Last of the summer fun!

We finished up summer shopping for back to school clothes in the city.  It was a great day! My oldest son came and hung out with us while we shopped. We don't see him often due to work and school but when we do it is a great time!

 After shopping we stopped for ice cream.

 I have been wanting to do a family pyramid for a while and we finally did it last week.  The challenge was try to get a picture of it.  This was as good as it gets. So much fun!!

This was us doing a family stack!  It was a mess.  Still fun though! I was super squished. The little angle was the only face we can't see very well. We may have to try this one again.

Co-parenting - Affects my job!

I am a pharmacy student and I am going to work part time this fall.  My place of employment asked me to turn in my schedule and availability for the fall. I printed my schedule, looked at the calendar and planned for holidays, worked in enough time for studying but I did not take into account the fact that on my weeks I have to pick the kids up from school.  This totally slipped my mind. School for the kids starts this week and I am scheduled for an afternoon shift for the first day of school. I was just not thinking when I was planning this fall.  My X has always been here to pick up the kids and I never had to think about it.  Now I have to get my act together and get my schedule adjusted so I can be there to pick my kids up from school.  

This first year of co-parenting will involve becoming aware of different needs my family has and adjusting to them.  I am grateful for this year to finish school and balance out some of the kinks involved in the first year of a divorce.

Update- I had a chance to talk to the kids about how they felt things were going.  I asked if they were happy, if they felt as though things were normal, and their happiness level.  Everything seems to be going really well! No one felt things were very different.  Everyone expressed they were comfortable and happy.  So good, so far. 

These are just a couple of random pics from last summer. They turned out really cute!! I am going to try harder to take more pictures.

That darn tooth!

I have had a painful tooth for a few months.  It was sometime so painful I could not sleep.  The tooth had become so sensitive I was cautious about everything that went into my mouth.  Everything caused it to ache - hot, cold, pressure, and exercise for some reason caused it to be uncomfortable.  I have been through several bottles of ibuprofen and acetaminophen, just to maintain normal daily activities.  

But today I went to the dentist and had the tooth removed.  It is still a little numb but I already feel much better.  It is so great not to be in pain!!!  I am still plagued by the habits of dealing with the painful tooth,  I still tip my head to keep cold drinks away from the absent tooth.  It is pretty comical.

I was extremely nervous about my visit to the dentist.  My anxiety level was super high!  I had a good friend offer me a blessing.  During the blessing he said a host of angels would buoy me up and I would be calm during my procedure. He also said I would not have complications and would have a positive outcome.  It was truly a miracle!  The entire time of my appointment I was able to be calm and to help keep myself relaxed.  I was sure my gag reflex was going to be terrible but I did not have a single issue with it except when he was putting in the stitches.  The entire experience as a true joy and I was very blessed!

Thanks so much - Dr. D - You are the best!!!!!

Girls Camp 2016

I spent the week with my Lovely daughter!  It was so much fun hanging out with the girls and getting to know girls from other cabins!! 

These girls made camp an awesome experience!! I can't wait to go back next year!

We learned camping skills, played games, sang, grew closer to Christ and endured a 5 mile hike.  It was a blast!!

One remarkable moment:

We attended a beautiful evening meeting, which was held in the pavilion so all the campers could attend. A spiritual thought was being shared and we were trying hard to listen but our sound system was not the best.  Just a few minute in the presentation four girls from another cabin came in and be can to talk quietly in the row behind us.  It was the most distracting thing ever. I was super annoyed and shushed them a couple of times. They continued chattering.  I even gave them the "angry" face but no luck.  The gentleman finished is comments and it was over. I was still very disappointed my girls miss out due to all the talking.  Then during testimony meeting one of my YCL's (youth camp leader) talked about this very experience.  She compared the meeting to life - the gentleman talking was things of God and Jesus, the girls talking - things of this world.  She said sometimes we have to work hard to focus on the words and things of pertaining to the Gospel and try to tune out things of the world.  This was amazing - the insight of an 18 year old girl opened my heart and mind to the Lord and allowed me to release the frustration I felt towards the noisy girls.  Because I was seriously holding a grudge, not because I had missed out, but because my girls were missing out.   

Coparenting - asking permission

This month, in the adjustment to co-parenting, I found it is a challenge for me to ask for permission.  I don't have to ask for permission for things in my life but if an activity involves the children, I do.  This week for example my brother and his family were going to the temple for the first time.  It was a super fun day! But I did not ask if I could take the younger kids with me.  I simply assumed it would be fine. However, I felt twinges of guilt for not asking him personally if I could have them for most of the day Saturday.  It was an important family event and they had every right to attend. He was kind and did not argue about it but Saturday was part of his week with the kids.  I am going to have to make a better effort at communicating my plans.  Co-parenting is tricky and has real challenges, but it is the best option for my kids.

Something new!

The new experience in my life is divorce.  It has not been an easy decision but it is the best option for me.  We are going to co-parent the kids. Co-parenting is shared custody and time with the kids.  The kids stay in the family home and, as co-parents, we alternate staying with them. I get them a week and then he gets them a week.  This has been working okay so far. It definitely is an adjustment!  I have to plan ahead for everything. I still have to consult him about plans and decisions.  It's truly the best option for the kids. It gives them a lot of consistency and the adjustment of having a single parent has been easier for the kids. The adjustment time will take a few months to get used to but I feel pretty good about it right now.

Conference Sunday!

Traditions in my house make conference Sunday a little more fun. We always have yummy food and drinks. We play conference bingo. The prizes for the bingo are movie theater style boxes of candy. I would rather give a fun toy but that ends up being, too expensive. For lunch I have prepared home made cinnamon rolls, bacon, and we always have a big bag of beef jerky. Beef jerky is so expensive, we only have it for conference. In April, we made sprittles for our special drink - sprite and skittles, yum!! But for today we are having YooHoo, another family favorite. The fruit for the day is honey crisp apple slices...only $1.25 lb at Walmart, Yippee! Hope your Sunday is blessed with a sweet spirit!