My Mommy you'll be

College has begun!

My Mom has been here with me in Provo for about 4 days now, helping me adjust, assisting me with the move and being my personal taxi while I attempt to adjust to college living. She has certainly been super mom! We have made several trips to Target after realizing the list of things we forgot to buy and making trips to Grammys house to pick up all of my things and of course also made time to have some fun!

My parents have always been my greatest support system, and my best friends. My mom and I have a special bond. She tells me countless times how she just prayed and prayed that she would have a girl...and here I am! Not sure what she would have done if she didn't a partner to go get mani-pedi's and to go antique shopping with. Not sure that the boys would want to tag along with her..that probably wouldn't have gone over well. My Mom is my best friend and I have some of the best memories of her and I. One very simple but very special thing that we share is loving to sit and talk about the future and to plan out the exciting things to come. I will never forget the time when she and I sad on the carpet of my room while we were remodeling our home. We sat and talked for hours about how cute my room was going to be, what colors to do, where to put the bed, what kind of light fixtures. We always seem to come to the topic of my life plan and I will always remember the countless times my Mom and I have  sat on my bed or under the trees in our front yard talking over and over about life plans and the endless possiblities!

I said goodbye to my Mom today. I knew that this day would come that I would be living on my own. My Mom always has supported me in anything I have done, been there to give me advice at the exact moment it is needed and been there to pick me up when I am down. 

Can you believe I am a college student Momma!?

 Dear Momma, 

You have prepared me for this exact moment all my life that I will finally be living on my own. You have taught me to no matter what, serve others, put a smile on, be involved, don't be afraid to ask questions, and to study hard! I am now at the moment in my life where I am to apply all that you and dad have taught me in my 18 years. I am one class away from finishing my first week of college and already I have faced so many situations where the things I am being taught I have already learned from you and Dad. Thank you for being my #1 fan. I love you tons and tons Momma. 

I'll love you forever,

I'll like you for always,

As long as I'm living

my Mommy you'll be.

Love always, Your baby girl, 

Annie Claire McKell

Goodbye Paradise

Sad to say.. the trip in paradise came to a close. Surely came too fast! Who would have thought that a trip in Hawaii would go by in a blink of an eye. It was so great to be all together as a family again. The A-Team had returned, with the constant movie quoting, Aaron's many crazy accents (many of which we aren't sure where they come from), Austin showing dad countless cars he could possibly buy, and Adam and Christy singing "Honolulu" in funny ways and trying to pronounce the street names.

Now that our trip has ended we have all parted ways to different places. Aaron and Caroline drove home to Utah, Adam flew to San Fran for business, Christy flew home to New York, Dad and Austin are holding down the fort at home and Mom and I flew to Utah...because IM A COLLEGE STUDENT NOW!

As for our dog Auto...well...he just sleeps all day.

If I had to pick out some of the highlights from our trip I would first pick the first time we got into Hawaii water in Waikiki. Let me tell ya..the water in Hawaii is like nothing I have ever experienced before!

The water was so great Aaron even decided to get a running start! Readdyyyy....

Annnddddd.....

BOOM! 

The next highlight would be the interesting lunch at "Giovanni's." I have never been a shrimp fan and so mom and I found another food truck to go to. But I must admit, the shrimp from Giovanni's is much different than the shrimp from Costco! The shrimp from Costco was the decision maker for me that I was not quite fond of shrimp. I did end up trying the shrimp at Giovanni's and Adam, Aaron and Austin would probably roll around screaming, "I told you so!"if they heard me say... "Man! that shrimp was good!"

Austin is Mr. Shrimp man! 

Nice one Austin! Apparently he just could not contain his excitement so he decided to flash one of these faces. 

And the licking of fingers begins!

The after math!

ALL DONE!

We finished our lunch and walked over to some of the shops and I immediately found the funnel cake station that was selling jewelry too. At this little shop a stack of Books of Mormon with a label next to it saying, "FREE Book of Mormon." Austin being the newly returned missionary started up a conversation with the store owners and the store owner was very eager to tell us that these Books of Mormon are now all over the world along with the children's book that he wrote. COOL HUH!

Last on the agenda was snorkeling! Unfortunately we could not find a reef that quite fit our expectations but with all the ones that we visited, it made for the coolest experience ever.

It must be impossible for the boys in our family to take a normal picture. 

Yet again...not a normal picture

I guess we will get a normal picture sooner or later. 

The trip is over and we are all adjusting back to normal life. I have started at BYU and that surely is interesting. There are EFY kids walking around campus and it is weird to think that I am not there with them. I also don't feel old enough to be going to college..certainly feels weird being the one walking around BYU campus with the backpack on, thinking about homework rather than the one visiting just to eat in the Cougar Eat and spend money in the bookstore.

Lets see how this goes....

GO COUGARS!

Just Beginning... Hello Hawaii!

Well, my sister in law Caroline McKell has certainly convinced me to get a blog! A place to keep thoughts, adventures and to share it with others. So here's to the beginning to Annie's Adventures! :)

This past week has been quite adventurous. From my brother Austin coming home from his mission, graduating high school, getting to Hawaii, saying goodbye to a very dear friend of mine that entered into the MTC on Wednesday on his way to Mendoza, Argentina and looking forward to starting college on Monday. 

We arrived in Oahu on Monday and enjoyed the evening in Waikiki with the family. The water here is so clear, it certainly makes Newport Beach and Huntington Beach back home seem like no big deal!

We were all so tired from the flight and trying to function on two hours of sleep that we all knocked out around 6:30 pm Hawaii time, which is 9:00 pm California time and 12:30 pm New York time for Adam and Christy. I have never experienced Jet lag before but let me tell ya, it has got to be one of the weirdest feelings ever. 

Tuesday morning we drove over to Pearl Harbor to see some of the museums and tours. Our plan was to see the USS Arizona but sadly the tickets were all sold out so we had to see it from afar. The ship is obviously underwater but they have built a memorial over it so you can see the ship below the water. From what I have heard, it is a very moving experience. 

Because we couldn't see the USS Arizona we decided to take advantage of the time we had and see the Battleship Missouri, which was a very cool experience! 

We began to explore the Island and discovered beach after beach that would just blow us away with it's beauty! And we hope to find more on the trip! 

It's already Thursday and I cannot believe it. My dad has to keep reminding us to slow down the trip and to enjoy every moment! 

Come Monday, I will have gone from a beautiful island with gorgeous surroundings and beaches, sleeping in a massive hotel with the most comfortable bed I have ever slept in..to a dorm room in Provo, Utah with a bed with springs that you can feel every time you move and sitting in class with all the other BYU freshman trying not to stand out and find our classes with ease! 

Complete opposites!