Ethnie's first important dress

After about 5 hour of cutting /sewing plus 3+ hours of experimenting and re-doing plus a dozen hours  mental designing, re-designing and pondering....it is done.

Steph had shown me this picture and this picture from Pinterest.  She helped pick out the fabric. Then she abandoned me to my own resources. No more help. She said it was up to me.  Now the pressure was on.  The problem was I wasn't really keen on the picture... but I did want it to be what she liked.

Started with this pattern...35 cents from a yard sale 20 years ago.

 

;

Ethnie's Blessing Dress.

Hope she likes it.   

General Conference

 ...was a little fattening.
Steph's family joined us and we did what we do well.

  Eat!

Cinnamon Rolls, fruit, breakfast casserole and juice.

Cookies while the Tabernacle Choir sang.

 

 Grilled hamburgers topped with  bacon, caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, avocados, tomatoes, pickles and lettuce.  With a side of homemade salsa and chips. Washed down with mint lemonade.

Finished off with a slice of strawberry glazed cheese cake.

We may have cause this week for a little repentance

...and a lot of exercise.

General Conference...was that today?

Oh no...instead of watching the Saturday sessions of conference Karl and I went to Willow  beach and went boating with Clare's family. 

 For about six years kayaking at Willow Beach has been on my "want-to-do" list.  

 So  when Kaye called and invited us to tag along with their family I knew this was my chance to get Karl to go.    

I promised I would  watch all the sessions of conference as soon as possible.   

It was about 90° with a nice breeze...perfect weather....wonderful day.

 Big Horn Sheep lounging at a park just outside of  Boulder City.

Overlooking Willow Beach

 Clare took us for a ride up the Colorado River.

Interesting catwalk trail along the wall of the gorge. 

One of my happy places...Kayaking

;

Karl tolerates it  to make me happy.

Bill's family trying to get past us.  We were on a collision course

...of course I was taking pictures of the event instead of paddling to avoid it

:)

Clare playing tour guide to another group up the river.

Karl wore out so Pam jumped in with me.

Pam wore out so Jordan got in with me.

Notice...Jordan was not paddling...he was singing.

I wore out!

Bill trying to get his kite up.

 In spite of the nice breeze that's as high as it got.

 The tuckered out group resting in the shade...

 ...and playing Farkle

What a group...they even got Karl to play.

Amazing.

Pea Pickin'

About every other day I spend time in my garden playing hide and seek with the Sugar Peas.

They are producing quite abundantly right now and no matter how thoroughly  I hunt...I can always find another pod ready to be picked.  I swear those little pods go from too small to pick-me size in the time it takes me to look from one side of the patch and back again.

So yesterday I froze peas.

Then I made Yakisoba

...and forgot to put any sugar peas in it. 

 Steph had to remind me :)

Released!

Sunday I got released from being the YW President.    This one caught me totally by surprise.  I'd only been the YW president for a year and a half and expected that I had another year and a half to go.  It was a challenging calling but I was just feeling like we were getting it pulled together and it was starting to run smoothly.   And I loved working with  some really amazing/inspiring  women.

So I've struggled with this one. I was the only one in the YW organization that was released.  We had just  made a few changes six weeks ago.  I wasn't given another calling.  Karl's wasn't called to new heavy-duty calling.  I was just released.    So I struggle with WHY.      Did I do something wrong?  Wasn't doing the calling right?  Offend someone?  Too old?   Didn't love the girls enough? Act burned out?   Oh well...

So I just figure I'm going through one of those "foggy" times when I can't see the road ahead and I just hang on and go forward.   Time to re-group and re-focus.  Time to start working on those MANY projects I've wanted to do but never had enough time.

 And the really bright spot...no extra or  early Sunday morning meetings.   Ahhhh maybe this really does feel good.

Incriminating Evidence?

Remember the challenge from our Bishop

 to read the Book of Mormon before the upcoming

 General conference...

I found this in Karl's "reading room."

Could someone be cheating?

Happy 4th Anniversary Clark & Rachel

 To Commemorate their anniversary 

(March 8th...sorry I'm late)

here is a picture of their first date

 

1999 Masquerade Ball 

I think it was also Clark's very first official date (right?)

Lucky to have you....Mom and Pinterest

 Late Friday night I  hit Pinterest hoping to find a real quick St.Paddy's Day card that I could just print off.
No luck...But I did find a little inspiration.  Problem...no Green paper/cardstock of the right hue.  But I did find a green file folder...15 minutes later I had a card. 
My mother always said "Necessity is the mother of invention." 
 My mother is almost as inspirational as Pinterest.

A Miracle

 I just finished reading the Book of Mormon

 

...in 40 days!

This is major for me

     ...since I have a reading disability.

I fall asleep within a fraction of a minute of cracking open a book regardless of the time of day

...unless it's an very intriguing novel.

Consequently, this is the first time I've read it straight through since college.

I've started countless times, continually plodding s...l...o...w...l...y....through it,  reading  different sections, bouncing around in it then just studying what I needed for a particular lesson or talk.

But when our Bishop challenged us to read it in the two months before the upcoming General Conference I decided I HAD to do it.
 

This is what I did different this time around:

I read an old battered paper-back copy so I didn't have to be careful with the book.

Started in the Book of Jacob, ended with 2 Nephi.

I set the goal of reading 11 pages a day...

Then I listened to it  while I read along.

Highlighting ANYTHING of note, anything that caught my attention or any  main ideas. 

 In other words I followed along with my marker :)

 Most of the time I read in the morning sitting in this patch of sunshine.

But there were many nights that Karl picked the book up off my face before he went to bed.

When this happened...at my next reading session I had to back up to where I stopped high-lighting...cause that's where I stopped comprehending what was on the page.

Did I put Moroni's promise to the test (Moroni 10:3-5)?
No...I didn't have to.  I already knew it was true...
but the Spirit did continue to testify  again and again of the truth of this amazing book.

Yet another quick project

 I've wanted to have a front door wreath for every season.
 Fall...Got it.  Christmas...Got it.
Spring...Hmmm.
I've been trying to decide what kind of Spring wreath I've wanted.  I've scoured  for ideas...didn't see anything that really "spoke" to me.
So this is what I came up with.
 
Okay it's not a wreath...but I really like it.
I'm wondering if anyone will notice it is in a Christmas basket.
Oh well...doesn't "JOY" express an Easter sentiment as also.

My entry is still a little blah.
 But it is a work in progress....reflective of my life:)

We tried...

 Saturday Steph and I tried to get some final newborn photos 

of Ethnie with her Daddy. 

  

With her stint in the hospital and her Daddy's work/school/study schedule, Saturday was our first chance.
Unfortunately Ethnie was 15 days old  

They say to get the newborn photos by 10 days...
while they are still sleepy little moveable things...for good reason.

Ethnie wasn't going to sleep through any cute little naked cherub shots nor was she  going to hold still. She really just wanted to keep her legs straight out. Not exactly the poise we wanted to capture.

Oh well...

  There will be a lot of other cute baby moments to capture.