Sundays

Yesterday was such a great day. Stake conference was fabulous. One of the speakers talked about how many children don't need the 'birds and bees' talk, because they already know about the topic. BUT, that doesn't mean they shouldn't be talked with about the subject. Parents need to teach their children about the sacredness of marriage and how God fits into everything. It was a great talk, really made me think.

We were going to walk around the Arboretum and Botanical Gardens after church, but instead we decided to visit Liberty Jail and Independence. These were both very spiritual experiences.

The church has reconstructed the jail, but left a wall off so you can so into it and really get an idea of how horrible the living conditions were. For four months, those men couldn't see the sky, couldn't stand up straight, and had to endure the bitterly cold weather with little protection. They also only had a bucket to use as a toilet, which was emptied once a week. Yuck! I learned that they actually tried to escape twice, both times unsuccessful. I don't know how they survived this experience. What a trial. Thankfully, God revealed D&C 121, 122, and 123 to Joseph a few days before the men were released.


Independence was also a testimony booster. The visitor's center is amazing.

At the end of our visit, four sister missionaries sat us down in front of the Christus and sang a beautiful song which testified of Christ. Sometime during about the third verse, Sadie looks at me and then points to Christ and says 'sesus' (her version of Jesus). I fought back tears of joy to think this little child of God is feeling the Holy Spirit and knows her Savior.


On the way home, Alex and I were singing songs to Sadie in an attempt to keep her happy. After we ran out of animals for McDonald's farm, I made up 'Little Miss Sadie had a Zoo.' We sang our funny new song and then Alex tells Sadie, "Mommy's weird." Sadie just says, "Oh" like everything made sense now. It was so funny.

Then she started to get fussy about three minutes before we got home. Alex tells her he thinks he can get us home before she counts to two (she's a very good counter). I tried everything to get her to count. I counted as an example and I said, "Sadie, what comes after one?" She just looked at me like I was stupid. Alex pulled into the driveway and then Sadie said, "Two!" What a stink. She was holding out on me the whole time. I love her! She's so much fun.

Enjoying the Kansas Sun

This weekend, Garmin invited us to attend the Great American BBQ. We thought this would be a good opportunity to experience the flavor of the Midwest, plus there was a firework show Sadie would enjoy. When we got there, it wasn't quite what we were expecting. This is mainly due to the fact that we got there early on Friday and the BBQ judging didn't even start until Saturday. We ended up only eating and taking Sadie on a carousel ride. She loved it! Alex said she said 'whee whee' the entire ride, while she had a death grip on the pole. Since we discovered the fireworks didn't start until 10 pm, we decided to just head home. Next time we'll have to plan a little better.



The giant pink elephant is the Mother's cookies mascot (one of those frosted animal cookies). Sadie thought it was pretty neat to see a huge, pink elephant. I can't wait to take her to the zoo agian.


In other news, I finally bought a jogger stroller. We got a double, since we are planning on another child some day. I know it looks a little funny only half full, but it's worth it. Sadie loves when we go jogging. She points out all of the bunnies and trees as the wind blows through her hair. Pardon my appearance in the photo, this was taken just after my jog. It's obvious I need to get more sun too! Just look at the cute baby in the cool stroller.

FYI, this is the Navigator stroller by Baby Trend. I really like it. My only complaint is that it's bulky. At first I was concerned about the front two wheels. They would really shake when I started picking up speed. Alex pointed out that the front wheels need to have the lock on when running and off when just walking around. This made all the difference. The wheels also needed to be pumped up when you first take them out of the box, but this is no big deal. There's lots of storage and it's a really smooth ride. I love it!

Today, Alex, Sadie and I went and looked at what kind of home we could get for our money in this area. We were pleasantly surprised! We fell in love with a beautiful four bedroom home with a spacious yard. One of my favorite things about this yard was there are no homes behind it so your view is a nature reserve! It's very beautiful. Here's the house and a shot of the yard.


We have many more adventures to go on while in KS. After our stake conference tomorrow, we're going to walk around the arboretum and botanical garden. It's a great walk where you can really enjoy nature and a variety of birds. A fabulous Sunday activity!

Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore.

Well we are! That's right, our small family is now located in the windy state of KS for the summer. Alex got an internship with Garmin's aviation department. Basically, him going to this job is like a child going to a playground everyday. I'm glad he is enjoying work so much, it's just a bit hard to not be close to our families and friends. It will be an adventure, though.

We are lucky enough to be staying with a family in the ward. They had a couple bedrooms and a bathroom they weren't using, so they let us move in for a really good rate. Sadie's room was filled with toys when we arrived! She has a play kitchen, easel with a chalk board and place to finger paint, a play vanity, and desk. What fun she will have this summer. There is also a trampoline, with the fancy spring cover and netting, outside. Yesterday, Alex and I played with Sadie on the trampoline and she roared with laughter every time one of us bounced on our bottom. :) It was adorable.

The weather will be an adventure too. One day it's 80 degrees and very sunny. The next is incredibly rainy and windy and the news is reporting twisters. Interestingly, the twisters are not my biggest concern, chiggers are.

They are tiny bugs, so small you can't see them, that live in the grass. They crawl up your body and find a nice spot to bit you. They feed on your skin and cause lots of itching and a sore that looks like a welt.

(Not my leg, or Alex's, thank goodness.)
They are related to ticks. Speaking of ticks, they are also a big problem in this area. The other creature to watch out for is this poisonous snake that lives in the water. Yikes! I'm scared to go outside. But the more I think about it, there are little pests to look out for wherever you live. For instance, Utah has it's rattle snakes and scorpions. The East has those dangerously gross spitting camels. You just have to adapt.

We'll keep you updated on all the sites we visit while we are here.

Congrats Graduates!

I just wanted to congratulate Brian, Kasey, Kiara, and soon to be Darwin (with his Masters) for graduating from college. What a great accomplishment!

Brian and Megan


I was able to make Kasey's, Kiara's, and Darwin's graduation cakes. Kasey's is the green cake a few posts back. Kiara's and Darwin's cakes are below. Kiara's is the UVU logo and Darwin's has the Mississippi State logo. They were fun to make. Thanks for letting me be a part of this huge milestone in your life!


Congrats again! Now go buy yourself an ice cream cone.

Animals with Ayden

For those of you who don't know, Sadie really loves animals and making animal sounds. Luckily, there is a home about two minutes from our condo that has lots of animals. Some of the animals you can see there are lambs, chickens, turkeys, geese, pigs, a wallaby, lamas, alpacas, goats, ostriches, muskox, horses, and a donkey. My friend, Angie, and I took our little ones to see all of these fun animals. Her son, Ayden, was fearless! This pictures accurately shows how the visit went.

Sadie was cautious, but very curious. Ayden was fearless and enjoyed chasing the chickens and picking everything up.


They had a lot of fun! I think their favorite part was feeding grass to the goat. We need to take them to the Zoo.

R&R on the East Coast

A few weeks ago, Alex flew to Georgia for a conference and then continued with his father to Florida for Sun n' Fun (aviation gathering). What a tough life! Since he got to go on vacation, I figured Sadie and I should fly to Massachusetts for our own vacation. It started off as a surprise for Mimi and Kate, but we had to spill the beans to keep Mimi from going to FL with the guys. The guys met us in MA toward the end of the week.

We had a great time. On our first full day in MA, Mimi took Sadie and me to the Yankee Candle shop in South Deerfield, MA. This wasn't a little building full of just candles. No, there are lots of themed rooms, including Santa's workshop where Santa himself is there all year round. Sadie was a little scared of Santa, until he pulled out an Elmo figurine. How did he know she is obsessed with Elmo? Magic...

There's a pirate ship, huge stuffed animals, a Bavarian village, and much, much more. Check out there website here.

On our second day, Mimi took us to a Children's Museum. Basically it is a house that has been converted into a discovery museum for children. Each room has a theme. Some of the room themes were jungle, ship, kitchen, colors, puppets, magnets, and water. This is a picture from the water room.

Sadie and Kate are standing on a giant bubble maker. You dip the pipe ring in the solution around the platform and then slowly raise is by pulling on the handle. If you're successful, there will be a huge bubble all around you. So much fun! Sadie could have spent the entire day there. I know of several places like this in MA. Does anyone know of a place like this in UT? I would love to find one close by.

After the Museum, we went out to lunch at Friendly's. Sadie got to share my ice cream cone. She loves ice cream.


Sadie also discovered how fun it can be to smell flowers. Every flower she saw, Sadie wanted you to smell it. FYI, dandelions stain. Check your nose after smelling a freshly picked dandelion!


While in MA, I had my first pilot's lesson! Alex's dad, AKA Grampy, is a wondereful pilot. He taught Alex to fly like a pro. Grampy is also a great instructor. This is the only reason I wasn't freaking out to be sitting left seat; I knew he wouldn't let us die. Flying is blast! I wish I would have taken a picture of me sitting left seat.

All in all, we had a great time. It was good to see Grampy, Mimi, Aunt Kate, and Abby the Dog (who taught Sadie how to pant).