8 MONTHS

For me it's not time that heals, it's the Atonement of our Savior Jesus Christ.  It didn't come as quickly as I had hoped, but it came.  7 long months I suffered with grief and anguish over the loss of my son.  For 7 months I prayed daily for peace in my soul.  My Father in Heaven knows me.  He knows my pains and my struggles.  The healing power of the Atonement has allowed me to be relieved of my anguish and grief.  

The Savior said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” 

(Matthew 11:28)

That's not to say that I don't miss Ben with every fiber of my being every single day, or that I don't cry over such a great loss on a daily basis, it just means that the Savior has given me rest, and for that I am forever grateful.

"The healing power of the Lord Jesus Christ—whether it removes our burdens or strengthens us to endure and live with them—is available for every affliction in mortality."

Dallin H. Oaks

SPORTIN' THE TOP BUNS...

Friday nights are always a good time with these ladies.  We spent the evening watching/playing ball, singing at the top of our lungs to pop songs on the way home from games and imitating older ladies who wore buns on the top of their head in public. We debated between the "top bun" and the "sun burned cleavage" look.  The first one was much easier to pull off.  There were at least 5 different ladies that were wearing this "do".  I'm sensing a new fashion trend...

MY NEXT ADVENTURE

TOUGH MUDDER
(link)

I was approached today and asked to be on a team to compete in the "Tough Mudder" competition coming up in May at Mount Snow in Vermont.  Check out the link.
It screams FUN!

Tough Mudder Video

WEEKEND WRAP-UP

Kaleb played in his first indoor soccer game the other night.  I was out partying so I missed it.  Thank goodness for friends with cell phones that kept me updated on the game with pictures and scores via texts.  He scored the first goal for his team.  I love that my kids are being immersed in sports.  Even better?  His team was sponsored so we only paid for his shirt.  AWESOME!

Steve cleaned his room Saturday night while I was out partying.  He threw some pennies onto Stevie's bed as a gift.  We woke her up Sunday morning for church and learned that she never took the pennies out of her bed and by morning they were embedded into her shin.  Crazy girl.

 Today -18 degrees and FRIGID!  Someday I'll be rich enough to have heat in my car again.  In the meantime, I'll just dress the part and smile and cheerily call to my children to
"HAVE A SUPER GREAT DAY" 
as I drop them off at school each morning.
(cuz they totally love when I do that)

THE ONLY PARTY I'D TRAVEL FOR

I drove two hours to spend some quality time with these lovely ladies.  And by quality time, I mean eating and laughing.  My two favorite things in the whole world.
(Our get together at the condo would not be complete without our self portrait elevator shot, AWESOME!)

FUNNEST MOMENTS:

"close call"

Skype

sexy gum

the three B's

(which I may or may not be striving for)

DG

complete mobility

Do you SEE how large this purse is?  I was tempted to see if I could fit my whole self inside.  All seven of my lady friends carry purses.  I am still trying to wrap myself around the fascination of purses.  

(which one of these girls is not like the others?)

Thankfully they still let me hang with them.

Thanks for a FUN night!  See you on the South Shore.

*WINK*

SCAT CAN

That's what Kaleb calls it.  He hasn't had one in a few years, and with some recent issues going on, Dr. Filiano thought it would be a good idea to have his brain looked at again.  We won't know how things are until Tuesday when we meet with him.

Because we were so close to the PICU, we stopped off to say hello to some old friends.  It was the perfect day to stop in because a lot of my favorites happened to be working.  We chatted with them for over an hour until Kaleb finally succeeded in dragging me out of there, but not before pilfering the PICU of some food and drink.  It's weird how such a place can hold such precious and good (for the most part) memories for me.  We'll be back on Tuesday and I promise keep you posted on any new findings.

BATHTIME FOR MAX

BALDERDASH

I love that game.  I love it even more when playing with HER!  She had us laughing the whole night, with her definitions and her guesses.  She's a super great time.  Here are some of her 'made up' definitions below.

Would you guess that a Zygal is the scientific term for a bad hair day? Or that Rowell is the word used for runaway roosters?  How about Moniac, a new type of car made of cardboard and duct tape.

Now if you'd please excuse me...I'm off and running (literally) in my Moniac to purchase some hair product because chasing the Rowells all night, led to a bad case of  Zygal this morning.

Any guesses as to the REAL definitions to these three words?

(no cheating)

FAMILIES ARE FOREVER

My heart is full knowing...

 That THIS family is forever.

This knowledge that I have makes the separation period a little less painful.

(but only just a little)
Sunday's are one of the hardest days for me because I got to sit and hold you for all three meetings uninterrupted.  I miss having that time with you.  I miss wrapping you tight in your blanket so that just your little face peeked out and also your feet because you were growing longer than your blanket.  I miss resting your legs on daddy's lap so they wouldn't hang down.  I miss watching him rub your little feet and toes so that they would stay warm and circulated.  I miss having your siblings beg to hold you because you looked so cozy and warm all wrapped up and having to tell them no because I selfishly wanted you all to my own.  I miss the occasional beeping your vent would do during Sacrament meeting and watching everyone turn to see where it was coming from.  I secretly think you were showing a little of your rebellious side.  I miss dressing you up in your handsome shirts and ties so that you would match your older brother.  I loved seeing the two of you look so sharp together.  I just plain miss you.

AND ONE

I went to Stevie's game this afternoon.  It was a nail biter!  They lost by one point with 17 seconds left in the game.  But she played tough and came away with 1/3 of the points in the game as one of the youngest players on her team.

(look closely at the poster board behind Stevie in the picture below...)

 I noticed as I was doing the books for her game today that she has quite the following.

A MALE population following.

(ahem)

(can't say I blame them)
As for the animal on her sign?
It's a Mexican boar with a sombrero, aka....BORTON.

HE'S A STAR!

Literally. :)

 Last night was Kaleb's first Court of Honor in a few years.  He had a lot of awards coming to him.  He made Tenderfoot the last time he was recognized.  Tonight he was recognized for Second class, First class and the new rank of Star, along with a bunch of other merit badges that he received.
(now we can start filling up his practically empty sash)

Kaleb is Patrol Leader and so he led the boys in the Pledge of Allegiance, the Scout Oath and Law.

 

Because the mother is recognized with advancements, Steve took over camera duty.  Unfortunately, this is the only picture that was decent.  All the ones of Kaleb pinning me came out really blurry.

Kaleb's goal is to be done with the rank of LIFE by April and then we can move forward on his Eagle.

A little post Court of Honor dancing.

ANOTHER 'W'

 Another win for Gilford.  That makes them 5-1.

Thank goodness for knee pads.  This is the result of ONE practice without them.

It's not pretty.

Check out Stevie's shiner.

I LOVE this game!!!

THE OTHER DAY

Monday was a day I'd like to leave behind me.  It's a long story that I won't get into, but suffice to say that I was really feeling down.  (no worries...I'm fantastic)  It was one of those "hide inside" days and eat everything and anything in sight.  (um...didn't really have much food in the house so I resorted to PB cups and chips)  Anyway, my DCYF worker called announcing that she's trying to expedite my certification (which isn't quite done) because she has someone in mind for me.  (I'll keep you in suspense on that one)  She needed pictures of our family for the matching meeting to be held on January 13th.  (I will expound on details at that time)  I sifted through some recents and decided on the family picture shoot we took in October.  That's just what my soul needed because as I was searching for the picture I wanted to send her, I came across THIS beauty.

*BIG SMILE*

This picture makes me LAUGH every time I see it.  As much of a pain as they are to actually take a serious picture of, (this is their idea of 'serious') I LOVE their personalities.  It's what makes my world go round.  And on days like Monday...I definitely needed that extra push to keep it going round.
Steve and Stevie...they have more in common than just their names.
xoxo
Do you know what ELSE made me smile?  Ben's little friend Caleb.  He is celebrating his 6th birthday tomorrow.  That is a huge milestone for this little boy.  Go and read about his birthday wish and leave a comment on his blog. (click on link below)
Caleb's Birthday Wish

NYE EVE and NIGHT

I had the pleasure of hosting four nieces for a couple of nights last week.  (Steve and Kaleb hightailed it south)   We filled our time with all things girly.  The first night they arrived I fed them dinner, played some games and they split for a movie...the younger half in my room, the older half in the basement.

These ladies hunkered down for a Pirate's of the Caribbean movie-a-thon.  It was all about Jack Sparrow this weekend.

Early the next morning, after a nutritious breakfast of cinnamon rolls, they played Just Dance 2 on the Wii. Check out my girls, they have some serious synchronization going on.

Favorite dance of the weekend?  Bollywood!

These two have mad dancing skillz.

They then moved upstairs for some SNORTA.  All around good fun.

I did make them get out a couple times for some fresh air.  The dogs appreciated that.  

Lunch time and games.  Made for a great combination.

The girls had to guess who's name was on their forehead by only asking yes or no questions.

 Sarah Jane was the hands down winner...with both names she got.

 Kayla, deep in thought...wishing that the name on her forehead said Jack Sparrow.

 We moved from lunch and games to pedicures/hair and movies.

 We had a full blown salon going on in the basement.

 They drew names and took turns making each other pretty.

It was quite fun to watch.

Dinner and bubbly.

With a game of Charades for dessert.  Can you guess what she's trying to act out?

 How 'bout her?

 or her?

 or her?

 shopping cart maybe?

 I have no idea...

The winner of my games won one of these.  Every girl likes a little (or big) bling!

 Back down stairs for more Wii.  This time they donned my boots...dancing is always more fun in boots.

(you should try it)

 Did I mention that the Bollywood dance was the favorite of the night?

 A little ice cream before the big moment...

And just before midnight...we took off our shoes and socks...rolled up our pants, collected items to carry and RAN out the door, around the entire house in the snow.  I LOVE this tradition.

Out with the OLD...and in with the NEW!

Happy  New Year!