Senior pictures for our last twig...

Senior pictures have been such a fun rite of passage.

The whole family came along to take Zac's senior pictures. 

Man, he looks young!

We were racing daylight but got some great shots. 

Hunter was less excited haha. 

It was just him and me going to take his senior pictures

and I remember him telling me about his friends

who LOVED to go do photo shoots - for fun!

He said something like 

"how many more times in my life will I HAVE to do this." haha 

We surmised it will probably only be once or twice so he might live through it. 

I wonder how he remembers that conversation 

but with him on the other side of the continent 

I guess we'll just have to go with my recollection. ;)

He survived the photo shoot and 

it fills my heart to see pictures of that

face we love and miss so much.

<3

Fast forward 2 years, 

it was just Emma and me and again we were racing daylight. 

Antelope Island is our backdrop of choice. 

We have heaps of great family memories there.

We love that place!

We love this girlie!

It was sooo easy to take her pictures! 

Congrats sweet girl and have a blast enjoying your graduation!

Grandma Branch graduated...

This is Paul's mom

but we all call her Grandma Branch.

Two weeks ago she had a stroke which left her paralyzed. 

She mostly slept after her stroke but sometimes she would talk with us. 

One morning she kept asking us 3 questions... 

what year it was, 

how old she was, 

and where she was.

We told her the answers several times

 and wondered why she was so interested in those three questions......

Within the hour, her physical therapist, 

occupational therapist, speech therapist, 

and doctor came in to see her 

and guess what they said to her????

Yup, you guessed it, 

"Revola, can you tell me what year it is?" 

"Revola, can you tell me how old you are?" 

"Revola, can you tell me where you are?" hahaha

What a smart girl!

We all sat there with our chins on the floor 

in awe that she was so clever

and told the Dr. and therapists what had happened. 

The Dr. said she was cheating but we stood up for her 

and said it wasn't cheating 

it was cramming!! ;)

Another morning she was talking to me and two nurses. 

It was hard to understand her for a few minutes, 

then I heard her say 

"I was baptized when I was eight

and I haven't sinned since."

We all know that's not really how it works 

but it was pretty funny. 

Maybe she meant she'd been trying to be righteous ever since.

It makes me think of Sister Eubank's Conference talk

" Being righteous doesn't mean being perfect 

or never making mistakes. 

It means developing an inner connection with God, 

repenting of our sins and mistakes, 

and freely helping others."

One night after being with Grandma at the care center
our girlie returned home and was reading scriptures before bed.

Her bookmark happened to be at  

Alma 40:12 which says...

"And then shall it come to pass, 

that the spirits of those who are righteous 

are received into a state of happiness, 

which is called paradise, 

a state of rest, 

a state of peace, 

where they shall rest from all their troubles 

and from all care, and sorrow."

And so it is with Grandma Branch, as

five days after her stroke

she passed away. 

Yesterday was her funeral. 

Wilson said she "graduated". 

What a perfect description. 

We are happy for her 
to be with her cute husband again.

We've been touched by everyone's kindness. 

Thank you dear family and friends 

for your prayers and love
at this difficult time.
You've all got that 
"freely helping others" part
down pat.

Much love...<3

Déjà vu and the little birdhouse by the garden...

Again this spring, as in many years past,

we have baby birds in the little birdhouse by the garden. 

We watched for signs of nesting, 

then signs that eggs were laid, 

then we didn't have to watch any more 

because we could easily hear that the little chicks had hatched. 

The parents are always totally stellar 

in their dedication to feed the baby chicks. 

They pale slightly, however, in the totally stellar dedication 

shown by the baby chicks to let the parents know they are hungry, 

starving even!!!

This only lasts a week, 

which is a good thing for the exhausted parents. 

Then before we know it the chicks spread their wings 

and are off on adventures of their own. 

Two springs ago, this delightful scene just happened to coordinate perfectly 

with our own first born chick, Zac, graduating and leaving our nest 

on his adventure of preaching the love of Jesus Christ 

to the people of North Carolina. 

Mother's Day and a senior...

It was so exciting!! 

We have missed that man these past two years 

but he's been totally stellar to write 

and send pictures every week. 

Well done, Zac!!

This spring, the aviary action in the little birdhouse by the garden 

has filled me with déjà vu 

as our next born, Hunter, just graduated 

and will be leaving our nest 

on his adventure of preaching the love of Jesus Christ 

to the people of New Hampshire. 

It is so exciting!!

Congrats, Hunter! 

We'll miss you more than words can express. 

How we've loved our years with you! 

We love your fabulous blonde hair, 

your deep base singing voice, 

watching you run crazy fast, 

 how thoughtful you are about your decisions and your words, 

how quick you are to laugh, 

and how dedicated you are to God, and goodness.

Enjoy your adventure, our wonderful son!
xoxo mom

Leather dress shoes and President Obama...

The twig's high school sure knows how to celebrate graduation. 

It feels like we've partied all month long!   :)

The Senior's Capstone Night was so interesting. 

Caleb's project was making his own leather dress shoes from scratch, 

Kolton made a laser, 

Jason shared his experiences from years of gymnastics/tumbling, 

and Hunter presented about the opportunity 

Boys State gave him to attend Boys Nation and meet President Obama.

 I wished we could have made it an all-nighter 

and heard about everyone's project! 

The next party was Scholarship Night which

left me with a lump in my throat that has lasted for days because of the generosity that was extended to the graduates.

That will have to be another story for another day though 

because it's time to go celebrate some more.   ;)

Pressed down, shaken together, and running over...

"Give, and it shall be given unto you; 

good measure, 

pressed down, 

and shaken together, 

and running over..."

(Luke 6:38) 

Man I love that scripture! 

I love the image of something so chock-full 

that it has to be pressed down and shaken.

Even then it's still running over!

It's a perfect description 

of how I felt on Friday, 

  so completely full of 

immense gratitude, 

squealy delightedness, 

and exhausted relief

that it makes your face jump between 

big splashy eyeball puddles

and smiles so big your cheeks hurt. 

Friday, this handsome wildcat-riding guy 

graduated with his Associates Degree! 

He hasn't graduated High School yet,

still has 4 weeks of Seminary to finish before

that happens next month, but somehow WSU doesn't mind. 

How grateful I am for the many educated, selfless men and women, 

the hard-working friends, 

the scholarships and opportunities 

that have blessed Hunter's life!

There aren't words...

just big splashy eyeball puddles,

achy cheeks 

and a heart willing to help 

the next round of brave souls 

who are walking this road less traveled.

Spirit of NUAMES...

The hallways were crowded with students and parents, some waiting in lines, others making their way to the next room at our first NUAMES High School parent teacher conferences when we heard this bubbly voice making it's way down the hall. It was too tiny to see above the crowd but the voice was coming closer and as it did we could tell people were being hugged by it. When it reached us it called our brand new, wet behind the ears, High Schooler by name and introduced itself to us. Deb Hefner, the Director of Business Operations for Northern Utah Academy for Math, Engineering & Science, entered our lives and hearts that afternoon, and we're the fortunate ones.

Later that year her dear husband would pass away. Our hearts ached for her and her beautiful daughter. At the next school dance, our oldest twig happened to see Ms. Hefner and asked her to swing dance. It was a dance to remember as all the students circled around this adored woman and cheered for her always celebrating the moment. These two had a standing agreement to dance together from that night on, including a dance at Ms. Hefner's daughter's wedding reception.

True to her huge heart and giving nature, Ms. Hefner and her daughter (who was in Armenia this night) gave the first "Jim Hefner Spirit of NUAMES" Awards and Scholarships this year to two students in honor of her late husband. How proud he must be of his girls!

How blessed we are to know Deb!

The weekend of hats!

The oldest twig had a weekend to remember and it all involved hats. 

The first hat was bright purple and had a tassel hanging from it with a big number 14. 

There aren't enough thanks we can give to all the people who contributed to this accomplishment. To teachers, counselors, administrators, staff, and those who make the early college scholarship possible... with much emotion and gusto we say, "Thank you!"

This twig is one hard-working dude. I still have trouble imagining that a 17-year-old boy can earn an Associates Degree before graduating High School. Congrats big guy! He wasn't alone either, as a whopping 55% of this High School graduating class earned their Associates Degrees. Amazing, absolutely amazing!

The second hat was a gem-encrusted shiny thing. 


He came home from Prom wearing it.

There's a king in the house. Rumor whispered that an awesome friend (Zach V.) may have had something to do with the nomination. Thanks dude - you rock!

I've been thinking what it means when a girl or boy is crowned Prom Royalty. I believe it means that:
The ones wearing the crowns have the very very best of friends: unselfish, kind, thoughtful, generous friends who see the best in others. Friends who make a difference in others' lives and never even know it.

“Friendship," said Christopher Robin, "is a very comforting thing to have.”
― A.A. Milne


We're crazy about these boys!

A huge shout out to the Hansons who, as the group plans were being made, seemed to get more and more to do. What amazing people, great photographer & cook, and how about that fabulous back yard! 

Just two nights later, the oldest twig was wearing a third hat. 

This one brought with it years of scouting memories: campfires, crazy deep-fried concoctions, night games, friends, blizzards, and service. 

For his High School Capstone Project, he earned his Venturing Trust Award and shared his beliefs and experiences in a presentation about scouting and its purpose of teaching boys to become honorable men.

The most important of these memories are of honorable, devoted men who have taught and shaped him. What a difference they've made! We send to all of you our heartfelt love and gratitude. We will strive to live each day to repay the debt.