Despain Family Reunion

I had a prolonged moment of insanity and decided to drive to Provo alone with my kids.  Rinar did a brothers trip and since he was going to be gone for the week, I thought, "oh, why not?"

Did you know it takes over 8 hours to get there?

Sheesh.

But we still had fun. We stayed the first night in Wendover and I pulled in to the hotel registry Thursday night at about 10pm. I was tired and I just wanted to get my kids to bed.  First, I couldn't find the room and thought I was going to go crazy. Then, I go to open the door. It is three floors up, Eli is asleep in my arms and my older ones have to go to the bathroom. The key did not work! I got so mad and frantic I decided to take it out on the door so I kicked it as hard as I could. I had on my sandals, so I only managed to stub my big toes pretty bad.

After a trying ordeal of trying to get the babies to go to sleep, they finally succumbed to their eyelids and I fell asleep, sort of.   But I had this really achy big toe. It felt like it was broken.  What an idiot!

We spent Friday with my good friend Melanie and her crew. It was a blast. Except, because of sleep deprivation, Harry and Julia were horrible. So I strapped them into their car seats, turned on a movie, turned on the car and left it idling for about 1.5 hours. I say it is cheaper than a babysitter and can you really put a price on sanity?

 Isn't this the most scrumptious little baby? This is Melanie and Jared's latest girl, Taryn. She is a good little baby.

On Saturday I went the the Despain Family Reunion in Provo. Despain is my grandmother's grandmother's family and her posterity. There were a lot of people there. They have quite the posterity.  Here is my Grandma N. and my uncles Barry and Dave.

They just had a little moment here.  Brotherly love, you know?

My sister Catye is getting married in October and here is her man, Mike. My kids LOVE him.  Hence, I love him. He will make a great addition to the family.

My Great-Grandmother May was one of 12 children. She was number 5. The church sent her parents to Lovell, Wyoming in 1905 on a mission to settle the area. It was one of the last wagon trains.  The guy standing up in this picture is Gordon. He is one of two surviving kids and my Grandma's uncle. I am not sure who the other two are, but I bet they are important.

We belong to the May faction.

On the drive back, Raef wanted to touch the salt. This is the famous salt flats. This is where they break land speed records and where the unfortunate Donner party planted the seeds of a horrible demise in the Sierra Nevadas.


We limped to the finish, but we made it all in one piece. The more I see Nevada, the more I realize that it is an incredible beautiful state. Elko and Winnemucca are beautiful country and I look forward to going back that way again.

Bargain Bin Sideboard

I picked up this beauty at the Goodwill Bargain Bin for $5.  I was so excited. I wanted something narrow that I could put in one of my hallways.  This fit the bill perfectly.

A little bit of paint, a little bit of fabric, a little bit of stenciling and here you go.

   
My latest creation. The paint is from Walmart. It is a Glidden color. It matched some fabric I had on hand. I decoupaged the fabric onto the front, to create an interesting front detail. After carefully measuring and cutting, I immersed each panel in the glue and then laid it onto each cupboard front.


I still haven't done anything with the pulls, but I just need some spray paint and it will be done in a jiffy. I just couldn't wait to put this on my blog.  It was a fun way to spend an afternoon while the babies were napping.

I printed a stencil pattern off of the internet. Then I cut it out by using wax paper, which I layered in blue painters tape.  I then glued the pattern on top. I rearranged it a bit to get the look I wanted, then I cut and cut while I watched reruns of Project Runway. It was kind of a pain, but I wanted to challenge myself and try something new.

Ophir Creek Trail

I have discovered the joy of hiking with my three oldest. It is a lot of fun. We don't ever get very far, but it is a nice, free activity to do.  Now, we are fortunate enough to live where there are ample hiking trails very close to our house.  They have breath-taking views and I want to experience it all while I have the chance.

On Saturday, we did a trail at the top of Mt. Rose summit. Just on the other side of the summit is Lake Tahoe. This trail was on the Tahoe Rim Trail system.  There were still lots of patches of snow on the trail and the boys had a lot of fun shoeing down each little hill.

Zach scolded Eli and so Eli was upset. But he still looked adorable holding a daffodil. You can get an idea of how cold it has been up here since the daffodils just bloomed.

But Eli was a trooper and he kept on plodding along the trail. I am just whipping this boy into shape so that we will be able to do longer hikes over the next while.

This is one of my new favorite activities to do with the kids and it sure beats them playing the Wii all Saturday afternoon.

Thoughts on Grocery Shopping

Drive to the grocery store. Walk down every aisle.  Put items in the cart. Take it out of the cart. Pay for it. Put it back in the cart. Take it out of the cart. Put it in the car. Take it out of the car. Put it in the kitchen. Put it away.

There is no food in this house. 

Let's go out to to eat!

Commandments Are a Blessing

 Cease to be ^aidle; cease to be ^bunclean; cease to ^cfind fault one with another; cease to ^dsleep longer than is needful; retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be ^einvigorated. (Doctrine & Covenants 88:124)

For many years I have pondered this commandment,"retire to thy bed early..."  It has never been easy for me. I love to stay up late and sleep in.  It is just my thing, the way I have programmed my body after many years of living this way. Yet, it is not what is best for me.

Well, for the last few weeks or so, I have been going to bed early and waking up in the 6 o'clock hour. It has been a blessing. I have been able to get the most important things done immediately.  I exercise, say my prayers, read the scriptures, and greet my waking children with a smile on my face.  I have been ready to go.

And it has served me well.  Some days were tough this week, but not insurmountable. I invited Christ to be a part of my day, and He did not let me down.

I hope that I can reprogram my body to a new lifestyle that is more in line with the scriptures. I feel that it is important to my eternal progression.

I have also struggled with the daily grind of taking care three toddlers. It can be overwhelming to the point of mental asylum.  I came up with a very simple solution to my "Trial and Tribulation". When I feel the weight of the world pressing down upon me (I would define this as crying-induced deafness), I hide away in my bathroom, lock myself in, and pour out my heart to my Heavenly Father. I don't want to be the mother that screams and yells and has no emotional control. I was turning into THAT woman.  I knew I had to make a course correction.  Prayer is my anchor and my salvation.  These words reverberate...

And if men come unto me I will show unto them their^aweakness. I ^bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my ^cgrace is sufficient for all men that ^dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make ^eweak things become strong unto them. (Ether 12:27)

I will have to constantly correct my course on a daily basis so that I can have heavenly peace with me, and the Spirit to guide me and comfort me.  Heavenly Father has definitely exposed a major weakness I possess. But I believe His promise. He has given me a weakness to keep me humble.  I know this weakness will become my biggest strength when the time is right.

I am awed by the fact that when I keep the commandments, my joy and peace are immeasurable.  I am learning to love the commandments. They set me free.

Slurp It All Up

I was busy making dinner today when I heard, "slurp, slurp, slurp..."

This is what I found.

Sometimes, it is just so good, you can't let even a drop go to waste.

Out On the Meadow

Look at me! I shot a deer!!!

With my camera, people. Relax.

I was standing on my back porch step to get this picture.  It's Bambi and his dad out on the meadow.  Him and about 5 of his friends. They were hanging out, eating some grub, catching up on the latest water cooler gossip. You know, who made it through on America's Got Talent, what dresses Princess Kate wore on her tour of North America, and the shockingly low approval numbers for President Obama.

It was a busy day out on the meadow.

Tomorrow we will be checking in with Thumper, at the hedge.