are still here with us. I love you so much. I use to worry you weren't going to be here to meet the man I married. But there you were. Crying when I told you I got married. Mad, because you weren't there. But that instantly turned into a smile when you saw Alma.
In so many ways I am still a selfish little girl, who worries about YOU not being around for ME. But what gives me peace is this wonderful gospel we are a part of. :)
I hope today was a good day for you. I know it was for your family. Today, I'm pretty sure each of us paused for a minute to thank the Lord for allowing you to be with us another year. I'll see you on Saturday, Tina!

...for the temple is the house of God...

What a great day. Full of love. Full of learning. Full of tears. Full of prayers. As I sat in the temple and looked across to my love, I could not help but feel so overwhelmed with gratitude to my Father in Heaven for blessing me with this wonderful man. Oh how thankful I am for you! You are everything I have ever wanted. Heavenly Father does indeed answer prayers. My heart is full. I love you. Thank you for sharing this journey with me. Thank you for loving me and thank you for letting me love you. Together forever; you and me. :)

Dancing's my passion...hehe.

Phyllis has started her dance group up again. And because dancing is my passion, I've offered to help her. haha. Have you ever done something you really, really loved? Dumb question, huh? Lots of people do stuff they really, really love. Well, my whole life I've only done one thing I REALLY, REALLY loved doing. I know, lame. Quit judging me. Well, dancing is the only thing I've ever done that I REALLY, REALLY loved. So why did I ever stop, you ask? Why didn't I ever go to PCC like I always wanted and dance? Because I'm an idiot.
Anyone who knows me, knows I HEART PCC. In my mind I, Tuituiotoga Linsley Toelupe (still getting used to that. haha) am the owner of this wonderful, WONDERFUL land called PCC. No one loves it more than I. Stop laughing! It's totally true.
For a long time I have wanted to dance again. But for a long time I've also been FAT. So with my dreams to dance, my dancing body has also gone down the drain. The McDonald's, Burger King, OCB, China King Buffet drain.
So why haven't I been teaching? The whole, those you can't do, teach saying. ugh. I said I love dancing, not I love to teach dancing. That is whole different ball game, if you ask me. It takes so much patience and kindness and tact. These are skills one needs in abundance. I, for one, only have these skills in small, small, very tiny spurts. Enough to get me through the grocery line at Walmart (that barely is enough.). I have to borrow some of Alma's just to get me through that. I just want to go to practice, learn, dance my butt off, and go home. How awesome is that?!?
So with all this said, I am so very excited to help Phyllis. I am not teaching anything. I'm mostly just there to help her with whatever she needs. Plus, I'm gonna start dancing, too. :) But only in the very, very back. It's my way of exercising while doing something I love. That way, when I do get my 30 years in the making, "hot summer body" I'll be sure to push all them skinny b^%ches to the BACK! lmbo!