Farewell to Clovis 2nd

I've been wanting to blog this for awhile but it is hard to find the words.

Nine years ago we moved from our little apartment to our first house. We didn't have much a few boxes and a one year old. Looking back life seems so much simpler. (Now we are a family of 6 with A LOT more boxes!!!) We moved into the Clovis 2nd ward. We knew very few people and I remember feeling very young. I told Cory one day after church that I felt like we didn't fit in very well because there weren't any young couples in the ward. He told me not to worry that soon we would be middle age and would fit right in, and then we would probably move. (not helpful) I also remember for a few years going up to what I thought were new couples in the ward and being so excited only to my disappointment when the usual response was, "oh no we are just here visiting our parents".

In time SLOWLY younger families moved in. Over the last nine years however it wasn't the move in of similar families that made me really come to love our ward, but service. Service that I was able to do, and the service of others to me and my family. I have come to know that it is through service that we begin to understand and love people. That we don't have to be in the same station of life, have similar backgrounds or common interests. The one commonality that we do have is the love of our Savior, and each of us working diligently to increase our testimonies. Through the nine years I had many opportunities to serve and teach. Three things I have come to realize to a greater extent happen as you serve. 1) you come to love those you serve, 2) you come to love those you serve with, 3)you see the love that our Father in Heaven and the Savior have for all his children. I can reflect back on both happy and sad occasions that there were people to lift me up, and also celebrate with me. The 2nd ward truly became my family.

A Quote I love from Elder Wirthlin sums it up perfectly. . .
"The Church is not a place where perfect people gather together to say perfect things, or have perfect thoughts, or have perfect feelings. The Church is a place where imperfect people gather to provide encouragement, support and service to each other as we progress on in our journey to return to our Heavenly Father." ( The Virtue of Kindness, May 2005)

So Thank you all!!! I have learned much from you, and will miss being together with you on a weekly basis. However we didn't move out of the country, state, or city. Just a few miles! We are even still in the same building. Yet now there are other people to serve, and come to love. In time I know I will.

**ON a Funny note (if you are still with me in this long post)

Aubrey (my five year old) is having a hard time adjusting to her "new church" as she calls it, even though it is the same church. I try to explain that Heavenly Father needs helpers where ever people live and since we moved we need to go at a different time. Her response "what is the PROBLEM just wake up early and go to church".(you really have to hear her say it, but it is with a lot of attitude) If you know her you will get it.

PS don't take me off your blog I like to see what everyone is up to

A whole Decade old!!

May 24, 2009 Kendal Brooke turned 10, what a milestone, a whole decade old. I have been a mother a whole decade! Her birthday was on Sunday so it was pretty low key. Just our family, grandma, grandpa, and Baubles!

When I think of Kendal I think back to when she was 9 months old, one of her first words was, "WOW". She would say it over and over, this little baby "wow, wow, wow". She has and continues to wow us with the things she accomplishes and the person she has become. Most recently she has taught herself the piano, she plays hymns and primary songs that I taught my fourth year piano students. She has never had a B on a report card. She is very involved at school and was one of 2 fourth graders to earn the block W award. Happy Birthday Kendal, we all love you and are so grateful you are in our family.




A self portrait, what an actress




Recieving her block W award!

Happy Birthday!

Make a Wish!

Well loved blankie!!

Brinley has had this blanket since she was born, it is her very favorite!! It was given to her by a good friend of mine. Well has been looking pretty gross for awhile so for about 6 months or longer I have been on the look out for a similar one. I was so excited to find the exact one at Target. I could hardly believe the difference in color. Pink and White vs. Gray and Very faded pink. She was excited at first but will have nothing to do with the beautiful clean new blanket. She just cries for "the udder one blankie", I even tried to give it to her when she was going to bed with the lights down low but it did not fool her. Oh well maybe I will put it in her 72 hour emergency kit.


close up of the old and new (you can not tell how gross the old one is here!)

Oh and special thanks to Gill for getting my last two girls blankies that they just can't live without!!

Bradens Baptism

On May 30th Braden was Baptized! A little earlier than planned because my parents were in town and had to leave back to Utah for the funeral of my cousin. We had a nice baptism with just our family and a few of our close friends. After the baptism our family came over and had a nice lunch and visited. I took a few photos in the morning of Braden, after about the 3rd one he looked at me impatiently. "Thats enough" he said. I told him, hey this is your special day and we are going to be taking lots more pictures of you. We are so proud of you Braden for the choice you made, the person you are becoming, and how your testimony is growing each day. We love you!

carpet angels & port o potties

Well we have been busy getting settled into our new house. We celebrated Bradens 8th birthday just before we moved, then Kendals a few weeks after that. Had my parents in town (our first house guests) for 10 days! Braden was baptized. I will blog later about those events and kids but I just wanted to post these pictures.

The day we got our keys Cory and I took Aubrey and Brinley over, they went running in their room. I asked Aubrey what they were doing, she said "we are making carpet angels".

Aubrey also thought it was very cool that we have a port o potty right across the street from our house. Cool if we ever need to use it, its right there. Well I didn't think she would actually use it. Few weeks later I go outside to find her crying she had fallen out of the port o pot, and scraped her knee on the street. I asked her what she was doing in there. "MOM, I JUST HAD to GO, and I DIDNT have time to go inside!!" hands on hips, saying it so matter of fact.

The crazy thing is that we used to go to a park that had a temporary port o potty while they were finishing constructing the actual bathrooms, and she would always throw a big fit about going in there. Finally I would give in and let her pee on a near by tree.