Roses Bloom Beneath Our Feet?

I recently heard a Relief Society lesson all about how to have
"Love at Home." The teacher echoed my sentiments about that song. Is it for real? How could life at home ever be that ideallic? Then she reminded us that roses have thorns. Then, it all clicked for me! If the roses are blooming under our feet, those thorns have got to hurt us sometimes! It suddenly all made sense!

I sometimes read back over my blog and think that it's kind of a shame that I only include a sample of the good parts of our home life. But, then who would really want to know about the hard times? This is just to let you know that we have both kinds of experiences, with a lot of hum drum in between. I have included a picture of our roses, thorns and all. Thanks, Dad, for showing me how to care for them. They are doing so well!

In the last few months we've had lots of tears, lots of emotion, lots of contention, and lots of hurt feelings. It's hard to move, it's hard to be an adolescent, and it's hard to be a little kid (especially if you are two.) But, we have the roses too. I have lots of memories that I choose keep etched in my mind in place of those "episodes." Like, during the recent violin recital I choose to remember how well Katelyn and Brandon did, not the fidgety little ones who had trouble sitting still so long. I am so thankful that Brian no longer travels. That is the sweetest smelling rose in the garden.

Life really is sweet. Just today we discovered a tiny turtle (stuffed animal) that was put into the bathtub to see if it could swim (by Zach). When I told Josh and Amanda the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears today, Zach walked by right when she broke the little chair and said, "Oh no!"

Tonight for family home evening we all took turns telling what we are most thankful for. It was so sweet to hear the kids tell that they were thankful for each other. It was unsolicited and sincere. Then, Josh looked up at me and told me he was so thankful for his Mom and Dad. I had a sudden flashback of how close we came to losing him during our adoption process. Wow. We are so grateful that story had such a happy ending. Then Amanda came up and hugged me tight and told me how grateful she was to have a mama. It was so sweet. Then we showed our gratitude and joy for our blessings by dancing together and singing. For some that might seem corny, but it was really fun! We all got into it and danced to "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" and "California Girls" from the Beach Boys and other songs. Then we concluded by singing the Primary song, "My Heavenly Father Loves Me." It fit us perfectly.

I too am glad that I live in this beautiful world, Heavenly Father created for me.

Who's Birthday Is It?

Can you believe our little buddy is two years old? We had a very fun day today celebrat- ing with our birthday boy. He thought it was great fun, although this morning I wasn't sure. We let him open his first present--this shirt he is wearing. He opened one side, took a look at it, said, "shirt", and walked away! I asked him if he wanted to finish opening it. He said, "no" and kept right on moving. We all laughed and laughed. We learned real fast that if it wasn't a ball, a car, a train, or a book, it just wasn't worth his time. He loved the train set from Grandma and Grandpa Wilhelmsen and the Elmo book from Grandma and Grandpa Carling (which, by the way, was the only thing that distracted him from his favorite present...) He got a basketball hoop from Mom and Dad--he was still talking about it when he was dozing off to sleep! We had to promise that he could play basketball when he woke up in the morning. Even then, there were some tired tears. It's just so hard to wait when you are two. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the day...

Happy Birthday, sweet baby.

Temple Hill

This is the view we get to see from our temple. Every time we are on Temple Hill we get to see God's handiwork; usually in the form of amazing sunsets and cloud formations. One day we saw a purple fog settled over the valley below. The beautiful, shining temple was like a beakon to all the wanderers below, calling them and inviting them to come up the mountain.
Today Brian and I spoke in our new ward about Lehi's Dream and this image came to mind. Aren't we grateful for the Tree of Life and the fruit that is white and most desirable above all other fruit. It has made our family very happy. Just wanted to share...

Go, Go, Go Brandon!

The last few weeks our family has been eating, sleeping, and breathing the music from "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." Our ward is putting on the production this week and Brandon, our lucky little deacon, has been able to join in all the fun. Can you imagine, of all the luck? We move in just as rehearsals are beginning? And, it is Brandon's favorite musical! He told me this week that living in California is like living in Paradise. He can't imagine a better life. He has made good friends in our ward, had a wonderful time learning and growing together as a team with them, and has been able to use his musical talents in a very fun way. We saw last night's performance and it was so good! I cannot believe the talent, the devotion, and the fun that one ward can produce.

On Halloween a group of youth in our ward came to our house trick-or-treating. Brandon answered the door and they all said, "Brandon!!! We didn't know you lived in this house!!" Then they all gave him high fives. One of the young men said, "Hey Brandon, can you sing higher than this?" Then he sang as high as he could. Brandon easily sang higher. They all applauded and told us how much they love listening to Brandon sing. Needless to say, Brandon is a very happy boy.