Musical bedrooms

So....because Roger moved out, and Cheide is turning 14 in two weeks; we decided it was time for Cheide to stop sharing rooms with a four year old and move into the big room in the basement. We moved all of his stuff down Friday night, then moved the big queen bed Roger left up to Malachi's new solo room. Occasionally one of us need to lay/sleep next to Malachi when he is scared or not feeling well so it will be nice to have more room.

 Cheide decorated his room with fervor, including a small second-hand fridge we bought him, and it looks great!

Congratulations Roger!

Our roommate/long time friend got married on Friday. He has been renting a room from us since January. His temple sealing was amazing and the reception beautiful. We are very happy for him.

Fall

I must say; I have very much enjoyed the summer. We spent many afternoons at Seven Peaks, Trafalga, the Scera pool and hanging out in our friends' air conditioned houses. We ran through sprinklers, went to parades and carnivals, went camping, had numerous bar-b-cues and planted new flowers for next Spring. It has been a great Summer indeed.
But, oh, how I am ready for the Fall and Winter again. My tummy tingles in excitement for Halloween and falling leaves. I am greatly anticipating the first snowfall and Christmas this year. The magic feeling it brings is waited for all year long.
So, come on over and play in the leaves with us, join us for canyon rides to see the changing colors, and join us for snowman building and snowball fights this year.
We expect to see you!

Ew, ew, ew, We got something shiny and new!

Last weekend we made a trip to Larry H. Miller to redeem a prize we had recieved in the mail. We had no intention of buying anything or even looking at any cars. We had just had our Nissan Quest repaired from the accident I was in and we loved our little van that took such great care of us. I even named her Emily.
Alas, we could not resist the manipulative powers of car salesmen and when they showed us the shiny silver Dodge Grand Caravan sport; with it's 5 doors, rear air, tape player that works and enough power to get me into trouble; we fell in love and brought him home. It certainly didn't hurt that the salesmen gave the exact payment we asked for, traded our old van in for a dang good amount and gave us an amazing interest rate that even they were stunned at.
Isn't he beautiful?!
I named him the Silver Bullet and even the kids are in love with him.

Relief Society release

Last week I was officially released from the Relief Society presidency. For those f you who did not know, I was called in January to be the second counselor. I was in charge of emailing ward information, planning and organizing monthly activities and preparing, overseeing and paying for, the ward garden plots. I also convinced our bishop to allow me to organize and hold the very first ward camp out ever in our ward. It had never been allowed before. Many people wondered how I did it when others had failed for years before. I explained to them the story of the little train who could. I never gave up harrassing the bishop until he grew sick of me and gave in! ;)
It was a short time but a lot of work! I got to know everyone in my ward so much better and made many new friends. I formed a few bonds that I will cherish forever.
I am so grateful for the blessing this calling was in my life, for the trials it brought me and the enormous blessings. It was incredibly humbling to discover that, as much as I honestly believe in the atonement of Christ; I never thought myself worthy to hold such an important calling or be such an influence to others in the gospel. This goes to show me that our Heavenly Father does indeed know me better and love me more then I do myself.
I will miss my meetings and working with the amazing women I have come to know. But I am certain the new presidency has many joys in store for us.

Wow, last week was a busy, chaotic, fun filled week for all of us. On Monday Cheide and Mick left for Maple Dell scout camp for a week. To keep us from missing the big boys, I tried to keep myself and the little ones busy. We went bowling, fed the ducks, went to Seven Peaks during an awesome storm with friends, and hung out with the Reed family A LOT! I love their family so much! Being at their house is like coming home. They are so laid back and welcoming, sometimes my kids refuse to leave. On Friday we woke up at 6 A.M. to watch the hot air balloons lift off. They are enormous! And I got a picture with my idol, Darth Vader. I took the kids to meet some soldiers and make thank you cards for them, then we went up the canyon to eat dinner with the scouts. Saturday night we sat outside the Stadium of Fire with the Reeds and watched the fireworks. By Sunday we were all wiped out. When the boys came home Noa and Malachi were overjoyed to have the big guys home.

Funny memories

Memories are a funny thing. We recently had to clean out my grandparents' home. My grandfather was born in the home and his parents lived there for years before that. MY great grandfather built the house I believe, so the house is over 100 years old. So cleaning everything out was awesome and heartbreaking at the same time. 100 years of memories is a lot to go through. For me, it was 25 years of memories that came washing back and I was often overcome with heartache and tears. "I remember this...", "Oh I always remember Grandma having this here...", "For as long as I can remember, this was there...".
And as we have decided what item we all want to keep to cherish and who gets what, it has been kind of funny to see some of the items people have the most loved memories of. For example; my cousin Ashley remembers a candy dish in my grandpas room but no one else remembers it and we cannot find it. My mom asked for the clock in my grandmas kitchen. This clock has been on the wall since my mom was a little girl and actually plugs in. As for me, I asked for the dog collars. No one else remembered that they were there, hidden inside the room in the garage. My grandpa hung them there years ago, when I was little, and they have never moved. But they fascinated me and remind me of hanging out with my grandpa when he went on calls as the Lindon city animal control officer. I loved to ride along with him.
Also, the record player. When I asked for it I was stunned that no one else had done so. This record player is from the early fifties and in mint condition. I used to love to play it at Grandma's house. And the records they have for it are amazing!!! Mick and I have so enjoyed it.
Lastly, I asked my grandma years ago if I could have her cedar chest, and as I was looking through t last week I discovered an evening paper from the day that JFK was assassinated. What a neat find!