Josh's tree

On Saturday, we planted Josh's tree in the front yard. We have the kids pick out and tree and help plant it after they are baptized. A few days after Josh was baptized, we planted a ficus tree in the front yard. It grew and looked awesome until this last winter. His tree and Dani's tree froze and we couldn't save them. We cut down the trees and planned to plant new ones in their place. Josh helped plant his new tree, which is an Evergreen Ash. These trees go dormant in the winter, so they shouldn't freeze.

Here is the first tree that Josh planted. Josh loved helping his dad plant the tree. The picture can be misleading because it also shows the neighbors tree.

Here is Dani and Angela standing next to Josh's tree. This picture was taken a year ago. You can see that the tree grew quite a bit. We were sad to lose this tree.

Josh dug a deep hole, maybe a little too deep. Actually, he is bending his knees. What a joker that kids is. That's why we call him "Joking" Josh.

Dani and Josh are planting the tree together. It may be Josh's tree, but it's a family effort. A family that works together, stays together, right?

Jim and Josh stand near the tree completely planted. They worked really hard to plant this tree. Notice, the neighbor's tree is still in the picture. I need to work on that.

Dani's field trip

Jim accompanied Dani on her field trip to Boyce Thompson Arboretum. She was so excited that her dad could come with her. As the kids get older, they enjoy going on the field trips with their dad. Jim enjoys going on them too. The Arboretum is located near Superior which makes for a long bus drive.

Here is a picture of Dani on the bus. She doesn't get to ride the bus often, so she enjoys riding the bus, especially with her friends. Dani say that they sang "Wheels on the Bus" just for fun and had a great time on the bus.
Here is the only picture taken at the Arboretum. There were a lot of desert plants and some lizards to see as they hiked through the Arboretum. After the hike, the had a picnic lunch. Jim and Dani had an enjoyable time on the field trip and spent quality time together.

Local schools serves communities

A couple of weeks ago, Angela's school sponsored a "Reading Under the Stars" program. It was a night where families could go and listen to stories and poems. Every child that attended received a free book, with an opportunity to win books later. My children came home with 8 free books. They had a book fair prior to the evening and I bought several books. My kids came home so excited to read. It was a great school program to promote reading and provide reading materials. It wasn't fancy, but I enjoyed the evening. The Cat in the Hat made a special appearance with "thing one" and "thing two".

A day later, Porter had their carnival. So many people helped to make it a success. It was truly a community event. The scouts helped out with the carnival as well. Jim helped run a bouncy ride for 4 hours plus he set up and cleaned up. He had a great time talking and interacting with the kids. I had an opportunity to work with people that I didn't know and it was a great experience. I helped out with the snow cone machine for a couple of hours. It was a messy job with the syrup. It squirted everywhere, not just where I wanted it. The snow cones were a big hit, which kept me pretty busy. The band played a few songs and Josh participated. I sat in the front row and I think that embarrassed Josh. Oh well, that's what moms do. It was a great community event to be involved with. I was really busy plus my camera was out of batteries so I didn't get any pictures. It was just nice to be involved and talk to the members of my community.

Schools are instrumental in getting the community involved in special events. It is so awesome to see the community come together. There are awesome people who work tirelessly to put together these events. I thank them for their hard work. Their are awesome people who volunteer at the event just to serve the community. I thank them too. My family benefited from these two school/community events.

Father and Sons

A couple of weeks ago, Jim and Josh went to Father and Sons campout. I just got the pictures and want to post them. Josh loves to go camping with his father. He is the only son and enjoys spending that one-on-one time with his dad. There was a creek with running water that attracted the kids. They played in it and had a great time. They had a great program that night and talked about the Priesthood. Josh is turning 12 this year, so any program about the Priesthood helps him prepare. Jim has his Ham Radio license and was able to call and talk to me from camp. He called using his radio to make phone calls as well as a hand held radio. Sometimes, Jim can call me on his Ham Radio when cell service is unable. My dad has his Ham Radio license since I was young. Now Jim has a license and he hopes Josh will get his license. Jim and Josh had a lot of fun on Fathers and Sons. Josh is always excited to go camping with his Dad. Josh is turning 12 and his dad is the Scoutmaster, so they can go camping together with the troop. Josh has waited a long time for this, to go camping with his "Dad's Scouts".

Temples

President Monson announced that there will two new temples built in Arizona.

1- The Gilbert Arizona Temple

2- Gila Valley Arizona Temple

This announcement was the first temple announcement made by President Monson according to the Church News. I am so excited to have another temple close by. When I was young, I watched the Jordan River temple being built from ground up. We attended the ground breaking ceremony, the open house, and the dedication of the temple. My parents and I were able to attend the dedication inside the temple. I was twelve years old at the time and interviewed to attend. My siblings were younger and didn't get that opportunity. I remember going to the temple to do baptism for the dead. It was a neat experience to watch the building of the temple and then performing the baptism. I did go once to the Salt Lake Temple to do Baptisms for the Dead. It was neat to go there to, but Jordan River was always my temple. I wanted to get married there too, but my family moved to Arizona. I met Jim and we were married in the Arizona Temple, which is now my temple. Jim and I later did a session in the Jordan River temple, that was really special. My kids attended the open house of the Snowflake temple. They thought that was cool. Now my kids can watch the Gilbert temple be built. We can even take them to the Gila Valley open house. What a neat experience that will be.

Emily's Latest Owie

Emily is only 3 years old, yet she has hurt her face more than any of my other children. The poor girl just slips and falls. Her latest injury occurred when she was standing on a crate in the back yard when she slipped and skinned her chin. It's looks horrible. She cried just a little bit. The poor girl has been through a lot of facial injuries. A couple of years ago in Utah, she really banged up her face. She skinned her forehead while running away from some fireworks that my brother lit up. She was totally scared of the noises. Then she got a little sunburned. To top it off, while at church, she fell and cut her head open on the shelf that holds the hymn book. She received 6 stitches. Her facial injuries didn't slow her down at all. She didn't even cry after the stitches. She's a brave one. I should protect the face more, but it's hard to follow that girl everywhere.

Here is Emily with a scraped forehead and nose, sunburned cheeks and stitches by her eyes. She had a rough trip to Utah two years ago. Now the scar is barely noticable. You have to really look for it.

Here is Emily's latest injury. We hope that it also the last injury for a long time, especially a facial injury. They look so horrible and are so visible.

Conference Weekend

Our family really enjoyed Conference in April. My kids enjoyed participating in the "Solemn Assembly" when we sustained President Monson as the new Prophet. It has been a great learning experience for my children. My sister-in-law emailed us a Conference packet. It helped keep the kids focused on Conference. There was a space on the packet. to color ties of those speaking. Dani and I really enjoyed coloring the ties and jotting down notes. At my Presidency Mtg., I brought my packet because all my note were written in it. They could tell I have young kids. During the Priesthood session, the kids and I went to Grandma Pace's house. The kids had a lot of fun playing with each other. I had a new camera to take pictures of all the kids. It was fun to watch the cousins play together. Next conference, Josh will go with his father to the Priesthood session. He is growing up so fast.

Dani and her cousin Kaylynn

Cousins playing on the trampoline. The kids love to jump on the trampoline. I like they like it best when are more kids on the trampoline. It's so fun to watch the cousins interact with each other.

Angela eating a popsicle.

Angela loves to swing. She is constantly swinging when she goes outside. She really can make the swing go up high.

Everyone loves Grandma's dog. I call her Pepper, but I think her real name is Dusty. I hear so many different names that I'm not sure what her really name is. Emily looks so cute petting the dog.

New Era

My niece was featured in the Q & A section of the New Era. We are so excited for her. Her bishop called and told her that she was in the April New Era. We are so proud of her Here is her question and answer.

“How should I respond when my friends say that Jesus Christ was a great moral teacher but not the Savior or the Son of God?”

You can share your testimony about Christ. You can tell them what you believe and share passages from the Bible. If they’re not interested, you just have to let it go and not let it dampen your testimony.
Cortney C., 16, Arizona

Cycling Merit Badge

The boy scouts in our ward have been earning the Cycling Merit Badge. This merit badge took about two months to complete. The boys needed to go on several bike rides, on two 10 mile rides, two 15 miles ride , two 25 miles ride, and one 50 mile ride. Jim drove the "Pace" car to follow the boys when possible. I was very impressed with the young men in our ward. This merit badge required so much time, effort, and strength. What a great accomplishment for these boys.

Easter

Easter came really early this year. Easter is such a fun and wonderful holiday. Our family went to the Easter Pagaent and enjoyed the spirit there. We didn't get good seats, they were in the back closer to Dairy Queen than the stage. We still could see and enjoy the message that the Pageant offers. Because of the busy week before Easter, we didn't to our usual Easter traditions. We dyed our eggs a week after Easter and had a Easter Egg hunt after Sunday dinner. It was nice to just focus on the special holiday. I misplaced my camera and had to use a disposable camera to take Easter pictures. At dinner, I used my sister's camera to take pictures of the hunt. My sister say that I am lost without my camera. It is true, especially on a holiday.



Here is a picture of my kids on Easter Sunday. Angela didn't want a picture taken, she just wanted to sing. The kids looked really cute this Easter Sunday.

Josh is growing up to be a fine young man. I enjoy talking with Josh. We have such great discussions. I enjoy playing games with him too. He love strategy games, so do I.

Here is Dani. She is truly a beautiful girl. She is growing so fast. I enjoy spending time with her just talking, watching movies, playing games, and just hanging out.

Dani looks so beautiful on Easter.

Angela received a cute yellow duck for Easter. She loves stuffed animals. Angela is such a cute sweet girl. I love to read and sing with her. She loves to sing from the Children's Songbook and Hymn Book. She loves to play with Emily. They have a special bond.

Emily is so adorably cute. She is so much fun to watch and play with. I love to listen to her talk and enjoy the cute phrases three year olds say. She loves her brother and sisters and loves to spend time with them.

Emily is on a hunt for some Easter eggs. The little kids had an egg hunt in the front yard while the older kids looked for eggs in the back yard.

Hiking

After our adventure during spring break, I took 3 of my kids on a hike to Usery Pass. It was a beautiful day with lots of wild flowers. It was a short hike and a great way to start off the day. I didn't bring Emily along.

Here is a picture of us after the hike. We had a great time and hope to go again soon. Next time we will take Jim and Emily with us. We miss them a lot.

Check out the beautiful wildflowers. They were everywhere on the trail. There were other wildflowers as well. I've never seen the desert look more beautiful. The kids were commenting and enjoying the scenery too. That is so neat that they took the time to enjoy nature and not be in such a hurry to finish the trail.