I think one of my favorite things that the boys have been doing is Alec helping Dallen and Ashton make boomerangs. Scott and I came home from somewhere and as we were pulling into the garage, there is Alec helping Dallen and Ashton cut out boomerang patterns, sanding them down and testing them out. Now, that's one of his ideas I can get behind :). Alec always has ideas...most of them are fun and entertaining, but there are some not thought through very well :). Anyway, they tried a whole bunch of different versions and finally got one to work (with a little bit of wind in the air). It was fun to watch them bond over it and especially have them out doing something creative. Then the next week or so, Dallen brought home a science project that his teacher showed him and he was SUPER excited to try it at home...and the best part was, that I actually had all the supplies needed! They made little "hot-air balloons", or the lanterns you see on "Tangled". They made all different sizes. Now, if I had a camera, I would be able to take pictures for you, but I sent that off to Derrek and I have the one that doesn't work well...bummer! But, basically you take two straws and criss-cross them and tape aluminum foil in the center. Then you make the "wick" out of paper towel and wax (my Scentsy holder was broken as a result, but I guess that was to be expected with excited boys and and experiment in progress). After the wick is hardened, tape it to the aluminum foil and then tape the straws to a trash bag. Then light it and the heat will make it float.
They experimented with little, big, and in-between sizes. I quickly taught them how to scrape wax off of the counter and they learned quickly what worked and didn't work as far as size of flame and size of bag. It was fun to watch and again, it was great to have them out of their rooms, bonding, and having a great time together. It was worth the Scentsy holder taking a beating...plus, they used up all the wax that I didn't like!
Ashton had his 15th birthday. He wanted an iPod touch, so he has been saving, diligently, for it for the past four months or so. He saved Christmas, earned merit badges (mom, I'll email you later!), every allowance penny he earned, and did odd jobs as often as I had them available, selling his PSP and every thing he could do to earn a buck. He will be getting it this week...it's been shipped! This is a REALLY hard thing for me to let him have in the house. But, Scott seems to think he is ready for it and I guess worse thing is that it will become mine :). He's super excited, though, and I have told him many times how impressed I am at his ability to save and to turn down things that he really wanted, but then he would pause to think about how hard it would be for him to earn that money back and then the thing didn't seem so appealing. If anything, this has been a great lesson for him in dealing with money. He was working on the Personal Management Merit badge during all this (that's why he had allowance) and keeping track and having to plan for a big purchase was all part of it, so it was perfect timing, in that sense. Here are some pictures of his birthday.
.JPG)
.JPG)
I had to go to Tuscon for the Mortuary on his birthday and I usually take them out to lunch for their birthday, so we had opted for dinner here. We started naming off the restaurants for him to choose from and there are 8 (or more) Mexican restaurants that we know of, a couple burger joints, and then the typical McDonalds, Arby's, Subway, Taco Bell, Little Caesars...SO DEPRESSING! So, I told Ashton he could come with me to Tuscon and we could go to lunch for his birthday while we had to wait...so that's what he did. We drove 4 hours down, played at the mall, ate at California Pizza Kitchen (I can't believe of all the choices, that's what he picked!), and then drove 4 hours back. Alec and Calvin were a huge help because they went to the store and got everything ready for me to come back and make dinner...Navajo Tacos. It was a fun day hanging out with Ashton and he seemed to enjoy it too, because when the day was over, he hugged me (rare) and said, "Thanks for a really good birthday, mom". It is definitely one he'll never forget...it was his first time with a deceased person in the car...ahhh, the life of a funeral director's family!
This last week, a friend in our ward, took some Senior Pictures for us for Alec. She got a new camera for Christmas and her daughter has been teaching her photography classes (she goes down to the valley for her daughter's class) and she posted pictures on Facebook of things she was taking pictures of and said that she was "playing with her new camera", so I asked her if she wanted to "play" some more and take some pictures for us. She was excited to have a person because she loves taking pictures of her grandkids and wanted to practice what she has been learning from her daughter. So, here are a few of my favorite that she took...
I got a part-time job for my neighbor doing bookkeeping and entering and filing and all that. It is the perfect job and I am so grateful and again, knew that if I had patience and trusted in the Lord, the timing would be best for all...so I get to make my own hours, I can still do runs for the mortuary, I literally walk two doors down, and I can wear whatever I want! Tamra and I went to the temple a couple of weeks ago and I was having a bad morning and when she asked me to go, I knew that is where I wanted to be, so I was really glad she called. On the way home, she asked if I worked and asked if I missed being in the construction business and all that and I told her that I didn't miss the stress, but I really loved what I did in St. George and then she said "do you want a job?" and I said, "are you serious?" and she said that she really needed help because she doesn't have time to be the person she wants to be for her family and she needs help but because of the last person they hired (embezzled $150,000!), she has been a control freak and it is now tearing everything apart. I told her my reasons of why I haven't gotten a job (because my kids and family come first and I haven't found anything that will allow me to just work during the hours they are gone) and she said that she was completely flexible and I can come and go when I need. She and her husband own a glass company and their jobs are all over the state (Tuscon, Flagstaff, Phoenix, basically wherever there is a job). So, base camp is their house and that's where I get to be. I'll be working with Quickbooks and it's good to see my old friend again :). It's comfortable and I am just really grateful.
Other news...Alec has gotten his dental done (NO CAVITIES!!! I think that is the first time in his LIFE!), but he has to get all 4 wisdom teeth out...and not just out, but surgically removed because the roots are curled and won't be coming out without surgery. So, I have to make an appointment with the surgeon and then he can OFFICIALLY send in his papers. That should be happening this week.
Derrek is doing really well. We sent him some music and I know that will help him a lot. Music speaks to his soul and has since he was in the womb! He is happier and more patient with himself and life. He is such an example of faith to me. I went to a Relief Society thing by Jenny Phillips called "Beautiful". It's her new book/cd (I suggest every girl/woman get it and realize how beautiful we all are...it's really well done). Anyway, while at this event, there was a talk given by a lady who had lost her baby at 37 weeks and had to deliver the still born baby. She talked about going through grief and how there were so many times she thought she didn't have any more faith and wondered where it had gone. I had thought that many times during these last two years and was frustrated with myself because I knew I know God, but I just felt so lost at times. Anyway, she talked about how she realized that she did have faith the whole time. She was attending church when she didn't feel like it, she was saying her prayers, even when she didn't feel like it, and she was doing those things she had been taught, even though it felt empty at times because she was just trying to get through the trauma of losing her baby. I realized that this is what Derrek was going through and then I realized the tremendous faith that he was showing by staying and trying to work on himself and what was going on. He's still working on it (I don't think we ever stop!), but I told him about the things I learned and I am really impressed with his strength to want to do what is right, even when he doesn't feel like it!
On other fun thing we did was we were invited to the Hancock's house to watch the Superbowl. I don't like Superbowl Sunday. It, to me, doesn't feel like it is keeping the Sabbath Holy. So, when Rinda asked me if we would like to come over, and telling me that Cody (her husband...yes, the pro-bull rider) really wanted to get to know Scott and was telling me that this is really rare for Cody to do, I had to say "yes". So, we went over and they made fajitas (so yummy) and there were about 4-5 other families from our ward. And the great thing is, that there was hardly any football watching at all. All the families really get along well and we had a ping-pong tournament, fashion show from the young girls, the boys played pool, moms chatted, and it was really a fun, great evening. It was fun to see Cody's trophy room and he had pictures framed of him on a LOT of bulls, and there were several saddle trophies and it was just fun. Anyway, it was a fun evening, and we are grateful for their friendship.
No comments:
Post a Comment