Happy Birthday Olivia!

Hard to believe, but Olivia Kristine celebrated her 9th birthday on June 23, 2010!

She has grown from cute little girl

to lovely young lady

before our eyes.

We celebrated with a family birthday dinner (a little early so we could combine it with Josh's birthday dinner before he left for scout camp) at Applebee's (kid's choice)!

On Livvy's special day, we woke her with breakfast in bed.

She followed by opening a few gifts.

Then we spent the afternoon swimming at the pool.

We closed out the evening with a little peanut butter ice cream cake!

We hope she had a great day! We're so glad you are in our family, Livvy!

It's Here!

Remember when I thought it would NEVER come? Well, after:

• a trip to the Science Center

• a trip to the Art Center
• Swimming lessons

• Trips to the pool

• Playing outside with friends
• Sprinklers under the trampoline
• Eating yummies from our own garden

• Summer Bridge workbooks

• Many trips to the library for activities, summer reading programs, and books
• Hot weather
• Severe storms
• Sleeping in until 8:00 a.m. if we want

It's official--SUMMER IS HERE!! No complaining from me after the winter we had. Let summer stay!

School's Out

Here are some shots of the kids on the last day of school. Jack and Livvy enjoyed their field day and Emmie had fun with her last day of elementary school with shirt signing and pics with friends. I can't believe I now have two in middle school (one being called a Freshman!) Yikes.

Memorial Day in Iowa

Every year I miss my family's tradition of going to the Whitney cemetery in Preston, Idaho to visit grandparents' graves on the Sunday before Memorial Day. I love the memory of lilac trees and walking over to see President Benson's grave before going to the park for a picnic with grandpa's famous chocolate cake.

So this year we decided to do some memorializing of our own. After a fun breakfast at Centennial Park with our ward family (a new tradition for us here in Iowa), we headed off, with our picnic fixin's, for a visit to Mount Pisgah cemetery in southern Iowa. This was a stopping point for early pioneers between Nauvoo and Winter Quarters. We had fun reading from family journals of our ancestors who passed through this very land as we visited the site. After that we kept heading south to visit Adam-Ondi-Ahman. I know there is not much there, but I love visiting anyway.

Cour·age \ˈkər-ij, ˈkə-rij\

Webster's Dictionary defines courage as:

mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty; means mental or moral strength to resist opposition, danger, or hardship. Courage implies firmness of mind and will in the face of danger or extreme difficulty.

Amazon.com describes the movie Glory as:

One of the very best films about the Civil War, this instant classic from 1989 is also one of the few films to depict the participation of African American soldiers in Civil War combat. Based in part on the books Lay This Laurel by Lincoln Kirstein and One Gallant Rush by Peter Burchard, the film also draws from the letters of Robert Gould Shaw (played by Matthew Broderick), the 25-year-old son of Boston abolitionists who volunteered to command the all-black 54th Regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Their training and battle experience leads them to their final assault on Fort Wagner in South Carolina, where their heroic bravery turned bitter defeat into a symbolic victory that brought recognition to black soldiers and turned the tide of the war.

For the Strength of Youth counsels:

Whatever you read, listen to, or look at has an effect on you. Therefore, choose only entertainment and media that uplift you. Good entertainment will help you to have good thoughts and make righteous choices. It will allow you to enjoy yourself without losing the Spirit of the Lord.

So what do these things all have in common? A couple weeks ago Josh came home from school and asked, "Mom, is the movie Glory rated R?"

"Yes," I replied. "Why?"

"Because we are watching it next week in our social studies class to end out our Civil War unit."

"Well, it must be a school-approved version like I watched at BYU in my American Heritage class," I responded, feeling fully confident that a school teacher would not show an R-rated movie to a group of 8th graders, especially without parental consent.

Nothing more was said about it until after school the first day of the movie. Josh came home and said, "Mom, that movie we are watching is pretty violent and has a lot of swearing in it. Are you sure it's OK for me to watch?" [See how trusting they are, even as teenagers? Kids need their parents.]

Hmmm, I thought. Maybe I was wrong [about the integrity of his teacher among other things]. So we checked with the teacher, and sure enough, it was the rated-R version--with no parental notification or consent. [Really? What were you thinking, teacher?] Josh was uncomfortable continuing to watch. So on the last days of school, instead of watching a movie in class, he chose to stand up for his values, go to the computer lab, and do an extra assignment instead.

Glory might tell the story of courage during the Civil War. But I saw courage in a more personal way as my 13-yr-old son recognized a situation that was against inspired counsel, and acted alone to stand for righteousness.

Thanks for the strong example, Josh.