Henry Happenings

Elder Henry Reporting to the MTC

2012-02-02T18:07:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Elder Henry reported to the Missionary Training Center (MTC) in Provo, UT to begin his two year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He will be at the MTC for training for about 8 weeks and then will go to Bahia Blanca, Argentina to serve and teach the good people there.

We had a beautiful day yesterday as we spent time together as a family before he went into the MTC. After breakfast, talking, laughing and playing one last game together it was time to pack up the car. We stopped by Grandma Brown's house so Elder Henry could give her another hug. :)

Then Elder Henry got to choose where he wanted to have his last American lunch for two years. He chose Goodwood. We had a great lunch and enjoyed some more time to talk and laugh some more. Another missionary family came in and sat down at the table next to ours. That Elder was going to Nashville on his mission.

Next, it was time to head over to the Provo Temple for hugs, tears, pictures and a lot more hugs!

The moment had arrived and it was time for Elder Henry to report to the MTC to begin his mission. As a mom, that is one of the more surreal feelings I've ever had. We were about to drop off my son and I won't be able to see him for two years. It seemed impossible. How can I be willing to do something like that? One look at Jacob's face told me how ... and why. He was ready. He was beaming with the joy only a missionary can experience I think. He was so thrilled to start his mission and his big adventure.

Of course, there were a lot of tears (after we dropped him off) but my heart is full of joy because I know he is exactly where he wants to be and more importantly, he is exactly where Heavenly Father wants and needs him to be.

Elder Henry has such a pure and humble heart and such a strong and joyful love of the gospel. We know he will have an amazing mission and truly will be an instrument in God's hands to bring the light and love of our Savior to the sweet people of Bahia Blanca Argentina.

Ahhh ... The Dentist

2012-01-11T11:55:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I took Tanner and Gavin to the dentist. They are now going to the one I've been going to since they wanted to "graduate" from the pediatric dentist (Since Tanner was taller than he was!) :)

Anyway, this dentist is great and the boys really liked the office, etc... Tanner discovered that he will need to get his wisdom teeth out in a few weeks. I know its wrong, but Gavin and I got really happy - this will be a great opportunity for funny video! Yes, that was our very first thought, not 'poor Tanner' ...

So, I'm sitting there watching them get their teeth cleaned and I have the thought "Hey, I could take a picture" and I followed through with that little thought - much to the chagrin of the boys. :D Yes, it is strange that your mom would take your picture while you're in the dentist chair - but... you should know that never stopped me before ;)

I love the look on Tanner's face!

Gavin and WWII

2012-01-10T11:36:00.000-07:00

Today Gavin took his Utah History project to school for his Utah Studies class. The students had to pick a decade in Utah's history to research and then do a report on it. Gavin chose the Great Depression and WWII.

He found out a lot of interesting facts:

Utah was the 4th hardest hit state in the US during the depression
There was a Japanese internment camp in Utah (who knew?!)
There were 14 military installments in Utah during the War
Wendover was the training spot for Enola Gay, the B-29 that dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki
The first woman judge in Utah was appointed in 1936 (way earlier than I would've guessed! Very Cool)

Gavin got extra credit if he dressed in period clothing so we rounded up the suspenders and bow-tie -- presto! So good-lookin' :)

He had to take an artifact or souvenir from that decade so he decided to bring my Rosie Riveter lunch box that I got a few years ago at the War Hawk museum in Boise. He got to tell everyone how the women (inside joke) were amazingly awesome and helped win the war! :)

He also had to give an oral report for about 3-5 minutes which he nailed. Great job, Gavin!

The Temple, A Baptism and Un-decorating

2012-01-08T17:50:00.040-07:00

Saturday was a fabulous day! We started it by going to the temple first thing in the morning. Russ, Mom, Jacob and I left at 6:30 a.m. and drove in the dark through the snow to get to the Temple at a nice early time. It was going to be a very busy day but we wanted to take Jacob to the temple. We're trying to go at least once a week this month before he goes into the MTC (Missionary Training Center) on February 1st.

It was symbolic I thought. We had to travel through the cold and dark to get to the Temple where it was warm, bright and full of the Spirit. Life can feel like that sometimes - we might feel alone or in the dark surrounded by coldness ... but if we press forward towards Christ, his Gospel and the Temple we will find light, goodness and warmth. It will always be worth the effort!

After the temple, we had to rush home to pick up Gavin and Tanner and hurry over to a baptism for a nephew. David and Kara's little boy, Max was baptized. It is always so fun to watch the little ones on the special day. Jacob and Gavin said the prayers. I was really glad we were there because no one else of David's side of the family was. I got kind of emotional when Max was baptized becuase the thought occurred to me that Jacob will be having these kinds of experiences in just a couple of months. He will probably get to baptize some beautiful Argentinian children (and adults) while serving there on his mission. I'm so happy for him that he will be bale to be an instrument in God's hands to share the light and love of the Savior with others.

After the baptism, we went back to David and Kara's house for awhile to eat pizza and visit. It was really nice.

On our way home, we drove past mom's house and saw that her driveway and sidewalks needed to be shoveled so we stopped and did that. We stayed there for a while and visited with her. It was a great visit.

When we finally got home later that afternoon, we had to take down the Christmas tree. Happily, it went pretty quickly with everyone helping. After getting all of that stuff put away and vacuuming and dusting that room, we were able to kick back and relax! We had dinner and then had our weekly "Family Movie Night". It was Tanner's turn to pick the movie and he chose "Kung Fu Panda 2" which is such a funny movie!

It was a busy, busy, spiritual, fun family day!

Poetry Out Loud

2012-01-08T08:34:00.012-07:00

Gavin was invited to participate in the first annual "Poetry Out loud" showcase at his junior high yesterday. He was one of 17 students that got to recite the poem they've memorized to the entire 7th grade student body.

He received this honor because he was the winner of his class' recitation competition. He recited a Shakespeare poem completely from memory in front of all those peers! I was totally impressed with Gavin. I know there was no way I would have been brave enough to do something like that when I was 12. Way to go Gavin! We are very proud of you!

As one of the 17 winners, Gavin got a movie pass and a bottle of soda ~ sweet! :)

Mission: Shopping

2012-01-07T16:31:00.022-07:00

Yesterday was a wonderful day! Russ and I spent it with Jacob doing a lot of shopping for his upcoming mission.

After watching Gavin in his Poetry Out Loud assembly at the junior high, we headed to Mr. Mac! Russ had typed up a very thorough list of everything we needed to buy for Jacob - boy, that list was long! gulp...

So, we got to Mr. Mac with our trusty list and with wide eyes - this was going to be overwhelming to try to figure everything we needed to get. We were truly blessed - we were greeted by a wonderful man named Rick. He truly was a blessing from heaven! He took his under his wing and in a very caring, non-salesmany way walked us through everything. All the while, he imparted lots of great missionary advice and stories to Jacob. It was such a wonderful experience! A couple of hours later, as we were leaving the store, he spent a few minutes more basically, bearing his testimony and encouraging Jacob. He gave me a hug. It felt like we were talking with a Stake President. (I think he said he was a High Councilman at BYU). We left the store strengthened and uplifted. What a tender blessing from a loving Heavenly Father.

Next, we went to Iggy's for lunch and then finished off the shopping for the day at Target. Then it was time to pick up Tanner and Gavin from school.

I feel so blessed that we had the means to get Jacob all set for his Mission and that we were there to help him prepare. It was a glorious day! :)

Eagle Pep Band

2012-01-04T16:22:00.000-07:00

Last night we went to the girls basketball game at the high school since Tanner was performing with the pep band. We thought it would be fun to see him in action. :) Also, we've been wanting to go to a game for a couple of years now but just never got around to it. It is nice to have an excuse to go now.

The band sounded great. It was kind of funny though because it was a school night and in between songs most of the kids in the band had their noses in books. Gotta get the homework done :)

I was impressed with how many people were there for a girls game! This school really supports them (it might have something to do with the fact that the girls are way better than the boys) ;)

Henry's Rockin' New Year's Eve

2012-01-01T16:37:00.002-07:00

Well, it might not have been "rockin'" but it was fun!

We started the day with a nice, relaxing morning. That afternoon, we did a family date - we went and saw the movie "Tin Tin" and had dinner at Macaroni Grill.

The movie was really good. None of us knew much about it except for the animation was supposed to be really great. It turned out to be a really fun, action-packed movie. We all loved it. Of course, dinner was delicious!

When we got home, we all chilled out and did our own thing for a bit:

Jacob relaxing & playing on his 3DS

Gavin buying stuff on iTunes

Tanner drawing

Gavin showed us a short movie he made. It involved Jacob as a dancer and Toodles as the dog who loses interest in the dancer's dance :)

Then we played a hilarious game of Taboo! We all laughed a lot. The best clue was given by Gavin "George Lincoln lived in one of these" (cottage) :D

Then we had brownies and rang in the New Year with a bit of the bubbly (Sparkling Cider and 7up that is) :)

Happy New Year!

Party at The Kellys

2011-12-30T16:04:00.041-07:00

Last night was our annual holiday party with Sariah and her family. We've done this get-togehter for the last few years during the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. It is one of the holiday traditions we really look forward to! It feels like getting together with family - we just love it!

This year we had the festivities at their home. After pizza and visiting for awhile we kicked off another amazing "Gong Show"! We started this last year and loved it so much we decided to make it a regular part of our holiday celebration. This year we really out-did ourselves! :)

This year's fantastic line-up was:

A glow-stick dance by Sariah and Nicole
Gavin recited a piece from Shakespeare
Jeffrey wowed the crowd (and the dog) with a remote control helicopter
Robbie played a lovely (albeit brief) song from Man From Snowy River
Russ surprised everyone (especially the dog) with his Eagle song
Tanner, Gavin, Jacob and I performed a theatrical masterpiece (silly 2 minute skit)
Jacob sang a song and accompanied himself on the piano as Larry Armstrong (Louie's less-than-famous brother)
Michael and Sariah (and the dog) performed a lovely song
Shane sang Silent Night in German (the only act that the dog seemed to really enjoy)

After the lovely Gong Show, we had dessert and then played a rousing game of Pictionary - it got a little heated and tense but it was all in fun ;) Then we watched a bunch of funny videos on YouTube.

As we were leaving, they told us about a neighbor who puts on a wonderful Christmas light display so we went over to that house and watched that for awhile - it was great!

Another wonderful time with our wonderful friends!

Our Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T17:00:00.030-07:00

Christmas Eve was really nice. It was calm, quiet, relaxing and just had a really special feeling to it.

Russ made delicious hamburgers for dinner. Next, the boys opened their annual Christmas Eve gifts (new p.j.'s and an ornament).

Gavin's ornament - a cello player personalized with his name

Jacob's ornament - an Argentinian flag on one side and

Elder Henry Bahia Blanca Mission on the other

Tanner's ornament - an oboe player personalized with his name

Aren't they cute?! :D

After everyone got in their new p.j.'s, we got all comfy on the sofa and watched one of our all-time favorite Christmas movies, ELF.

Lastly, we read the nativity story from Luke chapter 2. Then we continued our nightly tradition of reading a Christmas story from our Christmas Binder followed by singing a couple of Christmas hymns. It was such a lovely way to end the day and to feel the special spirit of Christmas.

Christmas Eve Family Party

2011-12-26T16:19:00.052-07:00

We had everyone over for a family Christmas Eve party on Saturday. I loved having a house full of family to share Christmas with. We had a wonderful time.

First we just talked for a bit while munching on snacks. Then we had pizza and talked and laughed some more. Next we did the ever-popular White Elephant gift exchange. This is always funny - the little ones were kind of confused and didn't seem to get what was so funny about opening a bunch of weird gifts. I guess you have to be a little older to get that kind of strange sense of humor! :)

After that, we had a family Christmas concert! Chloe played a couple of Christmas songs on her violin, Mathias sang Jingle Bells, Gavin played Brandenburg Concerto on his cello, Jacob played Hark the Herald Angels on the piano and finally (and after a lot of begging) Tanner played I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day on his trombone. It was so great to listen to all of the musical talents that the kids in our family have!

It was a wonderful, happy and joyful Christmas Eve together!

C.J. showing some of the nice leather work that he does

Mathias was so thrilled when he found the boys' toy dinosaurs!

What a smile on Johnny!

I love this shot of the big guys playing with the little guys!

Just hangin' out

The kitchen was taken over by all of the yummy desserts!

Pictures from the White Elephant Gift Exchange:

Our Wonderful Christmas Eve Concert:

Gage and Mathias graced us with their own rendition of Christmas music :)

It was a great day!

We're Dancing Elves

2011-12-24T08:39:00.000-07:00

I love to make these silly little videos of our family each year! Office Max has a site where you can import your pictures onto dancing elf bodies. The videos are hilarious! :)

This one is a lovely country dance. Who knew we'd be so at home at a hoe-down?!

Taking Jacob to the Temple

2011-12-21T09:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was one of the most special days of my entire life. Words won't do the day justice and it was such a special and sacred day that I can't go into a lot of detail...

Let it suffice to say that my heart is overflowing with joy and gratitude

~ joy that my son, Jacob has chosen to live his life in a way that made him worthy to enter the Lord's House
~ joy that Jacob loves his Savior and wants to live his life close to Him
~ joy that living what he believes is of the upmost importance to Jacob, he doesn't make excuses - he just lives what he believes
~ joy that Russ and I could share in this special day with Jacob
~ joy and gratitude that my Savior, Jesus Christ allows us to have Temples on the earth to be close to Him and to be instructed and comforted

Thank you for such a beautiful day and for allowing me to have such an wonderful young man to be my son!

Goody Plates for Neighbors and Friends

2011-12-20T08:53:00.019-07:00

Last night for our weekly Family Home Evening, we put together Christmas goody plates for all of our wonderful neighbors and friends.

On each plate we had:
chocolate fudge
peanut butter fudge
powder-sugar dusted candy bar brownies
butterscotch dipped pretzels with sprinkles
Christmas tootsie rolls sprinkled about

I think they turned out looking pretty and festive. I had decided just a couple of hours before that Monday night would probably be a great night to catch everyone at home so I hurried and made the fudge, brownies and pretzels. It was kind of hurried but I was really happy with how they turned out. We sampled the little leftovers and yum! Everything was very tasty :)

It was a bitter cold night, so I drove and Russ and the boys took turns taking the goody plates up to doors.

I love living in this neighborhood ~ so many wonderful and caring people! I wish I could make a goody plate for every single person but I got tired after 13 plates full of treats. :)

Sweet Suites!

2011-12-18T08:10:00.001-07:00

Yesterday afternoon we embarked on our annual gingerbread house making tradition. We got home from Gavin's piano recital and got out all of the fixings - it felt like Santa's candy shop! It's always so messy and always so worth it! There was only one slight problem - just as I was starting to glue everyone's houses together, I started getting an excruciating pain in my left foot. I could hardly stand it ...ugh! Well, I did my best to ignore it and we had a great time putting the houses together.

Mom's lovely snowed-in cabin

Tanner's robots from the computer game Portal

Russ' classic gingerbread house

Jacob's candy storage - notice the little gingerbread man in there getting buried by the candy

My traditional victorian home

Gavin's house was an inner castle from the Zelda video game

Our pretty little gingerbread village!

When all the houses were done and photographed and mom went home, I hobbled back to my room to check out my foot. When I took off my sock, I saw that my foot was badly swollen, red and hot. Oh boy. I knew I wasn't going to last until Monday but luckily our Doctor's Office has an emergency care office open on weekends. Russ drove me down there to get my foot checked out. I was sure there was a broken bone in there somewhere. It turns out that I had tendonitis. They took x-rays to make sure there wasn't a stress fracture but alas - it is "just" tendonitis. He gave my some anti-infamitories and pain meds and a lovely boot to wear. Luckily, he said that my foot should be feeling better in a week. Fingers crossed!

Once I got the boot on, it felt so much better to walk around! It ain't pretty but it sure does the job. After resting at home for a little we decided to go on our family date as planned. We went to dinner at Goodwood and then went to see the second Sherlock Holmes movie. It turned out to be a fun evening (even if I had to hobble through it!) :)

Christmas Music Is In The Air

2011-12-17T16:24:00.026-07:00

I love this time of year for so many wonderful reasons. One of my favorite things about Christmas time is the music! I especially love hearing my boys play their music.

Thursday night was Gavin's very first orchestra concert. They were able to perform in the beautiful auditorium at MMHS since their teacher also is the orchestra director at the high school. The stage was beautifully decorated since they had a Chorale performance there the night before. They played "First Christmas March", "Brandenburg Concerto" and "Up On the Housetop". I was so impressed with how well they sounded given the fact that most of them had only been playing their instruments for a few short months. Gavin looked like a natural up there. I'm looking forward to may more wonderful orchestra concerts. Way to go Gavin!

Friday night was Tanner's Concert Band and Jazz Band Christmas concert. He also got to perform with his combo (small group) before the concert started. They were amazing!

The Jazz Band performed "Ran Kan Kan", "I'll Be Home For Christmas" and "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree". Tanner had solos in the first two and sounded awesome. :)

The Concert Band performed "Appalachian Carol", "O Magnum Mysterium" and "Suite of Old American Dances". They were so great!

Finally, Gavin's Christmas piano recital was this morning. He played "With Wondering awe". He has really been practicing hard the last couple of weeks and it sure showed! He sounded so calm and smooth! Super job!

Thanks Tanner and Gavin for the gift of music!

Santa Toodles

2011-12-16T16:23:00.000-07:00

A few days ago Mom and Toodles came over for dinner and Toodles was wearing his new little Santa Hat! Can I just say, that shattered the cuteness chart!

The best party was when his little hat would slid down off of is head to under his chin - he looked like Santa! I thought I was going to bust up laughing! Too hilarious! :)

Jacob's Done With Fall Semester!

2011-12-15T16:02:00.006-07:00

Well, Jacob finished his Fall semester at BYU! He completed all of his exams yesterday and now he's a free man! (for a while) :)

Now he has about a month and a half to enjoy some time off of school, work and get ready for his mission. I want to make January a "Cooking School" month for him as well. I will feel a lot better sending him off to Argentina for a couple of years if I know he can make several dinners for himself. :)

He knows how to do his own laundry and clean the bathroom .. now we have to focus on cooking and grocery shopping! :)

Tanner and Gage's Birthday Party

2011-12-11T16:07:00.010-07:00

Yesterday we all got together at Jessica's house to celebrate Tanner and Gage's birthdays. It was Tanner's 16th and Gage's 3rd! It was really nice to get together! Thank goodness for birthdays - they're the perfect excuse for a get-together. :)

I've come to the conclusion that we have some pretty adorable kiddos in our family:

Mathias' amazing smile!

Gage with the Thomas the Tank Engine toy we got him

Johnny trying to share his lollipop with Gage's new toy :)

Happy Birthday Gage & Tanner!

Tanner Turned Sweet Sixteen!

2011-12-02T09:14:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Tanner's 16th birthday! What a blessing he has been to me and to our entire family.

I still remember so clearly the night he was born. We left little Jacob at home with Grandma Brown - they were standing on the porch waving goodbye to us as we pulled out of the driveway and headed off into the night towards the hospital. What a comforting scene that was knowing my little guy was going to be well taken care of.

It was so quiet and calm at the hospital, it was like we were the only ones there. The lights were dim and it was peaceful. He was born 4 minutes before midnight. He would've shared Dad's birthday. However, the pain was too intense and so he was born on December 1st. The sweet nurses said that we could say he was born on December 2nd if we wanted. :) I didn't think we needed to fib about it - each of those wonderful people can have their own special day. We named him Tanner Virgil Henry so he not only almost shared a birthday with his Grandpa Brown, he shares his name, too.

Tanner has brought so much joy to us! Thank you for being such a precious gift to us every day. We love you!

We had a fun day celebrating Tanner! For breakfast, I made cinnamon streusel muffins - his favorite. :) For lunch, I picked him up from school and took him to Wendy's for a burger. We went through the drive thru and brought the food back to the high school parking lot. We parked facing the open fields and gorgeous mountains. We had a nice time talking and listening to some of his Legend of Zelda music. He said it was one of the best lunches his had in a long time. :)

After school, when everyone was home, Tanner opened his gifts.

A new hoodie from Gavin

A computer game from Jacob

Birthday money from Grandma and Grandpa Henry

Tanner loves licorice so he was very happy to see this huge tub of it! :)

Tanner has wanted soundtrack from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe for a long time

Tanner and his new phone

Instead of going out to dinner, he wanted homemade pizza for his birthday dinner.

Tanner striking a very regal pose

For his birthday cake, he asked for my pumpkin streusel cake.

I love the look on Tanner's face :)

There was one candle left burning and before Tanner could blow it out Gavin did!

I think Tanner had a fun birthday and we had a great time showing him how much we love and appreciate him.

Happy Birthday Tanner!

Warm the Heart

2011-11-30T20:50:00.001-07:00

This month my service group, Hearts & Hands, has been collecting winter clothing items for the needy. My office has felt like Santa's workshop! I've had piles and piles of coats, hats and gloves! While it was messy and crowded in here, it warmed my heart. The generosity of the good people of this neighborhood is truly inspiring!

Tonight was my deadline for donations so I can drop the items off tomorrow. With the help of Tanner and Russ, I sorted and counted everything.

Here is what we collected:

36 pair of gloves/mittens
11 scarves
68 coats/jackets
120 hats
1 pair of boots
1 pair of ski pants
3 pair of socks

That makes a grand total of 236 items! Wow! In addition, 2 huge boxes of women's clothing was also donated!

My heart is so full of gratitude and love. The spirit of giving, the spirit of Christmas is truly alive and well here in our little neighborhood! Thank you all so much!

Merry Christmas!

Nativity at the Provo Temple

2011-11-29T15:56:00.007-07:00

Today I went to the Provo Temple with Marianne and Laura. I noticed a beautiful white nativity set up in front of temple. I've never seen it before ... I'm not sure if they've had this displayed before or not. Anyway, I just loved it and had to take a picture!

I love how pure, peaceful and natural it is. It is a good reminder how Christmas should be.

It's a Puzzle

2011-11-28T19:49:00.005-07:00

Well, we finally finished our puzzle today! Tanner, Gavin and I have been working on it since Thanksgiving. Mom and Russ helped with it, too. Its funny what a sense of accomplishment you get from finishing a puzzle. Tanner thinks we should laminate it. :)

Un-Black Friday

2011-11-27T19:41:00.000-07:00

Black Friday? I don't think so!

We had a wonderful Friday ~ we slept in, had a very lazy morning and then we decorated for Christmas! That's my idea of a great way to spend the Day after Thanksgiving.

On Saturday, we put the lights up outside and then we had a family date. We saw Arthur Christmas and then went to Chili's for dinner. It was a great weekend!

Family Pictures

2011-11-26T19:18:00.014-07:00

How did we spend the day before Thanksgiving? Well, we took our family pictures and we went and saw the new muppet movie! I don't think I cooked a thing all day!

I heard about a neat place to take pictures in Provo called "the castle" so we went there. It was a great backdrop! We only had about 30-40 minutes to get the pictures so it was a speed photo shoot but I'm happy with what I was able to get.

You'll find some of the other pictures on the blog header and off to the side (right margin).

Afterwards we went to the movie and then to JcW's for burgers and shakes. yummy.

What a fun way to get our Thanksgiving break started!

A Happy Gram

2011-11-25T19:36:00.002-07:00

Gavin got a Happy Gram today from school! This is something a teacher will mail to a student to let them know they appreciate them. I think they are fantastic! I wish every school did this .. I'm sure glad our's does.

I'm not surprised that Gavin got ine. He tries his very best and gets along with everyone, including the teacher. He's hard working, honest and kind. What's not to love?! :)

Great job, Gavin!

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T09:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving! We had a wonderful day celebrating all that we have to be grateful for. The best part was being together with loved ones! We were so happy to share the day with mom, Brad and Jared. It just seems more Thanksgiving-y if there are some more family around.

It was a fun day of baking, eating, trying to put a puzzle together, watching football, watching a Christmas movie (The Christmas Wish which was filmed in Mapleton!), playing games, laughing and of course, dessert! All of the desserts were homemade - Mom made two pies: pumpkin and pecan from scratch and I made a chocolate ribbon dessert. :)

It was a great group of people and we had a lovely day!

Our Thankful Basket

Each year we have a tradition of writing down some of the many blessings that we are thankful for that year. Thanksgiving evening we gathered together to read all of the things we were grateful for. It is truly a wonderful time for our family. We love this tradition!

OUR THANKFUL BASKET ~ 2011

thanksgiving break
the musical talents of my family
laughter
the neighborhood
bald eagles
temples
warm house on a cold day
stuffing
rain
music of tommy dorsey
no serious diseases
family pictures
grandma
no football
clouds
cinnamon roll pop tarts
alien biology art
pizza
immigrants
employment & paychecks
grace
crisp, sunny days
my husband
canis familiaris (dogs)
solid structures
toodles
america's military
tanner
jacob
witty brothers
bagpipes
awesome parents
family history
peace at home
the extinction of dangerous mega fauna
heaters
my extreme proximity to a church building and multiple temples
the atonement of Jesus Christ
comfy pillows
thoroughly modern millie
thanksgiving
spanish fork
the armada
all creatures of our God and King
dad's reliable truck
loving and beautiful wife
thanksgiving break
electronics
my food
clean, funny youtube videos
america
toodles
that grandma lives in spanish fork
ptsa service club
a deacon who magnifies his priesthood
beaker (the muppet)
dad
gavin
mom
thanksgiving get-togethers
couch sleep-outs
grandparents
life on earth
the fact that I don't have to worry about dangerous animals in this region
lady liberty
jacob
the fact that jupiter absorbs the majority of intra-stellar objects
the gospel
happy family
dinner
traditions
our schools
safe community
funny moments
hearts and hands
tanner
koko the gorilla
the invention of alphabet
fall
byu
this house
at&t
the holy ghost
talented musicians
a lovely home
a high schooler with a great attitude
the jazzy 20's
a prepared future missionary
piano
bahia blanca
the care with which God gave earth stable weather and climate
my family

We have so much to be thankful for! We are truly blessed because of the love, grace and goodness of our Heavenly Father and his son, Jesus Christ. Thank you!

Gavin's 4.0 GPA

2011-11-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Gavin! He earned a 4.0 GPA during his first term of junior high school! Way to go!

Tanner and the High School Musical

2011-11-18T19:01:00.002-07:00

Tanner got to help with the high school's musical production this year! The jazz band is performing all of the music for it live. They are putting on "Thoroughly Modern Millie". Since the jazz band will be on the stage, too (behind some of the set) they were to dress in costume, too. Tanner LOVED dressing like the 1920's! And he looked very handsome :)

We went to see the musical last night on opening night. It was amazing! I was so impressed with the high quality of singing, dancing, choreography, sets and of course, music! The kids were truly great! We thoroughly loved Thoroughly Modern Millie! Great job, Tanner!

Hats for the Homeless

2011-11-18T13:25:00.007-07:00

For the last month or so Mom and I have been making loom hats for the homeless.

I made 14 hats and 2 scarves!

Mom made 56 hats!

I love my new hobby! My favorite part is that it is meaningful - it will actually help someone! Yea for loom hats! :)

Missionary Friends

2011-11-14T18:56:00.000-07:00

Today, Chris, one of Jacob's best friends, stopped by. He is going to enter the MTC on Wednesday. He will be serving his mission in Peru.

Jacob has made so many wonderful friends here! It is so inspiring to watch these valiant young men join God's army to go preach His word to the world. What a glorious and happy reunion they will have in 2 years when they all come home!

Happy Halloween

2011-11-01T15:18:00.022-06:00

Yesterday was Halloween. It is becoming a little different as the kids get older but it was still a fun day. After school, Jessica and the kids stopped by to trick or treat. It was fun to see their adorable costumes.

Next, Gavin and I got into costumes and then the boys and I went over to mom's to say hi.

Then we hurried home, I made homemade pizzas and the boys finished their homework. After dinner, Gavin went trick or treating with his best friend, Brandon. When he got home about an hour or so later, we watched our all-time favorite Halloween show. In fact, it just isn't Halloween until you watch "It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown"!

During the evening we played games, ate goodies and handed out candy to the cute little trick or treaters that came by.

It was a spook-tacular Halloween!

Murder Mystery Dinner ~ Who Done It?

2011-10-30T16:43:00.059-06:00

Last night was the annual murder mystery dinner hosted by our good friends, Tami and Kevin Fenn. This year the theme was a 20th class reunion of the class of '85. Perfect! Like totally awesome! I was a little disappointed that it was not actually going to be set in the 80's - I was already to bust out the leg warmers, lace fingerless gloves and jelly bracelets! Oh well, once I found out I was "Molly Ringworm" the class drama queen who's made it big (won an Emmy for her role in the soap opera "The Brash and The Brutal") I knew I'd have a blast. Russ was Steven Spielsen (remind you of a producer you might've hear of? ET?)

It turns out everyone loves Molly and almost everyone hates Steven... hmmm... could he be the murder victim? But who would be the murdered? So many questions!

As the evening progressed, I discovered the Molly's "dislike" for Steven was actually more like pure hatred ... but was it enough to make her a killer? Yes! Yes,it was! I murdered Steven. Horrors. Now I had to make sure no one figured it out....

Russ made a great murder victim. ;) He cracked me up (secretly, of course) when he flopped down on the ground, arms sprawled out.

Well, I must have done a good acting job - only 5 people guessed I was the murderer. :)

Another fun part of the evening was seeing everyone's old pictures from the 80's. Here are ours:

They had a contest for best 80's photo and Russ one! It was hard to beat that awesome baby blue tux, class ring and the hair parted down the middle! :) I got the prizes for most dramatic and best costume ;)

My character, Molly was supposed to bring her "Emmy" (which turned out to be the murder weapon) and lots of pictures of herself as a movie star and with famous people. I found a couple of great websites that let you photoshop your own picture into various scenes. It worked perfectly for what I needed to do as "Molly" and it was a lot of fun. Here are some of my "famous" pictures:

I also passed out these business cards to everyone throughout the evening:

We had such a fun night!

Celebrating Jacob's Birthday

2011-10-29T15:01:00.032-06:00

Today we had everyone over to celebrate Jacob's 19th birthday. It was really fun to have them all here to eat, talk, laugh and just to spend time together. We had pizza and then Jacob opened his gifts. Afterwards, we had cake pops (instead of a traditional cake this is what Jacob wanted). It was a great day!

Gavin playing dinosaurs with Mathias

Jacob and his loving Grandma Brown

Kathy and her gang with the birthday boy

Jacob getting some help for the little guys

Happy Birthday Dear Jacob

Gage showed off his halloween costume

The boys with one of their all-time favorite women

Chloe with the birthday gift we gave her

Jacob Turns 19

2011-10-28T15:57:00.001-06:00

My first baby boy turned 19 yesterday! It was a really fun afternoon and evening as we celebrated Jacob's birthday.

It was a Thursday so all the boys still had school and Russ still had work and I had the field trip with Gavin. We made a little sign for Jacob and put it on the kitchen island for him to see while he ate his breakfast - we all signed the card, the boys drew a happy face on a balloon and we left him some money so we could treat him to lunch while he was at BYU. It was just a little reminder that we all were wishing him a very happy birthday.

By the time Jacob in the kitchen for breakfast, the balloon the boys left him had deflated (there must've been a tiny hole somewhere). Jacob thought that was how it was supposed to be and that it looked really cool. It did, too. :)

I love the laughter between brothers that this picture captured!

Tanner made this PJ shirt for him with a quote that Jacob said once - hilarious!

Gavin got him a nice BYU t-shirt - Go Cougars!

So excited to see so many cheese balls in one place! :)

He is one cool kid!

Jacob got the newest CD from his favorite group - Coldplay

A new camera (that I expect tons of pictures of his mission to be taken on!) :)

Jacob chose Tucanos Restaurant for dinner. He went there for prom and really liked it and wanted to go back. It was amazing! So much great food ... and they had creme brulee! The best part was when the waiters had all the birthday people get up and dance! Go JAcob!!!

After dinner, we went to Comedy Sportz. It was super funny as always!

When we finally got home a little after 10 p.m. we sang to Jacob and ate some homemade chocolate chip cookies.

Happy Birthday Jacob! We love you so much!

Orchestra Field Trip

2011-10-28T15:40:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I went with Gavin on his orchestra field trip to listen to the Utah Valley Symphony. This is an annual field trip that the junior high takes the band and orchestra kids on. This was my 5th year going on this trip! It has always been at the historic PRovo Tabernacle but that burned down about a week and a half after our field trip last year. This time they had the performance at the Covey Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Provo. It was a really nice venue and the seats were much more comfy! The only problem seemed to be that they didn't have enough seating for all of the kids. We were lucky enough to get seats. :)

Since the room on the buses was going to be tight, they asked if some of us chaperones would mind driving our own cars. Mind??? Are you kidding me? I think I can handle driving my own comfortable, nicely heated car and enjoy great conversation with my own son over sitting on a cold, bouncy, noisy bus listening to the obnoxious echoes of "singing" throughout the cavernous vehicle. No problem! :)

Gavin and I had a great time. AFter the performance we went to A&W for lunch. Our timing was great - we were just finishing up when a tour bus full of tourists embarked on the restaurant.

After lunch, we drove over to where the school buses were and waited for all of the kids to finish lunch and get back on the buses. It was really nice just hanging out talking, listening to music and playing games. :)

Thanks for a great date Gavin!

Gavin and his best friend Brandon

Me and my handsome date

The back of the Covey Center

Chillin' out in the comfort of our own car :)

A Busy, Great Day

2011-10-26T15:09:00.042-06:00

Yesterday was a very, very busy day! It was full of good stuff though so it was a great day.

In the morning I had Club Day at the high school. The Service Club made fleece blankets for the abuse shelter. I was the only adult there for most of it. (the other advisor was asleep at home but finally woke up and came to the high school for a few minutes). This was a bit stressful since it is a big project to run by yourself trying to give instructions to 55 high school students on how to make the fleece blankets. Also, I was the only one who brought scissors (5 other people were supposed to but forgot). So, my 5 pair had to stretch over the entire group of kids.
We finally got the blankets made and they turned out great. I love this group of kids!

Then I had to hurry home and get ready for my service group, Hearts and Hands, and the service project we were doing for the month. We were putting together snack sacks for the needy children in our area and donating them to the Community Action Food Bank. I got so many donations for the great ladies in my neighborhood! Also, it was the biggest group I've ever had at my house for one of my projects - I had about 16 people there to help. We were able to put together 180 snack sacks! That more than tripled my original goal!!!

It took a couple of hours to assemble all of the sacks and to get them in the back of my car. Once Russ, Mom and I had the car loaded, mom and I went to the Food Bank to deliver them. The lady there gave us a tour of the facilities and told us all of the great things they are doing to help the needy in our community.

After that it was time to buzz over to the schools and pick up the boys.

To top off a busy but great day, that night was Tanner's Fall band concert. It was impressive how great they sounded after just a couple of months of practice. It was a very entertaining concert!

Whew - what a day! :)

Pumpkin Painting

2011-10-25T17:37:00.002-06:00

Last night was our annual pumpkin painting party! As usual, it was so fun to see what everyone came up with. Mom had the scariest pumpkin by far. It was a mean looking little pumpkin with blood coming out of its eyes and a snake (the stem) coming out of the top! She even told us a story that went along with her frightening little guy! The rest of us opted for more colorful and fanciful ~ I guess we don't quite capture the "true" meaning of the holiday. :)

After creating our Halloween masterpieces, we enjoyed some delicious orange rolls! It was a great night!

Here are the finished products:

I made a lovely witch and Russ made a Santa Clause

Jacob made the muppet, Beaker

Gavin made a Pokeball

Tanner made a chameleon

Mom and her scary Jack

Walking the Beautiful River Walk Trail

2011-10-24T06:44:00.020-06:00

On Wednesday evening, Russ and I dropped Tanner and Gavin off at Scouts and Jacob had work. It was a beautiful evening and we didn't want to just stay in the house, so we decided to go for a walk. We had heard about a pretty walking trail down by the river but neither of us had seen it. So we went off to find it.

After a nice short drive down the hill and down a nice country road, we found the trail head. What a pleasant discovery! It was great to find such a pretty walking trail so close to our house! We got their just in time to have our nice long walk end just as the sun set.

We loved it so much that late yesterday afternoon, we took the boys, Mom and of course, Toodles. (we knew he would love this walk!) :)

It was so nice to get out and enjoy this beauty together - talking, walking and laughing. It was a wonderful way to spend the afternoon.

Lauren's Family PIctures

2011-10-22T18:56:00.000-06:00

I was so happy when Lauren asked if I could take their family pictures! I have her cute little guy in my primary class at church and my son is good friends with her oldest son. They are a wonderful family! And it turns out that they are super photogenic! What a beautiful family!

Here are some of my favorites:
To see more go to: http://laurahenryphoto.blogspot.com/

Sariah's Family Pictures

2011-10-18T06:45:00.002-06:00

A while ago my dearest friend on the planet, Sariah, asked if I would take her family portraits. Of course, I said I'd love to - it sounded like fun. And fun, it was! They are such a great family. I just love them to bits! :) I had a blast at their photo shoot and I was happy to hear later that they all had fun, too - including Shane who is a typical papa who just LOVES getting his picture taken for an hour. :)

A couple of weeks ago we met at the American Fork Amphitheater which turned out to be a fabulous spot for photos. (Now, I want to take our family photos there sometime). It had been raining earlier that day but we pushed the shoot back a couple of hours and it turned out to be perfect weather for it (maybe a little brisk but the lighting was fantastic).

I'm so happy that Sariah asked me to take their pictures. It was great to be there with them and to capture the love, warmth and beauty of this amazing family!

Here are some of my favorites, including some candid shots which are my most favorite ones of all! :)
You can see more at my portrait photography blog: http://laurahenryphoto.blogspot.com/

Beautiful Nebo Loop

2011-10-16T18:27:00.001-06:00

Yesterday afternoon, we went for a drive through the scenic Nebo Loop. It was an absolute perfect day for the drive.

After Mom got here, we started the day off by going by the cemetery and putting in fall flowers for Dad and Nick. It is always so nice to be there ... I feel close to them and it reminds me that we aren't that far apart even though I can't see them right now.

Next we grabbed some Subway sandwiches to go along with the picnic we packed and headed to the mountians. We found a perfect place for a picnic at the foot of the Nebo Loop. The only problem was one little pesky bee that liked to hang around us. Other than that it was fabulous. :) After the picnic, we enjoyed a nice, long, leisurely drive - laughing, talking and just spending time together was the best part.

What a gorgeous day! We're so thankful to live in such a beautiful part of the world!

What a Pleasant Surprise!

2011-10-12T15:06:00.003-06:00

Today I received an exciting e-mail from The Church!

Hi Laura,
We wanted to let you know that one of your images has been used as desktop wallpaper on our new Create.lds.org site. You can find it here:
Desktop Wallpaper at Create.lds.org

Thank you again for sharing such beautiful images. We hope that you will continue to share your talents and help us build this online library.

With Appreciation,
Web Media Associate Producer / Media Service Department
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

About a month or so ago, I submitted 3-4 photos for the new Create.lds.org site. I saw that they were looking for people to submit art for their worldwide media needs. They encouraged people to share their media talents with the Church and members around the world. These photographs will be used by Church designers for products and websites, as well as for lessons, family home evenings and noncommercial websites and blogs. I truly never thought my photos would stand out, and I certainly didn't expect to be selected as 1 of 43 desktop wallpapers.

So, you can imagine my surprise and joy when I received this e-mail!

Well, here it is! My photograph that was selected to be a desktop wallpaper. It is the Salt Lake City Temple on a cold, stormy day.

I hope you enjoy it! (Please feel free to download it!) :)

Desktop Wallpaper at Create.lds.org

Gavin's Cake Pops

2011-10-10T08:28:00.024-06:00

Tonight was our weekly Family Home Evening. Each week we all have a different job: conduct, lesson, music, activity and treats. Tonight Gavin's job was treats so he decided he wanted to make cake pops. We had seen them in a magazine a while back and we both thought they looked fun to make.

We did have a fun time making them and they were a huge hit with everyone! He decided to make lemon cake with milk chocolate coating. Yum! Thank you Gavin!

recipe for cake pops: http://www.bakerella.com/category/pops-bites/cake-pops/

Neighborhood Night of Service

2011-10-06T13:30:00.008-06:00

Last night our church sponsored a neighborhood "Night of Service". It was fabulous! We had a great turn out and we were able to get a lot done. We made school kits for under-priveledged children and collected hats to go to the homeless. Also there were people making fleece balls - they looked adorable and were easy to put together. I'm definitely going to try those sometime soon!

Our whole family was able to go and mom joined us. She donated several hats that she's made and I donated my first loomed hat! I was so proud of it and I loved that it was going to go to a good home and hopefully make a difference.

It was a great night! I wish they would do one of these every month... :)

My 3 awesome sons making a difference and cheerfully serving!

Love them to bits!

My FIrst Loom Hat

2011-10-05T13:40:00.001-06:00

I wanted to learn how to loom hats since our church was collecting some for the homeless. I had heard that it was super simple and fun so I wanted to give it a whirl. Mom had all of the supplies and got me started.

I am hooked! (no pun intended!) :) I absolutely love looming! It makes me feel very craftsy and talented (even though I'm not). I still can't believe I made this cute little hat!

I am now working on the third hat and I'm even teaching Gavin how to loom his first hat!

Letters to Soldiers

2011-10-03T19:16:00.011-06:00

My Hearts and Hands service project for last month was writing letters to soldiers. I was so happy at the result! I had a group of young men from Church write letters for one of their weekly activities. I had several wonderful ladies from the neighborhood come over one day to write letters (a couple of them brought their little ones who drew the best pictures!). Finally, I had the Service Club at the high school write letters. I was able to collect 82 letters and drawings! That makes me so happy since that means there will be 82 spirits lifted, 82 faces will smile and 82 hearts will know they are loved!

An Uplifting Weekend

2011-10-02T13:56:00.003-06:00

This weekend has been so amazing! We were able to watch all 4 sessions of General Conference together as a family. General Conference weekends are my favorites. I just love all of the inspiring and comforting and true messages we hear to help us draw closer to our Savior.

It was also a really wonderful weekend because we also started to dive into our family's geneology. We were able to go back an incredible number of generations on mom's mom's side - all the way back to Anna, the Cousin of Mary and beyond! When we saw that, tears came to my eyes and I was so touched to realize I am part of something bigger - a very large expansive family tree and I belong there with all of these people. Tanner's favorite discovery was to find out that he is related to Olaf "The White" - Viking King of Dublin! We are related to Aud The Deep-Minded, a legendary settler of Iceland and a devout Christian, who also happened to be a woman! We also came across Ruth, as in THE Ruth from the Old Testament! That was very special for me. I want to be like all of these amazing people in my own family tree. I want to raise up to the best that is within me. We also ran across three women who became Saints. One of my "favorites" was Isabella, Lady of the Sea - doesn't that sound so romantic ...

This will be quite an interesting, thrilling and rewarding journey as we discovery more about our beloved ancestors.

Pictures from where my ancestors lived in Scotland:
(some lived in these castles, others were christened and/or buried at them)

Ravenscraig Castle, Scotland

Kildrummy Castle, Scotland

Buckinghamshire, England

Glamis Castle, Scotland

Telemark, Norway ~ The area around where Aud the Deep-Minded was born

Iceland, where she helped settle and later died

Pictures from the Gordon Family cemetery in Indiana:

Some of Russ' ancestors lived on a beautiful little island off of Denmark called Bornholm. The island is famous for its lovely round churches. I just adore them! I think I could live here. :)

I am so thankful for the modern miracle of the internet that allows me to actually see where these good people were born, lived their lives the best they could and died. It is such a blessing!

Cello

2011-10-02T13:49:00.001-06:00

Gavin chose to join the orchestra this year and to learn to play the cello. This is a new thing for our family as both of his older brothers played in the band. It will be really fun to take on this adventure with him!

I already love the sound he makes on his cello - yes, it is quite "squeaky" at this point but he's learning and there is something special about the sound of a cello. I guess the sound of him practicing, squawks and all, are so basic and innocent that it truly is music to my heart - I really love it!

Stick to it Gavin and you will be making beautiful music before too long!

Club Day

2011-09-30T20:13:00.000-06:00

I am the parent advisor for the high school Service Club again this year. This will be my third year and I'm excited to work with a new student board and a new group of students! Tanner joined and it will be so fun to share this with him this year.

Today was our first Service Club meeting for the school year. We wanted to honor and remember 9/11 so we watched a short little patriotic video, wrote letters to soldiers and then had all of the kids sign a banner that said "Honoring the Heroes Among Us". A very special part of the meeting was when we had teachers and staff in the high school who are veterans come in so we could give them a little treat and to applaud them.

It was really neat to hear from the teachers and the principal. They all served our country valiantly and I loved watching the students faces as they learned a little more about these heroes.

It was a great way to kick-off the year!

Morning-side

2011-09-30T07:01:00.000-06:00

This morning Tanner went to his first "morning-side". It is like a "Fireside" devotional traditionally held on a Sunday evening but it was held early in the morning before school starts.

I was so impressed with Tanner's commitment to go to the morning-side this morning! It meant getting up earlier (losing a precious half hour of sleep) and wearing church clothes. That didn't seem to phase him at all. In fact, he also invited one of his friends to go with him!

Driving Tanner and LeRoy to the newly finished Chapel by the high school, we joined a long line of cars all going to the same place. I kind of got a lump in my throat. I am so grateful to live where there are so many youth who are strong and committed to the gospel. I love that my sons can be part of such an outstanding group of young men and women who have such a strong testimony of their Savior, Jesus Christ and are so valiant in following Him.

Even though it was still pitch black when I dropped Tanner off, my heart was filled with light! I am very thankful that he chose to start his day in this way. I am thankful for the church leaders who are providing this wonderful opportunity for the kids. I am so thankful for the gospel that blesses our lives so richly if we let it, even on a small country road at 6:30 in the morning.

Gavin's Court of Honor

2011-09-29T18:51:00.020-06:00

Last night was a Court of Honor for Gavin's Boy Scout troop. They had a cake decorating contest for the boys. Gavin decided to do the Argentina flag which turned out so great! He also added some personal creativity to the cake by adding a dash of orange extract. Yum! it added just a hint of an orange flavor which was a pleasant surprise. :)

Gavin took this cool picture of his cake

Gavin helped with the flag ceremony and then conducted the last half of the meeting. I was so impressed with how well he did. He was so confident and well-spoken up in front of everyone! He is really growing up into a mature, confident and all around amazing young man! I'm so proud of you, Gavin!

Gavin's cake tied with the football cake (on the end) for 1st place!

Wedding Reception Photographer

2011-09-27T20:22:00.000-06:00

My good friend Marianne, had her second daughter get married a couple of weeks ago and they asked if I would take the reception photographs as well as some outside the temple. It was fun to do it! Megan was such a beautiful bride.

Here are some of my favorites:

Celebration Dinner

2011-09-23T19:50:00.011-06:00

Last night we went out to dinner to celebrate Jacob's Mission Call. Jacob chose Macaroni Grill, one of our favorites. :)

At dinner, we gave Jacob a few little gifts: an Argentina bumper sticker, a little Argentina desk flag and a large Argentina flag (which is now hanging proudly on his bedroom wall).

It was a fun evening and a great reason to celebrate!

Jacob's Mission Call!

2011-09-22T17:56:00.079-06:00

He got it! Jacob received his mission call yesterday!!! I can't even begin to describe how special and exciting it was. It was just incredible.

I was bringing the boys home from school and just pulled into our neighborhood and we saw Jacob driving towards us down the road. He had obviously just picked up the mail as he was waving a big white envelope. We were so excited! It looked like he got his mission call!

After we both pulled into the garage, we hurriedly asked Jacob if that was it and he said yes. We quickly called mom so she could join us when he opened his letter.

About five minutes later, mom arrived and we were gathered together as Jacob opened this letter. It was amazing to me that in this crisp white envelope where words that would change Jacob's life. Actually they would change all of our lives. Jacob's hands were shaking like crazy as he gently peeled it opened and pulled out the letter.

As he started to read, the rest of the world just disappeared. Then the words we've all been waiting to hear .... "Called to serve in the Argentina, Bahia Blanca Mission"

I love the expressions on Tanner and Gavin's faces!

That one moment in time will be burned in my heart and soul forever. It was the moment when my life changed and the day my oldest son's life changed. He was now enlisted in God's army. It was truly one of the most incredibly special moments of my life so far.

The smile on Jacob's face and the brightness of his countenance spoke of the pure joy he was feeling. Everyone was smiling ear to ear. It was such a beautiful experience for all of us.

Happy tears streamed down my face as he read the letter and The Spirit rested upon all of us in that room. It was exactly the right thing! I knew in my heart that it was the right mission for Jacob and that it is where Heavenly Father needs Jacob. It is where Jacob will be able to teach, serve and grow. It is where he will bless lives and where he will be blessed. Argentina. Argentina! Who knew? God knew and I knew that He knew so it made everything just perfect.

Right after Jacob finished reading his letter, there was a scurry of excitement. Words like "wow" and "amazing" and "cool" were heard. Jacob gave me the best hug he's ever given me. I will never forget that. After hugs from everyone, he quickly called Grandma and Grandpa Henry to let them know the amazing news. They were so thrilled for him. Grandma Henry was actually one of only 3 people to guess Argentina! It was so great to share the moment with all of his grandparents. It was such an incredible blessing to have mom there with us in the room and I know Dad and Nick were there, too. I'm sure Katie was, as well. I know they are there to share in these very special moments of life.

Jacob made several more calls and posted it on Facebook to let all of his friends know. Tanner and I started looking up facts on Argentina and especially Bahia Blanca (which means White Bay).

And the winner is ... Argentina!

What an incredible day! That will definitely make the highlight film of our lives!

Congratulations Jacob! I'm so happy for you and so proud of you and the choice you've made to serve the Lord.

By the way, Jacob will enter the Missionary Training Center on February 1st.

My Old Prom Pics

2011-09-19T19:28:00.019-06:00

I stumbled upon some of my old Prom pics the other day ~ what a blast from the past! :) A friend from high school posted them on her Facebook page so I snatched them up. I'm pretty sure I have these somewhere ... but who know's where?!

These photos just crack me up! Who is that girl?! :) Gotta love the big hair! What I wouldn't give to have young Laura's physique! Oh well ... ;)

Long Live the 80's!

Where In the World Will Jacob Go?

2011-09-17T16:56:00.000-06:00

Jacob turned his Mission papers in earlier this month! It is amazing that this time in his life (and our lives) has arrived! It has seemed like missions was always something that would happen "in the future" when the boys ere older. Well, I guess the future is now. :)

This has been quite an experience for me. I can't tell you how many nights I've lost sleep worrying about Jacob going out into the big, bad world. I kind of start freaking out about how life is changing right before my eyes. They aren't my little boys anymore... etc... you get the picture. Although it has been stressful for me, it also has been a time of pride in my son. I know he is making a wonderful choice and I truly admire him and his commitment and courage. He will be the first missionary on my side of the family. Jacob, Tanner and Gavin will all be pioneers that way and I am so proud of them.

We are anxiously awaiting to receive his mission call! It should arrive in the next week or two. We thought it would be fun to involve family and friends in a little contest "Where Do You Think Jacob Will Serve His Mission?" Its been interesting to see where people think he'll go. Its also been interesting to try to guess where the Lord wants Jacob to serve in his kingdom on earth. I think my mind is about to spontaneously combust! Ugh! I just wish I knew. :) Oh well, we will know soon enough.

I was the last one our immediate family to put a guess on the chart. I finally was able to form two guesses. Now, I guess we will see how "inspired" my guesses were.
Here are our family's guesses:
Russ: Quebec, Canada and Barcelona, Spain
Laura: Calgary, Canada and Buffalo, New York
Tanner: Melbourne, Australia and Coventry, England
Gavin: Victoria, Canada and Stockholm, Sweden

Three of us think Jacob could go to Canada ..hmmm.. interesting.

Well, we will find out soon! (Hurry up mailman!) :)

Gavin's 1st Babysitting Job

2011-09-14T19:01:00.010-06:00

Yesterday Gavin got his first babysitting job! He has been wanting to start babysitting for a while now so this was awesome news for him.

One of Tanner's regular babysitting families called to see if Tanner could babysit for them but I told her that he couldn't because he had a band performance up at the Utah State Fair. After I hung up the phone, Gavin said "I could babysit for them" so I quickly called Angie back and told her that Gavin would love to watch the kids for her and she said that would be great!

Gavin watched two of the Gorrell boys at a playground while the dad coached the daughter's soccer game. It was only an hour but it was a great way to start.

I know Gavin will be a great babysitter and I hope it gets lots of chances.

The newest babysitter on the block and his first paycheck! :)

A Great Labor (free) Day

2011-09-07T10:32:00.001-06:00

Monday was a wonderful and much-needed relaxing family day. We started off by doing absolutely nothing! We all slept in which is something we don't normally have the luxury of doing so it was an awesome way to start our day off!

After a very slow-paced morning, we decided to get out for a little bit. We were kind of having a hard time deciding what to do ... we wanted to do something but nothing that would take very long and we didn't want to spend a lot of time in the car and we didn't want to be gone long ... hmm... what to do? Finally, Russ suggested going to the water falls in the Nebo Loop. Perfect! It would be beautiful, close and fun.

After lunch, we headed up to the Nebo Loop to find the waterfall. We had a blast just in the drive up there! I guess that what happens when you have a car full of hilarious guys!

About half an hour later, we found our spot, Grotto Falls! It was a perfect day for the short hike up to the water - nice, cooler and overcast. There were several other families on the hiking trail but it was still fun. In fact, we saw the Anderson's, a family in our ward. Small world. :)

After hanging out at the waterfall for a bit, we headed back down the trail. This is when one of the funniest moments of the day happened...

The main trail had several cut-off side trails that you could take if you wanted to go a little deeper into the trees and then it would bring you back to the main trail again. Gavin liked taking these side detours and encouraged his brothers to do some of them, too. They were a little less enthusiastic but they did a couple. Then they approached the really "fun" one. Gavin ran down the pretty steep incline first then he waited for his brothers ... waiting ... waiting... they actually were thinking of turning around and going back the easy way but then they heard the family we know coming up that trail behind them. They were trapped! :) Jacob, being the brave fearless oldest brother inched his way down with arms spread out like eagle wings. Next, it was Tanner's turn ... the pressure was mounting .. the voices were getting closer and closer ... Tanner stood there with his hands in his pockets, trying to be casual. Now our friends were standing right behind him. It seemed Tanner was trying to use mental powers to somehow zap himself to the bottom. Finally, he resigned himself to the fact that he was going to have to go DOWN. What I wasn't expecting (and what made me lose it) was Tanner squatting down and actually scooting down the hill! :D Poor Tanner's face was bright red as he tried to hide his smile. Good times!

Gavin watching his older brothers "brave" the trail that he just did

Jacob making his run at the steep ramp

Tanner um... scooting, yes, scooting down the ramp. Notice the smiles... The boy in the background is from our ward and probably the only reason Tanner went down instead of back up the trail where he came from. You can see a little color on his face... Of course, I was mother of the year as I howled with laughter as Tanner scootched his way down. My sides hurt!

There's nothing as natural looking as a bunch of kids that have to get their picture taken by some dumb ol' sign :)

(true feelings showing, perhaps?)

When we got home, Russ fired up his new barbecue and grilled delicious hamburgers for us!

What a fabulous day!

Rochelle's Reception

2011-08-31T09:14:00.018-06:00

My dear friend, Marianne, asked me to take the pictures at her daughter's wedding reception a couple of weeks ago. This was my first wedding job so I was nervous but excited. I am happy with how the photographs turned out and I really loved the experience of sharing such a happy day with a wonderful family!

Here's are just a few of my favorite's from Rochelle's reception:

Kicking Off Another School Year

2011-08-29T16:42:00.002-06:00

Well, here we go! Another fun, exciting, learning, growing year ahead for all of us!

Gavin at his Junior High School Open House

Mastering the lockers proved to be pretty tricky. I know he'll get it very soon and be an old pro before he knows it. It was so weird walking around the junior high school with my "baby". He is growing up and becoming an awesome teenager!

Gavin on his first day of Junior High

His school has all of the 7th graders come to school a day before everyone else so they can walk around, get comfortable and have their own assembly. I think its a great way for the kids to get used to junior high. The nice thing about it is that its only for a few hours. We picked him up at 11 and went to Trafalga for mini golf and laser tag and then we had lunch at Quiznos. It was our last "hurrah" before the official start of the school year. :)

The First Day of School
Tanner and Gavin were excited and looking dashing for their first day of school. Gavin was heading off to tackle junior high and Tanner was ready to take on high school! I know they will both have a great year ~ they are so smart, kind and hard working. Big things await them :)

Fall Semester at BYU
With Summer Term under his belt, Jacob was ready to set his sights on the new Fall Semester. He is doing such a great job at college. He is incredible self-disciplined, mature and intelligent. I know he will do fantastic things!

Mr. Handyman Strikes Again

2011-08-28T17:10:00.000-06:00

On Saturday, Russ built some beautiful shelves for the garage! It is part of the ripple affect of cleaning, organizing and de-cluttering downstairs!

Are they pretty? Thanks Russ!

Friday Night Lights

2011-08-27T17:15:00.007-06:00

Since Tanner is in the Jazz Band this year, that automatically makes him a part of the Pep Band. (Something he was unaware of when he joined) ;)

He will only have to perform at the 4 home football games. We think its kind of neat and it lets him get involved right from the start. He is excited to learn to the fun songs they will be playing at the games. He and the other 2 trombone players get to do that slide noise at every kick off. Go Eagles! Go Tanner! :)

Evolution of My Cell Phones

2011-08-25T08:13:00.005-06:00

I happened to stumbled across two of my old cell phones today as I was straightening my office. It is so interesting to me how much cell phones have changed in just a few short years. Who knows what they will look like 5 years down the road!

The Evolution of My Cell Phones:
(I actually really liked my flip phone - I wish they made an iphone flip!)

Russ' B-Day

2011-08-24T08:20:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we celebrated Russ' 44th birthday! You've had a birthday shout hurray!

The best part is always the homemade cards the boys make!

They gave him the new Madden NFL video game

He got a BBQ ~ Well, he will get one. He gets to pick it out.
He will now join the ranks of Backyard Man Cooks throughout the world! :)

The best guys in the world!

I love you, Russ! Thanks for being such a blessing to me and the boys!

Birthday dinner at Goodwood! So good!

Happy birthday to our favorite guy! We love you so much!

Jacob's Senior Pictures

2011-08-20T10:56:00.001-06:00

Jacob got his Senior pictures back today. I love them! He looks so mature & handsome. I remember him bringing home his first school picture from Kindergarten! Where does the time go?! :)

Our Basement

2011-08-19T15:54:00.011-06:00

Instead of Spring cleaning we did Summer cleaning! We just finished going through our entire basement: de-cluttering, throwing out trash, donating unwanted things, painting, and getting the carpets cleaned. What a project, but it feels so good to have done it! :)

Here's what we did:

Re-Doing Tanner and Gavin's Room

2011-08-18T15:42:00.000-06:00

This week we tackled the home improvement project of repainting and redecorating Tanner and Gavin's bedroom. We also decided to add some built-in shelves to display all of their lego creations, etc... It was a big job but it turned out fantastic and the boys really love their new room!

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I love how personal their room seems now ~ it has a lot of character and the best part is that everything has a place! :) It is a very cool room!

Primary Class

2011-08-14T12:38:00.002-06:00

I teach the 4 year old class in Primary at church and I have had a wonderful assistant this summer. Taylor is such a sweet, funny and intelligent girl! It was great to have her in our class. This was her last Sunday with us though as she is heading off to go to college at BYU-Idaho. I know she will do great and brighten lives there! Have fun, Taylor!

Family Temple Night

2011-08-13T12:44:00.012-06:00

Last night our ward had its first ever "Family Temple Night". All the families were encouraged to go to the Temple with their youth to do baptisms for the dead. It was such an amazing experience! We were so happy that we all could go together and do this most precious work side by side. In fact, Russ was able to perform the baptisms for all four of us. It was a very special and spiritual night.

Tanner's Oboe Recital

2011-08-12T12:56:00.012-06:00

Yesterday was Tanner's first ever oboe recital! He did so amazingly well. I could listen to him all day. :)

It also happened to be our wedding anniversary so Russ and I went to dinner at Chef's Table nice and early and then went home to pick everyone up and take them to the recital at BYU. It was a nice evening.

Thanks for gift of music, Tanner!

Tanner with his oboe teacher, Briana Hurst

Here are a couple of candids:
(I just love everyone's honest and natural expressions!)

my birthday

2011-08-07T20:08:00.034-06:00

My birthday started out in Boise and ended up in Spanish Fork. It was quite a day! We had just finished packing up Mom's stuff and loading it in the moving van the night before. On Saturday morning, we woke up early because we knew we'd have a long day ahead of us - driving the moving van down to Spanish Fork and then unloading it once we got to Mom's new house.

Before we left Boise, we stopped to gas up the moving van but Russ noticed that the gas cup was busted and wouldn't come off! Ugh! We had to back track a little and find a U-haul place to get a replacement. After a while they were finally able to fix it.

After about 7-8 hours we finally got to mom's place. We started unloading the van by ourselves which was exhausting after an already long, hard day. Finally Kathy and some of her kids showed up to help. Once we got it unloaded, we had to return the van to a rental place in town. We were FINALLY able to go home. Russ and the boys wanted to celebrate my birthday still. So, we got cleaned up, I opened a few gifts and then we went to dinner (yawn) We were too tired to even have birthday cake that night so we had some the next night ... happy birthday to me.

Moving Day

2011-08-07T12:09:00.004-06:00

Last weekend we went up to Boise to move mom back down to Spanish Fork. We are so happy that she has decided to move back! It means so much to me that she has decided that living close to her daughters is more important than living in Boise ~ that we mean more to her than a city. It will be wonderful for everyone to have her back down here. :)

On Friday, we drove up to Boise, picked up the moving van and then loaded it. Thankfully, a lot of wonderful men from Mom's ward came over to help! Tyson and his family came over, too. It was really heart-warming to see so many people there to help mom. It meant a lot to her, too.

After we got the van all loaded and all the helpers from church left, we all crashed on the floor in mom's house and had a nice time catching up with Tyson and Krystal. We ordered some pizza and relaxed a little.

Finally, we drove to our hotel for the night. We got mom a room there, too so she didn't have to sleep on an air mattress in her empty house. We stayed at The Red Lion it was pretty nice (too bad we didn't stay there long enough to enjoy it) :)

It was a busy, busy day but it was worth it to get mom to Utah! :)

Russ, Tanner and Gavin were such great guys! They worked so hard to help mom with this move. My heroes! (Jacob wasn't able to come with us because of school and work.)

Mom's New House

2011-08-01T12:25:00.017-06:00

Mom was able to find the perfect little house for her to live in! It is a pretty duplex that is single story, with a garage, backyard, and is less than 2 years old! We are so happy for her that she found it and that she can move right into it. What a blessing. :)

Here's the Grand Tour:

To celebrate mom getting this adorable house, we took her to dinner and then we went up to the grassy hill by the Provo Temple. We spread out our blankets and talked and laughed until we were crying it was a beautiful evening and a perfect way to end a great day!

Pioneer Day

2011-07-24T19:07:00.019-06:00

For Pioneer Day weekend we went up to Midway for a nice drive and picnic. We ate by the pond by the Wasatch Campground and then went through the little museum there. After that, we took a little stroll around the pond, followed by a drive through town. Midway is so a pretty and quaint town! We ended up going to a really cool veterans memorial on top on the hill. The views were great!

After our picnic and exploring Midway a little, we stopped by Kathy's family campout. It was fun seeing everyone but man, was it hot! Everyone seemed to be melting ... After visiting for awhile we headed home. I almost felt guilty getting into our nice, air conditioned car.

Jacob's Missionary PIcture

2011-07-24T12:41:00.007-06:00

We needed a picture of Jacob to send with his mission papers so I took this one yesterday. He already looks like a missionary! I'm so proud of him ~ you can see what a great guy he is just by looking at him.

The Future Elder Henry:

Henry Family Reunion

2011-07-15T06:41:00.051-06:00

We had a family reunion for the Henry side of the family last week. This time we met in a very small town called Joseph, Utah. They found an old LDS chapel that has been renovated to a rental for family vacations, etc... It was kind of in the middle of nowhere but it was nice to see everyone again.

Day 1:
Arriving and getting settled at the Old Church in Joseph, Utah

Day 2:
Relaxing, going to church, piano recital and family pictures

Day 3
Going Exploring - hiking at Bryce Canyon

On the way to Bryce, we passed the childhood home of Butch Cassidy

What a great brother! Tanner carried Gavin UPHILL at the end when Gavin was exhausted. He ain't heavy, he's my brother ....

Day 4:
Chilling Out - games, playing at the play ground and a "talent" show :)

Little Seth busting out some pretty sweet dance moves to Jacob's music

It was so cute when all the kids spontaneously came up and started dancing to Jacob's piano music! :)

Tanner and Gavin performed "Minimum Wage" by They Might Be Giants (a 5-second song)

Jacob's Ordination

2011-07-14T10:17:00.016-06:00

Yesterday evening something very special happened in our family, especially for Jacob. He was ordained to the office of an Elder in the Melchizedek Priesthood. This is a big step in preparing to be a missionary in a few months! We are so proud of him and the great choices he is making. We are also very excited for him and all of the exciting things in his future.

Usually, this would happen at Church during our meeting hours but we were out of town for the Henry Reunion and we thought it would be nice to do it when we had some family here for it.

It was a wonderful evening! Mom was here, Mike and Francie came up from Joseph, UT for it and well as Russ' brother, Brad and his son. It was wonderful to have their support. A couple of men from the ward (Kevin Fenn and Jason Thomas) also came to show their love and support of Jacob in this important step in his life. Brother Record from the Stake came also.

Mom's Birthday

2011-07-08T16:56:00.052-06:00

Yesterday was Mom's birthday! It was so wonderful to have her here with us so we could help her celebrate her special day in person!

We started the day off by singing Happy Birthday to here accompanied by Jacob on the piano.Then we had had a special b-day breakfast with cinnamon rolls!

In the afternoon, we took her to the beautiful Springville Museum of Art. We basically had the place to ourselves, it was very nice. I really enjoyed all of the art work there. The real surprise gem was all of the Russian art on the top floor! I didn't even know it was there! They were masterpieces. The Springville Museum of Art has one of the largest collections of Russian art in the USA- who knew? :)

I absolutely loved the simple, daily life captured in this piece

For some reason, this was one of my favorites ... I love the innocence, beauty and simplicity that it portrays

I think she is beautiful. I can almost hear her speak to me when I look into her big, dark eyes. This is a gracious reminder that beauty comes in all shapes - not everyone needs to be a size 0. In fact, throughout the ages, real women, with all their curves, have been the true object of beauty.

That evening we gave her some gifts and then took her out for her special b-day dinner to the restaurant of her choice. She chose Macaroni Grill (yea! we love that place!) After a delicious meal, our friendly waiter presented Mom with her chocolate cake and sang a birthday song in Italian! How fun! It was great to see her being serenaded! :)

Gavin gave Grandma some beautiful purple clay beads that he made just for her!

Tanner drew a wonderful portrait of Toodles!

Jacob gave Grandma a copy of his second CD that will be released in a two weeks

This is a pretty house dress that we bought for Mom in Old Town. I just love the vibrant colors! When I saw it there it reminded me of Mom.

We got her a charm bracelet with pictures of the boys on it

Happy Birthday, Mom! We love you!

Fourth of July Celebrations

2011-07-05T21:35:00.002-06:00

Our Independence Day celebrations started last Sunday when we went to an amazing Freedom Festival program at the Marriott Center at BYU. Wow! It was so powerful, emotional and inspirational. I had a headache by the time we left but it was so great and I'm really glad we went.

On the 4th of July we all got up early to get to the Freedom Run. I decided to run the 5K again this year. It was good, but I wasn't as prepared as last time so it was a lot more challenging. After the 5K, we met up with Kathy and her family to watch the parade. It was a pretty good parade and it was fun being together.

After the parade, we stopped at Ihop for a late brunch/lunch. Then we went home and crashed! It was a great day! :)

Birthday Get-Together for Mom

2011-07-03T20:09:00.016-06:00

We all got together last night to celebrate Mom's birthday a little early. Hey, we never turn down a chance to party, right?! :)

We met at a pretty park in Provo and the weather was nice - a little toasty at the beginning but then it got really nice once the sun sunk a little lower in the sky.

We barbecued, talked and laughed. The kids had a great time running around with their water guns squirting each other (and some select adults!)

Mom opened her gifts and then we sang to her and had yummy lemon cake.

Once the sun set, I broke out the sparklers. Russ and I worked hard to keep up on the demand while battling the annoying breeze that was trying its best to blow out our little matches that we were trying to light the sparklers with. It was worth it though. It was fun to see kids of all ages run around and play with sparklers. There is something so classic about them.

It was a fun evening!

Hot Air Balloons at Freedom Festival

2011-07-03T09:46:00.009-06:00

Yesterday morning we went to the annual hot air balloon launch in conjunction with the Freedom Festival in Provo. Gavin, mom and I have been going to this for a few years but this is the first time Russ joined us. We also met Kathy and her kids there. It is bright and early (we try to get there by 6:30 a.m.) but it is such a fun way to kick off the 4th of July weekend!

Great Thought

2011-06-28T12:32:00.002-06:00

"Often, the answer to our prayer does not come while we’re on our knees but while we’re on our feet serving the Lord and serving those around us. Selfless acts of service and consecration refine our spirits, remove the scales from our spiritual eyes, and open the windows of heaven. By becoming the answer to someone’s prayer, we often find the answer to our own." -Dieter F. Uchtodorf

Father and Son Campout

2011-06-25T16:30:00.015-06:00

Last night Russ took the boys on the annual Father and Son campout held by our church. I know it is something that all of them look forward to each year. I do, too. I love that my three sons love their dad so much and I adore that my sweet hubby loves his sons so much! It warms my heart that they love spending time together no matter what. I think Jacob, Tanner and Gavin know they are so blessed to have such an involved, caring, funny and loving dad. However, I think that appreciation and realization will grow deeper as they get older.

So, they went up to a beautiful campground called Blackhawk. They all said how nice it was there.

Russ made them quesadillas for dinner and then they went on a beautiful hike. Afterwards, they just chilled out by the fire, talked and enjoyed cookies, licorice and m&m's. (who needs s'mores?)

In the morning, they enjoyed a pancake breakfast and then packed up and came home. They were kind of in a time crunch because Jacob had to get back for work.

I'm really glad they had that time together!

It was nice to have mom here when the boys were away. We got some burgers and other junk food and rented a cute movie (The Tourist) and had a fun evening to ourselves!