Leyna Leyna Leyna

All that know our loveable Leyna, knows that she has no filter and says anything and everything on her mind. You also know that she loves to be heard....by everyone. So Sunday afternoon she was in the backyard swinging on the swing, singing at the top of her lungs,
"Sing, sweet Nightingale. Sing, sweet Nightingale. Aaaaa haaa aaaaa haa haaa!!" (sounded just like the stepsister on Cinderella) Then out of nowhere, to the same tune she starts shouting as loud as can be,
"Myyyy mom is bald. Myyyy mom is bald. Aaaa haaaa aaaa haaaa!!"

Eric and I were in the house listening and laughing hysterically!!
Leyna has this fascination with my baldness. Almost every morning she asks, "Mom, you're still bald?" She feels the need to tell every stranger and friend that her mom has no hair. On more than one occasion she's ripped my hat off and run away to expose my naked head in the midst of crowds of people. She has mini princess dolls whose hair can be removed and interchanged. She brought me one of her dolls the other day and said, "This one is you, Mom." Of course it had no hair at all. I think it's hilarious. I get a good giggle out of it every time I think of her innocence and obsession with the situation.

Toothfairy Visits Simi Valley!

Gavin lost his first tooth today! We rented "Toothfairy" in his honor and now he's $3 richer!

Chemo session 21

I have PET/CT scans scheduled for next Tuesday and find out results on Thursday. Keep your fingers crossed and hearts a prayin'!

A Child's View of Thunderstorms

A little girl walked to and from school daily.

Though the weather that morning was questionable and clouds were forming, she made her daily trek to school.

As the afternoon progressed, the winds whipped up, along with lightning.

The mother of the little girl felt concerned that her daughter would be frightened as she walked home from school. She also feared the electrical storm might harm her child.

Full of concern, the mother got into her car and quickly drove along the route to her child's school.

As she did, she saw her little girl walking along.

At each flash of lightning, the child would stop, look up, and smile.

More lighting followed quickly and with each, the little girl would look at the streak of light and smile.

When the mother drew up beside the child, she lowered the window and called, "What are you doing?"

The child answered, "I am trying to look pretty because God keeps taking my picture."

May God bless you today and every day as you face the storms that come your way!

Kaden's church talk

I made some suggestions to help Kaden write a talk for church this Sunday, but he refused any of my input. Instead, he sat down, started writing and 5 minutes later produced the following talk. In it, he incorporated the words of Grandpa Rick's baptism talk over a year ago! It's awesome to step back and realize that our children are really listening and understanding those things we're teaching, so much so that they can verbalize their thoughts and testimonies to be shared with others. Our kids are growing up so fast!

Happy Mother's Day

I have been blessed with AMAZING mothers in my life who have taught me countless lessons. For those who know our families, I'll let you take a gander at who taught me what. Some that come to mind include:

1. Always send 'thank you' cards
2. A gift should be given from the heart. Don't waste money on a card when a simple 'thank you' will suffice.
3. Life is about having fun and taking advantage of the moment. Be spontaneous.
4. Life should be enjoyed, but work should always come first.
5. A clean house is a house of order,and therefore,a house of God and peace.
6. A clean house is wonderful, but if family or other tasks need to be done, the workload of home can always be done later.
7. Having a good time in life teaches your children that other things and people matter besides just them.
8. The kids are everything, and everything you do should benefit them. (#7&8 can be linked together since doing for ourselves teaches such an important benefit for the kiddos.)
9. Ironning for our men is our responsibility.
10. Purchase non-wrinkling shirts, but if they do need some TLC, there's no reason why he can't iron his own clothing without you feeling guilty about it.
11. Drop everything for a fun time.
12. Drop everything to help someone in need.

I'm so glad I have such diverse ideals in my life, each with lessons that help me prioritize and have influenced the kind of mother I am today. Love you, Moms!

Today was a great Mother's Day -- probably the best yet. – No Ward Council meeting. Yay! I got to sleep in until Kami kept coming in and saying, ‘Wake up, Mom. I want you to open our presents.” I brushed my teeth and went downstairs. Eric had prepared pancakes and bacon. I was given an Olive Garden gift card with a note that said, “Mom, we know how much you love the Olive Garden. You are more “classy” than a fine dining experience. “ There was a box of See’s candies with a note, “Mom, sometimes you are like a box of chocolates. You bite into one and are not sure what you are going to get, but most of the time it is sweet.” A large bouquet of mums were on the table with this note, “Mom, we got you flowers to represent your beauty, these flowers are called mums. We got some mums for our mum” There were also some berries, “Mom, we know how much you like berries and we got themf or you just because…because we love you so “berry” much.” Kami also presented me with a recipe book and Kaden had handmade a fun trinket holder at school. To top it all off, we got to hear Eric give a talk in church – he did a great job of paying tribute to all kinds of mothers that impacted homes and history. Very well done.

Serena, the Graduate!

Congratulations, Serena, on graduating!!!! A job well done. Hopefully I won't be too far behind you if only I can decide what I want to be when I grow up - I thought I always knew until recently. Life is funny like that.

5k Family Fun Run/Walk/Ride

with 362 registered participants and almost $6k in funds raised, our 5k fundraiser for youth camps was a huge success, and we're sure it will only get bigger and better with time. After a prayer, presentation of American Flag, and singing of the National Anthem, bikers were sent on their way. Eric rode along with Gavin and Leyna. Kade rode with his friend, Wyatt. Runners and walkers left just 30 seconds later. Kambria is awesome. She ran the entire 3 miles without stopping or walking! She finished strong, too, racing my friend Kim across the finish line! You go, Girl!! Following the event, participants visited vendors, booths, played games like gunny sack races, egg toss, tug of war, limbo, etc... and had a great time listening to our amazing DJs, Millennium Productions. I hope to be a part of it all next year!