THE BEGINNING OF FOREVER: August 2016

lukie's first day

A couple weeks after school started for the older kids, Luke got his turn.

He was so excited!!!

We did the same thing for him as we did with the others. He had a school blessing, he had a new school outfit, and he set everything out the night before.

He was literally bursting at the seams as we headed out the door.

he was really this excited..ha!! He was also sporting a nice black eye to start the year out nicely.

Molly was also excited, because Luke seemed so excited. And maybe somehow she knew, back in the little brain of hers, that she was about to get mom AND the house, completely to herself for the afternoon.

Luke was trying so hard to show off his cool black eye.

I drove him to school the first few days, because there was a mix up with the bus schedule. I didn't mind...it gave me a chance to get even more pictures, and to hover around Luke that much longer.

He did get a little nervous as he was standing in line waiting to go in the building, but once his teacher came out, he marched in as if he owned the place. He is starting Duel Immersion this year, and I can't wait to hear Spanish coming from this little cute boy of mine.

It was definitely a little weird that afternoon, with just Molly here are home. There were moments of pangs in my heart and a few tears just in the back of my eyes, but knowing that Luke was in a great place, with great teachers, learning good things, kept my heart happy.

a little bit of this, a little bit of that

And...because I am slacking so badly in the blogging department, here is a cluster of pictures from my phone the past little while.

I will be better after this...promise.

My and my snuggle buddy, William.

Sam, Luke, Drew, Ezra

Molly feeding her baby.

Luke and Boston doing one of MANY bike races

watching for Daddy to come home

JoJo and grandpa came for a visit. We squished in as much play time as possible.

Grandma JoJo took the kids on all sorts of fun outings. They got snow cones, played at Deer Creek Reservoir, went toy shopping, and went to a movie. No wonder the kids shout for joy when they hear JoJo is coming!
Grandma JoJo took the kids to see a movie in Park City. Right at the end of the movie, the fire alarm went off for some weird reason. They had to evacuate the theater, and the firemen were called. Luke was THRILLED!!! According to JoJo, Luke got to sit in the truck, and see a fireman up close. Made his whole day.

We do weekly snow cone/Quench It runs on Friday. Sometimes we bring friends along. Jett got brave and bought a large! It was HUGE! The poor kid only made it about half way through.

Luke and his buddy Luke Phillips. They were quite the "bad guys."

We went to the Mountain Valley Stampeded Rodeo a couple weeks ago. It was awesome!!! The kids loved the parashuter that came down with the flag, the motorcycle jumper, the bull riders, and of course, Molly LOVED the "neighs." The rodeo ended with a firework show. We love rodeos!

I glanced over at William during the National Anthem, and saw this. He cracks me up.

Getting in my baby squishes every chance I get.

Luke's outfits never cease to amaze me! This kid is creative!

baby bums in swim suits.....priceless!

Our friend Ben (snake) , from college days, came in to town with his family. They spent a Thanksgiving with us in Colorado Springs, and we had an absolute blast! They are definitely some of our favorite people. It was so great to spend some time with them. Some friendships never die...no matter the time or the distance.

While we were in Idaho for my family reunion, Ben drove up to Pomerell for a day to do a downhill bike race. He totally rocked it and came away with 2nd place!! He pretty much rocks.

The kids and I tried out a new pool last weekend in Lindon. It was awesome!! It was cheap, not crowded, and had something for everyone. Why couldn't I have discovered this months ago!! Boo!

It had a flow rider, and Mary and Sam and their friends Jett and Blake, spent the entire time on it. It was awesome!

Mary

watching and laughing

Me, and the three babies, spent the entire time in the lazy river and going down the waterslide.

Sam

Sam and his friends made up the "Derby Down the Driveway." Basically, they get skateboards, put boxes on them, and attempt to fly down the driveway, while crashing into eachother. It is hilarious!!!

In other news....we seemed to have gotten in the habit of losing Molly's bottle over and over and over again. That was fun.

So...this last time, I just said, "that's it." Molly has not had her bottle since, and she is actually doing really well.

It is pretty weird not having bottles around the house, after 11 years. It does give me a little pang of sadness, but at the same time, good riddance to those things!

And, that's a wrap folks!

reunion time

Good grief! I don't know what else to say.

My blogging has completely gone down the tubes lately! Geesh!

I definitely need to kick it back into gear, and I plan on it. I just need another week or so, to get into the groove of kids back in school, fall madness, and sports schedules. Hopefully, it will be a little easier to find time to blog, with a few less kiddos at home to play with.

So, let's see.

My family had our reunion about three weeks ago.

Leading up to this reunion, I had some serious anxiety about some big issues going on with me and stuff going on with some members in the family. I had decided not to go to the reunion, in order to spare myself and everyone else from any sort of emotional uproar and to protect myself from being exposed to any bigger pains and holes in my heart.

As the reunion drew closer, and as I began to open up a little to my parents and to my Heavenly Father, I felt myself getting stronger emotionally and coming to a good place in my heart and mind, where I felt like maybe I could handle some things. The support and love from my parents helped a lot, and I felt like I at least had a support group behind me and some understanding as well.

After a lot of time on my knees, a priesthood blessing, and lots of pondering and tears, I decided to go to the reunion.

It was an interesting year for our reunion. Some could not make it at all, and others had to be on different schedules due to work and plane tickets. We were all kind of in and out at different times. During the time I was there, I felt like God's hand was right there too. I felt like those who were there at the time I was, were in a good place, and were supposed to be there in order for the peace and harmony to abide, that was extremely important at the time.

Although nothing was talked about, or cleared up, no apologies were said, and no deep issues were discussed, I came home feeling love and peace for some people, that I have not felt in a very long time. When I think about these people, I no longer feel sick to my stomach, and want to cry out of pain and despair for relationships destroyed. I feel like there was a spirit of peace and understanding at this reunion, that allowed for some very pivotal baby steps to be made, in the right direction. I felt the huge wounds in my heart begin to try to heal a little, and I felt a big weight begin to lift.

I know that Heavenly Father was by my side, and that he was also with all of us at the reunion, providing peace, happiness, fun, and harmony to abide.

I was actually sad when I got home after the reunion. It surprised me a little. I realized that I missed the spirit that was there with me, helping me along, and the peace that I felt. Family is so important. It is one of God's greatest gifts, and one of Satan's greatest forces to attack. It's no wonder the struggle has been so real.

That being said, here are some of the highlights of the reunion. We seriously had a blast!!! One thing we can always count on when hanging out with my family...there will never be a shortage of fun, water, and food.