Grandma Lila

We have some great family here - aunts, uncles, and cousins.  We love getting together with them.  We frequently get together with the Hills.  From the first time I met Uncle Matthew, he treated me like I was HIS family, not his wife's ex-husband's family.  Matthew IS my uncle and I couldn't love him any more than I already do.  His mom was the same way.  She was so friendly to us.  She was fun to be around, kind, and gentle.  She's been sick for the last couple of years and last night she peacefully passed on, surrounded by family who loved her.

We'll miss Grandma Lila.  Family dinners won't be the same.  She had a great sense of humor.  We laughed so much when we took turns trying on her wig after her last chemo. lol  I don't think I ever heard her say anything unkind or unpleasant.  She was just what a grandma should be.  I'm so glad that my cousins had such a great grandma, and I'm also glad that they were willing to share her with us.

Everything my uncle is, Grandma Lila was, too.  So welcoming, loving, and generous.  She lives on in him and all of the other people who's lives she's touched.  She will be missed greatly!  But we are so happy that she is free from her ailing body now, has rest from her earthly trials, and we look forward to the day when we will all be together again.

We love you, Grandma Lila!

Excel-lent

In January, Acadia participated in the Excel testing at her school. This is to determine whether the student should be placed (or kept) in advanced classes. All year, Acadia has been in Excel classes for all of her academics, so it was no surprise when we got the results this weekend that she qualifies for the program. What was pretty cool to learn, however, is that she tested at the level of an average 9th grade student at the end of their 6th month! She tested very high in all of the areas that they covered.

We are very pleased with her! She loves to read and to learn, and we're grateful that she has personally chosen to make her education a priority. :)

Good job, Cadi!

Retail Therapy Always Works!

lol... Actually, I don't think I was in "need" of anything, but since I definitely did some "retailing" this week, I'm loving the euphoria of it all!

You may recall how my camera died last fall. It was TRAGIC! I LOVED my camera! I always had such wonderful compliments on the photos I took with it. I always wanted to have it with me to capture all the moments I witnessed. I would look at something - anything: a field, a tree, a house, a barn, a dog, a road, etc. and I would think of different shots I could get of it, how different angles would look, what I would focus on and what I would just leave in the background, etc. I felt like a photographer, even though I really didn't know what I was doing. I have never taken a photography class, I just simply loved taking pictures. And so much of that was because I loved how my camera captured them.

I wanted to replace it, but we were on a tight budget and couldn't afford to get what I really would have liked to get. Instead, I got a smaller, compact camera that is decent but just not what I was used to. My interest in taking pictures died. If you were to count how many pictures I've taken in the last 6 months, and compare it with the same months in any of the recent years, you would see just how true that is. But it was a camera - a camera we could afford, a camera that worked.

This year is going to be big. We have so many wonderful things planned for our family. I want to capture those moments and keep them forever. I want a camera I love. I dread going on any of these trips using my current camera. What a waste! When will we get back to Yosemite? Or DisneyWorld? How many chances do I get to take pictures of Half Dome or Cinderella's Castle? How many chances do I get to take pictures of my children with their cousins in such a beautiful setting or with the Princesses that they share names with? If I'm going to be taking pictures, I want them to be good! I want to take the best ones I can and as many as I can, not just snap a half-hearted shot because I'm uninspired with the lack of ability in the camera I'm holding.

So... I bit the bullet. I handed over all future "spending money" or "gift money" allotted to me in the next 6 months to help pay for a camera that I know I will love. And yesterday, after a bit of research and playing with the floor model, I ordered my new Canon sx30 is. It should arrive in 2-3 weeks and I. Cannot. Wait!!!! This camera is comparable to what I had before - but better! It has nearly 3x the zoom that my old camera had - and 5x the zoom my current camera has. The megapixels are larger, too, though I've never had a problem with the lesser MP, so long as they were at least 8 or so. The modes are better, with so many more options, and then there are the attachments... All the bells and whistles I can add to this camera... filters, lenses, flash, etc. I am so excited! Since we will be going to Yosemite later this spring, I know I will love using my telephoto lens and macro lenses, the polarizing filter will be awesome, as well as the others I've ordered, too. I originally planned to wait, but we decided that if we were going to get them anyway, we might as well get it all now so we'll have them for all of our trips (including my romp next month with girlfriends to attend Women's Conference in Provo). So, I went a little crazy! I didn't order external flash yet, but that isn't something I would use as much for the places we're going and things we're doing, so I don't mind waiting longer for that. But everything else will be here within the next month!

I've already been daydreaming about pictures of my garden, kids, activities, etc. I have already thought about what kinds of pictures I hope to get in Yosemite, at the beach, and of course at DisneyWorld. I feel so much better knowing that I'll be able to capture our memories in a way that will be satisfying to me and accurately reflect the joy and pleasure we'll be experiencing this year. It makes me even more excited about this year and all we'll be doing! I can't wait to share my new camera and it's photos with you!!! :)

Lots going on but nothing to blog about.

Do my fellow bloggers ever feel that way? I am so stinkin' busy all the time. And I love my life (for the most part). I am involved with things I am happy about and feel strongly about. But when it comes time to blog, I got nothin'.

There are things happening in life and definitely in the world that I could share my feelings about, but sometimes I think there isn't really anything to say. What do you say? It's all been said before and we know how we all feel.

My kids are constantly saying and doing things that crack me up and I think that I should post it, but I'm in the car or busy doing something else so I don't get to it right away and by the time I have the time, I can't remember what it was they said.

Sometimes I see, read, or hear something that really touches me and in my mind I start thinking about all these great things I could say about it. Sometimes I plan out a blog post, sometimes it's just me pondering it, but again, when I get the chance to sit down and blog it... it's just not there anymore.

I think that part of it is that I'm busy. Part of it is that I'm tired. I feel like Bilbo, "I feel... thin. Sort of stretched, like... butter scraped over too much bread. I need a holiday." And thankfully, I do have one coming up, in a little over a month. (Women's Conference!)
But hopefully I'll find away to get my blogging mojo back before then. ;)

Days are Numbered

Acadia had an orthodontist appointment yesterday and she finally heard the words she has been waiting for the last 16 months to hear...

It's time to take the braces off!!!

But she has to wait until they could get her in for a long enough period of time. And it has to be done in two seperate visits. So the first visit will be at the end of this month and the final visit will be in the first week of April (during Spring Break). To say she's excited is a bit of an understatement. lol

So this is the last month of this phase of braces. And in another year or so, the next phase will begin, but for at least awhile, she will enjoy having a brace-free face. :)

Rori Cuteness

Conversation Rori and I had last night...


Me: Aurora Louise! I want to squeeze you!

Rori: Not this time.

Me: What time then?

Rori: Tomorrow

Me: I can squeeze you tomorrow?

Rori: Sure.


Wait a minute or two...


Me: Aurora Louise...

Rori: Nope, not this time.

Me: Is it tomorrow?

Rori: Yep.

Me: Today is tomorrow?

Rori: Yep.

Me: Then I want to squeeze you!

Rori: Not this time.

Me: But you said it's tomorrow and you said I could squeeze you "tomorrow".

Rori: Not this tomorrow.


She was playing a game on the computer and didn't want me to bug her. I did anyway. lol She was being SO CUTE, I couldn't help it so I DID squeeze her

More Progress

Another month has gone by, so it's time to check back in to see how I'm doing with the goals I set earlier this year. I feel good! I'm making progress, but there is still room to do better. Let's review:

1.Get Healthy - Okay, this has gotten a lot better in the last two weeks. I started to find the motivation and now I've been working out in the mornings before everyone gets up. I just use one of my dvds, but it is going great! I'm also tracking my eating and between the two, I've lost 5 pounds in the last two weeks. Just got to keep this up! :)

2.Get Organized - Still going well. I've still been getting my house clean every morning and each week I get at least another area or two uncluttered.

3.Increase Spirituality - Still going really well. I love studying the scriptures each day. I'll sit down to read for 20 minutes and keep reading for an hour just because I'm enjoying it so much. The spirit that accompanies the scriptures is beautiful and I love having it a part of my daily life.

4.Read the Silmarillion - Slowing down here. I need to pick it back up, but I think most of it is Ryan's fault anyway because he has been working so much lately, we haven't had time to read together. ;) It's something I'm continuing to do though, I know I'll finish it before the year is over. Oh, and now Cadi is reading it - she's almost caught up to me already so I need to step on it! lol

5.Record more songs on the piano - Ugh. Nothing yet. I need to practice more! I need to start making more of an effort. :S

6.Manage money and save for vacations - This is still going really well, in fact, it's great! We recently booked our trip to DisneyWorld and the best part is that we paid for it all in full! We still have other things we are saving for but we're on track to meet those easily. I'm so grateful and feel very blessed that things are working out so well. :)

7.I won't be 100% successful - I'm so glad that I've kept this in mind - and still do. I am not doing perfectly at my goals, but I'm just going to keep going because it's not about being perfect, it's about being a better person as I try to reach my goals.

I feel that overall I'm still progressing so I'm hopeful as I look ahead to another month. I hope my progress report is even better then! :)