Let Them Be Little

IT'S NOT EVEN MOTHER'S DAY YET

AND ALREADY it's the BEST!!

"That's why I couldn't be happier..."

Jonathan and the kids really surprised me! Seriously surprised me with the biggest Mother's Day surprise, ever.

This morning, Jonathan left to take care of some things. He was gone a couple of hours, when he came home, I was laying down in bed (I had been up but needed to take a rest). He came to talk to me and was acting rather strange.  I asked why he was acting a little weird and he said his leg was cramping.  And he ran down the stairs...

I thought to myself, "Okay, well that was weird, I wonder what happened..."

A few minutes later, he came back up the stairs and said he had gotten me an early mother's day gift and he wanted to give it to me now.

Well, okay!  Who would turn down a gift?  Not me!

I sat up in bed and I could hear Smash coming up the stairs. Thinking he would be carrying whatever Jonathan had gotten for me (since Jonathan had a cramping leg) I turned to see what he was bringing...it was Nathan!

I screamed! Really.  I screamed!

At first I couldn't believe my eyes. I thought I was seeing Nathan in Smash.

When I looked at the proud smile that Jonathan was wearing, I realized it was REALLY Nathan!

It was absolutely the best surprise and gift ever!  I have all of my kids home for mother's day.

What a gift. They are and have always been the greatest gift I could ever receive.

Thank you for the sweetest surprise. I love you all!

That's why I couldn't be happier. This song (titled Thank Goodness) from my favorite musical, Wicked, started going through my head just after the house was filled with these wonderful people.

Since I will be soaking up as much time as possible with my family, I am not sure if I will get a Mother's Day post prepared for tomorrow.

Happy Mother's Day to all.  Most especially to our own mothers! We love you!!

THANK YOU

to you, and you, and you.

There are several thank you notes I am working on at present.

They need to get in the mail!

Even though I haven't mailed out the formal thank you notes yet, I wanted to mention a few of the sweet thoughts that I have received from really sweet people!

And the list keeps growing.

Just when I am having a tough moment, or day, or something...a card, an email, friend, flowers, text or voice-mail will come that will completely lift me up! It's as if I get that special something just at the right time.

You are all so good to me. And you have obviously been spiritually guided to send something uplifting just at the right time.

Thank you.

This card was the first to arrive. And it came from a woman I have only met once, briefly. Her daughter lived with Emily last year and we met while the girls were moving in to their dorm.  We could not have known how close Mary and Emily would become through that time together, had I known, I would have tried to have a better conversation with her mother, Becki. Mary is a wonderful girl and I have been so thankful that she and Emily have become so close. In this case, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I suspect that Mary is such a sweet and wonderful girl because she is a lot like her mother.

Her mother read of my recent struggles on this blog and sent me the kindest note. It was such a thoughtful thing to do that I was completely overwhelmed and humbled by her.

You know, it is really interesting, every time I meet someone from Washington (the state), I feel a kinship with them. They too are from the Seattle area. Many of Em's friends from college are from Washington and she agrees with me, the NW holds some real treasures in their people!

Thank you Becki, when I am well and we have finally settled into a home here in Co., please bring your family and play! We'd love to have you!

A few days ago (not sure which day exactly, I was a little out of it), this arrived:

From a very wonderful woman. We have only met once but it was on a really special day, the day her son, Tyler, married my niece, Karen.

Jill is someone I feel that I have known for a long time and feel that I know her better than I do. I read her blog and keep up with her happenings and thoughts on life. She has raised 4 wonderful sons and has helped raise her 2nd husband's children too. She and her husband have a beautiful marriage and wonderful friendship. It's easy to know that by what she shares. She has darling grandkids and is a happy grandma. Her other name is Grandma Honey - now that's the sweetest name, ever!

I love this photo! Taken 3 years ago on May 1st in Fresno, CA.

 Thanks Jill, I have already started reading it and I am enjoying it a lot! You are so thoughtful, I wouldn't have splurged on a book like that right now, but it is one that I would have wanted to get for a fun read.  Thank you for thinking I could use a little lift and something inspiring right now.

 

Jonathan's parents sent me a card with one of my favorite poems on it. Thanks for thinking of me and for sending that beautiful card with the poem; I needed the reminder.  :)

I don't know how they remembered or knew that it was a favorite but somehow they knew. It is one I shared with my Institute class - I like it that much - only the best for them.  :)

They also checked in on Nathan this weekend and saw him face to face. They said he was doing great! I really needed to know that! Thanks for doing that, Ben and Joan! I was a little worried.

 

The Oak Tree by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr.

 

A mighty wind blew night and day

It stole the oak tree’s leaves away

Then snapped its boughs and pulled its bark

Until the oak was tired and stark

 

But still the oak tree held its ground

While other trees fell all around

The weary wind gave up and spoke

How can you still be standing Oak?

 

The oak tree said, I know that you

Can break each branch of mine in two

Carry every leaf away

Shake my limbs, and make me sway

 

But I have roots stretched in the earth

Growing stronger since my birth

You’ll never touch them, for you see

They are the deepest part of me

 

Until today, I wasn’t sure

Of just how much I could endure

But now I’ve found, with thanks to you

I’m stronger than I ever knew

 

HAPPY TEXT MESSAGES

ARE THE BEST!

Text messaging is wonderful and amazing and quick and easy and (can be) non-intrusive.

Still, I'm an old-school gal in a lot of ways (I just proved that by putting old-school and gal in the same sentence!) and I think it's important to have real-live conversations with people.

But since I have been sick and it is hard for me to feel up to talking much, I have found a new appreciation for text messaging.

Mainly because of my niece, Karen.

She is a master text-er.

Her texts could not be replaced with a phone call - well, unless it was via Skype.

Because she sends me cute little happy thoughts with messages like these:

Just look at that cute little guy! My first great-nephew, Rich. Aren't they a darling pair?

Finals day for Tyler and Rich's first official campus visit!

See what I mean? Aren't those the best messages?!

I love them; the photos via text and the beautiful people in them!

Oh, and they celebrated their anniversary on the 1st. Happy anniversary!

THE HAPPY NEWS FOR THE WEEK

My most exciting and happy news for the week is Emily made it back to us!

Yes!

She nearly missed her flight  - it was down to the minute - but she made it and we are happy to have her here.

Since BYU doesn't take a spring break, the students get out earlier than other colleges. So, we get to enjoy having her with us until she goes back to school and work in June.

She is the official chauffeur now that I am not able to drive. I think she likes being behind the wheel again.

We will be putting her other skills to use as well - there are quite a few things I could use some help with while she is here.

Monday I went to another iron-pumping session.  :)

It went better than the time before and I am very thankful for that.

When I arrived, my nurse, sorry - I don't have a nickname for her yet, was worried about me. I had had a very rough weekend and I was not well on Monday. My blood pressure was exceptionally low, even for me. She was worried that I might not tolerate the iron again. She asked if I was willing to stay there longer, take the iron more slowly and also get pumped up with saline while I was there. She felt the saline would help me feel a little better.

Absolutely.

It did take a long time. We were there nearly 3 hours. (Emi even started to fall asleep a little, ya, I saw that, Em!)

1,000 ml of saline. I'll bet my organs were wanting to do the happy dance with all of that liquid coursing through my veins.

Jonathan couldn't stay away, even though I assured him that Emily and I would be fine; he came bearing gifts during the middle of the procedure, smoothies. (Really good, btw!) Thanks, Jon!

My nurse was right, the saline did help me. This time was not nearly as bad. It still wiped me out for the rest of Monday. I don't remember Tuesday all that well. Yesterday was a better day, and I may have enjoyed that a little too much.

So, I am hopeful that more iron will help and I think I would like to ask for a side of saline again! (A large side!)

Oh, I did get to go see banana peel girl and get more blood drawn; don't know my stats yet.

She told me that her 70 yr. old aunt came to visit from Hawaii and had a similar scare. When she got to CO, she felt dizzy and was afraid she was going to pass out. She would fall easily and get hurt. She went to the ER and was given 5 units of blood. They never did find the bleed, so her insurance told her she had to stop looking for the cause, they were done paying for her hospital bills. She had come to visit her husband, he lives here and she lives in Hawaii, she ended up spending her entire vacation in the hospital and then went back home not knowing the cause of her blood loss. She told her niece, Erin - aka banana peel girl, that she would probably feel fine once she was in Hawaii again.

Erin told me that her aunt and uncle have the happiest marriage of anyone she knows but they live apart because her aunt prefers Hawaii and her uncle likes Colorado. They do visit each other often.

Separated by an ocean and several states is one way to not have to hear him snoring... :)

Today was a harder day for me and I was really ready for it to be the best day of the week!

Tomorrow is another iron-pumping day...we begin the cycle again.

Smash also has a track meet. I'm so sad! He is scheduled to vault during the middle of my procedure. By the time I finish, I don't think he will still be going and I don't know that I will still be going either. Hoping for the best though.

I found out that several family members fasted and prayed for me last Sunday. That was very humbling to me.  Thank you to those of you who have been praying for me. I believe that Monday's transfusion went better and that the nurse recognized immediately that I needed extra help that day because she was guided.

Your fasting and prayers have been helpful and very much appreciated. I feel it. Your faith and love buoys me up.

Thank you!

Next week: more iron, an endoscopy with biopsy and a colonoscopy with biopsy.

(I think when I drop something, get wobbly or am forgetful next week, I will say "OPSY" instead of "OOPS!" Seems appropriate.)

Well, I need to get back to bed. I was there earlier but was attacked by a moth - that is now in hiding - this is the 2nd attack this week. Jonathan took care of the 1st moth (which liked diving into my hair) last night. My hair! Isn't that the craziest thing? And my hair is not even fluorescent anymore. :)

But tonight's moth is more cunning, it's better at hiding and it goes for the face.

Just the thought of it diving for me makes me want to avoid sleep tonight. But I am too tired to fight sleep any longer.

Wait - that shouldn't have been included in the happy news. When it is officially gone, it will be happy news - so I will leave it as is.

Night.

WHAT'S A MOTTO?

NOTHING!  What's a motto with you?!  (ha, ha!)

Remember that funny line from The Lion King?

(During the song Hakuna Matata).

 

Today Jonathan came home during his lunch hour to take me for a drive, so I could get out of the house and see the outdoors. (Not a doctor's office...).

That was such a refresher for me. We drove up by our property; it's so beautiful and peaceful there - still trying to decide what we should do with it...to build or not to build...that I can think about another day.

While we were out the sun was shining and the clouds were fluffy. They were also in abundance but somehow the sun continued to shine brightly. The mountains were sparkling with fresh snow along the peaks.

Many of the trees are still blooming beautifully with spring colors.

Such beauty in this world!

Nathan told me that one of his close friends, Wilson, has decided to serve a mission. He is so excited for Wilson, this is really great news. They were good buddies at church and in high school, but Wilson is about a foot - a foot and a half taller.  :)

Wilson also honored Nathan with something very special today; the mentor pin from when he received the rank of Eagle. It brought tears to my eyes when Nathan told me he gave it to him today. What a sweet and thoughtful tribute.

My friend, Gina, brought Megan home from school today. It was fun to see the two of them come bounding happily through the door together.

I really do appreciate the help that others have offered to us right now.

It began to rain and thunder just before Gina left. It was a good soaking rain, how I love that! We need it, CO has been unusually dry. We could smell the rain and hear the water spray off the tires of cars as they drove by - how I love that too!

Megan and I watched a little Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. I bought the 1st season a little while ago thinking that she would like it. Since she didn't have Lacrosse today and no homework, we decided to pop some popcorn and have a little afternoon/evening movie time.

That was such fun, Megan is now a Dr. Quinn fan so I am sure we will have more movie dates to come.

We were still watching an episode when Smash came home from track, looks like he might also be interested? It happened to be a very 'manly' episode, ha, ha!

Smash is doing great at pole vault. He is right at 11 feet now, I can't wait to see him master that height in competition. He is working really hard to achieve it and improve daily.

Emi comes home in less than 48 hours! Woohoo!! And she is going to be so happy to drive, drive, drive! Since I can't, she will be doing a lot of driving - which I know she has missed while she's been at college. Fun for us both!

Tomorrow I go in for the first of my 5 ordered iron transfusions by my 'Hulk' doctor.

(You may be wondering why I call him that. He is neither green nor very large. But a doctor with specialties in hematology, oncology and internal medicine sounds like a doctor who went to medical school and asked, "Could you super-size me?" 

Although I joke about that, he is more than qualified to really help a lot of people - so I am glad he is on the case.)

As far as tomorrow goes, I am a bit nervous about it yet excited to see if it will help me to feel better while we figure out where my blood has gone (and is going) and why I cannot rebuild it.

Please pray that I will not have an adverse reaction to the mega-iron, which can happen and is brutal if it does.  I would really like this to work.

Now that I put that out there, I won't worry.

I'll keep thinking of the "motto"

Hakuna Matata!

:)

 

LOVE AND GIGGLES!

Tyler and Karen (my niece) took this darling video of their baby, Rich.

(If you are on Reader, you will have to come directly to my site to view it).

Oh, he is so cute, I can hardly stand it!

I have their permission to share it here. (Thanks!)

Karen wanted to show how "loopy" Rich gets when he is over-tired.

She says she also gets "loopy" when she is tired; meaning everything is sillier or more funny than normal.

My children tease me about doing the exact same thing (as do some of my close friends), wonder if it's in the genes?

This video certainly shows how much this little guy is loved by his parents and how much he loves them back!

Watching him look up to Karen and respond to her the way he does just melts my heart.

Love it, love it, love it!

Watch it! It will make your day!

 

Emily and Nathan got to see him (and his parents!) a couple of weeks ago when Tyler and Karen were in Provo for the weekend! Seriously, he is so cute! (Emily is too, of course!)

HOPPY EASTER

FROM a darling little bunny!

Clover's mom always sends a little photo greeting via text.

I love these little text surprises!  They always make my day.

Isn't Clover the most darling little baby?!  I just love her!

SUNDAY WAS A SAD DAY

FOR the Rich family.

Sunday morning we received word that my cousin, Tim, had passed away.

Tim is the son of my dad's sister, Bernice. She is the one who found him.

He is my age. We played together when we were kids.

Aunt Bernice and Uncle Bert are absolutely the sweetest people on the earth.  They have lived through a lot of sadness throughout their lives. They have the most tender hearts of any one I know.

(I took this photo of my aunt and uncle in May, 2008, aren't they a beautiful couple?)

This week is also the anniversary of the death of their oldest daughter, Sherry, who passed away after a very difficult battle with cancer.

Two of their children have now been buried in the first week of April.

My heart goes out to the entire family.

Tim was a father, husband, grandfather, uncle and brother (and cousin).

He had a difficult life. Some of the hardships arose from his own choices. He had chosen a destructive path from an early age and suffered the consequences of those actions throughout his life.

His drug abuse and other choices led him to a failing physical body; a failing heart, COPD, and other physical struggles.

But he had turned this type of life around in the last couple of years.  Reaching out for help from his family and from our church.

He had accepted the Savior into his life and was using the power of the Atonement to become a new man.

Before he died, he enjoyed a day with one of his daughters and her children at a BBQ they were having for him.  He was feeling pretty well.

No one knew he was near death, it was a complete shock to all when he passed away.

It is believed that his physical heart just gave out.

His family, especially his sweet parents, continually showed forth unconditional love to him, no matter what. They were always a great support and I believe he initially felt hope again because of their great love for him.

 

As I listened to the wonderful words that were spoken through the general conference addresses on Sunday, I was overcome with the many, many comforting words that will surely be helpful to my aunt and uncle and the family in the coming weeks and months as they grieve.

They were truly such beautiful and comforting messages.

In Elder Russell M. Nelson's address he stated, "Under God’s great plan of happiness, families can be sealed in temples and be prepared to return to dwell in His holy presence forever. That is eternal life! It fulfills the deepest longings of the human soul—the natural yearning for endless association with beloved members of one’s family."

“God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” That act was a supernal manifestation of God’s love. “For [He] sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

Because of the Atonement, eternal life became a possibility for all who would qualify. Jesus so explained:

“I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

“And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.

For the Atonement of the Lord and His gift of resurrection—for this sublime message of Easter—thanks be to God!

 All of this is familiar to us but it is wonderful to be reminded once again.

And there was a lot more too!

One address was that of President Monson who also taught beautifully about life and death and eternal life and the Savior.

As I have gone through his address to put quotes here, I am finding it hard to narrow it down enough...

please read his entire address, it is wonderful!

 

Right now, with the many things that are happening around us, I am clinging to three little words that mean a lot:

There is HOPE!

I hope and pray that those of you who are struggling now with illness or loss or any other hurt,

(especially during this Easter week), you too will feel that there is hope.

 

LESSONS FROM OUR CHILDREN

THIS MAY need to be part one in a series

because after I decided to write this down and share it here,

I began to think of other lessons learned from my children.

That is one of the great miracles and blessings that comes from choosing to have a family. 

Children can be wise and insightful at times

and they are not usually inhibited when it comes to sharing their feelings. :)

So if (and when) we are open,

we learn.

 

Sunday evening, the kids and I were discussing the importance of keeping the Sabbath Day holy.

Meg chose the topic for the evening and it is a topic I happen to love.

She had read some important insights from the new For the Strength of Youth pamphlet and after discussing what was written in there we began to apply it to our family.

We talked of things we do well and also things we could improve on in order to get the most out of our worship on the Sabbath.

When I taught a lesson in Institute last year on the importance of keeping the Sabbath Day Holy, I shared this slide:



Over the years, how society refers to this day has changed quite a bit.

What are your thoughts on how and why the title of the Lord's Day has changed over the years?

 

As the kids and I talked with each other the other night, this slide came to my mind.

The thought occurred to me that HOW we prepare (spiritually) throughout the week can change our experience on the Sabbath.

As we work through difficulties, adversities, challenges, obstacles or shortcomings throughout the week, we can make note of what we may need to work on, change, or think of while partaking of the sacrament during our Sabbath Day worship.

Likewise, acknowledging those things for which we are most grateful and for the daily witness of the Lord's hand in our lives.

These are all things we could offer up to the Lord as we partake of the Sacrament and while we think of Him and consider all that He has done for us.

I asked the kids if they could try to prepare to partake of the sacrament well before we arrive at church (or at least sometime before we are partaking of it) because I feel it would change how they partake of the sacrament, how they think of Christ and his sacrifices for us, and it would elevate their Sabbath Day experience.

I have many thoughts on this wonderful subject but I am not sure how much I should say here.

We are all busy people, trying to do lots of good things throughout each week. Our wise Heavenly Father gave us a day built in to our week to not only rest from our labors but center our lives on our Savior. It is a gift.

 

One question I posed to the kids: "What more can we do on the Sabbath that would make it even better for us?"

As we talked through some things that may be good additions or substitutions,

Smash asked me, "What LESS can YOU do?"

HUH?

Well, that was a strange question! I looked at him as if he possibly had two heads...what did he mean?  What was he saying?

I am a DOER. I like to DO. GO. Busy myself...I have always been that way.

Smash began to explain that he worries about me wearing myself out. He explained that he would like to see me take better care of myself and rest more. (He told me he worries I will die too early, I don't want him to feel that way!) He thought I could start by taking time to truly REST on the Sabbath.

The Sabbath Day is a good place to start.

 It has not been easy for me to feel content during down time or "alone" time so when I have that, I typically reach out to someone else or volunteer or work on something that I can take to someone.

It is something that I have been consciously working on for years...finding happiness and contentment when I am alone; when I have moments of complete stillness.

That probably sounds strange to some of you but it has not been easy for me to learn to love those moments. I have learned though. I do enjoy time alone now. It has taken me quite a few years to get there but I have arrived.  I love to feel moments of complete peace throughout the day. For the most part, I still listen to my music too loudly, reach out to others and spend plenty of time on the go. But I finally am able to truly embrace absolute quiet. (Not for long periods though...).

But after listening to Smash on Sunday and his concerns, it is apparent that I have more work to do, in order to do LESS, so I can be a better mom.  :)

I hope I can find a better balance.  I have really been working on striking a more healthy balance - especially since we have been here in Colorado but the move took a toll on my body and I have been trying to fully recover for months.

I will work hard on "doing less." (For those of you who are moms, you know doing LESS is a lot of hard work!)

 When the kids have a suggestion or request for me, I really try to listen and understand where they are coming from and what they need. 

They have great insights and there isn't anything I wouldn't do for them.

 So, in keeping with the Sabbath Day and REST theme of this entry, I want to share one more thing:

What does it really mean to REST from our labors?

Here is something I learned while studying more about the Holy Sabbath,

“rested” translated from the Hebrew “nefesh” means: 

To re-create or remake oneself.

Beautiful, isn't it?

By Him the world was created, through Him we are re-created.

 

A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE WHEN WE GET TOGETHER

 An impromptu visit -

 (and oo-wee, is it ever hard to get a photo of them together).

Happy St. Patty's Day!

 

 These goofy kids really love each other.

They tease and joke and get crazy (sometimes until it hurts!) but there is definitely a lot of love between them!

We had hoped to go see "the kids" (meaning the big kids) during spring break but Smash became really sick after his track meet.  He had a sinus infection and I believe he also had heat stroke. He was one sick kid for nearly the whole break.

As soon as he was well enough to get out of the house, and after he and Meg went skiing with their dad, (and I of course fit in my two physical therapy sessions) we decided to head out for a quick road trip.

I had several things I wanted to deliver and other things I hoped to take care of for them.

All things were accomplished, yay!

What a nice couple of days!

They (the big kids) are busy in their lives at school, which is great to see.  They seem to love life right now; what a blessing.

Meg went to classes with Em, and Smash went to a 4 hour art class with Nathan. Cool, huh?

 

So, why do we call them "the kids?"  Well, it all began way back when...

Meg was a baby and Smash a little tot.

When the school day was nearly over and it was time to pick up Nathan and Emily from school, I would let the 'littles' know it was time to prepare to leave.

One day they started asking me if it was time to pick up "the kids" and then they would refer to "the kids" throughout the day while they were away from us.

We would visit "the kids" during lunch and often see "the kids" while volunteering at their school.

It was so sweet that these two littlest of ours were calling their older siblings 'the kids' that it stuck!

I sure do love those kids, all of them!

NATHAN AND EMILY ROAD TRIP

to Dinosaur Land!

Last weekend Nathan and Emily took some of their friends out to visit my parents and see the dinosaur fossils. There were ten of them in their group, two car loads.

It sounds like they all had a great time.  There were several girls in the group who are from Ecuador, Nathan's friend, Alejo, from Colombia and others. 

Emily brought her friend, Mary, who is from my favorite state, WA.  :) 

(I think my folks were glad that Mary speaks English, ha, ha!)

My folks were very impressed with this group of kids! They said they were a really great young people.

One girl told my mom that she had learned about the dinosaur quarry and fossils from a textbook at school in Ecuador and she was so excited to get to see it all in person. She never thought she would have such an opportunity. As my mom described how thrilled this young lady was to see the dinosaur bones, etc., I couldn't help but think back to when I would bring my foreign friends to visit my parents. They were always very excited to visit my folks and see Dinosaur Land.

It also reminded me of how thrilled I have been when I have had the opportunity to read and study about another country and then see it in person.

It's so great that they could all go out there together. It makes me feel really happy that the kids would want to go visit their grandparents and take a big group of friends with them.  I really love that!

 

My nieces, Aliya and Breanna, were able to spend the day with them also. How fun for them to get to hang out with a college crowd and their (older) cousins!

 

 

I have had to steal some of the photos from Mary's blog (thanks Mary!) and FB. I wish someone had a photo of the group with my parents...maybe there is one out there somewhere...I hope...

CANCER TAKES MANY OF THE ONES WE LOVE FROM US

and we are often left to wonder why.

We are currently praying for several young parents who have to fight this cancer fight right now.

Why do young, wonderful people have to suffer from such a difficult disease and why do they have to leave this world too early?

We wonder how their spouses and children will be able to cope and continue on.

How will our Heavenly Father touch them individually and let them know they are not alone?

I have faith that he does just that.

I feel that since he knows each of us, he will find a way to personally touch the hearts and minds of those in need in a way that will speak peace to their (our) souls.

My cousin went through this several years ago. Her husband suffered and then died from cancer on his 40th birthday. She was just a young mom with 4 sons and 1 daughter.

 One of her sons (who was 10 years old when his dad passed away) has composed an inspiring piece of music and set that to photos and powerful words that tell a part of his own story of coping with the loss of his father.

As the music and words in the video speak alongside the images of deep and abiding love, it is clear to me that the Lord was so very mindful of this young boy at a time when he needed the reassuring love of our Heavenly Father and the healing power of our Savior.

My cousin has given permission for me to share this video here, thanks Laylene. (If it isn't showing up for you, you will have to visit my blog directly).

 

 

Matthew 5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

John 14:18 I will not leave you comdortless: I will come to you.

 

**If you would like to leave a message for Spencer here, feel free to comment and I will pass that along to him.

SUPER SWEET, VERY GIGGLY, FUN AND BUSY VALENTINE'S DAY

We chose to spend our Valentine's evening with these sweet, excited, NERVOUS, and very giggly girls.

I'm sure it wasn't Jonathan's first choice for our evening together but we did have a great time and these sweet little ladies made it one I won't forget.

One of my three volunteer positions in church (callings) is working with these young girls. And I love each one of them. They are so happy and fun. (More on the others later).

For the last couple of months we have been preparing for this evening (it was actually scheduled for last week originally but we were asked to change the date at the last minute; which left V-day as our only option).

We decided back in Nov. that we would like to do something nice for their parents. So, we planned a nice dinner - babysitting included, thanks Meg and Smash! 

In preparation, the girls learned about etiquette and how to serve properly. They learned how to plan and carry out a dinner party and how to make an invitation. They learned how to sew (and iron since we had to iron while sewing and most had not ever done that) and made these super cute matching aprons! They loved sewing! I think every girl really enjoyed those activities.

 They each worked really hard to be ready for the big night!

 When the girls arrived at the church that evening, they came to check in with me. They all looked so cute in their red, pink and white! But some of them, at least half were SO nervous! Some of the girls were even shaking! Trembling with fear!

I was surprised that they were so nervous.  They needed a lot of reassurance. They had so many questions.  What if...this happens?  What if...that happens?  What if...I? And so forth.

Not one girl wanted to make a mistake.  They were so sweet and cared very much about this special evening for their parents.

 After lots of reassurance and some reminders, it was show time! 

On the way in to serve they were very serious.

On the way out of the room, they giggled and giggled!

The girls literally hovered over their parents and made certain that all their needs were met - and then some.  We had to gently remind them that their parents also needed time to eat and talk to each other.  They looked at me like I was crazy when I said their parents would like to talk to each other...so that's when I threw in the words, "and think romantical thoughts..."(from Monsters, Inc.)  ha, ha!  In one chorus they all moaned, "EWWW!" But they left their parents alone for a little while.  :)

While coming in to get another plate for her parent, one girl said, "Serving is a LOT of work! It's a lot of back and forth, back and forth..., not sure I want to be a waitress any more." 

 Enjoying a little taste of what their parents were eating - while letting their parents think romantical thoughts. :)

I must say thanks to my own sweethearts who helped me a bunch!

Meg and Smash babysat and played with the younger siblings of these girls so the parents could be totally free.

And Jonathan helped me by getting the kids to where they needed to be all day while I made homemade pasta and prepared for the evening.  Although it wasn't a real celebration for us that day, what he did in helping me was the best gift I could have been given.

I really appreciated it! (And needed it!)

WHY I LOVE FEBRUARY 7th

 

This man walking with my boys is the reason why the 7th of February is one of my most favorite days of the year!

 

HAPPY MONTH OF LOVE!

SO, today I am thinking about something that makes me really happy and I LOVE it!

 The older kids, Nathan and Emily, get together about once a week and cook.  Isn't that the best?! They cook, eat together and then divide the leftovers.  So cool! (They see each other at other times as well).

They are spending time together frequently.  That is so wonderful to me!

A couple of weeks ago, I was coming home from Denver with a friend, we had gone to the temple together and I got a call from the kids with cooking questions.  To have them together...out there...cooking and calling me, well, it made a really great day even better!

Since they are asking for recipes and instructions from me, I now have to make things and MEASURE in order to give them some sort of a recipe. :)  Good thing I love to cook!

It is fun!  It makes my day when they call for help with a recipe or to tell me of their triumphs in the kitchen and/or funny stories in the kitchen.

 Smash loves that they are cooking together because he has decided that since I have to work on recipes, I will probably post more recipes here.

And he is correct (about that).

So here is a recipe that I made many years ago. It's probably been nearly 20 since I have made it; I came across it the other day while looking for something else.

I thought it might be a good one for the kids to try and may be a good one for Nathan to make when he is chef for the house. I'm not usually a casserole sort of cook.  But it can be an easy way to make a meal.  And sometimes it is a great way to stretch that good ol' grocery budget.

Smash, Meg and Jonathan really liked this so I will be making it for them again. 

French Chicken and Broccoli Casserole

  1 lb. fresh broccoli, chopped, steam for 2 minutes.*
 3 c. cooked chicken breasts, diced**
 3 c. grated cheddar cheese (or combo) divided
 2 tubes Ritz crackers
 1  stick melted butter
 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

(It calls for Ritz crackers...has to be good!)

  SAUCE:
 1/3 c. butter melted
 1/4 c. cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 c. COLD water***
 1/3 c. chicken broth
1/4 tsp salt
 1/4 tsp pepper
 2 c milk
1 1/2 cups of the above cheddar cheese

Directions:

In a 9X13 pan, layer the broccoli and chicken.

Make sauce: In saucepan over med. heat, combine the melted butter with all the liquids and the salt and pepper. Continually stir while on the heat until sauce thickens. Add 1 & 1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese, melt on low heat. Pour sauce over chicken and broccoli and then sprinkle with remaining 1 & 1/2 cups cheese.

Crush Ritz crackers in a large ziploc bag with a rolling pin.  (Don't crush them too finely).  Pour cracker crumbs and poppy seeds into 1 stick of melted butter and sprinkle over the cheese.

Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or so.  Look for it to be bubbly and nicely browned on top.

 Notes:

*If you wanted to make this without the chicken, I think adding steamed cauliflower to the broccoli would be really good.  Baby carrots might be good with the broccoli and cauliflower also.

**A rotisserie chicken is a huge time saver, if needed.

***When I made this years ago, I believe I changed the recipe a little and sautéed onion and made a roux instead of thickening with cornstarch. But the recipe turned out fine as is. (The next time I make it I will try the roux method again - just to see if I like it better).

 Not the best picture.  This was the next day just after re-warming. It really tastes a lot better than it looks! (It does look very nice in the pan though).

 I love that the kids are together and that they have each other. I love that they are cooking together. AND I love that they pretend to need my advice on occassion. :)

 

 “Cooking is like love, it should be entered into with abandon or not at all.”
-  Harriet Van Horne, 10/1956

IMAGINE MY SURPRISE

 when I found these photos that the kids had taken while we were on our trip to Alaska back in June and July of 2008!  

The other day I needed another SD card for my camera. My favorite one is full and I don't want to erase it - still have the jitters about my computer and I don't want to lose the photos. I know, I know, trust issues...

So, I grabbed an old card that I don't ever use and when I put it into the computer to upload the photos, these precious photos were there!  Taken from the kids point of views; mostly Meg and Smash as the photographers.

I was so excited to see these and to see the changes in the kids in the last few years.  2008 doesn't seem all that long ago and yet a lot has happened and changed since then; many of those changes are evident in their faces alone. 

The photo below is of Meg and I on a bus in Denali National Park.  Look at Nathan and Emily just behind us.

 

Here we are with the girls. Emily had long hair then and had it in braids.

 

 And here we are with the boys.  Smash smiled in photos back then! 

Not the best photo of us but I had to show just how much Smash and Nathan have changed since then:

Smash was SMILING in photos then. :)

 

Although the moose photo is a little blurry, it's fun to remember all of the moose we saw - as well as other wonderful animals and scenery.

The blond in the photo below is me. 

Just kidding, it's not a Mar-bear, it's a real bear.

  The kids zoomed in on him, or her:

 

Kids are great, aren't they?  There were a lot of photos taken of this next creature! Ha, ha!

They did make friends with him, he followed them all over while we were stopped at this little picnic area.

But they took a lot more photos of him than they did of the moose or bear, or anything else.  I love kids!

 

I think Meg took the photo below of Smash; it's so cute.

 

 

The kids caught whales too - - on camera.

Whale back.

 

Whale tail.

 

 

2!

And the photo below is a really great capture.  Not sure who took it but he/she managed to capture the sea lions on the rocks and a whale in the water next to them.  Really cool!

 There are many more photos but that's all I will share for now.  It's a lot, I know.

What a very fun find for me, I'm kind of happy that they were tucked away until now because it makes them seem even more special.

Great job at capturing these photos!

Kids, do you remember taking them?

SAY CHEESE?

 While we were in Provo, my sis and her family came to spend an evening with us.

We were so thankful to them!  I love seeing them; I always want to see family when we travel but it isn't always an option to make it to everyone.  So, it was heaven to me that they would make the trip to see us.

We had a little "cheese" with dinner and then a lot of cheesiness after dinner while I was trying to get a photo of the kids together... :)  I love this group of people!

(And a lot of operator error too...not sure what I was doing with the camera!)

 

 

 

 Hmm...

How about this one from last November?

 

 

STRIKE!

 OUT!!

We are Terrible at bowling. Horrible. No good. Very bad.

Which made for a fun day.

(We hadn't gone bowling in many years...but these lanes were calling to us).

(This is a great bowling alley - at the Y).

Oh we had a few spares in there and even a few strikes but for the most part it was a fun way to send the ball down the gutter, or perhaps hit a few pins at a time. 

Nathan and Smash both hit pins from gutter balls.  I have never seen that happen before. Those balls were in the gutter most of the lane and with some miraculous stroke the balls jumped up at the end and took out some pins!  When it happened to Nathan, I was amazed and remarked that I had never seen such a thing but then it happened to Smash too!  They must throw those balls with a lot of force and a good hook on the end.

 

While watching that happen, the simple thought occurred to me - you never know what will happen in the end. 

What seems to be a lost cause may not be that. 

I know I am talking about bowling here and that doesn't necessarily translate well into every day life and circumstances.

But I believe there is something to the idea that if you desire a particular outcome and you give it all you have,

there may be enough positive force (even towards the end of a journey) to alter the course and therefore the outcome.

Now, that doesn't apply to others; we are all in charge of our own journey and destination.

(Just as the hook and force of Nathan's ball would not be able to knock down someone else's pins).

But a good example may have a positive effect on those who come after us.

Sometimes we feel that our choices have determined our destiny - which they do, but we do have the power within us to change.

We can change our attitudes, our desires, our choices at any given time.

And when we choose to change, we are determining something new for ourselves.

We are beings that are meant to change, to grow, to learn and therefore succeed. (We also choose what we believe to be success).

I love this quote from the general conference talk given by Dallin H. Oaks last April.

"Desires dictate our priorities, priorities shape our choices, and choices determine our actions. The desires we act on determine our changing, our achieving, and our becoming."

So true.

All of that from bowling balls and gutters? 

Yes. I recognize I have a lot of growing and changing to do.

:)

 

Oh, and we had such a good time at bowling terribly, we did it again. 

We thought we were getting better so we were certain the next game would be GREAT!

I had to bowl with my left hand at times - and I think I perform better with the left.

But not better enough.  I was still terrible.

The boys did about the same.

Only Megan improved on the second game. (In fact, I think she won the second game).

:)

*Emily was working, we were waiting for her so we could go to dinner - so maybe Emily would have been our spectacular bowler?  We will have to find out some time.

*Nathan had the funniest little hop with his wind-up.  Can't wait to see that again.

5,4,3,2,1...

 BLAST OFF!

Such a blast to start our new year with a blast.

Camilla with Nathan.

 

This year we were not sure if it would be a good thing to get rockets in our stockings again;

we thought it might be too cold for launching.

Happily, we were wrong.

(Secretly, I had hoped we could launch from a frozen lake. Just imagine it...the rockets taking off from the ice, the kids scrambling, and slipping and sliding on the ice to retrieve them...oh, I can just see it now, ha, ha!  Could be such fun!)

Just after Christmas, the weather became really warm, sunny and beautiful. We thought it would be the perfect weather for launching. (Not on a frozen lake).

During the break, the kids and Jonathan went to work on the rockets, constructing, painting, etc. Mine just had to be put together, which was great for me since I was plenty busy with other things.

On the day we were able to launch, the winds were howling at 50 - 70 MPH.  There would be no launching with winds at that speed.

The next day we were planning to leave for UT.

So, we took the rockets with us!

No, there really wasn't any room.  Larry was filled to the brim and beyond, remember?

But Jonathan was determined. 

Funny story about that:

Earlier in the week, Smash had an epiphany of sorts.

While we were working on the rockets, Jonathan became a little intense and excited about working on them. 

I like that he enjoys this sort of thing and that it has provided creative fun with the kids through the years.

Smash began to notice how much Jonathan likes building the rockets and he came to me with a look of surprise and disbelief and exclaimed,

"Wow, dad is really into this!  He really likes the rockets!" 

When I told him that I did know that, he said, again with shock on his face, "No, really, mom, he really likes this!" 

Of course he does, he's an engineer!  Ha, ha!  I'm not sure why it took so long for Smash to see that but it was funny and provided lots of laughter.

So, when it was determined a few days later that we would not be able to launch the rockets, and Jonathan decided to make room for them to go to UT with us,

Smash came to me with that look of shock again and told me, "See, Mom?  I told you he was really into this!" 

We all laughed!

And laughed and laughed as Jonathan painstakingly went through everything in our vehicle to make room for rockets.  :)

And we were happy to have the rockets with us in UT,

we had a great time, in perfect launching weather,

in fact the weather was better than the previous year in TX! (click on link to see last year)

My cousin, Teresa, and her children were able to join us for the day!  They drove down from Morgan and I am so happy they did!  Such fun!

 

 

I love the look of wonder and anticipation on Camilla's face:

 

Smash with a dive, hoping to catch the rocket before it hit the ground:

 

 And a crazy catch for Nathan:

 Success!

 

These kids had a blast also!  Can't tell you who they are because I don't know!  They, along with 8 or so of their friends, were very interested in the rockets.  At first they searched for rockets, on the other side of the trees.  We couldn't see them unless we were retrieving rockets also.  After a little while, they inched their way toward us, little by little.  Finally, I approached them and asked if they would like to come and launch with us and they did.  Kids (of all ages) love rockets having a blast!

 

And this shot was not staged, at all:  (Ha, Ha!)

 

 Savanna and Megan

 

 

 Nathan was such a great retriever for us!

 

A LITTLE POST SEASON

YARD WORK.

 Just after Christmas the weather warmed and our snow melted.  Nathan had raked all of the leaves in the yard into large piles but we hadn't gotten rid of the leaves, and then it snowed.  So the minute it melted, I had the kids go out and bag up the leaves so we can have a nice, clean yard (for Jeanne and Allan... and us) this Spring.  While the kids were out working, some unexpected friends stopped by to help. :)  I think they wanted to see Nathan one more time before he left...

 

 

 

 

 

 

What a great group of young people!

 

SNOW FUN!

THERE'S NO FUN like SNOW fun!

We had a fantastic snow outing with the kids and our friends.  It was a beautiful day, super-duper windy (and by super-duper windy, I mean the kind of wind that kicks up and slaps you in the face!) but pretty nonetheless.

There are a lot of photos below, hopefully you don't mind.  I promise I will not post ALL of them but we had such a fun day, I must post quite a few.

 

 

Smash is riding his Christmas gift (and wearing another, his helmet, with a name like Smash, a helmet is a good thing!). 

Don't we look like quite the serious sled team?

We nearly ran into the Ranger down below, the same Ranger that the girls ran into twice just before we went down.  I got up and apologized for all of us.  He said he knew the hazards of standing where he was and he was fine with it.  Nice guy.

As you can see, I am not too serious (although my mouth is seriously huge)!  Hee, hee.

But Jonathan got serious:

He decided to try out a snowboard for the first time.

And this is where he (seriously) cracked a rib. Ouch!  Yes, I am being serious. (No worries, he's okay).

He really is okay!

 

 

Cameron loved the sled that Smash brought.

 And here is the fun crew for the day:

 

A VERY SWEET CHRISTMAS

 

This year Christmas was extra sweet for many reasons:

all of our kids were here with us,

it fell on the best day of the week, Sunday,

Jonathan spoke in church and did a wonderful job,

we celebrated in our traditional way, beginning with cinnamon rolls and delivery,

and although Megan barely escaped it, there was NO coal in her (or any one else's) stocking. (Click on the link to read about the year with coal!).

We have so much to be thankful for and we feel very blessed.

 

We delivered to several folks this year, here are photos of a couple of them:

(As the morning went on, more and more church clothes went on too).  :)

These crazy kids came outside without shoes and jumped into the snow! They are fun!

 

I can't express how much it meant to me to have us all together again.  There were so many very "normal" moments where I would be watching the children all together and tear up because I love being with them.  I love seeing them interact and have fun with each other.  I love watching them tease their dad.  I love seeing the older two try to impress good things upon the younger two.  I love watching the younger two try to establish territory, ha, ha. I love the feeling of 'completeness' when we are together.

These moments could continue to happen for a few more years but I don't want to take any of our time together for granted because these kids are all growing too quickly and may soon be somewhere else during the holidays or other special occasions.

For now, we are treasuring these treasures! And thanking heaven for them every day.

 

 

A fun little side note:

Check out this wrapping paper.  I had bought it and wrapped my table with it and some of our gifts as well, when my sister's package came I couldn't believe the wrapping paper she had also bought! Although we haven't lived near (or with) each other since 1983, this kind of thing happens a lot!  makes me light up all over when it does.  :)

GIVING TOGETHER

One of the many things I love about this holiday is the spirit of giving.

Serving year round is most important (and greatly appreciated!) and we do our best to spend time throughout the year giving and offering service where needed

but at this beautiful time of the year, when many of us are focused on Christ and His birth, it seems there are many opportunities to work and serve with others.

There is always a great need to give and no matter how much or little we have - we can give.

I was so very touched by the people who came together at a church activity in a spirit of giving.

All came with food, clothing and other needed items to donate to a local overflow shelter. The overflow shelter is only able to offer a cot for the night and a breakfast bag containing a breakfast bar and a couple of other snack items in the morning.  The overflow shelter provides places for those who cannot stay in the homeless shelters (because there is no room) in the area; the overflow takes in 5,000 people from now until March 1 each year. 5, 000 in only a few short months...that really made me feel so sad.

We were super excited to get to help.

We also put together large boxes of food to go to some of the families within our own congregation who may need a little extra help this season.  The response there was overwhelming as well.  Something that really touched me deeply was when some of the folks who came to help and offer what they had were some of those who could be receiving a box later that evening.  These are such great people! I'm grateful to know good and Christlike people wherever we go.

The kids had a terrific time helping with the service projects and playing with the children there.

Meg got to take care of a couple of little guys who she babysits now. They are really cute little guys and they LOVE Megan!

Kids made cards for the homeless.

Here is small sampling of the items donated; these were clothes for little girls only size 6 and smaller. Everyone was very generous.

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS - the tree - part two!

We did get our tree! Success!

Dec. 10, 2011

Our perfectly, imperfect, perfectly Charlie Brown (ish) tree!

First things first:

a stop along the way - for a photo with good old Smokey!

Wish Emily would have been home and able to join us!

A little snow wrestling:

You can take Jonathan down but not for long!

 Jon got pretty cold!

Nathan thinks it is all really funny:

After searching for just the right little tree it was time to cut it down:

Timber!

Meg really wanted to be the one to bring it down!

Everyone had a turn cutting and carrying the tree.

I love this photo of Smash.  And these boots were given to him by his youth leader (in TX before we left), he loves them!

This doesn't look like it in the photo but we have just come up a hill and are still climbing a little before we arrive at our vehicle.

Such a FUN day!

We were very careful this year to make certain we cut down a tree that would fit the space. 

(The first year we cut down a tree, we could hardly get it through the door and into our home!  It looked so tiny in the forest but it was HUGE in our home. It was a very fun tree for a very young family though!).

This tree seems a little Charlie Brown-like to me and I love it!

The poor little branches can barely hold the weight of the lights.  I have tried to decorate it but it seems to overwhelm it.  It will be decorated though, at least a little...

VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY WISHES

go out to this young lady today.

Happy birthday, Grandma Joan!

We hope your day has been wonderful and full of love.

We love you,

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS - the tree - part one

Also known as "oops" the treeless version.

Or as I like to refer to it, the practice run. 

We do a Thanksgiving run-through with new recipes early on in November...why not a cut down our Christmas tree run-through?!  Ha, ha!

As you have probably gathered, we left one afternoon in search of our Christmas tree and we did not come home with a tree.

We were close.  So close. Within minutes of making it into the designated cutting area in the beautiful Rockies before it closed.

We knew when we left that time would be tight and that we probably would not make it but we wanted to chance it any way. (We are always hopeful).

We did have a GREAT time NOT getting our tree.

Where there are kids and snow, there is sure to be FUN.

 

No sledding gear?!  We have options!  Use your shoes:

Or a Target bag is a fantastic sled!

(I went so fast I put a hole in it, thankfully not in my jeans!)

You can sled on your ski pants but I'll warn you, the route you choose may be painful:

  ROCK!  Ouch!

 

The scenery alone was worth the drive:

I MIGHT BE GETTING SMARTER

perhaps - occassionally - smarter.

 

I know it's risky putting that statement "out there" for all to see...

but when I began to experience slight glitches - or issues - with my computer, I started buying more SD cards and didn't erase all of them after I uploaded photos to the laptop.

The issues lasted so long that I kind of forgot about doing this (not the smart part)

but the other day I saw the SD cards in my camera bag and it was like an early Christmas for me.

Lots and lots of fun photos from recent months that would have been gone - wiped clean - had I not purchased (and used!) those extra cards.

It is true that I was skeptical, that's why I bought the extra cards but I'd like to think it also means I might be learning something and just may be getting a little smarter as I age.  :)

 

Just after Nathan returned home (end of October), we went to UT to visit family and we were able to attend a very special baby blessing for this cute little guy!

  Look at that CUTE face!!

(So happy to have photos to remember this wonderful day).

 

Great grandparents with the first great-grandson:

 

  Karen and Tyler with her mom, Stacy, and of course, the little man of the hour.  :)

 

Look at Rich!  He is posing perfectly, sweet little guy!

 

Here is a fun side note:

Tyler and his brother, who are also best friends (and their wives are too!), had their boys a month apart.  We got to meet little Grant on Rich's blessing day.  Grant is also a beautiful and sweet baby.  Seeing the two babies together was such a treat.  They are destined to be great friends as well as cousins.  What a special blessing for them!

Tyler's brother, McKay, with his wife, McKenna and the darling boys.

And my babies on that day with their grandparents (why do they grow up so fast?)

A LITTLE RED DRESS

Who would have EVER guessed that a little red dress would be such a hit?

I didn't.

When I picked up two little dresses for two darling little girls, I didn't think much of it.  But this time, since we ended up at Jonathan's parent's home for Thanksgiving, I got to see the reaction to the gift.

And the red dress was a hit!  Addyson fell in love with it immediately and passed the cream dress on to her twin sis.  Elyse was just fine with that, thank heaven. But the red dress was LOVED by Addyson. It really surprised me.  She didn't put it down.  She held it and carried it around. She wanted to know where it was if her mom put it away. It was so cute that she would be so excited about a little dress!

When Megan asked Addyson, "What shoes will you wear with your new dress?"  Addyson replied, "NEW, red shoes!"

Well, those new red shoes, and a pair of gold shoes to go with the dress for Elyse are in a package and on their way to those two little girls. I couldn't resist!

Addyson's a girl after my own heart.  (And it isn't surprising the Meg was the one to ask about shoes...that was one of her first words! No kidding!)

I asked Addyson if she could show me her ornament. Don't you love how kids "show" stuff to us?!  :)

GRATITUDE DAYS 24 - 30

Who am I kidding?! 

I cannot get these days posted in here in a timely fashion. So I will wrap up my November gratitude all at once.  Even though I haven't been getting on here and keeping up like I should, I have been keeping a daily list of those things for which I have been grateful.

Between life, travel, and computer issues...it just hasn't been all that easy to post. 

Our Thanksgiving was fabulous.  Relaxed. Our family was blessed to be together for the first time in a few years.  Ben and Joan's home was warm and welcoming to all of us; we spread out and made ourselves at home.  (We did clean up our mess before we left though)!

For the first time ever, the meal that I usually plan out every detail for weeks in advance, shop for during the weeks before and prep for well before the big day, I did all in ONE day!

Yes, I was one of those people out on Thanksgiving morning, grocery shopping...

incognito, of course...

It was hard for me to get up the nerve to go to the store and be one of the reasons the employees were not with their families and friends.

But I did it!

All in one day: the shopping, prepping, cooking and baking, and eating - of course!

We didn't eat until 6 PM but I never felt stressed at all. We had plenty of munchies to keep us from starving too much.  :)

Since we didn't eat until that evening, we were really lucky to have Jonathan's sister, Elizabeth, her hubby, Mark, and their twin girls, Addyson and Elyse, join us for our meal.  It made it so much better to get to share it with some of our extended family.  After inviting them to join us several times, Addyson told me she was hungry and wanted to eat with us!  I was so excited!  That locked in Elizabeth and Mark for sure and we got to eat with those cute girls of theirs!  What a joy!

And we got to see Dave, Tris and their two littles, Cedar and Clover.  They are both darling and such fun!  Clover is baby perfection!

A special highlight for me was getting to see my sister and spend time with her.  We even got to go shopping together for a little while.  It never matters to me what we do, if we get to be together at all it is fabulous!  Our families also got to spend time together on Alyssa's birthday!  It was so fun!  A parade (Jon got separated from us - not fun) that Alyssa was in and b-day cake and presents later.

On our way home to CO, we were able to do a drive by check on my mom, dad and brother.  YES!  I needed that!  I was happy to see them all.  My brother had a seizure just before Thanksgiving and gave everyone a scare.  My dad had a pretty bad TIA a few weeks before and my mom was sick. So you can imagine just how anxious I was to SEE them. We only had 30 minutes or so with them and we totally wore my mom out in that time (sorry MOM!) but it meant the world to me to have even a minute with them.

 

Keeping gratitude:

Keeping gratitude this year has been a good exercise for me. 

Since we are not settled and in our own place - and we don't know where that place will eventually be - - yet, I have felt a little off...a bit unsettled.

Yet, I have been struggling with feeling that way because I recognize all of the good in our lives and I do not ever want to be ungrateful for the blessings that our Father in Heaven has given to our family.

This has been a good move for our family. 

It has also been very difficult in many ways.

But where there is difficulty, there is always growth.

And I am excited to see just how we grow as we look back on this time in our lives.

My health has been compromised - really since the move.  It was hard on me physically to move. It really wore me down and I have been in a lot of pain since. 

But I am able to move more easily now and that is a great blessing. 

The cold has not been much of a help to me but it brings a lot of beauty, I like to focus on that!

There are things I miss about TX and will always miss: all of those people we love, love, love, the family there, Institute and the YSA's, working with such phenomenal people in the stake, the heat, the daily memories of our life and the children's childhoods there, living within close proximity to everything, the difficult situations which caused us to grow, my hairstylist (who happens to have become a terrific friend over the years), hearing Spanish spoken daily - wait, I have that here with Nathan right now, the familiarity with everything and everyone. 

We had been there a long time. 

It was a special place to me. 

I believe I grew a lot there and I treasure the memories we have made there.

For all of that I am eternally grateful.  The Lord knows what's best for us.  Our 2 year assignment turned into 11+ years in TX. I guess we needed that extra time there.  :)

I'm deeply thankful to a loving Father in Heaven who trusted me to teach the young singles. It was a humbling experience for me. Never would I have thought I would be asked to fulfill that assignment and it was the best I have ever had - outside of mother, wife, and missionary service. How I love that group of young people and getting into the scriptures with them.  Losing myself in that service was sweet!

I'm thankful that we have what we need.

A nice roof over our heads.

Good food.

Warm clothing.

Transportation (well, my transportation is working fine right now, Jonathan's is another story!)

Health.

Love.

Laughter.

Family.

Knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father's plan for us.

The blessing of a Christ-centered home.

I am indeed grateful to my Savior, Jesus Christ, for His life, love and sacrifice.

I am thankful that He died for us all and was then resurrected and has offered for us the promise of eternal life.

I'm thankful that His life began in a humble stable and that we get to celebrate that miracle at this time of year.

I have become more and more grateful as I grow older for the opportunity I have to renew my covenants with Him each Sabbath as I partake of the sacrament.  There is such beauty and promise in that ordinance.

I'm thankful for music.

Memories made with loved-ones.

Challenges.

Growth and understanding.

Education.

My children are the greatest blessing, each a miracle and I consider them my treasure.

Jonathan and I are truly thankful to have been blessed with 4 very different and incredible little people.

As I see the people they are becoming, I am so very impressed with them.  It's fun to watch them grow and change over the years. They are intelligent, spiritual, kind (most of the time), funny and fun, charitable and loving. They are also goofy and crazy at times, which makes life interesting, unpredictable and fun.

I'm thankful for what is ahead of us, the unknown.  I know the Lord loves us and that there is a plan for each of us.  There are great things in store for all of us, isn't that exciting?

Lots to be thankful for, continually.

 

Thank you to each of you also, I am thankful to those of you who may be reading this because I know you would only read it out of love for our family and for no other reason. 

Happy Holiday Season!

 

 

 

 

 

IF YOU CAN'T BE WITH THE ONE YOU LOVE -

LOVE THE ONE(s) YOU'RE WITH...

One of the young moms from our new church congregation recently gave birth to twins.   A little boy and a girl.  They are so sweet and really mellow! Their mom needed a little help, someone to come over and hold babies, change and feed them, and do a little light cleaning while she took a shower, ate a meal, had time to read to her toddler, etc.  Well, I am the gal for that!  I can clean and I can definitely hold babies and love on them for any amount of time.

However, I couldn't help but think of two other babies that I already love; a sweet baby boy and a brand new beautiful girl.  How I wish I could hold them!

So, as the saying goes, "If you can't be with them one you love..."

The twins were a great substitute - for now.

Sweet Clover
and Rich

Watch this video of Rich, his timing is impeccable as you will see and he is a genius, I am sure of that!  ha, ha.  I love that he surprised his parents too!  The first of many surprises to come, for sure.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Isn't he so cute?  Thanks for permission to post this, Karen.

BLESSINGS FROM THE WEEKEND

Like so many of you, we too felt blessed and uplifted during general conference weekend.

There was so much to gain from each of the talks; instruction from the Spirit, learning and love in abundance. 

Does it get any better than that?!

Not usually!

But this conference weekend, we were greeted with MORE love!  Something (or rather someONE) new to love!

Meet our newest niece!  Born to Jonathan's brother, David, and his wife, Tristan.

Clover. 

6 lbs. 6 oz., 19 " long.

She looks like baby perfection to me! 

I can't wait to hold her!

 

 

Clover is the little sister to Cedar, remember when he came sooo early?!  That was a scary time. 

Here is a photo of little Cedar, after he had been upgraded in the NICU.

But Cedar is certainly doing just fine these days, here is a photo from last June:

LITTLE "RICH" MAN

 

We were finally able to meet and greet this newest little family member.

The wait was worth it, he is absolutely adorable! 

Rich Tyler Heasley. 

 

He looks so good!  He seems to be growing and filling out well; his cute little double-chin is proof of that!

Hard to believe (for me) that he was a month early.

(Got milk?)

We took Emily, Megan and Smash to meet their newest cousin.  They thought he was super sweet!

Unfortunately we didn't get to spend much time with him, which was probably good for baby Rich and his parents,  but I would have liked to have had time to get some fun baby pics and family photos of Rich with his mom and dad.  (Maybe in October, Karen?)

It's apparent that Tyler and Karen are absolutely smitten with this little guy - and for good reason!

THE MILLIONS OF THINGS I SHOULD BE DOING

AND blogging is NOT one of them!

 

But I have to get on here and say a few things.

I am in the middle of a mess.  A disaster zone...of sorts.  But all will be well soon.

(It's not all that bad - actually - it could be much worse).

Packing, cleaning, sorting, purging, painting, crying, packing, cleaning, laughing, talking, hiring, packing, cleaning, fixing, crying, sprucing, fluffing, etc...

you get the picture.  :)

Thankfully, I have lovely friends who are kind and wonderful people who don't mind getting down and dirty with me (and a cute niece who stopped by while she was in the neighborhood and stayed to work).  I wouldn't know what to do without them.

 

Right now I miss my family.

Jon and the kids are in CO...well, the two youngest are with him in CO.  The other two are gone, gone, gone...Emily informed me today that she has not seen me in 2 months and one day.  I replied, "Well, that's sad!"  She agreed with an "I know!" :(   Frown-y face.

Smash started school (in CO) on Friday.

You are surprised?!  Ya, so were we.  :) 

 

(Friday is a weird day to start school...ha, ha!).

Smash is a freshman now; that seems crazy to me. 

Meg begins school tomorrow.  (8th grade!  Yikes!) 

And I miss them.

It is hard to be here without them. How I wish I could be with them right now.

I'm working as quickly on the home as possible so I can join them in CO soon.

Missing the first day of school with them is something that I have NEVER had to do before and it seems especially cruel this year with them starting in a new place.

So, I am sad.  Very sad.

I'm also very sad to leave the things and people I love here.

And Institute, oh, Institute.  To be torn away so early from something I love so much is PAINful.

 

But we feel this is the right thing and the best decision for our family now.   (Let's hope so!)  It was not an easy decision. 

 

Tonight I am feeling heavy hearted and a bit gloomy; a lot tired, and should probably go to bed. 

 

Tomorrow is a new day and I should be feeling better; there is lots still to accomplish.

Tomorrow is Nathan's birthday!  Happy birthday to a wonderful son. He really is a fantastic guy. Nathan is serving the Lord valiantly in Argentina.  My heart is filled with such gratitude when I think of the service he is able to render at this time in his life.

Today, Jonathan's parents are traveling together for their 50th wedding anniversary.  How great is that?!  5-0!  50 years together! Happy, happy day for them.

 

Good things are happening.

More good things to come...

 

BABY RICH HAS ARRIVED

And a new generation begins with him.  It's exciting!

Today I realized I should probably belong to Babies Anonymous (if there was such a group); because  I went around stating, "Hi, I'm Marilyn, and I'm a great-aunt to a new and very darling  great-nephew..." Ha, ha!

Karen sent this to me via text.

I copied this from Tyler's FB, hope that is okay?!

Such a cute family photo!!

Rich Tyler Heasley almost made his debut on Ashton Rich's birthday! (Smash).

But we think he must have really wanted his own day.  Which is great!

Earlier in the day, the kids and I were talking about knowing someone who celebrates his/her birthday each day in the beginning of August.  Each day, except August 4th.  We had no idea at the time that he was planning to change all of that and that his mom, Karen, was already in labor.

Since he came a month early, it was a huge surprise!  And tons of fun! 

In the middle of the night phone calls, texts, and FB updates were constantly flying around.  It was exhilarating and exhausting waiting to hear the next update on his arrival.  But it was so much fun!  I could not put my phone down for even a second!

At one point in the night, while waiting for the final word, I said a prayer for this little family. (I was a little worried about his early arrival and how he and his mom were doing).  And I was overwhelmed at the thought of how many people already love this little boy and at that moment he wasn't even here yet.  Isn't that such a beautiful thing?!  To have a great number of people already prepared and willing to love, nurture and support this little guy and his parents? Before even meeting him?

I think it is wonderful!  That is how it should always be!

What a blessing to be born into such a home and family.  He will be very, very loved; just what children need most!

I am so excited about this sweet, little baby joining the family!

 

Congratulations to all of the family members who have also gained this little Rich guy!

 

I'VE ALWAYS LIKED THE NUMBER 23

Happy 23rd anniversary to us!

 

Since we are apart, I think it is appropriate to play our song from way back when...

we danced to this (several times) before I left for Italy and it became OUR song:

 Download 06 Meet Me Half Way

 

And sweetie, remember this one? Once we decided where we would be married, it came on the radio EVERY time I drove by! 

Download 07 Together Forever (Lover's Leap Re 1

Is it totally obvious that we were married in the 80's?! 

Ya, I thought so...if you think the music is telling, you should have seen my hair!

 

 

One thing was classic and beautiful, that is for sure, the temple where we were married.

If we were together in TX today, we would probably go out to dinner; at Pappasito's Cantina.

If we were both in CO today, we would probably go hiking together.

So, I'll go to Pappasitos tonight and ooo and ahh over the food, and Jon, you can go climbing or hiking and ooo and ahh over the views!  And then we can talk to each other tonight about it all!  :) Okey dokey?!

 

Happy Anniversary to my grandparents who would celebrate 73 years today...I guess they must be celebrating on the other side.

And happy anniversary to my sis and her hubby of 17 years.

The 29th of July is a wonderful day.  :)

FIREWORKS

Outdoor fireworks are the best...

Here is a little video sampling of the fireworks show we got to see; you may think this is the finale but it is actually taken from the middle of the show. 

Download IMG_0856 fireworks wamego ks

 

These were out-of-this-world fabulous!  Really incredible!

We have decided that Kansas is THE place to be on the Fourth of July!

We really love great fireworks so if we happen to be traveling around the Fourth, I will look for a place that boasts of a good show.

This year we were traveling on Independence Day so I was determined to find a town/city where we could have some fun and celebrate the holiday and also stay there for the night.

Because of wildfires and droughts throughout much of the Southwest, it was difficult to find a place on our route that was still celebrating with fireworks for the Fourth of July.  Most cities had canceled their usual festivities.

So I searched for fireworks shows (with a good reputation) in NM, CO, OK, and KS and decided to map my route accordingly...

None in NM or southern CO. 

I decided I wanted to be able to travel further than OK so I looked throughout KS.  I found a great little town (a little out of our way) that boasted of the best and biggest show for small town KS. and had received numerous awards for being one of the top in the State; in fact, it had been awarded first place in a Kansas review.  We were excited to see it for ourselves.

Wamego, KS (also known as OZ-land) became our Fourth of July destination.  While we were driving into town the fireworks were already underway.  All along the skyline we could see large displays of fireworks.  There seemed to be 10 shows happening at once.  I thought we were late for the city fireworks display and began to apologize to the kids for thinking they began at 10 PM.  As we came into town it was clear that we had not missed them at all; people were still arriving and lining up, looking for parking, etc.  The fireworks we had been watching as we drove in to town were all private.  They were HUGE!  It was fantastic!

The city has a 4 day festival surrounding the Fourth with lots of things to do and enjoy.  Their celebration is much bigger than we had anticipated.  The town grows to 4 times it's size over the beginning of July. The little town, all abuzz with patriotic excitement, was invigorating.  Small town America in the Heartland, doesn't get better than that!

And their fireworks show did NOT disappoint!  It was one of the best we have ever seen.  It seemed like 30 minutes of one grand finale after the other! 

We all want to return.  But next time, I think we will take part in more of the festivities! Maybe we will make a mini vacation of it and stay a few days.

We stayed in Junction City, KS.; more hotels to choose from and not a far drive from this little town.

SUNSET DINNER

(**Edited:  I made some changes to the vinaigrette and I like it better!)

FROM THE GARDEN RESTAURANT on the 10th floor of the old Hotel Utah building (now called the JSMB).

The girls and I enjoyed a light dinner late one night while in downtown Salt Lake City.  The food was delicious and the view was spectacular. 

We sat and talked, laughed and watched the sunset behind the Salt Lake City Temple as the lights on the spires illuminated the top of that magnificent structure.  The lights added such a beautiful glow to our already lovely dinner; gradually becoming brighter as the sun descended behind the mountains.  Just gorgeous.

Emily ordered a salad and she LOVED it!  It was a salad with greens and chicken, a little feta, candied walnuts, red onion, chopped apple and a few fresh raspberries.  The salad was topped off with a delicious raspberry vinaigrette.

Here is the recipe for the vinaigrette:

1 c fresh raspberries

1/4 c apple cider vinegar

2 tsp sugar*

1 Tbsp dijon mustard

1/4 c olive oil

Combine all ingredients (except olive oil) in a food processor or blender.  Puree until smooth.  Slowly add oil until emulsified.

*You could substitute 1-1 1/2 tsp of agave nectar for the sugar if desired.

 

**My revisions:

I thought this might be a little better if I used a raspberry infused vinegar rather than the apple cider vinegar.  Vinegar comes infused with all sorts of good stuff, so off to Market Street I went on a hunt for really good vinegar.  Sure enough!

After I came home with the good vinegar, I remade the dressing. 

I added a few extra raspberries, just to round over the cup a bit.  Switched the raspberry vinegar for the other. And then I cut down on the dijon a bit.

This vinaigrette had a better raspberry flavor.

Both turned out to be very good;

but after a taste test with the fam and a good friend, BT, the adapted version won!

 

My trial vinaigrette

1 rounded cup of raspberries

1/4 c raspberry blush vinegar

2 tsp sugar (or 1 - 1 1/2 tsp agave)

2 tsp dijon mustard

1/4 c olive oil

Prepare with the same method.

YUM!!

 

LITTLE COUSINS

One of my favorite things about visiting Jonathan's family is the kids.  Since Jonathan is one of 6 children, and he is the second oldest, there are still little cousins around (and more on the way).  Kids keep the home lively and fun.  And they are all darling!!

  Grandma with Cedar.

Grandma and Addyson

Elyse (I think she believes that I am not still there when she closes her eyes, ha, ha).

Meg and Elyse on a "Minnie" walk.

Abby...she's hilarious! 

While the kids were playing, I was trying to discreetly snap some photos of them.  So I stood away from them and zoomed in with my lens while hoping to capture them playing naturally; without any of the shyness that might have appeared when my camera came out. 

After several shots of Abby, she gave me a posed look, I snapped the photo and then she said, "Was that CUTE?!"  When I told her it was definitely cute, she came running over to me and asked if she could see...

so much for being discreet, ha, ha!  Kids are the best!

  Abby and Cedar are the best of friends!

I'm so glad that I caught a photo of Cedar giving Abby a helpful push down the slide.  She must have demanded asked him at least twenty times, saying, "PUSH me!"  After several requests on her part, she told him, "Never mind, I'll push you!"  Just when he was in ready position to be pushed down the slide, she moved him over, sat down and then told him, "No, YOU push ME!"

I laughed and laughed while watching these two cuties play together!  Cedar.  He will be getting a baby sister in October!

CHANGES AND GROWTH

So, while I am recovering from our college drop-off and return and while I am preparing for the next Institute lesson (more on that later), I will be trying to also fill in some of our blanks and update this family blog. (Don't get too excited, ha!)  It may take me a while.

 

Before school let out, Smash was awarded the Presidential Award for Educational Excellence throughout his Middle School years.

Even though I gave him a REALLY hard time about receiving it (because he doesn't give his best effort or he rarely gives it any effort...), I was very happy to watch him receive this award and honor. He is a great kid.

Smash has much to offer as well as a lot to gain and give by working hard.  I hope he will use his gifts wisely in High School. He is growing and changing and still loving life and living it to the fullest.

 

Smash also likes our new(ish) addition...

Meet Larry.

Full name, Sir Lawrence of London.  Larry is a land rover LR3 and has been taking me everywhere I need to be lately.

(More on Larry later...probably).

 

And more on the college drop later too.  But know that SHE is doing great and loving life!

EVENING VIEW

from the back porch of my Aunt Valarie's home.

Happy Father's Day to our dads!

Jonathan's dad with our niece, Addyson.  (One of Elizabeth's set of two...)  Jonathan's dad, Ben, is a very fun grandpa.  He plays and jokes with all of the grandkids.  They love that about him.

 

My folks on their back porch with U hill behind them. 

Just before we left my parent's home, my dad sat down with my girls and gave them some insights and advice. He also shared with them his love for the gospel and for his Savior, Jesus Christ.  I am positive that they will never forget what we talked about that morning. 

He is a great man and a wonderful father.  I truly am blessed - as is the rest of my family!

Thanks a bunch, Dad.  I love you.

 

And a very happy father's day to the wonderful father of my children. 

Our children are blessed to have such a kind and caring father who would do absolutely anything for them (within reason, Smash).  His family means everything to him and we know that because he treats us just that way. 

Jonathan, we will celebrate your father's day and birthday properly upon our return!

GIRL TIME

 

Goodbye hugs for the college girl.

ON THE BORDER(S)

TX to NM + NM to CO + CO to UT= great fun. fabulous road trip!

For years now as we have driven to our beloved Colorado, we have laughed at the plain brown, "colorful Colorado" sign.  But, hey, when the rest of the state is so gorgeous, a plain brown sign is perfectly fine.

Life Elevated.  I like that for a motto.

 

2011 GRADUATE

  Goodness!  How we love this girl!

Graduating with honors and a smile. 

Recipient of the NTHS, Jon H. Poteat national scholarship.

What a happy day for Bemmer-Bo!  Her grandparents (Jonathan's folks), Marilyn and Adam, and her family were there to cheer her on (along with some friends).

Emily will always remember that these special people in her life were able to share this day with her.  We are so very blessed.

Emily will really be missed at home.  She is a joy!

Many things have brought tears to my eyes recently.  Knowing that she is leaving for college has made me a little extra emotional. 

While doing the laundry, I picked up her BYU t-shirt and began to cry.  I can't explain just how quickly the tears well up in my eyes - and when they 'well' they have no where to go but out!  I have cried at her awards nights, band banquet, and all of the graduation hoopla (and more).

One very sweet thing for Emily was a delivery from a family she babysits.  They brought over some handmade gifts and cards that the kids had made for her.  In the card from the parents, they told Emily that they had asked their oldest daughter if she had any heroes.  Without any hesitation, she named Emily.  They asked her why she felt that Emily was her hero and she responded that Emily is helpful, kind, happy, fun and always smiles.

When Emily takes care of children she engages with them.  They play together, she reads to them, she feeds them, she brings new and fun activities for them to enjoy while she is there, she helps them clean up whatever mess they might have made while playing and she loves them! She genuinely enjoys children.

Emily has had a sweet influence on quite a few children already in her young life. 

 

(Another reason to cry). The mind is a wonderfully, crazy thing...

the strangest thing happened as I dropped her off at the high school to be transported with the rest of her class of 540 kids to their graduation at the Dr. Pepper Stars Center.

She exited the vehicle as Emily the graduate, but as she walked toward the rest of her classmates (and the very long line-up of buses), I saw in my mind's eye a very, little Emi, the girl I dropped off at Kindergarten.  I watched that sweet girl walk away from me and toward a fabulously exciting time in her life. 

Oh, so happy for her, so sad for me.

And yet, I know she will continue to bring happiness home with every phone call, email, text and visit.

She will make the most of the years to come.

All that the future holds for her awaits her now and that's exciting! 

 

SUNDAY WALKS IN THE PARK

= Smiles all around!

 

We love our Sunday family time in the park (weather permitting!).

The last Sunday that we were able to go to the park, we saw a green corvette in the parking lot and knew immediately who happened to be the owner.  Our old neighbor and good friend.  (A Friendly, Friend's friend...who has the last name of Friend.)  :)

(Meg's nonchalant look).

That is when the treasure hunt began.  We didn't find him until we had given up and were on our way out of the park.  But once he was spotted, the kids went crazy!  They were so excited! 

Smash sprinted straight for him and you can see what happened next.  I think our friendly "Friend" was just as excited as we were.

Yes, that is Meg in her jammies...no matter how much we tease her about wearing those out in public, it doesn't bother her.  She feels that she needs to be extra comfy on Sundays after church so if she wants to wear pj's, she does.  :)

 

21 May, 2011

Update:

I started this post probably around a month or so ago and have not been able to publish it, crazy, I know.  We haven't enjoyed this type of Sunday afternoon since.  But I have high hopes for more.  And I hope an afternoon such as this will happen again before Emily leaves home. 

We have been enjoying other outings with the kids though: awards ceremonies, banquets, concerts, etc.  Our days are packed and our weeks are flying by.  Great things are happening and I hope to share some of that with you when I can grab a few minutes from somewhere.  (It appears that I will have time since the world didn't end today as predicted by a preacher in CA.).

 

 

I'M A FLOWER

Megan is calling me "Mum" in preparation for tomorrow's royal wedding.

We are planning on getting up EARLY in the morning to watch all of the fabulous pomp and circumstance!

 (Jonathan is gone so he can't be upset with me for not getting enough sleep.)  :)

The savory scones are baked, the sweet scones will bake in the morning.  What a jolly good way to start the mornin'!  We are ready for a proper celebration.  

Come on over if you want to watch and enjoy some fresh, hot scones with us!

 

When Prince William's parents, Prince Charles and Lady Di, were wed thirty years ago, I stayed up all night in order to watch the big event. It was a big deal to me at the time.  I thought Diana was fabulous!  They were married on July 29th, 1981.  (7 years later, Jonathan and I were married on that same date, crazy!).  They were wed on my grandparent's 43rd wedding anniversary.  My grandmother had a commemorative wedding plate from the royal wedding hanging on her kitchen wall until she passed away. One day while chatting with my grandma in her kitchen, she told me she thought I looked like Princess Diana while pointing to the plate.  I was very thin and young at the time and my hair resembled hers, so I thought that was the why she saw any similarities.  But as a young girl in high school, I thought it was sweet of my grandma to compare me to a princess, only a grandma would.  I didn't realize until after I'd been married quite a while that Lady Di and Prince Charles were wed on my grandparent's anniversary; I'm sure that is one of the reasons my grandma displayed that commemorative plate.  Her love for England I'm sure was also a factor.

When I saw that a commemorative plate for William and Cate would also be made, I thought of my grandmother and how much she would have loved that too.  If she were here, I would send one of those to her.  It would be such fun to talk with her about all of this!  Her English roots had a strong hold on her. 

 

Although we felt it wasn't the right decision, due to timing, etc., to move to England for 6 months, there have been moments when I wish we could have made it work, this would have been a fun week to be there! 

Ah, well...

 

Tomorrow I get to share the excitement with the next generation, my own little cheeky monkeys.  :)

 Time for this mum to get a few hours of sleep, so there will be no wilting tomorrow.

 

 

WHAT A FRIDAY!

So, today is Good Friday and Earth Day and it's a wonderful day for a birthday.

 

This morning I wondered, "Why is today referred to as Good Friday when it commemorates the darkest day in history?"  (I do know the answer). 

But if we were to refer to this as Black Friday because it was such a terribly dark day (and think of another name for black friday the shopping day) then we could have Grey Saturday and Easter could be White Sunday.  Just a thought.  I'm not trying to be sacrilegious, I promise.

In complete seriousness and honesty, I do love Holy Week.  And I recognize how Good He was to sacrifice for us.  I feel blessed and humbled that He was willing to die that we might live.

Easter has become a much sweeter holiday to me as I have aged and grown through the years.  As a child, it was not among my favorite holidays; eggs and the easter bunny weren't really thrilling to me.  But while I was in Italy, I witnessed a whole different type of Easter.  One more focused on our Savior's Life, Death and Resurrection.  They begin by waving palms on Palm Sunday, the rest of the week is full of worship.  If desired, a priest will come to your home and bless it at some time during Holy Week.  They even have a traditional cake in the shape of a dove. 

As I learn more of Him, try to live as He would wish me to live and become the woman He would want me to be, my appreciation and understanding of His Easter gift grows. As our family traditions include more of Him (and less of the other), Easter is becoming a favorite holiday for me.

  I am grateful for Him.

 

 

Earth Day:

 And a birthday!

  My sis! 

It seems that my sister's tongue lashes out at me a lot, ha, ha!  She still loves to stick it out at me, even after all these years.  I love it. Almost as much as I love her.

Jonathan's brother, Grant, also celebrates his birthday today.  What a day!

 

Jonathan and I have been asked to speak in church on Sunday, yes on Easter Sunday.  With only two days notice, I need some divine assistance!  Please pray for a miracle - that I will be able to prepare a talk in 2 days, 2 very busy days! (Actually just one day now).

A SUNDAY WALK THROUGH THE PARK

Last Sunday evening was gorgeous!  Actually, right now every day has been gorgeous; warm, Spring weather has come to north TX, hooray! 

I love that this season of the year comes earlier here than other places we have lived.  The winter months aren't around long enough to get tired of them.  This year, the spring blossoms have seemed even more beautiful than in other years.  It could be that I have just forgotten or perhaps the cold snaps we had in February attributed to a glorious March? 

When I left the beginning of March for the wedding, the buds and blossoms were just beginning to show and when I came home  a few days later, everything was in full bloom!  Spring is breathtaking.

Back to our Sunday walk.  Emily had just returned from Indianapolis, Smash had come home from climbing in OK the day before and Meg had returned the night before from Girl's Camp - just in time to make it to some of the wedding reception - which was gorgeous, by the way.  So, Sunday afternoon/evening brought on some tired and weary-from-traveling personalities.  I'm sure we are not the only family to experience this but sometimes after the kids have been away from each other (and indulged somehow by friends or other sources) there is a warming up period upon reentry.  They have to get acquainted with each other again.  There are times when they can do this in a happy manner and other times when they are cranky with each other.  Sometimes these reacquainting periods remind me a little of the first week of Kindergarten; after school they are tired, cranky and clingy.  They have spent all of their good energy elsewhere and come home depleted.  As happy as they were last Sunday to reunite, and believe me we were all SO happy to be home together again, we were all tired and not at our best.  But the Sunday walk and a frisbee did the trick.

The park was in bloom, the weather perfect for enjoying a stroll, trees were begging to be climbed and with each step we were getting back to us.  Ahh.

I didn't bring my camera so I snapped a few with my cell but a few days later I returned for time alone in the park and more photos.

iPhone pic, Em

iPhone pic, Smash

 

A SWEET RECEPTION

 My part began well before the reception:

The making of the hundreds of boxes for candy take-out.

Although it is difficult to see the size difference, the bride and groom's candy boxes were significantly larger than the rest...as it should be.

Preparing the glassware for the reception.  Wash and shine, place on counter to see if the sketch I have drawn for set-up will work.

  Bring out candy.  Make sure the candy placement is eye-pleasing (eye candy!) and that the candy 'fits' and works well in the jars.

Play around with ribbon ideas.  Wrap it all in plastic wrap, paper and towels and take to destination for set up.

Set up glassware and finishing touches:

Fill with candy:

Fallon was my buddy at the candy buffet.

I was very focused on the candy buffet since that was my assignment for the evening so I only shot a few other photos.  Although I really wanted to see the bride and groom taking part in everything, when I went to watch them dance, a light came crashing down onto the candy table and broke one of the pedestals.  We lost candy but not one jar was broken...total miracle!  Needless to say, I did not leave my little corner of the reception again.

 

Other sweet moments from the reception:  Aww...the newlyweds!  They had such a great night!  The evening, everything about it, was absolutely beautiful!

  Smash and Megaroo cutting a rug wood floor together.

  My niece, Fallon, and her mom, Tracey. 

Funny story about Fallon.  She walked into the reception with a new hairdo, new dress, new shoes, etc.  She looked super cute!  When she began to walk over to me, she was approaching me quite gingerly.  I noticed she had a slight heel on her shoes (maybe an inch and a half or so) and commented on her cute, new shoes and mentioned the heels.  She let me know right away that she did "Not know how to walk in them and they were killing her feet!"  I laughed so hard and told her I knew just what she meant.  She then said, "But it's worth it!"  Oh my goodness, she just cracks me up!  She let me know that this was the first REALLY BIG event in her life.  Well, it was a great event for her official debut.

 

19

Our darling niece, Andrea. (2 days before her 19th birthday).

(Her sis, Alyssa, poses and shoots the pic's!)

While visiting UT (for Marilyn and Adam's wedding), I was able to be a part of Andrea's birthday celebration.  Since I have always lived so far away from my sis and her family, this was a special treat for me!

Sisters - Andrea and Alyssa!  Aren't they the cutest?

  She's 19!  And she has the fingers to prove it, ha, ha!

We love you, Andrea. 

IT'S A GREAT!

After months of keeping this secret to myself (even from my children!)...

I am so excited to announce

something

(or rather someone)

REALLY great(!)

will be joining our family.

 

Baby H

 

The first great-grandchild on the Rich side. 

(My first great-nephew or niece; truthfully all of our nieces and nephews are great but this one gets to carry the title! *big grin*).

He or she will arrive in September (only the BEST month of the year!).

 

I think this baby is cute already! 

(I've seen photos of Tyler when he was a baby and I know what Karen looked like as a baby - they were both adorable!  Good chance that this one will be adorable too).

What an exciting year 2011 is turning out to be for our family.

The proud parents-to-be:

Photo taken at Christmas (baby H not seen but in the photo). 

Karen was not feeling well during part of her visit to TX, we had a little talk about possible reasons why... :)

Baby H was due to arrive originally on my birthday (also referred to by some as the best day of the year) Sept. 6th, but the due date has been changed to September 2nd.

Although it was exciting (for me) to have the due date on my day for a couple of months, I wouldn't want Karen to have to go even a minute beyond her due date!  Hopefully little baby H will arrive on time and healthy.

This little one is going to be loved by so many wonderful people! 

What a blessing for a child.

 

And without a doubt, this little one will be a blessing to all of us as well.