Thursday, December 18, 2008

What Color Crayon is Barry?

I thought it would be fun to see how Barry and I compared so I had Barry do the crayon quiz. Although he thought it was a little silly he answered the questions and this is the result.



You Are a Purple Crayon



Your world is colored in dreamy, divine, and classy colors.

You hold yourself to a sky high standard, and you are always graceful.

People envy, idolize, and copy you without realizing it. You are an icon for those who know you.

And while it is hard to be a perfectionist, rest assured it's paying off!



Your color wheel opposite is yellow. While yellow people may be wise, they lack the manners and class needed to impress you.



What do you think? Is Barry purple or should he try again. Although, in my opinion, it doesn't describe him perfectly it does do a pretty good job.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Thankfulness M, N, O.....


"The Ocean"

"Moms and Mom-in-laws"
"Noise"


M - Moms and Mom-in-laws
I have been blessed with the best mother in the world, some of you may beg to differ but really it is true. My Mom is one of my best friends in the whole world. I have missed her so much since she and my dad have been on their mission. I am incredibly proud of both of them for what they are doing and yet I still miss having her close. She is a great grandma and is a great example to all the grand kids. My Mom had always been there to support me and love me through my decisions whether or not I made the right one. I can remember even as a teenager looking forward to telling her how my day had gone. I hope to someday be half as smart as she is and I pray that my children will feel the same about me as I do about her. I love her so very much! Thanks Mom for everything!
I have also been blessed with a wonderful Mother-in-law. There are snide remarks, jokes, and even entire TV shows based on having a bad mother-in-law but I have the exact opposite situation. Sherry has gone out of her way to show support for Barry and I and is always willing to help us with the kids. She is a wonderful Mother to my husband and a fabulous grandma to our kids. We love living in the same town and ward as them, it's wonderful to have grandparents close by. Thanks Sherry, I love you!

N -
Noise and Naps
I am sure that some of you are thinking that noise is a very strange thing to be grateful for and I'll be honest, I am not always grateful for it. If you have ever spent much time at our house, especially when we have all 9 of or kids there, you will know that we have a fairly noisy household. Occasionally when we are all around the dinner table and there are 4 or 5 fairly loud conversations all happening at the same time and food is being passed and moved around I get a little overwhelmed at the intensity of your little family. On the other hand, not so long ago I imagined that I would never be happy again, but my life is truly amazing. Many times over the past few years I have stopped and taken stock of the events in my life and asked myself, "How can this be my life?" It's funny but I do it even more often now only the question is much more positive, "How can this be my life?" I am so blessed. I have a firm testimony of the Gospel, I have a wonderful husband who not only loves me but respects me and has earned my trust, I have been blessed with not 2 or 4 or even 6 wonderful, noisy, and amazing children but 9 of them. I have been blessed with a great education and now a job that I truly enjoy. True there is much noise in my life but that noise serves to remind me how wonderfully blessed my life has become.
I have also come to enjoy a nap. Occasionally Barry and I are able to sneak a nap in. I love it. Today during lunch at the office I was able to close my eyes just for a few moments and get a quick 10 minute nap. So refreshing. Sometimes when my alarm goes off I hit snooze which gives me 8 short minutes to grab a quick nap. My favorite of course are those with my husband but I'll take what I can get.

O -
Oxygen and the Ocean
Ok I'll admit it some letter are harder to find words for then others. But lets face it without Oxygen we would all be, well for lack of a better word, dead. So each day I will be thankful for the air I breath that contains enough oxygen to feel my lungs and then carry it on my red blood cells to each and every portions of my body! And I do love the ocean, when we were in California for Christmas last year we spent part of Christmas day on the beach. It was a little chilly but fun nonetheless. I am sure the kids had a great time even though there was a little whining about how cold it was.

Sunday, December 14, 2008

Elementary School Christmas Program

Things have been busy lately as we all try to prepare for this Holiday season, a big part of that was the Christmas program at the Elementary school. For those of you who don't know Barry's mom Sherri is the PE teacher at the Elementary school here in town and is in charge of the Christmas program each year. She always does and amazing job and once again she out did herself this year. Rachel and Ammon were both in it. I couldn't see Rachel very good most of the time and the dance that I filmed on the camera is somehow lost on the computer but as soon as I find it I will post some more pictures. Barry's sister Brooke, her husband Dan, and their baby Addy played the parts of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus and did a great job. Here are a few pics from that event.


Copying Chantelle

I have decided that these little quizzes to find out more about yourself are fairly intersting. Chantelle is a green crayon. You'll have to look at her blog to decide if you think that is accurate for her or not. Here is the results I recieved.




You Are a Blue Crayon



Your world is colored in calm, understated, deep colors.

You are a loyal person, and the truest friend anyone could hope to find.

On the inside, you tend to be emotional and even a bit moody.

However, you know that people depend on you. So you put on a strong front.



Your color wheel opposite is orange. Orange people may be opinionated, but you feel they lack the depth to truly understand what they're saying.



Check it out and see what color you are!

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Just copying Brooke!

Since Brooke is Mulan I decided I just had to know who I would be. I suppose with our 9 kids Snow White and all those dwarfs makes sense!


You Are Snow White!
Image hosted by Photobucket.com

Pure and trusting. You are a gentle soul who can get along with just about anyone. Everyone you meet instantly falls in love with you. How can they resist? You have a pure, lovable nature that' s center.
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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving Letters

I started this post a while ago and just got back to add the pictures. For some reason it is not letting me move them around, so you'll have to guess which one goes to which letter. I didn't even come close to finishing the alphabet during November but decided that I would keep going until I got to the end even if it takes me a few months, after all I should be thankful all year and not just during November right??? Anyway here it is -




J
Justin and Jeans
With the letter J comes our son Justin. Justin recently turned 13 and it seems he is rather pleased with being a teenager. He is obviously a good-looking kid and a darn fine wrestler too. He has curls that most girls would pay top dollar for, a sweet smile, and a good personality to boot. Justin is fun to be around and can always make me laugh, he reminds me of his father! I am truly grateful that he has become my son. I am also glad to live in a day when it is acceptable for a woman to where something besides a dress. Now don't get me wrong I enjoy wearing a dress from time to time and it is mighty nice to get all dolled up now and again and feel like a lady, but by far and wide I love wearing a good old pair of jeans. Of course I am quite content to let Barry wear the pants in the family!


K -
Kerri and Kittens
Our littlest child is my sweet little Kerri. I may be slightly biased but I happen to think she is pretty darn cute. Kerri is 4 1/2 years old and has recently started preschool. Kerri is quick with a smile and always has a hug, she loves her brothers and sisters and always tells me she misses me when I have been gone for an hour or so. I am glad that I am her mother. These days we are grateful for kittens. It only took us a year or so to convince Barry that the kids needed a pet. We got our little Missy during spud harvest and she has been growing like a weed ever since. She is fun to hold and play with, she especially likes to play with the lazer light.

L -
Love, Life, and Laughter
What would life be without love and laughter and of course with out life we wouldn't even be here so I am letter L gets at least three things. I have learned that sometimes in life we have to laugh or cry and laughing often feels better. It sounds silly but I love, love. I love to be loved and I love showing love for others. It is truly wonderful to wake up in the night and know that the person you love is lying right there beside you. It still amazes me that this man loves me as much as I love him. Life is Good!

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Our weekend in Utah

Cassidy and I had a great time this weekend. It started out on Friday with us traveling to Idaho Falls and picking up my very good friend April and then we continued on to Utah. April and I have been friends for a long time and my children all love her dearly. She is getting married in Atlanta, Georgia over thanksgiving weekend but received her endowments this Saturday. I was privileged to be her escort and totally enjoyed the experience. It was my first time at the SLC temple and experiencing a live session and I found it awesome. I am not sure I have ever met anybody as excited to go to the temple and partake of the blessings there as much as April. She has waited a long time for this day, I think she has longed for it ever since her
baptism. I am not sure if Cory knows how blessed he is to be getting April for a wife. She truly is a wonderful person. Along with the photos from this I am going to post a few from April's bridal shower just because the are funny.









Some of you may be wondering why I dragged Cassidy along for this trip but it was twofold in purpose. Cassidy also had an appointment with Dr. Rebekah Meyers at Primary Children's Hospital on Monday. Cassidy was born with a fairly common birth defect. It is called Pectus Excavatum (not sure on the spelling) this simply means that she has a sunken chest or that her sternum sinks instead of being straight. Along with this she as a more rare from of the same defect called Pectus Karunatum (really not sure on the spelling). When children to get this defect it usually affects boys and it is rare for a girl to have it, even more rare for a girl to the combination of the problem that she has. The good news is that for the most part it is simply cosmetic and can be covered if you are careful about the collars on the shirts you buy. This was our third visit with Dr. Meyers and this time she confirmed that Cass will indeed require surgery to repair the defect. Remember how I said usually it is simply cosmetic? Well the combination that Cassidy has can cause pressure on the heart and also extreme pain with exertion and exercise. Dr. Meyers said that the best time to do this surgery is about the time a child hits the growth spurt at the beginning of puberty. She wants to see Cassidy again when she is 13 and will then set the surgery date. This is a fairly large surgery, basically open heart surgery without touching the heart. It involves separating the cartilage from the sternum, clipping a small piece off along each rib, pushing the sternum either up or down as needed, and then reconnecting each rib (or at least the cartilage) with wire. Yeah, it is a big deal! They said she would spend at least a week in at Primary's in recovery. We took a few pics of Cass in the doctors office it was a really cute room but does little to show what a great hospital primary's really is. If she has to have this surgery I am glad that it will be a such a wonderful place. I am so glad we have two years before we have to worry about it too much. All in all it was a great weekend. We had a great time at Brian and Romina's as usual. They are always so kind to let us stay with them. What a great little family they are.

Thankful...

G -
Granparents and Gifts - First of all I am very thankful for Grandparents, my children are so very blessed to have amazing grandparents. Each and everyone is a great example of how to live not only the gospel but good lives in general. Our children always have someone to turn to. Each of them is still married to the person they married in the Temple years ago, in this world that is quite and accomplishment. Our family is shown love and support by each set of grandparents in their own way. At this time in my own life I am a grandparent orphan and I am glad that my children still have 3 sets of grandparents plus some great-grandparents as well. This picture from Ammon's baptism is the only one I could find with all three sets of grandparents in it. The next thing I am grateful for is gifts and I am not putting a plug in for Christmas. I am thinking more on the spiritual side. My spouse, children, and family of course are incredible gifts that my Father in Heaven has given to me, but I am also blessed in so many other ways. The gift of knowledge in school, the gift of friends, the gift of the gospel, I could go on and on but you see where I am going. Sometimes in my life I forget to look at all the gifts I have been given and focus instead on what I don't have, I am glad for this reminder because I am truly, truly blessed.
H -
Hayden and Husbands
Ok so my son Hayden is a great kid. He just turned 10 years old so he gets to celebrate in double digits from now on. I have enjoyed getting to know Hayden over the past few years and have fallen in love with him. He has a sweet personality and always has a hug if you simply ask for one. If you work beside him you he will work all day long. Hayden almost always has a smile on his face and is generally happy. I am grateful for his presence in my life. I have already mentioned Barry but I can't help but pass up the letter H without thinking of my husband. This weekend for example I spent the weekend with Cassidy in SLC and Barry stayed home with 6 children under the age of 10. He had two giant homework assignments, a wrestling match, took care of the nursery, and didn't even complain about the kids. He even took them swimming at Green Canyon all by himself. How great is he?! I know it is a blessing to have him in my life. I don't pretend hes perfect but he comes fairly close in so many ways. Love you!!!
I -
In-laws and immunizations-
There are all kinds of jokes and even TV shows dedicated to making fun of in-laws. I have absouletly nothing to complain about, I am blessed with wonderful in-laws. Bryce and Sherry haved showed so much love and support for Barry and I and or decision to marry and join our families right from the beginning. They have accepted my children as their grandchildren and treat me as a daughter. I can't even begin to list the many things they have done for us to help us in the last year. With my own parents gone on a mission I am not sure what I would do without the Holmans in my life. Thanks for everything you guys. I am also grateful for the blessing of immunizations. I never had to live my life without this great blessing so I am sure I don't truly appreciate it. It is one of those things like running water, electricity, cars, the phone, things that I don't usually think about but that I am glad to have in my life.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

More to be thankful for....

My thankful list continues.....
D -
Dads and Dates - I have personally been blessed with one of hte most wonderful Dads in the world. He has always been a great example to each of us kids and continues to be that way for his grandkids. I have always been able to count on him when I needed a priesthood blessing and could always trust his opinion. I am also grateful to Barry's Dad and the love and support that is constantly shown to us. Our house looks beautiful thanks to Bryce we are truly blessed. Another Dad that I am thankful for is Barry, he is a wonderful father to each of our 9 children. When we were dating this was something I noticed away, the first time we went out in fact and it is just one of the many things I love about him. The next D thing I am thankful for is dates. I loved dating Barry before we were married and I still love going out with him. We don't get out on our own too often due to our crazy life with our 9 crazy children but when we do it always helps us renew our love for each other. I love all these great men in my life.
E -
The Ensign and Events - When I was a little girl I could never understand why my parents wanted to read the Ensign. It just seemed like a bunch of boring church stuff. Now that I to am a grown-up I have discovered my own love for this wonderful magazine. The articles are truly inspiring and I especially love the conference issues. I also love and am thankful for Events both big and small. This weekend we got to attend the blessing of Brooke and Dan's sweet baby Addy and it was fun to get together with family members. We have also had the blessing of having my parents home from their mission for a few days and have enjoyed having them around. I enjoy going to school events for the kids and the primary program at church. Graduation a few weeks ago was of course a big event in my life. All of these events remind me how blessed I am to be wife, mother, sister, daughter, Aunt, cousin, neice...
F -
Family, Friends, and Faith - I had a hard time narrowing this one down so I just went with three! I have a wonderful family. This includes the one I was born into, the one I am raising, my married into family, and even the family I am no longer a part of. I have always been taught that family is the fundamental unit of society and I hold this as a precious truth. Without my family I would not be the person I am today, who knows what kind of person I would be without them. I have also been blessed with wonderful friends. A few of which came into my life at very pivotal moments in my life. I have a the priviledge of attending the temple with one of those friends this weekend and consider that a great honor. I am truly thankful for friends who push me in the right direction and encourage me to reach for things I don't feel capable of. Last but not least is faith, the hope for things not seen. I have a great faith in my Father in Heaven, I know that with His help, I can accomplish anything. This has been proven to me time and again in the last few years especially. Even when things don't seem to be going the way we want them to, we can have faith that the Lord is watching over us and has a plan, we just have to wait sometimes to see what it is.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Lots to be Thankful for...

So sometimes when I am checking out a fellow bloggers blog I am somewhat nosy and I check out the people they have linked also, in doing that this week I have noticed several people blogging about being thankful. Since this is the month in which we celebrate our thanks I thought I would copy those other bloggers and do this myself. The pattern has been to mention something for each letter of the alphabet so I will do the same. I will do this in a series of blogs throughout the month. Here goes -

A - I am thankful for Ammon (my son) and Angels - First Ammon, he is nine years old and I can hardly believe how grown up he is getting. It seems like just yesterday he was a tiny little bundle of sweetness and now he is almost too big for me to lift. I love him very much and am quite honored to be his mother. He was named after one of my favorite Book of Mormon heros and I hope he becomes as a great a man as this hero of mine. Next Angels, this has been mentioned in a couple of other posts, but I too have felt the precence of angels throughout my life and particularly in some difficult moments. I know we are watched over and cared for by those on the other side of the veil and for this I am grateful.


B - I am thankful for Barry and Books - I am thankful for my wonderful sweet husband Barry. There are so many things I could say about this amazing man. So many of the songs on our blog remind me of him. Everyday and The Broken Road both by Rascal Flatts are two of them. Listen to the words to these songs if you get a chance they are perfect for how I feel about him. He makes my life a little better each and every day, my favorite place to be is in his arms. I don't know what I would do without him, Thanks for everything my love! I also have a great love of reading. I love lots of different types of books. Of course The Book of Mormon is right up there, this year I am also trying to read the Bible for the first time by myself. I have to admit I love the sappy romance stuff and some mystery. I love Harry Potter, and more recently the Twilight series. I loved the Work and the Glory and have read all of The Great and Terrible series except the last one. I can read for hours and not get tired of it, but I must admit I am not sad to be done with textbooks!


C - I am thankful for Cassidy and Children - Cassidy of course is my first born and our oldest daughter. I have always wanted to be a mother and Cassidy was the initial fulfillment of those dreams. She is almost 11 years old and can't wait to be a teenager. I hope to be her best friend and confidant. Shis is beautiful and I am proud to be her mom. I also have a great love for all children. I love my calling in the nursery and enjoy working with the children who come into the doctors office. I have always wanted a big family with lots of children and I have been blessed to have that dream come true. I love each and every one of the children in our family and feel it a priviledge and a pleasure to be considered thier mom. I love you guys!

Friday, November 7, 2008

I've Been Tagged!

The rules of being tagged -

1. Link the Person who Tagged you.

2. Mention rules on your blog.

3. Tell about 6 quirks of yours.

4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers to do the same.

5. Leave a comment to let them know.

So I've been tagged by my sister-in-law Brooke to tell about 6 of my quirks. I've been thinking about this for a couple of days now and I'm having a hard time coming up with something. I suppose I'll have to enlist a little help from Barry and the kids. Here goes.

Quirk #1 I started noticing this habit during my psych nursing class When I am stressed or concentrating a lot I have a habit of rubbing my index finger in a circular motion on the pad of my thumb, the medical field calls this "pill rolling" and it can be a sign of mental illness, yeah that did make me a little nervous. The only thing that makes me feel better is I remember my Grandma Brown doing this when she was old, so maybe it is genetic, wait maybe that doesn't make me feel better!

Quirk #2 This one is Barry's idea; it is slightly embarrasing but it is also true and I suppose it could be considered a quirk. I tend to have a lot of gas! Of course I try not to do it in public but my loving husband gets to experience it more often then he thinks is appropriate for a girl.

Quirk #3 This one won't be shocking for any of you since you are all aware that I talk way too much. I have tried to work on this many times (by attempting to not talk so much) but it often seems that I have diarrhea of the mouth and seems to simply be a part of who I am. I'll probably be the little old lady who no one wants to visit because she talks too long.

Quirk # 4 Some people have the quirk of being squeamish about others feet. I am not at all which seems to be a quirk of sorts. I actually tend to enjoy rubbing feet and they don't gross me out at all. I suppose this works out well for my spouse although he doesn't get to enjoy it as often as I would like him too.

Quirk #5 This quirk I have discovered fairly recently, I really enjoy giving shots. I am always nervous that I will hurt the person and I don't want to do that. But there is some sort of weird thrill that comes with giving shots. Along the same lines I like starting IV's. I only get to do it a couple times a week in my job and I am still really nervous about it but at the same time I get this jump of excitement each time I do it successfully, that little flash of blood in the chamber is just cool!

Quirk #6 I don't know if this can truly be considered a quirk or not but my spouse sure thinks it is. I love to read. I think everyone of us has a tendency to be addicts of some kind or another and this appears to be mine. I can escape into a book for hours. The problem is I tend to finish it in those hours and then it's over and I'm sad that I didn't make it last longer. I really like series books because they last longer. Recently I read the Twilight series and finished all four of them in about 10 days. This was of course while taking care of my husband, children, and house. Truly I think I am addicted to reading, sometimes I have to impose a limit on myself.

Now I have to tag, the slight problem with that is I'm not sure I have 6 different people on my blog! Anyways I tag: Krista, Carmell, Sherri (yes you have to do it yourself), Holly, Romina (it's time to post that blog my friend!), and Chantelle! Have fun girls!

Friday, October 24, 2008

I have a Job!!

So yesterday I happened to run into Mitchell Brady, a fellow nursing student, and he suggested that I turn in a resume to Dr. Hopkin's office here in Rexburg. He said he wasn't sure if they were hiring but he knew they were accepting resumes. I almost didn't take it in because everywhere is accepting resumes but that doesn't mean they are hiring. I took it in though and they asked if I could wait a minute. I did and was interviewed and offered a job right on the spot! I start Monday. Thanks Mitchell!!

Sunday, October 19, 2008

A Good Ol'Southern Pig Pick'in!

So this weekend we celebrated the marriage of my brother Charlie and his new life with his sweet wife Lisa. They were married about a month ago and we all gathered this weekend to show them our support and love. My little brother Jason was in charge of the pig. Keep in mind that my family is from the amazing southern state of North Carolina and when we say we're cook'n a pig we aren't kidding. The Brown's love the fat and skin and all that greasy goodness despite the odd looks of new comers. For dinner we had BBQ'd pig (of course), hush puppies (deep fried corn bread), cole slaw, and pork and beans along with all sorts of sugary sweet things for dessert. We all had a great time visiting and eating and just enjoying each others company.
This is my mom slaving away over a hot dutch oven of oil frying up hush puppies. See that red bowl of mixture? Well each hush puppy is about a tablespoon or so of batter and she made two of those full. There were only about 10 left over! They really are that good.
This is Jason supervising the pig. He built this cooker himself and hauls it all over cooking for people. He is quite awesome at it and has become skilled at southern BBQ sauce. This is different then the regular sauce you can buy at the store. It is mostly vinegar and can be very spicy. The boys all like to drown their pig in it but I prefer just a little. My personal favorite is a well cooked piece of skin with a good layer of crispy fat on the back of it; Good stuff!
Dancing with Barry was one of the best parts of the evening. As you might imagine we don't get out real often for time with just the two of us and this was especially sweet for me. He really is a wonderful husband.
Charlie spent some time twirling Cameron around the dance floor. I think most of the parents spent more time dancing with their children then they did with their spouse but it was still good times just being together. In case you are wondering that is indeed the head of a pig being BBQ'd!

This is Charlie and Lisa dancing the night away in their garage. They are so cute together!
I was trying to dance with my own husband but kept getting interrupted by my jealous little Kerri so I spent a few songs swaying with her so she would consent to letting Barry have "his turn".

This is my dad keeping an eye on all that was going on and of course giving us all a bit of advice. Where would we be without wonderful parents?
I have such a great family! All of us were there this time except Jim and Brenda who live in Arkansas. We missed you guys! We don't get together as much as we should, I guess we are all just busy but it is great when we do take the time to gather as a family and just hang out. Love you guys!



Friday, October 17, 2008

Parenthood

So I have wanted to be a parent for as long as I can remember. I can remember being 5 or 6 years old and wanting to hold the babies at church. I pretended to be a mom and played with dolls long after most girls my age had given them up. I imagined what it would be like to be a mother and hold my very own baby. After spending a year in New York as a nanny to three sweet little boys I was sure I knew what being a mom was all about. Boy was I wrong! Don't get me wrong I love being a mother, it is in fact a great joy in my life (right under being a wife!) The thing is being a parent is much different then I imagined it being. Better in many ways but still different. It seems like each day something happens that in all my imagination I could not have thought of. Little things like my 4 year old telling me she would like another "dump" of cereal. "I already had 2 dumps", she said, "can I have 3?" I am sure you can imagine what I thought she was referring to, luckily I realized before too long that she was simply asking me to pour her some more cereal from the bag. Kids do say the darndest things. My sisters 4 year old asked her the other day if she could go to her friends house for "a couple of laters". These moments are some of the great parts of parenting, in any given ordinary day you get to remember to laugh, which is a great help in life. Another thing I never imagined about parenting is anything much beyond babyhood. My children are growing and changing and certainly have minds of their own and guess what - I can't control what they think or do! Believe me if you are not a parent yet this will come as a surprise several times in your future. Sometimes they act crazy in public, do things that were not learned by example, and even embarrass you. This week Ammon (9 years old) decided at the dentists office that he was not going to cooperate. For whatever reason he discovered in his mind it would not be worth it for him to lie still and open his mouth. He only needed a few cavities fixed to have his teeth cleaned but he absouloutly refused to listen. Because of this he will be going to the surgery center this morning and having his dental work done under general anesthesia. I have several thoughts on this. First I am a nurse so I am aware that anesthesia carries some risks I am also aware that it is quite safe. Second I was embarassed by my sons behavior and wanted to force him to behave. There are third and fourth thoughts but sufficite to say I am not thrilled by the events of today. Hopefully all will go well and he will realize that all in all it would be worth it to just cooperate with the dentist next time. Instead of an hour or so of uncomfortableness at the dentist office he gets: fasting since last night (not his favorite thing), an IV today (even less of a good idea in his mind), several hours at the surgery center, and last but not least he knows I am less then thrilled with his behavior. What does all this mean? Simply that once again I feel at a loss as a parent, what is the best thing for me to do? How are you supposed to react to your children? It's a good thing that you love them! Anyone have any suggestions?

Monday, October 6, 2008

Conference Weekend

Once again we had the amazing experience of meeting with Elder Scott during Bryce's mission reunion. This time was particularly special because we had the opportunity to help celebrate Elder Scott's 80th birthday with him. We have never taken the camera with us but decided we would this time. He is such a great guy. He takes the time to meet with each and every person at the meeting. Even though it is obvious that he is tired from having been in meetings all day and from traveling, he never acts like it. He smiles and greets and visits with all of us. In the Book of Mormon when Christ visits the Americas it talks about him taking the time to visit with each person who is at the temple that day. This is what the great Apostle of Christ reminded me of. I think this is the 5th time that Barry and I have had this opportunity, it has been a tradition for us since we started dating, and I hope we get to go as many times as possible. It truly is a testitmony stregthening experience to be in the presence of this great man. He gave us a little preview of what he would be speaking about in the priesthood session of conference and I can't wait for the Ensign to come out so I can read what he had to say. The things he said to us at this meeting made me want to be a better person, a better wife to my husband, and more worthy of the love that my sweet spouse offers me every day. I know that Elder Scott truly is an special witness of our Savior and that he testifies truthfulness. I love this gospel and all that it offers our families. What an amazing gift it is in all of our lives.
Elder Scott and his wife.


Barry and the boys and I with Elder Scott.
Elder Scott has a special place in his heart for Romina- and it's not just because of the 465 empanadas that she made for this birthday celebration!

Brian, Romina, Elder Scott, Justin, Stetson, Me, Barry.


Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Camping with Dad (Barry's Post)

Memories of School!

New Additions

First of all we'd like to welcome Addyson Lou Sttodard to the family. Congratulations to Brooke and Dan, both sets of grandparents, lots of Aunts and Uncles. and even more cousins! We are all thrilled that you are here, healthy, and you are well loved.




Look how tiny she is! I was very much enjoying being an Aunt!



Cassidy LOVES babies, I think she would have sat like this all day!


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Now we'd like to welcome our own new little addition. This may come as a surprise to some of you but we were finally able (slightly agaisnt his will) to convince Barry to let us have a real pet. Rachel has ask for nothing but a cat for her birthday for the past 3 years. We finally gave in and although her birthday was on the 12th the kitten wasn't old enough to leave it's mom until yesterday. Since we are fairly certain that she is a girl we have chosen the name of Missy but just in case we are wrong she may just turn out to be a Mister! Either way almost everyone in our house is thrilled beyond measure by her arrival.