A fun afternoon

I just pulled a few pictures off of my camera and it was so fun to go through and remember what a fun afternoon this was. I was in charge of a relief society event and had to drive to Mesa to pick up some delicious cookies. We stopped at the Mesa LDS temple and let the kids eat a cookie and walk around the temple grounds.

The crew at the temple were still putting up temple lights and guess what the kids immediately gravitated to. It was a beautiful day with beautiful reflection pools but guess what everyone immediately found.

I can't stop laughing at this picture. It is like Corban and Avery have never had cookies before. I feel like Avery looks when I eat cookies too.

That moment lasted about a minute, but Corban is really showing that cookie who's boss.

Silly Bands

When I was a kid, it was cabbage patch dolls and slap bracelets. When I was in high school, I remember people standing in line for hours waiting for beanie babies. (seriously??) Now, the latest and greatest collection, according to my girls, are silly bands.

My girls have been collecting these things like mad. I've even had teachers send class e-mails home telling parents not to let kids bring silly bands to school because they are such a distraction.

My kids have found another use for silly bands. The other day I walked into their room and found them on the floor using their silly bands to make a story. SO creative! I was so proud of my creative girls! Clever stories too...

Recommendation

I love stories about people who overcome great obstacles in their life. (who doesn't?) This is one of those stories. RENT it! I am not sure why it isn't more known. We loved this movie. What was amazing to me was how far our society has come in recognizing, diagnosing, and coping with autism. In the 50's when Temple Grandin was diagnosed, the doctor told her mother that somehow, a necessary bonding never occurred. In essence, it was the mother who failed in some way to bond with her child. I cannot believe this was a logical and common belief. Makes me wonder how far off we are in some of our beliefs today about certain issues.

Rent this movie. You won't regret it. Claire Danes was amazing.

Why I do what I do...

Ryan and West last year riding bikes. I can't get enough of that helmet.

Westy is a Ryan's son. No doubt about it. I'm not sure a son could idolize a dad more. If Ryan's around, I'm chopped liver. Really. Anytime anyone goes in or out of the house from the garage, Westy will yell across the house "daddy!?!" Certainly his father's son.

He has a little stomach bug and all with it, all the nasty side effects. In the middle of the night, he was really not doing well. I bathed him, put him in clean jammies and tucked him in bed with me. He was sleeping on my chest and I was rubbing his back and his head. Mind you, I'm exhausted, started two loads of nasty laundry, been puked on all night and just waiting for it to start back up again when he pokes his little head up and whispers "tank you mom."

Oh, be still my heart.

Come back...

Since my sister and her three kids left after a three week visit, I have done a lot of thinking. My house has grown quieter, somewhat cleaner, and our life has fallen back into our normal rhythm. Now normally, this would be a good thing, but the Secrist family is having a hard time adjusting. We are going through sister and cousin withdraw.

We are really missing...

And these are only a small snapshot of what we did. Tristen took charge of one of my Christmas projects, and I am still finishing up with the other. We cooked a TON of pulled pork for Hattie's baptism, went the zoo with cousins, took kids to the park a half dozen times, reenacted baptism pictures, cooked and ate the most delicious meals I've had in a long time, inadvertently offended a younger brother (Love you kevo!), finished the details of a Relief Society meeting I was in charged of, played on Craig and Diana's sand piles, went to a few Mac classes to learn about this new computer (!!!), just about completed all our Christmas shopping, trained for an upcoming 12K, and watched as much Everybody Loves Raymond as we could possibly squeeze in.

We have neighbor friends who are sisters and are about 13 and 16 years old. I watch them everyday go to the bus stop and never say a word to each other. They never talk, they never walk together, they don't even acknowledge the other. This breaks my heart. Sisters are supposed to take care of each other, watch out for the other and be each other's support and best friends. Ryan mentioned to me the other day that he never sees me giggle so much as when my sisters are around. We wish we could have had Tenille around to enjoy the full sistership but...she's busy doting on Remington. ;)

Sniff, sniff....I miss my sister. Come back??

A RANDOM ACT

We discovered this gem recently posted on YouTube. The Philly Opera company pulls off a great choice in song in the middle of a busy shopping day. We loved that they picked this song. Impressive and reminds of Marshall Fields Flagship store in Chicago (now Macy's too) - this would work in an old store like that. Enjoy! Wish we could have seen it.

Hattie's Baptism

What a great day! What a highlight in our family's history. What a spirit a baptism brings into a family! We are so proud of Hattie and her decision to be baptized. I've watched her closely these past few weeks and am impressed with her helpfulness, obedience and good nature. She makes great decisions and is a friend to all. We love you Hattie and your creative, sweet mind