An Amazing Weekend

 It's here!!!

Thanksgiving has passed and the Christmas season is officially upon us! 

The lights are my favorite... they invite the Spirit of peace so beautifully...they invite Him and HIS light!

One awesome surprise that we had this weekend was that my brother Kelly's kids surprised us with a visit for Thanksgiving from Georgia! Just to see them, hug them , look into their eyes, and talk with them was such a treat. They are so sweet, beautiful, and kind...my brother would be so proud...

I really felt so close to them even though it has been a while since we had seen them. It also made me feel so close to my brother too. I miss him sometimes, but then I feel comfort knowing that he is probably watching every thing that's going on and being one of our guardian angels!!!...I see so much of him in them...:)

(Kesslyn, me, Rebecca, Taylor, Austin, and Ethan)

 We enjoyed catching up, laughing, eating pumpkin roll (Ok, after dinner we ate the pumpkin roll ;), and playing games at Tiffany and Colby's house...

...and Kesslyn had a FIT over the train that went around in circles under their tree!!

 She LOVED it so much she would giggle, dance, and squeal with delight EVERY time it came around!!!

 ...and one more of my very favorite moments of the weekend was watching Kesslyn interact with everyone, especially her sissy Kierra! She was soooo excited to see her that even when Kierra had to sit down to work on some homework, Kesslyn climbed right up on the couch next to her and plopped her little bum right down beside her!!! I was dying it was so cute!!!

 What a good little homework helper you have there Kierra!!! :)

I know I say it so often, but I honestly don't think I can ever say it enough...I am so grateful for my family and the blessings the gospel brings! ...Eternal families, peace and safety, and true joy beyond measure all because of a generous and loving Heavenly Father!

Thanksgiving

 The Thanksgiving holiday has been such an enjoyable time! We met at Clint's sister Ginger's house with all of his family. We had about 40 family members gathered, and got to eat and visit and just enjoy getting to be together. Ginger made these beautiful sugar cookies as our place settings this year and they were absolutely AMAZING!!! What a talent she has! ...And I do believe that Clint and I still make quite the perfect pair even as a couple of turkeys! ;)

 Kambriella and Kesslyn snuggled up to Papa and worked on getting wrapped a little tighter around his little finger...;)  Success!!! :)

 On Thanksgiving night, Kierra took Kambriella home with her to her apartment where they had a fabulous sisters night full of food, games, talking on the phone to Riley ;), coloring, movies, and a visit to Megaplex for the new Disney princess movie Moana. FUN times for ALL!!!

  Even all of the brothers had a fun night! Carew, Dallin, and Gavin all stayed the night with their cousins at Grandma's house in Roy...which meant Clint and I had a

 peaceful date night at home after Kesslyn went to bed. 

What a perfect ending to a perfect day. :)

The boys all rode the train home from Roy and Kierra brought Kambriella back home so that we could all spend the day Saturday together. We started bright and early by heading to the tree farm to cut down our Christmas tree! ...Had doughnuts, got our family pictures taken by Clint's sister Cherie, decorated the tree, took naps :), went to IHOP for dinner, and then ended the night at Tiffany and Colby's house where I had fun helping Tiffany set up her Christmas village.

I cannot tell you what an enjoyable weekend this was for me. Not only did we do some very fun activities, but the spirit of peace in my heart was so real and full. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute that we had and the spirit in my home just having everyone there was so perfect for me.

The windows of heaven continue to pour out blessings upon us that we truly have not enough room to receive them all!!! My blessings basket is OVERFLOWING and so is my heart!!!

The Parable of the Leaves

It was Thanksgiving morning...my FAVORITE day to go for a run out of the entire year!!! The world is always so peaceful and still...no cars on the road...just all the beauty, peace, and quiet that one needs to simply count her many blessings and talk to God...

And all the while that I was running, I  was intrigued by the leaves that I would find randomly in the middle of the road ALL BY THEMSELVES...

 each one was beautiful...

 ...intricate in detail...

 ...crisp looking in the cold...

 ...slightly covered in frost...

 ...almost "preserved" looking...

 ...each ornate design telling a story...

 ...and testifying of the hand of God...

 ...waiting to be noticed...

 ...waiting for someone to stop and care...

 ...because they were out on their own...

 ...not in the big pile with the rest of the leaves...

 ...but each one just as beautiful...

 ...and just as important...

 ...than the next ONE...

 I felt like God was telling me a story...

 The Parable of the Leaves...

So as I was running, I couldn't help but think of these leaves...I kept thinking of them so much so, that after I finished my running route, I decided to go back around and look at these leaves again...this time walking and taking pictures instead of running. My mind was racing and thinking of the "ONE." 

Each of these leaves to me represented PEOPLE...

People that are all alone on the road of life, maybe waiting to be noticed by some hurried passer~by...

Still beautiful and important with a life story all their own, that's ornate and intricate in detail, maybe from experiences or trials that have left them feeling "out in the cold" or "covered in frost" and yet all the while  looking "preserved" and boldly testifying of the hand of God...

Well, with all of the lessons that I felt Heavenly Father was teaching me, 

I couldn't help but think of "the ONE"...all of the people in my life who may be alone.

And then very appropriately, the Spirit whispered to me to go and visit "the ONE."

I thought of my dear friend Bernice. Isn't she BEAUTIFUL?!  :)

 I thought to myself..."Bernice surely won't be home on Thanksgiving! Her family is so good to come visit her and take her places, so she'll probably be gone...but I'll still stop by..."

 So there she sat watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade on T.V. and quilting away...

This is a familiar sight to see...Bernice is always quilting, or writing recipe books, 

or watching the Jazz play on T.V. And while I know that Bernice is not "left out in the cold" or "covered in frost," (she does have an amazing family that takes such good care of her!) she does have a kind of "preserved look" don't you think? ;)

She is 98 years old with an "ornate and intricate life story to tell that completely testifies of the hand of God."

Her birthday is exactly one week after mine, (September 29th) and her husband that has been gone many years now shared my exact birthday...September 22nd...fun things to know! She has also made me smile each and every time she tells me in her sweet voice,

"Did you know that I've been president of the Relief Society 3 times??? :)

She. Is. Awesome. :)

As I visited with Bernice, I found out that she would be celebrating Thanksgiving on Saturday with her family, and that today she would just be home..

.possibly waiting for some "hurried passer~by" to stop and notice "the ONE."

 Bernice YOU have touched my life for good and have taught me so many things.

But today more than ever I truly enjoyed our visit, and I will never forget the story that I was told, or more rather taught, about the "Parable of the Leaves."

Happy Thanksgiving! I'm grateful for so many things...especially the leaves! :)

So Lucky

 A double strawberry double~dipped in chocolate??? How lucky can one be??? :)

 Well...not nearly as lucky as ME because out of all of the sweet and lucky things in the world, I am married to this amazing man. I LOVE him more than words can say...even more than a double strawberry that's been double~dipped in chocolate!!! :)

 He is so supportive and loving, and my #1 fan! He tells me all the time how beautiful I am, how I am one of the top 10 mothers of all time (including Mary and Eve...which we know is NOT the truth, but it sure makes me feel good, and makes my kids think they are the luckiest kids on the planet!!!)

 He works so hard at everything he does...INCLUDING living the gospel. He has been such an example to me in his dedication to the scriptures...not missing a day of reading them in over 3 years now...WOW.

He LOVES to take me on dates, be with ME no matter what we are doing, cuddle up close any chance we get, and kiss my neck just to see me giggle...

I truly love him...and I'm so THANKFUL that we are sealed together FOREVER!!!

Carew's Eagle Scout Project

 Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and there is soooo much to be thankful for!!!

Last night as I rushed from my garage into my house after a meeting,

 I quickly shut the door behind me and thought..."BRRRRR!!!! It's COLD outside!!!" and then I thought...

"I'm so blessed to have this warm, cozy home..."

I know that not everyone in the world is so fortunate...

Some people daily struggle to find warmth, food, or even LOVE...

And that's why Carew's Eagle Scout Project makes me excited...

He has committed to collecting 1500 pounds of food for the Utah Food Bank.

THAT"S A LOT OF FOOD!!!

On last Wednesday he invited all of the young men and young women of our ward to help in the project.

They went door to door and ended up collecting 1100 pounds...so he plans on continuing to collect from his cross country team, seminary counsel, and friends at school to reach his goal. I know he can do it! :)

 I love to think of just how many mouths will be fed from the collection...how many grateful mothers and fathers there will be that their little ones will have something to eat...

Honestly, with all of the many helpers that we had, we were able to accomplish so much in just a short time...

Collecting, organizing, boxing and weighing, loading, cleaning, and of course eating doughnuts and hot chocolate ... :)

Matthew 25:40

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."

Let's continue giving and sharing what we have...it's what the Lord wants us to do!

Great job Carew!

(Now on to the paperwork! ;)

My Sister

 My cute sister has been such a trooper since she has had surgery on her foot! 

It was an unexpected thing that really needed to be done, but has also been a trial for her in patience and tolerance...but she always keeps going and says, "I'm good!" (Even when I know she's really not...)

We've had to take a few excursions just to get out of the house...and she's so lucky, she's been getting to drive around in those awesome shopping carts at the store! ;)

 We've spent time together putting up her Christmas decorations...

This is her Snowman tree...:)

 ...and almost every Sunday we get to go visit and hang out together. It's always so fun to be with her and her family...Colby always spoils us rotten with gourmet cooking from his master grilling skills, to his new found love for smoking different types of meats...and then his soft giant teddy bear side always spoils my little girls ROTTEN! ;) I love how him and Kambriella love to sit and color together. :) So sweet...

He has also been so good to Tiffany to help her with all of her needs while she's been recovering too. He's a good guy with a good heart that's just getting better all the time! :)

 ...and then there's Tiffany, so full of love and laughter, care and concern for me and my family...Little Kesslyn will always get swooped up into Tiffany's arms for some kisses and snuggles and loves. 

And of course for some sharing of treats...chocolate and cookies I think are her favorite! :)

Seriously, I feel so blessed to have them in my family. I love how we always help each other out without any worry or concern for ourselves...having a sister is like having a full time angel at your charge, to help you with any and all of life's good and bad, joys and sorrows, surgeries or celebrations...

I'm thankful for my little sister and that we have each other! Hang in there and you will be back on both feet soon enough! :) But for now, please just continue to spoil my girls, and spoil me by letting me into your home and your life to let me be with you and serve you in any way that I might be able to. I look up to you, even though you're shorter than me, and you're so beautiful to me too! :)

I love you and want you to know it, and I'm so grateful that you're MY SISTER!

No One Likes a Frowny Face

No one likes a frowny face!!!

 Change it for a SMILE...

 Make the world a better place by smiling all the while!!!   : )

Clint and I escaped for a quick dinner date the other night only to return and find

one VERY SAD little girl...

Her and her big brother Gavin had been having a very intense competition of JUST DANCE on the Wii...

and sweet little Kambriella was feeling so defeated after losing so many rounds to Gavin...;(

Gavin wasn't being a poor sport, he was just dancing his best...but so was Kambriella!

And she HATED losing!!!

(I think she gets her competitive nature from her dad :)...

OK maybe from her mom too :)

But as soon as we got home and saw the tear stained cheeks and swollen eyes, we KNEW it was time to bring out some smiles!!!

Clint and I took turns dancing with Kambriella and trying to get her to smile...

There were a couple of good ones that came out! ;)

I knew that it would make her feel better to play JUST DANCE against her dad, because she would most likely win playing against him!!!

But he put up a pretty good fight!

 they battled it out...

 ...and then Clint did better than I thought he would...

So, after we played for a while, we just tried to remind Kambriella that we, of course are older and have had more practice at some of these things than she has...

We reminded her that it's fun to just play the game and that you don't always have to win...

And we reminded her that she can do ANYTHING that she puts her mind to, but that it's so important to be a good sport, to NEVER give up trying, and to remember that life is a journey and that we need to enjoy the ride, even if that means we might lose a few rounds of JUST DANCE.

We figured out soon after that too, that a good night's rest works wonders for ANY worn out or emotional little girl! :)

Thank goodness for a good night's sleep, daddy's who will dance with their little girls, and mom's who will let the little ones win. ;)

Once again we are sooo thankful for our family!!!