our world: August 2008

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Recycling...old to new

New School Year... Jacob and Carter have started school and love it! I guess that they are BIG independent kids. I did not walk them into the school yard and they didn't want me to. I was lucky to get this picture. Carter 2nd Grader (on the left) and Jacob is now a 4th grader. Good luck boys, I love you MUCHO!
New Gardeners...
It seems like only yesterday I was in

the large backyard cutting hoses and TV cables with our rider mower. Now, I pass the torch to Jacob (age 8) and Carter (age 7). They are doing a great job and I hope they don't cut up as many things as I did. Scott is a great trainer and it's cute to see them in safety goggles and wearing shoes (no toes lost yet).

New Ballet dancer... I was cleaning out my keepsake box and found my toe shoes. Sperry was very interested and I put them on her feet. She was a natural (probably as good as I'll ever be) and had to change to her dance leotard to make the outfit complete.
Old to me, new to them..."it's art" I found a few things that I drew in Elementary school when I was a kid. It was so funny that I could still remember drawing some of the pictures. My kids help to keep things in perspective, as always. I showed them a few things, they laughed out loud poking fun at my images and then they soon lost interest. It helped me to realize that they won't want a lot of "moms" drawings; they will want their own. So I was able to keep the select few and the rest are to be recycled (literally).

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

...hug hug, kiss kiss, hug hug, BIG kiss, little hug, kiss kiss, little kiss

We just got back from our big Utah Cousin Extravaganza. We miss you already. Some highlights included:
Fishing at Gooseberry: leaving at 4:30 am. Gooseberry starting at 38* degrees. BBQ up American Fork Canyon. Quinn's full body fly fishing suit. Gavin catching 3 fish. Grandma Sue's big bowls of ice cream. Grandma Karen's list of "you know you are related when.."
Regan's nocturnal night. the play written and directed by Taylor and Lindsey. Wade, Dagan and Jordan's mud fest on 4 wheelers. Dinosaur Museum with every kid that lived in Utah.
Visiting Temple Square and eating at the Lion House. Teague & Dawson the cabooses. Susie's expert knowledge on the '80s and '90s. Brian's squad for "free" golfballs. Aaron, Quinn and the pinata. Greg's Chats and Snacks. Buddies: Tatum and Sperry. Gourmet Fish with Andrea. Quinn and Aaron and the pinata. Kylee and her cooking lesson=fab cobbler. Whitney and her little dog ACE. JC the GRADUATE! Sara's stories of the "cooler" at her reunion. Jamie's "mexican restaurant". Abbey getting wet-or trying not to. Tyler & Tyra's update after 10 years. Avery's smile. Jordan catching the first fish with Grandma. Braiden, Ethan and Jacob always riding the 4 wheelers. Carter breaking the pinata. Gabriel summed it up with his "Cousins!!!" saluataion each time we saw him.
Hopefully everyone making it into the slide show.
Let me know what your favorite picture is from the slide show... You could win a car (sometime in your life...NOT during this contest and not from me).

Thursday, August 07, 2008

Hi -Yaaaah

My Cousin Keri and her 2 boys Dylan & Cole visited us recently. We had a wonderful time together. Keri and I were able to be chatty and the kids all played together! Super duper fun! Thanks Keri for the visit. Stay tuned for some more Cousin Extravaganza picts (and of course some big time grandma fun). For hours of fun try the game, "Sprinkler under the Trampoline". We also like the game "plenty of snacks to eat".

Sunday, August 03, 2008

I Could not ask for more...

We have been having a wonderful time playing. We have enjoyed our splash bash in the backyard with water fun. We went to our first Dodger game ever and loved every minute of it. We have had some fun family Sunday night walks together. We went to our cousin Laura's reception and danced our hearts out. And, we have games and toys scattered throughout the house. It is all in the building up memories.

Oh, also I had a wonderful Girls Night Out at the Ventura County Fair. We ladies sang and danced to Sara Evans! AHHH, the kettle corn was delicious as well. I suggest you try some if given the chance. Which do you like better, Kettle Corn or Funnel Cake? I'd like to hear your favorite Fair Food!

So, Sara Evans, I'd have to agree with the song you belted out I could not ask for more. These are the moments I thank God that I'm alive. These are the moments remember all my life. I've found all I've waited for and I could not ask for more. These are the moments I know Heaven must exist. Every prayer has been answered. Right here in this moment is where I'm supposed to be. I am so grateful for this time.

my Christmas poem

"Being only one star, what can you do When there are millions and millions and millions like you? 'I may be one, but I'm not all alone. Prophecies have declared my work written in stone. Many are waiting for what I am to give.
Looking for direction wherever they live. Everyone has something important to do, Your work may help one person; or even two.

Be a light to the world, no matter their view. Let love of the Lord reflect in you. And then it was time, our star couldn't stay. It's light announced the Savior, our first Christmas Day." ~ marci sargent, 2014 ~

"In our day the spirit of giving gifts plays a large role in commemorating the Christmas season. I wonder if we might profit by asking ourselves, What gifts would the Lord have me give to Him or to others at this precious season of the year?
~President Thomas S. Monson

"The world has enough women who are tough; we need women who are tender. There are enough women who are coarse; we need women who are kind. There are enough women who are rude; we need women who are refined. We have enough women of fame and fortune; we need more women of faith. We have enough greed; we need more goodness. We have enough vanity; we need more virtue. We have enough popularity; we need more purity". ~president Margaret D. Nadauld

"And we continue past the point we feel tired.
And we work past the point of our abilities.
And we remember who we are raising.
And within the warmth of hope,
we begin with the next day, to do again."

~marci sargent

"Heavenly Father is aware of our needs and will help us as we call upon Him for assistance. I believe that no concern of ours is too small or insignificant. The Lord is in the details of our lives. The future is as bright as your Faith." ~President Thomas S. Monson

"There are two important days in a woman’s life: The day she is born and the day she finds out why.” ~ Elaine Cannon

"The onslaught of wickedness against our children is more subtle and brazen than it has ever been. Building a strong family culture adds another layer of protection for our children, insulating them from worldly influences. God bless you goodly mothers and fathers in Zion. He has entrusted to your care His eternal children. As parents we partner, even join, with God in bringing to pass His work and glory among His children. It is our sacred duty to do our very best". ~ Elder L. Tom Perry

"My sweet young sisters, maintain an eternal perspective. Be alert to anything that would rob you of the blessings of eternity." ~President Thomas S. Monson

"I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by." ~President Thomas S. Monson

"Relief Society prepares women for the blessings of eternal life by awakening us spiritually to increase in faith and personal righteousness. Let us begin with ourselves. Let us begin where we are. Let us begin today. When we are spiritually awake, we will be better able to strengthen families and homes and help others." ~ Carole M Stephens

"Father in Heaven knew that you would face challenges and be required to make some decisions that would be beyond your own ability to decide correctly. In His plan of happiness, He included a provision for you to receive help with such challenges and decisions during your mortal life. That assistance will come to you through the Holy Ghost as spiritual guidance. It is a power, beyond your own capability, that a loving Heavenly Father wants you to use consistently for your peace and happiness." ~Elder Richard G. Scott

"Tonight, and tomorrow night, you might pray and ponder, asking the questions: Did God send a message that was just for me? Did I see His hand in my life or the lives of my children? I will do that. And then I will find a way to preserve that memory for the day that I, and those that I love, will need to remember how much God loves us and how much we need Him. I testify that He loves us and blesses us, more than most of us have yet recognized." President Henry B. Eyring

"our faith in God includes faith in God’s timing."
"We do not control what I call “the great transfer board in the sky.” The inconveniences that are sometimes associated with release from our labors here are necessary in order to accelerate the work there. Heavenly Father can’t do His work there, with 10 times more people than we have on this planet, without on occasion taking some of the very best sisters and brothers from among us. The conditions of termination here, painful though they are, are a part of the conditions of acceleration there. Thus we are back to faith in the timing of God, and to our need to be able to say “Thy timing be done,” even when we do not fully understand it. " ~Elder Neal A. Maxwell Click to see full talk from 2002

"I ask everyone within the sound of my voice to take heart, be filled with faith, and remember the Lord has said He “would fight [our] battles, [our] children’s battles, and [the battles of our] children’s children.” And what do we do to merit such a defense? We are to “search diligently, pray always, and be believing. Then all things shall work together for [our] good, if [we] walk uprightly and remember the covenant wherewith [we] have covenanted.” The latter days are not a time to fear and tremble. They are a time to be believing and remember our covenants."~ Elder Jeffery R. Holland, 2008

"Commune daily with your Heavenly Father who knows you best of all. He knows your talents, your strengths, and your weaknesses. You are here on the earth at this time to develop and refine these characteristics. I promise you He will help you. He is aware of your needs. He is aware of your unanswered prayers. ~Elder Marvin J. Ashton, May 1984

“To be a righteous woman during the winding-up scenes on this earth, before the Second Coming of our Savior, is an especially noble calling. The righteous woman’s strength and influence today can be tenfold what it might be in more tranquil times. She has been placed here to help to enrich, to protect, and to guard the home—which is society’s basic and most noble institution. Other institutions in society may falter and even fail, but the righteous woman can help to save the home, which may be the last and only sanctuary some mortals know in the midst of storm and strife” ~President Spencer W. Kimball

I testify that by the Spirit of Christ and by the Holy Ghost, you may walk confidently in whatever difficulties will come. Because you are so valuable, some of your trials may be severe. You need never be discouraged or afraid. The way through difficulties has always been prepared for you, and you will find it if you exercise faith.When you walk in the light, you will feel at that moment some of the warmth and the happiness that will finally be yours when you are welcomed home again with the hundreds and perhaps thousands of others whom you will bring with you, who have walked in the light because you did. ~President Eyring, April 2008

"The responsibility mothers have today has never required more vigilance. More than at any time in the history of the world, we need mothers who know. Children are being born into a world where they “wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12).¹ However, mothers need not fear. When mothers know who they are and who God is and have made covenants with Him, they will have great power and influence for good on their children." ~president Julie B. Beck