Easter tradition...

A few days ago we got this facebook message 

from our missionary and his companion.

We've loved this Easter tradition in our family

but we can't remember who we got it from.

Was it Darla or Stephanie?

Thanks, whoever you are!

<3

Like Hunter often says,

we all need Jesus. 

Happy Easter

"He is not here: for he is risen"

San Fran with honors...

Zac needed to take an honors class for one of his scholarships. 

The honors class that was highly recommended to him 

came complete with a field trip to San Francisco!

The class was called "The Beat Goes On" 

and the field trip was over spring break. 

Zac was awesome to send pictures each day!

Here are some of my favorites. =D

The Class Description says "From On the Road to the Summer of Love to Woodstock with several stops in between, this class explores the events, trends and personalities that illuminate this explosive time in America. Central to the class is a “field trip” to San Francisco where the students explore many of its neighborhoods that are on the forefront during these decades of change—places like North Beach, Berkeley and Haight-Ashbury. The class will also examine what of this revolution in thought and action has endured, as well as what has not, into Twenty-first Century America."

I believe one of the objectives of honors classes is 

to acquaint students with diversity of thoughts and actions. 

Some of the class experiences were a little too diverse 

for Zac's liking but he's an optimistic guy 

and found lots of things to love. 

This picture's for you, Hunter. <3

Zac found Alcatraz's audio tour quite interesting.

This is one of the two professors (taking a 360 photo) who led the field trip. Thanks men!

A memorable experience for sure.

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.   ;)

Mounds to rivers to floods...

The rivers and ponds that threatened our little vegetable garden plants became floods. It rained for days and rained HARD Saturday night! We were getting ready to hit the hay when that sweet warning voice of the spirit said "window wells." I asked the twigs if they'd look through the windows with a flash light into the window wells. The goal was to see rocks in the bottom of the window wells - not water!

They came back and reported no rocks in sight. Yikes! Hunter started coming up with ideas like wildfire - from tarps and buckets to siphons of all sorts! Soon, everyone was coming up with ideas, then improving on them, and a plan was hatched.

It wasn't pretty but it was in the nick of time! Water got to within 1/4 inch of coming in.

It was our own little miracle and we're beyond grateful!

Every Sunday I love hearing this beautiful prayer and partaking of the sacramental ordinance...Oh God, the Eternal Father, we ask thee in the name of thy Son, Jesus Christ, to bless and sanctify this water to the souls of all those who drink of it, that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they do always remember Him, that they may have His Spirit to be with them, Amen.

I testify of a loving God who blesses us, His children, with His Spirit of warning, instruction, comfort, and peace.  God is good!!    :)

Mounds and rivers...

We'd been hardening off our vegetable starts for a few weeks and Mother's Day was in two days so I approached the twigs and the Mr. about helping me plant our little garden for Mother's Day.   :)

It was a win - win!

As I was marking locations for each plant, I felt/heard the spirit whisper the word "mounds."

I shared the "mounds" instructions with the Mr. and twigs and we got everything planted, staked the tall homemade wire cages around the tomato plants, and were done lickety split. Yahoo!

Then the heavens opened up and it rained...and rained...and rained.

So far, the "mounds" have kept our little vegetable plants up and out of the rivers and ponds that have filled the garden. Thank you Heaven - we're so grateful!!   :)

A whole city of rocks...

We lucked into a sunshiny day in January and had a captivating audio book to listen to (Okay for Now by Schmidt) so we took off to find some rock cause you know, we love rock. 

I was grateful that the girlie was willing to take the hit and "walk" the dog.    :)

We went to the City of Rocks (Castle Rocks) and were joined by Scott and April. It was like food for my soul.

This was the entrance to a "pre-historic human shelter." Places like this stick with me, leaving me hugely grateful each night for a soft bed, warm blankets, and a roof over my head.

The back side of the shelter enticed the twigs to do some bouldering/scrambling.

Figuring out the best way to the top...

 

...where they could hurl ice sheets off the boulder.

Scottie and the Mr. swapped Bishopric stories.

My favorite story, however, was Scottie's interpretation of pictographs he shared in a Idaho lava tube a few years back with a pictograph expert. If you get a chance to ask him about it, do. It's a hoot! 

A park ranger found these pictographs just a few years ago at the City of Rocks (Castle Rocks).

Loved taking a ramble out yonder with these people!   :)