Changes

This morning we got up and ready for church. Sacrament went well--no one had to go out, so that is always a treat. We had our combined 5th Sunday meeting and then Sunday school. We had a great lesson about temple marriage.

After church, we came home, had some lunch, home teachers came, then Brian left to go home teaching and then to a meeting. My parents and Brian and Kamille came over for dinner. We enjoyed a nice dinner and visiting. After that we left for a meeting at the stake center for boundary changes for four wards in our stake. They realigned all the boundaries and there are still 4 wards, but things were made a little bit more balanced. Our Bishop stayed the same, Ken Brown is one counselor and Brian got put in as the second counselor. Please pray for me. LOL. The stake executive secretary called for an appointment on Tuesday. Brian and the YM president were actually at the same meeting on Tuesday night and he got a call too. So honestly, we totally thought it was to be a Ma and Pa on the pioneer trek they are having next summer. I knew they were getting started on the trek, so with both of them getting appointments, that is what we figured it was for. So on Wednesday night we went to the stake center for our appointment. He took Brian in first, so when he did that, I was like--I am thinking this is not just for the trek. Pres. Wagner came out and got me a couple minutes later and asked me a couple of questions, then asked if there is any reason that Brian wouldn't be able to serve as 2nd counselor in the bishopric. What do you say to that? I did say that I was concerned about sitting in church with soon to be five kids by myself. I guess that wasn't reason enough as he still got the calling. After we left his office, we just kind of drove around aimlessly, wondering how this would work out with our family. We figured he would need a suit, so we tried to find one. Luckily, Chrystalyn just happened to be getting rid of some of Jared's, so Brian was able to get those. Score. We had gotten a sitter, so we both grabbed a bite to eat, we got Libby's b-day gifts, then came home.

So knowing that the wards would be realigned, I assumed that we'd lose Vistancia from our ward. So I've been quite sad that I would be losing most of my friends from the ward. About a year ago I lost my good friends to West Wing ward and now my other good friends I had are in a different ward. That will be tough. I will survive, but it's still hard. A plus is that my sister-in-law and her family are in our ward now, which is a huge blessing seeing that they'll be able to help me on Sundays during sacrament meeting. I am going to need it. Hattie will be my challenge for sure. I hope I can survive. I have faith that Heavenly Father knows what we can handle. Thinking about it, I am worried about how I'll do this--keep a balance between taking care of stuff around the house, the girls, a new baby, my calling and having a life. But I just have to trust that it'll work out.

Our girls were funny when we told them this afternoon about Brian's calling. Eliza was trying to guess--she said, "Is he going to be a primary worker??!?!?!" She really wanted that. I told her no but that he'd be in primary a lot. They are pretty excited about it. Tonight when Brian had to go on the stand, Eliza said, "Bye Dad!" I thought--that's about right! Then she said, "Does that mean Daddy is getting old?" Cute. After the meeting tonight, he was set apart as a high priest, then set apart in his calling. My parents came, along with his parents and Jared and Chrystalyn and their family. He said everyone he talked to was supportive and everyone I talked to was giving me their condolences. So it's been a long Sunday and now the week begins!

Chickens

While Brian and Libby were gone, we tried to have our own fun. Friday night we had dinner at home, then went to Cold Stone for Ellie's "reward." Ellie and Eliza opted for cotton candy ice cream with sprinkles and Hattie got vanilla with M&Ms.

We came home and got the two little girls to bed and Eliza stayed up to watch The Wizards of Waverly Place movie on Disney. I was so tired I feel asleep.

This morning, Hattie greeted me at 5:15. Grrrr!! So it's been a long day. We got up and ready, then we headed over to a feed store to pick out chickens. My SIL Chrystalyn kind of headed up a little venture for Brian's siblings--mostly for us wives and Laura. We are going to have chickens for eggs at his parents' house. So today was the day to pick out the chickens. So we got there and there were two cute little puppies roaming around, so--if you know my two little girls--I was holding one and my niece Sara had the other. Luckily the chickens were in cages! While we were up front paying, one of the employees got out a HUGE--probably 3 feet long iguana--from a cage for the kids to see. Ellie and Hattie both went over there and petted it!!!!!!!! They are terrified of a tiny dog but will pet the giant iguana. Weird!!! I finally put them both down and got down low with them and let the dog come close and they did pretty well with that--both ended up petting them. We went over to Brian's parents' and dropped the chickens off and checked out what we have to do on our designated day. After I had left, Chrystalyn called and said one had already died! Heat stroke from the transport and such. And the one Eliza picked out had a bald spot--which the store people told us was molting--but it wasn't. The other chickens were picking on it and it continued with this group, too. So they took both back for a refund. Chrystalyn was able to find 7 more chickens from someone in Brian's parents' ward--which were cheaper and better, so we got those, too. We'll have more eggs than we need, but we are hoping to sell the extras. It'll be some work, but it'll be good for the kids and good for "food storage" if needed.

After the chickens, we came home--Eliza had Maddie and Katie come play and then Kari brought her girls to play while they moved. They had fun playing and it passed the day pretty quickly.

Jump Rope

Thanks to some tech-y friends, I was able to upload the video of Eliza jump roping. Enjoy!

Libby's 6th Birthday

Friday was Libby's 6th birthday. We started out with donuts for breakfast. That is always a hit. After the girls went off to school, I dropped Ellie and Hattie off at Terri's while I did one visiting teaching visit. Then we came home and baked some rolls, then headed to Karolyn's. She had a few new people over from the ward for lunch. After that, we stopped by Brooke's and Hattie got her very first haircut. Yes--she is 2.5 and is just now having her first haircut. I wanted it evened up and it's not a darling bob. It looks so cute on her! She loved getting it done, too. Ellie was so sad she couldn't get hers cut, too. She is funny.

(not sure why her head looks HUGE in this photo)



From there we went home and picked up the popsicles and took them into Libby's classroom for her birthday treat. She had a sub, but it worked out well. She was cool about. Originally I had arranged with her teacher to come after the PM recess and have them outside. But since it was SO hot outside, they had recess in the classroom, so we just had them in there after recess was over. She didn't mind that Ellie and Hattie were there--in fact they sat right next to Libby and had popsicles, too. I was actually thrilled that I didn't have to go out in the head with the treat. It was such a hot day, I was so hot and sweaty and miserable!!! Libby quietly enjoyed passing out the treat and I think was a bit embarrassed when her class sang Happy Birthday very loudly complete with "cha cha chas."


After school when the girls got home and Brian, too, we let Libby open her gifts. She got a new lunch bag. She wanted one with a pocket on it to put the little notes that we put in her lunch. We also got her Catch Phrase and a super soft reading pillow which she loves.


Around 5, Brian left with Libby to his parents' cabin. It was a reward from her bedtime chart and also for some birthday fun. Unfortunately he forgot the camera, but they had a great time. That night they had dinner, dessert, watched Ratatouille, played Clue and read. Brian said that Libby tried to let him win the second game of Clue. Sweet girl. This morning, they got up at 8 (lucky!), had Pop Tarts, played trains in the playroom, watched part of The Bee Movie and went up to Flagstaff where they watched trains go by, walked around downtown and had lunch at the Downtown Diner. They stopped at Jenny's and played with Isaac for a bit, then went back tot he cabin, finished the movie, then headed home.

Tonight after dinner, she got to have her cake. I let Eliza be the photographer, so we got some "artsy" photos. Oh well!



I think she had a great birthday weekend! At age 6, Libby...
--loves games
--loves to read, especially Amelia Bedelia and Junie B. books
--loves to do Waldo books or search-and-find books
--has a tender heart
--does her chores really well
--likes to help
--is very particular about the clothes she wears--is into "soft" shorts and rotates between 5 or 6 t-shirts. We won't discuss her Sunday outfit.
--is very particular (stubborn) about her hair...right now she'll only wear it with a clip on the side. I used to be able to do ONE ponytail in the back. I dream of doing two ponytails or curling it or a braid. One day...


Happy birthday, Libs!

Early Release

I survived the first early release of this school year. This morning, Ellie, Hattie and I hustled to the post office and Wal-Mart, then it was nearly time to pick them up from school. After pick-up it was a hectic day at home. It seems like I just cleaned up after everyone all day. I had wanted to take them swimming, but they chose other things (e.g. not to do their chores, etc), so we stayed home. When Brian got home, we picked his car up--hopefully for the last time from the mechanic--then stopped at Kohl's then home. Eliza and I went to Leslie's to visit her and her new little baby. She is a doll!!!!!! Love the new baby smell!

In other news--I don't want to jinx ourselves, but I think it's been almost two weeks since Ellie has had bathroom issues or we've had to clean out underwear (TMI?). That is HUGE and it has been WONDERFUL. We do a chart with her (I know--everyone has a chart but Hattie) but it has been working and she gets so excited about it. Tomorrow she gets an ice cream cone and let me tell you that is more than worth not having bathroom accidents or issues with her. It's only been a year and a half that we've been working on it, don't you think it's time?!? Now we get to move on to Hattie. Not sure I'm up for it after Ellie.

Weekend

This weekend was busy!

On Friday after school, my parents came and got Libby for her birthday sleepover. Libby wanted McDonalds for dinner, so she had that and my parents got something else. Then they went goofy golfing. She had a great time doing that and she beat my dad apparently.

It was warm outside, so after she got an ice cream cone. The next morning she had pop tarts for breakfast and then got to go shopping for her gift. She took a while to pick something out (my mom gives a better recap on her blog) but finally decided on some creative activities, two books and a movie. She had a great time and loved having their full attention.

On Friday night, Brian and Eliza went on a little campout. Eliza earned it on her chart, so finally she got to redeem it. They had to take Brian's Civic and he was really missing his truck!! But they had a fun time. They camped on Schnebly Hill Road. They had cheesy hot dogs for dinner and s'mores. For breakfast they had scrambled eggs, then packed up and went to his parents' cabin for a bit. She wanted to go to a museum, so they went to the Riordan Mansion in Flagstaff and took a little tour. She really enjoys things like that and this was no exception. The Rough Riders were there, too, so they enjoyed seeing them. They got lunch at the Galaxy Diner on Route 66, then headed home.







On Saturday while they were gone, Ellie and I went with Hattie to birthday party she was invited to, then went to Nanci's and I took pictures of a friend of hers and her daughters. That evening we went to the ward talent show. Eliza decided fairly last minute that she wanted to do a jump rope routine. She is so brave! She was nervous, but she does so well in those situations. She did her own little routine to one of Joe Satriani guitar solos. She did great! I wanted to upload the video, but it's a touch to big to download and I don't know how make it shorter!




The rest of the talent how was fun....these two little brothers totally entertained us by dancing to Thriller. And Bishop and his family's band never ceases to impress!






Sunday was a typical Sunday. It felt weird not teaching Sunday school! My friend Debbie just got called to teach the class just older than mine and she asked me to sub over the Labor Day weekend, so I'll get to keep my feet wet, which I am excited about. Sunday night we went to Brian's parents for Sunday dinner. ...had a good roast and mashed potatoes and rolls. We made pizookie for dessert.

Monday was back at school for a new week. I didn't have anything planned, so I just picked up from the weekend, which was nice. Today I had a dr. appt. He said my stomach measurement was textbook, then they did an ultrasound and the baby is measuring 35 weeks and 5 lbs. 9 oz. I am a little nervous that I'll have a huge baby! I am curious to see what the doc will say at my appt. in two weeks. I am thinking I might only have 5 weeks left now. I'd better get in gear because I am not ready!

Tonight was crazy busy. After dinner Brian jumped his car to start it (yes--makes me wonder what the $300 repair was in Prescott), then dropped it off a mechanic. Then we hustled him out to a meeting, then the girls and I went with Eliza to audition for the stake musical which is coming up in November. She did great. The lady in charge said she for sure would have a singing part, so now we need to get her a pioneer outfit to wear. I think she is excited!

Behind

I kept meaning to get on the computer and update this, but I was either too busy or too tired! Let's hope I can remember what all we did this week.

School is going well for Eliza and Libby. Eliza had her first spelling test--they do a pretest on Thursdays and if they get a 100%, they don't have to take the test on Friday. Eliza was excited to get a 100 on the pretest, so she didn't have to take it this week. She was sad not to get the class job of "zookeeper" in her class. She was teary about it on Monday night. I felt so bad for her and wanted to cry right with her. Brian thought I was silly and said she has to learn she doesn't get everything she wants at school. That is true, but it still was sad! I think she is over it now. I have been worried about her doing her reading homework--they have to read every night. Before school started, she would say that she didn't like reading, etc., and it was like pulling teeth to get her to read. To help that, Brian decided he would read with her every night and that has been going great. She looks forward to that time and is excited about reading. They finished one book already this week, so on to the next!

Libby is enjoying school. I got to go to lunch with her today. She eats her whole lunch, but doesn't save the best for last! She eats everything and then her sandwich is last. I sat with Eliza for a minute, then went out to recess with Libby. I about melted in the heat. She had fun playing, knowing I was watching her. She got her first "note" on her behavior chart today. She has to miss 5 minutes of recess on Monday for talking!!! I was quite shocked actually since it was Libby! I guess around her peers she is quite chatty. I am glad though. We chatted about it when she got home and hopefully that will be the last note. I think it will be since she has to miss recess and just for the fact that she didn't get a stamp on her chart.

Ellie has played a lot of dolls this week. She loves to be the mom. She is so sweet and says the sweetest prayers--always remembering people in her prayers. Last night the oldest 3 were playing dolls and Eliza and Libby were arguing over who had what doll accessory. I overheard Ellie say, "Jesus wants us to be kind." So cute.

Hattie has said some funny things this week. We were out with my mom one day and we stopped in a store and my mom had to use the restroom first. So before we went in we said she would be doing that. We walked in the store and not quietly, Hattie said, "Gramma--you have to go potty?" Then when we were done at the store (but still in the store), she said, "Gramma--did you go potty?" It was pretty funny. That same day she said, "My daddy's at work. He's my friend." Darling. Another thing--Ellie was crying about something while we were at Home Depot the other day. Hattie said, "Ellie, take a deep breath." She is also cute when she gets a compliment or when someone gives something to her. My mom came over this week and told Hattie that she liked her dress. Hattie said, "Thank you!" --very animated and cute. It made us laugh. And Ellie gave her a toy or something and Hattie said, "Thank you so much. That's so nice!" She can be so cute. But not so cute at her 5:45 wake up. One night this week she got up at 12 and didn't sleep again until 2. She just laid in her bed with her eyes open. I laid next to her to see if she would fall asleep--I did, she didn't! Plus it was torture on my back!

Let's see what else...Brian got his car back home from Prescott Valley. He just had the basic fixed to get it home. Now he is just going to try to sell it. I had a couple meetings on Tuesday night--I am at the point in my calling where you wonder how you'll ever have time to do everything. I do this in every calling I think, then I get into a groove and figure it out. I do know from my last calling though that as I serve, my time is enlarged and somehow I have time to do everything. On Thursday night a couple friends and I went to Cold Stone with Leslie to celebrate new baby who's coming this next week. The new Cold Stone is open right by us now--dangerous!!!! It was fun to eat and visit. We were inside at first, but it was freezing and were shivering, so we moved outside and about melted, sitting there chatting so long. Tonight I went to the park to help my niece with volleyball--her school tryouts start on Monday. She had two other little friends there and we just did some basic skills stuff. We stopped on the way home for a caramel apple at Rocky Mtn. (it's inside the new Cold Stone--did I mention dangerous?!), then came home.

This week I took my 3-hour glucose test. I didn't have to lay down this time like I did last time, but the first time I went back after drinking the stuff, the lab lady said I looked pale. Happily, I got a call today saying the results were normal. What a blessing. Terri had a fun back to school brunch at her house on Thursday--lots of moms eating and visiting. Lots of kids playing, too.

Anyway--this has gone too long. I post some pictures tomorrow for those who don't like to read!

Oh--and this week has gone much smoother. We have used the techniques in that book and it has gone well! Yay!

Lots

Updates from the rest of the week:
Thursday:
picked up dresser for the nursery
went to in-laws for swimming at night

Friday:
Went to Nanci's. I got a bunch of her maternity clothes to see me through the end of my pregnancy. Yay. I think I might survive now. It has felt so good to wear something different. I feel like I've been rotating through the same 3 outfits. She also showed me a new NuSkin product. Tempting, but I'll probably have to wait a month or two.

Found out I "failed" my glucose test, so I have to go in and do the 3-hour one. I held it together long enough to get off the phone with the nurse, then I cried. Big bBaby! It was just like one more thing I didn't need this week. I had to do the same thing with Hattie and it ended up being negative, so I am hoping for a repeat of that this time.

Brian had a scout campout, so the girls and I had a girls night. After dinner and after Ellie and Hattie went to bed, Eliza, Libby and I watched the Samantha movie (American Girl) and had popcorn and M&Ms. The movie was really good and we had fun watching and eating. Bedtime went well except I went too late (midnight) and Hattie summoned me at 5:35. We have been trying to get her to sleep in a little bit more. Usually it's 6 AM, which is still too early. We even put a sheet and blanket over her window hoping that would help, but no. It hasn't. Grrrr.

Saturday:
We hung out at home--colored, watched Samantha again, had lunch, etc. Brian got home a little after lunch. He had a good camp ut except for the fact that his Land Cruiser broke down. I asked if he had an ax he could take to it while he was there. It just stopped. So they had to leave it in Mayer. So Saturday afternoon, we all had to go back up there, meet the tow truck and have it towed to a shop in Prescott Valley. They can't look at it until Monday, so we'll have to go back up and get it early this week. This has been such a thorn in our side! We don't know what to do with it--just sell it for like nothing or he's looked into doing Cash for Clunkers, so we'll see about that. It's just a pain! We got home and were able to get a sitter for a little date night. Brian loves me being pregnant because I can't hardly eat anything at one sitting, so we just get a meal and share and it's plenty! I didn't even eat all of my 1/2 portion. I'm sure that will change soon. So we had Chevy's for dinner--love their salsa! We went to Barnes & Noble and relaxed and read a bit. I read quite a bit in a book that I want to buy. It's called The Explosive Child. Now before you judge me (or my kids), I have to explain. This week has been really hard. Probably three nights this week, we've had trouble with one child in particular and I've been desperate about what to do. It's been awful. Lots of tears! In my researching, I came across this book and when I saw it at the bookstore, I picked it up and read some. It is great. I was excited to try it out as I was reading. The hardest part about reading it was admitting we have an explosive child! I think all children are that at some point and/or over certain issues. The premise is that there are some who aren't flexible and when things don't go their way, they flip out and can't see beyond that and it ruins the rest of the day/night or whenever it is. And it's not all issues she reacts like this. I think the skills can be applied to all kids. Basically you have three plans of attack when wanting to deal with one of their triggers (could be getting up and ready in the morning, clothing choices, doing homework, meal time...etc. The book gave several examples of what might trigger your child.) So with anything, you either have Plan A, B or C. Plan A is for things you are adamant about and won't budge. You just don't allow it and a negative reaction will probably occur. Plan C is to not object to a child's request. It's kind of like choosing your battles. But then you have plan B. It's a bit extensive, but it's a great way to discuss it with your child and figure out a plan that will make both of you happy. Brian and I tried some aspects today and it has seemed to work well. Ideally, you'd be proactive and talk to your child "not in the moment" and try to come up with a solution before the issue comes up. Anyway...I am going to order the book and keep trying his approach.

We had a gift card for Cold Stone so we shared one of those, too. We discovered it's cheaper to get the biggest size and share it (there was plenty) than to get two separate ones. Duh.

Sunday:
Didn't get enough sleep again. LOL. We got up and ready for church. Sacrament went well. I got released from my Sunday School calling. I taught my last lesson for them today. Kind of sad! They were such a great group of kids and I'll miss teaching them each week. We had a good afternoon. My parents and brother and his family came over for dinner. Pork loin roast, mashed potatoes and corn. Yum. And Kamille's famous treats--they were SO good.

I left for a stake youth council meeting. So my new calling begins! We are in charge of a lot of things coming up, so we'll have to jump in with both feet right away.

So Far So Good

School has been going well so far for Eliza and Libby. They both still enjoy their teachers. Libby tells us ALL about her day and what they do. She knows who everyone is in her class, where they sit, etc. She is so sweet and cares about people. This week her job is the paper collector. Eliza has met a new friend in her class whom she really likes. I don't enjoy pick up time--it's so hot and they are so tired and hungry when I pick them up. I park across the street now and go get them from their lines and then we go back to the car, so it's not too long, but it's scorching outside.

Today after pick up, we went up to Anthem to look at a dresser I found on Craigslist. It was darling, so I paid for it and we'll go pick it up tomorrow since it wouldn't fit in my van. Now I just to find a twin bed so I can put Hattie in with Eliza.

Last night I had a training with the stake presidency for my new calling. Talk about intimidating. Most everyone was nervous to answer any questions--me included! I blabbed my way through any questions the stake president asked and I'm sure he was thinking, "Good thing she is just the secretary!" LOL.

This morning my mom came over and we dusted off our supplies and made some bread. We took a little hiatus over the summer, but I'm sure with school, we'll be regulars again. I think it was like riding a bike--we got right back into it and it turned out good. And my house smelled divine! Ellie showed up to "help" when it was time to form the loaves so she could have a sample, but Hattie wanted to help me the whole time. I guess I have another bread maker to train!


(Don't you love her outfit? It's either a swimsuit or a dress or skirt.)

We took a little field trip to Target--my mom had to get something and I bought a dry erase eraser for Eliza. Then my mom treated us to lunch at the food "court." It was good!

1st Day of School

Today was a bittersweet day as is every first day of the new school year! I always think about this quote when it comes to the beginning of the year:

"Being a mother means that your heart is no longer yours; it wanders wherever your children do."

So true. This morning went well. Everyone got ready smoothly and we were able to leave in plenty of time to take pictures and get to school. Eliza had picked her outfit out on Saturday and Libby just said she would decide this morning. And she did! I am so grateful it went smoothly and that no one complained about going. We went to their classes--Libby's first--and met her teacher. We got everything out of her bag and looked around a bit. We told Libby we were going to drop Eliza off but that we'd be back by to check on her. She wanted to go with us. So she did. We went to Eliza's room, found her desk and got her all situated. She got right to work on the word search at her desk. She said she had butterflies, but she did well. Libby didn't say she was nervous, but I could tell she was. Just a flushed face and had that nervous look. This day always tugs at my heartstrings! It's so scary sending them out into the world where there are more influences and kids who aren't always nice, etc. But as Brian assures me, they know what is right and will do well. We left Eliza's room and went back to Libby's. By then there were more students and she sat at her desk and got to work. We said our good-byes and went back to wave at Eliza and then back to wave at Libby one more time. I am waiting on pins and needles to hear how today goes!

I am sad some of the pictures are blurry but they are still cute.






After dropping them off, Ellie, Hattie and I went to Wal-Mart to stock up from being gone, then we came home and are just trying to pass the time until pick up!

OK--so pick up took a while since all K-8 get out at the same time. The girls were so hot when I got to the front of the line to pick them up. I felt so bad. They both had a good day though and said their teachers were nice. I am glad their day went well!

Articles

For the plane ride, I printed a bunch of articles which ended up being really good. I found them at the BYU Family Expo website. Here are ones I read and enjoyed and there are also a ton more there that are really good.

Building Confidence/Self-Esteem in Children/Teenagers

Accentuate the Positive

Parenting Children and Teens in Positive Ways that Matter

Other transcripts...

For the podcasts, I went to iTunes podcast page and searched for LDS. There were a bunch there. My favorites were the Seagull and Cricket ones where Steven Kapp Perry interviews someone each week. They were entertaining.

Stake Conference and New Calling (again)

Here are some of my favorite thoughts from the adult meeting of stake conference last night.
--We show our gratitude by our works.
--1st Corinthians 10:13--we won't be tempted (or challenged or given more adversity) than we can bear.
--We will have the strength to meet any challenge we are presented.
--Be meek and lowly of heart. (Meek= stands in awe of God's creations, remains silent even when accused, teachable, not casual towards things of an eternal nature) (Lowly of heart= comes when we realize what we caused the Savior in His suffering, having remorse that we have hurt others, complete submission to His will)
--To love is to create; to hate is to destroy
--We should embrace challenges of life with greater gratitude
--We should view challenges and adversity as an opportunity for growth.
--Get on your knees and ask for help. He wants to help us.
--Talked about Michelangelo and how he wanted to learn to draw, but was asked to draft, sculpt, cast, paint and to be an architect. He was willing to learn and try new things. In regard to callings we are extended, we shouldn't say, "I am not ___________ (e.g. a nursery leader and primary pianist, etc.). We accept and do our best. That is humility. We can't tell the Bishop what we can or can't do. We can explain a situation if we think there is a conflict, but then let the Bishop decide. If we don't accept the calling, we are breaking the covenant.
--All ordinances we are part of help us become like our Savior.
--If we look at our lives as an act of creation and that we are being molded, it will affect every decision we make.
--Heavenly Father gives revelation to parents in regard to their children.

Before the meeting last night, a member of the high council wanted to meet with me. He tried to get hold of us this past week, but we were gone, so we didn't meet up until last night. But I was called to be the secretary of the stake young women's presidency. It definitely came out of the blue (just as I was getting going teaching my Sunday School class). But change is good, right? I am excited to serve in that calling--something totally new.

Today we had the 1 PM session. It was weird since we are used to going at 8:30 and not having time to do anything before. We made it to conference and enjoyed it. I am always glad for the adult session because I can get a lot from that meeting and can take notes, etc. In the Sunday session, I am trying to keep the girls reverent so any bit I can hear is a perk. It was a good meeting though. There were two young kids who spoke--they both did so great. Sweet little Kylie P. was bearing her testimony and she fainted though. I felt so bad for her. She was looking a little weak and pale towards the end and I looked over at Brian and we wondered if that would happen. Luckily her mom could tell she was struggling, so she went up and was there in time to catch her. Poor girl. The one thing I took from President Wagner's talk was to be more specific in my prayers. I always think I am, but I am going to do even better. He said to say exactly what your desires are and to pray for each child by name for specifically what they need and you need. I am going to try out that challenge/promise. I need help and I need revelation in regard to them.

After conference we came home. Eliza and Libby played well together and I made brownies (used my friend Kari's recipe for homemade brownies with frosting. Yum!!) with Ellie and Hattie. They love to help and to lick the beaters and the bowl! We had spaghetti for dinner, followed by dessert. The girls got their baths/showers and I put Hattie to bed. Then Brian gave Eliza and Libby a father's blessing for the start of school. I think the girls were excited to have a blessing before starting school tomorrow and I am grateful Brian does it each year. It makes me (and hopefully them) feel more at peace. Brian also gave me a blessing, so I appreciated that.

After the girls were in bed, we got as much done to pack their lunches and I wrote little notes to put inside. I think I get just as anxious and nervous as they do (probably more) and would love to be a fly on the wall all day!

Home

We pulled in our driveway around 9 this morning. On the front door was a welcome home sign and all around the house were signs welcoming us home! They girls were glad to see us--like surreal to them--like is it really you!??! Abbie our sitter did a fantastic job and took excellent care of our girls and house. It was nice for them to have a couple other sleepovers and we are grateful to those who helped, too. We unpacked some and showed the girls the souvenirs we had brought home for them. They showed us the fun things they did this week.

So today we just played and enjoyed being with the girls. Hattie wouldn't let me out of her sight and I spent most of the day holding her! She gave me lots of hugs followed by a kiss, so that was cute. A funny thing she has been saying lately that I wanted to record is that when someone does something wrong, she'll say, "_____________ (insert name) is in Trimble." She thinks that is the word for trouble. It's very cute.

This afternoon Brian had a leadership meeting as part of stake conference, and after was the adult meeting. We didn't feel like getting another sitter for the girls since we had just been gone for a week, so we traded off. I went to the 6 PM meeting and Brian came home with the girls. The meeting was good. I heard a lot of things that I needed to hear. I'll have to record some of my favorite quotes/thoughts tomorrow. I need to get to bed! It's been a long couple of days.

Aloha

Brian and I just got back this morning from our trip to Oahu. Here's my travel journal and some pictures!

Saturday August 1, 2009

This morning we got up and ready. We took Eliza and Libby to Chrystalyn’s to stay until tomorrow night, then we took Ellie and Hattie to my parents to stay. They were all pretty excited to go to their places. From there Brian and I headed to the airport. Our flight left at 10:55, so after we got checked in, we read and had a bite to eat. The plane ride was smooth and about 6 hours long. I did some reading and I listened to some podcasts. Brian listens to podcasts and talks on his iPod, but this is my first time and I loved it! I downloaded several free ones from iTunes and I was set. They also played 17 Again on the plan, so I watched that. It was okay—a little silly but it kept me entertained.


After we landed—about 3 local time—we got to our rental car place, then drove to our hotel. We are staying at the Moana Surfrider in Honolulu. We have two balconies—one from which you can see the ocean. Driving to our hotel was crowded! Kauai is much different and much less populated. This is far more touristy it seems. We got to our room and got settled a little bit, then walked down to a little grocery store for some milk and cereal. We figured we could eat breakfast in our room to save some time and money. We got a half gallon of milk, which was $3.00, but the gallons were on sale for $8.99. CRAZY! The cereal was pricey, too.

We came back to our room and relaxed for about an hour before going down to the welcome dinner. It was out on a lawn and right on the beach.

The view was so beautiful! Dinner was a buffet with a variety of foods…Brian was more adventurous than me, having mussels, squid salad and salmon. I opted for the prime rib for my main meat. After some dessert—fresh pineapple and cannoli, we took a little walk on the beach. I don’t think I have ever done that, so that was fun.

Sunday, August 02, 2009

This morning the time difference threw me off a little. We went to bed last night around 9 Hawaii time and I woke up and I thought, “Surely it’s about time to get up.” I looked at the clock and it was 2:15. Crazy! So I went back to bed until about 6. I laid in bed until about 7, then Brian and I got up and ate our cereal. We had planned to go to the 11 AM church meeting, but since we were already up, we decided to hit the 9 AM sacrament meeting. So we got ready and drove to the building. It was the Honolulu Tabernacle. The building was really neat—it reminded us of temple grounds—lots of lush flowers and landscape, a reflection pool and really neat, large mosaic of Christ.




Church was good. I was a little nervous—being in a new place, but there seemed to be a lot of other visitors. The chapel was so big—it had rows and rows and rows of pews, then on either side were additional pews facing inward. We ended up sitting in front of a family—reminded us of the movie—Singles 2nd Ward, I think. They had this sesame mix—it was so crunchy and loud. Then I smelt tuna!!!!!! It was so potent. I didn’t turn around to see if that is what it really was but we figured it was. It made for a fragrant hour (ewww!). It was testimony meeting. After the bishopric member shared his testimony which was really good, there were only 2 more testimonies! One guy was up there for like 20 minutes. He was very entertaining and he told the story of his conversion. He owns a VIP tour company and he would point out the temple when he was on the North Shore and he kept hearing negative comments about Mormons. After about a hundred comments, he decided to go in to the visitor's center. He ended up spending 7 hours there. After that and seeing that the members were actually nice people, he stated taking his tours to the visitor center and made them go in! He said he told them they could go or they could walk and get off the tour! After a while and after missionary discussions, he was baptized. After sacrament, we walked around the building for a bit—it’s really neat—where you go outside to get to the classrooms and the rooms open to the outside. It ended up being a good time. From there, we drove around a bit to see parts of the city. We decided it’s a lot like New York but without all the traffic. We drove past a King Kamehameha statue and drove by Diamond Head.

We got some lunch, then went back to our room. The Next Food Network Star finale was on this evening, but they replayed all the episodes from this season. So we watched a few of those and got to watch the finale. We also switched rooms. Our first room was nice but had two double beds. It would have been okay but being pregnant—it was just a little snug. So we now are on the 4th floor instead of the 17th and a little closer to the beach.

This evening we took a scenic drive up Round Top Road to a state park. The drive up was so pretty—LUSH, LUSH area—like a rain forest. At the top there is a little park and a scenic lookout.




We drove back down and got some dinner at Cheesecake Factory. We shared the stuffed chicken tortillas and it was plenty! I can’t eat too much at a time now, so it worked out great. We topped it off with some Baskin' Robbins.


Monday, August 03, 2009

This morning we got up and ready. There was a group breakfast, so we went there for that, then Brian had a meeting that started at 8. I went to a couple stores close to the hotel, but all that was really open were the ABC stores—like a mini grocery/souvenir store. So I went back to the room and waited until time to go down to the spouse meeting. It was combined with the financial advisors and basically they did introductions, the host from St. Louis did a firm update, then a guy from the hotel talked about things to do while we were here. After the meeting we were free to go for the day. We went back to the room, changed into our suits (yes, I actually got into my swim suit this time! LOL) and went down to the beach. Brian has wanted to try surfing for the longest time, so he finally got to fulfill that wish! Right by the hotel is a little surf place and you pay for an hour of instruction with a small group. I think there were 6 or 7 in his group. He got a mini lesson on shore from “Blue”—an older Hawaiian guy—then they were out in the ocean surfing.



After a few minutes, he was able to get up. And he did it over and over again until the hour was up. He got up several times and had fun surfing. He said it was tiring and he realized why his shirt is called a rash guard. He wished he had worn a long sleeve one, as he had a little rash on both arms from paddling. And the inside of his knees were red, too, from laying down and then getting up. I sat on the shore and took lots and lots of pictures. I am glad he got to do that!



We went back to the room and got changed, then grabbed a bite to eat a little food court at the Royal Hawaiian. We went to one store, then went back to the room for a nap. Brian said he never feel asleep because the room was too warm—I had turned the air up a little bit before. Oops!! After we got up, we drove around—saw the inside of Diamond Head Crater. You can hike up the inside, but that was out for me, so we just drove in and out. Then we took a road that went right by the ocean, so that was pretty. We drove in a few neighborhoods and awed at the homes and their beautiful view. We drove a little further and stopped at some scenic views. The ocean was beautiful—such a deep blue color. We drove back and went to dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise. Neither of us were too hungry, so we split a burger. The waiter talked us into fries—we should have asked how much—it was $4.75! Then Brian got a soda and the waited asked if he wanted bottomless. Mistake! We got the bill and it was $6.75. OUCH! The redeeming (somewhat) thing was that you got to take the “colorchanging” mug and you could come back for a free refill anytime without having to eat again. We got a chocolate cake to go and we ate it later tonight. It was SOOOO good. So rich and decedent. Yum!
Like NY, there are people on the street trying to earn a buck. They fascinate me although I never put money in their buckets. This guys was clothed in newspapers...very well done.



Tuesday, August 4, 2009

This morning we got up fairly early and got ready and ate cereal for breakfast. We got our car and headed up to the North Shore. We drove up the west side by the Dole Plantation. There were tons of pineapple growing alongside the road. We wanted to do a little shopping before we started at the Polynesian Cultural Center which opened at 12. We ended up passing the little town we wanted--Halewie--and instead kept on going to Laie. We first went to the temple. It’s closed for about a year and a half for renovation. It was weird to see it like that—it was cement color instead of the vibrant white you usually see in the pictures. And the front windows were boarded up. We went in the visitor’s center for a little bit and went to the Distribution Center for a couple things.



We drove by BYU Hawaii and decided I should try to get a teaching job there. Ha! Surely they need an English professor!

We still had a little while before the Cultural Center opened and we realized that a couple places we wanted to go to were back in that little town we had passed. So we drove all the way back and ended up eating lunch at a little bakery Wialea Bakery. We split an egg salad sandwich. It was so good! We shared a cookie, then I got a Matsumoto shaved ice. I got creamcicle and strawberry with ice cream. YUM! It was soooo good.

The ice was so soft and to have the ice cream in the bottom was a nice treat. Then we drove back to Laie and spent the rest of the day at the PCC. It was a lot of fun and we had a good time. We went around to all the villages. I think we only missed Samoa. But we got to see the cultural presentations for each village. They were so entertaining and informative. I think our favorite was Tonga. They had some people from the audience come up and play the drums and it ended up being very funny. We also saw the Canoe Pageant which is like a parade on the water. That was fun to watch. This evening we went to a luau. There was some entertainment and of course dinner. Brian really enjoyed the food—I thought it was just okay. But it was the experience, right? After dinner we did a little shopping at the marketplace, then it was time for the evening show—Breathe of Life. It showcased each village and the costumes, music and dancing was just amazing! So entertaining. The best part was the fire twirling at the end. Now I’ve twirled a fire baton before, but this was out of this world. They were SOOO fast. It was great. It was a long, tired, but fun day.








Wednesday August 05, 2009

After getting up and ready this morning, we headed out to the Swap Meet at Aloha Stadium. We had heard a couple people mention it, so we decided to give it a try. It was a lot of the same stuff over and over again, but it was still fun to look around. We found little Hawaiian dresses for Ellie and Hattie, necklaces for Eliza and Libby, flowers for their hair and $5 sunglasses for me. We left there and headed to Pearl Harbor. We weren’t sure if we would make it in time to get a ticket to go see the USS Arizona, but we did. Our tour wasn’t until 12:15, so we looked around at some of the artifacts, then got some lunch before headed to our tour. It’s free to go to the USS Arizona so we opted to do that. Some of the other tours looked fun, but I think we got our fill on this one. Maybe if Brian goes back someday with my dad they could do the other tours. The tour started out with a little video about events leading up to Dec. 7, 1941, then talked about the actual day. It was interesting to learn some more about that day in history. From there, we took a little boat ride to the USS Arizona Memorial. You can see shadows of the boat under the water and a couple parts stick out above the water. It was neat to see and I’m glad we could say we saw that.



We came back to the hotel, took a little nap, then ate dinner at La Cucaracha.

Then we went to Borders and got a couple books to keep us occupied. I got a young adult book called The Mysterious Benedict Society and Brian got a WWII book called Flyboys. We ended the night with some ice cream and headed back to the room.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

This morning we got up and kind of lazed around a little bit. We finished off our cereal (yay!) and read more of our new books. Brian stayed up and read a ton of his. I read a lot, but ended up falling asleep. Our activity we wanted to do today was snorkeling at Hanauma Bay. It’s a nature preserve and they limit the number of people/cars at a time. So if you miss the morning wave, you kind of just have to keep driving by to see when they open the parking lot again. We drove by the first time around 10:30 and the lot was full, so we ate lunch at Burger King, then drove back by and it was still full. We stopped by a couple of scenic views and as I was getting in the car from taking a picture at one, I could see the sign changed to open. So I jumped into the car and we hustled over there and made it in! We paid our entrance fee and watched the brief video about the preserve and how not to touch anything, etc., then we walked down to the beach. We rented masks and went down to the water. Brian ended up being the only one who snorkled. I totally chickened out. I am just not an ocean fan! I told him I think I would be better if I was just dropped off somewhere and couldn’t touch the bottom. I don’t like walking on the sand and being pushed around by the waves. It’s just too unstable! I know, I am a wimp and I wish I liked it better, but that’s just me! Brian has learned that is me, too, so he went off and enjoyed snorkeling. He came in and out several times and had a good time. He saw several neat fish he said. I sat on the sand and let the water come over my legs. I enjoyed that.





We hiked back up the hill to the parking lot and headed back to the hotel. Tonight is a farewell dinner out on the lawn overlooking the ocean. Should be good.
Dinner ended up being very good. We were too full for dessert, so we grabbed a plateful and ate it later in our room.
Eliza made us a sign before we left to display in our room.

Today my parents picked up Eliza, Libby and Ellie and took them back to their house. Libby had earned jewelry making with my mom, so they all ended up making bracelets, necklaces and Eliza even made earrings. Later they dropped Ellie off at Brian’s sister’s house—Laura—for a little sleepover with them and to play with Tommy. She was really excited. Then my parents took Eliza and Libby to meet the teacher at their school. I didn’t want them to miss because we were out of town, so we arranged to have my parents take them. It sounds like it went well. They both have nice teachers and got to look around the classrooms and find their desks, etc. I can’t believe it’s time to start school again! I am going to miss them.

Friday, August 7th, 2009

Yesterday, Friday, was our last day. We got up and ready and checked out of the hotel around 11. Our flight didn't leave until 10:30 PM, so we had some time to kill! We went back up to the North Shore (less crowded!) and we ate lunch again at the little bakery.
And we couldn't resist another shaved ice. This time we got strawberry cream (YUM!) and mango.
Then we drove around to see some of the beaches there. In the winter the waves are 30-50 feet high. It's hard to imagine. We decided if we come back, we'll go to the beaches there. So much less crowded! The ones by our hotel were packed. We saw this old car at one of the beaches.



We also stopped at the Dole Plantation and walked around a bit and read a little bit about its history. Here's a cute little pineapple growing.



The plantation was lush with vegetation and flowers.

After driving around as much as we could, we took our rental car back and got to the airport around 5:30. We had a while to wait, but we both read. I ended up finishing my book. I really enjoyed it and can't wait to read the next one in the series. We had some dinner at the food court and waited for our flight. We were on time and flew overnight to arrive about 7 AM AZ time. I really don't like flying overnight. You don't sleep well and it just totally throws me off on my days/hours, etc. Yuck.

Overall we had a fun time. Just enough busy with enough relaxing. I think unless we were going specifically for Pearl Harbor or the Cultural Center, we would opt for a less touristy island, but we still had fun and enjoyed our time together.