Snap-shots of life

These are busy times. My mind and heart are full of thoughts of my kids~ where they're at in life, teaching and guiding. Making sure they are on top of school work and learning responsibility and work at home. Making good choices, creating spiritual experiences and having family discussions. Jon and I are constantly re-working family expectations and rules, instilling consequences and trying to remember to follow up. It is a lot right now! My calling is as busy as ever- especially with camp just over the horizon. It comes so quickly! So much planning and organizing. I haven't done any planting in the yard because CAMP! There are always lessons to prepare and mutual activities to pull out from corners of my mind to examine if I really want to do them. There is always something to work on and finish up before the next thing. I suppose this is what life is all about! I'm grateful I've had the capacity to keep all the plates spinning.
Here are some sweet shots I snuck in the busy-ness of life I want to cherish:

Zeke coming home from a school carnival and of course choosing to

spend his tickets on face painting. I sure love this predictable boy!

Spotting Jon plunking away on the piano peacefully. Wearing suspenders.

Watching Zeke stand in the glorious morning light and warmth.

The boys laughing and chatting in my bathroom~ one naked, neither caring.

Eli enjoying and sucking up the last of his minutes before he has turn off and turn in his ipod.

Sleeping beauty.

I texted this picture of these pretty flowers from my VT.

When she gave them to me from her yard they were just buds. I chuckled at our exchange:

Me- "They bloomed! Thanks again!"

Her- "Yep. That's what they do."

My sisters texted to plan a day to do the annual temple to temple walk. I texted my schedule on the day of the plan. We had to miss out. (It was Eli's 13th birthday so naturally he was so torn because any time with the cousins is the best time!)

My Laurels invited the Priests to help give a widowers home some curb appeal before she moves to a nearby home. This day was so bonkers! I was on my hands and knees all day putting the kids bathroom floor in, then running kids here and there after school in-between working, and having two minutes to freshen up to run over for opening exercises, then work hard in her yard. I remember wishing so badly I could skip this night and just finish that bathroom. I was so exhausted going over to mutual! But as we worked in her yard, I thought of this sweet lady~ she used to VT me years ago and we've since had a sweet relationship. I was grateful there were so many youth and leaders there to help get things looking nice, and can only hope there would be such kind souls to assist me one day. These kids really are so much fun to hang with. What an uplifting way to spend a Wednesday night!

One of the most anticipated dates for the kids was when Cade and Ashley were leaving the country for weeks and needed a place for their babies to go. Paisley and Zeke kept asking~ "How many days until Solly comes???" They would race home from school so fast to spend time with the cousins!

Rides around the house! A long ago retired favorite.

They all colored together and played so sweet while the kids were at school.
I think the girls were just thrilled I kept them at my house instead of sending them back to school.

Always a treat to have cousins visit Primary, isn't it?

I pulled out my old bag of tricks~ Solly painted the porch with water for quite a while. I can remember my kids doing this like it was yesterday.

I ran the kids through the drive-through before the hand-off so they'd have full bellies. As I sat there I thought this massive structure with the hazy sky behind looked a bit apocalyptic or other-worldly.