Oh, My! I'm Behind... AGAIN! ;o)

I'm even behind in my journaling.  Boo.
{And when you read this... you'll know that I skipped the end of the summer, BUT... just go backwards for a little while and look for them!  They'll be there... still in chronological order... for my sake!}

This will cover the very end of September and first weekend of October!  (Conference Weekend!!)

There are some things that I should really catch up on.  

The Primary program is OVER!!!  Hip-hip HOORAY!!  Not that I don't love the actual day of the program, but the several weeks before that just getting prepared and making sure they know all the songs well enough is just... blah.  But... they pulled it off and it was  ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL!!  (I'm the crazy chorister... FYI.)  All but one little girl had their part memorized!  Amazing!  They were so good to sing out beautifully, which really brought the Spirit.  And my kiddos did a great job!  Ella sang AND gave her part perfectly, which was, "I will follow God's plan for me by listening to the prophet!"  Lexi did well, but her mic wasn't working, so she had to tell her part to our family afterward.  I love her quote from President Monson:  "Let the scriptures be your guide and you will never find yourself traveling the road to nowhere."  LOVE IT!  And Braeden... WOW!  He was the very last speaker before we sang Scripture Power!  He did such a great job and the Spirit was so strong.  You just had to hear him say it, but he was asked to bear his testimony and give a personal experience about reading the scriptures, so... this is what he came up with... (and I just helped him put it in order and get the words together so it could be the very best for him!) 

"2 Nephi 4:15 'For my soul delighteth in the scriptures...'  This scripture is so true for me.  I actually do love to read the scriptures.  My family and I try to do it every night together.  When my parents think it's too late or they've forgotten I'm always the first one to remind them.

"When my mom asked me how I felt about the scriptures I told her that ever since we've been reading them together I've just known that they are true and always had a good feeling when reading them.

"Someday I want to be like Samuel the Lamanite, so righteous and filled with the Spirit that none of the stones, arrows, or temptations the devil can throw my way can even touch me.  I know that the scriptures are true.  I know that we have a living prophet who gives us modern day scriptures as he prophesies what our Heavenly Father wants us to know today.  I'm thankful for the gospel and the power that I feel as I read the scriptures.

"In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen."

It was so sweet.  And then they sang Scripture Power and by the chorus of the 2nd verse... I just couldn't hold my tears any longer.  Not only was it a proud moment, but the Spirit truly did testify the truth of the words those children shared and strengthened all our testimonies!

The following week was busy as ever, though we didn't have much soccer practice.  Damian forgot to leave a note saying that Braeden could run some drills at practice, so we didn't go to his practice on Tuesday.  Wednesday was full even though Lexi's practice was canceled.  Her coach's daughter, Kelsey, broke her arm severely and had to be taken care of.  Then Thursday we left after piano.  Yay!!  And amazingly enough I got all the laundry done and then got packed on time!

This is what Ella does while she's being neglected... so I can do all the laundry!

She puts her body in the pillowcase on top of the pillow and then gets another for her head and shoulders because her ENTIRE body just won't fit all the way in just one!  (Notice the shoes she just wears around casually... and even to the library these days!)

Elder (not any more, though!) Eric (Damian's youngest sibling) just got home from his mission.  He served faithfully in the Washington D.C. North area and we have been not-so-patiently waiting his homecoming!  Our children's nightly prayers changed several weeks ago to, "please help Uncle Eric make it home safely in __ days" rather than the usual, "please bless Uncle Eric on his mission (or in Washington D.C.)."  So... late the night he got home we came to Utah to play!  We took the kids out of school for Friday and Monday.  (I shouldn't say "we" because Damian wasn't able to come with me... what a surprise!)

We got here in less than 7 hours because we didn't leave until 7 p.m.  We waited for Damian to get home, and I had 2 piano lessons anyway, and then got dinner on our way out of town which sadly took half an hour.  Grr.  But... Ella fell asleep first, amazingly enough, and the others then followed soon after, so I only had to stop in Barstow to get a treat, use the potty, and change them into jammies.  Then the only other stop I made was in St. George for gas.  Yay!  It was still very late, and I was tired, but I did have to give in and get a big Pepsi this trip.  Sigh!

Friday morning we got up and headed to town to greet Uncle Eric!  Hasn't changed very much, I must say!  But he is still in mission-mode!  I overheard him grilling Braeden about some things.  And one time Braeden finally said, "WHY do I have to tell you everything??"  To which Eric replied, "Because I want to learn.  And that's how I do it... I ask lots of questions."  And Braeden came back with, "You already know all this stuff."  And when Eric said, "How do you know?"  Braeden said... like... DUH! "Because you were a missionary!!!!"

Awww!  Braeden and Eric both need some hair help!  Haha!

Eric and Lexi

Despite how excited she claimed to be to see him again, he literally had to chase Ella down to get a hug!

Oops on my part!  Very bad lighting in this, but... serves the purpose!

My cute huskies in their school "Spirit Wear."

Gpa showed up and helped the kids pick their pumpkins out of the garden.  (They had massive amounts of pumpkins that showed up volunteer and produced like 40 pumpkins!)  They were so excited!!  And I'm excited to take them home!  Shhh.  Don't tell... Hopefully I just won't get stopped at the agricultural checkpoint in CA.

Gpa's just in time for the fun!!

Turn that icky composter, Lexi!  But try not to breathe while doing it!

Just a small portion of their bounteous garden!

They each got to tromp in the garden with Gpa to choose their pumpkin!

Grunt... put some back into it!

Things like this are very hard to do with a cast on one hand!

So... we'll just set it down and take the picture instead!  Haha!

This one "WIGHT HEW!"

Yep... she can lift it!  And I think Gpa is lending his facial support for the cause!

Eric on his picture-taking perch!  ;o)

WHOA!  That's a big one, too!

My kids ate so many of these!  Even though they were still tart and waiting for the first frost to make them sweeter!

They must be washed off a little...

...and then they're ready for a quick picture!

Eric had to leave shortly after to attend his mission reunion up north, so we went out to Gma Pam's work just to say hi... like we always do!  {And... I've been meaning to take pictures of the kids in her office area for a long time now... it's a fun place for them!}

This is THE fun at Gma Pam's office!  Entertainment at its finest!  No parent work involved!

Lexi and Ella... turning... and turning... and then the other way...

Braeden doing the same thing, only he is opening it to a certain point so he can get all the way in the back and behind them.

Small space for a big kid!

The walls are closing in on me... HELP!  ;o)

So Ella came to the rescue and they successfully pushed the walls apart and escaped!

Then we OBVIOUSLY had to make a trip to our favorite!  The Pizza Factory!

Then we made our way up Right Hand Canyon to look at and pick leaves!  So beautiful!!!  We had fun, but were in dire need of a giant drink of cold water when we returned...  We had taken my mom's truck so the kids could roll the windows down, and when she took everything out to make room for all of us... she literally took EVERYTHING out and we didn't even have a bottle of water.

I picked up the van and stopped by Tink's to get yet another part for my car.  Seth is always so great to help me, so he got me a good deal on a new wheel bearing and ABS sensor and then installed it for me!!  {With a little help from Braeden again!  :o)}

The view of part of Cedar Breaks from Right Hand Canyon.

COWS!!

Isn't it beautiful??  This is where we stopped to do some gathering!

But we had to walk a little way... through the tall grass!

LOVE IT!!

It's so calm and peaceful up there.  I think we only heard one bird.

Braeden gathering leaves... but for a purpose!

Gma Pam hiding from the camera lens... and holding Ella's sucker!

Here is the gathering purpose!!  One, TWO... THREE.......

Ella jumped the gun a little...

It's raining leaves!!

The leaves were so amazing!  And we found some very colorful ones!  And for FHE after we got home, we talked about photosynthesis, how it stops when the days get cooler and there's not enough sunlight, and what the colors mean!  Green comes from the chlorophyll that is there and acts as kind of a catalyst for photosynthesis.  When that process stops, and the chlorophyll is no longer in the leaves, the yellows and oranges show up because they've always been there... just not in an amount large enough to counter the chlorophyll.  If the leaves are brown, that is because of the cellular waste that gets trapped in the leaves when photosynthesis stops.  And if they're red or purple, it is because the cooler weather has trapped some extra sugars in the leaves and the small amount of sunlight they get turns the sugar those colors!  There... now you've had your chemistry/biology lesson for the day!

There is beauty all around!!

Braeden actually HELPING Ella down into the area where we found an extra surprise!  CATTAILS!!

I also let the kids take some of these to school with their lesson about photosynthesis and their leaves on Wed. Oct. 5th... which was National Walk To School Day!!  {And yes... we DID IT!!  Well... we cheated a little.  We drove across Rancho California and parked on the next street and made our way all the way up the hill and across the park!  Yay!}  Oh... and they also took their maps of the US that we labeled and colored based on how many state license plates we saw on our way home!  We even saw Hawaii, Alaska, Mexico, 3 Canadian provinces, and like 34 states!  Woo-hoo!

I love this time of year in Utah!

The view down from where we were!

Ella didn't bother getting branches... just individual leaves were her thing!

Then after I spilled my giant water all over me and Lexi... I headed off to the Utah Symphony performance with Gma Linda and Great-Gma Liebhardt!  I inherited Gpa's ticket since he drove Eric to his mission reunion, and it was fabulous.  They brought in a pianist that was totally amazing to play Beethoven's Concerto No. 1 in C Major.  And we had dinner there before the performance, and other than the piles of plates that hadn't been washed (ICK!!) it was very yummy.  (They did finally bring out fresh and CLEAN plates!)

Braeden and Ella had gone home with my mom and Lexi got to have a late night with Caroline at here house while I was gone!

Saturday morning we rose early and headed to the St. George Marathon.  I had a couple of friends running and we went to cheer them on and meet them at the finish line!!  I can't even imagine WHY they would do that!  But... they made it!  And Tammy qualified for the Boston Marathon... by 30-some-odd seconds.  Wow!  And... come to find out, there were actually 5 runners from our ward!  I don't know what's wrong with them!  They're CRAZY!  And I mean that in the nicest of ways!  ;)

Tammy did actually give me permission to post these!  She is my friend, and was Braeden's preschool teacher, for those that know her that way!

I had called her husband the night before to see if there was a special something that she liked more than anything after a long run... There is!  It's chocolate milk!  So... I got her a big one!  And she was so excited to see it when she realized that it was not one of the drinks offered to the runners right after!  Yay!

I love this picture!  It just makes me smile!

After that crazy place we found refuge and lunch at Taco Time where it was quiet, cool, and not busy!  My kids love the crisp meat burritos there, and there isn't a Taco Time in California, so they had already stated their desire to eat there even before we came!  Haha!  Sounds like eating at certain places is becoming a tradition for more than just me!  :o)

Then we came to Gma Linda's to play with Eric again!!!  Though we found that once he left for the priesthood session of conference, we didn't see him again until in the morning.  I ended up leaving all 3 kids here with Gma Linda to accompany Nick, Gma Liebhardt, and Dad to the Sigma Chi Derby Days banquet.  I had the same dinner as the night before.  It was catered by the same restaurant... haha!  It was very nice, though.

This is the view Gma and Gpa Linda have from their front porch every day!

Ella just got caught stealing Jonathan's car!

Kids these days!  They can't even get a picture that's in focus!  (The guy Nick asked to take the picture said that my camera was Old School because he had to look through the view finder.  Boo... seriously??)  Dad, Gma Liebhardt, me, and Nick!

We then decided it would be fun to spend the night here.  Caroline came and all 3 girls ended up in the bunk-bed room, Braeden wanted the couch again (which surprised me, since that was something Ella had claimed more than a week ago... I guess she decided to abandon that idea.)
Sunday morning brought fresh fruit from Gma Linda's garden... (which is amazing... see her blog to be awestruck!) and Gail made sticky buns and brought  enough to feed "Johnson's Army" as Colleen would say!  Yummy!  And we listened and/or watched the morning session of conference.  Isn't it amazing that as we are taking notes and listening we all get something different that is JUST FOR US?  One of my favorite parts was when Elder Hales mentioned that the Lord WILL answer our prayers, but only when we are ready and likely in increments to which we are able or willing to handle.  He said that we often pray for patience, but we want it RIGHT NOW!!!!  That is sooo me.  And something I needed to hear.  I had never thought that I should have to wait for patience... because I really do need it RIGHT NOW... more for my family's sake than my own, but I guess now I will be revising my expectations.  I have, however, always know that if I pray for patience I will 99% likely to find a TEST of that patience I desire.  Hmmm...
After the first session of conference, we had lunch and birthday treats for Gpa Mike's birthday (which was just the next day... Oct. 3) and visited with family before settling in for the last session.

That's hot, Momma Linda!!  She made him a super YUMMY German Chocolate cake!

And no... not all his years are represented by candles.  That would have started a serious FIRE!  Haha!  J/K

Make a wish, and BLOW!

You can't tell in this picture, but that green candle in the very front was STILL lit when he was done with his first breath!  Guess he's not as full of hot air as we thought!  ;o)

We did finally make it back to Gma Pam's to get dressed that day!  I had brought pj's to put them in before driving home the night before, but when we decided to stay... well... I hadn't put in any regular clothes, so we spent the best part of the day in our pj's!  Lovely!  After we got dressed, we headed out for a ride in the back of the truck and then a trip to the park!  We got some much needed fresh, cool air and "honked the trucks" as they passed under the overpasses!

This is how Braeden generally feels about me snapping his picture.  Stinker.

I wish I could write a dog pant in here.  That's totally what it reminds me of when I see my kids doing what I used to do when I was little with the dogs!  The breeze in your face is so refreshing!

See that clump of trees?  And see the car on the freeway?  That's how big my home town is!  Not very!

I got out of the truck to snap some pictures of the kids trying to get the semi's to honk at them, and my mom thought that the state of my hair needed to be documented.  RUDE!

Ella gets very upset and desperate if one passes without honking.

But they have a celebration when they get a good one!!  And what is Lexi doing??

And just before dinner, I noticed that they were out playing in the garden, so I decided that they could do a little service for Gma Pam!  We cleaned out all the lillies!  I love these pictures because you can see my mom's yard.  That gazebo you see... Damian built that!  Yep.  It was my wedding cake holder!

I think we made more of a mess than we actually helped her clean out the garden.  Sorry, Mom!

And after dinner and baths, Gma Linda Gpa Mike, Gail, and Caroline came out to say goodbye and have one last round of FUN!
That was followed by bedtime stories and head-stands!  I don't know that I can even remember how we got on that... though I'm pretty sure it was Ella trying to do tricks off the furniture.  Then Lexi TRIED AND TRIED... but still has YET to perfect it enough to get up and stay there for more than a nanosecond!  :o)

Ella needs some work in her technique.

But she's sooo fun to watch!

And with a little help from he who can't do this trick with a cast on, she's UP!

Lexi's almost getting it!

They were "freaking out" that I could still do it!

Braeden is there spotting me just in case I try to take out the piano or the TV.   :o)

But alas, I don't need his help!  Though I must admit that this makes the top of my head hurt... really bad!

Um... this needs a little work.  Keep at it, Lexi!  Pretty soon you'll be able to join the circus!  ;o)

And... the next morning we were out the door at just after 9 a.m. to head home.  And as soon as we got here, I had a piano lesson, and Lexi headed off to soccer practice!  Damian took her since he was home and he also took Ella and Braeden so they could play at the park for a while!  Yay!  We try not to miss a beat, you know!
And there you have about a week's worth of info and activities!