Gilroy Gardens (Take 2)

Since our Legoland trip got cancelled, we took the kids and traveled north where the rains were nowhere to be found. Gilroy Gardens is a great place for little kids. The Boy will likely outgrow it soon, but this year we still enjoyed it. During the school year, there are virtually no lines at all.

Big surprise this year! The girl was just tall enough to ride most of the rollercoasters! It was her first time on one and she handled it like a pro.

No More Ball

The Boy played what was probably his last baseball game. After three years, he decided it really isn't for him. I really wanted him to enjoy it, but it's not meant to be. I won't miss ball season too very much.

Seriously?

Just a rant. We are in a drought. A pretty bad drought. Spanning years at this point. We pray for rain a lot. And I hate to be ungrateful when it comes, but so far, it seems to only come at the wrong time for us.

1. It rained on Halloween.
2. It rained on the Boy's first real, major birthday party.
3. It is now going to rain on Thursday and Friday of this week. The only two days we were scheduled to take the kids down to Legoland and the San Diego Zoo.  Not Monday or Tuesday. Exactly those two days. So we had to cancel.

It's rained two or three times between those three events, but seriously, the odds of this happening are just ridiculous.

For Dad

My father passed away almost two years ago.  Today is his birthday. Growing up, Dad always insisted on us going to church. He encouraged us to attend seminary and mutual. He even held callings in the Boy Scouts for our ward. He took the missionary discussions numerous times, but he never got baptized. Now that I'm older, I realize there were probably many reasons why he didn't.

Yesterday, though, he did. I took his name on the youth temple trip with us. Brogan Nicolds stood in for him and his father, Dean Nicolds, performed the ordinance. I was very overwhelmed. I was hoping to feel Dad there - approving, accepting. But that's not what I felt. What I felt was more like the Spirit telling me that I was doing the right thing. I'm grateful for that feeling and for my brother and sisters who had very supportive words the night before.