Dream Houses

I never knew I could have more than one dream house, but I do. I spotted this house as I was driving the coast up to Maine.



This house is in Maine. It belonged to a man named John Hamilton. He was one of the first men to build ships in Maine, or something like that. His view is out over a lake, wow beautiful.



I spotted this one coming in from whale watching. I bet it cost a pretty penny.



Sorry I couldn't fit the whole house in the picture, there are so many trees that it's hard to get good full shots, but look at that paint job. There are a lot of purple houses over there. I don't think that's going to spread out west any time soon.



I loved this Federal style home with the widow's walk. This house is in downtown Newburyport. The whole town is a historic museum from another time. I loved walking the streets soaking in the architecture of a former era.



This purple house has stained glass windows in almost every window. It was located out on Plum Island. The location in and of itself makes this one a dream house.



When you say a house has character over here, they know what they are talking about. Plus, it doesn't mean it's a fixer upper like it does in Idaho.



Just look at the intricate architecture. I love the corbels. The roof even has character.

Lord's Hand in June 2009

6/30/09~ We had our first people come look through our house last night. It was amazing how fast we cleaned the house when we heard they were coming over. Okay, maybe not clean as much as shove stuff under beds and in closets, lets hope they don't want to look in the closet. ;0) I realized it's going to take a lot of work to sell my house. I don't know if Big D is up for all that work, especially with how much traveling we still have to do this summer. I guess it will push us to work hard and fast in between trips and before school starts.

6/29/09~ Trying to get ready to leave for another two weeks and I'm still trying to recover from the last two weeks I was gone. The grass in our backyard was a foot and a half tall. I got so bored mowing it, because I had to empty the bag with every two seconds, that I started carving stuff in the lawn like, "I Love You" and a track for the boys' trucks. It was fun, but now I have to re mow because some of the lawn was so tall all I did was lay it over. I've also been pulling weeds in my garden. The weeds are two feet tall. I will be lucky to get any vegetation out of the garden this year. The funny thing is every summer I think, "Ok, maybe this summer isn't going to be as busy." I am wrong every year.

6/28/09~ Lowell and Rae blessed their new little girl, Madie, today. Of course Lowell told us where the blessing was to take place and I still got it wrong. We all walked into a church and there was no family there. We found the right building and sat down seconds before the Bishop announced the blessing. Good timing! Madie is a doll! She was even really good during the bless, as soon as Lowell said, "Amen" she started screaming. Another lady in the family with good timing I see.

6/27/09~ We celebrated Bud's birthday with a trip out to eat with a friend, a long with our big family birthday. It was Jay and Ape's turn for the family birthday party this year and Jay being a firefighter, we had a fireman theme at the fire house. It turned out awesome. It was every little boys fantasy come true. It was fun to watch the kids go through some drills. Then it was the big boys turn. Lowell, Jay, Brook, and Big D had to make it a competition to see who could get through the course the fastest. I think Lowell ended up winning, but that's just because Jay only did it once everyone else went two or three times. It's going to be hard to top this years party, good luck Brook and Andy.

6/26/09~ Today is Bud's birthday. I miss my kids so much. I can't get home fast enough. I scrolled through my pictures on my laptop as I was flying into Phoenix and I got all choked up. I probably shouldn't have done that. It wasn't any better that as I was in Phoenix Big D was in Chicago. I missed him too and we'd just spent a week and a half together. Lowell called me as I was waiting for my connection in Phoenix. He asked where Big D was and when I told him he said, "Wow, when you need your space you really need your space." I had to laugh. That was the cost of extending my vacation, we couldn't fly home together. I left Boston and hour and a half before Big D and he made it in to SLC twenty minutes before me. So it all worked out nicely. His was the first face I saw when I stepped off the plane, as it should be.

6/25/09~ We left Newburyport to stay in downtown Boston for the night. We are hoping that helps with our early morning flight. So instead of having to wake up at 3 a.m. we will have to wake at 4 a.m. I know I'm excited for that extra hour too. We went down to Quincy Market and saw a "Cheers" bar. I don't think it was the real deal but someone said that it was where they filmed the show. I guess there is a different bar that they actually patterned the show off of, but since we aren't bar people we really didn't seek it out. But I did love the show "Cheers".

6/24/09~ Today was a bit interesting. The lady that is traveling with us needed a prop for her presentation so I had a mission for the day. I punched info into my Lola and she sent me into downtown Lawrence, about twenty minutes away. I didn't think too much of it until I had to walk two blocks to get to the store. On my jaunt I passed by a parking lot with about half a dozen gang bangers and their thumping music. I couldn't just turn around as soon as I saw them, I'd draw attention to myself, so I kept walking. The problem with that is I had to pass them again on my way to my car. No need to fear a prayer of, "Please keep me safe. Please keep me safe." made me invisible to the evil, at least that is what I'm telling myself. I almost asked some construction workers on the street to walk me to my car, but I had an even better chaperon. Oh, and the store didn't even have what I needed. I hurried back to my comfort zone and stayed there the rest of the day. It kind of put a wrench in my adventurous side. I'm looking forward to going home soon.

6/23/09~ I drove along the coast all the way up to Maine. Some of those houses, WOW! I had to pull over and take pictures a couple times. I found an abandon lighthouse, at least that what I think it looks like. I had to stop and just watch the surfers brave the waves. It's been raining the whole time I've been here but it hasn't got me down. It's a different kind of rain, it feels more like a mist in the air than rain drops. Don't get me wrong it knows how to to the big drops too. When I got up to Maine I toured the grounds of one of the first ship dudes in the area, John Hamilton. He lived on the edge of a beautiful lake with some amazing views. On my way back I stopped at a roadside street vendor. I wanted to buy some maple syrup, but I didn't think that would be very fun to take home on the plane. So I bought some mango pepper jelly and I don't think it's going to make it to the plane. Big D and I have been enjoying it way too much.

6/22/09~ I saw my first Hollywood film crew, in the middle of Essex, MA. They are filming a Adam Sandler, Salma Hayak, and Chris Rock movie over here. It's beautiful enough, I bet they film a lot of movies over here. It's just new to me. I also went Antique shopping today. A couple stores I don't think there was anything under $1000. A little too rich for my blood. I've met a lot of really neat people. Every where I go there are people from all over the world. I love it!

6/21/09~ We went into Boston today and went to the Museum of Fine Arts. Wow, I am so amazed. I got to see my first "real" Monet, Von Gogh, Renoir, Titan, and many many more. We also went to a ladies house that she built after a Venitican palace. Isabella Stewart Gardner traveled all over the world collecting art. She built this house to display and share her art with others. She lived in the house up until she passed away in 1924. We were laughing about some empty frames they had hanging, one said Rembrandt on it. We jokingly said maybe someone stole them. On our way out we asked a tour guide and sure enough she said there was a break in about ten years. Two guys dressed as Boston police to get through the door. They tied the two security guards up in the basement and had the house to themselves. They got away with a lot of very valuable stuff, including the TWO Rembrandt. After that museum we went over to the Boston Commons and say all the old brownstones. I am so amazed at how beautiful every thing is around here. They have taken great lengths to preserve our history over here. I could be here for a month and not see and experience every thing.

6/20/09~ We went whale watching today. There was about ten to twelve Humpback Whales about thirty miles off the coast. We followed a mother and her calf most of the time. We got to see a full breech (when they jump out of the water) about twenty yards away from our boat. Even the tour guide was amazed. She confessed that they don't see that every day. I got to meet the lady that is over Big D's training, we invited her to spend the day with us. She is from South Africa and invited us to come stay at her cottage. Wow, what an invitation. We also made it to the Salem Witch Museum. That was very interesting! I knew a little about it but I didn't know that it was all started because one little girl, Ann Putnam, was bored. After about a dozen people were hung and many others imprisoned she felt guilty to come enough to come forward and apologize.

6/19/09~ I have been taking tons of pictures today. There are so many churches here that are just amazing. I got some advice on a hot spot for beautiful churches, downtown Amesbury. They weren't lying. Ten churches all in about a two mile radius of each other, and they are all different denominations. The only thing that stinks is the weather, it's been over cast and rainy so my pictures probably won't turn out too good but I sure have had a great time taking them. I found an old cemetery and walked around taking pictures. I got to the back of the cemetery where all the really old old headstones are. I was taking pictures and I started sinking in the mud. Oh baby, that freaked me out. I thought I was going to break through some two hundred year old casket and be laying with the early settlers.

6/18/09~ My first day on my own. I would have a lot harder time with this if I didn't have Lola, my GPS. I've loved exploring all the back country, the non-tourist areas. I've seen tons of beautiful homes and yards. I don't know how anyone could not have a beautiful yard here, it's so green. I've found some architectural salvage stores that I could get addicted too if I lived here.

6/17/09~ Our flight was fun. Big D slept and I couldn't quit looking out the window, even when all I could see was the clouds. Did you know there are more clouds above the clouds? I loved seeing the landscape, when the clouds would part. I don't know which state we were flying over but it looked like a beautiful quilt with straight lines that went on and on and on. At O'Hara Airport we were offered vouchers to take a later flight, so now Big D and I have $600 of free airline tickets to any where. By the time we got into Boston I was excited to get to the hotel but I couldn't get over all the beautiful things to see. I was glad I wasn't driving.

6/16/09~ I am off to Boston, wish me luck. I'm a bit worried about traveling by myself. I've even had some nightmares about it lately. But I will survive and I will have a great time. I just hope I don't forget anything. And yes it looks like I am going to have to wear my neck brace on the plane but that's okay. If it helps me to be able to enjoy my trip with very little pain it's worth it. It was cute, when I was packing Kinnzi could totally tell something big was getting ready to happen. I walked in the room and found her curled up inside my luggage. I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to do that when someone was traveling without me.

6/15/09~ I've been able to take my neck brace off for an hour here and there. I end up with throbbing headaches if I keep it off for too long. I'm going to look like an idiot if I have to wear this thing on the plane. At least I'm getting some movement back in my neck. It is funny, Bug has had to be my eyes when I'm driving, which probably isn't the safest thing to do. I just have to have her look left and right for me when we come to a turn. I took my niece and nephews to the park to get lunch and they thought it was so fun to watch Bug help that they all wanted to help. I had to fire them all, too many chiefs.

6/14/09~ I know I was whining yesterday about my neck, and yes I am still in immense pain, but I think the Lord is helping me to recoup quickly. I made it through church and I didn't think I would. Big D was telling everyone that I didn't do the dishes right and now I learned my lesson. I told people I was just wearing my neck brace to help my posture.

6/13/09~ My neck went out on me again. Leave it to the worst possible time, just like last time. It always seems to happen right before we leave on a trip. Last time it was a couple days before we left for Montana and this time it's a couple days before we leave to Boston. I am so pissed! We are trying every thing we can think of to get my neck up to par: muscle cream, massage, my neck brace. I can't believe this is happening now. Why can't my neck go out in the middle of the winter when we aren't going anywhere or doing anything? Someone must think this is really funny.

6/12/09~ The day I knew was coming, my computer crashed. It's been acting funny for a few weeks now but I haven't had the resources to do anything about it. I feel bad because Brook's been using my computer to look for a job and now I can't help him. After we get home from Boston hopefully I will be able to take it in to the computer doctor and they will fix all the boo boos.

6/11/09~ All this rain is really putting a damper on our summer plans. We came up with a summer motto, we actually made an adaptation from Dora's famous song on Finding Nemo: "Just keep swimming swimming swimmin". Our summer motto is, "Just keep moving moving moving". We've been playing kickball, Frisbee golf, taking walks, etc. We've been trying to just keep moving.

6/9/09~ We took the Yukon in to the auto body shop today. Next time we see her she will be all pretty again and no more boo boo, at least that's what I had to tell Big D as we drove away and he had to take a last look over his shoulder. He is so ready for this whole ordeal to be over and it will be, soon.

6/8/09~ My sister Ann was up visiting for the weekend and she went home today. It's always sad when my sisters leave. A little piece of my heart twinges with longing for them to stay. I guess I should just be grateful they only live a few hours away and not on the other side of the U.S. We had a great week because my sister Marie came home the first half of the week. I hope they both feel loved when they come home and missed when they leave.

6/7/09~ We put on a Baptism for one of our young ladies from Primary. It was really nice. We were suppose to do it yesterday but everyone was at TOFW so we moved it. I hope Amber, the young lady, felt special. She had a wonderful turn out and a lot of support.

6/6/09~ I went to TOFW today with my mom, Grandma Lovely, and my mother-in-law, Grandma Ellen. We had a great time! Our wells are definitely full. It was a little sad, the last time I went to one of these I had my two sister-in-laws with me. I felt a twinge of loneliness not having them with me. Who knows maybe some day they will want to come with me again. Until then I will enjoy whom ever comes with me.

6/5/09~ I ran Itch around town to run his errands and to pick up his kids. He does so much better when he has his kids. I've been very impressed how he's doing with them. He has been so gentle with them and he's really stepped up and tried to help them through the divorce. He is a rock. Grandma Lovely, Grandma Ellen, and I went to our first session of TOFW tonight. I haven't been able to go to the gym for the past few days so I was pretty antsy the whole night. I had to come home and run the track for a bit. I am stoked to go to the rest of the conference tomorrow. I need to remember tissues, I got choked up about ten times tonight.

6/4/09~ Itchy cut his hand pretty bad and had to have surgery. It really freaked us out because it took awhile to get the full story as to what happened. Here is what happened from his lips. He was at home carving a piece of wood, he is very talented, when one of his chisels slipped an went into his thumb cutting a nerve and an artery. He knew it was pretty bad so he cleaned it up and drove himself to the ER where they told him he needed surgery to repair the damage. At one point we thought he hurt himself at work. My sister, Marie, called from SLC and asked why Itch was carving and driving at the same time; she said that when you say there's been an accident it means a car is involved. So apparently a "carving accident" equals driving and carving. It's nice to have something to laugh about. He's doing well. He's pretty bummed, it seems like he just keeps getting kicked while he's down. He's not giving up, I'm so proud of him; he's come a long way in the last few months.

6/2/09~ I fear Big D and I are going to fall into old habits. We've been so excited about not having to go to bed at a certain time that we've been staying up till the wee hours of the morn. I went to bed and midnight then got up at 5 a.m. to go to the gym, the rest of the day I was toast. I can't do that anymore if I want to keep going to the gym.

6/1/09~ Our first official Monday of Summer and all we did was run errands. We did get lunch in the park, which I love but we weren't able to stay and play. I had to take the Yukon around to get quotes to get fixed. When the tire flew off it caused some body damage and Les Schwab is going to pay to fix it.

Whale Tale

We went whale watching on Saturday, June 20th. The day started out so well blue skies, calm seas, a peachy husband.














We saw some amazing sights that are way more amazing in real life than in a picture.



We followed a mother and her calf around thirty miles off the coast of Massachusetts.



I think one of them liked the attention and started to perform. The tour guide said it was more of a show of hierarchy or discipline.



All I knew is it was amazing. The tour guide was even amazed. She told us that doesn't happen everyday.



It really gave me more of a respect for these huge animals that I didn't have before.



By the end of our voyage everyone in our group had upset bellies but me. I think Big D was the worst, he almost blew chunks. He was no longer peachy as much as green.



Big D was so happy to be done with the tour. The tour was suppose to be between three and four hours it was more like six. We were all starving but it's a good think none of us ate before the trip.

Walking on the Beach

We loved walking on the beach. We tried to do it as much as possible. We probably would have done it more if it wasn't raining the whole time we were there. This is Hampton Beach in New Hampshire. The water really wasn't too bad but you can totally tell we are tourists with our rain coats on playing in the water. I think that might be an oxymoron, or at least just moron.



At first we tried really hard not to get our shorts wet, but then the tide would come in.



I think we both went home looking like we wet our pants, but it was so worth it. Big D is such a big kid.

Every once in awhile the camera would react with the water in the air and it was either hard to focus or I'd take a picture and all you could see is water droplets.



I think Big D's co-workers thought we were crazy. They wanted to walk the beach with us but not in the water. I think they're crazy, how can you come to the ocean and not play?



We wrote a little message to our kids in the sand. Ahhh, what good parents we are, we leave them for a week and a half and all they get is an "I Love You" in the sand as proof of how much fun we were having without them.

I'm Home

I have never been so happy to see the desert. I loved loved loved all the trees in the New England area, but man did I miss the mountains. I loved walking hand in hand on the beach almost every night, but boy oh boy did I miss my babies.

I had a great vacation. I would probably put it up there with the best of my life. I could tell I had a great one when I was just as giddy to come home as I was to go to Boston. We played hard and wore ourselves out.

Big D and I asked each other if we would ever move to New England and at first we said yes. After a week and a half we realized that even though it is way more beautiful over there, there wasn't any family and that is what make home, home. We might not live in the most aesthetically beautiful part of the U.S. but with our family all around us, it is perfect.

When I was going through security they flagged my carry on, I knew they would. I was smuggling home antique corbels. I didn't want to put them in my checked luggage because I knew they'd want to see what they heck they were if they x-rayed my bag and I didn't want them to cut my lock off. I was watching the guys face as he was x-raying my carry on. Stopping the conveyor belt, going forward and back, squinting, and finally flagging it.

Another person came over and grabbed my bag and asked whose it was. We walked over to a special counter and she talked to me like I was a terrorist, "Don't touch the bag or put your hands anywhere close to it until I tell you other wise." She opened my bag and swiped a cloth to make sure there wasn't any bomb residue. After that came back okay she just stood there looking at this bubble wrapped blob and asked, "What they hell is that?" I told her they were antique corbels and offered to unwrap the bubble wrap so she could see them. The tape was pretty tight so I asked her if she had any scissors, dummy me it's the airport, no one has scissors. I got a little bit opened and showed her. I think she rolled her eyes and probably thought I was a dink for bringing home they old decaying wood brackets. After she cleared me I had to laugh about they whole thing.

Big D and I were not able to fly home together because I'd extended my vacation. I flew out an hour and a half before him and he made it to SLC twenty minutes before me. I didn't think it would bother me so much not having him right there. I looked through my pictures on my laptop as I was flying into Phoenix as I was listening to the song Big D wrote for me three years ago for Christmas and I started crying. I realized at that moment how much I missed my kids and how excited I was to be home. It's amazing that even though a plane cuts travel time down immensely, it still wasn't fast enough.

As soon as we landed and were on the road we called Bud to wish him a Happy Birthday. Big D asked him if he was doing anything fun that day and he said, "Yes, I'm going home." Well that did it, now Big D couldn't drive fast enough.

I am so so so happy to be home. I missed everyone!

Museum of Fine Arts

On Sunday we went into Boston. One of our stops was the Museum of fine Arts, wow. I could have stayed their all day. I never did get to see it all, but I saw the best stuff.



As we walked through the front doors this is what greeted us on the ceiling. Amazing! I know the photo doesn't do any justice, sorry they don't allow flash photography.




We thought long and hard about what we wanted to see first.



Big D really enjoyed getting some culture. I hope he knows that's inapropriate, at least infront of his wife.



I took some painting lessons. I think I'm good enough to run with the big dogs, what do you think?



It's a good thing our whale watching expedition didn't turn out like this. I don't think I would have enjoyed the walks on the beach near as much.

We had a great time playing with Monet, Renoir, Titan, Von Gogh, among others. We like to run with a very exclusive crowd when we are on the East Coast.

Sand Sculptures

We were walking the Hampton Beach and found the amazing sand sculptures. They are having their annual contest and WoW there are some talented sculptors.



This sculpture came in 1st place. I probably wouldn't have chosen this as 1st, it had the least amount of detail. It is still beautiful.



I thought this one was pretty cool. It came in 2nd. Look at all that detail. See that dark line behind the sculpture? That is seaweed, that is how high the ocean swells were last night. Can you see that heap of sand in the background? That used to be a sculpture.



The 3rd place sculpture was neat too. The sculptures all had three days and 10 tons of sand to finish these masterpieces.



This sculpture is my favorite. Look at the detail in the peacocks and the water fountain. I looks like the water is really falling over the fountains edge.



This is Big D's favorite, as the other sculptures favorite. This sculpture won sculptors choice and people's choice, but no money. In other words he got a pat on the head for all that hard work.



I also liked this one. The imagination and creativity that went into this one is amazing. I could go on and on with all the sculptures. We are having a wonderful time and the best part, that is the ocean behind the scultures.

Traveling Is For Me

I could so get used to this. I am loving all the new sights and people. My only experience of other states, especially in the East, is what I see on TV. So in my mind every city is packed with people like New York.

Boy I was wrong. Yes there are big cities like that but not every where. Outside of Boston it's not much different than back home, except green and beautiful.

I have really enjoyed talking to people about places to see and things to do. Everyone is so nice and I love to hear their accents, of course they think I'm the one with the accent.

Did you know they don't say their "R's" over here? Why, I don't really know, but it's fun to listen too.

I've picked up some art from a local artist, a watercolor of a beautiful little cottage with an amazing landscaped yard. It's reminds me of what my dream home and yard will look like. It seems like it wouldn't be hard to obtain over here, everyone has beautiful yards over here.

I probably need to quit using the word beautiful, sorry.

I'm sorry I don't have pictures to share yet. I will soon, well as soon as I get home.

I need to go explore Maine, so I will write again later.

Goals 22 & 34

Visit a place I've never been and go away with my hubby on a romantic over nighter not for a special occasion. We'll I think coming to Massachusetts counts for both of those.

Neither of us have ever been here before and we've had a lot of romantic nights, without kids.

We are having so much fun that it's going to be hard to write it all down, plus I'm sure some out there would get bored. I've taken probably two thousand pictures and I'm excited to share them. I haven't loaded them onto my computer yet but when I do I will share the best ones.

I'm a Pain in the Neck

I think the Lord must have a weird sense of humor. Here I am a few days before my trip to Boston and my neck goes out on me. To be honest I don't think it's all that funny.

The last time my neck went out on me, two years ago, it was right before I was to leave to Montana. But last time it came on slowly over a period of a week, this time it hit me all in one night.

I went to bed just fine and about 3 a.m. I woke to an intense pain in my neck. I pulled myself out of bed to get some Advil, I didn't want to wake Big D. The Advil helped me make it to the morning until Big D woke up. He ran to the store and bought some Biofreeze and a massager. I've been having him massage me at least twice a day since then.

I think it's working. I went to church today and told everyone that Big D didn't like the way I did the dishes, but I learned my lesson. I didn't think I'd make it through Sacrament meeting but I did

I am really hoping that I can be all better before I have to sit on an airplane for five hours. I don't think Big D wants to listen to me whine for that long. Plus, if I'm laid up my entire visit to Boston I am going to be super duper oober pissed.

I am implimenting the power of postive thinking, "I will be better. I will be better. Oh please, let me be better!"

TOFW

I went to Time Out For Women this last weekend. I am addicted to them. This was my third one. I guess if one must have an addiction this one isn't the worst, although it's not good for the pocket book.

At the very first of the meeting they asked us to turn to the people who were there for the first time and tell them this isn't church. After a good laugh we were then asked to write down things we know. Things we know beyond any doubt.

The first thing I knew is that the last time I was at TOFW me and my group took up almost the hole row. I had my two sister-in-laws whom I don't have anymore. This made me feel a bit lonely. But, I still had my mom, Grandma Lovely, and my mother-in-law, Grandma Ellen. We had a great time, but other's were greatly missed. Who knows maybe they will come with me next time.

Some of the other things I wrote down that I know is: I know I am at my most beautiful when I've been kissed by the spirit. It's not when I've bought a new outfit that hugs all the right curves and hides all the wrong ones. It's not after I've spent hours in front of the mirror. It's when I've served someone, when I've followed a prompting to hug a stranger or put my arm around someone at the temple. I feel beautiful when I've done what I know the Lord would want me to do.

Another thing I know is that music can heal the soul. Nine times out of ten when I was brought to tears at the conference it was during a song. And sometimes I started crying just as the music began, before any words were sang. I feel that music is the quickest way for the Lord to touch and communicate with you. It's his way of reaching out to hug you, and me.

I also know that beyond any doubt that when we build others up, we in turn build up ourselves. There is nothing better for my bouts of depression then to think about what I can do for someone else. It works every time. If I just think about someone in need of a service I can provide or visit a lonely neighbor I know that I too can be blessed by it.

The Relief Society motto is "Charity Never Faileth" and I believe that with all my heart. However, it's not just giving stuff to someone less fortunate, it's giving a piece of your heart to those less fortunate. I know that just because I might be the giver one day, there will come a day when I am the receiver. What an awesome motto!

The last thing that I came up with that I know for sure is that tears never fall without the Lord's knowledge. When we are at our lowest and feel so alone, He is there. When we are so happy we can't contain the joy and it comes spilling over our eyes, He is there. When we just need to release tension for no other reason than to let go, He is there. When we are listening to a beautiful song that touches our soul, He is definitely there.

I had a great time at TOFW. It filled my well. I can't wait until the next time I get to go. The great thing is, I don't have to wait until then to fill my well, it gets filled every week at church. The Lord truly has an awesome gospel and I'm so grateful to be apart of it.

Yukon Disaster

If we didn't have drama, life would be boring. Plus, I'd have nothing to write about.

We took a trip up to Washington for our cousin's wedding a few weekends ago. On the way up we decided to stop and check out this Yukon we found on Craig's List. We really weren't going to but we thought since we were in the area we might as well. We test drove it and then went on our marry way.

Big D has been wanting a bigger vehicle like this for a couple years now. I've been very impressed with how patient he's been and how diligent in finding just the right one.

Over the weekend we discussed it and decided to purchase it on the way home. I'm pretty sure having eight people crammed into a tiny mini van helped with the decision.

After the couple hour drive in our new Yukon Big D decided he didn't like the way the big truck tires sounded and felt on the freeway so he took it in to Les Schwab to see if there was anything they could do about it, short of all new tires. They gave him some options and rotated the tires for us.

Big D was really excited to see how the Yukon pulled our boat so we decided to go boating the next day. We invited Brook and his family to join us and we all headed out after work.

As soon as we pulled out of the driveway I asked Big D if he felt like the shaking was worse than before? He said he couldn't really tell yet. We got distracted about all the fun we were about to have and didn't broach the subject again.

We got all the way out to the reservoir and at the top of the boat ramp I could tell Big D was feeling something funny. He started turning the wheel back and forth and then we slammed into the ground. I thought we hit a huge pot hole, until I saw our front drivers side wheel rolling off down the ramp and into the reservoir.



I had to walk down the ramp and fish the wheel out. We were so lucky because there were tons of people out boating and all their expensive trucks where parked along side the ramp. Our wheel went right past all of the trucks and trailers, all the people and animals, we were so lucky!!! We were even more lucky, or should I say blessed, that it didn't happen five minutes earlier when we were going 75 mph down the freeway.



Brook hooked up the boat to his truck, thank goodness he was there. The funny thing is five minutes after it happened my brother, Lowell, called me and asked if we were all okay. I asked him how in the world he knew so fast. He laughed and said he was the center of the loop, he knows every thing, some times before they happen. I told him he could have given us a heads up then.

We called Les Schwab and they sent out a truck to fix us up so we could get home. After an hour of being the center of attention and having people telling us the obvious, "Wow, dude that sucks!" Les Schwab finally showed up. Big D calmly told them, "You've let me stew for an hour, I don't think this is the best time to talk to me. We are going boating, you fix the truck and park it on the side for us. I'll talk to you tomorrow." We left and went boating.



After we were done boating we had a mismatched wheel on our Yukon and six terrified people to ride home in it. We had Brook pull the boat home and we followed, slowly. I guess I just hope that this isn't the kind of "mark" we will be known for when we say we left our "mark" on this world.

Lord's Hand in May 2009

5/31/09~ I have Sharing Time in Primary. It is my second time and it didn't go nearly as smooth as the first time. The kids were a bit rowdy and I think I had way too many scriptures. It's nice to learn what works and what does not.

5/30/09~ We planted Grandma Lovely's garden tonight. It was the perfect day for it; the cloud cover and the light rain it cooled all of us down and made the work fun.

5/29/09~ School's Out For The Summer!!!! We decided to celebrate with a boat trip. We invited Brook and his family to join us. Let's face it, fun is way more fun with more people. Big D was excited to see how the Yukon pulled the boat. He just had the tires rotated the day before and wanted to see how the Yukon did on the freeway again. We got to the top of the boat ramp and our drivers side front wheel came off and rolled into the lake. Needless to say we were pretty ticked, but relieved that no one was hurt.

5/27/09~ The girls had Passage Ceremony tonight. It's like a mini graduation for the next grade. I'm glad that we had our kids two years apart so we only have to go to Passage Ceremony every other year. They did a slide show at the end and after the sixth song started I leaned over to Big D and said, "Let's Go".

5/26/09~ I don't know if Big D just got tired of eight people in a mini van but we ended up stopping in Boise and purchasing a Yukon XL. It is pretty and Big D hasn't quit smiling.

5/25/09~ We are up in Washington for Kelly's wedding. She looked so beautiful and the wedding went off without a hitch, that is if you don't count an ER visit. Ken's oldest daughter, Savannah, got a little overwhelmed with everything and passed out. It was a good thing Lindsey was standing right next to her to catch her. They took her to the hospital and the doctor said she just had a panic attack. He let her out of the hospital for the wedding and then they had to take her back for observations. Other than that every thing was great.

5/24/09~ We went to Sacrament Meeting with Aunt Pat. It's nice that no matter where we go the church is the same. It's very comforting knowing that even on vacation you can feel a little piece of home. We got back to the hotel and the kids swam for four hours. I think I gave birth to water babies.

5/23/09~ Happy Birthday Kinnzi, she is now two years old and still thriving. We took her into the lady I bought her from to for her birthday. Kelly, the breeder, was so happy to see her and see how well she is doing. Kelly was really reluctant to sell us Kinnzi because we still had such small kids, which I don't blame her small kids can be rough. It was nice to go in and show her that we haven't hurt Kinnzi and in fact she is such a part of our family that we try and take her every where we go.
We left on our trip to Washington. Eight hours in a mini van full of eight people, lets hope we all survive the trip.

5/22/09~ Beaner had her Passages today, but I didn't get to go in with her. I let Big D go in since I got to go in with Bug. I bet she did great though, because just like with Bug, Beaner practiced with us a lot and every time she did better and better. I am so proud of my little ladies. What a lucky mom I am to have two beautiful and smart young ladies. They were both so relieved when passages were finally over, I don't blame them. I am really liking how this school teaches kids at a young age to public speak and learn to articulate themselves. Beaner is definitely gaining more confidence where in public school she was melting into the back ground.

5/21/09~ Bug had Passages today, which is where students stand up in front of a panel and present at least three projects they worked on through out the year. They kind of make it feel like if you don't do well on your Passages you won't make it to the next grade, but in reality if you are doing you Passages you've already made it. Bug did so good I was so proud of her. As we were walking out she confessed that she really didn't want me to go in with her because she was scared that if she messed up I'd be mad at her. How preposterous, I could never be made about some thing like that. She did the best she could and that is what I'm proud of. She practiced numerous time with Big D and I and she did even better than all those practices.

5/20/09~ Feeling much better today. We've had construction going on down our street for over a week now. The boys are in heaven. Today they were working right in front of our house so we had to get our pillows out for our bums to sit on the stoop and watch. The boys wanted to ride on the tractors so bad. I think one may grow up to play with really big toys.
We are initiating our summer of fun and activity. Our motto this summer is inspired from Dora on the movie "Finding Nemo". When Dora sings, "Just keep swimming, swimming" we've taken that and sing, "Just keep moving, moving". We've been trying to find fun things to do to stay active with our family. Big D has discovered Frisbee golf, which we've done a handful of times already. Tonight to change things up we went and played kickball and took a walk. I hope we keep this up all summer.

5/19/09~ I was down all day with an ear ache. I don't know what's wrong but I feel like I'm two again. This is the second ear ache I've had in the last month. It was ticking me off to have to lay on a heat pad all day. I was so bored while my family went and played Frisbee golf. It's just not fare! I figured since I was feeling like I was two again...

5/18/09~ They are replacing the water main down the center of our street this week. Actually they've been doing it for two weeks now. Today Bear and I are sprawled out on a blanket watching all the tractors do their stuff. He is such a boy. He had to go in the backyard and get his bulldozer to play with in the dirt so he could be like all the contractors. He makes me smile.
Today at the gym I ran the equivalent of a 5k. I was so dead that afterward we tried to go lift weights and as soon as my friend said she was leaving I waited till she was out the door then I packed it in. Holy Cow my legs are so dead. I don't know how people do marathons. I have one friend who ran a 1/2 marathon when she turned thirty as a present to herself. Is she crazy? That's not a present, that's torture. Who knows maybe that the next stop on my crazy train.
5/17/09~ We were in a bit of a rush to get home from Salt Lake. I really wanted to make it in time for church at 1p.m. I'd missed the week before because I went to church with my mom for Mother's Day and I'm not going to be here next weekend because of my cousins wedding in Washington. I didn't want to leave the rest of the presidency high and dry for three weeks in a row. We were a bit late but we made it. Yeah!

5/16/09~ My mom, I and my cousin D all stayed at the hotel Brook and Andy were going to stay at for their honeymoon. My dad ended up getting the happy couple a lodge in Yellowstone and it was too late to cancel their hotel in Salt Lake. My mom, sisters, cousin and I all went down and paid for the room to help Brook and Andy out. It was a nice adventure.

5/15/09~ Brook and Andy got married today. Boy was it a long day for everyone. We started with Brook's endowments, which was so nice. I loved seeing him in the temple. You could tell he was a bit overwhelmed with it all though. It's okay he can go back as often as he'd like to get a handle on it all. We went right into the sealing room and watched them become husband and wife for all eternity, AWESOME. The open house was at my church building so I had the keys. I lost track of time and by the time I got back to the church tons of people were standing in the parking lot waiting for me to unlock the doors. Oops! After the open house me and my mom had an impromptu trip to Salt Lake City. Wow, what a long day. Thank you to everyone who helped with the clean up. I was a bit nervous at how long it was going to take me but it went really fast with so many hands. Thanks!

5/14/09~My cousin, D, came up for the wedding. She is such a life saver; Big D and I were wondering what we were going to do with our kids while we were in the temple. The day we started discussing one of us staying home she called and asked if she could stay with us and watch our kids. She must have been listening to the spirit.

5/13/09~ Ann is up for the wedding and she brought home my girls. I thought I wasn't going to see them until tomorrow morning but here they are. Oh, I missed them so much. I tried not to focus on them being gone so I didn't go crazy. But now that they are home I can't quit kissing and hugging and tickling them. I didn't realize how much I missed them until they got home.

5/12/09~ Yeah, it worked! I feel so much better today. I actually made it to the gym this morning after taking a week off. I still took it a bit easy, I only ran two miles and came home, but I feel great. The migraine I've had for a week is not there today. Apparently it climaxed yesterday and then left my head. OH THANK YOU!

I only have two more days until my girls come home. I am so excited!!! I've been talking to them on the phone almost every day but it's not the same as having them here. I want to hug them and have them be my snuggle buddy for at least an hour per child. I figure they owe me that much.
Big D and I got our grades, we both got all A's. We were so excited. This was an exceptionally tough semester for Big D. He didn't think he was going to get one A let alone two. I am so proud of him.

5/11/09~ I told myself that I had one more day to be sick and that's it. I am so sick and tired of being sick and tired. I've had the worse migraine today. I've been tempted to wear my sunglasses inside as well as outside. I was hoping this sickness was one of those ones that if you push yourself to get up and move around you'll feel better, but I might've been wrong. I took it easy and slept. It better work because tomorrow I am exorcising the demons.

5/10/09~ Happy Mother's Day! My mother's day gift was my trip, and what a great one it was. Today I went to church with my mom and cooked dinner for my mother-in-law. I really should learn my lesson with cooking for my in-laws, every time something goes wrong; the food is under cooked, the ingredients didn't come together like they should, or like yesterday, I blow up a glass lid. I don't know if I just get nervous about cooking for them or what, but every time without exception something goes wrong. It's a good thing my mother-in-law is so gracious about all my disasters. She hasn't fired me from being her daughter-in-law yet.

5/9/09~ It's a good thing I came home early because I came down with what ever it was that Big D was suffering from the first of the week. I barely made it home. I stopped at the store and got some cold medicine, and I tried to find some that didn't say "may cause drowsiness". However, I had the darnest time keeping myself awake on the drive home. I had to pull over a couple times just to get up and get my blood pumping. I got home and went right to bed. I did pull myself out of bed to go to the bridal shower, but I seriously had my doubts on if I'd make it through.

5/8/09~ I decided to come home from SLC a day early. Andy is having a bridal shower tomorrow and no other sister from Brook's family can make it to the shower so I have to represent. Ann and I picked her out a great gift. When she opens her gift she will see a granny nightgown then the second layer will be a sexy nightie and Ann thought it was a little short and didn't like the idea that it didn't have any panties, so I found some floss panties and they will be on the third layer. I really think we out did ourselves. It will be a little awkward having her open it with my grandma sitting next to her.
I took the boys to Hogle Zoo before heading out of town. We had a great time wandering around seeing all the animals. Bud was excited to see the penguins, that's what he's been learning about in school. He was more excited to see the penguins then the bears or alligators. We ended our visit with a nice little train ride, ate some lunch, then got on the road home.

5/7/09~ I spent the day with my sisters, Marie had to work part of the day so Ann and I went and took her out to lunch. Then Ann and I went shopping, to the park, then more shopping, it was a good day. Bud and Bear got to go to the Build-a-Bear workshop. Bud got a turtle named Turtle Jack and Bear got a dog and named him Puppy Jo.
I heard from the girls they are having a great time. It's a bit hot in Florida but they are swimming a lot and having a great time with their cousin Lexxi.


5/6/09~ I took my final, I am done with school for the semester, YEAH! I love the end of a semester it's so freeing. I decided to reward myself, and since my girls were gone, I'd run away to Salt Lake and see my sisters. Bud and Bear would miss one day of school but I'm fine with that. We will have tons of fun.

5/5/09~ My babies left for Disney world today. I won't see them again until next week. What am I suppose to do until then? Wow, what am I going to do when all my kids actually move out and get lives of their own. I will be so lost. I will have to actually get a life of my own. Yeah right:)

5/4/09~ I finally admitted that I was a bit freaked out about my little girls going across the United States without me. I think any parent would. As a mother all I can think about is every thing that can go wrong and I will be stuck on the opposite side of the country. Big D sat all of us down yesterday and gave us father's blessings. This helped calm my nerves. I know they are going to have the time of their lives with Grandma Honey and Papa Guy, to be honest I'm a bit envious. This is an awesome opportunity for them, it's not like Big D and I could ever afford to take them. I'm glad they are going to have this experience that will last them a life time. Now we just have to get them packed.

5/3/09~ We had a family meeting over at Grandma Lovely's house. Brook gave us the good news that he and Andy will be able to get married in the temple. She finally got her letter from headquarters about her temple divorce from her first husband. This is great news for them, they were a bit discouraged thinking they might not be able to get sealed for a year. We also planned my mom's garden for this summer. We are going to do a big family garden and rotate weeding it again. It worked out pretty good last year.

5/2/09~ We decided to start our Spring cleaning. We only got the girls and boys bedrooms done, but it's a start. Of course, clean rooms are a magnet for the kids so all day they played in their rooms with their friends. Needless to say, I need to "Spring clean" them again. Ahhhhhh! I am fighting a losing battle here.

5/1/09~ Bud, Bear, and I went on a field trip with Bug. We went back to the park were we planted wild flowers. We checked on the progress of our flowers and planted another native plant. This time we planted a bush that was already growing. Bug's teacher encouraged the students to come back and check on their plants so they can watch them grow. Bud and Bear were very entertaining for the other students. I'm pretty sure I will be asked not to bring them again, they were a bit distracting.