Future Missionary

We had an exceptionally fun family home evening last night. Our lesson was on missionary work. We showed Lucy some pictures from Jason's mission in Australia. She almost couldn't believe that he was a missionary! We talked with Lucy about the importance of missionary work and how she can share what she knows about the gospel and Jesus with her friends.

We gave her a little homemade badge like the missionaries wear and she and Jason went knocking on doors (around the house) pretending to share the gospel. I would answer the door and she introduced herself to me as Sister Ray and then she and Jason would proceed to answer questions I had about "her" church. I was very impressed by how much she knows! She had a great time pretending with us and I felt like she really understood what we were trying to teach her.

After the lesson we had some cookies and milk with the kiddos. In this picture Jason is behind me making crazy faces trying to get them to smile for me.
Family home evening has become such a fun time for our little family. We look forward to Monday nights and I really try to think about what the kids need to hear that week. I'm amazed at how much they soak in even with just the short little lessons that we do.

Before bed we played an intense game of hide and seek. I hid Lucy on one of the shelves in the pantry. After finding her, Graham decided to join her.
We then told Lucy that she was going to have to sleep there that night and so Graham decided to help her out. He kept bringing her toys and laying his beloved blanket on her. Then he gave her a hug and a kiss and told her good night. It was so sweet! That kid sure keeps us laughing!

Lookin' Good!

This past week there was a Change of Command ceremony for the Commanding Officer of Naval Air Station Lemoore (where we live). All of the officers in attendance had to wear their dress white uniforms. It's always nice to see my military man all dressed up. Doesn't he look good!

Here he is talking to Commodore Murdock (our old bishop) after the ceremony.

Good Friends......Good Times

Julie and Emma, Petrea, Brianna, ME, Marci, Kelli
Jill, Sandra, Tara, Mary Jane

Last weekend a bunch of my friends came over for a girls game night. My sweet friend, Jill, is moving next week and we wanted to have a fun night to send her off.

We had a great time! Everyone brought a treat to share. We had a some chocolate fountain drama, but in the end I think everyone got their chocolate fix. Here's Jill trying to get it to work.

We started the night with a little Win, Lose, or Draw, but we spent most of the evening playing The Great Dalmoody (spelling?). It's a lot like Scum. We had a great time competing and laughing together.

I'm so grateful for all the wonderful friends I have here in Lemoore. We always have such a great time visiting and joking around. I'm so sad to see Jill go! She's such a true friend and I'm so grateful for all that she has done for me. She's always checking in on me to see how I'm doing and just listens when I need someone to hear me out. Thanks, Jill! Good luck in Pensacola!

Finding the Joy

Warning: A little long and a little boring, but a little therapeutic for me. So...read on if you have a little time.

I've been going through a little bit of a rough patch these past few weeks. We have a lot of changes that are going to take place in the coming months and it seems the anticipation is taking its toll on my emotions.

When I think back to other times in my life when major life events have taken place (birth of a child, moving, new job) , it seems like I've always had a hard time coping. My security boat is rocking a little bit and my reaction is to curl up into the fetal position and think about how horrible it's going to be to die drowning. As each event comes and goes, I would like to think my coping skills have gotten a little better, but this time around I'm getting more disappointed in myself because I feel like I should be able to handle these relatively simple trials with less drama.

A major symptom of stress that I'm suffering with right now is that I can't make any decisions and no matter what I finally decide to do, in my mind I've always chosen wrong. This is usually with small stuff, like what I'm feeding the kids, how I handle a discipline situation, what I buy, things I eat etc, etc. It can be very exhausting!

A friend of mine loaned me a book that has helped and I've really enjoyed. It's called Being The Mom, by Emily Watts. There were more than a few parts that struck a chord with me. The final chapter goes through the different stages of parenthood and lists the things "you just have to live through" followed by the things "you're going to want to remember". Being how I'm in the toddler and preschool phase of parenting, some of her insights caused me stop and reflect about the time I spend on unimportant things. For example: We have to live through tantrums, toilet training, tears and frustration. But along with all that, we get to be there for the funny conversations each day and the see their little personalities that are forming. We'll want to remember what it feels like to be someone's favorite person in the whole wide world (that one got me a little teary....remember, I'm on an emotional roller coaster right now).

"The biggest mistake of all would be to dwell on the frustration of the live throughs while letting the want to remembers slip through your fingers."

I truly want to be the type of person that can just go with the flow and take life in stride. I want to be able to live each day without worrying about what's coming months away and is ultimately out of my control. Hopefully I can find a way to see the rocking boat as more of an adventure ride and not a death sentence!

A Date With My Darling

Jason and I got to go on a date Saturday evening. We decided to do something besides dinner and a movie. We went to a Par 3 golf course and had a great time! Jason is a great golfer, me....not so much. I can make contact and do okay, but I would definitely like to get better.
The course was perfect. Not crowded and the holes were short. It was nice being able to spend some time together after a busy week.

Still Sizzlin'

Well, we're still hot here in Lemoore without much relief coming anytime soon. Today it's 97 degrees! I'm so ready for fall to show itself. I want to wear my cardigans and sweatshirts!!

Here's some pics of the kids trying to stay cool.
Our friend has this long board that Lucy is in love with. She spent the whole afternoon riding it down the driveway, hauling it back up, and going again and again.

Camping with the Kiddos

This past weekend we decided to take a little camping trip up to the Sequoias. We went with the Sare family and had a great time. We made the 1 1/2 drive on Thursday afternoon and stayed until Saturday morning.

Our campsite was great! Lots of space and privacy. There was only one drawback. We had to walk about 1/4 mile from our car to the actual site. So....that meant we had to make numerous trips back to the car to get unloaded and then turn around and do it again two days later to load up. Not too big of a deal, but it got a little exhausting with the little ones.

Friday was awesome! We drove up to Sequoia National Park and saw all the sites. It was Jason's first time up there, so it was fun to see his reaction to the gigantic trees. The trees really are amazing to see. Quite the sight.
First we hiked up Morro Rock and saw the amazing view. I was able to do it, even with my fear of heights. Lucy loved it. There were little stone steps all the way to the top. What a trip!

We made our way over to the Tunnel Tree and then to see General Sherman (the largest tree in the world....volume wise).
We made our way back to camp and enjoyed dinner and of course, S'mores.

Lucy had a fabulous time. Graham had fun, too. Although we had quite the struggle with him and his shoes. He HATES to wear shoes. He cries as he's trying to take them off, "Beet ......Hep......Beet.....Hep" (translation: feet.....help......feet...help). We wrestled him the whole time.

Here he is throwing one of his shoe tantrums

Here's the lineup of shoes we tried. We even gave Lucy's shoes a go, but no luck

I'm glad we made the trip. Sometimes it seems like with little ones, the fun doesn't outweigh the work. There were times that it felt like that this weekend, but there were many moments that I was able to enjoy my family and see how much fun they were having, that it was worth it.

Caleigh and Audrey lovin' their hot chocolate

Here's Jason making us some pancakes and Lucy enjoying them

Happy Birthday, Graham!

Graham is 2 years old as of Sunday, August 31st. These couple years have absolutely flown by. Here is our little guy in a glance:

Day of birth (I love this picture!):

A few days old:6 months:

1 year old:

18 months:2 years old today!

We didn't do anything to spectacular for his day. We had some neighbors over for cake and ice cream and he opened a few presents.

He had to spend some time on the "thinking chair" after he bit little Audrey. As you can see, he's very upset about it. We're having issues with biting lately. Any suggestions?


We sure love our little man. He is growing up so fast and he keeps us laughing every day with his new words and crazy antics. Happy Birthday, Grahammer!