Primary Program

Today we had the Primary program at church.

It is kinda magical.

It doesn't matter how many times you practice

or how many times you sing the songs,

It always works out.

It was my 17th program as the chorister.

I did most of them when my kids were in the program,

but this one was the 17th.

It is has been hard.

We had a lot of kids that were hit and miss in the summer

and a couple of families move out recently.

Not to mention that my mind went to mush when I had pneumonia. 

Truth be told, we sang some of the songs with the wrong words.

But hey, they sang all the wrong words together.

I remember very vividly the primary program when we sang I Know That My Redeemer Lives.

I remember sitting in the chapel on 4th and 4th in Twin Falls and singing that hymn.

It is truly a testimony of Jesus Christ.  

I can only hope that someone who sang it today, will remember it 50 years down the road.  

Will this be my last Program?

I can't help but wonder. 

It could be. 

I guess.

Time off

Hum, it seems I have taken some time off.  

I have to admit that I have had a case of pneumonia 

that just won't go away.

It was hard to miss a couple of weeks of work

and go back to have convince 24 little 5 years old, 

that they were no longer in charge.

Harder still is that I still have pneumonia in the x-ray

and I have missed most of Fall feeling tired and not

up to walking in the the changing colors of the leaves.

Life is good.

Looking forward to better days.

Home

I felt like I needed to post a picture of home.

I am hoping to be home for a while,

but who knows?

The thunder woke me up about 4 this morning.

A cold front.

I'm not ready for a cold front.

Seasons will change,

Time will march on,

and 

I will too.

Favorite Summer Memory

I like to look back at the Summer and pick a favorite memory.  

I have been thinking about it.

I have had a magical Summer and I can't pick out just one.

But I did love spending time with these little people.

I started school this week.

Worst day:  The first day of school is sooooo hard.

Best day:  The day when I walked past last years students 

and they hug me like a long, lost friend.

Most hopeful day: That moment when I know that the little ones I have

will hug me like that next year.

So we were off.

I have two students who have just arrived in the country.

They work hard, as do their parents.

Sometimes we read or hear that immigrants are here for free health care or food stamps

or whatever,

I will tell you that it has been my experience they are here to work.

They were so proud when they came in with their school supplies.

They are on time, they have a backpack. 

In the winter, they have a coat.

They rarely miss a day.

I watched a little family last year.

A young mother brought her daughter and 16 year old sister.

I used to think she was brave.

I have decided now, that it isn't bravery, but it is faith.

Faith that there is a better world,

Faith that they can do better.

I love all my students, but these little families that walked here have a piece of my heart.

After all in the 1800's, my family also came to Idaho,

walking and ready to work.  

Finishing the Adventure

So after a week of fun and sand,

we ventured out.

I was so excited to find a Piggly Wiggly on my birthday.

Happy Birthday to me!

We stopped in Nashville on our way home.

We visited the Grand Ole Opry on our way to church.

It was beautiful.

Next time, we need to plan better so we can see a show.

We then went to Memphis and visited Graceland.

Hallmark was filming their 3rd movie of 

Christmas at Graceland.

They said the decorations were from Elvis's estate.

It was pretty.

This room had 350 yards of fabric covering the walls.

I found this room interesting.

It was fun tour.  

If you're in the neighborhood, you should stop.

Our tour included the plane.

Let's just say, I wouldn't complain, if I had to travel in it.

We were lucky to have Callie with us on our way home.

She found us some really good food.

And we stopped in Oklahoma to visit the Pioneer Woman.

 And I can't leave out a couple of shots of this beautiful country that we live in.

I feel blessed to have seen so much of it.  

I will not tell a  lie,

When we got home,

We were tired for a few days.

Our summer is coming to an end, as we go back to work.

I'm happy we took the hikes,

put in the kayak 

and played in the sand.

Sand, Sand, Sand

As hard as I try, I can't get my family together,

however,

I will take all but 2.

What a blessing that all of these people came together.,

even the one whose tongue is sticking out.

We spent a week in Duck, North Carolina on the Outer banks. 

The theme was Sand.

These little people spent hours filling up buckets of water with sand.

Scott, well, not so much.  He did find some rather strange creatures on his walks.

These two were missing the same teeth. 

Watching my crazy family in the waves, 

made my heart happy.

Peter was pretty good on the boogie board.

He went out a couple of times with Grandpa.

This one, didn't love the water, 

but he did love the sand.

My boys still found joy in digging holes.

This was a 'step on the sand pile' contest.

She had aspirations.

Lucy spent hours, and hours, in the surf. 

She would float on her back and then come out and dig

in the wet sand.  

She found some great stuff.

Everyone enjoyed the beach.

This girl also loved the waves.

The two year olds, loved it when I would take them out in the ocean.

I would hold them out so they could float,

and they would sing.

-not sure what they were singing-

I usually like a morning walk, but because of the heat,

I opted for an evening walk.

It was beautiful, even when we spotted the shark.

Taking advantage of a nice big hole.

We also had an outing to Duck Donuts.

They are amazing.

We also saw some lighthouses.

And there was a morning, when I decided to go to the beach for a scripture study.

I felt like God gave me the okay when I got there.

I love that my kids are as adventures as we are.

I appreciate, more than I say, that they all made the journey

to spend a week with us.

Next time,

they all need to come!

The beginning of an adventure

After the girls and their parents got on their way, Wes and I got on our way.

--we were all going to the same place--

We started a road trip to North Carolina.

We had a great plan to see some new places, but had a hiccup when the air conditioner in our car needed repaired in the middle of Nebraska.  

Nebraska is not my favorite place. 

We were not planning on coming home through it.

They didn't have the parts that our car needed.

After weighing all the options, 

I'm pretty sure we did the stupidest thing:

We changed our plans,

Got up at 3 AM,

and went the most direct route to North Carolina.

The mornings were great, 

The afternoons were hot.

And we stopped at 3 each day.

But we made it and had the car repaired while we were at the beach.

Our important appointment was to see this baby be blessed.

And to hang out with the rest of my grands.

It was worth it.

Later that day we went to Duke to visit the campus.

Our grand daughter loves this place.

It really is something to see.

The photographers in our group had a great time.

I just like taking a couple of shots.

And of course, there is the moment when I see one of my babies

with  one of his.

Wes had a dream come true when he was able to touch the basketball floor.

My next trip to Duke should be for graduation.