preview of christmas letter arriving in your mailbox soon...

make sure you get your copy by sending us your address if you do not think we already have it.

hawkes wedding.

The weekend before Thanksgiving, we attended the wedding of Justin and Martha in the Salt Lake Temple. From the early age of 3, Whitney and Justin have been the best of friends and consider each other pseudo-siblings. In the sealing, the sealer shared great counsel. He talked about how in the formation of this new family, the Hawkes, they have become Satan's number one target. The sealer also told the bride that women should never underestimate the power of bearing testimony to their children--it is different than the witness of a father. Wonderful counsel during this time of turmoil in the world.

The Seatlle-ites of the early 1990s (Reddekopps, Montagues) reunite.

Justin (aka the groom), Whitney, and Nate. The goofy behavior of childhood continues even into adulthood.

Yes on Proposition 8

They All Agree: Obama, McCain, Biden, Palin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_Hmdcy_lvQ

I DO - Government
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=H3La1zbo8cc

I DO - Hollywood
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=gIxpv2sOs3s

I DO - The Family
http://nl.youtube.com/watch?v=CNA7Ts_OaTc

Yes on Proposition 8

A commission of the National Assembly of France, a country that allows civil unions but rejects same sex marriage, concluded that because the effect of same sex parents on child's developing psychological identity is unknown, such arrangements are not in the best interest of the child.  The language of the report recognized that "Marriage is not merely the contractual recognition of the love within a couple.  It is a framework with rights and obligations conceived in order to welcome and provide for his harmonious development."

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints outlines the religious and societal necessity of preserving marriage in "The Divine Institution of Marriage" and emphasizes the same idea.

"Marriage is not primarily a contract between individuals to ratify their affections and provide for mutual obligations.  Rather, marriage and family are vital instruments for rearing children and teaching them to become responsible adults.  While governments did not invent marriage, through the ages governments of all types have recognized and affirmed marriages as an essential institution in preserving social stability and perpetuating life itself.  It is true that some couples who marry will not have children, either by choice or because of infertility, but the special status of marriage is nonetheless closely linked to the inherent powers and responsibilities of procreation, and to the inherent differences between the genders.  Co-habitation under any guise or title is not a sufficient reason for defining new forms of marriage."

David A. Bednar noted the ripple affect of not passing Prop8 would be a "tyranny of tolerance."  Not passing Prop8 takes away peoples right to believe in traditional marriage and allows for lawsuits to be filed against people and institutes who for religious reasons choose not to perform same sex marriages, not to perform in vitro fertilization for same sex couples, and not to allow adoption to same sex couples through their agency.  

I find it fascinating that only a few decades ago, the politic atmosphere was centered on not being "forced" to have a "piece of paper" to show commitment and believing that partners in committed relationships should have rights and protections.  California agreed and laws are in place.  Civil Unions are protected under the California Family Code.  Now the pendulum has swung again and the desire is to have that "piece of paper" that was not wanted or valued in the not so distant past.

YES on Proposition 8

We believe in the divine institution of marriage and support Proposition 8. We reiterate the words of Elder Cook who said tolerance does not mean live and let live, but rather show love for and towards all men and stand for moral principles.

Please visit: Proposition 8 Question and Answers:

Will same sex marriages hurt others? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-jc4ujp9Ok

Sick and tired of intolerance? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y4nqtDrJI7A

Are others supporting Prop 8? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIvS7redS8M

Will courts overturn it again? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4tTRvmgZKM

Didn’t we already vote on this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsHqrHoxTiM

Don’t others deserve the same happiness? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP2ERL6Xykk

Will existing rights disappear? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IGPxqHScjk

other summer travels.

the family discovered "rock band". jeff leads on the vocals and nan rocks the drums.

our old haunt of seattle was frequented.

return to the island of kauai. lemmon girls love sun and warmth. 

and whitney was even found enjoying time being pulled behind a boat. jeff and nan never thought they would see the day.

jerusalem center.

as mentioned, i had the incredible opportunity to study at the byu-jerusalem center this spring. we lived on the mt of olives overlooking the old city. below is but a small sampling of the amazing adventures in the two months spent in the middle east--jerusalem, egypt, galilee, and jordan. if you are interested, i have over 800 more snapshots...

on the city ramparts surrounding the old city.

kissing the sphinx.

sunset on the sea of galilee.

dome of the rock on the temple mount.

So...um, we pretty much are horrible about keeping the blog updated.  And to add to the terribleness in writing, we don't have Whitney around to remind us how to upload pictures.  Oh well, here are the words of what is happening until at a later date when we can be schooled by Whitney and add some pictures.

1.  Whitney is back in Provo for her fourth, but not quite final year of college.  She is scheduled to graduate in December of 2009 with a BSN.  Maybe we should add that since the last post, Whitney spent Spring Term at the BYU Jerusalem Center--rough life.  

2.  Jeff is spending lots of time traveling between Mexico where it is 100+ degrees and home where it is about 62 degrees.  He loves the challenge of running the business in Mexico and getting to speak lots of Spanish.  

3.  Nan spent the summer looking for the sun and is now back in the classroom teaching PreCalculus and APStatistics.  

4.  The entire family spent two weeks in Kauai which was pretty much amazing.  Lots of sun and playing.  We got to hike, scuba dive, and surf.  Whitney even got to practice her nursing skills when our sister-in-law fell off a 25 foot cliff while we were hiking.  She had some deep lacerations and a shattered humerus.  Hooray for Whitney who pretty much stripped all of us of our shirts and after cutting them to pieces created a fabulous brace and splint to set the arm--the ER doctors and nurses gave Whitney kuddos for her wilderness work. 

festival of colors.

On Saturday, Whitney and a bunch of friends attended the "Festival of Colors" celebration at the Hare Krishna Hindu temple in Spanish Fork. The story behind the ritual of burning a witch and then throwing colored chalk at each other is unclear. Everytime she asks, a new explanation is given. Even wikipedia does not give a clear cut answer. Imagine that. Whatever the reason, it was fun to be a part of the chalk-throwing celebration which resulted in being totally covered in pink, blue, green, yellow, orange, and purple. And even 48 hours later, Whitney still has an aura of pink around her head from the pink chalk that seems to have decided to take up residence in her hair despite vigorous scrubbing.

Monterey California Stake 50th Anniversary

Yesterday Nan and Jeff were able to participate with the Latter-Day Saints in Monterey County the 50th Anniversary of the organization of the Monterey California Stake....organized March 2nd, 1958 by Elder Mark E. Peterson of the Quorum of the Twelve. It was wonderful. Of the seven men that have been called to serve as Presiding High Priest of the stake by the Lord four are still living and were in attendance. Two of the other three had family members in attendance. Others that had lived and served in the stake came from as far at Utah and Idaho to be with us for the celebration.

We began the day with a wonderful luncheon for the former and current Stake Presidents and Bishops. There were approximately 75 to 80 in attendance and each attending family stood and introduced themselves. It was wonderful fun to hear all the stories of inspiration, trial, fun and service. We learned about the "Egg Ranch" in Wastonville, the Avis Car Rental shuttle, the stake pig farm in Carmel Valley amongst other various welfare and fund-raising projects. How blessed are we today to live under the post 1989 budget change directive. Hopefully we are using that time to increase our study and ministry to others.

The stake then hosted an open house for all current and former members and of course any friends at the stake center in the early evening. It was wonderful to see so many former members of our stake and hear how their lives are progressing and how the Lord's hand has been so evident in strengthening and blessing their families. It was amazing to see kids that have grown to adulthood and started families, begun their service in the church and society and have begun to apply lessons learned while members of the Monterey Stake.

The crowning event of the day was a fireside last evening with a representative from each family from each stake president taking part. The stories and doctrine taught were inspirational, memorable and uplifting. The music was fantastic. I hope to be able to add the musical number performed by a member of our stake of the "stake song" named "The Banner of Faithfulness". It is wonderful and was an inspiration to all in attendance.

It was interesting to learn of all the wonderful general church leaders that have had a hand in building up the faith of the members of the stake over the years. President Gordon B. Hinckley attended stake conference on 4 different occasions in Monterey during his lifetime. Other general church officers that have attended include Elder Spencer W. Kimball, Elder Howard W. Hunter, Elder LeGrand Richards, Elder Boyd K. Packer, Elder James E. Faust, Elder Henry B. Eyring, Elder Richard G. Scott, and many others.

What a blessing to our family to have lived here and been able to be taught by so many wonderful, wise and humble servants of God.

(pictures will be forthcoming)

park city snow.

with a little encouragement, whitney managed to escape the demands of school for a day and hit the slopes of park city with roommates and friends. it was fabulous.




the white-out conditions that covered the mountain in the late afternoon. it was hard to tell the difference between the mountain and the sky!

president's weekend.

president's weekend meant an escape from the snow in provo for whitney, a girl rendevous in san francisco, and fun eats in monterey.


these hearts are all over san francisco as part of a charity effort for san francisco memorial hospital.


at carmel beach.


breakfast at toasties. ollaliberry pancakes that are scrumdiddlyumptious.

storm.

a HUGE storm hit the entire California coast last week. we lost power on friday january 4 at 930am. winds were reported to be around 80 mph in our area and up to 170 mph in the passes in tahoe. after the rain and wind subsided, we took a walk on saturday morning around our neighborhood and along the beach to survey the damage. there was tons of sand, kelp, large rocks, and even an uprooted concrete bench on the oceanfront road. on other streets, huge trees fell blocking the entire road, crushing cars, and splintering the power lines. the waves were well over 12 feet and gorgeous. it was so fun to just watch the waves thrashing and rolling in. an estimated 51,000 people were without power in our area and an estimated 1 million without power in the san francisco bay area. crazy. power was out for three days at our house so we slept in lots of extra layers of clothing and lots of extra blankets in an attempt to stay warm! we only had one flashlight the first night so it was quite the adventure!


the yellow tape blocking off our road.


power pole splintered in three.


uprooted concrete bench.