The Nitty Gritty

Today in church we sang the hymn "As Now We Take the Sacrament". I was especially touched when we sang the third verse: 3. As now we praise thy name with song, The blessings of this day Will linger in our thankful hearts, And silently we pray For courage to accept thy will, To listen and obey. We love thee, Lord; our hearts are full. We’ll walk thy chosen way.  (As Now We Take the Sacrament) Recently, I have had what I consider miracles happen in my life. This has been the hardest year of my teaching career. On top of adjusting to full time teaching after a 5 year reprieve, I was faced with many challenges as a teacher. I felt desperate for a change for next school year. My sister calls me a "go getter" meaning when I want something badly enough, I'll work to make it happen. So, I did what I needed to do in order to get a new job. I obtained my Arizona teaching license after passing some exams and I attended a teacher fair for the local school district. I have m...

I love you March. Thank you for being awesome. 

Grandma and Papa Bruiser came to visit in March. We had a wonderful time. We went to the Lego movie, ate good Mexican food, hiked and played at Papago park, hiked at the nature trail in Scotsdale, toured ASU, and went to the Phoenix Children's Museum. The boys were delighted to do so many fun things. We can't wait to see Grandma Bruiser and Papa John again in a few months! The boys could hardly sleep the night before Grandma's arrival. Ms. Johnson heard so much about the Lego Movie from Will and Van at preschool, she took the time to write a thoughtful note to the boys on the back of a Lego movie picture she got in the mail. Having fun in the music lab at ASU Isaac's office Papago Park Grandma reading bedtime stories.  Group photo before they had to leave for the airport. Thank you for a fun time!! We love you!

I love this little guy of mine. Every time I drop off William and Van at preschool and hug them goodbye, I walk to the car with a big lump in my throat. It's tough leaving my boys in the hands of someone else everyday-- I can't say enough what a relief it is to leave them in GOOD hands.  Yesterday as I was preparing dinner and William was drawing at the table, I asked him, "So do you like preschool?" He answered with a shrug,"Ya, but I don't like the naps." Then I questioned, "Do you wish you were home with mom during the day?" Just to check in and make sure he's happy with his school day and for my own reassurance that I'm number one:). His eyes welled up and he said fighting back the tears, "I miss you mom." Then we both kind of cried and he followed up with "but I like to play with my friends. Can I like both?" I responded with a resounding "YES!"  I want to remember that moment forever. It was a reminde...

We went to Geek's Night Out Thursday night at Mill Avenue. Because William loves geeky stuff like robots, aliens, and Star Wars, we didn't want to miss out. There were booths geared for kids. The boys made colored snow, glowing bracelets, controlled a robot built by high school students, and touched those "clear balls with the  lightning inside." It was fun to get out and discover what downtown Tempe is like in the evenings.  Our home teacher brought a robot car that he built for fun and  so that he could show the boys during his visit. He and Wiiliam always have good conversations about robots. Brother Skidmore related the robot to working together as a family--just like the parts of the robot work together. Will practically idolizes Brother Skidmore and ever since the Sunday visit I've been saying "be a good helper so we can tell Brother Skidmore" and Will immediately helps. I told Isaac "that is home teaching at its finest." Will has been dr...

As you can see it was a warm day on Saturday--warm enough that we had to run through the splash pad to cool off. Then Van had to take his clothes off because they were dripping wet. At one point Isaac noted, "are we one of THOSE families that lets their kid run around in his underwear?" I replied "looks like it! Who cares? It's Arizona!"  We love you AZ but PLEASE don't have unusually hot days in the summer. We only like record breaking temperatures in the winter. 

Saturday is our favorite day of the week. It's the day we treat ourselves to some outdoor fun, clean up the house, and restock our fridge with food. Now that Isaac and I are both working full time, we look forward to Saturday when we can have a day with each other and our kids. We love discovering what Tempe has to offer us. Yesterday, we went to Papago Park. It used to be a National park until Arizona bargained to get it back by agreeing to make it into a state park and a zoo. Turns out the park and the Phoenix Zoo are just minutes from our house. Papago Park is beautiful with several trails, fishing ponds, and picnic areas. There was one particular hike called "hole in the rock". You walk up a rocky staircase and at the top there is an actual hole in the rock. It's pretty cool. Will and Van kept calling it a bear cave. We also packed a picnic and played on a playground. Later we went back to the park to see Hunt's Tomb. I love being in high places at sunset. It ...