BUBBLES!!!!!!!!!

We got this doggy bubble blower thingy for Chloe and Tyler a while ago. Yes, I am just now getting the pictures on here. Man I'm slow...

Anyway, this was Tyler's first time playing with bubbles and it was fun watching Chloe blow them for him. And I am just now noticing something on Tyler's upper lip, don't ask me what it is...any guesses?

There is nothing like a watching a child's first experience with bubbles.

Three days of darkness.

In Sunday School last Sunday we were discussing what it would have been like to be in the Americas during the three days of darkness before Christ came. It was so dark that you could even feel the dark. You couldn't see the stars or the moon, or light a fire. You probably would grovel on the ground trying to feel your way around. Someone in class brought up that some people in traumatic circumstances have their hardest time from midnight to 4 a.m. Imagine that for three days. Trying to find food, and survive. Now think about that with little kids. That hit home for me, having Tyler and Chloe. How would I console them? Then, on top of the darkness, the whole earth was shaking. I think I would want to just hold on to my family and not move the whole three days. And by the end of the three days I would probably be about ready to give up. But that's when the light comes back, the earth stops shaking and everyone hears a voice. It takes a few times before they can understand what the voice says. They have to open their ears first. Great peace comes from hearing Christ's voice. Then everyone looks up to the heavens and Christ descends to the Earth. Of course that is a very abbreviated summary, and I'm sure you can fill in the blanks I probably missed. But a few days ago, I was thinking about this discussion and how horrible it would have been. Then I started thinking about a different three days of darkness. Everyone has their 'three days of darkness'. David and I are sure in the middle of our dark days. First, we lost virtually all our income. David is still looking for a job, but no one is hiring now a days. We have our house on the not-so-great market. We did get a buyer but last minute the buyer got scared of the said market and backed out. We thought we were expecting another baby, (bad timing, but we were happy) and found out that wasn't the case. Very dissapointing. Our earth is shaking under us as well. We have some people close to us, who you would think would be there for us, are not. They are not so happy with us right now, which probably hurts the most, for reasons that we hoped would be understood since they have and are in similar situations as us at the time, and in some cases are still. (Confused yet:) ) Some people will say anything to hurt you. We are finding out even those we care for the most will try to exclude us from functions or get-togethers. I'm not asking for a pity party, or anything like that. But for one reason or another, I feel like it is important to put this out there. It may be that someone else may need to hear it, or maybe it's just for me. (I learn better if I take notes:) ) So yes, we have our own three days of darkness. But despite that, we also have many blessings. We still have money for food. We had three different lookers on our house this weekend. We have family members who will/have helped us any way they can. And even finding out that we don't have a bun in the oven is good news. The bad timing, obviously, but among other things, I want to get in shape first...;). And just like the Nephites, the light will come and our Earth will stop shaking. I truly believe we will be stronger and more faithful at the end of this. I think when you're in the midst of darkness, things may look hopeless. But what about the Nephites that never lost faith? They knew and recognized the darkness as a sign that Christ was coming. They knew that it wouldn't last. And though it was probably still hard for them, they knew who was in control the whole time. So though we may not know what is next in store for us, good or bad, we do know who is in control. And just like the Nephites, we will cling to our families. And the Spirit will whisper to us and comfort us when times get hard. It may be hard to recognise at first if not in tune with the spirit, but when we 'open our ears' we will know what to do and be comforted. I feel like this is our refining fire. Better things are to come (it can't get much worse anyway, right?) So, David is still out looking for a job, we are still trying to sell our house, and we will surround us, and cling with family and friends that uplift and befriend us. Hopefully we do the same for them. And if there is anyone that read this who are upset at us for some reason, we are really sorry. We don't mean for anyone to be hurt if we said or did anything. I truly pray that we can learn to forgive and be forgiven. I hate all the contention. It's not worth the heartache and always get more people involved then it should. And if you actually read all of this and made it through my extra-long post today, thank you. We love you all and thank you for your prayers and all you do for us. Prayers are truly answered by the angels who love you the most, your friends and family. The road may get rough in spots, but it's still the road Heavenly Father put us on. Even rough roads can leads us to where we need to be. So long story short...too late...a lot of people have asked us how we are doing. We're okay.



Whew!!! That was a long post.

My little girl...

is not so little anymore.

I can't believe she is three and growing. Chloe is now nearly potty-trained(she has had one accident this week) and says things like, "Mommy, I want to do it all my myself" and explains that I am HER mommy and Tyler has Daddy when she wants me to herself. This year is almost over and she will be a Sunbeam in January.

Time flies so fast when you have kids. There is so much that I cannot put to words about being Chloe's mommy other than, I love it! She is her own person now and loves to practice her independence. But the first person she calls for if she can't do it on her own is her mommy, and I love it.

I GO POO POO!!

That is what I heard from the bathroom yesterday. Chloe actually did it and we are very excited for her! On top of that, she wore her big girl underwear ALL day yesterday without a single accident! YEAH!! We are so proud.

A Day in the Life of Party Cake

Chloe loves helping. She decided she wanted to make Daddy a Party Cake. No, it wasn't his birthday, or any one's we know. But she wanted to make a cake none the less. So we got out the bowls and mixers and box mix of cake...I mean, ingredients for my cake made from scratch...yeah...and made a cake. Chloe was very involved and did alot of the steps with little help from me. She decorated it and then we took it to Grandma and Grandpa Jennings to share the wealth of party cake goodness. You have to make sure it tastes as good as it looks.
The best part is enjoying the yummy goodness. Mmmm....and it was tasty.

Isn't Daddy so pretty??

I think these pictures speak for themselves.

Chloe got out the towel and nail polish. I came in the room to find what you see here. Yes, daddy was asleep. Chloe was very proud of her work and still comments on how pretty daddy's toes are every time she sees them.

If you have older kids...

Here is another conference packet if the other one is too young for your kids. Free to print too.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/6177170/October-Conference-Packet

General Conference Packets for kids

For those of you who have kids, here is a free Conference packet from Deseret book that looks like fun. Even though Chloe and Tyler are still a little young for it, she will enjoy coloring the pages and geez, Dave and I can do the activities...hehe. Enjoy!


http://deseretbook.com/conf.pdf