Colorado trip

Everyone had the weekend off so we all packed up for a weekend trip to Colorado. Middle of nowhere Colorado, Rifle to exact. It was a fun but hectic weekend with not a lot of rest. We did get to go hiking some very fun waterfalls though. 

This little girl

There's this little girl whom I love. It's no secret. I often joke that one day Shara and Shawn are going to come home to find that I've stolen her. Totally not going to happen but still. She's so fun and can make anyone's day better. I love her to pieces. I also love that she calls me Net now. I may or may not have taught her some bad habits- but that's what aunts are for right?!

Temples

There really is something about just being around temples or being on temple grounds. There's a sacred feeling and often you can find the peace and comfort that you're looking for just by being there. Tonight I was cancelled from work so I decided that I needed to go for a drive. I was lead to the temples. They give me a feeling of everything will work out the way it should. This is one perk of being in Utah- all these temples are within 20 or so minutes of each other. 

Baptism anniversary

Today was Jake's anniversary of his baptism. So we had a BBQ to celebrate. Bunch of people came to help celebrate. The 2 elders who did the discussions for him came- one being Eric and his current companion (who is so weird) and Pittman who is now home from his mission and engaged to Chelsea. Chelsea also came. Then Matt and Julene also came over. So quite a few people in addition to the 6 of us. We had hot dogs out on the grill with baked beans and I made mac & cheese. With raspberry white chocolate cheesecake for dessert. It was all so tasty and I think we all had fun. it was great to sit outside and soak up some of the sun and the slight warmish weather we've been having. It was such a good day. Glad we were able to have everyone over! :)

Trip to Holland

Went to a RS activity tonight and one of the speakers shared this poem and I really like it. It's a poem about raising a child with a disability but the way she put it, it can be applied to any circumstance and in any position in life. So I share it here.

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

(Poem: Welcome to Holland by Emily Kingsley)

Interview

So today I had a phone interview with Primary Children's. I am so excited because that phone interview has turned into a personal interview next week. My stomach has all kinds of butterflies in it but I'm excited. I don't know what I'll do with a job that I work more than 12 hours a week.