The Writing On The Wall...And The Table

The other day, Leer mentioned to me how great he thought it was that our kids never really were the type to write on the walls. But recently, while painting the walls, we found this:

It says "Chloe and Myah's hideout"

Well, you know how one home improvement project leads to another...I decided to try my coffee table from downstairs in the family room upstairs. That's when I discovered this:

Artwork on the underside of the coffee table

And it's even signed by the artist

There are 3 drawings of houses

And of course she wrote "I love my dad"

Then in big green letters "You are the Best"

I tell myself she wrote that for me, but it's probably meant for her dad. Again.

And then she wrote "I am the best in my flamle" which I think means "family". Best at what, Chloe? Graffiti?

Myah's So Glad When Daddy Comes Home

Leer was away on business all last week. We miss him terribly when he's gone. He called once he left the airport to let us know he was on his way home. Myah parked herself in the middle of the driveway and waited 45 minutes for him to get here.

When she saw him round the corner, she did a celebratory cartwheel.

Then she giggled with glee and wiggled her feet in the air.

And greeted her Dad at the car.

Summer Was A Total Flop

One of the highlights of this summer has been swimming with Myah. She has mastered the belly flop and does them over and over again. She feels no pain.

The Belly Flop...

She's got other skills, too.

Like the Cannonball...

The Back Flop...

The Walk-Right-In...

The Sit-Right-Down...

Leer + Zip Line = Scared Horse & Worried Wife

First Day of School & One Lonely Mom

Today, my baby started Kindergarten.

I always take a picture of Chloe on the first day of school in the front yard. I thought I'd do the same with Myah. She's cute!

Then we got in the car and I let her sit in the front seat. She feels special when she gets to sit in the front seat. She looks big.

Then we got to school and she got in line with her friends. They're cute too.

Then I took about 65 pictures of her standing in line, because she's so cute.

Then she was like, "MOM, seriously..."

Then she just ignored me and my camera.

Then she walked away.

And I cried. It was ugly.

Then I got in the car and thought it would be a good idea to call Leer. It wasn't. Crying, I told him that I had just dropped Myah off at school and that I was on my way to Target. Trying to help, he said, "just think, you get to go there all by yourself!"

Therein lies the problem. Now I have to go to Target by myself. Alone. Without my baby.

In other news, Chloe started 5th grade last week. This is the first year I didn't cry when I dropped her off. Don't get me wrong, I like her just as much as I like Myah. I guess by now I'm just used to her being at school. It's going to be a great year for her.

I always take a picture of her in the front yard on the first day of school. She's something pretty.

Trek - An Experience To Treasure

They, the builders of the nation,

Blazing trails along the way;

Stepping-stones for generations

Were their deeds of ev'ry day

Building new and firm foundations.

Pushing on the wild frontier,

Forging onward, ever onward,

Blessed, honored Pioneer!

Service ever was their watchcry;

Love became their guiding star;

Courage, their unfailing beacon,

Radiating near and far

Ev'ry day some burden lifted,

Ev'ry day some heart to cheer,

Ev'ry day some hope the brighter,

Blessed, honored Pioneer!

As an ensign to the nation,

They unfurled the flag of truth,

Pillar, guide and inspiration

To the hosts of waiting youth

Honor, praise, and veneration

To the founders we revere!

List our song of adoration

Blessed, honored Pioneer!

It was our honor to participate in the Pioneer Trek that our Stake organized for the youth in our area. Basically, it is a pioneer reenactment. A call was extended to me over a year ago to serve as the Clothing Committee Head. What a joy it has been to serve in that capacity and to work with such great people. My specific duties involved choosing what projects the youth would have to work on, supplying patterns to all the wards, and organizing sewing activities so that everyone could achieve an authentic pioneer look. It was truly rewarding to see everyone in their costumes. I believe the costumes really enhanced our Trek experience and helped everyone identify with the pioneers.

Jason was asked to be a Company Captain. That meant that he was there to help 4 of the 18 families with any emergencies or anything that they might need. We were able to trek all 25 miles with our 4 families and it was great to get to know them.

I'm really at a loss as to how to explain the experience we had there. The Spirit was sweet and strong. Before Trek, I had a respect for the pioneers and the struggles they had. I was truly grateful for the sacrifices made by them that we benefit so greatly from. However, now I find that I have a new reverence for the pioneers. We trekked 25 (sometimes grueling) miles over the course of 4 days. They trekked 1100 torturous miles, sometime walking up to 18 miles per day. We trekked in summer. Many of their journeys lasted well into winter. We had nice, comfortable shoes. Many of them ended up with their feet wrapped in burlap because their shoes were worn through. We ate extremely well. By the time they reached Ft. Laramie, they were allotted less that 1 cup of flour per day which they mixed with a little bit of water. Everything we own was waiting for us when we returned home. The pioneers were allowed to bring only 17 pounds of their belongings with them. We all survived, most of us with minor blisters. Countless pioneers buried their loved ones along the way. I recently heard a story of a pioneer mother who buried each of her 5 children during her journey West..digging their graves with her only possession - a tablespoon. I never want to know what that would be like.

My favorite scriptures are found in the 26th chapter of Alma. They seem to express my feelings in so many situations. These few verses definitely apply to my feelings about Trek: "Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold, many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever...Therefore, let us glory, yea, we will glory in the Lord; yea, we will rejoice, for our joy is full; yea we will praise our God forever. Behold, who can glory too much in the Lord?..Behold, I say unto you, I cannot say the smallest part which I feel...Yea, blessed is the name of my God, who has been mindful of this people...I say, blessed be the name of my God, who has been mindful of us, wanderers in a strange land."

The Goodwins - An Inspirational Story

Christine & Gary

Myah, Chloe, Mitchell, Ryan

January 1994:

One uneventful day, two missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints tracked a particular street in Watford, England. They didn't have any success that day, in fact, only 1 person was home on the entire street. Christine was a stay at home mother with 2 young children. When she answered the door, she saw who it was and promptly dismissed the 2 missionaries. They left.

The following week, the two missionaries found themselves in the very same neighborhood, even the very same street. For some reason, they felt a strong impression that they needed to tract this street again even though they had been unsuccessful just one week before. Again, it seemed nobody was home until they came to Christine's house. This time when she answered the door, she said, "I know who you are". They asked her how she knew and she explained that she was actually a member of the church who in her words was "beyond less-active". The prompting the missionaries felt to tract that street again was an answer to Christine's prayer. After they had left her house the prior week, Christine felt bad for the way she had treated them and prayed that she would have an opportunity to see them again. Jason was one of those missionaries. This was the beginning of a relationship that made my husband's entire mission worth it. With permission from Christine's husband Gary, they began teaching Christine and her little daughter, Victoria about the Gospel. Even though Gary wasn't interested in participating in any discussions or learning about the church, Christine faithfully started attending church again. She would walk an hour and a half to church every Sunday with her 2 children. Eventually, something changed within Gary and he was baptized as well. Their family has been blessed because of the choices they made to accept the Gospel in their lives. They have had 5 children, Victoria, Connor, Ryan, Mitchell and Joshua.

Sometimes, Heavenly Father gives you special experiences in your life that let you know that He is there, that He is mindful of you, that He knows you personally, and that if you are willing, He will use you to bless the lives of others. In our church, we have what is called a Patriarchal Blessing. This is the definition found on the Church's website:

Patriarchal blessings are given to worthy members of the Church by ordained patriarchs. Patriarchal blessings include a declaration of a person's lineage in the house of Israel and contain personal counsel from the Lord. As a person studies his or her patriarchal blessing and follows the counsel it contains, it will provide guidance, comfort, and protection.

Jason received his Patriarchal Blessing a couple months before he left to serve his mission in England. Amazingly, it speaks of this great family that he would meet and the impact that he would have on their lives. The Goodwins have been vacationing in Utah and last week we had the opportunity to spend some time with them. When Christine answered the door, she gave us all big hugs and knelt down by my daughters and said, "Your father changed my life".

The Goodwins are truly an inspirational family. You see, their youngest son, Joshua was born with Edward's Syndrome and died an hour after birth. As tragic as that is, to hear them speak about him, their testimonies of the Savior and the Atonement are very evident. They know that they were chosen to be Joshua's parents and that they will be reunited with their son and that he is still with them. They are able to cope with their great loss and recognize the many blessings and miracles in their lives because of the choices they made to accept the Gospel back in 1994 when my husband had the privilege to teach them.

Note: The feeling you are feeling right now is the Holy Ghost telling you that it is true.

How wonderful it was to see them! It was my first time to meet Gary and Mitchell. I had met Ryan when he was a baby and Christine flew all the way to Utah with him to come to our wedding. Sadly, I didn't get to meet Victoria and Connor this time because they were attending EFY down at BYU. Someday...

Mitchell, Christine, a moose, Gary. What's a trip to Park City without kissing a moose?

Doorbell Ditching = Career

Chloe: "Mom, when I grow up I want to be one of those people who delivers packages."

Me: "You mean like a Fedex person?"

Chloe: "Yeah, it looks REALLY fun. They have to ring your doorbell and then run away before anyone sees them."

Happy Birthday Chloe!

Caring

Huggable

Lovable

Outgoing

Energetic

Happy 10th, Chloe! We love you very much.

Where has the time gone? Seems like yesterday that she came into our lives. (sniff, sniff)

This Is Myah

She is bored.

Poor, poor Myah. Poor, poor Chloe.

Cowabunga Bay & A Car Accident

Wednesday, I took the girls and some of their friends to Cowabunga Bay for Chloe's birthday (which is next week and I'll do a proper b-day post then). They had so much fun!

Myah, Shaylie, Brielle, Chloe, Hannah

Seriously, I think they spent a good hour trying to get everyone onto the inner tube at the same time. You can tell by their faces how proud they are of their accomplishment.

Here is my review of Cowabunga Bay. Typically, I like a good water slide. This place however, may have done it in for me. First, let me say that I HATE being splashed unexpectedly even if I'm already wet, (I know I'm weird) so that's kind of where my problems started. But, just getting from point A to point B is a feat in itself. Unbeknownst to me, kids can dump buckets of water on you and squirt you with hoses while you're walking up the stairs (which is SUPER funny). There is also water shooting out of the structure from every which way. Goggles would have come in handy. Then I finally get up to the tallest slide (the purple tube slide) and was not prepared for what would happen next. Take my advice and don't attempt this slide unless you are wearing a one piece swim suit. After being shot out of that thing at bullet speed, my swim suit top was wrapped around my head. No one wants to see that. And if you're going to be getting an enema, I think it would be nice if they would inform you of that with some sort of warning sign. I should have stopped there. But no. I thought it would be a good idea to try the red tube slide which was not quite as high as the purple one. Needless to say, I had pretty much the same experience but for that slide you get to scale a mesh/net ladder thingy which forced me to stare death in the face wondering if they had tested the ladder for use by chubby people! Also, if you are walking along and you start hearing bells, that means that 2 tons of water is about to be dumped on you which is also quite enjoyable. Not.

I will say, after I tested out all the slides and was violated by water in every possible way, I noticed that the girls were still having loads of fun so, I felt pretty confident that I could let them go at it themselves if they stayed together. I was able to relax in a lawn chair, work on my tan, and catch up with my long lost friend Sudoku. I knew it was a good idea to bring that book.

Now, if that wasn't enough excitement for one day, we were involved in a car accident on the way home! I was rear-ended and pushed into the car in front of me. And it happened to be at that intersection that's about a mile from our house. You know the one...the one EVERYONE drives by 10 times a day. I probably don't even need to post this since most of you drove by and saw it all. I do appreciate all the concern that was expressed towards us, it's just that it's kind of embarrassing. Especially when you're in your swimming suit. Anyhoo, I'm happy to say, it wasn't my fault and we all seem to be okay.

The hole in my back bumper.

The dangling license plate on my front bumper.

Good times. Good, GOOD times.

Stadium of Fire

The 4th of July is my favorite holiday. I love everything about it. Leer and I often discuss how blessed and lucky we feel that we were born in America. I don't even want to imagine how different my life might be if I had been born anywhere else.

For about the past 11 years, we've made it a tradition to go to the Stadium of Fire. (I think we've only missed 3 of those years.) It is absolutely the best celebration around and on the 4th of July, there is nowhere else I'd rather be. This year was particularly special because Chloe had the opportunity to be one of the dancers in the show.

I was so proud of her. I got the chance to be one of the mom helpers for our dance studio which I was so grateful for. Driving down Friday morning, we got to see the hot air balloon festival going on. That pink one is a giant piggy bank. The girls in my car thought the balloons were pretty cool.

You cannot imagine the work they put into organizing this event. And the dancers worked their butts off! I was in shock when I saw the rehearsal schedule:

Thursday 4 pm until 7 pm

Friday 7:45 am until 11 pm

Saturday 6:45 am until 12 noon

Needless to say, the girls were sore and exhausted. It was totally worth it though and they should be proud of themselves. Look how cute they are!

Now let's talk about the JONAS BROTHERS. Is it wrong for ME to be a fan? I guess I was too busy enjoying the concert to take any pictures of them. But, they were great! And it was pretty funny to hear thousands and thousands of teen aged girls screaming their heads off for them. This was definitely the most rowdy Stadium of Fire that we've been too.

One word...FIREWORKS. I L.O.V.E. fireworks. And this year's display didn't disappoint (although Leer thought they were shorter than usual). I don't know if the Stadium of Fire has the biggest fireworks show in the nation, but I'm sure it's the best.

'Til next year...sigh.