Time Out for Women

A group of us had the opportunity of attending the Time Out for Women event that came to USU's campus this weekend. I think this is my fourth year attending and I always come away walking a little taller and feeling much better and happier about life. It's always good to take a break from the very day hubbubb of life and have a chance to hear these amazing presenters and know more about the love Heavenly Father has for each one of us.

This is the first year that we have attended the program held on the Friday night. This program turned out to be one of my favorites. The presenters were amazing and the music and photographs were amazing and touching. The spirit was extremely strong for me on Friday night.

One of the presenters was Mark Mabry, who is a photographer and has recently photographed Christ's ministry on earth. All that comes to my mind is amazing. The stories he shared of his experiences bringing him to the point of taking these photos and the stories of things that occurred while taking the photos are untellable. I wish I could but there is no way of doing them justice. You would need to hear them directly from his mouth.

It is now Saturday night and I decided to google Reflections of Christ by Mark Mabry because I wanted to see the pictures again and I SO want one for my home. I came across this like of the slide show he showed at Time Out for Women and I wanted to share. I believe I got the better end of the deal being in the presence with the spirit that was felt while this slide show was going but I hope you can get an idea of how amazing this photography is. Most of the pictures of Christ are painted but what an amazing talent he has to capture what he does with a camera.

I hope you enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbzPUjabIb0

We also got a peek of some future photography to be released of another Testament of Christ. This one was of Christ's second coming and how people will interact with Christ when he comes. I look forward to watching for this one! Again, all I can say is AMAZING!

They Love Their Dad

I think the picture speaks for itself......

Ashley's First Day of Preschool

Today (September 8) is the day Ashley has been waiting for.........today, she started preschool at Morningside. Ashley has been doing preschool at daycare for two years now but today she got to start her "other" preschool as she calls it. Ashley has been very upset since Hannah started school in August because she has been ready to go.

I drove her to her first day of preschool and walked her in. She immediately made friends with Teacher Nicole and was commenting that she has a friend named Nicole. She completely forgot she has a sister named Nicole too. I hugged her in the parking lot and told her how proud I was of her because I knew once we got inside she would be off and going.

Teacher Nicole took Ashley and showed her where to hang her backpack and got her a name tag and that's all she wrote. I don't even think she heard me say goodbye and that I'd be back to get her in awhile. That's my Ashley. A complete polar opposite from her sister Hannah.

I like Morningside for the fact that you pull in the circle drive and a teacher comes out to pick up your child and then a teacher brings your child to you for pick up. Nice! I love not having to park and walk in. They even buckle them in the car for you. Complete HEAVEN. Wouldn't it be nice if they did this for kindergarten too?!?

I am posting this late and Ashley has now completed two weeks of preschool and I must say she LOVES it. She has a friend from day care in her class and they seem to play together well. She has commented that she has some other friends and they "follow her around".

When I picked Ashley up on Thursday, the teacher commented at how well Ashley listens to instructions and works extremely hard to complete her projects correctly and neatly. That's my little Picaso!

It's hard for us to remember that Ashley is only 4. She is tall for her age and very mature. It almost feels like she should have been starting kindergarten instead of preschool. That's alright though. I'll take preschool. I want to keep her little and innocent as long as I can!

Ashely is attending the afternoon session of preschool. Grandma Peterson picks her up from Traci's and takes her to class and then I pick her up after work. Here's two pictures of Ashely on her first day outside in Traci's front yard.

There She Goes!

Last Thursday (September 3), Ashley decided it was time to take the training wheels off her bike and learn how to ride a "two-wheeler".....and learn she did.

Dave helped her for the first little bit and then she got frustrated and said, "Dad, I will do it by myself." That's our Ashley! With pure determination and help from Hannah she mastered the concept of getting herself going and off she went. The braking.....well, we're hoping that will come with time.

I was in the house and Dave was outside with the girls and Ashley did a little wreck on the bike. She puts her arm in the air and says, "I'm alright. It's just a little blood. I'll get back on." She is such a crack up.

Dave and I are amazed at how quickly kids pick up on things. By Saturday afternoon she was acting like she had been riding a "two-wheeler" for months.

Way to go Ashley. You're riding a "two-wheeler" at four years old!

Bar J Wranglers

Last weekend (August 28), Dave and I took a trip to Jackson, Wy for a night at the Bar J Wrangler Ranch. It has been five years (where has the time gone) since we have last been to Jackson to see the Bar J's. The last time we went, I was barely pregnant with Ashley and this is the trip that we hit the deer and totaled our Jeep Cherokee.

Of course, as mine and Dave's luck goes, it always has to be an adventure. This adventure actually started Friday night. I was at my Mom's Friday night because Dave was working the Mt. Crest football game. Nicole fell to sleep on my Mom's lap at 7 p.m. and woke up at 8 p.m. running a 103.5 fever. I quickly gave her some Ibuprofen and brought her home.

At home, I took her temperature before putting her to bed and it was down to 102.7 so I decided to give her Tylenol. It was no more than three minutes later when she decided to start throwing up. I was so thankful to have Hannah still up. She was such a big help in taking care of Nicole after I had her cleaned up so I could clean up myself and the bathroom. Of course her first course of action was to call Grandma Peterson and get her on her way to help! I remember Hannah always calling Grandpa Peterson when the llamas or cows got out to get him started on his way to get them corralled back in. I guess it's nice to know that she knows where to turn in case of an emergency. It took awhile but Nicole's fever finally broke and she went to bed for the night.

We were going to play Saturday morning by ear to see how Nicole was doing and then we'd decide whether or not we would be going to Jackson. Nicole seemed fine all morning. She woke up with a fever around 100.7 but with a little Ibuprofen she was happy as could be. We decided to go ahead and go and we'd have Grandma Peterson keep her medicated and all should be fine.

We got to Alpine, Wy, which is about 30-40 minutes from Jackson around 4 p.m. We checked into our hotel room and called to say we had made it safely. Grandma Peterson had to call back because Ashley had been riding her scooter and fell and smacked her head on the cement. When I received a call back, Ashley was finally under control and had an ice pack on her LARGE goose-egg. I had them give her Ibuprofen and she was fine the whole rest of the time.

Dave and I got to the Bar J Ranch and received another phone call around 6 p.m. that said Nicole's fever was 101.5 and rising. She was medicated with Ibuprofen and Tylenol and it wasn't breaking the fever, In fact, the fever once again reach 103.5. Thank goodness my brother and his family were with my mom to help and keep everyone calm. They put Nicole in the bath and everything else they could think of to break the fever. Finally, Mike gave her a blessing and 20 minutes later she was down from my Mom's lap playing with the other kids and her fever was down to 100.

Can I just say how helpless you feel as a mother to be 4 hours away from your child that is sick. Dave was the one stepping outside to take the phone calls. He can stay much calmer than me. It's quite a gift he has. I was inside saving our seats and my stomach was in complete knots. All I could do was pray to myself that she would be alright and for the fever to break. I was so relieved to call back after dinner and before the show began to find that she was doing great!

When Dave and I woke the next morning we did learn that Nicole fevered again through the night to 102 but my Mom was keeping it under control with the meds. So, we checked out of the hotel and made our way home. It took until Wednesday before she stopped fevering. Poor girl!

On a brighter note, the Bar J's were great! Dave and I really enjoy going to Jackson and enjoying the atmosphere at the Bar J Ranch. We enjoy the yummy steak dinner and the entertainment. I sure hope we make it back sooner than five years from now!

Some of the outdoor decor.....

Here's the Bar J Wranglers.......there is one more guy off to the left playing the steel guitar but he wasn't in enough light to show up in the picture.

This guy is hilarious. He always dresses up for a little humor. With this costume on he was "swooning" the women. Too funny and what a great laugh.