Valentine's

I know I am way behind.  However I have been keeping good track of things.  My Husband knows me pretty well and he knows I love roses and Lilies and flowers in general.  For Valentine's he gave me these beautiful pink roses.  They lasted forever and were so pretty.  I was really impressed.  I have a good husband!!  

Crystal Hot Springs

On Monday the 25th we all got together and went to Crystal Hot Springs to go swimming and then out to eat.  We had a great time swimming and the water is always nice and warm.  They still need to update the bathrooms there, but they are better than they used to be.  Afterwards we always go to Peach City to get hamburgers and shakes, but they were closed for remodeling.  So we ended up going to Costa Vida.  It was good too.  We had a great time with everyone there, even Char and Brett came all three days we spent together.  That was nice.  We really enjoyed ourselves.  It was too bad this visit was so short!

Makae, Courtney, and her roommate.

My Weirdos, Jerod, Makae and Ethan

Anthony and Makae

Makae and I.

Makae and Jace.

Sleigh Riding with the Family

Cole came home for a quick visit on the 22nd of January and so we filled it with family events.  On Saturday we headed up to Charlene's  and had a dinner of tacos and then  out to their property up Daniels, and had a great time sleigh riding.  It was a little crazy at times.  Brett brought his snowmobile to take us back up the hill so we didn't have to walk but after riding on it once I decided I would rather walk.  It was a bit crazy.  We all had a great time though.  Afterwards we went back to Char's and we had some hot chocolate and visited.  It was really run.  And Yes we were able to get Mom out of the house and up there.  It took a lot of cajoling and pushing, but we did it.  She does so much better when we get her moving!

Lillie Ann is telling Alicyn to stop being a boob, and get on a tube!

Courtney beating up on her brother.

My weirdos!

Olin is quite the sledding king! 

Char and I taking a minute to rest.

Brett - Love his expression, me, Char and cole.

Olin smiling for me!

Char, Lill and Cole.

Cole and Daranee

Granny and Brock.

This is a rare moment.  It's not even Mother's day or her birthday or Christmas!!!

Alicyn and Cole visiting, Kurtis, Lill and Jessica in the background.

One of the family!

Ethan's many activities

Ethan is involved in a lot of extra curricular activities.    These past few weeks not only has he worked, but he has been participating in honor choir, Academic Decathlon, and FBLA.  Two weekends ago he did the Academic Decathlon and won the Bronze Medal!!!  Last Weekend he went to Honor Choir, and although we couldn't make it, everyone said it was great!!  He has another AcaDec contest coming up this weekend.

He has really made a concerted effort to get involved and to work hard this year.  We are really proud of him.

Goals

As a family we settled down about the first week of January and talked about things we would like to accomplish this year.  We do this every year, and I guess we always will.  Not sure how much good it does, but we continue to try.  We succeed for about half a year and then we get tired, or lose track, or steam, but we continue each year, so I guess that is worth something.

This year it surprised me that the thing the kids wanted most this year was to spend more time together as a family.  Doing things like watching movies together, playing games, eating together, hiking.  They all wanted that.  It is sad but I tend to notice when they get home from school they do homework, I fix dinner, and then we all go our separate ways and spend the evenings pretty much alone even if we are in the same house.  Shawn either works or gets in the tub and watches shows.  I go to my room or do crafts.  Jace plays games, Cade plays games, and Ethan is either gone or at work, or doing homework.  So I think it is good that this is something they all want to do.

As for me, my biggest goal this year is to get back to the basics.  The basics of prayer, scriptures study, going to church and journal writing.  My life goes so much better when I am doing those things, and for some reason it is so easy to shove those things aside if I am busy, and I usually am.  I decided I needed to re-evaluate what is truly important and these things are.  They are more important than crafts, than laundry, that cooking, that my computer.  So that is what I am concentrating on.  I told the Relief Society president that I wanted a more involved calling.

I have had a hard time going to church lately.  Part of it is just so much that has to be done and feeling like I have no down time and that going to church is just one more thing.  That of course is looking at it wrong.  I always feel better after going, and the lift in my spiritual well being as always good.  So having a calling should help get me there.  I know another issue is I don't particularly feel close to anyone in this ward.  So I am trying to work on that as well and make some good friends that I feel comfortable around so I feel comfortable and wanted at church as well.

I know part of my feelings about church are because of extended circumstances that I have no control over, but that too, is something only God can work on so I need to leave it to him.

We studied the other day a topic that made it clear that Heavenly Father would help us with power through the atonement.  Not only to repent but to be strong.  Not will power, but his power.  We talked about it a lot, and sometimes it is just saying I can't do this, so you better pull me through.  I think all of have those issues and moments.  Anyway.....


This long post that is rambling, is really my way of setting down in writing that I have made a  goal to work on things where I need help and that As a family we are going to work on helping each other.

Fixing dolls

This past Christmas my mother decided to start giving away her doll collections.  Each of us girls got a doll that meant a lot to her  or one that my grandmother made.    They really mean alot to each of us as well.    Since she has had them for a long time most of them are dirty and dusty.  When I got mine I decided it needed a good cleaning, so I unpicked the back of the dress and then took the clothes off and hand washed them.  Then I cleaned up the doll with a washcloth and sewed up any of the places that the Muslin was wearing out.  I put snaps on all of the clothing so that they could easily be cleaned in the future if needed.  When I am done the doll looks so good and almost new.  When Lill saw mine she asked me to do hers so I did.  It was amazing.  Her doll actually had light green lace on it, but had faded to a yellow, so I  took one of my Copic markers and used water and recolored the lace and it looks really nice.  Then I saw Charlene's so I did hers as well.  Her's is in lavendar.  They all look so good now.  I should have taken pictures of the others but I didn't.  Mine is below.

Crafting

I have used a bit of my january to do a little crafting.  Things that were supposed to get done before Christmas, but didn't.  I think I'll just count them as getting ahead for this coming year.  Besides I enjoy it and have a good time doing them.  I can listen to books while doing them as well.

January is the time to get to stuff I never do!

So I put things off and off and off.  Finally when things are so bad I can't stand it I say - January.  Since it is always cold and yucky outside I know I have a little time for things inside that normally don't get done.  This year it was my flowers.  Wreaths and arrangements.  They have gone through two moves and many years of dust and gravity and fading.  I finally couldn't take it anymore and redid them all.  I mostly put them back the way they were as I like them.  But they look new and nice.  The kids thought I was nuts washing my dried flower wreaths and silk, flower by flower, and letting them dry and then putting them back together.  Why not buy new.  They have no idea how much this would all cost!!!

Ethan and those deer.

So Ethan has bad luck with cars and deer.  They must recognize easy prey and when they want to  die and say "lets run into this guy, he never misses"  Okay I am just teasing, and I shouldn't because he gets pretty upset about things like that.  However this is the second time a deer has ended up dead and the car dented.  This time a lot worse though.  We made a claim this time because it will just cost to much to fix.

Little Winter Time Fun

Shawn and Ethan both bought passes to Snow Basin this year, and for Christmas Ethan got a snowboard.    During break and also a few weekends they have been taking off to go snowboarding.  Shawn had really been enjoying it.  He goes most days in the morning for about an hour.  He enjoys it and gets some exercise each day from it.  He thinks it is way worth his money.  That and his Ingress playing are keeping him pretty active.  But we won't get into Ingress, because it bugs me!!

A lot of times there is even an inversion here in the Morgan Valley.  You don't notice it much, but when he gets up on top of the mountain you can see the clouds covering the valley almost like and ocean.  You can really see it the pictures below of up on the mountain and out our back door.

New Year's Eve 2016

We decided to spend the day together as a family, which was fun.  We got up and all went to breakfast at IHOP.  I'm sure the waitress was ready to get rid of us after the  4th refill of Hot Chocolate around the table.  We took Courtney Hammond with us.

Afterwards we decided to go ride the train in the Mall where Makae works.  She was fun and had a good time taking us around.  She said she wasn't going to be able to come up to Granny's tonight.  That was really too bad, but we had her for Christmas so I was okay with it.

We all came home and watched a movie.  The boys got some for Christmas and we had a hard time choosing, but we finally settled on Ant Man.  We really enjoyed it together.  Then we got things ready to go to Mom's and headed over.  Actually I went over first and then later everyone followed.  Alicyn came with Kaleigh.  Anthony was staying with his dad, and Jared was with his state proctor group.  Lill came with her and Courtney.  Daranee didn't come.  Kurtis and Jess showed up late.

Ethan came and then left and then, came and then left.  He spent the night hoping from one party to another.  We had great food like always, visited, played games, talked.  About 10:30 I was tired so I let off fireworks and then I went up and got ready for bed.  The rest stayed up.  At midnight they came and sprayed us all with silly string.  Then Shawn headed home, he doesn't like Mom's beds.  I slept okay.

On New Year's day we got up and had a good breakfast.  Cleaned up a lot of the house.  Had a good time with Mom and then headed home.  THe kids and us watched another movie, The Winter Soldier, and then following When Marnie was there.  It was a fun little holiday and it is nice that the kids still have a few days left of Christmas break before they have to head back to school.