Dream job

A while ago, Ken was promoted to the traffic team. He loves to write tickets and take traffic reports so this was a job he has wanted for a long time. After his 4 year stint in detectives/narcotics, this was his reward.

As part of the traffic team, he gets to ride the motorbikes. So, for the next two weeks, he will be in Utah attending motor school. He is getting his certification to ride the police bikes. This is the one police assignment he has dreamed of doing since he was a little boy. One of his favorite shows was CHiP's". Now he has the boys brainwashed into loving it with him. Henry thinks he is John and Daddy is Ponch.
Here are a few pictures I took of him last fall.


He got the bike in November and rode as many days as he could until it got too cold.


As long as it was over 50 degrees, he was happy on the bike.



I just realized that is not the car he drives anymore. His third police wish was granted a couple months ago when he was given the new Dodge Charger, without a light bar. He tried to get it unmarked but no luck. I think he's spoiled! He disagrees and is having a really great time!!!


I don't have a great picture of it but here is Alexys in front of it displaying her Flat Stanley doll for an Activity Days project.

Small moments

Since I started working, life seems to fly by. I have no idea if I'm coming or going most of the time. Only things that are absolutely necessary get done. (I've determined that meals are optional though my kids seem to disagree.)

I feel like I never see the kids anymore and my time with Ken is very limited now. Any spare moment I have is spent reading text books or doing homework. I only have two more weeks of my school left though. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel but I am very much still IN the tunnel.

Ken is out of town for the next two weeks so that doesn't help my sanity level at all. One day at at time...

So, the other night, Ken was working late and all the kids were asleep except Henry. I was doing homework on the computer while Henry played with his trains on the floor next to me. Suddenly, I noticed the room was very quite. I turned my attention away from the computer to discover that Henry (and ALL his trains) had gone to bed by himself .


"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

Some breaths are happy, some are sad, and some are heavy laden with guilt... I need to slow down and remember to enjoy the small precious moments each day. They are guaranteed to happen, with or without me.

And I will.....

Just give me TWO more weeks.

Catching up!

Pictures from Henry's birthday (which was February 28th).

How does your garden grow?

One evening as I was feeding my children dinner, I looked up from the counter where I was working and this is what I saw....



For some reason, the scene struck me as funny and I had to laugh. Obviously, I have my priorities straight.

Sad thing is this picture was taken three weeks ago, and my kitchen table still looks like this. When will the warmer weather arrive so these "beauties" can be relocated to my garden and I can fill my kitchen table with my next project.

How do you do yard work?


This is me...


and this is my neighbor!


Apparently, I thought it was a little colder than she did... :)

Dear Friends

This last week Shaelynne said good-bye to a dear friend. Logan has lived down the street since we moved into this neighborhood. We never believed the day would come when her family would move away. Shaelynne wanted to spend one final day with Logan doing something fun. We took Logan, Shaelynne, and Sylee (another friend from our ward) to Scrapin' Girlfriends to make bracelets and then out to Daisy's for volcano drinks. They had a great time together. It was sad to see Logan leave and Shaelynne wasn't the only one who cried buckets of tears. All my kids moped around for days after the final trailer pulled out of the subdivision. Their family will definitely be missed.

A couple years ago Logan's mother, Stacy, came over to dance in a summer rain storm with my kids because her kids were out of town. I was annoyed with the sudden down pour. Stacy told me she never let the chance to dance in a summer rain storm pass and wanted to borrow my kids since her's weren't available. I stood where it was dry and took pictures. While I missed the opportunity to dance with my kids, she taught me a life changing lesson that day. Ken's cousin made this picture up for me. I am thankful that Heavenly Father allows us to experience priceless moments with good friends that will stay in our hearts forever, especially when life's journey's leads them far away from us.

Alexys' speech

Alexys was asked to recite parts of "I Have A Dream" speech by Martin Luther King Jr. today in her elementary schools success assembly. This is what she recited:

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

She had it all memorized and did a great job. She didn't even act nervous. She was the only student asked to perform in front of the school so this was quite an honor. And I forgot my camera so there are no pictures... :(