Sunday, November 25, 2012
Thanksgiving 2012
Ellie
I’m thankful for the world and Heavenly Father. When I walk home from school, I notice the plants and the grass, because they are shiny and pretty.
Miriam
I’m thankful for my Home, if I didn’t have a home, where would I go?
Enoch
I am thankful for blankets to keep us warm and trees to give us oxygen.
Natalie
I’m thankful for Joseph Smith and being able to read the scriptures and know about the gospel.
Isaac
I am thankful for seminary because now that I can go on a mission earlier, it will play a bigger part in preparing me for it.
Auriana
I thought it was neat to be able to set aside a day to focus on being grateful for Young Women’s and Personal Progress. It helped me realize what a big part they play in my life.
Becky
One thing I personally noticed through doing this experiment is how easy it is to change my mood through gratitude. I’ve learned that focusing on my blessings can instantly improve my outlook, it’s almost as if one tiny thought of gratitude has the power and magnitude to chase away any number of negative thoughts.
Last night, I asked the kids what their favorite thing to be grateful for was. I was happy to hear them say, Personal Progress, Activity Days, Seminary, friends, and family. The day we focused on being thankful for family was probably the most memorable of all the days. We just happened to do family pictures that day and so we had extra time to be together and appreciate each other. As we commented about our gratitude that evening, these were the comments that were made. Family gives purpose to life and makes it joyful. Family is the source of the best memories and the motivation for living righteously so that we can all be together. Gratitude for family eliminates contention in the home. My family helps me all the time. Family makes things more fun. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be happy. If I didn’t have a family, I would be lonely. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be alive!
I’m thankful for the world and Heavenly Father. When I walk home from school, I notice the plants and the grass, because they are shiny and pretty.
Miriam
I’m thankful for my Home, if I didn’t have a home, where would I go?
Enoch
I am thankful for blankets to keep us warm and trees to give us oxygen.
Natalie
I’m thankful for Joseph Smith and being able to read the scriptures and know about the gospel.
Isaac
I am thankful for seminary because now that I can go on a mission earlier, it will play a bigger part in preparing me for it.
Auriana
I thought it was neat to be able to set aside a day to focus on being grateful for Young Women’s and Personal Progress. It helped me realize what a big part they play in my life.
Becky
One thing I personally noticed through doing this experiment is how easy it is to change my mood through gratitude. I’ve learned that focusing on my blessings can instantly improve my outlook, it’s almost as if one tiny thought of gratitude has the power and magnitude to chase away any number of negative thoughts.
Last night, I asked the kids what their favorite thing to be grateful for was. I was happy to hear them say, Personal Progress, Activity Days, Seminary, friends, and family. The day we focused on being thankful for family was probably the most memorable of all the days. We just happened to do family pictures that day and so we had extra time to be together and appreciate each other. As we commented about our gratitude that evening, these were the comments that were made. Family gives purpose to life and makes it joyful. Family is the source of the best memories and the motivation for living righteously so that we can all be together. Gratitude for family eliminates contention in the home. My family helps me all the time. Family makes things more fun. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be happy. If I didn’t have a family, I would be lonely. If I didn’t have a family I wouldn’t be alive!
Sunday, November 18, 2012
OCTOBER 2012: by Becky
Birthday season is officially over at our house…just in time to start thinking about Christmas.
Ellie wanted to have a dolphin party. She wanted to invite friends over and dress up as dolphins and pretend to be dolphins. I’ll have to say it was hard to find ideas for this party, but it turned out fun! Natalie and her friends came over to help and they made a very fun dolphin playground in the family room, complete with an octopus, a cave, waves, and seaweed. We hung up blue streamers, blue crepe paper, blue balloons, and we waved blue plastic around. It felt very “oceany.” We ate blue jello with gummy fish and even spent some time in the backyard trying to catch fish (crackers) in our mouths. Berry had fun eating all the fish we didn’t catch! I can’t believe Ellie is seven!
Natalie wanted to go on a scavenger hunt for her birthday, so Bjorn and I had fun devising one with 13 clues for her 13th birthday. She and her friends (The Magnificent Seven) had to go around town doing & saying silly things to get their next clue. They did a lot of service along the way and Bjorn and I had a blast watching them from a distance. We wanted to keep an eye on them without them knowing we were there.
Auriana’s been talking about taking the ACT test soon. Isaac made the 9th grade basketball team. Natalie, Enoch, and Miriam have all started into basketball, and we were talking about going to the church to practice because Natalie has a homework assignment to do 100 layups. Ellie said, “I want to do layups with you Natalie,” and she got down and started doing sit-ups. Natalie, Miriam, and Ellie have started back into Irish dance as well.
Congrats to Brandon on his ordination to the Aaronic Priesthood. We’re glad we were able to be there to support him in that and also to spend time with family and enjoy a yummy dinner prepared by Barbie. It was sure great to see Mom and Dad safely back in the States. We enjoyed having them here and spending time with them. It kind of seemed like just another visit during one of their breaks. It won’t feel like they’re really home until we actually see them in their home. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon – in Rexburg. Yay!
Ellie wanted to have a dolphin party. She wanted to invite friends over and dress up as dolphins and pretend to be dolphins. I’ll have to say it was hard to find ideas for this party, but it turned out fun! Natalie and her friends came over to help and they made a very fun dolphin playground in the family room, complete with an octopus, a cave, waves, and seaweed. We hung up blue streamers, blue crepe paper, blue balloons, and we waved blue plastic around. It felt very “oceany.” We ate blue jello with gummy fish and even spent some time in the backyard trying to catch fish (crackers) in our mouths. Berry had fun eating all the fish we didn’t catch! I can’t believe Ellie is seven!
Natalie wanted to go on a scavenger hunt for her birthday, so Bjorn and I had fun devising one with 13 clues for her 13th birthday. She and her friends (The Magnificent Seven) had to go around town doing & saying silly things to get their next clue. They did a lot of service along the way and Bjorn and I had a blast watching them from a distance. We wanted to keep an eye on them without them knowing we were there.
Auriana’s been talking about taking the ACT test soon. Isaac made the 9th grade basketball team. Natalie, Enoch, and Miriam have all started into basketball, and we were talking about going to the church to practice because Natalie has a homework assignment to do 100 layups. Ellie said, “I want to do layups with you Natalie,” and she got down and started doing sit-ups. Natalie, Miriam, and Ellie have started back into Irish dance as well.
Congrats to Brandon on his ordination to the Aaronic Priesthood. We’re glad we were able to be there to support him in that and also to spend time with family and enjoy a yummy dinner prepared by Barbie. It was sure great to see Mom and Dad safely back in the States. We enjoyed having them here and spending time with them. It kind of seemed like just another visit during one of their breaks. It won’t feel like they’re really home until we actually see them in their home. We are looking forward to seeing you all soon – in Rexburg. Yay!
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Photo of the Week!
I've been tending a baby and poor Berry thought he would cleanup after her and got himself stuck!
Sunday, October 14, 2012
September 2012: by Bjorn
It’s hard to believe we have a 16-year-old daughter! But as I look at the way she lives her life and conducts herself with her friends and how responsible she is with schoolwork, her job, developing her talents, and everything, I’m so grateful to have this beautiful, mature young woman as my daughter. She truly brings me joy – as do all my children. And she’s a safe, responsible driver as well. I was honored to take her out on her first date on her 16th birthday. We had a lot of fun. I love Auriana’s sense of humor and just hanging out with her and talking and laughing. She has even ventured into the realm of voice impersonations and some witty one-liners. Listen closely and you may catch some of them. Oh, and you’ll have to ask her about the book she is writing.
There comes a time in a father’s life when he finally has to admit that his son is taller than he is. I guess I’m finally to that point and man enough to admit it in writing to the whole family. ☺ And while with one breath its tough to admit, in the next breath I’m proud of a son that has exceeded me in height and will continue to exceed me in so many ways because of his many abilities and talents. Isaac is just finishing up football. He had a fantastic touchdown reception in an overtime game against their rival, Springville, but it was called back because a teammate lined up wrong. He handled it pretty well and only gave the offending player a little bit of a hard time. It has been fun to see him improve in the game and earn the respect of coaches and players. Now on to basketball!
Natalie got invited to be on an accelerated basketball team, so she is going straight from accelerated soccer to basketball and trying to decide if its still possible to fit Irish dance in there somewhere. Her body has taken a bit of a beating this soccer season so we’re actually glad to transition to something hopefully a little less taxing on her bruised tailbone and aching feet. Natalie recently transitioned to a full-size fiddle (she’s using the same one both Jenny and Brenda used to play). Auriana is also working at the fiddle a bit more and so they have had fun playing duets together. This is tricky with only one full-size fiddle in the house, but they do play a fun song together with two bows and one fiddle. In just 5 days Natalie will officially be a teenager. It’s hard to believe we have three teenagers.
Enoch just finished up his soccer season and had a blast. It was fun to see how much he improved over the course of the season. He loved his birthday and was ecstatic to receive a Ninjago Sonic Raider to add to his Lego collection. I’m amazed at how quickly he can assemble those things. I look forward to seeing how his mind transitions that skill into a career as an adult. After parent teacher conference recently we learned that on the school testing that each student does Enoch only missed one question out of the entire series of tests in all subjects. We knew he was smart, but not THAT smart! Enoch and I had a fun time on Thursday building a gate to go on the west side of our house. He stuck with it through every step of the project from taking down the section of fence (under Becky’s guidance the day before) to helping measure, cut, assemble (he loves using the power drill), and hang the gate. He also helped me shop for hardware, dig the hole for the new fence post, and mix and pour the concrete. Now that the concrete is set we just need to put on the latch and rebuild the remaining section of fence. I guess its just like Legos, only life-size, and so he’s a natural at it. ☺
Miriam had a fun soccer season as well. Although she enjoyed having her dad as the coach, I think some of her teammates wished otherwise because the only two games they won the whole season were the two games I missed. No, I’m not developing a complex… Really, I’m all right. I’ve only cried into my pillow at night twice. ☺ She played great and has definitely come a long way from the oblivious cart-wheeling gymnastics girl in kindergarten to the speedy goal-scoring player she is now. Miriam is loving 3rd grade and of course her teacher loves her and is amazed at how smart and capable she is. Miriam and Ellie took time off of Irish dance to play soccer and so now they’re excited to be back into dance.
Ellie played soccer for the first time this year and had a blast. She takes after the rest of us and loves the sport and is a natural. She put on a great program at school and even memorized the Preamble of the Constitution. Pretty impressive! She loves first grade and can’t wait to turn 7 in November. She’ll be the last in our every-two-weeks birthday period. September 15 through November 5 is an exciting time in our family, and Becky and I are always grateful when we make it through the 4-birthday time frame with happy children and a dollar or two left in our pocket. ☺
We had a fun time hosting the Piano Guys at the Harvest Moon Hurrah this year. It was the biggest crowd we’ve ever had and probably the most people that have ever been in that park for any event in the history of the city. The kids enjoyed getting hoodies signed and meeting Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp Nelson after the performance. After such a huge response I’m not sure how I’m going to top that next year.
Work has picked up a bit, for which we’re grateful. With all the kids in school all day now, Becky is trying to figure out what to do with her time. She has had a couple of meetings with people in the Church media & family history departments and is looking into possibilities there. She has also been doing some math tutoring and tending and as always, keeps our family running smoothly and on schedule and happy.
We thoroughly enjoyed watching conference last weekend and are excited and inspired by the news about the missionary age being reduced. When it was announced I could feel the collective “spiritual” gasp from members all over the world as a prophet of God presented the word of the Lord as received through direct revelation. What a neat experience and what an amazing time this is for the Church. A member of our quorum who works at the MTC as a teacher said that leaders there anticipate that the number of missionaries will increase from 58,000 currently to 100,000 in the next year and then likely level off to about 80,000 after that and steadily grow from there. Exciting times! So thrilling and humbling to be a part of this great work, and to be in it with all of you!
There comes a time in a father’s life when he finally has to admit that his son is taller than he is. I guess I’m finally to that point and man enough to admit it in writing to the whole family. ☺ And while with one breath its tough to admit, in the next breath I’m proud of a son that has exceeded me in height and will continue to exceed me in so many ways because of his many abilities and talents. Isaac is just finishing up football. He had a fantastic touchdown reception in an overtime game against their rival, Springville, but it was called back because a teammate lined up wrong. He handled it pretty well and only gave the offending player a little bit of a hard time. It has been fun to see him improve in the game and earn the respect of coaches and players. Now on to basketball!
Natalie got invited to be on an accelerated basketball team, so she is going straight from accelerated soccer to basketball and trying to decide if its still possible to fit Irish dance in there somewhere. Her body has taken a bit of a beating this soccer season so we’re actually glad to transition to something hopefully a little less taxing on her bruised tailbone and aching feet. Natalie recently transitioned to a full-size fiddle (she’s using the same one both Jenny and Brenda used to play). Auriana is also working at the fiddle a bit more and so they have had fun playing duets together. This is tricky with only one full-size fiddle in the house, but they do play a fun song together with two bows and one fiddle. In just 5 days Natalie will officially be a teenager. It’s hard to believe we have three teenagers.
Enoch just finished up his soccer season and had a blast. It was fun to see how much he improved over the course of the season. He loved his birthday and was ecstatic to receive a Ninjago Sonic Raider to add to his Lego collection. I’m amazed at how quickly he can assemble those things. I look forward to seeing how his mind transitions that skill into a career as an adult. After parent teacher conference recently we learned that on the school testing that each student does Enoch only missed one question out of the entire series of tests in all subjects. We knew he was smart, but not THAT smart! Enoch and I had a fun time on Thursday building a gate to go on the west side of our house. He stuck with it through every step of the project from taking down the section of fence (under Becky’s guidance the day before) to helping measure, cut, assemble (he loves using the power drill), and hang the gate. He also helped me shop for hardware, dig the hole for the new fence post, and mix and pour the concrete. Now that the concrete is set we just need to put on the latch and rebuild the remaining section of fence. I guess its just like Legos, only life-size, and so he’s a natural at it. ☺
Miriam had a fun soccer season as well. Although she enjoyed having her dad as the coach, I think some of her teammates wished otherwise because the only two games they won the whole season were the two games I missed. No, I’m not developing a complex… Really, I’m all right. I’ve only cried into my pillow at night twice. ☺ She played great and has definitely come a long way from the oblivious cart-wheeling gymnastics girl in kindergarten to the speedy goal-scoring player she is now. Miriam is loving 3rd grade and of course her teacher loves her and is amazed at how smart and capable she is. Miriam and Ellie took time off of Irish dance to play soccer and so now they’re excited to be back into dance.
Ellie played soccer for the first time this year and had a blast. She takes after the rest of us and loves the sport and is a natural. She put on a great program at school and even memorized the Preamble of the Constitution. Pretty impressive! She loves first grade and can’t wait to turn 7 in November. She’ll be the last in our every-two-weeks birthday period. September 15 through November 5 is an exciting time in our family, and Becky and I are always grateful when we make it through the 4-birthday time frame with happy children and a dollar or two left in our pocket. ☺
We had a fun time hosting the Piano Guys at the Harvest Moon Hurrah this year. It was the biggest crowd we’ve ever had and probably the most people that have ever been in that park for any event in the history of the city. The kids enjoyed getting hoodies signed and meeting Jon Schmidt and Steven Sharp Nelson after the performance. After such a huge response I’m not sure how I’m going to top that next year.
Work has picked up a bit, for which we’re grateful. With all the kids in school all day now, Becky is trying to figure out what to do with her time. She has had a couple of meetings with people in the Church media & family history departments and is looking into possibilities there. She has also been doing some math tutoring and tending and as always, keeps our family running smoothly and on schedule and happy.
We thoroughly enjoyed watching conference last weekend and are excited and inspired by the news about the missionary age being reduced. When it was announced I could feel the collective “spiritual” gasp from members all over the world as a prophet of God presented the word of the Lord as received through direct revelation. What a neat experience and what an amazing time this is for the Church. A member of our quorum who works at the MTC as a teacher said that leaders there anticipate that the number of missionaries will increase from 58,000 currently to 100,000 in the next year and then likely level off to about 80,000 after that and steadily grow from there. Exciting times! So thrilling and humbling to be a part of this great work, and to be in it with all of you!
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Photo of the week!
As a 4th grader, 
Enoch took 3rd place in the 1 mile fun run at school. The 1st & 2nd place runners were both 6th graders. He's been quite sore ever since because he pushed himself so hard.
Enoch took 3rd place in the 1 mile fun run at school. The 1st & 2nd place runners were both 6th graders. He's been quite sore ever since because he pushed himself so hard.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Photos of the week!
We've spent hours on the soccer field lately ... but it's a beautiful place to be when the weather is so perfect and the mountains are all around! Enoch and Ellie both scored in their games this week! Natalie's and Miriam's teams both had a victory, and Isaac's football team won in overtime.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Photo of the week!
Ellie's first grade patriotic program! I love all the classic "1st grade antics" going on around her!
Sunday, August 12, 2012
August 2012: by Becky
Last month we wrote while Auriana was on a trip to the Quickwater Ranch, where she attended a two-week girl’s camp. She survived and had a great time. She even hiked Table Rock, with a pack! I was impressed! When Bjorn picked her up on a Saturday, they informed him that a family had dropped out of the family session that would start the following Monday and invited him to bring our family.
Incidentally, the highlight of the past month for us was our trip to the Sky Mountain Ranch in Victor, Idaho (also known as the Bennion Ranch). Every summer they hold a week-long family camp for 12 families to apply to and attend, six families stay at Sky Mountain in bunkhouses, and six stay at Quickwater in tents. Auriana was especially glad we got to stay in a bunkhouse.
We had a wonderful time, there were kids of all ages and we all made new friends and learned new things. The girls taught Irish dance and Folk music to other kids and we all took some fun classes taught by others in the group. I took Yoga and Nature classes. Bjorn took ASL. The four girls took watercolor and card making. The boys took wood-working, and Enoch took drawing.
Every morning started out with scripture study. Bjorn led the adult group and each of the kids met with other kids their age, with an adult leading each group. We each had our own assignments to do morning chores around the ranch, have breakfast, attend the class of our choice, then have lunch and do mid-day chores. The chores included cooking, cleaning up meals, taking care of the animals (goat, pig, and chickens), moving pipe, weeding the garden, and cleaning the lodge. There is a huge kitchen, but no microwave. Each meal was prepared from scratch and was supposed to feed 40 people; and there were no paper plates.
Every afternoon we were scheduled to have an activity with just our family. Horseback riding, canoeing, hiking, doing a work project, and doing a service project were how we spent our five afternoons together. For the work project, we were asked to create a “chapel in the pines” for gatherings in the woods. We cleared an area and helped move logs into place for benches. We also helped clear the trail to get there. For the service project, Bjorn’s uncle took us down into Victor to two different widow’s houses where we painted a deck and loaded up a trailer with junk. The kids played their instruments for both of them and they seemed to really appreciate it. They showed us some of the things they made and collected and the kids enjoyed that.
Every evening, we had more chores and dinner. The kids would play games out on the lawn, play ping-pong, play card games, and make music. There was a “live music only” policy, which turned out to be really fun. The younger girls that were there formed a group called the “Flexibles” and they spent time preparing a gymnastics routine for the talent show on the last day.
The week was phenomenal to me because our kids and all of the kids were so happy! There was a lot of work, but it seemed to be valuable and meaningful work and I didn’t hear one complaint from anyone. There was a lot of time for fun, a lot of time for friends, and a lot of time for family. We didn’t miss our computers and other electronics one single bit and we didn’t even realize until we were on our way home that we had all gone an entire week without candy!
Now at home, the kids keep accusing me of trying to turn our home into “family camp”, but it’s because everything seemed to be in such good order and it truly created a very happy family.
We also enjoyed a Pendleton Reunion! Bjorn and I were in charge and we centered it on Family History and spent most of our time in Bountiful. The family indexed 7,500 names prior to the reunion and then together we did an Endowment session and baptisms with family names. We learned a lot about some of our Pendleton ancestors through the family jeopardy game that Bjorn created and we spent some time doing service around the ward where Bjorn and his siblings grew up. A few highlights of the reunion were the skits that the different age groups put together and also the “bedtime” stories that each of the adults told about their own childhood.
Auriana, Natalie, and I just returned from Girls Camp. It was a great experience and I was amazed at how well the Youth leaders taught. I was grateful to Jenny for watching Enoch, Miriam, and Ellie while I was gone.
Incidentally, the highlight of the past month for us was our trip to the Sky Mountain Ranch in Victor, Idaho (also known as the Bennion Ranch). Every summer they hold a week-long family camp for 12 families to apply to and attend, six families stay at Sky Mountain in bunkhouses, and six stay at Quickwater in tents. Auriana was especially glad we got to stay in a bunkhouse.
We had a wonderful time, there were kids of all ages and we all made new friends and learned new things. The girls taught Irish dance and Folk music to other kids and we all took some fun classes taught by others in the group. I took Yoga and Nature classes. Bjorn took ASL. The four girls took watercolor and card making. The boys took wood-working, and Enoch took drawing.
Every morning started out with scripture study. Bjorn led the adult group and each of the kids met with other kids their age, with an adult leading each group. We each had our own assignments to do morning chores around the ranch, have breakfast, attend the class of our choice, then have lunch and do mid-day chores. The chores included cooking, cleaning up meals, taking care of the animals (goat, pig, and chickens), moving pipe, weeding the garden, and cleaning the lodge. There is a huge kitchen, but no microwave. Each meal was prepared from scratch and was supposed to feed 40 people; and there were no paper plates.
Every afternoon we were scheduled to have an activity with just our family. Horseback riding, canoeing, hiking, doing a work project, and doing a service project were how we spent our five afternoons together. For the work project, we were asked to create a “chapel in the pines” for gatherings in the woods. We cleared an area and helped move logs into place for benches. We also helped clear the trail to get there. For the service project, Bjorn’s uncle took us down into Victor to two different widow’s houses where we painted a deck and loaded up a trailer with junk. The kids played their instruments for both of them and they seemed to really appreciate it. They showed us some of the things they made and collected and the kids enjoyed that.
Every evening, we had more chores and dinner. The kids would play games out on the lawn, play ping-pong, play card games, and make music. There was a “live music only” policy, which turned out to be really fun. The younger girls that were there formed a group called the “Flexibles” and they spent time preparing a gymnastics routine for the talent show on the last day.
The week was phenomenal to me because our kids and all of the kids were so happy! There was a lot of work, but it seemed to be valuable and meaningful work and I didn’t hear one complaint from anyone. There was a lot of time for fun, a lot of time for friends, and a lot of time for family. We didn’t miss our computers and other electronics one single bit and we didn’t even realize until we were on our way home that we had all gone an entire week without candy!
Now at home, the kids keep accusing me of trying to turn our home into “family camp”, but it’s because everything seemed to be in such good order and it truly created a very happy family.
We also enjoyed a Pendleton Reunion! Bjorn and I were in charge and we centered it on Family History and spent most of our time in Bountiful. The family indexed 7,500 names prior to the reunion and then together we did an Endowment session and baptisms with family names. We learned a lot about some of our Pendleton ancestors through the family jeopardy game that Bjorn created and we spent some time doing service around the ward where Bjorn and his siblings grew up. A few highlights of the reunion were the skits that the different age groups put together and also the “bedtime” stories that each of the adults told about their own childhood.
Auriana, Natalie, and I just returned from Girls Camp. It was a great experience and I was amazed at how well the Youth leaders taught. I was grateful to Jenny for watching Enoch, Miriam, and Ellie while I was gone.
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August: by Bjorn
Well, the 3 younger kids are off to their first day of school! Can't believe Miriam's in high school! We did father's blessings...
