A few random photos

I have a few random photos that the kids wanted me to post plus one that I love, so here goes...



This is a castle that the girls built with one of their friends.  I think they did a great job.




Dakota and Megan's fort they built.




Megan in the fort.




Megan got this kitchen from her Grandma D.  It is a birthday/Christmas present.  She loves it so much, and so does everyone else.  All of her friends and even her siblings love to play with it.




Last week we had a yard sale and Rebecca and Dakota had a lemonade stand.  They made a good amount of money.  Both of them want to donate most of what they made to thier school's performance departments.





I forgot to post these from last year but here is Dakota on crazy hair day.




This is one of my favorites.   Xander just loves this hat and he looks so darn cute in it.



Pops Choir Concert

Rebecca LOVES, LOVES, LOVES her choir class at school.  I think she has one of the best chior teachers ever.  Tonight was the first concert of the year.  Her teacher, Miss McCune, likes to make this a pops concert with music that is familiar to everyone.  I loved the song choices this year.  We really enjoy going to her concerts.


Rebecca in her concert choir dress.



She has made some really good friends in choir.



This was the final song of the performance.  It was all 4 of the school choirs combined.



"Stand Ye In Holy Places"

We are so grateful to live in an area where the Lord has decided to place one of His holy temples.  We are so excited to be able to watch the process of the building of the temple from start to finish.  The first part of the process that we were able to attend was the ground breaking ceremony where one of the General Authorities of the church blesses and dedicates the land on which the temple will be built.  For the Payson Temple it was Elder Dalin H. Oaks.


 Photo by Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News

 In his talk before the dedication he talked about his ties to Payson and why this temple has a special place in his heart.  After his dedicatory prayer the land that we were standing on is now holy ground.



Official spot for the ground breaking.

 We watched as preparations were being made to accommodate 5000+ people for the ceremony. 



This is the site of the ceremony before any work was done.

 


Here they flattened out the area of hills where people would ride their motorcycles.  It was just behind the area where they set up the chairs.

 


Setting up a lot of chairs.





Seating for 5000.



It got really busy the night before the dedication and we even got a phone call from the city of Payson warning us of road closures and heavy traffic delays for the morning hours (I was told by some of our neighbors that ran errands that morning that they had to prove they lived there before they could get back into the neighborhood.) 



This was at the end of our block.



The morning of the dedication I went out early to get some pictures and to save our spots in the standing room area.  Lizzie, Rebecca, Dakota and myself were the ones that were able to attend.  Because of how early we had to be there plus the rain and the cold we decided it would be best to leave the two little ones at home. 



Lizzie, Dakota, and Rebecca all bundled up in their Sunday best.



 It was such a wonderful experience I had with my older girls. We got a spot right up front and Lizzie was able to watch the ASL interpreter that was there which was really fun.  I don't know as many ASL words as Lizzie does but I was still able to understand a lot of what was being signed.  Anyway, it was very cold and a little drizzly but that didn't stop most people from attending. 



Two of the six busses plus some of those who had to park half
a mile away.  I am so glad we onlly had to walk half a block.



The sea of umbrellas.



Just before the prayer the rain stopped and the
umbrells came down.  The crowd seemed endless.



I got lots of pictures of the chaos going on while the buss loads of people were coming but my camera's battery died just as the ceremony started so I had to borrow pictures from other people of the ceremony itself and the first dig. 



 Photo by Scott G. Winterton, Deseret News



After the dedication I was surprised to hear that anyone who wanted to would be able to use the special golden shovels to break ground as well.  I can't explain the joy I felt at this temple ground breaking opportunity with my eternal family. 



The plaque on each of the shovels specially made for this occasion.



 The girls and I went back home to get CJ and the little ones (plus give a quick charge to the camera) so that we all could break the temple ground together. 

The girls each saved a program from the ceremony (Dakota saved a little of the dirt too) and will record this experience in their journals.  It was a very spiritual morning and we can't wait for the next part of the building process to begin.



Payson Utah Temple



"We Thank Thee O God For A Prophet"

It's General Conference time again and I was so looking forward to the uplifting and inspiring talks that I would hear.  When I was younger I loved conference time because I got to sleep in and didn't have to get all dressed up, but also because of the good feeling I had while listening.  I didn't remember anything that was said because I didn't understand much of it but I still enjoyed watching it.  Now that I understand what is being said I look forward to conference more than ever and I don't even mind getting dressed up even though I am watching it at home.  For this General Conference however our Stake was given tickets.  I don't know how many times before that has happened but this was the first time the tickets were offered to us.  When we were offered the tickets to go to the Conference Center and be in attendance we jumped on the chance.  I asked for 5 tickets so that we could take the three older girls with us.  That's a lot of tickets to ask for since they want to let as many people go as possible but I just couldn't bear the thought of leaving the girls behind.

To say that the girls were excited when they found out that they would be going to the Conference Center for the Saturday morning session of conference was an understatement.  They didn't even mind how early they would have to get up on a Saturday to get there on time.  They were amazed with everything they saw just getting from the parking lot to the building.

There were sooooo many people.  I don't know that they have ever been to a place so crowded that they could remember.  There were at least 100 people holding signs or just plain asking for any extra tickets, and those were just the ones on the side of the building that we entered on.  They also got to see the protesters that just can't stay away.  I honestly expected to see more protesters but there really weren't that many.  Thankfully they were not like the protesters at the Manti Pageant who actually come up to the youth thinking they are easier targets.  They were loud but peaceful protesters.

Trying to take your picture outside was not an easy task.  You had to be fast and take your pictures before the crowd walked in front of you or did something else I didn't even expect, they stood in line behind the camera hurrying you along because they like the spot you chose to take pictures too.  I took more pictures than usual so the girls were getting tired of the camera and just wanted to go sit down.

The girls were a little surprised that they had to go through metal detectors and have our bags searched to get inside.  Once inside though things felt more reverent and we couldn't wait for things to get started.  I took a few more pictures before promising the girls that the camera would finally be put away (although after it was over I found one more spot where I wanted to take pictures so I did break my promise...sorry girls.)

Getting there early enough to make sure that you had a seat meant that you had plenty of time to converse with your neighbors.  There was a group of high school girls sitting in front of us that came from Palm Springs, California.  The gentleman sitting next to Dakota was from Canada.  I forgot which part but he said that he has come down for many Conference sessions over the years.  The last time he came they brought 31 of the youth with them.  He was fun to talk to and even had ties to our little city of Payson.

The one thing the girls looked forward to more than anything was standing for the Prophet when he entered the room.  I told them of the hush that instantly fell over the crowd as everyone stands for the Prophet.  They waited and watched but as the crowd quieted and everyone stood we were all surprised to see that the Prophet did not enter with Presidents Eyring and Uchtdorf.  I could see some scrambling going on with last minute changes to the program being given to the conductor of the meeting as the Prophet is usually the first speaker.  A few minutes later the program began with the Prophet's chair remaining empty. 



No worries however.  As we all stood to sing the song for intermission the Prophet quietly appeared.  Then true to his nature made a little joke about his tardiness and proceeded to make his usual new Temple announcements that got the whole Conference Center buzzing and just filled me with a spirit so strong that I was unprepared for it.  When it was over the girls were surprised at how fast time had gone.  They said it felt like they had barely sat down and now it was time to go.  They enjoyed Conference ever so much more when they were in the presence of the speakers then they do watching it at home with all the distractions and temptations to just lay your head down and go back to sleep.  Like me they wish that they could be there for every session of Conference.  When I lived in Colorado it was hard to get Conference on TV and there was no internet (yes, I am as old as dinasours) so we used to get dressed up and go to the Stake Center to watch Conference.  I really wish we had that option here.  If I cannot be at the Conference Center for the talks than I would at least love to be at a Stake Center rather than in my living room.  It just means so much more when you get dressed in your Sunday best and congregate with others in a quiet meeting house where there are less distractions.  I guess that is just wishful thinking for now. 

I can't express enough how grateful I am for this experience.  It is certainly right up there as one of my most favorite memories with my children.

Saying Goodbye...

...to popcorn, peanuts (all nuts really), licorice, corn on the cob, hard candy, caramel, and all other things on the no-no list for braces.  Today was B-day for Dakota.  When Dakota was loosing her baby teeth the dentist noticed that her teeth were not growing in correctly and were not pushing out her baby teeth as they should.  To try to prevent her permanent teeth from simply growing above her baby teeth (this is how I got my "fangs") the dentist pulled out 4 baby teeth.  He told me that she would still need to see an Orthodontist pronto.  I wasn't able to take her to see one back then so I just hoped for the best.  She did end up needing braces but since her teeth grew in mostly straight (thanks to a great Dentist) her time under wire hopefully won't be as long as Lizzie's.

 

Giving the "thumbs up" that the process isn't as bad as she was dreading.

This is the blackmail picture I plan to use if she thinks about dating before she's 25.

Putting the brackets on.

Alexander was not liking what he was seeing.  I think he was afraid that he was next.

Almost done.

Still a beautifully contagious smile.

Early Birthday Surprise

My parents attended a family reunion for my dad's side of the family up in Colorado earlier this month.  They drove to Colorado from Arizona and on their way home they decided to visit my mom's brother in Grand Junction.  From there they decided to go home through Utah stopping for the night in Cedar City because there were many places along the way that my dad wanted to take pictures.  My mom called me up and asked if we could drive down to Cedar City to meet them so we could spend some time together.  Of course I jumped on the chance to see them and visit with them so as soon as we could we jumped in the car and were on our way.

There is a gas station in Beaver that has a giant rocking chair in front where I have always wanted to take a picture of the kids but it was always night time when we passed it.  Since we were traveling in daylight this time I was really excited to get their picture in that chair.  Wouldn't you know it, just as we got out of the car to take pictures it started to rain so we did the best we could before the rain started pouring.

My parents had rented adjoining hotel rooms for us to play in...I mean sleep in.  My parents took the girls shopping for a present from Grandma and Grandpa.  We got back to the hotel and my dad was showing me some of the pictures he had taken on the way home from the reunion when my mom asked me to come to her room.  I opened the door and the kids jumped out and yelled "SURPRISE!".  Turned out when I was walking around the store with my dad, Rebecca and my mom were secretly buying birthday decorations for my surprise birthday party. 

No make-up and travel hair but here is my picture anyway.

It was so much fun!  I was totally surprised and wasn't even thinking about my birthday but I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present. 

This was one rockin' party!

My dad took a picture of the "paparazzi" taking my photos as I opened my presents.

Couldn't resist adding this sweet picture of Megan.

My parents and the kiddos.  Thank you so much Mom and Dad for a really wonderful time together.

I have been blessed with such a wonderful family.  I am so grateful that we are all sealed together for eternity because I couldn't imagine even one day of forever without my wonderful family.