More Rock Climbin

Joel and Thomas have had their share of rock climbing this month.  They attended an OA Fellowship at Kendall Cliffs where they were able to rock climb for a few hours.  Then this past weekend Joel took the troop to the YMCA for a rock climbing activity.  Only 3 YM showed up for the activity so they got a lot of rock climbing time.  They were also taught how to boulder and given the opportunity to do that for a while as well.

The videos are really fun to watch but it is better to turn the volume down.  It's kinda loud.

Daddy/Daughter Dance

Joel took Mary to the Daddy/Daughter Dance at Echo Hills Elementary.  Mary could hardly contain her excitement for the week before the dance.  Friday she came home and went upstairs to choose the dress she was going to wear and to choose Joel's clothes for him.  She told him he had to wear a suit and she would find something that would match her.  They had fun dancing together, making some crafts, playing life-size candy land, and laughing.  Mary's smile says it all.  How blessed our daughters are to have a dad that loves to spend time with them.

Revenge

Monday evening we were all cleaning up the kitchen as usual.  Spring decided to be sneaky and dump some water down the back of Joel's shirt.  He was pretty calm about it and just said to her, "I won't get you back, but I will get even."  He didn't mention anything else about it.  We then had FHE and Joel was responsible for the activity.  After the lesson and treat he announced, "We're going to go in the backyard and I will pull you up in the tree with the rope."  Eruption of cheers from all the kids as they scampered off to find their shoes.  Joel continued, "Spring, you're first!"  

Spring cheered with elation that she was going to be first.  Joel simply said to me, "That was easy!"  We headed outside and Joel lifted her up high then handed the rope to Thomas saying, "Be a good son and hold your sister where she is."  He walked off, picked up the hose, and turned it on.  The video tells the rest of the story!

14 Years

Yesterday Joel and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary.  Joel came home from work with white roses for me.  White roses have been special to us for nearly 20 years now.  We had white rose corsage/boutonniere at prom and my wedding boquet was made of white roses.  The kids were wondering why Dad brought me more flowers because I still had the ones from when I came home from Washington.  Mary told me now I have enough to share with her.  When we told them it was our anniversary Spring said we should have told her sooner so she could have made us a card.  Mary asked if she could go on our anniversary with us!

 

I am so blessed to be married to Joel.  He makes me smile everyday.  He works hard for our family and, yet, always has the time and energy for the kids and me when he gets home each day.  He is gentle and tender with our children and has such desire for our children to learn the gospel, gain their own testimony, and reach their potential in this life.  I learn so much from him on how to teach our children in everyday moments.  We enjoy attending the temple together and the opportunity that allows us to remember the covenants we have made.  Joel has always made me feel so special and important to him.  I love our time together and cherish the moments we get together.  My heart is full of appreciation to my Father in Heaven for blessing me with a husband that cherishes me and our children.  I am grateful for eternal marriage and eternal families.

A DAY of Oil Changes

Saturday, when Joel got home from the 11 year old campout with Thomas, he tackled oil changes on all 3 vehicles.  He had a handful of eager volunteers too that actually stayed with him throughout all 3 changes.  It was great fun to watch them all out with Joel.  Sammy was, by far, the most enthralled with the process.  He hurried in the house and came out with his toolbox and was under the car with Joel the entire time.  He wanted to know all the details and to see everything Joel was doing.  Joel had unending patience as a job that would normally take less than an hour to do all 3 cars took over 2 hours.  He said it was well worth the time and he loved having them out with him.

Cycling Merit Badge

Last month Thomas decided he wanted to complete the Cycling Merit Badge.  In addition to learning about cycling, bike care, bike repair, first aid, a road test with his merit badge counselor, he had numerous bike rides he needed to go on.  He needed to do two 10 mile bike rides, two 15 mile bike rides, two 25 mile bike rides, and finally a 50 mile bike ride completed in less than 8 hours.  He asked Joel if he would do this with him and Joel, being the amazing Dad he is, willingly agreed.  They went on their first 10 mile bike ride on June 16th.  A short 6 weeks later, yesterday, they completed their 7th and final ride of 50 miles.  They completed it in a little over 7 hours including breaks for lunch and a 20 minute break due to a heavy downpour of rain.  That is 150 miles they biked in just 6 weeks.

Thomas has loved doing this merit badge and Joel has loved the time spent with him.  Each week Thomas would plan out the route they would take and off they would go.  They have been able to explore and see parts of the surrounding areas that they would have never before seen..  Lots of wildlife and cool historic things have been seen as well.  Thomas has gained a new respect and appreciation for his Dad during this time as well.  He learned how much his Dad is willing to do for him even after long weeks of work and church committments and still getting on the bike and going for a long ride.  I am so grateful for the willingness of Joel to do this with Thomas and for the special bonding times they have shared on these rides.  I hope Thomas will always look back on these weeks with fondness.

They left early yesterday morning for their ride.  Thomas was up, showered, and ready to start at 4:15 am because he just couldn't sleep.  Joel held him off for about an hour or so and then they loaded their bikes and drove to their beginning spot.  They rode on the Ohio-Erie Canal Towpath and headed north to Cleveland.  Then they returned to their starting point, having completed 30 miles, and ate their lunch I had packed for them at the car.  Then they headed south for another 10 miles ending into Akron and turned around and headed back to the car completing just over 50 miles.  Joel said the last 12 miles seemed like he was going to die.  He said every hill seemed like a mountain as he was getting tired.  He said Thomas didn't even seem affected by it and was a good 100 yards ahead of him most of the time.  Joel commented though that Thomas would stop and wait for him to catch up and lovingly check to make sure he was OK before heading on again.  With about 8 miles to go Joel said Thomas went to stand up on his pedals to pedal up a hill and his left foot slipped off the pedal and got pulled underneath the pedal and he fell onto the bar of his bike.  This caused him to start to loose balance and start swerving.  Joel could see if he went too far off the path to the right he would fall into a heavily wooded ravine and it would have required him going to the hospital.  All Joel could do was call out to him to get back on the path and stay on the path.  He called this out to him over and over again and it shook Thomas enough to correct and eventually regain control of his bike and get back on the path.  He never fell and wasn't hurt for which I am so grateful.  They finished their 50 miles and what an accomplishment.  Thomas was so excited when he came home and could tell me about their day.  He has loved this merit badge and I know a big reason for that has been the individual time it has given him with his Dad.  How grateful I am for this time they were able to spend together.

And They're Off...

Thomas and Joel headed off for Scout Camp early this morning.  It is hard for me to believe that as I sit here typing my son is off to his first week of Scout Camp.  Where have the years gone?  I know he is going to have a great time and I know he is super prepared.  He wanted to start packing last Monday and slowly would add things to his bag each day.  I told him I would do laundry early on Friday morning so he could finish packing his clothing so he started the laundry first thing Friday morning.  It was funny because he told Joel on Saturday afternoon that he had been wearing the same pair of underwear for 3 days because he had packed all of his clean underwear already for camp!  We got a good laugh out of that and have been giving him a hard time about it ever since.  He is such a good sport!

He invested a great deal of time in his decisions for his merit badge classes.  He decided to do 3 required and 3 optional merit badges at camp.  He is taking:  Citizenship in the World, Environmental Science, First Aid, Archery, Leatherwork, and Orienteering.  He is also hoping to fit in Sculpture if he finishes Leatherwork early.  By the end of August he will have at least 12 merit badges earned, 7 of which are required.  He will also have acheived 1st Class rank by the end of July.  The really cool part of it too is he won't be 12 until December!  He is on fire and his love and enthusiasm of Scouting is beginning to rub off on some of the other Scouts as well, including the older boys.

I'm grateful Joel is able to be with him this week at camp. It made it a little easier to send  him off this morning but still a difficult thing for me to do.  I think part of that is dealing with the realization that this is another step forward as he is growing up and moving on to new experiences.

Father & Son Project

Last Saturday Joel, Thomas, and Sammy tackled the boys' closet.  I wish I had taken a before picture but I didn't so you will have to use your imagination.  When we moved in their closet did not have a hanging rod.  It was just wooden shelves up the closet.  We put in a bar so they could hang clothes but their closet has never been very functional.  We have talked a lot about needing to do something to it but just never did it since we were renting and didn't want to invest in that.  Now that we own the house we decided to do it.  They drew up plans and then headed to Lowe's to get the supplies.  Joel was so good about letting the boys help in each step.  They took out the wooden shelves and put in new hanging rods and shelves.  Sammy loved helping and never left Joel's side during the entire project.  The boys are so proud of their closet.  We think them helping with the installation has helped them take more pride and ownership in it as well because they are keeping it so neat and organized.  I enjoyed watching and listening to them interact throughout the day.  At the end of it all Sammy told me, "Mom, this is the best day ever of my whole life!"  I would say that is a successful project!

So Grateful....

...for a husband that is willing and knowledgeable enough to work on our cars.  I know it isn't his favorite thing to do after long hours at work, family time, helping get kiddos to bed, and then going out to fix our vehicles until late at night and then getting up early the next morning for early work meetings.  I am ever so grateful he does this for our family.  His ability and willingness has blessed our family countless times. I am so blessed to have him by my side for eternity.

Flying Gideon

I love to watch Joel play and enjoy time with our kids.  The kids love their time with Dad and it is so fun to see the difference in their interactions between Joel and I.  One of the kids' favorite things for Dad to do is throw them into the air.  Gideon took part in this yesterday.  It was so funny to see his facial expressions go from smiling, to absolute fear, and then back to smiling all in about 2 seconds.  Our kids are so blessed to have a Dad that loves to spend time with them and absolutely loves to come home and play with them.

Father Son Outing

Last night was the Ward Father and Son Outing. It is held later in the summer here because May still gets snow sometimes. The boys had a great time playing with everyone. They didn't even head into their tent until 11:30. Thomas and his buddy, Kaiden, slept in their own tent and stayed up even later. Of course, they were up at 6:00 this morning too. Sammy had his first soccer game this morning so they headed home and Thomas stayed with Kaiden so they could do some fishing. I am grateful that Joel enjoys this time with the boys. Sammy has since decided that he wants the family to go camping for his birthday!

Father's Day

Here are some videos I took of the kids for a gift I made for Joel for Father's Day. I did a slideshow of pictures from the last year with these videos interspersed and music. It was fun to hear their responses. We are blessed to have Joel as the father of our family. Happy Father's Day!

Our Next Adventure

We are moving our family to Kent, Ohio in 4 more weeks! This is a sudden surprise to us and yet we know it is the right decision for our family at this point in time. Joel has been offered and has accepted a position with a new company, Land O' Lakes, which is the reason for this move. It is really far from family and farther than either of us have ever lived. It has been a very difficult decision and yet we are finding peace in the decision because we know it is where we are to be right now in our life. I am so grateful for prayer and personal inspiration without which this would be an even more overwhelming step to take in life.

The company is really taking good care of us for the move. They will pack and move all our goods as well as unpack and put together all the furniture and appliances when they arrive in Ohio. They also have given us the option of having them ship both cars and covering all the airfare for our family to fly to Ohio instead of driving. Let's see...40 hours driving time in a car with 5 little kids and a puppy...or one day of traveling by air. Not a difficult decision for us to make. The kids are super excited to go on an airplane. Spring continues to be astounded and say to us, "I can't believe we get to move on an airplane!"

Joel and I head out in a week to find a place to live. It will be good to have that step taken care of and know exactly where we will be living. This is definitely a huge step in our life as a family and I am so very grateful Joel and I get to do it together with our children. I am also grateful for those in our extended family that have been supportive of our decision.

Joel's Recovery

Joel had the wonderful opportunity to have his tonsils removed and also have surgery on his nasal cavity to correct his deviated septum and remove excess tissue in the nasal cavity. He had the surgery on Thursday evening and we came home that night. He is really doing very well considering. He went to his meetings and to church yesterday. I took these pictures on Friday and thought I would share with all of you. Hopefully he doesn't notice them too soon or he may delete them! I am amazed at how well he has been handling the pain and discomfort. He is amazing. I know he will really appreciate it all in a few weeks when he has recovered.

"Daddy, Hold my babies!"

Mary is really into her babies and plays with them all day long. She lieks to dress them in her own clothes and wonders why the clothes keep falling off. One afternoon when Joel came home from work she decided that Daddy needed to hold her babies for her.

Family Day at Dad's Plant

On Saturday Joel's plant had a family picnic and fun day at the plant. They had bounce houses, sno-cones, kettle corn, and a BBQ. They had a little "hayride" to bring you from where you parked to the plant parking lot. All the kids loved it with the exception of Mary. She looked terrified and when I asked her if she was having fun she said, "No me like this at all." Sammy on the other hand kept saying, "I love this ride. Can we buy one of these to drive around in?" Thomas and Spring were old enough that they were actually able to go with Joel on a tour of the plant. They have been wanting to do this for a long time and we were very grateful for the opportunity they had to see where daddy works. They have been to his office many times; however, it is very controlled as to who can go onto the production floor. We had a fun time despite the triple digit heat!

Soccer Time Again

Well, we have been into soccer season again for about a month now. Thomas decided not to play this year with everything else he has going on (heading to Fresno weekly for piano lessons, cub scouts, and school). He misses it though and wants to play next year. Spring has been really enjoying her time with soccer this year. Her team is the Butterflies. Joel, once again, is her coach so he let her pick the team name and color. I love to watch him with the girls because he is so good with them. He has fun with them, gets them excited about playing, and also takes the time be sure they understand and are learning the fundamentals of the game. With everything else he has going on, I am so grateful he finds it important to find the time to spend 3 days a week coaching these girls. I know Spring absolutely loves it. She tells everyone that her dad is the coach and she calls him, "Coach Daddy!" Although it makes life busy right now, we enjoy the family time together watching and cheering Spring on. Thomas is a big help at the games to me as he helps keep an eye on Mary and Sammy as I tend to get pretty wrapped up in the game!

Time at the Temple

Last night Joel and I were able to attend the temple again together. We have committed to attend the temple at least once a month together. We schedule the day on the calendar for the entire year. Once it is there, we don't let anything change our plans to attend. Our trip to the temple trumps all other activities. We are so grateful to have been able to do this consistently for almost 5 years. Many times people comment that they don't know how we do this with young children and our response is, "We don't know how we couldn't do it." There have been times when it would have been easy to find an excuse to not go that night. How thankful I am that this is a commitment we have made together with our Father in Heaven. This gives us the strength to keep to our commitment.

I know our Father in Heaven blesses us when we make temple worship a priority in our lives. We need the peace and calmness that surrounds us within the temple walls. We receive answers to questions, comfort and strength, increased understanding of our Savior and the Atonement in our lives, and a continued resolve to live according the commandments and covenants we have made. I am so grateful to be close to a temple. I am grateful for a loving husband that finds value in us attending the temple together. I know it blesses and strengthens our relationship.

Joel and I were talking on our way to the temple last night. He mentioned that on his way to work yesterday he was listening to Elder Scott's address from conference entitled, "Temple Worship: The Source of Strength and Power in Times of Need." We enjoyed sharing our thoughts on this talk and we felt much more prepared for our time in the temple last night. One particular quote from Elder Scott spoke to us because yesterday was one of those times that it would have been very easy to stay home. Elder Scott counsels us:

"When a temple is conveniently nearby, small things may interrupt your plans to go to the temple. Set specific goals, considering your circumstances, of when you can and will participate in temple ordinances. Then do not allow anything to interfere with that plan. This pattern will guarantee that those who live in the shadow of a temple will be as blessed as are those who plan far ahead and make a long trip to the temple.

What is there that is more important than attending and participating in the ordinances of the temple? What activity could have a greater impact and provide more joy and profound happiness for a couple than worshipping together in the temple?"

Mickey's Dining Car

I had dinner at Mickey's Dining Car. This is the diner that is in all three of the Mighty Ducks movies. The diner has been open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for the last 65 years.

Mall of America

I went to Mall of America today. It is the biggest mall in the U.S.A. There is an amusement park in the center of the mall. The park has roller coasters, and all of the other rides that you might find at any other park. The neat thing is that it is all inside. I found a large LEGO store. There is a large clock in the Lego store that is about 20 feet tall. One of the worker told me that it is made completely of Legos, it took over 800,000 legos, and 25 people about 2.5 month to build it. In front of the store there are tables set up for kids to come and play with legos. I had dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. It was cool. After dinner the waitress asked us to answer some trivia questions about Forest Gump.