Choices For Zoey

This last week we lost our family dog Zoey. This picture of Conner and Zoey was taken in the fall of 2009 just a few months after we brought her into our home. She was a very smart dog. The kids enjoy going for walks, when they didn't take Zoey, she would sit by the door and cry. When we would finally let her out she would, without fail, meet up with the kids where ever they were. Usually that was the Green Store or the Reindeer Farm. That is how she met her fate. She ran out into the highway and was struck by a car.
Now this is where we learn an important lesson from our dog about choices and the consequences of choices we make. Zoey was usually an obedient dog, but she had those moments when temptation was stronger than her will to obey. This particular day the girls wanted to get her on her leash and take her with them for their walk. Zoey had other plans. They called her name and she kept running away only slowing down long enough to make sure they were still following her. She found herself out in the middle of the highway when she finally decided to listen to the girls. It was too late. She turned and headed back for the side of the road where the girls were standing and in an instant was gone.
I think we humans often have periods of time where we have this same problem. We have our Master, Heavenly Father, guiding us through our lives helping us to make wise choices. We find this guiding to sometimes be too difficult to follow and other things look temporarily more enticing, maybe even might look to make us happier for the short term. Zoey was having lots of fun defying the "commands" of the girls to "come". She waited too long before she decided that she should listen. Are we waiting too long?
 Alma 34:32-34

32 For behold, this ^alife is the time for men to ^bprepare to meet God; yea, behold the day of ^cthis life is the day for men to perform their ^dlabors.

 33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many^awitnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not^bprocrastinate the day of your ^crepentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the^dnight of ^edarkness wherein there can be no labor performed.

 34 Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful ^acrisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth ^bpossess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.

Now is the time to listen. Don't wait til you are in the middle of the road in the midst of danger to listen to the teachings.

                                     We also learned about compassion.

Beth, who owns the Green Store only knew our girls faces from multiple times through the summer that they had walked to the store for a drink or treat. She took the girls into the store, helped them call me ( I was in Wasilla) and then appropriately talked to the girls to help them cope with the tragedy they had just witnessed. She asked Aubrey her favorite color then told her she would get purple balloons and send them to heaven for our little Zoey. We thought she was just talking to help them for the moment. The following day these balloons were sent to our house from the local flower shop. Signed ":Beth from the Green Store. Purple balloons to send to Zoe in heaven." She didn't have to do that. She doesn't even know our family. She had compassion and will now forever be our friend. Something I need to work on.

We buried the dog that afternoon in the back yard. The girls watched as Ryan and I broke through the frozen ground and dug the hole. We then carefully laid Zoey in her rested spot and we all covered her and cried.
Aubrey and I then painted a sign to put at her grave so we can always remember how much we love and are going to miss her. Aubrey painted,  "I miss you. I love you. shhhh." She then painted all the kids names on it. My sweet girls. They had a tough day but they are strong and we will always remember the lessons we learned.

My Heirtage

My family heritage is something I have always been very proud of. One of the hardest things about getting married for me was losing the last name. I love that I am a Ringger. The Ringger name to me stands for love for family and unquestionable faith and strength in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I am not good at dates so if I mention dates, consider them 'abouts'. The Ringgers came to Utah from Switzerland in 1947. I believe they had 2 children. My Gr.pa was an electrician and my Gr.ma stayed at home with their eventual 6 naughty children and sold Avon. My dad remembers having to deliver the orders for her. I am sure the snow was 3 feet tall and he walked up hill both ways.

My Grpa Ringger passed about 8 years ago or so. He always left before Gr.ma. She would be standing on our porch kissing everyone goodbye and chatting and Gr.pa would be in the car pulling out of the driveway. Their dedication to service for the Lord did not go unnoticed. I remember feeling so impressed that a General Authority had come to Gr.pas funeral services. This was one time when the power of the Ringger legacy was proven to me.

When I was a child my grandparents served a few missions in Switzerland. I missed them when they were gone, but remember feeling proud to have grandparents in Switzerland. Gr.pas brother, Uncle Hans was a General Authority and was involved with much of the organization of the church in Europe. Another testament to me on the strength of my last name.

This last week, on Gr.pas birthday, Gr.ma was reunited with Gr.pa in the Spirit World. I wander if Gr.ma scolded him for 'pulling out' before she got in for the ride home.

She was so funny. I don't usually remember occasions. I remember situations and words said. Gr.ma was usually the last to get a joke. She would ask all kinds of questions about the joke and then finally say " Oh, oh" and chuckle little. Gr.pa teased that she was Polish. The Ringgers have a 'Big nose' curse. I hated my nose. Gr.ma, and Gr.pa for that matter, always told things the way they were. She would say to me, "If you lived in Switzerland you would be the prettiest girl on the block." After my first baby was born she grabbed my cheeks and squeezed hard and said, "You look better with fat on your cheeks." I am pretty sure Gr.pa would now say, "Who's the fatty." lol. The crazy thing is they never hurt my feelings. I love that about the Ringgers. You can't be soft. It is what it is and You are what you are and that is ok. They love you for you and it's all fun and games.

I miss my family dearly and am proud to say the I am a Ringger.

Conner Graduates

My little guy Conner is now officially a first grader. He is such a fun boy. These video clips show his personality perfectly. When he woke up on Tuesday May 24 to get ready for school he came to me sobbing. My first thought was that Cami hurt him when she went to wake him up. That was not the case. He was sad that it was graduation day and he wouldn't get to see his friends at school all summer. He told me that he wished it could be winter all year long. Funny kid. He loves school. He will really miss his friends and teacher Mrs Giauque. His best friends in class were Jacob, Joseph, Ethan and of course the girls Amber and Carly Mae. If you ask Conner, all of his class are his favorites. Mrs G loved this class so much. She said she would follow them to first grade if she could. They all wanted to learn and they all got along and listened well. Conner had a few issues with waking up and getting to school on many occasions, not because he didn't like to go but because he is not a morning person and would much rather stay home and play xbox and torment Aubrey. We learned that if we made a big deal out of little things they were doing at school the next day that he would wake up easier and get on the bus. That worked until the last week of school and then he missed the bus every morning and had to get a ride, very, very late.

My Kids are the Best

I am always so proud of my children and their accomplishments. They all show their talents in such different ways. the last little while I have been thinking a lot of all the things my kids do and learn and thought that I should jot it down while it was fresh on my mind.

Tyler has had to make some tough decisions this last few months of school. He has decided what he wants to do with his life when he grows up and has made a plan to help him get there. He is loading his class schedule next year with some difficult classes so he can get ahead for college. He wants to be a computer programmer and has done research on then best colleges for him. He is working hard at the Gardner's farm and saving money for college and his mission. I am proud of him and the way he takes care of his younger brothers and sisters. They all look up to him.

About a year or so ago Braden took on the task of teaching himself how to play the piano. He is doing great. I would love to find him a piano teacher to help him out a bit. He really enjoys music. He plays trumpet. He went to State this year playing his trumpet with a friend from his class. He hit a few bumps in the road on the way and almost wasn't able to go. He had to find a new duet partner the week before State and tryout again. I am proud that he stuck to it and was able to go. He has a very creative mind with no worries to what others think of him. I love him for that. Now if I could get him to focus on his school work.

Shaelyn has come so far in her school work. When they say reading is a huge part of your success in school they aren't kidding. She struggled with reading all through elementary school and finally in Middle School met up with the most awesome school librarian. She really motivated Shae to read. She has now read more books than I can count. Since her reading habits have changed, so have her grades. She has all A's and B's. I am so proud of her. She was in battle of the Books this year. She also has become an awesome writer. She finds great happiness in her creative abilities.

Cami has become my little thespian. She had the lead part of the elementary school fall play. She sings in the school choir and has sang many solos in various programs at the school. She also plays in the band. She plays the Clarinet. Her teacher, Mrs. McClain, gave her a trophy for being the most valuable musician. She had many good things to say about Cami. Cami personally tutored a classmate who also played clarinet but was having a hard time. She is a proven leader. I know she will do great things with her talents. I love her confidence.

Conner is awesome. He is by far my sweetest child. He has such a big heart. The kids a school love him. I can't believe he will be in first grade next year. He is growing so fast. This year we decided to put him into Minors 1 in baseball instead of a second year in T-ball. I was worried at first because he is so little. He was so disappointed after his first game because he couldn't hit the ball and he wanted so bad to run the bases. Last night was his second game and he hit the ball. It was an awesome hit. I think he will be just fine. He makes me so proud. He has such a drive to do his best at everything. He's a great kid.

Aubrey is my little 'demon' child. I love her. She has an imagination like no other. She will not be left behind by anyone. She keeps up with her brothers and sisters in all they do and doesn't skip a beat. When all the kids are at school she plays with imaginary friends. These friends often get her into trouble. She is so fun to watch. We joke that she will never survive childhood. She can rough and tumble, climb trees, hike, and run with the dog and then turn around and twirl like a ballerina, and play house. I am excited to watch her grow up.

My kids are the best.

"She likes me too much"

Tyler has recently turned 16. With that has sprung many conversations in the family about dating. Conner is usually at the center of these conversations. He wants to go with Tyler and pick him out a girlfriend. He knows what she is going to look like right down to her hair color and the amount of makeup she wears, and is sure that they are someday going to 'kiss' eeewwww.
I find it interesting how different the conversations are with Conner and Aubrey than they were with the older 4 when they were younger. Having 'big' brothers and sisters gives them more or just a different influence than just "Dora the Explorer" and "Barney" and mom and dad did to the older kiddos. It is definately different with older kids in the house. Yesterday Conner came home from school with a great big grin on his face and says, "Mom, there is a girl at school that likes me too much." Of course I have to ask him what makes him think that. Conners proceeds to tell me how she follows him everywhere and while they were counting to 116 at free time on the rug she was holding his hand. So I say, "hmmm, Is she cute?", "Well kind of......ok she is really cute." Too funny. Then he says, "AND she kissed me on the neck." Ok, not cute anymore. I calmly told he needs to tell his teacher when someone kisses him and to make sure he tells this girl that he can't have kisses from girls until he is at least 23. He looked at me very seriously and said, "Are you serious?" Yes I am. lol

A Little Slow to Listen

Yesterday our family learned a basic lesson in a big way. Tyler and Braden were packing for their trip to Florida with the Palmer high School Jazz Band and Choir. Tyler all the sudden is very stressed asking if I knew where his iPod Touch was. I of course answered the same as always saying I don't know. I didn't use it last. You have to know he has has been waiting to get this iPod for a month. His birthday was Feb 7th and we finally went and picked it up on Tuesday after school. He was very excited because this new one takes pictures and video. He gave his old one to Braden. They both spent the evenng Tuesday setting them up to their own liking then left them connected to dads computer to charge overnight. Wednesday afternoon it is missing.
Aubrey loves to play the iPods and hide them (usually because she knows she isn't supposed to have them). She can usually recall where she put it. Not this time. We turned the house upside down. We yelled,we bribed we tried everything to get her to remember where it was. This was at 3:00. They were to meet up with the band at the High School at
5:30. I finally decided we were going about this all wrong. I gathered everyone together and told them we should do this right. We should pray. We know Heavenly Father can help us in times of need and I figured what a great oppertunity to teach the little ones about the power of prayer. So I help Aubrey say a prayer. She went back to searching around dads computer and in my room. Still nothing. We finally decide that maybe dad accidentally picked it up when he left for work. We were sure this was the result, especially since we had just prayed. Well dad got home at 4:30 and didn't have it . We continued turning the house upside down with no results. This was so frustrating for me. I thought "I am not faithful enough. This is how it works isn't it? You pray, you find answers? Right? What are the kids learning from this."We ended up taking the boys to the school with no iPod. Iwas quite proud that Tyler did not once ask for his old one back from Braden. But still I was very sad for him. The kids at home continued to look while we were at the school. I told Ryan of my frustrations and we decided to take a break on searching and eat some dinner. We again prayed for help to find the iPod. We can still send it with the regular band when they leave for Florida on Friday and he could finish the trip with his camera.
After dinner we cleaned Conner and Aubreys room from top to bottom. No luck. We then started to clean my room from top to bottom. No luck. We then threw in the towel and sent the little ones to bed. I, for no real reason walked into my closet for the 10th time while we were looking and I saw dads ties on the floor. I mumble nder my breath and pick them up. I then notice one of my shirts laying in my shoe basket. I felt the urge to pull the basket out and dump the shoes and guess what was behind the basket. The iPod. I screamed with delight. The kids come running in. "Where was it?" Of course now Aubrey now remembers that is where she hid it. We got talking and every one of us at one time or another had a stronge feeling and hints that is was probably in the closet throughout the entire searching process, but everytime one of walked in we looked over the floor reallquick, assumed that someone else already looked behind things, and left it. I was happy that the little ones got to see the prayer was answered and the lesson was learned. We also got a bonus lesson for us older folks. Prayers are answered. Sometimes we don't hear right away, or maybe we are not willing to do the work necessary and sometimes the answer is just not going to come when we want and exactly what we want but he will answer our prayers. Heavenly Father was trying to tell each one of us. We were all a little slow to listen.

Zoey's First Swim

As soon as it was warm enough this Spring we took the family to the lake. While we were there we thought we should see if our pampered little Zoey could swim.

She hated the water. Oh, she swam back each time we took her out into the water. But she hated every second of it. The kids, however, had a blast.