Escape

Today I was remembering this:

If I close my eyes and concentrate hard enough, I can feel the warm Hawaii sun and the moist air. I can almost smell the plumeria flowers and hear the rolling waves. . .

Doesn't it look like heaven on earth?

It was.


(sigh)

Lainy still asks if we're going to Hawaii about every time she sees an airplane. Brad still talks about it being the best vacation ever. I bet Leah would love it too.

We want to go back. . . anyone want to come?

Sunday

We were driving home from church on Sunday when Lainy said:

"I need to marry my Daddy in the temple! And he can give me flowers!"

I think Brad's heart melted into a puddle when she said that.

So, what could we do? Our little girl wanted to go to the temple, so we went to the temple. (Explaining on the way that she can't actually marry Daddy. She has to grow up first and find a really good boy to take her to the temple. "But," Brad promised her, "When you get married I will give you lots of flowers.")

The temple grounds were full of beautiful flowers. We had a nice evening stroll around the grounds, counting the many blessings that a temple marriage has brought to our family.

In other news, I have it from numerous sources that our Leah is the most beautiful baby ever seen in these parts. One lady at church came up to me and said, with a hint of exasperation in her voice: "Babies just aren't supposed to be that beautiful! You really have beautiful children."

Sometimes I don't know what to say when people say stuff like that. Do I pretend I hadn't noticed how cute my kids are even though I wholeheartedly agree? Or do I just say thank you in my most humble voice? Usually I do the latter.

So, here is our beautiful baby (even though I don't think pictures do her justice).

Little Girls

"Little girls, little girls
Everywhere I turn I can see them
Little girls, little girls
Night and day I eat, sleep, and breathe them..."

Do you know that song that Miss Hannigan sings in Annie?

Last weekend I was feeling a little like Miss Hannigan (minus the alcohol).

What drove me to that point, you ask? Well, sparing the gruesome details, let me tell you. A certain three-month-old decided to break her awesome streak by eating every two hours around the clock (yes, nights too). And a certain two and a half-year-old decided to break her awesome streak by forgetting to use the potty. There may have been poop smeared on my carpet at one point. There may have been tears shed by all three of us at different points.

In desperation I turned on a few talks from General Conference in an attempt to bring the Spirit back into my grumpy home.

And I heard this:
"God bless you wonderful mothers and fathers in Zion. He has entrusted to your care His eternal children. As parents we partner, even join, with God in bringing to pass His work and glory among His children. It is our sacred duty to do our very best." (Elder Perry)

"...The work of patience boils down to this: keep the commandments; trust in God, our Heavenly Father; serve Him with meekness and Christlike love; exercise faith and hope in the Savior; and never give up. The lessons we learn from patience will cultivate our character, lift our lives, and heighten our happiness. . ." (President Uchtdorf)

And from our Prophet:
""Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct thy paths" . . . As we leave this conference, I invoke the blessings of Heaven upon each of you. As you return to your homes around the world, I pray our Heavenly Father will bless you and your families. May the messages and spirit of this conference find expression in all that you do--in your homes, in your work, in your meetings, and in all your comings and goings. I love you. I pray for you. May God bless you. May His promised peace be with you now and always."

I heard those words and, miraculously, peace reigned in my home again.

Also, miraculously, I was able to put down my frustrations and pick up my patience. I even forgot about the carpet as I squeezed my little girl until we both collapsed in giggles. And I remembered what a sweet experience it is to feed and rock my little baby (even if it was for like the 20th time that day).

And at the end of the day I could say, with none of Miss Hannigan's sarcasm:
"Some women are dripping in diamonds,
Some women are dripping in pearls.
Lucky me! Lucky me!
Look at what I'm dripping with,
Little girls!"

Tulips

Last weekend we traveled about an hour away to see these beauties at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival:

 

It was so fun! There were fields and fields of blooming tulips surrounded by mountains. Gorgeous! I guess it was started by an immigrant from Holland 27 years ago. 

We couldn't have done anything better that day. The weather was gorgeous and the tulips were breathtaking. Brad and I decided that living near fields of flowers would be pretty awesome. They just make everyone cheerful. Enjoy the pics!

 

The Many Faces of Leah

Sometimes I wonder...is this really the same baby?

We sure do love our expressive little 3-month-old!

P.S. Can you tell what color her eyes are? We're still deciding. Lately they've been looking kind of green...

Easter 2010

Last week for Family Home Evening we taught Lainy the Easter story. We told her that a long time ago in a place called Jerusalem, Jesus died for us. It was a sad thing, but it was part of Heavenly Father's plan. We told her that after Jesus died, his body was put in tomb with a big rock in front of the door so no one could get in. Two soldiers were also placed in front of the tomb. We told her that after three days, angels came to the tomb and moved the big rock and scared the soldiers away. We told her that one of Jesus' friends named Mary came to the tomb. She was very sad and was crying. She saw an angel and the angel said, "He is not here. He is risen!" Then Mary saw Jesus. He was alive again! He was resurrected. That made Mary very happy. We told her that because Jesus was resurrected, we can live with Heavenly Father again and be very happy.

Lainy listened, her big blue eyes wide with concern. Then  she said: "Angel said: He is not here! He is risen! We are happy!"

I think she gets it.

Sometimes being a Mom makes you cry.

Here are the pictures of some of the less important, but fun things we did this Easter.

Easter Egg Hunt

Anticipation

The Hunt

The hunting party

The loot

Dying Easter Eggs

Getting ready

Decorating

Designing

Waiting (and telling stories)

Laughing at Leah

Still waiting

The results!

The Dresses

Hope you had a Happy Easter too!

Doug and Jess

We had visitors over Easter weekend!

Brad's brother Doug and his wife Jessica came up for their Spring Break. Jessica's brother is in law school in Spokane, so they stopped there first, then came up to Seattle to see us.

We are so happy they made the trip! They braved very snowy and scary roads to get here. Even though we just saw them in Rexburg, it's always nice to see family one-on-one without everyone around.

Because it was General Conference, we didn't have a whole lot of time to show them Seattle. In between sessions on Saturday we went to Pikes Place Market, Alki Beach, and REI (Because, seriously, what is a visit to Seattle without REI?).  Jessica and I had fun making dinner and talking while the boys went to the Priesthood session. On Sunday, Brad showed them around campus.

(At the market)

Unfortunately, the weather was dreary and cold while they were here. They were hoping to escape the cold weather. "Oh dahnitt," as Lainy would say. We had fun, nonetheless!

(Lainy has always had a special relationship with her Uncle Doug. Thanks for putting up with her!)

We loved seeing you guys! We consider you some of our closest friends. It's just a perk that we're family too!