Good-bye to good friends

Once in a lifetime a family comes along that you just instantly bond with. When we moved to Ukiah we met the VanderStoep family and our lives were changed. All of our kids get along well with all of their kids. All of the adults also get along so well. I have never met someone like Julie. She is an amazing woman and I just adore her. We moved away from Ukiah a year and a half ago and it seems that we have still seen each other every other month or so. We don't live too far from them. Well they are moving to Las Vegas next week so the girls and I drove to see them and say good-bye. It was an emotional farewell. I know that we will always be close to their family no matter the distance between us. I have learned alot from Julie and will miss her dearly! I am thankful that Heavenly Father crossed our paths. She is truley one of a kind.

smokey shmokey!!

So the past few months it has been super smokey due to all the wildfires. So bad that the AQI (air quality index) has been hazardous a few days. Meaning that we can't even be outside. So one morning I walked outside and couldn't even see 1/2 mile away. It's crazy! These pics were taken from our front porch.

I don't even know...

Within the past year and a half our family has been plaqued with cancer diagnosis'. Last March my mother-in-law Marian was diagnosed with breast cancer. In July it was Halie with a wilms tumor, followed by Richard's Aunt Dolores in August with ovarian cancer. Richard's grandfather (Pap) is the most recent victim. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a few months ago. We are happy to say that Marian is cancer free as is Halie. Aunt Dolores is still fighting her battle and Pap just began his fight. Richard is close with Pap and Grandma and 2 weeks ago Richard and his sister Jennifer went to Phoenix to visit them. They had a wonderful visit and says that they are both in high spirits.

four fabulous females

We hear so often when we tell people we have four girls, "Oh I'm so sorry!" It really bothers me that is how people see it. We love having four daughters! Yes we know that it will be crazy when they are all teenagers! Yes we know that they are going to be expensive! Yes we know that we have four weddings to pay for! But give me a break. We are so thankful that we have four healthy children. They are all beautiful. They are all fun. They are all vital to our family and I wouldn't trade any of them for a boy!

Typical

So we were going to the library to play bug bingo and I told the girls to go get dressed. Halie ~ our sweet little Halie has always been very independent in the way she dresses. She comes out in the funniest outfit. I know that some people would have a cow but I have never cared (as long as it is clean). My feeling is that my kids are going to eventually conform to the fashion that the world thinks is cool. So why not let them be carefree for a time! Who knows, maybe she'll be a trendsetter.

Twilight

Okay so how many of you are obsessed with the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer? I know it's probably a little bit unhealthy but I love it! I am on her website all the time making sure that I don't miss anything. I can't wait until the last book comes out, Breaking Dawn. There is going to be a party just before the release at midnight at the Barnes and Noble in Chico and I am trying to get Richard to go with me. But regardless I will be there. Andrea got me into it and when I went to visit her this past weekend we spent time talking about it and exploring articles on the internet about the movie. 16 days and counting....

Our little girl is all grown up...

Okay not really grown up but McKenzie was baptized 2 weeks ago. It's crazy that she is already at that age! We had a great weekend and got support from our families. Mom and Dad Warnick came, along with Andrea, Luke and their kids Taylor and Andrew. We also were lucky enough that Richard's mom Marian came to support McKenzie. She is not a member of our church but knew how important it was. Aubrey and James came the day after the baptism also. We all had a great time playing games, talking, laughing, and eating. We are so proud of McKenzie and what a wonderful daughter she is. She was so excited to get baptized. It was great to see her enthusiasm and know that we are teaching her correct principles. She strives to learn in the gospel and has enjoyed being able to attend achievement night. ( Achievement night is a church activity night held once a month with other girls ages 8-11.)

Choice and Accountability

Growing up my dad had about a hundred lectures that he would give to us kids. We had most of them numbered by frequency of the lecture. Lecture #1...Choice and Accountability. This one we heard the most. Whenever he would start this lecture I would roll my eyes or chuckle under my breath. But as I have grown I have learned to greatly appreciate that lecture. Right now a person very close to us is really struggling. It seems like he continues to make so many painful decisions that lead him down an extremely dangerous path. We keep thinking his choices couldn't get worse, but they do. It is the point of no return now and there are devastating consequences to his many bad choices. The problem is that now his choices aren't just affecting him, they are affecting everyone who loves him (including his kids). As I sit back and look at the wreckage he is leaving behind him my heart breaks. I could have just as easily been on the same destructive path. I chose a different way (after many of my own trial). Somewhere in the back of my mind was dad's old lecture # 1. I am so thankful to my dad for teaching me such an important lesson.