A little late I know, hope everyones Easter was great. We had a wonderful weekend. Saturday we had our usual BBQ with egg hunt and confetti eggs. Some of my family was here along with two families from the ward. The weather was perfect for a BBQ.  Adam made his delicous carne asada.

Click here to see our Easter Photo Album ==> Easter Pics

We were lucky enough to have the Easter Bunny come Saturday night. The kids liked this because they were able to enjoy the candy and toys and not have to be rushed to get ready for church. We woke the next morning to rain and Ammon was glad to know the Easter Bunny hadn’t been hoppy around all night in the rain. 

The kids all got new Easter clothes. Marci and I spent hours shopping for modest, matching dresses. Who knew it would be so hard to find modest dresses in Utah?! I was sooo grumpy that day~sorry Marci~ but we finally found these cute outfits. I love that Adam and Nik have matching ties. Nikolas was so excited to get a pink tie, but the fact that he matched his Daddy was the BEST.

This past weekend was great. Mostly because of General Conference. Even better was when my buddy called me because he had two tickets to attend the Priesthood session on Saturday night.. The seats belonged to an Area Authority so they were about 30 rows back from the podium on the floor. I could see the brethren without having to look at the giant screens. It was an incredible experience.

I even got to meet Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Presidency of the Seventy. My buddy also got to meet Elder Earl C. Tingey. I didn’t because I was walking around looking for Elder Clate W. Mask Jr. (Jeff Mask’s dad). I didn’t find him.

The BYU priesthood choir was magnificent. Being so close to them made their performance even more spectacular. I hope I get to go again someday.

The neatest thing was when Zoë heard I was going to the Conference Center…

She looked at me all wide-eyed and said… "You get to see the Prophet with your own two eyes…luckyyyyy!"

How sweet is that? Children are indeed an heritage to the Lord. As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them: they shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak with the enemies in the gate. Psalms 127:3-5

~Adam

Ammon started crying down stairs (not too unusual) so I went to see what had happened. He told me that Britain had hit him (again not too unusual) in his eye. So I called Britain upstairs to talk to her.

Me: "Britain did you hit Ammon in his eye?"

Britt: "No!"

Me: "Where did you hit him?"

Britt: "I hit him in the playroom."

Zoë was selected as Super Student of the month from her class. Today she got to eat a catered lunch with Mr. Shenk, the principal. She got a goodie bag filled with free kids meals to about ten different places, and about five more for a dessert. She got a pin, a bumper sticker, of course, her picture in the newspaper, and her picture is on the wall at her school with a few good words from her teacher, Mrs. Bird.

She wrote: "Zoë is fun to have in class. Each person is affected by her enthusiasm. Zoë works hard to complete her assignments. She has a great ability to change her attitude when she is discouraged. We love her!"

Zoë’s favorite line was the last. I am so proud of my hard working first grader! Good job Zoë!!!

A whole week missed from school meant that Nik and Zoe had lots of homework on vacation. So part of each day was homework time. Grandma helped and volunteered to be Zoe’s reading partner. Two different times Grandma fell asleep as Zoe read to her. Well, fast forward a week and Zoe is reading to her Mom, and guess who dosed off? Zoe put her hands on her hips and said "You are just like your Mother!"

That is a compliment I will take any day!   

We are so happy to be home. We had a wonderful, fabulous, stupendous time in CA! Thanks Mom for room and board and all you did for us, we love you so much!

Cali was as beautiful as ever, but even better were the great events we were able to attend. Saturday we were able to witness the sealing of a very special couple, Wayne and Karen. It was beautiful and the spirit was so sweet.        

My Mom watched the three youngest girls. They walked around the temple grounds while they waited.

Then we were able to attend the baptism of Mariya. We are so proud of the choice she made. Her Daddy baptized her. Her foot came up out of the water, but not before she was completely submersed. It was awesome to witness this necessary step in her progression. Adam later confirmed her and gave her a blessing. Good Job Mariya!!!! We love you!!!

She got baptized with Janika Shearer, Seth Stebbins, and Annie Thunell.

The final spiritual event was the blessings of Baby Rhea and Gabi. Adam got the honors. He did a fabulous job, as always.

We are so grateful that we were able to go to CA! It was a weekend that will not be forgotten.

Jeff-

Happy Birthday elder! We hope this video adds some cheer to your first birthday spent in the service of the Lord.

~Your family

California is GREAT. We love being here with all our family and friends. The kids wanted to do something we can’t do in Utah so we fed the ducks and then went to the beach. Silly me, I didn’t realize my kids would LOVE the beach so much. They got soaking wet and I didn’t bring enough clean dry clothes, so we had to cut our trip short because some little ones were freezing. But we had a great time!!!

Ariana had a blast her first time at the beach. She put her feet in the water and didn’t cry. She actually wanted to grab the cold water! She loved playing in the sand.

Now that we live in a snow state, this video takes on added meaning. For those of you who have lived in it, you’ll fully appreciate the humor. For those of you who haven’t…well…you’ll still think it’s funny.

~Adam