Jared's 17

Seventeen years ago my oldest child was 17 and I delivered my youngest who is now 17.  This kid makes me smile.  He tells me he loves me every single day multiple times.  He still likes to sit close to me and lay his head on my lap.  He is such a sweetheart!

I'm not sure if I have ever shared how Jared's name came to be so I will now.  When I was expecting Trichelle the boy name we had chosen was Jared Joe.  Of course since we were blessed with a girl we put that name aside.  When number two baby came and was a boy we thought we would name him Jared Joe except there was already a Jared in the little, itty bitty town we lived in (Samaria, ID).  I thought it was weird to have more than one kid named the same name and so we went through all the "J" names that were so popular at the time and decided on Justin.  So Justin Joe is the name of our first son.  The name, Jared, never came up again until it was time to deliver baby number seven.  I was planning on naming this son Landon Larry.  Larry didn't like that name and usually he doesn't say and so I asked him what name would he like?  He thought about it and said: Jared.  I smiled and asked Larry if he remembered that was the name we had first chosen.  He didn't remember that at all and just said he liked it.  Well of course I liked it but now I needed to come up with a middle name to go with it...we used "Joe" with Justin.  That summer before Jared was born we took the family to the Church Historical sites in Nauvoo, Palmyra and Kirkland and so we decided on Joseph.  Joseph is also the name of Larry's grandfather and where Joe came from.  There you go...that's how he got his name.  I had a friend tell me that Jared just wasn't ready to be born when we had first chosen the name and so it had been saved for him.  That just might have happened in a round about way.

Jared chose to go to LaFerrovia for his Birthday dinner.  I enjoyed listening to him chat with us.  I love this baby of mine and I'm so glad that he is still around celebrating birthdays.

Robin's Birthday Lunch

I had errands to run today....one was to take our computer in to see if it could be fixed.  (It can't)  I called Carla to see if she wanted to run with me and she was still in Alpine at her brothers but was coming home to take Robin to lunch since her birthday was yesterday (same as Shari), she invited me to join them.  Robin was really happy and I had a great time.  After lunch we went to Seagull Book because I had just bought an outfit and decided that it cost too much..after taking it back I didn't feel like going anywhere else and so I went home.

We took Kevin and Julie out for their birthdays tonight and they chose Rodizio Grill at the Gateway.  It was fun visiting with them there and back.  The food filled me up and even though I was planning on ordering the chocolate cake to bring home I didn't.  In my opinion that chocolate cake is the best cake anywhere.  

Grandparents Day

This morning I was greeted by two of my cute grands wishing me Happy Grandparents day.  Kam made a cute mug and drew a cute picture.  It was so cute and thoughtful of them.  These little ones of mine make my heart happy.

Tonight our computer quit!  We couldn't turn it on without it turning immediately off...I depend on my computer and I am not thrilled that it isn't working.

Mac'n Cheese Meme

Mac'n Cheese Meme

Can you ever get enough of mac ‘n’ cheese?
 I do love it (especially homemade)  but do know when to stop.
Are you allergic to nuts or diary products?
 no...however dairy sometimes gives me a tummy ache.
Do you think age matters in relationships? for me it does...I think it's weird to see others with partners who could be their parent or child.
Has anyone ever called the cops on you? yes...when I was a young adult a group of us were shooting bottle rockets over the hill of Washington Terrace.  The police came but nothing else happened.
Did you talk to someone until you fell asleep last night? I always talk to Larry but he is the one that always falls asleep...I must bore him .
What’s the connection between the last person you texted? long time friends.  We met because we lived in the same Ward and I was her visiting teacher....oh how I love her!
Are you in a good mood? Yes....I usually am!
Excited for anything? 
I'm excited for the kids to all come tonight for dinner...and this week is filled with fun!
Do you have a hard time controlling your emotions? I have a hard time controlling my tears caused from my emotions of happiness or sadness.
Do you like your height? sure but I preferred being taller when my short waist was a little bit longer.  (I shrunk two inches five years ago)
How long have you lived in your current home? Twenty three years...we like it here!
Could you go a week without brushing your teeth? absolutely not! yuck...I gag just thinking of that.
Have you ever given any amount of money to the homeless? yes...but not much and the experience was awesome.
Own anything from Bath & Body Works? yes..lots of body wash and lotions that others have given me.
Have you ever had your nails so long that they curved down at the ends?
 No...I would never let them get that long but I also don't need to worry about that because they break by themselves at a certain length.
Have you ever swallowed a bunch of salt water by accident? In the Ocean I have...it's hard not to if you get caught in a wave.
Does it take you over an hour to go to sleep sometimes? Often these days it does take me longer than an hour.
When you get home from school/work do you change into your pjs right away? No but I would love to.  There is always much more going on that requires me to be dressed.
Have you ever stayed up all night and the whole next day without any sleep? Yes and it gives me a headache.
Has anyone ever told you that you have pretty feet? actually they have referred to as cute. 
What is the temperature currently in the town you live in? 80's during the days...the nights are nice and cool.
 Do you ever actually drink milk alone? We always drank milk when I was growing up with our meals and even with our first kids were little.  For some reason it's water now.  I do have a son that drinks milk alone at every meal.

Saturdays....Busy....Fun

 Saturday's are fun and can be busy.  Right now Parker and Kamryn are playing soccer.  Kamryn plays at 9:00 every week and Parker plays at 11:00. (actually he practices from 11:00-11:30 but he likes me to watch him practice..his games are at 11:30)  It's been fun watching the kids...I can already see improvement.  Today Kam scored 3 goals and both of my grands teams won.

While I was at Parker's game I got a text from Kathy asking me if I was coming to the Blackfoot Fair.  I was going to try to go but had so many other things that I didn't feel like giving up.  Her text triggered my memory of Cassie's shower.  I had Cassie's gift but had kind of forgot that her shower was today.  After the soccer games I went home and her gift wrapped and then I went to the shower. It was a family shower and I recognize most of the people since I usually do get invited to the family showers....and Yes that makes me feel good!  I love the Mark family!  I loved when Cassie introduced me with a big smile on her face as a very good, long time friend!  I'm so happy for Cassie!  I'm thankful for the Mark family...one of the best and closest families I know!

I left the shower so I could go watch Kamryn do a Triathlon.  Her Uncle Rick and his friends put this together for the kids.  They started by swimming in the Dunkley pool.  They had to swim a few laps and it was different for each age group.  Kam is a fast swimmer and was the first out of the pool in her group.

Then they had to dress and get on their bikes.  Kamryn was a bit hesitant and unsure where she was to go.  She got going in the right direction and really started moving when she felt confident in where she was to go.  Lynette (her other grandma) and I followed in my car so that Lynette could video Kam.

The last part was running which is Kamryn's least favorite.  She did a great job though.  She didn't slow down except when she passed the parents but she was encouraged to keep going and she did.  Kamryn acted a little shy today which is something I don't see a lot.  Even in the group picture she was standing just a bit away from all the other kids-that just happen to all be cousins.

I'm proud of Kamryn for trying everything and doing her best at it.  She has many talents and abilities and I like that she is exposed to them early so she can choose the ones that fit her best.

***Later we took a little "Care Package" to Justin's family...oh how they are loved! ♥

Little Acts of Kindness make a Difference

The last week I have been getting some nice texts from some of my friends....let me just say that they make me smile and they are greatly appreciated!  I think Julie must have set a goal or something because she is sending me a nice text every single day.  They are nice and loaded with compliments and expressions of love!  I have prayed over and over that they aren't tender mercies....I hope Julie is healthy and fine and still has many years here to be enjoyed.

Then yesterday while I was visiting with my nieces (Alexi and Shay) I was sharing with them how Larry had been prompted to call their dad before he was made Bishop.  Larry knew that he was suppose to tell Mark that he was proud of him for staying active in the Church and raising his family in the Church when he hadn't been.  He was suppose to compliment Mark for all his goodness.  Larry knew that before he knew Mark was going to be a Bishop.  It HIT me....Heavenly Father was using Larry as His mouthpiece!  Even though Larry thought those same exact things, those thoughts came from Heavenly Father through the Holy Ghost who "prompted" him!  Heavenly Father does that but often we don't recognize it.  I started reading the texts Julie sent me as if Heavenly Father were saying those things because I truly feel like Julie was Prompted to text me and say the things she did.  She is really good at listening and following her promptings.

I love how truly involved Heavenly Father is in our lives.  I hope and pray that I will know what He needs me to say and do for His children!  I know there are times when I am following the "spirit" and doing those things that I am prompted to do but I also know that I am probably missing way to many.  I guess that is something that I will work on being better at....listening to and recognizing the promptings I get and to follow through with them.  I really do what to be an instrument for Heavenly Father.

Lunch with My Girls

September 11....a Day we will Always Remember...the day the Twin Towers came Down.

No matter what I am doing on this day I always think back to 2001 when our Nation was attacked by terrorists...when I watched planes fly right through the Twin Towers.  My stomach always hurts and I shed a few tears but we carry on.  I got to carry on with a few of my grands. (Jordyn was a few days ago) I got to play with Macie and Parker while Natalie went to her doctor appointment.  She returned with sad news....there is no heart beat.  My heart goes out to Natalie and her family.  We all get our hopes up and before every child there has been at least one miscarriage and sometimes two.  I told Natalie that she might get to the other side and be overwhelmed with all her children that might be there waiting for her. (I don't know if that happens or not...but I think it might)  Natalie was pretty good and had been prepared in a way for this day. I was the one crying as I held her two little ones on my lap looking at them through new eyes....what miracles they truly are.

Today I got to take all my girls to lunch.  I love these gals.  They are all such wonderful examples to me.  I really do learn so much from each of them.  They are so much better than I was at their ages which is what I have always prayed for.  They are so beautiful...inside and out!  I am thankful that we had an opportunity to all be together and enjoy each others company.  Since Julie's birthday is next Wednesday..we had them sing to her.  I really enjoy the little ones that get to join us...it's their time now.  Each little one has such a cute personality...I love them all so much!  Life is Good!