Young Women's Camp

I had the chance to go to Young Women's camp in July. It was my first time since I was actually a young woman over 12 years ago. Young Women's camp was one of the best experiences for me as a youth. I am the personal progress coordinator in my ward so I was in charge of getting some personal progress done with the girls. I interview them to keep track of their progress and have a monthly activity to help them pass it off. We had camp at Cinnamon Creek over by Paradise, UT near Logan. It was so much fun!! Being a YW leader has been really fulfilling for me. It is fun to share my testimony with them and to go and just have FUN! I made a "Return to Virtue" flag which they all signed. We carried it up on our hike and posted it at the top of the mountain. We hiked to "Rosy's Mine" and walked through it, which was a cool experience. There was a shortage of flashlights and so we had to help eachother see. It made me think about the gospel and how we are there to help eachother through the dark times. I put together a really fun treasure hunt about virtue and I felt like this really sunk in with the girls. They were so hot and at the end they got a cold treat :) I celebrated my birthday the last morning of camp (I hit the big 30 and was feeling kind-of OLD). When I came home from camp, in a way I also felt kind-of young again. I was not afraid to laugh and have fun with the girls and that's what made it so fun.

Puppy love

lucky





Here are a few more photos of us having fun with the puppy. They liked to push him around in the stroller when he was brand new and he would just sit in there. He is VERY patient with them! Erika decorated him with some pretty flowers. Kyle wrapped him up in his very most favorite blankie and had him on the trampoline. I even caught Aaron taking a nap with him at the cabin!!

I Love to See the Temple!

Back in June we had the opportunity to go to the Oquirrh Mountain temple open house and that was a great experience for our family. Aaron and I hooked up with our good friends Andy and Sarah and went with them. We also attended a session with them in the new Draper temple, which is also so amazing! The temple was so crowded that night that it was hard to get everyone in! I just love this work and the way it draws people in who are trying to find peace in their lives. Aaron and I had the opportunity of going to the Draper temple dedication (actually in the temple) while our kids stayed with Oma and Opa (which was so wonderful of them!) It was really neat. The temple is such an amazing place and there is an undeniable spirit there. I would have never imagined how many temples would be coming up now. As a youth, I had the chance to attend ONE temple open house- the Bountiful temple. My children have already had the opportunity to go through 3 of them! I expect there will be more. In the past two years, our family has had the chance to go to the Rexburg temple, Twin Falls temple, and now the Oquirrh Mtn temple open house. What a great opportunity for my children to walk through those hallowed walls and to feel something special there. I know Erika felt a special spirit as we walked through this one and it was really neat. We talked about the altar and about how couples and families can be sealed there. She said, "Yeah, and I'm definitely getting married there!" I am so glad that my children have a love for the temple. Aaron and I have also had the opportunity to team teach the temple-prep class in our ward together. I'm thankful for the motivation I have had through this to learn more about the temple and to explore and share my feelings about it. I want the temple to be a focus for our family.

Lucky

Well, the big day has arrived, a day I have been waiting for for a long time!!   I finally got a dog!   When we first got married, we had the discussion about pets and had differing views but came to one consensus, and that was that someday I would get my dog.  I grew up with a lot of pets- horses, a cow, sheep, dogs, chickens and ducks, and I raised mice, hamsters, gerbils, and rats.  I also bred guinea pigs and sold them to pet stores.   (Not all at the same time, of course.)  So, I had my years as a youth when I was a pet lover.   Times have changed and I don't ever intend to be that extreme, but I still really wanted at least a dog.  I had kind of planned on getting a grown dog because it would probably be a lot easier to train, but the kids really wanted to get a puppy so that's what we decided to do.  The decision on a breed was also a hard one because Aaron was set that it would stay outside but it had to be small so the kids wouldn't be overwhelmed by it and could love and play with it.   We finally decided on a cavalier king charles spaniel, kind of like a mini cocker spaniel.  They are really mellow, don't bark a lot, and great with kids.  I found the one I wanted this last Saturday and we went and picked him up.  His name is Lucky- it was an easy name to decide and we all agreed on it.  Erika said, "He should be lucky because he is such a lucky puppy to have us as his family."  And, he is right.  I think he will have a good home here.  Since he arrived, the kids have been wanting to hold him non-stop!   The poor little thing has hardly had time to eat, nap, or pee, and this has been a challenge in training too so every once in awhile I have to tell the kids he needs a break.    He is a pretty easy-going and mellow dog, an ohh so cute!!   It has been fun to watch the kids get so excited about him!   We love our new puppy and are so excited to have him in our family!

More Disneyland pictures...

DISNEYLAND

June 5-13,  2009-  We went to California on a 10-day trip which included 4 1/2 days at Disneyland, one in Sea World, two at the Ocean, and two of straight driving.    It was such a blast!!!  We traveled with my parents and also my sister and her husband and two kids.  My cousing Megan also came along and our friend and relative Julia visiting from Germany joined us.  It was a very memorable time for us,  one I will never forget.   I will always remember that first morning heading into the park.  The kids were sooo excited!!   Erika's favorite event was meeting the real Sleeping Beauty (Aurora) and Kyle's was, of course, getting to see Lightning McQueen!   He even got to see him driving down the street in the Pixar Play Parade!   It was like a dream come true!   Every day at the Park, we played hard and maximized our time there.  At night, we were all so beat that we just fell right to sleep the minute we hit the pillow.  It was hard to wake the kids up in the mornings to get going, until they realized exactly where we were and the exciting day ahead of them.  My favorite rides were Pirates of the Caribbean and Star Tours.   

  We also enjoyed visiting Aaron's brother Thayne and his wife Raquel and adorable daughter Kaidynce in Torrace, near LA.  We had such a good time at the Ocean!  It was the first time ever seeing the ocean for most of us and it was so beautiful!  We also really enjoyed our trip to Sea World.  The kids were so excited to see Shamu!   It was incredible!  We are so grateful for their generosity in letting us stay with them for a few nights.  It was a wonderful time and I am so thankful for the opportunity we had to go.  Hopefully we'll go again someday when the kids are older.   Until then, we will remember our time in California and look forward to new adventures.  

Heidi's Second Birthday!

Heidi's birthday-  Heidi turned two on May 25th, Memorial Day.   I can't believe she's already two!!  She is such a sweetheart- we love having her in our family.  We had a fun day.  I took the kids to the park with the bike trailer and they had a lot of fun playing.  We frosted cupcakes and opened presents.  Heidi didn't quite understand what all the excitement was about, but she knew that she was special and often clapped her hands in delight.  We love our Heidi lou-hoo!