So Much Happened So Little Written

July was an extremely happening month, so I am going to share some of the highlights starting with the good news. I look back and wish that I could have written all of it at the time it happened, but I lived in the moment and enjoyed the time we had together as a family. I enjoyed watching the kids come back from their camps and adventures and we have been truly blessed from the experiences of this July. We have been touched by dedicated leaders and friends who have volunteered time and resources for the camps. Our children's lives have been touched. Here is our gratitude list for the happenings of July.

Girls camp for Emily! This year Emily was a YCL. She helped in the planning of girls camp and looked forward with anticipation. She loaded bags and bags of stuff into the car. She had a great opportunity to serve some of the 1st year girls. She loved being a youth leader and working with other girls in the stake. She talked about testimony meeting and the faith walk. She felt the spirit and her testimony was strengthened.

11 year old encampment for Austin and Bill! Austin learned so much about orienteering, setting up tents, knots, lashing, and first aid. Bill learned about Austin and 11 year old boys. They both enjoyed a fireside where they learned about our constitution and some history of the United States. Bill came home with a new appreciation for Austin and his blooming sense of humor.

Cub Camp for me! I am the primary presidency member over cubs and until recently was the cub committee chair so I helped get the boys signed up and helped to organize one of the stations. I had a great time with some of the other sisters in our ward helping the boys make flags and having the boys get their pictures taken with various costumes. We had so many mothers and even a father that walked and volunteered over the three days. It was so great to see how excited the boys were as they left to go to camp and how tired they were when they returned. It was so neat to have the boys meet at my home and as they waited for parents to arrive they would show me what they had made at camp and tell me of all the exciting things they had done!!!

Scout Camp for Willy!! Willy earned several merit badges at scout camp He learned a lot about accountability and finishing up what he starts. He had a couple of complaints about scout camp and that was that the food wasn't very good, and that he didn't have time to go canoeing. He worked hard at getting mostly required merit badges for his eagle. He only needs a couple of things to get his life rank and with consistent progress he will get his eagle. He learned a lot from his leaders and his friends at camp! Thanks goes out to all his leaders!

Youth Conference for Emily! Emily learned so much at youth conference and felt the spirit so strongly that for family home evening she shared with us the happenings and taught us from the question and answer panel. She shared her testimony with us. She has so many questions and ideas. Her big goal in life is to be Happy and to Change the World. She had a great time over the 3 days she spent with friends and leaders at SVU. I'm so grateful that she shared with us her experience as we all felt the spirit of youth conference.

We love having visitors from Idaho and especially loved meeting Grandma and Grandpa Ward in upstate New York. It was so awesome to go as a family and go to the Hill Cumorah Pageant together. We loved the costumes, the fires, the waterfalls and the story of the Book of Mormon. It was spectacular. The stage was amazing! and of course the back drop is the hill cumorah! It was a beautiful evening. It was great to hear from grandpa that when he was a missionary in New York he was in the pageant. We loved the pageant each of the kids told us that they liked the Nauvoo pageant the best. It's interesting what they remember.

We spent the night in a little campground. The kids and Bill slept in the tent and I stayed in the motor home with grandma and grandpa. (We haven't camped this summer so the kids loved it.) The kids couldn't pass up the swimming pool in the campground so they went swimming while we took down the tent and cleaned up camp. We enjoyed the peacefulness of the sacred grove with the children. I sat with Lydia on a bench and talked about the first vision and as we talked you could tell she understood and she felt the spirit. It was so beautiful. We walked around for a good while. It was amazing with all the people that we in the sacred grove that it was reverent and quiet. The sun was beautiful coming through the trees. We noticed that change in behavior as we left the grove and looked through the homes and other buildings on the Smith farm. We had a pizza lunch in Palmyra. We visited the David Whitmer farm where the church was created and looked at the Martin Harris home.

We had awesome luck at the end of the day we were able to get the last camping spot at Watkins Glen State Park in upstate New York. It was nearly dark when we arrived so we didn't get much time to look around. We had a nice time together eating dinner and talking with grandma and grandpa. We took a little time in the morning to look around at the water falls at the park before leaving to go to the Corning Glass Museum in Corning New York.

The Glass Museum was awesome! We watched several different demonstrations: a glass blower make a vase, a lady make a little glass animal, and Austin helped with a demonstration on how different types of glass break. The displays were awesome on how corning ware started and all about the different kinds of glass we use. The kids really thought the demonstration on fiber optic cables ( which are made of glass) was really cool. Loved this museum! 2 thumbs up!

We loved having grandma and Grandpa stay with us over the the next week. Bill took the time off of work so we enjoyed being together for the week. WE had record breaking heat and humidity so we stayed home or did indoor activities. But we loved being together and enjoyed some great food. We went bowling,to the movies, out to eat, and of course to the 150 anniversary of the civil war parade. I loved watching the kids interact with their grandparents. Lydia always wanted to play games or would climb up on grandpas lap and fall asleep. I love the feeling of the kids reconnecting with family. Still after five years I miss connecting with family. I miss the kids playing with cousins and uncles and aunts. So hanging out with family is so wonderful. I enjoyed it so much when Ibraham and Jason had lunch with us and Dad and Mom thought Emily had great friends. We our so glad that Grandma and Grandpa came for visit!!!

Well, along with all the good also comes the opposition in all things part. Along with blessing there must be trials. It's strange how that always goes hand in hand. For the most part in our life it has been a trial in the area of finance. Last year we worked so hard to get out of debt and we had paid off so much we thought we saw the light at the end of the tunnel but then you have.....

• Inspection sticker renewal. I call that sticker my thousand dollar sticker. no matter what the repairs to get that sticker always cost me that much. So yes again it cost me that much . Plus the cost of a ticket having got pulled over at a checkpoint on the 4th of July. Sticker expired the last day of June. Replaced the suburban earlier in the year with a little Aveo because the Suburban wouldn't pass inspection without major expensive repairs. Double Ouch



• Hard drive on computer melted. Lost all pictures taken over the last 5 years or more, including all the pictures from last years trip to Nauvoo, Kirtland, Burley, Boise, and Utah. I have cried all ready about this so no new tears now! This also includes any pictures at sites around here. We thought we were backing everything up off the hard drive each month but evidently we were only backing up our business stuff. Had to buy a new computer. Double Ouch memory wise and money wise.


• Appliance breakdown! This time the washing machine is dead! Bill prolonged the buying of this appliance by replacing a power switch but Monday I smelled the smell of motor burn out. No way to save that. So its either spending a lot of time at the laundry mat or buying a new washing machine. I opted for the later so a new machine will be delivered next Tuesday. ouch ouch ouch. We have already replaced a dishwasher and a dryer this year.

We have so much and our so blessed that even if we have to use some of our credit we are grateful that our family is healthy and strong. We are so blessed by good friends and by opportunities to serve. Love life and and all the curve balls it gives us!