Annie in The Lion King

This past Friday and Saturday, Annie performed in The Lion King at our local community center.
She did absolutely amazing and I was truly emotional a couple of times (during her solo singing
parts) because I was just so proud of her and so overcome with the privilege of being her mom.
So grateful for this girl and who she is and the choices she makes. She is amazing in every way!

Sure love you Annes! And love watching you up there on stage.

And one more, because they are the cutest

So grateful to be a mother

As deeply as I know anything, I know I was put on this earth to be a mother. I know it.
Even with all of my mess ups and weaknesses and falling short, it is what I am supposed
to do with this life. I am humbled to the core with this miraculous blessing. And so
grateful for an incredible husband who makes it possible. These six have my heart.
I'm completely changed because of who they are and the privilege of being their mom.

Spring soccer

April phone pics

Early in the month of April, Jacob had to leave extra early one morning for a business trip.
Later, as the rest of us gathered together for family prayer, I prayed that "dad would be safe
in Little Rock." Not long after, I heard Nate and Grace arguing, with Nate insisting that
daddy was on an airplane and going on a trip. Grace was adamant he wasn't and finally
out of frustration yelled, "Daddy is not on an airplane, he's is just on a little walk!"

Sometimes it is important to take a trip down to the rec room now and again,
to observe how safely and calmly your children are playing with each other.

My favorite part of spring break? Even better than camping? The first three days when
I went through every drawer, cupboard, closet and room of the house and purged
like a crazy person. And finally replaced my old storage containers. The amount
of happy I felt about all of this is likely not normal. And I didn't care one bit.

And I may or may not have received a little (or a whole lot) of teasing from one or four
of the people who live with me when they saw this storage container.

Listen people, I don't care if I only bought this container to make the stacks even.

Do you expect it to go without a label, and not match the rest of them? I didn't think so.

The first thing I did after being called as the new Primary president in our ward was to
organize the closet for our ward. Somehow it calmed my heart. For about 16 seconds.

Spring is gorgeous. I'm a fan.

And the day I put this on Instagram, the caption read:

Just decorating PVC ninja sticks and talking about shooting stars on this windy afternoon. You know, the usual.

Just checking

Do you know what I find pretty fantastic about two-year-olds?
Every single day they feel the need to make sure they are still not the boss.

Sigh. Good thing she is adorable.

My backyard view

This world we get to live in is just really, really beautiful.

Junior class election

I'm really proud of this guy and how often he chooses to go outside of his comfort zone.
And so grateful for the many friends and schoolmates who voted for him and moved
him into the finals of the junior class elections. No matter the outcome, these are
good experiences and I love seeing my kids do things that take extra bravery.

Love this boy of ours.

Marathon Monday

I don't have words to express what my heart feels when I wake up each Marathon Monday in April.
To me, it represents our five years in Boston and what that wonderful city and those amazing people
are all about. In addition, just days before we moved from there, we experienced the marathon
bombings very closely and intimately. I cry every time I read what I wrote that night.

God is good. Always.

Matt's 12th birthday party

With our Matt turning twelve just a few weeks ago, it was his year for a friend birthday party.
But when I asked him what he wanted to do with his friends, he thought for a while and
said that while he really liked being with his friends, he would rather do something like
Annie did for her 12th birthday party. And that he would love to spend the day with
his dad, hiking and watching a movie and having fun. So that is exactly what they did.

 They grabbed some lunch on the way to their hike and they spent several hours
on Antelope Island State Park. Apparently the views were incredible and with
these two and their love of hiking, it was just a fabulous day away.

 

 

 

And then they came home and spent a few hours watching a movie Matt wanted to see.
(Which actually wasn't blue, contrary to the strangeness of the photo.)

I'm glad Matt was confident enough in himself to know what he wanted and to ask for it.
He seemed so happy about his decision and I don't think Jacob was disappointed with it either.

A good choice, a good day, a really incredible boy.

A heartbreaking tribute

Today I had the privilege of going with Annie to attend a tribute for the head custodian
of their junior high who was killed in an accident last week. Standing along the
sides of the road, as family and friends escorted this good man's earthly body to the
cemetery, was sweet and beautiful and touching and absolutely heartbreaking.

I know our Heavenly Father has a plan for each of His children and that our Savior will make
all things right in the end. I know it. But sometimes, even with this beautiful knowledge,
you can feel sadness to your core. Because today six children buried their dad and
a wife buried her husband. And everything about that feels so very devastating.

An interview by Forbes

I'm kind of dying that Jacob was just interviewed by Forbes and that I
was able to watch the interview live. I'm so proud of the incredible job he did!
I'm so grateful for his amazing heart and what drives him. His goodness blows me away.

Here is the link to the whole article if you are interested.
Oh my, this guy I married is something else.

Rank advancement...times three

This handsome guy received three rank advancements tonight.
He is just plain awesome. And not just because of his hard work in scouting.

Prom night

 On his way out the door. This boy is a whole lot of goodness and handsomeness.

And our darling Campbell and his beautiful date.