Last night we had our first real planning meeting as a group of youth leaders for this 99 Day Book of Mormon Challenge/SLC Conference Trip. One of the big things discussed is exactly when do we want to leave and when do we want to come back. After much discussion, we decided that it really will be better to have an extra day there to make it even more memorable for the youth, then to cut it short and have it feel too rushed. So we are suggesting that we leave Thursday morning and come back on Monday. That means the kids miss 3 days of school. But it also means we get to have all of Friday to do lots of other things. Some of the ideas are to see the Testaments movie, the Joseph Smith display, of course Temple Square, etc.
We actually haven't gotten to the "activities" part of the planning. Except that we have decided we need to request our tickets for a conference session and the Testaments movie so we can all go as one big group. The other big discussion was the Bishop's idea that the girls should all stay in a motel while the boys stay at our "contacts" houses. All us girls LOVE the idea!!! lol Now we're double checking the budget to see if we can.
We gave the youth the complete breakdown of their reading assignments last night. They were happy to receive them. It is great to see them excited about this. They are reading, they are interested, they are looking forward to it all. I really think this will help to stregthen their testimony of the Book of Mormon.
I updated my link with the reading assignments, I now have up to Day 15 on there. I will keep adding the days until I'm done. But be patient with me, it takes awhile and I will need to take a break sometimes. But I will hopefully have it all up within a day or two.
Thursday, June 30, 2005
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
My dog thinks he's a hobbit.
I went into the kitchen and Simon was begging to be fed (as usual). I reminded him that he had already been fed. He looked at me and I could just hear him thinking, "Yes, I've had one feeding, but what about second feeding?"
Sorry dog, you're not a hobbit.
Sorry dog, you're not a hobbit.
Monday, June 27, 2005
An added bonus
This weekend, Acadia and I went out to scout out all the yard sales. We found a couple of really good buys, the best one was the ping pong table with paddles and balls for $20. SCORE! Ryan loves me now. ;)
The added bonus is that I paid for it using a "marked bill". Have you heard of Where's George? If you look at your currency, you may come across a bill that has been stamped with this "Where's George" website info. We have come across three. You go to the website, enter the serial number and it tells you where it's been and you can check in to see where it's going. So far, we've never seen any updates to the bills we pass on. But now...we have! It was just the town over, but still fun to track. Hopefully the person they pass it on to will log their info too. I just eventually want to see one make it's way to some state out on the East Coast.
The added bonus is that I paid for it using a "marked bill". Have you heard of Where's George? If you look at your currency, you may come across a bill that has been stamped with this "Where's George" website info. We have come across three. You go to the website, enter the serial number and it tells you where it's been and you can check in to see where it's going. So far, we've never seen any updates to the bills we pass on. But now...we have! It was just the town over, but still fun to track. Hopefully the person they pass it on to will log their info too. I just eventually want to see one make it's way to some state out on the East Coast.
Sunday, June 26, 2005
The Challenge
Today we revealed a huge challenge with a huge reward to the youth in our ward. It's the Book of Mormon challenge. We are asking the youth (and leaders) to take the challenge to read the entire Book of Mormon in 99 days. Why 99 days? Well, because in 99 days the date will be Sunday, October 2. And on that day, we want to be reading the final chapters of the Book of Mormon with all of our youth on TEMPLE SQUARE!!!
We are taking the youth to Salt Lake City for General Conference in October. And from now til then, we are preparing for it (spiritually) by reading the Book of Mormon daily. We gave the kids a chart and calendar to keep track of their progress. They each got a Book of Mormon so they can mark in it, take notes in it, take it to Girl's/Scout Camp, etc. We gave them the first two days worth of reading assignments and will have the rest in a couple of days.
The reason why we didn't have it all for them today is because we are doing more than just telling them to read from X to X. We are also telling them a scripture to mark from that reading and including a quote and/or question to go along with that reading as well, to encourage them to really think about it, apply it, etc. And in order to get all that info, we are doing our homework! I've been assigned 11 days worth of scriptures which I need to find quotes/questions for and also choose which scriptures we'll mark. And I need to have it all done by tomorrow. I guess I should get started on it!
We are planning on taking 4-5 days for the trip which will require the kids to miss two days of school, but already the parents are expressing encouragement. They realize that this is going to be an amazing experience for the youth. We are going to have our first real planning meeting this Wednesday. We are going to do all we can to get tickets in the Conference Center for one of the sessions. We have also thrown around other ideas of what to see/do while there. Some include seeing one of the BYU games (we have connections), getting one of the youth motivational speakers to meet us, seeing Legacy, going to do Baptisms on Friday night, possibly even getting a member of the General YM or YW presidency to talk to us.
The youth are very excited! We also made sure to tell all the youth who weren't there, so they can start with us today too. To keep the youth motivated, we will be having special spotlights and such on Sundays and some Wednesdays. Sometimes we'll have someone dressed in character discussing something we are reading at that point, sometimes we'll have little handouts, sometimes a quiz or other type of activity. It's going to be quite involved and require alot of extra work to coordinate, but it will be so worth it!
I feel so lucky to be able to participate in it, this is going to be a great experience!
We are taking the youth to Salt Lake City for General Conference in October. And from now til then, we are preparing for it (spiritually) by reading the Book of Mormon daily. We gave the kids a chart and calendar to keep track of their progress. They each got a Book of Mormon so they can mark in it, take notes in it, take it to Girl's/Scout Camp, etc. We gave them the first two days worth of reading assignments and will have the rest in a couple of days.
The reason why we didn't have it all for them today is because we are doing more than just telling them to read from X to X. We are also telling them a scripture to mark from that reading and including a quote and/or question to go along with that reading as well, to encourage them to really think about it, apply it, etc. And in order to get all that info, we are doing our homework! I've been assigned 11 days worth of scriptures which I need to find quotes/questions for and also choose which scriptures we'll mark. And I need to have it all done by tomorrow. I guess I should get started on it!
We are planning on taking 4-5 days for the trip which will require the kids to miss two days of school, but already the parents are expressing encouragement. They realize that this is going to be an amazing experience for the youth. We are going to have our first real planning meeting this Wednesday. We are going to do all we can to get tickets in the Conference Center for one of the sessions. We have also thrown around other ideas of what to see/do while there. Some include seeing one of the BYU games (we have connections), getting one of the youth motivational speakers to meet us, seeing Legacy, going to do Baptisms on Friday night, possibly even getting a member of the General YM or YW presidency to talk to us.
The youth are very excited! We also made sure to tell all the youth who weren't there, so they can start with us today too. To keep the youth motivated, we will be having special spotlights and such on Sundays and some Wednesdays. Sometimes we'll have someone dressed in character discussing something we are reading at that point, sometimes we'll have little handouts, sometimes a quiz or other type of activity. It's going to be quite involved and require alot of extra work to coordinate, but it will be so worth it!
I feel so lucky to be able to participate in it, this is going to be a great experience!
Saturday, June 25, 2005
Acadia is in love
He's tall, dark, and very handsome. He has brown hair, brown eyes, and he's very muscular. And his name is Chanse.
The Girl Scout troop went to Royal Ridges today and spent about two hours learning how to groom, saddle, and ride horses.
Acadia was first assigned to groom and saddle Spirit...
After we finished saddling Spirit, we found out he was going to be the lead horse in a group about to head out so Acadia wouldn't be riding him. And that's when Acadia met Chanse (pronounced "chance")...
It was love at first sight. She was really good at riding! It didn't take very long for her to get the hang of it...
After they practiced a bit in the arena, learning how to walk, stop, turn, and trot (or "trout" as Acadia kept saying - lol), they were able to go outside for a little walk. Acadia was the lead horse...
After the walk, Cadi helped take the bridle and saddle off...
Then she said good-bye to Chanse...
Just as we were going to leave, we noticed that Spirit was back in the arena too, so Cadi went over to say good-bye to him too...
They were both wonderful, gentle horses. Spirit liked to be touched on his face and liked Cadi kisses. Chanse didn't mind very light touching on his cheek, but he didn't like alot of face contact.
Acadia has been asking if we could buy Chanse ever since we left. She wants to go back and ride HIM. She has even cried because she misses him (as soon as we got home). I told her to draw a picture, instead she made a picture and is writing him a letter. She says she wants to write him everyday. lol
Acadia fell asleep in the car on the way home. As I tried to wake her up, she kicked her legs a little and said, "I can't! I can't move it!" I asked her, "What can't you move?" She answered, "I can't get the horse to move!" She has already started dreaming about him!
While re-watching the video we took, Acadia came up with a riddle (?)... What do horses have in common with humans? They all have BIG butts! Okay.
Acadia has announced that she has "finally found something to love" and now knows what she wants to do when she grows up, "work at a camp and teach people to ride horses". She doesn't understand why we can't buy Chance. She says she'd be "good enough to give up my own money".
As I've witnessed Acadia go through this experience, I realized that she is about the same age I was when I looked out the window as our car exited the Marine World Africa USA parking lot (in Redwood City) and decided that I wanted to train dolphins when I grew up. That dream stayed with me. As I got older, my love for dolphins and killer whales grew. I read books, drew pictures, day dreamed, played, and loved whales and dolphins.
Knowing how real my love for dolphins was at such a young age, I want to take Acadia's newfound love seriously too. We cannot afford for her to take regular riding lessons. However, we may be able to give her more exposure to horses. The visit we had today was $20, so we can do that once in awhile. Any other suggestions?
The Girl Scout troop went to Royal Ridges today and spent about two hours learning how to groom, saddle, and ride horses.
Acadia was first assigned to groom and saddle Spirit...
After we finished saddling Spirit, we found out he was going to be the lead horse in a group about to head out so Acadia wouldn't be riding him. And that's when Acadia met Chanse (pronounced "chance")...
It was love at first sight. She was really good at riding! It didn't take very long for her to get the hang of it...
After they practiced a bit in the arena, learning how to walk, stop, turn, and trot (or "trout" as Acadia kept saying - lol), they were able to go outside for a little walk. Acadia was the lead horse...
After the walk, Cadi helped take the bridle and saddle off...
Then she said good-bye to Chanse...
Just as we were going to leave, we noticed that Spirit was back in the arena too, so Cadi went over to say good-bye to him too...
They were both wonderful, gentle horses. Spirit liked to be touched on his face and liked Cadi kisses. Chanse didn't mind very light touching on his cheek, but he didn't like alot of face contact.
Acadia has been asking if we could buy Chanse ever since we left. She wants to go back and ride HIM. She has even cried because she misses him (as soon as we got home). I told her to draw a picture, instead she made a picture and is writing him a letter. She says she wants to write him everyday. lol
Acadia fell asleep in the car on the way home. As I tried to wake her up, she kicked her legs a little and said, "I can't! I can't move it!" I asked her, "What can't you move?" She answered, "I can't get the horse to move!" She has already started dreaming about him!
While re-watching the video we took, Acadia came up with a riddle (?)... What do horses have in common with humans? They all have BIG butts! Okay.
Acadia has announced that she has "finally found something to love" and now knows what she wants to do when she grows up, "work at a camp and teach people to ride horses". She doesn't understand why we can't buy Chance. She says she'd be "good enough to give up my own money".
As I've witnessed Acadia go through this experience, I realized that she is about the same age I was when I looked out the window as our car exited the Marine World Africa USA parking lot (in Redwood City) and decided that I wanted to train dolphins when I grew up. That dream stayed with me. As I got older, my love for dolphins and killer whales grew. I read books, drew pictures, day dreamed, played, and loved whales and dolphins.
Knowing how real my love for dolphins was at such a young age, I want to take Acadia's newfound love seriously too. We cannot afford for her to take regular riding lessons. However, we may be able to give her more exposure to horses. The visit we had today was $20, so we can do that once in awhile. Any other suggestions?
Friday, June 24, 2005
Oh What Do You Do In the Summertime?
1. Can you share a tale of a favorite summer cookout/get together? I just remember going to Rancho Seco alot. Sometimes we'd barbeque. I remember that we went through a period of time where we'd get fancy hotdogs. Like the cheese filled kind. Sometimes we barbequed baked potatoes (I think). And I know we sometimes did corn on the cob.
2. What is a favorite summer ritual of yours? While growing up, we always had swimming lessons. We always rode our bikes to the park, had swimming lessons, and stopped by the library on the way home. I don't know if we have any "rituals" now. We keep trying to go camping with our friends in Idaho, but so far every year it gets foiled!
3. After a long hot summer day, what is your favorite way to quench your thirst? Good ol' fashioned Ice Water! Though at times a nice strawberry smoothie hits the spot just right.
4. The 4th of July is coming up, what plans, if any, do you have? This year we are going to spend the Fourth with our good friends, Beckie and Jack and their family. We're gonna BBQ, have water balloon games, and set off the fireworks. Should be lots of fun!
5. What are you looking forward to doing most before the summer ends? Heeheehee, that is easy! Going to Canada!!! First to go killer whale watching in BC and then to visit Landon in Alberta. We've set the dates and I'm working on reservations now. Yeah, I cannot wait!!! I have always wanted to go whale watching in BC, and we're finally gonna do it!
2. What is a favorite summer ritual of yours? While growing up, we always had swimming lessons. We always rode our bikes to the park, had swimming lessons, and stopped by the library on the way home. I don't know if we have any "rituals" now. We keep trying to go camping with our friends in Idaho, but so far every year it gets foiled!
3. After a long hot summer day, what is your favorite way to quench your thirst? Good ol' fashioned Ice Water! Though at times a nice strawberry smoothie hits the spot just right.
4. The 4th of July is coming up, what plans, if any, do you have? This year we are going to spend the Fourth with our good friends, Beckie and Jack and their family. We're gonna BBQ, have water balloon games, and set off the fireworks. Should be lots of fun!
5. What are you looking forward to doing most before the summer ends? Heeheehee, that is easy! Going to Canada!!! First to go killer whale watching in BC and then to visit Landon in Alberta. We've set the dates and I'm working on reservations now. Yeah, I cannot wait!!! I have always wanted to go whale watching in BC, and we're finally gonna do it!
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
I remember you
It seems that lately life has been very busy! There haven't been many times that we have just had time together to just spend as a family. And sometimes I feel like I never get one on one time with Ryan anymore.
I don't know if that has necessarily changed much in the last day or two, but it feels like it's changed.
Yesterday we had the missionaries over for dinner (Oooh! Tried a new recipe, it was great, easy, quick - I'll post it at the end of this post!) and afterwards we took Acadia out. The Rosers had sent Acadia a gift card for Home Depot. Home Depot? Yes, Home Depot. You see, Acadia had asked for a Disney Princess mirror that she had seen there. It is quite large and so instead of buying and shipping it, they sent a gift card covering the cost and gave Cadi two gifts. 1) The actual mirror. And 2) the experience of carrying the gift card and paying for her mirror herself.
After Home Depot we ran an errand and then went out for ice cream. We "celebrated" Cadi's birthday with Daddy since he wasn't actually home at all on her real birthday. That was cool. Afterwards when Cadi was in bed, Rye and I stayed up and watched LOTR. We talked a bit too - good, quality time.
Today I was busy in the morning while Acadia was at school, so Ryan cleaned out the garage a bit and took a couple car loads of stuff to the DI trailer. I helped a little when I got back and even though we weren't working in the same room the whole time, it somehow felt like we were working together.
I don't know why, don't quite understand it. But it just seems like we're getting more together time, even though I'm not sure if we are. It feels nice and I like it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rocky Ford Chili
2 cans chili with beans
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
4 cups corn chips
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 cup shredded cheese
Sliced, ripe olives
Sour cream
Salsa
In a large microwave-safe bowl, heat chili and corn on high for 3-4 minutes or until heated through. Place corn chips in four large soup bowls; top with chili mixture, lettuce, cheese, olives, sour cream and salsa.
Yield 4 servings
Rated by Rosers – 4 stars (out of 5)
You know a meal is good when Sister missionaries go back for seconds! I think this recipe is going to replace our previous taco salad recipe. Mostly because it was so quick and easy - plus very yummy!
I don't know if that has necessarily changed much in the last day or two, but it feels like it's changed.
Yesterday we had the missionaries over for dinner (Oooh! Tried a new recipe, it was great, easy, quick - I'll post it at the end of this post!) and afterwards we took Acadia out. The Rosers had sent Acadia a gift card for Home Depot. Home Depot? Yes, Home Depot. You see, Acadia had asked for a Disney Princess mirror that she had seen there. It is quite large and so instead of buying and shipping it, they sent a gift card covering the cost and gave Cadi two gifts. 1) The actual mirror. And 2) the experience of carrying the gift card and paying for her mirror herself.
After Home Depot we ran an errand and then went out for ice cream. We "celebrated" Cadi's birthday with Daddy since he wasn't actually home at all on her real birthday. That was cool. Afterwards when Cadi was in bed, Rye and I stayed up and watched LOTR. We talked a bit too - good, quality time.
Today I was busy in the morning while Acadia was at school, so Ryan cleaned out the garage a bit and took a couple car loads of stuff to the DI trailer. I helped a little when I got back and even though we weren't working in the same room the whole time, it somehow felt like we were working together.
I don't know why, don't quite understand it. But it just seems like we're getting more together time, even though I'm not sure if we are. It feels nice and I like it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rocky Ford Chili
2 cans chili with beans
1 package (10 ounces) frozen corn
4 cups corn chips
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 cup shredded cheese
Sliced, ripe olives
Sour cream
Salsa
In a large microwave-safe bowl, heat chili and corn on high for 3-4 minutes or until heated through. Place corn chips in four large soup bowls; top with chili mixture, lettuce, cheese, olives, sour cream and salsa.
Yield 4 servings
Rated by Rosers – 4 stars (out of 5)
You know a meal is good when Sister missionaries go back for seconds! I think this recipe is going to replace our previous taco salad recipe. Mostly because it was so quick and easy - plus very yummy!
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