Dan Liljenquist for US Senate

This was my third time being a state delegate and I truly love the experience. I love being in the grassroots of politics and feeling like I am doing my part to help the country go in a direction that is reflective of my values. I had the opportunity to meet several candidates and I have chosen to put my endorsement behind Dan Liljenquist for US Senate.

After meeting Dan several times I am convinced that he is the candidate capable of turning our country around-especially when it comes to fiscal discipline. His track record is remarkable in this area and his enthusiasm to do so is unmatched.

Please know that I have the utmost respect and gratitude for Senator Hatch, but when something better comes along, I believe I am obligated to go with that choice. My biggest obligation to make this choice has to do with those three sweet smiling faces above. It's time to focus on their future.

Here is a brief recording of me endorsing Dan. I would encourage all of you to do your homework and get to know these candidates and decide for yourself. If I can answer any more questions, please let me know.

Here is Marc's endorsement.

You can see Dan's convention speech here.

He is mine

I have been thinking a lot lately about the story of Moses when his counselors help him by holding up his arms so Israel can win the battle. I think about the faith those counselors must have had, to know that something as simple as holding up his arms was actually what was allowing them to win the war. It makes me ponder on the many times I have been asked to "hold up an arm" and I wonder if I fulfill the task with the same amount of faith. Do I have the conviction that what I am doing is helping to win the good fight?


I thought of this as I was in the backyard with David and all he wanted me to do was throw a ball straight up in the air over and over again (like for 20 minutes). The task was simple, a bit monotonous and certainly not very difficult. Yet each time I tossed this ball in the air, I saw a look of pure joy and adoration in my little boy's eyes. For that moment, I was the coolest thing in his world.


And in performing this simple task, I was winning the war. I was building a foundation of love and a relationship of joy with my son. A bond that will grow stronger with time so that when Satan tries to claim him someday (and he will try) I will be able to say with confidence, he is mine!


It has changed my outlook on motherhood to have pondered this. With each act of service and love I perform for my children (be it changing a diaper or dancing a jig) I am literally helping to win the war for God. No act is too small and no performance can be counted as little. Indeed by small and simple things, great things are brought to pass.

Yesterday . . .

I stopped doing what I was doing and put David on my lap. He sat there with his sweet head pressed again mine as we watched Dora together. I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be.

Vivian is 11 months!

Do you adore those sweet little fingers as much as I do? I was staring at this tender baby the other night as I nursed her and I was absolutely in love with every little squishy part of her body. She is darling in every way. I love her tiny toes, with the second toe sticking slightly up over her big toe, I love her chubby thighs, her nose that wrinkles when she smiles, her teeny tiny teeth, her curls, her little fingers that she loves to place in my mouth while I nurse her. I am so in love. 

And can you believe my baby is just one month away from turning ONE!?! What an absolute joy these past eleven months have been. Vivian brings more giggles into our home, more joy, more purpose, more love, more opportunities to serve and more reasons to recognize why we are so blessed. She does everything she can to be a part of what her older brother & sister  are doing. She slaps her arms on her legs when Marc gets home and lets him know if he waits too long to properly greet her.  She greets me every morning with kicking legs, shaking arms and sweet giggles-it is my favorite part of the day. Vivian has helped to remind me how precious it is to be a Mom. I want to soak up every moment and phase with her. I even smile at the difficult phases because I have come to learn how soon they will be gone. I treasure having this sweet baby in our home.

Happy Easter!

Piggies

She is getting so big! I haven't styled her hair like this again because I couldn't stand how non-baby she looked. Such a sweetheart.

This boy . . .

 . . . is as big of a handful as this picture would make him out to be. He has exercised every ounce of knowledge I have ever learned about positive behavior management and has pulled my heart in directions I never knew existed. He keeps me on my toes and pushes buttons on me no one has ever pushed before. He is a challenge. And like all things in life I have had to work for, it is the work that has created within me a love for him that is unmeasurable. When he was born I came across the quote by Elizabeth Stone,  “Making the decision to have a child - it's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart walking around outside your body.” This boy has OWNED my heart from the moment he was born. Some day I hope he will understand just how much he means to me.

Fashion

It appears we have another fashion queen on her hands. Lucy has been wearing her clothing backwards for about a week now. She appears to like the style and I can't seem to tell her differently. What a funny gal.

Vivian is 10 months old

Sweet Vivian is 10 months old. She is turning into quite the communicator. She says: hi, mom, dad, all done and signs for: more. She waves bye bye, puts her hands up to the top of her head when you say, "So big" and loves to play peek-a-boo. She is so darn cute!

She loves her brother and sister. She is so content to sit by them and play with them. They love her so much. Lucy is constantly playing with her and sharing her toys and David will say to her, "Vivi, it's ok" whenever she is sad. I love these three.

She loves her Daddy so much. She will lunge for him and SCREAM if he does not pick her up quickly enough once he is home from work or church meetings. Her top 2 teeth have come in (making a grand total of 4), she gets up on all fours and them goes backwards, she loves to pull herself up on things and she loves to snuggle with Mommy. When I nurse her, she loves to pinch at my skin. The more tired she is, the harder she pinches. I let her pinch, because I love having a baby. We love this sweet angel sent to our home.

Welcome Spring

We love to be outside. I love this time of year.

Cutest little hot rod ever.

Spring time also brings General Conference. We tried something new where each time the prophet or an apostle spoke, my kids could open a bag with the apostle's picture on it. The kids LOVED this and were so excited for conference. The bags had things inside them like coloring pages, matching games, chips, play dough etc. Best conference yet!