Dear
Loved Ones,
Happy
Birthday to Aunt Elena and Happy Baptism Day to Cousin Jared! What a special
day for their family!
We wish we
could have joined Grandpa and Grandma Melin in New Jersey this weekend for the
celebration.
We’ve had
another week full of regular family stuff.
One exception was I got to have an echocardiogram on Monday. It was
really cool to see my heart. It’s healthy, with no holes, murmurs, or
blockages. So far I’ve had my brain, carotids, aorta, inferior vena cava, and
iliac veins checked and everything is clear. I guess I should back up and tell
you that after meeting with the neurologist on the 6th they suspect my
February “episode” was a TIA and they just wanted to be sure there are no blood
clots wandering around my body. We will get this all settled down, perhaps take
a daily aspirin, and get approved to start exercising again and get off all the
weight I have gained. I am sure 90% of my problems will at least be alleviated
with that plan!
So after the
medical adventures Monday we went to James’ baseball game for FHE with Grandpa
and Grandma Melin and FROZE to death…it was so cold! James did great and had
fun. Tuesday was a crazy busy day. It
was Niles’ 4th birthday AND James’ last field trip. I volunteered to
chaperone because I haven’t done anything with him all year. So Grandma came
over at 7:30 and watched Ammon for us. We had birthday breakfast and rushed off
to school. James and I and his classmates worked most of the day at Rocky Creek
Farm, planting trees, strawberries, pumpkins, sunflowers, picking up prunings,
and feeding baby goats. On the way home we stopped to visit grizzly bears. I
was exhausted! I caught a quick nap, then made Niles’ dinner and cupcakes. We
ate then went bowling because Niles has been begging to go there. We got home
and ate cupcakes and opened gifts. One gift was a pirate costume, which Niles
insisted on sleeping in. He also got a Pete The Cat book collection, so we got
to read stories and snuggle our cute little pirate to sleep on his
birthday-night.
Wednesday I
caught up on laundry and rested—working on the farm really did me in! Rich got
to nap with me on his lunch, which is always kinda fun. That night we had our
church activities and I stayed home with the little boys and went to bed early.
Thursday Niles had a follow up x-ray for his fractured arm. It isn’t healed all
the way, but enough so he can have his sling off. That night James had another
game. It was raining hard when we got there, but the rain let up and a rainbow
came out during the game. Uncle Mike got to join us, so that was fun. He came
home and joined us for homemade biscuits and chicken noodle soup and the kids
showed him the silly Goat Simulator game they bought last week. It was a lot of
fun.
Friday we
had a sunny morning so I cleaned up
outside and inside and cleaned the car while it was sunny. By naptime it was
overcast and it rained all evening. We had homemade pizza and movies —The Avengers
and Paddington. Saturday was another rainy day, so we did chores in the morning
and made some soup and bread and invited the Jones family over to watch
Paddington with us in the afternoon. It was a nice “staycation” day. That night
Heidi went over to a friends’ house, the boys watched Jurassic Park, and Addie
and I watched “Three Coins in a Fountain” on PBS. We also played with our new
app, Dubsmash, making silly videos. Addie and Heidi really crack me up
sometimes!
Church was
nice today, it was high council Sunday and we learned a lot about our new high
councilor. He gave a good, heartfelt talk about opening our mouths and
hastening the work. Niles gave the
prayer in Primary, and Heidi gave a nice talk about how the 4th
article of faith is our path home to Heavenly Father. We had naps and grilled
brats for dinner, even though it is cold and rainy. Now the kids want to join
Uncle Mike at the ranch and make s’mores, so I think that’ where we are headed.
We hope your
coming week is good and that you feel our love and have all the guidance and blessing
you need. We got some nice letters from Aunt Jill and had a long talk with
Uncle Matty last week and our thoughts and prayers are especially with them
this week. On Wednesday Uncle Matt Post AND Kara Layton (Ryan’s wife) both turn
34 (I think)—so HAPPY BIRTHDAY to them!! We love you.
Love,
Rich and Jamie and Family
PS: Just thought we’d share some of our
favorite gospel quotes this Sabbath day…these are so encouraging!
“Brothers
and sisters, I testify that no one of us
is less treasured or cherished of God than another. I testify that He loves
each of us—insecurities, anxieties, self-image, and all. He doesn’t measure our
talents or our looks; He doesn’t measure our professions or our possessions. He
cheers on every runner, calling out that the race is against sin, not against each other. I know that
if we will be faithful, there is a perfectly tailored robe of righteousness
ready and waiting for everyone, ‘robes … made … white in the blood of
the Lamb.’ May we encourage each other
in our effort to win that prize is my earnest prayer, in the name of Jesus
Christ, amen.”
-Jeffrey R. Holland, The Other Prodigal,
Ensign May 2002.
“Who
is righteous? Anyone who is repenting. No matter how bad he has been, if he
is repenting he is a righteous man. There is hope for him. And no matter how
good he has been all his life, if he is not repenting, he is a wicked man. The
difference is which way you are facing. The
man on the top of the stairs facing down if much worse off than the man on the
bottom step who is facing up. The direction we are facing, that is
repentance; and that is what determines whether we are good or bad.”
-Hugh Nibley, Approaching Zion, pg. 301-302
“I do not know who in this vast audience
today may need to hear the message of forgiveness inherent in this parable, but
however late you think you are, however many chances you think you have missed,
however many mistakes you feel you have made or talents you think you don’t
have, or however far from home and family and God you feel you have traveled, I
testify that you have not traveled
beyond the reach of divine love. It is not possible for you to sink lower than
the infinite light of Christ’s Atonement shines.”
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Flashback to 5/10...Ammon's Birthday Cake |
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Rub-a-dub-dub, three men in a tub! |
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Blurry action shot of the birthday boy bowling |
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Heidi and James bowling 5/19 |
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Cupcakes and presents after bowling 5/19 |
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Dread Pirate Niles! 5/19 |
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Heidi with the huge new pan Rich scored at the thrift store for $2 |
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Ammon 5/20 |
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James and me on the bus to the field trip 5/19 |
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Feeding goats 5/10 |
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My group of kids on the farm field trip, planting strawberries
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Heidi's Activity Days group made "modest" duck tape dresses at their activity 5/20 |
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The rainbow at James' game Thursday night 5/21 |