"BiKEs foR KiDS"

I have a cousin, Dan, who seems to be everywhere and doing everything. His latest project was helping his son, Luke, with his Eagle project. Now Eagle projects should involve the scouts in your ward. However, it is hard to involve other scouts when a camp has been planned on the same weekend as your planned Eagle project. Hence, the frantic call of help from dad to everyone he knew, including family!

Luke's project was part of a bigger service project. For the past few years, the daughter of a lady in Luke's ward has raised money to buy bikes for children who have never had one. She raises money to buy bike helmets and bikes for 1,000 children. These children are pre-screened through their school principals and teachers. All the children are in 2nd grade and have parents who cannot afford to buy them their own bicycle.

Luke's part of this was to oversee the building of the bikes.

Luke is showing Brian how the seat and reflector should go together.

Bri was a natural. Of course, it didn't hurt he has built a few bikes during his lifetime. One older volunteer next to us quipped, "I'm not used to building bikes in the daylight."

Many volunteers showed up to help build the bikes. It was estimated we put together over 350 bicycles. The remaining bikes went home in the box, for the lucky mom or dad to build. Fortunately, the bike came with a lot already assembled. We had to attach the front wheel, handlebars, seat, front reflector, back reflector, and pedals. Brian and I put together probably around 30 bikes.

This is what the finished bikes looks like:




All ages participated. I just had to take this picture. This young man was very intent on making sure the bike was put together perfectly.

So the children first met to get instructions and a backpack (probably with some coupons, etc.). Then, it was off to get their helmets. There were volunteers fitting each one. The children each had a choice of color: red, blue, or green. Then, they had to wait patiently while the previous group was still on the bike course.

Once they got on their bikes, they had a course set up to teach them about the proper hand signals for turning left or right, and reminding them to obey the traffic signs.

Probably about 85-90% of the children didn't know how to balance and ride a 2-wheeled bike. The volunteers stayed with them during the course, to make sure no one got hurt.

This was a terrific way to spend our Saturday. The best part was seeing the children so excited. Their smiles were so big. They were jumping up and down, squeeling with delight.

We are so blessed. I forget that sometimes. It's good to be reminded how fortunate I am.

Thankfully the weather cooperated and it was a good day for everyone: volunteers, parents, and children who are now bike owners.

Amazing!

From April to October is a bit long, and so much has happened. Let's try this by month:
MAY
We were able to have the whole family (my family, and my 2 brother's families) get together for a family portrait. It had been about 8 years since the last one, so it was definitely time. The weather was if-fie on May 29, 2010, so we ended up in my friend's living room. They have a curved staircase and no furniture in that room yet, so it worked out great!

JUNE
June has 2 birthdays (mine and my brother, Rick) and is the start of summer. Summer took a long time coming. We were able to go on a family vacation (again, the whole family, all 20 of us). We went to Disneyland and Sea World and San Diego Zoo. Not all were able to be there for the whole time, but it was great for the time we were all together. Aliyah and Xander enjoyed Disneyland as much as their grandpa, who is a huge kid at heart.

Also, we have planted a garden and it is actually growing (thanks to Bri, who realizes that plants need water).

JULY
2 birthdays in July (Anne's and Xander's) and we were able to be there for both of them. 1 Anniversary (ours--30 years!!!) Bri and I stayed a bit longer after family vacation to be with Anne. Then, the best part of the year happened on July 30, 2010. Anne, Jace, Natalie, Ryan, myself, Brian and Mom were able to go to the St. George temple and perform the saving ordinances for my mom's mom (Marion Melissa Pearson). When mom was sealed to her parents, she was so excited. She kept squeezing my hand. I was so thrilled for her.

AUGUST
We have 3 birthdays in August (Bri's, Ryan's, & Aliyah's). It was a nice, warm, sunny month. Amy went back to school, and so did Bri. Only Bri is teaching.

SEPTEMBER
We had a wonderful dinner on the Sunday before Labor Day at Rick & Tammy's house. It was a last minute thing, and all (well, except for Bri who was out of town) were able to be there. It was good to be together and catch up. Little did we realize it would be the last time we were all together.
On September 23, 2010 mom decided she had lived without dad for long enough. She passed away from a heart attack. This was unexpected. However, we are thrilled she was taken so quickly and there was no lingering illness for which we would have needed to make decisions.

OCTOBER
It is getting close to Halloween and seeing the pictures of the kids/grandchildren all dressed up is fun. I must admit I do not miss thinking up ideas for the children's costumes.
Summer has lasted until about 3 days ago, when it has started to be rainy. Today, hail/snow fell coating the grass, but not the roads yet. I still feel sad that summer is done for the year.
Now, we are getting ready to welcome our 4th grandchild to the family. Anne is due fairly soon (not soon enough in her estimation) and I am excited to see our newest addition.
Tabitha is crawling, and interacting with anyone who will smile at her. Aliyah has started pre-school, and Xander is absorbing everything he can.

As you know, November and December will be busy, busy, busy, so don't expect too much for another little while.

Quarterly Post

Well, since my last post (a quarter of a year ago) so much has happened. I have missed 3 birthdays, and Valentine's day. However, I have not missed the most important day of the year. TAX DAY!! (hahaha)

On January 31, we welcomed Tabitha Cate to our family. She was a month early, and her mom, Natalie, was delighted. She is so sweet, just like Aliyah and Xander.

I was able to go down for a week and help Natalie and Ryan (although they really didn't need any help). It was good times to snuggle with all the grandchildren.

Then, Amy had her birthday. She ended up waiting for her present, because I was down in St. George and couldn't have her present ready. I think she was ok, because that way her birthday lasted longer. She is such a wonderful, considerate, and thoughtful person. We have enjoyed her being around a little bit more lately. It is great to talk about things together.

Next was Valentine's Day. I have a wonderful husband who really put some thought into what he should get me for this special day. Rush Limbaugh to the rescue. He heard about a special price for Rush Limbaugh listeners for chocolate-covered strawberries. And were they delicious. And big!

All would be well, except there was no special deal! These are our $60 strawberries :) Someone was grumbling the whole weekend.

Then the last birthday I have missed was Natalie. I had been down in St. George the week before, so I was not there for her birthday. I saw she had a wonderful day. Her birthday present finally showed up just last Friday. She was able to get my grandmother's piano. We were able to arrange for The Piano Gallery to deliver it to her. Definitely worth the price!

Well, I will keep blogging, at least once a quarter!

LIFE

LIFE sometimes comes at you with big, capital, letters. Like this week.

For the past couple of weeks, my mom has been tired when she does her normal, routine things. She also gets out of breath very easy. She has seen the doctor, who thought it was possible for her to have a blood clot in her lung from her surgery which was 3 months ago. We took her in for a CT scan of her lungs, and all was normal. However, on Tuesday morning, she had a really hard time catching her breath. She called my sister-in-law, Tammy, to take her to the ER. Once there, it was discovered she had a lot of fluid around her heart, and that is what was causing her tiredness and shortness of breath. She was told she had some heart failure. They have been draining the fluid, and she felt much better within a matter of hours. IMC has the best heart failure team in the country. They have been very attentive and have done many tests to see exactly how much damage had been done. Fortunately, there was no damage to the aeorta, and her heart was not enlarged. The doctors think she can make a full recovery.

I know the power of the Priesthood has blessed mom during this time. I don't know exactly what twists and turns are still ahead with her condition, but I know we can make it.

Even with the blessing of comfort from the Holy Ghost, you still worry about what you need to go through before the end result comes. I am very thankful, though, for the knowledge God has given us.

FAMILY

As the family grows, so does committments. It gets harder and harder to have everyone together at one time in one place. We had a together moment the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It took planning, but the results were worth it.


Anne's sister-in-law, Jen, was kind enough to allow our whole family a photo shoot. She does a great job. Anne, Jace, Aliyah and Xander had their family pictures taken just prior to us. The kids were a bit tired of smiling on que. Jen was able to still get some great family shots.

Jen even made the old people of the group look good.

It was cold, but not as cold as I thought it would be. Thanks, everyone, for meeting in Coalville, tromping through snow, ice, and grass, and for smiling through the cold. Thanks, Jen, for letting us have this great memory.

Also, today would be dad's 77th birthday. He enjoyed family so much. I'm happy to say I enjoy my family probably as much as he enjoyed us. His saying of "family is where it's at" is so right-on. I miss him and am so blessed to know we can be together again. I am very blessed, also, to have my family sealed to us, just as I am sealed to my parents. I'm so glad I know families are forever, because I love everyone of them, and enjoy being with them.

SpiriTual ExperieNces

On fast Sunday in November, the bishopric member conducting talked about how his mission president told him he should be having a spiritual experience every day. I have been keeping track ever since then. Most days during the past month, I have recognized at least once during the day when I was being prompted by the Holy Ghost. There have been a few days, in the beginning, when I didn't recognize the promptings. As President Kimball states: "Expecting the spectacular, one may not be fully alerted to the constant flow of revealed communication." Spiritual revelation most often comes quietly, as a thought to help you during your day.

I am thankful for this challenge, because I have recognized how much my Father in Heaven helps me each and every day.

Special Moments

Life is a series of moments all hooked together. This past few days, I have had some wonderful, insightful moments. Let me list a few:

• reading my children's blogs and seeing gratitude in their hearts
• having my children and spouses like each other
• having my children and spouses like us (I think)
• having grandchildren who mess up the clean house, but do it with a smile. I would rather have smiling grandchildren than a clean house any day.
• special talks with Amy
• special talks with Anne
• special talks with Natalie
• sharing time with my girls
• having sons (even though technically they are in-laws, I still count them as mine)
• reading to Aliyah
• seeing Xander be so sweet one moment, and so mad the next
• watching Rocky chase the kids, and wanting to not miss out on one single thing
• having a loving, helping spouse

It has been a fantastic time having all the family together. In case you didn't know, we have the best family around. I am very blessed to have them. I am blessed to have grown up in a home where I knew family was important. I didn't have the same understanding I now have, but my dad kept telling us, "family is where it's at." I totally get that saying. I miss sharing my wonderful family with him, but am glad I can share them with my mom. Another special moment was taking Aliyah and Xander, along with Jace, Anne, Natalie, and Brian down to mom's to spend a little bit of time with her. We got to have ice cream with GG (great gram).

Yes, I am thankful for many things, but most of all for my family.