Another Aubri Picture

Sam took some photos of Aubri a couple of weeks ago, and I kept meaning to post this one on here for my journal but never got around to it. She looks like she is sick of us taking her picture, doesn't she?

Venting

I don't usually like to make politically statements on my blog, but after reading so many articles about the Girl Scouts of American, I have to just vent.

Years ago when Jenni was small, I was one of her Girl Scout leaders. I thought it was a great organization and since I had been a Girl Scout many years ago, I was all for it. When it came time for the cookie drive, I had my eyes opened a bit.

I was in charge of collecting, storing and distributing all the cookies for our troop. My living room was literally packed with boxes of cookies to the ceiling. It was crazy! We spent many hours as a troop and me personally selling and accounting for all those cookies. And do you know what we got for all our hard work? $.50 per box for our troop. At the time the cookies were selling for $3.00 per box. Where did all the other money go? I started to dig deeper and over the years I discovered that Girl Scouts is nothing that I thought they were. They have a very liberal agenda and the values they spoke about at national conventions were nothing close to mine.

Since that time I have not bought any more cookies. It may sound radical to some of you, but what they are doing is just plain wrong. Perhaps you are thinking "just one box of thin mints won't do any harm". I disagree.

Today I came across a web site that made my blood boil. Here is the link:

http://www.100questionsforthegirlscouts.org/100/

What kind of organization for young girls promotes this kind of stuff? It makes me sick. All I could think about while reading this was "secret combinations". To make it even worse, they are sending out little girls to further their agenda. Pathetic.

Our children are being assaulted on every side and it is really time we just say no, we are not going to stand for this any longer. It may seem like a small thing, but remember, "By small and simple things are great things are brought to pass..."

So, while I think little girls in Girl Scout uniforms are adorable, I will not be purchasing any cookies when you knock on my door :)

To Grandmother's House

On Saturday Tara, Aubri and I headed to Boise help my mom and to visit with Dayna. It was Aubri's first road trip and I have to say that little gal was a complete angel. She slept the entire way only woke up when we stopped so she could be fed, stretch, eat and have her diaper changed. I still can't believe what a good little baby Tara has. She is VERY lucky. Dayna and my mom gobbled her up and it was fun to "show her off" :) On the last evening of our trip we remembered that we wanted a four generation picture, so this picture is what we got. As you can tell, it was taken at the end of a four day, activity packed week and we all look a little haggard, but hey, we got the picture :)

Tara and I managed to get everything done on my mom's list and when we left we had her freezer packed full of goodies and meals. I enjoy knowing that I can still help out in a small way even though I live far away.

The last photo is of me giving Aubri a bath in Great Grandma's sink. I love how that little girl just chills whenever she gets near water. She LOVES it. She is literally resting her chin on my hand and the rest of her is completely limp. All except her little fists that is ;) And don't you just love her chubby cheeks? My mom and Dayna both agree that they are definitely Williamson cheeks. All of my children with the exception of Jenni had those cheeks. Makes you just want to squeeze them!

Joshers

I was out running errands this morning and started thinking about Josh and what a great son he is. I then began to realize that in a few short months, he will be gone from our home on a mission. And while yes, I am happy that he will be moving forward to the next level of his life, I will miss him. I will miss listening to him play the piano. I will miss him coming upstairs to my bedroom around 10 pm each night to talk about his day with me. I will miss cleaning up his hot chocolate mugs - okay, maybe not that one ;) but, I will miss him. Here are some things you may or may not know about him:

1. He has a wicked sense of humor. This kid is SILLY. The picture above is from Halloween 2011. Yes, he actually wore that to LDSBC. A while ago I was talking to him about how lonely he will be on his mission and how he will miss me. His reply? "I have a large enough ego that I will never be alone..."

2. He gets up at 5:30 am to get catch a bus to go to college and does not usually get home until around 6 pm at night on the days he has school (Monday, Wednesday and Friday). He is taking a full load - 16 credits and earned a 4.0 last term, enabling him to make the Dean's List.

3. He also works 30 plus hours a week on his days "off" from school (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) as a delivery driver for Mark's business, Mattress Dealzz.

4. He volunteers at an elementary school in SLC in a Kindergarten class. It started out being a requirement for one of his classes last term, but he liked it so much, he still goes and helps out the teacher.

5. He takes his church calling very seriously and I must say, does a great job. He is straddling two worlds right now; after high school and before mission. Yet he still manages to has put his whole heart into his calling. On Sundays his day is just as full as other days - 7:30 am Mission Prep, 9:00 am church, 12 pm passes Sacrament to shut-ins in the ward, 1pm, presidency meeting and then he finally gets to rest...unless he is needed for fast offerings. His Sundays are as full as mine!

6. He passed out Valentines to students at college yesterday. Not just the students he knows, but to everyone he saw. He told me that people LOVED it.

7. He has a soft spot in his heart for our cats, Maddie and Mr Scribbles. He lets them sleep with him at night and the sit on his lap when he actually has time to play his X-Box. He told me that they had both better be alive when he gets back. Well, one will be here for sure...the other? She may be sent to kitty heaven before too long...

8. He consumes enormous amounts of hot chocolate. Not just in the winter months, but all year round. Mission care packages will be easy...chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate.

Aubri's Blessing

Sunday Aubri Roo was blessed by her father. It was a sweet and touching blessing and I am grateful for a good son-in-law who honors his priesthood and was able to perform this ordinance for his little girl.

Jenni bought the dress and I have to say it was darling. The pictures don't really do it justice, but you can kind of get the idea.



And...doesn't Tara look great for having given birth just two short months ago???

Dinner And a Squirt Bottle

Tonight we had our birthday dinner for Emma. We were missing a couple of people, but we managed to still have a good time. Samantha was sick, Josh came late after work and Austin had church duties to attend to and came later also.

Jenni had told me about a game the Badgers play for their birthdays and I thought we would give it a try. You place 20 question in a jar and have the birthday person pick out one question at a time and then choose someone to answer the question. If they get the answer wrong, the birthday person squirts them with water. Some of the question were "What is my favorite color?" or "If I was stranded on an island who would I want with me?" etc.

Emma got a little carried away with the squirt bottle and after a bit, Christopher retaliated and Cordell held her down haha...it was great.

Here are some of the photos from the evening...

A Camera And A 13 Year Old...

Yesterday Emma asked me if she could take the camera to school for a "science project". I had a feeling that would not be the only pictures taken, and when she came home and I examined the SD card, I was not disappointed. Here are some of the best shots...

You may notice most of the pictures include her best friends, Casey Ann and Ashely. As I was looking at the photos, I could not believe how much Emma and Ashley look alike. They really could be twins! Spooky...

The Big 13

Our baby girl is a teenager as of today. Emma is now thirteen...where did the time go? Seems like yesterday I was in labor in the middle of the Super Bowl :) Here are some of my favorite things about this little (big) girl:

She is very determined and won't let anything get in her way when she makes up her mind. We often call her "Miss Bee in Her Bonnet".

She loves to socialize with friends and family. She probably gets this from her sisters :) Her calendar is usually fuller than mine!

I never have to worry about her grades or getting assignments in on time. Never. She stresses about this all on her own...

She is a natural athlete -- Any sport she tries, she excels at--especially soccer.

She is very tender-hearted concerning spiritual things.

She loves her family, especially when they come to cheer her on at her games.

She loves being an aunt to Aubri Roo, and tries to change as many diapers as possible as long as they aren't messy ;)

She loves to eat...especially healthy food. When she was small and we would go to get fast food, she would always ask for a "salad" kids meal, instead of a burger kids meal.

She has a great sense of design. Whether its fashion or scrap booking, she is a pro.

She is an excellent cook. She makes killer eggs just like Greg and Tara. She fills them full of sauteed vegetables and lots of cheese -- Yum!

She is beautiful inside and out. But don't tell her that she is beautiful, because we don't want it going to her head ;)

(Tomorrow night is the big family get-together and I should have some pictures to post)