Family Visitors Weekend for Wade's ordination--can we please press repeat?

Last weekend was one for the memory books.  We were so happy to have family visitors in town for Wade's ordination at church.  Turning 12 is a very big deal--he was excited to become a deacon and receive the Aaronic priesthood!  Other bonuses were having family at his flag football game on Saturday and a friendly audience to watch him participate in his final children's presentation during our congregation's sacrament meeting on Sunday.

We all agreed that the weekend couldn't have gone better.  So much food, fun, and laughter!  Thank you to those who made the trip to be with us--we love you and loved having you here in the desert with us.

What a happy day!  Here we are with Sandi Collins, Grandma Deb and Grandpa Rod, Bishop Washburn, Brother Robins, Grandpa Rich and Grandma Donna, Uncle Brant, Aunt Chris, and Greyson!

Happiness!!!

Enjoying the gorgeous weather on the porch--just right!

Being silly with Grandpa Rich

Selfie time!

The flag football game was so fun!  I personally had a great time introducing our family members to any human who walked by, haha!

With my mommy and daddy

I love this picture of Rhiannon with Grandpa and Grandma!

This picture is a little fuzzy, but I love how it captures the grandparents together.  We are so blessed to have parents who get along well and enjoy each other!!!!

Wade with Grandma Deb and Grandpa Rod

Wade with Grandma Donna and Grandpa Rich

Wade with our dear friend Sandi Collins

We were playing a great game that Wade got for his birthday called 5-Second Rule.  LOTS of fun!!!

It's hard to make a Top "10" list, but I'll try.  In no particular order, here are some of our favorite moments from the weekend:

1.  Food.  Beef stroganoff, Red Vines, Bit-O-Honey candy, cinnamon rolls, donuts, nacho bar, chicken salad, sandwiches, chips, taquitos, etc.

2.  Fun at Wade's flag football game!

3.  Being at church together

4.  Uncle Brant surprising Wade with the tie he was wearing that day, Uncle Brant's favorite.

5.  Playing with Greyson upstairs

6.  5-Second Game, playing with the mini-pool game, tossing the football, shooting guns, hot tubbing, and basketball

7.  Help in the kitchen!

8.  Boys watching football, girls talking girl stuff. :)

9.  Grandma Donna's "black people" comment during the 5-Second game.  Classic.

10.  Watching "Blackish" with Grandma Deb and Grandpa Rod; watching "The Flash" with Grandpa Rich and Grandma Donna

11.  WADE'S ORDINATION!!!!!!!!  So neat!

12.  Hearing Wade narrate the Primary program in his new manly voice

13.  Visiting, laughing, press repeat.


We felt the love!  It was a wonderful weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

3 beautiful October sunrises/sunsets

They really have been amazing this month.

Things you learn from your dad

Here's a fun throwback picture from October 2000.  Rhiannon was about 5 months old.  What a cutie!

Earlier this month Rhiannon was bothered about something, but I had to laugh when I got this text:

"I think being my father's daughter I have a hard time when people are being complete idiots."

HAHAHAHA! That was a while ago and I am still laughing about it.  Truer words have never been texted.

Wade is TWELVE today!

More to come.  We plan to celebrate for the next 2 weeks. ;)  We love this kid so much and are very proud of the young man he is becoming!

Billboard

Sometimes I get pointed out publicly in our Sunday congregation.  I'll just be sitting there, smiling at the speaker, enjoying what they're saying, and then that person will start talking about me in a very positive way, for the ENTIRE room to hear.  This has happened at least 4 times in the past year that I can remember.   It is so nice and so embarrassing at the same time.  Because, really, I'm not looking for that kind of attention and I'm N-O-T perfect (ask my family).  There are more deserving members in the congregation who are humbly, quietly living their religion every day, serving more, and following the Savior more diligently than I am.  Those are the people I'm trying to emulate.

This past Sunday I gave a short testimony and then a friend of ours, Bryce Perry, got up and talked about how he and his wife had bumped into me at the DMV and I was a "ray of sunshine," (we all laughed at that).  And then he said I was a "billboard for the Church."  We all laughed at that, too.  Boy, it was embarrassing and kind at the same time, for the reasons I mentioned earlier.

I am grateful for the gospel, though, and for my ward family, a group of imperfect people trying every day to be better, a ward family that supports our little family in all that we do.  So I guess I will stop complaining about their kindness and recognition and strive harder to be the person that they think they see.  This talk is a great place to start:  What Lack I Yet?

If I appear to be a "ray of sunshine," I have the Savior to thank for that.  For His Atonement and all that means.  It is everything.  I have my husband and kids to thank for that--our home is a happy place and I love my place in it, even on stressful, crazy up-and-down days.  And I have friends and family to thank for that, people who lift me up, make me smile, and encourage me.  Life is good!

Columbus Day 2015

Oh, how we love our "days off!"  Columbus Day was a win-win-win this year.

First we did a family project and closed down the pool.  

Next we went on a family date to see a movie called The Martian.  

Then we had a family dinner, courtesy of Papa John's!  (best part--making 2 meals out of it!)

It was a busy, fun day!  Our next fun things this month include:

Wade's 12th birthday on Oct 21

Family visitors that same weekend

Halloween, then only 3 weeks until our week-long Thanksgiving Break!

Wade's first Beginner Band concert

Jason and I went to Murray Middle School on Friday afternoon to see an informal first concert in his beginner band class.  Wade says this class is a little crazy (um, cough, only one girl in the class?  Yes, that's a daily practice of patience.), but he enjoys it.  He is having fun in the percussion section (back row, in the middle).  Two of his best friends are in the class with him--Nick is in the front row, blue shirt, playing trumpet, and Jordan is off to the right playing electric guitar.

I came away with a lot of respect for their band teacher, Mr. Peterson, and what the kids have learned in just a few weeks.  As soon as the concert ended, the kids took off for the refreshments and then chose the loudest percussion instruments they could find around the room and played around, haha!

Enjoy the videos!

Silly boys!  Wade with two of his best friends, Jordan and Nick.

Sunday selfies

Sunday Selfies, 10/12/15

I love these fun kids so much!

Rhiannon and Wade go to...

On Wednesday night Jason and I had a church activity to attend.  Rhiannon really wanted to go see her friends play Powder Puff, and she kindly let her brother go with her.  I dropped them off at the high school football field earlier in the evening and they sat and watched 2 or 3 girls' Powder Puff games for the next few hours.  They sat with a bunch of Rhiannon's band friends who apparently gave Wade their stamp of approval, too.  This picture of them having fun at the game together made me smile. :)

A really great date night

Jason and I had a great date on Friday night.  Rhiannon was off playing at the high school's Homecoming football game, and Wade was at a friend's house, so we took off on our own.  First we had dinner at China Express--love their dinner buffet!  In the middle of the meal Jason told me to save room for dessert.  I asked him about the frozen yogurt served there at the restaurant, but he had other plans.

After dinner we drove down Ridgecrest Blvd to this place:

This little dive has been around for years and gets steady business.  We love their milkshakes!!

The surprise of the evening was when we headed for home.  I thought we were going to go out in the desert somewhere and do some star gazing.  Jason had an even better idea--he had our comfy camping chair recliners all set out on the porch; we took those out to the backyard and watched the stars from there.

I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT.

Thanks for a great date, babe--I love you!

Rhiannon embraces Spirit Week

On Sunday night Rhiannon was up in her room planning out what she was going to wear each day for Spirit Week.  So far she has had a ton of fun!  I love this cute girl and her enthusiasm!

A thoughtful text

I've been teaching an institute class for young single adults for almost a year and a half now and I absolutely love this assignment, in case I haven't mentioned that before. :)  Every week we have a good time learning together, but there is something special about the brand-new course Jesus Christ and His Everlasting Gospel.  We feel the Spirit in a powerful, consistent way every single week because of our focus on the Savior.  It is fantastic.

Last night was no exception.  We spent almost 45 minutes sharing our favorite General Conference moments and talks, and then we learned about Jesus Christ calling the twelve Apostles and proclaiming His mission as the Messiah.

When I got home there was a text on my phone from a friend in the class--it made my day and my heart filled with gratitude.  The Spirit is the true teacher, and I'm always thankful when it is there in abundance, comforting and helping us individually.

Singing in the rain

Living on the East coast for a couple years was a fantastic experience for our family.  It also opened my eyes and helped me realize some things I'd taken for granted here in the desert.

1--Desert rain is simply the best.  It comes so rarely.  Even flooding is bearable because you know, like snow, the puddles are going to disappear VERY quickly.  While we lived in Virginia, the first huge rainstorms were very welcome and exciting, but after that I was always on high alert for flooding in the basement...

The dogs and I got caught in the rain earlier today, but it wasn't a downpour yet so we just enjoyed it.  It also makes for a very relaxed, peaceful morning at home!

2--One upside to having so few trees here is that you have a GREAT view of the sky and the mountains.  The East coast was FULL of beautiful, tall trees and green everywhere, but you couldn't see the sky because of it!

October 1st Sunrise, Ridgecrest, CA

Other news:

--we enjoyed General Conference this weekend SO MUCH.  It was great to be all together, sustaining the new Apostles, Elder Rasband, Elder Stevenson, and Elder Renlund.  So many good things shared over the two days--it's hard to choose a favorite!

--Saturday was busy with other things, too.  We helped clean the church at 7:00 am, watched Conference, and then Rhiannon was gone from 2:00 pm to 11:00 pm on her first high school band trip to Taft.  She had a good time and said judges liked her performance on the mallets.  She was VERY happy that the school took 2 buses instead of 1 so they didn't have to fit 3 to a seat, haha!

--Wade visited with Bishop Washburn yesterday for his 12-year interview.  When he and Jason came home and walked through the door, he said, "I'm worthy to be a deacon!" Then a few minutes later he said the next thing he was going to prepare for was his mission.  This was pretty exciting for me to hear from our sweet boy Wade, who talks a LOT more about football, movies, and video games. :)

--This knock-off Olive Garden soup was a hit yesterday.  It popped up on my Facebook feed one day and I had to try it--VERY, VERY good.  I think it's the first time I've made a soup in the slow cooker that wasn't a chili-type one.  Had to share!

Zuppa Toscana (better than Olive Garden!)

1 lb. Italian sausages (use spicy to get that signature Olive Garden flavor) 

4-6 russet potatoes, chopped   [I used 4 large ones]

1 onion, chopped 

1/4 c. REAL bacon pieces (optional) [I was lazy and didn't add this]

2 Tbsp minced garlic (about 3-4 cloves) 

32 oz. chicken broth

1 c. kale or Swiss chard, chopped (or spinach)  [I used closer to 2 cups of kale]

1 c. heavy whipping cream

2 Tbsp flour 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Brown sausage links in a sauté pan. Cut links in half lengthwise, then cut slices. [I took the sausage out of the casings and browned it that way, like I was cooking ground beef]

2. Place sausage, chicken broth, garlic, potatoes and onion in slow cooker. Add just enough water to cover the vegetables and meat. 

3. Cook on high 3-4 hours (low 5-6 hours) until potatoes are soft. 30 minutes before serving: 

4. Mix flour into cream removing lumps. 

5. Add cream and kale to the crock pot, stir. 

6. Cook on high 30 minutes or until broth thickens slightly. 

7. Add salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste. 

Can't wait to have leftovers for lunch!