Sarah's Baby Shower Weekend

The tables were set...


The pregnant lady was in town...


The guests had arrived...



The food was prepared... It was time to party!


I tried to take a picture of Sarah by each guest as they held up the gift that was given. I took one shot of each and apparently I didn't notice that baby Caroline was covering up my sister-in-law Amanda's face. Her daughter Maggie was cute smiling for the photo.


Glen's sister JoAnn.


My sister Nani.


Two sisters--Sarah and Rebecca.


Glen's sister Maurine and her daughters RaNae (in green) and Michelle (in red) and RaNae's daughter Nicole (in purple).


Sarah's friend Melissa and her mother Karen.


Glen's sister Barbara.


Gift from Abe and Klarissa.



Gift from Mike and Lorene.


Nani was our gift scribe with her little partner Brooke holding blue bear.


Blessing outfit provided by Eli's grandmother.


My sister-in-law Kathy and her daughter Kaelyn.


Gift from Mark and Michelle.


Sarah's friend Kassi.


The pregnant girl resting after opening all those gifts.


Playing Clue to entertain Maggie while waiting for the guys to get back from golfing.


Brooke wandering around outside.


This little girl ate all the M&Ms except the yellow ones.


She also loves to eat strawberries.


Jeff and Sarah looking at all the baby loot they amassed at the baby shower.


Everyone was very generous.


Cute baby Caroline with Rebecca.


Dallas helped Brooke make ice cream.


Family game time.




Some pictures of Caroline.




Jeff and Sarah hanging out.


Does Sarah look like she's ready to have the baby?


I'm wondering why not?!? The baby shower is over, now where's the baby!!

Bouquet of Flowers

What girl doesn't enjoy receiving flowers?


We all did at the family dinner when Amanda presented each of us with our own bouquet of cookie flowers. She is holding a pot of flowers that she made for a table centerpiece. So cute!

The Birthday Boy

Someone had a birthday over the weekend.


Amanda was so sweet to bring him his favorite cookies--burnt ones... I don't get the whole idea that burnt is better, but whatever makes him happy--especially on his birthday.


Our neighbors, the Stewarts, brought over some caramel popcorn for a birthday treat that Rebecca enjoyed helping him eat.


For a fun birthday activity, Jeff and Andy joined Glen for a game of golf. Hmmmm, looks like Andy didn't get the memo that he was supposed to let the birthday boy win that day.


One thing's for certain--his wife sure loves him whether it's his birthday or any other day of the week.


Hope you enjoyed your 65th birthday, Glen! (Little inside joke... Rebecca told everyone at church that her dad had just celebrated his 65th birthday. Doesn't Glen look great for being that age??)

One Hot Mama

There is a little problem I've been dealing with lately--for the past 6 months to be exact--that I'm getting a little fed up with and that is HOT FLASHES!!!

Unless someone has experienced one, I'm not sure it is understood just how annoyingly, irritatingly and deeply uncomfortable they really are. It only intensifies with each additional one throughout the day, evening and all through the night. And then each morning it starts all over again. It's enough to cause a woman to come close to losing her mind!!!


A recent Dear Abby in the Deseret News caught my eye with the bold headline "Men Gain Empathy in a Flash for Menopause". The article was referring to a previous writer "Hot Flash Hilda" whose husband says she's "mean" and "freaky" because she doesn't want to snuggle when she's having a hot flash.

Linda in Mesa, Arizona didn't give me much hope for improvement any time soon when she wrote to say she's been having 18 years of menopause. She had told her son that menopause constitutes justifiable homicide and he'd better tread carefully. She suggested Hilda tell her husband that hot flashes are like claustrophobia. You're heating up from the inside out and have no way to escape and there are times when the skin actually hurts.

Diane in Susanville, California wrote that her husband didn't understand her need for distance during a hot flash. She took him to a spa and when he was good and hot inside the sauna, she joined him and suggested that they snuggle. He told her he was all hot and sweaty! She told him he was having a hot flash and that's when he finally got it.

My favorite comment was from Michelle in Wurtsboro, New York who described what a woman feels like during a hot flash. She wrote, "A 450-degree oven about sums it up."

So just a word of warning to all who come in contact with me--
I'm HOT!!

Motherhood Through the Years

It was nice to talk to my beloved mother on Mother's Day. I am thankful that she has always been my best friend and such a great example of a great mother. Thanks, Mom, for being the best mother in the world to me.


I am thankful that I am a mother. I love my family so much. The next thing better than having the children all surrounding me is to have them on cell phones cradled in my hands as they participated in the missionary Mother's Day phone call. Glen and I were excited to receive the call. It started with just one kid trying to listen and participate in Elder Benjamin Thomas's conversation.


And we kept adding phones as more kids kept calling.



Fun time and a great way to end Mother's Day.