family history cousin camp

Lucky for me, I have the most talented and kind sisters and sisters-in-law.  (In my view, they are all my sisters).  They inspire me all time, and my whole family benefits from their talents.  The family history cousin camp my sister Jodi held this summer was just one of those times. 

I have always loved history, but haven't done a lot with researching our family history.  Our family history is a pretty complicated story, filled with murder and intrigue (really!) and although my parents have tried to find answers, they have been met with frustration every time.  That is, until Jodi got involved.  She has been amazing and they have had some major breakthroughs that have helped us find answers and understand so much more about my dad's grandparents and our family history.  

This past summer, shes held a family cousin camp at her house, where she taught the kids how to research a name, fill in the blanks on the Familysearch site, and find names to take to the temple to link our family together.  It was pretty awesome.  Not without complaint, mind you :).  We may or may not have had to chase kids down a few times and drag them back!  But in the end, I think they each understood much more and each one found at least one name to take to the temple.  After a few days of camp, the twelve-and-above group took all the names to the temple to do baptisms.  

Kate was especially inspired by what she learned, and has since spent hours finding names and preparing them for the temple.  I'm guessing she's found at least 50 names!

We also spent an afternoon at the Salt Lake City cemetary, learning more about some our grandparents and ancestors, and finding the grave of Willard Richards, who is my grandma Sally's great grandfather.  It was an afternoon well spent.  

(Love Ryenne in this picture- full of enthusiasm, eh?  I would say this is a pretty good example of the response we got when we suggested the family history camp idea!)

cousins/best friends

Found these pictures on my phone the other day.  They were taken at my nephew's farewell before he left for his mission in the Czech Republic.  Needless to say, I smiled when I looked at them.  We were missing Mckell, who is serving her mission in Oklahoma (8 months to go!)  

These kiddos are the best of friends.  They have so much fun together and make me laugh so much.  I admit, I teared up a little that night thinking that from here on out, it will be an awfully long time before they're together again.  They'll leave on missions one after the next, which makes me so happy and proud of the great kiddos they are, but a little sad at the same time.  They're growing up!  And I love them all so much.  

Kye has a friend fighting cancer, and so he and his friends decided to shave their heads in support of him.  He asked David if he would do the honors.  Once again, a bunch of great kids.  (Who by the way, couldn't take a normal picture to save their lives!  

volleyball!

When Ryenne came to us last year and told us she wanted to try out for the high school volleyball team, I was a little stunned.  And worried.  After all, this is the girl who has never played on a sports team (except one year of kindergarten soccer maybe?)  She is an talented ballerina and has taken since she was five years old.  So I'm not saying she's not an athlete, because believe me.  If you have ever watched a pointe ballet class, you couldn't say those kids aren't athletes.  That takes some serious skills.  

But still, she definitely hadn't played volleyball before.  These days, it seems like you have a to play a sport from the time you're in diapers in order to make the high school team!  I was worried she wouldn't make it.  I worried she'd be devastated and embarrassed.  And if I'm being completely honest, I was worried that I would be embarrassed (sad but true).  I wondered how to politely suggest that she might not be suited to volleyball.  I stewed and worried about this (amongst the rest of things mothers of middle school aged children worry about).  One morning, I was doing just this as I was cleaning the house when a clear answer came into my head, telling me that it didn't really matter if she made the team or not.

I knew that much of what I was worrying about was out of my control, and further, not that important in the whole scheme of things.  I was reminded to focus on what I could control- the things that we are doing and teaching in our home, and that as I did these most important things, our children would would be better able to get through the ups and downs that they will face as they grow.  Not a promise that they wouldn't have struggles or make poor decisions- just that there are "big things" and "little things" and that I needn't worry about the little things.  

That little morning lesson continues to bless my life.  This agency part of parenting is pretty advanced material.

Anyway.  That was a long way of explaining how I felt as we ventured into the uncharted world of volleyball :).  

The first time I picked up Ryenne from open gym last Spring, she got into the car and broke into tears.  She was definitely out of her comfort zone.  We had a little chat about her choices:  1) she could quit or 2) she could stick it out.  She could go for it, knowing that she would feel uncomfortable and have to work twice as hard as everyone else but really, what did she have to lose?  She knew her chances of not making the team were pretty high, but we talked that if it didn't pan out, it wasn't the end of the world.   

She received word, via email, on my birthday- welcoming her on the high school freshman volleyball team.  I remember she fell to her knees and started crying (the happy kind!)  

So proud of Ryenne.  Not for making the team (which was a great thing!), but for pushing herself beyond what was familiar and doing hard things.  So many lessons were learned those few months, both by her and her parents!  Most importantly, we are learning that our world doesn't hinge on our extra curricular activities! Those will come and go, but what we do in our home is what will really make the difference.  (Hopefully we can do enough good to help outweigh all the future therapy issues we create!)  Who knows what the next three years of high school will bring, but I'm learning that this girl is made of pretty good stuff.  I admire her and her courage.  

So glad  I've got these kiddos around to help me figure life out.

Everyone always asks why Ryenne wears a different colored jersey.  She wore red because of her position.  (Her dad would say it's because she's an odd ball, which may have a little truth to it :)

aaaaaaargh!

pumpkin patch

Thank goodness our good friends, the Johns, take pity on us every year by letting us pick pumpkins on their farm.  I mean, check these pictures out.  Now that's a pumpkin patch!  Every year I have great pumpkin growing ambitions, and every year we end up back at Greg and Amanda's patch.  It's a sad gardener that can't grow a good pumpkin and I'm afraid that's me.  But I'm sure I'll keep trying.  

Also, I always think I'll limit the kids (and me, who am I kidding) to one pumpkin each.  But every year we end up with 3 or 4 per person.  There's just so many cute ones!  Little, tiny ones and big fat perfect-for-carving ones.  Pumpkins that have the perfect stems, the best shape, the fun colored ones, or the odd, warty ones.  I have a love affair with pumpkins. 

They always tell us to pay them in homemade chocolate chip cookies.  I think we owe them about a hundred dozen.  

I sure love living in the country.

the haircut that broke my heart

This fall, I let Sam's hair get waaaaaay too long.  He could hardly see.  This boy haircut thing is tricky!  It grows so darn fast!  So after much persuading by the girls, and talking over strategy with our favorite stylist, Aunt Kelsey, we decided to go short.  (I tried telling Aunt Kelsey that maybe she should teach me how to cut it myself because it's hard to get appointments sometimes, but she didn't think it was such a good idea. Oh, she of little faith.)  We decided going short would give us a little bit longer between haircuts.

We were loving his funny faces once Kels started cutting.  She clipped the back super short, and then turned him around to take a peek in the mirror.  He made a funny face and smiled as told her, "Put my hairs back on!"  

We had to take a picture of his in-between punk haircut to send to dad.  I told him all he needed was skinny jeans and he'd be set!  (His dad's worst nightmare:  skinny jeans and punk hair!)  

When she finished the top off, I couldn't deny it.  He looked pretty darn cute.  But.  Look how much older he looks with short hair!  Not just a month or two- several years older!  

He sure did look cute with that little haircut, but I can't help myself.  He's wearing it long again.  

My baby can't grow up quite yet.  

family pictures- autumn 2014

Finally getting around to posting our family pictures, taken back in November!  Our good friend Nicole (Nicole Nelson Photography) took them for us- she's the best.  Not only super talented but one of our favorite people.  I look through these pictures and can't believe how my little ones are not-so-little anymore.  All the sudden, Miss Kate looks so grown up!  Nearly a teenager!  And Sam?  Not a baby anymore.  

We're doing our best to enjoy these days.  Filled with lots of noise, laughter, and of course, the ups and downs of family life.  It is busy, but I wouldn't want to be doing anything else right now.  This feeling-like-we can't-keep-up stage of our lives will not last forever.  

That's what I think of every time I look at this family of mine.  This is the time to be happy.  

Right here, right now.