Waiting for email from our missionary

Here we sit like birds in the wilderness waiting for our email to come this morning. What a wonderful way to start the week. We so look forward to hearing from our missionary each Monday. It has been such a blessing having Spencer on a mission. He is in the swing of things in Honduras. One thing he has learned already is that those who fall into inactivity stopped reading the Book of Mormon daily. His testimony of daily scripture reading has really grown. We have been trying really hard to have family scripture reading daily. Rebecca usually misses out since she is already gone for seminary, but we keep trying to find a better time so all can be here.
Thanksgiving is such a wonderful holiday. As we spend the time with family, I am more and more grateful for my sweet family. They are such a blessing to me. We love being together every chance we get. Our kids all love to get together also. My parents were so wise and loving as they taught us the gospel and the importance of loving one another.
I am so grateful for the gospel in my life. My Savior gave His life for me, and for that I will be eternally thankful. The blessings I have been given testify to me how much the Lord loves me and each of us. As we are in the Christmas season now, I am excited to really focus on the birth of Jesus Christ, and the reason He came to earth. I love my Savior. What a glorious blessing the gospel is in my life. He lives, He loves us, and He has a plan for us. What more do we need?

Our missionary

Our missionary is doing so great! He loves the MTC, and loves learning the spanish language. He gets to leave for Honduras in about one month. He is super excited to get there and learn more spanish and start teaching the people. He asked us to send him some CTR rings so he could give them out to the kids there, and hopefully, that will let them into some homes. He and his companion have been asked to be zone leaders. Spencer is learning to serve the missionaries out of love as opposed to duty. That is a great thing for us all to learn, and I am going to work harder to do that.
It has been so fun to have a missionary. We look forward to his emails every week, and they encourage us all to do a little better. It is wonderful to hear about the experiences he is having.

Time

How does time go by so fast? It seems that just last week Spencer got his mission call, and we had 3 months untl he left on his mission. Now he has 1 month before he enters the MTC. Just yesterday, I'm sure, Katie left for her study abroad in Vienna for 4 weeks, and I will see her in 1 week. Where has the time gone? It is a fickle thing. When I dread its' passing, like our kids growing up, it speeds along. When I want it to pass quickly, it drags by. Is it like this for anyone else? Just a few years ago that Von and I were married, have turned into 23 years this summer. It baffles my mind.
I have been moving pipe for Von for the past two weeks, and it has been good. It makes me tired, but so far, it gets the exercise in that I need. At least I accomplish something while I work out. It seems so much more productive than exercising just to exercise. For the most part, the weather has been nice, so that also helps my mood. Sunshine is so helpful that way.
Well, speaking of time, it is my bedtime. Good night blog.

Spring

Spring seems to be on its way finally. It is beautiful today, and we get to brand in the sunshine. I love spring more than dental floss, and that is saying a lot. : ) I love the first blue bird, the robins, the new green grass, and flowers. I also love to see the new buds on the trees. The air smells so fresh and clean, and I love to be alive. I am so grateful for this time of year.

Gluten intolerant : (

I just found out I am gluten intolerant. Good-bye to all my favorite yummies. I am also lactose intolerant, so I guess I can eat water and carrots. Anyone have any advice or great recipes for me?

More ambition please?

I need someone to kick me in the backside and tell me to get busy. Oh, where is my ambition today? I need to make bread, clean the basement, clean 2 bathrooms, make something delicious for lunch, maybe a treat for the guys, and vacuum and sweep all the floors. Plus, I'd rather be sewing. If Cinderella could come for a day, this is the day I would choose.
On a brighter note, Mom and Dad are on their way home this weekend!! Yippee! I don't know why Arizona seems so far away, but it does. It will be great to see them.
Ok, here I go. Really. I'm outta here to clean something. Moving now....

Spencer's mission call!

I am one happy Mama. My boy just got his mission call to the Honduras Comayaguela mission! It was so fun to open that letter. We got the envelope in the mail on Thursday, and Spencer and Katie had to wait until after Spencer's test Friday morning before they could come home. It is amazing how many places you think of your boy going to on his mission before the envelope is opened, but once it is read, it is the one. We are so proud of Spencer and his decision to go on a mission. He enters the Provo MTC on July 11, 2012. That means we do get some time with him after school ends before he leaves. He also gets to move pipe for at least 1 1/2 months. I'm sure he is most excited about that. What a fun day this has been.

Calving, knitting, basketball and stuff

OK, ok. My last post was depressing, and I didn't update it for a very long time, so I will now. We are officially calving now. We always have some come early, so I have been telling people we have about 8-10 calves on the ground. Von told me yesterday morning that we have 40 calves, so today we probably have about 50. Where have I been? Oh ya, knitting. I have been trying to learn how to make new things like headbands, sweaters, and hats. It has been fun, and it keeps my hands and mind busy.
We have been in the process of adding on to our living/family room area. It also added to our kitchen area. It is all open now, which is really nice. We were also fortunate enough to have John and his brothers come rock and brick our fireplace for us. It turned out far better than we ever hoped. They did a beautiful job. We are so excited about it.
Soon, we will be able to put our fireplace in and enjoy the heat. We only have a few things left to do before we can live in the new addition: trim out the windows and door, hook up the switches, put in a few lights, and paint the floor. The siding is almost finished, then the outside lights can be put in. We are so close. We are going to put wood flooring in this fall, so until then we will live on painted sub-floor. Hopefully painting it will cut down on the dust.
Rebecca has had a great basketball season. She and Jorgee have carried the team this season. As freshmen, they have really been amazing. They hustle all through the game, steal the ball, and make most of the points. I love to watch them play. Rebecca gives it her all every game, and we are so proud of her. She never gets angry, and several people and other teams' coaches have commented on her great sportsmanship. She always tries to help girls up after they go down, and she apologizes when someone gets hurt because of her. It is so good to see.
We are so proud of our children. We have been so blessed with sweet, good kids. Katie and Spencer are doing great at college. Spencer is close to sending in his mission papers. Katie might get to go to Austria for the month of June for study abroad. Camia is reading really well, and Baylor is as energetic as ever. : )
Last Thursday I slipped on the ice and went down really hard. I bruised my backside and right wrist really good. I limp around like an old person. I hurt. Waa.
So, today, while the sun shines, I am going to make bread, calzones, do laundry, and try to find the house under the clutter. Then I will knit more on my sweater. Sounds like a lovely day, doesn't it?