Sweet, Sweet Boy

Ethan brought this home from school today.  I love him so much.  We must be doing something right with that kid....

Just in case you can't read his handwriting, it says:

Dear Family,

I love you family.  They love me a lot.  My mom and dad and baby.  I love my family a lot.

Love,

Ethan



Hey! Where's my Golden Ticket?

I was looking back on past posts and realized that there is far too much space in between each one lately.  To remedy this, I've decided to do a post right now!  Yay for me!  As for us, we're living life and enjoying the journey...most of the time.  I wasn't able to attend the General Relief Society Meeting as I usually do with my mom, but I recorded it on my DVR and I was able to watch it last night.  I have to say, it was a good conference!  One thing that is awesome about DVR though is you don't have to listen to the singing...shhh don't tell. 

I really enjoyed President Uchdorf's talk about Forget Me Nots.  It's so true that we tend to put everyone and everything else first before ourselves.  I'm not saying we need to be selfish people, but we do need to take care of ourselves.  I've found myself waiting for that "golden ticket" to make my life all better at different times in my life.  It has taken a lot of growing up for me to realize that there is no "golden ticket" or if there is, it's not going to change my attitude about things.  I also liked the part where he said that we're not perfect and Heavenly Father knows that, and that he also knows that the people we think are perfect aren't perfect either.  It's so easy to get caught up in comparing your weaknesses to somebody else's strengths.  It's a hard cycle to break, but it's so important to realize that Heavenly Father loves us individually, even with our imperfections.

As far as waiting for my golden ticket goes, maybe one day something amazing like that will happen, but I know of at least three things in my life (Dan, Ethan, and Sydney) that are better than any golden ticket could be.

What Have We Been Up To?

Well, there has been an aura of controlled chaos lately around our home....I guess that's the usual aura around here.  Anyway, we've been doing pretty well.  Ethan has been in school for about a month now.  He loves being in first grade.  Sydney is as cute as ever.  She is talking up a storm.  She also has learned to fake crying.  In fact, the other night she fake cried and then when I asked what was wrong she said, "I sad."  It was cute.  I know I've got to savor these days while I can.  They're not going to last too long.

We went to the Utah State Fair earlier in the month and had a great time.  Ethan and Sydney both LOVED the big yellow slide.  We all went together as a family and then Dan took the kids so I could get some pictures the second time.  Ethan caught a fish in the catch and release fishing pond.  We got to see tons of animals.  The kids especially loved the goats because they were so friendly.  They wanted to be petted and wanted attention.  It was a really fun time.  They also had this cool Lego area where you could go build something and they had a shark and a lion made completely out of Legos.  Ethan thought it was awesome. 

All in all, it was a good time. Until next time....

Thinking...

Well, I've been doing a lot of thinking over the past month. We went to visit Grandma and Grandpa Cornia about a month ago because Grandpa was not doing well health wise. He passed away yesterday morning. I knew as I drove away that Sunday evening at the conclusion of our visit that it would probably be the last time I would see him in this life. I cried most of the three and a half hour drive home. It was really hard leaving. He knew his time was drawing near. I could tell by the way he was talking about things that he just kind of knew things were going that way.

We had a wonderful visit with Grandpa and all the family up there. Grandpa still had his mind and had us laughing a bit. He was still as "strong-willed" as ever. He was still Grandpa up until the very end. I am grateful for that.

He was a great man and he will be missed, but I know I will see him again. I know those that pass on do not go far. They stay around, watching over us, comforting us when needed, and blessing our lives even after death. I take such comfort in my testimony of the Gospel and in my knowledge of life after death. We all have our time here on Earth and Grandpa used his to the fullest.

Grandpa Cornia was a great man. He accomplished so much in his life. I love him so much and will miss him everyday. I think seeing his empty "chair" at the house when we go up to Idaho for the funeral will be hardest for me. It will make it real.

I love you Grandpa.

A LOT Going On...

We've had a lot going on pretty much nonstop this summer...we're finally in the lull and school is almost starting! It has been pretty crazy. First, in June we had Dan and Ethan's birthdays and we had Father's Day. It was an eventful week to say the least. On top of that, Dan was picking up shifts like crazy at the hospital and at the rehab/nursing home.

At the end of June/beginning of July, we had Kylea and Colby's wedding. Dan made the wedding cake:

This is Alisa putting the final flowers on it as Dan actually was called in to work that night...go figure.

Anyway, after that, we had a wonderful vacation at Bear Lake with the family. Ethan and I even went body surfing on one of the nights. We had some awesome wind coming off the lake.

Then, we went up to Idaho for an impromptu visit to my grandparents, had my birthday, and went up to East Canyon with my parents and family for some fun. More pictures to follow on that later...

This one is me and the kids with Grandma and Grandpa Cornia.

Ethan starts first grade in about a week and a half. I'm excited for him, but also....holy crap, I'm going to have a first grader! Life has been good, but busy, for us this summer. We've had a few bumps along the way like car problems, etc., but hopefully those will be resolved soon.

I'm really looking forward to the routine of school and having a little bit of extra time since I will only have to entertain one child, not two, all day. Yay for more gym time for me!

Until next time....