Homecoming - Senior Year...

Trellany was invited to Homecoming by Nathan Eck.  They went on a big group date to Tempe Town Lakes and rode paddle boats around the lake, had a picnic and then went to some new ice cream gelato shop that was really yummy.

Then the big event came and there is a funny story behind the Dress that she wore.  You've all heard of the 'Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants' well this is a true to life 'Sisterhood of the Traveling Dress'.  One of Trell's best friends Dianne owns this really cute dress.  Dianne wore it last year to Prom, their really good friend Cheyenne wore it to Winter Formal, Trellany wore it for last nights 'Homecoming' and another one of the really good friends is going to wear it next weekend for Mountain View's homecoming.  The thing is that all these girls are built just a little different from 5'10 to 5'4 etc yet the dress works on all of them.  So we truly do have a real life 'Sisterhood of the Traveling Dress'.  Now it will be interesting to see where these wonderful young women end up 5 - 10 years from now.  I hope the friendships they have with each other now will last a lifetime.

Here's a little mini-video of the photos we took for 'Homecoming'.  Enjoy.

My Beautiful Angel...

Well today we picked up Trellany's PROFESSIONAL Senior portraits and all I can say is WOW...when did she go      from my adorable baby girl to this absolutely AMAZING BEAUTIFUL Young Women...I seriously want to lock you up for the next few years.  After viewng  pics...there isn't anything else to say...

                            

I LOVE YOU and you are truly my ANGEL...

It's True...I'm In Love With A Vampire...

Who would have guessed that I would fall in love with a Vampire...I love suspense novels (The Bourne series)...I love Danielle Steel (except she seems to be falling into a rut of the same stuff) I did like HRH and then of course there's Nicolas Sparks (who by the way my best girlfriend forever grew up with Nicolas and his family so she knows them really well and I can't wait to see the movie this Friday of a book I feel upon called 'Nights in Rondanthe' it's probably one of my all time favorite books until TWILIGHT...yes I'm a Twilight addict. Trellany started reading them a little over a year ago and kept saying 'Mom...you have to read Twilight' it's the best book...well I started but only got to page 60 and said 'I just don't get what the buzz is about this book'...I couldn't get into it...so I put it on the back burner and said maybe one day. Yet everyone I talked to was going crazy and spending days at a time reading the series and basically life was stopping for those few days. I again...just didn't get it.

So...Trellany asked me to please read the series before the movie comes out this winter. I took the challenge and thought Oceanside - two weeks on the beach - hanging out doing nothing - perfect time to see if I could catch the fever. Well let me tell you 'I caught it'...
>and couldn't stop reading. I read ALL (3) books while I kicked it on the beach...and found out that nearly half the beach was reading it too...I totally cracked up.

The Movie is coming out November 21st and me and 2 other crazy friends Sandy and Brooke have rented a movie theater to have a private showing on opening night for 250 people. The crazy thing is we are totally sold out and it's not even close to November yet.

All I can say is 'TWILIGHT' is an incredible series and if our sons learned half of what Edward has to teach on how you treat the love of your life...well let's just say the world would be a much better place.

Maybe that's why I love to read...because it takes me out of the world and into a place that is always better than here.

Anyway...if you haven't read 'TWILIGHT' and the series I encourage you to...you won't be disappointed and that's coming from someone who has never read a Vampire story in her life...but Edward is no ordinary vampire...enjoy.

Lots to catch up...

OCEANSIDE 2008

Where does the time go...it seems like it was just yesterday that we were taking our summer vacation and now it's already 6 weeks into school and Fall Break is just around the corner. Seriously where does the time go...it's CRAZY.

Here's some photos of our crazy Oceanside trip. I took Trellany with her 5 friends. Trellany's group of friends signed up for EFY and they were caught in the big server crash that happened during registration and unfortunately thousands of kids got lost and didn't get into EFY this year. So I thought I would invite them all to Oceanside for a week to have their own EFY. I know I'm nuts...me with seven teenagers and Bromley...what on earth was I thinking...that's just it I wasn't..LOL. Trennon brought his cousin David so we had 5 girls with the 2 boys and Mr. B-man...not to mention all the other teenagers at the complex that found the girls within the first few hours of our arrival. It was definetly a CRAZY...CRAZY...week but they had so much fun and I know memories were made that will last a lifetime.

The Girls...Jessica, Courtney, Brianna, Whitney & Trellany...they truly are the best of friends.


Trennon & Bromley...one of the rare moments they are friends..

The whole gang...Trellany, Brianna, Courtnery, Whitney, David, Trennon & Jessica
(Bromley's hiding in the background) so I found the other solo picture of him..he's so cute.

Beach Babes..and of course we have to have the music...they so ROCK!!

5 really cute girls + 5 Boogie Boards + Ocean = 5 HOT SEXY Boogie Boarding crazies...

Best of cousins...David & Trennon...they really have a ton of fun together.

So many memories...senior year...memories to last a lifetime...it will be interesting to see where they all are 10 years from now...only time will tell...but I have a feeling that their bonds will always be there. Great trip...tons of fun.

Trellany's Senior Picture

It's hard to believe that Trellany is a senior this year. Where has the time gone. It seems like it was only yesterday that she came into this world and began her journey through life. She truly is the greatest joy in my life. I don't know why we were so blessed to have this special Angel come into our life but I know that she is that one in a million every family dreams about. She has never been any trouble and I am so proud of all that she has accomplished. She is extremely talented in so many areas and on top of it all she is truly the sweetest most kindest person you will ever meet. She always has a smile on her face and accepts the perils of life and the adversities with a true heart of a champion. She truly is one of Gods choices daughters and I thank him each and every day for allowing her to bless my life in so many ways.

Here's a little tribute to her Senior year that we had fun doing while we were in Oceanside this summer.

It's Been Too Long...

Well...as you can tell since my last post it's been nearly 2 months. They say time flys when you're having fun...and boy do I wish that was the case...except for the past few weeks. Basically the middle part of July has been a total BLAST. But up to that point it's been over the top crazy. Here's a quick run down of the events since Mother's Day.

My Birthday - Nothing Special...just still trying to hold onto 39 for one more year..Ha Ha!













Then school got out and it was on to a crazy summer (which unfortunately is now almost over).

Memorial Day Weekend Trellany and Trennon went on our STAKE EXODUS & what a tremendous experience that was for them.



The middle of June was 'GIRLS CAMP' and that is ALWAYS one of the highlights of the year for me. This year our theme was 'HEARTS & SOULS UNDER CONSTRUCTION' and we went to 'Showlow, Arizona'. It was beautiful weather, a great campsite 'Moylen's Pond' where the girls got to play, swing on swing sets that went over the pond, swim and just have a total blast.
One of the activities was a 'Engineering Inspection' (what we called our HIKE). I must preface before the next part that as long as I've been going to girls camp (6 years now) I've only been on one Hike that went right. But this Hike will definetly be one that will be remembered for a very long time.

Not long before the Exodus we found out that Trellany had a stress fracture in her left knee (the knee that had the surgery back in December) the Doctor told us that she had to stop everything and do nothing for the next 6 weeks except for walking otherwise her leg might snap in half and that would be a (quote from the Doctor a 'catastrophic disaster'). Well the Exodus was only 10 days later and we were like there's no way. But the Stake leaders made great exceptions and insured me that she would stay at camp and only walk and so she went. Well then a week and a half later we leave for Girls Camp. Our Hike was only to be a light trial walk. Our Hike ended up climbing up and over the dried up River Bed of boulders only to come to the end and hike up and over this mini mountain that ended up with another mini cliff to climb up to finally get to the road. Needless to say I was an absolute disaster worried about how we were going to get Trellany up and out of this precarious situation we managed to get into. Never once did she complain (but for those of you who know Trellany...that's Trellany) but thanks to a lot of prayers and two sweet angels (her two best friends Courtney and Olivia) they came to her side and literally never let her go until she was up and out of the Hike and back safe on flat land. It truly was an incredible experience and I know that our Heavenly Father was watching out for all of us on that wonderful day.

The rest of Girls Camp was a total blast with the last day watching the young women and even some of the leaders learn how to 'Repel' it was AMAZING.

Trennon and Bromley went off to Young Men's Camp the same week Trell and I were at Girls Camp. The only thing is they went to San Diego, California and spent a week on the Navy Base and attended the San Diego Padres game. They got to stay on the base and see how helicopters and jets are built and then they even got to ride on one of the Navy Cargo ships and visit one of the aircraft carriers that is stationed at the base. But I think the biggest rush was when they all got to climb into the cockpit of one of the fighter jets and pretend to be a 'Top Gun' pilot.



Well that catches us up...more later on our crazy Beach trip to Oceanside...me with 7 Teenagers and Bromley. I must be CRAZY!!...but love my children with all my heart and I'm hoping the memories I'm creating for them will carry them through this insane road of life we all live on.

Mother's Day

I spoke in Church today (on Mother's Day) and what a special blessing it was. My Mom and Dad were able to come along with Kent's parents. Below is a part of my talk that meant so much to me to share...since we as mothers feel invisible at times.

It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?" Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all.

I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?

Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again.

She's going ... she's going . she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England . Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there, looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean.. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, " I brought you this."
It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe . I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription:

"With admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work:
* No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names.
* These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished.
* They made great sacrifices and expected no credit..
* The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it."

And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you. I see the sacrifices yo u make every day, even when no one around you does. No a ct of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become."

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot see if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

When I read this at the first part of the year, I was touched and overwhelmed with emotion because how many of us here today feel invisible? How many of us feel that we are rolling a boulder up the steepest hill and there is no end or help in sight yet we can’t give up or stop because the consequences are absolute destruction. My favorite magnet on my fridge is the one my girlfriend gave me over 12 years ago. It says…’When you get to the end of your rope…tie a knot in it an Hang on’. As each year goes by my rope keeps getting longer and there are several knots at the end…but I’m hanging on because I know the reward when it’s all over is my eternal family.