April 2017

I'm slowly but surely catching up on this blog.  My goal is to actually record life and my thoughts in real time, or at least within a week or so.  But for now I'll have to be content to remember back on the last few fun filled months.  

Paige and I drove out to Utah for Jenessa's wedding and to move Paige back there so she could start settling in for school.  Transitioning from a mission is not easy and for someone like her who likes to be busy it was extremely difficult.   We went to the St. George temple along the way.  It was my first time inside that temple so that was a treat.  And the grounds at the Salt Lake temple were so gorgeous.  Jenessa and Chase seem very happy.  McKell flew in and sang at their luncheon and she did an amazing job.  She doesn't ever give herself enough credit.  We met Kira for the first time too.  She's a cutie! It's fun seeing the next generation start having babies. 

In April McKell went to Prom with Dalyn Sckapich, who happens to be friends with the Ashby clan.  That was fun for our two worlds to collide.  She said she enjoyed the date and the dance, which she normally doesn't like much.  It's been fun to watch her last high school events and see her prepare for life on her own. 

 

Chad came for a visit and we had a good time visiting at Encanterra, despite the look of consternation on his face in this photo.  ha ha

 Sydney still wants to keep the Easter traditions alive, and I guess I can't blame her.  (Sometimes the youngest child can really feel left behind.)  Luckily Grandma and Licia helped her decorate eggs which made her night!  Paige liked her peeps in the mail too

 For RS we taught the elderly women in our ward how to use a computer and get on family search.  I guess I should rephrase that. . . We tried to teach them how to use a computer.  :)  Valene is the lady in the picture with me.  She has Alzheimers and she couldn't remember much of anything we had done 15 min after we were finished.  But the coolest thing was I logged into her family search account and found some documents written by her mother that gave an account of her experience hearing angels singing in the Mesa temple when there was absolutely no one but she and her husband in the temple with her that morning.  Valene teared up and for a few minutes became very clear about who she was and who her mother was.  We had a little break through moment together and it was worth all the time spent in confusion and frustration.  I always learn so much about myself from spending time with these older sisters. 

And I just have to document some of the little things in life that bring me joy, like the finishing touches left by our cleaning ladies, Luz and Sylvia.