Youth Conference 2012

A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend our ward's youth conference. Their theme was "Living Waters" based on the scripture John 4:14, "But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." All of the activities for the conference had to do with water.

We met early Friday morning and traveled to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple so the youth could do baptisms for the dead. Next we took them to a water park to play for the afternoon. Then we drove up into the mountains to spend the night in a cabin. At the cabin we just let the youth (and leaders) play games and mostly just spend time getting to know each other better. In the morning, we had a devotional from the bishop. Then we packed everything up and headed to a lake where they could enjoy boating, tubing, canoeing and just playing in the water and sun.

Needless to say, the youth had a great time and the leaders came home exhausted. (Actually the leaders also had a great time and the youth might have been even more tired than we were.) I've been to plenty of combined mutual activities, but this was the first youth conference I've attended with our ward. After being with them for over 30 straight hours, I was definitely reminded how funny (i.e., twitterpated) youth at this age can be (especially the young women). But we have such great youth that I would do it all again without hesitation (except for the part where they blasted out the radio playing teenie-bopper music-I could definitely do without that part again!).

Luckily I got to come home and get plenty of rest since the rest of my little family had gone to Nevada for the Miller family reunion. Ross and Leah went with his mom and uncle. They stopped in Elko both ways to visit Grandma Mary. Leah was SO EXCITED to go to Grandma Miller's again. She still remembered our visit in April and was looking forward to seeing all the clocks again.

While in the Reno/Fallon area Ross got to go to a Reno Aces baseball game and "Hot August Nights" (a car show). At the reunion they got to go swimming and spend lots of time visiting with family. They had a great time, but when it was all done they were happy to be out of the car and back home again. And as much as I was enjoying the peace and quiet, it was nice for me to have them back too.

Sierra's Sealing

On August 4th we got to witness and celebrate our niece, Sierra's, sealing to her parents in the Provo Temple. We've got to know Sierra quite well over the past year or so. And we were so excited when her adoption was finally official at the end of June. But we were even more happy to be there for her sealing. The sealing ceremony was so great. The sealer (who knows them because he is in their ward) taught some wonderful things before conducting the actual sealing. Sierra looked beautiful in her little white dress. What a special experience!! I love the temple. Afterwards, we went to a nearby park for a little family dinner and then her neighbors and friends came for a big celebration complete with cake and lots of yummy watermelon. Sierra is such a sweetheart. We are glad to have her as part of our family.

Last Week of July

So to finish up our busy July, we celebrated the 24th of July (Pioneer Day) by going to the "Days of '47" parade with some of my family. I didn't get many pictures at the parade, but here are a couple of Leah enjoying the parade on her Aunt MoMo's lap.

After the parade, we went back to my parents' house for some much needed naps. Then I tried to set up the kiddie pool in the backyard so Leah could beat the heat in the water. But someone had borrowed my parents' pool, so I had to improvise with the little sandbox. However, that didn't keep Leah from having a great time playing in the water. I even used water from the hot tub to fill it up. So it was a nice and pleasant temperature for her to play in.

She had a ball playing, but didn't always want to stay in the pool. She often ran over to the slide for a ride down. Which would cover her bottom and legs in grass and dirt. But she didn't seem to care in the least. (You'll see from the pictures that Ross also enjoyed soaking his feet in the water with Leah.)

Before long, Makynlee came out to join Leah in the fun. These two had a blast splashing together and chasing each other around. By the time they were done, the water was full of grass and dirt and who knows what else. They were two dirty girls in much need of a bath who didn't want to stop playing.

Here they are later on all cleaned up and playing on the bench swing. I know I say it a lot, but these two have so much fun together.

The next night we went to the Bees baseball game. We had a great time and, overall, the little girls did pretty well. They didn't care much about the game, but they definitely thought it was a fun place to play. They especially liked when Aunt MoMo bought a snocone and shared with them. This picture of Melyssa (MoMo) was actually taken by Leah (with a little help from me).

These two were on the go the entire game, but they were having such a great time. We have since gone to another game with them. They were both looking forward to going again and were both sad when it was time to go home.

During this week, my parents were with the youth in their stake on a Pioneer Trek in Wyoming. So my mom wasn't around to take care of Kynee during the days while my sister worked. So I offered to come back up and take care of her on Friday. Leah was more than happy to join me on a trip back to Grandpa's house. The girls did pretty good playing together that day. There was only one major cat fight that ended with both of them in time-out. One of their favorite things that day was playing in my parents' new free-standing pantry that didn't have stuff in it yet. They opened and closed the door while they were inside a countless number of times.

That evening after people were done with work, we met up with Ross and went to dinner at Texas Road House (yummy!) and then went to Trafalga to play. Trafalga is a local fun center with games, rides, miniature golfing, etc. We weren't sure the girls would be big enough for any of the rides, but they really wanted to try them and the workers let them ride. This frog hopper ride was one of those where they take you up about 30 feet in the hair and then drop you back down a little at a time on a bungee system, then take you back up to do it again. Both little girls wanted to try it. It was funny to see their different reactions to the ride. In the first picture, they are getting ready for the ride to start. So both are happy just waiting. But the next picture is taken about half way through the ride. Leah is clinging onto both of her aunts' hands with a look of uncertainty, while Kynee has a huge grin on her face and is loving every minute of it. But don't worry about Leah, she did have a good time and even rode it a couple more times before we left. Even though it involved a lot of panic on her part each time, she still wanted to do it again.

We thought the girls would enjoy the miniature bowling. They have little lanes with small balls, perfect for these small ones. Kynee got more into it than Leah. But I got a picture of both of them rolling the ball with MoMo's help.

We tried to all go miniature golfing, but by hole 3 it was obvious that Leah and Makynlee were going to make it a very difficult task. Both were enjoying it a little too much and we couldn't get them to leave anything alone. So I took the girls to find other things to do while the other 4 adults finished their golf game. Their favorite ride was a miniature pirate ship that rocked back and forth. We rode it over and over (with Leah clinging to me each time, of course - funny girl) and we even convinced the others to ride it with us when they finished their golf game. It was about 11:00 pm when we left that night, but everyone was having such a good time, that it was hard to pull away any sooner.

So that pretty much concludes our busy July. August is already a third of the way over. Our summer is slipping away so quickly. Ross has to report back to work next week. We've done enough fun things that we really can't complain, but it is still so sad to see it coming to an end.

Another Visit and Mom's Birthday

So things did slow down a bit after having the kids with us for a while. Our next adventure came the very next Monday when we went back to Ross's mom's house to spend more time with Kyle, Amy and Jackson before they went back home to Louisiana. We enjoyed the afternoon with them playing games and visiting while the little ones played. Visits like that are never long enough, but we did enjoy our time with them while they were here. We just hope that it is not another year and a half before we get to see them again.

That evening we went to my parents' house to celebrate my mom's birthday. We had to drive through what felt like a monsoon to get there, but we had lots of fun once we were there. My dad made some Mexican food for dinner and we had homemade ice cream for dessert (among plenty of other treats). We got back home really late that night, but it was great to be together as a family to celebrate our amazing mom and grandma.

Here's a picture of us singing happy birthday to her. (You can be glad you can just see it and not hear it!)

And of course, it just wouldn't feel right unless all the kids got a chance to blow out the candle. So here's a couple more pictures of the kids blowing out the candle too.

House Guests

So, if you have been following life with the Leslies, you'll remember that July has been very busy for us. And the second week in July was definitely no exception. On Monday evening, our niece and nephew came to stay the rest of the week with us while their parents were vacationing in Hawaii (hardly seems fair, right?).

Anyway, going from a family of one child to a family of three children was quite an adjustment for us and definitely came with some pros and cons. The pros were that we love these kids (Leah especially loves them) and it was great having them there to entertain and help take care of Leah. And it was good insight into the years ahead when Leah (and any other children that might come along) reach their age. Another advantage of having them there was that it gave us an excuse to do some fun things.

While they were there, we watched lots of movies, played outside a bit, and Ross even taught them how to play Bocce Ball. One of the evenings, we took them miniature golfing. Since they have much different levels of skill, Ross took William with him and I kept Sierra and Leah with me. We kept things VERY casual and the kids had a ball. We even gave Leah a ball and club to play with and she thought she was just as big as the rest of us.

These two girls were so funny to watch. They both started out the course by hitting the ball. But by the end, Sierra had resorted to more of a hockey style of play and Leah would just pick up the ball and put it in the hole. Plus, we started out a hole behind Ross and William, but somehow ended up getting ahead of and finishing before them. But I didn't care as long as the kids were having a good time, which they were. Here's a couple pictures of the girls chasing their balls around one of the holes. It kind of turned into a "free for all."

During the weekdays, the kids had day camp activities that they got to attend. So while they were gone, Leah had a nap and I enjoyed the peace and quiet for a couple of hours. And on Friday, Sierra and I got to have some "girl time" while Leah napped and William and Ross were gone. I let her pick out a movie to watch while I did her hair. Then we got out the foot spa and did pedicures and manicures. Sierra loved all the one-on-one attention!

Another fun thing we did was attend a Scottish Festival on Saturday. We had to get up early to get there in time for the parade, but I was glad we did because it ended up being really cool to see. Here are some spectators waiting for the parade to start.

Hearing the bagpipes and drums was amazing. After the main parade, the bands all lined up for a mass band and together played "Amazing Grace" and "Scotland the Brave" (that's the traditional song you often hear played on a bagpipe - it kind of sounds like "Praise to the Man"). It was so moving to hear them play like that, it kind of got me choked up at times. After the mass band, we walked around to look at the booths, watched the Scottish dancers and saw some of the athletic events. Unfortunately it started raining on us, so we didn't get to see as much as I would have liked.

We actually heard about the festival from my dad. He and my uncle Rod were planning on attending. So we decided to join them. They love them and have been to a few Scottish Festivals together (Ross has even joined them before). I now can see why. I didn't think I would like it as much as I did and would enjoy going again. I just wish I knew more about my Scottish heritage. In any case, Leah LOVED spending the morning with her Grandpa!

We also went with Ross's mom, Kyle, Amy and Jackson. Sadly, I didn't get any pictures with them. They didn't stay too long, but they wanted to come check it out since the three of them went to Scotland on vacation before Jackson was born.

But we did meet up with them later that evening when we took William and Sierra to Ross's mom's house for their next stay. After dinner, we took the kids to the park to play and to run off the rest of their energy. Leah loves playgrounds and went down the slide over and over again. Jackson was really unsure at first, but ended up liking it too.

 

The kids found a playful kitten to play with for a while. It was pretty good to let them play with it but sometimes it got a little rough. It even pounced on and attacked Leah once when she tried to play with its leg. And it ran away if all four kids tried to get it at once (I probably would too!). But it always came back before too long.

 Ross and Kyle had a great time chatting and throwing the football around with William.

Here coms a picture for all of you that think that Leah is always so sweet and good. Remember the cons of having house guests that I mentioned earlier. I won't bother dwelling on a list of them, but I will say that by the end of the week, we were all VERY tired. Leah was a beast that night. She was clingy and cried over the tiniest things. So even though Leah got upset when she realized that the kids wouldn't be going home with us, Ross and I were looking forward to getting back to our normal routine with just one child. So at the park, Leah reached meltdown mode, but she was happier for the picture back at Grandma's house. (It also helped that she had her beloved binky for the second picture.)

So that concludes week two of our busy July. Stay tuned for more, things haven't stopped yet!

My Favorite Scripture

Yesterday as part of the Young Women lesson in our Beehive class, we learned about scripture study. And each of shared our favorite scripture. Over the course of my life I have had many favorite scriptures. But my current favorite is 2 Nephi 25:26:

"And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins."

I like this scripture because it very eloquently expresses my personal feelings and testimony of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I'm not sure why, but I really felt impressed that I needed to share this scripture somewhere. So I decided to put it on my blog,  mostly so that my family, especially my posterity, will know that I have a testimony of Jesus Christ.

A Visit with the Prices & Kynee Turns 2

If I thought that our June was busy, then I obviously didn't see July coming! Life with the Leslies has been pretty non-stop lately.

The weekend right after the 4th of July we had a few things going on. One of those was a visit with the Prices, who were in town from San Jose. Leah and I got to visit with them on the 3rd when my sister gave their whole family haircuts. But we decided to get together again when Ross could visit too.

So on Friday we met up with them to have lunch at Zupas and to go watch the new movie "Brave." The lunch, of course, was delicious. And we all enjoyed the movie. Even Leah was good to just sit and watch it during the little bit that she stayed awake. Afterwards, we went to Brian's parents' house so we could visit some more and play with Baby Seth. We even Skyped with Lesley's parents who are serving a mission in the Nauvoo Temple. It was nice to get to visit with them too.

Before we left, we tried to get a few pictures of the kids together. They weren't real excited about stopping to take pictures, but we still got a few cute ones. Here's the kids sitting on the stairs. I like the second one because it looks like Hannah and Leah are sharing a secret behind the pillow!

Seth is getting so big! He's such a cutie and I love kissing those chubby cheeks!

This is about the best shot we could get of our two families together. I really miss having my best friend, Lesley, around. But at least we are able to chat on the phone a lot and still get to see each other twice a year or so. I keep hoping that one day they will move back here for good. I know they want to, it just better be sooner rather than later.

On Saturday, we celebrated my niece, Makynlee's, 2nd birthday. She had a "Tangled" pool party. My aunt and uncle have a pool in their backyard where we love to swim and they were nice enough to let Kynee have her party there. I wasn't sure how much Leah would like it, but she had a ball and even stayed in the water longer than any of the other little kids. Here she is having a grand time with Kynee, Aunt MoMo and Aunt Lyndsee.

After swimming, we went to my parents' Stake property to have cake and ice cream and open presents. Here's sweet Kynee blowing out her "2" candle.

Leah of course had to watch Disney shows on MoMo's phone while she ate her cake and ice cream.

After it got dark, we lit hot air lanterns and sent them up into the sky like they do in "Tangled." It was really cool watching them float up into the sky. But we all watched anxiously to see if they would blow out before they sunk down to the ground. (Don't worry, they all burnt out before they had a chance to start any fires.)

While we were lighting lanterns, Lyndsee and Jason's friend, Dave, and his sister sang "I See the Light" (the song played in the movie when the whole town releases the floating lanterns). Here's a picture of them singing (sorry it's such a poor picture-it's hard to get good pictures in the dark) and a picture of Kynee dancing while they are singing (she loves dancing).

One other great thing about the party was that my grandparents were able to come too. Here's a picture of Grandma and Grandpa Putnam (on the right) and Grandma Tucker and Walt (sitting on the left).

So that gets us through the first week of July. Stay tuned if you want to read more about the Leslies' busy July adventures.