April 2016

April was a good month.  We started off the month with conference weekend.  We did our usual tradition of dessert night following the Priesthood Session.  One year ago, Kori came to my house for our traditional dessert night with a RAGING headache.  This year, she laid in my recliner.  What a year.  So... So glad it's this year and not last.  

 Really cute men.  Really good men

Our wonderful stake president was called to be an area Seventy

and we are so proud to be able to say we know him. 

He is one of the greatest men I have known. 

I had the pleasure of receiving a blessing from him wherein he blessed 

me with the wisdom of Solomon and the patience of Job

in raising my children.

I will forever be grateful for those words.

I have REALLY  good kids,  I am very blessed that way.  Like I was thinking the other day about the fact that I cannot recall a time that I have had to really yell at my little kids.  We just don't have to really discipline them.... They are truly the most well behaved children I have ever known.  They practically raise themselves,

but when it comes to these teenagers......I can use all of the wisdom and patience that I can get. 

Elder Bednar came to reorganize our stake.

We met in the Burns Arena

It was a wonderful meeting and he was awesome.

I always thought of him as boring and rigid with perfect hair

but, he was super down to Earth.  He said funny things,  

in a surprising way.  

He taught us some wonderful new ideas.

I loved everything he said and I was so uplifted.

Brian Zullo and his family came over later for Sunday dinner.

It is always fun to see them.  

He is such a good friend to Raleigh. 

I love him for that.

Peyton LOVES soccer.  

This night she was so happy because she scored her first goal

The girls went out to lunch

We celebrated Grant's birthday

He is 16

He is the greatest kid

Parker, the Love of Morgan's Life

got his mission call to....

Durban, South Africa

We can not believe it.

Raleigh broke out all of his mission memorabilia

so that Parker could look at it.

Morgan thinks it is fate.

Surely, it's a sign

She LOVES him

And he is such a good boy.

I am so happy that she loves him because

he is so good.

Even in his Happy Socks

We also were asked to be in 

Paparazzi Accessories Mother's Day Video

They cut SO much out, but it still makes me cry

Here is a photo of Parker. 

I love this picture

 I am so happy with all of the rain that we have had this month.

I really enjoy dark rainy days, especially when I am at work and

I am still wearing my boots and that makes me so delighted. 

A couple of additional thrilling April happenings that are 

insignificant but thrilling none the less

 were finding a wholesale clothing site where I have been able to 

significantly increase my wardrobe

without spending a lot of money.   Two of my favorite things. 

I literally worked my BUTT off at work.

I bonus-ed a ton this month

(Good thing.... because I purchased 4 skirts and added a purse to my collection)

But, I was proud of my results

I found a cute man a home in a 55 and older community

and he was SO excited, he brought me flowers to say

thank you.   It's kind of a thankless job most of the time and so

when people do things like this,  it makes me think

"I think I can continue to do this....  for a while longer."

Raleigh came up with a hair brained idea and I agreed very reluctantly to eat clean for one month.
I have not been receptive to the idea every time he has suggested it before because our lifestyle does not support it at all.   9 out of 10 days when I get off work,  I am literally starving!!
And it is all I can do to run through the Chick-fil-A drive thru and try and not have
all of my fries eaten before I get out of the parking lot.   But he was determined to make it work.

So, I semi-agreed.  With the understanding that HE would be in charge of dinner since he
gets off a bit earlier.  And the plan that he would have this healthy dinner all prepared by the
time I got home.
The first night was great.
The second night however.....  we hadn't discussed our meal ahead of time.   And I felt that there had been a lack of communication.  I got off work and I was of course......STARVING, but thought that I should get something on my way home because if I were to walk in the door and there was NOTHING to eat,  I was going to LOSE. IT. IN. A. MAJOR. WAY

The trip to the store only exacerbated the situation and I hastily made a very poor dinnertime decision and frankly I didn't even care or rather was more or less making a point that I was incapable of making healthy choices in my weakened after work condition.......and as I was driving home,  I was rehearsing...OUTLOUD.... my very angry, resentful speech...
not caring that people were seeing me talking (or rather yelling) to myself  as I was driving along.

"I am not going to do this stupid ass diet if it means I have to go shopping after work and then come home and prepare the meal  (which every one knows healthy meals take no less than 30 minutes to prepare) because I am not that on board with this ridiculous plan anyway because who cares if I eat clean...  it's surely not going to make me any happier.  I doubt I will notice any health improvements and to be honest I have a blistering caffeine headache and I am on the verge of doing bodily harm to someone.  So what is the point of this CRAP???"

 I walked in the door with my Kirkland pot roast and oversized bag of Ruffles in hand

and there was my husband....  still in his work clothes, seasoning the baby new potatoes which were garnishing a plate of tenderloins, laying deliciously next to a broccoli/cauliflower medley

And I was ashamed.

I apologized to him for my behavior
(even though he didn't even know that I had behaved badly)
but, not until I had devoured my entire plate.
Total Deliciousness