First Day. New Job.

As we prepare to move, I am more consistent 

about exercising before Sweetheart goes to work. 

The mornings during monsoon season bring clouds and cooler mornings.

 

On his first day of his new job, 

Sweetheart posed for a picture.

He has his pocket protector and a smile.

The sunset was beautiful and marked the end to a great day!

The Old Man

Sweetheart said he felt old this year on his birthday. 

He asked Hurricane how old is OLD.

Answer: 50

He is here with his favorite cake. 

The only change this year is 

the peanut butter cup are cut up instead of whole. 

O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A

We woke up in Texas and ended the day in Kansas.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

 

Last year we decided to color in the States that each of us has been too. 

The total count is as follows:

Hurricane - 8

Underfoot - 16

Sweetheart - 34

Me -  37.

Sweetheart and I had been to every State surrounding Oklahoma.

Today was the day I would go through the State.

Sweetheart will need to do it another time.

When we left Lubbock, we left gas stations and civilization.

Just before the Oklahoma border, we passed through a Border Patrol station

to be asked if all in the car were citizens of the United States of America.

There was nothing 30 miles before the station 

or 30 after the station on the road we drove.

There weren't even bathrooms. So we made nature our bathroom.

We drove into Oklahoma and continued to see a lot of prairie.

The Welcome Center is like an oasis with manicured lawns and a bathroom.

We got out and ran around, went to the bathroom on a real toilet, and returned to the car.

But the 3 of us in the car added one more State to our 50 State quest.

Find Peace

In our lives we will have temptations; we will have trials and challenges. As we go to the temple, as we remember the covenants we make there, we will be better able to overcome those temptations and to bear our trials. In the temple we can find peace.

~ Thomas S. Monson

Blessings of the Temple

Mormon Battalion

We went to a presentation about the Mormon Battalion 

that was an active military unit during the Mexican-American War. 

It is the only battalion named after a religious group. 

Hurricane was enchanted by the brass band that played.

He counted how many instruments have mouth pieces,

 how many boys and girls, and how many songs. 

I grew up learning about Israel Evans who walked the 2,000 miles in Company B.

He was stationed in San Diego after arriving in San Diego. 

He later was a captain of a handcart company. 

Sweetheart and I have talked about him.

On his messager at work, he has "Israel Evans walked 5,000 miles."

One day he was asked why Israel did that.

Sweetheart responded, "Because he believed a prophet."

Before we went, we looked up on Family Search to see 

if Sweetheart had a member in the battalion. 

He did. His name was Riley Garner Clark.

He was in Company A and was assigned to Los Angeles

after arriving in San Diego.

He eventually settled in Panguitch, Utah.

We haven't learned much about him yet.

The only battle that the Mormon Battalion fought was against bulls south of Tucson. 

Their march took them through the desert in the winter.

When they arrived in San Diego, most had no shoes, and their clothes were in tatters.

After the presentation, the boys got to dress up and see different displays.

We are glad we learned about our history.

Grape Harvest

I wrote about our grapes in June.

I took pictures of the grapes before Sweetheart cut them off the vines.

He did it while we were at the Muppet Meet. 

He sent me a picture with his phone so I didn't remember about these.

Again with the download I did last week I found them.

Our yard has been incredibly blessed this year with produce.

We are grateful for the production that they have given.

I really liked to look up and see the grapes hanging there.

The clumps were full and heavy with deliciousness.

They covered the 4 foot by 4 foot table. 

As a family we cleaned, sorted, picked of the stem, and juiced them.

Hurricane was given the choice of beverage and chose our grape juice.

He asked for a cheers before we drank then took a little sip.

He said, "This is took rich to drink quickly."

He's an insightful boy.

Pavers

We made an addition to our curb appeal. 

 See if you can tell the difference between the 2 photos.

This is when we bought our house over 7 years ago.

A LOT has changed in the front yard since this picture was taken.

This place has been a wonderful haven for us as a family.

 Here are the differences:

1. None of the original plants are in front. The tree on the right frozen to death. The tree in the front hit the roof and was planted on top of the sewer and water lines. The other plant was ugly.
2. Aloe, lantana, lavender, rosemary, and mesquite trees are in the front yard.
3. The mail box has moved 3 times.
4. The Prius wasn't ours when we moved here.
5. The red front door was painted later - not that you could see the original front door.
6. We have a double gate on the right side and a single gate on the left side.
7. The wall on the left side has been moved forward 20 feet or so.
8. The sidewalk goes around to the side gate.
9. A rock river is in place for water run off.
10. The house has been painted - the same color.

And the most recent addition is the pavers.

Sweetheart and I have been talking about doing this for 3+ years.

I wanted a steps as defined from door welcome. He wanted an extra parking spot.

We made a compromise and got what we wanted - 

a defined entrance to the house and an additional parking spot. 

The men who did the work came on a 107+ degree day.

10 Years ago.....

Here we are 10 years ago....

Here we are now....

After 10 years and 2 children, he finally convinced me to go away with him for the night. Not like go on a date but overnight. Our children were highly supportive (and excited.) The event was to be a surprise. Sweetheart doesn't keep surprises well so he spilled a little of the surprise.

We shared a supper, chocolate cake, and went to a hotel.

What a memorable evening!

Learning to be a Father

Underfoot was having a learning experience about quantity and cost.

His Dad leaned down to look him directly in the eye to explain.

A tender moment happened for them in a public place.

When I was thinking about this later, 

I thought about how important the role of fathers are.

"The next principle which calls for our defending voices is elevating the divine roles of mothers and fathers. We eagerly teach our children to aim high in this life. .... Do we also teach our sons and daughters there is no greater honor, no more elevated title, and no more important role in this life than that of mother or father? I would hope that as we encourage our children to reach for the very best in this life that we also teach them to honor and exalt the roles that mothers and fathers play in Heavenly Father’s plan."

~ Bonnie L. Oscarson

Defenders of the Family Proclamation 

April 2015

Underfoot talks about how he wants to be a father.

He talks about what he wants to teach his own children.

We hope for his future in a career and profession.

Our greater hope is for his future family and his happiness as a father.

Pioneer Day

We celebrated Pioneer Day with our ward on Saturday.

We arrived for pancakes, sausage, and eggs.

Sweetheart stepped up to flip pancakes.

A bike parade was held. Hurricane brought the side car.

Sweetheart brought out his Scout and drove it around all day.

The day before we watched 17 Miracles and talked about our ancestors.

We talked about their courage, faith, and determination.

We asked the boys how they were pioneers and to think about it.

Home Teaching

Sweetheart took them with him.

They found a plot of grass and enjoyed the afternoon

while Dad visited. 

Easter Egg

We downloaded Hurricane's photos.

We found these fun pictures.

Hurricane took a lot of pictures of this one egg.

Sweetheart made it and put our initials on it.

He saved the egg and didn't want it eaten.

Hurricane wanted to keep it in his secret draw.

I didn't want the smell.

So we took pictures of it so Hurricane could remember.

He took most of the pictures.

Sweetheart wrote that he love me.

How lucky are we to have such wonderful boy

who wants to remember that his parents love each other.

Wicked Spoon

One of my very favorite things

about the family reunion was the Wicked Spoon.

A friend posted about her get-away to Las Vegas

and how much she enjoyed this buffet.

I really wanted to go there. 

So an attempt was made for Friday night.

It failed.

Sweetheart agreed to take me in the morning.

His sister offered to watch our children.

Her offer was kind and generous.

We went and tried nearly everything.

The polenta was delicious.

I tried caviar for the first time.

It was all so yummy.

There was an incredible dessert bar

with multiple types of gelato.

The boys sampled almost everything.

 

Here is the chocolate of a chocolate dipped strawberry.

He ate the strawberry and wasn't sure about the chocolate.

We had a great breakfast.

It kept us incredibly full.

Thanks to a kind husband to make a special memory for me.

Havasupai

Sweetheart was given the opportunity to go to Havasupai.

He took Hurricane's camera to see if he could get a few shots.

The group left our house at 12:30 am 

so they could hike the trail head before it was too hot.

They arrived, ate breakfast, and took the hike down to the bottom.

This is the group before they started down the mountain.

The picture was taken just before the camera broke.

They made it to the bottom, jumped off waterfalls,

and hiked to different areas.

They spent 4 days in Havasupai.

Sweetheart wants to take us back.

Time for us to prepare to hike 10 miles in one day.

Blackberries

Sweetheart harvested a handful of blackberries.

We planted a stick a few days after Hurricane was born.

Sweetheart picks a handful every day.

He takes a lot of joy in this part of our yard.

Final Cuts

He is doing the final cuts for the house.

YIPPEE YIPPEE YEAH! 

The project started in January, and we are now in April.

3 Generations

While Grandpa L was here,

we took pictures of the 3 generations.

Here are 3 of the 5 triple Ls in the genealogy line. 

Here are 3 with smiles that light up our lives!

Birthday Party

Every 4 years, we have a birthday party.

The boys may invite as many friends as they like.

 

We hosted a Jedi Training Camp.

They had to build a light saber, do physical feats,

and destroy the Death Star.

Underfoot was thrilled with all the attention.

Hurricane wanted it to be his party.

His Dad took care of him.

They were exhausted by the end of the day.

Tile

Sweetheart continues to move forward with the tile.

He is a hero.

He is doing a lot of square footage.

He's looking forward to completion!

Tile Job

The tile job is going slow. 

Here is the bathroom. First room done.

The blue tape dots are the tiles that are dry.

We can walk on these (Note: There is no toilet.)

He worked really hard to take the tile from the front entry.

We wanted it all uniform.

Since I've been sick, 

Sweetheart is balancing 

work, boys, me, and the home improvement.

We've such a long way to go.

My job is to get better.

His job is overwhelming.