2008 Newsletter

What a great year! I'm amazed at quickly the time has flown and already we are welcoming in 2009 in a few days. Here's a recount from our family -

Jhonny broke out with Halliburton in April and has been dealing with the frustrations of the oil field. The biggest transition has been in getting used to the schedule and being gone for days at a time. In his spare time he has been busy doing home improvement projects. He teaches the Deacon's quorum on Sundays and tries to make it to Mutual on Wednesday nights.

In June I gave birth to Gavin 3 weeks early due to PIH. It took a while to recover, but I soon found myself looking for more to do with my time. I took on a babysitting job to earn money for dance lessons for the girls and joined the local MOPS chapter. The biggest transition came when I was released as a counselor and pianist in the primary and called to be the Relief Society President of our Branch.

Jessica turned 6 in June and started First grade. She is at the top of her class and has E's on her report card in all her subjects and conduct. The biggest accomplishment came last summer when she shocked the primary by reading her own talk. Everyone broke out in applause and she had a big grin on her face. Her reading has only soared since then. Jessica is also involved in her fourth year of dance. Jessica has been a big helper and great big sister to Lily and Gavin.

Lily turned 2 last April and has been celebrating her birthday every day since it seems. Whenever her dad brings home a treat or when I pull out a new (hand-me-down) outfit she shrieks with pleasure at her new "birthday" present. Lily started dance lessons this year at Lisa's dance and after two lessons of the Mom and Me she was more than ready to move on to the pre-ballet class by herself. Lily loves to learn and play and is always doing something new. For a kid who hasn't grown more than 32 inches in the last year, she sure has gotten "big." Her latest accomplishment is getting potty trained! Yeah!! Mom is most excited about that one. Lily continues to entertain us around here with her antics and latest phrases.

Gavin was born June 16th and has been steady on his growth chart. He has a big grin and loves attention. He is finally sleeping through the night, rolling over and almost sitting by himself. He is a cuddly baby who loves the most expensive pacifier. I'll do anything to prevent another thumb sucker. He also cries alot when he isn't getting enough attention to which his sisters are a great help. We look forward to seeing him grow and develop. He is babbling at us and when he's upset it sounds a lot like, "Mama".

Our family took a couple of vacations this year enjoying Zion's Park in Utah for my grandmother's 80th birthday/family reunion. It was great to see cousins that have grown and catch up on everyone.

We also took a weekend to go to Grapevine and visit the Great Wolf Lodge in September. It was loads of fun and we made some great memories there.We are optomistic about the future. Even though we may pass through some tough times, we are sure of the Lord's tender mercies and his watchful care. We are grateful for our testimonies and the blessings of the gospel. We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Please excuse the mess and neglect. . .Relief Society President under construction

"Have you ever been married to a Relief Society President before?" This was the question I posed when my husband asked if all Relief Society Presidents spend so much time on their calling. I couldn't answer that, because I've never lived with one before. I was out on my own when Mom got that calling. She attested to me that yes - this job is time consuming and very near the equivalent of a Bishop. So I'm thinking probably - um - yes, I'm sure other Relief Society Presidents spend so much time on their calling, but perhaps not since other RS Presidents have a full commitee including a VT supervisor, secretary, a whole Enrichment commitee and not to mention three teachers to help her do her job. I've got 2 counselors and 1 teacher. So I may spend a little more time than most. . .but that is the beauty of living in a branch.
On a happier note - I think things are going very well so far. I'm more excited about Visiting Teaching than I think I've ever been. Perhaps it's because with the help of the missionary couple in our ward that has spent the past four months hunting down every member on our records, I now have a better understanding of all the members I've never met - which is quite a few. I've never felt quite so concerned for the welfare of so many all at once and I've never been quite so impressed or inspired so maybe it's the extra energy boost of the Spirit that is keeping me going?
In the beginning I was daunted and worried about finding the time to meet all the needs of our branch. But as I've fallen into this role and learned my duties, I've gotten excited. My counselors are wonderful and supporting. I know I'm on the right track when they are thinking exactly what I'm thinking and they say okay let's do it - even when I'm not sure they want to take on more responsibilities. They're awesome! They're on fire and they are getting me geared up too! I loved our lesson on unity and working together for a common goal. That's what we need. Unity to pull this all off.
And the highlight of my week other than the great program that our Choir director put together for Sunday- was Friday night when I dragged my family out to go caroling and visiting to some neighbors and some of the less active sisters on my VT route. No one begrudged our coming and it was a good feeling to wish some people a Merry Christmas and let them know we care. Santa even came along for our visits! It was pretty nice and my favorite part about Christmas so far.
Now if only I can get around to wrapping all the gifts I've got hidden around the house.
I'm hoping the next couple of days will be my own. Hoping. But I've hoped that before with less luck. So. . .?
Merry Christmas! I hope that you all are able to feel the Spirit of Christmas or rather the Love of our Savior during this hectic time!
And I do know that with a little experience things will level out and I'll get that balance my family and my sisters need from me.

La Macarena. . .Gavin style

Not sure how Gavin feels about all that lovin. . .

Visitors. . .

We enjoyed the company of our friends over the weekend after Thanksgiving. Too bad some of us caught a stomach bug. Otherwise it was great fun having them here. The highlights: kids playing and a trip to see Twighlight (without the kids), just hangin out and a photo shoot before they headed home.

Lily and Dawson had a great time. They were inseperable most of the weekend.

Jessica, Jeffrey and Dylan taking turns on the computer game. Too bad it was so cold outside. (Although that didn't stop them all from hitting the sandbox more than once.)

Picture fun. . .Gee, do ya have to leave? Lily was pretty determined to go too. We discussed trading kids for a week. "I'm going with Dawson," Lily informed us after hearing the hypothetical plans. Hmmm, she seemed pretty willing to trade me in for a new mom if it meant more time with her friend and extra attention for being "too cute."

Lily the problem solver. . .

How do you wash your hands when you're too short to reach the faucet?

Where there's a will, there's a way.

Sorry I've been a bit incognito

It's finally out of the bag so I can post again. The biggest thing on my mind for the past couple of weeks has been this new calling I officially recieved yesterday. It came as quite a surprise as it's the one calling I would never ask for or consider myself as a candidate for, but somehow my name came up multiple times and here I am, the new Relief Society President of the Rockdale Branch. You may think, "What?" As did I, but I have been reassured many times that I am the right person for this job. We shall see. I'm certainly willing to give it a shot if that's what the Lord wants me to do. I look forward to lots of growth in the near future.
As with any new challenge, I am sure the Lord will qualify me for this new job. I have no doubt about that. I'm looking forward to getting things under way and discussing stuff with my presidency. When asked what I would do if I were called to this position my immediate response was, "I'd call me some really good counselors." Well, someone must have listened to my request, because I got two of the best ones I could have asked for.
So I could say that I don't really have a clue as to how to be a Relief Society President, but I feel that's a pretty weak excuse, because huh - the Lord knows what I need to know and I guess he'll let me know if I'm not doing it right. And then there's this handy thing called a handbook - so I really have no excuse. As my support people have said and I know from past experience in other positions when I "haven't had a clue" - the Spirit will guide and teach me along the way. What more can I do? I have a way of learning things pretty fast - so I'm not really too worried yet about all that I don't know. I guess I've gotten away with being free from the fire for a while and it's time to stretch again. Lucky me!
Anyway - now you know. That's what's been keeping me away from the bloggersphere for a while. I hope to post more soon. I do have some pics from Thanksgiving with our friends and a few other fun things. . . more later if I can.

Musings on a Sunday afternoon. . .

I love my neighbor. I'm not speaking metaphorically. I'm speaking literally. My neighbor across the street is the sweetest friend. She came over for some help a couple of months ago after she found out I sew when I graced her garage sale and rummaged through her masses of material. Ever since we've been popping back and forth.
I sent Jessica over last night to help her put up her Christmas tree. With problems in her family all around, she almost didn't want to put one up at all. So I was happy to lend her my little helper to make sure it happened. Anything to liven up her spirits. Jess got to play with their Wii in exchange for her services and is anxious to go back and finish "helping".
She came by this afternoon again needing help. I was so pleased she trusts me enough to ask. She offered to pay me - I'm getting tired of that. How am I to get any blessings when people keep trying to pay me to help them? I guess it's hard to ask and accept help these days.
I may find a way to refuse her money. I don't want it, really. I'm happy to have a friend, that's all.
When my mom had to go back to work, we moved into town. Around the corner lived a girl who was in my first grade class. Just so happened she was also a member of my church. We became best of friends. It also worked out that her family had a sibling to match in age almost every sibling in my family. Four out of Five of our kids became best friends with theirs.
Since Mom worked, we ended up at their house after school almost daily for years. Luann graciously took us in, no questions asked along with her 7 kids that she already had. Imagine up to 12 kids or more running around under one roof, all playing their own games. Sometimes, Luann would let me and her daughter help her with the various crafts she was working on. She taught me how to crochet and a little bit how to knit. Back then, it wasn't a play date. It wasn't day care, and it was rarely announced. We simply dropped in whenever our hearts desired.
It wasn't until almost nine years ago when we learned that Luann was killed in a car accident that Mom expressed to me her gratitude for Luann watching out for her kids when we were younger. I'm sure Mom would have paid her if she could have, but she really didn't have it and Luann never asked for it. We were friends and neighbors. I miss those days. I miss Luann and I hope she is being justly rewarded for her kindness and service on the other side. She may not have been a perfect woman in some regards, but her door was always open to me and my family. For that I am truly grateful and I love her dearly.
I think sometimes it's hard to find a good neighbor. One that you feel so comfortable around that you can just drop by anytime. Or at least it seems more rare than it once did. So this Thanksgiving, I'm grateful for good neighbors.

The first step to Tae Kwon Doe. . .

. . .is learning how to coordinate the kick and the hie yah!

Okay, so Gavin did roll over by himself. He did it yesterday for the first time, but I missed it! Today he did it 4 times, but I only saw the last one. I put him down on his back and turned around to find him on his tummy. Then while I tried to observe him, he wouldn't do it. When I did catch him in the act I was pretending not to look. Way to go Gavin!

My Little Storyteller

Lily's version of the 3 Little Pigs.

What the moon said to Lily

"Mom, I heard the moon last night."
"What did he say?"
"He likes cheese!"

The hearts of the children. . .

My family has a young gene. We are and feel much older than we look. My Mom could be my sister and often has been mistaken for such. I decided I must get it from my Grandparents who seem and act much younger than they are.
Grandma told us that the eye doctor told Grandpa he had pretty good eyes for a 61 year old. They paused and said they had kids who might take offense at that. The doctor said, "How old are you?" He replied, "81." She said, "Well, you've got REALLY good eyes for an 81 year old!"
I'm still amazed that they packed up their car and drove the two days down here from Idaho at their age. I kept calling my parents to ask if they REALLY were coming this time?? They really did and it was so good to see them.
They came with my parents to see Jessica in the primary program. I was playing the piano for it, so technically I was involved as well. Jess amazed everyone by reading her parts all by herself. For 8 kids, they did a fabulous job and we couldn't be more proud of them.
After church, the grandparents came over for dinner. We had a full house and the visit was much too short. If only I didn't have kids and other interuptions. I would have enjoyed sitting around all day and night just chatting with them and enjoying their company. I'm sure their days are numbered although it's hard to believe. They seem just as young and full of energy as they did 30 years ago. It will be a shock and a sad, sad day when either one of them passes on to the other side.
In Sunday school today (the brief ten minutes I was there for) we were talking about Malachi and Elijah. I thought about the hearts of the children turning to their fathers and the fathers to their children. As I sat cherishing the time with mine, I know the feeling. . . I love my family and my roots. I wonder if Grandma and Grandpa feel like roots. I can tell they love their branches. All 7 children plus spouses, 43 Grandchildren plus however many spouses and soon to be 40 Great Grandchildren. They know them all. In fact they have this huge tree in their house with little windows for pictures of their kids and grandkids. . .needless to say it ran out of room for everyone years ago.
Just as they were leaving Grandpa came over and almost with tears in his eyes he hugged me and paid me compliments. I could tell he was proud of me. I'm not so sure I was so deserving, but I'm humbled by it. I've heard this from my other Grandparents as well. Though I sometimes think they see a grander version of the real me, they do inspire me to live a better life and honor their heritage and faith. I want to make them proud. It's nice to hear it and see that they sincerely mean it. I wonder if that's what Malachi means by turning our hearts. . . I'm so blessed to be a twig on this family tree. I hope my children will come to know how blessed they are to share this heritage.

Lily cried as they pulled out of the driveway saying, "Where are they going? I want my Grandpa!" she wasn't ready for them to leave either.

I'm afraid we stayed up a bit late tonight playing and laughing after our visitors had left. How great is it that these relationships will last forever? And someday we won't have to say goodbye?

Just for Ginger and anyone else who cares. . .

Mexican Chicken Chowder my way.

1 can black beans
1 can corn
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken chunks (large can size) (Or cooked chicken)
1 package taco seasoning (I use half of it)
3 cups chicken broth (water and boillon cubes work for me)
8 oz sour cream
Tortilla chips and Cheddar Cheese (We use fiesta blend) (optional)

You can add green chilies or onions and stuff, but my kids won't eat it with that.

Mix all ingredients except for the sour cream, tortilla chips and cheese in a pot (or crock pot) and heat through. Stir in sour cream with a cup of soup and then mix in with the rest. Heat through and serve with tortilla chips and cheese. It can be cooked up pretty fast or done in the crockpot to be prepared earlier and used later.

Trees are falling all around. . .

The young men and Elder's Quorum have been planning to come and cut down our dead Walnut tree for some time. At last the project was realized this morning after a long evening of Halloween celebrations. The men were gracious to sacrifice sleep and their time by arriving promptly at 8:00am to start the tedious job of chopping down a tree and hauling it off.

By why stop at just one? Our neighbor had a chat with Jhonny this past month about tree cutting. He had a guy who quoted him $1200 to take out his two pine trees and would do ours for $600. Jhonny politely declined the offer saying that though it was a fair price, we had a better deal. He asked, "How much?" "Um, free," he replied. "Well you can't beat that," he said shaking his head.

After sharing this story with me, I wondered why not cut the neighbor's trees, too? Why should we be the only beneficiaries, here? Let's take it a step further shall we?

So after getting the okay from our laborers, I knocked on the neighbor's door and asked if we could take out their trees for them. Mrs. Neighbor looked at me in unbelief when I told her it was a free service by the men from our church and her eyes teared up as she gratefully accepted the offer telling us it was a Godsend.

It would have been great had it ended there, but they insisted on giving us a donation for the church. Okay, rob us of our blessings why don't you? JK. The men and boys worked hard for donuts, drinks and pizza.

It's kind of amazing the attention we drew from the neighborhood. People slowed down to see the action, one car stopped just to watch one tree fall. Our neighbor from the other side came out of his house and talked to me for the first time since we moved in a year and 1/2 ago. The neighbors across the street came out to observe as well. I noticed a kid come out of his house just to watch. It was quite the event. Even Gavin didn't want to miss the action.

Happy Halloween

Ocupado!

Let's see. . .
first there was conference
then a new babysitting commitment for once a week
a new baby (a friend's - not mine)
a sewing frenzy (two dresses in one week)
a baby blessing
a mission report
another new baby
MOPS! Yeah!
a trip out of town
Super Saturday!
a birthday
a new friend
another new baby
a stake auxilliary meeting
a sewing frenzy (Mermaid costume for new friend's grandaughter)
a sick child
a branch activity
a primary program practice
more sewing frenzies (Renaissance costume for daughter)
a visit to see one of those new babies
Halloween just around the bend.

Think November might let up a little?
This is about the time someone usually reminds me to learn how to say, "no" and you'd think I'd learn. . .

What happened to October?

Wasn't it yesterday that I was sitting in front of my TV watching conference? Now I'm frantically trying to finish a costume for Jessica before Friday (i.e. Halloween and the END of the month!) Pictures to come. . .

Today is my birthday, shout hurray!

We want to sing to me today. One year older and wiser, too. Happy Birthday to me!
Yep, it's finally here. Grand old 36. It's a nice even number divisible by 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, and 12! I like 36. It's an easy number to manipulate in an equation. . . not like 53 or 71 that's not divisible by anything but itself and gets you all frustrated because you can't do anything with it and makes your brain turn to mush trying to figure out how it fits in. No, I'll take 36 with all it's options.
I might make myself a cake and cream peas and potatoes to celebrate. If not - I won't be too sad. I had a great weekend with good friends. . . so can't complain!

Something to blog about. . .

Friday, after a full week, I rushed to complete Jessica's dress to match Lily's for Gavin's special day at church. We've been anticipating this day for almost four months. My younger brother finally came home from his mission and we were excited to see him report. My mom suggested that we just combine this occasion with Gavin's blessing and have a super family dinner afterwards to celebrate October birthdays in the family (Ray, Mandy, and Me.) So it was a full weekend.

Earlier on in the week Dad asked me to speak along with Jake in church. I was crazy to say yes, but by the time I realized it, it was too late to back out. Friday night we caught up with Jake and went to bed LATE. I dreamed that I was at the church meeting and it was my turn to give the talk, but I hadn't prepared my talk yet!?! When I woke up, what a relief to realize that it was still Saturday and I still had a day to prepare!

However first we had plans to go to the temple and do some work for Jhonny's family. They've been waiting a long time for this to be completed and words can't describe the amazing experience it was to be in the temple and do some of this work for them. We were fortunate enough to have a Spanish Sealer to officiate in the ceremony. He performed the ordinance in Spanish and the Spirit was incredible. I could feel the gratitude, humility, love, excitement, and relief of these wonderful people that I'm pleased to say are my family.

No time to dwell on this wonderful experience however, because I still had a talk to write. So we hurried back home and after getting my baby situated, I began working on it. This is tough for me - not because I have a hard time speaking, but because I can go on forever. Knowing this was a special day for Jake to speak, I didn't want to take up too much time, yet I really wanted to say something worthwhile in the short time given. So, it took me a little time to write it and all day to RE write it and edit!! I finished about 10pm and turned to finish putting buttons on the girls' dresses and getting things ready for the next morning.

Sunday I was pleased to find out the Elliotts, who were in our ward in Venezuela and participated in our wedding, made it out to the meeting. Brother Elliott, David Amadio (my best friend's husband), the Bishop of my parent's ward, my dad and brother were all there to stand in the circle to help bless Gavin. It was a beautiful blessing and I can definitely say I'm grateful for the priesthood!

My talk went well according to my feedback and Jake's talk was perfect. He also sang a song and did a beautiful job topping an already wonderful meeting.

After church we gathered at Mom and Dad's house for food. Tiffany, Jake's long time buddy that he's known since birth drove up from Clute for the day. The missionaries came over and Tanya was blessed to be able to drive a car down for Mom and made it too. Mandy and Jason's family were obviously there and we had great food and lots of dessert choices. After us birthday people blew out our candles, Grandma let all the rest of the grandkids blow out a candle too.

The time came too quickly to leave for home. It was one of those times that everything met all my expectations and beyond.

Got Milk?

Can you get a bug over the internet. . .?

I've been looking forward to conference for a while now. I was pretty happy that it finally arrived. However as I sat before the TV, an itch began in the throat. Then a sinus headache slowly came on until I was in MISERY. Double my misery because the kids began to whine from not getting enough sleep the night before. Triple my misery because I really wanted my peaceful, spirit filled awe inspiring conference weekend.

Jess was NOT happy about the fact that I hadn't bought candy for conference bingo. I figured that the 14 page activity packet would be interesting enough for a change, but she is quite set on our year old tradition and decided during Saturday morning to have a melt down about it. Good grief.

By the afternoon my head was spinning and the medicine I took for it knocked me out. I really didn't get much out of the second session at all. When my husband left for the priesthood session, I put the kids to bed (7:00pm) and fell miserable into my bed.

I must have really needed the sleep, because my husband found the girls awake when he got home and they watched "Shark tales" together. I was completely oblivious to all of this.

At the midnight hour, I woke up to feed my baby and had the most miserable nausea hitting my stomach. I thought of my blogging friend's post about soda crackers and Sprite and wondered if I caught something from reading her blog? I thought back to little kids mentioning that their stomachs hurt and I trying to decipher what kind of pain they were referring to. Perhaps I was plagued with this so that I would know? Did I eat or drink after one of them unknowingly? Could it have been that noodle that I suspected of going bad and tried out just to be sure? I vowed to throw it out the next morning to avoid this again. I finally fell asleep again dreaming about the source of my pain.

Fortunately, Gavin was gracious enough to sleep in until 7am after I fed him. I woke up feeling MUCH better and found my bed filled with kids that trickled in as they woke up.

Today was better. We rewatched the second session of conference before the 11:00am session. I'm glad we did. I missed some valuable counsel yesterday and especially loved Elder Holland's talk on the ministering of Angels.

The video of Pres Monson brought tears to my eyes. I hope that I can be so obedient to the promptings of the spirit some day. Wow. What a man of God! I love our prophet.

During the morning session, the girls disappeared to play in their rooms. When they came back, I informed them how disappointed I was. Jess asked me why. We had a short discussion on the importance of listening to the prophet despite her perspective of how "boring" it is. She repented and tried her best to listen in the afternoon. Lily obediently took a much needed nap.

I feel like I've feasted today. I hope I can implement the counsel in the days, weeks, and months to come. Happy conference, everyone.

Great Wolf Lodge

Jessica wanted to try this on her own. I was pretty impressed! For the relatively FEW times we've been able to go swimming this year, Jessica has really improved in her swimming abilities. She went on ALL of the water slides. She took me on the "Red" one that was in my opinion kind of scary, but she said it was merely, "exciting". What a brave little girl. She definitely gets that from her daddy. Lily and I are a bit more cautious about such things.

This past weekend we took a quick trip to Grapevine, TX to enjoy the Great Wolf Lodge. It had tons of attractions for the kids to enjoy. We spent two days in the indoor water park, ate great food (their breakfast buffet had EVERYTHING you could possibly imagine for breakfast for kids and adults including a pancake bar made to order), watched an animatronic story in the lobby before bedtime, watched a movie on the flat screen TV, slept on the most comfortable bed I've had in a hotel in a LONG time, and the girls played in the cub club while I visited the spa for a much needed massage! It was a fabulous gettaway for our little family and wonderful early birthday present to me. (We originally reserved this trip over my birthday weekend, but Jhonny's days off were changed and so we moved the reservation up.) Thanks, honey.
We also enjoyed playing Saturday night and Sunday with our friends that we haven't seen in a year. What an exhausting fun trip!
Jeffrey and JessicaDawsonGavin chasing BrooklynDylan and Lily

When Jess got home from school today she and Lily both crashed for several hours. We must have worn them out!

Babysitter

"Look, Mom, I'm the babysitter!"

Doin Dishes

Last week I decided it was high time my girls learned to do the dishes. I have memories of my brother and I standing at the sink - one of us washing and the other rinsing. We weren't ever real excited about doing those dishes or at least I wasn't, but I learned nonetheless.
On the contrary, my girls were SOOO excited at the prospect of this fascinating chore involving bubbles. (My dishwasher is broken.)

It started when Jess said, "This is a wet job," and took off her shirt to avoid getting it more soaked. Lily not wanting to be outdone, followed suit. Pretty soon this led to a strip race until Lily was naked. They finished the dishes and I dumped both of them in the tub for their bath.

sacrifice, a baby shower, and other warm fuzzies

Friday I spent my day in the car. . . It started with a trip to pick up frozen berries for myself and a few others in my branch. I needed to go to the walmart out there to find a gift for this baby shower that we didn't have in our local wanna-be super walmart. . .so I drew the short stick as it were to pick up the lot. . . I enjoyed my rather lengthy wait in line talking to a sister about life as a young mom and kid adventures. . . we laughed and the time seemed short as we pushed her young ones forward. . .mine were buckled up in the running van watching a DVD. She being braver than I. . .

Then on to find the Walmart with the high chair. . .when I walk through a real super walmart, I'm amazed at the selections, the grandiosity of it all. . .reminding myself of the things once taken for granted. . .we found what we were looking for and stopped at the McD's for lunch.

Back home again to make it back for carpool. Oh but first a quick trip to Jessica's school to drop off money that failed to make it into the backpack for needed and wanted items due that day.

Then to meet up with friends to exchange berries before heading out to pick up the carpool. . .one less child to pick up due to strep throat and I worry that my kids might pick it up. They've been a little sick - just congestion, no fever yet - I'm waiting (Lily finally registered fever this afternoon (Sunday) - doctor tomorrow?? more road trips)

Not long to rest for we needed to go to College Station to pick up pictures taken two weeks prior. They were cute - got more than planned.

Then off to Gattitown for dinner. Wish I had been more hungry. Don't know why I wasn't. Home again to fall into bed exhausted.

~~~

Saturday I prepared for the baby shower. This for a friend from Jhonny's work who is here from Columbia with her Venezuelan husband and having her first child, a boy. I've been planning for weeks and I really hoped some people would show up. Fortunately I knew that at least 4 of us would come since we were all assigned a part to put it together. We ended up with 10 ladies total not including the kids (mine) and my husband to hang out with the new dad to be while we ladies did our thing.

Tatiana got some great gifts and everyone was happy to finally MEET each other. Most of us have husbands who work with eachother, and we hear names, but rarely meet face to face. It was good to know of the others who endure the same long hours of missing husbands and other trials. . . It was good and I appreciated those who accepted the invititation to support Tatiana.

Afterwards, Tatiana's husband thanked me like only a Venezuelan can and I felt goose bumps. It was better than a thank you card - really. I wasn't thinking of myself at all through all this, but I guess I did plan it and though I didn't do all the work, I suppose it wouldn't have happened otherwise. He pointed that fact out to me which took me somewhat by surprise.

Perhaps because being a member of the Relief Society, I've taken this sort of thing for granted. Baby Showers, Meals, Service. . . It's like expected. . . The appreciation expressed was one of surprise and sincere gratitude that someone - practically a stranger would do this for them. This all caught me off guard and so when I said the pleasure was ALL MINE. . . I meant it.

~~~

This morning in church, we had one speaker. Rather than preparing his talk yesterday, He was in Lake Jackson wearing a yellow Mormon Helping Hands T-shirt to help clean up debris from Ike's aftermath. Regardless, his words were inspired. He spoke of our Savior and the atonement. He related experiences of how the atonement was applied in the lives of people he has known. He spoke of insights received in Temple service. His words seemed unrelated at times, but I knew better. Being led by the Spirit, he seemed to address one by one issues being dealt with by members of our tiny branch. Perhaps we were being blessed because of his rendered service . . .

I felt like the Spirit was truly teaching us - like we were in the presence of . . . I felt like I was sitting in the temple learning at the feet of the Savior. I pondered my own trials and wondered how the atonement could apply to me. As if on cue, the speaker addressed that issue and I found a little hope or at least a renewed knowledge of how well the Lord knows me and that he indeed knows how to succor my needs. He knows. Others may think they know, but only the Savior REALLY knows my heart. Even now. . .I've felt Him close today. I didn't realize I had been missing Him so much.

Then we just continued to be fed in Primary. C.G. gave his talk on prayer which was eloquent as usual. I'm not sure if it's his ability to deliver or his mother's ability to write, but his talks are always sooo good. I love listening to him read with that little country boy twang that reminds me of a Southern preacher. Sister Husher delivered her lesson on prayer and how Heavenly Father knows us by name. Even though she may not have felt like the message was being received due to some distractions and wiggles, it was a great lesson and I felt it. I love the simplicity of the gospel and the scriptures we read where the Lord called his servants by name. . .

So this afternoon, I've held my children a little closer. I lingered a little longer at my son's crib . . . I held my two year old a little longer. . . I hugged my six year old and told her I loved her. . . I kissed my husband goodbye as he rushed off to prepare for another job tomorrow. . . I'm blessed.

~~~

My husband just called to tell me his truck broke down and he's been waiting for a tow truck. All will be well, but it's certainly not convenient and my heart beat a little faster when he told me he was waiting for a tow - accident? Are you all right? No accident - just truck trouble.

Jess came to ask me if dad was alright. I said he would be. "Thank goodness for prayer," she said. See? Someone was listening in primary today. . .

I finished sewing the romper and should now be back in focus for mothering. . .

I was a little worried that this little thing would be too small - but so far so good. It only needs to fit for another couple of weeks.
We're blessing Gavin in the Copperfield Ward on Oct 12 in conjunction with Jake's mission homecoming talk. Sacrament Meeting is at 8am I think.

Motherhood 101

That's right folks, I've made it to 101 posts on my little family. So I thought I'd post 11 things I've learned in my courses of motherhood thus far:

1. There is room in my heart for all my children; this is easier felt in theory than demonstrated in practice.

2. Saying "No" to your kids is not the worse thing you can do.

3. Passifiers are easier to get rid of than thumbs, although not quite as accessible.

4. Toys are meant to be played with; so there's no sense in picking them up until the end of the day.

5. It's important to take time for myself even if it means I don't get that relaxing soak in the tub until 11pm.

6. Potty training is seriously funny business.

7. Time out IS punishment enough and will work if instigated properly.

8. Coloring is good for dexterity.

9. Motherhood changes perspectives on things once dreaded and now cherished. (i.e. PBS, Nursery, Naps. . .)

10. _______ has already happened and is guaranteed to happen again whether you laugh or yell; so you might as well apply a sense of humor.

11. Praying and Reading scriptures daily helps keep the grumpies away.

End of the day

Mandy responded and they are out of power, but they have a generator so all is okay. I heard Jason was out helping neighbors clean up today. Mom is hanging around until the power comes back on in Houston. We'll see how long that takes.
Mom distracted my kids today so I could get half of Gavin's blessing romper finished today. This is a project that I've been sitting on for over a month. I'm quickly running out of time to get it done, so I'm really happy she came and filled in a little.
The best news I can report is that Jhonny finished the plumbing problem!! The washing machine is back in business! He worked pretty hard, but was able to find and dig out the old pipe, pull it out, roter root out the mess, and replace the old pipe while inserting a clean out that didn't exist previously. Yeah! It looks great and I'm even more impressed with his home improvement skills than I was before. Is there anything this guy can't fix? Given a little time and materials, he really can do it all. Thanks honey!

Ike yikes!

The winds are gusty here in Rockdale, but it looks like this is the place to be if you're in Texas this weekend. Here's the lowdown on our week since things really became a concern.

Thursday: 3:17pm - Rumor of no school on Friday. How obsurd for Rockdale. Cars already pulling through town evacuating from Houston and the coastline.
4:30 A call to the school confirms that Rockdale WILL have school on Friday.
4:35 Leaving for Dance lessons in Temple - gas lines are piling up and campers are passing by. Mom says she's going to stick it out in Houston since the Mayor encouraged inlanders to hunker down and let the coast get out. Dad is asked to forget that emergency relief isn't his job anymore and will consequently be working at the storehouse through the storm. I tell Mom to just come anyway, but she's trying to be brave. Dad had promised to try and come home for the night of the storm so Mom won't be alone.
5:50 Jessica loves her dance class and does great. We were late because we were following an RV going really slow!
6:30 Lily sooo excited for her first class. The teacher suggested we do a mom and me class first. I was willing, but 2 minutes into the class, Lily doesn't need Mommy anymore and has adopted her teacher to take my place. I'm the only Mom with no kid in the class. Okay not really true - Gavin was in his car seat needing me more than Lily and Jessica, who was supposed to be helping me with Gavin, was enjoying the class next to Lily and the teacher. I'm abandoned by my children in the Mom and Me class!
7:30 finally driving home. There is a steady stream of cars heading north.
8:30 Dad calls to inform us that after his bridge call they decided to send Mom to our house because they are expecting Tropical Wind storms Friday morning and Dad doesn't think he'll make it home Friday night.
11:15pm Mom makes it to our house with slow downs on 290 in a couple of places.
11:20pm Dad calls to make sure Mom made it okay. He's staying in the Bishop's Storehouse for the storm and to work the the emergency relief protocal.

Friday
2:00am Gavin wakes me up
4:00am Gavin wakes me up
6:30am Gavin wakes me up and I wake up Jessica for school
7:30 Jessica leaves for school and Katelyn arrives to play with Lily
All day Friday we watch the news to see the progress of the Hurricane. Everyone is happy that Mom made it here.
9:00am Jhonny begins working on the clean out for our sewer line that was clogged up. He pulls out tons of roots and junk from the pipes and ends up digging up two broken pipes to be replaced. I can't do dishes now because the pipe is missing. It's to be replaced hopefully on Saturday.
10:00am We go to Walmart to stock up on food. The parking lot is full of people who have evacuated. Rumors are that there is no more gas. There is still gas, just more expensive.
5:00pm we head to College Station to return the roter rooter (sp?) to Home Depot. Everyone is buying up plywood. We're wondering why they're so worried here in College Station.
6:30pm We get into Gattitown for dinner and enjoy the food and fun.
9:00pm Home and getting ready for bed. Gavin shows signs of a little runny nose. I know I'm going to have a long night.
1:00am Gavin wakes me up
2:00am Gavin wakes me up
3:00am Gavin wakes me up
6:00am Gavin wakes me up
7:00am Gavin wakes me up
7:45am Lily wakes me up and I stay up.
8:00am We finally see signs of some wind in our area. News reports lots of flooding, power loss, and winds in Galveston, Louisiana, and Houston. We can't call Mandy. I'm guessing her phone line is down and probably out of power. Hope she's okay. Not wanting to call Dad because he's probably busy. If you read this call us if you can and let us know you're okay.
9:30am Dad calls to update us. He's on generators at the storehouse since 3:30am. The water tower is out of power. There's no water pressure. Dad got soaked when he went out in the rain to turn on the generator. Trees are down and/or stripped of leaves. There's flooding and no power in Houston. Dad's glad he boarded up the windows at the house. Shingles are off of the older homes. There's a lot of wind, but the Hurricane is over Hunstville by now. The trees were over flat in the wind. Dad says it's the worst storm he's been through. Copperfield Bishop emails dad to let him know they had some roof damage and minor leakage. Dad will try to call Mandy.
9:45am Jhonny goes back to work on the sewer line.

Missing Jhonny

Jhonny is gone again. I saw him briefly last night when he popped in and left again for a job 2 hours later. It's tough being a field engineer's wife. If he's home too much - that's not good for our finances. If he's gone too much, you miss him a lot. I'm getting used to it, but he's been gone a lot lately. He's worked more of his days off than not for the past month. This was to be his 4 day weekend off, BUT the schedule was changed and so he doesn't get a day off now until NEXT Friday.
That will make 37 days with no days off. Meanwhile - I still feel like I'm camping out with a broken dishwasher and a clogged pipe that makes laundry difficult. I've been making do by standing over the machine and holding the drain tube out the door as to avoid more floods in my laundry room. These are the things he's been promising to fix since July 31st. We're well into September now. But how can I drag him out of bed when he is home? Especially when he's working round the clock with 2-3 hours of sleep between jobs?
On a brighter note, I got a job! A perfect job. I'm watching a 3 year old girl three mornings a week for 2 hours each. It's a win-win all around. The money is just right for my purpose for it, Lily gets a playmate, I don't have to leave the house or get a sitter for my kids and I still have a lot of freedom with my time. Best of all it doesn't conflict with my drive to dance lessons - the need for the job in the first place. So it couldn't have worked out better.
I also got an invitation out of the deal to go to MOPS once a week where I get to drop off my kids in the nursery for a couple of hours and play with some other moms in town. I'm all for it! I've been trying to figure out how to make friends in this community for over a year now. It would be great if we had a ward that had lots of moms around wanting to get together - but our little branch doesn't lend itself to midweek activities very well with the price of gas and the geographical area we cover. So I'm excited to see how this goes. . .
One last mile stone to report - Gavin slept in his own room last night for the first time. I was a little anxious about how it would be for him, but he was great. He slept until 2:45am before waking me up for a feeding and then slept again until my alarm went off at 6:45am. Woohoo!

Save you money!

I was on the phone yesterday doing research when Lily asked me what I was doing.
"Saving money," I replied.
"Can I save money with you?" She asked.
"Certainly!" I said. "It goes like this. Clap your hands and shout 'Woohoo!'"
"Woohoo!" she shouted.
After calling my services that were negotiable, I was able to cut our bills down $46 a month. Woohoo! Here's how:
I don't need my landline now that we have a magic jack - I just need the internet. Att said that I don't need a landline any longer to just have the internet - I was able to upgrade our internet service, get a $50 rebate AND still save $17 a month! Consequently our landline phone number will be disconnected next wednesday.
I cut down my cell phone minutes - $20
I tried to cancel my ADT, but we still have a 2 year contract. However the lady said she could knock $10 off of my rate - ? It didn't change any of our services either. How? Don't know, but I'll take it!
Woohoo!

My Sweet Jessie

I'm not sure if Jessica is happy to be in school this past week or not. The first day she was excited to see her friends. So excited in fact that apparently her teacher had to get on her more than once to pay attention and stop talking to them. Being in trouble upset her and it affected her attitude at home. When I put her in time out - something I rarely have to do with her anymore, she told me I didn't understand because her teacher yelled at her that day. I listened and commiserated and we discussed the matter.
Things got better as the week progressed. On Friday she announced that the teacher told her she could sit in the back since she was being so good. I'm not sure this is a great idea, but she took the compliment with pleasure. I hope this teacher learns that flattery will get her everywhere with Jessica.
We got the "site words" for the first test in a couple of weeks. Jessica read them over in ten seconds and tossed the paper aside. I really hope she gets something a bit more challenging soon. She doesn't seem to mind as much as I do that it's too easy for her.
This little girl of mine isn't so little any more. At moments I reflect on how much she has matured over the past year or so. She's lost the "cute" factor. When she's not pulling an attitude with me, she's sweet and pretty. She leaves me notes on my pillow, writes in her journal, reads her own bedtime stories, and tries to do her chores without being told. She's getting ready to lose a third tooth and has more permanent teeth growing in. Saturday, I let her help me make some pans of Lasagna. She mixed the cheeses and helped me with the layers. She's my nose when I'm in doubt and my second set of hands when the baby won't wait for me to finish the dishes or make dinner.
She's growing up. Before I know it, she'll be a teenager and asking me to drive the car. When I was six, the world was slower. Summer lasted forever and an hour was a long time. Now it's a blink of an eye. I wonder if it's the same for her or if time seems to stand still as it did for me?
When I look at her, I see her whole life ahead of her with so many choices and opportunities. My hope for her is to enjoy every minute and to embrace all that life has to offer. I hope she will learn to choose wisely from the buffet of life.

I love you too, Lily Lou

• This tiny tot only looks like she's 1. Her vocabulary gives everyone reason to pause and puzzle over just how old this girl is. She's "smart as a whip" as my mother put it today
• This past week as we were getting the house ready for Grandma and Grandpa's visit I requested her help to pick up her toys. Lily decided it was less painful to just sit in time out and gathered her things to beat me to the time out stool rather than help clean up. After thinking it over, she ended up in an extra long time out. I figured it would work better if she were given the minutes of her intellectual age.
• On parentcenter.com I was reading that her grammar at this age may not make sense. Okay here is a clue that she is truly advanced. Her grammar is nearly perfect. She speaks very well and it doesn't take much to repeat whatever word you say to her. When she doesn't express herself so fluently, it tends to be on purpose like last night when she climbed into Gavin's carrier and said, "Gaga, goo goo. I'm the baby Mom!"
• Lily loves to sing. Her signature hymn is "I am a Child of God" to which she almost knows all the words. While visiting my parents' ward, the nursery leader marveled over the fact that Lily sang during singing time. The other kids looked at her amazed that she was singing because it hadn't occured to any of them that they should do this too. After receiving encouragement and permission, the rest of the class also joined in. Yesterday, during sacrament meeting she declared that she would also sing and did a fair job following Sister Husher in "More Holiness Give Me."
• On a not so Holy note, she rearranged the words to a popular tune mixing up the original lyrics and some that I made up to help along her potty training. My lyrics: "Tinkle, tinkle, little pee, come on out from inside of me." Her lyrics: "Tinkle, tinkle little star, come on out from inside my butt." I have to give her kudos on understanding the idea although I was trying to be less vulgar about it.
• Last night over dessert, we were talking about who would take care of us when we're too old to take care of ourselves. When I asked my girls who would take care of me they both said, "Me!" But then Lily rethought her answer and said, "Jessica!"
• Lily loves her thumb, but sometimes she is willing to work on not sucking it. A few tricks of mine that only work temporarily - lip gloss, and nail polish that speak to her vanity, and Dora. The show suddenly pauses when she sucks her thumb (thanks to TIVO). Of course I have to watch her the whole time for this to work. It's almost torture for her to sit comfortably and concentrate so hard on NOT putting it back in her mouth.
• Lily is independent. She ignores threats and demands things on her own terms. She has come to believe that saying "sorry" abolishes her from responsibility of any wrong doing past, present and future. Now if it weren't for the fact that she is so darn cute, we'd probably be wringing her neck. But she flashes us that cute grin of hers and says something completely distracting that makes you want to laugh or melt rather than yell as she bats those beautiful dark lashes over her chocolatey brown eyes.
• One of my favorites: "Mom, I love you. I want to give you hugs and kisses."

Gummy Gavin

Gavin, gavin, gavin. This little boy is certainly stealing my heart. He's starting to talk and coo at me. The way he looks at me, I can tell he loves his mama. Yesterday in church we were listening to a really great talk that was probably a bit on the serious side when he started his smiling almost giggle over my shoulder. The sister behind me was just as distracted as I was by his bright gummy grin and dimples. What a cutie pie!

Labor Day

We had planned a trip to Houston for Labor day, but my parents decided to come here instead just in case Gustav decided to get nasty. I hope they had fun. The girls didn't want them to leave. We went to the park and then did some window shopping at IKEA. It was packed and even though we saw things we might want, the lines discouraged us from actually purchasing anything but lunch. Jhonny had to work today and so he missed out. Tomorrow it's back to school.

The report is in!!

So Jess reports that she had fun, but can't remember what she learned today. Her teacher read a book called "First Day Jitters." Jitters means when you are nervous and have butterflies in your stomach. First graders DO have water bottles and snacks, too. Oh and there were a lot of "babies" who had to have their parents take them to class. The new cafeteria was WOW! really cool! Everything was great except for Recess because it was HOT and she only got to drink from the fountain for 5 seconds. She was SOOO thirsty Mom! We had icecream with our cookies when she got home from school. That cured the problem.

Brain? Testing, testing, testing. . .

Alphabet? Check!

Left? Right? Check!

Breakfast? Check!

Teeth brushed? Check!

Lunch $? Check!

Backpack? Check!

Teacher's name and classroom? Check!

New school clothes? Check!

New Hannah Montana shoes? Double Check!!

Bus Marcano? Check!

Jessica is already to go! 1st grade here we come!

She didn't even need Mom to walk her in.

Happy happy baby!

That's what I love to see! Those cute little dimples. Gavin loves his swaddleme. This morning I put him in his bouncer and put up the mirror. He looked up at himself and I think I heard him laugh. It's so fun to see him do something other than cry!