Mele Kalikimaka.

For Christmas of 2005 my family went to Hawaii! Ever since I can remember my mom has been saving up sky miles and money so that my family can take a trip to Hawaii! We finally decided to go right before Mike graduated High School. The whole month before we were all stocked about going! My mom was obsessed with the song "Mele Kalikimaka" because that is how you say Merry Christmas in Hawaiian. Looking back, I can honestly say that this is the best trip my family has ever been on!

This is the picture of us in the airport. Believe it or not, this picture was actually in the newspaper and talked about family's going places for the holidays! Yes... we are basically famous!

I remember the flight being the longest thing in my life! When we got there, it was night time. We took a taxi to our hotel and I remember driving by the ocean and being blown away by the beauty of this island! Our hotel was not the greatest on Maui but we had lots of fun! Below is a picture of my brother and me fighting! And yes... that would be Matt's finger in Spencer's ear!

We did a lot of fun things on the island of Maui. There are a lot of things to do and I would dare say... we did most of them! We took a day of "sight seeing" and drove around the island! We started at Pearl Harbor. It was so interesting and cool to see what happened there. We also took a tour on a battleship! I remember it being really hot but also very interesting! Below is a picture of the fam at Pearl Harbor!

We also stopped on our car trip at a lighthouse! It was off in the ocean and we stop and read a sign about it. As you can see in the picture below, the boys weren't very excited about it... Mike was just happy he had his beef jerky... and so was Matt! But I actually thought it was really pretty! You can actually see the lighthouse in the picture, it is between mine and Spencer's heads!

During the drive we stopped at some different places. I remember driving along the side of the road and being able to see guys surfing on these huge waves! It was fascinating to me! After a long and awaited car ride, we finally got to out last stop! The gorgeous Hawaii Temple! It truly was gorgeous and I was so glad we made the long trip out there! We went into the visitors center and they took us on a little tour of the temple! It was so cool to go there and see the famous temple!

We had a blast on the island of Maui but we didn't stay there very long... we actually spent most of our time on Kauai. It was beautiful! My favorite part of the island was the billions and billions of chickens! They were EVERYWHERE! It was so funny! Supposedly, back in the day they had a huge storm and it blew all of the chickens out of their pens. Then, chickens became wild and now they are everywhere! Our new hotel was a Marriott and it was really nice! There was actually a really cute hot dog place just down the street called Puka Dogs! They were delicious! I put mangoes on mine! Below is a picture of the fam eatin our dogs!

My favorite part about Kauai was the rope swing! Our friends the Blaylocks told us about it and then it was our quest to find it! We actually ended up talking to some locals about it! And eventually, we found it! It was in the core of the island and you had to hike a ways for it! Below is a picture of us on our way to the rope swing! When we got there I was blown away! It was absolutely stunning! There was a huge river which had a waterfall flowing into a huge pond of water. Then there was a huge tree with a rope attached to it! There was a ladder up the side of the mountain so you could climb back up! Since it was just a place for the locals, no one was there! A funny side story... we were walking across the river trying to go over to the tree and my mom, who was carrying all of our stuff, slipped and fell into the water. All of our stuff started floating down the river! We ended up catching everything and we laid out all of our electronics and luckily enough, nothing was broken!

Back to the Rope Swing! We (dad, mike, spencer, matt, me) were all standing at the top by the huge tree. My dad had the rope in his hand and asked, "Ok who's going first?" Everyone just stared blankly at my dad. A) We had no idea if it was safe and B) it was really high! So... me being the only girl and the only one scared of hights, finally volunteered to go first! Yes, needless to say I was about to pee my pants! But I gripped that rope tighter than anything in my life, said my prayers, and jumped! It was one of the biggest rushes in my life! The water was freezing but it was so worth it! We swung for a while and then, after we were all exhausted, we left.

On our way back from the rope swing, we stopped at Banana Joe's. It was a cute little shack that we had heard about. We went in and all got banana smoothies... they were actually really disgusting! Haha so we threw them away, but we got a pretty cute picture of matt and me in front of the shack!

Christmas was on a Sunday and we attended church! It was an incredible experience to go to church in Hawaii! The members were so welcoming and even made us leis (you can see in the picture below) We even ran into our friends The Smiths and went to church with them! It was such an awesome experience and I am so glad we decided to do that!

Since it was Christmas, my mom packed a cute little tree and stockings! The day we got to the island of Kauai we stopped at Wal*mart and picked up presents. We all drew names and then we bought a little goofy gift for our person! We also picked up a boxed Christmas dinner! Christmas was a lot of fun because it helped us realize the true meaning of Christmas! We went to Church and then we invited the Smiths over for dinner! They even brought a cute cake that said "Mele Kalikimaka"! So funny!

The rest of the vacation was pretty much spent chillin on the beach! It was gorgeous there! The water was so blue and the sand was so white! The sun was awesome because it made you really tan... it was weird actually! And it was winter in Orem so that was nice coming back and all!

Hawaii was amazing! I loved everything about it. I now understand why it was my mom's goal to get the whole family there together! It is still my favorite family vacation and whenever I look back on it, I always want to go back! I would dare say it is the greatest place on earth!

HAWAII.

Zoe...

A couple of years back my parents told us that we could finally get a dog! We went and looked at the newly born puppies and I loved them all. But there was one dog whom I just fell in love with! Come to find out, she is the one we picked. She used to be so small, she could fit into the palm of one hand. I loved her!

Zoe is a Bichon Frise.

We have trained her to do just about every trick in the book: sit, lay, roll over, play dead, dance, shake, high-five, G.I. Joe, bunny (hop up and down on hind legs), ask nicely (sit on hind legs), and go to your spot (go lay in your bed). She is one of the smartest dogs I have ever met! One of the funniest things that she does is she buries her "puppy" named Doby! Every time after she eats or at night time before before bed, she will go and bury him somewhere in the house.

Zoe and Doby!

Another thing that Zoe loves is her bed! She lays in it almost constantly! It is so funny to me because Zoe is a ton like our family. We have our moments when we love to be active and go play but we also have our moments when we like to just relax and be still. Zoe is this to the T and I love it haha.

Zoe and her bed.

A couple of years ago Zoe was playing with me and Spencer up on Spence's bed and Zoe ran and jumped off, she yelped really loud and then she couldn't walk. We took her into the vet and come to find out she tore her ACL. So yes, Zoe had to get surgery on her ACL :( it was the saddest thing I have ever seen! She was so sad and was just in pain all of the time. My mom stayed up with her the first night and just held her all night long. We love our dog so much and would do anything for her!

Zoe and her cast.

She loves us too! She is one dog who loves to cuddle! I would dare say it is one of her favorite things. If you are at home sitting on the couch or taking a nap on your bed, Zoe is always right there beside you! If you are sick, she will not leave your side all day long! She is such a sweetheart! Matt calls her, "Fluffy Pillow". Because she is so soft and loves to just snuggle in.

Zoe and Dad on the couch.

So if you cannot tell... we love Zoe! She has brought me through thick and thin. She is such a joy to have in our house and in my life! She is getting old and we are all so sad! I cannot picture my life without this little fluff ball!

This is just a little clip of Zoe... it cracks me up! Her toy is under the hutch... She brings so much laughter into the lives of the Baker's!

I LOVE ZOE.

The Junior High Years...

Junior High was an amazing time in my life! I had an incredible experience and I learned so many things! In 7th grade I shared my locker with the one and only Kaitlyn Swenson! We both made the cheer squad and so we would dress up on game days together! We also both decided that we weren't going to take PE and would count dance for that credit. So we would leave school early together and then carpool to dance! Loved it!

8th grade was my all time favorite year! I was a cheerleader once again and it was amazing! I think what made it so great was because I knew a lot of people. Don't take that as being cocky... haha but I had just taken the time to get to know a lot of different people and I think that made everything more fun! I shared my locker with the amazing Lauren Craig! We had been friends since about 4th grade. She was also on the cheer squad with me and so we saw each other a lot at school as well as away from school. I remember when I tried out for the cheer squad, me and my friend Jordan McKell made the 9th grade cheer squad. But we both made the decision to stay on the 8th grade squad with our friends. I made Jazz Club at the dance club 8th grade year as well. It was just overall an incredible year!

This is a picture of dress up day for Cheer! We all dressed up crazy and took crazy pictures!

9th grade year was awesome because we ruled the school! We were the oldest and had learned the ropes. I was also on the cheer squad and we didn't cheer for Oak Canyon anymore but had the opportunity to cheer for Timpanogos High School, which was a ton of fun! I also liked my first boy and he was on the football team! His name was Taylor Atkin haha. We sat by each other in Geology and it was so funny! We like never talked but everyone knew we liked each other... oh the good old days!

I also had a math teacher named Ms LeBlanc, yes she was related to Matt LeBlanc from friends! Anyways, she was the person who inspired me to become a math teacher! She was incredible and I learned so much that year! I gained such a love for Math. 9th grade year was amazing!

I had some awesome friends and I loved everything about it!

GO EAGLES!

13 years of dancing...

I don't know where to start so I guess I will begin with my love for dance... I started dancing when I was just 3 years old. I started out at Center Stage in a tap class. When my mom saw my love for dance she signed me up for a couple of classes at

The Dance Club at age 4. When I turned 5 I was on a professional dance team. I was on a dance team at The Dance Club for the rest of my dancing career.

I loved to dance.

It was my whole life.

I remember waking up, going to school, going to dance, doing my homework at dance, eating at dance, then going home and going to bed. When I was sick, I was at dance. When my family had an event, I was at dance. I lived, breathed, and slept dance. I loved it! Dancing to me is my way of expressing emotion. I believe that everyone has to have a way that they can express how they are feeling inside and dance is that for me.

Sadly when I was in 9th grade I had to quit dancing. This is because I got shin splints really bad. I went to Florida for a huge dance competition and we competed all morning and ran around Disneyworld all day and all night. It was a lot for my body and shin splints arrived. When I realized that dancing wasn't in the cards for me anymore, I thought my life was over. Dancing was my everything and it had been since I was just 3 years old.

In the end, now that I look back on it, I am glad that I stopped dancing when I did. I was able to do so many different things with my life once dance didn't encompass everything I did. I am however so glad for everything dance has taught me. I believe I am the person I am today because of all my years as a dancer.

It taught me dedication, hard work, people skills, and so much more.

Dancing is still a part of my life. I love to dance around my room and release emotion. Sometimes, when I am home alone, I turn on the music and dance around and it helps me unwind from my life. It is so relaxing and I still love it.

Dance.

A Little Bit About Me...

Ok... so I have never done this before so please be patient with me. I have decided to start a blog about my life because I am the worst journal keeper on the planet... basically! Ok so I guess I'll just start out with a little bit about me.

My name is Alena Marie Baker and I was born January 16, 1990 to two wonderful parents: Dan and Connie Baker. I am the only girl in my family which leaves me with 3 awesome brothers: Mike, Spencer, and Matt. My family is everything to me. Anytime I am with my family we always have a great time! We love to do crazy things together! My family is very sarcastic and like to crack jokes anytime it is permitted. They are my light in this world and they help me everyday. I do not know where I would be without them!

I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints! I have a testimony that it is the only true church on the earth today. Thomas S. Monson is the prophet on the earth today and is a mouthpiece for the Lord in these latter days. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and that he restored this church. I also have a testimony of the Book of Mormon and know that it is written by the hand of God! I love my church and it means more to me than anything on this planet. It has made me who I am today and also helps me realize my true potential of why I am here on this earth and who I will be in the future.

I attended K-3rd grade at Hillcrest Elementary School, 4th-6th at Orchard Elementary School, 7th-9th at Oak Canyon Junior High, and 10th-12th at TIMPANOGOS High School! I have always had a love for learning and have loved every one of my schools. Junior High was an amazing experience. I was actually a cheerleader for all three years... believe it or not!

Then in High School I was apart of THS' first marching band. I was a member of the Dance Guard. My senior year was incredible. I was on Student Council as Senior Class Historian. I made the slideshow for graduation which meant I was in charge of introducing it and therefore talking at graduation!

I am now up here at Utah State gaining an education and loving every minute of it! In my personal opinion, Utah State is the greatest place on earth! I am a Human Resource Management major in the Huntsman School of Business and I love it! I love learning about businesses and how they operate, what makes them successful and what doesn't. It is simply fascinating!

I have had the incredible opportunity of receiving the Ambassador Scholarship! It is a 4 year full tuition scholarship and honestly such a blessing! About 500 people applied my year and they only accept 20. What I do is I work out of the admissions office. We are in charge of recruitment and we do many things: give tours to incoming students, attend college day, put on activities on campus, go to open houses, and we are all assigned to a high school (mine is TIMPANOGOS) and we go there twice a semester and also send emails about everything going on up here at USU!

I love life and everything about it!

Everyday I wake up and am so excited to be alive!

I have an incredible family and incredible friends that make life worth living!