The graduation!

We are so proud of Hillary for doing what she was determined to do: get her bachelor's degree.  We are so grateful for the supportive husband she has - for the supportive people they are to each other.  Hillary put it this way:

It's been an interesting year on my nonlinear educational path. But I feel so blessed and loved, motivated and empowered to be the best mom I can to these kids and contribute some good to the world. Andrew is my best friend, my support, the love of my life and together we made both of our college degrees happen. I wish they could've all walked across the stage with me. Because really, the 

five of us earned this bachelors degree!

Sunday Best and Sunday walks

Auntie Maya might be the best shopper I've ever known, and clearly one of the most generous people I've ever known.  Recently she gifted these beautiful and simply comfortable outfits for all of our grandkids, just because.  Hopefully they can all wear them together some day soon.  On the Sunday I was with the Dobbins I was thrilled to see that the shirt I packed kind of matched the girl's dresses.  We had a nice Sunday walk to church, and then a nice Sunday evening walk in play clothes.  

at the beach in Utah!

On the day I arrived in Utah we went to play at a resevoir, about an hour from Hillary & Andrew's home.  The drive was beautiful, but the wait to park at the reservoir was long and crowded.  Happily it was worth it.  We found a nice spot on the beach and set up blankets and a huge shade umbrella.  We then spent the afternoon, til sunset, playing in the water.  It was so much fun!  I also liked seeing all the different water equipment and toys that people brought:  rafts, paddle boards, giant floating swans and roosters, motorized boats, etc.  I would love to go again and again and again!

Hillary multi-tasked by eating lunch and finishing up a book for her class
(for graduation)
before she joined us in the water

the miracle of the cracked windshield

Well, I've been in Utah and Idaho for a week now.  I have so much to blog about when I get home and have access to all the pictures I've taken!  This post doesn't need pictures but it is a fun story that I want to remember.

I flew into Utah and had a rental SUV reserved for Hillary and the kids and I to take a road trip up to Idaho, with Andrew meeting us there a day later.  Andrew took us to the rental car place, which was not at the airport.  As we were moving our stuff into the smallest 5 seater SUV I've ever seen Hillary said "Mom, I think we've got a problem - there is no place for Samantha to sit".  She was right, as we'd be meeting Samantha in Idaho.  I figured we'd just have to deal with it somehow.  Then Andrew noticed a big crack in the middle of the windshield - like a rock or bb had hit it.  I pointed it out to the rental people and they were surprised and said that it was a good thing we had not driven off the property with it, because we would have technically been the last people to have rented it and would have been held responsible for the damage!  As they were doing the paperwork to get us another vehicle I asked if we could upgrade to something with at least 6 seats.  Because of the inconvenience of the windshield they upgraded us to a mini van with no extra charge.

Well, the 2 extra seats turned out to be so imperative!  I don't know how we could have managed without them. Samantha would not have been able to come with us to Idaho Falls to stay with us at Rocio's.  Also, Samantha is changing apartments for her next semester and had to transport all of her stuff there.  It barely fit in the mini-van.  We would have had to make several trips in the small SUV.  Also, while in Idaho, we took a day trip to Island Park. We invited Rocio and family to come with us but they couldn't because her husband had to work.  But, because Hillary and kids were back in their own vehicle with Andrew, Rocio and her 2 kids were able to comfortably fit in with Samantha and I (the older 3 were on vacation with their Dad).  It was so fun - especially because they were able to come with us!

I am so grateful for what I am light-heartedly calling "the miracle of the cracked windshield"!

the picture of spring

This picture is a year old, but Hillary just shared it a couple of weeks ago.  I LOVE IT!

prom dress shopping

A few weeks ago Samantha told me that she really wanted to go to her senior prom and she had a couple of boys in mind that she wanted to ask.  I told her to hold off until we could talk about it a little more.  The next day she came home and said that she asked a boy today and he said yes.  I could not believe her bravery!  I wanted to prepare her to not be too sad if the boys said no - that's a possibility for anyone - but she went for it and it all worked out!  So now she has been in Heaven shopping for a prom dress.

 Last Saturday I told her we could go to a couple of stores to look and she asked if Reggie could take her instead.  I gave Reggie the biggest smile and the biggest hug, and my honest opinion that he is the best Dad in the world.  Samantha remembered that Reggie took all of our girls prom dress shopping in their day and so she wanted to keep up with the tradition.  I don't think Reggie had intended to start this tradition - for Julia and Hillary he knew of an outlet store in the city that I didn't want to drive to, so the 4 of us went.  With Mariah - I love her with all of my heart! - but by the time her senior prom came around Reggie just understood her better than I did, and on one of those days when we needed a break from each other he took her out shopping and they found a dress; a beautiful, perfect for Mariah dress.  I was so proud of him.  And I got to be involved as well, in making a little jacket to go with the dress. So I did not/do not feel slighted at all that my girls have had the prom dress shopping tradition with their father.

Reggie and Samantha didn't find anything when they went, so today Julia, Lester and Addy have taken her to look.  If they don't find anything then I think it will finally be my turn to take her.  You know, I think that over the years I have talked quite a bit about loving our 4 daughters and surviving our 4 daughters.  The teenage years have never been the easiest for me, but they certainly are worth it.  And let me say one more time, I love that prom-dress shopping father of theirs!

cameras

My children are driving me crazy! The girls all have their own cameras, so why is it when I download pictures off of mine, there are HUNDREDS of pictures that I didn't take? I am not exaggerating. Right now the computer is downloading pictures off of the SD card; it is taking a while because there are 720 pictures. I have given up watching them as they download because the last several hundred have been of the kids, well, Hillary and Mariah inparticular, where they have taken the camera, held it in front of themselves, and taken picture after picture. Now Samantha, she takes dozens of videos. She holds the camera up to the t.v. and video tapes her favorite DVD. Then Luke likes to take the SD cards out of the cameras and put in the Wii so that he can do lots of activities with the pictures, like puzzles, etc. The right cards never seem to go back into the right cameras. So, it is very difficult for me to find the pictures that I actually took on my camera.

I was going to post the several close-up pictures that Hillary took of Luke's nose, but when he saw me doing it he got upset and asked me to take it off the blog. Oh well, you'll just have to take my word for it.

our own green grocer

When Hillary gets off of work she brings lots of things home with her.

1. She always comes home with a smile and brings alot of happiness into the house.

2. She comes home with interesting stories of the people she meets. Today she met someone who spoke and acted just like "Niles Crane" on the show "Frasier".

3. Lately she has been bringing us alot of yummy food. This week it has been cherries and pistachios. The last few weeks she has brought us some amazing bread: cinnamon bread, orange bread, etc. Reggie's favorite is the guacamole that she mixes up, and she's brought home some yummy mango salsa.

4. This summer she met a new co-worker named Kylie. They have become friends and done alot of stuff together, including hanging out at our house. The more the merrier.

All of these are just a few examples of why life is more fun when Hillary is home.

Good Charlotte

Last night Hillary and I were reminiscing about her childhood and we had some good laughs. One particular memory was about a rock group called "Good Charlotte". When Hillary was in the 8th grade she went through a "grunge" sort of stage. I won't call it goth, but she always wore black, had a skull bracelet and had a "Good Charlotte" poster above her bed. She also went through the stage of sneaking things that didn't belong to her. Mostly candy. So one day, after she had gone to school, I noticed that some packages of Starbursts that I had bought for a primary activity were missing. I went into her room and found the remnants of the empty packages. I was mad and started thinking of an appropriate punishement. I then became creative and started to laugh and laugh. I helped myself to her "Good Charlotte" poster. I took it off of her wall and put in on my wall, above mine and Reggie's bed. When she got home I didn't say anything. Pretty soon she came out of her room asking where her poster was. I told her to go look at my room. She says now that at the time she was mad but also trying not to laugh. She just couldn't believe that that poster was above our bed. After a few days I gave it back, but I don't think she ever put it on her wall again.

Hillary soon out-grew that stage. From high school on the posters on her wall have been of Audry Hepburn, the ocean, and tons and tons of friends. It was alot of fun laughing about all of this last night.

I love Hillary's camera

Hillary took these pictures. We've been walking past this scenery/these cliffs all of our lives. I love that she has captured it in pictures. I admit, when it is foggy our city looks like the most grey, dreary place ever. But when it is sunny we remember that we live in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Graduation Season

Hillary graduated from LDSBC this last week! We are so proud of her! Now she has some big decisions to make about what to do next. She could go back to LDSBC for one semester to re-take a few classes to up her GPA; she has heard that the BYUs are getting harder to get into. But, on the other hand, she was surprised to find out that she has already been accepted into BYU Hawaii. So she could go there. What an exciting time in her life!




On a side note, her cousin Natalie also went to LDSBC this semester and they have had a GREAT time together. In the middle of all the fun, the late nights, the parties, church activities, Temple Square, etc. they have done a really good job of taking care of each other. I told Hillary I was sorry I couldn't be there for her graduation and she said thats okay, because Natalie went and she was a good "Mom"; taking pictures, clapping and cheering as Hillary crossed the stage, etc. And then a couple of days later Hillary was a good "Mom" to Natalie, accompanying her to the emergency room at 3 a.m. when she had an allergic reaction to popsicles.

So congratulations Hillary and good luck in whatever your future holds!

Hillary's Easter

This Easter Hillary had the opportunity to go to Texas with her cousin Natalie. She had a wonderful time. As the picture shows, she was able to see the little ones again.
She and Natalie have had a great time this year going to the same college. What would life be like without family.

The Maid of Honor

Hillary will be Julia's Maid of Honor, and from the looks of it they started rehersing 18 years ago. They have really been having alot of fun together the past several weeks planning the wedding. Julia has gone to Salt Lake City several times to stay with Hillary and go wedding-dress shopping. Hillary has been great about giving her opinion, support, etc. She is very happy about the whole thing.
Since Julia was 17 months old she and Hillary have been a major part of each other's lives. I'm so glad they are still enjoying each other's company.

And as the next picture shows, I assume Julia will be just as supportive of Hillary when it is her turn.

Somewhere Out There

Last summer Hillary got Luke to watch the movie "An American Tale" and he loved it. For weeks afterward he went around singing the song from it "Somewhere Out There". Today, as we were getting ready for church, we had the BYU channel on in the background. We were surprised to hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir singing that song. It was so peaceful and comforting. I have looked online to try to hear it again, but I can't find the Mormon Tabernacle Choir's version. Hopefully it will be on again. But, to Julia and Hillary: If you're feeling homesick, or lonely, or having roommate problems, or trouble with a class, or anything, just remember that we love you and that:

"Somewhere out there, beneath the pale moon sky, someone's thinking of me and loving me tonight."

from the 9th to the 9th

Hillary had a whole month off of school for Christmas. She came home December 9th and left today, January 9th. It, was, as usual, hard to see her go. I was feeling cold in our 53 degree weather today until I looked up the temperature in Salt Lake City - 27 degrees. Its probably even colder for Julia in Idaho. Its an adventure! So with Julia, Hillary, Rocio, Evani and Tzuri gone its awfully quiet around here. And we hardly even see Mariah these days, her being such a busy high school senior. I guess we are used to loud houses, and a bit crazy, because we just let Luke invite 4 friends over.

Cursed!

You know how I did a post on how helpful Hillary was to me? How she drove me to the emergency room in the middle of the night, etc. etc. Well, the city has been so sweet; they decided to send us a picture to remember the occasion. Three pictures in fact. The first one is of Hillary behind the wheel, the second one is of our license plate and the third is of our car turning the corner. When we were driving that night we noticed a very bright light flash 3 times as Hillary was turning right. I hoped it was nothing, but turns out it was a traffic camera taking our picture. The ticket came in the mail and said it was a red light violation. I called to argue on the phone with them, since the picture clearly shows Hillary in a right turn only lane, turning right on a red light, which is legal. The people told me that they had a video showing that Hillary did not "stop"; she only yielded before she turned. DARN THEM! Furthermore, even though I've been parking on our street for 20 something years now, I curbed the wheels the wrong way yesterday and got a parking ticket. We are feeling a little bit cursed. I have to admit, these experiences are making it harder for me to go back to my job. When I catch a kid doing something wrong, and I give them detention, I feel terrible when they beg me for another chance. I want so much to let it go, like I wish these tickets would go away, but I have to be consistent and give them the consequence. I have also noticed that when I start walking towards groups of children they get very nervous; it makes me think of when a police car gets behind me. In both cases we are all thinking "Oh no, did I do something wrong? Is she coming towards me?/is the policeman going to pull me over?". It is an uncomfortable feeling both ways. But thats life.

grateful for Hillary

Last week Reggie was out of town and I got a really bad case of strep throat. Not only was I not able to take care of my kids but I couldn't take care of myself, so Hillary took over. She drove me to the doctor twice. The first time I told her she could leave and come back for me but she refused to go. The second time I didn't want her to leave my side and she didn't; she communicated with the doctor for me, got my medicine, etc. (It was a strange feeling to hear the doctor talking to her instead of me on what I needed to do.) In between all of that she took the 3 kids to and from school, bought ingredients for and made gingerbread houses with them, took Samantha and Luke on a picnic and did her best to clean the house. She was a real hero. This experience made me a bit reflective. When Hillary was 9 years old I had a 3 month period where I couldn't take care of myself or my kids by myself. I felt very depressed and scared of life. One thing that helped me cope was having my kids around me. I specifically remember Hillary taking her turn staying home with me on Sundays, reading to me from the church magazines. That really helped me know that everything was going to be okay. I know that being a Mom means spending your life caring for your children, but it also means having people in your life that will care for you. I am feeling very blessed.

the Christmas creche

Last Wednesday afternoon we picked Hillary up from the airport. (hurray!) She had told us that one thing she REALLY wanted to do was go to Palo Alto to see an annual Christmas "creche" or nativity display/presentation at one of our church buildings. So, as Wednesday was the last night for it, we went straight there. IT WAS AMAZING! There were rooms full of tables full of hundreds of nativitys from all over the world. We made a list of all the different matierials we could see that were used to make the nativities: wood carvings, embroidery, weaving, crystal, ebony, banana leaves, oil cans, gourds,legos etc. etc. There was also beautiful paintings of the nativity all over the building and they had people playing Christmas carols on the piano, harp, flute, etc. as we were walking around. They also had a marionette puppet show telling the Christmas story, and they served hot cocoa and apple cider. I have been enjoying Christmas since the day after Thanksgiving but this event helped me to really enjoy focusing on and thinking about the Savior. They have done this event for 22 years so far and we hope to go again next year.

3 cheers for Hillary!

Hillary played the hostess again Halloween weekend. She had many visitors, including Julia, staying at her apartment. Hillary dressed as THE CUTEST CHEERLEADER EVER! along with one of her friends; Julia was an 80s girl; another friend was very creative with a Twister costume, and cousin Natalie was a crazy elf.