Award of Merit

Last night Kevin and I attended our scouting district's recognition dinner where he and 9 others received scouting's Award of Merit. We ate prime rib, eavesdropped on some truly bizarre conversations, poked fun at some scouters and oohed and ahhed at a gorgeous LDS meetinghouse originally dedicated in 1905 by Joseph Fielding Smith.

I'm so blessed to have married Kevin. He is so dedicated to the youth, both in our ward and in our community, and truly wants to help them to realize their divine potential. I always knew he was a great guy that would accomplish many things, but I NEVER in a million years imagined scouting to be among them. I'm proud of you hon...even if scouters are a breed of their own!!! :)

2008 Kicked my Trash ......2009 WIll Not!

I'm finally getting around to thinking about the New Year, the Old Year and how I would like them to be different. I wrote this post in my head while folding laundry a few minutes ago and the whole time I kept hearing my friend Catherine say, "Girl, you have got to stop whining! I took my family of 9 thousands and thousands of miles from home only to take up residence in a war zone, where we may or may not have power or water at any given moment AND they don't regularly sell Hershey's chocolate milk mix!" While I know Catherine would never actually say this to me, I think she could very easily think it. I'm really not a whiner...never have been...hope I never become one. Quite simply there were some things of 2008 that I REALLY hope don't repeat themselves in 2009.

SUCH AS:
1- Kev lost his job. This really took a toll on our family and our faith. We're still fighting through it with "hope of a brighter day."

2- We were all sick, sick, sick. Mia had RSV, I got pneumonia, we had ridiculous amounts of tummy issues, Max had his tonsils out, the girls both struggled with ear infections, I fought with strep throat...the list goes on and on. Our families all wanted to have us quarantined.

3- We tried to adjust simultaneously to a new baby, a newly called Bishop dad/husband, a new and bigger house (a blessing and a curse), the accessibility of friends and a revolving back door, two kids in school full time and all the activities that come with that and potty training.

4- Car problems. Enough said.

5- We watched so many people we love struggle with really tough things. Kev does so much better than me at compartmentalizing all the "STUFF" he has floating around in his head and heart, but I struggle. I think and stew and wonder what I can do or say to lift someone else's burden. It's one thing I actually have come to love about myself, but I've got to learn how to "let it go" after I've done all I can do. Because when I don't...I get sick. (Refer to #2)

I could go on, but I'm even depressing myself just writing about the yucky stuff. Let's move onto 2009. It's going to be a great year full of CHANGE and good things. I have made a list of some things I want to do this year so that "life" doesn't get in the way of my life.

Here's my list...in no particular order except #1.

1-SPEND MORE QUALITY TIME WITH THE MAN I LOVE. Sorry hon, the Pinewood Derby does NOT count as a date!

2-CONQUER MY LAUNDRY! I have a plan and a new rolling/hanging rack in my laundry room to assist me along my way. (I'd love ANY tips on the subject.)

3-READ MORE BOOKS. Not including The Adventures of the Bailey School Kids and the Fancy Nancy books, I think I only read 10 new books last year. An all time low record for me AND most of them were only mediocre at best.

4-STUDY UP ON NUTRITION AND KEEP MY FAMILY HEALTHY.

5-LOSE 25 POUNDS OR MORE. I need to finish the Yoga class I started and then couldn't finish because I got pneumonia. It's a vicious cycle.

6-GET PUBLISHED. I've got a couple projects in the works. One is bigger than I initially imagined it would be, but in the end could be very, very good.

7-CELEBRATE OUR 10TH ANNIVERSARY BY TAKING THE HONEYMOON WE SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THE FIRST TIME AROUND. Seriously, Grad School could have waited. If only we both weren't so practical.

8-REDECORATE MY BEDROOM. Right now it's the most depressing place in the whole house. A hodge podge of miscellania buried under all the stuff that somehow the "not me" creature that lives with us always manages to place there.

9-STOP AND LISTEN EVERYDAY.

10-TELL THE PEOPLE I LOVE EXACTLY THAT. Don't think I'm weird or dying if I all of a sudden tell you I love you. Just know that it comes from deep within my heart.

That's my simple list of 10. "Yes I Can!"

A Sad Goodbye To An Old Friend

Today a 15 year relationship between me and my hat came to an end. Anyone who has or has had a favorite hat knows how impossibly hard it is to find a replacement. I've been looking for a new one for a while because I knew my baby was not going to last much longer. NO LUCK!! This hat has been to every Young Women Camp over the last 10 years, hiked many-o-mountain, been on every vacation, blown off my head and into the lake, covered my early morning bed head during my 7:00AM classes (MANY YEARS AGO), and has beautifully maintained it's position as my GO-T0 guy whenever I've been in a rush.

With much hesitation I put my hat in the washing machine today and it literally self-destructed. The plastic bill ripped through the fabric at the seam, in the front and on the underside where the bill meets the cap. I'm so sad!!

Does anyone have suggestions as to where a girl with a big head and a LOT of hair might find the perfect hat to last the next 15 years?

Cracker Crazy!

My kids have lost their minds and have gone absolutely nuts over plain old saltine crackers. In all fairness, it's the first time we've ever had them in the house. I prefer CLUB crackers so that's what I always buy. We were supposed to have the missionaries over for dinner Christmas day (they didn't make it) and I made a huge pot of chili to feed them. (We shared it with family instead.) I grew up eating chili with saltines, but Kevin's family prefers tortillas and my sister-in-law from Texas like Fritos. So, not knowing what the missionaries would prefer, I had little of everything on hand. To make a long story even longer, the kids think they have died and gone to Heaven with these saltines and I keep finding cracker crumbs all over the house. We've gone through three boxes since Christmas. What do you think will happen if I show them the butter trick?!?!

Jackson's Baptism

Two of my handsome guys!


Four fabulous grandparents we couldn't live without!








Well, I'm officially an old woman. Today our oldest(who we just yesterday brought home from the hospital with his gigantic cheeks)was baptized and confirmed a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I am so blessed to know this little boy who tries so hard to make good choices, be the best big brother, do well in school, excel in Scouting and who loves his family. My life changed for the better and forever upon his entry into the world and I am eternally grateful Heavenly Father has given me the opportunity to be his mom. Today, for the first time, I felt like I was giving a little bit of him back to the Lord. I'm honored and humbled at the thought of a lifetime filled with various events that ultimately will take him home.

Thanks for sharing your life with us Jackson! We love you!

The Twelve Days

Every year Kevin's Aunt Mary puts together a 12 days of Christmas activity for the kidos. She brings each child a giant gift bag filled all sorts of treasures. Each gift is wrapped and labeled as to which comes first, second, third etc. and we open one each day. They receive their final gift from Aunt Mary on Christmas day at Grandma Lulu's. Needless to say THEY LOVE IT. Are you kidding....opening presents before Christmas....who wouldn't love that?!?!?! Thanks Aunt Mary! We love you!

This is the picture of day one this year!

Light the Night

Friday night South Jordan City turned on their Christmas lights and opened their outdoor ice skating rink. Kevin and Mia stayed home with the sniffles but Jackson, Kacie, Maxwell and I had a grand time at the celebration with Papa and Gramma Cinny and my brother's family. (To see more cousin pictures visit my mom's blog.) The kids fell on their little keisters a million times but got right back up and kept on skating. (They're still a little sore today.) Max keeps grabbing his cheeks and saying, "Ow...my poor bum." We visited with Santa, drank hot chocolate and rode in a 100 year old wagon. Thanks for inviting us Papa!

Enjoy the pics!