perfect gift

As much as my Mom denies it, she has the ability to give the perfect gift. I had tears in my eyes when I opened my Christmas present this year and found my grandmother's wedding ring. The diamond had fallen out long ago and my Mom explained that it really wasn't worth much money. To me it is worth so much. I'll take it to the jeweler this month and have my diamond put in the setting. It was a wonderful gift especially on the first Christmas of my entire life without my Grandma.

Our traditional Christmas Eve at the Frederickson's was very peaceful. Eliza was an angel, Cooper and Marcos were shepherds, and Max and Wilson were wisemen. They all took their roles very seriously. The kids also shared piano talents and Wilson bore a sweet, simple testimony. Mom was in charge of the program this year which meant everyone participated or else. We all sang "Guard Him Joseph" to end the night.

The kids all slept well on Christmas Eve, and were lined up on the stairs in their new Christmas pajamas by 8:00 am. With five kids, even limiting Christmas to three gifts apiece can sure add up. I think we had a good balance this year of surprise and excitement, tempered by a little disappointment. Tony and I both agree that a little Christmas disappointment when we were kids was a very good life lesson. Eliza was thrilled with her American girl doll with the matching pajamas. Max was more thrilled with his Power Ranger underwear than his new tool bench. It didn't take Wilson long to get over his disappontment with the "RipStick" skateboard and by the end of the day he was a little more than proficient. Cooper informed us that all his Christmas dreams came true, thanks to Grandma and Grandpa who gave us a pull-up bar, tetherball pole and punching bag. Cooper also got the coolest Trikke bike, which provided the Dad with hours of fun. My always easy to please husband was thrilled with his $8.00 rubics cube and digital remote BBQ thermometer (again from Mom, the Queen of gift giving).

Thursday before Christmas Tony took the boys out of school to go skiing. What a great Dad. They had a beautiful time and Tony said it was the perfect sunny blue-skyed day. Wilson reported that he skied like an Olympian. It was extra fun for the boys because they met the Hainsworths on the hill. I love the idea that snow skiing is an activity for Tony to do with the kids, but I did feel a little left out. Next time I'll go and take my new snowshoes. Marcos can come with me until he gets old enough to join the big kids.

The Friday before Christmas was one of our most memorable ward parties ever. Santa arrived to visit with the kids and when it was Eliza's turn he jumped up to do the Jingle Bell rock with her. Unfortunately, Santa appears to have lost weight and his pants dropped to the ground. It was a while before he noticed, but it didn't phase Santa much. He just pulled his pants back up and motioned for the next kid. We also learned that Marcos is absolutely terrified of Santa. Tony is convinced it is the beard, but I'm not sure.

Saturday before Christmas I tried too hard to make happy Christmas memories and ended up just being grouchy all day. Oakley and Eden were here so we made our gingerbread trains. It involved a lot of frosting in hair, candy in the mouth and general stickiness, but was a more fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon than listening to me complain. That night we had dinner with our friends the Delongs and it turned out to be a very relaxing night. We even watched "Luke 2" together. The highlight of the night was when Oakley announced at dinner right before prayer that when he grows up he is going to be black just like Max, "My penis is going to be black..., my head is going to be black..." We love that Oakley.

After all the gouchiness on Saturday I was very relieved to be in Sacrament meeting on Sunday for a beautiful Christmas program. The spirit was really strong and I could feel peace replacing tension. I have struggled this season with unknown factors stealing my peace, but church turned out to be the perfect antidote (not always the case!) Primary always feels good, even when neither of my counselors were there and the kids were on a major Christmas high. On Sunday night we all got together at Mom and Dad's for a yummy shrimp dinner in honor of Dad's 65th birthday. It was a nice evening. Cam and Jill and Tony and I gave Mom and Dad a Bose radio this year and Tyler, Chelsea, Dustin and Kimberly gave them a laptop. It's nice to be able to give your parents nice gifts, even when they fight it. I was also really touched by Jeff and Stacy's gifts, which were homemade and very thoughtful.

making christmas memories

This has been a good month so far for making memories. The weather has been so beautiful with perfect snow for making snowmen and sledding. It has been magical to wake up every morning to a winter wonderland. Our shopping is all done (the blessing of the internet) so we'll just send out Christmas cards, wrap the gifts and make the Rocky Road.

Last Friday night, Betina, Eden, Mom, Eliza and I had dinner at the Davenport and then went to the Nutcracker Ballet in Spokane. The performance was magical. Mom made it extra special by bringing books explaining the story for the girls. She also reminded me that the first time I saw it in San Diego when I was a little girl, Barishnikov was the main dancer. I wish I had a better memory. It was really a treat to enjoy that night with my little girl, my Mom and our great friends.

On Saturday morning, my friends in St John had a shower to welcome Marcos. It is always humbling to be the center of attention (even for me). I really appreciated the sacrifice of time everyone gave. Instead of gifts for Marcos, everyone brought donations for children in orphanages. Betina took some of them to Ethiopia with her (Ivy is on her way home!) and the rest we will get to Guatemala. Marcos, as usual, was the perfect charming baby and his cuteness always takes my breath away.

Today we started with breakfast and a movie at the Garland theatre. Nothing is more fun than soda, popcorn and licorice for breakfast. After the movie, we ran a few errands and then took the kids to the roller rink. It was flashback time for Tony who recovered his childhood skating skills very quickly. He spent a lot of time at his Aunt LaRue's skating rink in Idaho Falls when he was a kid, and man, has he got the moves. The kids were a little nervous at first and wanted their roller blades, but soon they were skating like true children of the 80's on four wheels. My favorite sight was Max in the middle of Cooper and Wilson, skating for all he was worth. Sadly, I think Eliza inherited my balancing abilities and clung to the wall most of the time. Still, she had a smile on her face the whole time. The kids can't wait to do it again.

Marcos is now up on all fours. He is scooting to get whatever he wants, and has a developed a shriek worthy of a fifth child trying to be heard.

Maxwell's verbal skills are keeping us in stitches. For starters, he talks nonstop, at church, at storytime, anywhere there is an audience. Last week, Callie took the kids to get some donuts at the store. Cooper picked out a package of powdered white ones. Max shook his head and reported, "I can't eat those. They are white and I am black." He requested his own package of chocolate fudge donuts. It didn't work, but it was a good try. Another day he checked Marcos' diaper: "He's not poopy Mom, just watery!" The funniest part of Max's communication is his facial expression. He is so entertaining right now, but is really bored with me at home. He will start preschool one day a week after the holidays.

This week I've been feeling like something is stealing my peace and am trying to pinpoint what it would be. I have so much to be grateful for, and things are going so well. I've tried really hard to reduce and simplify and keep focused on the family, but it feels like there is a piece missing this Christmas. I'm glad to have Primary to look forward to every week, and am convinced I will figure it out.

signed, sealed, delivered --I'm yours

Here is a short list of "firsts" that Marcos experienced on or before December 1st

first teeth
first snow
first haircut (at home)
first birthday

Saturday was Marcos' birthday and the day we sealed him to our family in the Spokane temple. The ceremony was very short (maybe even considered a drive-by) but we didn't need long to officially recognize what we've known from the beginning--he's ours. He looked so sweet in his little white outfit. I hope my kids can always remember how it feels in the temple, as it is a pretty unique experience for them to be there. After the sealing Tony gave him a father's blessing. He blessed him that he will feel connected to both his birth heritage and his adoptive heritage. He also blessed him that he will be a unifying force between his brothers and sister. I see the effects of that blessing every day.

After the sealing we all went to lunch (Mexican food was the closest we could come to Guatemalean cuisine and it just doesn't compare). Tony's parents came from St George through a terrible storm and were in Spokane for less than 24 hours. It meant so much to us that they would make that sacrifice to be there. We were thankful to my parents for hosting them in Spokane as well. One little bonus of their trip was that we had a mini Christmas together after the sealing before they flew out. It was fun for them to be there when the kids opened their gifts. Eliza was thrilled with her sparkly pink shirt, Max with his football sweatshirt and both the boys truly needed new sweatshirts. The wall plaque she had made for us was exactly my taste. Grandma sure started our Christmas out fun this year.

To celebrate Marcos ""first" achievements, Eliza also lost her first tooth. That silly tooth fairy forgot to come the first night, so we sent a note to her the second night. Lucky for her, she showed up and left the hefty sum of .55 cents and a handwritten apology. Eliza was thrilled.

On Sunday we invited several families for dinner and then watched the Christmas broadcast from Salt Lake together. It was nice to be together with our "St John family" all snuggled in by the fire eating brownies and peppermint ice cream. On Monday I took the kids to the beautiful creche exhibit in Spokane. I wish I could have spent more time enjoying the amazing display of literally hundreds of nativity scenes. We had family home evening treat at Aunt Nancy and Uncle Dale's house to meet their new grandson. As usual, Aunt Nancy is the family bungee cord--she keeps us all together and I really love her.

Yesterday the kids and I made gingergbread cookies (and a huge mess). Today I was blowing bubbles for Max and Marcos and they were erupting in big belly laughs. I wish that I could package the sound of the laughter and the smell of the cookies, and give it for Christmas this year. I would call it "essence of Christmas" and it would be a guarenteed hit.

Christmas with five kids is going to be our best ever.

Fully Invested

We split up for Thanksgiving this year. Kelly stayed in Spokane with Wilson, Cooper, Eliza, and Max. They upheld the tradition of delivering meals on wheels, and enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast in Spokane with the Frederickson family. Marcos and I flew to Utah to be with the Lundberg family. Marcos traveled incredibly well. I know that we were being watched over (it was probably Kelly's prayers). I could not remember how to get to Elk Ridge, but miraculously we drove straight to Russ and Pam's house. We were immediately welcomed, and fortunately food had been saved from Thanksgiving. Marcos greeted the family with a blowout diaper-that boy can fill a diaper. After he was cleaned up (so bad it required a full body bath), he was ready to play with his cousins, uncles, aunts, and grandparents.

Everyone teared up as Mom and Dad told stories from their mission. They told story after story of prayers being answered on a daily basis. Dad said "be careful what you pray for, because you will get it." We each shared our gratitude for grandparents who know, and live the gospel. What a blessing. We can all look to grandma and grandpa for a shining example of how to live the gospel. They are truly fully invested.

On the first night I stayed with Pam and Russ in order to go running with Russ in the morning...... Bad choice.....I am still stiff (just kidding). What a beautiful place they live in. Marcos slept all through the night and was again doted over in the morning. On the second night, I slept at Rand and Debbie's due to their proximity to the stadium, and the BYU bookstore. We went to the bookstore, and bought our new BYU cougars attire, with our fully invested T-shirts, and our face paint.

On the second night Marcos and I went to visit Tyler, Chelsea, Kate, Evan, and new baby Beck. What a beautiful baby, with perfect little features. I was taken back by his sweetness. I fed him a bit too much, and he paid me back with a nice spit up. Together we watched the Louisville vs BYU basketball game. Yea! This was a good start to the Cougar weekend. I then got to stay and talk with Tyler and Chelsea. I had them all to myself this time. I stayed until almost 11:00pm. I hope I did not over stay my welcome. They are so easy to talk to that time goes by fast. I then went back home to Debbie and Rands. I woke up early the next morning to prepare for the game. We painted our faces, got pictures, and then went to the game.

We were fully invested. We got there 1 and 1/2 hours early, and sat and enjoyed the energetic build up to the game, with music stretching, and dancing. Russ wanted to develop our own dance routine.....but Rand was not quite confidant in the dance so we nixed that.

I cannot believe it. Another year, another last minute win. Two years in a row I have bought tickets to the "Holy War" on e-bay and have been 20 rows up from the game winning touchdown. This year the stakes were definately higher. With Rand, Russ, and myself having painted our faces blue (see picture) with white letters, and black outline. The true, the proud, the TRUE BLUE COUGARS were fully invested. We each had a fully invested t-shirt. Due to the fact that we were not able to "storm the field" last year at Rice Eccles Stadium, this year we decided to join the crowd in storming the field. What an incredible game......Let me remind you.... 4th down and 18 yards to go with about 1 minute left in the 4th quarter of the game. Austin Collie gives the juke to his defender and streaks down the sidelines as Max Hall tip toes through a narrow pathway to freedom- to launch the bomb, Collie catches and gets pushed out of bounds. The crowd goes wild. Then Harvey the Mack Truck Unga blows through the hole and bowls over defenders, running in standing up in the endzone. The mania begins. Just then a couple of coeds rushed down the stands whispers to us "the zealots with face paint" to help them storm the field. Rand gave them the thumbs up, but said we first wanted to watch the rest of the game. As the game ended I felt like I was part of continuous flowing river. We got sucked into the river's current of bodies, and flowed onto the field. High fives, jumping, singing, and pandamonium. The announcer then requested that the fans "please leave the field"...... and as true blue BYU fans do.....we obeyed.

I cannot wait until next year.

marcos in a month

Marcos is changing our family. His arrival has changed Tony into Superdad--no kidding. Superdad does things like fly to Utah with the baby, single-handedly get all the kids ready for family pictures and offer to take the baby to church meetings. Superdad uses his new powers to see things that need to be done without the Mom asking. Superdad has even shown signs of multi-tasking. (He was once sighted feeding the baby and doing charts at the same time!) I'm falling head over heels in love, again, with our new family hero.

Other miraculous Marcos-inspired changes have shown up in sweet tenderness from Wilson and Cooper. The other morning I was getting ready for teacher-conferences and asked Wilson to dress the baby. I couldn't help but do a quick peek and saw a tender moment when Wilson carefully bathed, lotioned and dressed his baby brother. I wish I had been quick enough to catch on film Maxwell feeding Marcos his breakfast the other morning. He did a great job with an estimated 50% of the food actually making it into Marcos' mouth. Maxwell's biggest problem is that he loves to climb in the crib and snuggle with Marcos. Inevitably he wakes him up and the wrath of Mom is kindled. Marcos loves the feel of Max's hair. Eliza, in her continual role as family librarian, engages Marcos in personal story-time every day. Cooper was born kind and tender, and Marcos brings out all of his best traits.

I on the other hand, reached a low parenting moment the other day. Wilson was dishonest with me about his homework and hid his book in his closet on the highest shelf. I indulged in extreme overreaction and called the town Sherrif to see if he would confront Wilson at the school, and hopefully take him to jail or something. Luckily for me he declined and I took the book up to school myself. I found out that two of Wilson's friends did the same thing on the same day. Those lucky kids don't have parents who call the cops. It's a good thing I was the first child, the guinee pig, because I sure am messing up a lot on Wilson.

We had to clarify with Maxwell tonight at dinner that we will not be "stealing Marcos from the temple on December 1st" we will be SEALING Marcos in the temple on December 1st." I'm glad we got that straight.

Marcos has reached a few milestones: two little teeth have emerged (just as Eliza is about to lose her first one!). Marcos has become an expert clapper and has learned reverse gear. He scoots backward on his tummy, as well as to the left and right for something he wants. It's a good thing he's my fifth or the fact that he won't crawl before his 1st birthday may have had me hiring physical and occupational therapists round the clock. Incidently, language skills are progressing nicely as well, with great vocalizations and verbal play.

My last Enrichment meeting was last Tuesday. I hope I learned the lesson intended for me from this calling because I think it will be the most challenging calling I have, or ever will have had. Today was my first day in Primary. It was like that feeling you have when you have been on vacation for a long time and you get home to everything familiar and sleep in your own bed again. I felt like myself at church for the first time in years. My greatest challenge is trying not to be too emotional everytime one of the kids says something tender. I need to try really hard to write down things that the kids say to tell their parents. I love it when people tell me things that show my kids are learning the gospel of Jesus Christ. This primary is particularly well organized, the music people are awesome and the majority of teachers really like the kids. I am happy that the structure is in place so we can just focus on how fun it is to live the gospel.

Tony spoke on gratitude in church and had such a good insight. He said that entitlement is Satan's replica of gratitude. I've been thinking about that and hope that this Thanksgiving we replace all entitlement with gratitude. Of course everytime I look at that sweet Guatemalan boy the gratitude spills over. I guess that's that biggest Marcos change in our family--we are just more thankful.

halloween

Tonight as they said their prayers, all four of my verbal children thanked Heavenly Father for the blessing of Halloween. Wilson was thankful that Heavenly Father invented the holiday so kids could have fun dressing up and of course Cooper thanked Him specifically for blessing them with a large haul of candy. Wilson dressed this year as Death, Cooper was Pancho Villa the Bandito, Max was a vampire, Eliza was supergirl, and Marcos was the cutest little chick (pollito) I've ever seen.

The highlight of my day was when a little boy in Cooper's class asked what Max was. I told him he was Dracula and the little boy said, "he's not Dracula, he's Blackula!" Maybe "Balckula" will stick as Max's new nickname.

Tony was not on call this year (hooray) and really got into the spirit. He wore the lion costume and jumped out of the shadows on the porch. I'm sure he will be a legend around town tomorrow, particularly with the junior high kids whose screams could be heard for miles.

Grandma Sue came down to see the kids in their costumes at the school parade and inadvertently went home with half the costumes in her trunk. Tony was a real hero when he drove halfway to Spokane and back to retrieve the important wardrobe pieces.

I am feeling overwhelmed this week in two ways. First, I have a lot of kids now and I am felling the stretch. I know our family will eventually return to equilibrium, but I'm not going to pretend we are not having growing pains.

The second way I am feeling overwhelmed is with the amazing kindness everyone has offered us. I have such good friends who seem to be reading my mind and are helping in exactly the ways I need. Yesterday Betina came to can apple pie filling with me. I think I needed her company more than the pie filling and it was a great day. Today a friend called from the grocery store just to see if I needed anything. I have meals in my freezer and dear, sweet Audrey has cleaned my kitchen at least 3 times since we've been home. This experience has made me want to serve people more. I have a new appreciation for how much simple acts of kindness truly help.

I do spend a large portion of my day marveling at how wonderful it is to have Marcos home. He is an angel. I love his snuggliness, the sounds he makes when he is happy, his little hands and feet, his sideburns, and his little Guatemalan bum. Sometimes I wonder how our family ever lived without him.

antigua

Our visit to Antigua has been the second best thing about our trip to Guatemala (try to guess the first!) Yesterday afternoon we spent all afternoon walking through the mercado which must have been an entire city block. The first thing we purchased was a traditional sling for Marcos. Once snuggled in, he contently slept through all our shopping. We had a good time picking out surprizes for Eliza and Max, especially traditional musical instruments to add to our "box of music." Neither Tony or I are very good at bartering, so I hope we made someone's day by giving them a good price. After about a half an hour of shopping the thunder cracked and it started raining buckets. Most of the booths were covered with tin, but the ground turned into little lakes in minutes. We were running though stalls of raw fish, chicken, spices and unrocognizable fruits and vegetables laughing our heads off. At one of the stalls we met the most lovely girl named Monica and we sat and talked for quite a while. She wanted to know everything about the kids and was most anxious to meet Max. Our driver Luis had recommended an authentic restaurant for dinner and we enjoyed it so much, epecially the kids. I'm so proud of the kids for trying new foods. Today Wilson ordered linguini with squid and loved it.

One of the kid's most fun experiences was last night when we went to get ice cream . A girl about Wilson's age was selling necklaces and was more than persistant! She spoke amazing English and simply would not take no for an answer. The boys were fascinated by her and keep quoting her lines like, "yes my friend, I give you a good price," and "you liike this? I give you two!" I was glad to see my kids giving away all their Quetzales to people on the street. Cooper commented that he will bring more next time to give away. I hope it sunk in that the kids were making a living,not playing a game.

Our hotel room in Antigua was posh. We all slept in late and enjoyed a great breakfast buffet with watermelon and cantalope juice, omlets and of course, almond cookies and chocolate-real chocolate with cinnamon drunk from a mug. We spent the rest of the morning hunting down authentic Guatemalan music and visiting a museum in el centro. Back at the hotel the boys and I took a quick swim in the beautiful pool surrounded by Guatamaya birds (they look look parrots). Luis drove us back to Guatemala City and then joined us for lunch. My new favorite food is Peruvian Seviche, which unlike Seviche I've had before, is more like a salad than a soup. It was amazing and makes my mouth water thinking about it. We have confirmed that Marcos loves lime! He goes wild with it. After lunch we took the kids to the children's museum. We only had an hour, but it was a great place to let them explore and hear other kids speaking spanish.

We are packed and ready to go home tommorrow. The boys can hardly wait for Max and Eliza to meet Marcos. He is so sweet, so perfectly delicious. But mostly, so ours.

I wish everyone working on adoption policy could have joined us at he US consulate this morning. An entire room full of recently united families with beautiful black haired children would easily convince any skeptic of the joy of this process. The foreign adoption process weeds out weak parents and leaves parents who are fully invested. I think of society's broken families that are sick that a few people's bad choices could end so many happily-ever-after-families. We were particularly grateful to have the help of Leticia . She is a beautiful woman with a pure heart and charitable motives.

After our consulate appointment, which included a lot of waiting, Cooper and I had our first solo adventure to encontrar (to find) tortillas. How nice to be able communicate, even minimally enough to ask directions, find a tortilleria, order, pay and get ourselves home! Luis came to pick us up and we were on our way to Antigua.

Antigua is beautiful! The city is 8 blocks by 8 blocks with cobblestone roads and thin sidewalks. Each home is painted a different color. The mountain jungles are incredible, dense and green around the outside of the city. We spent all afternoon tasting new foods, shopping in the mercado, and meeting new people. We could not stop smiling.

Marcos has had absolutely no problems with the adjustment. He was immediately attacked by Cooper and Wilson and was in seventh heaven. He is a serious, curious boy, who hardly ever cries--When I carried him through the streets of Antigua with my "guatamalan blanket" wrapped around me, he slept like a baby. When he was awake he was ready for more adventure. He loves people. He does not like to be alone. He has been babied and we appreciate it. --When we met Lorena, who has been loving and taking care of precious Marcos since he was born, she was so sad. Once she met us it helped, but she was still sad. She could not stop complimenting Marcos on how good of a baby he has been, and that she would miss her "frijolito". --And she is right. He slept 8 hours, and he loves to eat, and play. What a marvelous thing that our Father in Heaven has given us, our fifth miracle. We could not be more appreciative. The only greater joy we will feel is when we seal him in the Temple, to truly finalize the adoption-forever.

We also had a chance to taste more of the guatamalan food-it is so flavorful. Our boys have loved it. Wilson said in response to a question about how he liked the food, "When can we come back to Guatamala?"

We miss Eliza, and Max -- We look forward to being together- as a complete family. There is no question in our minds that we will return to Guatamala. The only question is when. The people are beautiful, and we feel a strong pull, or obligation to return.

big brown eyes and tons of hair

How is it possible that in the time it takes to exhale I can be so in love, that I would die for this little boy? Never, in the history of Guatemalan adoptions, has such a sweet, darling boy found his family. So far his temperment is very relaxed, very mellow. His little cry is sweet and heartbreaking. On our outing today to the mercado he fell asleep in Wilson's arms and napped for over an hour in Tony's while we shopped. We'll test that temperment on the long trip home.

We were suprised to find out that he has no teeth yet! Lorena reports that he is a good eater, all vegetables, fruits and dulces (sweets). It's pretty clear that he has been held A LOT! He will probably follow in his brother Max's footsteps and wait to walk until he is 15 months. We are hearing cute little verbalizations and Wilson and Cooper can make him belly laugh like crazy. Tony and I have yet to even earn a smile.

He has Tony's big head--including one very flat side, Cooper's lashes, Wilson's nose, Eliza's eyebrows (another waxing candidate) and as dark of eye's as Maxwell. I think he has my mouth, but we'll see.

My favorite things on this boy are his awesome sideburns. Wilson loves his chubby tummy and cheeks. Tony is enamored with his eyes and Cooper loves his smile.

We are all so anxious for him to meet Eliza and Max. This is so much better than I ever imagined.

This morning was really hard. We watched Leticia, Lorena and Marcos pull into the parking lot from our window. Lorena was already crying and Marcos was nestled so comfortably in her arms. The minute she saw me she just handed me the baby and broke down, then I started balling and it took awhile for us both to gain our composure. There is no question about how loved he's been. Lorena has four children including a 10 year old boy and a 5 year old girl. Her other two girls were 16 and 18 and cried and cried when he left. Lorena was very happy that the boys were here; she knew his transition would be easier with kids.



This is Wilson. I'm the only person that can make him laugh. All you say is, "buje buje buje!" He laughs hard . He is a very very very very cute boy. We want to speak Spanash around him as much as we can.

Cooper here. I think Marcos is vary cute. I was the 1ast one to see him. He loves me. He is not black! He is tannish blackish whitish--mostly cute.

Safe Arrival

The four of us are snuggled up on a big comfy bed in a charming hotel called the San Carlos watching "El Mundo Divertido de Peep," (The fun world of Peep). Because it is a cartoon intended for children under age 5, I am understanding everything! We had a safe, rather uneventful flight. We were surprised to see the family who sat in front of us on the plane, check into the same hotel. We were especially delighted to discover that they are here to pick up their two little girls. They are on exactly the same schedule we are in terms of consulate appointment and trip home. Another family we met at dinner, was here visiting their little girl. The Mom warned me that it had taken three days for their little one to warm up to them, but watching her smiling with her new family was pure joy. Tony and I are surprised that we don't feel any nervousness or anxiety. We just feel peaceful and calm about putting the missing piece in our family puzzle.

Almost home

Two weeks ago we received the most wonderful news. We have been OK'd by the Guatemalan government and it looks like Marcos will be home in November! It feels not a day too soon. I've met a lot of doomsayers lately who have had personal experiences with unsuccessful adoptions. I am usually so shocked at the rudeness of their sharing these stories with me, that I am at a loss for words. I wish I could look them right in the eye and agree that bringing home an 11 month old child will be hard. It will be hard on Marcos, Max and me. However, I am confident in my ability to love this baby through the difficulty. I am confident that I can maintain the routines that will help him and the other kids feel secure. At age 36 and after eleven years of motherhood, I feel equipped for the challenge. I feel like Heavenly Father has prepared me. Tony and my marriage has never been stronger and we know that Marcos is meant for our family. We are not going into this with ideations of bliss. We just know it is part of the plan for our family. Next time someone gives me another failed adoption story, I'll just refer them to my blog and walk away.

Last weekend we witnessed a miracle firsthand. Tony had taken the boys to the high school football game Friday night. Our team was ahead and one of the kids from church had made three touchdowns! The quarterback, another LDS kid, suddenly fell face first onto the ground. The EMT's responded quickly and Tony was called onto the field. Tony and a couple of other medical people focused on keeping him breathing and his heart pumping. After about ten minutes Tony was horrified to discover that his eyes were fully dilated (blown) and fixed. This was a sign of severe neurological damage. Tony and the quarterback's Dad immediately gave him a blessing, in front of coaches and EMT personell. Tony asked the coach to gather his team and start praying. The other team joined in, and then all the people in the stands joined in prayer. They landed the helicopter right on the field and flew the student to Spokane where he had a four hour brain surgery to remove a clot from a "torn" area of the brain. I hadn't seen Tony that shaken in ten years. The outlook was very bleak and all signs pointed to either death or severe brain damage. When the surgeon called Tony the next day she was a little skeptical about his report. Apparently, both eyes had resumed normal function by the time the kid had arrived at the ER. Within 3 days of the surgery the boy had been ex-tubated, was communicating clearly and eating sausage and eggs. By day 5, they had him up on his feet and were planning discharge by the weekend. As Tony and I have reflected on the situation we have never felt so grateful for the power of the priesthood and that Tony, besides having the skills of a doctor, is a worthy priesthood holder. I hope our children always remember this dramatic miracle in their life. I hope Tony and I always remember it and that it's remembrance continually increases our faith.

Wilson, Cooper and Eliza are all playing soccer this fall. As always, the kindergarten team is highly entertaining and we spend a lot of time yelling, "other way, you are going the wrong way!" I'm glad it is only four weeks long. The kids also started piano lessons today. It feels like a lot, but it isn't too bad if I don't have to drive anyone anywhere.

I've had the opportunity to teach seminary this week. It has required me to be more efficient, but I love it. We are studying the Old Testament and I'm horrified at what I've either forgotten, or never knew about the Bible.

The best advice people have given me has been to always have clothes laid out for the next day, bags packed for school and breakfast table set. Those three things are truly survival techniques. I haven't felt overwhelmed lately, but I am usually surprised at bedtime what got packed into a single day. On Tuesday I will be 36. I love birthdays. I love that for 36 years years I have thought life couldn't get any better. This year I know it will be getting better because my baby is coming home!

6 more weeks

I called the adopotion agency on Friday to schedule a visit with Marcos. I just didn't think I could wait any longer. Vivian had just received word that we were approved by the Guatemalan government and that our wait will be about 6 weeks. I feel relieved and more at peace than I've been for six months. I know our family life is going to change in ways I can't imagine, but I think we are all ready.

Tony has been asked to serve in the student stake. It means he will be gone every Wednesday and Sunday, but we feel really good about what he will learn and the opportunity for growth. The men he works with are amazing. The extra bonus is that we will get to see much more of Jeff and Stacy since Tony has been assigned to their ward.

Reason #98098347 for loving St John. I have three kids in soccer, but they only have 4 practices and 4 games apiece. They can also walk to practice and no one is uptight about winning or losing. The coaches even coordinated with the dance teacher so the activities wouldn't overlap.

Wilson had a rough week at school. The big magazine sale started and caused him lots of anxiety. He is having a hard time completing his school assignments as well. I'm thrilled that his teacher is so dedicated and is willing to give Wilson extra attention every afternoon after school. Wilson has just mastered carrying out routines developed by his teacher or parents and now we have to work on his ability to develop his own routines. Mom says he reminds her so much of Cameron, so creative and bright and completely unable to finish a task beginning to end. Mom says the only thing that truly helps kids like Wilson is for them to grow up and marry organized, efficient wives! Sometimes when I get discouraged about Wilson's school success, I watch him on the trampoline doing gravity defying flips with the grace of a dolphin. I hope those skills are marketable in the workplace.

Cooper likes school, but I can tell he is still learning to negotiate social situations. We all laughed and laughed when he brought home a C- on his first spelling test. I'm glad we didn't overreact: this week his spelling test was an A+100% I love the way Cooper is motivated by money. He works so hard when he is working for cash.

Eliza lives for kindergarten. The biggest bonus is the way she and Max play on her days off. I think it is because he misses her so much he agrees to play her "girl games" out of desperation.

Max makes several trips a day to the stop sign on his bike to see if the "kids are coming." I took him on a bike ride the other day and when we got home he was all curled up on the floor of the bike trailer fast asleep. Next time I'll throw in his pillow!

Tony and I had a nice visit with Grandma Abuelita this week. Tony took some stitches out of her leg and was amazed at how healthy she is at 93. She is taking all her children on a cruise in November. Grandma gave me one of her last "doubleknit" quilts so now all my children have a blanket made by their great grandmother. I've always loved Grandma's ability to be around kids without getting
ruffled. I think it is the quality I most hope to have as an elderly person.

We are starting to get excited for our annual trip to the beach. It is the perfect location to come listen to the prophet's voice.

Max loves Marcos

Max and I were walking today when out of the blue he said, "Let's go get Marcos." I told him we have to wait until Guatemala says we can come. Standing in the middle of the street, Max promptly folded his arms and said a heartfelt prayer that Heavenly Father would send Marcos home now. Then he looked up at me and smiled his all knowing, all trusting, beautiful smile. The neighbor standing near commented, "Wow, that is faith!" I think Max and Marcos have a special relationship already. I can't wait to watch it in person.

Schooltime

I actually shed a tear today as I left three kids with their respective teachers on this first day of school. Wilson was defineatly having some anxiety about fifth grade. He reported that his teacher is, "picky, picky, picky!" Cooper was thrilled that this year he will have potential to earn tootsie rolls daily. He and his friends have every recess planned from now until Christmas. By far the most excited was our kindergartener. She marched right into class where her teacher grabbed her for a hug and said, "let me just look at the whole picture!" Eliza could hardly contain her excitement about having "homework," but duly rolled her eyes and sighed heavily when I told her it was time to get it done. It was much easier to get back into our routine this year, which makes me hopeful that we'll be able to maintain the routine and get to school on time. I'm grateful tht my kids go to a school where everything is familiar, even to first time kindergarteners. I love that everyone knew Eliza on her first day of school. I think the familiarity is a blessing to both Cooper and Wilson as well.

I cleaned like a mad woman today. I don't know why I think I can clean a summer's worth of dirt out of my house in a day, but I gave it a valient effort. I'm not sure how long Max is going to last alone with me. He wandered around aimlessly with his pillow asking to go to"BYU." I later figured out he wanted to go to the football field( BYU is heavily associated with football in this house) so Tony took the kids to play after dinner.

Mom and I had such a nice time on our quick trip to Seattle. She had a doctor's appointment there and it made for a wonderful excuse for a girl's getaway. We ate kosher food at a New York deli, authentic Vietnemese noodle bowls and great Mexican beans and rice. We got some good shopping in and especially had fun in IKEA, where we got good ideas for organizing Mom's new house. We did a fair amount of getting lost, but this gave us plenty to laugh about. I'm so different than my Mom, but wish I were like her in more ways, like her compassion, empathy and especially, her attention to detail.

Thank goodness for one last weekend of summer including a couple of days at the lake. It's been such a great summer, I'm having a hard time transitioning to f\Fall.

15 years

The anniversary of 15 years of marriage to an amazing man quietly passed last week without much celebration. My gift however, was a new canoe, in remembrance of one of our first dates at BYU. I still can't believe I invited Tony on an overnight trip with my canoe class way back in 1991. Last night was a perfectly still evening with just a taste of fall in the air. We took the canoe to Rock Lake and quietly paddled past jumping fish, a family of ducks and diving herons. It was amazing to see the underwater rock cliffs on the periphery of the lake and we enjoyed the most beautiful sunset. I know if Tony had been making the plans we would have been waterskiing on the perfect glass. I guess that is what I love most about my sweetheart; he consistently puts me before himself.  I look forward to many more canoe trips with that man. 

 I took the kids to Steptoe Butte for our annual summer hike. I was so proud of the kids, we made it nearly to the top. About halfway up we discovered that we were being pursued by 20 foot trolls who kept trying to blow us off the mountain. We hurried to the safety of the castlerock then walked right on top of the big black snake that wound around the Butte. Eliza found magical fairy powers that prevented the snake from smelling us and Cooper found the snake's heart near the top and killed it with his pocket knife. Once we had conquered the snake the trolls ran in fear and we chased them down the mountain back to our car where we feasted on cheese and crackers, grapes and lots of cookies. It was a really fun day with the kids. 

New pictures of the baby came today. He weighs 17 lbs at nine months-everything about him is tiny except for those gigantic brown eyes, ojos gigantes.

Heaven

The closest thing to heaven on earth is two weeks in a row of family reunions--without the food preparation! Our family reunions were highlights of our summer. We hosted the Lundberg reunion this year in St John, and it was a great success. The Russ and Pam Lundberg family arrived on Wednesday which gave us a little extra time with them. Everyone else (except Jeremy, Jeffrey, LaRisa and Marcos) arrived on Thursday. The weather was hot, so we headed to the pool before family pictures and yummy roasted turkey dinner. After dinner Grandma and Grandpa Lundberg shared some of their stories from their mission and had everyone in tears. They feel the blessings promised to them when they were set apart are coming to pass. They truly feel surrounded by angels and cited example after example of miracles happening at the Deseret industries. Mom and Dad's hearts are very tender and it is evident in the kind way the treat each other.

Later that evening we headed back to to the pool for our family diving contest. The winner had to be uncle Blake for his incredible frog dive, but Grandma Lundberg got high marks for going off the low and high dive with amazing grace. Even Grandpa Lundberg took a dip. The monogrammed towels were a big hit for all participants. That evening we had popcorn and movie in the "outdoor theatre" on the patio.

Friday we spent at the lake on the boat. It was a little disappointing that first thing the tube cover ripped right off the still inflated tube and the wind was so terrible it made white caps on the river. We made the best of it and had a great time visiting and swimming. Grandma and Grandpa even took a group of kids to the dam to see the fish ladder. They had us all in stitches telling about cousin Tony driving the tourguide nuts with his endless questions. Tony is a very bright boy with loads of curiosity.

We started Saturday with Blake and Lori's famous pancake breakfast. The men all went golfing where Uncle Blake handily beat everyone and a perpetually positive Russ complimented even the worst shots. That afternoon we put together missionary packages for Jeffery and La Risa and went swimming. We were sorry to say Goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Lundberg who had missionary work to do! That evening the older cousins watched the little ones so the adults could go to CoeurdeAlene for dinner and the famous desserts. It was a lovely evening of fabulous food, mountains of ice cream and a romantic walk on the boardwalk.

What a treat to have everyone together for church on Sunday and a final dinner together before saying goodbye. Thankfully we have next year to look forward to when Grandma and Grandpa will host a humanitarian reunion in St George. We are already looking forward to being together.

One of the greatest blessings of being with the Lundberg family is the joy that comes from being surrounding by five very in love married couples. Marital discord just isn't a part of our get togethers and the peace is remarkable. My greatest joy was watching the love and friendship between cousins. Eliza had five "sisters" to play with all weekend and was inseparable. The special friendship between Wilson and Rebekah that has been there since they were very little was equally gratifying.

We were blessed to have an extra day with Deb and Rand and their family, especially since it meant Rand finishing a lot of "honey-do" projects. The kids worked on a scripture story literally all day and performed "Ammon" at FHE evening that night. It was a slight variation from the actual scriptural account but ended beautifully with strong testimonies from each of the kids. We celebrated their performance with unlimited ice cream until even Cooper said he felt sick.

After saying goodbye to Deb and Rand we packed our suitcases and got ready for our next reunion hosted by Tyler and Chelsea in Utah. We broke the trip up by staying the night in Boise and made it to American Fork by lunchtime on Thursday. Tyler and Chelsea surprised us with great reunion t-shirts featuring the famous Rippy volkswagon van. We had family pictures and then headed to Seven Peaks water park where the Shade company treated us to dinner and a fun evening of water slides. Max was a little overstimulated, but everyone else had a great time. We went directly to Solitude ski resort where we tucked very tired kids into cozy beds in Tyler's lovely condos. Tony and I woke up first thing on Friday and had an amazing hike in the mountains. After breakfast we swam at the pool and got ready for the Zoo. It was a very warm day, but we all had a great time seeing the animals and especially enjoyed the bird show. One of the most entertaining moments of the day occurred in the tiger exhibit where a women felt a bee go down her pants and stripped naked standing right next to Tony. Several family members witnessed her doing a most amazing "bee in the pants dance" and were able to perform it for the rest of us later.

That evening after a delicious taco dinner we put the kids to bed ands pent the evening playing a "get to know you" game. A get to know you game with one's siblings is the height of hilarity and tenderness and we relished the opportunity to hear the answers to such questions as: Who is one of your heroes not in this room?, What is a gift or talent that you have been given?, What is an activity you enjoy? It was a particularly special moment when Tyler shared that one of his gifts was that he never remembers having to find a testimony, he just always had one. Cameron, Dustin, Jeff and myself also admitted the same experience. I think Mom and Dad felt very blessed at that moment.

On Saturday we all rode the lift to the top of the mountain and hiked up to a little lake. The guys spent the rest of the morning playing a round of frisbee golf and then we met again at the pool. Again, I loved watching the cousins have such a good time together. Corbin and Kimball are highly entertaining and deliciously mischievous. Eliza and Kate also had a good time together and drove Addy nuts with their "nurturing." We all said goodbye that night and heartily thanked Tyler and Chelsea for a wonderful time together.

We got a call from Tony' sister Debbie late that Saturday night. She had been terribly sick with a bladder infection and then threw her back out. Rand was fishing in Alaska with his brother and Debbie was feeling terrible. We were able to go to Orem on Sunday and Tony popped her back into place. She experienced immediate relief and we were all able to go to church together because of Tony's gift of healing. It was a nice way to end a beautiful weekend.

On the way home we stopped in Oregon at the Lewis and Clark interpretive trail, and later in Walla Walla where Max picked out and rode out the door his new birthday bike. He's a big boy now. We celebrated his official birthday with Workmans at the lake on a perfect summer evening with water as smooth as glass. Of course we had to go back to the sand dunes to play in the lovely soft sand and look for clam shells. Max and Oakley exchanged gifts and were as cute as ever together. We just left the boat at the lake and went back the next afternoon to take the church youth on boat rides. I have become an official driver and can hit the bumps like a pro, but I was happy to see Tony come to take a turn. The church kids are so grateful and fun, it is always a pleasure to be with them.

Yesterday was the Tour de Lentil, the 60 mile bike ride that nearly killed me last year. This year a group of us modified the ride to exclude a couple of the worst hills and cut it down to about 45 miles. We also started 2 1/2 hours earlier, which made for a much cooler ride. It was a beautiful day and ended perfectly when my biking friends came to St John to pick black berries and make home made ice cream. The frozen custard (secret ingredient is rum!) and lemon sorbet were perfect compliments to our standard favorite: lemon-blackberry. The company was as enjoyable as the icec ream.

Just a week and a half until school starts. Two of my kids have their school supplies and new shoes, the other will prepare by the skin of his teeth, as usual. My new family motto is, "To the END." I'm trying hard to help my kids do a task thoroughly-to the end, not just half way. My thoughts are really on Marcos right now. I know as soon as summer ends and I have three kids in school, I will feel his absence even more strongly. My hopes are up for news by the end of August. I will just keep studying my Spanish and bracing myself for the changes that come with having a baby again. Marcos home will be the only thing that could make our near perfect life any happier!

16 miles

Saturday we managed to do a little of each of our family member's favorite things--quite a feat with 6 different people. We started on bikes at Heyburn state park on the couerdealene bike trail. Eliza rode tandem with Tony and I pulled Max in the trailer. The boys did great, especially Cooper. We were all motivated by thoughts of ice cream in Harrison, which tasted so good after a hot ride. When we finished, we jumped on the boat and spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and perfecting our dives from the bow of the boat. Cooper will be our best diver with his slim and graceful body, but Wilson gets high marks for gutsy backflips. Even Eliza and I got diving lessons from the rest of the family. Max entertained us with his lip-syncing and fancy dancing to Micheal Buble.

It would have been the perfect day had it not been for the very sad news from Dustin and Kimberly that their birth Mom made the selfish decision to keep her baby. We were heartbroken. The only comfort came from Corbin who said, "Don't worry Mommy, our new baby is coming soon." I can't imagine why Dustin and Kimberly are being tested this way. It is testing our whole family's faith.

For the first time all summer I thought to myself today that the kids need to be in school. Ironically Wilson said at dinner tonight that he wishes school were starting sooner and Cooper spent the afternoon purchasing school supplies at the pharmacy. It's a surprise every year that I could actually wish for the end of summer. In spite of those sentiments, tonight Tony and I went for a run and the beautiful, full harvest moon came up as bright as a lantern over the wheat fields. The smell was intoxicating and it felt like we could run forever. I love this time of year and there isn't a place on earth as beautiful as St John.

rollercoasters and diving boards

Maxwell, my son who has been highly cautious of the swimming pool and lake, announced on Tuesday, "Hey Mom watch me put my face underwater!" To my shock, he held his nose and dipped in. He then announced, "I'm ready to go off the diving board." He hesitated just minute then jumped into my arms. I was shocked but laughed my head off when he climbed out of the pool, walked directly to the lifegaurd, and requested a popsicle. He had been working up to this jump ever since the early June swimming lessons when all the other kids got popsicles for going off the diving board. I learned a lot about Max's personality from this experience. I must let him do things on his own time. He reminds me much of Cooper. 

 When I was putting Wilson to bed the other night he told me he'd had difficulty sleeping and the scriptures had been running over and over in his mind. He said two years ago he'd asked Heavenly Father if the church was true but he'd had no answer. While he was thinking about the scriptures he had feeling, "kind of like going on a roller coaster at Disneyland, only better." I've never heard the Holy Ghost described this way, but it was pretty accurate for an 11 year old boy. Less than 24 hours later he did a sneaky, peaky, dishonest thing that earned him the chance to work for the neighbor lady for a couple of hours in the blazing heat for free. As Grandma Chocolate used to say, "When he was good he was very very good, but when he was bad, he was horrid!" 

 I've survived another Enrichment event. This time we had a pool party and BBQ: chicken, tabboulah, greek salad and pita and hummus. People seemed to like it and it wasn't a very stressful meal. One week to the family reunion--We are getting excited

Cooper's dinosaur day

"I went to walking with dinosaur 's . I got a shirt. I got popcorn, candy, and soda. "

-Cooper

 Cooper had a unique experience at "Walking with Dinosaurs" with our friends the Delongs. He learned that T-Rex dinosaurs are the newest breed of dinosaurs. The lighting and effects were pretty amazing he said. He also learned that Mom T-rexs can roar loader than Dads because they are protecting their young. 

On Friday night Cam and Jill and family came and stayed the night like old times, only instead of being newlyweds they came with three kids! We had a yummy blueberry pancake breakfast together and then went to Rock lake for a few hours. It was beautiful on the lake. 

 Wilson turned 11 this week. His friend Jonah Hainsworth came for the day with his wakeboard-injured Dad. We had fun swimming and wakeboarding at Rock Lake. Wilson and Jonah practiced pellet gun and slingshot shooting all afternoon and made more than one hornet mad! 

Here is what Wilson had to say about his birthday: "It was very fun! I got a lot of cool stuff like a machine gun and I shot it at the bee's nest and made 100.000.000 bee's mad. All I wanted for my birthday party was for my "cousins" to come, but Jackson, Yuhua and Eli were at scout camp. Then Jonah called and said, "Hey, my Dad needs to work in Pullman, can I come over?" It was like Heavenly Father gave me a birthday present. It feels good to be 11."  

On Monday night we celebrated Grandma Rippy's 93 birthday. It was fun to see our cousins and Aunt Clara and Uncle Fred. Grandma is one of those wonderful people that is perpetually optimistic. We are grateful for her.

Mozart on a summer's night

Last night, as an early birthday gift, Becky Dickerson took me to Manito Park for the most wonderful evening of music. The temperature was perfect, we sat on the grass and had delicious treats from Lindmanns and enjoyed both classical and contemporary pieces by vocalists as well as instrumentalists. We even indulged in dinner at Twiggs and had salmon and Portebello mushroom sandwiches. It was wonderful to spend an evening feeling so pampered with a friend I enjoy so much.

Becky and I talked, among other things, about dignity. I'm going to explore that word and poll my friends and family as to what that word entails. I'm interested in how I can better maintain my dignity as well as preserving others dignity. I would like to read a book on "disciplining with dignity." I know dignity does not involve shame, sarcasm or raised voices all of which I am guilty. I think it involves charity, respect and peace. The Savior, as always, will be the best example for me to study.

Wilson stayed the night with Mom and Dad last night and was spoiled. My kids are very blessed to have good grandparents, particularly ones that actually like their company. Tony took his board exams today. He is tired, but feels fairly confident he passed.

We had a great cub scout hike through (literally in) the Palouse river yesterday. The weather was perfect and the kids had a ball laying in the green mucky water up to their necks. All went well until Wilson declared he had been attacked by a leech. Leeches really put a damper on fun, real or imagined.

I love this time of year when harvest starts. I love the smell of wheat and the buzz of electricity that runs through town.

New picture of Marcos arrived yesterday. These were his cutest one yet and I clearly discern a hint of mischief in those beautiful brown eyes. I don't know what is going on with his hair--it looks wild. I am destined, with one exception, to have kids with the world's most difficult hair. Marcos clearly belongs to us.

coeur d'alene 2007

There is no better place to spend a weekend of 100 degree temperatures than at a cabin on Lake Coeur d'Alene. This weekend marked the 8th annual lake weekend with the Hughes and Hainsworths and like we say every year, it was our best year ever. I think half our fun is reminiscing about past years and remembering traumatic experiences that now seem charming and funny. 

We laughed our head off thinking of poor Betsy being mooned by Tony and walking in on a butt-naked Jason all on the same weekend. I remembered the year I slept half the night on the hammock on the dock with a screaming Cooper who had a terrible ear infection. 

We can't forget all of the injuries that Tony has sustained;  broken hand, perforated eardrum, fascial rope burn and the blessing it has been that they all happened to him and not one of the kids. None of those injuries ever stopped him from skiing, we note. Our only trauma this year was a very sick little Emma who literally stayed in bed and the bathroom the whole weekend. It broke your heart to look at her because she loves to be at the lake and in the water. We took the Black Squirell with us this year, and of course something broke. I was really proud of Tony because he and a yacht club employee were able to fix it. Tony is learning a lot about boat repair this year!

Both Friday and Saturday the adults had great ski time. Everyone but me was able to master the wakeskate; both Betsy and Andrea made it look like a piece of cake. I managed to clear my sinuses and provide several entertaining falls. One of the happiest parts of my weekend was watching the boys together. With Jackson as the ring-leader and Eli as designated comedian, the boys spent the whole weekend watching endless Indiana Jones movies, navigating wild tube rides and mastering the wake skate. I love the friendship that the boys have and the acceptance they feel with each other. We didn't hear one word of complaint or whining and Jonah especially, was the first to express gratitude. Anna, Lily and Eliza were thick as thieves and Cooper loved kayaking and giving rides to the little ones. This was John's first year at the lake. He loved the tube and was very brave in the water.  Max, not so brave in the water, but liked playing on the beach with the toys.

On Friday night the adults went for dessert at the hotel and a walk on the boardwalk. The desserts were fabulous, but of course we go for the conversation and time alone. We really missed James most this night; he wasn't able to come on this trip. What we have learned from our trips together is that we have the most fun when we keep things simple (food, clothes, activites) and focus on making memories. I am very lucky to have friends who not only show me up on the wakeskate, but also on showing patience to their families . I learn so much from both the lemon sisters.

I really fell in love with Tony this weekend again (for the millionth time) as I watched him driving a boat full of kids in the hot sun for 2 hours and loving it. I love that he plays so hard. I must get that man a bimini top for the boat so he doesn't get sun stroke.

Other good news of the weekend was that Evalie was born on Saturday July 14th. She has long lashes, chubby cheeks and several very cute chins. I can't believe my baby brother is a Dad! Stacey had to have a C-section after pushing for 2 hours, but she looks great and everyone is healthy. Also, Tony's Mom and Dad were set apart as missionaries today. They will be running the Deseret Industries in St George. They will be amazing and we are very proud of them.

We have another wonderful week of hot weather and Wilson turns 11 on Tuesday. As always, the only thing that could be bettter in our lives would be a certain small Guatemalan boy home safe. We are back in PGN and can begin counting down 8 weeks again. Better luck this time.

Fourth of july

This week has officially felt like summer. For starters the weather has been hot, hot, hot. We had the most wonderful camping trip on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. We stayed at Boyer Park with the Workman family. As with all great camping trips, we had great dutch oven food. The Workmans wowed us with a chicken curry and pineapple upside down cake. We wowed them with a very fattening, cheesy, meat-filled concoction called "Splazana", as well as blackberry apple cobbler. Mom and Dad came on Tuesday and stayed in the marina hotel. That night we all went for a boat ride and discovered "the dunes" on the river. We had so much fun jumping and sliding like penguins in the soft sand. Oakley was hilarious when he headed face first down a steep dune and stopped at the bottom spitting a mouthful of sand. I'm glad Mom and Dad were there to make that memory.

On Wednesday we started our day at the ward flag raising ceremony and pancake breakfast. It was really early, but a great way to remember what day it was. Tony had to go straight to the hospital for call, so I relied heavily on other people to help with my kids and the boat, so that everyone at the lake could have tube and boat rides. Mado was there. She has been in the US for almost a year and I loved seeing her relaxed and enjoying the lake with her kids. Our new friends from Columbia were there as well and they had a great time on the tube. Several ward members were also there and I'm glad we could share the boat.

Wilson spent a large portion of his time caring for several baby birds that a mother had kicked out of the nest. The boys fished them out of the water and then made them comfortable in a donut box. They bought worms from the marina and hand fed them for hours. Wilson was so grateful that Heavenly father trusted him to take care of those baby birds. We will all probably get some avian flu, but it was worth it to see Wilson so tender. Both Cooper and Wilson got up on the wakeboard and skiis. Max even requested tube rides and Tony and I both had great skiis. I'm feeling much more confident driving the boat and just need to conquer backing the trailer into the lake. At the end of the day, I'd never seen my kids so tired, and I was equally exhausted. We went to have dinner with Tony at the hospital, cleaned up and headed for the Endicott fireworks display. Everyone but Max loved it. He covered his ears and closed his eyes for the whole show. It was a beautiful holiday and we were very grateful to have a boat. 

I must be doing something right. Wilson said he feels like crying when I make him clean the toilet with a toothbrush because he feels like a slave. I answered with a resounding, "YES!"

Last night for our date, Tony and I rode our bikes up Steptoe Butte. The view was breathtaking and the ride was good and hard, but not impossible. I thought coming down was stressful, but Tony loved it. He wished he didn't have to brake for cars and deer.

Tonight we went to Rock Lake with the Dickerson family. We always have a good time with them because Todd knows the lake so well. This time we got to watch a tree full of turkey buzzards take flight, an Ospry catch a trout and get the heck out of the way of a fire fighting airplane filling up with water. Todd taught us that when the water is green it means it is "blooming" with plant life deep below and gives the water a beautiful color. Even a few misbehaving children couldn't ruin a perfect summer night.

Father's day whip cream fight

Monday was the fifth annual Father's Day Whip Cream Fight at the Lundberg house. This year we only had one child in tears. Wilson was expert at aim and managed to plug everyone's ears with his whip cream. Cooper's strategy was to simply hide until everyone had used up most of their whip cream, and then attack. Eliza was plain FAST! In spite of the whole family smelling like a dairy for a day or so, this event was, as always, a highlight of our year.

We got another picture of Marcos this week. He is growing fast. I was a little concerned about the mosquito bites on his face, but I think I'm over-reacting.

We had a beautiful day at the lake on Thursday night with the Winter's family. Cooper and Wilson are both up on wakeboards and skiis. The kids loved the tube rides and even Max is begging for a turn. The water was cold but smooth like glass so Tony and I had good skiis. The low point was that Jaylynn Winters snapped her hamstring. Ouch. The kids are anxious to invite the Winter's again because they bring great snacks. They also pointed out that the Winter's are fun to have along because they obey the rules and are thankful. I'm so thankful for the lesson they taught by their example.

Today was fast Sunday and we all fasted for the people in town who have been affected by a young man's recent bad choices. It has reminded us that a parent's presence is integral to keep kids safe and that good communication within our family is imperative. It breaks my heart that children my kid's ages have to deal with the effects of sexual abuse and rape. It is a motivator for me to closely follow the spirit.

Tomorrow we are off to Boyer Park for a camping trip. It should be a great (very hot) 4th of July.

a day at porcupine bay

Yesterday we enjoyed a quintessential summer day. Tony and I had the sleepy kids loaded into the car by 6:45 and we were off to Porcupine Bay. Just driving through Davenport brings back so many childhood memories. Our favorite breakfast spot, "Ellie's", has been replaced by a Mexican Restaurant so we stopped for pancakes at the Davenport Inn. Breakfast out is my favorite way to start a day.

It wasn't a particularly warm day, so the crowds were low. The kids spent the whole morning catching polywogs and burying themselves in the warm sand. We took Mom and Dad to the cove at the end of the river and spent an hour skipping rocks and skiing. Cooper got up for just a minute on the wakeboard and we were very proud of him for trying. We were glad to have Addy, Lane and Kimball with us, even if Kimball insisted on wearing his favorite swimming suit, a Snoopy Speedo! We also discoverd that Cocoa Rice Krispies make terrible Rice Krispy Treats.

I felt grateful to have access to such a beautiful place, grateful that the boat worked without a hitch and of course especially thankful for a "ready made family reunion" every weekend at the lake.

summer experiment

I always feel anxiety that summer is going to pass too quickly and I will have wasted the precious hours. This summer I will conduct an experiement to see if keeping a record of our activities will leave me feeling more satisfied at the end of August. It will also be a good way to expend the nervous emotional energy I have while waiting for my sweet little boy in Guatemala.

The kids have been out of school just over a week. We've been to the lake at least three times and the swimming pool at least five times. Our routines are going pretty well, the kids have already jumped off the diving board at swimming lessons, and everyone seems to be so relaxed. Today I took the kids to Manito Park in Spokane and we fed the ducks and picnicked with the cousins and Grandma. The boys were most enthralled with the catfish that ate bread and licorice from their hands. We also went through the Japanese gardens where the kids named all the Koi fish; "zebra", "baby blue" "big daddy anchovie." The kids were horrified to hear that the seagulls opened Grandma's sack, took her sandwich out and ate it before she even knew what was happening. Max pointed out another little boy at the park and proudly said, "He's black like me!" It was a really beautiful day.

Tomorrow I will attempt to imitate Jill's famous pickled asparagus, all 50 pounds. I think the kids are planning to sabatoge Tony with whipped cream as well. It will be the fifth annual Father's Day Whip Cream Fight.

Tuesday was Betina's birthday party and we painted her room. It was so much fun. I am determined to give service to all my friends for their birthdays because it is what I would want most and allows quality time together. Tomorrow is my friend Sara's birthday and we are going to weed her garden.

Lundberg Quips:
An angry Wilson asked this week why we didn't name Cooper "Butthead" instead of Cooper. He said it fit him better.
Max laughed when I told him I'd break his legs if he threw food on the floor and asked , "Again?!"
Cooper said at dinner one night, "This is the best part of the day when we can just be together and talk about our day." (Very reinforcing).
I overheard Eliza say to her friend Roxy, "We are pretty much the most special in the whole wide world, right?" To which her friend Roxy responded with a resounding, "RIGHT!"

I wish more than anything I knew what Marcos did today, what he smiled at and what made him mad.