"See" A Good Day Challenge - Day 17 - Sisters

I just love this girl! My sister Emily and I are best friends. We talk just about every day, laugh and cry together. The lord knew exactly what he was doing when he put us together in this family. We don't get to see each other as much as we would like so when we got together over the memorial day holiday we just cherish the time. Our children adore each other. Hunter and Jocelyn laugh so much you can just see from the pictures the adorable friendship that they share. Braxton and Henry are only 10 days apart, it will be fun to watch them grow up together aslo. I'm grateful for my sister and I love being Auntie to her children.







Sister quote graphics

"See" A Good Day Challenge - Day 16 - Model Man

As I was walking thru Target I ran into a friend and she says to me.... did you know your little guy is displayed in the mall? When we got his 1st yr pics they asked me if they could use him and I said sure but didn't really think they would... so i was surprised to hear it was up... I was so glad I ran into Gretchen.

Of course I had to go right over and check it out.. this is what the display looked like... pretty dang cute!

You can only imagine that the smile on my face got real BIG... I was a proud momma! Henry's little smile just melts me every time.. he is such a sweet little guy.
Check out our little "Model Man".

The wise man built his house upon the "ROCK"

As I was reading the conference talk by Elder Wilford W. Andersen "The Rock of Our Redeemer", my mind thought about the song... "The wise man built his house upon the rock". Is my foundation of my life built upon a rock so that when the trials come I won't be washed away?!

The begining of the talk shares stories of the early saints that went thru so many trials. :

There the early Saints had come seeking refuge. Many had lost their homes and their farms, and some had lost their loved ones to the growing persecution. In Nauvoo they gathered and built a new and beautiful city. But the persecution was relentless, and by 1846 they were once again forced to leave their homes—this time in the middle of winter. They lined up their wagons on Parley Street, awaiting their turn to cross the frozen waters of the Mississippi River into an unknown future.

As we stood on Parley Street reflecting upon their desperate conditions, my eyes were drawn to a series of wooden signs nailed to fence posts upon which were etched quotes from the diaries of these suffering Saints. As we read each quote, to our amazement what we found in their words was not desperation and discouragement but confidence and commitment and even joy. They were filled with hope, the hope that is reflected by this quote from the diary of Sarah DeArmon Rich, February 1846: “To start out on such a journey in the winter . . . would seem like walking into the jaws of death but we had faith . . . [and] we felt to rejoice that the day of our deliverance had come.”1

These early Saints were indeed homeless, but they were not hopeless. Their hearts were broken, but their spirits were strong. They had learned a profound and important lesson. They had learned that hope, with its attendant blessings of peace and joy, does not depend upon circumstance.

They had discovered that the true source of hope is faith—faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in His infinite Atonement, the one sure foundation upon which to build our lives.

As I sat there reading the talk...I thought WOW these people were amazing... the strength they must have had to overcome trials.

Then I realized, how we in 2010 have our own stories, our own diaries that we write. We are also a group of pioneers, saints that are overcoming SO many trials. I look around me and I'm just amazed at the woman and families that are just keeping the faith and hoping and praying that things will work out. Some have buried a loved one, depression, lost a job, carry the saddness of not being able to get pregnant, have bad health, worry daily about a wayward child, pick up the pieces from a destroyed marriage, debt and addictions, and just have the strength to get up and deal with daily stresses.

My heart was filled with peace when I read this talk. I wanted to post some of my favorite parts of the talk. It really helped me to know once again the lord loves me. He loves all of us.

Hope and happiness and joy are not products of circumstance but of faith in the Lord.

The prophet Mormon, himself no stranger to difficult circumstances, understood and clearly taught this doctrine:

“And again, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you concerning hope. . . .

“ . . . Behold I say unto you that ye shall have hope through the atonement of Christ . . . , and this because of your faith in him according to the promise.

“Wherefore, if a man have faith he must needs have hope; for without faith there cannot be any hope.”

Hope comes from faith in Jesus Christ. He has already overcome the world and has promised that He will wipe away our tears if we will only turn to Him and believe and follow.

Faith grows by keeping the commandments.From the Bible Dictionary we read that “miracles do not produce faith but strong faith is developed by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ; in other words, faith comes by righteousness.”5

When we strive to keep the commandments of God, repenting of our sins and promising our best efforts to follow the Savior, we begin to grow in confidence that through the Atonement everything will be all right. Those feelings are confirmed by the Holy Ghost, who drives from us what our pioneer mothers and fathers called “our useless cares.” In spite of our trials, we are filled with a sense of well-being and feel to sing with them that indeed “all is well"

“Remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.”

I testify of Him, that He has overcome the world, that He will never forget or abandon us, for He has graven us upon the palms of His hands.8 I testify that those who keep His commandments will grow in faith and hope. They will be given strength to overcome all of life’s trials.

"See" A Good Day Challenge - Day 15- Palmer Party

Our family got to see a great day while spending it with our dear family and friends. We are so blessed to be surrounded by amazing people. Justin and Kira came into town and what better way to celebrate than a BBQ and pool party! I know I miss seeing Kira over at the Lowry's house and just chatting with her. They are an amazing family, so full of life and love. Everyone had a fun afternoon in the pool.

This Memorial Day I'm Counting My Blessings Even More, Hugging My Family A Little Tighter and I'm Grateful To All The Solders Who Serve Our Country!

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those who have lost loved soldiers. Brothers, Sisters, Wives, Husbands, Uncles, Aunts, Cousins, Sons and Daughters, Mom's and Dad's. We will be giving special thoughts to my sister in law Ashlea's family. Her Uncle is dearly missed, he truely is a Hero!

Myspace Graphics, Memorial Day Graphics at WishAFriend.com

"See" A Good Day Challenge - Day 14

Hunter and Enoch had a blast at there "Big Boy Sleepover".





They sure did let there imaginations go wild with the cowboy and Indians. I'm so grateful for great friends for Hunter.








They made tents out of mommies sheets and then they realized that beach balls go high up if you hit them under the tent!

There is always Tuesday....

Monday May 24th is now in my books for the worst Monday morning EVER! When I get done with this post, you will think my day sounded like a funny crazy country song. I can laugh about it now .... that is, because it is OVER.

I headed out to take Hunter and his friend to school, then I went to drop Henry off at my friend Kelsey's house. That part of the day went great, no problems, no worries!

Next I was off to my appointment for my results on my cancer scan. Oh yeah that dreaded morning. I even got a cute "positive" text from my friend Lauren to keep me going... I was pumped. No matter the result I was going to be o.k.... well, that is what I thought.

NOW, go ahead and get a visual of this. As I'm sitting in the lobby I look down and there is a piece of cabbage... oh yeah.... CABBAGE showing out of my bra. I have cabbage on my boobs because I had to ween Henry and dry up the milk. And in doing this process you have to leave the cabbage on for 24hrs... You can only imagine my thought as I'm trying to adjust my shirt and bra.... without drawing attention to myself. I had to put good smelling stuff on so that the doctor won't smell the cabbage. Nice huh!

THEN as I continue to sit there I realize my period JUST STARTED... oh nice! So I go to the bathroom and OF COURSE they call my name as I'm in the bathroom.. SOOOOO I do what any desperate girl does... I take half of the paper towel roll and put it in my pants...and I hope nobody notices me walking like I just rode a horse.

The doctor comes in and unfortunately gives me some bummer news! The cancer has gotten bigger and they suggest I do surgery. Apparently the cancer wanted to permanently live in my neck! We discuss some options and then I cried & cried & , cried... did I mention cried! Crying just seems to make it all better for the moment. As the doctor leaves to go call another doctor, here comes another positive text from Chelsey. It did take my mind off of it for a brief moment just long enough to text her and collect myself, you know remove the nose boogers from the crying that you DON"T want the doctor to see...

I tell ya I sure do have earthly angels taking care of me.

After leaving my appointment, I called my sweet Hubby and he was so bummed but very positive. We are grateful that the cancer hasn't spread to any other place. The lord has blessed us in that way and many other way's with AMAZING doctors. As of right now we don't' know anything else... waiting on the doctor's to contact us and let us know what is best for me.

I was grateful for the hugs, emails and sweet phone calls that my dear friends gave me.

It was a LONG day good and bad... with cabbage boobs (Victoria secret watch out... I got the new bra style), cancer results and a my "girlie time" starting (what a mess)... and I'm SO glad it is over.

Hello Tuesday!

Like Father, Like Son

This song is perfect... my son Hunter ADORES his dad! He does WATCH everything he does and wants to just like him!



Drivin’ through town just my boy and me
With a Happy Meal in his booster seat
Knowin’ that he couldn’t have the toy ‘til his nuggets were gone.
A green traffic light turned straight to red
I hit my brakes and mumbled under my breath.
His fries went a flyin’, and his orange drink covered his lap
Well, then my four year old said a four letter word
It started with “S” and I was concerned
So I said, “Son, now where’d you learn to talk like that?”

Chorus:
He said, "I’ve been watching you, dad ain’t that cool?
I’m your buckaroo, I wanna be like you.
And eat all my food and grow as tall as you are.
We got cowboy boots and camo pants
Yeah, we’re just alike, hey, ain’t we dad?
I want to do everything you do.
So I’ve been watching you."

We got back home and I went to the barn
I bowed my head and I prayed real hard
Said, “Lord, please help me help my stupid self.”
Just this side of bedtime later that night
Turnin’ on my son’s Scooby-Doo nightlight.
He crawled out of bed and he got down on his knees.
He closed his little eyes, folded his little hands
Spoke to God like he was talkin’ to a friend.
And I said, “Son, now where’d you learn to pray like that?”

Chorus:
He said, "I’ve been watching you, dad ain’t that cool?
I’m your buckaroo, I want to be like you.
And eat all my food and grow as tall as you are.
We like fixin’ things and holding momma’s hand
Yeah, we’re just alike, hey, ain’t we dad?
I want to do everything you do; so I’ve been watching you"

With tears in my eyes I wrapped him in a hug.
Said, “My little bear is growin’ up.”
And he said, “But when I’m big I’ll still know what to do.”

"‘Cause I’ve been watching you, dad ain’t that cool?
I’m your buckaroo, I want to be like you.
And eat all my food and grow as tall as you are.
By then I’ll be strong as superman
We’ll be just alike, hey, won’t we dad
When I can do everything you do.
‘cause I’ve been watchin’ you."
hey yeah
uh huh

Henry's 1st Birthday!

Our family had fun celebrating Henry's 1st birthday Luau style! Henry had his cousins, Grace, Gavin and Perian over for the weekend. His birthday party was filled with friends and family that loved him. My dear friend Lauren came with her kids, Molly, Maggie, and Gordon. Lauren was at the hospital hours after little Henry was born, she is special to Henry, we can't believe it has been a year. Little Carter and his family also came for the festivities. We are excited to have Henry and Carter grow up together and have playdates. Thanks Salmon, Towers and White family for sharing this fun day with us. Even Stacey a friend of the family came to visit. It was a fun day filled with food and fun! I loved the "big" cupcake idea so much that I used it from my sister in law Ashlea. The cupcake turned out great the SECOND time. It was a hit!!!
Hunter and Mommy had fun making the cupcakes.
Our Big BOY!

Henry's cousin Grace and brother help him open his presents.

Gordon as cute as ever, having fun with the balloons.
Maggie is alwasy so sweet to Henry!
Yuuuuuummmm!
Henry was so funny when he was

Happy Birthday to YOU>>>> HENRY!!!
I'm a big boy now.

Scriptures

Sunday during Relief Society we had a great lesson on "Scriptures". It left me thinking as I was driving home about what I could do as a mom and wife to better the scripture study in our home. Some sisters gave ideas like : keeping a piece of paper and pen beside your scriptures so you can write down simple promptings and thoughts you have when you read. Another woman shared about how a mother wrote scriptures down on a piece of paper then put them in a jar on the table. Each night when the family had dinner they picked a scripture to talk about.

Well I LOVED the ideas so I took it a step further and I decided to keep a basket of primary gospel art pictures on our table. On the back of each picture is a summary of what you are reading about with scriptures and fun information.

Hunter loves being able to pic a picture each night and read about it. He helped me find the scripture and we read it together. The first night he wanted to read 3, I was happy for his excitement. I felt that with a "picture" to view as well as the scripture it might be easier for the little kids to really get involved.

I was grateful for the small and simple reminders we get on Sunday of the things we should and could be doing with our children.

What a powerful quote by ~Marion G. Romney ~

“I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness.”

http://scriptures4kids.com

This is a great, fun, wonderful site that my sister sent to me... Hunter loves it and we have fun learning about the scriptures. Check it out!

Quotes on the Book Of Mormon

Ezra Taft Benson

“I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”

Joseph Smith

“And so, I counsel you, my beloved brothers and sisters and friends everywhere, to make reading in the Book of Mormon a few minutes each day a lifelong practice.”

Marion G. Romney, as quoted by President Ezra Taft Benson

“It was by faith that this marvelous record of ancient peoples, this testament which we call the Book of Mormon, was brought forth by the gift and power of God.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

“The holy scriptures are for children, to fill their eager minds with sacred truth.”

Thomas S. Monson

“[The Book of Mormon] will give you a greater desire to live in harmony with … gospel teachings.”

Howard W. Hunter

“And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.”

Not So Fun Friday

As my week goes on each day I realize I'm only 3 days, 2 days, 1 day away from nursing my baby for the LAST time, and also having a cancer scan.

I feel blessed I was able to nurse Henry for his first year. I know I will miss the bond in the middle of the night, my sweet baby looking up at me smiling and just knowing I'm providing for the perfect innocent baby he is. And of course the pulling my boob across the room as he played and turn around in the middle of nursing, yes even the pain will be missed (some) :). So many sweet memories for sure.

When my doctor said o.k. are you ready to do your PET Scan, I said yes and he said o.k. you have to stop nursing and we will do it Friday! FRIDAY... wow that is so close, I mean that was only a week away...Friday... really! Honestly, I had to fight back the tears in the doctors office and I told him o.k., let's do it.

As I got into the car I just cried, I cried because my "happy bubble" of not thinking or dealing with the realization that I have had cancer and there was a possibilty of it again wasn't in my thoughts for 2 years. My mind was filled with this beautiful baby I was bringing into the world, and now raised for a year. I couldn't believe it was THAT time again. That time that I had to be in a cylinder like machine for 30 mins without moving, with my mind RACING with so many thoughts, good, bad, and uncertain. I always feel so alone and so glad when it is over. I remember praying last time, just praying so I wouldn't feel alone even thou I was in the room all by myself. Peace came over me and I know I'm never alone thru this trial.

At least with Henry I only need to be away from him for 24 hours instead of 1 week like Hunter. I'm soooo thankful that I got to nurse Henry for 1 year and share this bond. Now on to making sure I will be around to see both my boys grow for many years ahead. Friday will be a emotional day, but a new day starting new chapters, with GREAT outcomes I pray.

I'm grateful for amazing friends... Lauren and Chelsey that are loving my boys while I go thru this procedure.. I will glow a little from the radiation they put in my body. Some might think that is pretty COOL.... JUST KIDDING! I'm so thinking since I pretty much have to fast for the time before my appointment I might just be 2 pds lighter or I can totally get a pizza and watch a movie since I will be all by myself for several hours... see there is a "happy" ending to this crazy day.

"See" A Good Day Challenge - Day 13

My Monday Morning was brightened by an awesome email from my brother. My brother Jason has been serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Peru for almost 2 yrs he comes home in 4 months. I got to see how his testimony has grown and he shared this awesome email with me. I loved it and wanted to share with you... check the scriptures.

I learned this week all about that, trials and it was a lesson i learned after a hard month of not having anything. The work is hard where i am at and i was wondering why the blessings aren't coming. I learned alot about the faith and the trust in the Lord. Mostly i learned all about patience and that the lords way is much better. Its funny because if we see a river on the side of a highway we can see that they both go to the same destination. However, who made which? The man made the Highway and God, the river. With that said its obvious that sometimes man wants the way that is strait and fast and easier, like the HIghway, but god´s way is the river where it is windy and slow but always steady and in the end they both go to the same destination. Ive learned alot from this and i found two scriptures that have helped me so very much. They are written from a father and son. Mormon 9:20-21 and my favorite is Moroni 7:33. Now get your book of mormon and read it... Now. It is short but full of truth. The key word is EXPEDIENT and that mean what is convenient to him. The trick is we have to look for his will and then have the faith to do it and then he will bless us. I love this scripture because this week we doubled our numbers and will have so much success after a long month´s process of trial. The Last scripture is found in Mosiah 2: 22. This is a promise to all so i think you should take advantage of it. I love you all so very much and testify that it is the truth. The Lord is great and good to us all. Be safe and stay strong.
Elder Barattiero
PS I love you lots

Greys Anatomy..... I'm so hooked!

O.k. Ladies, I'm so hooked on Greys Anatomy this season. Thursday night is my T.V. night and really I almost lock myself in my room at 8pm on. Any body else a Grey's Fan?!

Boys...Boys...Boys.... BATHROOM!

BEFORE....



















AFTER....... I love this "BOYS" theme because I can change out the pictures as they grow. It is so basic and easy. The only cost was getting the letters, frames, pictures developed and some small wooden character cars and trucks. My cost was $20.00 very inexpesive and I used other items I had in the house to fill that places I wanted. I loved it...... Besides as much as I change my mind it is good to do quick makeovers. :)