Two Down, One Left to Go

Jim passed the next Microsoft Certification test. He has passed 2 out of the 3 tests that he needs for work. He studied really hard in April, and wanted to take the test in early May. He couldn't schedule the test until May 27th. He was planning to study for the test again during Memorial Day Weekend. He had to work this weekend. He worked most of the day on Sunday and all day on Monday. He didn't have the time to study like he had planned. He woke up early this morning for 1 hour of study before the test. We said a prayer before he headed out the door. When Jim called and told me that he passed the test, I was thrilled and knew that the Lord is blessing us. I am so proud of Jim, the certification tests are not easy to pass. He works so hard at work, and we appreciate all that he does. He is a great example to me and our kids.

Another Temple in AZ

WOW!

I heard from my dad that there are plans to build another temple in the Phoenix area. That's great news, especially for those living in the West Valley. I found this information on this website : http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/announced/. This a great web page about the temples operating, under construction, or announced. It's so awesome to have temples being built.

"President Thomas S. Monson has announced that a fifth temple for Arizona will be built in the Phoenix area (site location not yet announced). "The blessings of the temple are eternal," said President Monson. "Those who come to this holy house will feel of God's love for His children and come to a greater understanding of their own divine origin and potential as His sons and daughters." The announcement comes less than a month following the announcement that temples will be built in Gilbert, Arizona, and in Arizona's Gila Valley.
A temple in Phoenix will decrease travel time for the growing membership in the West Valley, who currently drive to the East Valley to attend the Mesa Arizona Temple. The Mesa temple is attended by more patrons that any other temple outside of Utah."

School Awards

Josh earned the science award. There were several students in each grade that won the science award. Josh wants to be a scientist, so he is on the right path. He was on the honor roll every quarter this year. Twice, he earned all A's. Good job Josh!
Dani earned the writing award at school. Dani loves to write and wants to be author someday. She constantly writes plays by hand and using the computer. She is very creative with her stories.

Angela earned the "Most Improved in Math" award and a promotion certificate to 3rd grade. She has worked really hard in math. She struggled with the concept at first. She thought 1 + 1 = 11. She has worked hard and now can do addition and subtraction up to 10. She learned her math skills through "Touch Math". It's a great program for those kids who struggle in math.

ASU

Jim needed to go to ASU yesterday. He needed to get a few things set up before school starts. I wanted to go with him and explore the campus. It's been a long time since I've been to ASU. I think the last time I was there was when I graduated. When we arrived at ASU, there were so many new buildings on campus. I didn't know that there was any room to build more buildings, but the somehow they find a way. We went to the MU to have lunch. It was fun to be on campus again, it brought back a lot of memories. I want to take my kids to ASU during a school break. I want to show them the cool library at ASU, particularly the entrance. They built a new institute building at ASU that I would love to check out. The institute program at ASU and MCC helped me so much in my college days. What a great program that is!

The entrance of the ASU library is underground, which makes this library unique.

Here is a picture of the whole library. The entrance is underground, with the main part right next to the entrance. The grounds around the are very pretty and people love to sit on the grass above the entrance.

Emily and I hung out while Jim got everything set up for school. After classes, I would grab some food and sit down by these fountains. There are several fountains near the MU, which is makes it a beautiful place on campus. Emily was a good sport and toured part of the campus with me. I can't wait to visit ASU with my kids again. I wished that I didn't wait ? years to visit ASU again.

First Class Scout

Josh earned his First Class rank last night at the Court of Honor. He has worked really hard to accomplish this. He loves the scouting program. Josh can't wait until he is 12, so he can be one of his "Dad's Scouts". He was watched his dad hang out with the scouts, waiting patiently for his turn. Josh only has 3 more months left, and then he can go to scouts with his dad. Josh has had a few opportunities to work with the 12 year old scouts. In a couple of months, Josh will get to go to scout camp with his dad. Josh is totally love that!Jim gave Josh his rank advancement. What a neat experience for both Jim and Josh. They are going to have fun in scouts together.

I'm carefully pinning on his First Class pin. He looks a little nervous, but I won't poke him.

My cute kids

Josh had his final band concert this year. He is really good and plays with a good tone. He enjoys playing the clarinet and being in the band. and He has learned a lot about music this year and plans to play the clarinet again next year.

Dani is taking tap dance this year. She really loves to tap and is really good at it. They had their pictures taken on Tuesday. Here is her dance costume for her recital in June.

Angela got her hair cut this week. She has a very sensitive head and hates to have her hair done. She really hates to have her hair cut, so this is a very brave of Angela. She looks so cute with it cut, and it's easier to maintain.

Emily went to QT and got a orange drink. When we were leaving the store and made a comment about how cute she was. I noticed then that her drink matched her outfit. How cute is that!

Field Trips

Yesterday, Dani went on a field trip to Saguaro Lake. They went aboard a paddle boat and toured the lake, had a picnic lunch, and went on a small hike near the lake. It was a great field trip.We cruised the lake on the Desert Belle. The cruise lasted 90 minutes with a great captain telling us facts about the lake while cracking a few jokes. The kids loved the cruise, especially when there was a small chance to get wet from the wakes of the other boats. We went in the morning so there wasn't a lot of boats on the lake just yet.

The kids loved checking out the sites. They loved the ducks, vultures, and waving to the fisherman, boaters, and kayakers. The scenery was beautiful. I loved seeing the 4 peaks mountain range. This is a picture from the website. It shows a better view of the paddle boat against the 4 peaks mountains. The scenery is awesome. There is a campsite only accessible by the lake. My kids would love to camp there. That's sounds so cool!I enjoyed going on Dani's field trip. I'm glad that I had the opportunity to go with her. She was so sweet to invite me. Thanks Dani!

Angela is going on a field trip today to Porter Elementary. She currently attends Roosevelt and is in 2nd grade. The special ed program that she is in transfers to Porter in 4th grade. She is in a class with mostly 3 graders who will go to Porter next fall. The students are going to check out Porter and have lunch there. The neat part about this is Josh and Dani attend Porter Elementary. My three school age kids will have lunch at the same school. This is a first time that this has happened. I wanted to be there for this special occasion, but the teachers didn't want the parents to come. I could eat lunch with Dani and accidentally see Angela, but that wouldn't be fair to the other kids, especially for those kids who will attend Porter in the fall. I am posting this email and thinking about my kids today. I hope someone sees her and say hello and makes her feel welcome outside of her class. Porter is Angela's home school and she loves Porter and can't wait to be a student there, but she has another year at Roosevelt with totally awesome teachers and a wonderful program for her.

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Mother's Day is a day set aside to honor our mothers. My mom is a great example of love and service. She has a huge heart and shows her love through her service. She has always been there for us. She has helped me in so many different ways, which makes it hard to remember all of the things she has done for me. Here are just of few things that stand out in my mind.

• She came to see my muscial performances in high school and endured my practicing.
• She gave me encouragement when I faced surgery and physical therapy with my arm.
• She helped me plan my wedding reception and made that day wonderful for me.
• She helped me when I became a first time mom and gave me encouragement.
• She reassured me when I was worried about Angela's health.
• She watched my younger kids so I could go on field trips with my kids all day.
• She spoils my kids on holidays, she believes that any holiday is a reason to celebrate.

I could go on and on. My mom has done so much for me, some of which I will never know about. That's what make moms so special. They don't look for the recognition, they just do things because they love you. I love you Mom.

I have a wonderful mother-in-law. She is a great exampe of service and love. She truly loves her children and her grandchildren. I've enjoyed my relationship with her and love her positive outlook. I love talking with her and receive a lot of good advice. She listens and is a great rescource when I need her help. She loves my children and makes them feel that they are the most important person in the world. She loves to play with the my kids and get to know them on a personal level. She is willing to watch them while Jim and I need a break or what to go on a small vacation. She is an amazing lady and I glad that she's my mom too.

Both my mom and mother-in-law love to go to lunch together. They have a great relationship with each other. They are so cute together as you can see in the picture above. This picture was taken several years ago at a wedding breakfast for my brothers. They support each other a great deal. I hope they had a great Mother's Day, they both deserve it. They had taught me to be a better mother through example.

Thank you!

Angela's Tree

Today, we planted Angela's tree, it is her first tree. She was so excited and was willing to help watch her dad plant the tree. She waited patiently for this day to come.

Angela is posing for this picture. She didn't actually help dig the hole. That's a lot of work for such a little girl, but she sure looks cute.

The girls helpied Jim plant the tree. Emily wasn't afraid to dive in and help her dad. Angela just enjoyed watching the process. It's fun to watch dad plant the tree.Here is the final project. Angela's tree looks awesome and she loves having a tree just like Josh and Dani. Jim and I wanted to plant a tree after each child gets baptized. Angela didn't have to wait too long, she just turned 8. We wanted the kids to see a symbol of their baptism. Our yard is looking beautiful and the we hope the kids will remember their baptism when they see their trees.

Piano Recital

Dani had her first piano recital today. She did a fabulous job. It was wonderful to hear her song played on a grand piano. I've heard her recital piece over and over again. I can sing it in my head. At the recital, it was wonderful to hear her play and show off what she has learned. She received the most willing and cheerful award. That's Dani. She is cheerful gal and we love her.

Dani had her song memorized, but she was nervous and wanted to have her music with her. She did an amazing job, did I mention that?

Here is Dani and her piano teacher, Sis. Favreau. She has been such a great teacher for Dani. Dani didn't know anything about music when she started. She didn't practice a lot at first, but Dani is becoming knowledge about music and is happy to be taking piano lessons. She is ready to blossom as a piano student now that she knows the basics.

This is the beautiful grand piano that Dani played her recital piece on. It is simply beautiful. It's not every day that you get to play on a grand piano, unless you own one, which we don't. She looks amazing and so happy. She had a great piano recital.

Blogging & Emailing

My sister-in-law mentioned to me that you can have your blog and email at the same time. What a awesome concept. I have my blog set up to email about 10 people, including myself, every time I post. If you go under settings, and under email, there is a place for your to write down 10 e-mail addresses. I included my e-mail so I can forward it to other e-mail addresses if I need to. That's it!

Now you can blog and email at the same time. At the end of the e-mail there is a link that they can use to see your wonderful, fabulous, and informative blog. We work so hard that we would love to have our family and friends check it out. Blogging just got cooler.

Dani's Tree

On Saturday, Jim and the kids planted Dani's tree. We lost her baptism tree last year with freeze. Her tree was still so little when winter came. We tried to protect it, but it was too cold. A lot of ficus trees died that year. This time, Dani wanted an orange tree. Here are the pictures of her old ficus tree and her new orange tree. The front yard looks funny with Josh's tall tree, Dani's little tree, and hoses running everywhere. Where should be put Angela's tree? It'll be worth it when the trees grow healthy and strong.

Dani and the ficus tree we planted when she was 8 yrs. old.

Here is Dani's orange tree that we just planted. I can't wait to have oranges to eat and share.

Women Conference Classes

A friend of mine wrote down her notes and feelings on the classes she took at BYU Conference. I think that is a wonderful idea, so I would like to share mine. We didn't attend the same classesas did, so I learned a lot from her notes. Here is a list of the talks and classes that I attended. I hope you don't mind if I share them with you. It has helped build my testimony and refect on what I learned at Women's Conference.

Awake, Arise and Come Unto Christ

Sheri Dew was the first speaker and she introduced the theme. She spoke about the great influence we have as women of the church. When we know who we are, and become Christlike, then we can influence the world for good. She called the women in the family the "Heart of the Family","Central to Heavenly Father's Plan" and a "Secret Weapon". Those are important key phrases that I've heard before, but they are powerful and should be heard often.

The Family: A Proclamation to the WorldOne of the instructors in this class said that we should believe the Family Proclamation deeply and actively follow the principals taught within the document. We need to deeply study the proclamation, even have one that we cross-reference and take notes like we do with the scriptures. We should memorize, read frequently, and ponder so we know and remember the words we can actively use it. She said that we should share and defend the Proclamation and reminded us that the audience for this Proclamation was the world, not just the members of the Church.

I Know the Scriptures Are True(Establishing Scripture Reading Traditions) The instructors told us that if the scriptures can find a home in our hearts and not just in our head, than that will lead to a testimony of the scriptures. There were some fun ideas of reading scriptures with the kids. One idea was to write down every one's favorite scripture story or scripture and put it in a jar. Grab one out and read it. It's fun for the kids to read their favorite scripture and maybe even act it out. It helps the kids learn to love the scriptures and want to read them more. Sis. Matsumori, second counselor in the Primary, was one of the instructors.


"Teach Me to Pray to My Father Above":Meaningful Prayer in the Family
There are many blessings we will have we we play as a family. We need to make our house a "House of Prayer". Have family prayer in the morning will arm our children as the face the world. On instructor says that no one is allowed to leave the home without a family prayer. She says that sometimes, she has had morning prayer several different times, but she never let her children leave without the spiritual protection of prayer.

Temple Worship Is a Avenue to Exaltation in God's Kingdom Brother and Sister Bateman spoke to us about service in the temples. Merrill J. Bateman serves as the President of the Provo Temple. He said the path which leads to Heavenly Father leads through the temple. We should escape the world and prepare our souls to Come Unto Christ. We should also pattern our home after the temple.

Strengthen thy Stakes: Standing Strong and Immovable in Faith
Sister Julie B. Beck spoke to us about our importance of women. We have the ability to nurture and influence while the brethren hold the priesthood. Both are essential and complement each other. We need to strengthen one another.
Turning the MTC into a Review, Not a Revelation
This class was an awesome class. The instructors reminded us that missionaries need to be prepared a home. They will have successful and fulfilled missions when they do. Going on a mission is a privilege. The future missionaries should be taught to handle uncomfortable situations, have had spiritual experiences, have great faith, have a testimony of the Book of Mormon, and show obedience. These are best learned at love.
I'll Follow Him in Faith: Establishing a Spiritual Pattern through Family Home Evenings
Lloyd Newell, the voice of the Spoken Word, and his wife were the instructors of this class. Spiritual patterns can help make our homes more peaceful, joyful, and sanctuaries from the world. Family Home Evening should be a spiritual pattern, done consistently. The Lord will bless us if we are persistent with Family Home Evening, even if once in a while the outcome doesn't work out.
Successful Family Reunions: Creative Organization with Clever Follow-up This was a fun class. We learn to spare spiritual experiences and get in touch through emails, blogging and family reunions. We can have spiritual experiences on our Family Reunions. Keeping in contact with the family is very important. We should connect with our family members heart - heart.

President MonsonIt was so wonderful to hear from our prophet. When he walked into the Marriott Center, we all stood and sang "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet". It was amazing experience. He spoke to us about finding Joy in every moment. Every day is a special occasion. He also talked about Adversity in life. He said that tears and adversity are necessary for development. It was so wonderful to hear from our prophet.

Thanks for letting me share some of what I learned at BYU Women's Conference. It was such a wonderful learning experience. I have been blessed to be instructed by the leaders of our Church. What a wonderful experience.

Women's Conference

This weekend, a friend and I went to BYU Women's Conference. It was a great experience to be taught by the leaders of our church. It was neat to be surrounded by close to 20,000 -23,000 women who were there for the same reasons, to come closer to Christ. The theme this year Awake, Arise, and Come Unto Christ. (Moroni 10:31-32).

Thank you Kim for inviting me to go to Women's Conference. It was an amazing weekend and it was great to spend the time with you.


We stayed at Young Hall in the Heritage Halls complex. It was fun staying in the dorm. It was so cold when we arrived at the dorms. After settling in, we went to get some famous BYU Creamery ice cream. As we walked to the creamery, it started in snow a little, just enough to have snow flurries. It's May and it's snowing. I was so excited that it was snowing, just a little. After the ice cream, we needed hot chocolate because it was so cold for us AZ girls.

Young Hall on a Clear Day- BYU is a beautiful campus The Snow on the Mountains

The classes were so good. They were so good that there were long lines to get to every class. After the class ended, you had to practically run to the next class and stand in line and hope that you can get in the one you want. I wasn't so lucky on one of my classes, but ended up taking another fabulous class. Eating lunch was difficult unless you skipped a class. I ended up snacking some carrots and apples that I grabbed after breakfast. It was a great experience and would do it again in a heartbeat. I'm going to speak about the classes in another blog. The classes were so amazing and helped me so much. It was the reason I came to Women's Conference.

One night, we were able to help in the humanitarian effort. Kim and I helped make around 3,000 card to be delivered to the soldiers on duty. There were other service projects available that night. It was amazing to see so much service done. The sisters had a lot of fun doing the service projects. The members of the General Primary, YW, and RS presidencies were walking through and watching the sisters complete the service projects. It was amazing to see these sisters and feel their love.

After the service, we went to a concert with so many amazing singers. Hillary Weeks was the host and she did an awesome job. Kenneth Cope, Michael McLean, Mercy River, Eclipse, and Jenny Jordan Frogley performed for us. The men of the Tabernacle Choir had a special performance for us from the Tabernacle. It was such an amazing concert.
The highlight of Women's Conference was the concluding speaker - President Monson. It was an amazing experience. We all stood and sang "We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet" while he entered the room. I felt the spirit so strong and knew that he was a prophet of God. It was so amazing especially since the solemn assembly a month ago. His message was so incredible - to make each day a special occasion and find joy in the journey now not later.

President Monson

I was able to spend some time with my two brothers and my sister-in-law. I am blessed to have such a great family. Jeff picked us up from the airport and took us safely to BYU. It made sure that we made it to the dorms safely, even waiting for us to receive our dorms keys. Jeff graduated from college the next day. Congratulations Jeff! Steve provided us to two well cooked meals. He had his special meatloaf waiting for us when we arrived in Salt Lake City. He is an amazing cook. I would love to get together with him and learn his recipes. Iralee spent some quality time with us and chauffeured us again Provo after Women's Conference and a ride back to Salt Lake City. I thank them publicly from their service. I love my family dearly. They are a great example of service.
Iralee and I - She is so awesome!

My amazing brothers!- Steve and Jeff