See you in two years!

Wednesday I dropped James off at the MTC. We are so proud of him! He will be serving in the Washington DC Spanish speaking mission. I was the only sibling unable to attend his farewell, but I hear it was wonderful and that he made many co-workers who visited cry. He gave a talk on God's love for us and then played the piano as his friend sang.

We will miss hearing him play the piano for the next couple years. I have never heard his equal in talent. I know that this gift of playing and composing music will be utilized while on his mission.

Monday Daniel and Disa brought James to stay at our house until Wednesday when he reported to the MTC. Tuesday night Daniel, Disa, James and I went to the Salt Lake Temple. It was pretty special to be inside the Temple with two of my siblings. Someday I will get to go through with my other three siblings.

We will see you in two years, James. You will be taller both in features, stature, and wisdom.

Beach Days

Brooklyn loves the beach. Brooklyn LOVES the sand. She loves to play in it, sift it through her fingers, and eat it. Yes, you read that right. She loves to eat sand. Weird? Yes. We could not stop our year old baby from stuffing handfuls of sand down her throat. We tried, but in the end it wasn't worth our efforts. She just liked the texture/taste... we don't know!

We went to the beach a couple times when we were in California in July. I figured now was a great time to reflect on it as the weather turns cold.



James, Reagan, and Kennedie built a sand couch. They spent a lot of time perfecting this couch. I have to say that it was comfortable! When we left the beach the family nearest to us asked if they could take it over right away. The couch was quite a hit.Reagan had a blast at the beach. She is a social butterfly just like her father. She made new friends at the beach and played for a while with different groups of people she had just met.


Brooklyn had not been walking long. The beach was the first place she really ran. She ran to the water and enjoyed every second of it.
Below shows James and Kennedie starting the sand couch.

Martin's Cove

A couple of months ago Matt was called to Wyoming on business. We took the rare opportunity to go with him on this trip. Along the way, we stopped at Martin's Cove. This was the best part of our entire trip and was really something special.

Both Matt and I have ancestors that traveled to Utah in the Martin Handcart Company. Our ancestors likely met long ago. Matt has ancestors on his Dad's side that traveled in this company. Ancestors on his Mom's side traveled in the Hodgetts Wagon Company that traveled most of the way along side or near the Martin Handcart Company. His Mom and Dad's family likely met as well, not knowing that someday our families would be connected.

When we went to Martin's Cove we didn't know much about the history of this sacred place. We have since researched and read and learned so many fascinating, special stories of this Company and the sacrifices they made for us.

We arrived at Martin's Cove just before they closed. A missionary couple asked us if we would like to accompany them in a ride around the grounds. They told us so many wonderful stories as they showed us place after place of significance. Since reading "The Price We Paid" (thanks, Jen) our pictures have even more meaning to me.
Below is the river where the pioneers had to cross for the last time in the freezing snow. The rescuers saved many lives by carrying people over the icy water over and over again.

Below is Devils Gate.There are several statues at Martin's Cove representing the rescue efforts that were truly heroic.
The missionaries told us that it is always windy there. Can you imagine walking all day long in the blistering snow with the wind blowing at your face?