So, there goes another month! Here are a few memorable things to note from April:
* Cameron's Baptism We enjoyed celebrating the day with most of our family. Cameron was baptized and confirmed by Steve. Cam was SO excited for this day and I loved watching him as he listened to the speakers prior to his baptism...he was so attentive to what they were teaching. Cameron sang a SOLO --"I am a Child of God" -- and did a wonderful job. He changed into his new suit after the baptism and I had one of those *gasp* moments as a mother when I realized I had not removed the sewn-on tag on the sleeve of his suit! Oh well, Cameron could have cared less! We all came to our house afterwards for BBQ beef sandwiches, salads and desserts, plus lots of noisy playing and visiting. It was a wonderful day! (as a not-so-great side note, I have NO personal pictures from baptism day :(. I have one photo of Steve and Cameron that one of the primary leaders took at the church, but if anyone else happened to take photos PLEASE pass them along!)
* Spring Break in Arches We kept our tradition alive by once again traveling to Arches National Park for Spring Break. We were joined this year by Ray and Danita, Layne and Jami and their kids, and Mike and Cathrina's family. The weather is always a little unpredictable, and this year was certainly no exception! We enjoyed several hours of lovely sunshine but also endured a lot of cold, rain, and wind, even a wind advisory period which caused one of the support rods in our tent trailer to collapse and forced us to break camp and head to Moab for some respite. Gratefully, the winds subsided and we were able to repair the trailer (thanks to help from Ray and a roll of duct tape). The kids spent hours climbing rocks, going on hikes, catching lizards and eating junk. I spent four days questioning the reasoning behind the decision to bring two infants camping. Steve and I took the babies and Emily on a little walk when a woman looked at us with wonder, asking if we were actually camping or if we were just there for the day. She was shocked to learn that we had been camping for a few days (she had a 16-month-old that had been giving her fits). I heard her a few minutes later telling her camp-mates that "that lady over there is camping with THREE KIDS including twin babies!" It took all I had to not shout back, "You ain't seen NOTHIN' lady! I got three more back at camp!"
Whenever our Arches trip falls over Easter weekend, we always enjoy having an egg hunt with the kids. Julia was the big winner this year as she found the egg containing a ten dollar bill (which was a bit of justice as Julia has made the decision to refrain from eating candy for a whole year!). Even with roller-coaster weather and the baby factor, I loves me some Arches and can't wait to go back next year.
* Live the Life Phase One complete! In January, I started a fitness/nutrition program called "Live the Life". It's been some of the best and most rewarding few months of my life as I have worked so hard to improve my health and fitness. I composed a long blog post about this which I never actually published...maybe I still will, but I finished the first phase (12 weeks) and I have just started the second phase. After Phase One, I have lost 13 pounds and 6 inches from my waist and thighs. I feel amazing and I am never hungry. I'm too embarrassed to post my before pictures today (maybe another time), but here is one of my "afters." I have a ways to go still, but I am so proud of how far I have come, especially considering that I am 10 months post-cesarean with twins! I'll be sure to post an update at the end of my next 12 week cycle.
* Root Beer? Emily came to us a few weeks ago with the most panic stricken look on her face. She was pointing frantically to her mouth and we noticed some brown liquid drizzling down her chin. When we asked her to explain, she just led us upstairs. On the kitchen counter were two brown bottles, a larger one and a smaller one. The large one contained root beer, and the small one was LIQUID SMOKE! Guess which one Emily had taken a swig from?
* Rest in peace, Cindy The Scothern family was very saddened by the passing of my 30-year-old cousin Cindy Stoddard. She had been in the hospital for a few weeks and was in a lot of pain. I hadn't seen her for a very long time, but was touched by the outpouring of love and support shown at her funeral. I continue to pray for the well-being of her two sweet daughters and for peace and comfort to her family.
* The Living Christ I memorized the Living Christ document and recited it to the Young Women of our ward, then challenged them to memorize it as well in preparation for our upcoming girls' camp this summer. Completing this goal was a gratifying and tender experience for me, and I would challenge any of you who desire to draw closer to the Savior to take up this challenge for yourselves...you won't regret it! I was given a computer file (which I modified slightly) that broke the document down into smaller paragraphs with picture hints and word cues. It was really helpful and I'd be happy to pass it along to anyone interested!
* Sleeping - Sitting - Solids Luke and Landon are finally sleeping all the way through the night, they are eating solids like champs (and noticably getting a little chunkier), and they have reached that blissful milestone where they are sitting up strong and playing with toys but are not moving/crawling/pulling up yet...they are delightful little babies and bring so much joy into our home.
* Julia's Utah History Project Julia enjoyed researching about Zion National Park for her project, and was excited to make this display for the school Utah history fair using only pictures we had taken as a family. She was especially proud to talk to people at the fair about her hike to Angel's Landing, which is not for the weak or faint of heart! We are so proud of Julia for always being such a great student (and we're thankful that she is quick to forgive that we nearly missed the fair...hey, getting the babies and Emily out the door in one piece is no small feat!).
* BYU Women's Conference I had the wonderful opportunity just last weekend to attend Women's Conference. The theme for the conference was "By Small and Simple Things are Great Things Brought to Pass." I loved being at Women's Conference with my younger sister, Lydia, and enjoyed every single talk and presentation I heard, but the closing session was my favorite, with Elder and Sister Bednar as the speakers. Sister Bednar spoke about the common practice of referring to our busy lives by saying "my plate is full." She warned that the simple principles we are encouraged to engage in daily (scriptures, prayer, exercise, eating healthy, early to bed/early to rise) are all in danger of being "nudged" off of the "plates" of our everyday lives if we do not consciuosly strive to make room for them.
Elder Bednar counseled that although we are bombarded by a world obsessed with the promise of instant gratification in every arena, ordinary people can bring forth extraordinary results through small and simple things. He spoke of the concept of "drip" or "trickle" irrigation, where a plant is continually nourished by constant, small drips of water. Likewise, consistent drips of spiritual nourishment help our faith to take root. He cautioned against being a "Spiritual Spurter" who is zealous in spiritual pursuits for very short periods of time with long drought periods in between (one of his examples: fasting for 3 straight days is less effective than having a meaningful fast on three consecutive Fast Sundays). He reminded us that the foolish virgins weren't against having oil for their lamps...they certainly knew they needed it, but just procrastinated until it was too late. CONSISTENCY, like drip irrigation, is the essential oil for our spiritual lamps and helps us avoid "sporadic and shallow spiritual spurting."
Well, I think that's a lengthy enough re-cap of April! We are all excited that May is here and that there are only 3 more weeks of school! Rachel is running for Student Council next week...ahh, the memories! Wish her luck, and I'll keep you posted. Now, if we could just get some May-like weather (still getting snow flurries often here)...that would truly be reason to celebrate.
