Waiting!

Today I'm waiting for answers to specific questions. I thought the answers would come easily and quickly. I thought I'd know by now. Truly, today is on my top 5 list of most painful days. I hate waiting. I don't like not knowing. I would like to know. I want the waiting to be over.

Laughter of Eternal Joy!!!

I hope I can relate this story to the level it deserves. Last night, as with almost every Sunday evening, Cameron and I were chatting with the passerby's on their evening walk. I enjoy visiting with the many who take a Sunday stroll down our street. After all the herds had come and gone,We were in deep conversation about important world events - like what we were going to make for a Sunday night treat. Our little lender dog curled up next to Kayla's hip for a moment then ran along to play. Jax (Kayla's dog) came trotting along, sniffed where lender dog had been, then promptly turned marked his territory, peeing all over Kayla. Oh the laughter! Doubled over in tears of laughter, I asked Kayla if she was aware that Jax had just peed on her. "Hmm, I wondered what the warmth was." Again I rolled with laughter. About now I'm sure you are asking, "was that really all that funny?" Not so much, but the story is not over. Our conversation of the most high importance continued until...Kenai (my dog) walked up to Kayla, looked at her, sniffed her side, then promptly turned and marked Kayla as his. This time there was no need to tell her, his bladder was a little more full, causing an instant feeling a warmth followed by wetness. Oh my dear sweet Kayla. It is such a good thing we are BFF's. My laughter could not be harnessed in. Neighbors from all across the land came to see what could possible cause such a ruckus. No audible words could be detected from my mouth. The tears that flowed, the lack of air to my lungs, the purple face, and the laughter of eternal joy could not be measured. Kayla has been not only marked once, but twice by not so noteworthy males and I have a memory in my head that I can live on forever. Thanks Kayla for being a good sport and letting me publish this story.

Who Are You?

I always knew that I didn't have much in common with Bella except that I love Edward, but I was surprised to find that I am much like the quiet, yet strong mother of Edward. Take the quiz to the right then share with me who you are. Inquiring minds want to know!

Zits at my Age!

Okay, so don't be looking for any pictures. I'm not posting any of my face right now. But seriously...I already went through pubirty. I no longer have periods, but I look like a thirteen year old (no offense Karina). I currently look like a pizza face. All day long I've been singing (to the tune of Popcorn Popping) "I looked in the mirror and what did I see? A face full of blemishes and acne. If I could pop one, which would would it be? The one on my nose looks ready to me." With any luck, my husband might think he's fallen in love with a teenager!

She's 11 Now!

Kensington is our only child who came into this world on her own, without a scheduled date at the hospital. 11 years ago I went into labor and didn't dare tell Cameron because he was so tired I didn't want to disturb him. When the contractions were 3 minutes apart, I thought it might be time. Off we went to the hospital, only to wait until noon the next day. This beautiful girl blessed our lives at 6 lbs. 5 oz. She was a very happy baby. She loved waking up early and has become a habit that remains still. This picture says it all-Kensington loves babies. Almost every Sunday she'll ask me which baby she can go steal to hold for a while. So thank you Trissy, Melissa, and Carrie. Can't wait for Carrie's new baby so Kensi will be happy to help. Kensington has enjoyed dancing since she was 11 months old and learned to walk. She admires and "looks up" to her big sister Karina, and is a great example to her little sister Karadie. I especially love our talks as she helps me work in the garden. A passion we both share. Cameron enjoys the time he spends with her at work while she helps him clean up and gather his tools. We sure love and appreciate the sweet and wonderful spirit she brings into our home. We love you Kensington!

Family Traditions!

Three years running we visited Yellowstone Bear World in Idaho on closing weekend. What a wonderful tradition it has been. Who knew that a spur of the moment day trip would turn into something that we look forward to every year now. This year did not lack in excitement. Due to cold weather, the animals were out moving more than they have in years past that we have been there. The crowds were at minimum. We were the first to enter the park, and the only patrons there for the first hour. Every car that entered was eligible to enter one person from their group into a drawing to feed the baby bear cubs. Yep, Karadie won (really, there were only 2 people that had entered so they let both of them feed the cubs). Karadie had so much fun! Typically we love watching the cubs for hours, but it was a bit chilly, so we watched them in short glimpses, went to the gift shop to warm up, and back to the cubs for a bit more viewing. They were very active and as always, highly entertaining to watch. I pointed out to Cameron the cub he was to get me for Christmas, a darling little chocolate colored girl. I hope I'm not disappointed.

The petting zoo was our next stop. Stiltz the moose is growing quickly. He was found in the wild 4 years ago, shortly after he was born. His mother had died, so Bear World rescued him and adopted him into their family. He still loves to push his antlers against the fence, snuggle in real close and let you pet him. We love spending time with him and felt so lucky to have seen him first thing yesterday morning. Shortly after petting him he moved to a part of the park where he was not accessible for the remainder of the day. The white tail and mule deer in the petting zoo fought for our attention too. Kensington especially loved sharing food with all of them. One young buck wasn't so hip on the sharing idea, so he nipped at Kensington's leg letting her know he wanted more. He also didn't like me standing near Kens, so he stepped on my foot and gave my fanny a good head butt to move me away (don't be alarmed, no humans were hurt in the creation of this story).

This was our first year seeing Dylan the gray wolf. He's always been hiding when we've been there in the past. Sadly, Dylan is not expected to make it through the winter. He is very old and has athritis in his hind legs really bad. It broke our heart watching him try to keep up with Stormy the arctic wolf. They are beautiful animals and so amazing to watch run around the park.

Of course the JOY of the trip are the BEARS!!! We drove for hours around the park. Again, the cold seemed to make them more active. The bears were out walking around, playing with each other, some even fought a time or two. That is an amazing sight watching them get angry with each other. I can see why you don't want to cross one of these animals in the wild. It wouldn't take much for them to show you who's boss. The highlight of the trip for me was having one particular large black bear eat an oreo off of the running board of the truck on Cameron's side. (I'm not sure how the oreo got there. Pretty sure it was accidentally on purpose). Of course we had to quickly drive through again to see if luck would repeat itself. Oops, this time I accidentally spilled my rootbear on the running board, door, and tailgate of the truck. It was amazing to me that the same black bear actually recongized our truck and came running. Luck was with us. This very large bear quickly ate the cookie and continued walking along side of the truck as we drove slowly, licking the rootbear off the running board. Cameron sped up a bit so that the bear would stop licking and after the bear backed off Cameron slowed down again. Oh, no. We didn't count on the bear picking up his pace and trying to climb into the back of the truck. Feeling the weight of the bear pull the back of the truck down got all of our hearts pumping a bit faster. No time for a picture...the girls were screaming, I was laughing and Cameron was making some sort of an evil cackle as he gently pushed on the gas. You would think the bear would back down, but no. He decided to do a circus dance and continued to walk on his hind legs still hanging onto the back of the truck. With a little more speed the bear dropped down to all fours again. The park gates were about to shut for the night, but we wanted one more quick go around. No way this bear would spot us again, right? Hmm, smart little creatures. Not paying much attention and driving rather slow, we felt the weight of something large move the back of the truck again. It was no surprise to find the same bear trying to make an escape in our truck. We were smarter this time and drove fast enough that he was forced to back away. Still, no pictures, but was it EVER an adventure we're not likely to forget!

Hope vs Despair

I so loved conference last weekend! In anticipation, I wondered if the bretheren would speak a lot about the economy and desperate times in which we live. I was so relieved that their message was one of hope. President Uchtdorf's Saturday morning talk especially touched my heart. "Hope has the power to fill our lives with happiness. Hope is a gift of the spirit. It is a hope that through the atonement of Christ and the power of his resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal...We have the responsibility to make it an active part of our lives and overcome the temptation to lose hope. Hope is not knowledge, but rather the abiding trust that the Lord will fulfill his promises...it is confidence that if we live according to God's laws and the words of his prophet now, we will receive desired blessing in the future."

I have been feeling so discouraged the last little while. I keep hearing about my good friends troubles...loss of jobs, loss of income, unstable jobs, not enough work, foreclosures, etc.; not to mention our own current situation. It has all weighed so heavy on my heart. A few times I have even had an all out real panic attack. Very scary. After listening to the conference messages such a weight was lifted off my shoulders. No...things haven't changed, but my outlook has. I know that panic attacks, fear, despair, discouragement are of Satan. We are doing everything we can. We go to church, have family home evening, pay our tithing, fast offerings, I even got a job. I know that I need to have more hope in my life. The Lord's promises are sure! Whenever I start to feel the despair creep back in, I pull out the conference messages and I again feel my Father in Heaven's love and know that if I hold on, the light will come!