Nov 19 & 20

Saturday, November 19th-

Big day!

Edited by ??

Today was Grant's baptism day! The services were so wonderful and so many people came to support him.

Denita and Jeff came in town late last night with their kids, Mom and Dad came from Vegas with Darin (who had been in Vegas for work) this morning and Nicolle came down last night as well. Becky and Christine both came to the baptism with their kids as well as Jodi, Paislee, Brenda and Jay, Mark and Jeri, Deruchette and her 3 littles (Brett and the big girls are at Disneyland), Steven, Katie and their boys, Amber, Frank Heiser, and from Primary: Jim (and Addy) Emma, Chris Johnson, Ellen Sorenson and Elaine Croft. The Huffs had a bunch of family and friends too so we had a packed house!

Baptism

Tamina and Molly at lunch

Men that were in the circle during the confirmation: Silas, Jim, Scott, Grandpa Rowley, Mark, Steven, Jeff, Frank, & Jon.

Both talks (by Sis. Sorenson and Sis. Croft) were great and powerful and just watching the Priesthood in action was beautiful. Grant & Topher's siblings sang “When I am Baptized” which was super cute.

Afterward we had a little lunch at the church. The kids ran wild in gym most of the time but at least they had fun with their cousins.


In the evening we went back to the church (we had it reserved) and had Thanksgiving dinner. We had decided that since those of our family that were near would be coming this weekend so we might as well enjoy Thanksgiving together too. It was a bit stressful but so worth it. Honestly, Grandma Rowley did most of the work. We had divided food out so no one had to cook too much, which was nice. Deruchette and her 3 littles came and we all had a good evening together. The kids played hangman on the chalkboard for a lot of the time.

Prepping for Thanksgiving Dinner

"Patiently" waiting for dinner

Sunday, November 20th-

Cleod is 12. He was ordained a Deacon in the Aaronic Priesthood today. It was a little surreal but he was ready and it felt good. He is an amazing boy and I'm so proud of the young man he is becoming.

Today (last night really) I was reminded of how I need to make birthdays more special for my kids. Originally I was supposed to wake up Grandma today and play the piano at choir practice. I didn't think it was a big deal but as I was talking to Denita and Deruchette about it I realized I should be home with him. So Deruchette said she would wake up Grandma and I let Mary Saylor know I wouldn't be able to make choir. I made breakfast for everyone as requested by Cleod: eggs, toast, sausage and bacon. We opened presents before church during a 10 minutes break Silas had from church meetings to come home and say hi.

Presents

Looking at Grandpa and Grandma's card

More presents

There is a note written on the bottom saying "new scriptures"

Church was good and Molly did have a meltdown at one point but I got her figured out quickly and back to nursery. Cleod came into Primary for long enough to get his Faith in God award and his certificate of advancement from the Primary and then he was off to Priesthood. Weird.

Silas ordained Cleod after church which again was surreal but so good. Cleod was so happy and in the evening when it was just he and I, he thanked me for everything we did during the day and was really just grateful. It was adorable and made me a happy mom.

Birthday festivities

Birthday boy and his cake!

Nov 14-18

Monday, November 14th-

I'm so grateful for so many things today. It was a horrible day but I found comfort in the scriptures.

I am grateful for…

• The Book of Mormon, specifically Nephi’s desires to learn the truth of the words of his father’s vision of the Tree of Life.
• Joseph Smith and his work to translate the Book of Mormon.
• God’s love for his children
• My faith in Christ’s Atonement and His power to heal.

Tuesday, November 15th-

Today we put the finishing touches on the girls’ room. Yesterday I finished painting the trim and touched up the ceiling a little. Then today Silas met us at Wal-Mart to do some shopping which included picking out new sheets and curtains for the girls. They had blue curtains that I made for our apartment about 10 years ago and they were using Cars movie sheets that Mom bought for her house over 10 years ago. Now their room looks more girlie and the girls are SUPER excited. Molly said it was “beautiful” and Cora keeps saying, “I can't believe we have a new room.”

Before

During

After!

Getting the room put back together

New sheets and curtains!

Silas being silly while eating lunch after shopping with us

This evening we finally watched the episode of the original Star Trek episode that has Cloud William, the character where Silas's dad got the name that he suggested to us (to everyone, we just happened to actually do it). The character was weird and I kind of felt badly. I thought he was a stronger leader than he ended up being. Kirk was the strong leader in the story. Anyway, it was funny that it took us over 12 years from when we decided on the name to actually watch the episode. 

Cleod's candy wrapper quilt

Star Trek

Wednesday, November 16th-

Two miserable kiddos

Today was a calmer Wednesday than normal. Cleod and Grant stated home from school because they have sore throats. Because of this we were able to get papers rolled before Ryan and Cora got out of school at 1:30pm and then we started the route right away. Ryan and Cora did a great job. This is our last week and we are a little sad about that.

We didn't have to take Cleod across town to piano so that saved a lot of time today. It's too bad we love his new teacher so much. Haha. Otherwise we would find someone closer.

I let Cleod got to Scouts because it was in the back of our neighborhood and it was outside. They were working on making fires so I thought he would have a good time. It ended up being a bad experience because of the smoke hurting his throat and causing him to cough a lot. He also got hurt by a board they were using to block the wind. When he got home, Molly snuggled with him. She hasn't been really very nice to him when he has tried to help her lately so it was nice to see that she wanted him.

Silas went with the youth to do baptisms for the dead in St. George so he was gone for a while this evening. Amie came over after the kids were in bed and we had a great visit. She is seriously one of the best people I know and has helped me so much with different issues I've had over the last year or so.

Thursday, November 17th-

It snowed last night!

• Cleod and Grant home again from school. I was gone most of the day so they alternated between reading and watching Star Trek, the original series. Haha. Cleod spent a lot of his reading time writing notes on the Pre-Earth life and other subjects from the Topical Guide. It was pretty cute. They both seem OK tonight so I'm hoping they will be back to school tomorrow.
• The girls and I woke up Grandma Warby and then went for a quick trip to Wal-Mart. (Boy that place sucks the life out of me!) Silas met us there again which was nice.
• Fed kids and headed with Molly to Katie’s house for lunch with the Warby girls. We haven't gotten together forever so it was really nice to chat with them.
• Between cleaning bathrooms, doing laundry and taking care of kids, the rest of the evening went pretty quickly.
• Ryan had piano after school. He has been so positive and happy lately and he LOVES piano lessons.
• Cora has dance, which she is LOVING.
• Silas had a Sunday School meeting.

Happy girl (for that moment)

Finally replaced some old pictures

Friday, November 18th-

After bank party and helping at school. She's trying to be happy but is so tired!

Today I am grateful for Silas’s job. He has worked for the bank for almost 2 years again. Before that he worked for the State of Utah for 2 years after a 7 year stint at the bank. It was good for him to leave but such a blessing that he is back at the bank.

Today was the bank's 59th birthday party, which is always fun to go to. This year I took the boys out of school to go to it, which was OK except the food wasn't super fabulous and they didn't like it so they didn't eat much...and it was their lunch. So next time if I take them we need to have a backup plan or just be prepared to eat food we don't like. Haha.

I am also grateful for the bank because they have decided to cover more of the employee's insurance premium. I have been concerned that it would go up in January and we aren't sure what kind of a raise he may or may not be getting. But now we know that even if he doesn't get a raise, we should be taking home more because of the decrease in the amount we will be paying out in insurance.

Another great thing we just found out is that Silas has been approved to go to a conference in Dallas in October. Yea!!

Today we also had Amber & Mike's niece Sophie over for a couple hours to play with Cora. Also, Molly and I helped at Cora's class in the afternoon. It seems like there is always something going on!

Nov 11-13

Friday, November 11th-

• Silas had day off for Veteran's day. Yea!
• I decided randomly to paint the girls’ room with leftover paint from the main level remodeling.
• Silas played racquetball for a couple hours in the morning.
• Molly seemed better this morning and ate a little breakfast. The girls played together and watched a movie in our room while I painted.
• I helped in Cora's class.

• 

  Tired, bored, and silly!

  We ate at Brick House for lunch. Molly ate a little but was really exhausted by the time we were done.
• I worked on painting room again until evening, before taking Molly to the InstaCare and then ER...she had another “episode” with severe stomach pain and we were really worried. We realized later that if it was something really bad like her appendix, she would be in pain for a lot longer. The doctors were really helpful and I feel OK about just watching her. She has some weird virus but because she has shown improvement it shouldn't be long before she's better. By the time we were at the ER she had a boost in her energy and was really hyper and happy but as we left the hospital she was exhausted again.
• Finished painting ceiling and walls so just need to do baseboards and trim.

Molly wrote her name for the first time at lunch today!

Meticulously blowing her nose at the InstaCare

Miserable girl after giving a urine sample.

Being silly at the ER

Saturday, November 12th-

Today I ran my first 10K! It was really great. Megan and I started at a really quick pace, faster than I had trained for so I couldn't keep it up. I finally had to stop and walk for about 30 seconds because I had the WORST side cramp. I prayed and prayed that it would subside so I could finish. Within a few minutes it was gone and I got into my groove. I ran the rest of the race at my normal pace and ended up finishing 1:00:57, so just 57 seconds over an hour for 6.2 miles. My pace was 9:37 min/mile average according to my running app. I am very happy with that time. The race was from Springdale to Graffton, UT and was so beautiful! I definitely want to do this race again. Megan got 2nd place in our age group so we stayed a little longer than planned so she could get her medal, which was so great.

Graffton, UT after the race

Megan got 2nd place in our age group!! 

We got home a little before 1pm. My cute family had finished their chores and their computer time and were playing outside with neighbors.

Molly was doing so much better this morning so we decided it was OK to go to the temple together. We were thinking last night about having Silas go alone but changed our minds. Plus, Natalie is super capable. Molly was fine but did start feeling tired and yucky again while we were gone.

After the temple, which was wonderful, we had dinner at Cracker Barrel with Clint & Elisha and Frank. We enjoyed their company a lot.

While we were still in St. George we found out that Danny Bedard had another stroke and was at the hospital on St. George so we stopped by there to see him for a little while before heading home.

Sunday, November 13th-

Cleod's last day of Primary

Molly has been on today but not great. Her eyes are super bloodshot tonight and she isn't close to her normal self. I am hoping we can get into the Dr tomorrow. I am sort of wishing we had done some tests while we were at the hospital on Friday...but I just figured that if it wasn't something serious it would go away soon. She hasn't had a fever yesterday or today so that is an improvement but she isn't eating well and is so irritable. It's frustrating because she acts like she gets whatever she wants...because she usually does, plus we've been babying her this week. She's getting a little beastly.

Today was a little harder day for the Bishop's family. Because he isn't available to be Dad during church I was stressing a little this morning about what to do. I didn't want to miss Cleod's last day of primary but I didn't know if we should have Molly in nursery….or at church at all. I was wishing that I didn't have a Sunday calling or that my mom lived closer. I finally decided just to keep her with me in Primary. It worked out but wasn't ideal.

This evening Silas was home way later than normal so I had to leave for choir practice before he even got home. When I got back, he was sleeping on the couch with Molly and when he woke up, he was grumpy. He finally explained that a couple of people are mad at him so he was feeling badly about that. It is truly hard to be the Bishop and people sometimes don't realize that he is just a regular guy who is doing his best to serve the Lord. He comes home drained every Sunday but to come home discouraged too just makes me sad and mad. The kids really had no positive interaction with their dad today and that frustrates me.

Randomness: Today Ryan lost a tooth. Earlier this week Cleod and Grant each lost a tooth on Thursday. We have never lost this many teeth within a few days. Cleod lost his messing with it at school and Grant pulled it out right in front of Silas and I, literally twisting and pulling. It made me proud. Haha

Nov 8-10

Tuesday, November 8th-

Mom & Deni’s kids were in a accident yesterday but are fine. Scary stuff, though. Molly is still sick and super miserable. I am finding myself being overly sensitive and feeling offended by others tonight so I want to write about things that made me a proud Mom today.

• Ryan was invited to a party tonight. I helped him pick out a modest gift and he didn't complain. He also didn't ask for anything for himself. When I picked him up from the party at 7pm, he told me he hadn't eaten because they ran out of hot dogs but he didn't want to say anything. Although I think he maybe should have told them, I was happy that he didn't make a big deal about it and just waited to eat when he got home.
• I thanked Cora for being a good example to Molly and Cora started talking about all the things she liked about Molly. It was really sweet.
• Cleod was super helpful when he got home from school. He really enjoys the hour we have before the 3 elementary school kids get home. He heated himself and me some leftovers and then a small bowl of ice cream. He also was really helpful with our sick Molly while I took Ryan to the store and to his party.

Fell asleep while I was drying and
rocking her after her bath

Fell asleep again after getting dressed

Had a little energy and was happy for a little while

Miserable again

Wednesday, November 9th-

Waiting at the InstaCare

Cora occupying herself while we waited at the InstaCare

We are quitting the paper route. In some ways I am way bummed but it is time. The last few weeks have been harder for the kids to get moving and it has turned into another thing to nag them about...a I already nag them too much. I am also getting nervous about delivering in the winter. Doesn't sound as fun as watching the boys cruise up and down driveways on their scooters.

The boys have learned some valuable lessons. They have learned to work together and to follow instructions. They are learning about saving and spending money. They have learned that sometimes we have to still do hard work when we don't feel like it.

But I don't miss losing a couple hours of my day, hours I willingly sacrificed to help my kids but will gladly take back to use otherwise. I don't miss getting a sub when we are out of town. The kids will once again be able to have a breather after school on Wed since they get out early. They can enjoy more play time before getting ready for scouts.

Fell asleep waking Cora to school

Molly is still really sick. We took her to the InstaCare this morning and they tested her for strep. Luckily it's not that although I sort of wish it was because we could put her on meds and she would start feeling better. The Dr thinks it's a virus and we need to wait it out. She is tired and weak. She complains about a pain in her neck and one in her stomach. She has fevers on and off but they don't get too high. Her eyes are bloodshot and sad.

Thursday, November 10th-

Feeling yucky

New outfit from shopping with Amber

Today I have some blood work done again and my white blood cell count was back to normal. I wasn't really worried but I was relieved to get that news. Now we can move on with life.

Today was my last training run before the 10K on Saturday. It was a good run but my left knee started feeling funny toward the end. I hope that doesn't mean it will be acting up on me Saturday.

Cleod is a champ at the bass clarinet. Lately he has been playing whatever he can find. Today he played a bunch of Christmas songs. He just sight reads it and it sounds awesome!

Ryan was playing and singing with his guitar and Silas commented on how crazy, talented the kids are. I joked that they are going to be poor, depressed artists someday. That's really not true though. All our kids are smart and will hopefully be engineers, teachers...whatever...as well as musicians and athletes. (The second I use loosely because we are not the most athletic people. Maybe I just want them to be healthy.)

Feeling OK but still looks so sad!

Speaking of healthy….Molly is improving tonight. As of early afternoon I wasn't so sure but as the evening as progressed she seems to have more energy and seems happier. No one else has gotten sick so hopefully we are about done. We are still going to lay low tomorrow but are hoping to be back to normal Saturday.

Silas is gone being the Bishop tonight. It’s funny how it hits me sometimes still. It’s part of our life now but every once in awhile it seems super weird that he is it Bishop. Haha. But holy cow am I grateful for that man and for the simple fact that he is in the position spiritually to be the Bishop of our ward at all. So grateful!