What The...?

My girls never did this.

More Stuff

We got a trampoline this week (safety net is in the mail). Pure fun all around.

Alice refused for two years to ride a bike without training wheels. She left her bike right behind the car one day and when we backed out the training wheels broke and nothing else. Justin and I thought this was perfect because it was time to move on to the real deal. But Alice completely disagreed. Then the other day the heavens opened and she changed her mind.
Justin was very patient with her and she didn't give up....


















...but he did. He took off on the little girls bike showing us "how it's done."

Take a Walk

Mark's legs were itching to walk today. The girls were happy to join him while I followed from a distance.

I love their playful shadows in this picture.

Special Blankets

My little Laura was wrapped in her "special blanket" yesterday morning. She was peaceful, happy and had her best playmate with her. This blanket was made by a very wonderful lady and it was a beautifully made blanket. Laura has slept with, eaten with, traveled with, played with this blanket nonstop for the last four years. Now this blanket is thin, tired, and torn. So I asked her if she wanted her blanket with her as she grew up. She said yes, but I didn't think it was going to make it and I told her this. She put on a very brave face and said she wanted to put it in a box and keep it safe...all said with huge tears rolling down her face. She suggested the attic, but I thought she needed it closer. We bought a special pretty box at the craft store, and she gently put her blanket in the box. We made a pretty label and she put it under her bed. She can open it and look at it any time she wants. But she still needed a trusty playmate. While at the store she picked out some fabric to make a new blanket that she didn't have to be careful with. As you can she, she felt much better. Her "special blanket" can't be replaced, but this is a good compromise so she doesn't snuggle her blanket into the puffs of what once was.

I also finished a blanket I was making for Mark, and he wanted to be right there for the dirty work too. I tried to get him to snuggle up with the blanket once it was finished, but he's already made his choice about another. Oh, well. By the way...I'm still sewing today and I'll show you what it is later. Nothing big, but fun for me.

The Piano

Mark thinks that when ever the piano is being played, he belongs on the bench too. He sings sweetly and hardly ever pounds, licks or sits on the keys.

Reverence

We'll just pretend that I didn't snap a picture while Alice was saying the prayer...okay.

Big Changes

It's been a crazy few months for my extended family. In November my Grandpa Jessie, my mother's dad, died. I wish I had some digital pictures of him, especially in his Military Police uniform. They're great and when I get some I'll share a few. Then early this month my Dad's father passed away. They both lived full happy lives and my memories of them are treasures to me. The photo on the left was taken when Grandpa Earl was a young man fishing on the Snake River in Idaho. I've been reading his personal history and here's a small chunk that I loved.

"My earliest memory of Papa is of hearing the front door slam at our home in Lehi, Utah, and of seeing a huge man wearing high-top boots, riding breeches, a leather jacket, and an old felt hat, striding into the living room and calling, "Ruby, I'm home!" I jumped up from where I'd been stacking blocks on the floor, and running to him, I threw my arms around one of those boots. I can still remember the leather laces and the metal lace clips pressing into my cheeks, and the joy of flight as I was carried on the boot foot into the kitchen. There things became a little more crowded as Papa's leg pressed me from the front and Mama's leg pressed from behind. The boots smelled of beet pulp, an odor I love to this day. From the time I was born in 1922 until I watched his casket lowered into the grave at the base of the Wasatch Mountains on May 8, 1942, I was bathed in love by this man."



There's more news about some of the men in my family. We have two new babies since the beginning of the year. My little brother, Brad and his wife had their first little one...a girl. The look on his face says it all.











And my other brother, Greg and his beautiful wife had their fourth child. From what I hear she loves to be sung to and smiles at the sounds and attention.


Daily life in my own house is fun and all, but it's hard to think about those things when loved ones are coming and going with such regularity.