Scared

I think tomorrow I will just stay in bed and hide under the covers.

My kids, more specifically Joyanne and Noah, are planning lots of tricks and tom-foolery for tomorrow's big day.

 

I'm glad my kids have a great sense of humor.

It should be exciting!

Serving the Elderly

We were able to share a Sacrament Meeting at an Assisted Living Home.

Daddy and Joyanne gave a talk on prayer and Noah shared his testimony.

Hiram and Jaden said the prayers.

Joyanne played the opening hymn, "Sweet Hour of Prayer."

I played the Sacrament Hymn, "I Stand All Amazed".

Daddy played the musical number while all the boys sang from the Children's Songbook, "Pray in Faith".

Daddy also played the closing song, "Did You Think to Pray?"

It was a great experience.

Joyanne loved her first day going to Young Womens and was spoiled with a whole tray of cupcakes and a bunch of candy bars.

 

After playing a new game "Draw Something,"which Joyanne received from her birthday party, the kids went to bed.

I talked for 2 hours with family and Daddy talked nearly an hour with a close neighbor, friend.

Life is good!

HAPPY DAYS!!!

Birthday Party!

Joyanne had her birthday party with her friends today.

 

 They loved bouncing on the bounce house and wanted to eat more and more cupcakes and ice cream.

 

The flour game is always a favorite for our parties.

It's fun to watch the kids dig their faces in the flour to get the dime. 

 

The General Women's Conference  was nice to attend with Joyanne.

Glad we can share in religious experiences together.

Science Fair

Joyanne took 3rd place in the Physical Sciences of the Science Fair.

She worked so hard on her project.

She took 6 different colors of construction paper and put little strips on the window to see which color fades faster in sunlight.

She related this to furniture to show which color furniture will fade faster in sunlight.

What color do you think will fade faster?

Red, Yellow, Orange, Black, Blue or Green.

Her hypothesis was correct. 

Joyanne was pleased and surprised with winning 3rd place.

Her friend, Brylin, took 2nd place in the biological sciences. 

Joyanne came up with the project all on her own after searching through about 3 science books.

She prepared it all on her own without any help from Mom or Dad.

I was impressed with her dedication and perserverance to study it out and finish it through.

Way to go, Joyanne!

Ever Learning

I learned a valuable lesson today.

No matter how hard I try to do the right things and say the right things, someone will always be around to tell me I'm not good enough.

I am thankful to a wonderful husband who tells me he loves me.

His love is what I deeply treasure.

 

I also learned and still need to better learn to just be quiet and listen when someone wants to vent.

Being understanding is key!

I made a mistake in conversing with someone close to me and didn't handle it as well as I could have.

 

I'm grateful I get the opportunity to learn from my mistakes.

I know I am not perfect, but I will keep trying to be loving and forgiving.

What Really Matters

I have spent some time, lately, pondering on how I spend my time.

What really matters?

 

"Me-time" has become a priority in the many things I do.

I have spent a half hour a day on music practice, an hour or so of exercise on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 20 minutes of daily reading time, Facebook time, Happify time, blogging time and e-mailing as well.

It averages out to about 3 hours of "Me-time" every day!

 

I miss the days of sitting with my kids and just enjoying some good books with them.

I miss teaching my little ones how to do puzzles or play simple games, like "Memory" and "Go Fish".

I miss the simple walks we would take outdoors to get fresh air.

I miss jumping on the trampoline with my kids and playing with the dog.

 

I got so wrapped up in needing "Me-time" that I forgot about how fun it is to do things with my family.

My computer time, reading time, and even exercise became my getaway from it all.

I claimed it as my "me-time".

My excuse being that I just need a break.

I mean, I do have 6 kids, right?

I deserve this, right?

But after all these years of Facebook, entertaining books and exercising at the gym, I realize that it all really can be a time-waster.

 

My kids need me!

They are growing up so fast, and I know if I don't enjoy time with them now, I will have missed out!

 

I still plan to take breaks and do things for myself, but I plan to put more of my "me-time" into family time.

I love them and want to be with them for eternity!

I can't expect it to just happen; I have to make it happen; and with God's help I can have a forever family.



Happy Birthday, Joyanne!

Happy 12th Birthday, Joyanne!

She has been so excited for this day!

Her brothers spoiled her with lots of Dollar Store presents.

It took Joyanne a while to find all her hidden presents. 

Receiving a Google Nexus didn't come as a complete surprise to her, but she loves having it. 

For school, their having a Spirit Week of sorts and today was "Fake Injury" day.

Joyanne did great at creating her own fake injuries.

We were all excited to eat the Strawberry Cheesecake Daddy made for Joyanne. 

Grant was pretty upset when he wasn't the one to blow out the candles. 

Joyanne ended the day by attending her first Young Women's meeting.

She was excited to receive her temple recommend and is looking forward to going this Friday.

We love our little "Joy" and how kind and good she is!



Explorers

We went and found a cave on the side of a mountain.

It wasn't very deep, but fun to explore and hike a little bit. 

We have fun exploring all the amazing places here in the Vernal area as a family.

Our Young Woman

James came up with a fun game that has entertained the kids for hours today.

They threw all the shoes off the shoe rack.

Then they take little toy cars and drop them down the wire rack.

Their goal is to get the car to drop all the way to the bottom.

They help each other if their car gets stuck in between.

They are having so much fun with such a simple toy.

 

Joyanne has been anxious to cook more and more.

We were only too happy to let her get in some practice.

Yesterday she made Macaroni and Cheese for lunch.

This morning she made blueberry muffins.

And tonight she is cooking a Spaghetti Pasta. 

Joyanne met with the bishop and received her temple recommend.

I can't believe my little girl is going to be a Young Woman on Tuesday.

She is a beautiful young woman and I am excited for this wonderful advancement for her.

Choir Concert

I have been busy the last 3 nights with choir rehearsals and our performance.

The Uintah Basin Orchestra and Chorus performed under Dr. Mike Bankhead from Utah State University.

I have sung in all kinds of church choirs growing up.

Every school choir there was, I was in it.

I love to sing, especially to praise the Lord.

And that is what we did tonight.

There was such excitement and anticipation in this concert. 

My only regret was that my family was not there.

Jade had to work, and at first, I worried about taking such little kids, like crazy wild 2-year-old Grant, to such a professional concert.

Next time, I will make a more "concerted" effort to have them there.

I was sad after the performance to not have anyone to see.

But I did make some wonderful friends this time around.

Thanks McKenna, Wendy, Rachel and Tammy!

Singing and music are a passion of mine and I hope wherever I go in life, that I will always have music with me.

Time Given



Wow!  I could breathe a little today.

I reprioritized a bit and now I can enjoy life and my kids a little bit more.

James loves spending time with me, and one of the way we spend time together is working on school workbooks.

James is working out of a 1st Grade workbook and doing well.

He is a smart little 5-year-old boy, who is excited to start Kindergarten next year.

 

James and Grant love to ride their bikes outside together.

I loved being able to just sit outside and play with them for a few minutes. 

 

I am so grateful to my family for letting me be apart of the Uintah Basin Orchestra and Chorus.

It is such a privilege to be with these people who have such talent.

I have 3-hour rehearsals tonight, tomorrow and all day Saturday, so my family gets to suffer (or maybe PARTY) without me.

They missed me tonight and it's nice to be appreciated and loved.

So a BIG thank you to my Prince Charming and my 6 little munchkins.

I love you all dearly!

I'm in Love!

Today felt like a holiday for me.

I have the most wonderful, amazing, compassionate husband.

 

He loves are kids so much.

He reads with them, plays with them, and helps them with their homework. 

Along with doing dishes and helping clean up, he made me an omelet for lunch, watched a Sherlock Holmes show together, and he made a simply marvelous dinner of Steak and spaghetti squash.

 

I felt so absolutely loved today by my Prince Charming and fell in love all over again. :)

 

Joyanne and I were able to go to a Relief Society activity, while Daddy stayed home with the boys.

Joyanne was a great help in the nursery. 

Today was a good day and I loved it!

All Things to All People

If I could have a wish granted to me today, it would be that I could be and do all things to all people.

I feel a little stretched thin, with my loads of laundry piling up, my kitchen counter completely covered with so many objects, and a scatter-brained mind that keeps forgetting important things.

Time to take a step back and reprioritize.

And maybe, just maybe, I need to "Let it Go!"

 

Tonight we watched "Frozen" as a family.

I loved the movie and the many good messages behind it.

Joyanne was thrilled to finally have us all watch it together.

She LOVES the movie and claims it as their favorite now.

One of THOSE days!

It was one of those days where I wish I didn't have to teach my own boys piano.

Tears for them and extreme patience on my part.

I controlled my own reactions, but it took all my will power not to cry or get upset as well.

 

Thanks to this man for helping me out.

He made dinner tonight and cleaned it up.

Whew! I needed a break, for sure.

 

I've been going to the gym since September and I need a new exercise routine.

I've been doing running, sit-ups, push-ups, pull-up machine, and curls.

When I switch my workout, add more weights on, or if I push too hard, I get migraines.

Not sure what to do.

Any suggestions out there?



A Much Needed Day of Rest

I am so grateful that Heavenly Father gave us a day of rest.

I really needed it this week.

I was actually able to sit down and play the piano a little.

 

I took a wonderful Sunday walk that refreshed my spirits.

I love walking outside and enjoying a gentle breeze, hearing the birds twittering all around with an occasional dog bark and the hum of cars nearby.

 

Noah made Fetticini for dinner with help from Dad.

We had a Family Home Evening Lesson on making and having good friends.

 

James was a great helper afterwards and volunteered to put away the dishes.

I am so thankful for my kids who are good helpers.

Now on to a new, busy week.



Water Balloon SurPRIZE!

At the Rec Center, the kids were able to participate in some free St. Patti's activities.

Face painting, tug-o-war, potato sack race, and catch a leprechaun were just some of the fun-filled activities.

James guessed how many jelly beans were in the jar, 899.

Joyanne won 2 prizes and used them tonight.

She received a water balloon container that easily fills up water balloons.

When Daddy came home from work, Joyanne threw a water balloon right at him.

Too bad it bounced off him and landed on the grass.

He promptly picked it up and popped it right over her head.

I soaked Daddy on the back.

We had fun!

After dinner we had a water balloon fight, but none of us got very wet.

It is fun being together as a family!

Park Afternoon

We had a fun time at the park and the weather was just gorgeous and beautiful.

 

 

Here's to an exciting weekend!