Mt Rainier Trip

Saturday we took a trip through the Chinook Pass and around through White Pass. It was a beautiful day. The only downside was the clouds in the mountains. So there is no actual picture of Mt Rainier here, but I will upload one we took earlier a few months ago later on. The girls did such a great job on this trip.

I LOVE the USA!!!!

Nine Years Ago Today. . . . .

Nine years ago today:

I married my best friend.

I made sacred covenants with my Father in Heaven that made it possible for me to live with my husband and children forever.

I started down a path that lead to two amazing children.


Today seems like any other average day, and for that I'm very grateful. It means my husband and I are living under the same roof again after being separated for a year. It means my children are healthy and happy with only the occasional argument thrown in. It means life is good. There are no major dilemmas weighing me down, nothing pressing on me to get done before the stress of it threatens to make me explode. I feel content. I feel happy. Doug loves his job, he's done with college after nine years, he doesn't have to study for exams. He's content. He's happy. Do you see why I'm grateful this day is like any other average, mundane day?

We haven't thought of a way to make our day seem extra special. The funds are tight so we aren't doing individual gifts. We're going to save for something we both want (still not sure what). We talked about going out to dinner, but I'd rather just spend the evening home cuddled up on the couch. Besides, why leave the kids behind when they're the best things that have happened so far in our marriage?

I'm so grateful to be married to an amazing man who holds the priesthood and fulfills his duties as a husband and as a father to the best of his abilities. It doesn't hurt that he is SO GOOD LOOKING!!!!!! I'm not sure how a girl like me got so lucky, but I thank the Lord every night that I was blessed with such a man. I LOVE YOU DOUG!!!!!!! I know I'm not perfect and that I can be your biggest frustration at times, but I would do ANYTHING for you!!!! I love you honey and I can't wait to see what the next 109 years bring.

Memories from Friday, August 3, 2001

Pioneer Day

I braved the Yakima roads by taking the girls to their Primary Activity on Saturday. The GPS didn't get a signal until I passed my first turn so I ended up on all these random side streets. I ended up staying for the whole activity because I was afraid I'd get lost driving home. I figured I could follow someone home after we were done. Why not use the GPS again? Well, our location is so new it is not an address in our GPS.

It was a fun Primary Activity. They had taffy pulling, relay races, and other pioneer-ish activities. My cousin gave me some pioneer bonnets awhile ago and I was finally able to put them to use. No one else was dressed up so the girls were a little embarrassed at first. Miriam HATES it when people look at her so her stress level went through the roof. Once they started playing games she was fine.

Miriam informed me they weren't correctly dressed because they weren't wearing boots. Pioneers did NOT wear flip flops. Agreed, but I bet their shoes were pretty floppy by the time they reached Salt Lake.

Relay Games---I wasn't paying attention when Miriam's group did their relay. Oops!

Pulling Taffy----My kids, not fans.

Making S'mores--thankfully someone else was helping my kids, it was TOO hot to go over by the fire.

I'm so grateful I have all my current comforts of home and freedom of religion. I'm so thankful to those who were willing to give all they had, even their lives, for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love the prophet Joseph Smith and I know he was a true prophet, sent here to restore the gospel to the earth for this final time. What an amazing example of faith, courage, love---basically he is someone we should pattern our lives after. I love my Savior, Jesus Christ, and I feel so blessed to be part of His church. I'm going to try to be more like my pioneer ancestors, more willing to share the gospel, more willing to sacrifice all I have, more willing to go where the Lord wants me to go.

We are in Yakima Washington Now

Sorry for the slow blogging. I just copied my mother's blog to ours since not everyone checks her blog. These are some photos of our new place for a while and the girls on the ponies at the 4th of July in Idaho.

UPDATE SINCE MARCH 2010

In case people are still checking our blog.......
We are finally back together again. Things couldn't be better with the exception of being home with the Miriam and Shay. Here are some, meaning LOTS of pictures of the things we've done (Gettysburg, Ocean City, etc.)

Mallena and Lindsay

Gettysburg

We didn't eat here, but thought it was a funny name for a business

Mallena and Abe in the rain

Mallena imitating Miriam when she had her picture here

Mallena trying to climb the tower, after 3 flights of stairs. There were 8.

Good try honey. Maybe next time.

The Devil's Den

Rita's at Ocean City.

On the Downward Slide

Doug was complaining the other day that he was tired of seeing "The Wizard of Oz Christmas" on our blog. Well, it's true, I'm behind on my blogging. Not only have I not posted lately, I also haven't been good at checking other people's blogs. Sorry! I really am interested in all of your comings and goings, but it just seems like time has started to fly past me at an alarming rate. I won't complain because life is so great (most of the time).

I can't believe that Doug is back in Philadelphia on his last rotation. I have felt every 294 days that he's been gone (minus the few days we've seen him). I won't say that the time has flown by because it hasn't. Some days have been VERY long, some days have been very short, some days have been filled with tears, some days have been full of sheer joy. The only constant in this whole ordeal has been the love and support from my Father in Heaven. I would be very ungrateful if I did not acknowledge where my strength and determination to keep going came from. I truly feel like the Footprints poem where it tells of how the Lord carried the man during his hardest times. There have been many times where I just didn't know how I was going to make it one more day with such loneliness in my heart. Our Father in Heaven has designed for us to live as families, to support and love each other. This separation has been a trial, but I have such a strong testimony that the Lord knew that with His help, I could make it.

I'm determined to make this experience be a positive influence on me. I want to be a better friend, a better neighbor, a better sister, the first one swooping in to give service, the first one to sit by someone new at church, a better confidante, a better listener, someone who gives healing hugs, someone who carries the Spirit with them so that people can feel our Father's love.

Hmmmm.....I'm not sure why I just wrote all that. This was not the direction I was planning on taking with this post. Oh well, I'm to lazy to delete it and try to come up with something else. Hopefully my rantings may be helpful to someone else.

These are Doug's rotations away from us. Sorry, I didn't realize it was going to cut off part of it. It all started in May 2009.

This is what our time looks like now. We went from four sections down to one. As of tomorrow Doug will be 1/4 of the way done with Philadelphia!

To my hunny bunny: I LOVE YOU! Thanks for working so hard so that we can have a pleasant perspective of the future. WE MISS YOU, but are so proud of you. No one will be cheering louder at graduation than me. Well, that probably isn't true, I'm not one for shouting or using blow horns. Just know my heart will be bursting with joy and pride. Only two months and three days until I'm with you in person again. Keep up the good work!