Waiting Paid Off

Monday, Tuesday and Wednsday this week I dejunked and sifted through years worth of clutter.  I waited an entire year to make this happen.  Because, I assigned most of my daily maintenance to my children, which left me with about eight hours each day (I still had to go to the bank with Maddie, take the boys to activity days, run to Walmart to prepare for Maddie's party and take the children to get their teeth cleaned -- on two separate days) to make my project happen.  Maddie was by far the best subcontractor, but the older dinner crew helped when they were home.  I over heard Eddie accuse Molly of his same infraction, "Are you hiding to avoid labor?"  She responded, "I don't know what labor is; I'm hiding to avoid you shooting me with NERF darts."  I acutally didn't make them work, because that totally ruins my vibe and slows me down.  HA!  Spoiler alert:  It's SO much easier to not included the children and teach them to work.

Here is the finished playroom -- sans a picture of Molly (these were taken in November of 2014, hence Baby Ryan.). "How can this be my playroom?  My picture isn't in it."  I ordered one the next morning.  

I also took a YouTube tutorial about washing Cabbage Patch dolls, and put the doll bath to the test.  This is my doll from Christmas of 1985, and she looks like new.  Molly loves her.  I love them both. 

Twinning poses.

I moved to the basement and found this little note left by Andy years ago, "POOP."  I did use a magic eraser and scrub it off.  Thank you for tagging the piano light, Andy.  The basement is clean and nice.  And the final day I organized the kitchen.  Each of the rooms feel different to me, but the average user, AKA the rest of the family probably can't tell a difference.  I'm still smug, even though I'm the only one.

Austin was in the paper again.  They sure use him as the face of the school board.  He's getting used to it by growing a tough skin.  I think he's dreamy.

Saturday we deep cleaned the pergola and pool deck.  Austin held his annual office party.  All of the party conditions were perfect.  Food, friends, music, weather and fun made for a lovely event.

After everyone left, Austin and I floated then invited our little friends to join.  

Sunday was father's day.  We started a restful with a the youngest three, that are not so young any more, coming in to be with us.

After breakfast, CFM, and church we were home to host dinner with for the father and grandfather, a family walk and a few family games.

Molly's bubble braid slayed.

Our nice father and his six youngest.  Austin talked with both Andy and Meg today.  Just this evening I found Austin with his head down on our bed.  He told me he had a list a million miles long.  That's just like him -- exhausted from being the best dad in the world.  His love for us is proven daily by his work ethic.  He's doing just what Andy professed, "When you love the people around you, you work hard."  Here is another quote about fatherhood that we found while reading our summer novel, The Trumpet of the Swan: "A cygnet at last! I am a father, with all the pleasant duties and awesome responsibilities of fatherhood."

I'm old and wore a bow in my hair to church today.  Dearest Natalie told me that I'm not quite too old for it.

Meg's babies are the size of limes this week.  She measures three weeks ahead of schedule, which is exactly right.  She's filling her time in her little home improving the space in her apartement and the fleshy tables of her heart.  Her phone calls home are a highlight each day.  On a farming note, their chickens are staring to lay.  

Andy shared an experience that started like this: "I was given my assignment.  Then I was praying and pondering, praying and pondering, and praying and pondering.  I said a prayer and the revelation started flowing."  

He also told Nick, "You're going to make a GOATED missionary because of what you're already doing.  You'll fall into line.  I'll keep you accountable as you report to me your key indicators."

And a direct quote to Maddie, "Maddie!  You're tan!"

La Primera Semana de Junio

I hardly have pictures from this week.  Nick and Maddie swam every morning from 6-8am.  Maddie taught swimming lessons from 9-11am.  Nick played tennis from 9-noon then worked from 12:30-4:30pm.  Maisie worked with Austin 7-5pm everyday.  Eddie, Ryan and Molly read novels, swam and deviced.  Here are extras that happened.  

I sent Maddie's birthday invite.  If you're in town, you're invited!

Thursday Cora and I went to the temple.

Saturday morning there was a pile of kids and blankets all over the family room floor.

Then we hiked the lava tubes.  It had been ten years since we hiked that trail. Lava Tubes 2013

It's still cold and dark in the tunnels.

Austin figured out how to photograph it at least.  Molly loved the entire excursion.  She talked the entire way.  Ryan skipped.  Eddie explored.  Maddie didn't trip.  Nick teased.  Maisie sang.  I'm sure the fellow hikers just loved the din of our group.

Nick's new car.  He needs a name.

Saturday night we put on another stake dance.  The venue was the Sedona church building.  The views could not be beat!  Look at these lucky youth!

(That's Nick in the bright salmon and white shoes in the center of the circle.)

Cute Maddie is my favorite.

Sunday morning I over heard the makings of a new game.  Molly coined it, "Feeding Tube."  Nick is under all those blankets and pillows.  Eddie passed food and drink down that pool noodle.  Nick giggled.  Great game. 

(I've noticed that when I upload from Facebook the pictures go bad.  Now I'm just screen shotting and uploading directly.  I hope this new method works.)

Andy simply reported that their mission will have 60 baptisms this month.  He said that theirs is the top for their area.  He also said that it was transfers week, so several trips to the airport and several exchanges kept him really busy.

Melijah are home safely.  We missed them all week.  When they come home, it's as if they live here and were never meant to leave.  Her babies are growing happily, and hopefully in the next few days she'll find out gender! YAY!

And Then, It Was Girls' Camp

Lucky for us Monday was Memorial Day, so we stayed home.  Nick won Catan by a lot.  

Maisie decided to make doughnuts.  She's getting better at it.  We were all pretty excited.

Our CFM included the story of Jesus washing his apostles' feet.  I gave each person a pedicure.  This was actually a lovely FHE.

Here are Maisie's hobbit feet (size 5) and Molly's Elder wand.

Then Tuesday came and all the camp food prep began every moment for the rest of the week.  Here are 10 shoulder roasts smoking.

Here is part of the food.

Grandma Kim sent Maisie the most darling graduation card.

It took 9 crock pots for dinner.

More stuff.

Molly's letter to Andy this week was sweet.  I think she's realizing that she's not the baby forever.  "This is Andy holding me when I was a baby."

And then we went to camp.  Here are the YCLs leading the camp in songs.  

Maisie and Makena were helpers.  Meg and Elijah drove up with all the dinner food and were our guest speakers.  They shared beautiful stories of friendship and testimony.  They radiated testimony and the results of covenant keeping.  Maddie vibed so hard at camp.  She sang every song and won every game.

Dinner.

Molly's acro dance rectial of course was the same day as camp.  We arrived home in time to get her ready.  Austin readily agreed to dance in the parent dance with her.  Of course Grandma B. came to watch.  Maisie commented, "Ah, Grandma came to watch Dad's dance recital."  We all laughed so hard.  She smirked back, "I tried to get him to dance in the Nutcracker for years.  I'm so glad he's finally on stage."  

For some inexplicable reason, Maisie owns green eye liner.  We just had to make that happen.

Daddy/Daughter Dance

Molly's Dance

Once hope these ladies were in my bed before I was.  We cozily watched the Cinderella cartoon.

Sunday's rest consisted of gaming, walking and talking.

And sleeping.

Elder Babcock's call this week was sweet.  I asked him his favorite song, and he replied, "The Day Dawn is Breaking, from April 2023 Saturday Morning General Conference."  Meg giggled immediately at that response.  These were his best quotes:

"That's when I'm happiest.  When I'm working the hardest."

"I'm all in."

"Unhappy missionaries are just lazy."

"If you love the people around you, you'll work hard."  

This big boy glows from every ounce of his soul.  I love him so much.

Maycember

Graduation week is upon us!  But first, these are two examples of what my neglected younger children were up to.

Molly drew me a labeled picture of the candy she wants for her birthday.

Eddie and Molly are perfecting their acro-yoga moves.  Ryan spots them.  (That poor, little girl.)

Maisie's scholarship banquet proved very unfruitful, though she applied for several local options.  It's that FASFA bit that kills her opportunity.  I guess no of the benefactors know that she's paying for every bit of college herself.  

VALEDICTORIAN! (She deserves it.  We are so proud of her.)

We did stop to go to park.  I suppose my children are way too old to be apart of the park group, but I'm the only one who organizes it -- if I don't send out the texts and flyers, no one comes.  And, there are several women who need the out.  This puts my in a very hard place of being very old and on the fringe myself.

Because Maisie didn't get to run track, we have spent this entire semester working out together.  I wait for her to get home, Maddie joins us, and we love it.  I am so focused that I'm not very fun.  They sure giggle and work hard together.

Wednesday night the eight MUHS graduates from our stake gathered and held a little party.  I put together a few charcuterie boards.  Let's just say that my offering was accepted.

These two ran and played all over the yard.  I had to remind them not to run through the sitting area.

Here is Maisie and her display.  I suppose this is the last "project" for school that I will ever do for her.  She was so worth my entire day and every creative juice.  Maisie never pretends to be someone else.  She knows how to vibe at a high frequency and also takes time to vibe at a low one.  This girl.  Oh!  We had to finish writing her speech, because she hadn't started it and it was due in three hours.  That's what we did all morning.

New born baby, darling Meg, flew in for a week of festivities.  We sat at the dinner table, and she handed me this!  She's pregnant with TWINS!  No one could contain their excitement, so naturally, we had to share the news with the grandparents.

They were pretty tickled about being great-greandparents.

Seesters.

Friday was all graduation prep and ceremony. Let me note, that Maisie has had plenty of time to do all things, but she's spent up to eight hours each day playing her guitar.  AHHHH!  And I let her.  I love hearing that constant hum of music that exudes from her fingertips and soul.

We did stop to read and connect with Heavenly Father.  

Here is the graduate finally decorating her cap, because she needed to get ready one hour later.

All the while, Meg entertained the siblings in the pool, by the piano, and on the floor playing games.

Then it was time to get ready.  We thought we were very clever about this pants suit.  

All the bling.

The final product.  I sewed her lei and tied it around her cap.  I wish I had done the same for Meg a few weeks earlier.

Nick drove Maise to graduation (He took he driver's test earlier that morning and passed, so I sent him to drop her off!  I'm so happy he's a driver!).  We then had 15 minutes to get the rest of us ready.  Once at the school we were treated like royalty.  Because Austin is on the school board, we had special parking, we were escorted out onto the field, given brilliant seats and basked in the ONE perk for his stress, weekly political slandering, and sheer busyness.  I'm not saying we deserve it, but we do donate our father to the community, so it was a delight to be recognized.

Then she and Makena, her best friend and co-valedictorian, walked onto the field first.  She was the most excited I've ever seen her.  

Her speech was sensational. Start at minute 50, and you'll get to hear her. Maisie's Valedictorian Speech

Austin stood on the stand a shook the hands of all the grads.   

We paused to take a picture and pretend like we have time for each other.

The family.

The grandparents.

The parents.

We missed Andy and Elijah.

My fiery fairy.

Best friends and in August roommates at BYU.

Big girl and little girl.

The end.  Maisie came in at 2:15am from the school party.  She won pots and pans, a desk and a waffle iron.  She said that she felt like a celebrity.  Several of her classmates raved about her speech and her goodness.  This girl was on CLOUD 9!  What a sweet ending to childhood.

Saturday was just stopped.  We swam and sat.

Sunday was Grandpa's 78th birthday.  I made him a raw key lime pie.  He seemed pleased with his party.

Do you see his hand holding onto Maddie's?  He's often holding our hands and hearts as he quietly teaches and loves.  What a tender mercy that we live just by them.