Memorial Day

Nice picture of the boys taking down the flag on Sunday evening. Ken has them go out and salute the flag, and they play military music on his phone. Josef is wearing my apron that he made me take off, and put on him. They are a pretty crazy group...

Sunday morning Music and the Spoken Word had a Memorial Day program. It was wonderful, the music was beautiful and I loved the message that was given.

Let Us Remember
Delivered By: Lloyd D. Newell
Scattered across the world are burial sites of those who have served well and even given their lives in defense of liberty and country. Whether they are found in a small hometown cemetery or a large military memorial, these graves serve as a reminder of the courage and commitment to duty of those who served in war and now lie in peace.

How can we say thank you to such heroes? How can we express our heartfelt gratitude for the men and women who have given so much in our behalf? Most of them were not seeking adulation, but there is something we can do that they would likely appreciate, a way to honor their memory: we can remember.

To remember is to build on the foundation of freedom they laid, so their loss is not a bitter end, but a beginning of better times. To remember is to read and share their stories, so their memory remains alive and fresh. Remembering means we strive to avoid making the same mistakes that made their sacrifice necessary. To remember is to think of them as they thought of themselves—not as heroes of extraordinary bravery but simply as regular people who recognized their duty and tried hard to do it.

In addition to an occasional flower placed by a headstone or an annual visit to a hallowed grave, we can reflect often on the price of freedom, the courage it takes to maintain it, and the men and women who had that courage and paid that price. Waving flags are beautiful, the call of the lone bugle is tender, and the sharp report of a gun salute is a great honor, but to be held in sweet remembrance is the finest tribute of all.

I hope I always remember, and I hope my boys do too...

Patriotic Boy

It was too hard to get his face, because he moves to quickly! I love his baby legs, and I am afraid they will be too small soon, so then he can wear them on his arms:)

Saying Goodbye to the 30's

I can't believe that it has finally happened. This birthday has been looming out there for a long time, and now it has come! I am glad that my 39th year is over, it is not one I want to repeat. I learned a lot, but I also struggled a lot. I know that struggling is the place that I learn most, but I really do wish I could learn a different way. Along with all of the struggling, I know that there were a lot of blessings too, and I am very grateful for the blessing. I just hope and pray that my 40th year is easier!

Paulie gets to go to Kindergarten

Wilson loves Paulie the polar bear. He got him at Build a Bear a few years ago, and they have been buddies ever since! Today Wilson gets to take Paulie with him to school, he is so excited!

Parvovirus, Fifth Disease, Slapped Cheek Disease

Holden is sick. I sent him to timeout, he grabbed the quilt grandma made, and he went to sleep...

Holden started with a fever of 103.4F on Thursday afternoon. I took him to the doctor on Friday morning to check for an ear infection or strep throat. All tests came back negative. He had a yo-yoing fever all weekend, but he didn't really seem sick. On Sunday he started complaining of pain behind his knees. He started walking really rigidly, and then opted to crawl. Sunday evening he received a blessing. Monday morning he was still crawling, and had a rash on his face, stomach, and back. Ken and I took him back to the doctor. He has Parvovirus, or Fifth disease, or Slapped Cheek Disease. I am so grateful that is all that he has, the doctor was worried about a bacterial infection in his joints. Hopefully the fever goes away soon, so he isn't contagious any more, but from what I have read the red cheeks could stick around for as long as a month....

Following their Example

Wilson and Holden love to color and draw. Josef loves to follow their example, and so he loves to color and draw too! I hope that he always follows their good examples, because unfortunately they are sometimes bad examples...

Banana

Josef loves bananas, and he is also VERY independent! This afternoon he would not take one from me piece by piece. He yelled at me until I gave him an entire banana (unpeeled and all), then when he decided he couldn't get the peel off by himself, he gave it back to me to peel.

Ready for Stake Conference

This morning we had Stake Conference, so we had a little extra time. I couldn't resist taking some pictures of the boys in the white shirts and ties. They have grown up so much! One of the speakers, at conference, was a young man that just received his mission call to the Dominican Republic. He talked about the things that he had done to prepare for a mission. I hope that the things that we are doing with our boys now will prepare them for missionary service.

At conference, I saw Mary Ann Kershisnik. She has been on my mind so much the past month. I have stopped by her home twice to see her, but she hasn't been home. It was great to see her. She is a wonderful example of a boy mom to me. She raised four boys - I can't imagine one more:) She was there to hear her granddaughter Mikey speak, because she just returned from a mission in Russia. Mary Ann sat with us until she had to leave for her own meetings. Holden sat right next to her, and read books and colored. Later in the meeting Josef warmed up to her, and wanted to sit next to her. She held his crayons, and helped him color. It was sweet to see all of my boys interact with such a wonderful lady. I am so grateful for the great examples I have in my life!

Don't Look at the Mess!

ONLY LOOK AT THE CUTE LITTLE BOYS, NOT THE MESS THAT SURROUNDS THEM:)

This morning I took Josef & Stone in Josef's bedroom to read my scriptures. When I looked up from reading, Josef and Stone were reading their own books. I was able to sneak out of the room, and get the camera. Cute little boys!

Wilson's Kindergarten Program

Wilson had his Kindergarten Program yesterday. It was so fun to go and watch he and his classmates share what they have learned this past year. Wilson had a speaking part. He said, "I can sing the one about the monkeys jusmping on the bed." He stood up there so big, and said it so confidently and clearly. I messed up the video, and so I am so mad that I don't have a record of it! Wilson lived up to his name, he comes from a long line of "Wilson's" that are great speakers, and he was great too!

I find it amusing that he was so confident standing up and speaking, but when I asked him about his hesitation in dancing he said, "mom all those people were watching!" I am afraid he has some of his mother in him too!

We've got a jumper!

Josef loves to jump! He loves to jump and then fall. He is such a fun little guy, I just adore him:)

Happy Mother's Day

I read this great article this morning in the Deseret News, it is titled the "Influence of Mothers", and Sheri Dew wrote it. This is my favorite quote in the article, "We all need the nuturing touch of the mother who bore us and the "mothers" who bear with us." I am so grateful for the mother that bore me, and I am also grateful for all of the "mothers" that bear with me. I am so grateful to be a mother. It is something I feared I would never have the privilege of being here on earth.

Just in case you want to read the article here is a link to it. It really is a worthwhile read!

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700133244/The-Influence-of-Mothers.html

19 years ago this weekend...

I can't believe it has been 19 years since I received my mission call. The letter arrived while I was in Utah for my cousin's, Emily, farewell. Eric was at home, and so he read it to me over the phone in front of lots and lots of family. He first told me Zimbabwe, I remember my Dad's face turning a funny shade of gray! Then he told me Washington Seattle Mission. Doug and Erin were there for the farewell, and had just moved to Issaquah. What a blessing to was to have them live there for my entire mission. A lot has happened, since that day, I will ALWAYS be grateful I decided to serve a mission for the Lord. That one decision has impacted my life more than any other decision that I have made! It was the best foundation I could have ever had to build my life...

Sad Eyes

Josef woke up with yuckie, crustie eyes. I hate when my little guy doesn't feel good. He has an appointment at 4 o'clock, so hopefully we can get something to clear up the yuckies!

First "Project"

Ken has been hard at work finishing up this storage and work space downstairs. We were lucky to find a piece of Formica on clearance over the weekend, so Ken installed it. We still need to get a stool for it, add some shelving inside, apply the cream finishing paper to the exposed sides, and put a bulletin board in the gaping space...but other than that it is ready to be used!

I was excited to use it this morning to cut off some of Holden's jeans that he blew out the knees...they should work for shorts this summer, right?!!!

I LOVE ribbon, my "collection" has sadly dwindled. I am not serving in YW anymore, and I don't have any need for pretty ribbons (notice all of the blue ribbon) with all my boys. I obviously didn't work very hard to get the tension rods very straight, Ken will have to "straighten" out this mess later:)