Wordless Wednesday

Goodbye Sweet Summer

I was sitting and reminiscing with my phone pictures about the fun, every day summer days.

laying out just isn't the way it used to be...

lots and lots of bike rides with my biking buddies.

Picnics at the park 

...or at home (with friends Aaron and Leah Frantz)

swimming in Nana and Papa's pool

(Cade with friend Ayden Pulsipher)

Many trips to Silverwood (gotta love when Daddy rides the kiddy rides with you!)

The classic North Idaho Fair

Tyce trying to grasp what that massive, oinking hunk of bacon is.

We will miss you.

That fall nip is already in the air.

Cranberry Jam Photography

Back to School

First Day of Preschool and Kindergarten!

Little Builders  &   Frederick Post

My handsome {crazy} boys.

Jay ran into school like it aint no thang. 

No problem, mom. I don't need ya. ;)

(Cade was in the same school last year, and Jay knows most the kids in his 6 student class.)

 I said goodbye to Cade at the fence to the playground (They wont let you in without a guest pass and it was a zoo). He left a little unsure of where to go and what to do in the sea of people... then he spotted his two best friends on the playground (Ayden Pulsipher and Aaron Frantz) and they all put their arms around each other with a sigh of relief! 

That's when the tears started rollin'.
Really? Am I THAT mom?

My baby is all grown up. He's no longer ALL mine. He's officially in the world.

5 1/2 years flew by. In another 5 1/2 he'll be in middle school. 5 1/2 after that he'll be dating and driving. Ugh.

I better soak 'em up every day!

Labor Day Weekend

This is the FIRST time Jon and I have taken our kids camping with JUST our little family.

It was the bomb.

We went to Round Lake near Sandpoint. It's a little fishing and canoeing lake. Very calm.

We went canoeing twice and we are happy to say only one man went overboard.

Tyce.

No big deal. Just breaking him in. ;)

We also enjoyed a nice hike on the back side of the lake (canoed to it), bike rides ("mountain biking"), a family baseball game, yummy food, cards, swimming and catching pollywogs. 

For Labor Day, we got cleaned up and went double dipping to TWO barbecues with both sets of grandparents. Yum!

Goodbye sweet summer!

BIG goals.

"No success can compensate for failure in the home."

-President David O. McKay

WARNING: Major information overload. This is mostly for my own sake... ;)

I am sitting here after an AMAZINGLY uplifting night at the adult session of our stake conference.

It was by FAR the most uplifting meeting I have attended in a long time. 

Everyone is gone to bed, and here I sit with the dishwasher running in the background, and the spirit is still on fire inside me!

I have been doing A LOT of thinking lately.

About me, about what I want, about the goals I want to pursue and things I would like to achieve. I started feeling discontented with my job, and where I was at. I've been wanting more.

I decided after much deliberation and a year on the job, that it is time to pass the baton on my Group Fitness Coordinating position. I also felt the need to downsize on the amount of classes I was teaching (I've been teaching for 3 years).

After a few months of trying to get past my boss begging me to stay, I am now officially just a grunt again. So, this gave me room to think about bigger goals. I started thinking about school and my potential degree. I didn't want to pursue broadcast journalism anymore. What about dental hygiene? Good money, good job security and great schedule with kids.

BUT then I researched programs and found only one in the area that is an hour away and highly competitive. What about nursing? I looked into programs. I really would only want to do labor and delivery and they work three 12 hour shifts a week and it's usually graveyard the first 3-5 years.

Ugh.

I started putting all this pressure on myself to get it done before my life gets crazier, cursing my parents for not pushing me to get my degree before having kids (wasted 2 years dental assisting!) etc.....

And so you see where I have been the last few months.

Then I attended the meeting tonight. My entire thought process changed.

For the most part, I have always tried to follow the Spirit in my life. My choices have lead me to a great school where I was able to influence others through my calling (I recently found a NOW member from USU that I invited to a RS activity almost 9 years ago, and got baptized later). Then, a few plans that fell through lead me home to meet my husband. My dad lead me into dental assisting; A great certification and a job that I love. And then a surprise in life lead me to the greatest calling of all, being a mother.

I had the strongest, most undeniable feeling that right now, this is the most important thing I can be doing.

NOTHING is more important than teaching these kids the fundamentals of the gospel. 

NOTHING is more important than raising my children to be strong, self sufficient leaders and examples. 

NOTHING is more important than helping them form testimonies to build on with their own experiences.

The member of the seventy that spoke to us tonight gave us an amazing promise.

He bore testimony, in the name of Jesus Christ, that if we do these three things:

#1 family prayer morning and night

#2 daily family scripture study

#3 family home evening

that if we ever have a child go astray, that they will return. And that's a promise.

WOW.

Immediately my mind went straight to a certain part of my patriarchal blessing that says that if I magnify my calling as a wife and mother, that I will feel like I have been successful and have done well in life.

Now there's the success I'm looking for!
I want to kiss my kids as they get out of the car for school. I want to be there to hear about their day. I want to cook for them. I want to read with them, I want to answer their questions. I want to have those important life talks.

Is it important to strive for higher education? Yes. Is it good to set goals? Of course.

I still have goals and plans to finish school, but I realized tonight that there is no rush. I know what Jon and I still have lots of time together. I will probably start picking away at classes still. But I know in my heart where my main focus should be.

I am so grateful to know that I am a daughter of God. He loves me and He knows what's best for me and when. I know He lives and hears the pleadings of my heart, and leads me in the right direction.

I am so grateful that he lead me tonight.

I'm an Aunt! (for the 24th time on my side)

I had the opportunity given me to shoot the birth of my sister and brother-in-law's 5th baby!

There is nothing more miraculous to me than the birth of a new little spirit... it brings tears every time.

Thanks Andrew and Cassie. I was blessed to be a part of this experience!