Quick Trip To Idaho For Rachel's Wedding

This weekend we made a quick trip up to Idaho to go to our nieces wedding!  It was a long drive, but it was worth it.  We went up a day early and Austin wanted to go to the Rexburg Temple.  Let me tell you, there is nothing like going to the temple with your children!  I just sat in there and counted my many blessings!  After we did that, Zach took off to BYU-I to work on some school things and we took Austin to buy his suits at the Missionary Mall.  Aubrey helped decorate for the wedding and Ian played with his cousins.  He loves that.  It is so neat to spend time up there and see the cousins.  Then the next day Don, Me, and the boys went to the temple to see Rachel and Alan married and Aubrey and Ian waited outside. It was so cold in Idaho!  Well for us it was cold.  When we came out of the temple, the weather was perfect.  Zach told Ari that Rachel was no longer her sister because she is married now.  Zach was joking, but poor Ari burst into tears. 

So Zach tried to comfort her.

He started laughing!  So sincere.

Like I said, the weather was perfect.  It was fun waiting outside with the family.

Cute little Gibson climbed in the flower bed to look for lady bugs.  How cute is that?  He looked so serious!

Finally Rachel and Alan came out!  Don't they look cute?  It was so neat to see them married.  They are such a cute couple.  I know they are going to be fine!  Their sealing was so sweet.  It was a great moment to share with them and the family.

Don's brother Doug and his family.  We love them!

We even took a family picture. 

It is hard to believe that 25 years ago, Don proposed to me here at this temple.  So sweet!  I am so happy he did.  He is the best thing that ever happened to me!  I just love him!

At the luncheon, Rachel had enough of her dress.

At the reception Rachel served popcorn.  (Brave girl!) Don and Zach took charge and made the popcorn and kept it coming at the reception.

The rest of the night we had fun with the cousins.  It was fun to spend time with the family and everything went so good.  It was a fun night.

At the end of the day we were exhausted.  I can only imagine how Doug and Diane felt.  As the bride and groom drove away, there was a pretty sunset.  It was a perfect way to end the day!

End Of The Road

Aubrey had her last dance competition.  They went to Lake Las Vegas and competed.  They did really good.  They even competed their ballet routine.  It was a fun night.  At the end of the night they watched a video that Courtney put together of the dance year.  It was so sweet and made us all cry.  It was a rough day for Aubrey.  I think just knowing that this was the last time she would compete with these girls, broke her heart.  The girls surprised me by giving me a gift for being their team mom.  They didn't have to do that.  I really didn't do anything special, but I did appreciate the love!  They are wonderful girls.  It was an amazing dance year!

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day!  We started out the day going to church. It is so wonderful to hear the Primary Children sing to the fathers in the ward.  I especially love watching Don lead them.  Then we came home for a steak dinner.  I always feel bad when Don wants steak for Father's Day, because he is the one that grills it.  I want him to relax and I want to do things for him, but he loves to grill.  So, he ends up cooking his own dinner.  Then we opened gifts.

He will never tell us what game he wants. He just wants to get things for the kids, so we got him a gift card to Game Works.  Oh heaven help me Austin!!!

Zach felt like Dad would like these CDs.  I guess they are lectures about Joseph Smith.

Aubrey found this shirt at Wal-Mart and had to buy it for Dad!

It was a good day for Don.  I love him.  He has done so much for me this year.  There are times when he has had to be both Mom and Dad, and he did an awesome job.  I asked the kids what they love about Dad, and this is what they wrote.

Zach - He is a good example of a righteous priesthood holder.

Austin - He plays video games with me.

Aubrey - He snuggles with me and watches girlie movies with me.

Ian - He does scouts and reads with me.

 

Austin's Temple Day

Today we went to the temple with Austin.  It was time for Austin to take out his endowments. (One ordinance we receive in the temple is the endowment. The word endowment means “gift” or “bestowal.” As part of this ordinance, we are taught about the purpose of life, the mission and Atonement of Jesus Christ, and Heavenly Father’s plan for His children. We gain a glimpse of what it will be like to live in His presence as we feel the peaceful atmosphere of the temple.) It was a neat time for us as a family.  It was great to have two of my sons in the temple with us.

There is a great view of the city from the temple.  I realized today that some of the trees have grown very large and block some of the view.  We have lived here for a long time.

It was a great day.  I was very grateful to be with my children in the temple.  I took some time to count my blessings and enjoy this moment.

As we can tell, things have not changed with Austin.  He still loves goofy pictures!