Love, Joy, Peace

"The message of this season that is applicable throughout the year lies not in the receiving of earthly presents and treasures but in the forsaking of selfishness and greed and in going forward, seeking and enjoying the gifts of the Spirit, which Paul said are 'love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.'"
-President James E. Faust "A Christmas with No Presents, Dec 2001 Ensign

And The Stocking Were Hung...

I found our little girl snuggled in front of the fire tonight.  I love this time of year!

Grateful

 

News From the Field

Yay! We have some new pics from our missionaries.  Kristen and Jeff are doing great.  Their mom updated their blog with a few fun pics I thought I would share here :)
Jeff is training a new companion and Kristen's companionship was just made a trio and they are both in their same areas from the beginning of their missions.  I am amazed at their growth as we read their weekly letters and we are so proud of them.

















Matt is doing great at Welfare Square.  He is the Assistant Zone leader and is very busy in the warehouse as they prepare for a big remodel.  He enjoys the hard work and the people he get's to meet everyday.  He has decided to extend his mission :D  We are very proud of his hard work and dedication.

Ode To The Bathroom

Our little downstairs bathroom has served us well.  During our kitchen remodel, it served valiantly as our kitchen for a little over a year.








With just the hood left to complete in the kitchen, and needing to get our basement back in working order...we changed gears and went to work on the basement.  The exercise room is now ready for carpeting so we tackled the bathroom. 
Patient Shawn listened to my ideas and as the cabinet and shower are attached...and we weren't quite prepared for THAT much of an overhaul, we decided to refinish the cabinet and remove the wallpaper and mirror.
As usual the talent of my in house carpenter amazes me as he transformed our little vanity.  We tackled the chore of removing wallpaper and then Shawn put in the tile floor.  A first for him and he did great.







Some paint, new faucets and tadaa, here you go little bathroom.  We hope you like your new look!

 

Aggie Pride

 

Tennesse or Bust

Today we dropped off our Kristen to the MTC.  She received a beautiful blessing from her Stake President last night as she was set apart as a missionary.  We are so excited to hear about her adventures in Tennessee!

Bountiful

All these missionaries bring such neat experiences for our family.  Matt went thru the temple today - what a neat day.  He was very nervous but we assured him, the moment you enter that holy place...you will feel the peace and be comforted.

















After, Kenna, Grandma and Grandpa Bentley and Grandma and Grandpa Steiner met us for lunch.
Wow....when did these kids grow up?

MTC

We dropped Jeff off at the MTC yesterday.  When we first arrived, the drive was lined with smiling missionaries.  It was the greatest sight to see.









It is a very quick exchange dropping off your missionary now.  A quick chance for goodbye hugs and a picture and he's off.  I felt the spirit of The Work going forward.  A warm feeling of the amazing sacrifice these young people make.  Jeff was ready and excited.  We will miss him but I am excited to hear of his adventures and the people of Wisconsin will be truly blessed!









Two down, one more to go :D

Honored

We survived diapers, terrible two's and temper tantrums (sometimes we still have those, LOL)
We have survived elementary and jr high school. We are currently surviving teenagers, driving and dating. We are at a different season in our lives than some of those around us.  We have quiet car rides, Sunday nap time, and great discussions at family home evening.  We still have toys, fruit snacks and treats in the cupboard ;) but our home runs differently than years past.  We have a few more wrinkles and found a few extra pounds.  Some nights are quieter with all the kids working.
Our moments together are savored and treausured.  As I listened to Jeff talk at his farewell today, my heart was full.  What an amazing young man.  I looked around the chapel at all of our children and I felt so blessed.  Blessed that family means love, acceptance, committment and joy.  Not all the time of course...but that is what is so wonderful.  Our Father in Heaven has created this wonderful plan.  With family...you have an opportunity to grow, love, forgive and laugh with your favorite people.
Thanks for being my favorite people.

Happy Easter!

I was so excited for our Easter egg hunt.  Spring is here and we have been so ready.




















Happy Easter!

Jordan River

One step closer sending these two on their missions..... a trip to the temple.  What a wonderful privilege to share this experience with Kristen and Jeff!












We are so proud of you both!  Love you!

The Mock Up

Cardboard or not....this mock up our dear carpenter Dad made of the hood brought some smiles and excitement all around.  He has been so busy painting and finishing the basement (excercise room) but took a minute to show me what our design will look like :D









This picture below is where we received our inspiration.  Thanks dear - it's going to be great!!!  Now build away ;)

Lucky

This June, I will have been at my current job 12 years!  Wow..I'm old, ha ha.
Many wonderful people have come and gone...quite a few I still keep in contact with and are great friends. Our office is such a great place...and it's all due to the people.  The transportation industry is interesting but these people make it a happy place to come to each week.  Here's a peek at the way we celebrate St. Patricks day....FTMG style :)









All in a days work.

Birthday Girl!

A BIG happy happy birthday to our Kristen!  We went to Logan to take her to dinner for her birthday.










We love you!!!!!!  Have a great day :)

#3 To Tennessee

Kristen received her mission call! She will be serving in the Tennessee Knoxville mission.















We are so proud of this young lady.  We are so excited for her new adventure even though we will miss her oh so much!!!  Three missionaries - wonderful!!!!!!

Suckerama

After the adventure of making 800 (no, that is not a typo :) :) suckers for the jr high school fundraiser, I couldn't pass up the chance to make a few more batches with these cute kids!
They had such a great time picking out flavors and helped with every step.  They are so creative and J created our first ever....double sided sucker!  Amazing!

Thanks guys for a fun afternoon <3

Great Reminder

Mamma Mia

Kenna's most recent culinary journey took us to Italy this week :)  She and Grandma B have been planning a homemade pasta day for a while now.  It finally came together this week.  Oh what a day!  We got all our ingredients together, rounded up a pasta machine, and we were in business.  At one point, I had to leave and run an errand, I came home to four flour covered faces, a kitchen with "hey mambo, mambo Italiano" blaring in the back ground..it was the cutest thing I had ever seen!  We had Italian music playing in the back ground as we kneaded, rolled, and cut our noodles.








I am so happy both of my girls enjoy cooking.  Kristen has been loving her Kitchen Aid she got for Christmas...it makes this baking mama very happy :D
Next stop....ravioli! Ciao!

Game Night

I know I have said it before but I LOVE LOVE having everyone home for dinner!  After Sunday dinner this week, we played board games.  It was a blast.  We got a few new games for Christmas and they were really fun.  After everyone left, I realized how lonely it will be when everyone is on their mission.  I know they will be doing great things but oh how I will miss nights like these!