Snapshot May 2012

I have a horrible memory.  And I want to remember the day to day normal things that go on in this house.   I want to somehow remember the details, the ordinary things of being in the thick of mothering.   These days, all of the wonderful little things get smothered out so quickly by larger issues and begin to grow fuzzy in my mind.  So, here's to remembering....by writing it down.

So, here's what is going on these days..


-Dropping off Scott to preschool each day is almost always such a treat.  But, it involves hugs, waves, blowing kisses, saying, "Mom, I love you so so so so much."  Every day I revel in the blessing of having this wonderful little boy in my life.


-Jon is on tour right now with the Brighton High Performing Arts.  He is in San Francisco.  I hope he takes a lot of pictures!  What a great opportunity. I am thankful that my children have so many great experiences.

-Scott had his end of year preschool program and graduation yesterday.  He has had an awesome year.   He has grown leaps and bounds.   Carol Wilkinson is such a gifted teacher.  Every little paragraph I write here is worthy of its own blog post.. I can tell I haven't blogged in awhile.. this is supposed to be a simple little list..  but everything I write begs me to write more.


-Speaking of having an awesome year.. Michael has blown me away this year.  He has been the most amazing 7th grader in our family yet!  This young man has impressed me with his work ethic, drive to excel and his commitment to meeting his goals.  Wow.  He has had a GREAT year.  He also has such wonderful friends.  I love and respect this young man..


- The other night Michael needed a book for his honors reading class.   He was absolutely insistent to have it so he could get his reading in. I decided after checking at the library that we would need to buy it.   He said to me, "mom, I won't be able to go with you to get the book because I need to get the rest of my homework done."  I was so impressed with his multi tasking ability and commitment to get his homework done.


-Steve and I have found tremendous peace in attending the temple.  Again... this begs a complete blog post of its own.

-Scott has played on a soccer team this spring.. It was his first time ever playing on a team.  He is a good little soccer player... when he goes for it.  He is young and it has been fun to have him get started.. there is potential there and it is great to get him started.

-Joseph is preparing to perform in the big end of year "POPS" concert put on by Vocal Ensemble.   He is performing in quite a few numbers.  He has a great group of friends and they are very excited about their number.   We look forward to this concert.  He had a great concert choir concert the other night.  These end of the year concerts are so bitter sweet for me.  I am happy and sad that another year has come to an end.  It was a great concert and I so appreciate that Joseph has had such a great experience in music !!!

-I make about 30 sandwiches each week.  No exaggeration.   I use up an entire loaf of bread in a day... easily.   Sandwiches are just a staple around here... turkey and cheese, grilled cheese, and of course peanut butter and jelly.

-I love the calmness in our house in the afternoons after school.   We don't allow the tv or computer to be on until 8:30 pm on most nights (Mon-Thurs)  This has been a great idea that we started about March 1.  This encourages our boys to find better things to do with their time.  It is working and it changes the spirit in our home dramatically to cut down on the noise and help the boys do things with their time that brings them peace and purpose.

-Another thing we do which adds greatly to the peace in our home is family scripture study and prayer.  We do this at night.  Many nights that peace acts to heal and lift.  It is such a blessing to have the scriptures.

-I love driving my children places.  It gives me a great opportunity to talk with them while we drive in the car.  I get to drive Jonathan to and from school.  I drive Joseph often to school and work.  I drive Michael to the bus each day.  I drive Jacob to school and piano lessons.  I drive Scott to preschool and to friends.  It is a great time to talk.

-This week because our third car has been out of commission I have been driving 3 boys to 3 jobs, picking up and dropping off to rehearsals, picking up from school and the usual dropping off to lessons.  I feel like I am in the car for half the day.

-Steve has been just amazing!  He fixed our Suburban twice in the past month.  These weren't minor little fixes either.  He replaced the radiator, hoses of various kinds, and the water pump.  He didn't really know how to do this. He read up on it, watched youtube videos and did a fabulous job and saved us, oh I don't know up to about $2000 dollars!    It is so nice to be married to such a smart man.

-We are finishing the bathroom downstairs and Steve is doing that too.   It is coming along and will be so nice when it is finished.

-I am working on creating a mudroom/office/craftroom.  I have painted so far and waiting for the money train to roll in so I can put up mudroom lockers, bench, desks etc etc etc.

-We need a big review on household jobs and what is expected.   The kids need a big kick in the pants to be consistent and dependable.  We used to do a better job around here... we need to regroup, reset and begin again.

-We had some pretty awesome birthday parties around here in Feb, March , April, and May.  See.. another blog post.. I have a lot of catching up to do!

I am not sure this post captures the little things.. but it is a good try and better than nothing.

Blogging is so therapeutic for me.  It helps me to focus on the good, count my blessings and "see" things more clearly.

Prom 2012

Prom  May 25, 2012

It was an awesomely fun experience to go with my son, Jonathan, to help him pick out his tuxedo, and help him to pick up his corsage.   We had many opportunities to talk and laugh and anticipate the fun he was going to have.  It was almost as fun as having a daughter..but he is my son and it was pretty fun to do a few things with him to get ready to take this beautiful girl to Prom

I think they are darling... and they are very good friends.

It was reported to me that they had a great time together.  I should ask Jon to write about it here.. and maybe I will.

But, I do know this:

The big day began with a hike and breakfast.

-next the girls did the spa thing.  Had their nails, hair and makeup done
-Met up at about 5 pm, took pictures, and began their progressive dinner.
-The dance was held downtown at the state capital and he and his group just had a great time.

Is that a beautiful dress or what?  And she has the tiniest waist... what a princess girl.

 These two have so much fun together.. talk for hours.. laugh together.

Off they go...

This is that darling Terra Wunderlei and her date.  They were part of the big group who did prom together.

This is another picture of part of their group.  I am still waiting to get more pictures and when I do I will post them.

I love having teenagers.  I love getting to know my teenager's friends.  They are great people and it is fun to share in these exciting times of their lives.

I would say Prom 2012 was a great success and they will remember it all of their lives.

I was supposed to get more pictures from this event..but they did not show up...  That is the last time I will trust that important pictures will show up.  

Mother's Day 2012

Mother's Day this year was simple..just the way I like it.

To me it isn't about material gifts, it means the most to me when it is about notes from my children, simple homemade gifts, a walk together, a shared meal.  It is about treasuring our time together and slowing down to ponder about the relationships I have with each of my children.   This year I got all of that.  I don't need a big hurrah hurrah day for me...!  Just some simple, sincere heartfelt expressions of love to recognize the sweet relationship I share with my kids.

The day began with Scott, finally being able to have me open his gift!  I gathered him up close to me and sat on the couch.  I read his little note, looked at the picture he drew and opened the gift. He was so "essssited" for me to open my present.   And, I milked the moment for all it was worth.

Then he helped me cut a flower from the yard to wear in this homemade flower holder.  I felt very special wearing a flower to church today.  I smelled the beautiful fragrance of the delicate, feminine  iris all day.

I then got to walk to church with my dear little Scotty boy...  It was the most beautiful Mother's Day in memory.  The weather was absolutely perfect and the walk to church was just so fine.

After church, I got to walk home with three of my boys... Eric, Jonathan, and Scott.  It was another happy moment, walking at times with an arm around each other.. just chatting and laughing.

Dinner was Chicken Alfredo.   And we just enjoyed being together.  It was just so so nice.  At the end of the meal, each boy expressed something they love about me:

Scott:  I "preciate" mom because she lets me come with her to the store.  She buys me a treat.  We have fun.  She gets me what I want for my birthday.  She jumps on the tramp with me.  We just have fun."

Jacob:  "I love mom because she always gives me a 2nd chance when I do something wrong.  She keeps me on track."

Michael:  "I love mom because she helps me get thru school.  She is so generous and takes good care of me.  She loves me."

Jonathan: "Even though its not exactly they way I want, she helps me with almost anything.  We have fun talks and laugh a lot, (said with a laugh)  She generally supports me.   She talks with me and supports my feelings with the opposite sex.  (oh my such a typical 16 year old response.. ha ha!)

Eric:  "I appreciate mom because she's fun.  She's a beam of sunshine when there is no sunshine.  She's happy most of the time.  We like to have long debates and talks.  We like to talk."

Joseph...  was not there dinner.  Too bad.

Steve:  "I appreciate you mom and am grateful that she puts up with me."
Ha ha!

Later, I opened the homemade gift and card from Jacob and Steve and I took a walk.  Then came home, had rootbeer floats together.  And, everyone gave me a card.  That was really sweet.

It was a good and wonderful Mother's Day!
Wish I had taken a few more pictures.

And, I must add that Saturday night when most everyone was gone..I spent the whole evening watching awesome girl movies and I loved loved every minute of it.  Haven't had that much fun in awhile.

Mother's Day 2012  .. it was sweet

I am going to do this someday!!!   I wish I had already started.  A collection of photographs document a British couple's travels over six years by just showing their feet.

A collection of photographs document a British couple's travels over six years by just showing their feet. The series takes on a twist with the addition of a third pair of feet--their daughter.www.tomrobinsonph...

Pinned via web

Oh yeah... it is the annual BYU vs Utah Game...

We have a fun rivalry going on in our  house.    Joseph somehow "lost" his way and chose to become a University of Utah fan.  We just can't understand where we went wrong.  :)  He has been on that path for years now.  

We have always had a lot of fun with this and love every minute.  Joseph does too...really.  It is all in good fun.  

This picture says it all....   

BYU got beat really bad in this last game.  It was humiliating...so humiliating.   And, we grounded Joe until further notice.  

Ha ha!  

Ahhh better luck next time BYU!

Trek 2011...

I must say that Summer 2011 will be remembered and cherished partly because of Trek 2011.  Or mostly because of Trek 2011.  

My testimony was strengthened by leaps and bounds and my view of the Gospel and life was opened  up in deeper  more meaningful ways.    

We prepared to go all Summer.   We asked ourselves, "what motivated these people to leave all behind,risk so much to go to Zion?"  

And the answers began to come... 

We read the Book of Mormon again through new eyes...the eyes of an early Saint in search of the truth.  And, I swear anytime I have been obedient to a request by a priesthood leader to read the Book of Mormon, the experience has been richer and significantly more meaningful.  

As I read and studied, I began to "see" why the early saints were willing to do what they did.  In reading the Book of Mormon, they came to know the Gospel had been restored in its fulness and that a living prophet was on the earth once more.   They loved the Savior and they knew the Book of Mormon was another testament of Him.  

We also saw the movie "17 Miracles" and read many pioneer stories of faith..especially those of the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies.  I also finally read the book, "Fire of the Covenant."  We  went to see the new Joseph Smith movie at the Legacy Theater. 

 I felt those early Saints urging us on....  to understand and remember.   Those feelings began to come soon after accepting the call to be a Ma and Pa in Trek. I love it when that happens.  

Steve and I walked just about every day  to prepare.... and we would talk about everything...It was like taking a mini vacation everyday with him. And we loved this!   This was great preparation for Trek..what a great experience to serve beside my husband in this capacity. 

All of this added up to a great Summer...unforgettable... as we prepared to be a Ma and Pa in Trek.    

Needless to say, I am so grateful that we had this opportunity to be a Ma and Pa on Trek 2011.  

This is the morning we left for TREK.  We were a Ma and Pa to 8 kids..3 girls and 5 boys!  We prepared all summer for this event, reading, getting in better shape.  

We were so lucky to have two of our kids go on Trek this time.  What a tremendous wonderful experience it was...

On the bus...excited to work with and beside my best friend and partner.... as a Ma and Pa..

One of our daughters, Marissa Lott..  at Independence Rock

One of our sons Jacob Westover.  What a fine young man!  One of my favorites!

Brandon.... another son...Mr. Helpful.  We met him for the first time on trek and immediately loved him.

This is our wonderful Trek Family... 5 boys and 3 girls..each one amazing.  

The first night after dinner, we had a big square dance.  Everyone loved this.  It was a beautiful evening.... the Wyoming Prairie truly was beautiful in this spot.

Ahhh...those amazing Wyoming Sunsets...  and three darling girls....  unforgettable. 

The next day, we set off for Martin's Cove and Sweetwater.......

 Everyone was happy with anticipation!

  First, we arrived at the Visitors Center.  There was a short introduction with a speaker and a video with music that brought us all to tears.


There was a chart in the visitors center listing the names of every person in the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies...  


I was completely overcome with emotion when I saw the names of Steve's great great great grandparents and their two little girls there.....

  

Their names are Thomas Eccles 37, Alice Eccles 36,  Mary Ann Eccles 11, and little Martha Eccles 8.  I believe Thomas' name is in red because he died.  He died about a year after reaching the valley due to the exertion of the trek West.  He just never fully recovered from the experience. 

 My heart swelled with love and appreciation for this little family who set out from England for Zion with hope and faith in the hearts, facing the unknown.   Words can't really fully express the respect I have for these faithful, good people  who demonstrated such faith allowing us to have what we have today.  

It was a special few moments of Trek for us....  and to be there and walk where they walked!  I just took it all in....

At Devil's Gate. So happy to share this Trek experience with our good friends The Wheats.  Here I am with Holly.  I love her!   

So great to be here.... here in the Martin's Cove area..by Devil's Gate where so much happened.   

Carl and Holly Wheat...our dear friends.  We were so happy that we ended  up in the same company!  Hooray! 

We went to Martin's Cove..."The Temple of Wyoming."  And felt of its sacredness.  

Ahhhh Martin's Cove.....  the Temple of Wyoming.   We were quiet and reverent as we walked through this area where so many died and exercised their faith in the face of tremendous trial. 

Our three girls, Brittany Estrada, Jenni Zackrison, and Marissa Lott  at the Sweetwater Crossing monument. 

Joe.... 

At the Sweetwater.... where we learned about the Valley Boys and their selfless rescue of hundreds of weak and starving saints.  

Each one of us got to experience a "taste" of what it meant to be "rescued" as each of "our" Valley Boys carried us across the river.  There was a quiet, reverent spirit with us as we contemplated what it means to rescue and be rescued ...  ultimately by the greatest rescuer of all....our Savior, Jesus Christ.   

These were our Valley Boys.....  We watched them struggle and shake with exertion as they carried all of us across... It was humbling.  


We could only imagine what it must have been like for the real Valley Boys standing in near freezing water all day...all day...carrying hundreds of poor, starving, sick people across the river.  They saved hundreds of lives and offered comfort and help to people who were in desperate need.  

This was quite the emotional experience.  Everyone was touched.  There is no way to explain it....you have to experience it for yourself.


The last part of the day, we listened to a very entertaining and inspiring dramatization about Ephraim Hanks, an amazing man who through inspiration and a call by a prophet to help the people of the Willie and Martin handcart companies, saved lives and assisted in miraculous ways to rescue them...  Everyone really enjoyed that.  And, Ephraim Hanks great great grand daughter just happened to be married to the man presenting the story !  

 That night we arrived at Sixth Crossing... the camp where the Willie Handcart company was rescued.  

Before dinner each night, we blessed and cheered by music played by this little band.  It was so great!  

All of our meals were wonderful.  We had the best support crew!  They fed us, cleaned up after us and cheered us on! 

We had a special Ward Night Fireside at Sixth Crossing.... with our wonderful bishop, Bishop Paul Salisbury.  This night was one of my favorites on trek.  

Talking about the difference between "clinging to the rod" and "holding fast to the iron rod."  It was awesome.  

Ahhhh... the end of another awe-inspiring day..... so grateful...inspired.....loving the experience.  

Each night before bed we would gather our trek family around us and have a little bit of family time.  Each day we had a "thought" and encouraged the kids to share their thoughts.  It was a joy to just listen to the kids ... to take in all that they had to say.  We had amazing kids in our family.  I loved listening to them talk...   

The next day began the hard core trekking.  We were set to trek 16 or 17 miles this day... It began with a good breakfast, prayer, a cheer and off we went.   We were set to experience another great day and to do hard things....while we lifted, loved and supported each other.  

Jon's answer for dealing with the Wyoming wind and sun....

I didn't take a lot of pictures this day....  So here's the highlights:

• Steve was sick today... rare for him.  He had an electrolytes issue......  so I was alone quite a bit with our family... and I experienced what it must have been like to lose a husband as a pioneer and to worry about your spouse...  
• Our cart broke down.   It literally came apart.  We pulled together, fixed it and kept moving forward.
• The Woman's Pull.....   what an experience.   Another sacred, moving experience that is best understood through personal experience.  
• Then with my three girls -- we pulled our handcart up this huge hill.      

My three amazing, strong girls... Bittany Estrada, Jenni Zachrison, and Marissa Lott.  

Boy, were we tired after this day.... but we had one more day to go...and 16 more miles!  How did the pioneers do this day after day, with only a cup of flour to eat, in extremely cold temperatures?  We decided that it was a miracle that any of the Willie and Martin handcart companies survived at all.  

After dinner, we sat our aching bodies down to watch Ward Skits...which were very entertaining...especially our ward's.  Hilarious!   

Then, we played games....

Followed by a very sweet family time... with our great trek family and then off to bed...sweet bed. 

The next day, we were off on another 16 mile or so Trek!  How did those pioneers do it?  

Today we had many water crossings!!!

Pushing, Pulling, Working Together!

Pa Knudsen... the mighty man.... watching over things...

Ethan...

Jenni...

Joe

Marissa...

Parker....

This was our hardest day...We experienced relentless Wyoming wind with blowing dirt and dust.... seemingly endless walking....glaring sun... but also witnessed the kids learning to do hard things, helping  and supporting  each other and small miracles along the way.

 After awhile with all that Wyoming wind, we all wore that Wyoming dirt...in our hair, ears, on our teeth.  Here you can see that dirt caked into Jacob's eyebrows, ears, and face, in his shirt collar.   

This was a day of quiet endurance...quietly helping one another... taking step after step toward the next camp.    One of our girls, Britanni got so dehydrated she had to be put on a horse and taken to the front of the group to the Medical crew.  It was just a hard day of endurance.   But, we learned ....we experienced...and we gained understanding.  Grateful for it all.... 

This is us walking into our camp...after a long 16 mile day....amid the cheers of the support staff.  Can you see how tired we were.... can you see my tears of relief and joy....mixture of emotions...appreciation for our pioneer heritage ... and so much more?  

We did it!  We made it!   38 miles in 3 days...and here we are walking into our last camp amid cheers from the support staff.  It brought tears....of relief.  

That night we had the testimony meeting of all testimony meetings..... lasting about 3 hours...a spiritual feast. 

It began with amazing music......   

Jon sang a song "Bring Them In," with an ensemble group.  What a great song...
If there was a theme an overall lesson we all took from Trek 2011 it was echoed in the words of this song.  We all need to be on the look out to rescue others.   And we need to never forget the greatest rescuer of all ...our Savior, Jesus Christ.

This music was followed by wonderful talks... and then deep, stirring testimonies..one right after the other... full of faith, lesson and insights learned.  I was on the edge of my seat amazed at what I was hearing.  The kids took so much away from this experience.  There was such a spirit there with us in every place and in every step of this journey .   


And, our last night, we got a "taste" of what cold was on the trek.  It got so cold, we woke up to ice on the ground the next morning.  All night I couldn't get warm enough to fall into a deep sleep. Crazy as it may sound, I appreciated this experience too...  

Gathering for lunch on the way home... 

Trevor and Jonathan...

John and Mary Ann Curtis...  another couple in our blue company.  Love this couple... 

  

Trek was an  absolutely wonderful experience.  I will count it as one of the great experiences of my life.  I wanted to go home, but I didn't.  Coming into the Valley on our way home, I felt a little sick and very sad to be leaving the trek experience behind.  It was similar to how I feel as I leave the temple.  I am somewhat relieved to be done with my work at the temple, but then I have to take off those temple clothes, put my street clothes on, and go back into the world...  That is exactly how it felt to come home from trek.  There was such a spirit out there...  a spirit of love, unity and cooperation.  There was a spirit that abided with us to help us see and understand what the pioneers must have felt.  Our testimonies were strengthened.  Small miracles were witnessed.  I didn't want to leave that behind to return to our world of self-centeredness and worldly distractions. 

One of the best parts of trek for me personally, was that I got  to work with and beside my sweetie Steve... my partner and best friend.  I love him so much.  I got to know him even better and I really liked what I saw.  I fell in love with him a little more.

Blessed...that is what we all are ..so blessed.  

I loved Trek 2011.  I look forward to doing this again with Michael and Jacob in 4 years.