This Moment::Josh, Karen, & Aiden::Sept 28

**Gratitudes:

~That Michael and I are feeling so much better than we were! Having a stomach flu is awful!

~ Glad that the family could come over on Tuesday to celebrate birthdays, and that I got this great pic of Josh, Karen, and Aiden. :)

~ That even though it is turning fall (which will quickly lead to winter) and I'm not excited about that, my favorite tv shows are back. I love hanging out with those people once a week!

~ Maren's son is back from his LDS mission safe and sound. You can read about her excitement on SAHMsisters.com And check back to see the update about him being home.

Have a great day!

Emily is 16! :: Sept 27

I can't believe how fast kids grow up!

When she was little, you could always find her in her dress walking around with an umbrella. It always reminded me of a Victorian lady in her dress and parasol. :)

When she was about 3, we had a litter of puppies that would follow her around. Sometimes they would tug on her clothes. She would scold them and shoo them away.

As a little girl, she loved to play with dolls. She loved being the mommy. I always pictured her with a houseful of little children.

She has always been a drama queen. :) When she was little and my mom would send care packages to the kids with treats and toys in it, I would always put Emily on the phone because her excitement would let my mom know how much the stuff was enjoyed. She has always felt everything to the max, happy or sad.

Once time, at church, I had to take her out because she was being noisy. As we exited, she shouted out "Save me!"

Another time in church, as she was inching away from us, I stood up to pick her up and take her out. She saw me coming and bolted toward the front. She ran toward the Bishop and hugged his legs. He scooped her up. She smiled at me. Saved by the Bishop!

Everyone loved Emily. She had red hair with a few curls, chubby cheeks, porcelain skin, and blue eyes. She has always been beautiful.


She always has loved her grandmas. She loves to be spoiled. She loves to be played with. She has always made lots of friends wherever we went. She has always been loved by everyone.

I hope that you have a wonderful birthday today Em! We all love you very much!

With love,
Mom

Reminding myself to be thankful... ::Sept 22

Today I ran everywhere.

It started by going acorn hunting. I found out that today is officially autumn, so Steve & I drove to the foothills where we take our evening walk and took pictures of acorns. I love acorns and feel that they are the epitome of harvest season, not for me, but for the squirrels. I also think they're cute :)


Then Emily & I went the mall to shop for Emily's 16th Birthday Present. She knows what she is getting & was there to try everything on, but she can't wear any of it 'til Tuesday. She thinks it's a bummer, but she is very excited :)

Amber went with us, and after finishing our shopping we stopped and got a footlong sandwich from Subway & split it in thirds. We also got pretzel bites. I already knew that I am a fan; today, I found that we all LOVE pretzel bites, and we bought a second bucketful. :)

Then we went to buy Amber some jeans. Two stores later, she had her jeans.

Then, I bought everyone shakes at a little local diner...because I hadn't consumed enough calories, I guess. :/

Then, we drove up the canyon to see how the fall color change is coming along. It is coming along very nicely, I'd say. Lots of yellows, some oranges and a few reds. I found the perfect spot for taking pictures, which is good, because I've got a senior pic shoot coming up :)

Got home and had to clean out the van, vacuum it, and wash it. It hasn't been done since we went camping, so it really needed to be done! It will haul many teenagers come Tuesday evening when we celebrate Emily's birthday. I'm glad that it is done, but it was a major pain!

And now I'm home. And Josh and Karen just came to pick up Aiden. And it is almost bedtime. It has been a good and productive day, and I am totally ready to relax for a while!

Take care of yourself and have a great weekend!